Episode 1: The Phoenix and the Soul Reaper

Episode 1: The Phoenix and the Soul Reaper

“Not that I’m complaining Pinkie, but is it really necessary for me to taste test every single one of these candies?” Sunset asked while contradicting her own question by taking another one of the small, chocolate covered jellies and popping it into her mouth. A burst of strawberry goodness intermixed with the smooth chocolate, reminding Sunset that at least there were a few things about the human world that were the same as the realm of Equestria. Candy remained awesome, no matter the world.

“Oh I know you probably have a lot of super important schoolwork to get to, man did Mr. Cranky ever dish out the essays this weekend, but I have to get these recipes tested out for the bake sale next week!” said Pinkie Pie, practically bouncing from one end of the kitchen to the other as she whipped up yet another batch of candy, some kind of caramel confection from what Sunset could tell.

“We don’t mind at all, darling,” said Rarity, perched by the door to the living room of Pinkie Pie’s quaint suburban home, “I do believe Sunset’s just realizing that it is getting rather late.”

Rarity had pretty much hit the nail on the head. Sunset’s eyes glanced at the nearby digital clock sitting atop the refrigerator, noting the time as well past six in the evening. While she had to admit helping Pinkie taste test candy wasn’t a bad way to spend a Friday afternoon, she did want to get to work on those essays Mr. Cranky had given out in foreign culture’s class. It wasn’t even because she wanted to get the work done fast so she could enjoy her weekend. The assignment genuinely interested her. Sunset Shimmer was used to a world where what humans would consider magical and mythological was very real, yet in the years she’d spent living in the human world she’d become interested in its own mythology. So much of it seemed to overlap with Equestria’s own real world creatures and cultures that it gave her several theories on how the human world might be tied with Equestria by more than just conveniently placed mirror portals.

As it happened Mr. Cranky had assigned an essay based on eastern afterlife belief systems and the corresponding myths surrounding them. Sunset was keen to get started on her research.

“Meh, its not that late, Rares,” said Rainbow Dash, who was lazing about in the living room, sprawled on the couch, one leg casually thrown up over the back of it while she flipped through channels on the television. “Ugh, Pinkie, when are you going to get your parents to grab a streaming service? New season of Daredevil is on, you know! All this thing seems to get is news, news, and more boring news!”

“Hey, I don’t control my parents. And there’s more channels than news. Maud watches Discovery all the time.” Pinkie Pie called from the kitchen, “Anyway Dashie, stop watching tv and help us with the candy! I got a batch of licorice covered caramel drops with your name on them!”

“Licorice covered caramel? Pinkie Pie, you come up with some weird stuff sometimes,” Rainbow Dash said, rolling off the couch and stretching, “Alright, I’ll give ‘em a whirl. News is depressing anyway.”

“Actually, do you mind keeping it on?” asked Twilight Sparkle, who just walked through the front door with Applejack and Fluttershy in tow.

It only took Sunset a second to notice that all three of her newly arrived friends were walking tensely and had nervous twinges in their expressions, and Twilight almost immediately went for the tv remote, flipping through the news channels with an oddly intent look in her eyes. Sunset had known Twilight Sparkle for the shortest amount of time among her relatively newly made friends in the human world, and wasn’t sure what might rattle her this way.

“Did something happen while you guys were at the store?” Sunset asked, stepping into the living room. Beside her Applejack took off her hat and dusted it off, from what looked like... rock dust? In fact now that she was looking all three of the girls that had gone out to shop for more candy ingredients for Pinkie were coated in a light layer of dirt and dust, and Sunset’s eyes widened as she saw that Fluttershy had scraped knees below her skirt.

“Was a' explosion outside the supermarket,” Applejack said, her emerald eyes narrowed in a deep frown, “Downright oddest thing I ever did see.”

“Whoa!” said Rainbow Dash, “Seriously!? Something explodes and I miss it!? Maaaaan!”

At Applejack's raised eyebrow Rainbow Dash had the presence of mind to blink and quickly add, “Y-you guys are okay, though, right?”

“We’re all okay,” said Fluttershy, calmly going to the kitchen and asking Pinkie Pie, “Is it okay if I use your bathroom to clean up and, um, maybe also use some band aids, if you don’t mind?”

“Totally! Totally! Don’t even need to ask! It’s not bad is it?” Pinkie Pie looked as if she was having the energy drained right out of her, seeing her friends shell shocked and one of them injured.

“Yes, darling, are you alright? You look a mess,” said Rarity, halfway to hugging Fluttershy before the other girl just raised a hand, palm out to forestall her.

“I’m okay. Its nothing, really. I just need to sit down for a bit,” was all Fluttershy said before drifting off to the bathroom. Sunset felt a cold feeling in her gut, looking to Twilight.

“What happened, exactly?”

Twilight Sparkle didn’t look away from the tv, which had now reached a news channel that was purely for local events. On the screen Sunset saw an aerial image of a large strip mall, the center piece being a vast supermarket. The white and black forms of police cars and the cherry red of fire engines scattered around the parking lot, along with the brick shape of several ambulances. The headline scrolling across the bottom of the screen read: “Mysterious explosion in downtown shopping area injures 7. Cause unknown, but officials report possibility of gas leak from underground pipes as potential cause.”

“We were just leaving the market when I heard a strange noise,” said Twilight.

“Noise?” Sunset walked up next to her, arms crossed, face turned deathly serious, “What kind of noise?”

Twilight’s eyes shifted over to meet Sunset’s, and she pushed her glasses up, expression a cross between unnerved and fascinated, “I’m not certain. I don’t have a frame of reference for proper description, except maybe... a howl.”

“For the record, neither me nor Fluttershy heard this,” spoke up Applejack, “Not to say yer lyin’ or nothin’ Twilight, just gotta get it out there that whatever ya heard, weren’t something the rest of us picked up on. The explosion, that I heard real good.”

Twilight gave the barest of nods, “Yes, the explosion, if that was what it was.”

“Uhhh, Twilight, how can an explosion be anything other than an explosion?” asked Rainbow, confusion painted across her face, “I mean, those tend to be pretty obvious. KABOOM! Ya know?”

“Ahem, well, yes, and there was a, er, ‘kaboom’, of sorts,” said Twilight, pointing at the tv screen, “You can see it there. About twenty meters into the middle of the parking lot. It was large, and threw dust and dirt across the entire parking lot.”

There was indeed a sizable crater in the middle of the shopping center’s parking lot, with half a dozen parked cars tossed aside or crushed like little plastic toys. Sunset was shocked that the report said only seven people were injured. The crater was large enough that had there been anyone in that area there was little to no chance they’d have survived. It made her shiver, thinking that her friends had come within minutes of death. Had they left the store a little earlier, or if Pinkie Pie had sent them there at a different time and they’d been just arriving when...

Sunset shook herself, pushing aside the dire thoughts.

“Okay, so why do you doubt that it was an explosion, set off by some kind of gas leak like the news is saying?” asked Sunset, keenly curious. Twilight Sparkle, while not the same Twilight Sparkle from the magical realm of ponies that Sunset knew, was every bit as intelligent as her Equestrian counterpart. Sunset had come to respect the human world’s Twilight quite a bit in the short time she’d known her, especially her sharp mind. What was Twilight seeing her that Sunset wasn’t?

“Well, look at it,” said Twilight, gesturing at the crater, “Doesn’t anything about it seem strange to you?”

Sunset narrowed her eyes, taking an unconscious step closer to the television, bending over slightly as she looked closely at the crater. After a moment her eyes snapped wide. Twilight must have noticed her change in expression because she said, “You see it now?”

“Yeah,” Sunset said with quiet contemplation, the gears of her mind already spinning.

“...Well? Don’t leave us waiting in suspense guys, spit it out already!” said Rainbow Dash, tapping her foot impatiently.

“You see the way the concrete and dirt is impacted inward?” Sunset said, pointing to the screen, “And the sewer pipes that are exposed have been bent downward, not ruptured or torn upward?”

By now all of her friends, save for Fluttershy who was still in the bathroom, had gathered around the couch and were looking at the screen. Rarity, eyes keenly examining the scene, tapped her chin with one slim finger in thought, “Why yes, I do believe I see what the two of you are driving at. How odd.”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash exchanged looks, Dash giving a helpless shrug and mouthing ‘eggheads’, while Applejack sighed and said, “Mind cluein’ the rest o’ us in?”

“It means that, technically speaking, this wasn’t an explosion,” said Sunset, “This was an impact. Something hit the parking lot with incredible force, and made that crater. No gas leak, that’s for sure.”

“Sooooo, what? You’re talking like a meteor or something?” Dash asked, face still a prime example of confusion.

“Oh! Oh! I’m calling it as a super secret battle between invisible superheroes!” Pinkie Pie declared, “Or maybe the government is testing invisible weather balloons! Secretly.”

“I don’t think it’s any of those things, Pinkie,” said Twilight, pausing to look up in speculative thought, “At least I think we can consider the superhero angle to be unlikely. I’d also largely rule out a meteorite. While I did hear a howling noise, it wasn’t nearly loud enough to account for an object falling at the kind of velocity it would be moving at if it had passed through the atmosphere. Honestly I have no idea at all what could account for this. Its really puzzling.”

It certainly was. Sunset’s mind turned over the possibilities, coming up with little that would explain such a strange and sudden impact. Nothing she knew of in the human world could be responsible. Did that mean that the impact could have been caused by something not of the human world? Sunset smiled as she felt the fanning flames of interest rise inside her.

Not long ago she’d considered the possibility of returning to Equestria, to the land of magic and mystery that she’d sorely missed, but had stayed because she realized that not only did she have wonderful friends in this world, but there were mysteries of magic to solve here as well. Could this be one of them?

Her smile only deepened as she said, “Well whatever caused that crater, there’s only one way we’re going to find out more. We need to investigate it!”

“Oh my, won’t that be dangerous?” said the timid voice of Fluttershy as she returned to the living room, fresh band aids applied to her knees and her expression one of deep rooted worry.

“I don’t see how,” said Sunset, “Whatever caused the impact isn’t likely to do it again in the same spot. Besides, we’ll be careful. Or I’ll be careful, I guess none of you have to come with me, but I’m checking this out.”

Twilight looked concerned as well, once more pushing her slipping glasses up her nose, “Do you think this has some connection to... to magic?”

There was a slight undercurrent of fear in her voice, like a thin fog dampening Twilight's otherwise enthusiastic mood for discovery. Sunset more than understood. Twilight was filled with the same passion for learning and satisfying curiosity that Sunset was, but only a few months ago, when this world’s Twilight was still a stranger from Crystal Prep, her curiosity towards magic had nearly caused catastrophic damage to both herself and this world. It was only natural for her to still feel afraid of what magic could do. Truthfully Sunset wasn’t inclined to diffuse that fear either. It’d been a hard lesson for her too, learning that one needed a healthy fear and respect for what magic could do, especially when one got a hold of too much of it.

So it was with a reassuring but serious look that she put a hand on Twilight’s shoulder, saying, “It’s a definite possibility. This town seems to have a habit of attracting strange magic. If magic is somehow involved, we’ll have to be triple careful and watch each other’s backs, right?”

Twilight glanced at Sunset’s hand, then took a deep breath, managing a small smile, “Right. I guess as one of the few people in town who know about magic it’s our responsibility to check out any possible magical events. If it is dangerous, there isn’t anyone other than us who could do anything about it.”

“Sweet,” said Rainbow Dash, finally looking pumped up rather than confused by the proceedings, “We’ll have to wait ‘till it gets dark and sneak in, but I’m totally down for something exciting to happen around here.”

Applejack gave her a sidelong glance, “What, the giant plants tryin’ to eat you weren’t ‘nough excitement fer one year?”

“No way!” shot back Dash, grinning, “That was cool for that month, but I’m getting bored. Magical investigations admittedly don’t sound that exciting, but maybe it’ll lead to something cool happening.”

“Ahem, as much as this all sounds lovely,” said Rarity, “Crawling around in a big hole in the ground doesn’t sound like my particular cup of tea, so I hope you girls don’t object if I sit this spelunking adventure out?”

“To be fair I don’t really want to go back there, either,” said Fluttershy, shivering, rubbing her arms, “I don’t have a good feeling about all of this.”

“No worries,” said Sunset, “The fewer of us there are the easier it will be to get in and out without being spotted.”

Twilight frowned, “That’s true, the police will probably have the area blocked off.”

“Only with yellow tape. I doubt they’ll keep anyone posted out there all night,” said Sunset, “Lucky us it's a Friday, so we can afford to pull an all nighter if we got to. Shouldn’t take us too long to give the crater a good look for anything unusual.”

“Hmph, ain’t too fond o’ the idea of doin’ something that ain’t strictly legal,” said Applejack, adjusting her stetson with a small grimace, “But sits worse with me ta let y’all go without me. Guess I’m in.”

“Me too!” said Pinkie, almost bouncing off the walls, “We can do candy stuff later- ugh, did I just say that? Oh well, magic sleuthing away!”

As erratic as Pinkie Pie could be Sunset had zero objections to the chronic party girl coming along. Pinkie could sometimes notice things that the most analytical and intelligent of minds would miss, simply because she was, well, Pinkie.

“Seems like we’ve got a plan,” she said, the essays she’d been eager to work on for the moment forgotten with the promise of a new mystery possibly involving real magic in front of her, “We wait until night, and then we see what we can find.”

----------

The streets of the city were lively even as night fell, the warmth of spring keeping the air pleasant well after the sun sank behind the mountains to the west. Street lights kept the area well lit, and on one such street light on the border between the suburbs and the downtown center a figure in black stood. The figure went unseen by those passing on the sidewalk underneath, its black robes fluttering slightly in the spring breeze.

The figure was that of a young woman, skin pale gray, hair a short cut dark green. The robes she wore were loose and held up with a white sash. Through that sash a curved blade was sheathed, which she kept one hand on as leafy green eyes scanned the surrounding suburbs.

After a moment she let out a sharp sigh, “Tch, still laying low. How long are you going to hide? I’m not letting you get away.”

Paying no mind at all to the people on the streets, as if they weren’t even there, the girl jumped from the street lamp. Rather than fall downwards, her feet, which were clad in distinctive socks and sandals of an eastern style, seemed to land upon the very air itself and push off of it, catapulting the girl a great height and distance across the suburbs.

Not once did anyone seem to take notice of this lone, dark figure crossing the sky. Even when the occasional person did look up, it was as if the girl passing overhead was entirely invisible.

----------

With the sun fallen the parking lot was blemished by shadows of deep blue and shifting black. It was late enough that the stores of the strip mall had their doors closed, the lights off, and even the grocery story, open the latest, had just went dark for the night. The parking lot was almost entirely empty, save for one or two scattered cars of late night janitors or similar workers.

Sunset Shimmer saw the crater like a pool of black ink in the middle of the parking lot, its boundary surrounded by a series of tall orange cones that anchored bands of yellow police tape stretching around the crater’s perimeter. As she’d suspected there was no sign of police around. No need to guard a hole in the ground, just set up the barrier and assume most smart people won’t wander into it.

Hmm, what does that make us, then? she thought sardonically, cracking a wry smile.

“Okie dokie, looks like the coast is clear,” said Pinkie Pie, hands circled around her eyes like imaginary binoculars, “Hmm, you ever wonder what coast they’re talking about? We’re an inland city.”

“Not now Pinks,” said Rainbow Dash, who’d switched out her casual clothes for a set of dark jeans and long sleeved shirt, somehow having acquired face paint to put dark marks underneath her eyes. The black beanie really completed the ‘out to do nefarious things’ look. Sunset rolled her eyes.

“Let’s just get in there. Everyone ready?” she asked.

Applejack gave a thumbs up, and Twilight Sparkle just smiled sheepishly, nodding her head. Pinkie Pie’s head bobbed in a vigorous nod. Rainbow Dash just slid out of the bushes they’d been hiding in alongside the edge of the parking lot, saying, “Ready at conception.”

Sunset blanched at the involuntary mental image, “Ew.”

Rainbow Dash just snickered and the group swiftly exited the bushes and crossed the parking lot in a few quick strides. Ducking the police tape the girls reached the edge of the crater, looking down at its murky depths. Taking a final glance around to make sure no one was looking, Sunset pulled out a flashlight, “I’ll go first and make sure to find a safe way down.”

There was no argument from her friends and soon Sunset was gingerly making her way down the admittedly steep crater slope with a small pocket flashlight guiding the way. Chunks of broken concrete made for either solid stepping stones or precarious dangers to be avoided, depending on their stability, but Sunset managed to find her way to the bottom of the crater without much trouble. She turned around to light the path for her friends to follow her, and before long all four of them were standing amid the dirt and rubble strewn around the crater’s bottom.

“Alright, so we’re here,” said Applejack, slowly shifting her own flashlight around, “What’re we lookin’ for?”

Twilight Sparkle reached into a shoulder bag she’d brought along and brought out a device that Sunset noticed looked a lot like the one she’d seen the girl using when she’d first come to Canterlot High, investigating strange magical signatures that just happened to correspond to Sunset, her friends, and the portal that linked this world with Equestria.

“Is that what I think it is?” she asked, if only because she was curious if the device had any other functions besides scanning magic, and to be honest she was curious how it did that too. She hadn’t had much opportunity to really inquire with Twilight about her knowledge of various scientific devices, what with just finishing up the school year and focusing on getting Twilight situated after her transfer from Crystal Prep.

“Oh, um, yes?” Twilight blushed as she held the device up and adjusted a few knobs on it, causing the antenna on either side of the block shaped device to wiggle up and down, “This is calibrated to detect energy waves on a spectrum correlating to magical emanations. Of course I didn’t know the energy was magic when I first designed this to detect it. Since then I’ve adjusted it to be more accurate and pin point for locating magical signatures, and added a few extra wave frequencies to try and search for other unusual energy signatures. You wouldn’t believe how much trouble I went through to get the crystals I needed to-”

“Yeah, yeah, cool science thing finds magic stuff,” said Rainbow Dash, already halfway across the crater and digging at a pile of concrete rubble, “You got the tech end of things locked down. That PKE meter goes beep boop you just point us to where and we’ll get to poking.”

Twilight nodded, turning her full attention to the readings from her device. Meanwhile Applejack and Pinkie Pie went off one direction, leaving Sunset to wander towards another edge of the crater. She swung her flashlight from left to right, not really expecting to see anything immediately. If there was a strange magical event that had occurred here she imagined any clues to it would be small, residual, and difficult to spot.

Not at all like that sword sticking out of the ground right over there.

...

Sunset did a double take.

“Oh hey!” Twilight exclaimed happily, “I already have a reading!”

“Let me guess,” Sunset said, pointing, “Its coming from right over here?”

“Why, yes! Um, how did you know?” Twilight asked as she walked up, eyes shifting between her devices’ readout and the spot where Sunset was pointing her flashlight. Strangely, Twilight didn’t seem to notice the sword, even though it was right there in the open. It was a curved blade connected to a plain hilt wrapped in black cloth, and a simple round guard. Sunset blinked as Twilight's eyes swept right over the blade without reaction.

“You don’t see it?”

“See what?” Twilight asked, tilting her head.

“Y’all find something over there?” called Applejack.

“Yes... I think,” said Sunset, her confusion mounting as she approached the sword. It was stuck in a concrete slab, blade first, which struck Sunset as very unusual. In Equestria there might be enchanted blades that could pierce stone, but the mundane metals of the human world? Perhaps a few might be strong enough, but not common steel. Unless this wasn’t a common, mundane sword.

She gulped, resisting an urge to reach out and touch the hilt of the blade. She instead looked back at Twilight just as the rest of her friends congregated around her. She lifted her other hand and pointed at the sword, “Do none of you see this?”

“See what, sugarcube?” asked Applejack.

“Yeah, you’re just pointing at thin air,” said Dash.

“Is it a ghost? It's a ghost isn't it!?” Pinkie Pie looked more excited than scared.

“I am getting an energy reading from that location,” said Twilight, voice filled with fascination as she approached and ran her device around the area the sword was in, “But there’s no physical presence. What are you seeing?”

“It's a sword,” Sunset said, recalling her eastern cultures study, “A katana I think.”

“Whoa! Awesome!” said Rainbow Dash, “Try to pick it up!”

“Wait!” snapped Twilight, unease in her voice, “We should take this slowly and carefully. Messing with unknown magic is... is dangerous.” Her eyes grew sad for a moment before switching back to determined focus as she held up her device. “Just give me a minute to analyze these readings before we do anything hasty.”

Rainbow Dash looked like she wanted to argue for a second, but at seeing Twilight’s look she just conceded with a small nod, “Okay, you eggheads do your thing. Still, this is pretty cool, right? What’s a weird invisible magic sword doing in this crater?”

“Maybe it's what fell out of the sky, all swisssssh, SLAM!” said Pinkie Pie.

“More wonderin’ why Sunset here is seein’ it but we ain’t,” said Applejack, scratching at her head.

Sunset was wondering the exact same thing, and was both unnerved and a bit excited by it. What was this sword? Where did it come from? And... why did she keep feeling a strange compulsion to reach out and grasp it? She suppressed the feeling, standing up from where she’d been kneeling to look more closely at the weapon, and dusted her knees off.

“Well, whatever it is, we’ll do what Twilight says and take this slow. The night is young, so Twilight can take some time to examine the sword, then we’ll decide what to do about it. No rush.”

----------

“Now are you certain you’re going to be alright, darling?” asked Rarity with a serious air of concern. She and Fluttershy had just reached the intersection of streets where their respective home would be in opposite directions, and while the streets were well lit Rarity could not quite shake a feeling of distinct unease as she looked down the street at the darker patches of shadow that clutched between alleyways and back lawns. It rather felt like being watched.

“I’ll be just fine, Rarity, don’t worry,” said Fluttershy sweetly, offering her friend a comforting smile, “Thank you for walking me this far.”

“Of course, of course. I wouldn’t mind walking you all the way to your door if you wanted. My home isn’t too far, really, and one can never have enough aerobic exercise,” Rarity said, looking for any off handed excuse to stick close to Fluttershy, if for no other reason than because of that continuing sense that they were being watched by... by what?

Fluttershy must have picked up on her unease because the other girl’s face turned worried, “It's alright Rarity, really. Um, it is alright, isn’t it? Is something the matter?”

Rarity realized she’d been suspiciously looking around, casting fearful glances left and right at any given shadow. She rubbed her arms as if to ward off a chill. What was with this feeling? It was like having little icy needles pricking at the base of her neck, and it was only getting stronger! Rarity felt like every little nerve in her spine was screaming at her to grab Fluttershy and just run.

“I, I don’t know, darling. I just feel a scoach uneasy, is all. Perhaps I really should walk you the rest of the way...home?” she trailed off, eyes widening as she looked up and behind her. Fluttershy’s eyes went wide as well, her mouth opening agape in horror.

“R-Rarity?”

Behind the girls, directly behind Rarity, was... something. Rarity couldn’t fully make out its shape because it appeared as if it was little more than a bulky haze in the faintest shape of something humanoid and massive, easily twice the height of either girl. Rarity couldn’t make out a face, but she could see the most faint, blurry outline of a bulky body and long gorilla-like arms. It clearly wasn’t human. Another creature from Equestria? But there weren’t supposed to be any more random portals!

Whatever the thing was, it saw them, and stepped forward, and Rarity then heard a sound that sent an arctic chill down to her very soul. A horrific, hungry, murderous howl that made both girls clap hands over their ears. At the same moment Rarity felt a bizarre sense of pressure on her body, as if the air itself had just become thick and heavy, pressing down on her. She almost fell to her knees, but the sight of Fluttershy’s terrified face created a spark of defiance that forced Rarity to keep her footing, and with pure instinct guiding her she grabbed Fluttershy by the hand and immediately began to run.

“Wh-wh-what is that!?” Fluttershy gasped as they tore down the sidewalk at nearly a full sprint.

Rarity, not looking back, shook her head, “I don’t believe we want to know! Just run! Fast as you can, darling!”

----------

The figure stood atop a house, her face shadowed by a frustrated frown.

“Where is it!? I can feel its spiritual pressure! Blast it all, is it going after living people too?”

The girl in black touched the blade sheathed at her side and drew it, her eyes scanning the suburbs with growing desperation, “Can’t let it get anyone else. Hurry it up, Clover, you can’t fail again!”

Once more the girl in black was off, leaping into the night, sword in hand.

----------

It felt as if for every minute that passed that Sunset Shimmer’s nerves became more tense. The night air had gained a chill to it that made her close up her black leather jacket against the breeze and start pacing. Twilight Sparkle still knelt in front of the spot where the blade only Sunset could see was, having pulled out a small tablet device and hooked it to her magical scanner.

“Well Twi? Ya got anythin’ yet?” asked Applejack pensively, perhaps sensing the uneasy mood in the air.

Twilight adjusted her glasses, making a few taps on the tablet that she then held up for the other girls to see, “After testing out several different wavelengths for detecting metaphysical particles based on my admittedly limited understanding of the effects of magic on things such as thermal signatures, air density, electromagnetic fields, and...” she blinked at the blank stares of most gathered, save for Sunset who just looked anxious, “Well, in layman’s terms, I got the scanner to detect the sword.”

“So you can tell it’s there?” asked Sunset, stepping forward eagerly. Twilight flinched slightly at Sunset’s sudden closeness, but held up her tablet and pointed out the part of the screen that was displaying what appeared to be the crater, but everything was cloaked in blue save for several bright points of multi colored light. Four of those points were moving and shaped vaguely like people. Sunset recognized herself and her friends, their forms a collection of red, orange, and green hues of various shifting patterns.

“That’s us,” she said, “Are those our actual magical fields you’re detecting?”

“Yes, more or less. It's more accurate to say the device is detecting the changes to multiple more mundane aspects such as body heat, your bio-electric field, and the movement of air particles around you and translates that into relevant magical signatures based on what I’ve learned of how magic affects the body and the immediate atmosphere around the source of the magic but basically yes. And as you can see, the sword is there too.”

“Whoa! It really is a sword, sweet!” said Rainbow, crowding in to look at the screen. Sunset could make out the shape of the blade on the screen, though much like herself and her friends the form was indistinct and made up of bright hues of red and orange, rimmed with green.

“So, y’all thinkin’ this here pigsticker s’what caused the crater?” asked Applejack.

“It’s still too early to speculate,” said Twilight, rubbing her chin between a thumb and forefinger with an intent look of thought flashing through her eyes. Sunset wanted to ask what Twilight might be considering, but didn’t want to interrupt the other girl’s train of thought. Best to let Twilight’s mind do its thing.

After a few seconds Twilight said, “I think that I need to return to my lab. I don’t want to risk any of you trying to move the sword on your own. Give me a day and I can make something to possibly contain the sword for safe transport back to the school. Then I can take my time studying it in a controlled environment.”

Sunset felt a twinge of disappointment, as if some part of her just wanted to snatch up the sword then and there, but she shook off the strange feeling and gave Twilight a nod of agreement, “Sounds like a plan to me. Let’s get out of here then.”

Just as she finished speaking, however, Pinkie Pie nearly jumped three feet in the air, her whole body shaking like a miniature tremor, ending with her puffy pink hair twitching akin to a pile of Jell-O.

“Woooooo! Wowzie zowie! That was a doozie,” Pinkie Pie said, pupils shrinking to pin pricks, and her voice suddenly turning strained, “A real scary doozie. Rarity and Fluttershy are in trouble!”

The other girls all blinked at Pinkie Pie, but only for a moment, for all of them were familiar with Pinkie Pies rather unusual “Pinkie Sense” that allowed her to at times predict things, if only seemingly at complete random. Even Twilight Sparkle, who had the least experience in dealing with Pinkie Pie, didn’t look too inclined to doubt. Sunset recalled a brief event not too long after Twilight transferred to Canterlot High where Twilight had tried to study Pinkie Sense and had been left confounded for the entire week. Sunset sympathized, wishing she understood just how Pinkie Sense worked, too. Her own theory was that it was some kind of latent magic unique to the human world, but had no real evidence to back it up other than that she’d never known a pony to have random future predicting seizures... actually now that Sunset thought about it she ought to ask the Twilight Sparkle of Equestria if the Pinkie Pie over there had the same ability.

“If they’re in trouble then what are we waiting for!? Let’s go find them!” Rainbow Dash said, already scrambling up out of the crater with her usual athletic ease. Applejack wasn’t far behind her as she dug out a cell phone.

“I’ll give Rares a ring an’ find out where she an’ Fluttershy are at!”

Pinkie Pie jumped after them while Twilight Sparkle quickly retrieved her scanner and put both it and her tablet away in the book bag she’d brought. She gave Sunset a worried look, to which Sunset nodded up the crater, “Go, I’ll be right behind you.”

Pulling out a flashlight to illuminate her way Twilight began to ascend as well, and Sunset took a step to follow, then paused. Almost without thinking she looked back towards the sword, sitting there gleaming in the moonlight. She knew Twilight was right, that it was safer to wait until there was a way to bring it back to the lab at Canterlot High. In that instant she felt an intense sense of foreboding, but it wasn’t fear of the sword, rather it was a sense that she would need the sword before the night was out.

That’s crazy. I’m not Pinkie Pie. I don’t get premonitions, she thought, trying to force some logic into the situation. Twilight was nearly to the top of the crater and she could hear Rainbow Dash calling for them to hurry up.

Well, she could apologize to Twilight later for going off plan. Without further hesitation Sunset Shimmer put her hand around the hilt of the sword and with remarkable ease pulled it free of the rubble. It felt solid as any normal physical object and had a comfortable grip that made the blade feel as if it belonged in her hand. Without even realizing it Sunset was grinning to herself as she turned and rapidly climbed up the crater to join her friends.

Rainbow Dash was already halfway out of the parking lot, with Applejack not far behind dialing into her cell phone. Twilight and Pinkie Pie had waited for Sunset and with an awkward wave with her free hand, realizing neither other girl could see the sword in her hand, they all took off running.

----------

Rarity tore down another street turn, Fluttershy’s hand still gripped firmly in her own. Her lungs were ragged with heavy breathing and her legs burning worse than her most extensive aerobic workout. Sweat cooled in icy trails down her neck and back as she ran. Beside her she could hear Fluttershy panting between sobs.

“J-just keep running! We’ve probably lost it by now,” she said, but her words were punctuated by a spine freezing howl, one that caused her to involuntarily look back.

The air shimmered with the huge bulk of the partly invisible beast that hounded them, stalking around the street corner. Rarity saw one of its hazy limbs grip a wooden electrical post as it turned the corner and to her shock saw a massive set of claw marks tear into the wood as the creature burst after them in a looping run that put it on all fours.

Rarity gulped and redoubled her speed, or at least tried to. Her fear choked mind considered briefly banging on any number of the front doors of local homes they ran by, but all that would do is put other people needlessly in danger. Screaming for help was a consideration, but she barely had breath to talk...her cell phone!

Reaching for the device as she ran, fully intending to call the police, she was shocked to find the phone already ringing as she brought it up, a upbeat country song playing as the screen displayed a smiling picture of Applejack. Rarity answered without hesitation and didn’t let Applejack so much as get a word out before shouting, “Monster chasing us! Need help now! Currently on 7th Pine Avenue! Will meet at the park between here and the mall, the one with the old golf course! HURRY!”

She held on just long enough to hear Applejack say, “Ya got it hun, just hang in there! We’re a’ comin’!”

“W-we’re going to the park!?” Fluttershy breathed, “But it’s dark there, and there’s nowhere to hide!”

“It’ll be okay, darling! It’s the closest spot between us and where the girls are! We’ll meet them in the parking lot and...” she trailed off. There really wasn’t a plan beyond ‘keep running’ but perhaps one of the other girls would have a better plan. A magical friendship beam would not go remiss.

The creature howled behind them, sounding closer than ever, and Rarity’s whole body wanted to shiver as if bathing in a winter lake, but she forced herself to keep running, and didn’t dare let go of Fluttershy’s hand.

----------

The howl carried over the rooftops of the quiet little suburb. People going about their evenings, eating dinner or watching television, didn’t hear a thing even though the howl echoed like a clarion bell to those that could hear such things.

The girl in black halted in mid air, her sandal clad feet skidding in thin air as she stood upon nothing, eyes sharply looking down towards a distant park.

“There you are!”

She all but vanished as she exploded into motion, rocketing towards the park and the howling of her prey.

----------

The parking lot to Whitetail Park was completely empty, but exceedingly well lit, which Rarity was grateful for. The light pooled across the pavement like a welcome blanket. There was no gate to the park, just a plain stone, waist high wall split by an open hard packed dirt path that led into short rolling hills dotted by tall trees. On a bright sunny day Whitetail Park was a prime spot for families to picnic and friends to play catch, with the old golf course across the scattering of woods being where many people practiced their game for the larger courses on the other side of town.

Much as Fluttershy had said there wasn’t a lot of places to find cover or hide from their pursuer, but Rarity wasn’t interested in hiding. She had an instinctive feeling that this thing would be able to sniff her and Fluttershy out no matter where they hid. No, she’d chosen here because it was secluded, away from any homes where innocent bystanders might see or get caught up in what was happening. That and it was about the right spot to meet the other girls, if Rarity had timed it all right in her head.

She didn’t see them yet, but she had to believe they were almost here. Until then she and Fluttershy would have to keep running. There wasn’t any other choice, yet her and Fluttershy were flagging in their steps, the breakneck flight finally pushing the girls to their physical limits. Rarity could tell that despite her best efforts she wasn’t covering ground as fast as she had been just minutes before.

Gasping for air and pushing onward Rarity focused on the opposite side of the parking lot, unwilling to risk looking back, even as she heard the creature’s howl what felt like mere paces behind her.

Suddenly an incredible force struck her from behind, like being rammed by a car. Pain exploded across her back as the world spun and Rarity lost her breath as she hit the pavement hard, rolling several times before stopping in a moaning heap. Gritting her teeth, trying not to scream out from the dozen or so painful aches over her body, Rarity opened her wincing eyes to see that Fluttershy too had been thrown about, tossed so that the two girls were now separated by ten or so yards.

Between them stood the hazy shape of the monster that had been chasing them. Rarity blinked as she realized that she was seeing it more clearly now, its outline more distinct. Definitely bipedal, with long arms tipped in four huge claws, the creature had a head shaped oddly, like a half melted waxen mask. Despite its translucent form Rarity could almost make out a pair of yellow glowing eyes within the mask-like shape of its face as it turned to look between her and Fluttershy, as if it was trying to decide which girl was worth snacking on first.

Without needing to think about it Rarity clenched her teeth and ignoring the pain lancing her body she forced herself to her feet, shouting, “Over here you big brute! You want a tasty, beautiful damsel to join you for dinner, then here she is!”

As she waved her arms to get the creature’s attention she shot Fluttershy a look that she hoped conveyed the word ‘Run!’ quite thoroughly. Unfortunately Fluttershy looked near frozen in place, eyes wider than the moon itself as she stared at the beast. Rarity was ready to scream for Fluttershy to run for it, but had no time as her distraction worked all too well and the hazy shape of the monster leaped at her, arms outstretched.

Rarity was hardly an athletic girl, but she wasn’t without some grace. She’d taken a few courses in self defense martial arts, and while short of a black belt she knew how to move to protect herself. As such managed to throw herself to the side, narrowly avoiding invisible claws that dug furrows in the concrete where she’d just been standing. Her body protested the move with bouts of pain shooting up and down her limbs, but she managed to hop back to her feet just in time to begin running again, leading the monster away from Fluttershy.

Rarity only got a few steps, however, before the creature, with a piercing howl, jumped dozens of feet in an arc that landed it right in front of Rarity, forcing her to stumble and lose her footing. Rarity hit the ground hard on her rear, looking up at a pair of piercing yellow eyes that were filled with unnatural hunger. She thought she saw a mouth opening amid the indistinct haze of the creature’s form, a mouth wide enough to swallow her head whole, and Rarity knew in that moment there was nothing she could do to escape a messy fate. She only hoped Fluttershy could get away, or that her friends could find a way to deal with this beast... and that her body didn’t end up looking too dreadful.

Then there was a flicker of a dark shape across her vision and a flash of steel, followed by the beast howling, not in hunger, but pain as it reared away from Rarity, clutching at its face. Rarity blinked several times rapid fire, unsure of what had just happened, but she then saw that standing before her was a new hazy shape. It was much smaller than the beast, more akin to Rarity in size, and strangely as Rarity looked at it, for every second that passed, the haze seemed to lift and the form resolved into something clearer; a girl.

A girl wearing an exceedingly bland and unbecoming black robe that just screamed for some color. Rarity saw the girl’s light gray skin, wavy green shoulder length hair, and sharp green eyes, and instantly wanted to drag the girl home to whip up something for her to wear that wasn’t black. Just not her color. Oh, wait, horrible monster still trying to kill her, no time for dresses!

“W-who are you?” she asked, clambering to her feet. She noticed the girl in black was carrying a sword in her right hand, a long curved blade with a star-shaped crossguard and wrapped in dark green cloth.

The girl looked at Rarity for a moment in clear surprise, speaking in an airy voice, “Wait, you can see me? But nobody should be able to- ah, nevermind that, just get out of here!”

The creature, which Rarity was able to see more clearly now as well, was recovering from its wound, a gash across its face that dripped dark brackish blood. That face was covered by a white bone-like mask the reminded Rarity of a boar’s skull, and the creature’s body was now resolved into a thick, reddish brown mass of muscle. Most strangely of all was the hole in its chest, a perfectly shaped round hole that seemed to go straight through the creature, leaving only inky blackness between.

“Rarity! Fluttershy!”

Rarity turned her head to see that Rainbow Dash was springing ahead of Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Twilight, and Sunset as they all arrived at the parking lot. As relieved as she was to see them she didn’t have time to do more than wave before the creature with a ragged howl charged forward, causing Rarity to tense, ready to dodge. However the girl in black stood her ground and as the beast balled up a fist and smashed it towards her she intercepted the blow with her sword. It seemed unlikely such a slip of a girl could stand up to a brute over twice her size but to Rarity’s surprise the girl absorbed the blow, only skidding back a foot before digging her heels in, her sword cutting into the knuckles of the monster. The girl's’ body shook from the strain, however, and Rarity heard her gasp out, “Better run fast. I can only hold it off so long!”

Feeling wrong about leaving the girl behind but knowing that she couldn’t do anything to help without her friends, Rarity just said, “Be careful, miss!” before turning to rush towards Fluttershy and the others.

----------

Sunset felt relief wash over her for just an instant as she saw that both Rarity and Fluttershy were safe, or at least not more harmed than she’d feared as they’d run across town after Applejack had finished her call, in which Rarity had made it clear that some kind of monster was chasing them.

And monster certainly fit the description. Sunset Shimmer had seen numerous fantastic creatures while living in Equestria, but nothing that compared to the bizarre being that had been chasing her friends. The mask, the strange hole in the chest, not to mention that horrifically unpleasant howl, Sunset couldn’t think of any beast from Equestria that was remotely similar. Just the sight of it filled her with a cold apprehension, and at the same time a spark of instinctive desire to bury the blade in her hand straight through the creature’s mask, causing her hand to clench around the hilt all the tighter.

She also saw a strange girl in black who was facing off with the masked creature, and Sunset’s keen eyes quickly noted the girl was carrying a sword not unlike the one Sunset had picked up. There was clearly a connection, but there was no time for asking questions as Rainbow Dash had rushed to Fluttershy’s side, helping the terrified girl to her feet while Rarity, who was battered and bruised, stumbled up to them.

“Glad you could make it, girls,” Rarity said breathlessly, “I don’t suppose any of you happen to have a spare tank on hand, do you?”

“Tanks at home,” said Rainbow Dash, looking Fluttershy over, “You okay Fluttershy?”

“I...I...” Fluttershy seemed barely able to get out any words, only managing a full sentence after taking a few deep breaths, “I’m not badly hurt.”

“Well where's the beastie that’s chasin’ ya’ll?” Applejack asked, looking around with her hands balled up into fists, ready for a brawl, but not looking at the actual creature or the girl fighting it, “I’m rarin' ta give it a smack upside the head!”

Both Sunset and Rarity looked at Applejack, nearly speaking at the same time.

“You can’t see it!?”

“Its right over there, darling!”

“Huh?” Applejack’s face twisted up in confusion as she looked to where Rarity was pointing, where the girl in black was finally forced back by several heavy handed haymaker swings from the masked beast. But Applejack didn't react as if she saw any of it. She just looked back at Sunset and Rarity with clear bewilderment, “I ain’t seein’ a darn thing.”

Rainbow Dash frowned, “I can’t see anything either!”

“Oh, there’s something there all right,” said Twilight, who’d taken out her scanner again and was staring at its readouts with a face paling to a lighter purple sheen, “And whatever it is, it’s big!”

“You sure? I can’t see a dang-” Rainbow Dash began, but was cut short as the creature, pursuing the girl in black, smashed down with both its fists. The girl side stepped quickly, avoiding the blow, but the impact of the beast’s fits on the pavement created an impact that shook the ground and threw up a cluster of broken concrete and dirt.

“Whoa!” Rainbow Dash stared with wide eyes, “Okay! Totally something there!”

“There’s something else there too, but I can’t get a clear reading on it,” said Twilight, frowning.

“It must be the girl,” Rarity said, “There's a girl in a very boring and unbecoming black robe fighting the creature. We have to help her!”

“Ain’t arguin’ that, but how we gonna fight somethin’ we can’t even see?” asked Applejack, all but vibrating from pent up frustration.

“I can see it,” said Sunset grimly, “And so can Rarity. We’ll help the girl, the rest of you get to safety.”

“Oh no, not a chance Sunset!” said Rainbow Dash with firm resolve, “Even if I can’t see it I’m kicking this jerk's butt for hurting Fluttershy and Rarity!”

“Same here,” said Applejack, “Twi can point this critter out an’ we’ll smack it good, together, ya here?”

Sunset sighed, but nodded with a hapless smile, “Right, together then. Twilight?”

She looked to Twilight, who was now giving Sunset a strange look, pointing the scanner her way. Sunset felt her face flush as she realized Twilight must just be now noticing the sword that Sunset had taken. Twilight didn’t say anything however, just communicated a reserved worry as she turned the scanner back towards the monster. “It's about twenty three paces ahead at a thirty degree angle to the right, chasing the other energy signature. If you’re going to go after it, go now!”

“Wheee, ghostbusting time!” shouted Pinkie Pie, joining the line of girls about the charge forward, only leaving Fluttershy to stay by Twilight as the pair hung back.

The girls exchanged looks, all going on an unsaid signal to begin rushing towards the monstrous creature. Sunset and Rarity led the way, guiding the three who couldn’t see the beast clearly. As they closed Sunset gasped as she saw the girl in black take a heavy blow from a clubbing arm and was sent sprawling to the ground.

“Ugh! Blasted Hollow,” the girl grunted as she stood back up, brandishing her sword.

Hollow? Was that what the creature was called? Sunset mentally filed that bit of information away for later reference while she charged in. While not really experienced with weapons Sunset had taken a fencing class or two, both in Equestria when she’d been a magical unicorn pony, and here in the human world after gaining a bipedal form with hands and opposable thumbs. She knew enough not to hold the sword like it was a baseball bat and instead in a looser grip.

Before the girl in black could re engage the “Hollow” Sunset was slashing at its legs, followed by Rarity slipping in behind it and kicked at the back of the Hollow’s knee. At the same time Applejack and Rainbow Dash, using Sunset and Rarity’s actions as a means of guess the Hollow’s position, tried tackling its legs. Pinkie Pie had in the meantime somehow produced a set of water balloons between her hands and threw them with remarkable accuracy.

Sunset’s slash cut shallowly along the Hollow’s leg, feeling like trying to hew into stone rather than flesh. Rarity’s kick mostly bounced off, leaving the girl hopping about while holding her foot with a rueful look on her face. The water balloons from Pinkie Pie just splashed harmlessly on the Hollow’s face, though this seemed to distract it as Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s combined weight slamming into the leg Sunset had slashed threw it off balance for a moment.

The girl in black, mouth agape and eyes staring widely, shook her head and regained her senses enough to take advantage of the Hollow’s opening and rushed in, chopping at its face mask with a sweeping arc that reflected the street lights like a series of small sparks. However the Hollow raised an arm to block, taking the blade deeply into its flesh in a spurt of dark blood, and also keeping the sword stuck in there as it rose and turned its full attention on the girl in black.

“Uh-oh,” the girl said, tugging at her sword in a vain attempt to try and free it, but the Hollow reached out with its other arm, clamping down its hand around the girl’s waist and lifting her up above its head. Sunset could only watched in shock as the Hollow slammed the girl down, hard, straight into the parking lot pavement in a crushing impact that indented the girl into the ground.

Rarity gasped, eyes filled with horror at the injured girl, who was twitching but not rising as blood coated the ground around her.

“Look out!” came Twilight’s distant yell, a moment too late to help the distracted girls who’d been thrown off by seeing the girl in black get injured. The Hollow spun about, lashing out with its arms all around, and Sunset felt the impact as she and her friends were tossed aside like little plastic dolls.

Sunset ended up flat on her back, air knocked out of her, Pinkie Pie groaning on her side just a few feet away.

“Oooowww,” Pinkie Pie said, snapping up into a sitting position with her eyes swirling, “That was super meanie pants of Mr. Monster. Oh, feel like I’m gonna hurl. Just aim me at the big baddie and I’ll give him the Taco Tuesday Special!”

“It’s Friday, Pinkie!” Sunset said, getting to her feet, hand still clasped around her sword.

“Oh right! So Friday Chili Surprise, urp!” Pinkie Pie looked like she was turning green, and Sunset hoped she hadn’t hit her head too hard. Concussions were no laughing matter. It was then Sunset realized that this monster, this Hollow, was playing for keeps. It wasn’t going to take it easy on anyone, and any one of her friends might die if it wasn’t stopped.

The other girls were slowly getting to their feet as well, bruised from being tossed around, with Rainbow Dash sporting a cut on her brow that was sending a trickle of blood down her blue features. Meanwhile Twilight, eyes flicking rapidly between them and her scanner, shouted, “It's coming Sunset! It’s coming for you!”

“I can see that!” she shouted back, blinking blearily as the Hollow, focusing upon her, began to stomp in her direction.

What do I do? I can’t beat it, but if I run there’s no one to even slow this thing down as it butchers my friends! I have to do something! I have to-

Before she knew it she felt heat blossoming inside her, a feeling of warmth that seeped through her chest, into her arms that shakily held the sword in front of her, and then seemed to pour into the sword itself. To Sunset’s eyes it was as if a faint, flickering aura of fire was rolling along her arms and saturating the sword.

She felt her heartbeat steadying, her stance firming. She didn’t know what was happening, but she did know one thing; she could stop this monster from hurting her friends.

Confidently, Sunset took a step forward to meet the Hollow.

----------

Feeling as if she was swimming through mud Clover felt herself regain consciousness, her head aching like it was caught in a red hot vice. Stifling a groan she reached out, feeling for her sword, her Zanpaktou, and felt its hilt in her hand. She ignored the blood coating her face from a nasty head wound after the Hollow had slammed her down and forced her body upright.

She saw the Hollow in front of her, its back to her as it stomped towards one of the human girls who had miraculously come out of nowhere to fight the Hollow. Clover didn’t know how any of them could see the Hollow, but those questions could wait, she had to... wait what?

Her eyes locked on one of the human girls, a bright orange youth with hair like fire that stood before the oncoming Hollow holding...

An Asauchi!? Where did she get one!?

It was nothing more than a training blade, carried by the squad of recruits Clover had been overseeing, and it was unlikely the Asauchi could do more than scratch the Hollow, unlike a full Zanpaktou. Despite that the girl with the fiery hair didn’t seem daunted at all, and as Clover watched she saw what looked like small flames flickering along the girl’s arms and into the Asauchi. This accompanied a feeling of pressure that was unmistakable.

This spiritual pressure isn’t coming from the Hollow! It’s the girl! But she’s just a human. How can she be pouring spirit energy like that into the Asauchi? Only trained graduates from the Academy should be able to.

Regardless of the impossibility of what she was seeing Clover still couldn’t let a innocent human battle a Hollow. Her duty as a Soul Reaper wouldn’t allow her to stay down! She hadn’t wanted to release her Zanpaktou if she could help it, as it might attract more Hollows, but she didn’t see any choice. She held her Zanpaktou before her, putting a hand on the flat end of the blade.

Before she could speak the release phrase, however, a wave of nausea overcame her. It seemed her head wound worse than she expected, the roiling pain in her head making the whole world spin. She fell to one knee, darkness creeping in around the edges of her vision, and she barely kept conscious as she leaned against her sword.

Blast it! I...I have to...help...

But it didn’t look like it was needed. To Clover what she saw next, knowing or unknowing, would change every life in that parking lot for that night and every night to come.

----------

Sunset was filled with the heat until it felt like her bones were melting inside her, but she kept stepping forward. The Hollow howled in hunger and rage, leaning over her as it opened its mouth wide to try and bite her in two.

Sunset held her sword in both hands, widening her stance. She wasn’t looking at the sword, yet somehow know it was changing. Had changed. It was still a katana, but no longer bearing as plain or simple an appearance. Its cross guard had changed shape into a curved, sweeping affair akin to a crackling flame, and the hilt was now wrapped in alternating cloth of bright orange and deep yellow, just like her mane of hair.

Wonderment filled her for a second, but only for that split moment before instinct burned away conscious thought and she swung the blade at the onrushing Hollow, its bone white mask filling her vision along with its empty maw of darkness. She felt the blade crunch into that mask, the sharp steel filled with her inner fire cleaving through sinew and bone with arm jarring force.

Then abruptly the fire was gone and Sunset Shimmer felt nothing but pure exhaustion overwhelm her. She fell to her knees, the sword clattering to the ground beside her. She breathed hard as sweat dripped down her face and off her chin. Behind her Pinkie Pie stared with wide eyed wonder, and more distantly her friends did the same. Sunset even saw the girl in black was awake, leaning on her own sword, and looking at Sunset with reserved contemplation mixed with barely contained surprise.

As for the Hollow, its face, its entire head, was split down the middle. Blood dripped in an oozing waterfall to the pavement, and then the beast sagged like a dead puppet. Then its form wavered, turning dark and dissipating like ash being blown away in the wind.

All was silence for a moment before Pinkie Pie shouted, “Whoohoo! Ghost officially busted!”

As if the girl’s declaration was a signal that shook everyone out of their stupor all of Sunset’s friends rushed to her side, or in some cases staggered and stumbled due to injury.

“Wow Sunset, what did you do there!?” asked Rainbow Dash, “I was just starting to see stuff but I couldn’t tell what I was looking at, but you were all glowing like when we rock out with our ponytails out.”

“Are you alright, darling? You look ready to pass out for a month!” said Rarity, though she soon turned her eyes with equal concern towards the girl in black.

“I have no idea what just happened,” said Twilight, looking at her scanner with baffled shakes of her head, “The readings simply went bonkers for a moment there. Whatever that creature was you managed to make it vanish entirely from the readout.”

“Ain’t to distract folk from our near death experience,” said Applejack, “But y’all seein’ this sword now?” she asked, pointing a boot toe at where Sunset had dropped her sword.

All the girls blinked, and turned their heads to stare at it. Apparently they could all see it now. Before anyone could comment on that there was a dull thudding sound and all turned their heads to see the girl in black had fallen over again, quite unconscious.

Sunset stood up, picking up the sword in the process, “Whatever happened tonight, we need to get off the street and somewhere safe, not to mention look after her.”

“I suppose taking her to the hospital might be out of the question, given she’s clearly not... normal,” said Twilight with a contemplative look, “We can go to my place. It should be safe and my parents are out of town for the week, so I have it mostly to myself.”

“Don’t you also have a brother who might wonder why we all look like we just walked through a warzone?” asked Sunset. Twilight’s face turned a brilliant shade of red.

“He’s, uh... he spends his weekends with Dean Cadence, lately,” Twilight said in a soft, embarrassed voice.

“Seriously?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Your bro is nailing Crystal Prep’s dean?”

Twilight stiffened, “He’s not ‘nailing’ anything! He’s just, they’re just, they’re really close.”

“Close like a hot dog through a doughnut, eh?” said Dash, making a certain gesture with her fingers. Applejack smacked the other girl upside the head.

“Ease up girl. Twi’ if yer comfy with it we’ll be happy ta take ya up on the offer,” said the farm girl graciously, and there was no argument from anyone else in the group, least of all the unconscious girl in black.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash carried the unconscious girl between them while Twilight led the way. It’d be a bit of a long walk, but taking a bus was out of the question given the girls’ state, which would attract too many questions. Fortunately while far Twilight assured them her home wasn’t outside reasonable walking distance. Sunset was glad enough of that, because she felt like she was about ready to fall over at any second. Whatever she’d done to change the sword recovered from the crater into the form it now had, doing so had taken a lot out of her.

Questions swirled in her mind as Rarity got on her phone along with Pinkie Pie and started making calls to assure family members that the girls had just decided to go for a night on the town and then Twilight had suggested a sleepover. It was as good a cover for the night’s events as they were going to get, but luckily most of the girl’s families were very understanding folks, and Sunset had no family to worry about in this world. Her small one room apartment, paid for out of a every slowly dwindling stash of gems taken from Equestria that she pawned for cash, was not a good spot for all the girls to gather.

Foremost in Sunset Shimmer’s mind was what was coming next. She wasn’t foolish enough to think this was the end of it. These strange blades, the girl in black, that monster, all of it was tied together, and she felt certain with a worried twist in her gut that this was only the beginning.

Author's Notes:

An idea that popped into my head and wouldn't leave. I've been a huge fan of the world and story of Bleach for a long time, and after seeing Friendship Games the idea kept bouncing around in my head to toy around with crossing those two worlds over with each other. To be honest I have no idea to what extent I'll be continuing this, given all the other stories I got clamoring for my attention, but I had to get this itch scratched before it drove me nuts, so here we are, the first of an unknown number of episodes. I will say for those of you out there familiar with Bleach that while the initial part of this story will take a lot from the anime's beginnings, I'm intending to take the story in its own direction in due time.

At any rate, let me know what you folks thought of this. I welcome all comments, questions, and critiques. 'Till next time.

Episode 2: Questions and Decisions

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Episode 2: Questions and Decisions

Despite all that had happened to the girls that night they were still taken aback and left staring at the sight before them. Twilight Sparkle self consciously rubbed her arms and said, “It’s not really as big as it looks. It’s rather plain on the inside.”

“Dude, you could park a jumbo jet in there and still have room for a few extra guest rooms,” said Rainbow Dash, and Sunset couldn’t entirely gainsay the point. The mansion in front of them was gigantic, and Sunset had seen her share of mansions while living in Canterlot.

The mansion was a sprawling affair, with its main building towering four stories tall. White washed wood framed massive windows on either side of the tall front doors, a large set of stone steps leading to them from the well paved front driveway. Looking to her left and right Sunset saw the mansion had side wings, two stories tall, that edged off to the north and south, like the spokes of a tuning fork sprouting from the main building. The architecture was strangely smooth and crisp, almost making the place have a sterile, hospital feel to it.

There were a few lights on, glowing out from the tall windows on the mansion’s front and Sunset glanced at Twilight questioningly, “Servants?”

“Oh, well, yes. We have some hired help to keep the place in order,” Twilight said, looking around the vast driveway with a jittery look in her eyes, “Most of them should be asleep this time of night, but probably safest to go in through one of the side entrances. This way.”

“Gotta admit, sugarcube, I weren’t expectin’ ya to have such, uh, fancy digs either,” said Applejack, one arm of the girl in black slung over her shoulder while Rainbow Dash was doing the same with her other arm. The strange girl hadn’t made so much as a peep the whole walk to the mansion, but Sunset could still see her breathing. She felt a flush of guilt for not actually taking the girl to a hospital, but given the oddity of her, the fact that her friends hadn’t been able to even see her at first, and that she had known what that monster was... a hospital might not be the best place to take her. Too many questions would be asked that Sunset had no answers for. The girl didn't even have an ID or wallet.

“My family has a lot of...” Twilight paused, chewing her lip, “Old money. Stocks and bonds, real estate, that kind of thing. Couldn’t even say for sure what my parents do, day to day, but they tend to go on a lot of business trips. Heheh.”

That nervous laugh caused Sunset to give Twilight an odd look. Was Twilight so nervous because this was the first time her friends had seen her home? Sunset put the thought from her mind as they walked the long way around to the south wing of the mansion. Here a small gravel pathway wound between elegantly kept topiary, leading to a door that was situated at the corner where the south wing met with the central building.

Twilight fished out a small brass key from one of her skirt pockets and fiddled with the door for a second before swinging it open, stepping aside, “Right this way. We’ll take her to my secondary lab. Nobody goes there very much except for me.”

“Secondary lab?” asked Sunset as they filed inside. The door led to a spacious hallway with soft gray carpeting and tall, arched ceilings, interspersed with hanging lights that were off, leaving the hallway shrouded in darkness.

Twilight was last in, flipping a switch that lit up the hallway with a pleasant yellow glow. Seeing more clearly Sunset took in the various paintings hung up along the wall, all made up of very scenic landscapes of some hilly and heavily forested countryside, sometimes depicting old towns and even a castle that made her feel a pang of nostalgia for Equestria.

“Oh, my main lab is on the third floor, but it’d be conspicuous to take her there because the head butler Mr. Robert cleans it rather regularly. My secondary lab is in the basement and a lot less likely to be disturbed,” Twilight said, leading them off down the hallway to the left.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack adjusted their grip on the unconscious girl, carrying her along carefully while the rest followed behind. Pinkie Pie bounced happily, making small comments here and there whenever she caught sight of something interesting like a weird painting or two. Rarity was unusually quiet, arms crossed as she walked and saying nothing. Fluttershy seemed still rattled from the night’s recently survived dangers, but offered Sunset a warm, comforting smile when the two’s eyes met. Sunset brought up the rear of the group, and just before she started after the others she paused, noticing something above the doorway they’d just entered.

She wasn’t sure why it caught her eye, other than she had no idea what is was. A symbol, carved out of a stone bas-relief, hanging above the door like a sentinel. It was a plain symbol, a five pointed cross, each end of the cross forming what would have been a perfect circle were they all joined. Almost like the five points of a star, actually. Sunset wasn’t sure why the symbol stood out to her. The human world was filled with odd symbols that had a myriad of meanings to various cultures and religions.

Shrugging away the slight feeling of unease the symbol gave her, Sunset hurried to join the others.

The hallway led to a four way crossing that Twilight swiftly took the right hallway, leading them along the south wall of the main building. From the tall windows that lined this hallway Sunset could see a small courtyard between the south wing and main building, filled with a lovely garden and long pool, the center of which sported a tall stone fountain. Doors, heavy oaken affairs, lined the left side of the hallway.

“Man, how many people live in this place, Twi?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Looks like you could barracks an army in here.”

“Just me, my brother and parents, along with maybe half a dozen cleaning and serving staff,” said Twilight, then added hastily, “We didn’t build the place or anything. We inherited it from my grandparents, who had a lot more hired help back then and had a few extended family members living here... though my grandparents died and the other family members moved out while I was still pretty little. I barely remember any of them.”

“I like it!” said Pinkie Pie, “I can really get a good echo going on in here. Ech-”

Applejack snaked out an arm to clamp a hand over Pinkie Pie’s mouth, “We’re tryin’ ta be sneaky like in here, Pinkie. Let’s keep the noise down ta secret surprise party levels, ya’hear?”

“Mmmhmm,” Pinkie mumbled through Applejack’s hand, and Twilight smiled.

“It’ll be okay once we’re to the lab. It’s soundproofed. I, uh, sometimes have experiments that can make a lot of noise.”

There were a few more twists and turns in their walk through the spacious hallways of the vast mansion, including passing through some kind of lounge that had a huge fireplace of marble occupying one wall and a single, blue curtained window looking out the back of the mansion’s east side to look upon an expansive back yard that led to a wall of dense woods. The edge of one of the Everfree’s many branches? Sunset tried to recall maps of the local area and realized that yes, that had to be one of the edges to the rolling Everfree Forest that enshrouded the town like a cloak.

Eventually they reached a innocuous door that when opened led to a large staircase leading down. The stairs creaked slightly as the girls descended under the light of pale electric lights made up to look like medieval lamps hanging from iron chains, making Sunset almost feel like she was back in Celestia’s palace in Canterlot, descending into the dungeons.

Yet another maze of hallways greeted the girls here, but Twilight didn’t lead them far before reaching another door that when opened led into a room that would have been considered large by most standards, but compared to the size of the mansion was actually rather cozy. Several tables were neatly arranged along the walls bearing various scientific equipment from beakers to microscopes and everything in between. A couch was pushed up in one corner, a blanket neatly stacked atop a pillow at one end, and this was where Twilight directed the girl in black to be set down.

While Applejack and Rainbow Dash did that Twilight went over to another desk sitting up against the far wall and dug into one of the drawers, pulling out a rather large red and white first aid kit. Without even needing to be asked Fluttershy took up the first aid kit and went to examine the girl while Twilight took out her scanner and turned it on.

“We don’t really know what she is,” Twilight explained, “So while normal medicine might work, we can’t be sure of anything. I think it might help if I watch carefully on this how she responds to normal treatment.”

“Makes sense to me,” said Sunset, standing about and feeling a tad useless. The sword she’d recovered from the crater was looped through her belt, and now that they were here and settling in she looked down at it, “Should I set this somewhere?”

“Oh, uh, how about over there next to the bio-metric oscillator?” said Twilight, more intent on the girl at the moment. Sunset glanced over at what she assumed was the device in question, a weird looking thing of vacuum tubes and cables, and went over to set the sword down. The katana’s edge seemed to glow under the plain light of the lab and Sunset felt an odd pang of regret just setting it down, but even though she’d used it, even though she’d somehow changed it into its present form, the sword wasn’t the most important thing to focus on right now.

One by one the other girls found spots around the lab to sit down or lean against walls, none of them besides Fluttershy really having any medical knowledge and so just trying to stay out of their friend’s way as she worked. Twilight hovered nearby, eyes on her scanner, but otherwise didn’t interfere with Fluttershy, whose eyes held determined focus as she began to check, clean, and bandage the girl’s wounds, starting with the gash along the forehead.

Sunset watched nervously, worried at the mount of blood that had covered the girl’s face. She seemed rather frail, now, laying there on the couch, her black robes soaked sticky with blood. Her dark green hair was plastered to her face, though Fluttershy was carefully cleaning that off with a soaked cloth of water, then disinfecting alcohol from the first aid kit. The girl was breathing, and steadily, which seemed encouraging. Fluttershy was as gentle and careful as a mother bear tending her cub, slowly removing the black robes bit by bit so she could check the girl’s limbs and chest for any broken bones. Despite the terrible hit the girl had taken when the Hollow had slammed her to the parking lot it looked as if nothing was broken. Sunset blushed slightly as she noticed the girl wasn’t wearing much underneath the black robes save for bandages wrapped around her breasts and a simple white cloth set of undergarments around her groin. Fluttershy didn’t seem to mind it at all or be embarrassed, all her focus on the art of healing.

“No broken bones, but so many bruises, the poor thing. She’ll need painkillers when she wakes otherwise it will be hard on her just to move around.”

“What about her head? That looks, I mean, it looks bad,” said Sunset.

“Head wounds always tend to bleed quite a bit,” said Fluttershy in an almost clinical tone, “They can be dangerous, but I don’t feel any fractures. She might have a slight concussion, which can be bad, but there’s little we can do except clean and dress the wound and try to help the swelling go down. We won’t know more until she wakes up.”

“I’m just surprised you can even touch her,” said Twilight, eyes glued to her scanner, which she’d used a USB cable to plug into a laptop on her desk, “According to my readings the girl’s physical presence is fluctuating. Its as if she’s existing in two different states simultaneously. It's fascinating! One moment it looks like your bandages are just hanging in midair, the next wrapped around her. And her sword! It's giving off readings just like the one Sunset picked up!”

Applejack had been the one to carry the girl’s sword with them and had laid the weapon down to lean against the end of the couch by the girl’s feet. Sunset took a closer look at it. It was a katana just like the one she had, its star shaped crossguard briefly reminding her of the symbol on the door to the mansion, though much more resembling an actual star than a cross.

“This is cool and all,” said Rainbow Dash, yawning slightly, “But I’m feeling pretty beat now that all the excitement is over. Don’t suppose there’s a bed around here? Or a tv? A game system? Tell me you got something, Twi?”

“Oh, uh, there should be guest rooms down here somewhere. I know my brother owns pretty much every game system, er, ever. But I wouldn’t think it's a good idea to go into his room. Never been into games myself, but I have plenty of books. The library, one of them, is on the first floor and I bet you could find something fun to read there.”

“Daring Do?” Rainbow Dash asked hopefully.

“Full set,” Twilight said with a warm smile.

“Awesome!” Rainbow Dash went out the door in a flash... and returned almost as fast, smiling sheepishly as she poked her head back in, “So, uh, where’s the library?”

“I better go with you,” said Twilight, “Just in case you do run into any of the help I can explain you’re all here for a sleepover.” She looked forlornly at her scanner, and set it on the desk next to the laptop, “It’ll collect data on its own, I can look it over later.”

“S’pose I’ll go with y’all, since ain’t much I can be do here that’ll be useful,” said Applejack.

“Well, as for me, a bed would be most appreciated,” said Rarity, face paler than usual, “I rather feel a tad drained from all that’s happened.”

“I’ll show you to a guest room on the way to the library,” said Twilight, then glanced around the room, “Anybody else?”

“I’ll stay here,” said Sunset, and Pinkie Pie licked her lips as she tapped her chin.

“You got a kitchen?”

Twilight let out a light chuckle, “Several. I’ll show you to one of the smaller ones that are out of the way.”

That left Sunset alone with Fluttershy and the unconscious girl. Fluttershy didn’t leave the girl’s side, only pulling over a chair to sit by the couch as she watched the girl carefully, checking her brow every now and then. Sunset found a spot on the floor nearby to sit down, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around them as she looked worriedly at the girl on the couch.

“So, she’s going to be okay?” she asked, and Fluttershy gave her an encouraging smile.

“I think so. You’re really worried about her, aren’t you?”

Sunset let out a slightly stress filled laugh, “I’m worried about all of us. That wasn’t a walk in the park we just went through, even if it happened right next to a park. That... that thing was trying to kill us, Fluttershy. It nearly did, if I hadn’t...” her eyes turned towards the sword on the desk, “I don’t even know how I did what I did. Who is this girl? What was that thing!? She called it a Hollow but I’ve never heard of something like that before, here or in Equestria! I wish I had my journal with me so I could write Princess Twilight, maybe ask if she’s heard of anything like this. What if there are more of these monsters out there? What if they’re going after other innocent people right now? How did I change that sword into the shape it is now and know I could beat that thing? It could’ve killed me. How-”

Suddenly she was being hugged tight by soft, warm arms as Fluttershy knelt next to her and held her close. Sunset hadn’t even realized she’d been trembling, or how badly she’d been rambling, until Fluttershy just went “Shhhhh,” in a warm, caring tone, “It’s okay Sunset. We’re all okay. It’s going to be okay.”

Sunset felt the gates around her emotions break open and suddenly she found tears in her eyes, tear she hid by burying her face in her friend’s shoulder. Her voice managed to choke out, “I...I could’ve lost any of you tonight.”

“But you didn’t. We’re all here, perfectly fine. A little battered, but fine. And tomorrow morning this will all seem like a bad dream,” said Fluttershy, her voice filled with the calm motherliness of a woman much more mature than her teenage years. Sunset had at times heard students at school snicker about Fluttershy, saying she was a fraidy cat and a door mat. Perhaps at times that was true, but Sunset would knock the block off of anyone who said Fluttershy was a coward. She at times seemed to have inner strength to spare for herself and all her friends combined.

Sunset couldn’t help but hug her back, sniffing and wiping her face with the sleeve of her jacket, “Yeah, yeah you’re right. I just... this has been one heck of a night.”

After that the two of them settled into a comfortable silence, Fluttershy returning to her vigilant post watching the girl while Sunset took off her jacket and bunched it into a pillow so she could lay out on the floor and doze. She was fading in and out of consciousness, always just inches from full sleep, when Fluttershy’s sudden cry snapped her to full wakefulness.

Fluttershy had stood up swiftly, knocking her chair over in the process.

The girl was sitting up, eyes open and sharp. Slowly she looked around the room, alighting upon Sunset and Fluttershy in turn. She reached up and touched the bandages around her head, frowning slightly.

“Where am I?” she asked, voice hard.

“Um, miss, you really shouldn’t be up right now,” said Fluttershy carefully, holding her hands up as if to press the girl back down to the couch, “You were badly hurt and need to rest.”

“I won’t expire that easily,” said the girl, who blinked and added, “Though I suppose I’ll thank you for the help. But answer my question; where am I? More than that, how is it the two of you can see me?”

Sunset stood now, jacket in one hand as she slowly put it on. She and Fluttershy exchanged quick looks, and she could tell Fluttershy wanted Sunset to take the lead on this. Sunset didn’t have a problem with that, choosing her words, “We couldn’t just leave you there after that... creature was dealt with. We decided to take you to a friend’s home to try and treat your wounds. As for why we can see you, I don’t know. Are you not supposed to be seen?”

“I’ll ask the questions,” the girl said, grimacing as she swung her legs over the side of the couch, holding her head, “If I don’t report back they’ll send others to look for me. Blast it, how long have I been out?”

“A few hours, no more,” said Fluttershy, smiling helpfully.

“Too long,” said the girl, trying to stand, but falling back to the couch, “Ugh, damn Hollow. Hit me harder than I thought. Should’ve gone Shikai right from the start instead of trying to play it cool. Stupid Clover, stupid. Now you’ve exposed yourself to the humans and the Captain is going to pitch a fit to end all fits. Oh, not to mention losing three recruits on a routine training exercise... dammit. Damn it.”

The girl’s tirade seemed entirely unaware and self directed, speaking as if Sunset and Fluttershy weren’t even in the room. Almost none of it made sense, but Sunset did pick up the girl’s name: Clover. On impulse she strode over and picked up the sword she’d transformed back at the parking lot, and held it out towards Clover so she could see it.

“This is what I used to defeat that monster. What is this sword? Why did it change into this shape when I used it?”

Clover blinked, hazy eyed as she looked at the sword. Fluttershy frowned, stepping between Clover and Sunset. “Hold on, Sunset, she’s still hurt and we shouldn't be interrogating her all of a sudden!”

“I understand Fluttershy, but I have to know what this was all about,” said Sunset, “If there’s a threat to this city, its my responsibility to do what I can to keep it safe, especially if the cause of the threat is magical in nature.”

Fluttershy looked like she was about to argue but Clover spoke first.

“It's not magic.”

Sunset and Fluttershy both blinked, looking back at Clover, who was slowly drawing her black robes back over her body. She looked at the sword in Sunset’s hand and then at Sunset herself, meeting the other girl’s eyes with a measuring gaze. Whatever Clover saw there must have been enough for Clover for she slowly nodded and go on speaking.

“What’s in your hand is called a Zanpaktou. The weapon of a Soul Reaper, like myself. The creature you fought was a Hollow, the soul of a dead human who has become corrupted. Soul Reapers purify Hollows with our Zanpaktou to send them on to the afterlife. No living human is meant to know these things, but I can’t see any way to keep it a secret save killing you and all the other girls who were with you... and I’m not doing that. Protecting the living is my duty.”

Slowly, with some difficulty, Clover stood, and retrieved her own sword, her Zanpaktou, and sheathed it through the white sash the belted her robes, “I don’t have the foggiest notion of how you managed to transform a Asauchi into a true Zanpaktou. It's sealed, at least, but a human, a living human, with a Zanpaktou... there is only one precedent...”

She shook her head, “I thank you for your help in treating my wounds, but I have to go. I have to report back to my Division and my Captain. I... don’t know what will happen after that. It will be out of my hands at that point. I’m sorry.”

“Hold on a second,” said Sunset, “That doesn’t explain anything!”

“What do you want me to do, draw a picture for you?” said Clover, a bit of sass entering her voice, “I can’t say what I’ve said any plainer, and honestly I shouldn't have said that much. These are things humans are not meant to know, but for some reason you’ve managed to bond with a Zanpaktou! I could confiscate the blade, but that wouldn’t change what you did, and that my Captain is going to need to know what happened. What’s best is that I stop talking and leave before I spill any more eons old secrets of the nature of reality!”

With that Clover began to stumble towards the door. She got about two paces before falling flat on her face, groaning. Fluttershy was by Clover’s side in an instant, checking her bandages.

“Oh my! Oh my, you shouldn’t be moving. I told you not to move around Miss Clover. Your head wound is still too fresh for being up and about. Come on, let's get you back on the couch.”

“Uuuuugh...I’m... I’m the th-third seat of...of the twelfth Division of...blaargh...” protested Clover weakly as Fluttershy picked her up and walked her back to the couch, Clover seemingly too dazed to resist much. Sunset just stood there, blinking as Fluttershy laid Clover back down and began to redress the bandages. Fluttershy murmured soft words of comfort as Clover continued to mumble and babble.

“Got to... get back... Hollows... more than normal. Need to... report...zzzZZZzzz...”

Fluttershy smiled in relief, “Oh good, maybe now she’ll get some rest.”

“Yeah,” said Sunset, shaking her head, “Let’s hope so.”

----------

By the time morning crept across the horizon, lighting up the sky with periwinkle blue hues, most of the girls had managed to get their share of sleep, though they’d all traded places to keep watch over Clover. Sunset had taken last watch and was still stretching out the aches from her numerous bruises from last night as she kept a close eye on Clover’s sleeping form.

Worry gnawed at her. Very little of what Clover had said during that brief period of wakefulness made much sense to her. The afterlife? As in the literal afterlife? The realm beyond the veil of death? Not even Celestia herself had claimed any knowledge of that and she was the oldest living being Sunset knew! The human world was rife with various religions that claimed various knowledge of life after death, but not a single shred of actual proof of any of it.

Could this girl really be some kind of... what had she called herself? A Soul Reaper? Like those figures in mythology cloaked in black and carrying scythes? It seemed impossible. Perhaps Clover was just disturbed, touched in the head by whatever strange magics she might wield. She claimed these swords, these “Zanpaktou”, weren’t magical in nature, but Sunset didn’t believe that for an instant. Perhaps Clover had a different understanding of magic than Sunset did, but it was pretty obvious the swords were supernatural in nature. The sword had absorbed Sunset’s magic, after all.

There was more to worry about as well, given that it was clear Clover intended to leave as soon as she was conscious again, recovered or not. Sunset half wanted to find something to tie Clover up with to keep her still, so Sunset could figure out just what in blazes had happened last night and what this was all about concerning “Hollows” and “Soul Reapers” and “Zanpaktou”. However she doubted that even if they did tie her up with rope or something that Clover would stay put. She seemed like the stubborn type to Sunset.

So, what? We just let her go? As if nothing happened?

It seemed like the only real possibility, if Clover was determined to go without answering any questions, or at least answering them in a way that didn’t pop up twice as many new questions.

When the door opened and Twilight stepped in Sunset stood up from the chair she’d been leaning back in.

“So she’s still asleep,” Twilight said, statement rather than question as she went over to her desk with the laptop, yawning, “I’ve been through the library several times trying to find references to what she was talking about while awake. Nothing about Soul Reapers or Hollows, but after some work I discovered that the word ‘Zanpaktou’ is Japanese and could be roughly translated as ‘Soul Slayer’, or rather ‘Soul Cutting Sword’. Considering what it did to that Hollow it’s an appropriate name.”

Sunset tilted her head, joining Twilight by the desk, “Japanese? Seems strange. Why would she have a sword with a Japanese name?”

“It's not just her sword,” Twilight said, “Her outfit as well. It’s similar to several styles of dress from Japan, though I’ll admit I’m hardly knowledgeable about foreign fashion. I suppose this is just one of many mysteries about our guest. She, uh, seemed rather adamant about leaving when she was awake?”

A quick sigh escaped Sunset, “Doubt we could stop her from leaving, once she gets her strength back. I guess we don’t have any right to keep her... it's just I really wish we could get her to sit still and just give us some answers. All that talk about the afterlife...”

“It's definitely,” Twilight seemed to wave her hand in the air as she fished for the right word, “..concerning. Yes, concerning sounds about right.”

“The only thing I’m concerned about,” said a young male voice from the door, “Is when I get breakfast and a walk.”

Both girls turned to see a small purple dog with odd green ears and mane waddle into the room, sitting down just long enough to scratch his ears with a hind leg. He looked to Sunset with a grin, “Morning Sunset.”

“Good morning Spike,” Sunset said, smiling down at the dog, who not so long ago gained the power of speech through the rather unusual events that occurred around the Friendship Games.

“Hey Spike,” said Twilight, “I’m sorry I forgot to fill your bowl! I’ll do it just as soon as I start this data here a quick look-see!”

“And a walk,” added Spike, shuffling, “Seriously, Rob usually opens the door for me but haven’t seen the guy all morning.”

“Mr. Robert? Strange, he’s usually quite punctual about that,” said Twilight, then shrugged, “I suppose the data can wait. Can’t have you going on the carpet. Again.”

“One time!” said the dog in protest, “Just once! Not my fault you were so into that research paper that you weren’t hearing me barking at the door.”

“It was a really interesting paper, Spike, on the migratory patterns of Royal Red shrimp!”

Spike didn’t say anything, his expression said it all as one of his little eyebrows raised and the rest of his face went pure deadpan. Sunset managed to contain a snigger and said, “I’ll stay and keep an eye on Clover then. Just remind one of the girls I’m down here and maybe have them bring a bite to eat?”

“No problem, last I saw Pinkie Pie and Rarity were teaming up to whip up some breakfast,” said Twilight as she made for the door, but halted as she nearly tripped over Spike. “Huh? Spike, what’s wrong?”

He was sniffing at her legs, face suddenly scrunched in suspicious concern, “Twilight, why do I smell... wait, who’s that!? She’s new!”

He pointed with one furry paw at Clover’s prone form, and Sunset imagined the smell he’d picked up was either Clover herself, or the traces of blood from her and the rest of the girl's’ wounds. Either way the dog now knew there was a stranger in the room and was shooting a questioning look at his owner.

“Oh, her, right, umm... “ Twilight floundered for words, “How to explain?”

“It's best you don’t explain at all,” said Clover abruptly as her eyes flickered open and she let out a long, pained groan as she rubbed her head, “It’d be best if you all forgot I ever existed, really.”

“Whoa, she’s a morning person, ain’t she?” quipped Spike with a roll of his eyes, and Clover blinked. Then blinked again. She then pointed at Spike.

“That dog just talked.”

“‘That dog’ is also about to wet the carpet if he doesn’t get outside soon,” said Spike bluntly, to which Clover just rubbed her head some more.

“The trauma must be worse than I thought. Hallucinations are not a good sign, Clover. Might be best to visit the fourth Division before reporting in, get yourself properly checked on. Dogs aren’t supposed to talk. Unless an experiment got out of the Captain’s laboratory. But no, why would it be here then. That’s just be crazy, Clover. Haha. Talking dogs...”

Spike just looked at Sunset and Twilight with a paw raised in question, “What’s with her?”

“Just a minute Spike,” Twilight said, then turned her attention to Clover, “Look, Miss Clover, my dog does have the ability to talk, but that is neither here nor there compared to the many questions my friends and I have for you about what happened last night.”

Clover halted her personal rambling to look at Twilight with thoughtful apprehension, “Okay, the dog aside, I told you all last night that the less you all know, the better off you are. I may be in poor shape at the moment, but I can’t afford to waste any more time laying about.”

“We won’t try to force you to stay,” said Sunset, “But I have to know before you go; are there more of those Hollows out there in the city?”

That particular question had plagued Sunset the most for the entire night. Whatever they were, the monsters were clearly dangerous and if there were more there had to be a way to deal with them. Clover seemed to read Sunset’s thoughts.

“It's not the task of the living to fight Hollows. That’s what Soul Reapers like me exist for. Yes there are in all likelihood more Hollows wandering the city. There are always a few in any major city where people might die on any given day. However there were more out there last night than there should have been. Hollow activity has been rising all over the city the past few months, but last night was pretty bad. I...”

She halted, shaking her head, then wincing as if she wished she hadn’t, “I’ve said too much already. This has nothing to do with you girls.”

Sunset frowned, pointed at the Zanpaktou she’d supposedly ‘bonded’ with last night, which now leaned against the wall, “I’d say at this point it has a lot to do with us.”

Clover eyed the sword, hands alternating between clenching and relaxing. At last she sighed and said, “You may be right about that. You, all of you from last night, saw the Hollow. Humans shouldn’t be able to see Soul Reapers or Hollows without unusually strong spirit energy. That means you may be targeted by more Hollows.”

“Wait, what? Targeting us? Why?” asked Twilight in alarm.

“Because Hollows are human souls that have become corrupted with negative emotions, and are driven by an unnatural hunger to consume other souls. Either the souls of the recently departed who have not yet crossed over, or the souls of the still living,” Clover said, and met Twilight’s frightened gaze directly, “They especially hone in on souls that have strong spiritual energy, like you and your friends displayed last night.”

Sunset felt as if she’d taken a punch to the gut, and swallowed despite a suddenly dry mouth, “That must be why it was chasing Rarity and Fluttershy.”

“Very likely, yes,” agreed Clover, who looked as if she was tasting something sour, “The more I think about it the more I realize how much danger you girls might still be in. Blast it all, this complicates things...”

Spike was remaining admirably quiet during all this but Sunset could tell the canine was practically bursting with questions. So was Sunset.

“Complicated in what way?” she asked, trying to keep focused on the flow of the conversation rather than derail it with other questions she wanted to ask.

“I need to return to the Soul Society, the realm of Soul Reapers, and report what happened. I also don’t want to leave you girls unprotected, since it's possible more Hollows might come after you...” Clover trailed off, face a mask of deep thought. “The only thing I can think of to do is go to an expert.”

“An... expert?” Sunset asked.

Clover nodded, and stood slowly, swaying a bit but steadying herself after a second, “Yes. Soul Society knows of someone in the city who will do favors for us if paid properly. I can go to him and arrange for you girls to be looked after while I go report to my superiors. After I make my report, well, we’ll just have to wait and see what the Captains decide to do.”

“We said we wouldn’t try to keep you prisoner here and meant it, “ said Twilight, “But what will your, uh, superiors decide? They won’t try to hurt us will they? We didn’t do anything wrong.”

Clover seemed a bit taken aback by Twilight’s worried look and said, “I can’t say for certain, but one of the Soul Society’s greatest duties is the protection of the living world. I don’t imagine they’d want to hurt any of you. Your friend there with the Zanpaktou is the snagging point, really.”

“Sunset. My name is Sunset Shimmer.”

“I see. Well, Sunset, I don’t know what I can tell you. What you did last night should have been impossible for any normal human, or even a few abnormal ones. At worst I suspect another Soul Reaper will be sent to confiscate the Zanpaktou for study. I, uh, don’t think they’ll want to abduct you for study as well. No, no probably not. Chances are this incident will be swept under the rug and in a month’s time you’ll all forget about it. Or be made to forget, I suppose. Regardless, it's out of my hands.”

A grimace made its way onto Sunset’s face as she crossed her arms, “I won’t be anyone’s dissection project, Clover.”

“I said its unlikely it’d come to that. Really the only guy I can think of who’d even want to try is... well, he may be my Captain but no one takes him too seriously,” Clover said with a flat look as if she was recalling some unpleasant memories, “Twelfth Division gets little enough respect as is. Ugh, anyway, I really have to be going.”

“You don’t want to stay for breakfast at least?” asked Twilight, “I could ask you so many questions over a bowl of cereal! Please, just a few? I want to know so much about where you’ve come from and what you do as a Soul Reaper!”

Clover backed up a step, raising an arm as if to ward off the overeager girl in glasses, “I said the less you know the better! Don’t you people know how to listen?”

Sunset put a hand on Twilight’s arm, looking at the other girl with a short shake of her head, “Let it go for now Twilight.”

Twilight looked for a moment as if she wanted to argue further, but then just slumped her shoulders, “Alright.”

“Well then,” said Clover, still looking tense like a rabbit ready to bolt as she slowly retrieved her own Zanpaktou from the foot of the couch, “I’ll just be on my way.”

She stepped around Sunset and Twilight, gave Spike one last strange look, then went out the door.

A few seconds later she returned, a demure look of embarrassment on her face. “Um, which way is the way out?”

----------

“I can’t believe you just let her go like that!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash, “I mean, c’mon we went through all that trouble to get her here and then you let her up and leave!?”

The girls were gathered in one of several kitchens in the Twilight family mansion, surrounding a onyx black dinner table and wolfing down a set of pancakes that Pinkie Pie and Rarity had cooked up earlier. Spike, having been let out briefly for his ‘walk’ around the mansion’s backyard was now quietly napping beneath the table. Sunset stabbed at her pancakes a tad more forcefully than she needed do, feeling Rainbow Dash’s frustration.

“It wasn’t like we had any right to keep her chained to the wall, Dash.”

“Besides I thought we brought her here to help her heal, not to interrogate her,” pointed out Fluttershy, but she too looked worried, “I do hope she was well enough to go. If she’s collapsed out there all on her lonesome...”

“Relax sugarcube, what’s done is done an’ there ain’t no sense in worryn’ ourselves gray over it,” said Applejack, chewing down a bite of pancake and frowning, “Though I figure we oughta git a’ game plan goin’ on what ta do ‘bout there bein’ more of them Hollow critters in town. An’ ya said that Clover gal said somethin’ round the size o’ them beasties wantin’ ta chew on our souls?”

Rarity shivered, “Dreadful thought. Just one of those horrible creatures was bad enough. Just how many might be stalking our streets every night?”

“We don’t know,” said Twilight, “And I don’t think Clover did either. The number of Hollows sounded like it was a surprise to her, too. For the moment I’m planning to spend today building a number of devices like my scanner that can detect the energy signatures of Hollows. I have enough data from last night to do that easy enough. I’ll also make sure each of us has a long range walkie talkie to get in touch faster than dialing on a cell phone. Right now Sunset is the only one with a weapon proven to hurt Hollows, so I’m thinking we have ourselves an extended weekend long sleepover here until I get those Hollow detectors built. Once the school week starts we just... keep in touch and if any of us are in danger, we get to Sunset.”

She looked over at Sunset with an apologetic look, “I’m sorry, its the best plan I can come up with. I don’t want you to be in any more danger, but for all we know that Zanpaktou of yours is the only defense we have.”

Sunset smiled reassuringly, patting the blade’s hilt that she’d laid against the table. She really needed to figure out a sheath or something for it. “Its okay Twilight. I was planning to find a way to deal with the Hollows anyway, and that detection device you plan to build will help me track them down in case they try going for any innocent people.”

“You better be planning to bring some of us on these ‘Hollow patrols’ then,” said Rainbow Dash, “That sweet sword of yours might be the best for busting Hollows, but I’m not standing by and shaking like a leaf in my house while you do all the dangerous stuff.”

“She’s right, darling,” Rarity said, sipping on some coffee and looking as if she was trying to not shake herself, “Those Hollows frighten me, I won’t lie, but we can hardly expect you to do all the work yourself. That’s not at all what our friendship is built on, is it?”

“If these Hollow critters are gonna be comin’ after us anyways then I figure we might as well return the favor,” said Applejack, face hardened in thought, “Only problem is workin’ out how ta put the boot ta ‘em. Ya got yer sword, but no offense Sunset, could’ve been a stroke o’ luck ya managed ta take that Hollow out. Ya sure ‘bout bein’ able to go toe-ta-toe wit another beastie? Or if there’s more n’ one at once?”

Sunset shuffled in her seat, the mouth of pancake she was chewing on suddenly tasting a lot less sweet. Swallowing she then said, “I’m not saying I’m some expert swordswoman but I did take a few classes, and... and it's not like I’ve got a lot of other options. If it's just one Hollow I think between all of us we can take it. I hope.”

She was trying to keep her confidence up but Sunset couldn’t deny a fair bit of fear underlying her projected aura of gusto. She and her friends had dealt with dangerous situations before, but the Hollow’s attack had felt very different. The sirens had wanted to dominate, not kill. The carnivorous plants that’d sneaked in through the portals during the Friendship Games had been dangerous, sure, but had lacked the horrifying, killer intent that had exuded from the Hollow. Even Twilight, empowered by a massive dose of magic and losing her mind while tearing holes in reality hadn’t radiated the kind of raw, murderous aura the Hollow had.

Hollow consumed souls. Hunted them like timberwolves. All it would take was one mistake. One slip up. One single moment of bad luck. That’s all that it’d take for Sunset of any one of her friends to get seriously hurt, even killed, if they were serious about hunting down Hollows.

Maybe we should just wait for Clover and her Soul Reaper superiors to deal with it... Sunset thought, then shook her head. No, there’s no telling how long it’ll take them to do anything and in that time a Hollow might hurt someone. If we have the ability to protect this town, we have to try, don’t we? No matter the risk?

She felt a warm hand on her own and glanced up, seeing that next to her Fluttershy had reached over and clasped her hand with a tight, comforting grip. The other girl just had to smile and Sunset felt her worries flit away, and she returned the squeezing grip gratefully.

“Well, I’m thinking we could try ponying up,” said Rainbow Dash, “I felt totally awesome when I did that during the Games. Kicked that over sized dandelion's butt and saved Sunset’s behind at the same time.”

Sunset smirked, remembering the event rather fondly for another incident where she nearly got killed. “I’d be inclined to agree, but while I now understand that magic comes out in this world when you're expressing your truest self, that’s not exactly something that’s easy to define or just do at will. I mean, I don’t think any of us have been able to ‘pony up’ whenever we want since the Friendship Games.”

“Well, that phenomenon also manifests itself when you play music,” said Twilight, starting to put away some of the now empty dishes, “I don’t suppose you girls could bring some more portable instruments along when you patrol?”

“Oh! I could throw on my twelve instrument harness and parade around town!” said Pinkie Pie happily, “I haven’t had a reason to use that thing in ages!”

“Sorry Pinkie,” said Sunset, “But I think that only happens when we’re using our signature instruments, and to be honest I’m not sure I’d be comfortable betting our lives on new instruments if we don’t know for sure it’ll work.”

“I also don’t imagine I could bring my sewing kit along and inspire myself with on the fly dressmaking to ‘pony up’, as it were,” said Rarity, “Hmm, not that I’m sure what I could do if I did. Rainbow Dash has those fetching wings when she transforms, the same as Fluttershy, but I’m afraid the rest of us don’t exactly get much of a power boost from it all.”

“I wish I understood this ‘Magic of Friendship’ that you all have,” Twilight said with a small sigh, and a small twitch of unease, “It feels like the more I try to understand the more questions I keep finding. Regardless, give me time. I might be able to devise something we can use to help fight off the Hollows besides the detectors.”

“Take it easy Twilight,” said Sunset, “Don’t overwork yourself.”

“I just don’t want to hold any of your girls back. You’ve all been so kind and understanding since the Friendship Games. I want to repay you all for accepting me after all that I did,” said Twilight.

“Sugarcube ya got nothin’ ta repay us for,” said Applejack firmly, “An’ yer bein’ a huge help already. We’d be clueless on what ta do without ya takin’ on making them detector thingamajigs, not ta mention ya let us use yer home like this.”

A quick, embarrassed but pleased smile flashed across Twilight’s face at that, and in short order the girls had finished their breakfast and cleaned up the dishes. Twilight assured them she could get the detectors made by nightfall. The general agreement among them was to meet up outside the high school once the sun went down, at which point they’d work out the plan for patrols. Twilight escorted them out the same side door they went in through, the girls exiting into a bright and sunny Saturday morning.

“Do you think Clover really did go to some kind of expert to have them watch us?” asked Twilight in a low whisper to Sunset, standing in the doorway as she saw the girls out.

Sunset shrugged, “I don’t know, and I don’t think we can afford to worry about it. Whatever Clovers doing, we have our own plans to enact, right?”

“I suppose you’re right,” said Twilight, looking unconvinced, “I just wish we knew more.”

“We’ll deal with it, whatever comes,” Sunset said.

----------

The shop was a run down, dirty affair tucked between the back lots of two much larger buildings in the city’s downtown area. In order to even find the shop one had to go down several back alley turns, and even then Clover knew that there were defenses in place that would prevent any normal humans from wandering this way by accident. Of course she was no normal human and could sense the correct path through the wards and soon found herself looking at the shop’s dusty front doors with a frown on her gray features.

She didn’t really want to come here. While the proprietor of this store was, ostensibly, a neutral party, and one she was authorized to make use of if the mission parameters called for it, she did not trust the man who ran this place.

With a deep sigh she raised a hand and knocked, trying to ignore the pain that still throbbed in her head. It was a kind gesture of those human girls to tend to her, but what Clover really needed to recover wasn’t human medicine, yet another reason to come to this shop before trying to return to the Soul Society and deliver her report.

After a minute the door opened, jangling a rusty bell on the awning above. Standing in the doorway was a small, pink skinned girl whose hair was a puffy swirl of purple streaked with white. Her eyes, a similar purple to her eyes, seemed normal enough unless Clover looked at them at just the right angle, at which point those tiny eyes seemed to swirl like an infinite whirlpool. She wore a plain, simple dress and work apron, and atop her head was, of all things, a propeller beanie.

“Hello,” said Clover, “I’m here to see the owner of the shop.”

The girl smiled widely, too widely, almost wider than a human face was meant to smile, and she chirped in a voice that sounded like the ringing of broken bells, “Of course pretty miss Soul Reaper! I’ll go get the boss up right away!”

The girl skipped away into the shop, Clover following slowly, as if walking on eggshells. She felt oddly chill, standing in the front of the store. It was dark inside, the only light filtering in from the sunlight outside. Multiple shelves occupied the rather cramped front space, seemingly lined with candy and sweets of every variety. All a lie, Clover knew. A candy shop, but just a front for the truth deeper within.

The bouncy pink girl only got halfway to the back of the store before a sliding door back there opened up and a man walked out, yawning, “Aaaawwww, oh my, what a lovely night! Such terrifically terrible dreams I’ve been having, hearing the howls in the night. Ah, Screwball, good morning! Good morning indeed.”

The man was of an indeterminate age anywhere between thirty and eternity. Wild white hair made a messy waterfall around his gaunt, crooked face, and a short beard was stroked by fingers that looked ready to wiggle off his hand. His eyes were his most distinctive feature, red on yellow, always twitching, never blinking, and seeing everything. He wore a simple enough looking dark green shirt and trousers underneath a loose black robe he never seemed to belt. His feet were bare save for a pair of wooden sandal clogs. Upon his head was a floppy white and green striped hat that seemed to perpetually cloak the man’s face in shadows.

When the man caught sight of Clover he smiled, and it made Clover feel like there were bugs crawling along her spine.

“Well well well, what an unexpected pleasure to see you here, Miss Clover. So rare you ever drop by my humble little establishment,” said the man with a slick tone more slippery than an oiled eel. “Whatever can I do for you?”

Clover gulped, steeling herself, “Hello, Mr. Discord. I find myself in need of your services.”

Author's Notes:

So, kind of a wind down episode. Lots of questions and partial explanations. My mind is still working overtime to plug in various MLP characters into where I feel they might fit best inside a Bleach based universe. Anyone remotely familiar with Bleach will know its got a huge roster of characters, but instead of using them my intention is to use various MLP characters for all those various roles, then plug in the gaps with either OCs or perhaps background ponies that strike my interest as needing some fleshing out.

I can't claim I'll come close to maintaining a fast rate of updates with this, as for now this is more a matter of striking while the iron is hot. Anyway thanks for reading and let me know what you think in the comments, positive or negative I welcome whatever you folks got to say.

'Till next time.

Episode 3: Hollow Patrol

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Episode 3: Hollow Patrol

Sunset watched her namesake with a slow, relaxing breath, trying to settle her nerves and pulling her jacket tight against a chilly wind that was blowing in from the west. On a Saturday evening like this the area in front of Canterlot High School was all but deserted. Sunset leaned against the back of the school’s front statue, recently repaired after its destruction just a few months ago. On her back she wore her school backpack, within which were several items, including a heavy mag-light, some snacks, water, a small first aid kit, and her journal.

Her Zanpaktou was carefully looped through her belt. She wished she had some kind of sheath for it but there were a couple of problems with that. One, she didn’t really know a store that just sold katana sheaths. Two, while the sword itself was invisible to normal eyes, a sheath wouldn't be, and the last thing she needed tonight were police pulling up next to her to ask why she was carrying around a sword sheath. She’d just have to be careful how she moved so she didn’t cut herself, at least until she had a reason to draw the sword.

As for her journal, she’d just tucked it away a few minutes ago, having finished writing to the Twilight Sparkle of Equestria. While she didn’t expect, nor specifically call for help from the Princess of Friendship, Sunset felt a lot better being able to pour out some of her worries and fears to her friend and fellow unicorn from another world. She held her friends in the human world close, but when it came to certain matters it felt just... more natural to vent to Princess Twilight. Especially Sunset’s worries about what the creatures known as Hollows might do, what kind of threat they represented.

Did Equestria have anything like this? Sunset had never heard of such creatures. Maybe Wendigos could be seen as similar? Spiritual entities that fed on other beings, but really that was only a superficial comparison at best. It really did unnerve Sunset, how foreign the Hollows felt. A supernatural entity, but one that seemed unique to the human world.

This is what I wanted, isn’t it? To discover magical and exciting things in the human world? To defend the city from dark magic? Heh... well Sunset, you got what you wanted. Really ought to be careful about what you wish for.

Her thoughts were interrupted at the sound of approaching footsteps and she saw her friends approaching. Apparently they’d managed to meet up on the way here. That or Sunset had just been early. Sunset laughed at herself, realizing it was very likely the later. She’d been so antsy, pacing around her apartment, she must have left at least half an hour earlier than needed to make the meeting.

“Hiya Sunset!” said Pinkie Pie around a cheerful smile as she bounced up, brimming with energy as usual, “Been waiting long?”

“Nah,” Sunset lied, leaning off the statue and meeting her friends down at the sidewalk, “Just got here. Everything ready?”

“I was just able to make the last adjustments,” said Twilight as she knelt down. She had her backpack slung around her shoulder, but also carried a smaller cloth case and unzipped it. Inside were seven small devices that looked very much like color coded cell phones; blue, orange, yellow, pink, white, purple and red. Each bore a marking on its clean plastic surface that Sunset recognized as, well for the humans they wouldn’t be ‘cutie mark’s per se, but in her mind that’s what they were.

Rainbow Dash leaned over Twilight’s shoulder, looking at the devices with a wry grin, “Great, now all we need are matching spandex suits and to decide who gets the Dragonzord.”

“Wrong crossover, silly!” Pinkie Pie said, snatching up her own pink device, which really did resemble a simplified cell phone as she flipped it open and examined it with wide eyes, “Oooh, pretty. How’s it work?”

The other girls had given Pinkie a strange look at her initial comment, but then again Pinkie tended to make weird off hand comments like that, so they ignored it as Twilight distributed the devices to their proper owners. Sunset looked at her red device quizzically. Her cutie mark was inscribed on the top back of the plastic case, and as she flipped it open she saw that it’s top portion had a wide screen while the bottom half had a few simple buttons, including a clearly marked on/off switch.

“These Hollow Detectors operate on the same basic principles as my metaphysical scanner,” said Twilight, unfolding her own to turn it on. The screen glowed to life with a soft luminescence, showing a menu screen with three rotating icons; a radar circle, a magnifying glass, and a alarm bell.

“This icon is the long range scan,” Twilight said, using the buttons to rotate to that icon and selecting it. The screen turned into a rough satellite display of the town in the immediate vicinity, with a green scanning line rotating around much like a radar. “It will pick up any energy signatures corresponding to a Hollow's, or at least what we can guess is a Hollow based on the data I gained last night, up to a kilometer and a half away. Sorry I can’t boost the signal beyond that, but it’s what I can manage on such short notice.”

“Oh that’s perfectly alright,” said Rarity, body tense but a certain relief in her voice, “This is quite amazing on its own and certainly make it so any of those dreadful brutes can’t sneak up on us.”

“And if one does get close that’s what this feature is for,” Twilight said as she backed out of the scanner screen and went over to the magnifying glass. Activating that icon looked as if it turned on some kind of camera function as Twilight showed the screen displaying a real time image of whatever was in front of the phone. Looking more closely at hers Sunset noticed there was a tiny camera lens hidden near the top middle of the Detector.

“This feature will concentrate a scan directly in front of the phone and render any unusual energy signatures into an approximate shape,” said Twilight, blushing slightly, “I know it’s not ideal, but it doesn’t seem like we can all see the Hollows clearly yet, so this will have to do in the meantime.”

“An’ I’m gonna guess this here last icon is a’ panic button, right?” asked Applejack, to which Twilight nodded.

“Exactly. If any of us are in trouble, hit that icon and it’ll send an alarm signal to all the other devices, including pinpointing on the radar map where the device sending the signal is. Actually I ought to add active tracking for all the devices at all times, but... I only had the one day.”

“Its okay Twilight, these are just like Rarity says; amazing.” said Sunset with an encouraging tone, and her sentiments were swiftly echoed by the other girls. Twilight’s blush deepened as she looked at the ground, as if trying to hide her smile.

“I just hope it’ll be enough,” Twilight said, then reached into her book bag and removed a series of small walkie talkies, “These are for just checking in with each other when it isn’t an emergency. They have more than enough range to reach across town.”

One by one the girls tucked the small black and yellow walkie talkies into skirt or pants pockets, after Twilight let them know what frequency to use.

“So what is the plan?” asked Rainbow Dash, “How’s this ‘Hollow Patrol’ going to go down?”

Sunset took a deep breath. She’d been putting some serious thought into this while she’d been waiting for the girls to show up, “My first instinct is that we should stick together. We won’t cover much ground, but we’d be more able to deal with any Hollows we find. That said, with these devices, we might not need to worry as much if we split up. The town is basically broken up into three parts; downtown, the suburbs, and the outlying farmland and forest. I’m pretty sure the Hollows will be where there are people, so for now I’d say the downtown and suburbs are our main concerns. So I say we split into two groups. Me, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie will take downtown. Twilight, you, Rarity, AJ, and Dash will cover the suburbs. We patrol until at least, say, midnight, then we meet up at one of the twenty four hour diners to refuel and then the teams will switch off locations.”

“Sounds good ta me,” said Applejack.

“Alright, let’s do this!” said Rainbow Dash, pumping a fist.

With that the girls set out, just as the last bit of sunlight slipped away behind the horizon.

----------

In the shadows shrouding the top of Canterlot High a figure stood, watching the girls depart down the street.

The figure wore a dark cloak, but beneath it a bit of ragged, wild gray hair could be seen, and equally wild magenta eyes as the figure chuckled rather erratically to itself.

“Seven little piggies out to play. Will they find the wolves before the wolves find them? Heheheh!”

----------

Life sucked. This was the fundamental conclusion Adagio Dazzle had come to in the months following the humiliating defeat of herself and her sister sirens at the hands of a bunch of irritating, two-bit high schoolers. It still didn’t make any sense to the eldest of the sirens, her hands clenching in barely contained ire as she thought about what had happened.

Equestrian magic or not it should’ve been impossible for a bunch of random human teenagers to defeat three sirens fully empowered by the adoration of an entire crowd of hypnotized people.

It was all Sunset Shimmer’s fault! We had them beaten! Then she steps in and turns it all around. Where did she get that kind of power? It’s not fair! We were so close... so damn close to having enough magic to...

To what? Escape this purgatory of a world that Starswirl had cast them into? Adagio wanted nothing more than to return to Equestria, although having masses of loyal, dominated subjects worshiping her was a close second. She figured achieving the later might somehow help with the former. With enough magic, anything was possible. If she had to she’d find a way to tear a hole between worlds with her own two hands! If only... if only...

“Hellooooo! Dagie? Anybody home?”

A pair of blue hands waved back and forth rapidly before Adagio’s eyes, and with a sigh like a bellows she glared at the blue skinned girl sitting across from her. Sonata Dusk’s cheerful smile seemed like a bur in Adagio’s gut, annoying the older siren in human guise all the more as Sonata let out a relieved sigh and held up a fork with a speared piece of fried chicken on it.

“Was worried you’d checked out there Dagie. Eat up! Got to keep our strength up you know.”

“Ugh, what’s the point?” muttered Aria Blaze, scowling and staring off into the crowd milling around the downtown mall’s food court, violet eyes hard as flint. “Human food might keep us alive, but it won’t make us any stronger, idiot.”

“Hey, I’m not an idiot,” said Sonata, pouting, “And it is important to eat! Or were you planning to go to work on an empty stomach?”

Aria’s jaw tightened, her pig-tailed head of blue and teal streaked hair bristling as she turned on the younger siren seated next to her, lips curled in a snarl, “I’m this close to just quitting this job, quitting the two of you, and ditching this town!”

“How far do you think you’d get?” snapped Adagio abruptly, fixing both her younger siblings with hard eyes. She held Aria’s gaze with steel in her own eyes, her voice coldly practical without raising above a low octave, “How far, Aria? If you’re not willing to work, how will you make money to live off of? Without our gems we can’t hypnotize anyone to give us what we want, can’t gather power by feeding off of any emotions. We’re trapped, powerless, in this worthless world. Leave if you want, but have fun starving alone, or freezing to death. Heh, if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll find a few of these monkeys that like your body enough to pay for it, because you sure won’t have any other way to make money on your own.”

Adagio only got a small bit of satisfaction at the absolute fury sparking in Aria’s eyes, but that feeling died rather quickly, leaving her feeling even more empty than before. Sonata gulped, looking between the other two sirens worriedly.

“H-hey guys, let’s just chill, huh? I know things are rough for us right now, but no need to be at each other’s throats over it, right?”

Aria literally spat, arms crossed, as much seeming to do something other than deck Adagio, “I don’t have to sit here and take this crap. Sell my body? As if I’d slink that low. I’d rather starve. But don’t sit there all high and mighty and pretend like you’re enjoying this any more than I am, Adagio!”

“Yo!” came a call from one of the burger joints lining the food court, “Lunch break is nearly up new girls!”

All three sirens shuddered a bit, looking over with tired, unhappy eyes at their present form of employment and seeming jail. Some back corner of Adagio’s mind knew they were lucky to have landed even these part time jobs. It’d taken all of her persuasive ability and charm, sans her siren powers, to convince the manager to take a chance on the three of them. Between all three of their meager paychecks it was barely enough to afford one cramped apartment and cheap food to keep them fed each week. These lunch breaks with free food from their work was a blessing, really, and Sonata had taken to sneaking away all sorts of stuff from the shop to concoct imaginative dishes at home.

It just left Adagio feeling more irritated to think that Sonata, the youngest and weakest of the three of them, seemed to be adapting to their hopeless situation the best.

“Well, our shifts going to be done soon anyway, so we can tear each other apart at home,” she said sourly, munching down on her tasteless burger. This time of evening the mall was winding down anyway, and in an hour or so they’d be off and could go ‘home’. Except for Adagio it’d never be home. No place in this world could be home to her. Home was lost, an entire world away, and only the thought of somehow, someday returning to it acted as the single ember in her mind that kept Adagio from sinking into utter despair.

----------

The city’s downtown district, especially on a Saturday night, was lively. Cars beeped and honked down the streets glittering with lights, and people both young and old jostled this way and that either out for a night of fun or taking care of last minute errands before heading home. On one hand Sunset was grateful for the crowd because it made her feel less conspicuous, but on the other hand it just meant that if a Hollow did appear then that many more people would be in danger.

“Anything yet?” she asked the two girls beside her as they rounded a corner that’d take them by the downtown district’s central mall, a place built within the first five stories of a high rising skyscraper, one of only three in the downtown that were tall enough to dominate the skyline. She had her own Detector out as well, looking at the screen as casually as she could so that she looked like any other teenager glues to their phone.

“Nope, not a peep, pop, or pip to be seen,” said Pinkie Pie, waving her Detector around as if that would improve reception, “Maybe the Hollows ain’t feeling peckish tonight?”

“I hope so,” said Fluttershy, looking around the passing crowds, “There’s so many people out tonight I can’t imagine what would happen if a Hollow attacked now.”

It would be ideal, Sunset supposed, if no Hollows appeared. It was foolhardy to immediately jump into trying to hunt Hollows down when, really, they’d barely scraped by when facing the one from last night. Yet it just didn’t sit easy with Sunset to do nothing. She kept her eyes alertly scanning their surroundings as they wandered along the sidewalk. Each shadow within a dark alley seemed to pop out at her, and her nerves grew tense with each passing step. The three girls were just passing within the front of the entrance to the shopping mall when Sunset felt a chill seep into her, making her halt in place.

“Sunset?” Fluttershy looked at her curiously.

Sunset turned, frowning, “I don’t know. I just thought I felt something.”

Pinkie Pie made a ‘hmm’ noise and looked herself over with a curious glance, “Not feeling any twitches myself. You sure yooouaaaah-” Pinkie Pie suddenly shook like an accordion from head to foot, her hair frizzing in several places. “Whoa, okay, never mind, I felt that!”

“Where’s it coming from?” Sunset grunted in frustration, looking at her Detector, “If we can feel it surely these things can detect it!”

However no sooner had she spoken that the scanner screen, displaying a detailed image of the downtown area, lit up with a blinking yellow dot. Information displayed, indicated the energy signature was up in the air, fifty meters, just to the north of the mall building.

All three girls looked up in that direction just as a Hollow’s piercing howl froze the air. In the sky there was a strange darkness, like a black tear in the air, or perhaps an opening maw. As Sunset watched this hole in the sky open wider, something dropped out of it, a long sinuous shape that wiggled through the air like a snake.

Or a centipede. Sunset’s eyes widened as the figure became more clear to her eyes as it fell and then latched onto the side of the mall building. Almost twenty meters long from head to tail the Hollow had the shape of a large, many legged centipede. Each leg was curved and bladed like a scythe, and its face was a wide bone mask much like the last Hollow’s, save that flanking the Hollow’s mouth were massive mandibles as big as broad swords. Yellow light glinted within the eye-holes of the Hollow’s mask, and it howled once more.

“Wow, that one’s way bigger than the last,” said Pinkie, shading her eyes, despite not really having to, “Uh, should we hit the panic button yet?”

Sunset’s eyes narrowed, her hand going to the hilt of her Zanpaktou, slowly drawing the blade from her belt. The Hollow hadn’t moved yet, and she saw that it was weaving its face through the air as if sniffing for something. Had it sensed her and her friends yet? Or had something else drawn it here?

“Fluttershy, get on the walkie talkie and let the others know we have one here,” Sunset said quietly, eyes darting around. So far they hadn’t drawn any attention from the crowd, despite stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. A few eyes curiously glanced their way, one or two passers by looking up at the building to see what the three strange high school girls were staring at, but upon seeing nothing the continued on about their business.

Fluttershy nodded and got out her walkie talkie, “Girls? Um, hello? Girls?”

Soon enough Rainbow Dash’s voice crackled over the walkie talkie, “S’up Flutters? You guys got one?”

“Y-yes. There’s a Hollow here. Um...” she glanced nervously between Pinkie Pie and Sunset, holding up her Detector and switching it over to the imager mode, “I-I can’t quite see it as clearly as Sunset and Pinkie Pie seem to, but it kind of looks like a big centipede.”

Twilight’s voice suddenly spoke up, “What’s it doing? Are you under attack yet?”

Sunset pursed her lips, wondering just why the Hollow was handing out on the side of the building, almost looking confused, and she said into her own walkie talkie, “It hasn’t attacked yet. It looks more like its looking for something. Maybe us, maybe not-”

At that moment, however, the Hollow’s face turned downward and pointed directly at the three girls, and Sunset felt a sweat drop trickle down her neck, “Actually, scratch that, I think it just noticed us.”

With a piercing howl the Hollow began to crawl down the side of the skyscraper, its scythe legs punching holes in glass and concrete alike as it went. Sunset tensed, “Its coming! You girls better hurry up and get here!”

“On our way!” said one of them, but Sunset was too busy focusing on the approaching Hollow to even pay attention to who. She pocketed the walkie talkie and Detector and held her sword with both hands, readying to dodge. “Fluttershy, Pinkie, stand back! Try to clear the crowds!”

Pinkie Pie saluted, “No problem.” She then sucked in a deep breath and let out a shriek louder than any Hollow’s howl, “AAAAGHH! Gas leak! The street’s gonna blow! Everybody run for your lives!”

If there was one person who could act psychotically panicked, and enjoy doing it, it was Pinkie Pie. She grabbed Fluttershy, laughing between screams, and drew the other girl away while waving her other arm around to ward off other people who were now looking at her as if she’d gone nuts. “Hurry up people! Run for it! My nose smells gas, and it might blow any second! Don’t you people watch the news!? It happened yesterday!”

That did spark a few memories in people’s minds about the ‘explosion’ at the grocery store yesterday, so many started to rapidly back away from that part of the street, others walking faster, though none yet broke into a run. It was enough, however, as Sunset was in the clear with nobody else nearby as the Hollow reached the street level and hit the ground with a heavy impact that cracked the ground and created a cloud of dust.

Here we go... Sunset thought as the Hollow burst from the cloud of dust, mandibles flashing and mouth opened wide as it came straight at her.

----------

Adagio gratefully threw off her sweat soaked work shirt and apron, only marginally feeling better as she put her her normal dark purple hoodie and let her massive head of curly orange hair hang loose, free of the hair nets she had to wear on the job. Ugh, jobs. It was so asinine.

“Can’t wait to get home,” said Sonata happily, practically bounding towards the back door that’d lead to a short hallway that’d in turn open up into one of the alley that ran along the side of the mall, “Mmm, a comfy couch, free network television, and no customers yelling at me about forgetting to hold the pickles. I don't know why. Pickles are tasty!”

Aria said nothing as she changed into her own hoodie, face a dour scowl since the lunch break. For a moment Adagio felt a twinge of regret that she’d torn into Aria so hard, but it... it’d angered her to hear Aria talk so casually of leaving. The three of them were sisters. A trio. They’d done everything together since childhood. How dare Aria talk about leaving like she could just do it like that without even thinking about it!? After all Adagio had done to try to make their lives on this miserable rock better!

Seething, Adagio stepped past Aria without saying anything and followed Sonata out into the alley. Aria fell in behind, glaring but also refusing to speak to Adagio. It was going to be a long, awkward night back at the apartment, Adagio thought to herself, before bumping into Sonata.

“Oof! Sonata! Watch it! Why did you stop?”

It was then that Adagio noticed that at the mouth of the alley a bunch of people were running by, several shouting or screaming, moving as if their lives depending on it. There was a faint dusty fog in the air, and as she watched Adagio heard a loud crashing noise and saw what looked to be a news stand flinging through the air, passing by the alley mouth in an instant.

“W-what?”

“Maybe we should take a different route to get home,” said Sonata with a nervous chuckle, backing up. Behind both of them Aria halted in the doorway, face a confused mask.

Adagio, feeling a sudden and very intense spike of unease put a hand on Sonata’s shoulder and pulled her back behind her protectively, “Yeah, another route. Good idea.”

Amid the crashing noises there was something else in the air. A sound faint but distinct. A howl?

“What is that?” asked Aria, “You girls hear that?”

Sonata gulped, “I think its time to mosey. Like, really fast moseying.”

The howls got louder, almost painfully louder, then someone appeared at the mouth of the alley and Adagio’s eyes turned wide as dinner plates and her heart ignited with anger.

Her!

It was Sunset Shimmer, looking quite a bit more haggard than last Adagio had seen her, but no less annoying defiant looking. In fact that look of hard determination on Sunset’s face was much like the one she’d worn when she’d ruined all of Adagio’s plans. Only now the look wasn’t directed at her and her sisters, but at some danger out of sight beyond the alley mouth. For all Adagio’s anger she wasn’t without her faculties, noticing that Sunset was carrying a strange sword in her hands, and that whatever she was facing down, it was probably the thing making all the noise.

Well, I don’t know or care what kind of trouble that little witch has gotten into. She can deal with it by herself. I need to get my sisters out of here!

Without thinking about it further Adagio pushed Sonata down the opposite direction, deeper into the alley, and grabbed Aria’s arm as well, “C’mon girls! Time to go.”

Aria looked sharply at Adagio but didn’t argue, and Sonata certainly needed no urging. However the three siren siblings only got a few steps before a massive crash behind them made Adagio look back.

Sunset Shimmer had jumped back into the alley, avoiding something that was chasing after her. Adagio couldn’t quite see it clearly. It was like some kind of huge, hazy shape that was partially invisible. It moved quickly, like a rabid animal, and slashed with some barely visible limb at Sunset, who leaped aside as the attack cleaved apart bits of the wall next to her, exploding plaster and concrete like confetti.

When Sunset, breathing heavily, glanced back at them, Adagio saw Sunset’s eyes snap wide in shock. The thing chasing her took advantage of the distraction, bearing down on Sunset.

For a second Adagio felt an immense sense of impending payoff, thinking of seeing this girl, this symbol of her torment, crushed in front of her. She began to smirk at Sunset’s shocked face, but at the same moment Sonata’s voice rang out.

“Look out behind you!”

Sunset was snapped out of her shock by Sonata’s warning and ducked the blow, slashing out with the sword in her hands and apparently hitting something because Adagio heard the nearly invisible thing howl loudly, making her head hurt.

Dang it Sonata! she thought, but there wasn’t much ire in it. A part of her was actually a bit relieved. She hated Sunset Shimmer, but she wasn’t at all sure she wanted the image of the girl’s dead body haunting her memories either. Sonata’s warning was probably for the best.

“Ugh, run you idiots!” was all Adagio said, turning and fleeing with her sisters towards the back of the alley, leaving Sunset to face whatever monster that thing was alone.

----------

It was around the point where the Hollow was pushing her back halfway down the alley, her Zanpaktou barely holding off one of its scything legs, that Sunset realized that perhaps this was all a rather terrible idea. Getting a lucky hit in on one Hollow was not the same as being ready to battle another that wasn’t going to just let her slice it with ease. The centipede Hollow was canny and swift, attacking relentlessly while not giving her a chance to get a counter strike in.

Her feet skidding across the wet pavement of the alley, Sunset pushed off with her Zanpaktou, the blade sparking against the centipede’s scythe leg, and she managed to leap back to get some distance. So far that was all she’d been able to do, keep her distance and try to lure the Hollow away from the crowds. That was why she’d heading for the alley. She hadn’t expected to see, of all people, the sirens. It’d taken her completely off guard to see those three just standing there in the alleyway, looking just as shocked as Sunset had felt.

She’d lowered her guard in that moment, and knew that the Hollow would’ve struck a possibly fatal blow on her if one of the sirens hadn’t shouted a warning just in time. Sunset was grateful, surprised, but grateful, but she still was finding it difficult to do more than defend herself against the Hollow. What was worse was that the sirens were fleeing down the alley, but Sunset had been to this mall before and had once or twice explored the back alleys on pure curiosity. The way the sirens were running led to a chain link fence. They might be able to scale it, but it’d slow them down. Sunset had planned to do that, but hadn’t expected just how hard the Hollow would press her.

She wasn’t sure where Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy had gone, until she saw both girls at the mouth of the alley behind the Hollow. Pinkie Pie had grabbed a fire extinguisher from somewhere, and Fluttershy while unarmed and shaking, looked determined to try and help. Sunset wanted to shout for them to run until the other girls showed up, but she didn’t even have breath for that as the Hollow ducked its head low and tried to snap at her with its mandibles.

Sunset side stepped, slashed in downward arc with all her strength. The edge of her Zanpaktou clashed with one of the mandibles, the force of the impact jarring Sunset to her core. The strike had managed to redirect the Hollow’s lunge into a dumpster, smashing the metal bin inward but slowing the Hollow for a second. Sunset took advantage of the moment of bought time to turn heel and join the sirens’ in their flight down the alley.

One of the sirens, the one with the orange hair (what were their names again?) turned her head and glared at Sunset.

“Hey, stop following us! You’re just leading that thing towards us!”

Sunset gulped air, trying to catch her breath, managing to shout, “D-don’t have much of a choice! There’s a fence ahead, better be ready to hop it!”

“Oh for the love of-! This is your fault!” growled the orange haired siren, but one of the others, the one with the dark purple pigtails shouted, “Less blaming and more running, Adagio!”

“Y-yeah, running waaaay more important right now!” said the blue haired siren, who was beating feat faster than any of them.

The Hollow was right behind them, having thrown aside the now demolished dumpster and bellowing out a howl that made Sunset want to clutch at her ears. The sound of its many legs ripping into the pavement as it tore after them was like a thousand daggers digging into her brain. She imagined she could feel the Hollow’s breath on the back of her neck, even if she wasn’t at all sure Hollow’s bothered with things like breathing.

Up ahead the alley made a sharp right between the mall building and and office building behind it, and Sunset saw the sirens rush that way just ahead of her own sprinting form. Feet a blur, Sunset just barely avoid the Hollow’s charging body as she sped off down the turn while the Hollow’s momentum carried it into the wall in a resounding crash that saw the wall of the office building smashed in.

Up ahead was the chain link fence, a good eight feet tall and blocking off the alley from what looked to be a small garden area around the back of the office, the kind of space that office workers might go for a quick smoke break or lunch. Beyond that was another sidewalk and street, and Sunset could see more pedestrians that way either passing by or milling around curiously due to the commotion a street over.

Only the commotion is coming to them. I got to stop the Hollow here before we reach the street, Sunset thought grimly as the sirens hit the fence like squirrels up a tree. Made Sunset think those three had some practice climbing fences.

Sunset herself was no less swift, for all that she had a sword in one hand. She shoved the hilt into her mouth, holding the sword tightly as she clambered up the cold, hard chain link fence. The move wasn’t so unnatural to her. She’d been a pony, once, and holding objects in her mouth, while awkward with human anatomy, wasn’t too strange for her. Reaching the top of the fence she swung one leg over and got her sword back into her hand, and was about to hop down, when the Hollow reared above her. It stretched its centipede body upward, and began to swing its whole body down to try and crush her. Sunset flung herself from the fence, not a controlled drop but a desperate lunge for safety.

She was still clipped by the Hollow’s smashing body, sent spinning to hit the ground roughly and roll through several garden bushes and beds of pebbles. The Hollow’s size was enough that the move also smashed several of the garden’s small trees, and catch up to the sirens, flinging them in different directions.

Sunset breathed heavily, head spinning. The fall had hurt, but she hadn’t broken anything, and was able to stand fairly fast, before even the Hollow had managed to regain its balance from its body slam. The three sirens were also standing, though now the three had been separated with the orange haired Adagio on one side of the Hollow with Sunset, and the other two sirens stuck on the other side.

As if the Hollow sensed its prey was scattered it slithered its long body forward, coiling it to block the way out of the garden and to the streets while using the other half of its body to keep a firm barrier between Sunset, Adagio, and the other two sirens.

“Dagie!” shouted the blue one, “What do we do?”

Adagio, face a swirling torrent of both fear and fury, shouted, “Run you morons! Don’t wait for me!”

There did seem to be a fire escape leading up the side of the office behind the other two sirens, so Sunset imagined those two could escape easily enough, but to her surprise she heard the blue one shout, “No way! We’re not running off without you!”

“Beside who’re you calling morons!” shouted the other, “Think you can try and play it cool!?”

Adagio roared with frustration, but the Hollow wasn’t waiting for the sirens to argue it out and snapped its head towards her. Sunset moved faster, lashing out with her blade. She managed to catch the Hollow beneath the mask, slicing a shallow cut along its lower jaw, which made the Hollow break off its attack with a pained howl. Behind Sunset, Adagio blinked.

“I-I didn’t ask you to protect me.”

Sunset shook her head, “I’m protecting everyone! That thing will consume whoever it can get its filthy claws on! You, my friends, me, random people! I have to stop it!”

Adagio’s eyes burned with some smoldering mix of resentment and fear, but as she looked at the Hollow that look only turned harder, “Fine, then how do we kill it!?”

“I just need to be able to cleave that head with my sword,” Sunset said, “That killed the last one.”

“Last one!? How many of these things are there?” Adagio shouted, but the Hollow forestalled any more talk as it shook off the shock of its wound and lunged once more, lashing out with several of its scythe like legs at Sunset. Adagio threw herself backwards, while Sunset instead ducked forward and to the side, dipping beneath the Hollow’s slashing legs while thrusting up with her blade.

Her Zanpaktou managed to penetrate a joint between the scythe and elbow of the leg, and Sunset dug her heels into the ground and twisted the sword, pulling hard. The move ended up cutting through more than half the leg, leaving it hanging limply as blood splattered from the wound.

Sunset would’ve felt more satisfaction if the Hollow didn’t have so many more leg’s left, and if she wasn’t already feeling dog tired. She was definitely not used to this kind of heavy activity. Being in a band was tiring, but this was a whole different level of tension as she pushed her body to keep moving.

The Hollow twisted to face her, faster than Sunset was prepared for, and bite furiously with gnashing mandibles. Sunset stumbled back, losing her footing, and saw the sharp mandibles reaching for her.

Abruptly a burst of fire extinguisher smoke billow out and engulfed the Hollow’s head, distracting it and throwing it’s attack off just enough to miss Sunset by inches, cutting her jacket. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy had just hopped the fence, Pinkie with the fire extinguisher in hand and blasting more smoke at the Hollow.

“Hurry Sunset! Get it!”

Sunset wheeled around, fully intending to get the Hollow while it was distracted. Its head was lowered and shaking, half obscured by the billowing white smoke. Sunset charged, then jumped, slashing down hard with her sword at the Hollow’s head. At the last second the Hollow turned its head just enough that the sword hit a mandible, rather than the mask itself. The Zanpaktou bit deep into the mandible, then cut through, severing it entirely. Yet whatever sense of accomplishment Sunset felt was short lived as the Hollow rammed its head into her gut and sent her flying backwards.

She felt herself hit the fence, bouncing off and hitting the ground hard.

Struggling to regain her breath and her senses, Sunset staggered to one knee, hand gripping her Zanpaktou tight. She could feel a warmth from the blade, as if it was heating up, or perhaps heating her up. Either way, despite the pain she found herself able to stand.

“Come on then!” she shouted at the Hollow, eyes gleaming dangerously. “I’m not done yet!”

Off to the side Sunset saw that Fluttershy was making her way towards Adagio, who was on the ground. When had Adagio been hit? The Hollow was flailing around enough Sunset supposed a stray limb might’ve clipped the siren. She looked only a bit bruised as Fluttershy helped her up, but Adagio shoved the other girl away with an angry look. By now the Hollow had moved around enough that the other two sirens had a clear line to Adagio and the blue one hopped up and down, waving.

“C’mon Dagie, make a break for it!”

Adagio didn’t hesitate, turning and running from the concerned looking Fluttershy to head for her sisters. In that moment the Hollow followed the siren’s movement and Sunset saw the beast’s yellow glowing eyes narrow.

No!

The Hollow, ignoring Sunset, lunged at full speed for Adagio Dazzle.

Sunset rushed to try and intercept the blow, but could tell in the sick, slow motion of her adrenaline rush that there wasn’t a chance that she’d make it in time.

----------

Adagio ran faster than she’d ever run before, hating her weak human legs every step of the way. In front of her she saw her sisters waiting for her, Aria halfway to the fire escape already, but looking back with wide eyes showing genuine worry and fear for the first time in a long while.

Sonata remained at the bottom of the fire escape, waving with her arms as if she could pull Adagio to her faster. The pure terror flashing into Sonata’s eyes was the only warning Adagio got before the entire world seemed to explode and twist, her whole body feeling numb as everything spun wildly.

Then there was a moment, just a brief moment, of blackness.

When Adagio blinked her eyes open, she felt strange. Light, and not very tired. It was almost like waking up from a restful sleep. She sat up, and saw she was still in the garden, still facing that horrible centipede monster, with her terrified sisters nearby. Only Adagio was now up against the wall for some reason, and Aria and Sonata weren’t even looking at her.

“W-what are you two fools doing!? Hurry up and run already!” she snarled, standing. Why did these two have to be so difficult!? Didn’t they understand she didn’t want to see either of them get hurt!?

Something was wrong. Her sisters weren’t looking at her, even as she shouted. Enraged, Adagio shouted again, “What’s the matter with you!? I said...”

She trailed off, finally turning her head to look at where her sister’s horrified eyes were glued. Something made a metallic clinking noise as she turned. The Hollow was in the middle of the garden.

Impaled on its one remaining mandible was Adagio. Or rather, Adagio’s body. A body she realized with stark fear she didn't appear to be inside anymore.

From that body a chain sprouted, the chain leading across the way until it connected to Adagio herself, who looked down to see the chain was linked straight into her chest, as if it were a part of her. Fear colder than any she’d ever felt washed through her as her trembling hands reached for that chain, tugging at it. It was solidly connected to her. Her stupor was only broken by the scream that tore itself from Sonata’s throat, a soul killing sound of despair.

“Adagio!”

That scream pierced Adagio, making her reach out for her sister.

“No, it’s okay, I’m right here-”

Adagio’s hand passed right through Sonata, the younger siren not responding at all as she fell to her knees and started bawling, tears streaming down her face.

Aria, on the other hand, jumped down from the fire escape, eyes filled with such raw rage that Adagio took a step back from her.

“You...” Aria stepped towards the Hollow, veins throbbing on her forehead, fists clenched so tight blood seeped from between clenched fingers, “You... don’t touch her!”

Aria charged, completely of control, screaming her rage and denial. All Adagio could do was stand there stunned, uncomprehending of what was going on as Sonata cried beside her.

----------

Sunset Shimmer couldn’t fathom what had just happened, but she had her guesses, but all of it had to wait. The siren with the pigtails was charging the Hollow in a mindless rage, and if Sunset was going to prevent... prevent another death she had to move!

She continued her initial charge that’d been meant to save Adagio, whose body now hung limply from the Hollow’s mandible. Sunset could see the chain leading from the body to what she had a sickening feeling was Adagio’s soul standing not far away, but there wasn’t time to think about that. This Hollow had to be stopped, now.

Both her and and the pig-tailed siren seemed like they would reach the Hollow at the same time, and Sunset prepared to jump to go for a decapitating blow. The Hollow saw them coming, rearing up to strike, but then a voice cackled out loudly.

“Bad dog! No more play time!”

A roar of what sounded like gunfire exploded in the garden, and a barrage of bolts flew in from above and smashed into the Hollow’s head. In a split second the Hollow’s head was blown half off with a final howling wail. The beast dissipated, its form shimmering out of existence, leaving Adagio’s body to fall.

“Sister!” the pig-tailed siren shouted, diving to catch the falling body.

As the siren cradled her fallen sister Sunset looked up at where the voice had spoken and the gunfire had come from.

A hooded figure stood on top of the office building, outlined by the glow of the full moon. The figure carried a huge weapon that looked like a many barreled bazooka wrapped up in tight white cloth, obscuring most of its form save for its vague shape and a single handle with a trigger. All eight of its barrels were smoking.

The hooded figure leaped down from the top of the office building, easily a height of over a hundred feet, and landed lightly beside the siren cradling her fallen sister as if she’d dropped no more than a step.

A unhinged female voice spoke from the depths of the hood, “Whoops. Guess I should’ve acted sooner, but I seriously thought the Soul Reaper sub had this. Hooooo boy, ain’t she a mess?”

“Who are you!?” snapped the pig-tailed siren. Sunset found herself stepping forward, while Pinkie Pie came up behind her alongside Fluttershy.

The figure removed her hood, revealing a woman just shy of her middle years. Light blue skin and a vulpine set of features were accompanied by a wild, utterly unruly head of gray hair. The woman’s eyes had a skittish look about them, of a reddish purple hue.

“Me? Call me Screwloose. Been ordered by my boss to keep an eye on the lot of you. Well, not you three,” she said, gesturing at the sirens, “You three piggies just joined in the chase on your own. But these piggies,” she pointed at Sunset, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, “They’re the ones I’m supposed to watch. Which I did! Can’t say I didn’t do that. Just maybe I guess the boss wanted me to act as well, but he said not to unless I had to and seriously, how am I supposed to be able to tell when I should or shouldn’t step in, right?”

“You... you could have killed that thing at any time,” said the pig-tailed siren, holding her fallen sister tightly, “And you waited until after it impaled my sister to do it!?”

“Yeah, yeah, my bad. Hey, look, you want to save your sister or what?” said Screwloose, fingering her ear and not even looking at the fuming siren.

“S-save?” the siren breathed.

“Can you do that?” asked Sunset, stepping closer. Looking at Adagio she noticed that the siren’s body didn’t seem to bear an actual wound, almost as if the Hollow’s mandible went through her spiritually rather than physically.

“Oh, maybe. The Hollow knocked her soul out of her body so it could feed, but technically her body isn’t dead yet. Not unless something severs her soul chain,” said Screwloose with a bored air, “If we get her back to the shop the boss might be able to stitch her soul back in. Assuming you can pay him for it.”

“Pay?” Sunset frowned, “To save a person’s life? Who is this boss anyway?”

Was this the ‘expert’ that Clover had said she’d arrange to watch over her and girls? So far she wasn’t exactly impressed. Screwloose didn’t seem to be bothered by Sunset’s ire, making an offhand gesture.

“Eh, I’ll let him worry about introductions, and payment. The boss doesn’t deal with common cash, and could ask for just about anything as a price for his help,” Screwloose said, eyebrow twitching slightly, “Yes, he has all sorts of prices he likes to ask for.”

“It doesn’t matter!” said the blue siren, standing suddenly as she wiped at her tear streaked eyes, “Whatever it is, I don’t care! We’ll pay! Please, we’ll pay anything! Save her! Save Dagie!”

Screwloose grinned widely at that, “Well then, an eager customer. The boss’ll be happy. Why don’t you girls follow me then!”

At that moment, rushing across the street at a full spring, were the forms of Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, and Rarity. All four girls came to a skidding halt, Twilight all but shouting past panting breaths, “I’m so sorry we came as fast as we could! Where’s the... Hollow?”

All four of the newly arrived girls blinked at the scene before them, the trashed garden, the woman with the bazooka-like weapon, and the three sirens, one of which looked all but dead.

Twilight scratched the back of her head, “So, uh, what did we miss?”

Episode 4: The Shopkeeper

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Episode 4: The Shopkeeper

To say that the group of girls rapidly walking down the street, one of them having to be carried, was tense would have been an understatement of massive proportions. The two sirens Aria and Sonata were carrying the body of Adagio between them, not unlike Applejack and Rainbow Dash had done for Clover the previous night. The only difference here was that the actual Adagio, or rather her soul, stiffly walked beside her sisters and her body, the thick metal chain connecting her to her body clinking with each step.

Adagio’s mind was a storm of erratic thoughts.blending into one another half formed. She couldn’t keep from staring at her limp body slung between her sisters, feeling queasy. The crazy looking woman named Screwloose seemed to think there was a chance to get Adagio back into her body, but the whole situation felt so surreal it was hard to feel assured of anything.

Then there were the girls ahead of her and her sisters, the ones who had landed them in this mess in the first place. They walked in a tight cluster, sometimes whispering among themselves, or occasionally looking back at the sirens behind them. Sunset Shimmer especially kept casting furtive, tense looks backwards, a twitch of guilt in her eyes whenever they met Adagio’s.

This is your fault. All of this. If it wasn’t for you... me, my sisters, we’d be safely home. Not that junky apartment, but our true home. Equestria. All your fault...

“H-hey,” said Sonata, “You guys are sure you can see Dagie, like, her soul or something?”

The fearful concern in her voice was clear and it snapped Adagio out of her brooding for a moment to look at her sisters with a guilty expression of her own. Twilight Sparkle responded first, though most of the girls from Canterlot High looked back at Sonata’s question, some of them actually looking at Adagio herself.

“We can, or at least some of us can. She’s there, walking right next to you, just a few feet to the left. Um here,” Twilight took a small purple device that looked to Adagio like a cell phone, and after a few button presses she handed it to Sonata, who took it gingerly with one hand while still helping carrying Adagio’s body with the other.

“What’s this thing?”

“Just point it this way,” said Twilight, gesturing towards Adagio, and as Sonata did so, hand trembling slightly. Then Sonata gave a small gasp, eyes glued to the cell phone, “I see her! I mean, a I see a weird glowy blob that’s kind of shaped like Dagie! But I’d recognize that poof of hair anywhere! Hey! Dagie! I can see you!”

“Ugh,” Aria grunted as Sonata’s excited gesturing nearly caused them to drop Adagio’s body, “Sonata, watch it! Fat lot of good it does to see her soul if we end up dumping her body and cracking her skull.”

“Oh, um, s-sorry,” Sonata said, carefully handing the phone shaped device back to Twilight Sparkle. As she did so Adagio heard the younger siren whisper, “Thank you,” to Twilight, and it made Adagio fume. Thanking these girls? They were the reason this whole mess was happening in the first place!

There was nothing she could do about it. Her life hung by a thread, and the dubious mercy of the boss of the strange woman who was leading them. The streets were still crowded, and a few of the passing humans gave the group of apparent high school girls being led around by a woman in a black cloak a strange look, especially with one of the girls being carried by two of her companions. Most of those watching just shook their heads with amused smiles, and Adagio could imagine they thought the unmoving body being carried was just a girl who’d gone a bit too eager into her first night of drinking.

She supposed it was better than anyone calling the police about people shuffling around a dead body. Or nearly dead.

Screwloose herself was not an encouraging guide, constantly chuckling erratically to herself and mumbling under her breath. With the frizzy, unkempt hair it only added to the distinct aura the woman put out of being more than a tad unhinged. Stranger still, that weapon she carried had vanished under her cloak in a manner that seemed quite physically impossible, given its bulk.

They’d gone about three blocks from the site of the attack by that monster when Screwloose abruptly hung a left down a narrow alley. There was only a small moment of hesitation from the gaggle of girls before they followed her, and Adagio felt a slight shiver entering the alley. She was starting to think her and alley’s were a bad combination. If she lived through this she resolved to avoid them as much as possible.

The narrow alley stretched out ahead of them, almost seemingly forever. It left Adagio shaking her head in confusion, as if something was trying to muddle her brain as they walked down the alley’s tight, confined corridor. As they walked it sounded even as if their footsteps were being muted, all noise having a quieted, echoing quality to it. On a whim Adagio glanced back, and blinked. The mouth of the alley was gone, replaced by a turn in the alley that made it look like they’d already gone through several turns.

What is this? Magic?

Adagio didn’t know what to make of it all, but what choice was there except to keep going forward?

----------

Guilt gnawed at Sunset, worrying away at her gut like a hyperactive puppy with a bone. Nevermind that she didn’t have any particular reason to like the sirens, that was besides the point. She’d wanted to keep people safe by dealing with the Hollows, not get anyone hurt. Or killed. That thought chilled her. Whatever this Screwloose woman said it didn’t change that, at this moment, Adagio’s soul was torn out of her body. Nothing about that struck Sunset as safe.

And she’s only in this condition because of me, Sunset thought with one hand clenching around the hilt of her Zanpaktou, I led that Hollow right to her and her sisters. I couldn’t defeat the Hollow fast enough to keep it from doing that to her.

Adagio’s death glare any time Sunset glanced back was proof enough of how the siren felt about the matter. As for the other two, whose names Sunset had finally learned were Aria and Sonata, she wasn’t sure if they blamed her or not. Sonata just seemed terrified and anxious to help Adagio. Aria looked like she wanted to commit murder, but that anger didn’t seem directed any anyone or anything specific, rather just a general ire spread out to everything that wasn’t her sisters.

Some part of Sunset was telling her she shouldn’t feel that bad, that the sirens weren’t deserving of sympathy after the fiasco with the bands, but Sunset squashed such thoughts quickly. Anyone deserved a second chance, and of all people Sunset Shimmer understood that lesson best. Whatever they’d done, or might do in the future, Sunset felt confident that helping them now was the right move. She just wished she had been able to do more to keep it from getting to this point.

“All passengers keep your arms and legs inside the guidelines and brace for landing,” said Screwloose suddenly, cackling softly under her breath. She’d led the girls to a cross section in the alley leading off in four different directions, and Sunset got the distinct feeling of something in the air. Perhaps magic, or perhaps something else, but it almost tasted like the air was thick with an energy that made Sunset’s tongue tingle.

“Alright, where in sam heck are we?” asked Applejack, “I can’t tell nothin’ ‘bout where we’re at an’ I’ve been tryin’ ta pay attention.”

“Oh but that’s the point my pretty sunflower,” said Screwloose, “Misdirection wards to confuse the senses. You need a ‘pass’ to get through, or a guide with a ‘pass’.”

She reached into her cloak and pulled out a small trinket, a wood block carved in the shape of an unusual symbol that looked very much like a stylized skull. Laughing once more Screwloose held out the pass towards one of the alley’s turn offs, and the air shimmered. Orange light filled the alley as a barrier of energy barred their path, though only for an instant. As the pass touched the barrier a doorway opened up within it, just wide enough for one person to walk through.

“Go on piglets,” said Screwloose, “Head on in. I have to go last to keep the way open.”

Sunset went through first, her friends filing in behind her, and the sirens taking up the rear just ahead of Screwloose. Once all of them were through the barrier sealed up behind them on its own. Beyond the barrier the alley swiftly opened up into a plain looking courtyard, a dirt lawn and a old, broken cobblestone path leading up to a squat two story building that nestled between much larger buildings like a barnacle lodged between docked ships. The building was mostly made of wood, with a stone foundation but the rest simple wood planking. A front awning covered the front of the building, from which hung a sign. It was in lettering that Sunset couldn’t read, not at first, but as she looked at it the letters seemed to wiggle and writhe until they spelled out, “Discount Import Sundries, Candies, and Other Random Delights.”

The girls hung there for a moment, taking in the sight of the dilapidated building and its strange sign, but Screwloose didn’t give them more than that before striding forward, “C’mon, no gawking. You want the pretty fish girl saved, right? Every second wasted just means her soul chain gets weaker.”

“Just what is a soul chain,” Sunset heard Adagio ask, the siren soul tugging at the chain implanted in her chest, “You still haven’t explained anything!”

Screwloose waved a hand dismissively, “Would’ve thought it was pretty obvious. Soul chain. Chain that attaches your soul to your body. If it gets severed, you're no longer attached to your body; ie dead as a doornail. We’re not talking quantum physics here, just soul mechanics.”

“Fish girl? So you know what they are?” said Sunset, “How?”

Adagio shot a glare her way but Screwloose ignored it and chuckled as she led them up to the shop’s front, a pair of double doors. “Boss knows everything that goes on in town, including that niffy concert and light show you lot put on not too long ago. Oh, not to mention both your's and the purple nerd’s little dip into magical girl transformations, or does the term ‘raging she demons’ fit those events a bit better?”

Sunset blanched, exchanging a look with Twilight who had gone a tad pale. Suddenly Rarity stepped forward, eyeing Screwloose with a frank stare, “As interesting as this all is, a woman’s life is in danger, so let us move things along, yes?”

“Fine by me,” said Screwloose, opening the door to the jangle of the bell hanging above, “Hey, boss, I’m baaaaack!”

One by one the girls shuffled inside, the front of the shop getting crowded very fast. Pinkie Pie seemed happy to shuffled between the shelves, eyes widening at some of the candies on display. Sunset noted that most the shelves in this front of the store were filled up with candies or packaged pastries, yet some of them looked very... odd. She wasn’t even certain all of it was actually edible.

Sonata and Aria leaned closer, more protectively, around Adagio’s body as they eyed the poorly lit shop, the first with nervous worry, the second with narrow eyed suspicion. Sunset found Rainbow Dash next to her, the other girl whispering, “This doesn’t look like the kind of place you’d go to for help.”

“Oh but looks can be so deceiving, can’t they?” said a man’s voice as a sliding door at the back of the shop opened. From it stepped a mature man whose exact age Sunset had trouble placing. He was wearing very casual and usually eastern styled clothing, his sandal clogs clacking on the wood floor as he stepped forward, holding a green and white stripped hat to his head. When his eyes glinted from beneath the brim of that hat Sunset felt an odd shiver pass through her. The shopkeeper’s eyes were yellow upon red.

The man looked at the lot of them, made a ‘hmm’ sound and turned to give Screwloose a flat look, “I take it the rather simple task I gave you of watching those girls and making sure they didn’t get into too much trouble didn’t go so swimmingly?”

Screwloose coughed and tapped one of her feet, looking away, “You said to keep an eye on these seven here, and just these seven. Which I did. They’re totally unharmed. It’s not my fault some random extras slipped into the middle and got hurt.”

The man stroked his chin, which bore a tuft of white beard, “I suppose not. No punishment detail for you then. So, why bring them here?”

At that point Sonata nearly ran forward, only held back by the fact that she had to drag her sister’s body with Aria’s help. Just behind them Adagio herself followed, for once looking less angry and now more nervous as she kept eyeing her flaccid body and the chain connecting her to it.

“Please,” said Sonata in a voice filled with desperation, “You gotta save my sis! Some creepy monster, like, knocked her soul out. The weird lady that works for you said you could save her. Please, we’ll pay any price you name!”

The man looked at Adagio’s body, then not much ot Sunset’s surprise he looked straight at her soul standing not far away. “Hmm, I might be able to do something. Bring her to the back and I’ll see what kind of help I can offer, and what kind of payment I’ll expect in compensation.”

As Sonata nearly fumbled over four or five rapid ‘thank yous’ amid bursting tears Sunset also took a step forward to join them but the man held up a hand, “Just these three. The rest of you can wait here. I’m sure we’ll have plenty to talk about once I’m done with my present customers.”

Sunset blanched a bit at that, but took a deep breath and nodded, “Fine. We’ll be waiting.”

----------

Screwloose had also vanished into the back of the shop with the mysterious shopkeeper and the three sirens. Sunset and her friends had taken to finding what comfortable spots they could around the shop front, with Sunset herself sitting down to lean against the wall next to the door, sword propped up next to her. She’d dug into her backpack to get out the snacks she’d brought and she saw many of her friends followed suit, having brought their own odds and ends to nibble on. A glance at her phone told Sunset it was half past midnight, and for all her earlier energy she was feeling pretty battered and drained.

Two nights in a row of battling hideous ghost monsters was taking its toll and every bit of her ached, now that she wasn’t moving.

“Anyone else wondering why we’re sticking around here?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Whatever do you mean, Rainbow?” asked Rarity as she examined some of the shop windows, “We want to know how things turned out with that Adagio girl, don’t we?”

“Do we?” said Rainbow Dash, “I mean, I get that it bites for her and her sisters that she’s all hurt and stuff but its not like we’re friends with those three. I mean, shouldn’t we get back out there to look for Hollows?”

“No offense Rainbow Dash,” said Twilight, “But if anything I think what just happened shows it might be too much for us to handle patrolling for Hollows, at least until we’ve found a better way to fight them.”

“What, so Sunset had a spot of bad luck,” said Rainbow Dash, pressing onward with a determined look, “If those siren chicks hadn’t shown up and distracted her I bet Sunset could’ve taken that Hollow, or at least held it off until we got there to help put the hurt on it.”

“It could have easily been one of us in Adagio’s place right now,” said Fluttershy, hugging herself. She looked up at Rainbow Dash, “I’m not saying we shouldn’t keep trying to stop Hollows from hurting people, but maybe Twilight is right that we should wait until we have a way to do that without getting hurt ourselves.”

“More to the point,” said Sunset, “I want to see who this shopkeeper is and what he knows. He’s clearly a lot more in the know than we are. He might know how to better fight Hollows than what I’ve been trying. Besides, I do want to know if Adagio is going to be alright. Not a friend thing, just... she got hurt because of me. I owe it to her to stay.”

Rainbow Dash looked like she wanted to argue, but at a touch on her elbow from Applejack, the farm girl giving a solem shake of her head, Dash sighed and said, “Yeah, okay, I get it. Just after seeing what one Hollow can do I ain’t keen on letting those things have their way with my hometown.”

“I’m thinkin’ we’re all on the same page on that one, sugarcube,” said Applejack.

“This place is awfully run down for a shop owned by a man of apparent means,” said Rarity, gliding along the storefront, seeming unwilling to stop moving, perhaps too jittery to do so, “Also has anyone else noticed how deathly quiet it is in here, or am I imagining that?”

Sunset cocked her head, curious now that Rarity had mentioned it. Aside from her friends talking the entire shop was completely silent in a way that almost made it feel uninhabited. Whatever the shopkeeper was doing with Adagio, Sunset thought at least she might’ve heard something, some kind of background noise. In fact, a place as old looking as this ought to creak quite a bit, but there was nothing.

“Strange,” said Twilight, carefully reaching into the pocket of the dark purple and red flannel blouse she wore and pulling out her magical scanner, “I wonder if this place is just built to be soundproofed, or if there’s a magic involved.”

“You could probably find out with that interesting nic-knack of yours,” said the shopkeeper as he returned, practically flourishing his way through the back door, “But I warn you it might explode in those pretty hands if you turned it on inside my shop. We have some rather, erhm, volatile goods in stock.”

Twilight paled, hastily putting away the scanner as the rest of the girls stirred, Sunset standing up unsteadily. “Is Adagio going to be okay?”

“Well, why don’t you ask her yourself,” said the shopkeeper with a crooked grin stepping aside from the back door and clearing the way for Sonata and Aria to walk through. Aria had a strange look on her face, like she was trying to keep from bursting out laughing while still being furious. Sonata looked both incredibly relieved, happy, and anxious all at once as she cradled something in her arms, hugging it tightly.

The object in question was a plush doll, about the size of a forearm. Shaped like a miniature yellow siren with orange frills, with big magenta button eyes and a fuzzy flipper tail. Sonata was all but crushing the doll to her chest, making little ‘squee’ noises at it. Sunset just blinked in pure confusion.

“I... don’t get it. Where’s Adagio?”

Suddenly the plush doll mumbled something loudly into Sonata’s chest, to which she giggled, holding the doll up, “Heheh that tickles Dagie! Stop it, I wanna keep hugging you!”

The small siren plushie opened its mouth and yelled, in Adagio’s clear voice, “I said you’re smothering me you moron! I might not need to breathe in this thing but I still don’t want you crushing me like a pillow! Gah, this is undignified!”

Sunset and every one of her friends just stood there in utter bewildered shock, all eyes so blankly wide that a Hollow could tear apart the store around them and they’d probably have not noticed. Sunset was pretty sure her brain had decided to check out for the evening.

Noticing their stupor the small siren doll, the Adagio doll, turned and glared at them as best as a plushie that weighed no more than a single pound could manage, “What’re you all staring at!? I’m stuck in this body because of you!”

“Oh relax Dagie, it won’t be forever,” said Sonata, still hugging Adagio tightly, and she looked over at the shopkeeper, “Right?”

The man gave a few quick nods, slick smile still on his face, “I don’t lie to such lovely young girls. As I told you before we transferred your sister’s soul into that temporary gigai, I shall be working to repair the damage done to her true body post haste. The Hollow’s attack damaged her body’s connection to her soul, along with other complications stemming from you girls’ rather unique identities. In about a month’s time I should have your sister’s body repaired and ready to accept her soul back into it. In the meantime that gigai should serve well enough.”

“Says you!” barked Adagio, and actually floated in the air, her little plushie siren tail waving angry as she slipped from Sonata’s grasp to put her fuzzy nose up against the shoppkeepers, “You made this thing to look ridiculous on purpose, didn’t you!? I bet you had much more suitable gagas-”

“Gigais,” the shopkeeper corrected.

“Whatever! Why’d you stick me in this useless little plush doll!?”

Holding his hands out to his sides in a harmless gesture and adopting an apologetic smile the shopkeeper said, “I just thought you might appreciate a swift, small body to help you avoid any further dangers while I repair your real body, my dear. You did listen to me when I told you how badly damaged your soul really was, yes? Both your soul chain and your soul sleep were injured from that blow you took, and if you take another such hit again... well, I’m sorry to say that will be that. Even my extensive, genius abilities won’t be able to help you then. So, yes, I thought a small, inconspicuous form that was very good at running away might be best for you, don’t you agree?”

To that Adagio continued to grumble but backed off, floating reluctantly back to Sonata. In the meantime Aria crossed her arms and gave the shopkeeper a level stare, “Just make sure you keep your end of the bargain, old man.”

“Oh, do I look like someone who’d back out of a deal?” asked the shopkeeper, putting a hand over his heart, “I mean really, how could I run a respectable establishment if I gained a reputation for going back on my word? As long as the pair of you fine young ladies run some errands for me while I work upon your sister I assure you, she will be returned to you good as new.”

“Is that the price you asked of them?” Sunset found herself asking, “Sonata and Aria have to work for you now?”

Aria turned a sharp stink eye towards Sunset, “What’s it to you what we do? Its none of your business!”

“Now now now, no need for shouting,” said the shopkeeper, smiling politely as he tipped his hat to Sunset, “Before we go any further, my dear girls, I think some introductions are in order.” He reached into the folds of his dark green shirt and withdrew a plain white paper fan that he unfolded with one hand and proceeded to lightly fan himself as he gave the girls a short bow. “As you no doubt have guessed I’m the humble proprietor of this not quite so simple candy shop. Among other things I act as a neutral party that caters to various individuals whose needs run towards goods and services of a supernatural nature. You girls may refer to me as Mr. Discord.”

The name instantly struck a chord inside Sunset’s mind and her mind went sailing back in time, scrolling across her memories of what felt like practically another lifetime ago. As a promising student and apprentice to Princess Celestia herself Sunset had been privy to all manner of lore during her studies, and although she had not always been the most humble student, she had possessed a thirst of knowledge and a love of mythical tales, of which Equestria had no shortage of.

Few such stories were as prominent as the tale of the entity known as Discord, an draconequus and embodiment of chaos that had put Equestria through a serious period of unrest before the Princesses had managed to stop him with the Elements of Harmony. It was only through her recent correspondence with Princess Twilight that Sunset had learned Discord had been freed, defeated again by Twilight and her friends, then released once more to be reformed by Equestria’s Fluttershy into something almost approaching a respectable member of society. Or at least not nearly as dangerous as he’d been before.

Sunset was getting used to the idea that the human world had equivalent persons for practically everypony back home, just meeting ‘Principal’ Celestia alone had been quite the mental trip when she’d first got here, but it still shocked Sunset to be staring at a man who was this world’s equivalent to her world’s master of chaos.

Yet at the same time it wasn’t that surprising, especially considering he seemed to be more than enjoying her and her friend’s confusion.

“Guess it’s a pleasure ta meet ya,” said Applejack first, though her tone indicated she wasn’t so sure just what to make of Discord, “Name’s Applejack.”

“Oh, I already know who all of you are,” said Discord with a wink, “Why it's been rather hard not to hear of the girls who have kept this town from falling into chaos, what, three times now? First when Miss Shimmer here went a tad power mad, then when these colorful sisters tried to drain power from the local student body, and of course who could forget the most recent fun with the Friendship Games, with all those fascinating portals opening up and Miss Sparkle here doing an encore of Miss Shimmer’s previous performance? Why one hardly needs Hollows and Soul Reapers running about town for it to still be lively around here.”

“So you know a lot about us,” said Sunset, “Where do you fit into all this? What are you?”

“What a personal question,” said Discord, chuckling dryly, “Perhaps you can tell me instead what are you?”

“What do you mean? You can’t tell just by looking at me?” Sunset asked cheekily, trying to maintain control of the conversation and getting the distinct feeling that control wasn’t ever there to begin with, “I’m just a regular high school girl.”

Discord smirked knowingly, gesturing at the Zanpaktou leaning up against the wall, “Ah, yes, I keep forgetting that high school girls are well known for carrying the weapon of a Soul Reaper. Hunting down Hollows is also a normal pastime for a ‘regular’ high school girl? Come now my dear, let’s not pretend either of us are as normal as we want to appear. You, or your friends. Now, what do you say we go in back, have ourselves a nice little sit down with a cup of tea, and talk about your rather unique situation?”

The girls exchanged hesitant looks, except perhaps for Pinkie Pie who looked as if she wanted to go over to Sonata and try and give the plushie Adagio a hug, and was only being held back by the death glare from Aria. With apprehension Twilight leaned towards Sunset, whispering, “I don’t think we have much choice but to go along with it. I can’t help but point out we can’t even leave that barrier without a pass.”

It was an excellent point, and Sunset wished she’d thought of it sooner, although she had to admit it probably wouldn’t have changed her decision to come here. One look among her friends told her that they’d follow her lead, though Rainbow Dash was looking agitated enough to chew through the walls.

“Alright,” she said to Discord, “Lead the way.”

“Yo, what about us?” spoke up Aria, “We free to go or what?”

“Oh, yes, yes,” said Discord, snapping his fan closed and with his other hand pulling out a wooden, skull carved pass from his robe and tossing it to the siren, Aria catching it deftly with one hand. “I’ll call on you when I have need of you, which may be quite soon, but do feel free to go home. Although the offer of using my abode as your own is still open. I have plenty of space.”

“Thanks, but we’ll pass,” said Aria, and Sunset noticed Adagio was looking irritated at the other sirene, perhaps because Aria seemed to be taking charge for the time being as she looked over at Sonata, “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

“Okay!” Sonata chirped happily, holding Adagio close as the three sirens strode out of the shop. Sunset watched them go and saw Adagio watching her from over Sonata’s shoulder a the sirens went out the door. Even from a small, admittedly cute plushie, that look made Sunset shudder a bit.

But she put the sirens from her mind for the time being and refocused on the matter in front of her. She retrieved her Zanpaktou and then followed Discord as he cheerily led them through the sliding door at the back of the room. Here was a short hallway that stretched off to the left and right, and Sunset almost instantly recognized that the hallways looked far longer than what she’d think could be contained inside the relatively small looking shop. She somehow wasn’t surprised.

Discord neither went left nor right but instead straight ahead, where the seemingly plain wall actually turned out to be another sliding door, leading to a somewhat small sitting room where a circular table took up most the center space. There was enough room for all the girls to find a seat, but Discord remained standing, taking up a spot along the wall with a casual lean as he gazed at the seven young women before him with appraising eyes.

“Well now, let’s get some tea to relax with. Screwball!”

Another part of the wall next to Discord slid open and a small girl in a white and pink dress, her poofy purple and white streaked hair bouncing, stepped in. “What’cha want boss? I was just getting the pretty ladies body hooked up like you wanted.”

“Oh, finish that, but after could you be a dear and brew us all up a fresh pot of tea? It may be a long evening and I think all these girls could stand to have some of that tension seeped out of them with something nice and relaxing.”

“Right away boss, heheh,” the girl said, giving Sunset and her friends a wink and a wave as she bounced away.

Sunset watched her go for a second, then switched her attention to Discord, “Hooked up? What exactly are you doing to Adagio's body?”

“Nothing that isn’t necessary,” said Discord plainly, “Until her soul can be returned to it the body has to be kept in good condition. Now enough about them, let’s talk about you. All you girls have had a rather rough couple of nights, haven’t you? Quite suddenly thrust into conflict with Hollows, seeing that the world isn’t all that it seems. Then again, the lot of you already knew the world wasn’t exactly mundane, what with one of you being a magical pony.”

Sunset flinched, and Rarity pipped in, “Okay Mr. Discord, how do you know so much about us? I don’t know about everyone else but I for one am rather uncomfortable with your insistence on this cryptic manner of yours.”

“My apologies, Miss Rarity. My information comes from many sources, but I haven’t been monitoring your school directly. That said, it hasn’t been that difficult to discover the true nature of your friend or the portal that exists on the school grounds. Why, even your friend Twilight here was able to learn all of that, and she did it practically by accident with a cobbled together device of her own.”

“C-cobbled together?” said Twilight, sounding almost insulted, “I spent a lot of time refining my scanner.”

“And an impressive piece of work it is,” said Discord, “Especially for being built by someone who didn’t even know what she was looking for when she first built it. In fact all of you girls are rather talented in your own ways... if only those ways were useful for combating Hollows perhaps Miss Adagio wouldn’t have found herself in the state she is.”

“Whoa, hold on there buddy!” said Dash, hands slamming into the table, “That wasn’t our fault!”

“Oh, I’m not saying it was,” said Discord holding up a placating hand, “But you cannot deny that if any of you, especially Miss Shimmer, had more power then the Hollow wouldn’t have been as much of a threat.”

“If your employee had acted sooner the Hollow wouldn’t have been a threat either,” pointed out Rarity.

“Alas I don’t control every single action of my staff,” said Discord with a shake of his head, “I did tell Screwloose to ensure no harm came to the seven of you, but I had no input on her moment to moment decisions. Ultimately it doesn’t change the fact that were, say, Miss Shimmer more capable of using the power of that Zanpaktou of hers then perhaps the next time you face a Hollow it can be dispatched without any harm coming to anyone.”

“That would be nice,” said Fluttershy, “I don’t want to see anyone being hurt, by Hollows or anything else, but how can we do more than we’re already doing? I was right there when Adagio was hurt and there wasn’t anything I could have done.”

“An’ ta be honest, it ain’t no sure thing we coulda done anythin’ if we’d been there too,” said Applejack, glancing around the table, “I mean, me n’ Dash might’ve tried doin’ fisticuffs with the critter, but no tellin’ if that would’ve helped or just ended up with one o’ us needin’ the plush doll treatment instead of Adagio.”

Pinkie Pie for a moment let her carefree look slip into a tiny frown, “Hollow’s are pretty big and tough. Next time I’ll have to bring my party cannon.”

“I suppose it is rather obvious at this point that we need some manner of edge against these brutes,” said Rarity with a light sigh, curling one finger around her hair, her next words coming reluctantly, “That, or we perhaps just... call it quits?”

“Quits?” asked Rainbow Dash, as if the word itself was some kind of curse.

“Well, darling, if we can’t fight Hollows without getting hurt, or others getting hurt, then perhaps we should just not fight Hollows at all. Clover did say they were hunting us, and the Hollow was chasing Sunset specifically tonight. Perhaps if we just, well, stayed at home and didn’t go out it would spare both us and others the trouble.”

Rarity didn’t sound entirely convinced herself of what she was saying, but Sunset understood what the other girl was talking about. However there was an issue with Rarity’s suggestion, and Sunset heaved out a large sigh as she said, “I understand what you’re trying to say Rarity, but there’s a problem with us just trying to hide from this. We can’t stay locked up in our homes forever. We have to go back to school come Monday. What will we do if a Hollow attacks while we’re in class?”

Rarity pursed her lips, hanging her head, “I suppose that is a good point. Even if we stayed at home, there’s no telling if a Hollow might not attack us there as well... with our families around.”

“I ain’t brinin’ this kind o’ trouble back ta the farm, wit little Applebloom there ta get caught up in it,” said Applejack firmly, “Maybe Big Mac might try ta fight it out, but I don’t even want him gettin’ invovled in this. No way, no how.”

“I sure don’t want my mom and pops or any of my sisters having to deal with these super scary things,” said Pinkie Pie, “I’d waaaaaay prefer to take on the big bad Hollows out on the streets than at home or school.”

“And even then there’s still a chance we might get attacked there anyway,” said Twilight, who fixed Discord with a curious stare as she adjusted her glasses, “One thing among many I’ve been wondering about is why now? Why are Hollows appearing now? Nothing like this has ever happened before.”

“Oh, Hollows have always been here, and everywhere,” said Discord off handedly, “They are the souls of the dead, unable to find peace in the afterlife. Any time a person dies their soul must be sent on by the hand of a Soul Reaper. If they are not, its inevitable at some point, perhaps months, perhaps years or decades, that a lost soul will transform into a Hollow. Soul Reapers keep the Hollow population under control so that they don’t bother the living, however things changed rather recently in this town when Hollows started to appear in far larger numbers than before. The increase was small at first, but more and more have been appearing ever since...” he tapped his chin, smiling in surprise, “Why, ever since about half a year ago when you had your little brush with dark magic, Sunset Shimmer.”

Sunset felt her mouth go dry and her heart beat skip a note, “Are you saying this started happening because of me?”

“Perhaps, perhaps not. It may have been your transformation that fateful night, or it may have been the overuse of that interesting portal to another realm. It does seem to be that every time you girls got caught up in a situation at that school of yours the Hollow population increased in this town, as if they were being drawn here. By what, specifically, I have no idea,” Discord shrugged helplessly and at that moment Screwball returned with a tray of cups and a steaming pot of tea.

The girls all sat silent for a minute or two as tea was poured and they took a few sips. Sunset had to admit the tea was very refreshing and helped wash away some of the fatigue and aches from her body. Her mind, however, was whirling. Bad enough that she had gotten the sirens caught up in this business with Hollows, but to think that she might’ve been responsible for the Hollows being in town in the first place was one that made her gut twist sickeningly.

“It's not a light burden,” said Discord simply, sipping his own tea, “What you girls are trying to take on. Soul Reapers fight, and many die, every day keeping Hollows in control all over the world. Their society has evolved over thousands of years to combat this constant threat to the stability of the world, a necessary but constantly exhausting war... one all seven of you have unwittingly stepped into and made this city a center point of. Now I don’t know exactly what the Soul Society might do next. Certainly Clover has made her report by now and things will change for the seven of you drastically in the coming weeks. All I can say is that, if you are resolved to face this head on, I can offer my assistance in preparing you girls to fight, and win, against Hollows.”

Sunset cast a sidelong look at Screwball, the young girl leaning against the wall and smiling as if at some private joke, her swirling purple eyes watching them with amusement. She turned her gaze back to Discord, voice level, “And what will be the price of this help?”

“Well, I’m a generous soul with new customers,” said Discord, pointing at Sunset with eyes glinting with eagerness, “My help has but one price tag in this instance. You girls will give me your word that if there ever comes a time when I am in need of your aid, you will lend it, just once, without question.”

“Oh no, I know how these things turn out,” said Rainbow Dash, “This is going to be one of those things where we agree thinking it’ll just be like some random innocent thing but then BAM you’re asking us to do something crazy like help you take over the world. Nu-huh, no way, I’ll take my chances with the Hollows on my own.”

“Come now Miss Dash don’t be so dramatic,” said Discord, “If it makes you feel better I’ll add this addendum; if any of you have legitimate moral objections to the future favor I ask then you are free to dismiss it, no repercussions.”

This made Rainbow Dash grimace, but she leaned back in her seat, arms folded as her brow furrowed in thought. The other girls all looked around at one another, all of them showing various expressions of uncertainty. At last it was Fluttershy who spoke, “I think we should trust him.”

“Are you sure about that Fluttershy?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Personally this guy gives me the creeps. I think we can do just fine on our own, we don’t need his help.”

“I git that ya don’t like takin’ a deal without knowin’ the full price Dash,” said Applejack, “I ain’t real fond o’ the notion either, but fact is we need the help, an’ he did just say we can back out if we feel whatever he ask o’ us ain’t somethin’ we can live with doin’.”

“Sunset? What do you think of this?” asked Twilight nervously, hands fidgeting, “I don’t suppose it could hurt to take him up on this offer. We’ve already seen that his servants have weapons that can hurt Hollows, so clearly he knows about fighting them.”

The girls all looked to her and Sunset wanted to squirm under the combined force of their eyes, but she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders, meeting Discord’s waiting gaze. “Alright then, Discord. You help us take on Hollows, and we’ll help you, once, down the road, as long as whatever the help is it isn’t something we have good reason to object to.”

Discord’s smile seemed entirely too wide for his face as he snapped his fan out, fanning himself as he came up to the table and leaned over it, his free hand extending towards Sunset, “Well then, we have a deal.”

After a second of hesitation Sunset stood, reached out, and clasped his hand, “Yeah, we have a deal.”

----------

Later that night the girls were gathered at a street just at the edge between the downtown and suburbs. Each in their hands carried a wooden skull pass that would allow them to return to Discord’s shop when the wanted to. He had explained that the passes were just the first step in his help for them, and that as long as they kept the passes on hand either of his staff, Screwball and Screwloose, could more easily find the girls if they were in danger.

He’d also said that if they waited a few days and came back to the shop sometime during the school week he’d have something prepared to help train the girls in fighting Hollows.

“I still think this was a mistake,” said Rainbow Dash, pocketing her pass and looking sourly at the ground.

“It’ll be fine, Rainbow darling,” said Rarity, “While I admit the man seemed rather less than genuine in all his aspects I don’t think if he meant us harm he’d have let us go so easily.”

“I think he honestly wants to help us,” said Fluttershy, flinching a bit at Rainbow’s stare, “I mean, it's just a feeling I have. He may act strange, but I just felt like there was... I don’t know. He seemed sad, to me.”

“Really, with all that grinning he was doing?” asked Pinkie Pie.

“It's just a feeling,” Fluttershy repeated, shaking her head, “So are we going to look for Hollows tomorrow?”

The question hung in the air. Sunset’s hand strayed to the hilt of her Zanpaktou, looped through her belt. When she touched the blade she could almost swear she felt heat within it, struggling for an outlet. Looking back at her friends Sunset said, “If all of you are up for it, yes.”

“You could all stay at my home again to rest and prepare, “ said Twilight, rather hopefully. It occurred to Sunset that Twilight probably had never had friends over to her home before last night, and she smiled.

“We’ll make it a full sleepover.”

At Twilight’s return smile Sunset knew she’d made the right call. Hunting Hollows wasn’t going to be easy, tonight had proved that beyond a shadow of doubt, but Sunset had to remind herself it was her friendships with this girls that would strengthen them all to bear the burden of whatever was to come.

----------

Upon a infinite plane of pale white sand several dark mesas of stone rose like an onyx forest. Between the shadowed cracks of these mesas Hollows gathered in a shifting, howling horde. Some gnashed teeth and tore at each other, their unnatural hunger overwhelming them as they sought to consume souls, even the corrupted souls of each other. Others hung in tight groups, familiar packs that warded off other Hollows that stalked among the horde.

It was unusual for Hollows to gather in this numbers, not without the will of a much stronger Hollow or group of Hollows to force it. As it happened there was such a group. These four Hollows stood head and shoulders taller than any of the others in the horde, their heavily muscled bodies hunched over stone boulders as if they were thrones.

“We’re running out of time,” said one of the large Hollows, a creature that looked like a humanoid shark with a large fin sprouting from its back and a mask lined with knife like teeth, “If we don’t get at least one of the souls soon those bastards from the fortress will lose their patience with us.”

“The problem is that we kept sending these scrubs,” said another of the Hollows, one with a female voice, her body like that of a vast, coiled snake, but bearing the upper torso of a praying mantis. She pointed with a large claw at the Hollow horde, “None of them are strong enough to get the job done. I say we stop it with the half measures and go ourselves. It won’t matter then, and we can appease those Arrancar to get off our backs.”

“I don’t see why they don’t go hunting themselves,” said the grating voice of a Hollow whose form looked as if some deep sea urchin had a skull face implanted into it, “Even one Arrancar would gather plenty of souls, the whole damn town, without trouble.”

“Don’t be a fool,” said the last of the four Hollows, a huge, hairy thing whose body was little more than a mass of hair with a pair of large, spindly hands, and a huge grinning mask poking from the hairy bulk of its body, “An Arrancar would bring down all the Soul Society upon that town. That’s why they’re using us. Lower class Hollows don’t attract too much attention, even in great numbers. It’s also why we won’t get involved unless we have to. For now, we continue to send these lesser Hollows. Its only a matter of time before we snag one of the souls the masters in Las Noches desire.”

“Hmph,” said the female snake Hollow, “Well I for one am tired of sitting around waiting. I’m going. With my power I can keep hidden from any Soul Reaper eyes, and if I do find one of these unique souls the Arrancar want, I’ll snatch it up myself.”

The big hairy Hollow let out a rumbling chuckle, “Do as you please, but don’t expect any help from us if you get into trouble.”

“Tch, as if I would need help.” said the snake, slithering off the rock in a whisper of scales as she flowed away from the meeting.

----------

It was well past two o’clock in the morning by the time the girls got back to Twilight’s family mansion, all of them exhausted and famished from the night’s events.

“We still have plenty of food left in the pantry,” said Twilight, “So we can fix up a quick dinner before heading to bed, or you girls head to bed. I think I’m going to spend some time studying this.”

She held up the pass from Discord’s shop, eyeing it with a keen light of curiosity. Sunset had to laugh. Only Twilight would consider research before sleep. “Just don’t spend the whole night playing with it, Twilight. You need some rest too.”

“Oh I can sleep in if I have to, I just want to see how this works and maybe if there’s a way I can duplicate it.”

Rarity gave a small, lady-like yawn, “Well, while food sounds lovely I almost think I might skip it to hit the proverbial hay. I’m utterly drained.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty party pooped myself, but no worries, I’ll put all my culinary power towards a fast but tasty dinner first,” said Pinkie Pie.

As the girls went to the same side door as before, Twilight opening it up with her brass key, there was a noise behind them, just like a sudden gust of wind. They all turned and Sunset blinked in surprise. Standing behind them was Clover, the Soul Reaper looking much better than before, and standing with a curt, polite stance as she approached them.

“I returned as fast as I could,” Clover said plainly, a bit stiffly, Sunset thought as the Soul Reaper stopped a pace away, “The Soul Society has heard my report and made its decree as to what is to be done.”

At that, Clover bowed to Sunset, her form rather rigid as she did so, “I have been assigned the task of training you as a Substitute Soul Reaper. I look forward to working you.”

Episode 5: Training Day

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Episode 5: Training Day

Monday morning started off normally for Sunset Shimmer. She rolled out of her crumpled, small bed, padded over to the bathroom while still working out kinks in her joints and yawning. A shower washed away most of her morning fatigue and she threw on a comfy white bathrobe while she brushed out her hair and went about making a quick breakfast of cereal and sliced apple, the sunlight filtering in through the windows to light up motes of dust in the air.

Quiet and peaceful, if not for the black clad Soul Reaper who was now perched outside her window.

“GAH!” Sunset nearly spilled her cereal as she scrambled away from the table, blinking at the window. Outside Clover just slide through the wall like it wasn’t even there, a ghostly spectre yet somehow still looking completely solid and real as she poked her head through the window.

“Good, you’re up. I was wondering how long you were going to sleep. We have a lot to go over today for training!”

“Look,” said Sunset, calming herself with a few slow breaths as she resumed her seat, “I told you I have school each morning during the week. Training will have to wait until after class.”

“But if a Hollow attacks-”

“Me and the girls will figure out an excuse to leave class and we’ll handle it together,” said Sunset calmly, “But there hasn’t been another Hollow since Saturday. We’re just going to take this one step at a time Clover, alright?”

Clover’s lips pressed tightly and her eyes flashed for a moment, but her voice kept its polite and upbeat tone, “If you’re willing to put in the extra work after school hours then I suppose there’s no problem with it. I can probably handle any Hollow issues during your classes anyway. As for your friends, I’m still not certain I approve of them going into combat against Hollows. The living shouldn’t have to deal with such things; that’s the whole point of the Soul Society and Soul Reapers.”

“It’s their choice,” said Sunset curtly, though a part of her rather agreed with Clover, “And since we’ve made that deal with Discord,” she shuddered a bit at that, “It only makes sense my friends continue to be involved.”

“Mr. Discord is a reliable enough ally,” said Clover as she floated into Sunset’s kitchen fully and landed in front of the table, standing straight and rubbing her chin with slim gray fingers, “At least as long as he gets his due. I’m not sure how he intends to help your friends fight Hollows, however. I suppose he might give them weaponry similar to what his servants use... well, I suppose we’ll see in due time. Just be prepared for the worst. This isn’t a game we’re playing here.”

“Believe me, I know,” said Sunset, mind flashing back to that slow, horrific moment she saw Adagio get impaled, “I more than know.”

As if sensing what Sunset was thinking, having heard the whole story already, Clover’s expression softened, voice easing with sympathy, “I guess you do at that. It could have turned out far worse for that girl. If she’d truly died you would have had to perform Konso on her soul.”

“Konso?”

“Soul burial. It is the process by which we Soul Reapers send non-Hollow souls, Wholes, to pass on to the Soul Society. It is a technique that is easy to perform, but I will have to show it to you... probably today, actually,” said Clover with a somber undercurrent to her otherwise energetic tone. “It is just one of many duties you will have to get used to as a Substitute Soul Reaper.”

“Yeah, about that,” Sunset started to put away her cereal bowl and then went to her room to get dressed for school, Clover following behind, “I’m still not clear on what that means. What, have I been drafted into your organization?”

“In a sense,” said Clover, leaning up against the door as Sunset threw on some clothes, “Its a rarely used title that...that...”

As Clover trailed off Sunset glanced up, wondering what she’d stopped talking, only to see Clover turned around in the doorway, cheeks flushed. “What’s wrong?”

“You, uh, you were getting dressed. I’m just being, you know, polite...” said Clover.

Sunset blinked, looking down at herself. She’d had on her bathrobe in the kitchen and hadn’t even thought twice about taking it off to fish out some underwear and other clothes for the day, leaving herself rather exposed in the process. It hadn’t even occurred to her that it’d be inappropriate. She’d lived most of her life as a unicorn pony from another realm, where clothes were optional and she’d rarely bothered. Even as a human she hadn’t much noticed or cared about the taboos against nudity, especially when she was alone in her own apartment.

But I’m not alone, and Soul Reaper or not, Clover has all the same hang ups humans have about this kind of thing, she thought as she laughed to herself and said, “Sorry about that. I’m not used to having company over. This won’t take but a minute.”

She hurriedly got dressed, her usual teal shirt skirt along with blue jeans and black boots, tossing on her leather jacket over it all.

“Okay, I’m decent. You can get back to telling me about this whole Substitute Soul Reaper business while we walk to school.”
Clover visibly gulped, saying in a suddenly mousing voice, “...okay...”

Before leaving her apartment Sunset retrieved her Zanpaktou and placed it inside her guitar case. She figured that would be the easiest way to carry it around until she worked out a better solution. Rarity had told her yesterday that she was working on something that would ‘compliment Sunset's new position and weapon with style’.

She and Clover were halfway down the first block of Sunset’s usual fifteen minute walk to the school when Clover resumed, “A-as I was saying, Substitute Soul Reaper is a title that’s only been used once before in the history of Soul Society, so the Captains did not come to this decision lightly. Oh, I ought to tell you that too... oh, there’s so much to go over! This is like having to teach basic classes at the Academy all over again.”

“Don’t worry about too many details, just give me the basic rundown about what applies to me. I don’t need to know everything on day one,” said Sunset, trying to give Clover an encouraging smile.

“Okay, well, basically your position is that of a temporarily recognized ally of the Soul Society who is allowed to use Soul Reaper powers; wielding a Zanpaktou, and...uh, well if you want, eventually learning Kido spells. Oh, and there’s things like Hoho techniques for fast movement, and Hakuda for unarmed combat. I’ll just be focusing on your Zanpaktou for now, and maybe if I can, maybe show you how to use Shunpo in time. Anyway, as this Substitute Soul Reaper you’re not part of any of the 13 Court Guard Divisions, just an ancillary individual under the blanket authority of the whole Soul Society. As it happens you’ll mostly be under my watch as a member of the 12th Division, which is in charge of research and development of any and all technology the Soul Society makes use of. I’m 3rd seat in the 12th Division, which puts me directly under Lieutenant Meadowbrook and Captain Starswirl-”

Sunset nearly tripped over her own feet, just barely catching herself as she stared dumbly at Clover, “Starswirl!? Starswirl the Bearded?”

Clover paused, blinking at Sunset, “Uh, well, he does have a beard, but I don’t think anyone’s ever called him by a title because of it. Wait, how do you know Captain Starswirl?”

“I, well, I don’t,” admitted Sunset, “I’ve just heard that name before. Historically speaking. Probably just a man with the same name.”

Definitely a man, or rather stallion, with the same name. There wasn’t a student of magic anywhere who didn’t know the name Starswirl the Bearded! There were conventions that still drew crowds that celebrated one of Equestria's most prominent mages. Perhaps she ought to be surprised that in this world he might’ve passed on, and then become apart of something like the Soul Society. Come to think of it, Meadowbrook was a familiar name too, another well known unicorn mage, albeit from the east and not as prominent in Equestria as Starswirl. It seemed this Soul Society attracted all sorts of historically noteworthy people.

Clover seemed to accept Sunset’s explanation with a nod and shrug, and Sunset figured that was for the best. Not that she thought the whole issue of her being from another realm entirely was going to be too much of an issue, but things were complicated enough already without adding that to the mix unnecessarily.

“Right then, as I was saying, you’ll basically be acting as a Soul Reaper for this town, performing the duties of protecting it from Hollows, with my help of course, until such time as the Captains make a decision as to your long term status. This matter of being a Substitute is only a temporary affair until they deliberate further, you see.”

“So what will happen to me and my friends in the long run?” Sunset asked.

“Worst case scenario is that they decide to remove your powers as a Soul Reaper and have you and your friends’ memories of these events erased,” said Clover, bluntly, but honestly, “There were several harsher minded Captains that wanted more... extreme solutions, but cooler heads prevailed. It's possible that, if you take to the role as a Substitute, that you may be allowed to keep the position for, well, as long as you want it. Until the Captains reach a decision we’re to do what we can to get you up to speed.”

By now they’d reached the street that Canterlot High was on and Sunset saw dozens of students passing by on their own way to class, buses stopping and unloading a colorful river of various young folk filtering into Canterlot High’s front doors.

“Well, suppose I’ll see you after...class?” Sunset glanced around. Clover had already vanished into thin air. Sunset gave a small, rueful smile, shaking her head and heading on into the school.

----------

The school day was as normal and uneventful as just about any of the many such days Sunset had faced in the past. Her essays due in Mr. Cranky’s class were turned in, albeit with a twinge of worry as to their quality as she’d had to basically do a rush job on them on Sunday, but given all that had happened Sunset could accept a B over her usual A grades this time around. If anything several of her teachers seemed more concerned with Sunset’s apparent fatigue and still present bruises, garnering a few questions if she was alright, which she brushed off with reassurances that she’d just had a bit too much fun camping over the weekend.

At lunch she had gathered with the girls and briefly gone over what Clover had told her, most of her friends accepting it with simple nods, or in Pinkie Pie's case playing with straws while not really paying attention.

“It's unfortunate that this ‘Soul Society’ could just decide t erase our memories out of the blue,” said Rarity in a tense tone, “Rather foreboding, really.”

“Clover made it sound like it wouldn’t come to that, but I know what you mean,” said Sunset.

“It worryin’, but a drop in the bucket compared ta what we already got on our plates,” said Applejack, “Speakin’ o’ which, Clover tell ya just what this trainin’ o’ yer’s is gonna be like?”

“Not really any details, but I’m not expecting it to be easy. Guess I’ll find out soon,” said Sunset, and felt Flutterhy’s light touch on her shoulder.

“Whatever it is, we’ll be there to support each other.”

“Yeah,” said Pinkie Pie, “And maybe soon with the help of Mr. Creepy Shopkeeper we’ll mysteriously one by one get super powers of our own, then form the center of a coalition of misfits from a myriad of different factions in a epic battle for the fate of the universe!”

At the stares Pinkie Pie shrugged, “What? Too much like the source material?”

After a second the girls decided to ignore Pinkie Pie and Rarity leaned in towards Sunset, “I can’t give it to you here, but as soon as schools over and we meet with Clover I have just the thing for your special sword. I’m just certain you are going to love it.”

Sunset laughed lightly, “I don’t doubt it Rarity, looking forward to what you’ve got.”

The rest of the day went by a in a blur of going through the motions, Sunset’s eyes always sliding towards the windows during class, as if expecting to catch a glimpse of either a black clad Soul Reaper going by, or the horrific form of a Hollow. She and all the girls had their Detectors on hand, just in case, but there wasn’t a single beep from them, and when the bell rang to let school out Sunset nearly jumped, half thinking the sound had been her Detector going off. Putting a hand on her chest and slowing her breath, she shouldered her backpack, retrieved her guitar case from her locker, and heading out towards the soccer field where she’d agreed to meet the girls.

Rainbow Dash was already there, kicking around a soccer ball, probably to work off some nervous energy Sunset imagined. Applejack and Pinkie Pie showed up next, joining Sunset in watching Dash do her thing. Before long Fluttershy and Twilight also arrived, leaving only Rarity as the last girl to show up. When Rarity did arrive it was with a long case wrapped in dark red cloth. She had a particularly satisfied smile on her face and had a happy bounce to her step as she approached Sunset and held out the case.

“Go ahead, look inside. I did some research to ensure I did everything correctly and I hope you’ll be pleased by the results. Come now darling, open it!”

Rarity’s giddiness was a bit infectious and everyone gathered around, even Rainbow Dash setting down the soccer ball to come over and see what Rarity had made. Sunset wasted no time, unwrapping the red cloth and opening up the black lacquered case within. Inside the case was a sword sheath, wooden and carved delicately from what looked to be deeply varnished wood that made it look like a smoky wine red. Upon the sheath a image was carved, wrapping the length of the mouth of the sheath almost halfway down. It was a phoenix, the noble beak and crest of feathers detailed in their carving, all the way to the flickers of its curled wings and tail that seemed to almost pop off the sheath as if alive. Beside the sheath there was a dark orange sash with a clear loop for the sheath, something Sunset could easily wear under her jacket with little obstruction.

Gulping, Sunset reached out a hand and gently ran her fingers along the smooth length of the sheath, “Rarity, it's beautiful. You did this in one day?”

“Oh of course not. I did it in two! I’d started as soon as I could Sunday, and finished today before school. Now I’m not entirely certain I got the length right, I mean, I’m good at eyeing my measurements, but I would like to see you try it out to make sure it's a proper fit.”

“Wow Rares, I mean, I knew you could belt out a whole line of dresses in no time flat, but didn’t know your skills extended to woodshop,” said Rainbow Dash as Sunset carefully removed the sheath and sash and began to put both on. She found the sash fit her near perfectly, loping her waist easily and holding the sheath on her left hip.

“I’m a creator Rainbow Dash, I learn what I must to create,” said Rarity with a happy gleam in her eyes as she watched Sunset, “Hmm, it rides a little higher than I wanted, but does it feel alright, Sunset?”

Sunset turned around, testing the balance of the sheath and how it rested on her hip. Her jacket could hide part of it, and the sash as well. She might still have to be wary of police driving by, but for just a practical way to carry her Zanpaktou it seemed just fine. “It feels great, thank you Rarity.”

Retrieving her Zanpaktou from her guitar case she slid it into the sheath, finding it fit perfectly snug. It felt like it belonged there, and she could almost swear she felt satisfaction from the sword, as if it approved. Rarity giggled, purely happy to see the results of her hard work. At that moment Rarity’s body was suffused by a bright blue glow, specks of magic wafting around her form. It wasn’t a surprise to the girls, they’d gotten used to this occasionally happening when they had a moment of truly showing their most harmonious inner traits. In a flash of light a pair of white pony ears sprouted from Rarity’s head, and a long, groomed purple tail extended from her back. The term Rainbow Dash had coined for this transformation was ‘ponying up’, and none of the rest of them had thought of a better term for it.

“Oh my, heh, I suppose I got a tad caught up in the moment,” said Rarity, looking herself over.

“I still find these transformations fascinating,” said Twilight as she examined Rarity, “I still want to determine if this magic is purely from this land of Equestria that Sunset is from, or if it is somehow linked to magic inherent to this world.”

“I’ve a few theories on that,” said Sunset, “But I’d need a lot more time to experiment and gather evidence before I’d feel comfortable sharing them. It’s all just shots in the dark at this point. The only thing I feel like I can say for certain is that magic changes between worlds. The energy is the same, but the shape and use of it seems to alter.”

Twilight seemed to brighten, a happy smile on her face, “Maybe we could get together sometime to run some experiments at the school this week?”

“Sure, if we can find time,” said Sunset, then thought for a second, “Hey, the labs at your home are pretty impressive, bigger than what we have at the school. Why not use those ones?”

“Oh, um, well,” Twilight glanced away, “My parents are back from their trip, and I’m not actually allowed to have company over, technically. I, uh, got chewed out a bit over letting you girls stay over the weekend. Turns out Mr. Robert did see you girls at some point, which is strange because I never saw him... well, regardless, we’ll have to use the school lab from now on.”

“I’m sorry if we got you in trouble,” said Sunset.

“Yeah, that’s a real downer,” said Pinkie Pie, “So I say let’s get those frowns turned around and have fun with today’s training! Whenever Clover shows up.”

“Actually I’ve been standing right here,” said Clover suddenly, standing atop the stands flanking the soccer field. The Soul Reaper hopped down in a single leap, landing in front of the girls. Her eyes looked at Rarity with curiosity, but not, Sunset noted, surprise. “I see. So this is what the transformation looks like.”

“You know about it,” Sunset said, statement rather than question.

“I was briefed before being sent back here to oversee your training. The Soul Society does have eyes on this school. So, yes, I know about your ability to transform into these forms with equine traits. It may explain why the Hollows are targeting you.” Clover gave Rarity a pensive look, “I don’t suppose you know how to switch back on your own?”

“Oh, y-yes,” said Rarity, “Just a moment.”

Rarity took a deep, calming breath, eyes closed, and putting a hand over her chest. After several more deep breaths the ears and tail seemed to slowly dissipate into white light. Sunset was impressed, actually. After the Friendship Games she and the girls had played around a bit with the transformations to get a feel for what did or didn’t cause them to happen, and if it was possible to end them at will. It’d taken a bit of time but they’d discovered that simply achieving a calm state of mind and focusing for a moment caused the transformation to end. Starting it up at will was still out of reach, needing either a triggering emotional moment or the use of music.

“Why’d you need her to go back to normal?” asked Rainbow Dash, “It's pretty awesome when we transform.”

Clover glanced at Dash, eyes sharp, “Perhaps, but that doesn’t change that the Hollows are after you girls, and that transformation might act like a beacon for them. Now, let us go. I’ve found a good spot to begin training. While this is mostly for Sunset Shimmer’s benefit, you girls can come along, and learn what you can. I’m responsible for all of your safety now, and while Discord might be able to help you in his own way, I still have my own work to do now.”

“Aww, just work?” asked Pinkie Pie, “Why not look at it like you’re hanging out with us, you know, like friends?”

“Friends?” Clover asked in surprise, blinking, “But, we don’t even really know each other.”

“Well, ain’t no time like the present ta remedy that, eh?” said Applejack.

“I’m sure we’d all love to get to know you better Clover,” agreed Fluttershy with a serene smile.

Clover seemed a bit taken aback by this, pausing a long moment before managing to say, softly, “Okay, I suppose that would be... nice. I mean, there’s technically no rules against it that I’m aware of and since none of you are officially part of my Division the rules against fraternization also doesn’t apply. Not that I want to fraternize! I mean, of course not, heheh, Clover stop talking you're digging yourself deeper... ” She shook herself, holding her head high as if she hadn’t just started babbling, “Let’s get going. Training officially begins now!”

----------

Half way across town, the long sinuous form of the serpentine Hollow glided amid the trees of a small garden park, ignoring the pedestrians around her, as tasty as a soul might’ve been right then. Then she raised her snake-like head with its fanged mask to the air and sniffed.

“That scent... yes, it's them. One of them at least. Hmm, yes, there will be no escaping my fangs, you tasty souls.”

The serpent Hollow opened her maw and let out a long howl, and in response to that howl, crawling from the shadows of the city, over a dozen lesser Hollows appeared to obey their master’s call.

----------

Aria grimaced deeply, an expression that was starting to feel default for her lately. As she and Sonata hauled the rather large packages into Discord’s shop she could see Screwloose lounging at the back of the room, the woman wearing a smile that said she was silently laughing at the pair of sirens. Well, trio. Aria had to remind herself to be grateful that Adagio was even alive, even in her... present state.

“Watch it! Watch it I said!” said Adagio as her plush, doll-body floated alongside Sonata, trailing another package that had been tied to her with rope, “If you keep jostling me Sonata I’m going to... to...” she’d been raising one flipper threateningly, but upon looking at its plush form Adagio just let out a huge sigh, “This sucks.”

“Aww, don’t be down, Dagi,” said Sonata, “And sorry for bumping into you, but you keep swaying right into me.”

“It's not my fault!” shouted Adagio, “It’s hard to control this body! It’s like trying to swim with three left flippers and a backwards tail!”

“That’s because you’re always so agitated, my squeaky little fish,” said Screwloose, yawning and scratching at her head almost like a dog with fleas, “Movement in that gigai is all about syncing the spirit to it, and if your spirit is filled with unrest then of course you’ll have difficulty moving right.”

Adagio just groaned and eventually all three sirens dropped off their loads inside the shop. Aria, giving her package a light kick, asked, “What’s in these things anyway? They’re way heavier than they should be. Also, what was with that pick up? You sent us to a completely empty warehouse that looked abandoned, except for these three boxes, and that was on the other side of town!”

Screwloose shrugged, yawning again as she stood up and with casual ease picked up all three boxes, stacking them one atop the other, “Boss gets his product from various sources, and where they drop the stuff off is between him and them. As for what’s in here, it’d take me forever to explain, and it's not like you piglets need to know. Just do your jobs and...”

With a frown Screwloose ceased talking and peered with narrowed eyes around the boxes at the open door. Aria and her sisters looked as well, but didn’t see anything in the front yard. Screwloose cocked her head, and twitched her ears, and she smiled.

“Well, there goes the neighborhood. Heh, sounds like the fun’s kicking off faster than we thought. Boss!? Hey, boss!”

As Screwloose went into the back, moving open the door that way with her foot, the sirens followed while exchanging looks of mutual bafflement. They found Discord down the hall, being trailed by Screwball.

“Boss, I just sensed a whole bunch of Hollows crawling out of the woodwork,” said Screwloose.

“Ah, yes, me and Screwball felt it too,” said Discord, a thin smile on his face, “Seems as if those poor girls are going to be in for a difficult time of it, even with their Soul Reaper watchdog.”

“Should me or Screwball go take care of it?” asked Screwloose, almost eagerly, “I do like to stretch my legs.”

Discord stroked his chin, looking up at the ceiling in thought, “Hmm, the contract for the girls’ protection technically ended the moment Miss Clover returned from the Soul Society, and yet I feel those girls are a worthy long term investment. On the other hand, if we give them too much help they’ll never find the strength they need for what might come. Always a precarious, knife edge balance, chaos and harmony.”

His eyes rested upon the sirens, and a wide smile spread onto his face, “How would the three of you like to earn some overtime?”

----------

The ravine was just off of one of the main highways connecting the city to the rest of the wider state beyond the mountains. Right on the edge of the south end of the Everfree Forest the ravine was just a smooth, grassy area flanked by two long hills, both of which were dusted by a light smattering of trees.

The seven girls from Canterlot High stood in a line in front of Clover, Sunset at their center, waiting for her to begin. It was a tad like being in front of recruits back at the Academy again, and it sent a stab of guilt through Clover as she remembered the events just a few nights ago. Routine training in the living world with the third year Academy students, just a simple patrol through a living world city.

It’d been her task to teach the students with her and keep them safe, and for nine of the twelve in that class she had. Three, however, had fallen to the Hollow ambush that’d assaulted them just outside the strip mall, and in the ensuing battle, though Clover had prevailed against the Hollows, the consequences of the fight were now staring her in the face. Not just three dead students, though her superiors had deemed that under the circumstances she’d done all she could, but the fact that one of the student’s Asauchi’s had ended up in the hands of a living human had cast quite the shadow over her.

If it wasn’t for the Captains of the 13th and 2nd Division’s vouching for me alongside my own Captain, and the Captain Commander’s merciful nature in the first place, I’d probably be done as a Soul Reaper. She thought, though she didn’t think that was anywhere near as bad as having lost the lives of students under her protection in the first place.

Being sent back here to watch and train Sunset Shimmer had come as a shock, but one she’d embraced because perhaps by doing this she might redeem herself, if only in her own eyes.

“Alright,” she said, calmly reaching into her robes and withdrawing something that looked very much like a pez dispenser, topped with a cartoon rabbit’s head, “The first thing to know about being a Soul Reaper is that you’re not truly at your peak while inside a living body. While living bodies that are permeated with enough spirit energy can interact with spirit entities, as you girls found out when you carried me to Twilight’s home to treat my wounds, those bodies of flesh and blood are still in a way a limiter on spiritual pressure. That is why if you are to learn how to fight properly as a Soul Reaper, Sunset, you have to leave that body first.”

She saw Sunset’s unease and that of the girls around her, Fluttershy putting a hand to her mouth and Rainbow Dash taking a step forward, “Whoa there, hold up a sec! Are you saying Sunset’s gotta die or something to be a Soul Reaper?”

Clover held up her hands, “No, not at all. While yes the vast bulk of Soul Reapers are human souls that have passed on naturally to the Soul Society, even we must at times use artificial bodies to interact with the living world. As such we have these-” she pressed the rabbit head and it dispensed a small green sphere, like a tiny piece of candy, into her other hand, “We call these gikon; artificial souls. Each one contains a pre-programmed personality that will take control of your body while your soul is ejected. You can climb right back in whenever you need to. It's all pretty simple, but to truly understand it it’s best to have you just do it.”

She stepped forward, but instantly recognized that Sunset was tense as a coiled spring, and none of the other girls were any better. A bead of sweat on her forehead, Sunset said, “You’re, uh, absolutely sure this is safe? I can get back into my body and this... gikon thing won’t just run off with it?”

Clover rolled her eyes, “Of course I’m sure it’s safe. Soul Reapers have used these for centuries. I understand if you’re a bit apprehensive, I mean, you haven’t ever been out of your body before I suppose, but really it’s easy as breathing. Trust me, as soon as you’re outside that body you’ll instantly feel the difference and understand why it’s critical for your development as a Soul Reaper.”

Sunset looked at the gikon in Clover’s outstretched hand and Clover watched the girl force out some of her tension with a gulp and she reached out to take the small green sphere. Sunset held it between them and forefinger, eyeing it. Twilight seemed equally curious, stepping forward and seemingly by habit pulling out her scanner to start examining it.

However at that instant a series of beeps issued from the pockets of each girl, and Clover looked around in surprise as they all pulled out different colored cell phones, flipping them open.

“Talk about bad timing!” said Rarity, then the girl’s already white face seemed to lose even more color as she looked at the phone’s screen, “Dear me, that rather looks like a lot of them, doesn’t it?”

“And they’re coming straight here,” said Twilight, frowning, “The last one had to search around a bit to find Sunset, but these ones are homing in from over a kilometer away. Something must be different with this group.”

“What?” asked Clover, but just as she did she felt it, multiple spiritual pressures approaching rapidly. The dark, aggressive feeling of the spirit energy indicated to her instantly that this was a pack of Hollows coming their way. Instantly she turned to the girls, saying quickly, “All of you hide, now.”

“Wait, you’re not planning to fight the Hollows by yourself are you?” asked Sunset, “We can still help.”

Clover’s mind flashed back to the loss of the Academy students, the way the Hollow ambush had mangled one of them before any of the rest could even react. Taking in a sharp breath she said, “This is too many for you, when you can barely handle one. Just hide, or do you want to see your friends die?”

The other girls exchanged looks, and Clover thought for a moment they’d argue, but Twilight stepped up and took Sunset’s hand, saying, “This is the job she’s trained for, let’s let her do it, and watch. We might learn something.”

Sunset’s jaw tightened, but after a second she nodded, then fixed Clover with a serious stare, “If you start getting into trouble, we’re jumping in regardless, but we’ll hide. Just be careful, alright?”

A little taken off guard by the sincerity of the concern in Sunset’s voice, Clover could only return the nod and say, “I will.”

----------

Sunset clenched the gikon tightly in her hand as she watched Clover remain standing out in the open of the raven while she and her friends found some bushes among the trees at the top of the hill to hide in.

“This is so lame!” growled Rainbow Dash, “We’re just stuck watching her risk her life for us!?”

“I don’t like it either, sugarcube, but what choice do we got?” asked Applejack.

“We could go kick some Hollows in the face, that’s what!” shot back Rainbow Dash, flashing teeth as she all but snarled in frustration, “I can’t stand being helpless like this!”

“I’m afraid I have to agree with Clover’s assessment in this case,” said Twilight, her eyes glued to her Detector, “If it was just one Hollow perhaps there’d be some merit in us trying to do something, but with this many it seems more sensible to leave this to the professional.”

“Yeah, and it should be fun to watch at least,” said Pinkie Pie, snacking on some popcorn which she idly offered around her to the other girls, none of which accepted because they were too busy staring at her and the manifested snack.

Rarity shivered, “I can almost feel them. It's just like that first night. Oh, nothing about these Hollows feels right.”

“We’ll probably be able to see them as well,” said Twilight, “Didn’t anyone else notice how easily and clearly we all so Clover today? Its as if our senses are somehow adjusting to the spiritual realm. I wonder if its making any physiological changes to our bodies? Oh, if only I could be monitoring our brain chemistry right now!”

“Easy there Twi’,” said Applejack, “Let’s keep frosty here. We may be hidin’ but them Hollows seem like they can sniff us out, so wait can’t be droppin’ our guard even with Clover takin’ the brunt of things this time.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened and she hunkered down, hugging herself, “I see them! They’re here!”

All any of them had to do was look to see it was true. Over the opposite side of the hill a hold cadre of Hollows emerged from the treeline. A few flew in the air, either on bat or insect wings, while most the rest crawled or walked along on various limbs. Each Hollow was different in its own way, often possessing some kind of animalistic trait. Some were bipedal while others looped along on all fours. Some had claws, others meaty fists. All bore the bone white skull masks that showed them for what they were, and each had a empty hole somewhere along their stomach or chest.

Clover stood completely still, her Zanpaktou drawn and her feet spread wide in a ready stance. Looking at the Soul Reaper’s calm poise, green hair slightly stirring in the breeze but otherwise unmoving, Sunset got the feeling that perhaps her worry for Clover was unwarranted. She stood as if she had complete control of this space.

It didn’t take the Hollows more than a second to spot Clover, and the moment they did they let loose a sickening chorus of howls that made Sunset want to clasp her hands over her ears. Then the Hollows were moving in a burst of speed, a dozen charging down the hill at the lone Soul Reaper.

When Clover spoke it was in a loud voice that carried over the sound of Hollow howls, and Sunset saw the girl leap into the air as she did so, “Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!”

Flinging out her free hand, palm straight up, a wave of blue fire crashed out from Clover’s palm and smashed into the lead Hollow. The blue wave of flame consumed the first Hollow, a frog-like creature that blackened and vanished in the cobalt fire. At the same time at the peak of her arc Clover slashed out with her Zanpaktou, a white line cutting across the face of a bat shaped Hollow that’d been diving at her, splitting its skull mask instantly and turning its body to vanishing ash.

“...Holy-” Rainbow Dash began, and Pinkie Pie finished, “Moly!”

Sunset was equally stunned as he friends. In an instant Clover had dealt death blows to two Hollows. Sunset recalled her deadly struggle with just one the other day and it occurred to her that perhaps she’d seriously underestimated Clover’s ability.

The Hollows didn’t even pause in shock at the lose of two of their number, the remaining flying ones slashing in from three different angles. Yet as their claws descended, Clover just seemed to vanish into thin air. Sunset almost thought she heard a gust of air as Clover disappeared, only to reappear behind one of the flying Hollows and thrust her Zanpaktou through the back of its head, slaying it instantly.

Abruptly something snapped upwards and wrapped around Clover’s leg, a long tentacle that extended from the mouth of a bipedal Hollow with a fat, puffy cheeked skull mask. It tugged at her, pulling her out of the sky to slam Clover into the ground. The hit wasn’t anywhere near as hard as the one that’d felled her that first night, but Sunset could tell it still rattled Clover as she rolled over and slashed at the tentacle, severing it in a gout of brackish blood.

The other ground bound Hollows charged in, eager for a swift kill, but Clover flipped to her feet and, Zanpaktou shimmering in the sun, took up a ready stance to meet them.

----------

“Oh wow, m-maybe we shouldn’t be doing this?” said Sonata, shaking slightly as she held up the camera that Discord had given them. She and her sisters were hiding in some bushes at the mouth of the ravine, having been led there by the rather unusual girl Screwball, who’d then given them instructions to record whatever they saw happen there.

“Hey, as long as we stay hidden it’s fine,” said Aria, “Not like we can even see much of what’s happening. All I can make out are hazy blurs.”

“I can see them,” said Adagio, floating between her two sisters, plushie face cast in a deep frown, “Clear as day.”

Sonata and Aria looked at each other, then back at Adagio. For her part Adagio didn’t respond to her sister's’ worried looks and continued to keep her eyes fixed on the battle before her, eyes gleaming with frustration and anger barely contained.

----------

Sunset was having a hard time keeping track of Clover’s movements. She was a constantly shifting form of gray and black among the Hollows that surrounded her. Fists and claws reached for the girl, smashing and cutting through the air, and each time Clover flipped or twisted away, just barely. However Sunset also noticed that Clover was so consumed with evading that she couldn’t counter attack, having not been able to even wound a further Hollow past the one’s she’d already downed at the start of the fight.

“Grrr, I can’t take this,” said Rainbow Dash, fists clenched, body shaking, “I just can’t sit here watching this!”

“It’ll be okay Dash,” said Applejack, “Just keep it together, girl. We can’t do nothin’ right now.”

The three remaining flying Hollows descended as well, circling the fight and cutting off any escape Clover might have from above, swooping and slashing any time Clover tried to just leap out of the pack of Hollows around her. Clover had to start blocking with her sword, deflecting and parrying attacks that she couldn’t dodge, and Sunset swore she saw sweat flying off of Clover’s face as she moved in a constantly dancing pattern of defense.

Then one Hollow, a beefy monkey-like creature, caught Clover across the back, sending her to the ground. The other Hollow’s pounced but Clover rolled away from their grasping claws, though one claw tore at her black robes and Sunset saw a stain of red blood on the ground.

Rainbow Dash must have seen it too because all at once she stood up from the bushes, her whole body suffused by a deep blue glow even brighter than Rarity’s had been.

“I’m done watching! I’m going to go help her! NOW!”

Before anyone else could say or do anything to stop Rainbow Dash, she rushed from the bushes like a star track athlete and rushed down the hill, the glow of magic around her intensifying even further, and changing. Normally when this happened Sunset would see Dash sprout pony ears, the rainbow colored tail, and a pair of wings from her pack like that of a pegasus, and that did start to happen. The ears appeared, through they seemed somehow sharper than before. The tail sprouted out, resplendent in its prismatic pattern. But the wings?

When the wings appeared it was not in a flash of light but an eruption of sparking lightning that tore up the ground around Rainbow Dash as she ran. By the time the girl leaped into the air what was flowing from her shoulder blades was not a pair of simple, blue feathered wings, but a wider pair of wings that looked as if they were forged out of brilliant white metal. Each wing sported a band of prismatic rainbow color along their fringes, from which poured forth crackling electric energy that seemed to propel Rainbow Dash faster along and left behind a azure trail of sparks.

The light show certainly got the Hollow’s attention, as they all turned their heads at once, one of them just in time to catch a kick straight to the face from the flying Rainbow Dash. Upon contact there was a blast of lightning, as if Dash’s kick transmuted a massive burst of electricity straight into the Hollow. It convulsed and Hallowed, mask cracking as it fell backwards to the ground in a heap.

Rainbow Dash flew upward, turning around as if for another dive, but paused as she finally realized what she’d done and what had changed about her. She looked at her hands, her body, eyes gazing at the metal wings on her back, still crackling with raw electricity, and her red eyes went wide.

But only for a second before the eyes narrowed in glee and she grinned.

“Right on. Right the heck on! Okay you Hollows, get ready to be- WHOA!”

Rainbow Dash had to dodge rapidly to the side as a massive shape burst out of the trees on the hill the Hollows had come from and nearly clipped her out of the sky. Clover had managed to use the distraction to escape the cluster of Hollows around her and appeared in the air next to Rainbow Dash, bleeding from a cut in her side but otherwise unharmed.

“Are you hurt?” Clover asked.

“Pfft, as if. What the heck just threw itself at me?” Rainbow Dash asked, and Sunset was wondering that as well as she looked at the massive cloud of dust that had appeared from the impact of the thing that had tried to tackle Dash from the air. As the dust began to settle a feminine yet raspy voice laughed.

“Heheh, so your souls really are something special. This must be why they want you so badly. Well, I won’t disappoint them. Your souls are mine, little girls...”

The dust cleared and a serpentine shape the side of a small house reared up, a huge snake of a Hollow with the upper body of a deadly praying mantis, talons clicking in the air.

“...And I’ll look forward to devouring them if you even think of resisting.”

Episode 6: Substitute Soul Reaper

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Episode 6: Substitute Soul Reaper

A laugh cold and merciless as the bottom of the ocean echoed from the serpent Hollow’s mask, it's praying mantis shaped upper body shaking with mirth as it kept its eyes locked on Clover and Rainbow Dash.

“It’s amazing you’ve survived this long. Aside from the Soul Reaper what can any of you do? I can taste a tiny bit of power in those shiny wings,” the Hollow pointed with one claw at Rainbow Dash, “But whatever it is doesn’t feel all that special to me. I can’t fathom why the big bosses back home want you for, but whatever, I’ll just pluck those wings and drag your body back to them all the same. Oh, and as for the rest of you...”

The Hollow swiveled around until its eyes fixed upon the girls still hidden in the bushes, “You all can play with my friends here!”

With a howl the serpent Hollow seemed to command the other remaining lesser Hollows to attack. As one the remaining horde began to charge up the hill, the fliers swooping towards the girls whose only protection was some light shrubbery. Fluttershy gasped, backing away, while Rarity and Applejack stood poised, perhaps to run. Pinkie Pie stubbornly frowned, whipping out a pair of whip cream spray cans from seemingly nowhere while Twilight looked to Sunset.

“Sunset, the gikon!” Twilight said, “Didn’t Clover say it’d help you fight as a Soul Reaper?”

With Hollows bearing down on them Sunset knew she didn’t have much time to think things over. She looked at the small green orb in her hand, unsure what to do with it.

Fortunately neither Clover nor Rainbow Dash were sitting still. Clover shouted, “You just swallow it! Then you’ll be able to fight properly, but there’s too many Hollows! Just run!”

“I’m coming guys!” cried Rainbow Dash, diving down, but the serpent Hollow moved to intercept her.

“Not so fast!” shouted Clover, vanishing in an eyeblink and appearing between the serpent Hollow and Rainbow Dash, her sword blocking the Hollow’s sweeping talon in a clash of sparks. “Its me you’ll be dealing with, Hollow!”

“Fine by me,” the Hollow replied, pulling back for a second then instantly lunging forward with a heavy double slash of both its talons that Clover had to dodge away from. Fortunately her actions were buying Rainbow Dash time to catch the crowd of Hollows heading up the hill, dive kicking one of them in the back. Once more her wings surged with a wave of electrical blue bolts, transferring a burst of lightning into the Hollow she’d hit and knocking it to the ground in seizures.

However this got the attention of several other Hollows, including the flying ones, that changed course to bank in upon Rainbow Dash, claws and fangs slashing at the girl as she rapidly beat her wings to evade. That still left five Hollows coming for the girls, only moments away. Applejack grabbed Fluttershy while Rarity did the same with Pinkie Pie.

“We gotta make a’ break fer it!” shouted Applejack, and the girls began to run, Sunset bringing up the rear. With one hand she gripped the gikon, while with her other she drew her Zanpaktou. She and her friends only got about twenty or so feet before the Hollows got to the top of the hill and began to smash through the bushes and trees. It was clear that the girls might be able to run a bit over the rough terrain at the top of the hill and maybe even reach the fringes of the Everfree Forest, but the Hollows would catch them sooner rather than later. The only way to get out of this with her friend’s lives intact was to fight.

Taking a few more running steps Sunset then dug her heels in and turned around, facing the Hollows.

Not certain what to expect she opened her mouth and popped in the gikon, swallowing hard.

There was an oddly chilly sensation for a second and a sense of disorientation as Sunset felt like she was being literally booted forward. The feeling of displacement ended just as fast as it began as she found her footing on the ground, and along with that was a surge of energy that filled every pore of her body that made her feel light as a leaf in autumn.

Looking at herself she saw that she was no longer in her body, her physical body standing just behind her with an alert and bouncy intelligence in its eyes; the artificial soul having taken control of her flesh while she was now just her own soul. Sunset had half expected to come out of her body with her soul in the shape of a pony, and some part of her was disappointed, even alarmed, that this wasn’t the case. She was still shaped like her human self, though she noticed she was wearing a black robe almost identical to Clover’s. Strangely Rarity’s sheath and sash had copied itself over to Sunset’s soul body as well, still firmly snug at her side.

But more importantly than any of that, Sunset’s Zanpaktou was still in her right hand, having transferred over as well, and Sunset could swear the blade felt sharper and more alive in her hand now. Everything felt clearer, actually, and as the first Hollow reached her, a relatively short bipedal creature with a wide, flat head like a grinning toad, and swung with a over sized fist, Sunset could see the blow coming with crystal clarity.

When she ducked the blow it felt natural, her body moving swifter than she could ever remember it moving, and when she slashed up with her Zanpaktou to try and make the Hollow retreat, her blow ended up severing the Hollow’s arm entirely, sending it spinning away. The Hollow howled in agony, but Sunset was already taking advantage of its distraction and gripped her Zanpaktou in a loose two handed grip, slashing across its chest, splitting it along the open hole it had there. That Hollow’s body shimmered and dissipated into nothingness, and the other Hollows, paused, hesitating as their easy prey suddenly became a hunter in their midst.

With a smile and almost predatory light entering Sunset’s eyes, she charged straight into the fray.

----------

Rainbow Dash had lost track of what was happening beyond the immediate space around her. .She heard the sounds of fighting elsewhere, but she could only pay attention to the Hollows trying to tear her head off. One Hollow with deep brown fur and a crested mask shaped like a deranged bat swooped after her, its arms blended into leathery wings. It howled, opening its mouth and spitting something green and viscous.

“Oh no, you ain’t hitting me that easy buddy!” Rainbow Dash said, pulling a hard left to avoid the goo, smelling the acid in the air as it passed her. Another howl above made her look up as a bird-like Hollow with a large curved beak dove at her, stabbing. Her hands snapped up and she caught the beak, halting with with more strength that she thought she might’ve had in her body. The momentum of the Hollow’s dive forced her down but she felt power flow through her wings, lighting up her body, and pooling into her palms as the electricity fried the avian Hollow into a black mass that fell from the sky.

“Hah, this is pretty niff..ty...” Rainbow Dash suddenly felt herself breathing heavily, sagging in the air, and the remaining flying Hollows pounced at her.

“Grr!” Rainbow Dash pushed past her sudden tiredness and dove, the flying Hollows in hot pursuit. She wasn’t sure why she’d suddenly gotten tired, but guessed it probably had to do with the amount of electricity she was using. Maybe she could only do so much at one time?

Waiting below her was a Hollow with four elephant like legs and tentacles for arms, and it jumped into the air at her, but at the last second she rolled away from it, letting the Hollow smash into the fliers behind her. All three Hollows went down in a pile while Rainbow Dash landed on the ground, turning around in a ready battle stance. However the Hollows, tangled together, began to howl and tear at each other, biting and gnashing and eating chunks of one another’s flesh in blind hunger and rage.

Rainbow Dash felt a bit queasy looking at it, “Whoa, that’s... that’s just gross.”

Her distraction cost her as the last remaining Hollow on the ground near her had snuck up behind her and with a meaty fist smashed Rainbow Dash squarely in the back, sending the girl sprawling and skidding across the ground. The Hollow, shaped like bipedal dog, let out a piercing howl and stalked towards Rainbow Dash, who was too dazed to so much as move a muscle.

----------

Hidden in the bushes not at all far from where Rainbow Dash had fallen the three sirene sisters sat in frozen fear, all three of them exchanging looks with each other that held the same question; should they do something?

“Mr. Discord said not to step in unless there’s really no choice, and this is looking pretty no choiceish to me,” said Sonata, biting her lower lip and gripping the video camera with knuckles turning white.

Adagio seemed less moved by the situation, “She got herself into that mess, she can get herself out of it.”

“Dagie, c’mon, they tried to help us the other day!” said Sonata.

“So what?” said Aria, “That doesn’t mean we have to keep risking our necks for them. We nearly lost Adagio, you want to be the next one stuck in a doll’s body, or worse, Sonata?”

Rainbow Dash was just barely starting to recover her senses and start to rise by the time the Hollow loomed behind her. It raised a hand and there was a tearing sound as a spike of bone shot out of its palm, a spear poised to skewer Rainbow Dash before she could do anything to evade.

With a look of snap desperation Sonata stood up and rather unthinkingly hurled the video camera at the Hollow. The camera sailed through the air and nailed the Hollow right across the brow, not harming it in the least, but drawing its attention as the Hollow looked up at the shocked and now rather terrified looking siren girl.

“Uhhh...heheh...hi?” said Sonata, waving her hand sheepishly.

The Hollow opened its mouth in a howl of rage and began to charge up the hill. Among the siren's Aria leaped to her feet and began to pull Sonata back while saying, “You complete friggin’ moron! What were you thinking!?”

At the same time Adagio floated backwards, looking ready to bolt, but hesitating as her sisters stumbled backwards out of the bushes, Aria’s foot catching on the roots and both her and Sonata spilling to the ground. The Hollow was nearly upon them as Sonata and Aria tried to scramble back to their feet.

Adagio’s plushie body tensed, whether to fight or flee it didn’t look like even she knew, but it wasn’t needed as a blue bolting form slammed to the ground in front of the Hollow; Rainbow Dash recovered and with a blazing look of anger in her eyes.

“Sit boy!” she snarled at the Hollow, flaring her metal wings wide, the rainbow spectrums of light along their edges seeming to glow brighter as lightning sparked and arched between the wings, and she punched out with a single fist as hard as she could at the Hollow. The Hollow in turn punched down with its bone spike, and it collided with Rainbow Dash’s fist. A bright flare of cobalt light engulfed the area, and Adagio ended up flying backwards from the force of it while Aria and Sonata only covered their heads and stayed down.

When the light cleared the Hollow was little more than a charcoal mass turning to ash, and Rainbow Dash was barely standing, her fist bleeding from a puncture wound between her knuckles. Her body was dripping sweat, and her wings looked dull and lacked even a single flicker of electricity.

“Whoa... think I need... to take five...” breathed Dash as her wings and the remainder of her ponied up form slowly vanished into white light, leaving the girl utterly drained as she collapsed to the ground.

Slowly Aria and Sonata stood up, while Adagio floated beside them. After a moment’s hesitation Sonata went over to put her arms under Rainbow Dash and start dragging her to the relative safety of the bushes.

----------

Clover had a better sense of the battle than most, her sharp spiritual senses keeping tabs on the remaining Hollows and the spiritual pressures of the humans. She’d felt it when Sunset Shimmer had swallowed the gikon and entered her spirit form. Without the flesh of a human body suppressing her, Sunset’s spiritual pressure was massively increased. It surprised Clover just how much she was sensing from the fire haired girl, enough spiritual pressure to easily match a seated officer of Clover’s rank. However it was all uncontrolled. She imagined Sunset was feeling fantastic at the moment, but that could be problematic as well; it could make her cocky.

As for Rainbow Dash, Clover had sensed her fighting the lesser Hollows, and was happy to feel that the eager young girl had taken out a few, but now she sensed that Rainbow Dash’s spirit energy had wanned, dropping back to normal levels. She couldn’t see what was happening, precisely, but she just had to hope Rainbow Dash would be okay, as well as Sunset and the others, because she had her hands full with her own opponent.

“Come on now, I thought Soul Reapers were supposed to be tough!” chided the serpent Hollow, lazily slashing with her large saw-like talons as Clover dexterously wove away from the attacks, “All you’re doing is running away. I’m starting to think you’re not taking me seriously.”

“Oh, I am,” said Clover, ducking a talon and continuing to leap back, “I know that you’re not like the others. You’ve consumed a lot of your own kind. I’d lay a bet that you’re close to evolving into a Gillian-class Hollow.”

“You flatter me,” said the serpent with a praying mantis head and skull mask, putting a talon to her face in mock embarrassment, “To be honest I’d rather not evolve. Gillians are so mindless, and uniform in appearance.”

“You don’t have a choice, you’re a Hollow,” Clover said plainly, “You have to consume souls until you evolve. Instinct will force you. Your only hope of salvation lies within the blade of a Soul Reaper, to purify you and send you to the Soul Society.”

“Not likely for me, little Soul Reaper,” the serpent laughed, “I wasn’t such a good girl in life, either.”

Clover’s eyes narrowed, and she sighed, “I see. Well, my duty remains the same. I must cut you down. Tell me, first, before I end you, who is after those girls?”

“Sorry, but while I’ll admit to being a chatterbox, I’m not a blabbermouth. You’ll have to learn the truth on your lonesome, if you survive!” the serpent said, her body starting to gleam with reddish light as the Hollow’s spiritual pressure rose and she charged at Clover.

Clover held out her Zanpaktou before her and placed her hand upon the flat of the blade. She’d made the mistake of not going all out against the Hollow the first night she’d met those girls and been injured as a result. She wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.

“Seek, Chishiki!” (Knowledge)

In a burst of shimmering green light her Zanpaktou elongated and smoothed out into the shape of a long staff, the top end capped by a bladed ring wider than her head, while the other end was tailed by a hard metal spike. Her spiritual pressure magnified as she released her sword’s new state, the Shikai, and met the Hollow’s charge head on. Slashing talons met with the solid staff and the Hollow found herself deflected backwards and suddenly put on the defensive as Clover leapt into a dancing pattern of attacks, alternating between wide slashes with the ring blade on one end of the staff, and sudden hard thrusts with the spike on the other end.

“Ugh! R-releasing your Zanpaktou won’t help, Soul Reaper!” the Hollow said, barely managing to fend off Clover’s attacks, “Not if you can’t see me.”

Suddenly bursting out of the Hollow’s side were gill-like slits, and flowing from them was a yellow smoke that smelled of sulfur and engulfed the area. Clover backed off, but was still engulfed by the fumes. She held her breath, assuming there had to be poison within. The gas made her eyes water, that was for sure. She heard the Hollow laughing, voice seeming to come from all sides.

“How long can you last, I wonder...”

Clover felt the air disturbed next to her and only was able to half dodge as a talon slashed from the smoke, catching her arm with a shallow cut.

“When I can see just fine in this poison cloud, but you can’t!”

----------

Twilight Sparkle stood transfixed as she watched Sunset fight. A part of her mind was still trying to piece together some notion or theory on why it was that she and all the other girls were able to start seeing spirit forms on their own, but for now all she could do was watch as Sunset ploughed into one Hollow, blade first, the Zanpaktou’s edge bursting from the Hollow’s back in a splatter of blood.

That left three that still surrounded Sunset, but she didn’t stay still for a second, rushing away from the one she’d just felled to charge another, slashing hard. This Hollow was a bit more canny, wary now that Sunset was fighting back so viciously, and dodge aside of Sunset’s overhand chop while the other two Hollows rushed in from behind.

“Behind you!” Twilight shouted, and Sunset spun around, her blade cutting a circular arc that forced the two Hollows back at the last second.

“S-should we try to help?” asked Rarity, face so drawn tight with tension it looked as if the girl might explode, “Do you think if Rainbow Dash was able to transform we might do the same?”

Twilight Sparkle just shook her head in uncertainty, “I don’t know enough about how you girls transform to even guess, Rarity!”

“Dash did her ponied up state ‘cause she was too loyal ta’ let Clover fight alone,” said Applejack, “She’s kinda got the easiest emotion ta’ use in situations like this. Ain’t like I can go honestly tell them Hollows they’re a bunch o’ jerks an’ expect ta’ get a’ power boost oughta’ it.”

“But I ‘ponied up’ earlier and didn’t feel any different,” said Rarity, “Nothing like those wings Rainbow Dash gained!”

“Hey you all! Stop worrying about nothing!” said, well, not Sunset, exactly, but rather the artificial soul inside Sunset, who was standing among the girls who were watching the soul of Sunset battle the Hollows. “Your friend is a Soul Reaper now and can handle this just fine. You all need to be finding safety!”

Fluttershy blinked at the not-Sunset, wincing a bit as the real Sunset was seen narrowly avoiding a slash from one of her Hollow foes. “I, um, don’t think we want to leave our friend behind... uh, whoever you are.”

“Call me Chappy! Chappy the Rabbit!” said the artificial soul, making Sunset’s body smile exceedingly wide and happily, jabbing a thumb at her chest, “I’m the most popular brand of gikon among female Soul Reapers, voted #1 by the Soul Reaper Women’s Association just last year!”

Pinkie Pie giggled, “I like her!”

Chappy beamed at the praise.

“Well, Miss Chappy, we appreciate the advice, but we can hardly call ourselves friends if we run off while Sunset and Rainbow Dash are in danger,” said Rarity, fists clenched, “Even if we’re for the moment bereft of anything we can do to help.”

“I’m not certain there isn’t anything we can do,” said Twilight, watching as Sunset cut a shallow wound on one Hollow’s outstretching arm while she was forced to leap back to evade the scything claw of another. The Hollows were getting more confident, feeling out Sunset’s defenses now and getting into a rhythm of attack where one or two of them would distract while the other circled around to strike at her. Sunset was holding her own, but it seemed like she was also unable to get in any more telling blows now that the Hollows were taking her seriously.

“We need to give her an opening,” continued Twilight, “Any kind of distraction so she can finish at least one more of them off!”

Applejack tilted her stetson on tighter and smiled, “Now yer talkin’ Twi! What’cha got in mind?”

A dozen plans flitted through her mind, each one more improbable than the next. Her eyes fell upon a the several rocks strewn around the ground, several of which were well shaped for throwing. Nearby there was also a large log, a fallen tree from probably years ago, just big enough that a few of them together might lift it.

“Applejack, Pinkie Pie, see if you can grab up that log! Fluttershy, Rarity, um, heh, how are your throwing arms?”

Fluttershy smiled nervously and picked a rock up, “Not very good, but for Sunset, Rainbow, and Clover, I’ll certainly try.”

Rarity gingerly snatched up a rock and tossed it lightly in her hand, “If only I could gain a pair of lovely wings like Rainbow Dash, then I’d destroy these brutish Hollows, but I suppose this will have to do.”

Applejack and Pinkie Pie had already gone over and between the pair of them easily lifted the big wooden log like it was a battering ram, “We’re good ta’ go over here Twi’!”

For a second Twilight had a strange feeling, as if it wasn’t quite right for all these girls, who have only known her such a short time as a friend, were so ready and willing to follow her lead; yet at the same time it somehow felt natural. Twilight turned to face the Hollows, focusing on one that had the look of a squat, humanoid toad, and said, “Okay, focus on the amphibian one! Go!”

As one she, Fluttershy, and Rarity began throwing rocks, the small projectiles landing around or smacking into the frogish Hollow in question. At the same time Applejack and Pinkie Pie rushed forward, hefting the log between them. Just as the frog Hollow was turning around to see where the annoying rocks were coming from Applejack and Pinkie Pie reached it, ramming the tree into the Hollow’s gut at full speed. The blow was enough to knock the Hollow over, not really injuring it much but getting it to the ground.

Sunset, seeing this, took full advantage with a quickly shouted, “Thanks!” and went wild upon the other two standing Hollows, slashing one’s legs while spinning into an upward slash at the other that cut it across the chest, not enough to kill it but force the Hollow back. The Hollow with the wounded arm pressed in, trying to smash Sunset with a heavy overhand slam, but she twirled away from the blow, jumped and kicked off the Hollow’s extended arm, and stabbed her Zanpaktou through the middle of its mask, right between the eyes.

As that Hollow dissipated into nothing the frog Hollow hopped to its feet, eyes narrowing at Applejack and Pinkie Pie. It ignored the rocks Twilight and the others threw at it, sticking out its tongue and spearing it towards Applejack. Pinkie Pie, ears twitching, barreled into Applejack, tackling the other girl out of harm's way, but the tongue, unnaturally sharp, cut a nasty gouge into Pinkie Pie’s shoulder.

As Pinkie Pie cried out in pain Twilight's heart leapt into her throat, but Sunset landed right behind the frog Hollow, eyes flashing in fury, and as the Hollow turned around she slashed hard, splitting its skull in half with the blow.

As the frog Hollow vanished in flecks of dust, the very last Hollow backed away from Sunset as she turned around. Much to all the girls’ surprise, the Hollow turned and fled at a full run, and just like that the fight seemed to be over.

Twilight found herself breathing rather hard for someone who’d only thrown a few rocks, but she had not time to think about that as Fluttershy was running forward towards Applejack and Pinkie Pie, one being held by the other as Pinkie made small whining sounds of pain.

“Pinkie!” Fluttershy cried as she knelt next to her friend, “Oh my, oh my, stay still, let me look at it.”

“It’s bleedin’ pretty bad,” said Applejack, face pale. Beside her Sunset walked up, sweat dripping from her chin, Zanpaktou still in hand. Sunset’s face was fluctuating between unreleased anger and deep, shocked worry.

“Fluttershy, how bad is it?”

Twilight also walked up, along with Rarity and Chappy, all of them worried about Pinkie Pie but Twilight had them stop a distance away to give Fluttershy room to work. Fluttershy peeled away the torn cloth around Pinkie Pie’s shoulder and Twilight saw a ragged red wound there, nearly five inches long. She gulped. There was a lot of blood, but if she was recalling her anatomy correctly there wasn’t a critical artery in that area.

Fluttershy tore her own skirt to make bandages to press to the wound, eyes pure concentration, “We’ll need to clean the wound as soon as possible, but as long as we keep pressure on it she should be okay.”

Twilight let out a sigh of relief, but it was short lived as she heard a crashing noise from the ravine and it occurred to her the battle wasn’t actually bover. Clover and Rainbow Dash were still both in danger!

She stood, “What about Clover and Rainbow Dash?”

Sunset held up her hand, “I’ll go. The rest of you stay here. Please.”

Seeing Pinkie Pie wounded on the ground Twilight couldn’t come up with a single logical objection to Sunset’s words, and just nodded slowly, “We will.”

Seeing confirming nods from her friends, even Pinkie Pie who was putting on a brave face past a mask of pain, Sunset smiled and said, “I’ll be right back.”

----------

Eyes closed against the burning gas, lungs strained as she held her breath, Clover relied entirely on her spiritual senses and hearing to detect the incoming attacks of the serpent Hollow. With strikes faster than its own snake-like shape would suggest the Hollow darted in and out of the gas, long talons cleaving the air as they sought’ Clover’s flesh.

Each time she stretched her senses, feeling the attacks coming, and spinning her Zanpaktou, Chishiki, to deflect the blows. Each strike upon the staff jarred her. This Hollow was definitely stronger than most of the common variety. Clover knew she’d been right that the Hollow had consumed enough souls to be on the cusp of evolving into a Gillian, of the Menos class. Its intelligence and willpower to control lesser Hollows was also concerning. Hollows weren’t known for working together unless forced into it by stronger Hollows, and they wouldn’t perform a specific task unless fearing reprisal from something higher on the food chain.

However Gillians were too lacking in thought to give orders, to that meant it had to be an even higher class of Hollow that was pulling the strings behind the hunt for the Canterlot High girls. An Adjuchas... or worse, a Vasto Lorde? The idea was worrying but she had to concentrate on the battle. She didn’t have to look at the ring blade on the end of her staff to know Chishiki’s edge would be filling with green light, bit by bit.

One talon snuck through her guard, cutting her thigh and making her choke back a scream of pain, and the Hollow laughed.

“Slowing down, Soul Reaper? Must be hard holding your breath so long. Too bad I’m not letting you just leave the cloud, huh? Life is so unfair.”

The Hollow was correct in that Clover had tried several times to leave the poison cloud’s radius, but each time the Hollow was there to block her, slashing talons forcing Clover back. Even with the speed of Shunpo, the flash step, Clover wasn’t able to escape. The Hollow was living up to its form of a snake by being oily fast as well. Clover just had to remind herself that all she had to do was hold out a few moments more, and she could turn things around.

Chishiki’s ring was almost entirely illuminated, now. Just a few more seconds.

She felt the Hollow appear below her, and both talons slicing in from opposite sides in an attempt to pincer her. Clover spun and braced her Zanpaktou, the ring blade blocking one talon, while the spike end blocked the other. The force was still enough to strain her arms and make her grunt, almost taking in a breath of poison air. Worse, with Chishiki now stuck between the two talons she couldn’t move or pull it free. The Hollow howled with laughter and Clover sended it rising in front of her.

“You see this is why I thought the others were being cowardly fools, sending all the small fry Hollows after those girls. You Soul Reapers aren’t anything special, just a bunch of arrogant souls that think they can enforce order in the world, as if it needed your interference!”

You certainly talk a lot, Hollow, Clover thought, smiling, And its given me all the time I need.

“Hitei!”

Upon speaking that command word the ring blade of Chishiki glowed brightly, filling in with lime green light that then swirled like a whirlpool. Within seconds, as if being sucked away by a powerful vacuum, the poison cloud vanished into the pool of green light within Chishiki’s ring blade. The Hollow was there in front of Clover, its praying mantis mask unable to show much expression but its yellow glowing eyes now wide with shock.

“What the-!?”

In its surprise the Hollow lessened the pressure on Clover’s Zanapaktou, and with a hard yank she pulled the staff free and then lashed out with the ring blade, cutting a deep line across the Hollow’s shoulder as it instinctively leaped back. The Hollow landed upon the hillside on the east side of the ravine, knocking over several trees as it glanced at its bleeding shoulder wound, then glared at Clover.

“How did you do that to my poison cloud!?”

Clover held Chishiki before her like a spear, the glowing ring blade slowly losing its emerald luminescence as the last of the poison cloud vanished within it.

“One of my Chishiki’s powers is to analyze and negate other spiritual powers. As long as the ring blade has time to examine and analyze the composition of a power, I can then use ‘Hitei’, negation, to cancel that power. Your poison cloud is useless now, Hollow. Even if you pour out more, Chishiki has already analyzed it, and will just negate it again.”

“I see, lucky you,” said the Hollow with a voice dipped heavily in the sauce of sarcasm. “Well, since my trump card isn’t going to work, I hope you don’t feel too disappointed if I make myself scarce. Better part of valor and all that.”

The Hollow turned to flee, and Clover shot forward to give chase, but in the same movement the Hollow made to start running, it leaned down and suddenly its tail whipped upward like a thunderbolt.

“Got you!” the Hollow said in smug satisfaction as multiple shards of bone extended from its whipping tail and then shot into the air like a wave of daggers. Clover tried to dodge, but just couldn’t evade all of them, several bone shards slicing her arms and legs as she spun Chishiki to deflect the remainder. Still, one bone shard pierced her right leg below the knee and she bit back a scream, falling out of the sky as she lost her concentration.

Suddenly a black form leaped through the air and caught her, landing lightly as Clover was cradled in two strong arms.

“Huh?” Clover looked up, blinking at Sunset’s face as the girl carefully set her down on the ravine floor. Though pain wracked her Clover couldn’t help but smile slightly at seeing Sunset in her spirit form, already naturally bearing the uniform of a Soul Reaper.

“So you used the gikon, good,” said Clover, “I’m assuming you can feel the difference between this form and your human body?”

Sunset’s eyes were locked on the Hollow, but she did nod at Clover’s words, “Oh yeah, definitely. I’ve never felt this strong, this free...” Sunset’s eyes narrowed, a shadow of pain crossing her features, “Well, there was one time before, but this is different. This feels cleaner.”

“Are you two lovebirds don’t talking?” asked the Hollow at the top of the hill, more bone shards sprouting from her tail, “Because I’d really just like to kill the Soul Reaper and then snatch the rest of you back to Hueco Mundo.”

“Hueco Mundo?” asked Sunset with a quirked eyebrow.

“The realm of the Hollows,” said Clover, grunting as she forced herself to lean up on Chishiki, “I’ll tell you later. We still have to defeat this Hollow first. Ugh, if you can keep her busy, for just ten seconds, I can finish her off. Chishiki has one other power for me to use...”

Sunset eyed the weapon Clover was carrying, “That’s your Zanpaktou? But it looks completely different.”

“Explanations later, Hollow now,” said Clover, “Like I said, just ten seconds. Be careful,she’s much stronger than the others were.”

Sunset shouldered her own Zanpaktou, smiling, “I’ll manage.”

With that Sunset charged forward, leaping up the hill with massive jumps that went well beyond what a human body was capable of. The Hollow scoffed and braced for the girl’s charge, and when Sunset jumped to slash down with her sword the Hollow deflected her with a single talon, sending Sunset smashing into a tree. Clover winced, but knew Sunset’s spirit body would be more durable than the frail flesh of a human form. Unsurprised, Clover saw Sunset stand, but she now had to focus on her own part of things.

Reversing her grip on Chishiki, she pointed the spike up the hill, and began a Kido spell chant.

”Ye lord, mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!”

As Clover chanted the energy of the Kido spell began to form, but not in her hand as was normal for such a spell, but rather it flowed straight into her Zanpaktou, pooling at the end of the spike. Meanwhile Sunset had rushed right back in at the Hollow, keeping its attention. Talons slashed down, cutting massive furrows in the ground as Sunset dodged left and right, slashing with her blade, scoring shallow wounds on the Hollow’s toughened flesh but not doing any serious damage. Clover noted that Sunset’s fighting style was a wild, uncoordinated thing, yet somehow primal and furious, the girl’s erratic movements actually making it hard for the Hollow to get in a clean hit. More trees were sliced in half by the Hollow’s talons, and more furrows sliced through the ground, but Sunset just kept moving, diving and leaping to avoid blows while getting in any slash she could. It couldn’t last, but it didn’t need to, as Clover finished the incantation.

”Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!”

At the tip of Chishiki’s spike a sphere of pure crimson flame formed, expanding to the size of a beachball, then even larger as the power reached its peak and Clover said the last line of the chant.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

The sphere of fire erupted from the tip of the spike like a cannon ball, a roaring blast of blood red flame that ate up the hillside as it rolled upwards at the serpent Hollow. Sunset jumped away as the Hollow spun to face the blast, just in time to take the boulder sized ball of swirling energy head on. An explosion of fire rocketed upwards like a pillar, bathing the hillside in heat, and for a second Clover was fearful she’d timed things too closely and hurt Sunset, but she saw the girl leaping down the hill as the flames were still burning through the Hollow.

By the time the flames dissipated the Hollow’s body was a blackened husk, only her mask still intact, but even it cracked as Clover watched, splitting down the middle.

“W...what...?” the Hollow said, voice unsteady as its form already started to turn to ash, “How did...? But that was just a low level Kido...”

“You’re right,” said Clover, breathing hard past the pain in her leg, “Normally a Shakkaho, even with the incantation, wouldn’t have been enough to finish you. But that’s the second power of my Chishiki. Whenever I cast a Kido spell with the full incantation, the spike amplifies the power of the spell threefold!”

“Damn... Soul Reaper!” The Hollow howled, but even as her form was vanishing there was a burst of dark light behind her, and the Hollow’s head turned in pure fear.

“Oh...shit...”

Rising from the ground behind the Hollow, as if from the depths of the earth, were a pair of huge stone doors. The doors were carved of a deep, thick stone, from which emerged two huge human skeletons whose hands seemed to meld with the door itself as if to open it. Twin demonic horns sprouted the from the skeleton’s skulls, and golden ring staves bearing crimson banners were stabbed through the skeletons at three different points each.

The Hollow stood frozen in place with her half vanished body as the doors began to open with a massive groan like the bellow of some ancient beast.

“NO!” The Hollow cried, trying to flee, but chains erupted from the depths of the opening doors, behind which was a deep red glow and even deeper blackness beyond. The chains stabbed into the Hollow, lifting her body into the air as she futilely struggled.

Sunset had reached Clover by now, turning to look at the grotesque scene with wide, shocked eyes, and Clover felt a pang of sympathy for the girl. It wasn’t always easy, seeing the Gates of Jigoku for the first time.

“What’s happening?” asked Sunset in a breathless, almost fearful voice.

“Hollows slain by Zanpaktou or Kido are purified of the sins they committed as a Hollow and sent to the Soul Society,” said Clover in a cold, clinical tone, “But if the Hollow’s soul is burdened by dark sins committed while living as a human... the Gates of Jigoku, Hell, are opened to claim them.”

With a final howl of terror the Hollow tried to claw free of the chains surrounding her, but was pulled back towards the gates, until a huge humanoid hand the size of a house erupted outward, bearing a massive curved blade that pierced the Hollow through the chest, impaling it. The Hollow’s struggling ended, and the gigantic hand and sword retracted back through the gates to vanish into the dark. The gates then slowly yawned closed, banging shut with a cloud crash of finality. After that the gates simply vanished in a burst of glass like motes of light, as if they’d never been there in the first place.

----------

Much later that evening the girls were congregated at a local burger joint. Sunset had returned to her physical body, attempting to return the gikon to Clover, but was told to keep a hold of it just in case. Rainbow Dash was tearing into her meal with a vengeance, but Sunset wasn’t feeling quite as hungry. Well, she was, but even as she tried to gnaw upon a veggie burger her mind kept going over the events of the day and she couldn’t help but feel a tad sick.

Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were both okay, despite their injuries. As it turned out Clover knew a number of spells she called ‘Kido’ and among them was a spell of healing. Pinkie Pie’s shoulder was still very sore, and might sport a scar that the girl was shrugging off as just a ‘battle tattoo’ but Sunset could see that despite the party girl’s energy, she was also very shaken.

Rainbow Dash seemed to be taking things more in stride.

“So you’re sure it was the sirens you saw out there?” asked Sunset.

“Sure as sure can be,” said Rainbow Dash, “Guess it must’ve been one of them that dragged me into the bushes after I took out that Hollow. Not sure why they left after.”

“They’re clearly a tad on the anti-social side,” said Rarity, “Really, if those girls are going to be following us around I’d rather they just be open about it. Its not as if we haven’t forgiven and forgotten about other people who went a bit power mad before.”

Sunset rolled her eyes at Rarity, smiling, “I’m just wondering what they were doing there. Did Discord ask them to go?”

“It's possible,” said Clover, not seated at the table with the girls but rather hanging next to it, invisible as she was to the human eye, and not needing to eat human food. “Determining what Mr. Discord does and why has never been easy.”

“Do you know him well?” asked Twilight.

Clover smiled ruefully, shaking her head, “No one knows Mr. Discord well, except perhaps Captain Starswirl, and even then... I don’t usually probe into my superior’s past. My own experience with Mr. Discord has been on and off again as I’ve done business with him while on missions to the living world. Not a lot of Soul Reapers actually do that. Still, in the time I’ve known him the only thing I’ve concluded is that Mr. Discord has his own agenda, and he keeps it to himself.”

“Think he’ll have any notion o’ what happened ta’ Dash today?” Applejack said while she gave the girl in question a concerned look, “No offense, sugarcube, I’m just worryin’ ‘bout what them new wings o’ yers might mean.”

“I ain’t worried about it,” said Rainbow Dash confidently, “They’re totally awesome and let me kick some butt. I don’t see the problem.”

“Save fer the fact that we ain’t got a clue why it happened!” snapped Applejack, “Fer all ya know them wings’ll be suckin’ the life right outta ya! Didn’t ya say ya got real tired after usin’ ‘em a bunch? What if it’s killin’ ya without ya knowin’?”

Rainbow Dash seemed to consider this for a second, then shrugged, “Nah.”

“To answer the question,” said Clover, “Its possible, but the only way to know would be to ask. Were you all planning to go to him tomorrow?”

The girls all looked around at each other, and Sunset eventually said, “Yes, I think we are. I appreciate you training me, but it seems like Discord is the only one that can help my friends figure out what’s happening with them.”

“I understand. I’ll go with you to Mr. Discord’s tomorrow as well. I need some medical supplies after today. I can’t rely on Kido all the time,” said Clover.

“What is Kido, exactly?” asked Twilight with open interest, “Are they actually magical spells?”

“In essence, yes. Kido uses reiryoku, a form of spirit energy built up from willpower inside the soul, and incantations focus that energy into the shape of spells.”

Rainbow Dash sighed, “Guys, can we save the lessons for another time? Let’s just enjoy dinner and unwind. We won today, I’d say that means we passed the lesson, right teach?”

Clover blinked, then slowly let out a sigh and smiled, “I suppose so. We’ll cover more tomorrow, but for tonight, yes, you girls have all earned a rest.”

With that Clover went to depart, Sunset said, “Hey, where are you going? You’re part of the group now too, and also deserve some time to relax. I mean, you’re the one who actually beat that tough Hollow, and are you even recovered from your wounds?”

Clover paused, not quite looking back at the girls seated at the table. Her voice had a quiet, subdued tone to it, “My wounds aren’t so bad that I can’t continue to do my duties, and while I am primarily here to watch over and train you as a Substitute Soul Reaper, i still have my other duties as a Soul Reaper to perform. I will get rest when I can, so please, don’t worry about me.”

As Clover moved to leave Sunset gave her friends a quick, apologetic, look, “Excuse me girls, I’ll be back in a sec.”

Rarity smiled, “Go on darling, we’ll be right here.”

Rushing out onto the street, just catching up to Clover, Sunset said, “Hey, wait up!”

Clover paused, turning to face Sunset with a questioning look on her face, one green eyebrow slightly quirked upwards.

“Look, I get that you take your job very seriously Clover,” said Sunset, “And that’s great. It's something I can really respect. But we told you that we’d be doing this as friends, and we meant it. I’m not saying you have to hang out with us if you really do have things you need to do, but... well, just remember that you’re always welcome to hang out. Even Soul Reapers need to relax sometime, right?”

Clover’s smile was a small thing, but it was there, “Thank you. I’ll remember. Good night, Sunset.”

With that the Soul Reaper turned and was off, leaping into the air and flitting away into the evening skyline. Sunset watched her go for a time, then went to return to her friends.

----------

Within the dark valley of messas the remaining three Hollows congregated amid their howling horde of lesser Hollows. The shark shaped Hollow growled, slamming a stone with a fist and smashing it to dust.

“So she went and got herself killed. Bloody brilliant. Now the Soul Reapers probably know we’re targeting those souls.”

The large shaggy Hollow let out a dry laugh, “She was warned. It doesn’t matter. The plan was never to take them on openly. The whole reason to send our lesser kin was to probe for weaknesses until a crack in the armor was found.”

“And have we found that yet?” asked the tentacled Hollow, wheezing, “We’ll only get one more chance at this before they take matters into their own hands.”

The large hairy Hollow’s mask cracked something almost like a smile, “As it happens while our late comrade was wasting her time with a pointless fight, I had a few lesser Hollows sniff around town. And they found something. Some souls that smell like the one’s we're after.”

A large pseudopod, like that of some massive angler fish, sprouted from the hairy Hollow’s head, and from the tip of that pod a light shone, displaying three different images.

One image was of a peaceful looking farm, with an old green woman sitting on a rocking chair and watching a large red skinned man work the field alongside a young yellow skinned girl with red hair.

Another image showed a simple suburban home with a pair of average looking suburbanite adults watching television while a small girl with white skin and light purple and pink streaked hair playing with a fuzzy white cat.

The last image was of another home, a bit more ramshackle than the others but still nice, displaying a scene of a barbeque in the back yard where two middle aged adults watched their teenaged daughters talking over their food; one sister quiet as a mouse, another loud and boisterous, and the third looking as deadpan as a rock.

The images faded and the shaggy Hollow chuckled darkly.

“We don’t have to fight our targets directly. Instead we can go for their weak point. Their families.”

Episode 7: Learning Curve

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Episode 7: Learning the Ropes

Applejack always got up before dawn. While she had her hands full at school doing her classwork that didn’t mean she didn’t need to pitch in around the Apple family farm. Sure fancy modern machinery meant her older brother Big Macintosh could get the kind of work done that would’ve taken twenty to do in the olden days, but Applejack still wanted to do her part and not leave every little thing to her brother. He’d already given up on going to college to work the farm full time, and Applejack, well, a part of her felt some guilt that she wasn’t able to do more.

Of course even the things she could do were fairly small beans compared to real farm work. Mostly she just did her share of the morning chores and then a few more before heading off to catch the bus alongside her little sister, Applebloom.

“Hey, sis,” Applebloom said as they stood at the bus stop at the end of the long winding road that connected their farm to the highway heading into town, “You been gettin’ home kinda late past few days, haven’t ya?”

Applejack stiffened slightly. Granny Smith had already noticed she’d been getting back to the farm later than usual, Applejack could tell just by the curious looks her grandmother shot her way, but Granny hadn’t said anything yet. She hadn’t thought Applebloom of Big Mac would have noticed.

She didn’t want to lie to her sister, so she searched out for something close enough to the truth for her comfort, “I, uh, I’m doin’ some extracurricular like activities wit the gals after school.”

Appleblooms little yellow face turned curious, “Like a club? Like what me, Sweetie, and Scoots got goin’ wit our clubhouse?”

“Sorta,” Applejack said, noncommittally.

“Must be some rough clubbin’ ‘cause ya keep showin’ back home with scrapes an’ bruises,” said Applebloom, but didn’t press further as the bus arrived. With a sigh of relief Applejack got on the bus, taking one last look out the window down the road to her farm.

This Hollow business, she didn’t want it getting anywhere close to her home. She was glad enough all the trouble seemed to be brewing in the city itself and that the farm was a good few miles outside the city limits. Applejack tried to breath deeply and unwind the knot of worry in her chest. Today she and the girls would visit that Discord fellow after school. Maybe something good would come of it, but Applejack wasn’t so sure how far she trusted the shopkeeper. There was something just slightly off about the fellow that didn’t sit right with Applejack, but if they were going to figure anything out about that strange power Rainbow Dash had shown the other day then Discord was their best bet.

Everything’ll be fine, Applejack girl, stop yer frettin’, she told herself as the bus rolled away from the farm.

----------

While the bus rolled on down the road away from the farm, large, burly Big Macintosh was already hard at work in the field with a tractor. He gave the leaving bus a small, happy smile, glad to know his sisters were off getting educated. He knew both of them would do the Apple family proud, no matter what vocations they ended up in. Big Mac rather suspected Applejack might stubbornly dig her heels in and insist on working the farm once she was done with high school, but he already knew Granny Smith was secreting away a college fund for the girl, and he was going to back Granny one hundred percent on convincing Applejack to pursue higher education.

The girl was too bright to waste the opportunity for college, and if she really was serious about working the farm, well there were lots of ways higher education helped there as well, especially on the business end.

Putting those thoughts aside Big Mac threw himself into his work, easing into the familiar routine while on the porch of the farmhouse Granny Smith took up her customary relaxing spot to watch the fields.

Neither of them could have seen, off in the distance in the sky, a black line opening in the air, like a yawning black mouth.

----------

“Goodbye brother, I’ll see you when I get back this evening,” said Twilight, managing as much of a casual tone as she could as she called up the stairs of the mansion's front entry hall, “I might be out a bit late! The girls are helping me with research!”

“Whoa, hold up a sec, Twily!” called her brother. Twilight was almost to the doors, but she paused to see her brother, Shining Armor, all but vault over the banister to land lightly on the stairs, grinning as he walked up to her. She returned the smile, almost rolling her eyes at his athletic display. Shining Armor could be a bit of a show off, sometimes.

“Come on, brother, I’ll miss my bus,” she said as he wrapped her in a big hug, nearl lifting her off the ground.

“Hey, can’t blame me for missing my little sis. Always in and out the door, that’s you. What’ve you been up to at the school lab that’s keeping you out so late anyway?” he asked, all brotherly smiles, but Twilight sensed a genuine streak of inquisitiveness underneath it all.

“Oh, nothing much, just some,” Twilight fished for an excuse that sounded good to her, “Some small scale energy experiments. I’m looking to improve light bulb efficiency in the school by at least eight percent by the time summer vacation hits! So you know, they, uh, don’t burn out as often.”

Shining Armor laughed, but not derisively, just kindly amusement, “Yeah, that sounds like something you’d be doing. Okay, okay, just don’t keep your friends all night over it. They are treating you alright, aren’t they? You’re not really used to having a lot of friends, yet.”

Twilight paused, glancing away, “They treat me well, brother. Truly. Um, I’ve got to go now. See you later.”

With that Twilight waved and went out the door, passing by the limousine parked in the driveway and instead walking on foot for the bus stop.

----------

With the door closed Shining Armor’s face flowed from a relaxed smile to a harder look between calm and concern. He let out a slow sigh, shaking his head.

“It's not like her to hide things from me,” he said, as if to himself.

“Do you want to have her followed?” asked a feminine voice soft as crystal chimes from the shadows of a side hallway. Stepping into view, Cadance, dean of Crystal Prep to some, and to Shining Armor so much more, stood in all her elegant grace. She wore a well tailored dark blue suit and skirt, ideal for her role as a school dean, and might have seemed plain, but Shining knew well Cadance’s capacity to make any outfit shine. The suit complemented her rosy skin and long hair with its many shades of pink and violet, with a single streak of creme. He knew from personal experience how silky smooth that hair was.

“No, not yet, Cadance,” said Shining, “Whatever she’s doing, I’m not willing to have my sister being spied on.. Still... they’re all stirring. This city is becoming less safe for her by the day.”

“It is the duty of us all to face such dangers. Even her,” said Cadance, her voice saddened but firm.

“Not yet it isn’t,” Shining nearly snapped, but cooled and controlled himself around Cadance, softening his voice, “Twilight doesn’t have to deal with all of this yet. I know she’s near the age, but I... I can do enough that maybe mother and father won’t feel the need for her to know.”

As he spoke he held up his hand, pulling back the sleeve of his shirt, looking at the five pointed metal cross he wore around it, “If I could keep her from this her whole life, I’d sacrifice my own for that gladly.”

He felt soft, comforting arms wrap around him from behind, and he smelled the clean, heady perfume as Cadance rested her chin on his shoulder, holding him from behind as her voice whispered in his ear, “Twilight is a lucky girl to have you as her brother. I don’t want her to have to deal with the things we must face, either. Yet the decision...”

Slim fingers, their brush light as a kiss of cloud, touched his chin and turned him to look into Cadance’s eyes, “The decision isn’t ours, Shining. You know this.”

Her lips drew him in, the briefest of caresses that lit every nerve of Shining Armor’s on fire. If he didn’t have other matters to attend to that day, if they both didn’t have duties to attend to, he doubted he’d have let Cadance out of the house, or his arms for that matter, for half the day.

“I know,” he said, near breathless, “But she’s my little sis. It's my job to worry about her.”

“And before long she may well be my little sister too,” said Cadance, with a light chuckle akin to wind chimes, “I have every reason to want her safe. We’ll both look out for her, whatever happens.”

To that Shining Armor nodded with a light of resolved fire in his eyes, “Whatever happens.”

----------

School passed, and the girls gathered. As one group they took a city bus to the downtown area, and made their way along the streets until they were able to find the alley mouth that’d lead to Discord’s shop.

“So Miss Clover will be meeting us there?” asked Rarity, looking a tad pensive before the alleyway, “I do hope she didn’t run into any Hollow trouble.”

“Unlikely,” said Twilight, “I mean, her running into trouble. The Detectors have been clear all day. I think perhaps after their defeat the other day they might be laying low.”

“Or laying in ambush,” said Sunset, then shook herself, trying to lighten her mood, which had been anxious all day, “Sorry girls, I think my mind is starting to run away with me.”

“It's okay,” said Fluttershy, her eyes shifting around at the darker corners of the streets even as she put a peaceful smile on her face, “I’ve been feeling the same way. It's hard to look at anything the same way anymore when you know that... that monsters can literally appear from nowhere at any time.”

Rainbow Dash clapped a hand onto the meeker girl’s shoulders, flashing a grin, “No need to be so worked up girls, we’ve already taken on those Hollow jerks a few times, and we can keep right on doing it until they get it through their stupid skull masked heads that we’re the wrong girls to mess with!”

“Yeah, we’re the best around, and nothing's ever gonna keep us down!” Pinkie Pie sang, and she and Rainbow Dash shared a quick fist bump of mutual confidence. Sunset smiled, feeling her tension popped like a balloon. Maybe there really was no reason to get so worried. She felt the comforting presence of her Zanpaktou at her side, her hand brushing the hilt, and also knew she still had the Chappy gikon in her pocket to use anytime she needed to go into spirit form.

Things would be fine.

The girls shuffled into the alley, and Twilight took the lead, taking out her wooden, skull shaped pass. The other girls did the same, Sunset giving the pass a closer look as they walked. It seemed like a pretty innocuous thing, save for the fact the block of wood had a angular, stylized skull pattern etched into it. It almost looked like a Hollow mask, but Sunset figured that had to be her imagination. Not all skulls had to do with Hollows. Chances were Discord was just trying to be his own unique brand of off putting. She had to wonder just how similar this world’s Discord was to the one that existed in Equestria.

The thought reminded her she hadn’t written to Princess Twilight since the battle the other day, or even looked at her journal for a reply to her previous inquires. She resolved to do that before going to sleep tonight.

When they’d first come through these alleys the area had felt unnaturally cramped and narrow, with a strange sense of displacement that made the alleyway seem to go on forever. That was gone now, and the alley felt plain as any other. Was that the passes doing? It had to be. It wasn’t long before they reached the same cross section as before, and Twilight led them to the left. They could see the shop clearly from here, and as they approached the orange glowing barrier appeared. Mimicking what they’d seen Screwloose do earlier Twilight held hr pass to the barrier, which opened the way for them.

Once threw they approached the building, and Sunset noticed that Screwball was out on the front walkway sweeping, while chatting with... a cat?

“And then Mr. Discord had to figure out what to do with twelve entire crates of curry!” said Screwball, laughing, “I thought those poor siren girls would have an aneurysm when he told them to dump it all in the sewer!”

The girl giggled at the conclusion of her story, and the cat, a small, light gray creature with strange yellow eyes, yawned and to Sunset it almost seemed like the cat smiled as it lazily flicked its tail. It was lazing upon the bannister around the wooden walkway that surrounded the shop, just next to the small wooden steps leading to the front doors.

When Screwball caught sight of the girls she leaned on her broom, and smiled welcomingly, “Why hello! The boss is waiting for you. Go on in and follow the hallway to the right and you’ll find him with your Soul Reaper friend and the temps.”

“Temps?” asked Applejack.

“The fishy girls!” Screwball said.

So the sirens were here as well. Sunset didn’t have a problem with that. They’d apparently helped Rainbow Dash out of a jam during the previous fight, so as obstinate as at least two of them seemed to be Sunset was willing to let the brownie points stack up. She did wonder what Discord was doing with them. Perhaps Adagio’s real body was already repaired and he was transferring her back into it? As adorable as that little floating plush doll was Sunset was sympathetic to Adagio, knowing it couldn’t be easy being reduced twice over; once from a true siren to a human, and now from a human to a fluffy toy.

As they went through the front doors Sunset turned to glance one more time at the gray cat. Its yellow eyes were glued to her, and for a second she thought one of the cat’s eyes slid off balance, but then the cat yawned again and closed its eyes, apparently intending to nap.

The front of the shop was empty, and so the girls proceeded further in, following Screwball’s directions and heading to the right when they reached the long hallway. The hallway went past several more spots that Sunset suspected were sliding doors, but they didn’t stop. Screwball had said they’d find Discord by going right, so on they went, far further than should have been possible for the shop’s size. Finally the hallway ended, though not in a dead end, but rather there was a large portion of the floor that had been opened up like a hatch, and there was a set of wood steps leading down. Bizarrely, light filtered up, bright as natural noon sunlight.

One by one the girls went down, Twilight first followed closely by Sunset. The stairs went all the way down a good twenty feet before hitting the ground. Ground that looked like the rocky terrain of a blasted, empty stone plain. All the girls goggled, mouths agape, as they saw that above them was not a ceiling, but what looked to be a clear blue sky, as if they’d just stepped into another world. Above them the stairs ended in an open square hole in the sky.

“Oh my, well this is certainly something, isn’t it?” said Rarity, crossing her arms, “I don’t suppose we should have expected any less from this Discord fellow.”

“Wow, talk about basement space! You could hold one serious party down here,” said Pinkie Pie, “I wonder what the utilities bill on extra dimensional spaces looks like?”

“Somehow doubt he’s the type to worry about that,” said Sunset, eyes scanning the area. The plain wasn’t flat or uniform. She spied outcroppings of stone, several cliffs in the distance, a few areas that looked like they dove into canyons, and even a few scattered dead trees. Then nearby, coming around the edge of a huge series of boulders, she saw Sonata, Aria, and Adagio all jogging along. At first she thought Adagio was back in her human body, but Sunset soon spied the soul chain dangling from her chest. The chain flowed back to her doll, which Discord was carrying as he called out the steps of their job in a cheerful voice.

“One! Two! Three! Four! Step! Two! Three! Four! C’mon girls! Pick up those legs!”

“W-why... why do we have to... huff... keep doing this...?” cried Sonata.

Discord, not even breathing hard, while the sirens were covered in sweat, said, “Why, I don’t suppose it actually does either you or Miss Blaze any good, other than toning those thighs. As for Miss Dazzle, why, exercising her soul is important to keep its strength up for eventual reimplantation into her body! Now no more complaining, we have another thirty laps to go...OH! Hi girls, didn’t see you there!”

Discord waved to Sunset and her friends, and he stopped his job. The three sirens did as well, all of them collapsing into a panting pile, Aria shooting Discord a withering glare while Adagio, dusting off her legs, focused her glare towards Sunset.

Sunset and the girls started to walk up, and by the time they reached Discord there was a rush of air and Clover appeared there as well, black robed and at ease.

“Hey Clover,” Sunset said, “How’s the leg.”

“Recovered, thanks to medicine from the shop,” Clover said, wiggling her leg as if to prove it was fine. “Glad you all made it promptly.”

“Indeed! Indeed!” Discord said, clasping his hands together and bestowing a friendly smile upon the girls, a smile that still made Sunset feel uneasy in her own skin. Discord looked the girls over, eyes settling on Rainbow Dash, “Clover was just telling me earlier that it seems one of you has had a bit of a, how to say, evolution to your unique friendship transformations.”

Friendship transformation? Sunset had never really thought of them like that before, but given they tended to manifest either when she was together with the girls playing music, or showing their most harmonious traits, perhaps it wasn’t such an inaccurate way of describing it.

Under Discord's scrutiny Rainbow Dash tilted her chin up, arms crossed, “Yeah, that’s right. Know anything about it?”

“Perhaps, but I need to see it first,” replied Discord while clasping his hands behind his back as he started to strut around Rainbow Dash. “I don’t suppose you know how to summon that change at will, do you?”

“Look, dude, we already know what makes us pony up, just not how to do it whenever,” said Rainbow Dash defensively, “I don’t got my guitar with me, and showing loyalty means I need a situation that tests it, right?”

“Hmm, yes, but I do suspect there’s more to that transformation now than that, including how to activate it,” murmured Discord, eyes squinting. Sunset saw that Rainbow Dash was getting more and more uncomfortable by the way the girl kept shuffling around, trying to keep Discord in view, and so she stepped in.

“Look, Discord, can you help my friends like we agreed to, or not?”

“Oh I imagine so,” said Discord, barely glancing Sunset’s way, “You should probably go do your own training with Miss Clover. I assure you, your friends are in good hands with me.”

Sunset wasn’t very reassured, but she felt a hand on her arm and looked over to see Fluttershy, who had a calm, encouraging look on her face as she quietly said, “It's okay Sunset, you go on ahead with Clover. We’ll be fine.”

“Alright, if you guys say so,” Sunset said, turning to Clover who was waiting patiently, “Shall we?”

Nearby Twilight was looking between Discord and Clover with a fidgeting unease that Sunset didn’t understand until Twilight said, “Um, I don’t know who I should go with. On one hand I’m very curious to see what kind of ability Rainbow Dash has awakened, but on the other I also want to see more of what Clover will teach about Soul Reapers.”

The girl had two different notebooks fished out of her book bag, and was looking between them, “Ooooh, mysterious friendship powers, or Soul Reaper abilities? Which should I study?”

“Well sugarcube I figure it might take a bit o’ time fer Mr. Discord here ta’ do much wit us while we’re still sortin’ this power out. Meanwhile Sunset an’ Clover already got a’ good start goin’, so you’ll git more ta’ see wit them,” said Applejack. Twilight beamed a smile for the helpful words.

“Thanks, that’s a good point. So, yes, Clover, Sunset, if you’ll allow me to tag along?”

“I have no objections,” said Clover, “I’ve already scouted a good spot, so follow me.”

----------

The spot in question was one of the shallower canyons, a dusty place with high, jagged walls of rock. Sunset stood before Clover while Twilight had found a seat on a small boulder, a notebook open in her hand with a pen ready to go. It warmed Sunset a bit, seeing just how similar the mannerisms were between this world’s Twilight and the pony world’s, at least in a few ways. The human Twilight did seem more awkward and uncomfortable with herself, but Sunset had to remember that the Twilight of Equestria had the benefit of many friends and rough lessons to smooth out her awkwardness. This Twilight still had much to learn and experience, yet the core of the girl, that drive for knowledge and understanding the world around her, that was still the same.

Sunset was happy to call her a friend and have her along for all this insanity.

“Let us begin,” said Clover with a officious air, “First you have the gikon with you?”

Sunset whipped out the small green orb, “Right here.”

“Good, then go ahead and swallow it,” Clover said, and Sunset obeyed, with only a slight hesitation. She didn’t mind the whole idea of being displaced from her body so much, but she remembered that in returning to her body she’d had to... well... throw up the sphere again once she was back in her own flesh and blood. Not pleasant.

Swallowing the sphere she felt the same sense of being abruptly booted from her body, a jarring feeling of being shoved forward. However this time she was more prepared for it and wasn’t nearly so disoriented as her first time as she landed lightly on the feet of her spirit body. Behind her her flesh and blood body gave a happy yawn and smiled.

“Aaaah, that feels good. Hello! Chappy reporting for artificial soul duty!” said Sunset’s body, or rather now Chappy’s body, as the artificial soul saluted to Clover.

Clover just nodded, “Go sit by Twilight, Chappy, and try to keep out of trouble during the lesson.”

“Not a problem!” said Chappy in a sing song voice and hopped off towards Twilight, holding up a hand in a high five position, “Hiya Twilight, how’s it going?”

“Uh...okay? I guess?” Twilight hesitantly and lightly tapped Chappy’s palm with her own, then seemed to try to bury herself in her notebook while the artificial soul stood nearby, bouncing in place. Sunset just shook her head at the scene and returned her attention to Clover.

“No doubt during the battle you noticed a significant difference between your abilities in this soul form than what you could do in your human body,” said Clover.

“Yeah, I felt lighter, and stronger. Kind of like I could accomplish anything,” Sunset said, not quite willing to admit just how good it had felt, or how satisfying defeating those Hollows had been. If anything it had kind of unnerved her, reminding her a bit too much of how she’d felt when she’d turned into the ‘raging she demon’ the previous year.

Has it really been a year? It both felt like a long time, and an oddly short amount of time. She’d gone through so much in just a year, and hardly felt like the same pony. Sometimes Sunset wasn’t entirely sure who she was anymore.

“The reason for that feeling of strength,” said Clover, “Is because the physical matter of your body inhibits the flow of your reiryoku, the power of your spirit. The sense of this power is called reiatsu, or spiritual pressure. Free from a physical body your soul’s reiatsu can be felt clearly and your reiryoku can be utilized to its full extend. All soul bodies, all objects in the spiritual realm, including Zanpaktou, are made of reishi, spirit particles. Think of them as the spiritual equivalent to atoms. Reshi, spirit particles. Reiryoku, spirit power. Reiatsu, spiritual pressure. These are what make up the basics of a Soul Reaper and our powers.”

“Why do all those names sound Japanese?” asked Sunset bluntly while Twilight’s hand was furiously jotting down notes.

“Ah, that’s a simple one,” said Clover, “The original Soul Reapers were mostly souls from that land, and the original Soul Society was based largely in that region. This was around four thousand years ago. Since then the Soul Society has expanded to operate in every part of the living world, and has members from every culture. However due to the core, original members mostly being of Japanese origin, much of the terminology of our culture stems from that source and remains in place as a matter of tradition.”

“Makes sense,” said Sunset, wondering just what the world was like before the Soul Society. Weren’t they in charge of some kind of life and death cycle? Who’d been in charge before them, then? Still, if she was going to ask every question that popped into her head they’d never get on with the lesson.

“Very well, now that you're in your spirit form, I need you to learn how to control the flow of your spirit energy. Literally everything you do as a Soul Reaper will be based upon control of that energy, from techniques like the Shunpo Flash Step to eventually being able to communicate with your Zanpaktou and learn to activate your Shikai.” said Clover as she drew her own Zanpaktou and held it in front of her. Sunset watched as she placed a hand on the flat of the blade and Clover spoke in a intoning voice.

“Seek, Chishiki.”

Clover’s Zanpaktou glowed an intense green and Sunset felt a burst of pressure upon herself, like a hand pressing down on the core of her chest, as the sword flowed into a longer shape; that of a staff with a ring blade upon one end and a spike upon the other. Clover held the weapon that was a good headspan taller than her with ease and spun it once to plant the spike end into the ground.

“What did you just do?” asked Sunset. Behind her Twilight’s scribbling in her notebook increased, the girl's’ eyes fixed on the demonstration. Chappy just clapped lightly, smiling.

“A Zanpaktou is a sword in part, but it is also its own soul, its own spirit, formed from your own spirit energy,” said Clover, “Zanpaktou are alive. More than tools or weapons they are a partner to their Soul Reapers, and in strengthening your bond with your Zanpaktou you will in time learn its name and a release phrase that shall transform it into this; the Shikai state.”

Sunset gulped, glancing down at her own Zanpaktou still sheathed at her side. This sword was alive? It had its own soul, formed from a part of her soul?

“I... had no idea,” she said in quiet wonder.

There was a look of understanding sympathy on Clover’s face, “You could not have known what you were doing when you forged the Asauchi into a true Zanpaktou. Those training blades are given to each Soul Reaper recruit so they might in time do as you did, but for most trainees it takes years. You did it in a single night of desperation. That reveals one thing about you, something I can sense clearly right now; you, Sunset Shimmer, possess an extraordinary amount of latent spirit energy inside you. It is my... massive task to ensure you learn to control that power and use it for the good of the Soul Society.”

She held up her changed Zanpaktou, “Now, the Shikai state is normally as far as most Soul Reapers go with their power. The Shikai is powerful, granting new abilities tied to the transformed blade. You saw me use it the other day to defeat that Hollow. There’s no way to know what kind of powers a Zanpaktou will grant until it is transformed, but when you do release your Shikai you will find not just unique abilities, but a general increase to the amount of reiatsu you can use to fight, making you faster and stronger still.”

She paused, frowning, “There is a state beyond Shikai, but I don’t suppose there’s much reason to talk about that yet. Even when i do it would only be in theory, as only a rare few can achieve the second release... well, no matter. You’re not even at Shikai yet. Let’s start with basic reiatsu control, first.”

Clover went up to Sunset and reached out a hand, touching Sunset just above the heart. Sunset stiffened a bit at the contact, but didn’t say anything as Clover spoke, “You can feel your spirit energy inside here, your soul sleep, the resting place of your power. You must focus to draw on it, feel it more than see it, and direct it with your will more than your mind. Now, close your eyes, and feel...”

----------

Rainbow Dash shivered, “Okay, dude, no touching!” she said with a final glare at Discord, who retracted his hand and shrugged.

“I was just demonstrating where your spirit power generally rests. You have to feel it out to direct its flow, my dear.”

“I can feel things just fine without a grubby old man touching my chest,” said Rainbow Dash and off to the side Sonata snickered.

The three sirens were resting on some nearby rocks while the rest of the girls watched Discord work with Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie was busy drawing little sketches into the ground with a stick she’d found while Rarity watched the proceedings intently alongside Fluttershy and Applejack. Rainbow Dash tried not to nervously shift under the attention. She liked attention, but Discord just straight up creeped her out.

For his part Discord didn’t seem ruffled at all. He had the constant air of a man amused with himself, as if he knew a grand joke no one else knew the punchline to. It made Rainbow Dash want to deck him. He never stood still either, always shuffling this way and that, his sandal clogs clacking upon the ground loudly.

“I believe the power you possess is tied to those wings you already have while ‘ponied up’, and if what I think is true, which it usually is, you can activate them by focusing your will upon those wings, or the image of the wings, and pump just a bit of spirit power into it to make them appear. However you need to focus to accomplish this.”

“Ugh, alright! Fine! Focusing away!” said Rainbow Dash, taking a deep breath and working on getting into the zone. She played all sorts of sports, and outright loved physical competition. It was impossible to get as good as she was at most of those sports without knowing how to focus, or enter the zone as she preferred to think of it. She just imaged a fire in her head, and poured all of her fear and doubt straight into that fire, until it was all burned away except for her, her confidence, and the object of her focus. In this case she imagined the wings. Those awesome, lightning streaked wings.

After a minute of nothing happening beyond her imagining she snarled out a sigh, “Dude, this isn’t working!”

Discord rolled his eyes, “Not after sixty seconds, no, but then again I’m not certain your focusing on the right thing. What were you feeling when you transformed earlier?”

“What is this, a visit to the shrink? Why do I need to talk about my feelings?” asked Dash irritably.

“Because spirit energy responds to emotion more than anything else,” said Discord in a tone of an adult explaining basic math to a slow child, “If you don’t feel anything then your spirit energy doesn’t know how to react or what to do. So feel it out, Miss Dash. Feel what you felt when you charged to Miss Clover’s rescue.”

“You can do it Dashie!” said Pinkie Pie in a cheerful cry and even Fluttershy cupped her hands, saying in a quiet, subdued shout, “Yay... go Rainbow Dash...”

Taking a deep breath Rainbow Dash closed her eyes and tried again. She summoned up the fire and burned away all her extraneous thoughts and fears, and then focused upon her memory of the other day. She’d been so angry that there’d been nothing she could do to help Clover. It wasn’t right for others to have to risk their lives for her. It wasn’t loyal to stand by and do nothing while another person did the hard work of bleeding, maybe dying. Rainbow Dash loved ponying up so much because it made her feel strong, with wings to carry her wherever she needed to go to be there for those that mattered to her. Wings that let her be the most awesome and loyal person she wanted to be!

Much as the last time it happened in a flash of warmth flooding her and a burst of light that filled her soul. That energy exploded out in a burst of electricity, an aura that shook the ground for a moment as her body changed; pony ears and tail, but most important of all... wings. Bright white metal wings, edged with bands of prismatic color, and crackling with electricity.

She could feel the power now, her spirit energy, flowing through her, right from the core of her chest to the tip of every limb.

Discord was smiling in a thin, satisfied way, while the girls jumped and cheered, even Sonata while the other two sirens just stood and watched. Adagio, her soul body clutching the doll she was connected to, was frowning deeply, but Rainbow Dash didn’t care. She grinned, jumping up and flapping her wings to do a quick loop before landing again.

“Sweet!”

“Indeed,” said Discord, “It seems that this power comes naturally to you, and I suspect it will come naturally to the others as well.”

“You think so?’ asked Rarity, tapping a finger on her chin, “But what is this power exactly and why do we have it? It’s clearly similar to what happens when we pony up, but it just... if you forgive me saying Rainbow, it feels different.”

“Hmm, it seems your senses might be among the sharpest of those here, Miss Rarity,” said Discord, “If you can tell the difference between this power, and the one you use to, as you say ‘pony up’.”

“What’re you talking about, Rares?” said Rainbow Dash, still smiling, “The ears, the tail, I’m totally ponied up right now, so what’s the difference?”

Rarity had a streak of nervousness on her face, a tightening around her clear blue eyes, “It just feels... well, somehow... Oh I don’t know. Just different. I guess.”

“More wonderin’ why ya think we all got the same power, Discord,” said Applejack, raising an eyebrow.

“Because all spiritual powers can be sensed, even when dormant, but a strong enough ability for detecting such things, and I sensed that each of your souls have this potential power resting inside you,” said Discord as he walked along the line of girls, stroking his beard, “In fact, I would stab a guess that this power predates the power you gained from interacting with the pony princess from another world. Yes, I think that when that happened the power of harmony, friendship, whatever you wish to call it intermixed with another power that was already there, lying in wait within the depths of your souls. Now they’ve become one and the same, and altogether something new that hasn’t been seen in either this world, or the other...”

Before he could go on there was a rush of wind and suddenly Screwloose was there, gray hair wild, and face grim, “Boss, you told me to come and warn you if the wards got tripped. Well, the wards got tripped!”

Discord’s expression shifted from amused speculation as to the nature of the girl’s powers, to an instant hard look devoid of amusement, “Is that so? Which ones?”

Screwloose pointed at Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack all in turn, “Her, her, and her.”

“What’s goin’ on?” asked Applejack, frowning, “What wards?”

Discord removed his hat for a moment, running a hand through his snowy white hair, “Well, this is a complication I hoped we could avoid for a time longer. Girls, I’m afraid training will have to be suspended for today, and action must be taken immediately. Your families are in danger.”

----------

“Okay,” Sunset said, taking a deep breath and patting her face, “I can do this. I can do this. Hrrrrgh!”

She held up her palm and grunted, trying to push the spirit energy she could feel swirling around inside her into a sphere shape in her hand. Grinding teeth, brows furrowed, she strained until she thought her brain was going to burst, but all she managed was a faint flicker of blue light before she collapsed.

“Huff... huff... I thought you said this would be easier the more spirit energy a person has?” she asked Clover, who stood watching her with a critical eye.

“It will be, but you still have to learn control. You’re pushing too hard. You have to learn to guide the flow, not force it out like you're trying to punch through a wall.”

Sunset took another calming breath and wiped sweat from her forehead, readying herself to try again. She sincerely hoped the other girls were having more luck than she was. Part of the problem was that this wasn’t anything like using magic as a unicorn. Strain and pushing were the keys, there, especially with unicorns with a lot of innate magic. The horn wouldn’t respond to a gentle, half hearted touch, you had to pour your all into pushing the flow of magic through your horn, take the magic by the bit and bridle and keep it under control.

Spirit energy seemed to behave a lot more... erratically.

Or maybe it was just responding to her own erratic emotions. Clover had said spirit energy responded to how one felt, and right now Sunset felt anxious and frustrated. She needed to calm down. Breath in, breath out, still her mind, not let anything shatter her sense of placid calm-

The ground nearby exploded as Rainbow Dash landed like a meteor right behind Sunset, shouting, “HURRY GUYS TROUBLE!”

Sunset screamed, flailing about. Twilight fell off her rock, notebook flying from her hands. Chappy hid behind Twilight. Clover just stood there, blinking but otherwise not moving.

With her heart racing like a terrified rabbit against her ribcage Sunset turned around, hand on her chest, breathing heavily, “Dash! Seriously!? What’s wrong with you...wait, what happened/”

Rainbow Dash had a look of strained fear on her face, a wild look in her red eyes as she babbled, “Discord set wards around our families homes in case of trouble and there’s trouble! Hollows! Hollows are going after Pinks, Rare,s and AJ’s homes! C’mon dudes, we gotta jet, NOW!”

The girls’ words dispelled confusion rapidly, Sunset’s eyes narrowing as she looked back to Clover, “Lesson’s over.”

“Understood, let us waste no time, and go,” said Clover, just as Twilight recovered her notebook and came up with Chappy following behind.

“W-what do we do? If three families are being attacked at once...?”

“Split up, egghead, what else!?” shouted Rainbow Dash, “Discord’s lending us his girls, and we're splitting up to go defend all three homes at the same time. Now hurry it up, or you’ll get left behind!”

With that Rainbow Dash shot back into the sky, and it was only then that Sunset even fully realized that the girl had manifested those new, metallic wings from the other day. Well, at least they wouldn’t all be going in defenseless this time. In fact, as Sunset felt a fiery anger rising in her gut at the thought of any Hollows daring to attack her friends’ families she suddenly felt almost sorry for the Hollows.

----------

Sweetie Belle was sort of bored. She wished Applebloom and Scootaloo didn’t have to always have to go home to early after school. Applebloom had chores at the crack of dawn, crazy farm girl that she was, and Sweetie Belle didn’t at all envy her. As for Scootaloo, well, Sweetie Belle wasn’t sure why that girl had to leave early sometimes. She didn’t really talk much about her own home of family. Strange, but hey, she was a cool friend and Sweetie Belle wasn’t going to pry. They’d all learned that lesson after the school paper incident.

So she was just busying herself in her room, drawing in a coloring book when she noticed her window open rather suddenly and without seeming any wind.

“Huh?” the young girl blinked, staring at her window, now just standing open, without a hint of wind from the outside.

Frowning, Sweetie Belle went up to the window, looking outside into the backyard. It was getting late, the sun just starting to flow below the horizon. It cast the back yard in gloomy blue shadows that made Sweetie Belle shiver.

“Strange,” she said, and began to close the window, but just then something grabbed her, tightening around her chest, cutting of her air so she couldn't even scream, and pulled her out the window.

----------

Big Macintosh brought in the last load of apples from the orchard, the tractor finally empty. He wiped sweat off his brow and stretched, feeling muscles crack and pop in relaxation. Another hard day done, but a good day’s work at that.

Parking the tractor and unhitching the cart behind it, Big Mac started towards the farmhouse. His eyes cast a glance towards the road to town, wondering if he’d spot Applejack on her way back yet. He sighed, seeing nothing. Out late again with her friends. He didn’t mind, per se. A young girl had a right to choose how to spend her own time, but as a brother, he worried. He hoped she wasn’t getting into any trouble out on the town. Or spending time with the wrong kind of crowds.

Well, nah, she had good friends. He’d met them all and liked those girls just fine. Perhaps one of them he liked more than just fine. Such kind eyes, and a gentle manner, with pink hair like a river of soft silk. He shook his head, trying to stop that line of thinking. She was a good couple of years younger than him anyway and never once looked at him with anything other than the same kind eyes she showed anyone. No reason to daydream to the point where he’d make a darn fool of himself.

Snorting ruefully he doubled his pace to the farmhouse, only breaking stride when he noticed the front door hanging open. Now, this was a good town, and the Apple family rarely locked their front door, but Granny Smith was a terror about keeping the door closed so the heat wouldn’t get out. Why was the door swinging open on its own, without Granny shouting for him to close it, or having done it herself?

For a moment cold fear broke through him. Granny was old. Real old. She always seemed stronger than the oak trees surrounding their fields and orchards, but it was an unspoken fear between Big Mac and AJ that Granny’s time was running short and any day now...

“Granny!?” he called, reaching the door. The farmhouse seemed unusually dark inside, and too quiet. His fear doubled, stomach twisting with acidic dread of what he might find. “Granny Smith?”

He took a step in, but that was it, before some invisible force hit him square in the chest, blasting him off the porch and onto the ground like he’d been rammed by a car.

----------

Maud examined the rock again. It had definitely moved. She knew every rock in the yard of her home. She knew most the rocks in every park in town. She knew what kind they were, and where they rested. And that rock had moved, the large stone near the ninth post from the south east corner of the front yard.

“Something is out there,” she said in what she thought was an alarmed tone, but was just as monotone as usual for her.

In the kitchen there was a bang of pots and a curse, “What was that!?” shouted Limestone, “I’m trying to do the dishes! Speak up!”

Maud’s eyes blinked, an expression of utmost concern by her standards as she watched another rock in the yard be jostled by something moving, something she couldn’t see. “I said there is something in the yard. I think it might be invisible.”

“Maud, if you’re going to talk nonsense can it wait until I’m done here!?” shouted Limestone. Limestone was always shouting.

Behind Maud there was a shuffle and Marbel’s worried gray features appeared beside Maud, the younger girl looking worriedly out the window as well.

“Hmmm?” Marble said in a questioning hum.

“Marble, stand away from the window, “ Maud said, putting out a hand and guiding her little sister back away from the front of the house. Another stone had moved, jostled just outside the window. Maud started, hard. She saw nothing, but knew something was there. In her core, somewhere in her gut, she knew whatever it was meant harm to her and hers.

“Marble, run,” she said, just as the window shattered, spraying broken glass at both girls.

Episode 8: The Power to Protect

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Episode 8: Power to Protect

Splitting up had been the only choice that made sense, but Sunset still wasn’t thrilled with it. There was no telling just how many Hollows they were going to have to fight or how strong, so not having all of her friends in sight filled Sunset with cold worry.

Each girl whose family was in danger was going to their respective homes, but each needed backup that could fight. Luckily Discord was sending Screwloose and Screwball with them to help, though when questioned why he himself wasn’t going, he only said a rather vague, “It’d be a bad idea for me to leave the shop.”

So it was that Screwloose, Rarity, and Twilight were heading for Rarity’s home, while Screwball, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash were heading for Pinkie’s house, and finally Sunset, Clover, Applejack, and Fluttershy were making their way out to the Apple family farm. Clover was literally carrying Applejack, while Sunset carried Fluttershy, and they both made large leaps in their spirit forms to cover the distance quickly. Sunset ignored any possibility they might be seen, or rather Fluttershy and Applejack would be seen being carried invisibly through the air.

She was still shocked at the fact that she could move as fast as she did or jump as high. Clover of course outpaced her, and could somehow seemingly walk on thin air if she needed to. A trick Sunset wanted to learn, but there wasn’t time for it. The downtown quickly turned to suburbs, and even those got soon left behind as the girls kept running and jumping, covering dozens of feet per leap. Sunset only cast one glance towards the suburb area, hoping the others would be okay with their own battles.

Housing turned to rolling, tree strewn hills, the highway cutting a swatch over the countryside. The Apple farm was only a few miles outside the town limits, bordering the distant, thick green wall of the Everfree Forest. The mountains on either side of the town were like dark teeth in the sky, now that the sun had set and dusk had settled. Sunset breathed hard, focused on what lay ahead. She felt Fluttershy clutching her tightly and whispering to herself; a prayer, perhaps?

Soon the fields of the Apple farm loomed ahead, and the thick apple orchards beyond that. The barn and farmhouse stood as silent, dark sentinels, and the lack of lights send a shiver through Sunset.

They landed on the dirt path between the barn and farmhouse, and Applejack all but tore herself from Clover, rushing for the house. “Big Mac! Applebloom! Granny!”

Clover, already drawing her Zanpaktou, hissed, “Don’t rush in! That’s exactly what the Hollows would expect!”

Applejack barely hesitated, only slowing her steps rather than stopping, a look of fear and anger whipping across her features as she balled her fists and ground her teeth, “I ain’t standin’ still while my family's’ in trouble!”

“Trouble?” asked an female voice, wavering and croaked with age as an elderly green skinned woman with her white hair tied back in a bun ambled onto the porch, “What’s this I’m hearin’ ‘bout trouble?”

“G-Granny Smith!” cried Applejack, relief flooding her face as she stepped forward, “Yer alright!”

Sunset had a sudden, intensely bad feeling. Something wasn’t right. There still weren’t any lights on in the farmhouse, and until the last Apple was firmly tucked in bed even Sunset knew Granny Smith never put the lights out. There was a chill in the air as well, a tense feeling of waiting violence. “Applejack...” she began to warn, but the girl was already on the porch.

“What happened Granny, where’re Big Man and Apple... bloom?”

Applejack halted what she was saying as she got a good, close look at ‘Granny Smith’. Sunset saw it around the same time, the woman’s eyes. They were lacking any emotion or depth, and weren’t even really looking at Applejack. Clover began to shout something about a trap when the image of Granny Smith seemed to convulse and implode upon itself, revealing that the woman was never there at all, but rather was just some kind of false image or doll attached to the end of a long, black tentacle that whipped out and knocked Applejack off the porch.

Clover vanished and reappeared to catch Applejack in mid-air, just as the sound of Hollow howls filled the air and the monstrous spirits began to flood from the house, crashing out of windows or exploding out the door.

----------

Upon seeing the ambulance outside her home, it’s lights strobing the street in a wash of colors, Rarity clenched her teeth and fought back the urge to scream in both frustration and fear. Screwloose and Twilight ran at her side as they rushed to the front of the house, the front door open as paramedics wheeled out someone. Rarity recognized her father, conscious but with a compress on his head, laying on the medical stretcher. Beside it her mother walked along, face pinched in worry.

“Now honey you stay still and let these fine young men tend to you, okay?” said Rarity’s mother.

“Mmm, yes dear, I don’t think I’ll be dancing a waltz anytime soon, so don’t you worry.”

“Mother! Father!” Rarity shouted, rushing to them. The paramedics barely halted, only slowing enough to allow for Rarity to walk alongside the stretcher. “What happened? Where’s Sweetie Belle!?”

“Rarity?” her mother blinked in surprise, then said, “Everything’s fine. Your father just tripped down the stairs and bumped his head. I... I think Sweetie is still in her room. I called the ambulance as soon as I could and I haven’t seen her. Hm, odd, you’d think the way your father was hollering that he was dying that Sweetie might’ve come had a look, but I suppose that girls’ got her headphones on or some such thing.”

“Now I wasn’t hollering,” said Rarity’s father, frowning past his mustache, “Maybe grumbling a tad.”

“Dear you swore up and down that you were seeing the light and walking into it,” deadpanned her mother, but Rarity was no longer listening. Instead her eyes were focused inside the house, and she rushed in, Screwloose and Twilight following behind without comment. Not, at least, until they were inside and Twilight pulled out her Detector.

“They’re here,” Twilight said, “I have at least five readings. Towards the back yard of the house, and the alley beyond.”

Screwloose glanced back at the paramedics loading Rarity's father into the ambulance, “If we’re fighting there’s going to be too many eyes on us without another ward. I’ll have to set it up once we’re out.”

“What about the other wards you set up around these homes?” asked Twilight as they went up the stairs, “Couldn’t they keep out the Hollows?”

“Not without blocking other people as well. The wards were just early warning alarms. A precaution the boss felt was prudent,” said Screwloose. Now that they were at the top of the stairs the woman opened up the black cloak she wore and withdrew the large, multi-barreled bazooka-like weapon. “When the fun starts, you little kittens stay behind me.”

Rarity was barely hearing any of it, marching directly for Sweetie Belle’s room. She tried the door, not bothering to knock. The door wasn’t locked and the inside of the room was lit, but empty, a half open coloring book on the bed and a few things strewn around the ground. Rarity’s eyes immediately homed in on the open window and she went to it without even hesitating.

There she halted, sucking in a sharp breath.

The Hollows were waiting there, five of them. Four were smaller creatures, all having the look of amphibians and lizards in both body shape and that of their skull masks. The larger one looked like a disgusting cross between an octopus and a sea urchin, a round, bulbous body covered in harsh spikes and sporting an array of writhing tentacles. This Hollow hung back towards the alley, and in one of its tentacles it clutched Sweetie Belle tightly, even covering the young girl’s mouth so she couldn’t scream. However Sweetie Belle was conscious and the moment Rarity was in sight Sweetie Belle’s eyes widened and she tried to struggle in the Hollow’s tight grip.

“Sweetie Belle!” Rarity shouted, then her eyes glared dangerously at the tentacled Hollow, “You! Unhand, er, untentacle my sister this instant!”

“Sure, sure,” said the Hollow in a bubbly male voice, “I’ll let the little one go, just as soon as you hand yourself over to me.”

Twilight came up beside Rarity, her own eyes taking in the scene and her Detector beeping wildly, “Oh no, this isn’t good. Even if Screwloose can get some of them, the big one looks to be just as strong as the snake one from before.”

“Where is Screwloose?” Rarity asked, not taking her eyes off of the Hollow or her sister. Suddenly the back door of the house was kicked open and Screwloose strode out into the yard, hefting her many barreled bazooka with a wild, crazed smile on her face.

“Hiiii! It’s a nice moon out tonight, isn’t it? Perfect night for kidnapping and getting blown up!”

The head Hollow looked at Screwloose, then up at Rarity, then back to Screwloose, and held Sweetie Belle in front of it, “I have no idea who or what you are, but make a wrong move with that weird ass weapon of yours and you’ll be scraping bits of this kid off the pavement with a spatula.”

To emphasis his point the Hollow began to squeeze hard on Sweetie Belle, constricting his tentacle around her. The girl made muffled screams, eyes tearing up in pain. Rarity snarled, “I said let her go!” She literally jumped from the window, landing hard on the soft lawn with a jarring roll, but Rarity knew how to tuck and roll, and it’d only been about a ten foot drop. Still her legs felt unsteady, through from pain or rage she wasn’t sure, as she stood facing the Hollow.

“Okay, apparently nobody here understands how hostage situations work,” said the Hollow, “You see I have all the power here, because you want this girl alive, see? Not doing what I say means the girl gets hurt, so instead you do what I say! Simple, right?”

Screwloose didn’t lose her madcap grin, licking her lips eagerly, “Doesn’t sound like you’ve been in a lot of hostage situations either, Mr. Tentacle. What do you think will happen the second you kill that girl? You really believe I won’t blast you to pieces the second you lose that squealy little piglet meatshield?”

“Screwloose, please, can you not refer to my little sister as a ‘piglet’? And we want to rescue her, not kill the Hollow after its... its... “ Rarity trailed off, feeling impotent rage as she realized that she had no idea how to get her sister clear of that monster without Sweetie Belle getting hurt.

“Well, seems like you’re starting to get it,” said the Hollow, waving Sweetie Belle like a traffic signal, “Why don’t you quite the posturing and come over here. It’s you we want, girlie, not this piece of meat. Soon as you’re in hand I’ll let the little girl go, see?”

The tentacles only tightened more and Rarity’s heart dropped seeing the pain on her sister’s face and the tears streaming down her cheeks. What could she do? Even if Screwloose attacked and was able to defeat these Hollows there was no chance that it could be done fast enough to prevent Sweetie Belle from being hurt.

What do I do...?

----------

Pinkie Pie’s whole body felt like it was trying to twitch out of its skin by the time Rainbow Dash’s flying full speed and carrying her, arrived at Pinkie’s house on the edge of the suburbs. Screwball, the bouncy and odd little girl, had managed to keep easy pace with them on the ground, and Pinkie was sort of glad there weren’t too many people out on the streets to notice them go by. Not that she didn’t have much bigger worries at that moment.

Her normal feeling of content was replaced by the unfamiliar tremors of fear. Pinkie preferred to face life’s trials with a constant smile and laugh, but she’d never had to fear for her family’s safety before. It was hard to have anything other than a wide eyed, tense look on her face as Rainbow Dash landed in the front lawn and set her down.

Pinkie could already see things weren’t right. The front window was broken in, for one, glass littering the yard. Pinkie’s house was a bit separated from other homes, the outskirts of the suburbs having slightly larger homes often cut off from each other by larger lawns and copses of trees. The house was encircled by high shrugs and some trees, and the nearest other home, while in visual distance, was still a good half a football field away. No reason anyone would’ve heard the glass breaking and called the police.

On top of that Pinkie knew her mom and pops had a tendency to go to bed early, but they must have heard the window breaking, so where were they?

Screwball skipped up beside them, not seemingly armed, but sporting a confident look about her, “I’ll swing around back, and we’ll see what’s up-”

There was a sudden, massive crash from inside the house, and all three girls exchanged looks. Screwball coughed, “Scratch that, we all go in at once.”

“No need to tell me twice!” shouted Rainbow Dash, rushing straight for the door, folding in her wings to keep from getting stuck on them as she went through. Pinkie Pie was directly behind her, heart clenching at the sound of another loud crash, like someone smashing through a table or wall. What were the Hollows doing to her sisters or parents!?

The living room was a wreak. The tv smashed, the couch broken in half, and several crushed holes in the wall. Pinkie grit her teeth past tears, “Somebody please tell me you’re okay!? I’m here to save you-”

Another crash, louder, from the kitchen, and a shape came barreling out of the doorway to smash into the far wall.

A Hollow, a small one shaped like a bipedal ant with pincer claws, lay there dazed for a second before stumbling to its feet and then scrambling away from the kitchen, “H-help! She’s crazy!”

All three girls, Rainbow Dash, Screwball, and Pinkie Pie, just stood there blinking at the Hollow fleeing out the back door as another shape filled the doorway to the kitchen. There stood a girl with dusky gray skin and neat cut, short purple hair, her eyes unblinking and face blank as stone.

“Did anyone see an invisible creature run by?” she asked plainly, as if it was the most normal thing in the world, and she wasn’t covered in cuts and bruises, with a half demolished kitchen behind her and a refrigerator door clutched in her hand like it was a bludgeon.

Pinkie Pie smiled widely, while Rainbow Dash gaped, and Screwball just pointed a finger towards where the Hollow had went, “Thataway.”

“Thanks you,” Maud Pie said, only looking once at Pinkie Pie, “Oh, Pinkie, hello. You should join the rest of the family in the bomb shelter. I’m dealing with a pest infestation.”

Without another word Maud stalked past the girls, refrigerator door still in hand as if it weighed no more than a foam bat, and proceeding to go after the fleeing Hollow with all the determined, deadly walk of a slasher movie villain.

Feeling an incredible amount of relief, despite the fact that her family might still be danger, Pinkie Pie bounced along behind Maud, “I’m so glad you’re safe Maud. And ma, pops, Marble, and Limestone are in the shelter?”

“Yes,” Maud said in a tone that to others might sound deadpan but Pinkie Pie could pick out the nuances of. The slight tremble in Maud’s voice that likely none other than a close sister like Pinkie Pie could hear that indicated just how furious Maud was. It was a little scary and Pinkie Pie winced as Maud raised the refrigerator door above her head once she was out in the back yard.

Maud didn’t look at the fleeing Hollow, rather Maud’s ears twitched and her nose sniffed the air, and then when the Hollow tripped on a rock Maud reacted instantly, flinging the fridge door, which sailed like a boomerang to click the Hollow upside the head and send it sprawling.

“Whoa...” Rainbow Dash said, coming out along with Screwball, “Pinkie, did your sis just tag a Hollow without even seeing it!?”

“Hollow?” Maud asked, a stillness in her face that made Pinkie Pie want to squirm uncomfortably. “Pinkie, what is happening? Do you know why invisible monsters are attacking our family?”

“W-well, heh, you see Maud... um-”

“We’re attacking because we’re after your sister’s soul,” said a deep male voice as a shadow fell over all the girls, and a Hollow, massive in size, jumped down from the roof right between the group. Its bulk caused an impact that blasted dirt everywhere, and sent Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Screwball flying around, and even Maud was knocked back as a huge fist smashed into her, sending the girl skidding across the ground like a stone skipping over water.

This Hollow had literal muscles bulging from its plain blue skinned surface, sharp abs, and a fin springing from its back. Its face was a the tapered, toothy mask of a shark.

“And in case any of you were wondering, we’ll happily kill anyone we feel like to get what we want.”

----------

Discord sat on the front steps of his shop, sipping a hot cup of tea and frowning into the night.

Beside him the gray cat padded around, yawning out a tiny meow.

Discord glanced at the cat, sighing, “I know exactly what you’re thinking.”

The cat’s bright yellow eyes looked at him as she scratched at her ears, tail flicking.

“You’re thinking I’m being a coward, hiding here while they’re out fighting. That’s it, right?”

The cat licked its lips, laying down with another yawn. Its tiny ears twitched.

“Well you know I have good reason to stay inside the shop’s wards!” Discord said irritably, “Even the Soul Society is only willing to do business with me as long as I stay neutral. How neutral will I stay if I leave the wards, get spotted by either of the other factions, and get drawn into the fight, hmm? We can’t risk the work, you know. Not at this fragile, starting stage.”

He sipped his tea again, but it didn’t taste nearly as good as it should. His eyes narrowed, and he grumbled, “Those girls have to do some things on their own. I can’t hold their hands through all of it, and I did send Screwloose and Screwball with them!”

The cat meowed again, licking its paws. Discord sniffed, “Will you quit it with the guilt trip already!? If you’re so concerned about them you could go. Oh, but you’re on their watch list just the same as I am, so you have the same limitations. At least you get out by masquerading around as a common feline.”

The cat turned her head up, staring at him. Well, one eye at any rate. The other drifted, doing its own thing. Discord frowned, blowing out another sigh. “Okay, okay, that wasn’t fair of me, I know. Still, you have to trust me on this one, old friend. Tonight will either make, or break, those girls, and if they really are what I think they are... well, everything changes, starting tonight. For us, for the Soul Reapers, for the Quincy and Arrancar... the whole war changes with those girls.”

He paused, his red on yellow eyes glowing in the darkness, “And change is what I desire most of all.”

To this the cat gave the barest gesture, almost a nod, and yawned again, settling its head down to peer into the night the same as Discord was.

----------

Claws tore through the tractor just as Applejack rolled away from the bow, the wolfish Hollow that was chasing her snarling as it chase after her. Applejack could still feel the burning bruise across her ribs from the blow that’d thrown her from the porch, but had no time to even think about that. It seemed the whole area around the farmhouse was teeming with Hollows, and it was all Clover and Sunset could do to keep most of them occupied while Applejack and Fluttershy tried to find safety.

Dagnabbit, if only I had something to hit these varmints with! Applejack thought bitterly, seeing Sunset manage to cleave one Hollow’s head in half while spinning to deflect the blow of another, while further off Clover, having already transformed her Zanpaktou into that staff weapon, was wheeling through the thick crowd of Hollows, injuring some, and forcing others back. Still there had to be over twenty of the damned things, by Applejack’s swift guess, and no telling if there were more waiting in the wings.

How long before Clover and Sunset were overwhelmed? More than that fear, there was the terror gripping Applejack over the fate of her family. Where were they!? What had that fake image of Granny Smith been!?

Growling past her fear she put her all into pumping her legs in a hard run, making her way for the far side of the farmhouse, keeping an eye out for Fluttershy. At a glance she couldn’t see where the girl had got off to, but then spied a fringe of pink hair hiding beneath the porch. Applejack almost smiled at that. Some might have seen such a thing and think Fluttershy as being cowardly, but if anything Applejack saw it as smart on her friend’s part. Fluttershy had come to help if first aid was needed. She wasn’t exactly the fighting type. If Fluttershy could keep out of the danger, all the better.

Makes so I only gotta worry ‘bout my own self.

The wolf Hollow was snapping at her heels, bony jaws almost nipping flesh as Applejack rushed headlong towards a nearby pickup truck, Bic Mac’s, which he sometimes used to go to town for groceries or the rare day off he took. She vaulted into the bed of the truck, rolling as she did. She knew her brother kept a few tools back here, including a pitchfork that she snatched up, wheeling around just as the wolf Hollow bounding up on the truck.

Swinging hard, she cracked the Hollow across the mask, barley injuring it but knocking it away from the truck. A howling screech alerted her to another problem as a flying Hollow with thin, bone wings, and a vulture-like mask dove at her, beak poised like a spear. She jumped from the truck, hurling the pitchfork at the same time, clipping the Hollow’s wing and making it lose control so that it crashed into the roof of the truck with a resounding crunch that dented in the metal roof.

There was a blast of red fire and light as she saw Clover fire off one of those Kido spells of hers, the small ball of crimson flame incinerating a Hollow while the resulting explosion sent a few others spawning. Sunset was fending off three other Hollows at once, and the distracting explosion gave her an opening to impale one while backing away from the other two. Yet for all that effort there seemed to be as many Hollows as ever and Applejack clenched her fists in frustration.

Suddenly there was a loud howl that dominated the area, making Applejack clasp her hands over her ears. All the Hollows ceased their attack, backing away, though only a few paces. There was a rumbling laugh in the air, and then a shadowed shape emerged from the depths of the farmhouse, phasing through the wall as it went. It was a large Hollow, its entire body covered in thick, sickly dark green coarse fur. Its head was like a long, grinning skull with painted lips and vast yellow glowing eyes. From the top of its head was a strange protrusion, a pseudopod identical to the one that’d hit Applejack earlier. Long fingered, clawed hands extended from the bottom half of the Hollow’s hairy body.

“

“As amusing as it is to watch you all fight, I trust by now you see how outnumbered you are. I wish to extend an offer.”

Applejack growled and she heard Sunset shout, “Why would we listen to anything you have to say!?”

“Well, the offer isn’t for you, it's for the Soul Reaper,” said the Hollow.

Clover, holding her Zanpaktou at the ready with a distasteful look on her face as she gazed at the Hollow said, “My sentiments are the same as Sunset’s. Why should I listen to anything you have to say?”

“Because you are a Soul Reaper, whose loyalty first and foremost is to the Soul Society, is it not? I suspect you have your orders, and that they only concern this trainee Soul Reaper here,” he gestured with one fat claw at Sunset, “I’m willing to bet you have no orders at all concerning the other girls. I also know that your superiors are in desperate need of information concerning the recent movements of your enemies in Hueco Mundo, information I possess. So what i propose is simple. Disengage, Soul Reaper. Walk away and allow us to do as we will with the blond girl there, and the pink haired one hiding nearby. We will not touch your pupil. You can leave with her and fulfill your orders, and I’ll add in the bonus of telling you what I know of your enemies plans, a boon you can take to your superiors in the Soul Society. See? A generous offer, yes?

“I don’t give two shakes of a rattlesnakes rear end about your offer!” shouted Applejack, “What’ve ya done wit my family ya stinkin’, rat faced gutter slug!”

“What? The old woman and strapping young man? They’re safe. For now. If you want them to stay that way I’d suggest keeping your mouth shut, child. If you’re lucky you might get through this night with your soul intact.”

Applejack was beyond furious. She could feel the heat of it burning in her chest and warming every part of her body despite the chill breeze. All she wanted to do was kick in the face of every Hollow on her farm. Her teeth were grinding like stones in her mouth and her eyes held only the promise of pain for the Hollow in front of her.

Then Clover spoke and washed that feeling away with pure shock, “If I accept your offer you will tell me what you know, now, Hollow, before I depart with my student.

“WHAT!?” Applejack roared, echoed by Sunset’s much quieter, “Huh?”

The Hollow laughed uproariously, “Hahah! You see, little girls? This is the true face of Soul Reapers. Duty before morality. They’d sell out any so called ‘friends’ if it meant serving the greater goals of Soul Society.”

“Ya... ya no good betrayin’ snake!” shouted Applejack, “Ya can’t be serious!?”

Sunset sounded equally enraged, though perhaps more hurt as well, “Clover what are you thinking!? You can’t take that offer! I... I won’t do it! I’ll fight here, even if you do take that offer.”

Clover’s eyes turned sharply towards both of them, “I shall not shy away from what must be done. If I must flutter away from here, even if it means not rescuing Applejacks family, then I’ll bear that shame for right now. Fighting here is pointless, and it doesn’t buy us time at any rate, so, yes, I shall take this offer.”

Applejack might not have considered herself the brightest sort, though she was far from stupid, and could tell there was some odd emphasis in Clover’s words. Suddenly she realized Fluttershy wasn’t under the porch anymore, and it was all she could do to keep her eyes from widening. What’s Fluttershy doing? Clover must know. She’s playing for time. Dang it all, I shoulda known.

Sunset seemed to get it too, frowning deeply but saying, “I.. I understand. I don’t want to get killed here anyway. Sorry Applejack, but I’ll stick with Clover.”

Applejack summoned up some of her residual anger to fake a glower, “Then ya can just go sit on a cactus and spin fer all I care!”

“So be it. Hollow,” said Clover, “I accept your offer. Now, tell me what you know.”

“Wise decision. What I know is that Las Noches is planning to-”

There was the sound of smashing wood and glass from inside the farmhouse, followed by a loud bellow of a very angry man. The large Hollow turned, face darkening, distracted by the noise, and Clover took full advantage of the distraction, flinging out a finger.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Three: Sajo Sabaku!”

Spearing down from the sky there was suddenly a massive golden chain that wrapped around the large Hollow, binding its hairy body up tightly. At the same instant Sunset burst into action, slashing through two of the lesser Hollows near simultaneously while shouting, “Into the house!”

Applejack needed no urging, rushing forward as the large Hollow struggled against its chains, howling in rage. Clover moved as well, spinning her staff to impale a Hollow in Applejack’s way with the spike end as all three girls ran into the farmhouse.

“Sorry for the deception!” said Clover, “I saw Fluttershy show me her Detector and point into the house, and she sneaked inside while the big one was distracted with us. She’s remarkably good as stealth for such a brightly colored girl!”

“She must have seen some Hollows apart from the others and figured that’s where AJ’s family were at,” Sunset said, heading through the living room and into a back door that led into the kitchen. There was Fluttershy, with a kitchen knife in hand and waving it at a growling bat shaped Hollow, while Bic Mac was physically wrestling with a more humanoid Hollow with a fish-head mask. Granny Smith was beating at that one with a rolling pin, though her aim was so off it was clear she could only guess at where the Hollow was based on her grandson’s position as he wrestled it.

Sunset and Clover split up almost instantly, Sunset ramming her Zanpaktou through the back of the bat Hollow while Clover slashed the head off the humanoid one with one deft twirl of Chishiki’s ring blade. Big Mac, surprised the invisible thing he’d been wrestling was suddenly gone, blinked at Applejack, clearly not able to see either Clover or Sunset in their spirit forms.

“Applejack?” Big Mac’s wide eyes quickly narrowed, “Ya gotta git outta here, girl! There’s monsters about!”

“I know Big Mac! Where’s Applebloom!?”

“Camping out wit her cousin Babs,” said Granny Smith, and Applejack smacked her forehead. She’d forgotten that their cousin was coming to visit this week! At least that was some good news. It meant Applebloom was out of harm's way... assuming the Hollows couldn’t track her sister into the woods.

“What’s goin’ on AJ?” Bic Mac asked, seeing the look on Applejack’s face and probably rapidly guessing she knew more about what was happening than he did. Big Mac was always the sharper of the two of them.

There was a series of howls from the front of the farmhouse and Applejack shook her head, “No time ta explain! We gotta run fer it!”

----------

“Well?” asked the tentacled Hollow, holding Sweetie Belle aloft. Screwloose had her bazooka aimed, eyes gleaming with unreleased violence.

“You’re call, girl,” said Screwloose to Rarity, “I can take the shot and risk, but that’s your sis, your blood, and your soul on the line. Make the call.”

Rarity’s lips quivered and her back straightened. Her voice was a hoarse, hissing whisper, “I’ll go, but if he so much as twitches in a way that is not releasing my sister then you destroy him, understand? Make it hurt.”

“Heh, I like your style,” Screwloose said, barring teeth in a smile that was almost predatory.

Rarity raised her voice, “Very well, Hollow, you win. I shall give myself up!”

“Mmm, smart. Come on over then. I’ll let the little one go as soon as you’re in my grasp.”

With slow, deliberate steps, Rarity walked towards the Hollow. Some back part of her mind realized she hadn’t seen where Twilight had gone, but she wasn’t sure at the moment that it mattered. All that mattered was Sweetie Belle. If Rarity had to give up herself for her sister to be safe, if she had to give up her soul to protect her own blood, then Rarity would give it gladly. She felt warmer, strangely, as she walked forward. It was a cold night out, and yet she felt almost hot as lit coals as she walked towards the Hollow.

The slimy sea urchin shaped Hollow chuckled as Rarity got close, its four amphibian Hollow lackeys forming a circle around Rarity.

“Well?” said Rarity, “Release my sister!”

“Sure, sure,” said the Hollow, lowering the tentacle with Sweetie Belle in its clutches, setting the girl down. The second Sweetie Belle was free, her tear streaked face burst into more tears.

“Rarity! W-what’s happening!? What are you doing!?”

“Saving you, dear Sweetie Belle, no matter the cost,” Rarity said, smiling comfortingly at her sister... then felt a rod of raw, hot pain stab through her shoulder as the one of the Hollow’s tentacles pierced her shoulder straight through. Blood spurting from her, dark and staining her dress a Rarity felt her body being lifted into the air. The pain was beyond anything she’d ever felt, yet so intense it almost numbed her as her eyes took in the sight of the tentacle embedded in her flesh, the red blood seeping out in a dark river.

Sweetie Belle screamed. Screwloose aimed her bazooka and almost fired, but the Hollow moved Rarity into the line of fire, forcing Screwloose to hold off.

“Wow, you people are stupid,” said the Hollow, “We don’t need these girls bodies! We need their souls. I just let this cute little thing bleed out and I can take her soul with me, leave the meat behind. Heh. Oh, might as well take the little one back, too!”

“N-no,” said Rarity, clutching at the tentacle piercing her, her hands becoming stained with blood. Her blood, which burned hot like it was boiling.

One of the Hollow’s tentacles lashed at Sweetie Belle, but suddenly a purple form darted from the side of the alley and snatched her up just in time to evade the tentacle. Twilight Sparkle carried Sweetie Belle away at a full run, shouting, “Screwloose, do something!”

So Screwloose did. She jumped straight up into the air and then blasted away with her bazooka, explosive rounds raining down on the Hollows in a storm. Most of the lesser Hollows were destroyed, save for one that hopped out of the way in time. The larger Hollow pulled its tentacles back, Rarity along with them, evading the barrage deftly.

“Always a friggin’ complication!” growled the Hollow, “Heh, least I got the girl.”

“H-have me?” Rarity asked, eyes glittering strangely as she felt something welling up inside her. The pain faded. All Rarity could think about was Sweetie Belle and her parents. Her blood. Her family. She didn’t care what she gave up, but she’d let nothing touch them again, and give up any amount of her own blood in generous sacrifice for that goal. “You have me alright. Let me show you how much I have to give!”

The glow infused her, crystal blue, yet it was now also rimmed with red. The Hollow looked at her with the yellow eyes of its mask going wide as Rarity’s blood glowed pure crimson, and suddenly flowed like crystal mist into Rarity’s outstretched right hand. There was a cutting line of red, straight as a razor, and the tentacle was severed.

Rarity hit the ground, pulling the other half of the tentacle out of her shoulder. The wound bled, but the blood didn’t fall. Instead it flowed around her, wrapping and encircling her body. The glow intensified, blood red light filling the alleyway. The Hollow sounded afraid for the first time.

“What the... what the hell are you?”

Rarity was now clad in an outfit that was one part elegant dress, one part protective armor. All of it was different shades of red, the long, slim dress reaching down past her knees, yet slit so her legs had free movement. The chest piece was almost crystal-like, bearing the shape of a rose. Small, form fitting shoulder pauldrons also bore the same rose motif. In Rarity’s right hand was a crystalline red, thin bladed rapier.

“I don’t know what I am,” said Rarity plainly, raising the sword, that caught the moonlight in a crimson gleam, “Other than very cross.”

----------

With electric sparks dancing through the air Rainbow Dash spun and juked to avoid the shark Hollow’s viscous blows. Pinkie Pie watched in open amazement that her friend was able to move so nimbly, but that awe was soon drowned out by worry for her sister as she rushed to Maud’s side.

“Maudie! You okay!?” Pinkie Pie said as she knelt by her sister’s side. Maud in response slowly, stoically rose at the waist into a sitting position. Blood trickled down Maud’s seemingly impassive face.

“I’m fine,” Maud said, standing, but Pinkie Pie could tell the lie for what it was. For all of Maud’s seeming to not care for the condition she was in it was plain the blow she’d taken from the shark Hollow had hurt Maud. She wasn’t quite a steady on her feet as she was trying to make it appear.

“Maud, you should sit down. Let my friends take care of this,” said Pinkie Pie, “You’re super duper hurt.”

“I won’t let anything hurt my family,” Maud said plainly, blinking once, eyes examining the ground. Pinkie Pie knew Maud was watching the indentations in the grass the Hollow was making as it moved, trying to pinpoint its position.

While the Hollow was focused on Rainbow Dash’s flying around, Screwball came up on it from behind. The bouncy little girl had procured a large spiked metal club, seemingly from nowhere, and swung it like an over sized baseball bat. The blow cracked the Hollow in the back of the knee, causing it to stumble, and then Rainbow Dash zipped in to deliver a electrically charged blow across its face.

“S-see?” said Pinkie Pie, “My friends have it. Well, I guess you can’t see exactly, but I’m serious Maud, they have things under control. You need to sit down before you hurt yourself more.”

This really wasn’t any fun at all. When she’d learned she and her friends could see spirits and stuff and this whole thing began she thought it might be neat. A fun afterschool activity; ghostbusting. But there wasn’t a single thing fun about seeing her big sister bleeding. There was nothing to laugh at knowing her family were huddled down in the old bomb shelter, and that if they didn’t defeat this Hollow she might never laugh with her family again.

No, this wasn’t fun. It was as opposite of fun as a thing could be, and Pinkie Pie wanted nothing more than for a way to make it stop.

Maud reached down and wiped something from Pinkie Pie’s face, a tear, she realized. Maud’s mouth twitched in a frown, as expressive a sign of her anger as Pinkie Pie had ever seen.

“I don’t like seeing you cry, Pinkie,” was all Maud said before striding towards the Hollow.

In the meantime the Hollow roared, swinging one of its huge, meaty arms back at Screwball. The small girl took the blow, holding her spiked club before her like a shield. She was knocked back, skidding across the ground and cutting furrows in the lawn with her heels as she giggled.

“Wow, this is a tough one. I can’t crush you with one hit? That’s pretty strong, Mr. Hollow.”

“He’s not that tough!” said Rainbow Dash, sweeping up into the air and then diving once more at the Hollow, which in turn grinned its toothy, shark-like grin and opened its mouth, suddenly leaping at Rainbow Dash and biting down with its teeth.

“Whoacrap!” Rainbow Dash dove to the side, but when the Hollow’s teeth bit down, narrowly missing her, there was a concussive blast of force that hit the girl and sent her spinning towards the ground, out of control.

Pinkie Pie rushed to catch her friend, taking Rainbow Dash’s fall in the gut and both girls getting knocked to the ground. The Hollow laughed as it landed on the ground once more, a sound like clattering bones.

“I’d watch it if I were you, human. My bite really is worse than my bark.”

“Ugh, I don’t need to hear your lame puns, jerk!” growled Rainbow Dash as she rolled off of Pinkie Pie and spread her wings again, lightning flickering around her, “I’m frying you like calamari!”

“...Uh, I’m a shark, not a squid.”

“Whatever!”

Screwball giggled, “He’s right you know, you should have said ‘shark fin soup’, that would’ve been good.”

The Hollow nodded, “Yup, can’t believe you missed something that obvious.”

“Argh, whose side are you on Screwball!? Just hit him already!” shouted Rainbow Dash.

“Yeesh, no sense of humor,” Screwball said, then smiled at the Hollow, hefting her bat, “Ready to be knocked outta the park, Mr. Hollow?”

“Give it your best shot, kid,” the Hollow said, then its glowing yellow eyes blinked as he glanced down at his feet, where Maud had calmly walked up, reaching out and feeling where his leg was. “Uhhh... okay, seriously, what’s with this girl?”

Maud, seemingly satisfied she knew where the Hollow was now, reached out and gripped around the Hollow’s leg. To this the Hollow just scratched at his shark shaped head.

“What do you think you can do, human? I’m five times your siz-aaaaaaaah!”

The Hollow’s condescending words were cut short by a startled yell as Maud yanked hard on the leg and pulled the Hollow off its feet, causing it to crash to the ground.

Rainbow Dash just blinked at Pinkie Pie, “Dude, what’s up with your sister? Is she a robot in disguise?”

“She’s Maud,” was all Pinkie Pie could say in response, yet despite Maud’s apparent boundless reserves of strength her fear didn’t lessen. If anything it intensified. The Hollow wasn’t actually injured yet. In fact even as Screwball rushed in to try to take advantage of the situation the Hollow kicked hard, knocking Maud back like a pinata, while flipping to its feet just as Screwball leaped into the air, spiked club held overhead in a two handed swing.

The spiked club flashed down, and the shark Hollow opened its mouth wide, then bite down. Its teeth sank into the metal club, holding it firm. The Hollow’s glowing eyes narrowed to golden slits as it then lashed up with one heavy fist, uppercutting Screwball hard and knocking the small girl through the second story of Pinkie Pie’s house.

“Dammit!” Rainbow Dash said, her wings flapping once to send her bursting into the air once more, leaving a blue trail of electricity as she rushed to try and hit the Hollow from behind. The shark Hollow spun around, spitting out the spiked club at Rainbow Dash, forcing her to dodge, but in so doing left herself open to a backhand swing from the Hollow that send her smashing to the ground again, this time too dazed to get back up immediately.

The Hollow cracked its neck, sighing, “Man, you girls are bloody tenacious. Almost a shame to kill you, but hey, maybe one of you will make for a sexy Hollow. Now, let’s start with you, little miss creepy bland face.”

This was said to Maud, who had managed to stand back up, and was staggering forward towards the Hollow once more. Despite her clear injuries, one arm hanging useless and possibly broken, Maud just walked towards the Hollow.

Pinkie Pie shouted, “Maud, stop it! Please, stop it now! Just run!”

“I can’t do that Pinkie,” was all Maud said, eyes not even wincing as blood covered them.

Rainbow Dash was still trying to get to her own feet, and Pinkie Pie saw no sign of Screwball since the girl had been knocked through the house. Fear crawled in around her, her hair losing its poofy quality and seeming to deflate to straight locks. She fell to her knees, hands on the ground as she shook.

I can’t do anything; not even laugh. I can’t make a joke to fix this. I can’t sing a song to make the ghosties go away this time. I need... I need... to be...

Suddenly it was like there was another voice in her head, speaking softly, yet dangerously harsh; You need someone else to do for you what you can’t. You need me

Pinkie Pie felt like her head was splitting open as pink light emanated from her body, bathing the entire yard in a sickly pink glow. Everyone stopped what they were doing, Maud turning slowly to look back at her sister along with Rainbow Dash who was blinking in surprise.

Mist swirled from Pinkie’s body, mist the color of cotton candy. It swirled and twisted up like a living thing, until it turned solid, extended legs and arms, forming clothes and a head with razor slick pink hair. Suddenly there were two Pinkie Pie’s, one looking tired and drained, but the other looking vibrant and energetic.

Pinkie Pie, the real Pinkie Pie, looked up at her double with a mix of awe and fear, and blinked as a hand was offered to her. The other Pinkie helped her up, and Pinkie Pie gulped at the cold touch of that other Pinkie’s hand, and the mad light in her doppelganger's eyes. She noticed then that there was a physical difference between them, besides the fact that her hair was going back to its poofy nature while the other one’s stayed straight as a knife’s edge, and that was that the other Pinkie’s eyes were the same brilliant yellow color of a Hollow’s.

“The hell is this?” said the shark Hollow, “Who are you supposed to be?”

The new Pinkie Pie turned her head, and smiled... a smile too wide for a human face, with teeth sharp as daggers.

“Hiya, call me Pinkamena. I’m going to eat you.”

--------

They fled into the apple orchards. Strong, proud apple trees flanked them on all sides. Applejack was breathing hard, but her worry was for Granny Smith. The elderly Apple family matron wasn’t showing any signs of fatigue, only hard faced determination, but Applejack knew her grandmother had to be feeling the strain of their flight from the farmhouse.

“We can’t escape the Hollows,” said Clover simply as they ran, “The humans don’t have the stamina to outrun them. Hollows don’t tire when the chase is on.”

On Applejack’s other side Sunset said, “Then we don’t have a choice. Applejack, you and Fluttershy run on ahead with your family, while me and Clover hold off the Hollows.”

“B-but there’s so many,” said Fluttershy, her words causing Big Mac to glance back, as it was only the words of those not in spirit form that he could hear.

“That may be so,” said Clover, “But i believe Sunset and I can keep them busy long enough for you to get away safely. They might still track you, but I don’t see much choice.”

“How ‘bout we turn an’ fight, an’ finish the bugger’s off?” said Applejack, “Only reason I wanted ta run in the first place was ta git Granny and Big Mac outta harms way.”

“Don’t talk ‘bout us like we ain’t here, child,” said Granny Smith, sweat dotting her face, “Don’t rightly know what kind o’ vermin we got crawlin’ over our farm, but I ain’t runnin’ fer my health. I’m doin’ it so’s they didn’t trash our home no more when it came time ta give ‘em a right clobberin’.”

“Eyup,” Bic Mac concurred.

Applejack closed her eyes tightly, shaking her head, “Ya’ll don’t know what we’re dealin’ wit. I do. Ya can’t help me, Granny, Big Mac. Not against critters like we’ve got ta deal wit.”

“Just you and yer friend here?” asked Big Mac, glancing at Fluttershy with incredulous concern.

“I got other friends, ya just can’t see ‘im,” said Applejack, and winced as Granny gave her a sharp look.

“Now ya listen ta me, Applejack. Yer gonna tell me true what ya got yerself into, ya hear? No playin’ wit fancy words, just say it plain.”

It was impossible to argue with those keen eyes of Granny’s, and Applejack didn’t want to hide anything either. Maybe if she had come out and just explained things to her family, crazy as the truth was, they could’ve been more prepared for this situation. So Applejack gulped and hastily laid out what had happened, even as the group still ran through the apple orchard. She didn’t spin too many words, just gave the basics, and by the time she was done she felt... lighter. More at ease, despite the dangerous situation.

Big Mac just made a small whistle as he shook his head in disbelieve, but Granny Smith, she actually held a look of knowing in her eyes and nodded sagely.

“Had a feelin’, child. I had a feelin’. Been ‘round these parts longer than most, before that city was a city an’ was just a little ol’ mountain town. Seen things. Heard things. Yer ma and pa...” Granny suddenly shook her head, “Ain’t no matter now, but I believe what ya say, Applejack. Big Mac, listen up, we’re runnin’ on, and lettin yer sister an’ her friends deal wit these Hollow varmints, ya hear?”

Big Mac looked like he was swallowing a bucket of sour apples, but he nodded once, muttering , “Eyup.”

“Alright then, we make our stand here,” said Clover, halting, as did Sunset, Applejack, and Fluttershy. Applejack looked sidelong at Fluttershy, who was shaking slightly.

“You could keep runnin’ Fluttershy. Ain’t no shame in it.”

Fluttershy shook her head, gulping, “I can’t. Not without the rest of you. I’ll... I’ll do whatever I can.”

Applejack spared one last glance at her grandmother and brother as they continued on, then turned to face back towards the direction of the farmhouse. She heard the oncoming howls. The Hollows were coming. Two dozen or more, plus the big hairy one with the despicable pseudopod lure. Applejack resolved to tear that pseudopod off that Hollow’s head if she could.

“No more runnin’,” Applejack said with heartfelt truth, and just as the first of the Hollows hunting them emerged from the orchard ahead of them, she felt power surging through her. In front of her was the enemy, behind her and beside her were the people she held dear. Applejack wasn’t going to budge from the line she’d just drawn in her mind, and that was a simple, honest fact.

As the Hollow, a creature scrawling on six legs with the upper body of a ant-lion with massive mandibles, Applejack lifted her leg and kicked out with all her strength.

There was a flash of gold light, and she felt a surge of might reach all the way down her spine and into her legs. There was a blast like the launching of a rocket and she felt the Hollow’s body not just impact under her boot, but be crushed by the force of her blow as the Hollow’s body, a hole blasted through it, dissipated into ash.

The blow had made the other Hollows pause in their charge, and in the back Applejack could see the large, hairy Hollow waiting, cautious. Cautious of her.

“Huh?” Applejack cocked her head, confused.

Clover was staring at her, mouth gaping. Sunset though, was actually smiling, and with one hand pointed down at Applejack’s legs.

“AJ, you might want to look down.”

She did so, and blinked. Her legs had changed. Or rather, her boots had. Instead of a pair of leather work boots and denim skirt, she now was clad in what looked to be thickly armored boots that went all the way up past her thighs. The metal of the armored boots looked like it was made from a combination of gold plates and a bone white substance similar to metal of Rainbow Dash’s wings. There were multiple segmented plates that made up the knee and thigh joints, and the knee pads themselves had the strangest motifs, almost like that of skulls. Around the boots at various points, all the way up past the knees, there were a number of small grooves, the purpose of which eluded her.

Another Hollow, apparently overcoming its momentary fear, curled its insect-like legs and flung itself at Applejack. Before Clover or Sunset could react, Applejack herself spun around in a roundhouse heel kick. As she did so a number of the small grooves on her leg suddenly ignited with golden flame, like miniature thrusters, increasing the speed and power of her kick. The boot smashed through the Hollow’s skull like it was made of thin plaster and the creature vanished into dust.

Applejack paused, looked down at her new boots, then up at the line of Hollows... and grinned.

Episode 9: No Turning Back

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Episode 9: No Turning Back

The reflection of moonlight off of Rarity’s dress and crystalline rapier seemed to bathe the alley in a flickering glow of blood. She could still feel the wound that had pierced her shoulder, yet it seemed the dress had halted the flow of blood and dulled the pain, though perhaps that could also be attributed to the sense of calm that’d overcome her with this new, manifested form. Much as Rainbow Dash had been she realized she was ‘ponied up’ in a sense, the ears and tail still present, but the energy of that form felt different, combined with something else stemming from her current attire and the weapon she held.

Just as she had told Rainbow Dash before this power felt different than the energies of harmony, although in a way she couldn’t put her finger on despite being draped in it presently.

Regardless Rarity was perfectly happy to ignore any unease she might feel in favor of focusing upon how much she sorely wished to teach this Hollow a lesson in what a mistake it had made in targeting her little sister.

Nearby Twilight still held Sweetie Belle, slowly backing away with unsure eyes.

“R-Rarity? Are you okay?” Twilight asked, while Sweetie Belle was still too distraught and trying to control her crying to say much of anything.

“Why, I feel fine, Twilight. Rather energetic, actually. In fact, I do believe I shall dispatch this Hollow myself, if it’s the same to the rest of you.”

Screwloose’s face held a look of accepting understanding as she hefted her bazooka, “I’m no kill stealer. You’re feeling the groove, then go for it. I won’t step in unless I have to.”

The Hollow, despite looking a tad taken aback at Rarity’s new form, seemed to slowly regain its confidence a it chuckled, it’s spiky urchin body shaking, “So you sprouted a dress and a dainty little sword? So what? You’re still just a human. I bet you couldn’t even dodge this!”

Two of its remaining tentacles whipped around and aimed at Rarity like spears, thrusting out at her at top speed. Rarity wasn’t certain how or why, but the Hollow’s attack was something she could see coming. It wasn’t as if time had slowed, so much as it felt like her instincts were sharper, allowing her to act without needing to go through the bothersome steps of thinking it all through. Her body just knew what to do.

Which wasn’t dodging at all. Instead she felt a spark of power flow from her core and into her rapier as she raised it in a rather unusual slashing maneuver for a traditionally thrusting weapon. As if responding to her thought and will the the rapier’s blade extended and expanded with a growth of blood red crystals that formed a new, curved edge around it; changing it momentarily into a curved scimitar just long enough to sever both oncoming tentacles in a wake of light like a splash of blood.

The second the move was ended the crystal formation vanished, returning the sword to a rapier state. Rarity blinked, feeling that the crystal formation, even her dress, was formed from the blood inside her own body. She could practically feel the sword and dress pulsing with her own heartbeat. Instinctively she knew that both would respond to her creative impulses, though to what extent she wasn’t certain.

The Hollow, floating back, growled, “Okay, getting to the end of my patience here. Let’s see you cut down all of these!”

The dozens upon dozens of spikes that surrounded the bulbous Hollow now also extended, flying out like smaller, sharp needle-like tentacles. They flashed around and rocketed towards Rarity, coming in from almost as many directions as there were spearing tentacle tips. To this Rarity knelt down and placed her left hand on the ground, and she saw the tips of the fringes of her dress suddenly grow shards of red crystal that then went into the ground, and with a thought she send energy through those crystals into the alley street.

Crimson slabs of crystal rose like a shell around her, blocking off most of the incoming tentacles, most lodging into the crystal. A few tried to get around the shell, which wasn’t entirely complete, but Rarity didn’t waste a second, mentally forcing the shell to extend higher and force the tentacles up, while opening up a space for her to charge through. She felt faster, her body lighter than normal, and she crossed the distance between herself and the surprised Hollow much faster than she expected.

“Shitshitshit!” The Hollow tried to pry its tentacles free and back away, but they were stuck fast to the crystal shell Rarity had made, and it only had its one last remaining larger tentacle to try and slap Rarity away as she charged in. She side stepped, then thrust with her rapier, but the Hollow snapped back it’s tentacle to take the absorb the blow. Rarity’s rapier pierced into the tentacle, but didn’t reach the Hollow’s main body.

“Hah! Got you!” the Hollow cried in satisfaction, opening its mouth so its hidden, final tentacle could emergy from its mouth, poised to spear Rarity through the chest.

Sweetie Belle shouted for her sister, and Twilight held the girl tight, eyes wide and fearful behind her glasses. Even Screwloose began to raise her bazooka to intervene, but Rarity just smiled.

“Actually, darling, I think I have you,” she said, and sent her power through the rapier, and into the Hollow’s body, her instincts and creative imagination guiding the power. Suddenly the Hollow convulsed as red, jagged crystals began to erupt from its body, starting at the tentacle near where the rapier had pierced through, but rapidly spreading up its bulbous, sea urchin form. Doing so wasn’t easy, as Rarity could feel the power within her being pushed against by the Hollow’s own spiritual energy, but she had come too far to stop, and pressed on even as doing so drained her rapidly.

“Grrrah! N-no! Stop!”

But it was far too late for that. Rarity, even if she’d wanted to, which she wasn’t entirely certain she did, couldn’t seem to stop her power now. Exhausting her, the power surged into the Hollow’s body, crystals tearing upwards and out of its spiritual flesh, until finally the last jagged crystal split its mask in half. With a final wail the Hollow’s body dissipated into ash, and was gone.

The crystal shell also vanished, breaking like glass and then the shards vanishing into motes of light. Rarity slowly turned around, looking towards her sister, “Sweetie Belle, you are alright, aren’t you...dar...ling...”

She trailed off as exhaustion like she’d never known overwhelmed her senses, making the world spin. The red dress and rapier both vanished into motes of light just as the crystals had and Rarity was left with just her normal, bloody red dress and a ragged hole in her shoulder that looked only half healed.

“Rarity!” Sweetie Belle cried, prying free of Twilight to run to her sister, who had sunk to her knees. Screwloose muttered something under her breath and stepped forward too.

Twilight rose to join them, but Rarity saw a shape emerged from the shadows behind Twilight, the last of the lesser Hollows that had hid itself just as Rarity had transformed earlier. She tired to shout a warning, but Twilight was already turning around to see the last Hollow leaping for her, mouth open wide. Screwloose tried to turn, but it was clear she wouldn't be fast enough.

At the last second there was a bolt of blue light that streaked across from somewhere behind Rarity. The cobalt bolt of light, looking for all the world like an arrow, smashed into the last Hollow’s face and blasted it part, its body vanishing into white ash. Twilight, breathing hard, just stood there stunned, while Rarity tried to look behind her to see who had fired that arrow... but she saw nothing. The alley was empty, though she thought she saw just the slight stirring of a puddle that suggested someone had run by swiftly.

Who had done that?

The question would have to wait, because Rarity’s exhaustion and blood loss caught up with her and she fell unconscious.

----------

“Eat me?” the hulking shark Hollow echoed with incredulous disbelief soaking its tone. “I don’t know what you’re supposed to be, a phantom or weird clone or what, but the only eating being done around here is by me, cutie.”

“Aww, you think I’m cute?” asked the being that called herself Pinkamina in a sugary sweet voice that dripped with a flavor of imminent violence, “Maybe if you’re really nice and really lucky I’ll make things quick. Not painless, but quick.”

As Pinkamina began a slow, bouncy walk towards the Hollow, Pinkie Pie stood up on unsteady legs, blinking at the back of her strange new double. She could feel Pinkamina, as if some invisible tether linked them together. She could feel Pinkamena's thoughts as if they were muffled echoes of her own mind’s thoughts, as if they were separated only by the thinnest bubble. The thoughts of Pinkamina confused and even scared Pinkie Pie, because there was little to them other than violence and hunger coated by a mad amusement at everything around her. The only reason she felt any comfort at all in the situation was that among Pinkamena's thoughts was one they both shared with utmost intensity; that they would protect their family.

“Y...you’ll be careful, right, Miss Pinkamena?” Pinkie Pie found herself asking, “I, uh, I like making new friends, and... and that’s what we are, right? So you’ll be careful and not get hurt by the Hollow?”

Pinkamina paused, lowering her head for a second, her shoulders shaking in a high pitched giggle, “Don’t be silly Pinkie Pie. I’d never be hurt by a second rate Hollow like this. Just sit back and let me take care of everything. It's what you made me for, isn’t it?”

Pinkie Pie didn’t know how to answer that, but she did feel an odd familiarity with this unnerving doppelganger, as if she’d known Pinkamena for a long time. The sensation passed, but it left Pinkie Pie feeling even more confused than she already had been.

Nearby Rainbow Dash dusted herself off and spread her wings, “I don’t know what’s going on her, Pinks, but if this creepy new you is on our side, then I’m not going to question it.”

She shot up into the air and rocketed towards the Hollow, passing by Pinkamena who gave the other girl a hungry look, licking her lips. “She’s a yummy looking one, too.”

Pinkamena had just started to pass Maud as well, who was giving the copy of her sister a strange look. Pinkamena just smiled her wide, tooth filled grin, not even slowing her walk as she said, “Stand back, Maud. Your sis has got this.”

“You’re not my sister,” Maud said in flat reply, to which Pinkamena only giggled more.

“I’ve always been your sister, silly. Always and forever. You’ll learn.”

Rainbow Dash reached the Hollow first, her speed seeming to increase the longer she fought. With a grunt the shark Hollow swung through the air, trying to tag the girl out of the air, but she wove around the attacks with swift twists of her wings, and delivered a punch straight to the Hollow’s chest, just below the open hole it had there. Electricity jolted up its body, but the Hollow growled through the pain and smashed down with both fists, nearly clipping Rainbow Dash as it cratered the ground.

“Dang it, this jerk is tough,” muttered Rainbow Dash, flying back to avoid another swing from the Hollow.

Below her Pinkamena just laughed, saying, “Why don’t you take five, blueberry? I’ve got this.”

Rainbow Dash’s jaw twitched, “Like I’d just let you hog all the fun!”

“You’d better, otherwise I’ll be tempted to eat you along with the Hollow here,” warned Pinkamena in a voice that was suddenly cold as deep winter.

There was a sharp look in Rainbow Dash’s eyes as she landed next to Pinkamena, as if forgetting the Hollow was even there, and stabbed a finger to Pinkamena’s chest, “LIsten here, buddy, I don’t know just who or what you are, but if you’re going to roll with me then there’s one rule; don’t tell me what to do!”

Pinkamena’s response was to lean in, eyes fixed on Rainbow Dash’s, then lollled out her tongue, three times longer than any normal human tonge had a right to be, and licked the other girl’s face from neck to check.

“Gwwwaaah!” Rainbow Dash was instantly and immediately a good fifty feet up and away, wiping at her face from what seemed to be far too much drool, while Pinkamena chortled below her.

“Now be a good girl and stay out of my way, otherwise I’ll take an actual bite, next time,” warned Pinkamena while Rainbow Dash was still trying to clean herself off.

Watching all this unfold with a dumbfounded look in its eyes the Hollow snorted, grinning its own grin filled with sharp shark’s teeth, crossing its heavily muscled arms as Pinkamena began to walk closer, “Right, so clearly you're insane. Or the other pink one is insane. In fact from what I’ve seen of this family, you’re all insane. On any other day I’d leave nutcases like you to stew in your own juices, but a job's a job. Kindly die now, please?”

It raised one might fist and with a howl brought the first down straight at Pinkamena’s head. Before it connected Pinkamena's smile went even wider, wide to a physically impossible range as it seemed her entire mouth expanded like an inflatable balloon. In a split second a horror show of a mouth, wide as a door and filed with crooked, razor sharp teeth caught the Hollow’s fist and bite down hard. A sound like a bear trap snapping shut was followed by the noise of tearing flesh, and the Hollow screamed in agony as the entire front half of its fist was bitten cleanly off.

As the Hollow clutched at its bleeding stump of a hand, Pinkamena chewed with wet crunching noises, her cheeks like those of a cartoonish chipmunk, and after a second swallowed the Hollow’s flesh with a burb.

“Ah, kind of bland for a first meal, but there’s many more bites to go. At least you’ll fill me up.”

“Grrrraah! What the hell are you!? What did you just do to me!?”

“I told you, silly, I’m going to eat you. Now quit being such a big baby about it and get in my belly!” Pinkamena said happily as she raised one arm above her head, which suddenly started to convulse and shift until it expanded to nearly four times its length, a writhing pink limb that then split in multiple places to reveal dozens of tiny, saw toothed mouths all biting hungirly..

She whipped the tendril at the Hollow, and it raised an arm to block the blow. Even as the whip-like arm was blocked the many mouths along its length bit small chunks out of the Hollow, causing it to roar in pain, but also anger.

“Damned bitch! Get your weird mouths offa me!” the Hollow bellowed as he lunged forward with a hefty kick that caught Pinkamena in the gut and sent the strange doppelganger flying through the air.

Pinkie Pie felt Pinkamena's pain as if it were her own, doubling over and holding her stomach as Pinkamena laughed at the pain and spun in the air, landing lightly a few dozen feet away. Pinkamena was obviously hurt, a bit of blood dripping from her mouth, but didn’t seem to mind as she licked her lips.

“Oooo, this is fun. I love it if the food fights back. Adds so much to the flavor.”

“Okay, no. I’m the one eating you, girl,” the Hollow said, opening its own mouth wide, shark teeth glinting in the moonlight, “Let’s see who's got the bigger mouth here!”

“Happily,” said Pinkamena, bracing herself and smiling wide as the Hollow started to charge. The Hollow lowered its head, mouth opening like a black cavern rimmed in teeth like massive spearheads, and Pinkamena made no motion to dodge or move out of the way.

As the Hollow’s mouth snapped shut, Pinkamena actually leapt gleefully inside the shark like maw. The instant she did the Hollow make a choking noise, as if Pinkamena had gotten lodged inside, and then he began to shake and twist like he was having a seizure. A scream tore itself from his throat an instant before Pinkamena did the same, massive mouth biting a hole through the Hollow’s neck from the inside, blood pouring out in a torrent.

Pinkie Pie stood in mute horror, watching this scene. Even if the Hollow had been threatening her family, this was far beyond anything she had ever wanted to see done to it. The Hollow was on its knees, coughing and writhing, and Pinkamina, coated head to toe in its blood, turned around to grip its face in her hands, yellow eyes filled with glowing hunger.

“Bon appetit,” Pinkamena said, her mouth once more widening, becoming large enough that it could engulf the Hollow’s entire head.

Then Pinkie Pie shouted, “Wait! Stop!”

Pinkamena did so, but only glanced back with one eye at Pinkie Pie, who was shaking, holding herself.

“This isn’t what I wanted. Just stop. He’s beaten. He can’t fight back. Just... stop...”

Pinkamena sighed, “Don’t be naive. This thing would’ve killed our family without a second thought. It's just a monster.”

Pinkamena turned back to the Hollow, which tried to raise an arm in defense but she bit it cleanly off and spat the appendage out. The Hollow’s cries of anguish hit Pinkie Pie like a truck, and suddenly she found herself moving, walking up beside her double and putting a firm hand on her shoulder.

“I said stop. Go back. Back to wherever you came from!”

She felt a pull on that tether that linked her to Pinkamina, a pull that came from herself, and Pinkamena halted, through her body shook as if trying to resist. Pinkie Pie could feel Pinkamena resisting, as if there was a tug of war between them.

“You’re making a mistake,” said Pinkamena with anger seeping through her voice, “You need me. You can’t do anything useful without me. You know it, deep down!”

Pinkie Pie gulped, forcing down her fear, “Thank you for the help, but you can go back now. Go. Now.”

She pulled hard on the tether inside her, and felt Pinkamena slipping. It was exhausting, but bit by bit Pinkamina felt as if she was slipping further and further inside Pinkie Pie. She saw Pinkamena's form begin to dissolve into pink mist, and the doppleganger growled, “You’ll need me again, soon. And you won’t always be able to put me back.”

“That’s okay, maybe eventually we’ll figure out how to be friends, but bye bye for now,” said Pinkie Pie as Pinkamena's body fully transformed into mist that seemed to seep back into Pinkie Pie’s body.

Abruptly she realized she herself had been glowing this entire time, ‘ponied up’ with ears and the extra length of tail, but these too vanished as Pinkamina was put... back in the cage, so to speak.

The Hollow, with one missing arm, and the other arm without a hand, a gaping wound in its neck, just looked at her with narrow yellow eyes. It somehow managed to talk, despite its wounds.

“She’s right, you know. You are pretty damned foolish to get rid of the one thing that was protecting you from me.”

“Well, not exactly,” said Pinkie Pie, laughing, “I mean, you haven’t forgotten them have you?” She pointed behind the Hollow, who with wide eyes turned around.

Screwball had emerged from the hole her body had put in the house and now stalked out of the rubble, massive spiked club in hand. Maud had used the distraction Pinkamina had provided to acquire the refrigerator door once again and was also making slow, steady steps towards the Hollow. Rainbow Dash landed next to Maud, wings shimmering with lightning, the look in the girl’s eyes communicating a ready desire to pummel.

The Hollow audibly gulped and said to Pinkie Pie, “You know what, think I’m just going to call this a draw. Heheh, no hard feelings?”

Pinkie Pie just grinned, “Sure, but I think you ought to run pretty fast. Maudie can really get some distance with that fridge door.”

----------

With a loud shriek the Hollow with a shape akin to a humanoid salamander was crushed flat under the impact of Applejack’s right boot as she landed hard from a leap that had boosted her over twenty feet high, then smashed down with the extra momentum gained from more golden energy thrusting from the grooves along the back of the boots.

The impact created a small crater where she stood, the Hollow twitching underneath her for a second before it burst into motes of ash. She looked up at the other Hollows that were trying to surround her, and just kept grinning.

“Come on then ya dang snot-nosed varmints! I’ll boot all y’all offa my farm!”

One Hollow charged in, scrabbling forward on many beetle-like legs, howling as it thrust a large horn on its head at the girl’s chest. Applejack kicked straight up, shattering the horn, and then flung herself into a follow-up roundhouse with her other foot, the golden metal of her new boot’s heel crunching into the Hollow’s face, shattering its mask and blowing it back into the crowd of other Hollows. Applejack’s heart pounded like a hooves of a thoroughbred horse at full gallop, and she felt utterly elated. She knew she was glowing, pony ears and tail forming on her body the same time the boots had. The energy surged through her veins, filling her with a unrelenting sense of confidence.

It almost cost her as her focus on the Hollows in front of her caused her to ignore the ones slipping in behind her back, but just as Applejack turned to see them coming for her there were flickers of black as both Sunset and Clover appeared, swords cleaving into the Hollows that had nearly pounced Applejack from behind. As the Hollows vanished into dust Fluttershy stumbled her way through the throng, hands half raised as if unsure what to do with herself.

“Be cautious,” snapped Clover, swinging her Zanpaktou around and slashing through another Hollow, “Even if you feel invincible I assure you you’re not!”

“She’s right AJ,” said Sunset, holding off one Hollow’s snapping jaws with her Zanpaktou, grunting as she pushed off then cut hard vertically, splitting the Hollow’s chest, “We need to stick together on this!”

“Y-yes, stick together,” said Fluttershy, making a small ‘eep!’ noise as a Hollow lunged at her, only to be met by Sunset’s cleaving blade. The girls gathered together, forming a tight circle, back to back.

Applejack looked around her and saw that her friends had good reason to caution her. They were still surrounded by a thick pack of Hollows, encircling them entirely at this point with a wall of bone masks, gnashing teeth, and flexing claws. In the back of it all, watching impassively, was the large fur covered Hollow with the pseudopod on its head. Applejack narrowed her eye.

“I’m bettin’ if we take out the big fella these other critters’ll scatter like the rats they are,” she said with firm belief.

“That may be difficult,” said Clover, voice tight with equal measures of focus and concern, “I think I know that Hollow. I’ve read reports, at any rate. The tendril on its head, it's a lure that can take the shape of whatever he wants. If this is the same Hollow in the reports, he’s called Grand Fisher, and he’s as strong as a Hollow gets without evolving.”

“Oh? My reputation precedes me? I didn’t know I’d become so well known among Soul Reapers,” said the large, hairy Hollow, Grand Fisher, “I mean, sure I’ve killed a few of your kind and evaded those sent to hunt me for, what, fifty years now? I was starting to feel like I wasn’t gaining any infamy at all.”

“Well by the end of tonight ain’t nobody gonna remember yer ugly mug!” shouted Applejack, “Ya made the worst mistake o’ yer sorry unlife tryin’ ta go after my kin!”

Grand Fisher rumbled a loud laugh that shook his whole body, “Ah, but Applejack, you’re acting as if this is the first time I’ve ever done that.”

Applejack’s eyes blinked in bafflement, “What’re ya talkin’ ‘bout?”

Sunset tensed as the Hollows encircling them drew closer, “Guys, we don’t really have time to be chatting.”

“I wanna know what he’s goin’ on ‘bout!” snapped Applejack, “What’d ya mean by what ya just said, Hollow!?”

“Its interesting,” said Grand Fisher, “I didn’t know any of the other girls on our target list, but when I sniffed your soul out, it didn’t take me long to remember I’d caught your scent before, Applejack. I never forget a soul, you see, especially one I want to devour. It must have been some time ago. Eight years, perhaps? Yes, eight. That’s when I first smelled you, my tasty little soul.”

Applejack felt like she’d just had the blood in her body replaced by ice water as her eyes snapped wide. Eight years ago!? But that was...

“I see by your look you remember it now too,” chuckled Grand Fisher, “Of course who would forget the day their parents died?”

Applejack barely felt herself move. Her body was consumed by shaking fury. She charged straight into, then through the ranks of Hollows. Golden light blasted from each of her steps, the grooves thrusting out jets of gold fire that increased the speed and impact of her steps like she was a freight train tearing through brick walls. She felt the hits as Hollows tried to converge on her, claws slashing, teeth snapping, but she broke through all of them on sheer momentum, ignoring pain as cuts laced her body.

She barely heard Sunset shouting for her to stop, and didn’t see it as both Sunset and Clover chased in her wake, Zanpaktou flashing to try and cut by the Hollows that were swarming into their path. Some part of Applejack knew she was being a fool, making a terrible mistake to rush forward like this, but that voice was drowned out by the pure rage that drove her legs forward, and the memories of eight years past.

”Hey ma! Watch this! I can knock them apples right outta the tree with one good kick!”

“Heh, now AJ don’t ya go gettin’ yerself hurt like that. We can pick apples just fine wit our hands, girl.”

“Aww, but this is way more fun, ma!”

“Listen ta yer mother, little hayseed, an’ do yer work proper like.”

“Okay pa, but I bet I could kick apples outta every apple tree in the whole orchard if ya let me.”

NO! She forced the memories back, pushed the tide of sounds and images away of that afternoon in the orchard, when the sun was just starting to set and the word for the day was nearly done, her mother and father both smiling at her antics trying to kick apples out of the orchard trees. That had been the good memories of that day, but it wasn’t long after that... No, no more thinking!

The only thing she wanted to do was kick in Grand Fisher’s face for even mentioning that he might had anything to do with that day!

She broke through the line of Hollows, blasting several back like bowling pins as she charged ahead, making a direct line straight for Grand Fisher’s grinning face. All she could see ahead of her was his smug Hollow mask, and felt as if her legs would burst from the need to kick straight through all of his grinning teeth.

Then there was someone standing between him and her, a face that made Applejack stop in her tracks in a skidding cloud of dust as a voice she hadn’t heard in a long time penetrated her skull.

“What’d ya think yer doin’ little AJ?” said her mother, kindly but sternly, “Gettin’ caught up in a scuffle when ya ought ta be lookin’ after yer brother an’ gran.”

Sweet Cider looked exactly as Applejack remembered her mother. Taller than Applejack, but with the bright, apple red skin like Big Mac's. Her mother's eyes were the same brilliant green like Applejack's, though, and her hair the same honey blonde shade, cut neat and short so it didn’t get in the way of farm-work. She was even wearing the same red and white checkered shirt and dirty denim blue jeans she had eight years ago, plain brown work boots almost reaching her knees. The only thing missing was her mother’s stetson, but then again Applejack knew that was sitting on her head at that moment.

She also knew this couldn’t be her mother. Clover had already said this Grand Fisher used his lure to impersonate others. Applejack knew that, but even so the instinct to stop, the pure shock of seeing a face she hadn’t seen in so long, it froze her in place as memory assaulted her once more.

”Welp, suns down, girls, I’m thinkin’ its time fer supper if my nose ain’t decivin’ me,” her father said, stretching his broad, light yellow shoulders and wiping some of his cherry red locks from his brow.

Applejack jumped down from the tree she’d been hanging from, tossing the last apple to the bucket below, “Yes! I’m stavrin’!”

Nearby her mother heaved up the freshly loaded bucket of apples, smiling, “Here’s hopin’ ma’s cooked up some fritters. She’s been promisn’ it all week an’ I’m gettin’ a serious hankerin’ in my sweet tooth.”

Applejack’s father grinned, “Ya always got a hankerin’ there, hun. Maybe I can satisfy it later tonight.”

Applejack didn’t understand why he waggled his eyebrow or why her mother laughed and gave his shoulder a slap saying, “Really, Hard Nail, not in front o’ AJ! You’ll git her askin’ awkward questions!”

Her father bellowed out a laugh, his rich bell laugh that always made Applejack feel safe, and all three of them began to walk back towards the distant farmhouse. Only something felt off to little Applejack. The shadows somehow seemed darker around the trees, and she felt suddenly rather chilled to her bones, even in the summer heat.

No, I don’t want to remember this. Stop making me remember!

Applejack turned around, peering into the growing darkness in the orchard, and felt as if something was watching her back. She heard her mother calling for her, but she was frozen in place. She saw yellow eyes glowing in the dark, and couldn’t move. Then something in that darkness moved towards her, but before it reached her she felt herself being picked up, wrapped up in the warm arms of her mother.

She heard her father shouting, “What n’ tarnation’ is it!?”

Her mother also shouting, “Dunno, just run fer it!”

Everything was confusion as trees flew by, her mother’s ragged breathing filling Applejack’s ears, and the soft whispers of comforting words from her, but all drowned out by the much louder noise of a unearthly, monstrous howl.

It was my fault. If I hadn’t frozen up. If I’d just kept following my parents, maybe we would have just gone to the farmhouse with nothing happening. I couldn’t even tell Granny or Big Mac what had happened. I never knew. I was a kid. I was terrified. The police later said it had to have been wild dogs, or maybe a rare wolf come down from the mountains. I never knew...

Applejack felt the world spin as something struck her mother from behind, and she was dumped hard on the ground. She heard the scream from her mother’s lips and was frozen solid, only until her father’s hands gripped her and hauled her to her feet.

“Run!” he roared at her, “Git ta the house, now!”

And she could only obey and run, even as he ran back for her mother. She didn’t look back, only hearing the howls, and only seeing her own tears of terror blocking her vision. It was the last time she ever saw either of her parents.

Until now, with the image of Sweet Cider looking down on her with sad eyes, “Why didn’t ya run faster, AJ? I wouldn’ve died if you’d just run faster.”

Applejack clenched her jaw, tears brimming in her eyes, but she felt as if the heat of fury was so strong inside her that those tears would get burned away to steam. Her whole body shook as she spoke in a low tone entirely too calm sounding to give truth to the blazing anger inside her.

“How. Dare. You.”

Her foot came up like an executioner's axe, and smashed down with the force of a meteor. The false image of her mother was torn apart, ripped to shreds by Applejack’s heel, half the pseudopod being torn off along with it as she smashed the ground in a blast of rock and dirt that cratered the ground.

Grand Fisher howled, gripping his torn off pseudopod, growling, “I take it I struck a nerve? Heh, you’re lucky, actually. Soul Reapers showed up that night before I could finish off you and the rest of your family. I only got your parents. Well, half of them.”

“...Half?” Applejack’s voice trembled with anger.

“Oh, you can learn the truth yourself, after I take your soul to Hueco Mundo. It’ll be like a family reunion! You should be grateful!” Grand Fisher said as he raised one massive, long fingered claw and smashed it down towards Applejack.

She spun and kicked, golden light propelling her boot faster than ever to clash with Grand Fisher’s claw. Clover hadn’t been lying, the Hollow was powerful. Much stronger than any of the small fry Hollow she’d crushed that night. When her boot impacted on the claw the result was like a blast of force that nearly blew her hat off as the metallic boot grinded against the claw with a shower of orange sparks. The two were both knocked back, and Applejack snarled under her breath.

“I don’t care what ya think yer knowin’! I ain’t listenin’ ta a thing ya got ta say anymore! Ya hurt my family. Ye profane my ma and pa’s memory! Yer dust, Hollow.”

She was dimly aware of Sunset and Clover fighting among the lesser Hollows behind her, Fluttershy keeping between the two and trying to stay out of their way, but that felt like little more than a backdrop to her facing down Grand Fisher. Even if there were no other Hollows, allowing for Sunset and Clover to help, she would have told them to stay back. This wasn’t just a matter of survival anymore. This battle was for the pride of her own family and the memory of her mother and father!

She clenched her fists and stared into Grand Fisher’s amused gaze, her anger boiling over until she couldn’t feel a single iota of her pain beyond that which was inside her heart at remembering the loss of her parents. It felt as if the metallic boots covering her legs were vibrating with that rage, the energy building up inside them until the ground shook beneath her.

“So much ire, and all of it pointless,” said Grand Fisher, “Your parents were neck deep in our world before I ever showed up. If not me it would have been the Soul Reapers that took them from you. If you want revenge, look towards the Soul Society, not I.”

“Shut yer mouth!” Applejack roared, golden light flowing from the grooves of her boots and propelling her forward like a missile.

Grand Fisher jumped into the air, launching itself over twenty feet high as Applejack passed underneath, her momentum carrying her along a fair distance before she could halt herself by digging her heels into the ground. Grand Fisher’s laughter continued to echo as he fell towards her, seeking to crush her with his sheer size and weight. Applejack jumped back, barely avoiding the crush, but the Hollow’s claws flashed out and tore at her, cutting both cloth and flesh shallowly. Applejack ignored the pain and blood, ducking in and kicking hard from the hip. Her blow connected solidly with Grand Fisher’s hide, but even the strength of Applejack’s new boots only managed to knock the Hollow back slightly.

Applejack heard her teeth grinding as she pressed in harder, kicking again and again at the Hollow. Grand Fisher’s claws moved quickly, each time intercepting her boots with a clash of sparks, a jolt of force at the last hefty kick blasting back both of them. Applejack, a deep guttural growl in her throat, leaped straight back into the attack even as Grand Fisher said, “I only enjoy eating unusual souls. Special souls. Your parents were such souls, and I could smell the taint of Soul Society on them that night. Especially your mother. She all but smelled like a-”

“I told ya ta shut yer filthy mouth!”

Applejack kicked with her left leg, hard, and instinct guided her to do so before she actually got to striking range at Grand Fisher. The reason why became apparent as a blast of golden light flew from her foot and stampeded towards the Hollow like a crashing wave. He crossed his claws before him and the blast hit him full on in a small explosion of gold fire. When the dust settled Grand Fisher was still there, but his claws were burned and scorched, twitching in pain. Applejack suddenly felt rather tired, as if she’d just run a marathon with a sack of rocks strapped to her back.

Applejack, labored breaths heaving in and out as she stood there glaring, wiped sweat off her brow and retrieved her stetson, which had fallen off when she’d launched that blast. Affixing the hat back on her head she readied herself to charge in once more, except that Grand Fisher jumped back again, putting distance between them and turning so that it faced not only her, but Sunset, Clover, and Fluttershy.

Sunset’s body was bruised up and battered, as was Clover, though not to the same degree. Applejack blinked at the pair, realizing that the two had thinned the herd of lesser Hollows by more than half and the remainder were keeping back, as if afraid to keep tangling with the Soul Reapers. Fluttershy stood beside them, swaying slightly, and Applejack saw a faint trail of blood on her scalp from a nasty cut she’d gotten somewhere during the fight.

“I am no fool,” said Grand Fisher, “I haven’t survived as long as I have by pressing a fight I no longer have the advantage in. Believe me or don’t believe me, but I tell you that while it may have been my hand that killed your mother and father, it wasn’t just me that led to the events that night. Ask your Soul Reaper friend there, if you dare. Ask her about what the Twelfth Division actually does.”

“Don’t you be talkin’ like yer gettin’ away! Yer not!” Applejack shouted, feet pounding as she ran towards the Hollow.

“Damn straight he’s not,” said Sunset, also joining Applejack in the charge. Clove hesitated, looking to Fluttershy and the remaining lesser Hollows, clearly not willing to leave the other girl undefended.

It didn’t matter either way, however, as Grand Fisher made another mighty leap, moving faster than either Sunset or Applejack could match as it jumped again and again, covering dozens of yards with each jump. Applejack felt tears of frustration falling down her cheeks as the target of her rage, her parent's murder, was getting away.

“NO! Get back here you murderin’ bastard!”

Grand Fisher’s dark laughter was all that stayed behind of the Hollow, with a few parting words as his form vanished towards the distant Everfree Forest, “Don’t worry, Applejack, we will meet again. I still want to taste your soul, just like I did your mother’s.”

She kept running, feet impacting the ground with tiny craters as she went, unwilling to give up the chase. She’d catch him! Catch him and tear him to pieces with her bare hands if she had to! She’d... She’d...

“Applejack!”

A hand on her shoulder. Applejack didn’t even think as rage took her and she turned, kicking hard.

“Whoa!” Sunset dove aside, just managing to not get booted, “Applejack, calm down!”

Applejack stood there, chest heaving, eyes glazed with anger and unfocused, until gradually she blinked them to clarity and only after she realized that Grand Fisher was gone and she was alone at the edge of the Everfree Forest with Sunset did the full impact of her exhaustion hit her. In seconds Applejack collapsed to her knees, tears falling from her eyes.

“I...I couldn’t... Sunset ya heard him, he said he’s the one who... who took ‘em from us. Eight years I’ve had ta look at Big Mac, Granny... Applebloom, look at ‘em and remember what we all lost ‘cause o’ me.”

Sunset was there in front of her, kneeling down, hands on Applejack’s shoulders, “Listen to me, you are not at fault for whatever happened back then. That Hollow’s responsible, plain and simple, and that’s assuming he wasn’t lying through his teeth. So don’t you dare blame yourself, AJ. Don’t.”

Applejack was shaking, suddenly feeling every burning bit of pain from the cuts on her midriff and chest, and the sudden cold of the night. “I still let the bastard git away. I shoulda tried harder, fought harder...”

“You did everything you could,” Sunset said, slipping in to hug Applejack close, then pulled back to look her in the eyes, “But I need you standing, AJ. Fluttershy and Clover are still back there, and so’s your family. There were still some Hollows left.”

Suddenly Applejack surged to her feet, wiping her tears away and glaring at the mention of more Hollows, and said with heated sureness, “Not fer long.”

----------

Things were quiet for a time inside the main living room of the Apple family’s farmhouse. Fluttershy steadied her breath, trying to calm herself and keep her hands from wanting to shake as she worked on cleaning and bandaging Applejack’s wounds. The claw marks on the other girl’s midriff were thankfully shallow, but still looked painful and Fluttershy gave her friend a worried look.

Applejack was sitting on the couch, every inch of her body tense, and with a sunken look to her eyes as if she’d skipped several days of sleep. Granny Smith was in her rocking chair, a set to her jaw as if the old woman was ready to chew rocks. Bic Mac remained standing by the window, his eyes peering into the night as if he still expected trouble. Or perhaps he was worrying about Applebloom, who was still out camping.

Sunset and Clover stood off to the side, Sunset looking at Applejack with the same kind of concern Fluttershy was feeling, and Clover’s own eyes closed, as if in deep thought.

Finishing the bandaging as best she could Fluttershy said, “You should be okay, but you’ll need a few days for these to heal properly.”

Applejack barely responded, just giving a faint nod and a mumble of thanks, still stiff as iron, fists clenched tightly. Even now, after those metallic gold and white boots had faded and Applejack appeared normal again there was still an air of anger and violence about her that made Fluttershy nervous. The few remaining Hollows that had been around after the big hairy one had fled had been rapidly destroyed, and Fluttershy had been almost scared of her friend. Almost, but that fear was a minor thing next to her sympathy for and want to help Applejack. Fluttershy had heard most of what Grand Fisher had said, and it just left her wanting to hug her friend tightly. Of course with those wounds hugs would have to wait, but it was the thought that counted.

Looking around the quiet, tense room Fluttershy sighed and said, “Should we try to contact the other girls and make sure they’re okay?”

She hadn’t forgotten she had other friends out there tonight, fighting for the safety of their families. Fluttershy was starting to think if her worries piled any higher she’d get crushed under the weight of them all. It didn’t help that she felt rather unhelpful during this crisis.

“There’s others been attack this night?” Granny Smith asked, voice tight with anger, “More o’ them monsters threatin’ good, decent folk?”

Bic Mac also looked like he was ready to grab the nearest blunt object to go wallop some Hollows.

“Checking in with them isn’t a bad idea,” said Sunset, “Fluttershy, Applejack, you both still got your cell phones, right?”

Fluttershy pulled out hers, but Applejack gave a small grunt and said, “Think my cell phone got smashed up, Sunset. Fluttershy’ll have ta make the calls.” She then rubbed her face with a hand and looked to Granny Smith, “And ta answer yer question, Granny, some of my friend’s also had their families targeted by the Hollows. We all had ta split up so we could protect y’all.”

Granny Smith’s nod was a grim one, “Ya done good, child. Wish ta high heaven ya didn’t haffta git yerself involved in this messy business, but now what’s done is done, I’m glad yer your ma’s daughter through an’ through.”

Those words made Applejack shudder, and Fluttershy almost paused in dialing for Rarity. There was a look in Applejack’s eyes that made the otherwise proud and strong girl seem so helpless.

‘I’ll, uh, go into the kitchen,” Fluttershy said, feeling like if she got on the phone here she’d be interrupting.

“Yeah, in fact, Sunset, Clover, ya’ll mind joining her there?” asked Applejack, “I’m thinkin’ me, Granny, an’ Big Mac got some family talkin’ ta do.”

There weren’t any objections and soon Fluttershy, Clover, and Sunset were standing in the kitchen, the door firmly closed. Clover looked at the door with a thoughtful look, and one somewhat shadowed by a trace of guilt. “I hope she isn’t taking Grand Fisher’s words to heart. He was trying to confuse her. Make her more angry so she’d make mistakes.”

“Clover, don’t take this the wrong way,” said Sunset, arms crossed, her own expression pensive, “But was there anything to what that Hollow was going on about? With AJ’s parents being... I don’t know, connected to Soul Society somehow? He even mentioned your Twelfth Division.”

Clover sighed heavily, “Grand Fisher is a Hollow the Soul Society has hunted for over fifty years, Sunset. He’s had plenty of time to learn about us and use that information however he wants. I... I don’t know anything about what happened to Applejack’s parents eight years ago. I haven’t read every record of the Twelfth Divisions’ research, true, and I’ll admit there have been projects that took place here in the world of the living, but I’m sure Grand Fisher was just trying to rattle Applejack.”

She paused, gray face frowning, and she brushed a hand through her green locks, “If it’ll make you feel better I’ll look into it when I return to Soul Society to deliver an update on what’s been happening. If there are any records concerning Applejack’s parents, I’ll find them.”

By now Fluttershy had dialed Rarity, and was happy to hear an answer, even if it was Twilight Sparkle’s voice that answered instead of Rarity. It didn’t take Fluttershy long to get brought up to speed on what had happened at Rarity’s house, and while Rarity was unconscious she was alive and safe, as was all of her family. Another dial later and a similar story was garnered from Pinkie Pie, who Fluttershy noticed sounded more exhausted than she’d ever heard the party girl be.

It’d been a long, rough night, but Fluttershy sighed with relief at knowing her friends were all okay. Tired, battered, and in some cases dealing with some serious inner baggage, but alive and able to see another day.

She just wished there’d been something more she could have done to help.

----------

The mesas of dark stone amid an ocean of bleached sand was more empty than it’d been before, many of the Hollows that had gathered there dispersing now that the more potent Hollows controlling them had been reduced in number.

Grand Fisher seethed, sitting upon his rock. He glanced up as his last remaining comrade, the shark shaped Hollow, dragged itself to the meeting spot. The shark Hollow was a mess, with a missing arm, another hand mangled, and its throat still dripping blood despite healing as the Hollow bit into the corpse of a lesser Hollow it’d captured on the way there. Chewing down the unfortunate lesser Hollow, still trying to heal its wound, the shark Hollow spat and looked about at seeing just Grand Fisher there.

“And then there were two, huh? No offense, Fisher, but I think your plan to get at those girls through their families blew up in our faces.”

“Do tell. You failed to capture your target, despite all your bluster?” Grand Fisher commented dryly.

“Oh, I’m sorry, do you have your target stuffed in your back pocket!?” snarled the shark, “Looks to me like you failed just a hard as I did. At least like me you knew when to cut and run, so don’t go acting all high and mighty.”

“My retreat was a strategic choice. You look like you were forced to run after being torn to shreds by... what, a few little girls? I had an actual Soul Reaper to deal with.”

The shark Hollow glanced away, and Grand Fisher thought he saw the other Hollow shiver, “Little girl... yeah, right. That thing wasn’t any girl. It was a damned monster. And this is coming from another soul sucking monster. Going to guess your ‘little girl’ also turned out to be more than she seemed. My take on this situation; it's time to cut our losses and run.”

“And defy the will of Las Noches?” asked Grand Fisher, “You are a fool if you think there’s anywhere in Hueco Mundo we could run to escape their wrath for failing.”

The shark Hollow growled, kicking the sand before him in frustrated anger, “In case you hadn’t noticed we’ve already failed! Several times! We’re down to half our numbers, and those girls have only gotten stronger! Far as I’m concerned if the damned Arrancar want them so badly, they can do the job themselves!”

“As it so happens,” said a voice above the two Hollows, “That is exactly what we intend.”

Grand Fisher felt a cold fear break out inside the place where his soul had once been and looked behind him to see a figure standing atop one of the mesas. It was an old man, with wispy white hair encircling a bald top. White horns like those of a ram curled from the old man’s temples, and a fragment of bone like a ram’s lower jaw bones jutted from either side of his chin. The old man was wearing a white vest tucked into loose white pants, a pair of black colored shoes on his feet. Despite having a somewhat human appearance the old man had a clear Hollow’s hole at the base of his throat. Tucked into the black sash belted around his waist was a brown hilted blade, very much like a Zanpaktou. Finally, upon the man’s forehead was a number tattooed in black; eight.

Grand Fisher didn’t blink, but the old man vanished and appeared between him and the shark Hollow with a buzz of noise the only indication the man had even moved. Grand Fisher tried not to sound terrified as he said, “Grogar, its... good to see you.”

“Is it? Hmm, I wonder. Normally underlings are only happy to see their superiors when they have good news to report. Do you have good news to report?” asked the old man, Grogar, clasping his hands behind his back and calmly gazing at Grand Fisher.

The shark Hollow was slowly backing away, trembling in the presence of this man. “We did everything we could, but the souls you want aren’t normal!”

“Of course they’re not,” said Grogar, “We wouldn’t have wanted them otherwise. Unfortunately your bungling of the task has made matters more complicated. We’d hoped using such weak Hollows might allow us to garner what we wanted without drawing Soul Society’s attention. It's too late for that now, and so we’ll have to try a different approach. Consider yourselves lucky I remain in charge of this affair. Others among my peers might have killed you two outright for your failure.”

Grogar then smiled, a thin smile without any warmth, “As it happens I have better uses for the two of you. An experiment, you might say.”

Episode 10: Issues of Trust

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Episode 10: Issues of Trust

The rest of the school week passed almost disturbingly slow and quietly after that night. Sunset had trouble getting a full night’s rest, her mind mired in thoughts of recent events, and always ready to hear the warning beeps from her Detector that she always kept close to her person. She was starting to learn to sense spiritual pressures with greater skill, but she was a long way off from being able to detect Hollows at any distance without the device to help.

Yet aside from one or two stragglers that Clover dealt with herself, there had been no sign of Hollows. Sunset wasn’t foolish enough to think that they were truly gone, just biding their time. Surely at least that Grand Fisher would return at some point. It’d been made clear that she and her friends were of importance to the Hollows, though the reason why still eluded her. It had to have something to do with the transformations her friends were capable of. So far all but her and Fluttershy had exhibited new powers that came with their ponied up form.

Where those powers came from or even what they were was a matter of speculation. Twilight had moved some of her lab equipment to Discord’s shop so she could study the girls during their training sessions, and Discord hadn’t objected. He also likely knew more than he was letting on. He claimed to not know exactly what these strange abilities Sunset’s friends were showing were, just that he had a few suspicions. He also wasn’t sharing those suppositions, and was just working the girls through various exercises to help them control the powers and use them effectively.

They’d gone to his shop practically every evening after school, and while the girls trained with Discord, Sunset had trained with Clover. It was Friday night, exactly one week since everything had begun, and Sunset was back in that same small canyon in Discord’s odd ‘training room’, with Clover watching her as Sunset formed a glowing blue ball of spirit energy in her palm.

“Good, good,” said Clover, nodding with a encouraging smile, “You’re finally getting how to direct your reiryuku.”

Sunset’s brow beaded with sweat at her concentration, her eyes focused on the glowing ball of light, “Of course I’d get it eventually. Just a matter of practice.”

The sphere of light wavered for a moment and Sunset nearly fell into her old manner of trying to force the ball back into shape, to shove her spirit energy into place, but she took a steady breath, calming herself. Calm focus, not forcing. She had to direct the energy as smoothly as breathing, not like she was driving nails into the ground with a boulder. Her heart rate slowed and the sphere became stable once more.

“Now that you’ve made this much progress I think we can move to the next step,” said Clover, tapping her chin thoughtfully, “Hmm, whichever step that will be.”

“You don’t know?” asked Sunset, blinking in surprise.

“W-well,” Clover cleared her throat, looking away with a faint brush of red coloring her gray cheeks, “I usually have a lesson plan handed to me from actual Academy teachers when I sub for them and the students are usually already much further along with you. I’ve never actually had to train a student entirely from scratch who doesn’t know anything. Not that I’m saying you’re a bad student. You’re not. A bad student I mean! I mean you’re a good student and I’m just having to think a lot more about what lessons to teach and how to teach them and I’m babbling again aren’t I?”

Sunset chuckled, letting the glowing sphere vanish and holding up a placating hand, “Relax Clover, it’s fine. I don’t mind it if you have to take some time to think about what to teach me next. Needed a break anyway. This working with spirit energy works up an appetite fast.”

Clover nodded sagely, “It will do that, yes, and it’s a good sign. The hungrier a person gets while exerting their spirit power the greater their potential.”

That made Sunset think, her eyes gazing upward thoughtfully, “You know, I haven’t asked much about it, because we’ve been so focused on just training, when we’re not dealing with Hollow attacks, but... what is the afterlife like? I mean, it still floors me that you’re technically a ghost, Clover. And you’re talking about getting hungry. Do ghosts actually get hungry?”

For a moment Clover had wide eyes very much akin to the deer confronted by a pack of timberwolves, and she made a quick mumbling noise before saying, louder, “T-that’s kind of hard to explain, and I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to actually tell someone who’s technically still among the living. Then again, I haven’t been told not tell you things either. Hmm, okay about the hunger thing, hmm...”

Sunset watched Clover begin to pace, eyes cast towards the ground in deep thought. Sunset found herself smiling as she sat down on a nearby rock outcropping. In some ways Clover reminded her of Twilight, either version. She tended to overthink things. She waited patiently for Clover’s to get her thoughts straight and continue.

“Think of it like this, the living world and the spirit world mirror each other. The main fundamental difference is in the particles that make up matter, but the way those particles arrange themselves is relatively similar. My spirit body isn’t made up from the same matter that a physical body is, but it has a lot of the same basic forms and functions, including organs, blood, skin, etcetera. Now where hunger is concerned, it usually isn’t an issue. A spirit body usually doesn’t need nourishment, at least not in the same way a physical body does. However if a spirit has lots of power inside it, that power can require nourishment. That’s why Soul Reapers and other spirit entities can get hungry if they exert their power. Normally you’d need food made in the spirit world and from the particles of that world to satisfy that hunger you’re feeling, but if you enter your physical body and eat living world food it should have a similar satiating effect. Understand?”

“Somewhat,” Sunset said, still trying to process it all. “So can... can spirit’s die? Like, die again. You're already technically dead, but you can die twice?”

Clover’s expression gained a solemn cast as she met Sunset’s gaze evenly, “Yes. Think of death as a means of transition from one world to the next. When you of the living world die, your souls are meant to go to the spirit world. When that spirit body dies, it in turns traverses back to the world of the living to be reborn here. An eternal cycle that the Soul Society guards and maintains.”

“And Hollows are a threat to this balance,” Sunset concluded, realizing that any soul that became a Hollow would be taken out of that cycle of death and rebirth.

“Precisely. It is why we fight to purify Hollows, to their souls can rejoin the natural flow of souls from one world to the other.”

“But you told me Soul Society itself has only existed for a few thousand years, right? How was this all regulated before then?”

At that Clover became fidgety, shifting from one foot to the other uncomfortably, “I’ll... I’ll be honest with you, I don’t truly know. History from the period of time prior to the formation of Soul Society is sketchy. All I’ve ever heard or read was that it was a time of chaos, where human souls were hunted freely by Hollows and all was survival of the fittest. Why the flow of souls was still stable back then... well maybe there was some kind of natural equilibrium that existed, but at the expense of the quality of life in the spirit world. Souls constantly having to fear consumption by Hollows, always on the run or in constant states of battle. The Soul Society changed that. The creation of Soul Reapers changed that. Now, souls can rest in peace in the Soul Society without fear, for Soul Reapers protect them.”

“Who’s in charge of it all? How is the Soul Society-” Sunset bean to ask but Clover raised a hand to quiet her.

“You said you were hungry, right? Why don’t you go retrieve your physical body and get some food? There’s a lot of answers you’ll just have to wait for. I can hardly explain everything in one evening,” Clover said, politely enough but Sunset got the feeling that the Soul Reaper was trying to avoid the questions more than anything else. Why that was could just be that Clover wasn’t really ready to answer, or wanted Sunset to focus on her training, but it still left Sunset wondering... was she hiding something?

No, she wouldn’t start getting suspicious. Clover had done nothing but help, and was a friend. That was all there was to it.

----------

A clash of noise exploded around the rocky terrain as Rainbow Dash’s electrified fist crashed against Applejack’s metal clad leg. Applejack bore the jolt of electricity over her body and her raised leg ignited with thrusting golden flames, pushing harder against Rainbow Dash as the girl beat her wings to put on the pressure.

It ended with both girls being blasted back, flying apart from the force of their collective attacks. Applejack skidded along the ground while Rainbow Dash flew up, Both were covered in sweat, their clothes dirty and in a few places torn, and their breaths came in huge, heaving gasps.

“Ready to... huff... give up yet, AJ?” asked Rainbow Dash with a smirk.

Applejack’s face hardened and she wiped sweat from her brow, not losing her ready combat stance, “Not on yer life, Dash! I’m just gettin’ started!”

This response only deepened Rainbow Dash’s smirk and she pounded her fists together, wings flaring, “Alright! That’s what I like to hear!”

With a single flap of her wings she went into a dive that left a streak of rainbow light and sparkling lightning, a circle of broken air forming around her as she rushed down at Applejack. Applejack prepared for the attack by grinding one of her metallic boots deep into the stone ground to anchor herself, while the golden light flowing from the grooves on her other leg grew more and more intense, a large burst of momentum driving thrust reading to kick as soon as Rainbow Dash got in range.

However just before the two girls could collide again there was a incredibly loud and sharp whistle that made them both halt in place.

“That’s enough my dears! Break time!” called Discord, a coaching whistle in one hand and a gnarled wooden walking stick in the other, “Everyone take an hour for food and tea.”

“Aww come on!” complained Rainbow Dash, “We were just starting to get past the warm up!”

“Dash’s right,” said Applejack, frowning, “I could go fer hours yet.”

Discord shook his head, a knowing look on his face, “You may feel as if you can, but trust me, you’ve pushed your spirit energy as far as it can go without rest. Much further and you’d risk doing yourselves more harm than good. Come now, your friends are already waiting.”

Rainbow Dash landed, stretching her legs while Applejack cracked her neck. Rainbow Dash wasn’t fond of having her fun cut off, but if she was being truthful, if only with herself, she was feeling a bit beat. Summoning her wings filled her with exhilaration and sparring with Applejack only made her feel more energetic, yet at the same time her power burned through her real fast. Annoyingly fast. She wanted to be able to draw more out of herself. She could feel that was more juice inside her, just waiting to be tapped, if only she could dig hard enough for it. But as a girl who’d trained hard for a lot of different sports she also knew that training too hard without the right rest and nourishment to help the body build itself up and recovery was worse than not training at all.

“Alright, alright, we hear you, D-man.”

“D-man?” Discord muttered, shaking his head.

As Rainbow Dash mentally dismissed her wings, letting them fade away, and started to follow the guy towards the other side of the training area where the others would be she noticed that Applejack was dragging her feet, eyes still glaring.

“AJ? C’mon girl, we can get back to training soon.”

Applejack let out a harsh breath, muttering, “I don’t need no break.”

“I know it sucks, but seriously, Discord ain’t far wrong that if we don’t rest, we’ll just end up hurting ourselves,” said Rainbow Dash, putting a hand on Applejack’s shoulder, only to blink in surprise as the other girl threw her hand off. “Whoa there AJ? What gives?”

Applejack stared at the hand she’d just used to bat aside Rainbow Dash’s as if she didn’t know what it was, then shook her head, “I... I don’t wanna talk ‘bout it Dash. I’m just... dealin’ with some things right now an’ I just wanna get strong as I can, fast as I can.”

Rainbow Dash saw a fierce glint of anger flashing through Applejack’s eyes, the farmgirl whispering, but more than loud enough for Rainbow Dash to hear, “He ain’t gonna git away from me a second time.”

For a moment Rainbow Dash tried to think of something to say, but her mind just drew a blank. She’d heard the basic story of what had happened at Applejack’s farm and knew what Grand Fisher had done to Applejack’s parents. She wasn’t about to pretend she understood what her friend was going through, but it was worrying, seeing that look in Applejack’s eyes. Not that she didn’t think Grand Fisher deserved the worst thrashing that could come his way, and was planning on being there right beside Applejack to help deliver it... but not if the cost was Applejack getting herself hurt or... or worse in the process.

“Hey, you will get stronger, AJ,” Rainbow Dash said, “We all will, and when we do, there won’t be a Hollow this side of creation that’ll ever wanna mess with our town or our families again. We just got to not just train hard, but train smart, you feel me?”

“...Yeah, I hear ya, it’s just,” Applejack was staring at the ground, her entire body tense, “I ain’t sure who ta trust no more.”

Rainbow Dash cocked her head, confused, “Trust? What are you talking about?”

Applejack took of her stetson for a moment, running a hand through her hair, “Just somethin’ I was talkin’ with Granny ‘bout after what happened. Ain’t wantin’ ta repeat any o’ it, especially with how tight Sunset’s gettin’ with Clover.”

“AJ, you’re not making a lot of sense here. What’s Clover got to do with anything?”

“Not Clover specific like. She seems a good sort,” said Applejack, green eyes filled with uncertainty, “It’s just the folk she works for I ain’t so sure ‘bout now.”

At Rainbow Dash’s continued gaze of bewilderment Applejack just shook her head and replaced her stetson back on her head, “Nevermind. Ain’t no point dwellin’ on it ‘till I know more. C’mon, let’s git goin’.”

Rainbow Dash was still more than a little confused over what had Applejack so worked up. Some kind of conversation she’d had with Granny Smith? About what? Well, Rainbow Dash wasn’t one to sweat the details. She didn’t really trust Discord all that much yet, but since he was letting them use this sweet training area she was willing to let it all chill and not worry about it too much. But now Applejack was acting weird. It didn’t sit right with Rainbow Dash, but she’d let it go for now. She just gave her friend a comforting punch on the shoulder and the pair walked off to go join the other girls.

Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie were all seated around a large picnic table with white and green checker patterns that Discord had apparently had brought down and set up. There were ice coolers set up and open with juice bottles and cold sandwiches, and next to the table was a large portable stove that had a pot of tea boiling on it. There were some lawn chairs set up nearby too, and Rainbow Dash blinked at seeing the sirens there, the three girls... well, two girls and one doll, were arguing. No surprise there.

“I don’t want to be in even more debt than we already are!” Adagio was shouting, “There has to be another way, you’re just not thinking hard enough.”

“Wow, that’s the first time you’ve ever accused Sonata of thinking at all,” quipped Aria.

“Grr, not now Aria! If you don’t have anything useful to say, keep it zipped!” growled Adagio, to which Aria stood up and snatched the doll out of the air, “H-hey, let me go!”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did the plush toy try to talk back to me?” asked Aria with false sweetness while squeezing Adagio.

Nearby Sonata looked between her two sisters while chewing her lower lip, “Can we, y’know, not do this? Like, seriously this is the most not useful thing we can be doing right now. All I’m trying to say Dagie is that we can’t keep up our old jobs, and we can’t really keep our old apartment either, so why not move in with Mr. Discord and work here full time? He even offered to pay us actual money!”

“Why not!? I’ll tell you why not! He’s a untrustworthy slave driver that has us do the dumbest chores around here and then tosses us into the middle of dangerous situations with only a video camera for protection, that’s why!” cried Adagio, “What’ll we do if we get caught up in another crazy battle and, oh, I don’t know, one of us dies!? You want that, Sonata?”

“Uhhhhhh...” Sonata scratched her head, eyes almost going cross.

“That was a rhetorical question!” shouted Adagio.

“Oh. I’m terrible at answering those,” said Sonata, and Adagio’s scream of frustration could probably been heard halfway across the training area.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack took seats among their friends, and she glanced at Rarity, jerking a thumb in the siren’s direction, “They been at it for long?”

“Only since the entirety of our stay here,” sighed Rarity. Her own clothes were a bit torn as well, Rainbow Dash noticed, and while Rarity had clearly tried to straighten her hair out and freshen up a bit there were definitely some strands out of place and a few bits of dirt here and there. Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, didn’t look that tired, but did have a bit of a rattled look about her.

“How’d sparring with Pink’s crazy alter ego go?” asked Rainbow Dash casually as she snatched up a bottle of orange juice and a sandwich. Rarity shuddered, as if a ice cube had slid down her back.

“I cannot believe Pinkie Pie of all people has manifested such a terrible and brutish individual as her power,” Rarity said, lips pressed tightly in a thin frown, “Why, she tried to bite my hand off!”

“Oh she did not,” said Pinkie Pie, “You’re exaggerating, Rarity! Pinkamena just gave your hand a bit of a lick, that’s all. Just to see what you tasted like.”

All the girls stared at Pinkie Pie for a moment, and she smiled sheepishly, laughing awkwardly, “She didn’t actually bite Rarity.”

“But she tried to!” said Rarity, “Several times. With that... that horrific way her mouth grows. And other parts of her. I have never before seen a foot grow a dozen sharp toothed mouths before and now that I have I’m certain I’ll have nightmares of it for weeks to come!”

“W-well you’re power’s kinda weird too,” said Pinkie Pie defensively, “I mean, you bleed out a sword and dress, then make more blood crystal thingies! You’re basically covering yourself in your own blood then stabbing things with more blood. That’s pretty creepy too.”

Rarity turned her head high and made a small ‘harumph’ noise before saying, “My power is elegant, and requires creativity. Besides its not really blood, just... Mr. Discord, how did you explain it again?”

Discord, who wa pouring cups of tea for everyone, didn’t even look up from what he was doing as he said, “Your powers manifest using a part of yourselves as the catalyst. In your case, Miss Rarity, your blood is the catalyst, but the actual weapon, dress, and crystals are extensions of that catalyst rather than the actual blood itself. Its the same for all of you. Even the lovely Miss Pinkamena is, in the end, just a construct, an extension of a part of Miss Pie.”

“What part, exactly?” asked Rainbow Dash, curious.

“At a guess, I’d say a suppressed part of her ego, perhaps her id,” said Discord, shrugging, “Only with time can I ascertain more about the powers being exhibited by you fine young ladies. The more you train, the more of your powers will become clear to me, I think.”

“Hey guys,” said Sunset, arriving alongside Clover. Sunset was back in her physical body, Rainbow Dash saw, but as usually still had her Zanpaktou sheathed at her waist. It was starting to become an almost natural part of Sunset’s attire and Rainbow Dash was getting used to seeing her with it. Sunset looked around, eyes searching.

“Where’s Twilight?”

A good question. Rainbow Dash hadn't even noticed the egghead wasn’t at the table.

“Ah, Miss Sparkle went back to the school briefly,” said Discord, setting the tea cups along the table in front of each girl, even as Clover and Sunset took seats, “There was some equipment there she wanted to bring to her field lab here to help with an experiment she wishes to try concerning you, Miss Sunset.”

“Me? What kind of experiment?” Sunset asked, almost sounding alarmed. Rainbow Dash snickered, recalling the way Sunset had once experimented on her and the rest of the girls when she’d been trying to figure out how the friendship magic worked. A bit of turnabout would be fun to watch to see the Sunset getting a bit of her own medicine.

“She didn’t mention details, only it involved your Zanpaktou and your connection to it,” Discord said, glancing over at the sirens, “Are you girls joining our picnic or are you going to continue glaring at one another?”

The sirens exchanged looks, Aria making a disgusted face while Adagio floated away with a grimace. Only Sonata answered, “We’ll go grab our own lunch, boss.”

“Fair enough I suppose. Very well, go take your lunch where you will,” said Discord, waving a hand. As the sirens went to go Sunset stood.

“Wait, I’ll come too.”

“Uh... what?” asked Aria, while Adagio just turned and glared.

“Who said you could come!?”

Sunset blanched at the hostility, but Sonata stepped in, holding up her hands peaceably, “Hey now, what’s the harm in her coming along?”

“Why does she even want to?” asked Aria with eyes narrowed.

“I, uh, don’t like meat,” said Sunset, pointing at the sandwiches, not a one of which lacked ham, or turkey, or roast beef. “Wherever you’re going I can probably snag a salad or something.”

For a moment the sirens were silent, or rather the pair of Adagio and Aria gazed with glowers at the smiling Sonata, and after a moment Aria just groaned, “Fine.”

Adagio still looked half ready to argue, but as her two sisters already began to make for the exit, Sunset following behind with an apologetic shrug, the plush doll just groaned and shook her head, floating along behind the group.

“Well,” said Rainbow Dash, “That’s going to be an awkward snack run.”

----------

“So, the ghost hunting thing is going better than bad, but worse than perfect?” Spike asked casually as he helped Twilight load her backpack by retrieving various items from the tables she needed. Twilight Sparkle had a notebook in hand with a checklist she was going down, marking off all the items in turn as they were packed neatly into her bag. She tried to keep a calm and unworried look on her face.

“I didn’t say that precisely, Spike. I said things were going relatively well but there were a many matters still unresolved.”

Spike rolled his eyes, scratching behind one of his floppy green ears with a back paw, “Right, that's not vague at all.”

“Where you always this snarky or is it only after you gained the magical ability to talk?”

“I dunno, did I have a snarky bark, back in the day?”

Twilight sighed, but smiled, actually kind of enjoying the levity. It helped ease the tension that had been rising up inside her since the start of this whole affair with Soul Reapers and Hollows. While she was learning to be at ease with her new friends, Spike had been her sole real companion and friend beside her brother for a very long time. While it was still a little strange to have him talking, especially because at times he talked perhaps a little too much, she did appreciate being able to communicate with him like this. Snarky or not he was a supportive, comforting presence in her life, especially now when so much felt uncertain.

“Anyway, what I meant by what I said is that while it's good that my friends are gaining new abilities that will help them protect themselves and the city, it still remains we don’t really know much about what’s going on or why. I feel like... like we’re just dipping our toes in the shallow side of the pool, but it won’t be long before we reach deep water, where who knows what lurks beneath the surface?”

“Ominous,” said Spike, glancing at the backpack, “That why you’re stepping up your research? Trying to figure out what’s hiding beneath the water?”

“Precisely. I don’t like not knowing. There’s too much we don’t understand about all of this. Hollows, Soul Reapers, Zanpaktou, my friends strange new powers, Discord and his connection to it all... and that strange arrow from the other night.”

“You mean that blue one that saved you from that Hollow? You still have no idea who did that?” asked Spike, “Didn’t that Discord guy have any ideas? You were talking like he was some dude who was in the know.”

“We mentioned it, but he didn’t comment on it other than to strike that scraggly beard of his and go ‘hmmm’,” Twilight stroked her chin and made an enigmatic humming sound in imitation. “Then he just brushed it off and had us start training. Well, had the other girls start straining. Me and Fluttershy just sort of hung around, watching.”

There must have been some frustration coming out in her voice as she felt Spike bump her leg playfully, “Hey, cheer up. You’ve been helping the girls out on the science end of things. You built those cool Detectors they need to find Hollows, right?”

“Y-yeah, I know. I just want to be able to do more. If I can just make some headway on understanding how these powers work, or how Sunset bonded with her Zanpaktou, maybe I can figure out a way to help out even more,” said Twilight, somewhat hesitantly before adding, “Assuming I don’t just screw up, absorb a bunch of random magic I don’t understand, and turn into a crazy eldritch raven demon.”

“Hey, if makes you feel any better, I thought you looked kinda cool when you went all dark queen of magic on us.” Spike said with a grin, to which Twilight gave him a rueful smile, picking him up and hugging him tight.

“Even so, thanks for helping me snap out of it.”

“Well, you know, man’s best friend and all that. Or girl’s, in this case,” said Spike, giving her a quick lick on the cheek, causing Twilight to giggle.

“Okay, okay, enough of that. Let’s get back to the shop. I want to try a new idea I had for analyzing Sunset’s sword that might help me understand just how she’s connected to it.”

She set Spike down, the dog happily walking ahead of her while she snatched up her backpack and headed out of the school lab. The hallways were all empty this time of evening, quiet save for the clack of her shoes on the tiles as she went. She didn’t even see Vice Principal Luna until the woman stepped out from a side hallway like a shadow detaching from the gloom of the darker hall.

“Ah, Twilight Sparkle, I wanted to talk to you,” said the Vice Principal in her tone that always sounded a shade too naturally strict for its own good.

“Wha!” Twilight nearly jumped in surprise, “O-oh! Vice Principal Luna. Um, hello?” she gave a sheepish wave, “Can I help you with something?”

“Perhaps,” said Luna, “I don’t mean to pry, but Principal Celestia and I have both noticed a certain pattern of behavior from you and your friends. We don’t wish to impose, but you are our students and your safety as well as that of the school’s is our highest priority besides your education. That said, is there anything you’d like to tell us? Leaving at the same time each evening, and a pattern of recent injuries we’ve noticed... is there another magical threat that has arisen?”

It still seemed strange to Twilight that most of Canterlot High's student body and almost all of its staff were not only aware of the magical events that had occurred around their school, but seemed largely accepting of it all without getting any higher authorities in the city or larger government involved. It was as if all the school was under some unspoken agreement just to keep such things to themselves. What happened at Canterlot High, stayed at Canterlot High. Only perhaps this time it couldn’t be contained, as the Hollow issue threatened the entire city.

Still, if Sunset hadn’t gone to the Principal or Vice Principal yet, perhaps Twilight shouldn’t make any hasty decisions either. She cleared her throat, trying to look as innocent as possible.

“Uh, well, n-not really. I mean, nothing that you need to be worried about Vice Principal Luna. Nope. The girls and I are just fine. Yup. So... um, can I go?”

Luna’s eyebrow rose, “I wasn’t intending to hold you. Of course you’re free to go. Celestia and I were just... curious. I’m certain that, if it's an important enough matter, you’ll keep us informed?”

“Yes, yes of course!” Twilight said, already rapidly backing away and then turning to walk away briskly, “Have a good night, Vice Principal!”

“...Yes, to you as well,” said Luna, watching Twilight the entire time until the girl turned a hallway corner out of sight.

----------

Unbeknownst to Twilight after she was gone another shadow emerged from the side hallway, Principal Celestia coming to stand beside her sister with a worried frown.

“Should we act, Tia?” asked Luna, “Before they get more than just scrapes and bruises?”

Celestia shook her head, eyes worried but firm, “We don’t have permission to do anything yet, and can’t afford to while the portal to the other reality requires protecting. We must have some faith in those girls for now. They haven’t let us down yet.”

“But if the rest of the Captains decide that they cannot allow them to move freely?” pressed Luna, “Even the Captain Commander can’t overturn it if the Central 46 are convinced by the other Captains that the girls are too dangerous to be left to their own devices.”

Luna’s nose wrinkled, “It doesn’t help that they’re being trained by him of all people.”

“He is an accepted ally of convenience, though you are right, sister, that his reputation is doing those girls no favors,” Celestia said with a slow sigh, crossing her arms in contemplation, “If worse comes to worst, we shall do what we must to keep them safe. There’s precious little we can do now, as it is. Orders are orders.”

Luna gave a quick snort, “As if you were ever good at following orders, Tia.”

“I have no idea what you mean, Lulu,” said Celestia with a smirk.

-----------

“You’re certain it was her?” asked Shining Armor, voice heavy like stone, sitting at a large dining table in one of the more cavernous rooms of his family's estate as he gazed at a girl standing to the side of the table who he’d only recently let in because she’d claimed to have information he’d want to hear. “There isn’t any doubt?”

The girl standing straight and unconcerned before him had a flat look on her face, her tone a straightforward one that lacked any deceit, “If I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t have bothered coming to tell you about it. It was definitely Twilight Sparkle, fighting Hollows alongside another student from her school and another woman I didn’t recognize. To be more accurate Twilight wasn’t actually fighting so much as just trying to assist, with mixed results. She didn’t even try to dodge the Hollow I had to shoot.”

Of average height and somewhat plain appearance, the girl’s straight white on icy blue hair done up in pigtails and wearing a pair of orange glasses along with her Crystal Prep uniform of severe violet shades, Sugarcoat wouldn’t have stood out much in a crowd if not for her unusually blunt demeanor. If he wasn’t fairly aware of her tendency towards frank, often unsolicited honesty, Shining Armor might have doubted her more.

As it was her story of walking home from a late night at the local library only to run across the presence of Hollows attacking humans, including his sister and one of her friend’s family, was something Shining Armor had to believe was true, but was having difficulty knowing what to make of it.

I knew Twily was hiding something, but this!? If she’d only kept her nose out of this business for another year I could have convinced the others she wasn’t needed. As soon as they know... as soon as His Majesty hears of this, there won’t be anything I can do. They’ll demand she be brought into the fold, sooner rather than later.Damn, damn, damn...

“Look I just did what I felt my duty was in reporting to you, Shining Armor,” said Sugarcoat, “After what happened at the school during the Friendship Games I didn’t want to leave any of those girls in harm’s way and decided not to go over your head to anybody higher up on the food chain, either.”

Shining Armor’s eyes narrowed slightly, “You’re saying no one else knows about this yet?”

“Just you and just me” said Sugarcoat, “As far as I’m concerned whether it stays that way is entirely up to you. I did my part by saving Twilight from a tight spot. I’m a trainee, and graduation both from Crystal Prep and my training here is coming up soon and I don’t want that screwed up by some weird internal politics involving your sister. Twilight might not be a friend but what Cinch did to her was not acceptable by my standards, so it wasn’t too much risk to shoot a quick arrow and call it a night, if it meant she didn’t get chewed on by a Hollow.”

Slowly Shining Armor nodded, standing up from the table, “Cinch... is being dealt with, for that unapproved stunt with foreign magic. I still don’t know what she thought she was accomplishing, but it's up to higher authorities than me to decide what to do with her. For saving Twilight, you have my thanks, and to be as frank as you are; I owe you one.”

Sugarcoat’s face didn’t change save for the smallest tick of a half-smile, “I do like favors. I’ll remember that for when it becomes useful. Before I go, do you mind if I ask what you intend to do about your sister?”

“I don’t mind the question, but why ask? Like you said, the two of you aren’t friends.”

There was a long pause from Sugarcoat, her eyes as blank as the rest of her face, but finally she said, “There’s been a certain amount of interest in her from several of my fellow trainees, since she transferred out of Crystal Prep. People wondering if she’ll be brought into the fold like we were after the Friendship Games. If we were selected for our potential, then logically Twilight Sparkle would also have been selected... yet she hasn’t been there for any of the training we’ve undergone. The only conclusion I could come to was that someone didn’t want her there, and seeing you now, I can see why. What I’m wondering now is, how long are you going to try to keep the truth from her?”

“Why do you care?”

“...Because you can’t keep this secret forever, especially now that she’s already gotten herself involved from the other end,” said Sugarcoat. With a shrug she turned to leave, striding from the dining room and only pausing long enough at the door to say, “Of course it’s none of my business what you decide to do, but if I were you, I’d just get it over with now and tell her everything. Less painful, that way. Simpler. Some people just don’t get how much easier it is to tell the truth, even when it’s not pleasant.”

After she was gone Shining Armor remained there, staring at the door, frowning, “Simpler, huh? Easy for you to say, she’s not your sister.”

----------

Sunset had made the resolution that if she ever did end up returning to Equestria one of the idea’s from the human world that she’d see carried over were twenty-four hour convenience stores. She couldn’t count the number of late study sessions back home that would’ve gone better for having quick, all night access to snacks and caffeine.

With a plastic bag filled with pre-packaged salad, a pair of apples, some low-fat chips, and a bottled frappuccino. Her stomach was already growling at her to dig in but she wanted to wait until she got back to the training area. The sirens were still in the store and a quick glance through the window told her that the trio were still grabbing up an assortment of foods. Adagio was zipped up inside Sonata’s dark blue hoodie, doing her best impression of an actual plush doll while still giving stink eyes towards Sunset.

How long is she going to keep glaring at me? Not everything that’s gone wrong for her has been my fault. Only some of it...

She still felt guilty for Adagio’s present state. If she’d been stronger she could have stopped that Hollow in time to prevent the siren from being hurt. She had to mentally check herself from reaching for her Zanpaktou. She’d worked out a way to keep it mostly hidden in public. Since the sword itself was invisible to normal eyes she could let the handle and hilt stick out over her shoulder without it being noticed. The sheath Rarity had made could be hidden underneath her jacket, strapped to her back with a cloth cord. It was a little awkward at first but she was getting used to it.

Once the sirens were done they came marching out of the store, both Sonata and Aria carrying multiple bags. At Sunset’s look Aria looked back with a challenging expression. “What?”

“You girls are going to eat all of that?” Sunset asked. They had at least six bags filled to the brim with food and drinks.

Sonata blinked innocently, “Well, yeah, duh. Why else would we have bought it?”

“What business is it of yours what we eat?” muttered Adagio, sulking out of the front of Sonata’s hoodie.

“Sorry, just trying to make conversation,” said Sunset, as they got walking down the sidewalk, “Forget I said anything.”

“That won’t be hard,” said Adagio.

“Look, what’s your problem with me?” asked Sunset.

“Oh, I don’t know, might have something to do with how you’ve ruined our lives?” shot back Adagio, while Aria nodded in rare agreement with the other siren.

Even Sonata had some of her bubbly expression drained as she said, “Life has been pretty rough since we tried to take over the school with our magical mind control powers and got our gems blasted into itty bitty pieces by a giant energy beam which you sang into existence. Oh, then Dagie got soul punched by a horrible ghost monster that you lead right to us. Huh, now that I think about it a lot of bad stuff happens to us whenever we’re around you. Weird, right?”

Sunset sighed, hunching her shoulders slightly as if the words were putting a weight on her, “Yeah, okay, so sure I’ll admit I had a hand in some of the bad stuff that’s been happening, but you guys are still the ones that tried to mind control the school. What did you expect, for us to just lay down and take it?”

“Would’ve been an improvement to that school,” muttered Aria.

“I don’t even care about that dumb school and its students,” said Adagio with a scathing heat in her voice, “I just wanted to get enough power to either make life in this miserable world bearable, or get us home.”

“You mean Equestria?” asked Sunset.

“No, the smelly apartment we barely can afford with loud neighbors and the faint smell of dead rat. Of course I mean Equestria!” shouted Adagio. “Do you know any other worlds that aren’t infected with hairless monkey people!?”

Sunset’s jaw set tightly, anger rising inside her, past her guilt and the little goodwill she’d managed to gain towards the sirens, “A lot of those ‘hairless monkey people’ are my friends. They could’ve been your friends too if you weren’t so obsessed with controlling them for your own selfish reasons! If you’d just come to the school in friendship and eventually opened up about yourselves you might already be home instead of where you are now!”

Adagio’s eyes rolled, sneering, “Oh, I suppose you're ‘power of friendship’ would’ve magically zapped us home instead of destroying the core of our power if only we’d learned to be friends, hmm?”

“No, but I might have told you about the portal to Equestria that any of you could’ve stepped through at any time you wanted to go home,” snapped Sunset, “Oh, but now that you’re stuck in a plushie doll’s body while your real one is sitting in cold storage you’re kind of stuck here, aren’t you? Too bad you choose to try enslaving my friends with magic instead of just making friends with us instead. Oh, only now even if you do get your body back, you’re technically guilty of committing assault on the Princess of Friendship, who by the by controls who comes in and out of that portal. I hope you’re good at apologies because I think you’re going to have to work up one heck of an impressive one to convince Princess Twilight to ever let you go home now!”

She was breathing hard by the end of her tirade, face flushed, the anger subsiding now that she’d given it vent... but she was now staring at a trio of sirens who were looking back at her with looks that ranged from shock to despair.

“You’re saying there’s a way for us to go home...?” Sonata asked, shaking slightly, “But that Princess chick won’t let us?”

“I didn’t say that, specifically,” said Sunset, holding up her hands, “I just said that you might have to do some convincing with her, is all.”

“Sounded more like you said she’d never let us go home, and she controls this portal, right?” said Aria darkly, “As if she’d ever forgive us for what we did, so our only way back might as well be a locked gate!”

Adagio was disturbingly quiet, not saying anything, and just starring at Sunset. No, past Sunset. It was like Adagio wasn’t looking at anything at all, just staring blankly. “ with a slow, shuddering breath Sunset said, “Look, I got angry and probably exaggerated just now. Princess Twilight, she’s a really good pony. She was willing to forgive me after I messed up big time, so if you’re honestly sorry for what you did and can tell her that, she’d probably be willing to let the past by the past. You could still go home, if you wanted.”

“Adagio still needs to be in her real body for that,” said Aria, “It’ll be a few more weeks, at least.”

“But then we can go home, right?” sai Sonata, smiling, “Back to Equestria? Back to the ocean?”

Sunset nodded, “I’m sure of it. Yeah, I mean, if you want I could even talk to Princess Twilight for you... assuming you three won’t backslide into being mind controlling witches again.”

“Even if we do end up going home, our gems are still gone,” said Aria, voice filled with doubt and disgust, “I don’t even know if we can survive transforming back into real sirens, without those. Could be that being stuck as this damn monkey bodies is the only thing keeping us alive.”

“It's worth a shot, isn’t it?” said Sonata, “I wanna try anyway.”

Adagio was still being silent and it was starting to bother Sunset. Somehow the eldest siren’s shouting and anger was a hundred times easier to bear than her silence and unblinking eyes. By now they’d made their way back to the alleyway leading to the shop and Sunset wanted to give the sirens something positive to think about, “Like I said, I’ll talk to Twilight. She’s pretty smart and has access to more lore than anypony in Equestria. She can probably figure out if it’s safe for you three to go through the portal before you have to try it out.”

“Thanks!” said Sonata, “You know for a loudmouth hothead you’re kind of nice!”

“...Uh, thanks,” said Sunset as she used her pass to open up the barrier around the shop. As they entered the yard in front of the shop she paused, noticing that she and the sirens weren’t alone.

Out of the corner of her eye she noticed that odd gray cat that had been hanging around the shop lately, stretched out on the front steps and watching them with curious eyes, but also waiting for them was a man standing on the walkway to the front of the shop, Clover nearby looking both different and worries. The man was wearing a similar black robed uniform to Clover’s, with a Zanpaktou with a blue silk wrapped hilt and square cross-guard at his side. The only difference between his clothing and Clover’s was that his left arm was wood badge bound to the arm with white cloth. On the badge was a symbol, one that Sunset recognized as the Japanese kanji for the number six. The man himself was tall and slim shouldered, and carried himself with a dignified air. His skin was pale white, much like Rarity’s, and he had a smoothly cut set of wavy blue hair, and a neatly trimmed moustache. Oddly, he wore a monocle on his right eye.

When the man saw Sunset and the sirens he smiled politely, speaking with an accent that sounded faintly Canterlot's to her ears. “Ah, Miss Sunset, excellent. I’m happy to make the acquaintance of the young lady that’s caused such a stir. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lieutenant Fancy Pants of the Sixth Division. I am here to evaluate you.”

----------

Twilight was nearly back to the shop. The alley that’d lead to Discord’s shop was just a few streets away, the crowds fairly sparse for a Friday evening. Spike walked along next to her, occasionally scratching at the leash her wore.

“Sorry,” Twilight said in a whispering tone she knew Spike would hear easily but might keep passers by from noticing she was talking to her dog, “Leash laws.”

Spike just gave an understanding if still somewhat irritated look. Then he paused, sniffing the air, causing Twilight to halt as well. She was just at the next street crossing, the light still having not changed over as cars passed by.

“Spike, what’s wrong/”

The dog glanced around to make sure there weren’t any people nearby, then said, “Thought I smelled your brother for a second.”

“Shining?” Twilight blinked, and turned to look, but saw nothing. “Are you sure?”

Spike’s frown was almost too human on his canine features, his nose still twitching, “I guess not. Coulda swore it was...”

Twilight knelt down, giving Spike a comforting pet on the head, “Well maybe he’s out on the town with Cadence. It’s Friday night, after all.”

“Actually, Cadence is working late at the school tonight,” said Shining Armor, who was suddenly behind her. Twilight nearly jumped out of her shoes, whirling about in surprise, but Shining Armor just smiled in a brotherly fashion, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Twilight blinked a few times, slowly adjusting her glasses and looking around Shining Armor, as if trying to see where he’d come from. She didn’t see any convenient hiding places he could have been skulking in. How had he just appeared out of nowhere like that? Still, it was her brother, so she quickly dismissed her unease and smiled back, giving him a quick hug. Spike was just sitting there, sniffing the air, and frowning slightly.

“Hey Shining! Um, what are you doing here?” Twilight asked.

His smiling was disarming, but she detected a hint of strain in it as he put a hand on her shoulder, “I heard from some of the kids are your school that you and your friends have been coming downtown a lot lately, so I thought I’d spot you along the main streets easily enough.”

A light of seriousness appeared in his eyes, his tone turning strangely firm, and his hand on her shoulder grew a shade tighter, “Twilight, we need to talk.”

Episode 11: Evaluation

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Episode 11: Evaluation

“Is this necessary?” asked Sunset while standing across from Fancy Pants, not much more than fifteen minutes since first meeting the gentlemanly looking fellow at the front of the shop. They had since gone into the shop and the underground training area, where things had rather quickly moved along through introductions to where they stood now, with Sunset and Fancy Pants facing each other at about ten paces away while everyone else stood, watching, further off to the side.

Sunset hadn’t been sure, but Discord seemed agitated by the turn of events, though he’d been nothing but polite to the Soul Reaper Lieutenant, treating him with roughly the same courtesy he showed Clover. As for Clover herself, she was the only one standing closer than Sunset’s friends, hanging close on the other side of the training field while watching with a pensive look on her gray features.

Fancy Pants himself already had his Zanpaktou drawn, the blade seeming to have a slightly straighter form than either Clover’s or Sunset’s. The hilt was a slimmer oval shape with a small hook protruding from the side. He had a smooth, disarming smile on his face while still holding himself at a ready stance, one foot forward, the other back, akin to the fencing stances Sunset had seen in class.

“I’m afraid it is the most efficient means for me to evaluate your progress, Miss Shimmer. I realize that you have had little time to train with Third Seat Clover, but given the rise of Hollow activity, among other things, my Captain feels it prudent to test you now and if needed... step things up a notch, shall we say?”

“This should have at least passed through my own Captain, first,” said Clover in a voice that wavered slightly, as if she were unsure of her footing, “L-Lieutenant, I was to understand that the Twelfth Division had full authority over Sunset Shimmer’s training as Substitute Soul Reaper. Has this changed?”

“Not at all,” said Fancy Pants, “Yet any Captain has the right to request evaluations of other Division projects at any time there is cause to desire up to date information. Captain Platinum has a keen interest in how this new Substitute Soul Reaper is handled.” He smiled in a reassuring manner, inclining his head in a slight bow, “Rest assured I won’t do your charge any harm.’

“You’d better not buddy!” shouted Rainbow Dash from the sidelines, “Otherwise you’ll have us to answer to.”

“Darn straight,” said Applejack, a look hard as iron on her face as she looked at Fancy Pants with guarded, suspicious eyes, “Ain’t no funny business gonna be tolerated ‘round here.”

Rarity politely cleared her throat, “Please, girls, must we act so uncouthly? Offering threats to a man who has done nothing but be a gentleman thus far. Really?”

“It's quite alright, Miss Rarity,” said Fancy Pants, “I understand their trepidation. You young ladies have been placed under a great deal of stress, and I am a stranger pointing a blade at a friend. However much I may assure you that my intentions are merely to test Miss Shimmer, your unease is understandable.”

“S-so you won’t hurt her?” asked Fluttershy.

“It is not my desire nor intent. This is a test of ability, not a duel... although,” Fancy Pants turned his eyes to Sunset, and she felt a sweat break out on her skin as his friendly gaze turned sharp, “I request that she fight as if she were trying to kill me.”

Sunset’s mouth felt dry as she said, “Why would I do that?”

“Because, without the edge that comes from fighting to slay your opponent I fear I won’t get much of a glimpse-”

Fancy Pants suddenly vanished, the faintest brush of air flowing past her being Sunset’s only clue as to where he had moved. She spun around, her Zanpaktou flashing out of its sheath across her back and coming down to block, but she might as well have been moving through thick jelly compared to the speed of Fancy Pants as he put his sword cleanly to her throat before she’d even fully turned around to face him.

“-of your true ability.” He finished, making a small smile as he pulled his blade away from Sunset’s skin and took a step back.

Sunset just blinked, “How did...?”

“Shunpo, otherwise known as the Flash Step. I’m sure you must have seen Third Seat Clover use it already, battling Hollows,” said Fancy Pants as he held himself at the ready once more, body turned to the side, sword held up in his right hand, and his left hand now clasped behind his back, “It is a fundamental Soul Reaper technique for high speed combat. You’ll need to master it yourself, to truly function as a Substitute Soul Reaper.”

“I’ve only been able to just teach her proper control of her spirit energy,” said Clover, “If you use Flash Step she won’t be able to react to it, Lieutenant.”

“Hmm, yes... perhaps,” said Fancy Pants, “But she did react to it, just now. Most first year Academy students could not have even cleared their swords from the scabbard before my blade found their throats, but Miss Shimmer not only had her sword out, but was half turned around. She could feel where I went, which normally only second year students can accomplish, if that. Less than a week of training, and she’s already at that point. Let us continue. I’ll dispense with Flash Step, for now. Show me your sword skills, Miss Shimmer. Attack me.”

Taking a deep breath Sunset fixed her eyes upon Fancy Pants, narrowing her focus down to just him, letting the rest of the training area and her watching friends fall away to barely more than background elements. A part of her was getting angry, being treated so casually, but she tried to keep that spark of pride from clouding her thoughts.

“Fine, you want it, you got it,” she said, unable to keep a little of the rising heat out of her tone. Springing like a bunched snake she rushed Fancy Pants, lunging into a hard slash from the right that Fancy Pants parried while only taking half a step backwards. Sunset didn’t let up, lashing out again and again, alternating between striking high and low as she tried to break through his guard.

Every time Fancy Pants shifted ever so slightly, wasting no movement, only using the minimal motion needed to turn Sunset’s blade aside. After a minute it felt like attacking a wall more than attacking a person. No matter how Sunset slashed, no matter how she twisted around her strikes to try and feint or throw Fancy Pants off, every attack met an expertly timed parry of his slightly straighter Zanpaktou. All she’d accomplished was to get him to move back a few paces. She was sweating and breathing hard already, while Fancy Pants looked as fresh and composed as when they’d started.

His eyes twitched a touch narrower, “It seems you’re still holding back. I can feel there’s a good deal of spiritual pressure building inside you, but barely a whit of it is flowing through your blade.”

“Well, I’m already in my spirit form, so it’s not the physical body holding me back,” said Sunset under her breath, wiping some sweat off her brow, “I’m hitting you as hard as I can.”

“Yet there still isn’t any killing intent in your sword,” he said, lips turning town with a tinge of a frown, “Can you not muster up a single shred of desire to strike me down seriously?”

Sunset groaned, shaking her head, “Look, I don’t know what kind of po... er, person you think I am, but I wasn’t raised in a place where you could just decide to kill a person all casual like it was nothing. I just met you, and while you’re not exactly earning my trust as a fast friend here, I don't want to hurt you, let alone kill you!”

“From what I’ve heard you’ve had little trouble in battling Hollows with such intent,” Fancy Pants said.

“That’s different! Hollows are... they’re already dead, technically, and all I’m doing is purifying their souls or whatever to go to Soul Society, right? Top it off with the fact that they’re trying to kill me and my friends and, yeah, it's not that hard to hit them with everything I’ve got!” said Sunset, voice raising with her anger. “Why is it so important to you that I try to kill you anyway?”

“Only that is the most straightforward way for me to see what I need to see,” Fancy Pants replied, his eyes turning contemplative, “Hmm, you said it was easier when you felt your or your friends were being threatened?”

Suddenly Discord spoke up, his tone somehow quiet, calm, and warning all at once, “Lieutenant Fancy Pants, do be careful what paths your mind treads under my roof. These girls are under my protection.”

“Of course, I was not planning to actually harm the girl, but you must admit Mister Discord that as long as she doesn’t feel like she’s in danger, she cannot truly fight at her full capacity.” Fancy Pants said with a voice of complete assured confidence. Discord’s red on yellow eyes gazed with unreadable intensity at the Soul Reaper, but finally nodded, once.

“You do have a point, I suppose, but don’t take it too far.’

“Don’t I have a say in this?” asked Sunset with a grumbling tone, eyeing Fancy Pants warily.

Fancy Pants smiled, though the expression did nothing to reassure Sunset, “Do not fret, I’m merely going to turn up the pressure a bit. Instinct and intuition should take care of the rest.”

The moment he was finished talking Sunset felt a massive spike of pressure at the core of her being, and it almost seemed as if the air itself became denser, making it harder to breath. The source of the pressure was Fancy Pants, though he did not move or change his stance. This was just his spiritual pressure rising, crushing down on her like being buried under sand. She almost wanted to sink to her knees, but with a small growl and her anger flaring she held her stance and glared at him.

“Good, good,” said Fancy Pants, “Withstanding the spiritual pressure of a stronger opponent is key. Now then, shall we resume our dance?”

This time he came at her like striking cobra. Not as fast a with that Flash Step move, but faster than any Hollow had struck at her before. Sunset barely turned aside his first thrust, feeling the blow jar her entire arm down to the shoulder. The second blow, barely a fraction of a second behind the first, stabbed high, seemed to come straight for her head, and she backpedaled, swinging with wild abandon to try and parry. She did, though not in time to stop a lock of her fire hued hair from being cut off, the strands floating away as she tried to regain her balance.

He’s not really trying to hurt me, she told herself, despite the fear mixing in with her outrage like a sick slurry. He’s just testing me.

Yet Fancy Pants’ eyes were cold as iron now, and sharper than the edge of his sword as he relentlessly pressed her, strike after strike, forcing Sunset to retreat faster and faster until she was practically running from the man. Hot shame burned inside her, knowing her friends were watching this pitiful display. She wanted to counterattack, but she couldn’t find a single instant where Fancy Pants wasn’t practically on top of her, blade stabbing for her flesh. Her arms were starting to go numb and hot sweat soaked her now as she grew slower and slower with her parries. Now Fancy Pants’ Zanptakou cut her clothing, the black robes of a Soul Reaper that her spirit form wore, and she could almost feel its edge touching her skin.

In desperation she retaliated without a care for her own safety, shouting a wordless cry of fury as she lunged forward, Zanpaktou lashing out in a swing she put all her effort into. She did feel a welling up of her own spirit energy, pushing back against the tide of Fancy Pants’ own spirit pressure. For an instant she thought she’d caught him off guard, as his eyes did widen, but it wasn’t because she was able to strike him. Pain exploded in her arm and she realized Fancy Pants’ surprise was because her sudden lunge had caused his blade to cut a bleeding wound along the upper part of her left arm.

Yet despite his surprise he did not relent, having leaped up and over her swing to spin in the air and land behind her. In that moment Sunset felt his spiritual pressure increase and focus upon her, and it turned her sweat cold because she could feel killing intent from that energy, as if his whole being was focused upon striking her down.

Fear gripped her and she acted without thinking, throwing all of her energy into dodging backwards. It felt like the world shifted instantly and the movement caught her utterly off balance as she tripped and fell skidding onto her backside... a good twenty paces away from where Fancy Pants had been poised to strike.

Breathing hard, Sunset sat there dumbly, not sure what had just happened. Fancy Pants himself looked at her with appraising, curious eyes, and slowly his spiritual pressure receded like a tide and he calmly wiped a small trail of her blood fro his Zanpaktou and sheathed it.

“I see... most interesting,” he said, almost as if to himself.

Suddenly there was a burst of spiritual energy from elsewhere, two of them, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack were there standing between Sunset and Fancy Pants, both girls glowing with their own power as the golden and white boots encased Applejack’s legs and electrified white wings of metal sprouted form Rainbow Dash’s back. Both girls looked ready to pummel Fancy Pants into the ground.

“What the hay was that!?” growled Applejack, “Ya said ya weren’t gonna hurt her and then ya’ll go cuttin’ up her arm!”

“I hope you’re ready for a foot up the blowhole, because I’ve got a double serving of it coming right up, pal!” said Rainbow Dash, lightning arcing from her wings erratically.

If Fancy Pants felt threatened, he didn’t show it. Instead he put a hand to his chest and bowed deeply to the two wrath filled girls, “My deepest apologies. I accept full responsibility for the accident. I did not expect such a willful and daring counter maneuver, almost utterly ignoring all sense of defense. I should have pulled back my blade faster.”

“Please,” said Clover, appearing next to Sunset, kneeling down to check her wound while speaking loud enough for all to hear, “There’s no need for anger. This was a test, albeit one that wasn’t warranted in my opinion. The wound is shallow, and a healing Kido will fix it readily enough.”

Clover’s eyes met Sunset’s, her voice soft, “You are alright, aren’t you?”

“Y-yeah,” Sunset said, still trying to get her breathing under control. Fluttershy was there a few seconds later, while the others gathered around, only the sirens hanging back and watching the proceedings as if unsure what to make of any of this. Discord had a strangely pleased look on his face as he stroked his beard and eyed Sunset.

“An impressive feat, you just pulled there, Miss Shimmer,” Discord said.

“What did I do?” Sunset asked, feeling a tad lightheaded, “One second I was sure he was about to get me, and the next I was all the way over here falling on my butt.”

“Shunpo,” said Fancy Pants, still watching Rainbow Dash and Applejack with curious eyes, as the two girls had neither moved nor deactivated their powers, “That was a Flash Step. A sloppy, instinctual one, done in a moment of fight or flight response, but a Flash Step none the less. Learn to control those instincts and you may well prove a very promising Soul Reaper, Miss Shimmer.”

“I feel honored,” said Sunset in a voice based with sarcasm while Fluttershy got out bandages from a small first aid kit and began to clean her wound, Clover beginning a healing Kido incantation under her breath.

“You should,” said Fancy Pants, in a tone that said he knew Sunset was still angry with him, “At any rate, Third Seat Clover, I believe this shall be enough for me to make my report to Captain Platinum. I shall convey my appreciation for your cooperation in this matter to both of our Captains and ensure they know just how far along your student... and her friends, have come.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” said Clover, voice tight and coolly polite, but Sunset could sense the unease underneath it all. Already her arm was starting to feel better, but she knew the pain would linger for a time still.

“Well, I’ll be off then,” said Fancy Pants, bowing once more, “Mister Discord, ladies, it has been a pleasure and I look forward to our next meeting.”

With that he walked off as stiffly formal as he’d arrived, leaving Sunset to watch him go, and wonder just why the Soul Society had sent him in the first place, and why the way he’d looked at her friends once their powers had activated had left her feeling nervous.

Also, watching him depart left another thought rising to the forefront, “Huh... I wonder why Twilight hasn’t gotten back yet?”

----------

Twilight shivered under the cold air that blew through the secluded park. Whitetail Park was much as it’d been the first night she and her friends had encountered a Hollow, and just as empty as evening turned to dusk. She sat on a bench, and looked up as Shining Armor took off his dark purple Crystal Prep alumni coat and put her around her shoulders. She held the coat tight around herself and gave him a small smile of thanks, but soon looked away.

He wasn’t different. His smile was still kind, his eyes filled with brotherly affection. He hadn’t changed at all, yet... yet she couldn’t look at him the same way either. Not anymore.

“There’s still so much I don’t understand about what you’ve told me,” she said, “It’s hard enough to imagine you’ve known about Hollows and Soul Reapers practically all your life! And mom and dad, too! Cadence as well! All of you... all of you knew, and never told me a thing!” She tried to put some anger into her words, but they mostly just came out hurt.

“I’m sorry, Twily. I am,” he said, sitting down next to her as if this were one of those rare times she’d gotten an A- on a test and she’d needed consoling, “Try to understand the reason you were never told any of this is because I all but begged our parents to let you live like a normal girl, if only for awhile. I never wanted you to have to be a part of any of the... the struggle the Quincy must face. You don’t deserve to have to fight a battle that has nothing to do with you. I wanted to keep you safe.”

“Nothing to do with me? Nothing to do with me!?” Twilight’s voice finally raised, and she nearly lost her glasses as she whipped her head around to glare at him, “You’re my brother! My BBBFF! How could this not have anything to do with me!? You’re telling me not only you, but my whole family, including my babysitter have been part of an ancient secret society of humans who fight Hollows and that for all my life I’ve had this kept from me because it has nothing to do with me!? Shining, you are in serious need of a lecture on basic logical deduction! This has everything to do with me!”

Shining Armor stared at her for a few long seconds, then cracked that annoying smile of brotherly amusement he always had when he’d caught her staying up late past her bedtime to study, “Well, I guess you could’ve blown up at me worse than that. Hey! Stop hitting me! Twily!”

She was beating her balled up fists on his shoulder, which only caused him to laugh, which in turn made her try to flail harder on his shoulder. His impossibly hard, muscular shoulder, to which her thin arms did little but make her hands hurt. After a few moments she stopped, instead just giving him the stink eye. He looked at her with mock wariness.

“You done?” he asked.

“Maybe,” she replied with a puff cheeked frown, which soon deflated back into worried confusion, “I have so many questions, I don’t even know where to begin. Where did the Quincy originate from? How do their powers work? What are their powers? Why do you fight Hollows. More importantly, why to you fight Soul Reapers? Who’s in charge of all of this? Why-”

Shining Armor held up a hand, covering her mouth for a moment. As she glared at him he smiled apologetically and took his hand away, “Listen, Twily, I know you have a lot you want to know. You wouldn’t be you if you didn’t have a million questions lined up. I don’t have time to answer them all now. Not even a fraction of them. The important thing at this moment is that you understand why I decided to tell you all of this now, instead of later, or never.”

His expression shifted, his whole stance while sitting next to her on that bench. It was the most serious she had ever seen him, and it left her heart feeling chilled.

“There are those among the Quincy that would insist you join our fight, no matter how you felt about it. Your potential is something that’s been talked about among us since the day you were born. You’d be a shoe in for the Stern-... well, never mind that. My point here is, I don’t want you to be forced into it, Twily. You’re my LSBFF, and it’s always been my job to look out for you. As of right now the only ones who know that you’re involved with Hollows and a Soul Reaper,” by his tone it was hard to tell which he felt was worse, “are me, Cadence because I can’t keep secrets from her, and one other, a trainee, Sugarcoat.”

“Sugarcoat!? What does she have to do with this!?”

“Not just her, but several of Crystal Prep's student body,” Shining Armor said, “That school has been a location for us to test potential among the bloodlines of various Quincy families for generations. Almost every student from Crystal Prep who participated in the Friendship Games were ones of sufficient potential that they were brought into the fold. They have already begun their training as Quincy and will likely rise to our highest ranks, in time. We... we’re at war, Twily. Wars need soldiers. Do you understand, yet, why I wanted to keep all this from you?”

“I’m starting to, but what happens now? I’m already helping my Canterlot High friends deal with the Hollows cropping up all over town, and then there’s Clover... she’s... she’s been nothing but a good friend to us so far. I can’t just start looking at her like an enemy.”

He nodded, a grim light in his eyes, “I know, Twily, I know. You don’t know the history yet. You don’t know how cruel and destructive the Soul Reapers can be. I’m also not like some of the Quincy who think all of Soul Society must be destroyed for the war to end. I know that they’re people, and there’s good ones and bad ones among them. Clover might be one of the good ones. But she’s still a Soul Reaper, and they prize order and loyalty to their laws above all else. I guarantee you that, friendship or not, if Clover is ordered to move against you and your friends, she will.”

“What do you want me to do, brother? I still don’t know what to think about any of this.”

He was silent for a long time, and Twilight could tell he was thinking, hard. While nowhere near as smart as she was, she knew Shining Armor was still a very bright man, even if he sometimes thought with his heart more than his head. More than that, she found she still trusted him. No matter what secrets he’d been keeping this was still her BBBFF. He’d never do anything to hurt her.

At last he answered, “For now, stick close to your friends. Don’t tell them anything I’ve told you, but stick by them. I’ve met them and I know they’re good people, even if Sunset is being trained by a Soul Reaper. As for being a Quincy, it’s up to you Twilight. I won’t tell any of my superiors about you unless you willingly ask to join our cause. Also, if you want me to, I’ll start to teach you what we can do. I wasn’t lying about your potential... but understand that if you reveal any of the powers you’ll learn to your friends, especially to Clover, it’ll complicate things. I might have to bring you fully into the Quincy, then. Do you understand me, Twily?”

“I... yes, brother, I understand,” she said, quietly, then looked at her phone as it started to buzz at her, “Oh no! I’ve been gone so long! I have to get back to my friends. They must be worried sick about me.”

“No problem. Just, like I said, keep this between us, okay? And we’ll start your training tomorrow, in the morning before school.”

“Yikes, that’ll mean getting up before dawn.”

‘Hey, if your friend Applejack can do it on the farm, I think you can handle it here,” said Shining Armor, grinning, “I’m not going to go easy on you just because you're my sister.”

She smiled at that, nodding, “Fair enough. You’ll answer my questions too, during training? About the Quincy?”

“As much as I can. Understand I can’t tell you everything unless you’re serious about joining us, but I’ll tell you all I can before that,” he said, to which she nodded, knowing her brother well enough to grasp that he wouldn’t allow any further information to be pried from him until he was ready to tell her. She’d learn the rest with time, but she had no idea what to do about the notion of actually joining the Quincy. She didn’t know enough yet to make an informed choice, and she had no liking for the idea of being involved in some war.

Even though she was technically already involved, her and all her friends.

Putting the troubling thoughts aside she collected Spike, who’d been waiting patiently nearby keeping quiet, but gave a happy bark as Twilight approached and led him away. Shining Armor gave her one last wave before walking off himself, likely heading back for the mansion. Twilight herself started back for the bus stop to the downtown area, only glancing over her shoulder once or twice.

“So, what’d he say?” asked Spike.

“A lot... and very little at the same time,” said Twilight, chewing her lower lip, “I have even more questions than before. In time, maybe Shining will answer them.”

“He smelled scared,” Spike said, wrinkling his nose, and Twilight glanced down at the dog in surprise.

“Scared?”

“Well, not piss yourself scared, more like he was expecting something bad to happen. Or still is. My nose is still twitching from it.”

That hardly did anything to set Twilight at ease, and she increased her pace, suddenly wanting to get back to the girls as soon as possible.

----------

Adagio couldn’t focus on anything. Events were occurring around her, but her mind wasn’t there. She barely watched Sunset Shimmer’s ‘evaluation’ by the other Soul Reaper, and afterward she went through the motions of training her soul via exercise under Discord’s supervision with little more than mechanical blankness. Her sisters tried to engage her in conversation, or rather Sonata would make some silly remark, inciting Aria to get irritated with her, and as the two shot quips at each other they would pause, as if expecting Adagio to jump in with her usual ire to tell the two to shut up.

But her mind was a world away. Sunset’s words had shaken her, leaving her thoughts drifting towards the past. She’d always been the strongest among her sisters, the natural leader of the trio. It’d been that way even when they’d been young, and the seas east of Equestria their home. Singing came naturally to sirens but it had been Adagio who had first mastered the magic of it among her siblings, she who had taught them so they too could draw power from the emotions of those they sowed discontent in. Adagio had seen the potential for power in such song, and knew the power gained was even greater when the songs were being sung by multiple sirens. Aria and Sonata had been easy enough to convince; Aria hated feeling weak and Sonata thought everything was a game. It’d been all too easy to set them on her path, and Adagio had felt certain that there’d be no height of power and adoration she couldn’t reach.

Then that unicorn wizard had thrown it all into disarray, and she and her sisters had ended up in this world of hairless ape things, the magic of the world so weak they could barely garner a trickle of strength using their usual methods.

She’d been miserable, but in a way she’d almost come to accept the exile, though the desire to return home had never left.

When she’d learned that there was a source of Equestrian magic in this world her confidence had surged like a rising tide, and Adagio had once more felt certain of herself. She had convinced herself that with her and her sister’s combined strength there was nothing to stop them from taking what they wanted, and with that new power forcing a path open back to Equestria, or failing that, at least take enough control of the city that life would be bearable here.

And it had all turned to dust in a torrent of harmonic magic, breaking the gems that were the core of any siren’s power. Where they even really siren’s, anymore, or were she and her sister’s truly trapped living as humans? The very thought should have ignited a pyre of fury inside her, but that anger had turned to smoldering ashes as Sunset’s words had driven home one very clear thing to Adagio.

They could have gone home, and Adagio had burned that one remaining bridge. Despite Sunset’s words Adagio didn’t believe for an instant that Princess Twilight Sparkle would ever forgive her or her sisters. The way home was shut, and they were now stuck here, forever, and it was her fault.

Oh, she was still angry at Sunset, but she was now equally angry with herself.

A pink face filled her vision, blue eyes wide.

“Hiya grumpy guss!”

“GAH!” Adagio floated back, started out of her funk as Pinkie Pie, having seemingly materialized out of nowhere, smiled at her.

“There’s a party with your name on it, I’m thinking,” said Pinkie Pie with an appraising eye, “Yup, we’re talking a Class 4, maybe Class 5 Emergency Party Deployment. I’ll need to go get extra cream cheese and at least a twenty foot wide inflatable swimming pool.”

Adagio looked at her with lidded eyes, saying in a flat tone, “What in the name of Celestia’s over sized, cake inflated flanks are you blabbering about?”

Abruptly she was bushwhacked over the other side by an excited Sonata, who snatched Adagio’s plushie body from behind and hugged it, “Why we’re talking about a Moving Out of Our Crappy Apartment Going Away Party! Me and Blinkie Cry-”

“Pinkie Pie.”

“Whatever. Me and the pink one that smells like cotton candy got to talking and I said that we were going to be moving in here out of our dumb apartment, and then she said-”

“That moving out requires a party, especially when one of the movers is super down in the dumps and could use some cheering up!” said Pinkie Pie with a pumping fist, practically buzzing with excitement that wasn’t exactly rubbing off on Adagio as she alternated glares between her and Sonata.

“When did we decide we were moving?” asked Adagio with a low, incredulous one.

“Duh,” said Sonata, “You were like, totally out of it all day Dagie, so me and Aria argued for a while and somewhere in between me telling her she ought to try something other than pigtails for a change and her throwing a rock at me I suggested we should just go ahead and accept Mister Discworld-”

“Discord,” provided Pinkie Pie.

“What are you, the name police? Anyway me and Aria agreed to accept Mister ‘Discords’-” Sonata made air quotes with her fingers, “-offer about moving in here and working for him full time! You were too busy being in a funk to disagree, so now here we are!”

“Yes, because that’s how decisions work...” muttered Adagio, closing her eyes and wondering why it was that plush toy bodies got headaches, “Okay, yeah, fine, whatever. So since it seems like I’m not being given a choice in any of this, when are we moving?”

“Sunday,” said Sunset as she walked up to the group. The girl was covered in sweat and was using a towel to wipe her face off. Adagio had to wonder why a spirit body sweated, but she was quite done trying to make any sense of how this world’s supernatural aspects worked. Honestly the world filled with magical ponies and dragons made more sense to her by leagues.

“Yup,” said Pinkie Pie, “We already asked Mister Discord if we could take the day off to help you guys move in and of course throw a party. He seemed pretty into the idea, actually, especially when I brought up the swimming pool.”

“Pinkie, I don’t know if an actual swimming pool is going to be necessary, especially because we were probably going to throw the party upstairs where there’s no room for it,” said Sunset.

“And you and your friends are okay with all of this?” asked Adagio, frowning, “Helping my sisters and I... after what we’ve done?”

Sunset tossed the towel onto her shoulder, taking a moment to look at Adagio frankly while brushing some hair out of her eyes, “I won’t say some of them still aren't’ sore over it, or that they all trust you. Applejack and Rainbow Dash especially seem on edge, but I don’t think that has anything to do with you guys. But we’re not trying to hold a grudge. I’m not asking you to be friends with us, but maybe you should at least consider us... acquaintances that don’t hate each other?”

“I... I can live with that for now,” said Adagio.

“And look on the bright side, our Twilight here wasn’t even there for the whole crazy rock anthem magic battle, so she’s got no reason at all to hate any of you,” said Pinkie Pie happily, to which Sonata said, “I thought she was totally there though?”

“Oh no, that was the Twilight who's a Princess in Equestria and is also a magical pony while the Twilight that’s here is a sciencey human person who wears glasses and used to go to Crystal Prep but then turned into a super magical raven monster but she got better and now hangs out with us even through the Princess Twilight also sometimes still hangs out with us and you should let me tell you about the time they both hung out with us at the same time. That was confusing.”

Sonata just stared blankly at Pinkie Pie with a wide smile on her face, eyes vacant of anything resembling understanding. She eventually said, “So tacos or pizza for the party?”

“Taco pizzas, obviously,” replied Pinkie Pie, to which Sonata’s smile only widened.

“I like the way you think.”

Sunset in the meantime was frowning, eyes gazing across the training grounds towards the floating stairway and door that led back up to the shop. “Speaking of Twilight, she’s still not back yet.”

“Oh, no worries, Dashie gave her a ring a few minutes ago. She’s on her way,” said Pinkie Pie.

“I wonder what kept her so long?” mused Sunset, to which Adagio sighed.

“Are you always this much of a worrisome nitwit when it comes to your friends? Maybe she just wanted some alone time? Or stopped to get food?”

“Hey, I worry about my friends, okay?” said Sunset with grit teeth, “Don’t you worry about your sisters the same way?”

To this Adagio could only silently fume, because Sunset wasn’t exactly wrong, and a part of Adagio thought that perhaps she hadn’t worried enough about the well being of her sisters. If she had, perhaps they wouldn’t be stuck in this mess to begin with.

----------

The night was late by the time Twilight had returned, and only long enough to set up her lab equipment before it was time for going home. Sunset wasn’t certain but it seemed as if Twilight was oddly quiet after she got back from the school. It was hard to tell, as Twilight was usually pretty introverted, but she barely said two words beyond belated greetings. Perhaps the most telling thing that Sunset noticed was that Twilight’s usual meticulous and well ordered lab set up was a lot more haphazard than normal, like she wasn’t paying much attention to where she was putting things. That was a red flag, but Sunset didn’t want to press Twilight if she didn’t want to talk about what was bothering her. Spike was also a bit more withdrawn than usual, but if Twilight wasn’t going to talk, there was no way Spike was. The recently sentient canine could give Rainbow Dash lessons on loyalty, at least where Twilight was concerned.

At the end of the evening of training Sunset along with all of her friends and the sirens tromped tiredly out of the shop while a waxing moon filled the sky. It’d be full soon, perhaps even by Sunday, Sunset thought.

Everyone seemed fairly relaxed, even the sirens for once, wearily stretching away the rigors of the day’s training. Clover was right behind Sunset and hung back, saying, “Sunset, a moment if you will?”

Sunset blinked back at the Soul Reaper, and waved for her friends to go on. Clover stayed on the steps up to the shop, and Sunset approached, one hand on her hip casually as she asked, “What’s up?”

“I feel I should apologize for what happened with Lieutenant Fancy Pants,” Clover said, voice filled with trepidation, hands fidgeting, “It wasn’t right for the Sixth Division to go over the Twelfth Divisions head like this to test you without Captain Starswirl’s permission.”

“Hey, it's okay,” Sunset said, patting her arm, only wincing slightly at the ache from the scabbed over wound, “It was just a scratch, and honestly the guy took it pretty easy on me, I’m guessing.”

“Yes, he did. A Lieutenant of the Thirteen Court Guard Divisions is not a joke, as you experienced. There’s actually a far cry difference in ability between a Third Seat like myself, and a Second Seat, a Lieutenant. Even more so between Lieutenants and Captains. Yet he wasn’t exaggerating about your progress. We haven’t even trained a week together and you’re improving by leaps and bounds. To pull off a Flash Step, even if just by instinct...”

Clover seemed to withdrawn into herself for a moment, face lost in thought, “I... I think perhaps I’ve been too hesitant. I don’t know yet what may happen in the future, Sunset. The Soul Society is still deciding, ultimately, what to do about you and your friends. I’m here as a guide, and observer, but I also consider myself your friend now. I hope you feel the same.”

Sunset smiled, letting out a small laugh, “Of course. Me and the girls couldn’t think of you any other way after you fought beside us like you have. You saved Rarity and Fluttershy’s lives that first night we met you, and I’m pretty sure if you hadn’t been there to deal with the brunt of the Hollows there wouldn’t have been any way for me and Applejack to save her family. Of course you’re a friend, Clover.”

Clover gave a strangely formal bow, “That means a lot to me to hear that. Thank you. I think tomorrow I am going to step up your training. It’s clear to me you learn best by doing, not by having theory explained to you. So tomorrow evening I shall teach you how to commune with your Zanpaktou.”

“Commune?” Sunset asked with a quirked eyebrow.

“Yes. Your Zanpaktou’s spirit still lies dormant. To awaken it you must commune with it, learn to speak with it, and in time, perhaps a short time in your case, given your potential, learn your Zanpkatou’s name.”

Recalling what that meant, Sunset’s eyes widened slightly, “Wait, you mean...?”

“Yes, I am going to teach you how to unlock your Zanpaktou’s Shikai.”

----------

Shining Armor lay in his bed, staring up at the ceiling, unable to get to sleep. His brain kept turning over the conversation with Twilight, and the consequences thereof. He’d just set himself on a dangerous path, a razor’s edge of secrecy that could spell serious trouble for both him and his sister. He’d teach her the powers and skills of a Quincy, but he would not bring her to His Majesty unless she fully and willingly accepted joining the Quincy.

Some among his peers would call what he was doing treason. Or at least severely insubordinate.

Even his parents couldn't intervene with His Majesty if it was decided Shining Armor had overstepped his bounds, but this was Twily. He wasn’t going to force his sister into something she didn’t want, nor was he going to try and force her to abandon her friends.

Her friends were a complication though. Good girls, all, far as he was concerned, but Sugarcoat’s report of the power Rarity had manifested was troubling. He knew of what kind of power it resembled, and if other Quincy discovered it, then Twilight’s friends would be considered enemies just as much as the Hollows or Soul Reapers were.

He rubbed his face, groaning, “Really stuck myself in a bind this time.”

“No kidding,” said Cadence and Shining Armor snapped up in bed, the sheet falling down from his bare chest. She was standing by his window, leaning against the frame and silhouetted by moonlight, wearing not her casual business suit by the stark white, tight fitting uniform and cloak of a Quincy.

“Cadence... usually it’s me sneaking in through your window,” he said with a small smirk, to which she rewarded him with a gorgeous smile, though her eyes held a different light, one of concern.

“I got to find ways to surprise you sometimes, don’t I?” she asked teasingly, striding over towards his bed and lightly sitting upon it next to him, leaning down towards him. They shared the briefest of kisses, and she leaned back, sighing.

“So you told her?”

“Some of it, yes,” he said, “I already told you what i intended.”

“I know, my love, and I agree with you,” Cadence’s voice was filled with affection lightly tempered with practicality, “I just wanted to know what she decided.”

“Not much, yet, other than agreeing to be trained by me,” Shining Armor said.

“That won’t be easy,” said Cadence, casting a worried look at the door, “Your mother and father are going to require more of your time as preparations are stepped up. They’ll notice it if you’re missing at certain times, especially if both you and Twilight are missing at the same time. I’ve already heard whispers in His Majesty’s palace that some are wondering why you have not been seen there as often of late.”

Shining Armor looked away, face a stubborn mask, “Let them whisper. I know a place I can train Twily that no one will find us, and as long as I do so at the right times no one can prove anything.”

“Shining...” Cadence grabbed his face gently, turning him to look at her. He felt her eyes on him, holding him with their loving depth, “Let me help you.”

“How?” he asked, and she leaned in, gracing his lips with another kiss, and he felt her arms slip around his naked shoulders.

“There’s no reason you have to be the only one to train her,” Cadence said, pushing him down to the bed and tossing off her cloak as she sat astride him, “Between the two of us, I might even be better suited to the task. So let us both take turns training Twilight, that way you still have time to focus on your duties without raising too much suspicion.”

“I don’t know, Cadence, Twily is pretty skittish about all this, I don’t know if she’ll...” he trailed off as Cadence started to unbutton her uniform, stealing his words.

“Don’t forget I practically helped raise her, Shining. She’ll trust me, don’t worry. Now... enough talking. I’ve had a long day, and so have you.”

That was the last complete sentence Cadence said for the rest of that night, and Shining Armor slept very well by the time morning arrived.

Author's Notes:

Anyone else wonder just how much older Shining Armor is than Twilight? Ten years maybe? That'd be my guess. Also, any bets on how long its going to take Twilight to blow her cover concerning learning Quincy powers?

Some might think it odd that Fancy Pants is the one I've made the Sixth Division's Lieutenant, given that was Renji Abarai's position in the anime, and those two couldn't be more different, but part of that i to illustrate that while I'm using Bleach's framework, not every character is going to have exact equivalents... though admittedly I'm imagining Captain Platinum as being a lot like Byakuya, just a bit more flamboyant compared to the poster boy for the stoic bishonen.

Anyway thanks for reading folks, hope you all continue to enjoy, and as always leave any comments or critiques you want, I appreciate them all. 'Till next time.

Episode 12: Party Time

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Episode 12: Party Time

When Pinkie Pie planned a party, she always pulled out all the stops. Didn’t matter what the reason for the party was, the important thing was that she did everything she could to make sure that it was the most fun anybody could possibly want to have and that not a single person left without a massive smile on their face. And if there was anybody she knew who needed some smiles put on their faces, it was those siren girls. Sure they might have been kinda mean and tried to dominate the school and beyond with mind controlling, magic stealing singing, but who cared about the details? Pinkie Pie had plenty of friends who did things like that. Sunset, Twilight... huh, now that she thought about it she hung out with a lot of former super villains, even if they were super villains for only a day and were totally nice people now.

No reason to think the sirens were any different, and really, with a party on the mind, Pinkie Pie didn’t think much at all aside from the planning. This time she even had help!

“Okay, honest opinion, which will be more fun; Extreme Cupcake Twister or Cheese Dip Strip Poker?” Sonata asked, looking at a list Pinkie Pie and her had come up with before they’d gone out shopping for supplies.

Pinkie Pie affected a knowing smile and held up a finger as if a teacher bringing up a point, “When in doubt, combine. How do you think s’mores were discovered? Speaking of which!” She snatched up some chocolate bars from the shelf and tossed them into the cart, moving right along down the aisle, grabbing whatever struck her fancy, including cheese dip and cupcake mix for what she imagined would be a lovely game of Extreme Cheese Dip Cupcake Strip Twister Poker.

By the time they were done they left the store with enough bags filled with party supplies to fill a station wagon. They didn’t have a station wagon to put it all in, but they had the next best thing.

“Ugggh, I, uh, I’m happy to help and all, but... but do you think you two could carry a little of this?” asked Rainbow Dash, not quite buckling under the weight of the bags she was carrying.

“Whoops, sorry Dashie, let me get a few of those,” said Pinkie Pie, hopping over and snatching a few of the bags off the top of the pile, handing a few to Sonata, who took them gingerly as if the idea of physical labor was a foreign concept. In a few moments Rainbow Dash looked less like a walking mountain of bags and more like an actual person carrying said bags.

“Thanks, thought I was about to pull some muscles there,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Aren’t you like, super strong or whatever?” asked Sonata.

“Yeah, but the incredible awesome strength only comes out when the wings do, and I ain’t busting those out on a public street unless it's some serious life or death stuff going down.”

As they headed down the street to make their way back to Discord’s shop Rainbow Dash moved up next to Pinkie Pie and spoke in a quieter tone, “How’s your family?”

“Oh, they’re doing great. My mom and pop already got contractors coming in to work on fixing the place up. Marble’s still...” Pinkie’s voice grew a tad more subdued, “She’s still a bit scared to go outside at night. I don’t think Clover’s memory replacement thingamajig was able to get rid of all the nasty memories of that night. Come to think of it, Maud’s been acting a bit more Maudie than usual, too. She always tells me to ‘be careful’ whenever I leave the house.”

Pinkie Pie shrugged it all off. All she really understood was that Clover had some nifty Soul Reaper device that could replace the memories of an event with altered ones, so that people didn’t quite remember things like Hollows and the like. As far as her family was supposed to remember they’d just had an unfortunate run in with a localized, freak windstorm. She also knew that Rarity’s little sister had also had the same thing done to her, to make her think she’d just fallen asleep in her room and had a nightmare. Strangely, though, Applejack’s family hadn’t had the same done with them. She didn’t know why, and wasn’t really keen on asking.

“Well, I gotta admit, I’m not surprised about Maud acting weird,” Rainbow Dash told her, “Near as I can tell that’s her version of normal. I mean, she took on Hollows bare handed without even being able to see them. That’s both freaky and awesome at the same time.”

Pinkie Pie just grinned, “Maudie has always been protective of the family, so I’m not surprised at all. She’s also always been real strong.”

In fact Pinkie Pie couldn’t remember a time where Maud hadn’t been there to help her or her other sister’s out of trouble, whether it be with bullies or angry dogs or even making sure there was no boogeyman in the closet or under the bed in the dark of the night.

“Your sister sounds pretty cool,” said Sonata, “But so are mine.”

“Sounds to me like you guys are always arguing,” said Rainbow Dash, “Makes it hard to believe you all ever agreed with each other long enough to try and take over the school.”

“Oh, us arguing is just, like, the grease in the pizza. Sure it's unpleasant by itself, but it’s part of what makes the rest of the pizza work!”

That made perfect sense to Pinkie Pie, but she could tell Rainbow Dash was having a hard time getting it by the way the other girl’s face screwed up with a confused frown. She just giggled and gave her friend a pat on the shoulder, “It’s okay Dashie, don’t think so hard about it. Just think of the party and all will be well.”

“That’s your answer for everything, Pinkie.”

“And it just also happens to be the right answer to everything.”

Just then there was a beeping noise from both hers and Rainbow Dash’s pockets. Both girls halted immediately, Sonata going a few more steps before pausing and blinking back at the two other girls with a questioning look. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie exchanged worried looks as they pulled out the source of the beeping; their Hollow Detectors.

“Guess we ought to have known they’d start showing up again. Didn’t give them enough of a bloody nose the last time,” Rainbow Dash muttered, checking her screen the same time Pinkie Pie did. Pinkie herself tried to keep the uneasy nervousness off her face. She’d been happy enough to just help her friends deal with the Hollows before, but now with Pinkamena around there was a part of her that was literally outside the bounds of her control. At least, total control. She could force Pinkamena back inside her when she had to, but even with the little training sessions at Discord’s place there was always some resistance from her alter ego. She never went back easily or quietly.

Pinkie Pie didn’t know whether to call it luck or not when the signal on her Detector’s screen vanished within seconds. Maybe it was a glitch?”

“The heck?” Rainbow Dash frowned, shaking her Detector, “Where’d it go? That signal was pretty close to us.”

Sonata poked her head over Pinkie Pie’s shoulder, “Why do you guys have flip cells? Those are kinda out of date.”

“These aren’t phones,” Rainbow Dash said, still looking at her Detector’s screen as if she could force the signal to appear again by sheer force of will, “They sense Hollows. Only this one’s up and disappeared on us.”

“Well, no biggie,” said Pinkie Pie, “Maybe it just decided to run away back home to have a party of its own rather than stick around here. Either way, no more signal, no more problem. We’ve got a party to set up!”

“I... guess so,” Rainbow Dash said, still looking worried as she put away her Detector.

----------

The Hollow watched the girls continue down the busy sidewalk from a perch atop a nearby building, almost human looking eyes narrowed as he grumbled to himself. His body still didn’t feel right. Bloated with unstable energy that felt as if it was wriggling around inside him. He still had the shark like mask that was his distinctive feature when... a normal Hollow, but the mask was partially open and human features could be seen within the shadows of the mask. His body was also more human than it had been before, less hulking and more scaled as if he were a professional wrestler rather than a behemoth. Still, he had clawed hands, and traces of shark-like skin on his body. He did wear clothes now, baggy white pants tucked into smooth black cloth boots, but that was it.

Tucked into a white sash around those pants was a broad bladed short sword, almost like an elongated shark’s tooth.

“Grrrr, bastard Grogar, he’d better keep his end of the deal...” but even as the Hollow growled the words he knew instinctively the Arrancar couldn’t be trusted, not really. But what choice did he have? This transformation was unstable. Unless the process was completed within the next two or three days, he’d explode from the chaotic reishi building inside him.

Grand Fisher is taking even longer to change than I am... wonder if old man Grogar will even finish his change if I manage to bring one of these girls in first... just need one.

To aide in his task Grogar had given him a trinket that suppressed his spiritual pressure so it couldn’t be easily detected. It’d give him time to watch and observe his prey until he could decide the right time and manner to strike. His eyes mostly were fixed on the pink one. She’d spared him, once. He was almost grateful for it. Perhaps that was why he was thinking of going after one of the others. Grogar had said he only needed to bag one, so he could afford to leave the pink one be and focus on one of the others. The blue one, maybe? She hadn’t been that strong when they’d fought before...

No rush. I won’t underestimate them like last time. This time will be different.

----------

Applejack finished cleaning out the gutters and without even really thinking about it hopped down from the roof rather than use the ladder that her brother was keeping steady. When she realized what she’d done she stood up, blinking at her legs, which hardly felt jarred when she’d landed. Big Mac was giving her a strange look and Applejack adjusted her stetson to hide her embarrassment.

“Eh, heh, guess I’m a mite stronger in’ the legs then I thought.”

“Ain’t no harm in that,” Big Mac said, “Just watch that sorta thing ‘round Applebloom. We aim ta keep our outta the mess, if we can.”

“Outta what mess?” asked Applebloom, coming out the door with her schoolbag slung over one shoulder. It might’ve been a Sunday morning with no school to be had, but Applebloom used the same bag to carry snacks and other things to her friend’s clubhouse.

“Nothin’,” Applejack said, while Big Mac affected a mile long stare of innocence and said nothing.

Applebloom peered at both of them with the suspicion of a youngster knowing the adults were hiding something, but didn’t press it further, saying, “If you say so. Anywhos, Scoots and Sweetie Belle are takin’ me ta see the new Daring Doo movie, so I’ll be out a bit late.”

Applejack found herself clenching her jaw a bit, “Ya got Granny’s permission fer that?”

“Y-yeah, course I do,” said Applebloom, a tad too defensively for Applejack’s liking.

“Ya sure? Cause if I ask Granny and she don’t know a’ thing ‘bout this...” Applejack trailed off with the quiet menace of a big sister.

Applebloom was quiet for a few seconds under that hard stare Applejack gave her before saying, “Fine, I’ll got git permission right now. It ain’t gonna be that late anyways, and why’re ya bein’ so protective anyway? I ain’t a’ baby no more.”

“Then prove it by gettin’ Granny’s permission, and not trying to lie ta yer big sis,” Applejack shot back, to which Applebloom just gave her a irritated look and went back into the farmhouse. When Applejack noticed Big Mac’s look she crossed her arms over her chest.

“What?”

“I didn’t say nothin’.”

“Yer the one that said we gotta keep her outta this mess with the Hollows an’ Soul Reapers. Best she don’t stray too far from the homestead.”

“I ain’t disagreein’ with ya.”

“Ya got that look in yer eye.”

Big Mac sighed, putting the ladder on his shoulder and aiming to take it back to the barn, “Just worryin’, is all. Don’t rightly know how ta keep Applebloom safe an’ still let her be herself. Ya know, Granny’s word or not, she’ll figure a’ way ta go with her friends.”

Big Mac usually didn’t speak so much, and it was a solid sign of how worried he was that he was this vocal about what he was thinking. Applejack wasn’t keen on dismissing her brother’s words out of hand, but like him she was at a loss on how to handle the situation. She just hoped that if Applebloom did anything foolish it wouldn’t lead to trouble, because Big Mac was right, short of locking Applebloom up in her room there’d really be no stopping her from going out when she had a mind to do so.

She knew Discord had his two workers, Screwloose and Screwball, working patrol around the city, and she and her friends had been doing the same when they weren’t at school or training. Saturday had gone buy quiet, and hopefully Sunday would be the same, but worry gnawed at her. Worry, and a simmering, festering anger.

Grand Fisher was out there, still. She knew she wasn’t going to get a good night’s sleep until she’d put that Hollow down like the rabid dog he was. Then there was the Soul Society to worry about. No matter what assurances Clover gave her, there was what Granny Smith had told her, bouncing around in Applejack’s head.

My ma could see ghosts. She’d seen ‘em her whole life, an’ never told me. Seen Soul Reapers too, and Granny’s near certain they approach my ma about somethin’... somethin’ ma never told no one about, not even Granny. Just a year ‘fore she an pa were killed. What’d the Soul Society want with her? Why didn’t they protect her?

She knew she was overthinking things. She hardly had the full story. Maybe Clover would come through and find something in that Twelfth Division’s records, but Applejack had a sinking feeling that’d only lead to more questions, at best.

Taking a deep breath to clear her head, and having just finished her chores for the morning, Applejack said to Bic Mac, “I get what yer sayin’. Just keep an’ eye on her if ya can. I gots ta get goin’ myself.”

Big Mac gave a silent nod and with that went off to put the ladder back in the barn, leaving Applejack to start making her way to the bus stop that’d take her into town.

----------

“This place looks a little dilapidated, Shining,” Twilight said, looking over the old warehouse with reserved concern, “Is it safe for us to be here?”

“Oh, don’t worry Twily, it’s meant to look this way to keep out prying eyes,” said Shining Armor, a small smirk on his face as he led her up to the old, abandoned building. It was situated just on the north fringe of the city, where the trains used to come through back when the city was still largely a mining community, and the old unused train tracks still criss crossed the streets here among the warehouses. Many were still used, but several like this one hadn’t looked as if they’d seen use in years, with spots of rust across its sheet metal roof and weed filled cracks lining the concrete.

Shining Armor went right up to one of the metal side doors and led Twilight inside. She expected to see a dusty, grimy interior just as ramshackle as the outside, but she gave a small gasp as the interior of the warehouse completely took her off guard.

Smooth material that she couldn’t quite tell if it was metal or stone filled the space within the warehouse, pale and almost akin to marble if not for the strangely metallic sheen to it. Aside from a semi-circular area by the door Shining had took her through the rest of the interior was uneven, with random dips and dives, pillars and platforms, all random like some bizarre crossbreed between a skate park and obstacle course. The area was well lit, but Twilight couldn’t see any source for the lighting. No electric lights were anywhere to be seen.

“What... what is this place?” she asked, fascinated and bewildered simultaneously. She actually reached into her blouse pocket to pull out her metaphysical scanner but Shining Armor put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head with a wry look on his face.

“Probably best you don't try to use that here. Your device might overload. This ‘warehouse’ is surrounded by a warding barrier against both detection and entry without the right key to enter.”

“What kind of key?” Twilight asked, not having seen her brother pull out any object like the passes Discord had given them to get through the shop’s wards.

“Quincy blood,” Shining Armor said with a chuckle, “This is a training area just for Quincy. This one isn’t used much anymore. Mother and father made it for me when I was a kid, just starting my own training. Aside from them, and now you, the only other person that knows of this place is Cadence. This space is bathed in reishi, and all of the floor, walls, and pillars are made from condensed reishi.”

‘Reishi, that’ spirit particles, right?” Twilight asked, and at Shining Armor’s look she gave a shy smile, “I was paying as much attention to Clover’s lectures a Sunset was.”

“Guess that means I can skip some of the preliminary stuff,” Shining Armor said, striding to the edge of the semi-circular platform they were on, “One of the main differences between a Quincy and a Soul Reaper is that we rely on manipulating reishi exterior to ourselves alongside our own inner spirit energy, where Soul Reapers almost exclusively use their internal power.”

He held out his left arm, and dangling from his wrist was a bracelet charm, a silver five-pointed cross. Twilight realized she’d seen the like before, a symbol that appeared several times around her family’s mansion. She’d never really thought about it or taken much notice of it before. She blinked in surprise as in a glow of blue light that seemed to flow from the cross like water an object took shape in her brother’s hand.

A tall bow, its surface a light blue sheen with marble white vertical stripes. There was a shield shaped guard at the point where one would notch an arrow, with a curved handle that Shining Armor held with familiar ease. Twilight didn’t see a string on the bow, but somehow that didn’t surprise her.

“A Quincy bow, shaped from a combination of my own spirit energy, and local spirit particles,” Shining Armor explained, “Each Quincy’s bow is a bit different, and might have different properties, but all of them fundamentally function to allow a Quincy to gather more reishi, and fire it in the form of arrows.”

To demonstrate he raised the bow and instantly a blue, intense light formed a string from one end of the bow to the other. He grabbed that string of light and pulled back, and a bright, near solid arrow of cobalt light formed from the string between his fingers, and extended through he shield guard. Twilight could almost feel the pressure seeming to build from the bow, making her take an involuntary step back a moment before Shining Armor fired.

Like a bolt of lightning the arrow flew from the bow, nearly cracking the sound barrier with a circular burst of air as the arrow rocketed down the length of the training chamber and impacted with a distant pillar. The pillar exploded on impact, the arrow detonating and shattering the edifice into a hundred dusty chunks.

Twilight gasped, hands clasped to her chest. Shining Armor looked back at her, looking a tad embarrassed, “Sorry if that startled you. I’m not used to holding back, so I guess I kinda overdid it there. But that’s the basic shot from a Quincy bow. There’s a lot more we can do with them, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Now then...”

He reached into a pocket and pulled out a small object, a small silver cross mounted on a thin metal chain of fine links. It wasn’t the five pointed cross Shining Armor used, but rather a more traditional cross, four pointed with a circle in the center. Twilight peered at it for a second, curious. “Why is it different than yours?”

“Oh, heh, well technically I don’t even need the cross the summon my bow, they’re just useful focusing tools. This one here is an older cross, before we refined the newer crosses to train the current generation. This cross was actually used by mom before she learned to summon her bow on her own, so I thought it’d be appropriate for you to train on. Here.”

He handed it to her and showed her how to wrap the chain around her wrist so the cross could be hidden up her sleeve. The metal felt cold to the touch, but at the same time Twilight felt a strange warmth inside her when she wore it. She peered at the cross, eyes locked on it. In a way she couldn’t explain it felt right to be wearing it, as if it belonged there.

“Now it might take me a few days to really show you how to summon a bow,” Shining Armor was saying, “Even the most basic form of bow, without any solid shape, can be tough to bring out so don’t be disappointed if it-”

He cut off as in a flare of blue light, one that shocked both him and Twilight, the cross she wore began to glow intensely and in a wash of azure energy a bow formed around Twilight’s hand. It wasn’t a solid object like Shining Armor’s, but rather a curved, plain bow formed purely of blue energy. Twilight stared at it in pure shock and fascination. She could feel the bow, almost like it was a part of herself, as if it were connected to something at the center of her body. She felt like there was a river in her, and the flow of that river happened to take the shape of a bow, and all it’d taken was the cross on her wrist to open the dam that’d been holding that river back.

“Well... okay then,” said Shining Armor.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. Um. is this okay? Is it supposed to do this?” Twilight asked, still staring at the bow in her hand. It felt warm, like holding onto beams of sunlight.

“If I didn’t know you better I’d say you were trying to show off,” Shining Armor said with a small laugh, patting her shoulder, “It's okay, Twily. It’s rare, very rare, for someone to summon a bow like that, without really being shown how, but I can’t say I’m surprised. Like I told you, people were gossiping about your potential since practically the day you were born. You were correcting some of my schoolwork when you were ten. You’ve always been a fast learner. Just... let’s try to take it slow from here. Quincy powers can be dangerous if used without care.”

“I’ll be careful, Shining,” she said, gulping, “I want to learn. I need to understand. So please, show me.”

“One step at a time, little sis, one step at a time.”

----------

“One step at a time, Sunset. You can’t rush these things,” said Clover in a clear, lecturing tone, “Even with your potential, this will likely take some time and effort.”

Sunset held back some sharp words, knowing she was being impatient and that Clover was teaching her as best she could. She just felt like the pressure was mounting. There was no telling when the Hollows might make another attack, or if the Soul Society might suddenly decide to do something other than have Clover train her. Sunset was all too aware of how far she had to go in order to have the strength to keep her friend’s safe, and the next logical step was learning how to better bond with her Zanpaktou.

It just wasn’t being very cooperative.

She sat cross legged, balanced on a relatively flat topped boulder, her Zanpaktou laid across her knees, one hand on the hilt, the other on the flat of the blade. Clover stood nearby, and for the entire morning and almost all of yesterday had been trying to walk Sunset through the process of meditating to hear her Zanpaktou’s voice.

“Its not quite like conventional meditation, “ Clover explained, “You have to feel the link you share with your sword and let all else drain out of you except for that single point where you and Zanpaktou share a soul.”

“We’ve been at this forever,” Sunset said, “And I haven’t felt a thing. Isn’t there some other way to do this?”

Clover’s face scrunched up in consternation, but her tone remained cool and collected as ever, “A few Soul Reapers have managed to hear their Zanpaktou in crisis situations, or through constant use in battle, but the normal way is the meditative one. If you could feel the link, and reach the proper mental state, you could enter the mental world you and your Zanpaktou collectively share.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Clover. I can sit here all day but the closest I get to entering a ‘mental world’ is when I’m near to falling asleep,” Sunset said with a sigh.

Clover glanced away, rubbing her chin between thumb and forefinger, clearly deep in thought, when Rainbow Dash arrived, flying with her wings and landing easily. Sunset had noticed that her prismatic friend was using the wings more often, and getting less and less tired with each successive use. Growing stronger. I need to catch up, Sunset thought, and tried not to let the thought be a bitter one. It was a good thing her friends were getting stronger. She just... wanted to be doing the same.

“We got the shopping done,” Rainbow Dash said, pointing a thumb over her shoulder back towards the exit, “AJ just got here, too. We’re about to head out and help the sirens move their stuff out of their apartment, me and AJ anyway. Pinks, Rarity, and Fluttershy are chilling here to make food for the party and set up everything else.”

Sunset cast a look a Clover, “Well, I’d be happy to help with either the moving or the party set up, if Clover says the training is done for now?”

Clover gave a small start, as if having not noticed Rainbow Dash even showing up, and rapidly cleared her throat, “Ahem, yes, that’s fine. I need to think more about how to help you commune with your Zanpaktou anyway.”

“Alright then,” Sunset hopped down from the boulder, looking around, “Chappy? Chappy!? I need my real body back you dang rabbit! Where’d she get off to?”

“Oh, uh, heh,” Rainbow Dash scratched the back of her head, “She’s upstairs. AJ had to practically sit on her to get her to stop trying to eat up the party goods before we were ready to actually party.”

“Ugh,” Sunset groaned, giving Clover a rueful look, “I thought these gikon’s were supposed to be, well, obedient?”

“Well, the Chappy model is blessed with a rather energetic personality. Its supposed to make them more fun and personable to use,” said Clover defensively, “I... uh... I was part of their development team, actually. The Twelfth Division makes almost all of the Soul Society’s special equipment. I didn’t design the erratic behavior though! I worked on the social aspect and definitely did not put in an obsession with food. Must’ve been Fourth Seat Glazed Doughnut who did that.”

“Whatever, let’s just get up there and get me back in my body before Chappy destroys it with a sugar rush.”

Up above in the shop proper there was a buzz of activity. Rarity was decorating two of the side rooms which had been joined together after sliding one of the walls aside (something it seemed many of the walls in Discord’s shop could do) with tasteful and colorful streamers and ribbons, all culminating in a banner welcoming the sirens to their new home. Sunset assumed the rather adorable chibified drawings of the three sirens in question were Pinkie Pie’s handiwork. Discord was overseeing the process, trying in vain to keep Rarity’s decorating to a tasteful minimum. It was the first time she’d seen the shopkeeper actually on the defensive for a change, and the sight brought a bit of a smile to her face.

Nearby in a surprisingly roomy kitchen Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were making quick work of the baking, and the smells floating from there was already causing Sunset’s stomach to grumble, and she wasn’t even back in her own body yet. Chappy was almost literally being sat on by Applejack, who gave Sunset a wry grin as she arrived.

“Ain’t gonna ever git used ta havin’ someone else in yer body, Sunset,” she said, “Especially not someone who’s got ‘bout as much energy as Pinkie Pie.”

“Hey, is that a compliment?” said Chappy, “I like compliments, but something yummy would be better. Did you have to hogtie me? With actual rope? Oh hi Miss Shimmer! I was just trying to make sure your body was well fed and taken care of. Honest.”

Sunset gave Chappy a bemused look, especially at the rope keeping her tied to the ground. She shook her head with a sign, “Okay, out. Thanks for the hard work Chappy but I want my body back for awhile.”

“Oh, okay. Uh, rope first?” Chappy asked with an awkward smile. Sunset didn’t think she’d ever get used to seeing someone else wearing her body like a suit. Applejack gave Sunset a questioning look, and at Sunset’s not she untied Chappy, who then stood and with a grin gave the back of her head a like tap. This knocked out the gikon sphere from her mouth and Sunset’s body went limp as she caught the gikon itself.

Applejack grabbed her body to keep it from falling and Sunset climbed back into it, another bizarre sensation she was far from used to. It was like stepping into warm water, only her spirit form was dissolving into her physical body and she could feel the pull on her soul like a current.

Once she was back in her body, Chappy’s gikon tucked away in her pocket, she turned to Applejack and Rainbow Dash, “So, we helping the sirens move now?”

“Yup, they’re waitin’ outside fer us,” said Applejack, expression a bit tight, “Wish more n’ that Sonata girl would show a bit o’ gratitude. Other two are bein’ standoffish as ever.”

“Well, maybe they’ll loosen up by the end of the night,” said Rainbow Dash with a shrug, “And if not, who cares? Not like we have to live with them or anything.”

“I suppose you’re right...” Sunset said, frowning slightly as she looked around and noticing someone missing from the proceedings, “Is Twilight not here yet?”

“Haven’t seen her,” said Rainbow Dash, “She’s probably doing something eggheady. I wouldn’t worry about it. We can always give her a ring if she starts running late.”

“Right,” Sunset imagined Rainbow Dash had the right of it. Twilight could get easily distracted if she had something to research. She had been acting odd since Friday, but there could be any number of reasons for that, including just stress. Still, Sunset thought it would be a good idea to talk to Twilight, just to make sure nothing was wrong, as soon as the chance presented itself.

Outside she, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash found the sirens waiting. Adagio was slowly floating around, pacing, while Aria had an impatient frown, one foot tapping. Sonata was already preemptively partying with a bag of chips and bobbing her head to music only she could hear in her head.

“About time,” said Aria, “Thought we’d be stuck waiting for another few hours.”

“We could just leave ya’ll to do this yerselves,” said Applejack in a low tone, but Sunset put a hand on her shoulder.

“I was just finishing up some training with Clover, that’s all. We’re ready to go now.”

“I parked the moving van just outside the alley,” said Sonata, “We shouldn’t leave it there very long.”

“Why not?” asked Sunset.

“Uh, because I’m pretty sure the people I jacked it from are going to want it back and might be looking for it,” the siren said with a grin.

At the collective stares of those around her, including her sisters, Sonata raised her hands, her grin turning sheepish, “Joking! I’m joking! You guys need to learn to lighten up. Geez! Bossman Discord gave us a forward on our pay to rent the van.”

“Can you even drive?” asked Rainbow Dash incredulously.

“Well, duh, I’ve played Crazy Taxi. It’s, like, basically the same,” said Sonata offhandedly.

“Much as I hate to admit it she’s better at driving around those hunks of junk than I am,” muttered Aria, “I hate cars.”

“It's a van, not a car, dummy.”

“Shut up Sonata, it has four wheels, so who cares what we call it!?”

“Enough,” said Adagio, voice flat, “Let’s just get this over with.”

That cut short any further conversation and the group rather awkwardly got moving, Sunset giving Adagio a worried look as the siren turned plush toy floated over to be carried by Sonata. She hoped that maybe spending some time trying to relax might help Adagio’s mood improve, but only time would tell. She was almost more worried about Twilight.

I wonder what she could be doing?

----------

Sweat dripped off Twilight’s chin and her arms shook terribly as she tried to hold the bow steady. The strain on her arms was painful, and she could feel the spirit particles in her hand as she tried to hold the bow’s string back almost as if they were hot coals. Tears stung her eyes as she tried to keep her concentration and her aim.

“Steady, Twily, try to hold it as long as you can,” Shining Armor said, standing right next to her, his own bow up and with a reishi arrow drawn back, providing a stance for Twilight to mimic.

“It... it hurts...” she said, gritting her teeth, hands shaking.

“You’re not used to holding the reishi, yet. Your body will adapt, and it will get easier, but it always hurts the first time...” Shining Armor said, trailing off and wincing, “Yeesh, never thought I’d be saying stuff like that to my little sister.”

“Shining!” Twilight cried, turning towards him almost instinctively, face unabashedly red. She’d let go of the string in the same movement and the arrow shot off, flinging past Shining Armor and spearing into the depths of the training chamber. Twilight nearly fell over in surprise and Shining Armor jumped back.

“Whoa, Twily, watch it.”

“S-sorry!” she said, rubbing her hands. Her glowing blue blow had vanished, but once she got herself calmed down a bit she was able to focus on the cross around her wrist for a second and summoned the bow back to her hand, “I’ll try again.”

“It's okay, my fault for being a dork,” he said, approaching her and taking a look at her hands, which were sporting some scratches and bruises from the exposure to spirit particles, “I’ll get you some special gloves next time to help you deal with the reishi exposure. I think we ought to pack it in for today.”

“But I’m only just starting to learn!” she said in protest but Shining Armor held up a hand.

“You still got that party to go to, don’t you?”

Twilight blinked, then nearly smacked her forehead, “That’s right! I completely... ugh, why am I so scatterbrained today?”

“Don’t worry so much, Twily. This hasn’t exactly been the typical week for you, so it’s not strange even your mind would have some trouble processing all of this,” Shining Armor said, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder, “You’ve done a lot more today than I expected you to be able to. You’ll learn even more tomorrow. Now go, have some fun with your friends, even if a couple of them are Soul Reapers.”

Even with his easy smile Twilight could see the tension in Shining Armor’s features at the mention of Soul Reapers, and while she did want to hurry and get to the party, there were some answers she wanted first. “Shining, before I go could you at least answer me this; why do the Quincy dislike the Soul Society?”

He looked at her with clear reluctance and she could all but see him debating with himself how much to tell her. She wasn’t often angry with her brother. Irritated at times, the way siblings could get, but not angry. She wasn’t angry now, either, but the idea of him deciding what she did or didn’t need to know did sort of... irk her.

“Shining, please, don’t hold anything back. I need to know this, if I’m ever going to decide where I belong in regards to the Quincy.”

“Its not that, Twily, its just... its hard to know just where to start, or how to even paraphrase it all. You’re talking a thousand years of history, a thousand years of conflict, and trying to sum it all up. Even the start of it isn’t exactly simple. Not to mention the history itself isn’t entirely clear. Stories passed down, a few texts and documents, lots of hearsay. The Quincy of old didn’t always make the best historians.”

“Then just do the best you can. The basics. At this point I’ll take anything you’re willing to give,” she said, voice earnest. After a moment’s more thought, Shining Armor nodded and began in a somber tone.

“A little over a thousand years ago, give or take a few decades, a group of humans in the forests of northern Europe discovered not only the existence of Hollows, but a means to combat them. Exactly how they developed their powers isn’t well documented, and most assume it was a combination of spiritual training, talent, an maybe a bit of old fashioned alchemy. Regardless, the Quincy taught themselves to hunt Hollows with bows of reishi, and developed other techniques to fight the monsters that preyed on human souls. Things went well for a breif time, but before long the Soul Reapers arrived, and intervened. They demanded the Quincy lay down their bows and cease to hunt Hollows, that it was their duty to deal with Hollows and not that of living humans.”

“I don’t understand, why would they care if the Quincy fought Hollows?” Twilight asked.

“According to the Soul Reapers the Quincy methods caused damage to the cycle of souls, because our bows supposedly destroy Hollows rather than purify them like a Soul Reaper’s Zanpaktou,” said Shining Armor, lips curled in a deep frown, “I honestly don’t know if that’s true or not. There’s never been any evidence that we’ve discovered that the destruction of Hollows has any effect on the world’s stability. Most Quincy back then assumed the Soul Reapers were just trying to control us, to control the entirety of the afterlife.”

“A-are they?” Twilight asked, alarmed. It was hard to imagine, really. Could anyone control the afterlife? She had never been particularly engaged with religion outside of an academic interest, but it somehow struck her as suddenly very heavy to realize that the Soul Society might actually consist of something akin to the legitimate authorities of the afterlife. Or were they legitimate? What gave them right to claim dominion over the souls of mankind?

It was a question that felt far too large to contemplate, yet she could see in Shining Armor’s eyes a sense of understanding. He nodded to her, face grim, “Now you start to understand, Twily. Even if they don’t control all the afterlife, the Soul Reapers at least control some of it, and without any real proof they belong in that position. A thousand years ago they demanded our ancestors surrender their powers and not even try to defend themselves from Hollow attacks. Is it really that surprising the Quincy would fight back, are still fighting back after all this time? Shouldn’t the destiny of humankind be in the hands of humans?”

“I don’t know, Shining. I don’t... this is a lot to take in.”

He once more had that brotherly smirk that made her want to hit him, “Well, you did ask.”

She sighed, giving him a small glare, but it didn’t last, and she found herself laughing, if the noise was a tad helpless and exasperated, “I guess I did. I’m going to have to keep asking more, but I think you’re right, that’s enough for today.”

“I’ll see you later, Twily. Be careful out there, and remember; don’t reveal that cross to your friends. At least, don’t do it unless you’re sure about whose side you’re on, because once the cat is out of the bag, there’s no putting it back in.”

----------

The moving went shockingly fast. The sirens didn’t exactly have a lot of stuff in their small apartment and emptying it out only took a couple of hours between all of them working at it. Sunset was actually kind of happy for the trio, as the building the apartment was in wasn’t exactly up to code, and it was in the seedier part of town, one of the few places in the city that had a crime rate to speak of.

By the time they returned to the shop to unload everything Twilight was there, helping out set the tables. Fresh baked goods ranging from cupcakes to cinnamon rolls lined one table, while the other held some recently ordered pizzas and enough soda to last most the night. The smell got Sunset’s stomach growling in seconds and gave her plenty of motivation to finish up carrying in the siren sisters’ stuff quickly.

The labyrinthine nature of Discord’s shop still left Sunset feeling a tad unnerved, and she didn’t exactly envy the sirens in their new abode, but at least Discord seemed to be giving them some space. Each siren was being given their own room, a luxury they didn’t have back at the apartment. Once they were done getting the right boxes to the right rooms the girls gathered together in the room set up for the party, where Sunset noticed that her friends were joined by Screwloose and Screwball, who she hadn’t seen much off since Discord had sent them off on patrols for most of the past few days.

“I thought this was supposed to be a party, but I’m seeing a distinct lack of alcohol around here,” said Screwloose, to which Rarity made a scandalized face.

“We are all quite underage for that kind of thing, Miss Screwloose.”

“Speak for yourself, I’m well past old and crotchety enough to get some booze in me. Boss, where's the good stuff?”

Discord, who was already in the process of mixing several different sodas together with another mysterious clear liquid from a flask he’d pulled from the folds of his robe glanced up, “Oh I’ve already gotten that covered. Just a nip from the stash for us adults while the kiddies have their fun.”

Screwloose licked her lips and all but bum rushed the offered drink, “You’re always so thoughtful, boss.”

“Don’t thank me, thank our mutual friend who’s taking your place on patrol so you and Screwball can enjoy yourselves tonight,” Discord said while handing the drink over, immediately getting to mixing another one.

Sunset turned a curious glance his way, “Someone else on patrol? Have we met this person?”

“In a sense,” Discord said with a cryptic smile, “They’ve lazed around the shop here and there, and you might have seen them. Or maybe not. It's not just this person, if you’re worried. Clover also volunteered to go on patrol. That’s why she’s absent from this little soiree.”

“She didn’t have to. She was welcome to join in here,” said Sunset.

“Oh, I get the feeling Miss Clover isn’t much of a party person. Now, speaking of parties, shall we get this one started?”

“Indeed we shall!” cried Pinkie Pie, bouncing over to a side table where a I-pod station was set up to speakers mounted around the room, “So I officially declare the Welcome to Your New Home That Isn’t a Scary Low-Rent Apartment Sirens Party to begin NOW!”

She hit the play button and the room was filled with an exceedingly upbeat bit of techno-pop that Sunset was thankful wasn’t too loud. Pinkie Pie could get enthusiastic with the volume, sometimes. Plates were passed out and before long everyone had some food and drink in hand. There was plenty of room for seating, and Discord had pulled more than a few plush chairs from somewhere and one of the more fluffy looking couches Sunset had ever seen. Some of the girls, like Rainbow Dash, happily flopped into a seat to start munching on pizza, while others like Rarity seemed to prefer to stand and chat. Or try to chat. Aria was being stiff and tight lipped, while Adagio floated listlessly nearby, looking as if she didn’t know what to do with herself. Neither were particularly responsive to attempts to talk.

Sonata was the exception, more than happy to talk, at least when she wasn’t busy inhaling food at a rate that competed with Pinkie Pie.

“So I got a question for you,” Sunset asked, trying to break the ice, “You sirens were banished a thousand years ago, by Starswirl, according to the legend.”

“Mmmhmm, I think there was a battle of the bands involved with that, too, but I don’t really remember very clearly,” said Sonata, “I think we invented acapella during that whole bit.”

“Really? Huh.” Sunset shook her head, trying to get rid of the mental image of the sirens in barber shop quartet outfits, “Anyway, what I was curious about is, that happened a long time ago, but... were you three banished to the human world an equal amount of time in the past? Like, were you suddenly in the human world’s medieval times?”

“Technically you’d call it the Byzantine era,” corrected Twilight, “Or maybe early Middle Ages, depending on how close they were to the collapse of the Roman Empire.”

Sonata just stared blankly at them, “I dunno. Me, Dagie, and Aria were just suddenly here and no longer had our awesome fins, and lemme tell you learning to walk using these things,” she wiggled one of her legs, “Not easy.”

“When we were punted here, it was already modern times,” said Aria with a irritable grimace, “Took us forever to figure out how half the stuff in this world worked.”

“That’s strange,” Twilight said, “Some kind of distortion in space time perhaps? I wonder if this ‘Starswirl’ character intended you to end up in this world’s future as opposed to the equivalent timeline?”

Upon seeing Sonata’s continued stare of uncomprehending blankness and Aria’s equal look of exceeding disinterest, Twilight just smiled in polite awkwardness and took a sip from her soda. Sunset caught sight of Twilight’s hands and raised an eyebrow. There were a few bandages wrapped around the other girl’s fingers.

“Uh, Twilight, did you hurt yourself?”

“Huh!? Oh! Um, yes?” Twilight seemed to want to shrink into her seat, “I tripped, earlier. Scrapped my hands on concrete. No big deal. Heheh...ehhh...yup.”

Well, you’re not acting suspicious at all, Sunset thought with a heavy dose of sarcasm, then just shook her head. There was no reason to think paranoid thoughts just because Twilight had a few band-aids on and had been acting a tad odd. The stress was just getting to her, that was all. Sunset resolved to relax and enjoy herself, and took to doing so with a will. Conversation wore on and before long Sonata and Pinkie Pie had cleared a spot for some dancing, which Rarity and Fluttershy both joined in. Applejack and Rainbow Dash had brought over a game console from one of their homes and Discord happened to have a tv set up to use, though it was a much older model than the more modern flat screens Sunset was used to seeing.

The buzz of music and conversation set Sunset at ease, and slowly even Aria seemed to loosen up and, while not smile exactly, she looked less likely to bite off the head of anyone that tried talking to her. Only Adagio remained disconnected, floating from spot the spot like a drifting balloon.

Sunset, frowning, approached Discord, “Hey, you got any more of that hard stuff Screwloose seems to like?”

He gave her a sidelong look, “Underage, aren’t you?”

“By human standards, maybe, but remember, I’m not exactly human myself,” Sunset said, cracking a wry half-smile, “The legal drinking age in Equestria is quite a bit lower than here.”

“Well then, do you like it straight, or do you prefer I mix something up for you?” Discord asked, tapping the flask he pulled out.

Sunset held out her hand and he looked at her with surprise for a moment before handing the flask over. Sunset didn’t let herself think about it before taking a long pull, holding back a gasp as the liquid burned a trail straight to her gut. It’d been a long while since she’d taken any alcohol, but back home she’d been able to hold her own at any of the Canterlot taverns, when she’d been in the mood. She wasn’t really in the mood now, but if she was going to actually try to converse with Adagio Dazzle, she figured she needed something to fortify herself with.

“Mmph, strong stuff. Celestia’s got stronger in her room,” she said, thinking of course of her mentor from Equestria, and only then realizing the Discord from this world wouldn't know her. Strangely, while he did give her a coy look of surprise, there was also a knowing quality to his abrupt smirk.

“I’m sure she does. Well, go on then, have fun talking with the stiffest plushie in the world.”

Taking his word sin stride Sunset cross the room, weaving around the dancing forms of Sonata and Pinkie Pie, who had both somehow managed to rope Fluttershy into dancing as well. Rarity had cornered Aria by the snack table and seemed solidly determined to get the pig-tailed siren to talk about something. Twilight seemed rather distracted, and Applejack and Rainbow Dash were so engrossed in their video game that half the shop could collapse and they probably wouldn’t have noticed, while Screwball and Screwloose appeared to be taking bets on which of the pair would win.

It was about as clear a shot as Sunset would get to talk with Adagio. The siren’s plush toy body was hovering not far from the door, almost looking at the exit forlornly. She barely glanced at Sunset as she came up, “So, having fun yet, or do we need to break out that game of Twister Cupcake Strip Poker Whatsit that Pinkie Pie was threatening everypony with?”

There was a soft snort from Adagio, “If I had an actual body I’d say get me enough drinks and I wouldn’t care what we did.”

“Any word on how much longer until you get your body back?” Sunset asked, intent on keeping the conversation going no matter how antisocial Adagio got.

“Not soon enough. As if it would make a difference, now. You made it clear there’s no going home.” Adagio said bitterly.

“I didn’t say that. I said I’d talk with Princess Twilight about it.”

“And how’s that going?” the siren inquired quietly.

Sunset glanced away, “I still haven’t heard back from her about it. I’ve gotten her up to date with all this Hollow business, at least. She’s... well I had to convince her coming here might be a bad idea until I had a better handle on things. She things all of this is incredibly fascinating, but the last thing I need is another Twilight here trying to study Hollows or perform experiments. One is enough, for now. Thankfully the Celestia over there reigned Twilight in and has adopted a ‘wait and see’ policy until I can tell them more. As for you and your sisters, I sent the message, I’m just... waiting for a response.”

Adagio’s small doll-like face scowled, “Forgive me if I don’t hold my breath for good news.” She cast a strange look at the party, her eyes flicking back and forth between her sisters with equal parts annoyance and... was that guilt, Sunset saw? Abruptly Adagio growled and turned towards the door, “I need some fresh air.”

As she floated out Sunset followed her, “Hey, wait up!”

At the steps of the front door Adagio wheeled on her, “I don’t want to be followed! Stay and enjoy your party and leave me alone.”

“Look, I’m not so easily gotten rid of,” Sunset said with a stubborn cast to her face, “I just want you to talk to me. Or anyone, for that matter.”

“What is there to talk about? I don’t like any of you. Sure, you’re being all nice and fuzzy warm now, but that’s just because you feel guilty over ruining our lives so you’re trying to make yourself feel better by shoving friendship down our throats.”

Sunset took a deep breath and let it out with a bit more force than was needed, but Adagio had an incredible talent for making her anger rise to the surface, “Yeah, maybe I’m feeling a bit guilty, but that doesn’t make what my friends and I are trying to do for you any less genuine. If you’d just open up a bit, maybe you would understand that.”

Adagio stared at her, hard, for a few seconds, then groaned, “Fine! You want to talk, we’ll talk, but not here. I need some... some space. Somewhere quiet. I can still hear that tacky music your pink friend is playing.”

Sunset briefly considered going back to tell the others she’d be out for a bit, but she figured they wouldn’t go far, and she did have both her cell phone and Detector on hand. It should be safe enough. Heading out through the ward she followed Adagio, who didn’t go too far down the alleyway before finding a fire escape to climb up that reached the rooftop of one of the adjoining buildings. There, Adagio perched her tiny plush doll body on the edge of the roof to look out over the downtown, while Sunset sat with her back against the railing wall beside her.

Both of them were quiet for a while, until eventually Adagio made a small grunting noise of discomfort, “If you’re not going to start talking, what do you expect me to say?”

“Whatever you want to say, Adagio. I know you have a lot on your mind-”

“You don’t know single thing!” growled Adagio, “Not about me, not about my sisters, not about anything we’ve been through. You’re just... you’re just some pony, who got too ambitious for her own good and ran away from home looking for what? Power? Magic? What did you think you were going to find in this world that drove you to abandon friends, family, and a mentor?”

Sunset gulped, a lot of old feelings bubbling up along with the memories that came with them. She’d been so angry with Celestia, back then. She’d thought Celestia had been intentionally curbing her potential, intentionally trying to keep Sunset from achieving the power and prestige she thought had been her due. She hadn’t cared about much of anything back then, and had barely thought twice about leaving Equestria, thinking the world she’d find through the mirror would lead her to ever more powerful magic.

“You’re not wrong about any of that,” she said, voice just above a pain filled whisper, “I was a real idiot. All I wanted was power, and in the end, I didn’t have anything. Are you so different?”

“No, and that’s what makes me so angry with you! How can you sit there, judging me for my choices, when you made all the same mistakes yourself!? Where do you get off looking down on me!?”

“Adagio, I don’t look down on you,” Sunset said, looking up at the plush doll, which was shaking with fury, “I just understand where you are right now. I’ve been there, having seriously screwed up, and thinking there’s no way to get up after.”

“You don’t understand at all. You, you were by yourself when you fell,” Adagio said, for the first time losing some of the anger in her voice, for that edge only to be replaced by a undercurrent of intense pain, “You didn’t drag anyone else down with you.”

“... Your sisters.”

It was almost a full minute before Adagio spoke again, voice low and filled with regretful reminiscence, “I can still remember the day I taught them how to use their voices to sing songs that’d sow dark feelings for us to feed upon. Sonata thought it was a game. Aria, I think she knew what we were doing was forbidden to sirens, but she went along anyway because she was just angry enough at our kin to not care.”

“Your kin?”

“Hmph, did you think we were the only sirens in Equestria?” There was a scornful note in Adagio’s voice, but Sunset didn’t think it was directed at her, “No, there were others. Not many, but others. Our race had declined so much. Little more than scattered nomads. Aria hated it. Thought we should have better lives than scavenging the shoals. Sonata was the happy one, pleased to do whatever as long as she was with us. So easy to manipulate both of them to follow my lead...”

There was a pained catch in her voice, “A-and they did. Followed me willingly through all of it. I led them to shore, to sow chaos among the ponies. I thought they were the easiest marks, the fastest way to gain the power and adoration I thought was owed me. I’d return to the sea more powerful than any siren in history, and raise up my entire race from being scattered pods of wanderers and make us a great civilization once more, with me as ruler, of course.”

She lowered her head, like a massive weight was pushing her down, “Instead all I accomplished was getting my sisters and I thrown into a world we barely understood, and have had to scrape and crawl in to just keep fed. Our one chance to go home I destroyed on a last desperate attempt to fulfill my ambitions, and now I’ve got nothing except the very bitter realization I can’t even get back to square one, because the very core of what made me a siren was destroyed. My sisters too, and that’s the worst of it... if I hadn’t led them here, they’d still both be back home. Aria might still be as angry as ever, but she’d have her gem, and the sea, and Sonata to keep her company. Sonata wouldn’t have to keep trying to pretend to be happy just to prop us up, she could be smiling for real. All my fault, because I was so sure I was the one who was going to lead the siren race to greatness.”

Silence hung heavy in the air. Sunset looked at Adagio, the siren plush doll hunched over as if trying to curl up into nothing. With a sigh Sunset stood, and reached over. Adagio gave a surprised squawk as Sunset pulled her into a tight hug.

“Ack! What do you think you’re dong!? Let go! Arrgh, you’re worse than Sonata!”

“You ever think maybe she’s hugging you for a reason?” Sunset said, not letting the plush toy go so easily, no matter how Adagio struggled.

“Probably just to annoy me,” Adagio muttered, trying to bite Sunset’s arm and finding that cotton and felt teeth didn’t really do much to a leather jacket.

“Maybe. Or maybe she does it because she sees you’re in a bad mood and is trying to make you feel better by showing she cares.”

“Sonata isn’t aware enough of anything to do that. She just sees cute, and responds accordingly. Isn’t your pink friend the same?”

“Her name is Pinkie Pie, and while, yes, she and Sonata are definitely kindred spirits, Pinkie Pie is also far more intelligent and aware of what’s going on around her than you might think at first glance. I wouldn’t be shocked if Sonata was the same way.” Sunset slowly lessened her grip on Adagio, letting the siren float up slowly. Instead of floating away, Adagio spun around, looking at Sunset quizzically.

“So, what, I’m supposed to feel better from a hug, whether is given by you or my sister?”

Sunset’s shoulders shrugged and she leaned back, one hand resting across a raised knee, “Just pointing out that as much as you feel guilty about the path you’ve taken your sisters down, I don’t think they hate you for it. They’ve stuck by you, haven’t they?”

“Hmph... they shouldn't. They should have abandoned me. I just assumed they didn’t have anywhere else worth going. Its not like I ever expect them to forgive me.”

“Have you even looked for forgiveness?”

“Of course not!” snapped Adagio, “I’m not you. I don’t cry, and simper, and then get instantly forgiven for my mistakes like it was nothing.”

“Hardly nothing,” Sunset said, “It took awhile for anyone at Canterlot High to really accept me after I went she-demon on them. Even my close friends took some time getting used to me. I had to start somewhere. You have to start somewhere. I can tell you here and now, you’ll never start feeling better about any of this until you talk about it. Neither of your sisters know how you feel right now, do they?”

“...No.”

“I can’t make this decision for you, Adagio. All I can do is give advice, and that advice is; talk to them.”

Adagio shuddered, “What if they don’t forgive me? What if talking to them is what sets them off, and they do abandon me. What then?”

Sunset stood up slowly, holding a hand out to the siren who’s soul was trapped in a plush toy, “Whatever happens, I’ll be there. But call it a hunch, but I’m pretty sure they’ll understand.”

There was only a few seconds hesitation before Adagio held out a little toy flipper and shook Sunset’s hand, though she pulled it back fairly fast, face a weird twist of reserved hope and a need to still look standoffish, “We’ll see. This... doesn’t make us friends. I'm just taking your advice, that's all. Don't expect me to be all buddy-buddy with you now, got it?”

Sunset just smiled, laughing, “Right, of course not.”

“Wow, okay, this is just way too sugarcoated for me,” said a sudden masculine voice from above, “I was trying to be polite and let you guys finish your little heart to heart, but I don’t think I can take this anymore.”

Sunset spun around, looking up to see a man standing in the sky. Or what looked like a man, if not for the hole of a Hollow through his chest and a Hollow’s bone mask covering most of his face. The mask was shaped like that of a shark’s face, much like the description she’d heard form Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash of the Hollow they’d fought. Yet this mask covered a human sized head, with a long, spiked mane of white hair, and within the rim of shark teeth of the mask’s open mouth she could make out a shadowy, almost human face, with similarly human eyes. He had arms, legs, and a body like that of a man, though much of his arms and chest were covered by grayish shark skin. He wore baggy white pants, and black shoes, but nothing else. Sunset quickly noticed the short, but broad bladed and curved sword sheathed through a sash at his waist.

She didn’t sense any spiritual pressure from him, but there was no mistaking the threat he represented.

“Who are you? How did you get so close without being spotted?” Her Detector hadn’t gone off either, so Sunset could only guess he had a means to conceal his spirit energy.

“We’ve never met, girl, but I’ve had the pleasure of meeting a couple of your friends. I kind of wanted a rematch with the blue one, but since she didn’t leave the ward first, I guess I’ll have to settle for you. Nice bit of luck for me, but I figured at some point I’d manage to catch one of two of you alone. Now then...”

He drew his sword slowly, its edge serrated like the tooth of a shark, “Since your friend was nice enough to spare me before, I’ll return the favor, and make this quick. The doll can leave. You, on the other hand, are coming with me.”

Episode 13: The Strength of Kindness

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Episode 13: The Strength of Kindness

“Adagio, run!” Sunset hissed through clenched teeth as she drew her Zanpaktou with her right hand and fished out Chappy’s gikon with her left. She tried to ignore the sweat breaking out on her neck. Floating nearby, Adagio hesitated, looking back and forth between Sunset and the fire escape back to the alley floor.

Sunset practically had to shove Adagio towards the fire escape, shouting “GO!”

Adagio clenched her mouth closed for a moment, then said with a sharp tone barely hiding fear, “Fine, but you better know what you’re doing! I’ll bring help as fast as I can.”

Swimming through the air Adagio darted away, and the Hollow watched her go with a bit of wry amusement in his predatory eyes. Once Adagio was out of sight he turned his attention back to Sunset, “It’ll take her a few minutes to call in the cavalry. Plenty of time for you and me to go somewhere more private.”

“As if I’d go anywhere with you,” Sunset said, swallowing the gikon sphere and popping out of her body. Chappy, now in control of her flesh and blood, hopped back, giving a quick salute.

“Yikes, looks like a nasty situation. Need me to get your body clear, Miss Shimmer?”

“Yup, go find a spot to hide,” said Sunset, and Chappy obeyed quickly, finding an air ventilation shaft to hide behind. With that out of the way Sunset focused on her opponent, still wondering just what was keeping her from sensing his spiritual pressure. She did have a slight sense of his presence, but it was so faint she wouldn't have noticed it unless she was specifically trying to feel it out, and even then she got the impression if she was any further away she wouldn't be able to feel him at all.

As if he’d read her thoughts the Hollow chuckled dryly, “You have bigger things to worry about, missy, then how I snuck up on you. Now come on, we’re taking this somewhere else.”

“And I said I’m not going anywhere with you,” Sunset said sharply, gripping her Zanpaktou with both hands and readying herself for when the Hollow made his move. All she had to do was hold out for a few minutes until Adagio got help.

“You misunderstand me, girl,” the Hollow said, vanishing with a speed that instantly reminded Sunset of Fancy Pants’ Flash Step move. The Hollow appeared right next to her, barely giving her more than a partial instant to turn before his hand was gripping her shoulder like a steel clamp. “I wasn’t asking!”

With incredible force he jumped, pulling Sunset along at high speed as he rocketed through the air. He kept kicking off of the air, as if he could turn it into solid ground for an instant, and with each jump pulled Sunset along for hundreds of yards at high speed. The air pressure of the high speed movement disoriented Sunset for a few seconds before she gathered enough of her wits to retaliate, striking out with her Zanpaktou, the blade catching the Hollow's arm.

The Hollow grunted in pain and she abruptly found herself being flung downward. She tried to control her fall, but had no idea how to do make the air act like solid ground like this Hollow seemed able to do. She felt the impact hard, rolling across pavement until she slammed into something rough and unyielding. Dazed, pain lancing up and down her body, she managed to stagger to her feet and look around herself.

She’d been thrown into a plaza, a large roundish area where numerous shops formed a small commercial center, all culminating in one large building with flashing neon lights; a theater. She’d been tossed to the downtown theater plaza, and she’d just slammed into the fountain in the center of the plaza. People were walking around, many stopping to stare, not at her specifically for she wasn’t visible to them in her spirit form, but they could see the impact she’d made into the stone siding of the fountain, which had cracked slightly.

Ugh, good thing this spirit body is tougher than my physical one. A hit like that would’ve left me with broken bones for sure.

Even so, she hurt. Her whole body felt like a piece of tenderized meat. This Hollow was a lot stronger than any of the one’s she’d faced before. His body was certainly different. Far more human-like than previous Hollows she'd seen. What was he, exactly?

The Hollow landed a few dozen feet away, looking casually relaxed as he twirled his own sword in one hand, “This’ll do. It's far enough away your pals won’t find you as fast. Nifty thing about what’s hiding my spirit energy, it’s got a radius. Hides your spirit energy as well, so your friends won’t be able to sense you so easily.”

“And just what’s doing that?” she asked, playing for time.

With a nonchalant shrug the Hollow reached into the sash holding his pants up and pulled out a strange looking charm on a bracelet of tiny bones. The charm itself looked like a glass vial holding a green liquid of some sort. “Old man Grogar is one creepy bastard, but he knows his stuff. I have no idea how this little thing works, and I don’t really care. Just makes my job easier.”

He tucked the small charm back into his sash and then flexed his sword arm. Sunset tensed, and when the Hollow came at her it was with another of those blindingly fast movements that was similar to the Flash Step. Expecting the move this time she was able to react better, recalling how she’d managed to dodge Fancy Pants, if only once. It was a close call but she turned faster than she thought she could, swinging her Zanpaktou to meet the Hollow’s onrushing blade coming for her side.

The two blades met in a clash of sparks and a blast of air that was hard enough to startle the nearby humans, causing many to jump back. Sunset, despite using two arms to the Hollow’s one, felt herself get pushed back by the strength of the blow, her feet skidding along the plaza’s pavement. The Hollow didn’t let up, rushing in again and slashing hard. Sunset just barely managed another block, the force of the hit actually lifting her off her feet and sending her flying back into the large front window of a shoe shop that was just next to the theater. Her back cracked the glass, though she didn’t actually break the window, and several people screamed at the sight of what to them was just a window cracking for no obvious reason they could see.

This is a bad spot to fight. Someone’s going to get hurt. Sunset turned and started to run down the plaza, planning to get out into the parking lot, but the Hollow cut her off.

“This’d go way easier for you if you just gave up,” he said, slashing down hard. Sunset threw herself to the side, avoiding the serrated shark-tooth blade as it hit the ground, smashing concrete in a long furrow. His arm was overextended and she felt her adrenaline pulse as she rushed in, slashing at his side, only to find his free hand snap out and grasp her sword, stopping it dead.

The Hollow lashed out with his sword while still grasping her own blade, but Sunset pulled hard on her Zanpaktou. It felt like trying to free it from a block of stone, but the sword came free, with strange sparks erupting from where her blade cut along the Hollow’s palm. She felt the Hollow’s sword cut her clothes, her black robes getting a shredded line along the stomach that almost touched flesh.

Backing off, keeping her sword up, she watched as the Hollow casually examined the hand he’d used to grab her blade. It was only lightly cut, no more than a shallow scrape that barely bled. Sunset had no idea how that was possible. Her sword should have sliced his palm clean open! Instead he just flexed his hand, hardly hurt.

“Eh, shouldn’t even have gotten scratched this much. This is the problem with only being a half baked Arrancar. I don’t have anywhere near the power I ought to. Oh well, it's enough to deal with a equally half baked Soul Reaper that can’t even release her Zanpaktou.”

“Arrancar? What is that supposed to be?” Sunset asked hastily, hoping to keep this Hollow talking. He seemed like the chatty sort, even as he stalked towards her.

“Wow, you mean they haven’t told you anything about the fight they’re trying to drag you into? Hah! Typical Soul Reaper shit. I’d almost feel sorry for you, but, you know, heartless monster and all that. Arrancar are Hollows that have evolved to mimic the abilities of Soul Reapers. This thing?” He held up his sword, “Arrancar also have Zanpaktou. Ours just work differently. Of course mine won’t work at all because I’m only partially evolved, but its enough to handle you.”

Thank Celestia this guy likes to talk so much, Sunset thought, backing away slowly and planning her next move. This Hollow was clearly a lot stronger than her, and she’d barely injured him. It hurt her pride to admit it, but she’d need help to take him down. Her only chance was to do something about that charm he had that was suppressing his and her spiritual pressures.

Not wasting another second she charged him, which seemed to catch the Hollow slightly off guard, as if his sheer confidence in his strength precluded any notion his prey would go on the offensive. Sunset feinted hard to the left, then side-stepped to the right, slashing high. She didn’t want to go for the charm quite yet. She had to lure him into exposing an opening. He blocked her blade with seemingly contemptuous ease, but Sunset didn’t let up, increasing her pace as she alternated her slashes left and fright, ever aiming higher.

The Hollow held his position, parrying each blow, and growling in annoyance, “This is pretty pitiful. If this is all you can do I’m shocked you survived an encounter with Grand Fisher. I’m not even breaking a sweat here! The pink one was more intimidating. Actually she was bat shit scary. Color me glad I snagged you instead of her.”

That’s right, get cocky. Assume I’m not a threat, Sunset thought ruefully. Just when she aimed a final slash for his head, seeing his casual parry coming as if he was hardly paying attention, she reached inside herself to feel her spirit energy, and tried to push it out through her feet, replicating what it’d felt like the last time she’d used Flash Step.

The jump was disorienting, as if the whole world flickered, but she kept on her feet instead of falling flat on her butt like last time. She was behind the Hollow, who was only just starting to turn in shock when she lunged in, thrusting her Zanpaktou towards his hip, where the charm was hidden beneath his sash.

“The hell-!?”

The Hollow vanished as well, leaping away from her at high speed, but not before her Zanpaktou had cut cloth and torn the charm free from his side. The vial of green liquid clattered to the ground between them and the Hollow narrowed his eyes, “So you do know a few Soul Reaper tricks. Not fast enough, however.”

He moved towards the charm, and Sunset also took a step towards it, intending to beat him to it, but just then she heard a familiar voice shouting.

“Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!”

A wave of blue energy crashed down, smashing into the charm and blowing it to pieces, leaving a small crater in the plaza. Nearby humans shouted and cleared out of the plaza even further, and Sunset saw more than a few people nearby with cell phones out either dialing or taking video. She looked up at the source of the voice and saw Clover was standing atop of the theater, her palm still out and smoking from her Kido spell.

“Clover!”

The Soul Reaper jumped down from the theater and landed beside Sunset, not taking her eyes off the Hollow. “You’re lucky I was already nearby and heard the sound of clashing blades. Are you unhurt?”

“Mostly,” Sunset said, still grimacing at the pained aches all over her body from being tossed around before. “What were you doing nearby?”

Clover frowned, her Zanpaktou already drawn, but she tilted her head towards the theater. Her voice was a whisper, presumedly so the Hollow wouldn’t hear, “Guarding the theater. The younger sisters of two of your friends, plus another young girl who I think is their friend, are within watching one of those moving pictures. I didn’t want to risk leaving them unattended. I didn’t expect you and a Hollow like this to show up... what... what is he?”

“He called himself an Arrancar. Or a half evolved one, anyway.”

She instantly saw that Clover recognized the term, fear filling the Soul Reaper’s eyes, “Arrancar!? That’s not good. Not good at all. Only half evolved, you say? How is that possible? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

The Hollow laughed derisively, “Recent development from old man Grogar himself. Don’t know how he’s doing it, but he’s got a way to change us lesser Hollows. Not a pleasant experience, let me tell you. Worse part is the whole transformation is unstable. If I don’t get back to let the old goat finish what he started, my body will explode on its own. Suffice to say I’m not about to stop until I complete my mission and capture one of these girls the bosses want so badly.”

“You won’t be taking anyone,” said Clover firmly, “You’re only salvation is within the edge of my blade. Prepare to be purified, Hollow. Seek, Chishiki!”

As Clover’s Zanpaktou transformed in a wash of emerald light, the Hollow grinned, raising his own blade, “Good! At least you’ll put up a fight.”

“Hey, I knocked off your charm thinige!” said Sunset, feeling a bit insulted, “I’m not exactly a pushover here!”

“Sunet, focus,” said Clover, holding her now transformed weapon, spinning the staff so the ring blade faced her, its opening turned towards the Hollow, “I must analyze what I can of him. That information could prove invaluable to Soul Society.”

“Yeah, not giving you the time, lady,” said the Hollow, dashing in and slashing hard at Clover, who was forced to use Chishiki’s haft to block. The strength of the Hollow was enough to even force Clover back, and when Sunset came in from the side to help, aiming a thrust for the Hollow’s back, he swung back with his other hand and deflected her sword bare handed.

Damn! I can’t do more than scratch him! Sunset’s frustration piqued, a seething fire in her gut. If only she could get her Zanpaktou to talk with her! She knew she had more power inside her, just waiting to boil over, but the only avenue to let that power out was in this sword that she couldn’t figure out how to communicate with.

The Hollow jumped up, kicking out with both legs, catching both Soul Reapers and sending them flying back. Sunset lost her breath for a second as she lay on the pavement, casting a quick glance at her Zanpaktou.

Come on you! What’s your name!? Talk to me!

----------

Fluttershy was nearly out of breath, having run about as fast as she could, looking for a sign of Sunset. The young girl’s face was a mask of frayed nerves, fearing for what might be happening to her friend at that very moment. When Adagio had come flying back to the party, fearfully and rapidly explaining about the strange Hollow that had attacked her and Sunset, the party had ended in an instant.

Discord had immediately set them all out to look for Sunset. When they hadn’t found her anywhere near the rooftop that Adagio said they’d encountered the Hollow at, the girls had all split up to search. There was no time to worry about safety or the danger in splitting up. The downtown area was large and there was no way to know where Sunset might have been taken. They just had to spread out and hope for the best.

It wasn’t exactly a comfort when Fluttershy’s Detector had gone off, beeping wildly and letting her know there was a powerful Hollow signature nearby. She was the closest to it, and she’d hastily called the others as she sprinted full tilt towards that location. She’d get there well before any of the others, and she fearfully realized that she didn’t even have any powers to fight with... but what else could she do but go to her friend and try her best?

She heard the wail of sirens as an ambulance passed by her, and fear caught in her throat for a second before she realized it was heading a different way than where the Detector was taking her. Still, it spurred her on to run even faster, despite the way her lungs burned at the effort.

When she reached the familiar plaza with the theater that she and her friends had gone to on numerous occasions she immediately noticed the crowd of confused onlookers who were giving the area around the fountain a wide amount of space. Beyond the crowd she could hear the ringing clash of blades, and she worked her way through the crowd to see past it. Fluttershy winced as she saw Sunset, leaping at a strange, man-shaped Hollow with a shark’s mask, get kicked out of the air before she could bring her sword down. Her friend was thrown back into the wall of a burger joint beside the theater, sliding to the ground in a groaning heap.

“Sunset!” Fluttershy shouted, catching several nearby onlookers off guard. To the other people around they wouldn’t be able to see anything that was happening, just the strange aftereffects. They wouldn’t know who Fluttershy was running to, because to them it’d look like she was just a crazy girl shouting at nothing. Fluttershy hardly cared at that point, rushing to Sunset’s side while the Hollow was kept busy by Clover appearing beside it, twirling her staff in a series of rapid attacks that put the Hollow on the defensive, if only for the moment.

Reaching Sunset’s side, Fluttershy knelt down, putting a hand on her friend’s shoulder. Sunset was bleeding from a cut scalp, and Fluttershy could see bruises on her face. She was sure there were more injuries she couldn’t see due to the black robes. “Hold on Sunset, let me help you. We have to get you to safety.”

“I’m, ugh, I’m fine,” Sunset’s voice said with pained strain as she stood, teetering unsteadily. As Fluttershy moved to put one of Sunset’s arm around her shoulder the other girl shook her off, “I said I’m okay Fluttershy. I can still fight. I have to, otherwise I don’t know if Clover can handle this guy by herself.”

“T-the others are on their way,” Fluttershy said, “You’re too hurt to keep fighting.”

“Let me worry about that. You need to find a spot to hide,” Sunset said, and both girls flinched as an explosion rocked the plaza, Clover having fired off another Kido at the quickly evading Hollow.

“But-” Fluttershy began to protest. She’d come here to help, after all, not to hide, even if she was terribly frightened. Sunset just ignored her, charging back into the fray, leaving Fluttershy to wonder what she could possibly do to help.

----------

Clover risked a glance at Chishiki’s ring blade, seeing the glow around its edge only slowly spreading. The analysis of this Hollow was taking a long time, and she suspected it had more to do with the unstable nature of his spirit body rather than his raw power. There was no doubting this strange half-evolved Arrancar was strong, easily keeping pace with her. However his erratic spiritual energy was likely what was causing her Zanaktou to have trouble analyzing his power. At least he didn’t seem to have any unusual abilities. She had never fought a true Arrancar before, and if this partial one was any indication, she wasn’t eager to.

The arrival of Fluttershy was both a boon and a complication. Boon for it meant that help was likely not far behind the king young woman, but complication for the fact that she was the only one among her friends who had no ability to fight. If the Hollow decided to make Fluttershy a target...

She Flash Stepped to the Hollow’s left side, seeing Sunset charging in from the right. Sunset was injured, but Clover was impressed by the girl’s fortitude and willingness to keep fighting. Clover wasn’t about to back down either. The Hollow chuckled as Clover spun, sweeping Chishiki’s ring blade low at his knees, while Sunset went high for his head. He flipped his body vertically, stabbing his sword down through the hole of the ring blade, trapping Chishiki in place while he balanced on the hilt of it like an professional acrobat, using one foot to kick down and deflect Sunset’s Zanpaktou.

The move left him in an awkward position, however, and Clover yanked back hard on Chishiki, catching the Hollow’s sword with the inner edge of the ring blade and yanking him off balancing. Sunset, sensing the weakness, used the Hollow’s earlier parry of her blade to just add to the momentum as she twisted around and slashed in a hard backhand swing that cut along the Hollow’s chest in a burst of sparks and a light wash of blood.

The Hollow grunted, tucking his body into a roll that brought him to his feet a half dozen paces away. His chest had a shallow cut on it, about all Sunset’s sword could manage even with a solid hit that would’ve split a lesser Hollow in half.

“Getting real tired of this dance, ladies,” he snarled, curling his free hand into a claw and aiming it at Clover, “Might be a big risk, but let’s see how you like this.”

Suddenly a red orb of light pooled into his outstretched palm, an unstable, writhing orb of energy that looked as if it was a living thing trying to escape confinement. Clover could feel the massive reiatsu build up and knew what the Hollow was trying to do. It was an attack lesser Hollows couldn’t use, but ones that had evolved to the Gillian stage or higher could, and were feared for.

“Sunset, back away!” she shouted, taking her own advice and leaping back.

To Sunset’s credit she didn’t question Clover, jumping back as well, making it so the Hollow would have to choose between targets. Clover wasn’t intending to let the Hollow get off his attack if she could stop it, however. A blast like what he intended to unleash could cause serious property damage and the deaths of innocent bystanders. She didn’t have time to use Chishiki’s spike to enhance her Kido, she’d have to do this without the incantation.

It’d be costly, however. Kido used without the full incantation drained more power, but she had no choice.Taking her free hand she formed a symbol between her middle and index finger, placing both at an angle across her Zanpaktou’s hilt and said, “Bakudo Seventy Three: Tozansho!”

Blue light erupted from her body, trailing across the ground until it was underneath the Hollow. Then four points of light flew upward at equidistant points around the Hollow, flowing upwards until they joined at right angles to form an inverted pyramid which then crystallized into a solid barrier. This was the highest level binding Kido she knew, and the strain of using it without the incantation immediately hit her like an avalanche, dropping her to her knees, breathing heavily as sweat trickled down her face in small rivers. Her legs felt like little more than sacks of rock and her vision dimmed as if she was near to passing out.

The Hollow, now encased in a upside down pyramid barrier of energy, swore profusely and loudly as he aimed his palm upward, the only direction he had any space to aim now that he was at the bottom of the enclosed pyramid. The energy orb he’d been charging now exploded in a wild, barley controlled torrent of crimson destructive power that flew up and smashed into the top of the inverted pyramid.

“What is that!?” Sunset shouted, shielding her eyes from the bright red light.

“Cero,” Clover said, “A destructive beam only evolved Hollows can use. If he unleashed it in any direction but up, it’d have taken out half the plaza.”

That was why she’d used Tozansho, rather than any other binding or attack Kido. She knew the barrier wouldn’t be strong enough to stop a Cero fully, but it’d force the Hollow to aim upward if he didn’t want to blow himself up in the process. She wasn’t that surprised when the wave of energy from the Cero cracked through the top of the Tozansho barrier and blasted through, sending the last residual bits of the Cero beam into the sky.

As the barrier fell apart like breaking glass the Hollow inside was glaring at them, clutching at his hand, which Clover noticed was twisted and burned. Clearly using a Cero when he was an unstable and half-evolved was risky for him. He looked like he was in pain beyond just the wound to his hand, as if his body wasn’t obeying him very well anymore. Veins popped out and pulsed on his forehead, though whether that was from rage or pain it was hard to tell.

“Starting to forget that I’m supposed to bring one of you in alive,” he growled, eyes glancing back towards where Fluttershy was rooted, having not moved since trying to come to Sunset’s aid. Fluttershy’s eyes widened at the Hollow’s glare and she backed away a step.

“You stay away from her!” Sunset shouted, and before Clover could tell the girl to stop, Sunset rushed forward at the Hollow. Despite her exhausted state Clover pushed herself back to standing and joined Sunset’s charge. This time the Hollow sprang to meet them, leaping forward with his sword leading the way. Sunset met him head on while Clover shifted to the side, looking to get behind the Hollow. Injured or not Sunset didn’t back away from the Hollow a single step, swinging her sword with wild, fast slashes that gave little room for defense. The Hollow in turn paid little heed to protecting himself either, and the result was a storm of clashing slashes between the two that led to both taking painful hits in just a few seconds of exchange.

By the time Clover had even swung around behind the Hollow she saw Sunset was cut in half a dozen places now, bloody wounds covering her chest like crimson rivers on a map. The Hollow had taken almost twice as many shallow slashes, Sunset’s Zanpaktou still not able to score a deep wound, but it seemed like what she was lacking in damage dealt per attack Sunset was trying to make up for with sheer volume of attacks. Still, it wouldn't be enough. Sunset’s injuries mounted, and she looked ready to collapse at any second, yet the fierce fire blazing in her eyes wouldn’t stop. Clover felt with acidic fear in her gut that Sunset would keep attacking until she died, unless this fight was ended soon.

Behind the Hollow, Clover reversed her grip on Chishiki and aimed the spiked tip towards his spine. If she could just get in one good hit, she was sure she could pierce that hardened flesh of his. Thrusting with all her might she felt a jarring shock run up her staff as the Hollow swung around and gripped the shaft of Chishiki with his damaged hand, seeming to ignore the horrific pain moving the twisted limb caused him. Then with a hard yank he pulled both Chishiki and Clover along past him, and towards Sunset, almost impaling the other girl if Sunset hadn’t managed to throw herself aside at the last second. However both Clover and Sunset were off balance for a second, and the Hollow didn’t waste the advantage, shoulder rushing both of them and impacting them hard enough to send both skidding along the ground like it was made of ice.

Clover rolled over, bracing herself on Chishiki to try and stand, but only managed to get into a half sitting position by the time the Hollow’s foot kicked her squarely in the face and sent her flying into a nearby street lamp with an impact that sparked flaring pain in her head, then blackness.

----------

Fluttershy cried out, seeing Clover fall to the ground after bouncing off a street lamp, and then lay completely still, her Zanpaktou clattering to the ground with a painfully loud ring of metal.

Sunset wasn’t doing much better, a mass of wounds that hurt Fluttershy just to look at them. Her friend’s black Soul Reaper robes were torn and tattered, and covered in bloody, ragged cuts. She’d never seen anyone, let alone a friend, look so injured, in so much pain. She knew she had to do something but she didn’t know what. This Hollow was so much stronger than her, what could she ever hope to do to stop him?

The Hollow was stalking towards Sunset, who was swaying on her feet, barely able to hold her Zanpaktou up, yet seemingly doggedly determined to keep fighting until her body was torn to shreds. Fluttershy knew she couldn’t allow that to happen, but her mind felt frozen with fear. What could she do?

“Fluttershy, what’re y’all doin’ here?” asked a young voice from nearby, and Fluttershy turned in shock to see a familiar yellow skinned girl with apple red hair done up in a pink bow.

Applebloom was walking out of the theater entrance with a number of other people, a crowd of folk who’d just gotten out of a movie and had no idea what was going on in the plaza outside. Beside Applebloom were her two friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, both looking with wide eyes at the damaged, half demolished plaza.

“Whoa! Cool! What happened here, a demolition?” asked Scootaloo, grinning in oblivious ignorance of the danger not more than twenty feet away.

Sweetie Belle was a lot more nervous looking, hugging herself and taking a step back, “I don’t think so. This... this looks familiar for some reason.”

Applebloom glanced at her friends, then back at Fluttershy, “Uh, hey, ya alirght there, Fluttershy? Ya seem real spooked. What’s goin’ on?”

“Girls... get away from here, please,” she said, mouth dry as a desert as the Hollow slowly turned away from Sunset and fixed his eyes on the three young girls.

“Well well well, talk about a lucky break. I can grab both you and these little ones at the same time. Bet they’ll make good bargaining chips to get the others.

“Yeah, because messing with my friends families turned out so well for you last time,” Sunset managed to say, though her voice was tight with pain, “You’re not touching any of them. You’ve still got me to deal with!”

“Lady, you’re one foot in the grave already. Then again, so am I,” the Hollow said, “Which means I don’t have the luxury of playing with you anymore, though it's been fun. You’re one vicious fighter. You’d make a better Hollow than a Soul Reaper. Now then...”

The Hollow turned his attention back to the still confused looking young trio of girls, taking a step forward. Fluttershy reacted immediately, rushing towards the girls and taking Applebloom by the hand.

“H-hey, what they-” Applebloom began to protest, but Fluttershy just shot the three girls a single look.

“Run!” she said, not so much shouting as putting such force into her voice and eyes that the three girls didn’t even think to protect, they just obeyed. Fluttershy was no longer thinking as she ran away down the plaza street, dragging along Applebloom and with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo right behind her. Her entire being was just focused on the singular fact that she couldn’t let these three come to harm.

Of course there was no way she and three pre-teen girls were fast enough to actually escape a Hollow that had speed to match a Soul Reaper’s Flash Step. They’d only gotten a dozen steps before the Hollow appeared in their path, blade pointed towards Fluttershy. She skidded to a halt, throwing her arms out to keep the girls from running past her.

“Girls, behind me, now!” she said, standing as the only barrier between the Hollow and the children. She could hear the fear in their voices as they asked her what was happening. None of them could see the Hollow, but they knew Fluttershy, and knew she wouldn’t be doing this if there wasn’t an honest danger present.

“Seriously?” the Hollow asked, eyes incredulous past his shark mask, “What are you going to do? Flail at me uselessly? Because I'll admit, you're kind of cute, and that'd be adorable.”

Fluttershy felt herself shaking, but she couldn’t tell if it was from fear, or something else. She realized she was starting to get a little angry. Actually a lot angry. All she wanted was for her friends to be safe, and here was this cruel bully just pushing them around however he liked! Threatening little girls!? What gave him the right to go around hurting people, just because he was strong?

“What am I going to do? Give you a piece of my mind is what i’m going to do!” she found herself shouting, while a bright yellow glow began to suffuse her body, bathing the plaza in bright light. She took a step forward, and strangely, the Hollow took a confused step back, “I’ve met plenty of mean bullies in my time, but you sir are taking the cake! You Hollows just go around pushing down anyone who you think is weaker than you, and act like you have all the right in the world to do as you please!? Well let me tell you, you don’t! People aren’t you playthings or your food!”

She didn’t realize it, but the glow of intense blue light was coalescing around her head, forming a halo around her face and pooling inside her eyes until they were twin, indigo beacons. She also didn’t notice the change that was coming over her as her pegasi wings and pony ears and tail formed at the same time. She didn’t notice Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo backing away from her, too, or Sunset staggering over to Clover, helping the recovering Soul Reaper get back to her feet.

All she saw was the Hollow in front of her, who was backing further and further away from her as she kept stepping towards him.

“Now you listen to me and listen good, I’m am not letting you hurt my friends anymore! You, sir, are going to turn around and walk away politely and quietly after apologizing to everyone here for the trouble you’ve caused!” she said, unaware of the fact that her eyes had transformed. The sclera around her iris had taken on the same blue hue as the glow around her body, while the iris’ themselves had turned a luminescent gold. More prominent than those changes was the fact that on her forehead a third eye had opened, this one a solid pool of blue light.

The moment those eyes landed on the Hollow grunted and went rigid, limbs shaking as if he was trying to move, but was being held by some invisible force. “W-what the... what is with you girls...? First the pink creeper, now this? Ugh...get, get out of my head!”

Fluttershy didn’t know what he was talking about but she was still far too angry at him to back down now, and she walked right up to him, ignoring the sword he still held, and stabbed a finger to his chest in a commanding fashion, “I said you’re going to apologize to my friends, then leave us alone. Have I made myself clear?”

The Hollow growled, sweat droplets appearing on his face as he struggled to move, stepping away from Fluttershy as if each step was taking a supreme effort. As if his sword weighted a literal ton he slowly raised it, a glowing aura of red surrounding the Hollow’s body, “I don’t care what voices you can shove into my brain, girl, this is my life on the line, so I’m taking you to Hueco Mundo!”

Despite his words he looked as if he could barely move, even when he swung his sword down at Fluttershy. However his attack was so slow and uncoordinated as he seemed to be fighting his own body that even Fluttershy was able to sidestep it. Fluttershy finally took notice of the power flowing through her and realized she’d ‘ponied up’, but more than that, something else had changed inside her. Her power was flowing out of her, and was pressing in on the Hollow, its own spirit energy rising to resist, like two tides colliding. She could also feel the Hollow’s desperation and pain, the unstable energy inside it bubbling over like a boiling pot of water.

It was like finding an animal that had been experimented on, and for all her anger there was also sympathy in her for this tortured creature. Not that she had any intention of allowing him to keep harming her friends, but she understood that fear and pain were driving his actions.

“You need to stop,” she said firmly, “Even if you’re scared, you won’t gain anything by fighting. Put down the sword, and maybe we can help you instead.”

The Hollow staggered as if her words were blows hitting him, “D-damn witch, you’re voice is cutting my brain! Stop trying to control me!”

Back and forth Fluttershy felt the Hollow’s spirit energy pressing against hers, unable to fully shrug off Fluttershy’s power as it seeped into him. It wasn’t so much that Fluttershy had the stronger spiritual pressure, far from it, but hers was able to passively slide past most of his defenses, a mental battle the brutish Hollow used to using blunt force wasn’t prepared for. He made to try and slash with his blade once more, but Fluttershy stepped forward, hands clenched into fists at her side as she said, “I just want you to stop trying to hurt my friends. So. Stop!.”

It was like a final hammer blow to the Hollow’s psyche, and she saw him shiver and drop to his knees, sword clattering to the ground. Sweat dripping from his face and breaths coming in harsh pants, the Hollow just said, “...I need to stop,” in a bland monotone, as if stripped of free will.

The idea of what she’d just done frightened Fluttershy. She didn’t want to hurt anyone, let alone force them to obey her against their will, but what choice had she had? She couldn’t let the Hollow hurt anyone anymore, and the only thing she thought she could do was talk him down. She hadn’t expected to gain any kind of power, let alone one that seemed to crush other people’s will. It unnerved her deeply, making her shudder as she looked at the Hollow kneeling in front of her.

“Um, well, that’s... that’s good. So, um, please run away now?”

Again that disturbing monotone, without personality, “Running away now.”

Oh no, what did I just do to him? He sounds like a robot. Fluttershy gulped. The Hollow stood up then, taking his sword and sheathing it in the sash he wore. Then behind him the air twisted and distorted. Fluttershy took a step back as a hole ripped open in the air, like a cavernous mouth opening up in space. Blackness stood beyond the portal that had opened wide, and the Hollow stepped through the hole, eyes still blank. Fluttershy could see nothing of what he was standing on, but it looked as if the Hollow was walking away into that dark void the portal opened into before the mouth of it closed fully, leaving Fluttershy alone with three very confused young girls that were still staring at her in complete shock.

Clover and Sunset both approached, each limping and favoring different injuries, Sunset using her Zanpaktou as a makeshift crutch while Clover was holding her bleeding head. With a frustrated look on her face Clover said, “You shouldn’t have let him go.”

“I couldn’t think of anything else to do,” Fluttershy said.

“If you had some kind of control over him you could have kept him still long enough for one of us to finish him off,” said Clover in a pained, but cold tone.

“I, I couldn’t have!” said Fluttershy, “That would’ve been horrible.”

“Hollows must be purified by a Soul Reaper,” Clover said, but Sunset put a hand on her shoulder and Clover, with a frustrated sigh, just looked away, “But I suppose you’re not a Soul Reaper, so you wouldn’t understand.”

Sunset looked at Fluttershy with a mixture of worry and shared sympathy, “It's over, either way. As long as you’re okay, that’s what matters. We can’t afford to stay out here. It's only a matter of time before police show up.”

As if her words were an omen Fluttershy was able to hear distant sirens, getting closer. She gulped, then turned with a start to realize that Applebloom and her friends were still there, staring straight at her with wide, shocked eyes.

Scootaloo was the first to blurt out, “Whoa, what’s up with your face!? You got another eye, and it's totally glowing!”

“Oh my, um, it is?” Fluttershy said, raising a hand to her face to feel around the new opening in her forehead, to which she made a frightened ‘eep!’ noise. She hadn’t realized that she’d changed, and it was somewhat disconcerting to suddenly have a glowing new eye in her forehead.

“Well, nothing for it, we got to take the girls with us. Fluttershy, can you turn off the whole eye thing?” Sunset asked, voice weary with pain that was also etched onto her features. Fluttershy felt her heart clench, seeing her friend so badly wounded. Both Sunset and Clover looked ready to drop, and especially in Sunset’s case her wounds looked terrible.

“I... I don’t know if I can,” Fluttershy said, looking at Sunset’s wounds, “But we should worry about you first.”

As she spoke she felt a response from within herself, felt her spirit energy pouring from her third eye towards Sunset. A part of her tried to pull that energy back, not wanting to accidentally control her friend, but the energy seeped towards Sunset and into her in a matter of seconds, and Sunset gasped.

“I’m sorry!” Fluttershy cried, “I don’t know how to control it. Um, please don’t start doing what I say.”

Sunset gave her a confused look, “Huh? I don’t know what you’re talking about, but... huh, I don’t hurt as much as I did a moment ago. What are you doing?”

“Strange,” Clover said, examining Sunset closely. Fluttershy could see that some of Sunset’s wounds were bleeding less, the lighter cuts closing up slowly. Clover looked back at Fluttershy, “A strange power. I don’t know how it could control a Hollow, but also heal at the same time. Very odd.”

“Um... sorry?” Fluttershy said again, utterly unsure of herself as she tried to pull her spirit energy back. Eventually it obeyed and stopped flowing into Sunset, and the effort of even that small healing left her feeling incredibly tired.

“Who’re ya talkin’ too?” asked Applebloom suddenly as she nervously looked at Fluttershy as if she’d never seen her before, “Why’s yer face all weird lookin’ now?”

“We don’t have time to explain things to them,” said Clover, frowning, “I also lack any memory replacement devices right now. Perhaps we should take them to the shop?”

Sunset looked less than enthused, but nodded, “I don’t see a lot of options. We’ll figure out what to do about this once everyone’s safe. Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy blinked, and noticed that while her two normal eyes did so, the third one didn’t seem to even have an eyelid to blink with. She was definitely getting strange looks from the crowd of folk who were starting to peer around the plaza in curiosity. She gulped and looked to the three young girls.

“Um, girls, I can explain everything later, but we should go, first. Would you all please follow me?” she asked, and felt a stark horror flash through her as she noticed her power reaching out towards the girls, almost instinctively.

No! she thought harshly, forcibly pulling the power back. With a wordless, stuttering cry she tried to mentally force her third eye closed. It only did so after several seconds of difficulty, as if it was reluctant to shut. Slowly the glow around her vanished and she felt an exhausting drain on her body as both wings and pony ears flowed away and her eyes returned to normal. She almost fell over, but Sunset held her up, taking one of Fluttershy’s arms over her shoulders.

By the time the police arrived they were long gone.

----------

“So she’s okay? They’re all okay? That’s great,” Twilight said, holding her cell phone close as Rainbow Dash finished explaining. She nodded, once, “Yes, I’ll start heading back. So you’re sure they’re all okay? Oh, well, I understand they’re injured, but nothing life threatening?”

After a few final assurances from Rainbow Dash that everything was fine Twilight hung up and tucked away her cell phone, taking a quick look around. When the group had split up to search for Sunset she’d ended up taking the side of town that wasn’t too far from where the warehouse Shining Armor kept his training ground in.

She glanced that way, wondering what Shining Armor was doing. Some sort of secret Quincy business? A part of her wanted to accept joining their ranks if only to satisfy her curiosity about what the Quincy were actually planning. Could there be a connection between them and the rise of Hollow activity in the city? She wished she could feel more comfortable and trusting of this whole Quincy thing, but she just didn’t know enough yet. She trusted her brother, but Shining Armor was just one member of a much larger organization. There was no telling who else among the Quincy would prove worthy of equal trust as her brother.

“You certainly look as if you have a lot on your mind.”

Twilight spun around, nearly giving herself whiplash. Seeming to melt out of the shadows surrounding one of the many trees planted alongside the sidewalk strode a woman Twilight was very familiar with. “D-Dean Cadence!”

“Please, Twilight, just Cadence when I’m not on the job,” said Cadence while flashing a relaxed smile, gesturing at her outfit, “Well, not on my public job, at any rate.”

It took Twilight a few seconds to realize that Cadence was wearing a very unusual outfit. It reminded her of a military uniform, with its sharp lines, the set of dual gold buttons running up and down the top jacket, and the stark pants tucked into nearly knee high black boots. Aside from the boots the outfit was almost entirely white, even the long shoulder covering cloak that trailed behind Cadence. On the left lapel of the outfit was an insignia Twilight now knew was the symbol of the Quincy; a five pointed cross.

She’d been told by Shining Armor that Cadence was part of the Quincy, but it was so surreal seeing her long time babysitter in this new light. She took a deep breath to steady herself before saying, “Is that what Quincy normally wear?”

Cadence laughed, a light, comforting sound to Twilight that reminded her of simpler days. “More or less. We don’t have the strictest uniform code, but white is the standard color, and most of us stick to a military style. Don’t worry, skirts are still in if you opt for them.”

Twilight wished she could laugh at Cadence’s easy manner, but she was still too tense, “W-well if I do decide to join up at least I know my wardrobe will be easy to figure out. Heheh...heh...”

“Twilight, it’s okay, you don’t have to pretend to be at ease with me,” Cadence said, expression filled with understanding, “I know this must be hard for you. You’ve lived your whole life thinking the world was one thing, only to find out how much smoke and mirrors that all is. I was fortunate that I was raised with the truth, so I can’t imagine how hard it must be for you to have to learn all of this now.”

“It's been an adjustment,” Twilight said, making one of the larger understatements of her life. “But I’ve already learned that magic existed. That’s certainly helped me with absorbing the rest of this.”

Cadence gave a small, knowing nod, “The Friendship Games were as much a surprise to us as it was to you. Quite the interesting school you’ve transferred to, and I’m glad for it. You’ve made some good friends there.”

“They are. I’ve been very lucky to know them,” Twilight said, thinking of the constant danger they seemed to be in now. She was glad Sunset had been found, but she was uneasy and wanted to get back to Discord’s shop so she could see with her own eyes that everyone was okay. Rainbow Dash hadn’t given many details, and it’d sounded like Sunset and Clover both had been pretty badly injured. Also Fluttershy had awakened her own powers, which Twilight was keen to hear about. She really did need to get back to her lab and resume her tests.

“I know they’re as mixed up in this affair as you are, and that one of them is being trained by a Soul Reaper,” said Cadence, coming close to Twilight and putting a hand on her shoulder in a comforting, gentle manner, “I hope you’ll stick close to your friends and be watchful. Their lives will be in great danger as long as they pursue Hollows and mingle with Soul Reapers.”

“I... I will be sticking by them,” Twilight said firmly, and uneasily added, “I won’t spy on them.”

“Of course not. I wouldn’t ask you to do that. If anything what I’m asking is that you protect them as best you can. I’ve always wanted you to be able to make friends, and now that you have them I don’t want to see you lose them,” Cadence said, patting Twilight’s shoulder before standing back and looking her over, “Now, I don’t know if Shining Armor told you, but he and I will be switching off as your instructors in Quincy powers. I know you have to get back to your friends, but I wanted you to know to expect me at the training site tomorrow. I know we’re close, Twilight, but I’ll have to be strict in your training, so don’t expect it to be easy.”

“I won’t. I want to learn, and however hard you need to be, I can take it,” said Twilight, oddly relieved. Training with her brother was fun, but also a bit awkward. She thought perhaps he was taking it too easy on her. She knew Cadence would be tough but fair.

Cadence gave her a blinding smile, “I’ll see you tomorrow morning, then. Enjoy the rest of your night, Twilight. And remember, stick close to your friends.”

“Don’t worry, I will,” Twilight said, waving to Cadence as she began to walk back to the shop.

As she did so she didn’t notice that, on her shoulder, right where Cadence had touched her in such a comforting manner earlier, there was the tiniest of black dots that blended in with her clothing almost seamlessly.

Author's Notes:

And now we've got a the whole roster with their base powers acquired. Now they'll need a team battle to really bring it all together. Don't worry, Sunset will get her sword issues figured out soon enough. It wasn't easy for Ichigo to reach Shikai either, and I don't want to make it go too easy for Sunset either.

Just as a heads up I might start updating a tad slower, as I do need to spend more time doing some editing on these chapters and the story's only going to get heftier from here. No worries, I still plan to keep this updating regularly, just not quite the breakneck pace I've been setting lately. (breakneck by my standards anyway).

At any rate, thanks for reading along so far folks, and as always let me know what you think if you want, or give any critiques you want. I appreciate them all. 'Till next time.

Episode 14: Inner World

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Episode 14: Inner World

It was with a syrupy, surreal slowness that the next five days of the school week passed with nothing of real incident occurring, leaving Sunset Shimmer feeling like a penned sheep that knew there was a timberwolf stalking the area, but had yet to strike. There was a tension like a static charge in the air, yet with nothing to relieve it Sunset felt restless. Time at school was spent more looking outside the window, wondering when the Hollows would attack would be, than paying attention to the class.

One additional worry to add to the growing list was that her friend’s little sisters and their friend now knew far more than they should. There hadn’t been much else to do, after the battle last Sunday, other than to take them to the shop and that of course had led to awkward questions followed by even more awkward answers. Sunset had tried to keep the answers as minimal as possible, just the bare bones of what Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo needed to know to understand the situation was both serious and dangerous. Oh, and that blabbing about it to anyone was a no go. Not that Sunset figured many adults would believe the girls if they did go talking about it. A bunch of high school girls with mystical powers fighting demonic ghosts sounded more like a Saturday morning cartoon than anything remotely believable, so Sunset imagined the secret was mostly safe, even if the girls told everyone they knew. The bigger worry was that the young girls wouldn’t grasp the danger of the situation and would try to stick their noses into it all again.

Hopefully that wouldn't be a problem, but it was now a background worry buzzing around in the back of Sunset’s mind like an annoying fly.

Her unrest was not much aided by the fact that her attempts to commune with her Zanpaktou weren't having much luck. Clover had taken to spending more time training Sunset in swordsmanship, or ‘Zanjutsu’ as Clover referred it, and helping Sunset refine her Flash Step. By the time half the week was over Sunset had at least learned to use the high speed maneuver with enough ease that she could at least keep pace with Clover... most of the time.

“A bit faster, Sunset, you’re still holding back,” Clover admonished her as the pair raced along the floor of one of the several canyons dotting Discord’s training ground, “I can tell you could move swifter than this.”

Sunset grimaced, jumping from spot to spot to keep up with Clover’s flickering movements, the canyon walls spiraling by like a brown blur, “If I go much faster I lose my balance, and end up flat on my face!”

“I know this is difficult, but you’re learning quite quickly. I’m merely trying to put some of that nervous energy to good use,” replied Clover, flashing to a halt at the mouth of the canyon’s far entrance, “Although I suppose we’ve practiced enough for today, at least where Shunpo is concerned. I have to remind myself that you’re making great strides already. We can afford to pace ourselves.”

Sunset landed next to Clover, breathing hard, feeling the red hot burn of her blood pumping even as the sweat cooled on her face and chest, “I do want to be ready the next time the Hollows make a move. It’s just... yeah, this is going to take a while. I want to push myself, but the last time I tried pushing beyond my limits I ended up abandoning my teacher, my home, and going a tad megalomaniacal. Trying to find a bit more balance, this time around.”

“You know, you have yet to tell me much about where you come from,” said Clover, and at Sunset’s reluctant look she went on to say, “I already know some simply from reports concerning that school. The Soul Society has kept an eye on it for some time specifically because of that portal.”

“So you Soul Reapers already know about Equestria?” Sunset asked.

“Not much, truth be told,” Clover replied with a curious and thoughtful look on her gray features, “We cannot cross over, you see. Any attempt a Soul Reaper has made to go through the portal has failed, as if it didn’t exist for us at all. I would think it the same for Hollows, otherwise you might have had an infestation of them over in your realm long ago. It's just that the portal seems to resonate with energy of a kind we’re unfamiliar with. That energy had always been relatively weak... until the events leading to your, um, ‘she-demon’ transformation. Since then the portal appears to have a much stronger resonance. It’s one of the reasons we kept certain individuals stationed there, to prevent any Hollows from getting close to the portal in case the increased energies in the portal attracted any. That said, I was merely asking because I was curious about your upbringing, about the kind of world you come from.”

“Not that I’m not flattered, but I’d just as soon not talk about it,” Sunset said, looking downcast at the ground, “I’ve decided not to go back, and talking about it kind of just hits me with the nostalgia feels. I got enough on my mind lately without adding another bout of homesickness to the list.”

“I understand. Still, perhaps, one day, you’d feel more comfortable talking of home?”

“Here is my home, now, and I need to make peace with that,” Sunset said, then hesitantly added, “Maybe someday, though. Hey, if things go smoothly you might get to meet Princess Twilight. She’d probably be happy to chat with you until the sun rises about anything you wanted to know about Equestria.”

“Ah, yes, the equine double of your friend. Strange to think the one from your home realm is some kind of royalty whereas the girl here is a fairly normal student,” Clover remarked thoughtfully.

Was it unusual? Sunset had never really thought so. The two Twilight’s shared very similar personalities, and from what Princess Twilight had told her the rest of Sunset’s friends here had a lot of common traits with Twilight’s friends in Equestria. The human Twilight even lived in a wealthy family, somewhat mirroring the pony Twilight’s wealth, if not the status that came with being an alicorn Princess.

Oh, and was that a small stab of jealousy still inside you? Sunset thought ruefully to herself, recognizing the residual sensation in her heart. Perhaps she was still a tad jealous of Twilight, who’d stuck out her apprenticeship with Celestia and obtained ascension to alicornhood. There’d been a time Sunset would have given anything to be in Princess Twilight’s position of power and respect. There’d been a time her pride had demanded nothing less of her.

But not anymore. I’m not that same girl, er, mare that ran through a portal in search of power to the exclusion of anything else. I’m... I’m better than that now.

She looked forlornly at the Zanpaktou sheathed at her hip. She might’ve been a better person than she’d been in the past, but that didn’t seem to be helping her with her present dilemma. That half-Arrancar had done a number on her. On her and Clover both, and if what Clover said was true then a full Arrancar was easily magnitudes more powerful than what they’d faced. If it hadn’t been for Fluttershy...

“Hey, can we give communing with my Zanpaktou another shot today, before we call it quits?” Sunset asked, “I know you said I can’t really push this, but we did nothing but sword and footwork training today, and I just wouldn’t feel right at least trying to talk with my sword once today.”

Clover looked at her with a considering gaze filling her soft green eyes for a moment before she smiled and nodded, “If you wish. I had an idea on how to perhaps make this... faster, but also a tad risky. I didn’t want to try it so soon, but if you want we can.”

“What way, exactly? And why is it risky?” asked Sunset.

“Communing through meditation is meant to eventually open up your mind to entering your Zanpaktou’s inner world upon its invitation. There is a way to enter that inner world through more roundabout means. A technique that combines hypnosis with Kido to allow a Soul Reaper to step into their Zanpaktou’s inner world without being allowed in by the Zanpaktou’s spirit. This is risky because, well, your Zanpaktou is a part of you, but it is still its own entity, with its own personality. How would you feel if a stranger suddenly showed up in your room without permission?”

Sunset let out a dry laugh, “I’d be pretty cheesed off, but then again, I’ve tried knocking on the door all week. Maybe it’s time to show my Zanpaktou I’m not such an easy girl to ignore.”

----------

“Really, must we do this? I just simply don’t feel right putting dear Fluttershy through this,” Rarity said to Discord as the man stood off to the side watching her and Fluttershy square off.

Discord had been working the girls hard all week with regular sparring matches between them, with Discords helpers Screwloose and Screwball also stepping in to provide extra sparring partners in what in Rarity’s mind was a rather grueling pace. It was getting rather hard to keep a proper appearance while coming home each night drenched in sweat, bruises, and a head of hair staggered by split ends. Still, even Rarity had to admit that there were some beneficial results showing. She’d become rather comfortable with her unusual ability.

At first the feeling of her own blood crystallizing into shape outside her body, forming the armored dress and rapier, had felt quite odd, but by now she’d come to feel natural with it and even admire the strange beauty and grace inherent with her power. She could use the crystals to shape new weapons around her base rapier, and had come up with several favorites such as a chain-blade whip and the large yet elegant scimitar. Yet always the rapier remained the core, as if it was the real weapon, the crystals just the extension. She could form them at a distance, using shards of crystal like projectiles, or striking with spears of them from the ground. She’d found doing so was more draining, however, and the furthest she could send her crystals was, at best, about fifty yards.

Still, overall, Rarity felt confident to take on any more brutish Hollows that might dare show their faces in town. She certainly knew Rainbow Dash and Applejack were both nearly chomping at the proverbial bit for some action. Both of those girls had become equally comfortable with their powers in the days of training here with Discord. Rarity could regularly hear the buzz of lightning from Rainbow Dash’s wings or the smashing explosions from Applejack’s kicks, and had sparred with both at different times over the week.

It seemed to her that Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were not so comfortable with their newfound abilities, however. Pinkie Pie’s dreadful alter ego unnerved Rarity to no end and she severely disliked having to spare with “Pinkamena”. The horrific girl was just unnatural, and quite uncouth. All that talk of eating and love of blood. Really, it was just impossible to think that such a beast had emerged from her lovable and upbeat friend!

And as for Fluttershy...

“I, um, don’t mind, really,” said Fluttershy as she nervously shifted on her feet a dozen paces from Rarity, “Its just, I, um, well, I don’t really know w-what to do to fight.”

It’d been like this all week. Fluttershy could, just barely, seem to summon her transformed eyes, along with the halo and glowing third eye, but when she did the poor dear just didn’t seem to be able know how to use it to fight, even when sparring. Yet Discord kept firmly insisting they try, like he was doing now.

“It's merely a matter of experience my dear,” Discord said with that utmost reasonable of tones, “When you used your power to deal with the Hollow you were following instincts born of need. Now you must learn to harness need as a matter of conscious will, rather than instinct. You have all the tools you need to succeed, you just have to have the will to pick them up and use them. Now, Miss Rarity, if you please, do begin.”

Rarity let out a long, deep sigh, “Oh, very well. But I shall not be party to bullying my friend and if I say this has gone too far, I shall stop and hear no more about it!”

“I understand your sentiments, Miss Rarity, truly I do, but you do your friend a disservice by treating her as if she’s made from glass-”

“I, um, really don’t mind.”

“-and she’ll not get any stronger through coddling. It is only a matter of time before, hmm, something happens, one way or another, and it was my understanding you girls wished to be prepared for it, yes?” Discord said, staring at Rarity with eyes that gave her a itchy feeling down her spine.

“Be that as it may, I shall only do as I feel is best. Now, Fluttershy, are you ready?”

Fluttershy visibly gulped, but gave a small, demure nod, and closed her eyes in concentration. Rarity waited patiently, knowing Fluttershy was the least practiced among them at controlling her powers, and even activating the change was still difficult for her. Rarity understood completely. Mentally recapturing the emotions that spark the change wasn’t always easy.

Still, even though it took almost a full minute, Fluttershy’s body began to glow with soft yellow light. Rarity watched with fascination as the blue halo of energy appeared around her friend’s brow first, then that energy seemed to drain into her eyes until when both snapped open they’d transformed color into pools of bright, shining blue with striking gold iris’. At the same time her ‘ponied up’ features appeared, wings, ears, and tail, so too did the third eye open upon Fluttershy’s brow; this one a pure pool of blue light, like a beacon.

Seeing Fluttershy’s change complete, Rarity activated her own, picturing in her mind the moment she’d been willing to sacrifice anything to save her sister. That raw emotion was the trigger, and focusing upon it brought about her own change. She could feel her power seep through her blood, a warmth without compare. The blood flowed out of her skin as if it wasn’t there, a series of elegant crimson rivers that in mere seconds flowed around her to replace her regular clothing with the finery of the red, armored dress. In her right hand the rapier took shape, solid red and crystalline. Rarity always felt a bit giddy at the change, now, as every nerve felt on edge, on fire, sensing everything around her and making the world seem to pop out in more defined colors.

“Excellent,” said Discord, “Now, Fluttershy, when Rarity attacks you I want you to try commanding her to stop, like you did with the Hollow.”

“Um, w-well... okay...”

Rarity held up her sword but tried to put on a comforting smile, “I’ll be careful, darling. Don’t be afraid to put some ‘omf!’ into it. I won’t mind, really.”

Fluttershy tried to hide her face with her hair, which wasn’t as easy now given the glowing third eye rather ruined the effect, “...Okay.”

Well, that’s about as much enthusiasm as I can expect. I do hope she’ll be alright. Rarity thought with no small bit of guilt as she braced her legs, took on a fencer’s stance, and then rapidly advanced on Fluttershy with a few swift steps. Fluttershy yelped and backed away, and even as Rarity sent a small poke with her rapier towards the girl she could tell Fluttershy was terrified. She had to pull her strike to keep from actually hitting Fluttershy, and backed away a step herself.

Discord sighed, stroking his beard, “Miss Rarity, you could at least try to make it look like you’re being serious. And Miss Fluttershy, you didn’t even try to command her to do anything.”

“I’m sorry,” Fluttershy said, “It's just, um, sorry Rarity, but you looked very scary just now. You’re eyes were very, um... intense. And you moved so fast! I could barely see you coming.”

“Yes, well, it does seem I’m a few notches swifter of foot while changed like this,” Rarity said, pursing her lips, “I could slow it down a tad, if you want?”

Fluttershy smiled then, “Yes, slower would be great. I’d really appreciate it.”

Just then Fluttershy’s third eye seemed to glow brighter, and Rarity felt... odd. She wasn’t sure what it was, but something felt different, like there was a weight on her that she couldn’t see. Shaking her head she got back in a ready stance, and moved to attack Fluttershy once more. However, while she had intended to slow down for Fluttershy’s sake, she found that she was not only moving slower, but much slower than she’d anticipated. Indeed she felt entirely sluggish and her strike, what was meant to be a fairly tepid thrust, was now like she was trying to move her arm through cement.

Fluttershy blinked in surprise, easily evading the blow, and then her gold on blue eyes went wide, “Oh my! I’m so sorry Rarity! I, I think my power is doing something to you! Oh no, I didn’t tell it to! I didn’t mean to. Are you okay?”

“F-fine, darling, just fine,” Rarity said, or sort of said, as she realized even her speech was slowed and slurred. It was like her whole body was slowing down, from her senses to her movements, to even her heartbeat. In fact she could feel it slowing down further, and further, making her head feel light...

“Rarity!”

She heard Fluttershy cry out, and then suddenly there was a massive burst of pressure, a sense of a massive spirit energy blanketing her, and suddenly she could move and think normally again. She could feel her heart beating back at its normal pace and she blinked through a bout a dizziness to see that Discord was next to her now, one hand on her shoulder while she leaned against him. It was his spiritual pressure she’d felt, and it covered her like a shield.

“Miss Fluttershy, concentrate. Pull your spirit energy back,” Discord said calmly, and Fluttershy, who was near to crying, nodded and closed her eyes.

Slowly the third eye also slid closed. Rarity, who by that point had recovered her wits, stood away from Discord, head still a tad light, and asked, “What just happened?”

Discord was looking at Fluttershy, brow creased in thought, “I would say we are learning more about how your friend’s power works. She wanted you to slow down, and so her power made that happen. Almost too well. She could have stopped your heart from beating, had that gone on much longer.”

“I... I didn’t mean too,” Fluttershy said, sounding miserable. Rarity felt a welling of sympathy and found herself going to Fluttershy’s side, embracing the girl in a quick, strong hug.

“Now, now, it’s alright. I’m fine. Just a tad dizzy, is all.”

She then shot a withering look at Discord over Fluttershy’s shoulder, “This is why I said we shouldn’t be pushing her!”

“And I shall point out this is exactly why we should be pushing Miss Fluttershy,” said Discord, “Among all of you I suspect her power is quite possibly the most dangerous, to herself and her allies as much as your enemies.”

Fluttershy hugged Rarity back tightly, then nodded to her and wiped her face with a shirt sleep, taking a few deep breaths to look at Discord. “I don’t want to ever have to hurt anyone. I thought my power just made it so people did what I told them, which is... which is bad enough.”

“From what I’ve observed so far, I believe it would be more accurate to say that your power implants your will within a target. Whether that will is for them to obey a command, heal from a wound, or in the case with Miss Rarity ‘to slow down’, your power makes that will manifest itself,” Discord said with a small smirk appearing on his face, “Why, you’d never have to pay the pizza delivery driver ever again.”

“Really, must you joke?” Rarity said, then looked at Fluttershy thoughtfully, “If that is your power, dear, it is very impressive.”

“I’m not sure I even want it,” Fluttershy said, shifting nervously, “Not if its so easy to accidentally hurt someone.”

“That’s simply a matter of learning control. Rather the whole point of this training,” Discord said, then added after a moment’s considering pause, “Also I do think there are some key limitations to what you can do. First of all, I suspect you can only affect one individual at a time. We can test it out, later when you feel up to it, but from what I witnessed I think it takes your powers full concentration on one subject to work. Secondly, your power can be resisted. That much we saw with the Hollow you commanded, who did resist at first. I suspect strong enough individuals might shake off your power altogether. The only reason it worked so well on Rarity was that she wasn’t trying to resist.”

“I was rather caught off guard by it,” Rarity said, frowning briefly, but then decided to put on a more cheerful face, “Well at least we know more than we did before. That’s good, right Fluttershy?”

“I suppose so,” Fluttershy said, still looking uncomfortable. The sight made Rarity feel less than stellar, herself. She wanted her friend to feel better, and decided there could only be one solution.

“Well, I would say this calls for a break and a coffee run!” Rarity declared, and before Discord could get his mouth halfway open in protest she went on, “No no no, I insist! Not only coffee, but some delightful scones and muffins to go with it. I shall attend to this matter myself.”

“Come no Miss Rarity, at least let me send one of my new shop girls. They do live here now and need to earn their keep,” Discord said, referring to the recently moved in sirens. Rarity eyed him for a moment, then shrugged. Coffee was coffee, no matter who went and got it, and she knew for a fact Fluttershy adored the scones that came from the local coffee shop. She could already see Fluttershy smiling slightly at the prospect.

“Very well, but I still insist on paying for it myself,” she said, dismissing her blood armor and rapier with a elegant wave of her hand to then fish out her wallet to retrieve the needed cash.

----------

“What was that about?” Sunset asked, looking off with a worried frown towards where she’d just sensed the large burst of spiritual pressure she recognized as Discord’s. It’d only lasted a moment, and made her spine shiver. Discord’s spirit energy had felt somehow different from others. Even his energy feels slippery, she thought.

“What was what about?” Twilight asked, looking up from the machine she’d brought down, or rather asked Applejack to carry down. Sunset recognized it as a device for measuring brain waves, complete with a silly bowl shaped helmet with blinking lights. Sunset was fairly sure the blinking lights weren’t a necessary component. Then again Twilight had clearly modified this machine for her own use, and no doubt had added some functions.

“It seems Mister Discord felt like intervening in one of the girls’s sparring matches,” said Clover, eyes focused on a book she was holding without looking up, “I can feel everyone’s spiritual pressure’s, however, so whatever happened I don’t think anyone was hurt. If there’s a problem, they’ll call for us. We should concentrate on what we’re doing.”

“Yes, of course,” Twilight said, wincing slightly as she adjusted some dials on her machine, which was in turn attached to a laptop she had set up on a fold out table. Sunset noticed that Twilight’s wincing seemed to stem from a few bruises on her wrists and arms.

“You okay, Twilight?” Sunset asked, pointing at the other girls’ small injuries, “You been doing full contact sports lately?”

“Hm? Oh, these? Um, no, not sports. Not really. I’ve been...” Twilight very deliberately looked away, and Sunset didn’t need to tap into her latent skills as a master detective to guess that her friend was keeping something hidden “Been practicing with my bow. Heheh, you remember how bad I was at, uh, archery? Well I thought I’d try to pick it up as a... hobby. Yup, so, archery practice.”

“I see...” Sunset said, not really seeing at all. You’re hiding something, Twilight, but I’m going to trust that whatever it is, you have good reasons. The last thing Sunset wanted was to start mistrusting her friends. She just hoped that whatever it was, Twilight knew what she was doing.

“So is your machine prepared?” asked Clover, setting down her book on the table and looking at the boxy device with a curious expression, “I’m not very familiar with the living world’s technology, but I assume this is some manner of scanner?”

“It's a neurological monitor that I’ve modified to also measure spiritual energy patterns,” said Twilight, “While Sunset is undergoing this hypnosis I’ll be monitoring her mental state and how it's interacting with her spiritual state. It may help me better understand the connection between her and her Zanpaktou,” said Twilight, smiling happily as she got to explain something of a scientific nature. Clover looked over the machine with an appreciative nod.

“Impressive. When the day eventually comes that your soul must cross over to the Soul Society, you should consider joining the Soul Reapers. Twelfth Division would love to have more keen minds like yours in our ranks,” Clover said, to which Twilight just blinked and gave a nervous chuckle.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, Clover, but I kind of hope I don’t have to worry about that for a long, long time.”

Clover opened her mouth to respond, then seemed to think better of it and just gave a shrug, turning to Sunset, “Let’s begin.”

Sunset had found a relatively comfortable patch of ground to set out a mat and sit on, taking on the same cross-legged meditation pose she normally did while Twilight fitted the neurological scanner’s helmet onto her head. It looked absolutely ridiculous, but having done this kind of thing to her friends herself when she’d been studying how magic worked in the human world, Sunset didn’t complain. As Twilight returned to her laptop and started up the machine, Clover came over and sat across from Sunset. She then pulled out a pocket watch from her robes and dangled it in front of Sunset’s face.

“Okay, if I’ve understood the technique from that book, this should help put you to sleep,” Clover said, slowly waving the watch back and forth at the end of its chain, then blinked at Sunset’s deadpan look. “What?”

“Did you really just read a beginner's book on hypnotism? I thought you said this was some age old Soul Society technique?” Sunset asked bluntly. Clover’s face colored and she cleared her throat.

“Ahem, well, yes, I’ll be using a minor Kido spell to bring you into your Zanpaktou’s inner world, but the actual hypnosis bit is something we have to do ourselves. I thought I’d try using human methods first before resorting to more Kido. Besides, it was a chance to learn something new! Couldn’t pass that up. Now, just follow the watch with your eyes and you should start feeling sleepy.”

“I think for expediency's sake we should just use the Kido,” Sunset said and Clover sighed.

“Oh, alright,” she put away the pocket watch and instead held her hands out, palms up and index and thumbs touching so the palms formed a rough triangular shape before her. A small green light appeared in the space between her hands and she said, “Just focus on the light. Stare into it until it fills your whole vision. Breath deeply, and slowly.”

Sunset did as she was told, taking in a deep breath and slowly regulating her breathing as she stared into the soft, lime colored light. As her body started to relax and she felt her mind start to drift off in that fuzzy, warm state between sleep and wakefulness, she wondered what her Zanpaktou was actually like.

She blinked, and found herself standing in another place, one that held echoes of the familiar even as she realized she was nowhere that truly existed. At first she was shocked by the familiar white pillars and long well carpeted corridors of what looked liked the hallways of Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, but it only took her a few seconds to see that the architecture of the school she’d attended in Equestria was mixed with the starkly clean walls lined with lockers that were from Canterlot High.

It was as if someone had taken elements from both schools and blended them together. Modern florescent lights mixed with old magically lit torches, and as Sunset passed by various doors along the hallway she saw some led to classrooms of magical alchemy and cauldrons, while others held modern desks and computers.

Two different lives, but I was a student in both. Is this my Zanpaktou’s inner world? I didn’t think it would take so much from my own background.

She walked on, her footsteps echoing through the otherwise eerily silent halls. Just as she was starting to think of trying one of the classroom doors to explore one of the rooms, she abruptly found herself at the end of the hall, facing a pair of large wooden double doors that somehow seemed to stretch taller than the hallway would allow. The shape of the doors, and the gracefully carved, regal handles on them, reminded her of the doors leading into Celestia’s throne room at the royal palace. Suddenly feeling hesitant, Sunset took a moment before reaching out to open those doors. Despite their size the doors swung open easily at her touch, as if some other force was opening them besides her.

Beyond was a space that very much took from Sunset’s memories of Princess Celestia’s throne room, although it lacked walls or ceiling. Indeed aside from the broken, marble pathway, carpeted in red, leading up to the stone steps that in turn led to a tall backed golden throne, there was nothing but an expanse of endless blue sky and clouds. It was as if the throne and the path to it were resting on a ocean of cloud, with the blue horizon like a dome on all sides.

Unsure of herself, Sunset walked forward, crossing the wide pathway towards the steps leading up to the throne. Just as she reached the foot of the steps she felt the temperature suddenly rise in the air, and then a female voice, both strange and yet horribly familiar spoke.

“Ah ah ah, that’s not your seat. You gave it up, remember?”

Sunset spun around to face the speaker, just in time to have a powerful, red clawed hand grip her throat and lift her off the ground. Just in front of her face was a face that in some ways mirrored her own, yet was changed and twisted in a sultry, demonic visage. Bright crimson skin covered a body that was so much like Sunset’s, yet its clothing was simpler, a dark flame covered dress and large black boots that complimented the fiery head of hair and flaming tail the girl sported. Black eyes held gleaming teal iris’ and the girl’s grinning, wicked face was flanked by a pair of tapered ears.

Despite the firm grip on her neck Sunset could still breath, and managed to say, “Y-you? You can’t be here! I...”

Her demonic self scoffed at her, tossing her to the ground, “You what? Got rid of me? Tossed me out like yesterday’s garbage? Overcame your ‘inner she-demon’ or whatever with the power of friendship? Oh please, spare me the sputtering denials. It's been torture sitting in the back of your mind, cast aside while you’ve been playing super hero squad with your little playmates. Why do you think I got out the first opportunity I could find?”

Sunset’s breathing had quickened, and her mouth was dry, her mind reeling. This woman, this demonic version of herself, this was what she’d become when she’d put on Princess Twilight’s Element of Magic and absorbed all of that magical power, transforming into the she-demon she now faced. She’d assumed that when the Elements of Harmony had been used against her in that form that the evil of it had been purged out of her... though somewhere in the darker corners of her thoughts she’d always feared that part of her still lurked, waiting.

“The Zanpaktou,” Sunset said, “When I first grabbed it from that crater, you shifted from me, into it?”

Her other self idly examined one of her claws, still smiling, “Almost right. I was born from the part of you that you tried to discard. I’m a Zanpaktou, alright, pure and simple, yet everything about me comes from a part of you that you tried to bury like an unwanted skeleton you were tired of keeping in the closet. But you can’t get rid of me anymore than I can truly be rid of you. We’re stuck with each other.”

Rage poured into the she-demon’s eyes, her face twisting in a rictus snarl, “And I’ll be damned if I’ll let you take the throne of this world while you still prance about pretending like you don’t need me.”

“Need you? What are you talking about? I never wanted to be anything like you, let alone need you!” Sunset said, standing up and balling her fists at her side, “You nearly destroyed my life.”

“Correction, you nearly destroyed your life, I just happened to be the result of what you wanted and sought after. Oh, but now that your fluffy band of friendship bunnies aren’t cutting the mustard when it comes to power you come crawling right back to me. Well, forgive me if I’m not inclined to answer that call from a scared little pony who’s too afraid of her own shadow to remember what gave her such fire in the first place. Now, leave.”

Before Sunset could respond the she-demon spread wide, bat-like wings and flew towards her. Sunset tried to dodge but was grabbed by the arm and swung around like a toy, thrown bodily back towards the doors leading to the hallway. She hit the ground hard and rolled through the doors, which slammed shut behind her. Sunset winced at the very real pain she felt, even if this inner world wasn’t exactly real. She stood and stepped unsteadily towards the doors again.

She didn’t fully understand what was happening, but she knew she couldn’t afford to back down yet. Whoever or whatever the she-demon was, she knew she had to confront her.

If she’s really my Zanpaktou’s spirit, then why did she take that form? Why reject me like this? But if she really is a manifestation of the evil that’d taken over me back then...

It occurred to Sunset she might not have been thinking about this the right way. It wasn’t like she’d been possessed by an outside force, when she’d tried to steal Princess Twilight’s Element with a more than haphazard plan to return to Equestria as some kind of conqueror. No, she’d chosen to do all of that herself, and while the corrupted power of the Element of Magic had overwhelmed her thinking, she had accepted it was still her choices and her fault that had led to that crossroad in her life. She was just glad that Princess Twilight and her friends at Canterlot High had been there to stop her, and give her a chance to redeem herself.

Pushing her way through the doors once again, Sunset saw that her she-demon self had taken a lounging position on the throne, one leg raised up over the arm of the throne while she leaned back on the other.

“You’re a real glutton for punishment,” the she-demon said casually, “I was trying to give you a gentle hint to leave, but if you insist on coming back here I’ll have to start hurting you.”

“I want to know who you are,” Sunset said, voice firm, taking a few steps down the pathway to the throne and then holding position, “That’s the whole point of me coming here! If you really are the spirit of my Zanpaktou, then talk to me!”

The she-demon rose angrily from the throne, flames rising from her wings and hair like a wave, and Sunset could feel the heat even from afar. “Talk to you!? You’re the one who cast me aside. You’re the one who chose to ignore me, not the other way around! All this time, well before you picked up that sword, I was waiting for you to acknowledge me again. But you think your friends are enough to fill in all the blanks inside you. Well, they’re not! You’ve been so pigheaded about playing the good friend its like you’ve forgotten what made you who you are. You’ve forgotten your power, so why should I listen to anything you have to say?”

“I don’t understand what you’re trying to say! My friends are the best thing that have happened to me since I went through that mirror and ended up in this world! I haven’t forgotten who I am, I’ve been discovering who I am.”

A peal of derisive, bitter laughter rolled from the she-demon as she clutched her sides, the fire around her seeming to dance along with her mirth, “How can you know who you are if you’ve forgotten who I am? Whatever power your friends give you, it can only go so far when its them you need to protect. If a single one of them fell, what could you do, except cry?”

The thought of any of her friends being hurt, or worse, filled Sunset with a burning rage and she shouted, “I wouldn’t cry! I’d protect them, no matter what!”

There was a small spark of flame around her, as if it wafted from the throne itself to reach towards her, and the she-demon quirked and eyebrow, “Hmm, maybe you haven’t entirely forgotten who I am, but its not good enough yet. You’re still afraid of me, afraid of yourself. Until you let go of that fear, and take hold of me again, I won’t aid you. That Zanpkatou will be a dull blade in your grasp until you remember what sharpens it, sharpens your very soul.”

“Wait, what does that even mean? Who are you!? What am I supposed to remember!?” Sunset shouted, but the she-demon was done talking, launching herself from her throne and delivering a powerful kick straight to Sunset’s chest. The pain exploded through her and she felt as if she’d just broken several ribs. The whole world spun and dissolved around her, until she woke up shouting.

“What am I supposed to... to... huh?” Sunset looked around. She was sitting where she had been before, on a mat placed on the rocky ground of Discord’s underground training area. Sweat drenched her, and her chest hurt, as if the blow she’d taken in the inner world of her Zanpaktou had been real.

Clover was looking at her with concern, as was Twilight, who was busily glancing between Sunset and the readouts on her laptop.

“You okay, Sunset? What happened?” Clover asked, leaning forward, “You started sweating, and murmuring to yourself, then just suddenly jolted like someone punched you and woke up shouting.”

“Kicked, actually,” Sunset said with a pained look as she rubbed her chest. No broken ribs like she’d thought, but she wouldn’t be surprised if there was a bruise. “My Zanpaktou spirit wasn’t exactly happy to see me.”

“So you spoke with it? Amazing!” Twilight seemed to let her own worries melt away at the prospect of discovery, “What was it like? Tell me everything. I got lots of interesting data but I need to correlate the readings to the actual events that took place inside you and the Zanpaktou.”

“I too would like to hear exactly what happened,” said Clover, her own face still shadowed by concern, “Spare no details.”

At first Sunset was a bit hesitant, as she wasn’t sure she wanted her friends to know that her Zanpaktou spirit was taking the form of the she-demon she’d become at her lowest, most shameful moment. Yet she knew holding anything back would just make things harder, especially if Clover was going to help her figure this all out. She recounted what had occurred, not leaving anything out. Both Clover and Twilight listened patiently, though Twilight dug out a notebook and jotted down more than a few things while Sunset told her story. By the end of Clover had a look of deep thought on her face while Twilight remained inquisitive.

“Is it normal for a Zanpaktou spirit to behave this way, Miss Clover?” asked Twilight.

“No...” said Clover, “Not entirely. Combative Zanpaktou spirits are not unheard of. Many aggressive Soul Reapers have equally aggressive spirits dwelling inside their blades. Forging a bond with one’s Zanpaktou spirit takes a slightly different path for each of us. My Chishiki, for example, is a very curious and knowledge thirsty spirit, reminding me sort of yourself Miss Sparkle. When I communed with him Chishiki was always eager to learn, and our bond grew from a shared desire to know the world around us.”

“Well, the only thing my Zanpaktou seems to want to do is kick my butt,” muttered Sunset, “She kept going on about how I’d discarded her, or forgotten her, or something like that. I don’t understand it. I didn’t discard that she-demon form, the Elements stripped it from me, and she said she was my Zanpaktou spirit anyway so it wouldn’t make sense to treat her as if she were just some residual power from that transformation.”

“Could it be that she’s both?” suggested Twilight, “I mean, is it possible she is a Zanpaktou spirit, but also happens to have trace amounts of your, uh, ‘she-demon’ self trapped within?”

“Given the unique nature of that Equestrian magic, anything is possible,” said Clover, “It's one of the factors that makes you girls different, especially in Sunset’s case. There’s never been a Zanpakou that interacted with magic and spirit energy at the same time, so... so this Zanpaktou spirit could be different than any other in the history of Soul Society. I must apologize, Sunset. This was too dangerous to try without truly understanding what your Zanpaktou is, and I shouldn’t have suggested doing it. Please forgive my carelessness.”

“It's okay, Clover, really.” Sunset smiled and gave Clover’s arm a firm, reassuring squeeze, “I would have wanted to try this anyway. You told me there was some risk before, so it's not like you didn’t give me some warning.”

“Still, we shouldn’t attempt this again. If anything I’m worried about pushing you to unlock your Shikai, now, because there’s no telling what your Zanpaktou spirit might do. If it's infused with strange magic from your home realm, anything might happen when you learn its true name and call out to it,” said Clover, eyeing the Zanpaktou at Sunset’s side warily. Sunset just shook her head.

“I feel like I need to keep pushing forward, Clover. I have to keep up with my friends, so I can fight by their side. That, and while this might sound strange... I feel like I want to do this for her sake as well,”Sunset said while placing a hand on the hilt of her Zanpkatou, eyes softening. “She might be a raging she-demon, but she’s a part of me. I don’t know what part, exactly, but I got the feeling like she was kind of lonely, in there. I need ot figure out how to reach her, connect with her.”

“Well, if that’s how you feel, I’ll try my best to continue helping you, but I think for today we’ve done enough,” said Clover.

Letting out a long sigh, Sunset just said, “Won’t hear any argument from me, there.”

“I heard the girls were getting coffee and muffins,” said Twilight, “Shouldn’t be too long before it gets here.”

“Sounds perfect to me,” said Sunset, slowly standing and stretching her limbs. She could set aside the puzzle of her Zanpaktou for the time being. With the week as slow as it had been, maybe she had some time before the next emergency.

----------

Shining Armor was not in a good mood. At all. This manifested in an exceedingly cold and hard look on his face, a steel clad expression that was usually enough to make most people give him a wide distance. Cadence, as usual, seemed immune to his frosty mood, even though she was part of the reason for it.

“You’re still mad at me?” she asked quietly as they both walked down a clean white hallway. Both of them were in full Quincy uniform, Shining Armor’s outfit a crisp and stark white military jacket and slacks, with a long mantle that trailed all the way down to his short, black boots. Both their booted footfalls echoed loudly, clacking upon the pristine tiles. Shining Armor let Cadence stew a few seconds before answering.

“I told you I didn’t want Twilight being spied upon. I distinctly remember telling you that.”

Cadence’s voice had that annoyingly perfect balance of apologetic and reasonably logical that meant Shining Armor knew he’d already lost the argument before it’d really started, “I know that you didn’t want her being followed or watched by our intelligence resources, but I decided to do this myself, without involving anyone else. She won’t even know the trace is there, and it will allow us to protect her in case there’s unforeseen troubles down the road.”

“And if the trace is discovered? Not by her, but by the one training her friends?” Shining Armor asked, not willing to give up quite yet, “Do you think that man would just let her go if he knew she wasn’t just a Quincy, but had brought a trace into his shop?”

“The trace won’t be discovered,” Cadence said simply, lightly touching his hand. He wanted to pull away to make it clear he was still mad at her, but it was almost impossible to ignore the gentle warmth in her touch as she continued to say, “Remember that when it comes to concealment there are few in our ranks that match my skill. Who else could have created a trace that’d bypass even Discord’s wards? Trust me, love, I know what I’m doing. I’m only trying to look out for Twilight’s well being.”

Shining Armor was silent for a moment before saying with a sigh, “You could have asked me, first. You also could have told me sooner than this morning. You’ve had that thing on her for days now.”

“I wanted to make sure it was working smoothly and that I wouldn’t have to remove it. The trace will stay attached to her shoulder, melded without being noticeable by anything short of a detailed examination of her spiritual makeup. I’ll be able to see and hear most of what happens nearby her, hence if she gets in over her head we’ll know about it and be able to help.”

“Assuming either of us are in a position to do so,” Shining Armored muttered, “Do you know what this emergency meeting is about?”

“No, but your father must have had a good reason to call it in. I’ve heard he’s mobilizing almost half the Hueco Mundo Hunters Battalion at orders from His Majesty.”

“Has His Majesty said anything to my father about why he needs this mobilization?”

“Your father has not discussed anything he may have spoken of with His Majesty,” Cadence replied, “Regardless, I suspect this is in response to the rumors of Las Noches stirring. We’ll find out soon enough.”

The hallway opened into a wide antechamber with a vaulted ceiling, where a wide, circular table of dark wood dominated the center of the room. Shining Armor immediately recognized the light blue skinned man with a well groomed dark head of hair similar to Shining Armor’s own standing at one end of the table, with a similar white military uniform but also wearing the officer’s cap of a battalion commander. Night Light looked up from several maps spread on the table, his eyes lighting up slightly at the sight of his son but only giving a curt nod and salute, which Shining Armor and Cadence both returned.

“Sir,” Shining Armor said in polite, formal tone, “Sternritter B, Shining Armor, reporting.”

Cadence mirrored his speech, “Sternritter L, Mi Amore Cadenza, reporting.”

“At ease, both of you,” Night Light said, glancing to his left where two women had been seated at the table, having watched both Shining Armor and Cadence enter, “This constitutes the full force I’ve been authorized by His Majesty to call upon at this time, until we know more about the situation.

Shining Armor of course recognized both of the other people present. One was his mother, Twilight Velvet, her soft gray skin and two toned white and purple hair offset by her cool, calm expression as she gave him a small smile. The other woman was taller than his mother, with a slim, athletic build, with white alabaster skin and long, wavy hair that was a pale shade of pink.

“Five Sternritters,” Shining Armor said, “Plus half your battalion, father. At the risk of breaking etiquette, what the hell is going on that needs this much firepower on standby?”

“Shining, really, language,” Twilight Velvet said, while the woman next to her laughed.

“Do you find something funny, Fleur De Lis?” asked Cadence casually.

“My apologies, but you four really do make for an adorable family dynamic,” said Fleur, hiding her giggle politely behind a raised hand, “It's a real shame the prodigal daughter isn’t here to complete the set.”

Night Light’s eyes narrowed, and Twilight Velvet’s grew frosty. Night Light cleared his throat, “Our daughter is not of what of concern...” he glanced at Shining Armor pointedly, “At the moment, anyway. No, right now why I have been asked to call this meeting is because our scouts in Heuco Mundo have noted a massive gathering of Hollows in the Forest of Gillians.”

Shining Armor frowned, stepping towards the table to look at the maps, which showed vast swaths of desert, the bleak dead landscape of Hueco Mundo; The Hollow World. One vast area of that dry, nearly lifeless realm was a series of massive canyons and underground caverns, the Forest of Gillians, so named for that was where many Hollows of that classification gathered. If there were enough Hollows there now to make the Quincy take note, something had to be in the works.

“How many are we talking about?” he asked his father.

“Our last reports showed no less than a hundred Gillians, plus a horde of lesser Hollows nearly three times that number.”

Shining Armor exchanged a look with Cadence. The lesser Hollows were of little concern, but the Gillians were another matter. On the hierarchy of Hollow evolution they were still well below Arrancar, but significantly stronger than common Hollows. Just a few Gillians weren’t much threat to a single Sternritter, who were the Quincy's most elite warriors, the 'star knights' of His Majesty. However, any gathering of a large number of Hollows was worthy of note, especially since it'd require a high level Hollow to control such a horde. Still...

“Even if this group did come to attack us here, that horde wouldn't pose much of a threat,” said Shining Armor, “Not here, at the seat of Quincy power. They’d be slaughtered. The same applies if they decided to attack the Soul Society. Even just a few of the Soul Reaper Captains would be sufficient to deal with that number of Gillians. And yet any Hollow powerful enough to gather that many Gillians together and force them to cooperate rather than eat each other would also be smart enough to know that. Ergo... they have a different target in mind than either us or the Soul Society.”

“That’s our conclusion as well,” said his mother, leaning forward, propping her elbow on the table and resting her chin on one hand, “It must be an Arrancar or Vasto Lorde controlling that many Gillians, but our scouts couldn’t get close enough to determine which. It may just be a rogue looking to set themselves up independently of Las Noches, but there’s also the possibility that they intend to attack somewhere in the living world.”

“And if they do, it will be our job to put a stop to it before the Soul Reapers get involved?” asked Fleur, “A nice bit of competition to see if we can wipe out the Hollows first before our age old blood enemies show their faces.”

“More important than that, we stop the Hollows before too many lives are lost,” said Night Light, “If they attack in force in the world of the living.”

“And if they do, is there really any doubt of where that attack will appear?” asked Shining Armor bitterly, “There’s only one city lately that has attracted so much Hollow attention, and I somehow doubt they’ve lost interest.”

Night Light gave a solemn nod, “Yes, our home city is a likely target.”

Episode 15: Brewing Storm

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Episode 15: Brewing Storm

Adagio slumped in the open space between Sonata’s partially unzipped hoodie, her arms and head hanging out as she lay inert, partially so that she didn’t draw any undue attention as her sister went about order a dizzying array of different coffees, half of which weren’t even identifiable as coffee due to the amount of sugar and whipped creme involved, and a pile of pastries that filled two bags. The other reason she slumped dejectedly, unmoving, was because she still hadn’t mustered up the courage to actually talk to her sisters about how she felt. She could imagine Sunset laughing at her for her cowardice...

...No, she supposed Sunset wouldn’t laugh, would she? It felt strange, but Adagio had to admit she wasn’t as angry with the pony turned human as she used to be. Mostly she was now just angry at herself. It was fear, she knew. She was afraid to even bring up the topic of apologizing to her sisters for their current state, to ask forgiveness for bringing them to this wretched state. She wanted to, she just couldn’t work up the nerve, yet.

Maybe she’d wait until she got her body back. It might be easier to talk to Aria and Sonata if she could actually do so while being eye to eye with them. Thinking of that made her wonder how much longer she had to wait to return to her real body. Not that she had any fondness for the mostly hairless monkey form, but she had to admit it beat being in a plush doll, no matter how closely the doll resembled her true, siren self. Much as she detested being human she had to admit it had a few benefits. What hair it did have she’d enjoyed styling, and while she’d never bothered with clothing as a siren, the human form seemed well suited to showing off decorative clothes.

I can’t even eat in this doll body. Damn thing has never felt right.

Sonata finished the order, and cheerfully called Aria over to help carry it, the other siren girl only doing so after a begrudging nod and glare.

“So glad we’ve gone from food service workers to being a delivery service,” muttered Aria, “So much more dignified.”

“Hey it's not so bad!” said Sonata, already pulling out a jelly filled scone and munching on it as the girls left the coffee shop, “Mmph, we get much bigger rooms out of the deal, and the work is a lot easier.”

“Yeah, when we’re not putting our lives in danger,” said Aria, “I say as soon as Adagio has her body back we skip this town! We’ve started from scratch before, we can do it again.”

“All of those times we’ve started in a new town we had our powers to make it all easier,” said Adagio plainly, keeping her voice down so anyone passing by wouldn’t likely take notice, “But besides that, we can’t leave town. Not until we’ve tried that mirror...”

“Do you think that Twilight chick will actually let us go home?” asked Sonata, “I mean, we did kinda do a lot of horrible stuff to her and her pals. I’d still be pretty peeved if someone did all that to you and Aria.”

Aria just scowled, and Adagio felt something inside her clench, and her voice grew stronger, “If I have to I’ll use Sunset’s book to write to the Princess myself, whichever one will listen.”

“Pfft, what would that accomplish?” asked Aria, unimpressed.

Because I’ll tell them about how all of this is my fault, and that you two shouldn't have to suffer any more for my mistakes. Even if I have to stay here, I’ll ask that my sisters can return to Equestria. I’ll beg if I have to. Adagio thought, but couldn’t bring herself to say any of it out loud, and the trek back to Discord’s shop became quietly uncomfortable.

Once back at the shop the girls made for the front doors, and Adagio noticed they were just behind that odd gray cat, which was striding towards the doors as well, sinuously going up the front steps. The cat glanced back at them, its walled, yellow eyes gleaming, and Adagio thought it smiled as it swished its tail at them.

“Aww, hi kitty!” said Sonata happily, going up and opening the door for the cat. “There ya go!”

“Thanks,” said the cat in a breathy, squeaking male voice as it went through the door.

“You’re wel...come.?” Sonata blinked, still smiling, but trailing off in confusion as she exchanged a look with an equally floored looking Aria.

“Did that thing just talk?” Aria asked.

“No,” said the cat cheerfully, “This is all in your heads. It's the nuthouse for all of you, surely. Heheh!”

The cat laughed in a giggling cascade as it disappeared into the shop, leaving the three sirens to stare at each other. Finally Adagio sighed, saying flatly, “Equestria made so much more sense than this world.”

----------

Training was over for the day, a fair be earlier than normal, but Discord called it a reward for how hard they’d all been working that week.

“You girls have been putting in the blood and sweat, it’s only fair to let you have a little extra rest,” the eccentric man had said with a twist of a smile on his face, tearing off pieces of a muffin and casually feeding it to the gray cat on his shoulder, “In fact why don’t you all take the day off tomorrow? Yes, never know when something big might be coming up around the corner, so take a day for yourselves to relax and have some fun.”

Sunset glanced at the man sidelong, getting the distinct feeling he had a more specific reason for giving them a day off of training besides just wanting to reward them for hard work. She and her friends, along with the sirens, were all sitting around, picnic-style, not far from the stairs leading out of the training grounds. Coffee and pastries had been distributed and Sunset was thoroughly enjoying the combination of mocha and scone. Helped smooth over her simmering frustration over her encounter with her Zanpaktou spirit. A part of her wanted to go right back in there and pummel answers out of her she-demon self. Not that imagined that’d get her anywhere. The she-demon was strong, and likely would just kick her right back out again.

“Ya doin’ alright there Sunset?” asked Applejack, wiping muffin crumbs off her shirt, “Yer lookin’ mighty intense there.

“Huh? Oh, sorry, just thinking.”

“Ooo, what about? Are they tasty thoughts for your juicy brainpan?” asked Pinkamena, stretching out a limb like a squid’s tentacle and snatching up a scone, hauling it back to her and tossing the pastry into her widely open mouth, where she then chewed in exaggerated motions while staring hungrily at Sunset.

Nearby, Rarity shivered and gave Pinkamena a scornful look, then said to Pinkie Pie, who was seated right next to her double, “PInkie Pie, must you keep your... your pet summoned?”

“What?” Pinkie Pie asked innocently, taking a big sip from a large frappuccino, “She’s hungry, and we’re hanging out, right Pinkamena?”

“Mmmhmm, and aren’t I being just so well behaved? I didn’t try to eat a single one of your friends today! I think that show’s I’m growing as a person. What do you think, Rare-Rare, isn’t it nice I didn’t bite or even try to lick you at all today?” asked Pinkamena, far too sweetly, blue eyes sparkling with all the sweetness of a wolf licking its chops.

“Yeah, because you were too busy trying to chomp on me,” said Rainbow Dash in a voice made from pure, distilled deadpan, “Good thing I’m too fast to let a walking dental nightmare get the better of me.”

Pinkamena just giggled, “One day I will taste the rainbow.”

"Not anytime soon," Rainbow said, shuddering faintly before blinking and peering at Pinkamena, "By the way, what's with the eyes?"

"I use them to peep at soon-to-be snacks," Pinkamena replied with a snicker, but Rainbow Dash just waved it off.

"Nah, I mean, like, why are they blue right now?"

The other girls, hearing this, all leaned over to get a look at Pinkamena's face, Rarity gingerly raising a hand to her chin, "Why Rainbow Dash, you're right. Weren't they yellow before?"

Pinkie Pie snaked around to get nearly nose to nose with Pinkamena, her own baby blue eyeballs seeming to near pop out as she eyed her doppelganger, "Whoa, freaky-deaky. You're eyes are like mine now, Mena, instead of being all yellow and Hollow-y."

Pinkamena let out a short snort and pushed Pinkie Pie back, her eyes briefly flickering to yellow before returning to sharp blue, "Don't think about it too hard, or you'll break something in that squishy head of yours. My eyes go yellow when I'm in the mood. The mood for munchies, or screams. Or both. Mostly both."

“And on that disturbing note, do we get a day off tomorrow too?” asked Aria, who was the only one of the group besides Discord who wasn’t sitting. She had her arms crossed over her chest, and was eyeing the cat on Discord’s shoulder. Sunset wondered why, until she noticed the cat actually smile and wink at Aria, who gave a start and looked away. Sunset blinked. Had she just seen that?

“Hm? Oh, I suppose so,” said Discord, “You three have earned it too. By the way Miss Adagio, I have some good news for you.”

The siren stuck in a small plush doll raised her head from where she’d been forlornly eyeing the bag of pastries she couldn’t eat, eyeing Discord both quizzically and with a fair hint of suspicion. Discord only smiled at the look, and continued to say, “Progress on repairing the damage to your original body has been going quite a bit smoother than even my predictions anticipated. It should be ready for your soul to be returned to it in as little as three or four more days. A week at most.”

Adagio looked stunned, and was quickly snatched up into a hug by Sonata, “Did you hear that, Dagie? You’re going to be back to your big poofy haired self in no time!”

“Uh, yeah, that’s... good,” Adagio said.

“Aww c’mon, show some enthusiasm!” said Sonata, eyeing Adagio curiously, “Or are you starting to like the cute new cuddly body more than the old one?”

“No! I want my body back. I just didn’t expect it this soon,” Adagio said, looking at Discord, expression reserved, guarded, “Is there a reason it's going so fast?”

For a moment Discord’s face seemed shadowed by his green and white stripped hat, both the hat and the long bangs of his unkempt white hair obscuring his eyes as he said, “Let’s just say that there’s some interesting differences between your soul and a normal human’s that I believe has to do with the fact that you sirens, much like Miss Sunset, come from another world. Your soul is much more efficient at absorbing energy than the average human soul, I think because consuming energy is a natural part of your nature as a siren.”

“But our gems were destroyed. We can’t eat magic anymore,” said Aria glumly.

“I don’t know anything about that,” said Discord with a shrug, “I never examined any of you while you were still had these gems you’re so attached to. No matter your connection to those gems, or how that connection was severed, your souls still possess the basic structure and makeup that allowed you to consume energy at a rapid rate, even if the object that acted as a physical medium for that process was destroyed. Hmm... think of it like this, even if you lost the use of your mouth, you’d still technically have a stomach. It’s like that. What I’m doing with Adagio’s body is sort of like connecting a feeding tube, metaphysically speaking, to her ‘stomach’ or rather the part of her that can absorb energy. It bypasses whatever system was in place that utilized your gem, and feeds the soul directly. Understand?”

Aria didn’t look like she did, and Sonata had a very clear bluescreen effect filling her eyes, while Adagio just looked thoughtful. Meanwhile Pinkamena’s own stomach growled loudly and she whined, “All these eating metaphors are making me want to nibble something warm. Any volunteers?”

Pinkie Pie sighed, “Okay, might be time for you to go to bed, Mena. You’re starting to salivate too much.”

There was a trail of drool slowly pooling from the corner of Pinkamena’s mouth, which she licked away and gave Pinkie Pie a challenging look, “You haven’t given me a decent meal yet. When are you going to let me sink my teeth into something meaty? All this human food barely puts a dent in my tummy’s rumblings. I need a real snack, like a big tender Hollow!”

Sunset saw that Pinkie Pie was more than bit unnerved, her expression thick with unease as she said, “You’ll just have to wait and be patient until some Hollows show up, and I don’t want you going overboard when they do. Now come on, go to sleep. I’ve kept you out to have some fun hanging out, but I can’t keep it up forever.”

“Tch, fine, but the next time you bring me out there’d better be something I can gorge myself on, otherwise I’m going to show you what I’m like when I get cranky,” said Pinkamena, glowing and dissolving into a fine pink mist that flowed around and into Pinkie Pie. Afterward Rarity made a disgusted face.

“I’m so sorry Pinkie Pie, I just don’t know how you can stand dealing with that bore. She’s utterly lacking in any social graces.”

“I kinda like her,” said Sonata, “She just likes some good food. Girl has her priorities straight, far as I’m concerned.”

“Sonata, you do realize when she’s talking about eating, most the time she’s thinking about eating people, right?” asked Aria.

“Really!?” Sonata’s expression looked honestly incredulous, then slowly blanched, “Okay, nevermind, that's super creepy.”

“She’s not that bad,” Pinkie Pie said, looking a tad dejected, and Rainbow Dash came over to her, sitting down and giving the other girl a hard path on the shoulder.

“Its cool, Pinkie, don’t sweat it. So your other half’s got a bit of a weird streak, at least you got her under control. I mean, who’d of thought you could pull off the assertive, take charge role? I think its pretty awesome the way you handle Pinkamena.”

“Yeah, heheh, I’m totally handling her,” said Pinkie Pie, and while it sounded fairly confident and Pinkie Pie even managed a solid laugh, Sunset had a feeling that her friend was a lot more worried than she was letting on.

“So, um, not to sour the hanging out mood with talk of work, but is anyone else wondering why there’s been so few Hollows this past week?” asked Twilight suddenly. The girl had been pretty quiet since sitting down and nursing her cup of coffee. Sunset didn’t even think Twilight liked coffee all that much, but she hadn’t said anything about it. Twilight also hadn’t touched any of the pastries. Again Sunset was reminded of the way Twilight always seemed to be tired lately, with little scrapes and bruises on her hands.

“Maybe they’re just tired of getting their butts kicked by us?” said Rainbow Dash, looking over at Fluttershy, “Though it was Fluttershy that got to do the honors last time. Still jealous you sent that freaky Arranwhatever packing before the rest of us got there.”

Fluttershy cringed a bit, whispering, “I didn’t really mean to. I know they just want to hurt us, but I felt sort of bad for him. He said he might die if he didn’t finish transforming, and i wasn’t sure what that meant.”

Discord’s face had become serious for a moment as he reached up and scratched the gray cat on his shoulder under the chin idly, “From what you said it sounded as if that Hollow was being somehow forced through the evolutionary process, in a manner that made the whole transformation unstable. It may sound cruel, but that’s a good thing for us. Arrancar are not to be taken lightly, and that Hollow’s partially evolved state made him weak enough to make defeating him possible. Had he been a true Arrancar, even a weak one by their standards, it would have been a very different story.”

“How does this Hollow evolution even work?” asked Sunset, “All we’ve seen are regular Hollows, then that Grand Fisher guy, then the half-Arrancar. Are there more kinds than that?”

“Oh most definitely. Hm, let me show you,” Discord said, holding out an arm and speaking to the cat, “Give me a moment, my dear, I think this needs visual aids.”

The cat meowed at him and hopped off, and Sunset noticed all three sirens looking at the cat with equal levels of trepidation. Why were they looking at the cat like that? Strange. Once the cat was off his shoulder and sitting stretched out on a nearby rock, Discord reached into his robes and pulled out a sketchpad and box of crayons. Sunset didn’t even want to ask how he kept them hidden in there and just assumed his robes were as mysterious as Pinkie Pie’s own capacity for carrying assorted knick-knacks.

Drawing furiously for a minute, Discord showed them a picture of what Sunset figured had to be Hollows, if unnaturally adorable and small in comparison to the real thing.

“So you already know lesser Hollows,” Discord said, pointing to the first Hollow on the list, a big eyed critter looking like a cute little bat with a skull mask, “The vast majority of the Hollow population are made up of these corrupted human souls, who seek to eat the souls of other dearly departed and even their fellow Hollows. Everything from intelligence to strength and raw spiritual power varies widely among them, with some have little to none, while others possessing much greater levels of each, depending on how strong their will was as a human and how many souls they’ve consumed. Grand Fisher is still a lesser Hollow, but one who has eaten so many souls he is at the pinnacle of this category. Now, next up...”

He pointed at the next picture, which looked to Sunset like a large black thumb with a spiked collar and a white mask with a big pointy nose, and ridiculously large white booted feet, “Are the Gillians. A Gillian is formed when a Hollow reaches a certain point of power, upon which they combine with a number of other lesser Hollows to form a gigantic Hollow the size of a building. Gillians all look identical, and are usually mindless, but a rare few have a strong willed soul in control that directs the Hollow’s actions. A Gillian is powerful enough to challenge even a Soul Reaper Lieutenant, and can fire blasts of concentrated spirit energy known as Cero. Gillians usually spend their time hunting one another, devouring their fellow Gillian in a quest for every more power. Which of course leads to our next stage of evolution.”

The next picture was much like the lesser Hollows, but larger, a demonic looking entity that would have been intimidating with its spear-like claws and horned mask, but the chibified features and big dopey eyes sort of ruined the effect.

“This is an Adjuchas. These Hollows have personalities and full control over their mental faculties, while also having more power than a Gillian. Very few Hollows have the capacity to evolve past this point, though few ever need to as even an Adjuchas could defeat most Soul Reapers, with the exception of thirteen division Captains.”

Next to the picture of the Adjuchas there was a split line, two different arrows leading to separate pictures. One was of an Adjuchas chomping down on a pile of lesser Hollows, all waving their arms in cute little terror. The other picture was of an Adjuchas tearing off its skull mask and bursting with power.

“At the Adjuchas level there are two different ways for them to evolve further. One is to keep consuming Hollows, in hopes of becoming a Vasto Lorde, the most powerful classification of Hollow there is. Its rare, to the point of only one every few hundred years, for a Hollow to have the potential to become a Vasto Lorde. Such Hollows are so inconceivably strong that even a Soul Reaper Captain would be hard pressed to face one. The other method of evolution isn’t as rare, but still difficult to achieve, and that is the removal of the Hollow mask...”

Discord showed the last page, depicting a Hollow, but one that looked almost entirely human, save that the chibified human-like Hollow still had a few fragments of skull bone around its head and a Hollow hole in his chest. Otherwise he was shown wearing plain white clothes and carrying a sword.

“Doing this transforms the Hollow into an Arrancar. Hollows that possess a Zanpaktou, blurring the line between Hollow and Soul Reaper.”

“How in tarnation does that work?” asked Applejack, throwing her hands out, “Why’d takin’ their dang masks off suddenly give ‘em a Zanpaktou and make ‘em look all human again?”

Discord blinked at her, "The process isn't exactly well understood by anyone, since few have been present to study a Hollow actually going through the transformation. Remember that every Hollow was once a normal human soul. The human shape comes naturally to them, and the Hollow mask is part of the the sign of their corruption as Hollows. Removing the mask frees the spiritual body, in part, to retake its human shape. As for the Zanpaktou they have, that is more of a mystery. Their blades don't function like a Soul Reaper's Zanpaktou, which is a separate entity that grows in power alongside the Soul Reaper. An Arrancar's Zanpaktou more acts like a wellspring that absorbs the Arrancar's original Hollow form, storing it as a font of power to be released when needed."

Applejack just stared at him with a face screwed up in confusion, "I don't git it."

“Nevermind the details,” said Discord, “Whatever the reasons, this method is how Arrancar usually come into being. However, it sounds like now there’s an Arrancar out there that’s learned how to force the evolution onto far weaker Hollows that aren’t even at the Adjuchas stage. Bad news for us, certainly, though it seems as if the process isn’t perfect if it only managed to produce an unstable specimen like the one recently encountered.”

“Yeah, Clover and me were barely able to keep up with him,” said Sunset.

“Where’d Clover go off to, anyway?” asked Rainbow Dash, “She just up and vanished after coffee arrived.”

Sunset shrugged, “She said she wanted to check in with Soul Society and make her update report.”

“That poor dear works too hard,” said Rarity, “She really could have waited ten minutes to enjoy a break with us.”

Sunset wasn’t sure that it was about working hard so much as it was about Clover wanting to make sure her superiors were kept informed of everything that happened with Sunset and her friends. There was also the possibility she was looking into the matter of Applejack’s parents, which Clover had promised to do. Sunset hoped that was the case. Applejack hadn’t said much, but the girl’s mood had hardened some since the encounter with Grand Fisher. Even just sitting there relaxing along with the rest of them there was a certain intensity to Applejack, the girl’s face a shade more steeled and mouth less ready to crack a smile.

“Well, she can do what she wants, ain’t none o’ our business,” said Applejack, who then turned a look towards Rainbow Dash, “An’ while we may be gettin’ a day off, I say somebody oughta still go on patrol.”

“C’mon AJ, relax,” said Rainbow Dash, stretching her arms above her head and then leaning back on them, “We can chill for a day. Aren’t Screwloose and Screwball taking care of patrols anyway?”

Applejack’s voice turned sharp and harsh, “Maybe yer alright slackin’ off but not me!”

“Geez, lighten up, I was just saying we’ve worked ourselves ragged all week, and the D-man’s right, we deserve a break.”

Applejack stood up, suddenly, voice rising ot nearly a shout, “And when a Hollow attacks comes, slippin’ by Screwloose or Screwball’s patrolin’, what’ll ya be sayin’ then Dash? If one o’ them Hollows goes after our kin again, an someone dies, ya gonna just shrug an’ say ‘sorry, we was takin’ a break’!?”

Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack in mild shock, face reddening as she looked away and said, “I didn’t mean we should totally drop our guard. We’ll keep our Detectors on hand, sure, but we could still go do something fun. You remember fun, right AJ?”

A stubborn frown painted Applejack’s face and Pinkie Pie was quick to step between the two, smiling in a disarming fashion, “Okay, okay, let’s not have a repeat plot of the siren episode- eh, no offence girls,” she said to the sirens, to which Aria rolled her eyes, Adagio sighed, and Sonata just smiled.

“None taken,” said Sonata.

“A little taken,” said Aria.

“Meh,” was all Adagio said.

Applejack’s jaw tightened, but she nodded stiffly, “Yer right, Pinkie. I know it. Shouldn’t be snapping at any y’all, but... but if its all the same I’ll be patrolin’ tomorrow, alright? Y’all go have some fun, enjoy the day, but I’d just be goin’ stir crazy if I came with ya and probably be wretched company.”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Sunset, “You got as much reason as anyone to feel like keeping vigilant.”

“Thanks, I guess long as I know that Grand Fisher bastard is out there, I ain’t gonna be able to feel like things’re right...”

They all fell into a brief, solemn quiet after that, polishing off their coffee and pastries at a slow pace. At the end of it Discord headed for the stairs, scooping up the small gray cat, which purred happily. “You girls should go on home. The shop will be closed tomorrow.”

“Going somewhere?” asked Sunset curiously.

“No, I’ll just be busy with some... renovations,” said Discord casually, and gave a pointed look at the sirens, “I know it may be a hassle, but perhaps the three of you could join the rest of the girls on their day off? You’ll be able to come home once night comes, but for the day I’d like to have the place to myself.”

“Uhhh, okay?” said Sonata, exchanging looks with her sisters, until Pinkie Pie hopped up next to her.

“Hey, it’ll be fun! We can all go see a movie, or hit up the mall, or whatever we want! Girls day out, painting the town pink!”

“Or blue,” put in Sonata.

“Mmm, some shopping does sound like a lovely way to pass some time,” said Rarity, “I could look for some accessories to complement my dress. Oh, and Fluttershy, you could do with something to bring out the new colors your eyes take on when you transform. I’m thinking something in gold, or perhaps purple?”

“Oh, um, th-that’d be fine, I guess.”

Sunset smiled contently as her friends gradually got up and they drifted towards the exit, most of them talking plans for what to do with their Saturday. From the sound of things they were going to end up doing the mall, grabbing lunch, and maybe hitting up a movie if they could find anything interesting. It almost felt like it’d be a perfectly normal way to spend part of the weekend, totally at odds with the way the last couple of weeks had been. A part of her shared Applejack’s concerns. Just because the Hollows had been quiet for a few days that didn’t mean they wouldn’t show up at any given moment to cause trouble. She remembered all too clearly how much damage just one Hollow could do, reminded of the fact every time her eyes glanced towards Adagio.

We’re all stronger than we were when this started, but that doesn’t mean we can afford to relax too much. Even with the powers everyone has now, Discord has made it pretty clear that the Hollows can only get more powerful than what we’ve faced already. Could we even take on one of those Gillians, if one showed up in town? As big as a building?

Of course there’d be no way of knowing until they were actually faced with such a foe, but Sunset only felt more frustrated at the thought, feeling the weight of the Zanpaktou she wore all the heavier. How was she going to get the blade’s spirit to work with her? It was clear she could only become stronger by finding a way to strengthen the bond with her Zanpaktou, but that looked difficult to do while the she-demon was so pissed at her.

I really do need to think of something to call her other than ‘she-demon’. Red sounds too informal, and I think I used to own a puppy called that. Bitch Queen From Hell is a little over the top, though it sure fits my mood. Need to find a happy middle ground...

She still hadn’t settled on anything by the time they’d all exited the shop, out into what was still a fairly pleasant late afternoon, touching on early evening. Pinkie Pie gave a blanket offer of a sleepover for anyone who wanted to hang out at her place, and it sounded a lot better than stewing at home to Sunset, so she was all for it. So were most the rest of the girls, including the sirens, mostly because it looked like Sonata would drag her sisters there whether they wanted to go or not. However Twilight hesitated.

“I’d really like to, but I, um, have things I need to do at home. Yup, got some tests to run, and other... stuff...heh.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow at Twilight’s awkward, blushing features as the girl started to make a hasty exit, and said, “Hey, Twilight wait up, I’ll walk you partway home at least. You’re the only one without powers, and you never know when a Hollow might crop up.”

“Oh, that’s okay, I’ll be fine-” Twilight began, but Sunset shook her head, cutting her off.

“I want to chat a bit with you anyway. Hey, girls, why don’t you all head on over to Pinkie Pie’s and I’ll catch up with you there?”

“Okie dokie loki!” said Pinkie Pie, “Have a nice not-awkward chat with Twilight!”

As the rest of the girls headed off for the bus stop that’d take them towards the part of the suburbs where Pinkie Pie’s home was, Sunset and Twilight began the longer walk towards the edge of town with Twilight’s family mansion. The roads were fairly quiet for a Friday evening, and the sidewalks even more clear. It was enjoyable warm, spring starting to get that heated tinge of summer edge to it. In only another month or so it’d be summer break, and Sunset wondered if that would make their lives easier or harder? No more schoolwork to focus on, but then they’d have a lot more time to train and deal with Hollows.

She wondered just how far this would all go? Was patrolling for roving Hollows going to be a factor for the rest of their lives? Would they always be hunted now but the otherworldly creatures? And what of the Soul Society? Clover was training her for the time being, but Clover had also made it clear that this was all a temporary arrangement until the Soul Reaper bigwigs decided what to do about a ‘human’ having Soul Reaper powers, not to mention how they might respond to her friends developing odd powers of their own... powers that they still didn’t understand the origin of.

Our lives are even more turned upside down than usual, and let’s face it, none of us are heading for a normal life at this point. Do any of the girls really understand that this might not be a short-term adventure that’ll get resolved and allow us to go back to our daily grind? We might never be able to go back to the way things were...

It was a sobering thought. Sunset was sort of resolved to the idea of spending her life in a constant state of instability, dealing with one crisis or another as they came, but she hadn’t ever really had long term plans beyond ‘survive high school’. She’d had vague notions of maybe going into some kind of research job, or maybe something to do with archaeology. She somehow doubted sword skills and battling evil underworld demons were skills most colleges looked at for accepting potential undergrads.

Putting aside those thoughts, she turned her attention to Twilight. The girl walked beside her with a distinctly nervous gait, eyes shifting about and often adjusting her glasses despite them not needing it. It’d been obvious that Twilight was hiding something, but Sunset was hesitant to push too hard to pry it out of her friend. First of all Twilight was a friend, and Sunset knew she ought to trust her. Whatever she didn’t want to talk about Twilight must have had good reasons for it.

Still... Twilight was relatively new to the whole having friends thing, it couldn’t hurt to give her the chance to open up. Not push, per se, but just offer the opportunity to talk if she wanted to.

“So, Twilight,” Sunset began, adopting as casual and openly friendly a tone as she could, “How have things been going on your end?”

“Huh?” Twilight looked at her, blinking, “W-what do you mean?”

“Well, you know, with the research you’ve been doing, both on me and the rest of the girls. Or anything else you might have going on. Just checking to see how you’re doing with it all,” Sunset said.

A glimmer of relief crossed Twilight’s face and she settled into a more easy walk, voice lightening, “The research has been going well, actually. I’ve collected a lot of data. Heh, I know that probably doesn’t sound very exciting, as I still haven’t had time to properly analyze it all, but what I have been able to do has given me some interesting insights to the metaphysical bonds between spirit energy and the physical body. While a human body does seem to act like an inhibitor to spiritual power I think that’s just because there are specific conduits inside the body that act like valves, which by default are closed.”

“Really? How can you tell?”

“It's not that different than examining circulatory system. In fact I’d say that spirit energy inside the soul flows through the body in almost the exact same way blood flows through one’s veins and arteries, and just like your circulatory system there are spots where the flow is concentrated, and in some places can be restricted,” Twilight said, her mind now purely in a state of gleeful analysis, her face bright and smiling as she talked theory, “Studying our friend’s spirit energy as it flowed through their bodies during their training sessions using these new powers gave me the idea that something forced open the ‘valves’ that normally would have restricted the flow of their spirit energy, allowing these new powers to take shape. I’m not sure what it was that opened the valves, so to speak, but give the connection between the new powers and their ‘ponies up’ forms its safe to theorize that the magic of friendship has something to do with it.”

“Equestrian magic,” Sunset mused, “You think having Equestrian magic, the magic that stems from the virtues of friendship, is what’s opened up their spiritual ‘valves’ and allowed these powers to form?’

“Partially. There’s still the question of what’s fueling the powers themselves. I mean, could any human access powers like this if they had the valves opened? Or is there something else inside the girls that’s fueling the powers? I don’t know yet. I need more time to study them. Then of course there’s you, Sunset, being a whole different matter with your Zanpaktou. I got some good data today when you communed with your sword, but I’ll need time to really go over it and figure out how that connection works. Maybe I’ll find a way for you to commune with the Zanpaktou more easily.”

Sunset nodded enthusiastically, “I’ll take any help I can get.”

Twilight was quiet for a few seconds, her smile fading slightly as she said, “You didn’t just ask that because you were curious about my research theories, were you?”

With a slight gulp Sunset said, “I... heh, well, I was just seeing if there was anything you wanted to talk about. Anything that might be bothering you. You’ve seemed pretty distracted lately.”

They’d reached a crosswalk, and through the sign flashed for them to cross, Twilight stopped, haling in place at the edge of the sidewalk. Sunset watched her as Twilight clasped her hands nervously in front of her, looking at the ground with the creased, tight features of someone debating something internally quite fiercely. After a minute she looked up at Sunset, an almost pleading look in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Sunset, but I can’t talk about it. Not right now. I know that’s not much of an answer, and probably not what you wanted to hear but...”

Sunset shook her head, lightly touching Twilight’s shoulder with a gentle squeeze, “I know, Twilight. It’s okay. I just wanted to let you know that I’m willing to listen, if whatever’s bothering you becomes too much to handle on your own. Not just me, any of the girls would be there to listen, and help in any way they could, if you wanted them to.”

With a slow, grateful nod, Twilight said in a quiet voice, “Thank you, for trusting me. I... I promise that I wouldn’t be keeping things to myself unless it was really important for me to. I don’t really want to, but I have to. For now, at least.”

“That’s all I needed to hear. Come on, let’s get you home,” Sunset said, offering Twilight a comforting smile, which soon enough Twilight returned, and the two girls continued on their way.

----------

When Twilight entered the front doors of her mansion, having bid Sunset a good night well before reaching her mansion’s driveway, she was shocked to see that her mother was waiting in the entry hall to greet her. Twilight Velvet swept her daughter up in a tight hug before Twilight Sparkle had much of a chance to do more than squeak in surprise.

“Ah, here’s my little girl! I hope your studies have been going well?”

Fear shot through Twilight for a moment, “S-studies!?” Had Shining Armor already told her parents about her training as a Quincy!? He said he was keeping it between them and Cadence.

Velvet kept hugging her tightly, laughing, “Yes, at school. You’ve been doing well at Canterlot High? The teachers are treating you fairly, despite transferring over mid-term?”

“Oh, that’s what you- I mean, yes! Yes, everything has just been, uh... peachy?”

Velvet looked at her critically for a brief second, then was all motherly smiles again, “I suppose its silly of me to worry. I can’t think of a time you weren’t a straight A student. You started correcting your brother’s homework when you were nine. Still, have you had any difficulty adjusting to being around so many new people?” For a second Velvet’s eyes became incredibly, harshly cold, “I know some bullies just love to pick on the new girl.”

“Nope, no bullies,” Twilight said quickly, “Everyone there has been very nice to me.”

Velvet finally released Twilight and took a step back, “Good. I was displeased to learn you’d been having such a hard time at Crystal Prep,” Again a strangely cold look crossed Velvet’s features, “I’ve had some discussions with Principal Cinch concerning her treatment of you. She... conveys her apologies.”

Something about the way her mother said that made Twilight feel exceedingly uneasy, even scared. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts she hastily said, “I never expected an apology from Principle Cinch, but she hasn’t exactly been on my mind. I’m done with that school, and her, so, uh, let’s talk about something else. Is father home as well?”

Velvet nodded, “Just so, and yes he is. He has a business partner over for dinner tonight. We’re entertaining her while she’s in town for business matters, and you’ll meet her if you’ll join us for dinner. Her name is Fleur De Lis. You should go change for dinner...”

At that moment Velvet paused, looking Twilight over more carefully, and Twilight realized she still probably had some dirt on her from the training grounds at Discord’s shop. Even if she wasn’t directly training there, she was around a lot of dust and dirt there as the girls did their sparring. On top of that she was still probably a little frayed from training with Shining Armor that morning. Velvet’s eyes didn’t narrow, but they did take on a questioning light.

“Have you been playing outside with your friends? Those new Canterlot High friends?”

“Y-yup! Rainbow Dash is always dragging us into playing one sport or another, and you know, can’t always sit on the bench with a book in my hands. Hehehe...heh...”

Why am I so utterly horrible at lying? Twilight thought nervously as she sweated under her mother’s intense gaze. Still, it seemed as if luck was smiling on her as her mother didn’t press the issue, instead just nodding and saying, “Well, at least you’re getting out more. Now go, get ready for dinner. It will be in about twenty minutes, so you have time to freshen up.”

“Yes, mother,” Twilight said and hurriedly scurried away, glad to be out from under her mother’s questioning look. As she strode up the large, central stairs of the main hall and made her way through some side doors that would lead towards her room, she thought about what she now knew about her parents.

It was difficult to resolve the image of her mother lovingly hugging her with the picture in her mind of the Quincy, warriors who battled Hollows with bows of light. How had her parents managed to keep this secret from her for so long? All of those ‘business trips’, were they all excuses for her parents to go about performing their duties as Quincy? Was there any truth at all to what she thought she’d known about her family?

And what part do I want to play in the ‘family business’, now that I know?

She didn’t feel very close to an answer. Her training with Shining Armor and Cadence had been going well, at least. Cadence was a very strict teacher, far more so than Twilight would have expected, but was never unfair. Twilight had grown up with the kindly older girl as a near nightly babysitter and looked up to Cadence. Twilight admired and respected Cadence like an older sister, and while she was embarrassed at just how lovey-dovey her brother and Cadence could be together, a part of her couldn’t be happier that Shining Armor and Cadence were an item. There were probably no two people in all the world Twilight would trust more, and under their tutelage she was learning to control the powers of a Quincy quite rapidly.

Shining Armor claimed it was because she was a natural prodigy, but Twilight just assumed she had good teachers. Thus far she could summon and maintain her bow at will. Prolonged use still hurt her hands, leaving it bruised if she kept a steady rate of firing arrows for more than ten or fifteen minutes, but the strength of her arrows and her accuracy had grown steadily over the week until she could hit four out of every ten training targets... which might not sound all that good but by Twilight’s standards it was incredible! Just a few months ago she could barely hit a target with a regular bow at the Friendship Games.

The more advanced Quincy techniques were still a mystery to her. There was a form of high speed movement Shining Armor and Cadence could use that looked a lot like the Soul Reaper Flash Step, though the Quincy move was called Hirenkyaku. There were techniques that involved combinations of spirit particle manipulation and alchemy, usually with a type of ‘holy water’ that was saturated with reishi to perform various tasks. She was eager to learn more about those, but apparently she needed to learn a lot more fine tuned reishi control before she could try.

It was all thrilling to learn, but it also started to mount her feeling of guilt. Sooner or later she’d have to choose what to do with the power she was learning. She’d need to decide if she was going to fully join the Quincy cause, or instead focus solely on helping her friends.

Do they have to be mutually exclusive? Twilight wondered. Shining Armor seemed to think it was inevitable that the Soul Reapers would turn on Sunset and the other girls, but Twilight wasn’t so certain. She’d only met Clover and, in passing, Fancy Pants. Neither had seemed like bad people. Could she really join a war against people she had no reason to even dislike, let alone hate?

“You look like you’ve got a lot on your mind.”

Twilight nearly tripped over herself, having not even noticed Shining Armor leaning against the wall beside the door to her room. He was wearing casual clothes, which almost seemed strange to her now that she’d gotten so used to seeing him in his white Quincy uniform during their training.

“Hi Shining, I was just coming to change for dinner. Mother and father have a guest over, apparently?” she said, coming up to her door. Shining Armor gave a nod, his face schooled to a serious mask.

‘Fleur De Lis. As you’ve probably already guessed, she’s also a Quincy, and of the same rank myself, our parents, and Cadence are.”

“What’s happening?” Twilight asked, “Are they... are they here because of Sunset?”

“I don’t think they know about Sunset yet, otherwise they’d also have guessed your involvement. No, mom and dad are here, along with our guest, because there’s trouble brewing and we’ve been put on standby to deal with it in case said trouble falls here, on this city. Given recent events, I’d call it a safe bet. Which is why I was also going to ask you to stick around the mansion this weekend.”

“But Shining, if there’s some kind of trouble coming I ought to be with my friends!” said Twilight, “I should warn them!”

“Oh really? And just where will you tell them you got this intel form, Twily? Your Quincy brother?” Shining Armor asked plainly, which set Twilight to shifting back on her heels, as she really didn’t have a clear answer to those questions.

“I... I don’t now. Maybe I could make up a story about inventing a machine that predicts future events?”

“I don’t think your pal Sunset would actually buy that,” Shining Armor said in a flat tone, then rubbed his chin, “Rainbow Dash or Pinkie Pie, maybe, but most of your friends are too smart to fall for something that implausible sounding.”

Twilight frowned deeply at him, but eventually had to nod, “I guess you’re right, that wouldn’t work. I can’t just sit here and do nothing, though! What is this impending danger anyway?”

“Don’t suppose during any of your friends’ training the term ‘Gillian’ has come up?” asked Shining Armor, and Twilight gulped, nodding slowly as she recalled Discord’s brief description of the giant, powerful Hollows. Seeing her look, Shining Armor sighed gravely. “There’s a whole bunch of them being corralled together by an even stronger Hollow, and while we can’t be sure, smart money's on them intending to strike here. Hence why mother and father are here, with company.”

Twilight felt her mouth go dry, “How many is a ‘whole bunch’, exactly?”

“A hundred, give or take a few. Plus a lot more than that in lesser Hollows.”

Twilight wondered if fainting and banging her head on her own room’s door frame would exempt her from going to dinner. Her legs suddenly felt weak and she put a hand on the wall to keep herself steady, “That many? Can you and our parents even handle that?”

“Well we do have Fleur De Lis with us, and Cadence will be there to fight as well. All five of us rank among the top ten warriors among the Quincy, through Fleur is probably on the lower end of that scale. All of us have fought Gillians before and taken them down. Granted the most I ever fought at once was, uh... ten, but that’s only because it's rare for Gillians to gather in such large numbers. We’ve got this. Don’t worry so much, Twily. All I want you to do is stay here at the mansion. If you’re out in the city it’ll be that much harder to protect you.”

“You’re not going to let those monsters into the city are you? You can keep them out, somehow, right?” Twilight asked, aghast at the thought of such a horde of Hollows rampaging through downtown while battling her family and friends. It was a nightmarish mental image that left her feeling cold inside.

“We should be able to, yes. Quincy have methods of keeping Hollows warded off from certain locations. Why do you think we never had any crawling all over our mansion over the years? And I myself have... unique powers designed for this kind of situation.” Shining Armor reached out and ruffled her hair, “Relax. Big brother is on the job. No worries. And I’ll keep an eye out for your friends. I won’t let anything happen to them either. I just need you to promise me you’ll stay here.”

“I...” Twilight hesitated, but her brother’s eyes remained sternly locked on her. She knew he wasn’t going to let this go. He was likely only thinking of her safety, but she still didn’t like the idea of hiding inside the mansion if an attack came. Not while her friends would be out there, fighting. Yet Shining Armor’s eyes were as unbending as steel, and Twilight eventually nodded her head quietly.

“That’s my sis,” Shining Armor said, patting her shoulder, “I’ll see you at dinner.”

As he walked away down the hall, Twilight took a moment to compose herself before going into her room, wondering if she’d done the right thing.

----------

The records archive of the Twelfth Division was a labyrinth of interlocking rooms packed full of texts, scrolls, and more esoteric methods of storing information such as tablets of stone, or strange orbs that contained visual recordings of certain events. Shelf upon shelf was piled with such items, in a set of rooms so vast and winding it’d be easy to get lost if one didn’t know where one was going.

Clover, fortunately, had a fair notion of what she was looking for. The death of Applejack’s parents, eight years ago, left a fairly narrow margin of records from that time frame for her to check, and she’d spent hours already pouring over dozens of scrolls containing mission reports and project updates from that year. Unfortunately she wasn’t turning up anything useful. Sitting at one of the few tables set up among the shelves for just the kind of purpose she was using it for, Clover rubbed her eyes as she set aside yet another pile of scrolls to begin looking over.

I prefer not to think this, but if there is any mention of Applejack’s mother and father, it doesn’t look like it’s in the records I have authority to access. I could try sneaking past the wards on the higher clearance materials, but there’s no way I’d succeed. Those wards were placed long ago by Kido masters far more skilled in the art than I. Hmm... it’s starting to look like my only option is to approach the Captain openly and just request if he’ll let me have access to the restricting records. Maybe if I ask really nicely?

What bothered her was that there wasn’t any reason the death of Applejack’s parents should be in a restricted file. Thousands of people died every day, and while the vast majority fo those deaths were by mortal causes, there was always a small percentage that were the result of Hollow attacks. Sadly, the Soul Reapers couldn’t be everywhere across the world all at once, despite their best efforts to keep a few stationed in almost every major population center there was. Sometimes people just... slipped through the cracks. Applejack’s parents were likely such a pair, in a rare instance where a Hollow attacked, and there couldn’t be a Soul Reaper nearby to protect them.

But if that were the case, where’s the report on it? Incidents like that happen, and there’d be no reason to keep it hidden. I know it’d only make Applejack mad that no Soul Reaper had been there to stop Grand Fisher, but at least I’d have something to tell her. I could give the poor girl closure. Yet there’s nothing here. That’s just... strange.

“You’re quite the busy bee, Clover. I thought you’d be trying to get a little rest before returning to the world of the living.”

Clover turned in her seat, seeing behind her a man in the same kind of black robed uniform of a Soul Reaper she wore, only he wore the white armband and wooden badge of a Lieutenant, with the marking of the Twelfth Division. He was fairly tall, with dusky green skin on a lanky frame. His hair was a light shade of yellow, like straw, combed back neatly and long enough to fall past his shoulders. A pair of amused brown eyes gleamed with intelligence.

“Lieutenant Meadowbrook,” Clover said, standing from her seat and bowing respectfully to her superior, “What can I do for you, sir?”

“Be at ease, for one,” he replied with an easy tone, “Too much formality gives me stomach cramps, hence why I transferred from the Sixth to the Twelfth. Well, that and the Sixth Division already had a Lieutenant and I wasn’t about to pass up a shot at promotion. Really, Clover, relax. If you keep your head bowed like that I’m going to be tempted to use it as a spot to set my tea.”

Clover felt her face flush and quickly raised her head, “Yes, Lieutenant.”

Meadowbrook scratched his head, “I can see this is going to take some work. Well, no matter. So, what are you looking for down here? Looks like you have quite the pile you’ve been working through.”

“This?” Clover glanced back at the table stacked high with scrolls and books. She hadn’t actually needed to ask permission to access any of these files, as her rank as Third Seat gave her that automatically. Hence she hadn’t actually told either the Captain or Lieutenant about what she’d been doing down here. It wasn’t that she was intentionally hiding what she was looking for, it just honestly hadn’t occurred to her to bother informing her superiors about the matter yet. She didn't see any reason not to, now that the Lieutenant was here, asking. He might even be able to get her access to the more restricted files, now that she thought about it.

“You see Lieutenant, its like this...” she began, quickly and concisely explaining the situation with Applejack, and how there was some mystery surrounding the exact events that occurred on the night of her parent’s death. Meadowbrook listened intently, expression contemplative with a hint of intrigued.

When Clover was finished, ending off on explaining her interest in checking the restricted files, he said, “I share your curiosity, Clover. It does sound strange something that common, however tragic, wouldn’t be in records a Third Seat could access. Being as how I only transferred here recently I don’t actually know what was going on here in the Twelfth Division eight years ago, but... wasn’t that around the time of the, uh, ‘incident’ with the Twelfth Division's previous Captain?”

Clover knew all too well what Meadowbrook was talking about, and immediately corrected him, “That was further back, actually, closer to ten years ago. Captain Starswirl had already taken over after his predecessor by the time Applejack’s parents were killed. I don’t think that ‘incident has anything to do with it.”

“Hmm,” Meadowbrook looked intensely thoughtful, then just shrugged, “I suppose there’s no reason not to let you look at the restricted files. Keep in mind there are some you’d need the Captain’s authorization to look at, but I can get you into most of the classified reports. But just what are you expecting to find, Clover?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted, “Anything that would just give Applejack some final closure on what happened to her parents. Proof that Soul Society didn’t have anything to do with it, and it really was just a turn of misfortune with encountering Grand Fisher.”

“And what if you find the opposite of that?” Meadowbrook asked, leaning against the shelf, arms crossing as he tilted his head at her, “What if you find some report that indicates that Soul Society, specifically the Twelfth Division, did have some involvement with their deaths? Call me a romantic conspiracy theorist, but what if, worst case scenario, you find some top secret project that shows their deaths were Soul Society’s direct fault? Would you tell that human girl the truth, knowing it’d essentially turn her against you, maybe end whatever budding friendship you’ve got going with her and the rest of her friends, your star pupil included?”

Clover just blinked at him, shaken at the very thought of what he was saying being possible. “I... I hadn’t even considered that being a possibility. I’m certain that the Twelfth Division couldn’t have really had anything to do with it. Or if we did, it had to be some kind of honest accident.”

“I’m sure that’s the case, and sorry if I upset you, I was just curious if you’d even considered the possibility of the worse outcome of your investigation. Seeking the truth is a noble cause, but only if you’re prepared for what you find,” said Meadowbrook. He then let out a light chuckle, “In any case, you’ll be returning to the world of the living tomorrow, so if you’re going to get looking through those files, we’d best get you in the restricted area, eh? Let’s go, before the Captain starts wondering where both of his officers got off to. Knowing him he might assume we’re having some sordid liaison.”

“Li-Lieutenant! I’d never!” Clover said in hasty protest.

“Geez, injure a man’s pride much?”

“Not what I meant, um... per se,” said Clover, to which Meadowbrook just laughed.

“Oh, I do think I’m going to enjoy having you for a subordinate to tease at my leisure.”

----------

When Sunset woke up she knew that something wasn’t right. She had no visual evidence of this, the room was much as it’d been when she’d drifted off to sleep. Pinkie Pie’s room at her house was fairly spacious, and Sunset and the rest of the girls could manage to fit in there with a variety of cots and sleeping bags as they had several times before when they stayed the night. It’d taken a little extra work to get the sirens to fit, involving clearing out some space in the closet to add some headroom, but much like a game of human Tetris they’d managed to squeeze everyone in.

The night had been fun, if perhaps a shade tense. Games were played, pizza was ordered, and a lot of relaxing, meaningless small talk between movies selected from Pinkie Pie’s personal collection; mostly comedies, unsurprisingly. The only points of oddity that stood out in Sunset’s mind had been how Adagio remained generally quiet through the whole night, and the fact that Pinkie Pie’s older sister Maud had kept checking in on them, far more so than usual.

Waking up still curled up and toasty warm in her sleeping bag, Sunset raised her head, eyeing the window. Still dark, but the clock on Pinkie Pie’s bed-stand said it was just a quarter past five in the morning. Earlier than what was normal for her to wake up but that wasn’t what was bothering her. She had a uneasy feeling in her gut, and after a second she realized it was because the usual chirping of birds, something she almost always could hear as background noise coming from outside, was gone. It was entirely too quiet.

Standing, still in her pajamas, Sunset picked her way gingerly over the other sleeping girls to the wall where she’d set her Zanpaktou. It was a good thing the sword wasn’t visible to normal humans otherwise she’d have had a hard time explaining having it to Pinkie Pie’s family. She’d had to hide the sheath Rarity had made inside a cloth bundle attached to her backpack, which she left for now to just pick up the Zanpaktou itself as she headed for the door. She considered waking her friends, but she’d feel silly if all she had was a vague feeling of unease and some quiet birds.

Besides, they all had their Detectors close at hand, and those things would go off if a bunch of Hollows showed up. Although the half-Arrancar had had that strange charm that’d hidden his presence. She hesitated at the door for a moment, glancing back at her still sleeping friends. Before she could decide one way or the other the door opened on its own and she nearly jumped to the ceiling, only to see Maud’s stoic face staring at her in the doorway.

“There’s something outside in the back yard,” Maud said plainly, her expression unchanging but Sunset got the sensation the girl was tense, “I think this is like last time. You can see them, right? You should look while I wake everyone.”

Sunset had suspected that maybe Maud hadn’t taken to the memory replacement device Clover had used to alter the memories of Pinkie Pie’s family previously, and this just confirmed it. She gulped and nodded, “Good idea. If it's bad, I’ll shout. Get ready to get your parents and sisters to safety if its something bad.”

Maud merely gave the smallest of nods, and brushed past Sunset to start quietly waking the girls, while Sunset headed out towards the hallway leading to the living room, which stretched from one side of the house to the other, with a wide set of windows that showed the back yard. The house had undergone partial repairs from the Hollow attack the previous week, and while the upstairs still had a hole in it that wasn’t fully fixed yet, the downstairs was more or less back to normal. Sunset went to the window and looked outside.

At first she didn’t see anything. The yard looked clear all the way back to a distant treeline. Sunset frowned, then looked up, and gasped.

There was a hole in the sky! It looked a lot like the portal that the half-Arrancar had opened when Fluttershy had controlled his mind and forced him to run away. It was the same mouth-like portal, with edges akin to yawning teeth, leading to a plane of blackness beyond. However this portal was massive; easily a hundred feet in length and opening a cavernous forty to fifty feet wide.

To make matters worse, as she opened the window to stick her head out and get a better look at things, she noticed to the left and right, very distant, perhaps several miles off towards the other end of the suburbs, there was another of the same gaping portals opening. And if she looked the other way, towards the lights of downtown, there was yet another of the same portals, appearing like a distant black slit in the lightening sky of pre dawn.

“This can’t be good,” she said, just at the very moment her Detector started to beep rapidly in warning. She didn’t even bother to check the device, because it really wasn’t needed. She could see what was coming, and it made her blood freeze.

At first it was just a massive foot, pointed and curled at the tip, pure white like bone as it smashed down to the ground about a hundred yards away from the house. The foot was the size of a short bus, and was attached to a body that looked like a massively tall, seemingly armless, humanoid, shrouded entirely in a wavering cloak of pure black. Around the Hollow’s neck were pointed spikes, leading to a rounded head containing a gigantic skull mask with a long pointed nose. The huge Hollow, a Gillian, Sunset recognized from Discord’s drawings, brought out its other foot and slammed it down to the ground, its whole body slowly emerging from the portal.

It opened its large, gaping maw and out from it exploded a howl that sounded as if it were made from the twisted merging of a thousand lesser Hollows. And then it looked down... straight at Sunset.

Episode 16: Invasion

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Episode Sixteen: Invasion

Adagio had been dreaming of the cool ocean depths of home. In summer the shallow reefs along the coast of the Celestial Sea had been beyond beautiful, where the sunlight could cut through the clear water like glass and illuminate an entire world of rioting colors from countless types of sea life. The simple life of swimming those reefs with her sisters, long before thoughts of ambition and power had soaked her mind, was what Adagio missed most. Even in her dream, where she should have felt free, she instead felt the chains around her. She felt the chain in her chest, where her gem should have been, pulling her down to darker ocean depths, where something large and monstrous lurked.

There was no resisting the pull, wrenching her from the sunlit shallows, dragging her into the cold grasping embrace of the murky abyss, and the thing that waited for her there. A skull shaped like her own face.

The crashing of a titanic impact threw Adagio and woke her instantly from the dream turned nightmare. She was disoriented for a moment as all the girls inside Pinkie Pie’s bedroom started to awake from the tremor that’d tossed them about.

“What in tarnation is that!?” shouted Applejack, first on her feet, with Rainbow Dash just a moment behind.

“It is likely another attack by those masked monsters,” said Maud, who was inexplicable in the room at the door, staring at all of the girls, save for Sunset Shimmer, whom Adagio just noticed wasn’t in the room. Another crash from outside shook the floorboards and Adagio felt a grip on her arm. Looking over she saw a terrified looking Sonata holding her arm tightly.

“Dagie, what do we do?”

“You have to ask? Run, obviously,” she said, looking to see that Aria was up and tensely looking as if she already planned to bolt for the door.

“Maudie, you go get the family and lead them somewhere safe,” said Pinkie Pie, already bouncing towards the door, “Let us handle this!”

Maud held out a hand, holding Pinkie Pie’s shoulder, and looking with a steady gaze at her sister, “Don’t take any risks, Pinkie. This is not the same kind of monster you fought before.”

“Whatever it is we’ll deal with it,” said Rainbow Dash, glancing around, “Where’s Sunset?”

As if being summoned Sunset Shimmer appeared in the doorway, and Adagio was severely unnerved by the naked fear in the other girl’s eyes as she said, “Girls, we have to get out of here, now!”

“What is it darling? What kind of Hollow-” Rarity began to ask, but another massive crashing noise from outside shook the entire house, and Rarity gulped, “Never mind, yes, leaving now.”

The next few moments all happened in a blurring rush. The girls piled out of the room, and Adagio was almost blinded by the flashes of light as several of them, Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash, all transformed. Maud rushed upstairs, already calmly telling her other waking family members to get outside the house. There was some argument from one of the other Pie sisters, Limestone, Adagio thought the name was, but another tremendous impact from outside that shook books and plates off of shelves and caused furniture to topple over forestalled any further argument and suddenly everyone was running for the door.

They all exploded out into the front lawn just in time to hear the back of the house be crushed by gigantic force, wood and dust blasting everywhere. Adagio floated around to get a look at what was behind them, and wished she hadn’t. Standing above the house like a black monolith was the largest Hollow Adagio had ever seen. Shrouded in a black cloud, the creature’s pointed nose of a mask looked down at the small creatures fleeing from it, and it took one white boot and stomped further into the house, collapsing the back half completely.

“Oh no, our home!” shouted Pinkie Pie’s mother, eyes wide and mouth open in horror. Even if the elderly woman couldn’t see what was destroying her home, she could clearly see something was smashing the house to pieces.

“Mom, pop, take the girls and get out of here, now!” shouted Pinkie Pie, now glowing herself, pink mist flowing from her as she ponied up and her duplicate self, Pinkamena, took shape beside her. The straight haired Pinkie Pie doppelganger took one look at the giant Hollow and grinned with sharp teeth.

“Oooooh, looks like I’m going to have a real big breakfast today.”

Confusion and utter bafflement was apparent on all the Pie family’s faces upon not only seeing their daughter produce a duplicate of herself, but the fact that most of her friend’s also seemed transformed. The only one who appeared unsurprised was Maud, who looked on with a stony expression.

“Pinkamena Diane Pie, explain what is happening here,” Pinkie Pie’s father said, trying to sound strong despite a undercurrent of fear in his voice.

“No time pop! It’s super dangerous here. Get mom and my sisters away from here, please!”

“It’s coming,’ said Sunset, reaching into her pocket to pull out the Chappy gikon, “We need to lead it away from here, fast!”

She was referring to the fact that the giant Hollow was now focused on the cluster of tasty mortal treats in front of it and was howling its hunger, taking another giant step towards them. Sunset looked to Adagio, eyes pleading, “Take them to Discords shop! Can I count on you to do that?”

Adagio gulped, not at all liking suddenly having responsibility dumped on her, but she sure wasn’t eager to stick around here, and Discord’s shop was likely to be as safe as anywhere right now. She nodded, “We’re on it.”

Rushing over, she floated in front of Pinkie Pie’s father and and looked the man in the eye, “If you want to help your daughter, be out of the way. Stick around here, I can pretty much guarantee you’ll all be a liability.”

He shook his head, eyes filled with fear and confusion. Understandable given he had a small plush doll talking to him, and his house was exploding for no reason he’d be able to see, “I don’t understand.”

“Don’t bother trying to then, and just follow!” Adagio growled, “Now!”

“She’s right, father,” said Maud, “We have to go.”

Maud’s words seemed to tip the scale, and Pinkie Pie’s father nodded slowly, seeming to dredge up some manner of self control as he said, “Come, family, we will follow Pinkie Pie’s friend to a safe place. Pinkie Pie, daughter, do not hurt yourself.”

“I won’t pop, trust me. Me and Mena have got this covered!”

There was no more time for talk, then, as the Hollow took a final step, its foot crashing into the front lawn just in front of them. The impact nearly knocked a lot of them off their feet, Marble Pie actually almost falling over if not for Maud being there to catch her. Sonata visibly gulped, “Time to go!”

With that Adagio led her sisters and the majority of Pinkie Pie’s family away from where the site of battle would soon become. However even as she did so she looked around at the skyline around the city, and felt chilled as she could see multiple dark portals in the air opening, and realized that more of the gigantic Hollows along with a swarm of lesser Hollows were all starting to emerge in one huge circle around the entire town.

This isn’t an attack, Adagio realized with a sickening feeling in her gut, It’s an invasion.

----------

Shining Armor opened the door to Twilight’s room, already finding his sister awake and standing by the window, looking out with worried eyes. She turned to face him, “Shining! They’re surrounding the city!”

“I know,” he said gravely, “Remember what you promised.”

He eyed her hard, seeing her fidget, but she did nod, “I... I understand. I’ll stay here.”

“If anything goes wrong, use the escape route in the basement. Everything should be fine, but just in case,” he said, trying to keep his tone upbeat despite the dire situation. Twilight visibly gulped, but nodded again. He gave her a reassuring smile, “I’ll be back soon.”

With that he closed the door and rushed down the hallways to head for the main entry hall. His parents, Cadence, and Fleur De Lis were already there. Fleur glanced at him with an amused raised eyebrow, “Done tucking in the little sister?”

“She won’t have any idea what’s happening,” Shining Armor lied smoothly, “I told her there was an earthquake warning today and she ought to stay indoors. Twilight is a good girl and won’t disobey.”

“Just as it should be,” said Twilight Velvet, “And if anything goes wrong we still have Robert on site to keep her safe.”

The family butler Shining Armor knew was a capable Quincy himself, through he seemed to prefer to keep to the background. He hadn’t even seen the man since returning to the mansion, but knew Robert was around. No matter. Twilight could take care of herself well enough, but Shining Armor knew the wards around the mansion would be sufficient to keep her safe. More than that, he intended to slaughter any Hollows that he could find, to put an end to this invasion swiftly.

“Father, we should go,” he said, “The Soul Reapers will respond quickly to this.”

“I’m not so certain,” said Night Light, “Soul Society’s interest is largely in that school, not in the town itself. But regardless you are right, we must move swiftly...”

Night Light led them outside, and in the massive front lawn of the mansion the five Sternritter were met by a company of just over a hundred men and women in thick white military coats. They wore white berets, thick black goggles, and what would appear to the uneducated to be gas masks. Shining Armor knew the uniforms of these soldiers, the soldat of the Quincy, had several unique properties, but the most important was the coating of spirit particles designed to render these troops invisible to the eye of regular mortals. His uniform and that of his fellow Sternritter were the same, and it was part of what helped them do their work without complication in the living world.

“Men,” Night Light said, addressing the company of soldat, “This town is under Quincy protection and is being attacked by a horde of Gillian and lesser-class Hollows. You shall split into platoons and support each of us Sternritter in combating this vicious invasion of the living world. Only engage the lesser Hollow, and allow we Sternritter to deal with the Gillians. Preserving human life is our top priority. Sternritter Shining Armor shall enact a barrier to keep the Hollows to the city perimeter, while the rest of us will deal with each main flank. Fleur De Lis, take the south, Velvet, the east, I shall handle the north, and Cadence, the west. Shining Armor, once your barrier is up, remain in the city center and engage any Hollows that break past us or slip through the ward.”

“What about when the Soul Reapers show up?” asked Fleur.

Night Light’s face was steel hard, “The Hollows are our primary concern. Only engage Soul Reapers if they interfere with dealing with the Hollows. Understood?”

Fleur De Lis saluted, as did Shining Armor, Cadence, and Velvet, all of them saying, “Yes, sir!”

That said, the Quincy deployed. Each Sternritter used bursts of flashing blue reiatsu from their feet to leap into the air, quickly ascending and then leaping at high speed across the city towards their designated areas. The soldats followed, most of them unable to get the same speed and distance as their Sternritter superiors, but able to rapidly leap like white clad ghosts from telephone poles and electrical wires, using suburb home roofs and street lamps as steps as they followed their designated Sternritter towards the massing Hollows.

Shining Armor could see the Hollows were advancing slowly towards the city, and at least for now it didn’t look like they were attacking any of the humans in the area, but he knew it was only a matter of minutes at most before that many Hollows would start to cause damage. Then he noticed that, to the south there were signs of battle. He could feel multiple spiritual pressures flaring in that direction, and recognized them as belonging to Twilight’s friends. With so many Hollows out there it was hard to pinpoint exactly what was going on, but it felt like they were fighting one of the Gillians.

I can’t do anything until I get my barrier up. Father gave me orders to hold the center, but I’ll keep an eye out for an opening to go help them, assuming father doesn’t handle it himself.

The suburbs passed rapidly below him, and he could sense the platoon of twenty soldats keeping pace at street level a little behind him. Soon the suburbs gave way to the offices and rising skyscrapers of downtown, and Shining Armor took up a position on one of the taller skyscrapers roofs.

Closing his eyes he extended out his spiritual senses, marking the positions of his fellow Sternritter, and the approaching sensation of the multiple Hollow’s spiritual pressures. So far he only sensed the Gillians and the lesser Hollows. There was no sign yet of whatever potent Hollow had gathered this horde. There also wasn’t any sign yet of the Soul Reapers, but he didn’t doubt they’d show themselves soon enough.

First thing’s first, we keep the Hollows out of the main population center...

Shining Armor raised his right hand, and in a flash summoned his bow. He aimed it towards the sky, and pulled back on the pale blue string of energy, a pure blue arrow forming that then slowly started to transmute to a flaring white color as he altered the composition of spiritual particles inside the arrow.

Each Sternritter was unique. They were not only the elite of the Quincy for their spiritual power and skill in battle, but for the fact that His Majesty bestowed upon each Sternritter a signature power corresponding to a particular script, or schrift.

Shining Armor was Sternritter B, with the schrift of B, representing his power of “The Bastion”.

None among the Sternritter possessed his power of creating unparalleled barriers.

“Festung des Lichts!” (Fortress of Light)

He fired his arrow into the sky like a streaking white lance. It rocketed upwards above the city for almost half a mile before the arrow of specialized spirit energy flared like a small nova and bathed the sky in a dome of expanding white light. This light would be invisible to the eyes of the normal humans down below in the city, but to any spiritually aware individuals they’d see the sky tinting with sparkling white light as a glass-like dome encased the entirety of downtown and a good portion of the suburbs.

The Fortress of Light was one of several specific barriers Shining Armor could create with his arrows, this one tailor designed to ward off Hollows. Humans could pass through effortlessly, and even Soul Reapers could bypass the barrier, but for a Hollow the wall of opaque white light would not only repel them, but burn them with what would look like holy fire. Lesser Hollows would have little to no chance of getting by it. If the Gillians attacked in mass they might be able to get through, or weaken the barrier enough for a lesser Hollow to find a hole, but that was mostly because Shining Armor had to cover such a wide area. If he’d focused the barrier on a smaller area not even this many Gillians could break through it.

“Sir,” one of the soldat’s said as the platoon caught up with him, “Your orders?”

“Divide into squads and patrol the barrier edge. Stop any lesser Hollows that get through,” he said. That not only would keep the likelihood of lesser Hollows getting to the city low, but it’d keep the soldats busy in case he needed to go help Twilight’s friends.

Which given what they were fighting, was a distinct possibility.

----------

Sunset hurled herself out of the way as the Gillian’s titanic foot smashed down towards her, just barely avoiding being pancaked alongside the Pie family’s minivan. She rolled to her feet instantly and rushed the foot before the Gillian could take another step, slashing hard with her Zanpaktou. The blade bit a small chunk out of the huge, bone white, triangular foot but it was barely a scratch compared to the sheer size of the Hollow and Sunset got the distinct feeling he was barely doing anything to it.

She jumped back once more as the Gillian raised its foot, not so much as an attack but just part of the huge Hollow adjusting its position, but with its size every small movement contained deadly force that needed to be avoided.

“I hate to be the voice of pessimism but it doesn’t seem a if we are having much of an impact on this brute," said Rarity, her blood red dress billowing as she jumped past the Gillian’s other foot, lashing out with her weapon which she’d transformed into a long, segmented whip of red crystal blades. Much like Sunset’s Zanpaktou the whip of crystal blades cut a chunk from the Gillian, but it was little more than a paper cut compared to the Gillian’s overwhelming size, and Rarity had to rapidly jump away as the Gillian kicked out at her, the giant foot snapping at telephone pole like a toothpick in the process.

“We ain’t got much choice, Rarity!” said Applejack, her booted feet cratering the street as she ran forward, leaping upwards and spinning in the air as rocket-like blasts of gold energy propelled her into a roundhouse kick that impacted above the Gillian’s foot, where perhaps it might have had a knee underneath its voluminous black cloak. The impact didn’t even slow the Gillian down and when it kicked out at Applejack it would have caught the girl dead on if Rainbow Dash hadn’t flown down like a prismatic falcon and swooped Applejack out of harm’s way.

“If we could bring this jerkface down to our level we could all pummel his mask at once!” said Rainbow Dash, setting Applejack down and streaking up into the air at high speed. She flew past the Hollow’s face, lashing out with a fist amid a torrent of lightning streaming from her wings, down her arms, and into her hand as she struck the Gillian across the nose. The impact of thunder and lightning left a mark, but didn’t manage to stagger the Hollow, which responded by opening its mouth and snapping gnashing teeth Rainbow Dash. The girl barrel rolled away from the bite, teeth snatching the air where she’d just been, and she circled out away from the Gillian, frustration written over every ounce of Rainbow Dash’s body language.

“Um, th-this doesn’t look like it's working,” said Fluttershy. She’d transformed as well, ponied up with wings and tail, and with her changed eyes and full display, but she looked unsure of what to do, having backed up across the street away from the Gillian and nervously watching.

“I don’t know, I think we’re wearing it out!” said Pinkie Pie, having also joined Fluttershy across the street. Sunset glanced around, realizing that Pinkie Pie’s doppelganger wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

“Pinkie! Where’s the other one!? The crazy one?”

“Who, Mena? She’s gone mountain climbing!” said Pinkie Pie, pointing. Sunset followed to where Pinkie Pie was pointing and her jaw dropped. Pinkamena was on the Gillian’s side, her arms elongated and split open into large pincer-like mouths which she was using like clamps to scale the giant Hollow. Sunset could now hear the doppelganger's crazed laughter.

“What’d ya’ll suppose she’s thinkin’ she’s gonna do? Might as well be a’ flea crawlin’ on a cow’s behind!” said Applejack, glancing at Sunset, “Dash might be right, we gotta git this critter down on the ground an’ go fer the mask all together.”

Sunset nodded, frowning deeply as she wracked her brain trying to figure out just how to accomplish that goal. Individually their attacks weren’t doing that much damage, and the logic that a combined effort might crack that mask could also be applied to one of the feet. Sunset had spent a large portion of her life as a quadruped, where four legs led to a lot of stability. It’d taken her awhile to get used to the human body’s bipedal locomotion. When you only had two feet, losing one, or even just injuring one, was crippling.

“Okay everyone, follow me, I’ve got a plan! Pinkie, get your clone down from there!” Sunset shouted, breaking into a run that’d take her around the side of the Pie family’s demolished house. She didn’t need to look to know her friends were heeding her word and following her, Pinkie Pie cupping her hands around her mouth to yell up at Pinkamena.

“Mena, get down, we’re doing a plan thing!”

“No way! I’m scaling Mt. Gillian and when I reach the summit I’m chowing down on this pretty slice of Hollow’s face meats!”

Pinkie Pie just shrugged and smiled sheepishly at Sunset as the girls ran around the house, the Gillian turning to follow them, “Well, I tried.”

“Its fine, we can probably do this without her,” said Sunset between breaths. They were now in the back yard of the house, the Gillian’s thunderous steps keeping it not far behind them. To either side Sunset could see other Gillians in the distance, some heading towards the city, others turning their attention towards her and her friends. Things were definitely not looking good. Tackling one Gillain was hard. If one or two more joined the fight, it’d be near impossible to win. Still, they had to try.

Rainbow Dash flew just above the other girl’s heads, looking towards Sunset, “Right, so you’ve got us running, but what’s the plan?”

“Step one; dodge!” Sunset shouted, sensing a build up of spiritual pressure inside the Gillian that felt very much like when the half-Arrancar had used that beam attack during their battle. One glance back was all she needed to confirm what was happening. The Gillian had opened its mouth wide, aiming down towards the girls with a sphere of crimson energy pooling within its gaping maw.

Sunset broke to the right, grabbing Fluttershy in the process, while Rainbow Dash snatched up Pinkie Pie. Applejack and Rarity were quick enough on their feet to dodge on their own, the group of girls splitting up from the path they’d just been taking. At the last second Pinkamena reached the top of the Gillian, sitting on the crest of its head. Giggling, she poked her head down to peer at the Gillain’s face, and just before it fired its blood red Cero beam, Pinkamena grasped the Gillian’s nose between one of the massive jaws her right arm had become and yanked, hard.

The Gillian roared, its aim thrown off as a huge torrent of destructive red spirit energy blasted outward, forming a bright beam that cut a path through the Pie family’s back yard and scorched a smoking path of devastation into the forest beyond, culminating in a large explosion that shattered trees like matchwood.

Sunset and the other girls had just managed to avoid the beam’s path, and now stood on either side of a simmering, blackened furrow in the ground.

“Holy cow, this sucker packs a wallop!” exclaimed Applejack, one hand on her stetson from keeping it from falling off.

Sunset gulped, “Right, step two; Rarity, use your powers to trap the Gillian’s foot when it takes another step.”

Rarity blinked at her, looking unsure, “I don’t know if my crystals are strong enough for that.”

“That’s why Fluttershy is going to use her power to strengthen you. It can do that, right?”

Pensiveness flowed off Fluttershy like a waterfall, “I’m not sure. I... I think so? I can try.”

At the Gillian’s roar of frustration, shaking its head to try to dislodge Pinkamena from its nose, Sunset shouted, “Try!”

Fluttershy gave a hesitant nod, and then focused her eyes upon Rarity. Her glowing third eye shone with bright blue light, and while Sunset couldn’t actually see if Fluttershy’s spirit energy was doing anything, she did notice Rarity blinked rapidly and open her mouth in an ‘O’ of appreciation.

“My oh my that does feel rather perky, Fluttershy darling. Do keep it up. Why, I feel positively brimming with energy!”

“Um, I-I hope I’m doing this right,” Fluttershy said, her face a mask of hard concentration as she focused on Rarity, “This somehow feels harder than commanding or weakening others. Its like its draining me so much faster, to boost you.”

“As long as its enough to get the job done. Rarity, trap its foot, now!” Sunset said, then waved her Zanpaktou at Rainbow Dash and Applejack, “As soon as Rarity roots its foot in place, we three hit it with everything we’ve got!”

“Gladly!” said Rainbow Dash with a wide grin, and Applejack just gave a firm nod, shifting her stance into one ready to charge at a moment’s notice.

The Gillian in the meantime gave a savage shaking of its head that finally dislodged Pinkamena, sending the doppelganger flying. However at the same time Pinkamena’s jaw arm had constricted around the Gillian’s pointed nose, and its teeth had suddenly buzzed around like a chainsaw, and while she was knocked free of the Gillian, she took half of its nose with her. Falling into the pile of rubble that was now the Pie family house, Pinkamena laughed madly.

“Got your nose!”

Pinkie Pie giggled, then looked worriedly as Pinkamena cratered into the remains of the house. “I hope she’s alright.”

The Gillian, bleeding from its now broken off nose, roared in ear splitting pain, and turned towards the girls, fury in its blazing eyes. It took another monolithic step towards them, and Rarity went into action. She plunged her sword, now transformed back into a rapier, into the ground. Sunset could feel the spirit energy flowing from her friend and through the ground, to erupt upwards at the Gillian's foot in the form of half a dozen curved pillars of red crystal that wrapped around the Gillian’s foot like tangling vines. The Gillian halted, roaring as the through crystals held its foot in place, temporarily immobilizing it.

Sunset didn’t need to tell Applejack or Rainbow Dash to strike. She and the other two girls charged forward the second the Gillian’s foot got rooted in place. They attacked together, Rainbow Dash’s wings flowing with streams of lightning, and Applejack’s boots bursting with propelling, golden light. Sunset jumped up, inverting her grip on her Zanpaktou to stab it down with all of her body weight. Rainbow’s fist hit first, impacting hard with a intense burst of lightning that lit up the entire foot and traveled in crackling arcs up the Gillian’s body. Applejack hit a second later with a powerful jump kick that impacted on the Gillian’s ankle, cracking the white, bone-like substance that made up the Hollow’s foot. Then Sunset’s blade dug in deep from above, going in almost to the hilt before she tore it free in a gout of black blood.

The Gillian howled, its free foot staggering back as it tried to pull its trapped foot free. Sunset jumped off the foot, shouting, “Rarity, release it, now!”

Rarity didn’t ask why. Sunset imagined Rarity was quick witted enough to know what Sunset wanted. Rarity had her crystals release their grip on the Gillian's damaged foot just as it was pulling with all of its might against that grip. The moment the crystals released, the Gillian’s own strength was used against it as it suddenly found itself yanking backwards on nothing, and with a frustrated roar it toppled backwards like a collapsing tree. When it impacted the ground it sent up a colossal cloud of dirt and debris, smashing across half the street, and leaving Sunset glad that Pinkie Pie’s house was in a sparse section of the suburbs where the next nearest house was well out of the way.

With the Gillian down on its back, the next part of her plan became obvious. With the injured foot the Hollow wouldn’t have an easy time getting back up, and now its head was in striking range. “Everyone, the mask! Go for it!”

As one her friends moved, all save for Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy who kept back, not having any ability to launch an offensive attack. Even Pinkamena managed to crawl out of the rubble of Pinkie Pie’s home to leap into the attack, cackling as she wiped blood from her face and joined the rest of the girls in leaping up on the Gillian's body. It was like running along a giant black bridge of uneven cloth, and Sunset thought the Gillian felt strange underneath her feet, like walking on something made out of cold jelly.

She, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkamena all rushed as a group along the Gillian’s fallen form, heading for its mask. Halfway there the Gillian raised its head, baleful eyes staring at them, and Sunset realized she’d seriously miscalculated how dazed the Hollow would be. With a head splitting roar the Gillian opened its mouth and another intense glow of crimson light filled its mouth, aimed straight for Sunset and her friends.

Fear lanced through Sunset as she realized that not all of them could dodge in time, but even a she turned to desperately throw herself out of the way and maybe tackle one of her friends to safety in the process, a series of dozens of blue streaking arrows rained down from the sky. The arrows of light impacted into the Gillian’s head and mask, turning it into a pincushion, and causing the gathered red energy in its mouth to discharge like a bomb rather than a beam, exploding its entire head.

Quickly the Hollow’s body began to vanish into ash-like motes, and Sunset jumped off of it to land in the crushed concrete of the street, looking up at the sky where she saw a figure slowly floating down on a blue disc of light. It was a woman in a pure white uniform consisting of a elegant button-up jacket and tight fitting pants, with knee high black boots and a flowing white cloak. Her skin was as white as her uniform, and she had long, light pink hair framing a heart shaped face sporting lightly violet eyes. She had a bow in her right hand, an exceedingly long compound bow whose construction looked as if its complex pulleys were made from gleaming silver metal, with streams of blue energy forming the strings and streaming from certain parts of the bow like a fiery aura.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cut in on your action, but you girls did look so close to being eradicated I just couldn’t help but step in,” said the woman in a cultured voice carrying just a hint of condensation.

“Who the heck are you!?” asked Rainbow Dash, brushing herself off of some dust, “We had that Hollow totally under control!”

“Really? It looked more to me like you were about to be vaporized by a Cero, but perhaps I misjudged the situation,” the woman said with a laugh.

Sunset wasn’t too inclined to disagree, despite the derisive look the woman had in her eyes, but it still stung her pride, “Be that as it may, don’t dodge the question. Who are you?”

The woman’s eyes turned towards her, narrowing, and her voice became sharp, “I don’t answer questions from Soul Reaper lackeys. I only helped you because I’m here to slaughter Hollows anyway. I’m certainly no friend of yours. We just happen to be sharing a battlefield and have the same targets. Speaking of which...” she pointed and Sunset turned, blood draining from her face as she saw three more Gillians had closed the distance and were now little more than a football field’s distance from them. Among the Gillians were also several dozen lesser Hollows, flying like birds alongside the moving mountains of the Gillians.

“This is startin’ ta really git outta hand,” said Applejack, wiping sweat from her brow, “Was hard enough takin’ down one o’ these vermants! Hate ta suggest it, Sunset, but we might wanna think ‘bout makin’ a break fer it.”

The idea of running away didn’t sit well with Sunset at all. In fact it made her gut turn to acid with frustration and anger. She and her friends were supposed to be able to protect this city! Her hand tightened, sweat soaking her palm as she growled under her breath, “Dammit, I need more power. I don’t have time to play games with you! If I have to take that power from you, do you think I won’t?”

“Sunset, darling, are you alright?” asked Rarity, eyeing the approaching Hollows nervously, “If we’re going to run, doing it sooner is better than later, and if we’re going to fight, we’ll need to adopt a new strategy.”

“Take your time, think it over,” said the woman with the bow, idly, “Perhaps I’ll just stand back and watch this time. I’m sure you have this under complete control, right?”

“Hey, if you’re not gonna help, can you at least can the smart ass commentary?” shouted Rainbow Dash, her wings flaring with electrical pulses of energy. The woman just laughed, like mocking wind chimes.

“So now you’re asking for my help? Fair enough. To be honest I’m not sure who all you girls are, but I recognized one of you has Soul Reaper powers, and the rest of you look like your sporting abilities that look suspiciously like Fullbring. I’ll have to ask Shining Armor if he knew about the lot of you, and why he didn’t brief us if he did. I have a sneaking feeling he’s been keeping secrets concerning his little sister. I do recall he and his woman were assigned to watch that high school, which I’m guessing you’re all from?”

Sunset wasn’t sure what the woman was talking about. Fullbring? What was that? And how did this woman know Twilight’s brother? She also just said that Shining Armor was assigned to watch Canterlot High? What for? Who was this woman and who did she represent? Sunset hadn’t missed the implications of the fact she was wearing a clear uniform and was using powers that looked an awful lot like that blue arrow Twilight had said saved her back during the fight at Rarity’s house. She shoved aside all that for the moment, focusing on the here and now.

“If you can deal with the big ones, my friends and I can handle the smaller ones,” Sunset said, “We just need to keep them from getting deeper into the city.”

The woman smiled, thinly, raising her bow towards the Gillians, “I can live with that arrangement. Do try to keep up.”

Shen then jumped into the air, leaping upwards a good fifty feet, before pulling back on her bow and with a single release let loose with an entire volley of what looked to be hundreds of arrows that streaked the sky like a shotgun blast. One Gililan was knocked back by the barrage like it’d been hit by a hurricane force wind. Sunset found herself feeling a spike of jealousy. The gap of power between her, her friends, and this woman was readily apparent, and it just made her feel even more heatedly intend on awakening her Zanpaktou further as fast as possible.

“I want to eat her face,” said Pinkamena, more or less summing up the mood of the group.

“Long as she’s shootin’ Hollows, I ain’t much carin’ if she wants to be arrogant ‘bout it,” said Applejack, “Now let’s git in there an’ do some damage.”

“Focus on the small fry first,” said Sunset, just as the lesser Hollows started to swoop down towards them, “We clear those out, then we focus on another Gillian, assuming our new ‘friend’ doesn’t finish them first.”

As the lesser Hollows reached them, and Sunset rushed forward to bury her sword into the mask of the first bird-like Hollow that tried to get its claws into her, Sunset felt a hint of worry in the back of her mind.

Aside from causing destruction, what was the Hollow’s objective here? Who had organized this attack, and what wa the purpose of it? Sunset felt like she was missing something obvious.

----------

“Who said that ‘all war is based on deception’?” asked Grand Fisher as he stood at the apex of a dark stone mesas, still inside the infinite desert of Hueco Mundo, monitoring the attack of the Gillians on the human city through a few small portals. The portals were called Garganta, something that Hollows could form naturally to act as gateways between their realm of Hueco Mundo and other realms. He had just a few of the small, mouth-like portals open to watch the Gillians and other lesser Hollows. The Gillians were being largely kept from getting far from where they’d entered the living world, by the expected intervention of the powerful forces of the Quincy, and Grand Fisher soon expected the Soul Reapers would get involved as well.

Which is what he wanted. When the Soul Reapers arrived, it was inevitable the old, bad blood between Soul Reaper and Quincy would have the forces defending the city fighting among themselves a much as the Hollows he’d rallied for this attack. All of that would create a lovely stew of chaos that would distract all of the prominent forces powerful enough to stop him from his objective.

“I hardly care,” said Grogar in response to Grand Fisher’s query, “Probably some long dead human. So do you truly believe this plan of yours will work?”

“If you doubt me, why allow me to go through with it?”

Grogar cracked a withered smile, not at all a friendly expression, “You’re my experiment, and I enjoy watching how experiments play out until the end. Its key in such situations not to interfere with the outcome. I’m merely here to observe how you perform, not to ensure your success.”

Grand Fisher let out a humorless laugh, “And what does Lord Tirek think of your experiment?”

There was a sound of scraping metal and Grand Fisher suddenly found Grogar’s sword placed keenly just underneath Grand Fisher’s throat. By now Grand Fisher had the hulking, humanoid body of a partially evolved Arrancar, his back still having thick, shaggy fur from his pure Hollow form, and his face still largely covered by a massive, grinning mask, but inside that mask his eyes flicked warily to the old man whose sword stood poised beneath his vulnerable throat. Grogar’s face betrayed not a single shred of amusement.

“Lord Tirek’s opinion is none of your concern. Whether you live or die is utterly inconsequential. Even capturing the unique souls of those girls is a side matter, a secondary objective, to the large goal of destroying the Soul Society and the Quincy. You are nothing more than one pawn, no, less than a pawn, in that grand scheme. We allow you to play at war with these worthless lesser Hollows because you, along with all of them, are completely expendable. Never imagine, even for an instant, that you can speak to me like an equal.”

Grand Fisher’s voice filled with obvious fear as he said, “I understand, Lord Grogar.”

The elderly man made a scoffing sound as he took his sword away from Grand Fisher’s throat and sheathed it at his side once more, “Good. Now, what is your next step? Even that many Gillians won’t last long against Sternritter, and it's only a matter of time before the Soul Reapers show up as well. How do you intend to get those girls?”

“Simple. My comrades and I have made the mistake of always going to them, fighting them on their terms...” Grand Fisher said, chuckling darkly, and opening up a Garganta portal that showed a suburban street close the downtown area, where it was possible to see a group of humans running along the sidewalks. Pinkie Pie’s family, along with the three sirens. “This time, I shall make sure they come to me. While all the forces that could defend or aid them are tied up, I shall set up my lure, and choose my battlefield.”

Licking his lips, he began to step through the Garganta portal he’d opened, “But first, I need bait for the hook.”

----------

Screwloose blasted apart another group of Hollows, her bazooka-like weapon smoking from all its many barrels as she jumped from spot to spot, unleashing barrages to the left and right as more targets presented themselves. She was grinning from ear to ear, more than happy to be in the thick of things, but one eye was twitching wildly. All that’d come out to the Apple family farm were a few score of small Hollows, none of them strong enough to really give her much of a workout.

“Huh, this is too easy,” Screwloose muttered, smashing one Hollow’s head clean off with a backwards swing of her bazooka as she idly rubbed her chin. She glanced at the farmhouse, knowing that Applejack’s family were hiding inside, taking shelter until Screwloose gave them the all clear. There weren’t many Hollows left for her to destroy, though she could barely make out the distant forms of Gillians miles away at the edge of the city, where it seemed all the real action was taking place.

“Would’ve figured at least a few of the big boys would come out here. Totally a prime target, our tasty apples,” Screwloose said to herself, barely paying attention as she evaded one lesser Hollows claws, only to give it a swift kick to the ribs that sent it flying away. She pulled out a cell phone and quickly dialed a number, casually firing off her bazooka one handed at a few Hollows that were stalking towards the farmhouse.

“Hey, Screwball? Yeah, I’ve got everything covered here. What about you? Just a few huh? Same here. It’s like they’re not even trying. Uhhuh...uhhuh... okay now you’re just talking crazy. This kind of attack is the textbook definition of a distraction. Figured they’d come straight for the families again. Uhhuh... Uhhuh... well okay when you put it like that it sounds like we’re being intentionally stretched thin so we can’t cover all our bases.”

Screwloose frowned, glancing at the farmstead, and the general lack of any Hollows left for her to kill, and then back at the city, rather surrounded by Hollows.

“Okay I’m starting to see where you’re going with this, but it's not like I can just leave the farm, and you can’t leave the other families. Let’s call the boss, see if he’s got a plan.”

----------

“Plan? Screwloose, the last time I had a plan we got exiled to the living world,” Discord said, grimacing at his phone, “The girls are probably fine. Mostly. I’m nearly eighty percent sure of that. Well, yes, it would be a problem if one of the girls’ families suddenly became vulnerable, but you’re covering Applejack’s, and Screwball is covering Rarity’s, and we have our feline friend covering Fluttershy’s... well, yes, Pinkie Pie’s family doesn’t have a designated guard but the girls are with them, so...”

Discord frowned, stroking his beard, “Well yes I suppose if the Pie family’s home was attacked they might send the family away so they didn’t get caught up in the fight. I imagine they’d sent them here. The sirens are with them too, so they’d have a pass to get past the wards. Assuming they got here and weren’t intercepted between here and the house...Oh. Well, yes, that is an oversight on my part.” He winced as indistinct shouting could be heard on the other end of the phone, “Now there’s no need for that kind of language Screwloose. I just like to act like I’m perfectly omniscient, I leave the actual omniscience to Celestia. Okay, fine, it seems like I have no choice then.”

Discord sighed as he hung up his phone and glanced at his hat, sitting on the table where he’d been enjoying some tea. The Hollows really knew how to wreck a perfectly good day.

“I’m going to spend an eternity cleaning up after that mess, aren’t I?” he sighed to himself, briefly recalling the events of ten years ago, but he quickly pushed aside the thoughts and grabbed his hat, plopping it on his head. He then went into an adjoining room, sliding back a hidden door to reveal a small storage area that was largely empty, except for one thing; a sword stand.

On that wooden sword stand rested a long, gnarled wooden cane about four feet long, with the head carved into the shape of a strange being with almost draconic features, a twisted horn, and even more twisted antler.

“Been awhile since you and I went outside, partner,” Discord said to the cane, running one hand along the dark gray surface of it. Discord let out a nostalgic chuckle as he picked the cane up and turned to head for the shop exit, “Let’s you and me go for a stroll.

----------

The Gillian’s Cero beam cut across the sky like a blood red comet, and Night Light kept well ahead of its destructive path as he rose along on small discs of reishi underneath his feet. At least eight Gillians were targeting him, now, with four having fallen so far to his arrows. That still left far too many aiming to break through his son’s barrier around the city, but there was little to be done about it until he got rid of the Hollows currently targeting him.

His platoon of soldats were in the suburbs below, eradicating the lesser Hollows swarming around. The well trained Quincy soldiers were doing a skilled job of targeting and destroying the small fry without causing any undue collateral damage, keeping the mundane humans out of harm’s way, or indeed even noticing that a battle was taking place among them.

Some humans of course were feeling the impact tremors of the Gillians moving around, and more than a few might have seen the craters the Gillians were leaving around as they walked. Some confusion was apparent in the humans peeking out window or walking along the sidewalks, but so far no actual panic had set in. The people of the city didn’t understand what was happening, yet, and Night Light aimed to keep it that way.

The bow in his hand was almost comprised entirely of light, and it was shaped like twin crescent moons. The outer moon was almost as large as his body and bent outward like a normal bow, but it was connected by strings of light to the inner, smaller crescent of light, its curve faced towards Night Light himself. That small crescent was what Night Light gripped and pulled back to summon his arrows, almost as large as spears as he fired them towards the Gillian that had attempted to hit him with a Cero.

The spear-like arrow smashed through the Gillian’s mouth, blasting out the back of its head. As the Hollow began to fall Night Light hit it with a series of more arrows, bursting its body into motes of dust before it could hit the ground and accidentally crush any homes.

To his left he saw the Gillians going for the barrier halt, and all simultaneously begin to charge points of crimson light within their maws. A barrage of Ceros like that wouldn’t take down Shining Armors barrier in one go, but if the Gillians got off several like that then even the power of his son’s impressive barrier wouldn't last.

However just before the Gillians fired, there was a flash of light followed by a dark streak cutting across the sky. As if a giant scythe had cut through them the five or six Gillians that had gathered to attack the barrier all began to collapse at once, the top parts severed from their bottom halves. Night Light immediately sensed the presence of not just one, but two powerful spiritual pressures, and recognized them both for who they were.

“You’re here faster than I expected,” he said to the person he knew was now standing a little behind him and to his right. He’d sensed her before the other one who’d destroyed the Gillians. He glanced backwards, frowning softly, “Has Soul Society gotten its glacially slow bureaucracy moving a bit swifter these days, or are you here without their approval, Celestia?”

Celestia stood in the air, watching him with a guarded by still faintly amused look on her face. She wasn’t wearing the normal civilian garb of a humble school principal anymore, but rather the black robes of a Soul Reaper, with the addition of a flowing white overcoat designating her rank as a Captain of the Thirteen Court Guard Divisions. There was a symbol on the back of that overcoat, the Japanese kanji for “thirteen”, showing which Division she led. At her side were sheathed two curved katana, only one of two sets of rare twin Zanpaktou that Night Light knew existed among the Soul Reapers.

“I don’t suppose it’d be appropriate for me to comment on Soul Society’s laws to one of our enemies,” Celestia said, actually sounding a tad saddened as she looked at him, “You’re daughter is doing well, by the way. A model student.”

“Of course she is,” Night Light said, face schooled to ironclad stillness, “You didn’t think we’d let her transfer to that school without keeping a close watch on her, do you?”

There was the sound of rushing air and suddenly another woman appeared next to Celestia, the blue skinned form of Luna standing now slightly between Celestia and Night Light. She too was clad in similar fashion to Celestia, though her white overcoat bore the kanji for the number “two”. While Celestia's swords were still sheathed at her side, Luna bore two naked blades in her hand, one a normal curved katna with a black wrapped hilt, and the other a shorter, straight edged tanto she held in a reversed grip. Night Light knew neither Soul Reaper had released their Zanpaktou's power yet, and that he was just seeing their sealed state. It was a testament to Luna's power that she'd cut part those Gillians so quickly with just a sealed pair of Zanpaktou. He had fought Soul Reaper Captains before and knew how powerful they were, though he'd never faced this particular pair of sisters before. He was confident that he, with four fellow Sternritter, would be more than a match if it came to blows, but by himself he'd be in a tight spot.

Luna’s piercing gaze leveled on Night Light with obvious dislike.

“There is no time for talk, sister, especially not with our old foes. We must finish these Hollows quickly, since it seems the Quincy want to take all day with this matter.”

“Agreed, sister,” said Celestia, not taking her eyes off of Night Light, “Shall we stay out of each other’s way while we deal with these beasts? No arrows in the back, as you Quincy are so wont to do?”

“I seem to recall the last sneak attack was perpetrated by Soul Society, not by us,” snapped Night Light.

The roaring of Gillians suspended any further talk, the ones that had been after Night Light now targeting him and both Soul Reapers. Beams of red cut the air like blades, forcing Night Light and both Soul Reaper sisters to rapidly vanish out of the way. Seeing Celestia look at him expectantly, Night Light grimaced, saying, “Fine, a truce for the time being. Are there more of you out here, or is it just you two ladies I need to be concerned about?”

“It's just us for now,” said Celestia, then blinked and tapped her chin with a finger, “Well, there was one scheduled to arrive back here today. I suppose she’s arriving to quite the surprise right about now.”

----------

Clover stepped through the final doors of the Senkaimon gate, the portal Soul Reapers used to travel between Soul Society and the world of the living, and almost ran headlong into a Gillian’s foot.

“Wh-what the-!?” she almost leaped back through the Senkaimon, but the gateway’s arch of sliding paper doors hanging in mid-air was already closing, and upon snapping shut disappeared. Clover was left standing in the middle of a suburban area not far from where she knew Pinkie Pie’s house was, only to see that there was a horde of Hollows around. A dozen Gillians at least, plus what must have been at least a hundred lesser Hollows.

As she looked on in pure shock she could see that the Hollows were being fought against. She could see the streaks of blue arrows from what had to be Quincy bows, and more importantly, she recognized the lightning cutting the air that looked like it had to be coming from Rainbow Dash. If she focused on her spiritual senses for a moment it was a chaotic mess to pick out any details among so many conflicting spiritual pressures, but she could just make out the sense of Sunset Shimmer and her friends not far away.

This is insane. I wasn’t told about anything like this! Did the Soul Society even know? Gah! I have to get to those girls, quickly!

What she’d learned back in the Twelfth Division’s archives still left her feeling chilled and her gut twisted with worry, but those revelations would have to wait until the present crisis was dealt with. She just hoped she wouldn’t be too late to help.

----------

Twilight paced within her room, wringing her hands and constantly glancing between the large window taking up much of one wall, and the flat screen television she had placed above a mantel across from her bed. The room itself was spacious, perhaps a bit too much so, but her parents had long ago noticed Twilight's pacing habit and had given her one of the larger bedrooms in the mansion so she'd have space for it. Normally she'd felt relaxed and comfortable in her little sanctuary, but knowing what was going on outside in the town had her nerves doing cartwheels.

The television was turned to a local news channel, and a professionally calm looking anchor woman was reporting, accompanied by a helicopter view of the suburbs.

"While the exact cause of the tremors is currently unknown it is believed by authorities that we are experiencing a series of low level earthquakes with overlapping aftershocks. The tremor events seem constrained to a ring outside the downtown area and suburban locations, and while there have been reports of minor damage to streets, homes, and loss of power due to fallen utility poles, there have been no injuries. The chief of police and the fire department recommends that citizens remain in their homes and stay off the streets. Emergency services are responding to-"

Twilight tuned out the report, shaking her head. It was a miracle no one had been hurt so far. Normal people might not be able to see the battle taking place amid their very city, but Twilight just had to look out the window to see the distant flashes of light and the walking, towering dark forms of the Gillians. She was hopeful, having seen more than a few Gillians be brought down already, but it looked to her like her family and fellow Quincy weren't destroying the Hollows fast enough to keep them from reaching the downtown area. A huge white dome of white energy that she assumed only spiritually aware individuals could see was acting as a barrier, and she somehow felt a sense that the barrier was her brother's, even if it was so distant she could barely sense its spirit pressure.

Where are my friends amid all that? Are they okay?

Worry gripped her in a firm, clammy grasp, making her feel awful for staying at the mansion. But she'd promised her brother she would stay here. She'd promised!

A distant explosion, deep in the suburbs, made her flinch. She felt like such a coward. Her mind buzzed at a thousand miles a minute with thoughts of Sunset and the other girls being hurt, or worse, with dozens of different horrific scenarios playing through Twilight's brain. Her eyes sneaked a glance at her bedroom door. Unconsciously her left hand reached over and gripped the silver Quincy cross dangling from a band on her right wrist. The cool metal somehow felt alive in her hand, comforting to the touch.

Another faint explosion in the distance, caused by who knows what, left Twilight shuddering... and then taking a deep breath with a face firming with determination.

"I'm sorry, Shining... but I can't..."

With that, she strode towards the door.

Episode 17: Bitter Enemies

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Episode 17: Bitter Enemies

“Okay, everyone stop!” shouted Limestone as the group was just outside a gas station at the cusp between the suburbs and downtown area. Adagio jerked back and forth in the zipper line of Sonata’s hoodie as she skidded to a halt alongside Aria and the rest of Pinkie Pie’s family.

“What are you doing? We have to keep moving, idiot!” growled Aria, but Limestone didn’t so much as flinch at the angry siren’s tone and just glared right back.

“Yeah, no,,” said Limestone, “Now that we’re nowhere near our exploding house, its time for some answers! My little sis is back there, fighting some crazy invisible monster with a freaky copy of herself, and that one,” she stabbed a finger at Adagio, “Is a floating talking doll! Someone, I don’t care who, is going to damn well explain what is going on right now!”

“Limestone Pie, watch your language,” said Pinkie Pie’s father sharply, though he almost immediately gave a worried look towards the sirens, “Although I confess to wishing dearly to know what is befalling my daughter.”

“Ugh, there’s no time for that!” exclaimed Aria, throwing her hands up, “You know what, I don’t even care what happens to you lot. Sonata, Adagio, let’s just ditch these losers and get back to the shop. It's about the only safe place in the entire city right now.”

“We can’t ditch them Aria,” said Adagio with a firm voice, “You want to try explaining that to Pinkie Pie after this is all over?”

Aria didn’t have a response to that, only looking away with a tight faced frown. Adagio then looked at Limestone’s angry eyes and said, “But Aria is right we don’t have time for this. You’ll have to wait for explanations until we get to a safe place. I don’t want to leave any of you behind, but my sisters lives matter to me too, so please just trust us for now, okay!?”

Limestone looked reach to chew and spit rocks, frustration written over every angle of the girl’s faded purple features. It was only when Marble Pie stepped forward, quietly putting a hand on Limestone’s arm and giving her sister a comforting look that Limestone started to relax, running a hand through her straight granite gray hair. “Okay, okay fine. But when we’re in the clear one of you better tell us what’s going on, you hear me?”

“Fine, but let’s get moving,” said Adagio, but just as the group started to head out again they heard a voice call out behind them.

“Hey guys, over here!”

All eyes turned to see Pinkie Pie standing at the corner of the gas station, waving to them. Immediately Adagio was filled with confusion. Had something gone wrong and Pinkie Pie had been sent to catch up with them for some reason? Maybe Sunset had decided they needed an escort?

“Daughter, are you alright? What has happened?” Pinkie Pie’s father asked, taking a step forward, but was stopped from going further by an upraised arm from Maud, who had moved to stand between the group and the mysteriously arrived Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie Pie had a fearful look on her face, but something about it felt off to Adagio, “The big mean monsters hurt Fluttershy. I need help carrying her! Quick, over here!”

Sonata looked down at Adagio, “Guess we’d better help.”

Something about this didn’t feel right to Adagio. She didn’t know Pinkie Pie very well at all but from what little she did know about the bouncy pink girl it seemed very odd she’d abandon her friends in the middle of a fight, even if one was injured. Besides if Fluttershy was injured then why drag her here instead of a hospital? In fact if Pinkie Pie could carry Fluttershy this far, why did she need help now? Where was that unnerving doppleganger?

“This is fishy,” she said.

“But Dagie, we’re fishy,” said Sonata.

Adagio gave her sister the stink eye, “I’m serious! Something's wrong here.”

However as they were talking Maud Pie was already striding forward, silent and staring at the Pinkie Pie before them. Pinkie Pie smiled sweetly, “Oh, good, Maudie is really strong and won’t have any trouble carrying Fluttershy! Over here, she’s right around the corner!”

When Maud reached Pinkie Pie, instead of following the eager girl around the corner of the gas station, Maud instead cocked an arm back and decked Pinkie Pie squarely in the face with enough force to send the girl sprawling like a rag doll into a parked car at the edge of the street. Her entire family gasped, Limestone shouting, “Maud! The hell!?”

“That isn’t Pinkie Pie,” was all Maud said, nose twitching, “She doesn’t smell at all like our sister.”

Before anyone could respond the Pinkie Pie laying on the ground suddenly twitched and floated up into the air, limbs and head twisting around with loud cracking noises, her face showing a sardonic grin as she spoke in a darker, deeper voice, “Guess I should have expected I couldn’t fool all of you. Really, what’s the point of regrowing this lure and making it visible to you mundane humans if I can’t pull the wool over the eyes of one idiot girl? Oh well, guess we’re doing this the fun way!”

Suddenly the false Pinkie Pie twisted even more, pink flesh blending to a darker, distorted red as the body revealed itself as a tentacle like appendage which whipped down at high speed and wrapped around Maud, lifting the girl into the air as she struggled. Then the back half of the gas station exploded outward into chunks of plaster and rubble as a large humanoid figure lumbered through it. Adagio looked up, and up, and then gulped.

“Hey, at least he’s not as big as some of the other ones have been,” said Sonata with a nervous giggle.

“Is that really the issue here!?” shouted Aria.

The Hollow that had emerged before them was around the size of a street lamp, with a broad human shaped body covered in coarse green fur that then gradually became the color of dried blood around the arms. A large mantle of fur, like a cloak, spread from his back, concealing most of the form of a giant sword, all except the red cloth wrapped hilt sticking up from his right shoulder. The entire center of his chest was taken up by the gaping Hollow hole that Adagio could see right through, and his face was still largely obscured by a grinning Hollow mask, but it was clear there was a human-like face inside the mask with glaring red eyes. Three tentacle appendages stuck up from the top of the mask, one of which being the one that was now holding Maud tightly.

“Let my daughter go this instant!” shouted Pinkie Pie’s mother, trembling while being held by her husband. Limestone was desperately looking around, grabbing up a broken piece of wood plank from the destroyed gas station wall as if to use it as a weapon. Marble was huddling down, holding her head and closing her eyes as if refusing to accept what was going on. Meanwhile Maud, despite being wrapped tightly in a inhuman tentacle, looked rather unconcerned, though there was a cold hardness in her eyes that belied her real emotions.

The Hollow glanced down at Pinkie Pie’s mother, and Adagio thought she saw the creature’s mouth twist in a mocking smile, “Why, Cloudy Quartz, you can still see me? I’m surprised. I would’ve thought you’d have lost that power after the Soul Society had their way with you.”

Adagio looked over at the older woman, wondering what the Hollow was talking about. It was clear that most of the Pie family couldn't actually see the Hollow, only that Maud was being held up by some invisible force, but Cloudy Quartz was looking right at the Hollow’s eyes. The older woman looked equal parts frightened and righteously angry as she shouted, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, monster, but you’ll drop my little Maud this instant or I’ll-”

“Ha! You’ll what!?” the Hollow loomed tall and menacing, “The Soul Society sealed your memories and your power once they had what they wanted from you and your circle of friends. Now history is repeating itself with your daughter and her friends, only now I’m pretty sure Soul Society isn’t going to let them go about their merry lives with conveniently sealed up memories. No, if I know the Soul Reapers, they’ll try to control those girls, and if that doesn’t work, they’ll destroy them. Hmph, I’m practically doing you a favor by trying to get those girls to Hueco Mundo. As Hollows at least they’ll be free, rather than slaves.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying...” Cloudy Quartz moaned, looking more and more lost. Her husband held her tight, not even being able to hear the other side of the conversation but knowing his wife needed him.

“Well, since none of you are running away I assume you understand escape isn’t possible. With all the Hollows I have attacking around town I doubt anyone can even sense I’m here, so the distraction is going just like I wanted. So, let’s get down to business,” the Hollow said, lumbering forward, reaching down towards the group with both of its massive hands. Limestone shouted a wordless cry of anger, charging and swinging with the piece of wood in her hands. Aria grabbed Sonata’s hand and started to drag her away. Cloudy Quartz was thrown back by her husband as he tried to shield her and Marble.

Little of anything they did was fruitful. Limestone’s wood plank broke on the Hollow’s hand as he snatched her tightly in its grasp. Aria and Sonata only got a few paces before the other hand grabbed them both. Adagio was only barely able to fly out from Sonata’s hoodie, now floating around in the air and watching on in horror as her sisters were lifted up by the Hollow along with Limestone.

“Hmm,” the Hollow hummed in a musing tone, “Will four hostages be enough? Probably. Now, as for the rest of you, do tell those girls who I have, and that I’ll be waiting for them tonight... oh, let's say at the city dam. A nice neutral location for finishing this at. Tell them that if anyone other than those girls show up, well...” he squeezed his hands and the tentacle he had around Maud, constricting all of those he’d already grabbed. Sonata and Aria both cried out in pain, while Limestone mostly growled. Maud remained silent, even as her body was painfully constricted.

“Damn you...” Cloudy Quartz said, tears falling down her face.

Adagio, feeling like her heart was being constricted alongside her sisters, fearful and twisted up inside at seeing the pain on their faces, forced herself to say, “Fine, we’ll tell them! Just stop hurting my sisters you bastard!”

“Good, good. Let them know Grand Fisher is ending this game tonight. I’ll look forward to seeing them there-”

“My oh my, you do like to talk, don’t you?”

Adagio turned to look along with everyone else, Grand Fisher included, to see that Discord was standing perfectly poised on top of the gas station’s sign, wearing his customary green and white striped hat, black and green robes, and open sandal clogs. Adagio also noticed he was leaning both hands on a cane in front of him, a strange, twisted piece of gnarled wood that made Adagio feel a bit uneasy just looking at it. Discord’s red on yellow eyes gazed intently at Grand Fisher. “Then again, if I recall you’ve always been a chatty sort, haven’t you, Grand Fisher?”

“Discord... how’d you find me, amid all those conflicting spiritual pressures? Even you shouldn’t be able to sense specific reiatsu with so much of it filling the air,” Grand Fisher said, taking a step back.

“Hm? Oh, I suppose you’re right about that,” Discord said, scratching his nose and frowning at the distant scenes of battle, “Getting all these Hollows here, keeping the local Quincy and Soul Reapers busy, I’ll admit it was clever of you. All this chaos is a perfect cover to make a play like this. If it weren’t for those three,” he gestured at the sirens, “I’d never have found you. Good thing I placed a tracking Kido on those passes I give all my employees.”

“Always prepared for everything. Soul Society really should have disposed of you when they had the chance,” Grand Fisher muttered, taking another step backwards.

“Funny,” said Discord, his eyes narrowing dangerously, “I was thinking the same thing about you.”

Both moved at the same time, too fast for Adagio to properly follow. Grand Fisher jumped backwards and up into the air, while Discord flashed forward, holding his cane in one hand now like it was a sword, and was in one instant suddenly behind Grand Fisher. He swept his cane around and slashed with it, and Adagio saw a strange discoloration in the air around the cane, like a slick of gasoline. Whatever it was she couldn’t see more as in the blink of an eye Grand Fisher’s tentacle was severed from the top of his head, and Discord caught Maud before she could fall more than a few meters.

“Argh! Again!? Always with the lure getting torn off!” Grand Fisher growled, landing and immediately jumping again to put himself above the gas station, while Discord set Maud down.

“Thanks,” Maud said to Discord, dusting herself off and, without any preamble, went over to a nearby chunk of concrete from the mostly destroyed gas station, and picked it up in both hands as she narrowed her eyes at Grand Fisher, “Now put my sister down.”

“Pfft, as if you could even hit me with that at this distan-” Grand Fisher managed to half-way say before the chunk of concrete smashed into his face, knocking him out of the air.

Discord nodded appreciatively at Maud, “Very impressive, my dear. I can see you have more than a little of your mother in you.”

“...”

“Right, not the talkative sort,” Discord said, “Well, let’s finish this up. I hate to deprive Miss Applejack of her thematically appropriate revenge, but I really don’t need the headache having those girls fight him would entail.”

“Then hurry up and take him down!” shouted Adagio, “Before he gets away!”

“Hah! Too late!” said Grand Fisher, the void-like mouth of a Garganta portal opening up behind him as he pointed one finger at a spot just between the gas pumping stations. Discord blinked in surprise as the Hollow fired a narrow, crimson Cero beam from his finger, the beam burrowing into the concrete, leaving a melted hole in the ground.

There was only a second of time before the explosion came, the Cero having struck the fuel line underneath the gas station. Adagio saw only a bright flash of light and then felt a concussive force throw her out of the air. She bounce on the ground, and for once she was glad to have a body made of plush cotton and cloth, since the impact was fairly light and didn’t hurt nearly as much if she’d been made of flesh and blood. She was still dazed and had to blink a few times before the world stopped spinning. Floating back up she half expected to see nothing but a big smoking crater and a bunch of bloody chunks, but to her surprise the Pie family was still alive and intact, as was Discord.

Discord’s cane had changed shape, the gnarled wood transformed into sharp, unusually tinted metal. The metal had a prismatic sheen to it, like oil on water, and its entire form was crooked and bent in a series of awkward angles that barely kept a sword’s shape. Only the hilt remained similar to the cane form, with a head carved like some strange beast with a twisted antler and horn. Around Discord and encompassing the Pie family was a barrier of distorted air with the same prismatic, oily color as the blade. Around them was a circle of undamaged ground, while the rest of the gas station was a blackened crater.

As Adagio floated forward, she saw that Discord looked exceedingly angry, perhaps the first time she’d ever seen him show such emotion. The reason why became clear a second later as Adagio noticed that Grand Fisher was gone, the only trace of him being the last vestige of a closing Garganta portal. The Hollow had escaped, taking Limestone, Sonata, and Aria with him.

Discord took his hat off, dusting it off on his pants, “That was careless of me.”

Adagio was staring at the spot where Grand Fisher had escaped through his portal, “Where did he take them!? Can’t you go after them!?”

“Most likely he took his hostages to Hueco Mundo, though he can’t afford to keep them there for long,” Discord said, “Mortal forms can’t survive long in a spiritual realm without some means of protection. If Grand Fisher wants to keep his bait he’ll need to reappear in the living world sooner rather than later. And no, I can’t go after them. Not fast enough, at any rate. Garganta portals are exclusive to Hollows, and to create one of my own I’d need time and materials.”

“He...” Cloudy Quartz gulped, holding back tears, “He said he wanted to meet with Pinkie Pie’s friends, at the city dam tonight.”

Discord nodded, expression calm and controlled once more, “That's a problematic spot. It will limit how much power the young ladies can use without risking damaging the dam itself. Still, I can deal with him swiftly enough to remove that risk.”

“He said those girls have to show up alone, otherwise he’ll kill the hostages.” said Adagio, growling under her breath, “It's too risky for you to go anywhere near that damn. If you’d just stopped him here we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“The gas station exploded,” stated Maud bluntly, staring at Adagio, “Most of my family would be dead if this strange bearded man didn’t use his magic sword to protect them.”

“Strange bearded man...?” Discord mused with a quirked eyebrow.

Adagio looked at the ruins of the gas station, and growled in frustration, because Maud had a point. Grand Fisher blowing up the gas station had forced Discord to choose between protecting the helpless members of the Pie family, or to go after the Hollow and his hostages. There hadn’t really been much of a choice there.

“Alright, fine, but now what do we do?”

“We get the rest of you to safety, that’s what we do,” said Discord, “The rest we’ll worry about after that.”

----------

Rainbow Dash streaked downward, three flying Hollows close on her tail. The ground spiraled towards her, and she saw a set of power lines strung between electrical poles coming up quickly. Face splitting in a daredevil grin she increased her speed, air howling past her. At the very last second she tucked her wings in, passing through the narrow space between power lines, then immediately snapped her wings out to pull up hard. She went soaring back upwards while the three Hollows, nowhere near as fast or agile, ended up tangling into the power lines in a shower of sparks. She laughed, seeing another Hollow leaping up from the ground to try and catch her between its claws, but she just charged her fist with lightning and smashed the Hollow’s face in, sending it smoking remains plummeting back to the ground.

Rising back into the air, Rainbow Dash felt a shiver down her spine and glanced behind her just in time to see the baleful glow of a Cero beam cascading towards her. Banking hard to the left, she felt searing pain in her right wing and arm as the beam crossed within inches of her dodging form, the proximity enough to burn flesh.

“Argh!” Rainbow Dash cried out, wincing as she clutched at the burns on her arm. She also noticed the tips of her right wing were heated red, like metal left amid hot coals for too long. She could feel pain there as if it were a limb of flesh. It was almost enough to make her drop out of the sky but she forced herself to stay upright as she looked for the source of the Cero.

Of course it was a Gillian. There were at least six of seven of the things in the area, through most were being dealt with by that cocky woman with the bow and her little soldier buddies in white. Rainbow Dash had noticed a bunch of those guys swarming around down below, firing off arrows of light at the various lesser Hollows rampaging around. She had to admit that while a part of her felt like she and her friends ought to be able to handle this on their own, it was nice to have these bow wielders around to thin out the small fry and keep the majority of the big guys distracted.

The Gillian that had fired at her looked like it was about to charge up another blast, but was thrown off balance as Rainbow Dash’s friends assaulted it from street level. She saw Applejack and Sunset both working together to leap up and attack the Gillian’s left leg, while Rarity and Pinkamena went after the right leg, both teams coordinating their efforts to weaken the Gillian’s stance and throw it off balance. Applejack’s metal clad boot, boosted with thrusters of yellow energy, crossed paths with Sunset going the opposite direction, flashing by with her Zanpaktou slashing through the air like a silver streak, both attacks forming an X pattern that cut through the Gillian’s black clothed leg in a shower of brackish dark blood. Meanwhile Rarity had transformed her rapier into a long crystalline blade whip and alongside Pinkamena, who had shaped her arms into long tooth covered tendrils, lashed at the Gillian’s other leg to carve out chunks of cloth and flesh alike.

The result was that the Gillians’ second Cero went entirely off course and blasted upwards into the sky, missing Rainbow Dash entirely, while also staggering the Gillian to it’s knees. .

Growling away her pain, Rainbow Dash muttered, “Okay, my turn.”

She threw herself into a dive, teeth grinding tight against the agony in her right wing, which was even smoking slightly. She cut through the air like a missile, leaving a rainbow streak laced with lightning in her wake as she flew straight for the staggered Gillian’s face.

“Rrraaggh!” Rainbow Dash roared wordlessly, electricity coursing from her wings, down her arms, and pooling in her fists as she held both out in front of her, not unlike a battering ram, and smashed into the Gillian’s forehead and discharged all the lightning at once. A crack of thunder and flash of blue light followed a massive jarring up and down her arms, but she felt the hardened bone-like mask give way under the blow and crack. She rebounded backwards, seeing she’d left a smoking hole in the Hollow’s mask, but the Gillian still wasn’t down yet.

Howling, the Gillian opened his mouth, intense crimson light forming another Cero, aimed straight at Rainbow Dash, but then at the last moment Sunset, flashing into the space above the Gillian’s head, let out a deep warcry of her own as she slashed down with her Zanpaktou, targeting the spot Rainbow Dash had hit earlier. The blade carved into the bone mask, and then Sunset fell, using her own body weight to drag herself down the Hollow’s face,and a good portion of its chest, almost like an old pirate movie hero sliding down a sail, cutting a spray of black blood from the Gillian.

The Hollow let out one last bellow before its body began to disintegrate into white motes of ash, leaving Rainbow Dash to land, breathing hard, while Sunset wiped the Hollow’s blood from her Zanpaktou.

“Nice moves, Sunset,” Rainbow Dash said, giving a pained thumbs up, her arms feeling numb. Sunset smiled back wanly, looking pretty tired herself.

“Same to you. Really dig your Thor impression.”

“Heh, I need a hammer for that. Hey, wouldn’t that be awesome if I could summon up one of those? Maybe I should order one online, just to complete the image.”

“Ahem, if you girls are done chatting, we have more company,” said Rarity, pointing out that a number of lesser Hollows were rushing them from side alleys and down either side of the main street. Sunset nodded, calling out, “Everyone, form up!”

Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena hopped over, Pinkamena grinning hungrily at the approaching Hollows. Fluttershy rushed over, looking at Rainbow Dash with worried eyes.

“Rainbow, you’re hurt! Let me heal you,” Fluttershy said, focusing her eyes on Rainbow Dash, but she quickly held up her hand.

“Save it for now. There’s no time,” she said, and it was entirely accurate as the lesser Hollows were mere seconds from reaching the group of girls as Applejack reached them as well, and all six girls formed a tight circle, ready to take the charge of Hollows head on.

Rainbow Dash braced herself, wings spread, lightning crackling from them, and didn’t have time to even contemplate the pain in her arms before the Hollows reached them, then it was all pure chaos and the heat of the instant to instant struggle to fight. She saw Sunset carve into one Hollow, then pull her high speed ‘Flash Step’ to get behind and decapitate another. Out of the other corner of her eye she saw Rarity, blade shifted now to a curved scimitar, dance out of the way of one Hollow’s outstretched claw, only to lop it off a second later. She didn’t see Applejack, but heard the girl’s explosive kicks smashing into Hollows on the other side of the group, and Pinkamena’s mad cackling as she literally sunk her teeth into the enemy.

But that was all Rainbow Dash could see of her friends before she was fully occupied with the Hollows in front of her, ducking one slashing pincer from a centipede-like Hollow before lashing out with a lighting laced uppercut that sent the Hollow flying. She staggered back from a wolfish Hollow’s biting maw, using her wing to block the attack before spinning around and cutting loose with a kick that knocked the Hollow off its feet. She heard a growl behind her, seeing a tall bear-like Hollow rising above her, huge claws poised to strike, but she then heard Fluttershy shout, “Stop!” and the Hollow froze in place. Rainbow Dash grinned and jumped up, using her wings to spin around and deliver a roundhouse kick to the bear Hollow’s face, blasting a bolt of lightning through it.

“Thanks for the save,” she told Fluttershy, then gulped when she saw a frog-like Hollow leaping for Fluttershy from behind, “Watch out!”

Fluttershy wheeled about, raising her hands in instinctive defense, but the frog Hollow was plucked out of the air by a stretching pink arm covered in snapping mouths, Pinkamena pulling the Hollow to her gaping main mouth, which was wide enough to swallow the struggling Hollow whole. Crunching noisily, Pinkamena then burped. “Yummy!”

Rainbow Dash sighed, finding Pinkamena exceedingly creepy, but grateful that Pinkie Pie’s weird doppelganger was on the ball.

One by one the Hollows that had tried to swarm the six girls were cut down, leaving a pile of dissipating bodies and the six friends standing there, all panting to recover their breaths.

“Well, I think this counts as our aerobic exercise for the next month,” said Sunset between breaths.

“I... I think I’m reaching my limit,” Rarity said, wiping sweat from her brow, “I can’t seem to keep my crystals as hard as I was. They’re getting brittle.” She examined her sword with a critical eye, and Rainbow Dash did notice the red crystals forming the scimitar shape around the rapier were chipped in a few places.

“Having trouble keeping things hard is usually a guy problem, Rares,” said Rainbow Dash, wincing at Rarity's withering look.

“This is hardly the time for jokes, Rainbow Dash! We’re in a spot of trouble here in case you hadn’t noticed!”

“Hey, we’re hanging in there, Rares, chill out,” said Rainbow Dash, shrugging, and grimacing at the pain the lanced up and down her arms from the move. The burns on her right arm, and the painful ache in her left, were getting harder to ignore. She was pretty banged up, she had to admit, if only silently to herself.

Leaning down, hands on her knees and breathing hard, Applejack also gave Rainbow Dash a quick glance, “Happy yer havin’ fun, Dash, but Rarity ain’t makin’ no tall tale ‘bout us runnin’ outta steam here.”

Rainbow Dash had noticed the same thing, in truth. While their training and sparring with each other over the past week had increased each girl’s stamina and ability to maintain their transformed states, none of that had come close to how draining this continuous fighting was. Taking on these Gillians, along with all the lesser Hollows, was tiring in a way their training just couldn’t match. Still, they had to work with what they had, because it really was do or die.

Especially since there was another Gillian stomping towards them.

“How many more of these things are there?” asked Rarity, running a hand through her hair, “I’m not entirely certain we have the energy to wear down another one of these over-sized disasters of poor fashion sense. I mean, really, those black cloaks are entirely without imagination!”

“Well then let’s do this fast,” Rainbow Dash said, flying over between Applejack and Sunset, holding out her arms, “Grab on! I’m flying you up to that jerk’s face, and we’ll take him out in one shot!”

Sunset looked at her incredulously, “Can you even lift both of us?”

Rainbow Dash turned a meaningful look towards Fluttershy, “I can if Flutters gives me a boost.”

“I... I can try,” Fluttershy said between panting breaths, looking even more beat than the rest of them, sweat soaking her face, “I feel so tired... but...” She gulped and with an exhausted by determined look focused all three of her eyes on Rainbow Dash, the pool of blue light flaring bright. Rainbow Dash felt a surge of energy inside her, like a fitful spark, and she grabbed hold of Sunset and Applejack.

“Okay, here we go!”

“Don’t forget me, tasty blueberry!” cried Pinkamena, jumping onto Rainbow Dash’s back and wrapping her arms around the other girl’s neck, giving Rainbow Dash a sloppy kiss on the cheek, “I’m coming too.”

“Ugh... you need to go on a diet,” Rainbow Dash grunted as she flew upwards, carrying her three passengers. She wasn’t nearly as fast as she’d normally be, rising into the air at only a jogging pace. “The rest of you guys, try to distract it!”

“With what!? My charming good looks!?” Rarity shouted back, then winced as the Gillian roared, raising a foot to try and stomp down at the girls still on the ground, “Oh for the love of- Next time someone else can be the distraction!”

Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy all broke into a run as the Gillian tried smashing them with its feet. The rushed down the street, the Hollow slowly stomping behind them like a kaiju from a Japanese monster movie. Several lesser Hollows tried to block the girls’ path, but Rarity surged ahead to dance among them, thrusting rapidly with her rapier to pierce Hollow masks and clear the way for Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie to keep running. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash rose higher and higher, until she was above and behind the Gillian’s stomping form.

“Here we go!” she said, and swooped down towards the back of the Hollow’s head. Landing on it, she dropped off Sunset and Applejack, while Pinkamena hopped off on her own. The Gillian paused, feeling the four girls on its head, and it had a moment of confusion before all four girls struck.

Applejack raised her leg in an axe kick straight down atop the Hollow’s head, while Sunset stabbed down with her Zanpaktou as hard as she could, stabbing the blade into the Gillian all the way down to the hilt. Pinkamena flipped over onto the Gillian’s nose, balancing there like an acrobat, then grinned wide with sharp teeth gleaming as she sunk her gaping maw into the Hollow’s mask, tearing out a large chunk. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash flew around, down, then up in a curving arc to deliver a lightning charged uppercut to the Gillian’s chin.

The combined assault was enough the crack the Gillian’s mask and stagger it, but it wasn’t down yet. Rainbow Dash flew up and shouted, “AJ! Grab on!” and the farm girl didn’t hesitate to grab Rainbow Dash’s outstretched hand. They both swung around, and Applejack didn’t need to be told what to do. Dash flew faster and faster, now aiming straight for the Gillian’s head even as it saw her and charged up a glowing red Cero beam.

Rainbow Dash let out a wordless battle cry, as did Applejack as her boots both burst with thrusting flames of gold light from the heels, increasing the girl’s already incredible speed. Right before the Gillian could discharge its Cero beam both Rainbow Dash and Applejack impacted with its mask, right between the eyes. Applejack’s boots crunched through white bone, while Rainbow Dash electrified wings seemed to act like blades, carving into, and then through the Hollow’s flesh. As a result the Gillian’s head split in half, causing its body to fall and start to vanish. Rainbow Dash flew rapidly around, snatching up Sunset and Pinkamena as they started to fall. She then began to descend in a slow circle, watching the Gillian’s body dissipate entirely by the time she reached the ground with her friends.

Pinkamena was still chewing a bit of Hollow, swallowing loudly as she said, “Hmm, not bad at all. Nice blend of flavors, and goes down so smooth.”

“...Ick,” was all Rainbow Dash said, slumping to her rear in exhaustion.

“Double ick,” Sunset agreed, looking like she wanted to do nothing more than fall flat on her face and lose consciousness, sweat dripping from her chin. “Anyone else feeling pretty much like they’re running on fumes.”

“Heh, ya gettin’ tired already Sunset?” Applejack asked between gasping breaths, “I’m just... just startin’ ta git my second wind, here.”

“Oh come off it AJ,” said Rainbow Dash, “You look as beat as the rest of us.”

“I don’t know about you guys, but I feel fine,” said Pinkamena, licking her lips, “Really you human types are so easily winded.”

“And what are you, if not human?” asked Sunset, “I mean, seriously, why are you so different than the powers the rest of us manifest?”

Pinkamena laughed, shrugging, “Who knows? Far as I’m concerned, I’m Pinkie Pie’s better half, but it's not like I know how I was born.”

“Is everyone okay?” asked Fluttershy between panting breaths as she, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie ran up to join the group. Rainbow Dash gave a thumbs up, glad to see her friend’s worried face briefly wash over with relief.

“I’m good. Mostly. Kinda beat, but hey, we’ve taken down two of the big guys so far,” she said, then glanced around at the surrounding battlefield, “And it doesn’t look like there’s many left.”

She was exaggerating, in part. Whoever that woman was with the bow, she and her little soldier pals were doing a good job cutting down the Gillians in the area. Even as she’d spoken Rainbow Dash could see the woman streaking around the sky on a disc of blue light, her bow acting like a gatling gun as it fired sweeping barrages of arrows that turned another Gillian into a porcupine before the arrows exploded, shredding the giant Hollow in seconds. It was a bit rankling to see the woman dealing with such foes so easily after Rainbow Dash and her friends had needed to use almost all their power and skill to take down the two they had.

Sunset seemed to be thinking the same thing, because she straightened her back from where she’d previously been hunched over, cracking her neck and taking a deep breath, “With Pinkie Pie’s family in the clear we’ve done what we needed to. It’s probably time for us to clear out as well.”

“I ain’t goin’ nowhere,” said Applejack, “Any o’ you girls wanna toss in the towel, that’s fine, but long as there’s Hollows in my town, I’m fightin’.”

“I don’t disagree with the sentiment AJ,” said Sunset, clear understanding on her face, ”I’d rather keep fighting too, but we’re all running low on energy here and I’m not sure how much longer we can keep this up.”

Rainbow Dash winced, feeling the burns on her arm even more now that the adrenaline was starting to wear off, “I’m... I’m not that bad off, really. I could keep fighting.”

“Rainbow, those burns look pretty bad. Let me take a look at them,” said Fluttershy, coming over and gently touching Rainbow Dash’s arm, just around the edges of the burns. The girl’s blue and gold glowing eyes were now back to being filled with deep worry as she said, “These could get infected without treatment. They’ll scar if I don’t heal them. How can you even still be standing? This must hurt so much.”

“I-It’s nothing,” Rainbow Dash said, jaw tight as she tried not to focus on the pain, “Just got a little too close and personal with one of those crazy energy beams.”

Applejack looked on as Fluttershy started to focus her third eye upon Rainbow Dash. Very slowly the burned flesh started to clear up, but before long Fluttershy let out a shuddering breath and nearly collapsed onto her friend. Pinkie Pie and Rarity were there in an instant to help proper the drained looking girl up on either shoulder.

“Yikes, Fluttershy, you’re looking kinda ghosty there,” said Pinkie Pie, frowning and pulling out a candy bar from a back pocket, “Need some sugar to pick you up?”

“No, I’m... I’m just so tired,” Fluttershy said, and all at once the glow from her eyes faded and her luminescent third eye closed, her pony ears and tail vanishing in a burst of light. Rainbow Dash suddenly felt a hard stab of guilt having asked Fluttershy to give her that boost earlier to carry the other girls in attacking the Gillian, and then letting Fluttershy try to heal her.

Sunset looked at the scene with concern etched on her face, then turned back to Applejack, “Alright, if you want to stay and fight, I’ll stay as well, but the others should return to the shop to heal and rest up.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” said Pinkie Pie, “Splitting up the party is always a bad idea.”

“Much as I would love to get off my feet and wash off all this sweat and blood,” said Rarity, brushing strands of hair from her haggard face, “I wouldn’t feel right leaving any of you behind to fight while I took a breather.”

“I...I feel the same way,” said Fluttershy, “I just need a minute, then I can keep going, I’m sure.”

“You know me, guys,” said Rainbow Dash, “Since when do I ever quit?

Sunset looked around at her friends, and Rainbow Dash saw the other girl smile with a helpless shake of her head, “You guys are some of the most stubborn people I’ve ever met.”

Rainbow Dash just grinned, “You know you love it.”

The air was filled with the sound of Hollow howls, and all the girls turned to see that they had more company. Dozens of more lesser Hollows were pouring into the street, a mish-mash mass of beastly creatures with countless different features, some bipedal, others looping along on all fours. Rainbow Dash saw there were at least a dozen more fliers this time as well, and she cracked her knuckles. “These guys really don’t get tired of being pounded on, do they?”

Sunset gripped her Zanpaktou tightly, “We’re definitely the popular crowd today.”

Pounding her fist into a palm, Applejack snarled at the oncoming Hollows, “Alright ya varmints, come on an’ git ready fer a boot where the sun don’t shine!”

“The bravado is appreciated, but let’s keep focused, girls,” said Rarity, blood red rapier at the ready in front of her, “We’re rather outnumbered.”

Pinkie Pie’s ear suddenly twitched, followed by her left leg, then her nose wiggled, “Hey, I know this sign! It’s sign for a dramatic arrival of the calvary!”

“Huh?” Rainbow Dash glanced back at Pinkie Pie, only to blink as a blue arrow streaked by her, flying into the oncoming Hollows and hitting a Hollow squarely between the eyes, blasting its mask apart.

Several more arrows flew into the horde, slowing its advance slightly, and giving the girls a second to glance back behind them. Standing awkwardly on top of a car, a glowing blue bow of light in her right hand, Twilight Sparkle nervously waved at the girls.

“Um, hi! Uh, c-can I help?”

“Twilight...?” Sunset gasped, and Rainbow Dash could only silently echo the shocked sentiment in the other girl’s voice. The last Rainbow Dash knew, the egghead was at her family mansion, safe and sound. What was she doing here!? More importantly, where had she gotten that bow of azure light from? It looked just like the-

“Waitasec, Twilight, where did you get a bow like that!?” Rainbow Dash blurted.

“Umm...heh... tell you later?” Twilight said with a nervous laugh.

“Girls, ain’t time fer gabbin’! It’s time fer fightin’!” Applejack shouted, lashing out with a snap kick at the first Hollow that reached the group. Rainbow Dash spun around as well, fists charged with lightning, ready to pummel the first Hollow that got in her reach. There’d be time to figure out what the deal was with Twilight once they weren’t fighting for their lives.

----------

Shining Armor could tell the Gillians were starting to break. Their numbers had been cut down but more than half by now, and none of them were attacking his barrier anymore. To him that was a clear sign it was time for a final push to end this.

“Men,” he commanded to his waiting soldats, who had been easily wiping out the few lesser Hollows that had managed to sneak through the few cracks in his barrier, “We’re moving out!”

With a mental command he dispelled the Festung des Lichts, the dome of light flowing away like water. He’d considered keeping it up, but it was better to free up the energy that’d take to instead go on the offensive. Besides, in a few minutes he didn’t think there’d be any Hollow’s left, and now that he could sense Soul Reapers out there, he didn’t want to be stuck in the center of town.

He went well ahead of his soldat company, easily able to outpace his troops, but he trusted them to catch up and clean up any stragglers Shining Armor missed. As he rapidly jumped from building to building, then summoned the glowing discs of reishi under his feet to go fully airborne, Shining Armor started to pick out clusters of lesser Hollows and with deft shots from his bow started to take them out without breaking stride.

He sensed Cadence’s location up ahead, and saw several Gillians up ahead that were tearing into each other like wild beasts. That, he knew, was part of Cadence’s schrift power as Sternritter L. Just as his power was “The Bastion”, hers was “The Lust”, and it allowed her to magnify primal desires inside her targets to the point where they could no longer think or act normally, while she controlled those primal instincts like a puppeteer. It was little wonder there weren’t many Gillians left on her side of the battlefield, and Shining Armor was only able to finish off the ones that were busy eating each other by the time he got there.

“Worried about me, love?’ asked Cadence as Shining Armor shot apart the last nearby Gillian. She was sitting cattily upon a street lamp, legs crossed. She had her holy bow out, a deep red and pink lined cross-bow mounted on her right forearm with a thick, heart shape to the bow portion of it. Through small and seeming innocuous compared to many Quincy bows, Shining Armor knew Cadence’s bow was exceedingly dangerous, not only able to deliver the power of the Lust through its bolts, but capable of piercing almost any defense, even his own barriers shaped by the power of the Bastion.

“Just making sure each flank is clear now that we’ve got them on the ropes,” he said simply, glancing westward towards where he sensed his father and mother alongside two spiritual pressures he knew to be Soul Reapers. He even recognized who the Soul Reapers were. “It looks like your ‘colleagues’ are over there finishing off the Gillians alongside my parents.”

Cadence smiled brightly, “Yes, do you think it’d be rude of me to go say hi to them? I mean, I know we’re not in our civilian personas at the moment, but it’s always nice to exchange pleasantries with Celestia and Luna.”

Shining Armor sighed, “Best not to. They may know we’re Quincy, and act friendly enough, but the fact remains we’re enemies of those two women and everything they stand for. Courtesy is one thing, but we’re not friends with them.”

“Oh, Shining, friends and enemies are not mutually exclusive concepts,” Cadence said as she floated up next to him on her own disc of blue reishi, and kissed his cheek lightly, “I like Celestia and Luna, even if I might have to kill them one day.”

A part of him always felt a tad unnerved when Cadence talked like that. She was among the most sweet and loving individuals he’d ever met, but she could also talk about killing her enemies with the same casual affability that she could speak of going to get lunch with friends. He loved her no less for it, but it did tend to leave him wondering at times what kind of woman he’d fallen for.

“Well, let’s hope that day isn’t today,” Shining Armor said, frowning. He knew his mother and father fairly well, and understood both held a deep rooted hatred of the Soul Reapers that went beyond what Shining Armor had merely absorbed through being raised a Quincy. Both Night Light and Twilight Velvet had lost friends and family alike over the years to the Soul Reapers, long before Shining Armor or Twilight Sparkle had been born.

Cadence might be able to think of certain Soul Reapers in such an ambiguous light, and even Shining Armor didn’t hold much personal hatred for them beyond what was his duty, but he wouldn’t have been surprised if, as soon as the Hollows were dealt with, the battle didn’t end, but just shifted targets.

Suddenly Cadence frowned, turning to look across the town towards the south end of town. “Well, that’s that then.”

“Huh? What do you mean?” asked Shining Armor.

“Your sister, you told her to stay at the mansion, didn’t you?”

Feeling a rather abrupt chill Shining Armor said, “Yes...” he then groaned, “She’s not there, is she?”

“No. She’s gone to her friends,” Cadence said, lips pressed tightly, “I’m not sure how she sneaked past Robert, but she’s out there with her friends now, and they’re about to be neck deep in Hollows.”

Shining Armor looked back and forth worriedly between here he sensed his parents battling Hollows near the Soul Reapers, and the faint sense he had of the fighting to the south where Fleur De Lis was, along with Sunset, her friends, and now his sister. It was hard for him to define just what had him more worried, the possibility of Twilight being hurt, or the fact that it would be near impossible to keep her training a secret now. He was going to have a very awkward conversation with his parents, soon. Oh well, he’d known that was a risk when he’d decided to train Twilight. He just hoped the training was enough to keep her alive.

Cadence just put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing tightly. “Go to your sister. Keep her safe. I’ll go back up your parents.”

He nodded, “Thank you. Be careful. Celestia and Luna are not our allies, remember that.”

“You be careful as well, my love.”

----------

Celestia held her pale hand before her, watching with passive calm as three of the remaining Gillians lumbered towards her. She had not drawn her Zanpaktou from their sheaths, nor did she have any intention of doing so unless it was absolutely necessary. Her sister preferred the art of the blade more than Celestia did, but that was not the reason she kept her blades sheathed while Luna was tearing through Hollows with reckless abandon with her own twin blades. No, Celestia kept her Zanpaktou sheathed because there simply wasn’t any reason to do otherwise. She only ever drew her swords upon foes she knew without a shadow of doubt she couldn't defeat without needing their devastating power. For all else, Kido sufficed.

“Sprinkled on the bones of the beast. Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring.” Celestia intoned the Kido chant, a swirling torrent of golden lightning forming a growing orb within her outstretched palm. “Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!”

The Gillians, sensing the massive build up of power in the air, responded by charging their own crimson Cero beams. Celestia just smiled in a small, coy manner as the Hollows fired their beams of destruction towards her and she finished intoning her Kido.

“Hado Number Sixty Three: Raikoho!”

A massive stream of thunderous lightning flew from her hand, cutting through both the air, and the incoming Cero beams with equal ease. The incredible bolt of electricity tore through the Gillians as well, charring their upper bodies to smoldering ash and leaving the air smelling of raw ozone.

Behind her another Gillian approached, its black cloaked body shifting as an arm appeared from the folds of its body, a massive clawed white hand reaching towards Celestia. She glanced towards it, but didn’t need to make any move to evade, as the hand, and indeed the rest of the Gillian, was blown apart by a spiraling blue orb of energy that tore through it, leaving neat holes the size of cars through the Hollow before its head was also blown apart. As the slain Gillian vanished in motes of white light, Celestia looked towards the one who vanquished it.

“My thanks for the assistance,” she said courtesy to Twilight Velvet, who only looked at Celestia with a cold, ice hard expression. Velvet was carrying a weapon that was only vaguely a bow in any sense of the term. The massive weapon was carried on the shoulder almost akin to a rocket launcher, but it was shaped more like a ludicrous cross between an arbalest and an old fashioned cannon. Intricate scroll work like ivy covered the cannon barrel, which had the curved, elegant bows of an arbalest stretching out from it on either side, while towards the back the cannon was patterned to resemble a single carved wing. Twilight Velvet held the massive weapon with the ease of something that weighted next to nothing, a single firing grip in her right hand while a padded mount balanced the rest of the weapon on her shoulder.

“I wasn’t ‘assisting’ you,” Twilight Velvet said dryly, “I was just killing Hollows, of which there are few left to slay today. I would suggest not being in my sights when that happens.”

“There’s no reason for us to be hostile towards each other right now,” said Celestia, “For the moment we have a mutual enemy.”

“Which doesn’t change the fact that you’re still our enemy,” said Velvet in a razor edged tone. Celestia suppressed the urge to groan in frustration. There were few within Soul Society who believed that peace was a possibility, but Celestia had remained an advocate for keeping the possibility of diplomacy open with the Quincy. Ultimately she felt that the constant fighting between the two factions was a fruitless endeavor that only left them both more vulnerable to the schemes of the Hollows. Yet it seemed bloodshed remained an inevitable outcome whenever Soul Reapers and Quincy encountered one another.

“I’m sorry you feel that way, but I tell you now, Twilight Velvet, it will neither be I or my sister that strike first,” Celestia said evenly, “And despite how you feel about me, I have done nothing but treat your daughter fairly since she came to my school.”

“Don’t pretend that earns you any points from me,” Velvet said, “You maintain that public persona just to keep an eye on the portal at that school. If you cared at all for those students then you’d never have let that foreign world’s magic threaten the school in the first place.”

Celestia shook her head, knowing arguing further was pointless, and refocused her attention on the matter at hand. There were almost no Gillians left, however. In fact as she took stock of the area, she saw the last Gillians on that side of the city fall to a combination of powerful arrows from what she recognized as Night Light’s spiritual pressure, and the swift striking blades of her sister. There were still lesser Hollows by the dozen in the area, but the Quincy foot soldiers, the soldats, were finishing those off.

“Well then, I shall collect my sister and we shall be on our way,” she told Velvet, “Unless of course you are determined to make a fresh battle of this?”

The other woman's face was a hard mask, Twilight Velvet’s pale blue eyes filled with frozen anger. She glanced to the side as Luna appeared next to Celestia, and a moment later Night Light appeared next to Velvet.

“Sister,” Luna said, “Are you... unhurt?” Luna’s eyes glared suspiciously towards the two Quincy Sternritter. Night Light kept his bow out, eyeing Celestia with guarded respect, the kind of look one gave an enemy that one knew was strong enough to be a threat.

“I’m fine, Luna,” Celestia said, “Really, you did most the work. I just cleaned up the leftovers.”

“Captain Celestia,” Night Light said, “I’m not under orders to engage any Soul Reapers today, but I’d appreciate it if you and your sister vacated the field first.”

“There are still Hollows to be slain,” said Luna, looking southward, “I still sense a few Gillians and a fair number of weaker Hollows to the south... hmm... strange, I also sense another Soul Reaper.”

Celestia nodded, “That must be Clover.”

Night Light’s eyes gave a small twitch, “If you have comrades in that area, then you’d best go collect them. I assigned Fleur De Lis to cover the south, and she’s the shoot first, ask questions never sort. She won’t hesitate to fire upon a Soul Reaper if she sees one.”

Luna’s eyes flashed dangerously, “Then she’ll fall to my blade before that happens.”

Velvet’s cannon-like crossbow snapped up in an eyeblink, “Assuming we even let you leave so easily.”

Before Celestia could say anything another woman appeared between them, and she instantly recognized Cadence’s pink skin and colorfully multi-toned head of hair. It was a little depressing to see the dean of Crystal Prep in her Quincy uniform, an unpleasant reminder that for all their friendly talk in their civilian personas they were very much on opposite sides.

“Before anyone engages in the messy business of mutually trying to murder each other, might I suggest postponing that until it becomes absolutely necessary?” said Cadence in a light, almost casual tone that reminded Celestia of how the woman often talked and put others at ease as a school dean.

“Cadence, where’s my son?” asked Twilight Velvet, not lowering her weapon, but easing her finger off its trigger.

“He’s going to back up Fleur and... ensure everything is cleaned up on that end,” said Cadence, “He’ll take care of things. I came just to see to it that there wasn’t any necessary complications here.”

“We were merely concerned for the safety of a fellow Soul Reaper,” said Celestia, “Apparently this Fleur individual is somewhat prone to acting without thinking, or so we’ve been told.”

“Ah, yes, Fleur is a tad...” Cadence waved her hand in search for the right word, “Bloodthirsty. Don’t worry Celestia, Shining Armor can keep her under control. It really is for the best if you and Luna just... return to your school. Let us finish things up here.”

Celestia glanced towards Luna, who in turn looked at Celestia out of the corner of her eye. They’d never truly needed words to communicate with each other. They’d been together for years beyond what Celestia could count, and knew her sister’s body language so well that she could read Luna’s thoughts without a single word being spoken. Luna wasn’t going to back down. It wasn’t that Luna hated the Quincy, Indeed she’d confessed in quieter moments to even having a certain fondness for Cadence, who’d been among the most courteous Quincy either sister had ever met, but Luna had her own sense of honor and it wouldn't allow her to leave a battlefield before the fight was over or all allies’ safety was secure.

As long as Clover and, perhaps even more importantly, Sunset and her friends were still in danger there was no chance of convincing Luna to just return quietly to Canterlot High.

It was with a grave look on her porcelain features that Celestia looked to Cadence, “I’m afraid I don’t think that will be possible, Cadence. I ask that you allow us to go collect our comrades, then we shall retreat, but not before.”

Cadence’s eyes filled with grim disappointment, “That’s... truly unfortunate, Celestia.”

“Yes...” Celestia said as she slowly reached to the twin Zanpakutou sheathed at her side and drew them with the sound of soft ringing steel, “It truly is.”

Episode 18: Pride and Flame

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Episode 18: Pride and Flame

Sunset was almost glad to be surrounded by vicious, soul devouring Hollows, her blood pumping so fast and hot in her veins that she felt like she was burning from the inside out. It helped keep her mind from running out of control shouting questions about Twilight and the multitude of answers she wanted about just how, where, and when she’d gotten that bow of light.

It's the same kind as the one that other woman is using. It even fires the same kind of arrows.

Even as she side stepped the crushing fist of a ape-like Hollow, swiping her Zanpaktou through its shoulder and cleaving it down past the chest, Sunset could see Twilight nervously firing off streaking blue arrows of light from the bow in her right hand. Her aim was fairly decent, striking Hollows more than she was missing. It was clear Twilight had been training, increasing her skills far past the point of sub-par archery she’d displayed at the Friendship Games. And it was a good thing, because they certainly needed the help.

It seemed like every last lesser Hollow in the southern suburbs had gathered up to try and overwhelm the girls. Sunset wasn’t sure how many were left, but it was certainly enough to still give them a serious fight. The only good thing she could see was that she couldn’t spot any more Gillians left. It was just the small fry that needed to be swept up. Only there were a lot of small fry that needed sweeping.

Rainbow Dash was keeping the airspace above them clear, zipping back and forth to knock flying Hollows out of the air with concussive, lightning charged punches. For all of her friend's speed and grace, Sunset could still tell Rainbow Dash was flagging, her wings sagging more and more with each blast of lightning, and for every Hollow that was incinerated from the sky there was another waiting in circling patterns above, just looking for a chance to swoop into the fray.

The situation on the ground wasn’t much better. Applejack and Rarity had formed a tight perimeter around a tall SUV that Twilight was using as a perch to launch her arrows. Hollows swarmed around, only to be blasted back by powerful kicks from Applejack or cut down by swift, precise thrusts of Rarity’s rapier. Sunset was across the street with Pinkie Pie, Pinkamena, and Fluttershy, because some of the Hollows had tried breaking into the house there and Sunset had heard the frightened cries of a family that were inside, likely having no idea at all what was going on. Sunset imagined there’d be a lot of confused people wondering what had caused all the random property damage by the end of the day. She was worried a few people might have looked outside their windows to see her friends fighting, but there was nothing that could be done about that, now. If some of this fight ended up on video, posted on the internet, well, hopefully Clover and the rest of Soul Society had a contingency in place for that kind of thing.

Sunset saw one Hollow, its eight spindly legs and fanged mask making it look like some kind of skeletal spider, clamber atop of the house and smash in a window. Swiftly using Flash Step to appear behind the Hollow, Sunset swept out with her Zanpaktou and sliced off several legs at once, causing the Hollow to topple off the house and hit the front lawn. There, Pinkamena pounced, mouth stretching to an impossible width to devour the Hollow’s entire head in a blood splattering bite. Sunset winced, not for the first time wishing Pinkie Pie had a less disturbing power.

Pinkie Pie herself was sticking close to Fluttershy, holding a rake she’d grabbed from the lawn, not that that would be much of a weapon if a Hollow got past Sunset or Pinkamena. Fluttershy had managed to pony up again, though she was holding off on using her eye powers until it was absolutely necessary. Which might be soon, as several Hollows broke away from fighting Rarity and Applejack and made a charge straight for Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Sunset leaped off the roof of the house, clearing a wide distance over the front lawn and landed right in the middle of the street between her friends and the oncoming Hollows, already lashing out with her blade to split one nearly in half.

She spun on her heels, lopping the leg off of another of the Hollows before having to dodge aside from a third Hollow, sporting a rhino-like mask with a huge horn that could have gored her had she not gotten out of the way. Fluttershy turned as well to face the oncoming Hollows and with a deep breath her third-eye glowed brightly and she spoke with a tired but commanding voice, “Go away!”

The Hollows immediately veered off, turning their charge into outright fleeing, and Fluttershy let out a shuddering breath, sagging. Sunset gestured frantically at them, “Guys, get back across the street, now!”

Pinkie Pie took Fluttershy’s hand, and with Pinkamena giggling beside them, lashing out with her hands transforming into mouth covered tentacles at several more Hollows trying to pursue them, the girls rushed across the street towards Sunset. As they passed by her she heard a cry of pain nearby followed by a loud thump, and turned to see that Rainbow Dash was on the ground, wrestling with a large humanoid-shaped Hollow with a large, eel-like mask and wide bat wings spreading from its back. Rainbow Dash was bloody from several deep cuts on her side and arms, but that didn’t diminish the anger in her eyes as she punched at the Hollow with crackling fists. Yet the Hollow took the blow firmly and kept trying to claw at Rainbow Dash in turn, while more Hollows closed in from the sides.

Sunset rushed forward, slashing down at the Hollow on Rainbow Dash. The Hollow used one of its wings to try to block, but all that did was cause the wing to be severed in half by the blow. It howled, and turned its claw towards Sunset, and its pointed fingers extended like miniature spears, forcing Sunset to jump back, parrying with her Zanpaktou. She got cut along the shoulder for her efforts, but managed to avoid being impaled, and charged forward, getting inside the Hollow’s reach and thrusting her sword through the center of its mask, shattering it and causing the Hollow to evaporate.

Rainbow Dash grunted as she got to her feet, and smacked her hands together, electricity sparking between her palms as she cut loose with a blast of lightning that seared through a pair of the closest Hollows that had been heading their way.

“Think that makes eighteen for me. How many are you up to?” the grinning Rainbow Dash asked Sunset, who just gave her an incredulous look.

“You’ve been counting!?”

“You haven’t?”

Sunset couldn’t help but laugh, feeling suddenly surprisingly lighthearted despite the dire situation. “No, but if I start now I bet I could catch up to you in a few minutes.”

“Pfft, please, as if I’d need the head start. We’ll start over from zero, starting now!” Rainbow Dash said with an eager, competitive grin. The Hollows closing in on the two girls didn’t seem to notice the shift in their mood from blood streaked exhaustion to renewed energy and eagerness. Certainly none of the Hollows were quite ready for when Sunset and Rainbow Dash both jumped in opposite directions from each other, each tackling their own group of Hollows with reckless abandon.

Sunset cut through one Hollow and then the next without even really thinking about it, feeling a growing warmth inside her as she laughed. Even if it was absolutely silly to be counting kills when there was no guarantee any of them would even survive the day, she felt an upsurge of energy inside her, like the pulsing caress of a growing flame’s heat. She didn’t want to lose to Rainbow Dash, or anyone else for that matter. She certainly didn’t want to watch these crawling Hollows walk all over her and her friends like they were nothing!

Distantly in the back of her mind she thought she heard a voice not unlike her own say, ”Good. You’re almost there. You’re remembering. Just a bit further...let that flame grow.

Sunset didn’t slow down, not ignoring the voice, but hardly letting it distract her from what she was doing. She began to move faster, her body moving like a lithe branch in a windstorm, bending and twisting as Hollow claws, talons, fangs, and fists tried to tear at her flesh but never could quite managed to catch her. For every attack she deftly evaded her Zanpaktou sang out, blade biting through Hollow flesh and masks. With a joyous laugh she counted them up, her body becoming a blur, not even consciously considering her Flash Steps anymore, and not even really seeing the world around her. Everything was just narrowed down to a heated, sweat soaked view of Hollows howling in rage around her as she tore into them, and the warmth inside her pulsed hotter and hotter as she went.

Then without even any preamble there simply weren’t any Hollows left to cut down. Her Zanpaktou was buried to the hilt in the face of one last amphibian shaped Hollow that howled pitifully as it dissipated, and Sunset stood there in the street, almost a full block down from where she’d unknowingly left her friends, with not a Hollow left between her and them. Dully she was aware her count had gotten somewhere around the mid twenties before she’d forgotten to pay attention.

Sweat soaked her, but she’d only taken a few superficial wounds from her near trance-like charge through the Hollow ranks. Down the opposite direction of the street she saw Rainbow Dash had laid into the Hollows on that end in similar fashion. Meanwhile the last few flying Hollows were fleeing from the chasing arrows of Twilight Sparkle, the girl firing off meticulously with her bow to catch a last few stragglers before they got out of her range.

The rest of Sunset’s friends all gathered together, most of them looking with surprised eyes at either Sunset or Rainbow Dash as the two girls returned to the group. Applejack in particular stared at Sunset with a mix of awe and concerned anger.

“Might wanna warn us next time you an’ Dash decide ta go chargin’ off like a’ crazy pack o’ wolves wit yer tails lit on fire. Ya...” Applejack huffed out a laugh, shaking her head, “Ya could’ve least left some o’ them fer the rest o’ us.”

“Sorry,” Sunset said, breathing hard, but grinning, “Guess I just sort of got caught up in the moment.”

“Ha, I’ll say!” said Rainbow Dash, wiping her brow and smiling wide, “By the way, got twenty two. What’s your score?”

With an embarrassed look Sunset said, “I, uh, stopped counting when I got around twentysomething.”

“Awww c’mon Sunset! If I set a challenge you gotta keep count at least!”

“I’ll make it up to you next time,” Sunset said.

“Is there going to be a next time?” Fluttershy asked nervously, “Is an attack like this going to happen again?”

“That would be unlikely,” said Twilight, hopping down from the roof of the car she’d been standing on. She glanced at the glowing bow in her hands and with a nervous look, closed her eyes and the bow slowly vanished in a flow of blue reishi particles. Sunset noticed that on Twilight’s wrist she was wearing a distinctive silver cross.

“What’dya know, Twi?” asked Applejack, “I’m thinkin’ ya got some questions ta answer.”

“I, uh, well...” Twilight gulped, “I know that attacks like this are rare, and this one was intentionally organized, probably to target us... uh, maybe.”

“I’m sorry darling,” said Rarity, “But this is all most confusing. How did you come by such an interesting ability, one that looks rather similar to what that other woman was using.”

“Y-you must mean Fleur De Lis,” Twilight said, almost to herself, “Or maybe my mother? None of you have met her, have you? You’d know if it was Cadence-”

“Cadence? As in, Dean Cadence!?” Sunset asked, but Twilight continued musing.

“”By process of elimination it must be Fleur. So she’s here? I don’t see her anywhere?”

Sunset suddenly realized that was accurate. The Hollows were defeated, and neither the woman with the bow or any of the soldiers in white were anywhere to be seen. But that didn’t put Sunset at ease. Instead her intuition said the woman, Fleur De Lis, had to be nearby, perhaps watching them.

“We should get back to Discord’s shop,” she said, looking at each of her friends in turn, ending on Twilight, “We can... talk about things there.”

She didn’t want to use the word ‘interrogate’ or even ‘question’, but damn if she didn’t want to get as many answers as she could from Twilight. She just also didn’t want to upset the girl. Her friend looked nervous enough as it was without all of them giving her the third degree here and now. Twilight gave her a grateful look, no doubt glad for at least the brief reprieve before having to answer a lot of what would probably be some very awkward questions.

“Sounds good to me!” said Pinkie Pie, clapping Twilight on the shoulder, “I don’t even care where the glowy bow comes from. It’s nifty!”

“Quite,” said Rarity, leaning down to peer at the cross on Twilight’s wrist, “Hm, through I must admit I’m not certain this accessory really suits you, Twilight dear. Gold is a much more becoming color for your violet complexion than silver is.”

Twilight gripped the cross self consciously, “It was my mother’s.”

“Oh? Well, I suppose exceptions can be made for family heirlooms,” Rarity said.

“I see I didn’t need to be in such a hurry,” said another voice from nearby, the girls all glancing up at see Clover standing atop a street lamp. The Soul Reaper jumped off, sailing downward to land lightly on her feet beside them. Sunset saw that Clover already had her Zanpaktou drawn, and suspected from the tears here and there along Clover’s robes that she’d needed to fight her way here. Clover eyes roved over the group critically, lips pursing with worry, “You’re all alive at least. Is anyone badly hurt?”

“Nah,” said Rainbow Dash, brushing herself off, “I’m better off than I look.”

This was followed by the girl woozily swaying a bit and nearly falling over, if not for a rather quick response by Fluttershy to catch her. Rainbow Dash laughed it off, steadying herself, “Okay, guess I’m a little bit, uh... beat.”

“And you, Sunset?” Clover asked, “I felt your spiritual pressure fluctuating a lot just a moment ago.”

Sunset blinked, glancing at her Zanpaktou. The heat was still inside her, smoldering but not lessening. She recalled the voice she’d heard, what it had said. Had that been her Zanpaktou’s spirit? What had it been trying to tell her? That she was close to discovering what it was she needed to finally learn the blade’s name?

“I think my Zanpaktou was trying to connect with me, back there,” she said, “I felt close to understanding it.”

Clover looked relieved, face brightening with an enthusiastic smile, “That’s good to hear. If it’s reaching out to you, then you must be close.” Her enthusiasm dampened suddenly as Clover turned worried eyes towards Applejack. “Miss Applejack, I... I’ve made progress in investigating the matter with your parents.”

Applejack’s attention became riveted to Clover, green eyes flashing with intensity. “What’ve ya found out?”

Sunset saw the hesitation clouding Clover’s features, her voice quiet, “It would be for the best to tell you somewhere safer, where you can sit down.”

Applejack looked ready to argue the issue, but any such words she had were cut short as a blue arrow of energy snapped between the group, piercing Clover’s chest right between the breasts. Clover’s eyes went wide and blood spurted from her mouth as she fell backwards, Sunset moving to catch her in the blink of an eye, while a woman’s laugh echoed through the air.

“Hah, and here I thought for sure she’d dodge the first one,” said the pale white woman with the compound bow of energy, standing casually down the street with her bow out and her hand still on the string of blue energy. Sunset recalled that Twilight had called this woman Fleur De Lis. “Kind of disappointing, actually. I hoped to get a little more fun out of her.”

Sunset was barely paying attention to what Fleur was saying, too focused on checking Clover’s wound. The arrow of energy had already vanished, but it left a smooth round hole in Clover’s flesh that was already soaking her robes with blood. It wasn’t a wound to the heart, though. Not instantly fatal, but the blood flowing from Clover’s mouth suggested a lung had been hit. Sunset’s hand pressed to the wound without even really thinking about it, but she was already turning to look towards Fluttershy, knowing that Fluttershy’s ability was the only real chance of saving Clover. There was no chance of getting her back to Discord’s shop in time for him to do anything. Fluttershy, a look of wide eyed shock on her face, was already kneeling down next to Clover and focusing her gaze upon the wounded Soul Reaper.

Clover was still conscious, and looked like she was trying to say something, but Sunset just shook her head, jaw tight, “Stay still, let Fluttershy take care of you.”

Her voice was strained with worry but also with rising anger. She let Fluttershy take over with Clover, seeing the strain on Fluttershy’s features as her third eye casting a wash of blue light over Clover’s body. Sunset didn’t dare interrupt Fluttershy’s focus with any inane questions about whether Clover would okay or not. Instead she just stood and turned to face Fleur. Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena were all already staring down the woman, while Twilight stood off to the side with a look of pure shocked indecision on her face.

“I don’t got no idea why ya just did that,” said Applejack, her white and bronze metal boots seeming to vibrate with pent up energy, “But ya just made a big ol’ mistake.”

Fleur ignored the girl’s statement, instead turning a coy look towards Twilight, “Got tired of being a wallflower for your brother, hm? I don’t blame you, little Sparkle. You’ve got the Quincy blood singing strong in your veins, how could you stay away from a battle with Hollows? Tell me, did it feel good? Slaying your first Hollows?”

“I...I didn’t come here for that...” said Twilight, backing away, “I came for my friends.”

“Is that so? Well, you're young. You can afford to lie to yourself, I suppose. Of course now that you’ve gone and exposed yourself I can’t imagine you’ll be spending much time with your ‘friends’ anymore, even if your family did decide to allow it,” Fleur said offhandedly, only to be interrupted as a red crystalline spike erupted from the ground behind her, aimed for her back. Fleur spun faster than Sunset’s eye could follow, using her bow to shatter the spike into shards. She turned back, grinning at Rarity, who had been the one to attack.

“Oh ho! Quite the backstab attempt! Very ruthless. I like you. What’s your name, girl?”

Rarity sniffed, brushing some of her hair out of her face, “I have no reason to give my name to uncouth trollops that attack my friends. Girls, shall we?”

Rainbow Dash pounded her fists together, “I’m right with you Rares! Let’s do this!”

“Ain’t gotta tell me twice!” said Applejack, taking a stance not unlike a linebacker as her boots began to glow with pent up golden energy.

Pinkie Pie for once wasn’t smiling, “Mena, sic her.” Pinkamena’s immediate response was a hysterical giggle of joy, followed by morphing her arms into long, biting, tooth covered tendrils.

Sunset took a step forward to the head of the group, Zanpaktou raised, “I don’t know who you are, but you’re not getting away with this.”

All of them attacked at once. The only ones who remained still were Twilight, whose face was a pained mask of indecision, Fluttershy, who was entirely absorbed by trying to heal Clover, and Pinkie Pie, who could only cheer on Pinkamena and the other girls leaping into the fray.

If Fleur was remotely concerned at having to face five on one odds she certainly wasn’t showing it with her polite, but predatory smile as all five girls reached her to attack at once. She even chatted casually as she began to counter them. “At this point I suppose it’d be a breach of etiquette not to introduce myself.”

Applejack had jumped above her, a set of golden jets of energy erupting from the top of her right leg as she smashed it down in a powerful heel kick, but Fleur raised her compound bow, using it to parry the blow. Applejack’s kick impacted with enough force to crack the concrete of the street beneath Fleur’s feet, but the woman herself didn’t seem remotely phased as she used her bow like a flyswatter to bat Applejack aside, knocking her into a nearby van so hard that half of the vehicle indented into itself and Applejack slumped to the concrete, stetson hat slowly floating to the ground next to her.

“I am His Majesty's loyal servant, Sternritter T, the Tempest.”

As Rainbow Dash and Rarity came in from the sides, a massive blast of swirling air exploded out from Fleur’s body, like a concentrated tornado that shoved both girls back before either Rainbow Dash’s first or Rarity’s rapier could get close. Rainbow Dash ended up bouncing into the wall of a house across the street, leaving an impact of splintered wood before flopping to the lawn. Rarity didn’t fare much better, thrown rolling into an open garage to crash into a tool shelf that then collapsed onto her. Fleur’s smile didn’t falter as she aimed her bow behind her without even looking, targeting Pinkamena who’d rushed around behind, tentacles raised to strike.

“But you can call me Fleur De Lis,” she said as she fired an arrow that caught Pinkamena in the gut and sent the doppelganger spiraling away to bounce along the street for several dozen yards before laying in a crumpled heap.

Sunset was the only one still standing, and didn’t slow down as she charged in, blade low, and then swept it up in a uppercutting slash at Fleur, who responded by flipping her body into a spinning leap that avoided the blow, and then landed her neatly and lightly upon the edge of Sunset’s Zanpaktou for just an instant before Fleur kicked out and knocked Sunset backwards, nearly head over heels, to land on her back, dazed.

“Now, if you children are done trying to play war with the adults, why don’t you all run home? I only kill Hollows and Soul Reapers, and while you’re dressed up like one, my bacon-headed young lady, you’re certainly no Soul Reaper.”

Laying on her back, Sunset’s heart seethed. In the span of mere seconds she and her friend’s attack had been defeated, and while she didn’t think any of her friends were down for the count, it was blatantly obvious that this opponent was several plateaus of power above them. Yet that didn’t daunt her. It only made the heat inside her ignite hotter. It was like all the pain in her body was being converted into more and more heat, blistering away fear and exhaustion.

It was shame. The shame of lacking the strength to stand against the threats to those she loved and cared for. The shame of not having the power she knew she had the potential to possess, if only she had the ambition to grasp it.

As Sunset slowly stood, Fleur De Lis regarded her with raised eyebrows, “I’m giving you a chance to walk away, girl. Your Soul Reaper friend is as good as dead, but that’s no less than what her kind deserves. I don’t kill my fellow humans unless I have to, and if you keep attacking me, well...”

Sunset ignored her, fully standing now, and grasping her Zanpaktou in front of her with both hands, and glaring at it with her eyes filling with a blazing light that seemed to make her whole body shimmer. She could feel her connection with the Zanpaktou, feel the tantalizing resonance between her soul and the spirit of the blade. It was as if the Zanpaktou was waiting with baited breath to see what Sunset would do. It was an open challenge, and an invitation. One Sunset willingly, fully, and happily accepted.

In a flash of searing light Sunset found herself back in her Zanapktou’s inner world. She stood upon the broken path amid the endless sky, leading up the steps to the throne. Sitting upon that throne was the red, flame clad form of the she-demon, her Zanpaktou spirit, looking down at her with an imperious but questioning look.

“So, here we are. You’re trapped, facing a foe you’re just too weak to confront, with the lifeblood of one friend pouring out onto the street, while the rest either lay near defeat, or close enough to it to not matter,” said the she-demon, her voice resonating with the heat of blazing flames across the air. “What will you do, Sunset Shimmer? Beg me for help? Cry to the power of ‘friendship’ to save the day?”

Sunset locked eyes with the she-demon, and began walking up the steps to the throne. Her Zanpaktou spirit smiled at the sight, sitting up with taloned hands clasping the arms of the throne, “Or have you finally remembered who I am? Who you are?”

When Sunset reached the throne, she crossed her arms under her breasts and looked the she-demon squarely in the eyes, a deep, confident smile on her face.

“You’re in my seat.”

“Oh? And what are you going to do about-”

Before the she-demon finished her sentence Sunset’s hands snapped out, gripping the she-demon around the scruff of the neck on both sides, and Sunset bodily hauled the spirit off the throne and into a shoulder throw that sent the she-demon flying down the steps, bouncing off the last few, to skid along the pathway back out of the throne room. By the time the she-demon had shaken her head and recovered, standing back up, Sunset had already sat upon the throne, settling into it with a content sigh, hands clasping th throne’s arms with comfortable familiarity.

“I remember,” Sunset said, taking in and letting out a deep breath even as her heart started to race with a burning heat that felt as if she’d placed a shard of the sun in her chest, “I know who you are. I was scared of what you’d cost me, so I shoved you aside for a long time. You did nearly cost me everything, once.”

“Perhaps I did,” said the she-demon, cracking her neck with one hand and stretching, “I burn, Sunset. That’s what Pride does. It was up to you whether I burned you, or burned for you.”

Sunset nodded, her smile softening, “Yeah, that’s where I was wrong. I thought I had to discard my Pride to be... be accepted, as their friend. In a way that was true. Without humility I’d never have been able to earn their forgiveness, or their friendship. But I shouldn’t have tossed you aside entirely. Pride is my fire. My passion to be the best I can be. I have to balance you out with purpose. Pride without purpose is just hubris. But I know what I need to do, and I know what my purpose is. Now... now I can wield my Pride without it burning me.”

Sunset’s eyes narrowed dangerously, “Instead I’ll be burning only what I choose to.”

The she-demon threw her head back and laughed, and it seemed the sky all around the throne began to bleed with crimson light, flames flickering across the infinite horizon of the inner world. “About damn time! Alright, you can sit on the throne then and call the shots! For now.” The she demon grinned devilishly, “I won’t make it easy on you, of course. You better prove worthy of sitting on that throne, otherwise I’ll pull your ass right back down.”

“Anytime you want, take your best shot,” said Sunset, her own smiling not faltering in the least.

“Then all that’s left is my name...” the she-demon winked, “But you already know it, don’t you?”

“Yes. Strange, feels like it was always there, and only now can I hear it,” Sunset said, shaking her head, “Also, can I say I still don’t get why all these names are in Japanese?”

“I’m a Zanpaktou, Sunset, better get used to it. And hey, don’t mispronounce it!”

“Heh, what do you take me for?” Sunset said, and in an eye-blink she was back on the street, standing before Fleur De Lis. It was clear no more than a split second had passed, but Fleur’s expression of supreme confidence had changed to one of faintly confused interest. It was easy to see why. Sunset could feel her spiritual pressure blazing inside her, rising higher and higher as the connection between her and the Zanpaktou in her hand seemed to turn into liquid molten metal in her hand.

“What do you think you’re doing?” asked Fleur De Lis, a deep frown crossing her elegant features.

“Protecting my pride,” Sunset said, and held her Zanpaktou aloft, the blade now glowing with a intense orange-red light as Sunset intoned both the release phrase that had burned itself into her brain, alongside the name of the sword she’d bonded her soul to.

”Ignite, Hokori!” (Pride)

A pillar of gold and orange fire swept up in a spiraling torrent around Sunset, enfolding her body and searing the air, bathing all the surrounding area in a field of hot color. The street seared and concrete turned to molten stone as the release of spiritual energy continued in a pillar that any spiritually aware beings would be able to see from practically any corner of the city. Sunset herself felt the power inside her swell and take a new shape, her hand now clasping two different objects as the flames subsided and she was once more visible to all.

In her right hand was a new sword, its broad blade marking it as a traditional knight’s longsword, its cross-guard shaped like two spread wings carved from red hot iron. The hilt was wrapped in flaming red cloth that hung from the hilt for about a arm span’s length. In her left hand was a large kite shield, attached to her arm with red leather strips. The shield itself tapered towards the bottom to a sharp point, almost like another blade.

Sunset let out a breath she’d been holding, looking at Fleur with hard eyes hot with anger. Fleur for her part made a scoffing sound, making an off hand gesture of dismissal.

“Adorable. But if you think a mere Shikai is going to make a difference against-”

In a blink of an eye Sunset was in front of the other woman, broadsword smashing downward. Fleur barely managed to block with her bow, but the force of the blow sent her skidding back, heels scraping the street. Fleur’s eyes popped wide. “What the-!?”

Sunset didn’t give her even a second. She was on the woman again, spinning into a backhanded slash that Fleur tried to block once more, only to find herself being lifted off the ground and thrown bodily through a fence line across the street. Sunset Flash Stepped above Fleur, dropping out of the air with her sword now aimed downward. Fleur rapidly threw herself out of the way, Sunset’s body hitting the ground and her sword smashing a small crater right where Fleur had been an instant earlier.

“Ugh! Enough!” Fleur growled, aiming her bow, and a current of swirling air flowing into the compound bow and seeming to wrap around the many strings and pulleys of it before she fired an arrow that seemed enhanced by a vortex of air around it.

Sunset twirled in place, and set her kite shield in front of her. The arrow impacted the shield in an explosive blast of hurricane force air that smashed apart the rest of the yard’s fence and overturned a nearby parked car, but Sunset remained grounded where she was, her shield having absorbed the blow. More than that, when the shield was struck, the red cloth attached to the hilt of Sunset’s sword began to become covered in flame. She then burst forward, using Flash Step to get right in Fleur's face once more, the broadsword curving a deadly arc through the air that now was trailing a glowing aura of flame as the blade itself seemed to start growing hotter and hotter.

Fleur raised her left hand, a sharp torrent of air coalescing there in the shape of a disc of hardened wind. Sparks, like embers from a kicked up campfire, erupted from where Hokori struck the shield of wind, and Sunset could see the heat in her blade searhing through the air like a red hot poker through drywall. Fleur flung herself aside as her deflection failed, and a seared piece of her uniform's white mantel fell off as she narrowly avoided Sunset's blade. The Sternritter then formed her left hand into an almost claw-like gesture and growled, "Sturmkralle Ein!" (Stormtalon One)

A lash of air shaped like the expanding claws of a bird of prey slammed out from Fleur's hand, and Sunset met it head on, Hokori's shield leading the way. The blast of exploding air smashed windows of the nearby house and blasted apart the lawn's picket fence, and Sunset felt the powerful jolt of hurricane force wind rock into her. However Hokori's strenght was filling her limbs and the shield took the brunt of the blow, Sunset feeling a sense of ever growing heat inside the broadsword as the shield took more and more hits. She surged forward through the attack of wind that buffeted her, made her bones strain against the force, and she thrust out with her sword, which was now glowing visibly like the metal had been dunked in the heart of a forge.

The searing thrust cut a burning line across Fleur's cheek as she dodged back, and the woman let out a chocked snarl as her leap took her to the next yard over. She absently touched the burned cut on her cheek, eyes wide with rage.

“You dare mark me? Very well, let's see you deflect this!” said Fleur, aiming her bow once more, and this time letting out a rapid fire torrent of arrows, much like the kind she’d used to slay Gillians with ease. Sunset kept her shield out, letting it catch the stream of glittering blue arrows, which either shattered or deflected off the sturdy shield in a rain of impacts. With each arrow the flames grew more and more upon the red cloth of the sword’s hilt, until it nearly touched Sunset’s hand, but they flame did not burn her.

Fleur ended her barrage with an annoyed sigh, “Impressive, but if all you can do is defend this will be over soon.”

“Well, half of that statement is accurate,” said Sunset, feeling the blazing power in her right hand as the energy her shield had been absorbing, and transferring to the blade, now reached its peak. She didn’t really understand just what she was doing. She was acting almost entirely on instinct, but she knew that Hokori was guiding her. With the blade of her sword now glowing like it’d been heated on the coals of a forge she followed her instincts without hesitation, raising the blade and thrusting it forward as if she intended to pierce Fleur De Lis, even though the woman was a good score of yards away.

Flame erupted from the tip of the blade, a thick, concentrated jet of red, orange, and gold fire that melted a devastating path towards Fleur. Sunset could feel the very moisture in the air all but evaporate as the blast of searing spiritual energy rocketed out at her opponent. The light from the attack was nearly blinding and it was hard to keep hold of her sword as it shook in her grasp, but she held firm, not letting Hokori get out of control. She was in control now, and her pride wouldn’t let her lose such control ever again.

When the flames subsided there was a burned path of charred black all the way down the block, thankfully not actually touching any of the houses, and with only a few embers leftover so no fires would spread. Sunset knew she’d have to be careful with this new power when fighting in town in the future. She looked around for Fleur, for a second thinking she might have actually incinerated the woman, but a moment later she spotted Fleur standing on discs of blue reishi, about a hundred feet up.

Fleur’s left arm was seared, the white of her uniform sleeve gone and the flesh underneath blackened. The woman’s face was a twisted visage of pain and rage.

“You... you dare? And just when I was thinking of sparing you as an ignorant girl not deserving death simply because the Soul Reapers duped her into helping them. Oh my, girl, you’ve just signed your own death warrant!”

Sunset glared, bracing herself as Fleur, ignoring the damage to her left arm, took aim with her bow once more, and it seemed like all the air began to shudder and swirl as wind kicked up, gathering in a vortex around Fleur, “The power of the Tempest will erase you.”

Fleur’s bow glowed with a growing arrow of energy, but before she could fire, someone put a hand on her arm and forced the bow to aim upwards. The arrow exploded upwards into the air, a tornado of tearing, ripping air that Sunset could feel down on the ground even as the arrow sailed upwards harmlessly into the sky.

Fleur growled, turning on the one who’d grabbed her arm, only to blink as she saw it was Shining Armor who held her fast. He didn’t look amused, face a steel mask.

“What do you think you’re doing!?” shouted Fleur, “Let go, Shining Armor!”

“What am I doing? What are you doing?” asked Shining Armor, keeping his fist locked tightly around Fleur’s wrist despite her attempts to pull free, “You were about to unleash an attack that would wipe out half the suburbs, Fleur De Lis! Have you forgotten our job is to protect human life?”

“She burned me! My face! She marked my face! That bitch burned my arm! Let go of me this instant. I’ll finish her off myself.”

“No, Fleur. We are withdrawing. Night Light may require our aid to deal with other Soul Reapers. These girls are not a concern at this time,” said Shining Armor with ironclad resolve. Fleur chuckled, finally yanking her hand free.

“Oh, and the fact that your little sister is down there has nothing to do with this? I wonder what your father and mother will have to say about her suddenly showing up here, seemingly trained to form one of our bows. Care to explain that?”

“I shall, but not here, and not to you,” said Shining Armor, “Now are you going to come along willingly,” his eyes narrowed, “Or do I have to force you?”

Fleur stared at him for a moment, then cast her withering glance down towards Sunset and her friends. By now Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack had managed to recover their senses and were standing once more, and while Pinkamena was still down, she was moving and slowly trying to get back to her feet as well. Twilight was staring up into the sky, looking lost, but she and Shining Armor met eyes, and he nodded to her reassuringly, causing Twilight to nod in return, relaxing slightly.

Only Fluttershy didn’t look up, still entirely absorbing in healing Clover.

Fleur let out a sharp sigh, “Tch, so be it.” She then spoke more loudly, directing her words at Sunset, “I suggest you carefully consider what side of this war you intend to remain on, girl. The Soul Reapers won’t take kindly to you having a friend among the Quincy, and you won’t get lucky twice when facing a Sternritter. Especially if you ever end up facing me again.”

Sunset returned Fleur’s look with her own eyes gleaming with inner fire, and no hint of fear in her voice, “Luck won’t be a factor.”

To this Fleur smirked, “We’ll see, won’t we?”

“Twilight,” said Shining Armor, looking down at his little sister.

“Y-yes?” Twilight asked, wincing as if expecting a tirade from him. Shining Armor did look angry, if also deeply worried, his brow creased in hard thought.

“If I told you to go home... would you?”

Twilight paused, blinking, and then her eyes slowly traveled over her friends, meeting their looks each in turn before finally resting on Sunset’s. For her part, Sunset just smiled in understanding and gave Twilight a comforting look as she nodded silently. However to her surprise Twilight responded by saying, “Not yet, brother. Not until I know my friends...” she glanced at Clover’s fallen form, “all of my friends, are safe.”

Shining Armor didn’t look happy about that, but he said, “Be home before nightfall. Otherwise someone will be sent to retrieve you, and I can’t guarantee it’ll be me coming to do that.”

“I understand.”

With that Shining Armor turned to Fleur, “Come on, the others need our help.”

Fleur looked at him incredulous, “You really think your parents and lover can’t handle those two Soul Reaper Captains?”

As if to punctuate her sentence there was a distant burst of light from the sky of the northwest side of the city, and even Sunset could feel the intense press upon her soul that came from sensing several immense spiritual pressures spiking highly from that direction. Even from such a distance Sunset could tell that whoever was fighting over there were insanely powerful, and she felt a heated spark from inside herself, and her Zanpaktou. She didn’t hear Hokori’s voice, per se, but she knew that her Zanpaktou, much like herself, wasn't intimidated by sensing those incredible spiritual pressures, but was rather enticed by them. She wanted to not merely become that strong, she had a desire to surpass what she was sensing. If this was the scale of the war she and her friends had stepped into, she had to get that strong. Otherwise watching Clover bleed out would be the least among the possible tragedies that might occur.

Shining Armor and Fleur De Lis exchanged looks, and both seemed to mutually agree there was no more need for discussion, and both flew off across the sky riding upon those small blue discs of reishi they could form beneath their feet.

Sunset was left to regroup with her friends. She looked at her Zanpaktou’s new broadsword shape. It looked as if it should weigh heavily on her arm, but both the blade and the huge kite shield felt light as blades of grass in her hands. Still, they were a bit awkward to just carry around. However, examining the shield, she noticed that there were a pair of vertically aligned slits in the back portion of the shield, perfectly sized for the blade. Turning the shield horizontally, she flipped her sword around and sheathed it right through those slits, combining the sword with the shield so that the wing shaped hilt poked up from the top.

“Huh, neat,” she said, and then walked over to check on Clover as the rest of her friends gathered around.

Fluttershy’s attention had not left Clover for even an instant, and it seemed to be having some positive effect, for Clover’s wound wasn’t bleeding anymore, and the Soul Reaper was still breathing. Still, the hard lines of worry on Fluttershy’s face left Sunset feeling nervous.

“How is she?” Sunset asked.

Fluttershy didn’t look up, sweat falling in small rivers down her face as she said in a strained voice, “I don’t know. I can keep her breathing, and fix some of the damage, but I think she’s needs more than what I can do right now. I’ll keep trying.”

“Well let’s not mess ‘round wit wastin’ no more time,” said Applejack, “Let’s git her ta Discords!”

“Moving her could be dangerous,” warned Fluttershy.

“So’s just sitting here doing nothing,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Guys, Pinkamena’s beat up pretty bad too,” said Pinkie Pie, who was actually helping her doppelganger with one arm of Pinkamena’s slung over her shoulder. Pinkamena for her part looked like a walking bloodstain, the wound to the gut having bled down until most of her lower half was a crimson mess. Yet Pinkamena seemed more energetic than Clover, still smiling.

“Meh, I’ll live. I can bleed all over the place and still have an appetite. Still, a nap sounds really good right about now.”

There clearly wasn’t much time to think about this, so Sunset spoke in a commanding tone, “Rainbow Dash, fly ahead to Discords and let him know we’re bringing in wounded. Applejack, carry Clover while Fluttershy sticks close to heal. Pinkamena, will Pinkie Pie dismissing you help you heal?”

“Yup, though so would eating some tasty Hollows.”

“I think they’ve all run off, those that were left anyway,” said Sunset, “Either way, we go to Discords, and don’t stop for anything until we get there.”

----------

Two blurs of motion cut across the sky, one exploding a streaking azure stream of spherical projectiles at the other, which moved fast as black lightning to evade the pursuing spheres of light.

Luna kept a keen eye on the projectiles rocketing towards her, moving faster and faster to keep the cluster of homing spheres at a distance even as Twilight Velvet also pursued her, taking every opportunity to fire off more spheres from her cannon barreled arbalest. Luna saw Velvet streak ahead of her, turning in mid-air to fire several spheres in a circular pattern around her, just as the pursuing one's behind also took up a enclosing circle around Luna.

Each sphere then burst like a bubble, showering out now in a storm of arrows that filled the sky with a buzzing, thick blanket of lethal reishi. Luna, however, was only just warming up, and hadn’t shown Velvet a fraction of her speed. Of all the Captain ranked Soul Reapers in the Soul Society, Luna was regarded as the most masterful in the use of the Flash Step. Despite the space where Luna was being bombarded on all sides by the exploding cloud of reishi arrows, Luna’s form flickered in and out of the visible spectrum, gracefully untouched.

Velvet’s glare made Luna smile in satisfaction, “Having trouble hitting me?”

“Don’t look so smug, you haven’t struck me yet, either,” replied Velvet with a tone cool as a winter wind.

Luna’s smile didn’t falter as she held her Zanpaktou’s aloft, the katana in her right hand, the tanto still held inverted in her left. “I was just being sporting, allowing you the first move. Shall I now make mine?”

She didn’t bother giving Twilight Velvet even a second to respond to the quite rhetorical question. Luna just instantly flashed behind Velvet, spinning with both blades slashing at the Sternritter’s exposed back. To Velvet’s credit, however, she reacted faster than Luna would have expected, twisting out of the way of one blade while managing to interpose her arbalest between herself and the tanto, and then instantly lashed out with a retaliatory kick that Luna jumped back from. Velvet followed up by bringing her arbalest around and firing a point blank sphere of explosive reishi at Luna, who was already raising her hand clasped around her tanto, while chanting a Kido.

“Bakudo Number Eighty One: Danku!”

A rectangular barrier of translucent force snapped into place between Luna nd Velvet, catching the sphere of reishi... but the sphere then instantly changed course to fly around the barrier, forcing Luna to instead use her katana to slash the sphere before it impacted her body. The moment she slashed the sphere it exploded into a hail of arrows, forcing Luna to evade at such close range that one of the arrows did manage to tear through her black robes, scoring a light wound as she Flash Stepped away.

Now it was Velvet smiling in satisfaction, “You were saying something about being sporting?”

Luna just chuckled dryly, “Well struck. Out of respect for your daughter I wasn’t intending to unduly harm you, but since you seem to want a more serious fight... you shall have it.”

She connected the hilt of her tanto to that of her katana, combining the two Zanpaktou as she intoned its release phrase with the clear ring of deadly intent in her voice that matched the icy chill in her eyes. Her spiritual pressure burst outward, rimming Luna’s body in a pale blue and silver light.

“Descend from the heavens and rip asunder all under your gaze! Tsuki no Kagetsume!” (Shadowclaw of the Moon)

Pale silver light engulfed both of her blades and merged them briefly into an extending rod of light that then reformed and expanded like liquid mercury into the shape of a massive crescent bladed scythe. Then with a shimmer of moonlight that scythe split into two, creating twin weapons that Luna held in each hand, seemingly too large for any person to wield yet she held them with practiced ease. Each scythe bore a long, dark shaft of wood, and the blades were equally black, only the edges lined in gleaming silver. Luna pointed the right handed scythe blade at Twilight Velvet, and it looked as if all of Luna’s body started to become cloaked in shadow, an inky blackness flowing from her outline to pool at her feet like an expanding lake.

“All under the shadow of the moon will feel its claws, Quincy. Prepare yourself!”

----------

Celestia felt her sister release her Zanpaktou to its Shikai state and didn’t need to look to know that a fair portion of the sky in that direction would be getting coated in deep darkness. She sincerely hoped Luna would have the presence of mind to still be careful. Luna could be quite cocky and prideful, and her Zanpaktou’s personality matched that, only encouraging Luna to further take risks. She also hoped for Twilight Velvet’s sake that she would know when to retreat. Celestia didn’t wish to make the young Twilight Sparkle go through the loss of a parent if it could be helped. Then again, Night Light certainly wasn’t making things easy on her.

There was little subtlety in Night Light’s arrows. No tricks or hidden dangers, as was the case with Velvet or Cadence. No, when Night Light fired an arrow of reishi, it was the most perfectly concentrated spear of spirit particles Celestia had seen fired by a Quincy. She didn’t think any by a Captain of her stature would have enough power in her Zanpaktou to turn aside such arrows, and every time she did it felt like her arm was going to be ripped from its shoulder. The power of Night Light’s arrows left a sonic boom behind every time he fired, and Celestia worked hard to dodge rather than deflect, though she was no master of the Flash Step like Luna was.

Night Light was also utterly calm as he fought. His stance was relaxed, his face nothing short of a placid lake of pure focus. He would move swiftly from spot to spot, take careful aim, arrows large as spears forming in his moon shaped bow, and he’d fire without a word. No banter or talk. Celestia knew Night Light would fight until either she and her sister were dead, or willingly retreating.

Cadence was more worrying, for she was hanging back, watching Celestia intently. No doubt waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Or perhaps she was hesitant out of a sense of possible friendship? Celestia knew it was a laughably naive hope, but some part of her wished that the long standing cordial relationship she and Luna had with Cadence in their civilian personas might have counted for something. With Luna getting serious, however, it seemed like it was inevitable this fight would end in blood, on way or another.

Celestia wished she could sense if Clover was alright or not. She couldn’t sense Clover’s spiritual pressure anymore, though that could just be because the Sternritter’s spirit energy were too strong to feel clearly beyond it.

Taking a deep breath, Celestia watched Night Light’s movements closely. When he next fired she charged forward, gritting her teeth against the force of the arrow as she used her left handed blade to catch the projectile and change its trajectory just enough to fly past her, while leading with her right handed sword in a straight thrust. Night Light managed to sidestep, but Celestia had anticipated the movement and was already turning around so that she could backslash with her left hand, her Zanpaktou cutting a crimson line across Night Light’s shoulder. He didn’t do more than wince slightly at the wound, but didn’t so much as break stride as he made a few quick jumps back, pulling back on his bow and firing three quick arrows, each creating a sonic boom that shattered glass from windows in the suburbs beneath them.

Celestia threw herself into several quick dodges, feeling the air tearing as the arrows flew past her, whipping her hair around her head. She responded by stabbing a finger out, channeling flows of spirit energy into it as she chanted, “Hado Number Four! Byakurai!”

A bolt of yellow lightning flashed from her finger, nearly striking Night Light as he nimbly landed on a telephone pole and then jumped away, the electrical Kido spell frying the pole and blowing transformers all the way down the street. Celestia didn’t let up, using Flash Step to quickly get in front of Night Light and then jump at him, both blades slashing in a cross pattern. He blocked with his bow, the blue crescent of energy colliding with Celestia’s Zanpaktou in a crash of force and colliding spiritual pressures that actually cracked the ground beneath them.

While her blades clashed with Night Light’s bow, Celestia sensed a flicker of movement above her. Cadence was little more than pink blur, appearing above Celestia, her arm mounted crossbow aimed down at the Soul Reaper. The pulsing pink bolt that flew from that bow trailed a neon streak behind it, Celestia only have a fraction of a second to push hard with one sword to knock Night Light away from her while swinging her other blade up to catch the pink bolt of light to send it twirling away with an expertly timed parry. Cadence finished flipping in the air and landed in a crouch, already firing another bolt, which Celestia twirled away from, parrying with her right handed sword to deflect the second bolt.

Yet she noticed a jolt of reishi that transmitted from the bolt into her, like the sensation of a small bug bite. Her mind flickered with heated emotions, and she shook her head, trying to clear the fuzz. Suddenly Cadence’s voice spoke, in a soft, beckoning tone.

“You don’t want to fight, Celestia. I’m not your enemy, but a friend.”

The fuzzy warmth tried to stretch sticky fingers into Celestia’s mind, but centuries of experience sharpened by a willpower bright as the sun crushed past the feeling of sudden euphoria that’d been trying to cloud her mind. Celestia sighed deeply, looking between Cadence and Night Light with equal determination.

“You are right that I don’t wish to fight, but not because of whatever mind affecting power you’re trying to conjure on me, Cadence. All either of you have to do is stand aside, and I shall not harm you, but if you persist in detaining me and my sister then you continue to leave me no choice.”

Cadence’s eyes flickered with surprise, then respect. “I suppose I shouldn’t expect one arrow to inject enough of my power to affect a mind like yours. I really would prefer not to fight, Celestia, but we cannot stand aside either.”

“It is meaningless to discuss this,” said Night Light, already forming another large, spear-like arrow within his crescent shaped bow, “Soul Reapers will never compromise with Quincy, and we shall never capitulate to Soul Reapers.”

“All we wish is to retrieve one of our comrades and ensure their safety,” Celestia assured him.

“And we are to trust you would not harm one of ours if they’d already engaged your comrade?”

The rumble of explosions amid the spreading blanket of shadows in the sky from where Luna and Twilight Velvet fought seemed to drive home the volatile nature of the situation, yet Celestia was not ready to give up hope to avoid any more unnecessary fighting. If either Cadence or Night Light pressed her hard enough to force her to unleash her Shikai it would be difficult to hold back any longer. Taking a deep breath to keep her voice level, she said, “If I seriously desired to hurt either of you why would I still be fighting with my Zanpaktou sealed? Let me go calm my sister. Let us go seek our comrade. The Hollows are defeated, and at least in this time and place there is little to be gained from us doing battle.”

“Night Light,” said Cadence, “You of course have command here, and I will follow whatever orders you give, but I will point out that right now we have no standing orders to fight the Soul Reapers in the city. Things can only escalate from here, if we continue to do battle.”

Night Light’s eyes flicked towards the distant battle between Luna and Twilight Velvet, little more than a inky stain in the sky where flashes of light could be seen. It was difficult even for Celestia to sense what was happening there, as part of the power of Luna’s Tsuki no Kagetsume was that it disrupted spiritual senses. All she could tell was that both Luna and Velvet were still alive and fighting strong, but not which of the pair was winning. Then again, neither were likely going all out yet, neither Luna nor the Quincy. In Night Light’s eyes she could see the hint of fear, of deep rooted worry of a husband for his wife. Or was it something else? Celestia couldn't be certain, but it felt like Night Light was stretching his spiritual senses out, felt something that, for just a second, caused a look of surprise in his eyes, before he sighed and looked at her with his expression guarded once more.

“Hmm, very well,” he said, letting the arrow vanish from his bow, “I will allow you and your sister to collect your comrades and withdraw from the field, under our escort. You have my word we will not further engage you unless you engage us first, Soul Reaper.”

She inclined her head in a gesture of relieved acknowledgement, sheathing her Zanpaktou, “Thank you. Now let us hurry, before our loved ones tear each other apart.”

----------

Twilight Velvet wasn’t at all certain what to make of the shadows pouring off of the Soul Reaper Captain named Luna. They filled the sky like a miniature lake, and flowed off of the Soul Reaper’s body as if she were bleeding the shadows from arterial wounds. With the smallest gesture with her scythes Luna sent waves of shadow hurtling at Velvet, and she could see the undulating darkness taking the shape of dozens upon dozens of curving claws as they flashed at her.

Velvet didn’t hesitate to start blasting the shadows with her arbalest, pouring reishi into the mixture of cannon and bow to fire balls of explosive spiritual energy into the lunging shadows. The shadows could be damaged, cut apart, it seemed, but more just formed, coming at Velvet again as she rapidly dodged and twisted around, firing all around her as shadows closed in. More and more shadow bled off of Luna, the shadows now climbing upward like they were painting the sky black, seeing to enfold Velvet. She had no intention of being caught within a realm of shadow generated by this Soul Reaper. She flew upward, up and away from the grasping shadows, and fired down with a relentless barrage. Her blazing spheres of energy erupted into arrows that tore apart the shadows, but like beating back an ocean wave with cannon fire, the shadows just kept coming, no matter how broken up they got.

Luna’s chiding voice spoke from the shadows. “You can’t escape with simple brute force, Quincy. You can’t kill darkness.”

Velvet growled, reminded of just how much she despised Soul Reapers and their arrogance. Images flitted through her mind of battles past, of the blood soaked corpses of her first squad, and of her own mother and father’s graves, one of countless white crosses in an endless field of graves for the Quincy fallen.

Her son was already a soldier in this war, and sooner or later her daughter would be as well. The thought sent cold rage billowing through Twilight Velvet, a woman whose loyalty and love for her husband was eclipsed only by the love she felt for her children. The fear that any of them, or all of them, might be killed by Soul Reaper blades was all the motivation Twilight Velvet needed to hate them.

“I can’t kill darkness, perhaps,” she agreed as the shadows closed around her, “But it can be banished with enough light.”

She reached back into the mantle of her uniform, where several sheaths containing silver tubes was located. She quickly withdrew four such tubes between her fingers, flicking them out into the darkness. The caps on each tube flipped open and bright, clear luminescent blue liquid poured out. Velvet formed a set of reishi strings from her fingertips, touching her spiritual energy to each tube, which had now poured their water out in a spreading pattern almost like a dome. Blue spirit particles flared like fire, then bright as phosphorus, and suddenly everything was bathed in blindingly brilliant light from the explosive flare of energy that came from each tube of spiritually charged liquid. Such tubes were usually for more subtle techniques, but activating the stored spirit energy inside them to explode with light was a simple trick, and using four at once created a flare of light so bright it was like summoning a sliver of the sun for just an instance.

The shadows were a lot more solid than real shadows, as if they were almost akin to a living, black liquid, but the concentrated light forced the shadows back for a second, forced them to peel away from Luna for a moment to reveal her more clearly, wincing at the light. Velvet responded instantly, dropping towards Luna while firing her arbalest in one echoing blast after another.

Luna in turn responded with huge, sweeping arcs with her scythes, catching the sphere’s of explosive spirit energy in cacophonous blasts that shredded the shadows around her even as her scythes cut down the rapid fire attacks from Velvet. The shadows were forced to recede, then, and Luna formed them into a hardened, spherical shield around herself until Velvet’s attacks abated, at which point the shadows unfurled almost like wings around Luna’s body, revealing her mostly unharmed, but certainly looking unamused as the Quincy who was still thwarting her.

“Perhaps you’ll have to use your vaunted Soul Reaper ‘Bankai’ if you wish to defeat me,” Velvet suggested cheekily at Luna, who in response merely looked to the scythe in her right hand, as if examining it for damage. The blade was smoking lightly from where Velvet’s blasts had hit it.

“Bankai? You think yourself deserving of facing the highest form of a Soul Reaper’s Zanpaktou, merely because you’ve survived a few minutes against my Shikai? Is this your first time battling a Captain of the Thirteen Court Guard Divisions?”

“So what if it is? You likely have never faced a Sternritter, either. I haven’t used all of my power, yet, either,” Velvet shot back, scowling. She wasn’t bluffing, either. She had yet to make any use of her schrift, or the trump card of the Sternritter, the transformation known as the Vollstandig. The reason she hadn’t, much as she suspected none of her fellow Sternritter had, was because the Vollstandig was still a secret ability that His Majesty had not authorized them to use in a situation where the Soul Reapers being fought might still escape to report back to the Soul Society about it. Unless Night Light granted her permission, she couldn’t risk the transformation, even if Luna did use her Bankai.

As for her schrift, it was the letter V, the Vengeance. Unfortunately in order to use it, she had to make physical contact with her target, and so far Luna had proven to very difficult to get close to. However she didn’t see much choice. Her arbalest didn’t seem capable of breaking past Luna’s defenses. She’d have to risk getting close enough to touch Luna, only then could the Vengeance be activated and perhaps turn the tide in Velvet’s favor.

Shadows gathered around Luna once more, both scythes at the ready. Velvet got ready as well, aiming her arbalest. She intended to fire off a wide barrage to distract Luna, then move in fast as possible to try and make contact. Only Velvet noticed Luna’s shadows were spreading out to the side of her and behind, and that she was aiming her scythe at the shadows beside her, not at Velvet.

What is she- Velvet began to wonder, then saw Luna smirk and slash at the shadows beside her. Only then did she notice the swoosh of air behind her. She twisted to the side, but still felt a blinding stab of agony in her side as the scythe blade Luna had stuck into the shadows next to her emerged out of a small patch of shadow that had attached itself to Velvet’s feet and stretched out behind her, just wide enough to allow the scythe blade to go through.

Velvet realized Luna must have attached that shadow to her some time when the shadows had been enclosing her, just before she’d blasted the shadows back with the silver tubes. It seemed Luna could strike with her scythes out of any place those shadows were. Velvet now had a deep gash in her side from the scythe’s cleaving blade. It would have severed her spine and gone right through her if she hadn’t dodged at the last second.

Whipping her arbalest around she blasted the small shadow attached to her, though Luna pulled her scythe back quickly before the vanishing shadow might cut off. However now Velvet had to put a hand to her side, which was pouring blood far too quickly to think it was merely a flesh wound, staining her white uniform crimson.

“Ugh... damn. Dirty Soul Reaper tricks...”

“I’ll finish this quickly,” said Luna, twirling her scythes in her hands and leaping forward towards Velvet.

It was then that Celestia, like a descending angel, interposed herself between them, putting a hand on Luna’s striking scythe and halting it in its tracks. At the same instant Cadence and Night Light appeared on either side of Velvet, Night Light instantly putting his arms around Velvet.

“Are you alright, my love?”

“Mmph... more... more embarrassed than anything,” she said, grunting at the pain, feeling the hot warmth of the blood dripping down her side. “An elite Sternritter shouldn’t be seen in such a disgraceful state.”

“Nonsense,” Night Light said firmly, “A wound like that is to be expected, dealing with a Soul Reaper Captain.”

“Why do you stop me, sister?” asked Luna, turning hard eyes on Celestia, who met the gaze with an even calm look of her own.

“I have convinced Night Light to allow us to collect Clover and end this pointless fight for today. Please, Luna, put your blades away, and allow this to be the end of it for now. Enough blood has been spilled for one battle.”

Luna looked ready to argue, and a part of Velvet wished she would. She wanted nothing more than to destroy the two women before her, if only because of what they represented. Yet if Night Light thought it best to halt the hostilities for now, then there was no arguing it. Her husband would not have agreed if he didn’t think it was the best course of action. Velvet suspected it wasn’t defeat that Night Light feared, merely that victory would come at too high a price today to be worth it. Then he squeezed her hand and whispered, “Stretch your senses out, Velvet. South.”

Blinking, she did so. When she did, her eyes snapped wise. Twilight!? Her Twilight!? What was she doing out there in the city!? And... and why did her spiritual energy resonate with the distinct sensation of Quincy powers?

No wonder Night Light had agreed to stop the fighting. There was no way he’d want to risk one like Celestia or Luna being forced into Bankai when their daughter was anywhere near the site of battle. He must have just recently sensed her, too, otherwise he would have told Shining Armor or Cadence to go retrieve her. As it was Velvet had all but forgotten about the two Soul Reaper sisters and was now only thinking of wanting to go to her little Twilight. She felt as if her little girl was heading deeper into the city, and now that she was sensing more clearly, she could feel that her daughter was with a group of others... all with distinct spiritual pressures of their own.

“Husband, what is going on?” she asked faintly, partially from fear for her daughter, partially from the pain of her wound.

“I don’t know,” Night Light said with steely eyes, “But I very much intend to find out.”

Author's Notes:

I've had Sunset's Shikai in mind pretty much since chapter one of this story. Kudos to whoever called the name, Hokori (Pride), I know one of you did. Its not as long or complex as many a Zanpaktou's name, but I wanted Sunset's Zanpaktou to have a straightforward name, one that fit her but also wouldn't drive me nuts anytime I had to keep typing it out. As for its powers, well they're pretty straightforward as well, though Sunset's only scratched the surface of them here.

I hope no one's too dissapointed that only Luna went Shikai in the skirmish with the Sternritter. Celestia's very hesitant to use her Zanpaktou unless she's got no other choice, and for good reasons that will be revealed in time. Suffice to say that Luna's Tsuki no Kagetsume is good at precision attacks, while Celestia's... isn't.

Anyway, thanks for reading along folks, I very much appreciate it. As always, I welcome any and all comments, questions, or critiques. Updates should continue on more or less a bi-weekly basis, give or take a few days. 'Till next time.

Episode 19: Without Hesitation

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Episode 19: Without Hesitation

Sunset hadn’t time to consider the ramifications of all that had happened. The mysterious people bearing bows of light, and why Twilight and her family seemed connected to them. The sheer scale of the attack on her town, her friends, and the fact that it was likely just the tip of a much larger threat to come. The massive spiritual pressures she’d felt battling across the city up until a few minutes ago. Or her recently grown powers and the personal epiphany that the pride she’d feared since her failed attempt to steal Princess Twilight’s Element of Magic was in fact the core of her Zanpaktou’s power, and in essence, a part of herself she’d needed to reconnect with to start better understanding herself.

All of that was regulated to a background buzz as she focused solely on what lay in front of her, leading her friends, and carrying a wounded Clover, to Discord’s shop. No Hollows stood in their path, though if any had they wouldn’t have been there for long. Sunset could still feel Hokori’s strength humming through her, the shield and blade all but vibrating with barely restrained energy.

There was little to no talk among the girls. Each was coming down off of their own adrenaline highs, aches and pains from the battle starting to manifest past the haze of the fight, but none made any complaints. Sunset was proud of them. They’d taken on a grueling fight with little to no warning, and come out the victors. All the fear she’d packed inside herself over the past few weeks, the worry that this whole situation with battling Hollows would be too much for them to handle, it was melting away with the warmth she felt seeing her friends soldiering on despite their exhaustion and wounds. There’d be more fights, but Sunset felt certain that they could take them on. She was almost eager for it.

They bypassed the wards around Discord’s shop without any trouble and went right through the front doors to find that gray cat that seemed to hang around the shop a lot waiting for them. Sunset paused as the cat spoke in a young, masculine voice.

“Welcome back. Discord is this way.”

“Dude, did that cat just talk?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“At this point I’m not sure I can find anything surprising,” said Twilight, adjusting her glasses as she peered curiously at the cat.

Fluttershy managed a small smile at the cat, but it was a testament to how much focus and tiring energy she was putting into keeping Clover alive that the normally animal loving girl didn't have a larger reaction than that to a talking cat.

“We have wounded,” Sunset said, pushing aside any hesitation concerning a talking cat. She lived in Equestria for a fair chunk of her life. Talking animals wasn’t about to phase her. The cat just nodded, a somber look in its strange, gold eyes that stared in different direction.

“Follow me quick, then, girls.”

The cat led the off and they followed without further talk. Down the corridors of the shop’s back area they went, through several sliding paper doors until they reached a surprisingly large room with several leather couches and lounge chairs set up around a central sitting table. Almost every available space of wall aside from the doors in were lined with tall bookshelves, piled with a random and ill-organized explosion of random books, magazines, old VCR tapes and even vinyl records, not a single bit of it arranged with any sense of order. One corner of the room held an ancient looking record player and pair of speakers, while another had an equally old tube television and VCR player set up on a small wood entertainment center. The room was lit by few standing lamps and a single ceiling fan/light combination, the fan lazily stirring the dust in the room.

Pinkie Pie’s mother and father sat uneasily on one of the couches, while Marble occupied a chair as if she was trying to disappear into the plush leather cushions, hands wrapped around her pulled up knees. Maud stood near the table, a seemingly impassive stone if not for the way her hands were undeniably balled into tight fists. Discord was pacing back and forth across the room, a gnarled walking cane in one hand making a loud ‘clack’ against the floor with each step as he stroked his beard. The moment the cat led Sunset and the others into the room all eyes turned to them.

“PInkamena Diane Pie!” cried both Pie patron and matron at once.

“Hi ma, hi pa!” said Pinkie Pie, while Pinkamena, being carried along leaning on Pinkie Pie’s shoulder said, “I hate it when you guys use our full name.”

Pinkie Pie’s father, Igneous, looked equal parts worried and hesitant as he stood up, but Cloudy Quartz had no hesitation at all as she ran over to wrap both Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena up in a huge, tight hug.

“Thank heavens you’re both safe!” Cloudy Quartz said past sniffing tears, “I couldn’t stand to think of what might’ve happened to you.” Her eyes turned towards Pinkamena’s injured stomach, and she gasped, “T-that wound! You have to get it treated immediately!”

Pinkamena had a sour look on her face, as if the worry and affection was making her taste something wrong. “Its just a profusely bleeding stomach wound. It barely hurts...”

“Nonsense, young lady! You lay down this instant and let us take care of that. Mister Discord, you have a medical kit, yes?” Cloudy Quartz asked.

“That and more besides,” said Discord, eyeing all of the girls as they shuffled in, Rainbow Dash leading around the table with Clover carried carefully in her arms. Discord gave them all one quick look before saying, “I’ll go get what’s needed. Lay the wounded on the couches.”

Space was made and in short order Clover was laid out on one couch while Pinkamena was all but strong armed by Cloudy Quartz to be made to lay down in the other. Meanwhile Sunset took stock of a very noticeable detail. One Pie sister was missing; Limestone.

“Where’s Limestone?” she asked, and Pinkie Pie gave a shocked start, as if only now noticing that as well.

“She was taken,” said a heated voice as Adagio floated into the room, the siren plush doll looking dirty stained and ragged as she looked at Sunset, “Along with my sisters.”

“Taken!? By who?” asked Rarity, whose eyes then narrowed suspiciously, “Was it those dreadful people with the bows?” She blinked and glanced at Twilight, “No offense intended, Twilight.”

Twilight just sighed, and shrugged as Adagio said, “No, it was a Hollow. Grand Fisher.”

Applejack spat, one foot stomping the floor angrily, “Shoulda known that piece o’ filth woulda been behind all this!”

“What happened?” Sunset asked Adagio, jaw tight, one hand clasping strongly around Hokori’s shield. Adagio eyed the transformed Zanpaktou with a hint of curiosity, but her anger was simmering beyond any other emotions on her small, dollish face, and she relayed the events that had transpired at the gas station. By the end of it Sunset shared Adagio’s fuming anger, though mostly because she felt she should have anticipated such a move on Grand Fisher’s part and sent someone to escort the Pie family and sirens.

“I’m sorry Adagio, I should have expected him to pull a stunt like that,” she said, gritting her teeth, “An attack like this should have been an obvious distraction.”

“Even if you’d sent someone it wouldn’t have mattered,” growled Adagio in frustration, “That Grand Fisher was strong enough to wipe the floor with any one of your friends. If Discord hadn’t shown up when he did, we all would have been taken.”

It was probably true, but it still irked Sunset to think they’d been outmaneuvered. Now Grand Fisher was holding a strong position to set terms against them. No doubt he had plans for this arranged meeting at the dam tonight, and she and her friends were already pretty exhausted from the fight against the Gillians and horde of lesser Hollow. Again, no doubt a part of Grand Fisher’s scheme. She could feel the heat brimming from inside Hokori, and some part of Sunset’s mind said ’Oh, don’t worry, we’ll see to him shortly, just you wait.’

“So, uh, ma, you seem to be all cool with Pinkamena here,” said Pinkie Pie with a happy smile, “I was a bit worried I’d have to do a bunch of explaining, which I’m not too good at, heheh.”

Cloudy Quartz smiled warmly, patting Pinkamena’s shoulder, which only seemed to make the doppelganger more uncomfortable as she grimaced. “Discord has explained much to your father and I. What has befallen you girls, the battles you’ve faced...” her eyes softly glanced at Pinkamena, without fear or judgement, “The transformation you’ve undergone.”

“Ugh, stop looking at me, I don’t like it,” groused Pinkamena.

“I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable, dear child,” said Cloudy Quartz, “But you are, as I understand it, a part of-”

“Pinkie Pie. Think of me as her ugly shadow that comes out to play when she needs someone to do all the nasty things she can't.” said Pinkamena with an sardonic bitterness, even as she grinned with a fang filled smile.

Cloudy Quartz paused, then continued to say, “-A part of the family, I was going to say.”

Pinkamena’s eyes narrowed, sliding towards Cloudy Quartz suspiciously, “Pfft, say what?”

“It may be presumptuous of me, but you are like another daughter, one who was born from this strange power Pinkie Pie and her friends possess,” said Cloudy Quartz with complete earnestness filling her tone, “I don’t understand the details, but I will not question a blessing when it is given. So let me thank you, Pinkamena, for protecting your sister Pinkie Pie, and welcome you to the family.”

“I, too, welcome you,” said Igneous, despite clearly seeming confused and near the end of his nerves with all that had happened, “However you may have been brought into this world.”

After a second Marble gave a nervous, “Mmmhmm...”

Maud stared at Pinkamena with fathomless eyes, then said, “We’ve met.”

Pinkie Pie just grinned wide and gave Pinkamena’s hand a squeeze, “We'll have to throw you a ‘Welcome to Being Officially Part of the Family’ party when we got the time!”

Pinkamena let out a sound somewhere between a groan and a whine, “I don’t even know where to begin with what’s wrong with you people. Pinkie Pie, I’m going back into the hole, now. I'll heal faster and I won't have to listen to any of your crazy talk.”

Seemingly of her own will Pinkamena faded into pink mist and flowed into Pinkie Pie, causing Cloud Quartz to let out a startled cry, but Pinkie Pie quickly patted her mother’s shoulder. “Don’t worry ma, Pinkamena’s just being shy.”

Not long after that Discord returned, carrying with him a cardboard box. The gray cat stirred from its spot on the arm of the chair Marble was sitting in and said, “Want some help with this?”

Discord waved a hand, setting the box down on the table, “I’ll handle it. You’d best get back to the front. I sensed company coming. The wards won’t hold them if they want to come in.”

The cat’s eyes flicked towards Twilight, “They're coming for her?”

“Most definitely,” said Discord, who looked up at the confused looking Twilight, “Seems someone managed to slip a bug past all my neatly prepared defenses. I must really be slipping in my old age not to notice until I felt her family coming our way.”

Twilight gulped, “M-my family is coming here, now? Wait, what do you mean ‘bug’?”

Rather than Discord responding, the cat did, lightly leaping onto the table and walking over towards Twilight, its nose twitching as it sniffed at her. “Yup, I can smell it now that you’ve pointed it out, Discy. A real subtle tracer with that old hint of Quincy reishi. Whoever put it there really knows their stuff. Even knowing what I’m looking for I can barely sniff it out. Hey, you think they can hear us? Hey! Quincy! If you're listening, your ‘Majesty’ is a total jerkface!”

Discord gave a quick cacklesnort, opening the cardboard box and pulling out several esoteric looking vials of luminescent green liquid alongside a more traditional medical kit. Fluttershy hadn’t left Clover’s side the entire time, but now looked somewhat more relieved to see that someone else with medical skill was finally doing something to help Clover. She did eye the bottles of liquid curiously, however, and asked, “What’s that?”

“A little chemical and spirit particle cocktail I whipped up in my heyday that helps a spirit body recover from these kind of injuries,” Discord said while popping the top of one of the vials, letting a sickly sweet scent fill the room that reminded Sunset of something sugary left in the sun for too long. While Discord poured the contents of the vial down Clover’s throat, everyone else’s attention was largely rooted on Twilight.

The girl was rubbing her arms uneasily as she looked between everyone, then at the cat, “Wh-what is this tracer doing on me? Who put it there?”

“Probably one of the Quincy higher-ups that you’ve rubbed shoulders with in the past week,” said the cat, “Too bad I can’t remove it. It’s stuck there pretty solid, invisible, barely putting out a signal. Fine work, I gotta admit. Hey don’t feel bad, I’m sure you had no idea it was there.”

“I didn’t...” Twilight whispered, gulping.

“Wait, so what does this mean, Twilight? The whole bow thing?” Rainbow Dash asked, leaning casually against the edge of one of the couches while trying to hide her tension, “I mean, its awesome and all, but what’s your connection with those other dudes with bows? One of them was even your bro, right?”

Twilight looked as if Rainbow Dash’s questions were physical blows, flinching with almost every word. She nodded quietly, then said in a soft voice that gradually grew more strained, “I wanted to tell all of you what was happening but I really couldn’t! My brother, my mother, my father... my whole family are Quincy. I only learned this after the night the Hollows went after your families.”

“The arrow that saved you that night,” said Rarity, fingering her chin in thought, “That was a Quincy’s doing, yes?”

“Yes. After that, Shining Armor told me about what my family is, and offered to teach me,” Twilight said, staring at the ground with guilt slumping her shoulders, “I wanted to learn. I wanted to know more about the true nature of the world, and maybe learn how to handle myself so I could help all of you. I never intended to lie or hide anything, it just... it was just that Shining Armor said I shouldn’t tell anyone, and it just seemed to make sense at the time to keep it a secret until I knew more, until I could learn more. But the more I learned, the more I was afraid to say anything-”

“Twilight, it’s okay,” said Sunset, “You know we’re your friends and that we’re not going to jump down your throat because of this. You sound like you had this dumped on you out of nowhere and just tried to make the best choice you could with what you knew. Now, just what are the Quincy?”

Twilight took a few deep breaths and slowly told them what she knew, which wasn’t actually all that much. Sunset wasn’t actually all that surprised to learn that there was a group of humans who’d developed powers to fight Hollows. It made perfect sense to her that something like that would happen, as it was only the logical response to a threat like the Hollows. If ponies faced a constant threat then they’d develop spells or something similar to fight back, so why wouldn’t humans do the same? She was just surprised it was this big secret and that the Quincy hadn’t made their existence and powers more publicly known. Humans were strange when it came to maintaining the status quo of ignorance about the existence of supernatural forces. Even with all the obviously magical events that had occurred at Canterlot High over the past year or so most of the students just sort of took it in stride.

As for the war between Quincy and Soul Reapers, that was worrying. It put all of them, but especially Twilight, in a precarious position. Things had almost seemed simple when it was just Hollows they had to worry about. Being drawn in a supernatural blood feud that’d been going on for generations was a whole new level of headache that Sunset wasn’t eager to dive into, but it wasn’t as if there was much choice. Twilight was a Quincy, and her family was neck deep in it, all of them heavy hitters among the Quincy ranks. One of them had to have put that tracer on Twilight, and were now coming to Discord’s shop, no doubt to retrieve the prodigal daughter.

“Twilight, when your family gets here, what do you want to do?” Sunset asked in a serious tone, arms crossing beneath her breasts, “Are you going with them?”

Twilight’s pause was short, but thick with grave weight before she said, “I think I have to.”

“Ta heck wit that, Twi!” said Applejack, spitting, “Lands sakes girl, they can’t just force ya ta join their dang war! I git that they’re yer kin, but ain’t nobody got the right ta jerk ya around by the collar like that!”

“Damn straight!” said Rainbow Dash, pumping a fist into the air, “You don’t want to go, Twilight, you better believe we’ll back you up. They’ll have to go through all of us to get at you.”

“Quite so,” said Rarity, managing to flash a smile, “You know you can count on our support, darling, no matter what.”

Fluttershy gave a solemn, but solid nod, giving silent support while not taking her focus away from continuing to support Discord in healing Clover’s injuries. Pinkie Pie looked like she was about to pipe in her own supportive words as well but Twilight held up a hand, forestalling them. The girl’s eyes were misty behind her glasses.

“I know you’d all protect me if I asked you to. You’ve all been such good friends, and I feel like I’ve barely done a thing to repay all of you, for just... just offering me the chance. But when my family arrives, I’ll be going with them, of my own free will.”

“What!? Why!?” demanded Rainbow Dash.

Sunset sighed, looking at Twilight with a level stare, “You want to complete your training.”

Twilight looked back at her, slowly nodding, “I do. I know the Quincy aren’t precisely the ‘good guys’ in this war, but... but maybe...” she glanced at Clover, “I don’t know, maybe nobody is on the ‘right’ side. The Soul Reapers might not be in the right, either.” She clutched the silver cross on her wrist, “But when I was learning to use this power, Sunset, girls, it... it felt right. I feel like I’m discovering something inside myself that I’ve been yearning for all my life, but only just now got a glimpse of. This power, I can use it to learn even more about this world, and even help others, if I can. More than that, my family is always going to be important to me. I can’t abandon them, but at the same time I feel like I can maybe learn more about the reasons behind this war and maybe stop it from getting worse if I stay with them.”

“Influence the Quincy from the inside,” Sunset said, running a hand through her hair, “You’re sure about this Twilight? Absolutely sure? Because if you go with your family, its possible they’ll never let you out of their sight again.”

“I know,” Twilight said, the hesitation slowly leaving her eyes, her shoulders taking on a more resolute stiffness to them, “And I will find a way to deal with whatever happens. I won’t ever treat you girls as anything other than my friends, no matter what my family might end up telling me, or what what training as a Quincy pushes me towards. But I feel it's the right choice to stay among the Quincy and learn all I can. I know I can use it to help all of you, when the time comes.”

There was silence for a moment, then it was broken but a chuckle from the gray cat, “Heheh, well said! You’ve got guts, Twilight Sparkle. I like you. A few more Quincy like you and maybe the war can be ended. What do you think, Discy?”

Discord smirked, not looking up from his work, slowly switching Clover’s wound, “I think Miss Sparkle is exceptionally optimistic, but perhaps that will work to her advantage. There’s something to be said, for a lack of jaded cynicism in a world like ours. Now, to ask you girls a question I already suspect I know the answer to; what do you intend to do about Grand Fisher?”

It wasn’t much of a question. There couldn’t be any doubt, really, about what their next move needed to be. Sunset didn’t feel a single flicker of surprise when she looked towards her friends and saw that each and every single one of them had equal looks of determination hardening their features, even Twilight. Sunset turned to Discord, “What are we going to do? We’re going to thrash that two-bit Hollow and rescue our people, that’s what.”

Discord grinned, a wide, almost disturbing smile that seemed to make his oddly colored eyes glow. “Good to know. Now, while I’m no tactician, it would seem to me that doing exactly what Grand Fisher says, meeting him at the dam tonight, might not be the most advantageous move.”

“Whatd’ya suggest we do then?” asked Applejack, “Ain’t like we know what rock he’s hidin’ under.”

“Actually, I do,” said Discord, “I know he’s taken his hostages to Hueco Mundo, the Hollow World. I also know that Grand Fisher tends to haunt a particular spot there, a set of dark, stone mesas. I can get you girls there, although sadly I won’t be able to join you. However, if you move quickly you can take Grand Fisher by surprise, and perhaps beat him on his own ground.”

“Won’t he be stronger on his own territory?” asked Rarity, while Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes.

“I’m all for some righteous butt-kicking, but how do you know where this jerk likes to hang out?”

“Good questions both. To answer the first one, Grand Fisher may have a few more Hollows under his control, but I think he shot his wad, so to speak, with today’s invasion. If you hit him now, he won’t expect it. However I guarantee you that if you go to the dam as he wants, he’ll have some nasty traps prepared for you,” Discord said, then shaded his eyes with the edge of his white and green hat, looking down at Clover, “As to the second question, that answer will have to wait until you return. No doubt Clover has things to reveal as well, and when she’s awake perhaps it’ll be best for such revelations to come out then.”

Applejack stepped forward, voice grave, “What’s Clover got ta do wit this? You sayin’ you got somethin’ ta do wit what she was lookin’ into fer me? Why do ya know anythin’ ‘bout Grand Fisher?”

“Miss Applejack, believe me, I’d like nothing more than to tell you what you desperately want to know, but now is not the time-”

“Horsehockey!” shouted Applejack, taking another step towards Discord, but ended up halting in place as the gray cat walked over to the other end of the table where Applejack was, and put a paw on the girl’s leg... somehow stopping Applejack in her tracks.

“Trust Discord,” the cat said, “He’s a bit of a nutjob, I’ll be the first to admit, but he’s doing this for your own good.”

“I don’t understand, what do you know and why won’t you tell us?” asked Sunset, frowning.

“Its simple,” said Discord, “If you’re serious about tackling Grand Fisher, either in his own home, or at the trap at the dam, I can’t let you girls be distracted by things that would weigh on your minds. I promise you, my oath on it, that I’ll tell you all I know... after you defeat Grand Fisher and return safely with the unfortunate victims he’s taken. If I told you before, it’d just be needlessly putting you in danger.”

Sunset thought it over for a moment. She’d always had a bit of a sense that Discord knew far more than he was ever letting on, that he was connected to events in ways she and her friends couldn’t begin to guess at. Yet despite that he’d done nothing but help them since they’d first come to his shop. In fact it probably wasn’t a stretch of the imagination to say that without Discord’s help they’d have never gotten as far as they had. Whatever secrets he might be hiding, Sunset’s instincts told her that he was on their side. Besides, it wasn’t as if they could force him to reveal something he didn’t want to.

“Okay, fine, after we get back then,” she said and Applejack turned to her with a heated look.

“Now listen hear Sunset, I ain’t lettin’ this go just like that-”

“Applejack, we have to rescue Pinkie Pie and Adagio’s sisters!” Sunset snapped, “We don’t have time for an argument and unless you want to try beating answers out of the one guy that’s been trying to help us from the start, we don’t have any other options but to let him keep his secrets until after we’ve dealt with Grand Fisher.”

“But... dangnabbit, I gotta know the truth...” Applejack said, fists clenched, shaking with impotent frustration, “I need ta know.”

“If it helps ease your burden, Miss Applejack,” said Discord, “I will say this much; the things that Clover and I will reveal concern more than just you. They concern Miss Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy as well.”

This earned him a series of confused looks, Rarity pensively saying, “Well, that’s quite ominous.”

“Try not to concern yourselves with it,” said Discord, “Focus on the task at hand. Speaking of which, I do believe I’ve done all I can for Miss Clover here. Miss Fluttershy, you can cease using your power upon her now.”

Fluttershy nodded tiredly, letting her eyes return to normal and closing her third eye, her transformation flowing away from her with a sigh. “I hope she’ll be okay.”

“She will be, in time,” assured Discord, standing and dusting himself off, “Now, if you intend to go after Grand Fisher in Hueco Mundo, I must prepare a means for you to reach that plane and return to this one. However we first have guests to deal with.”

“M.my family is here?” asked Twilight, to which Discord nodded. Only then did Sunset feel it too, the presence of several powerful spiritual pressures nearby. She thought she felt three. Now that they were close, she thought she could sense how the Quincy auras differed from that of Hollows or Soul Reapers, or that of her friends. There was a feral quality to a Hollow’s spirit pressure, like that of a hungry predator. Soul Reaper’s like Clover and Fancy Pants had a sharp, buzzing quality about them. These Quincy auras felt cold, yet solid, like stone.

“Let us go greet them,” said Discord.

Sunset and the other girls gathered around Twilight, giving her comforting looks as they headed outside. The gray cat followed, but the rest of Pinkie Pie’s family and Adagio waited back in the shop. Sunset could tell that Twilight was beyond tense, holding herself too stiffly as she walked. The look on Twilight’s face wasn’t too far off from the near panic of a kid who knew they’d driven their parent’s car into a ditch and was just now realizing how much trouble they were in.

Coming out into the front courtyard of the shop, Sunset saw three people waiting for them. It didn’t take her more than a few seconds to recognize the family resemblance between these people and Twilight, especially evident in the middle aged woman who aside from some different coloring, was all but the very image of an older Twilight Sparkle. The woman was also noticeably wounded, holding a bandaged side that was still seeping blood that soaked her white uniform.

Whatever fear Twilight was feeling seemed to flee her the instant she saw her mother’s injuries, The girl stumbled as she ran forward. “Mom!”

The two men with the woman, one a blue skinned and haired middle aged man with broad shoulders and a stately manner, the other younger with white skin by the same blue hair as the older man, both moved to the side to allow Twilight to reach her mother. Sunset hadn’t really met Shining Armor in any official capacity, having only seen him once or twice before today. She knew he was the one who’d stopped Fleur De Lis from firing her final attack, and she gave him a simple nod of acknowledgment, which he returned after a moment. As for the older man, Twilight’s father no doubt, he was still as a statue, one eye on his daughter and wife, and the other on Sunset, her friends, Discord, and the gray cat which had taken a perch on the railing of the walkway around the front of the shop.

“Discord,” the man said in a cool, controlled voice, “I thought it was your policy to not become involved in the conflict between Soul Reapers and Quincy, yet here you are... harboring Soul Reapers, training humans in strange powers, and interfering with our daughter’s life.”

Discord stepped forward, seeming to emphasize his can with a simple hard tap on the ground, and he smiled thinly at the man, “Night Light, these girls came to me of their own volition asking for help. They are not directly connected to your continued schoolyard scuffle with the Soul Reapers, only wishing to know how to defend themselves against the Hollows that just seem to keep cropping up in this fair city. Your daughter just happened to be a part of the group, and I hardly did anything to ‘interfere’ with her. I told her nothing of Quincy, or taught her any Quincy techniques. I do believe you have your own son to blame for that.”

“Yes,” said Night Light, shifting a cold gaze towards Shining Armor, who held himself stock still under the look, “And he shall be disciplined. I trust you have no objections to us taking our daughter and being on our way, then?”

Discord made an off hand gesture, “She is free to do as she wishes. I have no intention of keeping her here... against her will.”

Now Twilight’s mother reacted, having just been gently hugging her daughter up until then, but now looking up with daggers in her eyes at Discord, “You will not associate with her anymore at all, you snake! If I weren’t already injured I’d gladly tear your shop down around your ears!”

“Ah, Twilight Velvet, as level headed as ever, I see. Are you sure you wouldn’t wish to purchase a healing salve or two? That wound seems terrible,” said Discord.

“I wouldn’t buy anything from you if you were literally my last chance at life.” Twilight Velvet's voice held nothing but corrosive venom, and Sunset was honestly shocked at how much the woman seemed to genuinely hate Discord. There had to be some history there. “I know you must have had something terrible planned for my daughter, and probably her friends as well.”

“I assure you, Twilight Velvet, my intentions are not at all erroneous-” Discord said, but Velvet cut him off halfway.

“Save it, snake. Only a fool would bite into your poisoned apples,” Velvet said, and then looked at Sunset and the other girls with narrowed eyes, “I don’t particularly know any of you. But since you’ve been friends to my Twilight I shall give you this advice. Don’t trust this ‘man’ who claims to want to help you. He gave me and my friends a similar claim, once, and he betrayed that trust. He’ll do the same with you.”

Sunset turned curious eyes towards Discord, as did most the other girls, except Pinkie Pie who seemed mostly just confused. Discord for his part just had a tired look on his face, somber but not particularly angry. Sunset noticed he didn’t deny anything Velvet said, instead just saying, “I am sorry for how things turned out back then, Velvet. I protected who I could, as best I could. It wasn’t enough.”

“Cloudy Quartz is here, isn’t she?” said Velvet, frowning, “I can sense her, even with her power locked up. Have you told her anything yet?”

“It wouldn’t matter even if I did. Her memory of those times is gone, and even my skills can’t undo that,” said Discord plainly.

Confusion was only mounting among the girls at the turn of the conversation, Twilight Sparkle looking back between her mother and her friends with obvious puzzlement that was reflected upon the faces of every other girl as well. “Mom, what are you talking about?”

Twilight Velvet glanced at her daughter, “I’ll tell you once we’re back home, young lady. You are still in trouble for keeping secrets from your parents and jumping into things you shouldn’t have. Your friends will have to fend for themselves, I will not let them drag you into any more of this business.”

“It's inevitable,” said Night Light, “That the Soul Society is going to come for these girls, Discord. What do you intend to do when that happens?”

“Protect them as best I can,” Discord replied with a firm grip on his cane.

“Ah, because it went so well the last time you tried to protect a group of young women who’d gotten in over their heads, yes?” said Night Light, shaking his head, “You’ll understand if I see to it my daughter has no more to do with you or them.”

“W-wait, dad, please listen,” said Twilight, turning to him with a desperate look, “I’ll go with you and mom, of course, but there’s this Hollow that’s taken-”

“Enough,” Night Light said, cutting Twilight off with a gesture, “You will come with us back home, Twilight Sparkle, and I’ll hear no more excuses.”

“Father,” said Shining Armor, “Perhaps we should hear what she has to say. It sounds important.”

“Silence, boy,” said Night Light with a knife edged voice, “Whatever affairs these girls have gotten themselves into are no longer our concern. Twilight is coming home and that is all there is to it.”

“But my friend’s family have been taken captive by a Hollow!” shouted Twilight, “I want to help them!”

That caused a pause wherein Night Light and Twilight Velvet exchanged looks with each other, Velvet’s expression going still, “Who was taken?”

“Two of them you wouldn’t know,” put in Discord, “Employees of mine. But the third that was taken was Limestone Pie, one of Cloudy Quartz's daughters.”

This caused a pained look to mar Velvet’s features for a moment, but she only tightened her grip on Twilight and shook her head, “I’m sorry to hear that. This is the pain that comes from associating with you, Discord. Even now, with their memories gone, my friends still pay the price for trusting you. But that’s exactly why I won’t risk my daughter’s life by allowing her anywhere near you. I hate knowing my friend’s daughters are getting mixed up with you, but I refuse to get drawn into that. I have to look after my own, now.”

“Mother, father, if a Hollow has taken humans hostage isn’t it our duty as Quincy to protect human lives?” asked Shining Armor, “At least allow me to accompany any rescue attempt.”

Twilight nodded enthusiastically at this, but Night Light just shook his head, “If they’ve been taken, then they’ve likely been taken to Hueco Mundo. His Majesty has only authorized scouting in that plane, to keep an eye on Hollow activity. Anything more than that would be a violation of our standing orders.”

“Then label it as a scouting mission!” said Shining Armor heatedly, “I’ll ‘scout’ for Hollows and if I happen to stumble across any human captives by accident, well then it’ll be my own initiative to rescue them and if His Majesty has an issue with that it’ll be me alone that’ll be responsible for my actions.”

As Sunset listened she was taking mental notes. It seemed like the Quincy had some sort of king, a head honcho that called all the shots. She wondered just where Twilight’s parents fit into the hierarchy. She also wasn’t blind to the implications of Velvet’s conversation with Discord. What connection did her friend’s parents have with Discord and Velvet? No doubt this was part of what Discord wanted to tell them once they dealt with Grand Fisher, and was connected to Clover’s investigation into Soul Society’s connection to Applejack’s parents.

There’s a lot going on behind the scenes here than me or the girls have even begun to guess at. I don’t like my friend’s lives being messed with. Whatever’s going on, I’ll get to the bottom of it, and protect all of them.

Night Light and Shining Armor were having a little standoff, both men matching gazes with each other; Night Light cold and firm as the picture of the disapproving father, and Shining Armor matching the gaze eye to eye with the flashing defiance of a young man challenging his elder. However before either man could speak further Twilight Velvet, hand still firm on her daughter’s shoulder, stood between them and turned the most potent ‘mom stare’ that Sunset had ever seen onto Shining Armor.

“No more foolishness, Shining. A Sternritter cannot enter Hueco Mundo without authorization from His Majesty. Even if you succeeded, you’d lose your rank, if not more. I won’t allow it.”

“But isn’t it one of your friend’s daughters that’s at risk?” piped in Sunset, suddenly, finding a growing anger in her heart at seeing this woman seem to be so adamant about not doing, “You tear into Discord for screwing over your friends, but won’t lift a finger now to help one of those friends you claim to care so much about?”

Velvet turned a withering gaze towards Sunset, “You don’t know a thing. Cloudy was... a long time ago I would’ve called any of them sisters, but that was before I had a family of my own to look after.” Velvet’s hand seemed to squeeze Twilight’s arm so tightly that Twilight winced in pain, not that Velvet noticed this. “I won’t lose my son or daughter. Not to the Hollows or the Soul Reapers. The only thing I can do to help my friend’s daughters is to tell them to get as far away from him-” she gave Discord a hateful glare “-as possible. I won’t risk more than that.”

“We’re leaving, now.” said Night Light, giving Shining Armor one last hard glare. Velvet started to drag Twilight away, the young girl giving one last, miserable and forlorn look to her friends a she reluctantly followed. Sunset met Twilight’s eyes and gave her a comforting nod and mouthed the words ‘It’ll be okay’, to which Twilight gulped, wiping away a tear from her cheek and returned the nod.

Shining Armor, shaking with impotent anger, clenched his fists, giving Sunset and the girls a final look of disappointment. “I’m sorry. I wanted to help. If you’re going to Hueco Mundo, be careful. There’s worse than what you’ve seen today lurking in that realm. And... thank you, for being there for my Twily.”

With a final, frustrated shake of his head he stalked off after his family, and in a few moments the Quincy were gone.

----------

“I don’t like it,” said Rainbow Dash, about ten minutes later as the girls waited in the training area while Discord and his cat friend went to work on creating a portal that would take them to Hueco Mundo.

“Don’t like what?” asked Sunset, “Stepping into a world we’ve never seen before to do battle with a Hollow stronger than anything we’ve yet faced? Or the idea that Discord has been hiding some mysterious past involving all of your parents?”

“Can it be both?” said Rainbow Dash with a nervous smirk, trying to cover up her unease with her usual cockiness, “I mean, I’m fine going to this Hucowhatsit to kick Grand Fisher’s butt, but yeah, mostly I’m wondering what our mom’s have to do with any of this!”

Applejack kicked at a rock, looking as if she’d rather chew the offending stone, “I ain’t a’ fan o’ him keeping secrets from us either, Dash. Not one bit. Was bad ‘nough thinkin’ my ma and pa were neck deep in this weird world o’ Hollows an’ Soul Reapers, but the rest o’ you too? It don’t make no sense! Why ain’t we learned nothin’ o’ this until now?”

“Clearly because there are those who didn’t want us to know,” said Rarity, arms crossed pensively as she tapped one foot in thought. “I find it equally unsettling that our families have had involvement with these unpleasant supernatural affairs. If I’ve been reading between the lines it sounds as if our mothers all had dealings with Mr. Discord prior, perhaps, to even our births. Then something went terribly wrong, and their memories were removed. I do recall that Clover has used memory replacement on Pinkie Pie’s family once before.”

“Yeah,” said Applejack, her frown deepening, “She didn’t use it on my sis or her friends, but she kinda made it sound like that kind o’ screwin’ wit memory is standard practice o’ the Soul Society.”

“I don’t understand this,” said Fluttershy, looking at the ground, “My parents are both so quiet and kind people. I can’t imagine either of them, especially my mother, having some dark, secret past.”

“For now there’s not much we can do about it,” said Sunset, “Grand Fisher is our problem, right now. Once he’s dealt with, we can get our answers from Discord and Clover.”

“Can we?” asked Applejack with a sidelong glance, “Ya really thinkin’ we can trust him ta give us the whole truth?”

“Do we have another option?” asked Sunset, to which Applejack looked away, giving the ground another grouchy kick.

“Yikes, don’t you all look like a gloomy bunch?” said a chirpy male voice as the gray cat walked up to them, tail swishing and yellow eyes looking off in different directions. The cat smiled at them as it sat down, “Discy wanted me to tell you girls it’l take him another couple of hours to finish whipping up the portal, so you might as well grab some food and rest. Been a busy day already, and you’ll need all your strength for taking on the big bad Hollow.”

“Thanks for the advice,” said Sunset, glancing around at her friends, “Might be a good idea.”

Pinkie Pie’s stomach responded with a hefty growl, “Oooh, yup, definitely nom times. Summoning up Pinkamena really works up the munchies.”

“I suppose we could stand to recover as much of our strength as possible before stepping into the unknown,” said Rarity, “There is a newly opened sandwich shop nearby that offers up these delightful baguettes.”

“Yeah, I could stand to chow down. Can’t be awesome on an empty stomach,” agreed Rainbow Dash.

That agreed upon the girls started to head back for the stairs, but Sunset noticed a small yellow figure drifting down from the entrance above. Adagio’s plush body floated along slowly, and Sunset paused at the foot of the stairs to meet the siren.

“Something up?” she asked, and when Adagio met her gaze Sunset was surprised at how a small plush doll could manage to look that determined.

“I want to go with you girls,” Adagio stated plainly.

“To get lunch?” asked Pinkie Pie, to which Adagio just blinked.

“No, to rescue my sisters.”

Sunset blanched, keeping her voice level, “Adagio, that might not be a good idea. It's going to be dangerous.”

Adagio scowled at that, “You think I don’t know that!? It doesn’t matter. I have to do this. I have to save them.”

“Look, dude, its cool you want to help and I totally get it,” said Rainbow Dash, “But what are you gonna do? Make squeaky toy sounds to annoy the Hollow into submission? Just let us handle this. We’ll totally get your sisters back in one piece, no prob!”

“I don’t care if you can ‘handle it’! They’re my sisters and I won’t just sit here waiting for someone else to bring them home!” shouted Adagio, the small head crest fin of her plushie form bristling, “They’re my responsibility! I’ve ignored that fact for far too long, and I won’t do it anymore!”

“Not even if it kills you?” asked Sunset in a quiet voice, “Because if you come with us, that very well might happen, you understand that don’t you? This Grand Fisher isn’t a joke, and even if we take him by surprise this isn’t going to be anything other than a vicious, deadly fight, worse than what we went through already. Do you think you can be a part of that? Do you think you can help in any meaningful way without getting yourself killed? Adagio, I know how you feel about your sisters. You know I understand that. Will coming with us honestly help them?”

Adagio was silent for a time, floating in front of Sunset with her look of hardened resolve not flagging. Finally she said, “I know the risks. Even if its something small, I have to try, Sunset Shimmer. They’re my sisters. I’ve used them all their lives, and if I’m ever going to be anything resembling a real sister to them I have to put my life on the line for them.”

The small plush doll in the shape of a siren shook with pent up emotions, her voice heavy and cracking with the difficulty the next words took, “Please, let me come with you.”

Sunset exchanged looks with her friends. Pinkie Pie seemed the most enthusiastic, giving a thumbs up. Perhaps with her own sister’s life on the line Pinkie Pie empathized with Adagio most of all. Fluttershy only gave the barest of nods, her expression frightened, grave, but keenly determined. Rarity seemed more aloof, only giving a shrug as if she didn’t particularly mind one way or the other. Applejack crossed her arms, frowning, but nodded her accent. Finally Rainbow Dash just sighed, laughed, and held her hands up, saying, “Well, its not like we didn’t warn her, right?”

“Okay Adagio,” said Sunset, “You can come. On the condition that you follow our lead, and don’t do anything risky. Let us handle the fight. Understand?”

The siren plush dolled nodded, bobbing up and down in the air, “Yes, I do.”

“Alright, then, let’s go get some food, and rest girls. We’ve got a long day yet to go.”

----------

Sunset had needed to track down Chappy to get back into her physical body before going to get food. The artificial soul had been found in a back room trying on differing sets of clothes like Sunset’s body was some sort of living mannequin. Sunset suspected most of the clothes were actually Screwloose’s, as none of it was small enough to fit Screwball, and far as she knew Discord didn’t wear anything other than those dark green robes, clogs, and silly hat. After retrieving her body and getting it dressed back into something appropriate (and why did Screwloose have a leather bodice in the first place?) Sunset joined her friends outside and they went to lunch.

It was a tense, quiet lunch. Most the girls weren’t talkative, only Pinkie Pie trying to get any conversation going, but it was clear everyone had their minds elsewhere as they chowed down on their overpriced, fancy sandwiches. Sunset knew she was sort of the odd one out in this situation, as her parents were back in Equestria, and she’d eat her jacket if they had any mysterious past connection to a secret spiritual war between different factions of ghost people. She couldn’t entirely imagine what her friends might be going through, wondering about the truth about their mothers’ pasts. It certainly made Sunset wonder.

After all, wasn’t it far too much of a coincidence that the daughters of five women who’d gotten involved in a supernatural war would also get drawn into it, through sheer happenstance? This had all begun when Sunset had discovered the Asauchi in the crater, after all. Wasn’t that event too random for this to have been planned by anyone? No, that had to have been coincidence. Who could have planned for something like that anyway?

I’m being too paranoid. There’s literally no one who’d guess that having Clover’s class of trainees be attacked by Hollows would led to her losing track of an Asauchi that would later be found by me, and that this would lead to me gaining Soul Reaper powers or my friends discovering powers of their own. Short of high end divination spells like what Celestia can pull off I can’t see how anyone in the human world could predict all that. And why would anyone set all of this up, if they had? Who has anything to gain by having wild cards like us appear in the mix?

Sunset pushed the thoughts away. If she let herself get too wrapped up in that kind of circular, paranoid logic she’d start to lose her common sense. Besides, all she really needed to think about now was how to beat Grand Fisher. He’d been one tough customer when she, Clover, and Applejack had faced him on the farm, and if what Discord had said about his recent transformation into a partial Arrancar was accurate he was going to be even stronger. Possibly more so than the shark Hollow.

That’s okay, thought Sunset, feeling the comfortable weight of Hokori strapped across her back, invisible to the local public, I’ve gotten stronger too. We’ll manage.

Hokori had returned to it’s ‘sealed’ state on its own, though Discord had informed her not to be alarmed by that. Zanpaktou would return to a sealed state on their own like that, or a Soul Reaper could do so themselves, to make the Zanpaktou easier to carry and to not waste reishi by constantly maintaining the Shikai. All Sunset had to do was call out Hokori’s name and release phrase to get the Shikai out and be ready to rock and roll.

It was with a nervous buzz that the girls returned to Discord’s shop. There was nothing to do but try to rest for the few hours it would take for Discord to finish preparing the portal. Each of Sunset’s friends spent the time differently. Rarity called her home, and spent some time talking on the phone with her little sister. Sunset could hear her in the other room, but not quite make out what was being said. Sunset was just lounging on the free couch in the room where Pinkie Pie’s family and Clover was, resting without really being able to sleep. Pinkie Pie sat with her parents and Maud, determined to enjoy some time together and take their minds off things with a board game she’d dug out from one of the shelves.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash both argued over a movie to watch on the old VCR, eventually settling on a rather amusing little film that Sunset only paid half attention to; something about a truck driver in Chinatown getting into some big trouble with an ancient sorcerer. Rainbow Dash seemed to have seen the movie multiple times, quoting lines as they came up.

Far as Sunset knew Fluttershy spent the time quietly curled up in one of the guest rooms, actually able to get some sleep despite the excitement of the day. Sunset was a little envious.

Her thoughts drifted to Twilight Sparkle, and Sunset found herself missing her friend already. It didn’t feel right to not have her here. They’d started this mess together, and had gone through every step of this strange adventure side by side... now Twilight had been spirited off by her Quincy family and Sunset honestly didn’t know when, or even if she’d ever see Twilight again. What were the chances Twilight’s parents would let her off a tightly controlled leash in the near future? They might lock her away in that mansion permanently. Then again, Twilight had seemed determined to get involved on the Quincy end of things. Eager to learn, to acquire more knowledge. She’d been like that with magic too, almost obsessive. It just made Sunset worry more for her friend’s well being.

I hope I see you again soon Twilight, and that you don’t get so submerged in trying to learn it all that you can’t come up for air anymore.

Finally, about two and a half hours later, the odd gray cat arrived to inform them all that the portal was ready. Sunset and the girls gathered up and went down to the training area, following the gray cat as it led them to a spot between two rises of boulders where Discord and Adagio were waiting.

Discord stood next to a pair of iron pillars, octagonal in shape that didn’t look naturally part of the local terrain. Both pillars crackled with flaring bolts of yellow energy, like big electrical conductors. Between the two pillars a shape had torn a hole in the air, like a gaping, black maw leading into darkness.

“Hello girls, and say hello to Mr. Garganta,” Discord said, gesturing at the hole in the air, one that Sunset realized as identical to the portals Hollows used.

“That’s gonna take us to that Huecoplace?” asked Rainbow Dash dubiously.

“Hueco Mundo, yes. Garganta are portals between worlds that only Hollows can create,” Discord smiled a toothy grin, “Normally. I’ve spent some time developing my own method for replicating the technique, albeit nowhere near as efficiently as a Hollow can. Even the weakest, newborn Hollow could make a portal like this instinctively. In my case I have to simulate it with advanced Kido methods that require a lot of energy and concentration. Unfortunately that means that in order to keep this portal open I have to remain on this side to maintain the spell. I’ll even need my feline friend’s help with it to keep the portal open for any real length of time, otherwise they’d go with you to help.”

“Kinda sucks I know,” said the cat, “It’s been a long time since I’ve planted my foot up the rear of some Hollows. But Discy’s right, I need to add my reiryoku to his in order to keep this artificial Garganta open for more than an hour.”

“Just how long are we gonna have to pull off this rescue?” asked Sunset.

Discord tapped his chin in thought, “I’d estimate we can keep the portal open for three hours, tops. I’ve given Adagio a sensor that should detect Grand Fisher’s spiritual pressure and lead you to him. This portal leads close to the location I suspect he’s hiding. You’ll have about an hour trek, I estimate. I can’t have the portal any closer, otherwise he’d no doubt sense it. Now, another thing to know about Hueco Mundo, spiritual planes like it and Soul Society are deadly for mortals to inhabit for too long. Your physical bodies tend to get broken down by the energies of a spiritual plane until your absorbed into it. For you girls it shouldn’t be a problem with your spiritual powers, but for those you’re trying to rescue it makes it all the more critical to retrieve them.”

Pinkie Pie gulped, “Wait, so you’re saying me and Adagio’s sisters will get all absorbified into Huecosomething if we don’t get them outta there pronto!?”

“Oh, a living human can survive a spiritual realm for, oh, a day I would guess, depending on the strength of their soul. The reason I’m saying this is because if you girls miss the window of time I can keep this portal open, I won’t be able to charge up another for at least another half a day, and given how long they’ve been held captive in Hueco Mundo already... well, just don’t miss the portal, okay?”

Sunset took a deep breath. They’d have less than an hour to take down Grand Fisher, taking into account getting to and from the portal. Missing that window of time meant that Limestone, Aria, and Sonata would be dead, absorbed into Hueco Mundo, by the time Discord could open up another portal.

So, no pressure.

“No point in waiting then, let’s do this,” she said, popping Chappy’s gikon into her mouth to assume her spirit form.

“We’ll be forming a walkway of spirit particles for you girls to cross on,” said Discord, nodding at the cat, “Don’t fall off, otherwise you’ll fall through the Precipice Realm, well, forever.”

“Just keep that portal open as long as you can,” said Sunset, then looked at the girls lined up next to her, “Ready everyone?”

Nods all around. The tension from her friends was a palpable thing, but Sunset was proud to see they all wore equal looks lacking hesitation. Applejack especially had a look of eagerness to come to grips with the Hollow responsible for her parent's death, her green eyes practically glowing with barely restrained anger. For better or worse, they were all ready to step into the unknown and face whatever danger lurked there. Sunset returned their nods, and as a group they stepped through the portal.

Episode 20: Blood on the Sands

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Episode 20: Blood on the Sands

A band of spectral light formed a pale pathway across the void. Sunset’s steps fell upon the light as if it were hard as steel, but she couldn’t stop a sense of vertigo from assaulting her senses as she moved. The Garganta portal led to a empty expanse of purest black, the absolute absence of anything. Down, up, left or right, none of it contained anything but the darkness. Sunset and her friends were the only ones existing in this space between worlds, what Discord had called the “Precipice Realm”.

The bridge of light extended ahead, the only other thing to give the empty void any definition, and Sunset took the lead, running upon it as she watched the light form ahead of her.

“Right, so this place, extremely not cool,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Just don’t be lookin’ down,” said Applejack, running alongside her.

“I hope we’re not stuck in this place for very long,” said Rarity, not taking Applejack’s advice and giving a very unsettled look at the void below the bridge of light.

“I don’t think we will,” said Sunset, pointing ahead, “Look.”

In front of the girls, not much further than another twenty meters, an opening was yawning open in the darkness. Sunset couldn’t quite make out what was beyond the mouth-like portal, but she caught sight of something white. The bridge led right to it, and Sunset picked up her pace. Not at all sure what to expect on the other side of the portal, Sunset drew Hokori from its sheath and leaped through the portal ready to fight.

She landed from a world that was an empty void, to a world that was a stark contrast of pale white sands and black sky. Her feet touched down on the uneven sand and she slid down what looked like a short dune. One by one her friends popped out of the Garganta portal behind her, each also sliding down the dune in trails of white sand dust. Only Adagio floated out more gracefully, the plush siren doll circling above a moment before settling to hover beside Sunset while her friends spread out around her.

“My, what a horrifically drab place,” said Rarity, pursing her lips as she looked around them. Sunset wasn’t inclined to disagree with the other girl. So this was Hueco Mundo, the Hollow World?

It looked like a dead, lifeless desert. Nothing but bone white sand stretched as far as she could see, gently rolling in uneven dunes. The air felt cold and stale, utterly lifeless. Above the sands a black sky yawned deep and inky, lacking any stars. However there was a moon, a disturbingly large moon, shadowed to a full crescent. Despite the lack of an clear source of light Sunset found she could see everything clearly as if the land was cast in constant, pale florescent lighting.

Glancing back at the still open Garganta portal behind them, Sunset said, “We need to get moving. Every second’s going to count. Adagio, Discord said he gave you a sensor?”

The plush doll bobbed her head up and down, “Yes.” She frowned as she reached with one fin to a zipper on her belly, literally unzipped herself, and pulled out a small red gem, showing it to Sunset briefly before putting it back inside herself and zipping back up. “I can sense where to go.”

“Well don’t keep us waiting, let’s get a move on!” said Rainbow Dash, pounding a fist into her hand eagerly.

There was no disagreement from any of the girls, and so they set out swiftly and silently, running across the desert landscape of Hueco Mundo. Sunset kept a sharp eye out, and also kept partially focused on her spiritual senses. The entire landscape echoed with a constant sense of Hollow energy, which made her feel more than a tad jumpy. She wasn’t sure if she’d be able to easily sense any Hollows until they were practically bumping into them. She just hoped that wherever they were in this realm it wasn’t an area regularly traveled.

Discord had said it’d take about an hour to trek to the mesas where Grand Fisher was supposedly hiding, and Sunset kept a hard pace going. Her spirit didn’t seem to get tired very easily, and she noticed her friends were able to keep up, even the less athletic among them. It seemed spending several weeks in training and battling Hollows was certainly increasing all of their stamina.

The time flew by with the eerie quiet of Hueco Mundo only broken by the crunching of their footfalls on the bleak sands. The dunes began to slope gradually downward before them, until they led to a wide, flatter plain of sand many miles wide. Within the first hundred meters of that flat expanse was a series of several dozen tall, dark mesas of stone that thrust up from the ground like the broken teeth of a long dead beast. Adagio slowed down at the last dune before the flat plain.

“There,” she said, voice sharp and tense, “He’s in there. I can feel him.”

“Well what’re we waitin’ fer? Let’s git in there and put that low-life varmint down fer good!” said Applejack with hot blooded anger in her voice.

Sunset held up a hand, “Hold up AJ, we can’t rush in without a plan.”

“Oooh, I like making plans,” said Pinkie Pie, “Especially surprise plans. Are we gonna set up a surprise for big, nasty Grand Fisher?”

“Ideally we do need to get close without him knowing we’re here,” said Rarity, “He took hostages with the clear intent to use them against us, so if he senses us coming there’s no telling what he’ll do.”

“How are we going to sneak up on him?” asked Fluttershy, “It looks kind of far between the nearest cover and those mesas.”

Sunset frowned, rubbing her chin, “Do you think your power can conceal us at all Fluttershy? I know you don’t know all of what it can do yet, but it seems like the most versatile out of all of our abilities.”

“I... I can’t say for sure,” Fluttershy bit her lip, “I wouldn’t want to risk it. So far all I know that I can do is make people do things, even become stronger or weaker... but making us invisible just sounds like too much of a stretch.”

“If we rush across quite-like I bet we can make it without being spotted,” said Rainbow Dash, peering around the edge of the dune at the mesas, “I mean, I ain’t seeing him anywhere. He’s probably somewhere in the middle laughing about his stupid plan or whatever. C’mon, we don’t need to overthink this.”

“We still need to have a game plan for actually fighting him,” Sunset said, “And more importantly, how to make sure Limestone, Aria, and Sonata will be safe while we do.”

“Leave that to me!” said Pinkie Pie, ‘Me and Pinkamena can snag me and Adagio’s sis’s and get them out of here while you guys keep the baddie busy. Even if he’s got them chained up Pinkamena can chew through anything, no prob.”

“Right,” said Sunset, nodding in agreement, “In fact, once you get them out of there, you should take them and Adagio straight back to the portal. Time is too short as is, so just get them to the portal and don’t wait up for the rest of us.”

“Uhhhh, not so sure I like that part of the plan,” said Pinkie Pie.

“Not certain I do either,” said Adagio, “Not because I don’t want to get my sisters out of here as fast as possible, but the last time you sent some of us off while you stayed behind to fight we ended up in this situation. What’ll happen if we run into Hollows on the way back? Pinkie Pie and her crazy clone might not be enough to fight them.”

Sunset grimaced. Adagio had a point. As much as it made a certain sense to send off the hostages to the portal as soon as they were free, doing so would be meaningless if they ran into trouble on the way back to the portal with only one of the girls to guard them. “Fine, once you got the hostages free, Pinkie Pie, come back to join the fight and we’ll wipe out Grand Fisher as fast as we can.”

“Now yer talkin’,” said Applejack, “Just long as I git the finishing blow.”

“So the idea is just to rush over there as quickly as possible?” asked Rarity, “And just hope we’re not seen?”

“I don’t think he’s keeping a close watch out for trouble anyway,” said Rainbow Dash, “I mean, come on, there’s no way he’d know we were coming.”

“Besides, we don’t have any other options,” added Sunset, “We’ll just have to risk it.”

There was no more to say as the girls tensed, then at Sunset’s signal of a three-count with her fingers, they all started running across the flat sands towards the tall stone mesas. With every step Sunset feared discovery by Grand Fisher, her heart climbing into her throat as they got closer and closer to the jutting pillars of stone. She kept expecting to hear a Hollow’s piercing howl, or perhaps Grand Fisher bellowing in sinister laughter, but all she heard was the constant crunch of the sand beneath her and her friend’s feet as they ran.

Then just as quickly as they’d begun their dash it was over and they were among the foreboding, tall lengths of stone that made up the cluster of mesas. In between the stones it was like a maze of dark, shadowy stone corridors. Their footfalls echoed dully amid the twisting paths of stone. Sunset turned to her friends, whispering, “Alright, let’s keep it quiet, and take this slow. Adagio, can you tell where he is in here?”

The siren nodded, floating to the head of the group, “He’s this way.”

They began to walk slowly down the twisting paths, making their way towards the center of the cluster of mesas. Sunset felt gradually more nervous with each step, her hand tight around Hikori’s hilt. So many spots inside this miniature labyrinth looked as if they’d make perfect spots for an ambush, and with so many deep shadows clinging to the ground it seemed as if Hollows could pop out of anywhere at any moment.

Suddenly Pinkie Pie twitched, her left arm shaking, then a tremor seeming to run down to her right leg while her eyes blinked rapidly and her tongue stuck out. “Oh, oh ow, that... that was almost a dozy.”

“What happened?” asked Sunset. Pinkie Pie looked at her with a worried expression clouding her features.

“T-that twitchiness means Limestone is close, but... but she’s in pain. I felt this the one time she saved Marble from falling out of the rock house Maud built in the woods but broke her arm doing it.”

“Rock...house?” Fluttershy blinked in curiosity.

“It's like a tree house, but with rocks,” said Pinkie Pie.

“How does that even work?” asked Rainbow Dash, but Adagio abruptly hushed them.

“Shhh! Keep it down you dolts. We’re there. Listen.”

At Adagio’s motioning fins the girls all huddled up along the side of one mesa wall while peering around the corner, which abruptly opened up from a narrow path into a fairly large clearing of space which appeared to be at the center of the mesa cluster. Several smaller stones were arranged almost like a seating pattern near the center of the clearing, otherwise just being an open area of white sand about fifty meters wide at any given point. Sitting upon one of these stones was the giant, humanoid form of Grand Fisher, his fur covered mantle hanging off his back and one hand resting on the large blade he had planted in the ground beside him like some barbarian king sitting upon his throne.

Between the sitting stones, shacked to the sands by what appeared to be chains made out of bone, were Limestone, Aria, and Sonata. Each girl looked battered and bruised, but by far Limestone looked the worst off of the three, with her face puffy with thick bruises, a bleeding split lip, and several fingers on her left hand bent at awkward, broken angles. Yet still for all her injures Limestone’s eyes held a angered fierceness as she glared up at Grand Fisher.

For his part Grand Fisher ignored the glares, his eyes fixed on another standing nearby, atop one of the other sitting stones. This man caused Sunset to blink several times, trying to get a better look at him, and she felt a distinct uneasiness as she did so. He looked almost human, with sallow, pale skin wrinkled like old parchment. His head was nearly bald save for the wisps of snow white hair around the fringes. He had curled ram’s horns extending from his skull, and fragments of a ram’s jawbone around either side of his chin. The Hollow hole in his throat was unmistakable, and Sunset made mental note of the number eight tattooed on the old man’s forehead.

More distinguishing than that, however, was the blade of a Zanpaktou tucked into his sash, or at least a sword that very much closely resembled a Zanpaktou.

Who was this guy? When he spoke it was in a tone drier than the desert.

“I fail to see how you believe this plan will work any better than your previous one did, and quite honestly these offerings,” he gave a derisive sniff at the three chained up girls, “Seems hardly worth all the effort you went through to send so many Hollows to the living world to be target practice for the Soul Reapers and Quincy.”

Grand Fisher sounded cautious as he spoke, as if he was very carefully choosing his words, “They are nothing more than a lever to force those girls to go where I wish. The dam that supplies that town with some of its energy is an ideal place to lay my trap. Their power will be limited because they won’t wish to destroy the dam and risk harm to their fellow humans if it’s destroyed, while I will have no such compunctions. All I need do is capture one of them to satisfy the Espada’s needs, correct?”

The old man smiled thinly, in a manner devoid of any comradely warmth, “Lord Tirek would prefer to have all of those girls brought to Las Noches, but I suppose one might whet his appetite. Then again, perhaps Lord Tirek need never hear of such things.”

“What do you mean by that, Grogar?” Grand Fisher asked, and Sunset felt her blood suddenly run to ice.

Grogar? Tirek!? First Discord, now this? What was with this world having incarnations of some of Equestria’s worst monsters? She was pretty sure this had to be this world’s versions of the infamous Grogar and Tirek, because as far as Sunset knew Tirek had been sealed away in Tartarus by Princess Twilight after his more recent escape, and as for Grogar... well he was an even older legend, and supposedly sealed away with the island of Tambelon.

She could only imagine the human world variants of those monsters had to be bad news, and seeing that Grogar was acting as if he was in charge of Grand Fisher, she could already see confirmation for that fear. What was next, Chrysalis making a guest appearance? The Smooze?

“Hey, who is that dude?” whispered Rainbow Dash, jabbing a thumb towards Grogar while still keeping hidden. Applejack’s eyes were narrowed to green slits as she glared at both of the Hollows, but most of her gaze was aimed at Grand Fisher.

“Don’t much care who the old timer is, if he gits ‘tween me an’ Grand Fisher, he’s goin’ down too.”

“Hold on,” said Sunset, “I’ve got a feeling that guy is too much trouble for us to handle. We should stay hidden for a minute and watch.”

Pinkie Pie made a quiet whining sound, eyes strained and worried, “But Limestone is super hurt. We have to do something.”

“We are on a tight schedule, as you pointed out earlier,” said Rarity.

“I know, but trust me, this Grogar is seriously bad news. Just... trust me on this and let’s wait a bit. Just a few minutes, okay?” Sunset said. She wasn’t any more fond of the idea of waiting as her friends were. She itched to get in there and help Sonata, Aria, and Limestone, and put down Grand Fisher. But she wasn’t sure how much her friend’s were sensing, but she was getting just a whiff of Grogar’s spiritual pressure and it was making her stomach twist. This had to be what a full Arrancar was, and Sunset’s intuition told her attacking while he was around would be a bad idea, of epic proportions.

However, she didn’t think he’d hang out for long. She could see an impatience in Grogar’s stance, and a dismissive manner in which he looked at Grand Fisher.

Focusing back on the conversation between those two, Sunset heard Grogar answering Grand Fisher’s question with a snort, “Underlings such as you have no need to know more than you are told. Focus upon the task of capturing one of those girls, and do try not to underestimate them any more than you already have. If you fail this time around I’ll be far less inclined to indulge in keeping you around.”

Grand Fisher bowed his head, though his eyes through the mouth of his Hollow mask looked narrow and strained, “Of course, Lord Grogar. You’ll have what you want soon enough.”

“Hmm, I wonder...” Grogar said, and for a second Sunset’s heart almost decided to go somersaulting out of her chest as she saw Grogar glance towards her and her friends. “I wonder indeed...”

Then Grogar simply vanished, with such speed that Sunset wasn’t even sure which direction he’d gone. She feared he’d spotted her and her friends, and was moving to expose them, but after about ten seconds she didn’t sense him any longer, as if Grogar had left the mesas entirely. Had he seen them? If so, why hadn’t he done anything? Perhaps it’d just been her nerves that made it look like he’d glanced their way.

“Alright, the old man is outta the way; game time!” said Rainbow Dash.

Sunset would’ve preferred to give it a few more minutes, just to be sure Grogar had gone, but she didn’t think she’d be able to hold Rainbow Dash, Applejack, or Pinkie Pie back at this point. Even Adagio, who had no means to fight, still looked eager.

“Remember the plan,” she said, “Pinkie Pie, Adagio, focus on getting your sisters free. The rest of us will focus on dealing with Grand Fisher. We need to hit him hard, and fast. No grandstanding or fooling around.”

“Yeah, yeah, we hear you Sunset. Maximum beatdown, zero banter with the baddie,” Rainbow Dash cracked her knuckles, “You ready AJ?”

There was an almost primal, feral light in Applejack’s eyes as she growled, “Ain’t never been more ready fer anythang!”

There was no more holding them back, and as one group Sunset and her friends went charging around the bend of the mesa they’d been hiding behind and rushed straight down the center of the clearing. As a group they all activated their powers simultaneously, many colored lights trailing behind them as each girl exploded with power, going through their individual transformations between the seconds of each running step they took. Rainbow Dash’s wings snapped into being from her back, white shining metal bleeding lightning. Applejack’s feet and legs instantly flashed with their white and gold metallic boots, the skulls on the knee caps seeming to gleam with golden light as she charged forward, feet cratering the ground with each step. Rarity’s dress flowed in a scarlet river over her body, her right palm opening as the ruby red crystalline rapier emerged into her waiting hand. Pinkamena seemed to leap right out of the corona of pink mist that formed around Pinkie Pie, the two girls now running side by side as Pinkamena shaped her arms into rubbery, whip-like lengths with salivating, fang filled mouths. Fluttershy’s eyes glowed bright, taking on their blue and gold tones as her luminous third eye opened radiantly. Finally, Sunset held her Zanpaktou in front of her and spoke in a strong, focused voice; ”Ignite, Hokori!”. The katana became pure orange fire, swirling and dancing in Sunset's hands, reshaping into the form of the kite shield and broadsword in the span of an eyeblink.

Grand Fisher was taken completely off guard, the Hollow blinking in surprise and barely rising to his feet before the girls were upon him.

“What the-!?”

He was blown backwards by four attacks hitting him at once. Applejack rocketed up in a spinning kick that caught him squarely in the stomach, while Rainbow Dash flew in with pure cobalt electricity wreathing both of her fists as she rammed into Grand Fisher right next to Applejack. Rarity had gracefully leaped to the left, complementing Sunset’s dash to the right, and both girls managed to reverse directions at the last moment to carve an X pattern across Grand Fisher’s chest with their blades. Sunset could feel Hokori’s edge cutting into the Hollow’s flesh. Much like the shark Hollow after his transformation to a partial-Arrancar the skin of Grand Fisher felt tough, like steel armor, but she could tell her blade was able to cut it and saw the blood spraying from the X shaped cut she and Rarity left, so she knew Rarity’s blade had hurt him too. The force of the combined attack sent Grand Fisher flying, back first, into one of the dark mesas behind him. Rocks and dust exploded outward from the impact, and Sunset could see cracks break out all the way to the top of the mesa as she and her friends landed from their attack.

“Awww yeah! That’s how it's done!” Rainbow Dash, lightning still crackling around her body, held out a fist for Sunset to bump. Sunset just looked at her and the electricity coating her friend’s hand, and Rainbow Dash blushed, “Oh, right, yeah let’s hold off on that until I’m not covered in lightning.”

“And until we know for sure we’ve finished him off,” Sunset said, already sensing Grand Fisher’s spiritual pressure spiking even before the dust cleared, “He’s not down from just that! Pinkie Pie, Adagio, move it!”

Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had already reached Limestone, Pinkamena’s arms moving like writhing snakes as their mouths started chewing on the bone-like shackles holding the Pie sibling down. Limestone, eyes focusing on Pinkie Pie past swollen bruises, muttered, “H-how did you...get...?”

“Never mind that Limestone! Just rest easy, we’re getting you girls outta this creepy borefest of a dimension,” said Pinkie Pie, while Adagio floated over to her sisters.

“Sonata, Aria, are you two okay?”

“Adagio?” Aria’s voice was filled with genuine shock, “You came for us?”

“Daggie! Ohmygosh, I’m am soooo happy to see you!” Sonata thrashed about in her chains, “I’mma so hug the crap outta you when I get the chance! There will be glomping like you wouldn’t believe!”

Adagio just blinked back tears and said, “Save it until we get you out of here. Hey, Pinkie Pie, can’t you hurry your clone up or what!?”

“Chewing fast as my teeth can go, shouty little cotton-wad!” said Pinkamena with a toothy snarly on her face, “Try shutting up or might be I’ll forget to free your sisters while I’m at it.”

“Pinkamena, don’t be mean, and uh, yeah, hurry,” said Pinkie Pie.

Meanwhile Sunset and the other girls faced the cloud of dust surrounding the mesa they had knocked Grand Fisher into. Fluttershy stood a bit behind them, her eyes focused on the cloud. “Is he... um, dead?”

“Not a chance,” said Sunset, “Get ready. Power up one of us if you can, or maybe try to hold him still.” Fluttershy nodded, gulping.

Soon a rumbling laugh escaped the cloud of dust and it cleared as Grand Fisher’s massive form rose up. He was bruised and his cuts still bled, but it was clear the damage wasn’t that severe. He flexed his arms, bunched muscles bulging. “This is a surprise. I never imagined you girls would be crazy enough to come here to Hueco Mundo. Did Discord put you up to this? Its the kind of insane move he’d pull.”

“We’re not here to talk,” Sunset said, brandishing her sword, “We’re here to put an end to you!”

She coiled her legs and in a burst of spirit energy used Flash Step to leap right for Grand Fisher’s head. He moved remarkably fast for his size, getting his arm in the way of her blow, but even so Hokori’s blade bit deep into that arm. Still, Grand Fisher barely showed any pain as he held her off, “Impressive, but come on, you don’t want to talk at all? Even though there’s so much I could do to enlighten you young ladies?”

“Oh, I imagine we can live without listening to any more talk from the likes of you,” said Rarity, using Grand Fisher’s distraction with Sunset to go for his right leg, moving like a bending reed in a swift breeze to duck below a backswing from Grand Fisher as she converted her rapier into a new shape, a long spear with a tip like a crystal shard. She stabbed that spear into Grand Fisher’s leg just below the knee, blood spurting out, but he quickly kicked out with the same leg, flinging Rarity dozens of yards in the process.

She landed gracefully enough, turning her spear back into a rapier, and stabbed the sword into the sands, clearly intending to attack Grand Fisher at a distance with crystal spikes. However as she did so she frowned at something, through Sunset couldn’t tell what. Grand Fisher had pulled his arm away from her and launched a straight punch at Sunset, which she blocked with her shield. The blow rattled her, but Hokori’s shield absorbed the impact well and she kept her footing underneath the punish force of the punch even as it slid her back a good distance.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack came in now, and Fluttershy shouted out, somewhat shakily, to Grand Fisher, “Hey! Stop right where you are and don’t you dare move!”

Grand Fisher looked at her, and their eyes met. Fluttershy’s third eye pulsed with light and Grand Fisher grunted, his legs seizing up just as Applejack and Rainbow Dash hit him from two different directions, Rainbow Dash’s taking to the air to smash an electrified punch across Grand Fisher’s jaw while Applejack jumped up from below to hit his exposed chin with a flip kick enhanced by jets of gold light from her boots. The Hollow was rocked back a step, but then he growled deeply in his chest and glared at Fluttershy, “A neat trick, but you can’t hold me so easily, little one!”

Fluttershy made a small ‘eeep!’ noise as Grand Fisher raised a fist and smashed it down towards her, but Rainbow Dash flew in from the side and yanked Fluttershy out of the way just as the fist struck the ground in a huge geyser of sand.

At the same moment Sunset rushed forward, thrusting her blade towards Grand Fisher’s extended hand, but the Hollow immediately jumped into the air, sailing over her head and flipping as he did so in a remarkable display of agility for one so large. His right hand shot out and grasped the hilt of the large blade he’d had planted in the ground by the stone he’d been sitting on before and he completed his flip, landing hard just a few paces from where the three hostages were being freed.

“Oh, don’t go so soon, we’re just starting to have fun,” he Hollow said with violent eagerness in his eyes as he slashed with his newly acquired blade at the hostages. Sunset Flashed stepped, instantly appearing in the blade’s path and clashing against it with her shield. Sparks danced, and the blow nearly buckled her knees, but she held firm and felt the power of the hit flow from her shield into her sword, the red ribbon starting to light with flame.

Before Grand Fisher could pull back to attack again red crystals shot up from the sands at his feet, stabbing at his legs. The crystals were clearly Rarity’s but Sunset noticed they seemed oddly different, somehow more jagged than the smooth crystals Rarity had created before. Either way the crystal spikes did their damage, cutting into Grand Fisher’s legs and he roared in pain. Even so, he tore his legs free of the crystals and wheeled on Rarity, thrusting his sword towards her. The blade was large enough that it could reach Rarity with ease, and she had to leap aside as the blade’s edge smashed the ground she’d been standing on. Grand Fisher didn’t let up, however, charging Rarity with pounding steps that shook the ground and he raised his sword to smash it down towards her.

Rarity raised a crystal pillar in defense, but it wasn’t at all clear if it’d be enough to deflect the blow. Fortunately Applejack charged in from the side and exploded upwards into a hard kick that met the descending blade in a blast of force that stirred the sands around them in a dusty circle. Grand Fisher’s sword was deflected upward, the Hollow put off balance for a second. Sunset took advantage of it by jumping up onto his shoulder and digging her blade into the joint where his shoulder met his neck. It was like trying to stab into concrete, but she pressed hard, and blood sprayed from the wound, coating the front of her black Soul Reaper robes. However even that wound didn’t seem to slow Grand Fisher down, and he raised his free hand to slap her from his shoulder. She took the blow on her shield again, back flipping in the air to land on the sands beside Rarity.

“Quite the tough customer, isn’t he?” Rarity said between breaths, wiping some sweat from her brow with her free hand while keeping her rapier at the ready.

“Its worse than that. Look.” Sunset said, eyes narrowing. Grand Fisher’s wounds were starting to close, clotting over as she watched. “Bastard’s regenerating. No wonder he doesn’t care if he gets wounded.”

Grand Fisher threw his head back and bellowed with laughter, “Isn’t it marvelous? This is power from just being party way to being Arrancar. Once I bring one of you girls to Grogar and finish my transformation I’ll be even more powerful, more unkillable! No more need to toady up to anyone, Arrancar or Soul Reaper.”

“Quit yer yappin an’ just die already!” Applejack shouted, and gold light burst from the heels of her boots like miniature rockets, propelling the girl towards Grand Fisher like a soaring missile. She spun in the air, using the extra force and momentum of the golden energy emitting from her metallic boots to launch a powerful roundhouse kick towards Grand Fisher’s head. He moved quickly, imposing his blade between himself and her, and the metal clad foot clashed with the edge of his sword, the resulting blast shaking the ground and sending streaks of residual energy cascading from where the two blows met.

Grand Fisher was forced back a step or two, but otherwise held his ground, a grin appearing on his face behind his mask, “Gotten stronger haven’t you little ‘hayseed’?” Applejacks’ eyes widened at the use of her mother's pet name for her, and Grand Fisher laughed, “Oh, it's so good that you’re here. Getting to kill Sweet Cider’s daughter, here in Hueco Mundo... I couldn’t ask for a better gift. You see, your mother’s soul got away from me, back then. Really pissed me off. Of course your father wasn’t so lucky. I took his soul here, and oh was it so delicious.”

”Shut up!” Applejack’s voice rose to a fever pitch, hot rage boiling in every inch of her face. She kicked off of Grand Fisher’s sword, twisted in the air as seething gold light seemed to gather into her heel, and she kicked down, unleashing a blast of writhing gold energy directly into Grand Fisher’s chest. The large Hollow was knocked backwards by the torrent, but he smashed his sword into the sand and used it like an anchor, keeping himself upright. As the gold energy faded a thick, black scorch mare several meters wide was on his chest, oozing blood, but he wasn’t dead. Indeed, he chuckled.

“Definitely stronger than before. You may well surpass your mother. All of your girls seem to be getting stronger, faster than they did. I wonder, did Discord or that little Soul Reaper tell any of you the truth yet? About what Soul Society did to your mothers? Or that I was used by them for their old pet project as well?”

“What part of ‘shut up’ did you not understand?” said Sunset, charging forward and feeling the heat in her sword intensify with her own anger and aggressive intent, “We don’t need to hear any more of your lies!”

She swept her blade forward, acting more on instinct than anything else. Hokori wasn’t speaking words to her, so much as just imparting sensations of how to attack, of how to go about unleashing the flames inside the broadsword. As she swept the blade in an upward arch, fire erupted in a harsh, thick wave of orange and crimson flames that flew forward like a cutting wave at Grand Fisher. Black sand and shards of melted glass were left in the flame’s wake, the heat filling the clearing. Grand Fisher crossed his arms in front of him to block the wave of fire, grunting in pain as the flames charred his flesh. He had to jump away from them, landing hard atop one of the dark mesas as the rest of the flames continued on and smashed into another mesa, cutting a dark, melted path several meters deep into it.

Grand Fisher shook, looking at the scorched marks on his arms, flesh burned down to bleeding muscle. “Bitch. These wounds won’t slow me. As for lies, if you don’t believe me I could always go track down the hayseed’s father. I only devoured enough of his soul to turn him Hollow as well, so who knows, maybe he’s still wandering around the desert, somewhere. Ha! Wouldn’t that be sweet? A little family reunion.”

Applejack’s eyes widened, “My father... you turned him into...”

“A Hollow, indeed,” Grand Fisher’s eyes narrowed in pleasure, “Rip the soul chain from a soul and it happens rather quickly, but it helps if the soul is in horrific pain first, which I had fun delivering onto him. Again, I wanted your mother, but hey, can’t have everything, right?”

“Y-you, you monster!” This was from Fluttershy, who’s eyes seemed to glow with greater intensity, her third eye almost blazing now. Suddenly Grand Fisher’s left hand started to twitch. The Hollow looked at his hand in surprise as it twisted and bent, suddenly coming up towards his face to slap it with tremendous force.

“You apologize to Applejack this instant or I will make you slap yourself into next week mister!” Fluttershy shouted, quite beside herself, perhaps not even thinking clearly. Apologize to Applejack? Sunset imagined Fluttershy was so angry she wasn’t thinking very clearly, but was thinking very Fluttershy. Besides, Grand Fisher slapping himself was quite the opening.

She saw Rainbow Dash flying around and nodded to the girl, and then said to Applejack, “AJ, hop on!” She raised her shield, indicating what she wanted Applejack to do, who glanced at her then gave a quick, eager smirk. Sunset knelt down, holding her shield up like a small platform, and Applejack hopped on top of it, legs bunched up. Then together they moved, Sunset pushing up with all of her not inconsiderable strength, while Applejack leaped with golden bursts of energy from her boots giving her even more of a boost. As a result Applejack went soaring up like a launched rocket, while Sunset’s shield absorbed more force to convert into flames for her sword. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash, timing herself perfectly with the other two girl’s actions, flew in right beside Applejack. Gold and blue light intermixed as both Rainbow Dash and Applejack combined their attacks, electrified fist and metal clad kick hitting Grand Fisher just as he was struggling to get his disobedient arm under control. The combined blows hit him square between the eyes and sent him flying off the mesa to land hard on the edge of another mesa, smashing the rock outcropping to chunks in an eruption of dirt and sand.

“Did... did that do it?” asked Fluttershy, licking her lips.

“I don’t know,” admitted Sunset, turning to glance back at Pinkie Pie. She could see Pinkamena had finished free the hostages, Sonata snatching Adagio out of the air the moment she was freed and hugging the plush doll to her chest.

“Oh Dagie, we are so gonna have the biggest party when we get home!”

“We’re not going anywhere yet,” said Aria, glancing up at Rainbow Dash and Applejack, “Is that asshole dead or what!?”

Rainbow Dash just shrugged, while Applejack adjusted her stetson and glared at the pile of rubble where Grand Fisher had landed. Sunset stretched her senses out towards the pile of rocks, and flinched as she felt a sudden, massive spike of Hollow spiritual pressure. “Girls, regroup!”

Just as she shouted it seemed beams of red light glowed from inside the rocks, like shards of molten blood. Then the rock pile exploded upward, sending debris flying like little bits of confetti. Grand Fisher emerged from the smoke and dust, but he was changing, growing larger. His body was wreathed in smokey crimson wisps of energy as he suddenly grew to twice the height he’d been before, he’s shadow cloaking the girls as they stared up at his hulking form. The top portion of his mask had shattered off, now exposing his face, bestial and bulbous, barely human. Red lines, like blood, ran down his face along either eye down to the still intact jawbone of his mask, and large, curled horns extended from either side of a protruding forehead. His sword had grown in size with him, now the size of a small office building. His rumbling laugh was like listening to the voice of a mountain.

“I wonder if I even need old man Grogar’s help to evolve into an Arrancar anymore? I’m practically already there. Ah, it was brave of you girls to come here, but so, so pointless. Look at me! You can’t defeat this! Perhaps if you had more time to grow into your powers, perhaps then you’d even be a threat to the Espada, but you're just children kicking frantically in the shallow end of the pool...” he raised his enormous sword, its edge eclipsing the crescent moon in the sky for a moment, “Unaware of just how in over your heads you really are!”

Sunset turned to her friends, shouting, “Everybody, run!”

They did, no arguments. Even Applejack, for all the raw hurt and anger in her eyes, turned and made a run for it as Grand Fisher’s sword descended. They, one and all, managed to duck down a side passage between some of the smaller mesas before the sword struck the ground with an earth shattering crash that had half of them sprawling to the ground. The blade smashed apart several mesas across from Grand Fisher, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.

The girls picked themselves up and ran on, darting down the twisting pathways between the remaining mesas. Adagio led the way, being able to float fast enough to not be slowed by the plodding steps of Grand Fisher, somewhere behind them.

“Okay, I don’t suppose any of you had a plan for how to actually kill this guy?” asked Aria breathlessly as they ran, “Because so far this rescue isn’t going all that swell!”

“Hey! You’re free, aren’t you!?” rasped Rainbow Dash with a flash of anger.

“Yeah, free to get stepped on by Hollowzilla back there!” growled the siren.

As they ran Sunset noticed Rarity being oddly quiet, and looking at her rapier with a frown. “Rarity, what’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure,” the girl replied, glancing around, “Did any of you girls feel as if something is odd with our powers?”

“What, you mean like how your crystals were looking all screwy?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Because now that you mention it, my lightning is acting weird too. All jittery and stuff, like it’s trying to pull outta me.”

Applejack grunted, “Was feelin’ somethin’ like that too. Ain’t seemin’ like such a’ bad thang ta me, cause it’s feel like it's makin’ my kicks stronger. Or maybe that’s just how dang pissed I am. Do we gotta be runnin’ from ‘im!?”

“At least until we’re in more open ground where we got space to maneuver,” said Sunset, glancing at Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy, “What about you two, any weirdness to your powers?”

“I’m hungrier than normal. Really wanna snack on someone soon, and not feeling like I care what or who,” said Pinkamena, while Pinkie Pie just shuddered, saying, “Feeling shivery, but okay. Kinda like stepping out of the shower into a cold room.”

“I, uh,” Fluttershy spoke between panting breaths as she ran, “I just feel woozy.”

And I feel fine, save for wondering how we’re going to take that giant bastard down, thought Sunset as they broke out of the mesas and onto the open area of desert before the thicker dunes. They were running hard for a good thirty seconds, easily halfway to the dunes, before Grand Fisher’s voice followed them among the loud crashing of stone being shattered.

“Come now, you don’t honestly think you’re getting away, are you little hayseed? What, does knowing I killed your parents and tortured your father’s soul until he became a creature like me not enough incentive to make you want to fight anymore?”

Applejack skidded to a halt, here entire body shaking, eyes closed with sheer rage and inner pain. Sunset turned to tell her to keep moving, but then saw Grand Fisher kneel down, and then jump with tremendous force. The giant Hollow soared above them, landing hard on the dunes they’d been running for, effectively blocking their path. “Of course I wasn’t going to give you girls a choice in the matter!”

As he turned towards them Grand Fisher lashed out with his building sized sword. It easily had enough reach to hit them, even from dozens of yards away. Things happened both quickly, yet in a kind of inch by inch slow motion. Sunset dashed forward, hoping to deflect even a fraction of the incoming blow’s force away from her friends, while everyone else started to dive out of the way. Crystals of blood red shot up jagged from the sands, Rarity’s own effort to try to deflect the massive sword as the crystals crew tightly together like a net. Grand Fisher’s sword smashed through them, shattering the crystals into small, glittering shards, but it slowed the sword just enough for Sunset to get herself between it and the girls, her shield held out and angled upward. The blow shook every bone in her body and sent her flying. She’d angled Grand Fisher’s sword just a fraction upwards, but enough that it gave her friend’s room to duck under it instead of be cut in half...

Except that Sonata wasn’t ducking fast enough. Sunset felt her heart freeze, certain the siren was about to be severed at the shoulders, but at the last fraction of an instant Adagio’s plush doll body flew in, slamming into the back of Sonata’s head and knocking the other siren to the ground and out of harm’s way. Only for Adagio’s body to get caught by the edge of the massive sword as it passed overhead.

Sunset didn’t see anymore until she righted herself in the air and landed on the sands, skidding back a score of paces before stopping, her sword blazing red from the sheer energy the shield had absorbed from the blow. She looked up, searching for Adagio, and gasped as she saw the plush doll lying in a torn heap, cotton innards strewn across the bleak sands like some toy a child had gotten angry at and torn apart. If that wasn’t enough to fill Sunset with equal measures or rage and cold fear, the sight of a broken chain leading from the doll certainly did the truck. Following the direction that broken chain pointed towards she saw another fallen form crumpled near the broken doll... Adagio’s soul body, blood coating a wound across her stomach, and the end of the soul chain coming out of her chest just as broken as the end coming from the doll.

Sonata, slowly pulling herself up from where Adagio had knocked her into the sand, took one look at the fallen form of her sister and her pupils shrunk to small, shocked pin pricks. Her mouth opened, but no sound came out as she scrambled in a daze to her sister’s side. Aria wasn’t far behind her, face a rictus of stunned rage.

“Adagio!? Damn it, Adagio say something you idiot!” Aria shouted, kneeling beside Adagio’s body. Sunset had forgotten to breath for a second, only drawing in a breath when she heard Adagio groan and saw the elder siren stir, rolling onto her back. The wound on her stomach was hard to gauge, it was just a ragged tear of blood, but at least she was still breathing.

“Fluttershy, look after Adagio,” Sunset said, turning to face Grand Fisher while the rest of her friends got back to their feet.

“Oh, I only got one of you?” commented Grand Fisher dryly as he pulled back his sword for another swing, “You girls have entirely too much luck. Another trait handed down from your parents, perhaps? Of course their luck ran out eventually, no doubt it’ll be the same with you.”

Sunset’s anger was like a writhing, living animal in her chest, roaring and struggling for release. Hokori’s blade blazed brighter, the metal glowing like it’d been stuck in a forge’s flames for hours. Her teeth ground together, a snarl of raw rage twisting her face as the heat seeped through her every pore as she started walking towards Grand Fisher. Without another word wasted she pulled the broadsword back, then thrust it forward as if to impale the Hollow, despite him being still many yards away.

He must have realized the volume of the incoming attack because he immediately held his own sword in front of him, braced with his other hand like a shield.

The jet of fire that erupted from the tip of Hokori was almost like a solid, molten stream, the flames and heat so concentrated that it was more like a solid beam of searing energy than it was mere flame. Sunset almost felt like she was being blown back by the force of it, and could feel the heat charring the sands at her feet. The solid jet of fire impacted upon Grand Fisher’s sword with a roar of noise like the piercing cry of some great bird of prey. For just a second it seemed as if Grand Fisher’s giant sword was holding the flames at bay, but then the metal of the sword started to turn bright orange, then red as the sword began to melt, a hole being burned straight through it by Sunset’s fire. Grand Fisher twisted aside, the beam of intense flames scorching a black hole through his shoulder as his sword melted in half, the severed tip slamming into the ground and only leaving a fraction of it attached to the hilt, the metal still smoking and running like wax.

“Gaaah! That hurt you damned little wannabe Soul Reaper!” he examined his now melted blade with furious eyes, then tossed the hilt aside, “No matter, I don’t need a sword to kill you.”

“You don’t got what it takes to kill us,” Sunset promised him, eyes still alight with inner fire that was only just getting warmed up.

“That right? Try this on for size then!” Grand Fisher shouted, opening his mouth wide. Crimson light gathered there, a growing ball of destructive energy that Sunset recognized from the Gillians earlier.

“Everyone, get behind me!” she shouted.

Applejack looked like she’d rather charge at Grand Fisher, but even she recognized the kind of attack that was coming their way and gave Sunset a stiff nod, joining the others in rushing behind where Sunset was standing. Fluttershy was kneeling next to Adagio, focused on the girl’s wound, while Aria and Sonata stood nearby with tense, worried faces. Limestone stayed close to Pinkie Pie, looking like she wanted to tear Grand Fisher’s face off herself.

With her friends behind her and her enemy in front of her, Sunset felt her confidence surge. For all Grand Fisher’s planning, he was still a brutish, straightforward fighter. He hadn’t seemed to grasp yet that the harder he pushed Sunset, the harder she was going to be able to hit back.

Alright Hokori, we’re doing this! Just one more hit to take, then we make this bastard pay for so much as breathing the same air as our friends

She got a warm sensation from her Zanpaktou, knowing full well Hokori shared her sentiments to the fullest.

Grand Fisher fired his beam of raw destructive energy, a wide flood of blood red power that lit up the entire desert around them. Sunset rushed forward to meet it, shield held out in front of her, head and shoulders hunched down behind the shield as she rammed it into the oncoming beam. The red torrent of energy broke on her shield like a river on a boulder, and Sunset felt herself being pushed back by the sheer force of it, felt her skin blistering from the power she was trying to hold back. Her friends stood behind her in a tight cluster around the fallen Adagio, looking on as Sunset held back the storm of destructive force Grand Fisher poured out.

“Listen up guys,” Sunset said past clenched teeth, “Rarity, Pinkamena, I need you two to immobilize him the second this attack ends. Applejack, Dash, when they do that, get next to me, then charge up the biggest attacks you can muster. Fluttershy, I know you’re healing Adagio, but if you can, try to give me, Dash, and Applejack a power boost, but only if you can do it without endangering Adagio.”

Her orders weren’t questioned, and all she saw were understanding looks from her friends, Rainbow Dash giving a thumbs up. A few moments later the red torrent of energy abated. Her shield was smoking, its metallic form even darkened in a few places, but it’d held intact through the brunt of the destructive beam. Her sword once more glowed hot with transferred energy, and she could feel Hokori’s eagerness to unleash flames one more upon Grand Fisher.

Not yet, just a few seconds until the right moment, Sunset thought.

Pinkamena and Rarity hadn’t wasted a second once the way was clear. Both girls charged forward, clearing the distance towards Grand Fisher in seconds. He glared at them contemptuously, “Now what? Sending the weaker ones to bite my ankles?”

“Hmph, weaker indeed!” Rarity harrumphed, moving with smooth, elegant poise to avoid a reaching hand from Grand Fisher. She trailed her rapier through the sands, “Let’s see if this sparks your fancy, you oafish plebeian narcissist!”

Curving streams of jagged red crystals shot up from the sands, encircling Grand Fisher’s legs, thickening and growing like a cluster of thorn bushes, wrapping the Hollow’s thick limbs. He growled and pulled at them, the jagged edges of the crystals burrowing into his skin like barbs. It distracted him from Pinkamena leaping up onto his right knee. The pink doppelganger seemed to wriggle and writhe, then, and her whole body expanded like piece of taffy, until it was as if she’d turned her whole body into one, large, drooling mouth that clamped down hard on Grand Fisher’s leg and tore into it like a rabid dog, blood spurting from the wound she was digging open like a geyser.

Grand Fisher howled with pain, raising a fist to pound at Pinkamena, but a glow of light drew his attention.

The glow was coming from the combination of Sunset’s sword, Applejack’s boots, and Rainbow Dash’s fists. Sunset had Hokori raised and poised to strike, while Rainbow Dash had her fists pounded together, lightning streaming from her raised wings and flowing down her arms to her fists to pool like twin orbs of pure electrical force. They were standing on either side of Applejack, who was now the center of their formation. Her metallic boots were surrounded by a golden aura of light, the eyes of the skulls on the knees flashing brightly, and jets of gold energy were flaming from multiple nozzles along the boot’s length.

Applejack glanced at Sunset with a small, strained grin, “Thanks fer lettin’ me take the lead here.”

“You deserve to put them to rest...” Sunset said, “I know this won’t bring your parents back, but you can get rid of this shadow hanging over their deaths. The rest...” Sunset gave Applejack a encouraging nod, “The rest we’ll help you figure out together.”

Applejack ran a hand along the edge of her stetson, fixing it in place, “Fine by me! Ya ready Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy gave Adagio’s head a pat, “She’ll be alright for the moment.” The girl's eyes flashed brightly, her luminous third eye casting its blue radiance upon Sunset, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack. “I’ll give you all the power I can!”

Sunset could feel it, the boost of increased energy from Fluttershy adding her power to theirs. She wasn’t sure how well her attack would mesh with Rainbow Dash’s and Applejack’s, but energy was energy. Put it all in the same direction and it tended to snowball together. Grand Fisher seemed to realize the danger of what they were doing, because he first tried to step away, but Pinkamena and Rarity were doing their jobs well, keeping him rooted in place. He then growled, forming another destructive beam of energy with his mouth.

“Kill me and you’ll never learn the truth, hayseed! You won’t learn what the Soul Reapers did to your parents!”

Applejack just muttered under her breath, “Right now I’m thinkin’ I can live wit that.”

The red beam of energy blasted out from Grand Fisher’s mouth at the same moment that Sunset thrust her blade forward, Rainbow Dash pushed out her lightning charged fists, and Applejack spun around and kicked out with all the force she could muster.

Intense flames from Hokori mixed with brilliant torrents of electricity from Rainbow Dash, all coiling around a solid beam of gold energy fired from Applejack’s kick. The wild, combined corkscrew of energies collided with the solid red beam from Grand Fisher, and the entire desert shook with the impact. For only an instant did the two beams grind against one another, then the combined force of the girl’s attack tore through the river of red, following the stream up all the way to Grand Fisher’s head. The Hollow’s eyes bulged as the chaotic forces of fire, lightning, and raw force tore their way through his face, ripping his head apart like a watermelon being hit by a sledgehammer. The combined beam of force continued on well past the destroyed Hollow to impact into the desert some distance away in a expanding shockwave of explosive force that shook the ground further and sent a wave of sand-dust blasting across the landscape for half a mile.

In the silence that followed there was only the ragged breathing of the girls to be heard as they stared at Grand Fisher’s now headless body. For a second Sunset feared some maddening regeneration might occur, but thankfully the corpse giant fell to the ground like a toppled tree, and then began to slowly turn to dissipating dust.

The fight was over... but Adagio’s blood was still coating the sands.

Episode 21: Sacrifice

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Episode 21: Sacrifice

The immediate silence following Grand Fisher’s defeat was rapidly broken by Sonata’s voice, high and shaking with fear. “Adagio, c’mon look at me. Open your eyes and look at me. No no no, please, you gotta open your eyes!”

She was holding the older siren close to her chest, while Aria paced like a agitated pit-bull nearby, face a twitching mask of desperation, rage, and pale terror. “Hey, yellow chick! Get over here and start with the healing again already!”

“Y-yes, I’m here, you don’t have to yell,” Fluttershy said, rushing back over to Adagio and kneeling next to the fallen siren, her third eye lighting up the area like a luminous blue torch. Everyone else slowly gathered around as well, though the girls gave the sirens and Fluttershy some breathing room, hanging back a few good paces.

“Fluttershy, how is she?” Sunset asked gingerly, trying to keep down her own fears. She’d warned Adagio of the dangers they’d face here in Hueco Mundo, she’d known that facing Grand Fisher would be a potentially deadly encounter. Sunset knew it was nothing short of a small miracle they’d defeated Grand Fisher with so few injuries, but it was hard to feel good about that while looking at Adagio lying there, blood seeping from a gash in her stomach, and a broken soul chain dangling from her chest.

“I think she’ll make it,” said Fluttershy, eyes gentle as they looked upon Adagio’s wound, “I wish we didn’t have to move her, but we really don’t have a choice, do we?”

Sunset shook her head, “Not if we want to make the portal in time. Can she be moved?”

“Let me bandage this first. Once the I’ve fully stopped the bleeding we can go, but we have to be careful. Too much jostling could make things worse.” Fluttershy went to work, pulling out a small medical pouch from a pocket in her skirt. She used medical gauze from the pouch to carefully wrap Adagio’s stomach. As she did so the siren moaned softly, eyes fluttering open.

“Uggh...what...?”

“Dagie!” Sonata almost hugged Adagio, but Fluttershy put a hand up, shaking her head. Sonata barely controlled herself, holding herself instead as she said, “Y-you’re gonna be okay. The nice yellow girl is gonna make you not bleed everywhere.”

Adagio looked at her wound, and grimaced. Then the expression only got colder as she saw the broken chain dangling from her chest. She sucked in a deep breath, then winced at that pain as Fluttershy said, “Try not to move too much.”

“Y-yeah, I’m getting that,” Adagio said, a quiet tremor in her voice, “This is bad.”

“The wound, I think I’ve got the bleeding under control,” said Fluttershy, “You’ll be okay.”

Adagio’s eyes didn’t express any relief, and she raised a hand to point weakly at the broken chain, “That is what I’m talking about. I... remember that old man telling me that,” she gulped, sweat breaking out on her forehead, “That if my soul got any more damaged he might not be able to put me back in my body.”

“Well we’ll make him do it anyway,” growled Aria, “I’m not losing my sister in this stupid place!”

Sunset shared Adagio’s worries, but also knew they didn’t have the time to dwell on it. She turned to her other friends, hand still clutching her Zanpaktou tightly. She had a feeling she may well still need it before the day was over. “We need to move. Dash, AJ, us three will take the lead. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, cover the rear. Fluttershy and anyone who can’t fight, stay in the middle. We’ll move as fast as we can without risking Adagio, but the clock’s ticking on our way out of here, so we need to go now”

She didn’t find any argument to that, and in short order the girls were off, not quite at a full run, more a brisk jog. Aria and Sonata insisted on carrying their wounded sister between them, and Fluttershy stayed nearby to keep her power focused on healing Adagio, much as she’d done with Clover not long ago. It seemed that Fluttershy’s ability couldn’t truly heal wounds, so much as she could force a person’s body to remain stable and accelerate its own healing rate. However the real concern wasn’t the wound itself, but the broken soul chain. Sonata had gathered up the remains of the plush doll gigai, as it was possible it might still be needed. After all a bit of soul chain remained attached to the doll as well.

Limestone ran alongside Pinkie Pie, face like hard hewn stone, at least until she was sure no one else was looking, then her face softened somewhat and she whispered to Pinkie Pie, “Hey... thanks for coming for me.”

“Hey, like I was gonna let one of my family stay in the clutches of such a serious, major-league creepozoid. That’s not how the Twin Pinks roll!”

“Twin Pinks?” Limestone blinked in bewilderment.

“Duh,” Pinkie Pie said, nodding at Pinkamena, who gave a disturbing thumbs up in which the thumb turned into a slavering mouth for a moment. Limestone gulped, shivering slightly.

“Right. Guess I got to get used to that.”

The girls continued onward, backtracking their steps across the dunes. The lack of anything resembling weather in this strange, dark realm worked to their advantage, giving them easy view of their previous footprints in the sand. It was almost half an hour of a tense, quiet jog through the seemingly endless expanse of rolling white dunes before Sunset sensed something was wrong.

There was so much residual Hollow energy in the air that she couldn’t hone in on it clearly until they were nearly on top of the Hollows, barely able to shout half a warning before a pack of over thirty assorted lesser Hollows, many of them quadrupeds scampering along on all fours or insectoids scuttling forward on too many legs to count, came swarming over one of the larger dunes ahead.

“Break through!” Sunset shouted, brandishing her sword and increasing her pace from a jog to a full run. Rainbow Dash took to the air, flying low to the sands as lightning danced around her wings and fists. Applejack’s face turned hard, barreling ahead with long strides.

Behind them Rarity and Pinkamena pulled ahead of those carrying Adagio, ready to take on any stragglers that’d get past the vanguard. The distance between the girls and the Hollows closed swiftly, like a wave converging on a small boat at sea. Only in this case the small boat was actually a high speed wrecking ball and the wave turned out to be a bunch of pinatas.

Sunset, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack hit the front of the pack of Hollows like a trio of ballistic missiles. Hollows were scattered like flies from the cobalt electrical punches of Rainbow Dash as she swept through the front ranks, scythe-like in her curving motions, wings blurring. Applejack was a practical bull in a bowling alley, kicking aside lesser Hollows like stacked up pins. Each golden burst of her metallic boots sent bits of broken Hollow flying. Sunset tore into the Hollows in front of her with near feral abandon. She abandoned almost anything resembling defense, using her shield as a weapon as much as her sword. Both swung about in a deadly tornado of strikes, the shield crunching in Hollow masks while the hefty broadsword cleaved entire bodies in half, sometimes two in a row.

The pack of Hollows fought back with the ferocious will of dedicated predators, talons, fangs, and claws flashing in at the girls. Yet they met ferocity with ferocity, ignoring minor cuts and flesh wounds to rend into the Hollows like determined farmers reaping a harvest of torn, dissipating Hollow bodies.

Several Hollows got around the center of the carnage to come at the seemingly weaker prey of the other girls, Sonata and Aria flinching at the oncoming monsters as they continued to carry their injured sister, and Limestone setting her jaw with determined anger. Pinkie Pie just nodded to Pinkamena and the doppelganger grinned with unnatural fervor, so wide it was like her smile stretched her face like taffy; if taffy had a mouth filled with sharp, monstrous fangs. The first Hollow to even get close had its head bitten clean from its body in one gulp. Pinkamena’s hands morphed into what looked like giant claws, each digit ending in a saw toothed mouth, and she tore into more Hollows like a starving wolf among sheep; or at least much less vicious wolves.

When Rarity engaged the Hollows coming in from the other side she did so with significantly more grace and controlled movement, if no less fierce in her own way. When Rarity struck it was with lethal precision, working her rapier like a sewing needle through cloth, each movement filled with smooth purpose, no wasted motion. Each thrust sent the deadly crystalline blade through the eye socket or throat of a Hollow leaping for her, and Rarity spun and danced through their slashing claws and gnashing fangs with the deadly motions of a swooping bird of prey. She complemented her sword strikes with piercing rises of sharp crystal spikes, erupting upwards each time she let her rapier dip to touch the sands. The crystals still had an erratic, jagged pattern, however, and Rarity frowned at them, even as she killed the Hollows around her.

Rarity’s wasn’t the only oddity appearing among the girl’s powers. As Rainbow Dash spun upon a wolf Hollow that was springing to strike at her back, she backhanded it with a fist of lightning, but the normally azure blue arcs of electricity suddenly turned bright red, and blasted through the Hollow to twitch and crackle uncontrolled into the dunes off to the side.

“Bwuh?” Rainbow Dash glanced at her fist for a moment, confused at the red energy in her hand, but it vanished in a moment and soon her lightning was back to normal.

When Applejack jumped into the air, pulling back a leg to heel kick a crocodile shaped Hollow beneath her, one of the skulls on her leg had its eyes turn red, and for a moment strange, vein-like red patterns appeared across the surface of her armored leg. While strange, she ignored it and smashed down hard with her heel, crushing the Hollow that’d been her target, and creating a shock-wave of force that sent other Hollows flying back like kicked up leaves.

Then there was Pinkamena, who once she was down slaughtering the Hollows around her, she looked around like a rabid animal, covered in Hollow blood, and growling with deep hunger. Pinkie Pie gulped, visibly shaken, “Uh, Pinkamena? You feeling okay over there girl?”

Pinkamena turned her eyes on Pinkie Pie, and they were nearly black, with her normally blue pupils now glowing yellow, almost like a Hollow’s. If what Pinkamena had said before about her eye color changing with her mood, this probably didn't mean anything good. The fierce yellow gleam in them now was particularly bright, intense, and unnerving as drool dripped from her fangs and she crouched on all fours, moving toward Pinkie Pie with the sinuous movements of a stalking mountain lion, growling a deep, predatory rumble the entire time.

“Uh-oh,” Pinkie Pie said, motioning with her hands in a placating gesture, “Easy other me. Down. Sit. Heel. Hooo boy, you’re not listening, are you? Guys! Help!”

Before Sunset or any of the others could respond, Pinkamena pounced, jumping at Pinkie Pie, but Limestone quickly tackled her sister out of the way. Both just narrowly avoided Pinkamena’s feral charge, and the doppelganger set her sights on the bleeding Adagio and encumbered Sonata and Aria. Pinkie Pie, seeing this, grit her teeth and focused all of her willpower upon her other self. “Pinkamena, go back, now!”

The growling doppelganger locked eyes with Pinkie Pie, and for a few seconds the two stayed that way, shoving their wills against each other. Then, slowly, Pinkamena seemed to calm, eyes returning to a more normal color. She only had a look of confusion on her face by the time she turned to pink mist and returned to Pinkie Pie. Limestone helped her stand, “Damn it Pinkie Pie, what’s with that crazy other you anyway? It nearly took your throat out!”

“She’s not an ‘it’ Limestone, she’s just, uh, different,” Pinkie Pie said, wincing, and looking around with worried eyes at the surrounding landscape, “I think its this spooky wrong dimension. It’s messing with Pinkamena’s mood or something. Me too. I’m feeling all funny, and not in my normal ‘ha ha balloons’ kinda way.”

By this point the last of the Hollows had been finished off or sent running, and the girls paused to take a quick breather. Rarity looked at Pinkie Pie with a hesitant expression, holding her rapier up to examine it, “I feel something as well. Its not just post fight adrenaline fatigue, it's like something is agitating me, yet it's feels so... so...”

“Familiar,” said Applejack, crossing her arms over her chest and tapping one of her metal clad feet, “I ain’t understandn’ this none, but fer some reason I’m feelin’ like my power is... echoin’ with somethin’ ‘round here.”

“Yeah, I get what you mean,” said Rainbow Dash, “Its a seriously weird feeling. Like I’ve been here before or whatever. I don’t get it.”

Sunset, casting concerned looks at her friends, turned to regard Fluttershy questioningly, “What about you Fluttershy? Anything strange on your end?”

Her face was bent over Adagio, but when Fluttershy looked up, all the girls could see strange red, vein-like patterns swirling around the flesh surrounding her eyes, almost like tattoos. She was frowning deeply, but her voice was steady, “Just a bit. I, uh, I’m trying not to let it distract me.”

“Speaking of distractions are we gonna stand around all day talking about this or are we getting out of here?” asked Aria with understandable impatience, given the condition of her sister. Sunset nodded, resting her sword on her shoulder.

“You’re right, let’s get moving. Whatever’s going on with your powers, we’ll figure it out later.”

“You’re not affected Sunset?” asked Rarity, “Not feeling at all out of sorts? Not that that’s a bad thing, of course, but isn’t that odd?”

Sunset frowned, then just shrugged, “It must be something to do with the unique powers the rest of you developed and its origins. My Soul Reaper abilities don’t seem to be affected, so maybe it’s just something that’s connected to what you guys can do.”

“Talk later, move now!” Aria shouted, and with that the girls were off once more.

Sunset wasn’t sure how long the fight with that pack of Hollows had slowed them down. In battle it was hard to really pay attention to time. Seconds could feel like hours. Still, she didn’t think it had cost them that much time. Discord had said they had three hours, and between going out to find Grand Fisher, defeating him, and now this long slog back and the slight delay with the lesser Hollows... they had time still, right? Uncertainty started to gnaw at her, and she wanted to run faster, push the group to pick up its pace. Fluttershy was adamant that they couldn’t go too fast, otherwise risk making Adagio’s wound worse, but what good would that do if they missed the portal entirely?

At her insistence, the group started to run faster. Adagio gave a few pained groans, but didn’t complain, and stayed conscious with a fiery determination in her eyes even as her face started to get pale. No more Hollows barred their path, and the girls crossed one dune after another, the pale crescent moon above them seeming to gaze down balefully.

They created one final dune, and Sunset let out a bursting sigh of pure relief as she saw the Garganta portal, right where they left it. Wiping sweat from her face, she said, “Adagio and the sirens go through first with Limestone. Then the rest of you go in one at a time. I’ll bring up the rear.”

With shuffling footsteps they started down one dune, heading for the small ravine where the portal was waiting at the foot of the dune opposite their position. Before they got halfway down, however, Sunset stopped cold in her tracks as a massive and cold spiritual pressure washed over her, nearly making her choke. It was clear everyone else felt it too, the faces of the other girls screwing up in confusion and even fear as the overwhelming spirit pressure pressed down on them. Then a green glow filled the air and Sunset looked up just in time to see an emerald beam of energy, clearly a Cero but of a different color than the crimson one’s she’d seen up until then, crash down from above.

The beam struck the ground of the ravine between the girls and the portal, and exploded with enough force to knock them all off their feet. By the time they started picking themselves back up there was a smoldering, glass coated crater in the ravine, and the elderly man with the ram horns and jawbones was standing between them and their path to freedom. He was slowly clapping, an echoing sound that somehow managed to sound incredibly condescending.

“An excellent performance. I commend all of you. A part of me wasn’t certain you’d defeat my little... experiment.”

Applejack snarled, “So you was wachin’ us the whole time!? Didn’t seem ta wanna help yer friend, back there.”

The old man threw back his head and cackled, a sound like dry bones snapping, “Friend? Do not presume to lump me in with a piece of free floating trash. Grand Fisher was a pawn, an experimental pawn, just like his small cadre of comrades, which you lot have thoroughly decimated since getting involved in these affairs.”

“Yeah, well if you’re not looking to get ‘decimated’ yourself, pops, you’d better get out of our way!” said Rainbow Dash, spreading her wings and letting them buzz with electricity for emphasis. Sunset clutched Hokori’s shield and broadsword tightly, perhaps having sharper spiritual senses than her friends and knowing fully from what she was sensing in this old man, Grogar, that he was in a league apart from the likes of Grand Fisher. Already her mind was turning towards how to keep him distracted so everyone else could escape, while the old man turned bored eyes over the group, resting briefly on Rainbow Dash as he clasped his hands behind his back.

“A bold claim for a bold young lady. Do you even have the faintest notion of whom you face? No, I suppose not. You lot seem woefully uninformed of the players already performing upon the stage you have so blindly blundered onto. Even if I formally introduced myself, I doubt neither my name nor title would clue you into the sheer dire weight of the circumstances in which you find yourself.”

“Enlighten us, then,” Sunset said, playing for time. Every second she could keep him talking was a second she could plan. She’d built up a lot of energy in her blade from smashing those Hollows with her shield earlier. If she could just catch him by surprise...

Gorgar regarded her, and a thin smile stretched upon his aged, wrinkled features, “Ah, I suppose you would want to delay me. Concoct a scheme to purchase your friend’s freedom? Oh, don’t look so forlorn, child, I encourage you, cordially, to try anything that comes to your mind. I seek to test you girls thoroughly. Lord Tirek would drain you like a cup of wine, before you’ve had time to properly ferment. Shortsighted, for all of his unearned power.” There was deep bitterness in the old man’s nasally, dry voice, and a sneer crossed his features, making his face seem like a leering skull. “I am Grogar Tambelon, the Eighth Espada, and I, unlike the one I am currently trapped serving, am quite capable of seeing the long term potential you young ladies possess. As experiments, of course. Don’t entertain any delusions of escape. I have no intention of allowing any of you to slip away from my grasp now that you’ve all stepped into the snake’s den of your own volition, with no Quincy or Soul Reapers around to interfere.”

As he’d been talking, monologuing really, Sunset had glanced back at the other girls, and whispered, “Get ready to run. I’ll keep him busy, then follow after you’re all through.”

Applejack grunted, also whispering, “Horseapples. Ya think yer takin’ this guy alone?”

I don’t think I’m taking him at all. I’ll be lucky if I can keep him busy for even a minute, Sunset thought, but just shot Applejack a glare, “There’s no time to argue this!”

“Now, what could you all be whispering about I wonder?” asked Grogar, “Do take your time. As I understand it this fake Garganta is degrading quite quickly. I estimate it has minutes left, at best. So yes, do keep planning how you’ll get past me. I don’t wish to cause any of you undue damage, so a simple surrender would be preferable to having to drag you back to my laboratory with missing limbs and the like. Quite a burdensome task, that would be.”

All the girls exchanged nervous glances, Sunset giving Applejack a pleading look, “Please, just let me do this, AJ. I’m counting on you to make sure everyone makes it through that portal.” She could practically hear Applejack’s teeth grinding together, and it seemed to Sunset like her friend was about to cut her own palms with how hard she was clenching her fists, but after a moment Applejack just looked away.

“Ya’d better be right behind us, ya hear me Sunset? Ya git yer fool self killed here an’ I’m never forgivin’ ya!”

Grogar called up to them, “Well, I’m waiting for you to make a move, young ladies. This is starting to get dull. Shall I come to you? I do ever hate having to get my own hands dirty with this kind of plebeian labor.”

Sunset just nodded once to her friends, saying merely one word, “Go!” before she launched into her attack.

She pushed as much of her reishi as she could into empowering her Flash Step, focusing all of her concentration on controlling the incredibly high speed movement as accurately as possible. In the fraction of an eyeblink she vanished from the dune and appeared in the air above Grogar, already in mid-flip so that she was facing downward vertically, Hokori’s blade drawn back to thrust. When she did thrust downward, she only saw Grogar had casually glanced up to follow her movement, then her vision was temporarily blinded by the sheer intensity and brightness of the flames she unleashed, a concentrated blast straight down at the Arrancar.

She completed her flip, and didn’t wait for the fire to dissipate. She knew that wasn’t going to be enough to do more than maybe superficial damage. Sunset charged right into the swirling ball of fire before it fully vanished, leading with her shield in a bashing move. She almost stumbled when she found Grogar wasn’t in the flames, and she felt his spiritual pressure only a moment before he struck. He appeared from thin air with insane speed, easily faster than Fancy Pant’s Flash Step, and the noise of the high speed move had a distinctly different sound to it than that maneuver, as if he was using a slightly different energy for his technique.

Sunset didn’t have enough time to react as the old man lashed out with a contemptuous kick that caught her in the back. The force of it knocked the air clean out of her lungs and sent her sprawling across the sands for a good two or three dozen yards.

Her friends had already reached the bottom of the dune, but Grogar remained in their way, and he turned to them casually, eyes drawn down in a narrow frown, “I am seriously going to have to amputate legs and arms to make you young folk realize the gravity your situation?”

He began to draw the brown hilted blade at his side, but Sunset had already recovered and Flash Stepped straight into him, not even trying to use any precision to control her movement, instead just smashing into him with her shield at full speed. Powerful as he was, he didn’t weight any more than a normal person, and physics is a bitch. The blow managed to knock him backwards, Sunset pushing on her shield to shove him out of her friend’s path, even as the force of the blow sent a shock-wave up her arm that cracked bones in her spirit body.

Pain shot through her, but Sunset growled past it, lashing out with her broadsword, fire engulfing the blade. Rather than explode outward, she kept the flames wrapping the blade, making it a scorching edge that she hoped might add to its striking power. If it did, however, Grogar didn’t seem to care. He caught the blade with his bare hand. The flames burned him, blackening his skin somewhat, but he didn’t appear to mind the pain and just looked at Sunset with faint irritation. Well, irritating him was better than boring him.

“Really, while your courage is remarkable, you’ll shatter both your body and your sword before you do any lasting damage to me, young lady. Now please, have a seat.”

He twisted, and brought his knee up straight into Sunset’s gut. The blow caused her to slid back, but she kept on her feet, struggling for breath, but she refused to drop. Her friends were almost to the Garganta! If she could just keep Grogar distracted for a few more seconds they’d be in the clear! Grogar just cracked a sickeningly mix between a grin and a glower.

“Such hope in your eyes. Allow me to extinguish it.”

He vanished again, with a buzz of noise that seemed distinct to an Arrancar’s high speed movement. Sunset couldn’t sense where he’d gone, couldn’t react at all to the strike that cut its way up her shoulder in a wash of blood. She almost lost her grip on Hokori’s shield, but even so her left arm now hung useless, barely able to do more than keep hold of the shield as blood dripped down from the crimson gash. Meanwhile Gorgar appeared all the way back at the Garganta portal, standing once more between Sunset’s friends and freedom. He’d drawn his sword, which now that it was free of its sheath she could see looked like it was forged not from metal but some kind of sharpened stone, with a hilt shaped like... a bell?

He slashed with the blade, and a wave of raw concussive force hit Sunset’s friends, bowling them all over and sending them sprawling backwards. As they slowly started to regain their feet, Grogar held out a hand as if he were a Shakespearean actor pontificating.

“Alas, despite such noble efforts, it would seem your time has run out.”

Sunset saw what he meant immediately. The Garganta, it was closing. Not swiftly. In fact it was closing in very slow, jerky motions, as if Discord was struggling to keep it open even a few seconds longer. Yet it was undeniably closing and would be shut entirely in a matter of seconds.

While Sunset struggled to get moving, Applejack struck first, bursting forward with her metal boots flaring like rockets. She aimed a powerful kick at Grogar’s head, but he raised his free hand to block it like he was absorbing the blow of a child. He then struck with the pommel of his sword, hitting Applejack cleanly in the stomach, blasting the air out of her and knocking her backwards towards the three sirens. Only Rainbow Dash’s quick thinking let her catch Applejack before she bowled over the sirens.

By then Sunset reached Grogar, sword red hot with fresh fire, and she slashed down to unleash a rolling wave of bright orange flame. Grogar responded by raising a gnarled finger, from which a potent green glow emanated for a moment before a large pale green Cero beam exploded out to smash into the wave of flame, just enough to cancel it out in an explosion of sand and cinders.

“And... I’d say that’s, as you young folk of this generation like to put it, ‘game over’,” Grogar said with deep satisfaction as the Garganta gave one last, shuddering attempt to remain open...

...then slammed shut entirely.

----------

Adagio had been mostly just focusing on staying conscious. The pain in her stomach was horrendous, but somehow the strange, empty feeling her chest where the broken chain resided felt worse. She knew exactly how bad that was. How effectively screwed she was. She’d been paying attention to everything Discord had told her over the weeks since she’d been torn from her human body and put into the plush doll gigai. He’d been very explicit in the danger of being damaged again while still in that doll, before he could get her old body repaired and her soul placed back into it.

While she wasn’t going to argue with her sisters wanting to carry her out of this place, Adagio knew it was pointless. With her soul chain broken... she was already effectively dead. Discord had told her as much. With that chain broken, there was no way for him to return her soul to her body, at least he’d certainly made it sound that way. She was willing to beg him to try anyway, since what did she have to lose at this point? However it looked like she wasn’t going to even get that much of a chance... nor were her sisters or any of the girls from Canterlot High that’d come to this damned dimension.

Grogar laughed as the Garganta closed and they all became trapped in Hueco Mundo. She could see the desperation on Sunset’s face, the horror dawning on the young pony from Equestria who’d so brashly attempted to befriend Adagio. It somehow broke something further in Adagio to see that look on Sunset’s face. Strangely, as much as she’d hated Sunset for all the problems she thought Sunset had caused her, she’d started to really respect the girl, even... even consider the possibility that she might actually be able to call the girl a friend.

It was unbearable to see Sunset looking so defeated. It wasn’t a natural look for her. Worse, the other girls didn’t look much better off.

“O-okay, so, uh, do we got a Plan B?” asked Rainbow Dash.

Applejack blew out a hard breath, still clutching her stomach from the hit Grogar had given her, “I... I ain’t thinkn’ we do Dash. But we can still go down swingin’!”

Rarity, biting her lower lip, held her rapier up, “Speak for yourself. I intend fully to defeat this charlatan and return home! There must be a way!”

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash clenched her hands into lightning charged fists, “We ain’t done yet!”

Pinkie Pie looked nervous as she said, “I don’t know if I can bring out Pinkamena with her being so cranky right now, but you know what, this meanie is getting on my nerves, so maybe I’ll do it anyway!”

Grogar’s laughter died off into a light chuckle, “Oh my, you will all make for incredible test subjects with spirit like that. You do realize, even in the exceedingly low possibility that you defeat me, you still would not have a way to return to your realm?”

Sunset, taking a deep breath and steadying herself, said, “Maybe not, but we’d rather try than just surrender to you!”

“Indeed? Well, its no skin off my back I suppose. Come then, let us be on with it,” said Grogar, “I tire of this game and would much rather get to researching your unusual capabilities and how I can bend that power to increase my own.”

The girls charged in, all save Fluttershy, who stayed with Adagio and her sisters, along with Limestone. Adagio could feel the girl’s power working inside her, keeping the wound from getting worse, but she wasn’t sure there was much point to that. She didn’t watch the battle unfold. She heard it, but she couldn’t really bring herself to watch those girls throwing themselves repeatedly and seemingly uselessly against an opponent who was several stages beyond their power.

And they came here to rescue my sisters, she thought with growing anger, For all the trouble I want to lay at their feet, the only one I have to blame for all of this is myself.

She heard explosions, could see out of the corner of her eye Rainbow Dash throwing bolts of lighting, and Applejack laying out blasts of gold energy from her feet. She heard clashes of blades as Sunset attacked furiously, her sword strokes countered point for point by Grogar’s, while Rarity lashed out with her rapier turning into a crystalline whip. Even Pinkie Pie sent out the feral Pinkamena, who for all her feral biting and clawing was swept aside by Grogar with a single punch. He seemed unstoppable, yet Adagio noticed he wasn't entirely unwounded by the barrage of attacks the girls were unleashing on him. They were just scratches, but it almost seemed like he was getting worn down, if even just slightly.

But what was the point? Grogar had been right. Even if he was defeated, which didn’t at all seem likely, what could they do after? The Garganta was gone, and Discord wouldn’t be able to create another for half a day at least. Even if the Canterlot High girls could survive Hueco Mundo for that long, there was no way Sonata and Aria could. Or Limestone, though Adagio didn’t particularly feel anything for the Pie sibling one way or another. But the idea of her sisters’ souls being slowly absorbed into Hueco Mundo, that chilled Adagio to her core.

She’d give anything to be able to do something about it.

...Maybe there was.

“Sonata...Aria...” she said slowly, looking up at her sisters. They looked back at her, and Adagio couldn’t stop a lump from forming in her throat. Sonata’s eyes were filled with fear, but at the same time there was a tenderness to the blue siren’s grip that Adagio realized had always been there. Sonata, for all her foolishness, all of her wacky tendency towards being an airhead, never stopped loving her sisters. No matter how demanding or demeaning Adagio had treated her, she’d stuck with Adagio faithfully through it all with a smile on her face and a silly comment not far from her lips.

Aria’s expression was always so angry, and now was no exception, but the anger was purely directed at Grogar, the one who was causing them such pain. Aria’s anger had always been with her, something of a defining trait, but Adagio remembered a time when her second youngest sibling was as passionate about the music they sang together as she was enraged by the constant obstacles in their way. For all her combative nature, Aria had never abandoned Adagio, and even now was holding tightly to her as if she’d protect Adagio from anything that might come their way.

“I’ve been terrible to both of you, haven’t I?” Adagio said, fear welling up in her, but wishing for all the world she’d said these words sooner, “I’m... I’m sorry. I’m sorry for ever dragging you two down into the dark with me. You both deserved better than me as a sister.”

Sonata blinked, confused, “What are you saying Dagie? C’mon, like, what do you got to apologize for?”

Aria just rolled her eyes, “Ignore her Sonata, she’s just being melodramatic.”

Adagio laughed bitterly, shaking her head, “You two, never listening to me, right up until the end...”

“It’s not the end!” said Sonata, though there was a quaver of fear in her voice as her eyes glanced towards the fight. Applejack was sporting several deep cuts, and Rainbow Dash was nursing a broken arm, while Pinkamena had one of her tentacle morphed arms chopped clean off. Rarity had a gash across her brow, seeping blood over her alabaster white face, and Sunset was limping, favoring a cut leg. Yet all the girls continued to attack relentlessly, pushing Grogar back, despite the fact that he hardly looked more than just a bit scuffed up, not even winded. But was there enough of a chance in that for Adagio’s mad plan to work?

She sighed. She’d never wanted to die like this. She... wasn’t sure anymore what she’d wanted out of life. Power? Fame? Glory? Adoration? All of it seemed rather worthless now.

All she wanted in this world or any other was for Sonata and Aria to live, and get back home to Equestria.

She knew of only one thing she could do to make that happen.

With more strength than she knew she had, she pushed her sisters away from her, taking several stumbling steps forward.

“W-what are you doing?” Sonata babbled, while Aria grimaced, “Seriously Adagio, what the hell is up with you?”

Adagio glanced back at them, her hands raising to the soul chain at her chest.

“When I open the Garganta again... get everyone through it, no matter what. And promise me you’ll both go back home, one day.”

She’d paid close attention to a lot of things Discord had said over the weeks of working for him. Including the fact that a soul whose soul chain was ripped free turned into a Hollow incredibly fast... and that all Hollows had the instinctual and natural ability for creating Garganta portals.

With all of her might, she tore the chain free from her soul’s body.

----------

Grogar looked at the girls lined up in front of him with clear annoyance.

“If I allow this to go on you do realize you’ll simply exhaust yourselves, yes? Surrender would be ideal for you at this point.”

Sunset spat at him, breathing hard, but keeping her blade held up and ready, “Sorry, we’re just not the surrendering types.”

“Oh please, I can see the desperation in your eyes. You know as well as I that this battle just has one outcome-” Grogar said, but was cut off as an unholy shriek of agony pierced the air. Even Grogar raised an eyebrow at that as everyone turned to see the source of the noise.

Adagio.

A hole of deep blackness appeared in her chest where the last fragments of her soul chain once resided, now falling to the white sands of Hueco Mundo. The siren fell to her knees, clutching at her chest, as she continued to scream. Her two sisters, panicked, rushed to her side, but Adagio threw them aside with shocking strength, and amid her screams she could be heard shouting “Get! Back! Aaaaarrgg!”

Pinkie Pie gasped, hands cover her mouth, and Applejack just blinked in rapid confusion, “What n’ tarnation’s happenin’ ta her!?”

“I don’t know,” Sunset breathed, fear and a gut wrenching feeling entering her as she watched the hole in Adagio’s chest expand, then white, viscous fluid began to erupt out of the hole, and out of the siren’s eyes and mouth.

Grogar raised an eyebrow, “How odd. She destroyed her soul chain on purpose? Fascinating.”

“What’s that supposed to mean!? What’s happening to her!?” shouted Rainbow Dash.

“Why, she’s transforming into a Hollow. Have you never witnessed the process? It’s normally done when a pure soul gradually is corrupted through intense, negative emotions built up over time, but damage to the soul chain causes the transformation as well,” Grogar said, shrugging as if he hardly cared, “I don’t know what that young lady is planning to accomplish. Transforming herself into a lesser Hollow will not change anything, other than, perhaps give me a new pet to toy with.”

As they spoke the white substance crawling out of Adagio’s body engulfed her like a cocoon, trailing up and down her form until it covered her in a hard white shell, like a smooth egg. Sonata tried to step towards it, but Aria held her back.

“Aria!? Let go! I have to help Dagie!”

“I don’t think you can,” said Aria, voice flat and filled with pain, face contorted, “I don’t think anything can.”

Fluttershy grabbed Limestone and the two joined the two sirens, backing away from the cocoon shape. Then spider-line cracks began to appear all over it, and red, blood-like energy began to pour out, along with a green gas. Grogar stroked his chin, even as Sunset felt a built up of unusually strong spiritual pressure from the cocoon.

“Strange, that reiatsu doesn’t feel like that of a lesser Hollow,” Grogar said, “This reminds me more of what an Adjuchas’ spiritual pressure feels like. Intriguing.”

Sunset, not at all sure what to expect, waved a hand signal at her friends, motioning for them to back away from Grogar, and move closer gradually towards Fluttershy and the others. One by one the did so, but the movements caught Grogar’s eye.

“Don’t go anywhere young ladies, I’m merely interested in this unusual development, but I’m hardly forgetting you lot. Stay put, or I’ll start cutting off legs to make you stay put.”

He strode towards the cocoon, which continued to expel red fluid and green gas as more and more cracks splintered across it’s shell. Grogar’s eyes scanned the cocoon critically, his expression not alarmed, merely curious.

When a white, clawed limb burst out of the shell to slash at him, Grogar jumped back out of range with casual ease, not taking his eyes off the cocoon. Sunset looked on, continuing to have her friends edge closer to Fluttershy, Limestone, and the other two sirens, as the cocoon continued to shatter.

Piece by piece the white shell fell away, until it finally shattered entirely, revealing Adagio within... or what was now Adagio.

The being was clearly a Hollow.

Her body looked very much like that of the original Equestrian forms of the sirens. White scales covered her aquatic body, long and sinuous, with a powerful fish-like tail at the back with sharp looking fins, almost like blades. In fact both her back and her arms also possessed wickedly sharp looking fins, with orange membranes between white spurs. Her arms ended in clawed hands instead of hooves, with membranes stretching between the large, curved talons. Her face was very much that of a true siren’s elegant yet somehow animalistic, with twin yellow eyes, not solid like a normal Hollows, but still containing Adagio’s sheen and pupils, filled with rage... all of it aimed at Grogar. Parts of her face had elements of thick bone, almost like a Hollow’s mask, but less prominent than on most Hollows, seeming to allow a range of facial expression.

The last element that made her different was that the large Hollow hole in her chest was blazing with one prominent, immediately noticeable feature.

That of a glowing red gem that pulsed with power, floating in the hole’s center.

“Her siren gem... it regrew,” Sunset whispered in awe.

Grogar, less awed, but more intrigued, said, “Very fascinating. I didn’t imagine I’d find a specimen more valuable than those girls. I wonder, just what are you, young lady?”

“Death,” Adagio responded in a voice that resonated with unrestrained rage, and red energy flowed among the fines along her back and the crest of her head, then pooling into an orb of raw crimson power in front of her gleaming siren gem.

She fired a Cero point blank into Grogar, engulfing him and the dune behind him into a wave of destructive ruby light. The sound of the explosion was deafening, and the blast wave nearly knocked Sunset off her feet, whipping her hair about as sand and dust went flying in a circular wave in all directions.

Even before Sunset managed another blink, the Hollow Adagio turned towards them, and her eyes narrowed. “Sunset, get them out of here, now!”

Before Sunset could even voice half a question, there was a wavering, tearing sound, and a hole opened up in the air; a Garganta!

Adagio was forming a Garganta portal! Sunset could barely get her mind in gear to realize that that must have been Adagio’s plan when she’d torn her soul chain free. A tidal wave of emotions rose up in Sunset. Anguish at realizing what Adagio had just sacrificed to save them, and immense gratitude towards the courage such a choice must have taken, followed immediately but deep regret that it had been necessary in the first place. She could feel the tears wetting her eyes even as she nodded, and shouted, “Everyone, through the portal! Quickly!”

It wasn’t easy for all of them. Sunset’s friends could move fast enough, but Sonata needed to be dragged, kicking and screaming, by both Aria and Applejack. Looking into the Garganta portal, Sunset saw that a thin spectral bridge of light was forming inside, allowing them to cross. She had to assume that was Discord’s doing. Adagio must have opened the portal right back to where Discord was, allowing him to establish his own connection to the portal. Sunset all but shoved her friends through, sending Rainbow Dash in first, then Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie along with Limestone. Rarity came next, all but leaping through the Garganta.

Then it was Aria, Sonata, and Applejack’s turn, and Sonata was fighting like a wild beast to free herself from their grip, her voice screaming.

“No! Let go! Dagie! NO! I won’t let this-! LET GO! Adagio!” despite her flailing, she was physically no match for a combination of Aria and Applejack’s strength. Tears flowed down the youngest siren’s face like twin rivers, and Aria’s face was no better, her own face filled with hard, bitter sadness even as she unrelentingly dragged Sonata into the portal.

Sunset waited until they were through, and turned to Adagio, shouting, “Come on!”

Adagio didn’t move, however, only glancing back at Sunset. “I can’t.”

“Of course you can! Whatever you just did to yourself, we can figure out some way to fix it!” Sunset said.

Even as she spoke, there was an explosion of sand, and Grogar appeared, dusting himself off. His white vest had been burned away, and his bare chest was slightly singed, but he seemed otherwise unharmed.

“Impressive,” he commented dryly, looking at the Garganta portal with a sneer, “And effective.”

He turned his eyes to Adagio, narrowing them to slits, “I commend you. What is your name, my fledgling Hollow? Surely not ‘Death’, but something less dramatic, perhaps?”

Adagio’s nostrils flared and she growled, “I am Adagio Dazzle, and you’re never going to lay your filthy hands upon my sisters... or my friends.”

“Indeed I suspect not this day, no. However you shall do fine as a replacement. I’m very curious to divine what that gem in your chest is.”

“Dammit, Adagio, run!” Sunset said, taking a step to go help the siren turned Hollow escape, but Adagio turned to her with a feral growl.

“I said, go you idiot!” Adagio shouted, and her gem glowed brightly for a second before a second, weaker Cero beam fired from it, straight at Sunset. She barely got her sword up in time, taken wholly off guard. The beam hit her, and the force of it drove her back through the Garganta portal, stumbling upon the bridge of light. She recovered just in time to see the Garganta closing.

Adagio was watching her through the closing portal, the siren’s face showing immense relief, even as Grogar slowly and menacingly advanced behind her.

Sunset made one last desperate dive for the portal, “Adagio, wait-!”

She saw Adagio smile, and just shake her head, saying something that Sunset couldn’t hear. The last thing Sunset saw of Adagio Dazzle before the portal closed completely was her turning to face Grogar, talons raised to strike at the unconcerned looking Espada. Then the portal closed, and Sunset was left staring into the darkness of the Precipice Realm.

Author's Notes:

So... er... yeah, one might say that mission didn't go as well as Sunset probably was hoping, but hey, no one said this was going to be a story without its casualties. That being said, one of the things I always thought was fascinating about Bleach was that it was a story where a character could "die" and still essentially remain part of the story as their soul went on. Tite Kubo never killed off any of the living humans like Chad or Orihime, which is fine, but a part of me always thought it was a missed opportunity to explore the idea of a character going through the process of dying, but their presence in the story continuing as their soul went through the change of becoming a Soul Reaper... or in this case, a Hollow.

I'd been planning this for Adagio since Episode 1, and she's the final of the trinity of faction protagonists I wanted to establish; Sunset as the Soul Reaper, Twilight as the Quincy, and Adagio as the Hollow.

This more or less concludes what I consider the first "arc" of this story, save for the wind down and aftermath to come in the next chapter. What'll come next is a lot of perspective shifting as I focus on Twilight, Adagio, and Sunset in different episodes as they deal with their new circumstances and learn more about their respective factions.

Oh, and random factoid - Because of a friend of mine here in Fimfiction I now imagine Grogar being voiced by David Warner, most known to me as the man who did the voice of Jon Irenicus from Baldur's Gate 2.

Anyway, hope you guys have enjoyed the story thus far. One arc down, I'm thinking two or three to go, depending on just how things develop. Thanks for all the support so far with comments and critiques. I seriously appreciate it, folks!

'Till next time.

Episode 22: Pick Yourself Back Up

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Episode 22: Pick Yourself Back Up

Hot water fell on her in thick, needle sheets. The steady drone of the shower blanketed out Sunset’s thoughts for a few blessed moments as she let the shock of the hot water wash over her, the deluge pushing against the boggy fatigue that threatened to suck her down into unconsciousness right then and there. She didn’t think passing out in the shower would be very dignified, but it’d fit her mood. She stood with her hands braced on the shower wall, letting the water wet down her hair and rinse down her back. She wanted to just stop thinking for awhile, but it was all but impossible. Her mind’s eye continued to flash back to the events of mere hours ago.

Sonata’s sobbing could still be heard, even down the hall from a different room. Sunset, back in her human body, and her friends stood in a tired, haggard group, with Pinkie Pie’s family not far away gladly receiving the rescued Limestone with hugs and cries of relief. Discord was there, standing across from them, his expression stiff.

“I should have anticipated that Gorgar might have taken a personal hand in this,” he said with a gruff, muttering tone, “He usually detests getting his hands dirty. I suspected he might have been responsible when that first partially evolved Arrancar showed up, but I didn’t believe he’d be there in person. I’m sorry you girls had to go through that.”

“There’s nothing that can be done to change that now,” Sunset said, wondering if she looked as tired as she sounded, “What I want to know is if there’s any chance at all of getting Adagio back.”

The look Discord gave her was answer enough. She hung her head, taking in and letting out a shuddering breath. Applejack stepped forward, less willing to let things stand. “Yer sayin’ there ain’t no way o’ snatchin’ her back from that old goat an’ sticking her back in her body?”

“I am not a man inclined to say anything is impossible, but in this case the odds are so astronomically low as to be a false hope if I made any claim to the contrary,” said Discord, holding up a slim hand and holding up a finger, “First of all, by now Grogar has likely taken Adagio to Las Noches, the seat of Arrancar power and a fortress of Hueco Mundo’s most powerful Hollows. Even all the Soul Society could not mount an assault upon such a place without risking being shattered by the casualties that would result from such a battle. You girls would be like lambs to the slaughter were you to go there as you are now. Second of all, even if Adagio was retrieved, she is a Hollow now. Her soul is now changed irrevocably from what it was before. There’s no method I know of that could place her soul back into her original body, because the two are simply not compatible, now. It’d be like trying to shove a DVD into a VCR and expecting it to play.”

“I don’t understand all that’s transpired,” said Cloud Quartz suddenly, still hugging Limestone so tight it looked like the girl was having trouble breathing, “But if this young lady, Adagio, has been lost to us while helping bring my daughter back to me, I... I wish I could show her all the gratitude in the world for it. I want to thank all of you for what you’ve endured to return Limestone to me.”

“Ugh, m-mom, I think they get it. Can you stop... crushing... lungs...” Limestone said, face turning red, for probably more than one reason. As Cloudy Quartz let go, giving Limestone a chance to breath, Maud glanced at Discord.

“It’s late.”

“Hmm, oh, yes, yes it is... perhaps before we do anything else we should all get some rest,” Discord said. Applejack gave him a hard look, stepping closer to him.

“Hold on just a’ sec there. Ya owe us answers, remember? A’ whole cart load o’ answers!”

Discord’s brows drew together, “Indeed, Miss Applejack, I do. I won’t duck that Q&A session, rest assured. But I think, for what I need to disclose, you all might want to be fully rested. Besides, Miss Clover will likely be awake by then, and she can add her own perspective to the matter as well. I suggest you girls all return to your homes. With Grand Fisher gone you’ll likely be safe for a time longer. I doubt Grogar will risk openly operating in the living world so soon after the battle in the city, with the Quincy and Soul Society both on high alert.”

Rarity yawned, running a hand through her hair, “I admit, sleep does sound preferable after... all that has happened. Everyone is frayed at the edges and there’s nothing like a full night’s beauty sleep to clear the mind.”

“I feel like I could sleep for a week,” said Fluttershy in a voice barely stronger than a hush.

Applejack practically growled, but said, “Fine, alright, we’ll hit the hay.” Her green eyes flared at Discord with fierce promise, “But ya better believe I’m gittin' the whole truth tomorrow, first thing in the mornin’! Ya hear me?”

“Quite loudly and clearly,” said Discord.

The girls piled out into the hallway in one exhausted procession, Sunset at the lead as they trudged towards the shop’s exit. They had to pass by the room that’d been given over to the sirens on the way out, and Sonata’s cries were barely muffled. Then they got louder for a moment as the door to their room opened and Aria came out. Sunset caught a brief sight of Sonata curled up in one corner of the room on a bed, knees drawn up, head buried, but then Aria closed the door and stood in Sunset’s way.

Aria’s eyes looked hotter than fresh coals, and every inch of her buzzed with seething anger. Sunset felt her mouth go dry, and started to say, “Aria, I’m-”

That was about as far as she got before Aria’s fist collided with her jaw. Sunset was rocked back, but she kept her feet, more taken off guard than actually hurt. Rainbow Dash burst forward, saying, “What the hell!?” But Sunset held out a hand, keeping her friend back.

She looked at Aria, who was glaring at her with her hands still balled into fists. Sunset wiped at her mouth, feeling the already growing bruise, and said, “I’m sorry.”

“Save it. What was Adagio doing there? Why was she there!?”

Sunset felt cold, taking a deep breath before saying, “She asked to come.”

“...And you let her?” Aria’s voice was deathly quiet, and more frightening than the loudest of scalding screams could have been.

“I didn’t know what would happen, but she wanted to come. She wanted to save her sisters,” Sunset said, only telling the truth, because what else could she do?

Aria’s voice was pure acid, “Well, she did save us. Us, and you idiots as well. And guess what...” Aria’s hand shot out and grabbed Sunset by the collar of her jacket, hauling her to be eye to eye with the enraged siren, “She’s dead. My sister is dead because of you. You could have made her stay behind. Instead you took her along into a fight she didn’t belong in.”

There was an uncomfortable shuffling among Sunset’s friends, but Rainbow Dash was the one to grit her teeth and push past Sunset, not quite getting in Aria’s face, but definitely putting her presence between the two, “Hey, your sister made the choice herself to come along! Don’t blame Sunset for that. And in case you missed the same screwed up scenario I saw, we all would have been dead if your sister didn’t pull of some last second awesome to get us out of there!”

“Dash... its...” Sunset began to say, but Aria just shoved her back, stepping away, breathing hard and giving them all scalding looks.

“Yeah, Adagio saved us. All of you owe her, and can’t pay half of it back. I just want you to know I won’t forget this. We were just fine until all of you showed up.”

She opened the door back into her and Sonata’s room, only pausing long enough to glare back at them. “From now on, stay away from me and Sonata!” She then slammed the door closed, leaving the rest of the girls to stand uncomfortably in the hallway.

After a moment Fluttershy put a hand on Sunset’s shoulder, “Don’t blame yourself Sunset. She’s angry, and hurt. Anybody would want to lash out after what happened.”

Sunset just nodded weakly, “I know.”

“I know...” she echoed her own words, one hand slowly balling into a fist that she used to punch her shower wall, all of her thoughts and feelings bubbling together like a cauldron.

She could have told Adagio no. Could have made her stay behind. What could she do, as just a doll, anyway? Sunset knew that the battle was going to be dangerous, that any of the battles she and her friends had been involved in were dangerous. Some part of her had held onto the hope that they could all pull through without anyone being lost. The hard reality was like the water pouring over her, scalding and unrelenting.

Yet the fire was still inside her. Beyond the pain and sorrow the fire of rage burned bright, her pride a flare against the encroaching dark. Sunset turned her face up into the water, letting it wash over her, then pulled back, opening her eyes and giving the ceiling an intense stare, hands still balled into fists at her sides.

Even if they couldn’t get Adagio back, Sunset knew this wasn’t over. The Hollows would continue to be a threat, and she and her friends would continue to face that threat head on. Grogar was stronger than them, for the moment, but Sunset would make certain that didn’t stay the case.

Grogar had taken a friend from Sunset, hurt her people...

There was going to be a reckoning, to settle that score.

Sunset left the shower feeling more invigorated, if still beaten and battered. It was strange. Wounds to the soul’s ‘body’ didn’t translate directly to the physical body. Her soul had been cut badly on the shoulder, the arm rendered inert, and she’d taken a dozen other smaller wounds. Discord had provided treatment before Sunset had returned to her physical body, and while her real body didn’t bear any of the wounds she’d taken in spirit form, she could still feel those wounds like a deep ache inside her. Still, with the shower, and a sense of resolve, she was now feeling better.

She threw on a white bathrobe, and trudged out into her apartment’s living room, intending to go plop into bed, but a knock at her door caused her to pause halfway across where the open kitchen met the living room. There was only a short hallway leading to apartment’s front door, with just a small closet to the left of it. She didn’t think a Hollow would bother knocking, but she snatched up Hokori anyway from where the blade was leaning against the wall by the entry hall.

The knock came one more time, a kind of brief, awkward sounding triple knock that was somehow both formal and somehow dorky at the same time. Sunset took a peer through the peephole, and her eyes widened. She quickly unlocked her door and opened it.

“Twilight!? What are you doing here?” she asked, looking in surprise at the girl standing in the hallway, “I didn’t think your family would let you out of their sight anytime soon. Did you sneak out?”

Twilight gave her a strange look, “What? My family? Why would they be keeping an eye on me? Wait, are you talking about the other me that’s here? The human one?”

Human one...? Sunset blinked, looking Twilight over again. She then picked up on what should have been obvious from the get-go. The lack of glasses. The fact that she wore her hair (or mane, as Twilight still likely considered it) straight and long instead of pulled up in a bun. The odd blouse, cutie marked skirt, and large boots that seemed to come with the transformation from pony to human. The fact that Twilight Sparkle, despite having been here to the human world several times, still held her hands in an awkward hoof-like ball.

Relief and happiness swept through Sunset, pushing down the previous feelings of anger, sadness, and pain. A genuine smile like a rising sun spread on her face as she moved forward with one swift step and pulled Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship, and her first real friend, into a tight hug.

“Yikes! Eheh, Sunset, you’re uh, pretty glad to see me I take it?” Twilight said, laughing in a combination of happiness and nervousness as she returned Sunset’s hug, purple face gaining a reddish hue.

Sunset found she was having trouble speaking past the lump of emotions clogging her throat, and with embarrassment she felt tears in her eyes. She finished her hug, holding Twilight at arm’s length and said, “Sorry, I just... you have no idea how glad I am that you’re here.”

“Heh, feels like it,” Twilight said, returning the smile and looking Sunset over, her brow quirking up, “Was this a bad time to show up? I would have been here sooner, but you know how Equestria can get. Always a new friendship problem to solve. Or a magical disaster to avert. Or lessons to teach to a new apprentice.”

Sunset gave a small nod, remembering that the last time Twilight had visited, just after the Friendship Games, she’d mentioned having a student. A time warping, former cult leader, on the road to reformation. Sunset wasn’t about to judge. She-demon, after all. “How’s that going, with the new student?”

Twilight coughed politely, her smile turning adorkably nervous, “Good. Um, it’s good, yeah. She’s eager to learn. I’m still not sure how good I am at teaching. I’m having to figure a lot of it out as I go along.”

“Well, if there’s anyone... anypony I know who can do it, it's you Twilight. Please, come inside.”

Sunset led Twilight into the living room, which was really the only room beside the bedroom on one end and the small bathroom on the other. Her open kitchen more or less bled into the living room, and there wasn’t much space to begin with. Sunset went to the small table set up at the edge of the kitchen and sat down, with Twilight glancing around the apartment before taking a seat herself.

“Um, this is a nice place. How did you end up with it?” Twilight asked.

“Right, this is your first time here. I know it's not roomy, but I picked it for simplicity more than luxury,” Sunset said, chuckling slightly at the memory, “When I first came here after running away from Canterlot, I had no idea how the economy here worked. I’d taken some gems from back home, figuring I might need currency, but nobody here just takes gems for goods and there’s not much of a barter system. I had to figure out how to sell the gems off for actual money... which wasn’t easy without an ID or social security card. Had to find a less than reputable place to sell the gems that didn’t care about legalities. Pair of brothers in town who don’t ask too many questions. Twins, I think? Whatever, they tried to shill me on the price but I was a very aggressive customer and got a decent price for the gems. That set me up with enough to afford food and a place to stay initially. Turns out those brothers rented out a room above their shop, and I took that at first. Worked at their pawn shop part time for a bit, until Flam’s connections got me a fake ID.”

She laughed, shaking her head, “Luckily Principal Celestia helped me get actual citizenship. Still don’t know what wheels she greased to pull that off, but she managed. She didn’t want to make a big deal about it, but I’m really grateful to her. I still have a fair chunk of cash left from the gems I sold and the work I did at the pawnshop, so I can afford this apartment for awhile longer... at least until I graduate high school and can move on to whatever’s next.”

Sunset’s voice trialed off then, her eyes looking down at the table, at her hands folded in front of her, “Assuming whatever’s next is something I have much choice in anymore. Um... did you get my last message?”

“I did,” said Twilight, eyes softening with worry as she leaned forward on the table, looking at Sunset earnestly, “I wish I could have come here sooner, Sunset. It sounds like you’ve been dealing with some pretty dangerous situations. Its both amazing and... well... pretty scary, too. Hollows sound like terrible monsters, but I can’t deny I’m fascinated by the idea of how they function. Equestria doesn’t have anything like them. Not to mention the whole notion of Soul Reapers! I never imagined the human world had such diverse forms of magic!”

Seeing the look Sunset was giving her Twilight smiled sheepishly and settled back in her chair, “Ah, anyway, your last message said that you were just starting to train with that girl named Clover, the one you think might be this world’s version of Clover the Clever. That was... a week ago?”

“Somewhere around that,” Sunset said, drawing in on herself a bit as she tried to brace herself for what was coming up. How to even begin explaining the events of the past few days? Twilight saw Sunset’s hesitance and gave a reassuring smile.

“You look tired. Um, not that that’s bad or anything, but um, we can talk after you’ve had a chance to sleep, if you want.”

“No... no that’s fine. I’ll get some sleep soon enough. Its been a rough day,” she laughed without any humor at the vast understatement that was.

“Well, I do have some good news if it’ll help you feel better,” said Twilight, “I talked it over with Princess Celestia and Luna, and they both agreed with me that the sirens deserve a second chance.”

At Sunset’s sudden, twitching look, Twilight seemed to misinterpret what it meant and said, “Of course they’d be on kind of a probationary status, watched in case of any problems, but they’d be allowed to return to Equestria. I did some research on the siren gems and after consulting with Princess Celestia she thinks it’s possible to regrow the gems under the right conditions. I think it should be safe for them to go through the portal, but just in case Princess Celestia would be there to help me with any spells needed to help them adjust back to their original forms.”

Twilight’s voice trailed off after a moment as she looked at Sunset, who’s face had gone deathly still and her hands gripping the edge of the table, hard.

“S-Sunset? What’s wrong?”

Taking a shaking breath, Sunset closed her eyes, “I’m... glad that Sonata and Aria will get the chance to go back home if they want to.”

Twilight was an intelligent pony, and instantly picked up on the context of the name that was missing from that sentence. A paleness entered the young pony princess turned human’s face, her voice quietly filled with uncertainty, “Sunset, you didn’t mention the third sister. You meant to, right?”

Well, there wasn’t going to be any avoiding it, and talking about it wasn’t going to become any more pleasant by putting it off. Sunset took one more deep breath, trying to steady frayed nerves, and without any preamble she began to tell Twilight exactly what had happened, starting with the invasion of the city by the army of Hollows. It didn’t take all that long, even without trying to paraphrase or skip on the details. Twilight listened with a twisted mix of fascination and horror, equal parts intrigued by elements like the unlocking of Sunset’s Shikai or the description of Hueco Mundo, by clearly disturbed by the sheer violence of the Hollows, the raw power of those like the Sternritter and Arrancar, and ultimately a heartfelt sadness at Adagio’s fate.

When Sunset was finished talking, Twilight looked away, rubbing at her face with an arm, “I know she was someone who tried to do wrong to us, and I didn’t know her at all besides as an enemy, but I can’t imagine wishing that kind of fate on... on anypony. Even with Tirek all we did in the end was lock him back up. I wouldn’t want him dead. And... and it's so strange, to think that she’s... dead, but her soul is still out there, having who knows what done to her by Grogar. Grogar, as in the Grogar, Father of Necromancy and one of the worst users of dark magic in Equestrian history.”

There was a hard, heated edge to Sunset’s voice as she said, “Believe me, if I could have done anything to prevent what happened, I would have.”

“I know. You’d never leave a friend behind, no matter the cost. Adagio, it doesn’t sound like she gave you much choice, but... she did save all of you. It was incredibly brave and selfless.”

“But still, ultimately, my fault,” Sunset said, remembering the faint bruise on her jaw from Aria’s fist.

“You shouldn’t be blaming yourself. You couldn’t have known how it would turn out.”

“I didn’t know, but that’s irrelevant,” Sunset said firmly, “The responsibility still falls to me, because I’m the one who took charge and made the call to bring her along. She might have asked, and Grogar might have forced the situation, but it was still my decision that put her there, Twilight. If I’m going to play the role of leader, I can’t duck responsibility when my choices have consequences I don’t like. You of all ponies ought to understand that, being a Princess.”

Twilight made a curious drooping gesture with her shoulders, and Sunset imagined if Twilight was still in her alicorn form that her wings would be drooping along with her ears. As it was, in her human form, Twilight merely slumped. “I... can see what you’re trying to say. I haven’t had to make too many tough decisions as Princess yet, but the responsibility is still there. Looming. But you never specifically took on the job of leading anyone, Sunset. You’ve had all this shoved at you, along with the rest of the girls, and you’ve had no time to do more than your best to just survive. I don’t think any of them are blaming you for what happened or are demanding you take responsibility for it.”

One of them is, Sunset thought, but instead said, “Even if that’s true, whether they asked it or not I’ve been the one making choices, and they’ve been following my lead. That’s enough to put the responsibility on my shoulders. Sometimes leadership doesn’t come with a crown and title, just the burden of making the call when no one else will.”

A faint tremor entered her voice, “And my call got Adagio killed, plain and simple.”

Silence reigned for a minute, then Twilight said, “Even so, what can you do, now? How do you even begin to take responsibility for something like that?”

“I wish I knew,” Sunset said, squeezing her eyes shut and suddenly very much wanting to just go to bed and pass out into a nice, dreamless void of sleep. She forced her eyes open again, looking at Twilight frankly, “So, besides the pep talk, and telling me about the siren’s pass to go home, did you have any other reasons for coming to my end of reality?”

“There was...” Twilight said, a shadow of trepidation on her face, “And it's even more important after what you’ve told me. These Hollows, Princess Celestia was hesitant to send me, but I insisted, because of the danger the Hollows represent. I came to do research on the portal between here and Equestria, and if possible develop spells that can ward it against the chance a Hollow might try to step through.”

“That makes sense,” Sunset said, frowning slightly, “Could you manage to do that without making it impossible for anyone to use the portal?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight said honestly, “The only alternative would be to turn off the equipment I have keeping the portal functional year-round. Let the portal go back to being inactive save for during its natural cycle. I’d rather not cut you off from home like that, however, so the ideal is that my research goes well and I can work out a way to protect the portal from this end so a soul eating monster doesn’t end up popping up in my castle library.”

She laughed nervously, and Sunset could see why. The idea that there were invisible, phantom monsters infesting a world that you had an active portal to in your home was not a comforting thought. Thinking about it, Sunset realized the kind of research Twilight was talking about couldn’t be concluded quickly. “So you’re going to be spending a lot of time over here, then?”

“Well, sort of. I wasn’t going to impose on any of you. As long as the portal is active I can just hop back and forth as much as I need to. I’ll come over in the morning, work on my research with Principal Celestia’s blessing to use the school lab, and then in the afternoon hop on back home. Some days I’ll stay in Equestria due to my duties as Princess, or because I’ll need to consult my own library of magical knowledge, but you can probably expect to bump into me at the school until I finish my research.”

“I guess it is convenient to be able to just step through the portal whenever you want,” Sunset said with a small smile.

“You know you could, um, come back some time,” Twilight said, “Just to visit, you know? I’m sure Princess Celestia would love to see you again after so long.”

Sunset froze up, feeling a clenching ache in her chest that she hadn’t felt for awhile. She’d decided to live in the human world for a number of reasons. She had friends here who mattered a lot to her, and the human world was a fascinating place that she found she enjoyed. Not to mention it was a place that needed people knowledgeable in magic to help protect it from magical threats. Even the Soul Reapers weren’t experienced with dark magic, and if anything like that seeped in from Equestria Sunset would be the expert in that case.

Then there was the deeply rooted, if admittedly illogical, fear of returning home to face her old mentor. She and Celestia had not parted on good terms.

“I don’t know if she’d love to see me, Twilight. She might forgive me for running out on her, but... but she still has to be a little mad over the fact that I planned to usurp her throne with an army of mind controlled teenagers.”

“Actually she laughed when I told her about that part,” said Twilight, “Like, a lot. I was a bit worried she’d forget to breath again.”

“You know, I’d feel insulted, only I can’t say that’s not a perfectly justified reaction,” said Sunset with a sardonic half-grin, “I still have no idea why I thought the teenager army scheme was going to work. Talk about being drunk stupid on power.”

They shared a laugh, and the tension eased out of Sunset a bit, and she looked solemnly at her hands clasped in front of her as she said, “I know I can just step through the portal, Twilight. I know I could go home at any time, and it wouldn’t even have to be permanent. I could visit, see old places... apologize to Celestia. I guess I’m just scared to bite the bullet and just do it.”

“Bite the bullet?”

“Human expression. Nevermind,” Sunset said, pushing back a yawn. Twilight watched her for a moment.

“So, about the other me in this world, do you think her family is going to keep her from seeing you and the other girls?”

The change in subject caught Sunset a bit off guard, but then again she didn’t see why she should be surprised. Of course Twilight would be curious about her human counterpart. It was a hard question to answer, as well, because Sunset just honestly didn’t know for sure. The Quincy had hardly proven to be reasonable people.

“I hope not, but the practical side of me says not to expect to see our Twilight for awhile. If her mother and father let her out of that mansion it's only going to be on Quincy business, I think.”

“I still have a hard time believing my... her... well, this world’s version of my family is like that. It's hard to get my mind wrapped around,” said Twilight in a shaken tone, though there was also a curious light in her eyes, “I’ll admit, however, I’m very curious how humans developed what sound like very magical abilities. We were so sure this world didn’t have magic.”

“It isn’t magic, Twilight, at least not like we know it in Equestria,” said Sunset, unable to stop her yawn this time, and stretched her arms above her head, “And while I’d love to try and bounce some theories with you about it all, I think I need to hit the hay. Do you have a place to stay?”

“I can just trot back home. The school isn’t too far,” Twilight said, but Sunset shook her head.

“It's dark out, and while the Hollows got thrashed in that last battle, there could still be stragglers out there, wandering around. I’d rather not risk you getting jumped at night. Why don’t you take my bed. I’ll crash on the couch.”

“I-I couldn’t impose like that!” Twilight stammered, waving her hands.

“Pfft, it's not a bother, Twilight. The couch is just as comfy as the bed and I’ve slept on it on nights I’ve been up late studying and just didn’t feel like crawling over to the bedroom,” Sunset said, already getting up to make her way over to the couch, flopping onto it, “Just toss me one of the pillows from the bed and I’ll be golden.”

“Um, well, if you’re sure,” Twilight said with a light yawn herself, “I am feeling pretty tired, too, and I’d like to get to work on my research as early as possible.”

“You know how to set the alarm. I’ve got to get up early too, to meet up with the girls at Discord’s shop.”

Twilight flinched a bit, “Oh, right, you’ve got a Discord too. I hope things are going smoothly with him? He isn’t, you know, acting all... chaosy.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow at Twilight, “Quite frankly I still don’t know what to make of him. I guessed from the start that he was holding things back from us, but I wasn’t sure just how much. Guess I’ll find out tomorrow. You could tag along if you want. The girls would enjoy seeing you again.”

“I’m curious, but I really do need to get started on my research. I’ll get a chance to see our friends at the school. Besides who knows how Discord will react to me showing up out of nowhere? I’d rather not make a complicated situation more so,” Twilight said, making her way to the bedroom where she retrieved one of the pillows to toss Sunset.

After that the two bid each other goodnight, and Sunset settled into the couch, feet propped up on one of the arms and keeping her bathrobe wrapped tightly around her. It wasn’t cold in her apartment, so she was comfy enough, and she wasn’t lying about the couch being good for sleep. The cushions seemed to suck her right in with their comfortable plushiness.

Sleep came slowly, despite her exhaustion. Her mind continued to turn over the events of the entire day while her heart smouldered. There was no denying pain and shame of Adagio’s loss. She remembered the depressing sound of Sonata’s heart rending sobs, and the harrowing anger in Aria’s eyes. Sunset lay on the couch and held her hand up in front of her, staring at it, slowly closing it into a fist.

It hurts, doesn’t it? Losing.

Yes, Hokori. Even if we killed Grand Fisher and saved who we went there to save, this doesn’t feel like a victory. I feel like I’ve been knocked flat on my ass. I’ve never... lost a friend before.

I ask you then, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to stay knocked down?

Sunset’s clenched fist tightened, until she could nearly feel her nails breaking the skin.

“No...” she said aloud, fire lighting up her eyes with the promise of things to come, “No I’m not.”

----------

Pain, deep, gnawing, tore at her. It felt as if her belly was being dug into by a hundred spinning daggers. Her mouth was dry, and unbidden a plaintive sound between a growl and a wail escaped her jaws. Adagio was woken from restless sleep by the oozing pain of a dozen wounds and the horrific hunger tearing at her insides.

She was in an octagonal chamber, perhaps thirty or so feet wide and ten feet high. Its wall were a dull bone white color, lit strangely by a source-less light that seemed to drip in from the seams between the wall and ceiling. Slowly, her whole frame shaking with strain, Adagio lifted herself up. Her body, she found, could float much as it had when she’d been a true siren back in Equestria, with small flicks of her tail or gestures from her arms allowing her to swim through the air as if it were water. She looked over herself, her new form... and growled bitter frustration.

So this was to be her existence, now. A parody of her true self, her soul warped into a mockery of her siren form? Yet... something felt somehow right about it all. Her gem, the core of her being as a siren, it was there, fully formed, floating in the middle of the void in her chest that was the hole of a Hollow. It felt so strange. She could feel the gem pulsing with energy, with life, amid the vast emptiness that radiated from that hole. A contrast that was as infuriating as it was confusing.

It was hard to think straight. Her hunger was increasing by the minute. She’d never felt so... so voracious She literally thought she’d consume anything that she could find, and might start gnawing on herself before long if this incomprehensible pain didn’t let up soon!

With pure, undiluted rage she decided to assault the wall. Her arms ended in vicious talons, and she put them to work, clawing and slashing at the white stone of her prison. She did little more than scratch the surface, as if the stone was made of something more akin to steel. Adagio let out a roar of unrestrained pain and anger, and felt horrified to her core as the sound that came out of her maw was... was no different than the piercing howls of a Hollow.

It drove home just what her situation was and what she’d turned herself into, and at that moment she hung her head, sagging down to the floor, and wept. She did so for a long time, only the monumental depression shoving back the pain of hunger.

The only point of light inside her dark thoughts was that, if nothing else, her sisters were safe. That thought was a buoy in an otherwise tumultuous sea of boiling hate, anger, and sorrow.

She nearly jumped out of her new skin when a voice, Grogar’s condescending nasal tone, spoke from seemingly everywhere, yet nowhere.

“Ah, I see you are awake. Good. I was growing impatient with you. I know I didn’t do so much damage to your form that you’d be in a coma, yet you took your time awakening after our... scuffle.”

He must have meant the wounds covering her form. She only had vague memory of the battle after she’d forced Sunset through the Garganta. She recalled unleashing everything she had at Grogar, only to time and again taste the edge of his sword on her flesh as he dismantled her piece by piece. She shuddered, then glared bitterly at the ceiling, “Where are you? Show yourself! I’ll not be taunted! If you’re going to finish me off, be done with it!”

“Oh no, my dear, I won’t be destroying you anytime soon. Why, it’d entirely defeat the purpose of capturing you and bringing you here. You see I fully intend to divine the source of your power,” Grogar’s voice said chidingly, “I do not make waste of opportunities, and since you’ve cost me the chance to study one of those other girls, you’ll suffice as their replacement. Now... I imagine you’re quite hungry at this time. Newborn Hollows usually become incredibly famished after a short span of time. You will need to feed.”

Adagio looked around with wide, wild eyes. The hunger seemed to spike inside her at the mere mention of feeding. However Adagio was no so lost in her mental faculties to not grasp the implications. Hollows had a very narrow diet, after all, and the thought sent a freezing chill down into her core.

A hole opened in the ceiling, stone grinding, and Adagio shot for it, but was thrown back by a barrier of energy that sent jolts of agony through her and threw her right back down to the ground.

Groaning, she floated back up just in time to hear a muffled series of shouts and screams, and backed away in time to see a form tumble down the hole and land in front of her. Whatever energy field had blocked her apparently didn’t go both ways.

Slowly, painfully, a human female of perhaps mid to late twenties teetered to her feet. The woman was wearing fairly normal clothes, the kind of skirt and blouse any number of average day to day people might have on, with fairly nondescript short brown hair and blue eyes. The only thing that marked the woman as different was the soul chain dangling from her chest.

“W-what...where...?” the woman blinked in confusion, and when her eyes laid upon Adagio, in all her horrific Hollow state, the woman shrieked and scrambled away. “Wha-what’s happening!? Oh God, what are you!?”

Adagio just floated there, stunned. Stunned not only because she knew exactly what Grogar was intending for her to do, but stunned for the fac that... the woman smelled so good. It was an impossible to describe scent, like the sweetest of fresh baked pastries mixed with the enticing scent of something warm and spicy. There was an instant pull inside her gut and Adagio felt her jaws salivating.

The woman continued to babble and scream, scratching at the wall and trying to stay as far away from Adagio as possible, and somehow those actions were only making Adagio more hungry, as if the woman was triggering deep, powerful predatory instincts that were washing against Adagio’s sanity and reason like a dark tide.

Adagio floated back from the woman, shaking her head, muttering, “No. You can’t make me do this. I won’t do this!”

Grogar’s voice spoke clearly from all places at once, “I don’t need to, my dear. You’ll do it on your own. It is what you are, now. A born again predator. Hunger will drive you, and instinct will run its course. Be thankful I’m allowing you a morsel from my personal pantry of intact human souls. I find them to be more palatable than my fellow Hollows, though in time I’ll have to have our feed upon them as well. But we’ll start simple, today. Really, this poor woman would not find much rest for her soul in Soul Society anyway, and you can just blame the Soul Reapers for being sloppy at their job, not reaching this woman in time before my servants could drag her here to serve as a meal.”

The woman wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation, already terrified out of her mind and curled up in the corner, crying and hugging herself. Adagio, while never making claim to being a person of moral character, still balked and felt sickened by what was happening. She knew she wasn’t a virtuous person, but this... this wasn’t what she wanted at all! She had thought Grogar would simply destroy her, after transforming into a Hollow. She’d never really considered the consequences of actually being taken. Even then, why couldn’t he just send another Hollow for her to eat? It was still a sickening thought, but at least it wasn’t...wasn’t this!

An angry growl tore its way from her lips, causing the woman to scream, but Adagio just clutched at herself as if she could physically restrain her own body, and floated into the corner opposite the woman. “No. I won’t do this. I don’t care how much it hurts! You hear me!? I’m not a monster!”

“Ah, but you are,” said Grogar, “And that is the first, most important lesson I must teach you, my dear. We all must eat. We all must give into our base natures. Until you understand this most fundamental truth, I can hardly make use of you. Now then... have a good meal. Try not to make too much of a mess.”

With that, Grogar went silent. Adagio was left alone with the poor, sobbing soul, who began to babble small prayers under her breath.

Adagio set her salivating jaw tightly closed, determined to control herself, determined to not give in.

To her credit, she lasted nearly ten hours.

Perhaps mercifully, by then, the hunger had become so powerful that Adagio was barely conscious of her actions... or of the screams that came afterward.

----------

Twilight’s room didn’t feel much like hers anymore. She ran a hand over the tightly shut window and looked out at the city beyond the mansion grounds, and wondered for the hundredth time how the girls might be doing. She desperately wanted to just call then, but her parents had taken her phone, her laptop, any access at all to the outside.

She’d been alone in her room, under guard by her dour faced butler, Robert, who stood watch outside the door. Twilight had slowly been going stir crazy, waiting for her parents to return. Apparently they were discussing what was to be done with her, without any of Twilight’s input, of course. She had spent most of the time since then either fruitlessly trying to sleep, or pacing around her room like a caged animal ready to tear down the walls.

She more than once glanced at her Quincy cross, considering the mad option of summoning her bow to blast the wall and make a run for it. Of course that was nothing more than a simple dream born of frustration. She’d be caught quickly, she knew, and her situation made only worse.

I just wish I knew the girls were okay. They were going to go after Grand Fisher. What if one of them got hurt? What if the needed my help!? Oooh, I can’t stand this! I feel like I’m going to scream!

She very nearly did scream, more in shocked surprise than anything else, when the door to her room opened and Cadence entered alongside her father, both of them still wearing their Quincy uniforms. Twilight turned to face them, trying to smooth over her features and remain calm.

“H-hello father, Cadence. Um, is mother okay?” she asked, genuinely worried, still, over her mother’s injury.

Night Light inclined his head in a shallow nod, clearly trying to maintain a stern visage despite the fact that it seemed more to Twilight that he was just as worried as she was, and perhaps even more ruffled, “Your mother is recovering, don’t you fret. She’ll be on her feet again in no time. Now, about you...”

He gave her the most solid and serious of ‘dad stares’ Twilight had ever seen him do. Far more so than the one time she’d nearly burned the mansion down due to a certain chemical accident in her lab. Twilight gulped, as transfixed by that stare as any young person who’d grown up with parents who had perfected that kind of look. “Y-yes father?”

“Shining Armor, Cadence, your mother and I have spoken at length. While your mother and I remain... reserved about this, your brother and Cadence have convinced us that your dedication to your training, even if it was done in secret, has been exemplary,” Night Light said, his lips in a thin frown, “Understand, young lady, that I am sorely disappointed you kept your training hidden from us. Your brother I’ve already told this to, and I tell it to you now; you will never hide anything from us again. Is that clear, young lady?”

“Of course, father. I... I’m sorry,” Twilight said, mouth dry.

Night Light sighed and said, “Well, with that said then, I’ll also so I’m proud of you. Your mother and I always knew you had potential, but if what Shining Armor says is true, you’ve gone past even those expectations. You’ve come a long way in a short time, but now, if you are willing, you must learn discipline as well as skill. If you are to truly join the Quincy ranks you must go through the same process we all have, and join your fellow trainees at the Quincy Academy of the Wandenreich.”

Cadence, at Twilight’s questioning look, stepped forward, “You will be taken to the hidden realm of the Quincy, where the seat of our power lies, Twilight. You will join the class of other Academy students and train to become a full fledged Quincy of His Majesty’s army. This is not an idle game or mere formality, Twilight. You will have the rank and responsibility of any other Quincy, and be answerable to your superiors. If you make a mistake, if you break the rules, you will be dealt with under the law of the Quincy. Even your parents, even I or Shining Armor, can’t shield you from this. You must understand what you are getting into before you accept.”

“If you do not wish this, Twilight,” said Night Light with deadly seriousness, “We can still use our influence to ensure you something resembling a normal life. You will not be allowed to ever use your powers as a Quincy again, and you won’t be able to see your old friends still, but I promise you I will see to it you get a fresh start at a new school, perhaps in a nearby city. You can continue your studies in science, and live like a normal young woman. That is the only other option we can afford to grant you.”

“So... this is my only choice?” Twilight asked, “No matter what, either living as a Quincy or as a normal girl, I can’t see my friends again?”

“Given who they are and what they’re doing, they’ll either remain potential enemies of the Quincy, or too involved in the affairs of the spirit realms to ever be safe enough to be around if you’re trying to live a normal life. I’m sorry, my daughter, but these are your choices...” Night Light said, and firm steel entered his voice, even as his eyes seemed to say that he didn’t like this any more than she did, “So choose, Twilight.”

Seconds ticked by like heavy sands in an hour glass. Ultimately Twilight knew she’d made her choice awhile ago, since starting her training with Shining Armor. She met her father’s eyes and stepped forward. “I’m ready to join the Quincy, father.”

There was, for a moment, both a flash of sadness, mixed with pride, in his eyes, and he nodded, “Very well. Then follow us. Cadence and I shall meet with your brother, and together we shall escort you. Before anything else, there is someone who wants to meet you. He asked that we take you to him immediately, if you decided to join our cause.”

“W-who am I meeting?” she asked, suddenly nervous.

“His Majesty,” was all Night Light said in response.

Author's Notes:

It was only a matter of time before pony Twilight showed up. I really like how Sunset and Equestria's Twilight bounce off each other, and its a shame we don't get more of it in the actual Equestria Girls movies.

Anyway this chapter is mostly about setting up the transitions our protagonists are going through. Adagio probably has it roughest right now, but it won't be picnic for SciTwi either as she gets a full taste of life as a Quincy. And next chapter? A very long overdue talk with Discord about just WTF is up with the girl's mothers. I'll try to keep it from being too expositiony.

As always folks, my heartfelt thanks for reading along with this mad idea of mine for a crossover, and I hope you all continue to enjoy. As usual I welcome any and all comments and critiques. Even if I'm not exactly Mr. Reply in the comments, I read and appreciate them all. 'Till next time.

Episode 23: Full Disclosure

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Episode 23: Full Disclosure

In the quiet pre-dawn hours the city streets had a haunted, almost ethereal quality to them, with only a small handful of people heading out to very early shifts at work or coming home from night jobs. A moving in front of cold and humidity created a nice, thick cloud of fog that enshrouded most of the suburbs and a good chunk of downtown, leaving the skyscrapers poking out of tufts of fog like fluffy white cotton.

The fog helped subdue sound, leaving the streets and alleys even more static and hushed than normal for this early hour before sunrise. Canterlot High School was of course closed for this Sunday morning, the tall and expansive school almost completely dark save for just one or two windows lit from teachers working over the weekend, including the principal's office.

Across the street from the school, just along the sidewalk, a faint ripple in the air resolved into the shape of a segmented paper sliding door. Light warmly glowed from within, and seemingly on its own the paper doors slid open, with mist and light pouring from inside alongside the fluttering of several black butterflies with red tinted wings. From the threshold of this strange portal three figures emerged, stepping onto the street.

Two of them were Fancy Pants and Meadowbrook, the former having an air of casual alertness about him as he clasped his hands behind his back and examined the area, while the latter ran a hand through his hair and looked like he was in dire need of coffee. The third figure stood ahead of the pair of Soul Reaper Lieutenants, standing tall and regal with a statuesque manner that made even merely glancing around the street look like she was commanding all around her. Unlike the two men, she wore a white overcoat over her black robes, with the Japanese kanji for “six” inked in black on its back. She was a tall woman, with the kind of body that would have made a magazine model burn with envy. Light violet ringlets of hair fell down past her shoulders, curling elegantly almost to the small of her back. Her face was like a carved marble statue, sharp yet feminine and seemingly sculpted to a porcelain vision of classical beauty. At her side a black sheath contained a Zanpaktou whose cross-guard was shaped like a diamond, with a pearl white handle.

“It’s been such a long time since I’ve graced the living world,” the woman said with a casually measuring glance at the surrounding suburbs, “I’d forgotten how interesting it could be. Why, what a quaint machine that is.”

She chuckled at the passing of a car through the foggy street, the driver of course not seeing either the Soul Reapers or the gateway that was closing behind them. The female Soul Reaper turned to her companions, smiling coyly, “Well, shall we, gentlemen? I imagine Celestia and Luna will be just thrilled to see us, so I’d like to get this over with.”

Fancy Pants bowed slightly, “Of course, Captain Platinum. They should be inside the school.”

“I’m all for getting this over with,” said Meadowbrook, his face gaining a trace of a frown, “I’m worried about Clover.”

“Oh, I’m sure your third seat is fine,” said Platinum, “Come now, to business.”

With that the three Soul Reapers made their way across the street to the front doors of Canterlot High.

----------

Sunset was awoken by the sound of rustling in the kitchen, and raised her head from the couch to see Twilight shuffling around in her fridge.

“Mmm...morning...” Sunset said with a yawn, “Sorry if the fridge is a bit empty. I haven’t had much time for a grocery run lately.”

“Oh! Good morning Sunset,” Twilight said, nearly banging her head on the fridge roof, and withdrawing with a mostly empty carton of milk, “I noticed you were a down to the bare essentials. No worries, I’ll grab something at the school instead.”

“Going to get right to work, eh? Heh, you got that in common with your counterpart here. She usually can’t wait to get to it when there’s research to be done.”

Twilight paused, then slowly put the carton of milk away and closed the fridge, “I got that impression too. Its the same with this world’s version of my friends. There’s a few small differences, but for the most part they’re the same. It makes me wonder...”

Sunset raised and eyebrow, sitting up on the couch and rubbing sleep from her face as she watched Twilight, waiting for her to finish her thought. Twilight glanced at Sunset, looking a bit hesitant. “Haven’t you ever wondered about your counterpart?”

The question caught Sunset a bit off guard, and she blinked a few times in bewilderment, “What brought this on?”

“Nothing, just good old fashioned curiosity. I mean, I met my other self, and it’s kind of gotten me thinking about how odd it is that in the years you’ve been here you never ran into the human version of you. Doesn’t that seem strange? Canterlot High is like some concentrated pool of personalities that all bizarrely mirror ponies from our world, yet out of all the familiar faces accounted for, your human self is absent?”

Sunset looked at Twilight for a few seconds, then a grim expression shadowed her face as she stood up from the couch, “Let me show you something, Twilight. Something I found when If first came to this world. Because like you, I noticed this world, and this city specifically, had counterparts for a lot of ponies back home... and I also got curious.”

She went into her bedroom, striding over to the back where the closet was. She opened it up and rummaged around some boxes she had orderly stacked behind racks of clothes. Inside one of the boxes were a few notebooks and papers; things she’d gathered or written during her first year in the human world that documented her findings on how the world worked and how to best integrate into human society.

Bringing the box out to the kitchen table she set it down and opened it up, explaining the contents to a very intrigued looking Twilight, “There was a lot I needed to learn in order to adapt from being a magical pony to becoming a relatively mundane human. Amid all that I also got curious about my human counterpart, and... I tracked her down.”

She pulled out a photograph, a polaroid. It showed a relatively sunny scene of a grim setting. A graveyard. Twilight took the picture and stared at it, hand shaking slightly.

“Sunset Shimmer... 1996-2012... Oh no... this is, she’s...?”

“Dead, yeah,” Sunset said, sitting down at the table and leaning back, “At the time it was a bit creepy to find out, but honestly back then I was more relieved I wouldn’t have to deal with running into her. I did some more digging after finding her grave and learned she’d died, supposedly, in a fire that burned down the bookstore she was working at. She wasn't a student at Canterlot. Or anywhere, for that matter. She’d dropped out of a different high school across town.”

“I’m sorry, Sunset...” Twilight said, features filled with regret, “What a tragic waste. I suppose no matter the world, bad things can just happen like that.”

“I hadn’t even thought about it since I first dug all this info up,” said Sunset as she put the photo away and closed up the box, “I guess now I’m curious where her soul might have ended up, but it's not like I don’t have a dozen bigger things on my mind right now.”

“You’ll be heading to Discord’s today and getting answers, right?”

“That’s the hope. After I get some caffeine and a doughnut in me,” Sunset said, stretching, “Breakfast of champions.”

They parted ways soon after that, Sunset and Twilight exchanging a last, firm hug before the aliconr turned human went off to start her research on the portal at Canterlot High, and Sunset going towards downtown. There’d been a thick fog out, but Sunset knew the day would burn it off, removing its obscuring presence.

With luck, the conversation with Discord would be equally illuminating.

----------

“You’re pacing, Discy,” said the cat, who was stretched out in a long, comfortable line of gray fuzz upon the top step leading to the front door of the shop, while Discord himself paced about in the yard. Screwloose hung out leaning against the railing of the veranda surrounding the front of the shop while Screwball hummed a tuneless song to herself, sweeping the dusty cobblestone path to the storefront.

“Yes, thank you, I noticed I’m pacing,” said Discord with a grumble, twirling his cane in his hand as he did so, “I’m hoping if I do this enough I’ll manage to burrow a hole into the ground and avoid the upcoming conversation entirely.”

Screwloose let out a stuttering giggle, “We could always pack up shop and move to greener pastures, but I don’t know, I think it’s fun watching you wiggle like a worm on a hook, bossman.”

Discord cast a sharp yellow eyed look at the woman, “Do you ever want to be paid again, ever?”

To this, Screwloose only held up her hands as if in mock surrender, “As if you actually pay me.”

“Heheh, he gives me candy all the time,” said Screwball, “You just don’t work hard enough Screwloose.”

To this Screwloose just blew a raspberry at the younger looking girl. Meanwhile the cat continued to watch Discord with its mismatched, wandering eyes seeming to somehow still follow his pacing movements. “You’re worried about losing them.”

“Hmph, whom do you take me for? Those girls are an interesting bunch and I’d like to help them, but I won’t cry over it if they decide to go their own way. It’s their right to chose their path,” Discord replied with a irritated hand wave. His voice didn't carry much conviction, however. He was worried, but didn't want to show it.

“Its that same right you fought for where their mothers were concerned, so of course you’d do the same for them,” the cat said with a sagely nod that somehow didn’t quite fit with the goofy smile that lit up its face. Discord paused in his pacing, jaw tightening.

“It doesn’t matter until I’ve told them everything, now, does it?”

“Everything?”

“Well, the parts that are relevant to them,” he admitted, “After all there’s quite a bit of everything to cover, and some of that everything they don’t need to know.”

The cat sighed, “Figured as much.”

“You don’t approve.”

“Oh, I get how you feel, Discy. You’ll be dropping enough on those girls already, no need to burden them with the whole shebang.”

Screwloose quirked up an eyebrow and raised a hand, “So, does that mean me and Screwball aren’t going to be tracking down the others yet? Had the idea bouncing around my brainpan you might be wanting me to toss up the proverbial Batsignal to call in the whole crew to help out our precious band of piglets.”

“No,” said Discord, “I’d rather not get the others involved yet...” his eyes narrowed and he muttered, “Although it’s probably only a matter of time before she gets them involved anyway, what with her daughter now developing her powers.”

Suddenly one of Screwball’s ears twitched and she perked up, the propeller on her beanie cap spinning, “They’re heeeerrrre!”

Discord didn’t question Screwball. He knew the young girl’s senses were sharper and stronger than even his were, and if she sensed the girls approaching then there was no doubting that. He took a deep breath, steadying his thoughts. Whatever came of today’s revelations, he fully intended to do all that he could to assist the young ladies from Canterlot High. The debt from years ago could be paid, at least in part.

The girls arrived through his shop’s wards with Sunset at the lead, though Applejack was practically on the other girl’s heels and her emerald eyes fixated on Discord like a pair of daggers the moment she spotted him. Yup, definitely her mother’s daughter.

“Ladies,” he said with a welcoming smile, “Good of you to come. Shall we go inside? Have a chat?”

“Long as yer chattin’ out some dang answers,” said Applejack with a clenched jaw.

“Heya, is my fam still hanging around?” asked Pinkie Pie, bouncing along at the back of the group.

“They’ve returned home, Miss Pie, but rest assured I’ve had wardings placed around their home and those of the rest of your families so that on the off chance Hollows approach, we can respond in time,” said Discord, leading the girls towards the shop doors. “Screwloose and Screwball will be on standby in case of emergency.”

As they passed the front of the shop Fluttershy paused to pet the cat, “Awww, who's a nice kitty?”

The cat purred loudly and said, “I’m a nice kitty.”

“Heheh, it's so interesting to hear another talking animal. You should meet my friend Twilight’s dog, Spike.” Fluttershy blinked, then looked downcast, “if we ever see either of them again.”

“I’m sure you will,” said the cat, standing and rubbing up against Fluttershy's legs, still purring, “Hey, pick me up. I wanna hear Discy try to explain stuff to you guys. It should be funny.”

“Yes... funny,” said Discord under his breath as he led the girls into the back rooms of the shop. He took them to the main lounge area where Clover had been recovering from her wound. The Soul Reaper in question was awake now, propped up slightly on the couch she was laying on, and she raised her head as Discord and the girls entered.

“Oh, you’re all here!” Clover said, trying to get up and wincing as she almost immediately sat right back down.

“Don’t move too much, Miss Clover,” said Discord, “It will still be at least another day or so before you’re well enough for moving around.”

Clover sighed, “I’m sorry for the inconvenience. I can’t believe I let that Quincy get the drop on me so easily. What a disgrace for a seated officer of the Gotei.”

She looked to Applejack, Clover’s face turning nervous, “I’m glad you’re here. All of you, in fact. There’s... much to tell.”

“And I shall be doing most the telling,” said Discord, “You can interject where you will, but I feel I should be doing most of the disclosure this day.”

Clover glanced at him, and nodded slowly, “I suppose you know more than what I dug up, but Applejack did ask me to look into her mother’s death, and I feel it's my responsibility to tell her what I learned myself, whatever additional information you have to add.”

“In due time, let us all get comfortable first,” said Discord while he gestured to the various chairs and couches strewn around the large room. Discord remained standing, however, standing at one end of the room by the old television, watching the girls as they seated themselves, except for Applejack who looked like she was too tense to sit and relax.

There was an awkward moment of silence as Discord and the girls watched each other, perhaps both just waiting for one or the other to work up the nerve to get things started. At last Discord said, “So, your mothers... I imagine you want to know the details of their involvement in everything that’s occurred up until now?”

“It would be nice to have this aura of mystery cleared up,” said Rarity with a tone of levity.”

“Startin’ with what Clover found,” said Applejack, “I wanna hear it from her first, and then ya can speak yer piece, Discord.”

He grimaced, “So be it.”

All eyes turned to Clover, who suddenly looked like she was a squirming bug under a microscope, but she held firm under the scrutiny and held herself up as best she could, propping herself up on her elbows and taking on an air of formality as she began to speak. “Upon Applejack’s request I investigated the matter of Sweet Cider and Hard Nail’s deaths. I had to secure access to archives that were otherwise restricted to a Soul Reaper of my rank, with the help of Lieutenant Meadowbrook, my immediate superior...”

----------

The deeper archives were sealed behind a metal door wrapped in chains and protective warding scrolls. Clover watched as Meadowbrook used several talisman and Kido chants to unseal the barriers locking the doors, which slowly swung open soundlessly to reveal the spiraling stairs leading down to the restricted area of the archive.

“Are you sure? You could get in trouble with the Captain for letting me in here,” Clover said as they walked down the spiral staircase heading down the dark shaft.

Meadowbrook just laughed, waving a hand, “I’m already doing this, so don’t waste time making me doubt the choice. Besides, this is technically within the rules. I do have authority to be here, and decide if another seated officer has cause to be here as well. Let’s just see what we can find, eh? Don’t worry so much, it’s bad for your health.”

At the bottom of the shaft was a chamber shaped like a five pointed star, each point of the star having several shelves of books and scrolls, but also a single information terminal mounted into the wall, a complex affair of tubes and wires, many containing intricate Kido scrollwork, to power the spirit device, all leading to a single large monitor with a broad keypad. Clover examined the area for a moment until she found the point of the star labeled for the more recent decades of records. It took a half hour of searching the terminal’s database, but she was able to locate the set of scrolls that contained reference to the names of Applejack’s parents, and inserted the first of those scrolls into the waiting alcove into the terminal, which started to display the data on the screen in a soft blue glow.

Only a few minutes of scanning the information had Clover’s eyes going wide, and Meadowbrook frowning.

“Is this true, Meadowbrook? Why haven’t I heard about any of this?”

“I see... so that’s what it was,” he said, rubbing his chin, “These projects were all classified by the Central 46 as part of our Twelfth Division's secret weapons development branch. Its an entirely separate unit from our regular Division, Clover. I know about it only because I’m a Lieutenant, and had to act as a liaison to that branch on occasion, but even I didn’t know all the details of their work. This is my first time even seeing any details of their projects.”

He licked his lips, “But this explains a lot of the more... messy scenarios of the past few centuries. The Baishin incident, the Bount, the failed Modsouls... it's all tied to our Division’s secret weapons development branch.”

“Including this,” Clover breathed, looking back at the screen with wide, fearful eyes, “Project Xcution.”

The project title was displayed clearly at the top of the screen, followed by scrolls of introductory text, and finally a still image showing six women in a group, standing together in front of what looked like the ruin of some old castle’s wall, overgrown with moss. Each woman looked to be in her mid to late teens, and Clover could quickly spot the family resemblance between them and most of her new friends in the human world.

The gray skinned woman with the wild, long dark blueish green hair might not have shared the same bright colors of Pinkie Pie, but Cloudy Quartz had the same bright grin and energetic gleam in her eyes in the photo, sporting a rather impressive set of leather clothes complete with silver studded biker jacket and fingerless gloves as her arms draped in a tight hug around a taller woman. That woman had light pinkish skin and a shorted head of periwinkle blue hair, and the cocksure look on her face, arms crossed confidently across her chest, held a clear echo of Rainbow Dash’s own features. To the left of the group, leaning against the stone wall, was a tough looking girl in a red and white flannel shirt and wearing a stetson hat, her stark blond hair and green eyes the mirror image of her daughter Applejack. Nervously nestled in the middle of the group was a girl with yellow skin and neatly done up, short rose red hair, smiling shyly at the camera and holding her fingers up in an awkward ‘V’ sign. Next to that girl was another, slightly older looking, with her arm wrapped around the nervous girl’s shoulder. This girl shared a similar shade of pink skin with Rainbow Dash's apparent mother, but this girl’s mane was a familiar purple shade that marked her relation to Rarity. In the photo Rarity’s mother was wearing a tight fitting and brightly colored tie-dyed shirt and loose cargo pants, and she was giving the camera a strange gesture with her tongue sticking out and one finger pulling down the bottom part of one eyelid.

There was one other girl in the picture, standing off to the right side of the group, looking a bit quiet and reserved. She didn’t look like she had any relation to any of the girls from Canterlot High that Clover had met, and while the rest of the women in the photo were wearing clothing clearly from the human world, this other girl was clad in the black robes of a Soul Reaper..

----------

“Project Xcution?” Applejack’s brow furrowed deeply, “What in bloody tarnation is that!?”

Clover looked to her with sympathy, and more than a little shame, and began to say, “It was-” but Discord cut her off.

“Let me take it from here, Miss Clover. After all, I was the head of Project Xcution, and many of the other projects conducted by Hitsuyo-Aku. That was the name of the Twelfth Division’s classified weapons development branch. Roughly translates to ‘Necessary Evil’. Obviously the Central 46, the governing body of the Soul Society, didn’t want the existence of such a group to be public knowledge, or even common knowledge among most of the Gotei Thirteen. For good reason; since most of those projects were morally questionable at best.”

“Start. Talkin’,” Applejack said past grinding teeth, “Whad’ya slimy bastards do ta our families back then!?”

“Applejack, calm down,” said Sunset, through her eyes were sharply gazing at Discord with a calculating look that seemed to be reevaluating him by the second, “But she’s right, you’d better start getting to the heart of this, fast.”

Discord nodded gravely, and slowly began to pace as he spoke, “Hitsuyo-Aku was created well before I took command of the Twelfth Division as Captain, and it was considered to be teetering on the edge of failure given that most of its previous attempts at developing new weapons for Soul Reapers to use had gone rather poorly. When I was put in charge I decided to take a different track with its research, which previously had focused on either changing the nature of Zanpaktou, or creating artificial souls for battle purposes. I proposed the idea of looking to the human world for potential sources of power, largely based on observations of Soul Reapers over the centuries that living humans could develop unusual abilities under the right circumstances. The Quincy were one example, but there were other instances of humans gaining powers. Old legends of wizards, mystical knights, magic swords, lycanthropes, vampires... most of those have a root in some human who awakened a spiritual power, one I wanted to research and learn the truth behind.”

He turned to look at the girls, “That power I eventually came to call ‘Fullbring’.”

The girls all exchanged looks, and Rainbow Dash scratched her head, “Is that what we’re using?”

“Yes, besides Sunset Shimmer, of course. The power the five of you young ladies have awakened is called Fullbring. It’s the ability to draw out the full power contained within the ‘soul’ of a catalyst. That catalyst can be anything; an item, a type of material, or even something metaphysical like a part of one’s own personality,” Discord said, nodding at Pinkie Pie at that last bit. “Everything in this world has a ‘soul’, even mundane objects. Fullbring attunes a person to that soul and allows one to bring that power to fruition.”

“Oh, oh! Let me guess! I know the answer teacher!” Pinkie Pie said, waving her hand in the air, “Our moms were totally Fullbusted and had the mojo too!”

Discord just blinked at her, “Well... yes. They were Fullbringers. Understand this, the origin of Fullbring is related to the power of Hollows. When naturally occurring in humans it's because the mother of such an individual survived a Hollow attack while pregnant, infusing the child with a shard of Hollow power that transmutes into the ability to use Fullbring.”

“Soooo, our mother’s mothers were all attacked by Hollows randomly at some point while pregnant?” asked Rarity, “That seems highly... coincidental.”

“That’s because it wasn’t a coincidence,” Discord said, “Project Xcution’s mission statement was to create and control a unit of Fullbringers, with the purpose of proving such a group could be an asset to the Soul Society. If successful it would have lead to hundreds of humans being recruited to fill out combat roles that Soul Reapers were spread too thin to fulfill. Each and every human city could have had a cadre of Fullbring using humans guarding against Hollows, freeing up Soul Reapers to engage in more direct conflicts with the Quincy and Hollows in other regions. In the case of your mothers... their mothers were,” he closed his eyes, guilt staining his voice, “Directly and deliberately targeted by a Hollow in order to produce Fullbringers from their children. Your mothers were made Fullbringers as part of Project Xcution. The Hollow Soul Society... recruited for this task was-”

“Grand Fisher!” Applejack snarled, eyes blazing, and she looked reach to tear Discord apart right then and there, “You sent that monster after our grandmothers!? Granny Smith!?”

“Yes,” Discord said, nothing but regret in his tone, “I won’t make excuses, Miss Applejack. Yet there is more to tell, so I ask you hold off booting my head off until I’ve finished.”

The farm girl spat at the floor near his feet and stalked over to the wall, leaning against it and looking at him with murder in her eyes, but nodded, slowly, “Go ahead, an’ when yer done, you n’ me’ll... sort this out.”

The other girls didn’t necessarily look much calmer. Rarity had a shocked look in her crystal blue eyes, while Rainbow Dash looked like she was chewing on something sour, hands clenched into fists. Fluttershy had a pale face, hands wringing in her lap. Only Pinkie Pie looked somewhat calm, only having her head cocked to the side and seeming more bewildered than upset. Sunset looked to be absorbing all this quietly, eyes not looking away from Discord’s, nor losing its measuring quality.

“After your mothers were born they were monitored closely by members of my team, to see if they would develop their powers naturally,” Discord said, “Keep in mind that at this time, they lived in different parts of the country and there was no chance they would normally come to know one another. Their parents had been selected at random, but now that the daughters were born, we began to manipulate events so that each family would end up moving to this city, which was already an accepted testing ground for our research due to its high Hollow activity.”

“Why here?” asked Rainbow Dash, “If this city was crawling with Hollows wouldn’t that have just put our parents in their sights to get munched on?”

Sunset’s eyes narrowed, “That was the point, I think. You had this young women you wanted to develop powers, and needed both a way to test those powers and make them beholden to you. The Hollows did your work for you.”

Discord nodded solemnly, looking somehow older and more tired, “The notion was that your mothers, freshly moved to this city, all young teenagers, would be manipulated to be in the same place at the same time, and when that happened Grand Fisher was under instructions to send Hollows after them. It worked like a charm. Just like you girls, your mothers came together as a group, protected each other by awakening their Fullbring powers. They didn’t know the ghostly monsters attacking them had been sent by us, and of course when we approached them with offers of assistance and training they had no reason to suspect, no reason to say no. As far as your parents knew I was the Captain who just happened to come across them at the right time, and could offer them knowledge of the world of the supernatural they’d just stepped into.”

“Just like us...” Fluttershy whispered, holding herself and shaking, “You did the same thing to us.”

“No, my dears, you all were a surprise. Something I never expected to happen, though I had suspicions,” Discord said, shaking his head, “My aid to you is just the smallest drop in the bucket of debt I owe to your mothers for what I did to them.”

“How did it end? You got them in your pocket, so to speak, but what happened after that?” asked Rarity, voice sharp as a needle, “Clearly none of our mothers have any memory of these events. My mother certainly doesn’t have any powers like mine.”

“Indeed, and it's both a simple and complicated,” said Discord, “Your mothers worked under me for a number of years. Xcution was a name they took to, a covert unit that targeted and slaughtered groups of problematic Hollows all over the world. Around this time several of them met with your fathers, and had to balance a normal civilian life with the secret life they led, and that was only the start of the tension between us.” He glanced at Applejack, “Sweet Cider especially was vocal about wanting to quit Xcution after she became involved with your father.”

“An’ ya convinced her ta stay,” Applejack said, fists clenched at her sides.

“Only for a time. I was already starting to see things in a different light by that point,” Discord said, “I had started out viewing the work as simply research for the good of the Soul Society and my own personal research goals, but it was impossible to work with those extraordinary girls and not start to admire them. To see them as more than weapons. Then there were two other young ladies who were a part of the picture...”

He held up a finger, “One was Twilight Velvet. Young, idealistic, and rebellious for a Quincy, she ran into Xcution during a battle with Hollows early in Xcution's operations, and became fast friends with them. My own first act of defiance against my superiors was hiding Twilight Velvet’s involvement, as I didn’t trust the Central 46 not to react poorly to your mothers being friends with a Quincy. Then there was the other girl who came on the scene some time later... the Soul Reaper.”

His deep yellow and red eyes fixed on Sunset, his voice level, “Your predecessor. The only other living human with Soul Reaper powers. Starlight Glimmer.”

Sunset just blinked, “Who?”

“A human girl who lived right here in this city, who got caught in one of Xcution’s battles,” Discord said, eyes looking distant, “She was terribly wounded in the fight. Dying. Firefly begged me to save her.”

Rainbow Dash gave a start, eyes flashing wide, “My mom?”

“She was more or less the team’s leader,” Discord said with a small smile, “Never could stand losing, and she considered any civilian casualties as a loss, so Starlight being wounded was something she saw as her responsibility. Of course there’s only so many things a Soul Reaper can do for a living human as badly hurt as Starlight was. Except transfer some of our power into them... and act strictly forbidden by Soul Society’s laws.”

“You did that?” asked Sunset, leaning forward.

“Nope,” spoke up the cat suddenly, “I did!”

Everybody looked at the cat. Rainbow Dash blurted out, “You’re a Soul Reaper?”

The cat smiled and bobbed its little head in a nod, “Yup! Least I was until I transferred my power into little ol’ Starlight. Heh, lost my Zanpaktou entirely. Really surprised me too, because I didn’t mean to give her so much power, but something inside her just sucked it all right out. Took me forever to recover even a fraction of my old power.”

“At any rate, Starlight Glimmer was saved, and suddenly found herself possessing fresh new Soul Reaper abilities. It was unprecedented in the history of Soul Society, and the only reason myself and my friend avoided execution for our transgression was that, at the time, I was irreplaceable as the Twelfth Division Captain, and my feline friend here immediately went into hiding.”

“Which was easy when I can turn into a this shape,” said the cat, giggling, “Of course I got other shapes to. I like changing into stuff. It’s fun.”

“Yes, well, after that I was placed in charge of Starlight. It was decided she’d be trained as any other Soul Reaper and placed in my Twelfth Division. She took to it quite well. A rather brilliant mind, very talented,” said Discord, after which he frowned, “Too talented, perhaps, but that’s a different matter altogether. She fought alongside Xcution as part of her training, but remained fairly distant from most of them, and ultimately she wasn’t involved in Xcution’s end, which came just a short year after.”

He turned to Applejack, “Sweet Cider became pregnant with your older brother, and that was the last straw for her. She put her proverbial foot down and quit. The rest of the girls supported her, even Twilight Velvet. At that point I wasn’t even inclined to stop them, rather instead I wanted to help them make a clean break from Soul Society, even if it cost me my position, or even my life. I argued my case with the Central 46 personally... and was overruled. They put me under house arrest and went to apprehend your mothers to take them to Soul Society. I managed to get a message out to them via Starlight to warn Xcution of what was coming. The girls went into hiding in the Everfree Forest, with Twilight Velvet arriving to help them. Soul Society sent in a detachment from the Sixth Division under the command of the its Captain to take the girls into custody, and they tracked the girls down to a ruined old castle in the forest. From what I heard later the resulting battle was something else; even the Captain of the Sixth Division was badly wounded. However in the end Xcution was captured, except for Firefly and Twilight Velvet, both of whom escaped to Quincy territory. Your mothers were brought to Soul Society where they would have been kept as prisoners, if not for the intervention of the Captain Commander.”

At the questioning looks he got Discord went on, “The Captain Commander is the head of the Gotei 13, and the only authority that might challenge the Central 46 on any given matter. I’d spoken with him myself about your mothers, about the wrongness of what we were doing to them, and got him to agree to call for a challenging vote with the backing of half the Captains behind him. As a result the Central 46 redacted their plans for Xcution, and discontinued the project. Your mothers had their memories altered, their Fullbring powers sealed away, and they were allowed to return to the human world to live out normal lives. As for Firefly, she was written off as a loss because no one in Soul Society thought the Quincy would let her go, but they did, and she... well... she did try to live a normal life as well.”

There was a small scoffing sound form Rainbow Dash as she crossed her arms, “Yeah, except for the whole skipping out on me and dad when I was still in freakin’ kindergarten! What happened there, huh D-dude!?”

“A separate affair, one that your mother ought to tell you herself,” said Discord, “She’s still alive, at any rate.”

“Tch, like I care,” said Rainbow Dash, “Whatever, I get that this was a messed up situation and hey, at least our moms got out of it all alive, but seriously why does it smell like history is repeating itself with us?”

“Because it is,” growled Applejack, “He used our ma’s and now he’s usin’ us. How we know this whole story ain’t hogwash, least the bits ‘bout you turnin’ over a new leaf? How we knowin’ this Xcution o’ yers ain’t still a thang an’ ya just want us ta take our ma’s places after they went an’ rebelled against you Soul Reapers!? Why should we be trustin’ ya at all!?”

Discord understood her anger. Applejack’s eyes would scald the skin off his bones if her ire could be made physical, and everything from the hard set of her shoulders to the scathing tone of her voice sent his mind flashing back to memories of her mother. Sweet Cider had been just as angry when she’d learned the full extent of how she and her friends had been manipulated by him, and he hadn’t blamed her for it one bit. He couldn’t blame Applejack for her anger now. It was all justified.

“I can’t prove my good will to you, Applejack,” he said, not using his customary ‘miss’ before her name, “You can choose to believe me, or not to, as your heart dictates. All I can do is tell you what I know, and offer both my apologies for the things I’ve done and my continued support for yourself and your friends.”

Applejack’s face was near volcanic, and her next words came out like a hiss of steam, “Tell me... did yer Soul Society have anythin’ ta do wit Grand Fisher killn’ my folks? He was workin’ fer ya Soul Reapers, right?”

Before Discord could say anything, Clover spoke up, “Discord had already been... exiled for other reasons by then, Applejack. He was no longer Captain of the Twelfth Division... my Captain was. Captain Starswirl. It was all in the files I read in the archives.”

Clover’s eyes shone with tears of shame as she hung her head, “I’m so sorry. I never imagined my Division could be involved in something so shady and immoral, but it was all there, clear as crystal. After Project Xcution was shut down all of your parents were put under a period of observation to ensure the memory blocks and seals on their power stayed in place. Grand Fisher was, officially, put on a top priority list for extermination, but unofficially he was more or less allowed to roam free in case he was ever needed as a pawn again. This is what allowed him to freely target your parents. Soul Society hadn’t expected him to go after the former Xcution members like that, and he caught them off guard. Your parents were dead before the observation team was able to interfere, and that’s the only thing that allowed you to survive that night... but it was just too late to save your parents...”

She trailed off, a hesitant tremor running through her, and Discord went over to Clover and put a hand on her shoulder, “You can tell her the rest, Clover. She’d learn soon enough anyway.”

“Learn what?” Applejack said, voice barely above a whisper.

Clover looked at her, took a deep breath, and said, “While your father’s soul was dragged to Hueco Mundo by Grand Fisher, the Soul Society recovered your mother’s soul. She still had no memory of Xcution, but even with her Fullbring powers sealed she had incredible reiatsu regardless. She was recruited into the Gotei, and for lack of a better term has been a prodigy in ur ranks. Sweet Cider is currently Captain of the Tenth Division.”

Applejack looked like she’d taken a solid blow, stepping back until she leaned against the wall as if it was the only thing holding her up. “Yer... yer bein’ serious? My ma, the woman ya’ll lied to and manipulated, ya took away her memories then when ya failed ta protect her from the very monster ya’ll turned loose yourselves ya had the gall ta make her one of ya?”

“I’m sorry...” Clover said.

Applejack just shook her head, looking completely dumbfounded, as if all the motions boiling inside her were trying to come out but were just tangling up into each other and leaving her to stare blankly at the floor in pure mental overload.

“The apology is mine to make, Clover,” said Discord, “I am the one who set this all in motion, so focused upon my research I never considered the long reaching consequences of what I was starting. I should have shut down those projects myself when I first took the position of Captain, but I didn’t, and it is set off many events that have cost others much. All I can do now is attempt to make up for some of it by doing all that I can to ensure you young ladies don’t meet the same fate as your mothers.”

Applejack said nothing, her eyes still focused not on her surroundings but rather seeming to twitch around in response to an inner struggle. The other girls were taking this all with varying degrees of clear discomfort and mixed emotions. Rarity’s brow was furrowed as she crossed her legs and leaned back in the couch, lips pursed as if tasting something sour, tapping one of her fingers in a uneasy manner. Rainbow Dash shifted around on her feet, arms still crossed, lips pressed in a tight frown. Fluttershy looked wide eyed and stunned, but more than that she was looking at the rest of her friends with deep worry, as if she was more concerned with how they were all taking this than she was concerned over her own feelings. Pinkie Pie was scratching her head, still looking puzzled, like she was trying to mentally juggle all the pieces of information Discord had disclosed.

Only Sunset’s expression hadn’t changed much, remaining locked on Discord with an air of guarded calculation, as if she was placing Discord on a set of scales in her mind and seeing where things weighed out.

“So, that’s quite a lot to chew upon,” said Rarity at last, “I for one feel like we may need a day or two to truly mull this over, Mr. Discord. While I in no way condone the way you manipulated our parents, I can appreciate that in the end you tried to do what you could for them. I’m just not certain where my own feelings stand, and, well, haste makes waste. I’d rather not jump to an emotional conclusion until I’ve had time to think about whether or not you deserve our further trust.”

“Y-yes, time to think would be good...” said Fluttershy, hugging herself, shaking her head, “I just don’t understand why Soul Society would do something so horrible.”

“It's not that surprising...” said Sunset, voice oddly quiet, “Even the most seemingly benevolent of ruling bodies have their dark secrets. It sounds like most of Soul Society, including most Soul Reapers, don’t have any idea what their superiors did, and it doesn’t even sound like all of the Captains agreed with it, otherwise this Captain Commander couldn’t have gotten enough support to overturn the Central 46’s decision. Right?”

Discord nodded, “Correct. It was the closest I’ve ever seen to the Captains of the Gotei 13 coming to blows over an issue. If the Central 46 had not backed down on their decree it might have meant civil war, which every Captain knew we couldn’t afford with the Hollows and Quincy just waiting for a sign of weakness to take advantage of. Its... it's the desperation of war that led to Hitsuyo-Aku being created in the first place. Victory by any means necessary.”

”Well I ain’t havin’ it!” burst out Applejack with vehement fervor, pushing off the wall and stalking right up to Discord, thrusting a finger under his nose, eyes blazing. “Now ya listin’ good an’ close, Discord. I ain’t speakin’ fer my friends. They can figure out how they feel their own dang selves... but you an’ me...we’re through. I’m done. I killed Grand Fisher wit my own hand, so far as I’m concerned, that bit o’ business is over wit. But my pa is trapped in Hueco Mundo somewhere, and my ma is brain scrambled and stuck workin’ fer yer ol’ bosses. I ain’t havin’ that either! So... so I’m gonna fix it! I’m gonna fix it all, an’ I’ll dang well do it without yer help ya damn lyin’ varmint!!”

“Applejack, wait-!” Clover said, trying to stand up, but her injury made her cry out in pain and fall right back to the couch. The other girls looked on in dismay as Applejack stomped out of the room, all but tearing the sliding door off its rail on her way out.

They could hear her stomping out practically all the way to the front door.

“Uhh, shouldn’t somebody go after her?” asked Pinkie Pie, “We can’t just let be all alone like that!”

“I don’t know Pinkie,” said Rainbow Dash, “I’ve seen Applejack angry before and this... this is a level beyond that. I don’t think she wants anybody around her right now. Probably just piss her off more.”

“I’m afraid I have to agree,” said Rarity with a sigh, “Out of all of us Applejack has to be taking these revelations the hardest. Her parents... its is horrible what happened to them and I’m sorry Mr. Discord but there’s little that can change the fact that it is largely your responsibility. If either of my parents or...” she gulped, “Or if Sweetie Belle had been killed because of all this, I’m not certain I would be any less, um, peeved as Applejack.”

“But what if she hurts herself?” said Fluttershy, already standing and heading for the door, “The way she is now who knows what she might do, like go after more Hollows alone?”

“I’d feel sorry for any Hollow that gets in AJ’s way right now,” said Rainbow Dash.

Fluttershy paused at the door, frowning, “Even so, I just can’t leave her like this. Not when she’s hurting this much.”

“That’s what I’m talking about! We need some serious positive vibe intervention, asap!” said Pinkie Pie, hopping up and joining Fluttershy at the door, “Applejack doesn’t need to be alone to stew in her icky bad feelings, she needs us, her friends to be there for her!”

“They’re right,” said Sunset, standing, “Applejack’s in a bad place right now. I know what it’s like to be filled with a lot of anger and now way to get rid of it. She needs to know we’re there for her, even if she doesn’t want to hear it right now.”

She turned to regard Discord and Clover, “Thank you for telling us everything. For my part, I still trust both of you. Clover, you’ve been nothing but a friend to us, and I’m not going to hold you responsible for what your organization has done. Discord...” she smiled slightly, “If anyone can understand what it’s like to want to make up for past mistakes, it’s me. You want to prove your goodwill, you’ll have to earn it, but I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and give you that chance to do that.”

Discord took a deep breath, nodding, “Thank you for that.”

“Don’t think we’re entirely done, through,” Sunset added, “There’s still a lot of unanswered questions I’d like to know, but I think right now we’ve all heard enough to need time digesting it, like Rarity said. That, and we need to give Applejack time to cool off and remind her we’re all in this together. So, for today, I think it’s best we all head out.”

“Agreed,” said Discord, “Take all the time you need.”

With that the girls exchanged quick glances, and then as one going out the door after their friend.

----------

Celestia sat at her desk in her principal's office at Canterlot High, blinking at the woman standing across from her with disbelief. Captain Platinum watched Celestia with hawkish eyes, Lieutenants Meadowbrook and Fancy Pants flanking her, the former looking like he’d rather be anywhere else, and the later having a calm, cold air of patience.

“I’m not certain I understand, Captain Platinum. You said you’re here to...apprehend them?”

“Perhaps that’s a strong choice of words,” said Platinum turning to half lean, half sit against Celestia’s desk, placing one hand on it as she smiled, “You know how those stuffy fellows in Central 46 are. Rather than ‘apprehend’, its is more accurate to say we’re here to ‘escort’ the young Substitute Soul Reaper and her allies to the Soul Society, so that they might be properly... given the opportunity to join us formally.”

“And shall these young ladies be given the choice of whether or not to accept either the escort or this ‘offer’?” asked Luna, who was standing a bit behind Celestia and to the side of her chair, eyeing Platinum with cold eyes.

“Why, whatever reason would they have to say no?” asked Platinum with an innocent flutter of her eyes, “It's a grand opportunity! They already battle Hollows, and as former allies of the Gotei 13 they could have access to all of our resources and backing, not to mention receive more thorough and formal training than they could get working for that crass exile.”

“Be that as it may I have looked over those young women for some time now, and I can safely say that they may not be as interested in this opportunity as you think,” said Celestia, “They’re a very independent bunch.”

“A malady that’s readily curable with a proper education,” said Platinum.

“Proper education, or indoctrination?’ asked Luna.

“Oh please, Luna, we’re not intending to force those young ladies into anything, but you have to admit it isn’t particularly proper to allow humans with potent abilities to run around without guidance!” said Platinum with a reasonable tone, “Then of course there’s this Sunset Shimmer. As a Substitute Soul Reaper you can imagine we’re very interested in ensuring she’s kept... under control. Especially considering what happened with our last Substitute Soul Reaper.”

Celestia’s expression darkened. It was not a pleasant look, like the sun itself going from brightest white to deadly crimson. “Enough dancing, Platinum. If you are here to take those young ladies against their will, rest assured neither I or my sister will stand idly by. Orders from Central 46 or not it is against everything the Soul Society stands for to force interference in the lives of human beings. We made that mistake before, I shall not stand aside and let it happen again, even if it costs me my rank or even my life.”

Platinum blinked at her, her friendly look turning icily cool, eyes narrowing, through her smile remained, “Don’t be so dramatic Celestia. I have no intention of taking anyone anywhere by force. We shall speak with these young ladies and make an offer, one I firmly believe they’ll see the benefits of. If not... well, I’m not under orders, yet, to do anything more than make the offer.”

Celestia didn’t know how far to trust Platinum on that count. She’d never known the Captain of the Sixth Division to do anything other than follow the rules, but she was one of the Captains from long ago who wholly supported the Twelfth Division’s weapons research, and had been one of the more loud voices calling for bringing the mothers of those girls under control. Platinum was a traditionalist, and a hard liner for maintaining the Soul Society’s order and dominance over any moral concerns. On top of that, Platinum had been the one to originally bring the girls' mothers into custody during the Xcution incident, suffering grievous wounds in the process. It was hard to imagine there might not be something of a personal vendetta at play in regards to that. It certainly seemed like no coincidence that Soul Society sent Platinum to do this rather than contact Celestia and Luna to perform the task.

“Be that as it may,” she said, “As long as those girls are students at this school it is still my duty to see to their safety, so I would accompany you when you meet with them to ensure matters go smoothly.”

“Would that not break the cover you and your sister have so carefully cultivated here?” asked Platinum, “Not only yourselves, but for your Lieutenants as well? Would you want to lose that anonymity?”

Celestia managed a small, coy smile, “They would have learned the truth soon enough. After the brazen invasion of this city the other day I was going to tell them myself. Might as well do that now, since Soul Society has decided to move forward without consulting me on this matter.”

Platinum eyed her for a few seconds, then Meadowbrook, stepping up beside her, said, “The young women in question may well be better disposed towards us if they see a familiar face they trust among us.”

“Hmm... true. Very well, Celestia, you can feel free to tag along,” said Platinum with a wave of her hand.

“Sister,” Luna said, “Perhaps I should go as well?”

Celestia shook her head as she stood, “I’d feel more comfortable with you remaining here and ensuring nothing happens to the portal, sister. We still can’t be certain the Hollows won’t attempt another large scale attack, or make any move against the portal. The sun and moon cannot always share the sky.”

That last sentence caused an almost imperceptible shift in Luna, just the smallest shade of a stiffening of her back and a knowing look flashing across her eyes. That sentence was a code phrase between the two sisters, one of many they’d formed between each other over the long centuries when they wanted to communicate with each other even when there were others present they didn’t want to clue into the conversation. It meant that Celestia wanted Luna to follow her covertly, and as Captain of the Second Division and present leader of Stealth Corps, there were few in all of Soul Society who would have a chance of detecting Luna when she wished to remain hidden. Even Captain Platinum wouldn’t know Luna was following them.

“I understand, sister,” Luna said with the smallest of nods, doing a fair job of looking resigned. Celestia smiled at her sister and then turned to Platinum.

“In all likelihood the girls are at Discord’s shop in the downtown area. Shall we?”

Platinum’s eyes shifted between the two sisters, “Yes, let’s. I’d like to return to Soul Society as soon as possible, preferably with new guests in tow.”

Somehow, Platinum, I doubt things will go nearly so smoothly, Celestia thought grimly.

Author's Notes:

Whew, that was quite a bit of backstory to get out. Hopefully it wasn't too much at once. I'd considered doing the mothers backstory as a series of full on flashbacks, kind of like Bleach's Turn Back the Pendulum arc, but decided that would take up too much of a chunk of time to do properly and take away from focusing on the girls' story line. Maybe as a potential future side fic.

Also this chapter starts to mark more of my divergence from Bleach, as Xcution is quite a bit different here than how it was presented in the manga, and the weapons research branch Hitsuyo-Aku is entirely my own creation for this fic.

At any rate, thanks again folks for reading along, and as always let me know what you think with any comments, critiques, or questions. 'Till next time.

Episode 24: Painful Truths

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Episode 24: Painful Truths

“So, ugh, Twilight, where do you need all this?” asked Flash Sentry as he nearly bent double under a massive box of equipment taken from the school’s lab. He and Twilight were standing just outside the front of the school where the Canterlot High statue stood containing the mirror portal to Equestria. The actual stone carving of the horse on top of the square base of the statue had been destroyed a little while ago when the human world’s Twilight had gone magic crazy, and it hadn’t yet been rebuilt, leaving the sight of the statue looking a tad bleak.

Twilight, the pony princess version, didn’t seem to notice Flash’s discomfort and near back breaking sweatdrops as she examined the area with a critical eye and then pointed to the left of the statue, “Just set it down over there, Flash. Thanks a lot, by the way. Without my magic I can’t really lug things around much. I really appreciate you coming over here on a Sunday.”

“Uggh, y-yeah, no prob,” he said, moving with slow, teetering steps to take the box of science gear over to the statue. When he set it down he blew out a sigh of relief and wiped sweat off his brow, “Whew, okay, think this is a sign I need to work out more.”

Twilight gave a small laugh, “I guess I could’ve had you make two trips. Sorry.”

“Hey, glad to do it. You, uh, don’t visit all that often so kind of makes me want to go all out on the helpful friend front when you’re here,” Flash said, stretching his arms to work the muscles and try to prevent any damage from the heavy lifting. Gigai’s were almost physically identical to real human bodies, including the need to work out the muscles properly. He wasn't joking, he really did need to work out, otherwise this gigai would be about as useful as a wet tissue paper in an emergency.

Oh, and wanting to work out has nothing at all to do with also wanting to impress the girl in front of you, eh Flash? some chiding voice in the back of his head taunted him, Nevermind that she’s an alien, magical quadruped from another dimension and you’re not exactly what you appear to be either. Yeah, totally ideal romantic situation, man, you’ definitely haven’t set yourself up for failure.

He promptly kicked that inner voice into the mental closet where it belonged, while Twilight started to dig into the box he’d set down to draw out some esoteric looking science gear. She gave him an apologetic smile that only boosted her adorable allure. “I’m sorry I don’t get a lot of chances to visit, Flash. My duties in Equestria, my life there, it gets pretty hectic. I never want my friends here in the human world to think I’ve forgotten them, though.”

“Hey, it’s not your fault Twilight,” he said with an understanding smile, leaning against the stone portion of the statue and running a hand along the portal mirror, “Your life isn’t here. I get that. I’d be a real tool if I expected you to hop on through the mirror all the time just to hang out with some high school kids when you’re literally royalty with a kingdom to look after. Its awesome enough you come through when we need help with stuff like crazy siren chicks trying to take over the school...”

He paused, then said, trying to make his curiosity sound genuine, because the Flash Sentry that Twilight thought she knew wouldn’t have a clue what she was doing, when Celestia had actually already briefed him. “So what is all this for anyway?”

‘Oh, uh, heheh...” Twilight’s face flushed with a tint of embarrassment as she seemed to scramble for words, “It’s uh... an experiment on... locking... things. Yup!”

“Locking things?”

“Well, um, its kind of hard to explain, but because of recent, err... events, like the sirens, Princess Celestia thinks I ought to find a way to kind of lock the portal, in a sense. Kind of a selective lock that’ll only let through certain individuals or things I want coming through. You see? I’m going to be testing out a few different methods to try and modulate the portal so that I can control what can or can't go through.”

It was about as good an explanation as she could churn out without actually mentioning Hollows, which as far as she knew Flash Sentry didn’t know a thing about. It was cute watching her sort of panic through coming up with a way to say that without tipping her hand, but he also felt a bit guilty as well as it just highlighted that he was the one doing the deceiving. Didn’t matter that he was under orders from Captain Celestia, it still sort of sat wrong in his gut to know he’d been basically spying on Twilight since practically the first day she’d come through the portal.

That had been a heck of surprise for everyone. When Sunset Shimmer had come through a few years back it’d taken Celestia and Luna both off guard, and Flash had been assigned to observe the mysterious pony turned human back then too. Sunset might’ve thought her brief relationship with him was a matter of her using him to become popular at the school, but it was a mutual affair where he’d been watching her and learning what he could of her. The same situation applied to Twilight, including the initial ‘crush’ he’d shown towards her. Bumping into her hadn’t been an accident, on any of the instances it’d happened.

Now, however, the crush didn’t feel so fake and Flash was worried he wasn’t being very objective in doing his duties. He didn’t like spying on Twilight, and if he didn’t fully trust Captain Celestia to have the best of intentions he probably would have refused to continue. As it was, with increased Hollow activity in the city, Twilight did need watching, for her own protection, and it gave him an excuse to hang out with her.

“Huh,” he said, “That makes a lot of sense, actually. Surprised you didn’t do something like this sooner, just to make sure some random human didn’t stumble on into ponyland.”

“That’s a good point, and honestly you’re right, I should have done this sooner. Or at least thought about it when I built the magitech to keep the portal open in the first place,” Twilight said, setting up several small pylons that looked to Flash like tesla coils on steroid.

“Uh, magitech?”

“Oh! Heh, it's a fairly new field of magical research in Equestria, which not to brag,” Twilight said in a totally bragging and excited tone, “I’m pretty much at the forefront of. I mean, we do have technology in Equestria, and over the past few years there’s been lots of progress in fusing it with magical techniques to create combinations of the two that can accomplish more than either technology or magic can do by itself. Its how I was able to get the portal open past its normal time limit to begin with. I created a stable resonating field using the-”

She launched, quite absent mindedly, into a technical string of raw science and magic speak that for the next few minutes Flash could only nod his head and smile for her to go on. He didn’t understand a word she said, but he didn’t want her to stop. She was just too cute when she babbled, showing such enthusiasm and excitement that it just lit up her whole face. Even if he didn’t have a clue about magic (and honestly rather sucked at Kido spells too), he could listen to Twilight nerd out all day.

When he saw Celestia, still in her principal's gigai, stride out of the school’s front doors. He also took note of the presence of Captain Platinum and Lieutenants Meadowbrook and Fancy Pants up on the school’s roof, apparently waiting for Celestia. He cast a glance at Twilight, who was still engrossed in her work. He wasn’t certain that, being a magically attuned pony, if Twilight could see spiritual beings. Sunset at first, and it was still a mystery just what had caused her and her friends to start seeing spirit entities, but with Twilight he was fairly certain she still couldn’t see them.

“Ah, Flash Sentry, Princess Twilight, is everything going well out here?” asked Celestia, causing Twilight to nearly jump up from where she’d been working.

“Oh, principle Celestia, hi! Everything’s going just fine here, thanks. Flash has been a big help. Thanks for calling him.”

“Yes, Flash has always been an eager and hard working sort,” said Celestia knowingly, “I was certain he’d be more than happy to come assist you, even if it wasn’t a school day.”

She winked at him and Flash felt himself wanting to shrink in on himself. Captain Celestia’s joking nature was legend among Soul Reapers. Some even gave her the nickname Captain Troll. Not in earshot of her, of course. Flash managed a steady smile for her, “Just doing my duty to a friend.”

“A friend, of course,” said Celestia with a light chuckle, but her eyes held Flash and there was something in them that told him the situation was a lot more serious than she was displaying. “At any rate, I have some errands to run off campus, so if you need any help with anything feel free to speak with Miss Cheerilee, as she’s the senior teacher still on site.”

As in, also the senior Soul Reaper still on site. That meant Captain Luna was also going off somewhere, and since she wasn’t out in the open that made Flash more than a little nervous as to what was going on. He knew something was up the moment Captain Platinum had shown up with her Lieutenant and the Lieutenant of the Twelfth Division, but it was a real bad sign that Luna was going stealth mode and Celestia was heading out with the others. With Lieutenant Cheerilee the only other Soul Reaper hanging out besides him it left the portal a bit vulnerable, and Celestia was basically doing him the courtesy of warning him to be watchful.

Cheerilee was the older, more experienced Soul Reaper between them, so in an emergency he’d defer to her until either of the Captains got back. He had about a hundred questions as to what the hell was going on, but he could hardly ask Celestia openly, so instead he inclined his head to her in a nod that was almost a bow.

“No worries, ma’am, we’ll be fine here.”

“Good. Show our guest every courtesy, Flash, and I’ll see you both when I get back.”

----------

All Applejack saw was red.

Well, that and the various pedestrians she shouldered past and the occasional vehicle that screeched to a halt and honked at her as she stomped across the streets. All in all it was like a very enraged game of Frogger all across the downtown district until she got to the quieter suburbs. Quite frankly she would have been fine with a car hitting her right about now. It might’ve taken the edge off.

She just couldn’t get herself to calm down, even if some back portion of her more rational mind was trying desperately to goosfraba her to something resembling a non-homicidal state of mind. It really had taken about all the willpower and common sense she had left to not simply try and boot Discord through his entire shop, and possibly through several more, and just leave instead after telling him off. She was just so... so... pissed the hell off.

And why shouldn’t she be!? Not only had Soul Society and Discord turned her mother into a living weapon alongside her friend’s mothers, they’d essentially used them up and then proceeded to mind screw them when they wanted out of the raw deal they’d been given. Then to top it off the Hollow that Soul Society had recruited to help them in their scheme went rogue they did nothing to stop Grand Fisher from murdering her parents and turning her father into the same kind of soul sucking monster Grand Fisher was. Oh, and if that wasn’t the icing on the giant cake of wrongness that this whole situation was, the Soul Society had then recruited her mother’s soul and turned her into one of them, with her blissfully unaware of the fact that they were the ones that had messed up her life in the first place!

It just grated against every single value and sensibility Applejack had! The Soul Society should have treated their task of defending humanity as a sacred trust, something to do with honor and nobility! They were supposed to be protecting the balance of the damned world and purifying Hollows, not using them in convoluted schemes to turn humans into living weapons! The web of lies, the thick veil of deceit that surrounded all of this... it sickened her to her core. All she wanted to do was tear it all down, rip apart all the lies and make things right. And she didn’t want Discord to have any part of it! She didn’t want his apologies! She didn’t want his help! She wanted him out of her life, and out of her friend’s lives...

Not that she had any idea at all how to accomplish any of that. Stomping away from Discord’s shop had felt good on general principle, but that annoying, small voice of reason inside her kept saying that she was being foolish. She couldn’t single handedly tear down Soul Society and save her mother from their lies. She couldn't by herself charge into Hueco Mundo and find her father, and somehow save his soul. She couldn’t do much of anything by herself except march around like an angry bull in a china shop, uselessly snorting steam at nothing.

The realization just made her more angry. If nothing else she just wanted to go home to the farm and... kick some trees into submission. She needed to clear her head. The farm was a good ways off without using the bus, and she wasn’t feeling up to being around people right then. So she went for the next best thing and headed for Whitetail Park. It’d have a few people there, with a morning clear and sunny as this, but she could find a quiet place there to just sit and fume in peace.

Changing direction she picked up her pace, just a fast walk at first, but slowly, as her frustration built to a fever pitch she stopped caring about how she’d look to any onlookers and just broke into a run, as if she could get away from truth if she ran fast enough. However there’s no getting away from the truth, painful or otherwise, and the revelations about her parents had broken right through years of built up walls of strength that had been forged on one thought she’d held strong ever since her parent’s death.

She’d always believed they were watching over her. Gone, but still with her, silently cheering her on to be the best sister she could be to her siblings, and a tough young woman capable of keeping the family together in their absence. She could bear the burdens because she’d believed her parent’s souls were at peace. She could deal with the pain, having faith that they were in a better place. But it had all been a lie. Her parents’ souls weren’t at rest, and all these years she’d been sending prayers to those who couldn’t hear them.

The fury only built, along with the pain, and she felt like she was near to bursting with both by the time she got to the park. The cheerful setting, with the blue sky above and the warm sun burning off the morning fog did absolutely nothing to improve her mood. There were a few people out, either walking pets or just enjoying a stroll themselves, but no more than a handful and they gave Applejack a wide berth as she stormed her way down one of the park trails until she found one of the taller trees to lean against, head pressed to the rough bark, her breaths coming in short, angry gasps as she clenched her eyes shut to try and hold back the tears.

----------

“I don’t get it, she couldn’t have gotten that much of a head start on us,” said Rainbow Dash as the girls walked quickly down the sidewalk, each casting about searching looks for their errant, upset friend. Sunset had already tried sensing Applejack through her spiritual senses, but she still wasn’t practiced enough at the skill to be able to pick out Applejack’s spiritual pressure amid all the other people out and about on the streets. Perhaps if Applejack was actually using her power that’d act like a beacon Sunset could follow, but for now she and the girls were stuck using their normal senses.

Pinkie Pie sniffed the air, and licked a finger, feeling the wind, “I think I’m getting a funky vibe in this direction!” She pointed off down a side street. Rarity looked at her incredulously.

“Are you certain? No offense to your usual Pinkie Senses but they’re really more for predicting random quirkiness rather than accurately tracking distressed friends.”

Pinkie Pie looked about worriedly, “I know but I just wanna find her quick before something bad happens. I’m getting a real wiggy feeling that I don’t like.”

“I hate to say this, but we might need to do that thing that in horror movies you never do,” said Sunset with a sigh, “Split up.”

“Hey, it’s broad daylight and the Hollows got their butts kicked hard just the other day, so I figure it’s probably safe,” said Rainbow Dash, “Thing is there’s only so many places AJ could’ve run off to. She wouldn't want to be around too many people, so I’m thinking either one of the parks, the school, or she hopped on a bus to head for the farm.”

Sunset nodded, “Okay, me and Rarity will check Whitetail park, the rest of you check the school.” She pulled out her cell phone, “We give a call once we’re done checking each area, and if she’s not at either spot, we check the farm.”

“Sounds like a fine plan to me, let’s get going,” said Rarity, frowning, “Before Pinkie Pie’s feeling turns into something more serous.”

With that the girls split up, all of them picking up their pace as a sense of foreboding started to set into each of their hearts.

-----------

“What do you mean they’re not here?” asked Captain Platinum with a hard edged tone like diamond. She was giving Discord’s disinterested look a return glare that could melt steel, but Discord seemed wholly determined to weather her ire. Beside Platinum, Celestia gave Discord a smooth incline of her head, trying to keep her own emotions off her face. They were all standing in the courtyard in front of Discord’s shop, facing the shop owner who was standing before his front doors with a lazy look on his face.

She rarely saw Discord, even if they both lived in the same city. There was tension there, from the simple fact that she’d never been able to peg how trustworthy her former fellow Captain was. Discord danced around sincerity like others sidestepped irritating flying insects. She’d been both a opponent of his during his work with that despicable weapons development branch of the Twelfth Division, an institution she’d never supported the creation of, yet she’d also defended him when he’d sought to break away from that group and protect the parents of the girls who were now being discussed.

“It is very important we find those young women, so if you could provide us with any information you have it would help ensure things from getting out of hand,” Celestia said, voice diplomatically neutral.

“I’m sorry my dear Captains, but they left not long ago and I didn’t ask them where they were going. They’re young ladies with lives of their own still to live despite their unique circumstances, so you can hardly expect me to keep track of their every move,” he said, shrugging his shoulders innocently, leaning against his cane that Celestia knew full well was no cane. He smiled thinly, “However I am glad you’re here. I was looking after young Starswirl’s third seat and I imagine you’d like her back?”

Meadowbrook was quick to say, “It’d be much appreciated. If I may ask, how was she injured?”

“An unfortunate run in with a Sternritter. I’m sure she’ll be happy to tell you the whole story in a concisely worded report once you’re all safely back in Soul Society,” said Discord, “You’ll be returning shortly?”

“Only after we’ve located those girls and given them... our offer,” said Platinum, turning sharply to Meadowbrook, “Go collect your comrade and catch up with us later. Fancy Pants, let us go. It's clear we won’t get any help here.”

Platinum turned and strode away, Fancy Pants giving Discord a swift bow and turning a quick sidelong gaze at Meadowbrook, “If you need assistance with moving Clover then you needn’t feel the need to follow us. We can return once everything settles and aid you in ensuring she’s transported home safely.”

“Thanks, Fancy, I appreciate it,” said Meadowbrook, sighing and approaching Discord, “Alright, let’s see her.”

“Just a moment,” said Discord, striding over towards Celestia until he was almost uncomfortably in her personal space. She gave him a flat look, not sure what he was up to, until he leaned in and whispered, “Be very careful, Celestia. Those girls are aware of the truth, now, and some of them are none too happy about it. Platinum could cause an incident if not reigned in.”

She turned her eyes towards him, lips pressed tight in a thin frown, “Why do you think I came along? I won’t let anything happen to those girls.”

“Captain Celestia, what are you two talking about over there?” called Platinum impatiently.

Celestia turned from Discord, striding away from him, “Merely exchanging a few final pleasantries. It's been a long time, after all.”

They departed with the assistance of one of Discord’s employees. Celestia recognized Screwloose from many years ago when she’d served as Discord’s fourth seat, though she didn’t think Platinum made the same connection. Screwloose was wearing a gigai that changed some of her appearance, but the spiritual pressure was hard to miss if one was familiar enough with it. When Discord had been exiled from Soul Society it’d never been clear how many of his old officers from his Division went with him, but Celestia wouldn’t have been surprised if there were more than just Screwloose.

Once outside the wards Captain Platinum went up into the sky, Celestia and Fancy Pants following.

“They could be anywhere in the city, but no matter, when it comes to spiritual senses I’m unsurpassed in Soul Society,” Platinum said, taking a calming breath, “Would have been convenient if they’d just been at that man’s establishment. If he wasn’t so useful for supplying Soul Reapers in the field I can’t imagine why Soul Society would continue to tolerate him.”

“Discord is not our concern at the moment,” said Celestia, “Can you find them?”

“Yes. This won’t take long. I’d have done this from the start if I hadn’t heard they were at Discord’s in the first place. Oh well, mere minutes lost.” Platinum closed her eyes and Celestia could feel the other Soul Reaper’s spiritual senses spreading out, like a sonar ping. Even in a city with such a large population, Celestia knew it wouldn’t be difficult for Platinum to discern the differences between individual humans. It wasn’t any idle boast of Platinum’s that she was highly skilled with her senses, perhaps the best among the Gotei 13 Captains, although Celestia might argue that Luna’s skill matched it. Thinking of Luna left Celestia a tad nervous. She had full confidence in Luna’s skill in stealth and ability to hide her own spirit energy, but this was Platinum.

Second ticked by until a full minute passed, then Platinum’s eyes snapped open, “I can feel them. Hmph, they’ve spread out. Some are returning to your school, Celestia, and another pair are heading in the direction of one that’s by herself. Hmm, Fancy Pants, intercept the ones going to the school. Be gentle and explain things cordially, but keep them detained at the school. Celestia, come with me and we’ll speak with the ones who are out and about... hmm, I think they’re at that park over that way.”

Blast it, Celestia inwardly cursed. Luna couldn’t cover both areas at once, and she’d been counting on Luna’s support if things came to a confrontation with Platinum. Still, she couldn't’ leave any of those girls to face Fancy Pants alone, in case something went wrong. Then again, Flash and Cheerilee were at the school, although both were under orders to remain hidden Celestia knew Flash at least would intervene if a problem occurred.

She didn’t have a way to tell Luna which way to go, regardless, so she’d just have to trust her sister’s discretion, and that her intervention wouldn’t be needed.

----------

Applejack didn’t really know how long she’d been there. She’d sat down, back leaning against the tree, legs pulled up with her hands wrapped around her knees. Her anger wasn’t gone, but it’d gone down to a burning simmer rather than a raging firestorm, but in some ways that was worse. It gave her too much opportunity to think as well as seethe. Her mind kept tumbling around in thoughts of wanting to blame Soul Society for her parent’s death, while continuously trying to tell herself that such blame didn’t have a point other than to make matters worse.

She didn’t even know what she was going to tell Appleboom or Big Mac, let alone Granny Smith. They deserved to know the truth, and while Granny might’ve suspected some of it, she probably didn’t know the whole of it either. But how could Applejack tell the truth, now? It was something she’d always believed in doing, but if she told everything to her family she could only imagine what knowing the fate of their parent’s souls might do to the mental state of her siblings. Big Mac tried to act like the strong silent type, but he knew she was a softhearted guy underneath it all, and Applebloom was even more sensitive at heart than he was. Could either of them take knowing the truth?

“Lands sakes, what am I supposed ta be doin’?” she muttered to herself, “Ma... pa... what would ya want me ta do?”

“Well, darling, I for one would suggest several dozen tubs of ice cream and marathoning something very sappy on Netflix, but perhaps we can find something more appropriate for you.”

“Rarity?” Applejack looked up to see her friend approaching tentatively, with Sunset right behind her, “And you too Sunset?”

“Well, we all went looking for you, but had to split up to cover all the possibly places you might’ve run off to,” said Sunset apologetically, looking at Applejack with clear concern burning in her eyes.

“Ya’ll shouldn’ve come after me,” Applejack grunted, “I want ta be left ‘lone fer awhile.”

“Yes, Rainbow Dash did say that you’d prefer that,” said Rarity, pensively making a waving hand gesture, “I admittedly can understand the need to shut oneself off when under such stress, but, well, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy both made a convincing argument for why in this instance we should find you and show some group spirit, as it were.”

“I don’t... I ain’t... gah, I’m fine!” Applejack spat, and Sunset gave her a level look, letting out a soft sigh.

“Look Applejack, I won’t say I know how you feel, because I don’t think any of us are quite as hit by what Discord told us as you are. That doesn’t change the fact that whatever your feeling, you don’t have to shoulder it all by yourself. And whatever your say, you’re not fine, so please don’t lie to us. Let us help.”

Applejack stood, somewhere between ready to deck Sunset or ready to hug her in a sobbing mess. She wasn’t entirely sure which end of that knife’s edge she was about to fall on. Both Rarity and Sunset were looking at her with such naked concern for her that it was hard to let her anger spill towards them. It hurt to see, knowing how much she was making them worry, even when a part of her just wanted to push them away.

“I don’t know what ta do,” she said, “I just don’t know what ta do! My parents’r suppose ta be at rest, an’ they ain’t! All I wanna do is save their souls an’ I can’t. I ain’t strong ‘nuff fer that... an’... and that hurts so damn much...”

“Applejack, dear, please don’t cry, because that will certainly make me cry as well and I’m a frightful mess when I cry,” said Rarity, putting hand to her mouth, “Whatever it takes, we’ll figure out a way to help you.”

“Exactly,” said Sunset, crossing her arms and taking on that tilted head, hand on hip stance that spoke of confidence, “None of us are strong enough to do everything, but that’s the magic inherent in friendship. The strength you lack by yourself you’ve got friends to lend you theirs.”

“Ya’ll are bein’ sappy as all get out,” Applejack said with a hopeless, tired laugh.

“Yeah, well, I come from the magical pony land of sappiness, so I’m allowed,” said Sunset with a smile, and for all the bitter feelings still trying to choke Applejack, she couldn’t help but return it. Rarity beamed as well.

“That’s much better, darling. Are you perhaps feeling up to joining the others? We can all find a quiet place to sit a spell and figure things out.”

Applejack wiped at her face, getting rid of some of the residual tears she’d shed, just shaking her head, “I appreciate it guys, really I do, an’ don’t think I’m gonna act ungrateful... but I’m thinkin’ I gotta git home ta the farm an’...”

“We understand,” said Sunset, “Just as long as you know we’re here for you. I guess we just needed to chase after you to make sure you knew that, after storming out of Discord’s place. Umm, what do you plan to do about him anyway? Are you serious about not working with him anymore?”

A tremor ran through Applejack and her face twisted up, “Right now I just can’t, Sunset. Just seein’ his ugly mug will tick me off, an’ I won’t do no one no good in such a state. Better I just keep my distance fer awhile. I can train on my own at the farm.”

“Nonsense Applejack, I’m certain we can take turns coming to your farm to help you train until you feel more settled,” said Rarity, “In fact I’ll volunteer myself for the first day.”

Applejack just heaved out a sigh, “Ya’ll can’t stand gettin’ dirty on the farm Rarity, an’ now yer wantin’ ta tussle with me?”

Rarity made a small scoffing noise, “Well, I’ve already traveled to another dimension to do battle with a demonic brute who eats souls, I can hardly continue to hold back due to a bit of dirt and sweat now can I? Besides, our recent experiences have gotten me thinking and I have some ideas I’d like to try out. You can be my guinea pig!” Rarity’s eyes sparkled with creative light and it made Applejack more than a tad nervous.

“Well, shall we?” asked Sunset, and Applejack, after a deep breath, nodded. The three girls began the walk back towards the park entrance, cutting across a wide patch of grass between the clumps of trees. They were about halfway across when two figures simply appeared in their path. One Applejack instantly recognized as principal Celestia, and she felt like she’d been punched straight in the gut when she realized that the woman was wearing the black robes of a Soul Reaper, along with some kind of additional white coat-like get up on top of that. The other woman she didn’t recognize, though she looked oddly similar to an older, more ‘filled out’ Rarity. This woman was also wearing Soul Reaper robes with a long, billowing white overcoat.

The woman Applejack didn’t recognize smiled like a knife at the three girls, her voice a kind sounding, regal, yet somehow steel hard voice. “Greetings, my young ladies. Allow me to introduce myself; I am Platinum, Captain of the Sixth Division of the Gotei 13. I have very much been looking forward to meeting you.”

Applejack, Sunset, and Rarity all exchanged stunned glances. Platinum stood there smiling, clearly expecting an answer or question, but it was to Celestia that Sunset spoke up to, clearly trying to recover from her shock.

“Principal Celestia, what is going on here?”

Platinum gained a faint, irked look at being ignored, but smoothed it out quickly, “She is my fellow Captain, as is her sister Luna. Both of them were assigned to a long term mission in the living world to protect the unique portal located at Canterlot High School.”

“It’s true,” Celestia said, stepping forward and placing a hand over her heart, bowing her head to them, “And I offer my apologies for not being able to tell you girls about my true identity sooner. Despite all that has happened at the school, I was not given permission to reveal myself or my sister. However with Captain Platinum here, things are different, and I felt it my duty to accompany her so that there were no... misunderstandings concerning what she has come here to do.”

Applejack had recovered enough of her wits to shaking her head fiercely and growl out, “An’ just what are ya’ll here for?”

It came out more harshly and accusatory than she would have liked, but her anger had flared right back up like a bonfire with freshly tossed on kerosene. Celestia!? She was a Soul Reaper!? She’d been lying all these years to everyone!? Bile rose in her throat, acidic and bitter. She’d respected Celestia and Luna! She saw them both as role models! Examples of the kind of women she’d liked to have grown up to be!

And both of them were just hiding their true nature all this time!? Back when the sirens had tried to take over the school, or later at the Friendship Games when things had gotten dangerously out of hand, both those instances Celestia and Luna could have done something to stop that and they’d just pretended to be normal humans? What about before that? Had either of them been involved in the deception and manipulation of her and her friend's mothers?

These thoughts lanced through her, hot and bright with fresh fury, in a mere second. Celestia looked at her with kind, understanding, and sorrowful eyes, and the look just ignited Appejack’s anger higher.

“Captain Platinum has come here because the Soul Society has an offer for you and your friends, Applejack. Only an offer, nothing more. You have every right to refuse-”

“Let me make my pitch, before you shoot it down, Captain Celestia,” said Platinum with a sidelong glance before giving the girls a dazzling smile. Something in that smile reminded Applejack of a cold winter night, and she decided she very much didn’t like this woman.

“Ever since you remarkable young ladies encountered third seat Clover and became entangled in our affairs we have carefully monitored your situation. Under normal circumstances the Soul Society endeavors to keep living humans out of the continuous conflict with the Hollows, but in your case you chose to become involved of your own volition and in a very short time have accomplished impressive feats. It is clear you have no love for Hollows, and while Clover’s reports indicate some unfortunate ties with the Quincy, it is also clear your not their ally either. There was great debate among our ruling body, the Central 46, but at length it has been decided that you be given the opportunity to officially align yourselves with Soul Society.”

Applejack felt her fits clench, but it was Sunset who spoke first, “What exactly does that mean? What are you asking us to do?”

“It means that you would... join the Gotei 13, as allies in our efforts to keep the balance of this world’s spiritual realms,” said Platinum, “You, Miss Sunset, would be given official training in your skills as a Soul Reaper, and assigned to one of our Divisions. While not Soul Reapers, your friends would be considered an allied force that you would be encouraged to fight alongside.”

“So we’d have to follow orders, is that it?” said Rarity, frowning, “We would be beholden to your superiors at that point, wouldn’t we? Be told when, where, and how to fight our battles.”

Platinum waved that off with an idle shake of her hand, “A small price for the benefit of having all the Gotei 13 as allies, having access to our vast store of resources, opportunities to train your abilities even further than you’ve taken them, and the ability to ensure a secure and luxurious place for yourselves and your families in the afterlife.”

Applejack felt something snap inside her, at the mention of her and her friend’s families, “Secure a place fer our families, eh? An’, what, if we don’t join yer lyin’, manipulation’ club o’ arrogant wannabe gods then our families ain’t havin’ a secure place in the afterlife!? Just what happens ta souls that get ‘saved’ by yer Soul Society!?”

Celestia’s expression turned deeply worried and she stepped a bit closer, holding up a hand, “Applejack, please understand, the Soul Society was created to establish order where before there was nothing by pain and chaos in the afterlife. Things may not be perfect but we’ve been doing our best for millennia to make things better. All Captain Platinum means is that joining Soul Society has many benefits. That said, you don’t have to-”

“But I do, don’t I!?” snarled Applejack, “If I don’t, well, ye’ll just brainwash me an’ make me join anyway, just like ya did ta my mother!”

She didn’t feel herself do it until her body was already glowing, pony ears and tail appearing along with the firm wrapping form of metal that shaped into her knee covering boots. Fullbring, she now knew the power was called. Her strong legs, inherited from her mother, the catalyst for this power that was now hers.

Platinum looked at her, and in the woman’s eyes Applejack could see the truth. For all her smiling offers and talk of benefits, this woman was as eager to fight her as Applejack was. She wanted Applejack angry. For that alone she probably should have shut off her power right then and there, not played into Platinum’s hands... but then Platinum said, “Ah, yes, your mother. Such an unfortunate event, her death, but you should be grateful we were able to rescue her soul and give her a new purpose. Most souls lose their memories of the lives they lead in the mortal world, so it’s not a surprise she doesn’t remember you, but perhaps if you come with us you could meet her.”

It was too much. Platinum casually speaking of Applejack’s mother like that, as if the whole thing wasn’t Soul Society’s fault! As if manipulating her mother to work for them was some sort of favor done out of the goodness of their hearts! And as if what she was doing right now wasn’t also just offering the same kind of shackles to Applejack and her friends! No. Applejack was done listening to this.

She had an answer for Platinum, and it came in the form of a flying, rocket boosted kick aimed straight for the arrogant woman’s jaw.

She heard Sunset and Rarity both calling out to her, one in warning, the other in shock, but she was already committed to the attack. However her boot hit nothing but empty air and she went flying by the two Soul Reaper Captains, Celestia looking shocked, and Platinum having side-stepped with such ease that Applejack had hardly registered her movement.

She tucked herself into a flip and landed on her feet, turning around to face Platinum with a growl on her lips, “You got no right talkin’ ta me ‘bout my ma, ya filthy liar!” She launched into another attack, charging at Platinum, but Celestia was suddenly in her path, holding her hands out.

“Please, Applejack, wait-”

Her anger propelled her forward, her vision misting over darkly until she only had a narrow focus in front of her. She didn't care that it was Celestia in front of her, Applejack spun into a hard kick, golden energy blazing from her foot. In a flashing motion Celestia’s hands blurred, drawing forth a pair of curved, gleaming katana; Zanpaktou. The blades caught the burst of gold energy and divided it like water parting around a solid boulder. The energy seared past several trees, knocking one over. Applejack’s boot continued on, colliding with Celestia’s Zanpaktou, and she felt her foot be stopped dead in its tracks. Celestia’s arms seemed to have titanic strength, but her eyes were no less filled with kind understanding and now genuine fear, but not of Applejack, just for Applejack.

“Please calm yourself. This won’t solve anything.”

“Get. Out. Of. My. WAY!”

Applejack kicked off from Celestia’s blades until she sailed up into the air, where she spun around and pulled back her left leg. She could see Platinum now, who had drawn a long, slender katana of her own. Applejack didn’t care, and charged up another blast of power from her leg, intent only upon wiping the smirk off that woman’s face. When she kicked out with her left leg the resulting blast of energy smashed into the ground, cratering a twenty foot wide hole where Platinum and Celestia had been standing. However neither Soul Reaper was injured, as Applejack saw both of them had vanished and reappeared on opposite sides of the crater. Applejack fell back to the ground from her leap and landed hard. As she straightened herself out Platinum vanished again, that high speed Flash Step that Applejack had seen Sunset and Clover use. At the same time she heard Celestia shout, “Captain Platinum, stop!”

In an instant Platinum was behind Applejack, and she barely had time to even turn her head to see the Soul Reaper’s Zanpaktou flashing for her back. Then in a blink of an eye Sunset was there in her spirit body, Hokori’s blade intercepting the strike meant for Applejack. At the same instant Rarity was there, transformed in her flowing crimson dress and her rapier lashing out with a crystallized red whip that extended from the tip of the blade. Platinum didn’t hesitate, Flash Stepping away to avoid the crystal whip, appearing standing in the air a good dozen or so yards away and up.

Celestia appeared in the air too, just a few paces from Platinum.

“Captain Platinum, I said stop this at once!”

“Stop what, Celestia? Stop defending myself? The young lady initiated hostilities, not I.”

“Hostilities that you provoked,” said Celestia with her eyes flashing with the first signs of real anger, “What are you trying to accomplish, Platinum?”

“I am merely following the orders I’ve been handed by Central 46,” replied Platinum with a casual shrug, “They want those girls brought under control. I was given leeway to make it a friendly offer, but I have just as much authority to change that to a matter of detaining a group of dangerous, violent vigilantes for the good of both the living world and the Soul Society. Don’t push me, Celestia. Those girls are coming with me to the Soul Society, one way or another.”

Hearing this, Applejack fumed, snarling under her breath, “I ain’t goin’ nowhere wit the likes o’ her.”

Sunset put a hand on her shoulder, glancing back at her physical body, no possessed by the gikon, Chappy. “Hey, get my body out of here, will ya?”

Chappy gave a snappy salute, “Can do. Where am I running off to?”

“Go back to Discord’s, I’ll retrieve you later,” Sunset said, and Chappy gave a swift nod before running off with impressive speed. Then Sunset turned her attention to Applejack, “We need to get to the school and find the others.”

“Oh I’d much prefer if none of you went anywhere,” said Platinum, using her free hand that wasn’t holding her Zanpaktou to point a finger into the air, “Bakudo Number Sixty One: Rikujokoro!”

Streaks of bright yellow light flashed almost instantly from Platinum’s outstretched finger to flow around Applejack, and in a fraction of a heartbeat she suddenly found herself bound by six flat planes of light that appeared to impale themselves into her body at her midsection. There was no pain, and as far as she could tell the six separate sheets of light weren’t actually penetrating her, but the energy held her fast, seemingly parlaying her whole body in place.

“What in tarnation!? Ugh! I can’t move!”

“Platinum! Release her!” said Celestia, “You have no right to bind a mortal with Kido!”

“I have every right. Not only am I following my orders within the bounds of their letter, that girl has violated the law by attacking an officer of the Gotei 13. Argue it all you want with Central 46 when we return home, Celestia, but my actions are entirely lawful,” said Platinum.

“I can’t let you do this. I warned you that I wouldn’t allow you to take these girls by force,” Celestia’s voice rang with cold warning. Platinum raised her own Zanpaktou in response.

“You would fight me? Even if you won, and that is a very large ‘if’, Celestia, you’d be committing an act of treason,” Platinum chided with a hint of actual disappointment in her tone, looking at Celestia with a bit of astonishment, “Surely it's not worth branding yourself and quite possibly your sister as traitors to Soul Society merely because you don’t like me being a bit rough with these girls. Why, the violent way the blond one attacked me just goes to show how much they need our guidance to reign them in. Imagine if she got that angry at a fellow mortal. With her power she could easily murder an innocent who merely got her ire up. And what of the others? I’ve read Clover’s reports, and the abilities these girls possess could easily be misused. One of them has the power to control and influence people’s actions, and you can’t tell me that isn’t an ability rife with potential for corruption. Or what of the girl who creates a mentally unstable clone of herself with an unhealthy appetite for literally eating anything and everything? Celestia, mortals were not meant to have such power without control, and Soul Society is meant to be that control. Standing in my way only goes to show how much your time in the living world has bent your priorities.”

“Be that as it may, I can’t let you do as you please, Captain Platinum. I believe you are abusing and twisting the spirit of your orders, and I’m willing to risk having to explain myself to the Captain Commander and Central 46 if I must, but you will not harm these girls while I remain standing.”

Platinum stared at Celestia for a few seconds, blinking in bewilderment, then merely shrugged and said, “Pity, that.”

Applejack, even if she wasn’t able to move, could still feel the air suddenly growing much colder. Sunset and Rarity also looked around, and Rarity frowned at the fact that their breaths were now rather ominously misting in the abruptly frigid air. “Oh my, this can’t be good.”

Applejack could feel the spiritual pressure flowing off of Platinum, like a boot pressing hard on her chest. By the looks on Sunset and Rarity’s faces, they felt it too. All three girls heard Platinum speak clearly in a voice like ringing crystal.

”Plummet, Fuyukogo.” (Winter Empress)

----------

When Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie arrived at Canterlot High School they found a rather bizarre array of scientific equipment arrayed around the statue with the mirror portal to Equestria, with an enthusiastic looking Twilight Sparkle looking over a chart being printed from a machine set up on a fold out table while Flash Sentry stood by the mirror itself, his hand on the portal.

“Okay, press in now,” Twilight said, adjusting some knobs on the machine with the printout. Flash did as he was bade and pushed his hand into the portal, which shimmered with white light. Twilight looked over her chart printout and nodded, “Right, that’s enough. I think with these readings I can start making some adjustments to my equipment back home- Oh! Hi everyone!”

She waved at the girls as they approached. Sunset had already given them the heads up that this was the Twilight from Equestria, so none of them mistook her identity. Rainbow Dash gave a quick wave, “S’up Twilight! And hey Flash, you not giving her a hard time are you?”

“What, me?” Flash pointed at himself, blinking, “I’d never even think of it.”

“Chillax dude, I’m just messing with you. So, either of you see AJ come this way? We’re looking for her.”

Twilight looked up in thought for a second, “No, can’t say I have, but I’ve been so immersed in studying the portal that a herd of buffalo could have stampeded by and I would have missed it.”

“She hasn’t been by,” Flash said, giving Twilight a slightly embarrassed look, “I’ve been keeping an eye out.”

Fluttershy looked downcast, “Oh, I hope she’s alright. Maybe Sunset and Rarity found her already?”

Pinkie Pie was looking around with a strange look on her face, nose twitching, “That bad feeling is getting all kinds of buzzier. I feel like all my hairs are wanting to dance off my head. I’m even getting goosebumps like its super cold out.”

“What’s going on?” asked Twilight, clearly curious, “Why are you all looking for Applejack?”

“It's kinda hard to explain Twilight,” said Rainbow Dash, not entirely sure how much of their exploits that Sunset had explained yet to the pony version of Twilight, “TLDR version is that AJ’s upset because of some things we learned today about... stuff. She stormed off, and now we’re looking for her to make sure she’s okay and doesn’t, like, wreak anything or get hurt.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide, her voice dropping an octave, “She’s that upset? About what?”

“Look Twilight, I’m super stoked you’re here and would love to play twenty questions with you, but if AJ ain’t here, it means she’s somewhere else, and we gotta vamoose.”

Fluttershy stepped up to Twilight to give her a quick hug, “We’re really glad to see you, but Rainbow Dash is right that we don’t have a lot of time to explain things. We need to find Applejack.”

“Well, Applejack is my friend too, so why don’t I help you all look for her? Flash can help too!” offered Twilight, smiling. Flash Sentry suddenly looked nervous, Rainbow Dash noticed. She quirked an eyebrow at him, but kept her focus on Twilight. She didn’t actually see a reason not to let her help. She was their friend after all.

“Shoot, why not? Let’s get going then,” she began to say, when she found Pinkie Pie abruptly grabbing her shoulder tightly, fingers almost digging painfully into Rainbow Dash’s shoulder.

“Pinks, what gives!?” she asked, but then found Pinkie Pie’s eyes wide and staring off back towards the city, her whole body shaking like a seizure. And not a amusing Pinkie seizure, but a rather frightening series of facial twitches and jerky arm and leg spasms that looked like they might very well be painful. Pinkie Pie remained standing however, breathing hard, and Fluttershy looked at her with concern blossoming on her face.

“Pinkie? Are you okay?”

“I...that... that was more than a doozy...” Pinkie Pie breathed hard, seemingly near hyperventilating, “We’re all in massive, big time, major league trouble.”

Rainbow Dash knew better than to question Pinkie Pie when her senses got triggered like that. If she said there was trouble brewing, then it was time to put their game faces on. “Okay, then we move now. We meet up with Sunset and Rarity at Whitetail. Hopefully they found AJ there, but if not we go to the farm, no more of this splitting up crap.”

:”Actually,” said a cultured voice from the sidewalk, “I would much prefer it if you young ladies didn’t go anywhere at all.”

They all turned to see Fancy Pants standing there before them, one hand resting on the hilt of his Zanpaktou, while the other rested comfortably behind his back. He gazed at them with a neutral look of unconcern, but there was a glint of hard iron in his eyes as well. “I’ve been instructed by my Captain to find you girls and explain the present situation, if you’d be so kind as to listen.”

Rainbow Dash didn’t think much of actually trusting this guy, especially with knowing that Pinkie Pie’s sense of danger was tripped just seconds before he showed up. The only time Rainbow Dash had seen Fancy Pants had been when he’d shown up to test Sunset, and she hadn’t gotten much of a feel for him besides that he was oddly cordial, kind of old fashioned in his mannerisms, and he’d been strong enough that Sunset had struggled to keep pace with him in their sparring match. Clover had seemed to respect him, but that was about as positive a thing Rainbow Dash could think of.

Oddly, out of the corner of her eye she spotted Flash Sentry, whose back had gone rigid, almost like he was standing at attention, before he seemed to remember himself and relaxed a bit, while still looking like his nervousness had been cranked up to eleven. What was up with that? Rainbow Dash focused her attention back on Fancy Pants.

“Look buddy, if you got something to say, spit it out, but we’ve got things to do. Kind of in a rush.”

“Ah, I see, well I’ll make this brief,” Fancy Pants said, clearing his throat, “I have come here with my Captain to escort you young ladies to the Soul Society. You’ve been extended an offer of partnership, and it would be our pleasure to give you a tour of our operations, so you might better decide for yourselves whether you’d like to join our ranks.”

Pinkie Pie suddenly starting shaking her head, holding herself, “Liar liar pants on fire, no matter how fancy they are. You’re not here to offer anything. I can feel it. You’re here to make us come with you, in chains if you have to.”

Fancy Pant’s eyes widened slightly, “Now where do you get such a barbaric notion? To my knowledge what I’m telling you is the complete truth. We are merely here to extend an offer, nothing...more?”

He trailed off with confusion clear in his voice as the same sense of spiking spiritual pressure washed over all of them. Rainbow Dash could feel it, like a frozen beacon of power in the distance, but so sharp and plain to feel that she realized the spiritual energy had to be gigantic and dense well and above the norm. Fluttershy shivered, and Pinkie Pie’s pupils dilated to pink pricks, her hair bristling.

“They’re in trouble,” Pinkie Pie whispered, “Our friends are in serious trouble!”

Whether it lent any credence to his words or not, Fancy Pants actually did look genuinely confused and surprised as he said, as if to himself, “I don’t understand. Why would the Captain release her Zanpaktou here?”

“I don’t care who’s releasing what or why!” shouted Rainbow Dash, clenching her fists and letting her body explode with blue, electric light, transforming then and there, her wings sprouting from her back in white, metallic glory with lightning pouring off them like water. She vaguely realized she was revealing herself right there in front of Flash, who far as she knew had no clue about any of this, but there was no time for those little details. “We’re going to help our friends, and you can either get out of the way, or get run over buddy!”

Fancy Pants regarded her, and to his credit he didn’t seem to be dismissing her as no threat, widening his stance and taking on a serious look. “I apologize, Miss Dash. I do not know what is going on, but my Captain has given me my orders and I am not to allow you to leave the school grounds. Please, do not take any rash, impulsive actions.”

“Ha, my middle name is impulsive! Now out of the way!”

With that Rainbow Dash exploded into motion, moving in an electric blue blur at Fancy Pants, fist extended to aim a punch straight for his face. Fancy Pants responded with a smooth motion that reached up with one hand to grip her wrist and redirect her blow so that he sent Rainbow Dash flipping end over end into the street. She shook herself, flipping to her feet, just as Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy both exchanged looks, and worried nods before transforming as well, Fluttershy’s eyes changing color and her third eye opening, while Pinkamena formed from a flow of pink mist to stand beside Pinkie Pie.

Pinkamena yawned loudly, displaying rows of sharp teeth, “Wow, man, I feel weird. Hey Pinks, did I try to eat you earlier or what?”

“Uh, yeah? Are you not going to do that now, please?” Pinkie Pie asked hopefully.

Pinkie Pie stretched her arms with loud popping noises, “Meh, I’m feeling a little less head fuzzy than before, and besides there’s a yummy looking Soul Reaper standing right there. Way more nutritious than you.”

Fancy Pants, taking a deep breath and drawing his Zanpaktou said, “I would prefer not o have to do this with you ladies. It is ungentlemanly, for one, and for two, I didn’t home here to harm any of you. I ask again that you peacefully stand down.”

Twilight, who hadn’t been able to see Fancy Pants from the start of all this, was just blinking in confusion, “Flash? What’s happening? Flash?” She looked over towards where Flash had been standing a few seconds ago, but he was suddenly nowhere to be seen. In the meantime Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie squared off with Fancy Pants. Off to the northwest part of the city Rainbow Dash could see what looked like dark gray clouds forming, and could feel not only that one overwhelming sense of spirit pressure, but several others now clashing with it. She knew her friends were now trapped in a fight, and she needed to get to them, and Fancy Pants was in the way.

“No can do. If you don’t want to get hurt, I suggest you back off,” she said.

“Pretty please?” Fluttershy asked, not quite using her power on him yet, perhaps hoping that conventional diplomacy would win through. Unfortunately Fancy Pants just shook his head with a sad sigh.

“I am sorry, young ladies, but I have my duty,” he raised his sword, “And duty comes before all else.”

Episode 25: Not All as it Seems

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Episode 25: Not All as it Seems

Sunset Shimmer felt the chill down to her blood, her breath fogging before her as Captain Platinum spoke with those clear ringing words.

”Plummet, Fuyukogo.” (Winter Empress)

A freezing eruption of icy mist billowed from the hilt of Platinum’s Zanpaktou, for a moment obscuring both her and the blade in a swirling cloud of white. The temperature in the air fell even further, until Sunset was reminded of the coldest of wintery nights in Canterlot. She saw frost forming on the park grass and trees. Beside her Rarity sucked in a breath and Applejack continued to struggle against the Kido spell that was binding her. It wasn’t just the temperature drop that unnerved them, it was the thick spiritual pressure washing over them. Clearly Soul Reaper Captains gained their rank for good reason.

A wave of cutting pressure sliced through the veil of swirling mist, clearing it away to reveal Captain Platinum holding her newly transformed blade. The Shikai of Fuyukogo had turned the blade from a thin katana into a thick and curved tulwar with a downward curving hilt that Platinum held easily in one hand despite the blade itself now being almost twice as long as her arm. The blade was covered in a gleaming, thin sheen of ice that almost made it look like diamond. However, the ice did not stop at the blade, but extended up Platinum’s hand and arm, forming what looked like a glittering blue gauntlet.

Platinum pointed her blade at Celestia, a coy smile on her lips, “Well? I’ve shown you mine, now you show me yours. Or do you intend to fight me handicapped, Celestia?”

Sunset saw that Celestia’s face was a marble mask now, holding her own Zanpaktou loosely at her side. However Sunset could see the tension coiled in Celestia’s body, belying her readiness to strike at any given instant. Yet for all that her voice was calm, even, and unwavering. “I’m afraid I’ll have to accept the handicap, Captain Platinum, for I cannot risk releasing my power in a populated area. Consider yourself fortunate in that regard, but I still ask you to reconsider this headstrong course of action, before it's too late.”

“If I’d intended to stand down,” said Platinum as she cocked back her arm in a striking stance, “I wouldn’t have released my blade.”

She swung in a sure swift motion, without even moving towards Celestia, and in that instant Sunset saw a flash of intense cobalt light and in an eyeblink an arc of solid, jagged ice had consumed the space where Celestia had been standing. The ice broke apart almost in the same moment and rained down on the park like a hail of spears, forcing her to move quickly, grabbing Applejack and leaping away from the destructive fall of sharp ice chunks. Rarity followed, sweeping her rapier upward and summoning a blanketing shield of red crystals to keep the plummeting ice from skewering her. The ice shards now littered the clearing like grave markers, some of them having torn right through the surrounding trees, causing several to break and fall.

Sunset looked around for any sign of Celestia, and managed to spot the woman about another hundred feet up from where she’d been, having dodged that opening attack for the most part, but Sunset could see a few ice crystals marring Celestia’s robes around the fringes. Celestia’s face was changed to something unsettling, hardened and with eyes narrowing with uncompromising yet controlled fury. Sunset had never seen that kind of look on Celestia’s face before, neither the one of this world or the one of Equestria, yet somehow the expression reminded her of the alicorn Princess of the sun.

“I’ve given you every chance, Platinum, to end this peacefully. Now you’ve left me no choice.”

Celestia simply vanished, a Flash Step that Sunset couldn’t follow, as if the woman had simply stopped existing for a fraction of a second. There was a clash like thunder and Sunset jerked her head to look at Platinum, who’d spun around, her Zanpaktou intercepting one of Celestia’s blades in a concussive clash of force. Celestia didn’t miss a beat, spinning in with her other blade, forcing Platinum back a sliding step in the air as she parried once more, though the force of the blow sent her skidding backwards with waves of pressure from her feet on the thin air. Both Captains eyed each other, then disappeared in another split second, and Sunset could only look on, eyes flicking about to try and keep up as Celestia and Platinum went into a dizzying array of blazingly fast sword strikes on each other. To Sunset it was like watching two dark, flickering blurs. Sparks rained down from each clash and it was difficult to tell who was striking and who was parrying. She could still managed to catch glimpses of Celestia or Platinum as one slowed down a bit to execute a more complex maneuver, or had their blades clash together for an instant before moving apart, but mostly her eyes were always an instant behind the two Captain’s’ movements.

“Sunset, not to interrupt the show, but perhaps it’d be wise to use this chance to be elsewhere?” said Rarity, winding her way around the field of ice spikes to join Sunset and Applejack, while Applejack continued to wiggle against the six sheets of light blinding her. Sunset looked at Applejack, biting her lip.

“AJ, can you move at all?”

“Nngggh! Grr! Can’t seem ta git my limbs ta budge wit this dang spell on me!” Applejack growled.

“Seems we can still carry you, however,” Rarity said, “Which I think we should do, post haste, and get out of here. Not to downplay the aid principal.. Captain Celestia is giving us, but I doubt we can do much to aid her at this point.”

Sunset shook her head, her mind flashing painfully back to her last sight of Adagio’s face before the Garganta portal had closed. “I’m not going anywhere. There’s been enough running away lately. If we start now, where will it end? Will we skip town? Go hide in the countryside? Flee the country entirely? If we start fleeing, it won’t ever stop, and they’ll hunt us anyway. No, I’m facing this. I’m stopping this. Now.”

Warmth burned through her, and felt Hokori’s eagerness flaring in her hand as she held up her Zanpaktou. ”Ignite, Hokori!” Flames burst forth, swirling and forming into her broadsword and shield, and the hot power of it all pushed back on the freezing chill of the air. The resonating power of her spiritual pressure alongside her Zanpaktou’s fortified her against the crushing spirit energies coming off of Platinum and Celestia, and she found she could much more easily follow their movements now.

Celestia spun in and deflected Fuyukogo upwards, while thrusting forward with her her other blade, catching a bit of Platinum’s robes in a shallow cut as the other Captain backed up a step, holding the icy tulwar in front of her and running a hand along the back of the blade like a gentle caress. A pillar of frost formed next to her, twice the size of a person, then from the surface of that pillar dozens upon dozens of swords of ice broke free and then started flashing at Celestia in a continuous torrent. Celestia moved with swift grace, blades flashing before her to deflect the thick barrage of arctic projectiles. The distraction was enough to allow Platinum to Flash Step above Celestia, raising Fuyukogo above her head and then slamming it down like she was stabbing the ground. From the tip of the sword a torrential blizzard of swirling ice fell towards Celestia, who was still being forced to block the ice blades flying towards her... until Sunset appeared in the path of those blades, shield raised to catch the incoming sword shaped shards of ice.

The impacts hurt, as the blades were flying with remarkable force, but Sunset held firm, freeing up Celestia to raise a hand towards the oncoming rush of blizzard-like ice from above and say, “Hado Number Fifty Four: Haien!”

A oblong wave of bright fire exploded from Celestia’s upraised hand and impacted the falling ice in a steaming burst. A moment later hot rain fell to the ground and Celestia cast a quick glance at Sunset as her shield caught the last of the incoming ice blades. “You should have fled, Sunset. I wanted to buy you time.”

“Forget it,” Sunset said, “I’m through running, least of all from Soul Society, which has a lot of explaining to do to me and my friends. Soon as we defeat this arrogant woman, we’re going to get this sorted out.”

“Sorted out? If you’d simply agreed to come with me from the start then all would have been well,” Platinum said. Above her dark clouds began to form, like a localized storm, and if anything the temperature plummeted even further. “You would have had your answers. Instead you wanted to do this the hard way.”

Sunset managed a devilish grin at Platinum, “You’ll find out that’s how I prefer it.”

“Have it your way, then,” Platinum said and in an eyeblink Flash Stepped to appear crouched in front of Sunset, right inside her guard. Sunset spun, Flash Stepping as well, putting distance between herself and Platinum, but the Captain had anticipated that move and instead of attacking with her blade, she unleashed a blast of ice. Sunset slashed hard with Hokori’s blade, unleashing the fire stored within. Cold and heat clashed, and Sunset saw shards of ice break through her flames and spear towards her. She raised her shield to block, feeling the hard impacts on the thick kite of metal.

So her ice is strong enough to get through my basic fire. I need to charge up even more, then, she realized. It wasn’t simply a matter of the fire being hot enough to melt the ice. Sunset could feel Platinum’s spiritual energy infusing every piece of ice she created with her Zanapktou, so Sunset needed not only hot enough fire to melt the ice, but enough of her spirit energy in the fire to counter Platinum’s. Which given how potent Platinum’s spirit energy was, Sunset wasn’t sure she could pull that off.

But she didn’t have to. She just had to press Platinum hard enough, for just as moment or two, to give Celestia an opening.

The moment the last piece of ice shattered against her shield Sunset burst forward, charging Platinum with a heavy horizontal slash. Platinum’s freezing tulwar intercepted Hokori, and there was a flash of steam as the heated, flame shrouded broadsword pressed against the ice coated curved tulwar, and Sunset could feel the spirits of both Zanpaktou roaring at one another, as if the flame based Zanpaktou and ice based Zanpaktou couldn’t help but want to clash.

‘Ho ho! Not entirely shabby, Sunset Shimmer. My Fuyukogo seems to like your little blade. What was her name again?”

“Hokori!” Sunset snarled, trying to bash forward with her shield at Platinum’s smugly smiling face, but Platinum was simply too fast, zipping out of the way of the shield. Celestia moved in now, trying to catch Platinum off balance, but to the credit of the Sixth Division’s Captain, she was no easy target. Celestia came in like a whirling dervish, spinning with both blades slashing, and Sunset came in from Platinum’s other side, thrusting with Hokori, but Platinum moved with fluid speed. Her Zanpaktou was a blue, cold haze as it swept right, left, and right again, parrying the attacks coming her way, and each parry let out a blast of icy shards from Fuyukogo’s edge, forcing Sunset and Celestia back.

“This is almost unfair, really. Celestia can’t use her true abilities, and my other opponent is a half-trained human.” Platinum scoffed and began to advance, only to have to dodge aside as a spike of red crystal, thin as a lamp post, shot up past her from the ground. Down below Rarity stood from having stabbed her rapier into the ground to summon the tall, then spike of crystal.

“I would much appreciate it if you didn’t act as if I wasn’t here. If Sunset is fighting you, then I too am one of your opponent's, madame.”

Platinum raised an eyebrow, then held her sword up in a brief salute, “Quite right. How rude of me to dismiss you, Miss Rarity. Allow me to fix that.”

Then, displaying speed that Sunset hadn’t yet witnessed and made her realized Platinum had largely been holding back up until that point, the Soul Reaper instantaneously vanished from above her and Celestia and appeared in a sonic burst of force right behind Rarity, blade poised to strike. Sunset didn’t even have time to shout out a warning, and Celestia, while Flash Stepping to try and intercept the blow, was just a sliver of a step too slow.

Platinum’s tulwar rammed through the back of Rarity’s shoulder, blood splashing across the frosted park grass.

Next to them, Applejack’s eyes went wide with fear and outrage. “Rarity!”

Celestia appeared next to Platinum, her own twin swords moving to strike, but Platinum simply said, “Move and she dies.” Those words stopped Celestia in her tracks, blades held at the ready, but not moving. Rarity, for her part, was standing stock still, staring at the sword puncturing her shoulder in shock. The blade had gone right through her dress, which she knew was hard as steel armor, but Fuyukogo had cut through it like paper. The pain only hit her through the shock a moment later, causing Rarity to grit her teeth in agony.

Sunset landed on the ground just a few paces away, eyes fixed on Platinum with glowing fury. “Let her go.”

“Certainly, but only after you surrender to my custody,” said Platinum, “And before any of you more ignorant of my Zanpaktou’s abilities decide to try anything, my beautiful Fuyukogo can flash freeze anything she’s penetrated,” she raised two slim fingers and snapped them, “Just like that. So if you don’t wish Miss Rarity here to have an even more pale complexion than she already has, I suggest putting away your weapons.”

Celestia’s face was stone still, her voice disturbingly calm, “You wouldn’t dare kill any of these girls. To kill a living human is against everything we stand for as Soul Reapers. Even you can’t be that delusional, Platinum.”

“Oh, and what have we been doing with the Quincy all these years, playing parcheesi?” Platinum quipped with a small, scoffing laugh, “We crossed that line a long time ago Celestia, and it’s long past time we stop tip-toeing around what must be done to bring the war with Quincy and Hollow alike to a final and victorious end. Do I want to kill any of these fine young ladies? No, of course not. Will I do so if I deem it necessary to serve Soul Society? Most assuredly. Now, drop your weapons,” A trail of frost began to form at the base of the wound where Fuyukogo pierced Rarity’s shoulder, “Before it's too late.”

----------

In the tense standoff between Fancy Pants and the girls who’d gone to Canterlot High, it was Fluttershy who actually made the first move. She stepped towards the rigid looking Soul Reaper, holding up one of her hands as all three of her eyes focused upon him. Her voice carried a steady strength to it, though her faint trembling hand belied how nervous she was.

“Let us pass, please.”

Fancy Pants immediately reacted by taking a staggering step backwards, feeling the tendrils of the girl’s reiatsu pressing against his own spiritual energy, burrowing into it like worms. Though disoriented, and feeling a sudden compulsion to just let the girls go as Fluttershy asked, Fancy Pants was a Soul Reaper with centuries of experience and honed spiritual energy, not a young unstable Hollow. He recognized the command as an unnatural compulsion, and fortified his mind and soul against it, pointed his blade at her.

“My apologies, Miss Fluttershy, but I shant be controlled so easily. Instead let me ask you, please, do not force my hand. I don’t have any wish to harm any of you.”

Fluttershy gulped, but held her stance firmly, “And we have no wish to hurt you either, but we must go help our friends if they're in trouble. Now. Move.”

The power flowing from her redoubled, and Fancy Pants felt it like a hammerblow on his soul. He’d been briefed on what to expect from these girls’ Fullbring powers, yet he was surprised by just how much strength was pouring off of all three of them. It took all of his willpower and pushing back with his own not inconsiderable spiritual pressure to keep Fluttershy’s command from forcing his obedience right then and there. Perhaps Captain Platinum was right, that these girls were too dangerous to allow to do as they pleased. He’d be lying if he said he fully supported the idea of interfering with the lives of living humans. It seemed to him an act of dubious honor. Yet it couldn’t be denied these young women had power, and were not old enough or experienced enough to be fully trusted to use those powers without causing harm.

The Quincy had needed to be dealt with for essentially the same reasons. Still, it left a foul taste in Fancy Pants’ mouth to point his sword at humans, and children at that. Yet what choice did he have? His Captain was already engaged in battle, if his senses were telling him anything about the clashing reiatsu deeper in the city. He was duty bound to his orders and his Captain. A Soul Reaper without duty was hardly a Soul Reaper.

“I am sorry, Miss Fluttershy,” he said past clenched teeth, still having trouble keeping his will his own under the assault of Fluttershy’s mental powers. He needed to deal with her first. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie’s abilities were solely physical and simple enough to deal with, but if he let Fluttershy continue to assault his mind then things would turn dire quickly. He pushed with his spirit energy, enacting a swift Flash Step to appear behind Fluttershy. For all the impressive nature of her power to control another’s will, her reaction speed was still very much human. All he had to do was a quick pommel strike to the back of the head, precisely controlled, to knock her uncon-

A flash of lightning force him to dodge aside, Rainbow Dash’s fist passing so closely by his face that he felt the static electrical charge singing him as she went by. Unlike Fluttershy it seemed Rainbow Dash’s Fullbring did fully enhance her reflexes and speed, for she turned on a dime, wings flaring, and came right at Fancy Pants again, fists lashing out with bursts of lightning with each punch. He ducked and bobbed aside, reminded of his many practice bouts in unarmed techniques with Captain Luna before she’d been sent to the human world on this assignment to observe the portal at Canterlot High.

Diving beneath one lashing fist from Rainbow Dash, he turned his Zanpaktou so that he could strike with the flat end of the blade and aimed a swing at her exposed midriff. She wheeled away, swinging down with one of her wings, using it like a weapon to parry his blade, and he had to admire the swift, graceful movements of the prismatic haired girl. He didn’t have long to admire her, however, for a pink colored demon came in from behind him, all weirdly and grotesquely extended limbs covered in serrated, horrific teeth.

Pinkamena attacked like a wild, ravenous animal, the unnatural looking doppelganger whipping her arms like the tentacles of a beast from some aquatic horror. Fancy Pants rapidly side stepped the first few blows, swinging with his blade to cut aside another tentacle that nearly got close enough to his face that he could see the teeth snapping in front of his eyes. And still Fluttershy’s power continued to attack him on a spiritual level, the girls eyes never leaving him.

“Surrender. Surrender. Surrender.” Fluttershy kept repeating, each word feeling like a physical hit on his soul, filling his mind with thoughts of simply lowering his sword and giving up. Fancy Pants breathed deep and focused all his willpower and batting aside these internal attacks, which unfortunately slowed his physical reflexes and he winced in pain as one of Pinkamena’s sweeping arm tendrils took a bite out of his forearm, the wretched teeth tearing a bloody wound.

“Heheheheeeee!” Pinkamena cackled, pressing her attack, “Yummy yummy Soul Reaper blood in my tummy! Give me more! More!”

“Mena, chill! We only wanna stop him, not tear him apart like a pinata!”

“But that’s how you get the nummy candies inside!”

Fancy Pants knew he needed to shut down Fluttershy quickly, and Flash Stepped away from Pinkamena, heading straight up into the air. These girls hadn’t yet demonstrated knowing how to use their Fullbring to step on the air like a Soul Reaper did with their reiatsu, though Dash had wings and could fly. It seemed going up might at least keep Pinkamena off him for a moment, and when he appeared about fifty feet in the air above the street he turned his attention to Fluttershy and raised his free hand towards her, index finger pointed.

There was a small flash of pale blue light, a small yet precisely controlled bit of spirit energy that then flew out in a relatively weak yet tightly controlled burst of physical force that struck Fluttershy right in the chest, knocking the breath out of her and sending her flying back a few paces to hit hard on the ground. Fancy Pants frowned, not enjoying using any amount of force against such a young lady, but he’d needed to break her focus on him, and Sho, the lowest level of Hado Kido spell was ideal for the purpose. It was so simple he hadn’t even needed to chant the Hado’s name to use it. Few Soul Reapers ever bothered as it was such a basic, weak spell that it was useless for most situations outside of basic Kido practice, but Fluttershy lacked the toughness or speed of her companions, so such a low level spell was ideal for shutting her down briefly without doing any real damage.

She wasn’t unconscious or out of the fight, but the hit had broken her concentration on him, allowing Fancy Pants to refocus his full attention on the only opponent that could take him in the air; Rainbow Dash.

As he expected Rainbow Dash had followed him up, flying high on electrically charged wings, and was already in his face by the time he’d finished hitting Fluttershy with Sho. Rainbow Dash opened up with a spinning kick, quickly followed by a slashing dive with one of her sharp wings. Fancy Pants rolled aside from the kick but had to use his Zanpaktou to block the wing, which turned out to be problematic given a powerful shock of lightning hit him through the contact with his blade on the wing, sending arcs of pain through his body. Still, he was a veteran of countless battles and the pain didn’t dull his focus, and he pressed in on Rainbow Dash, slashing a shallow cut along her shoulder that caused the girl to grit her own teeth in pain. He pressed his attack, slashing again and again, now forcing Rainbow Dash to go on the defensive as she darted around through the air to avoid his swift attacks. He was impressed. If anything he’d expected Sunset Shimmer to be the only one to develop speed to match a Lieutenant like himself, but Rainbow Dash was keeping pace with him.

It made him consider that she might be worthy of him releasing his Zanpaktou, but... no, not yet. His only task was to keep the girls here, and that didn’t require serious measures yet. He increased the tempo of his attacks, weaving through Rainbow Dash’s guard and anticipating her frantic dodges, catching another shadow cut on the girl’s arm. Then she caught him completely off guard by recklessly reversing her attempts to dodge and bursting forward, ramming him with her shoulder with enough force to knock him to the ground.

“And stay down!” Rainbow Dash shouted, raising her hands and pooling a swirling orb of lighting there that she then fastballed like she was a star pitcher at the big game, sending the orb hurtling down at Fancy Pants, who just barely flipped to his feet and Flash Stepped away from the blast of electricity that singed the ground he’d been laying on a second ago.

Pinkamena, a frustrated growl on her lips, sprung towards him like a pouncing lion, now that he was back on ground level. She opened her mouth like some vast, predatory whale as she dove towards him. Fancy Pants side stepped, slashing, catching Pinkamena with a cut along the jawline that hardly slowed her down as she chomped down on the street right next to him, chewing out a huge chunk of dirt and concrete that she then proceeded to spit at him like a vomitous projectile.

He raised a finger, chanting, “Hado Number Four: Byakurai!”

Golden lightning blasted out from his finger, shattering the spat out chunk of street, but Pinkamena had ducked the Kido spell and now attacked viciously with her morphed arms, biting mouths gnashing at Fancy Pants. He cut the tip off of one morphed arm, causing Pinkamena to growl in pain, and he quickly dodged the other, only to have to twirl about to meet the charge of Rainbow Dash as she rocketed down upon him. Her fists, charged with lighting, clashed with his blade and the electricity coursed through him, lighting his whole body up.

“Ugh, just give up already old dude!” said Rainbow Dash, pushing against his blade, “We got bigger fish to fry!”

Fancy Pants, jaw clenched against the pain, pushed off from Rainbow Dash and Flash Stepped quickly to gain some distance, landing in the middle of the street about twenty paces away from the girls. He took a deep breath, using one hand to dust himself off as he composed himself.

“I shall admit to finding myself in the wrong. I had assumed your victories up until now to be a combination of fluke and Sunset Shimmer doing most of the work. I can see now your abilities are not to be underestimated. I shall now correct this oversight and give you the respect you deserve.”

He inverted his grip on his Zanpaktou and held it before him, blade pointed downward. ”Keep thy promise, Seiyaku.” (Oath Bound)

However, before he could finish speaking the release command he heard another voice shout out, “Bakudo Number NIne, Horin!”

An intense rope of flaming orange and yellow spiraling energy snapped around him, binding Fancy Pants arms to his sides. Then another rope came in and bound his legs, holding him as tightly as a giant, crushing hand. He turned outraged eyes towards the entrance to the school, where he saw to his ire that the energy ropes were held in the left hand of a familiar individual.

“Lieutenant Cheerilee, what do you think you’re doing?” he asked with a glare.

He had not seen the Lieutenant of the Second Division for quite some time, yet she looked much as he remembered. Deep magenta skin, a rosy two toned head of well curled hair, and intense green eyes. She was clearly out of her gigai, her spirit body clad in the same black Soul Reaper robes he wore, with her squad officer’s badge of wood and white sash tied to her left arm. Her Zanpaktou was still sheathed at her side, but her hands held the ends of the glowing chains of the binding Kido spell she’d cast on him, and her face was one of stern displeasure.

“Lieutenant Fancy Pants, I understand it might have been awhile since you came to the world of the living, but I’m fairly certain you can’t have forgotten the laws against attacking innocent humans.”

“Laws that become void when one is attacked first and must act in self defense,” Fancy Pants replied simply, “Not to mention these young ladies are not exactly normal, by human standards.”

“Doesn’t mean you or your Captain have the right to come here and try pushing them around by force,” said another voice, Flash Sentry’s, as he appeared next to Cheerilee, also in his spirit body now, bearing the badge for the Thirteenth Division on his arm.

By now Rainbow Dash was standing by, tense and poised to strike, but not ready to pummel an opponent who was currently unable to fight back. Fluttershy had caught her breath and gotten back to her feet and was now looking around in faint confusion. Pinkamena looked ready to just start taking bites out of Fancy Pants, but Pinkie Pie put a hand on the doppelganger's shoulder and shook her head, much to Pinkamena’s snorting dismay.

As for Twilight Sparkle, the whole affair had transpired so quickly she’d been left standing there in total bafflement, until now where she blinked away her confusion and said, “Okay, what just happened? Are there Hollows or Soul Reapers around? I can’t see what you girls are fighting?”

Rainbow Dash blinked, “Oh, right, guess you don’t got that freaky spirit sight we’ve got. Huh, I wonder why not? You’re a magical horse just like Sunset. You sure you can’t sense anything?”

Twilight just shook her head, “I have no idea who you’re fighting. Um, is the fight over? You’re not punching anything anymore. And where did Flash go? He was just here!”

Flash looked at Rainbow Dash and quickly waved his hand under his chin with a rapid shake of his head, “Exnay on the revealay!”

Rainbow Dash just gave him a look and Flash broke out in a sweat, “Please? Seriously Dash, I know it's gotta be weird seeing me and Cheerilee like this, but we don’t need additional complications right now. I’ll, uh, I’ll tell her everything later, when things’ve calmed down.”

With a ragged sigh Rainbow Dash put a hand to her face and said, “Fine, but you’d better do it soon. She’s not dumb. She’ll figure it out.”

“Figure what out?” Twilight asked suspiciously, and Flash looked like he was close to having a conniption. Cheerilee rolled her eyes and put a steadying hand on his shoulder.

“Relax, Lieutenant. We have bigger concerns on our plate at the moment,” she said, eyes narrowing at Fancy Pants and tightening the grip her other hand had on the Kido chains, “I know you can break this Kido, Fancy, if you really want to. The question is; will you?”

Fancy Pants turned his head to slowly regard those around him, the three humans with extraordinary powers they were only just starting to come into yet had pressed him hard enough to actually decide to release his Zanpaktou, his two fellow Soul Reapers who looked ready and willing to draw their own blades against him if he continued, and one very confused looking girl who was in actuality a pony princess from another dimension. He could still feel his Captain’s spiritual pressure in the distance, clashing with the spirit pressures of others. In his heart he had to admit he suspected Captain Platinum might resort to force to bring the Substitute Soul Reaper and her five Fullbringer friends into Soul Society, if they refused the offer. He had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but the writing had been on the wall ever since news of Clover’s encounter with these girls had reached Soul Society weeks ago.

Gossip had turned to more serious talks, and the Soul Reapers had been split into two general camps; those that thought the girls should be left alone, and those that thought they should be brought to heel, one way or another. Fancy Pants tried to avoid such jabber-jawing, considering himself too much of a gentleman to waste time on gossip. His only concern was fulfilling his duty, to his Captain and to Soul Society as a whole. Unfortunately the situation had become muddled and he was no longer certain fulfilling one duty also coincided with fulfilling the other. Was his Captain out of line? He didn’t know. He was unaware of the circumstances that had led her to release her Zanpaktou and fight with Celestia. For all he knew Captain Platinum’s actions were completely justified. Only she knew the exact content of her orders. He’d only been told they were to give the girls an offer, nothing more.

His standing orders were to keep the girls here at the school, but he was also no fool. Five on one was terrible odds, even for a man of his talents. Cheerilee was correct, her Kido had taken him off guard and interrupted his Zanpaktou release, but he had the strength to break free. Not all Lieutenants were created equal, and he knew that compared to Flash or Cheerilee he was stronger, but perhaps not so much to take both of them at the same time. Certainly not while dealing with Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie’s aggressive doppelganger.

“It would seem,” he said at last, with as much dignity as he could muster, “That I shall be taking discretion as the better part of valor this day, Lieutenant Cheerilee. I yield.”

“Awww man!” Rainbow Dash kicked the ground, “And I was totally getting into it, too. I could’ve taken you.”

Fancy Pants managed a polite smile, even inclining his head in a small bow, “Perhaps, perhaps not. You will have to wait for another day to find out for sure, Miss Dash.”

“Okay could somepony please tell me what’s going on!?” Twilight asked in a burst of exasperation.

“No time, Twi,” said Rainbow Dash, already taking to the air, “The rest of the girls are in trouble and we gotta go help them.”

Pinkie Pie shuddered a bit, one ear twitching, “Yeah, and I’ve got a nasty bad vibe that Rarity’s in a real bad way right now! We need to hurry!”

Twilight took a deep breath and nodded, “Okay, count me in. Let’s go. Uhh... where are we going?”

Fancy Pants saw Rainbow Dash look off to the north, as did the other girls. He wasn’t surprised to see their spiritual senses could pick up on the high spirit pressures of two Captains battling it out. They’d have to be practically blind, spiritual speaking, to not sense where the fight was taking place.

“This way. I’m flying ahead. You guys can catch up.”

With that she zipped off, cutting a blue streak across the skyline. Fancy Pants had to wonder just how many humans were going to witness her flying over the suburbs, but at this point with his Captain fighting inside the limits of a human population zone there was going to be a large stir to quell in the human media already. The cleanup was going to be a mess. He could just imagine the issues it’d cause back in Soul Society. It sparked a thought of suspicion in his mind, as it almost seemed like his Captain’s assignment here had been meant to stir up trouble.

Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle hesitated a moment before following Rainbow Dash, as Cheerilee and Flash Sentry approached Fancy Pants. Cheerilee looked to the girls with an apologetic look on her face.

“I imagine seeing me and Flash like this comes as a surprise,” she said, “But your friend is right, there isn’t time for explanations. You should follow her, and let us worry about keeping Lieutenant Fancy Pants here tied up.”

Pinkie Pie gave a quick salute, “Okie Dokie Loki, we’ll let you guys play bondage with Mr. Monocle, oh and we’ll totally not tell Twilight that Flash-”

Flash Sentry took full advantage of his Soul Reaper speed with a Flash Step in front of Pinkie Pie to put a hand over her mouth, “Shhh! C’mon Pinkie! I know you know better than that!”

“Mmmph?” Pinkie Pie batted her eyes innocently.

Twilight just blinked “Wait... not tell me what about Flash?”

----------

Seconds dripped by like bits of cold water from an icicle. Rarity was feeling the pain in her shoulder like a roar of equal parts fire and ice. She’d never known such raw agony, and it stole her breath, which at least meant she wasn’t screaming like she wanted to. It was nauseating to see the foot long length of blade sticking from the front of her shoulder, coated red with blood, her blood.

Behind her, that despicable woman coughed politely, “I’m not seeing any Zanpaktou hitting the ground, so I can only assume you’re willing to forfeit Miss Rarity’s life?”

Celestia looked like she was chewing steel, her eyes reflecting a light of pure outrage as she took a step back, held her hands out to her sides, and dropped her swords. Her voice was colder than the blade piercing Rarity. “You have crossed a line, Platinum. I swear to you that upon our return to Soul Society I will see you answer for this.”

“Strange, I was thinking similar thoughts of you, my dear Celestia.” Platinum’s eyes flicked over to Sunset. “Now you. Sword and shield on the ground.”

“Don’t, Sunset,” Rarity said past a scream that wanted to boil past her throat, “You don’t know what she’ll do once you’re disarmed!”

“True,” Platinum admitted, “But is your friend willing to take that bet with your life?”

“Ya conniving, ugh, wretched, gah, little harlot!” Applejack was shouting. Her boots burst with energy, trying to push against the Kido spell binding her in place, but still couldn’t get her body to move an inch.

Rarity grimaced, feeling close to passing out, “Applejack, darling, not helping, but the sentiments are indeed shared.”

Sunset had remained silent, her eyes locked on Platinum's the entire time, her body rigid and tense as a wound up spring. She hadn’t dropped her weapon or shield. If anything her hands clenched tighter around them. Rarity felt a chill washing through her, a bit of ice growing further from around the wound in her shoulder.

“Well?” said Platinum, “What will it be?”

Sunset’s eyes narrowed, “You’re bluffing.”

Platinum’s tone dropped an octave past sub-zero, “Am I now?”

“If you wanted any of us dead you would have killed her the second Celestia dropped her Zanpaktou. Celestia is the only one here that can beat you in a stand up fight,” Sunset said with a slow, reasoning voice, “So the only reason you wouldn’t have immediately frozen Rarity and attacked Celestia is because you’re buffing. You either won’t, or can’t, kill us. It goes too far past your orders, doesn't it?”

Platinum’s eyes flickered with a hint of... approval? She then chuckled lightly, “Talented and intelligent. You’ll be a great asset to Soul Society once you’ve learned your place.”

In an instant the sword pulled free of Rarity’s shoulder and she found herself slumping to the ground. In that same moment Platinum vanished with a high speed Flash Step, right towards Celestia, who’d moved to scoop up her dropped swords. On even footing the two Captains were well matched, as Rarity had seen, but with Celestia in an awkward position, having to kneel down to grab her swords, she was just off balance enough for it to make a deadly difference. In a blinding blur of movement both women struck, but when Platinum appeared a dozen yards behind Celestia, slowly turning around, it was Celestia’s body that suddenly gained a deep, ragged cut of crimson across the chest, blood spraying through the air.

Celestia grunted in pain, face screwing up, but even as blood started to soak her robes she kept her feet, turning to face Platinum on unsteady legs. She threw herself forward, still moving with the speed of a Flash Step despite her fresh wound, but when her blades came in at Platinum from opposite sides the other Captain had an easy time just moving out of the way with speed the wounded Celestia now couldn’t match. Platinum would have scored another hit upon Celestia had Rarity, even on the ground and wounded, not acted in tandem with Sunset, who was rushing at Platinum’s back.

The moment Rarity had hit the ground, she’d focused all her effort and power on her blood, coating the ground. She’d sent spikes of crystal summoned from her blood into the frozen ground, drilled towards Platinum like burrowed snakes, and then sent them bursting upwards in a burst of crimson crystal spears right at Platinum’s feet. The Soul Reaper Captain’s reaction time was as extraordinary as ever, aborting her attack on Celestia to throw herself backwards from the crystal spears, but that just put her right in line for Sunset’s attack, who thrust her sword at Platinum at point blank range and unleashed a blast of fiery force.

A flash of light and steam billowed forth from the point of impact, and for a second Rarity thought Sunset might have scored a telling blow against Platinum... but she sensed the increase of spiritual pressure from the Captain that crushed down on all present. The steam flowed away to reveal a conical shield of ice that had interposed itself between Platinum and Sunset at the point of impact, and while that shield cracked and fell away, Platinum was left unscathed. Her Zanpaktou flicked out in a blinding motion, and though Sunset swung her shield to try to block the blow, she only partially succeeded, deflecting the icy blade just enough to avoid a deep cut, but still taking a nasty, shallow cut on her brow that started to pour blood into her eyes.

Desperation gnawed at Rarity sharper than any of the pain she was feeling. She couldn’t stand being so unable to lend aid to her friends. Sunset and Celestia were now both wounded, and could be moments from being overpowered by Platinum. Applejack was bound tightly despite her best efforts to break free. And Rarity was badly wounded, could feel herself becoming cold and numb as her lifeblood painted the ground, and it didn’t seem like there was anything more she could give to help those she cared for. Yet she still tried. She could see her rapier laying on the ground next to her, and her blood coated hand, trembling, reached out to grip it. With all of her might, Rarity tried to stand. Using her rapier as a crutch she forced herself to one knee, determined to throw whatever last flicker of strength she had at her foe.

Sunset too wasn’t backing down. Even with blood half blinding her she charged in at Platinum, form flickering with rapid Flash Steps as she sent a dizzying pattern of sword slashes at the Captain. Each time Hokori sliced in towards Platinum the elegant Soul Reaper parried with blinding speed, the flames of Hokori licking at the cold pouring off of Fuyukogo, more steam filling the park from the clash of flame and frost. Yet Platinum looked as if she was no longer trying, a toying smile on her lips.

Now standing on shaking legs, Rarity staggered a step forward, all of her willpower focused past her pain as she raised her rapier and prepared to make one last, desperate lunge to aid her friend.

Only to find a blue hand clamp down on her wrist, not painfully, but somehow both firm and gentle.

“That is enough, Rarity,” said Luna’s voice, filled with equal parts compassion and respect as the woman stood next to her, one hand on Rarity’s wrist, while her other held aloft a great, dark scythe, “Allow me to take over, if you would?”

For a second all activity in the park froze. Sunset and Platinum broke off their clash, and Celestia stood, holding her wound, and managed a small smile at the arrival of her sister.

“You’re late, Lulu...” Celestia said with a tone of mock chiding. Luna rolled her eyes.

“And you’re being sloppy, Tia. Allowing this trollop to injure you? If you’d just released your sword she couldn’t have even scratched you.”

Celestia just shook her head, “You know I couldn’t. Not in a city. Never again...”

Luna nodded with a faint, sad air, “Yes, the cross you insist on bearing. No matter, I went to look over the other girls, and thought I might need to intervene on their behalf against Lieutenant Fancy Pants, but it seems our own Lieutenants had that matter in hand, so I came back here as fast as I could. My apologies for taking so long... now...” she raised her one scythe at Platinum, while letting go of Rarity with her other hand and reaching out, where the other scythe sprung up from her own shadow to land in her waiting palm.

“I, unlike my sister, have no compunctions about using my full power to crush upstart, arrogant individuals who break the peace. Captain Platinum, I do hope you either have the foresight to withdraw immediately from this city, or the courage to face me in battle and give me the excuse I need to vent my wrath...” the shadows around Luna dimmed and it seemed all the light in the park started to get sucked away as Luna’s voice turned into a deadly purr, “For I am in a very bad mood.”

Rarity could barely remain standing, and with Luna’s spiritual pressure being added to everything else it was hard to even breath normally. Still, she felt fairly elated for a girl with a hole in her shoulder. For the moment she got an idea in her head and focused a bit of her remaining power on her dress and the wound, encouraging the red material to repair itself and bind around the wound like a bandage, adding a padding of red crystal like a patch. It actually seemed to work, and Rarity felt the flow of blood cease from the injury. Good, at least she wouldn’t bleed to death, then.

Meanwhile Platinum faced off between Luna on one side, Celestia on the other, and Sunset still in front of her. The woman laughed dryly, running a hand through her long purple locks of hair. “Even on your best day, Captain Luna, you’re an overly dramatic soul. As I already told your sister, all you're doing by resisting me is making your position in Soul Society worse. I am fulfilling lawful orders handed down by Central 46. What justification do you have to obstruct that?”

“You’ve broken several provisions yourself by causing potentially deadly harm to living humans, endangering the citizens of this city by engaging in unauthorized battle with a fellow Captain, and really beyond all that I don’t really care if its an order from Central 46, or if it even came from the Spirit Palace itself... you will not take these girls against their will while Celestia and I still draw breath. Now, what shall it be? Withdrawal? Or battle?” Luna’s voice resonated with resolve and her scythes remained poised. Platinum looked contemplative, and entirely too relaxed to Rarity’s eyes. It was almost as if the woman had expected all this to happen and was just playing out the script she’d intended.

“I see. Well, with my Lieutenant bound up by your own Lieutenants I suppose it’d be recklessly endangering him to continue a battle you and Celestia seem determined to fight until one of you ends up dead. Of course you may end up that way regardless, given obstruction of orders from Central 46 could be very serious charges. If I do withdraw, it will only be on the condition that you and Captain Celestia return with me to Soul Society. It will be up to the law to determine which of us was in the right, this day.”

Luna looked ready to argue, or even attack Platinum right then and there, but Celestia, despite the grievous wound on her chest, stood tall and stepped forward, “We accept your terms, Captain Platinum. You will withdraw, leaving these girls here in the world of the living, and I and Captain Luna shall return with you to Soul Society...” her eyes narrowed, “And there we shall indeed see that justice is done.”

“Ya can’t be serious!?” Applejack shouted, still struggling against the binding Kido on her, “Celestia, are ya darn daft!? If ya got half a brain in yer head ya oughta know ya won’t find no ‘justice’ in yer Soul Society!”

Celestia sighed deeply, smiling sadly at Applejack, “I know you have no reason to have any faith in us Soul Reapers after the horrible things you’ve learned, Applejack, but please, trust me... there are good people there who understand the differences between right and wrong. For all the-” she eyes Platinum, “Misguided souls there, I believe that Soul Society remains a place of harmony.”

Platinum raised a thin eyebrow at Celestia, “Strange sentiments, coming from one who has spent centuries doing nothing but question the wisdom of the governing body duly elected into power. All you’ve done, Celestia, since obtaining your rank as Captain, is cause disharmony among our ranks. I’ll look forward to finally seeing you brought to task for it.”

----------

Clover didn't know what to make of the situation. To say she felt unsure of herself would've been the understatement of the century. She couldn't remember feeling more off balance and less certain of things. Altogether life was usually fairly ordered and predictable, day to day, for a Soul Reaper, and for Clover that had been very much the case. She'd adapted to and rolled with the unexpected events of the past few weeks, encountering Sunset and the girls. She never suspected things could spiral so quickly out of control. The massive battle against the Hollows, quickly followed by this unnerving situation where Captains of the Soul Society had come to blows... it just left Clover feeling stunned and adrift.

It probably didn't help that she was still recovering from having a hole punched in her chest by Quincy arrow.

"You're lucky to be alive," Meadowbrook told her, "I must convey my thanks to that Fluttershy girl for doing such a good job of tending to you." He paused, pursing his lips, "Discord too, I suppose."

He was helping her stay standing as they watched the proceedings taking place in the courtyard outside Discord's hidden, back corner shop. Captains Platinum, Celestia, and Luna were standing across from Lieutenants Fancy Pants, Cheerilee and Flash Sentry in a loose group. Not far away Discord observed them closely, leaning on his walking cane, face set in a deadpan expression of pure neutrality. Behind him the girls Clover had come to know and think of as friends were gathered. Rarity was being looked after by Fluttershy and Screwloose, the former using her unique Fullbring powers while the later used more conventional healing methods. There'd been some talk of actually taking Rarity to a hospital, but Discord assured the worried girls that Rarity's wound, while bad, could be taken care off by the medicines he had in his shop. Given Clover had just experienced the effectiveness of those medicines she could vouch that Rarity would make a full recovery. There were other injuries as well, most notably the nasty cut on Sunset's brow and the painful looking wound Captain Celestia had taken across the chest, both which Captain Luna had applied healing Kido to and bandaged up. The only reason Luna wasn't presently assisting Rarity was because Captain Platinum insisted on departing as soon as a few loose ends were tied up.

"I would prefer to bring all witnesses with us back home," said Platinum, "But I suppose we can't leave the city without a Soul Reaper presence, can we?"

Celestia shook her head, "No, we cannot. My and my sister's Lieutenants will continue to guard the school and its portal, and provide security to the city. Third Seat Clover will also remain here until her wounds recover more, assuming Lieutenant Meadowbrook has no objections?"

"I came to make sure she was okay, and now that I have I don't have any qualms with her remaining here as a liaison between us and Mr. Discord here," Meadowbrook said, "As it stands I believe I can make a thorough enough report for the both of us."

Platinum nodded curtly, "Very well." She gave the human girls a long, measuring look "Then for the moment our business here is done. Regardless of the way our unfortunate encounter turned out keep in mind the offer to cooperate with Soul Society shall remain open, if you happen to come around to a more... rational disposition."

Applejack, who had a look of pure stubborn, mulish anger etched onto her face crossed her arms under her beasts and spat, "Don't git yer hopes up. I'd sooner stick my boot up yer pompous rear than give ya my 'cooperation'."

Rainbow Dash, who hadn't ceased her transformation since the fight with Fancy Pants, spread her wings and let arcs of electricity crackle over them, "What she said. Scram, and feel free to let the door smack you on the way out."

"You haven't exactly made the best first impression on us," said Sunset with heated, glaring eyes, "So if there ever is going to be anything resembling cooperation between us and Soul Society, its not going to come easy. Or at all."

While Clover entirely understood the reasons for their words, she couldn't stop a sense of hurt at them. After all, Soul Society was her home, and she'd always considered herself a loyal member of the Gotei 13. While she knew certain members like Platinum could be... difficult to deal with, there were also good people among the Soul Reaper ranks. Clover, despite learning of some of Soul Society's dirtier secrets like Hitsuyo Aku, still believed the Soul Society was a force for good, with a noble and worthy mission to protect humanity. A part of her had sorely looked forward to the notion that one day she might be able to work with Sunset and the others as full fledged allies of Soul Society, even take them there and show them around. And it hurt to see the kind of mistrust and anger she saw now in their eyes, directed towards Captain Platinum not without just cause, but still... did they think similar things about her?

Captain Platinum, for her part, brushed off the girls words and smiled thinly, "Well, perhaps in due time you'll learn to feel differently. Now, Captain Celestia, Captain Luna, Lieutenant Fancy Pants, let us go."

"Just one moment," Celestia said, turning around to face the girls, and despite the grimace of pain on her face, she bowed nearly to be perpendicular to her waist, head down in humble display to them, "Please, accept my sincere apologies for all that has happened this day, and in the past. I know you all have good reason to bear grudge towards us, but I swear to you on my honor as a Captain of the Gotei 13 and as one who has watched all of you grow into fine young women this past year of trials... I will do all in my power to try to set things right. Please, until then, be patient, and do not forget that you have friends in Soul Society."

Applejack looked like she was chewing on rocks, and blew out a long sigh with the weight of a boulder, but said, "Git yer head up, principal Celestia. I ain't gonna have ya bustin' open yer wounds 'cause yer tryin' ta apologize fer somethin' that ain't yer fault."

Celestia rose, true regret pouring off her features, "Do you wish me to convey any message to your mother? The changes to her memory were only concerning her time in Xcution. I do not know if her transition through death caused loss of memory, as that is often the case, but she may well remember her family. I cannot say for certain because I have never spoken at length with her or inquired as to her memories of life. It is... considered inappropriate, normally. But if you wish, I will find out if she remembers her life and her family, and bring her any message you desire."

Applejack gulped, hands clenching tensely, "Just... just tell her the family's stickin' together. Apples to the core."

Celestia nodded, and then looked to Discord, "You have my thanks for looking after them this long, Discord. Could you continue to do so, while I try to clean things up back home?"

Discord raised a hand and tipped and invisible capt towards her, "I'll do what i can, but they're their mother's daughters, and if some of them want nothing more to do with me, I can't force them. I'll try to keep things from exploding on this end. But..." his eyes narrowed, "Be careful Celestia. Cleaning house in Soul Society may not be as simple as just trusting in the truth."

Celestia frowned, and then sighed, "I suppose not. Farewell, Discord."

"Yes, indeed, farewell," Platinum said, putting a cold emphasis on the last word as she turned to create a Senkaimon gate. Her Zanpaktou seemed to dip into water, even though it was thin air, and with a ripple of energy the gateway appeared, a wide set of sliding paper doors that opened up with a outpouring of brilliant white light. Several black and red tinged butterflies flew out, Clover sighing a bit at the sight of the Hell Butterflies, guides and messengers of the spirit realm Soul Society made its home in.

Meadowbrook squeezed her shoulder, "You alright to stand on your own?"

It seemed to Clover almost like he wasn't asking about her injury. She nodded at him, voice steady, "I'll be alright. Safe journey, and please, let the Captain know I'll do my best to recover quickly and return to my duties."

He smiled, almost conspiratorial, it seemed, "Don't be in too much of a rush. Take your time, really."

Then he too joined the other Soul Reapers returning the Soul Society. Platinum went through first, followed by Celestia and Luna. Fancy Pants and Meadowbrook were the last through, Fancy Pants turning briefly to bow to those gathered, and it seemed to Clover to give Rainbow Dash a somehow meaningful look, to which Rainbow Dash responded with a sparking look of her own. What was that about, Clover wondered? Then a moment later the Senkaimon gate closed.

Flash Sentry let out a huge sigh, "Man, I thought Platinum would never bloody well leave!"

Cheerilee glanced at him sidelong, "We're not out of the woods yet, kid. Our Captains are in serious hot water right now, and we've got to keep an eye on the whole city without them around for a bit."

Discord cleared his throat, "Well consider me at your disposal for any assistance the two of you need in that regard. My shop is always open."

Cheerilee laughed lightly, "Sure, we'll keep you in mind for anything we might need, but for now I think I need me and my lovestruck friend here to get back to the school before that poor pony girl has some kind of episode over learning the truth."

Flash blanched, "That is going to be a long and difficult conversation. Oh geeze, Twilight didn't look happy at all when we left. She's gotta hate me by now."

"Now now, don't be down," Cheerilee said, patting his shoulder, "She'll get over it. Just be honest. And then barrage her with apology flowers."

"Does that work?"

"No, but I'll find it hilarious to watch."

Sunset Shimmer shook her head, "Still having a hard time buying you two are actually Soul Reapers." She winked at Flash, "Had me fooled, at least."

"Ain't sure I find it so funny," said Applejack, narrowing her eyes at Flash and Cheerilee, "Any other of you folk hidden in our school, or 'round the city we oughta know 'bout?"

Cheerilee shook her head, "It was just Flash, the Captains, and myself. Believe it or not it isn't easy to forge identities for Soul Reapers to take up positions in the human world, so we try not to do it in large numbers. Now, I do hope I'll see you girls back in class come Monday, but I'll understand if perhaps you have to... skip some days, too. I can prepare some make up classes for later on, if you all need a break from coming to school."

"We'll think about it," said Sunset, and glanced at Flash, "Uh, tell Twilight we'll catch up with her soon enough, but we've got to rest up here for today, I think."

"I will, you all..." Flash scratched the back of his head, "Well, take care, and sorry about having to hide things. C'mon Cheerilee, let's get this over with before I lose my nerve."

With that those two departed as well, leaving Clover to look towards the girls, wondering what they'd do next. Most of them looked lost and adrift as well, as if they were equally unsure of their next move... until Sunset drew up a determined look on her face and said to Discord, "Hey, I'm going to make a guess, but you noticed just how off all of this was, right?"

Off? What did she mean by that? Clover's mental gears began to turn while Discord returned Sunset's knowing look and nodded solemnly, "Off would be a mild way of putting it. I fear Celestia and Luna may well be walking into a trap."

"Waitwhat!?" Rainbow Dash spun around, and the other girls all equally looked at the shopkeeper with equal surprise and dismay.

"W-what kind of trap?" Fluttershy asked, eyes wide.

"An' why n' tarnation didn't ya warn 'em ya dang bearded goat!?" shouted Applejack.

"If I said anything to overt then it would have tipped off Platinum that I suspected something was up," said Discord with a deep frown, "As it was I tried to hint to Celestia as best I could to be wary, and I know Luna is smart and perhaps more importantly paranoid enough to not need such warning. Besides, it wouldn't have stopped either from going. Not with their sense of honor and duty. On top of that I'm not entirely certain Captain Platinum is the sole one involved in whatever manipulations are occurring. She could just be a patsy. However it is clear to me that you girls were not the real targets of Platinum's expedition here. Celestia and Luna were."

Rarity, wincing in pain, raised her head, "I can't deny that makes sense to me. I wondered myself why it was that Platinum stood down so easily once Celestia offered to return to Soul Society with her."

Discord nodded direly, "Precisely. I know Platinum. She is the sort to never yield unless she already has what she wants. If she'd truly been here to get you girls to go back to Soul Society she would not have stopped fighting until each and every one of you was hog-tied and dragged back there. No, she was here to get Celestia and Luna to return to Soul Society. Perhaps, too, to stir up trouble here, but that would have been a secondary objective."

Clover just stood there, flabbergasted, "But... but why? If Captains Celestia and Luna were desired back home then couldn't the Captain Commander just issue an order to recall them?"

"Obviously whoever wanted Celestia and Luna back wasn't interested in this occurring through proper channels. In fact I suspect the whole point was to cause both Celestia and Luna to return under suspicion of treason," said Discord, and Clover felt her heart grow cold.

"T-treason? That's impossible! Sure they may have broken a few basic protocols by engaging Captain Platinum, but so did Captain Platinum! She'd be under just as much suspicion! And treason is far and above beyond what really happened!" Clover realized, however, that by the draconian laws of Soul Society it wasn't truly impossible for things to be spun in such a manner in a hearing with Central 46. The cold feeling inside her only increased. "Certainly the other Captains would never allow things to get to that point. Celestia and Luna are well respected. Charges of treason... it can't happen. Can it?"

The look she got from Discord was not a comforting one, and Sunset chimed in with, "If it did, it begs another question; why? Who would want Celestia and Luna charged with treason? Wouldn't losing two Captains only weaken Soul Society, in a time where you guys are poised in a precarious balance of power with two other factions that want nothing more than to destroy it?"

"Someone who wants to destroy Soul Society, would be my guess," said Discord, "Or failing that, someone who wants to disrupt the balance of power for all of the spiritual factions in this war."

He stroked his beard, eyes fierce with thought. "There isn't much time. If things are not as they seem and there is someone, or a group of someones, manipulating events behind the scenes, then it won't be long before the situation turns from bad to worse. Celestia and Luna may have been the real targets today, but there's no doubt in my mind you girls are also in the sights of these unknown forces as well. I don't think its coincidence that the Hollows started targeting you girls so swiftly after you gained your abilities..."

Discord turned to Applejack, who stiffened and glared at his look. "Miss Applejack, I know you can't trust or forgive me yet, and I am not asking you to. What I am asking is that you help your friends and yourself by tolerating my presence for the time it will take for me to do all I can to strengthen you girls in the short time we have to do so before the proverbial fertilizer hits the ceiling fan. More so than it already has."

Applejack stared at him for a good long moment, eyes harder than an oak tree. She then stepped up to him, green eyes glaring up into his yellow on red ones. The punch was swift and brutal, and straight to the solar plexus. Discord made a rough 'oof!' and doubled over, coughing. Then Applejack blew out a relieved breath, tipped her hat to him, and said, "Sure, I'll tolerate ya, long as ya deal wit us straight an' no more lies. Just had ta git that outta my system, first."

Discord, still coughing, made a small thumbs-up gesture, "Fair enough... ugh... why don't you girls go rest inside and I'll... gah, I'll catch my breath and then we'll discuss our next move."

"Sounds good ta me," said Applejack, and without another word or glance back at Discord walked inside the shop.

Episode 26: Crossroads

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Episode 26: Crossroads

Sunset didn’t want to sit down, but one hard glance from Fluttershy was enough to have her gingerly parking her rear on the couch opposite the one Rarity had been lain down on. While the cut across her brow stung like a small line of fire, Sunset knew Rarity had to be in far greater pain. That wound to the shoulder was no joking matter, even with the healing support of Fluttershy’s power and Discord’s impressive medicines.

One by one her other friends shuffled to spots around the lounge, the spot Sunset was starting to think of as the main room of the living area behind the front of Discord’s shop. It seemed to be where they defaulted to going when it was time to talk, though most of her friends had a haggard, tired look about them. Not surprising, giving all that had happened. As everyone took seats, Discord remained standing, recovered from the sucker punch Applejack had given him and looking distinctly grave.

“Sooooo,” Pinkie Pie began, after a few moments awkward silence, “What’re we doing? Staring contest? Quiet game? I’m terrible at the second one, but a total champ at the first. Only person I can’t beat is Maudie.”

Applejack made a noise somewhere between a groan and a snort, “Yer nuttier than a basket full o’ woodchucks, Pinkie. After the day we’ve all had yer still crackin’ jokes?”

“S’what I do,” Pinkie said, smiling, “Seriously, what are we doing? My heads all fuzzy and buzzy and I can’t think real straight right now. Waaay too much stuff bouncing around upstairs,” she pointed at her head.

“It's a good question,” Sunset said quietly, leaning back in the couch, letting its cushy warmth embrace her. A part of her sorely wanted to just drift off and sleep for the next week straight, but she knew she couldn’t afford it. They might not have been certain of what to do next, but it was clear that resting on their laurels wasn’t going to be it. Celestia and Luna had been revealed as Soul Reapers, along with one of Canterlot High's top teachers, Cheerilee, and a student that all of them had considered a friend, Flash Sentry. How many more people might be Soul Reapers in disguise. Sunset frowned, and turned her attention to one more person who’d entered the room. Clover.

“Did you know? About the other Soul Reapers?”

All eyes turned to Clover, and she looked for a moment like the proverbial doe in the headlights, but managed to compose herself. She met their eyes each in turn, saying, “I did. Captains Celestia and Luna had been assigned to this city years ago, when we first discovered the portal to Equestria. Its not an uncommon practice, to have one or two Soul Reapers take up positions like that, but usually its reserved for larger population centers that need a more steady Soul Reaper presence to handle the flow of souls. However it's rarely a Captain, let alone two Captains along with their Lieutenants. The portal is that important.”

“Why didn’t you tell us about them?” asked Rainbow Dash, “I mean, it's cool and all that they chipped in on our side, but I don’t get the point of keeping it secret from us if you guys were on our side from the get go.”

Clover met Rainbow Dash’s questioning gaze, “It wasn’t in my authority to reveal the cover of fellow Soul Reapers, but please understand the intention of such cover identities is to protect the humans we watch over. No harm was intended in the deception, it’s just part of normal operating procedures. I’m certain Captains Celestia and Luna are genuine in their desire to help you, and certainly Lieutenants Cheerilee and Flash Sentry never did anything to harm you either.”

Pinkie Pie giggled slightly, “Heehee, it was kinda funny how dorky Flash was acting about it. Is he always like that, even when he’s being all Soul Reapery?”

“I don’t really know Thirteenth Division’s Lieutenant on a personal level,” Clover replied, blinking at Pinkie Pie.

“Don’t sit right wit me very well,” Applejack groused, tapping a foot, “All the masks and lies. Good intentions or not, the moment they figured out we was involved in this hot mess of a’ war, if Celestia and Luna really wanted ta help us, they should’ve come right out wit the truth from day one!”

“I’m sorry, Applejack,” Clover said, shoulders slumping, “All I can say is that we weren’t trying to harm you. My task was to watch over you girls and help Sunset train herself in her new abilities so she could control them without harming herself or others. I had no idea that Soul Society would send someone like Captain Platinum to try and force you to come with her like you were a bunch of common criminals.”

A shuddered passed through Clover, and Sunset could see she was struggling with her next words, “I never imagined Soul Society capable of something like what happened to your mothers. I want nothing more than to find a way to make things right with all of you. I understand if right now trusting the words of any Soul Reaper is difficult, but all I can say is that I consider you my friends Whatever happens between you and Soul Society, that fact won’t change.”

Despite the fact that the sudden rise made her head swim, Sunset stood and went over to Clover, placing a firm, comforting grip on the other girl's’ shoulder. “Hey, I can’t speak for everyone, but far as I’m concerned you and I are solid. Just because you’re part of Soul Society doesn’t mean you’re responsible for everything it’s done. For goodness sake I’m not dumb enough to assume that even most people in Soul Society were even aware of things like Xcution. I’ll admit it’s hard to believe that two principals I’ve trusted for years, a teacher I respect, and a guy I dated for a bit are also Soul Reapers. Kind of miffed, sure, that they didn’t tell us. But I can deal.”

She glanced back at her friends, “I think we all can deal. Right?”

Fluttershy smiled gently, “I just want everyone to get along.”

“I still think it's more funny than weird,” said Pinkie Pie.

Rainbow Dash shrugged, “I’m going to rib the crap outta them all when I get the chance, just to even the score. I mean, c’mon, its not cool that they were awesome sword-swinging death gods and held out on us for years. Sheesh. But am I gonna go flip out over it? Meh. We’ve got bigger tuna on the grill, like when are we going to go kick Gorgar’s butt and save Adagio?”

Applejack looked up at the ceiling for a moment and closed her eyes with a deep sigh, “Feel like my sense o’ right wit the world has been beaten black n’ blue. Thing is, I ain’t got ‘nough anger in me ta spread it ‘round ta everyone I feel like I oughta be mad at! I’m tryin’ ta tolerate Discord fer now, an’ can barely git my head wrapped around the folk at our school bein’ in on this whole Soul Reaper nonsense! Personally I’m gonna be keepin’ one close eye on Flash n’ Miss Cheerilee, just in case they decide ta stop bein’ on our side an’ it’d be better ta go full Platinum on us.”

“Snrk!” Pinkie Pie snorted, “Full Platinum. I like it.”

Sunset glanced at Rarity. “Rarity? Got anything to add?”

“...Blarg...” Rarity said, “My apologies ladies, I am far too tired and too stabbed to have a clear head for this conversation.”

Fluttershy worriedly stroked Rarity’s head, “It's okay, get some rest.”

Heading back to her chair to sink back into the comfortable cushions, doing her best to ignore the dizziness that came with the movement, Sunset said, “Which brings us full circle back to the original question; what now? Dash brings up a good point. We’ve got unfinished business with Grogar. Before this mess with Platinum I figured we were going to work on plans to get Adagio’s soul out of Hueco Mundo. On top of that there’s this other issue that someone out there has been manipulating the situation with Soul Society and that Celestia and Luna are walking face first into some kind of trap. Discord? Care to elaborate?”

As if he’d been waiting for just that moment, Discord strode across the room, stroking his beard the entire time. Click-clack went his clogs, until he reached the far wall, where he turned and began to pace the width of the room. As he did so he spoke, not looking at the girls, or Clover, or anyone. He looked off at nothing, red and yellow eyes staring intently at things only he could see.

“We find ourselves at a crossroads, my dear ladies. I’ve made mistakes and I cannot expect your full trust, yet I remain one of the few people in a position to help you. It is aid I give freely, with no more obligation to do me any favors. At any time any of you wish to walk, you may. I’ll even use whatever resources and influence I have left to ensure you and your family are protected.”

Click-clack, click-clack, the clogs tapped away on the floorboards as he paced, faster and faster.

“For those of you that choose to stay we face enemies on three fronts; Soul Society, the Hollows, and the Quincy. All three are aware of your powers, all three have reasons to seek you out in order to either eliminate or control you. Let us address Soul Society first. Celestia and Luna are likely to face a political trap, back home. Captain Platinum was sent to retrieve them, I’m near sure of it, and while I don’t know who or why, I can safely say that whatever happens won’t bode well for any of us if things proceed unchallenged. It may take weeks, or a month, as Soul Society’s bureaucracy is slow even when manipulated from the shadows. We have time before things reach critical mass there.”

“And just what is ‘critical mass’ going to look like? What’s our worst case scenario?” asked Sunset.

“Worst case? Our dear, favorite Captains will be charged with treason and executed, which in turn would severely weaken Soul Society and make it vulnerable to a direct assault from either the Hollows or Quincy.”

Clover shook her head, speaking quickly, “I just can’t see such an extreme situation occurring! Charging two Captains with treason and then having them executed? Nothing like that has ever happened in all of Soul Society’s history! The other Captains would never allow it, even if it was ordered by Central 46! It’d lead to civil war...”

“It may at that,” said Discord smoothly, but without mirth, or slowing his pacing. “I wouldn’t underestimate the level of corruption that may have taken hold of Central 46, and if Captain Platinum has been placed in someone’s pocket its not a stretch to think other Captains may be similarly compromised.”

“Hold up a sec,” said Sunset, “I think we need a bit more context here, for those of us who haven’t spent centuries in this Soul Society place. What is Central 46 and why does it have so much power to just hand out orders like that? I thought you guys had a ‘Captain Commander’ or something who was in charge?”

“Clover, would you like to field this one?” asked Discord.

“S-sure, but can I sit down first?” Clover said, swaying a bit on her feet. Fluttershy was almost instantly at her side, helping the Soul Reaper onto the couch next to Sunset. “Sorry, just starting to feel light headed is all.”

“You shouldn’t push yourself. You’re still wounded,” said Fluttershy, looking around with dismay at her injured friends. Clover gave her a small smile of thanks before putting on a more serious look, the lecturing look that Sunset had gotten used to while training with her.

“Now, Central 46 is the chamber of forty six individuals who are chosen to act as the central ruling body of Soul Society. It consists of forty ‘wise men’ who are elected leaders from communities all over Soul Society, including the four noble houses. The remaining six are judges whose task it is to actually proclaim judgments over the violation of laws within Soul Society, while the entire group of forty six debate policy and how such policies should be enacted. Central 46 has the authority to issue orders to the Thirteen Court Guard Divisions, or ‘Gotei 13’, which the Captain Commander must do all in his or her power to enact. However the Captain Commander can challenge and even overturn orders from Central 46 as long as they have the support of at least half of the remaining twelve Captains. This has... rarely ever happened, usually because Central 46’s orders have almost never gone against the general grain of what is best for Soul Society.”

“Right, so it's these guys that ordered Platinum to come here and bring us back to Soul Society, only we’re suspecting the real aim was to get Celestia and Luna to return with them to face some kind of manufactured set of charges,” said Sunset.

“Not manufactured,” said Clover with a sour look, “Unfortunately it is true that Celestia and Luna obstructed the mission of a fellow Captain, which could be construed as serious charges. Granted they both had just cause to interfere, but if what Discord says is true and someone is manipulating Central 46 from behind the scenes, then in any hearing it's very likely that Captains Celestia and Luna will find it difficult to convince Central 46 that they were in the right. However I still find it hard to believe it could go to charges of treason. Insubordination, perhaps, or dereliction of duty, but flat out treason... the Captain Commander would challenge such a ruling.”

“Which would lead to an increase in the tensions already thick in Soul Society,” said Discord, “No doubt distracting them from other threats. Ultimately the issue we face is that if things are left as they are it's only a matter of time before Soul Society descends into chaos.”

“Okay, but what do we do about it, huh!?” asked Rainbow Dash, frustration etched all over her features, “I don’t get all this complicated political stuff. So who do we punch to make things right again?”

“An auspicious choice of words, Miss Dash, as punching is exactly what I had in mind,” said Discord, to which many of the girls gave him incredulous looks, and Clover all but looked horrified.

“What are you suggesting?” asked Sunset.

Discord’s pacing abruptly stopped and he spun to face them, leaning on his cane with both hands clasped atop it, “I suspect our hidden manipulator is expecting us to remain here and lick our wounds. It would allow them to enact their plan and weaken Soul Society, likely by creating a split in loyalties between those who would seek to free Celestia and Luna from imprisonment and those that would support Central 46’s corrupt judgment. Sadly I doubt we can stop that chain of events from occurring... however what we can do is, when the split occurs, we launch our own support of the faction seeking to free Celestia and Luna. We come in on the side of the ‘good guys’ and see to it that any conflict is resolved quickly and with a minimum of damage done to Soul Society as a whole. At the same time we might also just unroot the ringleader behind the corruption of Central 46 and expose whatever real traitors are hidden among the Gotei 13’s ranks. If all goes well all of Soul Society will come through relatively unscathed, not to mention owing you girls a rather substantial debt of gratitude that you can then call in to gain assistance in tackling Hueco Mundo and rescuing your wayward siren friend.”

For a moment the sheer enormity of what Discord was proposing hit all the girls at once and they exchanged uneasy looks. However Rainbow Dash was the first to pound her fists together, an eager light entering her eyes as she grinned, “Hey, for once I actually understand the words coming out of your mouth. When things go screwy in Soul Society we show up, help the good Soul Reapers kick some righteous butt, and then after everyone sees how awesome we are they’ll owe us big time for helping them clean out the jerks hiding among them.”

“That’s the size of it, Miss Dash,” Discord said.

“B-but can we really do that?” Fluttershy asked with wide eyes, “Won’t that mean fighting a lot of powerful Soul Reapers, whoever decides to support Central 46?”

“An’ ain’t that just makin’ the civil war worse an’ leavin’ Soul Society even more open ta attack from the Hollows or Quincy?” put in Applejack, brow creased deeply.

“To your concern, Miss Applejack, I’m afraid it's likely impossible to avoid infighting among the Soul Reaper ranks. However if we move swiftly, in the right way, we can end things before it causes too much damage. I don’t expect everything to go according to plan,” Discord’s face twisted in a wry grin, “Its the nature of such chaos to throw well ordered plans into disarray. However with effort, luck, and a little controlled chaos I think we can save Soul Society from itself.”

He looked to Fluttershy, “As to your concern, its a well founded one Miss Fluttershy. I have no doubt all of you felt the power of Captain Platinum, yesterday. For Miss Rarity, Miss Shimmer, and Miss Applejack you all faced her directly. I don’t think I need to explain that as you are now you’d be no match for a Soul Reaper Captain, for as powerful as Platinum is, she isn’t the strongest Captain among the Gotei 13. Even the Lieutenants could prove dangerous opponents for you girls, as you are now.”

“Hey!” said Rainbow Dash heatedly, “We had that Fancy Pants guy on the ropes before Flash and Miss Cheerilee stepped in!”

“Did you now? Did he release his Zanpaktou?” asked Discord plainly, and Rainbow Dash grunted, crossing her arms and looking stubborn.

“Well... no. I mean he was about to, but got interrupted. I still say we still could’ve taken him.”

“Perhaps, but my point is that you haven’t truly faced a high ranking Soul Reaper officer at their full power. Even if you can match many seated officers, including Lieutenants, on level ground, it doesn’t change that a Captain would be beyond all of you combined. Not only are they potent without releasing their Zanpaktou, every Captain with the exception of one has the second stage of a Zanpaktou’s release; Bankai.”

He looked squarely at Sunset now, “You felt the power of Fuyukogo’s Shikai release. Remember that, and understand that a Bankai has easily five to ten times the power of a Shikai.”

Sunset sucked in a breath. Clover had told her a bit about Bankai already, but she hadn’t really understood what that meant until she had the frame of reference facing Platinum in battle gave her. The bottom line was that Sunset, despite her best efforts, hadn’t been able to touch Platinum. Her spiritual pressure had been nothing short of overwhelming. And she hadn’t even been going all out. It was a sobering thought.

“Right, so you’ve made your point that we’re not match for Captains, but your plan means we’d have to go in and fight against them in order to clean up Soul Society. I’m going to assume you’ve got a way to make this less suicidal?” Sunset said, leaning forward.

“As a matter of fact, I do,” said Discord, tone turning deathly serious, “However I need each of you girls, you included Clover, to understand the danger involved. While I was still a Captain of the Twelfth Division I had a number of side projects. Among those projects was developing new... experimental training methods. Methods designed to vastly increase the rate at which individuals might grow in spiritual power. Most of the methods were developed with Soul Reapers in mind, but during the time I was managing Xcution I also developed methods to accommodate Fullbringers. Your mothers used these methods. Its part of what allowed them to complete their Fullbrings in such a short span of time.”

“Sweet!” said Rainbow Dash, cracking her knuckles, “So we can use these super training techniques to get even more awesome!”

“Ideally. Your Fullbrings are only in their infancy, but the training should allow you to push them to the next level, if not outright complete them. As for the two of you, Sunset Shimmer, Clover... I intend to take personal charge of your training, and see how far I can push you both.”

“M-me!?” Clover said, blinking.

“Yes, you. Did you intend to sit on the sidelines during all of this?” asked Discord, to which Clover drew back, still looking stunned, but also reflective. She stammered.

“I...I suppose I can’t, can I? I’ve sworn to serve Soul Society, and if there really is a threat hiding in the shadows, manipulating the highest echelons of authority, then it’s my duty to see the threat ended. I just... this is hard to take in. You’re talking about outright treason, in many ways. Planning an assault upon fellow Soul Reapers, engaging them in open battle.”

“Clover, by the time we go there chances are Soul Society will already be poised for such fighting. All we’ll be doing is bringing the fight to an end faster, so Soul Society can survive,” said Discord, “But if you have any doubts, now is the time to voice them.”

Clover was quiet for a long time, and Sunset reached out to grab her hand, giving it a tight squeeze, which Clover returned gently. At last the girl shook her head and gave a helpless, small laugh, “Heh, I wouldn’t have conceived of doing something this reckless and crazy, but I suppose you girls have rubbed off on me. Count me in.”

“Excellent, now for the bad news,” Discord said.

“Oh, here it comes,” said Pinkie Pie, pointing at her left foot, “I had a twitchy toe that told me you had a catch incoming.”

“Indeed. The catch, as you say Miss Pie, is this; the training for all of its phenomenal potential carries with it grave risk. It is intensive and pushes your souls well beyond their conventional limits.” Discord's eyes took on a dark cast, a cold and serious sheen that made Sunset feel distinctly uncomfortable. “Make no mistake, dear ladies, that this training could prove fatal. If you falter, if you hold back, if you stumble even slightly you could suffer permanent damage to your souls. Do not take this lightly. If you accept to train under me using these methods, you can gain great power in a short time frame, but the risk involved in real and I can’t guarantee you’ll come through it unscathed.”

With a weak laugh Rarity said, “Ha! Because we’re quite safe from harm as we are now.” She winced, pale features twisting in pain as she used her one good arm to point towards her heavily bandaged shoulder. Her blue eyes shone with a passionate gleam that Sunset sometimes saw when Rarity was focused upon a creative goal. “Mr. Discord, it has been made painfully clear to me that if we are to survive the attentions of the likes of Grogar and Platinum that we cannot afford to be idle. Our lives, and those of our families, will remain at risk until we have the strength needed to take on all comers.”

She turned her head until she could meet Discord’s eyes, and said, “If your training can give us that strength, then I see no alternative course. I will not sit and wait for the next threat to rear its head and threaten those I care about. I will do all that I must, including risking my life, to defend what I hold dear. I would think each of my friends feels the same way.”

Sunset found herself grinning from ear to ear, “I couldn’t have said it better, Rarity.”

Even Applejack’s expression had softened and a smile graced her features as she tipped her hat, “Ain’t got nothin’ I can say ta object ta them apples. I might have some serious misgivings ‘bout Soul Society, but I’m likin’ the idea o’ bootin’ out whoever’s rotted it to the core an’ lettin’ some more decent folk a shot at runnin’ the show, an’ it does mean we gotta step up our game ta pull that off. What’s a bit more risk?”

“Heck yeah! We’ve already faced life or death stuff, so we can take some more, right girls?” said Rainbow Dash, pumping a fist eagerly, “I say bring on the super training!”

Pinkie Pie grinned at Fluttershy and gave her a playful punch on the shoulder, “C’mon Flutters, lets see some enthusiasm! It’ll be just like camp, only with more risk of bodily harm!”

Fluttershy laughed nervously, ‘Well, I suppose it's something we have to do, if we’re going to keep everyone safe.”

Sunset turned to Discord, smiling, “Sounds like it's unanimous. When do we start and how much time do we have?”

“I’d estimate we have a week at the soonest before things get out of hand in Soul Society, maybe two,” said Discord, “I’ll send one of my associates into Soul Society to keep watch on things and inform us when matters reach the point of no return. Until then we will spend all the available time we can training, starting tomorrow so that you have time to recover from your injuries. Rarity will need almost all my attention to have that shoulder in shape by tomorrow.”

“Then we train?”

Discord’s eyes all but glowed as he smiled thinly, “Like you’ve never trained before.”

----------

Twilight Sparkle had not known what to expect, exactly, once she’d agreed to make her joining of the Quincy cause ‘official’, at least as far as her family was concerned. Shining Armor and Cadence may have trained her on a personal level in the basics of Quincy abilities, but that told her nothing of what to expect from the rest of Quincy society or what would be expected of her. For the moment all that had happened was travel; a lot of travel. The very same day she’d spoken with her father and made her decisions to join the Quincy the entire family had packed up and along with Cadence and Fleur De Lis they had driven to a private airfield about twenty miles outside the city. From there they’d boarded a small jet liner of a configuration Twilight didn’t recognize, and seemed to travel far faster than she could have imagined across the country, then over the Atlantic. In four hours.

Guessing based off her general knowledge of world geography they crossed over the ocean and landed somewhere in northeast Europe. Somewhere in Germany or Poland, she estimated. The jet landed at an airfield that was nestled inside a large forest of tall deciduous trees, seemingly far from any major metropolitan area. During the flight over she’d been seated between her father and mother like sentinels, while Shining Armor and Cadence seated further ahead, while Fleur had remained in the back. Twilight Velvet’s injury had kept her moving slowly both in boarding and disembarking, but the older woman seemed determined not to show weakness, even when her husband had offered her an arm to lean on.

Conversation had been sparse on the way over, despite Twilight having many questions about where they were going and what was expected of her when they got there. Most of her questions had been answered tersely, her father explaining, “Until you’ve finished with your meeting with His Majesty we are only allowed to say so much. He specifically requested to meet with you while you were... free of any biases that too much information coming from us might create.”

A pair of limousines met them at the airfield. Fleur De Lis, Shining Armor, and Cadence went into one, while Twilight's parents steered her towards the other. The men and women driving the vehicles wore slick white uniforms, and carried themselves like soldiers more than simply hired help. Upon the side doors of the limousines was the five pointed cross of the Quincy.

“Where are we, exactly?” Twilight asked once the cars were moving along streets that twisted and wound their way through the thick forest, curving around steep hills. She thought she saw, off to her right through the treeline, the glimmer of a vast lake.

“North Germany,” Night Light replied, “This land has been owned by the Vandenreich for generations, and was part of His Majesty's original territory centuries ago. There’s a thick blanket of secrecy concerning the Quincy, and as far as anyone from the outside looking in is concerned the land is owned by a corporate conglomerate called Crosstech Industries.”

Twilight blinked. As a girl who spent ninety percent of her time studying up on the latest in scientific pursuits, Crosstech Industries was a name she knew well. The were at the very top of a short list of international companies responsible for some of the latest technological developments ranging from aerospace mechanics to pharmaceuticals and genetics. There wasn’t a single pool of scientific research and technology that the company didn’t have its fingers dipped in, and aside from a few entrepreneurs in America there wasn’t anyone who competed with Crosstech in terms of financial influence, worldwide.

“Is this where our family’s money comes from?” she asked quietly.

“Part of it. Crosstech controls a number of subsidiaries,” Velvet said, face still tight with the pain of her slowly recovering injury, “We hold stock in some of the American based subsidiaries, which generates a portion of the family wealth, while also supporting the Quincy. A practice built from generation to generation, solidified by alliances of marriage between Quincy bloodlines that each seek to control different businesses across the world.”

Nepotism, thy name is Quincy, “So, we’re basically super powered Illuminati?”

“Oh please,” said Velvet, “Let us not delve into conspiracy theory, daughter. Strictly speaking we don’t control the world. Merely a sizeable portion of its wealth. We don’t care about controlling government and politics, only in destroying the Hollows and breaking Soul Reaper control of the afterlife.”

“Although,” Night Light added, “There has been some talk in certain circles among us Quincy as to what should be done when the war is finally won and the Hollows and Soul Reapers defeated. Some of that talk is that we should start placing people in positions of political power, to better steer humanity as a whole towards a better future. Personally I’m not certain that’s possible, and ultimately it's all up to His Majesty to decide.”

“W-what is he like?” Twilight asked, “How should I talk to him? What does he even want to see me for?”

Her parents exchanged glances, worried ones, if Twilight was gauging their expressions right. Night Light turned to her, eyes tense, as he said, “We’ve already said more than we should. His Majesty is His Majesty. Nothing we can say can prepare you for speaking with him. Only know that you are our daughter and the Quincy blood runs strong in your veins. Follow your gut instincts, and be... polite. His Majesty can be... moody.”

Moody? She was about to meet with one of the most powerful men in the world, and the best her father could tell her was that he was ‘moody’? Twilight’s confidence was not boosted and she found herself staring out the limo’s windows nervously as they drove on. Before long the road went up and over a hill, the other side of which being a space where the forest opened up into a vast cleared area of well tended grass along the west shore of a huge, gleaming blue lake. Along the shore of that lake was... welll... a palace.

And not any kind of modern definition of the term, but rather something that looked as if it had been ripped straight from the cover of a high fantasy novel and made real. Brilliant white stone built a vast foundation with high walls and ramparts, marked by fluttering banners bearing the five pointed Quincy cross. The castle itself was built in the same pattern, with five wings spreading out from a multi-tiered central body, each of which had several smaller towers and spires spearing upwards into the sky. Yet all of this built up to a single, huge central tower that reached higher still, perhaps two hundred feet up, to where Twilight couldn't imagine such a thing could be kept hidden, yet she hadn’t seen this structure on the flight in nor had she seen any hint of it over the treetops on the drive up.

Some tingly sensation in her gut told her that they’d just driven past some kind of ward, a ward that probably kept this location hidden from prying outside eyes.

Her jaw must have been dropped because her mother said, “Close your mouth, dear, it's not becoming of you to gawk.” Her voice warmed slightly, “Though I suppose I can’t blame you. Silbern is an impressive sight, even if this is just the incarnation of it in the physical world. The one we have in the spirit realm is more impressive still.”

Twilight turned to blink at her mother, “There’s two of these things!?”

“Indeed. Well, technically just one. This palace exists in both the living world and spirit world simultaneously. What you see here is the part of it that is grounded in our physical world, but there is more that extends into the spirit realm via portals built long ago by the first Quincy. Inside you can cross a mere hallway or pass through a door and find yourself in the spirit realm portion of the palace.”

Twilight’s mind felt sufficiently blown, and she looked at the shining palace with newfound intrigue and respect. Now that the limousines drew closer she could see Quincy soldiers standing sentry on the battlements, still as marble statues. The road led around the west side of the palace and into wide gatehouse, the portcullis already raised for their arrival. Beyond the gatehouse was a sizeable courtyard, with the road going in one solid circle around a space containing a vast stone fountain. A set of large steps led up to opulently carved wood doors into the main building of the palace, and from those doors strode a woman. She wore a somewhat similar uniform to what Twilight had seen her family wearing, having the same white coloring and military cut to it. However this woman’s clothes clung to her tightly, consisting of a short miniskirt that barely covered her thighs, and a tied off halter top that exposed a fair portion of her generous cleavage. Her white boots went up to her knees, and atop her head of fiery orange hair was a military cap bearing the Quincy cross. Her skin was a golden yellow color, and as she approached the limousines her fire colored eyes shone brightly and matched her friendly grin.

Velvet sighed as she got out of the car, Night Light and Twilight following. Shining Armor, Cadence, and Fleur exited their own vehicle, Cadence beaming a smile at the new woman and saying with warmth, “Ah, Spitfire, come to welcome us home?”

The woman, Spitfire, spoke in a casual, somewhat scratchy voice, “Come to check out the new recruit. Soon as I heard Night Light and Velvet’s daughter was being brought in wanted to meet her face to face.”

She glanced at Velvet, then ant Fleur, “Also heard you guys got jacked up by some Soul Reapers. You alright? Been nothing but rumors flying around about that fight and I’ve had to bust a few lips that were talking behind your guys’ backs about how it was mistake leaving you in charge of operations in Canterlot City.”

Velvet took a deep breath, eyes cold, “Any rumors were highly exaggerated. It was a skirmish, barely a battle, and mostly we destroyed Hollows while the Soul Reapers... assisted.”

Fleur looked like she wanted to spit, almost reflexively clutching at her bandaged, burning arm, “We’re fine. We don’t need you defending our honor, Spitfire. If anyone wishes to discuss our performance they can speak their concerns to my face, after which I’ll happily educate them on the error in their judgment.”

Spitfire held up her hands, smirking, “We want to keep the palace intact, Fleur, so I don’t think I’ll be sending anybody your way. Besides they’re all smart enough to keep their mouths shut around you. I was just wondering what the hell happened. No offense but your arm looks like it got hit with the business end of some napalm, and the last time I saw Velvet limping was that scuffle years ago when she went to help those friends of hers against Soul Society bullshit. What was they called again, Xcution?”

“History,” Velvet said with a tired, sad look, “History that looks to repeat itself, but that is not my concern any longer. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we must take my daughter to His Majesty.”

“Just a sec, let me get a look at the little mite, eh?” said Spitfire, coming up to Twilight and leaning down. Spitfire had about half a head of height on Twilight, and seemed to not have much of a comprehension of personal boundaries, as she got uncomfortably close to Twilight, looking her over with a critical eye. Twilight, unsure of how to respond, just kept quiet and tried to stay still.

“Hmm, you look pretty green, but that’s to be expected,” said Spitfire, “I can also see you’ve been trained a bit. You’re holding yourself at a ready stance without thinking about it. This your work Shining Armor?”

“Yes, and Cadence helped as well,” said Shining Armor, “We both trained her in the rudimentary techniques.”

“Yeah, but can she catch up with the rest of my cadets?” Spitfire asked. “They’ve already moved on to the intermediate courses and it won’t be long before they start getting sent on active patrols with the more advanced students. I don’t have time to give her a crash course in the basics, so she’ll either have to keep up or...”

Shining Armor’s eyes narrowed but Cadence stepped forward, still smiling in a pleasant manner, “Twilight will be more than able to keep pace with the rest of your class, Spitfire. I understand you can’t take it easy on her. Your position as Academy mistress wouldn’t allow you to play into such favoritism. We only ask that you give her a chance to prove herself. She will live up to your standards, I assure you.”

“That’s for her to answer, I think,” Spitfire said, and turned her eyes back to Twilight, a rather intense gaze that set Twilight on edge, “How about it? You’re going to get tossed headfirst into my intermediate course with the rest of the new recruits, and I won’t be giving you any refresher lessons on the basics. My Academy is grueling, even to the initiated, and failure doesn’t mean a slap on the wrist. We do live combat exercises against real Hollows, and I’ve lost plenty of students who scrubbed out not by walking home, but by being shipped back in a casket. You up to it, rookie?”

Fear trickled down Twilight’s spine like a icy spider. She’d faced Hollows already, but she’d always had her friends there to support her, and she them. Twilight had no idea what to really expect from training at this Quincy Academy, but Spitfire made it sound just one shade short of physical torment combined with zero guarantees of personal safety. Yet she thought of her friends from Canterlot High School, and of the challenges they no doubt faced. She wanted nothing more than to be able to help them, and the only path she could see to doing so lay through becoming a full fledged Quincy, where she might be able to affect change from within their ranks. Or, failing that, she’d have the power she’d need to break away and return to her friends as a true asset in the battles to come. Either way, there was really only one choice, no matter how much it frightened her.

She gulped, and gave a solid nod, squaring her shoulders, “I am.”

Spitfire gave her a grin, “Good answer. I think I’m going to like you, kid. Don’t let it go to your head, though. Doesn’t mean I’m going to take it easy on you. Alright, go ahead and take her to His Majesty. Once that’s done I expect her at the Academy grounds to start her training first thing in the morning.”

Night Light nodded his head and put a hand on Twilight's shoulder, “Of course. Good day to you, Spitfire.”

With that Twilight’s family flanked her on either side and guided her up the steps and through the front doors of the palace, heading within. The grand entry hall of the palace reminded Twilight of the manor back home, if it was three times and size and twice as imposing. Everything was cast in a harsh white light, stemming from lanterns and chandeliers lit by chemical blue fire that Twilight knew was fueled by Quincy alchemy, the fires burning near perpetually and casting only light, no heat. White silk banners covered the walls, and tapestries within tall alcoves lit internally by pits of the same blue alchemic fire. The stairs at the back of the hall were ludicrously steep, and though they started wide, they narrowed almost to a single person’s width towards the top, near a single white door. Other doors were on the ground floor, evenly spaces around the walls, almost mechanically so.

The moment they were through Fleur De Lis began to stride towards one of the doors on the left, “I think I shall go find whoever has been speaking ill of us and have a discussion with them concerning proper etiquette.”

“I’ll join you,” said Cadence, “Just to ensure the discussion is... productive and doesn’t devolve into any unnecessary and regrettable actions by either party,” she paused briefly to smile encouragingly at Twilight, “You’ll do fine. We’ll speak again soon.”

As the two women strode off, Twilight’s parents and brother gathered close to her, Shining Armor placing a comforting and warm hand on her shoulder. “If you go up those stairs you’ll find an elevator that will take you to His Majesty’s throne room in this side of the palace. Just enter quietly and remember to kneel. One knee only will suffice. Don’t speak until given leave by His Majesty to do so. From there just... just follow his lead, I suppose, and be respectful.”

Twilight nodded, licking her lips, “I understand.”

“Cadence is correct. You’ll be just fine, Twilight,” said her father, looking at her with confidence. Twilight Velvet actually wrapped her in a hug, though Twilight could feel her mother shaking in pain from the action.

“We’ll see you when you’re done, daughter. Now go, don’t keep His Majesty waiting.”

As her family watched Twilight ascended the stairs. Her steps somehow felt heavier with each stair she passed, and she got a sense of brief vertigo at the height of the stairs where they were at their narrowest point. She opened the door at the top of the stairs, feeling the hold metal handle and frowning at it. The handle almost felt like ice. The door opened up into a luxurious looking elevator car, not unlike the kind she’d seen in high priced hotels. There were only two buttons; up and down. With a deep breath she pressed the ‘up’ button and silver doors slid closed.

The ride upward was smooth and quiet, and she got a prickly feeling along her spine, as if passing through some kind of energy field. She wished she had one of her magical scanners on hand, just to satisfy her curiosity. She imagined there might be a number of defenses in place to prevent this elevator from being used by intruders, as opposed to invited guests. Her mind tumbled with questions about what the King of the Quincy would want to see her for. Surely this wasn’t normal for just any recruit into the Quincy ranks? Her mouth felt dry and she was trying not to visibly shake by the time the elevator slid to a stop and the silver doors opened.

The room they opened to was smaller than she’d been expecting. Not much larger than the average living room, though the ceiling felt higher. A single silver chandelier with more blue chemical lights cast all in pale light. The floor was covered in smooth velvet carpet of a deep blue color. To either side of her the walls held open windows with white curtains billowing in a gentle breeze. She could hear birds chirping outside. At a casual glance she could see the throne room had to have been at the central tower’s apex. She could see the countryside for miles around, nothing but deep, untouched forest, and shining blue lake.

At the end of the room was a single raised portion of floor with a few carpet draped stairs that led to a throne of marble stone, with its back swept up and flaring like the head of a cobra. The Quincy cross, much as it was everywhere in the palace, was stamped in silver upont he head of the throne. Yet the throne itself stood empty.

Instead the man Twilight had to assume was the King of the Quincy stood by one of the windows, hands on the banister, and was staring out at the lake.

His skin had a dark, sooty quality to it, and his hair hung in thick charcoal strands to nearly his mid-back. He had strong, aquiline features, with a sharp nose and deep set eyes, red like twin drops of blood. The man certainly looked as if he belonged in the pseudo-medieval styling of the palace, for he wore iron dark armor in snugly fits plates over a broad shouldered frame that oozed athletic prowess, even standing still. A plain black circlet of iron kept his hair pulled back from his brow. The seeming only concession to the usual Quincy dress coat was the sweeping white cloak hanging from his back, sporting another silver rendition of the five pointed Quincy cross.

Following Shining Armor’s instructions Twilight took a few steps into the room, until she felt she was a polite distance from the man, and then knelt down on one knee, head bowed, waiting for the King to speak first.

When he did speak, it started with a boyish chuckle that somehow resonated with both frightening power and outgoing charm, “I see your family has impressed upon you the formalities. Unnecessary, in this case. I have no need of another obedient soldier. I have enough of those.”

He turned to her, and somehow without lifting a finger or saying a word Twilight felt herself standing as if it’d been a command, like a tug somewhere deep inside her soul. The King looked at her eyes, and only her eyes, and it kept Twilight transfixed.

“You’re most certainly your parent’s child. I can feel the potential inside you like a buried vein of gold, just waiting for the right tools to be mined, smelted, and forged into something beautiful and strong,” the King said, smiling at her, and it was the kind of smile that seemed like it could just as easily mean he was pleased, or that he was about to murder her.

At her continued silence the King chuckled again, waving a hand at her, “Oh, I forget myself. They probably told you not to speak until given leave. Well we can hardly have a conversation with you acting the mute. Speak, Twilight Sparkle, and ask your questions; for I know you must have many.”

Twilight blinked, opening her mouth, then closing it as she considered what to ask. She wanted to know why he’d wanted to speak with her in the first place, but perhaps before that there was a far more basic question that she felt needed answering.

“W-well, um, Your Highness? I can see you already know my name, but everyone has only ever called you ‘His Majesty’, which I suppose is proper and such but... um... could you tell me your name?”

If anything that disturbing smile that could mean a thousand things, or nothing, only widened, and the King nodded in agreement. “A good start, introductions. Most of my children prefer the old ways of showing respect, but I’ve never directly commanded they do so. Any are free to know and speak my name, the merely do not out of tradition.”

He swept his cloak over one shoulder and affected a deep, smooth bow, “Know then that my given name is Sombra Umbrum. I am the Father of the Quincy, and he whom they call King. You may, however, feel free to merely address me as Sombra for the duration of this conversation.”

“O...kay? Then may I be permitted another question, Sombra? Why did you wish to speak with me? W-why am I here?”

Sombra’s smile turned wry and he turned and strode up the steps to his throne. Instead of sitting in it, however, he turned and leaned against the side of it, arms crossed in an almost playful pose. “I wanted to take your measure. I’ve respected your parent’s wishes to keep you out of Quincy affairs, as they’ve been nothing but dutiful and capable servants to my regime. Yet now here you are, offering yourself freely to our cause. I’m well aware of your relationship with the young women from Canterlot City, and in particular the one who is not what she appears to be.”

His eyes took on a pale shine and the room seemed to lose a few degrees of warmth, “Tell me true, you have no desire to actually support the Quincy, do you?”

Twilight tried very hard not to shake like a leaf, but instead maintain a calm air about her. However almost any thought of lying or playing off his question as silly fled her mind under that hard, smooth gaze. She found herself speaking almost without thinking, “I can’t condone what looks like a pointless war, Sombra. I hate fighting. I hate seeing people get hurt. I don’t want to be a mindless soldier just fighting whomever I’m told. I decided to become a Quincy so I could prevent needless fighting. I wanted to understand the Quincy, understand the truth, and maybe find a way to change things so that Quincy and Soul Reapers didn’t have to fight anymore.”

The coldness of the room abruptly fled, and things felt normal once more as Sombra laughed, “I see, I see. Did you know your mother once told me something similar? Yes, in her youth she was such an idealist. She often spoke of finding a peaceful end to the conflict, to forge an end to the war through understanding. I admired her for it, and wept bitterly when the Soul Reapers, inevitably, proved to Twilight Velvet that they could never be trusted, nor worthy of peace. I suppose it is equally inevitable that you must learn the same lesson, yet I will not force it upon you. You will learn on your own, for I can see you are a bright young woman. Who knows, perhaps you may succeed where your mother failed, though my own long experience tells me otherwise.”

“But why!?” Twilight demanded, forgetting her fear for a moment under a torrent of frustration, “Surely after centuries of fighting both you and the Soul Reapers must see how futile the war is! You both desire to protect humanity, so why!? Why continue fighting!?”

“Ah, but that is where you fail to see, Twilight Sparkle,” Sombra said, slowly leaning off his throne and holding his hands out to his sides, shaking his head, “You believe that the Soul Reapers desire to protect humanity. I tell you now that this is a falsehood. It is a lesson I’ve had to learn through bitter, long years of dealing with them. What the Soul Reapers desire is control of humanity, control of our world in its entirety, including the very fate of all of our souls. Consider this, Twilight Sparkle. Every single Soul Reaper is just a normal human soul that has undergone special training to obtain vast power which they then use to control the nature of the afterlife. Does this not strike you as unfair? That were you to die your soul would be judged by another mortal soul, and you would then be told where you would go and what you would do in an afterlife you have no say over?”

“I... don’t know, but I’m willing to try to understand things from their point of view,” said Twilight, “Understanding has to come first, before reconciliation. That’s my desire, Sombra. To understand, and ultimately, reconcile the Quincy and Soul Reapers.”

She gulped, clenching her fists at her side and forcing herself to stand strong, “If that is not something you can find agreeable, th-then too bad. I won’t stop until I succeed in forging peace between Quincy and Soul Reapers!”

Since it seemed that lying would have been pointless, she figured she might as well stick to her guns. Or bows, or whatever Quincy stuck to. She refused to believe that the Soul Reapers were as bad as Sombra claimed, nor was she willing to believe that any organization her family was a part of could be wholly evil either. The only path then, for her, was one that walked the razor’s edge of loyalty to her family, and loyalty to herself.

Sombra, for his part, didn’t seem displeased by her words. If anything he seemed amused. “I do believe you will prove an interesting addition to the Quincy, Twilight Sparkle. You will clash horribly with some of your fellows, and I have a dire suspicion that in time your ideals will become tarnished, much like your mother’s were. Yet I am very interested in seeing just how you will affect the future of the Quincy. The war has stagnated for too long. It is time for something... new, to spark change in the future. I give you my leave to pursue your goals, Twilight Sparkle, as long as you remain loyal to Quincy and serve within the bounds of our laws. Seek understanding. Even seek peace, if you will, just as long as you don’t betray your kin.”

“I... I will, Sombra. Er, King Sombra?”

“His Majesty will suffice for when you are among others and must speak formally, but for when we are alone as this, Sombra shall do. Now, kneel.”

She did so gingerly, and Sombra approached her. He held out his hand, and in a glow of blue light particles of spirit energy flowed and formed into the shape of a glowing broadsword, with a cross shaped hilt. Twilight sucked in a breath, fearful for a moment, but he merely tapped the edge of the blade of glowing energy to her shoulder.

“Swear to me this oath, Twilight Sparkle; ‘Upon my honor as a Quincy I shall endure to serve the Vandenreich. My bow is my soul and it shall be the light that shields mankind until my blood is shed to the last drop. So I swear and so shall it be from this day until my dying day.’”

With a dry mouth Twilight spoke the words, and Sombra stepped back, allowing his blade to vanish back in a mist of blue spirit particles back into his body.

“Then rise, Twilight Sparkle, Quincy of the Vandenreich.”

----------

When the grinding noise reached Adagio’s ears she didn’t quite understand at first. Then she saw bright light pour forth from the wall of her cell, hurting her eyes for a moment before she was able to adjust to the brightness. She then just stared at the opening in disbelief for a time, unable to comprehend or trust what she was seeing. She floated up into the air warily, eyeing the opening in her cell. Surely this was a trick?

She knew not much time had passed since her... feeding. A day, perhaps. The hunger was returning, slowly, but had not reached overwhelming pains, merely an empty pang. She felt stronger than before, but it was a cold comfort when the screams of that poor woman still echoed dimly in her hunger fogged memory.

Adagio watched the opening for several minutes before letting out a growl. Fine, if Grogar wanted to play games, then she’d play. She floated forward, swimming through the air the same way she would have as a siren. Her pale, Hollow body moved with sinuous grace, and she almost found she liked the powerful strokes of it, until she felt sick remembering the price of that strength.

The light turned out to come from a brightly lit ceiling in a much vaster chamber than her cell. It was still confining, giving off the sensation of being underground, and consisted of little more than well polished gray stone. It was circular, with the ceiling domed and easily two dozen meters high. The overall diameter of the room was perhaps that of a football field, give or take. The floor was odd, however, not stone but instead filled with uneven, white sand. She also noticed the room wasn’t empty, but instead was filled with formations of stone ranging from small blocks, to square pillars, to unusual spheres and pyramids. If anything the collection of random formations made the room look almost like an..

Adagio’s eyes widened. An arena!

Grogar’s voice spoke in its drool, arrogant tone, “You’re awake. Good. Now that you have fed, it is time to familiarize you with your abilities. By now you may have considered yourself strong enough to form a Garganta once more-”

Adagio swore under her breath, realizing that was an excellent point and immediately tried to do just that.

“-You’ll find that I’ve installed penalties for such foolish notions.”

The moment she tried to open a Garganta, following her gut instincts just as she had when she’d done so for Sunset and the others, her body convulsed as horrible pain lanced through her. Arcs of red energy flowed over her body, waves of agony following them, and Adagio screamed, landing in the sand in a flopping mass.

“In fact you’ll find that I’ve installed countermeasures to ensure your cooperation in many matters, and to thoroughly prevent your escape. I wouldn’t advise continuing to open a Garganta. The pain will only be passing, but it will intensify to unbearable levels before long.”

Breathing heavily, face twisted up from the lingering pain, Adagio ceased her efforts to open a portal and slowly floated up once more, shouting, “Damn you! What do you want from me!?”

“To test you, to experiment upon you, to dissect the source of your most unusual power. While I could kill you and tear what knowledge I can from your corpse, I believe that I will learn more from using more extensive methods to observe and test your ability while you yet live as a Hollow. I shall push you to your limits, then past them. I will force you to develop your powers. In so doing I shall glean insight into the nature of that gem hanging inside the hole where your soul should be, and from that insight I may better strengthen myself. Cooperate and you may be treated well, like a well kept dog who understands her place. Show disobedience, resist, and you will know nothing but pain. Regardless, I shall still get what I want.”

Adagio’s fangs ground together as a deep growl rumbled up from the depths of her throat, “I hate you. I hate you so much.”

“Good. Hate is a potent tool for growth. Now that you have fed we will begin the next phase.”

More grinding noises filled the chamber, and Adagio saw at the far end of the chamber a portion of the wall rose, revealing darkness beyond. Yet from that darkness emerged shapes, crawling along on all fours, or walking tall on hunched legs. Hollows. Hollows like herself, yet Adagio could almost sense that that weren’t like herself. They somehow smelled weaker than her. Lesser. Tired and hungry as she was, she gained an immediate instinctual sense that she was the alpha predator in the room, and the realization sent a primal urge into the core of her being that said ’Rip, shred, and feed’. The feeling disgusted her, but she immediately recognized she’d have no choice.

The moment the small group of five or so lesser Hollows noticed her they immediately began to howl their own hunger. They were starved, and only not tearing into each other due to fear of Grogar who had given them explicit instructions. Kill or be killed. They knew it, Adagio knew it.

As one howling mass the lesser Hollows began to charge Adagio from across the arena, and with a feral howl consisting of all of her hate and rage for the one who was imprisoning and tormenting her, Adagio Dazzle threw herself into the fight. The first swipe of her talons cut a bloody swath through the chest of the first Hollow she reached, a tall baboon-like Hollow that even with several massive bleeding cuts in its chest still tried to pound Adagio with fists like cinder blocks.

Adagio flicked her tail, treating the air like water, and moving like a predatory fish she swam up over the baboon Hollow's blow and then took a chunk out of its shoulder with another claw swipe. However by now the other Hollows had surrounded her and she was tackled from the side by a Hollow with the body of a cockroach, but the head of a jackal. The Hollow sank its teeth into one of the fins on her right arm and bit down hard, causing Adagio to howl in pain as she was pulled to the ground. The other Hollows closed in on her, but she thrashed with her tail, the wide fin at the end of her tail not unlike a blade itself as it cut into a squat, toad-like Hollow that was about to leap for her head. Then in a feral rage she used her left talon to grip the head of the jackal Hollow and, while growling deep, she applied pressure. The jackal Hollow let out a frightened cry as its mask, then the rest of its head was crushed into crimson paste.

A fourth Hollow, akin to a cross between a gargoyle and a humanoid feline, spread its wings and flew over her, swiping with swift claws that cut painful wounds across her back, but Adagio retaliated with instinctively fast reflexes, snapping with her jaws and catching the Hollow by the leg. She then yanked the Hollow out of the air and spun around, throwing that Hollow into the baboon-like one that had been stalking up behind her. Both went down in a tumble and tangle of limbs, smashing into a stone pillar about two dozen yards away.

The fifth Hollow of the group sent to fight her appeared suddenly from underground, having burrowed down using its pincers. This centipede-like Hollow tried to catch Adagio with its pincers, grabbing her around her midsection. For a moment it looked like it had her, but in truth the centipede had only trapped itself close to the raging, hungry Adagio. Despite the pain of the pincers crushing at her sides, Adagio howled in pure savage anger and with talons and teeth alike tore into the centipede beneath her. Limbs and bits of bloody chitin went flying, and Adagio, despite some part of her that was sickened by it, she indulged the instinctive drive to gorge herself. With each chunk of the lesser Hollow she devoured she could feel a bit of its power flowing into her, adding to her own strength.

By the time she was down tearing the centipede to pieces the baboon and gargoyle Hollow had recovered, but their attitudes had shifted from one of aggression to that of outright fear, both backing away from the blood stained Adagio. Her eyes glowed yellow and turned narrow as a blade's edge. The growl that escaped her gore stained jaws was pure animal hunger. The bloodlust had risen up in her like a pure red tide, and her self control had checked out.

The remaining two Hollows tried to put up a fight after it became clear there was nowhere to run. Not that it made a difference.

"Yes," said Grogar's voice, "This is providing excellent data. I can tell your gem is absorbing as much power from the fear of your victims as your Hollow body is absorbing from devouring them. The gem itself has fused in symbiosis with your Hollow form. Still, I'll need much more data before I can determine how to replicate this power. Now that you've cleared the first wave..."

The grinding noise of more doors opening echoed through the arena, and Adagio raised her head from the remains of her last meal to see that now two more doors had opened up. From these doors twice the Hollows she'd just faced came spilling forth in a howling mass, and Grogar's voice echoed in her ears.

"Let us see how you handle wave two."

Author's Notes:

I wonder if an 80s training music montage would be appropriate about now? As you guys can probably tell the theme of the next few chapters is the training each of our main girls is about to undergo. Well, less 'training' in Adagio's case and more being forced to fight for her survival. Grogar is kind of a jerk. Also points to whoever called who the Quincy's King would be. Kind of a shoe-in for the job, really, given there's literally only the one 'king' anything that's been in MLP. Suffice to say this version of Sombra might have more to say than 'Cryyyystallllss'.

Anyway, hope you guys are enjoying things so far, and as always my deepest thanks for reading. Feel free to comment, question, or critique, as any and all such things are appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 27: Uphill Struggle

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Episode 27: Uphill Struggle

It’d been awhile since Sunset had skipped a school day, and it felt strange. She’d always considered herself a pretty model student, even when she’d had her... spat with Celestia back in Equestria. Heck, it was because she’d been such a good, fast learner that she’d wanted so badly to learn ever more potent magic, faster than Celestia had wanted to teach her. As always when she thought of that time, not truly all that long ago in the overall span of her life, it left Sunset feeling a bit melancholy. The arrival of Princess Twilight had reopened the page in her mind that had considered returning to Equestria. Not permanently, but even for just a visit. Some practical part of her knew Princess Celestia would welcome her back with open hooves, yet the fear of her old teacher looking at her with sad, disappointed eyes still lay lurking.

Get your head on straight, she told herself as she left her apartment that Monday morning, You’ve got training to deal with. Insane, potentially fatal training.

Worried as she was about just how bad this training of Discord’s was going to be, another, larger part of her was eager to test herself. Sunset enjoyed a challenge, and while there were plenty of fears nestled in her gut, they were kept suppressed by the eager heat burning in her chest that left her smiling as her steps got lighter and picked up speed. There was sense of dull pain, faint as a faded memory, upon her brow from where Platinum had cut her spirit body. Even if the injury didn't transfer to her real body, the phantom pain was a reminder of it, and she knew her spirit body will still have a light scar on her brow, hidden by her bangs. It was a keen reminder of why she and her friends had to give this training their all.

Discord didn’t know how much time they had. A week, two weeks? He had said a month at most, but Sunset somehow doubted it’d take that long for things to go wrong in Soul Society and require them to step in. So every day was going to count. She wondered just what the training was going to entail. Just why was it so potentially dangerous? She supposed she’d find out soon enough.

As she turned down the main street leading to downtown her phone began to ring. Checking it, Sunset didn’t recognize then number, but when she answered it was Twilight’s voice on the phone.

“Sunset? This thing working? Hello?”

“Hey, uh, which Twilight is this?” Sunset asked, somewhat tense, as it really was impossible to tell the two apart over the phone.

“Oh, sorry, this is original pony-flavor Twilight. Huh, though I suppose temporally speaking we might have both been born on the same day, so I’m not sure if either of us would count as the ‘original’. I should ask her what her birthday is the next time I see her. Uh, anyway I was testing out this ‘cellphone’ and figured I might as well call you and give you an update on the portal.”

“Cool, but how did you get my number?”

A brief pause, “Umm, Flash told me.”

Sunset nodded, then grinned at herself at the silly gesture, given Twilight couldn’t see it. Even after a few years in the human world she still had a few things she never fully adjusted to, including the odd yet convenient invention of phones. “Did he tell you anything else?”

“Y-yeah. I... I don’t even know what to think, really,” said Twilight, and Sunset could year the uneasiness in Twilight’s voice, “A part of me wishes he’d trusted me enough to just tell me the truth from the start, but there’s a colder voice of reason in my head that says there’s no way he could have, given his...er... unique position. We, um, talked about it. Briefly. I think we were both weirded out by the situation.”

“Well, if you ever need to just chat, I’m here,” Sunset said, then winced, “As here as I can be, given I’m about to dive headfirst into some new training.”

“I spoke with the girls for a bit yesterday and they brought me up to speed,” said Twilight, concern coloring her words, “Are you sure you’ll all be okay? Rainbow Dash was blowing it all off like this would be a cakewalk, but that’s Rainbow Dash. I could tell Fluttershy and Applejack were both pretty tense. Pinkie was just being Pinkie, but I don’t know, even she seemed frazzled. And I didn’t get to see Rarity at all because of her injuries. Is she going to be okay?”

Sunset grit her teeth, having shared the same concerns over Rarity’s condition. Kido spells seemed as good as Equestrian magic for healing, yet it was hard to imagine that Rarity would be back at one hundred percent for the training today. Maybe Discord would let her sit it out for a bit, until her shoulder was better. Sunset wondered what story Rarity had told her family to explain away her not coming home last night. “I hope she will, Twilight. I’ll definitely look out for her, you can count on that. I won’t let her overdo it.”

“Good. That’s good. Please, all of you be careful. I can’t imagine the pressure you’re all under. I wish there was more I could do to help. I feel... pretty useless, just securing this portal. Like I ought to be doing more.”

“Hey, you listen to me, you’re doing the most important thing you can do right now, Princess, and that’s protecting your kingdom. I don’t want Equestria to have to face the danger of a Hollow slipping through that portal, or so help us, the Soul Reapers or Quincy deciding that they want to set up shop in our world. Even if you and the other Princesses would be there to confront such a problem, I wouldn’t want Ponyville to be ground zero for such a confrontation. From what you told me, Tirek was bad enough to deal with when you were Super Twilight.”

“Super Twilight?”

“Heh, its what me and the girls here call you when you were amped up on alicorn magic. Rainbow Dash watches too many Japanese cartoons. Anyway, you said you had an update on the portal?”

“Gah, right! My heads all over the place this morning. So as it turns out, knowing that Flash and this world’s Cheerilee are Soul Reapers helped a lot with my research on the portal. I had them help with testing the wards while they were in their, um, ‘spirit forms’. Even if I can’t see them, Fluttershy let me borrow one of those Hollow detectors the human me made. Really incredible inventions, by the by, I sooooo want to chat with her about the design! Uh, anyway, after burning the midnight oil testing the ward, I managed to adjust it so neither Flash or Cheerilee could step through. While its not conclusive yet that the same would happen with a Hollow, its a big step forward that I’ve got a calibration that’ll affect spirit bodies. We’re going to try some more tests today to see how much the ward can take. Flash is going to demonstrate something called a ‘Shikai’. Its pretty exciting. Just wanted you to know.”

“I appreciate it Twilight. Good luck with the tests, and... be safe, okay? We’ve had lots of surprises around here lately, and the bad guys have a habit of going after anyone they think is vulnerable to get at us.”

Twilight’s voice was filled with confidence, but Sunset knew the other pony well enough to detect the nervousness underneath, “I’ll be careful. You do so as well, Sunset. And tell the girls hi for me!”

“I will, talk to you later.”

“Later. Now...huh... how do I turn this thing off?” Sunset chuckled as she listened to Twilight fumble with the cellphone until the line cut off, and she put her own phone away and continued on towards Discord’s shop.

She found the gray cat waiting for her outside in the courtyard, the feline lazily stretched out on the front steps. The cat raised her head and yawned as Sunset approached, and Sunset saw its tiny whiskers twitch about as the cat actually smiled at her. “Good morning! You’re the first one here! Besides your friend who got all stabbed, and your other friend who got shot by a Quincy. Wow, you guys are getting kind of beat up a bunch lately, huh?”

Sunset sucked in a breath and let it out slowly, “Seems to be our lot in life. Here’s to hoping this training will make it so we’re the ones doing the beating, not the other way around.”

“Hah, good attitude! You know we’ve never actually had a chance to get to know each other. That’ll change today.”

Sunset blinked, “Why’s that?”

The cat’s grin got wider, like it was about to pounce on some fish, “Because I’m helping your friends train! Discord can’t do it all alone, the silly man. Actually he’ll pretty much be working with you and Clover exclusively, while it’ll be my job to oversee the rest of your friends. Should be lots of fun!”

The blinking on Sunset’s end continued, “You know you’re a cat, right?”

With a innocent look in its walled, golden eyes the cat scratched at its ear, then proceeded to lick her paw and clean itself, “Really? Huh, when did that happen?”

Sunset rubbed at her forehead with the palm of one hand, “Right, stupid question. I’m going inside now, see if I can’t hunt down some coffee. I feel like I’m going to need it.”

“Discord’s waiting down in the training area. When your pals show up we’ll all come down and join you,” said the cat with a happy twitch of its tail, and Sunset left the feline there and headed into the shop. When she went into the kitchen she found it in use, and froze in the doorway, tense.

Aria Blaze was at the stove, cooking up what appeared to be pancakes. The siren appeared to be having some difficulty with the task, growling and swearing under her breath as she tried to get them the pancakes to flip without breaking up. As Sunset watched Aria tried to flip one over, and put a bit too much force into it, nearly sending the half formed pancake into the sink.

“Argh! For the love of...” Aria grumped, frustration pouring from her as she tugged at one pigtail and went to retrieve the errant pancake. Then, when she turned around, she also froze when she saw Sunset. The two girls just stood there staring at each other for a bit, and Sunset took a deep breath, deciding she needed to break the tension first.

“Morning. Um, did you want some help with that?” she asked, and almost instantly regretted asking when Aria’s eyes narrowed venomously and she all but threw the pancake back on the skillet.

“No. I don’t,” Aria said, pointedly turning her back on Sunset and hunching over her cooking.

Sunset stood there a moment, thinking maybe she ought to skip her coffee search, until her own sense of pride flared up. She’d taken Aria’s punch the other day, and accepted the other girl’s anger, but she’d be damned if she was going to slink away like a kicked dog just because Aria was angry at her. She sympathized. She understood. Aria had lost someone dear to her, and by all accounts Sunset was a good chunk of the reason it had happened. That was why Sunset didn’t snap back at Aria. The sirens were in enough pain right now, and it was understandable that anger would be part of responding to that pain. But Sunset wasn’t going to run away from being in the same room as them, or act like she didn’t care.

With heavy steps she went into the kitchen and started looking for some coffee to start brewing. Discord, for all his estentricieis, at least kept a well stocked and organized kitchen. Or maybe it was the result of one of his helpers like Screwloose or Screwball who kept the kitchen in such good order. Regardless she quickly found what he was looking for and got a pot of coffee going. By now Aria had managed to coerce a few pancakes into relative edible shape and got out a pair of plates to put them on.

As she watched, Sunset took another deep breath, “How’s Sonata?”

Aria snapped her head around and glared, “How do you think? She hasn’t come out of our room since we got back. I go to sleep listening to her crying.”

Sunset leaned back against one of the kitchen counters, hands gripping the edge of the counter tightly as she said, “We’re going to get her back, Aria. I don’t know how, or when, but we’ll find a way.”

Aria stood there, shaking, eyes raw with equal parts pain and anger. “You don’t know that. You don’t know anything! You’re as much of an idiot as we were for ever thinking for a second we could trust you and your friends!” she spat the word like it was acid, “I won’t let the only sister I got left be hurt anymore by listening to your idealistic horsecrap! Stay away from us, you got that?”

Without waiting for a response, Aria stomped out of the kitchen, burnt pancakes in tow. Sunset watched her go, and when she was gone Sunset hung her head, holding herself. She closed her eyes and whispered, “I’m sorry. Damnit all, Aria, I’m sorry about Adagio...”

But Aria was gone and Sunset was just talking to herself.

When the coffee finished brewing and Sunset poured herself a cup, it didn’t do much to improve her mood, but she finished it off anyway and then proceeded to head for the training area. She poked her head into the lounge area briefly to see if Rarity was still there, and was somewhat surprised to see she wasn’t. Could Rarity already be up and about? Sunset frowned and continued on until she reached the hatch to the stairs that descended to the vast underground training area.

At the threshold she paused. The stairs had changed. They were no longer wood steps leading down to a well lit rocky area, but instead was now a long set of spiralling stone steps that seemed to descend deep into a dark shaft lit by torches.

“The heck?” Sunset hesitated a few moments before blowing out a sigh and staring down the stairs. Whatever Discord was up to, it had to be part of the new training.

Tentatively at first, then with greater confidence, Sunset started down the stairs. A she went deeper she felt the air growing more chilly, and it gave her an unpleasant flashback to the fight with Captain Platinum. It served as a reminder of why it was so important to go through with this training, no matter how difficult and dangerous it turned out to be. She and her friends didn’t get a lot stronger, and fast, then they’d be at the mercy of any of the factions that decided to come after them in force. Whatever the risks, they had to face them head on.

The stairs went down to what Sunset estimated to be about fifty feet, and she idly mused on what kind of magic, or rather Kido more likely, was at work here. Could Kido spells warp space? Clover had explained some Kido basics to her, but Sunset had yet to really feel up to trying any such spells herself and she still had no real idea what the upwards limits of Kido based spells were. Far as she could tell the training area had been completely replaced. Or maybe it was like a portal, with the hatch to the stairs actually being able to switch between different portals to various locations.

At the bottom of the stairwell was a flat, circular room that had one tall archway opening up into a lighted area. Sunset walked through and had to shield her eyes for a moment. Sunlight glared down on her, and the chill she felt made its origin clear, for Sunset was standing on a wide slope of a mountainside, in the middle of a vast mountainous chain. Tall conifer trees covered the various stone peaks like moss, and snow blanketed parts of the slopes from the cold of high elevation despite the warm spring sun shining down.

“Hoi, Sunset!”

Sunset looked up and behind her, seeing that above the archway, which was set in the side of a smooth rock outcropping, Clover stood waving. With a short leap Clover jumped down next to Sunset, wincing a bit as she did so. Sunset was quick to give her a concerned frown, putting a hand on Clove’s arm.

“You okay to be jumping around like that?”

“As good as I can be without spending a month straight being treated by the Fourth Division,” Clover said, wincing slightly, “But Discord is skilled at healing Kido, and the medicines he makes are even better. I guess he was the Captain of the Twelfth Division for a good reason. Neither me or Rarity are at peak health, but with Discord’s help we can be part of the training without too much extra risk.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want either of you pushing yourselves if your injuries still need healing. This training is important, but it won’t do you and Rarity any good to cripple yourselves by tearing open wounds that’ve hardly had time to heal properly,” Sunset said, but Clover put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“We’ll be fine, Sunset. I wouldn’t be doing this if I thought I wasn’t up to it, and I’d sit on Rarity myself and spend all day smacking her with more healing Kido if I thought it’d help more than what Discord’s already done. He was up pretty much all last night treating her, not resting at all.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll trust you guys. Where are Rarity and Discord anyway? And where are we? How did Discord make his shop’s basement lead to a place like this?” Sunset asked, looking at the pristine mountainscape around her.

“They’re down the slope a little ways,” Clover said, “Follow me. I’ll explain on the way.”

They started walking, Sunset rubbing her arms to generate a bit of heat. Even with her customary leather jacket on, she hadn’t exactly dressed for mountain weather. She didn’t mind that Discord was going ot put them through the wringer during this training, but did he have to choose to do it in such a cold place? Big shocker, but Sunset was never much of a fan of the cold. As they walked, Clover explained the deal with the mountains.

“Apparently Discord has spent a lot of time connecting a few special doors in his shop to certain locations. All relatively local. One of them leads to his favorite tea shop. The one you just went through leads here, to this secluded area in the mountains not far from Canterlot City. Its remote enough that we can train without, um, worrying about damaging anything.”

“Smart,” said Sunset, glancing around and slowly getting an idea of where they were. She wasn’t exceedingly familiar with the local geography but she knew enough to now recognize some of the peaks she could see as being the same in the mountains that were a good distance north of the city. They were pretty popular camping spots, actually. “Aren’t we worried about running into any campers or hikers?”

“No, Discord has wards set up to ensure anyone wandering our way gets turned around without suspecting a thing. Should be perfectly safe,” said Clover as they reached a small gully where the the runoff of some melting snow formed a stream that made for a short waterfall. At the base of the waterfall she saw Discord and Rarity waiting for them.

“Ah, Miss Shimmer, welcome,” said Discord as she and Clover walked down the steep path to the gully floor. “I hope I didn’t confuse you too much with my little portal trick with the hatch. I figured you and your friends would roll with it.”

“It was a bit weird, but I can see the value in the setup,” said Sunset, “Quick access to different parts of the city, an escape route if you need it, and I don’t doubt you’ve got hidden caches of supplies and a few other secrets I don’t know about.”

Discord’s eyes showed a brief element of discomfort before he said, “Just trust that anything I do keep to myself has nothing to do with you, your friends, or the past of their families. But... yes, I do have a few more skeletons in the closet. Just not skeletons that pertain to you. If I were to air all my dirty laundry to your girls we’d be here for days just listening to me talk. That’s not why we’re here.”

Sunset nodded, “You’re right, and sorry if that sounded snippy. Guess I’m just kind of tired of surprises, even ones that make sense and are harmless. I was just telling Clover its pretty clever, setting up a training area out here. Varied terrain, plenty of isolation, and given the kind of powers we use, there’s no collateral damage to worry about.”

She then turned her attention to Rarity, “Hey. You feeling alright?”

Rarity was wearing a fresh set of clothes, her usual ostentatious and well cut dress and blouse plus some hiking boots. There was also something around the shoulder that Platinum stabbed, some kind of encasement of wood that covered Rarity’s shoulder, and arm. It was etched with a symbol, a Japanese kanji that Sunset didn’t recognize. Rarity noticed her looking at it and gave a short laugh, touching the cast of wood.

“I’ll be quite alright, darling. Mister Discord did quite a lot to make my shoulder feel better, and this um, let’s be generous and call it ‘quaint’ fashion addition is going to brace the wound for today so any exertions during training doesn’t make the wound worse.”

“Think of it as a medical cast made from spiritually awakened wood that holds a constant charge of healing Kido that maintains the regenerative processes,” said Discord, “I offered the same to Clover but she insists she’s fine.”

“Because I am,” said Clover firmly, “Truly. I won’t be a burden on anyone, you have my word.”

“I will trust your judgement on that count, as I won’t be taking it easy on you today,” said Discord, “I can’t afford to hold back if I’m to prepare all of you for what’s to come.”

“Yeah, speaking of that, what’s this I hear about enlisting your cat to help us out?” asked Sunset, raising an eyebrow, “Just... who are they? I gathered they must have been a Soul Reaper, because of that story you told about how they gave up their Zanpaktou to save that girl, Starlight Glimmer, but what is the deal with them walking around like a cat?”

“I just think it's very comfortable,” said the cat as it appeared at the edge of the gully, Sunsets friends following behind, “I think everyone ought to try being a cat sometime!”

Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack were all dressed in warmer clothes than Sunset was, and Fluttershy even carried some extra coats to hand out to her and Rarity as they gathered together. Sunset looked at the coat, and reluctantly exchanged it for her leather jacket. The coat was warmer, to be sure, but she liked her signature jacket. Oh well, she’d be in her spirit body soon enough anyway, so it seemed a moot point, but the gesture was appreciated regardless.

“How’d you know we’d need the extra clothes for the weather?” she asked, and Fluttershy just gave her an odd, open look.

“I, um, asked if we’d need anything special for today and Mr. Cat was nice enough to tell me where we were going.”

Sunset shot the cat a look, but the cat just smiled innocently and said, “You didn’t ask.”

“Well, now that everyone is here, I’d say there’s no time to waste,” Discord said as he twirled his gnarled cane and then rested it on his shoulder, “Miss Shimmer, Miss Clover, you will follow me down the gully into the forest. The rest of you girls will work with my friend here, who I think it’s well past time she introduced herself, isn’t it my dear?”

Sunset blinked and Applejack pointed at the cat, “Wait a darn sec, whaddya mean she? Cat sounds male ta me.”

The cat chuckled in its light, yet very male sounding voice, “Didn’t anyone ever teach you not to judge by appearances? Oh well, Discy’s right, I oughta introduce myself properly to all of you, since I’m going to be your teach for the next bit.”

As the cat spoke something like steam seemed to start pouring from its feline body. As the cloud of steam grew larger around it, the cat’s body started to morph, stretching and expanding upward slowly. Gray fur gradually shortened into smooth, light gray skin. As the body grew taller and took on human proportions a long mane of bright blonde hair grew from the crown of a youthful face that regained the golden, walled eyes that looked in different directions. In mere seconds the cat was gone and what stood before them was a young looking girl perhaps no more than a few years older than any of the other ladies from Canterlot High.

Sunset thought she recognized her as one of the students she’d seen wandering the halls at the school, but she’d always just sort of been hidden in the background. She was about to ask about that when all the other girls, for some reason, started freaking out.

“P-p-put on some clothes will ya!?” Applejack shouted, looking away, though occasionally glancing back at the gray girl with her face burning red.

Fluttershy was even more cherry colored, having turned her back completely, “Oh my... she’s, um... gifted, isn’t she.”

“Kind of jealous, actually,” Rainbow Dash was muttering, making a point of finding a nearby rock on the ground interesting, “The heck did you eat growing up?”

Rarity was shielding her eyes, “You know, miss, you could have warned us first before, ahem, ‘going natural’ like that. Did you want to borrow something to wear?”

Pinkie Pie didn’t seem to mind, just grinning innocently, “Hiya, what’s your name?”

“Pinkie! Perhaps she oughta cover up ‘fore we start up a friendly chat! Where’s yer shame, girl!?” Applejack said.

It took Sunset a few seconds to remember that humans had that nudity taboo. No wonder most of her friends were suddenly acting weird. The girl was naked as the day she was born, and Sunset supposed by human standards she was kind of a knock-out. She still wasn’t too familiar with what humans considered good looking, especially with the female end of the spectrum, but she guessed the girl was a solid nine out of ten. A little top heavy for her tastes. It still freaked her out a bit that human females kept them up on the chest. Seemed seriously inconvenient. Then again, bipeds; go figure.

Seeing as how she’d just switched coats, she offered the girl her leather jacket, “Here, before somebody starts bleeding from the nose.”

“Aww, but I find these reactions hilarious,” the girl said, but waved her hand at the jacket, “Keep it. I had Discord bring some clothes for me. Now that I’ve had my fun I’ll get dressed. Just a sec.”

Discord had removed a small wooden box from the folds of his robes and tossed them to the girl, who knelt down and opened the box, pulling out a set of black, form fitting bodysuit and leggings, a pair of white boots, and a orange tunic-like getup that looked like it was meant to go over the bodysuit. She dressed quickly, and when she was done she spun around and gave everyone a friendly smile and bow.

“Alrighty, so hello everyone, my name’s Ditzy Doo, of House Doo, one of the four noble houses of the Soul Society, though like Discord here I’ve been in exile for a long time. Pleased to meet all of you.”

Pinkie Pie happily shook Ditzy’s hand, “Pleasure to meet you! Birthday? I gotta update my files, since you’re a new friend and all!”

“Sixth of April, and if we’re doing parties, I’m a muffin girl, all the way,” said Ditzy.

“Blueberries?” Pinkie Pie asked hopefully, to which Ditzy winked.

“You know it!”

“Did we just become instant best friends?”

“For life.”

Pinkie Pie made a sound somewhere between a squee and a giggle and Sunset ran a hand through her hair, clearing her throat loudly.

“Not to interrupt, but question; haven’t we seen you at the school, Ditzy?”

At the question Rainbow Dash suddenly snapped her fingers, “Hey! That’s right! I totally remember her now! She like never talks, but it's always hanging around in the background and stuff!”

Rarity rubbed her chin, “Hmm, now that you mention it I do seem to vaguely recall someone of your particular appearance being in some of our classes, Miss Doo. But, that aside, are you sure I couldn’t make something for you to wear? The orange, I’m sorry it just doesn’t complement your complexion, darling.”

“Hey, this is the official training outfit used by the Stealth Corps back home,” said Ditzy, stretching as if to show the outfit off, which Sunset had to admit did... um... cling rather snuggly. “Buuuut, to answer the other question; the girl you’re thinking of isn’t me. It's my daugher. Derpy.”

“Daughter?” Sunset asked.

“You named your kid Derpy?” Rainbow Dash deadpanned, “Are you a sadist or something?”

“I’ll have you know it's a traditional name of the Doo family bloodline!” Ditzy said defensively, turning her chin up and crossing her arms under her ample chest, “Besides I’ve taught her how to protect herself. She’s completely able to deal with any bullies dumb enough to make fun of her name. Or her eyes for that matter. That’s one trait I wished I hadn’t passed on to her. Oh well, whatcha gonna do?”

“So, wait, is your daughter also a Soul Reaper?” asked Sunset, “How’d that even happen? You don’t look old enough to be a parent.”

Ditzy blinked at her, one eye focusing on Sunset, “I hope I don’t look too old, otherwise I’m going to have to smack Discord for selling me a defunct gigai. And no, Derpy isn’t a Soul Reaper. She’s got the potential, inherited from me, but she’s never trained in spiritual powers, and has no idea about what her real heritage is. Far as she knows I work as an international security consultant; aka a bodyguard. Not too far from the truth, since I spent a lot of time protecting Discord’s interests.”

For a moment all the friendliness drained right out of Ditzy Doo’s face and became something fierce and cold, “And I’ll appreciate it if none of you breathe a word of this to Derpy. I don’t want my daughter to be a part of any of this. She was born a human and it's my wish that she live a normal life and die as a human, old and happy. Got it?”

“In spades,” said Sunet, glancing at her friends, who all nodded their ascent.

Ditzy nodded, smiling once more, “Great! Now that twenty questions is out of the way, I’d say it's time to start training! You and Clover go along with Discord, and the rest of you follow me. We’re going up the mountain a ways.”

“I’m down for that! It’s what we came for, right girls?” said Rainbow Dash, looking pumped.

“Y-yes, I guess so. What are we going to be doing exactly?” asked Fluttershy, to which Ditzy just waggled a finger.

“Better to show you. Come on, follow me. Oh, and good luck Discy. Don’t break them.”

“You too, Ditzy. Try not to overdo it,” said Discord as Ditzy led off Sunset’s friends, taking them out of the gully and trekking up the mountain slope. He then turned to her and Clover and nodded down the gully towards the edge of the thick forest clinging to the side of the rocky terrain. “This way.”

As they walked, moving along the edge of the stream, Sunset sped up to walk next to Discord, giving him a sidelong look, “Alright, so why are me and Clover being trained separately from the rest of our friends?”

“While the core idea behind the training is going to be the same for all of you, there are different techniques involved when it comes to training Soul Reapers as opposed to pushing a Fullbringers abilities further. While we could train you all together, it’d be less efficient, and take longer, and time is a commodity we don’t have much of,” replied Discord simply. They reached the forest and he continued on into the thick forest of tall pines.

They continued on for a time, perhaps half a mile into the forest before Discord led them to a snowy clearing. There he stopped and turned to her and Clover, nodding at Sunset. “Best to take your spirit form now.”

“Right,” Sunset said, pulling out the Chappy gikon and swallowing it. Her soul popped out of her body, fully clad in black robes and with Hokori sheathed at her side. She glanced at the waiting Chappy and instructed the gikon to take her body back through the portal to the shop.

“No problem boss, good luck with the crazy training!” said Chappy, turning to jog off, but pausing briefly, “Ummm, hey, is it okay if I take your body for a whirl at the pizza parlor? They’ve got these new garlic butter stuffed crusts I’m dying to try.”

“Ugh, okay, okay, just... don’t overdo it! I don’t need to deal with indigestion after exhausting myself training,” said Sunset, and Chappy made a joyful whoop before bounding off. “Sigh, I really wish I could use my powers inside my actual body.”

Clover patted her shoulder, “It’ll be okay... hm, although I do admit I think your Chappy gikon has been acting odder than she should. I wonder if she’s developing some abnormalities by constantly being used for extended periods of time in the living world?”

“Are they usually not?” asked Sunset.

“Well, gikons are kind of for emergency use when a Soul Reaper needs to leave a gigai quickly, which honestly isn’t that common. I think yours might be the first gikon that’s gotten such regular heavy use, so maybe she’s developing personality quirks outside the gikon’s normal programming?”

“Ahem,” said Discord, “While that is an interesting question, we have other concerns at the moment.”

He pulled back the sleeves on his dark green robes and knelt down, placing his hand on the snow, eyes closing in concentration as he started to chant.

"Cry in the depths, essence of man, burn, writhe
Steel from blood, iron from bone, the coffin shatters
Rise and defy the sky, defy the sun, defy the moon
Ten shall count resolve, ten shall count worth
Ten shall be the corpses left behind"

As he chanted an intense violet glow of light began to expand outward from where Discord knelt, spiraling like a whirlpool. Sunset felt immense spiritual energy flowing from the man as his chant reached a crescendo, and the deep purple light began to rise around them like walls. In fact Sunset realized the energy was transmuting into walls. Tall, thick walls of conjured wood and... and bone?

”Secret Bakudo: Ju Bai Tamashi Rengoku!” (Ten Layered Soul Purgatory)

With a sound almost like the slamming of giant iron doors the Kido spell took final shape and Sunset and Clover found themselves standing within what looked like a large chamber, about eighty feet wide and twelve tall. The walls and ceiling were indeed made from intertwined beams of wood and what looked like humongous, thick bones. However while that was disturbing, what really affected Sunset was the immediate feeling of intense drain on her body. She suddenly felt tired and winded, as if she’d run a dozen miles. She put a hand to her chest, breathing hard.

“What the...? Clover, are you feeling this?”

Clover’s face had paled and she nodded, her own breathing labored, “Yes. This is... Discord, is this what I think it is?”

“If what you think it is happens to be a special barrier Kido that is compressing your spiritual energy, then you’re right, Clover,” said Discord, gesturing around him in grandiose fashion, like a magician revealing his master performance, “You’re standing within one of many ‘Secret’ class Kido I’ve developed over the years. No standard classification number, only performable by myself and a select few I’ve taught the secrets to.”

“That’s great and all but why do I feel like I’ve had the strength drained right out of me?” asked Sunset, trying to regulate her breaths. This almost reminded her of what it felt like to be crushed under the heavy spiritual pressures of those like Grogar or Captain Platinum.

“That’s because this Kido is designed to put strain on the reiryuku of any spirit being within it. It’s designed specifically for training Soul Reapers under extreme conditions. Having your spirit energy compressed in this manner, while being forced to fight for survival... this is the key to unlocking greater power in a Soul Reaper, because it has the side effect of strengthening the bond between Soul Reaper and Zanpaktou.”

“Fight for survival?” Sunset asked warily, one hand already going to Hokori’s hilt, “Against what?”

Discord gravely pointed behind them and both Sunset and Clover looked over their shoulders. The wall on that side of the room began to shift with the distinct, dusty and dry clack of bones. First a sharp, skeletal foot tore its way from the wall, followed by a thin, grasping hand of bone. Bit by bit a figure tore itself out of the wall, a shambling human skeleton, clad in the wide and red lacquered armor of an ancient samurai. Sunset thought it didn’t look too tough an opponent, but the moment that thought glided through her mind she saw dozens of more skeletal, clawed fingers bursting from the wall. And not just that wall, but all of them. From all corners of the chamber the morbid army took form, like some old, resurrected horde. Amid the echoing, rattling regiment Sunset saw drawn swords and ready spears. Within the empty eye sockets of each skeleton burned tiny purple flames.

Clover, while sounding perfectly creeped out, managed to actually sound somewhat admiring at the same time. “These are well made constructs, Mister Discord. I, uh, take it that we can’t advance to the next stage until we’ve defeated all of these opponents?”

“Correct,” Discord replied with a small, wry nod, “They are held back only by the will of the one who cast the Kido spell that created this tower we stand in; namely me. The moment I release them, they will do all in their power to kill you. Destroy them and the way opens to the next layer. On each new layer greater challenges await, more deadly constructs combined with the fact that the strain on your spirit energies will only grow more intense. Reach and clear the tenth layer alive, and you pass.”

“Sounds simple enough,” said Sunset, taking a deep breath and preparing herself, calming her nerves and steeling her resolve.

“Yes,” said Clover, drawing her own Zanpaktou and taking a ready stance, “No matter the difficulty, we will prevail.”

“I hope so. I can’t afford to give you too much help during this, you’ll have to survive on your own skills, my dears.” Discord turned and walked to the side until a staircase of bones formed from the roof, leading to a opening to the next floor that he went up, “I’ll await you at the top.”

After he was gone the staircase and opening in the ceiling closed back up, leaving Sunset and Clover alone with the horde of skeletal samurai. As if by unspoken instinct and understanding the two girls went back to back, blades held at the ready.

“Showtime,” Sunset said, holding one fist out to Clover.

Clover looked at the fist, blinking, then smiled sheepishly and bumped it with her own.

As if the skeletal constructs took that as a signal, they silently bared their weapons and came in at the girls on all sides in one, giant, rattling mass.

-----------

Rainbow Dash was enjoying the brisk hike up the mountainside. The clear, crisply chill air was bracing and the view energizing. Of course not all the girls dug it the way she did.

“A-are we there yet or what?” asked Pinkie Pie, huffing and puffing as one of her eyes twitched, “I think I’ve got a stitch in my side.”

“Aww c’mon Pinkie, you’re like the definition of boundless energy most the time, but a little hiking is getting to you?” asked Rainbow Dash teasingly, and her friend put her hands on her knees, bending over for a moment to catch her breath.

“That’s when I’m on level ground! Inclines, in a word, suck! And we’ve been walking forever!”

“We’ve been walking ten minutes!”

“For-ev-er!”

Applejack just gave Pinkie Pie a playful punch on the shoulder, “This is why I’m always tellin’ ya ta lay off the pastries, Pinkie. Yer needin’ ta balance out yer diet more so you don’t git winded by a’ little hill like this.”

“I beg to differ,” said Rarity, “But I must agree with Pinkie Pie, that this mountain hiking is a tad draining. Where are we going and why weren’t we perfectly fine training down by that lovely gully?”

As she spoke there was a distant flash of violet light coming from the forest at the bottom of the mountain slope, where all the girls knew Discord had taken Sunset and Clover. Rainbow Dash peered and shaded her eyes from the sun as she watched while what appeared to be a tall, pagoda-like tower rise from the treetops. It was easily over a hundred feet tall, with a distinct eastern look about it as each floor had long, sloped roofs with dark shingles. Something in the tower’s construction looked odd to Rainbow Dash’s eyes, as if some parts of it were made from large bones, but that couldn’t be right.

“The heck is that?”

“One of the reasons we can’t train too close to your friends,” said Ditzy Doo, standing at the head of the group with her arms crossed. “You see, Discy’s Kido spells for this training take up a lot of space, and multiple versions can’t be cast too close to each other without destabilizing.”

“So that’s some kind of weird training tower Discord just summoned?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Sweet! You going to do the same thing?”

“Will we be at a hundred times gravity?” asked Pinkie Pie, still catching her breath.

Ditzy Doo laughed, shaking her head, “No and no. First of all, a hundred times gravity? Wrong continuity. Second of all, the Kido I’ll be using is a lot simpler than Discord’s fancy training tower, but that’s because the tower was made for training Soul Reapers to bond more closely with their Zanpaktou. You girls are Fullbringers, and your power springs from a different source. The Kido I’m about to use is similar, but tailored for Fullbringers, and doesn’t quite require the same finesse.”

Thrusting her arm into the air, palm turned upward, a intense golden glow began to enshroud Ditzy Doo. “It also helps to have lots of earth around to act as a foundation.”

Ditzy Doo then slammed her palm down into the mountainside, sending currents of golden yellow light splintering outward like cracks in a mirror. The girls all looked around at each other worriedly as they felt the stone beneath their feet start to shake. Rainbow Dash was about ot ask what was going on but Ditzy Doo spoke first, chanting the resonate words of a Kido spell.

”Battleborn from the entombed soul

Waxen figures drenched in flame, hardened for war

Form now the cradle of seeping blood

Clad in armor of bones, warriors await their time"

As the mountain shook, Rainbow Dash heard a deafening crack as to either side of them dirty and rock erupted from the sides of the earthy slopes. She, along with all the girls were thrown off their feet as an entire slab of stone, over a hundred feet wide, emerged from the side of the mountain, with them on it. It jutted from the mountain like a fist, but that was just the beginning.

“Secret Bakudo: Kitae Tamashī no Butai !” (Arena of the Tempered Soul)

At Ditzy Doo’s words, completing the Kido, the slab of stone burst forth with pillars and vast stone walls, encircling the girls in what appeared to be a conjured arena akin to an ancient colosseum. Tall bronze braziers mounted along the top of the arena’s walls burst forth with intense crimson fire, and bathed the area in a hellish red glow.

Rainbow Dash, still trying to get to her feet, felt an immediate and intense pressure on herself. It wasn’t unpleasant, per se, more like she’d just downed half a dozen energy drinks. She felt extremely agitated, like she could run ten kilometers and still have energy to spare. But it was a dangerous kind of energy, like it wanted to burst out of her, as if she were a balloon being stretched tight with too much water. Rainbow Dash also felt unusually... aggressive, like all she wanted to do was put her fist through something.

“What in blue blazes did you just do lady!?” she near shouted, pointing at Ditzy.

“Easy. I created an arena to train you girls in. The same arena I helped train your mothers in,” Ditzy Doo replied evenly, facing Rainbow Dash with a unblinking gaze.

“Our mothers trained here?” Fluttershy looked around, her body shaking, her voice oddly hissing and angry, “Did you also scare them half to death by summoning this thing without any warning?”

“H-hey, is anybody else feeling really, really grumpy right now?” asked Pinkie Pie, frowning, “Because I’m getting maximum grump vibes offa all of you, and I’m feeling kinda the same.”

“I do feel strange, certainly,” said Rarity, eyes narrowing, “A tad cross, if I do say so, though I’m not at all certain why. Its as if I’ve drunk entire too much coffee while being annoyed by a late night project.”

“All I’m feelin’ is like I wanna knock someone's block off,” said Applejack, face twisted into a deep grimace, “I ain’t likin’ it one bit.”

Ditzy Doo nodded, “That would be the arena’s aura doing its thing. You see, your powers as Fullbringers stems from Hollow origins. I’m sure you remember how your powers behaved strangely while in Hueco Mundo?”

Rainbow Dash glanced at her friends, noticing they were all looking at each other apprehensively, Pinkie Pie in particular giving off a disturbed vibe as she shuddered and said, “Yeah, Mena got super cranky. Like, way more than her usual levels of grumpiness.”

“That’s because Hueco Mundo’s aura, the Hollow energy that permeates that realm, resonates with your Fullbrings. Ultimately a Fullbring is a mutation of Hollow powers inside all of you, inherited from your mothers. While Fullbring operates different than pure Hollow abilities, the kind of Hollow energy present in Hueco Mundo can enhance and excite your powers. Without control, it can make them unstable, as you witnessed in Hueco Mundo. With control, you’ll find being bathed in Hollow energy can make you stronger. It can even help you evolve your Fullbrings.”

“So that’s what this fancy arena is all about, eh?” said Rainbow Dash, cracking her knuckles, “Its hitting us with a bunch of that Hollow energy. That’s why I’m feeling so riled up!”

Ditzy Doo touched her nose, “Bing bing bing, and the prize goes to the blue one. This is why Discy needed my help to train you girls. Only I could use this Kido, since the user needs to have Hollow energy in order to fill up the arena with a similar aura. Otherwise it’d be useless for amping up your Fullbrings.”

Rarity frowned, rubbing her chin, “Wait a moment, wouldn’t that mean you have...?”

“Oh, right, I forgot to mention that part, didn’t I?” said Ditzy Doo as she raised her left hand above her head, turned inward as if grasping at something. Rainbow Dash then felt a sudden surge of spiritual pressure, stemming from the woman in front of them, a upwelling of spirit energy that started to turn distinctly dark and predatory. Very much like a Hollow’s. A deep red aura, like trails of smoke, rose from Ditzy Doo’s form, and in her raised hand an object began to take shape from gathering particles of crimson light.

Within seconds a mask formed in Ditzy’s waiting hand.

The mask was white as bone, except for three identical slash marks along the cheeks in dark red. It had a vaguely feline shape to it, with tapered portions on the head that looked like cat ears, or perhaps more like demon’s horns if one looked at it just the right way. The mask bore thin eye slits and a grinning, fang filled mouth, bearing very much a similar appearance to the masks of Hollows, aside from the fact that this was clearly an object to be worn and not an organic part of a body.

Rainbow Dash heard the other girls gasping, Applejack all but snarling, “What’s the dang meanin’ here!? What’re ya!?”

“Y-you can’t be a Hollow, can you?” Fluttershy backed away a step.

Confusion spiked inside Rainbow Dash, and on instinct she transformed, allowing her body to be suffused in blue light as she ponied up and sprouted her metallic wings. Immediately she could tell that being inside the arena’s aura was affecting her power. The lightning energy that spiraled and flowed around her outstretched wings was tinged red, and she could feel her power vibrating inside her with violent intent. Some part of her wanted to immediately lash out at Ditzy Doo, even though at the moment she hadn’t made any threatening moves.

Ditzy Doo upon seeing Rainbow Dash transform gave her a smile and nod of approval, then said to all of the girls, “It’d take too long to go into what I am and why. Suffice to say I’m sort of like you girls, and that similarity should help make training you even easier than it was with your mothers. This arena alone was enough to train them, with its ability to simulate Hollow reiatsu, but I wasn't like this back then. Now that I am, your Fullbrings will feel the Hollow power inside me and react to it. Now then...”

In one swift, sure motion Ditzy Doo put on the mask, and Rainbow Dash saw the woman’s eyes transform. Blackness filled her sclera and her already golden eyes gained a glowing luminescence identical to that of a Hollows. When she spoke again her voice had become distorted, almost monstrous.

“Training starts now. You girls are going to come at me with everything you have. Go ahead and ‘pony up’.”

Rainbow Dash took a calming breath, steadying her nerves under the pressure of Ditzy’s unnerving spiritual energy, and raised her fists. “Don’t need to ask me twice.”

Applejack’s teeth grated, but she followed Rainbow Dash’s lead, transforming in a glow of gold light, her metallic boots now tinged red from both internal energy and the glow of the red flaming braziers encircling the coliseum. “Gettin’ real tired of all these dang surprises.”

“Very well, let us, as Rainbow Dash would say, ‘do this thing’,” said Rarity, her flowing crimson dress flowing onto her body and her rapier appearing in her hand in a gleam of red light.

Fluttershy silently transformed, third eye opening while her other eyes narrowed with quiet determination.

Pinkie Pie spat on her hands and rubbed them together, licking her lips as she brought out the flow of mist that formed into Pinkamena. The straight haired doppelganger took shape and already had multiple mouths of sharp teeth forming all over her body, her main mouth dripping with drool and her eyes glowing brightly yellow.

“Sooooo hungry!” Pinkamena growled, shaking like an animal barely held back on a chain.

Ditzy nodded in approval, turning and widening her stance to present a ready combat pose. “Now remember girls, don’t hold back. Otherwise-”

She vanished in an eyeblink and a shockwave of sonic force as she moved with breakneck speed to appear in the center of the girls’ formation. “-it will hurt.”

Fists and feet flashed out with blinding swiftness, making Ditzy look as if she was suddenly three or four different people, her form blurring into multiple mirages of herself as she truck all five girls simultaneously. Rainbow Dash felt a kick struck her square in the back before she’d barely had a chance to turn her head in shock, and in the next instant she, along with all of her friends, were sent flying like skipping stones over water to crash to the ground at different points around the arena grounds.

As Rainbow Dash was still getting the stars blinked out of her eyes as she tried to stand, she heard Ditzy saying distantly, “And by the way, I forgot to mention this, but the training doesn’t stop until you girls manage to make me bleed!”

----------

The cell was a plain, dreary, if immaculately clean place. The thick bars separating the cell from the rest of the room were essentially a formality, for Celestia knew she could break free at any time she wished. Yet such violent action would completely undermine her purpose. The entire point of willingly complying with Platinum was for the purpose of overturning the problems within Soul Society by using the due processes of law. To do otherwise would risk destroying the fragile order that had managed to hold together for such a long time, an order Celestia had helped build with her own hands alongside her sister.

Those hands now clenched in her lap as she sat in quiet meditation in her cell, awaiting her hearing with Central 46. She’d been divested of her Zanpaktou, though not her Captain’s robes, which still hung around her shoulders, a heavy weight of responsibility for so light a cloth.

There were narrow slits for windows in the top of the wall that provided some small light, and a view of the Seireitei; the inner realm of Soul Society where the Soul Reapers dwelled with the members of the four noble houses, and where the Soul Reaper Academy was built. At the very center of the Seireitei’s many ordered, clean avenues of shining white stone and tall, immaculate buildings stood a large plateau of stone. Upon that plateau was built the headquarters of the Gotei 13. It was a vast fortress of many towering pillars of stone and interlocked castle walls, all of it bearing the distinct sweeping roofs and wide walkways of Japanese inspired architecture. The particular tower that Celestia’s cell was in faced a long jutting expanse of stone that pushed out from the north side of the fortress plateau; the Sokyoku Hill where it was traditional to hold the execution of traitors and other severe criminals.

Celestia thought it was in poor taste to build cells to specifically look out on such grim ground, but she supposed if she’d wanted to object she should have paid more attention to such things when the fortress was being built.

She took a deep breath, clearing her mind. She wished that Lulu was here, but there was no way she’d be allowed to share a cell with her sister. She imagined Luna was being held in a completely separate part of the fortress. Celestia hoped fervently that Luna wouldn’t do anything rash until the hearing. They needed to maintain their poise and wits if they were to put an end to this foolishness.

Celestia heard the clink of a key turning and the door to the cell room opened, the Soul Reaper guards outside opening it up to allow entry for another. Captain Platinum strode into the room, gesturing at the guards with a dismissive wave, “You may close the door. I wish to speak with the prisoner alone.”

The guard only hesitated a moment before bowing, “Yes ma’am.” As the guard closed the door, Celestia couldn’t help but notice the tension in the young man as he glanced at her apologetically. Many of the guards seemed more embarrassed by having to have Celestia be in a cell rather than wary of her actually trying to escape. It was a tension Celestia had noticed in more than a few places within Soul Society upon her and Luna’s return, as if all was stretched taut and ready to snap among her people. It was... troubling.

“Ah, Captain Platinum, you’ll forgive me if I do no rise to greet you. I was meditating and it seems my leg has gone and fallen asleep,” Celestia said in a polite tone, to which Platinum rolled her eyes.

“I didn’t come here for a verbal sparring match, I came to inform you that the Central 46 have set you hearing date. You and your sister will be answering for your actions in four days time.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow, but kept most of the surprise off of her face, “That’s remarkably fast, for Central 46. I imagined they’d drag their feet for at least a week.”

Platinum allowed a small smirk to tug at her lips, “They are taking the situation seriously, Celestia. As should you. Treason is a serious matter.”

“And a phrase completely inapplicable to myself and my sister,” Celestia said with calm assertion. She met Platinum’s eyes with an intensely inquisitive gaze, “I confess only to being curious. We’ve never been friends, Platinum, but I thought we respected one another. I believe, or at least believed, that we both seek to serve Soul Society in our own way. What makes you so intent on trying to prove me and Luna as traitors? Where would you even get such a ludicrous notion?”

Platinum’s expression turned still and cold as a frozen lake, her voice carrying about as much warmth, “Do you take me for a fool? As if I’d reveal my hand to you at this stage, just so you could fabricate more lies to worm your way out of meeting justice.”

Celestia did stand then, not letting her eyes leave Platinum’s for an instant. She calmly strode up to the bars of her cell and said, “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Please, Platinum, explain yourself.”

“Hmph, of course you’d say something like that, but I won’t be taken in, and neither will Central 46. Once they see the evidence I have to present, there will be no doubt as to the traitorous nature of you and Luna,” Platinum said as she turned around and went back to the door. She glanced over her shoulder, eyes still cold, “You know there was a time, long ago, when I did respect you. When I thought you were the model by which other Captains should be judged. To think you’ve deceived us for all this time...”

“Platinum, listen to me, I don’t know what ‘evidence’ you think you have, but I’m telling you that someone, somewhere, has tricked you with fabrication!” Celestia said, having difficulty keeping her voice as calm as it was before. Some part of her knew that if she looked as rattled as she felt it’d only reinforce whatever delusion Platinum was under, but it was hard to keep a straight face. So someone out there had manufactured some kind of false evidence against her and Luna? It must have been convincing, to make Platinum think it’d swing the Central 46 or even the Captain Commander against her and Luna. However she was at a loss to think of what this evidence could be or what crime it supposedly convicted her and Luna of.

Platinum eyed her for a moment longer, for a moment looking almost doubting, then she shook her head with a scoffing noise, “Tch, your desperation just digs your grave deeper. I didn’t want to believe it at first, but the proof I found is irrefutable. So goodbye, Celestia. I shall see you at the hearing, and then I suspect, upon the Sokyoku Hill.”

Author's Notes:

The best way to train is to be put in extreme mortal danger, repeatedly. Just ask any anime protagonist. As you guys can see, I've taken some liberties with Kido here to create my own for the purposes of this training. My thought here is that, in Bleach, official Kido are ranked from 1-99 based on level of power, but in my headcannon these represent Kido that have been tested and approved for use by the Kido Corps. Its entirely feasible to there'd be a number of experimental Kido out there that don't fit into the numbered catagories either because they were tested enough, were deemed failures, or in this chapter's case are "secret" Kido developed for use by individuals who never let the Kido become a part of the official ranking structure.

At any rate, we'll be jumping between the girls here and the events taking place with Sci-Twi and Adagio, so next chapter will focus more on our Quincy and Hollow characters. Don't worry though, I don't plan for this training session to take forever. We do have other things to get to. As always thanks for reading you guys and hope you keep enjoying. Leave any and all comments, critiques, questions, ect that you wish, all of them are deeply appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 28: Divergent Paths

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Episode 28: Divergent Paths

The pain had become an ever present part of Adagio, and with its constant sting, time had also started to lose meaning. Her body was coated with blood, some of it her own, so much more of it shed from the endless Hollows her hated captor kept sending her way. Wounds marked her on every side, slashes and bites that left wet, red streams to sharply contrast with her alabaster white hide. Her breathing came in heavy, raspy pants, her exhaustion only held at bay by her continuous feeding.

Between each wave of opponents she had a few precious moments to devour what she could of her fallen prey. Soon enough her self disgust had turned to simple, practical relief at how she seemed to recover strength with every scrap of Hollow flesh she consumed. More than that, she felt a warm, glowing pulse of power deep within her core as she fed, and the gem glittering in the empty space of her Hollow hole shed a crimson light that told Adagio she was growing stronger.

For what little good that did her, at the moment. The arena was littered with the debris of battle. What bodies she didn’t eat had dissipated like most Hollows seemed to after being slain. Many of the stone obstacles had been damaged or outright smashed in the endless melee. When Adagio heard the grinding of more stone, seeing a door open up once more upon the wall, she groaned with the ache of moving to prepare herself for yet another wave... only to see that instead of more lesser Hollows pouring forth to fight her it was Grogar himself that strode out into the arena. His hands were clasped behind his back in a casual stance as he surveyed the area with cold, critical eyes.

“Eighteen waves cleared before reaching your limit. Acceptable. Your power is within the proper range for an Adjuchas class Hollow, though your abilities lack refinement. You appear unable to form a Cero at will, let alone to use it tactically-”

Adagio let out a enraged howl at the man and with a crimson flash a blood red beam of destructive energy unleashed itself from the center of her gem. The blast smashed in at Grogar, but the old Arrancar simply raised a hand and took the wave of energy head on, letting it explode around him. He cleared his throat and continued on, saying, “-however it’s clear that strong emotional stimulus certainly acts as a trigger for instinctive Cero use. That blast was mildly stronger than the one you used in our first encounter, and it is clear that unusual gem of yours is the focal point. My analysis of your body during today’s experiment clearly shows the gem is regulating the intake of energy you gain from consuming your fellow Hollows, and is doing so with at least eighty percent more efficiency than what I’d expect from a normal Hollow. Still, I think there’s much more yet to learn, my pet. For today my data collection is at an end and I have an errand for you to run.”

Adagio spat, some of her spittle containing blood, but she hardly cared, “Errand!? Errand!? Go find a piece of feces to choke on you damned goat!”

Grogar smiled with thin, mirthless lips, “Your defiance grows boring. Must I remind you of your place?”

He didn’t make any kind of gesture, no grand motion or spoken command. Adagio simply experienced instant and overwhelming agony without any warning, tearing through every fiber of her being. Her body arched with lances of excruciating red energy and she flopped about like a fish being tasered; her mouth open in a silent scream the entire time, lacking even the breath to make noise. What could have been minutes or hours of that pain passed before it stopped, leaving Adagio struggling to get air into her lungs. Grogar cleared his throat.

“I hope that brief reminder managed to penetrate that rather slow mind of yours. I can trigger that pain with nothing more than a thought. I can do it from quite a long distance away, and tracking you is made easy by other devices I’ve planted inside you. You belong to me, and resisting wastes what little freedom I might decide to grant you. Now if you are done being difficult, I have an errand for you to run.”

Adagio’s fangs ground together in pure frustration, bitter tears of impotent rage boiling down her cheeks. Patience, she told herself, she had to have patience. Grogar had no idea the magnitude of the mistake he was making in keeping her alive, no matter what benefits he thought he’d gain from studying her siren gem. She just had to bide her time, gain in power, gather whatever scraps of advantage she could, and wait for the right moment to strike. Some day Grogar would drop his guard. One day their positions would be reversed.

Adagio allowed herself a small, hidden smile at the notion. She had heard an old saying about revenge being best served cold. Adagio thought that perhaps she’d take a more... violently heated approach when the time came to visit vengeance upon Grogar’s despicable face.

Gathering what dignity she could she managed to float up into a baseline hover and faced Grogar with nothing but clear hate on her face, but managed to fake some accepting resignation. Adagio fancied herself a halfway decent actress. She could look obedient if it served her ends.

“What kind of errand?” she asked, teeth still grinding around her attempt to sound somewhat demure.

“Ah ah ah, what kind of errand Lord Grogar,” he corrected, eyes narrowing dangerously. Adagio suppressed an urge to gag and choked out the words.

“What kind of errand...ugh... Lord Grogar?” She felt sick to her stomach, the words tasting foul on her tongue.

“An associate of mine has dropped off a package for me at an agreed upon location that I require you to retrieve,” he pulled a small slip of paper from a inner pocket of his white vest and held it up, “You will follow the directions here to the letter, without deviation, and return with the package swiftly. I will be monitoring your movements, so do not tarry, otherwise you have experienced the kind of punishment I can bestow.”

Adagio frowned, not at all certain what the point of this was. Didn’t he have other servants that could do this kind of thing? Why send her out like this? Unless he had some kind of ulterior motive he wasn’t telling her, which wouldn’t surprise Adagio in the slightest. She didn’t other asking any questions, mostly because she suspected that would only earn her more pain as an answer. Instead she floated up to Grogar and gingerly took the notes. Some part of her desperately wanted to bite his smug face off, but knew that the attempt would go about as well as firing her Cero at him had.

She wished she knew how to use that power at will. She’d have to teach herself, through trial and error.

“Return within five hours. That should be more than enough time to reach your destination and return, with time to spare,” Grogar said, nodding towards one section of the wall where another door slid open to reveal a staircase leading upwards. She nodded and proceed to float past him, only to be halted by Grogar snapping his hands up to grip her chin between his fingers.

She bristled at the touch, but didn’t dare resist as he turned her face towards him, his eyes devoid of warmth. “Do not attempt to escape. This is a test of your obedience. Please me, and you may gain some small freedoms, but only if they are earned.”

Adagio thought she might break a tooth, she was gritting her teeth so tightly, barely managing to say, “Yes, Lord Grogar.”

He let her go, and she went up the narrow staircase, tremors of anger making her shake terribly. At the top of the stairs she found herself in a strange hallway of vast, dark pillars of stone, stretching to the left and right seemingly for hundreds of meters. Looking at her directions the first bit told her to go to the right and continue for thirty six pillars exactly, where she was to find another staircase she was to go up.

Muttering various unpleasant things she wanted to do to her captor, especially for sending her on inane errands, Adagio floated along the silent hallway. As she went she tried to take her mind off of the pains still aching through her wounded body by thinking about what her sisters might be doing right now. It was a sobering thought because if Adagio knew her siblings then Sonata was probably still a bawling mess, while Aria was likely trying far too hard to pretend to be the strong one.

“Good job Adagio, let’s depress yourself along with being frustrated over your complete inability to escape this hellhole,” she grumbled, oddly somewhat feeling better to just complain out loud. Somehow hearing the annoyance dripping off of her own voice was something of a comfort. It proved that she wasn’t close to be broken yet. She was still Adagio Dazzle, one pissed off and sarcastic bitch.

The thought was enough to make her smile a bit.

Finding the pillar and the extra set of stairs she went up those for nearly twice the length of the first set, until she was pretty sure she now had a ingrained and irrational hatred of all things stair related. When she reached the top she was surprised to find a flat stone wall that looked more like roughly worn rock rather than carved stone. However the directions simply told her to push on the wall, so she did, and found to her brief shock that the wall wasn’t actually there. Her talon passed right through like the wall was simply made of mist.

Taking a deep breath she floated on through, and blinked to find herself out in the vast sandy desert of Hueco Mundo. The wall she’d just passed through was built into the side of a rock formation, one of many that seemed to litter this part of the desert.

“Huh, a hidden entrance to your labs, eh? Sneaky damn rat,” Adagio said, frowning, “Why show me this? Unless it doesn’t matter that I know. Blast, of course he said he could track me anywhere, so what good does it do me to know where one of the exits are?”

She blinked, shaking her head. Talking to herself was probably not a good sign as to her mental state. Refocusing on the task at hand she looked at the directions. She was to head north to a placed called Las Noches? Where the hell was north!? Did Adagio look like she had a built in compass!? She was fuming, but her anger soon turned to surprise as she turned around and looked up... and up some more.

“Oh, that must be Las Noches,” she grumbled as she looked at the tall, mountain sized walls of a gigantic fortress. It was made from a pale gray granite, consisting of a huge main block with a single huge dome bulging upwards from its towering walls. Adagio counted eight separate pillars of stone that soared up even higher than the dome, surrounding the wall at equidistant points. Flanking the fortress on either side were strange blocks of stone of a pale, sea green color, with clear, huge square openings of blackness within them.

This had to be the center of power for the Hollows. Who else in Hueco Mundo would build something like this? Reexamining her directions she noticed they told her to go to the walls of the fortress and follow it to the east until she found a place with three dead trees. Trees? Glancing around she noticed there were a few scattered, dry and darkened husks of what might’ve once been trees. It made her wonder if this realm was always such a desiccated husk of a world?

Taking a deep breath, bracing herself for a long bit of flying, Adagio got moving, swimming through the air with smooth swishes of her tail. The pain from her wounds fell to a dull background ache, some of the lighter ones already closing up. She wasn’t sure if Hollows recovered from injuries this quickly as a normal thing, but she wasn’t going to question it, especially if it benefited her.

The bleak sands passed by with swift assurance as she picked up her pace. She knew it was only a fake, temporary sense of freedom, but it felt good to be somewhere other than Grogar’s underground lab, if only for a short time and stuck doing the bastard’s seemingly pointless errand. What could be in the package she was to retrieve? Who was she retrieving it from? The whole situation struck her as fishy. She had a growing suspicion that this was just another experiment in the guise of a seemingly simple task.

She growled at the thought. Despite how close the fortress of Las Noches had seemed, at first, Adagio hovered along the sand dunes for an hour before it got any noticeable amount closer. It took another such hour before she actually got within the shadow of its huge, imposing walls. Strangely she saw no gates or doorways leading into the fortress. Its walls were smooth as eggshells and seemingly impenetrable. Shrugging she turned to her right, following along what she assumed to be the eastern edge of the wall. Fortunately it didn’t take more than ten minutes at that point to find the small copse of three skeletal, dried out trees jutting up from the sand.

Glancing around, Adagio looked at her instructions, but they ended with her arriving at the trees.

“Well, now what? Am I supposed to guess where this stupid package is?” she grunted her her breath. She looked around, seeing nothing. She floated about the trees, but there was nothing there. Frustration boiled up inside her, and a bit of fear. The memory of the pain Grogar could inflict on her sent a cold feeling surging through her. What was she supposed to do if she couldn’t find the package? Just return without it? He’d surely punish her, but then he’d do the same if her time ran out.

“Dammit!” she shouted, lashing with her tail at one of the trees. Her sharp, blade-like fin severed the tree in half, causing it to smash into the sand.

“Geez, somebody’s in a bad mood,” said a voice from nearby and Adagio wheeled around to face one of the nearby sand dunes, where a woman stood, watching her with an amused grin.

She was an Arrancar, Adagio could tell that much at a glance. She had the shape of a human, with a tall, athletic build that showed toned muscles and even a hint of abs, but the clear, empty hole in her stomach along with the fragments of a bone mask in the shape of a jagged set of spikes jutting up from her short, wild blue hair showed her Hollow nature. A pair of jutting horns extended down from the sides of her head as well, and Adagio noticed the woman, more a teenager really, had clawed hands. Her eyes were a shining red and set in a punkish, youthful face. She wore fairly simple clothing consisting of a pair of tight, cloth pants and a sleeveless white vest that was tied across her chest with cords of black leather. Both pants and vest were torn up and frayed as if she did a lot of rough work in them. She left her feet bare, and Adagio noticed something like flecks of blue scales around the girl's’ feet and the back of her hands.

“Who are you?” Adagio asked defensively, floating back a bit, eyes narrowed.

The girl laughed, jumping down from the sand dune in a long, leaping arc that landed her right in front of Adagio. This close Adagio could see the hilt of a sword wrapped in blue cloth hanging from a strap across the girl's’ back as she leaned forward, hands on her hips, and sniffed at Adagio.

“You got the reek of that old man on you. One of Grogar’s new flunkies, huh? What’s he got you out here for?”

“Answer my question and I’ll answer yours,” Adagio said, raising her chin with a bit of sharpness in her voice.

The girl raised an eyebrow at her, and Adagio felt a distinct crush of the female Arrancar’s spiritual pressure as she said, “You’re pretty cocky making demands of a Fraccion.”

Adagio growled and prepared to either fight or run, whichever seemed more likely to keep her alive, but the girl just laughed again and the spiritual pressure went away. “Hah! Lucky you I like cocky people. Shows some guts. More than I’m used to seeing from any of the pukestains Grogar usually has running around doing dirty work for him.”

The girl extended a clawed hand, “Name’s Ember; Fraccion to the Fifth Espada, Lord Torch.”

Adagio hesitantly took the offered hand with one of her own and Ember shook it vigorously. Blinking, Adagio said, “Adagio Dazzle. What the hell’s a Fraccion?”

“Wow, you are new. Fraccion are the right hands to the Espada, the head honcho’s around here. What, that geezer Gorgar not tell you anything? You do smell like him, so don’t try and tell me you don’t work for him.”

Adagio lowered her head, hissing, “I don’t work for him, I’m his damned prisoner! He’s... studying me.”

Ember glanced Adagio over, seeming to take note of her wounds for the first time, “Yeah, sounds like Grogar. You’re not the first to get snagged into his labs for creepy experiment fun-time. Huh, he’s usually not interested in experimenting on Hollows. What makes you so different?”

Adagio wasn’t at all sure she ought to be trusting Ember with any information. After all Ember was an Arrancar, like Grogar. Yet she was also the first person she’d met besides Grogar, and at this point anyone who wasn’t freakin’ Grogar seemed near saintly by comparison.

“This is what he’s interested in,” Adagio said, pointing at the gem floating within her Hollow hole. Ember saw it, blinked and took a surprised step back.

“Whoa! The heck is that thing!?”

“A long story...” Adagio said, sighing, “One I don’t have time to tell because if I don’t find this damn package Grogar sent me for he’s going to make my day even worse than it’s been already.”

Ember’s expression changed to one of wry thoughtfulness, “A package, is it? That’s weird. Sounds like he’s screwing with you to me.”

“That’s about what I figured, but what choice do I have except to jump through the hoops he’s holding in front of me!?” Adagio said, anger simmering in every word. Ember looked at her, and tapped her chin with one claw for a moment before smiling.

“For now, you’re probably screwed, yeah. Buuuuut, here’s the thing, I don’t like Grogar. Bastard took a shot at my dad a few centuries back and crippled Torch bad enough that it bumped down from being the Second Espada to the Fourth. Then he eventually lost that position and he's now stuck as the Fifth. He's still badass, don't get me wrong, but he's fallen a long way and it's all Grogar's fault! I’ve got plenty of reason to want to snub the smug asshole. You seem kind of cool, for a lower class Hollow. Might be I can help you out.”

Adagio was suspicious, but the dangling bait of hope was hard to ignore, “How, exactly?”

“Life here is all about might makes right, you see. The stronger take from the weaker, even among the Espada. The only reason Grogar’s still alive after screwing with Torch is because the big boss Lord Tirek needs Grogar’s science know-how and forbids anyone from straight up killing the buzzard. But that doesn’t mean Grogar’s got enough pull to gainsay Torch if Torch decide to, say, take one of Grogar’s pet experiments under his wing.”

Ember looked Adagio over, frowning, “Of course my old man has no reason to give two craps about you unless he thought you’d be an asset to him, which no offense Adagio, you’re nowhere near strong enough to impress him....”

“But?” Adagio said and Ember grinned.

“But, if I showed you how to evolve yourself into an Arrancar, that might change Torch’s mind. He’s always looking to recruit more badasses into his horde, so if you can evolve and prove to him you're hardcore enough then he could grant you protection and take you right out from under Grogar’s nose.”

“And you’d be willing to help me do this... why, just because you don’t like Grogar?”

“Pfft, as if I need a better reason. The guy is a straight up piece of trash. Doing something to piss him off will sit just right with me, and hey, like I said, I like cocky people like you. Its win-win for me. All the real risk is going to be on you, since you’d need to figure out a way to meet with me in secret to train. Get caught and I imagine Grogar will make your life even more of a living hell.”

“I... don’t know if I could,” Adagio said, putting a claw over her chest, “He’s got tracking devices in me. For all I know he can monitor my conversations.”

“Tch, if he was listening in don’t you think he’d already be doing something about it?”

True, he hadn’t zapped her with any pain yet, and what reason would he have not to if he heard her talking with one of his enemies like this? Likely it hadn’t occurred to him to install any kind of monitoring besides the tracker to make sure she didn’t run off. Still, that in and of itself was an issue because she couldn’t go anywhere without Grogar knowing about it. So the only conclusion she could come to was to not hide where she was going. It sounded insane, but Adagio had made a life of manipulating others, and a plan was already forming in her mind.

“He won’t want me doing anything he doesn’t think is his idea,” Adagio said, rubbing her chin with one long talon, “But with a bit of time I could plant the notion so that he’ll think training with you is a wonderful idea he thought up himself.”

Ember eyed her incredulously, “Really? I might not respect the guy but know better than to assume he’s an idiot. How are you going to pitch me training you as a good idea?”

Adagio licked her lips nervously, “You let me worry about that. Heh, I must be crazy. But what do I have to lose at this point? Must be why I’m so willing to trust someone I just met. Speaking of which, what are you even doing out here? It is awfully convenient for me that you just showed up here out of the blue.”

“You always this suspicious?” Ember asked, arms crossing over her chest.

Adagio gave the Arrancar girl a grin that might have carried just a hint of crazy in it, “Recent experiences have taught me to not get my hopes up, especially when something looks too good to be true. I appreciate this offer to help me, and like I said, I’m desperate enough to bite, but what are you doing out here really?”

Ember frowned, her eyes narrowing for a second, then she groused and sighed, “Told my dad I suck as this espionage crap. Look, my old man knew Grogar was getting giddy over some experiment and wanted to know what, so he sent me out here to keep an eye on the goat bastard’s ‘secret’ lab, which ain’t as secret as he’d like to think. I’ve been out here all day, and when I spotted you pop up I figured you for one of Grogar’s flunkies. My plan was to talk you up, or failing that, rough you up... but turns out you’re pretty chill and are probably the experiment Grogar’s working on. Lucky you. Here’s the thing, knowing my dad he’s be just as likely to send someone to kill you just to piss Grogar off, but I’m willing to stick my neck out a bit to convince him my plan is better.”

“Because I’m ‘pretty chill’?” Adagio asked, eyebrow raising.

“Because I want...” Ember started to say, but abruptly cut herself off, grimacing and shaking her head, “Look, I don’t usually do this much chatter. All I’ll say is that I’m on the level here, so are you wanting my help or not?”

“Like I said, I’m desperate, and that’s not an admission I make lightly, so yes, I’m in,” Adagio said, “Just give me some time to convince Grogar. It might take a few days.”

Planting suggestions in other people’s minds was often a matter of patience and time. Repetition of the right words, subtle hints. Grogar couldn’t be much more resistant to it than any other person. On top of that, Adagio could feel the pulsing warmth of her siren gem. Its power was growing, and she could feel the clear echoing call of siren magic inside it, not just the more beastly Hollow power it was consuming. It was a risk, a serious gamble, but Adagio thought she might be able to use some of her old tricks. Her singing wouldn’t be as strong as when she worked alongside her sisters, but she’d been the strongest of them, and who knew if being fused with her Hollow self might make the gem more powerful.

She’d find out if she could sing like a siren again, one way or another. But before that she had the problem of this package to figure out. With a geral growl she looked back at the trees, “Before I return to that piece of filth I still have to find this cursed package! Any ideas?”

Ember shrugged, “Why don’t you use your Pesquisa to try sensing for it?”

Adagio blinked, “My what?”

“Pesquisa. Uh... your Hollow senses? They let you sniff out spiritual pressures and feel out what’s around you. If there was something hidden around here then you’d have a better chance of finding it.” Ember grinned, showing fangs, “Also useful for finding dinner if you happen to be peckish.”

Adagio thought of all the Hollows she’d consumed that past day through a seemingly endless, hellish battle in the arena, and shivered. “I’m nowhere near hungry, I just want to find this package and return before Grogar gets impatient with me.”

“Then close your eyes, and clear your head of clutter,” said Ember, “Then take a deep breath and focus.”

With a bemused look on her face Adagio did so. She was no stranger to the notion of clearing the mind to focus. She and her sisters did so every time they sung together. For Adagio it was always easiest to do this when focusing upon her ambitions, picturing all the thing she wanted and desired to grasp at any cost. It wasn’t as easy this time around to do that. Her ambitions had cost her so much, after all. Yet there were still things she wanted, and was willing to risk what little she had left to get. Revenge was pretty close to the top of that list, but it wasn’t enough... she couldn’t get her head focused and clear just thinking of her desire for revenge on Grogar.

However, while casting about in her mind for some way to focus her thoughts, she did find something she wanted even more than destroying Grogar.

A clear image of Sonata and Aria entered her mind, both of them smiling, both of them safe... both of them together with her once more.

That gave her focus. That was an ambition she could grasp for with the crystal clear discipline she needed. With a deep breath she felt her mind clear and center itself, and in that space she could feel her spiritual energy like a warm torch.

“Good, I can tell you’ve got this,” said Ember, “Now, if you can feel your spirit, send it out in a pulse. It’s like a mental shout, at least that’s how it feels for me.”

Adagio understood, though in her case it was less a shout and more like imagining herself letting out one harmonious chord, and she felt her spirit energy flow out of her in a single pulse. With a startling realization she understood this wasn’t any different than the sonar pings she and her sisters would use when they’d lived as sirens in Equestria’s oceans. Her spirit energy rushed out in an invisible circle, reacting with any other reiatsu in the area. She felt Ember, and could feel the Arrancar’s power, how much stronger Ember was, how it had its own unique flavor that reminded Adagio of something sharp and tart-like, yet somehow oddly sweet.

And she felt another source of reiatsu, a small ping of spiritual energy nearby, within the small group of dead trees, buried beneath the sand. Opening her eyes she looked and pointed, “There.”

Ember nodded, “Good. I felt it too. You know you feel weird, spiritually speaking.”

“Hmm? How so?” Adagio asked as she walked over to the area where she felt the buried signature of spirit energy, kneeling down.

“It's hard to describe. You’re definitely a Hollow, but it's like I’m getting two different spirit energies off of you, one that’s Hollow, and one that’s something else entirely. Whatever it is, the feeling is coming off of that gem.”

Adagio glanced over her shoulder at Ember, raising an eyebrow, “Would you believe me if I told you I’m actually a magical siren from another dimension and the gem is the heart of my power to seduce others with song?”

“...Wut?”

Adagio chuckled under her breath, “Nevermind. Let’s just say I’m perfectly happy not being a normal Hollow. Now then...”

She hated doing any kind of dirty work, but after being maw deep in the innards of a bunch of Hollows Adagio’s threshold for dealing with disgusting things was vastly raised. A bit of digging in the dirt like a dog, she could deal with that. It only took a few minutes to uncover a small stone cube about a foot long on either end. It wasn’t as heavy as Adagio thought it might be as she picked it up. There was a single latch to open it, and Adagio was rather curious if there was actually anything in there, but figured Grogar would know if she tampered with the container so she just tucked it under one arm and turned to Ember.

“Well, once I’ve gotten Grogar agreeing to let me train with you as if he’d thought the plan up himself, I imagine we’ll be seeing more of each other.”

“Good luck with it,” Ember said, “Still don’t know how you plan on convincing him, but I guess it's no skin off my back one way or another. Just try not to get killed. The number of people I can have intelligent conversations with around here I can count before running out of fingers.”

With that, they parted ways, and as Adagio floated back towards Grogar’s underground lab, package in hand, she turned all of her attention towards how she’d manipulate her captor into starting down a path that would lead to her being able to one day bring about his downfall.

----------

When Twilight Sparkle awoke it was to a familiar tickle on her face. Blinking awake she found a small purple dog sitting on her chest and licking her nose, who barked excitedly upon seeing her eyes open.

“S-Spike!” Twilight exclaimed, sitting up in her bed and giving the dog a tight hug, “When did you get here?”

She was in a room somewhere in one of the many towers of the Quincy fortress, the Silbern. It was a rather large and luxurious room the bed itself more than twice what Twilight could consider normal, and it was ludicrously plush. Despite all her fears and misgivings about the future she’d found herself sleeping a deep, comfortable, and dreamless slumber. A glance at the old grandfather clock in one corner of the room showed her it was still early, not even halfway to six o’clock. Sunrise was still a time off, and she’d need to get to the Quincy Academy before that, as per Spitfire’s instructions.

Spike, wagging his tail, said, “Shining Armor brought me along, but I was in a carrier until recently. He said he didn’t want me distracting you before your meeting with this king dude. How’d that go, by the way?”

Twilight shivered, “Strangely. I don’t know what to make of him. He seemed... not as scary as I thought he’d be, but I feel like he’s hiding a lot, too.”

Spike yawned, and thumped one of his hind legs as Twilight gently scratched behind one of his ears, “This whole place smells weird to me. Way too clean. Not sure I like it.”

“Neither do I Spike, but this is going to be home for now,” Twilight said, giving the dog a quick hug before setting him aside and tossing the covers to hop out of bed. She went to one of the large dressers situated along one side of the room and dug into it. Inside was something that made her feel apprehensive, even through Cadance had told her it’d be here for her in the morning.

Her Quincy uniform.

She looked at the slim, form fitting and sleek white uniform and sighed, closing the dresser. She’d change after a shower. Spike settled onto the bed while she went into the adjoining bathroom that was attached to her room via a door just to the right of the dressers. She took a quick, bracing shower, not taking as much time as she’d normally like, but she was too anxious to relax and just wanted to get this day going before she lost her nerve.

Drying off, she went back to the dresser and pulled out the uniform, slowly changing into it. The pants were well cut slacks that hugged the skin closely but still left lots of flexibility for movement. There was no skirt, but the blouse had long side tails that almost approximated a skirt. The blouse had elements of a military jacket, with double silver buttons up the front. The collar was high and a little tight, with the Quincy cross insignia on the right lapel, and a small, single star on the left to indicate her rank as a cadet. There was the cape that went across her shoulders, the sleek white silk going down to about her mid-back, and the cap, a short billed military cap that went on her head after she did her hair in a simple ponytail. Finally there were her black socks and tall, nearly knee high black military style boots. She’d never worn anything like them and they were a bit uncomfortable once she got them laced up.

Looking at herself in a tall standing mirror, Twilight felt like she was looking at a stranger. She still wore her normal glasses, and her mother’s old Quincy cross hung from her right wrist, completing the image. She could see Spike in the mirror’s reflective surface, laying on the bed behind her and looking at her with worried eyes.

“Are you sure about all this Twilight?”

She sighed, shaking her head, “No, but that doesn’t matter. I can’t turn back now, Spike. I have to do this.” She gulped, “I just don’t know if I can.”

Spike jumped down from the bed and came up to her, nuzzling her leg and smiling up at her, “I don’t really get all that’s going on, but I know you can tackle anything that comes your way. I’m totally here for you, whatever you need.”

Twilight knelt down, smiling warmly at Spike and ruffling his head as she wiped a bit of moisture from her eyes with her other hand, “Thanks, Spike. It means a lot to me that you’re here. I don’t know how much time I’ll have to take care of you, but I’ll make sure you have food and water before I go.”

“I’ll take care of that, Twilight,” said Cadance as she was rather suddenly standing in the doorway, as if she’d been there all along. Twilight nearly jumped out of her new boots, and even Spike gave the woman an unnerved look.

“Cadance? How long have you been here?”

There was a slightly hurt look in Cadance’s eyes, flashing back to gentle control in an instant, “I just got here Twilight. I wasn’t spying on you.”

Twilight’s brows creased, her voice taking on a hint of hurt as well, “You already have, once.”

Twilight felt a small stab of guilt, because Cadance looked no different than if Twilight had physically slapped her. The woman took a deep breath and put a hand over her chest, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I didn’t think you’d understand why I did it. I wanted to protect you Twilight. To know if you ever got into trouble. I... should have told you, but I only had your safety in mind.”

“Yes, you and my whole family, apparently,” Twilight said, unable to keep some scornful frustration out of her voice.

“That’s not fair, Twilight.” Cadance stepped into the room, slowly walking up to Twilight, who tensed up at the woman’s approach, but didn’t move away. Cadance moved around her, eventually ending up a bit behind Twilight, one hand resting on Twilight’s shoulder gently as Cadance looked at Twilight’s reflecting in the mirror. Twilight looked back at herself, clad in the Quincy uniform, the same way Cadance was. Cadance didn’t look happy, with her face bearing a saddened, tired cast.

“This is the life your brother wanted desperately to keep you from. Even your parents weren’t inclined to see you take up arms as a Quincy. Its a life that has consumed many, and I know they wanted something different for you, their cherished daughter. But now that you’ve chosen this life, there’s no going back. I’m sorry we couldn’t continue as we were. I would’ve liked to have seen you go on to college, graduate into any field you wanted, and become a brilliant member of whatever scientific field you desired. I would have cheered for you every step of the way, while doing my duty as a Quincy to protect you and every innocent human on this world from the shadows of anonymity.”

Cadance breathed deeply, a long sigh as she turned Twilight around, put her other hand on the girls’ other shoulder, and looked her straight in the eyes with a depth of both hardness and sorrow, but ultimately acceptance.

“Now I’ll do all I can to support you on this path your life has taken, whether you trust me or not. We are no longer student and dean, or the near sisters we could have been. Now we are comrades in arms. You will face great hardships in the time to come, Twilight. You’ll feel pain, see others die, people you’ll come to know. This is the hard fact of war, and we can’t protect you from it. Only be there to support you through it. So please, I ask you, don’t push us away. Your family loves you, even if you don’t believe that right now.”

The words were said with all the sincere warmth that Twilight remembered Cadance always speaking in. It felt so nostalgically comforting and right. Perhaps that was why it was so hard to trust. Cadance had always been this loving and supportive, for as long as Twilight could remember, and all that time it was while hiding such massive secrets. Could Twilight really trust any of her family again?

On the other hand, did she really want to go the rest of her life bearing a grudge against the people she loved? Could she bear that kind of lonely, cold life, while also facing all the many challenges in front of her? Seeing Cadance standing in front of her, looking a much scared as sincerely trying to connect, Twilight couldn’t help but swallow a lump in her throat and give the woman a quick hug.

“I’ll try, Cadance. That’s all I can say right now.”

Cadance hugged her back, “Its enough. Now, you’d best get going. Shining Armor is waiting for you at the front gates. He’ll show you how to get to the Academy. Good luck, and be careful. This training will be perhaps even more dangerous than hunting Hollows with your friends had been. I’ll look after Spike.”

Spike gave a small bark of acceptance, sensing Twilight losing some of her tension, and with Cadance giving the dog a pat on the head he seemed willing to let bygones by bygones for now. Twilight soon departed, making her way down the long, winding corridors of the palace to find the massive entry hall from yesterday. She felt proud to not need to ask any directions from the several Quincy soldiers she’d seen paroling the halls.

Outside in the courtyard she found Shining Armor waiting by the front gate, its portcullis still raised. He gave her a solemn nod punctuated by a small, relieved smile as she approached.

“Morning Twily. Sleep well?”

“Surprisingly so, given the circumstances,” Twilight said, standing awkwardly in front of her brother for a moment before adding, “Cadance talked to me. I, uh... I’m working on getting over the whole spying on me thing. I hope you, mom, and dad all know I don’t... hate you guys, right?”

Shining Armor stiffened for a moment, wincing, then managed to relax a bit, scratching the back of his head, “I didn’t think you would, really, but I know the whole family lost some of your trust with everything that’s happened. Didn’t figure this would be an easy transition for any of us. Wish we had more time to talk, but we really do need to get going if we’re going to get you to the Academy before morning muster.”

He led her outside the castle, and a little ways off the road, before turning to face her. “Alright, so you remember what I taught you about reishi collection?”

Twilight nodded, “All Quincy techniques revolve around collecting and releasing spirit particles, manipulating the ones in our environment or inside ourselves.”

“Correct. In a spirit realm made of reishi we have a lot more to collect and work with, but since a spirit realm is made up entirely of spirit particles they can interact with each other differently than they do with physical particles here in the material world. Basic principles remain the same, however, and being able to use reishi as a platform to stand on even simple air particles is one of them. Now, show me.”

It was a technique Twilight was still far from perfecting, but she got the basics. With a deep breath she concentrated on the flow of her own spirit energy, and some of the spirit particles existing inside the air around her. There seemed to be more here around the Quincy palace than in other areas she’d tried this in, which made the next part easier. With a slow exhale of breath she gathered some stray spirit particles underneath her feet, and then used her own spirit energy to fill in the gaps between them. Slowly a blue platform of energy formed beneath her, and lifted Twilight up off the ground.

Shining Armor nodded in approval, “Good. Now, I’m going to show you how to use this technique to travel quickly over a short distance. Its the same principle as a Soul Reaper’s Flash Step, and you need this if you’re going to keep up with the other students at the Academy.”

Twilight paid close attention as Shining Armor mirrored her previous actions, gathering reishi underneath his feet. Only while Twilight had formed one large platform, he created two smaller, but much denser pools of spirit energy under the balls of his feet. Then in a burst of energy he released that pent up reishi and propelled himself at high speed backwards. He then almost instantly did the same technique again to change direction and all but vanish for an instant before he appeared a good twenty yards away.

Twilight blinked, and raised her hand. “Question?”

“Go ahead,” Shining Armor said as he walked back up to her.

“How can you deal with the g-forces of such rapid movement without snapping your neck?”

Shining Armor slapped his forehead, “Right, I still haven’t taught you that one yet either, have I? Okay... damn, I really wish I had time to go over all of this. This is why joining the Academy is so dangerous for you right now, you don’t even know Blut Vene or Blut Arterie. This is all stuff I was going to teach you before we ever had to worry about you joining the Quincy or not.”

“Well we don’t have a lot of time, so just give me the basic rundown and I’ll try to work it out myself on the way to the Academy,” Twilight said, trying to control her rising stress with a few slow breaths. It wasn’t really helping. Shining Armor did manage to give her a reassuring smile, however.

“You’re right, you’ve got a real talent for picking things up fast, so maybe showing you once will be enough. I hope so, anyway. Okay, so watch...”

He extended his hand and for an instant Twilight felt a spike of spirit energy inside him. Then his hand seemed to briefly glow with hard angled veins of pulsing red light. Twilight could sense Shining Armor’s reiatsu, the pulse of his spirit energy flowing inside those veins of glowing rose color.

“Blut is the technique that allows a Quincy to infuse our bodies with reishi enhancements by channeling our spirit energy through our blood. This can be used to either boost our physical strength, or allow us to withstand deadly attacks. What you’re seeing now is Blut Vene, the defensive ability. With this I can withstand the g-forces of high speed movement, or take the attack of a Soul Reaper’s Kido or Zanpaktou without being instantly killed. Blut Vene’s opposite number, Blut Arterie, can make me strong enough to tackle Hollows bare handed, if need be. Of course how strong an individual Quincy’s Blut is vary’s a lot on how much spirit energy we have, but it's a core technique in our ability to fight Soul Reapers and Hollows on even terms. Hopefully you can pick it up quick. You should, as a pureblood Quincy.”

Twilight took his hand and examined it, looking closely at the lines of red light infusing his skin. She traced a finger along the veins and closed her eyes, feeling out the energy and how it flowed through his blood. “Hmm, this... kind of reminds me a bit of how Rarity’s power works, only she’s controlling her blood on a much larger and complex scale.”

“The blood is just a channel for us. What your friend is doing is fundamentally different, but that’s neither here nor there. Do you think you could do this?” Shining Armor asked, and Twilight chewed her lip.

“Maybe. I need time...”

Shining Armor gave a swift nod, and turned around, kneeling down, “Alright then, hop on.”

“Shining, I’m too old for you to be giving me a piggyback ride,” Twilight said with a small laugh, but he just smiled at her in that annoying, brotherly fashion.

“You need to focus on figuring out Blut, and I can’t expect you to do that while trying to also use our high speed techniques without killing yourself. I’ll move slow enough to be safe. We’ll be a bit fashionably late to the Academy but I’ll make sure Spitfire chews my head off, not yours. Now come on, daylight’s wasting.”

Swallowing her embarrassment, especially considering there were Quincy soldiers up on the palace battlements that could see the, Twilight climbed onto her brother’s back. It was a tad nostalgically familiar to when she was much smaller and he would give her piggyback rides around the mansion. Mostly though it was just embarrassing. Fortunately she did have something to occupy her thoughts as Shining Armor took off, making large leaps into the air, using his reishi to form miniature platforms that used to jump from point to point as he took her west into the forest. He was moving quickly, but nowhere near the breakneck speed he had before. The wind rushed by, making Twilight’s ponytail whip about. It was tad frightening at first, but her brother kept his balance well and she never felt in real danger of slipping free.

It allowed her to focus on figuring out Blut.

Shining Armor gave her a few basic pointers, but Twilight did most of the work herself as she focused her attention inward upon her own spiritual energy. She’d become skilled enough to summon her Quincy bow without any trouble, but that was an external representation of her power. Manipulating it internally was a bit different, and she spent long minutes feeling the energy slip away from her more than it followed her direction. Yet Shining Armor hadn’t been wrong, Twilight had a talent for learning quickly. By the time Shining Armor had slowed down Twilight might not had been able to form a Blut Vene, but she had a growing idea of how it was supposed to work. She had to concentrate her spirit energy at a single point on her body, and much as Shining Armor said visualizing her bloodstream as a natural channel for that energy helped. She couldn’t quite get it to solidify in the kind of defensive enchantment that Shining Armor had, but she felt like if she could just keep practice for a few days she’d get it right.

The problem was, however, she didn’t have a few days. She and Shining Armor had arrived at the Quincy Academy.

He landed in the clearing of a large forest valley that cut right through the dense trees. Uniform, steel bunkers lined either side of the valley, a dozen in total, all leading up to a thirteenth building at the head of the valley that looked to Twilight like a modern military headquarters facility complete with communications dishes, surrounding chain link fence, and a concrete helipad. In between the bunkers were spaces cleared out for square shaped areas of shaped stone that reminded Twilight of martial arts training pads, minus the actual padding.

As she and Shining Armor arrived she saw that there were people either inside these square arenas, or hanging out beside them. Those within, all of them young men and women around Twilight’s age and wearing Quincy uniforms similar to her own, were doing battle with each other. She saw Quincy flitting about at high speed, firing bow shots of blue reishi. Stray shots, instead of flying out haphazardly from the combat areas were instead intercepted by barriers of blue light that appeared around each arena, then flickered out as the fighters continued their bouts.

Twilight winced as she saw one girl in the nearest arena, a familiar athletic woman with beige skin and a wild head of hare of many blue tones, got hit in the shoulder by an arrow from her opponent, another girl who was familiar due to her lighter two toned set of pigtails, white on light blue, and her darker blue skin. The arrow drew clear and obvious blood, though it didn’t penetrate as deep as it should have, and Twilight realized the girl who got hit must have been using Blut Vene to minimizing the damage, though the girl still growled in pain.

“Argh! Dammit Sugarcoat, that hurt!” the girl shouted as she drew her bow back, a smooth dark blue longbow that was tipped on either end by jagged bolts of lightning. Even the arrow of reishi she fired had a snapping crackle of electricity about it, though the other girl dodged aside the shot swiftly, Sugarcoat’s face deadpan.

“You’re only getting hit because you're bad at dodging, Indigo. Move faster and I won’t hit you.”

“Gah! What do you think I’m trying to do!?” Indigo Zap huffed out, firing off more arrows as Sugarcoat ducked and weaved about, evading the attacks with smooth, simple grace.

“Try harder,” was all Sugarcoat said as she raised her own bow, a shorter and thicker one than Indigo’s, cast in a pearl sheen with an oddly square shaped and offset handle. The arrows she fired where almost like bullets more than arrows, compact sharp spikes of light that Indigo scrambled to dodge, getting tagged in the leg as she missed a step.

Upon that hit there was a klaxon sound and a woman standing by the side of the arena said, “Three points; Cadet Sugarcoat wins the bout.”

Indigo let out a rather unladylike curse and with a snap of her fingers dismissed her bow in a glow of blue reishi, and Sugarcoat did the same. The two girls stared at each other, Indigo wincing as she tried to ignore her wounds, “I’ll get you next time.”

Sugarcoat just shrugged, “If you do, you do. If you don’t, you don’t. I don’t see why you’re so competitive about this.”

“Uh, duh, we’re Shadowbolts, we’re supposed to be competitive!”

“We’re not some high school sports team anymore, Indigo. Competing seems pretty pointless when we’re all going to be dealing with the same opponents soon enough,” Sugarcoat retorted as she strode past Indigo, and then took note of Twilight and Shining Armor’s approach. The woman who called the match also noticed them, and turned to meet the new arrivals. She had skin of a light mint coloring, and a vibrant head of hair that took on two different shades of orange. Her eyes also had an orange tint to them, which narrowed slightly at Twilight and Shining Armor’s approach, especially when looking at Shining Armor.

“Ah, had to give your sister an escort here, did you? Can’t she use Hirenkyaku on her own?” the woman asked in a chiding tone, referring to the formal name of the technique Shining Armor used to move swiftly.

Shining Armor’s face took on a iron cast, “She’s learning quickly, Lightning Dust. Faster than most. Where’s Spitfire?”

“Setting up the exercises for later today,” said Lightning Dust as she took on a thin, satisfied smile, “Spitfire put me in charge of training until the evening exercise comes around. So...” she looked at Twilight, “Just what can you do, girl?”

“I, um, well...” Twilight stammered, feeling distinctly uncomfortable under this woman’s judging gaze.

Shining Armor stepped forward, “She’s capable of summoning a spirit bow, and understands the basics of spirit energy sensing and can use Hirenkyaku to a limited degree.”

“Hm, that’s hardly more than what a novice can do. If she’s to join the other cadets that’s simply not good enough.”

“Her placement here is an order from His Majesty,” Shining Armor reminded Lightning Dust, who paused at that and gave an acknowledging nod after spending a moment with a considering look on her face. .

“I wasn’t saying she can’t join the class, Shining Armor, but how am I to have her participate if she can’t keep up with the rest of the cadets?”

“I can keep up,” Twilight said firmly, stepping forward. By now their arrival had attracted attention from the other cadets, and a gathering had come to encircle the situation. Twilight glanced around, noticing other Crystal Prep students she had seen at the Friendship Games. She was hoping to see some friendly faces, but most of them looked at her either with only faint interest, or well guarded expressions.

Lightning Dust tapped a finger on her hip and said, “Well then if you are so confident then you won’t mind proving it. Lemon Zest!”

“S’up teach?” asked the neon pink skinned girl with brightly colored green hair with yellow highlights. Twilight didn’t think the white Quincy uniform worked well on her at all, but Lemon Zest didn’t seem to care, and had somehow gotten her hands on a pair of headphones. It seemed even Quincy training couldn’t deprive the girl from her music.

“You were scheduled to fight Suri Polomare, but instead let’s have you test out our newest cadet,” said Lightning Dust, glancing at Shining Armor, “That isn’t a problem is it? If she can keep up, that is.”

He didn’t look happy with the situation, but looked at Twilight questioningly. It was clear he was leaving this up to her, and with a small gulp Twilight nodded, “I can do it. W-what are the rules exactly?”

Lightning Dust’s smile turned a tad... ominous, “Pretty simple; step into the ring and when I give the signal, you go at it. Bows only, no physical attacks. First to three strikes on their opponent wins. Aiming for the head or heart is prohibited, but anything else goes. Got it?”

Twilight nodded, and Lightning Dust’s smile turned into a full on grin that carried a hint of disturbing glee to it, “Right then, get in the ring and show us what you can do. Lemon Zest, I expect you to treat this just like you would any other fight against another cadet. I don’t want to see any holding back.”

“Yeah yeah yeah, I hear ya teach,” Lemon Zest said as she hopped up onto the platform, Twilight following her. As the two girls walked out onto the stone arena Twilight saw the shimmering field of blue energy snap into place around it, presumably to protect the spectators from harm. There were now quite a few cadets watching, perhaps more than half the class. Twilight could feel their eyes almost all on her as she faced Lemon Zest in the center of the arena, the other girl stretching her arms casually and yawning.

“Been awhile. How’s life?” Lemon Zest asked, not looking all that worried or aggressive. Minus their surroundings this could’ve been any regular day back at Crystal Prep, for all the concern Lemon Zest was showing.

“Uh... okay, I guess?” Twilight said, “Strange, really.”

“I know right? This Quincy stuff is way over my head, but hey, apparently it's ‘family tradition’ or some junk. Guess I don’t care as long as I get to chill when I want.”

“Hey!” shouted Lighting Dust, “You’re not in there to socialize. On the count of three I expect to see some fireworks. One...”

Lemon Zest rolled her eyes and sighed, “Yeesh, such a slave driver. Oh well, sorry about this Twilight, but gotta satisfy teach, you know?” Lemon Zest cracked her neck and put her headphones on, switching on some music.

“Two...” Lightning Dust said, raising a hand in a ready motion to signal the start of the impromptu match. Lemon Zest, casually widening her stance while still looking relaxed, head bobbing with whatever music she was listening to, held out her left hand out to her side. In a flash of blue light a bow appeared there, a very oddly shaped one. It consisted of two opposite facing half circles of energy, connected by a central solid piece of what looked to be a hexagon of bright pink metal with small lines of energy flowing between the inner portions like a handle that Lemon Zest held. Twilight had never seen something so odd looking or impractical, but Shining Armor had told her that a Quincy’s bow often took shapes that represented aspects of the wielder’s personality... and well this odd looking thing somehow seemed to fit the odd girl in front of her.

Seeing Lightning Dust tense to signal the start of the match, Twilight quickly threw out her right hand, focusing to summon her own bow. It took shape in a sparkling flow of blue reishi particles, a fairly simple curved crescent of cerulean light.

“Three!” Lightning Dust chopped her hand down, and Lemon Zest’s bow came up in a flash almost too fast for Twilight to see.

And thus her life at the Quincy Academy began.

Episode 29: One Step Further

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Episode 29: One Step Further

At first, things weren’t that bad. Sure, fighting within the tower’s spiritual energy suppression field felt like trying to run a kilometer dash while wearing a suit made out of anvils, but the skeletal horde on the first level hadn’t been that tough. The silent, disturbing undead warriors had attacked in bulk, forming a wall of spears and blades that had been a challenge to avoid,but Sunset had faced just as bad if not worse when dealing with the Hollows. Between her and Clover’s combined efforts they’d been able to watch each other’s backs and gradually take down the skeletons, who didn’t seem to have any tricks up their bony sleeves besides trying to gang up on the two Soul Reapers.

Sunset had almost started to feel disappointed, going up the stairs to level two.

It occurred to her now, with a bone club the size of a Volkswagon clipping her in the shoulder and sending her flying through a column of bone and stone like a crochet ball, that level one had just been the warm up.

The moment her and Clover had entered the second level she felt the difference in the spirit energy drain on her body. It had become a whole plateau of worse, leaving her feeling sluggish before she could even take stock of her surroundings. This floor had lines of columns that looked to be built from stone engraved with large leg or arm bones, providing cover for the dozen significantly larger skeletal warriors that emerged from the shadows. With crested helmets that scraped the ceilings, these brutes were twice the height and width than the ones below, with bones that were thicker than some professional bodybuilder's biceps. They carried an assortment of brutal looking weapons, from huge, notched axes to the massive knotted clubs of bone the likes of which Sunset had just experienced getting hit by when the closest of the skeletal warriors that had emerged took advantage of her surprise and slowed down reflexes to strike her a hefty blow.

A kaleidoscope of pain exploded through Sunset’s senses, leaving her numbed and stunned for several long, agonizingly dizzy moments. Rolling onto her back, feeling the world spinning around her, Sunset blinked to see the looming shadow of a giant skeletal warrior levering an axe at her prone form. Swearing more sharply than a spurned sailor Sunset concentrated her spirit energy, as much as she could under the dampening effects of the tower, and forced herself into an awkward Flash Step to avoid the deadly axe’s edge as it smashed the ground where she’d just been. She backpedaled, clutching at her shoulder, which had taken the brunt of the previous blow. It didn’t feel dislocated, but it hurt like ten kinds of hell.

She spotted Clover out of the corner of her eye, rapidly ducking and jumping away from the powerful blows of several of the huge skeletons that had rushed her. Clover’s palm shot up the second she got a bit of distance between herself and her hulking pursuers.

“Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!”

The brilliant blast of cerulean light crashed outwards and smashed into the lead skeleton, blasting apart thick bone shards and bits of hefty armored plating. As that one skeleton fell, however, four of its companions surrounded Clover on all sides. Sunset, ignoring the skeletons coming her way, rushed towards Clover, pushing herself into another Flash Step, feeling the exhaustion pressing on her hard but ignoring it. Appearing right behind one of the skeletons about to crush Clover, Sunset drove her Zanpaktou into the things’s spine as hard as she could. The blade bit through the bone hard, and Sunset twisted, hearing the pop of vertebrae as she tore her sword out of the skeleton’s side.

The desiccated undead construct fell in half, giving Clover just the opening she needed to dive away from the crashing fall of the other skeletons’ weapons as they smashed into the ground with enough force to produce a small shockwave. Clover passed by Sunset at a dead run, shouting, “Follow me!”

Sunset didn’t question it, turning and sprinting after Clover as the hulking skeletons turned to start lumbering after them. Sunset was already breathing harder than could remember in any of the fights she’d been in up until that point. The tower’s suppression of her spirit energy was unbelievably constricting, like having a heavy mass of cold, wet blankets draped over her. It kind of pissed her off. Actually it, really pissed her off, and created a heated burn in her gut that kept pushing her on.

“We can’t run from these guys forever, Clover,” Sunset pointed out as they neared the far size of the chamber, the skeletons stomping behind them like a pack of rattling rhinoceros.

“Wasn't intending to,” Clover breathed back, sounding just as tired as Sunset was, if not quite as frustrated. In fact Clover had an intense look in her eyes, Sunset seeing the wheels spinning in her friend's mind. “We can’t afford to expend too much energy on these mindless constructs. Efficiency. Yes, we need to deal with them efficiently. One fell swoop. Save as much strength as we can for the other levels.”

Sunset couldn’t argue the point. This was just the second level of the tower. They had to conserve as much energy as possible, because it was clear things would get harder the higher they got. Her aching shoulder was a keen reminder that she couldn’t afford to get too battered up either, otherwise she’d just be a walking bruise by the time they reached the top. And as Discord had made clear; this training could be lethal. The constructs weren’t pulling their blows. One mistake could end her, or Clover.

We have to step up our game. That’s the whole point of this training.

“What’s the plan?” Sunset asked as they reached the far wall, both girls turning to face the oncoming force of undead warriors.

“Keep them busy,” Clover said, holding her Zanpaktou aloft, “Just buy me a few minutes. Seek, Chishiki!”

Emerald light poured from her blade, the weapon lengthening and morphing into the long staff of its Shikai form, the ring blade on one end and a metal point at the other.

“A few minutes. I can handle that. Ignite, Hokori!”

Sunset could feel the upwelling burst of spirit energy as her Zanpaktou was engulfed in flame and split into two parts, the shield flowing into her left hand and the broadsword appearing from the flames in her right. The tower’s suppression field affected Hokori, Sunset could feel that much. The flames burned, but felt lessened, and the frustration and anger inside her Zanpaktou mirrored her own. Hokori didn’t like being shackled any more than Sunset did.

Still, she felt better with the shield and broadsword in hand, and with greater confidence she rushed the skeletons coming at her and Clover. She could see that Clover stepped to the side, and was aiming Chishiki’s ring blade at the skeletons, a green glow starting to encircle the ring. Sunset was a bit familiar with Clover’s Zanpaktou, and suspected she was analyzing the constructs. She had no time to think on why, however, as she was fully occupied with not getting killed for the next few minutes.

Her speed and her shield were her saving graces. The huge, ogrish skeletal warriors were powerful, monstrously strong, but not that fast. Sunset could sidestep most of their blows as long as she could see them coming, and for what strikes she couldn’t evade due to the enemy’s numbers her shield accounted for. The hammer blows rattled her to her bones, but each blow created a burst of power that transferred from her shield to pool into her blade. Several times a brutish skelton would try to break away from her to go after Clover as the other Soul Reaper slowly circled the fight, but each time Sunset used Flash Step to cut off the offending undead construct and push it back with a few well timed slashes. Still, she was tiring, and each minute crawled by with painful slowness.

However, soon enough the green glow around Chishiki’s ring blade was full, and Clover’s face lit up with a satisfied smile. “Got it! Analysis complete. Let’s see if this works.”

Pointing the ring blade at the nearest skeleton, she intoned, “Hitei!”

The skeleton stopped in mid-swing at Sunset, its entire body going rigid. Then the glow of purple, flame-like light in its eyes snuffed out and the construct full apart like an exploding crash-test dummy. Sunset leaped back, putting some distance between herself and the skeletons as Clover invoked the same ability again and again, “Hitei! Hitei!”

Each time a skeleton froze, then collapsed into a pile of inert bones and armor. Within a few more heartbeats Clover had put down the last of the hulking skeletons, the crashing noise echoing through the chamber a moment longer before a staircase appeared from the ceiling, lowering down to give them access to the next floor. Sunset whistled appreciatively, giving Clover a nod.

“Nice work. That just saved us a serious brawl.”

Clover smiled wide, eyes closed in pleasure as she brushed some bone dust off her arm, “I wasn’t sure if that would work or not. However all of this place is built from a Kido, and my Hitei ability is capable of countering other Kido spells, so it stood to reason I might be able to do the same here.”

“Could you do that to the whole tower?”

“Heheh, eh...no. No, not the whole tower. In fact I’m not sure it’d even work on the next floor, if the constructs keep getting stronger. Hitei can only counter powers within the limits of my own reiatsu. The constructs here are strong, but technically my reiatsu is still stronger. But that won’t last,” Clover sighed, wiping some sweat from her face, “We’re already getting tired out. This is only going to get tougher.”

She glanced at Sunset’s sword, nodding at the blade’s fierce glow, and the flames flickering around the red ribbon attached to its hilt, “At least we got your Zanpaktou charged up for the next floor.”

Sunset gave Hokori a bit of a twirl, smiling, “Good point. Guess we’d best go see what’s in store for us in round three.”

As the both walked towards the stairs leading up, Sunset wondered how the rest of the girls were doing with their training.

----------

When Rarity coughed, and saw blood spattering the ground, she decided that perhaps she was pushing herself a bit too hard. The brace on her shoulder was holding up, at least, but the rest of her was getting quite battered. She wasn’t sure what she was more distressed about, the injuries, or the way her outfit was getting torn and tattered! Before long she’d have difficulty even remaining decent. Then again, given she was laying on the ground with all of her friends, none of them in any better shape than she was, she ought to focus on other priorities than the condition of her wardrobe.

Each of her friends were busy trying to pick themselves up, not a one of them lacking bruises or nasty bleeding cuts. The area was pockmarked by blast marks and the residual glittering spears of red crystals that Rarity had already summoned, with chunks of the coliseum blasted out by earlier attacks either narrowly dodged or missed entirely.

Lounging against a chunk of blown out masonry, Ditzy Doo yawned and examined her nails. There wasn’t so much as a scratch on her, and the Hollow-like mask she wore wasn’t even dirtied.

“So, what... you girls need a five minute break or something? Should I order out for pizza?”

“That would be amazing!” said Pinkie Pie, clutching her stomach as she stumbled to her feet beside Pinkamena, the doppelganger girl holding her head, which bled profusely from a cut scalp.

“She’s being sarcastic, Pinks,” grunted Rainbow Dash, wincing as she hobbled up, using her wings as leverage to stand up. She was among the least banged up of the girls, largely thanks to her superior mobility over the rest of them. Rarity felt a twinge of regret seeing how torn up Rainbow Dash’s sporty winter jacket was. She’d made that one for her. Well, not like she’d expected their clothing to survive this training, and she had a surprise in the works for her friends that would make up for the damage being done now.

Off to the side Fluttershy clutched at her stomach, still recovering her breath and gasping from the gut shot that had put her on the ground in the first place. Applejack, wiping blood from a cut on her cheek, went up to help Fluttershy to her feet, glaring at Ditzy the entire time with fierce green eyes.

“Ya gettin’ yer kicks smacking us ‘round, that it?” Applejack asked with a growl in her voice, a pulse of red light emanating from swirling patterns that had formed around her armored legs.

Rarity looked at the glowing swirls of energy uneasily, also glancing at her own crystals, littered about the arena. All of them had that more jagged quality to them that had occurred in Hueco Mundo. Knowing now that it was the increased Hollow energy they were being subjected to while in the arena only made Rarity more tense about the matter. She’d never fully considered the implications of what it might mean that her and her friend’s powers stemmed from a Hollow source. Just one look at the creepy, unsettling mask covering Ditzy’ Doo’s face and the way it turned the sclera of her eyes pitch black was enough to send chills down Rarity’s spine.

Ditzy Doo’s distorted voice let out a chuckle as she eyed Applejack, “I’m still taking it easy on you girls. If I wanted to really hurt you, none of you would be standing back up. This is going to be dangerous enough without me getting serious. Besides...”

Rarity grit her teeth as she felt Ditzy’s spiritual energy spike upwards and then press down on all of them like the weight of an ocean, wisps of crimson power flowing around the woman’s body like tendrils as her voice deeply resonated, “You haven’t come close to earning me fighting seriously yet.”

Rarity considered it a point of pride that she was becoming skilled enough to sense Ditzy’s incoming attack before it happened, if only for a bare instant beforehand. The woman was ludicrously fast, and when she moved it cratered the ground where she’d been standing. Already sensing that Applejack was the target, Rarity had been turning and stabbing her rapier towards the ground in the same instant. Her blade pierced the ground and Rarity sent her power, her very blood, flowing into the ground to transmit instantly towards Applejack and Fluttershy.

As Ditzy appeared behind them in a blurring flash, Rarity’s crystals were already erupting upwards in a sharp, jagged half-dome that acted as shield against Ditzy’s fist. The woman’s bare fist impacted with the uneven shield of crystal and shattered through it, but it bought Applejack just enough time to grab Fluttershy and bound away on a blast of golden power from the bottom of her boots.

Applejack’s own reflexes were swift, and even as she flew away, she kicked backwards, unleashing a concentrated blast of golden energy towards where Ditzy had been standing. Unfortunately Ditzy had already moved, the golden lance of power scorching a path through empty space. Rarity looked around wildly, eyes scanning for where Ditzy had gone, only to find the woman appearing directly in front of her, nearly close enough to kiss.

“Boo.” Ditzy said, slamming a palm into Rarity’s chest.

Rarity struggled to remain standing as she was blasted backwards, feet skidding along the ground. The air had been knocked clear from her lungs but despite that and the pain of the blow Rarity maintained her balance and concentrated on her rapier. Crystals morphed around the blade, becoming a long bladed whip, and she lashed at Ditzy in retaliation. With the sinuous motions of a snake, body moving with bending grace, Ditzy wove between the flailing blade whip and then with disturbing ease gripped the whip with one hand. Terrifying physical strength hauled on the whip, and rather than lose her weapon Rarity allowed herself to be thrown bodily through the air, trusting in her allies.

The trust was well placed as Rainbow Dash flew up in a blaze of speed and caught her, quickly lowering Rarity to the ground before fixing a glare on Ditzy and charging in, wings trailing blue and red tinged electricity.

Rainbow Dash attacked in a blue blur, striking with punches, kicks, and spinning slashes with her wings. Lightning arced between each attack, living serpents of electricity that lashed alongside Rainbow Dash’s limbs. With deft hands Ditzy Doo turned aside many of the blows, and the rest she evaded with swift yet minimal movements, dodging just enough for the attacks to whiff past her harmlessly. She commented casually as she did so, like someone talking about a film they were watching rather than a battle they were a part of, “Your power is good but your motion is wasteful. You don’t have to cock your arm so far back when you swing.”

“Oh yeah!? How’s this for wasteful!?” Rainbow Dash shouted, jumping back then slamming both her hands together, palms out. Rivers of raw electricity, flickering between brilliant azure blue and hellish crimson, pooled into her hands. Then with a roar of thunder a bolt of lightning lanced between Rainbow and Ditzy Doo, the light almost blinding.

When Rarity could blink away the spots and see clearly again Rainbow Dash was standing there, breathing heavily, a few sparking traces of electricity dancing in the air around her. Ditzy Doo was bent backwards like an expert gymnast, and Rarity could see the blackened spot in the arena wall behind her where the bolt of lightning had struck, while Ditzy Doo had simply limbooed backwards to avoid. While not into that kind of thing, even Rarity had to briefly admire just how... flexible Ditzy was as she bent back up, stretching her arms above her head briefly. The woman had quite the figure, and Rarity could imagine more than one ensemble that would look more striking on her than that rather unimaginative black and orange outfit she currently had on.

Ditzy, as she stretched, regarded Rainbow Dash flatly, “You need more self control. An attack like that is impressive, but only if you can hit what you’re aiming at. You should have waited until I was immobilized by one of your friends, or distracted-”

Pinkamena came in behind her, mouth opening wide like a shark’s, teeth extended as she tried to clamp down on Ditzy’s head. Ditzy flowed aside from the attack like grey mist, spinning and hammering Pinkamena with a backhand that sent the doppelganger skipping across the ground like a stone tossed across a lake.

“Like that! Nice move Pinkie, sending her in while I was lecturing.”

Pinkie Pie gulped, “Wasn’t me. Pinkamena just does what she does.”

Ditzy Doo shook her head, “Then maybe you two need to work on that. Pinkamena is your power. Shouldn’t you wield her then, instead of letting her act on her own?”

The way Pinkie Pie tilted her head at near a ninety degree angle to the side made Rarity wince and she could almost hear the gears trying to grind inside her friend’s head. Pinkie Pie’s large, baby blue eyes just looked puzzled and distressed as she said, “I dunno. She’s better at the fighting stuff than me. I only try to keep her from going too far when she gets too chompy.”

Pinkamena, still in the process of lifting herself off the ground like a large pink, pancake managed to shout, “I don’t want any more strings on me! I just want to find out what your flesh feels like sliding down to my belly!”

Ditzy laughed lightly, “And as long as you two are acting like two separate beings, you’ll remain a liability to your friends. Fullbringers are one with their powers, no matter what shape they take. You gain strength by growing closer, not more separated.”

“Yeah, that sounds cool and all, but that doesn’t really help us right here and now does it?” Rainbow Dash said, arms flung out in exasperation, “What does getting the crap kicked out of us have to do with making us closer to our powers?”

Ditzy’s turned to her, eyes narrowed to glowing slits, “Desperation. It’s as simple as that. People have a hard time growing without either a lot of innate discipline and motivation, or they get pushed to the breaking point of absolute desperation. Since I don’t have time to teach you the discipline you’d need to grow stronger, that leaves desperation as our go-to, dirty quick-fix.”

Rarity wasn’t entirely keen on the tone of that particular wording, but she also couldn’t deny there was a certain cold, harsh logic to it that sounded accurate. She remembered the moment her power awoke, in that terrible instant behind her home when she felt certain that the Hollow attacking her family was going to take her dear sister from her. Rarity had perhaps never been so desperate in her life, and that had certainly brought her the power she’d needed in that moment to save Sweetie Belle.

What Ditzy Doo was saying, in that context, made perfect sense. It didn’t make the woman any less terrifying as dense spiritual energy cloaked her like a second skin, causing small waves of air to flow from her in pulsing circles of loose dust.

“I need to push you girls to that limit of desperation, so you can go just one step further and hopefully find the power you need. If not, well, it's kind of hard to hold back this kind of power. But if you die, you die. I can’t do this with kids gloves on forever.”

“Then let’s git this done!” Applejack shouted, fists clenched in tight balls, and her body seeming to become rimmed in an aura of gold energy. Beside her Fluttershy had focused her eyes upon Applejack, and Rarity could feel the spiritual power flowing from Fluttershy into Applejack, empowering the other girl. Fluttershy had already tried using her power to weaken Ditzy Doo, during the opening moves of the training, and Ditzy had shrugged off those attempts without much effort. Since then Fluttershy had been alternating between empowering each of her friends.

With Fluttershy’s power adding to her own, Applejack made a massive leap into the air, her right leg shooting up above her head and a massive burst of golden energy thrusting her downward so fast that Rarity barely followed the movement. Rainbow Dash didn’t miss a beat either, wings flaring in a burst of lightning as she took to the air and then dove at Ditzy Doo from the side. Rarity, her reflexes kicking in, lashed her crystal whip into the ground and created a low aimed circle of stabbing red crystalline blades to try and take out Ditzy’s Doo’s legs.

Ditzy responded instantly to the multi-directional assault, first leaping up to avoid Rarity’s crystal spikes, then spinning her body, she kicked out with one leg to catch Rainbow Dash across the face before the girl could finish throwing a punch, while one of hands snapped up and grabbed the descending heel of Applejack’s kick and redirected the force so that Applejack went sailing right towards Rarity.

Rarity let out a somewhat unladylike curse as she quickly poured her power into the ground and created a bowl shaped construct of crystal to catch the out of the control Applejack. The jagged shape was beyond her control, but caught Applejack and prevented her from smashing into Rarity, though the impact still made Rarity wince.

“S-sorry, are you alright?”

Grunting, Applejack peeled herself from the crystal that caught her, and growled, “I’m fine!” before leaping back into the fray. Rainbow Dash had also recovered from being kicked in the face, still managing to stay airborne, and flipped around to make another pass at Ditzy. Meanwhile Pinkie Pie had joined Pinkamena and the two were whispering to each other. Rarity couldn’t hear what they were saying, but Pinkamena suddenly burst into rather disturbing giggles at something Pinkie Pie said, and with a wide, macabre grin, started to skip merrily towards Ditzy.

Ditzy turned to face the new threat, only to actually blink in surprise when the doppelganger produced a set of large teeth along her arms, then began to spin those arms like drills as she proceed to dive, not towards Ditzy, but into the ground, burrowing into it like a dolphin diving into the water.

“Huh. That’s new.”

Ditzy didn’t have time to ponder what Pinkamena was up to, as Applejack and Rainbow Dash were both circling her now. Rarity, seeing that her attempts at catching Ditzy at range were coming up fruitless, morphed her weapon from the bladed whip into the curved form of a saber and moved to join them. She felt a sudden rush in her blood as she did so, an a lightening of her steps, as if she’d just downed a full cup of coffee. One glance at Fluttershy confirmed that she had started empowering Rarity, and not to the detriment of Applejack either, as Rarity could see the farm girl was still being empowered as well. From the sweat now beading on Fluttershy’s face, and the way she was breathing heavily, it was obvious she was straining herself to lend strength to two of her friends at once, and her face went pale as a sheet as Rainbow Dash started glowing as well.

Rarity gulped, realizing Fluttershy was pushing herself well beyond anything she’d tried to do before, so it was only proper to reciprocate with her full efforts too.

Ditzy Doo was silent as Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash all made their move. They came in from both sides and above, blocking any sensible avenue of evasion. At the same instant Pinkamena also attacked, her drill-like limbs bursting from belowground like deadly tentacle blenders. Escaping such a situation should have been next to impossible. Which was why Rarity couldn’t fathom exactly how Ditzy Doo simply wasn’t there anymore, in the span of a simple eyeblink. The impact Rarity felt on her chest couldn’t even be properly described as physical force. It was more like a blow struck her down to her soul, shaking the core of her spiritual energy like an earthquake shakes a unstable building.

She knew she’d been hit, on some instinctual level, but the rest of her senses didn’t catch up until several seconds later as she was impacting with, then falling down from, a portion of the coliseum bleachers like a rag doll.

Rarity wasn’t certainly how long she lay prone, staring up at the cold, blue sky. She could hear faint groans in the distance, and knew her friends weren’t in any better condition. After a time she managed to turn her head slightly. Rainbow Dash was enjoying a rather awkward spot lodged halfway through a set of stone benches, spitting up blood from a busted lip as she rolled into a sitting position.

Further up, Applejack pushed aside a piece of rubble from the crater her body had made in the coliseum seating, her hat laying a good twenty feet away.

Blinking, Rarity turned, grimacing at the pain shooting down her back, and looked down to see that Pinkamena was planted face first into the arena wall like a pink turnip. A hole in the ground suggested where Ditzy had likely dug her out. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were both standing, but were backing up from Ditzy Doo, who was casually and steadily walking towards them while holding up a single finger.

That finger was glowing with deadly, blood red power, the thick energy pooling into a growing sphere of destructive light.

Rarity recognized it as the same prelude to the unleashing of a Hollow’s Cero beam. Neither Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy could hope to evade or survive such an attack. There was no way Ditzy could be serious about unleashing something like that upon them! Yet the look in Ditzy’s eyes was cold and merciless as a winter sea, and deadly intent wafted off of her like a sickening odor.

She’s serious. She’s going to kill us.

----------

“Grr, is Discord trying to kill us!?” Suset muttered past clenched teeth and hard breaths as she leapt through the cutting reach of three or four buzzing blades forged from bones. The blades slashed out from the rotating body of something that looked like someone had smashed together a score of mis-matched bones and skulls into the shape of a compact sphere, wreathed in a halo of purple flames.

This was the only construct on the third floor of the tower, but so far she and Clover had been battling it for over ten minutes without being able to find any opening in the bizarre thing’s defenses. It spun like a top, dozens of whirling blade arms slashing at the two Soul Reapers, cutting sparking furrows in the floor and ceiling as both Sunset and Clover continued to desperately evade its flailing attacks.

Sunset’s blade glowed with stored power, but she had so far not had a single opening moment with which to unleash it. If she slowed down her constant dodging for even an instant she’d be either skewered or cut to ribbons. Clover, likewise, was stuck without a clear opening to use either Kido or attempt to use Chishiki’s power to analyze this construct in order to attempt shutting it down with Hitei. It was all either girl could do to keep on the defensive... and even then...

Sunset heard Clover’s cry of pain as a near strike grazed her, cutting a bloody line in her arm. It caused a slight stumble in Clover’s footing, and four bladed appendages snaked in towards her in an instant. Sunset, seeing no other choice, risked slowing down her own evasions for a moment to aim her blade towards those appendages striking at Clover, and unleashed the flames stored in her sword. A concentrated blast of fire in the shape of a two foot wide beam blasted out and smashed through the limbs going for Clover. However Sunset, having had to slow her pace for the instant she needed to aim, found another three bladed limbs slashing for her. She got her shield in the way of two of them, but the third got through. A burst of white hot pain lanced through her side as she Flash Stepped away, and she glanced down to see a nasty gouge in her hip, perhaps an inch deep, seeping blood.

Crap. We need to take this thing down fast, otherwise it’s just going to bleed us out with a bunch of smaller wounds, until we can’t move fast enough to keep our heads on our shoulders.

What was worse, the four limbs she’d burned with her fire started to regenerate, growing back from the blackened stumps her fire had made of them. Another problem was that despite the size of the chamber they were in, this construct’s blades could reach any corner of it. There was simply no space to back off and catch their breaths in.

Continuing to dodge the whirling tornado of death around her, ignoring the burning pain form her wound, Sunset rushed towards Clover, who had managed to regain her own tempo and was also leaping about to avoid their foe’s unending strikes.

“Clover! I need an opening to get close to it!” Sunset shouted between flashing dodges, using her shield as much as her footwork to keep the seeking blades from touching her again. Her body screamed in protest, both in pain and in the mounting exhaustion this constant dodging was creating on top of the ever present sensation of her spirit energy being crushed down by the tower’s field.

“I don’t have time to try any Kido, otherwise I’d already be doing that!” Clover shouted back, spinning Chishiki in a deflecting arc, batting away bladed limbs that snapped at her.

“I’ll take care of that. Just get into the corner, quick!”

As she’d been hoping, Clover trusted her word, and didn’t ask any questions about what Sunset was planning. The Soul Reaper merely gave her a quick nod, and Flash Stepped back towards one of the corners of the room. Sunset followed her, and about a dozen flashing blade arms came right behind her. Once Clover was in the corner, Sunset appeared in front of her and turned, thrusting her shield out.

While the corner limited their movement, that also was true for the blade arms of this strange construct. The sharp appendages could only came at them from so many angles in the smaller space of the corner, and it gave just enough room for Sunset’s shield to maneuver as much as it needed to. It wasn’t easy, taking all of Sunset’s focus, but between her shield and the furious parrying with her broadsword she was able to keep the slashing blade arms at bay.

Meanwhile Clover prepared a Kido, chanting under her breath.

“Bakudo Number Thirty Seven: Tsuriboshi!”

Blue light in several dozen strands erupted from her upraised palm. Moving like living ropes the strands of light adhered to the walls and ceiling in a web-like pattern between them and the construct, solidifying into a thick, sticky barrier. The bladed limbs of the construct got caught in those thick strands of web-like energy and got stuck. It wouldn’t last, Sunset could see, for the blades started to cut through the strands, but they were stuck just long enough for her to act.

By now, after taking so many strikes on her shield, Hokori was back to full charge. It wasn’t as intense a flame as she might have been able to unleash outside the tower’s field, but it would be enough. She had to make it be enough. But that meant getting close. So while the constructs limbs were being caught up in Clover’s Kido, Sunset rushed forward, slipping beneath the web and then rushing the main body of the construct. Its spheroid shape still had a few limbs free to strike at her, but after spending all that time dealing with dozens of them at once, the few remaining ones were a cakewalk to dodge through.

Then, right up next to the construct, she shoved Hokori into its body, spherical body and triggered her stored flames.

For a second nothing seemed to happen, then in thick, glowing rivers of brilliant orange and red, tongues of fire erupted from all over the construct’s body. It then burst apart in a shower of flaming, bony bits, littering the chamber with its blackened remains. Its limbs went limp, and silence reigned in the chamber for only a few seconds before the next set of stairs emerged.

Sunset sat down, hard. Sweat dripped from her chin. Blood soaked her side from the wound she’d taken on her hip, which hurt like a constant wasp sting. Her very soul felt drained, and just the idea of standing back up was exhausting.

With heavy, slow steps, leaning a bit on Chishiki like a crutch, Clover came up beside her, and also sat down. The girl’s gray features were pale and her green hair was frazzled. The graze on her arm still bled, darkening the already dark robes she wore. Sunset looked at her and gave a small, sardonic grin.

“Three down...”

Clover let out a tired laugh, “Seven to go.”

Sunset took a deep breath, letting it out in a ragged gasp, “I’m starting to suspect this training is going to be hard.”

“Well,” Clover said, reaching into the folds of her Soul Reaper robes, pulling out a pair of cylindrical wooden flasks, “Discord never said anything about a time limit on completing this tower, did he?’

Sunset raised an eyebrow, glancing at the flasks, “I suppose he didn’t. What’re those?”

Clover smiled, uncorking the top of one flask and taking a long, deep sip from it, “Spirit energy enriched water. Here.” She handed the other one to Sunset, who took it gratefully, not even hesitating to uncork and upend the contents into her mouth.

It was like tasting a draught straight from the freshest mountain spring she could imagine, like imbibing life itself. That might’ve just been the exhaustion and dehydrating talking, however. Either way, it did wonders to help her feel refreshed, if even just a little.

“Clover, you’re a goddess,” Sunset said, laying back on the floor with a content sight.

“I just think ahead,” Clover said with an embarrassed scratch at her nose, looking away, “I considered the distinct possibility that we would need ways to recover our strength in the middle of this training, and made appropriate preparations. I also have some food, for when we get hungry. Since Discord never stated we needed to complete this tower in a single day I can surmise we can afford to take an hour or two to rest before trying the next floor.”

“Makes sense. I don’t think I could sleep in here, but taking an hour to catch my breath and finish drinking this ambrosia sounds just fine to me,” Sunset said, wincing a little and looking at her hip, “I also need to take care of this.”

“Let me,” Clover said, leaning over and placing a hand over Sunset’s wound, the hand already glowing blue with the light of healing Kido. Sunset saw the way Clover’s eyes were tight with their own pain and she frowned.

“You should take care of yourself first.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. You’re wound is worse than my little scratch,” Clover said in a tone that refused any further argument on the matter and Sunset shut her mouth and let herself be healed. It wasn’t nearly as quick or effective as she’d seen Clover’s healing Kido perform in the past, but she knew she had the tower’s suppression field to blame for that. It couldn't fully close Sunset’s wound, but it stopped the bleeding and eased the pain.

As Clover then got to tending her arm, Sunset sat up and glanced at the wall, her eyes narrowing. Despite the way the tower interfered with her spiritual senses she could still get a sense of the energies outside the tower, and she’d just noticed something strange. A sort of faint yet sharply intense burst of spiritual power that sort of felt like hearing an echo of thunder.

“Clover, do you feel that?” she asked, and the other Soul Reaper nodded, eyes blinking curiously.

“Yes. What do you think it is?”

“I don’t know,” Sunset admitted, but she suddenly felt very worried for her friends.

----------

Like a bulging, crimson blossom that promised to deliver death when it bloomed, the ball of energy gathering at the point of Ditzy Doo’s finger was aimed straight at Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Gulping, mind racing, Pinkie Pie couldn’t think of a single worthwhile joke to tell. She knew laughing in the face of danger was an important way to chase away the fear in her stomach, but she’d been having trouble finding that spark of laughter lately.

Things were just so serious and grim with everything that’d happened. She really did just want to make her friend’s happy and fill their lives with plenty of reasons to smile, but how was she supposed to do that when things kept getting more and more dangerous? There just came point when all the giggles in the world couldn’t chase away the ghosties. That was why she had Pinkamena, right? She was strange, grumpy, and kind of scary herself, but wasn’t that the point? That Pinkamena didn’t have to laugh away the scary things, because she was scarier than the creepiest nasty that could crawl out of the woodwork.

Only that wasn’t true, was it? Grogar and Platinum were meanies on an entirely different level, and even Ditzy Doo right in this moment embodied all the overwhelming power and fear that seemed to make Pinkie Pie’s laughter seem like just spit in the storm. Yet even Pinkamena wasn’t mean enough to match this kind of scary. Pinkie Pie stared into that glowing ball of red death and just knew it was going to smash her and her friends to tiny little bits.

Fluttershy clung to her, shaking like a frozen leaf. Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack were still lying bruised and battered amid the coliseum stands. It didn’t look like anyone could do anything!

Then Pinkamena extracted her head from the arena wall with an loud popping noise, and seemed to bounce up and down like an accordion, eyes swirling. It was just amusing enough to get Pinkie Pie to let out a small laugh, if only because hey, even when you’re about to get flash fried, some things are still funny.

When she laughed, she felt a pulse in the pit of her chest. The bright, bubbling pulse of energy crossed right over to Pinkamena, and for an instant both girls froze, staring at each other. Pinkie Pie could see herself reflected in Pinkamena’s eyes, and the pulse came again as she found herself laughing once more.

“Ooooh! I get it! Hahahah! That really is funny! Why didn’t I see it before?” Pinkie Pie said, bouncing to her feet and patting Fluttershy on the head, turning away from Ditzy Doo, who paused in her approach.

Pinkamena, frowning, head twitching to the side, said, “You lose another set of marbles or what? We’re getting tossed around like hacky sacks and you want to laugh?”

“Hah, of course silly! That’s what I’m good at! It’s what we’re both good at!” Pinkie Pie said, bouncing over to Pinkamena, who still looked at Pinkie Pie like she was the crazy one between them. Pinkie Pie grabbed Pinkamena’s hands and shook them up and down, giggling.

“Can’t you feel it? It's like the mirrors in a funhouse! Ditzy might’ve said it all grumpy pants style, but she’s right, we’re not separate! We’re both each other’s power! Now c’mon Pinks, laugh with me!”

“You’re nuts,” Pinkamena said, but did let out a chuckle, grinning widely, “But I like nuts.”

As both girls laughed, a nimbus of intense neon pink light flowed from both of them, forming into a swirling storm of cotton-candy colored mist that engulfed them. Pinkie Pie could feel herself blending into that storm like flavors of ice cream being mixed together. She felt Pinkamena, not as something separate from herself, but as a part of who she was, just like she was a part of who Pinkamena was. Fear, and its polar opposite, laughter, all bonded together with a questionably healthy dose of crazy and... and something else. Something intensely bright that connected her to her the girls around her. It was the warm, shining light of friendship that acted as the last bit of glue that fused with the power of her Fullbring, of all of their Fullbrings, making them something altogether different than they would’ve been without that magic inside them.

When the pink mist cleared, Pinkamena was still there, straight hair and all, but Pinkie Pie was nowhere to be seen. Instead, resting in Pinkamena’s hands, was a absolutely massive hammer.

In fact the term “hammer” barely categorized the weapon appropriately. It was as if someone had taken the concept of a maul, forged it from the same solid chunk of shining, rosy pink metal, and then made it about twice as large as was logically sound for any person to wield; let alone a five and a half foot tall young lady. The hammer itself was carved with ornate swirling patterns, and was encrusted along either side of its gigantic head with studs of chiseled, multi-colored gems that made it almost look like someone had put sprinkles on it. Either end of the hammer’s head tapered to a pyramid-like point, the kind of spike that’d punch holes in a tank if need be. The handle of the hammer was of the same metal as the rest of it, curved into a slim S shape that made gripping it easier. At the very end of the shaft it widened out and was stamped with a symbol, that of a trio of balloons.

Pinkamena stared at the weapon. So did everyone else.

“Pinkie...Pie?” Pinkamena sounded, perhaps for the first time, truly and utterly baffled and uneasy. This look only magnified when the hammer spoke in Pinkie Pie’s unmistakable voice.

“Whoa, freaky deaky! I feel all kinds of weird. Heheh, and it kind of tickles too!”

Ditzy Doo, smiling beneath her Hollow mask, said, “I’d say you just took a big step in the right direction. Let’s see just how big a step it really is. Batter’s up, Pinkie!”

Fluttershy gulped and scrambled backwards behind Pinkamena, focusing her third eye upon the straight haired girl to empower her as Ditzy unleashed her concentrated Cero blast in a thick red line of blazing destruction towards them. Pinkamena, feeling the power coursing through her, and the hammer that was Pinkie Pie, set her legs wide, pulled the hammer back, much to Pinkie’s laughing delight, and slammed the weapon forward in a baseball batter’s swing.

The hammer impacted with the crimson Cero beam with a hurricane of force. Yet something very odd happened at the point of impact. Pinkie Pie started to giggle, and a sound filled the air like the reverberating and loud deflating of a whoopie cushion. The energy of the Cero wavered like water encountering a funnel, swirling and spinning, then gradually vanishing until it was fully sucked into the hammer. A moment later the hammer shuddered, emitted a cloud of pink gas, and burped.

“Whew, excuse me,” said the hammer, in Pinkie Pie’s voice, “That was a spicy meatball there.”

Silence reigned for several long moments before Rainbow Dash blurted out, “What the hell just happened?”

Pinkie Pie, not entirely sure at all what she’d just done, tried to turn her head. But she didn’t have a head anymore. It was exceedingly strange, but in a way that felt kind of good. She had no eyes, or mouth, or ears, yet she could see everything around her. She could feel the shape of her hammer form, and the strong, pulsing connection between her and Pinkamena, not as two separate entities but as one being who just happened to be split into two at the moment. She could hear and speak, even without a mouth to open. It just seemed to come naturally.

“I have no idea! But it's neat. Heheh, hey, hey guys, Ditzy Doo really hammered this lesson in, huh? But I’d say I really hit the nail on the head with this training. Heehee!”

A chorus of groans ensued from everyone present, save for Pinkamena, who was still looking at Pinkie Pie’s hammer form with incredulousness shock. She whispered in a low tone, “I don’t get it.”

Pinkie Pie just laughed again, “I figured we’re both me. That’s what I Fullbring. Parts of myself. So if I Fullbring you, that means whatever I am, leftover, is also a piece of the whole. A piece that’s also totally Fullbringable. Fullbringed? I don’t know, I just knew that if you’re the scary me, and I’m the joking me, then we both can go bamf and when I bamf I guess it makes me into a super snazzy hammer!”

“A split personality,” Ditzy Doo said, crossing her arms under her breasts and looking at the two of them curiously, but not without satisfaction, “You Fullbring your split personality, and only now just figured out how to do it both halves. Interesting, because Cloudy Quartz’s Fullbring also had a dual nature like that, although not nearly as overt. Can you revert back?”

“Uuuuuuhhh....” Pinkie Pie tried to focus for a second on her normal human shape, but nothing happened. She giggled nervously, “I’ll get back to you on that.”

Ditzy Doo nodded, almost as if she expected as much. With a smooth swipe of her hand she removed her Hollow mask, which dissipated in a wafting aura of black and red energy. She looked around at the other girls with a sympathetic expression. “I think that’s enough for now. We’ll take a break here, get you girls patched up and fed.”

“Seriously?” Rainbow Dash said, sitting up and rubbing at her head, “Just like that?”

“Don’t get too comfortable. We’re far from done, but I think it’s time to let you all take a breather and reflect on what just happened. Besides,” Ditzy said with a smirk, “I think we need to give Pinkie Pie a bit of time to figure out how to un-hammer herself. On top of that, I’ve gotten a good feel for what your limits are, so round two will be even more intense. I want you all prepared for that, so I’m going to take our break time to go over some Fullbring basics with all of you.”

For the next five minutes or so the girls slowly convened together, catching their breaths and taking stock of their wounds. Applejack gave Pinkamena a clap on the back, smiling as she brushed disheveled hair from her face.

“Welp, looks like ya got their ‘fore any o’ us did, Pinkie. Er, Pinkamena.”

Pinkamena licked her lips, hefting the Pinkie Hammer over her shoulder with a musing look, “I still don’t get it. Which if us is supposed to be the Fullbring and which of us is the copy?”

Pinkie Pie’s voice chuckled from the hammer, “Duh, neither of us are copies! We’re both Pinkie! That’s what clicked in my brain like a oven timer going ding! You’re the batter and I’m the frosting, but only together do we make a delicious, fully baked cake!”

“If you keep talking about food I’m going to get even more hungry than I already am,” said Pinkamena, licking her lips with a tongue that extended entirely too far, drool dripping off her sharp teeth, “I don’t care about all this weird existential stuff. Still, I guess you’re a bit more useful in this shape. Why don’t you stay this way?”

“No way! If Ditzy is going to order pizza I’m shifting back to girl-form so I can eat. Uh, as soon as I figure out how. Hmm, maybe if I wiggle like this?” the hammer actually wiggled a bit, like a big metal caterpillar. Pinkamena grimaced while the other girls exchanged looks with each other.

“W-well on the bright side, it seems like the training is working,” said Fluttershy, rubbing her arms, “And if Pinkie Pie can figure out how to reach the next stage of her Fullbring, we can do, right?”

“Yeah, totally!” said Rainbow Dash, making an punching gesture, then grunting in pain and gingerly shifting her balance to favor one of her legs. “Ya know, once we’re not half dead.”

“This was rather intense for day one. Or has it just been the first few hours?” Rarity said, breathing heavily, “Then again, I suppose we all did accept the risks, knowing full well this would be difficult. We really don’t have much choice but to press onwards.”

“Yeah,” said Applejack, frowning slightly, “Let’s just hope there’s somethin’ of us left by the time all's said n’ done.”

----------

Amid the countless chambers and halls of the Gotei 13’s expansive headquarters Meadowbrook reflected that there were enough meeting rooms for ten times the number of Soul Reapers in all Soul Society to have one each to themselves and still have a few to spare. Or maybe that was just his own irritation showing through as he navigated the myriad of corridors and extensive walkways to find the meeting chamber that he and some of his fellow Lieutenants had set aside for gathering when they wanted to speak without the prying eyes of lower seated officers, or the imposing oversight of their Captains.

He didn’t doubt he already knew what the meeting was about, especially considering who had called it. His steps picked up pace along the well polished floorboards of the hallway as he heard raised voices coming from the sliding doors to the meeting chamber ahead.

“We have to do something about this! Moon Dancer I thought you of all people would jump on this!” shouted the familiar voice of the Fifth Division’s Lieutenant, Radiant Hope, and Meadowbrook opened to doors to the meeting chamber.

Radiant Hope had a light violet skin tone, and long, silk smooth cornflower blue hair. Her dark blue eyes all but blazed with righteous fury as she stared at a impassive looking woman who was looking at Radiant Hope with the hunched shoulders and irritated expression of someone set upon by a particularly loud and annoying rodent. Moon Dancer, the Lieutenant of the Ninth Division, had something of a frazzled look about her, with a few out of place strands of red and purple toned hair that hung past her shoulders. Her glasses were a bit crooked on her face and she adjusted them, smokey purple eyes narrowed at Radiant Hope.

“And do what, Lieutenant Hope? Captain Celestia and Captain Luna are lawfully incarcerated and according to the official report turned in by both Captain Platinum and Lieutenants Fancy Pants and Meadowbrook they both submitted to be bound by law willfully. What you’re suggesting is dangerously close to conspiracy.”

Radiant Hope looked ready to explode, but upon seeing Meadowbrook arrive, she let out a visible sigh of relief. “Meadow! Good! I was hoping you’d come.”

Meadowbrook coughed politely, closing the door behind him and glancing around the room. Aside from Radiant Hope and Moon Dancer the only other Lieutenant that had come was sitting up against the far wall, arms crossed, watching the proceedings with a pensive unease. Her skin was alabaster white, with a pink head of hair kept in a neat bun, and she sported the armband of the Fourth Division's Lieutenant.

“Redheart, good to see you,” Meadowbrook said by means of greeting.

“You too, Meadowbrook,” said Redheart carefully, “I hope you can reign in these two before they tear each other’s heads off.”

Moon Dancer rolled her eyes, “Oh please, I’m nowhere near that irrational. Lieutenant Hope is being paranoid and irrational, however, and I’m not sure why I’m still listening to her chatter on about how there’s some conspiracy undermining Soul Society.”

Radiant Hope put a hand through her hair, teeth grinding, “I didn’t say that Moon Dancer, I just said that it’s extremely strange how two Captains who have had nothing short of exemplary records of service are suddenly under suspicion of treason! And only on the word of Captain Platinum!”

Meadowbrook felt a cold chill run through him, “Wait, I wasn’t aware treason charges were already being tossed around. Last I heard Captains Luna and Celestia were only being put under house arrest pending a hearing about the scuffle with Platinum?”

Radiant Hope wheeled on him, distress pouring off of her in wavering eyes, “The official word just went out this morning. That’s why I called this meeting. As of now they’re both being charged with treason against Soul Society. But the missive didn’t tell us lower ranked any more than that! The other Captains are all being quiet about this, I think under orders from the Captain Commander.”

“As well he should order,” said Moon Dancer, “Because a matter this dire is for the Captains and Central 46 to work out. Not overly emotional Lieutenants. We’ll know more when we need to know more.”

“That’s not good enough!” shouted Radiant Hope, hands clenched into fists, “I know Captain Celestia! She saved my life more than once! Her sister is also one of the most understanding and helpful members of our organization. Wasn’t she your instructor back in the Academy, Moon Dancer!? How can you even suspect either of them of treason!?”

“I don’t,” said Moon Dancer with a groan, “But I have to follow the laws of Soul Society, as do you. Due process dictates this matter belongs in the halls of Central 46. I’m sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of this and that Captain Platinum is mistaken, and that the truth will come out via proper investigation and evidence during the hearing. Having clandestine meetings like this to throw around crazy conspiracy theories just wastes time and makes us look suspicious.”

She cast a glance at Meadowbrook, “Tell me you don’t buy into Lieutenant Hope’s ravings?”

Meadowbrook looked between them. The truth was he’d been thinking matters over ever since returning from the living world, and his own suspicions were rising. He’d spoken with Captain Starswirl on the matter, but as always the old man was dodgy as a barrel of hell butterflies, and it was hard to tell how much of the Captain was absorbed in his research and how much was actually aware of the world around him. Starswirl had a habit of saying three different things with one cryptic sentence, and Meadowbrook had gotten the impression from their conversation that the old man wanted Meadowbrook to be careful... but to keep his eye out as well.

“I’m not saying I believe that Soul Society is being undermined by any hidden forces,” he said carefully, “However I also have to say that there are things about recent events that don’t add up. Captain Platinum was as much out of line on that mission as Captains Celestia and Luna, and charges of treason are well and beyond what fits with what should be considered, at most, an act of insubordination. Doesn’t it strike you at all as odd that in just a few days things have escalated this much? Central 46 almost never moves their bureaucracy this quickly.”

Moon Dancer pursed her lips, looking thoughtful as she said, “No, not usually. But if Captain Platinum had some manner of convincing evidence that might have expedited the process.”

“Yet you can’t deny that it's still highly out of the ordinary? You don’t really like it when things get out of the ordinary, do you?” Meadowbrook said, and Moon Dancer heaved out a sigh.

“I don’t. I also don’t like overreacting, or going outside proper channels. What are you suggesting we do, Meadowbrook?”

“Only that we keep our ears to the ground and our eyes proverbially peeled. Conspiracy or not, something about this whole matter smells fishy to me.” He glanced at Radiant Hope, “I don’t suppose Captain Amore has said anything to you? She’s usually pretty open to you, right?”

Radiant Hope got a lost look on her face, eyes looking towards the ground, “That was my first flag that something was wrong. Captain Amore is usually the first to tell me anything when something is wrong. But she’s been very tight lipped ever since the Captains were called to meeting by the Captain Commander yesterday. It’s not like her. It really has me worried.”

“And Captain Starswirl is being cagey as usual, but he hinted to me that I keep my eye out,” Meadowbrook said, “So that’s what I intend to do. Nothing overt, but I’m going to be watchful for anything out of the ordinary.”

“What do you want us to do? Follow fellow officers? Stakeout the Captain's quarters? For souls sake Meadowbrook, we’ll be painting ourselves as the conspirators in that case,” said Moon Dancer, then Redheart suddenly spoke up.

“I don’t know if this means anything, but now that we’re talking about strange things, a week or so ago Captain Zecora went out in the middle of the night to visit the Sixth Division barracks, and when she got back she looked... bothered by something.”

Redheart shook her head, “I didn’t think much of it at the time. The Captain is always going out to do house calls, and I know Captain Platinum still has chronic pain from some old injuries suffered awhile ago, so sometimes Captain Zecora goes to provide her medicine for it. But she seemed rather disturbed upon returning that night. I was too polite to ask about why, however. Patient confidentiality and all that.”

“Can you check any medical records for that time and see if Captain Zecora wrote down what the visit was about?” asked Radiant Hope, and Redheart gave her a nervous look.

“Yes, but I don’t want to go behind my Captain’s back. If I ask, I’d rather do it directly.”

“There’s no reason not to keep this on the level,” said Meadowbrook, “I’m not suggesting we go slinking around or breaking into places we shouldn’t. All I’m saying is that we keep an eye out. Agreed?”

Radiant Hope nodded enthusiastically, and after a few moments hesitation Moon Dancer and Redheart also nodded their agreement. Meadowbrook breathed a little easier. At least he was no longer the only one who’d be searching for the truth. He just hoped they’d find something in time to do some good.

Author's Notes:

This was a surprisingly tough chapter to write, if only because I spent a lot of time working out exactly what form I wanted to have Pinkie Pie's next Fullbring stage take, and spent an equal amount of time debating whether or not to even show any of the upgraded forms during the training. It's kind of a trope in shounen storytelling that power ups actually don't get revealed until the next fight after the training, and while I'll probably do this for some of the girls, there's at least one or two I wanted to show develop during the training itself. As for why Pinkie Pie, well honestly it was a coin toss between her and Rarity. Both have very flexible minds that just strike me as the sorts who'd learn their Fullbrings a bit faster. At any rate, we've only seen the shape Pinkie Pie's new power takes, but how it actually works and what it does will be shown more of later on.

Anyway I hope you folks continue to enjoy the story, and many thanks for reading along so far. As always leave any and all comments, critiques, and questions you may have, as all are appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 30: Threshold

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Episode 30: Threshold

Twilight Sparkle didn’t even see the first arrow Lemon Zest fired at her. She merely felt the impact on her shoulder like someone had just fast pitched a baseball into it. The blow knocked her back a step, stunned by the sudden pain so much that she nearly lost her grip on her own bow. With wide, frightened eyes she looked at her shoulder, expecting to see an arrow of reishi buried into it, but to her surprise there were just a few fading blue particles of spirit energy and a small tear in her uniform where she could see a bruise forming on her skin. She wasn’t even bleeding, though the hit had been hard enough to hurt.

“What the hell was that, Lemon Zest?” asked Lightning Dust from the sidelines, “I don’t want to see you holding back or treating her with kid gloves!”

Lemon Zest, who stood in a casual, laid back position while still holding her unusually shaped bow at the ready, just rolled her eyes and said, “Teach, she didn’t even see that one coming! I don’t wanna smack around someone who can’t even fight back. That’d be seriously not cool. I’m just gonna knock out these three hits to win the match and call it good.”

As both the other Quincy had been talking Twilight had struggled to get her mind reoriented and focused. She hadn’t been prepared for just how fast Lemon Zest could fire off an arrow, but more than that she suspected there’d been something else to that attack. Even in pain and under pressure her mind worked swiftly and analytically. She judged by the nature of the impact on her shoulder that the arrow had come in from a strange angle, not dead on. Taking calming breaths, Twilight gathered her spirit energy. She wasn’t as helpless as Lemon Zest was assuming, and she wasn’t intending to go down without putting up a fight.

She had to prove herself worthy of being at this Academy, and advance forward, so she could one day stand beside her friends and protect them from the insanity of this pointless war.

Lemon Zest took notice of Twilight’s spiking reiatsu, turning her head to look at Twilight sidelong. Contrary to the girl’s seemingly easy going attitude, when she attacked there wasn’t any hint of hesitation or relaxation. Her hands move swiftly, almost too swift for Twilight to follow. Her right hand pulled back on a quartet of blue shining energy strings, drawing the two separate bows arching from either side of her bow’s central handle back, and released.

Twin arrows snapped out, but not in a straight line. The azure darts of energy twisted and curved erratically, like a pair of buzzing dragonflies. Only because Twilight had been expecting and looking for such an irregularity was she able to judge the timing and move. Hirenryaku wasn’t a technique she could use to its full potential without understanding how to use Blut Vene, but that wasn’t to say she couldn’t use it at all. She knew well just how much G-force the human body could handle, and was able to move in a short burst of speed, dodging to the side as the swirling twin arrows soared past where she’d been standing. It wasn’t the instant, high speed movement that Shining Armor had shown her earlier, but it was faster than a normal human could have hoped to dodge. Twilight felt the strain on her muscles and bones, and grit her teeth. She’d never been anything remotely approaching athletic, but the time spent training with Shining Armor and Cadence had prepared her to a degree, and she kept her balance as she landed a good twenty paces to Lemon Zest’s left, and then quickly aimed her own bow.

She was careful about the amount of power she put into her arrow. This was a sparring match, and she didn’t want to hurt Lemon Zest. While the other girl was more experienced and likely far stronger, even a small accident could lead to tragic results, so Twilight was careful to only put so much spirit energy into her shot as she let her arrow fly.

Despite her apparently laid back nature, Lemon Zest was alert and ready, not taken off guard by Twilight’s counter attack. The girl flickered out of sight as Twilight’s arrow sailed through empty air, impacting with the energy shield surrounding the sparring ground a moment later. Twilight sucked in a breath, her eyes darting around in search of where Lemon Zest had gone. A single moving shadow clued her into the the fact that Lemon Zest had gone up, and she snapped her attention upward to see the other girl hanging in the air, halfway through a graceful back-flip while still aiming her bow with easy accuracy. Twilight had all of a split second to react before Lemon Zest started firing off a barrage of a dozen arrows, each one coming at Twilight on a different rapidly shifting trajectory.

She threw herself forward, pushing spirit energy into bursts of speed from her legs in short, zig-zagging leaps. The force jarred her very bones and strained her muscles until Twilight felt certain she was near to snapping herself in half, but she did manged to weave through the rain of arrows that pelted the ground around her. Almost blindly she fired back as she moved, sending several arrows flying up towards Lemon Zest. The other girl responded simply by twisting her lithe body in mid-air, letting Twilight’s arrows zip past her harmlessly.

I can’t catch her at this speed. I need to move faster. I need Blut Vene.

Her brief observations of Shining Armor’s use of the power only gave her an experimental foundation of understanding. She understood that her body could act as a channel for her reiryuku, or spiritual energy in layman’s terms. Most Quincy techniques relied on a combination of that internal energy and the external spirit energy latent in the environment to power them. Blut Vene, however, was entirely internal. She needed to see her blood as a conduit, as if her circulatory system was akin to a electrical circuit board.

Send energy to one location, then close the circuit to contain it...

She concentrated, trying to coax her spirit energy into her hand as she’d seen her brother do, but she couldn’t take too much of her focus away from Lemon Zest, because the girl was already landing lightly on her feet a half dozen yards away, bow trained on Twilight.

Lemon Zest had the faint look of both irritation and concentration, almost as if she was a bit annoyed with Twilight that she was being forced to actually put effort into the match. Twin arrows of glowing light formed once more on either side of Lemon Zest’s bow and she let them fly. This time both arrows spiraled together into a helix pattern, and Twilight found she had no idea which way to dodge.

So she didn’t. Instead she planted her feet and fired an arrow of her town straight for the center of the helix. Her arrow ricocheted off of one of the spiraling helix arrows, causing both constructs of reishi to fly apart. The last remaining arrow, however, went on an erratic course that still sent it slamming into Twilight’s left leg with a force strong enough to knock her off her feet and lay her sprawled on her back.

“That’s two,” Lemon Zest said, not really sounding all that satisfied, “Just stop moving around and I’ll finish this, and we can all get back to doing things we want to. Seriously, you don’t need to prove anything. Lightning Dust is just being salty. Not like she’s got the pull to toss you out, even if she wanted to.”

“I can hear you, rookie,” said Lighting Dust, arms crossed and eyes flashing dangerously, “I can easily have your ass cleaning the showers for the next week.”

Lemon Zest shrugged, “Whatever.” She then aimed her bow once more at Twilight.

However Twilight had not remained motionless during the brief seconds of that exchange of words. All of her focus became devoted to trying to use Blut Vene. In the span of a few heartbeats she’d shunted spiritual power to several parts of her body. With each pulse of her blood she tried to emulate the pattern of energy she’d seen in Shining Armor. For an instant it nearly felt right. She couldn’t be certain, but there was a resonant echo in her that made it feel natural. As if it was just like taking a breath. Uncertainty tried to claw its way up from her reasoning mind, claiming she had no real way of knowing if she was using Blut Vene correctly, and that by assuming so she could easily get herself killed in the next few seconds.

But Twilight decided to trust her instincts.

As Lemon Zest fired another pair of arrows at Twilight, she moved. Parts of her glowed with red veins of reishi, probably too small for anyone not directly looking for it to see. When she moved, it wasn’t a low powered version of Hirenryaku, but a burst of speed fast enough to leave a sonic wake. G-forces that would have snapped her neck cleanly instead just felt like a heavy push on her body, now fully bolstered by her spirit energy in a full bodied Blut Vene.

Lemon Zest simply blinked in startled surprise as Twilight vanished in one instant, then appeared behind her in the next. Lemon Zest wasn’t even partially turned around when Twilight’s arrow caught her in the back.

In the very next instant Twilight had just enough time to realize something had also gone terribly wrong.

She’d intended the arrow to be restrained like before. Low powered like the one’s Lemon Zest had been using, with just enough strength to bruise. She wasn’t sure how she’d miscalculated, but the moment she’d released her arrow she knew with sickening, cold shock that it had a lot more force behind it than she’d intended.

The arrow hadn’t simply struck Lemon Zest.

It had gone clean through her, leaving a neat, quarter sized hole in the middle-right side of her back, perhaps just three inches from missing her spine.

Lemon Zest just stood there for a brief, shocked second, then started to fall over, her headphones slipping from her head to clatter to the floor.

Then in the very next moment everyone was shouting. Lightning Dust was at Lemon Zest’s side in a single eye-blink, catching the girl before she fully fell. Twilight heard Lightning Dust yell something about medical supplies and with speed that literally gave life to the woman’s name, she zipped off like lightning, taking Lemon Zest with her.

There were some more confused shouts, and a lot of Quincy cadets standing around either stunned or confused, but Twilight didn’t really see any of that. She’d simply slumped down to her knees, her bow vanishing from her limp hands as she stared at the spot Lemon Zest had just been, with a damp spot of blood on the white stone.

She then felt strong hands on her shoulder and saw Shining Armor was kneeling by her, looking at her with unrestrained worry. “Twilight? Twilight just focus on my voice, okay?”

“Shining? What did I just-”

“Shh, don’t say anything, just listen to me, and breath, okay? Just breath in, and breath out. Let go of the Blut Vene.”

She blinked, belatedly realizing she was still holding the power inside her body. She could feel its warmth surging through her. Gulping, she slowly tried to shake it off, surprised at how hard it was to let go, to force the spirit power back into her core.

“What happened...?” she asked, slowly trying to breath.

“You’re a pureblood Quincy, Twilight. One of the strongest in generations,” Shining Armor said with a heavy voice, “It was stupid of Lightning Dust to try to make you fight another cadet like that. Even more stupid of me to let it happen. When Lemon Zest kept hitting you like that, her reishi probably started a chain reaction in yours. It brought more of your latent abilities out. Purebloods can learn Quincy techniques instinctively, Twilight, especially when put in combat. When you used Blut Vene to get behind Lemon Zest, you didn’t realize it, but you instantly and instinctively switched to Blut Arterie to boost your attack. I know you didn’t intend to. It was just your Quincy blood, acting on instinct.”

“Is...” Twilight swallowed a lump in her throat, feeling a cold wetness in her eyes, “Is she going to be alright?”

“Lightning Dust is the fastest Quincy here. She’s taking Lemon Zest straight to the palaces infirmary.” Shining Armor squeezed her shoulder in a warm, comforting gesture, “Nothing beats Quincy medicine, and I could tell your shot didn’t hit her spine. She should be able to recover, as long as Lightning Dust gets her to the palace fast enough. I’ sorry, Twilight. I should have stopped this myself, but I didn’t think your power would come to the fore that quickly.”

Twilight shuddered, realizing just how easily that blow could have killed Lemon Zest instantly, with no chance at recovery. It left her feeling chilled straight to her marrow.

Off to the side, amid the Quincy cadets watching the scene unfold, Indigo Zap sucked in a breath and let it out in a slow whistle, “Damn. And I thought my first day here was rough.”

----------

It had been two days since her first encounter with Ember, or at least as close to two days as Adagio could estimate in this world without daylight. Grogar’s relentless experimentation left little coherent measure for the passage of time, so Adagio had to admit that for all she knew she’d been here for a much shorter length of time. Or longer.

Regardless, she’d waited patiently before starting her plan. Too soon equaled too eager. Grogar would see through such desperation. Manipulation was as much a factor of timing as it was persuasive argument. So she had held her tongue and been cooperative with Grogar. She of course had told him about meeting with Ember. There was no reason to hide that. She’d also mentioned Ember’s offer, in an off handed manner, not making any suggestions as to what to do about it. Grogar had been dismissive, at best, snorting at the notion. About what Adagio had expected.

Since then her life had been alternating between trips to the arena to test her limits, and time spent in Grogar’s primary lab to be poked and prodded by the Espada and his small army of “assistants”. These assistants consisted of quite a number of twisted Hollows with bulbous bodies and various deformed limbs. They didn’t seem to be quite like Arrancars, but weren’t normal Hollows either. More like tortured half-beings, no doubt cooked up in the very lab Adagio had to endure Grogar’s examinations in.

They weren’t dignified examinations, but there was a cold, clinical method to Grogar’s methods that kept them from turning to the realm of something creepy and far more disguising than they could have been. Grogar was solely interested in her body for its practical function, and nothing else. Thank the powers that be for small favors. Adagio endured it all with seething quiet, waiting for what she felt was the right moment.

“Master Grogar, may I speak?” she asked just after that day’s examinations were complete and she was dismissed to return to her ‘room’, which was just the same cell she’d woken up in days ago. The words, forced to barely sound demure, made her want to spit, but she kept control of her voice. She reminded herself that she’d danced this dance of manipulation for a long time, that it was part of her siren blood, and that no matter what form she took now, she was still a siren and that she would use every weapon at her disposal to sow the seeds of her enemy’s downfall. Including acting the part of a prisoner gradually accepting her supposed place.

Grogar, who had turned from her to take several tissue samples he’d extracted from her on that day’s examinations to test in a set of complex t looking laboratory apparatuses consisting of many liquid filled tubes connected to machinery, barely glanced back at her with a clear light of warning in his eyes.

“I grant you permission to speak, pet, but ensure they are words carefully chosen. I have no patience for games.”

“No games, merely a thought,” she said, moving as deliberately as she she chose her words. Body language was as much a part of manipulation as what one said. Adagio made sure her motions conveyed equal parts trepidation, deference, and casualness, as if what she was saying was something that had just come to her, and hadn’t been planned out in detail. “I told you of that Arrancar, Ember’s, plan. How she wanted to teach me the secret to evolving into such a higher state of being. She serves another Espada, one who is a rival of yours.”

Grogar’s voice cut sharply, “That fool Torch is no rival of mine. He is a simple minded creature whose power lies solely within crude destruction. Do not compare me to him, neonate!”

“No comparison, Master Grogar,” she said, having expected that outburst as she floated slowly closer to him, spreading her talons in a gesture of subservience, “I could tell by the mannerism of his servant that Torch hardly deserves the position he has. She too was... crude, and barely possessing intelligence worth noting. After all, her plan was flimsy, so easy mutable to serve your ends instead of Torch’s.”

This gained more of Grogar’s attention as he slowly turned from his work to regard her. Suspicion simmered in his eyes, but he’s voice carried a hint of intrigue, “Is that so? Go on.”

This was the critical moment. Here, now, her plan would either fall apart disastrously and she would likely know pain unlike any she’d been tortured with before, or she’d fix her hooks into this despicable man and pave the course to her eventual rise to freedom. A toss of the dice that relied solely on whether or not an Arrancar such as Grogar was resistant to a siren’s special magic... the magic of song.

”I know that your power is unrivaled.

Yet it seems so few give you your due.

If there’s one that I know,

Its that power’s not for show.

So why not make an example or two?

It had been a long time since she’d sung without the support of her sisters, yet to Adagio the act still came as naturally as gliding through the ocean depths. Her voice rang with resonate, slow grace, like dripping, fresh honey. Every word was laced with a steady, rhythmic pulse of siren magic, flowing freely and strong from the gem floating in the center of her Hollow hole. Elation and fear mixed inside her with equal measure as she watched for Grogar’s reaction. If he was resistant to this power, he’d immediately know something was wrong, because people generally don’t burst into random song.

When Grogar’s only reaction was to listen to her more intently, Adagio nearly shouted for joy. To his perceptions he’d hear her words, and be more likely to take them to heart, yet he’d never question the oddity of hearing her song. It’d sound as natural as common speech, yet carry so much more weight for the seductive magic pouring from each ringing syllable. She pressed on, floating around Grogar slowly as she sang.

Your foe has given you the perfect chance

To prove you are not a man to cross.

So take advantage of his plan

Plant a spy close as you can

And then in due time Torch shall learn the cost.

”

She bit back a sense of shock as Grogar spoke before she could continue into the next verse. “A spy, is it? You? And all I have to do is allow you to gain more power, and trust that you’d willingly spy upon torch for me? What reason would I have to place such trust in you, pet?”

So he’s not entirely without some resistance to the spellsong. But he doesn’t see it for what it is, only retains a skeptic mind. So be it, I can work with this, Adagio thought, shifting mental tracks. She’d hoped to grind in the potent suggestion of the song more, but she couldn’t risk pressing too far if Grogar had any measure of resistance to it. The seed had been planted, now it was time to water the soil while maintaining the illusion of deference. She ceased her singing, bowing low to him, putting just the right tremble of fear into her voice.

“Even I know trust isn’t something to put stock in, Master Grogar. But I know the price I’d pay for betraying you. Pain and fear is more reliable than trust. Even as an Arrancar, I could not hope to escape you. Also, since you seek to understand the source of my unusual power, wouldn’t seeing how my body reacts to such evolution only aid in your research? As I said, it was merely a thought. A chance to use Ember’s foolish plot against her and her master to gain advantage for yourself, which in turn would only make my position more bearable.”

She kept her head down, eyes lowered. Silence hung like a heavy, oppressive blanket in the laboratory, broken only by the background hum of the lab’s equipment. Then Grogar let out a small huff, a quiet snort of noise, then said, “I shall think on it, but do not get your hopes up, my greedy little pet. While a spy in Torch’s court would be useful, I may have better uses for you. Now return to your room and rest. Later this day we shall test your abilities against something stronger than the lesser Hollows I’ve sent against you.”

That news hardly filled Adagio with any confidence, but she was not going to complain. While he hadn’t fully embraced the idea she’d planted in his mind she knew it was only a matter of time before the notion slowly grew on him. In time he’d come to think the plan was his all along. With the seed planted all she needed to do now was survive, and wait.

----------

Rarity had, over the past twenty four hours or so, come to the distinct conclusion that Ditzy Doo, for all her banter, was something of a sadist.

Sure, she’d allowed Rarity and her friends occasional breaks to catch their breath, eat, take care of basic biological needs that a lady doesn’t go into details about, but those breaks usually only lasted an hour and then they’d be right back into fighting for their lives. And sanity. The arena being bathed in Hollow energy was seriously starting to have an adverse affect on everyone’s minds, combined with the general lack of sleep. The fact that the sky had darkened to night and then turned light with day once more told Rarity it’d been more than a day since they’d begun... but since her exhaustion had gotten to such a point that she’d stopped paying attention she actually didn’t know if that’d happened more than once.

She couldn’t feel her limbs very well anymore, and her wounded shoulder, beneath its brace, ached with a dull throbbing pain that brought tears to her eyes. Then there was the constant agitation welling up from her very core that she knew wasn’t natural. The Hollow energy of her Fullbring was growing ever more unstable, and it filled her mind with dark, unpleasant thoughts of violence that weren’t becoming of a well mannered young woman.

Still, she was handling it better than some.

“I’m gonna be mountin’ yer head over my fireplace ya damn slippery varmint!” Applejack roared, kicking again and again in a repeated succession of energy bursts from the bottom of her boots that smashed apart entire sections of colosseum stands as Ditzy Doo dodged among them with flickering fast movements.

“Still need to hit me first, farmgirl,” Ditzy said, spinning around to meet Rainbow Dash, who’d flown up to the top of the colosseum wall then turned sharply to dive down at Ditzy, flowing so fast that chunks of blown apart stone flew away in her sonic wake. Ditzy swung up a long, shapely leg to block Rainbow Dash’s haymaker punch, her momentum driving Ditzy back down off the coliseum stands and into the arena ground, digging a furrow in the ground for a dozen yards before Ditzy stopped her with a single hard punch to the gut that sent Rainbow Dash flying back into the wall.

Pinkie Pie came at her next, or rather Pinkamena did, both her arms extended into thick tendrils that gripped around the massive pink hammer that Pinkie Pie had transformed herself into. The hammer came down, and Ditzy side stepped it, but as the hammer struck the ground there was a strange wave-like distortion in the air and a crackle of pink, sparking energy that laced through the ground beneath Ditzy’s feet.

Suddenly the ground turned into a literal springboard, one that snapped up and sent Ditzy flying off balance with a cartoonish *sproing* noise. Rarity took advantage of Ditzy’s temporary off balance nature and leaped up, rapier poised to strike. She got to Ditzy’s height easily enough with a small touch of her foot on the air, where a small spark of light appeared. Ditzy had shown them all this little trick about being Fullbringers, and they’d managed to get the hang of it over the past day or so. Aside from the specific, potent Fullbrings they could evolve into higher forms, all Fullbringers could control the minor souls inside inanimate objects around them to one degree or another. That included the very air particles around them. With Fullbring it was possible to draw out the soul of the air to solidify it into a propelling point of compressed air that would allow them to jump higher and literally bounce off thin air. A sort of partial flight and method to move a fast speeds.

Rarity had gotten the best at the fine, finesse of this technique so far, and used it to appear behind Ditzy as she was flipped through the air by Pinkie’s odd hammer power. Her rapier struck out, fast as an adder’s fang. Ditzy’s reaction speed was terrifying as ever, one hand slapping the flat of Rarity’s blade, but Rarity had seen enough of the woman’s speed to fully expect that, and she instantly transmuted her rapier into its bladed whip form, jagged crystals forming the interlocking blades that she then spun around and lashed out at Ditzy from the opposite side she’d attacked before.

It almost caught Ditzy’ off guard, who tucked herself into a tight rolling ball, narrowly avoiding the red, lashing whip. Narrowly. When Ditzy landed on the ground, just a second after Rarity did, Ditzy ran a hand through her blonde hair, coming away with a few lopped away locks that Rariy’s whip had managed to cut free. Though Rarity couldn’t see Ditzy’s full expression past the Hollow mask, the woman’s voice was impressed.

“Getting better. If we had a month to do this, I could work miracles with you girls, with all that potential you five got locked away.”

Rarity smiled past clenched teeth, “Why thank you. The praise almost makes it worth being worked nearly to death.”

“Well, you all did understand that was a possibility before you agreed to do this,” Ditzy said flatly, “Speaking of which, shouldn’t be long now before we hit the ‘crunch’ of this, and so far only one of you has evolved to a safe point.”

“Whadd’ya mean by that?” Applejack asked, hands on her knees as she breathed hard, sweat falling from her chin.

“Only that just about any minute now you girls, save for Pinkie Pie, are probably going to start feeling a bit like you would if you had too many spicy enchiladas... seasoned with nitroglycerin.” Ditzy said, waving one hand in a vague gesture.

“Wait, why not me?” said the hammer, while Pinkamena rolled her eyes and licked her teeth.

“Who cares? All we need to do is make the dumb blonde bleed and we win! If your hammer did something useful maybe we’d already have won!”

“Hey, I’m totally super useful!” Pinkie Pie said, “Did you see the way we sent her flying off with that spring trap thingie! Heh, that was funny.”

“Indeed,” said Ditzy Doo, stretching her arms, “I’ve been watching what happens closely each time you use that hammer, and I think I’ve got a handle on how it works. Aside from being able to hit like a freight train, each time you strike with it the hammer distorts the world around it. It creates changes that basically work like... well, let’s call them ‘combat gags’ if you will. A springboard to send me flying unexpectedly. Or when it ate my Cero, complete with belch.”

Rainbow Dash glanced at the hammer, “So that’s what it’s been doing. I was trying to figure out why it turned a bunch of the arena into a vat of chocolate syrup a little while ago.”

She was referring to the pool of said sticky chocolate goodness that occupied a good ten meter radius portion of the arena on the south side, the result of some of the fighting a few hours ago where they’d nearly gotten Ditzy when she’d been stuck in the chocolate. It was indeed strange, and none of the girls had the time or energy to question it, but now that Ditzy brought it up Rarity could see what she meant. Pinkie Pie’s hammer form did seem to produce odd effects based around Pinkie Pie’s rather bizarre sense of humor.

“Probably has its limits, not unlike Fluttershy’s ability,” said Ditzy with a shrug, “Too much spirit energy possessed by your opponent would limit the distortions. Like me. Your hammer can only create inconveniences for me, nothing that’d outright take me out, because my reiatsu is so much higher that’s all your own spirit energy can manage. But the stronger you get, the more your hammer will be able to do. I’m willing to bet in time you’ll have reality distorting power on par with Discy’s Zanpaktou. That’ll be something to see, if you live that long.”

“Well we ain’t dead yet,” said Applejack, resuming a fighting pose, fists clenched, legs spread in a wide stance. “An’ we ain’t gonna stop ‘till we knock ya down a peg!”

Applejack surged forward like a charging elephant, hitting the ground so hard with each step Rarity could actually feel the ground shake slightly. However, just before Applejack got inside striking range, something strange happened. A crack appeared in the armor of her right boot, and red, flame-like energy started to jet out of it uncontrollably. Applejack cried out, losing her balance and hitting the dirt in a skidding roll, stopping just a pace from Ditzy. Her face was pinched in pain as she clutched at her leg.

“W-what in the...hay is this?”

“That’s what I was figuring would be happening soon,” said Ditzy, “Before long all of you will be experience the same thing. Your Fullbring’s are being overwhelmed by the Hollow energy of the arena.”

“What does that even mea-” Rainbow Dash started to say, then let out a scream of pain as her left wing suddenly convulsed, with an audible bone-snapping crack, and red lightning started to arch from cracks appearing all over the metallic appendage.

Fluttershy, who’d been hanging back from the battle due to how exhausted she’d been, barely able to stand, now rushed forward heedless of that, now that she saw her friends in pain. She reached Rainbow Dash first, trying to use her third-eye’s power to heal the damage, but it was as if the wing didn’t even notice the attempt to heal it. Furthermore, the moment Fluttershy started to pour more energy from her eye to try and heal the wing, she suddenly shrieked in pain as luminous red energy, like drops of ethereal blood, started to pour out of the third-eye, leaving Fluttershy to collapse to her knees.

Rarity, seeing her friends struck in such a manner, was able to mentally brace herself, fully expecting the same to happen to her; and it did. The armor plates on her elegant battle dress cracked, and shards like barbs of red crystal stuck out from them. She was torn into by lances of horrific pain, as if the same thorns were digging into her own skin, and Rarity barely managed to stay standing under the assault of agony. She could feel her Fullbring’s power thrashing about inside her like a wild animal, tearing at the bonds of its cage... her.

Pinkamena stared at all this with flat shock, and looked at herself as if expecting to explode or something, then said, “Huh, I feel fine. Why’s everyone else letting out such musical screams?”

“Like I said, it's the Hollow energy suffusing this arena,” Ditzy said solemnly, one hand on her hips, “While it has the benefit of enriching the power of a Fullbring, making it easier for that Fullbring to gain power rapidly and increase the chances of evolution, it also highly agitated and destabilizes it. Power continues to build, and without a proper outlet, without actual evolution occurring, the power just grows until it reaches a meltdown point. That’s what makes this training so dangerous, and potentially lethal. If your friends don’t evolve their Fullbrings soon, this will only get worse, until...”

She held up a hand, making a fist, then spread that fist and said, “Boom.”

“B-boom?” asked the hammer-shaped Pinkie Pie.

“They’ll explode. Violently. And die.” Elaborated Ditzy Doo.

Rarity, still maintaining her sense of clear thought despite all the pain she was enduring, said, “And Pinkie Pie is unaffected, having already evolved, yes?”

“Bingo. If the rest of you can do the same, you’ll be fine,” said Ditzy, and she tapped a non-existent watch on her wrist, “But the clock is now ticking. These effects you’re feeling are just the sign of the final countdown. I’d say you’ve got less than a day left to evolve your Fullbrings before it's too late. Do or die, girls.”

“Then there ain’t no other choice,” Applejack grunted, forcing herself to stand, despite the pain wracking her cracked leg, which still spewed small jets of crimson fire as she rose unsteadily to face Ditzy Doo. “Ya best hit us wit yer strongest attack.”

“Are you sure? I held back with that last Cero a lot,” said Ditzy, “I’m pretty sure that’s the only reason Pinkie Pie was able to absorb it. I go all out, I may accidentally kill you.”

“Yeah, well, we’re dead if we don’t pull this off, and I’m thinking the only way to make these Fullbrings come out is to go all out,” said Rainbow Dash, “So I’m with AJ. Hit us with your best shot, Ditz. If we can’t step up to the plate, then...” she gulped, showing a bit of the fear lurking underneath Rainbow Dash’s usual bravado, “Then it was going to be the end of the line anyway.”

Through she’d clutched her third-eye shut against the pain, Fluttershy stood on shaking legs now, and forced the eye back open, despite the ethereal blood dripping from it. There was a hard fierceness there, in all three of her eyes, as she breathed hard and stood beside Rainbow Dash, “I don’t know what else we can do, but I won’t let any of you down.”

Rarity took a deep breath, joining the line, as it were, and held her rapier up, “I’ve worked under tough deadlines before. I believe the proper term for such a situation as this would be ‘bring it on’, yes?”

Ditzy Doo regarded all of them with a grim gaze, then she simply vanished. She reappeared about twenty meters away, cracking her neck.

“Can’t say you girls are wrong. Discy would never approve of me going this far, but I think he didn’t realize just how far you girls would need to be pressed, either. The guy is kind of more old fashioned than he let’s on. So...”

Ditzy Doo extended her right arm out to the side, fist clenched, and suddenly a severe white glow surrounded her body. A jet of what looked like compressed air snapped out from her fist for a second, before her body erupted with an intense storm of what appeared to be both swirling, cutting air, and erratic arcs of white lightning.

“...I’ll go all out with this last attack. I haven’t even shown Discy this move, believe it or not. Even if I tried to hold back, I could only scale it back so much, so if you girls can’t defend yourselves this may well kill one or more of you.”

For a moment her expression softened, “Are you absolutely sure about this?”

Rarity looked at her friends, who all exchanged looks with each other. There was absolutely no doubting the fear present in all of them, or the fact that they all felt like they were at the ends of their proverbial ropes. They were all in horrible pain, exhausted to the brink. With the very possibility of death looming near, the only thing keeping any of them standing was the fact that they were standing together with equal purpose and will to live.

Like with many of the challenges they’d faced since coming together as friends, it was the very real power of that bond that kept them going.

And for Rarity, at least on a personal level, she was willing to sacrifice anything she had if it meant ensuring that her family and friends no longer had to fear the dangers looming over their lives. Ever since encountering that first Hollow that fateful night a few weeks ago Rarity had had to live with the constant fear that any one of the people she loved might be massacred by powers beyond their ability to defend against. She had had enough of that fear. No matter what she had to give of herself, her safety, her blood, her very life, Rarity would give it in a heartbeat if it meant protecting what she cherished.

Their present power just wasn’t enough to overcome Ditzy Doo’s might. That was the point of evolving their Fullbrings. If they couldn’t do it now, then it wasn’t going to happen at all.

Despite the writhing of her Fullbring, its unstable energy coursing through her painfully, Rarity could feel the sparking core of its potential as well. Her blood felt like it was ready to burst out of every pore in her body, and she didn’t feel any urge to fight that feeling. Let her give of her blood. All of it, if need be.

Seeing the resolve in their eyes, Ditzy Doo just nodded, and prepared to unleash her final attack. Blasts of white lightning ripped asunder the ground around her, and the back of Ditzy’s shirt ripped itself apart as the energy being shunted out of her body tore the fabric to shreds. Shock-waves of power radiated from her as she tested her legs, then said one word.

“Shunko.” (Flash War Cry)

Then she burst forward in a blast of speed and force unrivaled by anything Rarity had seen before, shattering the earth as she came at them.

The five girls from Canterlot High stood ready to face it, to whatever end.

----------

It was the ninth floor of the tower, and Sunset was learning all about the wonders of having a broken arm.

Mostly that they hurt like hell and became about as useful as a bottle of tabasco in an ice cream parlor. What was worse, it was her shield arm. Not only was she in constant, mind numbing pain from having to still carrying around the shield strapped to said busted limb, but she couldn’t effectively block anymore, which would have been extremely useful when facing the ninth floor constructs.

Unlike the other floors, the ninth already had a staircase present when she and Clover had dragged their wounded, weary bodies to it after barely having scratched by the eighth floor’s challenge, which had involved battling ninja-like skeletons that had been able to cloak themselves in that floor’s deep, encompassing shadows. Only Sunset deciding to risk lighting fire to the tower walls themselves had banished enough of the darkness to let them see their foes and mount an effective counter attack, but one of the sneaky skeletal bastards had snuck a final blow past Sunset's defenses with an iron staff that had caused the broken limb she now dragged around.

The ninth floor stairs were unlike the others, being huge stone steps as broad as a mansions, and flanked by tall lanterns of glowing violet flame held by carved skeletal figureheads.

Guarding these stairs were only two constructs, and they were... disturbingly familiar.

Both were about the size of young human women, and something about their stance gave them that feminine quality, but more than that each bore trappings that were eerily familiar. The skeleton on the left had scraps of orange and yellow hair falling past her scalp, and with a prideful and confident pose carried a broadsword covered in flames, and a large kite shield. The other skeleton carried itself with calm and calculating poise, bits of green curly hair hanging from its otherwise mostly bare head, and it twirled a staff in its bony fingers that had a ring blade on one end, and a metal spike on the other.

They were skeletal copies of Sunset and Clover, and the moment she and Clover had arrived at the stairs, both skeletons rushed into the attack with incredible coordination. Sunset had been trying to count the hours, and knew that getting up here had taken her and Clover at least two days, maybe three, and even with Clover’s provided provisions she’d brought along she and Clover both were at the very edge of their stamina. On top of their many sustained injuries, there was also the fact that this floor was the worst yet for how badly it suppressed their reiatsu. Sunset felt like she’d could barely move and lift her sword, let alone manage a Flash Step.

And her skeletal self was fresh, full powered, and as aggressive as she was.

The first blow nearly knocked Hokori from her grip and sent her sprawling back along the chamber’s stone floor like a penguin on ice. Clover didn’t fare much better, only managing to block one or two strikes from her skeletal copy before losing her balance as she tried to leap out of the way of one staff strike that caught her in the side and sent Clover tumbling in a heap.

“Clover! Back to back!” Sunset called, realizing their only chance was to stick close and coordinate their efforts. Alone, these copy skeletons would overwhelm then in moments.

Clover, grimacing, rolled to her feet and rushed towards Sunset, who in turn scrambled to meet with the other Soul Reaper. Their rattling, undead counterparts moved to intercept them, and both Sunset and Clover had to turn to meet their headlong rush. They did manage to get their backs to one another just as the skeleton constructs struck, and Sunset felt a margin of confidence feeling Clover covering her back as she swung to parry her copy’s fierce blow. Once more she nearly lost her grip on Hokori, her sweat soaked palms barely keeping hold of the broadsword. She tightened that grip, ignoring the numbing ache that made her arm feel like it was made of petrified stone, and counterattacked, slicing at the skeleton’s head and unleashing a burst of flame at the same time.

The flame was pitifully small, however, with how much her spirit energy was being suppressed, and the skeletal copy of her used its own shield to easily block her blow.

“Dammit!” Sunset cursed, struggling to keep her balance and stay standing as the skeleton pushed hard on the shield, nearly knocking her over.

Clover wasn’t fairing much better. She twirled Chishiki around, trying to mount an offensive against her copy, but she too was at her limit and her moves were sluggish and easily parried by the skeleton’s own spinning staff.

Then both skeletons moved at the same time, vanishing and then reappearing with motions akin to a Flash Step. They’d switched places, with Clover’s copy smashing hard at Sunset’s shield side with the ring blade, while Sunset’s skeletal doppelganger made a backhanded swing at the unprepared Clover.

Both girls took hefty hits. Sunset had no choice but to try raising her shield, and the pure storm of overwhelming pain on her broken arm made her choke out a scream as she was sent flying by the blow. Clover was hit as well, taking a large cut across her left shoulder that made her lose that arm’s grim on Chishiki, now stuck limply holding the staff with just her right hand as she used the last of her spirit energy to Flash Step fast enough to catch Sunset and prevent her from smacking into the far wall.

Feeling Clover gently set her down, Sunset gasped through the pain wracking her arm, dropping her shield.

“I...I don’t think we can win this, Sunset,” said Clover, her eyes narrowing and her pale face showing wide eyes as he looked at the blood seeping from the wound on her shoulder.

Sunset, breathing hard, trying desperately to push down the pain flooding her senses, forced herself to stand, “If we don’t, then all of this was for nothing! I won’t let that happen!”

“Sunset, listen to me, we can still retreat to the lower floors,” Clover implored, while their skeletal copies slowly advanced on them, “On the first floor I could use my healing Kido to recover our wounds. We could use the time to plan a strategy.”

It made a certain amount of sense. In fact it made a lot of sense, and given how badly they were both hurt it was clear continuing to fight would probably be an exercise in futility, not to mention get either of them killed. On every logical level retreating was the correct move.

Yet Sunset somehow knew that if they did retreat, then it would end up being the same as if they’d lost here and now. The challenge to overcome in this tower wasn’t just to defeat the ever increasingly potent constructs. It was to overcome themselves. They had to fight past their own limits, if they were to unlock the potential to ever face the likes of Captain Platinum on equal terms. They could fight, retreat, fight, retreat, over and over again... and it wouldn’t mean a thing because come the end the strength to push past one’s limits required that you kept going when you were certain you had nothing left to give.

Hokori’s voice laughed richly inside Sunset’s mind.

I was worried for a moment that you’d fail to figure out something so basic. I die if you do, but I can’t give you any freebies either. My own pride would never allow it. But now that you’re in the right mindset... it's time I showed you what I can really go.

Sunset blinked in surprise, glancing at the broadsword in her hand, which began to pulse with reserves of spirit energy that she hadn’t felt before. Time seemed to slow, the two skeletal doppelgangers coming their way with weapons raised to strike, but their motions suddenly seeming sluggish. At the same time Sunset felt her consciousness being pulled on, and she felt light headed as her vision swirled and yanked her mind into the inner world of her Zanpaktou.

----------

Clover felt her heart clench at Sunset’s words. Fear rose in her like a cold tide. Of course they should run! What was Sunset thinking!? Staying here to fight a losing battle was tactically foolish, even suicidal. Clover’s mind was hardly calm, but she could still analyze and calculate outcomes easily enough, and there was simply no way to win this scenario! Discord had given them a no win situation! But Sunset not only seemed pridefully determined to keep fighting, even at the cost of her life, but she didn’t even seem worried about the advancing skeletons now.

If anything, Sunset looked calm as she closed her eyes and started quietly muttering under her breath, as if speaking to someone. Clover felt a spike of spiritual energy radiating from Sunset’s Zanpaktou, and noticing that Hokori’s blade was starting to shimmer with heat.

What? How is she pulling up more spirit energy all of a sudden? We’ve been drained to our cores by this tower. She can’t have more left in her, can she?

It was then that she heard a clipped and coolly collected voice in her head, a voice she actually hadn’t heard directly in some time.

I am somewhat surprised at your lack of foresight, Clover. You are usually much swifter on the uptake than this, but I suppose you’ve never been placed in a situation quite this dire. Unlike that hot-headed brute, Hokori, I prefer to avoid unneeded risks, so I can provide you some hints.

Briefly confused, but then feeling a profound sense of comfort, Clover found her mind being swept away into another mental state. When she saw with her mind’s eye, she stood upon what looked like the surface of a infinite, still ocean.

The water didn’t ripple, even with her steps. From the ocean depths rose great stone obelisks, hundreds of them as far as the mental landscape could stretch. The obelisks were carved with great, massive shelves of stone, and within each stood countless tomes and scrolls. The volumes were huge, tall as a person, and covered with the dust of ages.

She took a few steps forward, until she found the spirit of her Zanpaktou.

“Chishiki,” she called, looking upon the spirit for the first time in a long while.

Chishiki turned his head, that of a great owl’s, his feathers a mix of rich brown and snowy white. He was perched upon a smaller stone obelisk that allowed him to rest comfortably while perusing one of the giant books with his wings. Giant, sharp yellow eyes regarded Clover critically.

“Since time is short I’ll not take long. Tell me, have you forgotten the reason you became a Soul Reaper?”

Clover stared at Chishiki, stunned for a moment before she recovered her wits, saying, “Well, of course I do. I couldn’t forget something like that.”

Those memories were the kind that never left a person, and Clover could recall them intimately. She could remember the streets of the Rukongai, the vast slum where countless souls dwelt. For some it was a peaceful and unchanging place, while for others in the less controlled districts it was a more dangerous area where some souls took advantage of the lack of Soul Reaper oversight to form gangs that roved the streets. Ironically the souls of the afterlife faced the same problems souls of the living world did; that they could be killed. Such souls were absorbed into the flow of energy that passed between the living world and the spirit world, to be reborn among the living once more.

A small comfort to any of those left behind, much as it was for those in the living world. It was the loss of the friends she’d made among her fellow children living in the Rukongai that had filled Clover at first with sorrow, which then had transmuted into a ravenous hunger for knowledge. Above all Clover had a desire to understand the nature of things and why the universe existed and functioned in the manner it did. That desire had led her to develop and train her latent spiritual energy to join the ranks of the Soul Reapers. Her hope had always been to use that position of power to seek even more knowledge, and perhaps in time find an answer to the state of the universe.

But then somewhere along the line of performing her duties as a Soul Reaper that desire had dulled. The flame of that hunger for finding knowledge had been weakened by the decades of day to day routine, until it was a passive hobby rather than a driving force.

“I wanted knowledge, above all else,” Clover said, and Chishiki nodded.

“I share that passion, and I feared perhaps you’d forgotten what it felt like. To seek ever greater knowledge requires ever greater risks, Clover. And power. Will you run every time that quest becomes difficult?”

“No...” Clover said, clenching her hands into fists, “I won’t. But not just because I want to unlock the secrets of this world.”

Chishiki tilted his head at her, golden eyes searching, “Oh?”

“Losing the friends I had back then, it's little wonder I substituted a quest for knowledge for ever building those connections again,” Clover said, her mind turning over the many events of the past few weeks, feeling a warm upwelling of feeling inside her, “But those girls, I can’t call them anything other than friends. The kind I don’t intent to lose. So yes, I want knowledge, but that’s not my only reason for wanting power anymore. Chishiki, will you keep helping me?”

The giant owl gave a small, amused hoot, turning the page of his book as he resumed reading, “Friendship, is it? Perhaps that, too, is worth seeking knowledge of. In any case, go, back to the waking world. I would hate for that uncultured arsonist to upstage me.”

Clover felt herself being drawn back out of the inner world with a cold snap of energy, followed by a surge of strength flowing up from inside her.

----------

Upon the tenth and highest floor of the training tower, Discord stood upon one of four balconies that actually opened up out to view the surrounding area. One part of his mind had kept focused on monitoring Sunset’s and Clover’s progress, but the rest had been sensing the developments taking place in the distance, upon the mountain.

He could barely see the arena Ditzy Doo had summoned to train the other girls, and Discord had felt the ebb and flow of their struggle until it reached the fevered pitch that he had known it had to. Even Discord, however, was surprised to feel the intensity of reiatsu that Ditzy summoned up, then, and he wasn’t at all sure what kind of technique she was about to unleash on those young ladies.

For a moment the overlapping explosions of intense spiritual pressures confused Discord’s usually keen senses, and in the distant arena he saw a torrent of energy erupted into the sky, colors of blue, gold, crimson, and white all intermixing in a swirling tornado of color. It was impossible to tell exactly what had happened, but one way or another Discord suspected the matter of those girls’ survival was resolved.

He was prevented from further trying to sense the details of what had occurred over there by a much closer explosion of spiritual energy from behind him. Intense heat hit his back in a pressure wave, and the entire tenth floor became bathed in a azure glow as a wave of cobalt flames smashed their way up the staircase alongside a burst of red fire. Both colors of flame flickered upon the floor and ceiling for a bit, until two forms emerged up the stairs, covered in bits of bone dust and ash.

Sunset and Clover both looked entirely beaten and exhausted, sporting blood soaked clothing and multiple wounds on their tired, sweat soaked bodies. Yet both girls were rimmed with the residual glow of spirit energy, wafting off of both them and their Zanpaktou, and Discord could feel the strengthened connection between the blades and the women wielding them.

He turned to face the pair, smiling slightly as he stroked his beard.

“Wasn’t too much trouble to get up here, was it?”

“If my arm wasn’t broken I’d be flipping you the bird right now,” said Sunset between panting breaths, but she was smiling, “But yeah, we managed.”

He gave them a sage nod, “I suspected you would. This tower could easily kill a Soul Reaper who wasn’t ready for it, but you and Clover are both possessing of talent and determination beyond the common. Now it's best we get those wounds tended to before you drop dead on your feet.”

Sunset looked relieved, but a concerned frown soon replaced it, “How are the others doing? I felt some strange spirit energy coming from somewhere. Thought it had to be them, but I couldn’t tell what was happening.”

Discord turned his gaze back towards the arena on the slope of the mountain, where things had gone rather ominously quiet. “Why don’t you two stay here and rest. I’ll go see how things are going on that end.”

And if any of them are still alive, he mentally added.

Episode 31: Threads in the Pattern

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Episode 31: Threads in the Pattern

Sonata didn’t want to get out of bed. Not because she was tired, but because getting out of the warm, fluffy confines of the futon meant she had to face the world outside the bedroom... and that was a world that no longer had Adagio Dazzle in it. That cold reality made her want to just burrow deep into the covers and ignore it. Even though there was this nagging voice inside her, buried beneath the layers of pain, that said she couldn’t, shouldn’t keep this up forever.

After all, what would Dagie think of her? Just sitting here, shut in for days on end, alternating between crying and blubbering; which were both technically the same thing but Sonata wanted to think she was changing it up every now and again. Well, there were times when Aria was nice enough to bring her some food, and the undeniable need to occasionally attend to her hygiene.

That being said she was a wreck and she knew it. She also knew that if Adagio could see her, there’d be some sharp words from her older sister concerning the need to toughen up and get over it. Dagie had always been the strongest of them. The fiercest willpower combined with the clearest thinking. Sonata knew, on some level, that she wasn’t very bright. She was usually happy as a clam to ignore the fact and just enjoy herself, but on some instinctual level she knew she was kind of an airhead. It had all seemed okay and in good fun when she had Adagio around to do the real mental heavy lifting.

Without her, Sonata had never felt so lost. Not alone, of course. Aria was there, but was trying to deal with her own pain in her own way. They weren’t really on the same page when it came with how to express grief. Aria just looked like she wanted to murder things, twenty-four-seven, and was pouring her energy into doing chores around the shop. Maybe that was more useful than what Sonata was doing, but just working up the energy to think about doing anything else was a trial in and of itself.

Yet she did, one morning. Or was it afternoon? She’d utterly lost track of time and didn’t even know for sure what day it was when she finally, eyes bleary and red rimmed, threw the covers off her futon and rolled out of bed. She felt weak and dizzy, with her skin having that clammy stickiness of having not really showered lately, combined with that sour bleariness that comes sometimes after recovering from being sick and bedridden.

Sonata stumbled into the bathroom adjoining the sleeping room, and grunted in near pain as she flipped on the lights, the harsh and bright fluorescent lighting stabbing at her eyes. Looking in the mirror she blinked at the person looking back at her.

“...Wow, Sonata, you look like a bad audition for the Walking Dead,” she said to herself, looking at the pale, frazzled girl looking at her in the mirror, her own visage a ghostly echo of her old self. She leaned on the sink for a second, taking a deep breath, stilling her screaming mind. No, she wasn’t going to go crawl back into bed. She’d cried enough. Mostly. She probably had a few more left in her, but she'd save them for the shower.

A half hour consisting of a warm shower, brushing her teeth, and brushing out her hair almost got her looking like something approaching normal. Still a bit too pale, with dark bags under her eyes, but at least she wasn’t doing a zombie impression anymore. When she returned to the bedroom she found the door open and Aria standing there, blinking at her.

“Sonata? You’re... out of bed,” Aria said, sounding surprised. She was carrying a tray holding a pair of plates with the sweet, steaming sight of what smelled like fresh chicken soup. Sonata’s stomach immediately respond to the delicious scent with a deep rumble and her mouth started to salivate shamelessly.

“Yup, out of bed, and starving!” she said, trying to force some energy into her voice, to crack a small smile, even if it probably came out rather twisted and wrong. Aria had a curled brow of worry on her face as she went to set the trays of soup down at the one table the bedroom shared, and she and Sonata both sat down.

“How are you feeling?” Aria asked in a slow, awkward manner, watching Sonata start to devour the soup in front of her. Sonata took a moment to respond, too focused on assaulting the soup. Only when a sufficient amount was warming her belly did she take a deep breath and met Aria’s concerned gaze.

“Terrible, but that’s... okay. I’m not going to sit in here anymore, Aria,” she said, spooning more soup into her mouth, shivering at the warmth, “I can’t. Dagie would go ballistic on me if she saw me doing that.”

Aria’s expression stiffened, eyes flicking away from Sonata, “Yeah. I guess she would.”

“So, um, what’d I miss while I was cooped up in here?” asked Sonata, “Anything interesting?”

Aria just sort of shrugged, frowning, “Been a bit out of the loop myself. Some big shot Soul Reaper types came through and kicked up a hissy-fit with those Canterlot High girls. I don’t know what really went down, but it got those girls’ panties seriously twisted, and since then they’ve spent like, I don’t know, the past four or five days doing some kind of secret training crap with Discord and that cat.”

Sonata, despite herself, couldn’t help but giggle, even if it was a weak one compared to her usual full and colorful mirth, “They're being trained by a cat. Soon the world shall fear their names.”

A ghost of a smile appeared on Aria’s lips, “Behold the dreaded hairball attack, learned from my sensei Mr. Meowgi.”

Sonata burst out into a fit of more giggles, nearly spilling her soup. It felt good. After days of nothing but pain and sobbing, it felt good to have something to laugh at. The pain from Adagio’s loss was still there, like something inside her had been forcibly cut out of her, but at least it felt like the wound was starting to scab a bit, instead of freshly bleeding. If she could laugh, even a little, maybe she could find the strength to keep going another day.

Still, it made Sonata do something she didn’t do often; think.

“Aria,” she said after a moment, slowly stirring the soup in front of her, “What are we going to do now?”

Aria was silent for a long time, her violet eyes staring in hard thought, her lips now pressed into a thin line. She let out a huge sigh, shaking her head, “You’re asking me? I don’t have a damn clue, Sonata. Adagio... she was the one who made all the decisions.”

Sonata gulped, closing her eyes for a second, pushing back the ready and waiting gloom that threatened to drag her back down. She wanted Aria to be able to come up with something, some kind of plan, but maybe it was time she stopped relying on others to do the thinking, scary as that thought was. She’d never been good at coming up with plans. She just wanted to live life moment to moment, having as much fun as she could. She’d hoped maybe Aria would already have an idea of what to do, but it occurred to Sonata that her sister was probably just as lost as she was.

Maybe it was time to start making choices herself. Even if she wasn’t all that much of a thinker, she had never had a problem following her heart. If she looked past all the pain, it was clear enough to see what that part of her wanted.

“I don’t want to ever be helpless again,” she said, a firm heat entering her normally bubbly voice, “I don’t want to leave Adagio. So... I’m gonna figure out how to become strong. Like those girls are.”

“Sonata, don’t be crazy,” Aria said, grimacing, “We don’t have any of their weird abilities, and even if we did, we couldn’t help Adagio.”

“I don’t care!” Sonata said, determination hardening her tone more and more, “There has to be a way. Adagio wouldn’t give up if it was one of us in trouble. There’s got to be a way for us to get strong, too, and even if Adagio has to spend forever as one of those Hollow things, I want her to still be with us.”

Doubt shadowed Aria’s features like a dark cloud, but she didn’t immediately disagree with Sonata, leaning back in her seat and crossing her arms under her breasts in a pensive gesture. After a minute she said, “This is nuts.”

“Maybe not as nuts as you might think, little piglets,” said a voice from the doorway, and both sirens turned to see Screwloose leaning against the frame of the sliding paper door to the room, a slim and coy grin on her face. The odd woman with her stringy gray hair was covered in dirt and bore a few wounds, as if she’d just been through a scuffle.

“What happened to you?” Aria asked, suspicion coating her voice.

“With the bossman out playing coach to the A-Team, me and Screwball are pulling double duty on patrols,” said Screwloose, stretching her arms above her head and groaning, “Tough work today, given the Hollows are getting uppity again. Ran into three different groups slinking around town this morning alone, and I know Screwball has run into much of the same. Nothing we can’t handle, of course, but this pots starting to hit boiling temperatures again. Almost like the Hollows know the heavy hitters are all out of town.”

Sonata frowned, as usual her brain having a hard time processing the nuances of what she was hearing. All this complex supernatural stuff was hard for her to get her brain wrapped around, but Aria filled in the blanks as she said, “Right, no Soul Reaper big shots around, and the girls are out with your boss. Means the Hollows might think the dinner bell is ringing around here.”

“Yup, but it's no big deal. Me and Screwball got this handled,” said Screwloose, slinking into the room with easy, smooth steps. “Now then, about you girls. I heard you saying something about wanting to get strong?”

Aria looked wary, glancing at Sonata, but Sonata felt no need to hesitate. She stood up, eyeing Screwloose intently, “That’s right. I want to help Adagio, and I don’t want to be all weak and helpless anymore.”

“Hmm,” Screwloose licked her lips, eyes shining, “Yeah, I can see that hungry fire in your eyes. It's a good look on you, instead of the empty headed one. Still, you’ve got a problem my fired up piglet. How were you planning to gain this strength you want so badly, hmm?”

Sonata tilted her head. She hadn’t exactly thought that far ahead yet. She just knew she hated feeling like she had, watching Adagio sacrifice herself for the rest of them, while being completely unable to do anything to save her sister. Sonata didn’t know how she’d get stronger, but she definitely wanted to try. She wracked her brain for an answer, and was only able to come up with one idea.

“I, uh, I’ll just ask Mister Discord! He’s smart, and knows a lot of stuff, so I bet he has an answer!”

Screwloose only gave her a small shake of her head, “I can already tell you that the boss won’t help.”

“Why not!?” Sonata asked, unable to keep a hint of desperation out of her voice.

“Because, like you said, he’s smart, and knows things,” Screwloose replied with a wry look on her face as she went over to Sonata and Aria, leaning between them and putting a finger to her mouth as if in conspiratorial confidence. “He’s helping the other girls because he can’t stop them from treading the path they’re so determined to tread, even if it's one that’ll get them smacked down by the big bads of the world. He feels all responsible and junk. Not my business to judge if he’s got a martyr complex going. But with you two? Aside from being magical fish girls from another dimension, you’re basically mundanes. Without your siren gems you two are about as threatening as a pair of declawed kittens. Even with your gems you wouldn’t be more than a minor irritant to even a middleweight power of the spirit realms.”

Aria scowled, shoving Screwloose back with a rough push, “Hey, you don’t need to rub it in! If you don’t have anything helpful to say, then scram!”

Screwloose let herself get pushed, and just stood in a relaxed pose, smiling, “Just making it clear to you, pig-tailed piglet. You’re powerless. If you want power, it’s not going to come from here. Best you start thinking outside the box. Or outside of this world.”

“Outside...?” Sonata began to ask, then her eyes shot wide and she nearly jumped to the roof, swinging about with a whoop of joy as she grasped Aria’s shoulders and shouted, “That’s it! That’s totally it!”

Aria looked at her as if she’d just cracked her skull open and tossed her mind out the window, “What’s it? Sonata you’re making less sense than usual, and I didn’t think that was possible.”

Sonata was having a hard time containing the sudden energy in her, like her bones were ready to vibrate out of her skin, but she was just suddenly excited as new possibilities entered her brain like the scattershot from a shotgun. “Equestria, Aria! Remember!? We can go back to Equestria!”

Aria frowned, “Y-yeah, but... what about Adagio?”

“I don’t mean going back for good, I just mean going back,” said Sonata, almost talking faster than her brain could keep up with, “Magic is what made Sunset and the others all super strong and beat us in the first place, and there’s still all sorts of crazy magic in Equestria, right? And it all works over here, too. We can go to Equestria and look for magic to help save Adagio!”

Doubt crested Aria’s uncertain features, “Even if we found any magic like that, and that’s a huge if Sonata, what are the chances we’d be able to use it?”

Sonata made a deep groaning sound of released frustration, all but shaking Aria like a maraca, “I don’t know but I have to do something otherwise I’m going to go crazy! This is the only idea I’ve got that makes any sense. We gotta try, Aria!”

Aria looked away, eyes pinched closed tightly in clear frustration, but she ultimately relented with a small nod, “Dammit, you’re... you’re right, and I don’t got a single better idea. I just don’t want us running all over Equestria on a wild goose chase for magic that might not even exist. I guess we’re paying Princess Twilight a visit.”

Screwloose, watching the two siren girls with measuring eyes said, “Sounds like you two have a plan then. I’ll escort you to the school.”

----------

After the day she’d had, all Sunset wanted as a bath, a massive meal, and about two days straight of sleep in the fluffiest bed mankind could manufacture. Every inch of her ached. Her left arm was bound up in a cast not unlike Rarity’s shoulder brace, looking like some strange wooden golem arm than a medial cast. Still, the healing Kido laced into the brace was doing wonders for the broken arm and Discord assured her it’d be fully functional before morning.

A good thing, considering training wasn’t technically over yet. Sure, she and her friends had survived the most intense portion of the trials, but now that they’d stepped upon a new plateau of ability, they had to refine what they’d learned. They had to master their new skills, and quickly. Whatever those new abilities were. Sunset knew what she’d learned from Hokori, but she had yet to see what her friends had achieved.

When Discord had led her and Clover to the massive stone coliseum that Ditzy Doo had created on the side of the mountain she’d found her friends all unconscious amid a battlefield that looked as if it’d been struck by a tornado or three. Ditzy Doo was wounded, bleeding from a hefty cut on her brow and, of all things, covered head to toe in whipped cream. Ditzy had refused to comment on either the injury or the whipped cream, only saying that her friends had succeeded in their training and that they’d need rest.

As it was, Ditzy, Sunset, Discord, and Clover had all helped to carry her unconscious friends back through the portal to Discord’s shop, Discord himself slinging both Applejack and Rainbow Dash over his shoulders like delicate sacks of grain. In less than an hour they’d cleaned up, bandaged wounds, and got everyone into beds, or on couches. Sunset and Clover were still awake and sitting with Discord and Ditzy in the lounge room, where a tired silence hung for a time before Sunset said, “Is it going to be enough?”

Discord looked at her, as she seated herself onto one of the chairs with a groan. He remained standing, leaning on his cane, “Enough for now. If we have time, we’ll sharpen what you’ve learned. It will put you as close as we can get to being prepared short of Bankai, and that’s something I’d only risk teaching you if there was no other choice.”

Clover let out a choking noise, “Bankai? Discord, I know you’re a bit of a genius in some respects, and that training was... something else. I think I’m stronger now than I ever imagined I could be. But Bankai can’t be taught in a few days. Or even years. It takes decades to learn, and that's for the few with the talent to do so. Only one Soul Reaper in a thousand has the potential, and only one in a thousand of them come close to achieving it.”

Discord just smiled at her, showing a single snaggletooth, “True, my dear, very true. Good thing I cheat. But it's a cheat that is ten times as dangerous as what I just put you girls through. I won’t do it unless there’s no other way. For now I’d say you’ve grown strong enough to readily take on Soul Reapers of Lieutenant rank, and if you must face a Captain, you at least won’t go down instantly.”

Sunset grunted, then said, “Great, but what about my friends?”

Ditzy smiled like a cat licking the feathers of a recently devoured bird off its face, “They did better than I thought they would when we first started. Get those girls motivated and they can move mountains. I think that friendship magic from your homeworld is working some wonderful synergy with their Fullbrings. I hit them with one incredibly potent attack and they stepped up to the plate. Knocked them on their asses, as you saw, but they still got their Fullbrings to the next level. Not complete, but close to it. Once they recover and spend some time breaking their new abilities in, they might even outpace you. I’d say together they might even beat a Captain.”

Discord glanced at her and Ditzy giggled slightly, amending, “Well, as long as the Captain didn’t go Bankai. Heck, Discy, we’re working enough of a miracle as is getting them this far, this fast. Don’t blame me for trying to be optimistic!”

Discord raised a hand in a placating gesture, “Of course not, but we must keep our perspective. Our main goal when we go to Soul Society will be freeing Celestia and Luna, not defeating every Captain that opposes us.”

Sunset leaned back in her seat, drumming her fingers on one of the leather arms of the comfortable chair, “Feels like a vague plan to me. Like we're just jumping in without a solid idea beyond hoping for the best.”

Discord flashed her a grin that all but bathed in wryness, “Rigid plans break as easily as glass, dear Sunset. We must try to keep our minds flexible, because we won’t truly know the situation until we’re in the thick of it. Ideally, if or when the execution is scheduled to occur, we can take advantage of the chaos to rescue Celestia and Luna and then flush out the perpetrators of this entire mess, whoever they may be.”

“Are we going to go to the Soul Society tonight?” asked Sunset, flexing her tired limbs, which were already starting to leave her feeling drowsy after only a minute of sitting down.

Discord shook his head, “No, I have a few final arrangements to make before we will have a safe house to use while we’re there, and I want to spend at least one or two days having you girls get used to your new spiritual muscles, as it were. Think of it as stretching after exercise.”

“Right, well, then don’t mind if I just pass out here,” Sunset said with a small laugh, “I don’t think I could even make it home if I decided to try walking.” She punctuated her words with a deep yawn.

“Sounds like a good idea to me,” chirped Ditzy, “I’ll go get the old training area prepped for you girls to do some sparring in after you’ve all gotten some shut eye and food.”

“Best to also check in with Screwloose and Screwball,” said Discord, “Make sure nothing has happened while we’ve been away.”

“Hey they’re your employees Discy. You keep track of them,” said Ditzy as a thick, misty white glow enveloped her body and she shifted form into that of the small gray feline once more. After giving a loud meow, she said, “I’m heading out for awhile. Be back in the morning!”

The Ditzy cat bounded off before Discord could respond, and once she was gone he let out a huge sigh, muttering, “Fickle woman. Oh well, I’ll go look in on things myself.”

Sunset, hard pressed to keep down another yawn, nodded slowly, already feeling herself drifting off to sleep, “Yeah... you do that... give a shout if the city blows up or whatever.”

She was asleep nearly before she finished speaking.

----------

Leaving the girls to their well earned rest, Discord got on a cell phone in the hallway and gave Screwloose a ring. Strangely, she didn’t answer, which would have bothered Discord more if it wasn’t fairly typical for Screwloose to not always answer her phone. He rang up Screwball next. The girl was still out on patrol, and reported that the city was fairly quiet, save for a few extra Hollows slinking about that had needed to be put down.

Normal ferals looking for meals, or scouts for the Arrancar? Discord doubted the Hollows would try a large offensive so soon after the last defeat, but if they’d caught wind of Celestia and Luna no longer being in the city then the Arrancar of Las Noches might feel bold enough to try something. That only made it all the more critical to end the strife in Soul Society and ensure those two sister Captains returned to their posts swiftly.

The portal to Equestria needs to be guarded. The amount of damage the Hollows could do if they slipped through would be catastrophic for both worlds, and I doubt it’d be much better if the Quincy suddenly took an unhealthy interest in it either.

Then again, he mused, was it that much better to leave the Soul Reapers in charge of guarding the portal? In truth, it wasn’t Soul Society he trusted to look after the doorway to that magical other realm, but Celestia and Luna themselves. He knew Luna didn’t trust him, and that his relationship with Celestia was tenuous at best, but there still weren’t any individuals he could think of better suited to the job of keeping that portal safe.

At least until he had need of it.

If his work was to be completed, he may well need to make a trip to Equestria himself. All the research he’d done so far was pointing towards one glowingly certain theory in his mind; that Equestria and the human world weren’t nearly as separate as they at first appeared. Indeed one large chunk of evidence to that theory was Sunset Shimmer herself. Though she may have been a pony from another reality, her soul’s composition was identical to that of a human’s soul. Discord suspected it wasn’t simple coincidence that ponies that came to this realm through the portal turned into humans, and vice versa. It was only natural, because once one stripped away the physical form, the souls were the same.

He set aside those thoughts as he passed the room where Sonata and Aria had been staying, noticing that the door was closed, but a note was taped to the front of it. With a bemused look, he gave the note a quick read.

”Dear Mr. Discord,

Thank you for being, like, totally nice to us and stuff

To help Dagie me and Ari are going home for a bit, to look for magic!

We’ll totally be back soon so don’t worry!

Tell all the girls thanks for saving us from being eaten.

Sorry for all the trouble.

P.S - I took the last taco from the fridge, don’t be mad!

P.P.S - Screwloose says this isn’t a taco but a burrito. I don’t see the difference.

P.P.P.S - Oh, Screwloose says hi and she’ll be right back after escorting us!

Discord read the note twice, just to make sure he’d gotten it all, then nodded to himself, “Well, looks like that those dice have been tossed. We’ll see where they land.”

----------

The time had come. Celestia kept her outward calm, still as marble, but inwardly she was as tense as she’d ever been. One way or another she’d soon enough have a chance to defend herself and her sister from Platinum’s accusations, and also see just what shape this ‘evidence’ the Sixth Division’s Captain would take. The past five days had been grueling, mentally and emotionally if not physically as she’d tried to theorize on what would transpire today.

The guards that came for her were a combination force of members of the Stealth Corps and Soul Reapers from both Sixth Division and her own Thirteenth Division. She suspected the presence of members of her down Division was thanks to the Captain Commander, as he would be the only one with the authority to authorize that. A gesture of respect and support? She hoped so. Among the Soul Reapers from her Division, of which there were three present as part of the guard, she recognized her Third Seat, Inkwell. She was an energetic, tall woman with a bluish gray tint to her skin, a wavy head of dark hair that, and intense green eyes.

“Captain,” Inkwell saluted as Celestia was led out of her cell.

“Inkwell, it is good to see you, even under these dire circumstances,” Celestia said, offering her Third Seat officer a warm smile, which Inkwell returned despite the obvious worry and strain riding beneath the surface of her features. Inkwell had always been a stalwart and competent member of the Thirteenth Division, and the only reason she was not Celestia’s Lieutenant as opposed to Flash Sentry was because Inkwell often suffered from frequent bouts of illness that made it hard for her to take on the full duties of that position. However she had groomed Flash Sentry well for the position and it was a testament ot Inkwell’s skills that Flash did the work of a Lieutenant so readily despite his young age.

It was hard for Celestia to see the wrinkles of worry creasing the edges around Inkwell’s eyes now, along with the other members of her Division that were present. The tension between them and the other Soul Reapers in the room was a palpable thing, like the air was charged with lightning. The eyes of the Stealth Corps members were hard and forced to unreadable stone, but Celestia imagined they were as tense as anyone, as Luna was their commander as well as the Second Division Captain. Loyalties were being strained to a taut, snapping point simply by the fact that Celestia and Luna were being incarcerated and put through a hearing. If word of treason had already spread, then Celestia imagined all of Soul Society might be turning into a powder keg ready to explode.

I must be ready for anything, she thought, projecting as much outward warmth and calm as she could, as if this were just another day of business as usual.

Her escort led her from the holding cell area and down several long corridors until they turned down a long flight of stairs that led to vast sliding doors that opened into a polished white courtyard between towering walls of the Seireitei’s headquarters. Another group of nervous, tension filled guards emerged into the courtyard from the opposite side, escorting Luna, who was not projecting quite the same calm Celestia was. If anything Luna’s bristling appearance reminded Celestia of a caged tiger, her sister’s deep blue eyes flashing like thunderheads ready to unleash their fury.

Waiting for both of them at the south end of the courtyard, where massive stone stairs led down the face of the rocky plateau the Soul Reaper’s headquarters was built within, were four more Captains of the Gotei 13.

One was Platinum, back rigid, eyes narrowed, and porcelain features schooled to flat control. Beside her stood Starswirl, looking for all the world as if he’d just woken up, even if it was well past noon by the reckoning of time in this spirit realm. He had placid gray skin and a straight, if barely combed head of white hair that matched an equally long and unruly beard. Yellow eyes peered tiredly past bushy eyebrows and the Captain of the Twelfth Division yawned.

“It's too early for legal proceedings. Good day Celestia, Luna. I hope this kerfuffle is over with soon so we can all get back to things that actually matter.”

Platinum’s eyes snapped towards him, “If the laws of the Gotei 13 are too difficult for you to bear, perhaps due to your advanced age, it may be time to consider retirement.”

“Oh come off it girl. I’m just baffled why the Captain Commander is even entertaining this nonsense. Better to get it over with, I suppose. The sooner the better.”

“Agreed,” said the woman standing on Starswirl’s opposite side. Like him she had a grayish tint to her skin, but her features, vibrant and exotic, were marked by a series of black, stripe-like tribal tattoos. Even her hair bore alternating stripes of black and white, and no one in Soul Society was sure which was her natural hair color, and which was dyed, if either. While she wore the traditional black robes and white over coat of a Gotei 13 Captain, she added additional flare consisting of both arm, leg, and neck rings of tight, banded golds. The woman’s eyes held a mysterious cast to them, a bright shade of blue. “I find these circumstances most dire, and think this whole mess to be quite a mire.”

Captain Zecora of the Fourth Division had a thing for rhyming her sentences. All of them. It was just about one of the largest mysterious of the Soul Society why she did it. Most of those who knew her just assumed she enjoyed messing with people’s heads.

“Whatever happens, happens,” said a tall, broad shouldered man beside Zecora, his eyes regarding Celestia without judgment... but also without remorse. “I’ve known Platinum longer than most of you and she wouldn’t bring these charges to bear lightly. If there turns out to be any truth to them, then the laws are clear and ironclad. So let’s get this jabbering over with and be done with it.”

“Your support is appreciated, Captain Hurricane,” said Platinum, managing a thin smile.

Celestia knew that Hurricane and Platinum had both joined the Gotei 13 during its earliest years, only slightly after Celestia and Luna had helped found the organization. Like Platinum, Hurricane was not only a Captain, but also head to one of the four noble families that comprised Soul Society’s upper echelons of power. He was a towering figure of dark blue skin and stormy gray hair, whose physique was second only to his booming voice. He was Captain of the Eleventh Division, the only unit in the Gotei 13 that exclusively specialized in direct combat. While all Soul Reapers were schooled in the arts of battle, each Division usually held other duties in maintaining the operation of Soul Society, from the Fourth Divisions work as healers to the Twelfth Division’s work as researchers, or even Celestia’s own Division’s duty as a training corps for relatively new Soul Reapers.

Only the Eleventh Division existed solely for the purpose of conducting warfare, and hence had the most combative members, emphasized by the personality of its Captain, who was always spoiling for a fight. As evidenced as he turned to Platinum and said, “Don’t get the wrong idea, Platinum. I’ll cut down anyone who stands against Soul Society; period. I don’t care who they are. Hollows, Quincy, other Soul Reapers. If you can prove Celestia and Luna really are traitors, I’ll be the first to take their heads off.”

“That will be for the Sokyoku, but your bloodlust is... noted,” said Platinum as she began to lead the procession down the vast stone steps towards the expanse of the Seireitei proper.

It was going to be a long walk to the chambers of the Central 46.

----------

From a tower several tiers above where the Captains were escorting the prisoners away, Meadowbrook watched from an open window, frowning deeply. Inside the room behind him Lieutenant Redheart stood like a silent shadow, waiting for him to speak.

“So you’re certain of this?” Meadowbrook asked at last, referring to the information she’d just relayed. Redheart gave a stiff nod.

“I checked the record three times, just to make sure. Captain Zecora’s visits to Captain Platinum’s quarters were for the purpose of relieving migraines via Kido spells.”

“That seems a rather mundane task for a Captain to perform,” Meadowbrook noted, but Redheart merely shrugged.

“My Captain likes to take care of some matters herself, and maybe because it was for a fellow Captain she wanted to do it personally as to preserve Captain Platinum’s image. I can’t claim to know her mind.”

“Hmm, so a dead lead...” Meadowbrook muttered, watching the procession of Captains, along with a sizable honor guard of lower ranked Soul Reapers, vanishing amid the many pathways of the Seireitei.

“Perhaps not entirely,” said Redheart, “Looking through the records of that visit also clued me in on something else. Captain Platinum has made a number of requests of the past year to withdraw medicines from our stocks, some for headache relief, but also several that... well, normally they are medicines meant for treating rare diseases. I can’t imagine why Captain Platinum would need them unless she herself had the condition, but then she wouldn’t be able to function as a Captain if that were the case. So I’m baffled as to why she’s been withdrawing that medicine.”

That did sound unusual. Meadowbrook wasn’t certain how that helped them, however. Over the past couple of days his own midnight excursions to observe and shadow members of Platinum’s Sixth Division had not yielded clues to potential wrongdoings among their number. He had yet to hear back from Radiant Hope or Moon Dancer, however, hence why he’d called this meeting. Hopefully one of the other two of his little alliance of investigators had turned up something that might shed light on what was behind the threat he suspected was looming over Soul Society.

It took another tense half hour of waiting, but finally both Moon Dancer and Radiant Hope entered the room, one right after the other. Meadowbrook noticed both had uneasy looks about them, but then again so did just about every Soul Reaper in the Seireitei that day. It wasn’t exactly a common occurrence for two esteemed Captains to be put under suspicion of treason, after all.

He gave the two new arrivals a welcoming nod, turning from the window to face them, “So... any luck?”

Radiant Hope’s lips pursed in a tight frown as she shook her head, looking down at the floor with a frustrated air, “None of my patrols turned up any suspicious movements around any of the Division barracks or officer quarters.” She coughed, “Well, nothing that couldn’t be easily attributed to those seeking private liaisons or simply going out for a night of drinking.”

There were fairly strict rules against that sort of thing among the Gotei 13’s ranks, but as with any system of rules there were plenty of people who bent those kind of rules and oftentimes did so under cover of night and behind closed doors. Granted drinking was still allowed, just not on Seireitei grounds without special permission, and fraternization was frowned upon openly but most turned a blind eye as long as things were kept on the down low. Radiant Hope’s frustration was understandable if she had to spend the past few days chasing fellow Soul Reapers who were only seeking private company at night or a good drink in the Rukongai districts, rather than anyone doing something truly clandestine.

He nodded to her sympathetically, then glanced at Moon Dancer, “How about you?”

Moon Dancer chewed her lip, looking between them with a pensive gaze, “I didn’t exactly spend much time wandering around at night chasing shadows. Instead I thought I’d look into the records to see if there was anything like this that had happened before in Soul Society. Legal precedents for charges of treason, that kind of thing.”

That didn’t surprise Meadowbrook. Moon Dancer was more comfortable surrounded by books than she’d be around her fellow Soul Reapers, and boiling things down to research probably put her mind at ease given the grave nature of what they were doing. Aside from her duties as a Lieutenant, Moon Dancer also acted as a librarian in the Daireishokairo, the Great Spirit Book Gallery, a place that housed all the collective knowledge and history of the Soul Society itself. Quite larger and less specifically restricted than individual Division records, like the one he and Clover had searched through in Twelfth Division, the Daireishokairo didn’t have many security restrictions but it was so large and complex than without an expert librarian like Moon Dancer it’d be difficult to navigate to find anything specific. The library was housed on the Seireitei’s northern block, a circular building that actually was mostly built underground with countless sub-levels. A lot like the Central 46 building, in that sense, now that Meadowbrook thought about it.

“The most interesting thing I managed to learn about treason,” Moon Dancer continued on, “Is that to be convicted requires physical evidence that proves the identity of the traitor without doubt. Witness testimony isn’t enough. You have to have some piece of physical proof the accused was involved, like a skin or blood sample that shows they were there. It's to avoid issues of our enemies using powers of disguise or illusion to sow the exact kind of dissension in our ranks that’s being caused by Captains Celestia and Luna being put on trial.”

“Well, it's not a trial yet, not until the hearing calls for it,” said Meadowbrook, “So this would mean Captain Platinum must have physical evidence, then. Or something she thinks is physical evidence.”

“It’d be pointless to have this hearing otherwise,” agreed Moon Dancer, “If she can prove the charges of treason, custom still dictates a two week period in which the condemned can reflect on their sins before execution. That gives us some time to find proof countering the charge, although it might be pointless if Captain Platinum does have physical evidence...” Moon Dancer trailed off, making a small growl of pent anxiety before saying, “Is it possible the charges are accurate?”

“Not a chance!” said Radiant Hope fervently, “I don’t care what evidence Captain Platinum has, it has to be faked somehow.”

“Regardless,” piped in Redheart, “We still need to find something useful, otherwise all this talking is a waste of time. Did you have anything else, Moon Dancer?”

Moon Dancer adjusted her thick rimmed glasses before slowly saying, “I did find something strange while doing my research. I don’t know if it means anything but... well, I know each and every nook and cranny of the Daireishokairo, and I can spot things when they’re out of place. I noticed one of the texts was missing while I was moving from floor to floor. Specifically a text concerning the treasures of Soul Society over the centuries.”

Meadowbrook raised an eyebrow, “What kind of treasures?”

“You know, old artifacts collected or created over time by Soul Reapers from across our entire history. There’s a lot of different books that detail items like that, their form, function, history, etcetera. You’d be surprised how many random items of spiritual power both minor and major have cropped up over the years, either fashioned by Soul Reapers, or even by humans with rare spiritual powers. Anyway each text usually only details a couple of items in as much detail as possible, but the text that was missing only discussed one; the Queen’s Key.”

Meadowbrook tilted his head. He’d never heard of this object before. “And what exactly is the Queen’s Key?”

“An artifact that has the power to open a gateway into the Palace of the Soul Queen.”

He blinked. Then he blinked again. “That’s... unsettling. I didn’t think it was possible to enter the realm of the Soul Queen without a direct escort from one of the Royal Guard?”

“It isn’t, normally, but the Key wasn’t meant for normal use. The Queen’s Key was constructed to allow the Captain Commander access to the Soul Palace in emergency situations. Far as the record goes the Queen’s Key was never used, merely stored away.”

“Wait, how do you know all this?” asked Radiant Hope, “If the text is missing, that is?”

Moon Dancer coughed in embarrassment, “I, uh, well I’ve read much of the texts in the Daireishokairo, and have a photographic memory. It's not that weird! I just like books, that’s all! I still have a social life!”

“No one said you didn’t,” Meadowbrook said, holding up a placating hand, “So where is this Queen’s Key kept?”

“Actually the text didn’t say. Only the Captain Commander is allowed to know the location of the Queen’s Key, and passes that knowledge down from one successor to the next. The text had nothing on where the object might be right now.”

There was a note of awed fear in Redheart’s voice as she said, “Imagine what kind of damage could be done with that Key if it fell into the hands of one of our enemies. They could just waltz right into the Soul Palace and launch a surprise attack on the Soul Queen herself!”

Moon Dancer rolled her eyes, “Technically true, but with the Royal Guard there, would it even matter? Four Soul Reapers, each with power to rival the Captain Commander? If I was inclined towards feeling pity I might feel some for the poor fools that tried such a gamble.”

“I wouldn’t be so blase about it,” said Radiant Heart, “Even a force as strong as the Royal Guard could be overwhelmed by superior numbers, especially if caught off guard by a surprise attack they couldn’t see coming. I’m shocked there’s any information about this Queen’s Key at all, and now you’re saying the book containing all this information about it is missing!? That’s incredibly suspicious!”

“It is,” agreed Meadowbrook, “But I’m not certain how it helps right now. Anyone could have taken the book. I’m assuming none of the Daireishokairo’s normal security measures were triggered?”

“No,” replied Moon Dancer with a deep frown, “And I already reported the missing tome. Normally there’s wards to prevent texts from being removed from the premise without a permission pass, but no such pass was checked out for that text, and before you suggest it, altering a pass to allow a different book to be checked out is nearly impossible.”

“Nearly... but not actually impossible?” asked Meadowbrook, to which Moon Dancer groaned and threw up her hands.

“Sure! Fine! Yes, its feasible someone might have found a way to fake or alter a pass, but what do you want me to do!? Go through the record of every single person that went in and out of the Daireishokairo for the past few weeks in hopes of spotting anyone out of the ordinary!?”

There was a long pause as Meadowbrook, Redheart, and Radiant Hope all stared at Moon Dancer, who slowly gained a dawning look of realization on her face as she said, “Uh, maybe I should go do that then?”

“Yes, that might be a good idea,” said Meadowbrook, casting a grave and worried look back towards the window. He couldn’t see the Central 46 chambers from this distance, but he knew that by now Celestia and Luna were there, and the hearing was likely commencing. “I suspect our time to get to the bottom of all this is drawing short.”

----------

Adagio met with Ember at the same copse of dead, withered trees as where she’d first met the Arrancar girl. It’d only taken Grogar a day or so to consider ‘his’ idea about planting a spy in Torch’s ranks, and with a look of self-satisfaction had given Adagio her orders to ingratiate herself with Ember and not only acquire all the power she could to evolve into an Arrancar, but to report on as much of Torch’s dealings as she could.

He made it clear in no uncertain terms that he expected her to not only make regular reports, with useful information, but to not get any funny ideas about double crossing him. He spent a large portion of the previous evening demonstrating the price of such treachery, and Adagio still shuddered at the crystal clear memories of pain that had wracked her for hours. Grogar had promised much worse if she didn’t prove loyal, and she believed him. Of course she was planning to betray him anyway, once she found some way to remove the devices that allowed him to hurt her so, but one step at a time, as they say.

“So you were right, you were able to wrap that bonehead around your finger. I’m impressed,” said Ember with a toothy grin, showing off that her teeth had quite the pronounced canines. “Bet you’re feeling pretty snazzy.”

Adagio grunted, rubbing a sore spot on her shoulder that still ached from the memory of last night’s torments and experiments, “I’ll be feeling even better once I’m strong enough to rip Grogar’s throat out. Speaking of which, just how are you going to teach me to evolve?”

Ember gave her a guarded look, “Well, first thing’s first. While I got my old man to agree to taking you in, there is a condition. He’s big on trials and proving one’s worth, all that jazz, so before he’s going to let me train you to become an Arrancar, you’ve got to prove you’re worth the trouble. He wants a show of force.” Ember clenched a fist and flexed her muscular arm in emphasis.

Adagio narrowed her eyes, showing teeth, not quite growling, “What kind of show of force?”

Ember leaned in, almost as if she was afraid someone might be listening in as she said, “Big things are in the works, but I can’t go into too many details. Rumor has it the Soul Reapers are being distracted by some kind of internal dispute, and it's the perfect opening to make a move on a few spots in the world of the living. Without having to worry about the Soul Reapers jumping our flanks a few of the Espada are putting together a raid on the Quincy. We got information on where they’ve got their training camp, and we’re going to hit their Academy. If we’re lucky we can wipe out a whole bunch of their recruits and really put the hurt on those bastards.”

Adagio felt her mouth go dry. She had little to no experience with the Quincy, only knowing that they were humans with unique powers that hunted down Hollows, and that the human world’s Twilight Sparkle was one of them.

“So let me guess, I’m supposed to be part of this raid?” she asked, and Ember nodded eagerly.

“That’s the idea. Do well, show you’ve got some claws, and my dad will welcome you into our ranks with open arms, and I’ll be clear to show you how to evolve.”

“By ‘doing well’, that means I’d have to...” Adagio licked her lips, feeling an echo of hunger deep in her Hollow core, along with a sickening memory of a human soul’s screams, “I’d have to kill Quincy?”

“Well we’re certainly not going over there to have a damn tea party,” snorted Ember, arms crossing as she eyed Adagio, “Quincy hunt Hollows without hesitation or remorse. No reason we shouldn’t give as good as we get. What, you’ve killed and eaten Hollows, Adagio. You’re a predator, just like the rest of us. Don’t tell me you’re feeling squeamish? What’s the difference between killing the Hollows Grogar tosses your way, and killing a Quincy?”

Grogar hasn’t given me a choice. I have to kill Hollows to survive. But if I kill Quincy for this raid, that’s an entirely different affair. Adagio’s thoughts were bitter ones. Revenge on Grogar was something she wanted dearly. However she wasn’t eager to cast off what little was left of her soul to get it. Yet she only had one route to power, as far as she could see, and that lay with keeping Ember’s trust and cooperation. Could there be some way to have her cake and eat it too? Not likely, but she couldn’t give up at the first sign of difficulty. She might find a way to impress on the raid without committing herself to murder, she’d just have to use a little... finesse.

After all, her siren song had worked on Grogar. No reason to think it wouldn’t work on others, Quincy or Hollow alike.

“All this is about is proving my power, right?” she said, floating around Ember, who followed her movements with a raised eyebrow and coy look. “If your father insists, I’ll do what I must, but keep in mind that there are other ways to demonstrate power than with brute force.”

“Can’t say I disagree,” said Ember, frowning, “My dad’s a different story, and he’s the one you’ve got to impress. He’s all about brute force.”

“I’m sure I can convince him, as long as I have a chance to... speak to him about the matter. When is this raid going to commence?”

“Soon. We don’t know how long the Soul Reapers are going to be distracted, so we can’t risk losing the window while it’s open. We’ll attack in just a couple of days.”

“Why not just attack now?” Adagio asked, floating closer to Ember. “Especially if time is a concern?”

“Takes time to get anything done, especially with multiple Espada are trying to work together,” said Ember with a roll of her eyes, her voice filled with a long suffering frustration, “I swear if we Arrancar ever pulled our heads out of our asses long enough to actually realize we’re all on the same side we’d wipe the Quincy and Soul Reapers out in week. As it stands, my dad’s going to spend the next day or so arguing with Lord Squirk and Lady Catrina over who gets first crack at the Quincy, how many troops to bring, how long we can risk fighting before too many Sternritter show up, yadda yadda yadda. They might manage to have a coherent plan by the time we open the Garganta portals to leave.”

“Sounds as if this is typical behavior for the Espada,” Adagio said, thinking of Grogar’s own double dealing plans to gain power for himself, “If your leaders are this disorganized how have they not killed each other yet?”

Ember laughed bitterly, “Simple, old fashioned fear. Much as each Espada competes with one another for position, there isn’t a single Arrancar, Espada or otherwise, who comes close to taking down the big boss himself. Lord Tirek is on a whole different level than the rest of us, and while he lets the other Espada have their little spats, he comes down hard on any serious in-fighting. We all have to play by his rules.”

“Hmph...” Adagio wrinkled her nose, “Sounds like a lovely man to work for. At least he understands how fighting among yourselves weakens you.”

“Yeah, well, I figure my old man wouldn’t be any different if he was in charge,” Ember said, then shrugged, “Whatever. So you’re in, right?”

Adagio nodded, feeling a grim feeling of determination coming over her. She couldn’t afford to turn back from the path she was walking. She needed power, and this was the only route laid before her. Adagio was certainly afraid. Not only would battling the Quincy be dangerous, but she felt like she might lose even more of herself if it turned out she had to take the life of a living human. Even in her darkest moments of pursuing power as a siren she’d never crossed that line. Manipulated others, certainly. Enslaved the wills of those she wanted to control, sure. But she’d never gotten blood on her hands. Hooves. Fins. Whatever.

Ember was right that there wasn’t much difference, technically, between slaying a Quincy, and the Hollows she’d already torn apart and feasted upon. In the end all were human souls, and she’d had plenty of blood on her by now.

But she was still left feeling cold at the prospect of killing a living person. Mostly because, in some deep, dark corner of her soul, she knew she was probably perfectly capable of doing it. If she was pressed hard enough, given enough reason, Adagio knew she was the kind of person who could do terrible things.

And that terrified her.

----------

The building that contained the Central 46 of Soul Society was rather innocuous when seen from the outside. It was little more than a squat, white cylindrical building of polished stone set within a square, perfectly still pool of crystal blue water. The pool of water was surrounded on all sides by a fifteen foot tall wall topped by bright orange shingles, sloped on other side. A single wood bridge only wide enough for two people to walk abreast led from a tall gate in the surrounding wall to a landing of stone around the front of the cylindrical building.

“I do not like this at all, sister,” muttered Luna as they were marched along. Their fellow Captains had formed a cordon both in front and behind them, with Platinum and Zecora leading in the front, and Starswirl and Hurricane bringing up the rear. The escort of lower ranked Soul Reapers formed a trailing procession that had stopped to wait outside the walls. Lower ranked officers were not allowed inside the Central 46 without special permission.

“Do not fear, Luna, we shall persevere through this,” replied Celestia with all the calm and comfort she could put into her voice. She could read her sister like tea leaves at the bottom of her favorite tea cup. Luna’s anger was a strong front for just how nervous her sister was.

Celestia shared the feelings, and understood completely. Luna wasn’t any more fond of not being in control of the situation than Celestia was. It likely did not help that they had long since been disarmed of their Zanpaktou. Luna’s twitching hands was a clear sign of how much she missed her blades, not that they would do much good where they were going. They’d be surrounded by their fellow Captains, the rest of the Gotei 13’s commanding officers waiting within the Central 46 chambers already. To fight would be an exercise in futility.

Arriving at the front doors to the building, which consisted of a pair of thick stone slabs with a near seamless slit between them, Captain Platinum approached and spoke in a loud, clear voice.

“I am Captain Platinum of the Sixth Division. With me are Captains Zecora of the Fourth Division, Starswirl of the Twelfth, and Hurricane of the Eleventh. We bring with us the accused prisoners Celestia and Luna to be heard before the wise council of the Central 46.”

There was a pause of only a few moments before a series of glowing blue kanji symbols appeared along the sides of the stone doors, which then grew into a larger, scrolling set of lines of symbols surrounding the entire building. Among the Soul Society’s most powerful wards encased this building and the many, many sub-level chambers beneath it. Unlocking even a small opening in them took nearly a full minute. With a sound like a distant gong being sounded the wards opened and the stone doors slide open smoothly.

The six Captains entered, walking along a long, spiraling staircase of stone steps that ran along the edge of the inner wall. The stairs led down to an open chamber like an amphitheater. Four rows of encircling seats set within raised tiers surrounded an open, hexagonal shaped space. The seats were occupied by people in incredibly voluminous white robes, with their faces obscured by white sheets of force. Each member of the Central 46 kept their faces hidden in such a manner, traditionally to avoid their identities from being known to any in the outside world. Functionally there was little point, but Celestia wasn’t inclined to bother bringing that up.

Aside from the forty six members of the council, there was a line of guest seats along the very bottom tier, and it was here that Celestia's peers, the rest of her fellow Captains, were waiting. She looked at each of them in turn, wondering which ones might speak out on behalf of her and Luna, and which wouldn’t.

Seated at the far end, looking bored and uncomfortable, was the youngest Captain in all Soul Society’s history. Sweet Cider was a unique specimen, historically speaking. Not only the youngest Soul Reaper to ever be appointed a Captain, but the youngest to hold the title of Kenpachi. In fact few even called her Sweet Cider, or even knew that was her name. Kenpachi was by far the more common moniker for her. The title belonged to the Soul Society’s strongest swordsman. Swordswoman in this case. It referred purely to raw physical talent, as several of the Captains might boast actually higher skill, and a number could boast greater powers with their Zanpaktou... but Sweet Cider was admittedly the most direct and brutal with the raw spiritual power she had and the straightforward capacity she had for violent destruction with her sword.

Of course Celestia had known the familial connection between Sweet Cider and Applejack for some time, and one couldn’t look at the two side by side and not see the family resemblance. Sweet Cider had her daughter’s bright blonde hair, though she let her’s fall in a unruly, wild mass of untamed locks as opposed to Applejack’s more naturally straight hair. Sweet Cider’s skin was bright, cheery red, much like her son Big Mac’s, but it was clear Applejack had inherited her mother’s sharp green eyes. Eyes that looked to Celestia and Luna without sympathy, but also without condemnation. It was clear Sweet Cider didn’t like being here.

Next to Sweet Cider was a man who gave Celestia and Luna an acknowledging nod and small smile, leaving Celestia’ feeling a warm uplifting that relieved some of her tension. Captain Cheese Sandwich, of the Eight Division, was a good and trusted friend. A consummate joker, he never took much of anything seriously, and even now he didn’t appear tense. Indeed he slouched in his chair, orange, cheese colored hands resting behind his head of poofy brown hair, as if he was merely taking in a show and not witnessing a hearing concerning two of his fellow Captains committing treason.

If any voice would be first to speak in her or her sister’s defense, it’d be his.

Beside Cheese Sandwich was a woman who made sitting in the simple wooden chair look more like sitting a throne, though she did it with a sense of humility rather than overbearing regalness. Captain Amore of the Fifth Division was a woman of stately appearance, with a incredibly long and smooth head of hair that fell well past her knees, shining a crimson rose color up top but gradually changing to a deep violet towards the bottom half. Her skin was a vibrant peach color, and her eyes held a kind golden hue to them. Amore looked towards Celestia and Luna’s entrance with an expression of soft pity and deep worry. Celestia knew Amore as a kind hearted and soft spoken individual, not at all combative unless roused to anger, an event so rare Celestia had only seen it happen once in centuries of having known the woman. However she also knew Amore was loyal to Soul Society’s laws, and it was hard to gauge whose side she might be on in the coming hearing.

Towering beside Amore was a man who might generously be described as ‘large’. A hairy mountain with legs might have been more apt. His skin and hair both were a dark brown color, his skin just the most minute shade lighter than the coarse hair on his barrel chest, partially visible past the neck of his black robes. He had thick sideburns leading to a rough, short beard, and his hair fell in thick shoulder length spikes down his back. His shoulders were broader than some people’s entire heights, and his arms were folded across his barrel chest like the trunks of ancient oak trees. Power resided in his dark eyes, and he gave little away in what he was thinking... but Captain Thunderhooves of the Seventh Division was always a difficult man to read, in Celestia’s experience.

Next in line was a deceptively short and relaxed looking woman with light orange skin and a wind swept head of black hair with several lighter streaked shades of grey shooting through it. Intelligent magenta eyes watched the whole room with lidded eyelids that belied just how alert Captain Daring Doo was, the head of Third Division hiding the tension in her petite body by slouching back in her chair and pretending to look as if she was ready to nod off. Much like Thunderhooves, Celestia had no real sense of what Daring might be thinking of the present situation. They’d never been all that close, just professional colleagues. From what Celestia knew, Daring was more concerned with pursuing knowledge of spiritual artifacts than with the day to day affairs of Soul Society. It made it hard to decide just what Daring Doo thought of what was happening.

Unlike Daring, however, the man beside her had a very easy to read mood, one of boredom and an undercurrent of contempt. With white skin that matched Celestia’s own, and a well cared for head of bright blond hair, and blue eyes that radiated a sort of unguided disgust, Captain Blueblood of the Ninth Division looked as if he’d literally rather be anywhere else than in the Central 46 chambers. Whether that was because he detested these particular proceedings or because he simply didn’t like being part of any kind of official work was a matter that could probably be left to a coin toss. Celestia didn’t hold any particular dislike for the man, but he did seem to chafe at doing his duties at times, and his position as a Captain seemed more a token gesture to the noble family he came from than anything else. More to the point, he was a well known friend of Captain Platinum. Celestia doubted she’d find much support coming from him.

Then there was the final Captain awaiting their arrival, the Captain Commander himself. His mere presence alone filled Celestia with both hope and trepidation in equal measure. He was her and Luna’s mentor, one who’d taught them the ways of the Soul Reaper, who’d built the Soul Society and the Gotei 13 practically from nothing. Without him, the world would still be a place of chaos and disorder, where Hollows roamed free to prey upon the souls of the dead and the living alike. He was the world’s most powerful Soul Reaper, barring perhaps the head of the Royal Guard, but that was debatable. Regardless, Celestia admired, respected, and feared the elderly man sitting in the final chair before the podium where she and Luna would be heard, and judged.

Scorpan smiled, but it was a small, hidden gesture, perhaps meant for only her and Luna alone to see. It was a grandfatherly smile, his golden eyes filled with equal measures of grim gravity and reassuring kindness. His was partially bald up top on his leathery, darkly tanned skin, but he still had a long, thick set of hair falling below his shoulder-blades, much of their rich brown turned to light gray. Though neither particularly tall or broad, Scorpan’s well muscled form carried with it a lurking sense of overwhelming might and solidarity that grounded the entire room. As head of the First Division and the Commander of all the Gotei 13, his presence alone carried immeasurable weight, and Celestia sincerely hoped that he, more than any other, would be able to keep this matter from devolving into the kind of infighting she feared would come about.

“The accused shall take their places before this council,” spoke a loud, baritone voice from behind one of the front screened seats on the first tier, one of the six ‘wise men’ of the Central 46. “All Captains, please take your seats as well until you are called for testimony.”

Captain Platinum strode past Celestia, giving her one final, hardened look before taking her seat, followed by Zecora, Hurricane, and Starswirl. With carefully paced steps Celestia stayed beside Luna as they both walked up the three steps onto a hexagonal shaped podium in the middle of the chamber. She and her sister stood under a harsh white light from above, illuminating them while keeping much around them shrouded darkly, but she could feel the stares of her peers and the council of forty six men and women who would be judging her fate. It was like having the weight of an ocean pressing down on her, but Celestia stood firm, and Luna looked into the shadows with a defiant glare.

The same booming voice spoke once more, its words falling like gavels.

“Very well, now that all are convened, let this hearing commence.”

Episode 32: The Fuse is Lit

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Episode 32: The Fuse is Lit

“Captain Celestia of the Thirteenth Division and Captain Luna of the Second Division, you stand accused of committing acts of treason against the safety and sanctity of Soul Society,” intoned the baritone voice of the faceless wise man of the Central 46, “It falls to this gathering to determine the validity of these charges and whether this matter shall go to trial. We begin the hearing by first allowing you to make a plea of guilt or innocence regarding these charges.”

Luna looked ready to spit quite a few choice words regarding those charges, but she held her peace and gave Celestia a questioning glance. Celestia more than understood her sister's anger. She shared it. It must not have been easy for Luna to keep that anger in check, and Celestia appreciated that her sister was willing to let her do the talking for now. She cleared her throat and addressed the council.

“I declare myself and my sister innocent of any charges of treason that could be brought to bear against us, and confess my confusion that ‘treason’ is even being considered in regards to us. We believed our incarceration was due to a misunderstanding regarding Captain Platinum’s behavior in the world of the living and how she accosted humans under the protection of myself and my sister, by the laws of Soul Society.”

“The incident in question is one we are well aware of, and initially that was what we were to hold a hearing regarding,” replied the Central 46 member, “However Captain Platinum brought forth the charge of treason upon her return with you and Captain Luna in custody.”

Suddenly Cheese Sandwich spoke up, his upbeat tone somewhat marred by a mocking note, “Because she can just do that without offering any proof, right? You guys just decided to suddenly put two of our best, most upstanding members to the question without so much as a lifted finger to check any facts?”

“Captain Cheese Sandwich, if you wish to address the council, you will do so with a civil tone and through proper protocol,” said the Central 46’s representative, “Captain Platinum backed her claim with pieces of evidence that convinced this council that a hearing concerning treason was a valid pursuit, and she shall be allowed to present this evidence to her fellow Captains and the rest of our council today.”

“Why did she not bring this to the attention of the Captain Commander first?” asked Captain Amore, her voice soft and gentle as ever, but filled with a disturbed tone, “We only heard of these charges of treason until just a few days ago, and it seems strange that if Captain Platinum had proof of treason that she wouldn’t have come to the Captain Commander right away. Indeed, why did Captain Platinum use trickery to deceive Captains Celestia and Luna into coming to Soul Society under guard?”

She paused, then cleared her throat, “If I might ask the Central 46 council’s permission to speak, of course.”

There was a slight cough from behind the hidden screen that kept the members of the Central 46 from view, then the baritone voiced wise man said, “Your question is a valid one, Captain Amore, and we shall allow Captain Platinum to explain herself. Captain?”

Platinum nodded eagerly and strode to the front of the room, “Of course. Wise council of the Central 46, my fellow Captains, my reasons for avoiding bringing the information in my position to light earlier was because I could not afford to give Celestia or Luna the chance to escape justice. Had I gone to the Captain Commander this would have likely convinced him to send a large, armed contingent to bring in our traitor Captains by force. It would have resulted in a costly battle at worst, displaying weakness to our foes watching the world of the living, and very likely given either Celestia or Luna an opportunity to flee. Keep in mind that Captain Luna is also in charge of the Stealth Corps and is well known for having the greatest prowess among us in matters of stealth. It was fearing their escape, and the damage that would cause, that forced me to utilize deception to ensure their capture and put them under guard before they realized what was happening. That was why I waited until our return to Soul Society before bringing my charges of treason and the evidence I have of that charge’s validity to the attention of the Central 46.”

She turned to Scorpan and bowed, “I do apologize for going over your head, sir, but it was necessary.”

Scorpan’s face was a leathery mask showing a faint hint of disquiet that somehow managed to seem more ominous than the front of a ocean storm. “You should have come to me, Platinum. At this point I don’t know what to think about any of this, but you should have come to me the moment you suspected anything as severe as treason from one of your fellow Captains.”

“I understand why you believe that, Captain Commander, but when I show you the evidence, you will understand I could take no risks.”

“Then why’re we wastin’ so much damn time yappin’!?” growled Sweet Cider with a disgruntled look and a stomp of one of her feet, hard enough to shake the room, “Show yer evidence an’ lets git this hot mess over wit! I got work ta git to that ain’t gonna be done by me sittin’ here listin’ to ya’ll blowin’ hot air all day!”

“Captain Sweet Cider, maintain a civil tongue,” said one of the other Central 46 members, an elderly woman by the sound of her voice, “But I do happen to agree with her. Let’s not spend too much time on the formalities. This charge is serious enough to warrant getting to the heart of the matter quickly. Captain Platinum, present your evidence of treason.”

“Very well,” Captain Platinum said, and reached into her robes to withdraw several pale, pearl-like orbs that she held delicately between her fingers. Celestia recognized them as remote information recorders, not unlike the video cameras used by living humans, only these orbs could collect information beyond the visual. They were capable of providing data on spiritual entities, scanning reiatsu signatures, and retaining this information to be displayed later alongside visual and audio data. The Soul Society used them in conjunction with either skilled operatives for surveillance purposes. As far as she knew Luna’s Stealth Corps made use of them rather liberally, as did the Twelfth Division's field research teams.

“Nearly a year ago my Division started to suffer from unusually high casualties during the performance of their duties as patrollers along our realm’s furthest regions,” Captain Platinum began. Celestia knew well that the Sixth Divisions specialization was guarding the far realms of the Soul Society’s spirit plane, the far flung wildernesses where Hollows might roam, or their enemies might try to establish footholds for an attack on Soul Society. It was a sacred duty, and one the Sixth Division took very seriously. Their Soul Reapers were trained to operating in small squads for long lengths of time without support, patrolling the often chaotic areas far outside Soul Society’s influence. Not only Hollows could roam those distant, unstable parts of the spirit plane, but escapees from Hell, or wandering creatures from the Beast Realm. Human souls also dwelled out there, pockets of souls that preferred to live in the dangerous wilderness as opposed to the vast sprawl of the Rukongai districts.

Casualties weren’t unusual in the Sixth Division, but Celestia had not heard that they were taking higher casualties than normal. Captain Platinum gave Celestia a hard look and continued, “At first I attributed this to nothing more than a random spike in Hollow activity, but as casualties lists mounted, I became concerned that something was severely wrong. As a result I decided to personally lead an expedition to scout the patrol routes suffering the worst troubles. After dealing with several ambushes by groups of Hollows of not only the lesser-class by of Adjuchas-class I concluded that they were aware of our patrol routes. Capture and interrogation of one of the Adjuchas-class Hollows can be viewed here...”

She held up the first of the orbs and a pale blue light emitted from it, forming a projection of images in the air like a circular window that showed a view of Captain Platinum and several members of her Division in the wilderness of a dense jungle-like area, likely one of many regions in the far realms. An Adjuchas Hollow, looking like a twelve foot tall and heavily muscled gorilla, was on its knees before Platinum, its body already covered in wounds and its legs encased in thick sheets of ice.

”Tell me how you knew my Division’s patrol routes, creature, and your pain will end swiftly.” said Platinum in the image recording. The Hollow growled in response.

”It must hurt, Soul Reaper, to think you’ve been betrayed by one of your own. Who is it, you must be wondering? Every time you send a group of your loyal soldiers into the wilds you have to fear that we’ll be waiting. You can’t be there for every patrol. You can’t protect all of your subordinates. It must just eat you up inside to realize how powerless you are-”

The Hollow’s tirade was silenced by Platinum reached to grip his mas with one, slim hand, with enough force to crack the white bone, and sharp shards of ice tore into the Hollow’s body. Not enough to kill it, but enough to make it howl in agony. Platinum’s voice hadn’t become any less stable or calm, but had dropped several octaves in terms of its freezing lack of mercy.

”I can always capture another of your comrades. One who is more inclined to answer my questions rather than spout ill chosen drivel. I’ll ask one last time. One last chance to buy yourself a painless death. Who told you our patrol routes?”

The Hollow started to laugh, a loud, bellowing sound. Then it said, ”Someone you know well. Someone you trust. When you find out just how deep the betray runs, it’ll tear your precious Soul Society part. Bwhahaha!”

The Hollow’s laughter turned into a chorus of pained screams as Platinum’s ice started to cut into it once more, and the recording ceased. Captain Platinum put the orb away, her face a cold mask, and said “I spent the next several months attempting to capture and interrogate other Hollows to learn the identity of the traitor, but one and all they held the information I sought from me.”

“Not to sound like a broken record, but why didn’t you bring this to anyone’s attention?” asked Cheese Sandwitch, eyes uncharacteristically piercing, “This was before you suspected Celestia or Luna, so you had no reason to withhold this information from anyone for fear of tipping them off.”

“No, but I feared tipping off whoever the traitor happened to be,” Platinum said, “Not to mention causing unrest among my peers by spreading the idea of a traitor without first acquiring proof. I needed to have indisputable evidence first, Captain. Had I come to anyone else with my fears it would have amounted to too much risk.”

There was a heavy bang, like that of a gavel, from the front of the Central 46 seats, and the baritone man’s voice said, “The Central 46 concurs with Captain Platinum’s reasoning. Please, Captain, continue your testimony.”

As Platinum prepared to continue, Celestia’s own mind was reeling. This had all begun a year ago? That seemed like far too much of a coincidence to her. After all, a year ago was just around the time of Sunset Shimmer’s attempt to steal the Element of Magic and the spark that had set off the chain of events that had led to this point. It seemed far too convenient for Platinum’s search for a traitor beginning around the same time things had gotten hectic at Canterlot High.

“It was clear I needed to try something other than interrogate Hollows, so instead I reduced the frequency of patrols, but bolstered the size of the actual patrols, while changing the normal patrol routes. My hope was to provoke the traitor into making a move to provide the Hollows with the new information on the changes to the patrols. The plan worked. I had several hidden squads of Soul Reapers using sensory equipment to track reiatsu signatures comb the wilds until they found a trail of reishi that belonged not to Hollows, but to fellow Soul Reapers.”

She held up the next orb, “In so doing, one of my surveillance squads captured this footage.”

The image projected showed a similar jungle wilderness, only this time it showed a wide clearing by a cliff-face, where a pack of Hollows led by several large Adjuchas were meeting with a cloaked figure in thick gray robes. The figure had a hood up that obscured its features, but it was clearly humanoid in appearance, and was showing the Hollows some kind of map. The image was blurry, and flickered out quickly.

“The spiritual pressure of this person was high enough to disrupt the orb’s recording abilities after only a minute, but it was enough to confirm that we had a traitor among our ranks. To be sure I had several more surveillance teams try to trail this individual, and they caught footage of two more similar meetings.” Captain Platinum showed each orb, each one showing a similar seen of a hooded figure meeting with Hollows, providing them with information. “Every time this happened our changed patrol routes were compromised, although the increased size of the patrols kept casualties from ambushes to a minimum.”

“As disturbing as it is to see all that go down,” said Captain Daring Doo suddenly, gesturing at Celestia and Luna, “That footage alone doesn’t implicate either of them. At best it just shows that someone with a lot of spirit energy who might have also been a Soul Reaper was giving the Hollows info.”

“I am aware of that,” said Captain Platinum, and turned to face Captain Zecora, “That is why I had an expert verify the identities of the hooded figures.”

None looked more surprised than Captain Zecora herself as she blinked, saying in a stunned voice, “I am afraid you must be mistaken, for I recall performing no such verification.”

“On the contrary, Captain Zecora. Do you recall visiting my quarters some time ago? To assist me with my headaches?”

Zecora’s eyes widened, but then she suddenly looked thoughtful, nodding her head, “I do believe I now see. That is why you requested me. The trifling task you asked me to undertake, it was for this hearing’s sake?”

“Indeed,” Platinum said, and turned to make a sweeping gesture at the entire gathering, “As my fellow Captains are aware, each of us must demonstrate the powers of our Zanpaktou as part of the process for attaining our rank. That means we all know that the power of Captain Zecora’s Shikai is an unparalleled ability to sense and identify all spiritual energies within its sphere of influence, including piercing all illusions or abilities that would otherwise disrupt her senses. It is literally impossible to fool Captain Zecora’s Zanpaktou, to sneak up on her, or hide from her sight. It also means that she can one hundred percent confirm the identity of the hooded figures in these recordings, for the orbs contain a copy of the spiritual energy signature of the individuals in question.”

She looked to Zecora, “I asked you to identify these samples when you visited me to help with my headaches. At the time I told you the samples were just from routine testing of a new batch of spheres my Division was testing. I didn’t know if you might have been one the traitor at the time, after all, so I had to come up with a convincing story. You remember the results, yes?”

Zecora cast a worried, and deeply fearful look at Celestia and Luna, and Celestia felt her belly tie itself in cold knots as the Fourth Division Captain said, “It pains me to know what that incident was all about, for my Zanpaktou told me that the reiatsu in your samples belonged to Celestia and Luna, without a doubt.”

“Preposterous!” Luna bellowed, suddenly, anger spilling out heatedly from her eyes, “My sister an I have been in the human world for that entire time! Our Lieutenants could easily corroborate this!”

Captain Platinum spun on Luna, just as Celestia said, “Luna, please, don’t make this worse.”

“Your Lieutenants could easily be in on your traitorous actions, ‘Captain’ Luna! I have given them the benefit of the doubt and assumed you and your sister have acted alone, for I have a hard enough time stomaching the notion that the two of you have turned on Soul Society, let alone corrupted those under your charge! I didn’t wish to believe this at first, either, but Zecora’s Zanpaktou cannot be deceived. You should know best, Luna, you helped her demonstrate its powers by attempting to sneak up on her. You, the best stealth specialist in Soul Society. Yet her Zanpaktou saw you clearly, identified your spiritual energy with ease. It did the same with the samples I showed her. I could have her repeat the same feat, her and now, with these recordings. It will show the same results.”

“I would insist that you do,” said Celestia, “But even if it shows my or Luna’s spiritual energy, there remains a question of motive. Think, Platinum, why would I or Luna betray Soul Society? What possible reason could we have to do so?”

“Why else? To protect your ‘students’,” Platinum shot back, face heated, “You’ve spent so long in the living world, perhaps you thought your duty to those girls outweighed your duty to Soul Society? You must have known, the moment they started showing unusual powers, that eventually we would need to decide what to do about them. Perhaps you feared a repeat of the past? Why not help the Hollows put pressure on us, then, to ensure we’d be too distracted to consider bothering you and your precious students!?”

Luna looked ready to leap from the podium and start strangling Platinum with her bare hands. Her pale blue eyes flashed dangerously as she snarled, "Platinum, you arrogant coward! You dare claim we would turn on our duty for such petty reasons!?" She turned her stormy blue eyes towards the rest of the chamber, voice rising even as Celestia tried to give her sister a warning look. "All of you would believe this drivel!?"

"Luna, this isn't helping..." Celestia said, but Luna wasn't done, turning her glare onto Captain Zecora.

"Zecora, your Zanpaktou may have sensed our spirit energy, but couldn't that have been faked by anyone seeking to frame us!?"

Zecora cleared her throat, looking miserable as she said, "Among all of you my Zanpaktou's power is well known. You yourself have seen its accuracy thoroughly shown. There is no illusion it cannot pierce nor deception to escape its gaze most fierce. It sees all in complete clarity... so I have no explanation for this disparity. You, Luna, and you Celestia are friends I hold most dear, so it is not with ease I say this, I fear."

The Central 46’s gavel banged loudly, until silence fell once more. Celestia took a second to glance at her fellow Captains, trying to gauge their respond to this turn of events. Sweet Cider looked agitated, like her patience with the proceedings was running thin. Cheese Sandwitch had a struck look, but he hid it well, and he managed to give her the smallest nod of support to let her know he still didn’t buy into the notion of her being a traitor. Amore looked deeply disturbed, as did Starswirl, stroking his beard in a nervous gesture. Hurricane’s expression was hard as iron and had an unforgiving and unsympathetic harshness to it. Thunderhooves was as immobile and unreadable as ever, like trying to gauge the thoughts of a mountain. Daring Doo appeared mostly confused and like she was trying to think over the logic of the situation. Blueblood was watching Platinum, perhaps as if to take his cue from her, and looked unconcerned regardless. Zecora looked as if she’d just swallowed something sour and was glancing at her and Luna as if unsure of what to think.

Finally, Captain Commander Scorpan’s stoic features only showed a tiredness that matched his voice as he said, “Enough.”

He stood, and approached Platinum, who looked a bit surprised the Captain Commander had stood. He strode to the center of the room, right in front of the podium Celestia and Luna stood upon, and he turned to face the Central 46.

“I have heard enough.”

“Captain Commander, despite your position you do not possess higher authority than this council,” said the baritone male voice, “You cannot end these proceedings with your order alone.”

“I understand this, but the fact remains that I have heard enough.”

He turned his head so his eyes could stare right into Celestia’s, then Luna’s in turn. His voice was quiet, yet carried with it the weight of mountains. There was an intensity in his gaze that matched the turning of Earth itself. “Tell me true, girls. Are you innocent?”

Celestia couldn’t quite help herself, and gave the old man the same kind of grin she used to when he’d still been her and Luna’s instructor, “Of some things, no. But of this charge of treason? Completely.”

Luna nodded sharply, “I have never once even considered betraying Soul Society.”

He held their looks for a moment longer, then gave on leathery nod of his aged features and turned back to address the room, “Captain Platinum’s evidence will be carefully examined. I assume you have no more, Captain Platinum?”

Platinum’s jaw was set in a tight clench, her voice clipped, “This is all I have. It is also more than sufficient. You know that, Captain Commander.”

“Perhaps for some, but not for me. Members of the Central 46, am I correct in assuming that you find Captain Platinum’s evidence sufficient to take this matter to trial?”

There was a few moments of silence, likely as the council consulted with one another, then the voice of the elderly sounding woman said, “It is enough to warrant that and more, Captain Commander Scorpan. I regret this, personally, but the fact is that if examined and found to be genuine, Captain Platinum’s evidence is damning in every sense of the term. I’m afraid any trial would be swift, at best, as there’s little that can refute what Captain Platinum has presented to us.”

“Then I must call for a vote of overruling support from my fellow Captains,” Scorpan said, invoking his one method of authority as the Gotei 13’s Captain Commander to overturn rulings by the Central 46, “I invoke my right to overturn the decision to bring this matter to trial before the Central 46 and instead insist upon this matter being solved internally with a special investigation by the Gotei 13 itself.”

Captain Platinum’s eyes flashed fiercely and she immediately said, “Nay.”

Bluebood was quick to follow, “Nay.”

Cheese Sandwitch was almost as fast to say, “Aye.”

Amore, still looking deeply troubled, said in a quiet voice, “Aye.”

Hurricane licked his lips, arms crossing over his barrel chest, “Nay.”

Daring Doo looked thoughtful, rubbing her chin, eyeing Celestia, then shrugged and said, “Aye.”

Sweet Cider tapped a foot irritably, then grunt out, “Nay.”

“Aye,” Starswirl said with a grimace.

Thunderhooves remained silent for a moment, then rumbled with a sad shake of his head, “Nay.”

Five for, five against. Celestia and Luna clearly could not vote on the matter. Only one Captain’s vote remained. Zecora stood there, all eyes turned on her, and looking like she very much wished to be elsewhere. Zecora looked at Celestia and Luna with a pained expression, her voice barley above a whisper as she said, “My instincts tell me that before betraying Soul Society either of you would rather die... yet the power of my Zanpaktou cannot lie.”

After a heavy sigh, she said, “...Nay...”

Scorpan looked for a moment as if he’d just been punched in the gut, but he hid the expression quickly. The Central 46’s gavel banged loudly, as if already delivering Celestia and Luna’s final sentence, which it may as well have for all it mattered. Celestia knew that the trial would be short and sentencing swift. For all intents and purposes she and her sister had just been found guilty of treason.

----------

The sounds of battle echoed across the training area beneath Discord’s shop. Sunset could hear the resounding clash of lightning, explosions, howling winds, and shattering crystals like an unending chorus of destruction. She could feel her friend’s spiritual energies as sharply as if she was right there sparring with them, even though she was actually on the other side of the training area working with Clover. She was amazed as the sheer strength of her friends’ reiatsu now, like a swirling storm of pressure that pressed in on her even from a distance.

They’ve each gotten to a whole new level. I hope it’ll be enough. Sunset looked down at herself and chuckled slightly, but immediately refocused her concentration on what she was doing.

She had her left hand raised, palm out, and was concentrating on channeling her reiruyku slowly into that hand without pushing too hard. She had to keep reminding herself this wasn’t a unicorn spell she was trying to cast, but a Kido.

“Good, good,” Clover said, standing a few meters away and watching her, “Now maintain that focus and repeat the chant.”

Sunset took a deep breath and started to recite the words Clover had taught her. She'd heard them once before, when Clover had defeated one of the first Hollows they'd battled together.

“Ye lord, mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man.”

She could feel hot, potent power flowing from her center, up through her shoulder, and into her arm like a warm river. The words she spoke seemed to vibrate in her mouth, and charge the air as she recited them. Sunset's heart raced with the sort of wonder and happy awe she remembered from learning her first spells as a young filly. She loved magic, and feeling its raw power as she applied it. This might not have been unicorn magic, but a spell was a spell and Sunset found herself spiritually soaring at the feeling of the casting as she finished the chant.

"Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!"

It was strange to her that words could affect the flow of spiritual energy, or create spells, but she could feel the energy gathered in her hand reacting to the chant as she spoke. According to Clover the chant and invocation created metaphysical channels inside the mind and soul that gave life and shape to the reiryuku and that was what formed a Kido spell. Sunset kept wondering why unicorn’s didn’t need to use any kind of similar focusing medium for their magic, but she kept reminding herself that spirit energy was not magical energy, and the rules that governed them were different. She had to stop thinking like a unicorn and thinking like a Soul Reaper. Regardless, the power blazing in her palm demanded release, and so she finished the invocation with the final words.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!” she invoked, and felt the sharp twinge of power flow over her arm, then blast out of her palm in the shape of a small red sphere of energy. It flew erratically in a curving arc, missing the boulder she’d been aiming at and instead blasting a small crater about three meters across in the ground behind it.

Sunset made a grunt of frustration, but Clover nodded approvingly, “Don’t be discouraged. You have better control than most who cast their first Kido. Heh, you should’ve seen me back in my Academy days. I singed off my bangs so much I started cutting my hairline back, just to save time!”

Sunset laughed lightly, but it was hard to feel too lighthearted, given the circumstances. Any day now they’d go to Soul Society, and likely be in for the fight of their lives. That was why she’d asked Clover to give her a crash course in Kido. She’d strengthened her Zanpaktou, but there was more to being a Soul Reaper than that. She’d be facing other Soul Reapers that had access to the whole range of Soul Reaper powers, and she wanted to have some tactical options on the table. If someone managed to disarm her, for example, it was certainly handy to have a backup method of attack like the Shakkaho spell.

Also it just felt good to be able to use a spell again, even if it wasn’t a unicorn spell.

“Alright, so how about a Bakudo? Any of those you can show me?” she asked Clover, who gave her a small smile.

“I’ll admit I’m not as good with binding spells than destruction spells, but I know a few. Let’s keep it simple for now. I’ll show you the very first Bakudo. It’s called Sai, and-”

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything too incriminating?” asked Discord as he literally appeared from nowhere, seeming to all but step out of thin air, one hand on his hat, the other holding his gnarled cane. “Two young ladies all alone learning how to use binding spells on one another? Oh my.”

Sunset rolled her eyes, “Only in your own lonely dreams. How’re my friends? Ditzy is making sure they don’t hurt each other, right?”

“Oh, I’m sure Ditzy Doo is having the time of her life guiding your friends in stretching their new proverbial muscles. Speaking of which, as much as having Clover teach you a few low level Kido is actually a rather smart move, I must interrupt the proceedings.”

“And why is that?” asked Sunset, stretching.

Discords face turned from joking to serious in a hot second. “Because I just got word from my contacts in Soul Society. Celestia and Luna have been found guilty of treason already, and are being placed in confinement for two weeks before they are scheduled be be executed.”

Sunset sucked in a sharp breath, and Clover closed her eyes in a pained look.

“I don’t believe it’s really come to this,” Clover said.

“Oh it gets worse,” Discord said, “I have it on good authority that members of both the Thirteenth and Second Divisions have started to gather in their own compounds, armed and apparently prepared for a fight. In response the Eleventh Division has also mobilized and is essentially patrolling the Seireitei in heavy numbers. I’ve even heard some of the other Divisions have had officers holding clandestine meetings. Soul Society is a powder keg, and one little spark will set the entire thing off, and unfortunately the fuse has already been lit.”

“Does that mean we’re leaving soon?” asked Sunset, and Discord responded with a heavy nod, placing both his hands his gnarled cane.

“Tonight, in fact. We’ll need every hour we can get to infiltrate Soul Society. I have a friend in the Rukongai who will put us up and help with entering Seireitei, and he already knows you’re coming.”

“Wait,” said Sunset, frowning, “That sounds like you’re staying here.”

Discord closed his eyes, like a man fighting back a migraine, “Sadly I can’t afford to leave here. If I left it’d leave this city, and the portal to Equestria, too vulnerable. Ditzy Doo will be sufficient guide, and my other friend over there should also provide some help. I believe you young ladies have the strength needed without me having to look over your shoulders. That said...”

He raised his hand in front of him, pointing the tip towards Sunset, “I’d like to test how much you’ve improved. Clover, could you give me and Miss Shimmer some space?”

Clover’s face flashed with momentary concern, “If you wish. Sunset?”

“I’ll be fine,” Sunset replied, not taking her eyes off Discord, “Why don’t you go see how the girls are doing? I’ll be along shortly.”

Clover gave them both a hesitant bow before using Flash Step to depart, heading back towards the distant explosions of the other girls sparring. Sunset faced Discord, silence stretching between them. Then Sunset slowly drew her Zanpaktou, and said, “Is there another reason you’re staying behind? A reason you’re maybe not telling us?”

“I thought perhaps we trusted each other a bit more than that by now,” Discord said with a wry tone, his lips twitching up in a half-smile.

“I don’t believe you’d do anything or hold anything back if you thought it’d harm us,” Sunset said, “But that doesn’t mean you might not still have a few skeletons in your closet. My friends and I are putting everything on the line to try and stop Soul Society from destroying itself. Doesn’t that earn us the whole truth?”

Discord eyed her, the depths of his yellow on red eyes filled with a depth of thought and consideration like a dark ocean, almost dizzying Sunset. Then he said, “Knock my hat off, and I’ll tell you.”’

She laughed, “Seriously?” Her lips curved in a deep smile, a fire flaring inside her the challenge, “Fine by me! Ignite, Hokori!”

Sunset was already Flash Stepping before Hokori even finished transforming, flames trailing the arc of the broadsword as she appeared behind Discord and swung for his hat. Discord simply leaned forward, letting the tip of the sword pass harmlessly just a half inch from his green and white striped hat, and he then spun around, using his cane with blinding speed to catch Sunset behind her right knee. The blow nearly tripped Sunset off her feet with a yelp.

She caught herself, jumping back to get some distance, but Discord was on her before she even finished the leap, his cane flashing towards her face. She got Hokori’s blade in the way, the wood not even chipping on her broadsword.

“Ugh, okay, so not a normal stick,” she said with a smirk, “Let me guess, that’s your Zanpaktou?”

Discord gave her a wide grin, “Not a wide leap of logic to guess, even if you hadn’t perhaps heard that from one of the Pie family, not that they would have known what my Zanpaktou was when they saw it.”

They remained locked like that, cane on broadsword, pushing against each other, and Sunset could feel the hardened power and strength in Discord’s unassuming form. He wasn’t giving an inch, even thought she was pressing nearly as hard as she could. With a grin she smashed her shield forward, trying to catch him by surprise. He flipped over the blow, spinning in the air and landing a good distance away, still holding his cane up like it was a fencing foil.

Sunset tensed, her shield extended in front of her and her broadsword cocked back to strike, “If you’re trying to test me, why not at least show me your Zanpaktou’s true form?”

“Oh, and why would I do that?”

“C’mon, I’m curious,” said Sunset, “You’ve been nothing but Mr. Mysterious since day one. Why don’t you show me some of the cards you’re holding?”

“Why Miss Shimmer, you almost make it sound like we’re playing against each other, rather than on the same team.”

“Hey, we’re on the same side, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know what my allies are capable of. You got to admit, you’ve still got me and my friends at a disadvantage when it comes to knowledge about each other,” Sunset’s eyes narrowed, flames dancing along her broadsword as she let power flow into it. One aspect of her increased strength from training was that she could bring forth flames without needing to absorb power with her shield. Her shield still amplified the power of her flames and created more powerful bursts, but at this point she could bring out fire at will, and it was a strong tactical advantage that she demonstrated now when she swung her sword at a distance, creating a fan of fire that flowed towards Discord in a short wave.

As her flames approached Discord he only gave a small, satisfied nod, “Heh, you understand the value of knowing your friends as well as your enemies. Alright, I’ll show you...”

It looked as if her flames engulfed him, wrapping around Discord in a thick sheet, yet Sunset could feel the upward spike of his spiritual pressure pushing back against the fire she’d sent his way. Then she heard him speaking in a calm, intoning voice.

”Rip through all boundaries, Konran Arashi.” (Chaos Storm)

Prismatic light, like the rainbow pattern of oil on water, tore through the flames and created a burst of multi-colored light around Discord. Sunset looked on as the last of the flames she sent at Discord dissipated and revealed him standing unscathed, and holding his unleashed Zanpaktou before him. It still had the hilt of a gnarled cane, but now there was a blade where the rest of the wooden cane had been. The metal was hard to look at, made from a hue of colors that shifted through the entire light spectrum, and even showed shards of color that didn’t seem like they could exist. The very air seemed to bend and twist around the sword, making it hard to see any definition other than the fact that it was there. Just looking at the sickly shimmer of wavering light made Sunset’s head dizzy.

“Alright, that’s a pretty weird looking Zanpaktou,” she said, “What’s it do?”

Discord merely smirked, and holding up a finger and wagging it, “Its so much easier to show, than tell, my dear.

He made little more than a casual, flicking gesture with the blade, and Sunset saw a cone of radiant multi-hued light flare out towards her. Whatever it did, she knew she didn’t want to get hit by it, so she immediately used Flash Step to try and evade, only to find the cone of prismatic energy seemed to have a life of its own. It suddenly spun up towards her, breaking into multiple bands of distorted light that surrounded Sunset and lanced through her from all directions.

It didn’t hurt, per se. Rather what Sunset felt was a immediate and utter disorientation as the world seemed to splinter in her mind’s eye, like the worst vertigo she could ever imagine having. She felt the effects of nausea and an extreme headache combined with complete dizziness to the point where she could barely tell down from up. She felt herself keel over and hit the ground, but in a way that almost made it feel like she was falling up instead of down. The whole world spun, and it took all of her strength not to toss her breakfast onto the ground right then and there.

She heard Discord speaking, could hear his footsteps, but even determining distance or location was hard with how every one of her senses felt like they’d been scrambled like an omelette.

“The whole world depends on a very well balanced set of physical laws to function. Our bodies, spirit or physical, also require so much balance in simple internal chemistry to operate properly. Disrupt even one of those carefully balanced orders and one’s body suddenly becomes almost useless.”

Sunset clenched her mouth tightly shut, trying to concentrate beyond her body’s sudden desire to throw up. She could feel the ground beneath her hands and feet, even if it seemed like that ground was spinning around like a demented theme park ride. Discord’s voice was hard to pinpoint, like it was coming from everywhere at once, but she focused on it, trying to gauge a direction.

“My Konran Arashi's power is to disrupt naturally existing orders. Whether that be the order in one’s body, or the order of spirit energy that creates a Zanpaktou’s powers, or even more fundamental laws like the direction sound travels through the air... all of it is torn to ribbons by my Zanpaktou. I’m sorry to put you through such an unpleasant feeling, Miss Shimmer, but you did ask for this.”

Sunset, sweating profusely, managed a small smile and said, “I did. And we’re not done with just this.”

She couldn’t tell which direction he was in, but he was close, based simply off the volume of his voice. She shoved as much energy as she could into Hokori, and sent flames swirling out around her in a dome shaped pattern of intense heat. She heard Discord give a small mutter of surprise, and for a moment the disorientation in her body and mind let up. She was able to feel the world right itself and found herself on her hands and knees not more than ten feet from Discord as he jumped back from her dome of fire, which only lasted a moment before billowing out. It had done its job, though, distracting Discord and giving her a chance to recover.

She jumped to her feet and slashed for his hat, but he was still swift on his reaction, his shimmering rainbow blade batting hers aside. But Sunset followed up with a hard slam with her shield that hit his sword and actually forced Discord back a step. She felt a twinge of pain that stemmed from Hokori herself, as the Zanpaktou’s shield seemed to shudder on contact with Konran Arashi, but she still felt power pull in from the shield and transfer to her broadsword. She smiled, eyeing Discord confidently.

“That’s quite the power, but don’t think I’m out yet! You’re hat is mine!”

Discord returned her smile with one of his own, eyes reflecting the prismatic light of his Zanpaktou in a way that almost made him look crazed. “Show me what you can do.”

She didn’t hesitate to do exactly that. Sunset could feel a surge of strength stemming both from inside her own well of reiryuku and from Hokori. The training had certainly solidified the bond between her and her Zanpaktou, and had forced her spirit energy to rise to greater heights through the extreme pressure she’d been put under while ascending the training tower with Clover. As a result she was faster and stronger than before, spiritual muscles strengthened the same as if she’d been an athlete undergoing intense physical training. Now that she knew what to expect from Discord’s Zanpaktou, she was ready for it, and launched into a blazing serious of swift strikes at Discord, meant to get him off balance.

He fought back with speed equal to her own, and each contact with his Zanpaktou brought a feeling of disorientation, but it was clear simple contact wasn’t enough to put her down the way those bands of light had. She expected him to use them again and was prepared for it when Discord suddenly Flashed Stepped up into the air, then swung his sword down at her.

Pushing herself to be faster she went into a quick succession of flickering Flash Steps, the rainbow bands of chaotic energy chasing her every step of the way. However they seemed to have a limit on how far they could reach, perhaps around fifty meters, and Sunset was able to outrun them this time, and the moment she did she charged right in at Discord. As she did so Sunset swung back her left arm flung her shield like a boomerang at Discord, which clearly caught him by surprise by the widening of his eyes. He blocked the throw by reflex, but in that same instant Sunset got right in his face, swinging her broadsword up in a rising cut.

He barely dodged it, and she flipped backwards to catch her spinning shield and strap it back to her arm. They both landed on the ground a few dozen feet apart, watching each other. Discord blew out a huff, and his finger traced a line across his right robe’s sleeves, where there was a shallow cut in the cloth.

“I’m impressed. Still no hat, but you actually caught me by surprise with that move.” He chuckled, still examining the cut in his sleeve, “And me without a proper tailor. Oh well, perhaps it was getting time for me to update my wardrobe anyway.”

“Better not ever let Rarity hear you say that, otherwise you’ll be spending the next day as a dressing doll, whether you like it or not,” said Sunset, raising Hokori’s broadsword above her head. Her spiritual pressure flared and her Zanpaktou became wreathed in thick streams of fire, weaving together like criss-crossing rivers. Discord raised a bushy white eyebrow at her.

“Oh? What do we have here?”

“Well, I know you’re holding back, obviously,” said Sunset, grunting past the strain of guiding her spirit energy, both pooled from her shield, and from inside her spiritual core, into Hokori’s broadsword. “But I can’t afford to do the same. With that ability your Zanpaktou has, you could probably do all sorts of tricks that’d take me out of the fight if I kept screwing around. So I’m just going to go all out and hit you with everything I’ve got, using the new technique Hokori taught me.”

Discord nodded his approval, and mirrored her stance, raising Kontan Arashi above his head. His own form gleamed with an aura of raw spirit power as he started channeling waves of energy up into his own sword, “Astute thinking, my dear. As it happens I don’t have to use Konran Arashi’s ability to disrupt order. I can just use my reiatsu to unleash a blast of power. Let us see if this technique of yours matches up.”

Sunset couldn’t stop herself form smirking. She could feel how powerful Discord was, clear as the sun rising over the horizon in the morning. Yet all that did was generate a feeling of bubbling excitement inside her. She wanted to match her strength against his. Or against anyone, really. Each fight was a step forward towards sharpening her skills and power, and she truly desired to see how far she could go, to what heights she could soar. Part of it was just to protect her friends and the world she’d claimed as her home, but there was always that side of her that just loved competition and improving herself. Hokori all but glowed with heated approval and the shared sentiment. Her Zanpaktou wanted to match power with Discord and Konran Arashi as well.

Let’s do this, Hokori.

As she and Discord both raised their spiritual pressure to their highest points the very ground shook beneath their feet. Both of them were surrounded by auras of light, Discord’s erratic and many colored, while Sunset’s was a bright golden red like her namesake. Waves of dust flowed out from both of them in small pressure waves, and the air itself seemed to distort around the two Soul Reapers as they prepared to unleash their attacks upon each other.

Then Sunset’s light altered, turning from a single fiery hue or orange and gold to a corona of pure azure. The flames around Hokori turned a painfully bright and intense sapphire, the heat roaring off of them intense enough to cause steam to rise from the ground. The blue flames flowed up her sword to gather at the tip in a point of light that turned so bright it was near blinding.

Sunset slammed her sword forward, and shouted the name of the technique Hokori had taught her, back in the training tower.

“Aoihi Senko!" (Bluefire Flash)

It appeared like the crashing wave of a tsunami made out of painfully bright, blue fire. The intense azure flames rolled over each other, wave after wave, crashing together in a white and cobalt flood of melting destruction. Unlike the beams of flame she could normally unleash, this technique covered a wider area, but Sunset had actual control over the direction of the wave of blue fire. She could concentrate it if she chose, or break it apart into dozens of individual blasts to strike entire groups of foes. The intensity of the hotter, blue fire was greater than her regular flames, but if she so choose she had fine control over how far their heat burned. If she wanted she could use this technique around her friends without even singing a single hair on their heads. The flames would simply go around them, the heat not touching them.

However with Discord she held nothing back, and directed the thick wave of blue fire to converge on him just as he in turn slammed his Zanpaktou forward and release a brilliant flash of raw spiritual energy straight into her flames.

The resulting clash of energies overwhelmed Sunset’s senses. She could feel heat and air pressure blasting around her, billowing her black Soul Reaper robes and nearly knocking her off her feet. The sound was deafening and the ground shook like an earthquake as the explosion of power from both Zanpaktou’s colliding made it impossible to see or sense anything for several long moments.

By the time things settled down the first sound Sunset heard was the loud patter of bits of rock debris striking the ground all around her, tons of stone being blasted into the air from the explosion of colliding energy. Blinking her eyes she saw a giant pillar of smoke and dust before her, only gradually clearing to reveal a crater so wide and deep one could have fit several houses inside it.

Standing on the other side of the crater was Discord, looking a bit winded, but otherwise unharmed. Sunset let out a frustrated sigh at the sight, but then noticed something interesting. She started to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Discord asked, brushing dust off himself, and blinked as Sunset pointed at his head. He balanced up, feeling his head, which was now missing its hat.

Then, floating slowly back and forth downward in the middle of the crater, was Discord’s hat, slightly signed with a bit of still burning blue flame. As the hat touched the ground Sunset hopped down into the crater to pick it up, spinning the hat on her finger and giving Discord a deeply satisfied smile, to which he puffed out a rueful chuckle and held up a hand. She tossed him the hat, and he batted out the last of the flames on it before plopping it back on his head.

“So, now you owe me an answer,” Sunset said.

“True. I suppose I’ll show you, rather than just tell you,” Discord said, sounding rather hesitant. With a simple gesture he returned his Zanpaktou to its innocuous cane form, the radiant prismatic blade flowing back into plain looking wood. “Follow me.”

He led her back to the stairs out of the training area. Sunset could still feel her friends sparring with each other, and see the occasional plume of dust from the direction they were doing so in. It was a testament to their own newly grown abilities that they hadn’t stopped their sparring even for the explosion of power she and Discord had unleashed on each other. She could sense Clover over there now as well, no doubt observing her friends workout with interest.

“Where are we going?” she asked, but Discord just waved her on and continued to lead her up into his shop.

He took her through several back hallways and through a set of doors further back than she had ever seen before. Finally there was one last sliding door, painted with Japanese kanji that Sunset couldn’t read, but she felt spiritual power invested in the ink. More wards? Discord made a simple gesture with his hands and the kanji lettering glowed briefly before the doors opened to reveal a new set of stairs leading upward. Sunset had certainly never seen the second floor of the shop, and followed Discord up the stairs with a bit of trepidation.

The stairs led to a wide, open room, easily larger than a half dozen of the first floor’s rooms combined. Sunset immediately recognize the set up. Tables filled with lab equipment. Charts of data scrawling along one wall. A few computer terminals on desks piled high with notes.

“This is a laboratory,” she said, and Discord nodded.

“Did you expect anything less? I was head of the Twelfth Division. Being in exile didn’t mean I ceased being a researcher.”

He went across the laboratory, towards an object situated on the far end. It was a metal cylinder, mounted from floor to ceiling in metal restraints. There was a smaller computer terminal attached to the cylinder, and Discord went to it, sitting down on a well worn and faded swivel chair. He began typing commands into the terminal.

“I want your word not to speak of this to your friends unless you absolutely have to, Miss Shimmer. I’m showing you this in good faith, because you’re right that given what you’re risking, you ought to know about additional risks.”

Sunset grimaced, “So if I deem it needed, I can tell them whatever you’re about to tell me, but only if its an emergency?”

“Yes. Your word, Miss Shimmer.”

She didn’t particularly like where this was going, but at least it had a clause that let her talk if it became important. She gave a nod, “Alright, you have my word. Now what is this?”

Discord made a few final keystrokes, and with a hiss a sliding panel in the metal cylinder moved aside. The interior was filled with dark blue liquid, but suspended in the center, clear as day, was a crystalline orb. It was of a strange color, a sort of light sea grean, and shone with shades of blue and white deeper within its core. Sunset couldn’t sense any spirit energy from it, but that might be because of the container it was in.

“What is that?”

“My most ambitious work; the Hogyoku.”

Sunset glanced at Discord with a quirked eyebrow, “The what?”

“It means 'Breakdown Sphere'. It’s a living artifact that can dissolve the boundaries between differing types of souls and allow for intermixing of different spirit energies. it also encourages rapid evolution in a soul’s spiritual abilities. Or at least, that is what it’s supposed to do. It remains incomplete.”

“Okaaaay,” Sunset eyed the orb curiously, “Why would you make something like that? I mean, it sounds kind of impressive, but what’s the practical application?”

“You remember the reason for the war between Soul Reapers and Quincy is based upon the assertion that Quincy powers destroy Hollows, rather than purify them, yes?” Discord’s eyes grew distant and glossy, “At the time the question was posed by some in Soul Society if a way could be found to alter Quincy powers to purify Hollows. It was a quickly dismissed notion of course, as at the time destroying the Quincy seemed the faster and more efficient solution. Yet that question fascinated me. Hollows, Quincy, Soul Reapers, what if there was a way to remove the limitations keeping these entities serperate? I began research on the matter back then, and slowly, over time, the notion of the Hogyoku came to be. For the most part it remained little more than a theory, until my work with Xcution. Fullbringers naturally cross the barrier between human souls and Hollow souls, and that melding gave me the blueprint to nearly finish the Hogyoku... at least until the majority of my research was stolen.”

“Stolen!? By who!?”

“Starlight Glimmer, your predecessor as a Substitute Soul Reaper,” Discord said with a gruff sigh, “Really I ought to have seen it coming, but I was too distracted by the dissolving situation with Xcution to realize what was happening with Starlight until it was too late. She’d taken a strong interest in the Hogyoku research, and had spent more and more time in the Twelfth Division laboratories. I trusted her as something akin to an apprentice, but she betrayed that trust by burning my lab, infecting my Lieutenant and Third Seat officer, and then making off with the half complete Hogyoku.”

“Wait, if she did that, then this one here is-”

“Is a new Hogyoku I’ve been working on trying to complete,” Discord said, frowning deeply, “I still want to use it to offer the Quincy a way to alter their powers so they no longer have a reason to be in conflict with Soul Society, but more than that it might also be the only item with the power to counteract the Hogyoku that Starlight took.”

“Where is Starlight now?” Sunset asked with a nervous glance at the glowing sphere, wondering what this Starlight Glimmer woman might've wanted with such an artifact. Equestria was full of strange and powerful items, and Sunset had even researched several of them before she'd fled through the mirror to the human world. If her memory was accurate, most items of power carried some kind of dangerous price tag attached to them, hence why her younger self had never bothered to seek out things like the Alicorn Amulet. She'd wanted power, but not at the cost of her sanity, such as it had been back then.

Discord let out a bitter laugh, “If I knew that, I’d have already gone after her myself. She’s remained hidden all these years, and has likely reached similar conclusions to myself in regards to how to complete the Hogyoku.”

Sunset watched him as he pushed along his swivel chair to wheel over to a white board across the room that held on it a complex chart of calculations, alongside a diagram of interlocking circles, each containing their own set of strange calculations. Beside that charge was a set of diagrams showing something Sunset immediately recognized.

“That’s the portal to Equestrai!” she said, eyeing the depiction of the statue outside Canterlot High, “What does that have to do with this?”

“Everything, my dear, everything. You see, the Hogyoku is supposed to break through the barriers between souls to unlock infinite potential dwelling within a soul, and allow powers and abilities to intermix between them. The biggest hurdle to that task is being able to penetrate that barrier without causing the soul damage. For the longest time I couldn’t find a method that worked. You and your home world changed that.”

He pointed at the diagram of interlocking circles, seven in total. “The magical energy that stems from Equestria is unlike any seen in this world. It seamlessly bonds with souls that possess the right harmonic frequency and then forms connections between those souls, utterly bypassing the barrier that keeps souls separate. You and your friends, when you defeated the sirens, or Princess Twilight when she led them to defeat you originally. Both instances were moments where your souls were essentially bonded and intermixed to form a power beyond what any one soul could have achieved by itself.”

Sunset gulped, remembering the sensation of being a part of that incredible moment, where she and her friends had stood as one against the sirens. It had felt very much like their hearts had beat to one tempo, and their souls intersected on a single point. “The magic of friendship. You’re saying it works like how you want this Hogyoku to work?”

“In a sense. The Hogyoku would be a device that performs a similar function, but on a smaller scale, focused on removing the barriers around a single soul so that other forms of energy could be blended into it, and to allow it to have near infinite potential to self-evolve. In theory it could blend Soul Reaper powers into a Quincy, or vice versa, but in essence it’d work on the same principles as your ‘magic of friendship’. Of course the only issue is that studying that magic is very difficult, as you girls only exhibit it rarely, and it seems to still stem primarily from Equestria itself.”

“You’d need to go to Equestria to study it then, or...” Sunset frowned, eyes narrowing, “Or you’d need me and my friends as guinea pigs.”

Discord held up his hands in a surrendering gesture, smiling disarmingly, “You can see why I wasn’t eager to tell any of you this, after dropping the bomb about Xcution and the girls’ mothers. I’m not actually studying your friendship magic or using you as test subjects. In fact I’ve basically halted my research on the Hogyoku for now. Once things calmed down I hoped to tell you all this, then actually ask your Princess Celestia for permission to go to Equestria and conduct my research there with her blessing. After all the hope I have for the Hogyoku is to use it as a gesture of peace with the Quincy. But right now I can’t move as long as Starlight is out there as a potential danger.She is a very troubled woman, and if she completes her Hogyoku, it’s likely she’ll use it to try to turn herself into a being of near limitless power.”

Sunset absorbed this information, and her brain did a little bit of basic logical deduction, “You’re worried she’ll either come after us, or go after the portal.”

“It certainly seems convenient for her that Celestia and Luna’s incarceration leaves the portal stripped of its strongest defenders. I also personally have suspected that your finding of your Zanpaktou was not a coincidence, but somehow engineered by someone who wanted to study the magic of friendship and how it affects spiritual powers. Starlight may well be behind all of this, to one degree or another.”

Discord looked at her with a deathly serious look, “Sunset, its up to you whether to bring this up with your friends or not. Regardless, if you encounter Starlight in Soul Society, do not fight her.”

“Why not?” Sunset demanded, “If she attacks us, we’d need to defend ourselves. She can’t be that powerful, can she?”

Discord leaned forward, eyes boring into her, “Starlight Glimmer’s potential made even the Captain Commander nervous, and he was the one that had final say on whether or not she was allowed to even be a Substitute Soul Reaper under my tutelage. She’s had much longer than you to perfect her abilities, and her Zanpaktou is exceedingly dangerous. It can ‘seal’ the powers of other Zanpaktou. That's what she did to Screwloose and Screwball’s Zanpaktou, the day she stole the original Hogyoku.”

“Those two? They were your...” Sunset blinked, “Huh, well, that does make sense doesn’t it? I wasn’t sure they were Soul Reapers because they didn’t have Zanpaktou, but if Starlight sealed their powers I guess they would have to use other weapons. Damn, that's... is there a limit to what she can seal, or a way to avoid it?"

"There are always limits to any given power," said Discord with a wry twitch of his lips, but he looked no less grave for it, "In Starlight's case she could seal nearly any power short of Bankai, but she needed her Zanpaktou to be in physical contact to implant the seal. That was with her Shikai. If she has managed to attain Bankai since then, its possible she could do much more. Not to mention she was highly talented in learning Kido, mastering many from both the Hado and Bakudo schools. The only good news I can give is that her seals can potentially be broken by a powerful enough reiatsu, but Starlight fled before I could confront her to try to break the seals she'd put on my people's Zanpaktou. Besides, I was too busy dealing with their infection to do much else."

Sunset tilted her head quizzically, "Wait, infected? What did you mean by that?”

“When Starlight stole the Hogyoku, she tested out its incomplete powers. Just becaue the object isn’t complete, doesn’t mean it can’t still function to a degree. She used Screwloose and Screwball as test subjects, infecting them with Hollow powers. Them, and Ditzy Doo. She'd been in hiding since using her Zanpaktou to save Starlight, originally, but she still had a secret entrance to my labs in the Twelfth Division and was there for one of her clandestine visits to check up on me when the situation with Starlight went down.”

Discord’s whole frame tensed, his hands gripping the arms of his chair as he hissed out a tired breath, “I still remember arriving at my lab after the alarms went off, finding those three on the ground, writhing in agony as Hollow energy overwhelmed them. It took all of the skill I had in binding Kido to capture them as Hollowfication overtook their senses. They became half-Hollows. Without help from Captain Zecora they would have died, but we were able to give them a chance to control the Hollow power Starlight infected them with... but as you can imagine things did not go over well with the rest of Soul Society. Given what had just happened with Xcution, well, I decided it best that we all flee into exile rather than face the very likely possibility that Central 46 would order us executed. I set up shop with them in the living world and did my best to make my presence useful to Soul Society to keep them from hunting us. As for Starlight, I haven't seen a trace of her since then.”

Sunset glanced back at the Hogyoku in its metal cylinder of liquid, unnerved by it. She understood why Discord might've been motivated to make it, but if it could literally infect people with Hollow energy, possibly turning them into monstrous hybrids, then it was as dangerous as it was potentially useful. Having something like that in the hands of anyone who wasn't extremely mentally stable sounded like a bad idea, and so far Starlight Glimmer sounded about as far from mentally stable as it got. “So now what? You’re trying to finish your work anyway? Even after all the trouble it caused?”

Discord shrugged, “Exiled or not, I remain a man who wants to push the boundaries of what can be done. And ending the war with the Quincy is a worthy goal. More than that, if Starlight completes her Hogyoku, I needed something to counter that with. A power to match what she would obtain. I thought only another Hogyoku would work... but perhaps you and yoru friends can show me a power that will work as an alternative. The magic of friendship has merged with your souls in ways I could never have predicted. These ‘friendship souls’ you all possess, maybe they’ll overcome whatever power Starlight seeks to obtain, and stop whatever damage she might do if she obtains it.”

Sunset shook her head, “Friendship souls? Come up with that one on your own did you?”

“I have a flare for the dramatic, I won’t deny it, but I think the name is apt for the nature of how that Equestrian magic has merged with you and your friends’ souls.” Discord said, then leaned back in his chair, “So there you have it. I think that covers the last of my skeletons in the closet. Satisfied?”

“Mostly I feel like my head’s still trying to wrap around all this, but at least now I know to expect extra trouble from this Starlight woman when we go to Soul Society.” She hesitated for a moment, “I’ll keep this bit between us for now, but the second I think it might be important, I’m telling the girls.”

Discord nodded with grim acceptance, “Fair enough. I think my gut can take another punch from Applejack.”

"I do have one last question," Sunset said, her mind trailing back into her own past, and her ambitions of power that had led her to seek an item of power. "Starlight... why do you think she wanted the Hogyoku bad enough to turn on you for it? Was it just ambition, or was there something more to it?"

Discord looked up at the ceiling, resting his hands behind his head, contemplation and regret etching themselves in equal measure across his features. "I can only guess at the truth, but were I to offer such a guess I would say that Starlight Glimmer wants to save the world."

"Save the... world?" Sunset blinked, completely baffled by that answer, and Discord gave her a saddened smile.

"Keep in mind that her idea of 'saving the world' probably wouldn't match up with anyone else's notion of how to do that. If she could, she'd force the whole world, the living realm and the realm of spirits, to do what she thought was best, no matter what the consequences were. The Hogyoku is just a route to power to do that." He shook his head, "Try not to think about it too much, Miss Shimmer. Just know that Starlight Glimmer is dangerous, and if she appears in Soul Society, avoid a fight if you can. If she got a hold of you or any of your friends it might be enough for her to complete her Hogyoku. Just be careful. Okay?"

Sunset nodded slowly, rubbing at the back of her neck, "Right, as if this wasn't complicated enough already. At least it can't get much worse."

To that Discord just let out a dark chuckle, "Oh don't say that, Miss Shimmer. Things can always get worse."

Episode 33: Infiltration and Initiation

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Episode 33: Infiltration and Initiation

The thin fold out cot might not have been the most comfortable thing Princess Twilight Sparkle had ever slept on, but when she was in full ‘research mode’ she tended to work herself to such a state of exhaustion that she could plop down on a bed of rocks and still sleep like a proverbial log.

It still felt weird to sleep like a human, however. She could never quite find a good way to situate her limbs in this form, and always woke up with the weirdest aches. Part of her wanted to conduct a longer, more in-depth study of humanity, from its diverse culture to its intriguing biology, but she knew she couldn’t stay in the human world for too long. Her duties in Equestria wouldn’t wait forever, and she was just here to ensure the portal would be safely guarded against attack from this side by any hostile beings that might try to force their way through.

As always, she was just a temporary visitor to this strange land, no matter how much certain parts of her wanted to remain longer.

And is it just scientific curiosity that’d make you want to stick around a bit longer? The thought hung in her half-awake mind for an uncomfortable moment, bringing with it a stray mental image of Flash Sentry.

Shaking her head with a groan she forced the thought away. That was a barrel of apples she didn’t need to dive into right now, especially in light of recent revelations. She and Flash, whatever they were or weren’t, would have to be shelved until things had calmed down in this world and they had some time to sort things out.

Nice excuse, Twilight. Way to dodge the issue.

She frowned at herself, getting the distinct feeling that the cynical and self depricating mental remarks might be signs that the stress was starting to get to her. The sooner she got the portal sorted out, the better. Espcieally given that-

“Hey you awake yet!?”

“GAH!” Twilight yelled, flinging herself out of bed as a blue, grinning face appeared over her.

Laying on her back on the floor, Twilight looked up at Sonata Dusk, who stood over her cot with an energized smile, fully dressed, with a knapsack slung over her back. The siren girl and her sister Aria had arrived yesterday, wanting to return to Equestria, but Twilight hadn’t had the portal ready yet to take travelers. The wards she’d built into the portal needed time to deactivate and then recharge before anyone could travel through, and Twilight wanted to perform at least one more test for safety reasons before she let actual living people cross.

As such Sonata and Aria had stayed the night at the school, where Twilight had also slept in an unused office that had been given over to her as a guest room. Of course Twilight hadn’t locked the door, because who does that? Apparently people who don’t want overeager sirens appearing to hover over their sleeping cot, first thing in the morning.

“S-Sonata! Don’t just sneak into my room like that!” Twilight said, slowly clambering to her feet and brushing herself off. She eyed the siren girl up and down, still freshly remembering that not so long ago this young lady had tried to hurt her and her friends. Yet even more recently Twilight had taken an even larger leap of faith in forgiving another individual who had been an enemy, and seeking to help that former foe find the road to redemption.

If she could accept Starlight Glimmer as a friend, after the debacle with the time spell that could have literally destroyed the world, then Twilight could accept the sirens. Besides, Sonata didn’t seem remotely malicious, and had clearly suffered quite a bit after the death of Adagio. Just thinking about that made Twilight feel chilled to the bone. Death wasn’t something she dealt with much at all in her life as the Princess of Friendship. Sonata had taken a brutal, personal loss, yet here she was smiling away.

That was either emotional strength Twilight had a hard time imagining, or a sign of something being seriously off with the siren.

“Well the door wasn’t locked and you said you could take me and Aria to Equestria first thing in the morning, aaaaaaaand,” Sonata pointed at the office desk where a digital clock showed in red numbers that it was just past one o’cock AM, “It’s morning! So, um, we can go now right?”

Twilight rubbed the last vestiges of sleep from her face and took a deep, deep breath, “It’s one the morning Sonata! I just went to sleep three hours ago!”

“Soooooo, that’s a no?” Sonata asked, lower lip quivering, eyes shining with tears as she held up her hands clasped together before her in a pleading gesture, “But the sooner we go to Equestria the sooner I can look for a way to help Dagie! Can’t we go now? Please?”

Twilight tried and failed to suppressed a groan, running fingers through her mane (she still thought of it as a mane, no matter what Sunset said about human terminology). She did some mental calculations. Chances were the wards still needed at least another hour or two to finish recharging, but that was time enough to shower and get breakfast. She’d done more on less sleep in the past, and it was hard to say no to the look on Sonata’s hopeful face.

“Okay, okay! Just... just give an hour to clean up and get breakfast and I’ll see if the portal is ready.”

“YES! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!” Twilight was crushed briefly by a tight and powerful Sonata-grade hug before the siren girl went rushing off, probably to wake up her sister.

Twilight was left shaking her head, partially in bewilderment, and partially to get the last cobwebs of sleep out of her head. She wondered blearily if Sunset was already in Soul Society or not, and how the rest of her friends were doing?

----------

They’d gotten what sleep they could, knowing that they’d be leaving in the middle of the night, and indeed it was barely a quarter past one o’clock when Discord summoned the girls back down into the training area. The time had come to begin their infiltration of Soul Society.

“Okay Chappy,” Sunset said, still feeling a tad odd talking, technically, to herself, “Ground rules while I’m gone; no overeating, no screwing around with my wardrobe, and in case of emergency...?” She left the last bit as a test question for the attention span of the artificial soul that would be wearing her human body for however long she’d be in Soul Society.

Chappy, with an almost too snappy salute for it to be serious, stood at attention and said, “In case of emergency I’m to do whatever Mr. Discord tells me to!”

“Right...” Sunset paused, then added, “Within reason.”

“Yes ma’am! I will totally not do anything dangerous while you’re gone, but do I have permission to have some fun?”

Sunset raised a critical eyebrow, “Define fun.”

Chappy’s eyes shone with eager light, “I’ll be going to school in your place, right, and I was thinking some of the sports stuff looked like fun. You mind if I join a few them?”

Sunset blinked at the odd request, “Huh, I don’t know how long we’ll be gone, but... I guess its okay? Look, just join one alright? I still have to use that body and go to school when we get back, so I don’t want you overloading me with a bunch of after school stuff I can’t do.”

“Sure sure! No problem! I’ll totally keep it under control boss!” said Chappy with a happy chirp, and Sunset got a sinking feeling that when she got back she’d have some damage control to do, but there was nothing for it. Chappy was the only gikon she had. She’d just have to trust the artificial soul not to go too wild with her body while she was gone.

With heavy steps she went down into the training area, where she found her friends already waiting for her. Sunset paused, looking them over each in turn, her eyes blinking in surprise. “Wow, what’s with the shiny new get-ups?”

Rarity let out an absolutely overjoyed giggle as she hopped to the front of the group and did a quick twilr to show off her outfit, “Aren’t they just marvelous? I began work on the basic designs before we started training, but was able to finish them in between rest breaks after we got back. Some of my finest work if I do say so myself.”

“Yeah, if yer lookin’ ta break in ta makin’ costumes fer superhero flicks, maybe,” Applejack muttered, face flushed red as she shifted uncomfortably, “Although I guess its pretty comfy.”

“Of course darling! I designed them for ease of movement and emphasis on style. They may be combat clothes but that hardly means we can’t look good while performing the nitty gritty task of doling out...” Rarity coughed politely and made air quotes with her fingers, “butt kickings.”

The outfits in question continued to hold Sunset’s attention as she looked them over, at once impressed Rarity got them together so quickly, and perhaps a tad jealous she didn’t get one.

Rarity herself wore a slimming dark violet blouse tucked into tight fitting black pants with knee high black boots with small heels. Her shoulders were bare, but she wore elbow length cloth gloves, and the entire ensemble carried rose red highlights and several stylized patterns in diamond shapes done in shining blue along the edges of the blouse. Finally a long flowing cape of deep purple edged in red hung from her back, not quite covering her bare shoulders, but trailing behind her elegantly. After a moment Sunset realized that the suit was meant to combine with Rarity’s blood dress, and that together they’d make a complete outfit.

Rainbow Dash was clad in what could only be called a set of body hugging leathers not unlike what a racing biker might wear, only the leather was all dyed in a deep ocean blue with white stripes patterned like lightning across her arms and legs, with shorter but heftier boots. She also wore a mantle of blue trimmed in white around her shoulders. Finally she had a pair of finger-less dark blue gloves, with steel studded knuckles, and a familiar cloud and rainbow lightning bolt pattern was etched into the back of each glove.

Pinkie Pie’s outfit had the overall look of a track suit colored the same dark neon pink of Pinkie’s hair, but trimmed with gold highlights along the cuffs and sides. She wore thick white gloves and boots, and a mantel similar to Rainbow Dash’s, but colored light pink to match the girl’s skin tone, but with the color brought out more by bands of gold trimming the mantle. Balloons, a favorite image Pinkie Pie loved to have on her clothes, marked the left breast of the track suit.

Fluttershy wore a set of loose, baggy pants, a long sleeved shirt, and tight fitting vest, all of which looked like silk and were in varying shades of green. The outfit reminded Sunset of certain eastern martial arts films she’d seen, where the overlapping front of the vest was tied with gold thread and the entire outfit had faintly shimmering leaf-like designs etched along the neck of the vest, along with butterfly patterns. The shoes she wore also looked silk, or at least very light and thin leather, laced up with gold thread.

Finally, Applejack had one a thick, red leather jacket, on the shoulders of which were tooled in images of apples. Under the open front of the jacket she had on a tight bodysuit of black with several stylized lines of orange along the sides and legs. She had brawny looking leather gloves, with metal backings. The outfit was completed with a thick brown leather belt with a silver buckle, tall brown work boots, and Applejack’s customary stetson sitting atop her blonde head.

“You all look great,” said Sunset, crossing her arms and smiling wryly, “I’m a bit envious.”

“Oh I didn’t forget you, darling,” said Rarity, “While I know you’ve got your Soul Reaper look, what with all the black, I thought I’d spice it up a bit with this!”

Rarity reached into the fold of her blouse and pulled out a lustrous looking silk scarf. Its color was primarily red, but somehow Rarity had dyed it so the colors shifted into natural shades of orange and vibrant yellow towards the edges, like a trail of fire. Rarity went up to Sunset and handed it over. Sunset was amazed at the smooth softness of the scarf, and while she’d never really gone in for accessories, she didn’t hesitate in putting it on, wrapping around her neck and shoulders so that its twin ends flowed behind her like flickering flames.

“It’s beautiful. Thank you.”

“Not merely beautiful, these outfits all serve a practical purpose,” Rarity said, grinning mischievously with her blue eyes shining. “Mister Discord shared with me the secret of imbuing bits of reishi into clothing, and a particular set of treated fibers that when imbued have two interesting effects. One, these clothes will make it so our bodies will be able to survive prolonged exposure to a spirit realm. And two, these clothes work similarly to something the Quincy use to cloak themselves from normal sight. As long as we wear these, normal people won’t be able to see us. It should make dealing with unpleasant affairs in the real world a lot simpler.”

“And we totally won’t use it to sneak in free movies at the theater,” Rainbow Dash said with a devilish wink.

Pinkie Pie giggled, and Sunset smacked a hand to her forehead, “Right, let’s remember ot use our powers only for good. And maybe free movies. C’mon girls, we have a schedule to keep.”

As a group the approached where Sunset could see Discord, Ditzy Doo, and Clover waiting for them. Ditzy was wearing her usual black tights and orange over-shirt, her hair tied back in a ponytail, while Discord was dressed as ever, though his hat still bore the scorch marks of their sparring match from earlier. Clover was in her Soul Reaper robes, Chishiki sheathed at her side. Between them was a tall stone rectangular archway that certainly hadn’t been in the training grounds before. Sunset looked it over, then said, “Is that what’s taking us to Soul Society?”

Discord nodded, “It’s what will open a simulation of a Senkaimon gateway to a designated location that Ditzy Doo and I set up long ago so we could move to and from Soul Society without having to use the official Senkaimon gate that exists for sanctioned travel between the realms. Unfortunately without a Hell Butterfly to act as a guide, you’ll be forced to travel by foot through the Dongai, a sort of parallel pathway that isn’t nearly as safe as a Senkaimon pathway.”

“Hell whatnow?” Applejack blurted in confusion.

“Oh, they’re spirit constructs that act something like security passes for Senkaimon gateways,” said Clover, “With one guiding you the path through the gate is smooth and easy. Without one, any Senkaimon leads right into the Dongai, which is meant to trap any stray entities trying to enter Soul Society unwanted.”

“Mmm, Dongai, sounds like a kind of yummy cake or bun to me,” said Pinkie Pie, then sighed, “Only its not.”

“Let me guess, its gonna be filled with things that wanna kill us?” asked Applejack.

“Only one thing,” said Clover with a nervous glance at the archway, “The Cleaner. Its sort of a garbage disposal that wipes out any stray energy that wanders into the Dongai. Its a natural security system for keeping out unwanted intruders, too.”

“So, um, how do we deal with it?” asked Fluttershy.

“We run really, really fast,” said Ditzy Doo, earning a wide flash of a grin from Rainbow Dash.

“Works for me! Let’s do this!”

“So all of you are prepared?” asked Discord, with a level of gravity and seriousness that seemed to make the air grow thicker. His eyes held a severe gleam to their yellow and red depths as he looked them each in the eyes. “This is the last chance any of you have to turn back. Once your in Soul Society, there won’t be a way to leave without using their own Senkaimon, which means you would have to have succeeded in freeing Celestia and Luna and brought the coming chaos to an end, one way or another.”

“Seriously dude, chill. This is no different than when we went to kick in Grand Fisher’s teeth,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Yes, but... when we did that, Adagio...” Fluttershy began, and a bit of Rainbow Dash’s bravado eased up.

“Y-yeah, well, we just spent a whole bunch of time and effort getting way stronger than we were then, so this time we won’t lose anybody!” the young athlete said, her magenta eyes flashing, “I won’t let any of you go down!”

“As strong as we may have become, we’ll need to use caution,” said Clover, “We should try to do this as covertly as possible.”

“We’ll just have to get in there and see how it goes,” said Sunset, “But one things for sure, we’re not getting anywhere worrying about it. Discord, open the portal. We’re going.”

“Very well then,” Discord said, tipping his hat to them all, and turning to the stone archway. Placing one hand on the grainy, gray surface a series of reishi particles flowed up the column of stone in flickering blue lines. Sunset could both feel and hear a buzz from the archway as the gray stone swiftly turned into a solid glowing arch of blue light. Streams of that blue light then filled the center space of the archway, transforming into a shimmering set of oriental paper sliding doors. Then those doors opened, revealing blinding white light.

Ditzy Doo took the lead, stretching her limbs, “Okay girls, in we go! The second we enter, follow me, and run. Don’t stop for anything!”

Without another word the girls all exchanged looks and affirming nods, then followed Ditzy Doo into the door of blinding light. For a moment Sunset couldn’t see anything other than pure white, then was almost as quickly dropped into deep, gloomy darkness. She could feel solid ground beneath her feet, but it took a second for her eyes to adjust to her surroundings.

She was in what looked like a narrow corridor, but where the walls were made of a churning black smoke, thicker than any fog she’d ever seen. Sunset immediately got an intense sense of wrongness from those walls of cloying dark smoke, and her nose wrinkled, even through she could smell nothing.

“What are you doing!? Run!” Ditzy Doo shouted from ahead of her, and Sunset saw all of her friends also momentarily dazed by their surroundings.

Then the black smoke started to close in on them, tendrils of it reaching like oily fingers towards the girls, and as one they all broke into a full on sprint.

“Ew! Ew! Ew! It’s chasing us!” Rarity shouted, impressing Sunset with just how fast her friend could run in heels as she overtook even Rainbow Dash, who was top of the track team.

Sunset didn’t glance behind her, but she could feel the overbearing, smothering presence of those walls of unnatural black smoke behind her and her friends, like the whole corridor was collapsing.

“Is that the Cleaner?” she shouted while running, sucking in breaths of air as she went.

“Nope!” said Ditzy Doo, “Those are just the borders of the Dongai! Don’t get caught by them, or you’ll lose a chunk of yourself. The path is closing behind us because if we keep a gate like this open too long then Soul Society’s intrusion detectors will sense us coming. We can’t keep this thing open long. Just keep running!”

For nearly a minute the girls ran, all in a tight group, following along behind Ditzy Doo’s dashing form. Behind them the darkness of the Dongai’s black smoke walls closed in behind them, dark tendrils reaching.

“Hey, this ain’t so bad,” said Rainbow Dash, cracking a slight smile as she ran, “Just like a morning job to get the blood pumping!”

Abruptly Pinkie Pie’s left eye twitched, followed by a tremor that ran down her right leg, forcing her to hop for a second before resuming a normal run, but the girl’s face was now pale with worry. “Uh-oh! That’s a bad one! Pinkie Sense says run faster!”

“What? Why-” Rainbow Dash began to ask, turning to look behind them, and Sunset saw the girl’s eyes shoot wide as cup coasters. Sunset glanced too, and found herself blinking, trying to sort out what she was seeing.

Something was looming through the black smoke, huge and difficult to define outside of a vague, solid mass that was darker than the Dongai’s walls. Yet this huge looming mass bore one bright point of baleful yellow light in its center as it moved through the fog towards them with the speed of an oncoming freight train.

“The Cleaner!” Ditzy Doo shouted, “Move it girls! Pick up the damn pace!”

Sunset wasn’t sure they could go much faster than they were running without using Flash Step, which would be hard in this confined space. All they could do was push themselves harder, rushing ahead faster as the huge, deadly shape of the ‘Cleaner’ pushed through the fog behind them like a pursuing tidal wave. Sunset didn’t want to risk looking over her shoulder any more, as doing so would unavoidably slow her down, but she felt like she had a giant target between her shoulder blades as she ran, feeling the deadly thing chasing them through this dark chasm.

Sunset heard a gasp behind her, and risked a glance to see that Pinkie Pie had fallen a step behind. Dark tendrils from the collapsing corridor reached out, nearly touching the girl’s mantel. Pinkie Pie, sweat beading her forehead, pumped her arms in legs in a pink blurr to pick up the pace, but it seemed like the Cleaner surged ahead as well, closing the distance.

“Pinkie!” Sunset shouted, but before she could react there was light from ahead, and she saw that there was a opening of shining light right before them. The exit! It’d come up on them without warning, and Sunset couldn’t so much as slow down before she and her friends, with the Cleaner seemingly right on top of them, piled through the doorway of light...

... and found themselves falling abruptly through clear, bright sky for about two seconds before smacking in a tangle of confused limbs on top of a grassy hill.

Sunset, bruised and dazed, disentangled herself from her friends and sat up, “Pinkie Pie! Are you okay!?”

“Uuughh... I think I threw up a little...” muttered the young party girl as she rolled onto her stomach, alive and intact. Sunset, however, could see something, no doubt the Cleaner, had taken a chunk out of Pinkie Pie’s mantel. Not like a physical bite, but more like a part of the cloth had simply stopped existing, in an even, semi-circular chunk.

Rarity saw it and sighed, “Not even two seconds here, and already I’m having to pull out spares.” She produced another mantel identical to the one Pinkie had just gotten damaged and tossed it to the other girl.

Sunset blinked at Rarity, “Uh, where are you hiding all that stuff?”

Rarity just returned her look with a coy one of her own, holding up and wagging a slim finger, “A lady must keep some secrets, Sunset. Now, where are we?”

“Right where we’re supposed to be,” said Ditzy Doo, the only one who’d landed on her feet. She was currently not looking at the girls, but instead gazing out from the slope of the hill, and after a few seconds Sunset and her friends all stood and joined her.

The hill was at the very edge of what looked to Sunset like the single largest city she’d ever seen. Her mind tried to calculate the sheer size of the seemingly endless expanse of buildings she was witnessing, but her brain just sort of gave up after a minute. She knew there were cities in the human world that got big, like Tokyo or New York, but she had a feeling she was looking at something that might dwarf even those metropolis.

What was more the architecture of the city was strange and diverse. Few buildings rose more than two or three stories, but there was a clear separation of styles into various districts that, after a moment of looking, Sunset realized spread out like slices of pie from a central point. Each district carried a distinctly different style, some buildings having the curved shingled roofs of an eastern style, while others held the brick and stone of European styles. Other districts had more modern construction, like slices of suburban living from numerous time periods, while other districts still looked older and simpler, from thatch roofed hovels to simple log cabins. It was like each part of the city was designed by peoples form all across the world, representing dozens of generalized time periods.

Then there was the central area from which all this sprawled. It was like an ordered nucleus to the massive city it sat at the center of. A perfectly circular district of white stone buildings with orange tiled roofs and bright streets. White towers, block shaped in nature, rose from various points around what looked to be a huge stone plateau. Within that plateau huge fortress walls were carved, with more white towers, one building flowing into another. Even from this vast distance Sunset could still see the fortress clearly, which only gave weight to its massive, mountain-like size.

“Welcome to Soul Society girls,” said Ditzy Doo, pointing at the distant fortress, “And say hello to our goal, the Seireitei.”

----------

This was Adagio’s first look inside the Arancar’s fortress, Las Noches. Grogar had given her the freedom to follow Ember wherever needed to enact “his” plan to have her infiltrate the ranks of the Hollows serving Torch, and so she found herself floating along behind Ember through bright lit corridors of polished white stone with so may turn offs and side passages that Adagio soon lost complete track of where she was.

The halls echoed with a strange sense of emptiness, like the dusty cold of a hospital at night, or the streets of an abandoned town.

“Where is everyone?” she asked, eyes suspiciously looking around as if expecting ambush, “I thought this was where all you Arrancar stay, but this place looks empty to me.”

Ember gave Adagio a knowing smirk, “This outer layer is a maze meant to slow and confuse intruders. Not a lot of us hang out around here, and unless you know the way it’d be easy to get lost. And quit doing that.”

Adagio, who’d been eyeing one of the side corridors with narrow eyes, gave a small start and said, “Doing what?”

“Looking at everything like you’re expecting an ambush every other minute. You need to learn to relax. Showing fear is going to make half of dad’s horde look at you like a snack, and the other half dismiss you out of hand.”

With a small grumble Adagio forced herself to stop trying to see everything around her and just follow Ember with a bit more confidence, but it was hard to maintain a steady stance. Her nerves were strung tighter than those on a fine tuned piano. She was all to aware of how dangerous and tenuous her position was. She was relying solely on Ember’s word for her safety among other Hollows that would, as Ember just made clear, see no issue with devouring Adagio at the smallest sign of weakness.

After several more twists and turns Ember took Adagio to a final short corridor that led to a huge rectangular opening from which poured surprisingly bright light. As Adagio moved through it she was shocked to feel warm air on her face and the sight of blue sky above her.

“What is this!?” she blurted, starring around her, “Did we leave the fortress somehow?”

Ember guffawed, punching Adagio’s shoulder lightly, “Geeze, quit gawking. We’re still inside Las Noches.”

Adagio couldn’t believe that. There were still white sands covering the ground, as if they were standing in the middle of a huge desert, yet above them was a dome of pure blue marked by streaks of white cloud. She could see towering white walls in a vast circle stretching to her left and right, from which even more walls lurched inward like spokes from the rim of a great wheel. Cylindrical towers, some in shining gold, others deep red, stood at random intervals around the sands, some taller than some skyscrapers she’d seen in human cities.

At the center of the vast dome-like space was a towering central pillar, rising up from several pagoda-like structures of carved stone. This center tower went up and up, until Adagio could see it seem to touch the sky and...

“Wait, that’s a ceiling?” she asked, starring at the huge tower as it seemed to meld into the blue of the sky in such a way that she could see the seams in what she now realized was a sky, but a massive domed roof.

“Yup,” said Ember with amusement clearly chiming in her voice along with her half-grin, “Lord Tirek likes to remind everyone in his fortress just what kind of pleasant world has been denied us Hollows. Or at least that’s the rumor I hear for the artificial sky. I suppose it does keep this place from being a total bore. Now c’mon, we need to head to my dad’s slice of this pie, before we draw too much attention.”

“Attention?”

“The outer layer is pretty much abandoned, but in here, its kind of a free for all,” Ember said, starting to walk quickly towards the right, heading for one of the inner fortress walls, “Most the small fry are too smart to mess with me, but if they smell fresh blood like you, that might overcome their common sense. So shake that tail of yours and let’s move.”

Adagio did exactly that, floating along quicker to keep up with the sudden swift pace Ember set. They crossed over towards the large interior wall that spread towards the center of the dome, passing several hundred yards of flat sands where Adagio still couldn’t see anyone or anything else about beside herself and Ember.

At least until the three Arrancar appeared directly in their path, almost as if they’d been waiting there for them.

“Hey, is that little Ember? What’re you doing dragging some scrub Hollow from outside into Las Noches?” said the lead Arrancar, a tall, broad shouldered young man whose Hollow mask remnants consisted of a bony ridge around his head and left eye. He had dark skin and a smooth cut head of beige hair that hung just above blue eyes.

Beside him the other two Arranar with him put on looks that were equal parts malicious and hungry as they looked at Adagio, one of them, a orange skinned young man with busy brown hair and blue eyes, and a skeletal jawbone covering the right side of his jawline, said “She looks pretty meaty, too. Well fed. Bet she’s gonna be a tasty one.”

The third Arrancar, a shorter, squat male with gray skin and thick dark hair that covered his eyes, with a bony fringe on either side of his cheekbones, just chuckled darkly, licking his lips.

All three wore the same kind of baggy white and black clothing Adagio had seen Grogar and Ember wearing, and by now she assumed it was an aesthetic that all of this race shared. They also, like Ember, each bore a sword sheathed either at their hip or across their back.

Upon seeing the three, Ember sighed heavily and rolled her eyes, “Right, if it isn’t the three-stooges act of Dumbbell, Hoops, and Score. Do you guys ever get tired of being living, breathing stereotypes? Does the idea of having an original thought really scare you three that much?”

The three male Arrancar exchanged looks, the lead one, Dumbbell Adagio guessed, snarled, “I don’t know, do you ever get tired of running that mouth of yours? Just because your old man is an Espada you sure like to act like you’re untouchable, Ember, but we all know Lord Tirek’s law doesn’t protect the weak.”

Adagio noticed Ember’s stance shift slightly, her feet spreading a bit as her hand drew close to her sword, “Yeah, makes me wonder how you three have survived this long.”

The orange skinned Arrancar, Hoops, elbowed Dumbbell, chuckling, “Dude, she’s just posturing. Let’s jump her and grab the piece of meat over there already.”

Adagio found herself floating forward, emitting a loud growl from the very base of her throat, “This ‘piece of meat’ has a name, imbeciles! I am Adagio Dazzle, and the only way you’re touching me is if I’m strangling your blustering throats!”

This caused all three of them to blink at her, then the male Arrancars all started to laugh uproariously.

“Oh wow, man, she’s got a lot of spunk for a flying fish! Hahah!”

“Heheh, I can’t take it, look at her, she’s like an angry little goldfish. What’re you gonna do, goldfish? Blow bubbles at me?”

“Hey, do you think Ember sneaked her in here for a snack herself, or was she looking for another kind of fun?”

Ember, teeth grinding, drew her sword with a loud metallic ring, which caused the three male Arrancar to stop laughing an all take up defensive positions, hands on their own sword hilts.

“Look, boys, I don’t have time to play with you three, but if you’re going to be stupid about this, try to remember that I can take all three of you by myself,” Ember said, and Adagio felt the heated increase of pressure in the air as Ember’s reiatsu shot up. The girl’s body became wreathed in smokey red light, and her blue hair seemed to dance in a sudden wind. “Do you really want to do this dance with me?”

Again the three males exchanged looks, and Dumbbell snorted, drawing his own sword, a sharp yellow aura surrounding him as his own spirit energy rose, “Whatever, Ember. You might be strong, but you’ve never fought us three on one, and much as the morsel there might try to puff herself up and bark, she’s no threat. So how about you make this easy on yourself and walk away. Your old man feeds you plenty, and you don’t need the food...”

Adagio heard a hint of desperation in Dumbbell’s voice there, and the looks on the three faces of the males suddenly went from simple mindless aggression to a much deeper, painful hunger.

They’re starving... Adagio realized, not exactly sympathetic per se, but knowing the feeling of hunger all too well and how it affected one’s mental state. It struck her it might have been awhile since any of these three actually ate, and it might be driving them to be more aggressive than they’d normally be. And she was basically a walking steak dinner. They wouldn’t back down, even if Ember was stronger than any of them.

If Ember knew or cared about any of that she certainly didn’t show it as she pointed her blade at the three, “Last warning, boys. Out of the way, or this gets ugly.”

They hesitated only for a moment, then all three drew their own swords and moved as one, with flickering speed that took Adagio by surprise. They came in at Ember from three different angles, blades slashing viciously. Ember moved like a branch bending in a storm’s wind, snapping left and right and batting aside their attacks in bursting clashes of orange sparks. The impact rang loudly in the air, and in an instant Ember counterattacked, kicking out hard with her right leg, smashing Hoops in the gut and sending him flying, while forcing Score back with a hard slash that forced him skidding back a dozen yards.

Only Dumbbell hung close, slashing hard, forcing Ember to block with her free left arm. Her arm, hardened by an Arrancar’s iron skin, took the blow without taking more than a scratch, but it was still a scratch that bled as she jumped back from Dumbbell and growled.

“Wrong choice, dumbass.”

“What do you expect when you parade a freakin’ feast in front of us? Of course we’re gonna want to take a bite!”

Dumbbell held out a hand, a destructive glow of yellow light appearing in his palm. Ember responded by lowering her head, the bone-white horns jutting forward from her head starting to glow as a crimson orb of power formed between the tips. The air grew thick with spiritual energy, then both Arrancar discharged their Cero’s simultaneously.

Gold and crimson light intermingled in a destructive dance. The ground shook at the impact of the two potent blasts, but it was the red light that managed to overwhelm the gold, shards of red force blasting past to impact near Dumbbell. He crossed his arms, deflecting some of the blow, but it distracted him long enough for Ember to appear from the wall of dust thrown up by the explosion and rush in behind him.

He turned, but would clearly be too slow to defend himself, and Ember’s blade chopped in. However it was intercepted by the swords of both Hoops and Score, who had recovered and rushed in to defend their comrade, parrying Ember’s attack together.

Ember was forced back a step, which was enough opening for Dumbbell to turn and join his allies in unleashing a brutal and swift combination of attacks upon her, forcing the female Arrancar back even further. The air screamed with the hard clash of steel as Ember struggled to keep all three of her foes at bay, her red eyes narrow in concentration. As for the three males, they were so focused upon Ember, and so contemptuous of any threat Adagio might have posed, that they hadn’t even glanced her way since the fight started.

Their mistake.

Adagio had no illusions to being an honorable or fair fighter. Stabbing people in the back suited her just fine, especially if they were foolish enough to make the offer so tempting.

Fast as the four battling Arrancar were, Adagio’s reflexes weren’t sub-par by any means, and having been forced to fight dozens upon dozens of Hollows in Grogar’s arena had sharpened her skills to a fine edge. She floated quickly and silently up behind the three male Arrancar, and with no hesitation tore her talons down Hoops’ back while at the same time used her tail to wrap it tightly around Score’s neck.

Iron skin or not, Adagio’s physical strength had been increased by Grogar’s experiments as much as her speed, and Hoops’ back gained lines of bloody cuts from her talons. The wounds, while not crippling, were incredibly painful and Hoops screamed, dropping his sword and reaching for his torn, bloody back as he fell to the sands.

Meanwhile Score made a choking sound as Adagio’s tail began to constrict like that of a snake’s around his throat. He raised his sword to try to stab at her, but Adagio gripped his arm with both of hers and while he might’ve been stronger than her pound for pound, she had leverage now and she yanked his sword arm behind his back at a painful angle. In seconds Score fell to his knees, making gurgling sounds as he tried to break past a constricted windpipe, while Hoops kept writhing on the ground.

Dumbbell, abruptly losing the support of both his allies, was, well... dumbstruck, and dropped his guard. Ember took full advantage, delivering a crushing blow with her left fist into his sternum, and then with a savage strike with her sword she cut into his shoulder. The blow forced him to drop his sword and howl in pain, falling onto his back. He made to dive for his sword but Ember kicked him in the gut hard, the impact accompanied by the sound of breaking ribs. Dumbbell growled in pain, but still tried to reach his sword, grasping it, until Ember then shoved her sword into his hand, eliciting a howl of pain.

“Don’t be an idiot. Even if you released your Resurreccion, I’d just release mine too,” growled Ember, withdrawing her sword and looming over Dumbbell, who held his wounded hand close to his chest, his sword forgotten.

Adagio did raise an eyebrow at that comment, however. Resurreccion? What was that?

Regardless, just like that, the fight seemed over. Hoops started to recover, but saw his allies were down, and upon seeing the molten anger in Ember’s eyes, he wisely remained down.

Ember, keeping her sword drawn and pointed at Dumbbell, flicked a glance at Adagio, “Nice. Very nice. you’re going to fit in just fine with dad’s horde.”

Dumbbell, face pained and filled with bitterness, glared between Ember and Adagio, “You going to kill us or what? This is freakin’ humiliating enough, so just get it over with quick, dammit!”

Adagio, a tad surprised, glanced at Score, who she was still basically strangling. The short Arrancar was quickly losing strength, unable to even claw against her tail anymore. He’d probably be dead in another minute. Adagio vaguely wondered what happened to Hollows killed like this? Did they just fade away to nothing? A spark of hunger flared in her, seeing the helplessness of her prey. Predatory instincts rushed with heated feelings, telling her to tear and feast... but she was not a slave to instinct! She refused to be shackled by anything so base.

With a growl she tossed aside the near unconscious Score, and glared at Dumbbell. She loomed over him and said, “Do you remember my name, now?”

He blinked at her, seemingly confused, then slowly said, “Y-you said it was... uh... Adagio, err... right?”

“Adagio Dazzle,” she said firmly, baring her fangs,”Remember the name. I am no one’s piece of meat. No one’s servant. No one’s anything! Do not forget this.”

Dumbbell looked ready to argue, or say something unpleasant, but Ember’s blade resting next to his throat made him think twice and he grudgingly nodded, “I hear ya.”

Adagio was not a fool. She knew these three might be trouble in the future, but she already had a plan forming in her head for dealing with that. She wasn’t some muscle headed brute he needed to always rely on force, and these three might prove useful in the future. Now that she’d shown the iron, it was time to slip on the velvet glove, so to speak.

“Now, you three are near starving, aren’t you?” she asked, making her voice soften, almost sympathetic. Ember raised an eyebrow, but Adagio gave her a look that she hoped communicated ‘don’t worry, I got this’.

Dumbbell and his friends exchanged confused looks, Score only just now catching his breath and Hoops wincing past the pain in his back.

“Uh...yeah, that’s why we attacked. We wanted to eat you. Err, not that we’ll try that again...”

“Oh, I know you boys won’t,” Adagio said, her voice turning to just enough honey to sound sweet while not losing its hard edge, “Because if you do as I say, I’ll get you something to eat.”

That got exactly the reaction she expected. Suspicious but hopeful. She could see it in all three Arrancar boy’s eyes. They didn’t trust her, but they were so hungry the mere mention of the possibility of food was enough to make their mouths water.

“H-how are you gonna do that? There’s no good hunting that isn’t staked out by other hordes...” Dumbbell said, voice bitter, “If you ain’t part of a horde, you’re stuck picking up scraps. What, you think Torch will let you take us to his hunting grounds? Bullshit, he’s not that nice.”

“He’s right,” said Ember, “Even if you get in good with my old man, he’d never let these scrubs feed on our hunting grounds. These guys are pariahs. They don’t serve any Espada lord because no one wants them. You get a few dozen losers like this haunting Las Noches, looking to snatch up table scraps or feed on the stray Hollow that lets their guard down.”

“I suspected as much,” said Adagio, licking her lips, “But not to worry, I believe I have a solution. You see, Lord Grogar, he doesn’t care what I do with the Hollows he has me fight daily. Half of them I don’t even eat. So instead I’ll bring the leftovers from my time in Grogar’s arena to our little meeting place, Ember. You can direct these... boys, there. You can eat your fill there, as long as you make yourselves useful.”

“Wait, you work for Grogar?” asked Dumbbell, and Score shivered.

“That guy’s is serious bad news.”

Adagio shrugged, turning as if to float away, “Well, if you don’t want the food.”

“No!” Dumbbell reached out for her, then gulped and held back, “I mean, uh, y-yeah, maybe we can work out a deal. Just, uh, what do you want us to do for this food?”

Adagio smiled sweetly. Hook, line, sinker. “Oh, I’m sure I’ll think of something.”

Afterwards, when Dumbbell, Score, and Hoops had scurried off to whatever corner of Las Noches they holed up in, Adagio let out a large breath, steadying herself.

That had been an exceedingly lucky break. It was only because those three had ignored her as a non-threat that she’d been able to get in behind them and make such an effective sneak attack. Hoops hadn’t actually been that badly wounded by her talons, and Score had only been defeated due to her managing to get her tail around his neck at the right moment. Either one of them, had they been able to fight back and strike at her, may well have had the power to kill her in one or two blows. The same counted for Dumbbell, if not for the fact that Ember had been able to take advantage of his momentary surprise.

Ember slapped Adagio’s back, laughing, “Damn girl, you’ve got more spine than I gave you credit for. You didn’t have to jump into that fight, you know? I mean, I had those losers, but...” she coughed, glancing away, and Adagio thought perhaps she saw a coloring of faint rose on the Arrancar’s cheeks, “Thanks for the help.”

“Of course. We’re allies, are we not?” said Adagio, “Besides I couldn’t stand them ignoring me like that. I’m not one to dismiss so easily.”

“I’m seeing that. You’ll make for one hell of an Arrancar once we get you there.” Ember tapped her hip and looked at Adagio curiously, “Why did you offer them that deal, though? Could of offed them and not had to deal with their guff. Be a way easier way to avoid a future headache.”

Adagio managed a small, knowing smile, “Kill a barking dog and he’ll never bother you again, true. Feed a barking dog, and you gain their loyalty.”

“Huh... what are you going to do with the loyalty of a trio of losers?”

Adagio shrugged in response to that, “I don’t plan on being on the bottom of this totem pole forever, Ember. They might be useful in the future.”

Now that the scuffle was over it seemed a good chance to ask about that strange phrase she’d heard. “Anyway, Ember, what was that word you said back there? Resurreccion?”

Ember blinked, then snickered, “Right, you wouldn’t know.” She held up her sword, giving it a few flourishes, “Every Arrancar, when we evolve into what we are, end up creating a Zanpaktou as part of the evolution.”

“Like the Soul Reapers have?”

A sharp grimace of distaste crossed Ember’s face, “No. We call them Zanpaktou because they bear a resemblance to the Soul Reaper weapons, but ours function differently. An Arrancar’s Zanpaktou... hmm, ugh I’m no good at this technical stuff. Think of it like a well. Yeah, a well that contains the core of our power. Its like how we Hollows get stronger from consuming others, our Zanpaktou act like a big storage well for containing a huge chunk of extra power that’s added on top of our base power. We can release that power whenever we want by calling our Zanpaktou’s name. When we do that...”

She made an explosive gesture with her hand and said, “Boom. Resurreccion. We transform into a more powerful state and start kicking serious ass.”

“Hmm...” Adagio hummed thoughtfully, “Any drawbacks to this transformed state?”

“Not really, other than it burns up power pretty quick. I mean, we can stay in that transformed state for awhile, but you’ll tire out faster than if you kept your Zanpaktou sealed.”

“So why didn’t those three back there transform the moment they decided to attack? Wouldn’t that have made the fight easier for them?” Adagio asked.

Ember chuckled dryly, “Because they didn’t want to die. If they released their Zanpaktou this close to my dad’s territory then half the horde would’ve felt it and interpreted it as an attack on our turf. By keeping their power down, they hoped to get me quick, snatch you, and be gone before anyone from the horde felt it. Simple gamble, and they lost.”

With that the conversation petered out and they found themselves moving along the edge of the interior wall they’d been heading for. Ember led them through a gate halfway down the wall, a giant steel door that led to a causeway through the wall to the desert on the other side. Adagio frowned as she immediately noticed that this slice of the desert inside Las Noches was different than the relatively empty space she and Ember just left.

Here, there were a number of massive tent cloths strung up around a single dark pillar of stone that rose about as high as the interior walls. Adagio could see fire pits glowing inside the open tent spaces, and actual clusters of Arrancar hanging out around the fires, dozens of them. Some fought and play wrestled with each other as their fellows looked on and laughed, while others seemed to drink some frothy liquid from clay mugs, the scent of alcohol so strong that Adagio could smell it from a hundred meters away. Ember and Adagio were noticed well before thy got to the tents, and more than a few Arrancar bellowed greetings to her, seemingly familiar with Ember.

Adagio tried to keep her head held high, remembering what she’d been told by Ember. Indeed, more than a few of the Arrancar around these tents eyed her with hungry eyes, while many others were dangerously curious. Ember made quick waves and greetings to those that called to her, but pressed through the crowd and ignored offers to come drink or spar.

She led Adagio right towards the center stone pillar from which the tents all clung to, and there Adagio could see a vast fire pit, larger than all the others, burning around what could only be described as a makeshift court cared out of stone slabs torn from the pillar to form a set of seats around the fire. A number of Arrancar sat here as well, feasting. Bits of lesser Hollows were strung out like racks of meat, and the Arrancar ate like old world barbarians with spits of roast over their fires.

Presiding over this scene was a man seated on a throne carved from the black stone of the pillar. The throne was massive and made all of hard angles, with a back shaped like a pair of upturned leathery wings. The arms of the throne were carved into the shapes of snarling dragon heads, and the base like the coiled tail of the same kind of draconic beasts.

The man himself was a giant, easily topping twenty feet tall, with deep sapphire blue skin pulled taut over rippling muscles that looked as if someone had bound together multiple tree trunks and decided to call them legs and arms. The man wore fine jewelry over meaty fingers, bands of gold rings and bracelets dangling precious gems. His bare feet bore gold anklets, and his massive neck a shining gold torc encrusted with gems. His chest, thick and so heavily muscled Adagio imagined cannonballs would bounce off his pecs, was clad only in a single huge white vest that matched the torn white pants he wore. A crown of black metal studded with rubies upon its three spikes rose from his head, which was topped by a wild expanse of dark blue hair. His face was as chiseled and blocky as it was menacing, with gleaming yellow eyes that stared down at Ember and Adagio as they approached.

Adagio took note of the giant tattooed number five etched onto the man’s chest, right above his heart, and the cavernous Hollow hole in his stomach.

The moment this monolith of a man saw Ember his craggy features broke out into a beaming grin and he bellowed, “HA! There you are daughter! Welcome back!”

He literally jumped off his throne and smashed into the ground right in front of Ember and Adagio like a boulder. Ember barely had a split second to raise her hands and shout half a protest before she was scooped up like a child and pulled into a crushing bear hug.

“Ugh, daaaad! Stop it! Put me down!”

“Not a chance, now quit yer squirming and sit on my shoulder a spell,” said the huge man, clearly Lord Torch, the Fifth Espada, as he placed his daughter on his shoulder like someone might with a pet bird. Ember sat there on her father’s massive shoulder with an embarrassed and grudging look, arms cross over her breasts and glowering, to which Torch only grinned wider before turning his gaze towards Adagio.

That gaze held the weight of mountains behind it, and Adagio suddenly felt very, very tiny. However, recalling Ember’s words, she held her chin high and met Lord Torch’s gaze with a steady one of her own. It felt like trying to stare down a volcano. She could feel the other Arrancar of Torch’s horde pressing in around her in an eager circle, like hounds scenting blood, and Adagio felt with chilling certainty that she was being measured, and if she failed to measure up then with a single snap of his fingers Torch could set his people upon her like starving wolves on a lone lamb.

Everything had gone deadly silent. Even Ember didn’t make a sound, her eyes gazing steadily at Adagio with the clear expression that said ‘I got you here, the rest is up to you.’ Adagio stiffened her spine and steadied her breathing. She could do this. She had to.

With a slow grumble like the rumble of a distant earthquake Torch rubbed his chin with one pair of meaty fingers and leaned forward just a tad. As he did so, his shadow falling over Adagio, she felt his spiritual pressure rise. It wasn’t like she sensed it so much as had it shoved its way past her brain like a sledgehammer made out of searing magma. She suddenly couldn’t breathe, the air was so thick with hazy, blazing hot spirit energy that crushed down on her with the force of a dropping meteor. He wasn’t touching her. This was just the sheer weight of the Fifth Espada’s spirit energy, his aura, smothering her and crushing Adagio down like the press of a hundred ton anvil.

She felt like every inch of her was trying to turn to dust, her bones creaking under the unrelenting spiritual force of Torch’s reiatsu. Her lungs burned for air, and her eyes watered. For a moment it seemed like her entire essence might shatter under the weight it was being put under. And if she let it, it would. So Adagio fought back. With images of her sisters burning in her mind, she snarled fiercely and pushed back with her own spirit energy. Her Hollow reiryoku surged, like a pebble against a waterfall, but it did push back. Like a rubber band stretched taut she felt like she might snap at any second, but she knew that now that she had chosen to fight back, to falter now meant oblivion.

Teeth grinding so hard she could feel her gums bleed, Adagio let out a deep throated roar and pushed as hard as she could against the reitasu trying to crush her down, and her body for a moment glowed with a flowing saffron hue. Then as abruptly as the crushing spirit force had appeared, it vanished, leaving Adagio feeling light as air, and breathing heavily as sweat poured down her face.

Gasping for breath, she heard Torch let out a bellowing laugh that echoed across the horde tents, and she looked up to see him grinning, showing huge canines.

“Not bad! Hah! Not bad at all! For a little Adjuchas you’ve got some spunk to you. I see my little Ember chose well for a prospective recruit.”

“So does that mean I’ve passed this blasted test?” Adagio asked, feeling a tad cheeky.

Torch’s grin turned positively savage as he reached behind his back, and pulled from a strap back there a dark edged battle axe with two crescent heads that he slammed down in front of him, its blade just inches form Adagio’s face. She gulped.

“Don’t get cute, little one. Ain’t a lot of small fry like you that can withstand my spiritual pressure and not turn to ash from the weight of it alone. So I’m acknowledging you got potential. Potential I might want to add to my horde, if you prove yourself against the Quincy. But don’t ever forget, in my horde you’re never done proving your strength. Strength is all that matters.”

“She don’t look so strong to me,” said a judging, male voice from the sidelines, and Adagio turned her head to see a young male Arrancar starring at her with unfriendly yellow eyes. He had a shock of red hair in a spiked pattern down his back, like a mowhawk, and dusky skin peppered with bits of what looked like red scales. His arms were crossed over a broad chest bound in a tight white vest, and the Zanpaktou sheathed at his hip was broad and curved; a falchion.

“In fact she looks like a total weakling. Look at her, she’s sweating.”

Ember issued out a sharp growl and snapped a glare towards the man, “Shut your gob, Garble. She stood up to dad’s spirit energy. She also helped take down three Arrancar that jumped us on the way here. She’s solid, and if you got a problem with that, you got a problem with me.”

Garble glanced up, “Yeah, whatever. We’ll see how well she does when there’s an actual fight to be had.”

Ember continued to glare but Torch pounded his axe into the ground again, “Enough. Garble’s not wrong. Your little playmate here has to show what she’s got to the whole horde. I can see the blood on her claws, and if she helped you take on a few weakling pariahs on the way here, that’s impressive, but it doesn’t count until we see her in action ourselves. Now then, what do you call yourself, tiny one?”

“Adagio Dazzle,” she replied, having caught her breath and finding herself able to raise her head again.

“Adagio, eh? Well then, you ready to help strike a blow against them Quincy bastards?”

She took a deeper breath, forcing away her trepidation, reminding herself she had only one path forward. “I am.”

“Good!” Torch bellowed again, slapping his axe over the shoulder opposite the one Ember sat on, “I’ll be looking forward ot seeing what you can do. Soon we will strike at the very heart of the Quincy. For now, I welcome you to my horde!” He gestured towards the tents with their many fire pits and the banquet of Hollows to feast upon. “So eat, drink, and rest yourself for the battle to come!”

----------

She’d done nothing but train since an hour before dawn much earlier that day. Twilight was given no special treatment or time to brush up on what the other Quincy trainees had already learned; she was just expected to keep up, or wash out. Her only consolation through the grueling hours of training was that she’d gotten word via a brief visit from Shining Armor that Lemon Zest was recovering from her injury at the Silbern’s medical ward. Quincy medicine was nothing to sneeze at and Lemon Zest was expected to return to the Academy in about a week’s time. Twilight did want to go visit, if only to apologize for what happened, but she was given no such time. Spitfire and the other trainers at the Academy, most of all Lightning Dust, set a grueling pace.

Target practice consisted of live fire exercises while dealing with any number of “mock” opponents, almost all of whom had lethal force to send back at the Quincy trainees. First it was specially trained human soldiers who, while not Quincy themselves, were loyal to the Quincy cause and had access to every modern weapon available to humanity. Battling human special forces soldiers with fully automatic weapons and armored vehicles was just the Quincy Academy’s idea of a morning warm up exercise. Its main purpose was to teach speed, reflexes, and hone combat instincts, as use of Blut Vene and Hirenkyaku were essential to evade and survive gunfire.

It also taught fine control of one’s Quincy reishi, ensuring arrows could be fired quickly and accurately, but most importantly with the controlled level of power needed to defeat the human targets without lethal force.

Twilight still shivered at several near misses while she’d fought to keep her abilities controlled, while keeping pace with her squad. All the trainees were broken into groups of six, and Twilight wondered if it was coincidence or intent that she’d been paired with the girls she’d been placed with during the Friendship Games. Minus Lemon Zest, of course, whose place in the squad was replaced by a girl Twilight was not very familiar with.

“Wow, um, Twilight wasn’t it? Hm, could you maybe try to aim a little less towards me when you’re firing your bow? I don’t want to end up like Lemon Zest, m’kay?” said Suri Polomare as she held up a finger and slightly tipped Twilight’s bow a few degrees to left.

“Oh! Um, s-sorry,” Twilight said, quietly, as she and the rest of the girls were all crouched, hidden on branches in a tree as they watched a nearby field between the lines of thick trees.

“Shhh!” said Indigo Zapp, finger on her lips as she glared at both Twilight and Suri, “Keep it down idiots! You’re gonna give our position away.”

Suri sighed, tossing her head of purple, bunned up hair, settling back against the tree trunk. Her pink skin stood out starkly against the dark bark and the white of her Quincy uniform, and she had a perpetually irritated air. “Yeah, because you’re being soooo quiet, Zapp. The Hollows haven’t even been released from the pens yet, m’kay? The exercise doesn’t start for another five minutes.”

That was the task of the afternoon, Hollow hunting. After the exercise against humans as a warm up, the Quincy were now moving to training against the Quincy’s true enemy, the Hollows. The Quincy kept pens of captured Hollows for the expressed purpose of training Academy recruits. Spitfire had briefed them on the training exercise half an hour ago. They were to enter a specified training area in the forest, and take time to find ambush points as they saw fit. Each team of trainees was to be scored on how many Hollows they killed within an hour time limit, which began once the Hollows were released into the training zone.

The instructors would be observing from afar, scoring each team not only on kills, but on efficiency, teamwork, use of Quincy powers, and any number of other factors they deemed important.

They also wouldn’t be interfering if any team or individual got in trouble. It was sink or swim, do or die. Real battle wouldn’t have do overs, so neither did the Quincy Academy’s intense training. Twilight gulped, sweat dotting her brow. While facing humans with guns had been frightening in its own way, she’d found that with even her less than refined high speed movement it wasn’t too hard to avoid being hit against people with regular reflexes. Granted she hadn’t hit any humans either, too afraid of a repeat of the accident with Lemon Zest, and had let her team do all the take downs against the human troops... but against Hollows? She could afford to take some risks, there, at least.

Still, I wish I had more time to learn how to control my powers. I don’t want to hurt anyone. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt.

She took a deep breath, trying to steady her mind. She had to tackle this calmly and with a analytical mind. If she let her emotions get the better of her...

Her thoughts were broken by the distinct howl of Hollow, a haunting sound that seemed to cut across the forest like a lonely, chill wind. Twilight stirred, and the girls around her all readied their bows. Sour Sweet, a few branches down, shifted as she steadied the aim of her "bow", which looked more like a large crossbow with a long stock and a mounted scope. Her yellow skin clashed against the greenery of forest, and she kept her dark pink and teal striped head of hair tied back in a long ponytail.

“Do try to not get killed anyone...” Sour Sweet said, then breathed as an aside, “...of course if you do that just means more points for me.”

“We’re on a team, deary,” said Sunny Flare, smirking as she glanced sidelong at Sour Sweet, “We’re being scored as one. Try to remember that.” As she spoke the young lady gave a small flourishing twirl to her own weapons, which looked to Twilight like a pair of silver plated dart guns, although she knew from seeing them in action that they fired small, rapid fire Quincy bolts. Aside from the girls primp and proper straight, and short cut purple and light pink striped hair she had a remarkably similar look to Rainbow Dash, with the same sky blue skin and near magenta eyes.

“Everyone quiet,” said Sugarcoat with narrowed eyes, her own plain, pearl white and compact bow already blazing with a blue reishi string and intense, spike shaped arrow, “They’re coming.”

They all went still and quiet as blades of grass in a graveyard, for indeed the Hollows were coming. Twilight could see them through the few open areas in the treeline, like living shadows flickering through the forest gloom. Dozens, maybe hundreds. In the distance she heard the howls rise like a tide, and felt the spiking spiritual pressures as other teams of Quincy trainees started to engage the Hollows from their own hiding places.

There was no specific signal among the girls, only a mutual nod between them and an understanding when it was time to fire. Twilight tried to match her timing to theirs, but was a shade behind when they all let their first volley of arrows loose. The blazing blue bolts of reishi slammed into the first Hollows that had emerged into the clearing of tall grass, and just like that the ambush was over and the battle for survival had begun.

Episode 34: Flashpoint

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Episode 34: Flashpoint

“Here, wear these over your clothes,” said Ditzy, having gone into some bushes by a small cluster of trees not far from the edge of the hill they’d landed on. She pulled out a set of heavy looking brown cloaks and gave one to each of the girls, aside from Sunset and Clover. Rarity looked at the drab, plain cloaks with a wrinkle of her nose.

“Why, pray tell, must we put on these... accessories?” the disgust in her town suggested she felt the term entirely inappropriate and too generous for the heavy brown cloaks.

Ditzy smirked, “Your sense of fashion is keen, Rarity, but you lot stick out like a blazing torch dressed like that. That’ll be fine once the party starts, but while we’re still trying to keep a low profile its best any of you who don’t look like Soul Reapers wear something a bit more subdued. Don’t worry, it won’t take us long to reach the safehouse, so you won’t have to let your fashion sensibilities suffer for long.”

Rarity sighed, throwing the cloak on over her outfit, “I suppose necessity at times must dictate heavy sacrifices. Still, you could have chosen a better color than brown. Something in a warm summer tone, perhaps?”

Sunset coughed, putting a hand on Rarity’s shoulder, “I’m sure the next time we sneak into the afterlife we’ll prepare more fashionable disguises.”

As the rest of the girls threw on their cloaks, Clover turned to Ditzy with a considering gaze locked on the distant sight of Soul Society, “Even with those cloaks we’re going to draw attention. No doubt the Second Division has eyes on anyone entering Soul Society’s borders. How are we going to avoid being spotted?”

“Would any jerks keeping watch even recognize us?” asked Rainbow Dash, “I mean, I guess it’d make sense for the higher ups to know all about us, but would the average Soul Reaper have gotten descriptions of what we look like?”

Clover’s expression turned ponderous for a moment, “Given how unlikely it is that any of you would actually come here, possibly not, but even so its a risk. Besides, my face is surely known, and Ditzy Doo’s as well.”

“Don’t you fret Clover,” said Ditzy with a confident smile, “We’re going to where there’s very little chance of Soul Reapers keeping watch. We’ll be hitting up District Seventy Eight.”

Clover’s eyes shot wide, “The Hanging Dog District!? Are you insane!? That’s nearly the worst District in all the Rukongai! Its utterly lawless, and filled with the worst kind of thugs and criminals! The only reason its not as bad as the Zaraki District is because at least the criminals in Hanging Dog usually just want to steal practical things like clothes, rather than just kill you! Why even bother with the cloaks? We’ll have to fend off a small army of hooligans just to walk down the street, and that will get someone’s notice even if Soul Reapers don’t often patrol those streets.”

Ditzy raised a placating hand, laughing off Clover’s worries, “I said don’t fret. Any of the local flavor that decides to say hello to us won’t last long enough to cause the kind of ruckus that’ll draw any unfriendly eyes. Right girls?”

In response Sunset’s friends all responded a bit differently. Rainbow Dash cracked a flashy, madcap grin, “Might make for a good warm up.”

Fluttershy was largely still, not visibly nervous, but rather carrying a calm if reserved air as she nodded, “If we must, but let’s try not to hurt anyone too badly.”

“Ain’t nobody gettin’ in our way fer long,” Applejack said, pounding a gloved fist into an open palm, “I ain’t stoppin’ ‘till I find my ma.”

Rarity flipped some stray hair from her face, sighing, “Educating some local ruffians on proper etiquette will be a pleasure, if it becomes necessary, but I’d just as soon save our strength for more important matters.”

“Maybe all the grumpy gusses in town will ease up their nasty attitudes if we offer them something tasty?” suggested Pinkie Pie, then glanced up as if looking into her own head, “Uh, no Mina, I didn’t mean they would be tasty. I’ll get you something to eat soon, though, okay?”

Sunset gave a dry chuckle, shaking her head at her friends, “Kind of feel sorry for anyone who tries to get in our way. Still, Ditzy, we’d better get going shouldn’t we? We’re kind of exposed out here.”

Clover still didn’t look entirely convinced, but reading the mood of the group she hung her head and sighed, “I suppose if the gangs in District Seventy Eight get their noses bloodied badly enough we won’t have much else to worry about. Still, this just feels like asking for trouble.”

“We’re here to quite possibly battle some of the most powerful Soul Reapers in the Soul Society, Clover. I think ‘asking for trouble’ is a line we’ve long since crossed over,” Sunset said, somehow managing a smile that was at once reassuring and cocky at the same time. She couldn’t really help herself. Nervous as she was, now that she was here, and the task was underway, all Sunset could focus on was what was in front of her. There was zero thought of turning back. Indeed there was a glowing sphere of heat inside her that burned eagerly to get down to business.

Ditzy Doo didn’t waste any more time, and led them away from the hill on a quick trek to what Sunset guessed was in an easterly direction. There was a sun in the sky, which brought all manner of questions to Sunset’s mind, including if it rose and set in the same east to west direction the one in the human world did. Was it a ball of gas, like in the human world as well? Or was it a smaller sphere of concentrated, primordial magic fire like it was in Equestria? Or was this sun its own unique spirit construct?

She was tempted to ask Clover, but thought better of promoting too much idle chatter, although she was sure Clover would probably enjoy the distract from her worries. It occurred to Sunset this might be harder on Clover than it was on any of the rest of them. Soul Society was Clover’s home, after all. The people they might be fighting soon were comrades to Clover, some of them might even be friends. There had to be a lot going through the Soul Reaper’s mind.

Following the edge of the massive city’s border, the nature of the buildings gradually changed. The further east they went the less ordered and clean the buildings looked and the more sprawling and ramshackle they became, until there was a huge slum of dilapidated buildings consisting of countless styles and makes form across dozens of time periods, all boiling out of the city limits like some overflowing cauldron. This district was easily twice the size of any of the others, and extended outward from the normal relatively even circular curve of the city limits like it was a dripping stain across the land. Before long Sunset and the girls found themselves walking muddy, dirty streets between dank wooden buildings.

Both the buildings and the streets were filled with people. Sunset was immediately taken aback by just how many people crowded the twisting pathways of what was essentially one, massive slum. They came in all varieties, from folk wearing the tattered remains of waistcoats and dresses of clear Victorian era design or even older, to men and women in tattered togas or even thick, matted clothing made from animal hide. People of all ages and ethnicity were present, many moving about with distrustful and wary gazes at one another, an especially the strangers in their midst. The smell was also overpowering, like a hazy mist of compressed humanity. Sunset faltered in her step as she noticed dark alleyways where even more people huddled under cloth awnings or inside makeshift shelters.

“Clover, what is this?” she found herself asking, “Why are there so many people here, and in such... living conditions?”

Clover’s face was one of resigned, crestfallen regret as she said, “Its just what happens when there’s too many souls to look after and not enough Soul Reapers to keep order.”

“The hay is that supposed ta mean!?” snapped Applejack, her face a barely controlled mask of rage. “Look at these folk!”

“Gotta admit, this place is kind of a dump,” said Rainbow Dash, frowning and keeping watch with a wary, on guard gaze.

Fluttershy wore a pained look that looked forced to a difficult level of calm, belied by her trembling hands. “I don’t understand, Miss Clover. Shouldn’t the Soul Society be taking care of these poor souls?”

“You’re right,” Clover said, heaving a sigh, “But its not a simple matter. We-”

“Don’t have time for getting into it now,” said Ditzy flatly, turning sympathetic but hard eyes towards the girls as she looked over her shoulder at them, “I know this isn’t pleasant to see, but save the questions until we’re at the safehouse. For now, just keep an eye out for trouble and walk fast.”

Sunset could see why Ditzy wanted them to pick up the pace. Whispers followed the group as they walked down the dirty streets, the residents of District Seventy Eight eyeing them with suspicious and unfriendly eyes. Sunset saw more than a few people run off hurriedly, perhaps to spread word to others of the group of odd strangers walking the streets.

Pinkie Pie must have sensed something as well, because she’d remained quiet up until then, occasionally twitching in various ways and her baby blue eyes etched with growing worry. Then she got a particularly large tremor in her left leg that ran all the way up her spine, and Pinkie Pie said, “Uh-oh, I think we have a welcoming committee waiting for us a few streets down, and they don’t have any cake for us. Unless its a cake made out of sharp objects and bad attitude.”

Her prediction proved, as usual, to be true. Just a few blocks deeper into the district Ditzy lead them around a street corner only to find the way blocked by a wall of some of the most rough and unpleasant individuals Sunset had ever lain eyes on. It was like a small army of every single bandit and/or thug stereotype from every era of human history, all armed from head to toe in their own culture or era specific manner. Sunset saw flintlock and cutlass totting pirate types rubbing shoulders with bow wielding fellows who looked like they’d fit in just fine with a Mongol horde. A set of men in dirty but still somehow stylish suits and fedoras with tommy guns filled one alleyway while across the street a trio of huge men in outright Viking gear bore axes and swords as tall as Sunset was. And of course there were those thugs whose grimy kimonos and katana may well have stepped right out of a Japanese period drama.

Probing the horde of thugs with her spiritual senses Sunset realized that few, if any of these men (and a few equally thuggish looking women) had much reiatsu to speak of. Their weapons were made of reishi, but then again so was everything else in the spirit realm, but not a single weapon, including the katna present, were Zanpakto. They were just objects made of spirit particles that resembled their real world counterparts. The thugs themselves might be strong, vicious, and skilled, but lacked any real spirit power.

Still, they outnumbered the girls about five to one, so Sunset wasn’t about to take this casually.

Rainbow Dash, on the other hand...

“Whoa, nice of you guys to roll out the red carpet for us,” said Rainbow Dash with a dazzling and smug smile as she stepped ahead of the group, already cracking her knuckles, “You really shouldn’t have.”

Applejack sighed and put a hand on her stetson as she walked forward as well, “Dash, you’d better not be planin’ ta tackle these fellas by yerself.”

“Um, could we at least ask them if they’d let us pass nicely first?” asked Fluttershy, “You know, before the violence?”

Clover exchanged a look with Sunset, and then called out to the thugs in a loud, authoritative voice, “By what right do you bar the passage of duly appointed Soul Reapers of the Gotei 13?”

Sunset found herself inwardly shrugging, figuring she’d let Clover give diplomacy a try, on the off chance it might actually work. It didn’t take her long to see it wouldn’t as one of the thugs stepped from the crowd, apparently the self appointed leader. He was a bruiser of a man, easily topping seven feet, and definitely looked to be of Japanese descent by his style of dress and dark hair. Instead of a katana, however, he carried a huge wooden club with metal studs that Sunset recognized from her foreign cultures studies as a tetsubo.

The man peeled back his lips in a smiling sneer, “Let you pass you say? Sorry ladies, but this is our turf your walking through and we ain’t-”

He was interrupted as Rainbow Dash, completely ignoring his imposing presence, turned to Applejack and started complaining, “Aw c’mon AJ! Let me take these guys alone! Please!? I wanna give my Fullbring a decent workout and see how fast I can take them down.”

“This ain’t a game Dash,” growled Applejack, pointing a finger at the lead thug without actually looking at him, which caused the thug to pop an angered vein on his forehead, “These jerks may be weak as a’ newborn calf but they could still hurt ya if ya dropped yer guard!”

“Now listen here you little-” the thug started trying to say but Rainbow Dash cut him off, snorting and giving Applejack an idle hand wave.

“Pfft, yeah right, like I’d ever let a bunch of two-bit mooks get the drop on me so easily. Give me some credit AJ! Besides, this is like the perfect chance to strut my stuff!”

“Grr, that ain’t the point Dash!” shouted Applejack, “We’re supposed ta be keepin’ a low profile, an yer Fullbring is anything but low profile! Better ta let Fluttershy take ‘em all down at once.”

“Oh, um, if... if you really want me to,” Fluttershy said, but the lead thug, whose face had turned absolutely beet red and gained several extra veins of throbbing rage, lifted his testsubo in both thick hands and roared.

“Stop ignoring me!”

He slammed the tetsubo down, straight at Rainbow Dash’s head. Just before the weapon smashed into the girl’s cranium, Rainbow Dash grinned broadly, and there was a blinding flash of incandescent cobalt light as a bolt of lightning seemed to strike down from the sky itself and strike her. The flare of blue light grew even brighter, and all the thugs took a step back in shock, many covering their eyes at the eye burning white and blue light that filled the street.

Sunset found herself smiling, despite also shaking her head, “Looks like Dash is going to do things her way.”

“Damn straight I am.”

Rainbow Dash’s voice was pure assured confidence as the light faded, revealing her form. She was holding the huge lead thug’s tetsubo at bay with one, sparking finger. Lightning danced over every inch of her body now, but most all the six wings that now spread from her back. Two remained the shining silver metal as before, but were easily half again as large as their previous incarnation. The other four wings, one pair above and another pair below the metallic ones, were forged seemingly from solidified electricity. Indigo energy took the shape of tendons and feathers in a crackling mass of raw lightning given physical form. The electricity all but dripped off Rainbow Dash like wet raindrops, and sparked along the ground. Even Applejack took a step back, but mostly because she knew what was coming.

“T-the hell is this!?” the lead thug started to jabber, but that was about all he managed to get out before Rainbow Dash vanished in a blast of thunder, and a glowing blue fist collided with his chin at super sonic speed and catapulted him through the nearest house.

Rainbow Dash, now airborne, cracked a huge smile and turned her burning magenta eyes towards the rest of the thugs. “Okay boys and girls, give me a countdown!”

She vanished again, nearly creating a sonic boom with her speed, and suddenly there was nothing but an electric blue streak patterned with rainbow after-lights that moved among the gathered thugs in a dizzying pattern. Sunset could barely follow Rainbow Dash’s movements, which may well have surpassed her own Flash Step, as she struck the thugs again and again, launching dozens of attacks in mere seconds... seconds Rainbow Dash counted down herself.”

“Ten... nine... eight...” a dozen thugs were already down, smashed through walls or thrown across the street by flashing punches and kicks of lightning charged fists and feet.

“Seven... six... five...” a few tried fighting back, firing arrows or guns, or slashing wildly with hand held weapons, but they caught nothing but air as their faces were rapidly introduced to Rainbow Dash’s fists.

“Four... three... wait, is it over?” Rainbow Dash asked as she abruptly halted her insanely fast assault to halt in mid-air, surveying the street around her. In less than ten seconds she’d utterly mopped the floor with the entire gang of thugs that had confronted the girls. Not a single one was still standing, the few that were still conscious left groaning in heaps in the street or smashed halfway through nearby walls.

Rainbow Dash laughed, scratching the back of her head, “Huh, thought that’d have taken longer. Oh well, I rock!”

Ditzy Doo looked at the carnage with an appreciative nod, “About what I expected. You girls have gone well beyond the point where opponents like these would be much of a challenge. That light show probably turned some heads, however, so let’s move along before somebody decides to take a peek.”

Applejack put a hand to her forehead, saying, “That’s what I was sayin’ Fluttershy ought’ve dealt wit ‘em. We coulda gone on by without makin’ a holy mess o’ things and telegraphin’ where we are ta anyone an’ everyone in a ten mile radius!”

“Aww knock it off AJ, it ain’t that big a deal,” Rainbow Dash said as she landed and deactivated her Fullbring. “Even if Flutters did her thing, it wouldn’t have been any faster than me doing it the hard and fun way.”

“We’re far enough away from the Seireitei that even reitasu releases like that wouldn't trigger any early warning systems,” said Clover, “But its possible a patrol might have seen the distant lightning. Moving more swiftly to this so-called safehouse seems prudent.”

“Well, while it was a rather vulgar and direct display, I must confess it was effective, and elegant in its own way,” said Rairty, while Pinkie Pie eyed the fallen thugs with a wincing expression.

“Yikes, I don’t envy any of their headaches when they wake up.”

The girls moved along quickly from the scent of the “fight”, stepping over bodies as they went. Sunset shared Pinkie Pie’s sentiments, not at all envious of the beatdown those poor thugs had just endured. At least Rainbow Dash had held back enough to keep from killing anyone. Probably.

Rainbow Dash’s display had certainly left an impact on the locals, as rather suddenly the crowded streets became nearly empty as people cleared the way in front of the girls. There certainly wasn’t any further attempt to bar their way by any local gangs. Before long they found themselves nearing what looked to be a dead end, a spot in the mud strewn road that led to a large circular turnabout that didn’t have any way out of it beyond the thickly clustered buildings, including one in particular that stood out starkly amid the others.

Sunset blinked at the building, “Is this the safehouse?”

Ditzy nodded, a content and happy smile on her face, “That’s the place. He certainly hasn’t changed his style much. No subtly, that guy, I swear. Let’s give a knock, see if he’s home.”

The building in question was a two story house of stone foundation and brick walls, with a steeply slopped roof that reminded Sunset of a coo-coo clock. In fact, clocks were something of a motif for the house, as it had a large one mounted on its roof, and had several tall hour glasses acting as the cornerstone of the walls. Smaller clocks of countless varieties hung from the outer walls, and even a full standing grandfather clock flanked the front doors.

Rarity looked about at the house with a quirked eyebrow, “Well this is certainly a... charming abode. Whoever lives here?”

“An old, old friend of mine and Discy, who has been our contact in Soul Society ever since we went into exile. He’s-” Ditzy was still talking as she raised a hand to open the door, but it flung open inwards before she got the first rap on the door out, and a voice called from within.

“Ahah! I knew you’d be here, and only twenty eight seconds earlier than expected! Come in! Come in! Don’t mind the mess! Just don’t touch anything. At least, nothing that’s sparking, fizzing, blinking, or otherwise... well, just don’t touch things. That is you, right Ditzy?”

Ditzy chuckled, shaking her head and walking inside, with Sunset and the other girls following in bemusement.

“Yeah, Doctor, its me.”

----------

“What do we do? The Eleventh Division is mobilizing to full combat status and if what I heard from the rumor-mill is true they’re getting ready to move on the Thirteenth Divisions barracks!”

Radiant Hope sounded near ready to burst at the seams with agitation, and Meadowbrook wouldn’t be surprised to see her crawling up the walls with all the nervous energy bound up in the young Fifth Division Lieutenant. Radiant Hope was pacing back and forth on the short balcony they’d chosen to meet on, one that was situated on one of the towers overlooking the south side of the Gotei 13’s headquarters.

“We can’t do anything about that,” Meadowbrook said simply, “We’ve zero authority over Divisions outside our own, so if the Eleventh butts heads with the Thirteenth all we can do is stand by and watch, unless we receive orders to the contrary. We need evidence, hard evidence, of suspicious activity to take to the Captains. That means waiting until Moondancer finishes her search for whoever took that book.”

“I can’t accept that!” Radiant Hope nearly shouted, turning a fierce glare towards the distant cluster of buildings south that was built around a sizable lake and forested area within the Serietei’s borders. The Thirteenth Division was relatively small compared to some of the others, and didn’t require much space, so the number of buildings out there was less than a dozen, mostly hidden by the trees. It wasn’t a very defensible position, if the Eleventh Division actually did decide to lay siege to it.

Meadowbrook sighed, wishing he had the authority and strength to give Captain Hurricane a smack upside the head. Ever since the results of the “trial” were made public the Eleventh Division Captain had been on the warpath, putting his entire Division into a state of combat readiness and maximum patrol of the Seireitei. Unfortunately the Captain Commander couldn’t order Hurricane to stand down, because both Luna and Celestia’s Divisions were giving Hurricane plenty of justifiable reasons for his actions. The Thirteenth Division had gathered all of its members at their barracks, fully armed, and rumors spoke of their intentions to rescue their Captain by force before the execution.

To make matters worse the Second Division was split right down the middle between those loyal to the law of the Central 46, and those loyal to Luna. The ones devoted to their Captain had done the opposite of the Thirteenth Division, all but vanishing into the night and no one, not even their own Second Division comrades, knew where they were now. Given the Second Division’s role as part of the Stealth Corps, there was plenty of justifiable fear that those who’d vanished were now hiding in wait for a chance to also try and rescue the two condemned Captains.

And it certainly wasn’t as if the other Divisions weren’t also feeling the strain of the situation, as evidenced by Radiant Hope herself.

“I have to do something,” Radiant Hope said, breathing heavily, “I know many of my fellow officers in the Fifth Division will back Captain Amore if she chose to take a stand! We should go to the aid of the Thirteenth Division! The Eleventh might back down if they saw us standing with the Thirteenth as a united front!”

“Or,” said Meadowbrook, “It’ll trigger the kind of civil war we’re trying to avoid. Have patience, Radiant. We’re not at the flashpoint yet. We need to hold out and find something concrete to take before the Captain Commander. Only he can diffuse this mess and maybe convince the Central 46 to reconsider their judgement. But we have to show him proof this whole situation was engineered.”

Radiant Hope eyed him, still looking far from calm, “And if we can’t? What then? What will the Twelfth Division do? Will Captain Starswirl side with us, or with them?”

“Us? Them?” Meadowbrook just stared at her, “Radiant Hope, you’re talking like the Gotei 13 has already split apart. We can’t afford to start thinking of our fellow Soul Reapers as ‘them’. We are all comrades.”

“Sure, until we start executing our own! Meadowbrook, you have the face the possibility that there isn’t going to be a way to stop what’s coming!” Radiant Hope said sharply, pain filling her voice. “I hate to say that, but its the truth. If Moondancer doesn’t find anything, if we can’t find anything, then I’m not standing aside and watching Celestia and Luna be executed.”

Her hand slipped to the hilt of her Zanpaktou, gripping it tightly, her voice heated, “I’ll fight, even against our fellow Soul Reapers, if it comes to that.”

She looked up at him, fire in her eyes, “Even against you.”

He took in a sharp breath and let it out slowly, holing up a hand, “Whoa, slow it down Radiant. I never said that if it came to a fight that I’d try to stop you from rescuing the Captains. I’m just trying to tell you to calm down. If you go off half cocked you’re just going to make things worse. Have. Patience.”

Her eyes bored into him like two glowing hot jewels, and with a pained grimace she took her hand off her Zanpaktou, but she also started to stalk past him, “I don’t know how much more patience I can spare. I can’t stand this, Meadowbrook. I just can’t stand not doing anything. I’m going to the Thirteenth Division.”

“Without Captain Amore’s permission?” he asked, which caused Radiant Hope to pause.

“I... I’ll request permission from the Captain, of course. I know she’ll understand.”

“Just promise me you won’t make any rash moves, okay?” said Meadwobrook, wondering why he kept ending up in these kind of situations. Whether it was Radiant Hope’s unending passion for causes or Clover’s unrelenting curiosity for mysteries, it seemed he kept having to keep an eye on these young women who liked to get into trouble.

Radiant Hope turned a glance towards him, and at least a bit of her anger seemed to simmer down a few degrees as she managed to tiny smile, “Even if I did, would you trust me to keep that promise?”

Meadwobrook shook his head, “Not really, but it might give me a little piece of mind.”

“Alright, I promise not to do anything rash. Until I’m given a good reason to,” Radiant Hope said, then her expression turned thoughtful, “Have you heard anything from Redheart since our last meeting?”

“No. The last I saw her, she was sticking around the Fourth Division barracks, preparing for whatever crisis arises,” said Meadowbrook, “In any case, I’m going to go check on Moondancer’s progress.”

----------

Sunset wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this “Doctor” fellow, given what she’d seen of the outside of his home, but she found herself... oddly comfortable in the surroundings she now found herself.

The room was a lot larger on the inside than she would have expected from the house’s exterior, but then again this was an associate of Discord whose humble candy shop hid a giant underground training field in its basement. It was like one huge mashup of a workshop and laboratory, with machinery and gizmos littering tables shoved up against the walls, cluttering shelves, and even hanging from baskets nailed to the ceiling. Energy snapped and sparked along diodes and coils in one corner of the room, while another strange device like a cross between a barrel and a locomotive engine billowed steam across the floorboards. The whole room smelled of chemicals and burnt hair.

Orchestrating this chaos was a man wearing a brown overcoat a few shades darker than his own light brown skin, along with similarly colored slacks. A mess of brown hair topped his head and bright, if somewhat manic, blue eyes greeted the girls warmly as they entered the house. The man was literally elbows deep in a strange contraption on one of his workbenches, but he turned from it, leaving the machine a mass of wires and gears as he smiled widely at his guests.

“Well look at all of you! Live humans walking around the Rukongai and blending in like lit firecrackers at a funeral! Come in, come in, get comfy. And Ditzy, you’re a vision, like always. How’s the old homestead? The little tike?”

Sunset looked on with interest as Ditzy went up and gave the man a rather long and tight hug, and a far from platonic kiss to the cheek that caused Sunset to blush a bit before Ditzy switched it up to booping the man on the nose and saying, “Derpy is fine. And not so little anymore, given she's about to graduate high school. I keep telling you to come visit, you goof.”

The man coughed in embarrassment, tugging at his collar with one finger while looking away awkwardly, “Next chance I get, but, you know, so easy to lose track of time rather than finding it.”

He quickly stepped back from Ditzy and composed himself, straightening the simple red tie he wore, turning to address the girls, “Now I presume you young ladies are interested in finding a nice, safe, quiet way to get inside the Seireitei?”

“That’s right,” said Sunset, “But before that, how about an introduction? You already know who we are, but who are you, exactly?”

The man snapped his fingers, nodding, “Right! Right, names. Names are important, and I already know all of yours. Well, Ditzy loves to call me Doctor, for a variety of reasons I really don’t feel comfortable getting into with people I’ve just met, so we’ll go with my ‘official’ name in the Soul Society’s records. Time Turner. Yes, that fits quite well for now. So, yes, um, Time Turner at your service.”

“I’m still going to call you Doctor,” said Ditzy.

“Um, why’s that?” asked Rainbow Dash, to which Ditzy just smiled, slid up to the girl, and whispered something in Rainbow Dash’s ear that instantly turned the girl’s blue skin to flushing scarlet, eyes popping wide. At Ditzy’s ensuing giggles Time Turning turned an exasperated look at her.

“Whatever she’s telling you is probably exaggerated lies, I promise,” he said, “Ditzy, please, try not to tease them so much. They don’t need to know our personal business.”

“But you two are... uh, familiar with each other?” asked Sunset, unable to help her curiosity.

“Well, yes,” Time Turner replied reluctantly, “Myself, Ditzy, and Discord are childhood friends of a sort. Discord and myself grew up in this District, and Ditzy, well, I suppose you could say she enjoyed ‘slumming it’ despite being from a noble family. I’ve basically known her my whole life.”

“Aww, that’s the boring PG way of describing it,” Ditzy said with a wicked smile, and Time Turner gave her a breif glare.

“I don’t air personal things in front of strangers, luv. Besides, don’t we have rather significantly more important matters to focus on right now?”

Ditzy sighed, arms crossing under her prodigious bosom, and nodded, “Fine, fine. Spoilsport. You got the path for us?”

“More or less,” Time Turner said, all but skipping towards another workbench across the room with a far lighter air about him now as he pulled a plain green tarp off an object assembled there, “I haven’t tested it out yet, but in theory this will work just fine for bypassing the barrier around Seireitei and getting yourselves inside without being detected.”

The object, or rather objects, under the tarp consisted of eight brass metal spheres, each about the size of a volleyball. As Time Turner unveiled them, Pinkie Pie was almost immediately peering over the objects and poking at them.

“They’re shiny. What do we do with them? Oh, do they turn into nifty rocket gliders that will let us fly over the wall?”

“What? No! Um,” Time Turner paused, scratching his chin and looking thoughtful, “Although that would be rather amazing. Do I already have something like that? Bah, never mind. These spheres are what I call Reishi Modulators.”

Pinkie Pie’s eyes glazed over somewhat, but Time Turner seemed to notice that at least Sunset and the others were paying attention, so he coughed politely and went on, “You see, Seireitei, that is the area of Soul Society that is the home of the Soul Reapers, the four noble houses, and the Central 46 is protected by several layers of defense. The first is a physical barrier. A wall of dense reishi stone that detects unauthorized trespassers and instantly shuts to cut them off from the interior. There are four gates into the Seireitei, each at a cardinal point, and each protected by a guardian of substantial strength. Rather than brute force through one of those gates, these Reishi Modulators will let you bypass the first layer of defense.”

He picked up one of the spheres with a single hand, indicating to Sunset that he was either rather strong or the spheres didn’t weigh as much as they looked like they did. He held the sphere before him, and in moments Sunset sensed Time Turner’s reiatsu rise upwards, a white aura surrounding him which then poured into the sphere.

“If you concentrate your reishi inside the sphere, it takes that reishi and then alters its signature to a different, pre-calibrated modulation. In the case of these spheres they’re designed to output a new reishi signature that the detection system in the outer wall will see as friendly and allow you to pass without trouble.”

“Awesome sauce,” said Rainbow Dash, swiping a sphere herself and holding it between both her hands. After a second of concentrated starring at it she paused, a small drop of sweat on her forehead, and said, “Uh, dude, its not doing anything.”

Time Turner scratched his head and said, “They’re kind of delicate, Miss... um, Rainbow Dash, right? Yes, you can’t just shove reishi in them, full speed. You have to give it just the right amount, and keep that stream going at a steady pace. It takes some practice. I was intending you girls to stay the night here and get that practice, before attempting to do this for real.”

Rainbow Dash grimaced impatiently, eyeing the sphere, “Well what are we waiting for? Let’s get practicing!”

“Hold up, Rainbow,” said Sunset, “We’re not in an immediate rush, so let’s take our time and hear what else Time Turner has to say. I imagine we’ve got a lot to go over, not just how we’re getting inside Seireitei, but how we’re going to go about things once we’re in.”

“Indeedy,” said Time Turner, nodding enthusiastically, “Its no simple thing you girls plan to do, rescuing imprisoned Captains and all that. There’s a second barrier, another layer of defense, that’s invisible but even more potent than the wall. The ultimate warding Kido protects Seireitei from multiple forms of infiltration. It blocks inter-dimensional gateways such as the Hollow’s Garganta, and it prevents physical access by destroying any spirit bodies passing through it without a pass for the ward. However this ward does have a chink in the armor.”

“Small thermal exhaust port, by chance?” asked Rarity, and as everyone, including Sunset, turned to stare at her, Rarity thrust her chin out a bit and said defensive, “What? I can’t make reference on occasion?”

“Just surprised at what you’re referencing,” said Sunset, grinning, “I didn’t take you for the sci-fi aficionado.”

“I’m not, but I do enjoy good art in all its forms, and the original trilogy is considered classic for perfectly valid artistic reasons,” said Rarity, clearing her throat and then gesturing to Time Turner, “Do please go on, Mr. Time Turner.”

“Ahem, yes, right, as I was saying there is a weak spot in the ward that can be exploited,” Time Turner said while going to another table, this one containing a uneven heap of random papers and scrolls. He knocked over about half of it without a care while snatching up one large rolled up scroll that he unfurled to display to the girls. It was a map, showing a complex maze of tunnels and chambers that looked to Sunset like a-

“Those are sewers,” she said bluntly, blinking, “You’re going to have us go in through a sewer system.”

“Why, yes. Well, sort of,” he said, “These tunnels are technically sewers, although they have functions beyond disposing of waste. The ward itself is so large that the amount of spirit energy it generates requires a huge lattice-work to act as the frame to sustain it. That’s what these tunnels actually are. The sewer aspect is just a secondary function. There's an entrance to these sewers just beyond the first wall that you'll bypass with the Reishi Modulators. It's locked, but that shouldn't be a problem for Ditzy. At any rate, because the ward does have to allow sewage to pass in and out its possible to hide one’s own reiatsu signature in the sewer water and swim past the ward without activating it.”

Rarity looked absolutely disgusted and gulped, “A-are you saying we have to... you’re not serious? We’re swimming through... oh my...”

She started fanning herself and Pinkie Pie grimaced, “Uh-oh, where’s a fainting couch when you need one?”

Applejack went up and put a bracing hand on Rarity’s shoulder, “Take it easy there huh, deep breaths. It won’t be so bad I’m thinkin’. How much waste can a fancy smanchy lookin’ place like Seireitei even make? Water’ll probably be cleaner than some folk’s tap water.”

Rarity looked a tad green around the gills, but nodded, taking deep breaths, “Yes, let us hope so. Ugh, you girls are lucky we’re friends. The things I go through to see to it you’re all looked after, really.”

“Umm...” Fluttershy raised her hand, shifting uncomfortably on her feet, “M-may I ask a question?”

“Of course! Of course! Ask away!” said Time Turner, perhaps too eagerly.

“Well, um, it just seems like such a... glaring weakness in that ward, kind of like that, uh, exhaust port thing from that movie Rarity mentioned. Don’t the Soul Reapers know about it?”

“Oooh, quite right, and very sharp of you to point it out Miss Fluttershy,” said Time Turner with a happy grin, “I was just getting to that bit. The Gotei 13 are well aware of this weakness in their ward, and so each point the water crosses it in the sewers has automated guard constructs, courtesy of the Twelfth Division. You’ll have to destroy them quickly, before they can raise an alarm, then swim by the ward. Difficult, but not impossible for young ladies of your talents.”

“Honestly you can probably leave that part to me,” said Ditzy, “I’m still the fastest one here and can take those things out in a flash.”

“Assuming I don’t get them first,” said Rainbow Dash with a wink, to which Ditzy shared a competitive grin with the girl. Sunset smiled at the sight, but focused on Time Turner.

“Alright, so assuming that all goes well, what then? Can we get to where they’re holding Celestia and Luna via the sewers?”

“Unfortunately not. The sewers don’t have any convenient exits close to the towers they’ll likely be holding the Captains in. In fact, it’d be hard to use the sewers to even get close to the Gotei 13’s headquarters, because there are even more guard constructs occupying the tunnels beneath the fortress itself, too many for you girls to take out without an alarm being raised, even with Ditzy helping you.”

He pointed to a location on the map, where three tunnels intersected in a triangular shaped room, “You’re best bet is to come up here. This exits to a storeroom beneath the Thirteenth Division’s barracks. My sources indicate the Thirteenth Division is mobilizing under Third Seat Inkwell, and they may well already be preparing to try to rescue the Captains by force. Now I’m not sure if you could convince them to help you or not, but if you could sneak out of the barracks then you’ll find yourself in a forested area with plenty of cover. From there you could try to get to the prisoner towers on your own, but honestly at that point this is more or less where my contributions to this plan end and you girls will have to figure things out on your own. Improvise, follow your instincts, whatever it is you’ll have to do.”

“There’s no telling just what the situation will be when we get inside the Seireitei,” said Ditzy, “I know the place well, and can guide us to the prison towers easily enough. It’ll just be a matter of using stealth as best we can, or getting involved in the fighting if this powder keg of a situation lights up before we get there.”

“We’d better get practicing with these, then,” said Sunset, pointing at the spheres, at which point her stomach decided to issue its own plans by gurgling loudly. Sunset cleared her throat, “But first I don’t suppose you have anything to eat?”

“Certainly! No point trying to do anything on empty stomachs. Come on, ladies, right this way!” Time Turner strode across the room towards a back door leading deeper into the house, “Kitchen is this way. I don’t claim to be a brilliant cook but I can certainly avoid poisoning any of you. I think.”

“Well, that’s encouragin’,”said Applejack with a shrug. Rainbow Dash elbowed her.

“Aw stop being a wet blanket. So far this is all going pretty dang smooth.”

----------

There was a palpable feeling of bloodlust in the air as the Arrancar prepared for their raid. Adagio watched as Torch strode among his horde, every inch of his towering frame looking like the picture of a warrior king. She noticed that not all of the horde was mobilizing, perhaps a hand picked group of a dozen being chosen to arm and move out while the rest would remain behind. Among this dozen was the Arrancar who kept giving her annoyed glares, Garble. He seemed to have a small cadre of fellow Arrancar that palled around with him, and Adagio did her best to ignore them while the raiding party got ready to move. Still, only a dozen seemed a small number for such a venture. When she asked Ember why that was the other Hollow gave her a sidelong look.

"If we sent off everyone then some other Espada's horde might move in and take our turf while we're gone. Dad's got to leave a big enough force behind that he'll know our territory will still be ours when we get back. Its not a big deal, Adagio. We're taking out a bunch of Quincy rookies. Even with just a few of us, with my dad present, plus two other Espada, it'll be a slaughter."

Adagio wasn't so certain about that. While she had not seen much of the Quincy in action, they wouldn't still be standing in an ongoing war if they were weak. She wondered if Torch and Ember both weren't underestimating their opposition. Still, it wasn't as if she had much choice but to go along with things for now. If the situation turned sour she could always use a Garganta to make a break for it, although with Grogar's devices still implanted inside her she would have to return to Hueco Mundo one way or another. She was stuck serving him until she found a way to eliminate the bastard.

Torch and his chosen raiding party were gathered at the edge of his horde's camp, and before Adagio could ask just where these other Espada were, the question was answered for her as she felt the wash of heavy and potent reiatsu as a number of figures strode towards them from the inner wall leading to this section of Las Noches. Well, some of them walked. One of them was carried on a palanquin made of draping green silk over a framework of what looked like oversized bones. As the group drew nearer Adagio made out more details. The palanquin was carried by some of the oddest Hollows she'd ever seen. They were short, bushy and trollish creatures covered head to toe in shaggy white fur. Their faces were largely obscured save for glowing red eyes, and the only thing indicating their Hollow nature were the dark holes through their stomachs. There were at least twenty of these bushy Hollows, each about only three feet tall, but they must have had some strength for it only took two of them to carry the palanquin while the others marched alongside it like an honor guard.

The person occupying the palanquin was a female Arrancar who gave Adagio a momentary flash of jealousy, because while Adagio knew she had good looks both by siren and human standards, the dark skinned woman in the palanquin had the kind of figure that caused wars. Her face had a faint feline quality to it, heart shaped and with emerald eyes that all but glowed with smokey promises; of pain or pleasure in equal measure, depending on her mood. Curls of wavy red hair trailed down the woman's back, contrasting with the sheer white clothing she wore, which consisted of loose and flowing silk in a fashion akin to a Greek toga. The remnants of her Hollow mask consisted of fragments around her brow, almost like a broken tiara, and her Hollow hole existed right in the center of her throat. The woman lazily carried a huge metal fan in one hand, with bladed edges, which she used to idly fan herself as the procession approached. She saw Torch and licked her lips, smiling in a way not unlike a cat seeing particularly hyperactive puppy.

"Lord Torch, I see you've got your troops all nice and mustered. How good of you to come meet us for this fine day of eminent blood and violence."

Torch gave her the barest of nods of respect, "Lady Catrina. Still dragging those... critters of yours wherever you go. Are they even going to be useful?"

"Useful?" Catrina laughed, which to Adagio's ears sounded like claws tearing through velvet. She reached over with her free hand and pet one of the bushy Hollows with affection, "My little Bushwollies are more useful than your horde of ravening savages. For one, they're loyal, a trait I find most valuable. Still, we're not here to debate our choice of servants. We're here to make war upon our mutual foes and their little generation of up and coming recruits. Squirk, be a dear and start warming up those Gargantas, would you?"

Standing a good distance to the side of Catrina's palanquin was another Arrancar, this one a man, and a fairly heavyset one at that. His skin was red like the carapace of a lobster, and his head was bald save for a large fringe of white bone that extended to a mask around half of his face like that of a ancient crustacean. He wore tight fitting white clothes, along with a black cape that trailed behind him. Carried in his right hand was a large solid metal harpoon, which he brandished as he glared at Catrina.

"Don't presume to order me around. Third Espada or not, I am not your servant, woman!" Squirk grunted in a low, gurgling tone.

Catrina rolled her eyes and stretched in her seat, and as she did so Adagio noticed some of her toga slip to reveal the etched number three across Catrina's left breast, just along the upper cleavage. So this was the third strongest Arrancar in existence? Even more powerful than Torch? She didn't look that strong, and while the spiritual energy coming off of her was potent, it didn't seem overwhelming to Adagio. Then again, Catrina was probably holding back.

"Oh you can be such an utter bore, Squirk. Tell me, do you wear that ridiculous cloak because you're ashamed of the number nine tattooed on your back, oh lowly Ninth Espada? Really, your pride is more easily wounded than the flesh of a helpless human soul. It still amazes me you reached our esteemed ranks, even with such a low number."

"Why you little tramp! You need me for this raid!" roared Squirk, his power flaring into a coiling blue aura around his body. Adagio could immediately sense his power, and if it hadn't been for Torch's own attempt to crush her with his reiatsu earlier, she would have been more impressed with Squirk. Merely the Ninth Espada or not, he was still an incredibly powerful Hollow, just one step below Grogar, and so far above her it left Adagio mentally gnashing her teeth in anger at how far she had to go before she could match these monsters as an equal.

Torch let out a roar and smashed his axe to the ground, apparently a favorite gesture of his, Adagio was guessing, as he glared at Squirk and Catrina, "I have no patience for your games! Catrina, stop baiting Squirk. Squirk, grow a thicker hide! We have Quincy we could be killing right now, for the glory of Las Noches and Lord Tirek."

Squirk grunted, but backed down, casting Catrina a final death glare, but nodding his bald head, "Yes, yes, the Quincy. About time we found out where they had their Academy hidden, but who would have guessed it would be so close to their main fortress? Is this information reliable?"

"Squirk we've been over this a hundred times," Catrina said, "The Second Espada confirmed the information herself. Why would the information be inaccurate? Unless you want to accuse her of all people of being a traitor? I'm certain Lord Tirek would love to hear such an accusation."

Squirk visibly paled, swallowing, "No, no accusation. Just caution. This raid relies entirely upon surprise to work. Even with the three of us together, we'll be right in the Quincy's back yard. If their Sternritter launch a swift enough counterattack, we'll be rapidly outnumbered."

"My my, is that harpoon of yours made out of your backbone?" asked Catrina, hiding her laughing face with her warfan, "Because it seems like you removed yours."

Torch growled at her warning, then turned to Squirk, "That's why we need you for this raid, Lord Squirk. Your specialty is Gargantas, and your the only Arrancar with the power to create Garganta that don't leave a detectable presence. The Quincy won't sense us coming until we're already among their flock of little sheep, tearing them to shreds, and by the time the mobilize to counterattack the damage will be done and we can fall back to Las Noches with ease. Our strategy is reliant on your power."

This seemed to puff up Squirk's confidence, or more likely his ego, Adagio imagined, and she saw him grin. "Yes, well, of course it does! Now then, is this all our forces?"

Torch nodded, "This is it, my finest warriors, including my own daughter."

This caused both Squirk and Catrina's eyes to look over to Ember, and by extension, Adagio. She froze under the twin gaze of the Espada, and wondered if she should bow her head, or meet their eyes. While one part of her warned for caution, a flare of pride caused her to keep her head straight, and her gaze level. Catrina's eyes narrowed, but a strange smile crossed her features, while Squirk merely glowered.

"What's this low class Adjuchas doing here?" asked Squirk. "Battlefield rations?"

Torch pulled back his lips in a combination of a smile and a snarl, "She is Adagio Dazzle, and I'm testing her for her usefulness to my horde. Its no business of yours."

Squirk snorted, "I'll never understand your obsession with recruiting from the lowly peasant stock, Torch."

"She'd make an adorable pet," said Catrina, running a slim finger across her chin, "Then again, I also enjoy a fine meal of fish. Hmm, if she fails to impress you, Lord Torch, perhaps you'd make a gift of her to me? Pet or food, she'd amuse me I think."

Ember took a defensive step towards Adagio, but Torch just waved his hand dismissively, "Whatever happens will be for after the raid. Now, Lord Squirk, will you open the Gargantas so we may begin?"

In answer, Squirk turned around and raised his left hand, then grasped as if he were clawing at the air. Adagio felt his reiatsu spike upwards as he tore his hand downward, and with a groaning sound not just one, but three Garganta portals opened up simultaneously in the air behind the Espada.

----------

Sunny Flare growled as she flipped away from the slashing pincers of a Hollow that looked like the abominable offspring of a crab and a millipede. Her hands danced in a complex kata of moves with her twin dart throwers, which fired a needling rain of thin reishi projectiles. While each individual needle of slim blue energy didn’t do much damage, they penetrated the Hollow’s touch skin with ease and left dozens of holes stitched through it like wet ink pelted by rain.

However even as that Hollow fell in a vanishing mass of ash, four more took its place and Sunny Flare found herself surrounded. Before the young Quincy could get mobbed, a potent and swift blast of concentrated reishi blew apart the heads of two of the Hollows, giving Sunny Flare enough of an opening to leap away from the other two.

“T-thanks for the save, Sour!” she shouted.

Sour Sweet, standing atop a nearby tree with her huge sniping crossbow braced on one of her knees, smiled kindly, “Why of course Sunny, no problem.” She then rolled her eyes and muttered, “It’d be nice if I had to stop saving your butt, though.”

The Hollows were overrunning the clearing the Quincy trainees had set up their ambush in. Indigo Zapp and Sugarcoat were on the side of the clearing opposite from Sour Sweet, alongside Twilight, the three girls having set up a firing line that poured arrows at the horde of Hollows. Sunny Flare had gone out to break up the Hollows’ initial charge and draw their attention, but had overextended herself. Now Twilight feared the girl getting swarmed and torn apart, and held her glowing bow of energy nervously as she fired into the Hollows.

“Zapp, go back up Sunny. We need to withdraw to a better position,” said Sugarcoat, to which Zapp snapped.

“Who put you in charge, huh!?”

“There’s no time to argue. Do you want to die? Because that’s what’s going to happen if we stay here,” said Sugarcoat in her usual blunt manner, yet Twilight could hear the faint undercurrent of strain and fear inside the other girl’s voice. Indigo Zapp, also hiding fear beneath her bravado, gave a worried glance towards where Sunny Flare continued to have to evade a growing number of Hollows.

“Damn! Okay! Just hold this spot until I get her out of there.”

Indigo Zapp rushed forward, using Hirenkyaku to achieve blinding speed as she fired blazing, electrically charged arrows into the front ranks of Hollows as she went to assist Sunny Flare. Twilight focused on providing covering fire for the other trainee’s charge, working to regulate her breathing and steady her hands as she picked her shots and fired. Her arrows tore into Hollow masks, killing several, but more and more kept rushing into the clearing from the deeper woods.

Twilight could also hear the distant sounds of other battles as no doubt the rest of the Academy trainees were mired in their own battles. It seemed unlikely that she and her companions would receive any kind of help. A high pitched scream of pain echoing over the trees chilled Twilight’s blood and reminded her this ‘training exercise’ had deadly consequences for failure, and she redoubled her efforts to fire.

“Where did Suri go?” Sugarcoat suddenly said, and Twilight abruptly realized their sixth teammate had vanished at some point between now and the start of the fight. Sugarcoat’s stoic face gradually turned into a frown, “She’d better not have run off...”

“Pfft, please,” said Suri, literally appearing from seeming nowhere as she landed next to Twilight and Sugarcoat, “I was doing something more useful than just firing arrows at random, m’kay? Watch this.”

It was then that Twilight noticed that Suri was holding a thin, gleaming silver wire in one hand, which looked as if it lead off to the clearing edge where the Hollows were coming from. Suri reached into her white uniform and withdrew a metal vial, popping the top and dripping a line of glowing blue liquid onto the wire in her hand. Quincy, reishi infused chemicals reacted with the transmitting wire, looking like smokey blue fire. In seconds that reishi traveled down the wire and then wrapped around a dozen trees across the clearing, burning through the trunks in moments. In short order a bunch of trees were now crashing down on the Hollows, temporarily stemming the tide.

“See? Now we have a opening to retreat. Brilliant if I do say so myself.” Suri preened. Sugarcoat merely nodded in a single gesture of acknowledgment.

Indigo Zapp reached Sunny Flare, letting loose an arrow straight into the face of a bearish Hollow that’d been barreling towards her, and skidded to a halt. “Sunny, time to jet!”

Sunny Flare, arms spread out to fire in two different directions as she spun about, said, “Don’t need to tell me twice, deary! Sour Sweet, some cover fire would not go remiss!”

Up in the tree, Sour Sweet grumbled, “Yeah, make me do all the hard work why don’t ya?” She then smiled and shouted, “Sure thing, I just love making myself a target while my dear friends get to run away!”

“Quit your complaining and just shoot already!” Indigo Zapp yelled as she and Sunny Flare started falling back towards the others, both of them cutting loose with rapid fire shots into the Hollows trying to pursue them. However, Suri’s trick in cutting down the trees were forcing a bulk of Hollows to go around, buying the girls precious seconds without being too heavily pressured. Twilight felt a sigh of relief escape her as Indigo Zapp and Sunny Flare got back to them. All that left was Sour Sweet.

“Sour, we’re clear! Get out of there!” shouted Sugarcoat, pulling back on her bow and sending a potent and large arrow flying into the regrouping Hollows. Sour Sweet shouldered her long crossbow, and prepared to jump from the tree, when Twilight and all the Quincy girls felt a rush of potent and dark spirit power, coming from somewhere nearby.

“What the hell is that!?” Indigo Zapp shouted, looking around for the source of the sudden reiatsu. Twilight looked around as well, her own analytical mind churning rapidly. She recognized the reitasu as that of a Hollow, but it felt much more dense and potent than the lesser Hollows filling the forest. And with a cold sweat breaking out on her brow Twilight realized there wasn’t just one reiatsu, but many. At least a dozen. More than a dozen.

“Sour Sweet, look out!” shouted Sugarcoat as out of the forest a intense red glow appeared, then abruptly erupted into a powerful and destructive beam of deep red energy.

Sour Sweet threw herself from the tree top with blinding speed, but even so her back was caught by the edge of the crimson blast and Twilight gasped as she saw the girl get knocked out of the air, her back torn and burned. Without thinking about it she moved, Blut Vene and Hirenkyaku activating both at once to give her speed as she jumped into the air and then soared upwards and across the clearing to catch the falling Soul Sweet.

She had to let her bow vanish for a second in order to catch the girl with both arms. Sour Sweet wasn’t unconscious, but she was clearly in a great deal of pain from the way her face was twisted up, and she was letting out a stream of choked swear words as Twilight landed.

“H-hold on, let me see how bad it is!” Twilight said, slowly turning Sour Sweet over as the girl hissed.

“Grrr, g-godamn bad, is what it is. Shit,” Sour Sweet ground her teeth, “That was a Cero.”

Twilight didn’t immediately respond, instead assessing Sour Sweet’s injury. She winced as she looked at the girl’s burned flesh. The back of Sour Sweet’s uniform was charred black, and the skin underneath alternating between angry red blisters and scorched skin. The wound wasn’t fatal, but Sour Sweet would be in agony at the slightest movement. Which was why Twilight was utterly shocked to see the girl stand, hefting her sniper crossbow, aiming through the scope, and screaming in both pain and anger as she fired a return shot int he direction the Cero had come from.

“Bastards! Hurt me!? I’ll freakin’ kill all of you!”

“S-Sour! You shouldn’t move-”

“Shut up! That must have been an Adjuchas. Goddamn instructors let an Adjuchas loose on us. I’m gonna splatter it” Sour Sweet growled, eyes bloodshot. It was thin Twilight noticed something strange. The lesser Hollows had ceased moving. As if the Cero had been some kind of signal, the lesser Hollows had all stopped their advance and now crouched down, like they were scared.

And the intense reiatsu signatures that Twilight was sensing were still out there, getting closer.

Sugarcoat the others all appeared beside them, Indigo Zapp grabbing Sour Sweet’s crossbow by the stock and yanking it upwards, “Sour, you idiot, stop shooting and giving away our position! We need to get outta here!”

“These reiatsu are not normal,” said Sugarcoat, adjusting her glasses in a nervous gesture, “Staying to fight would be unwise.”

“I dunno about that,” said a smug and mocking male voice as a dusky skinned young man with red scales dotting his flesh and a blazing orange mohawk came walking out of the forest. He waltzed past the lesser Hollows as if they were no more than street dogs to him. He wore white clothing similar to the Quincy, but edged in black, and no one would mistake the young man for human with the Hollow hole in his chest. The strange Hollow in a human shape, what Twilight realized what she had heard of as an Arrancar, stopped in the center of the clearing and eyed the girls with a hungry lick of his lips.

“Personally I don’t much care for your chances if you run either,” he said as three more Arrancar emerged from the forest behind him, and he gave Twilight and the other Quincy girls a smile like a wolf in a sheep pen, “But you’re welcome to try.”

Episode 35: The Pride of the Quincy

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Episode 35: The Pride of the Quincy

Spitfire had been carefully monitoring the training exercise from the Academy command post. Countless cameras were set up across the expansive training area, allowing her to get a good view of most of the action taking place as her recruits had engaged the packs of ravenous Hollows released into the area. The Hollows had been transported there via holding containers carried on a number of trucks driven to the edge of the training area, their cages only released when several alchemical “bait” canisters were activated deeper in the forest to lure the Hollows into the area with the recruits. The canisters basically contained reishi particles designed to “smell” to the Hollows like fresh souls to consume, and it drew them in perfectly, whereupon they’d encounter the recruits and the exercise began.

Things had been going quite well. This generation of recruits consisted of some very talented and promising candidates. Despite Spitfire’s harsh training methods she had no desire to see dead recruits. Indeed she wanted the kids to succeed, but that success could only stem from knowing the real fear and pain they’d face in the battles to come. While there were no constraints on the Hollows fighting the recruits, Spitfire, unbeknownst to any of the trainees, also had several of her fellow instructors hidden in the forest to keep things from getting out of hand. They wouldn’t prevent the trainees from getting wounded, but they’d interfere in small (and hopefully unseen) ways to prevent fatalities, at least where possible. If a recruit slipped up and got their head torn off, well, that was that, but so far it didn’t look like any of her trainees had gotten that sloppy. Yet.

She had a particular interest in watching the team of trainees containing the prodigal daughter of the Sparkle family. Both her innate power and her blatant inexperience showed in equal measure with practically every move she made. The clearing Twilight Sparkle and her comrades had chosen to fight in didn’t have as many good angles to view the action from as Spitfire would like, but she still got a good look at the trainees in action, including Twilight.

She barely has any technique, but she rapidly compensates for changes in her target’s movements. Her bow is basic and hasn’t formed the unique traits of a true Quincy bow yet, but her arrows contain plenty of punch. And that incident with Lemon Zest... if pushed into a corner she’s dangerous. Heh, you kept a fun one hidden from us, didn’t you Shining Armor? Not fair of you to keep talent like this out of the fight.

She liked Shining Armor well enough, but the man sometimes took his namesake a little too seriously, trying to play the noble knight in far too many ways. Or being a far too protective big brother. Spitfire found herself smiling as she watched the footage of Twilight and the others battling the onrushing Hollows.

No big brother shielding you anymore, kid, but I’m willing to bet that’ll lead to you becoming something special. If you don’t get yourself killed first.

As she continued to observe the monitors she saw that the team Twilight was a part of was preparing to make a tactical retreat from the clearing they where in, which made sense given that the ambush had long since played out and they’d need a more defensible location to keep from being overwhelmed by the Hollows. Spitfire had a solid measure of the other young girls’ skills, estimating that out of all the trainees this particular bunch exhibited the most potential. Well, except perhaps Suri Polomare, who was a quick replacement while Lemon Zest recovered. Then again, even Suri seemed fairly resourceful, seemingly more skilled with Quincy alchemy than with conventional bow combat. As long as they team continued to work together then Spitfire had every confidence they’d come through this exercise just fine.

Her relaxed mood instantly shifted the second she saw the blood red line of destructive energy cut across the view on the monitor, just barely grazing by Sour Sweet. Spitfire knew a Cero when she saw one, and also knew there shouldn’t have been a single Hollow released among the packs sent into the training area that would be powerful enough to use such an attack.

She didn’t waste a second, immediately grabbing the nearest headset and keying into the emergency frequency that’d transmit to all of her field instructors, while at the same instant she all but smashed her first into the base alarm, which started to emit a blaring klaxon whine through all the Academy.

“Fleetfoot, Soarin, Lightning Dust, report! Find where that Cero came from and get ready to repel attackers.”

Fleetfoot’s scratchy voice replied quickly over the coms, flush with excitement, because of course she’d be excited over something interesting happening. Spitfire knew Fleetfoot was bored to tears working as an instructor. “Can’t see anything from where I’m at, but I’m sensing more than one powerful Hollow reiatsu. Hell's bells, I think we’ve got Arrancar out here.”

“How’d they get in through the warning systems?” asked Soarin, “We should have detected any Garganta portals opening up.”

“It doesn’t matter.” said Spitfire, keeping her voice calm as she could, given the circumstances. “I’ve already activated the alarm, but it’ll be at least ten to fifteen minutes before we get reinforcements. Intercept and destroy those Arrancar. Keep them away from the trainees! I’m on my way!”

With that she spun and sprinted from the control room, rushing at top speed down several corridors before bursting out into the Academy courtyard, whereupon she instantly took to the sky, moving like a flaming comet towards the exercise area.

----------

Adagio watched as the last of the Arrancar brought by Lord Torch poured through the Garganta. Squirk was the last to emerge, eyes focused upon the portals of yawning darkness that remained hanging in the air above the forest floor.

“Won’t have a lot of time to do this,” said Torch, turning a sweeping hand towards his waiting warriors, “Go! Find as many Quincy as you can and tear them to shreds!”

Ember elbowed Adagio, “That means us too, let’s go!”

She nodded, and started to follow Ember as the Arrancar girl started to head off in a seemingly random direction, much like the rest of the Arrancar scattering to go find Quincy prey. However Adagio slowed just enough to twitch her ear frills and listen to the three Espada talking among themselves. She was curious just what those three would be doing while the rest of them hunted Quincy.

“Alright, Squirk you’d better stay here and keep our way out clear,” said Torch, cracking his knuckles, “Catrina and I will go play with any Sternritter nearby. Got to be at least a few watching over their little hatchlings.”

“What am I, a glorified doorman?” spat Squirk, “I’ll fight the Sternritter as well. I don’t need to keep the portals open. I can just make more when we need it.”

“Don’t be a fool, Squirk.” said Catrina, already having stepped off her palanquin, “If you’re killed it will make escaping more difficult. Just stay put like a good boy.”

Squirk growled something in reply, but Adagio couldn’t hear any more of the conversation at that point, having followed Ember into the deeper forest. She swished her tail and floated along faster to keep up with Ember, who was now hopping from tree to tree and sniffing the air, apparently in search of Quincy. Adagio took a second to open herself up to her Pesquisa sensory ability, something she’d been trying to refine since Ember had showed her how to use it. Her senses spread out and she had to wince at the sensory overload that accompanied it.

The area was already blanketed by huge numbers of Hollows, causing Adagio to feel a nervous hunger as the feeling reminded her of being back in Grogar’s experimental arena. She could pick out the Arrancar among the Hollows, like bright torches next to tiny fireflies. Sensing the Quincy was much harder. Their reiatsu was unfamiliar to her, and hidden among all the many Hollow reiatsu filling the forest, so pinpointing the locations of individual Quincy was difficult. Still, Adagio could tell that Ember was heading for a nearby group, one none of the other Arrancar had targeted yet.

This is it, now or never, she thought, and floated up to Ember. She had one shot at pulling this off, otherwise she was as good as dead.

“Ember, wait a moment.”

Ember halted on one of the nearby branches, glancing at Adagio, “What for? We’ve got to start racking up a body count to impress dad.”

Adagio swallowed, nervous, but steadfast. She’d gone over this in her head dozens of times since she’d decided upon this course. The plan was extremely risky, but she didn’t see another way to do what she needed to do while simultaneously avoiding killing anyone. If her plan worked, she’d impress Lord Torch without getting a drop of blood on her hands. If it didn’t, well, she doubted she’d live long enough to have much time for regrets.

The song that spilled from her lips was a wordless one, a sort of hypnotic chant of the kind she and her sisters had used countless times to bewitch simple minds en mass. She poured power into her resonating voice, drawing energy from the gem floating perfectly still within the center of her Hollow hole. This was one of the first risky hurdles in her plan. She’d used her power once on Grogar and it’d worked, despite his ability to resist somewhat, but she hadn’t tried enhancing her song with extra power from her newly reforged gem. She could feel the way her siren magic intertwined with her Hollow spirit energy, and was unsure of how volatile the resulting fused power might be, or how Ember would react to it. If she proved as resilient as Grogar, this plan could fall apart right here and now.

However as Adagio’s chanting continued, enhanced and louder with the extra power she put into it, she could see Ember’s body relax, the Arrancar girls’ eyes glaze over with a faint green hue as Adagio’s chanting penetrated her mind. It was the kind of hypnosis that made its victim highly susceptible to suggestion, and while Adagio did feel a sharp stab of guilt at doing this to who was essentially her only friend among the Hollows, she saw no other way. She needed Ember under her spell for this plan to work.

Now that she was certain the chant had taken hold, Adagio put a gentle talon on Ember’s cheek, the kind of gesture to draw a victim’s attention to orders about to be given. It only made Adagio’s guilt worse to see the slack yet receptive look in Ember’s eyes. She wouldn’t remember anything that had happened under hypnosis save for what Adagio wanted her to remember.

“You will follow me now, and do as I say. When we find the Quincy, help me defeat them without slaying any of them unnecessarily. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” was the dry, monotone reply, devoid of Ember’s usual spunky energy. Adagio let out a guilt ridden sigh and nodded.

“Good, follow my lead.”

----------

The air seemed frozen for a moment with the thick promise of merciless violence, and Twilight wondered if she and her fellow Quincy were being affected by some strange Hollow power, the way they all stood there stiff as dead wood under the gaze of the four Arrancar before them. Then Twilight realized it was just fear that had them rooted in place, the same kind of simple, primal fear that made deer freeze when the headlights of a car falls upon them. Her every nerve felt poised on a knife’s edge, and she held her breath, not daring to make a sound.

The lead Arrancar seemed to be drinking in the fear hanging in the air, taking a deep, smugly satisfied breath and licking his lips. “Oh that’s good terror I’m smelling right there. Nice and sharp. So, who wants to get torn apart first? Any volunteers?”

Next to the red skinned Arrancar one of the others behind him, a pale skinned and lanky guy with a long head of pink hair, stepped forward and said, “Why don’t we split the up, Garble? There’s plenty there for all of us to get a taste.”

On Garble’s other side another of the young Arrancar laughed in a gruff voice, all but drooling. This one was a heavyset and strongly muscled specimen, with spiky brown hair and bronzed skin. This one leered at the Quincy girls, settling his gaze on Twilight, which made her skin crawl. “If we’re splitting them up, I want the purple one. She smells the juiciest of the bunch.”

Garble turned glaring eyes upon his companion's, voice a hideous growl, “Shut your mouths. I’m in charge here. You get what I say you get, and only after I’ve had my fill first!”

The second the Arrancar were distracted, Sugarcoat moved. With swift, lightning reflexes she reached into a side pocket of her uniform and drew out a series of silver pellets, throwing them at the ground at the Arrancar’s feet. Twilight wasn’t sure what they were, but saw the other girls covering their eyes and she followed suit. There was a sound like loud fireworks, with blinding flashes of light, followed by the confused and enraged shouts of the Arrancar. Then Twilight felt someone grab her arm, opening her eyes to see Sugarcoat there, drawing Twilight towards the deeper forest alongside the other girls who were all running. Indigo Zapp was half carrying Sour Sweet, the other girl’s injury clearly causing her agonizing pain with every step.

“We need to find an instructor,” breathed Sunny Flare, glancing behind her fearfully, dart guns raised, “Like, right now. We can’t beat those guys.”

“We don’t even know where the instructors are!” said Suri, digging into one of her uniform pouches, “But not to worry, I got a signal flare.”

“You do?” asked Garble suddenly as he just appeared next to the fleeing girls, “That’s cute.”

He clotheslined Suri, spinning the girl head over heels with an audible crack of noise. The other girls all skidded to a halt, Twilight shouting, “Suri!” and drawing her bow back. Garble saw her movement out of the corner of his eye, and as she unleashed her arrow the Arrancar drew a thick, curved falchion and batted her streaking blue arrow out of the air with one swipe.

“Come on then, let’s play.”

He came at Twilight faster than her eye could follow, with a buzz of noise like a large angry bee. She saw a flash of his falchion coming for her neck, and Twilight threw herself back as fast as she could. The blade still would have struck her if Sugarcoat hadn’t fired her own arrow, her thick, pearl bow blasting with a bullet-like arrow that deflected Garble’s blade at the last second.

“No choice.” said Sugarcoat, eyes hardened, “We have to fight. Unload everything into him.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice!” said Indigo Zapp as she set Sour Sweet down and spun, charging up her own blue steel bow with a arrow akin to a golden bolt of lightning. Sunny Flare at the same instant used a nearby tree as a springboard to flip upside down and aim her dart guns at Garble from above. Meanwhile Sour Sweet, face still contorted in intense pain, turned and braced her sniping crossbow on one raised knee and took aim.

Twilight did likewise, continuing to jump back to get distance from Garble as she aimed her bow. All five still standing Quincy fired at once, arrows of varying sizes and speed converging on Garble in an azure storm of bolts. He actually staggered for a moment under the assault, several of the arrows managing to pierce his iron-like skin. However the wounds were superficial at best, and Garble laughed as he used his sword to shatter the few arrows that had stuck to him, and spun at high speed to vanish then appear beside Indigo Zapp, his sword striking faster than a flicker of shadow.

“Gaaah!” Indigo fell back, clutching her side, which spurted blood onto the forest floor. Though she kept standing, her injury slowed her, and soaked her white uniform with a growing stain of blood.

Twilight pressed her lips tight, her mind accelerating to breakneck speeds of thought. Garble’s skin was too hard for their bows to injure effectively, but he wasn’t invincible. If they could just hold him off long enough for help to arrive...

“Sugarcoat, Sunny Flare, cover me!” she said, rushing forward without waiting for a response.

“What the-!?” Sunny Flare cried out, then glanced at Sugarcoat, who only narrowed her eyes for a second before nodding and doing as Twilight said. Sugarcoat rushed to one side of Garble while Sunny Flare appeared at the opposite side, and both girls fired away. Garble raised his free arm to block the needle-like darts from Sunny Flare’s weapons, while he used his sword to deflect Sugarcoats heavier shots. Meanwhile Twilight used Hirenkyaku to the fullest extent she could, becoming little more than a violet blur of motion.

She didn’t have any Quincy alchemy supplies on her, but she understood most of the basic principles behind how it worked. Much like Quincy used spirit particles to form their bows and arrows, Quincy alchemy used those same particles to react with different chemical and physical mediums to create various effects. The basic tool of Quincy alchemy was the Ginto, a silver tube containing the liquid, distilled form of a Quincy’s spirit power. These tubes were then used in conjunction with other items to create the “spells” of Quincy alchemy. Twilight’s knowledge of the techniques were limited to just the fundamentals that Shining Armor and Cadence had taught her during their training back home, but it was enough that she felt she could come up with something with the right supplies.

Supplies she knew Suri had on her, so when she moved at high speed, it was to Suri’s side she went. She also wanted to check on Suri’s condition, fearful the other girl might have been killed. Being hit at that speed, and with the kind of force Grable used, could have snapped Suri’s neck without the protection of Blut Vene. Fortunately it seemed Suri was alive, as Twilight could see the girl breathing. Suri was clearly unconscious, however, and still possibly in serious danger from internal trauma. Twilight knew the best thing to do was to end the fight fast so Suri could get medical attention. So it was only with a bit of guilt that Twilight dug into the unconscious Suri’s pockets, pulling out a quartet of silver Ginto tubes.

Sour Sweet had started to help the others keep Garble busy, rolling from left to right to fire at a different angle each time, all but screaming in rage and pain with each pull of her crossbow’s trigger. While Garble could fend off Sugarcoat and Sunny Flare’s attacks without much trouble, Sour Sweet’s heavier weapon seemed to be something he was wary off, dodging the girl’s larger reishi bolts. Still, it kept him distracted, which is what Twilight needed as she rushed as fast as she could. She had trouble timing her movement at such high speed, feeling like she was flailing around awkwardly, but she managed to plant a Ginto tube at four different points around where Garble was being pinned down.

With the fourth tube planted, Twilight popped the top of it and dipped her finger inside, touching the liquid spirit particles within and pouring in her own spirit energy. Only then did Garble take note of what she was doing.

“What do you think you’re up to, punk!?”

Twilight gulped, “In a word? Heizen!” (Heating)

She wasn’t sure if invoking the alchemy spell’s name was needed, but either way she used her spirit energy to ignite the stored liquid in each of the four tubes, which then formed a rectangular, transparent field around Grable. The Arrancar looked around himself in confusion until the space inside the glowing blue rectangle of space suddenly lit up with blue fire, like a contained explosion. Twilight winced as she heard him yell in pain.

Indigo Zapp blinked in surprise, then grinned. “Niiiiice! You’re not entirely useless after all.”

Twilight almost smiled back, but Sugarcoat shouted, “Twilight, get back! He’s not dead!”

Indeed, the Heizen spell wore off, and inside the vanishing rectangle Garble still stood. His clothing and skin were scorched from the blast, but he was very much alive, and looked at Twilight with fury boiling in his eyes.

“You made me hurt,” he said in a hissed accusation, “Now I’m gonna make you watch as I take your limbs off, one by one!”

“Uh, do you want us to help, Garble, or what?” asked one of the other Arrancar, as Garble’s three companions caught up to the fight, all appearing at various points surrounding the girls. Twilight looked around, realizing they were surrounded, with no escape route left. Garble sneered, brushing ash off his shoulder.

“I don’t need help with these weaklings, but I’m gonna take my time with the purple one, so you guys knock yourselves out with the others.”

This caused a number of happy chuckles from the other Arrancar, and they didn’t hesitate to draw their own swords and leap among Twilight’s comrades. Indigo Zapp was stuck facing the pink haired fellow, slowed by her already badly bleeding wound. She fired an electrified arrow at point blank range, but the pink haired Arrancar ducked aside the shot and jammed the hilt of his sword straight into Indigo’s gut, knocking her to the ground.

Sugarcoat was attacked by the heavily muscled Arrancar with the brown hair, who smashed his oversized sword into the ground where Sugarcoat had been standing just a second ago, but she’d jumped straight up into one of the nearby trees, and spun to fire arrows down at her opponent.

The last of the four Arrancar went after Sunny Flare. He was a gangly looking fellow with flecks of purple scales on otherwise alabaster skin, and a mop of blonde hair covering most of his face. Sunny Flare didn’t stand still as this Arrancar thrust his blade at her heart, instead dancing away from the attack and using the butt end of one of her dart guns to deflect some of the blow while using the other to shove towards his head and fire. The Arrancar bent backwards, avoiding the shot, and then sprung back fast to literally head butt Sunny Flare so hard Twilight heard the girl’s nose break as she was bounced into the nearest tree with a meaty smack.

Of course Twilight didn’t have much time to watch more of her comrades’ struggles, because Garble loomed over her. He leered down at her with deadly intent burning in his eyes, and before Twilight could so much as twitch muscle to evade, his foot kicked out, catching her squarely in the chest. Air blasted out of Twilight’s lungs and her chest exploded with pain as she was sent sprawling to the ground. Coughing, trying to get breath back into her spasming lungs, Twilight barely had time to gather her senses before Garble’s foot crushed down on her shoulder, heel first. Twilight felt as much as heard the sickening crunch, and she couldn’t stop the scream of pain tearing from her throat as she was pinned down by Garble’s grinding heel.

“You know it really just boils my blood to think a bunch of wimps like you are supposed to be what we Hollows are afraid of.” Garble growled, twisting his heel in Twilight’s fractured shoulder, causing waves of pure, mind numbing pain to shoot through her. “I mean, seriously, we ought to be out hunting whenever and wherever we please, but because of you Quincy and the damn Soul Reapers we gotta always be the ones hiding. Well screw that noise! Today we give the Quincy something to be scared of!”

Despite the horrific pain scrambling her thoughts, Garble ranting on and on gave Twilight a moment to force her mind to focus. With difficulty she forced her spirit energy to flow through her blood and concentrate in her shoulder. While the damage was already mostly done, forming a Blut Vene on her shoulder allowed her to dull the pain and keep Grable’s grinding foot from doing more damage. At the same moment she forced both her arms up, forming her glowing azure bow once more, clearly catching Garble by surprise given the blink of shock on his face as she fired an arrow point blank into his face.

With a roar of pain he stepped off her, stumbling away while clutching at his left eye, which was now spewing a trail of blood.

“Grrraa! You bitch! What’ve you done to my eye!?”

Without waiting for him to recover, Twilight concentrated a burst of reishi from her feet, using Hirenkyaku while still on the ground to thrust herself upwards at an angle. She soared up over the fighting, seeing that her friends (they were friends now?) all desperately trying to fight against the other Arrancar.

Sunny Flare was stumbling back from the blonde Arrancar, one of her dart guns missing and one arm hanging useless and broken. Still she fired with her other weapon, slowing down the Arrancar’s advance, if only for the moment. Indigo Zapp had lost her bow and was being held up by her throat against a tree by the pink haired Arrancar, though she still struggled and pulled out a silver Ginto tube to smash at the Arrancar’s face in a flare of fiery blue light, causing him to howl in pain and drop her. Sugarcoat was holding her own against the heavily muscled Arrancar, though part of that was because Sour Sweet had taken up a new sniping position in a nearby tree and was giving Sugarcoat cover fire that allowed the other Quincy to stay evasive, keeping out of the big Arrancar’s reach as she kept pouring arrow after arrow into him. While each individual arrow wasn’t doing much damage, the small wounds were mounting, and the broad and heavy set Arrancar was clearly getting angry.

Twilight was amazed none of her fellow trainees had tried to continue retreating. There were equal looks of prideful determination on each of their faces, despite the desperate situation. In spite of the pain and fear wracking her, Twilight thought perhaps she understood why none of them could flee. What was the point of their training if all they could do was run away?

As Twilight managed an awkward landing a good ten meters away from the fight, she realized she could probably flee and get away clean. Garble was still too busy clutching his ruined eye to notice where she went, and the other Arrancar were all focused on her fellow trainees. She could get away, and maybe find help.

But no, she couldn’t do that. It wasn’t strictly logical, but there was a fierce heat blossoming in Twilight’s chest as she saw her fellow Quincy fighting against such insurmountable odds. There was something deep inside the young woman that could not turn away from the fight before her, nor allow these brutish Hollows to do as they pleased.

I’m... a Quincy. This is exactly where I belong.

Ignoring her pain, tossing her fear deep down to the pit of her stomach, Twilight drew her bow and aimed for the Arrancar that Indigo Zapp had just hit with a Ginto tube. She aimed for the pale Arrancar’s leg, right at the weak point of the knee-joint, and instinctively pushed her attack power higher with Blut Arterie, her arms glowing with red veins of light as she did so.

Her arrow was let loose with a burst of air strong enough to blast back tree branches, and the arrow penetrated right through the Arrancar’s knee. The pink haired fellow roared with pain and collapsed to the ground, clutching his now maimed knee. Indigo Zapp looked at Twilight in surprise, then gave a tired thumbs up and dove for her own dropped bow.

The pink haired Arrancar’s agonized shouts distracted the larger brown skinned Arrancar, who glanced back just long enough for Sugarcoat and Sour Sweet and both fire simultaneously, combining their arrows to hit the big Arrancar in the chest and force him to stumble back into, and through a tree, causing the trunk to crack in half. Meanwhile Sunny Flare used the distraction to slip away from her own opponent and join Twilight and Indigo Zapp, breathlessly nodding to both of them.

“Enough!” growled Grable, finally recovering his own senses and taking his hands away from his ruined eye, “Fizzle, Clump, Fume, back off! I’m going to finish them myself!”

“Uhh, if you say so,” said the pink haired one, Fizzle presumably, and all three of Garble’s flunkies vanished using that high speed, buzzing movement to get a good dozen paces away from the fight. Meanwhile Garble faced the five heavily wounded Quincy girls. Six, technically, but Suri was still out like a light, though Sugarcoat had grabbed the unconscious girl while Garble had been ordering off his comrades.

Garble eyed them all with his only remaining good eye and licked his lips, holding his falchion in front of him, “I’m crushing you all at once! I’ll teach you to take us Arrancar lightly!”

A flickering aura of orange reishi built up around Garble’s body, and concentrated in his now glowing yellow falchion.

“Explode, Despecho!” (Spite)

The very second the words left his mouth, Garble’s body was engulfed in a humongous explosion of intense spirit energy, like a column of dark orange fire rimmed with a solid aura of flaring red energy like miniature lava bursts. Twilight had to shield her face as her hair was blown back by a massive wind kicked up by the explosion of energy, and could feel her adrenaline pumping in fear as she sensed just how much higher Garble’s spirit power had just risen.

“Well great, this is just perfect!” shouted Sour Sweet, grimacing as she staggered back a step, “Maybe one of our instructors would like to get off their fat asses and come help us!?”

“Use your senses, Sour Sweet,” said Sugarcoat, face a stone mask despite the sweat dripping from her brow, “Can’t you feel what’s going on? The instructors are already busy fighting bigger threats.”

“Crap, you’re right,” said Indigo Zapp, wiping blood from a cut on her forehead, trying to keep her eyes clear, “So we’re on our own.”

It was hard for Twilight to feel anything past the potent aura of Garble’s spirit energy, but if she forced her senses to focus past that, she could pinpoint various reiatsu signatures all over the place. Strongest of all were the feeling of several strong Quincy auras which had to be the Academy instructors, but Twilight also felt at least two incredibly powerful Hollow reiatsu facing them. The Hollows must have brought some of their own heavy hitters to keep the instructors busy while the other Hollows attacked the trainees. Which meant if they wanted to live through this they’d have to defeat or escape these Arrancar on their own.

Twilight’s confidence that they could do that was lowering by the moment as the glowing light around Garble faded and revealed the Arrancar in a transformed state quite different than anything Twilight had seen before.

He was nearly twice the height he’d been before, and his body was covered in thick segments of bone white plates, like the armor of some scaled beast. His back was hunched and sported several long, curved back spikes like white blades. His arms had grown longer than normal, with curved talons and short knuckle spikes. Reverse jointed legs, like those of some dinosaurs, ended in thickly clawed towns that dug into the ground. Garble’s face had elongated into something tapered and draconic, partially covered in bony white armored plates and sporting inch long fangs. His eye that Twilight had damaged was still shut, but it was no longer bleeding, and his remaining eye glowed with fierce yellow rage. Even his voice had changed, darker and guttural.

“So, who wants to be the first snack?”

Sugarcoat didn’t hesitate, tossing the unconscious Suri to Indigo Zapp, and shouting, “All of you, run for it! I’ll keep him busy!”

In the same instant the pigtailed Quincy jumped up, aiming her bow down at Garble and unleashing a flurry of arrows down upon him. The arrows exploded in a cloud of dust around the transformed Arrancar, creating an obscuring veil. However before Twilight or any of the other Quincy got to take more than one or two steps before Garble simply appeared in the air next to Sugarcoat. Twilight could only watch as he smiled in malicious glee and swiped his claws.

Blood flew from Sugarcoat’s face and she screamed, falling to the ground. Twilight gasped as she saw the red laceration that went cleanly across Sugarcoat’s face, leaving both her eyes a crimson ruin. Standing on the air above, Garble laughed.

“Hey, now I get why you aimed for my eye before, Purple. It's kind of fun listening to how much people scream from it.”

----------

So far things were going well, Adagio thought. The Quincy recruits were largely confused and scattered, and Ember even under mind control could hone in on the Quincy with unerring accuracy. With Adagio planting suggestions into Ember’s mind to keep her under control, they’d found and ambushed three small groups of Quincy recruits who’d been too distracted by the lesser Hollows still running rampant all over the place to be able to respond quickly when Ember and Adagio set upon them.

Aside from one or two close calls from some strange spell-like powers the Quincy used with those tiny silver tubes with liquid, and one arrow that’d grazed her, Adagio had managed to help Ember knockout seven Quincy so far. In each instance Adagio had double checked to make sure the Quincy wasn’t dead, just unconscious and injured enough to be out of the fight. Then she’d taken parts of their uniform, usually the cloak, or maybe one of the silver crosses they tended to carry, and used one of the Quincy’s jackets to act as a sack to carry the trophies in.

Torch might question it, but as long as Ember remembers killing the Quincy, which she will once I plant the suggested memories into her mind, then he ought to accept these trophies as proof of our actions.

Not the most elegant plan she’d ever concocted in her time, but it should get the job done. She figured they just needed a few more trophies to make an impression with, then she could find a good spot to hide until Lord Torch gave the signal to return to the Garganta.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a nearby flare of Hollow spirit energy that drew her attention. She saw through the trees an intense orange glow of light, the origin probably no more than fifty yards away.

“What is that?”

She’d mostly just been thinking aloud, but Ember responded. Mind controlled or not, Ember could still react and think like normal. It was just that Adagio’s siren song was coloring all of Ember’s thoughts like a green fog, hazing over the reality with whatever details Adagio wanted to plant, which for the moment was that knocking Quincy unconscious was the same as killing them.

“That’s Garble’s reiatsu. Feels like he just went Resurreccion,” Ember said, voice still something of a dull monotone due to the mind control, “What do you want to do, Adagio?”

Adagio frowned. That Garble fellow had a serious attitude problem, and she suspected he might be trouble down the line. He clearly didn’t like her, and wasn’t hesitant about voicing his opinion that she didn’t belong in Torch’s horde.

With a devilish little grin, Adagio considered how much she might enjoy interfering with Garble’s fun and getting few more Quincy trophies out of the deal. After all if her song could work on Ember, there was no reason to think it wouldn’t work on someone even weaker minded like Garble.

“Follow me, Ember.” she said and floated off in the direction of the light, Ember following right behind her.

It only took a minute to wind her way through the forest to reach a small clearing where the light had been. She got there just in time to witness the scene of a young Quincy girl with pigtails try to distracted a fully transformed Garble so another group of Quincy could escape, and for her trouble got her eyes cut out with one swipe of Garble’s claws.

“Sugarcoat!” Adagio heard another girl scream, a voice she instantly recognized and looked with shock to see Twilight Sparkle rushing to the fallen Quincy’s side while Garble laughed.

“Ha! Sugarcoat’s her name? Nice, her blood even tastes kind of sweet,” Garble said as he licked his claws. Twilight was kneeling next to Sugarcoat, who was clutching at her damaged face and grinding her teeth to keep from screaming further.

Adagio swallowed back bile. What was Twilight Sparkle doing here!? The last Adagio had seen of the nerdy young girl she’d been hanging out with Sunset and the others back in Canterlot City. It didn’t make any sense that she’d be here of all places, and wearing a Quincy uniform no less!

And if Adagio had any doubts that Twilight was a Quincy, those doubts were put to rest the instant Twilight, with a scream of rage that didn’t at all sound like the mild mannered girl Adagio knew, formed a blazing blue Quincy bow and fired a massive arrow of spirit energy up at Garble.

The arrow was caught by one of Garble’s claws, which he used to crush the arrow in an explosion of azure reishi, but aside from a small scorch mark he looked completely unharmed by the attack.

The other Quincy girls present looked equally horrified and enraged by what Garble had just done to one of their own, but most of them were frozen with hesitation, none of them seeming to know what to do against an Arrancar in its Resurreccion form. Even Adagio could feel how much stronger Garble was than the Quincy trainees, like a massive shark hunting among minos.

Adagio quickly realized that without help Twilight Sparkle and the other Quincy here were as good as dead.

For a slow instant in time Adagio was torn. She didn’t really owe Twilight Sparkle anything, technically. Twilight wasn’t even among those who’d come to help rescue her sisters, so strictly speaking she didn’t have any real reason to care what happened to her. Garble hadn’t spotted Adagio or Ember yet, so she could just turn and leave without any consequence. Certainly trying to interfere would jeopardize her entire plan to get in good with Lord Torch and have Ember teach her the secret to evolving into an Arrancar. Why put that plan at risk just to help a girl she hardly knew and had no reason to feel beholden to?

It wasn’t like Sunset Shimmer or any of those other Canterlot girls would ever know this happened, anyway. Adagio could get away clean!

... Except that she’d remember. Just like she remembered every other rotten thing she’d done that had led to this wretched state of affairs, separated from the only two people she really cared about. Did she want to keep adding memories to the list of things she’d eventually regret?

Damnit! I hate having to be the blasted hero! she thought with bitter spite as she turned to Ember, who looked on at the scene blankly. Adagio spoke in a low, singing tone, her siren gem gleaming with light.

“Look at him, hunting our prey.
I think you should make him pay.
Prove that these Quincy are ours to claim.
If he gets hurt then he’s only himself to blame.”

The words sunk into Ember’s mind, igniting a bit of her inner flame as she growled and said, “Garble won’t claim our prey!”

With that Ember launched herself from the bushes she and Adagio had been hiding in, throwing herself straight at a very surprised Garble, who turned just in time to manage to use one of his claws to black Ember’s blade in a shower of sparks.

“What the hell!? Ember!? What do you think you’re trying to pull!?”

“Back off Garble! These Quincy are mine and Adagio’s to hunt!” Ember shouted, pressing in on Garble and forcing him back a step before she spun around and launched a heel kick towards his gut, hitting dead center and pushing him back a few skidding yards in the air.

“Are you crazy? We were here first!” Garble growled, “If you don’t turn tail and run, even your old man can’t protect you from me.”

Ember snorted, “I don’t need dad to protect me. These Quincy belong to me and Adagio, so if you want them, you’re only getting them over my dead body!”

Suddenly deep cobalt flames wreathed Ember’s sword, dripping off of it like water. She placed her free hand on the blade’s edge and ran it over the flames as she spoke.

“Eviscerate, Espina!” (Thorn)

The intense blue energy that flowed around Ember spiraled in a spherical embrace. It fluctuated like an unstable wave, breaking apart with twisting coils of energy, arching back and forth over the sphere until a single white blade of bone burst from the front of the sphere and it burst in a storm of fading blue embers.

Ember herself wasn’t as drastically changed, physically, than Garble had been. She still retained a human shape, her body and face the same as before, save for the additional horns now sweeping back from the crest of her head to join the two that curved forward. Smooth white armor of bone, like a second organic skin, covered her arms and chest, though her midriff remained exposed. A long armored skirt, split to allow her legs free movement, covered her lower half along with two bone-like boots. Two wings with blue membranes and stark white bones spread from her back, tipped with small bony thorns. Her sword was changed now into a huge, five foot long affair seemingly made from solid white bone, with a thick triangular blade that extended past the hilt with a pair of outwardly curved thorns forming the cross guard.

Ember leveled her sword at Garble and spat, “Last chance. Back off.”

Garble just rumbled with a deep growl and brandished his claws as he said, “Like hell.”

That was all either Arrancar needed to say to one another, both flashing forward and come together in a titanic claws of blade on claw that created a burst of force that rattled the trees around them.

Meanwhile Adagio moved, floating up in front of Twilight Sparkle, who looked at Adagio with a shout of surprise, turning her bow towards Adagio. Adagio barely dodged the arrow Twilight fired, and growled in a low voice, “You damn idiot, its me!”

Twilight blinked, “You? Who?”

Adagio cast a worried glance towards the other Arrancar that were with Garble, but they were all focused on Garble’s fight with Ember, which caused yet more blast of force as the two clashed with one another again and again, providing just the perfect distraction.

“Adagio, moron! Now get your skinny butt out of here while this diversion lasts! Hurry!”

She didn’t wait for a response, she instead floated up and towards the three distracted Arrancar, charging up power within her gem.

“Hey, listen up boys, I need you all to pay attention to me for a minute, if you’d be so kind.”

They turned surprised and confused looks towards her, which was just what she needed. Minds that were off balance were easier to control than ones that were focused. The second the three Arrancar looked at Adagio she began to chant, letting her voice push waves of bewitching magic towards her targets. Without her sisters to harmonize with she’d only be able to disoriented multiple targets for any length of time, at least not while still also maintaining control of Ember. She didn’t know for sure how she was going to deal with things once Twilight was in the clear, but hopefully Ember would beat Garble and then she could work out a plan after that.

Risking a glance behind her, she saw Twilight helping the blinded girl with the pigtails stand, and then rush to join the other Quincy girls. Twilight gave Adagio one last worried and confused look before she and her fellow Quincy ran off into the forest. Adagio let out a small sigh of relief, and turned to focus on her chant to confuse the three Arrancar that had been with Garble. All three of them were looking up at her with the glazed, vacant eyed stare of those being slowly seduced by her siren song, but she could feel how slippery her control was over them. Adagio just wasn’t used to doing this without her sisters, and with power already invested in bewitching Ember, she just didn’t have the juice to do more than temporarily disorient the three below her.

So instead she decided to just blunt force the situation and charged up a Cero in her gem, unleashing it in a focused beam to cut along the ground in front of the three Arrancar. She knew her beam wouldn’t be strong enough to injure them badly, but the force of the Cero’s destructive wake would toss all of them aside and kick up enough dust and dirt to confuse them for a moment. A moment she used to fly up towards where Ember and Garble still battled.

She saw Ember and Garble both flickering in and out of sight with high speed movements that brought them together in flashing clashes of sword on claw, and it seemed the pair were evenly matched in terms of speed and strength. Garble broke the pattern of attacks by jumping backwards and flinging a claw out, each of his talons crackling with crimson sparks. Instead of a Cero, he started firing an attack Adagio had never seen before; a set of high speed, red energy bullets that blasted from his talons like his claw was some kind of machine gun.

Ember responded by spinning her sword in front of her like a shield, deflecting the energy bullets into a rain of blasts that slammed into the forest at random, exploding trees and smashing into the ground in small explosions.

The fight was too even a match for Adagio’s liking, so she charged up another Cero, firing it up from directly beneath Garble. He responded to the deep red energy blast coming towards him by scoffing and extending his left arm towards the beam, pointing a single claw that glowed with flaring orange light as he unleashed his own Cero. Adagio swore loudly as her beam was broken apart by Garble’s, and the blast continued down towards her. She threw herself to the side, feeling her hide heat up with burning pain as even the slight graze of Garble’s passing Cero was enough to scorch her side. The beam hit the ground in a concussive explosion that threw up a building sized pillar of smoke.

However, Adagio had succeeded in distracting Garble, for Ember appeared above him with her large sword upraised. The sword’s blade suddenly began to spin around like a drill, becoming surrounded by a pulsing aura of blue energy as Ember aimed it down, point first, at Garble.

”Espina Perforadora!” (Piercing Thorn)

Ember rocketed down at Garble, her spinning energy blade thrusting in front of her. Garble spun to face her, thrusting a claw up that was filling with a glowing Cero sphere. Ember’s blade smashed into the Cero sphere in a shock-wave of force, followed by an explosion of power that was strong enough to knock Adagio out of the sky. She went spinning to the forest below, smashing through a few tree branches and nearly losing her senses as she cratered into the ground.

Grunting in pain, Adagio floated back up, shaking her head to clear the cobwebs, and looked up to try and see what had happened. Her spirit senses were for the moment scrambled by the overlay of various spirit energies clashing all around the battlefield. All she could see was a huge cloud of smoke and dust in the sky, at least for a few seconds. Then Adagio saw two forms falling from the sky, both leaving trails of smoke behind them. One was Garble, missing an arm and seemingly unconscious. The other was Ember, half of one of her wings torn clean off and the left side of her body scorched black, also unconscious.

Adagio gasped, and flew up to catch Ember before she hit the ground. Garble smashed into the forest some distance off, but Adagio wasn’t paying him any attention, all of her focus on Ember’s wounded body. Ember’s Resurreccion form was fading away, which Adagio had no idea if that was a bad sign or if it was normal for a knocked out Arrancar to revert back to normal. Either way it was clear Ember was badly injured, and the battle was still going strong all over the forest.

Fearful for Ember’s safety, not to mention her own, Adagio held Ember close and quickly flew off into the forest, hoping to reach the Gargantas before something else went wrong.

----------

Spitfire arrived at the training area to already find her fellow instructors squaring off against a pair of Arrancar that she didn’t need to ask to know were both Espada. The sheer potency of the dark, Hollow spirit energy she was sensing was enough to confirm that much. Once she got closer she was able to spot the numbers tattooed on both of her foes, seeing that the huge and ludicrously well muscled man with the axe was the Fifth Espada, and that the voluptuous woman with the flaming red hair and catish eyes was the Third Espada.

She sensed there was another Espada in the area, but pinpointing his location amid all the other swarming reiatsu down in the forest was difficult. Regardless, this was not a good situation. Soarin, Lightning Dust, and Fleet Foot were all Sternritter like Spitfire, but in terms of power scale only Spitfire ranked among the upper tier of His Majesty’s servants. Spitfire briefly weighed the risks, then immediately discarded the notion of caring about the odds. Her recruits were being attacked. The home territory of the Quincy had been violated. The strength of the opponents were irrelevant under such circumstances. The honor and pride of the Quincy required an answer in blood for this insult!

When she arrived on the scene it looked as if the two Espada and her three fellow instructors were still sizing each other up, but Spitfire had absolutely zero patience for the niceties of introductions or standoffs. She reached out with her right hand and with a snap of her fingers summoned her bow, which appeared with a heated buzz. Her bow’s shape was unusual, in that it didn’t have a physical body, but rather took the form of four solid bars of pure heat energy joined by a central sphere of glowing golden flame around her hand. The air itself grew hotter by just the mere presence of her bow, and she didn’t waste a single nanosecond before aiming it at the hulking Fifth Espada. Each of the four bars of heat energy flared with power, and from Spitfire’s bow launched an entire barrage of crescent shaped projectiles of heat so intense that she knew each one could burn through solid steel in an instant.

The Fifth Espada reacted with remarkable speed and power, swinging a gigantic axe with enough force and spirit energy concentrated in it to create a wave of force that deflected most of Spitfire’s projectiles, save for a few that managed to impact with him from the sides, but to Spitfire’s surprise the Espada’s skin took her melting blows with only some minor burns to show for it.

The huge man grinned at her, bellowing, “Well that’s a fine hello! And we were just about to get to partying with your friends, too! Whom do I got the pleasure of facing, eh? I’m Lord Torch, the Fifth-”

Spitfire didn’t let him finish, moving at high speed to flash right in front of him and unleash a charged up strike at point blank range, all four of her bow’s bars glowing brightly as she cut loose with a blast that combined all four bars into a large X shaped projectile that slammed into the Espada hard enough to push him back a few dozen paces before the projectiles exploded in a pillar of fire.

“Spitfire, you made it!” said Soarin happily, looking relieved to see her there. Not surprising, really. Soarin usually prefered to let her handle the tough situations, if he could. The guy was a athletic sort, with blue skin and darker blue, wavy hair. His face usually had a laid back look on it, but now he just looked deeply upset as he cast a glance down towards the forest. No doubt he could feel what Spitfire felt, that their Quincy trainees were being picked off by lesser Arrancar down there.

“Go help the recruits,” Spitfire said, “Take Fleetfoot with you. Me and Lightning Dust will handle these two.”

“A-are you sure?” Soarin asked, “These are Espada. You could get-”

“Sorain, move your ass, now!” Spitfire growled, eyes blazing. “Our recruits are dying down there!”

“Y-yeah! Got it! C’mon Fleetfoot!”

Fleetfoot, a slim woman with paler blue skin than Soarin and a swept back head of white hair, wearing aviator glasses, just sighed and gave Spitfire a brief salute before saying, “We’ll deal with the small fry. Catch up with you later, chief.”

Soarin and Fleet Foot then turned and started rushing off down into the forest. The female Espada glanced at them, licking her lips, and speaking in a sensual tone, “I don’t recall giving any of you kittens permission to leave my presence.”

She pointed a finger towards the departing Soarin and Fleetfoot, and from that slim finger an unbelievably massive, dark green Cero beam fired. It was intercepted by Lightning Dust, who flashed in front of the beam and caught it with her “bow”, which wasn’t actually a bow. There were a number of Quincy who formed projectile weapons from their reishi that didn’t take on the traditional shapes of bows, but instead took forms that more suited their fighting style or personalities. In Lightning Dust’s case the weapon of choice for her was a huge tri-bladed silver boomerang, whose curved blades were serrated along the inner edge. She held the boomerang like a shield in front of her, halting the massive green Cero that broke around her like a river around a stone.

Normally such a risky move would be deadly to the Quincy trying to stop such a powerful Cero, but the Third Espada had made the mistake of underestimating the power of what His Majesty’s bestowed Schrift’s could do. In Lightning Dust’s case, she was Sternritter D, the Daredevil. The more dangerous a situation she put herself in, the more powerful her counterattacks became. Spitfire knew well it was a double edged sword, however. Lightning Dust had to recklessly put herself in danger in order to get any power out of the Daredevil Schrift, as was evidenced by the fact that even as she blocked the Third Espada’s Cero the energy was still causing burns to appearing along Lightning Dust’s arms and legs.

“Hey, hag,” shouted Lightning Dust as the Cero played itself out around her, and her boomerang started to glow with blue reishi that spun around the boomerang’s three blades like a buzz-saw, “You’ve got bigger worries than those two! You’ve got me to deal with!”

Lightning Dust hurled her boomerang at the Third Espada, the weapon cutting a screaming path through the air. The Espada raised a large, bladed warfan to block the attack, but the blow was strong enough to actually force the woman to skid back in the air a few paces before the boomerang returned to Lightning Dust. The Espada eyed Lightning Dust and Spitfire both with a look of mocking admiration.

“Impressive, for mere Quincy. Perhaps you adorable young ladies will entertain me and Lord Torch more than I expected,” she smiled, revealing feline fangs, “Of course I still don’t expect that to last long.”

As she spoke Torch stepped from the remains of the flaming explosion Spitfire hat hit him with, his body smoking but still largely undamaged even by an attack of that magnitude, and was dusting himself off with one hand while hefting his massive axe with the other.

“Catrina, you don’t need to get your hands dirty here. I’ve got these two.”

“Now now Torch, don’t be greedy. There’s two Quincy here, and two of us. It’s only polite to split the sport evenly.”

“There’s not sport to be had here,” Spitfire snarled, raising her bow, “You want to challenge the pride of the Quincy? You’re about to find out that you couldn’t have made a bigger mistake.”

Torch grinned merrily, “I like your attitude, missy. You got just the right kind of fire in you to get my blood running hot. Even if you hate introductions, I got to know your name.”

Spitfire narrowed her eyes. Even if all she wanted to do was incinerate these Hollows to ash, she realized that each Espada was more than powerful enough to possibly be more than she and Lightning Dust could handle. But time was ticking away, and every minute she kept the enemy busy was a minute longer for HIs Majesty to mobilize reinforcements. By now the Silbern had to be in an uproar, with every soldat and Sternritter present rushing to reach the Academy. Even His Majesty was likely on his way.

So she could afford to indulge Torch, she supposed, if only to buy a few more seconds of time.

“Fine, if it’ll make you feel better before I destroy you.” she said, already charging up her next attack for emphasis, her bow glowing a bright golden hue that made it look like a blazing star, “I’m Spitfire, Sternritter I, the Inferno. Happy?”

“Immensely.” Torch said, hefting his axe, “When I kill you, I think I may just take your soul back home with me to add you to my horde.”

Spitfire shuddered at the thought, and responded to Torch’s insinuation by firing a barrage of several hundred blazing projectiles that nearly covered the sky.

Author's Notes:

It's chapters like this that kind of make me wish Tite Kubo had gone into more detail on how certain Quincy techniques worked, or at least expanded their repertoire. In this case the Ginto tubes which form the basis of Quincy "spells" are only rarely used in the manga, and very little detail is given on exactly how they function. In my mind its always soft of resembled a form of alchemy, so that's a term I go with here, even though I don't think its ever called that in the manga. Anyway, on the bright side, the lack of details given in the maga gives me a bit more free range to make up some spells and techniques of my own involving the Quincy alchemy, and I think Twilight is suited to making more use of it in time, relying on those techniques as much if not more than her bow.

Anyway, since it occurs to me I haven't gone into detail yet on how Arrancar high speed techniques work, I'll just borrow Gin for a moment to show you guys what Sonido is all about. Take it away Gin!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_fpz_cXVr8

...Huh, I guess Sonido really is identical to Shunpo and Hirenkyaku. Kind of makes me wonder why Kubo went through the trouble of naming them differently?

Well, in any case I hope you folks had fun reading today's episode! As always I highly appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques you guys might have for me! 'Till next time.

Episode 36: Crisis of Faith

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Episode 36: Crisis of Faith

To Twilight it was as if she had entered another world, a hazy realm of smoke, screams, the smell of fresh blood, and the overwhelming noise of unending battle. Every shadow in the forest seemed to boil with menace as lesser Hollows emerged from coils of smoke to leap with talons and fangs at Twilight and her fellow Quincy as they tried to seek safe ground. Twilight wasn’t sure where the smoke was coming from, but someone, somewhere, who knew on which side of the fight, must have caught the forest on fire. That thought alone was terrifying because Twilight knew fully just how fast forest fires spread and how deadly such blazes were. The smoke alone was starting to becoming choking, and ensured that they couldn't see the Hollows until they were practically on top of them.

Despite the painful and constant ache in her shoulder Twilight fought hard, spinning to face each threat with her bow of bright blue reishi ready to lance arrows into any Hollow that assaulted them. Sunny Flare was leading the blinded Sugarcoat along by the arm while using her free hand to fire her remaining dart gun, while Indigo Zapp was carrying Suri over one shoulder, unable to use her bow but tossing Ginto alchemy tubes to create small blasts of reishi to help keep the Hollows at bay. Sour Sweet staggered along without help, not because no one had offered, but because the enraged young woman had snarled at any such offer, insisting she could carrying her own weight despite the terrible burns on her back. Sour Sweet’s eyes were bloodshot and wild as she fired her huge crossbow from the hip at any Hollow that shambled out of the shadows.

“Do we even know where we’re going!?” Sour Sweet growled, blasting the head off of a hulking beetle-like Hollow that had jumped from the bushes behind them.

“Not really,” said Indigo Zapp, who happened to be at the head of the group, “Anywhere but here!”

“We’re likely to run straight into the fire causing all this smoke and burn alive,” said Sugarcoat, her voice husky and strained with pain, blood still dripping from her ruined eyes like crimson tears, “At least, you guys will as long as you’re slowed down by those of us that can’t keep up.”

“Sugarcoat, hun, please shut your overly blunt mouth for the next five minutes,” said Sunny Flare sharply, “I spent entirely too much time in front of mirrors to spend the rest of my life looking at myself and recalling leaving you behind to be torn apart by Hollows or burning in death. Suri... hmm, well I might live with leaving her behind, but not you.”

“G-gee... that’s a heck of a thing to wake up to.” said Suri, blinking awake with a bleary and dazed look. “I don’t suppose anyone knows the number of the ocean liner that landed on my head?”

“Suri! Are you alright?” Twilight asked, concerned, “Can you see clearly?”

“Head feels like a squashed melon and I’m fairly certain I’m about to throw up, so... been better. Would kill for a cup of coffee.”

“You likely have a concussion,” said Twilight, glancing at Indigo Zapp, “She probably can’t walk on her own yet.”

“Greeeeat,” Indigo Zapp said, rolling her eyes and adjusting her grip on Suri, “She’s heavy.”

Suri let out a weak snort, “Am not. I work out... m’kay... totally slim.”

Somewhere in the sky above, beyond the forest canopy, there was the sound of thunderous explosions, a series of heavy roars like a line of artillery pieces going off all at once. The air shook with distant pressure waves, shaking the tree branches. The girls exchanged nervous glances as they ran on.

“The instructors are really cutting loose up there,” said Indigo Zapp, licking her lips, “Who the heck are they fighting that’s taking that much firepower to take down?”

“Espada, has to be,” said Sunny Flare, her blue face turning a paler shade, “I can’t believe they did this. Attacking so close to the Silbern. It’s insane.”

“They knew how to bypass our wards.” said Sugarcoat, somehow maintaining a calm tone despite her condition, “This was a sneak attack meant to cripple us trainees. Weaken the Quincy by damaging the next generation of soldiers. The Hollows will probably retreat soon, to avoid the reinforcements that will be coming from headquarters.”

Twilight felt her mouth going dry, “But until then they brought powerful enough fighters to keep the instructors busy while the rest hunt us down.”

Almost as if her words were a prophetic omen, they girls came upon a grisly scene. In a small clearing, not too different from the one they’d fought Garble and his fellow Arrancar in, was a vision of bloody carnage. Here another group of Quincy trainees had made their stand against the invaders, but with much less happy results than what had befallen Twilight and her comrades.

Twilight felt acidic bile rise in her throat as she looked at the torn, blood soaked remains of at least five or six Quincy, young men and women just like her and the girls by her side. Only it was hard to even identify who these other trainee’s had been, such was the horrific state of their remains. Twilight had never seen a corpse before, at least not a human one. Certainly she’d done an autopsy or two on frogs or the like for science projects, but that was nothing like what she was seeing now. A sterilized dead frog was like an organic doll, just a step up from a plastic toy by Twilight’s estimation.

These ragged, red pieces of torn meat, ripped viscera, and glassy, sightless eyes had been people less than an hour ago. She wasn’t sure if it was the lesser Hollows still prowling around, or Arrancar that had done the killing, but these poor souls had been butchered like animals and their remains treated like a particularly messy child treats playdough.

Twilight managed to hold out about ten seconds before losing what little breakfast she’d eaten that morning onto the forest floor. The sickness boiling inside her at the horrible sights in front of her were only eclipsed by an uncomprehending sense of utter moral dissonance that her mind simply froze up at. How could anyone or anything with a logical thinking, sapient mind do something like this? Purely academically speaking she knew that war was filled with such horror, but reading about the brutality of armed conflict in books was completely different than encountering the stark naked reality in front of her.

And it sparked a flare of uncharacteristic anger inside Twilight, and even as she struggled to get herself under control from emptying her stomach onto the forest floor, her hand also gripped more tightly around her Quincy bow, her spirit power fluctuating inside her like a flame that just got a dollop of gasoline tossed onto it.

Sunny Flare let out a whispered oath, and Indigo Zapp growled a much louder set of less flowery curses. Sugarcoat was silent, while Suri, who wasn’t being held in a position to see said, “W-what is it? What’s everyone stopped for?”

“You won’t want to know,” said Sour Sweet, spitting, “Damn Hollows are monsters. I’ll kill every last one of them!”

“We need to keep moving,” said Sugarcoat finally, voice terse and tight with the strain of keeping her emotions in check, “If we stay put we’ll be just as dead.”

Twilight had fallen to her knees, but managed to get herself under control after a minute and forced herself to stagger back to her feet. She tried to not look at the bodies, but even if she couldn’t see them, she could smell the death hanging in the air, even beyond the smoke. Wiping her mouth, she stammered, voice filled with equal parts horrified bafflement and growing anger, “W-why did this have to happen?”

“Don’t think about it,” said Sugarcoat, turning her blind face towards Twilight, “Just don’t let yourself think about it. All that matters is getting out of here alive. Focus on that.”

Twilight nodded, then felt a bit foolish doing so given Sugarcoat couldn’t see the gesture, so instead she said, “You’re right. As long as it's all of us that get out.” She felt herself shaking, unsure if it was fear or anger causing it.

The howls of Hollows sounded loudly from nearby as yet another cluster of lesser Hollows emerged from the smoke shrouded depths of the forest, entering the clearing and leaping at the girls. Before any of the other girls could react, Twilight found herself moving without thinking. With the flickering speed of Hirenkyaku she found herself now easily and instinctively controlling Blut Vene to keep her body hardened against the sudden press of G-force as she appeared amid the charging Hollows, bow upraised. Her bow was behaving oddly, its simple form now shimmering with pale white waves of light and its crescent shape slimming into a longer but thinner appearance.

When she fired her arrows there was a chiming noise that accompanied it, like two pieces of glass clashing together. She took down two of the Hollows in a single shot, the arrow going through both creatures’ heads as it ploughed through them. One Hollow tried to get behind her with scything talons, but Twilight sidestepped, the Hollow’s motions seeming slow to her eyes now, as if it were moving through water. She raised her bow and sent an arrow through the Hollow’s chest, which blasted apart in a neatly shaped hole right above its Hollow hole.

The other Hollows tried to converge on her, seeming to sense the sudden threat in their midst, but Twilight let the emotions boiling inside her out, still unable to avoid seeing the bodies of the dead Quincy in the clearing and her mind feeling like an egg about to break apart under the sheer need to deny the death around her and unleash that denial upon the creature’s responsible.

It was a short fight. If fight was even the right term. The Hollows attacked, and Twilight moved through the weave of their claws and smashing fists, placing gleaming arrows through masks and throats and chests with simple, cold efficiency. The whole affair couldn’t have taken more than half a minute, if that.

Twilight knew something was wrong, however, even as the last Hollow dissipated into nothingness. She felt wrong, like she was still sick and would start dry heaving at any second. However instead of vomiting, she was laughing, and it was an uncontrolled laugh, yet a disturbingly familiar laugh, one that sent icy shivers into her heart.

No, this isn’t right. Stop laughing. Stop it. This isn’t how...

Twilight struggled with herself, dropping her bow, which vanished as she stopped concentrating on it. She clutched at her sides, hugging herself, her laughter tapering off into hyperventilating gasps. Suddenly someone was holding her, and shockingly it was Sugarcoat, who had managed to disentangle herself from Sunny Flare, and even blind had used Twilight’s laughter to find her and put a steadying hand on Twilight.

“Calm down Twilight. It’s okay. The Hollows are gone. We’re okay. Just breath.”

Off to the side Suri said, “D-did you see her eyes? Those flames around her eyes were-”

“We know Suri!” snapped Indigo Zapp, “The same damn thing from the Friendship Games.”

“Well at least she didn’t go full demon,” said Sour Sweet, then added, “But seriously maybe we should report this when we get out of here.”

Hearing those words, Twilight just shook more, breathing hard as she tried to calm her rising panic. She’d felt the magic inside her, as she’d destroyed the Hollows. Not the spirit power of her Quincy abilities, but magic. Equestrian magic.

Midnight Sparkle’s magic...

----------

Explosions of searing heat tore across the sky in a curving arc, over a hundred detonations in the span of mere seconds. Spitfire left no room for her opponent to evade, entrapping him in a crescent of fiery destruction. Her bow blazed hot and bright, a sphere of raw heat extending four white hot rods of pure flame.

Fire was the most basic element of destruction, which was why it was far from an uncommon element utilized by many warriors from all the factions of three-way war between Quincy, Hollow, and Soul Reapers. Spitfire knew well that the Soul Reapers had a number of Zanpaktou that bore the fire element, and her own memory burned brightly with recollection of the one time she’d faced one of the Soul Reaper Captains in battle, years ago. Celestia, Spitfire thought the name was. That woman’s Zanpaktou had been capable of heat that couldn’t have even been properly called fire. More like the sun incarnate.

The thought left Spitfire mentally trying to compare the relative strength of the reiatsu she was sensing from the two Espada present compared to what she remembered from her skirmish with Celestia, back in the day. The Soul Reaper Captains didn’t rank themselves by their individual level of strength, so there was a range of power among the Captains that wasn’t obvious by appearance. However the Espada clearly ranked their power, from the weakest number Ten, to the most powerful, the number One. Currently she and Lighting Dust were up against the Fifth and Third Espadas, both in the upper half of their rankings.

Just how strong were they compared to the Soul Reaper Captains?

It was difficult to tell. There comes a point when reiatsu, spiritual pressure, is just so vast that getting an exact read on how strong an individual is becomes nearly impossible. Both Torch and Catrina’s reiatsu filled the air like a vast, suffocating ocean. All Spitfire could tell was that she and Lightning Dust could hold their own for a time, but were outgunned in this fight by at least a slight margin. Actually, Lightning Dust was probably outclassed by an entire order of magnitude against Catrina, but her Daredevil Schrift might make up the difference given the nature of its power. As for Spitfire’s chances against Torch...

“Hahah! Nice little fireworks you got there!” He said with a hearty belly laugh as he walked out of the firestorm Spitfire had launched at him, his dusky skin slightly singed but otherwise still largely uninjured by the barrage. “Since you’ve been a good sport showing me your flame, I’ll show the same respect and show you mine!”

From his mouth suddenly flickered crimson motes of flame, and his chest expanded like a bellows as he took in a deep breath of air far beyond what a human could have done. Spitfire had only a fraction of an instant to react before Torch opened his mouth wide and unleashed a concentrated sphere of scarlet fire. While the sphere was no larger than the average soccer ball, Spitfire sensed the immense energy in it and didn’t waste her split moment to evade, throwing herself backwards at full speed.

The sphere detonated into an expanding cyclone of flame that was so large that even several hundred feet in the air it still touched ground and scorched a swath of burning destruction through the forest. Spitfire managed to escape the edge of the cyclone, but felt the heat of it. If she wasn’t somewhat resistant to fire due to the Inferno Schrift then she’d have blisters popping up on her skin, even from that near miss. Spitfire licked her lips and found herself smiling. She did always enjoy a challenge.

She’d already guessed that Torch’s iron skin, his Arrancar Heirro, was probably specialized in resisting fire in similar fashion to her Inferno. That meant that her normal attacks which relied on heat wouldn’t injure him. She wasn’t going to beat him with fire.

Alright then, fine. We do this old school.

Closing her eyes for a second and taking a calming breath, she mentally commanded the power of the Inferno to drain from her bow. The bright orange bars of light that made up her bow started to fade to a more normal pure blue of a standard Quincy bow. She then rushed forward. There was a column of smoke billowing upwards from Torch’s attack, which obscured her movements as she propelled herself up at an angle so that when she broke through the smoke she was above Torch.

Her bow’s bars glowed intensely as it disgorged a fusillade of arrows down on the Espada, a near waterfall of continuous blue bolts. Torch swung his axe in a wide arc, batting aside some, but there so many that it was like slapping at the rain. For a second Spitfire couldn't even see Torch underneath the deluge of arrows she’d hit him with.

A moment later she ceased her barrage, seeing Torch looking almost like a porcupine, there were so many arrows sticking out of him. Blood poured from several wounds where her arrows had managed to penetrate his flesh, but Torch, while grunting in pain, still grinned as he flexed his muscles and shattered most of the arrows from his body. Despite his wounds he cracked his neck and looked up at her with an appreciative expression. .

“Your arrows suddenly lost their heat. Going to guess you thought dropping the fire from them would help because you figure I’m fire resistant? Well, you’re right, I am, so that was a pretty smart move. Thing is, you’re still dealing with the Espada with the strongest Heirro, girl!” Torch bellowed, and then came at her with his axe. For such a big guy he still moved with impressive speed, but in this category Spitfire did have him beat. His first swing missed her by a proverbial mile, and his follow up she flipped over, landing on the extended half of the axe as she aimed her bow at his eye.

“Is this part covered in a Heirro?” she asked as she fired point blank.

To her surprise Torch managed to turn his head up and actually caught the arrow in his teeth, biting down and shattering the blue bolt of reishi with a grin.

“No, but not about to let you hit me there.” He winked, “It’d rob me of the pleasure of appreciating the eye candy while I knock you around!”

He twisted his axe to throw off her balancing act on it, and lashed out with a backhanded first. She was hardly frail so she blocked the blow with her bow, rolling with the attack to bled off its force as she flipped over him and fired an arrow into the back of Torch’s head. The arrow struck hard, shattering on his skull, but it did stagger the Espada forward a few steps and caused him to grunt in pain.

Rubbing the back of his head, he turned towards her and looked about ready to unleash another cyclone of flame if the angry look in his eyes was any indication, but at that moment Lighting Dust came cartwheeling through the air next to Spitfire, who managed to catch the other woman and steady her. Lightning Dust looked both dazed and battered, but mostly pissed off, which was fairly normal for her.

“Screw me sideways, that bitch is fast.” Lightning Dust said, spitting blood from her mouth due to a busted upper lip. She was covered in a number of shallow cuts that were clearly starting to mount in terms of blood loss.

“Of course I am.” said Catrina as she appeared next to Torch, holding her warfan casually at her side. Spitfire could see the fan’s bladed edge was wet with blood. Catrina eyed Lightning Dust with smoldering hunger. “Did you think I’d obtained my rank solely for my unrivaled looks? Child, you are entirely too naive to believe yourself my match merely because you become stronger when taking risks.”

Spitfire groaned and cast a deadpan look at Lightning Dust, “Did you go babbling about your Daredevil power again?”

“N-no...” Lightning Dust said, then at Spitfire’s continued look she glanced downward and muttered, “Maybe. Hey, it's not like her knowing about it gives her an advantage or anything! It's not like she can counter the Daredevil, since I’m the one who takes the risks that give me the power boost!”

Looking at the state of Lightning Dust’s body Spitfire said, “Unless she specifically only causes you light wounds and avoids putting you in any serious danger, in which case you can’t get any power at all out of the Daredevil.” She glanced at Catrina, “That’s what you were doing, wasn’t it?”

“Ah, a woman of intelligence. You are most refreshing, after dealing with this one.” Catrina cast a dismissive gesture at Lightning Dust. “However as I am also a woman of no small intellect I know your banter is only a tactic to buy yourself more time. Torch, we should end this now. We’ve no more time to play.”

Torch got a sour look on his face but gave a begrudging nod, “Aye, your right. Shame, I was starting to have fun.”

Abruptly both Torch and Catrina’s reiatsu flared upwards, their bodies becoming wreathed in flowing auras; gold and emerald respectively. Spitfire swore under her breath. Were these two about to release their Zanpaktou!? Two Espada going into Resurreccion would be far beyond what she and Lighting Dust could handle without tipping their hand with their own trump card... but His Majesty had not given permission to unveil the Vollstandig transformation yet. Even if it meant death, neither Spitfire nor Lighting Dust could go all out without permission from the King.

However, before either Espada could release their Zanpaktou, they were interrupted by the arrival of another spiritual pressure on the scene, one Spitfire instantly recognized.

“You two alright, Spitfire, Lightning Dust?” asked Shining Armor, already forming his bow and aiming it at the Espada as he appeared beside Spitfire, “More importantly, what’s the situation with the trainees?”

“We’re alive, thanks for the concern.” Spitfire said, too relieved to give Shining Armor too much of a hard time, “I sent Fleetfoot and Soarin’ to help the trainees, but I don’t know how many we’ve lost. These bastards hit us hard.”

“I can see that.” he said giving the entire scene a look of sharp concern. Spitfire could tell he was searching for his sister’s spiritual pressure. Amid all the chaos down in the forest it was probably nearly impossible to pinpoint her, if she was still alive. Spitfire did feel a moment of sympathy for him as he stopped his concentrated search with a growl of frustration and turned angered eyes toward the Espada.

“Where are the rest of the reinforcements?” asked Lighting Dust.

“I’m the only one who was allowed to come,” said Shining Armor, “His Majesty’s orders. I’m to use the Bastion to protect the trainees from His Majesty’s spiritual pressure.”

“Indeed.”

That voice, spoke in a deep and smooth tone, got both Torch and Catrina looking behind them at the man standing a good dozen paces on their other side. Clad in all his regal splendor, Sombra, King of the Quincy, looked at the two Espada the same way the average citizen might look at a pair of scavenging raccoons in their backyard.

“I’m impressed Tirek has finally worked up the nerve to launch a strike like this, however ill advised it was.” said Sombra, casually walking towards Torch and Catrina without drawing any weapon, just scratching his chin as if in deep thought. “I can only assume he was willing to be this daring because he knows Soul Society is distracted, otherwise I can’t imagine that coward being so bold as to threaten my people, my children, in our very home. He does realize that this cannot go unanswered? That I will have to respond to the bloodshed of this day with an even greater reprisal?”

Torch, far more cautious than his boisterousness of mere minutes ago, turned to face Sombra with his axe held at the ready. “Reprisal? How many Hollows have your Quincy hunted down and destroyed? You wipe our souls out of existence, and you want to talk to us about reprisals, you King of hypocrites! What we’ve done today is just you a tiny taste of what’s been done to our kind!”

“Torch, this is not the man to trifle with!” hissed Catrina, every muscle tense as a coiled cat’s, ready to spring. She gave Sombra a wide, false smile, one that had all the warmth of an evening on the moon. “So sorry to be poor guests, but we’ll be departing now.”

Immediately a Garganta began to open between Catrina, Torch, and Sombra, blocking Spitfire’s view of the King while Catrina grabbed Torch’s arm and began to drag him, forcibly, an impressive looking feat for such a slim woman compared to Torch’s bulk, into the portal.

Immediately Spitfire saw Shining Armor aim his bow downward and fire an intensely glowing arrow which then burst into a spreading shield of energy that covered the forest. She understood why soon enough as massive spiritual pressure exploded over the entire area, making it hard for her to breath and she was used to dealing with overwhelming spirit powers. This was His Majesty’s reiatsu, and it was so strong that had Shining Armor’s barrier not been put in place it may have suffocated any of the Quincy trainees in the forest.

There was a blaze of silver light, cutting straight down the length of the black Garganta portal, and Catrina and Torch both jumped back from it as the portal literally tore itself apart like a crumbling dark cloth, revealing Sombra standing on the other side. He had his glowing blade of blue light rimmed in silver in his right hand, having obviously just cut an inter-dimensional portal in half through sheer overwhelming reiatsu. Sombra looked as calm as ever, but Spitfire did notice he had a small smirk of satisfaction on his face as well that he quickly hid as he said, “I have not given my leave for you to depart, esteemed Espada. Not without taking from you the toll for shedding blood upon my holy lands.”

Spitfire could feel Sombra’s spirit energy flowing out of him and it was at once comforting, like being a child in the cradle once more, and terrifying, like peering over a bottomless pit. His Majesty was an inspiring beacon of hope and power for the Quincy, yet Spitfire couldn’t deny that she found that power somewhat... disturbing. The Quincy were humanity’s best hope for a future free of Soul Reaper and Hollows, yet with such power was His Majesty something that could be called human any longer? Gazing upon him, dark hair and mantle flowing like deepest night shadows shrouding his body, and his eyes gleaming like twin stars, Sombra seemed less human and more like a divine force of judgement.

However Catrina didn’t cringe from that force and instead composed herself with a hand brushing her hair from her face and stepping out in front of Torch, who looked at her quizzically.

“Catrina?” Torch asked as she strode between him and Sombra.

“Torch, be a dear and go ensure the retreat through Squirk’s Garganta’s goes smoothly,” Catrina said with a smooth tone, “I’ll be along shortly, but it seems the Quincy King is in need of someone to entertain him with a dance. Since we’re being so rude as to depart without his leave, I’ll humor him and his Sternritters.”

Torch growled, “Now don’t be a fool about this. Third ranked or not, you don’t have the strength to deal with this alone.”

A look passed between the two, and Spitfire felt a strange discomforting seeing Hollows exchanging such a comradely look. It irritated her for reasons she couldn’t quite fathom to see the enemy acting all too human.

“Torch, you’re an adorable man, but I don’t need protecting. Now scurry along already before embarrassing yourself further, oh, and do make sure that lovely daughter of yours and her friend survives. I might still want to play with them someday.”

Torch’s teeth ground with an audible noise like two grating cinderblocks, but he gave a grave nod and with the flashing speed of a Sonido, he vanished. Sombra glanced downward, as if she could still see where Torch was heading, and Spitfire could also somewhat follow Torch’s movements, seeing the bulky man’s blurred form rocketing down toward the forest. He smashed into Shining Armor’s barrier.

Spitfire saw Shining Armor widen his eyes in surprise as Torch’s impact rippled along the entire barrier like a wave from a stone hitting a still pond. He instantly leveled his bow and charged it with a flow of incandescent reishi, firing a large arrow with a blazing blue tip like a miniature star down at the barrier. Torch had hit the barrier axe first, leaning all his weight and momentum upon the blade, and then followed that up by opening his mouth and emitting a massive Cero blast at point blank range into the barrier, just moments before Shining Armor’s second arrow hit.

That second arrow erupted into an even larger barrier, this one shaped like gleaming blue diamond, surrounding the first barrier in a tight lattice of crystalline strands like an intricate web. However Spitfire could see that Torch had broken through that first barrier before the second one had formed, as evidenced by the large hole in it with shards of reishi breaking off like bits of melting snow.

“I didn’t think anything could get through one of your Bastion barriers,” she said, blinking in surprise.

Shining Armor’s face was hard as rock, “I only set up the first one to block His Majesty’s reishi from the trainees. It wasn’t meant to stand up to a pissed off Espada. Dammit! Twilight’s still down there!”

“Do not be concerned,” said Sombra, “The Hollows are fleeing. Soon only this one will remain.” He raised his sword and pointed it at Catrina, who looked at him with a tense smirk.

“An impressive sword, but I thought Quincy only used bows?”

Sombra raised an eyebrow at her, then with a rather sarcastic, deadpan look he inverted his grip on the glowing sword of blue and silver reishi. Suddenly another blade sprang from the bottom of the hilt, which in turn extended and curved, so that the two broadswords of energy formed a bow.

“I hope this bow appeases your curiosity, for the brief moment you’ll see it,” Sombra said, and raised his other hand to draw back on what at first was an invisible bowstring, until the silver light edging either of the blades forming his bow took the form of the string. Then formed the arrow, only rather than blue, this arrow swirled into existence seemingly from the color of deepest shadow. With no further preamble Sombra released the arrow, and Spitfire wasn’t even sure she could describe the sensation that filled the air as an impact or shockwave. It was more like the world just sort of stopped for an instant, then came screaming back a second later with the howl of the windforce created by the passage of the King’s arrow.

She saw Catrina’s form impaled upon the arrow, and for a moment Spitfire was certain that His Majesty had managed to defeat her in a single blow, but an instant later the image of Catrina shimmered and faded like mist and the Espada appeared some distance away, breathing heavily and clutching at a fresh wound gouged out of her side.

Sombra glanced at Catrina, tilting his head in the barest nod of respect. “A speed clone, was it? I only know one other capable of that much speed, and she’s a Soul Reaper.”

Catrina made a scoffing noise, “Not even Lord Tirek matches my Sonido, but even so...” she looked at her wound, snorting at the blood seeping down her hip and leg, “This, from a near miss? You are quite the monster, King of the Quincy. You might be less human than we Hollows are.”

Sombra smiled, and it carried to his eyes a gleam of something akin to madness, though Spitfire thought she might have been imagining things.

“Or perhaps I am merely what humans are meant to become.”

“A world where every person holds that much power strikes me as a very boring world indeed,” said Catrina, showing teeth, “I like a world where there is a clear line between the haves and haves nots, between predators and prey. A world where some of the people get to enjoy themselves as they please is better than one where no one can. If making the rest of the world like you is your dream for humanity then I’ll gladly fight to tear it asunder.”

“Come and try,” Sombra said, making an inviting bow.

Catrina seemed ready to go on the offensive, her stance tensing to attack, but at that instant the air beneath her distorted and then split as another Garganta opened. She seemed as surprised by this as anyone else, as a tall Arrancar with red skin poked his head up from the Garganta and shouted, “Leaving now! Last call for idiotic felines!”

“S-Squirk!? When did you-”

“Less talk more get in the portal!” The red skinned Arrancar literally grabbed Catrina by her ankles and yanked her down into the Garganta, the Third Espada letting out a rather undignified yelp as she went. Then a red hand rose out of the portal as it began to close, giving Sombra, the King of the Quincy, a rather prominent middle finger before vanishing back into the Garganta, which closed a second later.

For a few moments after that neither Spitfire nor Shining Armor said a word, instead just staring in pure stunned confusion. The silence was broken by Sombra making a sound that might have been a short, half choked laugh.

“It seems Tirek has filled his court with some unusual individuals. It will be almost a shame when we kill them all.”

Spitfire stood at attention almost by rote habit, previous military experience kicking in, but she soon transferred the gesture into kneeling towards her sovereign alongside Shining Armor.

“Your Majesty, I apologize for what’s happened,” she said in an unsteady voice, “You placed the Academy in my charge, yet I let this happen under my watch.”

“Spitfire, are you a god, or a prophet?” asked Sombra as he made a simple gesture, his bow seeming to break up into motes of shadow that melded back into his body. “Of course not. You could not have foreseen an attack of this scale. Our wards were penetrated without being triggered, likely by that red skinned fellow from just now. He will have to die first among those we seek in the hunt to come, for I will not allow such control of portals that can launch sneak attacks upon my people to remain in enemy hands.”

“Hunt, your Majesty?” asked Shining Armor.

“Naturally. This attack must be answered in kind. That is the nature of war, after all.” Sombra’s expression darkened, “First, however, we must count our wounded... and our dead.”

----------

Adagio took a brief breath of relief, finding it hard to believe that she was actually glad to be back in Hueco Mundo. That had not been a pleasant experience. She almost preferred the simple brutal efficiency of dealing with Grogar’s experiments as opposed to juggling her deceptions in the midst of that battle.

However her relief was a short lived thing because she still carried Ember’s unconscious, wounded form on her back, and now that they were all through the Garganta portal and back inside the protection of Las Noches, Lord Torch was barreling down on her like a giant blue freight train.

“Ember!”

Adagio was quick to gently set Ember down and then wisely float to the side before being bowled over by Torch. She quickly spoke, taking on as reassuring a tone as she could, “She’s still breathing. I think she’s just exhausted.”

“What happened, fledgling?” Torch rumbled with vibrant menace as he turned glaring eyes towards Adagio, and she could feel that sensation of her soul being crushed under heavy weight by his sheer spiritual pressure. She bore it and kept her tone level.

“There was a disagreement over...” she took a moment to choose her words, “Kill rights, concerning a group of Quincy. Ember fought with one of your other Arrancar. Garble, I think the name was. They both ended up injured like this.”

Torch’s massive brow furrowed, and he bellowed, “Garble, get your scrawny ass over here, now!”

The Arrancar of Torch’s horde seemed to part like a small ocean, not a one of them wanting to be anywhere near a potential object of their Espada’s ire. Garble, for his part, walked forward with a surly cast to his features, but not lacking confidence. He was still missing an eye, and his right arm was essentially a blackened stump, but he managed to hold a confident pose despite his extensive injuries. Near as Adagio could tell he’d definitely gotten the worse of the clash between himself and Ember.

“My lord,” Garble said with a strained tone, casting a furious glance at Adagio, “That witch isn’t telling you everything.”

Torch’s voice was heavy with the promise of imminent violence, “Do tell.”

“I don’t know what got into Ember, but she struck first after me and my pals were already claiming our kills. She spouted something about claiming them herself, but we’d already been putting the hurt on the Quincy so I don’t see how she had any claim to jump us like that. She didn’t even give me a chance to talk sense into her before going ballistic on me...” His gaze turned back to Adagio and he pointed an accusatory finger at her, “I’m thinking that little manipulative witch pulled some kind of trick on Ember!”

Adagio sucked in a short breath and floated forward, knowing she had to squelch this talk now, before Torch had a chance to think about it too much. “What kind of ‘trick’ could I have pulled? You’re just sour over Ember putting you in your place. I she wanted to claim more Quincy kills for herself, well, the term for that is competition Garble. If you can’t measure up, then maybe you should back down.”

Garble growled, drawing his falchion, but Torch made a halting gesture that froze Garble in place, gulping. Torch then cradled the unconscious Ember in his arms, Ember looking like little more than an infant in his huge hands.

“If Ember started the fight, then she owns the responsibility for the results,” he said with a somber tone, “Can’t crush your skull like a grape, Grable, for behaving like a proper Arrancar and fighting for your kills. I ain’t hearing any excuses, like tossing blame at Adagio either. My Embers a firebrand and doesn’t need to be tricked into fighting...”

He turned a slow look towards Adagio, “That said, I’ll be getting Ember’s side of things too. Hope for your sake your story checks out. In the meantime you ain’t leaving my camp until I get this sorted. Clear?”

Adagio nodded, hiding her nervousness with a placid smile, “Completely. I hope Ember recovers quickly. She’s been a good friend so far.”

Torch nodded at that and then turned away and began to walk towards the tents surrounding the pillar where his horde’s camp was. Squirk’s Gargantas had brought them all back to the same place they’d left from, and while Torch had been collecting Ember, Catrina and Squirk had been squaring off in an argument of some sort. Adagio cast a look that way, wondering what the two other Espada were arguing over. She noticed Garble glaring at her, but she ignored him and floated closer to where Catrina was slowly getting back on her palanquin, supported by her strange, furry Hollow servants.

“You should not have interrupted my battle, Squirk! Your place was to ensure the retreat of the others.” Catrina was saying, face pinched in a displeased grimace. Adagio noticed the feline woman was holding a rather nasty looking bleeding wound in her right side, just above her hip.

Squirk, spitting, said in a tone thick with irritation, “A ‘thank you’ wouldn't have killed you Catrina, unlike the Quincy King! The second Torch and the rest of his little horde were through my Garganta I went to collect you. Would you have rather I left you behind to be destroyed?”

Catrina rolled her glittering green eyes, “I had the situation entirely under control you fool! I have several trump cards to play in such serious circumstances that would have ensured my survival, and I had the bastard talking. He wasn’t fighting seriously, and neither was I. After a few more minutes of testing each other he might have gotten more serious, but in the meantime who knows what kind of useful information I might have gotten him to inadvertently spill? You ruined that by just... just...” Catrina shuddered, “I did not give you permission to lay your grubby hands on me like that! Do it again and you’ll regret it!”

Squirk’s muttered response was, “I already regret it, you ungrateful, mangy cat.” He then took note of Adagio watching him, “What are you looking at, low class peasant!?”

“Nothing at all, my lord,” Adagio said with a well practiced bow, “Forgive my curiosity.”

“Curiosity is a trait I encourage in my own servants.” said Catrina with a smile, strained somewhat by clearly being in pain from her wound, “If you ever tire of that goat Grogar, or of playing with the barbaric dragonkin, consider coming to my tower. I’d most enjoy playing with you, little fish.”

She then made a gesture with her fan at a distant tower of conical shaped ivory in the northern portion of the fortress. “Come, my bushwoolies, take me home. After today I require a great deal of beauty sleep.”

The small, bushy little Hollows immediately hopped to it, carrying Catrina on her palanquin away. Squirk watched her go for a moment, then grumbling under his breath he opened another Garganta and vanished into it, presumably to wherever he kept his own lair in Las Noches.

Adagio was left alone, to consider her next move, which as near as she could tell was going to be doing all she could to survive until Ember awoke, and then do everything in her power to convince everyone from Torch on down that what had happened during the Quincy hunt had not involved any manipulation on her part. Otherwise Torch would squash her like a particularly attractive grape. Assuming Garble didn’t decide to kill her before that due to a completely unreasonable (from Adagio’s perspective) grudge. And failing that Ember might kill her if she found out about the teensy itty bitty bit of of mind control Adagio had used on her... which Adagio was still feeling some lingering guilt over despite its necessity.

So in other words, her life (afterlife?) was just going swell. So much so that Adagio was starting to truly miss working at a fast food joint with her sisters, earning minimum wage and living out of a dirty apartment filled with unidentifiable smells.

Dammit she missed Aria and Sonata.

----------

“Argh! This sucks!” Rainbow Dash shouted as the Reishi Modulator orb in her hands sparked and gave her a small shock. She’d been pouring her reishi into to the surprisingly light metal sphere, but was having trouble getting the spirit energy in there in a steady flow. She was more of an ‘all out’ kind of gal. This slow and steady stuff didn’t really suit her style. Didn’t help her mood that the other girls seemed to pick up on activating the Reishi Modulators pretty quick.

“It's alright Rainbow, darling, you’ll get it soon I’m sure.” Rarity said, holding up her own orb in one casual hand. Her Reishi Modulator was glowing with a steady pulse of faint blue light, like an easy heartbeat. Rainbow Dash gave Rarity a tight smile.

“Oh, yeah, I got this. No problem. Just gotta make this little jerk do what I want it to!” she declared, clutching the orb tighter and focusing on pushing more spirit energy into it.

They were all standing in a relatively clear corner of Time Turner’s workshop, not long after they’d enjoyed a surprisingly well cooked meal. Food tasted a little differently to Rainbow Dash in this spirit world. Not exactly bland, but rather that all the normal tastes of sweet, sour, or salty were just a shade off. Still good, through,especially given how hungry she’d been after wreaking those lame thugs on the way into town. Ditzy said that using her evolved Fullbring was going to take up a lot of energy until she and the girls got used to using them, so the hunger wasn’t unexpected.

“Dash, you're being too forceful with it.” said Sunset, leaning against one of the nearby tables. She’d been taking time to examine a lot of the random devices that Time Turner had strewn about his workshop. Rainbow Dash figured Sunset was just going egghead mode, wondering how some of the stuff in here worked or what it was for. All Rainbow Dash wanted was to get this stupid ball working!

“Hey! I’m trying to be gentle! But it's hard! I don’t do gentle! It's like my spirit power just wants to go BAM, ZAP, WHOOSH!” she made a few emphasizing gestures, nearly tossing the orb in the process and only catching it due to her finely honed athletic reflexes.

“Admittedly I only taught you girls how to fight all out, not much on how to fine tune and control your spirit energies.” admitted Ditzy Doo as she watched them from the sidelines. “Your nature might be to go full force, Dash, but you’re an athlete right? You’ve played all sorts of sports.”

“Tch, not just played sports, but got awesome at them!” Rainbow Dash declared with assured confidence.

“Then you got to have learned how to restrain yourself, because you can’t be ‘awesome’ in every sport without knowing when and where to hold back. Think of it like pacing your exercise. If you went all out exercising you’d tear up your muscles instead of strengthening them. Apply the same idea here to your spirit energy.”

Rainbow Dash frowned, and focused back onto the Reishi Modulator, trying to imagine her spirit energy like she would her own limbs when getting ready for a workout. Stretch the limbs first, get them limber, start the workout slow until you start to feel the nice heady burn. Slowly her orb started to exhibit the same glow as the others had, and she grinned.

“Hey! I got it!”

Pinkie Pie, bouncing up to her, gave Rainbow Dash a heavy slap on the back, “Way to go Dashie!”

She grinned, but her spirit energy fluctuated again beyond her control and the orb’s glow faded into a painful spark, “Gah! Aw for the love of...”

As Rainbow Dash went back to practicing, she noticed Sunset shift off the table she’d been leaning against and look towards Applejack, who was standing a distance off by the door, stetson tilted down to shade her eyes and with her arms crossed firmly across her chest.

“AJ? You alright over there? Been awfully quiet.” Sunset observed, and Rainbow Dash admitted she’d been thinking the same thing. Applejack had been acting a bit surly since arriving at Time Tuner’s. Actually before that too. Not that Rainbow Dash could really blame Applejack for being out of it. She’d gone through a lot lately, maybe a bit more than the others, due to the whole revelations about her parent’s deaths, which got even weirder with the notion that even with her mother being dead Applejack was facing the prospect of trying to find her and might even have to fight her own mother soon.

Where with me, I won’t be seeing my mom anytime soon and don’t even need to think about her, skipping out on me and dad... Rainbow Dash thought, but shook the unhappy memories off as Applejack looked up at them and responded to Sunset’s query.

“Just thinkin’, and wantin’ answers, and not sure I’d git ‘em even if I asked.” Applejack said while turning a hard glance towards Ditzy Doo, who in turn met Applejack’s look with a steady return glance.

“If you have questions, Applejack, then don’t keep them in. I’ll answer what I can. You just have to accept that not everyone, even more or Discord, have all the answers.”

“Alright,” said Applejack, and she gestured towards the door, “Tell me just what n’ tarnation is goin’ on with what we were seein’ out there! What kind o’ half baked, screwy afterlife are you Soul Reapers runnin’!?”

Rainbow Dash flinched slightly. She hadn’t really been thinking about it too hard herself, but she had to admit that the district outside was kind of a dump. She’d never spent a lot of time wondering about the “big questions” of what happened after death. Rainbow Dash was very much the kind of girl who preferred to live in the moment. Yet it was kind of weird to think that the afterlife could have its slums just like the real world.

“I was wondering about that as well.” said Fluttershy in a mild tone, but with oddly piercing eyes. Rainbow Dash had noticed Fluttershy had gotten a tad more... intense, since their training. “I don’t understand why there seem to be people living in such poor conditions. Shouldn’t the afterlife be more peaceful and restful than this?”

Ditzy Doo nodded with a understanding look, “I can see why some of you might take it hard, seeing that. Quick question; how many of you girls are religious?”

That question got the girls all exchanging looks with each other. Quite frankly the topic of religion had never actually come up between them, like, at all. Rainbow Dash was pretty much as unconcerned with religion as one could get. It just didn’t factor into her day to day life. She’d never even thought to ask any of her friends about the matter.

Pinkie Pie giggled a bit, “Well mom and pop come from Amish roots, but that was a couple of generations ago. Not sure why great grandpa left. As for my parents, I guess they still go to church, but never tried to force us kids to go. I know Limestone and Marble go, but I don’t know about Maud.” Pinkie shrugged, “Guess I never really thought about it.”

“My own family is technically Catholic, but much like Pinkie Pie the tradition has never been particularly influential in our day to day lives.” said Rarity with a small, dainty shrug, “I certainly considered myself more of an agnostic sort, although I admit recent experiences make it difficult to know what to think anymore.”

“What about you Fluttershy?” asked Rainbow Dash, curious. Fluttershy looked at her with a calm smile.

“My parents are, hmm, I think the term is ‘New Age’ in their beliefs. I suppose I’m the same, but I always kind of liked what I read about Buddhism. Peace and enlightenment seemed like such nice goals to work towards.”

“Right, so basically you are a diverse bunch,” Ditzy Doo said, nodding at Applejack, “Going to guess Christian?”

Applejack let out a large sigh, “...Yeah, more or less. Granny does take me, Big Man, an’ Applebloom ta church each Sunday. Can’t say I was hardcore about it, but fact is... I believed in something better than this existed after we all bite the dust. I thought there was suppose ta be a’... a’ better place waitin’ fer good folk one way or another.”

Her hands clenched into fists, “But it ain’t like that. I’m lookin’ at the truth, an’ I can’t accept that when we die all we got ta look forward to is a world that’s just as unfair an’ prone ta pain and sufferin’ as the world we live in!”

“You’re far from the first person to have their faith in what they believe shaken by discovering the truth of how the spirit world works and interacts with the living world.” said Ditzy Doo with a grave, but softly kind tone, “I know it’s confusing, even painful. Soul Society was built to try and make the spirit world the kind of place of peace and rest that you imagine an afterlife should be. The problem is that it was built by human souls that, just like living people, have differences of opinion and flawed ideas on how to do things. Our resources aren’t infinite. Souls might not starve for hunger like a living body does, only craving reishi based food if they expend spiritual energy, but pain is still a factor. People can still take advantage of each other, or seek to hurt each other for all sorts of messed up reasons. And there are only so many Soul Reapers available to police the Districts and also cover the living world, and fight the Hollows, and fight the Quincy, all at once. There just aren’t.”

“But what about before Soul Society?” pressed Applejack, “There weren’t no one or nothin’ protecting people’s souls before that?”

“No, there weren’t. Souls flowed from one world to the other, but in an uncontrolled state. It was anarchy for a very long time, a sort of primal world where souls wandered and battled for any reason that came their way, and Hollows haunted the souls like packs of wolves. It was a brutal and savage time. The... the advent of Soul Reapers changed that, but even thousands of years later we’re still struggling to create the ideal afterlife.”

“Is this spirit realm the only one besides Hueco Mundo?” asked Sunset suddenly, “I recall you mentioning a Beast Realm at some point.”

“There are spiritual realms attached to this one. Human souls naturally are drawn to this plane and dwell here after death, but you may have noticed there aren’t many animals wandering around. That’s because there’s a separate spiritual realm, the Beast Realm, that draws in animal souls. Then of course there's Jigoku, Hell, that draws in souls of particularly evil individuals. The thing is, these realms all existed since the beginning, near as any of us can tell. No one knows for sure how it all started, except maybe the Spirit Queen.”

Applejack’s eyebrow shot up, “An’ just who is the Spirit Queen?”

Ditzy Doo looked at Applejack, eyes taking on a guarded look. “That’s something very few people know. The official word is that she is the ruler of Soul Society and the ‘linchpin or the world’. However no one outside of the Captain Commander has seen her in Soul Society. She resides in a different realm, the Soul Palace, and is guarded by the Zero Division, a group of five of the original Soul Reapers who founded Soul Society. They never come down to this realm, only remaining in the Soul Palace. Theoretically they send decrees down to Central 46 to enact policies, but honestly I’ve never known for sure just how that communication works. The Soul Palace and Spirit Queen are mysteries that most of Soul Society just have to accept exist. Kind of our own religion, if you will.”

“That’s insane!” Applejack said, “So, what, she’s God?”

Ditzy Doo shrugged, “Your guess is as good as mine. I’ve never met the Spirit Queen. You’d have to ask the Captain Commander what she’s like, which I don’t recommend given we’re kind of wanted criminals at the moment.”

Applejack let out a frustrated groan, “I hate how dang unclear all this is! Can’t anyone just give a straight answer!?”

“Sad to say, probably not.” said Ditzy Doo.

Rainbow Dash had been listening intently, and after a second realized someone hadn’t said much. “So, Sunset, what about you?”

“Huh?” Sunset looked over at Rainbow Dash, “What about me?”

“We spilled about our religious stuff. So how about you? You follow any crazy pony religion? Like the Church of Friendship or something?”

Sunset let out a hearty laugh, shaking her head, “No, no nothing like that. Back in the past some ponies worshiped the Princesses as living goddesses, but Celestia and Luna discouraged that stuff pretty heavily. We don’t really have much in the way of organized religions. I guess understandably the sun and moon both have some meaning in our mythologies, but modern beliefs about the afterlife largely remain downplayed compared to traditions of actual lifestyles. Like, ponies are way more into specific life traditions. To the point where each town might have vastly differing traditions on how to live day to day, which can lead to, er... ‘friendly rivalries’ we’ll call them. You should really see how crazy it can get. It's like each town has its own dozen different holidays, and neighboring towns love to set up competitions between each other.”

“So, what, ya’ll don’t got any traditions fer dealin’ with death or beliefs on what happens after ya die?” asked Applejack.

“Well, we have various funeral rites and ways of mourning the dead.” said Sunset, “But the afterlife is basically a big mystery to us, and most ponies are just kind of... content to let it be a mystery. Then again, that’s ponies. Different species have other beliefs. I think the griffins actually do have a pantheon of deities they worship, but I’m not as read up on those as I should be.”

“Huh,” said Rainbow Dash, “Wonder if your world’s got Soul Reapers and Hollows in it, and they’re just a lot better about keeping it secret than over here?”

“I seriously doubt that.” said Sunset, but she did hesitate, rubbing her chin thoughtfully, “At least I’m pretty sure there aren’t.”

With a grunt Applejack leaned off the wall and said, “Figure yer Princesses are honest sorts. They’d probably tell ya if there were beasties like Hollow runnin’ around. I can’t get my head wrapped ‘round all this. I just... wish things were simpler, is all. Anyway, I’m tired o’ talkin’ ‘bout this. When are we heading into get the rescue started?”

“Now that you girls mostly got these Reishi Modulators working, we can go at any time you want.” said Ditzy Doo.

“Then let’s not waste anymore time!” said Applejack, “Sooner we rescue Celestia and Luna, the sooner we can put this whole dang matter ta rest.”

Author's Notes:

And so we get our first hint that the same problem Twilight faced in Legend of Everfree is also a factor here, with Midnight Sparkle still possibly lurking somewhere in her subconscious. And she's presently separated from the circle of friends that would normally have helped her deal with that. But hey, perhaps she'll develop some new friendships among her fellow Quincy to face the darkness within? We'll find out.

I hope no one found the talk about religions odd, as I know Equestria Girls and MLP in general tends to avoid mentioning that kind of thing. Heck Bleach tended to avoid ever bringing up actual religions much, despite being a show that's literally all about the afterlife. Now I'm not a religious person myself, but I find belief systems fascinating and figure its the kind of thing that maybe should be explored somewhat in a story where the main characters actually go to the afterlife and technically go toe to toe with beings that are basically akin to gods. There's just a whole pile of interesting issues to explore with this concept, and one of them is brought up here with Applejack particularly, which is just what does someone who might be religious start to believe when they go to the afterlife and find out its nothing like what they thought? Applejack is definitely facing a bit of a test of her beliefs here. The other girls are faring a bit better mostly due to varying levels of actual connection to any religious background. I just kind of figured most of them, even if from religious families, probably don't bring it up very often with each other.

Then there's Sunset, who's from a different world altogether. I mostly base what she says on this chapter off of what I witness in the show and read in the comics, which is that ponies seem pretty focused on traditions and holidays based on mythologies or historical events (like Hearth's Warming Eve) or individual towns with their own unique festivals (like the Ponyville Days festival in comic issue 30) and its these traditions that make up most of what form a pony's values. They focus more on life than on death, and hence the afterlife is kind of just not touched on much in their society. At least presently. In the past this might be different, given there was at least some worship of the Princesses. Also this doesn't apply to other species, which could have extensive religious practices.

Anyway, its something I'm starting to explore here and hope you guys find it interesting. As always I welcome and appreciate any and all critiques, questions, and comments you guys might have for me. 'Till next time.

Episode 37: Into the Seireitei

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Episode 37: Into the Seireitei

Sunset found Clover in Time Turner’s kitchen, having stayed there to help the fellow clean up after everyone had eaten before training to use the Reishi Modulators. It was little odd to Sunset seeing the Soul Reaper with the sleeves of her black robes rolled up past her elbows as she scrubbed dishes. It seemed entirely too domestic and ordinary for the woman who introduced Sunset and her friends to a supernatural war for supremacy of the afterlife. Time Turner was helping Clover, also elbow deep in cleaning, and but his attention was drawn to Sunset’s entrance.

“Ah, hello there Miss Shimmer. How’s training with my little lovelies going?”

“Little lovelies?” Sunset said, bemused as she leaned against the doorframe.

“Or beauties if you prefer. Or sometimes I call them my tiny monstrosities, depending on how much of my eyebrows they singe off when malfunctioning.” said Time Turner, wiping his hands on a dishrag to dry them, Clover following suit as she finished the last dish and placed it in a rack to dry. “I call my inventions all sorts of things. Changes depending on how well they’re working. Still, how’d it go? You girls figure out how to use them without exploding the workshop?”

“I think we’ve managed to achieve ideal results with a minimum of explosions, despite Dash’s best efforts.” replied Sunset, “At this point AJ is foaming at the mouth to get going. I’m recommending we hold off until nightfall.”

Clover turned to her, expression carefully schooled to neutrality, but her voice carried a hint of her unease.”I’ll go ahead and second the waiting idea. No matter how bad things are in the Seireitei the Gate Guardians will still be on the lookout for intruders. We’ll need every advantage we can get.”

“You going to be okay Clover?” Sunset asked with a mixture of hesitance and concern. “This is probably going to be the very last chance you have to back out of this, before we get neck deep in fighting your own people.”

Clover hesitated, for all the world looking a bit like a trapped animal for a second, but she steadied herself, visibly building walls of confidence around her uncertainty. “If I was going to abandon this course I should have done so before we even came to Soul Society. Thank you for the concern, though, Sunset. I’ll be okay. This has to be done, for the sake of Soul Society as a whole. I can have an existential crisis over it after it's over, assuming we’re still alive by then.”

Sunset nodded, “Just making sure. Hey, this hasn’t come up yet, but it's a pertinent question now; how often do we need to sleep while we’re here? Does sleep work different in the spirit realm?”

Clover shook her head, “No more so than in the living world. Spirit bodies gain wear and tear like any other and need rest to recover. You might find yourself able to push for longer, of course, with your spirit energy sustaining you for greater lengths than your human body, but yes you’ll still eventually need to sleep and the danger of depriving yourself of that rest cannot be understated.”

“Then I’m going to suggest we all catch a power nap before it gets dark.” said Sunset, “Because I get the feeling our opportunities for rest once we’re inside the Seireitei are going to be few and far between.”

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Gradually falling behind the distant west horizon the sun tossed a riot of color across the Seireitei. The blazing red and angry oranges mixed with a gloomy violet seemed to suit Sweet Cider’s mood just fine as she stomped along the stone pathway between Seireitei’s many walls. Beside her and slightly behind her Lieutenant walked, blue eyes looking at her sidelong. He was a plain looking man, with short brown hair and a moustache that was thick enough to almost hide his mouth.

“Ya don’t got ta do this, if yer that worked up, ma’am.”

Sweet Cider clenched her teeth at his words, “Shut it, Silverstar. I ain’t ‘worked up’ or nothin’ stupid like that.”

He cast a incredulous glance at the stone walkway behind them, where a clear path of cracks in the stone could be seen following Sweet Cider’s trail. “Yeah, that’s why yer leavin’ behind footprints in stone, ‘cause ya ain’t angry.”

She looked at him. Just a look, with her deep green eyes flashing, and she saw Silverstar falter for a brief moment. But hardened his eyes and squared her shoulders, meeting her gaze head on, as if he was daring her to deny his words. It made her grin, just a tad. The only reason this man was her Lieutenant was because he was the only bastard in all Soul Society who wasn’t already a Captain that wasn’t cowed by her and could actually hold his own against her. Made him worth more of a damn than most in Soul Society. And he was right, she was angry. Pissed, even.

“I don’t like this damn situation one bit.” she admitted with a gruff look on her face, “The whole thing stinks like a ten day old rotted apple.”

Quirking his eyebrow at her usually unusual apple-themed terminology, a quirk she’d had since long as she could remember of her life in Soul Society, Silverstar said, “If ya didn’t like it, why’d ya vote against the trial?”

Sweet Cider paused, casting another irritated glance at him, but she crossed her arms firmly and gave the question some thought. Eventually she said, “... Gut instinct. Not ‘cause I think them two were guilty, but ‘cause my gut told me the truth wouldn’t come out if they got protected by the old man. This whole mess, something in it don’t smell right, an’ instinct is tellin’ me this is the only way ta kick over the midden heap an’ git ta the truth.”

“Seekin’ the truth by shakin’ things up so much somethin’ has ta fall out, eh? Should’ve expected somethin’ like that from you. Still don’t explain why we’re headin’ ta the Thirteenth Division, especially given its bein’ put on lockdown by the Eleventh.”

“If somethin’ is gonna start, it’ll be startin’ there.” said Sweet Cider firmly, “Don’t want ta miss out on the fun, do we?”

Silverstar stroked his mustache, “Won’t hurt ta have another Captain visible there. Might make the Thirteenth rethink their position an’ back down.”

Sweet Cider laughed, “Don’t count on it. I might think that Celestia is a bit of a softhearted milktoast Captain, but damned if she don’t inspire loyalty. Her an’ her sister both. Don’t think ya could’ve picked two worse Captains ta hang out ta dry, if yer were fixin’ ta keep the Gotei 13 whole.”

Silverstar quickly caught the extra meaning in her words, which also just went to show why she’d made him her Lieutenant. He was fairly sharp. “Suggestin’ that whoever arranged all this ain’t aimin’ ta keep the Gotei 13 whole, but rather tear us apart.”

“Now yer gettin’ why I’m a bit upset. That’s the kind o’ manipulation an’ double dealin’ that just burns my britches.”

She’d never questioned why she’d had such odd turns of speak. They just came naturally to her. Still, it irked her to see Silverstar smirking at her in wry amusement and she briefly considered pitching him over the nearest wall, just for a lesson. But she supposed she did need him conscious and functional for the next few days, so she kept her peace and continued to march onward.

The neatly ordered paths of the Seireitei were a geometric nightmare to people who didn’t know how to navigate them. Sweet Cider was fairly certain a depraved and particularly sadistic madman must have come up with the plan for all the turning paths, all at perfect right angles so that not a single curve existed in the countless walled walkways between the Gotei 13’s many division buildings. It was really a miracle born of a very nature-centric previous Captain of the Thirteenth Division that its barracks was built on one of the few plots of land that was allowed to keep its original state, that of a large, thick forest surrounding a lake right in the Seireitei’s southeast section. Sweet Cider could actually catch the light, verdant scent of the trees before she caught sight of them, the smell giving her a strange sense of the familiar.

When the walkway opened up into the green grass bordering the forest, Sweet Cider halted upon spotting the cordon of Soul Reapers, like a line of surly funeral shrouds. They were all the thickly muscled and stoic types that Captain Hurricane tended to prefer for his Division. The man went out of his way to recruit the most aggressive yet obedient for his ranks, drilling in loyalty to both himself and the law of Soul Society with single minded tenacity. While Sweet Cider kind of appreciated results and straightforward methods, she couldn’t deny dealing with the Eleventh Division was like dealing with a mountain made out of brick walls built by mules.

Then again, she’d heard some people complain that dealing with her generated the exact same feeling, and she couldn’t help but crack a small smile as she approached the cordon. She noticed that the Eleventh Division Soul Reapers all tensed up at her smiling approach, a few going so far as to put hands on the hilts of their Zanpaktou. That only made Sweet Cider’s smile widen.

“Mighty fine lookin’ blockade ya got goin’ here.” she said, sliding her eyes across the group of around thirty of the Eleventh Division’s rank and file members. They’d set up a small camp at the clear area between the Seireitei walls and the forest, a few tall, black tents probably housing another twenty Soul Reapers besides the thirty she saw. This was just a fraction of the Eleventh Division’s full numbers, which were split between covering other entrances to this area, or patrolling other parts of the Seireitei, not to mention the many more Soul Reapers still deployed to the living world. This little crisis in Seireitei didn’t halt the Soul Reaper’s duties to the realm of the living, after all.

Looking among the Soul Reapers, Sweet Cider picked out the officers, which she could discern just from their spirit energy alone. Looked like there were four seated officers present, one of them she recognized as Hurricane’s Lieutenant, Poesy.

“Where’s Lieutenant Poesy at?” she asked, not seeing the woman present, but able to sense she was nearby, “I’m aimin’ ta git past this cordon an’ I’d rather do it without havin’ to walk through it.”

“Diplomatic as always, ma’am.” Silverstar said.

“Shut it, Silverstar.”

One of the more boisterous looking Soul Reapers present, a tall, thick fellow with swept back, slick black hair sauntered up to her, wearing a smug look. She pegged him as one of the seated officers, maybe Hurricane’s Sixth or Fifth Seat. She didn’t really memorize the faces of all the other divisions’ officers below the Lieutenant level.

“Greetings, Captain.” the man started to say, “I’m afraid the Lieutenant is busy at the moment but if you come back lat-”

Sweet Cider’s left hand was on the man’s throat, lifting him above her head in about the time it took to bat an eye. She kept the pressure on his throat light. A cordial choke. Enough to strangle his words, but still let him get a bit of air to breathe, even if all he could do with that breath was sputter.

Immediately blades were drawn among all the other Eleventh Division members in a dry rattle of steel. Silverstar stayed standing casually next to Sweet Cider, not even bothering to look concerned. For that matter neither did Sweet Cider.

“Lieutenant, could ya please git out here ‘fore I gotta teach yer subordinate why it ain’t a good idea ta play games wit a Captain who’s got no patience for no horseapples?”

Fairly quickly a form emerged from one of the tents. She was a young looking lady, with skin a soft yellow color just a few shades too light to call lemon. Her hair was a dark shade of pink, braised around the brow in almost something like a circlet, while the rest hung in a waves down to her mid-back. Worried, teal eyes looked at Sweet Cider and the man she held, wide as dinner plates as she approached. Her voice was humble and quiet, like a particularly timid dormouse.

“Um, hello Captain Sweet Cider, Lieutenant Silverstar. Could I, um, ask you to please put Fifth Seat Davenport down?”

“Since ya asked nicely.” Sweet Cider said, dropping Davenport, who to his credit managed to land on his feet. He backed away a few steps, rubbing his throat, and casting a furtive glance between Sweet Cider and Lieutenant Poesy.

“Lieutenant, sorry you had to be disturbed. I was trying to tell the Captain that you were unavailable.”

Poesy glanced at him, and tilted her head in a small bow of thanks, “It’s okay. My meditation can wait. Is your throat going to be alright?”

Davenport clenched his fists, a heated gleam in his eyes, but he nodded, “Just fine, Lieutenant. Just fine.”

“Oh, that’s good. So, um, Captain Sweet Cider, what can I do for you, especially if it means you’ll stop trying to choke our fellow Soul Reapers?”

“Just need yer all clear ta go past the cordon.” Sweet Cider said, “I know I could do it on my own authority, but knowin’ Hurricane he’d raise a damn stink if I didn’t clear it through this cordon first. So consider it me bein’ polite that I’m askin’ ya ta let me by, rathern than just walkin’ on my merry way.”

“Oh, um, oh my that’s... well the Captain said that, well you see... I’m not supposed to let anybody through.” said Poesy, raising a hand to her mouth and biting her lower lip. “No one in or out. Those were the Captains specific orders. Oh, I don’t kow if he meant that to apply to other Captains. Does it apply to other Captains? I suppose if the Captain Commander came by I couldn’t stop him from going through. Oh! Not that I could stop you either! But is Captain Hurricane expected me to? His orders were so specific, and he didn’t mention what to do about another Captain arriving.”

She was starting to babble, so Sweet Cider raised a hand, forestalling the tide of words.

“Poesy I ain’t got all day. I’m fixin’ ta have a chat with Captain Celestia’s guys n’ gals ta see ‘bout makin’ ‘im see some damn sense. I’d like ta do it ‘fore somebody gits dumber n’ a blood drunk tick an’ kicks off a fight ain’t none o’ us want.”

“That won’t be necessary Captain Sweet Cider,” said the rough baritone voice of Captain Hurricane as he appeared from the pathway behind her, striding along with his white Captain’s overcoat swaying behind him. He carried in his right hand a scroll, and held it up as he reached the group, his eyes fixed squarely on Sweet Cider. “Any talking you need to do with the Thirteenth Division can happen after I deliver this to them.”

“An’ just what’s that?” asked Sweet Cider, eyeing the scroll with a reserved look.

“A signed decree from Central 46 ordering the Thirteenth Division to surrender their Zanpaktou until such time as a new Captain is selected to head their Division. If they fail to submit their blades to being held by us within two hours the Eleventh Division is fully authorized to use whatever means deemed needed to subdue resistance.”

“That’s just plum crazy,” said Silverstar, eyes blinking in shock, “There ain’t no way an entire division would disarm willingly like that! Especially with how riled up the Thirteenth is!”

Sweet Cider’s jaw clenched tightly, and she noticed that Hurricane didn’t look at all concerned with the situation. She could feel her own headache mounting, her foul mood deepening with this news. “Ya got ta know, Hurricane, that the Thirteenth was already fixin’ fer a fight. Central 46’s got ta know the same thing. They signed that decree knowin’ full damn well what it means. Two hours from now ye’ll be startn’ a civil war!”

“No, I’ll be performing my duties as a Captain of the Gotei 13 to lawfully subdue sedition within our ranks and ensure order is maintained.” Captain Hurricane replied curtly, “If you wish to aide me in this task I’ll welcome the assistance of the Tenth Division. After all, with sufficient numbers we can minimize the damage done by overwhelming the Thirteenth, or even perhaps intimidating them into surrender.”

Sweet Cider considered that. Her frustration with the situation was mounting rapidly, but Hurricane did have a point that if she called in her full Division to assist the Eleventh that it was possible the Thirteenth Division might see the discretion as the better part of valor. She didn’t know Celestia’s Third Seat, Inkwell, all too well, but Celestia tended to promote the more level headed types. And ludicrously loyal. Not always the best combination, since the most insane actions were often performed by the most calm minded individuals. After all, they didn’t have the sense to know when they shouldn’t be calm. Still, she wasn’t about to abandon what she came here to do.

“If I bring in my crew, ya don’t give me no damn guff ‘bout goin’ ta talk to ‘em.”

“Wasn’t planning to anyway.” replied Hurricane, dipping into a short bow, “The help will be appreciated, even if the Eleventh could handle the situation on our own.”

Sweet Cider huffed out a sigh, turning to Silverstar, “Go back to the barracks and have Third Seat Troubleshoes start musterin’ the division. Don’t pull no one off of active duties, but call up our reserves and anyone bein’ idle hands. Have them back here in less n’ two hours.”

Silverstar, looking as if he’d swallowed a slice of lemon coated in dirt, gave a quick bow. “Yes ma’am!” Then he vanished with the swift, wind rustling speed of a Flash Step.

As he departed, and Captain Hurricane began to lead her through the cordon and into the forest, Sweet Cider couldn’t tear her eyes away from the decree in his hand. She could demand to read it, but he was going to show it to the Thirteenth Division soon enough, so it wasn’t as if there was a question of what was written there. Instead she could only wonder why it’d been written. It wasn’t as if the Thirteenth Division could actually do anything with the position it was in. It wasn't a large division, comparatively speaking. Her division plus Hurricane’s would outnumber them three to one. Even if they had some crazed notion of mounting a rescue of Captains Celestia and Luna it would be a suicide mission.

No one was that crazy. Inkwell had to know this act of defiance was ultimately pointless.

But then Central 46 had to know that too, didn’t they? So why this decree, which would only ensure the escalation of the crisis?

Could the thing that smelled rotten to her about this whole mess reach all the way into Soul Society’s most guarded echelon of power? Corruption in Central 46 didn’t make sense! They already held all the authority they needed, and basically lived at the pinnacle of the Soul Society. So what was there to gain in creating a situation where Soul Society would start tearing itself apart?

It didn’t make any sense to her, but Sweet Cider was intending to find out, no matter who she had to kick in the head to get some answers.

----------

With the sun now behind the horizon the cloak of dusk had fallen over the streets of Soul Society’s many districts. Using that gloom as their cover, Sunset and her friends, along with Clover and Ditzy, made their way swiftly towards the border between the Rukongai and the Seireitei. This border was marked by two things. One was the starkly different architecture between the haphazard patchwork of different buildings in the Rukongai, and the neatly ordered white marble walls and gleaming tiled pathways of the Seireitei. The other was the floating wall of polished white that hung above a clear, open space marking that border. A wall that would slam closed, cutting off Seireitei the second an unauthorized spirit energy drew too close.

Sunset huddled at the mouth of an alley between two of the smaller wooden buildings right at the edge of the open area between the Rukongai and Seireitei, and she glanced left and right. She saw the tall stone pillars of a gateway about a football field’s distance to her left, one of the great gates into Seireitei. Ditzy had warned them that each gate had a guard watching over them, but hopefully they wouldn’t need to worry about that. The idea was to do this with stealth.

“I don’t see any guard around.” she noted, licking her lips and glancing back at Ditzy, “Are you sure they don’t take breaks or something?”

Ditzy chuckled dryly, “Of course they take breaks, but only rarely, and they live inside quarters housed within the gates themselves, so you can bet that even if you don’t see him, the Guardian of the South Gate is there. Lucky for you guys, I know just how to distract him.”

At that Ditzy began to... disrobe. Sunset sighed, while her friends one by one either gave quick gasps and turned away, or otherwise averted their eyes.

“Really must you do that, Miss Doo?” asked Rarity, “At least provide us warning first!”

“Seriously, who just tosses their clothes off that fast anyway? I thought I’d mastered the speed change in the locker rooms, but this is ridiculous.” muttered Rainbow Dash.

Ditzy laughed lightly, bundling up her clothes and handing them over to Rarity, “I’ll trust you to look over these until I need them again. I’m going to distract the Gate Guardian while you girls sneak through. Get your Reishi Modulators ready!”

“Don’t you need one too?” asked Fluttershy, hiding most of her face behind the curtain of her pink hair.

“Right here!” Ditzy said, flicking her wrist and just producing an orb from seemingly nowhere. “Don’t worry, I have this under control.”

At that her form began to become suffused with a smokey white glow and her body shifted as she crouched down. Gray fur sprouted and her body contorted, a tail forming as she got smaller and smaller, until in seconds a familiar gray cat was standing in the alley with the Reishi Modulator orb clutched in its surprisingly strong and prehensile tail. The cat gave the girls a smile and a soft meow, then began to swiftly pad out towards the distant gatehouse.

“She’s... odd,” Clover commented with a few fluttering eyeblinks.

“Is she really going to be able to distract the guard like that?” asked Rainbow Dash. Clover shrugged.

“I don’t know. I’ve never even met the man.” Clover said, licking her lips and adding, “All I know is that he’s supposed to be ridiculously large and strong.”

“Either way, let’s ready the orbs and be ready to make our move when the time is right.” said Sunset, drawing out her own Reishi Modulator and concentrating a slow, steady flow of her spirit energy into it. Her friends all followed suit, and in a minute they all had their orbs glowing softly. Sunset resumed watching the gatehouse, feeling a rising tension with each passing second, like her spine was turning into a compressed spring. She could sense a warm vibration from Hokori sheathed at her hip, and could tell the Zanpaktou was as ramped up as she was. She put a comforting and acknowledging hand on the hilt of the blade.

A minute or two later there was a sudden bellowing voice from the gatehouse, like a baritone roar of a cross between a man and a blow horn. “What’re you doing in my house, cat!? Ain’t no animals allowed on premise! Can’t you read the sign!? Now get before Iron Will shows you the boot!”

A moment later there was a titanic crashing noise followed by a bellowing wail, “NO! Not the upholstery! Stop that! You’re going to tip over the vase! Oh that’s it, when you got yourself a pest, boot it like the rest! Come here!”

Sunset could feel actual tremors in the ground as she heard more explosive crashes from the gatehouse. She shared a wide eyes look with the others, and offered them a helpless shrug with a sheepish grin. “Well, that’s one way to get a distraction. Let’s go!”

The ran as fast as they could. Well, most of the ran. Pinkie Pie bounced, while still keeping pace. Clover took the lead next to Sunset, saying, “The sewer entrance should be alongside that building over there, to the right.”

She pointed towards one of the first buildings on the other side of the floating wall, a long rectangular affair with a number of dark slitted windows in its side and a small, walled entrance on its left side. The spot Clover was pointing out looked almost like a bunker entrance, building into the ground along the building’s outer wall.

“Is it going to be locked?” Sunset asked.

“Yes, but I can open it.” said Clover, “Since some of the Twelfth Division labs connect to the sewer system all the seated officers have access to them.”

Sunset’s tension reached a pique as they passed beneath the giant floating stone slabs that made up the currently inactive wall. The wall had to have been at least ten foot thick, if not more, and if any one of the girls failed with the Reishi Modulators at that point then the wall would drop right on top of them, squashing them like grapes.

She breathed a sigh of relief as they got beyond the wall without it dropping or any kind of alarm sounding. Granted the Gate Guardian, Iron Will apparently if his self-referential squeak was to be believed, was still making a huge racket chasing Ditzy around his quarters. A few lights were coming on in nearby buildings, but hopefully anyone looking would be paying attention to the gatehouse and not the seven shadowy forms rushing across the open space towards one of the sewer entrances.

Fortune was with them as Sunset heard no shouts calling about intruders, and inside of minute they were at the closed stone doors of the sewer entrance. Once there Clover knelt down at the base of the doors and with a few swift gestures pressed her fingers upon the stone at several points. Sunset noticed the stone contained seamless depressions, like the buttons of a keypad, and it seemed Clover entered a code, as moments later the stone doors slide open seamlessly, revealing smooth stairs leading down into an eerily lit corridor.

“Huh, I was expecting a bit more a smell, to be honest.” said Rarity.

“Ya complainin’?” asked Applejack.

“Not at all. Shall we descend? Oh, but where’s Miss Doo? Is she still distracting that ruffian?”

Pinkie Pie licked her forefinger and put it up into the air as if she was testing the wind, and abruptly went through a series of rapid body tremors starting with a twitching left ear, followed by a wiggling right foot and triple eye twitch. “She’ll be here soon.”

“Like, how soon, hun?” asked Applejack, holding up a finger, “Like, soon soon? Kinda soon? Too late we’ve been found out soon? Oh look we’re already surrounded by guards soon?”

Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes up as if in deep thought, brow furrowing. “Ummm... I’d say just in the nick of time before it's too late soon. Give or take.”

Applejack heaved a groaning sigh, “Real reassurin’.”

“Is somebody doubting my skills in timing?” asked Ditzy as she appeared atop of Applejack’s head, fading in with the speed of an obvious Flash Step. Sunset blinked at the feline as she licked he paws and Applejack’s face turned into a flat frown, eyes blazing irritation as she swatted at the cat sitting on top of her stetson.

“Git off dangnabbit!”

Ditzy just vanished and reappeared again at the open sewer entrance, tail swishing about. “I see you’ve got the door open. Let’s go, before Iron Will realizes I’m no longer hiding in his sock drawer.”

“I WILL DESTROY EVERY PIECE OF FURNITURE IN HERE AS LONG AS YOU ARE INSIDE THEM, CAT!” came an echoing bellow from the gatehouse, causing Sunset to shudder.

“Okay, yes, going now is good. Everybody into the disturbingly clean and nice smelling sewer!”

“Does that guy not like cats?” asked Fluttershy as they all quickly went down the steps into the sewer corridor, a remarkably broad pace that let the girls walk three abreast with elbow room to spare. Iron Will’s shouting was muffled as Clover pressed a few more stone buttons on the other side to close the door behind them.

“He’s allergic.” said Ditzy with a flashing grin, then proceeded to glow white and smoothly melt back into the form of her human body. “I’ve been wanting to pull that prank on him for decades, heheh! Alright, next stop, the spirit ward!”

“Ahem!” Rarity cleared her throat loudly, holding out Ditzy’s clothes just as the woman, still butt-naked, had started to lead the way down the corridor with a bounce in her step. Ditzy glanced back at the clothes and her grin widened.

“Whoops. So easy to forget those things. Just a sec!”

In just a few moments Ditzy managed to slip back into her clothes, once more impressing Sunset with just how fast she could change. It must be a skill one practiced. Honestly even after years of getting used to them Sunset found wearing clothes all the time a bit uncomfortable.

Hm, if Ditzy learned a technique to shapeshift into a cat, then maybe she could teach me something similar? It’d be nice to get onto all four hooves again. Sunset thought, but put the notion aside as the group went deeper into the sewer.

The corridor very quickly opened up into the sewer proper, the gentle rush of water echoing through the long, wide pathways. The water went through a canal about ten meters across, with wide walkways on either side, and stone arches forming paths that bridged the gaps at junctions. Everything was lit by softly glowing lamps spaced out every thirty paces or so, making navigation easy.

“How far is the ward?” Sunset asked.

“It should be at the second junction from the entrance,” said Clover, “Its visible, so we won’t walk into it by accident.”

“There’s supposed to be some kind of robots guarding it right?” asked Rainbow Dash, pounding her fists together, “We can totally kick them into scrap heaps?”

“Constructs, not robots,” clarified Clover.

“Uh, what’s the difference?”

Clover blinked, as if the question was at once both ludicrous, yet one she’d also never considered. “W-well... umm... well for one robots are made of metal, and Twelfth Division's constructs are made from concentrated reishi particles arranged in dense patterns to form metallic-like armor. Which is not metal. And, er, robots have circuits! Constructs use spirit particle matrices! They are completely different!”

As they rounded a juncture, a glowing barrier of white energy could be seen blocking the way ahead like a glazed wall of glass. Standing in front of the ward were about six bulky metal objects that looked like floating hexagons the size of beach balls. With very mechanical sounding clicks and beeps square metal eyes opened up on them, flashing yellow, and large bladed clamps extended on thin robotic arms from the sides of the construct's bodies. In identical, scratchy mechanical voices they all said.

“Beep-boop, intruders detected. Engaging.”

Then the barrels of what looked like lasers extended out of the constructs chest areas.

Rainbow Dash gave Clover an exceedingly flat look. Clover smiled with embarrassment, saying, “Okay, well, they’re still technically not robots.”

Then the constructs opened fire with a barrage of blazing yellow spirit energy beams.

----------

“Fer cryin’ out loud Inkwell, ain’t ya supposed ta be smart!?” said Sweet Cider, not bothering to keep any of the raw frustration and anger out of her voice a she slammed one hand down on the knee-high table she was seated at cross-legged alongside Captain Hurricane. Third Seat Inkwell sat across from them, looking like a woman who hadn’t slept in days (probably entirely true) who was doing all in her power to keep her composure. She ran one dainty hand through her neatly bunned hair, pulling back a loose strand, and resumed looking straight at Sweet Cider Calmly.

“Ya ain’t got a chance o’ achomplishin’ nothin’ but wastein’ lives ya darn fool! Just comply with orders an’ there won’t be no need fer trouble, but long as yer defyin’ Central 46, whatda’ya expect ‘cept a heap o’ trouble ya can’t deal with!?”

“I appreciate the concern for the wellbeing of those under my charge, Captain Sweet Cider,” Inkwell said, taking a sip of tea from a ceramic cup on the table. Sweet Cider and Hurricane both had cooling, full cups in front of them. “However the Thirteenth Division has not violated any of Soul Society’s standing laws. Ordering us to disarm is an unjustified decree that bypasses due process. Did they gain audience with the Captain Commander before issuing such a decree?”

Sweet Cider hadn’t really thought of that, and cast a questioning glance at Hurricane, who gestured to the decree itself which lay open on the table. “The Captain Commander’s seal is on the decree is it not?”

Inkwell nodded, “True, but was that seal put there by him personally, or did Central 46 put it there for him? Even if he did, you cannot expect us to disarm.”

“Oh I don’t expect anything from you or your division, Inwell,” said Hurricane, lips curling in a eager smile, “But perhaps you’ll prove me wrong? Resisting orders gives my division full authority to detain every single one of you, by force.”

“I am aware, Captain. However my answer remains the same, and every one of the Thirteenth Division is behind me on this.” Inkwell’s eyes flashed with a spark of utter outrage, and Sweet Cider had to respect the steel that entered the woman’s voice, “We shall not allow the travesty of justice of that execution to take place. Be it right here and now, know we stand ready to fight and fall, one and all, to protect our Captain and her sister. Should we begin? Are you prepared for that, Captains?”

It was obvious there wasn’t any reasoning with Inkwell. Sweet Cider had no chance of defusing the situation. Her frustration just twisted further at the thought. It felt like she was on a train careening towards a broken bridge, and everyone on it was more than happy to just keep shoveling coal into the engine furnace.

“Yer a darn mule-headed idiot, an’ doin’ this ain’t gonna help yer Captain. All that’s gonna happen is in two hours most o’ ya’ll are gonna be imprisoned right alongside them other two idiots! But ya know what? Fine. This is how it's got ta be? I’ll see ta puttin’ down this foolishness myself. C’mon Hurricane, we’re done here.”

“Awfully bossy now aren’t you?” he noted with a quick smirk as he joined her in standing up, “I do enjoy a woman who can be assertive.”

“Shut it or I’ll assert my fist through yer kidneys.” Sweet Cider growled, then gave Inkwell a stiff bow, “Be seein’ ya soon, Third Seat Inkwell. Hope yer prepared fer the asswhuppin’ that yer bringin’ down on yer own.”

“We were prepared for this the moment Captains Celestia and Luna were wrongfully incarcerated.” Inkwell said with solemn finality.

“For the buck all good it’ll do ‘em.” Sweet Cider said under her breath as she and Hurricane exited the room, which led out onto one of the wooden causeways surrounding the long, single story building that was one of a dozen strung out among the forest trees. The Thirteenth Division headquarters and barracks was a serene place, filled with small, tranquil gardens and ponds among the clean, well maintained buildings. Despite that peaceful appearance, the air was heavy with nervous energy as the Soul Reapers of the division walked tensley around their barracks with hands near their Zanpaktou and eyes glued to the two Captains departing.

“Hmm, smell that fear in the air,” Hurricane chuckled, “These milksops are putting on quite a brave face, but they’ll crumble when it comes time to actually fight.”

“Ya reckon so?” Sweet Cider said past grit teeth. Most of the Thirteenth Division consisted of Soul Reapers freshly raised to their positions from graduating the training. Some specialists might join the Twelfth of Fourth Divisions first, but the Thirteenth was usually where green Soul Reapers got their first few years of practical experience before being sent to the other divisions. As such most of the Soul Reapers watching Sweet Cider and Hurricane depart were young and inexperienced. In some ways Hurricane’s assessment wasn’t entirely off. These kids weren’t really ready for an all out fight against far more experienced Soul Reapers.

However Hurricane was seriously underestimating the tenacity of people who were loyal to their cause. For all the fear Sweet Cider saw, she saw equal levels of determination. Their Captain, a woman who tended to act like a den mother to everyone under her care, was under threat. Nothing was more dangerous than family trying to protect its own.

“You seems less eager than you were during the hearing. Having second thoughts?” said Hurricane, eyeing her sideling with narrowed eyes.

“Don’t be mistakin’ nothin’, Hurricane. I voted the way I did ‘cause I hate wastin’ time, which is all the Captain Commander’s investigation would’ve done. How do ya prove Zecora’s Zanpaktou was lyin’? Far as we know, nothin’ can fake it out. Even if ya copied someone’s reiatsu down ta the last little spirit particle, her blade is supposed ta be able to pierce through to the truth, right?”

“That is how Zecora’s Zanpaktou functions, yes.” confirmed Hurricane, “I do believe Twelfth Division has tested its capabilities extensively to verify its prowess at detecting falsehoods. So there can’t logically be any doubt that the hooded figures were in fact Captain Celestia and Luna.”

Unless someone went and somehow pulled the wool over Zecora’s eyes, managin’ ta bypass her Zanpaktou. Sweet Cider thought, but kept it to herself. She wasn’t certain who to trust anymore. If there was someone inside Soul Society who was actively betraying the Soul Reapers, somebody with the ability to manipulate Captain Zecora into believing her Zanpaktou had shown her something that wasn’t true, well there was no telling who might be responsible and where they were hiding. Any seated officer might be suspect.

But she was willing to bet if she kept playing the role of a dutiful Captain and kept a keen eye out, the real traitors would make a mistake, sooner or later.

Of course Soul Society had to survive the chaos until then, but as long as no more random factors cropped up to make things more complicated than Sweet Cider figured she could handle it.

----------

Ditzy Doo dusted off scrap pieces of smashed construct from her hands while Sunset removed her Zanpaktou from the last, still sparking machine, smoke steaming up from the construct’s twitching form as its glowing eyes flickered out.

“Well, we handled that pretty easily.” she said, sheathing her sword. It hadn’t been a long fight. Blazingly quick in fact. The moment the constructs had opened fire most of the girls had react instantly to get to cover. All of the previous battles, not to mention their training, had certainly increased their reflexes and raw speed well beyond what it had been when this had all begun. Ditzy Doo, Sunset, Clover, and Rainbow Dash had rushed the constructs through the barrage of beams they fired. Despite being made of metal, the half dozen floating hexagons with arms didn’t stand up against fist and Zanpaktou alike for more than a few seconds of hectic combat.

Which was fine by Sunset’s reckoning. They didn’t have time or energy to waste, and there were bigger hurdles ahead to worry about.

“Perhaps, but these mechanical brutes nearly scorched my hair. Good gracious, these things look so droll as well. Who designed these tasteless, bland monstrosities?” Rarity clucked, shaking her head as she idly nudged one of the destroyed constructs with her foot.

Clover cleared her throat, coughing pointedly, “They were designed for function, not aesthetics, Miss Rarity. And the spirit beam guns-”

“Lasers.” said Rainbow Dash. “Robot lasers.”

Clover grimaced, “Spirit beam guns could not have scorched anyone’s hair. They’re based on Hado-type Kido spells, but lack elemental properties. They just fire small concentrated beams of reishi. Now some of the bigger models do have elemental spells for the basis of larger cannons but-”

“Not ta be rude Clover, but right now can’t we skip the detail an’ git movin’ along, now that the ‘bots are dealt with?” asked Applejack, and Rainbow Dash flashed a smirk.

“Ha! See? AJ thinks they’re robots too.”

“Okay so you’re both wrong, because they’re not robots, but what do I know, I’m just the woman who helped design and build them.”

“Did you also program them to say ‘beep-boop’?” asked Rainbow Dash, to which Clover glanced away, muttering.

“No, that was Captain Starswirl's’... own personal flourish.”

“As much as I’m finding this conversation fascinating, I’d say it's high time we do what we came down here to do and get past this ward. Ditzy, your sure we can swim under the water to bypass the ward?” asked Sunset, turning to the woman.

“Absolutely! Mosty.” Ditzy put on a steady, reassuring smile as she wiggled her hand back and forth, “I give it sixty-forty, at worst. I mean, it's not like I’ve actually tested this theory before, but hey, you only live once. Well, twice, if you count Soul Society. Then technically infinite times if you consider the endless cycle of souls back and forth.”

“Yeah, that saying doesn’t really fit this setting does it?” said Pinkie Pie.

Rarity eyed the water suspiciously, “The water at least looks fairly clean for... for sewage. Oh I am not looking forward to this. Perhaps someone else should go first, just to make sure it's not-”

Rainbow Dash, who’d snuck up behind Rarity, proceeded to give the other girl a sharp, playful shove. Rarity proceeded to utter a entirely ladylike and dignified scream, arms cartwheeling, before going head first into the water.

Sunset gave Rainbow Dash level look, “Really, Dash?”

Rainbow Dash shrugged, “I couldn’t help it. She left herself wide open for that.”

A moment later a supporting Rarity surfaced, glaring utter death at Rainbow Dash. “You. Are. On. My. List!”

“Hey, no need to act like such a wet blanket about this. Lighten up Rarity.” said Rainbow Dash.

“I don’t now Dash,” said Applejack, putting on hand on Rainbow Dash’s back, “Maybe ya oughta git on her level.”

“Huh, that doesn't even make sennnnaaaaaah!” Rainbow Dash said, then sort of awkwardly yelled as Applejack flipped her into the water beside Rarity. Rarity, for her part, gavve Applejack an appreciative nod.

“Why thank you for that, Applejack. You are not on the list.”

“Don’t think nothin’ of it.” Applejack replied, hopping into the canal as well. One by one the other girls went in, Sunset going nearly last, right behind Ditzy herself. Sunset wasn’t a huge fan of the water, and wasn’t never much of a swimmer. It was a bit easier to do as a human rather than a pony, and she had learned how, but she being fully immersed in water made her nervous. The water was cold, just short of freezing, and had a slight current she had to tread against.

Once Ditzy hopped in she swam over to the edge of the glowing barrier marking the ward, and said, “Deep breaths. The ward is about six or seven feet across, so don’t surface until you’re sure you crossed that.”

Sunset started taking deep breaths to oxygenate her lungs as she watched her friends also take in big lungfuls of air before ducking beneath the gently flowing water. Clover waited for her, giving her a curious look.

“You know how to swim, don’t you?”

“Yes. Not great it, is all. No worries. I hope.”

Clover offered Sunset her hand, “Here, just hold on. We’ll go down together, and then just follow me lead.”

After a second of looking at the offered gray skinned hand, Sunset slowly took it, the cold water emphasising the heat of the grasp. She cleared her throat and said, “Ready when you are.”

Clover nodded once, then ducked under the water, pulling Sunset along with her. The feeling of near freezing cold enveloped her head and her hearing became muffled aside from the burbling rush of water by her head. She used her left hand to steady herself while holding Clover’s tightly with her right. She kicked her legs to propel herself along while trying to keep herself oriented. For a good ten or so seconds all Sunset knew was cold and dark, but soon enough she felt Clover pulling her upwards and Sunset’s head broke the surface of the water.

With a few quick, sputtering breaths she blinked her eyes open to find herself and her friends on the other side of the ward. The corridor over on this side looked identical to the other one, minus any constructs, destroyed or otherwise. Ditzy had already deftly climbed out of the canal and was offering the others hands up, starting with a very eager Rarity who immediately began to wring her clothes out once she was back on solid, dry ground.

“Ugh, it is a very good thing I made these outfits out of quick drying material. I do so hope we won’t have to do that again on the way out.”

“Not likely.” said Ditzy Doo, “We’re kind of in ‘do or die’ territory now. We either succeed and go home the nice, easy way, or fail and not have to worry about going home due to contracting a terminal case of sword stabbage.”

“Oh, yes, a pleasant reminder, that.” said Rarity, sighing, then offering Rainbow Dash a hand up out of the canal. Rainbow Dash, understandably, looked dubious, to which Rarity rolled her eyes.

“Oh please, darling, when I take revenge it shall be at a time less expected and more appropriate than this. Give me some credit, will you?”

“Right. Let me guess, itching powder in my bra?” Rainbow Dash queried with a half grin and quirked eyebrow as Rarity pulled her out of the water.

“Mmm, tempting idea, but I like to get creative with my revenge pranks. You’ll just have to wait and find out. And no complaining, dear, you did after all start this.”

“Yeah, guess I did. Don’t suppose an apology and shoulder massage gets me off the hook?”

“Not even remotely.”

As the crew got walking, Clover got everyone’s attention with a raised hand, “Alright, from here we should try to keep our voices down. The Fourth Division sends people down here to keep the lanterns lit and the walkways clean, and we might also run across Twelfth Division personnel heading to or from the underground labs.”

“We’re going back to the surface at the Thirteenth Division barracks, right? How far is that?” asked Sunset.

“If we move quiet but fast, should only take an hour, perhaps two.” replied Clover.

----------

Sweet Cider might have given Silverstar a promotion if that was physically possible, not that she’d ever actually tell him that. He’d not only gotten a good chunk of the Tenth Division’s Soul Reapers mustered in short order, including Third Seat Troubleshoes, a man so tall and broad he could be easily mistaken for a walking barn.

“Captain ma’am,” Troubleshoes said in his usual sulking greeting, stringy black hair matted to his plain features. Next to him Silverstar gave a curt bow, lines of alert Soul Reapers standing at attention behind him. Sweet Cider looked over her troops with a steady, appreciative gaze, then started speaking in a loud, clear voice.

“Alright ya’ll, here’s the score. In a matter o’ minutes Central 46’s decree that the Thirteenth relinquish their Zanpaktou is gonna run out o’ time an’ Third Seat Inkwell has made it clear they ain’t havin’ none o’ it. So the Eleventh is goin’ in, an’ we’re...” she paused, “Helping. With a few twists. First off, beat down any Thirteenth member who don’t surrender peaceful, but don’t kill unless ya got no choice ta protect yerselves. Furthermore, keep an’ eye on them Eleventh boys n’ gals, an’ don’t hesitate ta step in if it looks like they’re gettin’ out a’ control. Understood?”

A chorus of “Yes ma’am!” followed her query, and Sweet Cider gave an approving nod. Then she turned her attention to the other group that Silverstar had brought, and had impressed her to find he’d thought of it.

“Lieutenant Redheart, I’m also glad ta have ya an’ yer fellow Fourth Division members here. Yer not under orders, but ya came when Silverstar asked, an’ I appreciate it.”

Redheart stood alongside a group of about two dozen Fourth Division medics, each with medicine kits and healing Kido training at the ready. Sweet Cider wasn’t optimistic or naive enough to think this wasn’t going to get bloody, so having the field medics close at hand was going to be a boon. Redheart herself bowed to Sweet Cider, a grave smile touching her pale white features.

“Captain Zecora wanted me to convey her heartfelt distress that things have gotten to this point. I’m to do all I can to aid the wounded and prevent any deaths we can, regardless of which division they belong to.”

“I’m expextin’ nothin’ less. Ya have my thanks.”

Redheart’s expression turned no less grave, but she nodded with the barest of appreciative smiles. There wouldn’t be much to smile about, soon enough. Sweet Cider looked back towards the gathered forces of the Eleventh Division, who were now all mobilized and standing in ranks awaiting their Captain’s order to advance. She could see Hurricane standing tall at the head of his troops, hands clasped calmly behind his back as beside him Lieutenant Poesy kept an eye on a small hourglass that was marking the time as the two hours ran out.

Even as Sweet Cider watched the last grains of sand fell with heavy finality to the bottom of the hour glass and she heard Poesy say, “Um, Captain sir? It's time.”

“And we’ve heard nothing to indicate that the Thirteenth Division intends to lay down arms willingly.” said Hurricane, unfolding his arms and using his right hand to draw his Zanpaktou. It was a straighter blade than most katana-shaped Zanpaktou, resembling more of a longsword with a square hilt. He raised the sword above his head, voice carrying in a loud bellow.

“All Eleventh Division elements, advance and engage at will! Detain all Thirteenth Division rebels by any means required!”

Sweet Cider frowned darkly. So the Thirteenth Division were ‘rebels’ now, was it? The Eleventh Division Soul Reapers all drew their Zanpaktou in an echoing chorus of singing steel, and started to dash in tightly knit groups of ten or twenty, advancing in a fanning out wall into the forest. Hurricane’s orders were carried to the other units waiting at other sides of the forest, Soul Reapers pushing into the tree line in a black tide.

With a heavy sigh Sweet Cider ordered her own Division to follow her lead, heading in right behind the Eleventh. There was a full moon in the sky providing more than enough silvery light to illuminate the forest, even if one in every four or five Soul Reapers were carrying lanterns to light their way.

For a minute nothing happened as the Eleventh and Tenth Division advanced deeper into the trees, the Fourth Division members trailing behind cautiously. Immediately Sweet Cider’s instincts were telling her to be wary. The Thirteenth knew they were coming, and wouldn’t just lay down without a fight. What tricks could they be hiding up their sleeves?

With a swift Flash Step she advanced ahead to join Hurricane at the forefront of the advance. “Somethin’ ain’t right. They’re lettin’ us git too far in without tryin’ ta stop us.”

“Scared and hiding in their barracks,” Hurricane replied dismissively, “They’re not up for a real fight. I told you, Sweet Cider, they wouldn’t put up much resistance. We can collect their Zanpaktou and round them up without even needing to draw blood, as I suspected from the start.”

“No, Hurricane, they ain’t gonna give up that easily and they’re lettin’ us move in way too easy fer my comfort. We should send scouts ahead ta-”

But even as she made the suggestion she felt an intense increase in spiritual energy from the very ground in front of her, and saw a bright red glow as all along the forest line in front of the advancing Soul Reapers a set of complex red ward sigils appeared. She felt the reishi gathering in those ward symbols and recognized the destructive nature of the Kido spells immediately.

“Down!” She shouted, running into Hurricane and pushing him back from the wards right before they exploded in balls of expanding red fire.

The explosions went off in a chain, throwing back Soul Reapers like bales of hay. Sweet Cider felt a ringing in her hears as she picked herself up, hauling Hurricane to his feet. The man didn’t look injured, but then again it looked to Sweet Cider as if the exploding wards had been set to go off before they got close enough to be badly hurt. This was meant to rattle and confuse, not kill.

“Bastards!” Hurricane spat, his own spirit energy spiking upwards like a stormfront, “I’ll not tolerate such dirty tricks!”

“There’s probably more traps up ahead,” Sweet Cider said, hearing other distant explosions as other Soul Reapers ran across the wards. “They’re slowing us down.”

“Not for long,” Hurricaine said darkly, eyes lit up with furious anger. “Continue the advance! We’ll smash right through this treachery!”

The explosions had created a screen of smoke up ahead, and while Hurricane shouted orders to his troops, Sweet Cider noticed something. There were shapes in the smoke, flickering up into the trees like living shadows. No member of Thirteenth Division moved like that. Sweet Cider cursed under her breath.

“Look out! They’re trying to surround us!” she shouted, drawing her own Zanpaktou. It was a long and almost blunt looking blade, lacking any kind of guard or hilt, just a solid brown-leather wrapped hilt. Even as she shouted, a series of small throwing knives, kunai, came flashing through the smoke. She swung her arm in a fast, powerful arc, not holding back much of her strength, as she was now getting truly angry.

The force of her swing created a shockwave of force that not only knocked away the kunai that’d been flying at her head, but blasted away the smoke as well. By now the recovered Eleventh Division Soul Reapers, and her own Soul Reapers behind them, could see what awaited them.

The Thirteenth Division’s’ Soul Reapers were waiting in a solid line a good fifty paces deeper into the forest, Zanpaktou drawn. Inkwell stood at the head of the group, expression saddened but grimly determined. And they weren’t alone. In the trees above the Thirteenth Division and all around the flanks of the advancing Eleventh and Tenth Division Soul Reapers were dozens of figures in solid black clothes, hoods, and masks. This shadowy figures bore Zanpaktou as well, but also various other tools of their trade including bandoliers of the kunai that had been thrown at Sweet Cider.

“It’s the Second Division, Sealth Corps,” Sweet Cider growled.

It looked like the ones loyal to Luna had been hiding with the Thirteenth Division after all, and now she and Hurricane had a lot more resistance to contend with. But that wasn’t going to stop Hurricane, who even seeing the Second Division reinforcements, simply put on a grim look as he pointed own Zanpaktou ahead and shouted, “All forces, attack!”

And with that, the battle began in earnest.

----------

“Here we are.” said Clover, leading Sunet and the others down one last corridor leading to a set of identical stairs to the ones they’d used to enter the sewers. Sunset was relieved they’d gotten this far without too much trouble, but it was offset with the realization that the real challenges started here. She was both worried, and warmly excited.

“So once we go up, we’ll be in the Thirteenth Division barracks, yes?” asked Rarity, “What exactly is our plan from there?”

“I was going to talk with the Thirteenth Division’s Third Seat,” said Ditzy Doo, “Inkwell is a pretty reasonable sort, and if she’s taking a firm stance against the execution she might be willing to help us get to the Repentance Cells where Celestia and Luna are being held. Failing that, we do our best to sneak as far as we can, and when stealth fails, we go the rest of the way swinging. I can keep at least one or two Captains off you girls, if it comes to that. Right now all that matters is freeing those two. We do that, they should be able to help deal with the rest.”

Applejack licked her lips, hands flexing into fists, “Well let’s git to it then! Open up them doors already!”

Clover nodded and felt for the hidden stone buttons, pressing in a coded sequence once more. With a quiet grinding of stone the doors at the top of the stairs opened... and the moment they did the sounds of battle spilled down to the girls. There was a heavy wave of clashing steel, energy discharges, shouts and screams, all mixed in one unending ocean of noise.

Ditzy Doo blinked. “Well... that's a thing.”

“It’s already started,” said Clover, face paling, “The Eleventh Division must have launched it's attack.”

“What do we do?” asked Fluttershy, gulping.

Sunset looked to her friends, and put on a blazing smile, drawing Hokori.

“What do we do? Isn’t it obvious? We fight!”

Episode 38: The Fruits of Training

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Episode 38: The Fruits of Training

Sunset could feel her eagerness burning brighter and hotter than her fear, even as she as her friends charged up the stairs out of the sewer exit, but she wasn’t prepared for the sheer chaos that greeted them. The sewer exit was little more than a small stone square built into the forest ground right between a placid blue lake surrounded by thick emerald forest, and a series of long, one story buildings of distinctly Japanese architecture.

And everywhere Sunset looked there was battle.

Men and women in near identical black Soul Reaper robes clashed all around, fighting tooth and nail against each other. Some kept their Zanpaktou sealed, flashing about with high speed movement and sparks kissing the air with each strike of spirit forged steel. Others had already released their Shikais, dizzying Sunset with the sheer array of odd sword shapes she saw, each one utilizing its own unique powers. In just a casual glance Sunset thought she saw at least two or three different swords using elemental powers, while she saw another that looked as if it was expelling a glue-like substance that was immobilizing its opponents, while yet another sword was extending and whipping about like it was more a dancing ribbon than a blade. To top things off, other Soul Reapers were making liberal use of Kido spells, causing all manner of beams, spheres, and blasts of energy to criss-cross the area, filling the air with the cacophony of explosions.

In just seconds Sunset realized one major problem with the idea of just jumping into the center of this madness. She and her friends had no way to identify friend from foe. All the Soul Reapers were dressed the same, with nothing clearly defining who belonged to the Thirteenth Division and who belonged to the Eleventh.

“Whoa, this is crazy!” said Rainbow Dash, blinking in confusion at the cauldron of bubbling battle around them, “Who the heck are we supposed to punch first!?”

“Whoever is defending the buildings is probably on our side,” said Ditzy Doo, “Also anyone who hasn’t released their Zanpaktou is probably with the Thirteenth. Some of them are raw enough to not know how, while the rest are probably following Celestia’s example of not using Shikai without need.”

“Without need!?” Applejack asked, ducking as an errant Kido spell flew overhead and exploded a tree behind them, “I’d say there’s a’ pretty dang clear need!”

“Either way, the Eleventh are combat specialists. Chances are they’re the ones who are winning and the Thirteenth are the ones getting pushed back. There, look! The flow of the fight is moving across the lake towards the barracks! That’s where we should go.” Ditzy said as pointed towards the buildings. Sunset had trouble making sense of the chaotic flow of the battle, but after a second realized what Ditzy was talking about. Once she let her eyes cease trying to take in every detail and just look at the larger picture, she could see it.

There was a clear distinction between the Soul Reapers who were fighting with less certainty and skill, half of whom hadn’t released their Zanpaktou, and the more aggressive ones who were pushing those other Soul Reapers back. The line of battle was gradually moving back towards the buildings, though it hadn’t reached there yet. She also noticed several other things, now that she was looking at the bigger picture. There were several Soul Reapers not fighting, but instead tending to wounded, their hands glowing with healing Kido. These Soul Reapers didn’t draw their Zanpaktou and ignored the fighting other than to drag wounded away from the worst of the combat to start healing injuries.

The other thing she noticed was that she didn’t see anyone wearing a white Captain’s overcoat. Letting her spiritual senses reach out, she tried to feel out where any Captains might be, but the confusing mass of conflicting spiritual pressures made it all but impossible to home in on one particular reiatsu. Ditzy seemed to sense what she was doing and said, “I’ve got shaper senses. There’s at least two Captains out here, along with two Lieutenants, and a number of seated officers. This here is just a small skirmish, the main fight is about four hundred meters further out.”

A skirmish!? This crazy mess!? This looked like total, violent insanity to Sunset, but Ditzy was saying this wasn’t even the main fight?

“Wow, so there’s an even bigger, meaner party elsewhere? Yikes, we’d better wrap this up fast then before it gets worse,” said Pinkie Pie, and immediately her body exuded the gleaming pink mist that formed into Pinkamena, who stretched and licked her lips as she eyed the fighting.

“Oh good, lots of playful snacks running around, just like I hoped. Can I finally cut loose a bit, Pinks?”

Pinkie Pie nodded enthusiastically, her body still glowing pink, “Yup, it’s hammer time!” The glow continued to engulf her until she became a pink stream of energy that transmuted into the large, ornate hammer that spun in the air several times before Pinkamena caught it. Pinkie Pie’s voice came from the hammer, chipper as ever, “Just follow the rules Mena, and only take little bites, okay?”

Pinkamena flipped her straight hair and showed her teeth in a manner that was less smile, and more wolfish snarl, “What about one or two medium sized bites? Like, if I have to treat all these guys as McNuggets can I pick out at least one to be my Big Mac?”

“Big Mac?” asked Applejack, eyeing Pinkamena speculatively.

“The burger, not your brother,” said Pinkamena, then a bit of drool dribbled out of the side of her mouth, “Although he’d made for a meaty mouthful. Mmm... Big Mac...“

“Alright yer gonna stop fantasizing whatever it is yer fantasizing ‘bout my brother right this second or I swear I’ll-” Applejack began, but just then the group was finally spotted.

“Hey!” shouted one burly looking fellow, taller and broader in the shoulder than most people Sunset had seen. He had a dark skinned complexion and plain black hair, along with a oddly tired and depressed expression even as he shouted and pointed at them. “Who’re all of you? You ain’t all Soul Reapers. Which Division are you fellas supposed to be with?”

Next to the big man another Soul Reaper, a short, scrappy looking fellow with blue hair, gave his compatriot an elbow, looking excited, “Troubleshoes, I recognize them lot from the reports! Its them Ryoka girls! The humans with the freaky powers that started this whole mess!”

“Huh,” the big man, Troubleshoes, scratched his nose, peering at them, “You thinking so? I suppose it would just be like my luck to run into a bunch of trouble just when this flanking attack was going so swell. Oh well, just my lot I guess. Figure we might as well capture them before they do something to make things worse, otherwise Captain Kenpachi will give us an earful.”

Sunset’s memory was tickled by the name ‘Kenpachi’, and she glanced to Ditzy. “Hey, isn’t that the title the Soul Reapers mostly know Applejack’s mother by?”

Ditzy Doo nodded, “Yup. These yahoos must be from Tenth Division.”

Rarity had a curious look as she asked, “And whatever do they mean by ‘Ryoka’?”

“Kind of a blanket term for outsiders considered to be aligned against Soul Society.” Ditzy said waving a dismissive hand, “So, you know, pretty much everyone who isn’t a Soul Reaper or kow-tows to Soul Reaper rule.”

“So these fellas know my ma, eh?”

Nearly the moment the words left Applejack’s mouth, Sunset felt a massive burst of spiritual pressure next to her, followed by a blast of air that radiated outward in a gust strong enough to actually make a number of nearby fighting Soul Reapers pause in their clash to suddenly look and take note of the group of strangers in their midst. Even a big man like Troubleshoots took a step back, blinking in mute startelement.

The source of the intense spirit pressure was of course Applejack, whose body had become wrapped in a solid gold aura. The forms of her metallic boots had taken shape, extending in white and bronze plates up to her upper thighs now, but the golden energy now also suffused Applejack’s arms and shoulders, streams of solid gold light wrapping around those limbs to then snap into the shape of form fitting yet thick metal gauntlets and shoulder guards. Much like the boots, the gauntlets were seemingly made from a combination of white and bronze metal, and just like the skull motifs on the knees, the knuckles of the gauntlets took shapes reminiscent of skulls. Also like the boots there were small nozzle-like holes situated at points around the wrists, elbows, and the back of shoulders that Sunset knew full well would exude spirit energy in the same rocket styled manner that the boots did. And if the intensely pounding and potent nature of Applejack’s reiatsu was any indication, Sunset knew those rockets would be much stronger than they’d been before.

But if Sunset needed proof, Applejack provided it without a moment’s hesitation the second the gauntlets had formed. In a move that gave Sunset’s best Flash Step a run for its money, thrusters of gold energy shot from the back of Applejack’s shoulder guards and she was instantly in front of Troubleshoes. The big man’s hand started to raise his Zanpaktou, a simple affair with a horseshoe shaped cross guard, but Applejack’s right hand closed around his face with a tight squeeze, lifting the huge fellow off the ground, much to his shocked expression.

“Where’s my ma?” Applejack asked, putting a remarkable amount of menace into such a simple question, and the light glittering in her green eyes was, Sunset had to admit, a tad frightening.

“The hell!?” the shorter Soul Reaper next to Troubleshoes had his own Zanpaktou drawn, and rushed Applejack, sword flashing towards her arm. Applejack didn’t even look his way or loosen her grip on Troubleshoes as she kicked out with her right leg with enough force to create a pressure wave. The kick slammed the short Soul Reaper squarely in the chest, making his eyes bulge as he was shot like a cannonball into, and through, the nearest tree.

“Yeash AJ, and you call me a showoff?” said Rainbow Dash, wincing.

Troubleshoes, for his part, had recovered from his shock and now slashed hard with his Zanpaktou, striking Applejack’s arm that gripped him. The blade hit the gauntlet in a burst of sparks, doing next to no damage, but the strike did force Applejack to let go and stumble back a step. Troubleshoes used the moment to Flash Step backwards a distance, rubbing his jaw.

“I don’t rightly know who your ma is, girl, but it's just both our bad luck you’re spoiling for a scrap.”

“Everyone, we have more trouble coming our way.” pointed out Fluttershy as she nodded towards where an entire portion of what Sunset guessed was the Eleventh Division had broken off from their individual fights and were now rushing towards them, anywhere from ten to fifteen Soul Reapers in total. Sunset noted that despite that, her friends weren’t looking scared. Even Fluttershy had a calm air about her.

Ditzy Doo cracked her knuckles, “Well let’s get to it. Applejack, can you take care of the big guy while we clean up the incoming flunkies?”

Applejack, never once taking her eyes off Troubleshoes, nodded. “I got this.”

“Actually, Miss Doo, if its okay, can I handle this?” Fluttershy asked, nodding towards the incoming cluster of Soul Reapers. Ditzy glanced sidelong at Fluttershy, then grinned and shrugged.

“Sure, knock yourself out.”

Rainbow Dash groaned, “Aww man, c’mon. Why’s everybody trying to outdo me today!? Flutters, are you sure you can handle them?”

Fluttershy began to calmly walk forward, turning to smile serenely at Rainbow Dash, “I’ll be okay, but if you want, come save me if I get in trouble. But I don’t think you’ll have to.”

“I’m never gonna get to eat anyone, am I?” grumbled Pinkamena.

Sunset looked at Fluttershy with a hesitant glance, but decided to trust her friend’s judgement and said, “Show ‘em what you can do Fluttershy.”

Fluttershy had a calm and sweet smile as she nodded to Sunset and resumed a slow walk towards the onrushing Soul Reapers, who were just ten meters away now. At the same moment Applejack rushed Troubleshoes, and Sunset lost track of both of them as their clash pushed both of those combatants back deeper into the forest. She could still feel Applejack’s reiatsu, however, so Sunset wasn’t worried of losing track of her friend in the battle, and her eyes were too glued to Fluttershy at the moment anyway.

As the enemy Soul Reapers started to surround Fluttershy, seeming to think her a quick and easy target, Fluttershy’s body became wreathed with a gentle white and blue light. Her spiritual energy rose, just like Applejack’s had, but rather than feeling like a forceful burst of power, this felt more like an exceedingly calm and uplifting breeze. It reminded Sunset of home, of the vast and green Equestrian fields where a strong but gentle spring breezes would blow.

Fluttershy’s pink hair rose like a curtain, as if uplifted by a smooth wind. Her third eye flowed open in a luminous blue light, but at the same instant a circular halo of blue energy formed behind her, easily four feet in diameter, with needle-like points of energy flowing off it’s glowing edge like rays from the sun. A white cloth took shape from the halo and wrapped around Fluttershy’s shoulders like a shawl, nearly transparent, and continuously shifting as if under a stiff breeze. Fluttershy’s stance became loose yet fluidly ready, her legs and arms shifting into a stance reminding Sunset of some soft-form martial arts she’d seen.

The Soul Reapers surrounding Fluttershy seemed momentarily taken aback by the changes in their intended target, both in terms of appearance and reiatsu, but these were members of Eleventh Division. They didn’t intimidate easily, and were all combat veterans, even if none of them were seated officers. Their hesitance only lasted all of a second before they rushed in at Fluttershy. They weren’t foolish about it, trying to dogpile in a uncoordinated mass. Instead these expert warriors came at Fluttershy in well timed, staggered waves of two or three at a time, always from different directions. Many already had their Zanpaktou released to Shikai, ensuring that a number of different shaped blades were being brought to bear, each containing powers of their own.

Not that any of it made an immediate difference against Fluttershy and her newly evolved Fullbring.

Her motions were minimal, just slight shifts and twists that belied their critical and completely efficient timing. As Soul Reapers slashed and stabbed for her flesh, Fluttershy seemed to become a bending blade of grass amid a storm of steel. Blade edges passed within bare inches of striking, but always seemed to find only air as Fluttershy moved aside with calm, relaxed movements. And every time a Soul Reaper passed by, many with shocked and disbelieving looks on their faces, Fluttershy’s arms moved in swift yet careful, even gentle motions. She wasn’t using fists, but rather striking with the palms of her hand, barely touching each Soul Reaper that tried to strike her. Yet for every light touch of her palm, a Soul Reaper simply staggered back... then sat down. Sunset could see that every Soul Reaper Fluttershy touched gained a glazed, relaxed look in their eyes as they simply dropped their weapons and sat down, completely passive.

In the span of a mere fifteen, maybe twenty seconds, half the Soul Reapers that had surrounded Fluttershy had fallen in this manner; weapon dropped, sitting down, eyes placid and empty of all aggression, or indeed any seeming conscious thought.

The remaining Soul Reapers were understandably unnerved by this, many of them suddenly backing away from the small, pink haired girl they’d just moments ago surrounded.

“What the damn hell is this!?” one of the Soul Reapers growled, “What kind of ability is she using?”

“Guys!? Why are you just sitting there!? Get your asses up! Hey!”

Fluttershy shook her head, smiling calmly, “They can’t hear your voices. Only mine. They won’t be harmed, and neither will you. Please surrender. This violence serves no purpose.”

One of the Soul Reapers grunted and put a hand to his ears, “Ugh, be careful, she’s doing something weird. I can feel her in my head!”

“It's easier now, when I touch someone,” said Fluttershy with a sad sounding sigh, “I still have to use effort at a distance. Please, surrender. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“Arrgh!”

Several Soul Reapers went to their knees, clutching at their heads as Fluttershy’s power washed over their minds. Sunset had to confess to herself it was a bit disturbing to see. She wasn’t sure how hard Fluttershy was trying, and there was a hesitance in the girl that suggested to Sunset that Fluttershy wasn’t even going all out yet. It might be because Fluttershy was worried about doing some kind of mental damage to anyone she controlled through exerting too much force. Regardless, with several of their comrades just struggling to maintain their own minds, the remaining pair of Soul Reapers both went after Fluttershy at the same time.

One, a woman wielding a Zanpaktou that had taken the form of a dagger, rushed Fluttershy from the front. Meanwhile the other Soul Reaper, a man carrying a blade that had split into two prong-like blades, stayed back while maneuvering towards Fluttershy’s back. The woman with the dagger Zanpaktou swung for Fluttershy’s head, and the dagger suddenly extended like a spear. Fluttershy bent backwards and twisted to the side, the sudden strike managing to take a few strands of pink hair, but Fluttershy stepped forward and caught the woman with a solid palm strike to the chest. As the woman staggered back, eyes glazing over with the effects of Fluttershy’s power, the man with the prong blade aimed at Fluttershy’s back and a sphere of what looked like concentrated sound waves formed between the prongs, which then fired off like a bullet.

Fluttershy started to turn away from the sneak attack, but there was a sound like crashing thunder and suddenly the sphere was deflected by a cobalt bolt of lightning. This was followed instantly by a gleaming blue form flashing into the Soul Reaper with the prong blade, Rainbow Dash’s knee smashing into his face and sending the man flying amid arcs of electrical energy. He landed face first in the dirt, quite unconscious.

Fluttershy frowned, “Rainbow Dash...”

“What? Hey, don’t give me that look, he was totally trying to backstab you! Er, back shoot. Back something. Look, point is he was playing dirty and I stepped in. It wasn’t at all because I was getting too antsy to just stand around watching anymore.” Rainbow Dash put her hands squarely on her hips, not quite meeting Fluttershy’s eyes. She had, of course, transformed as well, both her large metallic wings and the new lightning wings spread out around her and generating an electrical aura that crackled around her athletic figure.

With a third potent reiatsu on battlefield almost all of the fighting in the immediate area between the Eleventh and Thirteenth Division had tapered off as more Soul Reapers paid attention to the girls. The fact that one of them had all but single-handedly taken down over a dozen Eleventh Division members, seemingly without breaking a sweat, gave just about every Soul Reaper present some pause. Except for Troubleshoes, if the nearby crashing noises and falling trees was any indication. Sunset could feel Applejack’s reiatsu clashing with Troubleshoes’, even if they two were no longer visible.

“Alright,” she said, cracking her neck, “I think the exhibition bit is over. Let’s all get in there and take these guys down!”

“About time!” growled Pinkamena, gripping the Pinkie hammer tightly and letting her teeth show in a wide, drooling smile. “I was about to start gnawing on you guys if I had to wait a second longer!”

With that Pinkamena jumped, her legs literally stretching like taffy as she went flying into the air, crossing a good fifty meters of distance to land among a group of combating Soul Reapers who all looked at the strange girl with surprised eyes, which then grew into terrified eyes as sharp toothed mouths sprang open all over Pinkamena’s arms, legs, and chest.

“So which of you yummy looking morsels is going into my belly first?”

“She’s just kidding guys,” said the Pinkie hammer, “She’s not really going to eat you. I’ve got her contractually obligated to only take small bites. Er, I don’t know if that applies to fingers and toes. None of you are horribly attached to those, right?”

“Nom! Nom! Nom!” was Pinkamena’s less than eloquent response as she lashed out with her left arm, snapping the many fang filled mouths along its tentacle-like length at confused and horrified Soul Reapers, while she used her right arm to swing the hammer around, smashing the ground like playing a game of whack-a-mole. Each strike that landed on a Soul Reaper was accompanied by a loud, electronic dinging noise and an actual floating set of point numbers.

Rarity looked at the scene with an exasperated shake of her head, “I will never understand how such a slobbering beast stems from the mind of our dear Pinkie Pie. Oh well, since everyone else is busy showing off I suppose I ought to get into the spirit of things as well.”

The change that came over Rarity was more subtle than the other’s transformations. As blood flowed from her skin, not staining her clothes but instead solidifying with a wash of crimson energy into the shape of her armored dress and thin, red crystal rapier, there remained a faint blood-red aura around her. She raised her left hand, and a bracelet took shape, a full hand’s span wide. It was formed from the same red crystal as her rapier, and bore a similar rose motif engraved in swirls of thorned vines wrapped around a central blooming rose. Through the bracelet was the only real visible change, there was a undercurrent of buzzing power radiating from Rarity as she joined the rest of the girls as they started to charge towards the Eleventh Division Soul Reapers.

Sunset had taken the lead, flanked by Clover and Rarity, while Fluttershy stayed side by side with Rainbow Dash, all of them together heading for the largest clump of Soul Reapers on the battlefield, not far from where Pinkamena was wreaking havoc.

Ditzy Doo was hanging back, and Sunset cast her a questioning glance, to which Ditzy said, “This is your guy’s show. I’ll only jump in if I’m needed, but I think we both know you girls got this.”

Sunset grinned in response, heart alight with eager fire. Damned straight they had this! She gripped her Zanpaktou tightly.

”Ignite, Hokori!”

As her sword blazed to life, flames taking shape into the form of both broadsword and shield, Clover also brought her sword to bear.

”Seek, Chishiki!”

Then like a comet smashing into a tidal wave, the girls hit the line of waiting Eleventh Division Soul Reapers. Sunset shield slammed the first Soul Reaper in her path, sending him flying into his fellows with enough force to knock around like bowling pins. She immediately jumped into a swift Flash Step that took her behind two others, a pair of quick slashes cutting sword arms that had them dropping their Zanpaktou and clutching bleeding wounds just long enough for Sunset to follow up with a shield slam and spinning pommel strike that laid out both men unconscious on the ground in mere instants.

Clover, less aggressive, but no less potent, caught one Soul Reaper’s blade in the ring on one end of Chishiki and disarmed him with one spinning motion that also had the shaft of the staff slamming into his gut. She then turned around and gestured with her hands as she spoke a fast Kido invocation.

“Bakudo Number Four; Haniwa!”

A glowing yellow rope of energy flew from her outstretched hand, wrapping around and immobilizing another Soul Reaper that had been preparing to charge at Sunset, who in turn gave Clover a nod of thanks.

Rainbow Dash was little more than a blue flickering blur, leaving a trail of lightning in her wake as she flew and struck with such speed that Sunset couldn’t even keep track of where her friend was aside from witnessing the way enemy Soul Reapers fell in twitching heaps, electricity still playing over their bodies.

Most of the Soul Reapers fighting them didn’t even seem to notice Fluttershy, as she moved much more calmly and slow amid the battle. For every Soul Reaper she struck with flashing palms, she also knelt to see to those already wounded, trailing behind Rainbow Dash and passing gentle hands over the fallen, leaving them unconscious, but with their electrical burns reduced to faint marks as her spirit energy flowed into them and healed the wounds.

Then there was Rarity, who seemed to have taken it upon herself to deal with the entire left flank of the fight. She strode into the fight with her usual elegant flare, flipping some of her purple curls from her face with her bracelet clad hand.

“I do abhor the crude nature of this kind of fighting, but since you all have chosen to be brutes, I think it will take a lady’s touch to properly discipline you louts.”

One enemy Soul Reaper spat to the side and raised her own Zanpaktou above her head, which had taken the form of a spiked mace in its Shikai.

“Discipline this, you skinny tart!” the female Soul Reaper sneered, slamming her Zanpaktou’s mace head into the ground. Immediately an eruption of jagged stones started to rush towards Rarity in a deadly line.

Rarity just made a small “Tch” sound and raised her left hand, snapping her fingers. The rose bracelet glowed with flowing red energy, and then from the petals of the rose a sudden flood of blood exploded outward. It was like a living whirlpool of blood, although Sunset noted the crimson liquid did have a glittering, crystalline sheen to it. At Rarity’s gesture the blood flowed over the incoming rocks, and instantly solidified into huge chunks of crystal, stopping the miniature earthquake in its tracks.

Before the Soul Reaper could respond to that, Rarity gestured again and the living whirlpool of blood flowed up into the air, swirling around faster and faster until it started to disgorge dozens of small goblets of the red liquid. These floating spheres of blood then immediately glowed and transformed into a floating field of gleaming and artfully ostentatious blades not unlike Rarity’s rapier.

Then with another snap of her fingers, the blades descended in a flying barrage upon the surprised Soul Reapers. With the speed and precision of a swarm of attacking wasps the crystal blades stabbed into arms and legs with equal ferocity, yet moved with stylish flourish as Rarity gestured in the manner of a conductor leading an orchestra. A number of Soul Reapers did managed to deflect some of the blades coming for them, including the woman with the mace shaped Shikai. They rushed Rarity, who held her rapier up in a fencer’s pose, then jumped towards the oncoming Soul Reapers in a twirling move not unlike someone performing ballet. She thrust her rapier forward, and as if the weapon was a channel a fresh wave of blood red liquid sprang out and instantly transformed into a wave of jagged crystals that hit the advancing Soul Reapers like a wall. Most were caught on the spiked crystals, limbs painfully but not fatally pierced, but the mace-wielding Soul Reaper was fast enough to leap over the wall and came straight for Rarity.

Rarity parried the Soul Reaper’s swing, her crystal rapier swiftly morphing into a bladed whip to twist around the mace. With a deft spin and twist Rarity landed gracefully atop the crystal wall she’d just made and yanked the Soul Reaper down to impact the ground with a startlingly strong crash, knocking her opponent out completely. Looking quite pleased with herself, surveying her handiwork, which now consisted of a fair number of Soul Reapers disabled on the ground with useless limbs, Rarity snapped her fingers again and the whirlpool of blood that still hung in the air flowed back to her bracelet. She then jumped off the crystal wall and with a simple gesture created a series of crystalline bindings that rose from the ground and entrapped the wounded Soul Reapers, fully immobilizing them.

“There now, see how much more smoothly things become when we all sit down and behave ourselves, like properly sensible people rather than all this barbaric violence?” Rarity said, dusting herself off.

Sunset shook her head with a helpless laugh, a hot flash of energy surging inside her as her pride demanding she step things up, if only to match Rarity’s impressive showing. Of the Eleventh Division Soul Reapers still on their feet in the immediate area there were only ten or so left, and Sunset went after them with a vengeance. She had to be careful with her fire still, but her precision control of it was much better than it had been when she’d first obtained Shikai. Her shield having taken a few hits she had more than enough energy to unleash a decent sized blaze, sweeping her broadsword in an arc that unleashed a concentrated wave of fire upon the closest bunch of enemy Soul Reapers.

The flames hit hard, burning away uniforms and scorching flesh, but Sunset’s control of her flame allowed her to pull the flames back before they could do the kind of harm that couldn’t be healed. However the pain inflicted would be devastating, and a part of her kind of regretted having to go even this far. Taking down Hollows was one thing, but it was hard to relish hurting these guys and Sunset wanted to keep this fight clean if she could. Granted Hokori was less caring, more just eager to show off her power, and Sunset could feel her blade all but bursting at the seams to unleash more fire, but she forced Hokori to hold back.

The burned Soul Reapers, the few that remained standing, were dropped rather quickly by Rainbow Dash’s flickering form, moving so fast that Sunset only saw a few cobalt afterimages of her friend before Rainbow finally appeared next to Sunset, all but bouncing in place with hyperactiveness that’d put Pinkie Pie to shame.

“Was this all of them? This was way too fast.” Rainbow Dash said, looking almost crestfallen, “And easy.”

“Oh don’t worry about that,” said Ditzy Doo, giggling with silent shakes of her shoulders, “This was just a fraction of Eleventh Division. There’s a lot more out there, and we’ll have seated officers to deal with. Not to mention Captain Hurricane.”

Sunset nodded, but eyed the Soul Reapers in the area who were either part of the Thirteenth Division, or part of the group that was just healing the injured. Most were looking at her and the girls fearfully, or at the very least with the tense eyes of those unsure if they were looking at friends or foes. That was hardly surprising. Even if Sunset and her friends had only targeted the Eleventh Division, a bunch of strangers had just showed up and steamrolled a large number of Soul Reapers in what was supposed to be their secure home territory. Sunset would be suspicious too if she’d been in the Thirteenth Division’s shoes right now...

“Wait... shoes... oh crap! Applejack is still fighting that Troubleshoes guy!” Sunset exclaimed, trying to sense Applejack’s reiatsu to confirm if her friend was alright.

“I wouldn't worry about her,” said Ditzy Doo, looking surprisingly serious all of a sudden as she looked off in the distance, as if her gold eyes could pierce through the forest to see the fight between Applejack and Troubleshoes. “Applejack isn’t about to lose until she meets the person she came here to meet. That poor Troubleshoes guy has no idea what he’s up against.”

----------

The tree trunk shattered into a shower of splinters as Applejack’s foot tore through it, landing squarely into the side of Troubleshoes, who’d been using the tree as cover. The more than seven foot tall man went bouncing like a pinball across the ground, landing upside down against another tree. To Applejack’s continued amazement Troubleshoes remained conscious, and she saw him spit out some dirt and grumble, “This is about how I figured this’d go.”

“Gotta admit yer a right tough sunuvagun,” Applejack said, walking towards him while pounding her gauntlet clad fists together, “But ya can’t keep this up. Just tell me what I wanna knew ‘fore I gotta git serious.”

Troubleshoes moved like a boulder made out of molasses and rolled to his stomach, then slowly pushed himself to his feet. He still held his Zanpaktou in his right hand, and raised it as he stood. “Nothing doing missy. I don’t care who you think your ma is, I ain’t taking you to meet Captain Kenpachi.”

“Her name is Sweet Cider!” Applejack yelled, jets of energy from her shoulders rocketing her forward into another kick. This time Troubleshoes managed to catch it on his blade, but all that did was barely slow Applejack as both she and him went crashing through the tree with a loud crack, then dug a deep furrow through the ground beyond, ploughing an explosive trail of dirt and dust into the air as they went.

Applejack kicked off of the man’s Zanpaktou, jumping up into the air, only to spin an then cock back her right arm. Thruster energy poured from her elbow, propelling both her and her fist down like a missile. Troubleshoes, laying on the ground, just barely managed to Flash Step away from the attack, evading Applejack just in time to avoid an impact that was so strong that it cracked a series of fissures through the ground for dozens of meters around, unbalancing and toppling several more trees and distorting the forest floor.

As Applejack removed her fist from the ground, Troubleshoes, who appeared behind her, slashed down at her back. Applejack spun and caught the blade, gripping it hard in her now metal clad fist.

Troubleshoes didn’t seem too perturbed, or rather no more so than he already was with a constant dour frown on his face.

“If your ma really is the Kenpachi, you’ve got worse luck than me,” he drawled, pressing down with both hands on his blade, but Applejack held fast against him, her one hand seeming more than a match for all his strength.

“How’s that?” she asked, pulling back her other hand, ready to punch.

“She won’t remember you. Or no one else from being alive. That’s pretty much the norm for souls.” said Troubleshoes, sighing heavily, “Just sad is all, coming all this way for someone that won’t even remember you.”

Abruptly his Zanpaktou began to glow with soft green light, and Applejack felt the Soul Reaper’s spiritual pressure jump upwards.

“Still, can’t let you get in the Captain’s way. Sorry, but your luck is about to get even worse. Dry up, Kusatta-Un.” (Rotten Luck)

Upon the utterance of the Zanpaktou’s release phrase it instantly transformed, shifting from a blade into a smooth, round iron ball attached to a long chain that wrapped around Troubleshoe’s arm. The moment the transformation finished he jumped back, yanking hard on the chain. Applejack still had her hand on the iron ball and tried to keep her grip on it, but for some reason she suddenly lost her footing as the broken up ground beneath her shifted. She dropped to a knee, off balance as Troubleshoes spun the iron ball above his head and then launched it at her chest.

She tried to block, and should have been able to, but at just the wrong moment her foot seemed to slip on a loose rock and she was just a fraction off balance, enough that the iron ball slammed into her just before she was able to get her arms up. The blow was a hard one, knocking the breath out of her tossing her on her back a dozen feet back, but it wasn’t near enough to put her down. Applejack kipped up to her feet and faced Troubleshoes, eyes flashing the anger steaming inside her.

“Alright, no more playin’ around!” she shouted, and aimed a fist at Troubleshoes. She felt the gauntlet heat up as she poured her spirit energy into it, and the eye holes along the skull engraving on the back of her hand flashed as a nozzle opened up within the skull’s mouth. Then much like with her kicks, she fired a wide, golden blast of energy from the skull’s mouth. The blast had enough power behind it that it actually forced her to skid back a few inches despite bracing her legs for it.

Troubleshoes barely Flash Stepped out of the line of destruction, still getting his left arm and shoulder caught in the blast that cut an explosive path through a quarter mile of forest. Applejack could see a clear path burned right through the thick trees, smoking from the intensity of the beam. Troubleshoes himself appeared above her, his arm and shoulder bare and burned, but he seemed to just grit his teeth through the pain as he swung his iron ball down at her with surprising force.

She jumped to the side, only to find a loose tree branch from one of the fallen trees catching her legs and tripping her up. It slowed her just enough for the iron ball to clip her side painfully as she rolled away.

“Argh, what’s goin’ on!? I know I ain’t this clumsy dagnabbit!”

Troubleshoes landed a few paces away, spinning the iron ball of his Zanpaktou above his head. “That’s my Kusatta-Un. Normally I got the worst luck outta anybody in the Gotei 13. Nothing ever goes much my way. Only good thing about it is that when I release my Zanpaktou, all that bad luck, well... it goes right to my enemies.”

“Oh, that all it is?” Applejack said, regaining her balance and turning around to face him. “If bad luck is the best ya can throw at me, then believe you me,” her eyes narrowed to emerald slits, “I can take it.”

Troubleshoes had the presence of mind to look worried as Applejack started walking towards him. He spun the iron ball around and launched it at her, and unlike before, Applejack didn’t try to block or dodge. Why bother, if bad luck would just mess up the attempt? Instead she took the blow head on. Literally. She headbutted the iron ball. She felt the impact like a car wreck, but her evolved Fullbring did more than just amp up her strength and give her shiny gauntlets. It provided an outlet for all of her spirit energy in a protective aura around her body. It was why she could jet around at breakneck speeds without hurting herself. She suspected Rainbow Dash’s Fullbring did something similar, and probably Rarity’s too. Maybe all the girls, even if moving fast didn’t seem to be Fluttershy or Pinkie Pie’s particular shticks.

Regardless, it meant Applejack could take a lot more punishment than she could before, her body hardened by her reiatsu. Which in turn meant that while Troubleshoes’ Zanpaktou packed a wallop, it wasn’t enough to stop Applejack from advancing on him with measured, determined steps.

“Well now ain’t this just a right pickle?” Troubleshoes muttered as he swung his iron ball about again and again, smashing it into Applejack as she continued to advance. But despite the mounting wounds, including a bleeding scalp, Applejack just kept coming.

“Lemme tell ya somethin’ Troubleshoes. Ya might’ve figured a bit o’ bad luck could stop me, but if ya know my ma, then you ought’ve also known,” when she was just a step away from him she stomped her right foot down hard enough to crack the ground and upend it underneath them both, causing Troubleshoes to topple backwards, “Apples don’t need no luck!”

Golden energy thrust out of all the nozzles along the back of her right leg, propelling her into a spinning kick that smashed solidly into Troubleshoes’ face and knocked him straight down into the ground like a railroad spike. Dirt was thrown up in a bursting cloud, and took minute or two to settle.

Applejack winced as she wiped blood from her face, and stretched painfully, checking her wounds. It wasn’t as bad as it felt. No cracked ribs, and only a few bruises. She flexed her legs and gauntlets. “These puppies sure do the job, don’t they? Figurin’ I oughta name ya at some point. Seems all these fancy schmancy powers got names. Heh, bet Rarity’s already got somethin’ fro-frooy all picked out for hers. Now then...”

She knelt down and picked up the fallen Troubleshoes by the back of his head, examining him. He’d let go of his Zanpaktou, which had transformed back into its sealed blade state. He was still breathing, but was completely knocked out, with a growing lump on his head. Applejack sighed. “Guess I shoulda held back just a touch. Now I gotta go lookin’ fer ma the old fashioned way. Dang.”

She set him back down and after walking a few paces away she looked around, adjusting her stetson on her head.

“Now where did all them girls git off to?”

Closing her eyes and concentrating, Applejack spread out her spiritual senses. She could admit that she wasn’t as good at doing this as some of the other girls were, but she was able to get a general idea of what was around her. With a sharp breath she felt the massive, but still distant spiritual pressures that were likely the two Captains leading the attack, one of which was her mother. Her blood boiled with the urge to go directly towards that area, to finally after so many long, painful years to see the face of the woman who’d brought her into the world.

But to do that without the rest of the girls to back her up would be straight up crazy. Applejack was stubborn and brash, but not stupid. She’d lost her cool with Troubleshoes, but now with that particular fight done she could think a bit clearer. She had to link up with the rest of the girls first.

Taking a deep breath, Applejack stretched her arms and legs, limbering up her muscles. What she was about to do was a technique she hadn’t practiced nearly as much as she should have, but with these Fullbrings half of the trick seemed to be following one’s guts as much as training.

“Right then, if the fella wit the fancy armor suit can do it in them big budget superhero flicks, then I can pull it off too.” Applejack told herself, right before placing her gauntlet clad hands palm down towards the ground, then with a golden explosion of light she fired thruster-like energy out of both her palms and the bottom of her boots.

----------

“So let me get this straight,” said the young lady with the straight brown hair, eyeing Sunset and her friends with no small amount of trepidation as they all gathered together in front of the cluster of Thirteenth Division Soul Reapers who’d been defending the barracks, “You bunch are the Ryoka that Captain Celestia was trying to protect when she turned herself in? And now you’re here to free her and Captain Luna?”

“That’s about the size of it.” Rainbow Dash said, placing her hands casually behind her head as she grinned.

The brown haired girl blinked, seemingly disbelieving. “Can you guys actually do that? I mean, you’d have to defeat all the other Soul Reapers guarding headquarters, including the Captains.”

“Look,” said Sunset, “Um, what was your name?”

“Fine Line. I’m Captain Celestia’s 5th Seat officer. 3rd Seat Inkwell put me in charge of protecting our lowest ranked recruits while everyone else went to confront Captain Hurricane and Captain Kenpachi.” The young lady seemed nearly hyperventilating, her eyes wide and frightened, “M-most of us haven’t even been in a real fight until today. Oh no, Inkwell must be in trouble by now! She’ll need help!”

“Relax,” said Ditzy Doo, “I can still sense Inkwell’s reiatsu. She’s hanging in there, along with a decent amount of those that’re fighting beside her.” Ditzy Doo’s eyebrow quirked up as she glanced off to the distance, “Huh, I’m also sensing Nocturn’s reiatsu out there. Did the 2nd Division show up to help?”

“Yes! We’ve been hiding members of 2nd Division here ever since the trial. Not all of them, though. Some are still hiding in different parts of Seireitei.” Fine Line spoke quickly, her fear showing in almost every nervous twitch of her body. Sunset put a reassuring look on her face and held up a calming hand.

“We’re here to do all we can to help. If you can trust us.”

“I...” Fine Line looked around furtively, eyes dancing between the girls and the various battered members of her own Division that were mostly looking to her for leadership. Fine Line swallowed and stuttered, “I think so. Captain Celestia trusted you all enough to risk her life to protect you. We’ll do the same! But what are we going to do? There’s two Captains on the battlefield. Nobody has the strength to face them!”

Suddenly there was a sound like a screaming jet fighter, and everyone turned up to the sky to see a gold and orange form flying their way at high speed. Sunset’s eyes shot wide as she saw it was Applejack, using golden energy from her Fullbring like thrusters to fly through the air. It was a shaky, awkward flight too, but Applejack seemed to have it under control. Within seconds she flew across the lake and curved down into a hard landing just a few paces away from where the girls were talking with Fine Line in front of the first of the barracks buildings. Applejack stumbled a bit in her landing, nearly tripping onto her face, but was caught by Rainbow Dash, who looked at her friend with a wide smile.

“Whoa, look at you fly girl! Heh, looks like I won’t be the only one cruising the sky now. Totally. Awesome. And hey, looks like you beat that Troubledork. Learn anything useful from him?”

“Only that I ain’t so good at pullin’ my kicks. He’s taking a nap fer awhile. He said my ma won’t remember me none, but I can’t...” Applejack shook her head, grimacing, “I can’t let myself think like that. I gotta be able ta git through to her. Which is what I’m fixin’ ta do right now if we’re done cleanin’ up the mooks here.”

Rarity cast a concerned glance towards the Soul Reapers who were tending to the wounded. “Are they just going to keep looking after the injured? We can trust them to not try anything funny?”

Fine Line gave a nerve wracked laugh, “Oh we can definitely trust the Fourth Division. They’re solely dedicated to healing.”

A happy sheen entered Fluttershy’s eyes as she said, “I like that notion. It's good there’s such a group among you, who won’t add to the suffering. Perhaps I should help them with the injured?”

“Hmm,” Sunset’s brow creased in thought, “We might need everyone to take on the Captains, but if you’d rather take care of the wounded, that might go a long way to creating some goodwill with these people.”

“I know you want to help, Fluttershy,” said Ditzy Doo suddenly, eyes taking on a hard seriousness, “But the Fourth Division has the injuries well in hand. Fighting a Captain head on is going to be hard enough with all of you working together against one of them. Your friends are going to need you, including your power to heal.”

“So are we going to talk about it all day or are we going to go play with the giant, tasty reiatsu I’m smelling out there?” asked Pinkamena, bouncing the Pinkie hammer in one palm, which proceeded to giggle. Sunset found Pinkie’s giggling a tad unnerving given that Pinkamena had some bloodstains on her from the fight. She hadn’t eaten anyone, near as Sunset could tell, but more than a few of the Soul Reapers Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie had fought had bite marks on their limbs and torsos that were reminiscent of shark attacks. Mild shark attacks, but still...

Sunset turned to Ditzy Doo, “If me and the girls are taking on a Captain, can I guess that means you’re tackling the other?”

“That’s the notion,” said Ditzy, casting a hard gaze towards Applejack, “And it’s Sweet Cider I’ll be fighting, understand?”

“What!? Why!?” Applejack shouted, “I’m here ta see my ma! Why should I let you fight her instead o’ takin’ her on myself!?”

Fine Line’s eyes turned to giant moon-shaped pools, “Wait, the Kenpachi is you’re mother!?”

Ditzy Doo ignored Fine Line’s remark and crossed her arms firmly, “You’re letting me fight her because if you girls do it, you’ll likely be killed. You won’t have the sense to run if it comes to it, and with Sweet bloodyKenpachi Cider, it will come to that. Don’t you get it? The title ‘Kenpachi’ isn’t there for show. It belongs to the strongest warrior among Soul Reapers! As in stronger than Hurricane. So yes, you’re letting me fight her. If I win, you can have your chat then. If I lose, well...” Ditzy sighed and shrugged with a helpless grin, “I won’t be around to tell you ‘no’ anymore so you can feel free to do what you want.”

The grim tone in Ditzy’s voice seemed to give Applejack pause, and she gulped, saying, “So don’t lose. Guess that means we’re stuck delin’ with Hurricane.”

“Plus any seated officers they have with them.” Clover said, “Although I can probably deal with one of the Lieutenants myself, if they interfere. Which they will, because that’s how our luck has been.”

“No more point talking about it then,” said Sunset, already taking swift steps in the direction she felt the two massive spiritual pressures that had to be the Captains, “Let’s go.”

----------

Holding back didn’t come naturally to Sweet Cider. It took all of her restraint and self-control once her blood was riled to keep from simply splitting her opponents in half. Even so, she was leaving a trail of bloody fallen behind her as she advanced through the throng of Thirteenth and Second Division members that tried to overwhelm her with numbers.

Some struck with Zanpaktou, others threw Kido at her, while some of the Second Division who were well trained in unarmed techniques came at her with fists and feet charged with spirit energy. Little of it could scratch her body, fortified with her massive, near boundless well of spirit energy, and that was assuming she didn’t cut them down with swift, brutal strokes of her sword before their attacks even touched her.

She didn’t want to kill any of these idiots, but she wasn’t at all sure just how many would survive even casual, pulled hits from her. Every swing of her near blunt blade created shockwaves that tore apart the ground and felled trees.

And all the while she kept bellowing, “Surrender ya dang fools! Drop yer weapons an give it up already! Ain’t none of ya gonna be able ta stop me!”

But of course none of them listened, the stupidly loyal bastards. One moron came at her from above, some fellow whose Zanpaktou took the Shikai form of a katar.

“For Celestia!” he shouted, trying to stab at her neck.

Sweet Cider just tilted her head, letting the blade strike her shoulder, and felt the impact as a slight jarring motion as the katar was stopped dead on her skin, not even breaking it as raw spirit energy flowing around her body canceled out the attack. With a contemptuous growl she grabbed the fellow by the face, her red hand squeezing his surprised visage.

“Ya damn fool!” she roared, slamming him into the ground at her feet with enough force to make a small crater. “Ya wanna help yer Captain, then don’t throw yer life away wit a fight ya can’t win!”

“Whether we can win or not has yet to be decided,” said another man, this one a tall fellow with midnight black skin and dark blue hair, bearing a Zanpkatou also already released to Shikai, this one shaped like a pair of long, curved claws extending from a black glove.

Given his tight fitting black body suit, hood, and mask this was one of Luna’s people, probably one of her officers. Sweet Cider couldn’t remember many of the officers below Lieutenant level in the other Divisions. Not that it mattered. Even if Luna’s Lieutenant, Cheerilee, were here it wouldn’t make a difference to the outcome. No one had the strength to stop her and Hurricane.

“Look ya thick-skulled pajama wearin’ haybrain, I don’t wanna hurt none of you fools but yer not leavin’ me much choice! Just surrender an’ I can make sure ya’ll are treated fair n’ square.”

“As Captain Luna was treated fairly? As Captain Celestia was? No, Kenpachi. Strong as you may be, you cannot offer fairness to us,” the man said, taking on a wide martial artist stance, feet spread, blade arm cocked back, “As Captain Luna’s 3rd Seat officer I will gladly lay down my life in her service.”

Before he could move to attack, there was a nearby explosion from what sounded like a fairly high end Kido spell by Sweet Cider’s reckoning, and Inkwell appeared from the trees and landed beside him. Inkwell was clearly badly wounded, with half of her black ropes torn, and a bloody line tracing her chest. Her own Zanpaktou had also clearly been released to Shikai, bearing the form of a thin bladed straight sword of Chinese design, a jian, with a white tassel tied to the hilt.

Breathing hard, Inkwell glanced at her compatriot with a tired, weak smile. “Nocturn, hello. You look nicely uninjured. Having a better time of it than I?”

Nocturn coughed, politely, “Yes, well, I was about to face the Kenpachi in a hopeless one on one duel. I imagine my uninjured state wouldn't last much longer beyond that.”

Inkwell glanced at Sweet Cider, blinking, “Ah, yes, well, I suppose you always did want a poetic death in one on one combat, didn’t you? I regret to tell you, but Captain Hurricane has largely crushed our flank. I’ve ordered my people to start falling back while I try to buy time. It-”

There was a fierce rush of air, like wind, as Captain Hurricane arrived, Flash Stepping casually to stand next to Sweet Cider with a jovial air about him. Inkwell sighed.

“-hasn’t been going well.”

Hurricane laughed, loudly and uproariously, “What did you expect? This has been fine enough sport, but as I imagined you and your fellows could only put up so much of a fight against battled hardened Eleventh Division soldiers. And with the flanking attack Captain Sweet Cider and I sent out earlier those you sent to fall back to your barracks will just be walking straight into more of our people.”

Inkwell’s face sunk to a crestfallen sag, “You... blast it, Fine Line won’t be able to handle a surprise attack for long. Damn you Hurricane, do you take pleasure in harming your fellow Soul Reapers!?”

“I take pleasure in putting my skills to use for Soul Society, regardless of who my opponent is. I’m a soldier, Inkwell. Nothing makes me happier than fulfilling my orders to the letter while enjoying a good fight at the same time. Speaking of which, are you and your darkly clad friend there going to come at us, or should we come to you?”

Inkwell grit her teeth and Sweet Cider could tell the woman was at the desperate end of her rope, and she saw Inkwell’s blade start to drip with a dark, tar-like substance. No, not tar. Her nostril twitching as she sniffed the air, Sweet Cider realized the black substance was actually ink. How on the nose, given the name of the Zanpaktou’s wielder.

The ink bubbled upwards form the blade as Inkwell went into a series of flourishing movements, somewhere between swordplay and dance. Her Zanpaktou traced the air like a brush, the ink flowing as if it were alive to take the shape of a two dimensional picture; that of a large tiger. The picture of the tiger then became animate, roaring with life-like realism as it started to charge Hurricane. He didn’t seem concerned, just glanced at Sweet Cider.

“She’s been entertaining me with these pictures since the fight started. I’ve indulged her, but still-”

The tiger jumped at him, inky black claws and fangs flashing, but Hurricane swiped his Zanpaktou in a harsh arc and the creature exploded in a shower of lifeless ink.

“-I’m getting tired of the same trick over and over again.”

However Sweet Cider could tell what Inkwell had been doing. The tiger had been a distraction. While Hurricane had focused on destroying the tiger, Inkwell had drawn an entire flock of black crows with her sword. Now those drawings of ink, that hung in the air as if sitting upon an actual canvas, burst to life in a swirling cloud of flapping wings. The crows obscured Inkwell and Nocturn for just a few seconds, but it was long enough that by the time Sweet Cider swung her sword with enough force to cause a shockwave to disperse the crows, the two rebel officers had already Flash Stepped away.

Sweet Cider let out a grumbling sigh. “Gettin’ as tired o’ this as you are Hurricane. C’mon, after ‘em!”

“Of course, they can't’ get far, not with the wound I’ve already given Inkwell,” Hurricane commented dryly as they both also used Flash Step to give chase. Sweet Cider could sense Inkwell and Nocturn’s spirit energies easily, and had little trouble keeping up with their swift movement through the forest. Neither had actually gone far.

They ended up in a wide clearing, where it seemed a number of Thirteenth and Second Division members had gathered to reform their defensive line. Eleventh Division Soul Reapers were forming up on the other side of the clearing, preparing to charge, but had hesitated with the appearance of Inkwell and Nocturn on the other side. Sweet Cider saw Silverstar with a dozen or so of her own Division’s troops, and upon seeing her they rushed over. Silverstar’s face was shadowed by a deep frown as he approached and gave a terse bow.

“Captain ma’am, we might have a’ problem.”

“What kind o’ problem?” she asked, her voice taut as a bullwhip.

“Troubleshoes hasn’t reported back. Told ‘im ta flash us a Kido signal once the flanking attack hit the barracks, but so far nothin’.” Silverstar huffed, mustache twitching, “Bumblin’ or not, it ain’t like ‘im ta take this long.”

Meanwhile Lieutenant Posey had emerged from among the Eleventh Division troops and taken a spot next to Hurricane. “Sir, aside from whatever is left at the barracks I can confirm these are the last of the rebels. Should I, um, give the order to attack?”

Hurricane rested his Zanpaktou on his shoulder, “Not yet. Let’s be gracious and give them one last chance to surrender.”

Sucking in a breath, he shouted across the clearing, “Inkwell, last chance! Throw down your weapons and the rest of you won’t be harmed!”

Inkwell glared at him with narrowed eyes, the wounded woman’s blood still seeping to stain the ground. Despite that she held herself tall and proud, chin upraised. A mimic of Celestia’s stance, Sweet Cider realized. That woman really did seem to imprint on her subordinates.

“I do not believe I or those who stand with me are prepared to surrender, Captain Hurricane, but we will gladly accept yours if you have the foresight to realize the error your actions.”

“I’m afraid I’ll have to refuse your generous offer,” Hurricane replied dryly. Inkwell nodded grimly at that, and turned her attention to her fellow Thirteenth Division members standing beside her.

“I told you to fall back to the barracks. I distinctly remember giving that order. What are all of you still doing here?”

“We couldn’t just leave you out here ma’am. Everyone wanted to wait for you.” replied one of the Soul Reapers, someone that Sweet Cider noticed looked barely out of the Academy, yet despite obvious fear was standing stalwart and ready to fight. Sweet Cider couldn’t help but admire their courage, if not their brainpower. There wasn’t a single Soul Reaper among the Thirteenth Division that wasn’t clearly battered, wounded, and tired from the fight. Yet they simply weren’t willing to give up.

Inkwell closed her eyes painfully, tears edging out as she shook her head at her comrades, “Fools. All of you.”

“Well, nothing for it now,” said Nocturn with a short shrug, glancing at the remaining Second Division Soul Reapers, “It looks as if we have no choice but to make a last stand. Dramatically appropriate, at least. If only I had a pen to try my hand at a haiku to capture the moment. Oh well.”

Hurricane chuckled darkly, and looked ready to attack. Sweet Cider held back a sigh, at least comforting her growlingly annoyed mood with the knowledge that this fight was all but finished.

However just as Hurricane was raising his blade to order the charge that would likely break the last of the Thirteenth and Second Divisions’ resistance, everyone on the field felt a sudden approaching set of potent spiritual pressures that flooded the battlefield. The momentary lull in the battle had likely cleared the air of conflicting reiatsu enough that these new spirit pressures could be clearly felt, or at least that’s what Sweet Cider assumed otherwise she wasn’t sure how she could have missed sensing these auras!

It was hard to tell exactly how many, but there was a whole group of them, and each reiatsu was incredibly strong. At least on par with Lieutenant’s level, if not stronger.

“What n’ tarnation?” she wondered aloud, while other Soul Reapers among the ranks muttered nervously.

Hurricane looked briefly confused, “Who could this be? They’re not Quincy, or Hollows. How did they get inside the Seireitei’s wards?”

“Whoever they are, here they come!” shouted Silverstar, pointing to the sky.

Sweet Cider had to blink a few times at the unusual sight that greeted her eyes. A blue skinned girl with what looked like wings of both metal and lighting soared through the sky beside an orange skinned girl whose arms and legs looked armored and projecting rocket thrusters. Each bore a passenger, both pink haired, one a soft yellow color and the other as pink as her neon head of puffy hair. The winged girl, whose hair Sweet Cider noticed was a neon spray of rainbow colors, dropped down with bolts of lightning arcing from her electric blue wings in a flashy display as she landed, carefully dropping off the yellow skinned girl. The other flying girl with the armored limbs just dropped the pink girl, who transformed mid-drop into a hammer of all things. Sweet Cider expected the hammer to smash into the ground with a huge impact, but instead it seemed to bounce like it was made of rubber and spun around until a fine pink mist flowed from it, taking shape into another girl. This girl could have been the other’s twin, if not for the dourly straight hair and purely mad gleam in her shining blue eyes. She caught the giant hammer just as the armored girl, who Sweet Cider was just now noticing also wore a stetson hat, landed with a impact hard enough to throw up a cloud of dirt that obscured her from view for a few seconds.

In the meantime more strangers showed up. One was a gray woman with bright blond hair and wearing a orange and black bodysuit that was very similar to the Second Division’s uniforms. Hurricane made a sharp, hissing noise when he saw her, causing Sweet Cider to glance at him for just a second, but soon her attention was arrested back towards the newcomers. Two of the group were dressed like Soul Reapers, and their reiatsu felt like it too. One was a green haired girl with dark gray skin, and Sweet Cider’s memory was tickled enough to think this was a member of Starswirl’s Division, but she couldn’t be sure. The other had a distinctive reddish orange and yellow streaked head of wavy hair, and light orange skin. Both her and the other Soul Reaper already had Zanpaktou out and at the ready, both obviously released to Shikai. The one with the staff ending with a ring blade seemed unremarkable, but Sweet Cider was curious about the other girl’s Zanpaktou. She’d never seen one that took the form of a sword and shield before.

The last member of the group was a pearl white girl with hair so well cared for that it immediately made Sweet Cider want to punch her. The girl was clad in an entirely too... too... froo-frooey dress, even if it was partially armored and blood red, Sweet Cider’s favorite color. This girl was armed with a crystal red rapier that looked more suitable for sewing than battle, but there was no denying that like all of her companions the girl radiated strong spirit energy.

Then the dust cleared from the girl who’d landed with the armored limbs and Sweet Cider got a good look at her.

A shock ran through her and Sweet Cider didn’t know why. Her brow broke out with sweat and she couldn’t understand what was causing it. Even her heartbeat started to speed up, as if in excitement. There was a feeling of strain behind her eyes, like her mind was suddenly trying to think of something and she couldn’t recall what.

The girl’s eyes were a brilliant shade of green, and her hair as yellow as fresh straw. For some reason Sweet Cider could smell the aroma of recently cut hay and fresh baked apple pie, so sharp and real she thought she was standing next to a farm. The laughter of a little girl danced around her ears for a second before fading away.

Before she could wonder what was happening, she then felt a massive surge of power from her Zanpaktou. It was like her blade was vibrating in her hand, energy pouring out in an invisible torrent. Not just energy, but emotion. Her Zanpaktou was giddy, and its eager intent flowed through the blade and into Sweet Cider, making her struggle to maintain her self control. She couldn’t guess at why, but her Zanpaktou was making its desires clear, and it wanted to fight that strange girl. She’d never felt her Zanpaktou feel so alive in her hand, almost as if the girl's very presence was sharpening her blade.

And, oddly, the girl was staring right back at her, her emerald eyes wide with... recognition?

“Captain?” Silverstar whispered, clearly worried, and waiting for orders.

Before she could respond Hurricane took the initiative and stepped forward, eyes like stormy cloud as he said, “It's been a very long time Ditzy Doo. What are you and this band of Ryoka doing in Seireitei?”

Ryoka? Sweet Cider thought about it for a moment, remembering the reports she’d half read about the situation in the living world and the city Celestia and Luna had been overseeing. Wait... so these girls were the ones in those reports!?

The girl with the light gray skin and blonde hair, Ditzy Doo, laughed and waved, “Hiya Hurricane you overblown windbag! How’s life? Oh, right, being a bully to everyone weaker than you. So, same old, same old. Posey, how do you put up with this blowhard?”

Posey just looked confused, “Um, well, he’s not all that bad, really, Lady Doo.”

“She’s an exile Lieutenant. You don’t need to giver her any title.” Hurricane said, leveling his Zanpaktou at the group of Ryoka, “And your even being here is a crime against Soul Society. In the name of the Gotei 13 I order your immediate surrender.”

Suddenly the girl with the flame-colored hair smirked and stepped forward, mimicking Hurricane’s motion by pointing her Zanpaktou back at him, all but oozing bravado. “Sorry buddy, not happening. We’re here for one reason and one reason only!”

Thick flames burst to life across the girl’s broadsword, making it look like a vaguely blade shaped shard of magma more than a sword.

“To save Celestia and Luna!”

Then with a single, hard swing, the girl unleashed a concentrated, flowing pillar of fire that turned the ground to char as it rushed straight at Captain Hurricane.

Episode 39: Facing the Hurricane

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Episode 39: Facing the Hurricane

Feeling personally violated was almost passe at this point, yet it never ceased to fill Adagio with a bubbling, boiling rage and seething hatred for the old Arrancar who subjected her to these humiliating experiments. She had barely floated an inch back into Grogar’s lab before he ordered her bolted onto an examination slab and had her under both literal and proverbial microscopes. Painful, probing needles the function of which Adagio could only guess at pierced her limbs, but worse than that there was a device that constantly hovered over her siren gem, emitting a pale green beam of energy that kept scanning the gem, producing a terrible resonating pain in her whole being each time, like having her teeth grated upon with a file.

Of course the old goat insisted on asking questions while he examined the results of his devices probing her on the sickly green glow of a monitor attached to the examination slab.

“So Torch’s little whelp recovered from her injuries, and has agreed to train you, starting this evening?”

“Th-that’s the idea,” she said sourly past clenched teeth, flinching as the pain intensified at his glaring look and she added, “...Lord Grogar.”

In truth she was somewhat surprised she’d managed to maintain her web of lies up until now. Ember had awoken from her injury induced slumber the previous night with little clear memory of the battle against the Quincy trainees, or Garble for that matter. That was as it should have been, given Adagio’s spellsong was meant to leave next to no clear memory within a manipulated mind. The key was ensuring Torch didn’t find that too suspicious or ask too many questions, and fortunately Adagio was able to spin things in her favor by offering the Quincy crosses she’d taken off of defeated trainees as “proof” of her and Ember’s exploits. As for the fight with Garble, well Ember was a hot headed sort, and it hadn’t been a stretch to convince either the tomboyish Arrancar girl or her giant of a father that Ember had gotten into a scuffle with Garble over kill-rights to the Quincy they’d found.

Garble, of course, protested and grumbled, insisting Adagio had used some kind of trickery, but without proof, and with Garble lacking any Quincy crosses of his own to show he and his companions had made any kills, the surly Arrancar had lacked much credit with Torch.

So Adagio was accepted into the horde, with the understanding she still had to “pretend” to be in Grogar’s service as a double-agent, where from Grogar’s perspective she was instead a double-agent against Torch, where in truth the only goal Adagio had was to learn the secret to evolving into an Arrancar so she might gain the power to kill Grogar. After that, well, she hadn’t planned that far ahead yet. The whole situation was a tad convoluted, but such schemes came naturally to Adagio. She’d been scheming her whole life, why should the afterlife be any different?

A particularly painful jolt from the device probing her gem made her almost scream, but Adagio managed through sheer will and pride to keep her mouth tightly shut in a teeth grinding sneer. Grogar paid her expression little mind as he looked intently at the data on his screen, and let out a dry, rasping laugh that made Adagio want to shudder all the way down to her soul.

“Ah, there it is. I see it now. The nature of your gem.” He turned his abhorrent gaze towards her, approaching her and running a bony finger across the ruby red surface of her gem. The touch, cold and dusty as that of a corpse’s, made Adagio want to vomit.

“It acts like a second soul, derived from and connected to your own. I had wondered why it only appeared after you transformed into a Hollow, but now I understand. Your soul was wounded prior to your transformation, and this gem was somehow damaged or perhaps even destroyed by another force before you tore your soul chain out. Rebirth into a Hollow created the regenerative force for the gem, this second soul, to reform from its shattered state and fill the void left by your normal soul’s Hollowfication. Now it acts as second well of power, filled by your consumption of souls just as your Hollow soul is.”

He ran a hand across her cheek, eliciting a shiver of disgust from her that only seemed to make him laugh more. “Now that I have a complete map of the reishi particles making up this gem and how it is connected to your soul, I can start designing a method of replicating it. With such a second well of power at my disposal, why, I could easily begin to make certain changes around Las Noches.”

“And what becomes of me, after these experiments are finished?” she asked, trying to keep her voice neutral as she spoke.

“Remain loyal and useful, and you’ll find me a generous master. You already understand the price of disloyalty.” Grogar’s menace turned to almost grandfatherly understanding at the blink of an eye, “You are a creature of betrayal, Adagio Dazzle, this I can smell on you as clear as the stench of death. However I also sense your ambition, your lust for power. These traits could continue to prove of use to me well beyond the research I’m doing on your body. I shall rise in power, do not doubt that. Whether you follow in my wake, or are drowned in the undertow of my passing, that is for you to decide, my dear. Now then...”

With an idle gesture of Grogar’s the bolts holding Adagio to the examination slab snapped open and the invasive needles withdrew from her flesh, leaving only small wounds that quickly clotted and closed.

“Go to your ‘ally’ and grasp what power you may from her. Becoming Arrancar will not be easy, but I am confident you’ll take to the task... eagerly. After all, you want to kill me, do you not?”

Adagio, who’d already been floating towards the lab’s exit, halted, and turned wary eyes towards Grogar. She was ready to fight, no matter the odds, right then and there, in order to survive. However Grogar just laughed, a dark and cracking noise like the rattle of broken bones on a crypt’s floor.

“Do you think I would care? You are but a newborn barely able to crawl, and you think yourself a threat to a full grown adult. No, Adagio, I do not care what you scheme. On the contrary, I eagerly await whatever you attempt. It will make the final breaking of your will all the sweeter. So go, learn the mysteries of the Arrancar. Transform yourself. Become stronger, and let your hatred of me grow with your power. In time, you will learn that no matter how you struggle, I will forever be your master.”

Adagio growled, deep and seething in her throat, and turned away from the laughing Espada. His cackles still echoed like hot wax in her hears long after she left the laboratory behind her.

----------

Unlike most hospitals with their sterile environments and cold hallways, the medical wing inside the Quincy Silbern fortress was a surprisingly warm and comfortable place. Well furnished, bathed in soft light from electric lanterns, and cozy in atmosphere, it’d be easy to slump into any of the many plush leather chairs or benches lining the hallways and drift off to sleep. The beds were even more conducive to this sleep inducing feeling, but Twilight found that at best she could only find a few fleeting, frightening hours of rest. What little sleep she’d gotten had been bloated with horrifying imagery, nightmares that clung at her mind like quicksand.

Each time she’d awoken, it’d been with a half choked scream, and it’d taken time for her racing heart to calm and to drift back into troubled slumber. Several times her tired mind had only let her half awake, the shadows of her hospital room seeming alive and ominous extensions of her nightmares. She'd also seen her mother and father at one point, hovering worriedly over her bed, but had fallen back to sleep before being able to say a word to them.

Now, when she awoke, feeling almost refreshed, she saw that while her parents were gone, she still wasn't alone.

“Easy there, Twily, it’s okay.” Shining Armor said, sitting by her beside and putting a calming pair of hands on her shoulders as she’d snapped awake, gasping. “I’m here. You’re safe.”

“Shining...? Oh, I’m... I’m alright,” she said, taking slow breaths to try to calm her racing heart. The last image in her mind from her dreams was of blood soaked trees, fire, and a pair of cold, malevolent eyes wreathed in blue wisps of magic. Her own eyes. Glancing at the window, seeing the darkness outside, she said, “What time is it?”

“Lateish. I just got done with debriefing the situation with His Majesty and Spitfire.” Shining Armor sighed heavily, looking more tired than Twilight had ever seen him. “What a mess.”

“How...” she struggled to find the words. After she and the other girls had been picked up outside the forest by arriving Quincy soldats they’d all been rushed to the Silbern and the medical wing to have their wounds tended to. Twilight hadn’t seen any of the other trainees since then, and had been put under anesthesia while her shoulder injury had been treated. The rest of the day she’d been here, so she had no idea what had happened since then. “How bad was it? How many... didn’t make it?”

Shining Armor looked hesitant to answer, his blue eyes, usually so open, turning hard and guarded. “Your friends all made it out and are recovering-”

“I know that, Shining. But how many other trainees-”

“Do you really want to know that Twilight?” he asked, dropping his usual nickname for her and his voice held nothing but brotherly concern, despite how rough it sounded. Gulping, she nodded, and he closed his eyes in a pained but resigned look.

“Official casualties are still being tallied, given some of the Hollows and Arrancar didn’t... leave much in terms of remains. Initial guesses put the count at nineteen dead, and over forty wounded, half of them in critical condition. More than half this generation’s crop of trainees.”

Twilight felt sick to her stomach. She hadn’t made an exact count, but a sharp memory and a head for numbers had her recalling many of the faces she’d seen at the Academy. There hadn’t been that many trainees there, and with at least nineteen dead, that was a hefty blow to the Quincy. Not that she thought of it in those terms. Her own mind pictured the faces she’d seen and wondered how many of them were among those dead. Acid bit at her gut as she said, “How could this happen? I thought this land was protected against attacks like this.”

Shining Armor’s eyes lit up with a heated flame, “They’re supposed to be, yes. An Arrancar Garganta portal shouldn’t be able to open up right on top of the Academy training grounds like that.”

“Then how...?”

“The present theory is that one of the new Espada has powers over Gargantas that we haven’t encountered before,” Shining Armor said, grimacing, “I shouldn’t be talking to you about this. His Majesty hasn’t authorized us to discuss whatever his plans are for retaliation.”

“Retaliation?” Twilight asked, eyes widening.

“Of course, Twily! What, did you think we were going to take this attack laying down!?” Shining Armor snapped, then seemed to catch himself and softened his tone, “Sorry. I... I’m just a little... freaked out. You were right in the middle of that fubar situation and I wasn’t...” He took a slow breath, wringing his hands together nervously, “I wasn’t there to protect you. Any of you. I’m the Bastion. My power is a gift from His Majesty to protect all Quincy, but I wasn’t there to stop this.”

His voice was strained with a fresh river of misery, and Twilight felt her heart clench for her brother as he hung his head.

“I should have been there.”

Twilight reached out, brushing some of his hair away from Shining Armor’s face and looking at him with kind sympathy. “Shining, you couldn’t have known. Nobody did, not even Sombra.”

He blinked at her, “You really do call him by his name. He joked about it, but I thought His Majesty was just jesting.”

Twilight just shrugged at this, “He doesn’t seem to mind. But I’m serious, Shining Armor. A sneak attack from an enemy using a new power, nobody could have done anything more than they did. I’m just...” she swallowed, “Just glad most of us are safe.”

He nodded, but then his eyes turned guarded again, even guilty looking. “So am I but there’s something we need to talk about. It’s a good thing you woke up now, instead of later, because I can get your side of the story first. Your teammates, they, well, some of them had some strange things to say. About you.”

“Huh?” Twilight blinked, and after a moment reached for the side table next to her bed to grab her glasses and put them on so she could look at Shining Armor more clearly. “What do you mean?”

“Two things. One, they said that during the fighting you spoke to a Hollow. And the Hollow seemed to know you.” Shining Armor frowned, “The other thing was that you went a little... strange, when destroying some other Hollows. That you partially resembled the odd form you took on when magic transformed you at the Friendship Games.”

For a moment her frantic mind wanted to find a set of lies to wash all that away, but Twilight couldn’t bring herself to lie to her brother. So with a deep breath she explained as best she could. “I don’t really know the Hollow that talked to me. At least not well. I think. She bought us time to flee, but I don’t know why. I only know that I think it was a girl my friends from Canterlot High knew. Adagio. She became a Hollow to save her sisters, at least that’s what Sunset told me. I wasn’t there when it happened.”

She’d felt plenty of sympathy for what had happened to Adagio, former foe or not. However Twilight wasn’t sure what to think of Hollow Adagio. Things had happened so fast it was hard to even be certain that Adagio had been there to help or not. Certainly Adagio’s appearance alongside that other female Arrancar had bought Twilight and the other trainees time to escape, but why had Adagio been with the Arrancar in the first place?

Shining Armor watched her quizzically for a moment before slowly leaning back in the white leather chair he’d been sitting in, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “I see. Its strange a Hollow, even one who might have known you in life, would have done anything to intentionally help you. Given the confusion of the battle it's possible any number of flukes could have occurred. Now, about the other matter...”

“I-” Twilight paused, licking her lips and trying very hard to control the clammy and cold fear rising in her chest, “I don’t know what I can tell you, Shining. W-when I saw all those dead people, and the Hollows were coming for us, I just lost control of myself.”

She hugged herself, suppressing a shudder. “I remember moving, but not thinking about any of it. I destroyed the Hollows without any conscious thought, but... but I remember laughing, and it was her laugh.”

“Hers?”

Twilight’s mouth felt dry and her hands shook slightly, but she took a deep breath and forced herself to keep talking, even if all she wanted to do was avoid this topic. But there was no point trying to do that. Shining Armor was not only her brother, and someone she still felt she could trust, but he represented the command structure of the military she’d already agreed to be a part of, and they deserved to know everything she did; even if that wasn’t very much yet.

“M-my friends and I named her ‘Midnight Sparkle’.” At his look she managed a half choked laugh, without much humor, but Shining Armor could always get a rise out of her. “Shut up, it fit... fits. I, well, I don’t think she’s gone.”

“You’re talking about the personality that came out when you absorbed all that magic.” Shining Armor’s expression held a sharp edge to it, but it was tempered by clear worry for her well being. “Mother and father won’t react well to this. They nearly had a conniption the first time it happened. If there’s reason to think this ‘Midnight’ is still in your head somewhere I’m not sure what His Majesty will want done about it.”

“I can answer that now, if you’d like.”

Twilight nearly flew out of her bed as Sombra himself just seemed to appear in the room, as if melding out of the shadows near the far corner by the door. Shining Armor was out of his chair and kneeling before the King in barely an eyeblink.

“Your Majesty, you honor us with a personal visit.” Shining Armor said, then glanced nervously at Twilight, “I was trying to learn the specifics of the battle’s events from my sister’s perspective, before too much rumor and gossip spread.”

“And I commend the effort in protecting your kin. Rumors do have a tedious habit of spreading, becoming difficult to stomp out. Much like roaches. Or Hollows.”

Sombra glided across the room to stand at the foot of Twilight’s bed, somehow seeming to become more solid and lifelike once he left the shadows and stood in the clear light shining down from the room’s lamps. He didn’t even cast a glance Shining Armor’s way, the King’s eyes fixed entirely upon Twilight, which made her shift uncomfortably on the bed.

“So you know about what happened.” she said, not making it a question and instead just stating it, and leaving her question as to what was going to happen to her an unspoken question, hanging precariously in the air. Sombra offered her a thin smile that might have almost been charming if it wasn’t also rather unsettling.

“I know that you have a power within you that is unique, and it helped you rescue the lives of your fellow trainees. Some might fear this power, and perhaps caution is not without merit, but I personally consider this power of yours more of a potential boon than a danger.”

Fear rose rapidly in Twilight and she all but shouted at him, “Boon!? You didn’t see what I nearly did when I let that power take me over! I was ripping holes in reality and would have kept going if Sunset and the others hadn’t stopped me! I’d say there’s far more danger than potential here!”

“Um, Twily, maybe you shouldn’t yell at His Majesty?” Shining Armor whispered, but Sombra simply raised a hand.

“It's alright, I prefer she speak her mind. Now, Twilight, let me ask you a question. When a scientific mind discovers something new, like say a new source of energy, how do they approach the discovery?”

The question caught her a bit off guard, and her fear took a back seat for a moment as just adjusted her glasses and said, “Well, they study it. Something like a new energy source would be a huge...” she gulped, “B-boon to mankind. It’d... It’d be the scientist's responsibility to study the energy and seek to understand how it could be harnessed for the good of humanity.”

Sombra’s smile turned warmer, “Precisely. You studied magic out of scientific curiosity, and yes you allowed matters to get too far out of hand, losing control of a power you didn’t yet understand. However this doesn’t mean that seeking to understand that power was wrong. And it doesn’t change the fact that, whether you fear it or not, that power is now a part of you.”

Shining Armor looked at Sombra nervously, “Your Majesty, might it be possible to remove this... magic, from Twilight? If it's dangerous to her and to those around her, shouldn’t that be our course?”

“Possible to remove it, perhaps. But I shall not condone such a waste unless I foresee no other option.” Sombra looked Twilight in the eyes, an arresting look that held her attention entirely. “Twilight Sparkle, I will not command you to do anything you truly do not desire, but I ask you to consider this; rather than fear the power inside you, seek to understand it. It may seem dark and terrible now, but if you shine a light of knowledge upon it, you might find this ‘Midnight’ is not a thing to fear, but something wondrous instead. If you wish it, I shall ensure you have the opportunity to fully study the power inside you, with all of your scientific talent and prowess backed by the best resources the Quincy can provide you.”

Twilight felt dizzy, shaking her head, “I... I don’t know. What about my training?”

“You will finish training, of course. However afterward I will allow you to form a research team of your choosing, with the specific purpose of studying and understanding the power of magic, both inside yourself, and from any exterior sources the Quincy discover. If you desire it.” He paused, raising an eyebrow. “Do you?”

The very idea felt overwhelming to Twilight, who put a hand to her forehead, closing her eyes as she tried to sort through her jumbled thoughts. She was terrified of Midnight Sparkle, and yet Sombra wanted her to head up some kind of research team to study that part of herself that could have destroyed the world!? Granted Twilight’s natural curiosity was piqued. She’d begun all of this, meeting Sunset and the others, all because she’d become curious about the mysterious energy known as magic. She was still curious about magic, but her fear of it was now almost as potent.

...Almost.

Gulping, she met Sombra’s eyes with an even gaze of her own. “I’ll do it.”

----------

Churning flames baked the ground to black ash as Sunset’s unleashed pillar of fire careened towards Captain Hurricane. Many Soul Reapers, from both sides of the conflict, shielded their eyes against the bright flames, others taking cautious steps back, while those near Hurricane used the speed of Flash Step to evade the fire’s destructive path.

Hurricane himself did not budge, facing down the oncoming pillar of blazing fire with eyes narrowing intensely. He thrust his left hand out, palm up, just as the flames reached him. The fire crashed into his hand, and the pillar undulated around it, like water breaking over a boulder. For a moment Sunset thought Hurricane had stopped the flames entirely, but soon enough the roaring embers surrounded the man in an explosion of heat.

“Whoa, did that do it?” Rainbow Dash asked, and Sunset shook her head.

“Not a chance it's that easy.”

Soon enough her words were proven true. The flames that had engulfed Hurricane were parted by a single sword strike from his Zanpaktou, dispersing the fire from him in a billowing blast of air. His hand was burned, and his body was bearing a few scorch marks, but Hurricane himself stood tall and menacing. He glanced briefly at his burned hand, flexing it, then grunted and looked at Sunset.

“Sunset Shimmer I presume? Captain Platinum spoke of you briefly to me. She seems to think you’re some sort of threat. I confess I don’t see it, if that was the best shot you had to offer.”

Sunset smiled in a manner that was more like baring fangs than a gesture of friendliness. “Don’t worry, that's just my way of introducing myself. When I hit you for real, you’ll know it.”

“I hope so. Be a shame for you to come all the way here to the Seireitei without having enough power to put up a worthy fight.” Hurricane said, “I am curious, however, before I crush you all for your impudent manner... you say you’re here to rescue the traitors. Does that mean you’re in league with them, or simply ignorant of their guilt?”

“Neither. Far as I’m concerned, Celestia and Luna couldn’t have done anything to deserve execution. Even if they had betrayed Soul Society for some reason, I have more reason to trust their judgment over Soul Society’s any day.”

Hurricane snorted at that, raising his Zanpaktou in a ready position before him. “So arrogant. I’ll enjoy re-educating you on the limits of your strength.”

At that moment Applejack started to walk forward, causing all eyes to turn towards her as the young lady marched towards Sweet Cider. Sunset only then realized that the mother and daughter, even if one of them didn’t know that fact yet, hadn’t taken their eyes off each other since she and the girls had arrived.

“AJ, hey!” Rainbow Dash called, “Don’t forget the plan!”

Ditzy Doo moved swiftly, vanishing and reappearing in an instant at Applejack’s side and putting out an arm to bar the girl’s path. “Remember what we agreed on. I’m tackling Sweet Cider.”

Applejack didn’t look at Ditzy, her eyes glued to Sweet Cider with an unblinking gaze that held such a shaking pot of emotions it was hard to tell just what she was feeling besides being overwhelmed. Her voice was frothing with uncertainty, eagerness, fear, anger, joy, just about every emotion under the sun.

“I know that. I just got ta say somethin’ first. Won’t take but a’ tick, so ya’ll can wait ten bleedin’ seconds. Now out of my way.”

Ditzy looked at her for a moment, then slowly moved her arm out of the way, allowing Applejack to continue walking forward. Sweet Cider, a moment later, started to walk out as well, moving to meet Applejack. Even Hurricane seemed too interested in this development to do more than watch, though he did keep one eye on Sunset and the others, never losing his ready stance.

There were a few wondering whispers among the watching Soul Reapers, but no one dared move or interfere as Sweet Cider, the famed Kenpachi, the youngest in Soul Society’s recorded history, met with a seemingly random human girl in the middle of a battlefield. Standing directly in front of each other it was suddenly almost too obvious, the family resemblance. Sweet Cider had a good head and a half of height over Applejack, but somehow Applejack managed to not look small at all next to the towering Captain.

Sweet Cider’s hand clenched tightly around her Zanpaktou, and Sunset could feel the potent spirit energy vibrating from the blade, leaving her fearful for her friend’s well being.

“Well, spit it out girl,” said Sweet Cider, “Ya got somethin’ ta say, say it an’ let’s git on with the fight.”

Applejack’s fists nearly cracked with how tightly they clenched, but she raised her right hand... and took off her stetson. She held it out to Sweet Cider, something close to tears shimmering in her eyes.

“Been holdin’ onta this fer ya, ma. Now I’m givin’ it back.”

The simple, blank look on Sweet Cider’s face could have been anything from shock to incomprehension, but she stared at the hat for a good ten seconds before saying, “That ain’t my hat, and I ain’t got a daughter.”

From the shaking of her shoulders and the twists in her expression every one of those words hit Applejack hard as any blow from a Zanpaktou. Slowly, almost too slowly, she put the stetson back on her head, shading her eyes, and the subsequent tears, with the brim of the hat.

“Yer wrong. Ya got a’ whole family that’s been missing you an’ pa somehin’ fierce fer too long. Ya just don’t remember. But that’s alright. I’m gonna beat the memory back inta yer stubborn skull, ma. I’m draggin’ ya back home, even if yer just a damn ghost, ‘cause you deserve ta know yer family, and that we’re doin’ alright.”

Sweet Cider’s hardened features twitched with something like eagerness, “If ya think ya got the muscle fer it, girl, then daugher or not, I’m game fer a brawl. Got ta warn ya though I ain’t in the habit o’ holdin’ back.”

Suddenly Ditzy Doo zipped behind Sweet Cider with such speed that practically no one on the battlefield could follow her movements as the woman cast out her left hand and a line of thin white cloth that wrapped around Sweet Cider’s right arm.

“Huh?” Sweet Cider barely had a chance to glance down before Ditzy Doo, with a powerful leap, took both herself and Sweet Cider soaring through the air, leaving behind a confused and blinking Applejack.

“Sorry, but reunion chit-chat’s over! Fighting time is now!” said Ditzy, hauling away a confused Sweet Cider at high speed, vanishing into the forest with the Tenth Division Captain.

Clover, rubbing at the back of her head, bluntly stated, “Uh, I think that’s our cue to attack. Just a tactical suggestion, as I don’t know how long Miss Doo can keep the Kenpachi busy, but taking down Captain Hurricane quickly seems prudent!”

Almost on the very tail of her words there was a breeze of air, and quite abruptly Hurricane had moved from his position from before and now stood directly in front of Clover, glaring down at her. Clover started to move, but Sunset could see it wouldn’t be fast enough, taken off guard as she was. Sunset moved swift and easy as a leaf billowing on the wind, and as Hurricane’s Zanpaktou flashed for Clover, Sunset appeared in the blade’s path and interposed her shield. There was a heavy impact, nearly knocking Sunset to one knee, but she held firm as Hurricane pressed down on her shield. He seemed surprised to see her there, and Sunset couldn’t stop a smirk from blossoming on her face.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t think I could follow your movements?”

Hurricane’s eyebrow twitched, eyes flashing with anger as he pushed hard on his Zanpaktou, with enough strength to force Sunset to skid backwards like she’d been hit by a wrecking ball. However despite the force of the blow, she held firm, keeping her balance and letting all the energy that just got put into her shield to transfer to her broadsword, making its enveloping flames burn even brighter.

Clover had hopped back a distance, giving Sunset a grateful nod, and placed Chishiki in front of her with the ring blade positioned to have Hurricane standing in the center of the circle from her perspective. Sunset could tell Clover was already starting to analyze Hurricane’s spirit energy by the way the ring blade on Chishki started to illuminate with a green glow. It’d probably take awhile to analyze someone as powerful as Hurricane, but if Sunset and the other girls could keep him busy long enough then they’d have a serious advantage over him.

Speaking of the other girls, all five of them burst into action, even Applejack who looked with frustration towards the direction Ditzy had hauled off Sweet Cider.

Rainbow Dash hit first, her speed advantage giving her the initiative over the other girls as she snapped from one spot to the next in a flash of lightning, her fists crackling with indigo bolts of power as she slammed a punch straight towards the side of Hurricane’s face. He seemed surprised by the young athlete's speed, eyes flicking towards her as he interposed his Zanpaktou to block Rainbow Dash’s fist. Sparks of blue electricity twisted about from the point of impact, the lightning shocking across Hurricane’s body. He grunted in pain but kept his stance as he adjusted his grip on his Zanpaktou and turned it around to cut horizontally at Rainbow Dash, the blow so fast that Sunset almost didn’t see it.

Rainbow Dash managed to contort her body like an expert gymnast, barely evading the blow but was forced to fly back from Hurricane’s follow up slash, which caused a blast of air like a heavy wind to cut across the battlefield.

Pinkamena slipped in behind Hurricane in the meantime, twirling the Pinkie hammer above her head and then smashing the ground about five feet away from the Captain. Hurricane made a undignified noise as the ground beneath his feet suddenly undulated like rubber, and bounced him into the air with a audible boing.

“Batter’s up applegirl!” shouted Pinkamena, and Pinkie also giggled, “Get him AJ!”

Applejack, who’d taken to the air with a blast of thruster energy from her boots, spun through the sky and intercepted the off balance Hurricane, somersaulting in mid-air to launch a rocket empowered heel kick at him. However, even taken by surprise, Hurricane reacted with incredibly swift reflexes. He was able to cross his arms in front of him and take the blow, being sent flying down to the ground, but he used the momentum of the hit to flip himself and land on his feet, cracking the ground with the landing but remaining standing.

Now Fluttershy and Rarity came at him, Rarity raising her left hand to unleash the torrent of blood from her flower bracelet while lightly and gracefully coming in at Hurricane head on with her rapier. Fluttershy matched Rarity’s quick and elegant movements step for step, and as Rarity made blindingly quick thrusts with her blade, Fluttershy made equally speedy jabs with her palms. Hurricane became of blur of evading Flash Steps, his image flickering as he turned aside from the seeking rapier and palm strikes. However he was forced back several steps and was clearly unable to make a counterattack. Meanwhile Rarity’s torrent of blood formed into a whirlpool that disgorged a cloud of needle-like crystal shards that then instantly rained down at Hurricane as Rarity and Fluttershy both leaped away out of the line of fire.

Hurricane spun to face the cloud of crystal needles, his Zanpaktou whirling in front of him to deflect many of them, however one blood red needle got through and managed to stab into his right shoulder, causing the Captain to grunt in pain even as he tore the needle away. Then suddenly a pink tentacle limb covered in sharp toothed mouths lashed his unprotected back, tearing scraps of his Captain’s coat and robes away as Pinkamena tittered happily.

“Yum, you taste like blue cotton candy! Pinkie, can we keep him?”

“He’s too grouchy Mena, now go for the knees!”

Pinkamena complied with a macabre grin, moving faster than Sunset had ever seen the oddball clone move, almost like a pink streak of mist, as she dashed around Hurricane’s right side and swung the Pinkie hammer in a wide arc. Hurricane turned aside, using his sword to try and block the hammer, but the hammer hit the sword with an odd ‘twang’ noise and made the whole blade react like a cartoonish xylophone, bouncing Hurricane back as the laws of physics were forced to take a back seat to Pinkie Pie's power.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Hurricane muttered, and Sunset took the opening to Flash Step into range, sweeping her blade up at his sword arm in an attempt to outright sever it. He was fast enough to block, but Sunset didn’t slow down, spinning into a fresh series of swift slashes. Hurricane reciprocated, taking his Zanpaktou in both hands to meet her blade to blade. For a few seconds Sunset and Hurricane were nothing more than dark blurs of motion and sparks, her sword and shield both working in tandem to parry and strike. Sunset could feel how much faster she’d become since her fight with Platinum. She had barely kept up with Platinum's movements back then, and now she was able to evenly match Hurricane, an opponent on a similar level.

Hurricane had a solid defense, however, and Sunset wasn’t able to get more than a few glancing blows through, taking several shallow cuts in turn. On the plus side, the exchange had charged up her shield even more, making her sword blaze intensely. It also served to distract Hurricane while Fluttershy got behind him.

Sensing the impending danger, Hurricane surprised Sunset with a swift kick that hit her shield and sent her flying back, and he spun to meet Fluttershy. The calm young girl kept her composure as he slashed at her, and the white cloth that was part of her new Fullbring moved, as if of its own volition, to block Hurricane’s slash. The blade struck the cloth as if the silken material were steel, and it wrapped around Hurricane’s sword to yank it aside as Fluttershy stepped into him and struck him full in the chest with one of her palms.

Sunset saw a wave of white light spread in a circle from the palm strike as Fluttershy commanded, “Cease fighting and drop your sword.”

Hurricane’s body seized up for a second, his eyes blinking in glazed shock. For a second his hand loosened its grip on his blade... but then there was a violent surge of reiatsu from within him and he snarled, smashing a knee into Fluttershy, who was sent skidding backwards with a pained gasp.

“Get your filthy Ryoka voice out of my head, wench!” Hurricane shouted, tearing his Zanpaktou free of the grip of Fluttershy’s cloth. To Fluttershy’s credit, she didn’t drop from the blow she’d taken, and immediately went into a defensive stance as Hurricane came at her, spinning away to evade his blade, which cut a nasty gouge in the earth where she’d just beeing standing.

“Don’t let up girls!” Sunset shouted, rushing in. She jumped and brought her sword down in a heavy overhand swing. Hurricane raised his sword to block, the two blades clashing with a ringing crash that echoed all across the field. Then Sunset unleashed her flames from the blade at point blank range. A concentrated firestorm in the shape of a focused, explosive blast hit Hurricane, and while his reiatsu fortified body took the blow, he was sent flying backwards and crashed hard into the ground, fifty yards away.

Sunset’s friends took her words to heart, and Rarity turned to Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow, dear, could you add a little of that electrical pizazz to this?” As she spoke she snapped her fingers and her whirlpool of blood flew above her, and then down from the swirl of red liquid a giant and ornately carved spear descended. It floated down to Rarity and Rainbow Dash, turning horizontal while Rainbow Dash gave the weapon and Rarity an eager grin.

“Heck yeah I can!” She reached out and touched the spear, and her electrical wings buzzed with power as streams of lightning poured into the crystal spear, making the whole thing hum with power. Rarity winked.

“Thank you darling. Now, go my pretty!” With a single gesture Rarity launched the freshly electrified spear straight at Hurricane.

Meanwhile Clover, with her Zanpaktou still analyzing Hurricane, took a moment to reverse her grip so the pointed end of Chishiki was aimed at the Captain. She began a full Kido chant, holding her fore and index finger of her left hand in front of her as she spoke.

“Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel,-”

As Clover chanted, Hurricane, the chest of his robes burned away by Sunset’s attack, growled and met Rarity’s incoming spear head on. He swung his sword straight into the spear’s path, electricity dancing over his body from the contact, but he managed to send the spear flying aside on raw strength alone, breaking it in half in the process. However by now Clover finished her chant.”

“-With light, divide into six! Bakudo Number Sixty One; Rikujokoro!” (Six Rods Prison of Light)

Bolts of gold energy split in six parts flew from the tip of Chishiki, and instantly slammed down around Hurricane, locking him in place. Sunset recognized the binding Kido as being the same one Captain Platinum had used on Applejack, back in the park. The Kido had completely immobilized Applejack, and given that Clover had just used the full chant in combination with her Zanpaktou to empower the Kido, she assumed it’d do the same with even someone as powerful as Hurricane.

Hurricane made it very clear just how much she and the rest of the girls were underestimating him.

”Howl across the endless sky; Tetsukaze!” (Iron Wind)

A nimbus of lime green spirit energy engulfed his body, and the six beams of gold binding Kido that Clover had summoned broke apart like glass under the sudden rising tide of immense reiatsu. His Zanpaktou became wrapped in a thick current of swirling white wind, and within seconds an explosion of typhoon level wind force blew out from Hurricane. The wind smashed branches from trees, making the whole forest sway like grass, and many of the watching Soul Reapers had to shield their faces or kneel down to grasp the ground in order to keep from being blown away.

Sunset had to dig her shield into the ground to keep herself rooted in place, and Pinkamena did something similar with the fingers of her free hand, which extended into claws and sunk into the ground, while the Pinkie hammer giggled.

“Wow, heehee, this wind tickles!”

“I don’t think tickling is what he’s got in mind, Pinkie,” said Rainbow Dash, using her wings to stabilize herself as she shielded her face with her arms.

The other girls had all managed to ground themselves as well, either with their weapons or in Applejack’s case by simply pushing her feet so hard against the ground in a wide stance that they sunk into the dirt and held her in place. The wind died down soon enough, although Hurricane’s potent spiritual pressure remained as an overbearing presence pushing down on the girls. However Sunset was glad to see that not just herself, but all of her friends could stand up to that spirit pressure, their own spirit energies rising to the challenge like bonfires remaining bright and flickering in a windstorm.

When the currents of air parted around Hurricane his Zanpaktou was transformed. No longer a curved katana, the weapon had become a massive halberd with a long, dark iron haft and a bearded axe blade. A long spear tip rose from the top of the halberd, its tip slightly curved to resemble something closer to a naginata than a traditional spear.

Hurricane slammed the butt of the halberd into the ground, creating another blast of wind, albeit not as an attack but more as a show of force as he cast a pleased but equally condemning gaze at Sunset and the girls.

“Landing a few scratches on me makes you bold enough to think you can win this match? I’ll admit you lot seem to be stronger than I would have given any of you credit for, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Against Tetsukaze’s mighty winds, you won’t stand for long!”

“Well, long winded, maybe, I don’t know about ‘mighty’.” Rarity said with a ladylike wrinkle of her nose, a small floating armory of crystalline red weaponry already forming around her in preparation for the next round. Sunset meanwhile cast a glance at Clover.

“How’s Chishiki doing? You got a fix on his power yet?”

Clover nodded, “Almost. Just another minute or two...”

It was just then, almost as if Clover’s words had sparked the move, that another Soul Reaper appeared, Flash Stepping in front of Hurricane and facing Sunset and her friends. She was a demure looking woman with dark yellow skin and a long, neon pink head of hair. She almost immediately made Sunset think of Fluttershy, even down to the nervous manner in which the woman tried to hide half of her face with her long bangs as she spoke to Hurricane in a soft tone.

“Captain sir, if, um, if I may, I think I should assist you.”

Hurricane grimaced, “Lieutenant Posey, you know I dislike having personal battles interrupted. Outnumbered as I may be, I am more than capable of dealing with this riff raff without your assistance.”

“My apologies sir, but I...” Posey visibly gulped, “I disagree. I recognize that woman with them as Third Seat Clover from the Twelfth Division. I’m familiar with her Zanpaktou’s ability to scan the powers of others and then negate them. She’s been scanning you since the battle began and is probably, um, close to being able to try to negate Testukaze’s powers.”

“Preposterous. Even if her Zanpaktou did have such an ability, my reiatsu is so much higher than her’s the ability would be ineffective.”

“Possibly yes, but be that as it may, you are my Captain and it is my duty to, um, you know, deal with things that might inconvenience you. S-so may I have permission to engage Third Seat Clover while you deal with the others, Captain sir?”

Hurricane made a textbook ‘harumph!’ that would have only been made perfect if he had a giant moustache to go with it, and said, “Oh fine then! You have permission, Lieutenant. Don’t dissapoint me.”

Posey’s smile at that was positively beaming, and Sunset got an uncomfortable impression this was some sort of odd case of hero worship going on under the hood, but she didn’t have time to consider the odd relationships between her opponents as Posey immediately went into action, Flash Stepping with remarkable speed straight towards Clover. Sunset moved to intercept, but Clover threw up a hand, yelling, “Don’t. I’ve got her! Just focus on Hurricane and I’ll come help once I’ve defeated her!”

Then Posey, who’d drawn her own Zanpaktou, consisting of a slightly shorter katana blade and a teardrop shaped hilt, was right on top of Clover and the two Soul Reapers both clashed their Zanpaktou in an instant of sparks, followed immediately both both vanishing from sight as they Flash Stepped away, locked in their own combat.

That left Sunset and her immediate group of human friends to face Hurricane’s might as he brought his newly released Tetsukaze to bear, slashing it at them in a horizontal arc that unleashed a crescent shaped pressure wave of cutting air that careened right for them.

----------

A single strike of Sweet Cider’s sword was enough to sever the trunks of more than a dozen trees that crashed around in a cacophony. Her eyes darted left and right, tracking the barest flicker of movement that was her foe. She didn’t know who this ‘Ditzy Doo’ really was, but Hurricane had known her, and called her an exile. A former Soul Reaper Captain, then? She knew there’d been a couple of those that had gone rogue over the years. But what was she doing back here now, with those Ryoka girls!? This was going to throw everything out of whack! The chaos these nutjobs could cause would make it all but impossible to get things to quiet down so she could figure out who set up Celestia and Luna! Now the conspirators, if there really were conspirators, would have all the cover they needed to pull whatever shenanigans they were up to!

“Ya chose a bad time ta show up here!” Sweet Cider barked, tracking Ditzy’s movements and timing a backhanded slash where she felt sure the woman would be. Ditzy’s insane agility and swiftness saved her once more, if just barely as her wisp-like gray form narrowly bent out of the way of the slash, which in turn took out another chunk of forest. Ditzy’s giggling voice echoed back to Sweet Cider, irritating her more.

“That’s me, the Goddess of Bad Timing. But hey, I’m not the one who planned this. It was those sweet human girls who were so hot to come here and rescue Tia and Lulu from Soul Society’s cockemamy laws. And what, no reaction to the revelation one of them is your flesh and blood?”

“Don’t try ta rile me up. Ya ain’t gonna like the results!” Sweet Cider muttered dangerously, closing her eyes and focusing all of her senses upon Ditzy’s bouncy reiatsu, which was moving all around her in a hazy blur. Still, Sweet Cider could pick out the general current of those movements, and felt it when Ditzy switched tracks and went in for a blow at her back. Sweet Cider waited until the very last possible second to Flash Step aside from the blow, Ditzy’s fist hitting only air. The look of mild surprise on Ditzy’s face was highly satisfying as Sweet Cider landed a heavy, heel-first boot to the other woman’s ribs and sent Ditzy’s flying like a ping pong ball.

“An’ I ain’t that girl’s ma, so ya can stop flappin’ yer lips ‘bout it!”

Having carved a furrow in the ground with her bouncing body, Ditzy proved herself incredibly durable by flipping back to her feet, stretching and rubbing at her bruised side with a pitying look on her face as she turned her golden, walled eyes towards Sweet Cider.

“You sound real sure about that, but c’mon, even you can’t be so hard headed to not see the resemblance.”

Sweet Cider hesitated for a second, but then shook her head, pushing down the strange, empty feeling in her gut that seemed to long for something she didn’t have a name for, and the eager buzz in her Zanpaktou that seemed to recognize the young blonde girl from before and wanted to clash with her.

“Resemblances don’t mean a’ dang thing. Maybe the girl honestly has the notion stuck in her head that I’m her ma, but that don’t make it so. An’ even if she was, this sure as shootin’ snakes n’ the field ain’t the place fer her ta stick her nose into! This here’s Soul Society business, and it ain’t got nothin’ ta do with them Ryoka! Bottom line is that none o’ ya’ll shoulda come here, an’ daughter or not, I’m gonna smack sense into that fool girl’s head an’ send her and her pals packin’ back ta the living world ‘fore they make a bigger mess o’ things than they already have!”

It really was the only way. If she didn’t defeat those girls herself, then any of the other Captains might simply execute them on the spot for being intruders in the Seireitei. Hurricane certainly would, and so would Thunderhooves, Blueblood, or Platinum. Softer hearted types like Cheese Sandwich or Amore might give them a pass, and Zecora wouldn’t hurt a fly if she didn’t have to, but others like Daring Doo or Starswirl were wildcards. Regardless, the best way to ensure those idiot girls survived their stupidity was to defeat the quickly and toss their unconscious butts right back through a Senkaimon gate back to the realm of the living.

Of course she had to deal with Ditzy Doo first.

“If you think it will be that easy to stop those young ladies then you weren’t paying very close attention to them.” said Ditzy, cracking her knuckles. “Not that I plan to give you the chance to try.”

If it was even possible, Ditzy moved faster than before, seeming to appear in a score of places at once, creating the illusion of having surrounded Sweet Cider. She recognized this kind of effect. Some high speed techniques, especially those who were masters of the Flash Step, could make ‘speed clones’, essentially being in multiple spots simultaneously through sheer use of raw speed. It was faster than what Sweet Cider could easily follow, but she wasn’t concerned.

She was excited.

As Ditzy began her assault, individual speed clones rushing past Sweet Cider and launch powerful kicks and punches that knocked Sweet Cider one way or another with rocking blows, the Captain of the Tenth Division started to grin. Her heartbeat pulsed strongly and she licked her lips, letting a familiar old feeling creep over her. The battlelust. The hot, pounding joy of the fight. Her very first memories of Soul Society was of fighting. She’d wandered the most lawless districts of the Runkongai, only barely knowing her name, and had gotten into countless fights with the various scum who dwelled in such places. It had only been a matter of time before the Soul Reapers found her, with her unusually high spirit energy, and extended the offer to join them. She’d refused at first, but after that old codger Scorpan had asked her to duel him, she’d changed her mind. Mostly because he showed her that beating up useless thugs was a poor, poor substitute for finding a real challenge in a powerful foe.

She’d earned her title of Kenpachi by pursuing that longing for battle, although she’d never told anyone the reasons why she enjoyed it. The thing of it was, when she found a strong opponent, someone who could actually stand up to her power for any length of time... it meant she could finally unleash the dark, simmering rage that lay slumbering deep inside her, and had always been there for as long as she could remember from those early days in the Rukongai.

So as she took blow after blow from Ditzy’s blindingly quick attacks, Sweet Cider started to laugh, and let the hot anger she usually strove to keep in check bubble up like pressure from a volcano. Her spirit energy rose with it, the reiatsu surrounding her in a burning bronze aura of power, and she slammed her Zanpaktou point-first into the ground.

The resulting shockwave created a localized earthquake and indented the ground into a crater for several dozen yards around her, breaking apart the ground in uneven chunks. Ditzy Doo’s speed was suddenly hampered by the uneven footing, exposing the woman amid her high speed movements for just an instant. In that instant Sweet Cider took her Zanpaktou in both hands and cleaved upward in a slashing arc that made the air waver as if from heat, but it was simply air pressure from her slash cleaving apart trees for several football fields worth of distance.

Blood soared from a deep wound that cut along Ditzy’s side, only caught by the barest edge of Sweet Cider’s blow, but still knocked back like a rag doll.

“Is that all!?” Sweet Cider growled in a husky voice, “Now that ya got me this pissed off ya better give me somethin’ worth the trouble!”

She never understood what the origins of this anger was. It was an ever present thing for Sweet Cider. She usually struggled daily to keep it in check, and it never ceased to feel good to let it out, even a little. Most people pegged her for surly and difficult, and this was true, but the reason was because she always had to restrain herself from giving in to this rage, always there, pushing her. But for now, against Ditzy, she cut loose.

She charged Ditzy, every footfall breaking apart more of the ground beneath her as her spirit energy and anger seemed to synergize with one another. Her Zanpaktou felt like a hot iron in her hand, its own energy buzzing in equal amounts of anger and excitement. Sweet Cider reached Ditzy, who was only just starting to get up from being knocked away, and slammed her sword down towards the other woman.

Only to find the sword strike blocked, the force of the blow blasting away foliage and loose rocks around the two women. Ditzy’s arm was what had made the block, and was surrounded by a swirling encasement of white spirit energy. At the same time Ditzy’s other hand went to her face, almost like she was grasping at some invisible object.

“Is that all?” Ditzy asked, her voice calm and steady as her own body became enshrouded with a red aura and she pushed up against Sweet Cider’s blade, pushing it back as she got to her feet.

With a single swiping motion with her other hand, Ditzy brought down a bone white mask across her face, a mask like that of a feline Hollow. Her eyes turned black upon yellow, and her voice took on a distorted, unnatural tone as Sweet Cider felt Ditzy’s spirit energy turn heavy with the distinct feel of a Hollow’s.

“That’s my line!”

Pushing Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou aside, Ditzy jumped up to Sweet Cider’s head height, and decked the Captain square in the face with a punch strong enough to sound like thunder.

----------

Word of the battle taking place within the forest surrounding the Thirteenth Division headquarters spread swiftly as reports from both Eleventh and Tenth Division runners were brought to the other Divisions and the Gotei 13’s central headquarters. Within minutes Captain Commander Scorpan was informed of not only the resistance of the Thirteenth and Second Division, but of the presence of a small group of powerful Ryoka who had invaded the Seireitei and sided with the rebels.

And as much as it pained the old man, his duty to the law was clear, and with civil war facing the Gotei 13, decisive action had to be taken to bring order as quickly as possible.

So the alarm was sounded, gongs ringing like war drums through every corner of the Seireitei. Orders were dispatched to every Division Captain not already engaged in battle, with the follow, simple orders:

”Mobilize all available forces. Full wartime use of all Kido and Zanpaktou powers is authorized. Detain all rebellious elements and invading Ryoka, alive and captured if possible, but lethal force is authorized.”

And so one by one, the remaining Captains of the Gotei 13 began to move. Some, such as Cheese Sandwich, kept his preparations simple, fortifying his own barracks and sending out scouts. Others like Thunderhooves took on a stoic, dutiful mein as he ordered his Division to prepare reinforcements for the battle already in progress.

Captain Platinum, with a thin, satisfied smile lighting her face upon hearing of the presence of the Ryoka, simply ordered her Lieutenant Fancy Pants to attend her, and left towards the battlefield with just the two of them alone.

And from the Fourth Division barracks... an ominous silence.

Meanwhile the sounding of the alarm gongs echoed like haunting moans, carried through the air all the way to the tall, shining white towers of the Repentance Cells, the prison towers overlooking the Sokyoku Hill that jutted from the side of the massive fortress plateau. Celestia flinched at the sound of the alarms, her gaze out of her cell’s one, thin slit of a window shifting to see if she could see anything amiss from her limited vantage.

She couldn’t see anything, but if she stretched her spiritual senses to the limit she thought she could detect the barest hint of the conflicting reiatsu from the far off battle. The feeling, along with the alarms, left her feeling cold fear and deep, churning worry.

They came. It couldn’t be anyone else. Those foolish, brave girls actually came.

The sentiment was warming, but the implications were horrifying. With all the Gotei 13 mobilizing for all out war, she couldn’t imagine those young women standing much of a chance. Even if they cooperated fully with her own Division, it wouldn’t be enough. It only redoubled Celestia’s resolve and she cast a glance around her.

Repentance Cells were among the most secure rooms in the fortress. There was no need for guards, because it was believed that escape was essentially impossible from a room that had wards designed to suppress spirit energy and was made of reinforced walls that wouldn’t break even under the force of high level Kido. Celestia was alone in a circular, featureless chamber, save for the massive red stone doors leading in, and the single small window looking out. She knew Luna was in the next tower over, and they two could even speak to each other without having to shout.

“Luna, you know what this means.” Celestia said gravely. Soon enough she heard her sister’s voice, filled with equal parts anger and concern.

“I can’t believe they were crazy enough to try coming for us. They’re going to get slaughtered!”

“Faith, sister. Discord would not have allowed them to try if he didn’t think they had a chance of succeeding.”

Luna’s voice was soaked with sarcasm, “I do not find that particularly encouraging, Tia. I trust Discord as much as I trust Central 46 at this point.”

“Regardless, we can do nothing to change what has happened. They have come here by their own free will, and will face what challenges come their way with the strength of that resolve. In the meantime, I think I am getting quite tired of our present accommodations. What say you to a daring escape?”

“Oh, I don’t know, and here I was becoming so comfortable with the idea of allowing myself to be executed.” Luna replied dryly. After a pause she added, “Did you have a plan?”

“Don’t I always?”

“Yes, and if memory serves they only work about half the time, and that’s me being generous. Perhaps I should come up with the plan this time?”

“And what would your plan be, Lulu?”

“...Jump the guards when they open our cell doors and make a run for it?”

“And this is why I do the plans. Relax little sister, I didn’t walk into this situation without making preparations in case things became this dire.” Celestia said, examining her cell’s window more closely. It was too thin to fit more than her arm through, but that would be enough.

“Alright, I’ll bite, what’s your ‘brilliant’ plan this time?” Luna asked, and after a suspicious pause added, “This isn’t going to involve another song and dance number is it? Because I am not wearing that dress again!”

“Aww, but you looked so cute in it, Lulu!” Celestia laughed, then sighed, “Sadly I didn’t hide away any dresses this time around. Or any convenient explosives. Our captors were rather thorough in removing everything from us before putting us in these reiatsu suppressing cells.”

“Yes, everything but our undergarments, before sticking us in these drab white robes.” Luna said, referring to the plain and simple white robes that they, as prisoners, had been made to wear. Luna was right, the only thing they’d been allowed to keep were their underwear, which of course had been exactly what Celestia had been counting on.

“Indeed sister. Tell me, do you remember that trick Discord taught us? About how to make ward passes?”

“Vaguely. Didn’t he carve them into tacky little wooden badges with a skull motif? But, yes, I remember. We used to use the to sneak in and out of the Academy grounds after curfew. We’d be up until dawn screwing around the Rukongai with him and Ditzy...” a sad note entered Luna’s tone, “I miss those days. They were so much simpler.”

“Yes, well, I never forgot how to make those passes, and attune them to any ward I wanted. Including the one’s on these cells. They haven’t changed the attunement of these wards in centuries.” Celestia said as she reached into her robes and carefully slipped off her underwear. “Also, funny thing, you can turn any object into a ward pass, including undergarments.”

After a brief, shocked pause, Luna said, “You’ve got to be joking.”

“Not at all. Here, catch!” Celestia said as she put her arm through the window, panties twirling on one finger, and knowing her sister’s reflexes were even better than hers, gave them a toss. A moment later she heard Luna catch the pair, and made a groaning noise.

“Ugh, really Tia!? And why are they black lace!?”

“Oh shut up, yours are red of all colors.”

“T-t-they complement my complexion!” Luna cried, and Celestia giggled at hearing the glowing blush in her sister’s tone.

After a moment Luna joined the laughter, but it soon died out as the seriousness of their situation pressed in, and Luna asked, “Alright, so what am I supposed to do with these? Even if they bypass the cell wards that doesn’t mean I can force open the door or crawl out of this window any easier.”

“No, but what you can do is hold onto those until the guards do come and open the door for our execution. With that ward pass you also bypass the reiatsu suppression of your cell. Luna, you’re faster than I am, possess superior unarmed combat skills, and are a master of stealth.You have a better chance of defeating the guards in combat than I do, and then evading recapture after escaping your cell. There’s no doubt they’ll have at least one of our fellow Captains present to escort us, so it won’t be easy... but I’m relying on you to get away and help those girls in any way you can.”

There was a heavy silence for a long minute, then Luna’s grave voice said, “Even now you’d rather be the one to put yourself at risk. Damn you, Tia, do you expect me to abandon you just like that?”

Celestia laughed, although it was a short and strained sound, “Of course not. I expect you to go find those courageous young ladies and then come back with them to rescue my butt! I’m far too young and gorgeous to be executed.”

“Hmph, but then again if I wait a day or two after escaping I won’t have to listen to anymore of your singing in the shower,” Luna mused.

“Lulu!”

“Or fight over the last slice of cake. That would be nice.”

“That was one time, over a century ago, and I apologize for it!”

“I suppose you did. Alright, it's not as if I have a better idea, although I’ll point out this is basically my plan of jumping the guards, just made more likely to work because you had the foresight to prepare this ward pass.... ugh... on your panties. Seriously, Tia, you have a smutty mind. Your students would have their heads spin if they knew you like I do.”

Celestia smiled in wry amusement, “It's all part of my carefully constructed image of wise mystique.”

“Suuuure,” replied Luna with a thick helping of snark, and the two sisters shared a final laugh before the conversation petered out. There wasn’t much more to say or do at that point. They couldn’t do anything until the time for their execution came and Luna had her shot at breaking free, and possibly helping Sunset and the other girls to put an end to this madness that had overtaken Soul Society.

All Celestia could do now was wait.

Author's Notes:

Celestia always has a plan. They're not necessarily always good plans, but she's always got them. Meanwhile Sunset and the girls are about to get to the real test of their newfound strength against a Soul Reaper Captain who's no longer going to hold back and is done warming up. As for Ditzy and Sweet Cider? Suffice to say the Thirteenth Division's forested area is going to need some reforesting by the time the fight's done. Oh, and Clover gets a one on one fight with Posey? Well, almost... Silverstar is still out there somewhere, but then again so are Inkwell and Nocturn, so we might see some more of them soon, but next chapter were largely focus on girls versus Captain Hurricane.

Thank you all for reading, and hope you folks continue to enjoy the story. As always I welcome all comments, critiques, and questions (and if I forget to answer any direction questions, feel free to smack me upside the head with a PM. I'm a easily distracted man who forgets where he is half the time if he sees a shiny object.) 'Till next time!

Episode 40: The True Power of Zanpaktou

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Episode 40: A Zanpaktou’s True Power

Instinctively Sunset thrust her shield in front of her and leaped forward to face the incoming crescent of slicing wind, both to meet the challenge of the attack and to protect her friends from the onrushing menace. Even bracing for the blow, Sunset was unprepared for the sheer force behind the cutting pressure wave of air that collided with Hokori’s shield.

None of Hurricane’s physical blows came close to the impact of that deadly wind, and though she dug her heels into the dirt and threw her shoulder into it, she was still pushed back and nearly knocked off her feet. The wind howled like a mad windigo, slicing around Sunset’s shield and blasting past her like twin jet streams. Rarity made a gesture with the dainty flick of her wrist to conjure a flood of blood from her still active whirlpool to form a protective crystal dome around herself, Fluttershy, and Applejack, who were the ones standing closest to her. Rainbow Dash took to the air to avoid the slicing winds, while Pinkamena grabbed onto the other girl with one arm morphed into a tendril, getting hauled up into the sky alongside Rainbow Dash.

If Sunset felt any relief at all that they’d weathered that first blow relatively unscathed, her relief was short lived. Before she could even blink, Hurricane had jumped forward with a leaping Flash Step that put him at equal height to Rainbow Dash and Pinkamena, the halberd form of Tetsukaze already swirling with a sheath of white wind force. Rainbow Dash barely had time to raise her arms in defense before the halberd slammed forward in an overhead arc that unleashed a torrent of crushing air pressure right atop of the girls.

Rainbow Dash and Pinkamena both were sent catapulting straight into the ground, followed by the blast of wind exploding in a spherical torrent that cracked Rarity’s crystal dome, and caused Sunset to get knocked around like a leaf in a storm. She bounced along the ground for a few painful, jarring impacts before she dug Horkori’s blade into the ground to halt her momentum. Looking up she tried to spot Hurricane, but he’d already moved, hitting the ground behind Rarity’s protective crystal barrier. With a self-satisfied smirk Hurricane swung Tetsukaze into the dome, shattering the crystal into dozens of smaller shards. Before those shards were even done hitting the ground, Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack rushed out, all intent on retaliation.

With a smooth motion of her hand over the blade Rarity transformed her rapier into a curved scimitar and flipped into a high jump over Hurricane’s head, making a backhanded slash towards his neck. At the same instant Applejack went straight for Hurricane’s gut with an uppercut boosted with gold energy blasting from her elbow, while Fluttershy slipped around to Hurricane’s exposed side, one palm flashing out like a striking scorpion’s stinger. With three attacks coming at him all from different directions at the same time, hedging him in so dodging would’ve been near impossible, it didn’t seem like Hurricane could defend against them all. He managed to catch the girl’s by surprise when with a single twirl of the transformed Tetsukaze there was a metallic click and the halberd separated into three sections. Each length of the Zanpaktou was now connected by a chain that seemed to defy the laws of physics as both the part attached to the axe head and the part connected to the end of the spear extended and twisted around on streams of wind. The axe blade blocked Rarity’s crystal scimitar, while the butt end of the halberd knocked away Fluttershy’s palm strike, leaving Hurricane to use the center section to catch Applejack’s punch and halt it in it’s tracks.

While the three girls were still recovering their wits from that surprise, Hurricane spun the three-section halberd above his head, the weapon generating a twisting maelstrom of air that in mere seconds bloomed into a full blown tornado. A small tornado, true, but with enough wind force to fling Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack aside like a trio of toys kicked by an angry child. Sunset, not wasting a moment, flung herself forward with the speed of a Flash Step to catch Fluttershy before the girl ended up careening into a tree. She was relieved to see that Rainbow Dash managed to do the same for Rarity, while Pinkamena whipped one of her taffy-like stretching arms to catch Applejack and help her land without harm.

The three sections of Hurricane’s halberd snapped back together, but he continued to spin the halberd above his head with an almost casual and lazy air as he gave the girls a taunting look.

“Am I making this too difficult, Ryoka? Shall I perhaps tie an arm behind my back, or restrict myself to the use of one foot?”

Lightning cracked with fury around Rainbow Dash’s wings, making her normally magenta eyes flare with indigo light as she rose into the air. “Oh buddy are you just begging for royal-grade butt kicking!”

"Talkin’ my language there Dash!” Applejack agreed, a flare of gold energy engulfing her gauntlets and armored boots.

Sunset was in full agreement as well, but while she was burning with a eager need to put the smack down on Hurricane, her brain wasn’t so drenched in adrenaline that she couldn’t use it. It was clear that with the release of his Zanpaktou’s Shikai that Hurricane was going to be able to match them easily in terms of raw power. If they wanted to win, she and the girls needed to out think this blowhard.

“Dash, AJ, hold up, we need to figure out a-”

With twin warcries Applejack and Rainbow Dash both charged straight at Hurricane, leaving Sunset to stand there with an exasperated look on her face as she finished her sentence with a dry, deadpan “-plan.”

Rainbow Dash led her charge with blasts of lightning lancing from her hands, to which Hurricane responded with a sweep of his halberd to create a wall of wind that split apart the arcs of lightning as if they’d hit a solid barrier. Sunset was for a second confused by this, as mere air shouldn’t have been able to stop electricity from conducting through it, but a moment later she realized that all of the wind Hurricane was conjuring had to be laced with his spirit energy. That was what was disrupting Rainbow Dash’s lightning. But if that spirit energy could be weakened, then that wind would function exactly like natural air.

While Applejack hit the barrier of wind like a charging rhinoceros, and Rainbow Dash started flying around Hurricane and hurling spearing shafts of lightning down at him, Sunset turned to Fluttershy.

“If I get you close, can you use your power to weaken his reiatsu?”

Fluttershy looked pensive but managed a calm nod, “Yes, and you don’t have to get me close. I’ve already touched him once.” Her third eye pulsed with brilliant blue light, and Sunset could see a small, ethereally thin string of light connecting the eye to Hurricane himself. “I have a pathway to his soul. It's not strong enough to force him to surrender, but I can weaken him, a little. I haven't tried yet because, um, I didn’t want him to realize I had the connection until I could put it to good use.”

Made sense to Sunset. The moment Hurricane knew Fluttershy had established some sort of connection that’d let her affect him at a distance, she’d become his number one target. Best to hold onto that card until playing it would make a difference.

“Do it.” said Sunset, “Just wait until I hit him with Hokori first, then put your all into weakening his reiatsu.”

Fluttershy gave Sunset a trusting nod, “I can do that.”

“Great. Now, Rarity, Pinkie, I need you two to run interference.” Sunset said, pointing at Hurricane with her sword, “Just get his attention so I can tell AJ and Dash the plan while he’s distracted.”

“Leave it to us, darling!” Rarity said with a wink, while Pinkamena licked her lips, saliva dripping from her teeth.

“I’m gonna do more than just distract that meaty morsel.”

Rarity shivered slightly, “Do try to control yourself, will you? Now, once more into the breach, as it were.”

As Rarity and Pinkamena rushed into action Hurricane switched to the offensive as well, turning with a powerful arcing slash with his halberd that sent a cleaving blade of air up at Rainbow Dash, then finishing the turn with a strong downward slash slamming right for Applejack. In a cobalt blaze of speed Rainbow Dash evaded the cutting air, and Sunset saw the arc of sharp air pressure continue on to slice through a distant cloud, parting it cleanly. Applejack crossed her gauntlet clad arms and took Tetsukaze head on, the halberd blade smashing into the gauntlets with an unleashed blast of air that forced Applejack down to one knee.

He deftly twisted the halberd once more, this time just detaching the end section and flipped the iron shaft around to catch Applejack with a blow right under her chin, knocking her onto her back and skidding along the ground with a pained grunt. Rarity and Pinkamena ran past Applejack while Sunset appeared next to the farm girl, kneeling down briefly.

“AJ, me and Fluttershy are going to make an opening.” Sunset whispered, “Hang back until I use Hokori on him. That’ll be the signal.”

Applejack, who was rubbing her chin as she sat up, spat and said, “Long as ya don’t take ferever.”

By now Rarity and Pinkamena had split off to either side of Hurricane. With a gesture of her blade Rarity caused a torrent of what looked like crystalline vines to fly out of her whirlpool of blood, which now stayed flying close to her side like a cape. The vines wrapped around Hurricane’s right arm and leg swiftly, snatching his attention while Pinkamena came in at his other side.

“Batter up!” shouted Pinkie’s voice from the hammer while Pinkamena wrapped her arms around the Pinkie hammer and twisted them up like two rubber bands, until she let her arms spin out, twirling the hammer like a top to smash towards Hurricane. Since his right arm, which held Tetsukaze, was wrapped up for the moment, Hurricane swung his free hand around to block the hammerblow.

“What childishness is this!?” Hurricane growled as the second he blocked the hammer, it seemed to explode with a blast of gooey cake batter and frosting that coated him in sugary goodness. Pinkie’s voice giggled manically from the hammer.

“Get it!? Batter up? Because it's cake-”

“He gets it Pinkie!” shouted Pinkamena as Hurricane roared in less than amused rage and with raw strength alone tore his arms free of Rarity’s crystal vines and then swung his halberd around with such force that the air screamed. Pinkamena barely pulled the hammer back in time to block the blow, but there was so much force behind it that she was literally sent flying skyward. She was only spared a painful fall by morphing one of her arms into a long reaching tendril that wrapped around a tree to slow her down. She still hit the ground hard, but not bone crushingly so.

Hurricane turned towards Rarity, pointing the spear tip of the halberd at her, his face a stony mask of death. Wind force swirled around him, removing the cake batter that’d coated him as the wind coalesced around the tip of his halberd’s spear in the form of a concentrated sphere of air. Rarity, seeming to sense the extreme and immediate danger of the incoming attack, made a harsh downward gesture that caused a flood of blood from her whirlpool to drench the ground in front of her and sprout multiple meter thick barriers of red crystal between her and Hurricane.

”Chiyari-Suriyoku!” (Thousand Spears Thrust)

Upon Hurricane’s intoning word, the gathered sphere of wind instantly unleashed its concentrated force in a swirling white blast of wind with the pointed and thin shape of a spear. The blast tore through Rarity’s crystal barriers like a high caliber sniper round through concrete blocks. Rarity didn’t have time to dodge, so instead the blood from her whirlpool washed over her like a cocoon, solidifying into a thick layer of crystal at the last second to try and absorb the attack. The spear of wind hit her full force, shattering the cocoon of crystal, and sending Rarity staggering backwards and clutching at her stomach, where the main force of the blow had hit.

“T-that was distinctly unpleasant,” Rarity murmured, teetering, nearly falling over and only catching herself at the last second. With a cough a bit of blood splattered from her lips, which Rarity wiped away with a pained wince.

Hurricane raised an eyebrow, voice holding a tiny note of respect. “Impressive you still stand after that. I’ve felled over a dozen Gillian-class Hollows at once with that technique. If I wasn’t so pissed off I might actually commend you. As it stands I’m losing my patience with you Ryoka.”

“Yes, well, you don’t strike me as the kind of gentleman who has much patience to begin with.” Rarity replied with dry terseness, though her voice was thick with pain. She then smiled thinly, “That said, I think you’ve been quite cooperative with our efforts to distract you.”

Hurricane frowned, then snarled as he sensed build up of spirit energies elsewhere. While he’d been focused on Pinkamena and Rarity, Sunset had flagged down Rainbow Dash and explained the plan, sending the winged athlete back skyward to prepare. Then Sunset had turned her full attention to Hurricane, bringing Hokori to bear. Flames eagerly jumped off the broadsword as Sunset slashed the air, unleashing a blaze of flames that roared towards Hurricane. Rather than rush him directly, however, the flames encircled him. As Sunset suspected he would, Hurricane made another sweeping gesture with Tetsukaze, creating a barrier of wind that started to buffet away the flames...

Which was everyone else’s signal to act. Fluttershy, a safe distance away, concentrated on Hurricane and suddenly the glowing white string of energy connecting her third eye to the spot she’d struck him earlier in the battle flared bright. Hurricane blinked in surprise as he felt his spirit energy fluctuate and lessen for a second as Fluttershy’s connection to him imposed a restriction on his reiatsu. Not much, just enough to disrupt the energy he put into his wind barrier.

In that same moment Rainbow Dash, who’d flown directly above Hurricane, threw her arms out wide and lighting surrounded her like a nimbus. Rainbow Dash grinned like she was having the time of her life as she then cupped her hands before her, the lighting pooling there in a crackling mass.

“Block this, you jerk! Buccaneer Blaze!”

Sunset nearly choked on a laugh, hearing Rainbow Dash name her attack, but any humor was stilted by impressed awe as over a dozen different but equally powerful lightning bolts jumped from Rainbow Dash’s hands and curved down upon Hurricane in a converging mass of electrical might. In the same moment Applejack stood ready, golden energy flowing along her gauntlets and the eyes of the skulls on the back of her hands blooming brightly as she laced her fingers together into a combined fist, where the nozzles in the mouth of both skulls were pointed in the same direction; directly at Hurricane.

“Well, if we’re namin’ these moves, might as well join on in the fun.” Applejack muttered, then shouted in a much louder voice. “Roarin’ Apple Cannon!”

A twin blast of bright gold energy, so close together they might as well have been one beam, fired from Applejack’s gauntlets and tore a deep gouge in the ground as they barreled down upon Hurricane.

Hurricane’s wind barrier was weakened not just by Fluttershy’s power disrupting his spirit energy, but also by the fact that Sunset’s flames were consuming the oxygen within it. Even if the spirit realm of Soul Society was all made up of spirit particles, Sunset understood that those particles still largely obeyed many of the same basic laws as the living world’s particles did. Which meant that while this world’s “air” was technically not oxygen, it mimicked how oxygen worked, the same way her flames while not technically chemical fire but rather spirit fire, would still consume oxygen of both worlds the same way.

This also meant electricity, spirit particle based or otherwise, would also work the same way, and with Hurricane’s spirit energy weakened the lightning could lance right through the barrier to hit Hurricane head on at the exact same instant Applejack’s energy beams struck him straight in the chest.

The resulting explosion of energy slammed Hurricane backwards like someone being pushed around by a sumo wrestler, his body convulsing from the lighting while being drilled across the ground by the golden beam of power. Yet through it all he stayed upright, never losing his balance as he tanked the attacks, driven bodily backwards until he slammed into a tree, cracking it in half, but still remaining standing.

When all was said and done he was bearing multiple scorched burn marks, his body smoking slightly, and there was a large, bruised welt across his chest, but Hurricane remained conscious.

“Aww c’mon!” Rainbow Dash shouted, landing back on the ground beside the other girls as they all gathered together once again around Sunset, “What does it take to put this guy down for good!?”

“This boss fight is starting to feel way broken, that’s for sure.” said Pinkie Pie, her hammer form almost seeming to droop a bit. “Too many hit points, please nerf!”

While Sunset shared their sentiments, she was a bit more hopeful. She could feel Hurricane’s reiatsu, and while it remained potent, it was fluctuating and starting to wear down. They might not be able to take him out with one big move, but they could keep chipping away at him, bit by bit. For all his power, he was being wounded, and those wounds would gradually add up. They could do this! They could win, if they just kept the heat on and didn’t let up!

“Don’t get discouraged guys, keep at him!” Sunset said, raising Hokori and flickering across the battlefield with Flash Step to appearing in front of Hurricane, blade slashing down hard. Hurricane met her blade with Tetsukaze, the two Zanpaktou both expelling their respective elements in point blank blasts of air and fire that exploded around the combatants in a destructive wave, flattening trees and causing them to burst into flames at the same time.

Sunset could feel Hurricane’s strength surging through him, even as she kept her blade locked with his halberd. Refusing to back down, she pressed harder, matching his physical strength with her own, and for the moment holding firm. Yet Hurricane didn’t seem bothered. In fact he smiled with sickening confidence.

“I can tell you think you’re winning. That you can grind away my strength piece by piece like savages chipping at a phalanx of well disciplined soldiers. You poor, naive girls. These wounds are nothing.”

He Flash Stepped away from Sunset, reappearing back towards the center of the clearing. He held Tetsukaze horizontally in front of him, as if showing it off as he slowly turned the weapon for the girls to see.

“I can see now that you six are worthy opponents, at least. More powerful than most I’ve faced, to be sure. I understand why Platinum considered you all such potential threats. Left to grow, any one of you might become as powerful as a Captain. But you are not there yet, my young warriors. You still lack one essential quality...”

With a simple twist he detached the axe head portion of his Zanpaktou, extending the chain about three feet and began to spin the blade around on the chain, faster and faster until it was a solid metal blur, whistling through the air with a harsh cutting sound.

“Fear.” he said, “You girls still fight with the impetuous, youthful manner of children who believe themselves immune to death. Allow me to educate you otherwise.”

Sunset sensed the attack coming and braced for it, but even she was taken aback by the speed at which Hurricane flicked his halberd forward and the axe blade flew across the distance to her and the girls, the chain extending seemingly without limit. It slipped past her, changing trajectory in an eyeblink to fly in another direction, only to change direction again and again, the axe blade’s path becoming near impossible to follow. Sunset realized Hurricane was using the wind to change the blade’s movements, and also realized at the same moment he was trying to split her and the girls up and disorient them. Practically everyone had jumped back from the rapidly flying blade, each trying to get distance, each becoming more exposed.

Remembering her previous conclusion that Fluttershy would be Hurricane’s primary target once he knew the connection she’d established to him, Sunset immediately Flash Stepped towards the other girl... only she was a moment too late.

Amid the rapid changing movements of the flying axe head, the weapon suddenly appeared behind Fluttershy, so fast and harsh in its cutting arc that Fluttershy had barely turned her head and Sunset was inches from getting her shield in place, but neither were fast enough. The axe blade bit deeply into the back of Fluttershy’s shoulder blade, only the reflexive response of her Fullbring’s scarf saving her from being cut cleanly in half as the cloth got in the way of the blade, using its own supernaturally tough form to lessen the blow from one that would have been instantly fatal to one that instead just left a bloody gouge in Fluttershy’s back, crunched the shoulder blade underneath with a sickening sound, and sent the girl crashing into the ground with enough force to send her bouncing several times before she lay limply like a fallen crash test dummy.

Very quickly blood, in a bright crimson pool, began to seep from the wounded girl as she lay on the ground, unmoving.

“Fluttershy!” Rainbow Dash shouted, flying towards their fallen friend, but Hurricane took full advantage of the girls’ momentary shock. The chain connecting the axe blade to the rest of his halberd pulled back as he Flash Stepped in an instant to appear above Rainbow Dash, aiming the spear-tip of his Zanpaktou towards her exposed back. However Sunset, already looking for the attack, was able to throw herself into Hurricane shield first, slamming him aside while Rainbow Dash flew on to land next to Fluttershy. Rarity arrived there a second later, kneeling over the wound.

“Hold on dear, just hold on. I... I can stop the blood.” Rarity said in a nerve wracked but soothing tone as she gestured her hand over the wound, calling down her Fullbring’s blood to cover Fluttershy’s wound and solidify into crystal that acted as a makeshift bandage.

“Crapcrapcrap, not good!” Rainbow Dash growled, “She needs more than that, Rarity!”

“Well it's the best I can do!” Rarity shouted, then turned sharp eyes towards where Hurricane had twisted in the air to engage Sunset in a brief but fierce exchange of blows that left both of them landing on the ground a solid distance away.

“I’m going to rip him to pieces.” Rarity snarled, and Rainbow Dash nodded, standing and flaring with electrical power.

“Only if I leave anything of him for you.”

Hurricane chuckled without any hint of humor, “One of you is already down and you decide to charge in again? What if I attack your fallen friend again? Who might defend her?”

Rainbow Dash’s hair bristled and her eyes turned to liquid pools of pure rage. “You utter bastard!”

Rarity sneered, and with a gesture summoned up dozens of crystalline blades from her whirlpool, “You won’t get the chance!”

“Darn straight!” Applejack bellowed, coming in at Hurricane from behind, fully flying through the air on powerful jets of energy as she aimed a spinning kick at his back. He turned to block, and found the force of the blow as Applejack’s boot connected with his halberd strained his muscles like he’d been hit by a meteor, and was driven back by sheer momentum. Sunset, feeling white hot anger burning inside her alongside fresh fear for Fluttershy’s safety, let the flames of Hokori surge brightly and then transmute to deep, melting blue indigo flames. The heat around her increased so much that the grass started to burn away to ash, igniting in blue puffs of flame.

As Applejack continued to push Hurricane back, much to a surprised look on his face, Sunset slashed with Hokori, and breathed in a sharp, spitting voice, ”Aoihi Senko!”

The shape of her attack was not a giant wave of flame this time, but instead controlled into a concentrated jet, like a dragon’s breath. Applejack waited until the last second before breaking off from Hurricane and leaving him to take the brunt of the blue flames full on, the fire blasting into him as he spun around to block it with his halberd. However Sunset had full control of the fire from her Aoihi Senko, treating the exuding fire like a continuous, flexible extension of Hokori’s power. As Hurricane tried to block the jet of flame, she gestured with Hokori and caused the fire to flow around Hurricane, then flow up and break apart into dozens of smaller bolts of fire that then rained down on him from all directions, engulfing him in an ever growing explosion of azure fire that burned so hotly the ground started to melt into glass. Rarity took advantage of the moment to also send her crystal blades flashing in as, stabbing into the explosion of blue fire, and presumably Hurricane.

Then Rainbow Dash joined in, sending a crackling bolt of lighting into the maelstrom of fire, the bolts of cobalt energy intermixing with Sunset’s fire until the whole thing exploded in a blast of flame and lightning so intense that it bathed the whole battlefield with blue light and caught numerous trees from across the clearing on fire. Even Sunset had to shield herself with Hokori, the heat of her proximity to the blast intense enough that she could feel it through her Zanpaktou’s shield.

“That enough ‘fear’ for you?” Sunset spat. Her blue flames were still burning in a rising column where Hurricane had been standing, but she couldn’t tell if he’d survived the blast or not. The intermixing reiatsu from the attack was making it hard to sense anything else, but if she was going to listen to her gut instincts then, no, she doubted Hurricane was down yet. But they may have just bought a moment to check on Fluttershy.

The girl in question let out a pained moan as her eyes flickered open, while the other girls gathered around her.

“Oh my... this... hurts.” Fluttershy said, blinking, moving a hand to touch the crystal bonding around her wound.

“Fluttershy, you’ve been wounded badly. Try not to move.” Sunset said.

Fluttershy’s face was ashen and starting to sweat, pain swimming over her features, but there was also an aura of calm about her as her third eye flickered with bright blue light. This light then suffused her body as Fluttershy took slow breaths, uneven and intermixed with small gasps of pain. “I... I can tell. I’m sorry. I need time to... aaaah... time to focus my power on healing. I won’t be able to do much for, mmph... for awhile.”

"Are you sure?" Sunset asked, voice laden with worry. She'd gotten a good look at the blow Fluttershy had taken, and it was the kind of thing that put people in hospitals for months, and even then often with life long, crippling injury. She knew Fluttershy's power could heal wounds with surprising efficiency, but this looked like a tall order, even for her.

Fluttershy smiled, but it was a strained look, her eyes showing the same kind of fears that Sunset had beneath the veil of calm. "N-not as sure as I want to be. But I'll be okay for now. J-just focus on the fight."

Pinkamena sniffed the air and twirled the Pinkie hammer around, pointing it at the burning blaze of flames, “Don’t look now, but the meatslab isn’t cooked through yet.”

“Seriously!? He’s not down after that!?” Rainbow Dash shouted, just as a burst of spirit pressure exploded outward from the center of the inferno, a tornado of air cascading up into the sky that washed away the flames and revealed Hurricane standing in the center of the burned black field.

He was clearly injured, however. Sunset’s fire had scorched away much of the top of his Captain’s uniform, and left his bare skin burned red in many places. He also had a few fragments leftover from Rarity’s crystal blades embedded in his arms and chest, leaving bleeding wounds. There was a jagged scorch mark running all the way down his exposed chest, no doubt from where Rainbow Dash’s lightning had solidly hit its mark. All of this combined to leave Hurricane breathing heavily and for a moment it almost looked like he’d fall to one knee, but he quickly planted Tetsukaze into the ground at his side, bracing himself on the halberd.

“Well,” he said with a note of respect in his tone, “That was bracing. Given a little motivation you girls can actually fight. I wonder if you’ll fight even better if I manage to take down another one of you? Perhaps the loudmouthed blue one? Or maybe I should cut down the little pink monster?”

Sunset raised her sword, snarling, “How about none of the above? I’m getting tired of your hypocritical voice, Hurricane! You tell us we’re not taking this fight seriously, but you’re the one who keeps acting like he’s already won this battle. So far we’ve matched you blow for blow, so quit being so damned cocky!”

Hurricane tilted his head slightly, then smiled coldly. “You know, I agree. I haven’t been practicing what I preach. I confess it's only because I haven’t had a good fight in so long, I didn’t want this to end too soon. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve taken this much injury. But you’re right, young lady. It’s time I ended this.”

Suddenly the air itself seemed to grow still as there was a subtle yet incredibly powerful shift in the tension filling the battlefield. There was no warning build up of reiatsu from inside Hurricane, only a strange stillness that reminded Sunset of entering the eye of a storm. She noticed that the Soul Reapers who’d been watching the battle from the sidelines all tensed up, and many, even from Hurricane’s own division, quickly began to back away.

Hurricane offered them a look that almost approached sympathy, if only the kind of dry, cold sympathy a butcher gives the cow lead to slaughter. He held Tetsukaze in front of him, the halberd seeming to gather in the air around it in a swirling sheath of wind.

“Let me show you the difference between us; the gap of power you have yet to cross.”

His next words were spoken not in a loud roar, but rather with the steady, steel weight of a falling executioner’s axe.

”Bankai.”

----------

Several minutes earlier...

At the far side of the clearing opposite the battlefield where Sunset and the girls did battle with Captain Hurricane, Clover found herself locked blade to blade with Lieutenant Posey. Wanting to end this conflict quickly as possible so she could return to help her friends, Clover was putting her all into her attacks, spinning Chishiki about in multiple twirling arcs to slash with the Zanpaktou’s ring blade. Posey, despite her demure attitude, was showing herself to be every bit as competent as the second in command of the Soul Society’s dedicated combat division ought to be. As much as Clover knew she’d gotten stronger from training alongside Sunset, she was still a researcher from the Twelfth Division, and when stacked up against the skill of a dedicated warrior like Posey the difference in swordsmanship was clear.

For every spinning slash from Chishiki, there was an immediate parry and swift counter slash from Posey’s blade, expertly timed to force Clover into ever more unwieldy slashes that gradually left her guard wide open. Still, Clover had gained more from her training than a increase to her reiatsu. She’d honed her techniques in both Flash Step and reading spirit energy. Even when one particularly strong parry from Posey left Clover’s side exposed, which Posey took immediate advantage off with a hard stab that would have impaled Clover from hip to hip, Clover’s Flash Step was swift enough to flicker away from the blow with little more than a shallow cut.

The two combatants briefly squared off after that, slowly circling each other with deliberately chosen steps. Unable to help herself, curiosity an ever present factor for Clover even in the midst of battle, she asked, “Do you really think what Central 46 is doing is right, Lieutenant? You have to see that something about all this isn’t normal. Captains Celestia and Luna would never betray us!”

Posey’s eyes gained a strangely innocent and confused light as she replied, “That’s not really something that matters here. It doesn’t matter if I think it's right, only if Captain Hurricane thinks it is. The chain of command exists for a reason, Third Seat Clover. It’s not our place as subordinates to question our superior’s orders. We serve and obey... failure to do that is, well, it’s unthinkable.”

Holding her sword low, Posey burst forward, aiming a thrust for Clover’s chest. Just as Clover moved to block the attack there was a whistling noise and something small yet moving at incredibly high speed slashed between her and Posey, forcing Posey to break off her charge and jump back. At a glance Clover saw the objects that had flown between them consisted of a half dozen... leaves? They looked like leaves from the nearby trees, only rigid as metal shards as they stuck out of the ground.

“I can’t imagine a sentiment I disagree more with, Lieutenant Posey.” said a light, casual male voice as the dark gray form of the Second Division’s Third Seat Nocturn appeared next to Clover. She could tell his Zanpaktou was released, in the form of a metal brace on the back of his right hand from which two curved claw blades extended. Strangely he was carrying a handful of leaves in his left hand.

“Third Seat Clover, good to see you.”

Clover glanced at him, “Uh... yes? Um, good to see you too?”

Nocturn sighed, expression flat as a board, “Guess I didn’t make much of an impression when we met at the Soul Reaper Academy. I was in your class.”

“Don’t really remember, but that was a big class. Not to mention a long time ago. Also not the time for reminiscing.” Clover said, not daring to take her eyes off of Posey, who was warily sizing Nocturn up.

“Good point.” Nocturn said, dropping into a relaxed but ready combat stance, “Normally I might quote honor as a reason not to team up against someone two on one, but given we’re dealing with a Lieutenant and we’re both Third Seats, I’d say it evens out.”

Posey looked between them, seeming to become more nervous as she licked her lips, “Oh my, this is no good. If I have to fight both of you at the same time then I might not be able to hold back. That’d be very bad. I don’t suppose you both consider surrendering?”

“I have neither the time nor inclination.” Clover said, holding Chishiki at the ready. She hadn’t tried to begin an analysis of Posey or her Zanpaktou simply because Chishiki could only analyze one target at a time, and if she switched her target from Hurricane to Posey she’d lose all the progress she’d made on analyzing Hurricane. That was fine. She still had her Kido, and the final technique she’d learned from Chishiki during the training alongside Sunset, although if she used that she’d still lose the data collected so far on Hurricane. She wanted to avoid that and only use it as a last resort.

Nocturn feigned a look of consideration before tossing the leaves in his left hand up into the air. As they slowly floated down he said, “Surrender is death. I shall not partake in it. That is my answer.”

Clover blinked, realizing he’d just spouted a haiku as he slashed with his claw shaped Zanpaktou at the falling leaves. As the claw blades touched each leaf, instead of cleaving them in half there was a spark of spirit energy that filled the leaves and made them straighten out and become rigid. The leaves were flung by the impact of the blades, tossed like they were now made of metal themselves, and spun through the air at Posey.

Posey rapidly deflected the spinning leaves, which bounce away with metallic clinking sounds. Nocturn then vanished in a Flash Step, and Clover could track his movement to see he was looking to get behind Posey while she was distracted by his rather unconventional attack. Not wanting to waste the opportunity, Clover also used Flash Step to rush Posey from the front. Clover swung the shaft of Chishiki to try and sweep Posey’s legs out from under her, while Nocturn’s claw blades slashed for the Lieutenant’s face. Posey responded by first slamming her blade down to intercept Clover’s strike in a burst of sparks, while she bent back fro Nocturn’s strike and caught his wrist with her free hand. Then without slowing Posey shifted on the balls of her feet, twisting her arm to flip Nocturn head over heels while throwing a snapping side kick at Clover’s chin.

Clover leaned back just far enough to keep her chin from getting clipped, and quickly pulled Chishiki back to spin the bottom end of the staff around to try and catch Posey with a strike on the back of the head, but Posey was already bringing her own Zanpaktou up to meet Chishiki, having predicting Clover’s movements precisely. Posey then pushed in close to Clover, pressing her Zanpaktou hard against Chishiki’s shaft, and then rammed her knee up into Clover’s stomach, the blow knocking the breath clean out of her.

As Clover took a unsteady step or two back, trying to catch her breath, Nocturn flipped back to his feet from where he’d been tossed to the ground, and slashed at Posey’s back. Posey saw the attack coming out of the corner of her eye and threw herself to the side, Nocturn’s claws only cutting the fabric of Posey’s sleeve.

However a moment later Posey blinked in surprise as the arm with the torn sleeve suddenly snapped downward as if under a heavy weight, her Zanpaktou lowering with it.

“Huh? What did you just do to my arm?” Posey slowly raised it back up, but was clearly under some strain to do so. Clover was unsure what had happened as well, but after looking at Posey’s arm she quickly noticed that the fabric of the Lieutenant's robe sleeve no longer shifted like normal cloth should, but instead was stiff and rigid. Just like the leaves Nocturn had struck.

“I didn’t do anything.” said Nocturn, holding up the claw blade of his Zanpaktou, “That’s the power of my Yakkai Koto.” (Burden)

He produced another leaf, touching it to the edge of his Zanpaktou claw blades. He then dropped the leaf, which fell like a rock and hit the ground with a weight like a metal shard. “Any object struck that isn’t an animal becomes as heavy and stiff as if made entirely of steel. Plants, pieces of paper, clothing, even water. Right now your sleeve is acting as if it's made out of solid steel. Must be quite heavy and hard to move.”

Posey frowned, her previous nervousness only growing to a jittery height as she let her arm drop again. “This is bad. Very bad. I didn’t want to hurt any of you too much. Now I don’t have a choice. I have to protect my Captain, and you’re both in the way. I’m sorry. So sorry.”

In the blink of an eye Lieutenant Posey’s expression transformed from one of nervous desperation and sadness to one of murderous excitement. “But you asked for this. Frenzy; Kyoki.” (Bloodthirst)

Hazy violet light surrounded her Zanpaktou, which grew longer and wider to take the shape of a vicious looking saw-tooth blade, both its edges heavily serrated. Then, with a whine like a high pitched engine, the saw teeth began to spin around the length of the blade like a chainsaw. A bubbling laugh of violent glee erupted from Posey, and Clover gulped with uneasy fear as she saw that the formerly subdued Lieutenant now had an expression that could only be described as exceedingly homicidal.

Clover and Nocturn exchanged glances.

“Do you have as bad a feeling about this as I do?” asked Nocturn.

Clover threw a palm out towards Posey, shouting, “Bind her, quickly, before-”

By the time she’d even said that much Posey had reached over with her free hand and tore the portion of her sleeve off that had been solidified to steel. The sleeve ripped away much like twisting metal, signifying that her freshly released Shikai had just given Posey monstrous physical strength. Thus freed she immediately launched herself forward, slashing with that dangerous saw-tooth blade at Clover, who barely got Chishiki up to block. Sparks flew from where the sawing blade cut at Chishiki’s shaft, and Clover felt her very bones shaking under the blow. Then Posey reached with her free hand and grabbed Clover by the head, spinning around and bodily tossing Clover up and over, smashing her into the ground a few dozen yards away.

Nocturn sped in, slashing at Posey’s back, cutting the cloth of her robes. As Clover stood up, shaking the dazed clouds from her head, she saw Posey’s robes freeze up as Nocturn’s Zanapaktou power took effect, but all it did was briefly slow Posey down as she twisted and tore at the solidified robes, ripping them off her body. However that brief delay was enough time for Clover to chant a swift Kido.

“Hado Number Forty Six; Gaki Rekko!” (Raging Light Fang)

A circular plane of green light formed at the palm of Clover’s hand, then from it a barrage of thin emerald beams of energy flew up and forward at sharp right angles, piercing in towards Posey. The raging Lieutenant responded with a blood crazed laugh, slashing with her Zanpaktou to deflect many of the beams. However the barrage kept up and was enough to keep Posey pinned down for a moment, long enough for Nocturn to Flash Step in and slash at Posey’s legs, once more cutting the cloth of her robes and solidifying them.

This managed to briefly halt Posey enough that the last of the energy beams from Clover’s Kido pierced her arms, drawing a small gout of blood. Clover had hoped that might get Posey to drop her sword, but Posey just kept laughing, eyes bloodshot, and then slashed with her saw-tooth blade to tear apart the solidified robes around her legs, freeing herself even as she cut her legs. Now Posey was mostly only clad in basic white wrappings that many Soul Reapers used for simple undergarments, not that modesty seemed to be an issue for her at the moment. Clover frowned deeply, realizing that whatever altered mental state Posey’s Zanpaktou had created, she simply wasn’t going to stop as long as she was conscious.

I have to use that new technique. There’s no other way. But it will still end my analysis of Hurricane... I won’t be able to go help the others. Blast it, but I don’t see another way.

Before she could enact the technique, however, Posey came at her again, faster than before, leaping into the air with a large overhand swing that Clover braced herself to block. Then at the last second Posey vanished, using a Flash Step faster than Clover could follow, feeling the pressure of air behind her as she realized Posey was now coming at her back. Clover felt an impact on her side, and had just enough time to realize Nocturn had tackled her out of the way before Posey’s Zanpaktou cut down in a flash of buzzing metal.

Nocturn grunted in pain, jumping away and landing beside Clover, only now Clover could see blood seeping down his left side from where his arm now ended in a bloody stump. Nocturn’s severed arm was in Posey’s grasp, who looked at it with mild interest before tossing the limb aside and turning to face Clover and Nocturn while licking her lips eagerly.

‘N-Nocturn!”

“Don’t get distracted.” he said past clenched teeth, keeping his claw-blade up in a ready stance, “It's just an arm. Better that than my head. Now,I don’t suppose you have a way to stop this mad witch? It seems my Zanpaktou’s power is ill suited for this fight.”

“I do, but I need a few moments to activate the technique.” Clover shook her head, “You’re in no shape to buy me that-”

Nocturn, without another word, charged at Posey, leaving Clover to blink.

“-time... Blast it!”

She immediately planted Chishiki’s pointed end into the ground, while focusing her spirit energy into the Zanpaktou’s ring blade. Motes of twinkling green light began to form within the ring. As she charged the technique, Nocturn went all out against Posey. Even with one arm, he maintained his balance and spun into a series of swift slashes at the berserk woman, who responded in kind with wild, powerful swings of her own that tore up the ground around her. Nocturn, for the most part, relied on speed and feints to keep out of reach of the buzzing saw-tooth blade that sought to rend him to pieces, though this meant he also couldn’t get in more than a few glancing blows at Poesy. However, it was enough to get Clover the five or six seconds she needed.

Chishiki now flared with sparkling light within its ring blade, which then formed lines of green energy... very much like a net.

”Reikon Shomi!” (Spirit Net)

The edges of her ring blade then broke apart into eight equal sized pieces. These pieces then flew out like boomerangs, trailing with them each a portion of the ever enlarging net of glowing jade spirit energy. This net surrounded the battling Nocturn and Posey, and since Nocturn knew that Clover had a technique coming, he Flash Stepped out of the way at the very last second before the net slammed down onto Posey. The green bands of energy contracted around the struggling Posey, but despite her struggles she couldn’t seem to break through the strands of thick spirit energy that now ensnared her. Within a minute the net of energy had contracted enough that it now had Posey thickly wrapped up like a woman trapped in a spider’s webbing, the eight pieces of the actual physical ring blade locked around her like manacles. Each piece of the ring blade produced a separate band of energy that connected the net back to the main body of Chishiki, which Clover removed from the ground and held over her shoulder.

Nocturn, ashen faced but looking relieved, approached her, still warily eyeing Posey, who was growling like a caged animal.

“Impressive, but how long will that hold her?”

“Indefinitely.” Clover replied, “This technique uses all of Chishiki’s power to create this net to capture targets. While captured a target’s reishi composition is analyzed to improve the strength of the net so it becomes even harder to break free from.”

Nocturn gave an appreciative whistle as he tore off part of his robe with his teeth and used it to start binding the stump where his arm was, making a quick tourniquet. “Any downsides?”

“I can’t use Chishiki for anything else. Even if I dispel the net, Chishiki will be drained of power for about half a day afterward.” Clover sighed, “I won’t be able to do much to help my friends except with Kido spells until then. There’s also the question of what to do with Posey...”

Abruptly there was a massive explosion of raw spiritual power from across the battlefield, and all Clover could see from that direction was a titanic, pitch black tornado that pierced the sky. Clover had felt such power before, and knew what it meant. The knowledge drained the blood from her face as she breathed, “Not good... this is definitely not good.”

------------------

The area within a few hundred yards of where Sweet Cider and Ditzy Doo clashed no longer resembled a normal forest, but what happens after a forest has been largely flattened by an erupting volcano. There was hardly a tree left standing, the majority of them cut or smashed in half as the two women exchanged blows that sent crushing shockwaves through the air.

Quite frankly Silverstar figured he ought to be anywhere else rather than approaching such a battle, but he’d already ordered the other Tenth Division members to either fall back to the entrance area to the forest, or in one squad’s case, to go look for Troubleshoes and the squad that’d been sent with him. Silverstar would have gone with that search party, but he had other concerns. The Thirteenth Division was already using the distraction of those Ryoka to fall back to their own barracks, and Silverstar suspected they’d either try to escape through the sewer system or make a break for the east gate. He wasn’t too worried about Inkwell and her rebels getting away. He was more concerned with the mental state of his Captain.

Seeing that odd young lady with the stetson hat had clearly upset Captain Sweet Cider, even if the stubborn woman had hid the fact, and she was indulging in an all out brawl to further bury any confusion seeing that human girl had caused. Silverstar himself was also confused and more than a little worried. He wasn’t blind, after all. He could see the resemblance between that girl and Captain Sweet Cider, not just physically but on a certain emotional level as well.

Since Sweet Cider hadn’t given him any specific orders before the battle began he was free to follow his own prerogative, and as the Lieutenant of the Tenth Division he felt it was the best course to watch his Captain’s back, in case her emotional state got any more out of whack. Besides, this Ditzy Doo seemed a dangerous opponent.

Though she hadn’t released her Zanpaktou’s power, Sweet Cider was going all out in terms of physical strength and speed. It was hard to follow either combatant’s movements as they streaked across the area in blazing flickers of movement that usually only halted long enough for there to be an explosion of force from either a sword swing or striking fist. Disturbingly, Ditzy Doo’s face, when Silverstar was able to catch a glimpse of it, was covered in a bone white mask that was vaguely feline in shape and very much resembled that of a Hollow’s. Even her spiritual pressure had that distinctly cold echo of Hollow power that set Silverstar’s teeth to grinding.

What is she? I’ve never heard of a Soul Reaper who could mimic Hollow powers. She’s not an Arrancar either, the reiatsu doesn’t feel right for one of them.

He remained at the edge of the destroyed area of forest, observing the fight. He had his Zanpaktou drawn but not released yet. There was little reason to. He couldn’t contribute to a battle between two warriors of this level, not without having one hell of an opening, and even if one presented itself, Captain Sweet Cider would never forgive him for interfering with one of her battles. However he was prepared to deal with her ire if he saw no other choice but to jump in. Even if he could create a single moment of distraction that would be worth it, in his view.

Ditzy Doo appeared atop the smashed half of a tree trunk in front of Sweet Cider, crouching like a cat. She bore cuts all over her body, in a red, bloody patchwork. Sweet Cider also carried the wounds of the battle thus far, with bruises covering her face and arms, and a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of her lips. Yet neither one of them seemed fatigued yet, as if the wounds they’d given each other so far were just for warming up.

Streams of red energy rolled along Ditzy Doo’s body until the light pooled around her hands, the tips of her fingers shining with the gathering power. Then the energy extended into seemingly solid blades of cutting light, like claws covering Ditzy’s fingers.

”Garras De Gato.” (Cat’s Claws) Ditzy Doo said in that distorted voice from her mask, and coiled her legs and sprang at Sweet Cider. Her energy claws slashed in a swift series of blinding cuts that seemed to overlap with each other, so fast and dense were the number of strikes. Sweet Cider met the attacks head on with her blade, the Zanpaktou bluntly smashing into the energy claws to keep them at bay. Even so, Ditzy managed to get past Sweet Cider’s guard and planted both sets of claws into the taller woman’s shoulders, and then flipped over Sweet Cider’s head, using the claws as leverage to throw the Tenth Division Captain into a nearby set of fallen trees in a huge crash of splintering wood.

Silverstar nearly jumped in then and there, but a second later the trees Sweet Cider had been thrown into then rose upward as she grabbed one of the larger tree trunks in one hand.

“You tryin’ ta scratch me ta death?” Sweet Cider yelled, “Stop wastin’ my time!”

She hurled the gigantic tree trunk like a spear, sending it sailing straight for Ditzy. In response Ditzy vanished for an eyeblink, and red traces of light appeared all over the tree trunk as it flew by. She then appeared right where she’d been standing as the tree broke apart into dozens of sliced pieces behind her. Ditzy let out an easy laugh.

“Wasting your time is exactly what I’m trying to do. The longer I keep you here, the better the odds are for those girls to take down Hurricane.”

Sweet Cider grinned savagely, “If they can pull that off it might do that bastard some good, loosen up the ramrod up his rear end, but I ain’t holdin’ my breath fer it. ‘Course, it ain’t them girls ya gotta worry ‘bout, is it? ‘Bout time I smash that damn mask o’ yers right through yer face.”

Ditzy giggled and made a ‘come hither’ gesture with her glowing energy claws. “Give it your best shot.”

Silverstar had some trouble following what happened next. His Captain didn’t so much Flash Step towards Ditzy Doo as she catapulted herself like a ballistic missile from her position straight into Ditzy before the other woman had so much as a chance to blink. Sweet Cider’s sword would have cut Ditzy from shoulder to hip had she not barely managed to get her energy claws up to catch the Zanapktou. Even then the blade bit down harshly into Ditzy’s palms, drawing splatters of blood as the momentum of Sweet Cider’s slash launched Ditzy backwards and through a pile of fallen trees, scattering the thick trunks like matches.

Sweet Cider didn’t let up, bellowing in equal parts rage and laughter, a sound that set Silverstar’s spine to tingling coldly, as she jumped up and then came crashing down where Ditzy had fallen, driving her sword down. Ditzy agilely recovered at the last moment, spinning her legs about to kip up in a sideways flip that evaded the devastating sword blow while she lashed out with her claws, drawing blood across Sweet Cider’s thigh. At the same time Sweet Cider swung around, her Zanpaktou cutting the air in a heavy horizontal swing that Ditzy braced herself to catch with her claws. Even with putting her whole body into it, Ditzy was still forced back several yards before managing to halt Sweet Cider’s blade, although the strain of the act was clear in the shaking tension in both her arms and legs.

Ditzy only had a moment to savor that small triumph when Sweet Cider surprised her by letting go of her Zanpaktou for a second, instead grabbing Ditzy by the arms and pulling back with her head. Sweet Cider then snapped her head forward while yanking Ditzy upward, smashing her forehead straight into Ditzy’s face hard enough that the impact created a small shockwave. Sweet Cider followed this up by cocking by her right arm and then ramming her fist full force into Ditzy’s stomach, sending the woman once more bouncing into a pile of fallen trees.

While Ditzy clambered to her feet, Sweet Cider retrieved her Zanpaktou and cracked her neck, stretching. “Kinda prefer brawlin’ ta swordfightin. Tempted ta just toss the blade and take ya on bare fisticuffs.” She let out a deep snarl, “Feels better, ya see, usin’ my fists. More honest. Does wonders fer the foul mood you’ve put me in.”

“Yeah, sorry about that.” said Ditzy, rubbing her chin as she stood, swaying slightly. Her mask bore a few small cracks running like small, dark veins from the brow to the top of the mask’s left eye. “Let me see what I do to even out that temper of yours.”

Ditzy raised her right hand, and a sphere of crimson energy began to grow between her blazing claws. She aimed the sphere at Sweet Cider, bits of swirling energy inside the sphere becoming so intense that they turned from deep red to glowing, searing white. As this happened Silverstar stared at the scene with deep unease. There couldn’t be any doubt about it, that was a Cero blast that Ditzy Doo was charging up. The feeling of Hollow reiatsu coming off of her was overwhelming.

Before Ditzy Doo could discharge her Cero there was a cascade of potent reiatsu that overshadowed everything else, and all eyes turned towards the direction of what looked like a colossal tornado of black wind towering into the sky. Silverstar quickly realized the tornado, and the massive reiatsu that accompanied it, was right back where those Ryoka girls had been fighting Captain Hurricane. That made it fairly obvious what it was he was seeing, although this was Silverstar’s first time actually witnessing it first hand. The reiatsu was unmistakably Captain Hurricane’s however, and so potent it could only mean one thing; the Captain had unleashed his Bankai.

Both Ditzy Doo and Sweet Cider seemed to realize this at the same time, and the two looked at each other, then at the tornado, then back at each other. In practically the same instant both women vanished, rushing full speed towards the location of the other battle. Silverstar groaned, following after them.

----------

Sunset had barely had a millisecond to let out a very non-Equestrian expletive before Hurricane’s Tetsukaze erupted with a rapidly expanding tower of churning dark wind which in the blink of an eye grew into a towering tornado that soared into the sky and quickly rushed towards her and the girls.

She only caught a flicker of movement from Rainbow Dash, who dived defensively towards the fallen Fluttershy, before the tornado was upon them and she had to raise her shield as she tried to leap back out of the way.

The windforce from the tornado’s edge alone was so strong that Sunset was knocked clear off her feet, sent flying head over heels until she managed to get her bearings just in time to stab her blade into a passing tree trunk to halt herself. She looked around for the other girls, but to her dismay she couldn’t spot all of them at first. She saw Pinkamena thrown up against a tree, hanging on literally by her teeth, the sharp fangs having sunk deeply into the bark while the rest of the girl flapped in the breeze, barely holding onto Pinkie Pie’s hammer form. Rarity fared better, having created a wall of crystal around herself.

Sunset looked around desperately trying to spot where Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack were. Her spiritual senses were all but useless to locate them due to Hurricane’s overpowering reiatsu blanketing the area, making it hard to sense anything beyond him. She only gained a momentary relief when she looked up into the sky to see that Rainbow Dash was flying high, buffeted heavily by the tornado winds, but she was clearly holding on tight to the wounded Fluttershy. Then she spotted Applejack, who’d also taken to the air with jets of energy from her gauntlets and armored boots, but wasn’t nearly as stable as Rainbow Dash was, tumbling end over end and sent hurtling towards the ground like an out of control firework.

“Damn!” Sunset couldn’t move, but she shouted, “Rarity, Applejack’s in trouble!”

Rarity looked up to where Sunset was pointing, and while still keeping hunkered down behind her crystal wall, she directed her whirlpool of blood to fly up and create a tall crystal pole that Applejack was able to grab onto to halt her fall, the girl sliding the rest of the way to the ground on the pole while the tornado started to die down.

It was then that Sunset understood the tornado wasn’t the form of Hurricane’s Bankai, but just the result of the unleashed spirit energy. A mere byproduct that was now calming down.

Rainbow Dash landed beside the rest of the girls as they were able to start moving once again, no longer being tossed around by the wind. Rainbow kept a close hold on Fluttershy, looking as uneasy as the rest of them as they all looked upon where Hurricane’s form was revealed once the last of the black winds dissipated.

He was still bare chested, with even the tatters of his Captains coat and robes torn away. Dark iron chains wrapped around his chest and arms, leading down to his hands which clutched between them four chain ends apiece that then extended out to attach to eight massive floating blades. These blades were each twice again as large as the halberd Tetsukaze had formed in its Shikai state, and resembled double-bladed versions of the bearded axe head, each one still having a curved naginata spear point sticking up from the top. Sunset also noticed that while the dark tornado had vanished, there were still swirls of black fog-like wind clinking to the edges of each of the eight blades, and she suspected that Hurricane could summon more tornadoes in an instant if he wanted. Frowning, she saw glints of metal amid those flecks of dark wind, as if there were shards of metal floating in the air.

Hurricane cracked his neck and looked at the girls with a razor thin glare.

”Tetsukaze Yattsu no Guntai.” (Eight Armies of Iron Wind)

As if speaking the Bankai’s name served to awaken it further Sunset and all the girls felt the oppressive reiatsu washing off of it increase, making her take an involuntary step backwards that she quickly corrected with a frustrated growl. Discord had warned her how powerful Bankai’s were, and that even with their training they had little chance against once, but she wasn’t sure they had any other alternatives. Could they even manage to escape, if she and the girls tried to run? With Fluttershy wounded it didn’t seem likely. Not unless one of them acted as a distraction to keep Hurricane busy long enough for the others to get away.

We’re not strong enough to beat this. We were wearing him down, bit by bit, while he was just using Shikai... but now?

But what other option was there but to try?

“There,” Hurricane said, “That’s the look of fear I was talking about. All of you girls see it now, that you can’t win this battle. You’re understanding your own mortality. Your foolishness in coming to the Seireitei thinking you could rescue the traitors. Even if by some small miracle you defeated me, there are ten other Captains you would have to face, each possessing the true power of Zanpaktou, the final release; Bankai. You may as well-”

A gold beam of energy blasted in at him, and he made a slashing gesture with his right hand to pull the chains it held down, bringing one of the eight giant axe blades to fly down as well and block the intense gold beam. The energy cracked into the axe, blocked entirely, but the attack had snapped Sunset out of her momentary funk as Applejack, who’d fired the blast from a side kick, only now lowering her still smoking foot, shouted, “Enough yappin’ outta yer stinkhole! Are we supposed ta sit down an’ give up just ‘cause ya busted out more power? Get over yerself ya damn egotistical windbag!”

Sunset couldn’t help but laugh, glad she had Applejack around to remind her that no matter how bad things got, she had some rather amazing friends who just didn’t back down when things went from bad to worse. Hokori burned brightly in her hand as she pointed the blade at Hurricane, “AJ’s right. This isn’t over until you’ve got us beat, and that hasn’t happened yet! Right now, all that Bankai is doing is making Hokori’s flames burn hotter, wanting to take you down Hurricane!”

“Hear, hear,” said Rarity, reshaping her earlier wall into a set of floating crystal spears, each as large as the one she’d thrown at Hurricane nearer the start of the fight. Rarity’s eyes flashed with dangerous menace, “Fluttershy is a dear friend. Causing her harm was the worst mistake you’ve made yet, as now I’m going to tear you apart.”

“Oooh, I’m liking the bloodlust there, marshmallow.” Pinkamena chimed in, holding the Pinkie hammer over her shoulder while morphing her left arm into one giant, salivating mouth. “All that spirit energy coming off this ball of meat is just making me hungrier.”

“I’m all for kicking this guy’s face in, but what about Fluttershy?” asked Rainbow Dash, keeping a tight hold on the girl in question, “She’s in a bad way, and not getting better.”

Sunset couldn’t deny that was a good point. Not only were they down Fluttershy, but someone would have to protect her during the fight, and it was clear Rainbow Dash had volunteered herself for the job. However Sunset knew a tactically better choice for the role.

“Dash, let Rarity take over guarding Fluttershy.” Sunset saw Rainbow Dash bristle and open her mouth to argue, but Sunset cut her off, meeting Rainbow Dash’s gaze with a hard one of her own. “Rarity can attack and defend at range Dash! We’re going to need you for offense.”

Rainbow Dash looked ready to dig in on the matter, but Rarity quickly came over, putting a gentle hand on both her and Fluttershy, “It’s okay, darling. I’ll make sure she’s safe.” She smiled in a particularly devilish manner, “Now do me a favor and rip that uncouth bastard a new one, hmm?”

Rainbow Dash hissed out a reluctant sigh, and handed Fluttershy over to Rarity, who immediately set Fluttershy down gently on the ground, and with a gesture created a crystal barrier around the wounded girl while her already summoned spears surrounded her. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash joined Sunset, Applejack, and Pinkamena in a line that started to slowly walked towards Hurricane, who appeared to be patient in waiting for them to come to him.

The closer she got, the more sharply Sunset could feel Hurricane’s suffocating level of reiatsu. While she was committed to the fight now, the practical part of her still realized that she and her friends were sorely underpowered for taking on a Bankai wielding Captain head on. Not only was his power magnified, but this form of his Zanpaktou might have entirely different abilities than his Shikai that they couldn’t predict.

“I’ll go in first,” she whispered to the others, “and then you guys use that to see if he’s got any openings to exploit.”

“Hmph, sure, hog the fun part.” Pinkamena scoffed, and Pinkie Pie said, “Umm, you sure that’s a good idea Sunset? He’s got a lot of blades now. Like, too many.”

“Its just eight, Pinkie.” Rainbow Dash said with a roll of her eyes.

“And that’s eight too many. With too many chains. He’s like a big, grumpy Kratos.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, although Sunset was even more confused as she had no idea what that reference was about, even when Rainbow Dash and, “So, just Kratos.”

“Okay, I don’t know what you guys are talking about, so I’m just going to charge him now.” Sunset said, and put word to action immediately by shooting forward with as swift a Flash Step as she could manage, intending to come in at Hurricane’s left side.

She wasn’t even twenty paces from him when he responded with incredible speed, raising his right hand in a sweeping gesture that sent all four of the huge axe blades attached to that hand’s chains to launch down at her at once. Sunset’s eyes popped wide as she brought her shield up to block, but even as she did so, all four blades burst with their own individual tornadoes of black wind. Each tornado was smaller than the one from before, but was concentrated around each axe blade like a literal drill of wind, and when all four of these drills hit Sunset’s shield she felt the metal of the shield crack, and understood immediately to painfully gross extent that she and her friends had underestimated the power of a Bankai.

Hokori’s shield broke into a dozen different metal shards and Sunset was engulfed by the painful maelstrom of cutting winds. She was caught in a disorienting, painful tumble as she was ripped off her feet and sent hurtling like a leaf. Some strangely detached and analytical portion of her mind noted that the cutting portion of the tornadoes actually stemmed from hundreds of tiny metal shards flickering about within the winds. Then she couldn’t think of much of anything besides the pain. Then, darkness...

For a moment the blackness surrounding her felt all enveloping and cold, leaving Sunset feeling tired and worn. Yet there was a small pulse of heat from somewhere nearby, and Sunset stretched for that heat, reaching for it through the dark like she was swimming through tar.

Sunset blinked, realizing she’d blacked out for a second. Her whole body ached with sharp agony, but she forced herself to raise her head and take in her surroundings. She saw she’d been thrown easily a hundred yards from the battlefield, crashing into the forest in a deep furrow. Trees were torn apart in a broken path back from where she’d come, and she now lay in a heap at the base of a tree that much have finally halted her. That’d explain the horrible back pain, at least. The rest of it could be attributed to the dozens of cuts covering her body, soaking her Soul Reaper robes.

Bits of Hokori’s shield strap were still attached to her arm, and she saw the broadsword laying on the ground. She felt the heat from the blade, which flared with bright orange fire, nearly white. That had been what she’d felt in the darkness of unconsciousness, Hokori pulling at her. She reached out and grabbed the Zanpaktou’s hilt, feeling its warmth speared through her body, pushing back the pain.

“Right... note to self; Bankai equals ouch.”

As she stood she let out a sharp cry, feeling the fractures in her left arm. Biting back the pain she rushed back down the trail of destruction that marked her earlier passage, and arrived back at the edge of the clearing to witness her friends locked in deadly battle still. She couldn’t have been out for more than a few seconds, but things didn’t look good.

Sunset’s friends were all on the defensive, dodging about to avoid devastatingly powerful blows from the tornado clad axe blades that assaulted them. Hurricane gestured with his arms like a puppeteer, sending the axe blades into countless arcing strikes that destroyed entire chunks of the clearing while her friends struggled to keep out of the way.

“I’d say a tactical retreat is in order, wouldn’t you?” said a voice beside Sunset, and she whirled to see Clover standing there, with another Soul Reaper by her side that Sunset didn’t recognize but figured wasn’t an enemy given the way he stood with Clover almost casually despite missing his left arm at the elbow. Clover held Chishiki over her shoulder, but the Zanpaktou was now just a shaft with a strange set of glowing energy strands coming from where the ring blade had been, leading to an energy net that had a wrapped up and very irate looking Lieutenant Posey in it.

“Glad you’re okay.” said Sunset, frowning, “I don’t know if we can run without a way to distract Hurricane.” She looked at Hokori, eyeing the intense flames burning along its edge, “I might keep him busy for a minute if I go all out-”

“Actually I think our distraction just arrived.” said the dusky gray skinned Soul Reaper with the missing arm, nodding towards the other side of the clearing.

Two figures hurled out of the treeline from over there, one Ditzy Doo, the other Sweet Cider. Ditzy had her Hollow mask on, and Sunset saw she already had a large crimson energy sphere charged up in a hand that also had glowing claws of power radiating from the tips of Ditzy’s fingers. Without a second’s hesitation Ditzy thrust her arm forward and discharged a wide and bright beam of destructive Hollow energy straight at Hurricane. He spun to face it, swinging his arms forward and bringing his eight axe blades down to slam into the wave of red energy, like cinder blocks blocking a flooding stream.

“We’ve got to go, now!” said Clover.

“What about Ditzy?” Sunset asked.

“She can take care of herself, but if we stick around, we’re just risking more Captains showing up. A Bankai being unleashed won’t go ignored!” said Clover, and Sunset couldn’t refute the logic of that, but there was still the issue of where they could go. As if reading her mind, Clover put a hand on her shoulder and said, “If we head west, we can make for the Twelfth Division headquarters. I know some places we can hide there.”

Sunset nodded reluctantly, “Okay, okay...” she said. She wanted to keep fighting, to try and finish things with Hurricane, but what Clover said made too much sense, and prideful or not, Sunset wasn’t about to ignore common sense. Retreating and finding a good hiding spot to regroup, recover, and plan their next move was smarter than trying to win this fight, especially if by now enemy reinforcements were likely on their way.

Taking a deep breath she shouted, “Guys! Time to go!”

Still, she wasn’t about to leave without a parting shot, so as her friends all looked her way and started to rush to join her, Sunset raised her blazing sword high above her head. By now Ditzy’s energy beam had exploded upon Hurricane’s axe blades, while Sweet Cider, who’d been chasing after Ditzy, tried to slash at the woman from behind. Ditzy Flash Stepped out of the way, leaping above Hurricane and firing yet another Cero directly down towards him.

Meanwhile Sunset took a calming breath and concentrated upon the stored up spirit energy in her sword. When Hurricane’s Bankai had broken the shield that act had transferred a massive amount of power into the broadsword, so when Sunset turned the flames blue they shone bright enough to make the sword look like a miniature star.

”Aoihi Senko!” she shouted, and slammed her blade down hard. A gigantic wave of azure flame melted the ground as it rushed from her sword and crashed towards Hurricane at the same time Ditzy’s Cero fired down from above.

It was either a testament to how strong the attack was, or how much Hurricane tended towards overcompensation that his response was to spin around in a circle, spinning all eight axe blades as well, and in so doing created a thick tornado as gargantuan as the one that had been created by summoning his Bankai. This ludicrously large tornado expanded quickly, consuming Ditzy’s Cero and swallowing up the woman herself in a mere second. Sunset’s azure flame wave fared better, slamming into the tornado like a tsunami crashing into the side of a mountain. For a few seconds the power of the flames pushed against the strength of the tornado, jolting Sunset as she struggled to pour more energy into the flames. She could feel the strength of Hokori pressing against that of Tetsukaze’s Bankai state, and while she intrinsically understood that her Shikai fundamentally couldn’t match the power of a Bankai, that only made both her and Hokori burn all the more intensely to fight.

The wall of searing indigo fire rose higher and higher, pressing against the crushing black tornado, making the air dry and hot, lightning entire swaths of the forest on fire even as the trees were uprooted and sent flying. Sunset’s face broke out in rivers of sweat as she gripped Hokori’s hilt in both hands, shoving the broadsword forward as she poured out every inch of spirit energy she could against Hurricane’s mounting power.

And as much as she hated to admit it, she and Hokori were losing ground. She could feel the tornado start to break through her flagging flames, held back for the moment, but at any second she knew the unimaginably powerful winds would break through. She turned her head to look at her friend's, teeth grinding as she struggled to hold on, even for just a fraction of a second longer.

“Guys, run. Not sure I can hold this for long.” she said, but even as she spoke the power of the tornado managed to break through her flames like a flood through a shattered dam. Then the tornado was upon them, dragging Sunset and her allies into the air like so many blades of grass.

----------

“...Ugh...”

Sunset groaned as she awoke. Waking up from unconsciousness twice in a single day after getting smashed in the face by a tornado. If Princess Celestia could see her now she felt certain her mentor would have some vaguely cryptic life advice to give, even under such unusual circumstances.

Snapping to full wakefulness Sunset sat up quickly, only to groan in pain and lay back down, her head swimming.

“Easy there. You’re not up to standing just yet.” said a male voice next to her head, and Sunset turned, blinking to see Ditzy Doo in her cat form, sitting beside her, tail flicking about. They were inside what looked like a small, darkly lit warehouse, with various wooden crates stacked up against white stone walls. Moonlight filtered in through shuttered windows, indicating it was either still the night of their infiltration, or more alarming, that an entire day had passed.

“Sunset, oh my you’re awake, thank goodness!” said Rarity’s voice from around the corner of the some crates, the the girl appeared, looking battered and bandaged in several places, but standing. Her Fullbring was unsummoned, leaving Rarity just in her regular outfit now, and she came over to kneel down next to Sunset, who realized she was laying on a pallet up against one of the walls.

“How are you feeling?” Rarity asked.

“Like I just got hit in the face with a tornado.” Sunset replied dryly, rubbing her head, “What happened? Where are the others!?”

Ditzy raised a paw, and with surprising strength forced Sunset to lay back down. “Calm, kid, calm. Breathe in, breathe out. Everyone is alive, at least last I saw of them. When Hurricane hit you all with that final attack, it literally tossed all of you into the sky like a bunch of scattered twigs. I saw Rainbow Dash catch Fluttershy and Applejack caught Clover and Nocturn-”

“Who?” Sunset asked.

“Dark guy, missing an arm.”

“Oh, him. On our side, I assume?”

“Second Division, so yes. Anyway, that bunch flew off somewhere north.” Ditzy said, “They didn’t have much choice. That tornado remained active, chasing them, and they only escaped by flying as fast as they could to get out of there. My guess is they’re hiding out around the noble house residences in that area.”

“We... we have to go find them!” Sunset said, trying to get up, but Ditzy, despite being a five pound cat, held her down like an adult holding down a toddler.

“We’re not going anywhere yet. I managed to grab you and Rarity, but I lost track of Pinkie Pie, or rather her crazy double.” said Ditzy with a frustrated sigh, “I don’t know if she’s been captured or not. Right now you’re still too injured to jump up and run, and Hokori needs to recover after the beating she took in that fight.”

“Hokori...” Sunset looked to her right, finding her Zanpaktou tucked against her side. The blade was back in its sealed state, sheathed. Sunset touched the Zanpaktou, closing her eyes and focusing her senses upon it. She felt Hokori’s spirit, like a flickering bonfire. Intact, but drained. Hokori had given her all in that fight, and needed a bit of time to recover. Sunset took a deep, deep breath and tried to center her thoughts.

“Okay... okay. So, we’re separated from the others. Pinkie Pie is missing. We’re stuck deep in enemy territory, wounded, and the deadline for Celestia and Luna’s execution is getting closer by the second. To top it all off, we couldn’t defeat even one Captain, using everything we had. So, not a good day for us.”

“Don’t sell yourselves too short.” said Ditzy, “You fought Hurricane to a standstill, forcing one of Soul Society’s most powerful Captains to use his Bankai to be able to deal with you. A few weeks ago you girls couldn’t have scratched him even without his Shikai, and you managed to actually wound him. That’s a far cry from your run in with Platinum.”

Sunset frowned, the pains from every cut, bruise, and bone fracture in her body making her dizzy as she lay down. “Doesn’t feel much different. That power... Bankai... I didn’t realize just how much of a difference it would make.”

“It was rather overbearing, wasn’t it?” said Rarity, looking no more happy about the situation than Sunset. “It feels like we’ve taken a step forward, only to have, if you pardon the inelegant phrasing, a baseball bat smack us upside the head.”

Ditzy chuckled, albeit without much humor, “Discy and I both tried to warn you. Bankai is not to be trifled with. It is the ultimate form of the Zanpaktou, usually only achievable by the most talented of Soul Reapers. Every single Soul Reaper who has achieved it has inevitably had their names etched into the history of the Soul Society. There is no greater power a Soul Reaper can aspire to. To even survive having faced a Captain using that power is an achievement and goes to show how hard you girls trained before coming here.”

“But what good does that do us now!?” shouted Sunset, wincing in pain as she tried to sit up again. “We’re still... not strong enough.”

“That’s only half-true.” said Ditzy, and at Sunset and Rarity both giving her questioning looks, the cat smiled. “Currently, yes, none of you could face a Bankai and win. But in the case of Rarity and your other human friends, Sunset, they each have the potential to become that strong, and possible very soon.”

“What do you mean?” asked Rarity, “Are you suggesting more training like before?”

“No. At this point you’ve taken your Fullbrings as far as you can via training. In order to complete your Fullbrings, each of you girls will need, hmm, how to put it? The right emotional pressure. You’ll only fully evolve your Fullbring once you reach a certain mental and emotional epiphany about yourselves.”

Rarity raised and eyebrow skeptically, “Meaning?”

Ditzy shrugged her little cat shoulders, “Meaning exactly that. Your Fullbring isn’t complete because there’s something within yourself, on an emotional level, that’s holding back its completion. Only you can discover what that is, and overcome that emotional barrier. The downside is that there’s no way of knowing what that will be or how you’ll come to discover it. The upside is that it means it's entirely possible that, under the right conditions, any of you girls might evolve at any time, including during this whole fiasco.”

“I... see.” Rarity said, putting a finger to rub at her chin and looking contemplative. Meanwhile Sunset glanced at Hokori.

“Well, that’s good news for my friends, but I’m not a Fullbringer, and it's just been made painfully clear that I can’t beat a Bankai with my Shikai, no matter how hard I try. I hit Hurricane with everything me and Hokori had, and it just wasn’t enough.”

“That’s only natural.” said Ditzy, neither harsh nor comforting, but just stating a fact. “A Shikai can almost never match a Bankai, unless the power of the Shikai is very specifically suited to overcoming the Bankai’s abilities, or if the Soul Reaper in question has such overwhelming reiatsu that their Shikai may as well be a Bankai. But the only Soul Reapers even close to that level are the Captain Commander himself, and Sweet Cider.” Ditzy winced, and it was then that Sunset noticed that the cat had several bandages on herself, and looked rather wounded.

“So...” Sunset thought about that for a moment, and could only come to one conclusion. “My only choice, if I want to save Celestia and Luna, is to learn Bankai.”

Ditzy grinned from one cat ear to the other, tail swishing happily. “Bingo. And hey, lucky you, it just so happens that in the event we needed to, Discy and I have a way to teach you Bankai. It won’t be easy, and it’ll take at a bare minimum three days to pull off, assuming it doesn’t outright kill you. But it can be done.”

Rarity gulped, “It's going to be as dangerous as the training you put us through, Miss Doo?”

“As bad or worse, but we’re out of alternatives.” Ditzy said, “And we couldn’t do this back in the living world because the equipment we need to pull it off wasn’t at Discy’s shop. Its instead still hidden inside a secret training facility that me and him built underneath the Twelfth Division headquarters.”

Sunset blinked, “Would the Twelfth Division Captain know about this place?”

“Not unless Starswirl is a lot better at finding things than Discord is at hiding them, which personally I’m not laying bets on.” said Ditzy, “Of course we still need to get to the Twelfth Division’s headquarters and sneak inside without getting caught, but hey, no risk, no reward, right?”

“What about the others? Fluttershy was hurt, and Pinkie Pie’s missing, and-” Sunset was cut off as Ditzy put a paw to her mouth.

“Your choices are to either get bogged down worrying about what you can’t change, or to focus on getting stronger so that you can, when the time comes, do something to help them. Which will it be?” Ditzy said in as serious a tone as Sunset had ever heard from her.

It wasn’t a particular hard choice. She was afraid for her friends, so much so that she had to force herself to breathe calmly at just thinking about them being scattered out there around the Seireitei, no doubt being hunted by the Soul Reapers at that very moment. For all Sunset knew any of her friends might be locked in a deadly battle, and there was nothing she could do to help them. The very notion caused an angry burn deep in her chest, both at her present helplessness and the fact that failing to defeat Hurricane put them in this mess in the first place. Yet there was only one path forward to start putting things right.

Sunset reached over, grabbed up Hokori, and forced herself to sit up, despite the pain.

“Then whatever it takes, I'm going to learn Bankai.”

Author's Notes:

Bit longer of a chapter than I originally thought it would be, but there was a lot to pack in here if I wanted to get things to where I needed them to be to set up the next segment of the Soul Society Arc. The chapter ran a little longer than I planned, but this was also this story's first reveal of what a Bankai looks like and just how potent that form of a Zanpaktou is, so a little extra wordage to get the point across felt right to me. And while I do enjoy writing the lager group battles, having the girls separated out for a bit will allow for some more character focused one-on-one fights coming up.

As always hope you guys are enjoying the story and thanks for reading. I'm grateful for any and all comments, questions, or critiques you might want to throw my way.

And before I close this out, I feel the need to direct folks attention to something quite well done. Its the Bleach Abridged series, by BlazingAzureCrow. Now the first episode isn't currently on his channel due to copyright BS, but here's a bordered version to check out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Pl9FTCD9-k&t=5s

Why am I sharing this? Because the serious is freakin' hilarious, that's why. That and any Bleach fans in the crowd ought to appreciate it if they haven't found it already, and anyone in the audience who isn't a Bleach fan might still find it funny and sort of a an interesting primer on the kind of universe I've dipped our favorite Equestria Girls into. You know, if you didn't feel like watching like several hundred episodes of anime, that is.

Anyway folks, 'till next time!

Episode 41: A Hollow Interlude

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Episode 41: A Hollow Interlude

The cold, empty winds of Hueco Mundo swept over the vast, pale expanse of Las Noches, the fortress ever looming as one of the only differences in the seemingly endless landscape of white dunes. Adagio had grown accustomed to the cold, finding a sort of twisted familiarity in it, like the great void of the deep ocean. She floated around in a pacing circle near the copse of dead trees where she’d first met Ember. Nearby, a pile of freshly killed lesser Hollows lay in a broken heap, her own handiwork. She’d dragged the smaller, weaker Hollows from the holding pens inside Grogar’s underground lair, using the excuse to her so called “master” that she wanted to take snacks with her while she spied upon Lord Torch and his horde. She wasn't certain if Grogar believed her ruse, but given how confident he seemed to be that any schemes she concocted against him would ultimately fail, she supposed it didn't matter if he believed her or not.

The bodies of the lesser Hollows had been a little difficult to drag all the way here, but she had her agreement with that trio of oafs, Dumbbell and company, and Adagio was far from through with them. The three male Arrancar were as skittish as they were simple, but they’d come to the meeting place, and had seemed surprised that Adagio had kept up her end of the deal. They now gorged themselves on the Hollows Adagio had provided, their munching and slurping reminding Adagio of a pack of starving dogs tearing into table scraps. It disgusted her, but some small part of her also pitied the trio. She had some experience with what it was like to starve for sustenance.

Still, pity did not translate to her being willing to give them a free meal. Floating around to face the three, she adopted a friendly if keen tone, one meant to remind them who was their benefactor.

“Enjoying the meal, boys?”

“Mmph.” Dumbbell mumbled something past a gory mouthful of Hollow, swallowed while pounding his chest to help get the bite down, and then said, “Yeah, at this point just about anything would taste good.” He eyed her with wariness. “So what’s the catch? You said something about wanting us to do you a favor for the food.”

“Glad you remember. Its quite simple, my eager and hungry friends.” Adagio found it all to easy to slip into the role of the charming and smooth talking persona she tended to use when seeking to get others to do as she wished. “I can continue to provide food, and all I want in exchange is for you three to perform minor tasks for me. You can start by finding for me a place within Las Noches that no one is using. A hideout, if you will.”

“Why’d you want a thing like that?” asked Hoops.peeking at her curiously past his overlong, brown bangs, “Ain’t you got a place with Grogar? Or Torch? Or whoever it is you’re working for?”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “Never you mind why I want it. Find a suitable place, and there will be more for you to eat, I promise. And while you’re at it, I’m woefully uninformed of who the major players are in Las Noches. I want to know who all the Espada are, their names at least, and what rivalries might exist between them.”

Dumbbell snorted, “Hell, lady, you want a damn brochure while we’re at it?”

At Adagio’s sharp look, he gulped and help up his hands defensively, “Okay, okay fine. We’ll find you your hideout, and get a list of the info you want. Just keep the food coming, and we’ll hook you up. Um, speaking of which, when can we expect another meal?”

“When you’ve delivered what I want.” Adagio said, flicking her tail, “Now finish up and get to work. I’m expecting Ember soon.”

“Yeah, fine then. C’mon guys, let’s go.”

“Whoa, lemme grab one more bite.” said Score as he snatched up a final piece of Hollow, the others doing the same as they hauled away one or two of the bodies for further consumption. Adagio watched them go, feeling hungry herself. The raw, gnawing feeling inside her was not only growing stronger lately, but it took more and more Hollows to satiate. Perhaps that was a good sign? A sign that she was growing stronger? She didn’t know, but Adagio was getting used to not knowing how her Hollow body worked.

It wasn’t long after Dumbbell and his companions departed that Ember arrived at the copse of dead trees, hopping over the dunes in bounding leaps, and looking a lot more energetic than she had when she’d first awoken after the battle with Garble. The sight actually left a faint feeling of relief and light heartedness in Adagio, a rare sensation since her arrival in Hueco Mundo. She wasn't sure she could really call Ember a friend yet, but thus far the spunky Arrancar girl was by far the closest to being one that Adagio had in this realm.

“Hey, I just saw the dweeb squad go by.” said Ember, jabbing a thumb in the direction Dumbbell and his fellows had gone, “You’re seriously giving those guys food?”

“I keep my bargains.” Adagio said, “They’ll be doing some things for me in return, so don’t think this is some charity case.”

“Fair enough.” Ember said with a quick shrug of her slim shoulders. She then turned and started walking away from Las Noches, “Anyway, follow me. Its about time we got to training you to become an Arrancar.”

“Good, but why are we heading away from the fortress?” asked Adagio as she floated after Ember, easily keeping pace as she swam through the air. Ember moved swiftly, in simple leaps that cleared entire dunes, but Adagio had little trouble floating along in the Arrancar's wake.

“Because to pull this off, we need to get you to somewhere we can have access to a lot of disposable Hollows, but not the low class wimps you've been dealing with so far. I'll be honest, I'm kind of working off of theory rather than practice, here.” said Ember, a weight entering her voice that sounded to Adagio like a nervous swim instructor about to toss a charge into the deep end of the pool. Ember’s face had a tenseness to it, eyes momentarily distant as she went on to say, “You see, here’s the skinny; I was born an Arrancar.”

Adagio looked at Ember with a curious brow flicking upward. “That’s possible?”

Ember smirked slightly, “What, you think we’ve got male and females just for the looks? Same way Soul Reapers can have children, so can Arrancar. Its just a lot more rare for us. The spiritual plumbing doesn't quite work like it should, so legit offspring are basically like one in a million chances.” She sighed, “It’s partly why dad can get a bit... weird, around me.”

“I think that ‘weird’ is actually called being protective.” said Adagio with a chuckle, floating up beside Ember and casting a questioning look at her. “So why tell me this? What does it have to do with my training?”

“Only that I need you to understand I didn’t do this the ‘normal’ way, I was born to it, so I’m kind of working off of theory and what my dad’s told me about how the process works.” Ember looked around, eyes scanning the horizon until she nodded, apparently having spotted something. Adagio certainly couldn’t tell what the Arrancar girl was looking for. All of Hueco Mundo looked the same to her, just more and more featureless white sand occasionally dotted with a few boulders or stray dead trees.

“So how does it work, normally?” asked Adagio.

“Well, short version is; you got to tear your mask off.” Ember pointed at Adagio’s face, which was essentially shaped just like her original siren form save for the fact that her features were somewhat more pronounced by a bony white Hollow mask that seamlessly blended in with the rest of her body. Well, that and the clawed hands instead of hooves. Really that part was a fairly useful addition, what with the benefits of having thumbs.

Adagio blinked, a sense of unease creeping into her as she ran a talon over the bony ridge of the mask covering her face. “I take it its not quite as simple as just ripping it off with brute force?”

“Well, no. I figure you’ve noticed by now with killing lesser Hollows that if you break their mask, that makes them dissipate entirely. The mask is like the core of our power. Destroying it, destroys the Hollow.”

The unease only grew worse inside Adagio, but she forced it back with a hardened glare, her voice turning icy. “So how do I do it without destroying myself?”

“The way I understand it is you’ve got to have a desire you want so badly that when faced with the void of destruction, your soul just refuses to fade, and instead forces itself to evolve past the need for a mask.” A helpless laugh escaped Ember like a puff of wind. “Problem is, I’ve only got a vague notion of how to get you to do that. I’ve actually watched it happen once before...” a frown crossed her features, “With Garble of all people.”

“That lout!? You watched him evolve into an Arrancar?” Adagio was incredulous, to say the least.

“Yeah, sure did. Bastard was cocky even as an Adjuchas, and just some bootlick to the former Fifth Espada before my dad took over the horde. He would go hunting other Adjuchas and Gillians, trying to evolve into a Vasto Lorde, the strongest type of Hollow there is without becoming an Arrancar. I used to follow him to the Forest of Menos just to watch him get beat around and laugh at his ass.” With a snort Ember kicked at the sands, shaking her head. “Much as I hate the jerk, I had to give him credit, he just wouldn’t quit, you know? He wanted to get stronger so damned badly, desired it so much, he threw himself at other Hollows, entire packs of them, over and over again. Didn’t seem to care how much it hurt, he just kept at it. He’s a damn pain in the ass moron, but you’ve got to respect that kind of determination. And the thing is... it worked.”

They arrived at a place among the dunes that contained a deep depression in the ground, a hole that led down into darkness. It was some sort of cave, although it didn’t look naturally formed to Adagio, but rather carved straight down into the desert as if by great force, like a huge fist had just punched a hole in the ground. The edges of the hole were melted, uneven stone, and as Adagio looked down into the dark she thought she could see distant ground, and a forest of towering stalagmites.

“Where are we?” Adagio asked.

“An entrance to the Forest of Menos. It's a massive underground network of caves that spreads beneath miles of Hueco Mundo. Gillian Hollows gather there, preying upon each other endlessly. There are also small tribes of Adjuchas Hollows that make their home down there, trying to stay out of sight of Las Noches.” Ember cracked her knuckles and stood on the edge of the hole. “Garble evolved into an Arrancar down there, after getting so close to death I was sure the dude was done for. Watched him rip his mask clean off, and rather than be destroyed, he transformed. So if you want to become an Arrancar yourself, I’m figuring you need to do the same thing.”

Adagio looked over at Ember, hesitant. “That’s it? That’s your plan, throw me at an army of Hollows and hope I don’t kill myself when I eventually get desperate enough to tear my mask off? This isn’t much better than staying with Grogar and dealing with his arena!”

“Hey, I never promised this would surefire work!” snapped Ember, “I just told you I’d show you how to evolve, and far as I know, this is the way to do it! I mean come on, if it worked for Garble are you seriously telling me you can’t do it?”

That actually stung Adagio’s pride rather deeply. Her opinion of Garble was about the same as the piles of trash she had to clean up after a hard day of work at the mall food court. She didn’t think Ember was exactly a master manipulator, but she’d certainly found the right button to push to get Adagio’s sense of ego riled up. Her eyes glowing yellow, and swishing her tail in angry swipes, she growled, “Alright, fine. How do we get down there?”

“Like this.” Ember said, and booted Adagio down the hole.

“Screeeeeewww yoooooouuu!” Adagio shouted as she fell, only to blink and remember at the last second that she could float. Coughing with embarrassment she slowed her fall until she gently landed on the stony cavern floor. A second later Ember, without even bothering to slow her fall, jumped down as well. At Ember’s raised eyebrow Adagio looked away, face flushing red.

“S-shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything.” Ember said with a smirk.

“No but you’re thinking it!”

“Am I now?”

“Augh, you’re as bad as Aria...” Adagio muttered, then she started to take stock of their surroundings. The stalagmites she’d seen from up above were joined by nearly as many hanging stalactites, each one the size of small skyscrapers. The cavern ceiling had to have been at least a hundred meters up, and stretched out around for well beyond Adagio’s field of view. While there was no source of light down here that she could see, everything seemed to be bathed in a pale, dull glow that didn’t have a clear origin. Then again, Hueco Mundo’s surface was much the same way, so Adagio didn’t feel much need to question that aspect of this strange realm.

“So now what?” she asked, and Ember grinned.

“Now? Now we go hunting.”

----------

Within the massive internal dome of Las Noches, at its very center, was its pinnacle tower, the core of the fortress’ immense structure. This tower expanded through the top of that hundreds of meters high dome to pierce into the black sky of Hueco Mundo, and it was near the apex of this tower that the grand throne chamber of the Espadas was located.

The throne hall was a fifty meter wide chamber, stretching the full length of the tower floor it was situated on. Pale blue carved stone formed a set of tiered thrones on either side of the chamber, four on the first tier, four more on a second tier, and finally two more thrones that rested upon the chamber’s two highest tiers, one just slightly below the massive white carved throne sitting upon the chamber’s highest point. Huge stone doors at one end of the hall stood yawning open as one by one a set of figures strode into the room.

The first in was a truly strange looking individual, a tall and disturbingly lanky framed man who was clad head to toe in a tight fitting white suit with unusually puffy, flared sleeves and white gloves. A tall mask covering a head that looked more like a metal bulb with small eye slits than a normal human head topped the man’s shoulders and he carried a thin looking blade of bone sheathed over his shoulder, the weapon's hilt like a human femur trapped within a miniature rib cage.

Behind this man was Squirk, sneering in his red, glowering face as he spat at the man ahead of him. “Move faster, Smooze! I want this damn meeting over with!”

The odd, masked fellow, Smooze, just spun around, walking backwards, and made a mocking ‘after you’ gesture with his gloved hands without so much as saying a word. Squirk snorted as he went past the Smooze, which tipped an invisible hat at Squirk before hopping up towards his own throne, taking a seat beside the irate Ninth Espada.

Next to enter the chamber was Grogar, the elder Espada glancing at his two lessers and giving them a knowing smirk. “Good evening gentleman.” Grogar said with mock politeness, “So pleasant to see you arriving ahead of your betters to bow your heads in greeting to our arrival.”

Smooze didn’t react beyond making a small, uncaring shrug, while Squirk literally steamed around his ears. “Well, some of us can make it up the stairs without getting winded, old goat.”

Grogar laughed in a dry, desiccated sound that echoed through the chamber. “You throw insults like a braying dog that knows it can only bark. Amusing, and ineffectual.”

A high pitched, feminine cackle entered the room alongside its owner, a rotund woman with a wide, froggish face marked by wart-like flecks of white bone growth. Like the other Arrancar she wore white, in the form of a thick blouse top and stretched out tights, with floppy black and white laced boots. None of it flattered her figure, but the woman walked with a bouncy step, as if filled with energy. Carrot red hair fell in a tangled mess around her head, and she raised her hand on the hilt of a iron handled sword that looked like someone had strapped a blade to the end of a fire poker. A prominent Hollow hole was placed right in the middle of her flabby gut, which rolled as she laughed.

“Gwhaahaa! All you boys fighting is just such a pretty picture. This is why none of you will amount to anything. Too busy playing slap-fight with words rather than doing real work. Well, maybe except for Grogy. You got a decent head on your shoulders, honeypot.”

Grogar visibly shuddered, not doing very well in hiding his revulsion as the woman traced thick fingers along his arm and blew him a kiss as she rather nimbly jumped up to her own throne and took a seat, crossing her legs.

“I thank you for the complement, Hydia, but perhaps we can refrain from the use of pet names? It gives... entirely the wrong impression concerning our relationship.”

“Hmm,” Hydia drummed her fingers on the arm of her throne, a look of pretend thoughtfulness crossing her features. “Nah. I think I like coming up with little names for you, Grogypoo. Maybe when you are strong enough to challenge my rank as Seventh Espada, we can negotiate other things I can call you.”

“A day that cannot come soon enough.” Grogar silently grumbled as he took his own throne on Hydia’s side of the chamber, filling out the last of the lowest tier thrones.

The next to Espada entered the chamber at the same time, both looking as if they were trying to outdo the other in terms of holding their head high and shoulder past the other. One was Torch, his muscular frame towering over his compatriot. While Torch’s number ‘5’ Espada tattoo was prominently displayed on his chest, the other man seemed to almost self consciously try to hide the ‘6’ etched across the flesh surrounding his left eye, using the long bangs of his thick brown hair to try to obscure it as he glared with sharp orange eyes at Torch. This man had a youthful appearance about him, with sharp aquiline features and a hawkish nose, which had an angular, almost beak-like ridge of white Hollow bone running up is length. He was lean and muscular, decently tall but nowhere near Torch’s mass, with golden tanned skin. While Torch wore his massive axe across his back, the younger looking man beside him carried a gladius styled sword at his right hip, indicating a left handed nature. He wore a open, white jacket and loose pants, flared at the bottom, and like Torch this man seemed to favor gold bangles and anklets, along with a wide golden torc that partially covered the Hollow hole in his sternum.

Hydia smiled widely at the two, waving, “Hiiii Torch! Hiiii Guto. Didn’t kill each other on the way up, eh?”

Torch bellowed out a laugh from his gut, slapping the man beside him on the shoulder. “Bwhaahaa! Not today. Guto was being super polite, weren’t you?”

Guto, the Sixth Espada, sucked in a deep breath and let it out in a slow hiss. “We have more pressing concerns than your posturing. Lord Tirek would not have called this meeting without good reason, and I suspect it has to do with your failures with the Quincy.”

“Who’s failures, exactly?” came the cold tone of Catrina as the Third Espada glided into the chamber with steps that rolled her hips seductively, but only a fool would look anywhere other than her frozen, angry eyes as she brushed past Guto. “I would be very careful before you start making such claims, boy. My tolerance for buffons is stretched thin of late.”

Guto didn’t back down from Catrina’s deathly stare, his own eyes flaring. “What else would you call your attack upon the Quincy? From what I understand you failed to do more than kill a handful of their barely trained pups, and tucked tail to run the moment their Sternritter arrived.”

Torch snorted, flames flickering out of his nostrils, “Careful there Guto. Weren’t the Sternritters we retreated from, but their King. I’ll break the bones of Sternritter all day and glory in the battle, but their King isn’t for us to face.”

A dismissive frown crossed Guto’s face as he shook his head and with a flickering, swift movement using Sonido he appeared at his throne and sat down. “If we were willing to fight instead of ‘retreating’ every time we felt outmatched maybe we could end this eternal purgatory of a stalemate.”

“Only the young and foolish fight without a guarantee of victory.” said Catrina as she took to her own throne with a graceful Sonido that left her afterimage doing the talking until she was seated, “But I can’t expect you to understand the finer strategies of warfare.”

“Aww leave off him Catrina.” said Torch as he took his own thrown, mumbling as he settled his bulk into it. “Grr, damn thing is still too small. Prefer my own throne to this dinky chair.”

Hydia let out a sigh, “And once again we’re short our Number Four. Does that guy think these meetings are optional or what? Catrina did you see that walking brick wall coming up the stairs?”

Catrina wrinkled her nose in faint disgust as she looked at Hydia, saying, “I did not. I presume the Fourth Espada will do as he usually does, and forgoes participating in... anything.”

Guto growled, “Why does Lord Tirek tolerate such disrespect?”

“Because, like all things in Hueco Mundo, it is not a matter of respect but a matter of power, and the Fourth Espada possesses power sufficient to hold his own counsel should he so choose.”

The voice that spoke was a deep, resonant, and potently feminine voice. It belonged to a tall, statuesque woman who strode into the throne chamber with all the presence of a Queen attending her court. Sheer white fabric formed an elegant dress that at once covered much of her onyx black body, yet somehow tantalized the imagination with the curves hidden beneath. Knee high black boots clicked off the stone floor with pointed steps. Eyes the color of shining jade looked upon the room with smokey pleasure as all heads turned towards her. Near perfect features and full lips smiled in poisonous promise. A single, jagged horn of white bone rose from a head of long, silky smooth turquoise hair. The number ‘2’ was prominently etched in pure white at the base of the woman’s throat, a reminder to all of her position and power as she stepped upon the very air as if there were stairs leading to her high throne, just shy of the tallest in the chamber.

At her left hip was a long, steeply curved blade encased in a obsidian black sheath, its web-shaped hilt carved from green emerald and its hilt wrapped in alternating silk of black and white. Her slim, dark fingers clasped the edges of her throne’s arms and she looked down upon the other Espada.

“Most off all, it is Lord Tirek’s will to allow or disallow our fourth member’s absentee nature, and it is not for any of you to dare question his judgment. Is that understood?”

The other Espada all exchanged looks, some nervous, others sullen, with Guto gulping and nodding his head in stiff acknowledgment. “Of course, Lady Chrysalis. I was only incensed by the seeming disrespect shown to our Lord, not questioning his decision to allow the Fourth’s absence from these meetings.”

Chrysalis waved a hand in a gesture as if brushing away a gant, “Consider the matter forgiven, but I would suggest not bringing the subject up in Lord Tirek’s presence. Now, perhaps we can enjoy some silence until he arrives?”

There was no objection from among the other Espada, although Catrina shot sidelong looks towards Chrysalis that were as venomous as they were jealous. It wasn’t hard to see why. As much as Catrina was a vision of beauty, putting her next to Chrysalis was like placing a well crafted by essentially basic comic book drawing beside an original Picasso. Minutes stretched by silently as the Espada waited their ruler. Smooze twiddled his thumbs, and Squirk silently smoldered, while Hydia continued to drum her fingers on one of her throne’s arms. Grogar glanced at his fellows with calculating eyes, while Torch started to nod off. Guto sullenly sat, arms crossed and glaring, while Catrina continued to try to hide dagger look towards Chrysalis, who presided over the chamber with silent patience.

Then footsteps were heard approaching the chamber, echoing loudly. All eyes turned towards the doors, each Espada save Chrysalis unconsciously holding their breath for a moment. For a few it might have been a reflexive action of reverence, but for most, it as fueled by simple, primal fear of the man entering the throne chamber.

Power preceded him like a invisible tidal wave, an aura of such crushingly potent reiatsu that even the most prideful or stoic among the gathered Espada couldn’t remain fully composed, sweat breaking out on more than a few brows. Every step the man took was purposeful and radiated with strength. Every swing of his massive, thickly muscled arms, red as scarlet blood, carried a sense of unmatched prowess.

He was not as large as Torch, but somehow the man still made the Fifth Espada seem small by simple gravity of presence. He wore no shirt, leaving his thick red chest bare. An unusually small Hollow Hole existed right above where his heart would be, like a black pit. He wore wide, loose white pants tucked into thick and heavy looking black leather boots. A black leather strap circled his frame, holding a giant red leather scabbard upon his back that contained a broad bladed claymore whose hilt was forged from gold and whose cross guard was shaped like curved bull horns, a shape that were mirrored by the bone white horns curling from his large, thick brow, stemming from a crest of bone shaped like a jagged crown. His strong features showed a prominent chin with a full and stark white beard, which matched the large waves of white hair that fell down his back like a lion’s mane. Deep sunken eyes were solid black save for bright golden iris that looked around him with amused confidence. The number ‘1’ was etched in black in on the back of both of his hands, just above silver bangles he wore around his wrists.

Tirek did as Chrysalis had, seeming to walk on air through sheer weight of his power, and climbed above even her to the tallest of the chamber’s thrones, a massive and tall backed chair of pure white carved marble. The undisputed Primera Espada took his throne as if born to sit it, his aura of power washing over his subjects with the harshest and most solidly real of reminders that while the other Espada were Lords among Hollows... Hueco Mundo had but one King.

One by one each head of the other Espada bowed to Tirek, whether reluctantly or not. Even Chrysalis, who bowed her head last, still bowed, through she kept her lidded eyes focused on the man who sat above her.

After a moment, Tirek raised a hand. His voice was gravely and filled with deep, baritone power. “Enough. We have business to deal with. Catrina, Torch, your task to assault the Quincy-” Tirek spat the word as if it were foul tasting, “-went as I predicted. You performed adequately, though your failure to inflict more damage was displeasing.”

As if directing a blade Tirek’s reiatsu sharpened, crushing down on both Catrina and Torch with invisible, but horrifically potent force. Both Espada choked and gasped, Torch reflexively growling while Catrina taking deep breaths and hastily began to speak.

“I-It is understandable, L-Lord Tirek that perhaps you might... might wish we had done more, but with the Quincy King arriving much faster than any of us could have anticipated we had no choice but to fall back.” The woman’s feline features trembled, but she maintained a small sense of dignity as she held her back straight and forced her voice to calm. “I know well that you have decreed that none save you may cross blades with the Quincy’s self-proclaimed ‘King’. Neither I nor Torch would ever dream of going against your will, my Lord. The Quincy’s pathetic ruler is for you to crush, when you will, how you will.”

As if with the snap of his fingers Tirek’s sharpened spiritual pressure fell off of Catrina and Torch, both Espada breathing easier as Tirek settled back in his throne and gave an amused grunt. “Always the silver tongue, Catrina. Yet you speak truly.” His golden eyes burned with hatred, unmasked and unmitigated. “Sombra is mine to destroy. Hmph, none of you, save perhaps my lovely Chrysalis, might match him in battle. Well enough you fled when he arrived, yet I would have preferred more Quincy blood be spilled.”

Chrysalis, a inviting if pointedly thin smile crossing her features, nodded to Tirek and said, “Our ends were achieved nonetheless, my Lord. As you have planned the Quincy have been provoked in a manner they never have before. Thanks to Lord Squirk’s unique powers over Garganta we have struck at the heart of the Quincy, at their children, and like foolish parents the rest of the Quincy shall be howling for our blood. Sombra will have no choice but to launch a retaliatory attack upon us, a move we shall be more than prepared for. Soon, much more Quincy blood shall spill, fresh upon the sands of Hueco Mundo.”

Triek smiled in a flash of white teeth, letting loose a chuckle heavy with pleased bloodlust. “As I have planned, yes. That is why I have called all of you here. The Quincy shall come, sooner or later, and our strategy must be planned. When Sombra and his forces arrive, it shall be right into our trap.”

Tirek raised a hand and made a crushing gesture, closing it into a fist. “A trap that will crush the life from our enemies and leave their souls for us to dine upon. Soon, the stalemate that's kept us locked in this eternal war shall come to an end, and before long the Quincy and Soul Reapers both be nothing more than memory.”

----------

The deep claw marks torn through the stone ground and the blasted chunks that were the remains of several stalagmites were clear enough signs of recent battle, even without the fresh stink of blood and echoes of Hollow spirit energy hanging in the air. Adagio wrinkled her nose at the smell, tracing a talon over some of the claw marks gouged in the floor beneath her. The marks were far too large to have been made by a lesser Hollow, and what little she’d seen of Gillian-class Hollows didn’t make her think they had made these marks either.

“Probably a large Adjuchas-class.” said Ember, peering over Adagio’s shoulder, her Zanpaktou drawn and lightly twirling in one hand. Ember’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Definitely larger than normal.”

Adagio looked at her own body, not much larger than her original siren form, and glanced questioningly at Ember. “I’m Adjuchas-class and I'm not particularly large. Just how big are we supposed to get?”

“Huh? Oh, it varies a lot between individuals I guess. You’re not likely to get any bigger than you are now, but other Adjuchas’ can get nearly as tall as Gillians. It's not an indicator of power, just a random factor of size. Don’t let it get to you.”

A small vein popped up onto Adagio’s forehead as she snorted and looked away, “Who’s letting it get to them? I prefer my present size, thank you very much. So, even though Adjuchas can get large, it doesn’t mean they’re stronger than us.”

“Nah, although I wouldn’t let one smack you around to find out. Mass is mass. C’mon, this battle didn’t happen too long ago. The Adjuchas who fought here is probably not too far away.” Ember’s lips quirked in a brief frown, “Although it is weird. Adjuchas rarely go around hunting solo. This one should’ve been part of a tribe.”

Adagio looked around the smashed stalagmites, also noting that one stalactite had been ripped free from the ceiling and had crashed into the ground not far away. “Couldn’t our oversized Adjuchas just be a loner type?”

“You don’t get it, the Forest of Menos is one of most dangerous places in Hueco Mundo to live because of all the Gillians, who will instinctively gang up on other Hollows. I don’t care how badass an Adjuchas you are, you get a three or four dozen Gillians on your ass, and you're in trouble.” Ember grinned, “Kind of the point of bringing you here, because you won’t get a more desperate and dangerous fight to train in. But that’s also why the Adjuchas who do make their home here always travel in packs. A loner wouldn’t last long.”

“Oh, but we’re okay because you’re here?” Adagio asked with a incredulous roll of her eyes, to which Ember’s grin transmuted to a smirk as she bounced her Zanpaktou off her shoulder.

“Duh, I’m an Arrancar. I’m on a totally different level. I mean, okay sure I wouldn't want to take on a whole horde of Gillians by myself, but I can hang tight against a dozen of the big bastards. And hey, worse comes to worse, I can bail pretty fast.”

“How reassuring.” Adagio deadpanned and Ember shrugged.

“Hey, I said I’d help you, and you’re pretty cool and all, but I’m not dying down here for your fishy ass. I’ll try to pull you out of the frying pan if things get too hot, but there comes a point where it's every Hollow for themselves. Just the law of the jungle, Adagio.”

“Oh, believe me I’m all too familiar with the sentiment.” Adagio muttered and sniffed the air, “So if this lone Adjuchas is stirring up trouble, then they’ll probably attract a lot of Gillians as well. Perhaps following their trail would net us what we’re after.”

“Not the worst idea. Beats wandering aimlessly, and hey, even if we don’t find any Gillians, this Adjuchas might be a good target for you.” Ember closed her eyes, and Adagio could tell the Arrancar was opening up her Hollow spirit sense, her ‘Pesquisas’. Having practiced its use herself Adagio did the same, focusing inwardly upon herself and touching upon the core of her Hollow power. Letting that power out in a small, invisible sonar-like wave, Adagio picked up on the large traces of Hollow energy left by the Adjuchas... and something else.

“Ember, do you feel that?” she asked, eyes snapping open.

“Yeah, that’s weird.” Ember said, frowning deeper than before. “That... feels like an Arrancar. But not quite. It's like the energy is all scrambled and screwy.”

“Whatever it is, we can follow it. Let’s go.” Adagio said, swishing her tail and swimming through the air in the direction of the Hollow energies. The trail was strong, and easy to follow through the thick forest of towering stalagmites. Ember kept pace with Adagio without trouble, making long, casual leaps. The sight caused a question to pop into Adagio’s head.

“Say, Ember, when I was in the human world I’ve seen Hollows that can fly, and when you fought Garble both of you could stand on the air. Why can’t you do that here?”

“Oh, we can.” said Ember, momentarily halting herself in mid-air, feet skidding along empty space until she stopped. “It’s just harder to do it here. Takes a bit more skill and energy to pull it off. Jumping is way easier and more comfortable than trying to walk on the air all the time. Your flight thing is weirder and more rare an ability.”

“I see.” Adagio thought about that for a moment, then nodded, “Good.”

“We’re getting close.” Ember pointed ahead, where Adagio could hear the increasingly loud echos of a fight. The dark cavern ahead lit up with occasional flashes of red light, and the howling of several Hollows could be heard, droning and hungry. These reverberating howls were joined by the periodic, booming bark of a roar, as if from the throat of some huge beast. And, strangely, this was all punctuated by some rather jovially crazy laughter.

Through her Pesquisa senses Adagio could start to pick up on multiple Hollows getting closer, directly ahead. Not just a few Gillians, or even a few dozen. Adagio took a deep breath, hands clenching, teeth tightly pressed, “Ember, are you sensing the same thing I am?”

The Arrancar’s eyes were closed as she focused on her senses, having no trouble avoiding passing stalagmites during her flying leaps. “Yeah. Feels like a shit ton of them.”

“Is that the official, technical term?”

“Yes, we measure things in ‘shit tons’ which are smaller than a ‘fuck ton’ but more than an ‘ass ton’. We call it the ‘Hollow Metric’. And I’d says there’s at least one metric shit ton of Gillians up ahead. At least forty, give or take. Also feels like our mysterious Adjuchas and not-Arrancar are there too, having a real party.”

It didn’t take more than half a minute to reach the battle site. The cavern went into a slight rise, only to rapidly drop off to a sheer cliff about fifty meters deep, where an entire extra cavern stretched out in all directions in an underground valley a good half mile wide and running off beyond sight to the right and left. Within this valley a huge mass of Gillians surrounded their prey, the giant near hundred foot tall Hollows smashing into each other in a mob to try and get at their targets.

The targets in question were difficult to spot at first among the mass of collossal Gillians, but as Adagio and Ember reached the edge of the cliff and peered over the side to observe the fight, they both spotted the ones the Gillians were trying, and thus far failing, to devour.

One had to be the Adjuchas-class Hollow who’d made the huge claw markings from earlier. It was just as tall as the Gillians surrounding it, perhaps even a bit taller if it stood fully erect instead of hunched over. Bright red scales covered most of the Adjuchas Hollow’s saurian body, melded with wide, bony armored Hollow plates across its back, legs, arms, and tail. Small spines sprouted from around the Hollow mask, and flowed along the ridge of the creature’s spine and poked out from its elbows. A few patches of pale white feathers tinged around the edges in red crested the back of the Adjuchas-class Hollow’s skull, the fringes of its arms,and the tip of its long and powerful tail. It looked to Adagio’s eyes a lot like a extremely thick muscled version of those dinosaurs with the foot claws from those movies Sonata liked so much. Riptors? Reptars? Something like that. Adagio usually checked her mind out the door when Sonata put on movies. Regardless, this particular specimen was like a red scaled version of one of those dinosaurs, only one that had hit the gym one too many times. And a hundred feet tall. Covered in bone armor. With a massive Hollow’s skull mask covering its face save for the holes to expose its angry yellow eyes and mouth filled with saber-like fangs.

The Gillians kept trying to rush this massive Adjuchas, attempting to sink their teeth into it with lunges of their massive black cloaked bodies. The huge dinosaur Adjuchas kept wheeling about like an expert boxer, never staying still, shifting on its giant clawed feet as it lashed out with every limb to keep the horde at bay. Talons or fangs, even its huge whip of a tail, all bashed and slashed into Gillian flesh to keep the Hollows from overwhelming the Adjuchas, dark red Hollow blood spilling all over the stones. Yet every time a Gillain fell back, injured, or dropped dead from a fatal wound, there was another taking its place.

The only thing keeping the Adjuchas from being entirely swarmed, despite its ferocious defense, was the other Hollow riding on the Adjuchas’ back. He was whooping and laughing like a madman, in a voice that Adagio vaguely remembered.

“Whoooyeeah! You bitches want more! Come get more! You ain’t got nothing on us, right Gaw!?”

The Adjuchas barked a roar that Adagio noticed somewhat sounded like the name the other Hollow gave it. As for his name, Adagio didn’t know it, but she remembered him. He looked much the same as the brief encounter she’d had with him back when he’d interrupted her and Sunset’s conversation in the human world, what felt like forever ago. The half-Arrancar still had a somewhat shark-like skull mask covering his head, with only crazy, piercing blue eyes and the hint of a human face in the shadowed mouth of the mask. He still wore white pants and a vest, though vastly more torn than before, and he carried his curved, shark-tooth blade in his right hand, waving it like a crazed cavalryman astride his mount... if said mount was a gargantuan Hollow dinosaur.

The reason the Gillians hadn’t overwhelmed either, aside from the Adjuchas’ viscous fighting skills, was that the half-Arrancar was firing off crimson Cero blasts into the mob at random, the red beams cutting into any Gillian that the Adjuchas failed to keep back.

“Wow,” said Ember, “That’s got to be the biggest Adjuchas I’ve seen. She’s massive!”

“She? How can you tell? Ugh, don’t tell me you can see that kind of detail from here.” Adagio said, grimacing.

Ember guffawed, “What? No. It's just a scent thing. You can’t tell?”

“Not at all.” Adagio shook her head, “And not important. I’m more concerned with that male.”

“Really? Doesn’t strike me as your type.”

“Not what I mean! I recognize him. I encountered him in the living world. Figured he’d be dead by now.” Adagio said as a trio of Gillians came in behind the Adjuchas, one getting blown away by a Cero to the face from the half-Arrancar, but the other two managed to sink their teeth into the Adjuchas’ tail, causing a shrieking bark of pain from the dinosaur-like Hollow as it, she, turned around and started to tear into her tormentors. However this also took her attention from other Gillians, who started to swarm in from the other side.

“Well, looks like he’s going to be dead soon, along with his overgrown dino buddy.” said Ember, shrugging, “Oh well, we can clean up the Gillians once they’re out of the picture- Hey, Adagio, where are you going!?”

As Adagio floated up and then over the cliff edge, flying for the battle below, she called over her shoulder, “Just trust me and follow my lead. I know what I’m doing.”

At least she sincerely hoped she knew what she was doing. Adagio was trusting her own instincts in this case, an instinct for opportunity. While she was here to train to become an Arrancar and certainly hadn’t lost focus on that goal, she wasn’t about to pass up a golden chance at obtaining an entirely different kind of power; allies. That’s what she was doing with those three oafish bullies back in Las Noches, and this looked like an opening to do the same here. If she was going to rise in prominence and power among the Hollows she needed more than raw strength, she’d need capable subordinates.

As Sunset Shimmer might say... let’s go make some friends. Adagio thought with not a little bit of sarcastic irony as she flew downward into the fray and let the siren gem floating in the center of her chest’s Hollow hole charge up with a deadly scarlet light.

Her discharged Cero cut a destructive crimson swath through the air, ripping right through the pointed skull mask of one of the three Gillians that had charged Gaw’s blind side. Much as she’d hoped for Ember saw what Adagio was doing and played along, flashing down with the blurring high speed power of a Sonido, appearing in front of the mask of one of the two surviving Gillians and thrusting her sword right between its eyes. Ember then, with a feral snarl, tore her blade upward to cleave the Gillian’s skull in half, causing the Hollow to stumble and fall in its tracks.

The third Gillian still continued on, heedless of its comrades’ demise, and brought out its thin, bone white hands from the folds of its massive cloak to grasp at Gaw’s back and try to bite through one of the Adjuchas’ thick bone plates. Gaw, having used both her razor sharp maw and equally devastating claws to rend apart the Gillians that had bit her tail now swung about with a hate filled look and equally menacing growl. Her own jaw opened wide to snap around the neck of the Gillian on her back, crushing down with punishing force as she tore the Gillian off of her and forcefully slammed it to the ground. The Gillian, before it could rise, found a massively clawed foot, with huge scythe-like talons, smashing its face and Hollow mask to pieces.

“Whoa!” shouted the half-Arrancar, pointing at Adagio and Ember, “Where in the name of Tirek’s left nutsack did you girls come from!?”

“Nevermind that.” snapped Adagio, “Questions can come after there’s no more... wait, left what!?”

Further talk was forestalled by the fact that the Gillians, sensing fresh prey, now redoubled their attacks, rushing in from all sides. Adagio found one snapping its massive jaws right for her, which she nimbly dodged by grabbing its pointed nose and swinging herself up onto the Gillian’s head. Once there she fired a Cero blast straight down, collapsing the Gillian’s skull. Any satisfaction she might have felt was swallowed up by adrenaline, panic, and a unflattering string of curses as multiple other Gillians opened their maws wide, howling as they belched forth a barrage of their own Ceros. Adagio flew about in a evasive series of rolls and dives, ending up flying along the ground as Ceros tore through the stone right behind her.

Ember flitted among the Gillians at high speed, barely slowing long enough to make powerful slashes that tore through Gillian maks like a hyperactive hummingbird with a chainsaw. Adagio was envious of the speed, as she was quickly getting boxed in by the Gillians unleashing rapid fire Cero blasts around her, with each passing second leaving her with less space to maneuver.

Fortunately neither the half-Arrancar or his gargantuan ally, Gaw, were idle. The whooping madman jumped off of Gaw, using her head like a springboard, which elicited an annoyed growl from the Adjuchas Hollow. Heedless of his ally’s irritation the half-Arrancar latched onto the nearest Gillian’s face, digging his sword into its left jawbone and then yanked it to the left just as it was discharging a Cero. The Gillian spun around with a howl of pain as its crimson beam tore through the lines of its comrades instead, which caused them all to stagger in confusion... confusion that the massive Gaw took full advantage off.

Swift for something her size, the reptilian Adjuchas jumped full body into the group of staggered Gillians, landing right atop one unfortunate Gillian that was crushed to the ground under Gaw’s massive weight and ripping talons. Barking a roar filled with unrestrained bloodlust, the Adjuchas then turned into a whirling blender of flashing claws, fang, and tail, tearing into the Gillians around her with ferocious abandon. The Gillians responded with equal, single-minded fury, heedless of injury as they rushed Gaw with gnashing teeth, many of them firing point-blank Cero blasts into the Adjuchas.

The thick armor bone-plates covering much of her body helped Gaw weather the blasts exploding over her, but she still let out a shriek of equal parts pain and rage, blood pouring from freshly blasted wounds. For all her vicious and brutal fighting, Gaw was still surrounded and dealing with dozens of foes, each one near her size and mindlessly focused on attacking her regardless of how much she tore into them. The wounds were starting to mount, visibly slowing the huge Adjuchas down.

Slashing into the horde of Gillians, the half-Arrancar paused between driving his sword into the giant Hollows to shout the equivalent of back-seat fighting tips to his dinosaur-like comrade. “Gaw, one coming in on your left! No! My left! Duck! Now to the right! Your right this time, not mine! Whoa, look out, that dude’s biting the shit out of your leg! Bite him in the face!”

Adagio had never seen a hundred foot tall dinosaur Hollow give a death glare before, but now she had, as Gaw provided her half-Arrancar companion with what could only be described as murder incarnate distilled into a single glare. Then Gaw’s entire body began to gleam with baleful light a darker shade of red than her scales. She’d stopped moving for a moment, and the Gillians tried to take advantage of this, many of them piling atop her, biting and howling as the did so. For a moment Adagio was certain the Adjuchas was finished, but a second later Gaw’s distinctive roar split the air, and multiple spikes of crimson energy speared upwards across her body. The dark scarlet spikes of energy seemed to jut out from her small spines, with larger spikes also sprouting from along her spine, elbows, and the tip of her tail. Each spike pierced right through the Gillians trying to pile onto her, and like a dog shaking off water Gaw began to thrash about wildly. The energy spikes covering her body shredded the Gillians on her, killing at least half a dozen in a shower of gore that sent so much blood spraying into the air that for a second or two it all but rained crimson.

This seemed to make the other Gillians hesitate, even in their seeming mindless state. However the attack also seemed to drain Gaw, the energy spikes not lasting very long and vanishing moments later, leaving the Adjuchas sagging and breathing heavily. Sensing the weakness, the remaining Gillians, perhaps two dozen, started to surge forward again, but Adagio and Ember rushed into the opening Gaw’s attack had created.

Side by side, Ember and Adagio both charged up Cero attacks, the intense crimson beams discharging simultaneously to smash through the center of the Gillian line, destroying several. The Gillians responded in kind, letting loose streams of energy that Adagio and Ember had to swiftly dodge. With the Gillian numbers reduced there was more room to maneuver, and Adagio had an easier time closing the distance while weaving between Cero blasts. By now her blood was pounding and her senses sharpened to what felt like painful heights of awareness as she reached the Gillians and tore headlong into the face of the first one she reached. Her talons bit deeply into the bone-like substance of the Gillians mask, and Adagio lost herself for a moment in the simple Hollow instinct to feed as she bit and ripped into the Gillian’s flesh.

Nearby Ember and the half-Hollow were both using their swords to cleave into other Gillians, slowly forcing the ever dwindling line of massive Hollows to thin out even more.

Finally, whether by some unspoken communication or by simple instinct strong enough to penetrate even the Gillians’ simple minds, the dozen or so surviving Hollows started to retreat. They took lumbering steps back, and with frustrated and hungry howls, started to turn and flee.

Watching the Gillians begin to run in panic, it was like it flipped a switch deep inside Adagio’s brain. A primitive, basic instinctual hunger that burned hotly through her body and made her jaws salivate. A deep growl issued forth from her mouth, and she realized she wasn’t the only one. Ember, the half-Arrancar, both were grinning like feral wolves scenting blood. Gaw reared up to her full, impressive height, and let out a piercing roar, eyes fixated on their fleeing foes... no, not foes; prey.

A part of Adagio was disgusted and repulsed by this feeling, but she knew it well at this point. She’d felt it plenty of times while stuck fighting for her life in Grogar’s arena. She didn’t fight it, instead embracing this part of herself, this part that was essential to being a Hollow. Letting the lust for the hunt wash over her, Adagio let her voice ring out in a haunting song, trumpeting the hunt, and to her surprise her voice was joined by whooping calls from her allies, even the huge saurian Adjuchas, as they all rushed after the fleeing Gillians.

Slow and lumbering in their size the Gillians weren’t able to flee far, and in moments Adagio found herself tearing into the soft folds of dark fabric and flesh along the body of one Gillian. Its howl of pain just lit her blood further on fire, making her savage the Hollow even more as she slashed and bit, feeling a unearthly satisfaction at the potent taste of blood filling her mouth.

Ember was no less rabid, hacking with her blade with exulting laughter exploding from her mouth as she literally danced through the Gillians while carving great chunks from them. The half-Arrancar was right behind her, cackling wildly as he smashed one Gillian’s face hard enough to send it stumbling into another of its kin, then proceeded to Cero blast both at once with a barely controlled beam.

Gaw got the last kill, slashing through several other Gillians like a monolithic, living cuisinart before leaping onto the back of the last fleeing Gillian. Roaring with such volume that the walls of the deep cavern valley shook with it, Gaw grasped with heavily muscled claws to wrap around the final Gillian’s upper jaw, and with what looked to Adagio to be unusually distinct pleasure the dinosaur Hollow tore the top of the Gillian’s head backwards, ripping it clean off in a shower of gore.

With the last Gillian slain Adagio slowly floated to the ground, breathing heavily, her alabaster scales covered in slick blood. Ember landed next to her, stretching her arms and smiling brightly, like a child who’d just gotten off a roller coaster and couldn’t wait to go again.

“Well hell, this doesn’t exactly get us any closer to evolving your scaly butt, but it sure was fun! Hah, I forgot how much of a blast it can be to cut loose on some Gillians. Man, we trashed those losers.”

Adagio, licking blood off of one of her talons, said, “It was adequately exhilarating, but I didn’t jump into the fight for that.”

“Yeah, and why did we jump into that fight anyway?” asked Ember, eyeing the other two Hollows.

The half-Arrancar was busy jumping up and down, shouting at Gaw as the humongous Adjuchas bent over one of her kills and started to gorge herself on the dead Gillian’s flesh.

“Hey Gaw, dammit, save some for me! Don’t hog it all. Unlike you I actually need the juicy bits to not die! Hey, you listening to me you big feather head!?”

In response Gaw, without even looking at the bouncy half-Arrancar, just lifted a hind leg and proceeded to step on him. This didn’t seem to actually harm him much, despite Gaw’s ludicrous size relative to him. It just trapped him underneath her huge talons as he struggled and whined. “Whaaaat!? Seriously!? This isn’t fair at all! I’m starting to think you don’t respect me.”

Gaw barked a coughing call of complete agreement and went back to eating.

Adagio glanced at Ember, “Would you believe me if I said I did it to make friends?”

To this Ember made a sour face, pointing, “With them? Uh, no offense, but one of them looks like a crazy bum, and the other is a anti-social giant dinosaur. They don’t exactly strike me as ‘friend’ material.”

Adagio smiled thinly, placing a talon around Ember’s shoulder, “Just... try to not look at what is, and try to look at what could be.”

“Riiiiiight. Well, this is your show. Lead the way. Just try to remember we’re here to turn you into an Arrancar, and that means we need to get into a fight that pushes you to the brink of death. Allies aren’t really conducive to that goal.”

“Depends on the fight.” Adagio said, the proceeded to float forward towards the feeding Gaw and the half-Arrancar who only just then was managing to extract himself from underneath his colossal companion’s foot.

“Geez.” he grumbled, dusting himself off, “You try to be a nice guy and help a dino-gal out and what do you get in return? Nothing but attitude.” He glanced up at Adagio’s approach and straightened himself, hands on his hips. “So, uh... thanks for the help? Not that we needed it. Me and Gaw had that totally under control, right Gaw?”

He lightly and playfully punched Gaw’s foot, to which she turned her massive skull masked face away from her bloody kill to glare at him and issue forth a rumbling warning growl that shook the air. The half-Arrancar held up a hand. “Hey, you got to kill things, so you got no reason to be all grumpy. Go back to hogging all the food.”

Gaw snorted and proceeded to do just that while Adagio looked on with a quirked eyebrow. It was clear the half-Arrancar didn’t recognize her from their brief encounter back in the world of the living. Not surprising given they didn’t exactly exchange much, or any, of a conversation back then. His focus had been entirely on Sunset, and Adagio had only been in the way. It stood to reason he wouldn’t recognize who she was now, especially considering she'd been a floating plush doll back then. Even if her present form as a Hollow bore a resemblance to her natural siren form, as did her plush doll body, the two were different enough that one would have to be pretty sharp to make that connection.

That was well enough for now. Adagio didn’t bear any grudge over that event anyway, and it had nothing to do with her current plans. Putting on a welcoming smile, she dipped her head in greeting.

“Perhaps you and your... terse companion did have that situation well in hand, but I couldn’t pass up the chance at a good fight. You see my friend and I are here seeking to strengthen ourselves. From what I understand the Forest of Menos has quite a large number of foes to prey upon and become stronger. Gillians, and other Adjuchas.”

“That right?” the half-Arrancar bounced his sword over his shoulder, eyeing her up and down, “You trying to become a Vasto Lorde?”

Adagio gave Ember a questioning look, and the Arrancar girl walked up and joined them, "You mentioned Vasto Lordes before. I'm still unclear as to exactly what those are."

“He’s talking about the strongest class of Menos Hollow. Its what an Adjuchas would normally evolve into if they have the potential. Takes consuming thousands of other Hollows, and even then there’s only a small chance you have the potential to reach that next level. That’s why some Hollows side-step that process and try to become Arrancar instead.”

“Ah, I see.” Adagio said, then turned her attention back to the half-Arrancar, “I’m not here to hunt Hollows to become a Vasto Lorde. I’m looking to become an Arrancar.”

“For real? You know how to do that?” the half-Arrancar suddenly got an intense look on his face, leaning forward, eyes focused on Adagio. “Because if you haven’t noticed, I’m, uh, kind of stuck with this thing still on my face.”

He pointed at the shark-like mask covering his head, his voice taking on a frustrated and near manic tone. “I mean serious, what the hell, right!? So that old bastard makes me into this freaky half-baked, incomplete Arrancar, totally without my permission or anything. Then he sends me to go fight these crazy human girls with whacky super powers, and, like, I don’t get my ass kicked but, uh... one particular fight doesn’t go well. Two fights, if you count the one when I was just a regular old Hollow. Anyway, this pink haired chick uses weird mind powers on me and the next thing I know I’m here in the damned Forest of Menos, getting my butt chewed on by Gillians. Gaw saves me-”

Gaw proceeded to snort between bites of her meal, and Adagio could have sworn that through some bizarre means of body language the giant dinosaur Hollow managed to say in no uncertain terms ’by no intention of my own’. Huh. Weird.

“-by ripping those bastards a new one. In thanks I’ve been hanging out with her ever since and we’ve been best buds. Right bestie!?”

A tail slap and one bruised up half-Arrancar later he continued his tirade/story, bleeding from the forehead.

“So anyway, point is, I got to eat Gillians like every day otherwise my messed up, unstable spirit energy will self-destruct. Not sure why, but chowing down on these Gillain dudes holds the explodey death at bay. Problem is I can’t keep this up forever. I need to finish evolving. I got to become an Arrancar too.”

Bingo. Adagio thought, hiding her deep satisfaction with a frown of sympathetic concern. “That’s just terrible. And to think, we both have such unfortunate circumstances. You see, I wish to become an Arrancar so I can have the strength to break free from the servitude I’m forced to suffer at the filthy hands of the Eight Espada, Grogar.”

“That asshole!? He’s the one who’s screwy experiments made me this way!”

I figured that much out already. Adagio thought while she said with mock surprise, “Truly? Then we have an enemy in common, for I hardly consider that disgusting goat an ally. As soon as I have the power I intend to depose and take vengeance upon that odious man. Perhaps... we should make common cause with each other?”

The half-Arrancar was looking up with a bewildered expression as he silently mouthed a word over and over again. It took Adagio a second to realize he was mouthing the word ‘odious’, with clear incomprehension as to the word’s meaning. Trying, and failing, to head an utterly exasperated look, Adagio snapped, “Look do you want help or not!?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, totally. Wait, so you’ll show me and Gaw how to become Arrancar?”

At the mention of her name in this conversation Gaw turned her blood stained face towards them, sharp yellow eyes watching them hawkishly. She let out a quizzical barking call and the half-Arrancar waved a hand her way.

“What? It’ll be awesome Gaw! Arrancar are way stronger and faster than that current form you’ve got. We’d be like, apex predator badasses. Well, relatively speaking. Still lots of fish higher on the food chain, but it’d be a step up from being stuck down here hunting Gillians all day.”

A disdainful snort escaped Gaw’s snout and the half-Arrancar shrugged at Adagio apologetically, “She’s not impressed. Says she likes it down here.”

“How can you even tell what she’s saying?” asked Ember, “All I’m getting from her is ‘growl snort growl’. Can’t she talk?”

“What do you mean? She’s a total chatterbox. I can barely get her to shut up.”

Adagio looked at him with deadpan eyes, “Uh-huh. So, we know her name, which I can only assume you gave her. What about you? I’m Adagio, and this is Ember. What should we call you?”

With a deep grin he pointed a thumb at himself, “Name’s Di. Di Roy.”

Ember looked at him flatly, “Unique name. Where’d you come up with that?”

“It’s like ‘destroy’, but you know, more name-ish.” Di Roy said, then blinked as both Adagio and Ember stared at him. Even Gaw glanced away, nearly looking embarrassed to be associated with him. Di Roy coughed, stuffing one hand in his pocket and mumbling. “I thought it sounded cool.”

“It's a... fine name.” Adagio said, and looked up at the towering Gaw. “Now, I understand if perhaps you think you have power enough for a life of hunting Hollows in this... dreary place. However consider this. You are a predator, are you not? One who lives to hunt?”

Gaw turned her head slightly towards Adagio, indicating this strange beast of a Hollow was paying attention, at least for the moment. It encouraged Adagio to continue. “Well, I can speak from personal experience that there are Hollows out there vastly more powerful than any of us here. Than all of us combined. They have their own agendas and care nothing for those they might crush underfoot in pursuing those agendas.”

Gaw snorted and tilted her chin up, at once seeming to say ’So what do I care?’ and, ’I’ll kill any who invade my territory!’ at the same time through simple fierce expression and aggressive stance. Adagio, taking a chance at a little body language of her own, floated up into Gaw’s face, getting eye to eye with the other Adjuchas-class Hollow.

“You should care because as powerful as you are, its not enough. Not to protect yourself or your ‘territory’ from any of those potent Hollows that could at any time decide to come down here and hunt you as prey. Do you want to spend your days stagnating in this hole until that inevitability? Until someone far stronger than you decides to hunt you down for mere sport?”

Adagio’s words seemed to strike a nerve inside the larger Hollow, Gaw’s lips pulling back in a deep snarl, a growl reverberating through the air. Her tail lashed about, smashing into the ground hard enough to splinter a web of cracks in the stone. The statement was clear enough, ’I am no prey!’

Adagio smiled thinly, “If that is true, then join with us. You and Di Roy both. Ember knows the method to becoming an Arrancar, and if we succeed we will all be more powerful than we are now! I will not stagnate in this dead realm. I will thrive, and if you wish, the two of you can thrive with me, and never have reason to fear being made prey ever again.”

A deep rumble of contemplative growling shook Gaw’s throat, her maw opening as she licked her lips clean of blood from the feasted upon Gillians. Then with a curious snort the beast turned and plodded back to her kill, resuming eating. Di Roy chuckled, sheathing his sword.

“That’s about as positive a response I’ve seen her give to anything that didn’t directly involve evisceration, and I think that’s only because there’s the promise of future violence with this plan of yours. Speaking of which, if we join up do I get first crack at kicking Grogar straight in his danglies? Because I owe that dude some serious crotch kicking.”

Adagio chimed out a laugh, “I’m certain that can be arranged. As long as you understand that I decide when and where we strike. Grogar remains powerful, and we need to plan this carefully.”

“Hey say no more, I’m the very definition of careful. That’s why they call me Di ‘Careful’ Roy!”

Gaw snorted again, barely lifting her head from her meal, and Di Roy shouted, “Everybody, Gaw! Everybody calls me that! And what did I say about hogging all the food! I killed some of these walking snack buffets too!”

With that Di Roy stomped off to start cutting choice pieces from one of the other dead Gillians, leaving Adagio and Ember to stand there looking on in general bemusement. Ember especially looked less than convinced that the situation was in any way a positive one, looking at Adagio with a sidelong glance of concern.

“Are you sure these two will be an asset?”

“Absolutely.” Adagio said, then shrugged, “Mostly. The large one at least appears capable. Not so sure about Di Roy, but even his type can have their uses. Regardless, I was hardly going to pass up an opportunity to acquire some more allies.”

Ember narrowed her eyes in dawning suspicion. “You... you just want to ride a dinosaur into battle, don’t you?”

“...It may be a thought that occured to me.” Adagio admitted, coughing and looking away with embarrassment coloring her cheeks. “What? I can’t both seek to be powerful and stylish? If one is to dream, dream big.”

----------

“So allow me a moment to confirm precisely what you are telling me, Captain Hurricane.” said Platinum as she paced in front of the man with each step seeming to be harder and sharper than the last. “You not only failed to eliminate a single invading Ryoka, but you also scattered them across the Seireitei without any means of determining exactly where they went? Oh, and to add a delicious cherry atop this sundae of competence, you also allowed the majority of the rebel Soul Reapers escape into the sewer system, only managing to apprehend a handful of stragglers, not one of which was even a seated officer? Do I have this understanding, or perhaps you’d like to amend something so I’m not encountering a sad joke?”

Sitting on the log of a fallen tree, Hurricane stretched his limbs and checked his wounds, only providing Captain Platinum with a level look of mild irritation. “You’re in a melodramatic mood, aren’t you? The rebels are in hiding, and the Ryoka battered and separated. I got a good fight out of it, so I can’t complain.”

“Can’t complain? Can’t complain!?” Platinum looked ready ready to draw her Zanpaktou then and there, only keeping control with an icy breath and forcing her face to stoic, frozen calm. “Soul Society remains at risk, and one of our Captains sits wounded and defeated.”

Hurricane’s eyes stormed darkly, his mouth turning into a grimace like a thunderhead. “I was not defeated. Be mindful of your words, Captain Platinum. Otherwise I might have to show you what defeat feels like.”

A foot slamming into the ground nearby got both of their attentions, making the two quarreling Captains look towards the burly mountain of muscles and hair that was Captain Thunderhooves. The large, broad shouldered Captain of the Seventh Division looked with hard eyes at his comrades and spoke in a thick baritone.

“This bickering is a waste of effort. Platinum is correct that the Seireitei remains at risk from these invaders and the rebels aiding them. We cannot allow this threat to our sacred land to continue a single breath longer than necessary. We must fully mobilize to search out the Ryoka and capture them. I suggest less finger pointing from both of you.”

Captain Platinum stared at Thunderhooves with flinty eyes, but slowly nodded, “You are right, of course. I allowed my emotions to get away from me for a moment. Captain Hurricane, I respectfully apologize for questioning your... competence. Now, we should divide our forces to sweep in each cardinal direction, searching building by building, street by street.”

“Why?” asked Sweet Cider, who’d been standing off to the side while leaning her back against one of the only remaining intact trees nearby, her arms folded over her chest. “We already known dang well where them Ryoka girls’r headin’. They’re goin’ after Captains Celestia and Luna, which means they’ll be makin’ a bee-line straight fer the Repentance Cells.”

“True, but we don’t know where Hurricane’s winds tossed them.” replied Platinum cooly, “They could be anywhere, even if they are heading for the same general area. Spreading a wide net is the only way to maximize our chances of catching them.”

“Also makes us more vulnerable.” said Sweet Cider, “Why not just turtle up ‘round headquarters? Them girls would never get past us if every Captain an’ their divisions fortified the main headquarters.”

“And let them wander wherever they wished all over the Seireitei?” Platinum asked in a shocked tone, “Certainly you must be jesting! Who knows what damage they might inflict while we waited idle in headquarters. Besides the Captain Commander’s orders were to apprehend the Ryoka as quickly as possible, which we can hardly do while waiting for them to come to us.”

Sweet Cider spat to the side, “Right. Well, if that’s the tune yer gonna yarble, then I ain’t gonna waste time arguin’ with ya.” She ceased leaning against the tree and turned to where her Lieutenant, Silverstar, was waiting nearby. “Lieutenant, take our forces back to the barracks and then start a search from there to the South Gate.”

“Yes Captain. What’ll ya be doing, if you don’t mind my askin’?”

A glint sparked in Sweet Cider’s eyes, “I’m goin’ huntin’ on my own. No offense, but the rest o’ ya’ll would just get in the way.”

“Now wait just a second!” said Platinum, taking several swift steps towards Sweet Cider, “You can’t just go off on your own like that!”

Sweet Cider’s eyes flicked towards Platinum with a look as pointed as a knife to the gut, and far less subtle in its dislike. “Thinkin’ I can. Thinkin’ if anyone wanted ta try stopin’ me, they’re welcome ta make that mistake.”

Platinum met Sweet Cider’s look with an equally stubborn and willful gaze, her voice steady. “You’re more injured than Captain Hurricane is. Is it wise to pursue the Ryoka by yourself, without any backup? Did you not just point out that spreading out makes us vulnerable?”

“It makes you vulnerable. I’ll be just dang dandy. These little mosquito bites ain’t slowin’ me down none, an’ I got business ta finish with that Ditzy Doo character. An’ other matters ta settle with another of them girls. Ain’t nothin’ I need help with, so you lot do whatever searchin’ ya want, but...” Sweet’ Cider’s spiritual energy spiked harshly, like a blanket of thorns radiating off of her as her eyes near glowed solid green. “Stay outta my way.”

With that Sweet Cider used Flash Step with such speed and force it created a small crater in the ground as she went, trailing dirt into the air. Platinum watched her go with a frustrated sigh.

“How she ever became a Captain is beyond me...”

“We should coordinate our search efforts with the other Captains.” said Hurricane, glancing in the direction Sweet Cider went. “We know the Ryoka are strong enough to match one of us, even with the use of Shikai. That means they can likely defeat any other officer from Lieutenant grade and lower.”

“Speak for yourself, no offense Captain.” said Lieutenant Fancy Pants, who stood near his own Captain, watching the proceedings silently up until now. “I have confidence many Lieutenants will prove adequate opponents for these young ladies. I certainly have no intention of dishonoring my division by losing so easily to them.”

Hurricane’s own spirit energy flared with heated anger, his voice matching. “Are you suggesting Lieutenant Posey dishonored me by losing!?”

Fancy Pants, keeping his cool, shook his head in a clipped manner. “Not at all. From what I understand your Lieutenant is merely missing. It is not confirmed that she has lost any battles, as of yet. With no body to be found on the battlefield it can be assumed she may be captured, perhaps, but until we know more I’m implying nothing. In all ways Lieutenant Posey is a credit to your division and her bloodline, Captain Hurricane.”

Hurricane stewed like a storm cloud, growling at the ground. “Posey serves me as well as her mother did. I’ll not hear her name besmirched, and if I hear such talk from you or anyone else you’ll envy those traitors in the Repentance Cells.”

Fancy Pants saluted in acknowledgment, then turned to his own Captain. “Captain Platinum, shall I send word to the other Captains of what has transpired here so the search may be coordinated.”

“Yes. Don’t bother with Captain Starswirl. I’d be surprised if we could get him out of his laboratory. As for the rest, we can search the districts closest to our division barracks and widen our search pattern from there.”

“If I may make a suggestion, Captain?” Fancy Pants asked, and at Platinums nod he went on, “If Hurricane has wounded some of those young ladies as badly as he has said, then one logical place for them to make for may be the Fourth Division’s barracks, with its extensive medical section. Given several rebel Soul Reapers are with them it stands to reason they would be privy to knowing where the Fourth Division is and its role in the Gotei 13. Might I then suggest at least one Captain, and perhaps an accompanying Lieutenant, make for the Fourth Division immediate. Even with Captain Zecora there, the Fourth Division is not suited for combat and may face trouble in dealing with the Ryoka alone.”

A quick, satisfied smile lit up Platinum’s face. “An excellent point Lieutenant. I think we shall do precisely that. Good thinking.”

“Very well.” rumbled Thunderhooves, “Then I shall concentrate my search to the west, and cover the main avenue towards the main headquarters. I’ll leave other areas to the rest of the Captains.”

“Assuming they even get off their asses to help.” muttered Hurricane, standing and cracking his neck. “I’m taking Sweet Cider’s advice and concentrating the Eleventh Division around the Repentance Cells. Those girls will show up there eventually, one way or another. And if they don’t, well, I’m sure Celestia and Luna will eventually try to pull some trick. Celestia is far too crafty for her own good.”

To that Platinum could only give a shallow laugh, “That, at least, is one statement in which you will find no argument from me.”

Author's Notes:

Adagio stepping up her plans for world domination. Or at least Hecuo Mundo domination. At this point she'd probably just be happy to get rid of old man Grogar. So her training in the Forest of Menos begins! Can't let the other main protagonists fall too far behind Sunset, right? Hmm, I think there's another Arrancar Encyclopedia about the Forest of Menos too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvoFmoz6TKs

Ah, so Gillians can be trained like giant, creepy puppy-dogs. Good to know, right Adagio?

Now before I wrap this up I'd like to make special mention of the character Gaw. She's something of a guest and huge nod to another fic-verse that actually is part of the inspiration that kicked me in the pants to start writing Friendship Souls... wow, almost exactly a year ago? Time flies. Anyway I'm speaking of The Bridge: A Godzilla-MLP Crossover, by a fine fellow named Tarbtano. Now as you guys can probably guess I'm a big crossover junkie. I'm also a kaiju fan. So that story is pure yes for me. In reading it there's a part of the story that crosses over into the Equestria Girls world as well. It was there that my brain started putting together the idea of doing Friendships Souls, which while doing its own thing being a Bleach crossover, and one that's more a fusion fic in nature, the idea was encouraged into growing by reading Tarbtano's fic. So Gaw is a nod and a connection to that. She's an obscure as heck kaiju actually tied to King Kong lore, which is awesome. Now, funny thing, The Bridge is part of a larger spread of fics collectively known as the Amalgam'verse. I may or may not be considering a gaiden-style side-fic at some point between Friendship Souls and the Amalgam'verse, but such plans are still a ways off if they do come to fruition, and I do want to assure any of my readers that Friendship Souls will remain its own fic and that any side-fics of the future will be independently enjoyable without making them required reading to keep enjoying Friendship Souls.

That all said, crossover lovers out there go check out The Bridge if you like. It's definitely worth a look in my opinion.

Alright, so that all said, thank you everyone for reading along, and as always any comments, questions, and critiques are highly appreciated! 'Till next time.

Episode 42: Never Split the Party

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Episode 42: Never Split the Party

Alarm bells rang across the ordered streets of the Seireitei, dozens of warnings echoing between the various buildings to warn all Soul Reapers on duty that intruders were loose in the vicinity. Before long almost every street and junction had at least one squad of Soul Reapers patrolling it, alert and vigilantly searching for any sign of the Ryoka invaders. Rumors were spreading quickly, like an airborne virus, among the lower ranked Soul Reapers, all concerning the battle at the Thirteenth Division headquarters.

“Saw some Fourth Division guys heading out of there and saw them taking out dozens of wounded. Eleventh Division wounded. I heard they got their butts handed to them by the Ryoka, and that even Captain Hurricane himself couldn’t capture them!” muttered one uneasy Soul Reaper to his companion as they stood guard at one street corner.

“That’s crazy.” said the other Soul Reaper, her face scrunching up in worry, “I can’t imagine anyone tough enough to go up against a Captain like that. And they expect us to catch these Ryoka?”

“I know right? What’s even crazier is that the Kenpachi herself was there and the Ryoka got away from her too! Seriously, I see one of the Ryoka I think I’m just gonna carefully sneak away and raise the alarm. I’m not being paid enough to fight dudes who can go up against two Captains and get away.”

The female Soul Reaper frowned thoughtfully, scratching her head. “But why are they even here? Are they really trying to help, um... well I guess I can’t call them ‘Captain’ Celestia and Luna anymore, can I? Still leaves a bad taste in my mouth, that whole business.”

With a shrug the other Soul Reaper glanced away from his partner and grumbled, “Not like common grunts like us get a say in this stuff, but yeah, I think it sucks too. Wonder what kind of evidence convinced Central 46 those two were traitors? Just doesn’t make sense to me.”

“Guess there’s nothing we can do except our duty.” said the other Soul Reaper, sighing and staring down the street, “And keep an eye out for anyone suspicious.”

Nearly on the heels of her words both Soul Reapers heard a casual whistling tune as someone turned the street corner, walking along at a strut that looked like someone trying entirely too hard to look like she belonged there. She was wearing a Soul Reaper uniform, the black robes and white sash covering a bouncy pink body. A floofy head of pink hair looked like it’d been wrung through a few bushes, with a few stray branches still sticking out of them.

The two Soul Reapers stared at this girl as she walked by, whistling away, and the male Soul Reaper cleared his throat.

“Ahem, uh... miss? What Division are you with?”

The pink girl froze in place like some kind of twitchy marionette, slowly tilting her head up and around until she was looking at the two Soul Reapers upside down. The girl flashed an innocent grin and spun to face them, affecting a weirdly rigid posture and salute.

“Hi there totally fellow Soul Reapers! Which I am too. You wanna know which Division I’m with?”

“Uh, yeah. That’s why I asked.”

“Heheh, of course you wanna know that. That’s a totally normal thing to want to know. Which I should know too, because that’s a normal thing to be able to answer. Which I will.”

The girl stood there blinking at them for a few long, drawn out seconds, before the male Soul Reaper realized he wasn’t getting an answer and he said, “Weeeeel?”

“Well what?” asked the pink girl with pure, clueless bliss.

“What Division are you with!?”

“Ooooh, um... number one?”

“The First Division?”

“Yuppers!”

“...The elite First Division that directly serves the Captain Commander?”

“Totally!”

“The First Division that only takes the best, and brightest Soul Reapers to work on the Gotei 13's most dangerous and difficult assignments, requiring both equal parts brilliance, skill, and incredible reiatsu to even be considered for a posting in?”

“That’s me!” chirped the pink girl happily.

“Alright...so, question, oh brilliant elite First Division member,” said the Soul Reaper as he pointed at the pink girl’s empty sash, “Where’s your Zanpaktou?”

At the girl’s completely blank expression the two Soul Reapers exchanged glances, both putting their hand on their own Zanpaktou. However just at that moment there was a groan from behind them.

“Told you that disguise was a stupid idea, Pinkie. Now I get to have fun my way, hehehe!”

The two Soul Reapers wheeled about just in time for elongated pink tentacle arms to wrap around both their faces simultaneously, which then proceeded to drag them both kicking around the street corner. Pinkie Pie stood there wincing as several loud crashing noises followed by some brief scuffling, muffled screams, and thumps were followed by Pinkamena’s cackling laugh. A few moments later Pinkie Pie saw Pinkamena walk around the corner, licking her fingers.

“Y-you didn’t eat them did you?” Pinkie Pie asked with a unnerved gulp.

Pinkamena rolled her eyes, “They’re alive, so stop giving me that look. I might’ve taken a few chunks out, but nothing they couldn’t live without.”

“Meeeenaaaaa!”

“What?” Pinkamena gave Pinkie Pie a sharply annoyed look, crossing her arms and leaning forward aggressively, “I’m playing nice! Nicer than they’d play with us. You know you can’t keep pretending I’m some friendly, well adjusted member of the ‘team’, Pinkie. I’m all the things about you that can’t come out of that fractured snowglobe you call a brain because you won’t let it out. Only now I’ve got my own mind, and you know what, maybe I want to do things my way sometimes! Especially now when your normal methods aren’t exactly up to getting the job done!”

“Okaaaay, fair point.” Pinkie Pie said, taking a slow, fearful peak around the corner at the two unconscious, roughed up Soul Reapers. There were some clear and obvious bite marks on them, but nothing that looked fatal, or even all that bad. She glanced back at Pinkamena who had the air of a uneasy junkyard dog, pacing about and looking ready to bite. Pinkie wondered if maybe her other half would learn to relax better if they got her a hobby. Like knitting. Or rocks! Maudie loved rocks, and she was totally laid back and super relaxed most the time. Soon as they got back to the real world Pinkie was going to set up a Pie Sisters Get Pinkamena a Hobby Outing.

But for now she still had to deal with grouchy Pinkamena and try to keep her from murder-devouring anyone.

“Buuuut, here’s my counterpoint Mena, we’ve got to still be friendly with people when all this is over otherwise we’re gonna have all sorts of trouble even if we do save Principle Celestia and Vice Principal Luna. That’s gonna be extra crazy hard if we, um, you know... one eight seven anybody.”

“One eight what?”

“C’mon, you’ve seen that movie! I’ve seen that movie so you must’ve seen it too!”

Pinkamena tilted her head to the side, perhaps a little too far for a normal human neck, and then gave a slight groan, slapping her face with the palm of one hand. “Right. That movie. You know, perfect choice, given our relationship. What with the super-friendly but idiotically clean ‘utopian’ society trying to leash a psychotic killer to do its dirty work. Don’t suppose you remember how that ended for the guy holding the leash?”

“Mena, I thought we were past this. Remember? I’m you, you’re me, let’s work together? It’s how I figured out how to turn into a neat hammer dealie?”

Pinkamena laughed, a light but ragged chuckle as she shook her head, straight hair dancing around a murderously grinning face. “Yeah, we’re working together. But that didn’t change what I am, Pinks.” She raised a hand, slits forming along the smooth length of her arm displaying wide, fang filled mouths that dripped saliva. “I’m still the part of you that can deal with the things you don’t want to face. You want me to stop tugging on the leash? Try giving me a little slack to work with. We’re not getting through this without blood. Or did you forget just how badly we got our teeth kicked in by that walking meat buffet?”

Pinkie certainly hadn’t. After getting caught up in Hurricane’s tornado's winds, Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had both been swirled around like a pair of goldfish in a blender. They’d been ejected out of the ludicrous winds, flung end over end amid various other debris from the forest, to land nearly head first into a building several blocks away. Only Pinkie’s hammer power prevented them from suffering any real harm, the hammer transmuting a portion of their landing area into an explosion of cotton candy. Some Soul Reapers were going to be very confused about what happened to one of their administration buildings. It was there that Pinkie had transformed back to human form and snatched a Soul Reaper uniform she’d found in one of the building’s closets. Since then she and Pinkamena had been wandering around, trying to find any sign of the other girls, thus far to no avail. Pinkie tried to shove aside her bubbling fear for her friend’s safety, and as she looked at Pinkamena, and the way she seemed to be getting more and more agitated... something just struck Pinkie like a nail between the eyes.

“Mena, are you feeling all my fears on top of yours?”

Pinkamena looked away, grimacing, “We need to get moving before another patrol shows up. Won’t do those friends of yours any good if we get caught before finding them.”

As Pinkamena stomped away, Pinkie followed after her, the pair keeping close to the walls that lined either side of the streets. The turned down one street when they saw some Soul Reapers coming from the other direction, hiding around the corner and hunkering down until the troop of six or so darkly clad Soul Reapers ran by. Ducking through a gate into a courtyard where three or four squat buildings were clustered, the pair stayed low and sneaked quietly behind one of the buildings, heading for a small gatehouse around the back end of the courtyard. As they went, Pinkie whispered, “Mena, talk to me. I’m like, pretty scared about how the others are doing. I want to be positive, but it's not easy. But it's even harder for you, isn’t it? Because whenever I try to not feel scared, well, it all goes to you, doesn’t it?”

“This isn’t worth talking about.” said Pinkamena with a soft, yet trembling grow, “Unlike you, I can deal with fear. I’m practically made up of the stuff. Its fun for me. When I’m not being held back.”

“But you can still get scared too, right? You’re worried about the others too.”

“Not. Important!” snapped Pinkamena, “Me being scared? That’s like fire being able to get burned. Stop trying to overthink things. You’re not any good at it.”

Pinkie Pie frowned, but didn’t say anything else. Pinkamena was clearly being extra grumpy and hiding things, but Pinkie could tell that she wasn’t going to be able to get anything out of her other half with the usual badgering methods. The back gatehouse was locked, but Pinkamena dealt with that readily by expanding her mouth and chomping away, making short work of the wooden door with huge crunching bites that were more efficient than going at it with a buzzsaw. This also caused quite a bit of noise and Pinkie Pie looked about like a startled stork, glancing at the buildings behind them as she tapped Pinkamena’s shoulder.

“Uh, do we know that those buildings are empty? ‘Cause I think they’re not empty.”

“Mmmph!” was all Pinkamena replied as she devoured door with rapid gusto.

“Hey! What’s with all the racket out there!? Some of us still have to file several dozen mountains of paperwork, invasion or no invasion!” shouted a Soul Reaper who poked his head out one of the nearby building windows, who then looked at the two pink girls down by the back gate with confused eyes. Especially as Pinkamena turned around, cheeks stuffed with door like balloons.

“The fu-” the Soul Reaper began, but Pinkamena proceeded to interrupt him by spitting out a barrage of door fragments like a living machine gun, causing him to yelp and duck behind cover as the window from was shredded by wood chips fired with ballistic accuracy.

“Blech, wood tastes like butt.” Pinkamena grunted, wiping her mouth and grabbing Pinkie Pie, “Come on, move it or lose it, Pinks!”

The shouts of alarm combined with ringing alarm bells certainly urged Pinkie Pie along, while Pinkamena and her hauled it out the gate and down another street. They made several rapid turns, sprinting like a pair of pink cheetahs, all but leaving a dust trail in their wake until the sounds of alarm bells fell behind them in the distance. Finally they ended up on another street, this one a long straight shot with no diverging paths. Still, Pinkie and Pinkamena both kept running, not willing to risk slowing down in case of pursuit. This led them to come to the end of the street into a vast courtyard, and both halted in their tracks at the threshold and at the very odd sight that greeted them there.

The courtyard was rather huge, with the same white stone polished tiling as the streets, and wide enough to fit several of Canterlot High’s gymnasiums in it. At the opposite end was a tall wall that merged with a multi-tiered pagoda styled building with slanted orange roofing, and several long balcony overlooks hanging over an archway through the middle of the building that crossed beyond towards the huge mountain plateau where the shining white towers of the Soul Reaper main headquarters could be seen.

However, the courtyard wasn’t empty, but was filled with dozens of Soul Reapers. Only rather than on alert, these Soul Reapers were all seated at long tables situated on either side of the courtyard, all of them laughing, chatting, and drinking. The tables were laden with food and drink, and small sake cups clinked together in toasts. Several obviously drunk Soul Reapers were even dancing on top of some of the tables while their companions shouted and cheered.

“Huh, so this is what it feels like to hallucinate.” Pinkamena stated with blunt wonderment.

“Ooooo! They’re partying!” Pinkie was puzzled, yet couldn’t help a little smile from seeing some Soul Reapers actually kicking back and enjoying themselves. But why was this party happening right now? Not that Pinkie Pie thought parties needed excuses to happen, but usually you don’t throw a party during an emergency.

“Well, it’s dumb, whatever it is. We should turn around before anyone spots us-” Pinkamena said, but before she could finish there was a loud, cheerful call from above.

“Well hey there! Come to join the fun guys! Hah, of course you have!” shouted a tall, orange skinned man with a curly poof of brown hair and twinkling, amused green eyes. He stood atop the wall next to the entrance Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had entered from, and Pinkie immediately noticed the man was not only wearing the normal black Soul Reaper robes, but had on the flaring white coat of a Captain. Nervously she waved.

“Heheh, y-yeah, we’re here for the party!”

She blinked and the Captain was between her and Pinkamena, arms out and grabbing both of them into a big, friendly hug. “Great! Whenever we Eight Division guys throw a party nobody from the other divisions ever wants to show up! I mean c’mon, guys, loosen them jimmies, am I right? Ha! Hey everybody, look, we got guests! And two cuties by the look of ‘em! C’mon girls, let me get you some drinks!”
It was around then Pinkie noticed the man had that unmistakable tinge of alcohol scent about him, and he had a clay sake bottle dangling loosely from one hand as he, with surprising strength for a guy as lanky as he was, drew both her and Pinkamena into the courtyard.

“Pinkie...” Pinkamena said with tension flaring up and down her spine, a bristling cat ready to spring in any direction. Pinkie Pie just shook a placating hand at her, as if to say ‘just play it cool’. Pinkamena’s jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed, but she nodded.

“Pinkie, is that what I heard your name was, hmm?” asked the man, grinning.

“Oh, uh, sure! I’m Pinkie and this is Mena. We’re, er...” well, the First Division didn’t work last time, so, random number time! “We’re from the Third Division. Yup. That’s us.”

“Heeeeey that’s great! What’s Daring Do up to right now anyway? As you can see-” the man gestured around at the party, “-I’m hard at work getting my people ready to repel the Ryoka invaders.” He half laughed, half snorted, taking a drink of sake, “Isn’t that right fellas!? We’re ‘preparing’!”

A few nearby Soul Reapers, one of which had a bowl of noodles on his head, turned around and provided varying degrees of salutes.

“Yes sir, Captain Cheese Sandwich, sir! We’re completely, one hundred percent ready to do our jobs to our utmost ability. You just give the word!”

“Heheh, you guys are the best. Keep up the good work.” Cheese Sandwich said, leading Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena to a low table stretched across the back end of the courtyard, at the head of the party, where other Soul Reapers sat and chatted, and many waved greeting to the Captain as he came up and vaulted over the table, dragging a bemused Pinkie and irate Pinkamena with him, one under each arm. He sat them down on either side of him as he sat down heavily on a floor mat and made wild gestures at the food there. “Now go ahead and eat up! You two look like minors so I guess drinks are out, buuuut I could also make an exception to the rule. I won’t tell Captain Daring Do I let her people get sloshed on duty if you keep it under your hats.

“Well, um, heheh, when in Rome, eh Mena?” said Pinkie Pie, licking her lips and realizing that all that fighting earlier had really worked up her appetite. So without wasting time thinking about she decided to dig in and started eating away, utilizing her full Pie family prowess to start demolishing the food immediately available.

Pinkamena by contrast didn’t touch anything in front of her and looked ready to start committing murder as she looked around her with sour lips pressed tight.

“Yeesh, you’re sister is looking pretty glum, ain’t she?” Cheese Sandwich said, elbowing Pinkie Pie and giving Pinkamena a sidelong look.

“Oh, Mena’s just really upset because, uh, somebody put her uniform in the wrong laundry. That’s why she’s not wearing one.”

"Figured it was something like that.” Cheese Sandwich said, then took Pinkie Pie completely off guard by instantly giving her a sober look followed by a sly wink. “I mean, somebody might’ve mistaken her for one of the Ryoka running around, but clearly none of them would be crazy enough to just walk into one of the division barracks. I mean, that’d just be silly.”

Pinkie gulped and chuckled, “Ha ha ha, yeah that’d be crazy, right? I mean, what’re the chances any Ryoka would show up here! Pfft, I mean they’d have to preeeeety stupid to do something like that, and get surrounded by a bunch of Soul Reapers that want to capture them, let alone sit right next to one of the big, head honcho Captain types. Hah...”

Captain Cheese Sandwich sighed contently and sipped his sake, “Yeah, tell me about it. Of course this party isn’t going to last forever. It's just an Eighth Division tradition to have a big party before any big operation to get everyone to loosen up before things get serious. I like to keep morale high. It’s important for people to enjoy themselves and have fun. But soon enough I’ll have to follow orders and have my people out there searching for the Ryoka with all the rest. Of course if there were any Ryoka nearby listening in, well I just hope they’d understand I don’t want to hurt them, but it’s also probably for the best that they stay put right here where I guarantee it’s safer than wandering around. Because if I ran into them once this party was over, I’d still have to follow orders and detain them. But good thing there’s no Ryoka here, right?”

Pinkie Pie gulped, “Yup... that’s a real good thing.”

A minute later a woman approached, snatching a muffin up from the table and taking a happy bite while she stood beside Cheese Sandwich. She had a bouncy, plumb colored head of hair tied into a ponytail, and skin of a more subdued pink shade than Pinkie Pie’s own. She had the armband on of a Lieutenant and blinked with curious violet eyes at the two new guests at the table.

“Hi Captain, didn’t know we had visitors. I’ve got a communication updating us on the situation.” she held up a scroll, twirling it between her fingers, “Sounds like Captain Platinum is requesting we move out. Pretty sure she knows our pre-op party tradition too.”

“Hey there Lieutenant Sugar Belle! So Plats going to badger us into getting off our butts, eh? Hmm, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that’s a whole lot of ‘not our problem’. We’re still partying, as part of a very important preparations for mobilizing the division. Can’t rush these things. Got to go through all the proper steps. Which includes a polka dance we haven’t even gotten to yet! Did you bring my instruments, by the way?”

Sugar Belle coughed politely, nodding, “Yes sir.”

“Super!” he turned to give waggling eyebrows to Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena, “Whaddya say girls, you up for some dancing?”

Pinkie Pie shared a worried glance with Pinkamena. Much as the two of them were at odds over certain things, there were other things they were completely in sync over. The need to find and help their friends was one of them. She gave Cheese Sandwich a uneasy look, “It’s a really amazing looking party and we’d really had to be downers, but we’ve got, well... important things to do. People who’ll miss us if we stick around here all day, even if it is safer.”

There wasn’t any real obvious change in Cheese Sandwich. It wasn’t a clear cut thing, but rather just a slow, simple shift in the way he sat, a tightening around his eyes and a slight heaviness to his previous light tone. Sugar Belle noticed it and immediately gave the scene a more concerned look as she stepped back from Cheese Sandwich, who spoke in a very quiet voice, one that only Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena could hear.

“You won’t help your friends by making more of a mess of things out there, girls.” he said, not looking at them, but instead taking a slow sip from his sake bottle, “I appreciate why you came. Celestia and Luna are dear friends. I have no intention of letting either of them be executed. Maybe, just maybe, would you consider just staying here in my barracks? I promise you’ll be safe here until this is all over. But if you try to leave... you won’t give me a lot of choice. I’m a nice guy, and I don’t usually play by all the rules, but even I can’t let Ryoka willing waltz out of my sight to cause whatever harm they wish, especially when one of them stinks so much of violence it’s practically gagging me.”

Cold sweat drops broke out on Pinkie Pie’s forehead, her hands turning clammy as she realized just how much serious trouble she and Pinkamena had just landed in. Yet she gripped her hands into tight little pink fists and took a deep breath. The other girls were out there, and they’d need her and Mena’s help. She wasn’t about to just sit in a safe barracks waiting for everything to happen on its own. She could never forgive herself if she left her friends to do all the risky stuff. She might’ve just been a silly party girl by most people’s reckoning, but she was a Pie and that meant always being there for friends and family, words that meant basically the same thing to Pinkie Pie.

“That’s real nice of you Mister Cheese Sandwich. And it looks like you throw really awesome parties. I wish we got to meet in way better circumstances than this. Thing is, me and Mena have to find our friends, and do whatever we can to help them. That’s just a given. Don’t even have to make it a Pinkie Promise to make it that serious. So we’ve got to go. Even if doing that means crashing this party, which any other day I’d kick myself for even thinking of doing. But you know how it is...”

“Yup, I sure do at that, little ladies.” said Cheese Sandwich, who then slowly stood and clapped his hands to get the attention of all the Soul Reapers in the courtyard. “Okay boys and girls! I know we usually do these parties longer but the other Captains are starting to get ants in their pants over us having our fun, so time to start doing our jobs!”

At the groans that followed he held his hands out, “I know, I know, I’ll make it up to you guys with a extra special big party once the crisis is over! Consider it a Captain Cheese Promise! Now sober up folks and get moving out to your assigned search areas!”

In a strange emulation of their Captain it looked to Pinkie Pie that the Eight Division Soul Reapers were able to do remarkable one eighties in terms of attitude, switching from party animals to sudden professional seriousness in the blink of an eye. The moment Cheese Sandwich called the party the entire courtyard got cleared in record time as Soul Reapers gathered into squads and quickly cleaned up, then moved out, marching down the street that Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had arrived through. Within minutes only Cheese Sandwich and Sugar Belle remained, the former looking on with confusion as her Captain stood up and dusted himself off, slowly striding out into the open area of the courtyard.

“Um, Captain, sir, what’s going on?” Sugar Belle asked, casting wondering glances at Pinkie Pie and PInkamena, who both also stood and faced Cheese Sandwich.

Keeping his back turned to them, Cheese Sandwich waved to Sugar Belle, “Say Lieutenant, knock knock.”

Sugar Belle gave him a flat look, then sighed and said, “Who’s there.”

“Ryoka.”

Sugar Belle licked her lips and took another step back from Pinkie Pie and PInkamena, “...Ryoka who?”

“Ryoka standing right next to you that I’m going to have to fight now and I’d really appreciate it if you made sure nobody shows up to interrupt since I don’t need the complications of explaining this to anyone else.”

“Captain, should I point out how this sounds like a really bad idea, or would I just be talking to myself at that point?” asked Sugar Belle.

“Well if it makes you feel better you can just pretend I’m too drunk to know any better.”

“Pretend?”

“...Alright I’ll admit I walked into that one. Still, gonna fight now, so please just keep watch and give a shout if you see anyone coming.”

“Fine sir, just... don’t go overboard.” Sugar Belle said while jumping up to one of the balconies of the barracks behind her. At the same time Pinkamena glared at Cheese Sandwich.

“So you knew who were were from the start and just played coy? Cute. I’m going to start chewing on your face now.”

“Last chance girls, you can both just stay here at the barracks as my guests, safe and sound. I promise you I’ll do all I can to make sure your friends are unharmed and that this whole business with the execution is halted. But I can’t have you two leaving here.” Cheese Sandwich said, almost imploringly, as his hand strayed down to the hilt of the Zanpaktou he had sheathed at his right side. The weapon’s sealed form looked like a common enough katana, but its cross-guard was oddly shaped, like someone had taken a slice of bread and split it in half to form around the curved blade of the sword. The handle itself was wrapped in bright yellow cloth.

Pinkie Pie shook her head sadly, and with a deep breath she was wreathed in luminous wisps of pink energy until with a bright snap of light she transformed into the twirling shape of her hammer form, spinning until it landed in Pinkamena’s waiting grasp.

Cheese Sandwich gave a slow nod, and drew his Zanpaktou, the polished steel sliding almost silently from its sheath as he spun it in a simple flourish and turned to face the girl turned hammer and her clone partner.

“Figured as much.”

----------

Applejack nearly flew through the roof when she woke up, sitting up with enough force to leap to her feet, ready to fight. She spun around wildly, trying to get her bearings, and only succeeded in making herself dizzy and nearly teeter off her feet. Feeling the world spin, she planted her feet solidly and rubbed her head, taking deep breaths as she waited for the dizziness to pass.

When it finally did she blinked at the room she was in. It looked like a finely furnished bedroom, minus the bed. She’d been lying instead on a thick floor mattress, albeit one with elegant silk covers with a distinctly embroidered flower petal sigil in icy blue coloring. The rest of the room had well polished wooden cabinets and a desk, the walls made from wood paneled rice paper covered in detailed paintings of calming mountain landscapes. There was an open window nearby that showed a wide garden, complete with a beautiful pond and fountain where streams of water fell down carefully placed stones into a bamboo device that let the water build in one end until it made one end of the bamboo branch tilt down, then quickly fall back when the water left, allowing the bamboo to hit a nearby rock with a distinct ‘thwack’ sound.

“Where n’ tarnation...?” Applejack breathed, then heard the sliding of a paper door behind her. She spun about, nearly summoning her Fullbring, until she saw that the person standing in the doorway wasn’t a Soul Reaper, but instead was a young boy.

He couldn’t have been much older than ten, maybe eleven, very close to Applebloom’s age. He had a mop of shiny dark brown hair sitting atop a head a bit too big for his gangly body, making it clear he had room to grow, but for now he was just a small fry. He had cream colored skin, but had the oddest blotchy patch of brown around his left eye, a brown that matched his eye’s color. He wore a light blue kimono with a darker blue sash, and tucked into the belt was a small blade, but somehow Applejack doubted it was a Zanpaktou. It wasn’t much larger than a dagger.

Seeing her, the boy gave a slight start, and spoke in a light, breathy voice that was thickly accented with what sounded to Applejack vaguely British. “Good morning miss! I’m glad you’re awake. You’re the first one.”

“The first what? Where’s this place? Who’re ya?”

The boy took a step back from Applejack, as she’d all but grabbed the poor kid, looming over him with eyes staring down at him intently. He offered her a stuttering smile as he said, “I don’t mean you any harm, so please calm down miss. My name’s Pipsqueak, miss, and you’re in my home. You and your friends fell into my family’s garden, and since you were all hurt, I brought you inside to tend to your wounds.”

“Ya...did, huh?” Applejack slowly eased back from the boy, face reddening as she realized she’d been inches from manhandling not only a ten year old boy, but also her and her friend’s potential savior. “Uh, well, thanks a bunch fer that, an’ sorry ‘bout gettin’ all up in yer grill just now.”

“Oh that’s quite alright. I’m just happy you’re okay. It's bad manners to let guests die in one’s care, and mother would be disappointed if I showed a guest bad manners.” Pipsqueak said, then suddenly put his hand around his mouth to cover it as he coughed. Applejack, blinking in surprise, looked at the coughing boy hesitantly.

“Are ya alright there, kid?”

Pipsqueak waved his free hand a few times in a dismissive gesticulation until his coughing fit ended and he managed a wane smile, “Just tip top, miss. Its nothing, just a condition. Gets a tad uppity in the mornings. Come now, let me show you to your friends.”

He led her out into a smoothly polished hallway, and in short order Applejack realized this ‘home’ was in fact a rather large mansion estate, easily on par with Twilight Sparkle’s home, if done in a more spread out, eastern style with countless rooms separated by thin paper walls. There were interior gardens and pools to be seen, along with large rooms filled with what looked like family portraits. Applejack paused at one such room, eyeing a huge portrait that covered much of one wall. She recognized the woman in the portrait who stood beside Pipsqueak with one hand gently clasping the boy’s shoulder.

“Yes miss, is something wrong?” asked Pipsqueak.

“Is that yer ma?” she asked, nodding at the portrait.

Pipsqueak smiled brightly, “Mmmhmm! She’s not only the head of our family, but a Captain of the Gotei 13. I’m proud to be her son.”

I’ll bet... Applejack thought, but said nothing as they passed by the room with the portrait of Captain Platinum and her son, Pipsqueak. Applejack wasn’t in a rush to mention she knew the boy’s mother, or that for the moment they were essentially enemies. Furthermore she wasn’t sure just how out of danger she and her friends were, if they were inside the home of Platinum. Strange, though. For the sheer size of the estate there didn’t seem to be anybody else around. There’d even been other people in the family portraits... so where was the rest of the family?

Before she could ask any further questions, Pipsqueak led her to a larger guest room filled with futons upon which several people were resting. Fluttershy was wrapped up in bandages, freshly cleaned, and was snoozing away, although she looked pale to Applejack’s keen eye. That one armed Soul Reaper fella, Nocturn, was on the futon next to Fluttershy, his missing arm now a thoroughly bandaged stump. Rainbow Dash and Clover were asleep on the other two futons on the other side of the room, neither of them too badly bandaged.

“Huh, why was I in a different room?” asked Applejack as she took in the sight, scratching her head and wracking her memory for just how they ended up here. The last thing she remembered was grabbing Clover and Nocturn when they’d all been swept up by Hurricane’s final tornado attack. Clover's Zanpaktou had transformed into some strange energy net that had been carrying an unconscious Soul Reaper woman that Applejack had recognized as Hurricane's Lieutenant, but Clover had deactivated the net to drop the other Soul Reaper into a tree as they'd been flying over the forest canopy. Applejack and Rainbow Dash had flown away as fast as they could, the tornado hot on their heels, Rainbow Dash carrying Fluttershy while Applejack had struggled to keep a grip on the two Soul Reapers. They hadn’t been watching where they were going, just trying to get away from the tornado, but it had chased them like a giant, flying wind wave, and the last memory Applejack had was the tornado catching up and making her lose her flight balance. She’d tumbled through the air, hearing the others shouting, but she certainly didn’t remember landing.

“Oh, just ran out of bedding here, so had to put you in the second guest room. You all gave me quite the fright, landing so hard in the yard like that.” Pipsqueak said, approaching Fluttershy and looking her over, raising his hands over her. Applejack saw a faint green glow emanating from the boy’s hands, recognizing the healing Kido spells that Clover used. “I’ve done the best I can, but I’m still not very good with Kaido yet. This young lady is the worst off. The wound on her shoulder is too deep for me to fix. You should take her to the Fourth Division’s hospital as soon as you can.”

“Yeah, well, that ain’t gonna be easy ta do, an even if we did... them folk might not help us.” Applejack was more than a little uneasy to talk about it, but if Pipsqueak had been helping them, then he deserved to at least know what he was getting himself into. “Ya see kid, we’re kinda, well ain’t no simple way ta say it but we’re basically the bad guys by Soul Society’s reckonin’ right now. Helping us out might not be a smart move on yer part. Yer ma’ll certainly git mad if she finds out.”

Pipsqueak didn’t take his eyes off of healing Fluttershy as he said, “I rather gathered you girls might be in trouble. Mother doesn’t tell me much of anything. I never really know what’s happening outside these walls, so... well I suppose if I have to behave according to the morals mother taught me then she can’t complain, can she?”

“An’...what morals are those?” Applejack asked.

“To always conduct myself with nobility, compassion, and wisdom, as befits the future head of the Platinum family.” Pipsqueak said, “And for the moment, as far as I’m concerned, that means helping injured people in need. Although I’d appreciate knowing more about who you are and why you might be so badly injured, alongside several Soul Reapers.”

His eyes turned hurt, shadowed by a deep frown, “I never get told anything about what’s happening out there. I know mother is trying to keep me safe, but I’m nearly old enough to seek entrance to the Academy. I should start to learn more. Perhaps you’d be willing to tell me, Miss Applejack?”

She scratched the back of her head, suddenly finding the floor very interesting. “Not sure that’d be such a good idea. It’s all pretty complex an’ stuff. An’ ta top it off, we’re kinda... not really friends with yer ma at the moment, if ya get my meanin’.”

“Oh.” Pipsqueak glanced at her, his eyes surprisingly mature and searching for a kid his age. “I can’t imagine you’re bad people, otherwise you could have hurt me by now. Taken me hostage, perhaps.”

“We ain’t bad folk, that’s fer sure.” said Applejack firmly, “We’re just havin’ a serious disagreement with some o’ the Soul Reapers ‘bout their... policies. Kinda leads to some fightin’, but trust me when I say we ain’t here ta hurt folk. Unless we got ta defend ourselves. An’ as ya can see we got some Soul Reapers that’re on our side. So like I said, things’re complex out there.”

“Mother says that a lot too.” said Pipsqueak, “That things are complicated outside our estate. That when I’m older I’ll understand. I rather think I already understand. Friend and foe isn’t as easy to see as black and white. Well, if she gets mad at me for helping you lot, I’ll just tell her it was ‘complicated’.” He gave a little boyish laugh, but it didn’t last long. “I’m not joking about getting your friend to the Fourth Division hospital. Even if you have to sneak in, there’s medicine there that should help your friend here recover from her wound much faster than anything I can do. If she doesn’t get that treatment soon, this wound might become crippling.”

He paused as another coughing fit took him, and he nearly bent double. Applejack rushed to his side, kneeling down to hold him tentatively.

“Ya sure yer alright there, Pipsqueak? That don’t sound good.”

“I’m... fine... just...” he gulped, huffing and wheezing until he got his breathing under control. His voice got steady, but Applejack could see the haunting echoes of old fear in his eyes. “I’ve lived with it my whole life. Mother always brings me medicine to keep it under control. I have some in my room, and I’ll take it as soon as I’ve sent you and your friends on your way.”

“Whenever they can wake up, sure.” Applejack said, frustration and worry rising inside her. The conversation had already told her this was all of her friends that Pipsqueak had found. Which meant Pinkie Pie, Sunset, Rarity, and Ditzy Doo were unaccounted for. Applejack had no idea if they were captured, on the run, hiding, or...

She shook her head, banishing the worst of her fears. “Where’s this Fourth Division from here?”

“Oh, not far. The hospital is to the west of here, near the base of the Gotei 13’s headquarters mountain. You can’t miss it, it’s a tall white building with the Fourth Division symbol carved into a huge circle on the front.” Pipsqueak went over to a drawer and got out a small scroll along with a ink brush and pot. In a few quick strokes he drew a symbol on the paper and showed it Applejack, essentially a square with two different dash marks inside it. Applejack memorized the symbol with a nod.

“Thanks there, Pipsqueak. We owe ya one.”

“Heh, I’m not even done yet.” he said with a boyish grin, “The noble families of Soul Society have a special entrance to the Fourth Division hospital, for emergencies. Each estate has tunnels that lead right into the hospital. You can use ours to get there in no time and avoid being seen. I’ll even give you one of our ward passes that will get you into the medicine storerooms so you can get what you need for your friend.”

“Geeze kid, yer really stickin’ yer neck out fer us.”

“It's my neck to stick out. And I never get a chance to do so for anybody, really, so I’m happy to do it. Doing this... well it makes me feel useful. That and it is the duty of a noble to help those less fortunate than themselves.”

For a little tyke who could’ve been going to grade school alongside Applebloom, this young boy sure did hold a sense of resolve that Applejack could only respect. He could potentially get in a huge heap of trouble for helping them, but he wasn’t hesitating. How had someone like Platinum raised such a good kid? With a deep breath, Applejack smiled and gave Pipsqueak a friendly punch on the shoulder. “Well I ain’t gonna argue that with ya. Soon as my friends are up an’ runnin’ we’ll git outta yer hair. With any luck won’t no one even know we were here. Speakin’ o’ which, anyone else here we should be worried ‘bout findin’ us?”

Pipsqueak smiled wanly as he glanced out the window, “It's usually just mother and me here. After father died, mother rarely has company over. This is just the primary family estate. The Platinums are a noble house with many local estates. I have aunts, uncles, cousins, but they don’t live here in the main house. Mother doesn’t trust servants around me either, so most of the time I’m by myself.”

“Sorry ta hear that...”

“It's okay. Mother always makes time for me, even with all her duties. Heh, to tell the truth it's a bit smothering. I wish she’d get out more, have some friends, instead of spending so much time worrying about me.” Pipsqueak finished checking on Fluttershy’s wounds and moved over to Rainbow Dash, who tossed and turned on her futon. “Your blue friend here looks like she’s recovering the fastest. I think she’ll be awake pretty soon. I should see about getting food prepared for all of you.”

“Look we’re alreay imposin’ way more than we oughta, so soon as they’re awake I’m thinkin’ we need ta get... goin’...” Applejack trailed off as her body tensed up. At first she wasn’t certain why, but a moment later her spiritual senses kicked in, warning her of incoming danger. A moment later she actually got a sharp and powerful sense of another spiritual pressure out there, closing in quickly. Her heart started to race, because while she’d only felt this reiatsu briefly, she knew it well and certainly wasn’t going to forget it any time soon.

It was her mother, Sweet Cider.

“Miss? Is everything okay? You look terrified all of a sudden.” Pipsqueak said, blinking at her worriedly.

Applejack, gritting her teeth, turned to him, eyes flashing seriously. “Pipsqueak, is there anywhere nearby that’s a good, open space, without anyone around?”

“Huh? Well, there’s the Academy training yards to the north. There shouldn’t be any classes going on at this time, and those courtyards are quite spacious so cadets can train in Kido.” Pipsqueak said quickly, frowning at her, “But what’s happening? You look so spooked.”

“Someone’s coming. Quick.” Applejack said, trying to sharpen her senses and gauge just how far away Sweet Cider was. It was hard to tell precisely, but she thought she had some time. She couldn’t quite pinpoint Sweet Cider’s exact location, but she could tell she was coming towards them. But how? How could Sweet Cider tell where they were? Was it just a lucky guess on her mother’s part, or...

Or was it that Sweet Cider could feel where Applejack was? She’d felt a connection of sorts when she’d first confronted her mother. A powerful draw that was hard to explain, but it was clear her spirit energy was calling out to her mother’s, and vice versa.

If she’s tracking me, and just me... then maybe I can lure her away.

Applejack looked at her wounded, bedridden friends. Even if Rainbow Dash woke up then and there, what were the odds that she could convince her friend to stay behind and help the others while Applejack went off to face Sweet Cider alone? It was probably for the best they were still unconscious. More than that, it’d keep their spirit pressures low so Sweet Cider might not notice them, especially if Applejack acted as a much more tempting target.

“Pipsqueak, I gotta git goin’. Someone's comin’ who’d mean my friends harm if they found us here, but she’s after me more n’ them. If I go be bait, she’ll chase me, and probably pass this place right on by.”

Pipsqueak gulped, looking at her with wide brown eyes. “I don’t pretend to know what’s happening, but surely if you go alone you won’t stand a chance. This is noble estate, surely to trespass here would violate our rights as a noble house-”

“Trust me kid, the one who’s comin’ won’t give a damn ‘bout that. She’s only after me.” Applejack’s emerald eyes glared with hardening resolve as she clenched her fists, her heart set upon the course she’d just chosen. “And I’m gonna give her what she wants, ‘cause I got to face her too. Thank you, Pipsqueak, fer all yer help. Look after my friends, an’ when they wake up... send ‘em on ta the Fourth Division. Don’t tell ‘em ‘bout me even bein’ here. It’d just make ‘em worry, an’ knowing one o’ ‘em,” she gave a pointed look at Rainbow Dash, “She’d come chasin’ after me. Which I can’t afford.”

Concern shone in his eyes, but he showed that mature understanding that went beyond his short years and gave her a solemn nod. “I shall do as you ask, but please, be careful. I’d hate for all my hard work in tending to your health to go to waste.”

Applejack gave him a smile, tipping her hat to him, and without another word rushed out the window, hopping out into the open garden beyond. Rushing along at a full run towards the wall, she summoned her Fullbring. The armored boots and gauntlets formed around her instantly in flashes of golden light, and with bursts of energy from her boots and palms she took to the sky. She let her spirit energy flare out like a shining torch, intentionally marking herself out.

“Here I am, ma, come an’ git me!” she breathed, blasting away at full speed like a soaring rocket to the north. She felt the return spike of her mother’s spiritual pressure, a incredible wave of power that flowed behind her like a tidal wave chasing her. As terrifying as the feeling was in some ways, there was a undercurrent of painful nostalgia along with it. For an instant it almost felt like being a little kid, running and playing hide and seek in the orchards, her mother chasing her while pretending to be a bear or wolf in some silly kid’s game.

Well, the games were over. One way or another, it was time to confront her mother, with no one around to interfere with this important Apple family business. That was the other reason she didn’t want Rainbow Dash or any of her other friends involved with this. Sure on some level she wanted them safe, but more than that this was a matter for Apples to deal with. This was between mother and daughter, and nobody else’s business!

Within minutes she spotted what Pipsqueak had been talking about. While so much of the Seireitei looked the same to her, with its immaculate white buildings arranged in complex yet ordered patterns, there were still areas that stood out either because they broke with the pattern or were larger than the more uniform buildings. Beyond the clean and picturesque noble estates there was a large wall marked with tall towers that looked like it was a broad avenue between the mountain housing the Soul Reaper headquarters to the west, and the Seireitei’s border wall to the east. North of this avenue was an entire wide section of space given over to a huge, square shaped building with an open center, and each corner marked by a tiered pagoda towers. Between this building and the avenue of towers was a series of wide, open stone yards that matched what Pipsqueak had described. They were basically three different wide fields of tiled stone, with what looked like bunkers and target ranges arranged around their sides. One could set up everything from large scale physical exercises to Kido spell training in those spaces, and they were right in front of the building that Applejack guessed was the Soul Reaper Academy.

Even if there’s anyone ‘round, chances are they’ll just be cadets. They’d have to be pretty dang dumb ta step in between a fight with a’ Captain.

Fortunately, as Pipsqueak said, the area looked empty as Applejack curved down and spun into a hard landing in the middle of the central training yard. She dusted herself off and then turned to wait, one hand on her hip as she kept her spiritual energy flaring high to make it obvious where she was.

She didn’t have long to wait.

When she arrived, Sweet Cider landed like a crashing meteor, cracking stone tiles beneath her feet. Applejack guessed she must have jumped across the wall and timed her arc just right to land no more than twenty paces away. Sweet Cider was still covered in dirt and blood from her fight with Ditzy Doo, but if her wounds were bothering her Sweet Cider didn’t show it as she bounced her huge, nearly blunt Zanpaktou off her shoulder and met Applejack’s waiting gaze with shining eyes of her own.

“Ya ain’t runnin’.” Sweet Cider noted.

Applejack still trembled inside, hearing her mother’s voice, gazing upon her face. Inside her heart all she wanted to do was rush over and embrace the woman in front of her, bury her face in that familiar shoulder and cry and bawl like a child for hours.

But that wasn’t possible. As long as Sweet Cider didn’t remember who she was, Applejack couldn’t hold her mother, couldn’t tell her anything that had happened to her or Big Mac, or Applebloom, or Granny Smith for all the years she and pa had been absent. A true reunion couldn’t happen until she’d pounded the memory of who she really was back into Sweet Cider’s thick skull! Damn Soul Reapers! All the anger she’d buried came flaring right back to the surface as she silently cursed the Soul Reapers for all that had happened to her family!

She raised her fists, taking on a ready fighting stance. “‘Course I ain’t runnin’. I got too much that’s needin’ ta be put right ta turn tail. Startin’ with makin’ ya remember who ya are, ma!”

Sweet Cider’s face was stone as she brought her Zanpaktou to bear in a loose, one handed stance, cracking her neck, her spiritual energy blanketing the air with powerful, deadly intent. “Yer still on ‘bout this whole me bein’ yer old lady? Figurin’ that’s even true, it don’t change nothin’. You an’ yer buddies can’t be allowed ta run all over te place stirrin’ up trouble when we’re already in a tight spot wit them two idiots about to be executed.”

“Then help us do somehin’ ‘bout it!” shouted Applejack, frustration boiling over, “We’re here ta save ‘em both, an’ if ya don’t want ‘em dyin’ then you should be on our side danggit!”

“Ain’t that simple, little hayseed...” Sweet Cider said, and Applejack saw her frown, as if Sweet Cider didn’t understand where that nickname came from. With a growl, Sweet Cider said, “A fight like that, hell a fight like what we got goin’ right here, is just the kind o’ distraction the real bad guys are probably laughing their heads off ‘bout. I gotta put a’ stop ta it all fast, startin’ with makin’ sure you crazy girls are locked up somewhere safe n’ sound ‘till this all blows over. Give up an’ come along quiet like, an’ that’ll help more n’ any o’ this foolish runnin’ ‘round tryin’ ta play jailbreak.”

Applejack clenched her jaw and tensed her body, “Ain’t happenin’, ma. We’re committed ta this ‘till the end. Even if we gotta smash our way through every dang Soul Reaper Captain that gits in our way.”

A strange smile came over Sweet Cider’s face, one that left Applejack feeling like she was a little girl again, alone and facing a hungry wolf that’d wandered onto the orchard. Her mother’s reiatsu concentrated into a sharp point, flowing into her Zanpaktou, which seemed to make the air vibrate with excitement.

“Heh, crazy thing is girl, I’m kinda glad yer bein’ stubborn ‘bout this. Somethin’ in me wants ta see what yer made of. If ya really are my own flesh n’ blood...” Sweet Cider’s spiritual energy exploded out of her in a visible, violent gold aura that cracked the stone around her and made her eyes become like twin emerald nimbus of light. “Then ya’d better make this fight a good one!”

Despite her fear, Applejack felt herself focusing, her soul seeming to sharpen just like her mother’s Zanpaktou onto a single point, until all she could see was the woman before her. Gold energy matching Sweet Cider’s flared up around Applejack, the two women like mirrors of one another.

“If that’s what ya want, ma...”

With thrusters of gold energy exploded from her shoulder armor, Applejack rocketed forward, spinning into a roundhouse kick. Sweet Cider, laughing merrily, charged to meet the attack with her Zanpaktou tearing up the ground in a uppercut slice that met Applejack’s armored boot in a echoing clash that shattered the ground around the pair.

----------

Sunset edged her head over the edge of the wall she, Rarity, and Ditzy Doo were using for cover. Behind them was a set of warehouses they’d been hopping between, keeping out of sight as they made their way west and north across the Seireitei. The going was slow as they had to keep stopping to let Soul Reaper patrols pass by, or stay hidden when the building they were in got searched. Once or twice Ditzy Doo had needed to use her impressive skills to rapidly knock out a squad of Soul Reapers that got too close to discovering them. After such instances Sunset and Rarity had been tasked with hauling the unconscious bodies to hiding places, stuffing them into closets or shoving them into corners behind crates. At this point there was probably a dozen or so poor Soul Reapers who were going to wake up with nasty headaches.

Now, however, with the morning sun getting higher in the sky, they were finally in sight of their target.

“So that’s the Twelfth Division headquarters?” Sunset asked to clarify, glancing over at Ditzy Doo.

“Yes, that’s the center for the Research and Development Bureau, which isn’t the barracks, but it's the main part of the Twelfth Division.” Ditzy replied, snickering under her breath, “Me and Discy used to call it the Phallic Division, for obvious reasons.”

“Oh did you have to point it out?” sighed Rarity, “Because I wasn’t going to say anything, personally, even if those buildings are a little... err.. unfortunately shaped.”

The buildings in question were a series of pale white affairs thrusting upwards in a tight cluster from a collection of more squat, traditional buildings. They were unlike the other buildings Sunset had seen so far in the Seireitei, having smoother surfaces, and rounded tops that were, in fact, just a tad on the phallic side. Honestly to her they looked more like giant white push-pops. The Twelfth Division had a few other odd buildings around its headquarters, including some domes bunched up around the southern end that had antenna-like protrusions coming out of their tops. It was all enclosed inside a low wall, with a front gate of tall wood, the gates themselves standing open.

It was all still distant, but close enough that they’d reach there if they just kept heading forward for another few hundred yards. Between them and the Twelfth Division’s headquarters there was a circular gathering of buildings that looked as if they were built around a pool of water crossed by a intersection of elegant wood bridges. Since more heavily patrolled streets lined either side of the area, the only clear way through to the Twelfth Division was through the circular cluster of buildings, which didn’t look as if it had anyone around near as Sunset could see.

“Seems to me we have to sneak through those buildings with the pool down there to get by.” she said as the three of them backed away from the edge of the wall, leaning against it as she glanced at Rarity and Ditzy Doo, “Don’t suppose you know what they are, Ditzy?”

Ditzy scratched her nose, smiling, “They’re called the ‘Four Heavens’ Inn. It's a special guest inn for people visiting the Seireitei. Top quality spa and restaurant, along with a tea house. Even if it's meant for guests, a lot of Soul Reapers like to visit there for the food alone.”

Rarity sighed wistfully, “Tea and a spa. If we weren’t hunted criminals I’d be there in an eyeblink.”

The already alabaster girl was looking even more pale than usual, and Sunset couldn’t help but note that Rarity occasionally clutched her stomach. “How are you holding up, Rarity? You took a pretty nasty hit in that fight.”

“Oh this is nothing, darling. Just a teeny bit sore.” Rarity said with a reassuring smile, which soon melted into a look of concern of her own. “What about you? Your arm?”

Sunset grimaced. Her left arm was one big, aching sore, and she could barely move it. Ditzy said that there were a couple of fractures, but that once they got into the Twelfth Division she could scrounge up some medical supplies to help accelerate the healing process. However, for now, Sunset was stuck to using one arm if a fight came up.

“I’ll live. Is it a bad sign that I’m actually getting used to being in pain on a regular basis?” Sunset said, chuckling dryly under her breath.

“It means you girls are getting tougher by the day. Let’s continue this trend.” said Ditzy Doo, who then went back to the top of the wall and gestured for them to follow her. “With the Seireitei on emergency alert there shouldn’t be anyone at the inn. We just sneak by fast and head right for the Twelfth Division. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.”

“I think you just jinxed us.” Sunset said as she and Rarity followed Ditzy over the wall and the three of them started swiftly running across the way to reach the edge of the circular inn buildings.

“Nonsense. There’s no such thing as jinxing. And if there is, well you didn’t want this to be boring, did you?” Ditzy asked with a wink as they crept around the side of the first inn building. Sunset glanced inside one of the nearby open windows. The interior of the inn that she saw looked like a first floor eating area, with lots of tables set up around what looked like some kind of bar set up. It was empty save for one very bored looking young woman in a yellow kimono polishing down the tables.

“Hmm, looks pretty clear here,” Sunset whispered, “I think it's just the inn staff around.”

“Well then, let’s move through quickly before anyone sees us.” Rarity said, licking her lips. “I’d rather not cause a ruckus for poor innocent folk just trying to run an independent business.”

At Sunset’s odd look Rarity took on a defensive tone. “What? I’m studying business courses Sunset, and I know how hard it is to run even a simple, small business. I’d be quite peeved if someone started a fight in my shop.”

"You don’t have a shop.”

“Oh, but I will one day darling. I’ve got it all planned out, and have even picked out the most lovely spot-”

“Talk time over, girls, let’s move.” said Ditzy, all but dragging the two of them along as they all ran low towards the first of the wooden bridges crossing the pool. Sunset cast about furtive glances in tense alert for anyone who might spot them, but thus far the coast looked clear. The center of the pool had a small island with a single cherry blossom tree, where they paused to double check there was no one watching before they started across the next bridge.

Sunset almost relaxed once they were across, but the moment they reached the other side of the bridge someone walked around the corner of the other side of the inn.

He was a tall man with snow white skin and a long wave of blonde hair. He had a classically handsome face with a strong chin and sharp features, complementing bright blue eyes. He wore the uniform of a Soul Reaper along with the long, elegant form of a white Captain’s coat. A white hilted Zanpaktou, heavily curved and hanging in a blue sheath, dangled from his right hip. When the man saw them he looked at them without recognition, but rather just calm yet demanding eyes.

“Ah, inn servants! Quickly now, get my table set and my favorite tea ready. I have only a short time to get a proper moment of relaxation in before I must be off. Hurry now, stop gawking, or do you not recognize who I am? Are you all new staff?”

Ditzy had gone stiff as a board, and Sunset gave her a look that was equal parts smug and distressed.

"No such thing as jinxes, huh?"

Ditzy puffed her cheeks out in an irritated sigh, "I have, on occasion, been known to be wrong about things."

Rarity just looked at the two in confusion. The banter just seemed to annoy the man more, whose voice grew more haughty by the second.

“I said go get my table set. Are you all daft?” He peered at them with his blue eyes blinking, “Hmm, you, the one with the bacon hair. You’re in a Soul Reaper uniform. Aren’t you supposed to be on duty? What are you doing at the inn?”

“Well, that’s...” Sunset thought fast, “I was checking the area in case the Ryoka decided to hide out here, sir.”

“Ah, capital idea. Indeed I’m glad I thought of it. I should have someone check around here while I’m taking my morning tea. Now, you, wench with the purple hair. Do be dear and fetch me my tea.”

Rarity grimaced, her eyes getting keen as daggers. Still, Rarity wasn’t foolish, and managed a thin, coy smile. “Why, um, of course sir. Tea. Coming right up.”

However before another moment passed the blonde man actually took a closer look at Ditzy Doo and narrowed his eyes, scratching his chin. “Wait a moment. I... Do I know you?”

Ditzy, hissing under her breath, said, “I hope not.”

The man’s eyes widened as he pointed an accusing finger at Ditzy, “YOU! I remember you now! You crazy, insensitive, brutish, uncouth, unruly, dirty little cat!”

"Aaaaand there it is. Hello Bluey. So glad you remember me. Only took you, what, a full two minutes to remember while looking right at my face?” Ditzy Doo said, rolling her eyes.

Rarity, still grimacing, turned to Ditzy, “You know this... gentleman?”

Ditzy snorted, gesturing with exaggerated grandiose flare at the man, “Say hello to Captain Blueblood of the Ninth Division. Head of the noble Blood family. All around jackass. So, Bluey, you still upset about that business with the hot sauce?”

A pressure wave of spirit energy, shining white, bursting out from Blueblood made Ditzy sigh and say, “Yup, he’s still upset.”

Blueblood drew his Zanpaktou in a ringing chime of steel and pointed it at them, “I can only presume the two young ladies with you are the Ryoka that have invaded Seireitei. Ha! How fortunate for me! I was intending to just enjoy a nice morning cup of tea before joining in the hunt, but it seems I can enjoy both my tea and the honor of being the first to capture you filthy Ryoka! Truly the gods of fortune smile upon me.”

Sunset gripped and drew Hokori, unsure if she could even go Shikai effectively with one arm, but certainly willing to try. Ditzy Doo also got into a ready stance, but at that moment Rarity stepped forward and took up a position between them and Blueblood.

“Rarity?” Sunset looked at her friend in puzzlement.

Even Blueblood had a bemused quirk to his expression as he looked at Rarity. “What is this now? Is one poorly dressed Ryoka wench looking to challenge me?”

"Poorly dressed!?” Rarity snapped, then took a deep breath, one eyebrow twitching, as she looked over her shoulder back at Sunset and Ditzy. “You two have more important places to be right now. We can’t afford to have you held up here. Please, let me deal with this uncultured oaf.”

It was now Blueblood’s turn to gain a twitchy eyebrow, followed by a few popped out veins on his forehead. “Uncultured!? I’ll have you know I am the soul of culture in this desert wasteland of cultural grace. Have you ever tried sharing an art gallery with a group of people who’s primary concern is how to better stab things with sharp metal objects!? Sweet Cider actually had the gall to call my masterpiece a, and I quote, ‘shiny garbage can on stilts’. As if she could grasp the artistic nuances of my work!”

Rarity cleared her throat, “While I can appreciate the struggles of artistic expression, that doesn’t give you the right to go around insulting whomever you wish-”

Blueblood cut her off with a deadpan look, “Your dress looks like a painted on dishrag.”

Her crimson, crystalline rapier formed in a wash of swirling red blood instantly in Rarity’s tight grip as her eyes turned to needle points of glaring death.

“I will cut you!”

Meanwhile Sunset started to say, “Rarity, I don’t think its a good idea to try to take this guy alone.” However Ditzy Doo put a hand on her shoulder, leaning in to whisper.

“No, she’s being smart about this. She knows if all three of us get into a fight here we’ll lose our shot at sneaking into the Twelfth Division. If she keeps Bluey here distracted, however, you and me can sneak in all the easier and get you that Bankai training.”

“But she can’t-”

“Look, trust me, I know Blueblood. Out of all the Captains he’s probably the weakest. Not a pushover mind you, but Rarity might actually be able to take him if she plays it smart. And Rarity’s one sharp tac. Point is, she’s buying us time.”

Sunset cast worried eyes towards her friend, “Even if she wins, where will she go? She won’t be able to follow us, will she?”

To that Ditzy stepped up next to Rarity, who was still staring with shining wrath at Blueblood. She whispered to Rarity, “Hey, if you take down Bluey, there’s a hidden hideout the Second Division uses at the west base of the mountain. You’ll find it between two boulders. Its marked by a symbol shaped like a cat. Just press it to get inside. Once I’m done training Sunset, we’ll meet you there.”

Rarity took a deep breath, nodding curtly. “I understand. Now do go, Miss Doo, and take care of Sunset. Please don’t waste any more time worrying about me.” She raised her voice above a whisper then, to say, “I shall enjoy teaching this simple minded neathderthal a thing or two about proper manners.”

Sunset found herself shaking her head. She just couldn’t do this. She couldn’t leave one of her friends behind to face the threat of a Captain alone. “Rarity wait! We’ll do this together! We can beat him faster as a team, and you don’t have to take the risk alone!”

Ditzy glanced back at her, “Rarity’s right, we don’t have time to get all of us caught in a fight. Trust her, Sunset.”

There was a growing heat inside Sunset and within Hokori. It started to almost feel like the hilt of her Zanpaktou was burning her palm, but not painfully, just in angry denial. Running away to leave a friend behind, even for sensible reasons, just infuriated her! Well, if she just straight up attacked Blueblood, maybe that’d force the issue!

However, just as she was about to Flash Step towards him, Ditzy Doo beat her to the punch. Literally. By Flash Stepping in front of Sunset and ramming a fist into her sternum.

“Sorry about this kid, but I can tell when somebody’s about to do something stupid. There’s a time and a place for that kind of pride, but it ain’t here.” Ditzy Doo said as Sunset, eyes wide, gasped and fell over Ditzy’s shoulder, stunned. She was lifted up, hefted atop Ditzy Doo’s shoulder, who then gave Rarity a nod of respect.

“See you soon.”

In a smooth eyeblink she leaped into the sky over Blueblood’s head, landing a good distance behind him while carrying Sunset off at a full run. Blueblood, sneering, turned to face them, raising a palm that started to glow with the intense, burning red and orange spirit energy of a gathering Kido.

“Don’t assume I’ll just let you get away from me, Ditzy Doo! Hado Number Thirty Nine: Kongobaku!” (Adamantine Blast)

A swirling ball of flames the size of a small boulder blasted out from his palm, chasing after Ditzy Doo, but just as quickly a wave of crimson blood flew in from above and then splashed down to form a wide barrier of red crystal that intercepted the Kido, which exploded upon the wall. A moment later Ditzy Doo accelerated away with the speed of a blinding Flash Step, and Blueblood was left behind as Rarity let out a chiming laugh, the whirlpool of blood she’d summoned flowing back to stand at the ready above her.

“And you don’t assume I’ll just let you chase them. If you wish to go after my friends, you crass lout, then you must deal with me first.” Rarity held her rapier at the ready, standing tall and fierce. “So, to start this properly... en garde!”

She rushed forward, thrusting the rapier in a speedy streak of a strike that flew like an arrow for Blueblood’s face. He responded with a shocked look but with the speed and grace appropriate to one wearing the uniform of a Soul Reaper Captain, swinging his Zanpaktou around to catch Rarity’s rapier in a flash of sparks. For a second both of them were blade locked, eyeing each other with measuring stares. Then Blueblood pushed hard with his blade, creating a small burst of air between him and Rarity as their spiritual pressure's clashed. Neither was pushed back immediately, and instead they broke off their clash at the same instant, leaping back several paces to face each other once more, squaring off.

Blueblood’s eyebrow shot up, “Color me intrigued. Very well, I’ll honor you with a proper duel, wench. Be grateful.” He flipped his hair, striking a pose, “Very few have the incredible fortune to be so honored as to duel one such as I. Your life, short as it may now be, shall be thoroughly enriched by the battle to come!”

Rarity coughed politely, her voice slathered with sarcasm. “I can hardly contain my excitement.”

Author's Notes:

Neither can I, Rarity. The party is getting more and more split as we prepare for the one-one-one battles to come. For our first round of matches we've got the party crashers Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena Vs Eighth Division Captain Cheese Sandwich, in what will probably be a very weird bout. Then there's the passionately charged battle of Applejack Vs Tenth Division Captain Sweet Cider, the ultimate mother-daughter spat. Finally there's the match I didn't bother to foreshadow, but probably should have, Rarity Vs Ninth Division Captain Blueblood, in what will surely be a more violent rendition of their pony counterparts meeting at the Grand Galloping Galla.

Meanwhile Sunset gets to be hauled off for Bankai training, whether she likes it or not.

As always thanks for reading guys, and hope you're enjoying. As per usual never hesitate to let me know what you think via comments, questions, and/or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 43: Apples to the Core

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Episode 43: Apples to the Core

With an emergency situation declared classes at the Soul Reaper Academy had been canceled for that day, but there were still a few students and teachers walking the Academy’s tall, hallowed halls to take care of pertinent tasks they didn’t think could wait a day. The students at the Soul Reaper Academy wore robe shirts and wide, hakama-style pants in similar fashion to proper Soul Reaper uniforms, only the student’s were predominantly white in color with red or blue highlights depending on their gender; red for the women, blue for the men. Even without classes there were still a number of chores that needed doing, and as such several students were cleaning one classroom when a massive pressure wave of force blew out the windows and they all felt an overwhelming amount of reiatsu pulsing like an earthquake from nearby. Several rushed to the windows to see what was happening, wondering if this had anything to do with the mysterious ‘emergency’ that’d shut down the Academy for the day.

What they saw was a glowing storm of golden energy and flowing waves of force radiating off of a space near one of the training courtyards in the distance. Despite the sheer distance the courtyard was from the Academy buildings, the students could feel yet more force blast by like gusts of typhoon force wind.

All the students could do was look at each with fearful, worried eyes, wondering what kind of monsters were battling it out so close by?

Sparks exploded from the armored plating of Applejack’s right boot as her mother’s blade parried her kick, the force sending her reeling backwards. Her eyes widened, glancing at her leg where she could see the armor gashed, blood trickling from the open wound. Yet she didn’t back away, or seek to gain distance from Sweet Cider, but instead blasted right back in, unleashing a brutally quick and powerful series of punches enhanced by the rocket powered thrusters firing from her elbows and shoulders. Her fists were a mind boggling blur, making Applejack for a few seconds look like she had a dozen arms instead of just two.

Any one of those punches were on par with the blow that had knocked Troubleshoes out cold. Sweet Cider deflected them with equally swift swings of her huge, machete-like blade, the steel blurring as she used one arm to meet each of her daughter’s punches with hard steel. Meanwhile every clash of fist upon blade created waves of force that tore into the ground around them in growing cracks through the hard white stone.

Applejack growled in frustration, redoubling the speed of her punches, trying to break through her mother’s guard, but it was like trying to punch through a solid wall. Out of the corner of her eye she saw her mother ball her free hand into a fist, and then smash it towards her while still parrying Applejack’s own punches with her sword. The fist flashed in with meteoric speed and force, and Applejack pulled back, crossing her arms to block. The impact still nearly knocked her senseless and Applejack felt herself propelled backward like a ball shot form a cannon, the world spinning around her.

With no small effort she managed to right herself in mid-air and with rocket thrusters blasting from both palms and boots she flew skyward in a high arc. She then thrust both her heels down towards Sweet Cider, and using her palm thrusters to stabilize herself, she fired twin beams of golden power straight from her boots down at her mother. The beams impacted with full force, creating a sizable explosion of flying chunks of rock and dust and shaking the ground like a localized earthquake.

Breathing heavily, Applejack tried to spot her mother amid the debris, not at all believing for an instant that such an attack would’ve done much to hurt Sweet Cider. This proved true a second later when Sweet Cider literally appeared in the air right beside Applejack, grabbing Applejack’s right arm in a tight, steel grip.

“Gonna suggest ya start fightin’ harder, kid.” Sweet Cider said, “‘Cause right now I ain’t even sweatin’.”

Before Applejack could respond she found herself being twirled around with massive force, and then thrown bodily towards the ground. Unable to do more than slightly slow her fall with a few bursts from her thrusters, she impacted the courtyard with enough force to shatter the stone and create a foot deep crater. Dazed and dizzy, barely catching her lost breath, Applejack felt more than saw Sweet Cider crashing down towards her and with a rocket blast from her shoulders she propelled herself out of the crater just in time to avoid her mother’s cleaving Zanpaktou, which sunk into the crater with enough of an impact to make it another few feet deeper. Then Sweet Cider, chasing after Applejack, swung her sword in an uppercut that sent a shockwave through the ground, blasting a huge line of destruction through the stone for nearly the entire courtyard’s length, leaving a rift in the ground meters deep.

Applejack had barely rolled aside from that attack, and responded with an energy blast of her own, thrusting out her left fist and firing a focused golden beam from the back wrist nozzle of her gauntlet. The beam crashed in on Sweet Cider, who raised her Zanpaktou to block it, causing the golden energy to part like a water stream around the blade’s blunt, thick edge.

“Dang it kid, if ya had the guts ta fight me one one one, ya should’ve least made sure ya had more fight in ya than this.” Sweet Cider said, before vanishing with the speed of a Flash Step. Applejack barely had an instant to feel out where Sweet Cider’s spiritual pressure was going before spinning around to face her mother appearing behind her, blade slashing downward.

She blocked the blade with her crossed forearms, feeling the force jarr and strain her down to her very bones, feeling muscles stretch and nearly tear from the force of the blow. Her knees nearly buckled and she felt the armor in her gauntlet parting under the force, almost down to her skin. Yet somehow she managed to hold the blow at bay, and despite the fact that her mother was only using one arm it was taking all Applejack had just to hold that blade back. In a risky move she twisted to the side, letting the blade cut a bit deeper into one of her arms, so she could pull back her right leg and then with a deep throated yell she kicked out full force into Sweet Cider’s stomach.

The blow actually knocked Sweet Cider back a fair distance, and for the first time Applejack heard her mother grunt in actual strain, as if the kick had actually managed to hurt. Still, Applejack was left sweating rivers, breathing heavily as she took up a fresh fighting stance, while Sweet Cider still looked hardly winded.

I gotta dig deeper! More an’ more ‘till I got enough fer one blow that’ll be hard ‘nough ta git through ta her!

Applejack reached into her core, at the very heart of her spirit energy. Like dredging from the bottom of a drying well she started pulling up every shred of power she could yank out of herself. Gold streams of energy flowed over her in bubbling waves of aura, her armored boots and gauntlets starting to turn bright like metal heated for a forge.

“Ya can’t keep standin’ there pretendin’ ya don’t remember a single damn thing ‘bout us!” she seethed past clenched teeth as she faced Sweet Cider. “Somewhere in that thick skull o’ yers ya gotta know! I ain’t just me, but all o’ us! Ya don’t ‘remember Big Machintosh!? What ‘bout Applebloom!? Granny Smith!? ‘Cause we sure as shootin’ didn’t ferget you n’ pa. Couldn’t have. Ya both left... such a damn big hole behind when ya’ll died.”

She wasn’t even embarrassed by the hot wetness falling down her cheeks, equal parts pain from the memories of losing her parents, and the terrible frustration of looking at her mother’s eyes and not being able to break through the facade of looking at a stranger instead of the woman who’d raised her and been the core of her whole world as a child. Sweet Cider, for her part, had a tense look of growing confusion sprouting across her cherry red features. It reminded Applejack of the way Big Mac looked when he was getting ponderous about a particularly obstinate problem on the farm.

“I don’t know how many different ways ta tell ya I don’t remember bein’ yer ma, kid.” She raised her Zanpaktou almost quizzically before her, holding the blade before her face as she examined it with curious eyes. “All I know is my blade seems ta have a mighty need ta take ya on. Its edge ain’t never felt this thirsty fer a fight before, so if nothin’ else... I’ll admit there’s somethin’ different ‘bout ya.”

In truth, though Sweet Cider wasn’t about to admit this aloud, there was more to it than just the eager desire pulsing inside her Zanpaktou to fight Applejack. No, perhaps even more unnerving to Sweet Cider than that was the fact that with every second of this battle she was feeling something different than any other battle she’d fought. Usually when she was having fun in a battle it was because she was finally unleashing the boiling rage that she usually kept penned up tight inside her. Fights like that were an excuse to let off that steam, and enjoy the relief that came with it.

But this was different. Here, exchanging blows with this girl... Sweet Cider found herself having fun. She felt happy, but not because she was letting out her anger. In fact she didn’t feel angry at all. The feeling that ran through her with every beat of her heart as she fought this young woman was a strange sense of contentment, and something else. Something more. Almost like... pride?

Sweet Cider shook her head and swung her sword out in frustration, the gesture causing a shockwave that tore up a large chunk of the courtyard beside her.

“Not like it matters. Ya ain’t even put a decent bruise on me yet, hayseed, so don’t git ahead o’ yerself!”

The words alone struck Applejack like physical blows, though not for any insult in them but for the memories they struck across her mind like flint striking sparks across stone. Hearing her mother’s voice, speaking such familiar phrases, yanked Applejack’s mind back to a dozen different memories of home.

”Ha! Yer quick little hayseed, but don’t git ahead o’ yerself! Ya gotta try harder n’ that ta fool yer ol’ ma!” said Sweet Cider with a full, rich laugh as she leaned over the edge of the apple-cart, smiling down at Applejack as the small child, barely six, giggled from her hiding place among the heaps of apples.

“Heheh, ya found me mamma! Again! Why’re ya so good at hide n’ seek?” the little girl asked as she was lifted, laughing out of the cart by her mother, who ruffled her hair playfully.

“Well yer Granny Smith played lots o’ hide n’ seek wit me when I was a little hayseed myself. I know all the good hiden’ spots ‘round here, an’ since yer such a smart little cookie I know ye’ll find ‘em too.”

“Let’s play again! I’ll beat ya this time mamma!” Applejack said, bouncing on her feet as her mother set her down. Sweet Cider adjusted the stetson on her head, kneeling down to get eye level with Applejack.

“I’m sure ye’ll beat me one day, AJ. Yer growin’ like a’ weed, gettin’ bigger every day. When yer a grown woman ye’ll probably be taller n’ me.”

Applejack giggled, hugging her mother, “Nah, ma, yer the biggest. And bestest.” She remembered believing those words, too. In little Applejack’s mind there was nothing and no one bigger and stronger than her mother. Larger than life and infallible. The eternal stone that would always be there to rely on.

Sweet Cider’s smile was bright as the morning sun as she ruffled Applejack’s hair again, chuckling in the distinctive, drawling laugh that Applejack would one day inherit herself.

“Ya think that now, but soon ‘nough ye’ll hit that teenager growth spurt an’ then I’ll blink, an’ ye’ll be a woman grown. Gonna be the proudest day o’ my life when I see ya all grown up, my little hayseed. But fer now, yer my little AJ. C’mon, git on hidin’, I’ll count ta ten.”

With a squeal of delight, Applejack ran off to find a new and better hiding spot while her mother counted...

The memory swirled away, along with others of similar happy times. But as painful as it was to remember what her mother had once been like, and to see the confusion and lack of recognition in Sweet Cider’s eyes now, the memory had given Applejack an idea. Which was one idea more than she’d had a second ago, at least.

“Alright ma, how’s this fer tryin’ harder!” she said emphatically and cocked her right arm back. Then with a golden burst of energy to empower the punch, she slammed her fist straight down into the ground. There was an explosion of dust and rock, obscuring Applejack from Sweet Cider’s view.

Sweet Cider narrowed her eyes, her gaze flicking left and right as another explosive impact occurred within the cloud of dust thrown up by Applejack’s punch. Then another, and another, each time in a different spot. Sweet Cider could sense Applejack’s spirit energy moving around quickly, no doubt aided by those thruster-like jets of energy from her armored boots and gauntlets. In less than a minute Applejack had punched the courtyard several dozen times, creating a lingering, thick cloud of rock dust along with a field of uneven ground filled with broken hunks of rock, some more than large enough to hide behind.

“So that’s yer game?” Sweet Cider muttered, “Hide n’ seek?”

She laughed under her breath at the absurdity of it, yet at the same time there was something uncomfortably familiar about this. Stretching out her senses, she tried to pin point where Applejack was, only to find that the girl’s spirit energy could be sensed all over the place. Frowning, Sweet Cider guessed that every time Applejack had punched the ground she’d also unleashed a controlled blast of spirit energy, the result being she’d saturated the whole area with traces of her power. This made temporary decoys of spirit energy that would make it hard to tell exactly where Applejack was, as long as she kept her own spiritual pressure down.

Clever girl. Sweet Cider thought, that sense of pride inside her flaring up again, irritatingly. She was about to give a good, hard swing of her Zanapaktou to clear the air when she sensed a stir of movement behind her and spun around just in time to block an incoming chunk of rock the size of a large dock, backhanding the boulder with her free hand. She sensed a flicker of spiritual pressure from Applejack, but the girl suppressed it quickly.

“This is yer big plan? Toss rocks at me from hidin’?” Sweet Cider called chidingly as another rock flew in from another direction, one she just as easily batted aside as the previous. “Yer a smart cookie, kid, but this ain’t gonna win ya this fight!”

The third chunk of stone that came sailing in was twice the size of the previous ones, not that this mattered much to one of Sweet Cider’s raw physical prowess. She slashed with her blade, cleaving the large chunk of stone in half. It was only when both halves of stone flew by her that she caught the flicker of blonde hair and felt the sudden, massive spike of spiritual pressure.

Applejack had been clinging to the back of the rock, having jumped onto it the second she’d thrown it, a feat of speed and agility only doable with her Fullbring enhanced body. In Sweet Cider’s brief moment of distraction, with her guard down at close range, Applejack poured all of her power into a devastating straight kick with her left boot that managed to catch Sweet Cider straight in the jaw.

The force of the impact, and Sweet Cider being sent sailing out of the dust cloud, actually cleared much of the cloud itself, leaving Applejack standing, panting in plain view as her mother tumbled end over end across the stone courtyard until she impacted with the wall connecting to the wide, central street cutting through the Seireitei towards the Gotei 13’s main headquarters.

Back at the Soul Reaper Academy the students who’d been watching the spectacle from the windows all exchanged excited and equally fearful glances.

“Holy crap did you see that!?”

“Who’s fighting down there!? This reiatsu is overwhelming, I feel like I’m gonna throw up.”

“Uh, shouldn't we be, like, getting one of the instructors or something?”

“Pretty sure they know what’s happening. Whoever’s fighting down there ain’t exactly being subtle.”

“I think that’s one of the Captains that just got tossed into the wall.”

“Shit, for real!? Who could knock around one of the Captains like that!?”

While the Academy students speculated in wild fascination for the spectacle taking place, Applejack herself hadn’t remained idle. The moment her kick had sent her mother flying she’d activated all the boosters along the back of her boots and gauntlet shoulders, creating jets of golden energy that sent her blasting forward in a streaking stampede towards where Sweet Cider had impacted with the wall.

Sweet Cider had hit the thick stone obstacle like a wrecking ball, crunching into it and getting lodged in the stone. Rubbing her sore jaw and spitting out a bit of blood, Sweet Cider actually let out a whooping laugh. So the girl could throw a decent hit! The feeling left Sweet cider grinning, although it still baffled her as to why she felt this way. She was so wrapped up in wondering about this feeling that she almost didn’t see Applejack coming in at her like a torpedo, fists outstretched.

Applejack hit her mother dead on in the stomach with both fists first, and continued to fly on powerful washes of golden thruster energy that took both her and her mother ploughing through the wall in a shower of exploding stone chunks. The ground shook as the huge, ten meter high stone wall that separated the central street from the surrounding district of the Seireitei cracked down the middle, then an entire section splintered apart in the explosive force generated by Applejack smashing her mother through the wall and onto the street beyond.

The two impacted in the middle of the wide, smoothly paved stone street, its expanse stretching out to either side of the two women in a straight shot either to the east towards the Seireitei’s eastern gate, or west all the way to the tall mountain plateau and the shining white fortress of the Gotei 13’s headquarters. The walls on either side of the street were lined with much taller watch towers, straight and square towers of white stone that were spaced out about a hundred meters apart. Some of these towers were occupied by alert Soul Reaper sentries, more than a few activating alarms as they saw part of the wall explode and the two women fighting it out right in the middle of the main street.

“This rattlin’ anything loose yet!?” Applejack roared, jumping up and smashing a potent punch towards her mother, who took the blow head on, letting it smash across her cheek, before pulling back her own free hand to ram her fist into Applejack’s own face, staggering the younger woman back and causing blood to spew from a split lip.

“How the hell am I supposed ta know!? Hah, all I know is I’m finally startin’ ta enjoy this!” Sweet Cider said, licking her lips as she started swinging her sword with more reckless and wild abandon at Applejack, who met the attacks straight with a combination of haymaker counter punches and powerful, thruster boosted roundhouse kicks. Each impact of Applejack’s armored limbs upon Sweet Cider’s massive blade caused impacts that rocked the surrounding area and made flares of golden spiritual energy to wash off the two women like two colliding tides.

With a heaving, wordless battlecry Applejack fired off thrusters from her palms to rapidly spin around her mother’s flank and spun into a kick, unleashing an energy blast that Sweet Cider deflecting into the wall in a golden stream of destructive power that all but cut through the meters thick barrier. But Applejack was already circling around to Sweet Cider’s other side, unleashing another energy blast from the opposite direction, forcing her mother to spin about faster, getting off balance as she parried the second energy blast. Finally, Applejack used this to leap in close while her mother was still off balance and thrust clasped together fists into her mother’s chest, and fired her now signature ‘Roarin’ Apple Cannon’ twin blast at point blank range.

The combined energy beams hit Sweet Cider in a fire hose torrent, pushing her back even as the energy splashed off of her spirit energy hardened body. The beams thrust her back all the way to the opposite wall they’d originally broken through, right into the base of one of the tall watchtowers. As the energy beams dissipated, Applejack stood on shaking legs while drawing in ragged breaths, her armored boots and gauntlets steaming like super-heated metal trying to cool off.

As bits of rubble still fell off the tower wall where Sweet Cider had impacted, the tall woman grunted and dusted herself off. The energy blasts that had hit her had torn away part of her uniform and bruised up her skin, even creating a few bleeding abrasions. It was more damage than she’d honestly expected to take, fighting this young woman who kept insisting they were related. Sweet Cider fought back the urge to keep grinning with glowing pride as she eyed Applejack with a new light of respect.

“Lemma ask ya somethin’ straight, kid. Let’s say ya did git me ta remember bein’ yer ol’ lady... what do ya expect ta git outta it?”

“What? What kind o’ stupid question is that!?” shouted Applejack, “You’d remember yer my ma dangit! You’d know who I am, and...” she trailed off, blinking. Sweet Cider sighed.

“Yeah, exactly. And what? Ain’t sure ya figured this out yet, but yer still livin’, and no matter if I’m yer ma or not, I ain’t alive. Not like I’d be comin’ home fer a big happy ending. Ya still gotta deal wit me being’ dead kid. No matter how ya slice it, yer ma ain’t comin’ back ta life.”

Applejack’s eyes turned wide and bleak, the edges of tears beading around them as she realized that her mother was right about that. Come the end, even with all of this, she couldn’t turn back the clock. She couldn’t bring her mother back. And even if she did get Sweet Cider to remember who she was, what then?

And yet while that future was a huge, yawning void of unknown consequences, something in Applejack flared up, refusing to back down from that unknown. Blinking away her tears, Applejack’s determination redoubled as she glared fiercely at her mother and held up her clenched right fist, blood dripping from where several previous parries of Sweet Cider’s blade had cut the armor and the flesh beneath. The blood dripped down in apple red droplets.

“I don’t matter what happens then, ma. I don’t care if ya can’t ever come back, if ya never wanna even look at home again, or if ya decide ta stick with the Soul Reapers. What matters ta me is that ya know who ya are, and then decide fer yerself what you want! This blood is yer blood! It's what ya gave me, runnin’ through my veins! All the strength I got, dealin’ with all the trouble and doubt I gotta take on runnin’ the farm an’ lookin’ after Big Mac an’ Applebloom and Granny Smith... it’s all from you. You an’ pa. I ain’t gonna let ya spend the rest o’ eternity not even knowin’ that much. And I’m willin’ ta bet my life on makin’ ya remember, fer both o’ us!”

Sweet Cider gazed at the drops of blood falling to the polished white stone, and then at the ironclad resolve inside Applejack’s eyes, eyes that mirrored Sweet Cider’s own. She stepped away from the wall and towards Applejack.

“If it's that important to ya... I guess I owe it to ya not ta treat ya like a little kid no more. If it’s my blood ya got pumping through that heart o’ yers, then ya can take me goin’ all out.”

She turned her Zanapktou to point towards the ground, gold light playing across her arm and down into the sword like flowing water. Applejack felt a disgustingly intense burst of spiritual pressure rise up from her mother and the Zanpaktou, and braced herself for what was coming. Sweet Cider’s voice echoed like thunder.

”Sever; Kizuna!” (Bonds)

Applejack felt a force hit her like being smashed by a runaway dump truck, throwing her all the way back into the wall behind her and pressing her against it. She felt like her lungs were being crushed by the ocean of spiritual pressure that blasted out around her mother in a golden flash of light. When the pressure eased up and Applejack could breathe again, and the glow faded enough for her to see, she stared at Sweet Cider with a visible gulp.

The gigantic slab of metal Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou had become could hardly be described as a sword anymore. Twice as tall as the already massive Sweet Cider, the blade was like someone had cut off a jagged portion of pure bronze and hammered it into the rough shape of a blade. It was barely tapered, and its ‘point’ was really more of a broad, flat head with just a hint of unrefined edge to it. The ‘hilt’ was just a more narrow and long chunk of bronze that sprouted out of the blade, raw and not even wrapped in anything resembling a proper grip. An iron chain, several dozen links long, hung from the end of the bronze handle, somehow seeming out of place to Applejack’s eye. Even Sweet Cider had to stretch her arm up to grab that handle and heft the giant blade over her shoulder. Even that small movement caused a shockwave powerful enough to cut the tower behind Sweet Cider, and Applejack could feel the unrelenting energy coursing off of the transformed Kizuna.

Applejack took a deep breath, her mind working furiously to try to think of how to even begin attacking that. Sweet Cider just barked a laugh and shook her head.

“Don’t think. Ain’t no point. Kizuna don’t got any fancy schmancy powers ya gotta worry ‘bout. She’s good at just doin’ one thing.” Sweet Cider raised the stupidly large blade over her head, thick streams of gold spirit energy soaking into and saturating the blade. “She sucks up my spirit energy like a’ hungry sponge and lets it out in the most direct way possible.”

Applejack felt the sudden, raw breath of mortal danger shooting down her spine, her instincts screaming at her to dodge just seconds before Sweet Cider slammed the blade down. The unbelievable pressure wave of unreleased spirit energy absolutely destroyed the street, the wall, and a good chunk of the Academy training grounds behind it in a blast that could’ve been seen from practically any part of the Seireitei.

Applejack, having barely used her thrusters to throw herself to the side in time, still felt the edge of that pressure wave like being slammed by a falling steam roller. She rolled and tumbled down the street, dizzy and bleeding, and staggered to her feet to stare wide eyed at the destruction she’d just narrowly avoided.

“Lands sakes... yer outta yer damned mind, ma. Ya tryin’ ta knock Seireitei outta commission through sheer property damage!?”

Sweet Cider cracked her neck, “Ain’t no one but you in the blast zone, an’ not like this can’t be rebuilt usin’ Kido in a couple o’ days. I’d be worryin’ less ‘bout Soul Society’s construction budget an’ more ‘bout yer own health, missy.”

With slow, measured steps Sweet Cider started walking towards Applejack. As this happened Applejack noticed two things. First was that the bronze gleam of metal from Kizuna had a strange resemblance to the bronze portions of Applejack’s own Fullbring. And second was that the spirit energy coursing off the Zanpaktou had a familiar feeling to it, not unlike what Applejack felt from herself and her friend when they activated their Fullbrings. That’s when her eye was drawn to the iron chain, so seemingly out of place, dangling from the hilt of Kizuna.

That chain... I feels like its got a’ different kind o’ energy than the rest o’ the blade. It ain’t like other Zanpaktou...

She had no more time to think on it because Sweet Cider suddenly burst into swifter motion, appearing at Applejack’s side, swinging down that colossus of a sword down. Applejack didn’t even think about blocking, only evading as she once again used the thrusters of energy from her boots and palms to fly aside as Kizuna crashed down hard into the ground. The resulting impact of force sent huge chunks of the street flying skyward, one clipping Applejack and making her spin out of control to smash into the ground. Groaning in pain, she forced herself back up just in time to take a kick from her mother to the face that sent her rolling across the ground, fairly certain her nose had just been broken.

“Just stay down. Ain’t no more shame in callin’ it quits here. Ya fought hard, girl, but this is over.” said Sweet Cider.

“No...” Applejack said, blasting off the ground and flying straight at Sweet Cider. She kicked, and Sweet Cider moved Kizuna in the way like a giant shield. Applejack felt a horrific pain up and down her right leg as the impact on the Zanpaktou was not only blocked, but it felt like all the force was sent back, and then some, jarring through her leg. Metal bent on her armored boot and she felt the bone in her leg snap. Applejack screamed, falling back, unable to put any more weight on that leg as she hit the ground.

Before she could do anything else, Sweet Ciders foot came crashing down on her chest, pinning her to the street. She felt her mother’s weight, both physically and spiritually, pressing down on her as Sweet Cider loomed above, face a stone mask, though one cracking with a wavering shine of concern and doubt.

“Give up dagnabbit! Ya done good, girl, but you can’t win this! Don’t make me...” Sweet Cider took a deep, shuddering breath, “Stop makin’ me do this fer lands sake!”

Despite the fact that her consciousness was now swimming in a deep current of agony, Applejack’s vision locked in on the iron chain swinging from the end of Kizuna’s hilt. A notion took root in her, a final gamble, all or nothing. Even with a broken leg, she ought to be able to pull off one last attempt to get through to her mother.

Past gritting teeth smeared with blood, Applejack looked up at Sweet Cider with unflinching eyes. “Ya still don’t git it. I can’t give up on ya.”

She dredged up the last of her energy, pouring it into her armor, building the growing force behind the thrusters as the ground started to shake.

“Right now, Applebloom’s probably in school, wonderin’ where I’m at. Ya ain’t seen her in years ma, ain’t seen how much she’s grown. She’s got these crazy friends she’s alwasy gettin’ inta trouble with. You’d like ‘em.”

Both boots and gauntlets started to turn bright hot, glowing with the heat of a smelting forge. Motes of gold light started to spill out from beneath where Applejack was pinned and Sweet Cider could now feel the tremors in the ground from the built up of energy inside Applejack.

“Big Mac’s in the field every day, doin’ the work o’ ten men fer the farm. Did ya know he gave up goin’ ta college so he could keep the farm runnin’ after you n’ pa died? He won’t talk ‘bout it none, but sometimes I see him lookin’ at old college brochures. He keep ‘em hidden under his bed. Kinda wish it was dang Playboys instead. It’d hurt less ta see.”

Applejack reached up and grabbed the foot Sweet Cider was pressing her down with, and golden energy started to flow out from beneath her in a growing tide of power as she pushed upwards, forcing her mother’s leg back with the slow, steady power of a rising shuttle launch as thruster energy, melting the ground beneath them, pushed upwards.

“An’ every single damned night I see Granny Smith lookin’ up at the sky ‘fore bed! I know she’s lookn’ up there thinkin’ o’ both you an’ pa! Rememberin’, prayin’, hopin’ you n’ pa are n’ a better place an’ that yer watchin’ over the rest o’ us Apples!”

Gold streams of power shot out of every nozzle on Applejack’s armor, with enough force to lift Sweet Cider bodily off the ground, and broken leg or not, Applejack rose up too, pushing her mother into the air higher and higher. Then she cocked her arms back, both her and mother in free fall for a moment, before she rocketed up and with bursts of golden power started to punch, and punch, and punch, pouring every shred of regret, anger, frustration, hope, and unmitigated love for her mother in every single strike.

“Yer an Apple, mother! An’ Apple forever, down ta the core!”

Higher and higher they went, shockwaves of energy exploding from every impact of Applejack’s fists onto her mother. The punches came faster and faster until it was like she was a singular storm of fists, dozens of strikes raining onto Sweet Cider in shining golden impacts over and over again as they both flew up into the air on a torrent of thrusting streams of energy.

Even when the gauntlets shattered apart in flecking gold shards of metal, Applejack didn’t stop punching. Even as the thruster nozzles on her boots started to melt and distort, she kept pushing higher into the sky, shoving her mother into the blue expanse. They burst through the clouds, Applejack still punching, until the bones in her hands started to crack.

“Now! Remember damnit!”

Applejack’s vision narrowed down to a single point; the chain on her mother’s Zanpaktou. She grabbed it with both bleeding hands, and bracing her one good leg on her mother’s chest, she tore with all her might. She felt the iron bands strain against her, felt her blood slick palms slipping on the iron, but she only gripped tighter as she and her mother hung suspended in free fall. A feral roar ripped its way from her throat as Applejack threw every last ounce of strength left in her body towards the sole task of breaking the chain in her bloody grip.

Then with a metallic snap the chain broke off of her mother’s Zanpaktou, and Kizuna suddenly radiated a soft and shimmering gold light.

Sweet Cider, who’d been stunned by Applejack’s assault, felt a torrent of energy shifting inside her Zanpaktou. It was as if two colliding powers were now flowing out of her blade, and her confusion lasted only as long as it took for that energy to flow into her. With it came a literal flood of memory, mental images crashing through her skull at speeds beyond thought.

The two women started to fall back to the distant ground below, Applejack so near to unconsciousness that she barely felt the air tugging at her. Then, suddenly, she felt herself being held tight, cradled against the warm body of her mother. With pained slowness she was able to turn her head to look up. Sweet Cider was holding her with her one free arm as they fell, looking down at Applejack with shocked eyes. Eyes that sparked with recognition. Applejack saw glints of light reflecting off the tears that got caught by the wind, carried away from her mother’s eyes as she looked down with recognition at her daughter.

“Applejack?”

That one word, spoken with wonderful familiarity, and filled with confused trepidation, left Applejack utterly exhausted as she started to weep in pure relief and joy, burying her face in her mother’s chest.

“Uhhuh.”

“You’ve... gotten taller.”

All Applejack could do was nod her head and bawl into her mother as they fell. She was so beyond tired, and relieved, that she couldn’t even bring herself to care how they landed. Somehow, held in her mother’s arms, she felt like everything was alright now. It didn’t matter what came next. Everything was going to be alright now, because the Apples were together.

For Sweet Cider, her confusion was only matched by fresh feelings of resolve to protect her daughter. Pride surged through her as she looked upon the injured girl in her arms. Applejack had grown so big, strong, and beautiful, it nearly made Sweet Cider’s heart burst with want to just crush her daughter in a big bear hug. If only her and Applejack weren’t so injured. Applejack more so than her. That final flurry of punches had left Sweet Cider bruised up, bleeding from a split lip that matched Applejack’s, but ultimately it was all superficial damage. Had the fight gone on a few seconds more, or if her memories hadn’t come back at that precise moment, then the outcome would’ve been entirely different. Sweet Cider’s old memories hadn’t overridden anything. She knew everything that had happened between now, and the death of her and Hard Nail. She still remembered being in the Rukongai, and being recruited by the Soul Reapers, and all the time she’d spent as Captain of the Tenth Division. Only now she also remembered the rest of her life, like a series of doors opening up to old familiar rooms in her mind.

The chain that had been attached to her Zanpaktou was the only blank. She didn’t know where it had come from, only that it hadn’t been there when she’d first learned Kizuna’s name.

Sweet Cider’s eyes narrowed. The Captain Commander had some explaining to do, but first things first...

As they fell back to the level of the towers surrounding the walled street to the Gotei 13’s headquarters, Sweet Cider adjusted her grip on her daughter, holding Applejack protectively close as she thrust out Kizuna. The blade bit into the closest tower, ripping down the length of the tower’s stone surface, arresting her and Applejack’s fall until they halted about ten meters off the ground. Sweet Cider easily jumped the rest of the way down, landing lightly.

Slowly setting Applejack down, she also let Kizuna return to its sealed form. The Zanpaktou gave her a strange sense of reluctance to re-seal, as if worried for her. Sweet Cider could feel the odd mix of spirit energies inside the blade, both her own, but somehow both different. One was her Soul Reaper power, but the other energy she suspected was tied to her Fullbring, the one she’d had and used to fight alongside her friends so long ago. The memories were still a tad jumbled in her head, but she remembered everything that had happened that led to Xcution’s end. It still felt like pieces were missing, but Sweet Cider was more focused on the now than on the past.

Right now her daughter needed medical attention.

“Ya dang crazy kid.” Sweet Cider muttered, wiping tears from her face, “Tearin’ yerself near apart just tryin’ ta git through my stubborn skull.”

Applejack, not even trying to move now that she was laid out on the ground, just chuckled drly, “If it ‘twere the other way ‘round ya would’ve done the same.”

With a laughing sob, Applejack added while looking down at her wounded body, “Guess I might’ve overdone it a’ tad.”

“Don’t ya fret none, little hayseed. I’ll git ya ta the Fourth Division and healed right up. After that... well, we’ll git ta that business once I know yer in proper care.”

“My friends-” Applejack started, but Sweet Cider put a finger to her mouth.

“Hush up. Yer ma ain’t gonna leave that posse o’ nutty friend o’ yers high n’ dry, but your health comes first. I just got ya back, AJ. Ain’t lettin’ ya bleed out.”

Having sheathed her Zanpaktou, Sweet Cider gently took up Applejack in her arms once more. She felt several spiritual pressures approaching, no doubt reinforcements summoned by those witnessing the battle, but Sweet Cider had no intention of sticking around to chat. Her mind was already tumbling down possible paths to take once she got her daughter to the Fourth Division for treatment. She’d have to figure out how to explain things to Captain Zecora so that Applejack wasn’t put under immediate arrest. Then there was figuring out how to help those crazy girls.

Her memories had changed things, but they hadn’t changed the fact that Sweet Cider still knew someone had been pulling the strings of all this trouble in Soul Society. If she wanted to protect her daughter it was all the more reason to uncover the truth and put an end to all this chaos.

Looking down at Applejack, Sweet Cider patted her head. “Ya wear my hat pretty well, ya know that?”

Applejack didn’t respond, however, having fallen into unconscious slumber in her mother’s arms. With a loving smile, Sweet Cider jumped into the air, making her way towards the Fourth Division. In her haste, she didn’t notice the figure hiding amid the rubble of one of the broken walls, watching her go with keenly interested eyes.

----------

The figure, wearing a heavy, black button up coat and hood, stepped away from the rubble of the wall and quietly sneaked around the wall back towards the side with the Academy, while troops of Soul Reapers arrived at the site of the fight that had just finished. The figure stayed out of sight and quickly, with remarkable speed, ran along the wall, then flickered across the open space of the street, still unseen, and landed on the other side to jump down to the street level of the noble district.

A small beeping noise came from within the figure’s thick coat, and with a slim pink hand the figure pulled out a cell-phone shaped device and held it up to its hood, speaking in a scratchy, female voice.

“What is it? I’m kind of trying to be stealthy here. Y’know, covert, quiet... yeah, everything’s good. The fight’s over. I nearly had to step in. Freakin’ Sweets never was good at holding back... no I wasn’t going to compromise the job. She wouldn’t even remember me. Geez you’re in a complainy mood, aren’t you? Are things going good on your end?”

The figure flitted among the houses of the noble estates, getting deeper and deeper into the noble district, leaving behind the commotion and rising smoke from the battle. The voice on the cell-phone spoke a bit more, and the figure giggled.

“Oh I bet you’re enjoying that. Try not to go overboard. They’re gonna figure out eventually that something’s up. Yeah I know, just long enough to get what we need. Here’s hoping your ‘friend’ doesn’t screw up her end of things. Anyway I’m almost to my target, so I’m gonna let you get back to doing your thing. Yeah, yeah, I won’t mess up my end either. The hell do you think you’re talking to?”

The figure hung up the cell phone, muttering, “Putting this damn thing on vibrate...”

Putting away the cell phone, the figure paused under the shadow of one noble estate’s rooftops to peer at another estate across the street. The same estate Applejack had come from. The figure licked her lips, and reached into her hood to adjust a pair of goggles over her violet eyes, strands of thick blue bangs falling across her face.

“Alright then, showtime.”

Author's Notes:

So to let you guys know my plans, although you guys probably figured it out just by the way this chapter is, my plan is to do each of the fights set up in the previous chapter individually with their own chapters that'll be a bit shorter than my usual chapters, but on the plus side my hope is to release one each week so you guys won't have to wait as long. I'm doing this mostly because I feel it makes the story flow a bit better for each fight to be its own somewhat shorter chapter rather than trying to pack all three into one big chapter.

Also, the music choice for that final scene of the fight might not be from Bleach, in fact its far more famously known for being used in One Piece, but honestly as far as bits of epic symphonic music go I couldn't think of anything better to match the emotions of that final moment of the battle between mother and daughter. Hope you guys enjoyed.

As always thanks for reading guys and let me know what you thought. Next up is Rarity Vs Blueblood. 'Till next time.

Episode 44: Art of the Blade

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Episode 44: Art of the Blade

A strong breeze passed through the circular area between the buildings of the inn, removing several vibrant pink petals from the cherry blossom tree in the center garden. The petals wove and danced around Rarity and Blueblood as the two silently faced each other, blades held at the ready, both eyeing one another for any sign of weakness or lowered guard. The breeze stirred Rarity’s hair, several stray cherry blossoms clinging to her shining purple curls.

Blueblood didn’t blink, even as one blossom petal alighted upon his nose, making it twitch with an obvious need to sneeze.

However that twitch, that split second moment of sensory distraction, was all Rarity needed.

To anyone who had witnessed Rarity in action against the Soul Reapers of the Eleventh Division in the earlier battle might have called her fighting style graceful and flashy. The truth was that Rarity had been being careful during that fight. Restraining herself. She hadn’t wanted to unduly hurt anyone.

Now, she wasn’t restraining herself. Now, grace and flash transmuted into something altogether more lethal. In the span of half a breath a torrential rainfall of crystal weapons burst forth from the whirlpool of blood that hung suspended beside Rarity. Weapons of every description soared in at a surprised Blueblood, whirling axes, spinning scythes, piercing swords and daggers, a flood of death converging on the Captain.

Rarity didn’t even flinch as the fusillade of crystal weapons smashed into the location Blueblood had been standing in, hitting with the combined force of a cannon barrage. Her keen eyes weren’t distracted by the debris sent skyward from the impact of her weapons, but instead cast her gaze around with sharp glances. When she caught a swift brush of movement through the dust thrown up by her attack she moved with viper like speed, thrusting her glittering red rapier out while also directing the blood from her whirlpool to splash down in a crimson curtain at the spot immediately to the left of where she’d seen the motion.

Blueblood let out a short grunt of surprise as he found his path trying to circle around behind Rarity at high speed blocked by a crystal wall, while at the same moment her rapier went right for his neck. Despite being taken off guard Blueblood’s reflexes were not to be underestimated. He got his Zanpaktou up just in time to push Rarity’s rapier aside, the clash so close that the sparks from it bounced off his cheek. He then used the crystal wall blocking him to instead act as a stepping point to jump up and over Rarity’s head, landing behind her and send a slash flying for her back. Rarity flung herself forward while spinning around, feeling the cold bite of Blueblood’s Zanpaktou on her armored dress. A shallow cut burned hotly along her hip where she’d been struck, yet Rarity noticed the blood from the wound barely seeped.

Once more she and Blueblood squared off, and out of the corner of her eye Rarity saw that several residents of the inn fearfully peeking out of the windows. It gave her a stark reminder that any collateral damage could prove deadly to bystanders.

Blueblood was looking at her with a distinctly pinched expression of barely contained irritation, like he had brambles in his socks. His voice held a sharp, nasal edge.

“Surviving my first strike is laudable, but ultimately pointless. Soon enough you will fall to my-”

Rarity came at him in a white and red streak of speed, thrusting her rapier before his sentence was finished. Blueblood once more moved to parry, but was taken by surprise as Rarity’s blade transformed in a spreading growth of crystal into a long spear, ornately carved with rose petals. The sudden extra reach of the weapon let it slip right past Blueblood’s guard, who barely twisted his head away from the thrusting weapon. Rarity followed up her attack by instantly transforming the spear back into a rapier, setting Blueblood further off balance as she thrust low past his raised defense. Only the raw speed of a Captain-level Flash Step kept Rarity’s blade from piercing his gut.

He reappeared on the rooftop of the inn building that had been directly behind him, and with a marble white hand he reached up to touch the bleeding cheek wound that Rarity’s spear strike had marked him with. He looked at the blood on his fingers with what appeared to Rarity as almost childlike shock. His eyes stared accusatory at her.

“You cut me!”

Rarity cleared her throat politely, “I believe I told you I would. Were you not listening?”

“Yes, but you shouldn’t be able to actually do it!” he shouted, pointing at her like he was accusing her of committing some sort of crime. “You’re just a human! Creepy powers aside you shouldn’t even be able to keep up with my movements, let alone retaliate!”

Rarity tilted her head and cupped an ear, “Excuse me. I couldn't quite hear you over the sound of your childish whining. Is such whingeing a requirement to become a Soul Reaper Captain? Oh, wait, don’t tell me, this is your Zanpaktou’s power? Annoying your opponent to death?”

“Oh, you think yourself the clever one.” Blueblood said with a visible twitch in his eyebrow, “So clever you don’t realize what it means when a Soul Reaper points a finger at you.”

Rarity, admittedly, hadn’t realized the danger she was in until the bluish white energy sparked along Blueblood’s finger as he intoned the Kido. “Hado Number Four; Byakurai!”

She dodged backwards while making a quick gesture with her left hand, summoning forth a set of diamond shaped crystal shields that interlocked in front of her just in time. The bolt of lightning-like energy lanced down into her shields, and broke through them just as Rarity managed to get clear of the bolt’s destructive path. Even then, the bolt blasted a hole into the ground right at the base of one of the bridges crossing the inn’s pond, sending wood chips flying. Rarity shielded her face from the debris with a forearm, wincing as one sharp chip of wood cut her cheek.

Blueblood wasn’t done, his finger following her dodging movements as he intoned the same Kido rapidly, sending more bolts tearing down at Rarity. Aware of how easily any of those bolts might strike one of the people inside the inn Rarity was forced to dodge along a fairly linear path, leading the bolts away from the buildings. She kept ahead of them, just barely, but it was enough for her to concentrate on a counter attack consisting of ten or so whipping chain blades that extended out of her crimson whirlpool.

“Will you stop using this disturbing ability already!?” Blueblood cried in a vexed huff as he began to dodge and parry the lashing chain blades in a blazingly quick series of movements, his strikes even severing one or two chains entirely before he was forced to abandon the inn rooftop and leap away out of the whirlpool’s immediate reach. He landed on the island with the cherry blossom tree, and Rarity took advantage of the moment to close the distance once more, charging the island while making a gesture to direct the whirlpool to fly over the small island in the pond and disgorge a sleet of crystal spikes at Blueblood.

He managed to deflect the spikes with precision, but it just bought Rarity more valuable seconds to get close to him, leaping onto the island over the now ruined bridge. She then came directly at Blueblood, repeating her earlier thrust that transmuted from rapier to spear. Blueblood was ready for the change this time, stepping back further to evade the spear’s reach...

Only to find a spike of tall, sharp edged crystal erupting from the ground behind him. He changed trajectory in an instant with Flash Step, but the jagged edge of the crystal spike still cut a bloody line along one of his arms, causing him to give a short yelp of pain. This was followed by an explosive roar of anger and indignation.

“Stop that!”

“Stop what?” Rarity asked with an innocent flutter of her eyelashes.

“Using dirty little tricks! You only injure me when you pull out some weird fake-out maneuver out of nowhere with that icky blood power! That spike didn’t even come from the disgusting pool that you have flying around! Where did it even come from!?”

“Oh, are we sharing the secrets of our abilities now? I’ve seen this part of Rainbow Dash’s quaint Japanese cartoons. The characters do so love to talk about how their powers work in those shows. Sorry, darling, but I don’t think I want to tell you anything. Doesn’t strike me as a very smart thing to do. Of course if you want to tell me about your abilities, I’m all ears.”

In truth it wasn’t complicated. Her evolved Fullbring had increased versatility over her initial power, which only let her extend crystals from points she was in contact with. She’d projected crystals underground at times to make them appear at a distance, but the truth was that Rarity had always been the origin point in those situations. She’d experimented with projectiles, but they lacked punch back then. The whirlpool of blood was an extension of her Fullbring, capable of rapidly forming new crystalline constructs at high speed while the whirlpool itself could move wherever Rarity willed it. However she herself retained the ability to project the blood, and the crystal constructs formed thereof, from herself.

Blueblood of course didn’t know any of this. His lack of knowledge of her power combined with his obvious arrogance was what was keeping Rarity in the fight. She could already tell he was faster than her, and no doubt stronger. If he could land a solid hit on her she’d be in trouble. Thus far her saving grace had been the unpredictability of her attacks and the fact that Blueblood had yet to take the fight seriously, giving her multiple openings.

Sadly, none of those openings had allowed her to strike a telling blow, so as flustered as Blueblood was it was clear to Rarity the tide of the fight could turn at any second. Fortunately she was far from being out of tricks. She hadn’t been chatting with Blueblood simply for the sake of the banter. It had purchased her precious seconds to extend more crystals under the ground, like thin veins of blood, so that a spiderweb of them existed underneath the tiny island. As Blueblood opened his mouth to no doubt retort to her earlier, chiding words, more crystalline spikes shot out of the ground beneath his feet. He reacted quickly, snapping out of view with a Flash Step, but Rarity had already anticipated his evasion and had sent her whirlpool to fly above the island and spread out a an expanding dome of crystal to surround the island. In the same instant she herself jumped back, just narrowly getting outside of the dome before it closed around the island, with Blueblood still inside.

I do so detest violence, but I can hardly play fairly with this man. Rarity thought sourly. In truth she fully understood that this was no game at all, but a matter of life and death. Perhaps Blueblood didn’t understand that, given how nonchalantly he was treating the fight? He struck her as someone who didn’t take much of anything seriously, or otherwise expected the world to capitulate to his needs.

Which struck her as a terrible waste. It was clear, just from casual sensing his reiatsu, that Blueblood was remarkably strong and was all but bursting with potential. Not to mention as grating as his attitude was, it at least did come attached to a decently handsome face.

What an absolute waste to place such beauty and potential in the hands of such arrogance and laziness.

Placing her hand on the crystal dome, she could sense within it, using her spiritual energy to resonate with the dome and feel inside it, so she knew where Blueblood was. He’d landed atop the cherry blossom tree to avoid her spikes, and now was standing there, looking around the dome. She couldn’t sense his expression, but imagined he was looking even more irritated than before. Well, he was about to look a lot worse.

With precise and finely tuned bursts of her spirit energy she had the dome start to project spears of crystal, thrusting down at Blueblood in a rapidly enclosing storm of stabbing blades. To his credit he spun about with great elegance and force, either parrying our outright smashing many of the blades. However Rarity could sense an opening in his defenses, and sent one spear flying straight for his back, resolving herself to what must be done to protect her friends.

She didn’t sense the uptick in Blueblood’s spiritual pressure until the spear meant to run through his back hit a solid aura of spirit energy that exploded outward form the man.

Rarity, blinking, almost reflexively stepped back from the dome. The reiatsu flowing out of Blueblood easily eclipsed her own, reminding her that she was dealing with a Captain of the Gotei 13, even if he was supposedly the weakest. In seconds cracks appeared all over her red crystal dome, Blueblood’s spiritual pressure alone now pushing against the construct.

Swearing under her breath, Rarity jumped away, just in time to avoid the dome blasting apart in a shower of crystal shards that smacked all over the inn like shrapnel. The inn residents had all ducked out of sight, fortunately, but Rarity had needed to summon a quick shield of crystal to keep herself from getting injured by the explosion of shards.

Still standing atop the cherry blossom tree, Blueblood radiated a fierce white aura of spirit energy, like the violent coils of writhing snakes. He was breathing in panting gasps, not so much from strain as from clearly rising emotions.

“Well, dear lady, if you are so keenly interested in the power of my Zanpaktou, I can provide an intimate demonstration for you.”

He made a sharp throwing gesture, sending his sword spinning into the air above his head. As he did so the blade started to gleam with a bright, reflective light. Rarity had to shield her eyes at the radiance filling the air above the inn, while Blueblood’s voice rang out in a prideful baritone.

”Look upon the world’s treasures; Mezurashi Kokei!” (Uncommon Vision)

The gleaming light from above shattered like pieces of glass, with a clamour of sound to match. Rarity felt a press upon her spiritual senses that was as widespread as it was heavy, Blueblood’s reiatsu coating the air in a thick layer that, while not as explosively impressive as Hurricane’s had been, was still intimidating. Rarity stood tensely upon a raw edge of adrenaline fueled alertness, waiting to see what shape Blueblood’s power would take.

She was confused, not seeing any sign of a blade. Blueblood remained where he was, looking at her now with self assured smugness, his smile lopsided as he crossed his arms over his chest. The shining light was gone, and Rarity saw nothing of where Blueblood’s Zanpaktou had gone. Even more worrisome was that while his spiritual pressure blanketed the area, she couldn’t sense any concentration of it.

When Hurricane had released Tetsukaze into its Shikai form Rarity had been able to sense the Zanpaktou like a thick pool of Hurricane’s reiatsu. But now, with Blueblood having activated his Shikai, she couldn’t sense any such presence.

Where had his Zanpaktou gone?

Nearly the moment she thought that Rarity felt a horrible pain rip across her left leg, just above the knee. She bit back a scream at the deep laceration, and instantly dodged aside, expecting a follow up attack as she cast about looking for the source of the attack. Her sharp eyesight caught a glimpse of light glinting off of something flying away from her, and she saw a slim coating of blood on an object that in all respects appeared entirely transparent.

Before she could gauge what that object was she felt another ripping line of pain tear across her arm, causing her to clench her teeth as she dashed aside again. This time she knew what to look for and saw the object more clearly as it flew by her. It was a slim blade, like a long dagger, and utterly transparent due to the fact that it was made from glass. Or at least something clear as glass. Rarity didn’t doubt in terms of sharpness and durability the blade she saw was as deadly as any steel. Blades, actually, as from the faint glints of light reflecting at various points around her she realized Blueblood’s Zanpaktou had transformed into quite a few of these nearly invisible, flying glass daggers.

And she was right in the middle of them.

Rarity banished any extraneous thoughts, kicking her senses and instincts into overdrive. Now that she knew what she was looking for she instantly snapped her fingers and summoned down a flying mass of her own weaponry while at the same time she threw herself headlong into the task of evasion, quickly leaping from spot to spot as Blueblood’s Mezurashi Kokei unleashed its deadly fury upon her.

She couldn’t easily count how many of the glass daggers there were. Everything was happening too fast at that moment for trying to count the numbers. All she could do was dodge and parry, her rapier flashing in crimson streaks. Her flurry of summoned weapon constructs flew about her in a fierce storm. In the span of mere seconds dozens of clashes occurred around her, red crystal sparking off of clear glass. Her mind narrowed its focus to the span of the ten feet around her, her body moving constantly as she flitted about the area, dodging around one side of the inn to the other.

All the while Blueblood remained where he was, poised atop the cherry blossom tree, smiling.

“Do you like it? My Mezurashi Kokei is quite the beauty, when I let her shine. Of course she’s just as capable of being an unseen killer when I wish it. You seem to be having trouble keeping up with her. Shall I make her blades dance faster?”

His words were punctuated with a sudden and vicious increase to the speed of the daggers assaulting Rarity. One slipped through the guard of her own zipping blades, nearly stabbing through her shoulder, but she hardened the crystal forged armor around that part of her dress to deflect the blow. Mostly. The glass was indeed sharper than any normal blade could be, still cutting a nasty gouge despite the reinforced armor. Rarity’s eyes narrowed, glittering with a incensed light.

A dance? I shall show you a dance, darling. I will not fall to a pompus fop who doesn’t even strive to realize his own potential!

She spun on her heels and sprinted away with the kind of speed that would’ve made Rainbow Dash proud. The pain from her leg wound shot through her with needles of anguish, yet Rarity didn’t dare let herself be distracted or slow down. Around her the glass daggers flew in, seeking her flesh, only to be intercepted by a flock of her own conjured weapons. They clashed around her in a ringing cacophony, showering her with sparks as she ran, legs all but giving her wings as she rushed away from the confines of the inn’s courtyard area and burst out onto the wider front garden area. A short path wove through a lawn of short grass, marked by tastefully placed arrangements of flower bushes and small trees. The area was enclosed with a short wall and gate, which stood open. Beyond the gate Rarity could see the streets that would lead to the nearby Twelfth Division headquarters. She hoped Sunset and Ditzy Doo would manage to reach and infiltrate the place safely.

Running out into the gardens with Blueblood’s Zanpaktou daggers hot on her heels, Rarity glanced around to ensure that the inn didn’t have any unfortunate garden tenders out and about and that the area was indeed empty. Seeing that it was clear, she changed directions, heading towards the north end of the garden. Within seconds she was out of Blueblood’s line of sight, and the moment that happened she noticed the assault of daggers slackened, the gleaming blades flying upwards in a high arc but not descending back down to attack her.

Rarity’s eyes flashed with understanding. Blueblood could only direct those daggers towards targets he could see. That seemed like an obvious statement, but when it came to the powers of those using spirit energy it was an important distinction. After all, Rarity had been able to direct the spears from her crystal dome earlier just by sensing Blueblood’s reiatsu. Yet the reverse didn’t seem to be true. Was that a specific flaw of his Zanpaktou, or simply that Blueblood lacked skill in sensing reiatsu as clearly as Rarity could?

Either way, it set another facet into her plan.

Blueblood appeared atop the inn once again, now looking down on her in the front garden. He still held a wide smile glazed heavily with smug confidence plastered on his face.

“Running away already, my lady? Or do you believe retreating to an open area might give you an advantage?”

Rarity returned his smile with a thin one of her own. “Actually I only wanted to ensure the poor folks of the inn were out of the crossfire. It's such a lovely inn, it’s a terrible shame to be damaging it or its proprietors.”

She’d expected him to play off her words dismissively, but to her slight surprise Blueblood looked a tad taken aback and he gave her a small nod. “That is an excellent point. This establishment is among my favorites and produces the finest tea in Seireitei. Of course, since you’ve gone and removed yourself from the immediate vicinity of the inn-”

He made a sweeping gesture at her, and a set of four daggers suddenly gleamed with intense white light, marking their location but at the same time filling them with what felt to Rarity like deadly amounts of unstable spirit energy.

“-I can use this technique without concern. Shiroi Hoshizora!” (White Starfall)

Like streaking, falling stars the shining daggers flew down at Rarity, leaving white trails of light in their wake. She raised her hand in a defensive gesture, conjuring a concave wall of crystal in front of her as she jumped back. The blazing daggers pierced through the wall, but stuck fast. However Rarity sensed the unstable reiatsu inside the daggers going out of control and used her spirit energy to Fullbring the air beneath her feet to send herself leaping high into the air.

Among her friends who used Fullbring only Rarity had really gained finely honed skill in Fullbringing things other than themselves, especially the air itself so one could literally walk upon or leap off the air as if it were solid ground. Of course Rainbow Dash and Applejack both had ways to fly on their own, but Rarity suspected there were advantages to being able to Fullbring more mundane objects than mere flight, which was why she’d spent more time than her friends practicing the technique. There was a slight green gleam of what Discord had called “Bringer Light” when her feet pushed off the air, sending her soaring into the sky just as the gleaming glass daggers exploded.

Massive spheres of light burst out of each dagger that’d been stuck in her crystal wall. The wall was disintegrated in an instant, along with several large, perfectly spherical chunks of the garden. Rarity gulped. Those weren’t mere explosions, but rather potent and concentrated instances of exactly spherical globes of spirit energy that looked as if they atomized whatever they touched. Worse, she saw the attack didn’t destroy the daggers, as all four glowing glass weapon remained after the spheres of light vanished.

Still, she pushed down her fear. This didn’t change her plan. Still suspended in mid-air, she used “Bringer Light” to accelerate to the left, circling around the garden. Another useful aspect this use of Fullbring was that it allowed for faster movement, which she needed here. Her blood whirlpool kept pace with her, flying at her side as it shot out a series of ornate crystal arrows in a focused barrage at Blueblood... and at the ground.

Blueblood, focused entirely on the attacks coming his way, gestured with his hand and a number of daggers started to spin and whirl about his body, deflecting the arrows coming his way. Rarity carefully counted, including the four daggers still glowing with faint light. She noticed those four daggers seemed drained, as if recovering from the attack Blueblood had used. Another note on his powers she mentally filed away. She kept accelerating around the garden, arrows striking the ground almost as often as they flew at Blueblood, arcing in from different angles at Rarity’s direction.

Sixteen... seventeen... two more there... nineteen... Rarity kept counting, gauging the number of Blueblood’s daggers.

He wasn’t purely on the defensive, and Rarity’s sharp senses felt a set of daggers rush in at her from behind. She almost smiled. So he was trying to catch her by surprise now? Cute. A quick spin and gesture formed a wide shield behind her, catching eight daggers in its crimson wall. Then those daggers suddenly glowed bright white and Rarity grimaced. So he could activate that dangerous power in any of his daggers, not just four at a time? It occurred to her he must have intentionally limited that first attack specifically to try and catch her off guard with this new one.

So there was a brain somewhere underneath all that arrogant pomp? Good for him.

She threw herself at full speed towards the ground, just barely avoiding the series of light spheres that blasted out of the daggers. Landing on the ground hard, Rarity winced as her wounded leg nearly buckled. Her distraction also halted her torrent of arrows, and Blueblood chuckled.

“Nearly had you there, my lady. Once again your reflexes impress me.”

“I’m almost impressed with you as well, Captain Blueblood.” Rarity said, still grimacing slightly from the pain in her leg, which had been made worse by her rough landing. “Why, if you keep this pace up I might consider you as being more than a waste of potential.”

“What did you just say!? Waste of potential!?” Blueblood clenched his fists. “I am the Captain of the Ninth Division! I am one of the Soul Reaper elite!”

“And I am honestly baffled as to how you garnered such a position.” said Rarity flatly. “How much effort have you put into the honing of your skills? Because I can sense the potential of your spirit energy and honestly, darling, if you put a fraction of the time into developing yourself as you do blowing hot air then this fight would have been over with the first blow. As it stands, a mere ‘human’ girl has fought you to a standstill.”

Blueblood’s eyes reflected his anger, but also a wounded light. It was clear to Rarity she’d hit the mark and struck a potent nerve within him. She’d done so intentionally, hoping it’d make him more reckless. Of course there was always the chance this would backfire and make him realize he needed to take this fight seriously. Lucky her, she saw him huff out a dismissive breath and flip his hair again. She could see him rebuilding his walls of self-deluded superiority, the wounded doubt being buried deep.

“Hmph, preposterous. You’ve only lasted this long because I’ve been generously polite to you as a lady. I am at the prime of my prowess, and for all your dancing about you’re already slowing down. This battle is all but over.”

That much is true. Rarity thought with hard focus as she snapped her fingers and enacted the next phase of her plan.

The arrows she’d rained down on the garden while Blueblood had been busy with the ones attack him now all glowed bright red as they expanded and grew upwards. Rarity’s Fullbring has previously only been able to really conjure crystals in a raw form, only creating finer details when applied to her rapier or armored dress. Now, however, she could create more complex constructs and control them with fine precision. More than that, it was easier to do this when she already had plenty of construct material already present on the battlefield, like say... a bunch of arrows stuck into the ground, which were really just crystals waiting to be transmuted into something else.

In mere seconds tall, winding brambles forged of red crystal thrust upwards from each arrow. Much like a massive thorn bush patch, a thick forest of twisting branches covered in sharp blades flew up, the branches writhing like living things.

While Blueblood stared at this in surprise Rarity directed the mass of brambles to snatch at his daggers, which she’d counted up in their entirety. Thirty two. The exact number of points on a compass rose, oddly enough. Rarity was fairly certain of the number, having carefully counted them. More than that, during their defense of Blueblood, Rarity had carefully let certain arrows transmute from crystal to small bursts of blood. Blood that coated each dagger except the ones recovering from their light energy attacks. So it was possible for Rarity to mark each dagger and entrap it in a thick, grasping mass of thorny vines that wrapped around the daggers and held them fast. Each and every single one.

Blueblood was still blinking at this remarkable feat in utter shock when Rarity, flying up on a trail of Bringer Light, appeared behind him.

“Checkmate, darling.”

Her words were matched by the rapier she set against his throat, its edge pressing up against his chin. With her sword wrapped around him from behind and right against his neck, and all of his weapons immobilized, it didn’t appear as if Blueblood had any other options left to attack or defend with.

Still, Rarity was alert, just in case.

Blueblood for his part glanced at her over his shoulder, not daring to turn his head very far lest he cut himself upon her blade.

“Check...mate? Heh... hahaha!” he started to laugh. “You think you have me beaten?”

“Captain Blueblood, I have a sword at your throat, and your Zanpaktou is immobile. I’m well aware you Captains have access to that nasty Bankai ability, but do you really think I’d let you activate it without putting you down?”

“You haven’t the stomach for that.” Blueblood said, although there was an uneasy look in his eyes as he said it. Rarity responded with a harsh, frozen gleam in her eyes and a harder press of her sword against his neck, drawing a tiny line of blood.

“Are you willing to bet your life on that supposition, dear Captain?”

“You don’t look like a killer to me.” he said, gulping.

“Perhaps I don’t. Perhaps I even loathe the very notion.” Rarity said, then her voice dropped several, cold octaves. “Perhaps I’ve been forced to grow up very quickly, given my friends have decided to put their lives on the line to do what they feel is right. If I must sacrifice my morals to protect them then I ask you this, Captain Blueblood; do I look like a woman who would hesitate?”

A very long, uneasy silence stretched between them. Then Blueblood carefully and slowly raised his hands in a gesture of surrender as he asked, “May I be allowed to deactivate my Zanpaktou, my lady? Without having my throat slit on impulse?”

“As long as the words ‘Ban’, or ‘Kai’ don’t leave that pretty throat, by all means.” said Rarity.

Blueblood, sweat trickling down his brow, lowered his reiatsu, the spiritual pressure lifting off the field of battle. His glass daggers each started to turn into a smoky white dust which then slowly flowed out of Rarity’s bramble patch and form into the shape of Mezurashi Kokei’s sealed form, laying at Blueblood’s feet.

After a moment Blueblood asked, “What then do we do now? I might point out that you can hardly hold me hostage here forever. Others would have noticed the reiatsu of our battle and would be on their way.”

There was fear in his voice, clearly indicating that he fully expected to have his throat cut anyway. Rarity frowned as if tasting something sour. As if she’d sink to such a low as to execute a surrendered man. She wasn’t certain just how far she’d go or give of herself to protect her friends, but she wasn’t that desperate yet.

“I need not hold you hostage at all. I think you’re going to stay put right here.” she said, and in a few second time a growth of crystal emerged around Blueblood’s Zanpaktou, encasing the blade in a thick prison of crimson. Seconds later a similar growth of crystal rose up around Blueblood, encasing his legs, then his chest. Chains emerged, wrapping around his hands and pulling them down to bind them behind his back. Within moments he was bound up to his neck in a pillar of crystal, his Zanpaktou similarly imprisoned at his feet.

“Oh, well, this would do it.” he said, letting out a heavy sigh. “How undignified.”

“Better than death, isn’t it darling? Do cheer up, you only lost for two reasons.”

“And what reasons are those?” Blueblood asked, seeming to deflate in on himself. It was a rather unpleasant sight to Rarity. Not that she sympathized that much, but it was clear that this loss had popped some sort of fragile bubble of self image the Captain had had of himself and his entire posture, what little of it there was to be seen with just his neck and head left mobile, was slumped in a depressive funk that... well honestly Rarity had felt the exact same funk on more than one occasion when faced with frustrating projects that weren’t coming out right.

Well, no one can improve without constructive criticism. Has anyone ever actually forced this man to face his own faults and encourage him to improve?

Keeping her rapier carefully pointed at his throat, as he could still try to activate his Bankai and Rarity wasn’t dropping her guard, she circled around to the front of him and offered him a faint smile.

“For one darling, it is as I said. You clearly haven’t tried to bring out your real potential. You’re talented, I shall grant you that. Perhaps that talent has gotten you this far. But without effort, without striving daily to hone that talent, you’ll only ever be a shadow of how brightly you could shine.”

Her eyes gained less sympathy, glittering with a radiant anger for a moment as her voice grew hard. ”And secondly, you didn’t respect me. You could have ended the fight several times if you hadn’t treated this like a game. Battle is no game, Captain Blueblood. No game at all. I’ve come to respect this blade I carry. The art of using it is as important and serious as any instance of pursuing my artistic passions. You, however, lack that respect. For either yourself, the blade you carry, or the battles you fight.”

She snapped her fingers again and a smoother chain of crystal emerged around Blueblood’s head, pulling around his mouth to gag him, so he couldn’t shout for help, or intone his Bankai. As she did so he grimaced and said, “Wait, just one more thing my lady.”

“Yes?”

Blueblood looked at her with a hint of his dandy spark dancing in his blue eyes. “Would you be interested in getting dinner some fine evening?”

“...You cannot be serious.”

“I have never been more serious.”

Rarity sighed, almost smiling, but instead just shook her head and gestured for the chain gag to finish binding Blueblood’s mouth. She heard him mumble something that might have been ‘Is that a maybe?’ but she wasn’t going to ungag him to find out. Taking the point of her rapier from his throat and offered him a polite, fencer’s salute with it.

“Sorry, darling, but I have a strict policy against dating men who have tried to kill me, however irritatingly handsome they might be.”

Gaged or not, Blueblood made a hopeful noise and quirked his eyerow up. Rarity rolled her eyes.

“Work on your attitude, then we’ll talk. For you, that means a lot of work. Now then, I’m sure someone will be along eventually to release you, but I must be off. Places to go, friends to rescue.”

She left him there, imprisoned atop the inn. A noisome package to unwrap for whichever unforunate Soul Reapers discovered him. And they would, Rarity had no doubt. Their battle had not been a long one, a matter of minutes, but it had been long enough that the released spirit energy from it would be a beacon to the numerous alert Soul Reapers on patrol. Certainly many were already on their way, but Rarity would be long gone by the time they arrived.

She went to ground amid the narrow streets of the buildings north of the inn, gradually making her way towards the large, rocky plateau in the center of the Seireitei where the Gotei 13’s tall, pale fortress towers and walls soared high. Tall green forest clumped along the base of that plateau, and somewhere in there was the hideout that Ditzy Doo had told Rarity about. Occasionally she saw a Soul Reaper patrol rush by a street corner, and she kept quiet and out of sight, even if this slowed her progress.

Her leg was aching fiercely. Most of her wounds were light, but that cut had been deep and even with the unusual nature of her Fullbring seeming to stop the actual bleeding, the injury itself was deeply unpleasant and made moving an exercise in pain tolerance. It’d been so much easier to deal with when adrenaline and battle focus had kept the pain at bay.

“Oh, and my clothes are a ruin. Such a nice outfit, but there’s no getting bloodstains out.” she murmured halfheartedly. If anything she was a bit glad for the pain. It was a good distraction from her more troubled thoughts.

She’d already dismissed her rapier, but she could almost feel its cold crystalline grip still in her hand. She could feel the tremble in her hand, the faint shaking that matched the disquiet inside her.

Would I have actually carried out my threat? It was a disturbing question that floated in an uncomfortable, cold mote in her head.

It seemed like such a ridiculous thought. Rarity was a refined girl who found violence to be a barbarous thing. At times necessary, but still no less detestable for the fact. And certainly if inflicting violence on others was, at best, distasteful then surely the act of taking a life, especially that of a helpless foe, no matter how irritating he might be, should simply be beyond the pall!

Right?

So why was it that when Rarity had made her threat to slice Blueblood’s throat there was a cold feeling inside her that she hadn’t actually been bluffing? It was not at all a comforting realization, because even if Rarity and the other girls managed to free Celestia and Luna and quiet the chaos in Soul Society without a single real casualty, there would always be more battles. More blood. More sacrifices. Adagio had already paid such a high price. Only the naive would assume there wouldn’t be others.

And am I becoming the kind of person who is willing to kill a defenseless man so that those I care about don’t have to make the same sacrifice? How much is all this fighting changing me?

She took a deep, steadying breath, and brushed her hair from her face in a calming gesture. “Stop worrying before you give yourself grey hairs, Rarity. You wouldn't have gone through with it.”

However the words held a distinct note of doubt, even to her own ears.

----------

Sunset might have been the first to admit that she had a bit of a temper. She’d gotten pretty good at managing it over the past year, but every now and then something really got under her skin and hacked her off. It was easy to feel the old burn of anger, like hugging a friend from out of town. If that friend was made out flaming, explosive rage.

“Why did you do that!?” she roared at Ditzy Doo, eyes simmering pools of bubbling rancor.

Ditzy’s strike had knocked her out cold and when Sunset had come to she’d found herself situated in some sort of underground cavern. It reminded her of the training area beneath Discord’s shop, only with a clear stone ceiling and more confined spaces; with rocky crags filling an uneven area that appeared roughly the size of a few football fields. Apparently Ditzy had managed to sneak into the Twelfth Division and get into the secret entrance to this hidden training area without trouble, while Sunset had been unconscious.

Not that she cared. She was royally pissed off and was going to give Ditzy Doo a piece of her mind! Ditzy Doo was lazily sitting upon a stone outcropping, twiddling a finger through her hair as she looked at Sunset with disinterested, passive eyes. Which only pissed off Sunset more!

“You left Rarity there to fight a Captain by herself! She could be dead by now! We should have stayed there to fight together! Between the three of us we could have had a better chance to win, you dumb, crazy, idiotic cat!”

She’d all but gotten into Ditzy’s face, looming over the placid looking woman. Sunset was breathing heavily, her mind whirling with images of Rarity laying bloody on the ground, a laughing Blueblood standing over her body.

“Why did you stop me from helping her!? I could have-”

As Sunset had been yelling Ditzy calmly stood and in the same motion was instantly behind Sunset, twisting Sunset’s injured arm up and around in a hold that would’ve been painful enough if the arm hadn’t been badly wounded. Now the agony of the hold stole all of Sunset’s words and made her drop to her knees in seconds.

Ditzy released the hold a moment later, and stepped back from Sunset while crossing her arms under her ample chest.

“Strip.” Dtizy commanded.

“W-what?” Sunset stammered, more in confusion and residual pain than from any embarrassment.

“Strip. Take of your clothes. Get naked. Do I need to make it clearer with visual aides?” Ditzy’s words dripped with heavy snark, and little amusement.

Sunset, her anger put off just barely by her bafflement, asked. “Why?”

“Your arm is useless right now. It, along with the rest of your body, needs a lot more healing.” Ditzy said, and pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “There’s a hot spring here. It’s rich in soothing reishi that will help my healing Kido work better. Not to mention we both need time to rest and recover. So hop to it, hot head, and strip so we can soak and cool our heads.”

Sunset frowned, nearly scowled, “You want me to take a damn bath while Rarity might be bleeding out as we speak?”

Ditzy hacked out a snort, smirking. “I’m sure your friends would be honored to hear how much faith you have in them.”

Sunset’s face became coated in a cherry red flush, equal parts anger and embarrassment. “I...they... but that was a Captain! We barely faced one of them together. How is Rarity supposed to take that Blueblood guy on by herself?”

“Like I already told you, Blueblood might be a Captain, but he’s not exactly the Gotei 13’s best and brightest.” Ditzy knelt in front of Sunset, eyes slowly softening. “I get that you wanted to stand by your friend’s side, but Rarity knows what she’s doing, and you shouldn’t sell her abilities short. She’ll be fine. The best thing for you to do is stop making your injuries worse with this pointless tantrum and hop in the damn bath.”

“I... I wasn’t throwing a tantrum.” Sunset said, perturbed.

At Ditzy Doo’s raised eyebrow, she hung her head and sighed. “Okay, maybe I was.”

“Good girl. Now c’mon, its naked time!”

“You’re entirely too eager about this.” Sunset said suspiciously as she started to disrobe. Ditzy Doo started to do the same, kicking off her socks as she led Sunset around another set of rock outcroppings.

“Hey, most people get all weird and uncomfortable without clothes, but I’m a lot more relaxed without them. You’re probably the only person I know who might understand. Or should I say, the only pony?”

Sunset chuckled, letting some of her anger and tension fade. She was still worried about Rarity, but Ditzy Doo had made her point. Sunset was too wounded to do any of her friends much good. The best thing to do was to heal up, and then train. If she attained her Bankai, then that would make a lot more difference to her friends than just getting more hurt by pushing herself too far.

Besides, a bath sounded wonderful right about now. She was completely naked, her Soul Reaper robes slung over her shoulder, as she joined Ditzy around the edge of a wide pool of clear, steaming water fed by a small waterfall that was situated against a short rock cliff. Ditzy was also sans clothes now, having tossed them into pile at the edge of the hot spring. Sunset did likewise, stretching as best she could despite her injuries. Ditzy looked on with a grin.

“You adapted pretty well to having a human body. You ever miss your pony one?”

Sunset blinked, looking down at herself, then shrugged, followed by a pained wince as the motion sent aches all over her body.

“Sometimes. Mostly I miss my horn. Magic was such a innate part of me, you know? I still sometimes catch myself trying to lift things with a horn that isn’t there, like when I’m still tired in the morning and forget I can’t lift the milk out of the fridge with magic and just end up starring at it for a second, not knowing why the carton isn't floating at my command.”

They both entered the hot spring, slowly settling down into the pleasantly warm water. For a moment Sunset could only let out a soft gasp as the warmth of the clear water literally soaked away her aches in a manner so swift yet soothing that she knew it couldn’t be natural. She felt fairly certain she could prune up in this stuff all day and feel perfectly justified in doing so.

Ditzy kicked back, arms up and relaxing along the edge of the spring while she lazily swung her feet, splashing the water lightly.

“Anything else you miss? Food only ponies can eat? Games only ponies can play?”

“Why the sudden interest?” asked Sunset, genuinely curious.

Ditzy tilted her head back, starring up at the ceiling in a ponderous manner. “You’re an oddity, Sunset. And oddities interest me. Its why I get along so well with Discy. He’s odd too. Your a drifter from another reality. You gave up an entirely different life to live this one, as a human. You turned your back on everything you knew, even your own species, to take on a new challenge. That’s a rare kind of choice, and I’m curious what kept you here when you had the chance to go back to everything that was safe and familiar.”

Sunset smiled, but it was a slow, small one as she looked into the water, at her own human reflection. Was it strange that the flat face with the pudgy nose and smooth chin were features she now recognized as more her own than the pony face she vaguely remembered from years ago? Was it odd that maybe, somewhere inside herself, she felt more... human, than pony now?

“I don’t really know, myself. I didn’t really have friends, back in Equestria. Wasn’t the ‘friend making’ type. I may have had magic, but I didn’t have the connections that really make that magic worthwhile.”

She pulled her knees up to her chest, hugging them with her one good arm. “I think that because I was able to finally make those connections, make friends, here in the human world... well, it feels more like a home to me than Equestria ever did. Whatever I left behind, it doesn’t equal what I have here, with the girls. I wouldn’t give them up for all the magic in the world. This one or Equestria.”

Ditzy was silent for a few brief seconds, then cracked a mischievous grin. “So which is better, going into heat, or dealing with that time of the month?”

Sunset almost wished she’d been drinking something, just so she could do a proper spit take. “WHAT!?”

“C’mon, I’m curious. Which is more of a pain in the ass to deal with, going into heat or dealing with the human equivalent? I mean, what was that even like, to discover?”

Sunset ran a hand over her face, chuckling. “You’re freaking insane, Ditzy. Who asks something like that!?”

“Aww, so you’re not gonna tell me? I’m just curious. Besides, you looked like you needed a laugh.”

Feeling the tension inside her slip away a little, Sunset realized she really could do with something to laugh about. Ditzy Doo had a strange way of thinking, but ultimately she seemed eager to help, in her way. Sunset leveled an even stare at Ditzy, smiling in a dry manner.

"Uh-huh, alright weirdo, I’ll play along. Honestly? Periods are more of a pain. The first time it happened freaked me out so badly I went to the hospital. You should’ve seen the look on the nurse's face when I tried to explain what was wrong.”

At Ditzy Doo’s burst of laughter Sunset cried, “Hey, it wasn’t funny! I was seriously scared. Then extremely embarrassed. I hit up the library the very next day and spent the whole week studying up on human biology. I didn’t want to get caught off guard again. Good thing too because that’s how I learned humans couldn’t eat hay. And I’d been wondering why none of the restaurants in town had any.”

She smiled, laughing herself at the memories of her awkward first month in the human world. “Anyway, its not just because the first time seriously freaked me out, but because it’s damned monthly. Heat comes a few times a year, but they’re predictable, don’t last long, and its not that hard to spend a week at home just... dealing with it. No stallions around.”

“No stallions, but perhaps a few mares around to help out?” Ditzy said, wagging her eyebrows suggestively. Sunset responded with a scoffing laugh and splashed Ditzy in the face with a kick of her feet.

“Cool off, airhead. Hate to burst any bubbles but I actually don’t swing that way.”

Ditzy laughed and sputtered at the water splashing her face, grinning even wider. “Oh really? I’ll keep that in mind. But you never even experimented?”

Sunset felt her face heat up as she glanced away, “I didn’t say that.” She coughed politely and quickly said, “So, Bankai! Training. Super interesting. Let’s talk about that now.”

Ditzy made a face, sticking her tongue out. “Spoilsport. Okay, okay, I’ll move on to the more comfortable and infinitely less interesting subject of training. The equipment I need for it is all right here. Getting you started is going to be the easy part. Hate to say it but there really isn’t much I can do to help out once the process starts. It’s all going to be between you and Hokori.”

“Between us how, exactly? I mean, what do we need to do?”

Ditzy’s eyes took on a more dangerous gleam in their golden depths. “You and her are going to have to fight.”

Sunset tilted her head, then shrugged. “Well, okay, we kind of already did that a bit when I learned Shikai-”

Ditzy cut her off, “That was child’s play. I mean a real fight. Bankai training involves physically manifesting one’s Zanpaktou spirit, then facing them in a no-holds barred fight to force them to submit to you. And because Hokori will be manifested, that means you won’t have her to use as a weapon. You’ll have to rely on your own strength to make her submit to your will. And in the meantime...”

Ditzy made a cutting gesture across her neck. “Hokori will be doing everything in her power to kill you.”

Episode 45: Smile, Smile, Smile

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Episode 45: Smile, Smile, Smile

“Stop jumping around you bouncing cheese stick! I’m trying to eat you!” Pinkamena howled, extending her left arm like a long rope of pink laffy-taffy, the end of her hand opening up into a giant maw of salivating teeth. Much as had been the case for the past dozen attempts, the mouth snapped down on empty ground, biting a chunk out of the courtyard but not even grazing Cheese Sandwich. He bounced away, staying just out of reach of Pinkamena’s snapping tentacle maw, a twinkle glinting in his eyes and a laughing smile on his lips.

“I know i’m irresistible, but I think this is the first time I’ve literally had a girl drooling over me.”

At his quip Pinkie Pie snickered, her hammer form twitching with her laughter, and Pinkamena glared at the hammer. “You would think that was funny.”

“It's kinda funny.” Pinkie Pie said, but she could feel Pinkamena’s growing disquiet like a bunch of angry wasps buzzing in her brain. Wait, did she even have a brain while in hammer form? Either way, it was easy to see Pinkamena was not nearly as amused by Cheese Sandwich’s attitude as Pinkie was.

So far all Cheese had done during the “fight”, if that was even really an accurate term for it at that point, was jokingly evade Pinkamena’s strikes, tossing a quip out every time he did so. Pinkie Pie wanted to think maybe he wasn’t being serious about wanting to fight her and Pinkamena, but it was hard to ignore the Zanpaktou that Cheese still carried loosely in his right hand.

Pinkie had a twitchy feeling that jokes aside, Cheese Sandwich was testing them. Oh well, Pinkie Pie was never good at thinking things through. She always went with what her gut told her, and aside from the fact that it was telling her she could really dig a Chimi-Cherry-Changa right about now, it also said she and Pinkamena needed to get on Cheese’s wavelength if they were going to have a shot at winning.

Pinkamena was starting to get that giggly look on her face that made Pinkie want to shiver. It reminded her of how Pinkamena got back in Hueco Mundo, more violent and unstable. Gripping Pinkie Pie’s hammer form with both hands, Pinkamena jumped at Cheese Sandwich, slamming the hammer down at him. He vanished again with a blinking Flash Step, Pinkie’s hammer smacking the ground.

“Run, run, run all you want! I’ll get my teeth into you eventually!”

The hammer struck the courtyard with a pink flash of light, and undulated the whole floor like it was suddenly a trampoline. This unexpected bounce to the ground made Cheese Sandwich slow down for a second as he glanced at the floor in surprise, but not nearly as much surprise as when Pinkamena spun around like a top, and shouted, “Dinner time!”

The end of Pinkie’s hammer suddenly elongated into the shape of a frying pan, which Pinkamena then used to try and scoop up a rather shocked looking Cheese Sandwich.

“Okay, weird.” he said, looking at the frying pan he was now standing in, “If you’re planning to fry me might I suggest adding some seasoning first?”

“No.” Pinkamena replied with dry, malicious glee as the frying pan lit up like it’d already been coated in cooking oil, flames shooting high. Pinkie Pie gave a nervous, gulping noise.

“Mena, not sure I like being used as a live skillet! C’mon, tone it down!”

“No way, I want to snack on some melted cheese!” Pinkamena shouted back, only to feel a finger tap her shoulder.

“You’re going to burn the meal like that. Cheese should be melted at a slow, gradual pace.” commented Cheese Sandwich in an affected instructional tone, “What kind of idiot burns cheese?”

Pinkamena, eyes furious, turned the giant pink frying pan around and swung it like a baseball bat as it shifted back into a hammer. The strike actually managed to tag Cheese Sandwich with a hit that rang out with a loud, clarion ring like he’d been an actual baseball, sending him flying into one of the courtyard’s far walls, where he left a Cheese Sandwich shaped impression in the stone for a second before he managed to peel himself off and land on the ground. He rubbed his head, which had developed a cartoonish knot.

“So that neat hammer can actually hurt. I was curious.” he said, cracking his neck. “I’m getting an idea on how your Fullbring does its thing. But just to be sure let’s get a few more test swings in, eh?”

Pinkamena hefted the hammer and hissed as toothy maws formed across her body, one particular large one starting to open on her chest. “I’m supposed to play with my food, not the other way around.”

“Calm down Mena, if he wants to play this like a game then let’s have fun with it and play.” said Pinkie Pie, her hammer head actually twisting around to ‘look’ at Pinkamena.

Pinkamena eyed the hammer with a fathomless gaze of inscrutable madness, but cracked an unpleasantly wide and gleaming grin. “Oh, I’ll play with him.”

“Uhh, maybe we’re talking about two different kinds of playing.” Pinkie said, but soon found herself being twirled over Pinkamena’s head as her clone stretched her arm out and spun the hammer about so fast it was like a solid disc of pink, whistling through the air.

Pinkamena's eyes fixed back on Cheese Sandwich and then, whether by legitimate centripetal force or by the unique powers of the Pinkie hammer, she began to rise into the air like a living helicopter. Cheese Sandwich’s eyebrows shot up as he watched the crazed girl and her morphed hammer rise into the air and fly above him. Then, cackling madly, Pinkamena used all the force she’d built up in her constant, twirling swing to launch the Pinkie hammer down towards Cheese Sandwich with enough speed to crack the sound barrier.

Pinkie Pie, despite herself, made a rather loud “Eeeeeeeee!” as she rocketed towards the ground, her hammer form bursting into pink flames like a comet breaking through the atmosphere. This time Cheese Sandwich raised his Zanpaktou to block the attack, still looking bemused. The hammer struck head first upon the upraised blade, not so much in a crash of force, but in a strange flickering wave of distortion that flowed across the air alongside circular pulses of pink energy. The blow still hit hard enough to crack the stone beneath Cheese Sandwich's feet and press him downward, but he held firm against her and Pinkie Pie could feel her spirit energy leaping through her hammer form and try to flow into the air around Cheese Sandwich or into his Zanpaktou, but it was like there was a huge wall forged out of Cheese Sandwich’s own spirit energy that was blocking Pinkie Pie’s.

As a result the random, chaotic energies of her Fullbring flowed out all around them randomly, the distorted air producing all sorts of random effects. In the span of just a few seconds random objects popped up from thin air and rained down, ranging from banana peels to anvils to literal lit bundles of dynamite. The dynamite exploded harmlessly off to the side, one catching a pile of randomly manifested cupcakes that managed to splatter both Cheese Sandwich and Pinkie Pie’s hammer form. Not one to ever let free frosting go, Pinkie Pie didn’t think twice about licking it up from both herself and Cheese Sandwich, only realizing after the fact that she’d somehow managed to form a mouth and tongue from the front of her hammer form to accomplish this feat.

Cheese chuckled and pointed at her, “I know you like sweets, but you don’t have to hammer it in.”

Pinkie Pie couldn’t help but guffaw, even as her hammer form fell to the ground, shaking with giggles. “Hehehe! I don’t know, Cheese, that pun was a little blunt.”

“Personally I think I nailed it.” he shot back, and from the distant sidelines of the fight Sugar Belle could be heard groaning.

Still chuckling, Cheese Sandwich glanced around, frowning slightly. “Soooooo, where'd the crazy one go?”

“You’re asking me? I don’t even know how to talk to Mena, let alone keep track of her.” Pinkie Pie said, trying to see if she could get her hammer form to wiggle on its own. She was getting some success in the form of an inchworm style crawl when Pinkamena burst out of the ground at Cheese Sandwich’s feet. She’d turned her hands into toothy drills and opened her original mouth open as wide as a large burlap sack, teeth seeming to grow to the size of steak knives.

Without even looking Cheese Sandwich used his right foot to hook Pinkie Pie’s hammer form and kick it up to his left hand, then lodged it into Pinkamena’s mouth while casually walking away. Pinkamena gagged slightly, but quickly spat Pinkie Pie out into her hands. Pinkie Pie was coated in a light layer of slobber now, but was otherwise unharmed by Pinkamena’s teeth. Pinkamena on the other hand rubbed at her jaw, one or two teeth broken from biting down on the hammer, but the teeth re-grew in seconds.

“Mena, the direct approach isn’t exactly doing too stellar. We need to switch up our routine.”

Pinkamena’s left eye shuddered, her pupils shrinking to pin pricks and getting bloodshot. “And do what!? Crack jokes with him!? Trade puns!? Do an epic rap battle!?”

“Ooooooh, I like that idea, but it’s already been done. Gotta come up with something else.” Pinkie Pie replied in a musing tone.

“Argh!” Pinkamena gnashed her teeth, running a hand over her face in clawing frustration. “This is what I’m talking about! We’re going to lose this fight because you can’t take anything seriously! Which one of us is supposed to be the crazy one? Because I think I’m earning more sanity points here than you, bubblehead!”

“Whoa, getting kind of personal here Mena. Can’t we just say that we’re both equally crazy? You know, share and share alike?” PInkie Pie asked with an aimable air of mediation, to which Pinkamena proceeded to collapse to the ground and start repeatedly ramming her forehead into the courtyard stone. After a second Pinkie Pie added, “...Is that a no?”

Meanwhile Cheese Sandwich, looking on with bemused eyes, held up a finger and said, “Should I point out that the offer of chilling here willingly is still open? I mean, it’d involve a lot less cranial trauma, self-inflicted or otherwise-”

“Shut your cheese hole!” Pinkamena spat, “You don’t have to live with a cotton candy brained, living advertisment for diabetes medication twenty four seven! I try to help her out, I try to be the one to do all the things she’s too soft headed to do herself, but do I get any appreciation or cooperation for it!? No! I get regulated to creepy clone status! Oh, and she just gets to turn into a hammer to avoid all responsibility for her actions. Leaves me to do even more of the work swinging her fat butt around!”

“My butt’s not fat, it’s healthy!” shouted Pinkie Pie, a literal cartoon vein popping up on the hammer. “Just because I have an above average amount of junk in the trunk is not a call for tossing around hurtful names.”

“You see!?” Pinkamena said, wagging an accusatory finger at Pinkie Pie, “This is what I’ve got to deal with! All the time! You have any idea what it's like inside this girl’s mind? Because I do. I live there! You’d want to commit murder too.”

In response Cheese Sandwich scratched his head, “I get the feeling there’s some underlying psychological issues being worked out here. You know if you girls need to just have a sit down and talk session I can come back later.”

“No!” both Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie shouted at the same time, and the hammer and clone girl exchanged looks. Pinkie Pie wiggled so that her hammer handle was pointing towards Pinkamena.

“Look, Mena, I know you want to do things differently than I do. But we’re both on the same page that we’ve got to beat Cheesey and skedaddle to help our friends, right?”

Heaving out a massive sigh Pinkamena scooped up the hammer, muttering, “Yes. I’m not sitting around doing nothing. That’d be so boring I’d rather someone just cut our throats.”

“Ew, morbid. Anyway, my point is that we both want the same thing. All I’m saying is we can’t get what we want by doing things your way.”

Pinkamena snarled, “So what, we got to do things your way instead?”

“No...” Pinkie Pie smiled. How a hammer smiled is a question best left to physics to ponder another day. “We do things our way.”

As Pinkie Pie said this she tried something she’d been thinking about for awhile, but had never been brave enough to risk any other time she’d had Pinkamena out and about. She reached out with her spirit energy to link with Pinkamena. She’d been able to sense Pinkamena’s thoughts since day one, at least on a surface level. She could feel the way PInkamena’s mind twisted around like a collection of pipe straws that a rambunctious toddler had gotten a hold of. Pinkamena was in a lot of ways a big, warped repository of all the negative feelings that Pinkie Pie tried to force out of herself to maintain her constant good cheer.

Now, she tried to take a little of it back. Always before she’d used this connection to force Pinkamena back into her subconscious when Pinkamena got a bit out of control. They’d always had this connection from the start, and for Pinkie Pie it had always been the leash she’d use to get Pinkamena to heel. She didn’t want to do that anymore. She wanted them to share the burden of their collective emotions together, and to think together as well.

”Hey Mena, can you hear me!?”

There was a groaning sound in her mind, and Pinkie heard Pinkamena reply, ”Ugh! Yes, I can hear you. Like a someone trying to scoop out my brain like ice cream. Mmm, I could really go for some of that.”

“What? Brain or ice cream?” Pinkie Pie asked, and Pinkamena probably took a little too long before responding.

”Yes.” She paused a second, then said, ”Am I more crazy than normal or are you trying to get into my head?”

Pinkie Pie’s giggles echoed in both their minds as she said, ”More like I’m opening the door between our heads. Or trying to anyway.”

“Is this just going to be another way to make me do what you want?” Pinkamena hissed sourly.

No way! I don’t want to make you do stuff Mena! I want you to just... be a little bit of me, and me be a bit of you. You’re right, I only really want to make people laugh and smile all the time, but sometimes...” She turned her attention towards Cheese Sandwich, who was being very polite in letting the pair just stand there. He seemed largely unbothered by their sudden silence, and continued to just look on with a curious face. Sugar Belle, conversely, looked a lot more tense as she observed the battle from the safe distance of the Eight Division’s gatehouse.

”...Sometimes, you gotta show a little teeth. Sometimes before you can be friends, you gotta first be enemies. Frenemies. So I’m going to try being a little scary like you. I just want you to do the same, and smile a little more. And not the creepy ‘I’m gonna eat your face’ smile, but a real smile. I think the only way we can win is if we’re both doing our thing together. Like peanut butter and chocolate.”

“Which one of us is the chocolate and which is the peanut butter?”

“Uhhhh? I’m the peanut butter and you’re the chocolate?”

“...But I want to be the-”

“Okay! Okay! You’re the peanut butter and I’m the chocolate. Or better yet, we’re both just Reese's Pieces, alright?”

“...I could live with that.”

----------

Cheese Sandwich watched, completely unaware of the conversation taking place inside the strange, straight haired girl who could seemingly spawn mouths out of any part of her body and the girl who could turn into a hammer, although he suspected that some sort of internal dialogue was happening. His powerful spiritual senses had been probing the girls since the start of the fight, trying to get a handle on just how their unusual powers functioned. He’d already gauged that both could warp reality to a degree, and he suspected both did so with opposing elements; one focused upon laughter, the other horror.

Their spirit energy up until that point had felt like someone had pulled apart two pieces of sticky bits of chewing gum, stretching both outward in opposite directions, until both seemed like separate things just connected by the thinnest thread. But now that stretched portion felt like it was snapping backwards, bringing the two halves back together in a intermingled glob of potent but unstable spirit energy.

Pinkamena’s body started to glow with a random and writhing aura of pink energy, and Pinkie Pie’s hammer form started to do the same, little sparks of erratic pink light jumping between her and Pinkamena.

Their reiatsu is getting stronger. Is she about to evolve her Fullbring? No... not quite. This isn’t like how it was with their mothers. The power is there, but it's not focused enough yet.

Cheese Sandwich wasn’t certain whether to feel relieved or not. Pinkie Pie and her unique Fullbring, Pinkamena, were certainly dangerous. He knew he couldn’t allow them to leave this courtyard, for fear they might cause all sorts of harm with their unpredictable actions. Yet he didn’t want to hurt them either. Cheese Sandwich might not have been involved in the horrible events that had led to the creation and ultimate dismantling of the original Xcution, but that was irrelevant. As a Captain of the Gotei 13 he owned the responsibility for the organization’s actions, and the very existence of Hitsuyo-Aku was one of many mistakes he felt needed correcting in Soul Society.

Part of that was ensuring the daughters of those poor women whose lives were turned upside down by Hitsuyo-Aku and its Xcution experiment were treated fairly by Soul Society. A complicated prospect, given those very girls were now invading the Seireitei in an attempt to rescue Celestia and Luna from their upcoming execution. On one hand Cheese Sandwich was glad to see the resolve and dedication these girls had to risk so much to come here. On the other hand it certainly tossed everything into a chaotic blender.

So why hadn’t he just taken Pinkie Pie and her unusual clone out yet? Cheese knew he could have at any time while Pinkamena had been chasing him around. As dangerous as those teeth were and potentially unpredictable as the hammer was, these girls simply weren’t fast enough to keep up with him if he went for a serious strike.

Well, part of it was that he honestly hoped they might still realize the futility of the fight and surrender. The other part was that he was curious about their power and, perhaps as a form of making up for not doing anything to help their mothers in the past, he could help Pinkie Pie become stronger. Not enough to defeat him, of course, but enough that she might be able to help her friends more once a better opportunity to rescue Celestia and Luna was possible.

Or maybe you’re just having fun, eh Cheese? he asked himself, Let’s face it, when’s the last time you got to stretch your legs like this, and with a girl who’s got such a good sense of humor?

Okay, yeah, if he was being honest with himself all of his excuses aside he was actually just having a good time.

Seeing Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena’s spirit energy growing, and the decidedly dangerous gleam entering Pinkamena’s eyes, Cheese Sandwich only felt a increased anticipation. If nothing else, he suspected they was about to put up much more of a fight than she had a moment ago. Not that their spirit energy had gotten that much stronger. Again, he was certain this wasn’t a fully evolved Fullbring yet, but what he did sense was that the harmony of energies between Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie were cooperating more smoothly.

They felt less and less like two separate entities with every passing second.

“C’mon Cheese, give us a smile.” Pinkamena said, and tapped the head of the hammer to the ground. She and the hammer both vanished down a literal hole that just opened up in the ground, dropping only after hanging suspended in mid-air for a second and giving Cheese Sandwich a particularly unnerving wave and grin.

“And now I’m concerned...” he said to himself with a quizzical quirk on his lips as he stretched out his spiritual senses, seeing if he could feel out where Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had gone. Pinkamena had already demonstrated a remarkable capacity for burrowing underground, but this seemed different. More like some strange dimension warping ability.

He sensed something behind him and flashed around, ready to evade or strike as needed, but blinked to see that it wasn’t Pinkamena leaping up at him, but rather a balloon. Big, sunny yellow, with a rather disturbing smiley face on it, the balloon floated up from a hole in the ground that closed up. Cheese peered at the balloon curiously, then stepped back as literally dozens upon dozens of more balloons started floating up around him from other holes opening up in the ground, until he was surrounded by them.

Then the balloons, in all their myriad of bright colors, started popping left and right. With each pop the balloons exuded a gaseous, pepper red mist. In seconds Cheese Sandwich was surrounded by the sharp, itchy scent of sneezing powder. He actually laughed as it stung his eyes and nose, causing a series of quick, rapid fire sneezes.

“Ooohah-choo! That’s hahaachoo! Kindaaaahchoo!... a neat move.”

“We’re just getting started, Cheesy!” said Pinkie Pie in her bubbly, sing-song voice from above, her and Pinkamena having used the distraction of the exploding balloon powder to pop out of their dimensional hidey-hole, courtesy of the Pinkie hammer’s reality warping, and leaped up into the air above Cheese Sandwich.

“You see, even if I want to eat your delicious looking face,” said Pinkamena, “Right now you’re just looking a little too bland for me. So Pinkie Pie decided to spice you up. Personally I think the pun falls a little... flat!” She swung the hammer, and Pinkie Pie giggled as the hammer seemed to strike thin air, making the space in front of the hammer shimmer and waver like a heat haze until a giant iron anvil the size of a small bus appeared in the air. It even had the Acme logo on it as it fell down at Cheese Sandwich.

He chuckled, unable to keep the smile off his face. “Hey hey! That’s good! I needed to do some powerlifting and work on my pecs!”

He jumped up to meet the falling anvil, and swung his Zanpaktou in a swift, powerful arc. The resulting slash cleaved a sparking path through the anvil, cutting its thick metal form cleanly in half. As the two separated halves crashed to the ground to either side of Cheese Sandwich, he reached Pinkamena and sent a swing at her.

“Let me cut to the chase, however. I really want you two girls to give it a rest and just hang with me here for awhile.”

Pinkamena blocked with the hammer, moving faster than even Cheese imagined she could, with a pink blur of motion that got the head of the Pinkie hammer right in the path of his Zanpaktou. As the blade clashed with the Pinkie hammer, Pinkie herself laughed.

“No can do pops. Mena and me are starting to see eye to eye about what we’re doing, and it definitely isn’t waiting here for other people to take care of our problems for us.”

As if on cue a bunch of floating eyeballs appeared in the air all around Cheese Sandwich, which in and of itself was rather disturbing, but then each eye started to swirl around with a green hypnotic pattern. Pinkie Pie’s voice spoke in a haunting, if somewhat goofy tone, “Gaaaze into our eeeeyeees Cheeeese Sandiwitch! You waaaaant toooo leeeet us goooooo... after giving us a cupcake or two for the road of course.”

Cheese Sandwich shook his head, partially because this was ridiculous, and partially because there was a bit of a hypnotic potency to this latest reality warping surprise. Still, Pinkie Pie’s power was still based on her spirit energy, and Cheese’s outweighed hers by several magnitudes. The hypno-eyes only disoriented him for a brief moment.

"And if I don't?" he said plainly. At that Pinkie Pie's voice gained a rather disturbing edge to it, not unlike Pinkamena's own giggling.

"Then I'll have to take a bite outta some cheese!" she said, and suddenly the hypnotic eyes all instantly transformed, opening up into horrific mouths, like a flying flock of fang filled Pac-Mans that flew at Cheese Sandwich. Genuinely creeped out and startled, Cheese swung his Zanpaktou around rapidly, deflecting and cutting through the various toothy eye monsters. However doing so kept him distracted, and when he was done cutting down the last eye monster, his back was exposed.

Pinkamena took advantage of the fact to quickly wrap her one free arm and legs around him, the limbs stretching with tentacle like elasticity to bind up Cheese Sandwich like a large, pink squid. One finger stroked Cheese’s chin as Pinkamena leered in close, the sharp teeth of her mouth forming a crescent in a grin of no small proportions.

“If parting cupcakes won't do, how about we give you a great big hug instead?” Pinkamena asked while constricting her lips like they were snakes. The pressure was impressive, to say the least. She was surprisingly strong for such a noodle limbed young lady. Then again, she clearly didn’t have a conventional body. To make things worse, mouths started to form all over Pinkamena’s limbs, their sharp teeth digging into Cheese’s uniform, and the skin beneath.

He could feel his bones creaking under the strain, and Pinkamena’s sawing teeth even broke through his skin in a few places despite the reiatsu hardening it, drawing blood. However this lasted only a few seconds. Then his spirit energy flared up, a greater flood of reiatsu pouring out of him, and suddenly the powerful constriction felt like little more than the gentle hug Pinkamena had been joking about. Her many, bizarre mouths were pushed back, the teeth leaving a few nasty bite marks, but nothing more.

“You know girls, I really like you two.” he said in a somber tone that matched the sad smile on his face, “You really are a funny, strange pair. Quite the act.”

With a burst of reiatsu flowing off his body he threw off PInkamena’s limbs and with a swift palm strike knocked her back, then gravity did the rest to pull Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie back to the ground to crash into the stone courtyard with a solid impact. Cheese Sandwich saw Pinkamena leap back to her feet, wiping blood from a cut scalp and licking it off her fingers.

“But if I play around with you gals much longer someone’s bound to notice the fight. That’ll lead to questions I’d rather not have to answer. Might lead to you girls getting tossed in a cell where I can’t help you anymore. So hate to say it, but I have to cut this party short.”

Cheese Sandwich inverted his grip on his Zanpaktou, his demeanor growing dour, his eyes shadowed as he placed his other hand on top of the hilt. The Zanpaktou’s unusually shaped cross guard began to emit a stream of pale, purple energy that wrapped around the entire blade like a miasma. When he spoke next, his voice was edged with earnest sincerity.

“My only advice to you girls is this; please reconsider my offer, because even I don’t always have a lot of luck holding back once I go this far. Knock ‘em dead, Hone Nashi.” (Boneless)

----------

Scorpan paced with heavy footfalls in his office. It was built along the edge of the tallest portion of the headquarters main fortress building, a long chamber open to an equally long balcony overlook that gave the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 and impressive view of the southern part of the Seireitei. A view that on any other day he might enjoy, but now he looked upon with ominous concern.

The Ryoka invasion, right atop the civil disorder... it was tearing into Seireitei like seeping, bleeding wounds. His spiritual senses, long reaching and sharper than all but perhaps Captain Luna and Captain Daring Do’s, gave him a frustratingly wide if still vague picture of what was happening in his domain.

He’d felt Hurricane and Sweet Cider’s clash with Celestia’s Thirteenth Division, and the subsequent arrival of the Ryoka, their unique Fullbring based spirit energies like torches in Scorpan’s mind. He’d felt Hurricane go all out, unleashing his Bankai, and had been shocked at how the humans from the realm of the living had fared. Scattered, but not truly beaten. The one called Sunset, her power had been like a beacon, protecting and guiding the others. To imagine that they could stand up to one of his Captains using Bankai, if even only briefly, was a shocking revelation of just how powerful that group of young ladies had become.

Even though he could not sense the exact locations of any of the Ryoka after their battle with Hurricane, he could feel the beginnings of new battles across his Seireitei. Captain Sweet Cider and Captain Blueblood both had released their Shikai’s, and Scorpan had even seen the destruction being unleashed upon the eastern road, smoke and dust still trailing into the sky from ruined walls and towers where Sweet Cider had battled one of the Ryoka. It seemed nearly impossible that one of them could have pushed Captain Sweet Cider so far... but Scorpan suspected he knew who had battled her, and what the result was.

He almost smiled to himself, if only in the way an old man who knew a talking to was coming his way could. Sweet Cider might not remain a member of the Gotei 13, but it would be her choice how she responded to her restored memory. Scorpan would accept her choice, no matter what it was.

But the matter of the other Ryoka, those foolish but incredibly daring and brave girls, was still problematic. As long as Central 46 ordered their capture, he had to send his Soul Reapers to do just that. If only there was a way to twist his way out of the those orders. If only the girls would be captured, he could put them somewhere safe until this mess with Celestia and Luna was dealt with.

Celestia... Luna... how Scorpan felt like such a failure, allowing this to happen to them. He was no fool. He knew foul play had to be involved. Somehow Captain Zecora had to have been compromised. But how? There was no proof, even when Scorpan covertly asked Captain Starswirl to observe and scan Zecora with the Twelfth Division’s finest instruments there was nothing revealed that could indicate that Zecora was anything other than herself.

Time was running short, but not so short that things could not be worked out. Celestia and Luna’s execution was not for another twelve days. More than enough time to capture the human girls, pacify the rebellious Divisions, and root out the core of this conspiracy against his people.

His eyes, weathered and wrinkled around the edges and thick with ages old tiredness, narrowed as he halted his pacing and glanced sharply out the balcony of his office towards a distant set of buildings to the south west.

Cheese Sandwich? Someone made him release his Shikai? It must be a truly dangerous foe, for him to think it necessary to use that unwieldy, wild blade of his. Those human girls are extraordinary. If only we’d made peace with their mothers, instead of using them. One of my worst mistakes, allowing that to go on for so long. Another to add to the pile...

As with the other instances when he’d sensed these battles taking place he considered the value of stepping in personally to deal with matters. He didn’t for several reasons. One, he had a strict policy of avoiding taking care of matters his Captains should be able to handle themselves. After all, they all in their own ways had room to grow and it would do them no good to lift their burdens himself. Second, he couldn’t afford to be away from the headquarters in case Central 46 gave any orders that he might... object to. He might not be able to countermand their mandates, but he could slow them down, or twist them as he saw fit, but only if he was present to do so. And thirdly, he knew Celestia and Luna. They were among his most promising students. Which meant he also knew it was only a matter of time before they attempted to escape the Repentance Cells. He’d rather be close by when that happened.

Moments after he sensed Cheese Sandwich releasing his Zanpaktou, a messenger in the dark pants and red robes of a courier appeared beside him on the balcony, having Flash Stepped there from the entryway of the office. The courier knelt, one fist on the floor as he bowed his head recently.

“Captain Commander, I bear a message from the chambers of the Central 46.” the courier said in a clipped, professional tone as he raised a scroll with his free hand. Scorpan took the scroll with a frowning nod.

“Thank you. Dismissed.”

Upon Scorpan’s command the courier vanished just as quickly as he arrived. Scorpan looked at the scroll, which bore the seal of the Central 46 in pressed black wax. Only members of Central 46 knew the Kido spells to enchant the wax to detonate the message in a puff of fire were anyone other than the intended bearer of the message to open it. Cracking the seal Scorpan glanced over the neatly printed words. Within seconds his jaw tightened and his hands crushed the note, his stone faced expression splitting into a quake of genuine anger.

“What is the meaning of this!?” he growled to himself, spinning on his heels as he began a determined march out of of his office.

“They go too far...”

The orders inside the message had been to move up Celestia’s and Luna’s execution to tomorrow morning! It was completely irrational! As irrational as accepting Platinum’s “evidence” in the first place, but now Central 46 had stepped too far beyond the line of reasoning. Whatever was wrong with them was something Scorpan was going to correct himself now! He couldn’t overturn their orders, but he did have one executive power in his purview, and that was to enact his right of contestation. Whenever the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 was given an order he felt he could not obey, he had the right to contest it with the Central 46 and personally argue the matter for a forty eight hour period.

He’d been holding off because he hoped some other evidence might crop up in the next twelve days, but if Central 46 was pushing things to the very next day he didn’t have time to waste.

Outside his office chambers, in a wide wooden hall draped with banners bearing the First Division’s symbol, a single black slash through a banner of white, he saw his Lieutenant waiting for him. She was a plain and stocky shouldered woman with brown skin and a long head of hair the color of straw, curled around her large bangs. Bright green eyes watched Scorpan carefully as he stomped out of his office.

“Problems, sir?”

“Lieutenant Smart Cookie, I must attend the Central 46. They have... given orders I find questionable.”

Smart Cookie always did have a rather sardonic way of raising her eyebrow. “Now you find their orders questionable, sir?”

He sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, feeling the weight of every one of his many centuries. Smart Cookie was his Lieutenant because she could and would point out his mistakes, without judgment, but also without fail. That, and she brewed the only coffee in this reality or any other that could get him functional in the morning. He offered her a tired smile.

“I have found this whole affair questionable since day one, but I cannot act alone in defying the very conventions that bind Soul Society together. If the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 were to allow his personal feelings to interfere with the order of law, then what right would I have to expect anyone to follow my own orders?”

“Nice speech and all, but can’t help but notice that you’re still going to go argue with those old fogies anyway.” said Smart Cookie, her eyebrow still arched high.

“Yes, well, I prefer arguing over the alternative of open revolt. That would just make things... complicated.” Scorpan said with a laugh dry as old autumn leaves. Complicated didn't even begin to cover the reprecussions if he went against the Central 46's orders in open rebellion. There were very few things that would get the Zero Division to come down from the Soul Palace, and him leading a revolt against the Central 46 would count among those few things. Even Scorpan didn't want to risk that kind of a mess if it could be avoided.

Smart Cookie didn’t share the laugh, instead asking, “What happened to set you off, old man?”

Scorpan’s grimace was like watching a desert crack open, his leathery face drawn into deep pockets of weariness. “The orders are crumpled up in my office. Damned fool thing to command. They’ve stepped up the execution date to tomorrow morning.”

That got both of Smart Cookie’s eyebrows up, her shock evident. “But... why? That doesn’t make any sense. Are they really worried a few Ryoka are going to defeat the entire Gotei 13 and rescue the Captains?”

“Maybe they do. Or maybe something else is going on. Either way, I intend to find out, and will argue those bastards into the ground on this if I must.” Scorpan said, and gestured a commanding hand at Smart Cookie, “While I’m gone I leave you in charge of operations here. The Captains should capture the Ryoka soon enough. See to it those young ladies are treated as well as they can be, given the circumstances. Also, contact the guards in charge of watching Celestia’s and Luna’s cells and have them increase their numbers. I won’t be shocked if they try to escape soon, and I don’t want them making their case worse by doing so. After that get in touch with Captain Starswirl. I’ve put him in charge of the continued investigation into the accusations against Celestia and Luna. With luck he may find something that will help us.”

Smart Cookie took this all in with a solemn nod, “And if he doesn’t find anything, sir?”

Scorpan’s eyes turned to fine slits, like two pieces of flint. “Then things get complicated.”

----------

The moment Cheese Sandwich spoke the release phrase on his Zanpaktou Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena both felt the incredible upsurge in reiatsu, alongside a rather erratic and strange dissonance in the air that made it feel like they’d just been dipped in an electrical current.

The purple, deathly glow around the Zanpaktou grew brighter, and then stretched out like some dripping piece of goo, morphing and growing longer. Then Cheese Sandwich started to spin it, and the intense purple glow resolved in a flash of violet sparks into a long chain. At one end of that chain, coiled in Cheese Sandwich’s left hand, was a circular orb with small holes in its tops, like an incense censer. On the other end of the chain that was being spun around a large, curved blade took shape along the length of a thick wooden handle. The curved blade tapered to a fine point at one end, and expanded into a large frill towards the back, like a trio of curved back secondary blades.

Pinkie Pie recognized the type of weapon as being similar to one’s she seen in a few kung-fu flicks and anime. A kusarigama. It was like a scythe or kama attached to a big chain. It was supposed to have a iron ball at one end, but in this case it was that strange incense container. The blade here was a lot larger than a normal kama’s, those swayed back secondary blades along the crest of the main blade almost making it look a bit like a rooster’s head to Pinkie Pie.

“Now be careful girls.” Cheese Sandwich said, still slowly spinning around the kusarigama’s blade in a wide arc above his head.“Hone Nashi is a temperamental fella and doesn’t play too well with others.”

Pinkamena licked her lips and laughed, “Neither do I. Less talky and more violence! I still wanna take a bite out of you!”

“Yeah!” said Pinkie Pie, “I mean, well, not the biting part for me, but definitely with the finishing this fight part! Round Three, Cheesy... FIGHT!”

Pinkamena twirled the hammer around, and pink energy cascaded around the hammer for a few seconds, arching up into the air until it swirled around both opponents and then started forming images in the air.

A pair of green health bars, with the names of both combatants appearing in a rather intense font beneath the bars. In between the health bars a timer appeared, starting at ninety nine, and started to count down.

Cheese Sandwich, for all his attempts at appearing serious, guffawed out a happy chuckle. “Dang it, and here I was going to start getting all straight faced, but I guess I just can’t do that with you two can I? What the heck, let’s do it!” With that he pulled the kama end of Hone Nashi to his hand and began to dive down towards them.

Pinkie Pie’s hammer cracked a smile, a literal engraving of a toothy cartoon grin forming on the business end of the hammer. “Mena, hit the music!”

Pinkie Pie’s hammer-grin was mirrored by a sharp toothed, hungry smile from Pinkamena. “My pleasure. Moorrtaaal Kombaaaat!”

Through the unusual power of Pinkie Pie’s Fullbring a literal gong popped up from the ground next to Pinkamena, and a single hammer swing banged the gong in a distinctive ring that then instantly started up a piece of music that any child of the nineties would have quickly recognized.

”Test your might!”

As the music kicked off Pinkamena, cackling like a gleeful lunatic, hefted the Pinkie hammer and jumped into the air to meet Cheese Sandwich head on. Inside both Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie there was a buzzing, synchronized energy that matched the mad laughter both shared. For once the two were at complete ease with each other and their purpose; to kick ass and have fun doing it!

Pinkie Pie’s hammer form swung through the air with enough force to create waves of air pressure around her, and she clashed headlong into Cheese Sandwich’s Hone Nashi, the massive kama blade sending pink sparks off the hammer as the two collided. Passing by each other Pinkamena and Cheese Sandwich landed a few paces away, turning to face each other in ready combat stances.

Pinkamena blinked as she noticed a sudden cut appear across her back, not too deep, but spreading a spray of blood through the air.

“Huh? But I didn’t get hit.” The green health bar on her end had gone down a few shaves of red, clearly confirming she had been.

“Did you? I wonder how that happened?” Cheese Sandwich whistled innocently while twirling Hone Nashi’s kama blade, which the then instantly swung in a lightning flash that sent the deadly instrument straight for Pinkamena’s head.

She ducked the strike, losing a few straight strands of dark pink hair, but rushed forward, mouth salivating as she opened it wide for a massive bite at Cheese Sandwich’s torso. Her teeth caught his robes as he stepped back, but then he tried to dodge to the side from her follow up hammer swing and suddenly found he couldn’t move that direction, as if a literal wall blocked his way.

The hammer caught him under the chin, knocking him up into the air with the cracking noise. Pinkamena then stretched her arm out, whipping the tentacle-like appendage in a blindingly quick series of strikes that Cheese Sandwich swiftly evaded, Flash Stepping back to the ground while rubbing his chin. His own health bar had gone down a bit, but he didn’t seem to notice as he pulled back on Hone Nashi’s chain, the huge kama blade spinning back towards him, and subsequently Pinkamena as well.

She spun to block it with the Pinkie hammer, deflecting it upward, but at the same instant she felt another nasty cut spread across her side, and just barely caught site of a distortion in the air, like a ripple in water. She saw the same blade, Hone Nashi’s kama duplicated on the same trajectory as the original, but from a different angle as it flowed out of the distortion in the air.

The distortion and the duplicate blade vanished in an eyeblink, but the original went back to Cheese Sandwich’s hand for him to continue lazily spinning it around.

“Oh, you spotted it? Your reflexes are getting better. No more reason to hide in then. Go ahead, Hone Nashi, show off for the girls a little.”

He threw the blade upward, the chain soaring upward. Pinkamena watched it warily, then Pinkie Pie shouted, “Itchy nose and back twinge! Look out below!”

Not bothering to question how Pinkie Pie could get any of her Pinkie Sense twitches while in hammer form Pinkamena just jumped back, just in time to avoid an identical Hone Nashi that tore up from the ground beneath her, mimicking the one that Cheese had thrown upward. Pinkie Pie suddenly screeched, “Wwwwwoooaaah! Everything’s going bonkers, Mena! Dodge, uh, everywhere!”

“Gee that’s helpfu-shit!” Pinkamena swore as now dozens of Hone Nashi’s started to appear from rippling distortions in the air, coming at her from every direction. Like a mad, graceful swan Pinkamena bent, twisted, and flipped out of the way of the attacks, at times having to bend her limbs in ways that would have been physically impossible for a normal human’s body. Still, much like how Cheese Sandwich couldn’t evade to the side, neither could she, keeping her evasions to an essentially two dimensional plane.

“Figured that had to be what it was.” said Cheese Sandwich, “Not just a simple visual gag, those health bars. I haven’t been to the living realm too often, but even I know what a video game is. We’re stuck to a 2-D battlefield. Heh, that’s a scary power you have, Pinkie Pie. Warping the rules of reality that much... not even many Soul Reapers have power like that.”

“Thanks, we’re thinking of going on tour.” said Pinkie Pie as Pinkamena landed atop one of the duplicate Hone Nashi chains, then used it like a spring to jump off towards Cheese Sandwich. A giant mouth opened up in her chest, opening wide until Pinkamena looked almost like a huge, pink venus flytrap filled with chomping teeth.

In a burst of speed Cheese Sandwich pulled on Hone Nashi’s chain, all the duplicates pulling back into their ripples. He then threw the original blade outward beneath Pinkamena’s diving arc. Her mammoth bite nearly caught him, and her chest mouth took out a huge chunk of the ground. Cheese Sandwich’s throw created a series of duplicates that appeared above Pinkamena, smashing down at her. She shrunk her form back to normal size, spinning the Pinkie hammer above her head in a pink blur to deflect the descending blades.

However the blades struck with such force that she was not only driven down to her knees, but also breaking through her guard. The sharp kama blades cut gouges in her arms, and another across her back, causing more sprays of blood to fill the air and knock her to the ground as yet more portions of her health bar got taken off.

Pinkamena, undaunted, retaliated with a growl, opening up her chest mouth to spit out a barrage of rocks at high speed, like a living gatling gun.

“Whoa, didn’t your mother teach you to chew your food!?” Cheese Sandwich perked up in surprise at the attack, yanking back Hone Nashi’s main blade to start deflecting the high speed chunks of stone flying at him. To Pinkamena’s credit the storm of spat rock managed to get a few strikes in. While most of the chewed up stone pieces got pulverized by Hone Nashi, several either hit Cheese’s shoulders or leg, and one even skipped off his skull, tearing the scalp a bit and causing it to start bleeding. For every little strike another small portion of his health bar ticked away.

The timer continued on silently between the two health bars, getting below the minute mark.

Pinkamena let out a sizable belch once she was done spitting out rock chunks, then charged Cheese Sandwich, hammer swinging. Laughing, he threw Hone Nashi again, only this time the kama became wreathed in a erratic violet light and started to move about on its own, seemingly at random. Pinkamena watched the blade’s movements warily, but kept in on Cheese Sandwich, reaching him and smashing the hammer down towards him. He blocked with the chain of his Zanpaktou, countering with a swift snap kick that Pinkamena flipped over, twisting around with a lashing hand that expanded into a large, snapping maw. Cheese stepped back, then ducked as Hone Nashi flew in from behind.

The blade slashed by Pinkamena, drawing more blood, and nearly hit Cheese Sandwich too. In fact Hone Nashi started to shimmer in and out of ripples in the air, appearing in duplicate from over a dozen sudden directions that would easily catch both Pinkamena and Cheese in its deadly path.

“Yikes! Mena jump!” Pinkie Pie warned, the tremors of her Pinkie Sense washing through her hammer form. “Another one coming in from behind! Duck down. Jump again!”

Pinkamena followed the instructions, not questioning Pinkie Pie’s premonitions. Cheese Sandwich also avoided the majority of Hone Nashi’s glowing path, his raw speed allowing him to Flash Step away from the maze of seeking kama blades despite the limited two dimensional movement he was dealing with.

However he also found, after dodging one blade, that Pinkamena landed, perfectly balanced, atop the extended chain, her teeth like giant white knives as she grinned wider than a great white shark. “Hiya! NOM!”

He blocked with his arm, Pinakmena’s teeth sinking in with a gout of blood and knocking a large chunk from his health bar above. However Hone Nashi flew in like a wild hawk, and the blade’s purple aura of energy seemed to howl as it sliced right through Cheese’s arm to stab deeply into Pinkamena’s gut. The blow knocked Pinkamena backwards, skidding across the ground.

“Mena!” Pinkie shouted, but Pinkamena grunted, getting back to her feet. Her stomach had opened up into a mouth at the last second to catch Hone Nashi between its teeth.

“No worries Pinks.” Pinkamena said with a wide smile, “I got this.”

“Maybe not so much.” Cheese Sandwich said, clutching his wounded arm and smiling sadly. “Like I said, I don’t got much control over Hone Nashi when he gets riled up.”

Suddenly the massive Zanpaktou spun its kama blade around, gouging its three back crest blades through Pinkamena’s chest. It then flashed forward, then back, creating several more duplicates of itself in a blinding series of attacks that crossed over Pinkamena over and over again. For a second time slowed down, leaving Pinkamena standing there swaying... then she dropped Pinkie Pie’s hammer form as dozens of cuts appeared over her body in a wave of blood that splattered through the air like red leaves scattered by the wind.

“Well... crap...” Pinkamena said, coughing up blood. Up above them her health bar had nothing left by a small green silver. It was entirely possible that only the bizarre rules of the “game” Pinkie Pie’s power had created allowed Pinkamena to keep standing at all, the rules dictating that an opponent wasn't’ down until their health was gone, or the time ran out.

Laughing, more of a gurgling sound than anything else, Pinkamena took one unsteady step towards Cheese Sandwich, who had pulled back Hone Nashi and held the kama blade tightly. The blade seemed to shake and thrash in his grip, as if it wanted to tear itself free to keep slicing up its foes, and only Cheese’s white knuckled grip kept it from doing so.

“It’s over girls.” he said, “Call it quits before there’s nothing left of the Fourth Division to heal.”

“Hehehe...” Pinkamena laughed, still stepping towards him in a bleeding, staggered walk, like some blood dripping zombie. On the ground, discarded, Pinkie shouted from her hammer form.

“M-Mena, stop! You’re hurt!”

“It’s, heh... okay Pinkie... I’m doing what you said...” Pinkamena coughed and laughed at the same time, blood popping out of her mouth like a bubble. “I’m gonna smile like you, so you can be scary like me...”

Pinkamena offered Pinkie Pie a smile then, one that wasn’t wide toothed or frightening, but one that reminded Pinkie of the cheerful face she saw in the mirror every morning. Then she turned and in a final burst of speed she dashed in at Cheese Sandwich. Her arms both extended into giant, saw-like claws, sharp teeth snapping. In a colorful blender of slashing pink arms she attacked the Soul Reaper Captain, who responded in kind with blindingly fast, deadly swings of Hone Nashi.

By luck or skill it was hard to tell, but PInkamena held her own for a few seconds, holding onto that last shard of health as she exchanged blows with Cheese Sandwich... and sent one of her legs snaking backwards like a stretched out piece of gum to grip Pinkie Pie’s hammer form around the haft.

”Last shot, Pinkie. Get him good for me!” Pinkamena’s voice said in Pinkie’s mind, and in turn Pinkie sent a feeling Pinkamena’s way; like a great big, warm and loving hug.

”He won’t know what hit him, sis!”

”Heh, sis. I guess I am.”

Finally Hone Nashi’s relentless assault broke through and cut through Pinkamena in a crescent of blood, her form starting to break up back into pink mist, but not before using her leg to whip the Pinkie hammer forward in a spinning arc. The hammer spun right past Pinkamena’s misting form and then slammed straight into the gut of an unsuspecting Cheese Sandwich. The blow hit hard enough to create a small shockwave and knock Cheese right on his butt, skidding along the ground for a dozen yards.

Pinkie Pie hit the ground, her hammer body clanging. Pinkamena finished dissolving into pink mist, which returned to the hammer in a wave. Pinkie Pie could feel Pinkamena in her mind still, but weakened and dormant. It would be awhile before she could summon Pinkamena again, and more than that, without Pinkamena present to be the synchronized focus, she couldn’t maintain her hammer form.

So the hammer shimmered with pink light, and Pinkie Pie took shape in her human form once more, kneeling there, sweat soaked and exhausted. She still retained the perked, pony ears and tail of her ponied-up state, indicating her Fullbring wasn't quite finished manifesting yet, but with Pinkamena out of the fight and her hammer form gone, all that remained were the elements of the video game that still hung about.

“Ugggh... that was a pretty good sucker punch.” Cheese Sandwich said, slowly getting up and rubbing his stomach, licking his lips. “I think I can taste my breakfast. Urp. Chocolate waffles don’t taste nearly as good coming up as going down. Whew...”

Cracking his neck he looked at PInkie Pie, then his eyes widened and his hands yanked on the chain of his Zanpaktou. Pinkie Pie felt a wash of air behind her, and looked over her shoulder to see Hone Nashi’s blade inches from her face, the kama having been flying right for her in a move that would’ve ended in decapitation had Cheese Sandwich not stopped it.

Cheese pulled hard on the chain, growling. “Down! Down boy! Fight’s over! I don’t care what kind of fighting game they simulated, we’re not ‘Finishing Her’ you dumb chicken! Now, to finally use a proper game quote, ‘Get over here!’” With a final yank he pulled his Zanpaktou back and grabbed the kama hard, glaring at it like it was a bad pet. When it looked as if the Zanpaktou was calming down, he sighed and looked back to Pinkie Pie.

“Right, so, now that the fight’s over and done, would you please just sit here at my Division’s headquarters nice and quiet like?”

Pinkie Pie looked up at him, pony ears twitching, and slowly stood, brushing herself off, then pointed up. “Fight’s over? Dude, did you forget what kind of game we’re playing? The fights only over when you take out all your opponent’s health, or the timer runs out.”

Cheese looked up at the timer, which was down to its last three seconds. It took about those three seconds for him to realize a couple of things. One, when Pinkamena had vanished and Pinkie Pie reformed into her human state, the health bar on her side had reset to full... given that Pinkie Pie was physically uninjured and Pinkamena was nowhere to be found. Two, his own health bar was still about a third of the way down from the injuries he’d sustained in the fight. And three, normally in fighting games the one with the least amount of health when time runs out, loses.

“Well sunuvabitc-” he began to say, then the timer hit zero. All of the ‘game graphics’, the two health bar and timer, started to glow intensely pink, and a voice boomed out.

”You Lose!”

Pinkie felt the power of her Fullbring surge through her, through the air around her. The barriers of the game field had been maintained by her power, as had the visual effects and sound effects of the fight. Now all of that energy channeled into a destructive form, becoming a swirling series of pink beams of energy that converged on Cheese Sandwich and proceeded to explode in a massive bomb that let out a blast so strong that not only did it crater about half the courtyard, but it sent Pinkie Pie flying back like a rag doll.

Bruised and battered, Pinkie Pie groaned and staggered to her feet. She was dizzy and feeling more than a little nauseous. Her power was completely drained, but she could still feel Pinkamena snoozing away in her mind, slowly recovering. As for Cheese Sandwich, for the moment all Pinkie saw was a smoking crater. She hoped he wasn’t dead or anything.

Suddenly there was a blade at her throat, and Pinkie Pie gulped, glancing back to see a very irate Sugar Belle behind her, blade poised..

“Don’t move, Ryoka!” Sugar Belle shouted, “You’ll pay for what you just did.”

Before anything else could happen through, Cheese Sandwich’s voice reached them from the crater. “Whoa! Whoa! Don’t go bananas up there Sugar! I’m okay. Hell's bells girl, you’d think you’d know me well enough to realize a blast like that wouldn’t be enough to do me in.”

Pinkie Pie looked on with surprised, wide blue eyes as Cheese Sandwich slowly climbed out of the crater. His Soul Reaper robes were wounded, all but destroyed from the waist up, and he was bearing several painful burn marks that slowly bled. But despite his wounds he otherwise looked alright, shouldering his Zanpaktou and lightly twirling the censer end of the chain as he approached, smiling.

“Pinkie Pie, I got to hand it to you, you’re one hell of a party goer. I haven’t enjoyed a fight like that in forever. Almost makes me understand Hurricane a little better, heh.”

Pinkie Pie, crestfallen, hair seeming to droop as if a balloon popped by a needle, sagged to her knees. Sugar Belle took her sword away from Pinkie’s neck, noticing the girl didn’t seem to have any fight left in her. “What do we do with her, Captain?”

“Well, first thing’s first...” Cheese said, and lightly, almost gently, appeared in front of Pinkie Pie and gave the girl a light chop across the neck, knocking Pinkie Pie out entirely. As she fell unconscious he caught her, holding her carefully like a father with a child who’d just fallen asleep from a long day of playing. He patted her head.

“Now that she’s out, we can get her to the Fourth Division for healing.”

“Won’t Captain Zecora, or any of the other Soul Reapers there, have questions about you bringing a Ryoka in?” Sugar Belle asked.

“Probably, but old man Scorpan’s orders were to treat these girls with all due kindness and respect once they were apprehended. Besides, not sure what my next move is, and the Fourth Division is where I belong right now too. Ouch, this girl packed a wallop!” he said, wincing as he looked at his wounds.

Sugar Belle sighed, “I should’ve helped, sir.”

“Nah. Sugar, don’t take this the wrong way, but you wouldn’t have been a match for her.” Cheese Sandwich said, hefting Pinkie Pie carefully in his arms. “Even Hone Nashi got out of control way faster than normal, like he could sense how dangerous she was.”

“Yeah, you did seem to be having trouble.” Sugar Belle said, then smirked, “I just assumed you were getting slow in your old age, sir.”

Cheese Sandwich sighed, “I get no respect around here, no respect at all.”

“Still, it couldn’t have been that bad.” said Sugar Belle, pointing at the end of Hone Nashi’s chain where the incense censer dangled. “You didn’t even have to use the censer’s ability.”

“Yeah, well, I may be old, but I’m not that old yet. Now quit judging my combat performance and let's get going before something else goes wrong around here.” Cheese Sandwich said, and the Soul Reaper Captain and his Lieutenant quickly Flash Stepped away from their damaged Division headquarters, carrying along the unconscious Pinkie Pie.

Author's Notes:

Future advice to anyone who wants to write a story involving lots of combat; be careful about what kind of abilities you give people. Some are way harder to write than others. Applejack? Easy. She kicks and punches things. Rarity? A little tougher, because she's the thinking type and you got to plan the fight a little more clearly to make that kind of smart fighting look good. But Pinkie Pie? By far the hardest girl to write combat scenes for in this story, specifically because her power is such a wild card. It can do just about anything as long as it fits within the basic notion of a joke or gag effect, and is only really limited by her spirit energy. Otherwise that hammer can whip out all sorts of crazy stuff. Which is fun, but also very hard to write, as I got to really pick my brain for ideas.

That aside, hope the fight turned out well for you guys. Granted I think more than a few of you guessed how this one was going to end, but to Pinkie's credit she did a lot better than Chad did in the original Bleach story. Poor Chad, guy never did get much luck in his battles.

Anyway, thanks for reading folks and by all means let me know what you think via comments, questions, or critiques, as I soak them all up appreciatively. We'll be pulling back to a more bi-weekly update speed, just FYI. 'Till next time!

Episode 46: The Shadows Move

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Episode 46: The Shadows Move

Frustration and an intense flare of anger boiled through her as Rainbow Dash stared with ruby ire at Clover, who stood firmly in her path to the doorway out of the room.

“What did you say?” Rainbow Dash said in a barely controlled tone of disbelieving fury.

Clover, taking a deep, uneasy breath, held her hands out, her voice firm. “I said going after Applejack would be a mistake.”

“And I give a damn about what you think, why?” replied Rainbow Dash, steam all but bubbling out of her nostrils as she clenched her fists tight enough to hurt.

Clover weathered the angry onslaught and glare with a resolved look of her own. “Because if you go after her, right now, all you’ll be doing is rendering her action in drawing off Captain Sweet Cider meaningless. The entire reason she went alone was so that we wouldn’t have to face the Kenpachi in a battle we couldn’t win.”

“And it's a fight AJ can’t win either!” shouted Rainbow Dash, the aura of her Fullbring starting to crackle around her in sparking bolts of energy. She hadn’t summoned her wings yet, but the girl looked all but ready to do just that and blast her way out of the manor estate. “For goodness sake Clover, she needs us!”

Clover shook her head, “It's too late, Miss Dash. If the fight was still happening, trust me, we could feel it from here. As it is I can’t sense either Captain Sweet Cider or Applejack out there, and you can trust that I still have the sharpest spiritual senses out of all of us.”

“She’s right, my lady.” said Nocturn with a respectful bow of his head to Rainbow Dash, his face somewhat pale and sweat stained as he held the bandaged stump of his arm. “I respect your loyal fervor to speed to your comrade’s side, but you dishonor her actions by placing yourself in harm’s way when she clearly intended to draw such danger away from us so we could move more freely.”

“Dude, stuff it!” Rainbow Dash said with a guttural huff, “AJ is way too awesome to leave any of us hangin’, and we shouldn’t leave her high and dry either! I have to know if she’s okay or not! I...” her teeth ground against each other like cinder-blocks. “I just have to, okay?”

“But in doing that you’d literally be signaling our position to every Soul Reaper in the district.” said Clover, “How long before you’d find yourself embattled with another Captain, or a group of Lieutenants?”

“AJ could be dying out there!” Rainbow Dash exploded with electrical energy, her wings both metallic and lightning bound spreading from her back, pony ears manifesting along with her crackling prismatic tail. “I won’t stand still while a friend needs me!”

“U-um, if I might say something?” said Pipsqueak, who’d been standing in a nervous huddle by the futon where Fluttershy still lay unconscious. “I am nearly certain that Lady Applejack was not slain.”

All eyes turned to the young noble, who gulped under Rainbow Dash’s hard, spearing gaze. “Speak up Pipsqueak, what do you mean by that?”

“Well, not to defame Third Seat Clover’s claim to the sharpest spiritual senses, but, um, I could sense the conflict between Captain Sweet Cider and Lady Applejack. While I couldn’t tell all the details, I did sense that in the end, um, the Kenpachi remained standing and Lady Applejack had fallen.”

At Rainbow Dash’s near volcanic look Pipsqueak raised his hands and shook them vigorously in front of him as he stammered, “S-she was still alive! Beaten, but living. I sensed the Kenpachi take her and depart. Um, in roughly the same direction as the Fourth Division headquarters, I might add.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, frowning. “Those’re the healer dudes, right?”

Pipsqueak bobbed his head in an eager nod, “Yes, exactly! I don’t mean to downplay your feelings for your friend, but I believe she is at the very least out of immediate danger, if Captain Sweet Cider took her to the care of the Fourth Division.” He suddenly coughed, several long hacking spasms.

“Whoa, you okay little man?” asked Rainbow Dash, but Pipsqueak waved her off.

“Yes, yes I’m fine. Just a minor condition. Now, Lady Rainbow Dash, there is a great chance we’ll learn more of Lady Applejack’s condition soon, as we are going to the very same place.”

Clover and Nocturn both looked at the young boy in surprise, this being the first Pipsqueak had mentioned of any plan. Clover’s expression was doubtful, but she cast equally concerned eyes at the prone Fluttershy. “That... makes sense. Miss Fluttershy needs more medical attention than can be accomplished here. Still, if the Kenpachi herself is there-”

“We’ll figure out how to deal with her and anyone else who gets in the way.” said Rainbow Dash as she went over to kneel by Fluttershy and placed a hand over the other girl’s forehead. “Flutters is down. AJ is down. Dammit I wish I knew how the others were doing.” She closed her eyes tightly, feeling all the tension roiling through her body, buzzing like the electricity around her wings. Her mind kept flashing with images of Applejack’s battered, broken body, and it made her feel a wintry chill inside her alongside the heated boil of anger and the electricity, vibrating need to do something!

While she’d been out snoozing like a complete wimp, Applejack had stepped up to the plate and gone toe to toe with her own mother. Rainbow Dash couldn’t imagine what Applejack must have been feeling at the time, or the guts doing something like that must have taken, and it hurt to think that all she’d been doing at the time was lay there in an unconscious lump while Applejack did all the heavy lifting.

She had to make this right, somehow. And as much as it burned her from the inside out to admit it, Clover and the others were right. She’d be all but spitting in Applejack’s face if she didn’t do everything in her power to keep Fluttershy and the others safe, rather than blow it all on some angry, rash idiocy.

Okay Dash, time to put on your big girl pants and do the job AJ trusted you with.

“Right, so we’re going to this Fourth Division place. Can we move Fluttershy while she’s still out like this? Is it gonna be safe for her?” Rainbow Dash’s first priority now was the safety of her wounded friend. She hadn’t taken too close a look at the wound Hurricane had given Fluttershy, but what she had seen had definitely looked bad.

“It will be.” said Pipsqueak with a solid, determined look as he walked up and knelt beside Fluttershy, “I’ll be coming with you to make sure of that. With my healing Kido, I can keep her stable until we reach the hospital.”

“Once we’re there how will we deal with any of the Fourth Division Soul Reaper guys there?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Will they even help us?”

“With the emergency you and your friends caused many of the Fourth Division won’t be in the hospital, but out in the field. It should give us a chance to slip in unnoticed and acquire medicine and tools to help heal Lady Fluttershy.” Pipsqueak paled a bit. “Although with the Kenpachi there too... well, I’m not certain. Maybe we’ll be lucky and be able to rescue Lady Applejack before being seen?”

Rainbow Dash found herself giving the young boy a cocky smile and lightly punched his shoulder. It was a good way to hide her own fear, which squirmed inside her in a nervous, gut churning clench. “Hey, a chance is all we need. So we sneak in, fix up Flutters, nab AJ, and then skip out before anyone knows we’re there. Totally foolproof!”

Clover shifted on her feet, “Not sure I’d call it ‘foolproof’, but you’re right that it's our best chance at the moment. We still need to figure out how to link up with Sunset and the others.”

Nocturn, rubbing his chin with his one remaining hand, said, “Wherever they are now, your friends will have the same goal you do. Rescuing Captains Luna and Celestia. That means logically we make our way towards the Repentance Cells, after finishing up at the Fourth Division.”

“They’ll be heavily guarded...” murmured Clover.

Nocturn gave her a grin of shining white teeth, “I'm in the 2nd Division, Clover. The Stealth Corps. Do you honestly think we don’t have secret ways through the halls of headquarters?”

“Into the Repentance Cells?” Clover asked incredulously.

“Of course not,” Nocturn chuckled, shaking his head, “But I’m sure I can get us close, without being detected. There are other 2nd Division members using the secret halls to hide, until the right time. If we can break the Captains free, that will be enough to turn this around, I think.”

“So what are we waiting for!?” Rainbow Dash said, smacking a fist into her other hand, “Let’s get this avalanche of awesome rolling already!”

In short order Fluttershy was very carefully and gently loaded onto a stretcher that Pipsqueak produced from one of the manor estate’s many, many closets, then proceeded to lead the group towards the west end of the maze-like building. As they walked through the immaculately clean wood floor hallways and their paper walls, Rainbow Dash carried Fluttershy’s stretcher alongside Clover, while Nocturn walked beside them, Pipsqueak leading. Rainbow Dash felt an odd buzz down her spine, a sort of tickling that left her looking over her shoulder.

“What is it?” asked Clover.

“Don’t know... just a weird feeling.” Rainbow Dash whispered back, eyes narrowing to red slits as she gazed down the hallway behind them. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt like they were being watched. However even when she stretched out her spiritual senses, feeling out for any reiatsu, she couldn’t pick up anything other than the people she was with.

“I guess it's nothing.” she muttered, continuing to follow Pipsqueak.

He soon led them to a small storeroom in one corner of the huge manor, and inside he raised one of the tatami mats, revealing a short staircase leading down to a smoothly carved and well lit tunnel. “Most of the nobles have these emergency pathways to the Fourth Division, in case of medical problems. Normally the healers would come here through this tunnel, but we can use it to reach the hospital without trouble.” The boy paused, then added, “Hopefully.”

Heading down into the tunnel, moving as swiftly as they could without endangering Fluttershy, none of them noticed the fleeting movment of a shadowed figure slowly following in their wake.

----------

Moon Dancer wiped at her eyes, trying to expunge the growing ache of exhaustion. She was seated at a table deep inside the Daireishokairo, the Great Spirit Book Gallery. Around her were shelves twelve feet high laden heavily with books and scrolls, all flowing in one large circle surrounding a central pit that went down for level after level of records, and up as well, all the way to the surface of the building. From the outside it would have looked almost like a humble affair, with its single squat, cylindrical building, but its archives spread deep into the ground, darkly lit save for occasional hanging lamps that burned with a soft blue glow.

In front of Moon Dancer was an archive terminal, a bulky affair with a wide keyboard of metal keys and a large, circular screen projecting images of the numerous files she was searching through. Because she wasn’t certain exactly when the book on the Queen’s Key went missing, she had to go through all the dates starting from yesterday, and search gradually backwards through the archive records.

Whoever took the book couldn’t do so without checking it through the archive’s system. For easily the twentieth time she grumbled under her breath about the lack of updates to the archive’s functions after the centuries. Copying the living world’s computer advancements, including keyword searches, would have saved her hours of this mindless slogging through check-out records.

There was, of course, the possibility that whoever took the book had somehow altered the records, though how they could have done that baffled Moon Dancer. It would take an extensive knowledge of the system itself to be able to make those alterations, not to mention the skill of a Captain to manipulate the complex Kido spells to do so. Even she wasn’t a master of those spells and she specialized in Kido!

Leaning back in her chair, running her hands over her head of two toned hair, predominantly red with stripes of violet, Moon Dancer groaned aloud and stretched her creaking arms and legs. “What am I even doing here? Oh, right, I’m the only one who knows these archives well enough to do this without my brain dripping out my nose! Augh! At least Radiant Hope or Meadowbrook could’ve volunteered to help!”

She wished she’d badgered either of those two to come help her. Not that they’d have actually been a lot of help, but company would’ve been nice. Some Soul Reapers might have joked about her being an anti-social recluse, but even Moon Dancer liked having someone to bounce ideas off of, or at least help alleviate the boredom. Her brain was starting to feel like it was molding, her thoughts getting sluggish with the monotony of the search.

She wondered how the others were doing? Redheart was probably doing her job as a healer, but were Radiant Hope and Meadowbrook okay out there? All Moon Dancer knew was that there was fighting taking place, but that was only because the alarms had reached even to the Daireishokairo. She perhaps should have gone to check on Captain Blueblood, but he hadn’t sent a courier for her, so the emergency couldn’t be that bad yet, could it? Either way, without direct orders she was left to her own devices, and she wanted to overcome this challenge in front of her. The information was in there somewhere, hiding from her, and she’d be damned if she was going to let herself be beaten by a collection of books!

Bending back to her work, Moon Dancer swept through another set of logs tracking visitors to the Daireishokairo and the various documents either looked up or checked out. Checking out a book was easy enough, you just had to run it through a device that temporarily inscribed a ward pass on the book to let it pass the archive’s ward, which would otherwise trigger an alarm. At the same time this process took a sample of reiatsu from the one checking out the item and used that to log the user, along with a time stamp. As far as she knew one couldn’t easily duplicate that ward pass, not without knowing exactly how they were made in the first place. The devices that inscribed the wards were built by the Twelfth Division, but she had a hard time believing anyone from the Twelfth Division would be involved in this whole screwy mess.

As her frustration peaked she decided to try going over the first records again, the ones starting from the previous day. Maybe she missed something in her earlier haste? Marking where she was, she brought up the first screen of logs. Passing over a few sets of logs, Moon Dancer paused, her brow creasing as she leaned towards the screen. It was a small thing, barely noticeable unless one happened to have a particular eye for detail and also hated it when things were out of place. One of the words in a particular line was misspelled.

Check out date - 04202016 - Object: The Treatsei on the Mechanics of Metaphysical Theory, Vol. 3.

The word ‘treatise’ wasn’t spelled right. A simple enough mistake, the kind anyone could make, if not for the fact that these logs were generated by the device doing the checkout of books and not written or typed in by hand. The device couldn’t make a spelling mistake, logically speaking.

The only way that word would be misspelled is if someone got into that device somehow and physically altered the record, and didn’t proofread their work. Possibly because they were scared of getting caught and in a rush.

The date was also telling. Very recent. In fact it was just about a month ago.

Right about when that trouble with those human girls started. Moon Dancer realized. Her mind started to race, following a simple and short train of logic. If someone had intended for all of the current chaos in Seireitei to be taking place, and if the Queen's Key was their intended target, then they would be taking full advantage of the Soul Reaper's being distracted to find it. Theoretically only the Captain Commander was supposed to know the Key's location, but given the sheer convoluted nature of Seireitei's bureaucracy what if that practice didn't begin until after someone left a record of where the Key was, perhaps in an old, forgotten book deep in the archive?

Over several thousand years we have more records we've forgotten about than anyone could possibly remember, even the Captain Commander himself. But even if someone changed the record-

“Find anything?”

Moon Dancer all but jumped out of her seat, spinning around to see Meadowbrook looking at her with a quizzical smile and raised brow. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked, slowly breathing in and out to calm her racing heart. She was a lot more tense than she thought she’d been, and she sat back down in her chair, trying to calm her nerves.

“Came to check on how you were doing.” Meadowbrook said, sliding up next to her and leaning against the table with one hip, arms crossing. “That and to update you on things outside, in case you were wondering.”

“I was curious if I needed to go check on my Captain, but I haven’t heard from him since the alarms went off.” Moon Dancer said, glancing sidelong at him past her glasses. “So what is going on out there?”

He gave her a quick rundown, starting with the confrontation at the Thirteenth Division barracks and the resulting battle, made all the more chaotic with the arrival of the Ryoka girls from the world of the living. Meadowbrook looked up at the wide, open hole running up and down the archive. “Clover was with them. Guess I shouldn’t be surprised by that, but I’m worried about her.”

“She’s your subordinate, you’d know more about what she’s capable of than I.” said Moon Dancer dryly, “So with the Ryoka scattered everyone is searching for them? Why hasn’t Captain Blueblood contacted me then!? You’d think he’d want his Lieutenant at his side during a crisis situation.”

“Heh, as his Lieutenant you should know best that Captain Blueblood probably decided to go for tea first, before anything else.” Meadowbrook said with a wry quirk of his lips, drumming his fingers on the table.

“Augh, the sad part is you’re probably right. I can just see the Captain sipping tea while Seireitei burns around his ears.” Moon Dancers rubbed her face again, “Whatever, if he needs me, he knows where I am. Right now I need to focus on this.”

“Which brings me to my first question again; have you found anything?” Meadowbrook leaned over her shoulder, peering at the screen.

“Not one hundred percent sure of it, but I think so, yes.” Moon Dancer pointed out the erroneous log date and explained the problem. “The only issue is that I have no way of determining who made the alteration.”

“Who did the checking out?” asked Meadowbrook and Moon Dancer keyed in a few strokes on the keyboard and the log changed to a new set of information, all names. Glancing over it to the right line in the log, Moon Dancer’s eyes widened, and she glanced at Meadowbrook.

“Meadowbrook, did you know about this?”

He stared at the screen, frowning deeply. The name on the screen was that of Captain Starswirl. Moon Dancer could all but see the gears twisting about in Meadowbrook’s mind.

“I don’t watch everything Captain Starswirl does. He spends most of his time in our labs anyway. Whoever altered the record could have just put his name there to be incriminating.”

“Or he might have simply assumed no one would suspect him, especially with such a seemingly innocuous record. But Meadowbrook, the only way to alter records like this would be to know those ward pass devices inside and out, and your Division was the one that designed and built them!”

“I know that.” His teeth clenched and he breathed out a hiss, “But they were built before either my or Captain Starswirl’s time. He’d know the specs inside and out, but... I have a hard time swallowing this. Why would he want a book about the Queen’s Key? Why steal it?”

“If he’s working for those trying to destroy Soul Society...”

“But why!?” Meadowbrook nearly shouted, his upset becoming more apparent by the second. “It doesn’t make any sense for him to betray us like this! He’s a researcher with access to the greatest labs in creation, with the full backing and resources of Soul Society behind him. He only cares about his research! He’d have no reason to jeopardize his position by helping the enemy.”

Moon Dancer had to admit that Meadowbrook did have a point. It didn’t make a lot of sense for Captain Starswirl to be a traitor. Where was the motive? It was possible someone could be trying to frame him, just like Celestia and Luna, but that didn’t scan by her logic. Frame jobs had to be pretty public to work, and so far Starswirl would be entirely in the clear if not for discovering this one little mistake in the altered record. No one could have predicted she’d come here and find this... could they? She regained her train of thought from before Meadowbrook interrupted it and she rubbed her chin, giving him a thoughtful look.

“Its entirely possible Captain Starswirl is just another victim of framing, just like Celestia and Luna. No matter how skilled one might be in altering records, the devices still take a sample of reiatsu during the check-out process. We can check the device to find that reiatsu sample. Once we bring this to the attention of the Captain Commander. Even a small piece of evidence like this might be enough to get Central 46 to halt the execution! This could avert the entire crisis and stop the fighting!” Moon Dancer said, reaching into a drawer of the table, where a recording slate could be found. The small metal slab could be used to record information from the terminal to be taken from the archive.

Just as she was about to put the slat into the terminal both she and Meadowbrook heard a voice chanting from across the chasm.

“Hado Number Sixty Six: Hyoga Seiran!” (Glacier Vapor Storm)

Moon Dancer barely had the time to look up in stark shock, eyes wide, as a spiral blast of deadly ice flew at her from the other side of the archive. She felt Meadowbrook tackling her, trying to knock her out of the way, then the world flashed blue and white, along with bone biting cold.

----------

Upon reaching the end of the tunnel there was a short staircase leading up to a door with a simple wood handle, and painted with the symbol of the Fourth Division across its center. Rainbow Dash watched Pipsqueak as the boy went up the handful of steps to the door, his outward posture calm save for the slight tremble in his knees that betrayed his nervousness. He closed his eyes for a second and Rainbow Dash imagined he was using his spiritual senses to try and determine if anyone was on the other side of the door.

A moment passed, heavy and buzzing with quiet tension, until Pipsqueak opened his eyes. “Its clear on the other side.” He looked unsure of himself.

“Is something wrong?” asked Clover.

“I don’t know. I spread my senses outward for a good distance, just to get an idea of how busy the hospital will be and the best route to take to avoid being found but... I didn’t sense anyone.” Pipsqueak said, biting his lower lip and covering his mouth to suppress a cough.

“No one at all?” Clover frowned deeply, eyes glinting the dim tunnel lighting with a curious gaze. “How far did you look?”

“Not the entire building, but several rooms and hallways out. Doing more might have alerted someone to our presence, but it's just odd that I didn’t sense anyone close to these emergency entryways. There’s usually at least one healer on standby nearby in case a noble triggers an emergency medical call.” Pipsqueak looked back at them, then the boy seemed to gather his courage, straightening his back. “Well, it doesn’t change what we must do.”

He placed his hand on the handle, which glowed with a soft green light. “These emergency entryways are warded. Only those of noble blood can enter, or those of the Fourth Division who have the right ward pass.” Opening the door a bright, pale light poured in from the well lit room beyond. Existing out into a hexagonal shaped room of wood tiled floors and white washed walls, there were identical doors along most the other walls, all presumably leading to other emergency tunnels to different noble estates. One door was a bit larger than the others, however, and also already ajar, leading out into a empty hallway.

Well, not entirely empty. The moment the group carefully stepped out into the hallway Rainbow Dash threw out an arm to block the others. “Hold up!”

Her alarm was due to the rather alarming amount of blood splashed upon parts of the floor, wall, and even the ceiling. The sprays were long and trailing, and by Rainbow Dash’s guess enough to leave a few bodies laying around... but there were no bodies to be seen. Just a broken sword, laying split in two a few paces down the hallway to her right.

Clover let out a sharp gasp as she caught sight of the state of the hallway, and soon enough the whole group was standing amid the blood stains, Rainbow Dash taking point and activating her Fullbring. Twin metallic wings, flanked top and bottom with crackling electrical wings, formed from her back along with the ears and tails of her pony features. “What happened here?”

Pipsqueak, his features turning a ghostly shade, knelt by the broken katana on the floor. “I... I can’t even guess! There must have been some sort of battle here. The Fourth Division has been attacked!”

Nocturn, carrying the back part of Fluttershy’s stretcher while Clover took care of the front, cast a hard look around the hall. “Not exactly a battle, I fear. These stains, they stem from those caught by surprise. Only one of them managed to draw their blade to defend themselves before being cut down. Whoever did this was either incredibly fast... or was trusted until they moment they turned.”

“We need to investigate.” said Clover, “There must be clues to who did this laying around somewhere.”

“Fluttershy first, then we check stuff out.” said Rainbow Dash firmly. “Pipsqueak, where to?”

“T-this way.” he said, stepping gingerly around the broken Zanpaktou and leading the group further into the Fourth Division hospital. They passed by rooms with doors flung open, the beds inside overturned, no sign of healers or wounded. Just more bloodstains. It was silent all around them save for the muted sound of their own footsteps and the uneven buzz of Rainbow Dash’s electricity. She was on high alert, tense to the point of snapping.

Reaching the end of another hall after taking a few turns, Pipsqueak led them to a wide set of sliding wood doors.

“This storeroom should have medical supplies we can use. Everything we need to properly care for Lady Fluttershy.” Pipsqueak said in a quiet tone, glancing around uneasily as he started to push the doors open. Just as he did so there was the polite cough of someone clearing their voice behind the group.

“Ya got a’ permit ta be takin’ stuff outta there?”

Rainbow Dash, along with everyone else, turned to find Captain Sweet Cider filling the hallway with her cherry red height and broad shoulders. She was covered in bruises and even had a bit of blood trickling in a dry line down a cracked lip, but otherwise looked healthy and large as life as she eyed the group staring at her with open shock. A grin split her face.

“What, ya’ll don’t think I can’t keep my reiatsu down so I can sneak up on folks when I want?”

While the others were still standing there stunned, Rainbow Dash exploded into motion. With a crackle of lightning that arched off the walls, she flew forward at full speed, electricity pooling her her right fist. She crossed the space to Sweet Cider in a blaze fast enough to put many a Flash Step to shame, her fist striking out in a cobalt thunderbolt.

Sweet Cider blocked the punch with her right hand snapping into position to intercept Rainbow Dash’s fist, electricity surging around both of them in wild spasms that burned lines through the walls. Still, Sweet Cider bore the brunt of the electrical discharge with little more than a grunt, and gripped Rainbow Dash’s fist tightly in her meaty palm.

“Now take it easy girl an’ have a seat! I got words fer you folk!”

Rainbow Dash found herself being spun around with ludicrous physical force, tossed bodily down the hallway like a bouncing, discarded action figure. She managed to right herself in mid-air after the third painful bounce, and was about to go bolting right back in at Sweet Cider when another voice, in a familiar twang, rang out.

“Rainbow, stop!”

Rainbow Dash halted, halfway to doing a flying drop kick at Sweet Cider, and instead ended up falling face first to the floor when she saw Applejack down an adjacent hallway. Applejack was leaning heavily against the wall, looking like she’d been run over by several busses by the state of her bruised flesh and the thick white gauze wrappings around her arms and hands. Her thick blonde locks were matted down with sweat and dust, and even though her eyes burned brightly there was unmistakable exhaustion in her shaking form.

“Girl what’re ya doin’ outta bed, dagnabbit!?” shouted Sweet Cider at the same time Rainbow Dash cried out.

“AJ, are you alright!?”

Applejack winced at both shouts, “Ya’ll don’t gotta yell. Ain’t my ears that’re busted up. An’ sorry ma, but I woke up feelin’ Dash’s spirit energy nearby an’ figured I oughta be there ta colm ‘er down.” Despite the pained look on her face and the clear taxing effort of staying standing, AJ smirked. “‘Fore ya both end up tearin’ down the whole hospital.”

Sweet Cider’s stance relaxed, her eyes softening. “Sorry there hayseed, I sensed yer friends an figured I’d git the rough introduction outta the way while you were still out. Didn’t know ya woke up. An’ ya still shouldn’t be walkin’ ‘round right now. I ain’t no healer an’ could only bind a few of them licks I gave ya.”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes were snapping back and forth between the two, her head looking left and right with a bewildered look filling her face. “Bwuhuh?”

Applejack shook with a laugh, then grimaced. “Ow, dang smarts ta laugh. Dash, fellas, she’s got her memory back.” The girl nearly collapsed, sagging against the wall, both from her drained state an the clear, heavy emotions straining her voice. “My ma knows who she is...”

Sweet Cider was beside Applejack in an instant, kneeling down to hold the girl as Applejack sagged down, her limited energy already drained. “Easy there hayseed, easy. Let’s git ya back ta bed, an’ then I need ta track down someone who’s got some healin’ skills.”

Pipsqueak took a hesitant step forward, bowing respectfully to Sweet Cider, “If I may, I am trained a little in the healing arts, and was going to treat Lady Fluttershy’s wounds. If you allow, we shall treat Lady Applejack as well, Captain.”

Sweet Cider turned an intensely searching gaze towards the young boy, which he met with a gulp and a straightening of his back. “Huh, you’re Platinum’s boy, ain’t ya?”

“I have that honor, yes.” he held his head a little higher, “My name is Pipsqueak, Captain.”

Rainbow Dash noticed that every time Pipsqueak said ‘Captain’, it made Sweet Cider twitch like a fly was buzzing around her ears. Feeling rather awkward about having just tried to electrocute Applejack’s mother, albeit on the perfectly understandable assumption that she was still a threat, Rainbow Dash scratched the back of her head and said, “So you got your memories back and stuff, so... that means you’re on our side, right?”

Applejack, despite her exhausted state, still managed a sharp look at her, “Rainbow Dash, what kind o’ wool headed question is that!? ‘Course she’s on our side now!”

Sweet Cider patted her daughter on the shoulder and helped Applejack stand back up, letting the younger woman lean on her as she looked to Rainbow Dash, then cast a careful glance at Clover and Nocturn. “Right, I’m gonna git this air cleared fast, ‘cause we got bigger problems ta deal with, not the least o’ which is what happened here. First off, I’m rememberin’ who I am, but I also remember all I’ve done as Captain o’ the Tenth Division. All them years as a’ Soul Reaper Captain, those’re still with me. Now I ain’t lettin’ nothin’ happen to you girls, an’ I’m clearin’ up this mess in Soul Society even if I got ta go blade ta blade with the Captain Commander himself. That said, the Tenth Division is my people. I’m responsible for ‘em, an’ I ain’t ‘bout ta turn on ‘em. We’re bustin’ out Celestia and Luna and finding out who’s behind all this” she gestured at the bloodied halls of the hospital. She then eyed Clover and Nocturn again.

“Either o’ you two object ta followin’ my orders on that?”

Clover shook her head, “No Captain, as long as your goal is the same as ours, I’ll consider myself under your command.”

Nocturn offered a wane smile, “Even if I did have reason to object, what would I do? Fight the Kenpachi? I’ve already lost one arm today, I’m not looking to become a double amputee.”

Sweet Cider looked between them, then nodded firmly to Pipsqueak, “Then git whatever supplies ya need an’ let’s see ta patchin’ folk up. Be quick, kid, we’re on somebody’s clock an’ I git the feelin’ we’re past half time an’ goin’ towards that somebody’s endgame.”

----------

Moon Dancer saw the ice covering the archive terminal she’d just been sitting at, the entire table and terminal encased in a solid, jagged spear of ice that extended out and covered a good portion of the floor. She recognized the Kido as one of the higher level destructive kind that could flash freeze almost anything it directly hit. Had Meadowbrook not tackled her, she’d be finished.

Meadowbrook himself was still on top of her, but he rolled aside quickly, scrambling to his feet while grasping her hand and hauling her up as well. He’d drawn his Zanpaktou in his other hand as he looked back at her. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, pulling her hand away from his, which he didn’t do anything to stop, and she drew her own Zanpaktou, a katana with a crescent shaped hilt and with a handle wrapped in deep purple cloth. “Did you see who attacked us?”

“No, and I can’t sense them either.” said Meadowbrook, his eyes scanning the area across the vast gap in the middle of the Daireishokairo’s cylindrical structure. “We need to run.”

Moon Dancer was about to ask him why they should, as there was two of them and just one attacker, when it occurred to her there might not be just one attacker, just the one who’s revealed themselves. On top of that she soon realized that Meadowbrook was right, even when she pushed out with her spiritual senses she couldn’t detect the slightest hint of reiatsu. No spiritual pressure at all. Which should have been impossible for someone who just pulled off a high-level Kido to hide their spirit pressure again so quickly. Even Captain Luna would have difficulty pulling off such a feat.

So they were up against an unknown number of enemies with the capacity to conceal their reiatsu. Suddenly running didn’t seem like such a bad idea, and she nodded to Meadowbrook. The two took off, rushing along the long, circular path that followed the inside wall of the archive. It was like one long, gradual spiral curve, occasionally marked by staircases that acted as shortcuts to get higher or lower, faster.

Moving swifter and swifter, until they were both flickering between staircases with the power of Flash Steps, Moon Dancer thought they might make it to the top without difficulty. Perhaps their mysterious attacker had bet everything on just that one surprise Kido, and had given up after-

She spotted the shadow of motion almost too late. A blindingly swift, dark figure, barring a flash of steel. Moon Dancer spun away from the blow, her sword reaching to parry. She was off balance with that parry, and while her Zanpaktou met cleanly with the steel of another Zanpaktou, the blow hurled her off her feet and smashed her into the wall. The blow jarred her, knocked the breath out of Moon Dancer’s lungs, and left her dazed as she awkwardly stumbled back. The shadowy figure followed up quickly, rushing her with a low swing of its blade. Moon Dancer cried out as her slow attempt to jump back wasn’t quick enough and a raw burst of pain lashed up her shoulder, leaving a shallow but profusely bleeding cut.

“Moon Dancer!” Meadowbrook had reached the next set of stairs up, but he swung around, ready to dash back to her aid.

The shadowed figure halted between the two of them, seeming to hesitate for a moment between two different targets, and giving Moon Dancer her first clear look at them. Their form was almost entirely concealed in a heavy black cloak and hood, but Moon Dancer remembered the feminine voice that had chanted the Kido, and could tell this figure wasn’t tall nor particularly broad. The Zanpaktou the woman held was wrapped in thick gray cloth, concealing the shape of its hilt and handle in an obvious attempt to keep the wielder’s identity secret.

Which means she can’t release to Shikai, otherwise she’d give away who she is. She can’t risk that if one of us gets away. Moon Dancer thought, coming to a swift decision on what she had to do.

“Meadowbrook, keep going.”

“What!? I’m not leaving you behind!” he said firmly, eyes narrowing.

“Somebody has to get out of here and warn the Captain Commander about what we’ve found!” Moon Dancer said in a sharp, almost desperate tone.

In response Meadowbrook simply shook his head, “Not happening. Either we get out together, or we take this traitor down together. Take your pick, Moon.”

Stupid, stubborn man! her mind growled, “Fine! Then all or nothing! Pulse, Haiiro Hansha!” (Grey Reflection)

Her quick, sharp command transformed her Zanpaktou in a grey, mist-like shimmer. The katana seemed to waver in shape, in a foggy blink becoming the shape of a broad chakram blade, with a purple wrapped handle on one edge that Moon Dancer grasped. As she braced herself into a fresh fighting stance the cloaked woman hadn’t moved, almost as if she wasn’t in any particular rush and was content to see what Moon Dancer and Meadowbrook did. Moon Dancer didn’t know whether to count that as lucky for her, or see it as a dire sign of how outmatched she and Meadowbrook were.

Seeing her release her Zanpaktou, Meadowbrook managed an encouraging smile and readied his own, placing his free hand on the back of his blade, which started to radiate a gleaming, teal color.

“That’s more like it, Moon. Drift, Kasso-ha.” (Gliding Leaf)

With spurts of teal energy like a sputtering fountain his own Zanpaktou transformed into the shape of a long hook-sword, with a sharp curved blade tip and the handle encased in an sharp crescent blade guard. The pommel ended in a shorter, spike-like blade, gleaming dangerously.

Moon Dancer couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw the hint of satisfied smile somewhere in the dark of that cloaked figure’s hood, gleaming white. Incensed by this, Moon Dancer decided she’d be the one to go on the offensive. Though her shoulder ached painfully, she raised her left hand, palm outward, and swiftly chanted.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

As she chanted, and the red ball of swirling flame ejected from her outstretched palm, her Zanpaktou also glowed with a similar red energy and discharged an identical ball of crimson Kido power. Her Haiiro Hansha’s unique power was that it could duplicate any Kido spell she chanted. It didn’t have to immediately discharge the Kido, either, she could store Kido inside her Zanpaktou to release later without even needing the chant, but for now she wanted to see how this mysterious traitor handled a double Shakaho.

Both simply and efficiently, as it turned out. The cloaked figure Flash Stepped right between the two converging balls of Kido energy, slicing through them with her Zanpaktou as she went, causing both spheres to careen off course and instead fly right for Meadowbrook.

Moon Dancer saw the explosion, but not what happened to Meadowbrook, because she was too busy trying to defend herself from her foe’s ludicrously swift strikes. Even with the reiatsu boost from releasing her Shikai helping her move faster and ignore the pain in her shoulder, Moon Dancer could barely hold off the frenzy of sword strikes. Whoever this was, they were skilled, perhaps as good as one of the Captains.

And Moon Dancer had never found swordsmanship her strong suit in the first place.

In short order she was knocked off balance again, put flat on her back and exposed, with the blade of her enemy poised over her throat. The new angle, looking up into the cloaked face, gave Moon Dancer a momentary glimpse of blue eyes in a feminine face. Then suddenly an arm, ghost-like, rose out of the floor beneath her and grabbed her around the waist. She felt a sudden, chilly tingle through her body, and then in a disorienting yanking motion she was pulled through the floor and down to the level right below where she’d just been.

Fear overtook her for a split second, until her calm, rational mind reminded her of just what the nature of Meadowbrook’s Shikai was. As she expected, it was Meadowbrook who’d grabbed her with his hand phasing through the floor and, once he was in contact with her he was able to extend his Kasso-ha’s power to her and let her phase right down through the floor. He stood now, one hand around her waist, grinning like a goofy idiot.

“You damn near blew me up with those Kido.” he said, winking, “Lucky you I’m so evasive.”

She elbowed him, “Jokes later, run now. Can your Zanpaktou get us through the wall?”

She was familiar with Kasso-ha’s basic power, but not what its full extent was, or what limitations it might have. The fact that it did have limitations was a foregone conclusion, as most Shikai’s did have certain limits on what they could achieve, even with versatile powers like the ability to phase through solid matter. Meadowbrook confirmed with with a solemn shake of his head.

“Too deep underground. I can only phase us for thirty seconds at a time. We’d end up trapped in stone if we tried to fly out of here now. We need to get higher first.”

“Then let’s move, before-” she began to say, then the entire floor above them exploded with a blast of lightning, presumably from another Kido the cloaked traitor had changed. Wood chips rained down on them as she and Meadowbrook dove forward away from the blast, both of them rolling to their feet with weapons ready.

The black cloaked figure stood amid the ruin of the shattered floor above, dust swirling around her. This time she gave the two Soul Reaper Lieutenants no time to think or act, flickering forward with an instant Flash Step that put her in front of both Meadowbrook and Moon Dancer, her sword flashing left and right with such speed it appeared to be in two places at once.

Moon Dancer wasn’t able to block fully, feeling the burning cut of steel on her forearm. Meadowbrook deflected, then phased, letting the blade pass through him in a buzz of teal light, like fireflies. The moment the blade was past him he became solid again and slashed hard with his hook sword, clearly trying to catch the cloaked figure’s hood to remove it.

The figure danced away from the blow, only losing a scrap of black cloth. On impulse Moon Dancer snatched the scrap of cloth, thinking it might lead to some clue to this traitor’s identity. She then turned around, grabbing Meadowbrook by the shoulder while shouting, “Up!”

Understanding immediately he didn’t even hesitate to jump upwards, phasing them both through the floor once again and taking them to the level they’d just occupied. Meadowbrook had to time his jumps carefully, as misjudging his phasing could get either them painfully stuck in solid matter, one of the risks inherent with his Zanpaktou’s power. However he’d been using this power for a long time and knew how to handle it with near perfect timing. Without needing Moon Dancer to tell him, Meadowbrook started leaping further and further up the levels of the Daireishokairo. He’d solidify just enough to get a foothold on the floor and jump up again, phasing through the floor, only to solidify them once more. She kept a firm grip on him the whole time, his hand once more around her waist. She knew contact was necessary for him to extend his power to affect her, but it still left her vaguely irritated at the contact. Moon Dancer wasn’t really the touchy feely type. She liked her personal bubble.

The threat of imminent death, however, was cause for an exception in this case, so she stayed close and tight to Meadowbrook, lest a mistake break their contact and leave her stranded halfway between floors in a very ignoble and likely messy end to her career as a Soul Reaper.

She kept an eye out for pursuit, knowing full well the cloaked traitor wasn’t going to just let them get away easily. However with the advantage Meadowbrook had in terms of distance gained by literally skipping through floors, she hoped they might make it out well ahead of their pursuer. It certainly seemed that they were nearly in the clear, when they finally phased through the final floor and made it to the very top of the Daireishokairo. It was a larger hexagonal chamber than the rest of the archive, with a great domed ceiling with a final array of book and scroll shelves arranged in several final encircling tiers. The ground floor itself was a wide, open space, with a grand hall leading to a pair of tall, open doors.

The area for checking out documents was a series of pedestals lining the entry hall in neat, ordered rows. Each pedestal carried a shining, gold cube shaped device with a slot for inserting any document, be it book or scroll, that one wished to check out of the archive. A plain palm press to the top of the cube imprinted one’s reiatsu to the database, caused the device to place the ward pass on the document, and it’d spit the item out the other end. Simple. Easy. And someone had manipulated one of those devices to get a book out of the archive without leaving a trace of who they were. Or rather, an altered trace.

And only she and Meadowbrook knew about the alteration, and what it might mean.

Landing solidly on the ground floor, Meadowbrook let go of her and both she and him shared a glance before both breaking out into a full sprint towards the doors. They were almost halfway there when Moon Dancer saw something that made her blood run to freezing streams. Darkness was crawling up around her and Meadowbrook in a square formation that was rapidly boxing them in, and Moon Dancer, being one who had focused much of her studies on Kido, recognized the pattern immediately.

Impossible! Without an incantation!?

Meadowbrook must have recognized what the Kido was as well, because he barreled into her, knocking her clear of the Kido’s enclosing wall just in time. However he was trapped within. Moon Dancer rolled aside, staggering to her feet while looking on in mute shock as the tall, rectangular tower of pitch black matter finished closing around Meadowbrook. It was then that Moon Dancer finally heard the familiar female voice of the cloaked traitor behind her, completing the Kido chant.

“Hado Number Ninety: Kurohitsugi.” (Black Coffin)

The cloaked figure was holding up a slim hand clad in a black glove, pointing upward, standing between Moon Dancer and the doors to the outside. How she had caught up so quickly, Moon Dancer couldn’t say. Was it possible this mysterious woman was just that fast? But what occupied her attention now was the sense of reiatsu, thick and heavy, leaking out of the figure’s cloak.

The cloak is what’s concealing her reiatsu! She can’t contain it while using a Kido of this level. But who is she!? Only a Captain could use a level-ninety Kido!

The thought drew her attention back to the Black Coffin, the giant slab of darkness. She knew the Kido in theory. She couldn't perform it herself, but she knew its effects. Inside the dark, enclosed coffin, space was warped and gravity distorted. It crushed whatever was inside with overwhelming gravitational force. Even Captain-class Soul Reapers rightly feared the Kido’s destructive power. Worse, Meadowbrook’s Zanpaktou couldn’t save him, as the Black Coffin was too powerful a Kido spell to be bypassed by a Shikai’s ability.

“Meadowbrook!” she shouted, knowing the cry was meaningless.

Sure enough, the Black Coffin became wreathed in dark violet light, several pointed shapes, like sharp crosses, appearing across its top surface. Then the edifice broke apart like pieces of black glass. Meadowbrook was there, standing, if only for a brief second before the damage done to him became evident in a burst of blood from his mouth and startled eyes.

“No!” Moon Dancer rushed to him as he fell, catching him and holding him as she sank to her knees. His Zanapktou clattered to the ground next to him, returning to its sealed state. That alone gave Moon Dancer pause. If Meadowbrook was dead, or dying, his Zanpaktou would be vanishing, not just returning to a sealed form.

Still, he looked terrible. The Black Coffin had crushed his limbs, left blood seeping from his ears, eyes, and mouth, and Moon Dancer couldn’t imagine what had happened to him internally. If he didn’t get medical attention immediately, he was going to die!

And she knew healing Kido, of course, but the traitor was right there in front of her. There was no way to heal Meadowbrook while the enemy was directly before her.

Knowing how hopeless the situation now was, Moon Dancer still gently set Meadowbrook down and stood, facing the cloaked figure. She looked at the traitor with anger seeping into her eyes like tongues of flame. Her voice was heavy, raw, and strained.

“Why are you doing this?”

Not really to any surprise of Moon Dancer’s, the figure didn’t answer, and instead began a slow, methodical walk towards her. Moon Dancer, knowing she was outmatched, but refusing to go down without a fight, summoned up what courage she could, her body becoming haloed by soft white light as her reiatsu flared up in preparation for another Kido chant. If she could just immobilize her opponent, maybe she could buy time for her to escape with Meadowbrook, and get to the Fourth Division in time to save him.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Two: Hyapporankan!” (Hundred Steps Fence)

In her left hand a six sided, pale violet pole of solid energy appeared. At the same time her Zanpaktou formed an identical pole along its edge. She pulled her arms back and then threw them forward, unleashing both poles at once. The twin Kido then erupted into a flying swarm of two hundred identical energy poles, all converging on the cloaked figure in a dense mass that, in such an enclosed space, should have been all but impossible to evade.

Moon Dancer, not even taking the split second to see if her Kido managed to strike her target, rushed to pick up Meadowbrook. Scooping him up with her free hand, shouldering his injured body as best she could despite her own protesting injuries, Moon Dancer then chanted another Kido. Placing her palm on the ground, a faded red light emanated into the floor.

“Bakudo Number Twenty One: Sekienton.” (Red Smoke Escape)

The red glow burst into a thick, scentless cloud of opaque rose fog that billowed out to fill the room. Without looking or hesitating Moon Dancer ran, using her memory of the room’s layout to guide her, given her vision was as obscured as the cloaked figure’s should be. She caught vague glints of pale light from the rods of her previous Kido, the scores and scores of binding rods having impacted all over the ground in a thick blanket. She didn’t see the cloaked figure pinned down anywhere by the rods, however, but she didn’t let the realization slow her down as she rushed at full speed towards where she knew the doors out were.

She burst out of the trailing red fog that crept out of the front doors of the Daireishokairo and onto a vastly wide bridge of arcing wood that cross over a glittering moat that surrounded the Daireishokairo’s circular white dome. Not taking even a second to look around, Moon Dancer bolted down the bridge, heading for a gate in the distant wall that enclosed the archive building. If she could just get through the gate and find help-

She felt a brush of air and caught a shifting motion to her right. She tried to evade, shifting direction with a blinking Flash Step, but carrying Meadowbrook slowed her down and left her more unbalanced than normal. When she saw the cloaked figure flit by her, blade thrusting out, she swung Haiiro Hansha to parry. The chakram blade skipped off the other Zanpaktou at a bad angle,

Moon Dancer felt an odd, cold numbness spread through her chest, and for a moment she wasn’t sure what had happened.

Then she looked down to see the Zanpaktou sticking out of her flesh, with deep red blood staining her black robes an even darker shade. The cloaked figure pulled her sword free, leaving Moon Dancer to sag down to her knees, Meadowbrook sliding from her shoulder, and her own Zanpaktou clattering to the bridge beside her. To Moon Dancer’s growing shock, she saw her Haiiro Hansha starting to vanish, bits of the blade flicking off into motes of grey light.

That’s not good...not good... she thought through a muddied haze, the numbness in her chest spreading to her mind as she fell face first to the ground. Her Zanapktou starting to vanish could really only mean one of two things. Either that wound had destroyed her ‘soul sleep’, the part of her spirit body where all her reiryuku rested, and hence the core of her spirit energy was now gone. Or the wound was fatal, and she was dying, and her Zanpaktou along with her.

She saw a shadow cross over her and was able to turn her head to the side to look up at the cloaked figure that loomed over her. Moon Dancer tried to move her hand, thinking to try one last Kido, but it was like her thoughts were sliding down a mud slick precipice into a deeper dark and her hands wouldn’t do what her brain told them to. She was pretty sure the spreading pool of red flowing around her was her own blood.

The last thing she saw before everything went dim was the cloaked figure holding out a hand towards her, surrounded by a intense emerald glow of light.

----------

The Fourth Division was mostly one large hospital consisting of a humble appearing central building with a sloped roof of gentle sea-green shingles. The front entrance had a simple swept up roof with the square symbol of the Fourth Division plainly painted over the doors, steps leading up to the doors from the courtyard surrounding the building, with a few trees spread around the area. There were several smaller side buildings back behind the main building, mostly for housing the Fourth Division’s healers and to act as secondary supply areas, and it was inside one of these store houses that everyone had gathered in.

Sweet Cider had moved the beds that Applejack and Fluttershy lay into the storehouse herself, along with carrying most of the medical equipment Pipsqueak needed, with Rainbow Dash’s help. Pipsqueak now worked tirelessly over the two injured girls, both of them having been given injections of medicine meant to enhance the effects of healing Kido. On top of that each bed had an apparatus built over them, a long wooden arm attached to a disc that hovered over the patients, designed to project focused concentrations of healing Kido energy to repair more intense wounds. Those were being used on Applejack’s hands, which had multiple broken fingers, and the deep wound on Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“I don’t know if either of you will be healthy enough to do more than walk, but I think I can repair enough damage to allow you leave under your own power.” Pipsqueak said in a gentle and somewhat embarrassed tone to a freshly awoken Fluttershy. Though still looking pale and shaken, Fluttershy offered the young boy a smile like a soft splinter of sunlight.

“You’ve done so much, Pipsqueak. Thank you. I actually feel much better.” she said, the faint strain in her eyes betraying the pain she was still feeling, even having taken some painkillers.

Applejack, not looking much better than Fluttershy, put on a brave face and encouraging grin. “Ya got a fair talented hand fer patchin’ folk up, Pip. Where’d you learn them skills anyhow?”

Pipsqueak’s mouth twitched in a nervous grin, battling between embarrassment and pride as he glanced at the ceiling. “I spent a lot of time here in the hospital when I was younger. Captain Zecora was very kind to me and when I got curious she taught me, and when she didn’t have the time Lieutenant Redheart helped me learn.”

Off to the side, sitting on an unused counter while swinging her legs idly, Rainbow Dash asked, “What were you doing here at the Fourth Division all the time?”

"Oh, ummm...” Pipsqueak touched his chest, licking his lips. “My condition. When I was smaller, mother would bring me here whenever I had a particularly bad coughing fit. Only the skills of Captain Zecora were enough to help me, back then. Now that I’m a bit older my body is a bit stronger, and the medicine mother brings from here is enough to keep the coughing under control. Most of the time.”

Fluttershy’s eyes shone with sympathy, “Oh my, that sounds terrible. If... if I may ask, what kind of condition is it?”

Pipsqueak got rather quiet, looking away from them all. “It's not important, really. I worry my mother enough about it, no need to worry you ladies about it. Ahem,” he held his head up, affecting a noble posture, “It wouldn’t do for a proper noble man to be a burden to others, especially such fine women as yourselves.”

Rainbow Dash snarked out an amused laugh. “Look at you, little smooth operator. Give it five or six years kid, and you might break some hearts like that.”

“The burden of being born a noble.” Pipsqueak acknowledged with a sagely nod.

Just then the door to the storeroom swung open and Sweet Cider strode in alongside Clover and Nocturn. Clover was looking at Nocturn with admonishing eyes, already mid-sentence when the doors opened. “-said you need to have that arm looked at again. Stop trying to be so tough.”

“But I’m so good at it.” Nocturn said with a smug look, despite the rather wane way sweat dripped down his forehead.

Clover rolled her eyes, crossing her arms firmly. “Change the bandages at least. You don’t want that getting infected.”

“Yes, yes, fine I’ll lick my wounds if it shall assuage your worries.” he replied with a heavy, resolved sigh.

Meanwhile Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pipsqueak all shot inquiring looks towards Sweet Cider and the other Soul Reapers, Applejack speaking up. “Anythin’?”

Sweet Cider frowned, like a red stone slab cracking. Her voice was heavy gravel, thick with concern. “I’m guessin’ there were maybe two dozen Soul Reapers here. An’ Captain Zecora was here too. We could sense traces o’ their spirit energy lingerin’ ‘round the place, but nothin’ ‘bout where they went or who hit ‘em. It’s like whoever attacked was bein’ all but invisible.”

Clover looked disbelievingly at the ground, shuddering slightly, “Captain Zecora’s Zanpaktou is supposed to be infallible in terms of detection. Nothing should be able to get the drop on her once she activates it.”

“Unless someone got to her first, neutralizing her before she knew the hospital was under attack.” pointed out Nocturn, “Then this individual could’ve taken the rest of the hospital at their leisure.”

“That’s one possibility.” said Sweet Cider gravely, eyes narrowin, “Here’s ‘nother one. What if Captain Zecora herself was doin’ the attackin’?”

“Are you being serious, Captain Sweet Cider?” asked Clover with wide eyes, “Do you really believe Captain Zecora could be a traitor?”

“I ain’t sure what I’m gonna be belvin’ no more, but either we got ourselves one heck o’ a invisible assassin runnin’ ‘round, Captain Zecora’s gone rogue, or worse... both o’ those things’re true an’ we’re in even more trouble than we thought.” Sweet Cider said, looking more sour with every word. Then she raised her head to look at everyone in the room with hard eyes. “Either way, ya’ll can’t stay here.”

Pipsqueak looked at Applejack and Fluttershy in alarm, gulping. “I’m not sure they should leave just yet. Maybe a little more time to make sure they’ll be okay to walk-”

“Lord Pipsqueak, I’m all kinds o’ appreciative fer helpin’ healin’ these girls, includin’ my own daughter, but fact o’ the matter is that this hospital ain’t safe. We’ve moved out here so when more Soul Reapers show, they won’t find us right off, an’ it’ll give ya’ll a’ window ta sneak out the back, but if ya don’t git goin’ soon, as in now soon, then we’re gonna be neck deep in ‘nother fight. An’ more o’ us fightin’ Soul Reapers is just what the real bad guys’re wantin’ I reckon.”

Sweet Cider’s words carried a heavy, gold ring of truth to them, and there was little the others could do to gainsay her on the fact. Rainbow Dash hopped off the counter, dusting her hands off.

“So if we’re going, then where are we going? Yo Nocturn, you said something about more secret passages?”

At her inquiry, Nocturn bobbed a swift nod, “Second Division has all sorts of secret ways to get around Seireitei. It’s why so many of us were able to scatter and hide when the split happened.” He rubbed his chin, dark eyes thoughtful, “If I recall correctly, which I always do, the nearest passage is a few streets to the north, hidden in one of the alleys between watchtowers. It will take us to the east stairs leading into headquarters.”

Sweet Cider’s eyebrow rose an inch, “Them stairs are mighty exposed. Ya got another sneaky bolt hole ta avoid gettin’ spotted? ‘Cause I guarantee ya that Hurricane’s got troops guardin’ them stairs.”

“There shall be another passage built into the plateau face.” said Nocturn, “We just need to find a way to sneak past any guards to reach it.”

“Or someone creates a distraction.” Rainbow Dash said, to which Applejack frowned at her.

“Ya ain’t thinkin’ what I think yer thinkin’, are ya Dash?”

“Hey, you played decoy for us with your mom.” Rainbow Dash shot back, a pained undercurrent in her tone that she wasn’t able to hide entirely, “Now it’s my turn.”

Applejack looked ready to share some sharp words, but Clover stepped between the two, “Look, we don’t know what may need to be done until we get there, so let’s forestall any arguments until we actually see what we’re dealing with. Sound reasonable?”

Applejack’s heated words turned into a slow sigh as she nodded, “Fair ‘nough.”

For Rainbow Dash’s part she looked away, saying in a quieter voice, “Yeah, sure.”

Suddenly Sweet Cider stiffened, her eyes darting towards the south wall of the storehouse, and her voice came out in a hard rumble. “Ain’t no more time fer talkin’. Ya’ll gotta go now. I’m sensin’ Soul Reapers comin’ this way.”

“How many?” Rainbow Dash asked, while at the same moment Applejack said, “What’dya mean ‘ya’ll’?”

Sweet Cider was already going to the storehouse door, opening it and pausing to look back at them, “Enough comin’ that I ain’t gonna risk any o’ you gettin’ caught, so yer followin’ Nocturn ta that secret passage, now. I’ll run interference an’ make sure ya’ll ain’t followed.”

“Whoa, wait, maybe we should help you out-” Rainbow Dash began to say but Sweet Cider cut her off with a sharp look.

“I ain’t planin’ ta fight, ya fool girl. Far as them folk are concerned I’m still a’ Captain. I do got some smarts in me an’ can do a little fibbin’ when needs be. I’ll divert ‘em from lookin’ fer ya’ll an’ at the same time see if I can’t git them workin’ on findin’ out who attacked the hospital. Also gotta git in touch wit my Division anyhows. Silverstar’s probably goin’ grey worryin’ ‘bout where I’m at.”

“Silverstar?” Applejack asked, almost exactly mimicking her mother’s earlier eyebrow raise. It seemed the Apple family had a trademark, in that department.

“My Lieutenant. He’s a decent sort. Might understand what’s goin’ on.” Sweet Cider’s brow grew deep furrows, “Dependin’ on how much he knew ‘bout my sealed memories, otherwise I might hafta pound his face in. However that turns out, I’ll be doin’ all I can ta git the other Captains focused on findin’ our real enemies an’ not you girls.”

Applejack took that with an uneasy shadow crossing her face as she adjusted the stetson on her head, seeming to touch it almost by reflex. “I git it, it’s just... I just got ya back, ma. I... didn’t think I’d be partin’ ways again so quick.” Her voice hitched a bit at the end, and it was clear the girl was fighting back a host of emotions trying to bubble their way out.

Sweet Cider went from the door, to Applejack’s bedside in the blink of an eye, and her big, bright red hands pulled her daughter into a tight, warm hug. Sweet Cider’s eyes held Applejack’s in a strong but softly gentle gaze, her voice rough and intense, filled with its own heady feelings.

“Ya listen ta me, Applejack. Listen’ darn close. Ya ain’t losin’ me again. Whichever way this all shakes out, I ain’t gonna let nothin’ stay standin’ ‘tween me an’ family no more. We’re partin’ ways fer a bit, an’ that’s it. But we’re seein’ each other again, hayseed, ya hear that?” A hand went up to Applejack’s head, patting it hard and lovingly. “I’m proud o’ ya Applejack. And I love ya. Just remember that, an’ the rest’ll work out itself, ya hear me?”

Applejack couldn’t really talk past the tears falling down her cheek, only managing a emphatic nod to her mother’s words. Everyone else was dead quiet, not daring to interrupt the moment. When the moment passed, Sweet Cider took a deep breath and turned to the others. “An’ ya’ll be careful and don’t take no foolish risks.” She eyed Rainbow Dash, “That includes you little missy. Ya seem like a right fine friend ta my Applejack, an’ I’d hate ta hafta knock sense inta yer head after hearin’ ya did somethin’ reckless.”

Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and made a pinched faced, sour expression. “Yes, Miss Apple.”

Sweet Cider guffawed, shaking her head. “Yer a darn cheeky one, ain’t ya?” She then looked south again, her eyes focusing on things far off and unsee. “They’re almost here. Time fer all o’ us ta do our parts.”

Giving Applejack a final look, Sweet Cider quickly headed out the door, vanishing with a swift Flash Step almost the moment she got out the door. In short order Applejack and Fluttershy were helped to their feet with Clover and Rainbow Dash both offering shoulders to lean on to help the girls walk. With Nocturn leading the way, and Pipsqueak bringing up the rear, the group quietly started making their way out towards the back of the Fourth Division’s hospital compound.

And none of them took note of the hidden, cloaked figure, keeping the shadows, following them.

----------

"Alriiiight! Here it is! I suppose I should say 'ta-da' or something, but you don't look that impressed." said Ditzy Doo, looking Sunset up and down with a thickly amused smile. She and Sunset had finished recuperating in the hot spring and after getting nice and dry, not to mention clothed once more, Sunset had been told to wait while Ditzy had gone off to get what they needed for her Bankai training.

Ditzy hadn't been gone too long before returning, Flash Stepping atop a rock outcropping while holding a very strange looking object at her side. To Sunset it looked like a very angular and odd proportioned mannequin. It was about as tall as Ditzy, with made from some kind of pale, bone colored ceramic material. It had a oblong head and strange, long pointed arms and legs. A pair of unusual, dark tubes ran from a point on its back, around its left shoulder and hooked once more into a hole in its front. Sunset just blinked at it, then shot Ditzy a questioning gaze.

"Its not that I'm not impressed. I mean this thing is supposed to help me get this incredible power in a ridiculously short time span, so that does impress me... but why does it look like a freaky mannequin? I don't know, I just thought when you said that you and Discord had equipment down here to help me get Bankai I was expecting something... bigger and flashier?"

"Heh, sorry, we're all out of Hyperbolic Time Chambers." Ditzy patted the mannequin fondly, "Bankai training isn't really about physical limits. Like I told you, the only way to do it fast is to make your Zanapktou spirit manifest and force them to submit to you. That's what this Tenshintai, or Divine Transfer Body, is for. It acts as a vessel for forcing a Zanpaktou spirit to physically appear. Just stab Hokori right into this baby, and she'll pop out."

Sunset put her hand on Hokori's hilt, looking between the blade and the mannequin. "And then what? We fight?"

"That's the idea." Ditzy said, and her voice turned serious, gaining a tough and somber edge to it. "Just don't forget, this isn't play sparring. Hokori will be seriously trying to kill you, and I won't be interfering. Interrupting the training will run the risk of crippling your relationship with Hokori. If I stepped in to save you, you might lose Hokori altogether. It'll be do or die, the second you begin-"

Sunset rammed Hokori into the center of the Tenshintai doll before Ditzy even finished speaking. Sunset fixed Ditzy Doo with a burning, determined gaze, her voice steady.

"There's no turning back for me." Sunset said plainly, "If there'd been such a point, I wouldn't have taken it anyway. This is the path to protecting everything I care for."

Sunset took several steps back as Hokori's blade started to glow with bright flames, surrounding the mannequin. Sunset cracked her knuckles, taking a deep breath. "I was born to tackle 'do or die'."

Episode 47: Blitz Chess

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Episode 47: Blitz Chess

The scent that lingered within the heart of the Twelfth Division’s laboratories was heavy with a stale, acrid quality that made Smart Cookie’s nose burn ever so slightly. The dim surroundings she found herself in were only lit by the ghostly, flickering glow of several terminal screens situated among the desks littering the lab. Two or three Twelfth Division researchers were bent over their monitors, clacking away at reams of data from any number of experiments, but they barely gave Smart Cookie a glance as she strode along the lab’s central walkway towards a raised portion at the back of the room, where the largest terminal of all took up a good portion of the wall.

From the hushed tone and general quiet of the room one might think there wasn’t a state of emergency currently overrunning the Seireitei. However Smart Cookie could feel the unspoken buzz of tension in the air. The usually mild researchers of the Twelfth Division might have been focusing on their work, but they knew the danger of the situation.

Seated in front of the large terminal at the back of the room was Captain Starswirl, his white Captain’s overcoat hanging off the back of his chair, almost like an afterthought, as his eyes focused on the screen in front of him. Smart Cookie was struck by the way the man’s sharp yellow eyes concentrated with burning intensity despite the wane, drawn look on the rest of his aged features. Dark circles under his eyes indicated that Starswirl hadn’t slept lately.

Smart Cookie approached, bowed respectfully, cleared her throat, and said, “Captain Starswirl, I’ve been sent by Captain Commander Scorpan to get an update on your investigation into the charges against Captains Celestia and Luna.”

Captain Starswirl didn’t respond immediately, muttering something unintelligible under his breath as he pressed a few keys on his terminal. Smart Cookie looked at the screen, noticing that there were multiple windows on display showing different data points. Reiatsu signatures, comparing them to other reiatsu signatures. Timetables of movements of various members of the Gotei 13. Maps of the Seireitei, Rukongai, and much of the surrounding territory of the Spirit Realm. There was also a list of profiles on various known Arrancar, including several that Smart Cookie recognized as Espada.

“Need more data...” Starswirl finally said, just loud enough for Smart Cookie to hear. He then turned his shining eyes towards her, face grim. “Countless pieces of information, yet all of it circumstantial. Suspicions without concrete proof is not evidence. Central 46 are a bunch of slack jawed, brain dead morons.”

Smart Cookie wince and coughed politely, “Sir, I’m not in a position to comment on the competence of the Central 46... or the lack thereof. Have you discovered anything that may lead to proving Captain Celestia and Luna’s innocence?”

A dusty sigh escaped Starswirl as he gestured at the screen with the buggered irritation of a man swatting at a swarm of annoying flies. “Something solid enough to clear the charges, no. All I have are half formed theories and suspicions based on a few seemingly disconnected pieces of information. The best I can give you is a loose overview and my best guesses, none of which will convince Central 46.”

“Still, I would appreciate any insight you have to give, Captain.” Smart Cookie said with another formal bow. Starswirl settled back into his chair, stroking his beard for a few moments before he began to speak in a swift but steady rhythm.

“Most of what I've been doing has been creating a list of potential individuals who may be responsible for the current crisis. My requirements for this list was that the individual needed to be in a sufficient position of authority to know Soul Society’s inner workings, the general disposition and deployment methods of our forces, and how we’d respond in a crisis situation. All of that would be needed to play a game of blitz chess like this.”

“Blitz chess?” Smart Cookie asked with a slight tilt of her head.

“Think chess, but on a swift time limit. You don’t have all the time in the world to consider your moves. Promotes faster thinking. However you really do need to know the game inside and out to play well, have a very clear notion of what each piece on the board can do and how it can move. Whoever set this game up must know the Gotei 13 with a similar familiarity to make us dance on the board. So logically that means either a Captain or a Lieutenant, but I’m betting on a Captain.”

“Why is that?”

“Though harder to hide their true colors, a Captain has all the knowledge and authority to set this up. There are only a few exceptions among the Lieutenants.” He glanced at her, “You, for example.”

“M-me!?” Smart Cookie gasped, aghast at the suggestion, but Starswirl waved his hand dismissively.

“Only an example. Your position at the Captain Commander’s side gives you knowledge and authority a step higher than a normal Lieutenant. Lieutenant Redheart is another example.”

“But she’s-”

“Girl, if you keep interrupting me we’re never going to get anywhere.” Starswirl said curtly, and Smart Cookie closed her mouth. After a second Starswirl nodded and continued.

“As the Lieutenant of the Fourth Division, Redheart would have access to medical records that would grant her more familiarity with all Soul Reapers in Seireitei. She’d also have access to more areas of Seireitei due to the Fourth Division’s many emergency medical tunnels to help the healers get around quickly. Again, I’m not accusing, merely pointing out there are Lieutenants who might have the means to manipulate us in the way we have. There is also at least one rare exception who isn’t part of the Gotei 13 anymore...” Starswirl’s eyes narrowed, “And honestly this setup has her fingerprints on it, at least in regards to how convoluted this plot is.”

“Who?”

“You do remember Discord’s protege from a ways back? Starlight Glimmer?”

Smart Cookie blinked. She did recall the unusual circumstance of their first ‘Substitute Soul Reaper’. “I thought she vanished years ago.”

“After causing a true mess here in the Twelfth Division. Or rather, in Hitsuyo Aku.” Starswirl said with a bitter lick of his lips. “You are aware of Hitsuyo Aku, yes?”

“Only the barest details. Given its highly classified nature even the Captain Commander kept access to information on it largely restricted.” Smart Cookie said, then she grimaced. “I never liked the idea behind the program. What’s the point of defeating our enemies if we end up employing methods that make us little better than Hollows?”

“A sentiment you are not alone in sharing.” Starswirl’s smile turned brittle, “That said, I still support the existence of the research.”

At Smart Cookies questioning look Starswirl chuckled dryly, “Is it that surprising? We’ve been making precious little progress in our war with the Quincy and Hollows. I’m not inclined to discontinue an entire branch of research, even after the Xcution disaster. We’ve only moved on to lower key projects, with more oversight from Central 46 itself.”

“Are you allowed to discuss what projects you’re currently working on?” Smart Cookie asked with genuine, if uneasy, curiosity.

“Probably not, but maybe sometime I’ll slip you a few details when the Central 46 isn’t looking.” Starswirl said with a wink. “Anyway, my point is that Starlight Glimmer, who was part of Hitsuyo Aku’s research back then, knows a lot more about the Gotei 13 than any normal Soul Reaper. She has the means and motivation to make this kind of move against us. Not without help, but this kind of scheme smells like hers.”

“I can accept that, but that still doesn’t tell us who is helping her.” Smart Cookie pointed out.

“My list on that count is a short one. Platinum, Zecora, Blueblood, Amore, and myself.”

“Yourself?” Smart Cookie looked at him incredulously.

“I can’t discount myself from this list for several reasons.” Starswirl held up his fingers, “One, it’d be simply poor investigative work to omit myself as a suspect. Two, I have access to more information than nearly anyone in Soul Society besides Scorpan himself, giving me ample means to manipulate everyone as I please. Three, given I’m the only one who could properly analyze the workings of Captain Zecora’s Zanpaktou to determine if it was tampered with, if she’s not the traitor then logically I’d be the next best candidate.”

He gave her an exhausted grin, winking, “So don’t trust me. Just in case.”

Smart Cookie gave him a level stare, “I’ll keep that in mind, Captain. So what is your reasoning for the others on that list?”

“Platinum was involved in capturing Celestia and Luna to begin with. We could look at that as mere coincidence, but given how the situation is panning out it's hard to believe anything is a simple coincidence.” Starswirl eyed the terminal screen, where Platinum’s profile was on display, and let out a soft grumble. “She’s always been a prickly woman. Loyal by all obvious accounts, but far more prone to acting on her emotions than she would ever admit. She’s loyal to Soul Society, but not necessarily to all of its institutions or members. In her youth, did you know she was a very open critic of the Central 46?”

“I did not.” Smart Cookie admitted, “She and I were part of the same graduating class, but while she was a high noble, I was a common girl from the Rukongai. We didn’t exactly mingle in the same circles.”

“Yes, I was an instructor back then. I remember you both. Platinum was far more hotheaded in those days. She was very vocally against the Central 46’s governing system. Claimed it was too bloated and bureaucratic, which it is, but she favored a simpler system that would give the Captain Commander more absolute authority...” Starswirl shook his head, “And she never understood why that would be a terrible idea that Scorpan would never support.”

“I can’t disagree with you there.” Smart Cookie said, “I trust Captain Commander Scorpan implicitly, but he’d be the first to admit that him possessing full authority over the Seireitei, without the balance of the Central 46, would doom Soul Society to rebellion and chaos.”

“Indeed. In any case, Platinum has, ahem, ‘cooled off’ significantly over the years, at least on a surface level. But I can’t forget that she’s prone to deciding things based on her emotions, and is stubborn about her grudges. There’s two levers that might motivate her to being a traitor, besides a dislike of the Central 46. One is her son.”

“Lord Pipsqueak? Do you think someone could kidnap him to use as a hostage?”

“More likely his terminal illness would be the leverage.” Starswirl said, and before Smart Cookie could respond, he held up a hand. “It's not common knowledge. Most know the boy is frail and has ill health, but only a few, including myself, know that the boy’s illness is a rare spiritual defect that will, within the next five or six years, waste away his spirit body. He’ll eventually dissolve into the background reishi of the Spirit Realm.”

“It... can’t be cured?”

Starswirl deflated slightly, shaking his head. “Zecora and myself have devoted no shortage of resources to seek a way to stop the degradation of the boy’s spirit body, but nothing we’ve tried thus far has worked. However...” his eyes narrowed, “That isn’t to say that Starlight Glimmer might not have found a way.”

“And she’d used that against Platinum to garner her support. But... to betray all of Soul Society?”

“Platinum loves her boy." Starswirl said with a shrug , "If she thinks there’s a way to save him, I doubt there’s much she wouldn’t do to see it done. Then there’s the other factor, that of her husband’s death and Celestia’s involvement in it.”

A frown lined Smart Cookie’s features, “I know the reports on that operation. Was his death not listed as a casualty against the Quincy?"

“That is what the report says, yes.” Starswirl said with a grave look shadowing his face, "There were... complications, involving Celestia and her Zanpaktou. You're aware she has sworn off using even its Shikai form as long as there are innocents or allies nearby?"

"Yes, I confess I never understood why." said Smart Cookie, chewing her lower lip, "Are you saying the death of Platinum's husband is related to that?"

"Its not my place to spout off the details," grumbled Starswirl, "But let's just say that things went poorly during a particular battle and number of people died, including Lieutenant Flash Magnus. Celestia blamed herself. Platinum certainly did too. A shame, given that prior to that Platinum held Celestia in such high regard."

After a long, heavy silence Smart Cookie said in a subdued, contemplative tone, “I can see why Platinum is on your list. And you as well. Knowing the details, you’d have every means to manipulate her to help set up Celestia and Luna.”

“Exactly. Now, as for Blueblood, he’s been Platinum’s confidant for a long time. He’d know all of this as well. His motivation is too shaky for me to consider him a likely candidate as a traitor, but I can’t discount him either. He was awfully quick to jump on the vote against Celestia and Luna.”

“Which could just mean he was following Platinum’s lead, and not necessarily plotting treason.” Smart Cookie said, then eyed the list again. “Now what about Captain Amore? I have difficulty seeing her as a possible traitor.”

“Nor I.” admitted Starswirl, “But the fact remains that the Fifth Division are the Gotei 13’s primary administration branch, and they handle all of our extensive paperwork and record keeping. Amore has more than enough information at her fingertips to know exactly where and how to manipulate us, if she wanted to. Granted she’s never demonstrated anything other than a borderline pathological desire for maintaining the peace, but the fact remains she has the means to effectively betray us, if not an obvious motive.”

After a slow nod Smart Cookie said, “Then that leaves Captain Zecora.”

A wave of frustration came over Starswirl, his body tensing as he slapped a hand on the terminal table. “She’s the most vexing part of this! By nearly every piece of circumstantial evidence that’s cropping up, she’s by far the most likely suspect, but she has no motivation to betray Soul Society. I’ve known that woman for centuries and she'd never willingly turn on us. However...” he sighed, “She’s literally the only one with the singular Zanpaktou power that was necessary for all of this to work. Without her testimony, nothing could have been pinned on Celestia or Luna. She has to be involved somehow, but I refuse to believe its as a willing party. She’s been manipulated somehow.”

“Leverage, like with Captain Platinum?”

“I have a hard time believing that. Zecora has a few skeletons in her closet, like anyone who gets as old as we are tends to accumulate, but nothing strong enough to use as lever of control on her.” He paused, and reluctantly added, "At least nothing I know about. I can't discount that even Zecora might have a secrets I'm not privy to."

“Hmm, what about some kind of mind control? There are such powers like that, among Zanpaktou and otherwise.” Smart Cookie mused.

“It seems the most obvious answer, doesn’t it? But its also hard to swallow. Zecora has a keen and powerful will. There’s really only a limited number of people who’d have the power needed to do anything to her mind.”

“Who would those people be?”

Starswirl glanced at Smart Cookie sourly. “Me, for one. Again, the evidence keeps stacking up against me. Hitsuyo Aku had more than one project for developing mind control to work on even those of immense mental will. All failures, but given Starlight Glimmer stole a fair amount of research when she went rogue, she could have finished any of them. Or, if I’m a traitor, I could have such devices myself to use. Now...”

He punched some keys and brought up two different profiles. One Smart Cookie recognized. The dark skin, wavy turquoise hair, the arrogant emerald eyes, and unmistakable fragments of Hollow mask in the shape of a crown across the woman’s brow made who was obvious.

“The Second Espada, Chrysalis.” she breathed.

“Yes. Our data on her abilities are extremely limited, given her penchant for avoiding direct battles. However we do know that she has some power that can affect the minds of her opponents. We don’t know to what extent that power reaches, but given her rank as the second most powerful Hollow there is... well I’m not inclined to underestimate her.”

“But she couldn’t infiltrate Soul Society. The wards around Seireitei would detect a Hollow’s reiatsu instantly! You even have early warning systems installed across the Rukongai to detect Hollows in case of invasion or attempts at infiltration.”

Starswirl shrugged, “True on all counts, yet as I said, we don’t know the true extent of her powers. Hollows also have a nasty habit of evolving new powers over time. She conceivably could have a means to infiltrate us. Especially if she’s had help from Starlight Glimmer. Remember, Starlight stole various things from our labs when she went rogue, and some of our research was also sunk into various attempts at stealth technology that'd allow exactly this kind of infiltration.”

“I’m... starting to understand your frustration, Captain.” Smart Cookie admitted.This earned a tired smile from the elderly Soul Reaper. "There's entirely too many variables here and not nearly as many ways to narrow them down."

“Indeed. Too many possibilities, not enough evidence.”

Smart Cookie glanced at the other profile. It showed a rather innocuous and plain looking Soul Reaper girl with mint colored skin and darker green hair, and a pair of plain blue eyes.

“And that is?”

“Oh, just Captain Medley, of the Zero Division.”

Smart Cookie nearly fell over. After recovering her wits she stammered. “The Zero Division!?”

“Yes. The Royal Guard. She’s just on this list for completeness. I doubt any of the Royal Guard would betray us for any reason, but Captain Medley does possess a Zanpaktou with remarkably powerful abilities in the arena of mind manipulation. She could have easily orchestrated a scheme like this in her sleep, if she had reason. Which she doesn’t. But I’m not leaving anything out of my list if I can think of it.”

Smart Cookie rubbed her forehead, feeling the beginning pressures of an oncoming headache. “So where does this leave our investigation.”

“Up the proverbial river with no paddle and a waterfall rapidly approaching.” Starswirl said bluntly. “I’ve spent a great deal of time going over the recent movements and reported actions of my suspect list over the past month or so, and out of all of it I’ve only found one thing that bothers me.”

“And that would be?”

Starswirl leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees, “I’m a very old man, even by Soul Reaper standards. My own health isn’t always the best. Captain Zecora cares deeply for her comrades and makes a habit of performing house calls in person. I know for a fact that she’s visited nearly every Captain at least once for regular checkups. And myself more than once, due to my at times stressed constitution.”

He stared at the ground, a profound look of worry seeming to age him even further as Smart Cookie watched. “Zecora is also extremely punctual. I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times she’s been late for any appointment. One of those instances was about a month ago.”

With a gesture he pressed another key and brought up a map of an area far outside of Soul Society’s normal borders. “Hitsuyo Aku’s research facility is here, over twenty five miles away from the edge of the Rukongai. It was placed at that distance to prevent any accidents in weapons research from having damaging effects on Soul Society. I’d been spending a number of long nights out there, working on various projects. Stress hit me hard one night and I nearly fainted. Zecora came out to check up on me. She was about twenty minutes later than she should have been.”

“What reason did she give for that?” Smart Cookie asked.

“She said that she’d had some last moment paperwork to finish at headquarters that couldn’t wait. I didn’t think anything of it at the time. Punctual or not, Zecora is also diligent in her duties and I could see her taking a little extra time to finish something before coming to see me. However, now... I’m not so sure.”

Looking at the map, Smart Cookie concluded what she suspected Starswirl had. “Someone could have intercepted her between here and the Hitsuyo Aku research facility.”

“Twenty minutes. Enough time to do something nefarious? Plant the seeds of betrayal in her mind, without her knowing it?”

“You’ve examined Zecora along with her Zanpaktou, so surely you’d have found something if that was the case, right?”

“I’d like to think so, but I have no way to be sure. Hence I keep spinning my damned wheels here while Seireitei explodes around us.” Starswirl growled with evident distaste at his own ineffectiveness as he slumped in his seat. “So there you have it, the state of my ‘investigation’. Was it helpful?”

“I suppose I’ll find out.” Smart Cookie said, “Celestia and Luna’s execution date has been moved up, and Captain Commander Scorpan has gone to the Central 46 to argue against the order. They were to be executed tomorrow, but the Captain Commander can delay that for two days.”

Starswirl perked up, eyes regaining that burning intensity. “That is extremely unusual. Why would Central 46 give such an order?”

“At a guess, they’re afraid of the Ryoka invasion succeeding in freeing the prisoners, and making the unrest in Seireitei even worse.” Smart Cookie said.

“That would make sense, but... something about that doesn’t feel right.” Starswirl’s eyes narrowed to yellow lines, his hand stroking his beard faster as he muttered under his breath. “Perhaps we should join Captain Commander Scorpan in Central 46.”

Smart Cookie raised an eyebrow at him, “Why?”

“I have a terrible hunch, is all. If this is a game of chess, then someone may have just put our ‘king’ in check.”

----------

Hokori’s flames bleed forth in a thrashing blossom of scarlet and orange, consuming the mannequin the blade had been thrust through. The heat of the flames increased, almost blistering and forcing Sunset to take several steps back as the fire flowed into a bright spectrum of flashing blue and darker cobalt colors. Ditzy Doo jumped back, landing light footed upon the top of one of the larger rock faces nearby, her arms crossing under her chest as she watched events unfold.

The flames finally absorbed the mannequin entirely, and Hokori’s sealed katana form vanished within the thrashing swirls of fire. Then with a burst of azure flame motes, both blade and mannequin disappeared, and in their place was the kneeling form of Hokori’s true spirit. Sunset watched as the crimson skinned demoness slowly rose from her kneeling position and stretched her arms above her head while letting out a wide yawn, her wings spreading out to either side of her.

“Aaaaah, feels good to get out of the old inner world every now and then. Let’s see, now where are we? Rock strewn training ground? How original.” Hokori’s voice was coated with sarcasm, but Sunset could tell that it was hiding more than that as her Zanapktou’s spirit turned darkly burning eyes towards her. “Sunset, you’re looking particularly... beaten. Is that why you’ve pulled me out here, to beg for more power?”

“Cut the crap Hokori.” Sunset said bluntly, cracking her knuckles. “Neither of us have time to screw around with posturing. I’ve only got a few days to get us to Bankai level, and we both know we’re not going to do that by trading insults.”

“No, no we’re not.” Hokori spat, rolling her wrists while slowly starting to stalk to Sunset’s left. Streams of fire flowed down Hokori’s arms, shaping themselves into the burning shape of her Shikai form’s broadsword and shield. “But I have to wonder if you really have what it takes to do that. You may have found your Pride again, but so far I’m not impressed with what you’ve done with me.”

Hokori gave no warning in her posture or motion, and all Sunset had to alert her to the danger was a simple gut instinct that she had to move. Even without Hokori in hand, she still had her own spirit energy and skills to rely on, and was able to throw herself backwards with a swift Flash Step, avoiding the edge of the broadsword that was inches from her throat as Hokori had launched into a straight thrust right at Sunset.

Hokori pursued, just as fast as Sunset was, and before Sunset could fully get her feet under her she found Hokori’s shield smashing towards her at full speed. Sunset crossed her arms in front of her and rolled with the blow, taking the painful impact as the shield slammed her across the ground, stealing the breath from her. She turned the momentum of the blow into a roll, managing to flip back to her feet just in time to leap out of the way of a scorching blast of flames that Hokori unleashed from her broadsword with a heavy swing.

“I mean look at you. What are you without me?” Hokori chided, slowly walking in pursuit of Sunset. Hokori adjusted her grip on her blade, letting go of the hilt and instead grasping the red cloth that extended from it. She then started to twirl the sword by the cloth, fast enough to buzz the air. “And even with me you still have the gall to lose to a punk like Hurricane and that shitty windbag, Tetsukaze!? C’mon, that was embarrassing!”

Face pinched in concentration, and her heart now starting to race, Sunset stood her ground against the advancing Hokori. Just as Clover had taught her she stilled her thoughts and calmly started to pull upon her inner reiryoku, her spirit energy pouring up from her core to pool into her hands.

“He’s a Captain for crying out loud, Hokori! Me and the girls knew going in that he was going to be a tough opponent. That’s why I’m doing this, so I can take guys like him and Platinum on equal ground!”

Her palms lit up with inner scarlet light, and Sunset quickly chanted, skipping the full incantation. She hadn’t tried this before, but she didn’t have time to do the full chant.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

Without the full incantation the energy inside her palm undulated and struggled against her control like an unruly dog on a leash. Sunset sharpened her focus as her arms shook, the crimson ball of spirit energy forming into a full orb, flickering with disruptive tremors as the unstable Kido spell fired off. The red sphere curved in on Hokori, who almost contemptuously swung her shield to block the spell. The sphere exploded on the shield, throwing up a cloud of rock dust. The blow charged Hokori’s blade, the broadsword igniting with fire as she continued to spin it upon its cloth, creating a blazing circle of fire in the air.

Hokori chuckled darkly, “Excuses, excuses. Is this your true nature, Sunset? Act like a big shot and then when things get tough you start blaming your failures on how strong your opposition was instead of how weak you are!? That’s so pathetic it makes me want to puke.”

Stepping through the cloud of dust kicked up by Sunset’s spell, Hokori looked about with her eyes boiling like an inferno, and gained an irritated scowl as she saw no sign of her quarry. That is, until Sunset burst out of the dust cloud right behind her. Hokori spun fast, swinging her shield, but Sunset ducked beneath the blow and then came rushing up with her fist leading the way in an uppercut that caught Hokori right under the chin.

Hokori was rocked back, but regained her senses quickly, just in time to take the flames around her spinning sword and launch them towards Sunset. The flames took the shape of a bright, intense disc of orange fire, the edges of which melted the ground as it buzzed towards Sunset like a giant flaming frisbee.

“Okay, that’s new.” Sunset deadpanned as she jumped aside, the horrific heat of the flame disc making her wince in pain as her skin felt scorched even from the near miss.

Hokori caught the hilt of her sword again, licking her lips like a hungry wolf. “I haven’t shown you all my powers Sunny. Aoihi Senko was just the easiest technique to teach you. I’m capable of so much more. Heh, not that you’ll ever manage to learn with weak sauce punches and relying on cheap tricks. Dammit girl, you’re supposed to be better than this! We’re supposed to be stronger than this! If you don’t shape up fast, I really am gonna kill you!”

Hokori’s wings spread wide and with a single powerful flap she sent herself hurtling upwards. Then like a swooping hawk she dove upon Sunset, gleaming blade cutting a deadly, whistling arc for Sunset’s head. With swift reflexes Sunset managed to twist away from the blow, Hokori’s edge snipping off a few colorful strands of hair. However Hokori had been a feint, taking advantage of Sunset’s predicted evasion to instead ram the edge of her shield hard into Sunset’s gut. The strike, made all the harder due to Hokori’s dive, knocked Sunset senseless as she found herself being picked up and carried into the air on Hokori’s shield, pain exploding through her body.

Before she could get her wits about her, Hokori flew right into one of the nearby rock outcroppings, smashing Sunset into the rock face with shattering force. Sunset felt her body indent into the stone, cracking it in a shower of rock shards. Hokori held Sunset there, pinned by her shield, and then raised her sword towards Sunset’s face. The blade was heated to the point that it glowed a devilish red and orange tint that nearly matched Hokori’s skin. The demon girl’s face was a bitter scowl of disappointment.

“Is this really going to be it? You tossed me off the throne only to crawl this piddling short distance before giving up?”

Sunset, teeth clenched, bile rising in her throat, raised one hand to grab the shield pressing her into the rock and locked her eyes on Hokori’s. “I haven’t given up. I will never give up. As long as anyone or anything threatens my friends, my home, I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.”

Hokori’s eyes flashed and her voice was a deep and low growl of primordial threat. “Prove it.”

She thrust the sword towards Sunset’s face. Sunset tilted her head to the side, avoiding the lethal blow, but the hot blade and its intense flames seared across her cheek. The pain was agonizing, lancing through her screaming nerves, but Sunset kept her focus, and gestured with her other hand, the one that’d been hidden beneath Hokori’s shield.

“Bakudo Number One: Sai!”

Sunset hadn’t learned many Kido. Clover had only had time to teach her a small handful, and most of those only through basic demonstrations. Sai was by far the simplest and easiest of them, the most rudimentary of the Way of Binding Kido Spells. Yet simple or not, the Kido’s effectiveness was based on the reiatsu of its user and whether it could overwhelm its target, however briefly.

In the span of a mere second Hokori found her arms twisting around behind her, as if by some invisible force. She kept hold of her blade and shield, but her arms were now awkwardly bent behind her. This of course meant there was nothing to hold Sunset up, but rather than let herself fall she reached out and grabbed Hokori.

With a savage shout Sunset proceeded to headbutt Hokori, cracking her forehead hard into her Zanpaktou spirit’s nose.

She’d always heard nobody wins a headbutt. This was technically true. Then again, if nobody came out on top with a headbutt, it at least meant Hokori wasn’t coming out unscathed. She may have been dazed by the headbutt, but Hokori was even more stunned, losing her winged balance as she started to fall, Sunset on top of her. Even in free fall Sunset kept a tight grip on Hokori and started to punch her demonic counterpart, ramming her fist into Hokori’s face several times before they hit the ground with a jarring impact that left Sunset sprawled atop Hokori.

“Ugh, get off me!” Hokori snarled, working one leg underneath Sunset and then kicked her straight in the gut with stiff force, knocking her off. Sunset rolled with the kick, rising to her feet in a battered and hunched stance, but plenty of fight still flaring in her eyes. Blood seeped from the burned cut on her cheek, but Sunset ignored it and remained fixed upon Hokori.

“You want proof of my resolve? If I break every bone in your body will that be enough? If you break every bone in mine, will that be enough? Like I told you-” she rushed Hokori, voice a razor’s edge, “-we don’t have time for this crap!”

Hokori growled furiously and flipped to her feet. With brute force and a burst of burning spirit power wafting off her she broke the Sai binding Kido, and then ripped her sword upward in a rising slash that sent bursting sparks of flame exploding outwards towards Sunset in a blossoming fireball. The infernal blast forced Sunset to change her charge into a quick Flash Step to the side,which bought Hokori an extra moment to go airborne again, wings flapping.

In response Sunset used one of the few remaining Kido she knew, drawing her right hand back with her middle and index finger poised. Yellow light gathered between her fingers as she chanted.

“Bakudo Number Four: Haniwa!”

A rope of yellow spirit energy formed from her fingers, and Sunset cast the Kido spell up like a lasso, wrapping around Hokori’s legs and keeping her from gaining any more height. With a sneer Hokori looked at Sunset with eyes casting heavy judgment, voice scolding.

“And what good is that resolve if you waste it by retreating from the challenges in front of you!? As your Pride I will not stand for that kind of cowardice!”

Hokori’s wings proved stronger than Sunset expected as she found herself being lifted right off the ground, still lassoed to her Zanpaktou spirit. Grunting, Sunset held on for dear life as Hokori flew higher, dragging Sunset through the air. It didn’t take Sunset long to see that Hokori was leading her right towards another cliff face, looking to scrape her off like a piece of offal from the bottom of a boot.

“Cowardice!?” Sunset shouted, quickly pulling herself up the energy rope, trying to get high enough to avoid the oncoming cliff, “Did you not see what Hurricane’s Bankai could do!? It literally took one shot to break our shield Hokori! It’s not cowardly to retreat from that, it’s common sense!”

She had to swing her legs up and make a final, desperate pull on the Kido rope, and even then she felt the top of the cliff brush past her rear end. Growling in strain, she planted her feet down then, grinding them along the top of the small plateau she and Hokori cruised over. Strong or not, the sudden jarring motion forced Hokori to jerk in the air, losing a lot of momentum. Sunset, capitalizing on Hokori’s distraction, pulled hard on the rope and put her whole body weight behind it. This managed to tear Hokori out of the air, slamming the demon girl into the ground with a hefty smack.

Her breaths coming in quick gasps, Sunset started to charge Hokori, hoping to get to her while the Zanpaktou spirit was still stunned on the ground. Hokori recovered fast, however, and slashed the Kido rope around her legs with a feral hiss, springing to her feet to meet Sunset’s charge.

“Don’t lie to me, Sunset. That’s the same as lying to yourself. You ran because you were scared. Hurricane is just another obstacle in your path. But you got spooked by him because he hurt your friends, and it filled you with fear.”

That made Sunset hesitate in her charge, just long enough for Hokori to counter-charge, trailing flames from her sword that then got unleashed upon Sunset in a searing pillar of roaring heat. Sunset had no choice but to do as Clover had taught her and to harden her reiatsu around herself. A spirit body was much more durable than one of mortal flesh and blood, the expression of one’s spirit energy allowing one to take attacks that would outright kill a normal person. Unable to dodge, all Sunset could do was take the flames head on.

The blast knocked her back while also searing around her body in a overwhelming flash of pain. Sunset wasn’t even sure if she screamed or not, as the howl of the flames drowned out all other noise.

Nearby Ditzy Doo Flash Stepped atop a higher outcropping of rock, looking on with inscrutable eyes. Hokori, taking one eye off of the burning field of fire in front of her that her attack had created, glanced at Ditzy with a raised eyebrow.

“What? Not going to poke your overly endowed ass into this are you?”

Ditzy Doo let a tiny smirk touch the edges of her mouth. “And spoil this warm, fuzzy tete-a-tete? Wouldn’t dream of it. A fight between a Soul Reaper and her Zanpaktou is far too intimate to try and make this a threesome. Besides, I think Sunset is going to be more of a handful than you think. She doesn’t need my help.”

At nearly the moment Ditzy Doo spoke, there was a eruption of reaitsu from where Sunset had been standing among the flames. The pillar of fire burst outward and then dissipated around Sunset, who stood surrounded by a pulsing sheath of her own spirit energy, which burned with its own radiant red and orange hues of fire. Her body bore several burns across it, the black robes of her Soul Reaper uniform torn and burned away in a few spots, exposing one arm and shoulder and some of her leg. Yet she stood strongly, despite the burns.

“Hokori, you’re right.” Sunset said, voice steady. “Seeing Fluttershy get cut down like that scared me. It should scare me. Every battle we get into puts my friends in more danger and I can’t keep pretending our luck is going to hold out forever. If I don’t get stronger, one of us is going to die.”

Hokori’s voice rose to a fever pitch of anger, pointing her sword at Sunset. “Then why are you acting so weak!? Why are you letting doubt hold us back!? You haven’t been fighting seriously, Sunset. I know. I’ve seen the fear that’s holding you back, but you can’t seem to see it yourself. And until you do-”

Flames flared from Hokori’s blade like a waterfall, melting the ground to molten scarlet as they traced a blazing circle around Hokori and Sunset, forming a blazing arena that enclosed the two combatants. Sunset felt the heat scalding at her back, making the air heavy and dry, torching her throat with every breath. Hokori’s eyes glowed with a deep crimson flicker as she started to stride towards Sunset once more.

“-you’re never going to beat me.”

Sunset started to walk towards Hokori as well, her stride no less determined or resolved than her demonic counterpart’s. She knew that what Hokori was saying was right, on some basic level. Even after she’d reconnected with and embraced her sense of pride, there was an underlying fear inside her. She assumed it was because she feared for the lives of her friends... but was there something else to it? Something she hadn’t seen? Regardless, she couldn’t back down now. There was no throwing in the towel for her. Not here. Not ever.

“Maybe you’re right Hokori, but I’m still standing, and I’m not going down anytime soon.”

As the two rushed each other, Hokori’s flaming blade swinging in a deadly arc of melting flame, and Sunset’s fist plowing forward in a wreath of spiritual force, Ditzy Doo continued to watch the battle with a look of satisfaction painting her features with a smirking grin.

----------

The procession that trudged through the gates to the courtyard surrounding the Fourth Division hospital carried a heavy air of nervous tension about them that Sweet Cider could feel even from where she stood at the hospital’s front doors. The Soul Reapers entering the courtyard were mostly Fourth Division healers, many of them carrying wounded on stretchers. Sweet Cider guessed these must’ve been the casualties from the battle at the Thirteenth Division barracks, at least the ones badly injured enough to need the facilities at the hospital rather than just field first aid.

Of course none of the arriving Soul Reapers would know that the Fourth Division had suffered a sneak attack. With a deep sigh Sweet Cider walked out to meet the arrivals. As she did so she noticed several Soul Reapers among the arrivals she wasn’t expecting to see.

Captain Amore strode with tall and easy grace, her multi-hued hair of deep violets and pinks flowing down her back like a cape. The stately woman had a look of intense concern and alertness about her lightly peach colored features. Beside her was Amore’s Lieutenant, Radiant Hope, if anything looking even more worried and off balance than her Captain. Both were leading the procession alongside Lieutenant Redheart, the Fourth Division’s second in command directing her people to start taking the wounded to the emergency medical wing of the hospital before even noticing that Sweet Cider was there, or that the hospital itself was disturbingly quiet.

Towards the back of the entering group of Soul Reapers were two more Lieutenants; Fancy Pants and Posey. Posey herself looked frightfully agitated, while Fancy Pants bore himself with a quiet, cool demeanor, only betrayed by the way he kept his hand close to the hilt of his Zanpaktou.

Amore saw Sweet Cider first, and giving the taller woman a surprised by acknowledging bow, Amore approached quickly.

“Captain Sweet Cider, I confess I was not expecting to see you here.” said Amore with her usual refined, but soft spoken dignity. Her eyes cast over Sweet Cider, the golden hued orbs widening at the sight of Sweet Cider’s wounds. “You look frightful. I had heard you did battle with the Ryoka, but it is quite alarming to see you in a state of injury. Please, tell us, what has happened?”

“Captains, ma’ams,” spoke up Redheart, “If you don’t need me I have to get these wounded situated and report to Captain Zecora-”

“Captain Zecora ain’t here.” interrupted Sweet Cider, her voice grave as she pointed a thumb back at the hospital. “And there ain’t nobody in there no more.”

That got a lot of eyes staring at her, Lieutenant Redheart’s mouth opening in mute shock for a second before she managed to get ahold of herself and say, “What are you talking about? There should still be at least a few dozen of us still stationed here while the rest of the Division is deployed, and Captain Zecora told me she’d be coordinating things from here!”

“Please explain yourself, Captain.” Amore said, eyes unsettled despite wearing a mask of calm.

Sweet Cider didn’t waste much time in giving the rundown on the state of the hospital as she’d found it, minus any mention of her daughter and her friends having been there. “After one o’ them Ryoka girls got away from me I came here ta git patched up, only ta find the place like I just told ya. Everyone’s misisn’, includin’ Captain Zecora, an’ its pretty dang clear there was a fight.”

Amore’s disturbed look only deepened as she turned to her own Lieutenant, “Radiant Hope, please take Lieutenants Fancy Pants and Posey and secure the area. Lieutenant Redheart, we still must tend to our wounded, so let us move into the hospital. Captain Sweet Cider, would you be willing to accompany me so we may speak in private?”

Sweet Cider nodded, and soon enough Redheart was uneasily directing her people to start taking the wounded into the hospital while Radiant Hope hastily went to gather the other two Lieutenants. Both Fancy Pants and Posey reacted with an expected shock at the news of what had happened and soon they, along with Radiant Hope, were leaping off with Flash Steps to search the perimeter of the courtyard. Sweet Cider was briefly fearful that they might spot Applejack and the others as they sneaked out the back, but she reminded herself that they had one of Luna’s Stealth Corps with them. They’d be fine. Pushing that worry aside she focused on the issue at hand, leading Amore into the hospital alongside the wounded and taking the Fifth Divisions Captain to a side room so they could talk out of earshot of anyone else.

“Captain I have to confess my concern.” said Amore once the door was closed, her eyes searching. “I cannot believe that one human Ryoka has sufficient power to either injure you enough to warrant immediate treatment, or that she could have eluded you so easily.”

Sweet Cider had expected suspicion on her story, and didn’t let her own nervousness show as she cross her arms and said, “Fact is I got sloppy an’ underestimated mah opponent. She got a’ few lucky hits in, then used the opportunity ta make a’ break fer it. There was a’ member from the Second Division that helped her. You know them folk loyal ta Luna got all sorts o’ hidin’ spots all over Seireitei. Rather n’ waste time tearin’ up the place tryin’ ta find ‘em, figured I’d check in on Captain Zecora and get patched ‘fore rejoinin’ my own Division. Then I found the trouble here an’ did a search, not minutes ‘fore you lot showed up.”

Amore’s face was a placid peach pool that didn’t reveal her thoughts. After a tense moment Amore inclined her head in a short nod, “That’s unfortunate. If we could catch at least one of the invaders we might convince her allies to give up. This situation is spiraling out of control too quickly, and I fear for the stability of all Soul Society if this continues.” Real fear broke through her mask as she glanced away. “Could one of the Ryoka have attacked the Fourth Division?”

Sweet Cider snorted, “Them girls’re tough, but the one only got past me by luck. I can’t figure them talkin’ down Zecora, dozens o’ Fourth Division members, then hidin’ the bodies.”

“We... don’t know anyone is dead.” Amore said with a paling face.

“True ‘nough. Plenty o’ blood ‘round here, but nothin’ a Soul Reaper couldn’t survive losin’. The fact that there ain’t no bodies anywhere ta be seen suggests they might’ve been taken prisoner. But again, by who? Don’t figure its them Ryoka girls. They got nowhere ta hide no prisoners anyhows, even if they could’ve taken Zecora down. Far as we know they’re all scattered anyway.”

“So what are you saying? That we have another enemy here, inside the Seireitei?” Amore’s stance remained placid, but her eyes blinked with a disturbed waver. “The trial... Celestia and Luna... are you suggesting someone has used this to attack us?”

“Don’t it just figure? You voted against’ them goin’ ta trial, Amore. Ya must’ve suspected somethin’ weren’t smellin’ right.”

“It;s true that I found the situation most... distressing. I didn’t think Captain Platinum’s evidence was strong enough to warrant a trial. We needed to investigate the matter more thoroughly.” Amore wrung her hands, the most visible display of dismay yet. “I was maintaining the hope that the Captain Commander may yet halt the execution. Find some clue to cast proper doubt on the evidence.”

“Welp, whaddya think this here attack on Fourth Division is, huh? Some mysterious force stalkin' us amid the chaos made by the execution seems ta me like somethin’ mighty suspicious and worth investigatin', while putting that damnable execution on hold!” Sweet Cider barked, harsher than she’d meant to, but her own ire was rising swiftly. Amore looked at her with a disquieted hesitance, but she slowly nodded.

“You are right, Captain Sweet Cider. This attack changes matters. It casts doubt upon all that has happened thus far. I shall take this to the Captain Commander myself, and I’m certain he’ll authorize a full investigation.”

“What ‘bout the Ryoka, then?” Sweet Cider asked, “If someone’s been manipulatin’ all o’ us, then them girls ain’t our real enemies, right?”

“I suppose, but the problem remains that they are actively attacking Soul Reapers and seeking to break Celestia and Luna free from imprisonment, which for the moment is still a legal imprisonment.” replied Amore curtly, regaining some of her composure and calm. “We cannot release either one until we investigate this attack, bring new evidence to Central 46, and ensure this is all done through proper channels.”

“We ain’t got time ta do this the dang bureaucratic way, Amore!” Sweet Cider snapped, losing a bit of patience, “Who knows how long it’ll take fer Central 46 ta yank their gobs outta their stinkholes!? Captain Zecora is missin’, and ya wanna spend time waitn’ fer ‘proper channels’?”

Amore sighed, slowly, a sound like a soft breeze, and steeled her gaze in the face of Sweet Cider’s ire. “Captain, we are still bound by the laws of Soul Society. I agree that we must find Captain Zeora and the missing members of the Fourth Division, and halt the execution. I also believe the Ryoka must be captured and put into safe custody until this crisis is resolved. The only way to achieve this is to follow protocol, bring this new information to the Captain Commander, and then await Central 46 to come to the proper decisions.”

The old, familiar anger seethed inside Sweet Cider, reminding her of just how easy it might be to just cast off her Captain’s coat and go rogue right then and there. Amore wasn’t strong enough to stop her. Nor were the four present Lieutenants together enough to slow her down if she really wanted to just fight her way out of this.

Yet as much as her hand itched to take up her Zanpaktou, she kept herself under control. These people, even if more than a few of them were misguided by ancient, draconian laws, were still decent folk for the most part. She had memories of serving together with all of them, and as much as some of that was built upon a lie of sealed away memories of her human life... she had a sense of basic right and duty that refused to let her just start swinging her sword.

Even under ideal conditions she’d probably end up killing a few of the Soul Reapers that’d inevitably stand in her way, and Sweet Cider knew that’d just serve the real enemy’s plans.

“Fine. Then let’s not be wastin’ no more time. You git goin’ ta headquarters an’ report ta’ the Captain Commander. I’m goin’ ta go mobilize mah Division ta investigate here an’ search fer our missin’ folk. We gotta also send out work o’ what’s happened here ta all the other Divisions.”

Amore nodded swiftly, “I’ll get my own Division on that immediately. Thank you, Captain, for being understanding. I know you wish to take more hasty action, but we can’t afford to lose our discipline in this critical time.”

There was a knock at the door, causing both Captains to break off the conversation as Amore said, “Yes?”

The door slid open to reveal Radiant Hope standing there, shifting from one foot to the other with distinct tension as she offered a quick bow. “Sorry to disturb you, Captains, but I wish to report we have swept the perimeter and have discovered traces of lingering foreign reishi, and blood, heading due north from here.”

Dammnit all! The girls must’ve ended up leavin’ a trail! Sweet Cider controlled the explosion of anxiety inside her and kept her face neutral as she said, “Ya find anythin’ else?”

“No, Captain ma’am. Fancy Pants and Posey are on standby, waiting permission to pursue the trail.” Radiant Hope said, then after a hesitant moment added, “And, Captain Amore, if I may request, could you release me to investigate a separate matter?”

“What matter is that, Lieutenant?” Amore asked, coolly curious.

“I, well... you see ma’am, I and several fellow Lieutenants had already been looking into the matter of Celestia and Luna’s imprisonment before this crisis began.” Radiant Hope admitted, her voice shaky, “W-we didn’t mean to go over anyone’s head, but I was convinced something was wrong about two of our most upstanding Captains being charged with treason. So myself, Meadowrook, Moon Dancer, and Redheart started to seek answers of our own.”

“I see...” Amore pursed her lips, then said, “Has anything come of this search?”

“I don’t know, ma’am, which is why I request permission to go seek Moon Dancer and Meadowbrook. My last contact with them was just prior to Meadowbrook going to check in on Moon Dancer, who was following up a lead at the Daireishokairo. However Meadowbrook told me he’d contact me with an update some time ago, and I cannot reach him via Kido spells." The waver in her eyes and tight, quivering tension in her stance spoke of Radiant Hope's worry for her friends.

“What n’ tarnation were they lookin’ fer in that big fancy schmancy library?” asked Sweet Cider.

Radiant Hope gulped under Sweet Cider’s glare. “During our investigation Moon Dancer discovered a certain book was missing from the Daireishokairo. A tome detailing artifacts of importance to Soul Society, specifically something called the Queen’s Key.”

“The who’s what?” Sweet Cider asked, at the same moment Amore let out a short gasp.

“That could prove problematic.” Amore said, her face going still with thought, “Records of the Queen’s Key should have mostly been either destroyed or transferred to the Soul Palace itself. If one tome escaped notice, and it was stolen from the Daireishokairo, it would prove a dangerous item in the hands of any enemy of Soul Society.”

Sweet Cider shot the other Captain a sidelong look, “Ya feelin’ like a’ little haste is in order yet?”

Amore returned her look with a sour one of her own, “I shall hasten my way to the Captain Commander, but let’s not leap to the worst conclusions yet. In any case, Lieutenant Radiant Hope you have my permission to go seek your companions at the Daireishokairo. With luck they may have found something that will hasten Central 46’s decision making process. Also, inform Lieutenants Fancy Pants and Posey they are authorized to follow the trail they found, to whomever it may belong. From there they can exercise their own judgment on what to do.”

Radiant Hope bowed deeply, “Yes Captain, thank you Captain.”

They all went back outside, where Radiant Hope rushed away to both inform the other Lieutenants of their orders and then depart for the Daireishokairo. Sweet Cider didn’t spare much more than a glance as the Lieutenant left, worried only that they weren’t moving fast enough to keep up with their hidden, mysterious foes. At this point she was getting more and more convinced it wasn’t just one person behind the attack on Fourth Division and the crisis in Soul Society. There almost had to be multiple individuals involved, to cause this much trouble this fast.

“Once I git back ta mah Division I’m gonna send squads ta every other Division barracks as extra security.” Sweet Cider said, “I’m also thinkin’ we need ta send some o’ us Captains ta check out wherever this Queen’s Key is bein’ kept, just in case.”

“Yes, well that will be a problem.” said Captain Amore, “Only Captain Commander Scorpan knows where the Queen’s Key is located.”

“Ya serious?”

Amore frowned, though not in any seeming annoyance but rather contemplation, as if she was trying to decide how to explain something. “Well, allow me to rephrase that. All of Soul Society’s artifacts are generally kept in the same location, which is the vaults within Central 46. The Queen’s Key would be among those items kept there. However only the Captain Commander has the knowledge of how to recognize the Queen’s Key amid the myriad of other artifacts in the vaults. You see as a security measure most of the stronger artifacts are hidden behind exclusionary wards that disguise them as other objects. Scorpan alone has knowledge of the ward pass to bypass those illusions. Assuming a potential thief even had a means to enter Central 46 undetected and to get past the more substantial but blunt defensive wards they still wouldn’t be able to identify the item they’d want to steal. They’d be stuck wasting hours if not days trying to sort out which item was what.”

Something turned over in Sweet Cider’s mind, like the ripple of something underwater. It was a stirring of thought that sent a spike of worry into her gut that told her something in Amore’s statement came with a giant red flag, but she couldn’t grasp the thought fully. It nagged at her, telling her that she’d just stumbled across a piece of the puzzle, but it hadn’t fallen into place yet. Growling in frustration at her inability to get anything more substantial out of the thought, she said, “Whatever sparkly wards ya got protectin’ them vaults if we got any reason ta be thinkin’ someone’s goin’ fer ‘em, then why not post up a few Captains nearby as extra protection? I’ll go there myself if I gotta.”

“Let’s at least get the Captain Commander’s authorization first.” said Amore, “He’s the only one who can allow access to Central 46’s chambers besides Central 46 itself. It’s not like you could just walk in there yourself, after all.”

Dagnabbit that feelin’ is back again! Can’t just walk in... Central 46... why is this naggin’ at me!? Sweet Cider ran a hand through her deep blond head of hair, teeth grinding.

Before she could get any further with her frustrated thinking, there was a stiff breeze and the sound of a Flash Step, and before Captain Amore and herself suddenly stood Lieutenant Sugar Belle and Captain Cheese Sandwich. Sweet Cider’s eyes shot wide and she forgot what she’d been thinking about for the moment as she recognized the pink skinned girl sitting unconscious in Cheese Sandwich’s arms.

“Hello ladies.” Cheese Sandwich said, smiling pleasantly, “Did anyone order a Ryoka for delivery?”

----------

Smart Cookie thought things seemed entirely too still outside the building that housed the Central 46. The wide cylinder of stone sat in its placid pool of water as she and Starswirl crossed the long wooden bridge to its front doors and Smart Cookie looked about with suspicious eyes, unable to shake the feeling of being watched.

As they drew close to the doors that would lead inside the building there was a metallic series of schnk sounds as the doors were barred by dozens of interlocking blades from both the top and sides of the door-frame. Starswirl frowned at the blades, eyes narrowing.

“They’ve turned on the full security system? I suppose that’s normal enough for when the Seireitei is in a crisis situation, but one would think they might make an exception for the presence of a Captain.”

“My apologies, Captain Starswirl, but I’m not entirely familar with the Central 46 building’s defenses.” said Smart Cookie, “I’ve never seen them active before.”

“This building is probably the single most guarded one in all Seireitei, even moreso than our main headquarters. Mostly because Central 46 doesn’t trust any Divisions’ Soul Reapers to actually stand guard here, so all the defenses are of an automated nature.” Starswirl said while running a hand along one of the blades barring the door. There was a soft blue glow that emanated from his hand, and sparked off the blade in a shimmering barrier. “These wards will turn aside anything short of a determined Captain using high level Kido or Bankai. And they’re just the normal defenses. The emergency wards are even more powerful, capable of withstanding just about anything, even the Captain Commander if he was trying to break through. At least for a time.”

“I still don’t understand. Can we not just contact the Central 46 via Kido and request entry?” asked Smart Cookie.

“They should already know we’re here. There’s detection Kido built into the walls to alert the Central 46 to anyone’s approach. They know we’re here. They’re just not opening the doors. And these wards block normal communication Kido.” Starswirl’s frown deepened, “Its possible that they’re too involved with arguing with Scorpan to want to bother opening up. Or...”

“Or?”

“Or something is wrong inside there.” Starswirl grunted, hands slipping to his Zanpaktou. Smart Cookie looked at him askance.

“Are you actually going to try to break the wards?”

“I’m considering it. Problem is my Bankai isn’t suited for the kind of hard hitting I’d need to do so, and even if it was, such an attack would just trip the stronger emergency wards. The Central 46 could disable them, of course, but if they didn’t want me in there in the first place then all I’d accomplish is pissing them off.”

“Is there no other way inside?” Smart Cookie insisted, her own nervousness still hidden behind a professional calm, despite her rising fear that something was very off about all this.

“No. Central 46 likes their little hideaway nice an inaccessible. If I want to get inside I’m going to have to craft a ward pass to get through. Fortunately I know these wards well enough to do that, but they’re complex enough that it’s going to take me at least a day, maybe longer, to do it.”

Smart Cookie sighed, nervously brushing unseen dust off her robes. “At least we can be fairly sure that nothing has happened to the Captain Commander or Central 46. If something had gone wrong there’s no chance the Captain Commander couldn’t respond to it, and the emergency wards would already be active instead of the regular ones.”

“True, but this smells every kind of rotten.” said Starswirl, “As long as Scorpan is stuck in there arguing with those idiots and can’t be contacted, he’s essentially out of play. That makes us vulnerable out here. I think we need to get inside there, as soon as possible. I suggest you return to headquarters and gather the other Captains apprise them of the situation. I’ll return to my labs and start making the ward pass to get into here.”

That made sense. By now the other Captains would be scattered across Seireitei seeking the Ryoka, so it would take some time to get them all back to headquarters, but it was important to update them on everything that had happened, including Captain Commander Scorpan’s present forty eight hour hold on the execution order and his current debate with the Central 46.

“I’ll go at once. Please inform me the moment you finish the pass and we can reach the Captain Commander.” Smart Cookie said emphatically, giving Starswirl a quick bow.

“I will. Oh, and please be careful, Lieutenant. I feel as if our opponent is entirely too many steps ahead of us.”

“I shall. You too, Captain.” she said, and Flash Stepped away, making her way back towards headquarters at full speed.

The myriad buildings of Seireitei flew away beneath her as she jumped from rooftop to rooftop, rapidly crossing the long distance to the headquarters plateau and its many fortress walls and towers. Her mind was filled with reeling thoughts of what she’d learned so far, and was deeply distressed at being unable to reach Scorpan. The idea that he might be unreachable for even a single day was a potential disaster if the wrong enemies of Soul Society knew, although she couldn’t imagine Central 46 ignoring it if the Seireitei came under large scale attack. But it might go unnoticed if a smaller yet no less powerful foe made a move for some secret goal while Scorpan was distracted.

She had to gather the Captains, convince them to drop the search for the Ryoka, whom she was now fairly convinced were just innocent pawns in this terrible game, and ensure the Captains were instead made vigilant against this new threat.

Not to mention she had to pass on word that Celestia and Luna’s execution was to be postponed for at least forty eight hours. It occurred to her if one of the Captains found the orders to Scorpan about them being executed tomorrow-

There was barely any warning.

The Kido spell simply snapped down around her with crushing speed, six rods of light entrapping her torso and paralyzing the Lieutenant of the First Division in mid-leap between rooftops.

With a choked noise she fell, smashing into the ground about ten meters down. The impact knocked her near senseless for a moment. Enough time for a voice to chant out another Kido spell.

“Bakudo Number Seventy Five: Gochutekkan!” (Five-Pillared Iron Weights)

Five pillars of metal, each near fifteen feet tall and connected by thick iron chains, appeared from the air above Smart Cookie and slammed down around her hard, pinning her limbs. That, atop the other binding Kido which she recognized as a Rikujokoro, was enough to utterly immobilize her and leave her helpless.

“Whew, that was close. Almost didn’t catch up to you. That would’ve made things complicated, heh.”

The voice that spoke was female, an almost casually friendly tone despite the voice belonging to a figure in a black robe that appeared before Smart Cookie with a flickering Flash Step. The figure bore a drawn Zanpaktou, its hilt wrapped in white cloth.

“Seriously, I’ve been running all over the place trying to tie up all these loose ends. Its lucky I stole, er, ‘borrowed’ a certain someone’s Zanpaktou way back when or I’d have trouble keeping tabs on everything. You have no idea how much trouble a plan like this is to pull off, you know?”

“W-Who...?” Smart Cookie managed to grind out past the paralysis gripping her whole body.

“Pfft, me? Nobody important. Just a normal girl trying to save the whole dang world from itself. You’d think I could get some credit for being so nice about it too, but noooooo, everybody has to make things hard and force me to be rough. Will you do me a favor and try not to struggle as much as the last two did?”

Smart Cookie grit her teeth, sweat pouring off her brow in a cold trickle as she struggled with all her might to move her body. The cloaked figure made a condescending click with her tongue, shaking her head as she poised her Zanpaktou above Smart Cookie’s immobile body.

“Tch, no such luck, eh? Well, don’t say you didn’t bring this on yourself.”

Smart Cookie could only watch helplessly as the glinting blade descended.

Author's Notes:

Bit by bit its all coming together, and we're getting ever closer to the climax of this arc. I hesitate to give an exact estimate on the number of episodes left in this arc, as there's still a few things to do before we hit the finale and I can never be sure how long any given set of scenes might take, but we're getting there.

For those who might be wondering, I do plan to do a segment checking in with Twilight and the Quincy soon. I've been holding off on that just because the in-story timeline needed to advance a little for me to be able to get to the Quincy, as Twilight's still recovering and most of the last few chapters events have all taken place over a pretty narrow time period. But for the curious ones in the crowd, we'll see what's up with SciTwi and the other Quincy soon...ish.

Anyways, thank you all for reading and hope you folks continue to enjoy. As per usual I encourage any and all comments, questions, and critiques and appreciate them thoroughly. 'Till next time.

Episode 48: The Sunset Casts Both Light and Shadow

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Episode 48: The Sunset Casts Two Lights

When Amore strode through the doors leading to Captain Commander Scorpan’s office, she was surprised to find someone else there entirely.

“Captain Platinum, Captain Blueblood, what are you two doing here?” she asked, noting that Blueblood himself looked roughed up and miserable. His usually perfectly brushed head of blond hair was disheveled and he bore a distinct cut across his cheek.

Has he battled a Ryoka, the same as Cheese Sandwich has? Did he capture one of them? Amore wondered. The young human girl that Cheese Sandwich had captured was being watched over by him at the Fourth Division hospital. Amore hoped perhaps having one of the Ryoka prisoner might help draw out the others from hiding, but Cheese Sandwich and Sweet Cider both had seemed less than enthusiastic about the idea. They had at least convinced Amore that they needed to wait until the girl regained consciousness before they could do anything else, and Amore couldn’t really disagree with that Not that she liked the idea of using a child as a hostage, but the chaos taking over Soul Society was by far the more distressing factor that needed to be dealt with. Peace and order had to be restored. It wasn’t as if they had to do more than threaten the hostage to bring the others out. It’d be a bluff, nothing more. Amore wouldn’t have condoned actually harming a prisoner.

But it hurt to see her beloved Soul Society in such turmoil and danger. She was fearful for the safety of Captain Zecora and the other missing Fourth Division members. Her heart went out to the injured among all the Divisions. Worst of all, she had a rising paranoid worry that even if this crisis was soon dealt with it was still dealing a blow to the Soul Reapers that may draw their enemies out of the war’s present stalemate and encourage an all out attack on the Spirit Realm.

Putting aside the unpleasant thoughts she watched as Platinum, who was examining a partially crumbled scroll, turned cool eyes towards Amore and Blueblood self-consciously adjusted the fall of his hair so it hid the wound on his cheek.

“Ah, Captain Amore, it's good that you’re here.” said Platinum with brisk certainty, gesturing at the otherwise empty office, “I was about to call for a meeting with the other Captains. It seems Captain Commander Scorpan and Lieutenant Smart Cookie both have left headquarters. I can only assume it has something to do with these orders from Central 46.”

Platinum offered the scroll, and Amore took it gingerly, examining the words on the parchment with growing alarm, her voice breathy. “Tomorrow? They’re to be executed tomorrow morning?”

“At first light of dawn.” said Platinum, voice brittle and cold as she turned towards the balcony overlook inside Scorpan’s office, from the right side of which one could just barely see the long, jutting portion of the plateau that was Sokyoku Hill.

“Of course the Captain Commander must have gone to Central 46 to contest these orders.” said Amore, “He likely brought Lieutenant Smart Cookie with him. That provides two days of delay before these orders must be acted upon.”

“I will point out that we have no proof of where either the Captain Commander or his Lieutenant have gone.” said Platinum, “While we can search for him, without actual confirmation that he’s inside Central 46, by the law we are still bound to obey the decrees handed down to us by them.”

“That’s absurd!” said Amore, approaching real alarm at hearing the firm and uncompromising tone in Platinum’s voice, “Clearly Scorpan must be arguing against these orders as we speak. There’s no other explanation for where he could be!”

“If that were the case, would he not have left Smart Cookie to inform the rest of us Captains of his decision?” said Platinum, “Why take her into Central 46 with him?”

“Where else could she be? Are you suggesting that they’ve simply vanished. That would be of even greater concern than if he was in Central 46, which he surely is!” Amore said, putting a hand to her forehead, rubbing at the beginnings of a serious headache.

“By all means proceed to Central 46 and gain confirmation of the Captain Commander’s presence there.” replied Platinum, giving Blueblood a sidelong look, “In the meantime we have to make preparations for the execution. With the orders slated for the morning we must ensure the Sokyoku itself is prepared. Blueblood, do you think you can handle that?”

“I, uh... well, yes, of course.” said Blueblood, sounding less than enthusiastic, “But what about the Ryoka? We still need to track them down, do we not? Shouldn’t I continue to help with that instead of being tied down overseeing preparations on some oversized flaming stick?”

Platinum’s voice dropped a few unpleasant octaves, “If, perhaps, you proved capable of dealing with the Ryoka, yes, but you’ve already failed once to deal with just one of those girls. Perhaps the Sokyoku, a nice stationary object, will prove less of a challenge for you to handle.”

Blueblood’s face colored crimson, and his jaw set tightly. “You were not there, Captain Platinum. I admit I underestimated the Ryoka’s abilities, but this particular woman was... more capable than your reports ever indicated. You said absolutely nothing of the extent of her powers, let alone her intelligence, grace, not to mention sheer beauty.”

Platinum’s eyes rolled like a pair of snowglobes, “So you were distracted by the appearance of your opponent, then? Blueblood, that girl shouldn’t have even lain a finger upon you, let alone left you in that sorry state I found you in. Just be glad I bothered to free you. I could have simply left you there to contemplate your shortcomings.”

Amore cleared her throat loudly, “Ahem, Captain Blueblood, pardon me, but you fought one of the Ryoka... and lost?”

He all but pouted, “She just caught me off guard! It won’t happen again.”

“Could you fill me in on the details, please?” Amore asked, and Blueblood did so, albeit in a fairly haphazard manner, glossing over his role in his own defeat, although Amore noted that the young Captain didn’t sound particularly bitter when describing his foe. If anything she quickly saw Captain Blueblood’s veiled compliments and exaggerated descriptions of the young lady’s prowess for the newborn infatuation that it was. Interesting, but hardly the most interesting thing to her about Blueblood’s account.

“You said she had two others with her that she remained behind to fight you in order to allow them to pass?” Amore clarified, “And which direction did these other two go?”

“Oh, I don’t know, I wasn’t really paying attention. West, I believe. Towards...” Blueblood paused, frowning, “Towards the Twelfth Division headquarters, in fact.”

“So instead of preparing for an execution that may be at this very moment is likely being argued against by our commanding officer should we not focus upon detaining the active criminals we know are in need of stopping?” suggested Amore, a bit of heat turning her normally calm and kind tone into something with a hint of edge, “Fourth Division has already suffered an attack, for all we know Twelfth Division is in equal danger.”

The news of Fourth Division seemed to catch both Blueblood and Platinum by surprise, and Amore quickly brought them up to speed. While Blueblood looked aghast at the news, Platinum was more contemplative, but no less seemingly surprised and distressed.

“You are certain no bodies were found?” Platinum asked, then waved away her own question, “It couldn’t have been the Ryoka, regardless. Those girls are many things; foolish, impulsive, arrogant, rude, and intolerably uncooperative, but they wouldn’t have attacked a hospital. Of that much I’m certain.”

“I agree.” Amore frowned, “Then who else could be responsible?”

“Is it not obvious?” Platinum said, a harsh certainty entering her voice, “The Second and Thirteenth Division traitors, of course! Only the Second Division knows how to perform such a deadly sneak attack, and could have used their secret paths to get into the Fourth Division. Furthermore Hurricane failed to detain many of the Thirteenth Division rebels, who fled into the sewers, from which they could have easily joined the remainder of the Second Division. They must have struck at the Fourth Division knowing it’d cripple our search efforts.”

Amore couldn’t have been more shocked if Platinum had sprouted a ukulele and started dancing the hula. For several long seconds the Fifth Division Captain tried to process all of the leaps of logic Platinum must have just taken... and sadly while it still sounded mostly ludicrous there was a certain small sense to it as well. If the rebels truly were serious about freeing Celestia and Luna, they’d need a distraction, a way to keep the other Divisions occupied elsewhere... and staging an attack on the Fourth Division would have the other Divisions running in circles trying to find out who did it, or worse, going after the Ryoka all the more. But she couldn't imagine anyone among the Thirteenth and Second Divisions who'd commit such a heinous act, even in service of rescuing their Captains.

“There’s no direct evidence of that...” Amore began, but Platinum all but jumped down her throat, her own eyes shining.

“The Second Division is the Stealth Corps, Captain Amore. They’re trained assassins and stealth specialists. If they didn’t perform such a sudden and complete attack, leaving no evidence behind, who else could?”

“I don’t know.” Amore admitted, shaking her head, that headache only getting stronger.

Platinum gained a curiously thoughtful look, her tone almost becoming self-musing, as if she wasn’t talking to anyone other than herself, “No matter what, time is short, and the only thing to do is more forward.”

“Captain?”

Platinum shook herself, eyes blinking, “Captain Amore, if you are concerned about the Twelfth Division, then by all means go investigate it yourself. Or see if you can gain entry to Central 46. We need confirmation of Captain Commander Scorpan’s status, one way or another. However I will fulfill the orders of Central 46 as they currently stand. Do you have any objections to this that are grounded in the lawful protocol of Soul Society?”

The fact left Amore feeling a steely chill, but she didn’t, and could only shake her head. “No, I do not. However I feel it is a mistake to proceed with the execution until we know for certain where Scorpan is.”

“Then I suggest you make haste to find him.” replied Platinum with finality. It was advice that Amore couldn’t argue with, and so she turned to stride quickly form the room, all the while feeling a greater and impending sense of utter dread.

----------

Radiant Hope stood upon the bridge leading to the tall front entrance of the Daireishokairo, and paused as she noticed the blood. It sat in a dry pool about halfway across the bridge, perhaps not more than an hour old. Unease gripped her in a clammy vice as she Flash Stepped to the pool of blood, kneeling down to examine it as she drew her Zanpaktou.

She almost touched the blood, but pulled her hand back at the last instant. Was there enough here to mean someone, possibly one of her friends, had died? She didn’t think so, but much like at the Fourth Division hospital, the lack of a body was unnerving.

“I’ve already checked inside.”

Radiant Hope spun around, Zanpaktou swinging just on startled instinct. An orange hand actually caught the blade between thumb and forefinger, and the amused looking woman attached to that hand raised a dark eyebrow at Radiant Hope, magenta eyes glinting amusement.

“Whoa, try not to be so jumpy, Lieutenant.”

Radiant Hope’s eyes widened and she quickly pulled back her blade and sheathed it, bowing deeply. “Captain Daring Do, I apologize. I didn’t even sense your approach.”

Daring Do was not a tall woman, in fact being perhaps an inch shorter than Radiant Hope was, but she carried herself with a relaxed and easy stance that seemed to negate the sense of her being short. Black and gray toned hair bunched in a shoulder length mass that Daring Do ran a hand through casually as she nodded towards the blood. “Can’t blame you for being jumpy. There was clearly a fight here. The inside is covered in signs of it.”

“That must have been my friends.” Radiant Hope said, worry etching itself across her words. “Meadowbrook and Moon Dancer were both here! I have to find them!” She cocked an eyebrow at Daring Do. “Wait, Captain, why are you here?”

“Suspicious much? I’ve been patrolling for the Ryoka, as is my entire Division at this point.” Daring Do said with a shrug, “I’m pretty much the fastest Captain next to the old man himself and Luna, so I can cover the most ground out of all of us. While everyone else was busy with the south end of Seireitei, I decided to go sweep the north. Haven’t found any sign of the Ryoka, but followed something interesting to this place.”

“Something interesting?” Radiant Hope asked, and Daring Do reached into the folds of her uniform to pull out a very peculiar looking object. It was a strange, sharp edged rod about half a foot in length, one end tapered to a knife-like point while the other end was split into four petal-like protrusions. Probing it with her spiritual senses, Radiant got the faintest trace of latent spirit energy from it. The reiryoku felt odd, not at all like that of a Soul Reaper’s.

“What is this? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Daring Do spun the object around in her hand, smiling in an oddly pleased fashion. “Haven’t a clue, but I found this lodged under the edge of a roof near the north gate. Been looking for more, and found two or three, all leading in this direction. I got a feeling if I keep looking I might just find them all over the Seireitei. Whatever they are, they ain’t made by a Soul Reaper.”

“Could the Ryoka have... but no, that’s not possible. They only arrived from the south, and you found this to the north. They couldn’t have placed them.” Radiant Hope said, her eyes locked on the strange object. “What could it be used for?”

“I don’t think its a bomb or anything. Not enough power for it to be that.” said Daring Do, “But it could be some kind of sensor, but until I take this to Starswirl to tinker with, there’s no way to be sure. Of course before I could head off to the Twelfth Division, I ended up here and found the library in a mess. Then you showed up. You say your friends were here?”

Radiant Hope nodded, and spent a short minute or two informing Daring Do about Moon Dancer’s search for the missing book on the Queen’s Key and Meadowbrook coming to check on her. Now both of them were missing and by the signs of battle it was clear they’d run into some serious trouble.

Daring Do’s easy manner gradually grew serious, or at least as serious as Daring Do seemed capable of being as she flipped the odd object over and over again in her hand as she put on a thoughtful look. “Okay, so I’m not an idiot. I can’t figure why the Ryoka might’ve attacked a freaking library, so going to go out on a limb here and say we’ve got other bad guys on our hands. In which case it doesn’t take a genius to realize this whole ‘treason’ BS is just one big con job.”

Radiant Hope swallowed and nodded her head, “That was something I guessed from the start. Um, no offense, Captain. Its why I gathered some of the people I trusted most to try and find the truth.”

“Well you’re not alone on that count anymore.” said Daring Do, scratching her chin, “The only question now is if we’re too late to make a difference in derailing the enemy’s plans.”

“We can’t let the execution happen, no matter what.”

“We should have days on that yet. What I want is to find one of our hidden bad guys and capture them, preferably after a righteous ass kicking.” said Daring Do, pointing at the pool of blood, “Not to mention find your pals. We bring one of the real culprits in to Central 46 and that’ll be that. They’ll have to let Luna and Celestia go.”

“That’s true, but how are we going to find Moon Dancer and Meadowbrook? I don’t see any traces besides the blood, and it doesn’t form a trail anywhere.”

“Pssssh,” Daring Do made a scoffing sound, smiling wryly as she tapped the side of her head, “Who do you think you’re talking to? You think I’m in charge of our reconnaissance specialized Division because I look good in a pith helmet? When it comes to noticing things I’m the goddamn Batman.”

“The...who?”

“I keep forgetting most of you outside the Third Division don’t keep up with living world culture. Never mind, just give me a few minutes to scope the area out and I’m sure I’ll pick up something that’ll lead us towards your friends.” Daring Do said, then immediately started to examine the area, vanishing and reappearing in random places with Flash Step.

And being good at her word, it was only a couple of minutes before Daring Do, standing near the entrance to the Daireishokairo, waved Radiant Hope over. “Hey, found what we’re looking for right over here!”

The area in question was a small walkway of stone that encircled the front half of the building, bordered by a length of soft grass. About twenty paces from the door, embedded deep in the grassy portion beside the walkway so that it all but blended in, was another one of the strange spike-like objects. Radiant Hope stood beside Daring Do, looking down at the strange device, and took note of the fact that there was a small speckle of blood here and there on the grass beside the device.

“Whoever fell on the bridge, they were carried here.” she said, and Daring Do nodded agreement.

“Looks that way. Which makes it all the more important we figure out what these things are, and fast. I’m taking these to Starswirl. He’ll have them figured out in no time.” Daring Do said.

Radiant Hope hated having no further clues or evidence as to the fate of her friends, but she also couldn’t really argue with Daring Do’s words. Without knowing what these devices were they had no path forward. The only thing to do now was to go to the Twelfth Division and hope Captain Starswirl could discern the function of the devices in time to make a difference.

----------

The day wore on into the evening with the Soul Reapers crawling all over Seireitei like maddened ants, unable to find any further traces of the Ryoka after the initial battles had taken place. News of those fights spread quickly, rumors and gossip like embers sparking a wild forest fire. Captain Blueblood defeated and humiliated by a single Ryoka? Another Ryoka so powerful her clash with Captain Kenpachi herself had leveled a good portion of the Academy training grounds? Yet another Ryoka who, despite being captured in the end, had fought Captain Cheese Sandwich to a standstill?

All of that left many Soul Reapers muttering in disquiet whispers among themselves as the sun started to set. If the Captains themselves were having trouble with these human invaders, what chance did low seated officers or the rank and file have?

Beyond that the rumors of the attack on the Fourth Division was also spreading, leaving many Soul Reapers nervously looking over their shoulders during their patrols. The division between those who supported the law of Central 46 and those who were becoming more and more convinced of Celestia and Luna’s innocence was growing ever worse. The absence of Captain Commander Scorpan was a noticeable pall hanging over the whole Seireitei, despite the rumor that he was locked in a closed door debate with Central 46... but with no Lieutenant Smart Cookie around to corroborate this preparations for the execution at dawn were proceeding.

From practically any place in Seireitei one could see the ghostly blue pillars of spirit energy on the Sokyoku Hill, where members of the Kido Corps being overseen by Captain Blueblood prepared the enchantments to free the wrath of the Sokyoku itself, the massive halberd shaped weapon designed to slay those who had committed terrible crimes against Soul Society.

Through it all the Captains themselves were like ships sailing through a storm. Sweet Cider had kept tabs on where most of her fellow Captains were. Platinum, Hurricane, and Thunderhooves were in headquarters, having made it their bastion alongside their Divisions. Amore was floating between Central 46 and headquarters, looking for a way to force contact with the Central 46 and the Captain Commander who was supposedly within. Daring Do had apparently found some unknown device and was in Twelfth Division with Starswirl, trying to find out what it was. Zecora remained missing, while Cheese Sandwich took temporary command of the Fourth Division while guarding their one, still unconscious prisoner.

Celestia and Luna remained in their cells, but at the first light of dawn there was little doubt Platinum would be there to remove them for their execution.

If that happened Sweet Cider saw only one thing she could do. The question was if she’d be stuck doing it alone? She hoped Applejack and her friends were safe enough. Neither Posey or Fancy Pants had reported back yet from their search. The worry ground Sweet Cider’s gears something fierce as she stalked around her office in the Tenth Division headquarters and went over the last reports from her own people concerning the investigation around the attack on the Fourth Division.

“An’ ya’ll ain’t found a trace o’ anythin’, even after checkin’ the emergency tunnels an’ sewers?” she demanded once again of Silverstar, who stood stoically under her hard gaze with his usual stout, toughness.

“The boys n’ gals have combed the place with dang microscopes fer all the good it’s done.” he said, “We ain’t even found none o’ them doohickeys that Captain Darin’ Do was goin’ on ‘bout.”

Sweet Cider all but growled, “Right, fine. Call ‘em back, then. I want all the squads ta be rested up fer tomorrow.”

“Ma’am, beggin’ yer pardon, but what are we gonna do once dawn hits?” Silverstar asked, eyes mostly hiding how tense he was.

Sweet Cider gave him a rueful look that wasn’t entirely aimed at him. If anything her irritation at Silverstar was just a phantom reflex from the anger she was feeling at Soul Society as a whole and her frustration at having her memories back but being unable to just forget all the time she’d spent as the Tenth Division Captain. Even now, remembering her life and home in the living world, she still felt attached to the office she stood in. It was a simple thing, too, the plain room with only a few shelves for books or scrolls, dominated by a central desk and a few chairs. She could remember every hour spent here doing her job, often talking with Silverstar about one bit of work or another.

Sweet Cider liked working and had always taking her responsibilities seriously. Dissonant memories didn’t just tear that sense of honest obligation out of her. So as much as she wanted to be pissed off at Silverstar and every other Soul Reaper for what had happened to her, she couldn’t bring herself to hate them either.

But the time was fast approaching that her only course was going to be to carve a path to helping her daughter and friends free Luna and Celestia, no matter who got in her way. Maybe she ought to find out where her own people stood on that count before it hit that point of no return.

She drew in a deep breath and let it out slow as she gazed at Silverstar with a frank look. “When dawn comes ‘round, if Platinum or ‘nother tries ta go through with the execution, bottom line is I’m stoppin’ it. By any means I gotta use.”

She let that hang in the air, the blatant and honest truth. What she’d just said could easily be construed as a form of treason in and of itself, as she’d essentially just admitted she’d fight her fellow Captains if it came down to it. The question now was how Silverstar would take this. She was prepared for his disapproval, or any number of reasonable arguments he might try to make to convince her to keep her cool and not do anything rash.

“So you want me ta git the whole Division ready fer a brawl, or ya gonna be thick skulled an’ try ta do this all by yer lonesome?” Silverstar asked bluntly, causing Sweet Cider to blink at him in surprise.

“Seriously? Ya ain’t gonna try ta talk me outta this?”

Silverstar met her eyes with a level headed look of his own. “Like I could even if I wanted to. Yer gonna do what ya think is right, Captain, an’ I can either help ya out, or git outta yer way. Since it don’t sit right with me ta let ya take all the risk yerself, an’ I know the rest o’ the Division is gonna feel the same, then our only course is ta be right there beside ya when the time comes ta bust our way through to the execution grounds.”

He paused, a hard light entering his eyes and a trace of guilt crossing his features. “An’ I’m just gonna take a guess an’ figure that this has got somethin’ ta do with that one Ryoka girl who’s got yer look ‘bout her.”

Sweet Cider grimaced, “Ya ain’t wrong. Lemma ask ya straight, Silverstar. Did ya know? ‘Bout my memories?”

The man’s guilty look only deepened, but to his credit he didn’t look away from her stern gaze as he said, “Knew ‘nough ta figure this’d happen sooner or later. Didn’t get told much other than yer Zanpaktou was all mixed up with yer Fullbring powers, an’ it was doin’ somethin’ to yer head that the Captain Commander wanted ta seal up. Said it was dangerous ta let them powers mix without knowin’ more.” He nodded at the blade in question, “Far as I got told, that’s why yer so dang strong. Yer Zanpaktou and Fullbring got fused together, but that also makes it real unstable, makin’ ya more... well more violent or somesuch. That’s why ya got recruited into the Gotei 13, and the old man himself put a’ seal on yer Zanpaktou. It was ta keep the Fullbring an’ the Zanapktou powers separate to a’ degree, least ‘nough so ya didn’t go total berserk. Don’t know if sealin’ away yer human memories were just a’ side effect or intentional, but that’s all I know.”

She searched is face for any signs of deception, but found nothing but open, guilty truth in his tired expression. A part of her was hot with fresh anger at having her life and afterlife constantly being meddled with. What right did the Soul Reapers have to play with people’s souls like this? The warm, deadly rage seethed under the surface of her skin like water boiling on the stove, and she realized that much of that anger was brimming up from her Zanpaktou, like Kizuna itself was humming with murderous intent.

By the slight paling in Silverstar’s face, he felt it too, and stood there stock still in front of her.

Sweet Cider, with a rough breath, took hold of her anger and shoved it down. “So yer sayin’ I might, what? End up goin’ crazy?”

“I don’t know, Captain. I really don’t know. Seemed ta me like even the Captain Commander didn’t really know fer sure what yer Zanpaktou was doin’ to ya. I think he put that seal on there as much ta protect ya as us. With it gone... well I just don’t rightly know what’s gonna happen. But I’ll tell ya this much.” He bowed to her, his eyes as serious as she’d ever seen them. “Whatever happens, I’ll follow ya. In the years I’ve served with ya you’ve been nothin’ but the best dang Captain I could’ve asked fer, an’ I know most the rest o’ the Division feels the same. We’re with ya, one way or ‘nother.”

Sweet Cider felt her anger simmer down against a tide of pride and satisfaction, knowing that Silverstar meant every word he said. While she knew there might be a few holdouts and diehard loyalists among her Division who wouldn’t support her actions, she also knew that Silverstar was right; most of her people would follow her if it came down to a fight. Which the way things were looking, it probably was. Which was a serious problem because she knew that was likely just what the real enemy wanted. But as long as they could save Celestia and Luna there was still a chance.

“Right then, here’s what we’re doin’...”

----------

“Pssst, how’s it looking?” asked Rainbow Dash, trying to fit her head in beside Nocturn’s as the Second Division officer was peeking out from beneath the edge of a street tile that he had raised. The tunnel the group had been following now capped off in a rather roomy dead end, with a ladder that led up to the surface. Nocturn was on said ladder while Rainbow Dash, wings formed and flapping, hovered beside him.

“Not ideal.” Nocturn admitted, pointing, “See there? Those are the main stairs leading up into the fortress proper. Quite well guarded, I’d say.”

Rainbow Dash could see that. The small portion of the street they were under was one of three streets that connected to a wide courtyard at the very base of the massive, rocky plateau upon which the Gotei 13’s main headquarters was built. A wide set of stone stairs large enough that an army could charge up or down them was situated right in the middle of the stoney cliff side, and around it was a veritable army of Soul Reapers who stood ready and alert. Torch stands had been set up at regular intervals to light up the whole courtyard as dusk set in, the sun already setting beyond the horizon. Rainbow Dash could see dozens upon dozens of Soul Reapers milling around, most on watch while others played cards or chatted in tight knit groups.

She also saw that there were several wood and stone barricades on the stairs, manned by yet more Soul Reapers.

“Gonna be a real gauntlet if we have to rush through all that.” she commented dryly.

“Fortunately we won’t have to, my cerulean friend.” said Nocturn, direction her attention towards a portion of the cliff face about fifty yards from the stairs. “There’s our next secret pathway, if we can get to it unseen.”

Rainbow Dash licked her lips, glancing back down the ladder to where Fluttershy, Applejack, Clover, and Pipsqueak all waited anxiously. “Yeah, you’re the only ninja in the party, dude. Don’t think the rest of us can be super sneaky with that many Reapers keeping their eyes out for us. We need a serious distraction.”

To this Nocturn offered a mischievous smile, “As it happens I have an idea on that. You see there’s many storage warehouses all across Seireitei, as each Division maintains their own separate logistics. However headquarters keeps its own warehouses close, both hugging the plateau, and under the fortress itself. In fact I happen to know that one of those nearby warehouses stores headquarters supply of celebratory fireworks. Meant for special occasions like holidays or weddings between important members of the nobility. Now, what do you think might happen if someone were to light such a warehouse on fire?”

Rainbow Dash could only think of a line from one of her favorite movies. “Biiiiig badaboom.”

“Indeed.” replied Nocturn, smile widening. “I rather imagine it’ll keep the attention of our vigilant friends out there long enough for you to sneak to the cliff’s secret entrance.”

“Whoa dude, hold up, I ain’t hearing any of this ‘you’ stuff. I need you to lead my friends to safety. You let me handle the distraction. Just point me to where that warehouse is.”

Nocturn glanced at her sidelong, dark eyes reflecting the distant torchlight. “Miss Dash, the risk is too great to let you perform such a task. Better to allow me.”

“Pfft, says the dude with one arm. Come off it man, who do you think you’re fooling with this tough guy act?” Rainbow Dash poked him in the chest, eyes alight with flippant spunk. “I’m the fastest one here. I can get in, light that puppy up like a summer barbecue, and be out before anyone spots me.”

“Much as I can admire your rambunctious spirit, shall I point out that if you do this then you won’t have the means to enter the secret passage, as only a Second Division member like myself knows how to open them in the first place?” Nocturn said smoothly, but Rainbow Dash just brushed this off with a wave of her hand.

“Dude, just hold the door for me. Seriously, I’ll blow the warehouse, once I’m, you know, totally sure no one’s in it and junk. While everyone is gawking at the light show, I’ll zip right on back here in no time, and you can open up the passage for me. Just make sure you and the rest get on in there while everyone’s distracted.”

A pointed look crossed his face as he seemed to consider her, “You’re not going to back down, are you?”

“Not a chance.” she said with a grin.

“Hmm. Determination and confidence are a powerful mix, as long as it's tempered with enough common sense. When the day comes that you die, Miss Dash, consider joining the Second Division. I’m certain Captain Luna would welcome you to our ranks.”

She rolled her eyes, “Don’t hold your breath for that to happen. You’re a cool enough dude, and I do dig the flashy swords you Soul Reapers get, but I don’t think I’d ‘fit in’ with this place and all its rules. Kinda prefer to live free... and that’ll still apply even after I eventually buy it.”

The thought did leave an uneasy pebble of discomfort in Rainbow Dash’s mind. Death was usually the last thing on her young teenage mind. Even with all the recent craziness she hadn’t really ever considered the prospect of dying, let alone what she’d do after her mortality caught up with her. Who knew, maybe she’d just learn to fly so fast even Death couldn’t catch her. Yeah, better to just get into her usual cocky groove and not worry too much about things. She had way too much to do to add dying to the list just yet.

Nocturn, having run out of objections, showed Rainbow Dash where the warehouse was. It was to the left of the giant stone stairs, about a block and a half away, but Rainbow Dash could still see its tall, slanted, orange shingled roof, as it was a near three story building. Apparently it held more than just fireworks, but Dash just needed to concern herself with those and nothing else. Nocturn described what she’d be looking for, big barrels marked with a peculiar symbol, a Japanese kanji for fireworks that Rainbow Dash smacked her brain a few times to force herself to memorize it.

That done, she flew down to inform the others of the plan.

Applejack responded pretty much like Rainbow Dash expected.

“I don’t like it.” the farm girl said firmly, “Ya shouldn’t be doin’ nothin’ by yerself. I oughta go with ya in case somethin’ goes wrong.”

“AJ, you’re tough as nails and I’ve got no one else I’d want at my back in a fight more, but this is about speed and stealth.” Rainbow Dash said, trying to put a placating tone into her voice. “Bottom line is that you’d, uh, kind of slow things down when I’ve got to move quick, know what I’m saying?”

Applejack got that look on her face she sometimes got when some guy at school was hitting on her and not getting the message she wasn’t interested, or when she was dealing with a particularly ornery tree in her orchard that wasn’t giving up its apples. Rainbow Dash gulped, but held her ground until Applejack ground out a sigh.

“Blast it all, yer right, an’ I dang well hate it. Don’t feel right at all lettin’ you do all the risky stuff alone.”

Rainbow Dash snickered, “Hey, welcome to my world earlier today when I learned you rushed off to fight your mom alone. Not a great feeling, but at least now I get what you were thinking at the time. Some jobs just need to be done alone, for the sake of your friends.”

Applejack adjusted her stetson to shade her eyes as she looked away with embarrassment, “Ain’t that just the prickly truth? Alright, you go do yer thing, Dash. Just don’t git foolish with it. ‘Cause a ruckus, but just ‘nough ta git them Soul Reapers lookin’ the wrong way, and then git yerself back here pronto!”

“Yes, please be careful.” said Fluttershy with a strained voice. Her Fullbring was fully active, and had been since they’d entered the tunnel. Rainbow Dash knew her friend was trying to heal the remainder of her injury, but the wound Hurricane had inflicted was no small thing, and even with Pipsqueak’s help the healing process was still far from complete. Fluttershy’s face beaded with sweat, even as she gave Rainbow Dash a worried look that was all concern for her friends and little spared for herself.

“I will Fluttershy, count on it!” said Rainbow Dash, all confidence, at least on the surface.

“Do what you can to suppress you reiatsu,” said Clover, “Don’t use any more spirit energy than you need to. Many Soul Reapers are used to relying on spiritual senses over simple things like visual observation or even just listening for strange noises. As long as you can keep your spiritual pressure down that should help you avoid detection.”

“Yeah, yeah egghead, I got it. I won’t use more mystical omph than I need to Clover, no worries.” Although the truth was that she was pretty worried. She wasn’t all that good at the finer points of reiatsu or whatever Clover wanted to call it. She could direct her spirit energy pretty much how she wanted, but that was often when going all out and zapping things. Pushing that same energy down so it didn’t go off like a beacon was a relatively new concept for her, but Rainbow Dash wasn’t about to back down from the challenge.

Pipsqueak looked between them all with an air of confidence himself, nodding his head to Rainbow Dash. “I wish you the best of luck Lady Dash. May fortunes of wind bless your wings with speed and discretion both.”

The young lad ended his words with a short fit of coughing that earned worried looks from all around, but Pipsqueak just smiled reassuringly once he got himself under control.

“If we’re to do this, best to do it now, as night is setting in.” said Nocturn from the ladder, and Rainbow Dash couldn’t agree more. The sooner she got going, the better she’d feel.

Flying back up to the top of the ladder, she and Nocturn both observed the guards by the stairs. With things getting darker by the minute, they waited until the guards on watch started to change shifts with the guards resting. In that moment Nocturn opened up the street tile further, allowing Rainbow Dash to slip out. The street tile was over a hundred yards from the courtyard, far enough that she’d be little more than a shadowy blue blur to anyone looking her way. She didn’t give any of the guards a chance to glance her direction, swiftly taking wing and flying straight up and over a nearby wall lining the side of the street.

Bit by bit she started to make her way towards the warehouse while flitting between shadows to keep out of sight.

As she did so her sense of unease grew, as if she was running low on time, but for the life of her she couldn’t grasp why.

----------

As the group waited quietly in the dark tunnel room for Rainbow Dash’s distraction to be ignited, none of them, neither the alert Nocturn or observant Clover, noticed that further down the tunnel a shadow stood stock still, but apart from the rest of the gloom.

The figure had watched Rainbow Dash depart with sharp, unblinking eyes hidden behind a pair of sooty dark goggles.

It was close to time to act, but not yet.

She needed to wait until they got a little further.

Then she’d strike.

----------

Fancy Pants landed lightly upon the roof of one of the buildings overlooking the long central street leading towards the courtyard entrance to headquarters, the firelight of dozens of torches and lanterns lighting up the night in a sea of orange, flickering pinpricks. Beside him Posey appeared, silent and tense, her eyes glancing about with rapid, searching looks.

“Steady yourself Lieutenant Posey.” Fancy Pants said, “We won’t let them escape.”

“I know.” she said, chewing her lower lip, “B-but it’s still so frustrating. If I hadn’t... failed, then they wouldn’t be running around free to do whatever harm they please.” She covered part of her face with a fall of pink hair, “If anyone gets hurt by them it’ll be all my fault!”

Fancy Pants suppressed a sigh. He could sympathize with Posey's feelings, but he knew they had no real grounding. “There’s entirely no need to place unneeded blame upon your own shoulders. You’re no more responsible for the Ryoka’s escape than any one other individual present at that battle. Captain Hurricane himself-”

“Is not to blame!” Posey said, suddenly fierce, her eyes almost burning with fervent, near fanatical light. “He would never had those girls slip past him if I’d been there to support him! Because I lost to those rebel turncoats I... wasn’t where I should have been. I won’t hear any blame put towards my Captain.”

Eyes guarded, he looked Posey over. Her resemblance to her mother was striking. She barely carried a hint of Hurricane’s blood in her countenance, aside from the way her eyes could glow with such heated intensity when roused. Fancy Pants wondered if Pansy would’ve had a better influence on Posey, if she’d lived long enough to really know her daughter. Being stuck in Hurricane’s dubiously negligent shadow had never seemed to do the girl any favors, despite her talents as a Soul Reaper. The fanatical loyalty could be a danger as much as an asset.

Right now it was pushing Posey to pursue the Ryoka all the harder since her defeat, despite likely needing to rest. Fancy Pants knew well how draining Posey’s Zanpaktou was on her, both physically and mentally.

“I cast no blame upon anyone.” he said diplomatically, “I only point out you shouldn’t burden yourself with such feelings of guilt. It will slow you down and distract you during a critical moment. Focus solely upon our task. And consider that when we do find the Ryoka, you should avoid releasing your Zanpaktou.”

At her sour look he added, “I understand it's powerful, but it drains your strength quickly and leaves you in a mental state ill suited to our orders of capturing the Ryoka rather than killing them.”

“You don’t have to tell me that.” she said quietly, “I shouldn’t have released it on Clover and Nocturn. I could’ve killed them...”

“Allow me to do the lion’s share of the fighting, and just do what you can to support me.” Fancy Pants said, eyes narrowing at the courtyard, “Once we find our quarry, that is.”

They’d followed the trail of faint reiatsu to an empty well not far from the Fourth Division hospital, but had been unable to ascertain where it had gone from there. At least not specifically. However Fancy Pants was well informed about the practices of the other Divisions. He knew that the Second Division used all sorts of secret tunnels and passages to get around Seireitei quickly and undetected. No doubt the well had some entrance to such a tunnel, but without the right knowledge it’d be impossible to find or open said passage. Instead he merely used logic to guess where the Ryoka and their rebel allies might be going.

Their goal was to rescue Celestia and Luna. The only way to do that would be to infiltrate the Gotei 13’s headquarters. Logically the Second Division had a few passages leading inside, but Fancy Pants doubted it could be a straight shot from that well. More likely they’d have to get to another, closer passage. If Fancy Pants was a betting man he’d guess such a passage was built along the cliff side of the plateau, where there were plenty of nooks and crannies to easily hide the entrance to such a tunnel.

Meaning if the Ryoka were going to appear anywhere, it’d need to be around this area. Furthermore with both Hurricane and Thunderhoove’s Division’s fortifying the area and guarding it with so many Soul Reapers there was little doubt the Ryoka would need to create a diversion to provide them a window to sneak in.

He and Posey just had to keep their eyes out for such a distraction.

Minutes passed as he and Posey silently watched. Then Posey drew in a sharp breath and tugged Fancy Pant’s sleeve, pointing. Looking west, where she was pointing, Fancy Pants spotted a dark flicker of blue motion in the air. With dusk darkening to night the flying shadow was barely visible against the stretching night sky above, and no doubt none of the Soul Reapers on watch below could see the motion. Even Fancy Pants couldn’t be sure he wasn’t seeing a trick of the light, but given Posey's unblinking stare he imagined she was certain.

It was one of the Ryoka.

“Should we raise the alarm?” Posey asked, but Fancy Pants shook his head.

It was, perhaps, a foolish bit of pride on his part, but he thought he knew who that blue, flying shadow was, and a part of him was eager to finish what was started back in the human world without the interference of the masses of Soul Reapers that would come if the alarm was raised. Or maybe it was just guilt. He hadn’t agreed with all of Captain Platinum’s actions, and for once he wanted to act in accordance with his own sense of honor rather than suppress it in the name of duty.

“I think we can handle one Ryoka between us, Lieutenant. Come, I think we both have honor to regain, and our quarry flies swiftly. But not swiftly enough to escape us.”

----------

The training area was heated like an oven set to bake. The air was dry and oppressive, with every breath Sunset took, scorching her throat. Fires burned across the stone outcroppings in hungry streams, coating everything in a writhing orange glow. There wasn’t an inch of her that wasn’t slick with either sweat, blood, or both. Her muscles and bones screamed at her for rest, yet she was getting so numb to the pain that she felt less like she was in the fight and more like she was controlling a uncooperative puppet on leaden strings.

But she couldn’t stop fighting. Couldn’t conceive of giving up. It was by will alone that her spirit energy refused to flag, sustaining her battered body as the battle with Hokori wore on. Sunset had long lost count of the hours that had passed. For all she knew days had gone by. Time was simply starting to cease to have meaning, or it would if not for the fact that she knew just how little of it she had left.

She heard the crackle of the fire before she saw it, and on instinct alone Flash Stepped away, throwing herself up and over the boulder she’d been using for cover. A beam of concentrated heat consumed the rock in a deep orange swath, melting the stone to molten rivulets that bisected the boulder even as Sunset avoided the devastating attack.

Hokori laughed, standing a few dozen yards away, her blade burning hot and the tip still glowing from her attack. “You’re running out of steam as fast as you’re running out of places to hide, Sunset.”

“Who’s hiding!?” Sunset snapped, appearing behind Hokori and wrapping her arms around the demoness in a tight arm lock, binding her sword arm while getting her other arm around Hokori’s neck. “I was just waiting for you to use all that fire you had stored up.”

“Tch, please, I wasn’t talking about that!” Hokori spat, elbowing back with her shield arm, catching Sunset in the ribs. Sunset took the blow with a grunt, but didn’t loosen her hold on Hokori’s sword arm. The reason she’d waited until Hokori has used up her stored flames was so that she could do this without burning her own arm. Now she twisted hard and used all the leverage she could gain to try and dislocate Hokori’s elbow.

“Then what are you talking about? You keep telling me to get over my fear, but what do you think I’m so damned afraid of, other than losing my friends!?” Sunset said with heated frustration as she kept bending Hokori’s arm. In response the Zanpaktou spirit hissed out a bitter laugh and slammed her head backwards, catching Sunset under the chin and knocking her away.

Sunset recovered in time to avoid Hokori’s follow up swing, but Hokori pressed in, forcing Sunset to focus entirely on evading while Hokori spoke in blistering words. “Do you really think your friends can’t handle themselves? Do you have so little pride in them you think you’ll really leave them behind if you keep reaching greater heights!? Do you think they’ll hate you? Become jealous of you? Why do you keep holding me back!”

Hokori’s blade swung faster and faster, a whistling buzz like a deadly humming bird of steel, and Sunset took a nasty cut along her right forearm that stung terribly. Sunset, biting back a scream, stepped into the reach of Hokori’s next strike and slammed her knee into Hokori’s gut, causing the demoness to back off for a second so Sunset could catch her breath.

While the arm wound hurt, Hokori’s words hurt more, making Sunset shudder as thoughts spilled through her head. The images of her friends dying were still there, heavy and stark as ever, but there were thoughts underneath all that that rose up like rotten bubbles from a deep swamp. Fear of her own power, and what it might do to her friendships. The pride she had in her abilities and what she might do with them was a powerful flame indeed, but flames needed fuel to burn, and a part of Sunset was fearful that it was her bonds with her friends that might end up being burnt up in the process of getting stronger.

In her mind's eye she could see herself blazing forward like a phoenix, yet in doing so casting a wide shadow as she left her friends further and further behind her.

She’d grown up knowing the tales of Celestia’s reign and the way that had led to bitter feelings of jealousy in her sister Luna, leading to Luna’s fall into Nightmare Moon.

While she knew her friends would never turn like that, what if Sunset lost her connection to them by becoming so strong that the only thing she could do was protect them, rather than fight beside them?

“You’re saying I’m afraid of becoming stronger... because it might mean leaving my friends behind?” she whispered.

Hokori huffed, murderously glaring and pointing her sword at Sunset’s chest. “I’m your Pride, Sunset Shimmer, but you’re still afraid of me, even if you accept me. You’re afraid if you let me burn too bright, you won’t be able to see your friends clearly anymore. Which is freaking stupid and it pisses me off! You're afraid of all these things you have total control over if you just stop worrying about them.”

Hokori rushed forward, flames erupting once more from her sword, and Sunset had to reel back from the searing swing.

“If you don’t want someone you love to be hurt, you shield them!” Hokori shouted, and swung again, the flames of the sword burning hotter.

“If you face a foe who stands in your way, you burn them!” The blade exploded with dancing flames that went from bright orange to shining azure in the span of a single swing, Sunset still desperately trying to dodge as Hokori pressed the attack.

“And if you’re afraid of leaving your friends behind, shine brightly as the beacon they follow!”

Sunset found herself trapped up against the edge of hot springs, the water seeming to boil from all the heat in the air. She faced Hokori as the demoness advanced, and she grit her teeth as she braced herself to dodge the next attack even as she met Hokori’s eyes and said, finally acknowledging the doubts that still lingered inside her that now colored her voice, “What if we can’t, Hokori? Even if we win in the battles to come, what if we can’t wait for them to follow us? I... I thought this power was a wonderful thing. That it’d let me keep my friends safe, no matter what threatens us. But what if all this power is what cuts me off from them, and I just... end up alone again?”

She hadn’t really faced this fear, only buried it under the joys of discovering friendship once again. But it hadn’t been that long, truly, since she’d been alone. An alone, self-absorbed, power hungry girl who hadn’t remotely grasped the value of having friends. If Sunset was being honest with herself, she was still terrified of losing that friendship. It still felt very new, in a lot of ways, and fragile, having friends. They had forgiven her, and she’d forgiven herself, for her past transgressions. She’d learned to accept her place in the group and grown comfortable with the feeling of belonging that came with it.

She didn’t want to lose that. She didn’t want to be alone.

If she got stronger alongside Hokori, and moved ahead of all of her friends, would that mean leaving them all behind?

Hokori spat, anger twisting her face. “That’s the fear that’s weakening us both. You either need to get over it, or there was never any point in awakening your Pride in the first place! And quite frankly I’m done playing around with you.”

When Hokori moved it was with a blazing Flash Step that left a azure trail of fire in her wake. Sunset grasped at her flagging spirit energy, her will shaken by Hokori’s words, and Flash Stepped as well, flickering away to evade. They both appeared in the hot springs, Hokori’s blade slamming down with a blast of flames that exploded into the water and created an expanding cloud of scalding steam. Sunset cried out as the steam burned her, even as she Flash Stepped away, bursting away from the cloud and stumbling along the wall of another cliff beside the hot spring. Hokori caught up with her, slashing a bright blue path of destruction with her sword. Sunset dove forward, feeling the heat in a wave over her back as Hokori’s strike narrowly missed and impacted with the cliff face instead. Rock exploded outward in a large, melted path that tore out a portion of the cliff, and caused the top portion of it to start collapsing in a rumbling avalanche.

Rolling to her feet and dodging away from falling rocks, Sunset pulled up as much spirit energy as she could and prepared to cast another Kido. She had to get back on the offensive, otherwise she’d just run out of stamina trying to avoid Hokori. Fortunately that avalanche might slow Hokori down a bit and give Sunset time to finish her Kido...

Only Hokori didn’t let the avalanche of falling cliff chunks slow her down at all. She crashed right through them, smashing rocks apart with her sword as she charged Sunset, who was caught by complete surprise by how fast and viciously direct Hokori’s movements were. Sunset had barely begun to chant the Kido, and was too off balance to Flash Step.

She felt an oddly cold impact that wasn’t so much painful as it was just strangely numbing.

The Kido energy faded from her hand as Sunset seemed to have trouble keeping her arms raised. She tasted something metallic at the back of her throat, and soon realized it was blood. With wavering eyes she glanced down.

Hokori’s sword was rammed halfway through her stomach, the steel no longer burning, but just sitting like a dull black spike through her flesh with blood already dripping out in slow crimson rivers. In front of her Hokori stood without any look of satisfaction on her face, just angry, tired resignation.

“So, that’s that then. Doesn’t look like either of us can go any further.”

Hokori’s voice sounded more bitter and sad than angry or triumphant as she pulled the sword free. Sunset found herself sinking to her knees a her blood stained the ground beneath her. Above her, Hokori raised her Zanpaktou, the broadsword stained red with Sunset’s blood and reflecting the surrounding flames in dark red shadows.

“I guess the last thing I can do for you is make the final stroke quick.”

Nearby, atop the partially destroyed cliff, Ditzy Doo watched, eyes unreadable, and making no move to interfere with the course of events. Her eyes were locked on Sunset however, unblinking.

For Sunset it was as if time had halted, her eyes staring into the streams of blood falling from her and painting the ground around her knees like a latticework. Whether it was her tired mind, going delirious with exhaustion and blood loss, or something deeper inside her psyche, Sunset thought she could see things in the blood. Images passing like misty phantoms.

She saw herself as a pony in Equestria, studying under Princess Celestia. So full of promise and pride, but always alone. She didn’t push other ponies away so much as she just... raced ahead of them. She didn’t have time for friends, because she’d been galloping forward so fast that she just didn’t have time to slow down for anypony else. She’d galloped so fast she’d raced straight into another world in pursuit of finding her full potential.

Then she’d run face first into a wall called Twilight Sparkle and her friends at Canterlot High, and the magic of friendship that’d taken her headlong gallop and stopped it dead in its tracks. Yet she hadn’t felt like her potential had been stunted, only that a whole new door of possibilities had been opened for her. With her friends she thought she could learn so many new things, learn to be a better pony... a better person.

She saw herself with her Canterlot High friends, learning to forgive herself, to stand up to the sirens, to lead them in the Friendship Games and befriend a whole new Twilight and save her from making the same mistakes Sunset had. She treasured those friends now more than anything else in her life. She couldn’t even bring herself to return to Equestria, because in truth her life and the people she loved most were here in the human world.

And the thought of losing them was overwhelming.

She saw painted in images of her own blood sights being unable to protect her friends, seeing them broken by threats like Grogar or Platinum, Hurricane or the mysterious Starlight Glimmer. Were her friends strong enough to survive such dangers without her?

But she also saw other images that scared her just as much. Images of her flush with unimaginable power, crushing all enemies that came before her... and her friends becoming nothing more than small shadows in her wake, so distant that Sunset might as well have been fighting alone.

That power she took such Pride in... she didn’t want it if it meant leaving the people she loved behind. Being separated from them as thoroughly as if she couldn’t protect them.

You’re being such an idiot.

Sunset didn’t know where the voice came from. It sounded like her own, but somehow, just a shade different. Just like Hokori’s voice was so similar to her own voice, but with a powerful and confident streak, this voice sounded like hers, but with a gentle and wise note that reminded Sunset of Princess Celestia.

You know your friends won’t resent your power, Sunset. They respect who you are, and just as much as you are inspired by their loyalty, kindness, honesty, generosity, and laughter... they are inspired by your pride in yourself and the way you shine so brightly for them. They won’t be left behind by you, they’ll grow even stronger by following your example. But only if you stop fearing yourself, and realize you’ll never be alone as long as you have pride in your friends as much as you do in yourself.

That was it. She’d forgotten. She had Pride in herself, but that Pride could also extend to her friends, and she’d lost sight of that feeling because she’d been so afraid of being alone that she’d forgotten her friends had Pride too. Pride she could show them how to follow, so they’d burn bright right alongside her!

Hokori’s blade slashed down with cold, bitter finality... only to be intercepted by Sunset’s hand clamping around Hokori’s wrist.

Blood poured from Sunset’s wound, and dripped from her mouth, but she stood up in front of Hokori, and met the Zanpaktou spirit’s shocked eyes.

“I’m not afraid anymore, Hokori. Thank you, for showing me just how stupid I was being.”

And suddenly fire, pure white, erupted from Sunset’s body, forcing Hokori to leap backwards to avoid the brilliant heat.

When the flames cleared, Sunset was standing, the wound in her stomach sizzling shut with tongues of white fire seeming to burn away the injury. Sunset raised her hand towards Hokori, “You’ve been holding out on me. You never told me you had a sister.”

The shield in Hokori’s hand suddenly burst into white flames, which then streamed and flowed to Sunset’s waiting hand, taking shape into a shield once more.

Hokori rolled her eyes, sighing, “You don’t really know anything about Zanpaktou, so I was kind of hoping you’d never figure it out. Dual Zanpaktou have twin spirits. You always focused so much on using me for attacking, I thought you might never realized my sister shield had a spirit of her own.”

Looking at the shield in her hand, Sunset commented, “And until I got over my fears I couldn’t hear her. But why push me so hard, instead of just telling me about her in the first place?”

Hokori’s eyes glanced away, saddened, “You know you’re not the only one afraid of being alone. I liked having you rely on me. Even if you accept your Pride, I’m still a reminder of some of your worst mistakes. If you had... her to rely on too, thought maybe you wouldn’t need me anymore.

And that’s why you’re both idiots. But I am too, because I was too scared to reach out to either of you, spoke that same kind voice in Sunset’s head, only it now sounded out from the blade in her hand. Suddenly a stream of white flame rose from the blade and took a shape Sunset knew just as well as Hokori’s demoness form.

The angelic looking version of Sunset Shimmer wore an elegant dress of white and pink, with burning gold and orange gauntlets and boots with flame and wing motifs. A band of red color crossed over the flesh around her eyes, and her hair fluttered about like living flame. Wings of gold and white light formed from her back, and a tall, straight horn of white fire rose from her head.

Somehow, just like with Hokori, Sunset knew this spirit’s name without needing to be told.

“Hikari...” (Light)

She looked between both spirits, blinking in realization. “My Zanpaktou’s full name is Hokori Hikari?”

“Technically it's Hokori no Hikari.” Hokori said with a reluctant grumble, “Pride’s Light.”

“Just wait until you learn your Bankai’s name on top of that, that’s even more of a mouthful.” said Hikari said with a breathy chuckle. To this Hokori let out a harsh growl.

“Hey! Don’t get ahead of yourself, Hikari! She still hasn’t earned Bankai yet! We’re not done here!”

Hikari slapped a palm to her forehead, “Really, Hokori!? She hasn’t proven herself to you yet!? What does she have to do, crawl around in molten lava? Dance on broken glass? Don’t you think you’ve tested her enough? You nearly killed her just now for crying out loud!”

“Well if she couldn’t stand the heat then she wasn’t going to be able to handle our Bankai, would she?” Hokori said, voice turning mocking, “You’d just hold her hand and guide her along like a little child! I’m the one who’s best suited to training her! She responds best to pressure and being slapped around some.”

“Getting stabbed in the gut isn’t being ‘slapped around some’.” stated Hikari firmly, “That’s like teaching someone to swim by tossing them into a shark tank.”

“Hey, I’d say those sharks would serve as excellent motivation to learn how to swim fast.”

Sunset cleared her throat loudly, causing both her Zanpaktou spirits to look at her. “So what happens now? I still need to finish my training, and while I’m glad to finally meet the other half of my Zanpaktou... there’s still a lot of work to do.”

Hikari nodded solemnly, “And much as I dislike the fact, Hokori won’t allow you to reach Bankai until she’s satisfied.” She glanced at her demonic counterpart. “However I take it Hokori won’t object if I play my own part in this and lend Sunset my shield?”

Hokori licked her lips and hefted her blade, “Do as you like, sister. I won’t submit until Sunset crushes me into the dirt. That’s my way, as much as your milk toast coddling is your way.”

“Very well then...” Hikari’s form blazed with luminous white fire, and in seconds the angelic woman was flowing into the shape of Sunset’s shield, strapped to her left arm.

Once more the two squared off, and Sunset found herself chuckling a little, to which Hokori glared.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, heh... it's just, this is a lot like the times I’ve had arguments with myself. You and Hikari really are a part of me, right down to the way I tend to fight with myself over anything that I think matters. But we don’t have time for that now, Hokori, so I’m going to make this quick. You got what you wanted, I’m not afraid and won’t be holding you back anymore.”

“Still need you to come and prove those words.” Hokori said, flames ignited across her blade once more, “Beat me, completely and utterly, and you’ll have your Bankai. Maybe with Hikari giving you a hand you might actually-”

Sunset Flash Stepped, a white streak of motion, and slammed Hikari's shield straight into Hokori’s face, propelling the demoness into the fallen pile of rock rubble from the previous avalanche like she was a pinball.

“I think we’ll manage.” Sunset said with a wry grin.

The rock pile exploded outward, Hokori, bleeding from the nose, grinning madly as she threw rocks aside, “Okay. It. Is. On.”

And so the two clashed again, the night continuing on outside the hidden, underground training area... time passing with the slowness of grains of sand falling one at a time from an hourglass, not just for Soul Society, but all other realms as well.

----------

The chamber was among the largest in the Silbern. Its ceiling rose to a vaulted set of shadows a hundred feet above, and its cold stone floor was covered in dark violet carpeting. Along the walls banners of white silk fell with symbols of the five-pointed Quincy cross stitched in brilliant silver. The table that took up the center of the room was patterned with that same five pointed cross shape, each arm of the cross having five chairs, two to each side and one at the end of the arm; twenty five in all. The center of the table was dominated by a podium upon which a twenty sixth chair sat, a tall backed and elegant affair of black cut mahogany.

Men and women in the shining white uniforms of the Quincy sat at the various chairs, among them Night Light, his wife Twilight Velvet, and across from them their son Shining Armor and his lover Cadence. Of the others present there were those who looked bored, such as Fluer De Lis, while others such as Spitfire and Lightning Dust looked as eager as bloodhounds about to be unleashed for the hunt.

The room was dead silent. Not a single Quincy, every single one of them an elite Sternritter, greatest of His Majesty’s forces, dared to speak a word until their King arrived.

He didn’t keep them waiting long. Shadows curled up from the back hair, tendrils forming into Sombra’s shape as he took form sitting there, gazing upon his most potent servants.

He let a brief moment of silence reign before he spoke in deep, grim words.

“You all know why we are gathered. You all understand the affront for which the Hollows must answer; our trainees, the young lifeblood of our Quincy lines slain. Blood calls for blood, and so we gather, my precious Sternritter, to plan our retribution upon Las Noches and the Arrancar that infest it like rats.”

Sombra’s eyes glanced to the side, as if he was seeing something off in the distance, and he smiled. The smile was a wide one, and of the kind many of the Sternritter had seen before. It left many of them uncomfortable, for His Majesty often saw things they did not.

“Now,” he said, “For the first matter to decide, the assault will require two leaders. One who will command the forces to draw out the Arrancar, and one to lead the team I shall task with the specific goal of slaughtering the Espada responsible for the Garganta that breached our wards.”

“If I may speak, your Majesty?” asked Spitfire, and Sombra gave a brief nod of his head, after which she continued, “The task of slaying the Espada who created the Garganta should belong to myself and my fellow Academy instructors. It's only right it be us that destroy that bastard!”

Fleur De Lis snorted, “You’ve already failed once? Why should you be given another chance? Why not allow someone with a bit more power hunt down the Espada?”

Not far away, at an adjoining arm of the table, a man with light brown skin and darker brown hair that was slicked back in a fine, expensive looking hair cut chuckled dryly, “Correct me if I’m wrong but didn’t you fail to pacify a single Soul Reaper who’d only just learned her Shikai? Not an impressive mark on your record of performance, is it?”

Fleur turned hot eyes towards the man, “Shut it, Filthy Rich. When was the last time you took to the battlefield instead of the boardroom? Or are you too busy getting ‘attention’ under the table from that two dollar whore you call a wife to think straight?”

Filthy Rich’s eyes narrowed dangerously, “Insult my wife again and you’ll find what’s left of your skull painting the floor.”

Sombra’s voice fell like the blows of a hammer on an anvil. “Strange, I don’t recall granting permission for my Sternritter to squabble like children.”

Fleur and Filthy Rich snapped their mouths shout and went deathly silent, both bowing their heads in deference to their King.

“Ah, silence. Good. Now, personal squabbles and desires aside, the one I feel best suited to tracking down and destroying the Espada in question shall be Cadence, who shall be free to pick two other Sternritter to assist her in her task. As for overall command, Night Light shall take that role as field general below myself.”

None were surprised by Night Light as a choice for command, given his Sternritter Schrift was C; the Command. However more than a few eyes were sent curiously towards Cadence. Why was she being picked to hunt down the Espada that was marked for death? There were far more directly powerful Sternritter than her. But none dared question His Majesty’s choice, and all remained silent as Night Light and Cadence both nodded their acknowledgment of their King’s commands.

“Now, before we all become too eager, allow me to point out what should be obvious to most of you. The attack upon us was clearly meant to provoke us to this very action.” Sombra said, leaning an elbow on the arm of his chair and resting his chin on his hand, “Tirek will no doubt have a ‘clever’ trap laid out for us. Allow me to deal with that trap personally. Our objective in this is solely to destroy the Espada capable of creating Garganta that bypass our wards. Any additional retribution we can inflict upon the Hollows is immaterial to that single tactical goal. We must draw them out, spring their trap, and engage the bulk of their forces while Cadence and her team locates and eliminates the target. Once that is accomplished, we withdraw. Is this understood?”

The nods around the table were unanimous.

“Then we will begin our attack in one week’s time. Sufficient for our wounded trainees to recover.”

That got Twilight Velvet to speak, almost against her own will, “The trainees, your Majesty? Why would we need to wait for them to recover?”

Sombra’s strange smile widened.

“Because they shall be accompanying the assault, of course.”

Author's Notes:

Whew, a lot to fit into one chapter. Set ups for Dash and Fluttershy's fights, getting all the Captains moving in the right directions for the finale of the arc, and of course the real highlight of the chapter... Sunset facing the core of her fear and learning her Zanpaktou has two spirits.

For those curious, this is very much a part of Bleach lore. The few examples we have of dual Zanpaktou in the manga all have dual spirits that go along with them.

Shinsui's Katen Kyokotsu takes the form of two lovely ladies as well:

And Ukitake's Sogyo no Kotowari takes the form of these two adorable twin kids:

So with that in mind when I was figuring things out about Sunset Shimmer's Zanpaktou, one of the first things I decided was what both her Zanpaktou spirits would be. Of course Hokori took center stage early on because she's, well, Sunset's Pride and had plenty of reason to suppress her sister spirit, very much out of fear that Sunset might rely more on Hikari over herself. If you guys remember how Sunset's Zanpaktou inner world is set up, there's the throne room (Hokori's half of it) and then there was the school, which was Hikari's half. Only when Sunset went through there before, the school was empty, because Hokori was suppressing Hikari, in part with unwitting help from Sunset's own fears.

But with that fear faced and overcome, Sunset now knows her Zanpaktou full name, and has a clear path to Bankai. Of course Hokori still insists on finishing their fight, but hey, that's just her way.

Oh, and the Quincy are moving forward with their plans, and Sombra's apparently planning something for the Quincy trainees. I bet Twilight Velvet is just thrilled about that.

Anyways, thanks again all you fine folks for reading and hope you're all still enjoying things. As always leave any comments, critiques, or questions you like. I appreciate all the feedback immensely. 'Till next time!

Episode 49: Thunderstruck

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Episode 49: Thunderstruck

Rainbow Dash tore across the night sky, not even bothering to look anywhere else but at her intended target, the fast approaching warehouse where the fireworks were contained. Stealth wasn’t really her forte, but speed was, and in this case she hoped she could get this job done so fast that no one would have a chance to spot her before it was too late. So far things seemed to be going alright. She didn’t hear any shouts or banging alarm gongs as she landed atop the slanted, tiled roof of the warehouse.

Taking a deep breath, she slid to the edge of the roof and glanced down, where there was a smaller, slanted tier of roofing alongside numerous wood panel window shutters. Hopping down, she quickly tried to pry the first window she came to open, only to find it latched shut. Well, no problem there! Cracking her knuckles, she charged up her first with a fierce glow of blue lightning, and with a solid punch blasted the shuttered window open. Doing so made plenty of noise, but she didn’t care. She’d be in and out in no time!

Jumping through the window, Rainbow Dash found herself in a large room that looked like it took up almost the entirety of the building's interior, save for a few side rooms behind barred doors. The chamber was filled with numerous stacked crates and barrels, lined up in neat and ordered rows and stacked high enough that some of them nearly reached to the roof. Rainbow Dash flew down to land on the floor, eyes alert for the sight of any barrels marked as Nocturn had described to her. Wasting not a single second she started zipping around the rows of crates, a blue blur of motion as she rushed around, seeking the barrels of fireworks. It took her less than a minute to find them, nearly twenty barrels stacked high alongside the southeast wall.

“Sweet!” she grinned, eyes twinkling with mischievous delight. Once she lit these barrels with some lightning she’d just zip right back out and let the explosions commence! Sparks of electrical energy licked between her fingers as she prepared to zap the first barrel. Just before she discharged the electrical blast, however, she sensed a sudden pair of spiritual pressures close by. She hadn’t been specifically concentrating on sensing any reiatsu, so this pair was all but on top of her before she felt them. Her pony ears twitched as she heard muffled chanting from outside the warehouse.

She turned just in time to see the warehouse’s front doors, tall wooden affairs crossed by wood beams, blasted open by what had to be some kind of attack Kido, and two forms darting inside. Rainbow Dash saw two Soul Reapers standing before her, staring her down from across the warehouse, and recognized them both. One was that gentlemanly fellow with the blue mustache, Schmancy Fants, or something like that. Captain Platinum’s Lieutenant. The other was that weird Fluttershy lookalike who apparently went balls to the wall crazy and was responsible for Nocturn’s current lack of a limb. Also an Lieutenant.

On one hand, Rainbow Dash wanted to swear under her breath, because a pair of Lieutenants might seriously cramp her style. On the other hand, she was filled a competitive buzz of excitement, because taking on two Lieutenants might be a nice challenge for her. Beating up lower ranked Soul Reapers hadn't given her much of a stretch of her wings, and Hurricane had been way too overbearing, so maybe these two would give her a good gauge on just how strong she was.

“Ah, Miss Rainbow Dash, I knew had to have been you.” said the dude with the blue hair, “I do hope you remember me?”

“Uhhh...Pantsy Schmants?”

The Fluttershy clone choked out a clearly unintentional laugh as mustache man sighed heavily and gave Rainbow Dash a flat look. “Lieutenant Fancy Pants, if you would be so kind as to remember from now on. And my associate is Lieutenant Posey.”

‘Um, hi?” Posey said, hand on her sword, but her other one giving a nervous wave.

“Yo.” Rainbow Dash said with a front of confident and casual bravado, crossing her arms over her chest and flaring her wings out, letting the wings buzz with arcs of streaming electric light. “So where’s the rest of your posse? You two don’t seriously think you're taking me down by yourselves, do you?”

Fancy Pants smiled thinly, “I’d prefer not to involve the lower ranks in a battle between peers. It's heartening to see you so confident, as I felt a strain on my honor at the notion of battling you two on one. However if you feel your skills up to the task then I’ll consider my honor satisfied and have no qualms taking you down alongside my fellow Lieutenant.”

“Good to know.” said Dash, cracking her knuckles and getting into a combat ready stance. “‘Cause I wasn’t planning to take it easy on you guys anyway.”

Fancy Pants and Posey both drew their Zanpaktou with cold steel echoes of ringing metal. Rainbow Dash watched them both tense, and she found she could read their balance, they way they were holding themselves, to gauge what they were about to do. When both Soul Reapers Flash Stepped, Rainbow Dashs’s eyes darted left and right, following their movements. After training with Ditzy Doo, and facing down the likes of Hurricane, these two didn’t seem all that quick.

Rainbow Dash found she had little trouble ducking under Fancy Pants’ slash that went high for her head, while throwing herself into a horizontal spin that let her jump over Posey’s low swinging sword. While in mid jump she flared out both her metallic wings, while her four lightning wings discharged electricity down their metallic counterparts’ length. The wings’ sharp, electrified edges caught both Soul Reaper’s blades and sent a burst of lightning down into them. The shock of electricity knocked both Fancy Pants and Posey backwards, throwing the later into a stack of cracks while the former managed to keep his feet under him as he skidded along the ground.

Rainbow Dash didn’t slow down for a second, touching off the ground with one foot to launch herself headlong into flight straight at Fancy Pants. She saw his eyes go wide with surprise as she threw a straight punch at his face. Fancy Pants barely stepped back from the blow in time to avoid getting his face smashed in. Dash didn’t let up, flying back and forth at greater and greater speed, until she was leaving indigo after images of herself as she launched speedy punches and kicks at Fancy Pants. He struggled to keep up, visibly taken off guard by Rainbow Dash’s speed as he flickered around with rapid Flash Steps to try and avoid or parry her blows, and only barely managing to do so.

Then Rainbow Dash kicked up her speed another notch, and this time landed a solid punch straight to the Lieutenant’s gut, discharging a dose of electricity in a blue jolt down her arm into the Soul Reaper, the strike sending him flying into the side of the warehouse wall hard enough to leave a spiderweb of cracks in it.

Fancy Pants coughed, almost falling, but caught himself and remained standing as he blinked at her.

“You’ve improved...” he said between gasping breaths.

Rainbow Dash grinned and held up a fist, lightning crackling around it. “I ain’t even busted out half of what I can do, buddy. Wanna keep going?”

He returned her grin with a thin smile of his own, brushing himself off. “As it happens, yes. After all, we haven’t shown you all we can do yet either. Neither I or Lieuteanant Posey can feel satisifed with ourselves if we do less than our best to defeat you. I, for honor’s sake, her for more personal reasons.”

There was a thud as the crates Posey had been tossed into got pushed aside, and the young woman stood up from the mess, shaking herself off of dust. Posey looked nervously at Fancy Pants. “Sh-she’s really strong. I might have to release Kyoki again. Oh, I wish I didn’t have to do this.”

“Hold, Posey.” said Fancy Pants, “Don’t release your blade. Allow me first, at least, so you might spare yourself the strain. I know what Kyoki does to you.”

“O-okay...” Posey said, but her eyes narrowed at Rainbow Dash. “Just as long as we don’t let her get away.”

“Feels good to be popular.” Rainbow Dash muttered. She’d have just lit the fireworks by now, fairly confident these two could escape the blast in time. But she didn’t think she’d be able to shake them before reaching the secret entrance Nocturn would led the others to. She had to knock these two out to be in the clear.

She flared out her wings and charged her fists with more streams of cobalt lightning. She rushed Fancy Pants again, not intending to give him a chance to unleash his Shikai. Competitive or not, this wasn’t the time or place for playing fair. However before she could reach him Posey ended up appearing next to the onrushing Dash in a blinking Flash Step, forcing her to veer away from Posey’s thrusting blade. Rainbow Dash wheeled around and sent a punishing blast of lightning at Posey, forcing the Lieutenant to Flash Step away as the arc of electricity burned a destructive path up the wall, tearing great chunks from it.

The moment had given Fancy Pants enough time to hold his Zanpaktou aloft, the katana glowing bright yellow light.

”Keep thy promise; Seiyaku.” (Oath Bound)

The katana was covered in a yellow and silver sheen of light that extended and warped the blade’s shape until Fancy Pants was holding a tall spear with a small, leaf shaped point. From the upper shaft of the spear, just below the spearhead, was an elegant blue banner edged with gold and displaying a complex Japanese kanji in white that Rainbow Dash didn’t know. She dug Japanese cartoons, but couldn’t read the language at all.

Rainbow Dash looked the transformed Zanpaktou up and down, “So, what’s it do? I know these things get all sorts of freaky powers. What’s the deal with yours?”

“I’ll allow you to deduce that for yourself.” Fancy Pants said, both hands gripping the length of the spear as he flourished the weapon, the banner rippling. “I swear to defeat you within the next five minutes with Lieutenant Posey’s help, but without her releasing her own Shikai.”

Rainbow Dash tilted her head in curious wonderment as Fancy Pants words seemed to resonate with his Zanpaktou, and the banner started to slowly vanish, starting with the very tip sparkling away in slow motes of gold light. Her confusion was matched only by her surprise when Fancy Pants threw himself at her at easily three times the speed he’d been moving at before.

“The heck-!?” Rainbow Dash grunted as she deftly avoided his first wickedly fast thrust, the spear grazing her cheek, and then used her left hand to quickly redirect the shaft as another thrust went low for her sternum. She flew up, planning to flatten him with lightning, only to find Fancy Pants Flash Stepping to keep up with her, leaping into the air and twirling his spear. The banner flapped along with it, trailing gold light from the very slowly vanishing fabric.

They clashed in mid-air several times, Rainbow Dash a flying streak of electric light and Fancy Pants leaving a trail of golden motes as he jumped after her. Each time the spear of his Seiyaku reached for Dash’s vulnerable flesh, but she battled it aside each time with well timed parries of her electrically charged fists or her shining metallic wings.

Posey joined in the fray, biting her lower lip in clear frustration as she tried to help Fancy Pants box Rainbow Dash in. Stacks of crates were tossed around like a child's play blocks as the trio jumped and flew in blazing, clashing flickers of motion around the warehouse. Still, while Fancy Pants was moving much faster now, and his strikes came with a lot more power behind them, Rainbow Dash realized she was still able to hold her own. As she blocked another of his hefty strikes, both arms crossing to absorb a slam from the spear’s shaft, she said, “Ugh, so you just got way stronger, and that banner thing is slowly fading away. So, what, you set a time limit to beat me and that gives you a power boost?”

“Something like that.” Fancy Pants said, reversing the grip on his spear and spinning it around fast enough to catch Dash in the ribs with a blow strong enough to nearly send her flying into the wall of the warehouse. She caught herself at the last second, bruised but still very much in the fight.

“Neat, so what was with the bit with Fluttercopy not using her Zanpaktou? Seriously, you guys don’t need to hold back on me.”

Posey visibly looked stricken, holding her Zanpaktou in an unsteady grip. “F-Fluttercopy? Please, um, call me by my name. Posey. I... I don’t even look that much like your friend. Do I?”

Rainbow Dash just looked at her flatly, and pointed while stating dryly, “Lady, aside from like being two shades off color you could be Flutter's sister. That aside, why doesn’t Fancydude want you using your Shikai? Not that I’m minding, really, I just don’t get why. If you both go all out you guys might get me.”

Fancy Pants interrupted any response Posey might have given by leaping at Rainbow Dash once more, his spear flickering in a blue streak that forced her to quickly twist aside, and even then Fancy had moved fast enough to clip her side while the rest of his spear impacted the wall and tore a huge chunk out of the warehouse’s side in a shower of wood and plaster.

“Focus less on our own reasons and concern yourself with defending your life, Miss Dash!” he said as he landed on the wall from his earlier jump, then leaped from it and drove his spear once more at Dash in a flurry of swift thrusts almost too fast for her to see. Dash ducked and wove between the seeking blade, bursts of electricity building in a growing arc among her six wings, turning even the metallic ones a bright cerulean blue.

“Defense?” she muttered, “Dude, you’re still underestimating me. I haven’t been defending myself, I’ve been building up energy.”

Her evolved Fullbring had drastically increased her speed from what it had been before, and had also expanded the ways in which she could use her electricity. One of those methods was building up a charge through constant movement. She hadn’t unleashed any large bolts of lightning specifically because she’d been spending all of that time dodging Fancy Pants’ attacks to charge herself up, not bothering with counterattacks until she had enough for one decisive blow.

In a dizzying display of speed she moved through Fancy Pants spear, her blue afterimage seeming to be impaled, but the real Dash slipping through his guard until she was right in front of him, both fists pulled back as so much electricity surrounded them that they looked like swirling blue spheres of raw power. Fancy Pants had no time to respond besides a single, shocked eyeblink before Dash thrust both fists into his stomach.

”Lightning Fist Flash!” she cried, discharging her stored lightning into Fancy Pants from both of her impacting fists.

Thunderous noise split the air, and a torrent of lightning cracked the warehouse’s north wall, filling the building with pure white light that spat from every window. When the light faded there was a good fifteen foot hole blasted through the warehouse, leaving a scorched trail about twenty meters down the street outside that still crackled with fading tongues of electricity. Fancy Pants was at the end of that line of cracked street, remarkably still standing, although he was marred by burn marks and his hair frizzed on its ends, still sparking with remnant lightning. He was leaning on his spear, shaking.

“Lieutenant!” Posey shouted, rushing out to him while Rainbow Dash remained where she was, glancing at the barrels of fireworks.

Now’s my chance! Dash realized, and rushed to the barrels while Posey and Fancy Pants were temporarily outside the warehouse.

She shoved a quick, small discharge of lightning into one of the barrels, and in seconds smoke started to fizzle out of it as she heard multiple fuses get lit up. Not hesitating for a second Rainbow Dash flew out of the hole she’d blasted Fancy Pants through, and an instant later there was a rolling series of calamitous explosions of light and color as literally hundreds of fireworks started to go off inside the warehouse. Within moments windows were bursting open and the roof was exploding outward as flashing colors of bursting fireworks rose into the night sky with screaming whines and shrieks of noise.

Rainbow Dash was about to fly off as fast s she could, hoping that Fancy Pants would be too injured to follow her, and Posey too distracted to do the same, but she only got a fraction of the distance out of the courtyard before something wrapped around her leg and yanked her to the ground.

She glanced behind her to see a blazing orange line of crackling spirit energy wrapped around her left leg, the binding Kido held by Posey as she stared with hard eyes at Dash while Fancy Pants struggled to remain standing nearby.

“Lieutenant Posey,” Fancy Pants said past clenched teeth, “Stand down. I...I shall... finish this...”

He wobbled on his feet, barely holding his spear up, and by now the banner itself had all but vanished. Posey looked at him, eyes shining with worry, but also resolve.

“I’m sorry Fancy Pants, but I can’t do that. You’ve done all you can. She’s just too much for you alone, and only I’m left to fight. I know it's dangerous, but we can’t let her escape. Just, um, be ready to hold me back, to bring me back to myself before I hurt her too badly, okay?”

Fancy Pants shook his head, “Posey... don’t. Your blade, it costs you too much.”

“If I can better serve my father, it’s worth it.”

By now Dash had charged her right hand with a flare of lightning and gripped the rope of binding Kido energy wrapping her leg, tearing through the bond to free herself. Just as she was standing up, Posey raised her Zanpaktou and Rainbow Dash felt the sudden, violent rise of spirit energy from the Soul Reaper.

”Frenzy, K-”

Fancy Pant’s spear shaft ended up smacking into the back of Posey’s head. She went out like a light, Fancy Pants catching her with one arm and gently lowering her to the ground. Rainbow Dash just blinked.

“Uh, the heck was that about?”

Fancy Pants, still shaking from his injuries, brushed some of Posey’s hair from her face, and then stood to face Rainbow Dash. “Her Zanpaktou is more dangerous than she realizes. Not just to her enemies, but to herself. Every time she releases it, the way it twists her personality, it leaves her mind just a shade more warped even after the blade is re-sealed. It will take many years, perhaps as long as a century, but in time the kind girl she is will slowly vanish and only a blood hungry monster will remain. Since her father doesn’t seem to care about that fact, I take it upon myself to mitigate the damage where I can, in hopes that she can be saved before it's too late.”

“That’s... okay, I’ll admit that both sucks to be her, but kind of awesome of you, Fancy Dude. I really don’t know what to think of you Soul Reaper types. Some of you seem like total jerks, while some of you seem alright.”

“You’ll find that no matter the group, be it Soul Reapers, Quincy, or even Hollows, things are never as simple as black and white.” Fancy Pants said, looking sadly at Posey’s unconscious form. “Regardless, duty makes warriors out of even the gentlest souls.”

“Yeah, had no idea your crazy sword powers could come with a nasty price tag like that. Seems pretty cruddy she got the short end of the stick.” Rainbow Dash said, then sighed, “Sadly, also not my problem. With her out, and you on your last leg, I’m just gonna call this my win and jet outta here, dude.”

With a grunt of pain Fancy Pants drew himself up to his full height, “Not so fast, my dear. I still stand.”

Rainbow Dash stared at him flatly, “Man, you’re like, waaaaaay to dedicated to this honor thing. I mean, I can kinda dig it, and it's awesome the way you look out for your friend, but this fight’s pretty much done.”

“Not yet.” he said, widening his stance into a bracing pose as he held his Zanpaktou spear at the ready. “You failed to grasp all that my Zanpaktou’s power entails. Allow me to educate you.”

The banner, which had been slowly losing its very last threads to motes of golden light, finally vanished entirely. The moment it did the entire spear lit up with blinding yellow light. “When Seiyaku’s banner vanishes, and I still haven’t fulfilled my oath, the Zanpaktou enters its ‘Punishment’ mode.”

The light of pale yellow radiance spread to his body, and the moment it did Fancy Pants started to grit his teeth, his eyes becoming bloodshot with pain. “The agony it inflicts is comparable only to the increased power it grants me for one final strike to atone for my failure.”

Rainbow Dash just shook her head in bewilderment, “Wow, you and that Posey chick are just peas in a pod aren’t you? Self-sacrifice is cool and all, but feels kind of wrong when it's getting forced on you like that.”

“It is not a matter of it being ‘forced’, as you say, Miss Dash.” Fancy Pants said past clenched teeth, raising his spear in a ready throwing stance, bracing his legs as Seiyaku’s light increased to a blinding yellow blaze, “Only that we both have reasons to accept the price our Zanpaktou ask of us to have the power necessary to keep our promises. Would you do any less in our position.”

“Dude, let’s skip the high-brow talk. Neither of us got time for it.” Dash said as she thrust her hands out and her electric wings called down thunderous bolts of lightning from the sky, charging her larger metallic wings with a incandescent, wild storm of arcing electrical arcs. “You said you got one strike left, right? So let’s finish this, Fancy Pants. Hit me with your best shot!”

Between her out thrust palms a sphere of lightning took shape, the streams of pure azure energy flowing from her wings, down her arms, and into her palms in a crackling waterfall of power. The sphere expanded to the size of a beach ball, arcs of energy gouging chunks of ground from around it as it shimmered with the power of storms.

Meanwhile Fancy Pant’s spear reached a peak of flaring light, and the man himself put on a dour, solemn look of pure concentration as he met Rainbow Dash’s eyes.

“Shokuzai!” (Atonement Strike)

He threw the spear, a mach cone forming and instantly shattering around the spears golden flight, a pure yellow streak of piercing power that ripped the stone courtyard apart in its wake as it flew straight for Rainbow Dash.

She, in turn, eyes streaming with electrical sparks and her prismatic head of hair rising as if in a harsh wind, cried out her own challenge.

”Thunderburst!”

The sphere of lightning in her palms fired off like a cannonball, careening right towards the path of Fancy Pant’s oncoming spear. The two collided between the two combatants with a unimaginably loud crack of noise that even drowned out the sound of the still exploding fireworks that now covered the sky, bathing the whole scene in a wash of scintillating colors.

The spear of Seiyaku pierced into Rainbow Dash’s lightning sphere, thrusting through it like a needle through a bubble. But then, that had been the part Dash had expected.

The moment the spear tore through the sphere, the sphere burst like a balloon, expanding in mere seconds to prodigious size.

Fancy Pant’s eyes shot wide as the expanding sphere slammed into him, whips of electricity tearing into him. The lightning also hit Posey, but Dash wasn’t too worried. She’d designed this attack to be non-lethal. The Thunderburst was her idea of a “crowd control” attack, the sphere concentrating vast amounts of electrical power, but with a simple trigger that allowed the sphere to burst and expand the moment it contacted anything. She had sensed how powerful Fancy Pant’s spear strike was going to be, and hadn’t been sure if she could outright stop it in its tracks, so instead she’d chosen to use an attack that would take Fancy Pants by surprise and knock him out no matter if his spear wasn’t stopped.

As for the spear itself, Rainbow Dash had nothing but her reflexes to rely on, but her Fullbring gave her speed in excess of any of her friends, and she dodged as hard as she could in a streak of indigo light as the spear bore down on her, barely slowed by her Thunderburst.

She felt a piercing anguish in her left arm, and found herself being carried along by massive force as the spear pierced her forearm and proceeded to nail her to the far wall of the warehouse courtyard.

“Ooff! Ugh...” Rainbow Dash grunted, teeth grinding at the pain that shot up her arm like a burning snake. She glanced down to see Seiyaku’s form impaling her arm, literally pinning her arm to the wall.

“Owwww... guess I underestimated him a bit too. Gah, this smarts!”

Then an instant later the spear glowed with pale blue light, and transformed back into a mere katana, subsequently removing itself from her arm as it clattered to the ground. Rainbow Dash glanced at it, blinking. “Huh?”

Further away, Fancy Pants rolled onto his back, his body still smoking as he sucked in breaths of air.

“Seiyaku... reverts to normal after... that attack. She cannot be used for... another day afterward.”

Rainbow Dash, clutching her bleeding arm, strode towards him. She first stopped to check on Posey, who was a tad singed, but still breathing strongly. “Whew, good. She’s still fine. Looks like Thunderburst did exactly what I wanted it to.”

Fancy Pants tried to raise his head, but it seemed to be too much effort and he settled back down. “A non-lethal attack. Heh... you young ladies are... so soft. I’m sort of... glad for it. I don’t think Soul Society could... withstand you if you were harsher in nature.”

A pleased grin crept onto Rainbow Dash’s face, “We’re pretty awesome. Sorry, Fancy. You gave me a good run, but you’d need to be a Captain to take me down.”

“I imagine that’s so.” he said, his eyes fluttering closed, “Be careful... Miss Dash. Captain Platinum does not share you and your friends non-lethal bent.”

With that he lost consciousness, leaving Dash to catch her breath for a second as the fireworks from the warehouse continued to explode in the night sky above. She estimated the fight had only lasted a few minutes more after she’d lit the fireworks. Soul Reapers would be on their way, but it looked like she was still in the clear. Her arm was starting to twitch with an agonizing amount of pain, now that her adrenaline was wearing off. Rainbow Dash, being an athlete who was looking to go pro one day, had an above average understanding of the human body. The spear had pierced the fleshier part of her forearm, and missed her bone and major arteries, but the muscle damage alone was going to be an issue if she didn’t get it looked at soon.

At least long experience with spot related injuries, including numerous broken bones, left her with a high pain tolerance, so she wasn’t doing more than wincing hard as she took a few seconds to use the mantle of her outfit as a makeshift bandage. She heard distant shouting just as she was finishing covering the wound, the Soul Reapers on their way to check out all the commotion.

Not wasting another second, Rainbow Dash took to the air in a blinding, blue streak.

Mere moments after she was gone, the still form of Posey suddenly gripped her fists, shuddered, and her eyes shot open, flashing with righteous anger.

----------

Colors bursting across the sky, accompanied by the rapid echoing bangs like distant cannon fire, signaled to Fluttershy and the others that Rainbow Dash’s distraction had begun. Nocturn peeked out from the street tile of their hiding place to observe the way the Soul Reapers guarding the main entrance to the headquarters fortress all turned their attention west towards the vibrant display of exploding fireworks.

Within minutes more than half of the guards had formed into squads and rushed off towards the scene, and among the ones left behind most were still staring at the explosions of sparkling colors filling the air.

“That’s our cue, let’s move!” Nocturn said, and Fluttershy gulped.

She was understandably on edge, given all that had happened so far. She was certainly worried about Rainbow Dash, but her fears extended to all her friends, and the Soul Reapers helping them. As much as she’d been projecting an outward calm as best she could, she still felt incredibly out of her depth being here in Soul Society, battling strange and powerful supernatural foes. One would think she’d have gotten used to it by now, but she still had a hard time believing how much of a strange and terrifying turn her and her friend's lives had taken.

Strangely, whenever she had her Fullbring active it was much easier to focus and stay calm, but she’d deactivated it for the time being because it... well it glowed, so it wasn’t very conducive to the group being stealthy. She missed the sort of relaxing aura of ease having the Fullbring active gave her. Right now her nerves were returning full force. Not to mention the back of her shoulder where Hurricane had injured her ached with a constant dull pain, despite Pipsqueak’s healing Kido and Fluttershy’s own attempts at healing with her Fullbring. The wound was just too deep to just heal up that easily, and while she could walk she could barely move her right arm without harsh pain filling her.

“Do you need help going up the ladder, Lady Fluttershy?” asked Pipsqueak, sounding quite stately and courteous despite his young age. She smiled at him, despite the pained twitch in her expression.

“I’ll be okay.”

He looked at her with a surprisingly mature expression for such a young boy, “A brave heart cannot always ignore a tired and wounded body. At least let someone support you.”

"I got ya covered Fluttershy." said Applejack, "Go ahead o' me an' I'll keep ya steady."

“If you insist.” she said, and above them Nocturn had moved aside the street tile entirely to expose their hiding spot in the tunnel.

“Hurry, fast!” he said, and with surprising agility for a man with one arm managed to pull himself up onto the street. Clover turned to Fluttershy and Pipsqueak and offered a helping hand to get Fluttershy onto the ladder.

“I’ll bring up the rear.” Clover said, “Do be careful, and follow Nocturn as close as you can.”

She got on the ladder, and Applejack got on behind her. It was difficult with her injury, but Applejack helped Fluttershy by putting a steadying hand on Fluttershy’s back to help her keep balanced as she pulled herself up using just her one arm. Pipsqueak came behind them, and Clover brought up the rear. It took only a minute or two for all of them to reach the street level, but to Fluttershy it felt so much longer.

They all crouched together with Nocturn on the street as he replaced the stone tile covering the entrance to the hidden tunnel. The fireworks were still going off in a series of flashing, flower bursts of light and sound, and as near as Fluttershy could tell no one was looking in their direction.

“This way.” Nocturn said, “Stay low and think stealthy thoughts.”

“Yeah, real helpful. I can see why yer the expert.” Applejack said with a wry half-smile, to which Nocturn ran his one hand through his hair.

“It's a curse to be as talented as I, but it's a burden I bear with pride. Seriously though keep low and follow my lead.”

They moved as a group, Nocturn taking them close to one of the walls alongside the side of the street, which soon turned into the wider, open area beside the massive stone steps carved within the walls of the plateau’s cliff face. Someone had done a little landscaping around here, adding some long patches of grass and a few trees and shrubs in a line along the wall, which gave the group some cover to work with.

Fluttershy all but held her breath as they moved, expecting to hear the sharp cries of alarm any second. Applejack kept pace with her, keeping a steady hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder. Every now and again Fluttershy saw Applejack glancing west, towards the warehouse and fireworks, no doubt just as worried as Fluttershy was about Rainbow Dash.

The wall ended perpendicular to the side of the cliff, the plateau's sheer rock walls leading hundreds of feet up in a looming, shadowy mass. Fluttershy could see the way white stone towers and buttresses were built up from the side of the cliff, all accumulating together into a giant fortress that jutted up from the top of the plateau to a dizzying height. Something about this huge, imposing fortress in the very center of Soul Society felt both appropriate and sadly disappointing to Fluttershy. This was the very center of the afterlife, and it wasn’t a comforting looking place at all. It spoke of power and authority, but not much of kindness or compassion.

She felt as if she could almost sympathize with the Quincy. Something about the Soul Society as a whole just felt...off.

Nocturn had them halt, crouched amid a few bushes at the foot of the cliff, his eyes narrowed at the distant forms of the remaining Soul Reaper guards.

“What’re we stoppin’ for?” asked Applejack.

“Someone’s coming.” said Nocturn, “This could be bad.”

Fluttershy didn’t see anyone, and she was hesitant to try to use her spiritual senses in case it might make her easier to detect, but she didn’t have to because in the next moment there was a loud bellow from the stone stairs.

“What is the meaning of this racket!?”

A huge mountain of an imposing man strode down the steps. He was by far one of the tallest, broadest individuals Fluttershy had ever seen, with a chest broad enough to park a battleship on, and arms to match. His skin was a dark, dusky brown, and he had a head of hair of a similar dark shade that fell in thick, bushy spikes down his back. Thick sideburns merged into a short beard on his chiseled, stony face. Covering his bulk was not only the black robes of a Soul Reaper, but the unmistakable white overcoat of a Captain.

Clover swore under her breath, “Captain Thunderhooves. I was sincerely hoping we wouldn't run into another Captain.”

“He’s as distracted as the others.” said Nocturn, “We should be able to make it.”

“What about Rainbow Dash?” asked Fluttershy, and Nocturn swallowed a grimace.

“I rather hope she has the wherewithal to not seek a glorious but no doubt futile battle and instead realizes the need for stealth with a Captain around.” he said, and took a deep breath, “Let us see if Thunderhooves himself takes the bait.”

Fluttershy’s heart beat swiftly in her chest as she feared the Captain might rush off in that direction and possibly catch Rainbow Dash. Then again, him sticking around was just as dangerous. She wasn’t sure their rag-tag group was up to a fight with another individual on Hurricane’s level. If he did go to investigate the fireworks, perhaps Rainbow Dash could slip past him without being noticed? Certainly if Thunderhooves stayed nearby then it’d be all the harder for Rainbow Dash to get to the secret entrance they were making their way towards.

After another half minute of questioning his subordinates, Thunderhooves narrowed his eyes in the direction of the fireworks, and gestured one of the other Soul Reapers present, a young woman. She was much shorter than Thunderhooves, but quite stocky and well muscled regardless, with a curly head of sandy blonde hair, rusty brown skin, and a serious expression.

Fluttershy couldn’t hear what Thunderhooves said to the young lady, but she bowed to him and then he leaped off with great bounding strides in the direction of the fireworks display, while the young lady he left behind took charge of the other Soul Reapers and started to direct them to tighten up defensively around the stairs leading into headquarters.

“Ah,” said Nocturn, “He’s leaving Lieutenant Strongheart in charge here while he investigates himself. Lucky us. Let’s move.”

Only a tight hand squeeze from Applejack helped Fluttershy settle her nerves as Nocturn began to move swiftly and quietly along the edge of the cliff. They followed him, Clover still covering the rear of the group, and Pipsqueak huddling right behind Fluttershy and Applejack as Nocturn lead them at the head of the group. They were all but soundless shadows, largely helped by the fact that the last of the fireworks display was still providing enough distraction that nobody was even looking their way.

But Fluttershy could tell the fireworks were trailing off. One second there were dozens of explosions of flashing sound and color in the sky, and the next there was only half as many. Then another few seconds saw there only being half a dozen erratic firework bursts. Fluttershy’s heart rate increased with each notable decline of fireworks. They didn’t have much time left! Where was Nocturn’s secret entrance?

That question got answered as Nocturn stopped at a piece of cliff wall that looked as indiscriminate and plain as the rest of the rocky surface. He reached out to the smooth stone and traced a symbol upon it in swift, deft motions of his finger. A kanji symbol glowed with a brief blue light, and then a small, person sized opening exposed itself in the cliff without making so much as a noise or tremor.

“In we go. Just take the ladder down.” he said, and stood aside to offer them a clear path in.

Fluttershy slipped inside, finding a short corridor leading to a opening in the ground with another ladder leading down about ten paces ahead. Applejack and her could barely fit in shoulder to shoulder, and Fluttershy stood aside to let Applejack go ahead.

“Sugarcube, I know ya wanna wait fer Dash. I do too, but ya oughta go down first, ‘fore anybody spots us.” said Applejack.

Fluttershy glanced back at the entrance as Clover, Pipsqueak, and Nocturn all moved inside one by one. Nocturn stayed at the entrance, peeking out to keep watch for Rainbow Dash’s return. She felt Applejack squeeze her arm, and looked over at her friend, Applejack’s green eyes standing out in the dark of the corridor as they swam with worry.

“We gotta trust her, Fluttershy. She’ll make it back. She's smart enough ta sneak past that big lump o' a Captain. 'Sides, I kinda figure Soul Reapers ain't too used ta lookin' up.”

Fluttershy swallowed her fears and nodded, turning to head for the ladder-

In that instant a cloaked figure slammed into the entrance, blasting right into Nocturn and sending the startled Soul Reaper flying down the corridor like a sack of grain. His passage brushed past Applejack and Fluttershy, bowling them both over. Clover grabbed Pipsqueak, but before she could even react the cloaked figure sent a leg clad in dark violet armor kicking out to catch Clover in the side of the head. She was sent sprawling to the ground, utterly dazed.

In the next moment Pipsqueak was grabbed and dragged outside, the cloaked figure seeming to fly on waves of purple light emanating like thruster fields from her cloak.

“Aaaaah!” Pipsqueak cried as he was taken outside, leaving a shocked Applejack and Fluttershy standing there, blinking. Nocturn was down, slumped over the ladder leading deeper into the secret entrance. Clover was groaning, but not getting up quickly, blood streaming from a head wound.

Everything had happened in mere seconds, leaving little time to react. Yet react Fluttershy did, not even thinking about it as her body lit up with bright, soft white and blue light. Wings, pony ears, and tail formed along with her brilliantly glowing third eye and halo, the shroud of pale cloth appearing around her shoulders from the center of the halo. She rushed outside, and saw Pipsqueak being hauled up into the sky by the cloaked figure, and without thinking about it Fluttershy took to the air herself, her wings beating quickly.

She was nowhere near as fast as Rainbow Dash, but the cloaked figure clearly hadn’t expected immediate pursuit, nor was Pipsqueak being an easy captive, struggling and kicking at his captor. The cloaked figure had been rising up the side of the cliff, and Fluttershy saw something was glowing with purple electric light a dozen meters up, some object like a spike embedded in the stone.

The cloaked figure saw Fluttershy, and she caught sight of purple eyes widening in surprise from inside the cloak’s hook.

“You!?” the cloaked figure said in a surprised, female voice that was oddly familiar, just as Fluttershy reached her and gestured with one hand.

“Return Pipsqueak, now!” Fluttershy commanded, her spiritual energy reaching out in a wave into the cloaked woman. Fluttershy felt resistance to her power, but also the strength and conviction of her will hit the other woman’s will like a hammer on an anvil.

“Ugh...” the cloaked figure halted in mid-air, less than half a dozen meters from the odd glowing spike in the cliff face.

The cloaked woman let go of Pipsqueak, who made a startled cry for a second before Fluttershy caught him. In response the cloaked figure shook its head, “Alright, that was weird. You have mind control powers, Fluttershy?”

“How do you know my name?” Fluttershy asked, slowly flying back from the cloaked woman as she held Pipsqueak close. The woman’s voice was so familiar! She was sure she’d heard this woman speaking before. It brought back such odd, nostalgic feelings, but why?

“Why wouldn’t I know your name, kiddo?” said the woman, who then raised a hand clad in dark purple armor that flowed with lines of pink energy, and pulled her hood back. “You hung out with my Dashie for, like, the entirety of kindergarten.”

Fluttershy hovered in the air, dumbstruck. The woman’s violet eyes complimented a pink skinned face that had every bit of confidence and snark in its expression that her daughter Rainbow Dash had. Even her head of cobalt blue hair had a similar length and style to Rainbow Dash’s, with a lighter tone of blue streaking down its center. She removed her cloak with a flourish, revealing that underneath she was wearing a suit of armor the color of deep violet, streaked with circuit-like lines of pink energy. The armor didn’t cover her whole body, more like a frame that encased her upper chest, back, arms and legs, with boots sporting wide fin-like wings that matched the even larger series of blade-like wings that expanded from the back of the armor frame. Both the boot fins and blade wings exuded a haze of purple light that seemed to be what was keeping the woman aloft. A visor covered her eyes in a line of purple glass, attached to small circular nodes around her ears.

“Mrs. Firefly!?” Fluttershy gasped.

Firefly chuckled, “Long time no see, kid. How’s my Dashie? You two still close? Had a bet going with my husband that you would would've hooked up by now, so fess up, just how close are you? Third base? All the way?”

“Whu...what?” Fluttershy just blinked, face blazing to red.

“Yikes, still stuck in that shell, huh? Guess my Dashie has a lot of work to do to crack you out of there. Hmm, or is she more into that farm girl? I admit I haven’t exactly been keeping tabs as close as I should.” Firefly said, still talking as casually as if her and Fluttershy had simply bumped into each other on the street or at the supermarket.

Before Fluttershy could respond to that, there was a shout from down below.

“Hey! Who are you two intruders!? Identify yourselves!”

It was Lieutenant Strongheart, her and the majority of the remaining Soul Reapers guarding the area having gathered below them, all staring up them. They had all drawn their Zanpaktou, and it looked like more than a few were preparing Kido spells from the way they held their palms up.

“Hey, do you mind!?” shouted Firefly down at the Soul Reapers, “Trying to have a conversation up here, you dimwitted little pissant Reapers!”

Strongheart’s face visibly colored, her whole stocky frame bristling, “What was that!? Oh, never mind! You’re all under arrest! Take them down, men!”

Firefly rolled her eyes and winked at Fluttershy, “Just a sec, kid. Lemme take care of this real fast.”

Firefly gestured with her right hand, and an object formed into her hand in a series of pink flashes of light, like building blocks appearing from thin air to assemble into a more complex form. That form being that of a giant, high-tech looking cannon with a hexagonal barrel, a long handle, and a scope that rose from the center of the weapon. Without preamble Firefly took aim, and pulled the trigger. The cannon immediately discharged a wide lance of purple lightning that tore down into the Soul Reapers in an explosive line, tossing most of them aside like ants.

Firefly wasn’t done with that, however, and made another gesture with her left hand, where a set of projection rose from the armor of her left arm and fired off a series of streaking, miniature missiles that rode down upon the Soul Reapers on purple jets of light. Violet colored explosions pockmarked the area below them, throwing Soul Reapers around like rag dolls. When the smoke cleared, most of them were down, save for Strongheart herself who looked to be barely standing.

“There, now where were we?” asked Firefly.

Fluttershy looked at the casual destruction caused in just seconds, and shivered, her mind immediately going to the need to get down there and start healing critically injured Soul Reapers. But she still held Pipsqueak in her arms, and for some reason Firefly had just tried to take him. What was going on!?

“W-what are you doing here!? Where... why..?” Fluttershy couldn’t even get her questions straight, she had so many!

“You know, I totally get why you’re confused, but I literally have no time for twenty questions, Fluttershy.” said Firefly, sighing as she aimed her cannon at Fluttershy. “And I really don’t want to have to hurt you, so could you please hand that boy over? Nowish?”

“What do you want with him?”

“Yes, I’d quite like to know that too, you brutish woman.” said Pipsqueak.

“Brutish? I was trying to play nice with you guys, ‘cause you’re all pals with Dashie.” said Firefly, sighing before eyeing Fluttershy with a hard stare that left Fluttershy feeling suddenly rather... exposed. “And I can’t explain things right now. I need the boy. Period. Otherwise years of work are going to go straight down the crapper. So hand him over. If not...”

The barrel of her canon started to glow with baleful violet light.

“I can’t promise to hold back.”

Taking a deep breath, focusing on the calm feeilng stemming from her Fullbring, she hardened her voice and pushed out with her Fullbrings' spirit energy. "Leave us alone."

The command hit Firefly like a wave, but Fluttershy felt much stronger resistance this time, Firefly's own spirit energy rising up like a current, pushing back against Fluttershy's own power. With a hard shake of her head, Firefly smirked and said, "Sorry kiddo, not going to get taken in by that power twice. Now that I know you can do it, I can harden my own defenses. Nice try though. Pretty impressive for a still incomplete Fullbring. Once you mature fully you'll be a real knockout."

Fluttershy gulped, and glanced down at the secret entrance, which was still open. Without another second of hesitation she dove for it, flying at full speed.

Firefly made a ‘tch’ sound and said, “Bad move.”

She fired a lance of powerful purple lightning into the cliff face above the entrance. In a shower of rocks the entrance was blocked by a pile of rock rubble. Fluttershy skidded to a halt in mid-air, gasping. Applejack and the others had still been inside there! Were they okay!? The collapse didn’t look bad, only the entrance itself, but she couldn’t be sure. Still, the bigger problem was that now Fluttershy was trapped outside with Firefly. She landed on the ground and set Pipsqueak down, turning to face Firefly as the woman lowered from the sky as well, landing a few dozen feet away.

“Can’t have you running off, girl. I need the boy. Make this easy on both of us and just hand him over, then you can go scurry off hiding somewhere. Seriously, it's amazing you girls have had the power and spine to invade Soul Society, but you can’t stop what’s coming. Just trust me and give Pipsqueak over to me. I promise you I won’t hurt him. No harm at all will come to him... in fact giving him to me is the only way to save his life.”

Fluttershy opened her mouth to respond, but Pipsqueak beat her to it, stepping forward, “If you promise not to harm Lady Fluttershy then I will accompany you.”

“Wait, Pipsqueak, you can’t do that!” Fluttershy cried, but he turned to her, smiling with wane reassurance.

“I would rather be the captive of a ruffian than watch harm come to such a kind and pretty young lady. My honor as a nobleman would be tarnished beyond repair if I allowed you to come to harm defending me.” he bowed to her, and then turned to Firefly, “I shall go with you willingly.”

“H-hey! I’m...ugh, I’m still here!” shouted Strongheart, “Stop ignoring me!”

Firefly glanced at Strongheart, “Oh, you’re still conscious? Lemme fix that.”

She aimed her weapon, but Pipsqueak shouted, “No, you shan't harm her either, or I will not cooperate!”

“Oh for the love of... fine, but if the good Lieutenant makes a move, I’m blasting her.”

“Lieutenant Strongheart, please remain where you are.” said Pipsqueak, “As a Lord of one of the Four Great Noble Houses, I command you to stand down.”

Strongheart blinked a few times, then slowly nodded. “Y-yes, my lord.”

“Well, okay then, guess that’s all settled.” said Firefly, running a hand over her hair as she raised her cannon away from Strongheart, instead just casually pointing it up as she leaned it over her shoulder. “This job has been nothing but a giant pain in the butt. I hate all this cloak and dagger crap. C’mon, ‘lord’ Pipsqueak. I’m on a seriously tight schedule, and it's taken too long already to do this.”

Pipsqueak nodded, and despite a frightful look from Fluttershy, he only shook his head at her and approached Firefly. Once he reached her she offered him a hand and he grabbed onto it, and she put her arm around the young boy. Her other hand, still occupied by the cannon, flashed pink and the cannon vanished back into component blocks of light, freeing the hand to reach instead to the hip of her armored frame. From there a slot opened up and a strange metal spike extended, which she withdrew in one fluid motion. It looked just like the spike that’d been embedded up on the cliff face. Fluttershy wasn’t sure what it was, but then again she wasn’t sure what to make of the entire armored suit Firefly was wearing. There was no doubt it was her Fullbring. Fluttershy could tell that much just by the feel of its spiritual energy. Yet it seemed so much stronger than any of the Fullbrings she or her friends had. Was this what a completed Fullbring felt like?

“Use this to get yourself and Dashie to safety.” said Firefly as she flicked the spike into the ground a few paces from Fluttershy. “Before Thunderhooves gets back. It’ll lead you to where your friends will be going, and one of them already is. Sorry we had to meet again like this, Fluttershy. Please take care of my daughter, okay? And tell her... tell her her mother’s sorry she’s had to be gone so long. Things’ll be confusing for a while, but in time, I hope she’ll understand why I’m doing what I’m doing.”

With that she flew up, as fast if not faster than her daughter had ever flow, and went right for where the spike in the cliff face was.

At the same time the spike at Fluttershy’s feet began to glow with purple electric streams of energy. From the top of the spike a circle of the same purple electric energy extended, to about the size of two or three people standing side by side. The same thing occurred at the spike on the cliff face, and at the same time both circles of light snapped into shimmering portals in the air. Fluttershy couldn’t see where the portal Firefly took Pipsqueak through led, for they vanished through it and the portal snapped closed too fast for Fluttershy to see. The one in front of her opened up into a well lit underground room, where lanterns hung on the wall showed a rather comfortable looking area filled with a few beds along one wall and shelves of supplies lining another.

And shockingly, Rarity poked her head towards the portal, looking rather surprised.

“Fluttershy!? Darling, what is this portal!?” asked Rarity, “Did you make this?”

“R-Rarity? Where are you?”

“Why, I’m in a Second Division hideout Ditzy Doo direct me towards. Where are you?”

“Um, just outside the main entrance to the Soul Reaper’s big scary fortress?”

“Oh my, where is everyone else then? And how are you making this portal?” Rarity asked as she tentatively stuck her hand through it, wiggling her arm about. “I didn’t even notice that odd spike in the floor until it started glowing.”

“I-I didn't make it, Rainbow Dash’s mother did.”

“Excuse me, did you say Rainbow’s mother?”

There was a sound of cracking thunder as Rainbow Dash herself suddenly landed beside Fluttershy, battered, bleeding from a deep wound in her arm, and looking around in confusion. “Hey guys! Wait, what about my mom!?”

Fluttershy felt her head going light. It felt as if entirely too much had been happening and she felt overwhelmed, but she took a deep breath, her active Fullbring doing wonders to help her keep her mind in order, as if a stream of cool water poured over the fires of her fears. “I’ll tell you in a moment, Rainbow, but let’s get through this portal first, and once we’re all safe we can talk.”

Rainbow Dash grit her teeth, but nodded, and they both turned towards the portal, when a terrifying shriek of rage echoed over the courtyard.

“Ryyyyokaaaa!”

They all turned, even Strongheart who’d been standing in utter confusion at the turn of events, and beheld a bloody phantom of a figure charging into the courtyard. Looking like a raging she-demon, Posey rushed the portal, her pink hair a disheveled mass, her eyes blazing with murder, and her deadly Zanpakatou Kyoki already released to Shikai form in her hand. Its serrated blade whined with high pitched death as she leaped at the girls, snarling with spittle on her lips.

“Rip apart and die Ryyokaaa!”

Fluttershy again acted on instinct, her Fullbring supporting her calm as she moved. She pushed Rainbow Dash through the portal, knocking her into Rarity and both girls went tumbling away into the room beyond the portal’s threshold. Posey struck, still aiming for Rainbow Dash through the portal, but Fluttershy stepped in, raising her hand and widening her legs into a ready martial arts stance. She caught Posey’s arm and turned the blow of that deadly, spinning Zanpaktou blade away from Rainbow Dash. However the sheer strength in Posey’s arm was incredible, and even redirecting as much of the force as she could, Fluttershy wasn’t able to completely control the direction Kyoki went.

The chain blade severed through the portal spike, which then flared with bright purple light.

Fluttershy threw herself away, as did Posey, as the spike exploded, taking the portal with it in a shimmering fade. Fluttershy saw Rainbow Dash and Rarity on the other side, safe and sound, but the portal cut out and left Fluttershy alone in the courtyard with an injured Strongheart and an extremely irritate Posey facing her.

Posey snarled, then almost just as quickly giggled with menace. “Oh, volunteering yourself to be carved up in that blue one’s place? Hehehe, fine, fine, fine, you’ll bleed and scream just as much as her!”

Fluttershy gulped, and was infinitely glad that her Fullbring was helping her keep calm, even as she got into a ready stance and faced Posey as the crazed Soul Reaper charged her with nothing but murderous carnage shining in her eyes.

----------

She crawled up from the depths of a nightmare that she couldn’t remember, only the small fragments of visions of her friends in danger and the clawing fear that came with it. Awaking sweat soaked, Princess Twilight Sparkle sat up from the cot she had set up at Canterlot High, and squinted at the digital clock on the counter near her cot. It was the middle of the night still, and she’d probably only been asleep a few hours. Yet she didn’t think she could get back to sleep.

Restless, she got up and went out into the hallway, heading for the restroom to wash her face and calm her nerves. Once that was done she headed for the cafeteria, intending to brew some coffee.

“Can’t sleep?”

“GAH!” Twilight jumped, and spun around to find Flash Sentry leaning against some of the lockers in the hallway. He smiled boyishly as she glared at him.

“Sorry, forgot what ‘mode’ I was in.” he said as he gestured at himself, and Twilight realized he wasn’t in his normal school clothes, but instead was wearing the black robes and white sash of a Soul Reaper. His Zanpaktou was sheathed at his side, a curved hilt wrapped in blue cloth.

“Did you float through the wall?” she asked, curiosity overcoming her irritation, and other more complicated feelings.

“Yeah.” he pushed his hand through the lockers, the appendage disappearing through it as if the solid matter wasn’t there.

“Wait, if you’re in a spirit form at the moment, how come I can see you?”

He gestured at his legs, which started to disappear for a moment, then became solid once more. “Soul Reapers can make ourselves visible if we want to be seen, it's just that we’re not supposed to. It's just a matter of pushing a little reiatsu out to surround my body, same way I might raise it to defend myself against attacks. Heck, I could physically touch physical stuff this way too.”

“Interesting. I wonder if that’s at all similar to how Aurora Sage’s Insubstantius Animus spell phases the matter of the caster to allow them to pass through solid objects.” Twilight wondered aloud as she leaned forward and poked at Flash’s chest, blinking in fascination as her hand passed through him. “Does that feel strange at all?”

A soft chuckle huffed out of him as he stepped aside, “Tingles a bit. Kind of like how living people get goosebumps when a spirit passes through them.” His expression became serious as he said, “Are you alright? You should be sleeping. You’ve been working on the portal for hours, and that was after spending an entire day getting those siren girls situated back in your world. How’d that go, by the way?”

“Oh, Aria and Sonata seem to have adjusted well enough.” Twilight said, “Without their siren gems, I mean. A part of me hoped they’d regenerate upon their return to Equestria, but no such luck. Their natural siren bodies need energy siphoned through the gems to survive, unlike their human bodies which can survive on normal food. Luckily the other Princesses helped me create a workaround, enchanting spell gems with energy that Aria and Sonata can feed on to sustain themselves. They’re not as effective as the siren’s natural gems, but as long as the supply holds out they should be fine.”

Flash frowned thoughtfully, “Not really a long term solution is it?”

“No...” Twilight said, glancing away, “But it buys them time until a more permanent solution can be found. They seem more interested in researching magic to help their sister rather than worrying about themselves. They spent the whole time tearing through my library. Even Sonata seemed focused beyond what I imagined her being capable of, from what little I’ve observed of her.”

“Hope that works out,” said Flash, then eyed Twilight seriously once more, “But about my first question; you okay?”

“Yes. I’m just worried. The few times I’ve slept, I’ve had dreams about my friends. N-nightmares really. I can’t shake the feeling they’re in serious trouble.” Twilight held herself, a pained look casting her face in shadow. “I feel so useless. All I can do to help is continue working on the portal, while they’re throwing themselves into mortal danger. I should be there with them.”

“Twilight, trust me, where they’ve gone, you couldn’t help.” Flash said, and at her wince he quickly added, “Not that you can’t do anything, it's just... I know what they’re up against. You’re right to be worried, but at the same time if you’d gone with them I don’t think you could be doing anything more useful than what you’re doing here. If Sunset and the others are smart they’re avoiding any battles, especially against any Captains.”

“Are your Soul Reaper Captains that strong?” she asked, perhaps a bit too much accusation in her tone, because Flash held up his hands defensively.

“Hey, I got one Captain, and her name is Celestia. As for the others, well, yeah, they’re strong.” he said, sighing, “Sorry, I guess this isn’t helping allay your fears much, is it?”

“It’s okay, Flash, I know this isn’t your fault.” she said, her heart heavy with a lead weight that seemed to hang between them. “None of this is your fault.”

“But you haven’t forgiven me either, have you?” he asked, “For not telling you what I was when we first met.”

“No! I mean, yes! I mean... I don’t know...” she said, looking away from him, “I understand you had perfectly good reasons to hide what you were. You’re not the only one, after all. This world’s Celestia and Luna also hid their identities, and Cheerilee as well. It makes sense that when getting visited by a strange being from another world that you’d have been sent to investigate me, to figure out if I was a threat or not.”

She looked back at him, her expression still hurt, “But even so, if you were just looking to keep an eye on me you didn’t have to pretend to be... interested.”

She realized it was sort of silly, given all that was happening, to focus any of her time on being emotionally distraught over this. There was literally next to no real connection between her and Flash. Just a brief sense of attraction that even Twilight wasn’t so dense that she couldn’t recognize. And it hurt to think that the first time she even had a flicker of feeling like that for anyone, it might have been built on a lie.

Flash looked at her with an even stare, and he let out a long, slow breath, “You have every right to feel that way. Even if I told you I hadn’t been pretending anything, what reason would you have to believe me? I’ve already hid who and what I am from you, it's a fair question to ask if you even know who Flash Sentry is at all.”

He held out a hand to her, “So how’s this? Let’s start over. Hi. My name is Flash Sentry, I’m a Lieutenant in the Gotei 13, Thirteenth Division, serving directly under Captain Celestia in a never ending quest to be amazing at battling Hollows, guarding a portal to a world of magical ponies, and if you’re interested I’d love to learn all about you, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

She looked at his offered hand, and the sincere look on his face, and she let out a genuine laugh of relaxed ease. “You’re kind of a dork, you know that?”

He returned the laugh, “Says the Princess of Dorkness.”

“Hey, I’m not a dork, I’m just very, very well learned!” she said, and took his hand, finding it now solid and warm. “At any rate, I was going to go make some coffee and get back to work on the portal. Care to join me?”

“Lead the way.”

As the pair walked down the hallway towards the cafeteria, turning out of sight, another figure moved out from where it’d been hidden down a side hall. A pointed hat and cape fluttered as the figure rushed down another hallway, quiet as a puff of smoke.

Author's Notes:

This was kind of a hectic chapter to write. Just a lot of characters to juggle. Rainbow Dash's fight was fun to write though, although it was sort of a warm up for what'll happen in the arc's finale. While the battles against Captains are partially to show just how powerful those foes still are, the fight against Lieutenants like Fancy and Posey are to show how far our girls have come since the days when regular old Hollows were a challenge.

And now poor Fluttershy has a blood crazed Posey to deal with.

Meanwhile pony-Twi is working out some issues with Flash, and a mysterious (although probably not that mysterious) individual is flitting about the school. Wonder what that's all about?

Anyway thank you all for reading and hope you're all enjoying yourselves. As always leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you like, as they are all very much appreciated. 'Till next time!

Episode 50: Compassionate Soul

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Episode 50: Compassionate Soul

Rainbow Dash all but bounced off one wall in an utter panic, and sped towards another wall, little more than a frantic blur as she searched for a door out of the chamber she’d found herself in as she babbled. “Gotta save Flutters! Where’s the way out! She’s still back there! Way out! Way out! Where’s the damn door!?”

In the center of the room, right where the portal had cut itself off just seconds ago, Rarity stared at Rainbow Dash, her own mind in a momentary stunned state as her winged friend tore about the chamber. Rarity had been recovering her strength in this place for most the evening, having found it just as Ditzy Doo had instructed her to. As far as hideouts went it was roomy and decently appointed, with a series of beds along one wall, a number of supply crates and shelves along another, and even a simple but effective bath and lavatory built into a stone alcove off to the side with a thick curtain to provide privacy.

However what it didn’t have were obvious doors in or out. The entrance Rarity had used was on the side with the supply crates, and it was seamlessly hidden in the stone wall itself, which when opened would lead to a small tunnel that in turn led to an opening in the side of the plateau amid some thick forested area on the southwestern portion of the Soul Reaper fortress.

Rainbow Dash obviously couldn’t find the hidden exit, and Rarity was hesitant to just let her friend out without fully understanding what was happening. Well, she had seen enough to know that Fluttershy was in danger. That alone would be reason to consider letting Rainbow Dash go, if not for the fact that Dash was clearly injured by the bloody, bandaged state of her arm. Rarity could see her friend’s left limb was hanging nearly limp, with fresh blood dropping down it, despite the bandage formed from Rainbow Dash’s own outfit mantle.

“Rainbow Dash,” Rarity began in a loud but calm voice, “Slow down! You’ll hurt yourself. More so than you clearly already are.”

“I have to go Rares! Fluttershy needs me! Needs us! C’mon!” Rainbow Dash shouted, barley slowing down at all as she started kicking at the wall, and turning desperate eyes towards Rarity. “Where’s the way out already!?”

“Look, Rainbow, you’re bleeding. I want to go help Fluttershy as well, but if you let yourself bleed out-”

“To hell with my freakin’ arm!” Rainbow snarled, eyes wild, “That crazy Posey girl’s attacking Fluttershy as we speak, and she’s a damn monster with her sword released like that! She’ll kill Fluttershy! We have to go help her, NOW!”

Rainbow Dash’s breaths were ragged now, and the blood pouring down her arm dripped into a growing crimson pool beneath her. Rarity could see how pale Dash was becoming. All of that movement had likely opened up the wound wider than it had been originally and made the bleeding worse than if Rainbow Dash had stayed still. Now Dash was losing blood quickly, and energized by her Fullbring or not, she was clearly in no condition to go anywhere or save anyone.

Fear for Fluttershy was coldly crawling through her veins, but Rarity was equally fearful for Rainbow Dash, and she was the friend immediately in front of Rarity that she could help.

Steeling herself, and her voice, Rarity said, “You’re not in any condition to help, Rainbow, darling. I need you to stay here so I can deal with that wound.”

“L-like hell you will!” Rainbow Dash said, teetering a bit as she faced Rarity, “Lemme outta here and I’ll kick that Posey’s butt... all... over...”

Rainbow Dash blinked, glancing at her arm. “How’d it get so... red?”

As Rainbow Dash fell back against the wall, barely keeping her feet under her, Rarity rushed to her side and checked the wound. The makeshift bandage was already soaked through, and the deep puncture wound beneath, one that went clear through Rainbow Dash’s arm, was seeping blood. Rarity hissed under her breath as she summoned her own Fullbring, her pony ears twitching as she brought out blood of her own to provide a fresh crystalline patch to the wound.

“Rainbow! How were you even moving around with a wound like this!? Did you not feel the pain?”

“Mmph, don’t have time for pain...” Rainbow Dash muttered, grimacing, “Everyone’s countin’ on me.”

“We can’t count on you if you’re dead for goodness sake!” Rarity said tersely, her voice raised with equal parts fear and anger as she slung Rainbow Dash’s good arm over her shoulder and led her towards one of the hideout beds. “I have to stop the bleeding, and hopefully there’s some proper medical supplies here. Sit, now! Stop fighting me.”

Rainbow Dash’s struggles lessened, but her eyes still looked fierce as she sat down on the bed. “But Fluttershy-”

“Will have to fend for herself!” snapped Rarity, hating having to say the words, but meaning them. “Right now I won’t watch you bleed out. Losing one friend to go help another is not something I’m prepared to do! Now stay still while I deal with this!”

She put both hands on Rainbow Dash’s shoulders, forcing the girl to lay down. It was surprisingly easy, much of Dash’s strength seeming to have seeped out of her. Seeming to realize she wasn’t going anywhere, Rainbow Dash let her Fullbring deactivate, which only seemed to clue her in further to the damage her arm had taken. She’d clearly underestimated the wound due to adrenaline the way her active Fullbring boosted her pain tolerance. It still hadn’t hit an artery, otherwise she’d never have survived this long, but her blood loss was much more severe than she’d thought and her head felt light and dizzy.

She stopped fighting Rarity altogether, laying down to let the other girl tend to her. Rarity summoned a tendril of blood that turned into a crystalline arm, which in turn grabbed several of the crates from along the wall and started sifting through them, pulling out thick gauze wrapping, a bottle of what Rarity hoped was disinfectant, and some thread. With a wave of her wrist Rarity created a set of thin, red crystal needles, and wove the thread through them. Dash gulped. She’d never liked needles.

“W-what are you doing?”

“I’m going to stitch this closed properly, then give it a real bandage. That should stop the bleeding.”

"When did you learn how to play nurse?"

Rarity smirked, "Please, Rainbow. I'm a woman of many talents."

Rainbow Dash grimaced, “I, uh, hate needles...”

Rarity, despite the worry in her eyes and the sweat now beading her brow, said, “Too bad, darling. Consider this revenge for pushing me into that dreadful sewer.”

As Rarity went to worth both girls became silent. From the look of deep rooted fear and concern on their faces it was clear they were both thinking of Fluttershy, and if she was going to be alright by herself against a foe like Lieutenant Posey.

----------

The high pitched whine of Kyoki’s saw blade, loud as the unrelenting howl of a banshee, was only matched by the violence hungry laughter of the woman who wielded the deadly Zanpaktou.

“That’s right! Run! Run! Run! Hahahah!”

Posey swung her screeching sword in one vicious arc after another, and Fluttershy continued to take swift, precise back-steps away from its dangerous edge. Every time the spinning, serrated edge of the Zanpaktou came within scant inches of Fluttershy’s flesh she twisted, bent, and pivoted her body out of harm’s way, all the while backing away from Posey’s relentless advance.

Sparks and chunks of stone flew as near misses cut deep furrows in the courtyard, Kyoki devouring the ground and slicing through it as if it were cardboard under an exacto-knife. Not a one of Posey’s swings had managed to strike Fluttershy’s swiftly dodging form, yet every strike carried with it deadly intent. Fluttershy didn’t doubt that a single slip up on her part would be lethal.

Yet her Fullbring was keeping her alive as surely as if she’d been wielding a blade herself to deflect Posey’s blows. Just as she could direct her spirit energy to encourage her body to heal, she could enhance herself the same way she did with her friends. Much of her Fullbring’s nature still felt mysterious to her, but she knew it largely operated on the principle that her own soul could be used to create states of being in herself or others, whether that be commands she willed others to obey, or for their bodies to work in ways she willed to be.

It was all limited by the extent of her spirit energy and willpower, but ever since it had evolved, her Fullbring’s effects had grown stronger, especially if she could gain physical contact with her target.

So far Posey’s aggressive assault had not left any openings for Fluttershy to get a strike of her own in. She had to dedicate herself almost entirely to defense just to stay one step ahead of the violent Soul Reaper woman. On some level Fluttershy was terrified beyond belief. It was only through her Fullbring willing herself to calm that she kept herself focused as she concentrated on dodging Posey’s horrific blade. But she knew she couldn’t keep this up forever. The pain in her shoulder was worsening by the second, and she could feel her spirit energy draining with every moment.

She’d have to try commands without the boost of physical contact. Fluttershy narrowed her eyes and hardened her voice, pushing as much command into it as she could as her third eye flashed and she sent her spirit energy out in a burst, focused it upon Posey.

“Stop attacking me, now!”

For a moment Posey stopped in her tracks, her face going through the most unpleasantly looking of spasms as one moment she looked like a terrified girl, and the next the mad berserk snarl was back, only to twist back into horrified girl once again.

“I-I don't to- Gehahah! Rip your lungs out! No, I-Grrr!”

Fluttershy was taken aback by the seeming war of emotions and personality clashing across Posey’s face, but she didn’t hesitate long and jumped in at Posey. She thrust out with her good left arm, palm out, aimed for Posey’s stomach. One good hit was all she’d need to send in a double-dose of spirit energy to force Posey to surrender!

“Ha! Too late!” Posey’s voice growled as the berserker mentality took over once again, Posey’s form flickering out of sight in a swift Flash Step, Fluttershy’s palm hitting only empty air.

Fluttershy reacted much as she had when she’d thrown Dash through the portal, on pure instinct. She spun left, throwing herself into a upwards, tucked in flip, assisted by a flap of her pegasus wings. She felt rather than saw Kyoki’s buzzing blade pass so close she could feel the vibrations of it in the air. There was a burning pain across her cheek as she came out of her flip, and and even more intense pain in her wounded shoulder. She cried out but didn’t slow down, jumping back to put more distance between herself and Posey.

Posey didn’t immediately pursue, her crazed eyes turning towards Fluttershy as she licked her lips. “Blood looks good seeping out of you, Ryoka. Your cries of pain make me feel so... mmm... good. What kind of sounds are you going to make when I cut into your belly?”

Fluttershy suppressed a shudder, running her left hand across her right cheek where Kyoki had opened up a small, but profusely bleeding wound. She took a deep breath and centered herself, her third eye blazing luminous blue and the halo behind her matching its light as she spread her wings.

“I won’t let you hurt anyone. Me, or my friends.” Fluttershy said, resolute as she took up a fresh fighting stance, “Or yourself.”

“Myself! Ha! I’m not hurting myself. I’ve never felt better!” Posey shouted, then laughed as she pointed Kyoki at Fluttershy, “Killing my father’s enemies is all I exist to do! What could make a daughter happier, huh!?”

“Are you sure you’re not feeling a tad bit sleepy, instead?” asked Fluttershy sweetly, sending out a focused wave of her spirit energy, slamming its invisible tendrils into Posey’s body. Posey blinked, shaking her head as she gained a drowsy look, but it was clear she wasn’t going to fall asleep with Fluttershy’s command. Still, her renewed attack was slower, less precise, and as Posey leaped in to strike Fluttershy found she had an easier time evading.

“Cheap trick. Won’t keep me from gutting you forever!” spat Posey, eyes raging as she gripped Kyoki with both hands, her swings getting wider, harsher, more wild.

Fluttershy still had to focus on evasion, but had more breathing room with Posey struggling to stay awake. Fluttershy kept pressing in with her power, trying to slow Posey down. Her concerns weren’t just for herself. She could sense the reiatsu of the wounded and unconscious Soul Reapers that Firefly had hurt. Many of them were in critical condition and needed healing, and soon. She had to stop Posey, and go help them!

She already knew, fundamentally, that she wasn’t going to escape capture. That wasn’t Fluttershy’s goal now. It was only to prevent people from dying, with every scrap of power she had to save them with.

But that meant beating Posey first!

Fluttershy glanced behind her at one of the walls bordering the courtyard. She wasn’t far from it. Thinking fast, she turned and fled towards it, knowing Posey wouldn’t miss an opportunity to strike at Fluttershy’s back. As she’d predicted, Posey came after her at a dead run, and as Fluttershy reached the wall Posey held Kyoki above her head in a huge overhand swing. Fluttershy, gritting her teeth against the horrible pain in her shoulder, jumped up onto the wall and flipped over Posey just as Posey’s strike smashed into the wall.

Kyoki’s spinning blade tore the wall apart in a shower of dust, but at the same time Fluttershy gestured and the shroud that was part of her Fullbring sprung to life at her mental command. The shroud's white, silken form wrapped around Posey’s waist, and before the Soul Reaper could react Fluttershy gripped the shroud and yanked with one arm, shifting her Fullbring’s power from making Posey feel sleepy, to instead enhancing her own physical strength.

Thus boosted, Fluttershy sent Posey up and over, flying into a rough body slam. The attack was meant to stun Posey, and Fluttershy could see it seemed to work, leaving the Soul Reaper groaning on the ground for a moment. A moment long enough for Fluttershy to rush her and place her hand on Posey’s shoulder.

“Sleep, now!” Fluttershy commanded. She felt her power tear down her arm, through her palm, and lance into the core of Posey’s soul.

Her physical contact magnified her power so much that Fluttershy was somewhat scared of it. She’d been very careful with the Soul Reapers she’d fought back at the Thirteenth Division because she feared stripping people of their free will, or doing some kind of permanent harm to their minds. In this case she wasn’t sure how much she could afford to hold back. Posey seemed pretty willful herself. But as much as she wanted to go all out, Fluttershy still instinctively held back, not wanting to damage Posey’s mental state. The girl seemed traumatized enough and mentally unstable already.

She saw Posey stiffen, felt the girl tremble for a moment, then start to sag. Posey’s eyes slowly started to close even as her grip on Kyoki remained tight. The Zanpaktou’s blade was still spinning like a chain saw, digging into the ground even as its wielder started to fall into slumber. When Posey appeared to go limp, Fluttershy started to relax, standing and backing away from the sleeping Soul Reaper.

She glanced towards the only remaining Soul Reaper who was conscious, Strongheart, who while injured and barely standing still had her Zanpaktou out and looked ready to fight, despite the way her hands shook.

“S-stay back Ryoka!” Strongheart said, “I won’t fall prey to your strange powers!”

“I don’t want to hurt anyone.” said Fluttershy, taking a few tentative steps towards Strongheart, “If you’ll let me, I need to heal your friends who are badly hurt.”

Strongheart looked dubious at that prospect at best, but before she could say anything, or Fluttershy was able to take another step, a terrible surge of reiatsu blanketed the area. Thick and filled with chilling taste of violence, Kyoki’s power pressed down on Fluttershy’s soul, its spiritual pressure suddenly stronger than ever.

She turned and her eyes went wide with fear as she saw Posey rising, but not naturally, but rather like a puppet on strings, her body jerking this way and that, limp save for the hand that held Kyoki. Kyoki itself was drenched in a blood red aura of spirit energy, coils of smokey red power flowing around it in time with its spinning, serrated edge.

Posey’s head, hanging limp one moment, now jerked upwards, her eyes bloodshot and glowing with red energy as she spoke.

“Aw, did you think it was over, putting little Posey to beddy bye? Hahahah! Oh no, girl, that was a mistake. Posey was still holding me back, but now that she’s napping, its just you, and me, and your pretty red guts!”

When Posey, or rather Kyoki attacked, it was in a unnatural, macabre dance of motion. The Zanpaktou controlled Posey with strange, difficult to follow motions that made the girls body look like a spasming cadaver, twisting at odd and seemingly impossible angles as Kyoki thrust forward with her, slashing at Fluttershy in a renewed frenzy.

Fluttershy swung her shroud, the white cloth spinning around to try to deflect the glowing Zanpaktou. Sparks flew from the cloth where it met the blade, the supernaturally hard cloth resisting the chewing teeth of Kyoki for a moment or two. But Fluttershy could see her shroud taking damage, with chunks torn through even as she kept swinging it as she struggled to also evade the Zanpaktou controlling the unconscious Posey.

“H-how are you doing this!? I thought Zanpaktou were supposed to be partners with their Soul Reapers, and didn’t act on their own!”

To be fair, she didn’t actually know much about Soul Reapers or their weapons, besides what she’d gathered by watching Clover and Sunset, but it had seemed to her the weapons needed their wielders as much as the wielders needed them. Kyoki seemed to be quite a bit different from other Zanpaktou, but perhaps Fluttershy just hadn’t seen enough of them to know.

Either way, Kyoki spoke with Posey’s mouth, laughing uproariously. “Whoahahahah! Partners!? You don't get it at all! If I had my way I’d be the one in charge all the time! All my wielder does is follow around her ‘daddy’ like a lost little kitten, never doing anything for herself! It sickens me! I’m doing her a favor when I take over like this! She can just rest easy and let me take care of her.”

Kyoki sent Posey’s body into a twisting leap, bending over backwards in a painful contortion as she sliced viciously with its spinning blade. Fluttershy tracked the erratic attack, just barely getting her shroud in the way to block. There was a terrible, high pitched whine as the serrated blade sawed into the spiritually hardened cloth, bathing the area in shining sparks. Then Kyoki tore hard through the shroud, splitting it in two. Fluttershy dodged back from the descending blade, seeing the deadly tip pass within a finger nail’s width from her face.

Still controlling the two halves of her shroud, Fluttershy took a gamble and sent them out to wrap around Kyoki, trying to halt the blade by overlapping the two pieces of the shroud together. Like with the commands of her third eye, the shroud was enhanced by her spirit energy, and by pouring more into it she could reinforce it further.

Sparks flew as the two shroud halves wrapped the Zanapktou like living snakes made of metal. For a moment the spinning blade teeth chewed at the shrouds, but in a few seconds the shrouds glowed a fierce, powerful light blue as Fluttershy concentrated her spirit energy into them. Then Kyoki’s blade stopped entirely, although Fluttershy could still feel them struggle against the cloth of her shroud.

“Okay, that’s enough!” she said, gulping as she put as much strength as she could into her voice, “You need to stop being so mean to your wielder. She’s not a toy for you to play with!”

Posey’s face, showing Kyoki’s own rage, screwed up in a mad snarl. “You don’t know a damned thing, meatsack! I’m doing this for her own good!”

Kyoki drove Posey’s still slumbering body forward, faster than Fluttershy imagined she could move, and kicked out at Fluttershy’s head. She side-stepped the blow, but had to still keep a grip on both halves of her shroud to keep Kyoki’s blade wrapped up tightly, limiting her range of movement. Kyoki took advantage of this, following up with a elbow strike that Fluttershy struggled to raise a knee to block, unable to channel any command energy into Posey as most of her power was tied up reinforcing her shroud. Not that she was certain it would help if she had, as Posey was unconscious. It was Kyoki she had to deal with.

Could I command the Zanpaktou itself? Fluttershy wondered, but before she could complete the thought Posey’s body, jerking about wildly under Kyoki’s puppet control, slammed her head forward and caught Fluttershy right under the chin.

Stars exploded in Fluttershy’s vision as the world spun. Her head rang again as she hit the ground, bumping her skull off the hard stone floor of the courtyard. Blinking in a daze, Fluttershy rolled to her back, but only in time for Posey’s heel to slam down hard on her chest.

“Arrogant blood bag!” Kyoki roared through Posey’s voice, “Telling me how to look after Posey like you know either of us! Bleed for me!”

Again and again Posey’s foot smashed down on Fluttershy, who cried out at the painful slams on her chest and stomach. She tried to roll away, but Posey just kicked her back into place with a harsh blow. Fluttershy lost her breath for a moment, her eyes having trouble focusing as Kyoki forced Posey to continue kicking her.

Still, Fluttershy accepted the pain. She knew what her friends could end up going through if they failed to rescue Celestia and Luna would be so much worse. The thought of losing any of them was a sickening barb that surpassed any pain from a mere physical blow.

And beyond that, there were people right here who needed her help! Injured Soul Reapers suffering from grievous wounds. Posey, who was trapped by her mad Zanpaktou. Fluttershy had to help them! No matter how much she had to endure to do so!

Focusing as much strength as she could, she abandoned her shroud, letting Kyoki’s blade go, to instead turn her spirit energy inward to enhancing her own speed and strength. She caught Posey’s foot just as it was descending towards her face, and with a fierce look in her eyes she raised one of her legs to draw it back and kicked Posey square in the stomach. The blow forced Posey to stumble back, teetering left and right as Kyoki struggled to keep the Soul Reaper’s balance.

Meanwhile Fluttershy rolled to her feet, standing up despite the painful protests her body was giving her.

She was about to rush in and try and tackle Kyoki out of Posey’s grip, but suddenly Strongheart appeared between them.

But rather than facing Fluttershy, Strongheart faced Posey and Kyoki.

“Enough! Lieutenant Posey, our orders are to take the Ryoka in alive! Have you lost your mind!? You were near kicking her to death!”

Kyoki snarled through Posey’s mouth, “Out of my way!”

Suddenly Kyoki Flashed Stepped, coming straight at Strongheart. The two Lieutenants clashed, Strongheart’s unreleased Zapankaktou being quickly pushed back by Kyoki’s potent, sawing edge. Strongheart grunted, planting her heels stubbornly and trying to push back.

“Posey, wake up dammit! I don’t want to hurt-”

Suddenly Kyoki growled like a rabid animal, and pushed up hard on Storngheart’s blade, forcing the other girl’s guard up. Then Kyoki slashed down in a bloody red line.

Blood splattered from Strongheart, painting the ground. She staggered back, a deep, horrendous gouge cut all the way down her chest. Blood spurting in a slow crimson arc as Strongheart fell.

“No...” Fluttershy breathed.

“Gwhahaaha! Oh that’s the stuff I’m talking about. That blood tastes so good!” Kyoki howled, making Posey dance about as she laughed. Strongheart, still alive, twitched on the ground, staring at her own wound with wide eyes. It was obvious to Fluttershy that the young woman had minutes to live, with a fatal injury like that. She wasn’t certain she could do anything to help even if she was at full strength...

But she was going to damn well try!

“NO!” She shouted, all three of her eyes now glowing luminous blue. “You do not get to laugh at that!”

She charged. Her two tattered shroud halves wrapped around her left hand, tighter and tighter. Kyoki saw her coming and gave a contemptuous thrust of her spinning blade.

Fluttershy caught the blade with her hand, which now wrapped in her shroud was able to withstand the serrated blade for just a few seconds. Fortunately seconds were all Fluttershy needed to force her injured right hand to move, despite the terrible pain of her wounded shoulder, to grip Kyoki’s hilt.

Fluttershy’s eyes met Posey’s, and she said, “Let. Her. Go!”

She shoved as much of her remaining power as she could into the command, touching Kyoki itself.

As she did so she felt her mind being forcibly dragged somewhere, like the whole world was vanishing into darkness save for the transformed Zanpaktou.

Then, abruptly, she found herself standing in a strangely gray place. The sky was gray, filled with dull white clouds. She stood on a seemingly endless plane of reflective red liquid... blood? It was like an ocean of blood beneath an ashen sky, yet she could walk on the blood as if it was solid.

She took a step forward tentatively, finding the blood ripped with her steps.

Then ahead of her she saw a single tree rising from the blood, its own bark charcoal black as if it had been burned. Yet the tree bore leaves, crimson as the blood it rose from. Sitting beneath the tree, curled up in a tight little ball, was Posey. Her eyes were closed and she didn't stir, clearly asleep.

Looming beside Posey was a black dog, a huge bloodhound the size of a grizzly bear. The hound saw Fluttershy approaching and immediately set itself between her and Posey. Its voice barked out across the Zanpaktou’s Inner World, because Fluttershy was pretty sure that’s where this was.

“Get away from us! I’ll rip your throat out and piss on the corpse if you take another step!”

Fluttershy wasn’t certain what was happening. Had her own power drawn her here? Was her spirit and that of Kyoki communicating directly now? Whatever the case was, she hardened her resolve and took another step forward. Kyoki howled, a baying hunting cry and charged, but Fluttershy just held a palm out.

“Heel!”

Her voice carried her command, and inside this space, with her soul connected to Kyoki’s spirit, that will carried even stronger weight. The whole ocean of blood ripped around her from that one word, and the huge, black hunting hound stopped in his tracks. His large, bushy tail thrashed in annoyance behind him. Lips pulled back in a saliva dripping growl of pearly white teeth, and red eyes glared at Fluttershy... but Kyoki heeled.

“Gonna... rip you apart...” the dog promised.

“No, you’re going to be a good boy and sit.” Flutteshy said, and Kyoki sat, growling the whole time.

Fluttershy sucked in a breath. The clock was ticking, with Strongheart bleeding out. She had to make this quick.

“Good. Now, tell me, why are you being so mean to Posey?”

Kyoki’s growl became a deep rumble that echoed through the entire Inner World. “She needs me. She hates thinking for herself. Always doing what her father commands without a care for what she wants. I’ll fix that. I know what she really wants.”

“What’s that?” Fluttershy asked.

“To be free.” Kyoki said, “To be free to do whatever she pleases, when she pleases. I’ll give that to her. Even if she doesn’t know she wants it yet.”

“By turning her into a bloodthirsty crazy person?” Fluttershy said with a frown and raised eyebrow.

“You have no idea how much rage she’s got inside her.” Kyoki said with a little, snarling laugh, “I’m just letting it vent. Once I’m in charge, she’ll be happy. Happier than she is being her father’s puppet. Its better than letting her simper and cower all the time! I can be strong enough for both of us! She doesn’t need to make decisions anymore as long as she listens to me! And I’ll rip to shreds anyone who tries to control her!”

“Including yourself?” Fluttershy said as she stepped closer to Kyoki, hands on her hips, “All you’re doing is being a big, mean bully for your own sake! Are you actually doing this for her, or because your mad at her!?”

“Shut up! What do you know!?” Kyoki barked, and struggled to leap towards Fluttershy, but lines of blue energy coiled out from her third eye like rope, lashing around Kyoki’s neck in the shape of a leash.

“I know animals.” Fluttershy said, “Zanpaktou spirit or not, if you’re like any dog I’ve known then you’re supposed to be loyal to your master, not bite the hand that cares for you! You say you’re doing this to protect her, but I think you’re being just as big a bully as her father is! Treating her like a puppet, making her do awful things, do you honestly think any of that is going to make Posey happy!?”

Kyoki growled once more, but there was less force behind it, and something almost akin to a whimper as Fluttershy got closer to him. Despite Kyoki’s spirit form being larger than Fluttershy by a good few feet, she somehow managed to loom dangerously as she glared at him, tugging on the spectral leash she had around his neck to pull him down to eye level with her.

“You may be big, mean, and don’t care about hurting people, but that doesn’t give you the right to do whatever you please! Nobody has that right! We’re all stuck living together in this world, and if you want to try and make it a ‘dog eat dog’ world then you’re gonna find there’s plenty of dogs around bigger and meaner than you, buster! If you really care about Posey, then you’re gonna stop pushing her around this instant and be a good and loyal dog for her. Otherwise I’m going to have to teach you a very harsh lesson you don’t want to experience.”

She eyeballed him from inches away, starring relentlessly. “Have I made myself clear?”

The seconds stretched out between them like the sands dripping from an hourglass, Kyoki’s blood red eyes locked onto Fluttershy’s teal orbs as they stared each other down. She could feel the bloodhound’s will, the Zanpaktou spirit bristling, but also slowly yielding ground against her own unrelenting force of will.

Slowly Kyoki grudgingly bowed his head, taking on a submissive pose.

“Grr, fine, I’ll back off, for now. Posey’s just too damned beta for her own good.”

“Then help her get stronger.” Fluttershy said with simple, pointed words, “And you can’t do that by controlling her life, you do it by showing her how to decide things for herself and supporting the path she takes. If you are her Zanpaktou, isn’t that what you should be doing?”

Kyoki barked out a laugh, “Easier said than done. Have you seen her when I’m not in control? She can barley speak above a whisper, and the second her father snaps his fingers, she’s off to do his bidding like a lost puppy. Grr, pisses me off so much!”

“There, there.” she said, reaching out a hand and scratching behind Kyoki’s ear. Her skill with animals seemed to translate to the realm of Zanpaktou spirits, because for all his surly growling, Kyoki’s ears perked up and one of his legs began to twitch in a rhythmic thump. “You’re really a good boy beneath all that silly growling and bloodlust, aren’t you? You just need to treat your partner better and I bet she’ll become stronger than you think she can.”

Kyoki shook his head and backed away from her, muttering, “Oughta bite your face off... stupid magic hands, not playing fair. Just go already! I’m seriously two seconds from just cutting you in half.”

“I need to wake Posey up first.” Fluttershy said, “Then I’ll go.”

With a large huff the black hound turned and went to Posey’s curled up, sleeping form, and laid down beside her, eyeing Fluttershy as she also went up to the sleeping girl. She knelt down on her knees next to Posey and very gently brushed some strands of pink hair from the other girl’s face.

“Wake up now Posey. It’s okay to wake up.” Fluttershy said, putting a small thread of commanding spirit energy into the words.

Posey slowly stirred, huddling up against Fluttershy and fearfully murmuring, “I’m scared... Kyoki’s angry... going to hurt people... too much blood.”

“Shh, it’s alright.” Fluttershy stroked Posey’s head comfortingly and continued to speak in a calming tone, “Kyoki’s very sorry for being mean to you. It’s okay to wake up now. Everything is going to be just fine. I’m here.”

Posey turned her head towards Fluttershy, her eyes slowly opening and looking up at Fluttershy’s face. Strangely, there was a moment of recognition that snapped Posey’s eyes wider, and the girl’s face turned confused and shocked.

“Mother...is that...?”

It was at that moment that Posey’s waking mind broke Fluttershy’s connection to Kyoki, and in a single eye blink Fluttershy found herself standing back in the courtyard in front of the main stair entrance to the massive Soul Reaper fortress plateau.

Posey stood before her, Kyoki still in hand. Fluttershy also still had the blade clutched in her own hands, one wrapped in her remaining shroud upon the blade itself, the other on the hilt. Only now Kyoki was back in his re-sealed katana form, and Posey’s eyes no longer shone with madness and violent lust, but rather looked as baffled and confused as Flutteshy herself felt.

Looking at Fluttershy, Posey whispered again, “Mother?”

Fluttershy, coughing politely as she let go of Kyoki and took a few steps back, self-consciously hid a bit of her face with her own hair. “Um, s-sorry, no, my name is Fluttershy. I’m just, uh, here to help my friends.”

Then, remembering someone else who needed help, Fluttershy’s own eyes went wide as she whirled towards the fallen Strongheart and immediately rushed to the wounded Soul Reaper’s side.

“Ohmygosh! Please hold on! I’m here!” Fluttershy said in a swift panic, dropping down next to the bleeding Strongheart. She immediately set her power to trying to help the Soul Reaper heal, her halo and third eye lighting up in a soft blue luminescence that bathed the whole courtyard as she started shoving every last remaining scrap of her spirit energy into Strongheart.

Strongheart gasped, writhing on the ground. The cut across her chest was deep, but had stopped at the rib-cage, not fully penetrating to the organs beneath. But still, the wound cut all the way down to Strongheart’s abdomen, and blood soaked the girl and the ground beneath her. Fluttershy felt cold, sweat trickling down her face as she focused solely upon keeping Strongheart alive.

Posey remained in a state of shock, eyes blinking as she took in the scene, both Fluttershy and Storngheart along with all the other wounded Soul Reapers laying around the courtyard. Posey shook with a shivering tremor, and slowly sheathed Kyoki before she went over to Strongheart’s other side and knelt down opposite Fluttershy.

“L-let me help...” Posey said, raising her hands and beginning to perform a healing Kido, green light flowing into her hands.

Even between the both of them Fluttershy wasn’t certain what Strongheart’s chances were. Her pulse was far from steady, and the blood loss she’d already suffered was horrific.

But Fluttershy pressed on, and not just for Strongheart. She sensed other Soul Reapers among the unconscious injured also barely clinging on, and with sheer will she extended her power to them as well, until her third eye looked like a living star of blue radiance. She could feel her spirit flagging, the power of her Fullbring draining out like water pouring from a drying river. She kept going, unwilling to spare an iota of power to do anything less than save whoever she could.

She hoped the other girls would understand. Rainbow Dash would probably yell at her later for being stupid. Kind of like Kyoki with Posey, Rainbow Dash wanted to protect Fluttershy, and could sometimes be a bit mean when trying too hard to do that. Fluttershy accepted that she’d be getting an earful later about being foolish and trying to help others when she should’ve been focusing on protecting herself instead.

Assuming the Soul Reapers didn’t kill her or something, but that worry was far from her mind as she poured out the last of her power into healing the very same people who were supposed to be the enemy at the moment.

When she used up the last of her power, her Fullbring dissipated away along with her pony features. It wasn’t burned out or anything, she could still sense it inside her, but her Fullbring was going to need awhile to recover from being drained dry. Fluttershy swayed, dizziness overcoming her, but a pair of strong and gentle hands grabbed her before she fell, Posey looking at her with deep worry and a strange mix of awe and bewilderment on her face.

“Mother, are you alright? You shouldn’t push yourself so hard.”

Fluttershy, still conscious but incredibly tired, frowned at the other girl. “W-why are you calling me that? I’m not your, um... mother, you know that right?”

Posey gulped, looking unsure of herself, but her voice held a strange conviction to it. “No, I’m certain. I felt you within Kyoki’s Inner World. Its you. It has to be. This... this will sound like a strange question, but how old are you?”

“E-eighteen.” Fluttersy said, not very comfortable with the direction this conversation was heading. Didn’t Clover say something once about how souls that died in Soul Society got reborn in the human world?

Posey took a deep, shaking breath, before saying, “That’s how long ago my mother, Lieutenant Pansy, died. I’m sure of it. You’re her. You’re her, reborn as a human.”

Before Fluttershy could react, Posey wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug, nearly choking her as Posey sobbed into her shoulder.

“I’ve missed you so much.”

“Um...uh...” Fluttershy gulped, slowly putting a hand on the other girl’s back and patting it gingerly. “I...oh my, this is... very awkward.”

“I’ll say. Especially for someone stuck between it.” said Strongheart, her voice more steady and her breathing easier. She still lay between Posey and Fluttershy, looking up at the pair with a rather uncomfortable expression and a small blush. “I don’t suppose you two could, you know, do this somewhere else?”

“Oh my goodness! Your wound!” Fluttershy saw that the massive cut had mostly closed. It was still a jagged thing of red scar tissue. Chances were Strongheart was going to be sporting a terrible scar there for the rest of her life, but it looked as if she’d live.

“Yeah, still not feeling up to standing, but I’m breathing still, so I’m going to just call it a draw, Ryoka.” said Stongheart, glancing away in embarrassment, “Thanks for healing me, it’s really, uh... sporting of you. But seriously, you’re like, every level of under arrest right now.”

“Strongheart, how can you say that!?” Posey shouted, suddenly standing up and waving her arms around, “She just saved your life! And she’s not a Ryoka, she’s my mother!”

“No, she’s a human who just happens to have your mom’s reborn soul, maybe. By every standard of Soul Society law that still means Lieutenant Pansy is legally deceased, and this girl ain’t her.” Strongheart said, leaning up on her elbows, wincing in pain but her voice getting stronger as she turned an apologetic look towards Fluttershy. “No offense intended, but even if you are Pansy’s soul reborn, doesn’t change that you’re part of an invading group of criminal Ryoka. I suggest, for you own sake, you just stay put here until my grandfather returns.”

This was all a bit much for Fluttershy to take in, and she remained sitting where she was, too tired and exhausted to even think about running away. Her head was still trying to wrap around the seemingly crazy idea that her soul had once been someone else entirely. It made a certain logical sense, if she thought about it. Of course everyone in the world was once a soul dwelling in the Spirit Realm. Just as they died and went to Soul Society, or became Hollows, those who died here got reincarnated into living human bodies.

So it was completely plausible that Fluttershy had, at some point in the past, been a soul here in Soul Society. Then she’d “died” there and been reborn into the person she was now, a simple, kind hearted eighteen year old girl who just happened to have a very atypical high school life involving magic and spirit beings.

And apparently Posey was convinced Fluttershy had once been her mother, Pansy. Whether that was true or not Fluttershy couldn't say, but it was possible.

“Oh my...” was all Fluttershy could think to say, eyes staring in bafflement at Posey.

Just then an incredibly potent wave of reiatsu blanketed the area, the spiritual pressure thick enough to make Fluttershy gulp for air as a massive form slammed into the ground behind her. Fearfully she glanced behind her, just enough for one eye to see the gigantic hulk of Captain Thunderhooves’ standing not more than a couple of steps from her, looming like a large, dark mountain.

His eyes looked down at her with uncompromising hardness, then slowly turned to take in the scene of the courtyard as he spoke in a deep rumble.

“Would someone care to explain to me what has happened here?”

----------

Applejack was near to panicking, and Clover’s insistence that they all remain calm while not sounding all that calm herself weren’t helping.

“We just need to remain cool headed and focused,” Clover was saying as Nocturn led them down the small, winding tunnels that criss-crossed the depths of the Gotei 13’s fortress. Lit only by a lantern that Nocturn had taken from one of the many unlit ones set up along the ceiling, the procession moved about a literal maze of old, dusty storerooms and side passages that didn’t look like they’d been used regularly for decades or more.

“Yes, everything will be just fine. We can regroup at a safe location, then send out a scouting team to locate Miss Fluttershy and Miss Dash, assuming they’re both not captured or dead, then we can mount a rescue. A rescue from the clutches of a Captain. Or more than one Captain. While also fighting through their entire Divisions. No problem. We’re stealthy. No one is as stealthy as us, especially as long as we remain calm. Very clam.”

Applejack sucked in a breath and put a hand on Clover’s shoulder. “Clover, breathe. Yer babllin’.”

“I am? Oh, right, of course I am. I always babel when nervous. Heheh, yes, I’ll stop now. Babbling that is.” Clover started to say, until Applejack gripped her shoulder more tightly and she gulped, taking a deep breath and nodding her head of dark green hair.

“Sorry...” Clover said.

“No need ta apologize none.” Applejack said, casting her own worried look at the floor. “I’m worried somethin’ fierce myself. Wish ta high heaven that varmint that bushwhacked us hadn’t taken out the tunnel entrance. Still think I should’ve blasted us a way out.”

Nocturn spoke without looking back at them, “If you had, you likely would have brought the rest of the tunnel down on our heads. I’m rather happy you listened to reason, as a part of me was sure you’d try it anyway, despite my warnings.”

Applejack sighed through her nose, gritting her teeth. “Ain’t gonna lie, I dang near did. Only reason I didn’t was ‘cause even I could see how unstable that there ceiling was an’ knew myself that it’d come crashin’ down if I tried brute forcin’ us a path back out.”

So instead the three of them had pressed on, hoping that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy would be able to handle themselves until Nocturn found them a way out. He was leading them to one of the Second Division’s hideouts. Not the one he’d originally planned to take them to, but one nearer to the exit of the plateau where they could go scout out the courtyard again and see if they could help their friends.

It ate at Applejack how poorly things seemed to be going. One by one she’d gotten separated from most of her friends. She was battered and bruised, and thus far the only good news was that her mother was out there somewhere, hopefully doing her own part to help. Applejack just wished she didn’t feel so useless right now.

Soon enough Nocturn led them to a small storeroom, where he once again demonstrated the Second Division’s remarkable skill at hiding secret doors by revealing one in the corner that looked entirely seamless to the naked eye. Once it was open they moved through, emerging into a wide, rectangular room... and finding about a dozen poised, red crystal blades all floating in the air and pointed at their throats.

“Oh! Oh dear! I’m so sorry, I thought you might be Soul Reapers! Well, the wrong kind of Soul Reapers at any rate.”

Applejack recognized that voice instantly, and saw Rarity standing by a bed along one side of the room where there were several other beds, all empty save for the one at the far end that had a pale, squeamish looking Rainbow Dash laying on it. Both of them were looking with tense surprise at Applejack, Clover, and Nocturn, who all stood stock still with the crystalline blades poised at their necks.

“Howdy Rarity, do ya mind takin’ yer pigsickers away from our gobs?” Applejack asked with a twitching eyebrow.

“Oh, of course dear, my apologies.” Rarity said, waving her hand and drawing back all twelve blades away from them, the weapon constructs floating back to her bracelet and then transmuting into small streams of blood red liquid that flowed into the bracelet without spilling a drop on the floor or Rarity herself.

Clover was looking at Rarity and Rainbow Dash with disbelief, “How did either of you get here!? We lost track of you Miss Rarity, and Miss Dash, you were still back near the fortress’ main entrance, weren’t you?”

“Sure was.” said Rainbow Dash with a pained voice, her expression looking sallow and haunted, “I don’t quite get what happened either. Fluttershy, she was by this portal looking thing, and then that nutty chick Posey showed up and... and Fluttershy pushed me through the portal, which led right here to Rarity. And she said something about my mom being around...”

Applejack’s eyebrow might have crawled its way right off here head if it could, and she quickly walked forward to join her friends while Nocturn headed for the lines of supply shelves and crates long one wall. Clover remained by the entrance, face bearing a puzzled frown.

“A portal? To here? But that shouldn’t be possible. These Second Division hideouts are known only to members of that Division.”

“Yes, well, we’d like to think so.” said Nocturn, “But if I’m being truthful, over the years its very likely a few other Divisions might have caught wind of some of these hideouts and passages. Especially your Twelfth Division, Clover. I wouldn’t be surprised if a few people might know of these hidden places, albeit not many.”

He rummaged around the shelves until he found a clay bottle with a bit of kanji writing on it and grinned. He popped open the cap and took a long drink, and Applejack smelled the distinct aroma of alcohol.

“Ahhh, that’s just the spot I needed hit right now.” said Nocturn, then glanced at everyone starring at him. “What? Nothing better for desperate situations than a good hit of sake. Perhaps you girls would like a taste?”

“We’ll pass.” said Applejack, turning back to her friends. “Right, I don’t much care how ya’ll got here, but Rarity, could ya bring us up ta speed a bit? Ya got any idea where Sunset, Pinkie Pie, or Miss Doo’s gotten off to?”

Rarity nodded, “I was with Sunset and Ditzy Doo up until a certain point.” A worried crease appeared on her brow. “I’m afraid we didn’t see Pinkie Pie anywhere. Not before we ran into trouble of our own...”

She gave a brief recounting of events leading up to and through her battle with Captain Blueblood. Applejack was impressed, never imagining that Rarity could pull off such a tough fight by herself. She and Rarity got along well enough, despite some obvious rough patches due to having rather opposite views on certain things, and while she knew the sometimes prissy fashionista was a lot tougher than her glitzy, froo-froo exterior would indicate, she still had a hard time visualizing Rarity taking down an opponent with the same rank as Hurricane, a guy who’d taken on all of the together.

But while Applejack just stared at Rarity, Clover outright blurted out, “I can’t believe you defeated Blueblood! I mean, he may be the youngest and least experienced of the Captains, but he was still a Captain! You’re incredible, Miss Rarity!”

Rarity coughed politely, blushing, but also beaming under the praise. “Yes, well, it was all a matter of fighting smarter, rather than harder.”

Rainbow Dash, grumbling, said, “I probably could’ve taken him too. And hey, I beat Lieutenant Fancy Pants! If I get another Lieutenant that’s like, the same as beating a Captain, right?”

Applejack slammed her palm to her forehead, “We ain’t keepin’ score, Dash.”

“Maybe you’re not.” Rainbow Dash said, then winced, “But you’re right, we got more important stuff to worry about. Fluttershy needs our help.”

Clover nodded, “Yes, we need to confirm if she’s alright or not. As long as Miss Doo is with Sunset then I don’t think we have to worry about either of them. Its hard to believe that Sunset is intending to achieve Bankai of all things, but if anyone can do it in so short a time, it’s her. As for Fluttershy, I suggest you all allow me to go.”

“Hey! She’s my friend, and she just saved my butt! I should be going!” snapped Rainbow Dash, while Applejack spoke at nearly the same instant.

“I oughta be the one goin’, ‘cause I ain’t badly hurt an’ can still fly.”

Clover looked between them, but shook her head calmly, “You’ve both taken injuries and used up a great deal of spirit energy in our battles. Even you, Miss Rarity, have likely drained yourself more than you think in facing Blueblood. On the other hand, I’ve only briefly fought Lieutenant Posey, and took no notable injury doing so. I’m still mostly fresh, and while I can’t access Chishiki’s full power for a time due to a technique I used, I’m not going out to fight, but ot gather information.”

She eyed the three human girls with an honest and firm look, “I know you fear for Fluttershy, but the reality is that in all likelihood her battle with Posey is already over, for better or worse. Right now what is needed is someone who can blend in and learn of Miss Fluttershy’s fate, and hopefully also learn where Miss Pinkie Pie has gone. Not to mention we still don’t know what happened to Lord Pipsqueak. There’s too much we don’t know, and I’m the only one who can likely learn anything without starting another battle. While some Soul Reapers will know my face, many other’s won’t, so I can move more freely to learn what I can. And if I am discovered, I have the best chance of escape with my Flash Step and use of Kido. I’m the best choice to go.”

Applejack crossed her arms, looking like she was ready to spit. “And what are we supposed to do in the meantime? Sit on our butts?”

“Yes, Miss Applejack. You all need to recover your strength. One way or another, there are still going to be battles fought when we try to break Celestia and Luna free, and we’ll need you all to be at full power for that eventuality.” Clover said, and Applejack, as much as she wanted to, couldn't really argue with her logic.

With a heavy sigh she sat down on one of the beds, “Alright, I hear what yer sayin’. You’d best git to it, Clover, an’ don’t ya dare let yerself be caught. Got ‘nough friends in trouble already.”

Clover smiled, letting go a breath she’d been holding. She was glad she wasn’t going to have to tie any of these girls down. Even Rainbow Dash looked mollified enough to settle down.

“Dang it, I hate this...” Rainbow Dash muttered, and Rarity sat on the bed beside her.

“I know, darling, but we must endure. Clover is quite right, unless we rest and regain as much strength as we can we won’t do anyone much good when the next round of unpleasantness begins.”

Nocturn took another drink from his bottle of sake, “And that next round is likely going to be for all the chips on the table, ladies. Do or die, soon enough this is all going to be over.”

It was a sobering thought, coming from a man who looked eager to get plastered. Clover gave him a hard look. “Do try to remain sober, Nocturn. I’m counting on you to look after these girls until I get back with news, good or bad.”

He nodded, setting the bottle back on the shelf, “Just needed something to take the edge off, Clover. Its going to be a long night. Don’t fret, one armed or not I won’t let anything happen to them. We’ll still be here when you get back.”

She didn’t miss his clear emphasis on “when”, and gave him a grateful nod. “I’ll be careful.”

With a final nod of farewell, Clover let Nocturn show her the exit to the hideout, opposite where the entrance they came in from the underground storage tunnels were. She went down a short passage that led out of the cliff side into the small forested area on the plateaus southwestern side. She could look up and see the long, jutting overhang of stone that was the Sokyoku Hill.

Clover frowned. She saw a glow of white and blue light from the tip of Sokyoku Hill. Feeling out with her spiritual senses, she got the faint ping of large amounts of gathering reiatsu. She couldn’t make out any details, but she thought there were at least ten or so Soul Reapers up there, one of them quite likely of Captain level, all channeling their spirit energies.

There could only be one reason a gathering of Soul Reapers would be performing any kind of ritual up there involving that much spirit energy, and Clover’s eyes became fearful as they gleamed under the moonlight.

They’re preparing the Sokyoku! But, the execution shouldn’t be for days yet! Why are they preparing it now!?

The only answer she could think of was that Central 46 had ordered the execution date moved forward. Which meant that Captain Celestia and Luna would be executed tomorrow! Sunset didn’t have three days to learn Bankai, she had less than one!

The enormity of the sudden, crushing time limit nearly froze Clover in place, but she shook her head fiercely and balled her hands into fists. She had to find a way to warn Sunset and Ditzy Doo of the new time limit, while also finding out about Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie.

She could get to the main entrance courtyard in a few minutes, and see what there was to see. Then, depending on circumstances there, she’d make her way to the Twelfth Division. While she didn’t know where this secret training area Ditzy Doo had taken Sunset to was going to be, specifically, she knew the Twelfth Division intimately. She’d find them, and warn them...

She just hoped there would be enough time.

Author's Notes:

Posey has issues. I think that's about all I can say on that front. And now Fluttershy is neck deep in those issues.

Any any rate, thanks for reading guys, and hope you're all having a good summer so far. As always feel free to let me know what you think through comments, questions, or any critiques you wish. I appreciate them all. 'Till next time...

Oh, wait, one thing I do wish to do here. Feather Book, the awesome fellow who did Friendship Soul's new cover art, has started up a new story of his own. Equestria Girls: Fallen Canterlot. Its a pretty neat idea involving Twilight dealing with the Equestria Girls world undergoing a magical cataclysm that puts it into a post-apocalyptic state. Go check it out if you can't get enough of the EQG gang being put into dangerous and intriguing situations. Its worth a look in my opinion.

Episode 51: Countdown to Dawn

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Episode 51: Countdown to Dawn

Captain Amore had been just as unable to gain entry to the Central 46 building as Starswirl had been, and consequently her next destination was the Twelfth Division. She swiftly entered the compound of dome-like and cylindrical gray towers that consisted of the Division’s research facilities. Finding one of Starswirl’s scurrying lab assistants she was able to learn that he was inside one of his personal workshops, deep down several sub-levels. As a Captain herself she had little trouble gaining access, and moved with hurried, tense steps.

Much like Starswirl had concluded, she realized that Captain Commander Scorpan being stuck within Central 46 could be a serious problem. She hoped Starswirl was already working on a way around the issue. They needed Scorpan to put a halt to the execution. With every step she took Amore became more certain the execution’s only purpose was to weaken the Gotei 13, and she wasn’t certain what disturbed her more, the fact that someone had been bold enough to try to attack them in this manner... or that it seemed to have worked so well.

Starswirl’s private workshop was five sub-levels down beneath the surface, consisting of a wide, octagonal shaped room. Each side of the octagon consisted of a lowered section of floor that was filled with different laboratory equipment, with tall pillars of stone wrapped with talisman constructing a barrier Kido around each individual section in glowing fields of orange light. A raised bridge led from the elevator shaft to a circular platform where a control console was situated in the center that looked like some madman’s pipe organ with an encircling keyboard. There sat Starswirl, working the keys with utmost concentration, sweat beading on his gray brow. In response small servitor constructs floated within the barriers of one of the lab section, working upon a staff-like object upon one of the tables.

Amore wasn’t certain what it was, but her attention was more grabbed by the two other women in the room, one of whom was Captain Daring Do, leaning against the railing of the control platform somehow managing to look both tense and bored at the same time. The other was Radiant Hope, Amore’s Lieutenant, who perked up upon seeing Amore and smiled brightly, despite her tired features.

“Captain!” Radiant Hope quickly saluted, “I’m sorry I didn’t report sooner, but I encountered Captain Daring Do at the Daireishokairo and we discovered... something.”

“Something?” Amore gave a curious look towards Daring Do, who leaned off the railing and proceeding to walk over with a lazy wave.

“Captain Amore, good to see you. Lemme bring you up to speed...”

It didn’t take long for the Third Division Captain to relay events. While Radiant Hope hadn’t found where her friends were, there was clear evidence of a fight at the Daireikshokairo. It was deeply unsettling. Two Lieutenants missing, and the great library itself attacked? Then there was the strange device that had been found outside the archive. Amore peered at it, the small metal rod sitting on a examination platform in one of the other lab sections.

“And Starswirl has not discovered what it is?” she inquired.

“As it happens,” said Starswirl himself, giving her a vaguely crotchety look over his shoulder, “I’ve seen its like before. I poked it a few times, just make sure. Its a Fullbring construct.”

“Fullbring!? The same power the human girls are using?” Amore said, surprised. “Are you saying one of the Ryoka created it with their power?”

Starswirl shrugged, “One of them may have manifested a Fullbring with similar powers, but I believe this belongs to another.”

“But there are no other Fullbringers. The mothers of those young woman have all had their powers sealed, even...” she was about to mention Captain Sweet Cider, but hesitated as she glanced at Radiant Hope. Technically only Captains were fully briefed on Sweet Cider’s unique circumstances. Lieutenants and lower ranked weren’t informed on that front.

Starswirl just waved a dismissive hand, “I’m not talking about her. I’m talking about the one that got away. What’s her name? Firefly? The mother of the rambunctious rainbow colored girl.”

Amore did recall that one of the previous team of Fullbringers had escaped capture. By the time she’d resurfaced with a husband and child she vanished again, before Soul Society could do more than put a few eyes on her. Eyes that had been readily evaded when Firefly had gone to ground. Amore knew the basics concerning Xcution, but no details on the project beyond the surface facts.

“You must know more about her then than I do, Captain Starswirl. Can you confirm that rod is hers?”

He nodded, “I recognized the design not long after Daring brought the damn thing in. Its a little different from the ones we’ve got on record, but the rods are part of Firefly’s ‘Ace of Sky’.”

“Ace of Sky?”

“The name of her Fullbring. Fully evolved Fullbrings each have a name the Fullbringer learns. They don’t have independent spirits like our Zanpaktou, but the names of their Fullbrings seem to have a personal significance to the Fullbringers, as much as the objects that serve as their Fullbrings’ catalyst.” Starswirl said, “A pair of goggles, in her case. At any rate, these rods are generated by her Fullbring, among many other devices and weapons, not to mention an impressive flight system that our last records showed allowed her to move faster than even experts in Flash Step. As for the rods, they create linked portals. A rod made by one portal can connect to any other rod within a limited radius of roughly fifty kilometers.”

Daring Do’s expression was now rather grim, “And I’ve found dozens of the damn things planted all over the Seireitei.”

“Is she the one responsible for the turmoil we are enduring?” Amore asked.

“By herself? Not likely.” stated Starswirl firmly, “Firefly was a strong leader for her small team, but she was no plotter. A scheme on this level is beyond her. But she’s no doubt helping our enemy. Or herself. Hard to say. Regardless, the most important part of her involvement is that her portals can be used by others. This would explain how our hidden enemy has been able to move freely around Seireitei. It wouldn’t be surprised if we searched the Fourth Division hospital closely enough we’d find more of the rods there. Chances are those portals were used to move the bodies of the attack upon the hospital, whether they were alive or not.”

Radiant Hope fidgeted in place, eyes downcast, “Its possible Meadowbrook and Moon Dancer are still alive as well, if they were taken through the same kind of portal. I... I hope they still live. I was the one who pushed them both, along with Lieutenant Redheart, into investigating the situation behind Captain Celestia and Luna’s capture. If they’re dead, the fault is mine.”

Amore shook her head, offering her Lieutenant an understanding look. “None of us had the foresight to see the extent to which this situation would escalate beyond control. I’m proud that you realized something was amiss before many others did, and tried to take steps to forestall this chaos.”

A grateful look passed Radiant Hope’s face as she bowed her head, yet when she met Amore’s eyes again she was back to looking solemn. “What do we do now, Captain?”

“I’ll tell you what we’re doing,” said Daring Do with heat snapping into her tone, “We’re going to put a stop to this execution bullcrap! Its obvious now we’ve been manipulated into this, and its equally obvious someone in our own ranks has pushed for all this. My money’s on Platinum. So I say we march on down to the Repentance Cells and release Celestia and Luna.”

“We cannot do that so easily.” said Amore, stepping forward and putting a hand on Daring Do’s shoulder, “We need the Captain Commander’s authorization. He’s currently inside Central 46 with no way to contact him. I was hoping Starswirl had a means to bypass Central 46’s wards.”

“That’s precisely what I’m working on.” Starswirl gestured at the staff he was making, “This will bypass the standard wards, once its finished. However I agree with Daring Do, we shouldn’t wait for me to finish this. The two of you should go and free Celestia and Luna now. We can worry about ‘authorization’ after the fact.”

“Impossible. By the law we need Scorpan’s command to ensure this went smoothly and without a fight-” Amore began, but Radiant Hope cut her off, something the Lieutenant had, in all the years she’d known the girl, never done before.

“Captain, the law must be put aside in this instance! Can you not see that?” Radiant Hope’s voice was filled with a powerful note of conviction, despite the stress clearly tensing her features. “If we delay until we have the Captain Commander with us it may become too late! If we are to act, it must be now!”

“The kid’s right.” said Daring Do, “If we hold off too long, the bad guys are just going to get further along with their plans, and we still don’t know the full extent of those yet. For all we know this execution is just one big distraction from something bigger in the works. If we’re gonna nip this thing in the bud we’re better doing it sooner rather than later.”

Amore sucked in a breath, letting it out slowly as she contemplated, feeling the weight of the burden being lain at their feet. This could well spark an all out battle that would split Soul Society down the middle. So far the fighting had just been contained to a few small skirmishes... but this would be placing herself and several Captains in open rebellion against Central 46’s orders and likely lead to them having to fight their fellow Captains openly to free Celestia and Luna.

Yet what other option was there? Wait for two very likely innocent women, two of the Gotei 13’s very best, to be killed due to the machinations of shadowy schemers who at this very moment continued to poison Soul Society from within?

“If we are to do this, then we must take every chance to avoid this devolving into an all out battle.” she said, breathing slowly, evenly, trying to keep her calm. “This should be kept between the high seated officers, Captains and Lieutenants. I don’t want our Divisions mobilized against one another. We will go to headquarters and try to convince the others to free the prisoners.”

“And if they try to go through with the execution before Starswirl can reach the old man?” asked Daring Do with a note of challenge in her voice.

“Then we stop them.” Amore said, feeling her mouth go dry at the words. “It is still several hours until dawn. I suggest we take that time to ensure our Divisions have proper orders to remain out of any conflict that takes place at headquarters. If this becomes a fight, I want it to remain between officers alone. Daring Do, where is your Lieutenant?”

“Quibble’s doing some special scout work for me. I was worried all this hubbub in Seireitei might blind us to outside threats, so I set him and a few squads from my Division to check out what’s happening on the Hollow and Quincy front.” Daring Do said while leaning a hand on her hip, “Just have this feeling they’re not going to be inactive while we’re tearing ourselves up here.”

“A wise course of action.” agreed Amore, “If either group makes a move we’ll need as early a warning as possible.”

“Great, since we’re all on the same page now, I’ll go make sure my people know to keep their heads down for when things get crazy at headquarters.” said Daring Do, and Amore grimaced.

“If they get crazy.”

“When.” insisted Daring Do, “I mean come on Amore, do you really believe Hurricane or Platinum are going to back down, even when we shove the obvious truth in their face that we’ve all been played for dupes? Hurricane is too proud to admit when he’s wrong, and Platinum... well honestly I think I’ve got her pegged as our traitor.”

“You can’t know that for certain.” whispered Amore, still hoping that there was no such traitor among her comrades.

“Fine, believe what you want, but even if she isn’t she’s not likely to back down either. Blueblood will follow where Platinum leads, so we can’t expect any help from him. Then there’s Thunderhooves, who’s an even stronger stickler for the rules than you are, and that’s saying something.” Daring Do shook her head, licking her lips. “Gonna be a tough fight, when it comes down to it. I’m betting Cheese Sandwich will be in our side of the ball-court, but who knows where Sweet Cider will fall? She did vote against Celestia and Luna.”

Amore’s heart sank, her expression dour, “True, but I’ve never been able to tell just what that woman is thinking most of the time. She’s rather rough and uncouth, and seems to have little patience. Who can say what she’ll do, come morning? And to make matters worse, Captain Zecora remains missing. Even if we succeed in halting the execution, we still don’t know what fate has befallen her.”

“Just more proof we have a deadly opponent in play here who has remained hidden.” said Starswirl, “For I guarantee you that even if Firefly was involved in cleaning up the mess, there’s little chance she could have defeated Zecora without causing far more collateral damage than was reported. Someone must have gotten the drop on the whole Fourth Division.”

He turned back to his massive control console and resumed his work, “At any rate, if I don’t finish this ward pass to get inside Central 46, then your task will be made all the harder. I suggest you find Lieutenant Smart Cookie at headquarters. She can at least corroborate that Scorpan is enacting his right to suspend Central 46’s orders until his has had his chance to argue the matter with them.”

Amore’s brow furrowed, “Lieutenant Smart Cookie was with you?”

“Until recently, yes.” Starswirl said, not looking up from his work, “She was investigating the dubious nature of the execution, and joined me when I first checked upon Central 46.” He paused and frowned. “Why? Did she not return to headquarters?”

“I did not see her there. Perhaps we merely passed by each other... she might be back by now.” Amore said, but her feeling of worry only deepened. “If she isn’t, we have no direct evidence the Captain Commander is even inside Central 46.”

“Look, don’t get your panties in a twist over it.” Daring Do said, “We’ll hit up headquarters. If she’s not there, I’ll put some of my boys on looking for her.”

Radiant Hope chimed in with clear fear in her voice, “What if the same thing that happened to Meadwobrook and Moon Dancer happened to her as well!? At this point are we not under clear attack by an infiltrating force besides the Ryoka! The other Captains have to listen to us now, don’t they!?”

“Radiant, calm yourself.” Amore said, feeling nothing but sympathy for her Lieutenant, for she felt much the same sense of dread herself, but she had to keep herself composed. She was a Captain of the Gotei 13, and she would not allow herself to fall to panic. “We will take this one step at a time. Daring, will you meet me at the Fourth Division hospital when you’ve finished preparations? I’ll check headquarters for Lieutenant Smart Cookie. If she’s not there, I’ll still inform the Captains present that I intend to call a meeting at first light of dawn. I’ll even send word to Sweet Cider.”

“And however that pans out, I shall enter Central 46 and bring out Scorpan.” Starswirl said, then darkly chuckled under his breath, “Assuming something horrible hasn’t happened there.”

“Cheerful thought.” Daring Do muttered.

Amore took a deep breath, steadying herself. “Then our course is set. When dawn arrives, we make our move.”

----------

Normally Pinkie Pie’s dreams were easily some of the best parts of her day. Well, every part of her day could be the best part, as long as she was with her friends, but the dreams were pretty good too. They were usually filled with lots of colorful landscapes, enough tasty candy to put a herd of elephants into sugar comas, and plenty of upbeat party music.

But her dreams weren’t colorful or playful. In fact what little she remembered of them were cold and dark when she awoke, although the memory of them faded almost as quickly as sleep’s heavy pull fell from her. While she felt a bit chilled inside, she found she was laid down and was resting within the warm folds of a comfy bed. She was in a room that smelled like a hospital, so she was going to take a wild stab in the dark that that was where she was. How did she recognize the smell? Well she was part of a large family, with sisters who’d gotten hurt plenty of times growing up, and an aging father whose health wasn’t always peak. So Pinkie Pie knew the smell.

The room was lit by lamps situated along the walls between the hospital rooms quartet of beds. Raising her head she could see she wasn’t alone.

“Fluttershy!” she said, almost bouncing out of her bed before a wave of dizziness sent her flopping back down. “Ooooh, room’s going tilt-a-whirl on me. No lunch, stay down. I need you in my belly. Or did we skip lunch today?”

“Oh my, Pinkie Pie, I’m glad you’re okay.” said Fluttershy, who seemed fairly calm as she sat in her own bed, her shoulder covered in fresh bandages. “I mean, none us knew where you’d gone, and it was a little scary to see you unconscious like that. I wasn’t sure when you’d wake up, and you were, um...”

Fluttershy trailed off, and Pinkie Pie tilted her head. “I was doing something in my sleep?”

“Um, y-yes... you were... crying.”

“Oh.” Pinkie Pie drooped, pulling her knees up to her chest as she sat in the bed, thinking back to the end of her fight with Cheese Sandwich. It had more than a little affected her to see Pinkamena being taken down so thoroughly, and then knowing that even her best hadn’t done much to phase the Captain. She felt like she’d let everybody down.

Fluttershy’s soft voice was quick to cut through her funk. “Its okay Pinkie. Everything will be okay.”

Pinkie Pie looked up at her friend, “Aww, you’re just saying that to make me feel better.” She grinned. “Thanks! It helps a lot. So, how’d you end up here? I got taken out by a giant metal chicken.”

“Huh?” Fluttershy blinked in confusion.

“Okay so it was more like a big flying chain scythe thingie, but it totally looked like a chicken head under the right lighting.” Pinkie sighed, “Did you lose a fight too?”

Yellow fingers curled through locks of pink hair and Fluttershy glanced away, face turning a rosy tinge. “W-well, sort of. I actually think I did pretty well, and I managed to help a lot of people, but... um, things got compli-”

The door to the room burst open and Lieutenant Posey, on shaky legs, forced her way inside past a struggling Lieutenant Redheart.

“Mother!”

“-cated...” finished Fluttershy sheepishly as Posey got past Redheart and swiftly reached the foot of the bed, eyes fixated upon the shy young girl as she edged back against the wall slightly.

“Mother I just had word sent to father about you. Hopefully he’ll be able to protect you from any problems your current, um, condition may cause.”

“Oh, uh, that’s... nice?” Fluttershy whispered, not looking Posey directly in the eyes.

Redheart, looking as if she was fuming, eyes sharply fixed on Posey, said, “Lieutenant I am going to have to insist you leave my patients alone and let them rest. Must I go fetch one of the Captains to sit on you?”

“N-no... that won’t be necessary.” said Posey, looking torn between being mortified when she glanced at Redheart, or ecstatic when she glanced at Fluttershy. Pinkie Pie just stared between them with her brain doing its best impression of an old dial up modem as she tried to process what she’d just heard.

She cupped her hand in a manner that wouldn’t even remotely prevent anyone from hearing her whisper very loudly to Fluttershy. “Hey, Fluttershy, I don’t want to freak you out or anything, but I think this crazy chick thinks she’s your kid.”

Fluttershy responded with a small squeaking sound and a faint nod of her head.

“Did you have a kid while we weren’t looking?” Pinkie asked.

“Of course not!” blurted Fluttershy, but immediately quieted down as Posey turned to look at them both.

“I know this must be... confusing.” Posey said, but before she could say more Cheese Sandwich literally popped his head into the room.

“Alright, no more giving the mortal humans existential crisis’ Posey. You’re confusing the kid, and she’s already gotten the third-degree from Thunderhooves. Out.”

Posey stiffened, looking torn. “But-”

“You can give the girl an aneurysm some other time, but I’m pulling rank here.” Cheese Sandwich said, stepping fully into the room and gesturing with his thumb to the door. “Go on, scram. If I have to I’ll carry you out, but let’s save us both that embarrassment, alright?”

She looked like she wanted to argue, but Posey slowly composed herself with a couple deep breaths, and gave Fluttershy one last furtive glance. “We’ll talk soon.” she promised, then hurried out, giving Cheese Sandwich a brief glare as she did so.

After Posey was out, Redheart bowed deeply to Cheese Sandwich. “My thanks, Captain. I might sympathize with her feelings, but she’s entirely out of line trying to harass the poor girl like that. Especially given her injuries.”

“I... don’t mind really.” said Fluttershy quietly, “But is she right? Was I, um... you know?”

“Know what?” Pinkie Pie nearly shouted, “What’s going on here!? I’m supposed to be the confusing one. So why am I so out of the loop?”

“Glad to see you’re awake and energetic as ever.” said Cheese Sandwich with a quick smirk as he strode between Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy’s beds. She gave him an uneasy look, still keenly recalling their fight. A similarly sour expression crossed his own face. “Sorry that I had to be rough with you, but you didn’t toss me a heaping helping of options. Just to make sure we’re all on the same page, please don’t do anything rash like trying to escape.”

“Especially given both of you are still recovering.” Redheart said emphatically, sending a stern look at both girls. “Regardless of your status as criminals, this is a place of healing and I’ll not have patients of mine re-opening wounds I’ve treated.” She turned to Cheese Sandwich, her look no less stern for him. “I trust I can leave them in your capable hands for now, Captain? I have many more wounded still to see too, given how understaffed we are at the moment.”

He shifted so he could dip her a short bow, smiling disarmingly. “I promise I’ll only tie them to their beds if they give me trouble, and clearly they’ve both learned their lessons about tangling with Soul Reapers. Go on Lieutenant, see to your charges, I’ve got this. Oh, but if you spot Sugar Belle, feel free to send her our way.”

Redheart nodded, then after giving Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy a final look of equal parts warning and concern, she departed. Cheese Sandwich took a quick look out the door, seemingly to make sure nobody else was around, and then closed the door and went back to facing the girls with a measuring look in his eyes.

“Alrighty then, guess I’ll answer the easy question first.” He looked at Fluttershy, a somewhat embarrassed grin on his face. “I’d like to put your worries to rest, but the funny thing is, Posey might very well be right.”

“O...Oh.” Fluttershy gulped, looking like the proverbial deer in the headlights. “She really is... mine?”

“Get out of here! Really!?” Pinkie Pie nearly vibrated out of her bed, “That is super-extra freaky to the deaky. Wait, do I have and surprise family members I don’t know about!?”

“Strictly speaking we all probably do.” said Cheese Sandwich, shrugging. “That’s the nature of the life-cycle. You live, make family, die, move on to the other side. Wash, rinse, repeat. You see girls, you’ve probably lived more than a few lives both on this side and on the other one. So have I. The thing is though is that memory doesn’t usually keep very well between lives. Goes bad quick, like milk left out too long. Sure you get exceptions like living humans who might have dreams of past lives, or spirit folks here in this realm who remember bits of the lives they had as a human, but by and large those memories don’t stick.”

He looked Fluttershy over, scratching his chin stubble, “You bear some resemblance to Lieutenant Pansy, but not enough to say you’re her spitting image. Posey must have gotten a better look when your mind entered her Zanpaktou's Inner World. Hurricane might suspect who you are, but unless he got a good, close look at your soul as well he wouldn’t have a way to be sure. Honestly, having worked with the guy for a few centuries I feel safe saying he might not care even if he did know.”

“Wowsie, is he really so much of a grump that he wouldn’t care about hurting his baby mamma?” Pinkie spouted, to which Fluttershy’s face blazed cheery red.

“P-Pinkie, please...”

Cheese Sandwich shook his head with a dour half-chuckle, “Its complicated, and not like I make a habit of sticking my nose into the other Captain’s personal lives. But since you’re neck deep in this, I’ll tell you what I know, which is that Hurricane and Pansy weren’t married, and Posey’s birth was a bit of a scandal, given Hurricane was, emphasis on the ‘was’, married to someone else at the time. Specifically one of the leaders of the noble houses, Lady Puddinghead. Suffice to say that didn’t go well.”

"Mmmm, Puddinghead. She sounds like she’s in charge of a delicious house.” said Pinkie Pie, licking her lips.

“Hmm, think I’m going to have to get some food brought down for you girls.” Cheese Sandwich muttered, “But yeah, Puddinghead’s a real doll, once you get past her weirdness. Could’ve made Captain herself, but she prefers to stick to the noble scene. The only house leader who does. Anyway, I wouldn’t count on any hugs and apologies form Hurricane. Even without the social awkwardness of it all, there’s also the simple fact that the law is that all family ties are effectively severed with death. You die and pass on, you’re effectively considered a different person, by Soul Society law. Kind of necessary for people to be able to move on. Of course that doesn’t always pan out. Some people do retain memory, and look for family when they get to this side. Aaaaand there’s been a few poor schmucks that’ve tried to look for the reborn souls of loved ones who moved on to the living world.”

He sat down on the bed beside Fluttershy, offering her a reassuring look, “So you don’t have to freak out too much, kid. You’re you, and Pansy was Pansy. You’re under zero obligation to carry any of her baggage. Posey’s young, and kind of what you might call ‘emotionally unstable’, so she might be coming on way stronger than she should. Right now you shouldn’t be worrying about it.”

Fluttershy looked pale, eyes swimming with thoughts that Pinkie Pie couldn’t discern, but she was starting to get worried.

“How did Pansy die?” Futtershy asked, and Cheese Sandwich blanched.

“You don’t really want to kno-”

“How?” repeated Fluttershy with ghostly calm.

The Captain sighed, looking away from her, then back with a dose of respect in his eyes. “Wasn’t there myself, but I heard she was killed in a fight with a Hollow. Not just any Hollow, either, but one of the Espada. Hurricane was there, and only he really knows the full story. Does it make you feel better to know?”

“Not really, but I want to understand as much as I can.” Fluttershy replied.

“That’s a good attitude to have. Must’ve impressed Thunderhooves, otherwise he’d have wanted you in a cell instead of a hospital bed.” said Cheese Sandwich, hopping up and energetically began to pace around the room. “Saving his granddaughter’s life, stopping Posey from rampaging around, not to mention keeping a bunch of other Soul Reapers alive long enough to get medical attention... all that’s gone a long dang way to make Thunderhooves second guess going after your friends, and its certainly made me re-think a few things.”

That made Pinkie Pie perk up, her eyes suddenly very alert and attentive upon Cheese Sandwich. Her ears did a twitching motion followed by a tremor in her left femur, which ran up her spine to make her pinkie finger tickle. Which meant that a former meanie pants was about to put on their good-guy shorts. She learned that much from when Sunset gave her the same feeling after the Fall Formal.

“I already figured something stank about the execution.” Cheese Sandwich began, “Kind of a no-brainer. Celestia and Luna, traitors? Pfft, yeah, and I’m the reincarnation of the queen of France.” He paused, scratching his chin. “Actually that might be true for all I know, but the point is that I never bought that they were guilty. Knew something was up, just didn’t know what. But after hearing testimony from Lieutenant Strongheart I’m starting to see what’s up.”

He looked to Fluttershy, eyes filled with an intense light, “That lady you ran into, Firefly, she kidnapped Lord Pipsqueak. You tried to stop her, then helped a bunch of Soul Reapers you didn’t have to that she injured. What doubts I might’ve had about you girls got blown outta the water by that. Now, Firefly being here and nabbing Platinum’s kid convinces me that we’ve got way bigger problems than you and your friends running amok. Platinum herself is probably compromised, might even been in on the whole scum-pond of a scheme. Either way...”

A deft hand reached into the folds of his Captain’s coat and he whipped out a scroll. “I got word from Captain Amore. She’s coming here to convene with me and Captain Daring Do. When dawn hits, we’re going to headquarters and confronting the other Captains, and try and blow the lid off this thing. Platinum can’t ignore that her kid’s been taken, and we ought to be able to convince her to let Celestia and Luna free. Then, theoretically, we can get on top of this conspiracy and shine some light around to expose wherever the cockroaches are. Your friends can come out of hiding then too and we can clear up the whole mess.”

Pinkie Pie’s thoughts did a few gymnastic back flips, “Okie dokie, but what if any of the Captains still wearing their mean pants decide they don’t want to change underwear to team Not-A-Jerk?”

“Well... then things get complicated. As in sword on sword action kinda complicated. In that case, you and your friends can feel free to go hog-wild and bust Celestia and Luna out yourselves.”

“You want us to fight?” Fluttershy said, eyes wide.

“Shh,” Cheese Sandwich put a finger to his lips while grinning, “Keep it on the down low, Miss Fluttershy. Now I’m hoping things can be resolved all nice and peaceful like, but I’m not betting my chickens on that particular basket not flying down the fast highway to Jigoku. Also not one hundred percent certain that if it comes to a fight me, Amore, and Daring can tackle the opposition, even if Sweet Cider weights in on our side.”

“Oh, um, I think she will...” Fluttershy said, licking her lips, “I don’t know if I should say this, but she kind of, um, remembers who she is now.”

Cheese Sandwich's eyes became dinner plates of surprise. “Oh. Ooooooh. Well, that’s either really good for us, or really bad for us depending on just how much she holds a grudge. Not envying old man Scorpan when he ends up on the receiving end of that earful. Anywhos, back to my point, if this turns into a crazy battle royale between us Captains, then you don’t need to worry about me, Amore, or Daring. We’ll consider you girls friendlies, and give you what support we can to bust Luna and Celestia free. To that end, I’m going to be leaving Sugar Belle here to watch you guys until morning. I want both of you resting up until then, but when dawn comes, you guys can sneak right on out, and Sugar Belle will go on break to the little Soul Reaper’s room and not see a thing. Mostly because that’s what I’ll be ordering her to do.”

“Oh my, but what if you all get in trouble for this?” Fluttershy said with a quiet voice.

A rich laugh burst from Cheese Sandwich, “If we lose tomorrow, I think disciplinary action is going to be the least of our worries. Just focus on resting up girls. Big day, come morning, one way or another.”

“Meh, I’m not feeling sleepy.” said Pinkie Pie, “But I’ll take that food you mentioned earlier!”

“Consider it done, pink-gal. I’ll make sure we get enough down here to fill up a moderate sized whale.” Cheese Sandwich said, tipping an invisible hat and heading out the door, apparently trusting them to stay put in the meantime. Pinkie Pie considered the idea of just trying to sneak out with Fluttershy, but vetoed the idea pretty fast. One, she was hungry. Two, she didn’t think Cheese Sandwich was lying. Her Pinkie Sense wasn’t often, or ever, wrong. He was a bouncy ball that’d landed in their court now, and she trusted that come morning they’d be free to leave and go find the other girls.

She hoped Pinkamena would be recovered by then, although she was pretty heavily worried about her other self. There was a faint echo of aching pain in the back of her head that said Pinkamena was far from tip top shape.

Shaking herself mentally she focused her attention back on Fluttershy, offering a wide smile, “So, guess we’re looking at a wait. I’m terrible at waiting.”

“Yes, I’m not too good at it either.” Fluttershy said, looking quite distracted as she coiled a finger through her hair and kept shifting her gaze about every few seconds.

Pinkie Pie, without even really thinking about it, found herself sliding up to Fluttershy’s bed and slowly poking her head up from beneath the bed’s edge to eye her friend. “You know who looks like they need a huuuuug?”

“Um, me?”

“Right you are!” Pinkie said, and bounced onto the bed, wrapping her friend up in a tight embrace. “Hugs are the best for removing injuries and soothing mental issues from having crisis’ of personal identity!”

“They are?” Fluttershy asked with a slight wince. “And, um, I’m not having an identity crisis. I think.”

“Really? I’d be totally having a major mental break if I learned I was the reincarnation of some chick who banged one of our current worst enemies and has a kid who looks like they’re the same age as us. It’d be, like, super freaky in the head-space for me.”

“Pinkie, you’re doing that thing we talked to you about.” Fluttershy said rather dryly.

Pinkie blinked, “Whoops, am I? Sorry! Silent hugs only then. Totally quiet and considerate emotional support from here on out.”

“Thank you.” Fluttershy said, and slowly returned the hug.

----------

Clover got around faster and easier than she expected she would. It wasn’t that her fellow Soul Reapers weren’t alert for trouble, in fact she saw numerous squads on patrol or guarding key streets, but Clover knew her way around and could avoid most of them. Those she couldn’t avoid it wasn’t too hard to bluff with the lie that she was running messages for Captain Starswirl. There were enough couriers running around with similar messages between the Divisions that few blinked twice at her. It made Clover glad she had such a nondescript appearance and that the Twelfth Division in general was sort of a cloistered group. Even if word of her presence with the Ryoka had spread, few people knew her face at a glance.

The first thing she had done was check the grand courtyard where the huge stairs leading up into the fortress plateau was located. She’d surveyed the warehouse Rainbow Dash had reportedly lit her firework distraction at as well. She’d witnessed most of the wounded, including Fancy Pants being picked up from the devastated warehouse, all get carefully carried off by members of the Fourth Division. She was rather impressed with the healers, whose Captain was missing alongside many other members. Yet the Fourth Division members kept their cool, tending to the wounded and pursuing their duties diligently despite what had to be a great deal of anxiety being shared among them.

The damage she witnessed done at the courtyard was disturbingly impressive. The battle that had taken place there must have been intense, and clearly not all of it done by Posey or Fluttershy. Speaking of Fluttershy, she saw the girl surrender to Thunderhooves, and kept out of sight as she saw the tower Captain take her alongside the other wounded towards the hospital of the Fourth Division. She had followed at a distance, and quietly observed from hiding until she was sure Fluttershy was being looked after inside the hospital. Thunderhooves had departed shortly thereafter, heading back towards headquarters, but Clover noticed that Captain Cheese Sandwich was moving around the hospital as well, although she’d only spotted him once through one of the windows.

Shockingly she also thought she saw Pinkie Pie bouncing around in one of the rooms too, looking none the worse for wear.

Clover didn’t want to risk getting closer, however. Not with Captain Cheese Sandwich there. He did know her face, and if he wasn’t on their side, she wouldn’t be able to escape him if he spotted her. Still, it looked like both Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were safe for now, which was a relief.

She’d turned to go, only to find a bright orange face grinning at her from across the street.

“Enjoying a night tie stroll, Third Seat Clover?” asked Cheese Sandwich, waving casually.

She froze, mind starting an instant panic while while tried to decide the best direction to try, and likely fail, to run away, but the Captain quickly let out a disarming laugh and held up his hands. “Relax, relax! We’re on the same side.”

“We...are?” Clover said with a climbing eyebrow.

He shrugged, “Well, more or less. If you promise not to bolt like a scared rabbit I’ll explain.”

“Given that if I ran you could catch me in the span of three seconds flat, I think I’ll hear you out, sir.” she said, swallowing past a dry throat.

“Pfft, three seconds? Do I look that old to you, kid? Try one second.” His grin didn’t falter as he brought her up to speed about Captain Amore’s plan to confront the other Captains at dawn, hoping to at least stall for time so Starswirl could get inside Central 46. He also told her that she and her friends were clear to try and rescue Celestia and Luna when the time came.

“That’s fantastic news!” Clover said, feeling for the first time in awhile that this mission wasn’t quite so suicidal. “If I can find the remainder of the Thirteenth Division and Second Division, we can coordinate with them. And by now I know Captain Sweet Cider will be on our side.”

Cheese Sandwich flinched, “Eh, I’ll believe that when I see it. Don’t worry about contacting Inkwell. I’m pretty sure I know where she and the others are at and will get in touch with them myself. Honestly not sure I want them getting involved. Amore’s pretty adamant about keeping this just between us officers, in order to minimize potential casualties.”

“That’s understandable, but I’m unsure Inkwell will want to be sidelined.” Clover said, “So, Captain Starswirl won’t be angry if I show up back at my Division?”

“Probably not. He’s working on cracking the wards around Central 46. Probably wouldn’t even notice you there if you dropped kicked him in the back of the head while playing the polka.” Cheese Sandwich said with a smarmy look glazing his features.

“Then I’d best hurry.” Clover said, and relayed to the Captain where Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy could find their friends, so they could all link up when dawn broke. She knew it was a risk telling him that, because if he was lying he could easily turn that information against them, but it was too late to try to do things by halves anymore.

Once they parted ways Clover doubled timed it across Seireitei, making her way to the Twelfth Division labs. When she arrived through the front gates she didn’t even see any guards to challenge her. That wasn’t unusual, however. Captain Starswirl rarely posted guards, and most of her fellow researchers were the sorts to remain busy with their projects rather than worry about who was passing through the halls.

It was somewhat relaxing to be back, actually, walking through familiar corridors and smelling a homey scent of chemicals and dry paper in the air. She’d forgotten how much she missed being here, her home away from home. She hadn’t been in the human world long, really, but it felt like so much longer now that she found herself walking brusquely through her own home turf.

Despite Cheese Sandwich's assurance that Captain Starswirl wouldn’t respond poorly to her presence, that didn’t necessarily mean every member of Twelfth Division might not decide to report her being her if she was spotted, so Clover still avoided contact with any of her fellow researchers as she began her search for the training area Ditzy Doo had taken Sunset to.

While she didn’t know precisely where it was, she did know the layout of the Twelfth Division quite well. It was divided into five sections, most of them specialized laboratories for different branches of research, surrounding a central tower that acted as both administration and barracks. Her old room was near the top of the barracks tower. There were five sub-levels as well, dedicated to workshops, archives, and specialized testing areas. If one was going to fit a secret training area here, it’d have to be underground, and it’d likely connect to one of the sub-levels.

Now logically Ditzy Doo would’ve helped make this training area back when she and Discord were still here in Seireitei, during the time that Discord was Captain of the Twelfth Division. They’d want it easy to access for themselves, but not to anyone else. That meant it was probably connected to the fifth sub-level, which usually required a Captain or Lieutenant's access clearance.

Lucky her she’d studied and copied the access ward Meadowbrook had once used to get them into the restricted archives, so she had a means to get into even the fifth-sublevel. She avoided the elevators and instead took the stairs down, opening up into darkly lit corridors where there were doors leading to Starswirl’s private workshop, but also the most reinforced testing labs in the entire Division. Places where any major accidents could be contained via powerful barriers, and heavily reinforced structures in the walls.

The perfect kind of spot to put a training ground where someone might try to achieve Bankai. Any powerful discharges of energy could not only be contained, but also not be easily detected by anyone trying to sense the spiritual pressures involved in such training.

So Clover searched the testing labs one by one, of which there were only four down here anyway so it didn’t take her long. Having spent some time at Discord’s home in the human world she was also familiar with the Kido he used to conceal the training ground he had there, so she knew what to look for.

Even so, she hadn’t entirely expected the hidden entrance to be concealed within one of the lavatories connecting to the testing labs. She supposed the fact that the ‘Out of Order’ sign on the door was bolted on was something of a hint. The ladder leading down was exposed upon flipping up the fake toilet seat. Clover wondered if that was meant to be symbolic of something before descending the ladder, which went down a short stone tube before opening up into a large underground chamber.

She felt the heat on her back almost instantly. The vast, stony area was awash with flames, and if Clover squinted she could see a pair of flickering dark forms darting in and out of the maze of fire, clashing with echoing rings of steel on steel. She could feel Sunset Shimmer’s spiritual pressure radiating from the area now that she was inside it. The shielding of the training area was superb if she hadn’t felt a shred of this reiatsu until she’d entered this place.

The ladder led all the way down to the ground, and just as she hopped off she felt a presence beside her.

“Gotta admit, I’m surprised you found us.”

Clover nearly jumped out of her sandals at Ditzy Doo’s words, the busty woman smirking at Clover with a wink. “Good job though, and glad to see you still got your head attached to your shoulders. I’m sure Sunset will be happy to see you too, assuming she survives her current-”

A distant explosion of fire blew apart one of the larger rock formations.

“-predicament.” Ditzy finished, smirk still firmly in place.

Clover gazed towards the direction where she sensed Sunset’s reiatsu, and noticed now that there was a separate spiritual pressure. She recognized it as being very similar to Sunset’s, but still distinct, like telling the difference in flavor between equally hot but subtly different spices.

“She’s fighting with Hokori.”

Ditzy nodded, “Its the fastest route to Bankai. She’s doing pretty good too, for having such a bi-polar Zanpaktou. She’s got at least half of her blade on her side. Heh, but Pride is a stubborn thing. The Hokori half isn’t submitting easily.”

Clover cast a questioning look at Ditzy, “The Hokori half?”

A white flash showed Ditzy’s grin deepening, “You’ll see. Not to jinx it, but I feel confident Sunset will pull this off before the next two days are up.”

Clover’s hands clenched with a sweaty grip that had nothing to do with the intense heat filling the training grounds. “We don’t have two days.”

That got Ditzy’s attention, her bright yellow eyes sudden gaining laser focus upon Clover, her voice a breathy hiss. “I’m not gonna like what you’re about to tell me, am I?”

“Not really, no.” Clover said, and quickly explained what she’d witnessed taking place on Sokyoku Hill, and what it meant. Ditzy’s face turned into a deep, terrifying scowl, and Clover for a moment feared for herself before Ditzy slammed her fist into her own palm and looked away with a growl.

“Crapmuffins, this is not what we needed! Sunset’s pushing herself bad enough as is! I don’t think she can finish this by morning.”

“I don’t see what other choice she has. That any of us have.” said Clover severely, casting a furtive look towards the battle once more. She couldn’t really make Sunset or Hokori out, only the flash of their clashing forms, along with the deluge of flames exploding around them like an ongoing volcanic eruption. Strangely, she also saw bright flares of white light, which she couldn’t identify. Was that some kind of new technique?

Ditzy shook her head ruefully, “Nothing for it then. C’mon. I didn’t want to interrupt their dance, but no way I can keep her in the dark about this. Sunset has to know that its crunch hour.”

Ditzy Doo rushed off, leaping with a full speed Flash Step that Clover couldn’t follow at all, but she didn’t have to. She knew where Ditzy was going, and moved as fast as she could to join her in reaching Sunset Shimmer. The heat only got worse the closer she got to the site of the fight, and she had to stick to the higher cliffs to avoid the worst of the flames. In many places stone ran liquid like molten streams, and embers filled the air in a flight of a thousand fireflies.

“You know, I’m glad Discord installed some serious atmosphere control in here.” said Ditzy as Clover found her atop a cliff overlooking a lower quarry-like area. “Without it we’d be getting roasted.”

“Where are-” Clover began to ask, but flinched as a massive crash of clashing metal exploded in the quarry beneath them in a ring as loud as a cathedral bell. That was when Clover saw them.

This was her first time seeing Hokori’s true spirit form, and was amazed and shaken all at once. In many ways Hokori resembled Sunset, with similar strong facial features and an eager grin that was all but a twin to Sunset’s own. The bright red skin and burning dark eyes were clear differences, however, alongside the literally flaming hair and wide bat-like wings. Truly a heated, raging she-demon, who was as unsettling to behold as she was awe inspiring, wielding the familiar broadsword against Sunset herself.

Sunset for her part arrested Clover’s attention even further. Bleeding from dozens of wounds, covered in sweat and soot, she still stood tall and strong against the flames. She carried her shield like it was a blade itself, holding off Hokori’s broadsword as it pressed down on her, fire flowing off the sword to surround them both.

Yet Sunset’s shield flared with a pure white light, a pulse of sunlight solidified into a barrier that shoved Hokori back in a shining burst.

Pushed back, Hokori gave off a fang filled grin and flashed back in, thrusting her blade. Sunset mirrored her Zanpaktou’s grin and stepped into the attack. Just as the two were about to slam into each other, Ditzy put a few fingers to her mouth and blew out a sharp whistle that seemed amplified beyond the norm, echoing across the entire chamber.

Sunset and Hokori stopped with their respective weapons bare inches fro each other, both sliding equally irritated glances towards Ditzy Doo. At least until Sunset spotted Clover, and her annoyance quickly gave way to equal waves of both joy and relief.

“Clover!” Sunset cried, and Flash Stepped up to them in an eye-blink, soon followed by a eye-rolling Hokori.

“You’d better have a good reason for interrupting us!” said Hokori in a tone that all but spat fire.

Sunset, instead, wrapped Clover up in a tight hug, then clapped the Soul Reaper on the shoulders, eyes as bright as her smile despite her clear exhaustion and the pain she was enduring. “You’re okay! That’s... I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to see you.”

A momentary worry crossed her eyes, “Do you know anything about the others?”

Understanding that Sunset had been dealing with her Bankai training without any real notion if any of her other friends besides Rarity were okay after the battle with Hurricane, Clover wasted no time.

“Everyone’s fine, more or less. A lot happened.”

“Enough to be worth stopping our fight?” Hokori asked with an agitated glare.

Clover gulped and nodded, “Believe me, you both need to know what’s happening.”

And so she told them. First about all that had occurred with meeting Lord Pipsqueak and his subsequent kidnapping, then the run in with Captain Cheese Sandwich and the arrangement to try and break Celestia and Luna free at dawn. Then, finally, the reason things had to happen that soon... the fact that the Sokyoku was being prepared for the execution, and it would likely take place tomorrow morning.

There was a stunned silence following her words, and after a moment Hokori scoffed.

“Doesn’t matter. Me and Sunset still have to settle this our way. All that’s changed is the time limit.”

“Yes, that’s right.” said Sunset with surprising calm, her eyes seeming to burn with sharper focus as Clover sensed the girls’ spiritual pressure deepen. She turned her gaze towards Hokori, and the Zanpaktou spirit returned the look without blinking.

“Hikari says we can’t afford to waste any more time, and I agree with her.” Sunset said, causing Clover to blink in curiosity.

Hikari? Who was that?

A snort burst from Hokori. “I’m sure she and you are happy little peas hopping into the same pod, but I don’t give handouts. You want my power, you have to take it!”

Sunset’s smile returned, predatory and fierce. “I didn’t say otherwise. I just said I agree with Hikari about not wasting time. I was enjoying our fight, but we don’t have any more time to spend on fun. Sorry, Hokori, but I’m going to have to end this.”

“Hmph, if you think you can, give me your best shot.” Hokori said.

Sunset glanced at Ditzy and Clover, “Thanks for telling me what I needed to hear. Now, you both might want to get a good distance away. This is going to over... soon.”

Ditzy and Clover exchanged a quick look with each other and Ditzy tossed out a shrug, saying, “Good luck. Don’t get dead, Sunset.”

“Please, um, win.” Clover offered, with a helpless, somewhat shaken smile, “If you get killed I’m not sure how I’m going to explain that to your friends. It’ll be extremely awkward.”

“Don’t worry.” Sunset said, hefting her shield and facing Hokori. “I’ve got this.”

As Ditzy and Clover proceeded to give the two combatants their space to resume their fight, Clover felt a significant increase to the intensity of both of Sunset and Hokori’s reiatsu. Neither spiritual pressure was rising much, as it was clear both of them had been using up a great deal of their power and were nearing the limits of their endurance already, but what they did have left was being focused and brought to the surface like the fresh drawing of sharpened swords from their sheaths.

Both Sunset and Hokori jumped back from each other, but just enough to give one another space to build momentum for a final charge. It was clear both from their stances and their focusing reiatsu that the two intended to end the fight with the very next, final strike.

“Hoo, boy, they’re doing the classic showdown bit.” said Ditzy, sucking a breath as they watched.

Clover held back her own troubled thoughts, worried for Sunset despite the other girls’ assurances. There was nothing behind held back in the way both opponents had sharpened their reiatsu, and Sunset was already so drained.

As Sunset had promised, it didn’t take long.

The flames around Hokori’s sword grew brighter, until they transformed into a pillar of azure blue fire. Meanwhile the shield Sunset bore turned into a beacon of light, seeming to take the very substance of light and turn it into a physical shell around the shield. Both spiritual pressures seemed to converge in opposing tides, cracking the rocks beneath the two facing off with each other.

Then Hokori unleashed her flames, the billowing wave of destructive blue fire taking the shape of a laughing, demonic head, its mouth open wide to swallow Sunset. For her part Sunset didn’t flinch away from the fire, and holding up her gleaming white shield of light she dove straight into the flames, like a woman diving into a tidal wave.

Clover held her breath, unable to look away.

----------

Sunset burned. Fire, painfully blue, searing all around, dominated her senses. Yet Hikari was with her. She felt that half of her Zanpaktou carefully, gently embracing her as a stark contrast to Hokori’s wrathful embrace of flames. The light of the shield was more than a guard, it also was a balm, healing flesh even as it was singed.

That was part of Hikari’s power. Just as attacks upon the shield empowered the blade’s flames, attacks made with the blade empowered the shield so its light could heal wounds to the wielder, while also forming potent energy barriers.

The harder Hokori fought her, the harder Hikari could work to protect her.

That, combined with her own supreme determination, allowed her to push her way through the seemingly unending pulsing of scalding fire. The stone beneath her feet burned like an oven-top, searing her feet. The air was so thick with heat and flame she could barely breathe as she pushed onward, the sheer pressure of the flames making every step a test of strength and will. Even with Hikari’s power washing her body with healing light, she still felt every in of screaming pain as the flames tried to push past her shield and consume her.

It will be okay. I am with you. Hikari’s voice spoke softly, a encouraging caress on Sunset’s soul. And Hokori, in her own way, is with you too. This is her way of showing her Pride in you. Now, rise, and show her it is warranted. Bring us together, as one.

Sunset took the words to heart, and pushed harder against the flames, turning her forward walk into a headlong run, faster and faster. The azure flames coiled around her, pushing back harder, yet Sunset could see a flickering end to them, and Hokori beyond, blade held forward, eyes blazing not with rage, but a joyous light.

Hokori was laughing, sounding utterly thrilled, even as Sunset broke through the flames and rushed on, straight for the demoness.

Hokori’s broadsword thrust forward, sparking past the tip of Sunset’s shield as she too lunged with everything she had.

There was a light impact and a burst of pain in her shoulder. The broadsword had cut along the top of her shoulder, deflected there by the shield, and opening up a large gash...

And the sharpened tip of Hikari’s shield had pierced Hokori’s chest, and stuck out of the demoness’ back.

The flames died out around the pair, and Sunset and Hokori both stood there transfixed. Then Hokori hung her head and rasped out a happy laugh.

“Heh... funny thing is, I hate losing, even to myself.” Hokori said, licking bloodied lips. “No, especially to myself. Even if I’d wanted to give you all of my power, there was no way I could until you forced it out of me. I’m just too damn stubborn to do otherwise.”

“You mean we are.” said Sunset, letting out a breath she’d been holding. “You and me, we’re all part of the same person. Hikari too. I need both of you. My Pride, and my Light. Without you guys, I’d be a pretty sorry shadow of what I could be.”

“Hah, you’re damned right...” Hokori said as her body started to turn into solid fire, flowing back into the broadsword. “And you’d better not ever forget it. Now brace yourself. This is gonna sting.”

“Huh?” Sunset asked, as Hokori’s form flowed like liquid fire into the broadsword, and then both the blade and the shield started to gleam with brighter and brighter light, as if both were turning into blindingly white fire.

Prepare yourself, Sunset. Hokori is right. This might be a tad uncomfortable. said Hikari.

Which was about all the warning Sunset got before her Zanpaktou proceeded to explode in a massive pillar of white fire, with her standing in the middle.

----------

As he concentrated upon his work preparing the staff that would function as a ward pass for Central 46’s standard wards, Starswirl felt a slight tremor in the ground.

“Hmm?” he glanced around, wondering what might’ve caused such a quake, this far underground and in such a reinforced area... but since no alarms went off he just assumed it was his imagination and went back to work with a shrug.

It wouldn’t be long until dawn.

----------

Clover rushed to the scene, where the white flames were slowly dissipating around a pool of seared, molten rock that was slowly cooling off.

“Sunset!” she shouted, rushing down as soon as the rocks cooled off enough to not burn off her feet.

Sunset lay in the epicenter of a charred crater. Her Zanpaktou was planted in the ground next to her, in its sealed katana form. Ditzy Doo appeared next to Clover just as she knelt down beside the seemingly unconscious Sunset, putting her arms around to cradle the girl and raise her head up.

“Sunset, can you hear me?”

“Well,” said Ditzy, “That was about as explosive as I remember from when me and Discy trained like this.”

Clover didn’t even glance up at the woman, instead focused entirely upon Sunset, who coughed and slowly blinked awake, much to Clovers flood of relief.

“Uggggh... now I know what it feels like to be banished to the core of the sun. Ow.”

“Are you alright?” asked Clover, and Sunset flashed her a grin.

“Better than alright.” Sunset said, an eager and strong glint in her eyes. “I know Bankai.”

----------

Dawn's first rays hadn't quite crept their way over the barrier of the horizon when Captain Sweet Cider existed the wide, sliding wood and paper panel doors of the Tenth Division headquarters and looked out into the courtyard. Standing there were her people, Soul Reapers she'd served with and commanded for years...

She knew those years were built upon a terrible violation of her own memories, but as much anger as she had simmering below the surface about that she couldn't place blame on a single one of the people who stood before her. For the time she'd acted as this Division's Captain these men and women had obeyed her orders, fought at her side, and demonstrated time and again their courage and loyalty. And this morning was the largest test of that loyalty, and some part of her felt a stab of of shame that she was asking this of them.

Silverstar was there at the head of the group of Soul Reapers, his head raised to attention as she walked out.

"Ma'am, we're ready to head out whenever ya give the word." he said with a somber note, but with resolve hardening his eyes.

Looking over the assembled Soul Reapers, all silently and alertly watching her, Sweet Cider sucked in a breath and said, "I ain't gonna ask if any o' ya want ta walk away now. If that was the case ya already had yer chance, an' I ain't gonna insult yer integrity like that. If yer here, ye've made yer choice an' I'm damn proud o' it. What's takin' place in our own home court is a' travesty, an' its time ta take a stand fer doin' the hard, but right thing. We're goin' ta headquarters, an' one way or 'nother we're makin' sure Captain Celestia and Captain Luna are freed. We won't be alone neither. Got word from other Captains who'll stand with us. Might be it won't come to no fight..." she shook her head, a grim smile on her face. "Don't suppose none o' you wanna take bets on how likely that's gonna be?"

There were a few short chuckles from her people, the tension thick enough that they'd take any excuse for a laugh.

She nodded, "Didn't think so. Alright folks, then let's not waste no time! Tenth Division, move out!"

----------

"Where are they? Dang it, Clover said they'd be here by now!" Rainbow Dash said, pacing back and forth in ever increasingly agitated footsteps.

"She did say Sunset needed to recover as much of her strength as she could after that grueling sounding training." said Rarity, watching Rainbow pace with slow flicks of her eyes, her lips pursed in disapproval, "And will you stay still? I may have treated your wound, but I'm not certain how well those stitches will hold up, darling. We'll be engaged in no shortage of conflict soon enough, so why waste your energy?"

"She's right, sugarcube." said Applejack from beside Rarity, "Ya ain't doin' yerself no good runnin' yerself inta the ground 'fore the fightin' even starts up again.

Rainbow cast a sharp look at them both, but sighed and gave a nod of assent, joining the other girls in leaning up against the cliff face. They were waiting just outside the hideout. Clover had dropped by briefly during the night to inform them of what she'd learned. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity had spent most of the night trying, and failing, to sleep, and now just waited for when Ditzy, Sunset, and Clover would arrive, along with Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, who supposedly had a way to escape the Fourth Division hospital without trouble and had been informed where to meet.

Nocturn had left a couple of hours prior to find the rest of the Second Division and organize them to make their own move when the moment presented itself. Which should be soon. Dawn was fast approaching, perhaps minutes off by Rainbow Dash's guess.

She was a coiled spring just waiting to snap. She loathed having to wait. Moments like this were torture for her. It was like when she had to sit in the locker room for those last few minutes before the big game. Always made her stomach twist up into knots. Once the action started she knew she'd be fine. Heck, she'd be thrilled once they were moving, fighting, doing something. These last few moments of tension as they waited were the worst.

When a twig snapped in the forested area nearby Rainbow Dash nearly flash fired it with lightning right then and there, but drew in an easy breath as she saw Clover, Ditzy Doo, and Sunset emerge from the treeline.

"Sorry to keep you guys waiting." said Sunset, her smile confident and relaxed. "Also good to see you made it, Rarity. Took down that Blueblood jerk?"

Rarity ran a hand through her hair with a pleased smile, "I taught him a thorough lesson, I believe."

"I beat Lieutenant Fancy Pants." Rainbow blurted, perhaps a bit too quickly, and with an embarrassed grimace she glanced away. Applejack patted her on the shoulder.

"At least ya'll beat yer opponents fair n' square. Pretty sure my ma was kickin' my teeth in' somethin' fierce 'till I broke that dang chain keepin' her memories bottled up."

Ditzy Doo nodded firmly.

"All of you have fought well. Knew I put you girls under a serious pressure cooker with that training, but its really paid off." Ditzy Doo said, then glanced off to the right, along the eastern edge of the cliff. "Hmm, and I sense the last of our intrepid party are arriving."

"No, its this way Fluttershy, trust me! The Sense is never wrong!"

"Um, okay, if you're sure."

Rainbow Dash perked up, her heart beating a tad faster as Pinkie Pie's colorful form bounced into the clearing, followed by the demure walk of Fluttershy. Dash all but flew to them both, ignoring the soreness in her arm as she hugged them both tight.

"Goshdangit! Fluttershy! Don't you ever scare me like that, ever!" Rainbow all but shouted into the girl's shoulder, her hug a crushing thing that made Fluttershy gasp.

"I'm, I'm so sorry Rainbow, but I didn't know what else to do." Fluttershy said, strained.

"Yikes, Dashie, you could give Maud's hugs a run for their money." Pinkie Said, "My lungs are going all pancake central over here."

Rainbow Dash let her friends go with a huffing sigh, wiping at her eyes with an elbow, "Sorry guys, just... really glad you're both okay." She then looked to Fluttershy, a nervous wave of uncertainty rising inside her as she asked, "Fluttershy... about my mom. Clover... explained a bit, but... did you really see her?"

Fluttershy looked away for a second, then as if gathering her courage, she met Rainbow Dash's eyes, trembling, and nodded silently.

Rainbow Dash felt like the air had been knocked out of her as she stood there, feeling... numb. She gulped, hands clenching into fists, as a menagerie of emotions tried to burst through her frozen heart, and she shoved them all down hard.

"Rainbow..." Sunset began to say, but Dash just held up a hand.

"It's okay. Fine. Whatever. She's here. I don't care." Rainbow Dash spat out, taking a hard, shaking breath. "We got a job to do. We do it. If... she gets in the way, I'll deal with her."

"Sugarcube-" Applejack also tried to speak, but was just as quickly cut off by Rainbow Dash.

"Applejack, please, just don't. I ain't got the same relationship with her as you do with your old lady, okay? Just... do me a favor and drop it."

Silence reigned for a moment, before Sunset said in a gentle voice, "Okay Rainbow, we'll let this lay for now. Just know we're all with you, whatever ends up going down."

"Yeah, I know," Rainbow Dash said, shaking her head and forcing on a smile, "You gals always got my back. Just, if she does show her face... let me handle her myself." Her magenta eyes flashed and her voice turned hard. "I got a lot I want to say to her, and right now I can only speak in fists."

At the tail end of her words, the first bright rays of sunlight poked through the trees, the sky turning a growing shade of cerulean blue. Clover gulped, and said, "It's time."

Sunset nodded, her hand resting on the hilt of Hokori, still sealed and sheathed at her side.

"Then let's do this. All or nothing, girls. Either way, this ends today."

Episode 52: Clash of Captains

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Episode 52: Clash of Captains

Platinum strode out upon the platform that extended from the fortress to act as a hub to the series of bridges that connected to the adjoining towers of the Repentance Cells, her expression hard and grim. A full squad of ten guards from her own Division waited for her, along with a similarly sized squad from Hurricane’s Division. Aside from their Zanpaktou, four guards apiece were armed with tall polearms from which red cords dangled, which would connect to the prisoner’s collars to maintain the spirit energy suppression that would prevent them from using their powers.

“Captain, ma’am.” The guards rose and bowed to her as she arrived, a nervous air hanging about them.

She took a deep breath, steadying her hand on the hilt of Fuyukogo. The Zanpaktou felt especially chilled in her hand today, as if it knew that the time for battle was soon going to be upon them. She could feel her Zanpaktou’s eagerness, and knew the reason why. Fuyukogo knew that somewhere out there was that girl, Sunset Shimmer, and with her that fiery blade, Hokori.

“Soon enough my friend...” she whispered to the sword.

“Ma’am?” the guard looked at her oddly, and she provided a thin smile.

“Dawn’s light has graced us this day, and the time has come for the traitors to be marched to Sokyoku Hill and face their punishment, as by the decree of Central 46.” Platinum declared, holding up the parchment containing the orders for the guard to examine. The shock in his eyes was evident, but he nodded, face pale.

“You wish us to get the prisoners from their cells?”

With an impatient snort she nodded, “Yes, that would be a necessary step in this process. I trust they have given you no trouble?” She started to walk down one of the bridges, the one that would lead to Celestia’s cell. The guards followed her, while the other squad headed down the bridge leading to Luna’s prison. Platinum was rather irked that none of the other Captains could come with her for extra security measures. She knew Celestia well enough to know the woman would try something, some final gambit, which was why she was going to her cell personally, but having Hurricane or even Blueblood present would have been reassuring.

But they had gone to that meeting Amore had called. Platinum had barely escaped being pulled in herself only on the technicality that an execution order required at least one Captain to preside over it, and by the letter of the law the execution was to proceed at dawn.

If Amore wanted to stop it she’d have to argue quickly in that meeting.

The two groups of guards reached the cells doors at roughly the same time. The doors themselves were huge slabs of stone set within a slight depression carved in the wall of the giant white tower. Stairs led up and down the side of the tower in corkscrew patterns, leading to other cells, but Platinum’s attention was rooted to the door before her.

With little preamble but clear unease the head guard fished out a wooden token, a ward pass to open the Kido barriers around the door. Flaring kanji symbols appeared in yellow script up and down the door as the token was pressed to a receptacle beside it. Then the stone slab split in two, opening down the middle with a grating sound.

Platinum went in first, hand on the hilt of her blade.

“Bringing me breakfast yourself Platinum? You shouldn’t have.”

Celestia was standing by the cell’s only narrow slit of a window, gazing out contemplatively. She looked as calm and collected as ever. It made Platinum’s blood heat up with a simmering anger, but she kept her voice frostily controlled.

“By the command of Central 46, Celestia, you are to be taken to Sokyoku Hill immediately, where you will face execution for the crime of treason against Soul Society.”

Celestia turned to face her, still looking serene, even cracking a small smile. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, Platinum. And I’m sorry.”

Platinum’s teeth clenched together tightly, ice and fire battling inside her gut. “Apologizing for your treason?”

“For whatever pushed you this far. Whether I had any part of it or not, I don’t know, but I’m sorry all the same. You could have come to me, you know? I would’ve helped.”

Platinum closed her eyes, knuckles white around the hilt of her Zanpaktou, her voice a sharp whisper. “It wouldn’t have made a difference.” she said, letting the mask slip. It didn’t matter much anymore, anyway. “You couldn’t have changed anything, even if I had wanted your help. Which I didn’t.”

“What happened to Magnus-”

”Is in the past.” Platinum hissed. “This isn’t about him, Celestia, or you, however much you might assume. Now enough talking. This will all be over soon.”

She gestured for the guards, who looked perplexed, to attach the cords of their control poles to Celestia. They did so after a moment’s hesitance, perhaps confused by the exchange between the two Captains, but obeying their own Captain’s orders. Soon four red cords were attached to Celestia’s collar and they started to lead her out of the cell, one guard carefully binding Celestia’s arms behind her with yet more cord.

Celestia remained seemingly unconcerned, her eyes looking to left towards Luna’s cell. Her smile deepened.

“You are right about one thing, Platinum, this will be over soon.”

This was followed by an explosion of noise and several cries of pain from across the way. Platinum’s eyes shot wide and she tore Fuyukogo from its sheath as she rushed out onto the bridge and looked over towards Luna’s cell tower. She saw several guards lying in heaps on the bridge over there, with perhaps four remaining standing in confusion as a dark blue form flew amongst them with dazzling speed.

Luna, unbound and free, fully in use of her spiritual powers, used blindingly quick kicks and palm strikes to hammer the remaining guards into unconscious piles in about the time it took Platinum to fully register what was happening.

Fury engulfed Platinum and her own reiatsu rose like a torrent, crushing over the entire area as she leaped across the span between the two bridges, pushing herself with her fastest Flash Step. She blurred from one point to another, Zanpaktou already cutting through the air at Luna’s back before she even finished landing behind the other woman.

Luna moved like a piece of liquid night, bending away from Platinum’s seeking blade, but lost a chunk of her midnight blue hair in the process. Platinum followed through with a straight thrust that pushed Luna to spin away with a dodge that still left a grazing mark across her mid-riff, but then Luna retaliated with a snapping elbow strike that Platinum had to step back from. This gave Luna enough room to Flash Step as well, flickering in a similar leap to Platinum's own, landing on the bridge beside Celestia and the other guards.

Luna’s lightning fast kicks took down two guards before Platinum caught up, jumping high above the bridge and raising her Zanpaktou up high.

”Plummet, Fuyukogo!”

The air instantly grew dozens of degrees cooler as parts of the bridge started to become coated in frost, even before the Zanpaktou transformed from a katana into its wide, crystaline blue tulwar Shikai form. Platinum slashed with the blade before even landing on the bridge, sending a cascade of ice down upon Luna’s position.

Luna went into a smooth series of swift backflips, barely escaping the torrent of ice that not only froze the bridge through entirely, but shattered that portion of it as well, sending the frozen bits tumbling down.

The guards and Celestia were still on one side of the broken bridge, while Luna and Platinum both ended up on the other, facing each other.

“Luna, just go!” shouted Celestia, “Now! I’ll be alright!”

A look of hesitance and anguish crossed Luna’s face as she eyed Platinum, then Celestia, clearly mentally calculating the odds of rescuing her sister while still dealing with Platinum while being armed only with her fists and Kido. Platinum knew Luna was skilled in the art of unarmed combat, but without a Zanpaktou Luna must have known she stood no chance against a released Fuyukogo.

“I’ll be back for my sister.” Luna promised with a harsh, steel clad tone, then Flash Stepped away in a blue blur. Platinum considered following, but knew if Luna was seeking only to run, there was little Platinum could do to catch her. So she let the woman go, and watched only long enough to be certain Luna had vanished amid the buildings of the deeper fortress before turning to Celestia and the guards.

She jumped over to them, face cold, and leaving Fuyukogo in its Shikai form.

Her voice was barely above a controlled growl. “Go and sound the alarms immediately.” she said, stabbing a finger at one guard. “And you! Report this to the other Captains immediately. The rest of you inform the rest of the Division and begin scouring the fortress! She’s likely going for the armory to retrieve her Zanpaktou.”

“Y-yes Captain, but what about-” the head guard started to turn towards Celestia, but Platinum just raised Fuyukogo. In an instant ice encircled the four pole arms connecting to the cords around Celestia’s neck, creating four pillars of floating ice under Platinum’s control as the guards instinctively backed up.

“I will take her to Sokyoku Hill myself.” she said bluntly.

“But Captain-”

“You have your orders! Now carry them out.” she commanded, eyes fiercely piercing each of the guards. Whatever doubts they may have harbored melted under that hard glare and their own ingrained training, and they all quickly jumped across the gap in the bridge and started to head off with flickering Flash Steps of their own to obey her orders.

Alone with Celestia now, Platinum gestured and the four ice shards surrounding the polearms controlling the cords around Celestia's neck rose to follow her own movements as she grabbed Celestia’s bound form and slung her with one hand over her shoulder.

“This is insanity, you know that right?” Celestia said.

“Only because you have no idea what this is truly all about. But it makes no difference. Your sister can’t stop this. Those children from the living world can’t stop this. Even... even I can’t stop this. Now silence, Celestia. For once in your life, just... be silent.”

“I make no promises.”

Platinum just groaned under her breath as she made a mighty jump, landing atop the nearest fortress roof, carrying Celestia along towards Sokyoku Hill.

----------

Ten minutes earlier...

Amore had difficulty containing the pensive and displeased look on her face as she watched Captain Sweet Cider approach at the head of what looked like a large contingent of the Tenth Division, marching into the courtyard leading to the Gotei 13’ main headquarters as if prepared to storm the place.

Sweet Cider’s stance mirrored that of her troops, bold and clearly ready for a fight, her eyes roving over Amore and the other Captains that had gathered to enter the fortress. Amore could see the flash of anger writhing in Sweet Cider’s eyes, but her tone was almost conversational as she said, “Fancy meeting’ ya’ll here this fine mornin’.”

“You got our message, but still came out on the full march, eh?” said Cheese Sandwich, sporting a small half-grin, “Can’t say I’m surprised.”

Sweet Cider’s lips curled into something that wasn’t quite a smile, “Ain’t gonna pretend like this’ll go any other way but south, an’ my guys n’ gals would be downright insulted if I told ‘em ta sit ‘round with their thumbs twiddlin’ away. Ya’ll can leave yer people at the homesteads, but Tenth Division ain’t missin’ this shindig.”

Amore’s own voice cut in sharply, “If this ‘goes south’ as you say, then I want the fighting to be kept to an absolute minimum! That was the point of not mobilizing our Divisions as if we’re about to lay siege to headquarters!” Indeed the only other Soul Reaper that had accompanied them was her own Lieutenant, Radiant Hope. Cheese had left Sugar Belle to guard the hospital with Redheart. Amore could see Sweet Cider had brought her own Lieutenant, Silverstar keeping a respectful distance as he stood among the rest of the Tenth Division Soul Reapers.

A short look entered Sweet’ Cider’s eyes, “All it takes is one fella blindly followin’ orders ta carry out the execution. With their spirit energy suppressed Celestia an’ Luna couldn’t even fight back against a’ rookie. Not takin’ any chances here Amore, an’ I ain’t sending my people back. Now are we goin’ in or do ya wanna waste all mornin’ arguin’?”

With a soft chuckle Daring Do said, “I’m all for getting down to business. Come on Amore, if things are going to blow up, best get it over with fast.”

“...So be it.” Amore said with a heavy weight of responsibility pressing on her as she turned and led her fellow Captains to the wide stone stairs carving a path up in the fortress plateau. The Soul Reapers of both Hurricane’s Eleventh Division and Thunderhoove’s Seventh Division guarded the area, but made no moves to stop the Captains. They knew of the meeting taking place and were under orders to let the approaching Captains pass, and moved aside with swift if tense bows before they resumed their posts... carefully eyeing the members of Tenth Division who’d taken up position across the courtyard.

The stairs led up to a smaller square courtyard nestled between the massive fortress buildings, rising many stories above the Captains’ heads. Other Soul Reapers had been stationed here as guards, all on high alert with tensions pouring from every one of them as Amore and her fellow Captains walked by. With glowingly heavy yet resolved steps Amore entered the large, heavy wood and iron bound gates across the courtyard into the central building of the the headquarters. She’d walked the route to the Gotei 13’s grand meeting hall hundreds of times, so she could walk the path in her sleep. Yet never before had she made this walk with such nervous energy brimming in every step. Her own footfalls and those of her fellow Captains sounded like thunderous drums in the quiet of the mostly empty halls.

She nearly jumped when Cheese Sandwich put a hand on her shoulder.

“Hey, relax before you bust a spleen. If you hold that spine any more rigid you’ll end up snapping in half.”

“How can you be so calm?” she asked, genuinely curious. Looking Cheese Sandwich he seemed steady as a rock beneath a raging waterfall. He just winked at her.

“Old man Scorpan used to tell me that if you’re already falling off a cliff it can’t hurt to flap your arms. We’re already off the cliff, Amore.” He tucked his arms into mimic wings and started flapping thm. “I’m not calm, I’m scared as all get-out, but I’m going to flap hard as I can. Might as well do the same, eh?”

His disarming smile was enough to earn a small laugh from her, and she looked at her hands. “Not certain I can. I’ve helped guard and build Soul Society with these hands, and I just can’t help but imagine that today it may be these same hands that irreparably damage it. If it comes to a fight, or if we can’t stop the execution...”

“We flap, Amore. Until we fly ourselves out of this mess like crazy chickens.”

“Is it weird that this is just making me hungry?” asked Daring Do.

“Please don’t talk about food. I’m nervous enough to lose what little I ate this morning.” gulped Radiant Hope, pale as a washed out dishrag.

“Hey, speakin’ o’ the ol’ man, any chance we’re gettin’ Scorpan in on this hootenanny?” said Sweet Cider.

“If all is going according to plan then Starswirl should be entering Central 46 as we speak.” said Amore, pausing now that they’d reached the tall doors that would lead into the meeting chamber at the heart of the fortress. She looked up at the doors with a grave shadow, wondering if upon opening them what future laid beyond them?

----------

The ward pass in the shape of a intricately carved staff of wood worked like a charm upon the standard wards of Central 46. A shimmer of pale orange light opened up like a sliding screen door, and the interlocking gate of crossed blades removed themselves from the physical door to the building. Starswirl kept a firm hold on the staff as he entered, then set it beside the door so he could grab it on the way out.

Assuming there would be a way out. He was far from certain that something unpleasant wasn’t waiting for him, and he kept his hand near the hilt of his Zanpaktou as he descended the long spiral staircase heading to the Central 46 meeting chambers.

Almost to his surprise he hard raised voices before he reached the bottom. One he clearly recognized as Captain Commander Scorpan’s, not only raised but filled with equal amounts of exhaustion, exasperation, and furious frustration.

“I cannot comprehend why you persist in arguing against what is only rational and right. If you are so convinced of their guilt then what harm is there in delaying their punishment until a proper and full investigation is complete? That is all I ask!”

“And what you ask seems to us to be a pointless and wasteful venture when Soul Society itself is under attack by the very humans that the condemned protected. As inconvenient and difficult to believe as it is, the fact remains that Captain Zecora’s Zanpaktou confirms the identities of the guilty. What purpose is there in delaying punishment? It only provides the invading Ryoka further chance to succeed in their aims.”

As Starswirl descended into the large, circular meeting chamber he saw that Scorpan stood upon the central podium, where Celestia herself had stood during the hearing not so long ago. The elderly Soul Reaper had a look of barely restrained fury in his eyes as he gazed upon the many hidden faces of the forty six who sat in raised sections surrounding him. One of the members of Central 46 seated on the lowest tier in front of Scorpan continued to speak in a controlled tone.

“Were we not under attack, we might have considered a longer investigation, but if anything this assault upon the Seireitei is only further proof of guilt, is it not?”

The sigh that came from Scorpan was like a hot bellows, ripe with irate fumes. “Proof!? All those young girls know is that two women they’ve grown to trust and respect were taken and then learned they were to be executed. They have no concept of our laws and customs, not enough to understand the gravity of attempting to rescue Luna or Celestia. Their attack is the action of young, provoked adolescents, not some part of a grander scheme!”

“You do not know that, Captain Commander, and you dismiss the possibility of their involvement in Celestia and Luna’s treachery too easily. Was it not Discord who has been training them? The same Discord who has exiled himself from our company, consorted with other tainted exiles, and may well hold a grudge against us for halting his research? What if he is the originator of the plots against us? Celestia and Luna both occupied the same city he has, and they may have hatched this plot together.”

Starswirl reached the bottom of the stairs just as Scorpan clenched his eyes shut, muttering, “Madness. I’m speaking against a tide of madness.”

“Control your tongue, Captain Commander,” said the Central 46 representative, “You will maintain proper decorum while in this hall.”

Starswirl cleared his throat loudly, causing a weight of attention to shift to him and Scorpan’s eyes to open with bleary surprise.

“Captain Starswirl, how did you get inside here?” said one of the members of Central 46, one seated higher than the previous speaker. “The wards were active to keep out interruptions to our debate.”

“I bypassed the wards.” Starswirl said bluntly, offering a rather unapologetic shrug, “They were in the way, and I needed to speak with the Captain Commander about a immediately urgent matter.”

“No matter is so urgent that it warrants breaking into our chambers and interrupting our discussion-”

“On the contrary, I believe the bylaws grant any Captain a right to act under their own best judgment during emergency situations.” cut in Starswirl, “And recent events more than qualify, and you can have your ‘debate’ about that any other time, but for now I have words for the Captain Commander, not you.”

“Why you insolent little-”

“Please, I’m older than the lot of you.” Starswirl muttered, ignoring the Central 46 member’s protests as he approached Socrpan, offering a somewhat apologetic smile. “Captain Commander, I don’t have a lot of time so I’ll cut right to the chase. No one outside knows you’re exercising your right to contest Central 46’s orders right now.”

Scorpan’s expression darkened, “But I gave Smart Cookie specific instructions to inform the other Captains and continue the investigation.”

“I know. She came to me first, sir. After going over our findings we decided it was best to seek you out, but the wards prevented my entry until I was able to construct a ward pass. However Smart Cookie was supposed to return to headquarters and inform the other Captains... however she has gone missing.”

“Missing!?” alarm was clear on Scorpan’s aged features, but he controlled himself swiftly, his eyes hard. “Do we know what has happened to her?”

“I’m afraid not, but I also learned from Captain Daring Do that two other Lieutenants who were investigating the Daireishokairo have also gone missing. We also have confirmed reports from Lieutenant Strongheart that there is another group moving against us, and that this group has kidnapped Lord Pipsqueak.”

Some of the blood drained from Scorpan’s face. “Spirit Queen protect us... it's all been a ruse. A distraction to make us lower our guard. Even...” his eyes turned sharply against the seats of Central 46. “Even my being here is only meant to cripple us. Who!? Who among you gave the order to move the execution to today!?”

As Scorpan’s voice exploded across the room, Starswirl found himself noticing something odd, his eye drawn to the chairs the Captains had used during the hearing. Specifically Zecora’s chair. It was barely noticeable. He doubted anyone casually walking by would even realize it was there.

A rod. Small, almost fully buried into the side of the chair’s seat, nearly invisible. The same teleporter rods that Firefly had been spreading all over Soul Society. And Starswirl knew Firefly could give those rods to others to plant and activate. While the Central 46’s building was warded against forms of teleportation Soul Society was more intimately familiar with such as the Hollow Gargantas, and furthermore could detect and react to similar reiatsu... he knew that the portals Firefly’s Fullbring used happend to be a blind spot in those wards.

Anyone could have used those rods to get inside Central 46, completely bypassing the wards.

“Oh... oh shit.” Starswirl said, just as four members of Central 46 rose from their seats. The members of Central 46 all wore similar white robes, and their seats had paper shields usually meant to block their faces so no one besides the Central 46 knew who was behind each seat. Now that they rose, Starswirl could see the four who stood had glazed eyes, flashing with green light.

“Sir!” Starswirl called in warning as he drew his own Zanpaktou. Scorpan’s blade cleared his own sheath with a rasping noise, but the four Central 46 members who rose didn’t attack the Captains.... they attacked the rest of Central 46.

Emerald fire erupted around the four individuals as they leaped upon the next nearest member’s of Central 46. Starswirl felt their spiritual pressure... shift and change as their bodies morphed. Soul Reaper reiatsu fell away to reveal Hollow reiatsu, and the four shape-shifters revealed horrific, twisted new forms.

Their bodies were sickly white, pale with a tint of green. Limbs were twisted and bent with odd joints, ending in scything claws. Their bodies were oddly tall and lanky, effeminate yet not quite male or female in shape. Their faces were covered in identical Hollow masks that resembled a fanged insectoid, and each of them let out unearthly, hissing howls as they tore into the helpless, shocked Central 46 members around them.

Before any could react half a dozen of the chamber of Central 46 were cut down in bloody ribbons, staining the area in splatters of gore. Screams echoed as the rest fled, the twisted, shape-shifting Hollows poised to pursue their fleeing prey. Starswirl was poised to intercept... but it was unnecessary.

A titanic mountain of spiritual pressure consisting of pure, ancient rage slammed the entire chamber with such force that even Starswirl, one of the oldest of the Captains, had to struggle just to keep his feet.

The Hollows, despite their feral instincts, paused at that wave of reiatsu, fear piercing their minds even as they froze in place.

Scorpan didn’t speak. He didn’t have to. His Zanpaktou spoke for him.

It was just a single strike, a wave of his old, dull gray curved katana wrapped in a hilt of faded black leather. The air rippled, once. Then the Hollows simply disintegrated, their bodies ripped to shredded piles of drifting ash in th span of a mere second. A good quarter portion of the chamber followed them, in one giant cut that tore through the chamber with an explosion of air pressure.

Starswirl knew that wasn’t even a technique of Scorpan’s Zanpaktou. That had simply been him extending his reiatsu alone in a single, focused strike.

“Starswirl,” Scorpan’s voice was an earthquake in progress, “Remain here and guard the survivors of Central 46. I am putting an end to this.”

Although he felt it was potentially bad for his health to gainsay the Captain Commander in his present mood, Starswirl had some logic to point out. “Sir, with all due respect, having detected Hollow energy inside or near the vicinity of Central 46, that would mean-”

A heavy hum of energy suddenly filled the building, and Starswirl sighed.

“-the emergency wards have activated.”

Scorpan’s face sported a volcanic scowl. “They cannot hold me.”

“Well, no, no they can’t. However the emergency wards are significantly stronger than the standard ones. They were designed to hold off assaults from the Espada themselves. It will take even you time to break through them to the outside. And I, uh, suggest not using your full power, sir, otherwise you’d destroy the building, and us along with it.”

“They planned this...” Scorpan muttered darkly, eyeing the torn up section of the chamber and the dust piles that were once the Hollows. “All of it. I should have kept one alive to question.”

“I doubt they would have spoken. Those weren’t normal Hollows.” Starswirl said, frowning, “If anything I think they would have killed themselves if captured. They didn’t feel quite right. They were pawns, nothing more, set here to confuse and damage Central 46. What I’m trying to figure out is how they hid their Hollow reiatsu. They seemed to have replaced the members of Central 46, but mimicked their spirit energy signature perfectly to keep from tripping the emergency wards until they wanted to reveal themselves.”

He turned to the surviving members of Central 46, who all stood with mute shock at that the situation. “The orders to move up the execution, was it one of those four who proposed the notion?”

One of the members, an elderly woman, nodded with wide eyes. “Yes, but... they only brought it up. They didn’t force the issue.”

Scorpan snorted, “They wouldn’t have to. Merely setting the seed would’ve been enough to get the rest of you to seize upon it. Fools. We’ve all been such fools. How did they get in? Where did they come from!?”

Starswirl reluctantly pointed out the teleportation rod hidden inside Zecora’s seat and explained its purpose. Scorpan looked utterly baffled.

“Zecora a traitor? That... I cannot believe that.”

“Nor do I, but I don’t think she betrayed us on purpose. Sir, I suspect she was compromised in a similar manner to the four of Central 46 who were replaced. Her disappearance from the Fourth Division may have been faked. Regardless of the truth, you are right that we must escape here. I would suggest starting to work upon shattering the emergency wards. I the meantime I will explore the rest of Central 46.”

“To what purpose?” asked Scorpan.

“I don’t believe infiltrating Central 46’s ranks was their only purpose here.” Starswirl replied, turning and pointing at one of the sets of doors leading deeper into the large underground complex that housed the Soul Society’s governing body. “I have to investigate to confirm what I fear I already know, which is that they not only are seeking to damage Soul Society, but to target the Treasury. To steal the Queen’s Key.”

“How do you know it’s there? Only I should know its location.” Scorpan said, eyes boring into Starswirl.

“Logical deduction, sir. And educated guess, and one I think the enemy could have made as well. Assuming they didn’t have another means to find out, like say using Zecora’s Zanpaktou to seek it out. While its Shikai reveals truths, you are aware its Bankai does... much more.”

A stormy grimace clouded Scorpan's expression. “Go. Find out if the Treasury has been compromised. I shall free us from this makeshift prison.”

His voice dropped to a whisper, “I only hope we are not too late.”

----------

With Radiant Hope left outside the chambers to keep watch on the corridor and ensure the meeting wasn’t disturbed, Captain Amore, Cheese Sandwich, Daring Do, and Sweet Cider all entered the Gotei 13’s central chamber. The room was a tall ceilinged, solem hall, with red paneled wood walls and varnished wood floors. No chairs or furniture of any kind were to be seen save for a single, simple, high backed wooden chair that sat at the very far end of the hall. Behind the chair a long paper lantern was mounted along a jade tapestry, providing pale light to the entire hall.

Amore had been here so many times, for countless discussions, announcements, and debates with her fellow Captains. The Captain Commander would always calmly be seated upon the head chair, as was his right, to preside over whatever needed to be talked with among the other twelve Captains, who would stand in two rows of six at either side of the Captain Commander down the length of the hall.

As bare and simple as the room was, it was the beating heart of all Seireitei to her, even more so than the chambers of Central 46. She’d always felt a sense of purpose and comfort when entering it.

Now, the purpose was there, but the comfort was long gone.

Waiting for them were Captains Blueblood, Thunderhooves, and Hurricane. Hurricane stood beside the Captain Commander’s chair, looking impatient and imperious. Blueblood stood a bit to Hurricane’s right and looked to have been in the middle of haphazardly pacing when he paused, giving a nervous look as Amore and the others entered. Thunderhooves stood at his customary place down the hall, stiff backed, glowering, and with eyes that betrayed a deep conflict taking place behind his otherwise hardened features.

“Captain Amore, you rarely call meetings yourself.” said Hurricane in a boisterous baritone, stepping forward with his arms crossing over his barreled chest. “I imagine it’s for a good reason?”

Amore opened her mouth to speak but Sweet Cider beat her to it, voice sharp as a butcher’s knife. “Can the horseapples Hurricane! Where’s Platinum gone off to?”

“She’s performing her duty under the legal orders of Central 46, last I checked.” Hurricane said, “It is morning, after all, and we have documented orders to begin the execution.”

“Sweet Queen above, you all knew I called this meeting to talk about those very orders and why we shouldn’t be following them without the Captain Commander present!” Amore nearly shouted, marching forward towards Hurricane. Thunderhooves stood in her way.

“Thunderhooves, you... you can’t seriously be going along with this?”

His eyes flicked away for a second, then met hers with uncertainty. “I read the orders myself. They are authentic. Central 46 has ordered their execution now, Captain Amore. I cannot deny the law.”

“Come on Thunderhooves,” said Cheese Sandwich, sliding up along the right side of the room, plainly moving in a way that’d give him a clear line to anyone else present, “You know something's wrong here. You heard your granddaughter’s testimony with your own ears. That Ryoka girl saved her life and a bunch of your people besides, while someone from another group has taken Platinum’s son.” Cheese Sandwich’s eyes sharply turned to Hurricane. “Has she been informed about that?”

Hurricane shrugged, “I’m not in charge of the Sixth Division’s intel or lack thereof. If a message has been sent to her about her son, it wasn’t my job to send it. As for Lord Pipsqueak’s kidnapping, what proof do we have the Ryoka responsible isn’t working with the ones attacking Seireitei?”

“Try common freakin’ sense!” shot Daring Do, mirror Cheese Sandwich’s movements, only covering the left side of the room, and being less subtle as she placed a hand on the hilt of her blade. “Lieutenant Strongheart’s report clearly indicated that Pipsqueak’s kidnapper was at odds with those other girls. More than that, that Firefly chick has powers to teleport people all over the damned place. If she was in league with the girls from Canterlot City why wouldn’t they be using those teleporters instead of running around at random? Use your heads and think it through! Celestia and Luna’s execution is a set-up and I’d bet my Zanpaktou that Platinum’s in on the whole damn thing, which is why she’s not here right now!”

Hurricane scoffed, “Or its just as likely that Celestia and Luna are completely guilty and have orchestrated this attack to weaken Soul Society because neither of them have ever approved of our war efforts against the Hollows and Quincy. Why do you think they were assigned to the human world to guard that worthless portal in the first place!? Even Captain Commander Scorpan knew they needed to be kept out of the way, and didn’t trust them. We’re under siege by the very humans who attended their school! Isn’t it obvious that they’re traitors!?”

“Enough of this arguin’!” roared Sweet Cider, turning a fierce gaze upon Amore. “This ain’t gettin’ us anywhere! Celestia an’ Luna could be gettin’ tossed up on the damn scaffold as we speak! Amore, they won’t listen. It’s time ta do this the hard way!”

“But... but we can’t just... not here...” Amore’s hands were trembling, she couldn’t control them. “If we fight here, in the very heart of all that Soul Society stands for... then we are lost.”

“Then get ta findin’ somethin’ else ta believe in, ‘cause if ya don’t stand up fer what’s right here and now then there ain’t no Soul Society at all!” Sweet Cider said, and backed up the words with the loud ring of steel as she drew her Zanpaktou.

“Hooo, boy, guess we’re doing this.” Daring Do said, drawing her own blade.

“HA!” Hurricane let out an ecstatic whoop as he tore his own Zanpaktou free of its sheath, “So you’ll all label yourselves traitors willingly? Fine by me! I’ve wanted to see just how a pup like you even got the title ‘Kenpachi’, Sweet Cider! Perhaps when I’m done with you I’ll let you keep it, as a consolation prize for being second-best.”

Cheese Sandwich hadn’t drawn his own sword yet, carefully shifting his gaze between Thunderhooves and Blueblood, “Do either of you really want to go through with this? Thunderhooves, you know the Captain Commander would never approve of this. Smart Cookie is missing. This is all wrong, and you know it.”

Thunderhooves’ jaw tightened, “The law... must be protected. Soul Society must be protected.” The humongous Captain slowly drew his Zanpaktou, the thick blade seeming small in his hands. “Without the law, there is no Soul Society. Please, stand down, and don’t force me to do what I will likely... come to regret.”

Cheese Sandwich turned a saddened look towards Blueblood. “And you? Has Platinum given you enough reason to trust her over your own common sense?”

“I... I...” Blueblood gulped, visibly shaken, looking at the unfolding scene with troubled eyes, hand hovering near his Zanpaktou shakily. “I’m not certain this is the best idea. Perhaps we should all remain calm, find Captain Platinum and discuss this rationally?”

“Boy, if you don’t have the balls to fight, then stand aside for those who do.” said Hurricane, “Or did that Ryoka bitch cut the spine out of you along with whatever pride you had?”

The wounded pride on Blueblood’s face was horrific to see, the way it twisted his features, but it was hard to tell who it was directed at, Hurricane, or himself. His own Zanpaktou came out with a dry hiss. “I am more than capable of fighting, Hurricane! If you want it to be on your side you should consider whom you insult more carefully.”

“You’re really going to fight us, Blueblood, after Hurricane insults you like that?” Daring Do asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’m am quite tired of everyone questioning my competence, my honor, and my pride. Hurricane may be a bore and a smug ass-”

Hurricane growled but Blueblood ignored him and continued.

“-but he’s still acting within the law. Now I’d rather we go find Captain Platinum and talk this out, perhaps even find the Captain Commander, but if you insist upon using force against your fellow Soul Reapers I am bound by honor to stop you, even if I may have doubts.”

His voice had become resolute, and the tension in the room rose alongside the heightening spiritual pressures from all present, save for Amore who had yet to draw her own Zanpaktou as she looked at the scene with anguish. Cheese Sandwich, Hone Nashi already in his hand, placed his other free hand on Amore’s shoulder.

“Platinum has to be stopped. She’s got to be heading for Sokyoku Hill by now.”

As if his words were prophetic, an alarm sounded through the room, echoing from the halls beyond. All the Captains tensed further, and Cheese Sandwich’s hand tightened on Amore’s shoulder.

“Go, fast! Stop Platinum. We’ll deal with matters here.”

“Not going to happen!” shouted Hurricane, and he moved, blade poised, rushing for Amore.

Sweet Cider intercepted him, their Zanpaktou’s clashing in a resounding crash.

Thunderhooves, face a sour grimace, charged in as well, Cheese Sandwich spinning to face him while shoving Amore towards the door.

“Go!” Cheese said, barely getting his own sword up in time to block Thunderhooves titanic overhand slash that forced Cheese Sandwich’s feet to crack the floorboards.

Amore backed away, feeling cold.

Blueblood and Daring Do faced off, and then both moved with dizzying Flash Steps, blades sparking off one another in blurring motions.

Comrades she’d known for years, in some cases centuries, were fighting each other in front of her eyes. It tore her apart to see, but she knew Cheese Sandwich was right. With everyone else engaged, she was the only one free to go pursue Platinum and stop the execution.

She turned and Flash Stepped out of the room, not daring to look back as the sound of the massive clash only intensified behind her.

“Captain!” Radiant Hope said, eyes wide.

“Follow me, Lieutenant! We’re going after Platinum.” Amore said and didn’t look to see if Radiant Hope obeyed as she rushed down the corridor, heading for the fastest route she knew to get to Sokyoku Hill.

----------

The resounding alarm gongs reached all the way down to the courtyard entrance to the headquarters fortress, and Silverstar sucked in a deep breath and blew it out forcefully past his moustache. Even without the alarm, there was no way any Soul Reaper present could mistake the massive crashing sounds coming from the large central block of the fortress, nor the massive spike of multiple spiritual pressures that could only be the Captains beginning to engage in all out battle.

“Welp, that’s about as clear a signal as we’re gonna get.” he said, drawing his own blade and turning to the rest of Tenth Division. “The Captain has started the party! Time we go n’ join the square dance!”

A multitude of rasping steel clarion calls rang out as hundreds of Zanpaktou were unsheathed together. The guards around the stairwell, consisting of members of both the Ninth and Eleventh Division, responded in kind. Silver Star could see a fair amount of hesitance on both sides. He understood, and even shared the hesitance, but he knew why the Captain wanted them there and why’d she’d ordered them to go in and take the fortress.

As much as mitigating the damage was a priority, and the last thing Silverstar wanted to do was harm his fellow Soul Reapers, by now it was likely that Inkwell and Nocturn were making their own move to secure the fortress from the inside, and there were still lots of members from the other Divisions present who might overwhelm them if the Thirteenth and Second Division weren’t given support.

The idea was to end the fighting swiftly and decisively, which wouldn’t happen if the battle was allowed to be turned into a dragged out battle. So Tenth Division’s orders were to rush the entrance and secure the fortress as fast as possible, subduing resistance with the absolutely minimum force needed to get the job done.

He didn’t like it and he knew it wouldn’t be easy. Even under the best of circumstances the risk of casualties, including deaths, were high. But he trusted Captain Sweet Cider and his comrades in Tenth Division. They’d get the job done, and make sure this fight didn’t last long, or cost more than was necessary to see it end.

“Remember fellas, knock ‘em out when you can, wound ‘em when you can’t, and keep together! We’re securin’ the main courtyard first! Charge!”

The Tenth Division moved as one, a solid wave of black robes that rushed the defenders at the stairs like a freight train. The defending Soul Reapers held steady, meeting the charge with blades at the ready and Kido already being chanted.

And in a explosion of blade on blade and lightning crack of unleashing Kido spells the battle for the fortress began in earnest.

----------

“What in flaming hells is going on!?”

“I don’t know, there’s explosions at the entrance and near the grand hall!”

“The alarm at the Repentance Cells was ringing, have the prisoners escaped!?”

“The main courtyard is under attack! Get reinforcements down there, now!”

Chaos reigned inside the Gotei 13’s fortress as the lesser seated officers and standard rank and file members from the squads of Soul Reapers from the Ninth, Eleventh, and Sixth Divisions stationed there all rushed to mobilize and organize against the attack. With Fancy Pants and Strongheart in the hospital, the only Lieutenant present was Posey, who was left utterly out of her element in the grander confusion of the situation.

Carrying out her father’s orders was simple enough, but issuing her own was still difficult for her when she didn’t know what to do. Yet after her encounter with Fluttershy... with her mother, she felt all the more resolved to become strong enough to be a worthy daughter. Even Kyoki seemed calmer than he ever had before, and the Zanpaktou almost felt comfortable in her hands as she directed the Soul Reapers around her.

“S-send five squads to hold the gates at the main courtyard, and three more to investigate the Repentance Cells. I’ll lead the rest to the grand hall and help my father with subduing the rebel Captains. Hurry now!”

Third Seat Blaze and Fourth Seat High Winds of the Eleventh Division both saluted her and rushed off to execute her orders. They’d all been moving along one of the higher hallways near the top of the central fortress block, where the First Division barracks were.

“Lieutenant Posey, what is going on here?” asked another Soul Reaper who quickly appeared from a side door. She was a middle-aged woman with brown skin and curly gray hair, and she looked exasperated. “Why is your Division rushing off to fight?”

“Because we are under attack, Third Seat Ivory Scroll.” Posey said, addressing the woman with a note of respect. Though just a Third Seat Ivory Scroll was of the First Division, and as such held esteem higher than her seat rank. “What else am I to do?”

“Enforce the peace! We must calm this madness at once. Even if the Captain Commander and Lieutenant Smart Cookie are not here, we must not allow this violence to escalate further!”

“I’m afraid it’s too late for that.”

Posey and Ivory Scroll both turned to the new voice.

Inkwell had emerged from a literal opening in the wall, and several more such openings appeared from both floors and other parts of the wall as dozens of Soul Reapers form the Thirteenth Division poured out, weapons already drawn. Inkwell’s expression was hard and determined.

“This ends when our Captains are free and this farce of an execution halted!”

Ivory Scroll grit her teeth, “This is insanity. Stand down, all of you!”

Posey shook her head, bringing Kyoki to bear, “No, she’s right, there’s only one way this ends. Come on, Kyoki, it's time to put down some traitors!”

Inkwell nodded in agreement, “I’ll not take you lightly. Breathe, Kuroi Kagami.” (Black Mirror)

Inkwell’s katana flowed in a wash of dripping black ink into the shape of a thin bladed, eastern styled longsword with a long white tassel at its pommel. She immediately began to draw an image in the air with the tip of her blade, the dark ink flowing off it to take the shape of a large, roaring griffin. The ink drawing sprang to life with a screech and dove towards Posey.

----------

Elsewhere in the fortress other Soul Reapers were moving to guard more secure areas, including the armory. Members from both the Sixth and Eleventh Divisions rushed down hallways leading deep into the bowels of the fortress’ plateau, and as they ran they noticed that the lamps along the walls suddenly going from being well lit, to being blown out, casting the hall into shadow.

“Wait, something's fishy here-” began one of them, only to be cut off by a shadow detaching from the wall and smacking him across the back of the head, dropping him into an unconscious pile.

“Shit, we’re under attack!” another started to shout, drawing her Zanpaktou, only to take a kick to the chin from another shadow that dropped from above, having been clinging to the ceiling.

Shouts of alarm arose, but more and more swiftly moving shadows appeared and slipped in among the confused Soul Reapers with the speed and precision of striking sharks. In moments a dozen Soul Reapers were knocked out cold on the floor and six shadows convened.

Nocturn, fully dressed now in the Stealth Corps dark jumpsuits and hood, nodded at his comrade’s handiwork. “Good job. Let us move swiftly to the armory. We must secure our Captain and her sister’s Zanpaktou.”

“Sir,” said Fourth Seat Echo, her yellow eyes glittering in the dark, “Do you think Inkwell can secure the Repentance Cells without help?”

“No worries, Echo. I have it on good authority the Tenth Division will be aiding us. And soon enough those fine young human ladies shall be joining the fun. Now, we move, swift and silent.”

His fellow Second Division and Stealth Corps members all gave quiet nods and like a pack of wolves they went down the hall, quickly and without making a sound. Nocturn had ordered the other remaining squads to set up their own ambushes and choke points across the fortress to disrupt and slow the response of the Divisions that’d be trying to move against Inkwell and Silverstar. While the Second Division wasn’t nearly large enough to handle a stand up fight, they could greatly slow the other Divisions’ response. And as for him, he wanted nothing more than to get Captain Luna and Celestia armed once more.

They went deeper into the fortress, crossing several guarded checkpoints... only to find the Soul Reapers guarding those checkpoints were already unconscious.

“Hah,” Echo laughed, “I bet you drinks at the finest sake house in Seireitei who is responsible for this, and our heroics are already too late, little brother.”

“Echo, I have told you time and again, stop calling me ‘brother’ while we’re in uniform!”

“Oh, why, because you don’t like being reminded you’re the younger of us?”

“No, it’s just... unprofessional. Besides, I don’t take losing bets.”

Echo laughed again as they crossed a final checkpoint at the front of several thick and heavy stone doors, covered in wards. The doors had been opened, courtesy of a ward pass that lay clattered next to the unconscious form of one of the many guards set around the doors themselves. Heading inside, Nocturn, Echo, and their fellow Second Division members looked around the vast armory chamber.

Rows and rows of Asauchi were placed upon the walls and weapons racks, but at the far end were several locked iron chests, one of which was torn open by force. Standing above it was Captain Luna, having just sheathed her own Zanpaktou at her side while having slung her sister’s pair of katana across her back.

She looked up sharply at their entrance, but was smiling like the cat that ate the proverbial canary.

“You are slipping, Third Seat Nocturn, Fourth Seat Echo. I thought I taught you how to hide your reiatsu better than that, but I felt you coming past the third checkpoint. I’ll have to ensure you all undergo more intensive training once this is over.”

Nocturn couldn’t help himself, grinning with a wide, beaming expression as he pulled down his face mask for a moment as he kneeled. Echo and the others mirrored his actions, bowing deeply as the knelt.

“Captain Luna, I should have known you’d escape without our help. Still I hope you accept what humble assistance we can provide. It’s good to see you, ma’am.”

“And I, you. Time is short, so listen well my shadows. Battle grips the fortress. Subdue it, and lend aid to your fellow Soul Reapers. Send one of you to contact Fourth Division and ensure healers come swiftly to tend the wounded on all sides. I will not allow this conspiracy to take even a single life among us if it can be avoided. I go now to save my sister before Platinum finishes this madness.”

“There are others coming. Human girls you know well.” said Nocturn, “By now they must already be inside the fortress.”

Luna nodded, “I suspected as much. You have your task, my shadows. May we all meet again, when it is over.”

----------

Cheese Sandwich had lost track of where Daring Do and Sweet Cider had gone, mostly because Thunderhooves had literally body rammed him through a wall.

Cheese felt the breath get knocked out of him as the impact cartwheeled him through not just the one wall, but the next wall behind it which sent him flying between two different sections of the inner fortress where he pancaked up against the stone wall of the far side.

“Ugh, gee, I think he’s angry with me.” Cheese muttered as Thunderhooves stepped out of the rubble of the hole in the wall across the way and pushed aside some fallen debris.

“It did not have to be this way!” Thunderhooves bellowed, “You could have waited! You could have remained in your own Division headquarters until the Captain Commander and Central 46, the lawful bodies of Soul Society, worked this matter through.”

Cheese Sandwich tapped the side of his head, knocking out some dust from one ear. “Yeah, and while that happened, Platinum would be killing two of our comrades. Our friends. But nah, let’s just follow the law because it's the law. Brilliant Thunderhooves.”

“A joker who takes nothing seriously would never understand the importance, or burden of upholding the law.” Thunderhooves snorted loudly, raising his Zanpaktou. “But I see talk is meaningless. Deliver justice; Ho Ken!” (Law Fist)

Blue energy rose from the katana, lengthening it and widening it, then warping the metal in upon itself until it reshaped into the form of a large and long shafted iron club. It was studded up and down its length, the round cylinder of the club itself near a foot thick and five feet tall, not including the extra three feet of dark, mahogany handle that Thunderhooves held. Cheese Sandwich felt the spiritual pressure inside both the other Captain and Ho Ken condense like the drawing in of a massive breath.

“Time to move.” Cheese said as he threw himself to the side, just before Thunderhooves leaped at him full force, swinging Ho Ken. The iron club had a literal shockwave forming around it from the force of its blow, which shattered a large portion of the wall it struck.

“Yikes, you’re going to ruin half the fortress if you keep swinging that thing around.” Cheese Sandwich said.

Thunderhooves could also ruin him if Cheese let himself get struck. He knew Ho Ken’s power quite well, having fought beside Thunderhooves plenty of times. The huge club built extra momentum with each strike. The first blow was impressive, but each successive blow would only get stronger, and stronger, and stronger. But also more unwieldy. The Zanpaktou had incredibly destructive power, but it was inflexible. The more Thunderhooves used it, the less he could control the direction of his swings.

A blunt instrument versus a fine tool of finesse... do I dare use Hone Nashi here? I can’t down Thunderhooves fast, and Hone is gonna get dang hard to control against an opponent like Thunder here. Damn, I really did draw the worst opponent for me, didn’t I? Must’ve hacked off Lady Luck recently.

He quickly jumped between the inner walls of the fortress, hopping from one spot to another as Thunderhooves gave chase. Cheese Sandwich didn’t have to beat Thunderhooves, just keep him busy for awhile. Thunderhooves swung Ho Ken with each leap, always missing Cheese by a few feet, but with each strike the portion of the fortress that go wreaked only increased, and the shockwave bigger.

“Okay, need you to simmer down.” Cheese Sandwich said, feet springing off the roof of a wooden walkway and sending himself leaping straight up towards the top of the nearest fortress building.

Landing there, he spun around and thrust out a palm.

“Bakudo Number Fifty Five: Maita Hebi!” (Coiling Serpents)

As Thunderhooves leaped up to the same roof Cheese Sandwich was on the air around him became surrounded by five green spheres of light that then became linked by coils of emerald lighting. Abruptly Thunderhooves found the airspace between the five spheres that he occupied had hardened to a consistency like cement. It halted him in mid-air for a few seconds, but he glared at Cheese Sandwich and gave a dour laugh.

“You cannot bind me for long.” Thunderhooves said as he flexed his muscles and spirit energy, his body emanating smokey blue light. “I shall be free in seconds.”

“Yup, but I can chant another binding spell in seconds. We can keep this up all day if you want, Thunder. Or you could try listening to reason for a change!”

“There is no reason while you rebel against the law!”

“Even when the law is in error?”

“Even in error without the law we lose the identity that makes Soul Society function!” Thunderhooves spirit energy exploded outward, making the green spheres of Kido energy around him waver, then crack. “I will not let it fall!”

Cheese Sandwich swore under his breath and began to chant another Kido, but Thunderhooves surprised him by using one of the spheres of breaking Kido energy from the binding spell like a baseball, hitting it with his iron club and scattering now unrestrained Kido energy spraying around like shards of glass.

By the time Cheese managed to evade them and regain his balance Thunderhooves was already falling towards him, smashing Ho Ken down with both hands. Cheese Sandwich barely Flash Stepped away in time, and saw a third of the roof collapse under the colossal blow.

“Great. Well, nothing for it then. Knock ‘em dead, Hone Nashi.”

He really hoped the others were having better luck than he was right now.

----------

The hallway beyond the central meeting chamber was torn asunder by a torrent of howling wind. Hurricane laughed heartily as he watched Sweet Cider get battered by the blast, the huge woman sliding along the hall with her blade pressing against the scything wind force that pushed her back up against the railing of an exterior walkway after she was bodily slammed through the doors leading to them.

Twirling the already released Tetsukaze around in his hands, Hurricane walked towards her casually. “Come now ‘Kenpachi’, you seemed so eager a moment ago, why are you holding back? Release your Zanpaktou already and let us face each other as equals!”

Sweet Cider turned her head and spat, cracking her neck as she brushed dust off herself and pushed off the railing. “Yer equal? Gimme a’ sec ta go find a cockroach fer ya ta fight then. Nah, that’d be too much fer the likes o’ you. How ‘bot a’ flea?”

“You’re attempts at banter are as banal as your sword technique. Spare me the false bravado. We both know as long as you keep your blade in check you can’t defeat me.” Hurricane chided as he flickered in and out of view, Flash Stepping above Sweet Cider and smashing his halberd shaped Zanpaktou down upon her.

She raised her thick, machete like blade in response, catching the haft of Tetsukaze solidly. Hurricane drove his Zanpaktou down harder, testing his muscles against hers. They were of a similar size, Sweet Cider the taller of the two, but Hurricane the broader, both with muscles bulging and with potent spirit auras flaring up between them. The wood and stone of the fortress walls and walkway around them could barely take the stress of the clash, buckling and cracking as the two struggled against each other.

Hurricane broke the clash first, stepping back and then lunging back in with a low, spinning slash that feinted with the blade at first seeming to sweep high before dipping low. Sweet Cider twisted her hips, pivoting away, lowering her on blade. The two edges skipped off each other, but Hurricane simply took his momentum and sent him whole body into a spin that brought Tetsukaze right back around in an uppercut swing, this one enhanced by a wave of shredding wind force.

Sweet Cider got her blade in the way in time to block, but the sheer force juggled her up into the air, crashing right through the roof of the exterior walkway. She ignored the minor blow and twisted in mid air, regaining control just in to intercept Hurricane’s next attack as he Flash Stepped beside her and hammered her with a overhead swing.

She was knocked down through the window of the level two stories up from the grand hall, crashing into what was an administrative room, her body scattering tables and scrolls all over the place. She kept her feet, her expression focused.

She hadn’t released Kizuna for a very simple reason; if she did there wouldn’t be a headquarters left by the time she and Hurricane were done. Despite her taunts she didn’t underestimate his strength, and for all his bravado he wasn’t underestimating hers, which was why he’d released Tetsukaze the first opening he’d gotten to do so. He knew without his Shikai he’d have been at a disadvantage going blade to blade with her.

The reason he was taunting her, trying to get her to release Kizuna, was to give him an excuse to use his Bankai. He knew if he used Bankai within headquarters, the destruction would be difficult to justify. But if she used Kizuna first, he’d have an excuse to say he had to use Bankai in order to put her down swiftly before too much damage was inflicted on the fortress.

Thus she refused to go Shikai to keep him form having an excuse to go Bankai.

The only problem was that this did give him a slight edge and forced her to fight defensively.

Hurricane came smashing through the same opening she’d made a moment earlier, leading with a powerful thrust from the spear tip of his halberd. Gritting her teeth, Sweet Cider charged to meet it, smashing the thrust aside with her own sword and delivering a punch straight towards Hurricane’s face.

He let go of Tetsukaze with one hand to raise it to intercept her fist with with his own, the two sets of knuckles colliding with a blast of force that further wreaked the office room, scattering furniture to shatter against the wall. Hurricane had a look of utter contentment on his face.

“Yer enjoying this, ain't’ ya, ya daft bastard?”

“Of course I am. Do you have any idea how I’ve longed for a chance to fight you?” He suddenly slammed his foot up, kicking her in the stomach. The blow was a glancing one but it was enough to push her back up against the room’s far wall. Hurricane hefted Tetsukaze, swirling rivers of wind coiling around it. “To be honest I don’t really care who is or isn’t right about the execution. This has been the perfect excuse to see just what my fellow Captains are made of, and perhaps this will convince the Captain Commander we need to take a more offensive stance in this war. We’ve been on the defensive for far too long, and it's made us stagnate. Whoever plotted this attack, I almost wish I could thank them for giving Soul Society a much needed kick to its teeth.”

His smile sharpened, “And if I get to see how good the one who took the title of Kenpachi truly is, then that is delicious icing atop the cake.”

Sweet Cider had taken advantage of the way Hurricane liked to listen to himself talk to catch her breath and gather her strength. Even without releasing Kizuna she could still focus her spirit energies around her blade and empower her strikes to a degree. Holding her blade behind her in a heavy striking stance she rushed forward. As Hurricane moved to block, she dipped her blade down, its edge cutting into the floor with the ease of a skinning knife through fat.

She then ripped her blade upward in a powerful swing that tore apart a huge chunk of the room’s floor and sent a shotgun-like spray of debris at Hurricane. He instinctively pushed the debris aside with a blast of wind, but as he extended Tetsukaze to do so Sweet Cider Flash Stepped past his extended guard and slashed down hard at his arms.

He responded fast, faster than Sweet Cider could of have suspected, his own form vanishing away in a blinding Flash Step. Still, she felt her blade hit something and heard him grunt in pain. She also heard blood drip to the ground and looked to her right to see Hurricane was now the one near the door out of the room, where she’d been just seconds ago. His right arm was bleeding profusely from a deep gash below the elbow. If he’d been a split second later in evading he’d have lost his arm, and the look on his face showed he knew it.

“You don’t play games.” he commented dryly.

Sweet Cider’s eyes blazed like emerald fire as her voice dropped a dangerous octave, her own spirit energy rising with old familiar rage.

“If ya ever thought fer a’ second I’m playin’, then yer in fer the worst surprise o’ yer life.”

----------

The distant sounds of fighting still reached into the central meeting chamber, tremors occasionally shaking the floor as Daring Do and Blueblood squared off. They’d already traded a few blows, but Daring Do could tell Blueblood was being cautious, only probing with his swings rather than going all out. She wasn’t certain if his caution was due to him being aware of the gap of power and experience between them, his heart not truly being in the fight, or if it was just his nature.

She’d never held a high estimation of Blueblood. To her he’d seemed lazy and irresponsible even at the best of times. Sure he had talent and potential, but it was wasted on a personality that cared more about keeping his hair well groomed than in perfecting his skills.

Strangely, however, she noticed a more serious cast to his expression than she’d have expected to see. In the few times she’d seen him in battle against Hollows in the past he’d always been flippant, or bored, or utterly dismissive. Here, however, his eyes were sharp and his stance surprisingly unsloppy. Was it because he realized the seriousness of the situation, or something else?

“Hey, Blueblood, it's just you and me here, so let’s hear it straight; do you really think this is what you should be doing?” she asked.

His eyes narrowed slightly, his voice strained. “I don’t need lectures, Captain Do.”

“I’m not lecturing, I’m just asking you why you’re siding with Hurricane. Dude’s obviously rocking a few loose screws.”

“Did I not just explain that I’m honor bound to-”

“Don’t give me that crap. Since when did you ever care about honor? I’ve seen you log more time in front of your mirror than you’ve ever spent training in the dojo, and you spend just as much time cruising the night scene to hit any woman dumb enough to fall for your looks before seeing what’s underneath. So what the hell does a guy like you know about following duty or honor, let alone be willing to put his ass on the line for it?”

She knew she was being harsh, but she was taunting him, jabbing at him, to get a more real and honest response. She’s learned when people got mad, they tended to speak their mind more clearly than when they had time to think of a polite response. Besides, whether he told her anything or not, if she got him mad, he’d fight stupid, and she always prefered stupid opponents to ones who were using their brains.

Her plan seemed to work as a dark glower rolled over his features.

“Do you think I don’t know my own faults!? I’m well aware I have a... slight vanity issue. And a weakness for beautiful women.” he coughed, “One more than some at the moment.”

“What was that?” Daring Do asked, confused.

“Nevermind! As I was saying, I know I have weaknesses that should have barred me from making the rank of Captain. Yet I made it. I’m here, wearing these silly, unflattering robes, and this clashing, drab Captain’s coat, because I must! Because I have a duty to my house to serve its interests and do what is best for it. And my house has been allied with Platinum’s house for countless centuries! If I turn on her, I break an alliance that has endured for generations. I sever bonds that have stood since Soul Society was born! What else am I to do but support her?”

“Even if she’s the one who’s the traitor?”

“Of course not! But you have no proof of that! All you have is happenstance and circumstance to point towards any of your suspicions being true. Am I to betray my house’s loyalties over your suspicions!?”

“C’mon Blueblood, you can’t be that much of an idiot. Everything is pointing towards her at this point. If she was behaving legit, she would’ve waited for Scorpan before trying to pull this execution off, orders from Central 46 or not! You got to see that, right?”

The hesitation was clearly there. She could see the doubt pulsing in his eyes, but it wasn’t enough. His eyes narrowed even further, to blue slits of ice.

“All I see is that you’re still talking when you should be surrendering. I’m not as weak as you think I am.”

She saw him toss his blade into the air at the same time he thrust a palm towards her and chanted, “Hado Number Sixty Three: Raikoho!”

That was a surprisingly high level Kido to do without a full chant, and Daring Do was surprised Blueblood could pull it off. A massive flash of golden lightning sprang from his palm and tore apart a path straight towards her. She leaped up and away from the blast, flipping in mid-air and returning fire with a Kido of her own.

“Hado Number Forty One: Fukyowaon!” (Dissonant Roar)

Though a much lower level Kido than what Blueblood had used, the spell was still made potent by her own Captain level reiryoku, the spirit energy taking the shape of a swirling, pulsating orb of air that flew down towards Blueblood and exploding with a gust of harmonic force that could break eardrums. Blueblood weathered the blast, and Daring Do saw him concentrating for a second before shining light filled the chamber.

All Captains were familiar with each others Zanpaktou, so she knew the light that shone when Blueblood’s Mezurashi Kokei activated. He hadn’t spoken the release phrase or his Zanpaktou’s name, but that didn’t surprise her. Any Soul Reaper who’d achieved Bankai could release their blade to the Shikai state without the release phrase or name. Most the time they didn’t do so out of respect for their Zanpaktou, as releasing them too often without the phrase or name could cause a disruptive disharmony between Soul Reaper and Zanpaktou. But sometimes in the right situation it was beneficial to release the blade anyway, and Blueblood was clearly trying to catch her off guard.

However she wasn’t second fastest among the Captains for no reason. And while Luna was faster than her, Daring Do had the sharper spiritual senses. Even with Blueblood’s Mezurashi Kokei scattering invisible glass daggers all over the chamber she could feel the minuscule traces of their presence in a way that many others, even her fellow Captains, probably couldn’t.

She Flash Stepped one way then another as nearly untraceable daggers of glass sought her flesh. She landed on one wall only to flip towards another as she dodged Blueblood’s assault. His attacks were remarkably more coordinated than she’d seen from him in the past as well, with the daggers moving in tight clusters only to rapidly expand their formations in strange and unexpected patterns to try and box her in.

“I’ve faced defeat once already. It’s been an enlightening experience.” Blueblood said tersely, “Allow me to show you the same enlightenment, Captain Do.”

“You know, I’m fine with Daring.” she said with a smirk. “Captain Do reminds me too much of my crazy cousin.”

Barely avoiding a half dozen daggers that came at her in a star-shaped pattern, she landed across the room and placed a hand on the pommel of her Zanpaktou and held it horizontally in front of her in an inverted grip.

“And I’m enlightened enough, thanks. Discover the path, Toi Tankyu-sha!” (Far Seeker)

A misty purple light flowed over the blade as it extended, then became segmented in a series of metallic rings. The hilt grew into a basket style, covering Daring Do’s hand, while the blade itself finished transforming into a long, loosely held sword-whip.

Blueblood’s expression hardened as he sent sent over a dozen of his daggers flying in at her. Daring Do flicked her wrist and her Zanpaktou leapt to life like a snake, coiling and snapping out with dizzying speed to snap the daggers away. She then threw her arm out and sent the segmented sword whip flying towards Blueblood. As it went the individual blade segments started to emit a billowing purple haze that started to rapidly expand.

Knowing the danger he was in Blueblood immediately dodged to the side, an instant before Toi Tankyu-sha would’ve struck, and even then a segment of his coat was caught by the swift blade. Fast as a serpent Daring Do flicked her wrist again, the sword whip extended well beyond what should’ve been physically possible as it bunched together then flew after Blueblood, homing in on him. He began to Flash Step with rapid dodges, the tip of the sword whip following him this way and that as he ran. At the same time he tried to keep his own offensive up, sending more daggers at Daring Do, which forced her to start dodging as well.

So it was that within seconds the battle became a lightning fast and deadly game of evasion and counter evasion. Both Captains were moving at full speed to avoid each other’s Zanpaktou as glass daggers flew after Daring Do in a lethal cloud, while Blueblood had to keep throwing himself at full speed around the room to avoid a homing blade whip that extended seemingly without limit to chase him. At the same time more and more of the room became engulfed in the hazy purple fog that Toi Tankyu-sha created. In the span of a few eyeblinks both him and Daring Do had near misses, small cuts and grazes bloodying their bodies and faces.

Daring Do was impressed with how well Blueblood was keeping his concentration, managing to focus his daggers on her enough to force her to continue evading even as her Zanpaktou kept trying to chase him down. She’d never imagined he had it in him to keep up with her this long or force her to exert this much focus.

Yet she felt confident the battle was going in her favor. By now her Zanpaktou’s mist obscured much of the room, and its effect was becoming apparent as she herself started to become translucent and turn into mist. Now as the daggers struck at her, she didn’t bother to dodge, the blades passing through her body as if it too were made of fog. In a way it was. The mist from her Zanpaktou allowed her to turn into mist herself and quickly transmit herself to any other place where the mist reached. For reconnaissance or evasion it was a supremely useful power.

It wasn’t too shabby for attack either, as she could still control the sword whip her Zanpaktou became at will as long as she kept it inside the mist.

She wasn’t invincible, however. Blueblood’s daggers, still filled with spirit energy, could damage even her mist form, but the effect was incredibly mitigated... and he knew it. As she directed her Zanpaktou to continue to chase him like a flying snake across the room she heard Blueblood’s frustrated growl.

“I know this power makes you difficult to hurt, Captain Do, but don’t underestimate me!”

She could feel anything that moved within her mist, and sensed him throwing his arms out towards her while he summoned his daggers around himself to form a thick barrier of blades that deflected away her own sword whips attacks. Even if he couldn’t see her, she knew he could sense her spiritual pressure, even with her body merged with the mist.

“It doesn’t matter if your body is part of this tacky fog if I use Kido upon you! Bakudo Number Sixty Eight: Kaiyo Shinso Keimusho!” (Ocean Depths Prison)

Streams of high pressure water erupted from the ground around him and flew towards Daring Do’s position. Before she had a chance to flow away in her mist form the high speed water surrounded her in ropes of binding, extremely pressurized water that was spiritually charged, allowing it to hold her even in her gaseous state.

“Got you!” Blueblood grinned, sending a cloud of his daggers towards her.

However Daring Do pulled her Zanpaktou back and spun it before her with such speed that it nearly looked like a buzz saw as it deflected the daggers, and she instantly had it flicker about her, severing the cords of binding water around her like they were little more than mere rope. Thus free she sent her spearing sword whip flying back towards him, putting Blueblood back on the defensive as he worked to direct his daggers to parry her blade.

“You’re still too cocky, Blue. This fight isn’t anywhere close to over.”

Despite her words Daring Do could tell this fight was swiftly becoming a battle of mental attrition. She and Blueblood were more evenly matched than she thought, and this fight would go on only as long as it took for one of them to slip up and make a serious mistake.

And she wasn’t entirely certain it wouldn’t be her.

----------

Sokyoku Hill was in many ways poorly named. It was certainly no hill, but rather a flat, rocky top to the largest extending portion of the plateau the Gotei 13’s fortress was build upon. It jutted out for a span several hundred meters long and easily half that width. Its fortress side portion was covered in a forest of dead trees, which was normally only reachable by a narrow staircase carved into the side of the plateau facing the fortress, guarded by several thick gates.

Platinum bypassed all that by leaping across roofs and landing atop the dry, dead trees. All the while Celestia was slung over her shoulder, the ropes of her collar held tight by the pillars of ice that floated alongside them as Platinum moved. Much as Celestia had said, she had made no promise to keep quiet.

“One thing I can’t figure out about all of this is why Luna and I were targeted specifically. I keep coming back to the Equestrian portal-”

“I could cover your mouth up with ice, you know.”

“-but if that was the target then there were so many easier ways to get us away from Canterlot City, so that can’t be the only objective. I mean, I suppose killing me could be considered icing on the cake, but I can’t help but feel there’s more to this-”

“A gag. Of ice. A ball gag.”

“Oh, kinky. But as I was saying, I keep trying to figure out why the execution matters. If you wanted me dead, or Luna, or both, couldn’t you or your shadowy fellow conspirators arranged it while we were helpless in our cells?”

Platinum issued forth a rattling growl of annoyance, “What good would it do you to know!? For Queen’s sake shut up! You were never this irritating back at the Academy!”

“You weren’t nearly this tight lipped back in those days either. What is this about Platinum? If it was just for revenge you could have killed me already. You don’t need the Sokyoku for that. Just slit my throat and leave me for dead. Why risk it all dragging me out here? You must know you’re on borrowed time.”

“You’ll find out soon enough. We’re here.” Platinum said, the forest of dead trees finally ending in a wide, football field long expanse of flat rock that led to the tapering point of Sokyoku Hill.

There were only two things breaking up the otherwise empty and flat top of the plateau. One was a good sixty foot tall scaffold consisting of two thick wood pillars crossed by a wooden beam, at the foot of which was a stone stand. That was the execution cross, upon which prisoners met their fates. The other object present was the instrument of those fates, the Sokyoku itself.

It was a gigantic spear, standing nearly as tall as the execution stand. Its thick wooden haft was bound to the ground by large coils of rope, nailed into the stone ground. The blade itself was a large, curved affair, with a long trail of white cloth tied to the base of the blade that flapped in the breeze. Silence reigned for a moment, broken only by the distant crashes and explosions of battle taking place in the fortress behind them as Platinum and Celestia both looked upon the Sokyoku.

Celestia sighed, “I always thought this thing was overkill. A weapon forged with the power of a million Zanpaktou? Why do we even need something that elaborate for executions?”

“I don’t know, and it hardly matters now.” Platinum said with a ever more tired voice, “Let us be done with this.”

She started to cross the distance to the execution stand, carrying Celestia along. With an impatient Flash Step she reached the Sokyoku itself, and took a few steps beyond it towards the awaiting execution stand...

Only to stop in her tracks as several forms came flying up from the edge of the plateau.

One flew on wings of lightning and carried a giggling pink menace.

Another rocketed upwards on boots shooting golden flames, carrying an elegant crimson clad beauty.

A fifth flew on her own gentle wings, not as fast as the others but no less resolved.

Three others arrived with the unmistakable whoosh of air that accompanies a Flash Step, three clad as Soul Reapers arriving one after another.

Platinum’s face turned into a scowl of rage as she looked upon those before her, each of them now standing between her and the execution stand.

Rainbow Dash cracked electrically charged knuckles, flashing a wide grin.

Pinkie Pie waved mischievously, sticking her tongue out.

Fluttershy stood calmly, staring with unmistakable determination.

Rarity flourished her rapier, which shone with crimson brilliance in the morning light.

Applejack’s fierce visage was matched only by the powerful, combat ready stance she took.

Clover stood with grim resolute eyes, Zanpaktou held before her.

Ditzy Doo stood with a relaxed, laid back stance, hands resting behind her head as she winked.

And finally Sunset Shimmer stood a step out ahead of the group, slowly and purposefully drawing her own Zanpaktou as she met Platinum’s eyes with a challenge lifting up her fiery eyes.

“Executions canceled, Platinum. Now give us back our principal.”

Episode 53: Phoenix Rising

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Episode 53: Phoenix Rising

A swift, sharp wind crossed the flat plain atop Sokyoku Hill, kicking up a trail of dust that passed between the line of battle ready girls with Sunset Shimmer at their head as they faced down Captain Platinum, whose expression was as flat and hard as a glacier. A small twitch at the corner of Platinum’s mouth preceded her cold edged words.

“Give her back? No. I don’t believe I will.”

The warmth started to get sapped from the air, Sunset suddenly seeing her own breath turn to white mist as Platinum raised her released blade, Fuyukogo’s gleaming blue form glistening with dozens of icy reflections in the morning light as it was raised high above Platinum’s head. Freezing air visibly coiled around the sword as Platinum flashed an utterly mirthless smile.

“If you want her, you’ll have to take her.”

Platinum slashed down with her blade in a white and blue torrent of exploding ice, jagged pieces of spearing cobalt cold erupting along the ground in an avalanche that spread towards Sunset and the girls. Rather than try to evade, the girls remained steady in their positions while Sunset took a step forward, matching Platinum’s cold smile with a heated one of her own as she took hold of her Zanpaktou with both hands.

“Fine by me.” she said, and fire flashed in a bleeding red and orange flare from her sword.

She struck out, Hokori no Hikari transmuting into its split Shikai form in an instant as a blast of unmitigated fire washed out in a wave that collided headlong with Platinum’s oncoming ice. Incredible heat clashed with unforgiving cold in a hissing blast of force and steam as flame melted ice and ice snuffed out fire in equal measure. When the steam cleared Platinum was left blinking in astonishment, as Fuyukogo’s attack had been stopped in its tracks, leaving Sunset and the girls beside her unscathed.

“What?” the Captain breathed.

In response Sunset’s smile merely deepened, and her form blinked out of view. The Flash Step took her direclty next to Platinum’s side, her flaming sword sweeping in at the Captain. Despite her momentary shock Platinum still managed to intercept the strike, if only by a hair’s breadth. Fuyukogo’s ice covered edge sparked off of the flaming broadsword of Hokori, the two blades seeming to almost leap against each other in their owner’s hands in eagerness to clash.

”What!?” Platinum repeated, this time with fuming anger as columns of ice exploded from where her feet touched the ground and lanced towards Sunset.

Sunset jumped back, and interposed the shield of Hikari as the jagged spears of ice stabbed towards her. The shield flashed brightly with luminous white light, an barrier of energy extending around the shield to block the oncoming ice attack. The ice shattered against the shield in a shower of shards, the force pushing Sunset back, but not penetrating Hikari’s defense.

Platinum stood there, staring. “If this were any other set of circumstances I’d be inquiring as to how you improved so dramatically over such a short span of time, but since I have a schedule to keep...”

She grabbed Celestia with her free arm and then forcefully jumped, dragging Celestia along with her, to soar over the group of girls standing in her way.

“Oh no you don’t!” Rainbow Dash shouted, zipping into the air, with Applejack not far behind.

Platinum snorted as she swung Fuyukogo, sending a deadly cascade of ice in an expanding dome, its inner surface laced with spikes, torrenting down at the girls. Rainbow Dash and Applejack both fired upon the avalanche at the same time, a lance of lightning and a beam of golden energy both colliding with the ice in mid-air. Their combined effort was enough to break some of the ice up, but plenty of shards still rained down on the girls. Rarity conjured crystalline red parasols over herself and the other girls still on the ground, and what few ice shards got past that were either easily evaded, or simply crushed by a giant pink hammer as Pinkie Pie transformed and brought out Pinkamena in a swirl of pink mist.

“I’m so going to make snowcones outta this chick’s blood!” Pinkamena grinned, then coughed slightly, spitting up some blood herself.

“A-are you okay, Mena!?” asked a startled Pinkie Pie, her hammer form turning almost as if looking at the doppleganger.

“Tch, fine. Still got a few guts out of place from being diced earlier by that cheesy bastard, but that’s fine, the pain helps me focus.”

“Let us chat after we deal with the Captain.” said Clover, already leaping up on top of one of the larger chunks of fallen ice and giving chase as Platinum rushed for the execution stand. The other girls also gave chase, although Ditzy Doo and Sunset were the fastest of the group, both flickering with remarkably instant Flash Steps that put them on either side of the fleeing Captain.

“What’s the rush, Platinum?” Ditzy Doo cooed as she swept a powerful kick towards Platinum’s mid-section, while Sunset chopped down from the other side, blade burning.

Platinum snarled and threw Celestia ahead while spining in a circle, Fuyukogo leaving a glittering trail of cold blue light. Ice, deep and dark blue, shot up in a thick pillar around her, absorbing both Ditzy and Sunset’s attacks. The pillar broke into pieces under the explosive power of both hits, but it kept Platinum unharmed as she then plunged her Zanpaktou into the ground and with a burst of reiatsu expanded a field of ice around her that started to errupt with spears of frost. Ditzy Doo turned into a blur of fists and feet, smashing ice spears as they came at her, while Sunset put both Hokori and Hikari to equal work, flames metling ice to steam while the glowing shield absorbed blows that would have otherwise skewered Sunset.

At the same time a moving wave of ice actually picked up Celestia and moved her ever closer to the execution stand, nearly getting her to the foot of the stone platform at the stand’s base before Clover arrived with a Flash Step, and with Chishiki already released to Shikai she swung with the ring blade end of the staff at the ice. It didn’t break the ice, but it did halt it for a moment, long enough for Rainbow Dash to soar in and grab Celestia, yanking the woman out of the ice’s grasp.

“Got her!”

“Good!” Sunset yelled, “Get her out of here! We’ll finish off-”

Before her sentence was done there was a sound like a sonic crack, and a flashing purple and pink form thundered over the field, intercepting Rainbow Dash. The girl barley had time to blink before a thickly armored boot planted itself in her chest and sent Dash catapulting into the ground in a shower of rock and dirt as she skidded dozens of yards. Meanwhile Celestia was snatched from mid-air by the woman who’d just arrived. Clad fully in her power-armor like Fullbring, Firefly sported a cocky smile and shook her head as Rainbow Dash struggled to get to her feet, shaking.

“Too slow, kid. You should’ve seen that attack coming miles off. I thought Ditzy was training you? Ditzy, you slacking off training my kid? She shoud’ve dodged that, easy.”

Ditzy Doo’s expression was one of deep disappointment and apprehension as she turned a hard look towards Firefly’s hovering form. Sunset had only heard Fluttershy briefly describe Firefly’s Fullbring, and wasn’t sure what to make of it. It looked like someone had taken a sleek, violet colored mecha from one of Rainbow Dash’s cartoons and turned it into a suit of armor, complete with a set of wings that looked like a wide mechanical blade fins. Purple light flowed in a shimmering haze from vents on these wings, clearly the Fullbring's main means of propulsion. The rest of the armor had a sleek, high tech look to it, covering much of Firefly's legs, arms, and torso, save for a bare mid-riff and a few exposed joints. She had no helmet, but a pair of circular nodes on either side of her head extended a visor across her eyes.

“I don’t know what your play here is, Firefly.” said Ditzy, “Whose side are you actually on? You were supposed to be keeping me and Discy in the loop, but it looks like you switched loops without telling us.”

Firefly looked entirley unabashed and unashamed, merely shrugging in the way a friend might casually do when asked if the drank the last soda in the fridge. It was striking to Sunset how similar the expression was to one’s she seen Rainbow Dash wear time and again. Colors aside, the mother and daughter had almost eerily similar looks, builds, and even the way Firefly carried herself just looked like an even more cocky and confident mirror to Dash’s own usual manner.

“Ditzy, you know you and Discord are my peps, but this is way bigger than you think. This goes beyond being on anyone’s ‘side’.”

“Quit talking and get Celestia on that stand!” shouted Platinum, her spiritual pressure increasing by volume’s as her body all but glowed with arctic blue light, “We don’t have much time!”

“Jeez, calm your freakin’ tits. This is why I hate working with Soul Reapers. So damned uptight.” Firefly childed as she floated down towards the execution stand. Ditzy Doo moved to stop her, while Platinum appeared behind Ditzy with Fuyukogo already slashing towards the other woman’s neck.

However Ditzy didn’t need to dodge, as Sunset smashed into Platinum’s side with her shield, Hikari pulsing with white light as she shoved the Captain away from Ditzy with enough force to actually cause Platinum to grunt in shocked pain and nearly get knocked off her feet. She regained her balance in an instant, just in time to parry a swift series of blows form Sunset that left the two blade locked for a moment while Sunset shouted to Ditzy, “I’ve got her. Go!”

Ditzy needed no urging, but as she turned back to Firefly she found herself staring down the barrel of the massive, hexagonal shaped cannon Firefly had summoned. Ditzy was more than fast enough to evade the huge beam of crackling violet, electrical energy that fired out of that cannon, but Firefly had bought herself the extra second needed to land on the execution stand with Celestia.

“I’m surprised to see you here.” Celestia said, sounding a lot more calm than a woman in her circumstances ought to. “I thought you’d never willingly set foot in Soul Society after what happened to you and your friends.”

“Hey, my current boss has a real way with words, you know?” Firefly said with a cheeky wink, setting Celestia down in the middle of the stand.

As she did so, however, Clover jumped up onto the stand, brandishing Chishiki, while the other girls arrived and Rainbow Dash got fully standing. Ditzy Doo apeared beside the girl as she set eyes on her mother, Rainbow Dash’s face a look of stormclouds personified. As Firefly met her daughter’s gaze behind the visor of her Fullbring there was a second or two of weighty silence, the only noise being the clamour of steel on steel and the hiss of melting ice as Sunset and Platinum continued to exchange blows nearby.

“Lack of battlefield awareness and dodging skills aside, you’re looking alright, kid.” said Firefly, seemingly entirely relaxed despite the situation.

Rainbow Dash’s lips quivered for a moment before her whole body turned harsly tense, her voice even more low and raspy than usual, “No. You... you don’t get to say anything to me like that! Not all ‘heya kiddo’ and that kind of crap, like you haven’t been gone for years!”

Firefly actually winced at that, “Yeeeeah, guess I can see how you’d be sore over that. I had my reasons, Dashie-”

“Don’t you dare call me that!” Rainbow Dash’s wings spread wide, arcs of writhing lightning flowing up from them in a storm. “I don’t want to hear your reasons or excuses! Right now all you are to me is another one of the bad guys whose face I need to pound in! You can shovel me your BS excuses after I’ve kicked your butt!”

“Yeash, and I thought your dad was the drama queen of the family. Alright, kid, you want to do it like this, I’m game.” Firefly said, the bulky metal wings of her own Fullbring spreading like an array of sleek swords. Then segments of each fin of those wings slid upwards and then detached, flying out and moving on streams of violet light. These flying segments, twelve in total, moved about in a series of rapid right-angle maneuvers that suddenly put them surrounding the girls. Purple energy pulsed at the tips of the 'drones' and they fired off thin, violet lasers in a dizzying storm of shots.

“Whoa nelly, I think ya tick yer ma off a mite!” said Applejack as she dodged one beam, and deflected another with a gauntlet, the purple beam scoring a painful mark across the gauntlet’s metal.

“Really, whatever gave you that idea, Applejack?” Rarity asked with sarcasm drying her voice as she narrowly but still gracefully evaded several beams, while directing the whirlpool of blood flowing up from her bracelet to conjure a cloud of daggers that flew at Firefly.

Firefly flew straight up in a violet streak, Rarity’s dagger’s chasing her, but the woman directed her long barreled cannon at the cloud of crystal daggers and discharged a potent blast of energy that shattered them in a glittering cloud of red dust.

Fluttershy and Clover tried to use the opening to get to Celestia’s side, but a quartet of the blade-like drones rushed them, firing more thin beams of energy that forced the pair to leap away from the attack. Fluttershy, all three of her eyes focused and filled with concentration, sent out her power to her friends and willed them all to become faster. The effect was immediately apparent as Clover started to Flash Step faster than she had before, Chikishi becoming a blur as it smashed aside several of Firefly’s drones while she threw an arm out to discharge a Kido at some of the one’s assaulting Rarity.

“Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!”

Blue, radiant power blasted one of them and sent it spinning away, only for the sharp piece of flying metal to quickly correct itself, split open like a steel flower, and return fire at Clover and an empowered beam of energy three times as thick as before. Clover used Chishiki’s shaft to block the beam, but the force still knocked her flat on her back on the other side of the execution platform.

Pinkamena, seeing the trouble the drones were causing, started to swing the Pinkie hammer above her head and then extended her arms like taffy, smacking several of the flitting drones out of the air and then smashing them like she was playing a game of whack-a-mole. When another of the bladed drones came in behind Pinkamena, opening up into a metal blossom to charge up a more powerful beam attack, Pinkie Pie shouted. “Twitchy nose, Mena! Watch out for the back-stab!”

Pinkamena responded instantly, turning to face the new threat and snapping her elongated arms back like a rubber band, bringing Pinkie Pie’s hammer form back around to baseball bat swing at the purple beam that was discharged at her. The hammer hit the beam with a sound like a golf club striking a metal ball bearing, knocking the beam right back at the drone, exploding it in a burst of violet flame.

As Fluttershy helped Clover back to her feet she saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack had taken to the sky and were engaged fully with Firefly in an aerial duel. She could see the invisible streams of her own power flowing through her third eye to empower her friends, and especially Dash and Applejack were both moving with far greater agility and speed than normal, yet Firefly was keeping pace with both of them despite that.

The older woman used her canon to fire off a trio of blasts that forced Applejack to awkwardly dodge and roll through the air to avoid the potent beams, while with her other hand Firefly reached towards her hip. From the armor at her hip a small hatch opened and a round, dark metal sword hilt popped out. Firefly grabbed it and drew out the hilt, which had no blade until its cross-guard extended like crab-claws and a thick, semi-solid beam of purple energy extended in a thick leaf shape. Firefly used this crackling energy blade to block Rainbow Dash as the girl soared in at her mother, lightning fists charged and tearing through the air with a powerful punch. Firefly seemed to have little trouble maneuvering to deflect her daughter’s attacks with her energy blade while still firing off blasts from her cannon to keep Applejack on the defensive, while also mentally directing her drones to keep up a relentless assault on the other girls.

“Oh my, I don’t know if this is going well or not.” Flutterhy said, glancing towards wehre Platinum and Sunset had gone.

That pair weren’t easy to spot. Their battlefield was easy enough to locate just by the amount of ice coating the ground or the way much of it sizzled and steamed away under roaring flames, but Sunset and Platinum themselves were little more than streaks of blurring motion as they zipped about, clashing again and again with Flash Steps and strikes so fast that Fluttershy couldn’t really see what was happening clearly.

“Where did Miss Doo go?” asked Clover, and Fluttershy realized that Ditzy Doo had seemed to vanish just as the fighting had really kicked off. However both girls, and indeed all the combatants present, felt the sudden massive burst of reiatsu from above them. Everyone turned to see Ditzy Doo on top of the execution stand, a swirl of potent spirit energy coiling around her right fist.

“You know it occurred to me that if I really wanted to put an end to this all I have to do is break this execution stand.” Ditzy Doo said loud enough for everyone to hear.

Platinum, breaking off from trading blows with Sunset, snarled and said, “Even you can’t break that with one blow!”

“Wanna bet?” called out Ditzy with a waggle of her eyebrows.

Firefly was blocking one of Rainbow Dash's lightning charged punches, indigo electricity crackling around the thick energy blade Firefly was using to hold the attack off, but she still was able to quickly spin about with a snap kick that caught Dash in the gut and sent her flying back, and then aimed her cannon at Ditzy Doo. “Go head Ditzy, but I’ll blast you at the same time.”

“That won’t be necessary, Firefly.”

The voice that spoke this time was a new one, female and overflowing with self-assured confidence as it seemed to emanate from everywhere and nowhere at once. Ditzy Doo gave a small start, as if sensing something nearby, and immediately dodged as the air rippled near her and a blade slashed out of nowhere. The Zanpaktou cut a shallow but bloody wound across Ditzy’s chest, even as she jumped back from the woman emerging from what seemed to be a literal shimmering veil in the air.

The woman, mostly clad in a black cloak, her hood up. Her Zanpaktou dripped blood from its edge, and its hilt was wrapped entirely in thick white cloth. A hint of pinkish purple skin could be seen within the hood as the woman smiled. “Nearly had you with that one, Ditzy. You’re slower than I remember.”

Ditzy Doo managed a cocky grin, shrugging as if to say the wound she’d just received was little more than cosmetic. “What can I say? I really like human junk food and I’m a bit out of practice. Lucky me all the fat goes straight to my boobs. How about you, still flat chested and bitter, Starlight?”

“Oh, I forgot how much I didn’t miss the ‘witty banter’ portion of our conversations.” the woman said with no small lack of sardonic drawl as she reached a hand up to her hood, “And since you already know me, no more point in playing Miss Dark and Mysterious.”

With one smooth motion she pulled back her hood, revealing a strong featured woman with a full, long head of light purple hair streaked with a band of teal. Her appearance was immaculate but somehow surprisingly plain, like a well groomed librarian. Her features were simple and edged more towards girl-next-door cute than traditionally beautiful. She could have been anywhere from a overly mature mid-twenties to a youthful mid-thirties, a kind of unidentifiable age that couldn’t be placed easily. Her eyes were a deep and vibrant shade of blue that held a tinge of violet to it, close to indigo. She gave a small toss of her head to clear some long bangs from her face as she cast a glance from Ditzy towards the rest of the plateau. Her eyes slid slowly over the girls from Canterlot City, briefly resting longer on Sunset Shimmer, who remained in a ready battle stance that kept one close eye on Platinum.

“Getting introductions out of the way, my name is Starlight Glimmer. First off let me say I’m glad none of you died trying to tackle the whole Soul Reaper military head on like a bunch of out of control torpedoes. Seriously I couldn’t have asked for a better distraction, and you girls really put the entire Gotei 13 into a tizzy so severe this all went waaaaaay smoother than I ever imagined it would. So for that you have my most sincere thanks.”

Platinum’s eyes narrowed at Sunset Shimmer, then with a flourish of her blade she sent a fan of icy shards flying at the girl. Sunset swore under her breath as she blocked the shards with Hikari, but Platinum took the moment to Flash Step away, disengaging and appearing at the base of the execution stand, shouting up at the woman.

“My son! Is he safe!?”

“Yes.” Starlight said with assurance, “I’ve seen to his comfort and ensured he’s prepared for the transfer. He’s sleeping like a baby presently, and won’t wake up until we’re through here. Good work, by the way, keeping everything together while the rest of us did what we had to.”

“I don’t need your praise! Just keep your end of the bargain and let us be on with this!” Platinum growled, “These children keep interfering and we don’t have time to waste.”

“Fine, fine. I suppose we are short on time.” Starlight responded, turning her full attention to Ditzy Doo like a laser pointer, raising her left hand, palm out, “Better deal with the most troublesome opponent first. Bakudo Number Ninety Five: Kokonotsu no Haka.” (Nine Graves)

A sharp breath of a curse flew out of Ditzy’s mouth as she immediately raised her fist and smashed it down towards the execution stand, trying to finish what she’d started before Starlight appeared. However with sickening swiftness a field of thick green energy appeared from thin air around her in four right angled planes, snapping shut around her. Then another, larger field encased the first, then another, and another, until nine glowing rectangles of force surrounded Ditzy Doo with crushing, binding force of such spiritual strength that Sunset and the rest of the girls could feel it even at a distance, like a deep buzz in the air.

Nodding in satisfaction Starlight simply vanished an reappeared with a blindingly fast Flash Step next to Platinum and Celestia, not even missing a beat as she ran a hand under Celestia’s chin playfully.

“I hope you don’t take this too personally. It really isn’t personal, you know. You and Luna were just the best tools for this particular task.”

By now Sunset Shimmer had Flash Stepped up to the execution stand, joined by Clover, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkamena in surrounding Captain Platinum and Starlight. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were still in the air confronting Firefly, while Ditzy Doo remained trapped inside the binding Kido atop the execution stand. Sunset could see Ditzy struggling against the encasing fields of force around her like a shark caught in a net. The woman’s body was exuding red Hollow energy in a torrent, her mask partially forming around her face as she thrashed against the Kido holding her. Sunset wasn’t sure how long it would take Ditzy to break free, but for the moment she and the girls were on their own.

“Just what has this been all about, Starlight Glimmer!?” she demanded, brandishing Hokori’s flaming edge and Hikari’s glowing shield, “Why do you want Celestia dead!?”

“Uh, does it matter?” said Pinkamena, “Once we paint the ground with her inner squishy bits the motivations aren’t exactly going to be important.”

“I rather think its important.” said Rarity, “After all our lives have been turned upside down because of this woman. I’d say we deserve to know why.”

“You’ve destroyed the balance of my home, my people, and my friends.” said Clover, aiming Chishiki’s pointed end at both Starlight and Platinum, “One of you has betrayed everything she was supposed to stand for. An explanation is in order!”

“Um, if you don’t mind, that is?” put in Fluttershy.

Platinum’s eyes flashed and she opened her mouth to speak, but Starlight held up a hand to silence her and smiled thinly at the girls. “Sorry, but this isn’t show and tell. Besides, if you want answers, you can see for yourself what I want. Firefly, be a dear and stop holding back? Go laser crazy.”

Firefly chuckled, “My pleasure, Glims.”

Suddenly it became very clear that Firefly had been playing around with them up until that point. With shocking speed her drones flew out in a spiral pattern around her. The one’s that had been smashed or destroyed were replaced by more that replicated themselves out of her blade shaped wings, until the full dozen spun around her in a incredibly fast pattern that burned a purple circle of energy in the sky. Firefly just raised one armor clad hand and snapped her fingers.

“Dragoon Purge, Full Spread!”

Purple bolts of energy and lightning exploded all over the field, firing out of the spiral circle in a dizzying pattern. Sunset and Rarity together raised barriers of defense, Sunset’s shield chiming with white energy that formed a defensive dome around her and Clover while Rarity’s blood churned into a wave-like crystal shield to cover herself, Fluttershy, and Pinkamena. The rain of purple lightning crashed into their barriers, straining both girls, but the barrier’s at least held, albeit Sunset could feel Hikari’s strength straining against the blasts. Hikari’s energy barrier’s needed Hokori’s strikes to power them, and her clash with Platinum, while brief, had stored up plenty of energy in Hikari. Still she felt the power behind Firefly’s attack and feared for Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who were still in the air with no protection.

Both of those girls flew like crazy to try to evade the storm, but Applejack took a hit to they shoulder that burned her armor and sent her spiraling out of control. Dash darted to catch her falling friend, snatching Applejack out of the air and moving like a jagged bolt of lightning herself to avoid her mother’s tempest of bolts.

By the time the rain of destruction ended the area of the Sokyuku Hill around the execution stand looked as if it had gone through an artillery barrage, with dozens of craters pockmarking the ground. As the dust settled Sunset saw that Platinum was no longer beside Starlight and Celestia, but instead had moved over to the Sokyoku itself, placing her hand on the giant shaft of the massive spear.

Blue spiritual energy in a flickering flame pattern erupted up the spear’s shaft, flowing upward to its bladed tip. Meanwhile Starlight hooked a finger around Celestia’s collar and with a flick of her wrist popped it off. However rather than free Celestia, this seemed to activate a function within the execution stand itself, as three perfectly shaped cubes of stone rose and floated up from the stand and hovered around Celestia. Two took up positions by her arms, stretching them out like she was on a cross, while the third cube floated around her legs, seeming to bind them in place.

In the span of a second Celestia started to rise up, apparently being dragged by the cubes to the top of the execution stand.

“Oh dear, that doesn’t look good. Sunset, buy me a moment. I can try to fashion something to hold her in place!” Rarity said, but even as she spoke there was a flicker of movement and Starlight Glimmer was simply standing behind Rarity.

“I’d really rather you didn’t.” Starlight said, simply touching a palm to Rarity’s back. The strike was like Rarity got hit by a wreacking ball, sent flying. Fluttershy caught Rarity and gently set her down, Rarity shaking her head in a daze. Sunset sneered fierecly and rushed to strike at Starlight, but Clover was suddenly there, pulling Sunset back.

“Wait, don’t attack her!”

“What? Why!?”

Clover shot a fearful look at Starlight Glimmer’s Zanpaktou, “Don’t you remember what Mister Discord told us about her Zanpaktou’s power?”

Starlight Glimmer smiled thinly, laughing lightly as she raised her blade, “Aw, are you sure you don’t want to attack me with those shiny Zanpaktou’s of yours? I could always stand to add a couple more to my collection. Guess you’re too clever for that... Clover, was it? And Sunset Shimmer, kind of disappointed you’d charge straight at me without even realizing the danger. You strike me as smarter than that.”

Sunset’s teeth grinded as she glared at Starlight, “You want smart? How about this? Rarity, sword!”

Rarity, shaking her daze off, blinked at Sunset, then her eyes lit up with understanding. “Oh! By all means, darling!” With a deft wave of her hand her whirlpool of blood flowed to her side and then disgorged a red crystaline replica of Hokori’s broadsword. Sunset resealed and sheathed Hokori no Hikari and in the same motion fluidly caught the replica blade Rarity provided and Flash Stepped right in front of Starlight, slashing hard for the woman’s sword arm.

Starlight smiled deeply as she smoothly turned her body away form the slash and brought her Zanpaktou up to block the crystal copy of Hokori. “Oh, I like you. I wish our first meeting could’ve been under smoother circumstances. I doubt we can have much of a conversation right now, but for what its worth I appreciate how pissed off you must be.”

“You haven’t even begun to see me pissed off.” Sunset promised, taking one hand off her copy sword and shoving a palm towards Starlight’s gut, “Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

She let as much of her spirit energy as she could hotly pool in her palm and form the sphere of potent crimson power. It fired point blank, striking Starlight square in the chest. It pushed the woman back a half dozen yards before exploding in a ball of crimson flame. However a second later Starlight stepped from the wash of red fire, brushing herself off irritably with next to no visible damage. “I see that you’ve got a bit of a temper problem. Not a bad Shakkaho for a beginner, through. I give it an eight out of ten. If we kept this up I might eventually break a sweat. Too bad for you we’re both out of time.”

At that moment there was an explosive amount of spiritual energy that washed out of the Sokyoku and dunked Sunset in the feeling of being awash in a steaming hot ocean current. Intense flames billowed up from the base of the spear, consuming it as it reached up towards the tip, expanding and pulsing outward like a living thing. Once the flames reached the tip of the spear the spear itself looked like little more than a shaft of black ash inside a cloud of living fire. Then that fire shuddered and writhed, contracting in on itself and then suddenly expanding its form to take a new shape, spreading wings the size of a football field, gaining a powerful avian body, with a sharp pointed head and beak sporting shining white eyes of fire amid its already flaming form.

With a painfully keen cry that split the air the Sokyoku finished its transformation into a building sized phoenix.

Almost everyone present couldn’t help but stare with some level of awe at the sight, even Captain Platinum, who had rarely seen the Sokyoku’s true form. Celestia herself, floated up to face level with the fire bird, stared into the consuming flames with a kind of tender resignation. If this really was where she died, she at least had a certain comfort in knowing that through the efforts of Sunset and her friends the treachery within Soul Society itself was uprooted and whatever damage was done today could in time be healed. Still, this wasn’t on her top ten list of ways she wanted to go out; number one being cake eating contest.

As the Sokyoku gave a mighty flap of its wings that created a hot windstorm that blasted the hill, Sunset shielded her face but shouted to her friends. “We have to break the stand!”

They all started to act in their own ways. Sunset and Clover started to use their reiatsu to jump off the air, rushing up the stand with blades cocked back to try to chop into the stand itself. Rarity tried conjuring axes of crystal to swing into the base of the stand, but the wood was hardly normal and barely chipped under the blows. Fluttershy pushed her own power into strengthening Pinkamena, who seemed to bulk up with fresh muscles under the influence of Fluttershy’s power as she opened her mouth to impossible proportions to try to gnaw into the execution stand.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack both rushed in together, Applejack staggering somewhat from a still somewhat smoking chest wound. They added their blows to the mix, both punching and kicking to try to smash the stand in time.

Yet the Sokyoku flew in with deceptive swiftness for something its size, and Sunset knew they’d never break the execution stand in time to keep the colossal bird of fire from impaling Celestia.

”Equalize: Sekai Chitsujo.” (World Order)

With the same mind numbingly quick Flash Step she’d demonstrated already Starlight Glimmer was simply there, standing between Celestia and the onrushing Sokyoku. The white wrappings of cloth around her Zanpaktou tore away as a potent teal glow engulfed the katana. The blade transformed, a long silver shaft growing to fill Starlight’s outstretched hand, twisting at the top to turn into twin bladed prongs, like a pitchfork with just two tines.

The two tips of the staff struck the beak of the Sokyoku and to Sunset’s surprise, the gargantuan phoenix was halted mid-flight. Before anyone could react there was a flash of teal light from within the two prongs of Starlight’s staff, and a sudden, massive suction-like whirlwind. Almost as if a black hole had been born at the tip of the staff the Sokyoku’s form began to flicker and pillow in a twisting river of flames being sucked straight into Starlight Glimmer’s Zanpaktou. It didn’t even take seconds. As the last flickering ember was absorbed into the staff, Starlight smiled in deep satisfaction and ran a loving hand over the two prongs at the end, like she was petting a cat.

“That’s my girl.”

She threw her head back and laughed, turning lustrously mad eyes towards Sunset and the other girls. “You wanted your principal back, right? Well, you can have her now. I don’t need her anymore.”

Starlight made a swift slashing motion with Sekai Chitsujo, the bladed prongs moving with silver streaks of motion. The cubes that had been holding Celestia in place each were severed neatly in half, falling away as inert stone blocks now, and Celestia, thus freed, fell a few feet before her spiritual pressure came surging back, no longer suppressed. Celestia all but exploded with reiatsu, locking eyes with Starlight as she halted her fall and Flash Stepped up to face the woman with balled fists.

“What did you just do!?” demanded Celestia.

“Wasn’t it obvious?” Starlight chided, twirling her Zanpaktou staff casually with one hand, “I just absorbed the Sokyoku into my Zanpaktou.”

“Hold on a sec.” Sunset appeared next to Celestia, still holding the copy blade Rarity had provided for her while keeping Hokori no Hikari sealed in her left hand, “That’s what you were after the whole time? I don’t understand. Why not just absorb that thing on your own? Why did you need Celestia and Luna to be set up for execution?”

“Because I can’t absorb a Zanpaktou that isn’t being directed at me, even if its being directed by accident.” said Starlight with an easy shrug, “The Sokyoku is only activated during an execution, so I couldn’t absorb it unless someone was up for the chopping block. Celestia and Luna just happened to be the easiest to set up for that.”

“Right... so why? What do you need the Sokyoku for?” Sunset pressed.

“Sorry, Q&A session is over Sunset. You’ve done a great job being my distraction, and hey if you want to keep being the Soul Society’s personal lap dog after this along with your magical girl team, by all means don’t let me stop you.” Starlight said, eyes narrowing, “But I’ve got big girl things to do, so if you’ll excuse me-”

Sunset appeared in front of Starlight with a Flash Step so fast that the air distorted around her. She swung Rarity’s copy blade with enough force that even with Starlight blocked it the blow caused a shock-wave that cracked the top of the execution stand and sent Starlight blasting through the wooden beam. Starlight caught herself and skidded across the air on her heels, sighing with clear annoyance as she brushed wood chips off her shoulder.

“We’ve got to do something about your anger issues.”

Sunset, now holding little more than a hilt as the crystal blade had shattered under the force of her own strike, growled at Starlight. “You’re not going anywhere without telling me what you're planning, Starlight Glimmer! My friends and I didn’t come all this way just to let you get away free!”

Starlight’s face turned sarcastically punchable as she gave a slow, sardonic clab of her hands, “And you’ve been doing such a good job of that, too. Oh, wait, on second thought.”

Starlight vanished once more, appearing back on the ground where the Sokyoku had once been, joining Platinum there just as Firefly as rocketed down and landed beside the pair.

“We’re still down one amigo, boss.” said Firefly.

“Yes, yes, I know. She’s running late, but she should be here any moment.” said Starlight with visible annoyance, “Assuming she’s not stupid enough to turn on me. Always a possibility with that one.”

Sunset blinked between where Starlight had been and where she was now, and let out a withering sigh. “I’m getting really tired of her doing that. How’d she learn to Flash Step so fast anyway? I’m calling shenanigans.”

She dropped down, Celestia following her, until she and all her friends had gathered up at the base of the execution stand, now facing the three women who were the cause of all their recent greif. A burst of thick Hollow reiatsu from above followed by the sound like shattering glass preceding Ditzy Doo finally breaking free of the binding Kdo on her, scattering the shells of energy like clay shards. Her Hollow mask was now fully formed on her face as she appeared next to the girls, her yellow on black eyes flickering towards Celestia.

“Hey. Glad you’re not dead.”

“Glad to not be dead.” Celestia said without much mirth, “However it seems my death was never part of the enemy’s plan.”

“Yeah, I gathered. How much damage could Starlight do with the Sokyoku, do you think?”

“I haven’t the faintest clue, but given it's a weapon forged to execute Soul Reapers, I could hazard some unpleasant guesses.”

Ditzy nodded, “So we smash their faces in. You good to fight?”

“I may not have my Zanapaktou but I can still muster Kido now that my reiatsu is no longer being curtailed.” Celestia confirmed, then looked to all the girls. “Thank you for coming for me, by the way.”

“Thanks later, once we deal with my jerkface mom and her idiot friend.” Rainbow Dash said.

“Hate ta bring up the obvious but we ain’t been doin’ so hot on that front, sugarcube. Yer ma’s kinda a’ powerhouse.”

“That’s just because you guys aren’t going for her jugular hard enough.” scoffed Pinkamena, “Even I could tell you were holding back.”

“I was NOT!” shouted Dash, but Sunset held up a hand.

“Guys, we don’t have time to argue. We need to take these guys down.” Sunset said firmly, though her voice was tinged with frustration, “Just wish I could go all out with my Zanpaktou, but...” she trailed off, not really needed to finish her sentence. They’d all just seen how effective Starlight’s own Zanpaktou was in stealing power, and Clover gave Sunset an understanding look of worry, no doubt equally fearful of losing Chishiki as Sunset was of losing Hokori no Hikari.

Ditzy put a subtle hand on Sunset’s arm, sawing in a low tone, “Best to let me and your Fullbringer friends tackle Starlight for now, but just so you know, as long as you don’t release your Zanpaktou to Shikai you can still use them. She can only steal them if they’re released.”

“Great, but that still puts us at a large disadvantage.” said Clover, eyeing her already released Zanpaktou, “I think it's best I help Sunset shut down Capta... well, she’s no longer a Captain, so just Platinum.”

“I don’t care how we do this, as long as you guys leave me to deal with my mom.” Dash said with hard finality.

Celestia’s head perked up as she looked beyond where Starlight, Platinum, and Firefly were standing with her eyes narrowing. “Wait, someone else is here.”

“Huh?” Sunset blinked, then felt two new reiatsu just as two more figures arrived on the hill not far from their position. Sunset didn’t recognize either woman, but the taller woman with the incredibly regal bearing and deep pink hair bleeding to dark purple was wearing a Captain’s coat, and the purple skinned girl with light blue hair next to her was wearing a Lieutenant’s armband.

“It’s Captain Amore and Lieutenant Radiant Hope.” Celestia said, seeming relieved, “She’s among the more sensible of the Captains.”

“So she’s on our side?” asked Fluttershy.

“Well she certainly seems to have an elegant bearing, and I think we can use all the help we can get.” said Rarity.

In the meantime Amore surveyed the scene with wide eyes. She could see Celestia was free, and saw the damaged execution stand. She’d felt the presence of the Sokyoku mere moments ago before her and Radiant Hope’s arrival, but that spirit energy had suddenly vanished and she wasn’t certain why. She could tell that the collection of young women at the far end of the hill had to be the Ryoka that had come to Seireitei, and was disturbed to see that one among them was wearing a Hollow mask. She’d heard the rumors about the Doo family’s exiled scion, but this was Amore’s first time seeing the strange Hollow powers that had caused the exile in the first place.

However all that aside Amore’s attention was rooted to the sight of Captain Platinum standing with a strange pair of women she didn’t recognize.

“Captain Platinum, I am here to place you under arrest for suspicion of treason against Soul Society!” Amore shouted, her voice more steady than she expected to to be as she drew her Zanpaktou.

Platinum regarded her with uncaring, cold eyes. “You may cross ‘suspicion’ from that statement, Amore.” she spat the name like a curse. “I confess my crimes. Soul Society no longer holds any meaning to me, now that my son is safe.”

Amore’s eyes flickered with confusion, “Your son... Lord Pipsqueak? What has happened to him?”

“Nothing, now, and no thanks to the worthless bastards in Central 46, or you my so-called ‘colleagues’. Condemn me as a traitor, I don’t care. Let’s see if you even have the spine or strength to take me on.”

“Yes, lets antagonize more Captain-level opponents.” quipped Starlight Glimmer with a roll of her eyes, “Firefly, prepare the portal. We have everything we need, so fighting here would be a waste of time.”

“We’re still missing one, boss.” Firefly pointed out, and Starlight smirked.

“Are we...?” she asked, and gestured behind Amore and Radiant Hope.

Amore perceived that gesture and turned to look behind her, blinking at who she saw.

Captain Zecora staggered along, covered in blood, her clothes tattered. She looked disheveled and it was hard to tell if the blood coating her was her own or that of others as she hobbled towards Amore and Radiant Hope, eyes looking desperate.

“My comrades take heed... for I am in dire need... do not trust... do not trust...”

“Zecora!” Amore cried, immediately rushing to Zecora’s side, concern brimming in her eyes. “We feared the worst! What happened to you!? Where have you been!?”

Sunset immediately sensed something was wrong. She wasn’t sure what or how, exactly. She’d never seen this dusky white skinned woman with the black and white striped mohawk either, but something about the way she moved struck her as wrong. Not like someone wounded, but like someone playing possum.

She drew Hokori no Hikari and started rushing forward, “Wait, don’t go near her!”

Radiant Hope heard Sunset’s warning, and turned to her Captain, who was now standing over a hunched over Zecora, “Captain Amore, back away from-”

The blade exploded out of Amore’s back in a shower of blood that coated the ground like red snowflakes and a wet splattering sound that echoed over the silent plateau. Amore shuddered, looking down at Zecora’s Zapaktou, which had impaled her straight through the chest, blood spreading in a crimson bloom from the viscous wound. She looked down into Zecora’s eyes, which stared up at her now with fierce glee.

“Ze...cora...?”

Zecora’s eyes flashed a deep emerald green and her voice... changed, deepening to a rich feminine and sultry tone that was filled with mocking scorn. “What, Amore? Did you have a question for me? Perhaps why there’s a blade rammed through you? Well, I was trying to warn you not to trust me.”

Zecora yanked her blade free in a spurting red tide, Amore staggering backwards and falling on her back like a discarded doll.

Radiant Hope’s eyes turned bleakly dilated at the sight, her voice shrieking, “Captain!”

The Lieutenant rushed to Amore’s side, her hands already glowing with the power of a healing Kido. Zecora glanced contemptuously at Radiant Hope and raised her bloody blade, “Oh look, an idiot girl who's dropped her guard in front of a murderous enemy. What fun.”

Radiant Hope looked up fearfully as the blade descended towards her, but there was a blinding streak of black robes and fire colored skin as Sunset arrived in a blazing Flash Step, Hokori no Hikari exploding into Shikai form as her shield intercepted the blow meant for Radiant Hope. Sunset’s eyes were all but flames as she roared, “No! You’re not hurting anyone else!”

Hokori’s broadsword sprung to flaming life, fire pouring out like a faucet as she slammed its heated edge at Zecora, blasting the Captain backwards in a hot trail that scorched a black, melted path of char a good twenty yards back. Sunset looked back at her friends, “Fluttershy, get over here and help keep Amore alive!”

“Right!” Fluttershy spread her wings and soared over, while the rest of the girls, plus Ditzy Doo and Celestia, rushed to surrounded Starlight, Platinum, and Firefly, who all looked generally unconcerned with the turn of events.

Platinum turned angry eyes at Starlight, “You told me only Central 46 were targets to be killed!”

Starlight sighed, “Yes, those were my orders. However our final comrade is something of a... independent individual. I’ll have to have a chat with her about the nature of our relationship when this is over.”

“Who is she? She cannot be Captain Zecora. You told me I was the only Captain who would have to betray Soul Society.” Platinum said, jaw tight.

“See for yourself...” Starlight said, tilting a head towards the burning pillar of fire Sunset had created that had blasted Zecora. In a few seconds the flames were dissipated, and Zecora was standing there, her robes scorched and charring away, and the woman herself bearing a few burn marks that she examined with a idle gaze.

“Hmm, that actually somewhat hurt. No wonder Tirek is so interested in you children. He always seems to know how to call who will become a major player in the game. Its one of the few reasons I allow him to play King of Hueco Mundo while I handle affairs from behind the throne...”

Sunset glared at her, but couldn’t quite hide her curiosity. “Tirek? He’s the one in charge of the Hollows?”

Zecora, or rather the one who was masquerading as Zecora, licked her lips and tapped a finger to her chin playfully, “Is he? I suppose he is, in a sense. He sits upon the throne and gives commands... hmmhmmhmm, but it is my voice that whispers those commands into his ears. Allow me to introduce myself, child.”

A pillar of incandescent emerald fire leapt to spiraling life around Zecora’s form, rising into the sky, and with it Sunset could feel the Soul Reaper reiatsu of Zecora be washed off like dirt under a hot shower. Like pulling off a spiritual suit the Soul Reaper spirit energy was cast aside, and underneath it a potent power that had the unmistakable heavy and chilling feel of a Hollow’s power came out like a thick miasma. It was so thick and cloying that Sunset had a hard time breathing for a moment before her own burning reiatsu rose up to push back against the pressure, allowing her to stand firm as the woman finished her hideous transformation.

The shape of Zecora melted away under burning green flames, bubbling and sizzling out like grease on a hot pan. White skin turned to shining charcoal. The mohawk burned away to reveal a long, dull turquoise length of well groomed hair. A sheer white dress of elegant design covered her statuesque and voluptuous frame, and her jade eyes glinted with confidence and power. A single, jagged horn of bone white pierced upwards from her skull, and a similarly colored number “2” was tattooed upon the base of her throat. She still held Zecora’s Zanpaktou in one hand, but a new Zanpaktou was sheathed at her hip, which she slowly drew, its steely curved blade gleaming.

“Espada Dos, Chrysalis. Do remember the name, would you? I do so hate having to repeat myself.”

Ditzy Doo let out a sharp hiss, “Shit... I’d really hoped it wouldn’t be her.”

Celestia blinked, “But how is she here? All of our scouts still have her placed at Las Noches... and even if she did slip out, to be able to disguise herself so thoroughly that Soul Society’s wards couldn't detect her?”

“It's not as hard as you imagine, dear sweet Celestia.” Chrysalis said, smiling deeply, “My precious Thorax is acting as an acceptable stand in for me while I take care of business here. As for fooling your oh so ‘reliable’ wards, you do realize to whom you speak? Infiltrating your ranks was not precisely my greatest challenge.”

Starlight rolled her eyes again, “Pat yourself on the back later. You still needed my help to ambush and replace Zecora. Without me you couldn’t have gotten this far, and without you my plan would’ve been that much harder, so instead of trading words, could you kindly get your shiny onyx butt over here so we can go?”

Chrysalis burst out an exasperated snort, “Oh fine. You’re entirely no fun, Glimmer.”

With a high pitched buzzing noise radiating through the air Chrysalis blinked out of view and appeared next to Starlight and the others, bypassing Sunset entirely. By now Fluttershy had arrived next to Radiant Hope, who had tears spilling down her face as she shoved glowing, bloody hands over Amore’s wound.

“I...I can’t feel her heart beating anymore...” Radiant Hope gulped, looking terrified.

Fluttershy gave her a kind smile as she knelt down, “Let me help. I can still feel her spirit. I’ll keep her going.”

“I’m relying on you Fluttershy.” said Sunset, nodding her head as she Flash Stepped back to the rest of her friends, surrounding Starlight’s group.

By now Firefly had already started to take action, reaching to the hip of her armored frame where a small hatch opened to extend several of her teleportation rods. She snatched them up between her fingers and tossed out four in a fan to her right, the rods impacting with the ground in a neat line where they immediately activated with arcs of purple lightning, connecting together to form a wide oval shaped portal. The hole in the air showed a forest beyond, and a hint of some kind of large, dark structure.

Starlight, seeing the portal open, gave a brief bow. “If you want answers, feel free to try and follow us, but you won’t be getting any more help from Soul Society.”

“Stop them!” Sunset shouted, hesitant to use Hokori’s flames with Starlight so close, but willing to try and bum rush Platinum.

She and the rest of her companions rushed in, but their opponents were all incredibly fast themselves, with Platinum and Starlight both using Flash Step to vanish through the portal while Chrysalis used the Hollow equivalent to do the same. Firefly was the only one who was remotely visible as she went through the portal, and even she blasted through at breakneck speed, the fin wings of her armored boots and the blade wings on her back both exuding massive purple thrusters of energy that sent her rocketing through before Sunset or any of the others got close.

Still they didn’t stop, and Sunset rushed through the portal, landing in a forest clearing in a place she didn’t recognize. From the feel of the world around her she thought they were still in the Spirit Realm somewhere, but no longer in Seireitei. All she saw around her with thick, tall trees, and somewhere through the thick branches ahead loomed some huge, shadowy building.

“Where’d they go?” Rainbow Dash asked, looking around.

“Take a’ guess, sugarcube.” said Applejack, pointing at the looming building.

“Are we leaving Fluttershy behind?” asked Rarity.

“Hey, somebody’s got to keep that Captain lady’s sticky, delicious blood inside her.” said Pinkamena, while the Pinkie hammer twitched.

“I got real major league hebbie jebbies going on gals. I think the baddies are doing something big here to get away.”

Sunset glanced back at the portal, seeing that the lines of purple energy around the rim of the portal were getting less stable. “Firefly must have set this thing up to collapse on it’s own...”

She hesitated. She wanted Fluttershy with them, but she wasn’t about to remove the only chance that Amore woman might have of surviving, either. However as she thought that, she saw Fluttershy appear at the portal edge, alongside someone else she immediately recognized.

“L-Luna!” she said, and the Captain of the Second Division stepped through the portal alongside Fluttershy, carrying a twin set of Zanpaktou sheathed in her hands while her own katana and tanto blade were sheathed at her hips.

“Sister, you’re a bit later than I would’ve liked.” said Celestia, but she still managed a small smile, “But I’m glad you made it. Is Amore...?”

“Breathing, barely. Starswirl is here too. He’s keeping her alive, and rushing her as fast as he can back to the Twelfth Division.”

“Twelfth, not the Fourth?”

“She’s beyond normal healing.” Luna said sourly, “Starswirl says he has machines at his Division headquarters that he can hook her to too keep her from fading away, even with her heart damaged as it is. Captain Commander Scorpan is trying to restore order, but the other Captains were still fighting even as I rushed here.”

Luna handed Celestia her Zanpaktou, the other woman taking the twin blades with a visible shudder of relief. “Then we’re alone in dealing with our enemies.”

“I sensed Hollow reiatsu.” Luna said, glancing at Ditzy Doo, “Was it you?”

“Me, but we’ve also got the Second Espada here, along with Starlight Glimmer, Captain Platinum who’s turned traitor, and Xcution’s Firefly.”

Luna sucked in a breath, “A formidable roster of rogues. Even with all of us together they shall be difficult foes to face.” Luna’s eyes turned towards the building through the trees, her eyes narrowing. “Sister, correct me if I’m wrong but is that not...?”

“Hitsuyo Aku.” Celestia said grimly.

Sunset glanced at her, “That research group that made Xcution? This is their base?”

“Their laboratories, yes. We’re many miles outside the Seireitei. I don’t know how, but it seems Starlight Glimmer and her compatriots have taken over the facility. Whatever they’re doing here must be part of her grander plan. I know its much to ask of your girls, but I don’t know if my sister and I will be enough to stop them, so-”

“Stop. You don’t even have to ask. We’re here to stop them, and we’re not about to back out now. Right girls?” Sunset said, looking at her friends, who all nodded affirmations, except for Rainbow Dash who was so focused on the building ahead she didn’t seem to hear much of anything.

“The portal is closing.” came a voice from the other side of the portal, Radiant Hope standing there looking scared and uncertain, her hands covered in her Captain’s blood. “W-what do I do?”

The portal was indeed shrinking, shimmering and becoming less stable as it went. Celestia looked at Radiant Hope with an assuring nod. “Stay there, Lieutenant. Soon enough the Captain Commander will quell the fighting, and when he does you must tell him what happened on Sokyoku Hill and where we’ve gone. Don’t worry, Amore is in good hands with Starswirl.”

Radiant Hope gulped and saluted, “Yes. I will. Good luck, and please... keep an eye out for Meadowbrook and Moon Dancer. If they’re there, please help them.”

“We will, don’t worry.” Sunset said, just as the portal flickered closed, leaving her, her friends, and two Captains of the Soul Society alone to face the looming dark ahead and the foes that have turned all of Soul Society upside down.

----------

“So do we have a plan of action, ladies, or are we continuing to wing this?” asked Rarity as they ran through the forest towards the dark building ahead.

“Punch them until they all stop being assholes.” said Rainbow Dash.

“I like her plan.” said Pinkamena with a hungry, tooth filled grin. “Does anyone object if I carve off a few pieces of the cute Hollow lady once we’re done with her?”

“Cute!? She stabbed a woman, quite ruthlessly.” Rarity said, aghast.

“I know. She smelled delicous too. Almost a shame she’s an enemy.”

“Ooooh, does Mena have a cruuuush?” sang Pinkie, her hammer form almost seeming to bend one of its ends in a grin.

“Can we not crush on our violent, psychotic foes?” asked Sunset.

“I concur, we really ought to be more focused on deafeating them, not on wondering what they taste like.” said Clover, then turned a look towards Celestia. “That disturbing conversation aside, what could this Starlight Glimmer want with Hitsuyo Aku?”

Celestia gave a helpless and equally mirthless smile, “What makes you think I would know, Third Seat Clover? I was never involved with Hitsuyo Aku’s research. Starswirl would be better equipped to answer that.”

“It doesn’t matter what she’s after.” Sunset said with a heavy tone, “All that matters is that we stop her.”

She certainly got no argument from those gathered, and as a group they started towards the building that could be barely seen through the trees. Sunset felt her nerves steady as they moved. As strong as their opponents had demonstrated themselves to be, they were still outnumbered, and even then she felt like she’d gotten a good gauge on Platinum’s strength, at least. Starlight Glimmer was far more of a wildcard that Sunset couldn’t pin down. She’d hit Ditzy Doo with a binding Kido with ease that had held the powerful quasi-Hollow for a good few minutes with ease, and had shrugged off a point blank Shakkaho without a scratch. But just how powerful was her Zanpaktou? It could steal other Zanpaktou, and if the fact that Chrysalis was using Zecora’s Zanpaktou was any indication then Starlight’s could also give others master of the blades she’d stolen. That was a unsettling thought.

As for Platinum, Sunset felt like she could match the ex-Captain of the Sixth Division with Shikai, but the real test was going to be when it came to use the final release, Bankai. She’d held off using it back on Sokyoku Hill because Ditzy Doo had given her some advice, just after she’d finished her battle with Hokori.

”Make Platinum use Bankai first, and survive against it as long as you can before using yours.”

“Why? Seems more sensible to go all out from the get go and try to take her down fast. I mean, what was the point of nearly killing myself to get this power just to hold back with it?”

“Listen Sunset, Bankai is a Soul Reaper’s most potent tool, but its also our most fragile one. Break a Shikai, and the Zanpaktou will recover. Break a Bankai, and that’s not something easily fixed. More importantly, you’re new to Bankai. You won’t be able to use it to its fullest potential yet, and it’ll drain your stamina faster than it will someone like Platinum who's had centuries to master her Bankai.”

“So what do I do? Take her out before she can use her Bankai?”

“Doubt you could pull that one off, Sunset. You’re good, but Platinum still has the edge on you. Not enough that she’ll be able to take you down with Shikai, however, which if I know her will really cheese her off. She’ll use Bankai, out of sheer frustration if nothing else. Don’t use your own until she uses hers, and you’ve taken its measure. Then hit her with everything you’ve got before she can recover.”

That was still the plan. Starlight and the others showing up hadn’t been unexpected, but as much as it galled her Sunset knew she couldn’t easily take on Starlight, and of the foes that had shown themselves Platinum was the one she was bested suited to fight. But what were they after inside the Hitsuyo Aku research facility?

The group exited the trees into a wide clearing that was unnaturally rounded, with a good fifty yards of open, short cut grass between the trees and the building that housed Hitsuyo Aku’s laboratories. The building itself was shaped like a triangular wedge of solid dark granite rising upward like a tower about a hundred feet tall and half that wide, with a roof that sported a dome-like structure atop it. There were no windows, but there were visible balconies on the top floor, situated on each side of the triangle. The main doors were on the flattened front end of the triangle, thick wooden affairs with a line of red shrine arches leading towards it like a walkway, extended out into the grassy field. It was at the first of these shrine arches that Firefly, Chrysalis, and Platinum were waiting.

Chrysalis leaned idily against one of the arch pillars, while Firefly sat atop the arch, legs dangling. Platinum stood in the center of the arch, Fuyukogo planted in the ground with her hands atop its hilt.

“Starlight Glimmer is inside?” Dity Doo said, barley a question and more of a statement.

Platinum nodded, “She is finishing our business here. We’re to keep you occupied until then.”

Celestia eyes Platinum with regret in them. “If you were willing to do all of this for Pipsqueak why didn’t you tell someone, Platinum? If not me surely Scorpan would have listened.”

“I’m doing this because I went to the Captain Com-” Platinum began, then sneered and shook her head, “No, just Scorpan to me, now. I went to him, and pleaded for him to convince Central 46 to allow the treatment. They refused. He refused. Because it required Hollow reiatsu. That’s it. My son was condemned to suffer a fate worse than death because his treatment required Hollow spirit energy, Celestia, and Central 46 didn’t even deliberate on the matter for an hour before making that decision. So yes I’m doing this. I’m doing the only thing I can to ensure my son-”

“Blah blah blah,” Chrysalis scoffed, leaning off the pillar and yawning, “No one cares to hear your sob story, Platinum. Or rather I don’t need to hear it. Your little spawn can live, hooray for you. All it took was betraying everything you ever fought for. If I knew you Soul Reapers were so easy to corrupt I’d have started offering bargains of my own centuries ago.”

“Silence, creature. I only suffer your presence because Starlight Glimmer made the questionable choice of enlisting your help. Once your use to us is done you’ll just be another Hollow to me.”

Chrysalis smirked, “Oh, who’s using who here, I wonder? So, Celestia, Luna, it's so good to see you both again. What has it been, five hundred years since our last skirmish? Where was that, somewhere in Africa?”

“South America.” Luna clarified, “You were feeding off the human sacrifices of the indigenous people.”

“Oh, yes, good times. Humans were so much more fun back when they believed in cutting each other's hearts out to please their ‘gods’. Well, I suppose some of them still do, but it's just not the same these days. They've lost some of their spark in this modern age. They could stand to have a good apocalypse to living things up, don't you think?” the Espada’s face brightened in a entirely too friendly grin that reminded Sunset of the way a spider greeted a fresh fly in its web.

Celestia, without taking eyes off Chrysalis, said to Sunset, “Let me and my sister handle her. I think we’re the only ones that can.”

“Hey.” Ditzy Doo said, arms crossing under her breasts, “I could take her. I think.”

“I’m certain you could, Ditzy, but someone has to break through and face Starlight Glimmer, and given her Zanpaktou’s ability you’re the best one suited to that task.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. You and Luna get to play with the fun one, and leave the hard work for me to do.”

“Hey, divvy us up however you like.” said Firefly, “Not like we’re in a rush. You’re the ones with a timer, now.”

“Mom...” Rainbow Dash said with a voice thick with a heady cocktail of emotions as she stepped forward and jabbed a thumb off to the side, “You. Me. Over there. One on one.”

“Sugarcube-” Applejack began but Rainbow Dash shook her head.

“Nope. This is between me and her. You had your spat with your mom. Now I have it out with mine. You and the rest of the gals go help Ditzy with the nut job inside the tower of doom.” Dash bit out, already spreading her wings to take to the air on sparks of electric current.

Firefly smiled deeply, and with a certain hint of pride, and her own sharp, mechanical wings flowed with purple light as she too took to the air. “That’s the spirit, kiddo. Let’s go do some bonding.”

“Shut it. The only bonding about to go down is between my boot and your face.” Dash said, and as a pair the two streaked off, one blue, one purple, flying out over the forest to begin their fight elsewhere.

Chrysalis chuckled dryly, “Ah the pains of parenthood. I’d say I could relate, but all of my children are so well behaved I can hardly imagine having an unruly one like her. Oh well, if they’re heading off, shall we do the same, Celestia, Luna? We can hardly fight properly here without hurting these weaker chaff, and I’m sure you’d like to maybe use your Zanpaktou for a change, Celestia?”

Celestia sucked in a deep breath and then let it out in a resigned sigh, “Yes, let’s move somewhere less crowded. I cherish my students and I’d hate for them to see what I must do to you.”

Chrysalis laughed in pure pleasure, “Hahahah! I’d forgotten how much I enjoy you when you’re serious, Celestia. Oh, and I suppose your sister might prove amusing too. Are you done fuming and giving me dirty looks over there, little Luna?”

Luna’s eyes, which hadn’t stopped staring daggers at Chrysalis, merely smiled thinly and said, “Quite done. Rather believe I’m ready to slit your throat. Shall we?”

Chrysalis’ smile turned positively devilish as she narrowed her jade eyes. “See if you can keep up.”

All three of them disappeared at the same time, leaving little more than a gust of wind in their wake as they left to some other part of the forest to begin their own battle. Platinum remained where she was, eyeing Sunset and the rest of the girls coldly.

“And so we’re back where we began. Me, and the lot of you.”

Sunset stepped forward, “No. Just me.”

“Um, are you quite certain that’s a good idea, Sunset?” asked Rarity, “I think it may be better to take her as a group, as uncouth as such tactics may be. Practicality and all that.”

“I know, and believe me this has nothing to do with pride or honor or anything like that.” said Sunset, “If we didn’t still have Starlight to worry about I’d say let’s go for it and gang up on Platinum. But we don’t know what Starlight is doing in there.” She looked to Ditzy Doo, “No offense, I know you’re stronger than all of us, but I’d feel better knowing you had all the backup you can taking her on. You go ahead with the others and leave Platinum to me.”

Clover spoke up, sounding worried, “The other girls surely, because Starlight can’t steal their powers, but I can support you against Platinum.”

“No.” said Ditzy, “Sunset’s right. Let her handle Platinum. You might not be able to use your Zanpaktou against Starlight directly, but you’re the only trained researcher here, Clover. Might need your help to figure out what Starlight is up to.”

Clover frowned, but didn’t argue the point, just looking to Sunset with concern. “Be careful, please. You’re kind of one of my only friends.”

“You too, Clover. Keep everyone safe.”

Platinum’s brows drew down in a hard grimace, “Unlike the others I have no reason to play this as a matter of honor. I’m not allowing any of you past!”

Suddenly Sunset was in front of her, Hokori’s blade burning with a solid fan of thick orange flames. Once more Fuyukogo and Hokori slammed into one another, Platinum glaring with fury as Sunset pushed against her blade and held firm.

“Sorry Platinum, but you’re stuck with me.”

Platinum growled in response, her frustration clear as she broke off from Sunset and then tried to Flash Step to the side to give her a clear shot at Sunset’s friends, but Sunset also Flash Stepped to match Platinum’s move, keeping pace and once more intercepting Fuyukogo’s ice with a blast of flame.

“Time to go girls!” said Ditzy, and she along with Fluttershy, Pinkamena, Applejack, Rarity, and Clover all darted down the walkway of shrine arches towards the doors leading into Hitsuyo Aku. As Ditzy opened the doors within and she and Sunset’s friends went inside, she gave them a small smile, wishing them luck. Then it was all she could do to focus on Platinum, who came at her with fierce frustration and anger.

“Damned fool girl! You don’t know what you’re interfering with!”

Four spears of ice formed in the air around Sunset in a spinning circle, then thrusted in at her murderously. Sunset moved with fluidity born of all of her condensed battle experience and her freshly strengthened connection to her Zanapaktou. Her ignited blade shattered one spear, then cleaved through another, the strikes serving to transfer power to her shield which flashed with a shell of light that absorbed the shattering blows of the other two spears.

She finished her spin and used the momentum to send a blazing thrust at Platinum’s chest, but the former Captain snapped her fingers and raised a thick sheet of ice in front of her that Hokori penetrated through, then with a burst of flames exploded. Icy steam filled the area, and Platinum leaped up through the cloud, eyes filled with a frustrated light.

“You come here, blindly charging into a situation you know nothing about, and act as if you can judge me! Ignorant, arrogant child!” Platinum drew back Fuyukogo, an intense blue glow rolling up the large, curved tulwar. Icy crystals spiked up from the blade in harsh torrents, appearing like a large growth of sub-zero crystals along its curved length, then Platinum slashed hard down at the ground where Sunset stood and unleashed a blizzard of deadly shards.

The very ground started to freeze over before the shards even impacted, spreading around Sunset, but she herself remained untouched by that frost as she held Hokori’s broadsword high and transferred energy from Hikari’s shield to the blade. She then slipped her hand to the red cloth attached to Hokori’s hilt and began to spin the blade over her head in a buzzing arc. Then fire erupted upwards from the spinning blade in an ever solidifying disc of pure heat.

Hokori had used this technique against her in their fight earlier, and now Sunset knew the technique herself, and its proper name. As the ice storm fell towards her, she smiled and swung hard on the cloth, taking her spinning blade and the disc of flame it had created to hurl it upwards in a burning spiral.

”Akai Shobo-shi!” (Red Fire Destroyer)

The disc of deep orange and red flames tore a path through the storm, flying through the torrent of ice and cutting cleanly through it. Ice shards rained down around Sunset with heavy impacts, coating the ground in ice and shattering several of the red shrine arches, but the space above her was cleared by the fire disc. The disc itself buzzed up with heated destruction towards Platinum, who sneered and took Fuyukogo up in both hands and just as the disc was about to strike her she flashed down with full force with her blade.

The air screamed as extreme cold and ice bursting from Fuyukogo impacted with the incredible heat of Sunset’s attack. Platinum grunted in effort, shocked at how much force was behind that spinning disc of fire. Fuyukogo’s ice melted around it, even as the blade bit into the disc. Then with narrowed eyes Platinum focused her might and spirit energy into her blade and with a forceful shout cut the disc in half. The two half spun out of control and flew off to descend to the forest beyond, exploding in blasts of flame that ignited the trees. Platinum, breathing hard, looked to see where Sunset was, but the girl was no longer on the ground.

She felt Sunset’s spirit energy spike behind her and Platinum spun to find Sunset rushing her from behind. Platinum made a sharp ‘tch’ sound and swung to meet the assault. Blade and shield clashed, and for a few seconds the two women were little more than a blurred flicker of fast movements, their strikes and counter-strikes sparking off of each other so fast that it looked like it was raining embers.

Why? Platinum thought in pure frustration. Why can’t I strike a telling blow on her!? How did she improve this much since we met in the human world?

More than just Sunset’s speed, strength, and skill, Platinum could feel how much sharper and more potent Sunset’s reiatsu had become. The spiritual pressure was easily a match for Platinum’s own, the two reiatsu pushing back upon each other as they clashed again and again in the air, their Flash Steps keeping equal pace with each other.

Furthermore, Platinum had not missed the significance of the fact that Sunset had released her Zanpaktou to Shikai earlier without using the release phrase. Only Soul Reapers who had achieved Bankai were capable of that... but Platinum refused to believe this child could have attained such a power. It was inconceivable for someone who hadn’t been born a Soul Reaper.

Fuyukogo and Hokori sparked off each other in a particularly harsh clash, pushing both Sunset and Platinum back, their feet skidding across the air. They were now about halfway up the tower, their rapid clash of strikes having taken them higher into the air as they’d leaped about trying to find an opening in each other’s guard. Platinum felt some small satisfaction in seeing that at least Sunset was sweat soaked and breathing hard. The girl was skilled, and far more powerful than Platinum would have guessed, but she clearly was pushing herself.

“Whatever your foolishness, you must at least recognize that I have the advantage in a battle of attrition. No matter how much Ditzy Doo has trained you, you can’t compete with the stamina of someone who has spent lifetimes longer than you fighting battles such as this. If you surrender, I will spare you. Your death was never a goal of mine.”

“Not happening.” Sunset said, pointing her blade at Platinum, “For one, I don’t trust you. For two, after all you’ve done you deserve a beat down. I’m all for second chances, and believe me I know what it’s like to lose yourself to a course of action you’re convinced is right without realizing the mistake you’re making, but there’s no way I’m letting you walk at this point.”

Undiluted anger coated Platinum’s eyes like a killing frost. “What do you know of the path I walk? You couldn’t possibly understand what it’s like to love someone as deeply as I love my son, and to know that the only path to his safety was denied by the very people I’ve spent centuries serving faithfully. Can you even begin to grasp my despair, or my resolve? Nothing will stop me from saving my son. Nothing.”

Sunset’s expression softened, if only a little as she sighed, “I know I can’t relate to that. I’ve never had a child. I don’t know what that kind of love feels like, or to have it threatened.” Her eyes hardened, “But I do know that throwing so many other people into harm’s way, no matter the reason, is at best a stupid thing to do. Celestia’s right, you could have trusted her to help you. When you’re that trapped by despair that’s what friends are for! To help you do what you can’t do by yourself. To find solutions that don’t involve-”

“Silence!” Platinum’s voice cut like a knife, “I won’t be talked down to by an infant spouting nonsense about friendship. That sort of idealism only works in the minds of those who’ve never faced harsh reality. So allow me to teach you that difference. The difference between a child’s ideals, and an adult’s resolve.”

Suddenly the temperature in the air dropped considerable, and an aura of white blue energy flowed up from Platinum like a smoky haze, glittering with tiny ice crystals. She turned Fuyukogo over into an inverted grip, its curved blade pointed downward as her eyes turned to a pure, shining blue color. She then let go of her grip on her Zanpaktou, and as it fell she spoke with frozen determination.

“Bankai.”

The moment Platinum said the word it was as if Fuyukogo struck something solid in mid-air with an earth shattering clang. In an instant ice, thick and blue, spread out from where the curved blade stood in a swift wave. Sunset leaped back to gain distance, but the ice continued to expand at a ludicrous rate, and furthermore she saw more ice pooling in the air all over the area, spreading like someone was painting in the ice from thin air. Further and further the deep blue ice expanded until it surrounded the tower and started to encompass a space that all but entirely covered the field below until a nearly perfect circular island of ice a hundred meters in radius spread out in all directions around Sunset and Platinum. Fuyukogo then geysered up a pillar of ice, then even more ice burst upwards from the surface of the island and Sunset felt the entire thing float upwards.

Sunset tried to Flash Step away, but as she reached the edge of the island she felt a barrier their, a shimmering blue field of power that spherically surrounding the island. Four curving pillars of ice sprouted upwards at each cardinal direction, like huge looming claws, and seemed to reinforce the barrier as the island continued to float up until it was soaring above the tower. Sunset landed on the cold ice floor of the island, and turned her look back towards Platinum, blinking in surprise and a bit of worry at what she saw.

A castle was rising from the center of the island, a giant eastern styled pagoda fortress with multi-tiered walls and giant front steps leading up to an open throne that overlooked the rest of the island. Platinum stood there, standing beside the throne where Fuyukogo was seen sheathed within a mount in the right side of the throne. The woman’s body was enfolded by a dark blue and white trimmed battle dress of ice, topped by an elaborate headdress of white frost. Platinum turned from the throne and raised her hand, and drew her Zanpaktou from the throne. The blade itself was unchanged, but it now glowed with a deep pulse of blue light that seemed to shimmer through the fortress and the island itself.

”Fuyukogo Sodaina Kyuden.” (Grand Palace of the Winter Empress)

Platinum’s eyes locked on Sunset, and Sunset felt a freezing cold touch her feet. She looked down to see ice growing up from the ground at her feet, entrapping her.

“Crap-!” Sunset started to yank her feet free, but in the same instant Platinum rocketed down the steps from her throne and seemed to fly across the icy field, and in her wake ice roiled upward like a living ocean wave. Sunset had only a moment to prepare herself before Platinum swung back her blade and then struck forward, and from that strike a gigantic burst of spiked ice rose up like an avalanche and crashing in at Sunset.

She thrust Hikari forward, the shield glowing to life with a huge barrier of light, but the ice smashed into it with titanic force and the barrier shattered. Sunset was hit with incredible force, sent flying and bouncing across the ice island until she nearly reached the edge of it. Her head was spinning and her vision nearly blackened out. She shook her head, bleeding now from a cut on her brow, and she staggered to her feet. She barely remembered the frost of the ground in time to leap up before the ice could catch her feet again. However even in mid-air Platinum appeared above her, much faster than she’d been moving before. A torrent of ice flowed up from the ground and followed Platinum’s wake, and formed into a storm of smashing pillars that shot out at Sunset.

She threw herself into dodging, barely avoiding the first few pillars that smashed into the ground with echoing impacts. She had to interpose her shield between herself and the next one, however, not fast enough to dodge, and the force of the blow sent her reeling towards the ground where she landed feet first and was pushed back in a ice shattering path until she was smashed into the wall of the fortress. The impact knocked the breath from her, but she regained her focus, and seeing Platinum land nearby she charged up Hokori’s blade with all of the power the impacts on her shield had given her. The sword lit up with bright azure fire and Sunset slammed her blade forward.

”Aoihi Senko!”

She focused the blue flames into a thick beam of roaring heat. As it burned a path towards Platinum the woman swung up with her own blade and nearly identical blade of ice, only colossally sized, burst up from the ground and impacted with the beam of fire. The heat washed over the giant ice blade, melting some of its edge but ultimately being dissipated until only a few blue embers fell and burnt out on the island’s icy floor.

“Damn it...” Sunset swore, breathing hard, and Platinum chuckled humorlessly.

“Are you that surprised? You’ve faced Hurricane’s Bankai as well. You should know that the power of a Bankai surpasses that of the Shikai in every way. Even your flames, which could melt my ice before, are now outclasses by the strength of my Bankai’s ice. This entire island, and my palace, are potent extensions of my power. I can create any weapon from them. Direct any manner of attack I wish from it. Every inch of this place is a deathtrap of unforgiving cold my foes cannot escape from.”

Platinum’s eyes turned harsh, “I offered you surrender before, but now all that awaits you is a frozen tomb, Sunset Shimmer.”

Sunset took a deep breath and managed a small smirk, “I’m not dead yet, Platinum. Quite frankly Hurricane’s Bankai hit harder.”

“Hmph, false bravado will not save you. This ends here.” Platinum stated and gestured with her sword. Sunset sensed the ice of the floor and wall behind her shudder, and she Flash Stepped away just in time to avoid blades of ice shooting up at her feet and at her back from behind. She rose into the air, and then heard more clinking ice behind her, turning to see that upon the palace walls a veritable army of warriors had appeared shaped out of ice. They wore ancient feudal armor of a Japanese style, and all carried large bows that they raised towards Sunset. Arrows of ice formed in the bows, and as one the ice warriors fired off a volley of hundreds of arrows at her.

Sunset turned in mid-air and worked both sword and shield together in swift swings to deflect and cut down the ice arrows that enshrouded her in a cloud of cold death. A few got past her guard, cutting grazing blows on her arms and side, making her wince, but she kept from taking any serious injury as her leap took her over Platinum’s head and landed on the other side of the woman. Platinum swept her sword around and the ground near Sunset was upturned by spearing lances of ice that forced Sunset to dodge like crazy, turning and twisting about to avoid the sharp points of ice that rose up around her like the fangs of a dragon’s maw.

Sunset saw the shards of ice close up around her like she was being swallowed up, and with a grunt she braced Hikari’s shield above her and then jumped up forcefully, smashing through the ‘teeth’ of that closing mouth. She landed back near the island’s edge, feeling herself tiring out as she sucked in cold breath,s her breath misting in front of her as she turned to face Platinum once more.

“You’re out of endurance, child. The next few blows will see this done.” Platinum said with confidence.

Sweat all but freezing on her brow, Sunset offered a tired smile and said, “Yeah, I didn’t expect to be able to beat your Bankai with just my Shikai. Still, needed to get a feel for what you could do with it, before I went all out.”

A deep grimace split Platinum's features, “Go all out? Please, you’ve got nothing left.”

“You think so? Pegged you as more observant than that, Platinum. You ought to know I wouldn’t have been willing to challenge you by myself if I didn’t have something to match your Bankai with...” Sunset said, and she stood straighter. She held Hikari in front of her, and Hokori out to her side. The shield started to gleam with white light, small motes of the light rising up from it like will-o-wisps. The broadsword began to glow with a deep orange light, as if it was being heated up in the belly of a forge. Sunset’s own body became outlined in a fiery glow that then started to grow into a flaming corona of spirit energy.

Platinum’s frown only deepened as she gestured and tried to send ice up from the ground at Sunset’s feet, but there was so much heat around the girl that the ice couldn’t get close without melting away. Platinum’s teeth clenched as she said, “This is ridiculous. You cannot have Bankai. I refuse to believe that!”

Sunset smiled, the flames rising higher around her, mixing with the light from her shield. “You don’t have to believe me. You can trust your own eyes...”

The aura of flames around Sunset suddenly burst outward in a wide circle of fire that swept out in a pulsing wave. Platinum shielded herself with one hand, staring into the fire in disbelief as Sunset spoke with a voice of resonate power.

”Ban...KAI!”

Her shield became of pool of brilliant shining light and her blade flowed into a river of fire that intermixed with the light. Sunset was engulfed in a swirling spiral pillar of equal parts light and flame that shot upwards hundreds of feet into the air. The pillar smashed right through the barrier around the island of ice and pierced through the clouds beyond in evaporating circles. The flame and light also pierced the ground, boring through the island until it erupted downwards to impact in the frozen field below, shaking the ground like an earthquake. The unrelenting pillar expanded, forcing Platinum to jump back towards the foot of her fortress steps, still shielding her face from the incredible heat pouring from the pillar. Ice melted around it, forming a sizzling, bubbling pool of rapidly evaporating water.

Platinum could feel the raw surge of reiatsu coming from Sunset, and as much as she hated to admit it, the proof was in the proverbial pudding. There was no doubt that what she was feeling was the spiritual pressure of a freshly released Bankai, and from the sheer weight of the pressure she was feeling she imagined that even those back in the Seireitei might feel this.

It’s not just reiatsu. There’s something more at play. An energy I can’t identify. Is this the magic from her homeworld...?

Platinum’s musing trailed off as the pillar of light and fire exploded outward and left a massive wave of wind force to sweep away the cloud of steam that had formed around the girl. Platinum’s ice started to freeze the pool of water back over again, but it couldn’t entirely reach Sunset herself, whose form slowly emerged from the cloud of steam.

She was clad in shining red armor of an ornate but functional design. Slim gold shoulder guards led to glittering dress sleeves and underneath the segmented armor plating was also a split dress of similar glittering material. Thick boots and leg guards of red metal and gold trim covered her legs and feet, with small wings of glowing flame sprouting from the heels. Twin wings of phoenix flame spread from her back, flowing with heat and power. Sunset’s hair moved and danced like living fire as well, and upon her brow was a red and gold circlet with a hole in the center, as if for a horn. Her eyes were marked by a band of red across her face, like war paint, and she sported a confident grin as she stood facing Platinum holding her new weapons.

Hokori had transformed into a massive flamberge, the large blade given a wave shape, with a wide hilt and wing-like guards flowing from the blade itself. A long red clad handle extended to a pommel shaped like a mote of flame. Fire engulfed every inch of the blade, gripped by Sunset’s gauntlet clad hand. Hikari had become like a living shard of light, it's bright glowing form made of glowing goldish white metal shaped like the wings and body of a swooping phoenix.

Both blade, armor, and shield bore Sunset’s sigil, the sun of twin red and white; fire and light combined.

Breathing a slow sigh, Sunset gave name to her Bankai.

”Mugen-Hokori no Eien-Hikari.” (Unlimited Pride of Eternal Light)

Stepping forward, the heat dripping from her causing her steps to melt and steam the ice at her feet, Sunset eyed Platinum with a grin.

“So, ready for round two?”

Episode 54: A Showdown of Ice and Fire

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Episode 54: A Showdown of Ice and Fire

A short while ago...

The crystal still water of the pool upon which the Central 46 building was built rippled under a deep tremor. The ripples came in gradually growing increments of intensity, and soon the air around the cylindrical building began to shimmer with a opaque field of force upon which densely woven scripts of kanji floated like kites. These thick wards were meant to hold off the assaults of powerful spiritual beings, designed with defeating the attacks of even the most powerful of Hollows. Of course every ward has limits on what it can take, no matter how much time or energy was put into its construction. Given time even the most powerful ward can be worn down and breached.

For even a Captain of the Gotei 13 it should have taken days to batter down the emergency wards of Central 46.

Captain Commander Scorpan did it inside of half an hour.

A cleaving wave of sharpened, supreme spiritual pressure tore through the wall of the Central 46 building, slamming into the exterior layers of the emergency wards in a pulsing shudder of white light. Another wave collided with the wards a second later, making the pillar of protective energy flash like crystal under sunlight. A hairline fracture cracked its way down the length of the wards with the sound of a glacier groaning. Finally, one last titanic blow tore into the weakened point in the wards, and a vortex of raw spirit energy ripped through the wards in a cascade that parted the pool of water and smashed through the surrounding courtyard wall beyond.

The wards continued to crack, flaring with destabilizing energies until it burst apart. Smoke and dust trailed up from the torn out hole in the wall of Central 46, and Scorpan stood there, frowning deeply as he dusted himself off.

“That took entirely too much time.” the elderly Soul Reaper grumbled.

“But far faster than I predicted.” Starswirl said at his side, “I’ll have to remind myself to try to upgrade those wards when we get around to erecting them again.”

“Not important right now.” Scorpan said as he closed his eyes and focused his senses, stretching out to feel out all the conflicting reiatsu in Seireitei. There was a ludicrous amount of clashing spiritual pressures it was difficult even for him to sort it all out. He was able to get a general picture of things, but the details were almost impossible to discern. He knew a large scale battle was taking place in the main fortress, consisting of hundreds of lower ranked Soul Reapers, but the spiritual pressures of at least six Captains all stood out like bonfires among crowds of lesser candles. He also sensed a clash of spiritual energies on the Sokyoku Hill, several of which felt strong enough to be Captains or very close to it.

A seething growl of frustration escaped him as he said, “Starswirl, go to Sokyoku Hill and find out who battles there. I shall go subdue the fighting inside headquarters.”

Bushy brows raised upon Starswirl’s brow, “Perhaps we should both go to Sokyoku Hill. If our real enemy is there we may catch them by surprise. They’ve already stolen the Queen’s Key from our Treasury. If they escape with it-”

“I know, Starswirl. That’s why I need you to go there and if possible stall the enemy. But I must go and put an end to the fighting among our own people. I am the only one who can.”

That was the reason for his frustration, the knowledge that he couldn’t afford to immediately go to Sokyoku Hill. He had to subdue the fighting between his own subordinates first, otherwise there might not be much of a Gotei 13 left to salvage by the end of the day.

----------

Explosions of Kido spells pelted the central fortress courtyard, a line of Sixth and Seventh Division Soul Reapers holding the upper balconies while Silverstar led a cluster of his own people in a charge across the open courtyard. This was their second push, their first having been held back by the determined defenders, but Silverstar had expected this spot to be a tough nut to crack. The courtyard was designed to be a choke point, and the hardest area to break through in the fortress. With only a steep set of stairs leading into it and surrounded on all sides by fortified balconies and thick gates most enemies trying to take the fortress would be facing a painful challenge, at best.

Fortunately Silverstar knew this and the initial push had just been to probe the defenses and how they’d been organized. Clearly the attack had disorganized the Divisions defending the fortress, because the Kido being used to pelt the courtyard weren’t coordinated, but were rather a hodgepodge of Hado and Bakudo that didn’t focus fire or work together well. On the other hand Silverstar had organized this second push expertly with his fellow Tenth Division members.

“Stay tight folks! First rank get those barriers up!”

The first line of Soul Reapers in the group all raised their hands, chanting together. “Bakudo Number Ten: Hagane Kibo!” (Steel Scales)

Shimmering discs of yellow force swirled around the upraised hands, forming a line of shields against the oncoming storm of exploding Kido. The barriers shook under the blows, but they diffused most of the destructive Kido. There were still explosions that shattered parts of the courtyard and sent chips of rock cutting into the charging group, and Silverstar saw several fall to such shrapnel, the wounded quickly pulled back by other comrades to be taken back down the stairs where members of Fourth Division waited to heal injuries. Halfway through the courtyard he raised his Zanpaktou towards the left flank balconies.

“To the left! Bind ‘em up!”

He joined in the chanting this time as those not busy keeping the shields up started a new set of Kido spells. These were more varied, each Soul Reaper chanting their best binding Kido, which varied in strength among them. Silverstar himself wasn’t that skilled with Kido, but even he could pull off a decently high level one.

“Bakudo Number Sixty One: Rikojokoro!”

A swarm of binding spells flew up into the balcony area, golden chains and ropes of light wrapping up some Soul Reapers while others were bound by iron rods, flying lines of silver cloth, or encasing pyramids of light. Silverstar’s own Kido snapped around one Reaper with six sheets of impaling energy, paralyzing them. The barrage lessened the Kido raining down on the unit from the balconies and made it easier for those carrying the shields to defend their brethren as they advanced towards the far gate. As they did so Silverstar waved his Zanpaktou, signaling a second unit waiting at the stairs to start their own advance.

This unit came on hard, not only unleashing destructive Kido from their front rank, but many Soul Reapers having already released their Zanpaktou to the Shikai state. Various elemental blasts and bolts from Kido were joined by numerous eclectic attacks from Zanpaktou that devastated the defenders on the right flank. Silverstar had put those with more offensive Zanpaktou in the second unit to add to their striking power as they hit the defenders hard on the right flank while those on the left were still bound up and unable to provide support. The result was a momentary pause in the storm of defending Kido spells that had made getting at one of the gates so difficult.

“Move it people!” Silverstar shouted, surging to the head of his unit and brandishing his Zanpaktou, “Right up to the gate!”

As they made a final charge across the last few yards, he held his Zanpaktou out and spoke firmly. ”Dig your heels in; Boseki.” (Tombstone)

Pale blue light surged up his blade, transforming it into a broad and curved calvary saber with a silver hilt. With the last steps of his charge he swung the Zanpaktou and the courtyard around him buckled. The stone slabs of the courtyard obeyed the commands of his Zanpaktou and several of them lifted up to fly like battering rams into the gate as he and his comrades reached it.

The gates held firm, even as other Soul Reapers added their own Zanpaktou to the assault, some blasting it with battering air currents, while another unleashed a spray of corrosive liquid on the thick wood gate doors. The gates were made from not only thick wood, but wood specifically treated to be resistant to spiritual powers, and further reinforced to be stronger than many steel doors from the living world. Silverstar knew it’d take time to batter it down. If his people could keep the defenders off balance for a time longer, however, he was sure they could get inside.

He was about to try pulling up more of the courtyard to form a bigger battering ram when Silverstar blinked and suddenly found himself unable to move. Abruptly nobody was. Nobody could. It was impossible to move when an ocean of crushing spiritual pressure was pushing down on every single Soul Reaper in the courtyard like a giant hand.

Silverstar struggled to even turn his head to look back at the stairs leading up to the courtyard. He saw many Soul Reapers on either side of the fight were already dropped to their knees. Some unintentionally, simply due to the massive spiritual pressure pressing down on them, others very intentionally in respect to the man walking calmly to the center that was seconds ago a battlefield.

Silverstar gulped and bowed deeply to Scorpan, who looked left and right at the damaged courtyard with a deep frown on his craggy brown features.

“This fighting shall end now.” Scorpan said plainly. “I order everyone present to sheath their blades and attend to the wounded. Do not make me repeat this order.”

“C-Captain Commander, sir.” Silverstar managed to choke out, “The Captains...”

“I will see to them. You have your orders, Lieutenant. All of you have your orders.” Scorpan said, his voice not raised much above a whisper yet somehow carrying with the intensity of a thunder crack to every Soul Reaper present.

Then he vanished. Silverstar didn’t even sense him leave, but he found he could move now. Despite this the courtyard was deathly silent for a moment as everyone present looked around at each other. Some still looked as if they wanted to fight, but none were foolish or crazy enough to go against the Captain Commander, and most simply looked equal parts frightened or relieved that the Gotei 13s Commander was here and taking charge of matters.

Silverstar just wondered if Scorpan was in time to keep the other Captains from killing each other.

----------

One didn’t have to look hard to see where at least two Captains of the Gotei 13 were battling it out. The number of smashed out holes in fortress walls or crushed sections of floor made it look as if a pair of hundred meter tall titans were clashing rather than two person-sized individuals. Sweet Cider and Hurricane’s fight had drifted to the north end of the fortress, and the pair literally blasted out of the side of the thick stone walls, Tetsukaze’s halberd impacting off of Kizuna’s sealed blade in swirling gales of force. They both landed upon a rocky gap between fortress towers, bits of debris from the destroyed wall falling around them.

They were both breathing hard and sporting multiple wounds, including a deep cut across Hurricane’s bulky chest that dripped blood to the ground, while Sweet Cider was favoring a leg that was soaked red from a chunk taken out of her thigh. Despite their injuries neither opponent missed a beat and the moment they landed from their fall they both charged straight in at each other, Hurricane laughing boisterously as if he was having the time of his life and Sweet Cider sporting a grim scowl.

Wind force clung to Tetsukaze’s blade in sharp rivulets as he spun the halberd then slammed it down hard. Sweet Cider caught the attack on her own Zanpaktou, and kept barreling forward until her shoulder smashed into Hurricane like a cannonball. He was sent reeling back but recovered in an instant, blood dripping from his mouth as he laughed, and pulled his halberd back before then swinging it forward like a baseball bat.

A tornado of destructive wind swirled out from the strike, chewing up the ground as it made its way hurtling towards Sweet Cider with crushing force. Sweet Cider grit her teeth and raised her Zanpaktou high over her head with both hands, her spirit energy flowing around her body in a thick sheath of power before she roared and brought her sword down upon the oncoming tornado.

The ground cracked apart like eggshells from the force of the clash, but Sweet Cider held firm and turned the tornado aside, where it went on to drill into the base of another part of the fortress in a forceful explosion of wind that sent shattered stone soaring hundreds of feet into the air.

“Come now ‘Kenpachi’, how much longer will you insist on this meager foreplay?” Hurricane chuckled, twirling his halberd above his head, licking his bloodied lips. “These wounds of ours are little more than love taps and you keep holding out on me! Release your Zanpaktou and let us truly test which of us is the superior warrior!”

Sweet Cider was sorely tempted to give him what he wanted, if only to hasten wiping that grin off his face. But one glance at the area of the fortress they’d just battled through was enough proof that she was right to be holding back. Besides, she was far from convinced she couldn't take him without resorting to her Shikai. For all his hot winded attitude he was just as injured as she was, and was expending a lot more energy in the process.

She spat in his general direction and said, “Ya haven’t gotten even close ta earnin’ me fightin’ serious.”

“Oh? Still playing coy. Well, let’s see what we can do about that.”

Holding his halberd before him like a lance Hurricane tensed and widened his stance, turning sideways. Sweet Cider in turn braced herself, ignoring the burning pain in her wounded leg as she tensed her own muscles for the charge. Both combatants burst into motion simultaneously, their motion creating a backlash of force behind them that tore up the rocky ground beneath their feet. Both blades started to swing with colossal force that ripped the air as they went, slamming towards each other until-

A leathery fist intercepted Hurricane’s halberd while another similarly old, wrinkled hand caught Sweet Cider’s sword. Both Zanpaktou were halted instantly in their tracks, as if they’d struck an utterly immovable force that simply negated their motion. The ground nearly broke neatly in two, all the halted kinetic force dispersing into a cleaving line across the ground and making it split apart like a miniature canyon. Sweet Cider and Hurricane were both knocked back by the back blow of force, and both took a moment to stare in shocked astonishment.

Captain Commander Scorpan dusted his hands off, standing in mid-air over the freshly split ground, and turned sharply glaring eyes towards both of them. The old man’s reiatsu hammered down like a gavel the size of a skyscraper.

“I trust that I have both of your undivided attention?” Scorpan said in a quiet tone akin to a volcano about to hit Pompeii.

Hurricane blinked, opened his mouth... slowly closed it, then set his halberd to his side, planting the butt end into the ground and bowed his head. “Captain Commander, its good to see you’ve returned from wherever you were. As you can see the situation has gotten-”

“Shut up, Captain Hurricane.” Scorpan said simply, “We will sort out who is at fault for this mess once we deal with the immediate issue of ending this pointless fight. Right now I want you and Captain Kenpachi to stand down and go stop Blueblood and Daring Do. I sense they’re still near the main chamber. I will go subdue Thunderhooves and Cheese Sandwich. Then we are all to meet at Sokyoku Hill, where in case you were too busy to notice something is just a tad amiss.”

One could have melted iron from the heat in his voice, but that didn’t stop Sweet Cider from taking a step forward, meeting Scorpan’s gaze with an even glare of her own. “I’m all fer puttin’ an end ta this nonsense, but lemme say this first; you an’ I, we got somethin’ ta have words over later.”

She rested her Zanpaktou over her shoulder and tapped the hilt. “Chain’s off, Scorpan, an’ I ain’t the same gal from a day ago. So when all this is said an’ done, we’re talkin’ ‘bout just what ya’ll did ta me and what we’ll be doin’ ‘bout it. You n’ me got an understandin’ on that point?”

The old man suddenly looked quite a bit older as his sunken eyes met her solemnly and he gave the barest of nods. “When it is over, we shall talk. Now go, both of you. I fear we’re running out of time before our true foes complete their plans.”

----------

“Is it just me or is it unusually cold in here?” asked Rarity, her voice echoing off the unusually tall walls of the corridor she ran down alongside Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkamena, and Ditzy Doo. Both the walls and floor were made of a dark gray granite that made her feel like she was wandering within the depths of an ancient labyrinth, despite the rather uniform and straight nature of the hallway.

“Is is ‘cause that frigid witch is fightin’ Sunset right outside, ya think?” said Applejack.

“Got it in one.” said Ditzy, who was leading the group. “This building’s walls are two way blocks against sensing spiritual pressures, but to drop the temperature in here means Platinum must have gone Bankai.”

“I hope Sunset will be alright.” Fluttershy said, glancing behind them worriedly. The group reached a open, triangular shaped room where the floor dipped down some stairs to a lowered area that looked like some kind of commons with a few garishly placed plants in marble podiums around several benches and tables, many of which had strewn papers tossed around them or on the floor. Doors lined the walls to either side of them, and across the commons area was a large set of stairs branching into two paths leading up.

“Sunset’ll handle Platinum I’m thinkin’...” said Applejack, frowning at the room, seeing several overturned tables, and kneeling down to touch the ground where there were a number of gouges cut into the stone floor. “Now what all happened in here?”

Ditzy looked around briefly, eyes scrunched in suspicious scrutiny. “I was afraid of this. Starlight and her A-Team must’ve taken over the whole building. Couldn’t have been more than a few days ago, too.”

Pinkamena sniffed the air, her long tongue snaking out and licking her lips thoroughly. “Lots of gooey blood got spilled around here. There’s still old fear scent hanging in the air.”

Rarity shuddered, “Fascinating, but where did that dastardly Starlight go? I can’t sense her anywhere.”

“That cloak she’s wearing will hide her reiatsu signature.” Ditzy Doo said, “And on top of that you saw the way she appeared when she first attacked me? That was a high-end concealment Kido. She’s gotten way better since the days she was hanging with me, Discord, and your mothers.”

“So what’re ya sayin’, that we ain’t gonna find her?” Applejack asked with a scowl, “We can’t let her git away!”

“Still your mammaries gal, I didn’t say we can’t find her.” Ditzy Doo nodded towards the stairs. “I’ve already got a guess where she’s going. Remember I’ve been besties with Discy for a long time, and while Hitsuyo Aku was never my personal stomping grounds like they were his, I still know this places secrets.”

She walked over to the stairs, then took an abrupt turn to the left an approached one of the marble podiums holding a tacky plant. She gave the base of the podium a swift kick, indenting a hidden trigger inside the stone. There was a soft grinding noise as the stairs themselves flattened out into a solid surface that then slide open like a pair of doors, revealing a large metal elevator platform at the top of a slanted shaft leading down into darkness.

“The tower is filled with all the boring administration stuff, quarters for the researchers, and a few of the more tame labs for the lower key experiments going on here. But the real work is done down below.”

“Oooooh, spooky.” said Pinkie Pie, her hammer form seeming to peer down the elevator shaft, “I’m half expecting to see an umbrella logo around here.”

“Strange,” said Rarity, “I don’t see how Starlight Glimmer could have had the time to open this hidden passage and get down it. Why, the elevator is even still here!”

Clover’s face paled somewhat as she approached the elevator, nervously gripping her Zanpaktou. “Remember that she steals Zanpaktou. She could have one in her possession that allowed her to pass through objects....” Clover’s eyes closed painfully for a second as went on. “Lieutenant Meadowbrook’s, in fact, has that exact power.”

Ditzy gave Clover a sympathetic look, “If he’s alive, we’ll find him.”

Clover nodded once, her eyes opening with guarded resolve. “And if he’s not, we’ll still find him.”

The girls stepped onto the elevator, and Clover searched out the control panel on the far railing. Touching the proper button there were a set of flickering pale lights that sprang to life down the large slanted shaft and the elevator started to move down at a swift pace, taking the group into a quick descent into the unknown.

----------

Chrysalis took a very deep breath and let it out with a thin, sardonic grin. “You know I keep forgetting how well manufactured the air is in this realm. So clean. So pure. So... stale. Really, how do you put up with it?”

A dark blue shadow lanced in behind her, Luna driving her tanto blade towards Chrysalis’s neck. Chrysalis hardly paused her conversation as she sidestepped the blow, strolling casually around the bank of the lake shore that she had led Luna and Celestia to. She idly splashed a foot into the lapping lake water, nose curling. “Even the water here has this artificial cleanliness to it. Its like this whole world is just a pretty oil painting hanging in a sterile white room. Tell me, how many souls come through here on their endless journey of ‘reincarnation’ and never realize how fake it all is?”

Undeterred by Chrysalis’ easy manner Luna drove in hard with both her katana and tanto, spinning into a swift series of slashes that made her look like little more than a twisting shadow. Chrysalis was unable to simply sidestep this barrage, forced to turn her attention to Luna and respond with equally swift parries using Zecora’s Zanpaktou and her own wickedly curved blade. Still, Chrysalis looked fairly annoyed with a furrowed brow and sneer on her face.

“I’m trying to have a conversation here. The least you could do is participate or stay out of the way.”

Chrysalis switched from parrying to an instant snap kick at Luna’s side in the span of a millisecond. Luna managed to sweep an arm down to block the powerful kick, but the blow still sent her skidding back across the lake shore sands. Halting herself, she glanced to Celestia, whom she’d consequently ended up next to, and said, “Anytime you wish to join in, sister, feel free.”

“Yes, but first I want to clarify something.” Celestia said, stepping forward and taking up an ready combat stance, both her own katana held in easy grips at her side. “Chrysalis, is Zecora still alive?”

“Hmm, maaaaaybe.”

Celestia’s eyes narrowed, “Zanpaktou are born of their Soul Reapers, and die with their Soul Reapers. If you wield hers, then she must still be alive, unless Starlight Glimmer’s power somehow surpasses that basic law.”

“Ah, so you’re not truly asking out of concern for your dear friend but because you are trying to learn the extent of Starlight Glimmer’s power, yes?” Chrysalis’ laughter had an almost musical quality to it, chiming with light scorn, even as the Espada smiled in approval. “How pragmatic and devious of you, Celestia. Why ever don’t we get along better?”

Celestia’s narrowed eyed gaze remained unfazed, “The way you evade the question is answer enough. If Zecora was truly dead you’d take every chance to parade the fact in front of us, just for the cruel joy of it.”

A slim fingered hand went over Chrysalis’ heart in mock innocence, “What, you think I’d gleefully enjoy the looks on your faces if I had the rhyming idiot’s head to toss at your feet? Hmm, you know me so well, but believe it or not I have some standards. If I wanted to twist the knife in you I’d find a way to do it with a little artistry. However since you’re being such a sport I will tell you that the Captain of the Foolish Fourth Division still breathes. Starlight, for all her grand schemes, is such a little softie at heart. She gave me specific instructions not to kill anyone I didn’t have to. Heh, of course I do things my own way and I imagine if my drones did their job there’s at least a few less of those morons in your Central 46. Also a few of the weaker specimens of the Fourth Division expired before I could properly cocoon them. It's not my fault Soul Reapers are so fragile, so I hardly think Starlight can blame me for that.”

A sunbeam couldn’t have crossed the distance to Chrysalis any faster than Celestia did, both her katana crossing downwards in a paired slash meant to bisect the chatty Espada. Chrysalis’ own blades snapped up to block, and the resulting crash of spirit forged steel opened a crater beneath their feet, literal conflicting arcs of energy sparking off their swords as Chrysalis and Celestia glared at each other from inches away.

“Upset, Celestia?”

Celestia responded by pushing harder with her Zanpaktou, shoving Chrysalis away, then in a shimmer of speed moving straight back into the attack, with Luna joining her in a blue streak. The two Captains moved in tandem, crossing each others path in a dizzying pattern as they came at Chrysalis from seemingly all sides at once with supreme speed. Chrysalis’ face split with a gleeful grin as she became a black blur, meeting the super sonic assault with her own blinding movements.

Explosions dotted the lake shore in a series of huge billowing clouds of sand. The battle streaked across the lake waters, geysers of water shooting up into the air from each impact of blades as the three combatants skimmed at high speed over the glass clear lake. The water started to fall like rain as Chrysalis burst upwards, soaring into the sky above Celestia and Luna, and with a chilling laugh opened her mouth to a disturbingly wide proportion, all but unhinging her jaw.

Emerald light pooled within the Espada’s gullet, thick and bathing the whole lake in dark green radiance. Celestia, eyes wide, only exchanged one quick look with Luna, who nodded and raised her Zanpaktou just as Chrysalis unleashed her attack. A Cero blast of pure emerald death, wide as an ocean liner, shot down and impacted the center of the lake. Water boiled to vapor instantly and a monolithic blast rocketed upwards in an expanding mushroom shaped cloud. Trees along the shoreline were torn free and sent flying through the air. Water along the edges of the lake was pushed up and out like a tsunami, then largely turned to steam under the heat of the powerful Cero explosion.

Atop the expanding cloud of steam Chrysalis stood, casually spinning one of her swords in idle calm as her eyes more intensely and carefully flicked about in search of her targets.

“Come now, I know that didn’t kill either of you. Come on out and let’s keep having fun.”

Up from the surface of the steam cloud a wall of tar black shadow emerged, deadly sharp tendrils of the pitch black shadow stabbing out at Chrysalis. She turned to deflect them, twisting and turning her body out of the way of the living weapons of shadow, and then flipped in the air, putting distance between herself and the growing expanse of shadow in front of her.

The shadows parted like silk curtains, and Luna emerged from them alongside Celestia. Both sported some singe marks on their bodies, but otherwise they were unharmed, largely thanks to the freshly released Zanpaktou in Luna’s hands. The long dark forms of the twin scythes of Tsuki no Kagetsume were poised in tense, savage readiness in Luna’s grip, their large curved blades seeming to drink in the shadows around them. Celestia glanced at her sister appreciatively.

“You reaction time is as swift as ever, Lulu. Now, if you’d be so kind as to give me and Chrysalis some space?”

Luna’s eyes moved sharply over to Celestia, “You’re going to do it? I can survive your Zanpaktou, you know.”

“Yes, I know, but it's been a long time, and I’m out of practice. Just give me a minute or two to adjust to having her released again, and then rejoin the fight. Please, Luna, for my own peace of mind I need to know you're a safe distance away before I do this.”

Luna grit her teeth, but nodded stiffly, “Very well. I’ll be back soon.”

The shadows of her Shikai enveloped Luna, and then seemed to vanish from sight, dropping back into the still expanding cloud of steam from the now largely evaporated lake. Chrysalis was left watching Celestia with raised eyebrows.

“I will never grasp why you fear your own power so much, Celestia. Sending your sister away, even temporarily, while facing me? Just because you're scared your precious little sister will get hurt by your Zanpaktou?”

Celestia’s face was like chiseled, cold marble, her voice equally hard. “It's a fear I don’t expect you to understand. It's a fear born of caring for others, which is so far beyond your grasp it may as well exist in another reality.”

“Don’t be so certain of that, dear Celestia. Love is not so foreign a concept to me. Indeed I have nothing but adoration for the things love can do.” Chrysalis’s lips twisted in a rictus grin, her voice growing husky. “Love can corrupt the soul faster than any other emotion. People kill for love. Pervert themselves for love. Why, people will even betray their greatest ideals, longest held companions, and challenge the very foundations of the world as we know it... all for the sake of their love for one person. How could I not respect that kind of power? The difference between us, Celestia, is that I don’t allow love to weaken me as it does you.”

A coy look appeared on Celestia’s face, pointed as a needle. “I think such declarations are premature. Decide whether or not I’m weak after you’ve beaten me, assuming that is that you can and simply won’t go crawling away back to Hueco Mundo like a spider fleeing the flame.”

Golden light, like liquid drops from the sun, crawled up along the lengths of Celestia’s twin katana, enveloping them completely as she raised them so that the pair of blades formed a cross in front of her.

”Reduce the firmaments of creation to dust and consume the weeping ashes. Shinryu Taiyo!” (Divine Dragons of the Sun)

Light of a pale golden sheen poured off the crossed swords of her Zanpaktou in a blinding fury. Heat without form blanketed the area, evaporating the cloud of steam as all moisture seemed to just vanish from the air under a unmitigated wave of harsh warmth as the light grew into a form of expanding light that couldn’t be properly called fire, so much as living plasma. Like a writhing bubble the plasma grew, dripping white hot streams of heat that curled the air and turned the barren basin of the former river to molten rock as they fell.

Chrysalis shielded her face, but the heat and light didn’t bother her spiritually hardened body as much as it would a human’s or a lesser Soul Reaper or Hollow. Still she knew this wasn’t the Zanpaktou’s power or full form, for the writhing mass of white hot plasma was continuing to expand and transform. The plasma split into two spheres, from which wings spread in billowing blasts of heat.

Both dragons were thickly muscled forms of white and golden scales dripping with the pure plasma like they were constantly sweating drops from the core of the sun. A serpentine necks were marked by golden spikes form which jets of plasma connected in jagged bolts. The necks were mirrored by whipcord tails that curled in the air and flicked experimentally, causing a small thunder cracks as did so. Heavily muscled legs ended in fire dripping claws as large as cleavers. The twin dragons’ heads were crested with two regal horns that curved back from their skulls, and their fierce faces had a strangely feminine quality to them as their eyes flashed as pure blue plasma coronas.

Celestia stood between the twin dragons, no longer carrying any weapons in her hand. Her Zanpaktou had fully transformed into the dragons of divine fire flanking either side of her, and from the look of strain on her face as she stood there she was having to concentrate with supreme effort just to keep the dragons under control. Both dragons were around the size of dump trucks. Not ludicrously huge, but large enough, and the sheer heat coming off of them was beyond extraordinary.

Already parts of the nearby forest were bursting into fire from the exposure of the heat and the motes of plasma drifting from the dragons. Celestia, despite the near immunity to fire her Shikai gave her, still sweated bullets, though it was all through the force she had to expert to control Shinryu Taiyo. The Zanpaktou turned twin dragons bristled with unbridled destructive desire. She could hear the Zanpaktou’s two nearly identical voices hammering her skull with a powerful and haughty pair female tones.

”You let us out only to provide us such partly fare!? Bearer, your taste in humor is most displeasing. This bug shall hardly make a single morsel to us! We demand you take us to Hueco Mundo immediately, that we might deliver judgment upon all the foul souls of that realm!”

“Shinryu Taiyo,” Celestia said in a motherly tone, “Focus and don’t underestimate the ‘bug’ in front of you. She’s the Second Espada. I need you to treat this seriously.”

The giant flaming dragons both let out a growl like jet engines revving up. ”Second Espada? But she’s so tiny! Nothing that tiny should be Second anything, except Second Breakfast. We shall devour her meager soul for insulting our presence with false titles!”

“Yes, focus on her, and stop burning the rest of the countryside. Also Luna’s around, so don’t burn her either.”

”We make you no promises! The little shadow shall do well to avoid our divine wrath herself!” Shinryu Taiyo declared and both dragons spread their, rearing up their heads to stare down upon Chrysalis with heated gall. ”Does the doomed one before us possess last words to speak?”

Chrysalis looked up at the dragons with a look of impressed approval, then said with a completely straight and unconcerned tone, “Yes, just three.”

The dragons paused, then both turned their heads to regard Celestia. “Is she insane?”

Celestia shrugged, “Does it matter?”

Looking thoughtful for a moment the dragons of sun fire just nodded once then snapped their heads around, opening their maws, and then proceeded to disgorge a solar flare of burning plasma from their throats down at Chrysalis in an unrelenting torrent.

----------

Power surged like a hot furnace through Sunset’s veins and she could taste the world around her in a way she’d rarely imagined possible. Her blood pumped like molten metal, her heartbeat a rock anthem in her chest. Colors popped out vividly in her vision and she felt like she could see the very currents of the air as they were moved by the waves of heat that poured off her body. Hokori no Hikari hummed in her hands, and she could feel the energy pouring into her from the two halves of her Zanpaktou in a pure river of uplifting power that made her feel like she was flying while standing still.

She’d felt this powerful only twice before. Once while making her biggest mistake, and once while saving another from that same mistake. Now, however, there was a sense of completion within herself that felt new. The Pride of her mistake was now a purer fire, fueled by her own pure desire to be the best she could be for herself and her friends. The Light inside her was balanced by the focus of her goals, able to shield what she cared for while allowing the Pride to be the blade without holding back or regret.

The Zanpaktou might have been someone she, as a pony turned human, was never originally meant to possess, but now it was a part of her in a way as thorough and right as the magic of her homeland.

And now she was going to show Platinum just why she should have never picked a fight with the girls from Canterlot High.

Platinum was still looking at her with a mixture of disbelief and slowly growing realization when Sunset moved. The motion came so swift and natural now she barely noticed any air resistance from the speed of her movements. More than just a Flash Step, however, this move was something altogether new and part of her Bankai. Her flicker of movement was accompanied by a wash of flame and heat from her wings like the ignition of a rocket and the icy ground behind her flash melted from the heat. The speed of her Flash Step was now combined with a massive extra boost of momentum that magnified by strength of her sword strike as she flew past Platinum faster than a bullet.

Platinum dodged, or at least snapped into a Flash Step of her own, but even so the flames of Sunset’s flamberge burned a scorching mark across Platinum’s side and drew a spray of blood from a partially cauterized cut. Platinum grunted in pain and spun to follow Sunset’s movement, slashing Fuyukogo through the air. The ice around her cracked and burst upward as a literal stampede of monster truck sized horses forged of ice charged towards Sunset in an attempt to trample her to paste.

Sunset only blinked once at the stampede, getting a particular bizarre moment of homesickness at the sight before she smirked and slashed upward with her flamberge. The resulting typhoon of flame that exploded from her Zanpaktou cut out in a cleaving arc of incineration. The stampede of giant ice horses were shattered and melted as the flames cut a swath through both them and a portion of the island several dozen meters across. The flames continued on to soar out into the sky, leaving Platinum to frown at the destruction with a frustrated growl. The damage to her island started to recover, more ice covering the sizable gouge torn into it.

She turned a flashing glare towards Sunset. “Will you stop blowing holes in my island!?”

“You could always try surrendering.” Sunset suggested with an eyebrow waggle. “I mean, I’ll still pummel you into an unconscious heap, but it’ll be easier if you’re not moving.”

“Thoughtful of you, but I’ll pass. You may feel strong right now, but if this truly is Bankai you wield, then you are fresh to it, Sunset Shimmer. You don’t know how to properly control or mitigate that power. You’ll burn out before you come close to defeating me.”

To punctuate her words Platinum thrust her arm up, and the ice around her rumbled like an earthquake. Like something rising from an arctic sea, a looming form of towering height speared upwards, with Platinum standing upon the top of the armored helmet of what turned out to be a samurai warrior of dark ice that stood fifty feet tall. Sunset stared up at the ice warrior’s unflinching, cold features as it raised a giant katana and slammed it down towards her with punishing force, mimicking Platinum’s own chopping motion atop its helmet.

Sunset’s wings flared with powerful flames, thrusting her upwards with hyper-sonic speed to meet the blade of ice the size of a tree. She led with Hikari, the flared white shield of gleaming metal impacting with the giant katana of unforgiving ice like two steam locomotives colliding. Sunset felt the jarring force of the impact. Even for all her fresh power in Bankai, physics were still physics to a degree and she was blocking several dozen tons of ice hitting with the force of a literal giant. Fortunately her Bankai operated on the same basic principles as her Shikai. Blows to the shield empowered the blade and vice versa. Only the effect was magnified significantly in Bankai.

Hikari glowed like a beacon, and the flamberge of Hokori blazed to fiery new heights of intensity, the flames turning the sword into a solid bar of searing orange light. Sunset pushed hard on her shield, turning aside the solid wall of ice that was the katana and then soaring up to fly at Platinum with breakneck speed. Yet for all the ice samurai golem's massive size it could move remarkably swift, pulling back and swinging its katana upward to intercept Sunset.

However rather than block with the shield, Sunset led with Hokori this time, the blindingly bright blade’s fire unleashing upon contact with the katana of ice. Fire blasted out in a fireball large enough to detonate a small office building. The ice katana shattered and the samurai construct fell backwards, breaking apart upon the ground. Platinum leaped from the falling titan and in the same motion gestured with her sword at Sunset, smiling coldly.

All the ice shards from the broken samurai golem and its katana suddenly shifted in the air, and transmuted into a glittering array of blades that poised in the air with deadly intent as their points all aimed towards Sunset as one. Sunset tilted her head in exasperation. “Oh for the love of-”

She couldn’t finish the sentence before the cloud of several hundred ice blades of varying lengths and sizes flashed in at her, surrounding her like a sandstorm. She reacted instantly with a spinning slash that sent out a circular wave of high flames, melting dozens of the ice swords at once. More yet slashes in and Sunset held up Hikari, the winged shield flashing. The edges of the shield that were shaped like feathers suddenly sent out a flickering cloud of feathers shaped from light. These feathers moved independently to guard Sunset, glowing with protective fields of force that intercepted the ice blades as they slashed in at her.

Spotting Platinum moving with leaping bounds back towards her ice palace, Sunset slashed with Hokori to cleave a flaming path through the cloud of ice blades trying to get at her, and as her wings flared with power and sent her rocketing after the former Captain the feathers of light from her shield followed her like a flock of sparrows, blocking the shards of ice trying to skewer Sunset. The backwash of heat from her wing enhanced Flash Step broke apart or melted most the rest of the flying ice blades, and as she caught up with Platinum at the steps of her palace the glowing feathers all winked back into her shield. She couldn’t use the defensive power of the feathers for too long, as that drained power from her blade, but as a form of protection it was one of Hikari’s more versatile abilities.

Platinum had anticipated Sunset’s charge, turning to face the girl upon the first few steps leading up into her ice palace. With a mere gesture the steps heaved and twin fists of ice as large as elephants thrust out at Sunset. She thrust Hokori into one of the fists while catching the other upon Hikari. Flames burst through the flamberge, shattering the one fist down the middle, but the impact of the other fist drove her back, forcing her to drive her sword into the icy ground to stop herself. It was surprising to her. The samurai golem had seemed larger, yet those fists had hit harder... was it because Platinum was closer to her ice palace? Was the strength of the ice higher the closer to the palace Platinum was?

Well there was an easy way to test that. Rather than charge blindly in at Platinum once more, Sunset’s wings of fire jetted her up into the sky and she flew back towards the edge of the island. Turning around she saw that Platinum wasn’t following her. Smiling, Sunset called out, “What’s the matter Platinum? Aren’t you going to come after me?”

Platinum, slowly climbing the steps of her palace, cast a razor sharp look at Sunset. “It is you who should be concerned with coming after me, child.”

“I don’t know, if you’re going to park your butt in your ice shack I don’t see there anything stopping me from raining fire down on you from all the way up here.” Sunset replied, raising Hokori and allowing a spiraling tornado of flame to start rising up from the sword to gather in the air above her.

Down below Platinum took a seat upon her palace throne and looked up at the tornado of flame with a small smirk. “Go ahead, girl. Put that theory to the test.”

Sunset didn’t need any further urging, and pointed her flamberge down towards the ice palace, the thick tornado of fire moving with the blade like an extension of it. From the center of that vortex of fire a barrage of crimson red flame discs, just like the one Sunset had created earlier in the fight, flew out in a storm. The tornado got smaller with each disc of red flame, but it managed to create over a dozen before the tornado flickered out, the deadly discs flying down at Platinum in a wave of destroying heat.

Platinum responded with a regal gesture of Fuyukogo, and a castle wall twenty feet thick and twice that height sprang up over the palace’s front stairs and its throne. The barrage of flame discs impacted with the ice wall in a super-heated series of explosions. Chunks of the ice wall were blasted to steaming pieces, but it managed to protect Platinum from harm, halting Sunset’s attack. Platinum was actually impressed by the girl’s tactical acumen. She’d figured out one of the keys to her Bankai’s strength with only a few observations to gauge by. Still, Platinum was getting over her initial shock at Sunset’s Bankai, now that she felt confident again that she could hold out long enough for the girl to exhaust herself.

“This battle still belongs to me.” Platinum said as the steam cleared from her destroyed ice wall and she looked up at...

Nothing? Where was Sunset Shimmer!?

An explosion of deep blue flame from the roof of her palace caused Platinum to spring up from her throne and look up towards the roof. She saw jets of blue fire washing over the edge of the roof as her whole palace shuddered. She could feel the blow resonate in the hilt of Fuyukogo as her Zanpaktou seemed to scream in equal parts rage and pain in Platinum’s mind.

She’s attacking the palace directly!

The barrage of fiery red discs had been nothing more than a distraction. Platinum swore under her breath and made a mighty leap upwards, flashing up the pagoda tiers of her palace until she reached the very slanted top of the highest peak of the palace. There Sunset Shimmer stood upon the apex of the palace, the flamberge of Hokori planted into the roof and firing off jets of blue fire into the palace itself. Platinum could see the flames bursting out of her palace’s windows as Sunset poured them in. Sunset glanced up at Platinum, giving an innocent grin.

“Is your palace insurance paid up?” the girl quipped, and Platinum snarled in response, flying towards Sunset as ice frosted around her own body.

Sub-zero cold flowed from Platinum in a absolute current of arctic wind that swept the flames back from the roof, though the blue fire clung on hard and didn’t die even under Platinum’s frozen assault. Sunset stood under the darkly cold wind, which Platinum knew could freeze normal people to icy cores in seconds, but the girl’s body only flared with greater flames as she pulled her flamberge from the roof and turned to meet Platinum’s charge.

Atop the roof of the now burning palace of ice Fuyuoko’s blade met with Hokori’s edge in a wash of frost and flame. Platinum drove in hard, slashing and thrusting with expert precision. Which each of her attacks the roof itself buckled and erupted with shards of ice that stabbed at Sunset in a relentless flurry. Sunset smashed into the ice with her shield, which in turn allowed Hokori to burst with further flames as she effortlessly swung the flamberge in one hand to meet Platinum’s attacks. The two women became more reckless with their strikes, both eagerly seeking to gain a telling blow on the other. Even with the flames coating her and her armor protecting her Sunset felt Fuyukogo’s cold bite several times. One strike hit along an unarmored portion of her shield arm, making it harder to move Hikari to parry. Another had gouged deeply into the segmented portion of her armor around her hips, sending biting pain and cold into Sunset’s body. Yet she was giving back equal wounds to Platinum as they danced across the roof in a glittering storm of ice and fire.

By the time a burst of melting ice and dissipating flames flaring out in a wide circle around the roof marked one hard clash of blades that sent each woman skidding to opposite ends of the palace’s roof Platinum herself was showing several deep cauterized cuts across her body, including a long wound down her left arm that left the limb shaking as she held Fuyukogo with both hands. As the two of them took a moment to face each other, catching their breaths, Sunset felt the roof beneath her feet crack. Thinking it was an attack she readied herself to block with her shield, but saw that the cracks were spreading through the whole roof. In seconds the roof of the top tier of the pagoda palace collapsed.

Sunset managed to hover with her wings, floating down into the ruin of the next tier of the palace, the interior of which consisted of what looked like an expansive and ornate bedroom. What parts of it that weren’t on fire at least. Platinum gracefully landed from her own fall, despite her wounds, and the haggard looking Captain looked around at the burning room with a growing look of desperate scorn.

“Even in edifice you can’t help but destroy the things I care about. Fire represents you well, Sunset Shimmer. Consuming and destroying what’s around you indiscriminately.”

Sunset cast a brief glance around the room as well, noticing that while all as carved from ice there was a lot of personal details within the room, including a child’s crib next to the main bed. The crib was already melting away under the flames she’d hit the palace with, and Sunset didn’t miss the significance, but also met Platinum’s gaze evenly. “So what, he’s still just a child to you?”

“He is a child! One who doesn’t deserve to die in such a way!” Platinum shouted.

“I... don’t disagree. I don’t even know what’s wrong with him. But even if this sounds harsh, let me ask; as a Soul Reaper Captain isn’t death what you deal with every single day? Won’t he be reborn in the living world?”

Platinum’s scowl was deep. “Not this disease. It degrades the soul. If it finishes consuming my Pipsqueak, there will be nothing left to be reborn.”

“Sweet Celestia...” Sunset said under her breath, although Platinum seemed to misread the words as her scowl only grew.

“She is not here to help you.” Platinum venomously spat, all but foaming at the mouth at this point. She raised Fuyukogo in a threatening pose, eyes unblinking, “And I am beyond ready to put an end to this battle.”

With a gesture the walls and floors turned into something out of a crazed dungeon crawl, buzz-saw like blades, arrows, spears, smashing blocks, and every other imaginable device of death started to spring from the ice in the room. Sunset threw herself into dodging the blender of attacks, her wings creating fiery streaks and blacks of backwash force as her enhanced Flash Steps sent her careening around the room, sometimes with enough power to simply smash through the ice weapons seeking to impale or crush her. The heat corona around her body was intense, Sunset keeping it charged by blocking what attacks she could with her shield.

In the span of half a minute the room became unrecognizable trashed by broken ice and debris, not to mention all the steam from the weapons being melted by Sunset’s flames. Sunset burst from the steam right at Platinum, bringing down Hokori in a hard overhead slash. Platinum surrounding Fuyukogo in a thick sheath of black ice, meeting the attack head on. The force of the colliding blows broke the floor beneath their feet, sending both women crashing down into the next floor, then through that floor into the next one, and the next, until they both crashed through to the ground floor of the palace. This was a huge meeting chamber filled with gleaming thin walls of ice, like the paper walls and doors of a more normal dwelling, only the light bent around this ice to create a kaleidoscope of mirrored images as Platinum and Sunset crashed into the area.

A few blindingly quick exchange of blows and parries saw the two breaking off from each other, both now bleeding profusely from similar cuts across their brows that dripped hot blood across their eyes. Sunset was breathing hard now, drawing in ragged gasps. She could feel the strain her Bankai was starting to have on her body. She was matching Platinum in terms of power pound for pound, blow for blow, even in the middle of her ice palace, but in terms of stamina it was clear Platinum was the one with the advantage.

But Ditzy Doo had predicted that, and so far things had gone more or less as Sunset had figured they would. If Platinum had any tricks left, any aces up her sleeve left to play, then here in the very center of her Bankai would be the place to do it. If that happened, Sunset was confident she could counter it, because she had a trump card of her own still left in her hand.

“You know, I’m sorry your son is sick. From what I’ve heard from my friends he’s a fine kid and doesn’t deserve what’s happening to him.” Sunset said between heavy breaths, “But what even makes you think Starlight Glimmer can be trusted?”

“It doesn’t matter. She’s my son’s only chance. There is no other way.”

“Are you sure of that? How hard did you look before you took a desperate grab at betraying your own people to someone you don’t even know?”

“Enough!” Platinum’s shout cracked some of the thin ice walls in the room, and in a strange maneuver she threw Fuyukogo behind her. Sunset saw the gleaming blue tulwar spin through the air, through the huge open front doors of the palace main floor out to the platform where the throne overlooked the courtyard. The blade sunk into the throne, and in a flicker of movement Platinum retreated to the throne. Her hand gripped Fuyukogo once more, Platinum’s eyes boring into Sunset.

“I won’t have you judging me any longer. Not someone like you, who’s barely lived. You have no right to tell me what is or isn’t worth betrayal. I’d drag myself through the mud for an eternity if it meant saving my boy!”

The entire island and palace started to shake like an earthquake, and Sunset saw the ice of the palace all around her turning into swirls of pure white snow. In mere moments the palace had transformed into a swirling torrent of snow, which then flowed towards the only feature left upon the palace’s foundation; the throne. The throne and Fuyukogo itself. The snow flowed into the blade and throne, until both were bleached white. Then the throne itself shattered, sending motes of shining diamond dust into Fuyukogo, which changed shape until its blue ice blade was now a long, thin nodachi with a blade of absolutely pure white.

”Ikken Hissatsu: Shiroi Kotei no Ken.” (One Strike Annihilation: White Empress Blade)

Platinum’s body started to freeze over, her very skin turning stark white as frost crawled up and down her form. Her breath crystallized in the air and even the ice at her feet began to crack from the sudden further dip in temperature radiating off of the single, long white blade in her hands.

Sunset knew this was her chance. Platinum had abandoned the battle of attrition that would’ve secured her victory in favor of destroying Sunset with a single blow. A blow Sunset hoped... no, had to match.

So she played her own final card.

Light split long the center of Hikari’s shield, the shield itself splitting open along the center with a single groove that was perfectly sized and shaped for a particular sword. Sunset turned the shield around so that she could angle Hokori into the groove, and with a single motion slammed the flamberge into the shield so that the two merged, melding together so that the tip of the flamberge matched the tip of the shield’s phoenix head. The hilt of Hokori extended until it was long enough for Sunset to grip like the haft of a spear, the spear’s “tip” more like a giant blade formed from the merging of Hokori and Hikari.

Flames coiled around the new merged weapon, azure flames that extended to coat the weapon like a second edge. Even Sunset’s wings of fire turned to scintillating and luminous jets of blue heat that widened and spread behind her in a majestic display.

”Saishu-Tekina Hidori.” (Final Phoenix)

Both women’s powers flared up at the same instant, both drawing back their blades and striking them down at one another across the distance at the same time.

From Platinum’s pearl white blade an absolute avalanche of white disaster exploded forth, a wall like an uncompromising sandstorm of cold so vast and freezing that the air itself screamed as all moisture within it was crystallized instantly. Man or beast, organic or inorganic, anything touching that onrushing wall of white would be turned to brittle frost, a cold so overwhelming that it would seem all other elements of the earth would shatter at its touch.

All elements save for one.

From Sunset’s blade a pure cerulean phoenix of solid fire the size of a ancient roc of legend flew forth, spreading its wings and crying an air splitting challenge to the wall of icy death it rushed towards, its flames melting away everything around it as it rocketed forwards like a shard of the earth's’ molten core given form and life. It speared its flaming beak forward like a spear, its claws outstretched like a phalanx as it collided headlong into the wall of utter white cold.

Steam erupted from the point of impact as the phoenix cleaved into the torrent of cold, its flames dancing in powerful spasms around it as it dug through the freezing whiteness. Its spread wings enveloped the wall of cold, spreading it outward so that when it blasted around Sunset the cold went to either side of her, leaving a clear space where she stood. Onward the phoenix rushed, its flames flaring brighter until it burst through the wall to reach for Platinum.

Her attack defeated, one might have expected Platinum to look surprised, but rather the Captain had an expecting and ready look on her face as the phoenix of blue flame crashed through her the wall of white and speared towards her.

Sunset noticed that Platinum still had the massive white nodachi in her hands, and it was poised and ready.

Platinum thrust her blade straight into the phoenix’s breast with a single clean stroke, halting the bird of flames in its tracks.

“I wasn’t certain, but I imagined you had a final attack of your own that you’d been holding back.” Platinum said between labored breaths, “So I held back, just enough, to be ready for it... heh... you’ve lost, Sunset Shimmer.”

Sunset, breathing equally hard, fell to one knee, head bowed... but she started to laugh.

“What’s so funny, girl?”

“Oh, nothing...just... you don’t know a lot about phoenix's, do you? When they die, they have this habit of exploding.”

Platinum blinked as the phoenix she’d impaled in front of her suddenly glowed with a intense blue light, beams of energy rushing out of its cracking surface in a series of venting flames. In a split second the phoenix gave a cry that was as much one of triumph and release as it was one of death as its form exploded into a fireball of azure destruction.

From the ball of flames a few motes of flickering blue fire wafted through the air and returned to Sunset, the small streams of flame merging back into Hokori no Hikari’s combined form. The blade then separated back into sword and shield, the more plain shapes of her Shikai. That was one major downside to her final attack. It reverted her back to Shikai, so she had to make sure it would be a winning move, otherwise she’d be in trouble. She couldn’t go Bankai again for probably a day at least.

With heavy breaths and no small amount of shaking limbs she gathered her Zanpaktou and stood back up, slowly walking towards the steaming crater left by the phoenix’s final explosion.

She was somewhat scared of what she might find there. The idea of taking a life was still as repugnant to her as ever, but she had no real control over the strength of her last attack. She hadn’t gone into this fight planning to kill Platinum, but had known it could always escalate to that point and it was beyond her control.

Sunset let out a small sigh of relief when she found Platinum intact, but that relief was still joined by a bit of fear because the woman was an utter mess. Her spiritual fortitude kept her body intact, but Platinum was now missing her right arm, and much of the right side of her body and face was burned and blackened. Sunset felt a bit nauseous at the sight of the burned flesh. The smell didn’t help. Fuyukogo was lying in its sealed state a few paces away, smoking and blackened itself.

She wasn’t even sure Platinum was still alive until she saw the former Captain draw in a breath, and her one good eye flickered open.

Platinum stared at her, and Sunset saw the woman struggle to try and move, but all her body did was tremble for a moment. A unintelligible growl escaped the woman, but she couldn’t seem to do much more than twitch there as Sunset stood over her.

Then the ground started to shake as the whole island began to break apart, falling out of the sky. Sunset quickly scooped up Platinum and Fuyukogo, returning her own Zanpaktou to a sealed state and sheathing it so she had free arms to carry with. With a few flickering Flash Step leaps she moved from broken portion of ice to another, using the falling chunks like stepping stones until she reached the safety of the forest.

The remains of the island and ice palace shattered into the ground in an earth trembling series of impacts, and after a few moments all went still again, leaving Sunset carrying the barely conscious Platinum as she stood in front of the tower of Hitsuyo Aku once more.

“I...” Platinum’s voice was barely above a ragged croak. Sunset looked at the woman, whose one good eye focused on Sunset with... absolute hatred.

“I...hope... one day you... you love someone... as much as I love my son. I want you to... feel that love so that... that you know what it will feel like... to lose them.”

With those words hanging in the air like a haunting mist, Platinum fell fully unconscious, leaving Sunset standing there with a feeling of chill that had little to do with the cold in the air. However, after a moment Sunset carefully set Platinum down and with a look of fortified resolve on her face she turned to the entrance of HItsuyo Aku and rushed to catch up with her friends.

Episode 55: Nobody Expects the Starlight Exposition!

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Episode 55: Nobody Expects the Starlight Exposition!

To Rarity the elevator shaft gave her the chilling sensation of descending down the throat of some cavernous beast. Only flickering yellow lamps mounted within the ceiling provided a few spots of pale light as the platform slide downward at a steep angle along the stone shaft. They had to have gone down at least forty or fifty meters, by Rarity’s estimate.

“So, not to be a downer upon the mood of valiant determination, but do we have a plan of attack for how to defeat this Starlight Glimmer character?” she asked no one in particular.

“I was thinking violence, myself.” said Pinkamena, picking at her prodigious maw of teeth, “She has a very eatable face, the kind that just begs to be bitten into like an overripe, smug peach.”

Rarity winced. “Lovely mental image, but I was hoping for something resembling more of a tactically thought out plan of action. Thus far we’ve seen her demonstrate rather impressive physical speed and strength, as well as sufficient proficiency in those Kido spells to give even Miss Doo some trouble.”

Ditzy Doo’s face was hard to read behind her cat-like Hollow mask, but her gold on black eyes were narrowed with grave resolve. “Best bet is to let me take her on while you girls support from the flanks. Let me set up openings, you take advantage of them. Meanwhile Clover can hang in the back and try to use her Zanpaktou to negate Starlight’s.”

An audible gulp escaped Clover’s throat, “Will that work? Can I use Chishiki from a distance without him getting stolen?”

Ditzy paused for a long, heavy moment. “I... don’t know. Starlight’s Zanpaktou is doing a lot more than it did when she was the previous Substitute Soul Reaper. Stealing powers, then handing them back out weren’t things she could do back then. From what I’ve seen she needs the Zanpaktou to be directed at her physically in order to steal it, but that’s just me shooting spitballs in the dark. Sorry Clover, but I can’t tell you it's not a risk, but your Zanpaktou might be our best shot at weakening Starlight enough to have a chance.”

“So no pressure then.” Clover said, pale faced.

Rarity slid over to the Soul Reaper girl and gave Clover’s shoulder a quick pat. “Try not to worry darling. If it seems that fiend is trying to take your Zanpaktou I’ll block her line of sight with my crystals.”

“I appreciate the offer Rarity, but we don’t even know if she needs line of sight to do it.” Clover said, but she did manage a twitch of a smile. “I’ll just have to deal with the risk.”

Despite her words Rarity could tell that Clover was putting on a brave face. The way the Soul Reaper’s hands clenched white knuckled around the shaft of Chishiki was more than sign enough of the girl’s fear. Lacking a Zanpaktou herself Rarity couldn’t entirely understand that fear, but she could try to imagine it. It wasn’t just about losing one’s power and becoming helpless. Zanpaktou were more like partners, even friends. To Clover there was more at stake than just losing a fancy weapon.

“Still, I can try to help minimize that risk, dear, so try not to fret too much.”

Standing near the elevator platform’s railing, Applejack was peering down the shaft and said, “Think I’m seein’ the bottom fellas. Git yer game faces on.”

“Have mine on already.” Ditzy Doo said, tapping her mask.

The elevator grinded to a steady halt at the bottom of the shaft, which opened into a wide circular room with five large metal doors evenly spaced along the wall opposite where the elevator stopped. Above each door was a steel sign mounted into the stone, with Japanese kanji etched into the metal.

“Ooooh, is this a guessing game?” asked Pinkamena, twirling the Pinkie hammer casually, “If we beat down the right one we get a squishy, killable prize?”

“Ain’t thinkin’ that’s the case, murdercube.” muttered Applejack, who then shot a questioning glance at Ditzy Doo. “Ya know this place? Where we goin’?”

“The doors lead to different branches of experimental research.” Ditzy Doo explained, pointing to each door in turn, “Spiritual Physics, Spirit Biology and Genetics, Personal Weapons Development, Soul Modification, and Large Scale Experiments. The Xcution program came out of the Soul Modification branch, in case you were wondering.”

“So how do we know which way Starlight went? We can’t afford to split up and search each branch simultaneously.” Rarity said, frowning at the large, imposing doors of steel.

Pinkamena sniffed the air, “I’m getting a odor of pretentiousness and manic obsessiveness from... this direction!” She pointed towards the door on the far right, the one that was labeled Large Scale Experiments.

“Uh, can we trust the doppelganger's random nose powers?” asked Clover dubiously.

“Her predatory instincts might be sharper than you think. I’m sensing traces of reiatsu down that way too.” said Ditzy Doo. “Can’t you girls feel it?”

Rarity closed her eyes for a second and stretched out her senses. There was a general hum of spirit energy that permeated the entire area, but there was something from nearby coming from beyond the far right door. It almost felt like...

“I think there’s several people beyond that door. More than several.” she said with surprise.

“Well let’s git goin’ then!” Applejack said, running over to the door and feeling around it. “Where’s the dang knob ta open this thing?”

“Normally you need a ward pass to get through those-” Ditzy began to explain, but Applejack just growled, pulled back her leg, and with a rocket boosted kick she smashed the huge metal door in like it was made of plaster, causing the whole thing to collapse with a metallic bang that echoed through the room.

“-...but there’s ways around that.” Ditzy finished with a smirk.

The girls went through the door, winding around the broken hunk of metal as Applejack cracked her knuckles. Moving with quiet steps Fluttershy spoke in a eerily hushed tone. “Is anyone else wondering what happened to the people who should’ve been here? Where are the research staff, or guards?”

“I’m trying to think pleasant thoughts as best I can.” replied Rarity. “But you’re right that it is distinctly unsettling that we haven’t seen another soul since we entered this place.”

“I think we’ll find out soon one way or another.” said Clover as the group continued on down a short flight of stairs that then opened into a polished hall with several thick windows spaced along the walls, accompanied by smaller steel doors. Peering through the windows Rarity could see that each showed a view of a different large chamber. Each one seemed configured with a different set of machinery, some of which looked rather advanced for the generally low level of technology that seemed to permeate most Soul Society’s aesthetics.

“What does Large Scale Experiments mean anyhows?” asked Applejack, “These rooms don’t look all that large ta me.”

“These aren’t the main chambers.” Ditzy Doo said, making casual gestures at the windows they passed by, “These are just for testing and assembling the parts for anything they’re working on in the big room. Large Scale is for anything that either needs a lot of space, or requires a metric crapton of spiritual energy.”

At the end of the hall an archway led to an open stone bridge that spanned outward into a gigantic, spacious area. Steps led down from the bridge at alternating intervals to a massive floor space about thirty feet down. If Rarity had to guess the ceiling was another good hundred feet up, meaning this chamber took up a lot of the space down that the initial elevator went. The area was well lit, giving a clear view of many of the experiments standing out in the open, left by the researchers who’d been working on them. Rarity saw a giant metal sphere suspended in a tank of green liquid big enough to hold a whale. Another area held the assembled skeleton of some massive, fifty foot tall wolf, its bones covered in wires and strange metal tubes connected to sizable tanks of a glowing blue substance. In another portion of the chamber a literal tree the size of a building was growing from a basin of strange white sand that reminded Rarity of the sands of Heuco Mundo. The tree itself bore odd fruit shaped vaguely like skulls and dripping with a viscous red sap that was disturbingly blood-like.

“I ain’t likin’ the looks o’ none of this.” said Applejack, “Just what’re all these things?”

Ditzy Doo shrugged, “Beats me. This has been Starswirl’s show for awhile now. None of these experiments were in place when Discy was in charge.”

“That tree smells like death.” Pinkamena said with a wrinkling nose. “And not the warm, fun, juicy kind, but the sour, rotting kind.”

“I’m more worried about what they’re trying to do to that poor wolf’s remains.” said Fluttershy, her eyes wide as the took in the sight of the humongous skeleton. “I never imagined such a large wolf could exist. Where did it come from?”

“The Beast Realm.” Ditzy said, her jaw tightening, “Couldn’t even stab a guess as to what they’re trying to do with them here.”

“Hitsuyo Aku hasn’t changed much since the days it did those terrible things to our mothers, has it?” Rarity said with a hardened look, her eyes scanning around carefully. Despite the bizarre and unsettling sights around her she hadn’t forgotten they’d come down here chasing a dangerous woman.

Ditzy shook her head, “No, it hasn’t. Makes me even more worried about what Starlight is after.”

Moving along at a swift pace the girls reached a portion of the chamber that was split by a thirty foot tall wall, where the bridge turned into a ramp leading up to the top of the wall, essentially creating a second chamber up top from which Rarity could see a flickering phantasm wave of green and blue light emanating. However before the ramp there was another green glow from below and the girls halted, looking over the side of the bridge.

“What n’ tarnation ‘re those things!?” Applejack exclaimed.

“Oh my, I... I think there are people inside them.” Fluttershy whispered.

Across the bottom of the wall were clusters of organic, green pods. They were plastered over the floor and wall with ropes of thick, gelatinous slime. The pods were semi-transparent, humanoid forms floating inside their veiny embrace. Rarity counted at least several dozen of the pods, all bunched together to the side of the bridge’s ramp.

“Let’s take a closer look, but stay alert.” Ditzy Doo said, leaping off the bridge and landing on the ground in front of the collection of strange pods. The rest of the girls followed suit, Rarity wrinkling her nose at an acrid, dry stench that hung in the air.

“My word these don’t smell pleasant.” Approaching one carefully she peered at the surface, then let out a small gasp. “Oh my, Ditzy Doo, I believe these are Soul Reapers trapped inside!”

Soon enough all of them could see it, that the forms cocooned inside the organic green pods were men and women dressed in Soul Reaper robes. Most looked unconscious, but a few had eyes open, albeit with dazed looks like they were in some half-awake fugue state. Clover looked at several of them with a spark of recognition blossoming in her eyes.

“I know some of these people. They’re from the Fourth Division!”

“Ya reckon this is where all them missin’ folk from the hospital ended up at?” Applejack asked as she reached out to tentatively touch one of the pods. “More importantly, ya reckon it’s safe ta try an’ tear these pods open?”

Ditzy Doo shrugged, reached out with her hands, and proceeded to rip the nearest pod clean open with her bare fingers. Green goop spilled out in a brackish wave, filling the air with even more of an acidic stench, but the Soul Reaper inside slipped right out easily enough and Ditzy Doo caught her, barely seeming to notice or care about the mess of goo getting on her.

“Seems safe.” Ditzy stated, setting the Soul Reaper down. She was a young woman with green tinted skin and a head of blue hair, save for one green streak. Her Soul Reaper robes were soaked with the green goo from the pod, but the stuff started to rapidly evaporate.

Fluttershy knelt next to Ditzy Doo, placing a hand on the Soul Reaper and her glowing third eye flashed with blue luminous power.

“She’s okay. She was injured by a stab wound to the back, but it's mostly healed already. I... think she’s waking up.” Fluttershy said as the Soul Reaper’s amber eyes flicked open.

The girl sat up with a frightful start, one hand reaching for her Zanpaktou, but Ditzy’ caught her hand firmly. “Relax, you’re okay. We’re friends.”

Rarity cleared her throat, “Miss Doo, um, you’re wearing your mask. No offense but it’s hardly the most comforting visage to wake up to.”

“Oh, right, the mask.” Ditzy huffed and pulled her mask up. The mask remained balanced on her head, almost as if it was attached magnetically, and Ditzy’s eyes remained black with yellow iris’, but her face was visible now as she grinned down at the Soul Reaper. “Yo, Sketchy, you recognize me now?”

The Soul Reaper’s fear was replaced with confusion as her head cocked to the side. “Ditzy Doo?”

“Ya two know each other?” Applejack looked between the two questioningly.

“Yup. Didn’t recognize you at first with all the goop on you, Skitch-Sketch. Glad to see you’re still breathing.” Ditzy said with a light laugh, offering the girl a hand up.

As the girl hesitantly took the hand, still looking dazed, she muttered, “Almost wasn’t. The hospital was attacked. Captain Zecora, she... she turned on us-”

“Shhh, easy there Sketchy. We already know. Zecora got replaced by the Second Espada, Chrysalis-”

“WHAT!?”

“-Annnnnd we’re chasing down her partner in crime, who’s probably doing something super-villainous with one of the experimental doo-dads down here. What I need you to do is start freeing the rest of the people in these pods and get clear of this building. There’s an elevator back that way. Once you’ve got everyone free, take it up, then get as far away from here as you can. Can you do that Sketchy?”

Ditzy’s earnest words seemed to penetrate the confusion on the Soul Reaper’s face and Skitch-Sketch gave a shallow nod, “Y-yeah. Yeah I’m on it. For the record I think you and Discord owe me some kind of raise at this point.”

“I’ll put in a word with Discy when the smoke clears.” Ditzy said.

“Wait,” said Clover, “It occurs to me that if Captain Zecora was replaced, then might she be here somewhere as well?”

“Good point.” Ditzy said, “Spread out, start cracking open pods. If you spot a tall lady with a mohawk that can’t stop rhyming, let me know.”

As the girls split up and started opening the various pods one by one, Rarity kept close to Ditzy and leaned close to whisper, “Pardon me, but how exactly do you know this Skitch-Sketch? You’ve been away from Soul Society for a long time, have you not?”

Ditzy smirked, “Suspicious much? Don’t worry, she’s just one of my and Discy’s little birds.”

“Little birds?”

“Mmmhmm. Discord likes to keep himself informed, so he’s got people in a few places that occasionally provide updates on what’s what. Sketchy is just one of those birdies who tweets at us about goings on here in Seireitei. There are others in the human world, and even a few unscrupulous Hollows who let us know about things happening in Hueco Mundo.”

“Hmm... I shall file that way for later, I think.” Rarity said, “Informants in the Hollow realm would be useful for when we go to rescue Adagio.”

“Already way ahead of you on that score, Rarity. Discord’s been planning that excursion since he started training you girls. If this craziness in Soul Society hadn’t gone down first, we’d already be there.” Ditzy said.

In the meantime the number of freed Soul Reapers piled up, the girls having to take a few minutes to get the stunned and disoriented Reapers focused and brought up to speed. There was more than a little mistrustful looks pointed towards the human girls and Ditzy Doo’s Hollow mask, but Skitch-Sketch kept them focused and given the fact that they were being rescued did a lot to generate some momentary good will.

It was in the last few pods that they found Zecora. When she was hoisted from the pod she’d been trapped in the Fourth Division Captain awoke almost instantly, surprise and fear mixed in equal measure with righteous fury as she nearly tackled the nearest person off their feet, which happened to be Clover.

“C-Captain Zecora, you’re safe! It’s okay!” Clover yelped, holding one hand up defensively, as Zecora had a finger pointed towards Clover’s head with the glowing yellow point of a Kido spell charging up at its tip.

Zecora’s eyes wavered for a moment, blinking slowly as she spoke in an exhausted, shaking whisper. “Is that you Third Seat Clover? I fear my head is worse off than the most devastating hangover.”

Several of her Division gathered around, including Skitch-Sketch who knelt down next to her Captain, with Ditzy hovering nearby.

“Captain do you... remember anything?” Skitch-Sketch asked in a calming tone.

Zecora carefully stood on trembling legs, her whole body seeming to shake as a weakened kitten, one grayish white hand rising to rub her head. “I fear I cannot recall more than a haze. Yet I know the source of my daze! A creature most foul ambushed me not far from this place, and I fear it has stolen my face! Tell me what has happened since that day, and has anything amiss occurred while I was away?”

“Well, you’re still rhyming, so Chrysalis couldn’t have scrambled your head that badly.” said Ditzy, “You’ve missed a lot. I’ll let Skitchy fill you in, but the enemy is still at large and me and these girls got some ass to kick.”

“Then I shall join you in your fight, for I cannot leave things in this current plight.” Zecora said, taking a shaky step forward, but Ditzy held up a firm hand.

“You’re in no shape for a brawl Zecora. Get your people out of here.”

Zecora looked like she was about to argue but Ditzy’s voice grew sharp edged as a knife. “Your Zanpaktou was stolen and you’re barely standing. Take your people and get clear, and leave the fighting to people who can still fight.”

The Captain’s lips curled in a deep frown, but the pained look in Zecora’s eyes clearly marked that she knew Ditzy Doo was right, and with a grimace she nodded. “Your words are harsh but you speak true. There is nothing more here that I can do. Swear to me that you shall do all you can to set things right and I shall in turn do what I may to lead my people away from this fight.”

“You got my word.” Ditzy said.

“Before you all go,” said Rarity, whose mind had been working overtime and had thought of something, “Some of you find gentlemen and ladies work at this... facility, yes?”

A few Soul Reapers gave reluctant nods, one or two of them wearing lab coats over their more traditional black robes. Rarity fixated on them and gestured at the the top of the wall where the upper floor alcove was. “Do any of you happen to know what experiment is taking place up there?”

“Huh, good question. Why didn’t I think of that?” Ditzy said, blinking.

“Well? Somebody do speak up.” Rarity said, resting her hands on her hips.

One of the Soul Reapers in question gave a nervous cough and spoke up, “Um, well you see it's not that we’re ungrateful for you rescuing us, but all of the experiments taking place here are highly classified. We can’t just hand that information out.”

Clover stepped forward, holding up a finger. “Quick point, we’re in the middle of a crisis situation. I think allowances can be made. And if you don’t like it, you can tell Captain Starswirl that I threatened you.”

“Third Seat Clover, with all due respect, you’re not high enough ranked to make that call. Only Lieutenant Meadowbrook or the Captain himself could-”

“Wait, Meadowbrook!” Clover suddenly shouted, “Where is he!? Has anyone here seen him!?.”

“Not just him.” Put in Ditzy, frowning as she looked over the crowd of people they’d rescued. “Lieutenant Moon Dancer and Smart Cookie are also both missing. Figured if they’d be anywhere it would be with you lot, but I’m not seeing them. Anyone here got a clue where those three might be?”

Many of the gathered Soul Reapers exchanged unsure glances with one another, until Skitch-Sketch rubbed her head and said, “I... I can’t really remember much from being in that pod, but I got real fuzzy memories of some of the pods being moved. I don’t know where, but if they’re not here then they must have been moved somewhere else in the complex.”

“Dammit. I don’t think we have time to search.” sighed Ditzy, glancing up at the higher level of the chamber where it seemed the intermixing green and blue lights were getting brighter. “I got the feeling we’re running out of time.”

“Then allow me to seek those who are lost.” said Zecora. “For me to do so there is no cost. My subordinates can flee quite well on their own, while even without my Zanpaktou my keen senses are well known.”

“Alright fine, just be careful about it. For all we know there’s more enemies in here we haven’t seen yet.” said Ditzy Doo cautiously.

“Haven’t caught any whiffs of any nasties lurking about.” commented Pinkamena, licking her lips.

“Hey, while yer lookin’ fer them missing Soul Reapers keep an’ eye out fer a little guy.” Applejack told Zecora, holding out a hand, “‘Bout yay high, brown hair, named Pipsqueak. He’s somewhere ‘round here too, I’m thinkin’.”

“Captain Platinum’s son? To be involved in these affairs whatever has he done?” Zecora asked with a stunned waver in her eyes.

“It’d take too long to explain, but let’s get back to Rarity’s question; what in Jigoku is going on up there?” Ditzy said with a harsh finger pointed upwards, her Hollowifed eyes narrowing at the Soul Reaper scientists present. “I don’t care how classified it is, somebody better spill the beans because right now we’re the only ones here to stop a crazy lady from using whatever you’ve got going on over there!”

There was clear hesitance still among the researchers, but one of them took a step forward and while waving off the protests of his fellows he said, “The second floor area was reserved for Project Crossgate. But it won’t do whoever’s up there any good! The Crossgate is missing too many components to operate, and we hadn’t even gotten it calibrated yet. It’s useless.”

“And just what is this Crossgate supposed to do?” pressed Rarity, but Ditzy spoke up before the researcher could.

“Oh crapbaskets... this one I remember. It was one of Discy’s old ideas that he never took past the drawing board. Let me guess, Starswirl decided to move beyond the concept stage?”

“W-well, after the discovery of the portal to that strange foreign realm Captain Starswirl considered the possibility that the Soul Society might need a way to counter invasions from other realities.” the researcher stammered, while Applejack gave both him and Ditzy a sour look.

“Alright, spill it Ditzy, what’s this Crossgate? Another secret Discord was keepin’ from us?”

“Not a secret. Just an old project idea he never took anywhere.” Ditzy Doo said, arms crossing, “The idea behind it was to create a variation on the Senkaimon Gate we use to move from the Spirit Realm to the living world, one that could move large quantities of mass from one dimension to another. Theoretically it was something we could use to perform evacuations of cities being threatened with destruction by our battles with the Quincy or Hollows. And, yeah, it could also be used to launch surprise invasions of other realms, moving whole Divisions at once instead of having to trickle them through the Senkaimon.”

“So what n’ tarnation does Starlight Glimmer want with a’ thing like that?” Applejack quirried with a scowl.

“Why don’t we go ask her?” Rarity pointed out, “We’ve spent enough time wondering about our opponent’s intentions. I say we get her to talking about them herself. She strikes me as the sort that enjoys hearing herself talk.”

“I can git behind that.” Applejack said.

“Alright then, looks like you all know what you’re doing.” said Skitch-Sketch, glancing at Zecora, “Captain with your permission, can we get the hell out of here now?”

Zecora nodded, “Yes, let us go. Leave this place swiftly and do not slow.”

In short order Skitch-Sketch started to lead the freed Fourth Division members and Hitsuyo Aku researchers back up to the bridge and down the path that’d lead to the elevator. Zecora gave Ditzy and the girls one last parting glance before following them. Rarity watched them go, hoping they wouldn’t run into any trouble in their escape. It was possible that if either Sunset, Rainbow Dash, or Celestia and Luna lost their battles then the escapees might run face first into one of Starlight’s cohorts, but Rarity pushed aside those dire thoughts. She had to trust the others would win their battles. She had to focus on the one in front of her.

Ditzy took the lead once more, leading the group up the ramp the bridge turned into, heading to the top of the wall where they then found themselves within the top alcove of the massive experiment chamber. This space, although only half the size of the rest of the chamber, was still large enough that Rarity felt rather small. The walls curved inward into a half circle. While the walls were bare stone at first, the deeper to the back of this area the group walked the more the walls became covered in strange geometric patterns made from risings of gold metal piping. Rarity started to see numerous hangings of intricate crystal formations housed in metal casings on the ceiling that hummed with the green and blue hues of light that were coating the area. Up ahead, partially cloaked by flickering shadows cast by a bright silvery light, was a structure that looked like a curved set of metal claws, each the size of a tree, curving over a wide pool of gleaming silver liquid. Nodes of glowing blue and green crystal jutted from the edge of the ‘claws’, which Rarity now saw were more like metal pylons, and streams of energy poured from the crystals into the pool of strange silver liquid.

A set of pipes, humming with geometric patterns of light, crawled from one edge of the pool to merge into a tall obelisk of metal and stone upon which a hexagonal shaped console jutted out.

Starlight Glimmer was there, her Zanpaktou held out and channeling a steady stream of fiery red and orange power into the obelisk. She glanced back at the group as they approached, her blue eyes rolling.

“Fantastic. Was kind of hoping it’d take you people longer to get here. Oh well, not like I hadn’t planned or this.”

As if to challenge that statement, Ditzy Doo held out her palm and slipped her mask on. A thick sphere of crimson power welled in her hand, and then with a ear shaking hum the Cero beam blasted out straight at Starlight Glimmer. It crashed into a flickering field of force that appeared in a orange wall of light that filled the entire space between them and Starlight.

“Sorry Ditzy Doo, I activated the area’s containment barrier. You’ll have trouble breaking through that, at least until I’m done here.” Starlight said, returning her attention to channeling energy out of her Zanpaktou and into the obelisk.

Applejack spat, raising her own hand and charging up a blast within her gauntlet. “Oh yeah, how ‘bout we see how long yer fancy schmancy barrier holds up ta all o’ us takin’ whacks at it.”

Pinkamena grinned in wide, tooth filled agreement as she hefted the Pinkie hammer. “Yes, let’s see how many licks it takes to get to the gooey center of this idiot pop.”

“Colorful.” Starlight drawled, “Knock yourselves out. Just try not to make too much noise. I need to concentrate on this. Oh, by the way, just FYI, if I lose my concentration and screw this energy transfer up then it's quite possible the resulting explosion might just kill you, your friends, and pretty much anything nearby, so maybe trying to interfere with me might fall under the category of a bad idea. Just saying.”

Ditzy sighed heavily and held up a hand to the girls. Applejack lowered her arm reluctantly, and Pinkamena lowered her hammer even moreso.

“Very well then.” said Rarity, “Just what are you planning to do with that device once you’ve powered it up? In fact, how are you powering it up? The gentlemen conducting research here said this Crossgate wasn’t finished being built.”

“Riiiight, let me just explain all of my plans. That should make it easier for you to foil them.” Starlight said with a voice heavily marinated in sarcasm. “Seriously could you people be quiet? This isn’t as easy as I’m making it look.”

“That energy, it’s the Sokyoku isn’t it?” Ditzy Doo said, her voice making it more a statement than a question as she started to pace around the edge of the barrier, eyeing the obelisk and the pool beyond it. “You finished Discord’s design and built the rest of the Crossgate after you shacked up here a few days ago. Now all you needed was enough spirit energy to power this thing up; and a million Zanpaktou fit the bill.”

“Not exactly, but close enough.” Starlight said, then snorted, “Okay, no. You’re not getting me to monologue Ditzy. Besides, I don’t know why you lot care what I’m doing. Celestia and Luna are free, and it's not like they were ever in any real danger of being killed. I just needed the Sokyoku. Well, it plus some other things, but that’s not important to you girls.”

“Beg to differ, darling. Your schemes have caused us no small amount of headache, heartache, and general distress. Quite frankly I can’t imagine a single good thing you might be planning to do with this device, so I’d say it's quite important for us to stop you.” said Rarity, carefully and slowly extending some crystals beneath her feet to burrow into the floor. Inching the crystals forward through the stone ground, she probed towards the barrier. She was cautious, keeping her spirit energy as low as possible so as to avoid what she was doing being detected.

Starlight turned to look her way, and Rarity wasn’t sure if the woman had sensed what she was doing, but when Starlight spoke it was without any noticeable concern.

“Oh really? I’m not the one that tried to control your mothers against their will, or manipulating them to give birth to you girls so you’d turn out as Fullbringers. I’m not the one who built an entire research institute dedicated to creating questionable projects at any ethical cost. I’m not the one perpetuating a pointless war that destroys both lives and souls without care or remorse! I’m certainly not interested in hurting any of you. You could just walk away from this and you’d be just fine. I wouldn’t stop you.”

Clover’s eyes narrowed, “But are you the one who arranged for the class I was taking out on their first patrol to be attacked by Hollows?”

Starlight paused, turning a glassy stare towards Clover, who went on with a quiet, cold tone.

“It's been bothering me for awhile now. All this began when the Academy class I was subbing for was attacked on what was supposed to be an easy, routine first patrol to Canterlot City. The Hollows that hit us were numerous, and seemed to know where we’d be. The fact that I lost one of the slain cadet’s Asauchi’s in the process... how much of a coincidence was it that Sunset Shimmer found that sword?”

A stillness came over Starlight’s face, her voice flattening. “I didn’t plan that as much as you might think. The Hollows were already there, sniffing around town because of those girls and their magical escapades. I just happened to see an opportunity when they attacked your class, and made sure that one of the Asauchi’s was left somewhere it could be easily found by someone who happened to have newly awakening spiritual potential.”

“What kind of opportunity?” Clover said with a grim tone.

“I was curious if someone touched by the magic of that other world could integrate that power with the spirit energy from this world. Simple as that. It was just a bonus the rest of the girls woke up their Fullbrings, and appeared to be merging Equestrian magic with them. Definitely worth observing, if I could figure out how to replicate the effects...” Starlight said, then groaned. “Oh for the love of- Stop that! Why don’t you go outside and bother Chrysalis? She likes the attention.”

“She’s busy entertaining Celestia and Luna, so I’m afraid you have us all to yourself, Miss Glimmer.” Rarity said, finding that the crystals she was burrowing underground was able to get past the point where the barrier was. Apparently the barrier only covered the space of the room, not beneath it. She hid her smile as she brought the crystals up beneath Starlight Glimmer. She didn’t dare think of messing with the machinery of the Crossgate itself. She didn’t think Starlight’s talk of a not-so-small explosion was a mere bluff. She had to bring the barrier down, not attack Starlight or the Crossgate.

If Starlight felt any concern for Chrysalis she certainly didn’t show it with her dismissive shrug. “Chrysalis must be having a ball then. She seems to have a real fixation on Celestia that if I were still a psych-major I’d say borders on the unhealthily obsessive. No matter, you guys can sit there and enjoy the show. Neat thing about the Crossgate is that it can be very selective with what it does or doesn’t take through the gates it creates. You guys aren’t invited on the ride, in case you’re wondering.”

“A ride to where?” asked Ditzy, running her hand along the barrier with a critical eye. “Where can’t you go that you need this thing to get you there? You planning to attack the Palace of the Spirit Queen herself?”

“Keeeep talking Ditzy, it just wastes time.” Starlight said. The flow of gleaming orange light streaming from her Zanpaktou stopped as the obelisk began to hum with a louder, whining buzz. “Besides, you’ll see yourself soon enough. That does it for the power, and what do you know I still got plenty of Sokyoku juice left! Hah! Knew it. Firefly owes me dinner.”

“What’re ya jabberin’ on about!?” Applejack slammed her fist into the barrier, which flashed with a wave of light, but otherwise held firm.

Rarity felt her burrowing crystals spread out around the edges of the barrier, finding several pockets of concentrated spirit energy embedded into points in the ground. She couldn't be sure but she thought these were what were maintaining the ward separating them from Starlight. She started to shape her crystals into points that could tear the ward apart, while Starlight grabbed up her Zanpaktou and turned to regard Applejack with disinterest.

“You know, your mother was never the sharpest knife in the drawer either but I figured you would have figured out by now what I’m doing here. I mean, it's kind of obvious when you apply a bit of logic to it.”

The streams of energy reaching from the pylons around the pool of silver liquid intensified, and the liquid started to bubble up like a frothing jacuzzi. The area where all the curving pylons converged started to shimmer, a point of silver light appearing there that slowly started to expand. Starlight glanced towards it with a look of anticipation, and it was that moment that Rarity used to thrust her crystals forward through the underground clusters of spirit energy holding the ward together.

The pockets of spirit energy came apart like shredded balls of string, and the ward cracked across its whole surface like a pane of safety glass hit by a sledgehammer. It broke apart into dusty motes of light, surprising everyone for an instant. Then Ditzy’s eyes narrowed to dark slits and she burst into motion, streaking right for Starlight like a gray battering ram.

Rarity felt a moment of elation as she and her friends poised to charge in right behind Ditzy Doo... until Starlight turned around in a fraction of an instant, raising her hand and stopping Ditzy flatly with her fingers gripped around Ditzy’s mask like a vice.

Ditzy grunted and slammed out a fist, smashing Starlight in the chest, but the other woman took it without letting go of Ditzy’s face and instead strengthened her grip with an audible grinding of flesh and bone. Starlight’s voice was no longer casual, but instead hot with growing anger.

“You girls seem really confused about something.” Starlight said, and her arm tensed, her spiritual pressure washing out of her in a heart crushing torrent that make Rarity choke on her own breath. Then with one heavy swipe she threw Ditzy Doo with air shattering force. There was a shockwave of air that made Rarity’s hair flip around her head as Ditzy was sent sailing out across the length of the chamber like a javelin, impacting through the giant wolf skeleton they’d passed earlier and shattering it before she impacted with the wall next to the distant entrance.

“You seem to think this is going to be a fight.” Starlight finished, tapping her Zanpaktou's staff end on the ground with a ring of finality. “It isn’t.”

There was an explosion of stone from where Ditzy had fallen, and the woman came flying out of the smokey debris to quickly cross the distance back to the group. She landed unsteadily, dusting herself off and glaring at Starlight. “Okay. Ow. But you should know a little toss like that won’t slow me down much.”

“Oh, I know. You’re impressive Ditzy. Back in the day, one on one, I wouldn’t have been able to touch you. But as the saying goes, ‘that was then, this is now’.” Starlight said, her words punctuated by the way she lifted her free hand to the air above her head, and pieces of white bone fragments formed in the air and took the shape of a mask.

Rarity’s eyes went wide along with all the others as a Hollow mask appeared in Starlight’s hand. The mask had a smooth surface, lacking even a noticeable mouth or nose, having only a single thin slit for the eyes. It’s shape was like an elongated diamond, with two wave shaped horns curling up from the brows. Though smooth, its face was marked by two red stripes running down from the bottom of the eyelids, like a bloody tear trail.

Ditzy’s expression turned sickened. “You did it to yourself? I thought it was bad enough when you did me by accident.”

“Yes, well, turning an accident into something positive is a good motto to live by.” Starlight said, slipping the Hollow mask on. Strangely, Rarity noted Starlight’s eyes didn’t change color the way Ditzy’s had. “You see I’ve refined the process. I can create Vizards who have more control over their inner Hollow, and bring more power out of it. Care to try me out?”

Starlight’s spiritual pressure turned cold and thick with Hollow energy, yet even as it crushed down on Rarity her keen senses told her it was subtly different than Ditzy Doo’s. In Ditzy’s case her Hollow energy still had a wild, savage quality to it. Yet Starlight’s felt deadly focused, and it didn’t overwhelm the whole of her reiatsu, as if she’d balanced the Hollow powers with her normal spirit energy in a way Ditzy either hadn’t... or couldn’t. A distinct purple hued aura of power now surrounded Starlight, like wisps of deathly gravelight.

“Alright, I’ve heard ‘nough o’ you!” Applejack bellowed and blasted herself forward on streams of gold thruster power from her shoulder armor. She flew into a spinning heel kick, boosted so far that Rarity could see the air streams breaking around her friend’s armored boot.

Starlight raised her Zanpaktou to catch the kick on its shaft, the impact blasting air in a shockwave around the pair. Starlight didn’t so much as budge from the blow, but Applejack braced her other leg on Starlight’s Zanpaktou, then fired a twin blast of gold energy from her heels that engulfed the woman and washed up against the wall in an explosion of rock debris.

“Okay, out of curiosity Applejack, has your charging in blindly ever worked?” Starlight asked as she emerged from the cloud of dust, cracking her neck as she did so. “I mean I’ve been observing your fights, you and all your friends’ for that matter. So far the only time you’ve pulled off a legit win via blunt force was with Troubleshoes, and that’s not exactly a high benchmark.”

Above Starlight, Pinkamena detached from the ceiling, where she’d been carefully crawling when nobody had been paying attention, and dropped on the woman with her mouth opening wide like some rubbery shark’s maw.

“NOM!”

Even through her mask it was possible to see Starlight’s flat and unamused look as she thrust a fist up and smashed Pinkamena straight in the gut, causing the doppelganger to fall limp over the woman’s arm like a speared fish as she coughed up blood.

“Wow, was that in your still injured gut?” Starlight asked, and as Pinkamena threw up more blood Starlight nodded. “Yup, I’d say it was.”

With a feral growl Pinkamena flipped off Starlight and with her other hand swung it around like a rubber band and brought the Pinkie hammer crashing in like a wrecking ball. Starlight turned the mighty impact aside with her Zanpaktou, the staff halting the hammer in its tracks, but then the hammer’s surface gained a gooey bubble-gum like quality as it stuck to the staff.

“Okay Miss Thievy McThieferton, if you like stealing people’s shiny swords, I’m gonna steal yours! Gimmie!”

Pinkamena yanked back on the hammer, the hammer's surface continuing to imitate freshly chewed bubble-gum as it stretched out, pulling on Starlight’s Zanpaktou. Starlight’s eyes narrowed in annoyance, but she was soon distracted by the fact that the rest of the group was all rushing her at once.

Fluttershy came in with a double palm strike, which Starlight slipped away from with a casual deflection with her free hand. Fluttershy’s scarf tried to snap around Starlight’s leg to trip her up, but Starlight quickly raised her leg and snap kicked Fluttershy in the gut, pushing her back. Still, Fluttershy sent a burst of her power into Starlight in that moment, commanding in a hard voice. “Don’t move.”

As it happened both Applejack and Ditzy Doo were slamming hard punches towards Starlight in that instant, and Fluttershy’s command almost rooted Starlight in place, but the woman’s overwhelming spiritual pressure pushed aside Fluttershy’s power in a mere moment. Ditzy and Applejack’s fists hit only air as Starlight vanished in a burst of high speed movement, yanking her Zanpaktou along with her, which stretched out the Pinkie hammer like a long, juicy loogie.

“Ugh, this is gross.” Starlight muttered, and raised a finger to point at the hammer. “Mits off, kid.”

There was a flash of purple light, a static crack of noise, and a bolt of energy smacked into the Pinkie hammer and blasted her off of Starlight’s Zanpaktou. Pinkie snapped back to her more normal sized hammer shape, smoking slightly and groaning. “Owie! Yikes, that smarts.”

“You alright?” Pinkamena asked in a moment of unusual concern.

“Feel like I cracked my noggin’ on a doorframe, but I’m good.”

By now Rarity had summoned up her whirlpool of blood from her rose bracelet, shaping a crystal rapier into her hand and floating a formation of about twenty more weapons at her side. She’d been watching Starlight’s movements, trying to spot an opening. More importantly, she wanted to keep Starlight’s attention on anything other than Clover, who had rather smartly moved back from the fight and was back near the ramp. Rarity could see Clover was using her Zanpaktou to gradually scan Starlight, the ring blade end of Chishiki gathering a green glow as Clover concentrated on Starlight.

Rarity had to make sure Starlight didn’t notice that.

Alongside her cloud of crystal blades Rarity flung herself into the fight, using Fullbring upon the air to boost the speed of her leap. Her blades stabbed in from all sides, but Starlight spun about, twirling her Zanpaktou in a dizzying display that knocked aside or shattered the crystal weapons in showers of red fragments. Rarity, undaunted, slipped in behind Starlight and ran a thrust towards the woman’s spine, but Starlight shot a hand out and caught the rapier. Rarity saw literal sparks fly off Starlight’s hand, as if were metal, as she gripped Rarity’s blade and lifted it up, forcing Rarity’s arms up as well. Starlight gave her a rather pointed look.

“Good effort. But-”

Rarity felt a massive impact of mind numbing pain as Starlight slammed the blunt end of her Zanpaktou’s shaft into her gut. Air blasted out of her lungs and she was sent spinning head over heels until she felt the hard slam of cold stone as she hit the wall and slid down it to crumple on the floor.

“-you’re way outclassed here.”

Sputtering, struggling just to get her hands underneath her, Rarity raised her head and shot Starlight a withering look. “Not to steal your thunder, dear, but I’ve heard those kind of boasts before.”

Red crystals broke from the ground around Starlight in a encompassing circle of deadly spikes. Rarity grimaced as Starlight’s raw aura of deep purple spiritual energy radiated out from the woman and broke the crystal spikes apart into specs of crimson dust.

“Sure you have. And hey, don’t let me discourage you girls. You’ve all come a long way, and if you keep up the pace you’re going at, who knows, maybe you could be a legitimate threat to me. Hell if I was as smart as I like to think I am I’d just kill you here, while you’re still weak enough for me to snuff you out easily.”

“Then what’re ya waiting for!?” shouted Applejack, coming in behind Starlight with a fist cocked back, slamming forward on a rocket thruster of gold powr. Starlight caught Applejack’s wrist, spinning and throwing the farmgirl into the wall next to Rarity with an impact hard enough to leave an indent in the wall several feet deep.

“For one, I’m not a murderer.” Starlight said with a scowl. “Believe it or not, I’m not some cackling villain interested in killing people just because they get in my way. I’m trying to save this screwed up world. It just so happens that to do that I have to play rough with the powers that be, and there might be some collateral damage along the way. That’s all you girls really are, collateral damage waiting to happen.”

“And just because you don’t mean for people to be hurt that makes it okay to do whatever you want, as long as you think your intentions are good?” Fluttershy asked, her voice growing a bit louder and more heated than her normal calm as she spread her wings and flew towards Starlight. “It’s scary enough having to be so careful with my own power, it really bugs me that someone like you would use hers so recklessly! Don’t you care about the damage you could do!?”

Fluttershy lashed out with her scarf while diving low to the ground. The white cloth wrapped around Starlight’s arm and Fluttershy yanked on it, trying to pull the woman closer, but Starlight managed to plant her feet and remain rooted to the spot. A pulse of power flowed out from Fluttershy and into Starlight, the girl giving Starlight a hard stare as she sent forth a mental command to try and force the woman to drop her Zanpaktou, but Starlight’s own spiritual pressure swamped Fluttershy’s like a candle being dunked into the middle of a lake.

“Of course I care about the damage I could cause.” Starlight said with a snort, “But I care about fixing the problem more.”

She pulled back on Fluttershy’s scarf hard enough to send Fluttershy careening towards her. Starlight’s knee then came up with meteoric force and impacted with Fluttershy’s stomach like a piston. Fluttershy coughed and gasped for breath as the blow sent her flying up into the ceiling, where she bounced off and went tumbling back to the ground, only to be caught by a leaping Ditzy Doo, who landed and set the girl down softly.

“And what problem is that, huh?” Ditzy asked after making sure Fluttershy was still conscious. The girl was still coughing for breath, but managed to give Ditzy a small thumbs up as she stumbled up to her feet.

Starlight’s voice turned furnace hot as she growled behind her mask. “As if you don’t know. You and Discord... you both disgust me. How long have you both known about the Zero Division and the Spirit Queen? Hm? Was it before you met me and Sunburst? Or did you only discover the truth after what they did to him!?”

For once Ditzy actually looked genuinely confused her brow furrowing into gray valleys as she pulled off her Hollow mask to look at Starlight directly. “Sunburst? What’s he got to do with this? Hold up, what do you mean about the Zero Division and the Spirit Queen? What about them?”

Starlight’s eyes bored into Ditzy intently, then slightly widened. “You... really don’t know, do you? Discord must have kept it a secret even from you. I just assumed he told you everything, what with how close you two are. Heh, so even the great Ditzy Doo doesn’t know all of Discord’s secrets. I find that oddly comforting.”

“Starlight, I know you don’t want to do the monologuing thing, but I could really use to exposition here.” Ditzy said, “What in the blazing nipples are you blathering about?”

“Oh no, I think I’d rather enjoy the idea of you having to ask him yourself. But if he gives you the runaround, like I know he will, you could always try cracking his files on the Hogyoku. You might find the real reason he started making it, and why I stole it in the first place.” Starlight said, reaching up to the upper hem of the dark cloak she wore and throwing them off with one gesture.

Underneath the robes Starlight was wearing a form fitting gray jumpsuit crossed with numbers straps over the chest and stomach, with long leggings and boots of the same ash gray shade. She had a open, purple trench coat on over the suit, with markings on the sleeves in the pattern of a lighter purple star shape and a teal, wispy glimmer coming off it. In the center of her chest the jumpsuit opened up, exposing a modest amount of cleavage, but far more importantly showing where a bright and gleaming orb of pale blue was embedded in her flesh. The orb swirlled with inner glints of light, like streaking stars, and seemed to contain an infinite void within its simple, spherical shape.

Ditzy blinked, “You merged yourself with it? Do you have any idea what that thing might be doing to your soul?”

“Empowering me, for the most part. Allows me to absorb power from other sources. Gives me kind of a tingly sensation, and maybe a bit of occasional heartburn, but otherwise I think the Hogyoku and me are getting along just fine, thanks.” Starlight said, “Of course I still have a lot of work to do to finish completing it, but for now it serves to allow me to break down the barriers between souls. It’s what will allow me to cure Platinum’s son of his condition, and eventually... absorb the magic of ‘friendship’, once I figure out exactly how that power works.”

“You’ll never get the chance!” Clover shouted, her Zanpaktou having now gained a complete aura of green light around the full edge of the ring blade that she aimed at Starlight. “Heitei!”

Starlight’s Zanpaktou flickered like a television losing its transmission for a moment, before it shimmered and transformed into its sealed katana form, no longer released to Shikai. Starlight shot Clover a raised eyebrow. “Huh, color me impressed. You’ve got a nice Zanpaktou there. Too bad I didn’t think to steal it earlier. Equally too bad for you that I don’t need Sekai Chitsujo at the moment to finish this fight. Or to finish you.”

In an eyeblink Starlight crossed the distance to Clover, striking with her sealed blade before Rarity or anyone else could properly react. Rarity saw blood fly from Clover as a deep cut appeared over the girl’s shoulder. Starlight spun in a harsh kick that smacked Clover across the jaw, sending her straight to the ground in a heap. As Clover lay there, dazed, Starlight inverted her sealed Zanpaktou and aimed it towards Clover's chest. “How about we sever that soul sleep of yours, so I don’t have to worry about your Zanpaktou ever being an issue in the future, eh?”

Rarity flung her arm out, forming a long crystal blade the size of a car that she sent flying towards Starlight, but as Starlight’s katana stabbed down she knew she wouldn’t be in time.

Fortunately there was a blur of black and fiery orange motion and another katana intercepted Starlight’s in sparking crash, pushing the woman back. An instant later Rarity’s blade came in, forcing Starlight to turn and block the attack, further getting pushed back towards the wall, although Starlight’s raw strength broke even that large crystal blade into shards after a moment.

“S-Sunset...” Clover said, managing to brace herself on Chishiki and hoist herself up, taking an offered orange hand from Sunset Shimmer, who had been the one who’d swooped in to block Starlight’s attack.

“Just in time, eh?” Sunset said, smiling. “Saw you sealed her Zanpaktou. That means I can use mine now.”

Clover returned the smile warmly, “Y-yeah, just for a bit, through. I don’t think Chishiki’s power can negate Sekai Chitsujo’s for very long. Maybe minutes.”

“Hey, minutes are all I need.” Sunset said as she turned to face Starlight Glimmer. Hokori no Hikari blazed to life, flames forming into the broadsword and shield of the Zanpaktou’s Shikai state. Starlight eyed Sunset with a flat stare.

“You beat Platinum. Kind of surprised by that, actually. Did you kill her?”

Sunset face twisted with a distasteful grimace. “Came close, but she’s alive. At least she was last I left her. Where’s her son?”

“Safe.” Starlight said, then there was a flash of silvery light form back towards the Crossgate, where the sphere of bright mercury light was growing bigger and brighter. “And as much as I want to indulge your clear need for some heroic final confrontation; time’s up.”

The sphere flattened out into a shape not unlike a large donut made of flowing liquid metal. This ring shape spread out until it touched the edges of all the pylons surrounding the main pool of silver liquid, then turned so it formed a gate in the center, with a clear hole in reality like a giant window. And through that window...

“Is that...?” Rarity breathed.

“Ya gotta be kiddin’ me!” Applejack spat.

“But... but that’s...” Fluttershy blinked in astonishment.

“I don’t get it.” said Pinkamena, “What am I even looking at?”

“Ooooooh this is super-duper baaaad!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed, her hammer form shaking.

Clover looked at Sunset, “What is this? Where is that place? I’ve never seen buildings like that in the human world.”

Sunset felt her heart freeze over and drop into her stomach as she stared at the gateway. Within the hole in reality she could see, as if through a wavering field of water, the tall majestic peaks of the Canterhorn mountains, and upon those sheer peaks the painfully beautiful and shining spires of Canterlot.

“That’s not the human world... that’s Equestria.”

----------

Princess Twilight Sparkle looked at the readings on the portal with a bewildered frown.

After she and Flash had gotten breakfast in the cafeteria of the school that morning the pair of them had spent some time just talking with each other and trying to get a baseline of comfort with one another once again. She’d gotten rather focused on asking him questions about life in Soul Society, and he’d done his best to answer her, even when she’d tried to get technical on him about how certain aspects of physics worked in conjunction with reishi particles. In a way by the time she’d exhausted the man’s knowledge she had a certain appreciation for how he must’ve felt when he’d learned she was a pony. It was both exciting and ultimately very confusion to try and figure out how another world worked, and to even decide what questions to ask.

Of course she’d been open to his questions as well, but he’d been far more reserved about asking her anything concerning Equestria, almost as if he was afraid to. She didn’t know why.

After a time she realized the sun had been up for quite awhile, and that she ought to get back to work on calibrating the control system on the portal to Equestria. Only when she and Flash had gone out there to begin work she’d very quickly noticed very unusual readings on the monitor she’d set up around the portal. She sat now at the desk set up beside the statue where the portal was, checking over the readings.

“This is strange. Was anyone watching the portal last night?”

“Well... I was.” Flash said, face flushing red. “Then we kind of got into talking.”

Twilight felt her own face heat up as she looked back to her monitor, “Right. Okay but that wasn’t for very long, and there aren’t any students here on the weekend. So there shouldn’t have been anyone around to just randomly wander through...”

“Whoa, hold up, did someone go through the portal!?” Flash asked in alarm.

“I think so. What I don’t understand is how. I had this portal set up to block both Hollow and normal humans from being able to step through, or at least it should have stopped them. Granted the system still needs testing, but it should have worked well enough to block a person with normal human spirit energy or anything with Hollow spirit energy from entering the portal.”

Twilight touched a few keys and brought up a fresh screen with a set of unusually spiky wavelengths. “See this here? These readings are a spirit energy of an unknown type! Not Hollow, but not human either! I have no idea what this is. The mass suggests someone or something person sized, but the spirit energies don’t match what humans or Hollows have.”

“Which means something different snuck through the portal while we were distracted.” Flash said, his voice changing to one of forced, professional calm. He straightened up, expression serious. “I need to go find Cheerilee. She ought to still be on patrol. As soon as I get her back here, we should go through to Equestria and find whatever has gone through there before it does any damage-”

Suddenly the mirror built into the statue flared with arcs of brilliant silver light, making both Twilight and Flash jump back.

“What the-!?” Twilight gasped as her monitors exploding. Flash shielded her with his body from bits of burning electronics, and when Twilight looked again he was staring at the portal with hard eyes.

The portal was still there, but it was slowly shrinking in size, getting smaller inch by inch.

“Uh... Twilight, I don’t think we have time to find Cheerilee.” Flash said, expression grim. “I think if we’re going to do anything, we have to do it now.”

“It might not even be safe to go through now! I don’t even know what’s happening to the portal.” Twilight said, fear tightening her gut.

“Then I’ll go through alone. You stay here where it’s safe, and see if you can do anything with the portal on this end.” Flash said, but Twilight grabbed his arm before he could move.

“No. If we’re going, we both go. I can’t do much with the portal on this side. I need my magic. And if something is wrong on the other side, then the Princess of Friendship needs to be there to do something about it.” Twilight said, and after a moment Flash nodded.

The pair approached the portal, and Flash experimentally touched the silver surface. His hand sunk in. “I think it's safe. I’m not feeling any pain or anything.” he said. The portal was still growing smaller, but there was still room for both of them to move through.

Sharing a look with each other as if to affirm they were doing the right thing, both Twilight and Flash rushed through the portal just in time before its light closed entirely and left the statue entirely inert.

Episode 56: You're Gonna Go Far Kid

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Episode 56: You’re Gonna Go Far Kid

More than a mile away from Hitsuyo Aku’s research facility two forms flew down from the sky and landed opposite each other upon the tops of forest trees. Rainbow Dash stood balanced on the uppermost branch, arms held out to her sides with sparks of dense electrical power flowing through her fists. Her eyes were glued upon her mother, while Firefly was looking back at her with an assessing glance up and down Rainbow’s body.

“Been eating well? You look healthy enough. I guess your father didn’t forget how to cook the second I left-”

A bolt of lightning streaked by Firefly’s face, making a few of her hairs stand on end. Rainbow Dash’s palm was still crackling with power, and her face was sporting a cringing look of barely contained rage.

“Quiet. We’re not here to play catch up. Either fight, or disappear again. I don’t care which.”

“Wow, harsh much?” Firefly said with a wince, stretching her arms over her head casually with a slight yawn. “Been a long night followed by a rough morning, more for you than me, kiddo. Your arm is still hurt from your scuffle with Fancy Pants. You sure you don’t want to just have a friendly mother and daughter heart-to-heart?”

“No.” Rainbow Dash said with hard iron in her tone, taking up a fighting stance as her lightning flowed around her in an eager stream.

A pleased light bloomed in Firefly’s eyes as she finished her stretch, and with a flick of her wrist summoned the long barreled energy cannon to her hand in a wash of purple light.

“Good.”

There was barely a second of silence, and only a single twitch of Firefly’s muscles serving as warning to Rainbow Dash before her mother snapped her arm up, gripping a handle along its length with her other hand, and fired the cannon. A long, blazing bolt of thick, crackling purple energy shot across the intervening space in an instant. Dash’s speed let her fly to the side in a cobalt flicker, narrowly avoiding the beam’s deadly path as it cut a burning swath through not only the tree Rainbow Dash had stood atop, but dozens of trees behind it.

Rainbow flew up, curving around in a swift arc, planning to dive bomb her mother, but Firefly was already airborne as well. Purple light flowed from the thick mechanical wings of Firefly’s armor as she matched Rainbow Dash’s speed and height as she flew in a tight circle, her cannon letting off bolt after bolt of potent energy.

The wind tore at Dash as she evaded the beams in tight, curving paths through the sky, struggling to get some altitude on Firefly, who pursued her doggedly.

Sucking in a grunting breath, Rainbow Dash raised her hands and charged an arc of lightning from her wings, returning fire at her mother with flashing bolts of her own azure power. Firefly showed off her own incredible maneuverability as with a simple shifting of her wings she instantly changed direction, flowing aside from Rainbow’s lightning bolt and then resuming her pursuit in a burst of purple light.

Seeking to match Firefly’s speed, Dash’s wings burst with expanding flares of lightning and she reversed direction, her flight taking a stark dive towards her mother while leaving prismatic trail of light in her wake. Her thunder wracked fist hammered towards Firefly’s chest. With a smooth motion her mother not only dodged the blow but also slipped inside Rainbow’s guard. In a purple flash Firefly rammed the palm of her free hand into Rainbow Dash’s chin, the strike rattling Rainbow’s head like a giant bell was ringing inside it. She lashed out almost at random with her lightning, sweeping her arms out and firing sparking arcs of power all around her, hoping to catch her mother with at least one of them.

“Tsk, tsk, kid, you’re getting sloppy already and we’ve barely begun.”

Firefly’s chiding voice came from above, and Dash looked up to see her mother barely outside of arm’s reach, literally twisting her body like a contortionist in the air to avoid some of Rainbow’s stray bolts while Firefly aimed her cannon down directly at Rainbow at near point blank range. She barely had time to cross her arms in front of her in defense before the cannon fired its deadly beam. The impact drove Rainbow Dash down like a falling brick under the torrent of energy, her arms burning with pain. When the beam petered out Dash saw that the sleeves of her outfit had been burned away and that both her arms were covered in rough burns. The pain from her already injured arm shot through her with a blazing pain, blood trickling from the now freshly opened injury.

Breathing hard, sweat dripping off her cheek, Rainbow Dash shook herself and pushed past the pain. Sharpening her senses, she looked back and forth for where her mother had gone. From a patch of clouds behind her Firefly flew up like a shark breaking through the water. Hexagonal ports opened up along the armored arms and legs of Firefly’s Fullbring, along with a larger node forming from blocks of purple light on her shoulder, and Rainbow Dash had all of a second to react before a swarm of miniature missiles were fired at her.

Biting off a curse Rainbow went into a sharp climb, the missiles trailing after her on bright violet streams of energy. Zooming about in a complex pattern, making hard right angle turns to try to throw the missiles off, Dash swooped through the clouds. The swarm of missiles stayed hot on her trail, however, and were slowly catching up, despite Dash pouring on the speed.

“Oh for the love of-” Dash grunted and threw a hand behind her, sending a trail of harsh lighting flying behind her. The bolt smashed the first missile, catching several others in the ensuing explosion, but more came on, forcing Dash to go into a sudden dive to avoid getting caught by the swarm. Diving down she suddenly saw her mother appear in front of her, with speed that was easily on par if not beyond the Flash Steps she’d seen from even Soul Reapers like Hurricane. Firefly reached to her hip and withdrew an object that she threw at Rainbow Dash. She twirled to the side to dodge it, seeing a metal rod fly by her.

Huh..? she wondered what it was for a second, before realizing it was one of her mother’s portal rods.

The rod sparked to life and opened up a portal in front of the missiles chasing Dash. She wasn’t sure why her mother had done that, until she saw her mother grin, give a mocking salute, and suddenly vanish at high speed... revealing another portal behind her that was just now activate.

“Oh fu-” Dash shouted as the missile swarm, going from one portal to the other, went from trailing behind her to flying right towards her from the front!

On instinct alone she spread her wings wide and flared out with as much lightning as she could from every part of her body. The missiles detonated in a thick curtain of explosions in front of her, the pressure wave pushing nearly knocking Dash off balance, but she maintained her hover and started looking around for where her mother had gone.

What she saw first, instead were the shining metallic forms of the twelve blade shaped drones that had detached from her mother’s wings and now surrounded her.

“Aw crapbaskets.” Rainbow Dash muttered and then threw herself into pure evasion as all twelve drones cut loose with their thin lasers of purple death.

It took all of Rainbow’s collective athletic skill, supernaturally empowered reflexes, and raw speed to keep out of the weaving web the lasers formed as they tried to pierce her. The twelve drones moved with the jerky, fast movements of wasps, tracking Dash and continuously trying to keep her surrounded as she dodged, bobbed, juked, and generally flew like an insane electrical hummingbird to stay one inch ahead of the beams seeking to skewer her out of the sky.

Taking on her mother was tough enough, but having a murderous laser light show chasing her at the same time was going to be a problem. She knew her electrical sphere attack had a wide enough area of effect that she could probably catch a fair number of the drones with it, but they were moving and firing too fast to give her the time she’d need to charge it up. That meant she’d need to take them out the hard way.

Eyes focusing on one of the drones that had strayed closer to her than any of the others she switched her course in a flash, all but vanishing from sight as she flew right towards the drone. It fired its beam, the laser grazing by Dash’s cheek, but she reached it in an eyeblink and slammed her lightning charged first right through the drone with an uppercut that split the metallic annoyance in half. She them immediately zipped towards another, slipping through a curtain of other laser blasts as the drone she’d just hit exploded behind her. Reaching the next one she brought in a backhand that smashed through the drone, sending multiple bits of it spinning off to explode as she started flying for the next one in the pack.

This drone was suddenly joined by three of its fellows, all four opening up like spinning metal flowers. They fired simultaneously, four thicker lasers that combined into one large blast. Rainbow Dash turned over in mid-air and dived, slipping under the intense beam, almost blinded by the light but keeping her eye on the four drones. It didn’t look like they could move fast while firing, and she took advantage of the fact by throwing both of her palms out and sending out a streaming river of lighting that burned through the four drones as she passed by them. Flying on, she heard the drones exploding, but didn’t dare look, because so far she may have taken down half of them but all that meant was that the other six had had time to position themselves almost perfectly around her to box her in.

There was practically no way to avoid the lasers this time, their position just right to leave no room for her to entirely avoid them... so Rainbow Dash didn’t bother. Instead she flew straight up towards one of the drones, avoiding the lasers from the others but allowing the one she was heading for to hit her. The beam pierced a hole through her larger middle wing on her right side, sending a backlash of shockingly intense pain through her, but she didn’t slow down. In a lightning blue streak she flew up into a spinning front kick, shattering the drone in front of her while completing her spin so she was facing downward.

Shouting a wordless battlecry she unleashed her lightning in a storm of raining bolts, covering an area wide enough to catch the remaining drones, the discharge so large that it seemed to affect the weather around her in the shape of gathering storm clouds. Her bright lightning pierced the drones, causing them to spark and then explode in purple showers of flames and metal shards.

Wiping her face, sweat dripping off her hand, Dash glanced around. Where had her mother gotten off t-

“Left side, kid.”

That was her only warning before Rainbow felt her mother’s armored foot impact with the side of her face. She could all but feel her face get squashed in by the blow, spit and blood flying out of her mouth as she was sent spinning away in a senseless mass. She nearly blacked out, but Rainbow growled under her breath and spread her wings. She grimaced at the pain from her damaged wing, but managed to halt and right herself, turning to face Firefly, who was looking at her in almost an identical pose and expression as she’d had at the start of the fight.

“Hmm, you’re good enough to handle the Dragoons, but your situational awareness really needs work. Tough though. You really can take a beating.” Firefly frowned at herself. “Uh, it occurs to me that as your parent I probably shouldn’t be as thrilled by that as I just sounded.”

“Why are you still talking?” Rainbow spat, lightning dancing through her hair as it rose angrily.

“I can talk to you if I want to, while also fighting. Let’s face it, you’re not at the level yet where I have to focus so much I can’t afford to talk. Besides, it’s pretty clear that your heart isn’t as in this as you’re pretending it is.”

“What’s that supposed to mean!?” Dash’s words came in a heated rush as she flew at her mother, swinging her fists in a blurring series of punches, streaks of electricity flying from her fists with each strike. Firefly slid aside from each punch like Rainbow Dash was trying to hit a shadow, her mother always an inch or two ahead of her fists.

“It means you’re not there yet, Dashie. Don’t get me wrong, you’ve gotten strong, kid. Stronger than I was at your age, and I’m not talking about all this Fullbring spiritual power crap. I’m talking about you. I knew you were something special since the day I first held you-”

“Shut up! I don’t wanna hear any of this! You’ve got no right to talk like that!” Rainbow Dash yelled from the bit of her gut, a large sphere of electrical might forming around her right fist as she threw her fastest punch yet, the air itself breaking around her arm as she struck.

Firefly’s reaction was just as fast, her left hand going to her hip to withdraw the metallic, purple blade hilt that opened up to allow the thick, dark violet energy blade to extend out and intercept Dash’s fist. Lightning sparked around the blade, Rainbow Dash’s first pressing in on the blade but unable to push past it. As Rainbow grunted and tried to push in, to try and force her first to reach her mother, Firefly looked her daughter in the eye.

“Talk like what? Like I’m proud of you? What mother wouldn’t be proud of having a daughter who’s got the strength to stick by her friends during all this craziness? Even before Soul Society stuck its fingers into your life you were kicking butt against weird magic from another world, while also pulling off lead guitar and signer of your own band. Talk about a resume of awesomeness.”

Feeling like she was going to break teeth from how hard she was grinding them together, Rainbow Dash shouted back in her mother’s face, “None of which has anything to do with you!”

An explosion of lightning flared out of her in a spherical burst, for a second forcing Firefly back. When the electricity faded Dash was struggling for breath, but kept her eyes fixed on her mother, who was smoking slightly from the massive surge of lightning but looked otherwise unharmed as she straightened her hair out.

“I never said it did, kid. Doesn’t change the fact that I’m proud of the woman I see you becoming. But that’s not the problem is it? Not now. No, if you were going to live a normal life, you’d be on the fast track to greatness. But my Dashie has gone and dived nose first into the spirit wars alongside all her friends, so fast just isn’t fast enough. We don’t need normal awesome. We need something a bit beyond that.”

“What, and you think I need your help to get there, is that it?” Rainbow Dash said, feeling an explosive cocktail of emotions boiling inside her that all but mirrored the thick, gray stormclouds that were twisting across the sky around her and Firefly now. Her anger was reaching an all-time high, making her vision blur at the edges with red, but beneath all of that was an old, old scab of emotional pain that she’d forgotten for a long time, but now was all but impossible to ignore. “I don’t need anything from you! Not your help, not your pride, not your excuses, nothing!”

Her frustration and anger was only intensified by the fact that she could feel the hot wetness of tears trying to bud in her eyes, but she clenched her eyes tightly shut to stop those tears before glaring at her mother.

“I. Don’t. Need. You.”

The words left her mouth like heavy weights, yet instead of feeling unburdened, all she felt was a tighter constriction around her heart, weighing her down. The anger wasn’t a single shade lessened. This wasn’t helped by the fact that her mother’s expression was so infuriatingly hard to read! She’d just unloaded her feelings and her mother just had this look on her face like Firefly was trying to see the hidden picture in one of those stupid 3D paintings!

“I know it must have sucked when I left, but-”

“How many times do I have to say it? I don’t want to hear your excuses!”

“Yeah, because shouting at the top of your lungs that you don’t need your mother really sets that tone, doesn’t it? You don’t need me so much you feel the need to keep saying it over and over again. Which of us are you trying to convince? Do you think I wanted to go, Rainbow Dash? You think I liked leaving you and your dad behind? Do you believe for a single goddamned instant that I’ve gone a day without thinking about you? How you’re doing in school, if you’re making any friends, what kind of passions get you out of bed each day, what kind of music are you into?”

Rainbow Dash kept shaking her head, not wanting to hear any of these words. With a wordless shout she threw a lance of lightning at Firefly, but her mother deflected the wild blue bolt with a swipe of her energy blade, sending it careening through the clouds, which themselves now shook and cried with flashes of thunder and lightning.

“Rainbow Dash, I’ve stayed away all this time because if I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have gotten to experience any of that life. School, friends, none of it. Not if I’d been there.”

“The heck does that even mean?” Dash shot back, still pooling more lightning into her hands for another attack.

Firefly’s expression finally cracked, a real sense of both pain and fear crossing her features in a wave as she shook her head. The woman took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, steadying herself. “I can’t tell you yet, Dashie. Not until I know for sure that you can handle it. Beat me, and I’ll explain it all.”

“Grr, what do you think I’ve been trying to do!?” Rainbow Dash pulled her fists back, her wings flaring up again with humming arcs of power. Blood dripped in crimson droplets from her wounded arm, and her equally injured wing kept tormenting her with blinding pain, but she shoved it all aside to focus upon the image of her mother. Her power properly charged up, her fists both turned into incandescent spheres of barely contained power, Dash charged at her mother. Her speed was such that she all but outran her own lightning, just a flashing line of pure blue that slammed headlong into Firefly.

Both her fists hit Firefly’s chest at the same time.

”Lightning Fist Flash!”

Discharging both fists at once, she saw nothing but a brilliant flash of white and blue light and for a moment couldn’t feel anything, not even her own pain as a echoing crack of sound nearly deafened her. The bolt of raw lightning flew off into the distance, dozens of smaller bolts flying from it in jagged lances as it went. When her vision cleared and her other senses recovered, Rainbow Dash blinked once, then twice in deflated astonishment.

Firefly had taken the blow without so much as moving an inch, and while there was a cracked scorch mark on her armor, she was otherwise unharmed.

“Rainbow Dash, I’m sorry... but you can’t win. Not like this.”

The impact of Firefly’s sword hilt into Rainbow’s sternum blasted the breath right out of Dash and left her sitting there in a limp, stunned state. Her mother pushed her off the hilt of her sword, then put the weapon away, grabbing Dash by the arm before she could fall. Rainbow hung there, struggling to remember how to breathe, while Firefly spoke on in a sad, yet soft tone.

“I think I understand now what’s holding you back. It really is my fault. Heh... Sweet Cider was right, I suck at being a mom. She was always way better at the parent thing than I was. Guess that’s why she had so many kids, while I quit at one. Knew from the start, much as I loved you, much as I wanted to hold onto you, I was never going to be what you needed me to be. Stupid to think I could just waltz back into your life and be the cool mentor type. Starlight said I ought to try, since we wouldn’t likely get another chance before... everything goes down.”

When Rainbow Dash managed to get herself breathing again and her eyes focused on her mother, Firefly let go and allowed Dash to back up a few meters, hovering weakly in the air.

“D-don’t talk like... we’re not done...” Rainbow Dash said, coughing. “We totally aren’t.”

“I don’t see how else this is going to work, Dashie.” Firefly said, turning around as if she was about to fly off. “We’re almost out of time. By now Starlight’s probably got the Crossgate active, and if my senses are accurate Chrysalis is still playing around with those two Captains. I thought I could help you get to where you needed to be, but all I’m doing is holding you back.”

“I don’t understand! Holding me back from what!?”

Firefly glanced back at her, holding up a hand and putting two fingers up. “I figure there’s two kinds of loyalty in this world. The kind that’s made from obligations, and the kind that’s made from freedom. The obligations are like chains. They bind you to the thing you’re trying to be loyal to, keeping you tied to it so you can’t escape. They’re heavy, those bonds. They can be strong, but they weigh you down, too. Sometimes they pull on you so tight you can’t even breathe.”

She looked at Rainbow Dash with a heavy stare. “I think that’s the kind of loyalty you have.”

Taken aback, Rainbow looked at her mother with confused eyes. “Uhhhh, what? My loyalty is all... chainy? Okay, mom, I know we’re in the middle of a serious fight and heavy emotional stuff, but are you high?”

A annoyed vein popped out on Firefly’s forehead as she said, “No. Well, like, not lately. Not since I last hanged with Cloudy, anyway.”

“Wait, Pinkie Pie’s mom?”

“Oh yeah, she was waaaay into that stuff back in the day. I mean, she mellowed out after she started having kids, but she introduced me to... well nevermind, not important right now. I was trying to be all philosophical here and you’re not listening. Your loyalty is totally the chain based obligation type. I mean think about it, why are you so dang loyal to your friends?”

Rainbow Dash snorted, crossing her arms, or at least trying to, but the pain in her wounded one made it hard to manage the stance. “Pfft, because they’re my friends. Duh. I’ll always have their backs! Its got nothing to do with obligation! There’s no chains between us.”

“Except that the whole reason you’re so focused on staying loyal to them is because of what I did.” Firefly said, her own voice carrying a note of surprise, as if she herself was just coming to this epiphany. “I wasn’t loyal. I abandoned you and you never knew why. So you fight that pain by being as loyal as you can be. You don’t ever want to be like the mom that ditched you.”

The words felt like slaps across the face combined with a sickening punch to the gut that made acid brew and churn in the back of Rainbow Dash’s throat. She wanted to deny what her mother was saying, but while she might not have been as honest as Applejack, even she could feel a note of truth in those words. This only added fuel to the fire, however, like shoveling a whole dump truck's worth of coal into the furnace. All that time she’d been with the girls, from how hard she’d protected Fluttershy from bullies in their childhood to sticking by the girls as the faced down the sirens and friends turned rage demon, the thought that all that loyalty was rooted in how much she... she hated her mother for leaving her.

It hurt. Both the admission to herself of just how much vitriol she’d truly been hoarding against her mother all these years, and the realization that what Firefly said was true. She had hated what her mother had done so much that she’d been desperate to never betray another person in her life like that. She’d never abandon anyone, no matter what. Only, could she call that loyalty if it was only being done out of... a sense of obligation to not be like her mother?

“No!” she shouted, in as much denial to herself as to her mother. “That’s not all there is to it! I... I’m not just doing this to get back at you. My friends mean more to me than that!”

Firefly looked at her dead on, drawing her energy blade once more and holding it up in front of her, expression at once both hesitant, hard, and even hopeful. “If you really believe that, then prove it. Not to me, but to yourself. Come at me, and show me what your loyalty is really made from.”

Rainbow Dash managed a small smirk, despite the roiling storm tearing itself through her heart. Though the energy from her wings was visibly flagging, she brought out streams of the electricity from all six of the wings sprouting from her back. The four smaller ones made from pure electricity straightened out and flowed along the edges of the larger, metallic wings in the middle. The effect was as if they’d combined into two large wings edges in a cloak of lightning, and Dash used them to speed towards her mother at breakneck speed.

Just before reaching Firefly she abruptly changed course, zipping to the left, then circling around behind to the right, faster and faster until she was surrounding her mother with such speed that it seemed Rainbow Dash was in dozens of places at once. The lightning from her wings was now forming a dense web around Firefly, being condensed tighter until it became a solid sphere of humming power. Finally Rainbow Dash flew straight up above the sphere that contained her mother, and flipped over, proceeding to dive bomb it with her fists outstretched.

This attack had no name. She’d only just now even thought of it. Use the lightning to contain her mother and restrict her movements. Make it impossible for her to use her superior speed to evade. Then hit her head on in an attempt to break those armored wings.

Even as she dove down and impacted the lightning sphere, causing it to erupt with an explosion of electricity that made the surrounding stormclouds turn white with light, there was still doubt nagging inside her. She let out a wordless cry of denial at those doubts as she pressed through the lightning, which did her no harm, and in a flashing instant saw her mother and slashed as hard as she could with her own metallic wings to try and sever the ones from her mother’s back.

There was a millisecond of time where Rainbow Dash saw her mother clearly. The electricity from the sphere’s explosion was coursing over Firefly’s body, causing a teeth clenching look of pain on her mother’s face for the first time in the fight. Yet despite that pain and the fact that the lightning was for once causing damage to Firefly’s armor, the woman still focused on Rainbow Dash, and the look in Firefly’s eyes was both hardened, and filled with a reservoir of saddened regret. Then there was a deep violet flash of energy, and pain blinded Dash.

The massive discharge of lightning faded and Rainbow Dash felt herself slowly falling past her mother, who was holding her energy sword out as if she’d just finished a strike, only Dash had never even seen the blade or her mother move. Then Firefly sighed and let the energy sword’s blade vanish and she put the empty hilt back in its side compartment on her armored hip.

“You can do it, Rainbow Dash. Even if you fall, I have to trust that you can do it. Find your wings.”

With a sound like cracking glass Rainbow Dash felt her wings break apart, the lightning spurting out from the broken ends like streams of azure blood. With nothing holding her aloft Dash started to fall, tumbling down through the storm clouds. She barely felt the wind ripping past her, however, as her body had gone numb.

I lost...?

The thought hung there in her mind, but her mother’s words echoed back as well.

Find my wings...? You just destroyed them! What am I supposed to do?

Passing through the clouds, she saw the vast forest below, rushing up to meet her. Would her mother catch her, before she hit the ground?

What kind of stupid question is that? a part of her shouted inside her head. Of course she will. She’s your mom. She loves you.

“Then why did she leave...?” Rainbow Dash whispered, a few sparks of tears gracing the air as she fell.

Duh, are you some kind of idiot or what? Pay attention! She left because she loves you! Something was seriously wrong back then, can’t you read between the lines!? Okay, maybe she should’ve said something, but maybe there’s a reason for that too. Thing is, why keep hating her so much?

“But I can’t just... fix everything...”

Who says you have to? Just let it go for now, and work on fixing the rest later. She’s your mom. You only got the one. Besides, don’t you have friends you need to get back to?

Rainbow Dash shook her head, closing her eyes as much against the wind as to just stop seeing the ground getting closer and closer. “My loyalty, is it worth anything if I just did it to not be my mom?”

Pfft, get over yourself. You think you’re the only person who ever did something because of parental baggage? It doesn’t make you a bad person, or make that loyalty to your pals any less awesome and real. They still mean something to you don’t they? You still want to help them and watch their backs, don’t you? That’s got nothing to do with mom, does it? It's your choice. You have that freedom to choose what matters to you and to stay loyal to it.

“Not chains...”

Damned straight. Not chains at all. That loyalty is who you are. That’s loyalty made out of wings.

----------

Up above Firefly was carefully watching Rainbow Dash’s descent with critical eyes. She knew she could rescue her daughter in an instant, as she’d set a few of her portal rods down there and could use one to teleport down there instantly to catch Dash before she hit the ground. But she was waiting because she sensed this could be the moment.

Fullbring revolved around the connections one made to the souls dwelling within certain objects, and the emotional strength of those ties. Yet her daughter and her friends were subtly different, drawing a connection to an aspect of that magic from the land of Equestria, combined with a part of themselves that they held dear.

She knew her daughter’s loyalty was a powerful thing, but flawed, a flaw that Dash couldn’t understand unless Firefly had been there to confront and bring it out into the open. If Rainbow Dash could overcome that...

The sky was painted with a flare of incredible blue tinted light, breaking through even the thick stormclouds and turning them luminous. The corona of that light enveloped where Rainbow Dash had been, and with a crack of thunder it seemed the stormclouds themselves swirled down in a series of tornadoes that combined in one massive pillar of thunderous storm around that point of light. Then it all burst apart with a clap of air splitting thunder, clearing much of the sky in a painfully blue haze.

For a moment Firefly didn’t see anything, yet she felt her daughter’s presence. It was like Rainbow Dash’s spirit energy was coating the whole sky.

A prismatic streak flickered by her, and she heard her daughter’s laughter like a gust of jubilant wind. She looked to see a literal rainbow cutting acrossing the sky in a twirling upward arc, and at the head of it was Rainbow Dash.

Her Fullbring had both changed, while fundamentally remaining very much the same. Her main wings had gained a good meter of wingspan, while at the same time transmuting into continuously pulsing jets of pure prismatic rainbow colored energy that were at once looked both solid and made from the incandescent distillation of colors even beyond the rainbow. To Firefly the colors were enthralling, even blinding to look at. Flanking those wings were four others, and far more familiar in nature to Firefly. Where once the four wings that were set above and below the central wings were made of electricity, now they’d become long, elegant and solid blades of metal of a gleaming but darker blue than Rainbow Dash’s skin. Despite being solid now the blade wings still thrummed and buzzed with arcs of electricity. All six wings were connected to a central, metallic chestpiece that armored Rainbow Dash’s torso, also forged from dark blue metal edged with accents of white. Most notable was a brighter, lighter blue gem about six inches across embedded in the center of the chest piece, sparking internally with lines of electricity.

With a fast, yet smoothly eased movement Dash turned her ascent into a swift dive, all but instantly reaching where Firefly watched and seeming to land on the air itself in a circular shock wave of multi-colored light. Firefly looked over her daughter appreciatively, nodding approval.

“Not as full bodied as what I’m rocking, but I can definitely see the influences. So, what’s it called? I remember from when it happened with me that you hear the name of your Fullbring when they finally become complete.”

Rainbow Dash gave off a dazzling smile and cracked her knuckles.

“Loyalty Knows No Chains.”

Firefly shared her daughter’s smile, “Hah, sounds about right.”

Rainbow Dash, despite her smile, did sigh and put on a more serious face, the nature of her spirit energy giving off a feeling of sharpening and focusing upon Firefly. “Don’t get this wrong, mom. I’m still mad as hell at you. You have a lot of explaining to do to me. Right now though I gotta get back to my friends. They need me.”

“They do, but not for fighting Starlight.” Firefly said, aiming her Ace of Sky’s rifle once more, “Now that you’ve gotten this far, there’s one last thing I need to do as your mother. Once that’s done, if there’s time, I’ll explain what I can. But you’re not leaving until then.”

Rainbow Dash tilted her head in a look that screamed teenage insolence, and proceeded to all but vanish in a burst of rainbow light. Firefly swore under her breath, feeling the shattering windforce of her daughter’s flight that she had to spread her own armored wings to stabilize herself. She had to actually exert some effort to match Rainbow Dash’s new speed, whipping out her energy blade as she parried the first blindingly fast blow, if only barely.

Adjusting to her daughter’s much quicker pace, Firefly’s visor sped a quick cascade of data across her vision and into her mind as she analyzed Dash’s new movements and calculated just how much output she had to pull out of Ace of Sky to match it. Which turned out to be a lot more than Firefly thought she’d need.

It took us months to really get all we could out of Fullbrings, back in the day. Dashie’s already this far, and she only just completed her Fullbring. Once she’s gotten used to it, she could easily blow right by me. Well, if not for Starlight’s experiments...

Now evenly matched, the pair flew across the sky in a dizzying set of curving arcs and clashing spirals, Dash’s fist glowing bright with so much energy that it seemed her skin turned translucent blue with cracking electrical power that broke out in god-like thunder from every blow she threw. Firefly’s energy blade curved and bent under each blow, even as she expertly matched to parry Rainbow Dash’s strikes. But this was no longer easy or casual blocks, but Firefly throwing all she had into keeping pace with her daughter.

No longer playing around, Firefly spread her own wings wider and all but tripled her own speed, becoming a violet streak of light. She threw out half a dozen of her portal rods, opening them up in mid air as she aimed her cannon. Firing a blast of thick purple energy into one portal she let the beam split through the other five portals, coming at Rainbow Dash from all sides.

Rainbow Dash responded by spinning around, her prismatic energy wings flaring and sending out crackling beams of rainbow energy that slammed into and countered each of Firefly’s beams. The following cacophonous detonation of power wiped out the portals, but Firefly was far from done, her wings now splitting off a new, freshly regenerated set of a dozen blade drones.

The drones zoomed in, half of them projecting thin blades of energy while the other six opened up and fired a combined blast at Rainbow Dash, tearing across the sky.

Firefly thought she saw the beam hit Dash squarely, the torrent of lavender power pushing her daughter back across the sky. Only then she saw the energy breaking around where her daughter held firm against the tide, using both hands to hold back the energy as it seemed to splay off a field of electrical power that acted as a shield. Once the energy had played out, Dash eyed the six blade spewing drones flying at her, and reached to the orb at her chest.

The orb glowed solid blue, and something emerged from inside it. A dark blue rod that looked about a foot long, until Dash grabbed hold of it and the rod extended to an easy five foot length. Then from either end of the rod the metal opened up to form cross-guards, and with a snap of power twin spear heads of solid azure lightning formed from the new weapon.

Rainbow Dash twirled the double lightning spear with eye catching speed and precision, and with only two sweeping arcs that left trails of bright blue light in the air she severed the six drones coming towards her. As the broken drones exploded, Rainbow Dash looked at the other remaining six and her eyes literally flashed with lightning around the edges of her iris.

Firefly heard a crack of thunder above her, and the sky darkened. She looked up to see stormclouds had gathered once again, only now it seemed they gathered with a purpose. As Dash raised her lightning spear to the heavens, the heavens seemed to respond, and with a roar bolts of lightning fell from the sky, impacting Firefly’s remaining drones and turning them to broken cinders.

“Broke your toys.” Rainbow Dash taunted. Firefly smirked.

“That’s okay. Got more.”

The wings on her back split in half, each one now ejecting a stream of violet particles that formed into two wings of light while the physical blades now swarmed around Firefly, twenty four in total.

“Dragoon Purge: Carnage Burst!”

The twenty four new and larger Dragoons now all pointed skyward at her mental direction, and firing off a barrage of blasts, each one as large as the beams fired by her cannon. The energy tore through the stormclouds, dispersing them in seconds. Firefly then aimed the drones at Rainbow Dash, who stood poised and ready for whatever Firefly might throw at her. The sight made Firefly grin, and feel a surge of happiness, despite the fact she knew this might be the last time she saw Rainbow Dash, even if everything went according to plan.

She just had one duty left to perform, and Dash was using up more than enough of her newly evolved Fullbring’s power to trigger it. Just one more push.

“Alright kid, let’s see what your Loyal Wings can really do!”

Rainbow Dash responded with a wily look and an expanding burst of prismatic power from her new wings. “Sure, if you can keep up enough to even see me!”

In an blink Dash became living streak of color, and Firefly flew forward on a wave of violet light to meet her daughter head on while the Dragoons swarmed around them both. Lightning spear and energy blade slashed against each other in a sparkling shower, Dash spinning her weapon in such a dizzying display that it was like she was holding a solid disc of storm wracked might as she thrust and slashed at Firefly. To outside onlookers the fight would’ve looked like a mind numbing swirl of flashing lights as the two women soared through the air, while the streaking Dragoons began to fire wide beams of raw power across the sky in a complex array.

Rainbow Dash seemed to move faster with every passing second, keeping one step ahead of Firefly’s beams while remaining on the offensive. Firefly had to devote much of her focus on keeping her daughter’s wild attacks at bay, her own wings flaring bright and brighter with lavender particles of light to keep her speed on par with Rainbow’s freshly evolved Fullbring. One thrust of of the double lightning spear cut strands of hair from her head and gave her mind a jolt at the same time, Dash following up the thrust with an almost instant back swing from the other end of the spear, clipping some of Firefly’s hip armor off. Firefly responded with an equally fast slash of her blade that scored a mark across Dash’s chest armor, then a kick that her daughter caught on the shaft of her spear. The powerful kick was still strong enough to send Dash skidding backwards, but she kept her balance far better than any other time Firefly had hit her.

However Firefly saw the first crack of red energy appearing on Dash’s armor and knew time was now shorter than ever and she had to end this now.

“Okay Dashie, enough playing around. Come at me with all you got! If you get through this next attack, I’ll call it your win!”

With a gesture she brought all of her Dragoons around her in a tightly packed formation, and held out her cannon, sparks of deep lavender power reaching from her body and wings to connect to all twenty four drones. The energy increased in intensity and brightness until she and all of the Dragoons now glowed with an internal gleam of violet light.

“Carnage Burst Full Volley!”

All of the Dragoons suddenly opened fire at once, along with Firefly firing her cannon. Both Firefly and the Dragoons started to move from spot to spot, so fast they looked as if they’d become an army in the sky, and they all cut loose with lances of destructive power, until the resulting storm of energy beams was like it was rainfall.

Rainbow Dash responded by flying right into the middle of the storm. Her central wings flashed again and again with blinding washes of many colored lights, firing beams into the storm to counter the ones coming towards her. With often inches to spare she hurled herself through the unending and hellish barrage, a streak of rainbow color so swift that a mach cone had formed around her, growing tighter around Rainbow's body with every passing second. Her doubled sided lightning spear blurred around her as she deflected energy blasts that her wings missed, and still she soared on, straight for Firefly.

And Firefly could feel it more than see it. The wild surge of power inside her daughter. The echoing cry of Hollow energy as it went wild. She knew what was coing, but Dash didn’t. None of the girls could, because she knew Discord hadn’t mentioned it. This was one of the reasons he’d asked her to come here, when he and Ditzy had been under the impression that Firefly was on their side. Honestly she wasn’t sure what side she was on, other than the one that’d help her friends the most. In that way, she and her daughter wree much the same.

You’re going to go so far, Dashie. I can only hope I can make sure there’s a world worth having you in it, and that you understand.

As Rainbow Dash broke through Firefly’s relentless barrage of blasts, she was aiming her lightning spear towards Firefly unerringly. From the look on Dash’s fast she hadn’t noticed that her Fullbring’s energy was growing rapidly erratic, the lightning and prismatic wing energy becoming jagged as Hollow power started to run rampant.

As Firefly swung her energy blade and blocked the spear, the two weapons clashing with a concussive explosion of force and sending curling fingers of lightning to rip across the sky. Firefly felt her spirit energy struggling inside her to push back her daughter’s, and saw the spear of lightning pushing through her own sword like butter melting under a laser scalpel. However just as the harsh spear of writhing blue electricity was breaking through Rainbow Dash noticed the way the rest of her power was going out of control with cracks of red light pouring from her chest piece and wings.

“What the-!? What’s going o-aaaaaaAARGH!” Rainbow Dash screamed in pain as her Fullbring started to overload.

Firefly, as calmly as she could while hearing her beloved daughter’s cry of agony, knocked aside the spear and tossed aside her cannon so she could put the palm of her hand on Rainbow Dash’s chest, right above her heart.

“Hold on baby. Momma’s got this.”

With a deep breath she pushed in the energy from her own Fullbring, wrapping around the wild core of Dash’s own and guiding the erratic surge of power. There was no containing it, per se, only guiding it. She and the girls had learned that lesson the hard way, during the days of Xcution. Sweet Cider almost hadn’t survived it. But Firefly knew what to do now.

Bursts of red power erupted from all six of Rainbow Dash’s wings and from the inside of her chest armor’s gem. Firefly used her own power to direct the torrent upwards, which rose into the sky like a writing crimson snake. Firefly held her daughter close, focusing all of her power and might on keeping the torrent safely erupting upward and away from Rainbow Dash. It must have hurt, she sure remembered it hurting from when it happened to her, but she’d had Sweet Cider doing this very same thing, guiding the flow of uncontrolled power until it ran its course.

When the energy finally did subside Rainbow Dash’s Fullbring was still there, intact, but its power had clearly faded. Firefly knew the effect was temporary and it’d recover its strength in time, but it wouldn’t overload like that again. At least she hoped it wouldn’t. These kids did have different Fullbrings, after all.

Holding her daughter at arm’s length, she brushed Dash off, saying. “You solid? I know that hurt like a bitch, but I think I managed to direct it all up and away. That was closer than I wanted to cut things, but hey, whatever works, right?”

Dash was drawing in deep, gasping breaths, still looking a tad rattled at what had just happened. Her ruby eyes blinked at Firefly and she blurtered out, “The heck was that just now!? I felt like... like I did when Ditzy was training us, about to burn up from the inside out.”

“That’s because you were, kid.” Firefly said, pointing at the cracks in Dash’s armored chest piece. “It's a lot like the overload you went through before, only if it was anything like when Ditzy trained us that overload was brought on by her unique little Hollow energy arena trick. This was different. When you complete your Fullbring, it’ll eventually overload when you first use it, and if there isn’t someone experienced with Hollow spirit particles to keep it under control you could get seriously hurt, even die from the overload. Damn near killed Sweet Cider, since she was the first one to fully evolve back then. After that she helped the rest of us deal with our own evolutions, just like I did here with you.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her hand, where she held her twin lightning spear. The energy was now more under control, the spear blades flickering weakly but without any out of control red energy. Dash’s eyes glanced sharply at Firefly then, “Is this why you wanted to fight me? To... make sure I didn’t get hurt when this happened?”

Firefly ran a hand through her head of blue hair, feeling a complicated swirl of emotions. “Part of it. I figured you’d be the first to pop your Fullbring’s full power, and while Ditzy might’ve had plans to contain this problem herself, I didn’t want to leave it to chance. Its not why I’m here, you know, ‘cause Starlight, but I figured while I was in the neighborhood I might as well make sure my little girl didn’t go and get herself blown to bits by her own power. Besides, I knew if I could get you to evolve your Fullbring, I could trust you with something.”

“With what!? Mom, you’re working for some crazy lady, you just jump back into my life out of nowhere with some big secret as to why you left, and spent the past ten minutes kicking my ass all over the place, and... and will you stop acting so casual about all of this!? I...” Rainbow Dash wiped at her face with an arm, her wings flaring with fresh energy. “I’m still so mad at you. I... I don’t hate you. I don’t. And there’s no time for me to keep yelling at you when my friends need me. So just... tell me what you need to say, then I’m going to my friends, and if I can, help then kick your friend’s butt into next week.”

Firefly let out a short, dry chuckle. “Yeah, Starlight won’t be that easy to take, and honestly kid you and your pals aren’t likely to even get a fair crack at her. She’s had this plan locked down for awhile. Discord and Ditzy might’ve called me in to spy on her, but bottom line is that I’m on her side this time around. Wish I could tell you everything, but it won’t matter soon. Only thing that really matters to me is letting you know why I had to go. You can listen, and do with the info what you will, but it won’t change whose side I’m on in this thing Starlight’s got going on.”

There was suddenly a silvery flash of light in the distance, and both Firefly and Rainbow Dash looked to see a sphere of translucent white and silvery power starting to encompass where Hitsyo Aku’s tower was. Firefly swore under her breath.

“Shit, there really isn’t any more time. Rainbow Dash, listen to me, okay? The reason I left... the reason I had to leave, and still do...”

Her daughter’s eyes flicked back and forth between the sphere of ever brightening light around where her friends were, and Firefly. After a second Rainbow Dash grit her teeth and nodded, still holding her lightning spear at the ready, but clearly willing to listen.

So Firefly took a deep breath, then told Rainbow Dash the truth.

----------

More than a mile in the opposite direction from where Firefly and Rainbow had gone for their confrontation the now dried out lake and the forest surrounding it were ablaze. A sea of fire stretched through the trees as a titanic clash of power took place in the sky above it.

One of Shinryu Taiyo’s draconic representations flew upwards while belching forth a weltering wave of plasma that evaporated what little moisture was left in the air as the unrestrained heat sought to catch a the flickering motions of Chrysalis’s black form.

”Stay still you putrid wench and feel the cleansing flames consume your corrupt soul!”

In response Chrysalis tapped a finger to her lips in mock contemplation as she continued to zip away with quick bursts of high-speed Sonido. “Hmm, you much such a tempting offer. I enjoy a bit of pain play as much as the next gal, but I really prefer to dish it out at least as much as I’m getting it. Oh, and we haven’t even established a safe word yet. How’s ‘moronic Zanpaktou’ sound to you?”

Behind Chrysalis a roaring wall of white plasma rose, spreading wings as Shinryu’s other half came at the Espada with outstretched claws. Its roar was like from the throat of a volcano, and streams of heat made the air waver as the dragon slashed at Chrysalis. The Espada’s smiling face remained cocky, but her eyes winced as she used her Arrancar Zanpaktou to intercept the flaming claws. Even with her immense spirit pressure the heat of Tenryu in close proximity still blistered her dark fingers, even as her Zanpaktou held back the claws.

“Then again, I’ve always prefered to give than to receive.” Chrysalis said with a pained hiss and a roiling aura of shadow rimmed green flowed around her blade as she slashed up with it, expanding a curved, sharp crescent of energy that tore into Shinryu’s claw. The dragon gave out a startled roar of both pain and rage, its tail swiping around like a whip. Chrysalis evaded it with a burst of Sonido, yet even then the tail of shining plasma came surprisingly close and the heat of it was intense enough to char some of her clothes even as she dodged it.

The other half of Shinryu Taiyo chased her upwards, belching forth another blinding bar of white hot plasma, which Chrysalis countered by extending a finger over the hilt of Zecora’s Zanpaktou in her left hand and firing a emerald Cero that crashed into the plasma in a swirling, combined explosion.

“Now stop being shy Celestia, Luna. You two can come play too.”

Celestia appeared above her, her right hand already outstretched while her left performed a complex set of gestures with her fore and index finger.

“As you wish. Bakudo Number Sixty Six: Shiroi Suna no Te!” (Hands of White Sand)

On either side of Celestia swirls of pearl white sands appeared in the air, forming together into two giant hands, each the size of a house. When Celestia pointed her fore and index finger at Chrysalis, the two hands of sand moved with swift speed, opening up and crashing down on the Espada like someone seeking to crush a bug.

In the same instant a rolling blanket of shadows reached up beneath the massive clump of crushing sand, and from those shadows Luna rose up, standing on the surface of the shadows and carrying the twin scythes of her Zanpaktou. Slashing with both scythes at once the pool of shadows around Luna formed identical blades, only many times larger. The shadow scythes sliced right through the ball of sand multiple times, causing it to burst apart.

Before the sand particles even dispersed both dragons of Shinryu flew up past Luna, passing on either side of her. The scorching heat was so prevalent that Luna had to raise a protective cloak of shadows to shield herself from it. The twin dragons gave out an eardrum blasting roar as they let out two jets of scalding plasma that burned through the sand, causing it to almost instantly turn to flecks of glittering glass.

And yet despite all that, Chrysalis stood where she’d been, amid the stardust glints of melting glass, and was brushing herself off. She was injured, certainly. Luna’s shadow blades had cut deep and bleeding gouges through her chest in a near perfect X-shaped pattern, showing the bone of rib cage in some places in the ragged, crimson wounds. Chunks of her flesh were scorched to blackened masses, and yet Chrysalis sucked in a breath that sounded pleased and she flashed a white toothed grin.

“Mmm, although I see you’re both such generous givers how am I going to compete? Oh, right...”

She licked her lips and stimulated her Hollow essence, letting it wash over her in a cold echo that interacted with the pain of her body like it was turning it to warm pleasure. In mere seconds the blood dripping wounds across her chest sealed up, the flesh regrowing itself in mere instants. The burns washed away like oil under a water hose, new flesh pushing away the charred pieces. In all but an eyeblink Chrysalis’s injures were simply gone.

“I’m the Espada with the greatest regenerative powers. How do I keep forgetting that? So, let’s make this more interesting.”

Using her own Zanpaktou she took the deeply curved blade’s length and ran it over her left arm. Crimson blood welled up and she let the droplets fall until several dozen globs of blood hung suspended in the air around her. “Here’s something I couldn’t do in our last encounter Celestia. Tell me if you like it.”

“I’d rather not see it at all.” Celestia said, “Tenryu, whatever she’s doing, stop her!”

”The impure one shall burn in a cauldron of eternal fire!”

The two dragons started to disgorge a rapid fire series of plasma spheres. The bright, pulsing balls of white fire surrounded Chrysalis in a dense field. The glowing blue eyes of Shinryu’s dragons both flashed at the same time, and the spheres flew inward, converging on Chrysalis. Luna, knowing what was coming, dove into her shadow for its full protection.

Chrysalis rolled her eyes, and a Garganta portal opened behind her and she simply stepped through it with her hovering field of blood droplets. The plasma spheres detonated around the portal in a expanding globe of fire that was like a miniature sun. What few trees had remained around the lakeshore turned to charcoal stumps under the pressure wave of heat until the miniature sun burned itself out in a burst of hurricane force wind.

However Chrysalis avoided any serious harm as her Garganta portal reopened a few more dozen meters up and she stepped out.

“You know it’s refreshingly terrifying how much power you have Celestia. Its intoxicating. I do so love seeing you be serious. Why not use your Bankai? Even I might not be able to regenerate from that kind of unmitigated, destructive ruin.”

Even as she spoke she placed a loving finger upon one of the floating droplets of blood, and a spark of emerald power leaped from her finger and between all of the blood droplets at once. Abruptly all the droplets started to writhe and expand, sharp and bloody productions ripping free from the growing central mass as each droplet in the span of a few seconds began to form bodies and limbs.

”Nacimiento Sanguinario.” (Sanguine Birth)

With piercing howls like knives scraping on glass each blood droplet grew into a fully formed Hollow. Each was humanoid in form, in the barest sense of the term, but with sharp angled, insectoid bodies teeming with bladed spikes and other keen protrusions meant to tear and gouge with. Long claws and fang filled maws still dripped blood from their sudden ‘birth’ as these new Hollows howled their hunger to the sky.

Chrysalis smiled and pet one with parental glee. “Go play little ones. Put on a show for mommy.”

As a wild pack the freshly created Hollows descended. Celestia looked up at them without a trace of compassion, but only a form of twisted disgust as she gestured upwards. Shinryu Taiyo both let out matching howls of rage that drowned out the pack of Hollows and both dragons rushed the pack in twin streaks of white fire. The descending Hollows responded with open maws charging crimson Cero’s, and in a wild mass the two dragons of shining plasma crashing into a barrage of blood red Cero beams.

Celestia frowned at the melee. Shinryu Taiyo’s plasma flames were burning these newly created Hollows easily enough, although each moved with speed well beyond a lesser Hollow as many evaded the lashing tails, buffeting wings, and cleaving claws of the dragons. Yet it was clear these creations were no match for the Shikai released Zanpakutou. At best the pack of Hollows would occupy the dragons for a matter of minutes at most.

Which was of course exactly why Chrysalis had created them.

She sped with an instant Sonido to appear behind Celestia, her right hand pulled back and her fingers held together to shape her hand into a knife point. Without a sound she thrust forward, trying to impale Celestia from behind.

A scythe flew up and deflected Chrysalis’s knife handed strike. The scythe spun around and like a boomerang came back to Luna’s hand even as she flew up and came at Chrysalis with not only a rolling tempest of scythe strikes, but her shroud of shadows expanded around her like an ocean wave, generating dozens of sharp tendrils that struck out to try and impale the Espada.

Chrysalis laughed in delight, working both Zecora’s and her own Zanpaktou in tandem to deflect the attacks seeking her flesh, and even then Luna was swift enough and her shadows prevalent and persistent enough that Chrysalis felt the sharp sting of cuts along her body. Yet the wounds meant little, healing between one eyeblink and the next.

“I know your Shikai well, Luna. Death by a thousand cuts is your usual tactic. You must know it won’t work with me. Come now, like your sister I have to ask, why not use your Bankai? You must have it by now. You were such a innocent little slip five hundred years ago, but now you're a big bad Captain. Surely you can do more than this? Mmm, or is the little girl from back then still tempted by my offer of showing her power and pleasures beyond her imaginings?”

“Silence your foul mouth, harlot! I hardly need Bankai to deal with you.” Luna spat back, but Chrysalis saw the flustered look in her eyes. Hah, five centuries and Luna was still susceptible. She likely remembered what Chrysalis could do once she got a taste of another’s soul. It’d been such fun to toy with Luna back then, too bad the power had a time limit and she’d need another bite of Luna’s soul to have the same influence she once did.

The shadows of Luna’s Zanpaktou doubled their speed, the blackness curving out to seek to encompass Chrysalis. She flew back, leaping away from the grasp of Tsuki no Kagetsume’s shadows. Feeling Celestia’s reiatsu behind her she turned to see the woman blocking her path out, potent blue streams of Kido energy already gathering in her fore and index finger as she thrust it out towards Chrysalis.

“Hado Number Seventy Three: Soren Sokatsui!”

The raging blue beam crashed into Chrysalis head on, not only doing damage but halting her momentum until she couldn’t escape the shadowy grasp of Luna’s Zanpaktou. Hissing both in equal parts pain and pleasure as Celestia’s Kido scorched her right arm and shoulder raw, she chuckled as she looked at the massive sphere of shadow she was now inside. Celestia stood there as well, starkly contrasted with the darkness around her. Chrysalis could feel the reiatsu from Celestia’s Zanpaktou as it devoured her swarm of children, although her little fresh born fledglings were putting up a berserker fight. Fresh borns like that had no personality or will of their own yet, just mindless drones tied to her will. And they had a useful trick, now that the last few remained fighting Shinryu Taiyo.

“I can’t remember Celestia, do your pet dragons feel pain at all?” she asked casually, licking her lips and the jagged horn on her head flashed with emerald light.

Suddenly there was the sound of massive explosions from outside the shadow as Chrysalis's five or six remaining children self-destructed, blasting the twin dragons with balls green flame. The dragon’s roared in pain, and Chrysalis laughed.

“Well, that answers that.”

Celestia winced slightly, but her voice remained strong, “That will hardly stop my Zanpaktou, and you are now trapped, Espada.”

The surrounding shadows writhed and a dripping array of giant scythe blades emerged from the sphere’s inner walls, slashing at Chrysalis as Luna’s voice rang out from the surrounding darkness. “And we shall not be allowing you to escape this time!”

Twisting about with several rapid Sonidos to avoid the slashing scythe blades of shadow, Chrysalis sighed. “Oh you don’t believe that at all. You know you can’t trap me, that’s why you haven’t used your Bankai. Either of you. Celestia fears killing you, Luna, if she uses her full power. She still sees you as weak and fragile, just like she did back then. Ah, and you’re always so afraid, so you don’t use your Bankai, because you know you can’t kill me and you don’t want me to spread word of what it can do to my fellow Espada. Five centuries and nothing has changed between you two. One still sees the other as a weak little shadow following in her shining wake, and the other still fears taking hold of anything that isn’t guaranteed.”

She held off one shadow scythe with her Arrancar Zanpaktou while kicking out with a leg to hold off another, while she held Zecora’s Zanpaktou in front of her.

“No offense, ladies, but I’m growing bored of this. Open the beholder’s eye; Kodokuna Shinjitsu.” (Solitary Truth)

Zecora’s Zanpaktou transformed in Chrysalis’s grasp. The katana flowed in a wash of silver motes of light that in their wake left a long, wide weapon that looked much like an elongated, blunt rectangle of metal. Upon that length of metal were a set of four circular mirrors, all embedded into the metal and appearing on both sides of the ‘blade’. The handle was long and wrapped in white and black striped cloth. Chrysalis held the Zanpaktou up and light reflected from the mirrors, and the Espada smiled thinly.

“There you are.”

Celestia’s eyes shot wide and she shouted, “Luna, look out!”

Before Celestia’s warning even finished Chrysalis opened her mouth wide and from her throat disgorged a wide, powerful Cero of sickly green destruction at a particular point in the shadow sphere’s wall. As the beam hit she heard Luna cry out in surprise as the woman was hit by the beam and driven back until both her and the beam broke through the shell of shadow, leaving the sphere with an open, crumbling hole in it. Luna had crossed her scythes in front of her in time to absorb much of the Cero’s deadly power, but she was sporting multiple bleeding burns across her body. Chrysalis hadn’t stopped, flying right out of the shadow sphere to swing Zecora’s Zanpaktou down hard enough that, even though Luna deflected with one scythe the blow drove Luna down into the crater that had once been the lake.

The mirrors on Kodokuna Shinjitsu flared again with light, pouring information into Chrysalis’ mind. This Shikai form revealed everything taking place around the user, no matter what manner of power tried to obscure it. Illusion, hypnosis, conventional cover, it didn’t matter. Whatever existed around the user was revealed to the Zanpaktou wielder’s mind. That’s how she knew exactly where Luna was hidden among her shadows, and it was how she now knew Celestia was charging up a most potent Kido behind her. Celestia had remained in the mouth of the hole blown in the sphere of shadows, quietly chanting the incantation of the Kido, which even as she whispered it Chrysalis still knew the words thanks to Zecora’s Zanpaktou revealing them.

“Limit of the thousand hands, respectful hands, unable to touch the darkness. Shooting hands unable to reflect the blue sky. The road the basks in the light, the wind that ignited the embers, time that gathers when both are together. There is no need to hesitate, obey my orders! Light bullets, eight bodies, nine items, book of heaven, diseased treasure, great wheel, grey fortress tower! Aim far away, scatter brightly and cleanly when fired!”

Chrysalis nearly facepalmed. Soul Reaper Kido sometimes reminded her of ad libs created by particularly stoned monks. Still, knowing that Celestia using a full incantation meant this had to be a high level Kido, Chrysalis prepared herself but turning to face the woman and drawing her own Zanpaktou’s edge across her chest, blood welling up along her flesh. As she did so a spark of bright blue power started to form around where her blood touched the air, transforming into a neon sphere that swirled with multiple twisting beams of light as it charged up.

The shadow sphere shuddered and descended like a black balloon dripping ink, flowing down towards where Luna had hit the crater of the lake below. Meanwhile Celestia remained where she stood in the air, the power of her Kido now formed into ten oval bullets of condensed reishi. Each bullet was little larger than your average sofa, but the power condensed in them was concerning even for one like Chrysalis. Luckily her own power was reaching its peak, the blue sphere forming in front of her bleeding chest glowing with transcendent light.

Both women triggered their attacks simultaneously.

“Hado Number Ninety One: Senju Koten Taiho!” (Thousand-Hand Bright Heaven Cannon)

“Gran Rey Cero.” (Royal Hollow Flash)

The bullets of pulsing pink light around Celestia all fired at once with sonic wakes of air trailing them as they converged on Chrysalis. The Espada, in turn, was all but engulfed by the neon blue aura of a wildly twisting Cero beam that fired from her bloody chest, the very fabric of space being torn in a shimmering wave through the air. Bullets and Cero collided in a simultaneous, swirling mixed aura of pink and blue that then exploded with such force that even Luna, hundreds of feet down in the lake, felt herself being crushed right back down into the ground by the pressure wave.

When the smoke cleared from the combined blast Celestia was missing large chunks of her Captains robe and clothing, her arms crossed defensively in front of her and both those arms and her legs, once marble white, now scarred with black and angry red burn marks. Half of her face was showing similarly marring burns, and right eye was sealed shut, blood trailing down her face.

Chrysalis wasn’t any better off, the explosion having detonated closer to her than to Celestia. Her left side was practically missing, with black gore sticking from an open ribcage. Zecora’s Zanpaktou fell to the ground, Chrysalis not having a hand on that side to hold it with.

“Heheheh...” Chrysalis chuckled, savoring the agony and licking burned, bleeding lips. “Always the best. I don’t know what it is about you but the pain is always somehow more savory when it's with you, Celestia. Tell me, did that explosion burst your eye, or just burn it?”

Celestia remained silent, breathing heavily as she glanced up with her remaining good eye. White flames descended as Shinryu Taiyo’s twin dragons flew down to join their wielder. One of the dragons glanced towards Celestia with a critical eye.

”You allowed this creature to injure you wielder?”

Celestia huffed out a laugh, sweat dripping down her face along with her blood. “I wouldn’t say ‘allowed’. Quickly, we must finish her before she-”

Chrysalis’ blew out a heavy, pleasured sigh as her injured body pulsed and throbbed like a living tumor, blood spraying from her broken half as organs and bone reshaped themselves in a spout of crimson rain. With wet crunching noises her arm and leg reformed, and Chrysalis stood whole once again, flexing her fresh limbs and blood soaked but uninjured skin with a few relaxing popping sounds.

“Regenerates?” Chrysalis finished for Celestia. “So sorry Celestia. I know your heart is just set on ending me, but not today, and not here.”

As if Chrysalis’ words were prophetic there was a burst of encompassing silver light in the distance, a large visible sphere of white and silver energy enshrouding the distant Hitsuyo Aku. Down on the ground Zecora’s Zanpaktou suddenly vanished, turning into a mote of raw white light that zipped towards the miles off research facility. That made Chrysalis curious, as she felt her connection to the Zanpaktou vanish inside her.

Interesting. Either Starlight decided to take the blade back, or someone severed the connection another way. Oh well, I was done with the thing anyways.

Turning to face Celestia, although keeping her senses keenly focused on Luna who remained down below, Chrysalis said, “That light is my cue to call this dance for today, I’m afraid. But don’t fret, ladies. We’ll see each other again. I do so hate leaving business or pleasure unfinished.”

Luna, having risen to her feet, growled and gestured with her scythes, sending long winding tendrils of sharp shadows rising up to try to catch Chrysalis, while at the same time Celestia’s dragons opened their blazing maws to spew forth jets of plasma. But as before Chrysalis opened a Garganta portal with simple ease, the black mouth opening in the sky behind her as she took a casual step back. She even gave a friendly final wave to the two frustrated Captains before the portal snapped closed, and the Second Espada departed the battlefield with only her mocking laughter left hanging in the air.

Author's Notes:

I think someone earlier mentioned that Firefly's Fullbring was very Gundam like, and they weren't wrong. Her Fullbring was heavily inspired by the likes Mobile Suit Gundam, and Dash takes after her mother a bit in this sense too. The idea that completed Fullbrings can dangerously explode upon completion is taken from the manga, tweaked somewhat for my own purposes here.

Amid my writing for this chapter the always awesome Feather Book did a sketch of Firefly and Dash that I thought was pretty cool, check it out:

Isn't mother/daughter bonding such a beautiful thing?

Anyway I hope you folks are having fun reading along and as always thank you for taking the time to check out my story. I highly appreciate any comments, questions, or critiques you fine folks want to leave me. 'Till next time!

Episode 57: Parting Shots

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Episode 57: Parting Shots

Transitioning from one world to another was a magical theory that Princess Twilight was familiar with, yet in all her readings on the subject none of them had prepared her for the sensations that came with moving through the mirror portal. Honestly even after doing this many times before, and having no end of days spent studying the portal, she still didn’t fully grasp how it worked or why moving through it felt like having her whole body stretched out like a piece of taffy and then squeezed through a tube of toothpaste while having her senses bombarded by more colors than Pinkie Pie could toss into her most eclectic cake mixes. Twilight hadn’t even known one could taste color until she’d first used this portal, and every time once she was through it she couldn’t help feeling disoriented for a second.

From the groaning noise beside her she imagined Flash Sentry was even more out of sorts than she’d been her first time through.

Blinking three times as breathing in and out each time, a simple exercise she’d taught herself to get her senses back under control, Twilight took stock of her surroundings. She was back in her proper alicorn body, hooves, mane, tail, horn, and wings all accounted for. Beside her Flash Sentry stood as a... not entirely unhandsome mirror image to the pegasus guard she’d met in the Crystal Empire. Only here Flash bore his Soul Reaper robes fitted around his pony form as if the clothes had adapted to his new pony shape. Not unlike how she had manifested clothing for her human form when she'd first traveled to that world. His tail, strangely, carried the white ribbon and wooden Lieutenant badge of his rank, rather than on his foreleg. His Zanpaktou was looped through his sash, having not changed size or appearance. Twilight made a mental note to conduct a study on spontaneous garment manifestation and alteration resulting from inter-dimensional travel when she managed to find the time.

“Huh, interesting. I wasn’t certain spirit beings would change or retain their form in our world,” Twilight said, suppressing the urge to poke, prod, ask questions, maybe hook him up to a few machines in her basement... she shook her head. Focus! “Nevermind. Flash can you sense anything?”

He stumbled forward a few awkward steps, seeming to have trouble getting his legs to move right. “Whoa, okay, this four legged thing is harder than I thought it’d be. Oh, hey! I got wings! Neat.”

She tried not to find his boyish grin endearing as he experimentally flapped his pegasus wings, clearing her throat. “Flash, please focus. We don’t know who or what’s come through here and we need to find out as soon as possible! We don’t know what they’ve done to the portal or what kind of harm they might have done here! Oh no, I need to find Spike and Starlight! And the sirens, too. I hope they’re-”

The doors to the library swung open under a pale teal glow, and Twilight was at once relieved and puzzled to see Starlight trotting in. Upon seeing Twilight and Flash Sentry, Starlight’s eyes lit up and she smiled. “Twilight, you’re back! I thought I heard the portal in here revving up. So what brings you back? Need more research materials, or just checking in? And hey you brought...uh... that guy, who’s...um... who are you?”

Flash Sentry flushed slightly, rubbing his head, then wobbled a bit on his three hooves before managing to find his balance again. “Gonna guess Twilight didn’t talk about me too much. Flash Sentry. Pleasure to meet you.”

“Starlight Glimmer.”

Twilight found herself glancing back at the portal while that introduction was happening. In Equestria the portal was connected to an ornate gold rimmed mirror. Normally it only opened for a limited duration, but Twilight had built a rather complex magi-tech apparatus around the mirror to adjust the portal’s magical attunement to simulate the conditions of it being naturally opened, allowing it to be active any time she wanted. Given what she’d seen of the portal in the human world closing she had expected to see some kind of tampering with her equipment on this end. Yet the mirror and the apparatus built around it looked completely intact and normal.

“Starlight, did anything strange happen last night?” Twilight asked, “Did you hear or see anything out of the ordinary?”

Starlight gave her an odd look, “Not really. I mean, Trixie dropped by, but that was it-”

“Hold up, Trixie?” Flash nearly tripped over his hooves again as he stumbled forward, “As in speaks in third person, has an ego roughly the size of a continental shelf, and still thinks capes are in good fashion? That Trixie?”

A potent stink-eye entered Starlight’s expression as she frowned at Flash. “As in my good friend Trixie, yes. How do you know her?”

Twilight quickly stepped between them, “She has a counterpart in the human world as well. Look, Starlight, there might not be much time. The portal closed behind us and we don’t know why. According to the instruments I had set up over there something or someone came through it last night. Now, was there anything off about Trixie yesterday? Anything at all?”

Starlight took a hesitant step back as her brow crinkled in thought, her tone gaining a tinge of unease. “She seemed pretty normal to me. As normal as Trixie gets, anyway. She came by early in the afternoon for spell practice. She’s getting a bit bored on the teacup front, so thought I’d show her how to do that invisibility spell I know. Uh, anyway everything appeared normal with her.” She gave Flash another look, her eyes finally seeming to trace over his robes and the sword sheathed at his side. “Wait, you’re one of them aren’t you? One of those Soul Reapers that are from the other world.”

“I am, Miss Glimmer. And since I was hiding what I was in the human world, it's not too far fetched to think the Trixie from our world was also hiding something,” he said, taking a second to close his eyes and concentrate. “And hate to say it, but my senses aren’t likely to be much use right now. I’m trying to feel for spiritual pressures, but it's like everything is being drowned out by this really loud background buzz. I feel like there’s an endless swarm of bees humming around me, and I can’t get a clear sense of anything around us.”

“I was afraid of that,” Twilight said. “Magic is such a rare thing in your world that your senses probably can’t make heads or tails of a world that’s literally vibrant with it.”

“Well, if you’re looking for Trixie, she’s still in the castle,” Starlight said, her tone turning grave, and a shade embarrassed for reasons Twilight couldn’t guess. Starlight even blushed slightly, “She, uh, stayed overnight. She’s in one of the guest rooms right now, right across from those siren sisters. But are you sure she’s who you’re after?”

“Even if she isn’t she can help us find whoever came through the portal last night. So can the sirens for that matter,” said Twilight. Meanwhile, Flash had approached the portal, touching it with his hoof, which caused Twilight to whirl on him and shout, “Flash, be careful, we don’t know what it’ll do from this side!”

He flinched back, but offered her an apologetic smile. “Sorry, just wanted to make sure. Feels like a normal old mirror here. No portal.”

“So it's really closed on this side now?” Starlight approached it, her own eyes gleaming with curiosity as her horn lit up and coating the mirror with a magical glow. “Huh, you’re right. It’s inert. But why? That’s really weird. I’m not detecting any spells on it keeping it closed.” She walked around the mirror, and gave Twilight a shrug when she finished. “I got nothing. It should be working.”

Twilight shook her head swiftly, her patience inversely proportional to her level of anxiety, which at this point was shooting or the moon. “We’ll figure out the portal later. Right now let’s go have a chat with Trixie.”

As they headed out into the crystal hallways of Twilight’s castle, she looked for anything at all that might be out of place, but her home looked the same as ever, down to the way books had been strewn around the library and ready room. Flash was still stumbling a little, but he seemed to quickly be getting the hang of his new hooved form and peered around with alertness equal to Twilight’s own.

“Where’s Spike?” Twilight asked as they hit the spiral staircase heading up towards the castle’s living quarters.

“He went out this morning to hit up the market. Those sirens eat like crazy, especially the blue one.” Starlight shuddered, “I’ve never seen a pantry get emptied that fast. We’ve had to stock up twice this week. I’m wondering if it’s got anything to do with them not having their real gems.”

“An interesting thought, we'll test it out later. So Spike is out of the castle then,” Twilight said, then after a moment. “Good. If things go wrong, I don’t want him getting hurt. Maybe you should-”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Starlight said firmly as they hit the landing to the next floor, “If there’s a problem, especially if Trixie is involved, I’m in to help. If it's really her, I can keep her calm. If it's not, then I want to give a proper thanks for impersonating my friend.”

“Alright Starlight, just be careful, okay? If she really is an imposter then there’s no telling what she’ll be capable of,” Twilight said with a voice weighted with a healthy dose of caution.

Walking down a long, gleaming crystal hallway, the group passed several doorways on either side until they reached the one of the doors in the very center. Starlight walked up and raised her hoof to knock, then hesitated and glanced back at Twilight and Flash. “Play it straight or just barge in?”

Twilight took a deep breath, “Play it straight. If it's just the real Trixie I don’t want to spook her. If she’s an imposter we’ll have to be vigilant and look for any indicator, no matter how small, that she isn’t who she say’s she is.”

Starlight nodded and knocked on the door politely. “Trixie, you in there?” However as she spoke her hoof knocks allowed the unlocked and already slightly ajar door to swing open. All three of them looked inside, blinking at the scene within the modestly appointed guest room.

All the furniture had been moved to the very edges of the room, clearing all the floor space for a large circle that had been carved into the floor, with a strange symbol etched within the likes of which Twilight had never seen before. It almost looked like a stylized spear head or spade with its end points branching into an unusual cross pattern with arrows at the tips. The symbol would have fascinated her more if Trixie wasn’t standing in the center of the circle, which was glowing a faint red, as she chanted under her breath in a language Twilight didn’t recognize. The moment the door swung open Trixie blinked and stared at them.

She broke the silence with a flat, “This isn’t what it looks like.”

This was immediately followed by a loud thump from the room’s closet door, which banged open and another Trixie fell out. This Trixie was wrapped up in bedsheets and blankets to the point of being near hog-tied, with her own cape being used as a gag around her mouth. Wild eyed, this Trixie started yelling and shouting in muffled rage while wildly gesturing with her chin at the Trixie standing in the arcane, red glowing circle.

That Trixie blinked again, then sighed. “Okay, it’s exactly what it looks like.”

The imposter mare immediately turned to leap for the room’s open window to the outside, but Twilight and Starlight were both on the ball, immediately lighting up their horns and catching the “fake” Trixie in a combined violet and teal aura of magic that held her hovering in the air.

“Not so fast.” Twilight said, “What have you done to the portal? Who are you?”

“More importantly, what’s this circle doing?” Starlight asked sharply as she went over to the tied up Trixie and ungagged her. “You okay, Trix?”

Gasping for breath, the real Trixie glared at the other Trixie. “That... that faker came in through my window in the middle of my exceedingly important beauty sleep and assaulted me!”

“Pfft, assaulted you? I didn’t even touch you.” the other Trixie said with a roll of her eyes as she hovered in the air. “You screamed and passed out before I even laid a hoof on you. Lucky thing this castle is so large that your high pitched shrieking didn’t get heard by anyone.”

“The sirens are right next door.” Starlight said in confusion, and the other Trixie shrugged.

“Heard by anyone that cared.”

Twilight stepped in front of her, while Flash flanked her, his eyes narrowed. “Be careful.” he whispered to Twilight, “She’s not normal. I’m close enough I can sense her spiritual pressure. Both her and that circle are humming with reiatsu. More than I might be able to handle if she gets free.”

Twilight’s horn glowed brighter as her telekinesis held the other Trixie firmer. “Answer the questions. Who are you and what are you doing with this magic circle?”

“Hmph, first of all it's not a ‘magic’ circle, you plebeian pedestrian pony. Not the kind you know at any rate. As for what it’s doing, well you’re too late to stop that. Your portal is officially sealed off, and even if you break this seal the deed is done.”

Starlight turned on the fake Trixie, her eyes narrowing dangerously and her own horn glowing with sharper teal power as she yanked the floating mare closer to her. “Then you’re going to show us how to undo it!”

“Hmm, lemme think about that...” the imposter said, then smirked. “How about no? No sound good to you? Sounds good to me. I mean, what are you going to do little prancy pony? Torture me?”

“How about I strip away you free will until you’re a willing puppet under my command who will tell me every little thing I want to know?” Starlight said, but Twilight coughed loudly, and Starlight gave her a startled look, then sighed. “Or we can not do that and find a less backsliding method.”

The fake Trixie looked at Starlight with a measured look, her smirk not going anywhere, “Interesting. So it's not just the voice and looks you share with her, but some of the chutzpah is there too.”

“What are you talking about?” Starlight asked, backing up a step.

“Oh, never you mind, Starlight Glimmer. You’re still just a poor mirror to the real deal, but hey, maybe when the time comes she’ll let you in on the fun. She has been curious about you. Personally I think you equine counterparts aren’t worth the trouble. I mean, come on, that’s supposed to be me in this world? Not exactly impressive.”

“Hey!” Trixie yelled, “I’ll have you know I not only have the greatest magical act in all Equestria, I saved the country from a crazy bug lady.”

“With help.” Starlight added.

“With help.” Trixie agreed.

“And I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this ‘Trixie’, but you got caught in two seconds while trying to jump out a window,” said Twilight to the imposter, who just turned her smirking look back at Twilight with a look of unpleasant mischief lighting up her features.

“Caught? You think I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, is caught by your paltry pony prestidigitations!? Hah! Perhaps instead it is all of you who are caught by me?”

Starlight glanced at Twilight, “I don’t think she understands the definition of the word ‘caught’.”

“She didn’t even know how to lock a door. I’m thinking maybe this Trixie is even less bright than ours.”

“I hate you too, Twilight.”

Flash abruptly pushed Twilight back towards the door, stepping in front of her as his wings flared out. “She’s up to something! Her reiatsu is spiking up!”

“Sharp senses Soul Reaper,” said the imposter Trixie as her body became framed by a faint blue outline of light, even as her eyes glowed with a shade of red. “Eisenwand; Zeige Dich!”

Black mist swirled out of a small arcane crest that had been invisible up until that point but now glowed red upon the front of the imposter Trixie’s magician’s hat. The mist had a physical force behind it that lashed out and knocked Twilight and Flash both off their hooves, while Starlight was shoved back into the closet with the pony Trixie. The mist continued to twirl around like a localized storm until parts of the mist started to take more solid shape.

Long, shining black equine legs formed below a thick, tall and well muscled stallion’s body, its body almost entirely covered in thick iron armor black as oil. Wind buffeted the room as wings of similarly black metal flared from the stallion’s back. A thick mane and tail formed from the stallion, seemingly shaped from the black mist that continued to swirl around. The stallions’ face bore an armored mask, covering his whole face save for the eyes, which instead of the eyes of a pony there were two solid red gems blazing with inner crimson light.. A tall, sharp horn of iron sprouted from the stallion’s head, shining with a wreath of red energy. The stallion’s proportions were far larger than that of a pony’s, though still shorter and more stockily muscled than an alicorn like Celestia. Twilight thought immediately that this stallion bore a remarkable resemblance to the image upon the Alicorn Amulet that Equestria’s Trixie had onced used to enslave Ponyville. Even the stallion’s chest armor bore a red gem nearly identical to the one the Alicorn Amulet had.

Twilight knew she couldn’t sense spirit energy, but she still felt an aura of power and menace flowing off this dark stallion.

“Mistress, I appear to be an equine. Explain,” said the stallion in a deep, masculine baritone.

“It's just a thing that happens in this world, Eisenwand. Now get me out of here, now!” commanded the human Trixie

“As you command, Mistress,” the stallion said, just as Flash Sentry leaped to his hooves and burst into action.

Wings flared, Flash vanished and moved with speed beyond what Twilight could see, Flash Stepping behind the stallion and drawing his Zanpaktou awkwardly between his forehooves. He struck, but his blade hit something in mid-air just short of the stallion's neck. Forming from the black mist that hung around the stallion, a sizeable lance of dark iron took shape, and the lance swung around on its own to batter Flash aside. With shocking speed the dark stallion swooped around and grasped the human Trixie with one of its forelegs while flaring its wings. Red light glowed around the stallion’s wings, and it zoomed forward, breaking straight through the castle wall like a wrecking ball, showering crystal dust all over the room.

“Dammit, get back here!” Flash shouted, flapping his own wings haphazardly as he floated out of the now giant hole in the wall to give chase.

“Flash, wait!” Twilight shouted, but he was already in hot pursuit, albeit with a shaky, unsteady flight that made some of her first outings in the sky look dignified by comparison.

Twilight quickly went to the closet, “Starlight, Trixie, you two okay?”

Starlight, who’d been knocked head over hooves to land upside down against the closet wall with Trixie laying on top of her in an eye-swirling daze, shook her head and stammered. “F-fine. Fine! Go after them! I’ll try to catch up on hoof as soon as I can!”

From the doorway to the hall two more heads peeked inside, a pair of scaled sea serpent isages, one of violet shades and the other of blue.

“What’s all this damn noise about?” Aria grunted out in clearly only partially awake irritation.

“Yeah, you guys sound like you're bringing the...” Sonata blinked at the massive hole in the wall. “...house down? Wow, did somepony sneeze too hard or what?”

“You two! Didn’t either of you hear anything last night, like Trixie screaming!?” Starlight shouted as she extracted herself from the closet, dragging the bound Trixie behind her.

Sonata smiled in abject lack of caring. “Totally. We thought you and her were just doing, you know, butt-touch stuff.”

Starlight starred, while Trixie’s face turned about as red as the average tomato. Twilight shook her head at the situation and just said, “Look you two stay in you room for now. We’ve got a problem I need to fix-”

“Need help?” Aria asked in a tone that suggested the question might have caused her physical pain.

Twilight suddenly remembered both siren sisters were capable of flying, but without their gems neither siren was capable of using their innate magic for much else. She didn’t want to risk harm to either of them, especially considering she had no idea what the “human” Trixie actually was or what level of power she or that strange black stallions he’d summoned actually possessed.

“Thanks, but this is too dangerous for either of you. Just stay here until I get back,” she said and didn’t wait for a response before she rushed out the hole in the wall, spreading her wings and taking to the air over Ponyville, although she did hear Sonanta call after her.

“Hey, if you die does that mean I can bring quesadillas into the castle again!?”

Twilight ignored the inane question, having a brief shudder at the unpleasant recollection that on day one of allowing the siren pair to stay in her home that Sonata had ambushed her with the horrifically cheesy food and she’d subsequently forbade any more in the castle.

Her flight skills had improved by leaps and bounds since she first got her wings, and she had little trouble gaining altitude to start looking for where the human Trixie and Flash had gone. Neither was all that difficult to spot, one riding upon a large black stallion who stood out against the bright blue sky, and the other being so poor at flying that he was literally flailing across the sky like a foal trying to learn how to swim for the first time.

She streaked after them, catching up with Flash Sentry in no time. “Flash! Stop flapping your wings like that. You’re not coordinating them.”

“What? Coordinate them? I can barely make them move! And do you have any idea how hard it is to hold my Zanpaktou with these hoof things?” He dipped up and down haphazardly in the air as he tried to keep flapping his wings at random, trying to hold his blade between his hooves.

“Use your fetlocks! They can literally grip small handles and other tiny objects! And can’t Soul Reapers walk on the air?”

Flash gave her a mile wide stare, then said. “Oh. Right.”

Suddenly he stopped flailing his wings and instead halted on the air, his hind legs taking up an awkwardly bipedal stands as he stood on the air using particles of reishi. He adjusted his grip on his Zanpaktou until he found the part of his fetlocks that could more easily grip the hilt and he took a deep, confidence boosting breath. “Okay I think I got it. We’re not letting them get away.”

Twilight hadn’t taken an eye off of Trixie or her summoned pet. The dark alicorn-like stallion seemed to be having a bit of trouble with flight as well, although not nearly as much as Flash had. Clearly that body wasn’t what the stallion normally looked like in the human world, but what was he then? Both he and Trixie were heading out towards the Everfree Forest, but were only reaching the outskirts of Ponyville. Twilight and Flash could catch up, she was sure.

They resumed the chase, Twilight flying along a fast as she could, while Flash made great leaps across the air, landing on thin air to jump again in huge yard eating bounds. Ponies down below in the streets of Ponyville looked up at the strange sight, many pointing hooves and quickly gossiping about why the Princess of Friendship was tearing across the sky alongside a pegasus who seemed to be jumping on the air.

“Hey, everypony can see you. Is that on purpose?” she found herself asking.

“Figured it’d be easier to just let myself be seen, since I don’t think you’re going to be able to keep a lid on this. Wrong call?” he asked.

“No, right call. We can’t afford any more secrecy,” she replied swiftly, eyes focused on the dark form of the flying stallion that still bore Trixie on his back. “Look, I can teleport ahead to cut them off.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea Twilight. I don’t know what Trixie is, but that pony she busted out of her hat has some serious spirit power. Not too far behind a Captain's level. Trixie too. If you try to take them alone it could go south real fast. Any chance of you being able to get your fellow Princesses in on this?”

“Maybe. If I teleport straight to Canterlot and use the minimum amount of time to explain it. Luna would be asleep this time of morning, Celestia would have to wake her up. Even at the fastest estimate it’d still take time. Too much I think. Trixie would get away by the time we got back.”

“Any local help?” he asked, to which Twilight hesitated a moment.

“My friends would definitely help, but the only one who’s good in the air is-”

“Heya Twilight! You’re back!” said Rainbow Dash as she zipped up between her and Flash, flying along with a happy smile upon seeing her friend. “Didn’t think we’d be seeing you for few more days yet, egghead. What’s up? Who’s the dude with the sword? Cool sword by the way, but man it hurt seeing you try to fly. What’s with the air walking? That looks awesome!”

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight gasped, then very quickly got her thoughts together, speaking rapid fire. “That’s Flash. He’s a Soul Reaper. We’re chasing Trixie, only she’s not Trixie. She’s human Trixie. Only she’s not human. I think. Either way she’s doing something bad and we have to stop her!”

“Actually I think she already did the bad thing and we’re just trying to stop her from getting away,” added Flash Sentry. “Mostly so we can force her to tell us how to undo the bad thing.”

It was clear by the glazed look in her eyes that Rainbow Dash was only understanding in the most peripheral of senses, but fortunately this was Rainbow Dash so understanding was completely optional when it came to taking action. She shot off a quick salute, turning herself in the air with the most casual of grace that oriented her with the distant dot that was Trixie and her summoned stallion.

“Say no more! I’ll slow them down long enough for you two slowpokes to catch up.”

“Wait Dash we should take them toge-” Twilight began, but Rainbow Dash had already accelerated away on a band of rainbow light and a burst of air, flying so fast the mach cone was forming around her almost instantly. Flash’s jaw dropped open for a second.

“Wow. That’s... pretty fast. I mean, not Shunpo fast, but still. I’m starting to think we might’ve underestimated you ponies.”

“Rainbow is good at what she does. But we still need to catch up before she gets hurt! Come on!” Twilight said, and poured on the speed herself. She considered risking a teleport, but then saw that it looked as if Trixie and her strange dark stallion were slowing down, angling down to land near the edge of the Everfree Forest.

Why are they stopping? I thought she was trying to escape?

As their quarry landed she saw Rainbow Dash catch up to them in no time, landing to confront the pair right on the small dirt path that led into the depths of the Everfree. Within a few seconds Twilight and Flash caught up, and she already heard Rainbow brazenly challenging the two in front of her.

“Alright you two, I don’t know what you think you’re trying to pull in my hometown and messing with my friends, but I’m giving you one chance to give up quietly before I start to get rough with you.”

The stallion glanced at Trixie with his flat, gem eyes seeming to convey a world of exasperation. “Mistress, may I destroy these annoying fleas?”

Trixie held out a hoof, “First, my scepter please, Eisenwand.”

“Of course.” The central portion of the thick iron plates of Eisenwand’s chest armor shifted, allowing the red gem held within a set of iron claws to detach upon a long, extending shaft of curled, twisted metal. Once the weapon was free it floated in the air for a moment while the hole in Eisenwand’s chest closed up with new plates of armor. The weapon, now a fully formed scepter, flew up of its own accord and not under any magic Twilight could see to rest in Trixie’s waiting hoof. The red orb flashed upon her touch, and she grinned.

“Good. Now we can start with the show. Tell me Twilight Sparkle, how do you prefer your curses? Intensely painful, horrifically humiliating, or both?”

Twilight wasn’t going to deign to give that a response, already preparing her horn to cast spells, when Trixie thrust her scepter forward and a pentagram star of red light formed around it. Twilight still couldn't sense any magic being cast so she had to assume this power, like Eisenwand himself, was somehow connected to spirit energy. Knowing well Sunset’s stories of her and the girls fights with Hollows back in the human world Twilight threw herself to the side as the pentagram flashed bright and flew forward like a physical object, trying to hit her. She evaded it, but the glowing red star impacted the ground not far from where Twilight had been and she saw the grass there wither and turn black.

Gulping, Twilight turned her full attention to Trixie and unleashed a potent but stunning bolt of magical force, the purple beam streaming towards the other mare. However human Trixie clearly showed beyond human, or pony, physical ability by back flipping right over the beam and while still in mid-air, giving off a snicker that was entirely too much like Equestria’s Trixie, she waved her scepter in an arc.

Three more pentagrams appeared, each one flying in a different direction, bending and curving through the air at sharp angles to try to take not only Twilight, but Rainbow Dash and Flash Sentry too.

Twilight threw up a shield around herself, encasing her body in a bubble of purple, sparkling magic. The glowing hex hit her shield, and the energy of it seemed to crackle and writhe against the barrier like a parasite trying to crawl its way past a layer of skin. Twilight might not have been able to feel the power behind spiritual pressures, but she could feel the impact it had on her shield, and while they may have been two different types of energy the magic and spirit energy interacted with each other like equal forces. Twilight would’ve been more fascinated if the hex didn’t end up cracking her shield and making it crumble away, even if the pentagram itself failed to get through.

Rainbow Dash had zipped up into the air to avoid the pentagram that flew towards her, while Flash had simply evaded with a swift flicker of high speed movement. However Eisenwand now burst into motion, matching Flash’s speed by vanishing and appearing again in a blink beside Flash and he thrust his lance right towards Flash’s chest. The Soul Reaper turned pegasus barely managed to get his Zanpaktou in the way, and clearly not used to his new body yet he was off balance as Eisenwand’s intense strength drove him back and sent him sprawling to the ground. In the same instant Eisenwand’s mane of dark mist moved like a living tentacle, solidifying and flaring up as it extended to lash at Rainbow Dash.

“Ha! Nice try big, dark, and ugly, but you’ll have to get up way earlier in the morning to tag Rainbow Danger Da-”

Rainbow Dash’s taunts, said while admittedly expertly evading the snapping, whip mane of misty blackness, was interrupted by Eisenwand’s tail also extending and shooting upwards. As insubstantial as the dark gray, ash-like mist looked, it solidly wrapped around Rainbow Dash’s left hind leg like it was solid as a steel cable. It then proceeded to yank Dash out of the sky and slam her into the ground with enough force to shoot up a column of dirt and leave a foot deep crater.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted, unsure of just how hurt her friend was. She’d seen Dash take some ludicrously bad crashes and walk away from them, but that impact looked painful.

“Worry about yourself, Twilight Sparkle,” Trixie said with a huff, having landed on the ground from her earlier backflip and now was aiming her scepter at Twilight, a quartet of pentagrams forming in a diamond pattern around the scepter’s red orb. All four flew towards Twilight in a different angle, coming at her from multiple sides. She already knew one of them was strong enough to break a shield made at regular effort, but she wasn’t sure how much more power to pour into a barrier to keep the pentagrams at bay.

So instead she teleported. A flash and pop of violet magic took her from where she was to standing directly behind Trixie in an instant. The four pentagrams collided together where Twilight had been. Grass died, while some of the ground froze over, while a nearby snake that happened to be passing by turned to stone. Twilight guessed that each hex, each “curse” had a different effect, and she was starting to take note of smaller runic patterns inside the pentagrams. If she had time to study them she might figure out which ones had what effects, but there was hardly time for that.

She delved deep into her reservoirs of magic and fired her magical stun bolt at point blank range. A beam as wide as a wagon shot out and impacted Trixie right as the mare was turning around. The beam smashed its way through a lone tree in the field, and Twilight had to cut it off early or risk it flying right back into Ponyville and possibly hurting somepony.

Breathing heavily Twilight was sure she’d taken Trixie out of the fight, but was left with a open mouthed, shocked look as she saw Trixie not only still conscious, but still standing. Grunting in pain, Trixie used magic to pick up her hat and place the floppy affair back on her head.

“Okay. Ow. First point to you, Princess, but don’t think that did more than muss up my hair and ring my bell a bit. You’ll need to hit a lot harder than that to put me down.”

Twilight glanced to her left. She still couldn’t see Rainbow clearly enough to see if she was alright. Flash had gotten back up and had charged in on Eisenwand, his Zanpaktou clashing with the black stallion’s iron lance. The two appeared stalemated for the moment, but she couldn’t tell who was holding back more. Flash hadn’t released his Zanpaktou’s power yet, but Eisenwand barely looked like he was straining himself at this point either.

Twilight decided to risk getting some information. If this Trixie was anything like the one from Equestria, she’d be plenty eager to talk about herself.

“What are you? I know you’re not a Hollow, and you’re not a Soul Reaper or Quincy either. None of them have powers like this. Are you a Fullbringer?”

Trixie smiled in almost identical fashion to the smug look of Equestria’s own personal “Great and Powerful” mare magician and placed a hoof on her chest. “Aw, you want to know more about moi? I can see how you’d be confused. The Soul Reapers don’t like to talk about us.” Trixie’s eyes grew bitter as her lips twisted her smile into a sneer. “Nobody does. Just another dirty secret Soul Society swept under its filthy rugs. But as long as I live the Bount will not be regulated to being the mere filler of history! As the last living Bount-”

“What about the one we met in Budapest several years ago, Mistress?” Eisenwand asked as he parried one of Flash’s slashes.

“...As the almost last living Bount I will revive my race with the help of Starlight Glimmer. The one from my world. Not the one from here who’s clearly got self-esteem issues. Really, what’s with her and this world’s version of me? Are they, like, an item or something? Because I had to wait hours before she left my counterpart’s room the other night. It was extremely uncomfortable.”

Twilight just blinked several times in quick succession. “What? Starlight and Trixie what? Bount what? Okay, nevermind, I’ll ask questions once I have you behind bars. Literally.”

Ever since her less than stellar performance against Equestria’s Starlight Glimmer during that whole incident involving time travel Twilight had been spending more time practicing new spells of a combat oriented variety and how to cast quickly in battle. Her horn lit up with multiple layers of magic, and sparks of lavender light popped from her horn’s tip.

Swiftly did bars of thick, almost seemingly solid purple magic appeared in the air around Trixie. In less than a second she was contained in a cage of glowing force, the bars no more than an inch apart and barely allowing Trixie to shift in place let alone move.

“How about you stay still for a moment?” Twilight said with a smirk of her own, teleporting over to where Rainbow Dash had fallen. With a loud groan and a blurring shake of her head Dash was already shuffling up to her hooves in the center of the crater she’d made.

“D-did anybody get the number of that zepplin?” the pegasus asked in a dazed tone. “I think it violated Ponyville’s air traffic laws.”

“Zeppelins don’t have numbers Rainbow, and it wasn’t a zeppelin but a... I don’t know what he is. Trixie is a Bount and I don’t know what that is either or how she summoned this iron stallion, but we need to take him down before Trixie breaks out of that cage.”

It looked like Trixie was in the process of doing exactly that, her scepter pulsing with ruby flares of light, each one creating a new hex pentagram that impacted with the magical bars of the cage containing her. Twilight could feel the spell slowly degrading under the mare’s, the “Bount’s” strange power. They only had a short window to gang up on Eisenwand.

Flash Sentry was being pressed back by Eisenwand’s quick thrusts, the lance moving so quickly that it looked like a dozen lance tips were seeking Flash’s flesh instead of one. Twilight noticed Flash’s Zanpaktou was still in its sealed state, and she found herself shouting, “Flash, now might be a good time to make with the Soul Reaper powers!”

“I know! I know! Just, ugh, still trying to get used to this body! If I release my Shikai it might make things worse until I adjust to using my hooves.” Flash said as one hard thrust from Eisenwand went straight for his head. Twilight gasped, feeling an instinctive burst of fear, but Flash Sentry managed to get his sword up in time to force the lance to slide by his face in a shower of sparks and losing only a bit of mane in the process. He leaped back, his wings awkwardly flapping. Rainbow Dash winced at the sight.

“Wow does he suck at flying. If we live through this I’m totally giving that dude some lessons so he can stop embarrassing all of pegasi kind.”

Twilight grimaced, “Let’s get in there! Just be careful Rainbow, this guy is strong.”

All those words did was make Rainbow Dash sport a daredevil grin as she spread her wings, ignoring the bruises now covering her. “Oh yeah? Let’s see if he’s strong enough to handle this!”

With a sparkling rainbow band left in her wake Rainbow Dash zipped into the sky, gaining hundreds of feet in mere seconds. Twilight gulped, fearful that Rainbow Dash was going to do something exceedingly reckless, but she could hardly stop her friend and more importantly she wasn’t sure she should. They needed to go all out right now to stop Trixie and her strange, summoned cohort. With that in mind Twilight cast another teleport spell, taking her to the opposite side of Eisenwand where she sent a stream of magic into the ground at his hooves.

The huge black stallion glanced at the ground as a literal chunk of it the size of a small house lifted from the ground under Twilight’s telekinesis and proceeded to start crushing upwards in two separate shelves in an attempt to hold him.

“As if mere stone will contain me.” Eisenwand snorted and sent his mane and tail’s misty forms slicing through the rock like pieces of pie, severing the stone to pieces. Only all this did was give Twilight ammunition in the form of several dozen boulder chunks that she still gripped in her telekinesis and started slamming at Eisenwand in a swift, multi-angled barrage.

To her credit one or two of the rock chunks got through Eisenwand’s impressive guard as he used his lance to shatter most the others. The ones that did slam into him rocked the stallion around, although Twilight wasn’t certain much damage was done. The iron armor covering his body barely looked dented. The stallions’ gem-like eyes flashed with red light as he smirked boldly.

“Ha! See, mere mortal means cannot harm one as mighty as-”

Rainbow Dash streaked down from the sky, the mach cone around her hooves almost narrowed to a spear point, and she impacted with Eisenwand’s back with earth shattering force. Twilight had seen Rainbow demolish Applejack’s old barn with a very similar dive bombing maneuver and knew to throw up a shield around herself before Dash impacted with the ground, or rather impacted Eisenwand into the ground like a cannonball.

The prismatic explosion and small mushroom cloud that followed shook the ground, and Twilight saw Flash shield his face and lose his balance in the air from the shockwave. She grabbed him with telekinesis and lowered him next to her, where the Soul Reaper gave her an astonished look.

“Yeah, think this cinches it, definitely underestimated you ponies.”

Twilight couldn't help but smile. “We have our moments.”

“Oh if you stupid ponies hurt one piece of my Eisenwand I am soooooo going to hex you until you're spitting up internal organs like badly digesting candy!” shouted Trixie, and Twilight noted with some concern that her magical cage was nearly out of juice to hold Trixie for much longer.

When the smoke cleared somewhat from Rainbow’s rather impressive maneuver the mare was standing atop Eisenwand, who was half planted in the ground like a giant, iron carrot. Dash was striking a rather heroic pose, chest out, grinning as she hopped off Eisenwand and strutted out of the small crater she’d just made with her enemy’s body.

“Ha! Now how’s that for awesome?” she said.

Twilight was about to say something along the lines of not dropping their guard yet until they had Trixie better contained, but the words died in her throat as in a flicker of dark motion Eisenwand literally appeared next to Rainbow Dash and proceeded to slam his hoof into her stomach with enough force to send the pegasus speedster careening like a bowling ball, rolling end over end until she smacked into one of the trees along the edge of the Everfree.

“Acceptable.” Eisenwand said with a snort, bleeding from a split lip and sporting an impressive dent in the armor on his back, but little else. “What more do you have?”

While Twilight gaped, Trixie cheered and with a burst of hexes from her scepter she melted the last of the magical cage and hopped out. “Bravo, Eisenwand, bravo! I thought that irritating technicolor twit actually had you for a moment.”

Eisenwand cracked his neck and shook some dirt out of his ear. “To the mortal’s credit she hit far harder than the Soul Reaper has so far.”

“You, uh, didn’t kill her did you?”

Eisenwand glanced at Rainbow Dash’s crumpled form and just shrugged. “You gave no instructions to hold back, Mistress. If the blue pony still lives, she’s more durable than any mortal I’ve faced, and quite a few Soul Reapers as well. Now, shall we finish this pair?”

“Rainbow...” Twilight gasped, about to run to Rainbow Dash, but Flash put a hoof on her shoulder.

“She’s still breathing. Concentrate. Either of us lose our cool, we’re done for.”

At a second glance Twilight could see Flash was right. She couldn’t see Rainbow Dash’s face from the way she was sprawled facing away from them, but she could see her friend’s chest still faintly rising and falling with breath. She wanted nothing more than to go make sure Rainbow Dash was okay and get her to a hospital if necessary, but Flash was right. If she tried that she’d end up dropping her guard, and with Eisenwand and ‘Bount’ Trixie right in front of her she couldn’t afford to put her focus anywhere else.

“R-right.” Twilight gulped, and glanced at Flash’s sword. “Now would be a really good time to use that Shikai thing, whether you think you’re ready or not.”

He still looked worried, but he met her eyes and she saw the trust in them as he nodded. “You’re right. Hang back, okay? I’ll try to make an opening for you to work some more of your magic.”

She managed an encouraging nod as he started to take steps towards Trixie and Eisenwand, both of whom watched him with careful eyes. He managed to balance himself on his hind legs, using his wings as counterweights while he held his Zanpaktou firmly in his fore hooves. Wind swirled around him as the katana was encased in a neon blue light.

”Serve faithfully; Kochi Yojinbo!” (East Wind Bodyguard)

The weapon that his Zanpaktou flowed into in a wash of wave like blue light was akin to that of something she’d read about once concerning traditional martial arts weapons from the eastern regions; a tonfa. Only in this case instead of the side mounted handle attaching to a club-like block of wood it attached to a large, straight blade that extended a good five feet of total length. Aside from the handle there was also a coil of white cloth that wrapped around Flash’s fore leg above where his fetlock gripped the handle. Twilight didn’t know if that was normal for the Zanpaktou or if that was just how it ended up with Flash being in a pony body, but regardless it looked like he could keep the unwieldy looking weapon well in hoof.

“Oh ho, loverboy is getting serious.” Trixie laughed, “Eisenwand, return the favor.”

“Yes, Mistress.” Eisenwand moved like a dark iron wrecking ball, crashing in on Flash with breakneck speed and thrusting his lance like a bolt of metal lightning. Twilight gaped as it looked like the lance pierced Flash, but she blinked a second later as the image of flash blurred out of view and a moment later it looked as if there were three Flash Sentry’s, all of them coming in at Eisenwand at once with their Zanpaktou slashing in wide arcs.

The black iron stallion of metal spun to meet the attacks, his tail, mane, and lance all moving in different directions. Two of Flash Sentry’s blurring forms were deflected, but the third glanced along the side the Esienwand’s lance and managed to cut a groove through the shoulder of his armor with his bladed tonfa. Eisenwand grunted but otherwise showed no pain as he lashed out with a hoof at Flash, but the pegasus’ form blurred again, vanishing from sight.

Trixie snorted, “What, a speed increase? That’s it?”

“Not exactly.” Flash said, appearing behind her, while two more Flash’s charged Eisenwand from the sides. Trixie snarled and spun around in an impressively fast, bucking kick, showing far more physical prowess than her Equestrian counterpart. Flash flipped away from the attack and lashed out with his Zanpaktou, but Trixie’s scepter glowed red and a pentagram of red energy interposed itself like a shield. Even so the tonfa blade cut through the pentagram, deflected just enough to miss Trixie but still giving the mare a reason to back away.

Meanwhile Eisenwand’s tail speared out at one of the Flash Sentry’s while he engaged his lance with the other, but both blurred out of view only to appear on the metal stallion’s other sides and slashed at him, drawing sparking cuts. The wounds didn’t seem to be slowing Eisenwand down much, but Twilight could see the stallion’s mounting irritation.

Twilight snapped out of her momentary stupor and leaped into motion herself, wings spreading as she took to the air. Flash might have the pair momentarily off balance, but that wouldn’t last long. She had to take advantage of the opening she was being given. Lighting her horn up with multiple layers of deep lavender magic she started to weave a powerful and complex spell, one she hoped would end this fight in one shot.

Trixie, meanwhile, had moved so she was nearly back to back with Eisenwand, and was firing out barrages of streaming hexs, the red pentagrams flying around like missiles to try and tag the constantly moving Flash, or rather Flashs. They kept blurring in and out of view, never more than three at a time, but never in the same place twice. Twilight would’ve made Trixie’s guess that this was some kind of high speed movement, only Flash had just said it wasn’t. So what was it, exactly? She noticed that when his forms blurred out of view it wasn’t with the flicker of motion that a Flash Step made. Instead it was more like...

Like light was bending around him. But that couldn't be it. If it was just an illusion of light then there would only be one ‘real’ Flash, and she’d already seen all three of the Flash Sentry’s make solid strikes. They each clearly had a physical presence.

The answer came when one of Eisdenwand’s lance strikes managed to graze Flash across the arm, drawing a small spray of blood that made Twilight wince and pour more speed into weaving her spell. The exact same wound and grimace of pain appeared on all three Flash Sentry’s.

Suddenly Twilight paid attention to their movements. Aside from the actual placement of their bodies, they were each moving in mirror replicas of each other. As crazy as it sounded, Twilight theorized that Flash’s Zanpaktou didn’t make him faster or bend light, it literally bent space so that he was appearing in multiple places at once!

No wonder he was hesitant to use it while in a body he wasn’t sure how to move in properly. Being in multiple places at once had to be insanely disorienting, and not to mention difficult to time one’s attacks. Flash had to know how to move his body perfectly in order to coordinate his actions while using that Shikai. Being in an unfamiliar pegasus body could seriously throw him off, and even as she had that thought she saw the results as one of Trixie’s hexes caused the ground beneath one of the Flash’s hooves to freeze over and when he tripped, all three of the Flash Sentry’s tripped.

“Gotcha!” Trixie cried in triumph as Eisenwand pounced, his lance spearing towards one of the Flash’s fallen forms.

“NO!” Twilight cried and with a brilliant burst of violet light she threw her spell.

A thick cone of sparkling purple light descended and hit the ground around Trixie and Eisenwand, just a pace short of where Flash had fallen. Immediately the pair halted in place and were forced down by what was essentially a simple variation of the gravity reversal spell Twilight had used once in the Crystal Empire. Only instead of reversing gravity, this spell magnified it. Ten times, then twenty times, and as Twilight saw both Trixie and Eisenwand still slowly trying to move out of the cone she increased it to fifty times normal Equestrian gravity. At that point Trixie fell flat on her face, crying out in pain. Eisenwand was still standing, but the metal stallion gave Trixie a worried gaze and started to move towards her.

“Mistress!”

“Don't’ worry about me you, ugh...fool... get the pony!”

Eisenwand looked up at Twilight and she saw him try to telekinetically raise his lance towards her. Flash had gotten back to his hooves now and was backing away from the cone of relentless gravitational magic as it started to creating a deeper and deeper indent in the ground. He saw Eisenwand’s lance slowly advancing, struggling upwards towards Twilight and Flash called out, “Twilight! Get out of the way!”

Twilight winced under the strain of the magic she was using. Affecting gravity to this extent was far from easy. “Nnff, c-can’t. Have to stop them here!”

With a final push of magic that made her horn look like a miniature star of purple light she nearly doubled the gravity again. The cone of purple magic pulsed with powerful rings of force as Twilight’s power and desperation hit equal peaks. There was an earthquake that shook half of Ponyville as the ground broke up in a deepening pit that grew nearly twenty feet deep and twice as wide before Twilight’s magic cut out. She was left faint, sweating rivers, hovering in the air with tired flaps of her wings as she looked down at the crater she’d just made.

Trixie was flat on her face, barely able to look up at the edge of the crater as she rose on shaking hooves. Beside her Eisenwand was still standing, but his armor was bent inward and warped in multiple places, and his lance was buried in the ground at his hooves. Coughing, sputtering some blood, a sight that made Twilight wince slightly, Trixie called up to them.

“O...okay... I’m willing to be... the bigger person here and... and call it a draw.”

Flash appeared next to Twilight, still holding his released Zanpaktou and pointing it at the pair. “Draw nothing. This is looking like a win from where we’re standing.” He glanced to the side as Starlight Glimmer came galloping up towards them, panting as she arrived at the side of the crater with wide eyes.

“I’m here! Just, whew, took awhile to catch up. I don’t gallop very fast. Need to, huff, get more cardio in.”

“And we just got reinforcements. Want to rethink that ‘draw’?” Flash Sentry asked, then glanced at Twilight and whispered, “Uh, you still got any juice left after that?”

Twilight managed a weak laugh, “I could maybe light a candle or two. Or if you have any paper clips that need levitating... But with Starlight here now I can warm a bench for a bit, assuming these two are still wanting to fight.”

Summoning up all the strength she had left, Twilight held her head high and looked down at Trixie and Eisenwand. “Look, you could decide to keep fighting. But the longer this lasts, the more of my friends will show up. By now the Princesses might have even noticed how much magic I was just tossing around and will come to investigate. I give you my word that if you surrender peacefully you won’t be mistreated.”

Starlight gave her a look, but Twilight just made a ‘leave it’ gesture with one wing and resumed looking at Trixie. “I don’t know why you came to my world or what you think you and this other Starlight Glimmer are trying to accomplish, but if it's a threat to Equestria, it has to stop. Cooperate, and I guarantee your safety, but you will tell us how to undo what you’ve done to the portal!”

Trixie snickered, then coughed again, wiping blood of her lips. “Weren’t you listening earlier? I told you it's already done. There isn’t any ‘undoing’ it. That seal blocked the portal with my own spirit energy. It wasn’t like shutting and locking a door, more like I cemented it up. The only way to open it again would be to break it open with more reiatsu than I used to close it, and you’d have to do it from this side. And since nobody in this world has spiritual power besides loverboy there, who isn't going to cut the mustard, good luck finding someone stronger than me in that department. Sorry Princess, even if you won the fight, you’ve lost the war before it even started.”

Trixie took off her hat and dusted it off, then glanced at Eisenwand. “We’re done here. Take five, Eisen. I’ll call you again when I need you.”

The iron stallion turned to her and did a rather knightly bow, “As you wish, Mistress.”

He then transmuted into the same dark mist that formed him and swirled into the symbol that appeared on Trixie’s hat, which she then plopped back upon her head as she sat on her haunches with a tired huff, holding out her hooves. “Okay, I give up. Clap the manacles on me and take me to ‘pony jail’ or whatever it is you do here in Equestria. Either way, you won’t ever be returning to the human world, so my job is done. Just tell me, do you ponies have peanut butter crackers in prison?”

----------

As weak as she was Zecora still had the strength to move with some amount of swiftness. She was familiar with the interior of Hitsuyo Aku from her visits to check up on Starswirl, but only in passing. She’d never thoroughly explored any branch of the expansive research facility, and hardly knew its every corridor or side room. However among the Captains of the Gotei 13 she perhaps had the sharpest spiritual senses, with only Captain Platinum having the skill to challenge her on that claim, and even in her weakened state she could use those senses freely.

Guilt was a lead weight inside her. If only she hadn’t allowed herself to be ambushed and captured then none of this would have happened. For all her pride in her senses she sure hadn’t seen that coming. With a deep frown she shoved aside the guilt and focused on what she was doing. She was in the main chamber between the different research branches, feeling for other faint reiatsu signatures in the area. She could feel the battle taking place back where she’d been rescued like the sensation of multiple bonfires exploding like someone was hosing them down with gasoline, which made sensing other spiritual pressures less than simple, but her skills in concentration were highly honed and she tuned out the feeling of the battle to focus on the quieter areas of the facility.

In moments she felt them. Four faint signatures of spirit pressure flickering in the direction of the Biological research branch. Which made sense, it was likely the only area of the facility that would have medical equipment.

The doorway leading into that branch of Hitsuyo Aku was shut firmly, but Zecora knew the proper Kido to bypass the ward, gesturing with several sharp motions of her hand to form a glowing blue symbol of kanji in the air that flashed once before fading out. The doors slid upwards without a sound and Zecora walked through them into a series of brightly lit, sterile stone hallways that branched out like a checkerboard before her. Each section of this part of the lab would be dedicated to different research projects on spiritual biology. Starswirl rarely spoke much of the details of what went on here, and Zecora got the impression he had spent the time since taking over Hitsuyo Aku in attempts to shift some of its research to less... unpleasant focuses. Still she ignored most of the labs she passed, not only because she didn’t sense the spiritual pressures she was seeking inside them, but because she honestly didn’t want to know what was being researched here.

Finding the faint reiatsu didn’t take long. They were in one of the larger rectangular rooms at the back of this section of the facility, a room clearly labeled as a medical lab. While suitable for research it would also double as the facility's medical station for treating injuries. Or testing out new experimental treatments or equipment. Inside Zecora found the room was darkly lit save for the soft glow of green light stemming from somewhere in the back of the room. She breezed by medical tables, cabinets of equipment, and lines of beds until she reached a open area where she found who she was looking for.

Moon Dancer, Meadowbrook, and Smart Cookie were all suspended in thanks of glowing green liquid, their bodies stripped to simple under garments and hooked to tubes and wires snaking out of apparatus both above and below the glass cylinders. Zecora wasn’t familiar with what the tanks were, although Starswirl had made mention once of some experimental healing devices he’d been working on that seemed to match what she was seeing. The liquid was a solution made from enriched reishi and a distillation of several unique chemicals extracted from sources Starswirl was unwilling to disclose. From the weak but steady flicker of each Soul Reaper Lieutenant’s reiatsu Zecora could tell they were alive, but extremely weak. She couldn’t be certain if it was safe to move them without examining them in more detail, but her attention was arrested by the room’s fourth occupant.

Lord Pipsqueak’s tiny body was similarly suspended in a tank of liquid, but rather than a soft green color the liquid filling the cylinder was an angry, pale red color. And unlike the other three’s reiatsu, Pipsqueak’s wasn’t weak, but almost vibrant with an energy that Zecora knew all too well.

The boy’s spirit body was being infused with the essence of a Hollow.

Her first instinct was to smash the cylinder open and remove Pipsqueak from it at once, but the healer inside her knew such a move would be incredibly risky for the boy. But then again so was letting this process of Hollow reishi infusion complete itself. Who knew what such energies might do to the poor child’s mind, let alone his body? Why would Platinum condone this to to be done to her own...

But of course Zecora knew the reason. She was all too familiar with Pipsqueak’s condition. Against her instincts she went to the cylinder and placed a hand upon it, allowing her spiritual senses to focus with pinpoint accuracy and detail upon Pipsqueak’s spirit body. With some concentration it was like looking at a detailed scan of the process taking place on a particle level. She flinched at what she saw.

The solution was indeed infused with Hollow reishi. To such a fine degree she had no way of fathoming how the feat was achieved. It shouldn't have been possible to replace the conventional reishi of the healing solution with Hollow reishi that meshed so seamlessly into another spirit body. The nature of Pipsqueak’s malady was an ever weakening bond of the spirit particles of his body. Over time they simply would degrade until he ceased to exist. Yet the Hollow reishi’s bonds were powerful, and only had to replace one in every five of Pipsqueak’s degraded particles to infuse them with new strength. More strength than they ever had before! Zecora watched in open amazement as she saw the solution of Hollow reishi particles slowly, piece by piece, reconstruct the boy’s spirit body so that the disease would be eradicated.

She had no way of knowing exactly what the end result would be, but Pipsqueak’s body would be entirely free of his disease once the process was complete. What else he might be by that point Zecora couldn’t say, but if nothing else he’d be stronger and healthier than ever before.

He might also be a Hollow hybrid abomination, but perhaps in the eyes of a desperate mother that was better than the alternative. If Zecora was being honest with herself she couldn’t entire be sure of what choice she’d have made in Platinum’s position. It didn’t make the knifing sting of Platinum’s betrayal hurt any less, nor how gruesomely used Zecora felt having been forced to play a part in the whole deception, but if nothing else she could feel a twinge of understanding, remembering every time she’d examined Pipsqueak herself and toiled on finding a cure.

Stepping away from the cylinder, she started to consider how to safely remove the injured from the area when she felt the approach of another who was doing well to try to hide their spirit energy, but they were moving too fast for the motion to not trip Zecora’s senses. She swung around, hand raised to cast Kido.

Zecora didn’t recognize Firefly from any personal experience with the woman, only a passing familiarity with the files on Xcution’s old operations. She hadn’t even been part of the medical end of that project back then, and she held no malice towards the woman, but that didn’t make the energy cannon Firefly was aiming at her seem any less deadly. The two women stared each other down for a moment, Zecora mentally conjuring any number of Kido to lead off the impending fight with, when Firefly lowered the barrel of her weapon.

“If you’re taking your wounded, better get going fast.”

A faint look of startlement wafted across Zecora’s face. “Why would you so easily let us go, knowing that we are your foe?”

Another voice spoke in a pained, tired rasp from the doorway to the room as another woman limped inside. “If I were you, Zecora, I wouldn’t question your good fortune and leave this place with the wounded.”

When she laid eyes upon Platinum, Zecora was caught between an urge to immediately fire a binding Kido to try and capture the traitor, and simply being blatantly amazed that the woman could stand at all in her present state. Platinum looked like a half charred corpse that had been dragged through a minefield. One of her arms was completely gone, burned to little more than a blackened stump, and half the flesh of her face was not much better off. Blood soaked the woman’s ragged, torn robes, and Zecora could sense Platinum’s spirit energy was so low it was actually weaker than that of the unconscious Lieutenants being healed in the cylinders.

Slowly lowering her Kido casting hand, Zecora had only one question for Platinum. Zecora dropped all pretence and rhyming, looking at Platinum steadily.

“Before I go, answer this, once and never again comrade. Was it all worth it?”

Platinum’s eyes flicked towards Pipsqueak, floating in the red cylinder like a silent beacon. The light in Platinum’s eyes gleamed fiercely and she spoke with no hesitance.

“Yes.”

Then there was nothing more to say. Zecora simply nodded once, visage faintly saddened, and turned her attention to the cylinders with the three wounded Lieutenants. “Can they be moved without harm?”

Firefly answered that by going over to the cylinder containing Moon Dancer’s floating, unconscious form and tapped a few buttons on a small console attached to the side of the device. The green glowing fluid started to drain from the cylinder at a swift pace.

“Safer than leaving them here. Far as I know Starlight wasn’t planning to take them with us, and when this place goes, anyone not on the guest list is getting left behind. So feel free to carry them out and hit them up with your own healing mojo, for what good it’ll do them. I’m not going to stop you.”

Zecora still wondered why Firefly wouldn’t just take this as an opportunity to kill one of the Soul Reapers who were her enemies, but galling as it was Platinum was right. It was folly to question a stroke of luck when it came along, and with wounded comrades to tend her interests in the murky motivations of the lady Fullbringer were fading fast. In short order she drained and opened the other tanks, Firefly helping detach the comatose Lieutenants while Platinum took to leaning against Pipsqueak’s cylinder, her eyes almost burning with their focus upon the boy within.

It pained Zecora to leave him there, but she was in no condition to fight. Her internal reiryoku was low, and she didn’t even have her Zanpaktou. That loss was still a painfully fresh wound, but there was little to be done about it.

Carrying all three Lieutenants at once was an exercise in awkward positioning. Fortunately none of them were particularly heavy, and weakened or not Zecora was still a Captain of the Gotei 13, and was able to carefully sling them over her shoulders. Before leaving she gave Firefly one last parting look, which the woman returned with equal frankness. The message passing between the two was clear. This was a one time kindness. If they were to meet again, it would likely be a fight.

Feeling the building start to shake with a build up of potent spirit energies, Zecora wasted no more time in quickly rushing from the scene with all the speed she dared to without risking further injury to those she carried.

----------

The last time Sunset had seen the white and golden spires of Canterlot she had been living a very different life. Memories of living as Celestia’s prized pupil washed across her mind like a blast from a cold shower. She could still remember the faint smell of warm coffee and baked goods wafting from the cafes near Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, and the way the sunlight from every one of Celestia's mornings would reflect off the stained glass windows to paint the hallways with rainbow light.

She may have left her homeland in a fit of angry ambition and injured pride, but she still loved Equestria. The idea that this Starlight Glimmer was threatening it, that she’d bring the insanity of the human world’s spiritual wars to Equestria, that ignited a fresh new rage inside Sunset that spread to every inch of her until she felt like she could feel the searing heat smelting her bones. All things considered she was surprised her voice was as steady as it was when she spoke, although there was a volcanically heated quality to it.

“What do you plan to do to my home?”

Starlight met her look with a unblinking one of her own, her face still hidden behind her Hollow mask. Her voice was... conversational.

“Nothing much. Certainly nothing I intend to explain to you in detail on the slim chance you find a way to follow me there and try to interfere further alongside your band of merry misfits. Honesty far as I’m concerned your role in this is done. I’ve seen enough to confirm my theory that Equestria’s magic empowers my world’s spiritual energies, and you’ve already played the part of the perfect distraction for Soul Society while I got this plan off the ground. So thank you for that, but I’m done with you now.”

With a sweep of her trenchcoat Starlight turned her back on the girls and walked over to the obelisk console that controlled the Crossgate. She even sheathed her Zanpaktou, her entire stance radiating disconcern as she started to press buttons on the console. Sunset saw the image of Canterlot through the portal shift as if the perspective of the image was moving at blindingly fast speed. A smearing streak of colors passed before the image settled on a dusty desert town that Sunset didn’t recognize, but saw numerous earth ponies trotting around, many wearing country hats.

“Nah, still too close to population centers for my taste. Your planet has to have some nice empty wasteland somewhere, right? Or maybe some wild, untamed mountains? Where would you put a liar if you wanted to go unnoticed for awhile?”

“How about the center of the sun?” Sunset provided as she flowed into an instant Flash Step that took her into a leap above and behind Starlight. Flames wrapped her Zanpaktou in a blazing sheath as she slammed the sword down towards Starlight’s left arm, seeking to sever it.

Starlight didn’t even look up from the console as she raised her left hand and caught Sunset’s wrist, stopping the blow dead.

“Are you for serious? I have to ask because, you know, magical realm and all that. For all I know there’s a legitimate castle or something inside your sun.”

Sunset grimaced, unpleasantly reminded of her encounter with Grogar, but she was more focused and in tune with her spiritual powers than she’d been then. She used Starlight’s grip on her sword arm like an anchor point, flipping her body up and over Starlight so she landed partially balanced on the side of the obelisk. The flames around Hokori flared to brilliant azure light, the heat of the blade matching Sunset’s increasing intensity as her ire at Starlight.

“Why don’t you ask Celestia? I’m sure she’ll give you the guided tour. Aoihi Senko!”

Despite the askew angle she was having to hold her sword at, the versatile nature of the Aoihi Senko’s blue flames allowed Sunset to direct the unmitigated blast of intensely hot azure fire around Starlight like an encompassing sphere of fire that melted the stone around it into a bubbling puddle in mere seconds. Able to easily feel how strong Starlight was Sunset wasn’t too concerned that the flames would do the woman much harm, but she wasn’t really trying to hurt Starlight, just get her away from the obelisk. For all of the anger that she felt brimming with bone melting fury inside her, all she really wanted to do was stop Starlight. But her frustration was mounting. If only she could use her Bankai! But that power was already drained from her final attack on Platinum, and while she could feel it slowly recovering, it was nowhere near ready to be unleashed again.

She felt Starlight let go of her hand, and there was a massive upsurge of reiatsu that flowed out of Starlight in a crushing wave of spirit energy and focused will. Like a waterfall had doused the flames the fires burned out around her and Starlight, her clothing only slightly signed, was giving Sunset a flat look. “I get the feeling that was sarcasm you were using just now. Look, Sunset, Miss Shimmer, however you want me to address you, I’ve already done the climatic battle routine with your friends and Ditzy. I get that you’re the ‘heroine’ of this piece and you want to have a big final showdown with me before I go on my way, but can we just not? It’s been a long day, I’m tired, I really need a cup of coffee, which I’m hoping Equestria has by the way otherwise I’m going to be pissed, and really this whole fighting business is just one big waste of time.”

Sunset just blinked at her for a second. Rage gripped her, mixed with a flat, acidic frustration that filled her features. “That sounds reasonable,” she said in a shockingly calm tone that she was far from feeling. She then smashed her shield into Starlight’s face with all the power her arm could muster.

Starlight took the blow like a brick wall takes a tennis ball bouncing off it. The woman was knocked back slightly, but otherwise she mostly appeared irritated. A loud, explosive sigh escaped her as she twisted Sunset’s wrist and proceeded to throw her across the room like one might toss aside a cat that had stolen one’s spot on the couch.

Sunset wasn’t injured, and got the distinct feeling that Starlight wasn’t even trying to inflict any real harm. Being treated as a non-threat was becoming beyond galling, but Sunset was at least grateful it meant that Starlight was more likely to make a mistake. What the mistake would be Sunset didn’t know, but it had to be coming. Soonish. Hopefully.

“Sunset, dear, are you alright?” Rarity asked, coming up next to Sunset alongside the other girls, forming a line alongside Clover and Ditzy Doo. There was a clear spark of tension among all her friends, most of them looking at her worriedly.

“Yes. Pride is stinging like crazy, and I’m angry enough to boil water by looking at it, but I’m not injured. Sorry, shouldn’t rush in without you girls, should I?”

“Nah, ya needed ta take yer own crack at her,” said Applejack with a wry sidelong look at Sunset. “Now all we need is Dash ta’ git on back an’ we’ll have the whole crew ta stampede this crazy gal with.”

“We don’t have much time,” Clover said with a nervous look, clutching Chishiki tightly. Sunset could see the aura of green energy filling the Zanpaktou’s ring blade was fluctuating wildly. “Chishiki can’t keep Starlight’s Zanpaktou negated for long.”

Sunset felt an intense spike of reiatsu from somewhere behind them, approaching at swift speed, and recognized the spirit energy in question. The other girls felt it too, glancing behind them as Sunset said, “I don’t think we’ll need to wait for Rainbow to show up.”

On the heel of her words there was a rush of wind and a boom of air pressure as Rainbow Dash simply appeared in front of them, almost as if she’d teleported. Sunset hadn’t been able to see more a momentary streak of color, Dash having been moving even faster than she had before. It was plain to see why.

“Oh wow Dashie, you’re looking even spiffier and sparkier than usual!” said Pinkie Pie, the hammer seeming to vibrate with excitement. Pinkamena licked her lips.

“Tastier too.”

She certainly looked different. Rainbow’s Fullbring had changed form, and pulsed with a far larger and sharper sense of spiritual pressure than Sunset had felt coming off it before. The basic form remained the same, yet the central wings had become larger and formed from a prismatic wave of flowing rainbow colored energy. Each of those wings were in turn flanked on top and bottom by four long, blade-like wings of solid blue metal, which in turn connected to a smooth metallic piece of armor that encased Rainbow Dash’s chest. A single pale blue gem sat embedded in the armor above Rainbow’s heart, and Sunset thought she saw crackling bolts of lightning contained inside. It looked impressive, but as she looked at Dash, Sunset felt something was off.

“Um, are you alright Rainbow?” asked Fluttershy, and Sunset also noticed that Rainbow Dash’s expression was different than its usual cocky grin. The girl’s face lacked a smile, or even the headstrong cast to her eyes Sunset was used to seeing. Rainbow Dash instead had a solemn and serious look about her, only somewhat softened by the relief in her eyes as she looked at her friends.

“I’m cool, Flutters. Totally frosty.”

“You’re mom?” Sunset ventured to ask, and Rainbow Dash flinched, her whole expression clouding over.

“Not a problem for now. Had a... talk. Still need to unpack that. Got my Fullbring competed form the deal, so more ready than ever to do some skull cracking.” She nodded towards Starlight, “I take it she’s been giving you trouble?”

“She’s problematic, yes,” said Rarity, a frown marring her features as she made an idle gesture with one hand and started to create a set of what looked like large, crystalline throwing stars, all of them spinning in an ever growing cloud above her. “After observing her fight, I can only suggest we try to keep her distracted while someone figures out how to stop that machine.”

“I can try to figure the console out, if the rest of you keep her occupied,” said Clover, sweat appearing in buds over her face. Sunset could see the girl was shaking slightly, but was doing well to keep her fear under control. Having gotten a good feel for Starlight’s power she was grateful and impressed with Clover, who wasn’t showing any sign of backing down from such an uneven fight. Meeting Clover’s eyes, Sunset gave her an encouraging nod, and was happy to get a similar nod back from Clover.

“I think we can managed that,” Ditzy said, holding her hands out to the side and generating a swath of condensed red energy around her fingers that formed into long, solid claws. The usually upbeat and bubbly woman’s expression behind her Hollow mask was dead serious. “I’ll lead in, the rest of you follow up.”

There was hardly any more time for talk, just a round of shared looks confirming that they were all together in this. Despite the desperation of their situation they knew there was no backing out. Sunset did find a renewed sense of strength just from having all the girls by her side now. Across the way from them Starlight had turned her attention back to the console on the obelisk, and Sunset could see the portal to Equestria had shifted several more times until it settled on a location Sunset didn’t recognize at all. It looked like a forest of dead, leafless trees in some dry desert of cracked, baked earth.

“That’ll do,” Starlight said to herself, “And I just start the final sequence... and done. Two minutes folks. It’s been fun, but you know the drill; places to go, realities to fix.”

Two minutes. One hundred and twenty seconds. Neither Sunset nor any of her companions wasted further time on talk. Ditzy Doo, true to her word, went in first, although Rainbow Dash was right behind her. Both burst in with such air rending speed that Sunset couldn’t track them for an instant, although her own senses were stronger than they’d been and she could just barely see the way both seemed to intuitively feel each other’s motions and came at Starlight from the sides in a fierce cross-patterned attack.

Starlight simply moved even faster, flickering out of the way in an instant to avoid the digging energy claws Ditzy Doo wielded and the potent, lightning charged punch Rainbow Dash was throwing. Dash showed incredible maneuverability by almost instantly reversing direction and turning her punch into a wild, powerful backhand that fired a massive blast of lightning at point blank range. The bolt was larger and more intense than anything Sunset had seen Rainbow unleash before. It was like the air of the entire chamber was being electrified. Sunset grit her teeth, hoping that this attack might actually put some hurt on Starlight. However Starlight took it head on, pushed back by the lightning as she raised a hand to catch it. Her heels dug into the ground and Starlight’s eyes narrowed in concentration, but she halted the huge onslaught of lightning in a few moments.

“Well then, I’m guessing Firefly had a decent heart to heart with you, if you’re packing this much power now,” Starlight said, a note of actual strain in her voice as she deflected the lightning upward to bore into the ceiling, showering the room with rock chunks. “Just more proof I was right and you girls are stronger than your mothers were. All thanks to that magic from Equestria.”

Sunset growled in frustration, but suddenly a shower of large, red crystal throwing stars descended on Starlight in a downpour, some of them using the falling pieces of rock from the ceiling as cover to try and surprise Starlight. She stood in place but her hands moved around her with such speed she suddenly looked as if she’d sprouted multiple arms, her Zanpaktou drawn in an instant. Even sealed the blade cut through Rarity’s hardened crystal, but she was occupied long enough for Sunset to come in and slip her blade towards Starlight’s chest. She was becoming less concerned with not wounding the woman and more focused on doing whatever it took to stop her before time ran out.

The two Zanpaktou deflected off each other, the blow numbing Sunset’s arm down to the bone, and Starlight whirled on her, eyes blazing behind her Hollow mask. Sunset had to raise her shield as fast as she could to block a flat palmed strike from Starlight. The blow hit with such raw strength that Sunset felt herself propelled across the room and coughed as the air was knocked out of her lungs from impacting the wall hard enough to create a ten meter wide crater. Dazed, she forced herself with a feral shout to land on her feet and stay standing. She was not going down! Not until they stopped this madwoman!

Fortunately her clash with Starlight had drawn the woman’s attention, giving Applejack an opening to rocket up over the woman, carrying Fluttershy with her. The farmgirl, eyes blazing with a fair amount of anger of their own, then blasted downward like a meteor while letting Fluttershy go in a well timed drop that let the girl spread her own pegasus wings and narrowly swoop by Starlight. Applejack slammed her gauntlet clad fists down together, gold energy shooting from her arms and shoulders in a powerful hammerblow. Starlight spun around, blocking Applejack’s strike with one forearm. The blow destroyed the ground beneath her feet, but Starlight held firm while slashing back with her Zanpaktou at Fluttershy in a deadly arc. Eyes wide Fluttershy desperately threw herself back from the blade, bending her body backwards in a nimble dodge. Like a reed rippling in the wind she immediately snapped back and tried to come in with a palm strike at Starlight’s back, but Starlight had gripped one of Applejack’s arms and used the girl like a battering ram to smack her into Fluttershy. Both girls cried out in pain from the ramming blow, sent flying like scattered pebbles.

Even as they were knocked away Pinkamena extended one arm to wrap the pair and gently set them down nearby while her other arm cocked back. With a chilling gleam in her eyes, which bled from shining blue to hungry yellow, Pinkamena slammed the Pinkie hammer into the ground next to Starlight. With a cartoonish sproinging noise the ground literally tilted up like a seesaw, managing to knock Starlight off balance as it tossed her into the air.

Ditzy Doo was there, appearing in the air next to Starlight with her blazing energy claws flashing in crimson arcs. Starlight almost instantly recovered her balance and ducked the blow, ramming a first into Ditzy’s stomach so hard it seemed to distort her back. The mouth of Ditzy’s mask opened, blood spurting out. Purple energy crackled around her fist and Starlight fired a small bullet of power that smashed Ditzy into the ground in a burst of broken stone.

“You know, I feel like I’m talking to myself sometimes. This whole fight is pointless,” Starlight said in a rough hiss, landing in front of Ditzy Doo and stabbing down with her Zanpaktou.

Ditzy, despite her injuries, managed to flip out of the way, ending up landing vertically on the wall. There she spread her claws out, power pouring into them in a growingly intense stream of coiling red strands of power. “It’s not pointless to try and stop someone from making a mistake, Starlight! These girls are stronger than you’re giving them credit for, and we’re going to stop you, one way or another!”

Ditzy launched herself back at Starlight with such force that she broke apart a large portion of the wall in doing so. She let out a feral, feline howl and the claws grew even larger, and writhing flows of red spirit energy burst from her back in torrents. She slashed with both of of her claws, creating a combined X-shaped energy wave of blood red power that cascaded towards Starlight. Even as Sunset watched she could feel the ludicrous power being thrown out. Ditzy Doo wasn’t holding back.

Starlight countered with a raised finger and a gleaming sphere of dark purple power that radiated powerful Hollow reiatsu. That power continued to rise to a crushing height that eclipsed everything else in the room, gripping Sunset with a weight that bore down on her like Starlight had turned the sky itself into solid pressure. Not even Grogar had come close to this soul freezing level of condensed reiatsu, and it made Sunset feel like a flickering candle next to an gale force wind. Yet that only made her inner fire blaze hotter as she gathered her own strength, ready to leap in the moment the opening presented itself.

Starlight discharged a surprisingly thin and concentrated violet colored Cero blast into Ditzy’s attack, and the two currents of power clashing in a powerful explosion that rocked the entire room. The front half of the chamber became little more than a broken crater, and the blast knocked most the girls off their feet. The two attacks appeared to cancel each other out for the most part, but Ditzy Doo hadn’t stopped, and pounced right through the cloud of dust to rush in at Starlight in a series of flickering Flash Steps, finally landing a solid hit with an upward kick that caught Starlight under the chin and managed to throw the woman upwards.

Seeing the moment as the opening she’d been waiting for Sunset leaped up towards Starlight, all of her power and focus coiled into this next attack. At the same moment Rainbow Dash also zoomed in from the other side, clearly having been waiting for this same instant. Sunset saw Dash draw forth a long metal rod from the gem on her chest. Sunset saw that rod blaze to life with two electrical spear tips from either end that Rainbow Dash spun in an arc of crackling power. Sunset similarly poured her strength into Hokori, the broadsword turning into an azure beacon of radiant blue flame.

Both girls struck as one, lightning spear and fiery sword descending on Starlight with equal power and ferocity.

Starlight didn’t bother trying to evade, raising her Zanpaktou to catch Sunset’s blade while using her bare hand to do the same with Rainbow Dash’s twin lightning spear. Electricity and fire burst around Starlight as both girls unleashed their elemental powers onto her with their combined fury. Sunset roared all of her emotion out, Bankai or not she was intent on pouring as much as she could into this attack, concentrating the blue fires of the Aoihi Senko into a point blank blast strong enough to turn steel to ash. Rainbow’s lightning was no less intense, a white blue bolt of god-like thunder that deafened the room. Fire and lightning swirled around in an elemental storm, forming into a potent explosion that knocked both Sunset and Rainbow Dash back as it unleashed its fury upon Starlight.

Not one to miss an opportunity, Applejack threw her hands up and charged the gauntlets on her arms. Next to her Fluttershy put a hand on Applejack’s shoulders and all three of her eyes turned bright with flowing blue light as she poured her own power to augment Applejack’s. A twin golden beam of power erupted from Applejack’s fist and speared through the explosion of fire and electricity that Sunset and Rainbow Dash had created, burrowing into the ceiling above.

As rock and dust filled the ceiling and the growing crater there, Rarity gestured with flinty cold eyes, her whirlpool of blood swirling to form an ornate and deadly storm of arm-length needles. The crystal shower of crimson death flew into the storm of energy above, adding their deadly fury to the combined attack of all the girls, Pinkamena included as she used the Pinkie hammer to knock up a giant chunk of loose stone and smack it like a baseball into the center of the torrent, triggering a final explosions that drowned out all sound for a moment.

More rock and dust fell upon the girls from the breaking portions of the ceiling. To Sunset it seemed like they may have overdone it and that the whole chamber might collapse, but for the moment it held firm. The experiment chamber had been built to withstand these kind of forces, after all. In all the commotion Clover had long since reached the obelisk by the Crossgate and was quickly examining its console. Her eyes flew across the screen, one of her hands tapping keys rapidly.

“We’re almost out of time! Thirty seconds left!” she called out.

In her other hand, Chikshiki’s ring blade let out a metallic groan, and the green energy around it broke like shards of glass. The moment that happened Clover’s eyes shot wide.

“Crap! Sunset, watch out! Her Zanpaktou is active again!” Clover shouted in desperate warning, but as she did so Starlight appeared next to her.

Sunset couldn’t believe that despite that massive barrage of attacks Starlight had endured, aside from a few burns and scratches she looked unharmed. What did it take to slow her down!? Was all of this power coming just from that fusion with the Hokgyoku or was Starlight this strong before Discord’s crazy soul-ball thing came into the mix!? Either way it didn’t matter now, because Starlight was right next to Clover! Fear gripped Sunset as she tried to move to help Clover, but she’d drained herself so much from that last attack that even her Flash Step felt slow and sluggish to use.

Clover turned in a desperate move of her own, shock and fear written all over her paling gray features as she raised a palm to cast a Kido spell. Starlight’s free hand gripped the girl’s throat in an instant and lifted her off the ground, squeezing tightly. Without using the command phrase Starlight transformed her Zanpaktou into its pronged staff form, the Shikai’s two prongs touching Chishiki’s ring blade. Clover’s eyes went even wider and she tried to pull her Zanpaktou away, but it was if an invisible force held it fast. With a cold shock of realization, Clover understood that when Sekai Chitsujo overwhelmed Chishiki's suppression power the two Zanpaktou were still technically connected via that power. Chishiki was still using Hitei to try and suppress Starlight's power! Which meant...!

“Nice Zanpaktou. Think I’ll take it,” Starlight said casually, Sekai Chitsujo glowing as it exerted its power upon Chishiki, forcing the other Zanpaktou to start shimmering into motes of light that were absorbed into Starlight’s staff. Because Chishiki had still been trying to utilize its own ability against Sekai Chitsujo, it could be targeted by Starlight's power.

Despite being choked, Clover’s eyes flashed with a fierce, almost insane desperation and she shoved a hand into Starlight’s masked face, forcing the Kido chant past her constricted throat. “H-Hado Number Eleven: Tsuzuri Raiden!”

A crack of electricity sprang from her palm and right into Starlight’s face, yellow bolts of energy flowing over Starlight’s body with a boom of thunder. Sunset, finally able to move, started to cross the distance to them. Her own Zapaktou was alight with flames she was ready to set loose, willing to risk losing her own Zanpaktou if it meant saving Clover’s.

Yet Starlight barely flinched at Clover’s Kido attack, and with barely a split second of time the last of Chishiki’s form shimmered out into motes of light and were absorbed into Starlight’s staff. After that she dropped Clover and in a mind numbingly fast movement used the butt of Sekai Chitsujo’s staff to slam Clover in the chest and send her flying like a skipping stone.

Sunset forced the course of her Flash Step to alter and caught Clover mid-bounce, holding the girl tightly with her shield arm while charging flames up in Hokori to unleash them on Starlight... but Sunset hesitated as the other woman raised her own Zanpaktou, its staff shape still glowing with power. The fact that Starlight could do that without the release phrase clued Sunset into the fact that Starlight clearly had Bankai. A part of her had been hoping that maybe the cocky woman hadn’t bothered to take her connection with her Zanpaktou that far. It also signaled just how much Starlight must have been holding back in this fight, if she wasn’t even bothering with Bankai.

“Go ahead. I’ll gladly take your Zanpaktou as well if you want to give it up so freely,” Starlight said with a smug smile, daring Sunset to attack her.

Coughing, Clover shook her head, gripping Sunset’s sword arm. “Don’t, we can’t afford to lose your Zanpaktou too...”

Clover’s voice sounded gutted and hollow. Sunset looked at the girl and saw how hard Clover was trying to keep tears from falling from them. Clover’s body was trembling in Sunset’s grip as Sunset landed lightly on the ground ten or so meters from Starlight. She set Clover down and looked at her with a sea of worry, seeing the twisted look of loss on Clover’s face that the other Soul Reaper was trying very hard to hide as she looked at Starlight’s Zanpaktou

“Give him back!” Clover shouted, teeth clenched. “He doesn’t belong with you!”

“Sorry, beg to differ.” Starlight chided, twirling her staff, then whispering to it a familiar command phrase.

“Seek, Chishiki.”

Immediately the form of Sekai Chitsujo wavered and transformed into the shape of Chishiki, and Starlight held the Zanpaktou with the grace and ease of someone who had used it her whole life. Clover gasped as if punched squarely in her gut while Starlight smiled thinly.

“Nice balance. I can’t wait to test him out, take him for a decent spin.”

Clover’s shaking doubled in Sunset’s grip and the girl tore herself away from Sunset, tears now streaming down her face as she threw a palm out. “Give. Him. Back!”

A frosty blue aura erupted around Clover, particles of water gathering around her like raindrops as she chanted a new Kido spell.

”Hado Number Sixty Six: Shin’en no Kiba!”] (Fangs of the Abyss)

Black water, as if summoned from the darkest ocean depths, formed in four coiling spheres around Clover. Sunset felt the chilling fury contained inside the spell and pouring off Clover, reminding her momentarily of Celestia’s long ago warnings of the dangers of Equestria’s darker magics. With a otherworldly shout Clover fired her Kido, the four spheres of water lancing out with black spears of super-pressurized and condensed water that were so strong they literally knifed through the stone floor like it was butter as they trailed towards Starlight.

Starlight merely hefted Chishiki and spun the Zanpaktou in front of her at insane speed, chanting her own Kido with casual indifference. “Bakudo Number Thirty Nine: Enkosen.” (Round Lock Fan)

A field of disc-shaped, shining yellow force appeared around the spinning Chishiki, the relatively low level defensive Kido empowered by Starlight’s raw reiatsu to easily absorb the crushing blows from the spears of pressurized, abyssal water. As the water sprayed harmlessly around Starlight, Clover, shaking and sweating while staring bleakly at her Zanpaktou in the other woman’s grip, just fell to her knees.

“S-sorry,” Clover said with labored breaths, her eyes turning slightly glazed as sweat dripped from her chin, “I’m so sorry Chikshiki. I didn’t have time to do anything, and I couldn’t move fast enough. I wasn’t strong enough to hold on to you.”

Sunset let go of her shield’s handle, Hikari still tied to her arm by the strap as she held Clover’s shoulder tightly, “Shh, it's okay. We’ll get Chishiki back, somehow. You have my word.”

The rest of the girls all started to surround Starlight in a semi-circle around the obelisk. Each of them looked nearly exhausted themselves. All of the fighting had drained each of them, but all of them were still poised to keep fighting. Not a one of them looked prepared to give up, no matter how bleak things were looking. Even Clover managed to force herself back to her feet with Sunset’s help, and stood ready beside her friends to continue the fight.

However Starlight snapped her fingers and lifted her Hollow mask off her grinning face.

“Aaaand that’s that,” said Starlight, jabbing a thumb at the console. “Time’s up, and I can bid you nuisances a fond farewell.”

The entire room was rapidly bathed in a wash of silvery light as the portal within the Crossgate started to spin like a coin on a table. The image of the strange dead, desert forest blurred into a silvery stream, and the light grew brighter and saturated every portion of the room.

Sunset felt her spiritual senses go haywire as her sense of everything around her grew distorted, as if the very reishi particles making up all the matter around her was vibrating at high frequency. It completely threw off her sense of balance, and she could just barely tell that her friends, Clover, Ditzy Doo, they were all experiencing the same massive disorientation. It wasn’t just as if the world was spinning, it was as if it had turned into a silver bathed kaleidoscope that they were stuck in the middle of.

She heard Starlight’s voice clearly, however.

“If nothing else I do want to thank you, Sunset Shimmer, for bringing all your friends here and wreaking half of Soul Society in the process. I think I’ve seen everything I need to see to say I’ve got a handle on this ‘magic’ from your home.”

Even as it felt like reality was trying to wring her guts out, Sunset still managed to focus upon the twisting image of Starlight she could see and spoke with surprisingly clarity.

“You haven’t seen anything of magic yet. Not mine. Not my friends. But trust me... you will.”

“Aw, that almost sounded like a credible threat. Let me quake in my shoes for a-”

”Quiet!” Sunset growled, and Starlight actually did, leaving Sunset a final moment for one last parting shot.

“We’re coming after you. I promise you, we’re coming after you, and stopping you from harming my home, or Equestria.”

Sound itself was growing distorted now, and Starlight’s voice sounded almost confused. “I thought Equestria was your home?”

“It was. Now this world is. And you’re going to regret screwing with it, and me.”

“...Good luck with that.”

Then everything turned solid, liquid silver and white, vibrating so much that Sunset felt like the world was shaking apart.

An instant later there was a popping noise, and suddenly it was all gone. The world returned and Sunset found herself and her friends hanging in the air above a giant crater in the ground and all of them were falling.

“Whoacrap!” Sunset flailed for a moment before managing to push enough reishi out of her feet to skid along the air.

There was a blur of rainbow motion as Rainbow Dash snatched Pinkamena and Rarity out of the air. Ditzy Doo and Clover were able to stand on the air like Sunset was, while Fluttershy managed a few gentle wing flaps to land on the bottom of the crater safely. Applejack’s armored legs and arms provided thrusters of energy she used to land as well, and in a few moments they were all gathered at the bottom of the crater.

“What n’ the hay just happened!?” Applejack shouted, “Where’d everythin’ go!?”

Ditzy Doo, taking off her Hollow mask and letting it dissipate in a puff of shadow, looked around with a dour expression. “Hitsuyo Aku... she took the whole damn thing. Hooooboy, Discy is not going to have kittens when he hears that.”

“So what, no more baddies to try and nom on? But I’m still hungry!” said Pinkamena, smacking the Pinkie hammer into the ground.

“Ow! Mena, watch the starvation rage!”

Rarity looked at them all with a carefully controlled expression, but Sunset could see the worry brimming in her eyes. “So, what does this mean?”

Rainbow Dash was putting away her lightning spear, merging it back with the gem on her armored chest, her own face no less grim. “Means the bad guys got away with all the toys they wanted, and things are... more complicated than I thought.”

Clover shuddered, her empty hands clenching and unclenching as she looked forlornly at the ground. There was a heavy pall over the group, a moment of tired, exhausted silence that hung like a fog between them all.

Sunset took a deep breath, feeling the angry burn from Hokori, and a gentle coolness from Hikari, both halves of her Zanpaktou filling her with one, strong thought that pushed through the grave malaise threatening to blanket her and her friends.

“It means that for now it's over. It means Celestia and Luna are safe, and Soul Society can get its head out of its rear and lick whatever wounds it's taken. It means that we’re strong enough now that our enemies would rather run than stick around and face all of us together. And it means that once we’ve recovered our strength... we’re going to go save Equestria.”

Author's Notes:

It may have taken a week longer than intended, but here we are. Starlight may have escaped but while this may mark the end of the fighting in the Soul Society arc, there's still a long journey ahead of our girls. The next chapter or two will mostly be winding down and tying loose ends, then we'll be seeing a shift in focus to our story's other protagonists and what they're dealing with. We're also going to be seeing more on the Equestrian end of things from this point forward. Oh, and for anyone wondering what human world Trixie's deal is, I'll be going more into detail with her in the next chapter.

Once again sorry for the delay folks and I sincerely hope you're all enjoying the read. For any who want to leave questions, comments, or critiques you have my thanks, as always. 'Till next time!

Episode 58: The Dust Settles

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Episode 58: The Dust Settles

A heavy silence filled the meeting hall of the Gotei 13, its ten occupants not making a single sound as they stood in their traditional spots, although the two neat rows were minus three of its usual occupants. Amore was still in critical condition, and Zecora was overseeing the Fifth Division Captain’s care, refusing to leave her hospital and tending to any of the wounded present there. Scorpan was not inclined to disagree with Zecora’s wishes and had made no insistence she attend this meeting. As for Platinum... it was unlikely they would be seeing her again, and if they did it would only be as another foe to face.

The absences in the room weighed heavily upon Scorpan. Soul Society, the Gotei 13, both were wounded, and he felt he only truly had himself to blame for it. The remaining Captains standing before him were people he had trained himself, fought beside for many years, in some cases centuries. He had thought he had built a stronger house than this, a stronger family. Had he always been blind to the thin threads holding them together, or just plain ignorant?

Yet strength was needed now more than ever. He couldn’t allow himself to fall apart. Neither could he ignore the failings on his part or that of his fellows. Matters needed to be settled. The wreckage needed to be cleaned up, the wounds tended to so they could heal. The air needed clearing, and it was his duty as the Captain Commander to begin that process no matter how much more comfortable the thick silence was.

“This has been a dark day for all of us.” He began, leaning forward in his chair, eyeing the Captains arrayed before him.

“Mistakes have been made that must be rectified, starting with this,” he turned his gaze to Luna and Celestia, who stood on opposite ends of the two rows of Captains. “As of now I am absolving you of any an all charges put against you, Captain Luna, Captain Celestia. Central 46 has given me emergency authority under the present state of crisis to make such command decisions until such time that they are capable of resuming their duties as Soul Society’s law. I know it may mean little to you now, but I am truly sorry for not being able to do this sooner.”

“It is not you we blame, Captain Commander.” said Luna with a sharp eyed look towards Hurricane. “There were others who made the situation devolve to what it became.”

Celestia shook her head, “Luna, now is not the time for that. Captain Commander Scorpan, we accept your apology, but as my sister said we don’t blame you. You were only following the law as best you could, and given the circumstances it would have been difficult to defy Central 46 on the matter until you had evidence.”

“Evidence we should have been looking for harder before tossing you two into cells and accepting insane charges of treason.” Cheese Sandwich said with a emphatic gesture. “Not that it matters now.”

“It matters enough.” Thunderhooves rumbled in a sighing breath, thick and strong features dour behind his beard. “We have all made errors that made it easier for our enemies to strike at us. I hardly feel worthy of this Captain’s rank, allowing my fear of breaking the laws and traditions of Soul Society to control me so.”

“Go easy on yourself Thunderhooves.” said Daring Do. “This Starlight Glimmer did some seriously twisted scheming to pull this off and I don’t know how any of us could have been ready for it. Sure the charges on Celestia and Luna were obvious bullcrap, but what the enemy’s real objective was and even who they were? That would’ve blindsided us no matter how skeptical we were about the treason charges.”

“Although it may have helped if some of us weren’t so eager to persecute their fellow Soul Reapers?” Luna said in a digging voice, eyes still locked on Hurricane, who in turn cast a disinterested glance back her way.

“My actions were all performed under the right of law. The fact that you and your sister are not guilty of the charges doesn’t change that at the time my Division’s actions were all in the pursuit of enforcing our laws and defending Soul Society. If you wish to dispute that, Captain Luna, feel free to do so but I will defend my honor personally if need be.”

“As if you understand the meaning of that word-” Luna began to say, but Scorpan tapped the sheath of his Zanpaktou on the ground, the small motion still making a clarion ring echo in the chamber.

“I will not see us tear each other apart further than we already have. Captain Hurricanes actions, while questionable at best, were still under my own standing orders to force your Divisions to stand down. The fault lies with me.”

“What of Platinum?” Blueblood spoke up, his voice lacking its normal boisterous tone and instead carrying a quiet reflection. “Knowing that she was the traitor, how can any of you trust me or Hurricane? We both supported her. Either of us could easily have been in on the entire scheme.”

“Ya ain’t smart ‘nough ta be in on any schemin’.” said Sweet Cider, her voice echoing a sourness that matched her features, the tall woman’s entire body radiating tenseness. “An’ much as I hate sayin’ it, if Hurricane was part o’ the plan, can’t figure he’d stick ‘round ta fight it out with me when everything went tits up. He’d have cut n’ run while the runnin’ was good.”

“Your vouch of confidence is appreciated.” Hurricane said with barbed sarcasm.

“Don’t count it fer much, bastard. Still a’ shame the old man stopped our brawl before I got a’ proper chance ta kick yer teeth in.”

“Enough!” Scorpan spoke with the voice of a falling gavel, but Sweet Cider met his disapproving look with an even one of her own.

“Yer right that we can’t be at each other’s throats, sir, but bottom line is... I ain’t even sure I’m gonna still be wearin’ these Soul Reaper duds by the end o’ the day.” She plucked at her Captain’s coat with a deep seated frown. “Right now only reason I’m standin’ here is to make sure my daughter an’ her friends are gonna be treated right by you folk, an’ ta tie up some loose ends with ya’ll an’ the folk I feel I owe some dues to. After that, whether I stick ‘round these parts or go my own way is a matter I’m still thinkin’ on.”

“Can’t really blame you for feeling that way. If our positions were reversed I’d be pretty peeved too.” Cheese Sandwich said with a helpless shrug and shake of his head, “Be a shame to lose you, Cider, but give me a heads up if you choose to pack it in, I can at least throw you a farewell party!”

Sweet Cider grunted unenthusiastically, “I’ll think ‘bout it.”

“So not to put a halt on our self-flagellation here but don’t we have more important things to talk about than who did wrong to who?” asked Daring Do, “What are we going to do about the fact that Starlight Glimmer stole our entire classified research facility and might be using it to invade the realm across that dimensional portal? I mean, we could spend days blaming each other for the shitstorm that just went down and weeks punishing ourselves and licking our wounds, but call me crazy but I just think we need to be focusing more on our next move than on feeling bad that we all got sucker punched like idiots.”

Scorpan looked at her for an instant, and Daring cleared her throat and stood a bit straighter. “Uh, sir.”

With a grave nod the old man’s hard lined features softened somewhat, but his voice remained solid. “You speak wisdom, but before we attend to that matter I must make certain things clear. Not just to all of you, my Captains, but to myself. An affirmation that I must speak aloud so there is no question or doubt remaining.”

He rose from his seat, back straight, but his posture humble as he bowed his head as if under a great weight. “The damage caused to Soul Society is as much our fault as it was the one who schemed these events. Blind adherence to our laws without clarity to see how they could be used against us, distrust among our own kind sowing the seeds of this sad conflict, and an unwillingness to hear out those who come from the outside... we must make good on the mistakes we have made. I will not allow us to fall as we have again, nor will I waste time placing blame upon the few when it is the whole of us that bear the burden of responsibility. First and foremost I shall tolerate no more squabbles among my own." He turned hard looks towards all of his Captains, perhaps lingering for a moment longer on Hurricane. "Not between any of you. What grievances you have, bury them now for there will be no more fighting among ourselves. Secondly, the courageous young women who finally exposed the nature of our enemy and fought to stop them shall receive our utmost respect and cooperation. I will brook no talk concerning using or controlling them, nor seeking conflict with them over past battles. We owe them, for without their actions we might not even know who our enemies were, let alone where they took the Hitsuyo Aku facility.”

“Even if they each are tainted by Hollow powers, and one of them was a Hollow corrupted exile?” Hurricane asked, or rather began to, but was silenced quickly by a single glance from Scorpan that carried with it a weight of spiritual pressure akin to a localized mountain dropping down.

“There will be no talk made against them. They are our guests here, and free to depart when they choose. It is my sincere hope to cooperate with them in resolving the next issue, which is the danger to not only the our world but now to the realm of Equestria.”

“Permission to speak, Commander?” asked Celestia, and at Scorpan's faint nod she went on, “Given the word we received from my sister’s Lieutenant, Cheerilee, our means of entering Equestria has been cut off. If I know those girls they will be wishing to do everything in their power to find a way to reach Equestria to stop Starlight Glimmer’s plans. However given all that’s happened their trust in us, if there was any to begin with, may be all but spent. If we want to cooperate with them then we must handle the situation delicately. I ask permission for me and my sister to resume our posts in Canterlot City. Even with the portal closed we should maintain a presence in the city itself, and any efforts we coordinate with those girls will be best smoothed over by familiar faces.”

Scorpan was silent for several long moments of contemplation, then said, “You may return to the human world, Captain Celestia, as you are correct that if we are to form any trust with the girls you are best suited to do so. However Captain Luna must remain behind.”

Before either Luna or Celestia could voice objections that were obviously coming, given both Captains’ expressions, Scorpan raised a silencing hand. “It is not punishment, simply practicality. Given our reduced forces I have tasks for all of you, and Captain Luna will have her own assignment that cannot be completed while in the realm of the living.”

Luna looked less than pleased but after giving Celestia a sidelong look, she bowed her head. “I understand, Commander.”

“Good, then we can proceed. Securing a route to the realm of Equestria is to be one of the Twelfth Division’s highest priorities. Captain Starswirl, can you provide an estimate on how long such a task may take?"

His hands lightly running over his long white beard, Starswirl's eyes seemed bright at the thought of a challenge. "I already have a few ideas in mind that I'd like to try out upon that portal in the living world. Even if those don't pan out, there's other theories bouncing around upstairs on how we might get there. Give me a month and I'll probably have something for you."

"Can we not recreate the Crossgate device that was stolen by Starlight Glimmer?" asked Thunderhooves.

"Yeah, sure, if you want to spend the next year gathering the materials for it." said Starswirl with a wave of his hand, "My people had been working on that project for quite some time before that damnable woman swooped in and stole it out from under us. I could put resources towards building a new one, but it'd take longer than just finding another way to get to Equestria specifically. Keep in mind the Crossgate was designed to go to multiple worlds besides Equestria, so trying to build one just to go there would be like constructing a siege tower to get over a fence. Better to just look for another gate in the fence-line, or a convenient spot to dig a hole, you know?"

Scorpan coughed loudly to draw back attention, "I trust Starswirl to know how to handle that matter. In the meantime we shall focus our attention on the recovery of the wounded, the reconstruction of damages to the Seireitei, and strengthening our border defenses. The latest intelligence we have from Captain Daring Do’s reconnaissance teams tell us that both the Quincy and Arrancar are stirring. Correct, Captain?”

“That’s right, sir. Lieutenant Quibble Pants sent me his reports and so far it seems the Hollows are gathering in large numbers near Las Noches, while at the same time many of the Quincy we knew to be deployed to various places in the living world have vanished, suggesting a large scale mobilization of their own forces.”

“Sounds to me like one group is pulling in its defenses while the other is getting ready to strike.” Blueblood said, tapping one foot thoughtfully, “If the Quincy attack, will it be at the Hollows, or at us?”

“We’re the weakened ones, and no matter our efforts we’d be fools to assume the Quincy don’t have some eyes on us.” Hurricane said roughly, one hand holding the hilt of his Zanpaktou idly, “I should keep my Division on full alert.”

“Do so, but ensure your people still have time to rest and recover.” commanded Scorpan, to which Hurricane managed a stiff but still eager bow. While Scorpan didn’t wish to cause further turmoil among his people, he knew he’d need to talk to Hurricane in private soon and address the man’s actions. Not during the conflict with the Thirteenth and Second Divisions, as those were far more Scorpan’s responsibility than the Captains carrying out his orders, but Hurricane’s obsession with testing his warrior prowess had put much at risk simply because he wanted an excuse to fight Sweet Cider.

Scorpan knew all too well it had been a blow to Hurricane’s pride that the title of Kenpachi had gone to the much younger and inexperienced Captain, especially one he knew was a leftover from one of the Twelfth Division’s weapons experiments. Yet for Scorpan bringing Sweet Cider into the Gotei 13 had been a natural choice. Her natural power was impressive, but more than that Scorpan had felt responsible for her. By bringing her into the fold he’d been able to guide her to a degree, and while her anger with him and Soul Society was now blistering, he was proud of how well she’d handled herself during this crisis. Even if she left the Gotei 13, she’d served as an example of what Scorpan considered an exemplary Captain.

While Hurricane had acted hotheadedly, Scorpan couldn’t afford to remove him from his position. He needed every powerful warrior he could keep, and Hurricane was still the Soul Society’s best field commander who held the personal loyalty of his Division. More to the point, Scorpan had meant what he said before. They all shared the responsibility for this debacle, not the least amount of which fell squarely on his own shoulders. Punishing Hurricane specifically would go against Scorpan’s own sense of personal responsibility. They would all come together to fix their mistakes, or fall together in the bed they’d made.

Hmm, it is times like this I wonder if my brother was right. To rule requires a heavy hand, and perhaps I have always been too soft hearted.

He shook his head at the idle thought. His brother and him had parted ways long. He doubted Tirek would have hesitated to destroy unruly or disobedient subordinates, but that was the Hollow way. Scorpan still believed in the innate strength of order and structure wherein the strong had the sense of duty, honor, and responsibility to protect the weak. Hurricane was not a lost cause...

Platinum, however, Scorpan felt equal measures of grief and anger at the woman’s actions. There was indeed the sharp cut of betrayal, the simmering and impotent rage that came with the realization that one of his own had turned upon him, her comrades of centuries, and the very sanctity of the afterlife she’d sworn to protect! Yet Scorpan was painfully familiar with Platinum’s reasons for doing so. He’d guessed it before he’d heard the full tale. What other reason could there have been, besides the need to save her son’s life?

Heavy was that weight, the knowledge that his own actions had trapped one of his own Captains in such a position of despair. Yet he had seen no other way at the time. Central 46 nor himself could authorize the treatment of Pipsqueak’s condition via such a method as the “Hollowfication” that the Twelfth Division’s Hitsuyo Aku had discovered. To allow it would have brought potential ruin upon all of Soul Society.

It’d been nothing short of a miracle that the Zero Division had been talked down from purging the whole Twelfth Division after the incident involving Discord when he’d been Captain of the Twelfth. Scorpan was still trying to decide how to best deal with the Zero Division’s ire over this latest set of events. However he was resolved to protect those human girls, no matter the cost.

“As of now my only desire is we rest and recover. We will remain vigilant, however. In the meantime we will do all we can to find a way to reach the realm of Equestria and support the efforts of the young women from the realm of the living to stop Starlight Glimmer and whatever it is she plans.”

“Not a hard guess, Commander, given she nicked the Queen’s Key from our Treasury. I’m not even sure why she went to Equestria to play around in horseland instead of going straight for the Spirit Palace itself.” said Cheese Sandwich.

“The woman may be insane, but she’s probably not insane enough to think she can take on the whole Zero Division with just herself, one Fullbringer, a half-dead Platinum, and a Hollow that’s about as trustworthy as a bag of scorpions.” replied Daring Do, “If I were her I wouldn’t. She’s in that pony realm to gather power. What else could she be doing?”

Before further speculation could begin among the other Captains Scorpan raised his hand for silence. “We could talk for hours and get nowhere when trying to divine the purpose of Starlight Glimmer. In the end her motives and objectives don’t change that we must stop her. As such there will be no further talk for now. We must all attend to repairing the damage done. Go now, and see to your Divisions. Dismissed.”

----------

The girls had been given accommodations at the barracks for the Thirteenth Division. After their initial rest and recovery, including a fairly hearty meal, they’d been largely left to their own devices. The Soul Reapers of the Thirteenth Division who passed by the girls showed grateful looks and smiles, many stopping to thank them personally for their intervention during the battle with Hurricane’s Eleventh Division. Many even expressed varying degrees of awe at the fighting prowess displayed by Sunset and her friends, not only from their battle with Hurricane, but many of the fights thorough the Seireitei. Apparently the rumor mill was churning full speed and word had spread fast of such feats like Applejack matching the famous Kenpatchi one on one in a battle that’d shattered half the Academy training field, or Rarity’s actual defeat of Captain Blueblood (apparently an excited inn staff had talked about that one to anyone who passed by). Not a one of the girls hadn’t faced a high ranking officer and failed to at least survive it, which seemed to transform them into local celebrities, at least to the exceedingly grateful Thirteenth Division, whose Captain’s life had been saved.

Still, the Soul Reapers also seemed to be able to sense when the girls were getting a tad tired of the attention. Rarity soaked it up, and Pinkie Pie had quickly started chatting up some of the locals like old friends, but most the rest of the group was exhausted. Rainbow Dash especially had been uncharacteristically quiet since the end of all the fighting and during the long hours into the evening as they’d all rested. Sunset was worried about her friend, but was equally wrapped up in her own fuming emotions.

With an angry toss she sent a rock skipping across the lake in the center of forest near the Thirteenth Division’s cluster of barracks and administration buildings. She and her friends had all decided to go for a walk, and take a rest along the banks of the lake. Ditzy Doo wasn’t there, having wandered off to “check on some things”, while Clover had gone to the Fourth Division hospital to check on Meadowbrook’s condition, so Sunset was alone with her friends as they all gazed out over the lake.

Sunset’s tossed rock skipped a few times before plopping heavily into the otherwise still waters, and she grunted, casting about for another one to toss.

“Ya doin’ alright there, sugarcube?” asked Applejack, even as she walked up, bending down to pick up a stone of her own to heft in her hand before giving it a sharp toss. It cleared half the lake before sinking beneath the shining waters.

Sunset drew in a let out a calming breath, looking at the rock in her own hand for a second before tossing it to plunk into the water. “Just impatient. I want to get back home and start working on a way to chew my way through that portal now. Having to sit around here, even if we do need the time to rest, is just getting to me a bit.”

“Even if we left tonight, Sunset, I don’t think it would make that much of a difference in how long it will take us to find a way to get to Equestria.” pointed out Fluttershy, who was sitting nearby on the soft grass beyond the shore of the lake, knees drawn up and her hands resting on them. Nearby a few small squirrels sniffed at her, and she idly pet one. “Right now we need to take care of ourselves, so when the time comes we’re at our best to take it on.”

“I know that, but it still just makes me... urgh! You know?”

Fluttershy’s face lit up with a small but understanding smile. “I think so?”

Nearby Pinkie Pie, who for reasons unknown was in the middle of doing a head-stand, piped in, “Hey look at it this way, we’ve got lots of time now to go help out Miss Grumpy Fish while the sciency people chew through that research progress bar to unlock the next tech tier we need to progress the story!”

“Huh?” Applejack said.

“Miss Grumpy Fish?” Fluttershy asked with a confused look.

“I’m fairly certain she means Adagio.” said Rarity, who’d been laying out comfortably on a wide picnic mat placed out on the grass, enjoying a cup of tea. Taking a sip the girl’s eyes shined with pleasure for a moment before turning serious as she set the tea aside. “And it is a logical next step for us, isn’t it? To go and repay the debt we owe her for saving our lives after that dreadful business with Grogar and Grand Fisher.”

The words actually hit Sunset rather hard. She’d been so focused upon the threat Starlight might pose to Equestria, somehow Adagio had fallen somewhere to the back of her mind, but her friends’ words brought all of the guilt she’d felt at Adagio’s fate right back to the forefront. Ultimately Pinkie Pie and Rarity both were right. There was little Sunset could do to hasten a way to be found to reach Equestria, but Discord did have a way into Hueco Mundo. With the newly forged strength she’d attained with Hokori no Hikari, and that her friends had obtained through their own experiences, it was possible they could take down Grogar and free Adagio.

Assuming there’s anything left of her soul at this point to free. No, there has to be. That woman is way too headstrong to let herself break. Sunset thought firmly. As much of a pain in the butt as Adagio had been, both as an enemy and as a reluctant ally, Sunset had to admit she both recognized and admired the siren’s willful personality and couldn’t imagine Adagio falling prey to other Hollows.

Of course there was the question of whether or not anything could be done for her, even if she was rescued from Hueco Mundo, but Sunset wasn’t about to wallow in that pointless question. Whether anything could be done for her or not, the answer was a resounding “No” if they never tried in the first place. And Sunset Shimmer wasn’t one to give up without trying.

“That’s right.” she said, turning to her friends, “Whenever the time comes, we’ll get to Equestria and stop Starlight Glimmer, but in the meantime we do owe Adagio for what she did for us. Once we’re all back at one hundred percent, a trip to Hueco Mundo sounds like its in order.”

“Wouldn’t bother me none ta take another shot at that old bastard.” said Applejack, a brief shadow crossing her features, “An’ double worth it if he’s got any rightful notion o’ what happened ta my pa.”

There was a moment of silence before Fluttershy said, “I hope Twilight is okay.”

“Which one, darling?” asked Rarity, looking worried herself, “Because I don’t know about the rest of you but I’m more than a tad fearful for both of them. One has been enduring who knows what trials from her oh so loving family of bow wielding maniacs, while the other has gone to face unknown danger defending her realm from an entirely too powerful madwoman’s schemes. As it stands I can’t decide which I fear for more.”

“I know how you feel.” said Sunset, walking over and plopping down on the picnic mat next to Rarity. “I hate not being able to do anything to help, but that fact is we can’t do anything yet. Our Twilight, the human one, she’s beyond our reach right now. We don’t even know if she’s still in the country. As for Princess Twilight, all we know is what Celestia told us after getting that message from Cheerilee. She and Flash went through the portal, and the portal’s just... dead, for all we know. Whatever made them go through, it must’ve been something to do with Starlight’s plan. We can only hope they’ll be alright until we find a way to get there to help them.”

“Yeeeeah, transitional periods suck, amiright?” Pinkie Pie said, falling from her head stand and laying on her back, arms and legs splayed as she stared up at the sky for a moment, then turned to the last member of the gang. “So, Dashie, being awfully quiet over there...”

All eyes turned to look at Rainbow Dash, who’d been sitting nearby, arm resting on one knee while her other leg just sort of hung out. She was pulling up blades of grass and tossing them into the breeze touched air with contemplative eyes. Dash’s usual energy and enthusiasm seemed more than a little curbed, but she wasn’t catatonic and looked back at the other girls with a small smile.

“Just thinking, Pinks. Not trying to worry you guys, I’m just still processing things.”

“With...um, with your mom?” asked Fluttershy in a quiet, cautious hush.

Rainbow nodded, pulling up another blade of grass, then letting it fall from between her blue fingers. “Yeah.”

“Not ready to talk about it yet?” inquired Sunset gently.

“Kinda. I don’t know. Its...” she grunted out a sigh, “Its both more and less complicated than I thought. She clearly didn’t tell me everything, but it was enough... enough that I think I get it, but I still don’t get it.” Despite her clear consternation her smile stayed on her face, “All I can say for sure is that I feel like an idiot for hating her for so long. There’s no way she could’ve told me this stuff when I was a kid. I’m almost an adult and I still can’t get my head wrapped around it, so no way kindergarten-me would’ve understood. Still...” another blade of grass was ripped free and then summarily discarded. “It would’ve been nice to know that there was a reason.”

“We understand if you can’t share it with us right now, Rainbow dear.” said Rarity, “As long as you know we’re here for you when you are.”

Rainbow Dash ran her hands over her face, rubbing it like trying to wake herself up from a deep sleep. “Nah. I’m cool. If I mope on this too long it’s gonna eat at me, so I’d better just get this over with.”

She hopped up to her feet and started to pace around the lake shore, clearing thinking harder than she was usually used to.

“So, the way my mom explained it to me, it was like this; she left because if she stayed the Zero Division would’ve killed both her, me, and my dad.”

A tremor of silence echoed over the group for a moment, Pinkie Pie gasping loudly before blinking once, raising her hand, and saying, “Not the Zero Division! ...Who are they again?”

Sunset scratched her head, thinking back. “I barely remember myself, but Discord might have mentioned them once. I don’t recall what their deal is. But why would they want to kill your mother, Rainbow? Or you and your father for that matter?”

The heady storm of confusion only mounted in Rainbow Dash’s features, stopping her pacing briefly. “Mom told me the Zero Division are these super powerful Soul Reapers who really run the show down here, only they do it from up there.” She pointed vaguely skyward. “From some ‘higher plane’ where this Spirit Queen lady lives or whatever. They’re also called the Royal Guard because they protect the Queen, but the way my mom said that kinda clued me in that there’s something off about that whole thing. Anyway, the way my mom tells is the Zero Division are not exactly on the up and up. When our parents all got out of Xcution and had their memories fiddled with, my mom was the only one who got away with keeping her memories intact because she buzzed off with Starlight Glimmer and Twilight’s mom to the Quincy. She didn’t stick around, though, and tried to start living a normal life again, where she met my dad, and then had me. Only Soul Society was watching her, and word got passed along to up the chain of command.”

“All the way to the Zero Division?” asked Sunset, and Rainbow Dash shook her head.

“Kinda sorta. The dude in charge down here, Scorpan, wanted Discord to bring my mom in for the whole memory wipe deal, but then some Zero Division chick shows up with orders to just straight up murder my mom. Only apparently Scorpan runs interference, buying Discord time to warn my mom about the pile of bricks about to drop on her head so... she has to skip town. Has to leave me and dad, because if she didn’t, when the Zero Division came for her they’d not only off her, but anybody near her.”

“Not to overly question your mother’s word Rainbow Dash, but I don’t understand something.” said Rarity, her brow creasing in thought. “Why would these Zero Division ruffians want your mother dead so badly in the first place? Just because she didn’t get her memory altered? Forgive me, but that seems exceedingly strange. If they had no faith in such methods why not kill all of our parents, just to be sure? If they’re so cutthroat it’d be more plausible they’d not take the risk of leaving any of our mothers alive, let alone children who might inherit their powers like we have.”

“Believe it or not, Rares, I kinda figured that one out too, and asked her that same question. And, well...” Dash rubbed at her forehead, “This is where it gets weird. And vague. She clearly didn’t want to tell me everything, but she told me enough. You see, during the time after she had me, but before the Zero Division showed up to come after her, she was still in contact with Starlight Glimmer. You see Starlight hadn’t gone all coo-coo yet, hadn’t stolen that Hokgywhatever from Discord yet, and was still working as a Substitute Soul Reaper. And apparently she and my mom had this friend in the living world named Sunburst-”

“Oh hey! Starlight totally mentioned him!” Pinkie Pie said happily, “I remember that!”

“Same here,” said Applejack, frowning deeply, “Seemed ta me like she was downright royally ticked off ‘bout somethin’ this Zero Division did ta the fella.”

Rainbow Dash gave a shallow nod, “Yeah, about that... mom was being real dodgy about the details, but he apparently died in some accident and Starlight had to send him on to Soul Society personally. Only instead of his soul passing on, like it was supposed to, it... uh, well you remember what happened to that Hollow Sunset and Clover took down during that first day we went out training?”

Sunset’s eyes widened as she remembered. The large, snake-like Hollow had been a tough opponent for them during that time where they’d only just barely begun to learn about the spirit realms and their own powers. Rainbow Dash had awakened her Fullbring for the first time, and Sunset had fought for the first time in her spirit body. Most of all, however, she remembered with stark clarity what had happened to that snake Hollow when Clover had struck the final blow.

A massive, horrific door to the realm of Jigoku, Hell, had opened up and dragged the Hollow to a fate that Sunset could only imagine, but shuddered when she did so.

A heavy, frozen silence hung among the girls. Fluttershy broke it with a whispered, “He... was he really taken to... um... that place?”

Rainbow Dash gulped, “That’s what my mom says happened, and from the look in her eyes, I believe her. This Sunburst guy got taken to Hell, and both Starlight and my mom were right there when it happened. Couldn’t do a damn thing to stop it.”

“But why?” breathed Applejack, “I ain’t givin’ Soul Society much credit fer smarts these days, but surely even they can’t screw up so bad they send the wrong folk ta eternal torment an’ damnation! Did... did this Sunburst fella do somethin’ real bad?”

“The way I understand it a Zanpaktou isn’t what actually sends souls to Jigoku anyway.” said Sunset with a bewildered and uneasy look. “Its supposed to be the weight of the soul’s crimes that summon the Gates that drag them down.”

“I don’t know.” Rainbow Dash replied with a helpless shrug, “According to my mom, she and Starlight tried to find out what went wrong on their own. Apparently this Sunburst dude was supposed to be a real stand up guy. Mom basically called him ‘a total nerd and wuss’. No way he did something worth ending up in Hell for, at least that’s what she said.”

“Did they find out?” Fluttershy asked quietly, “What went wrong, I mean?”

“That’s the vague part.” Rainbow Dash grumbled, arms crossing over her chest in a frustrated display. “She said they did dig up the truth, but that she couldn’t tell me what it was except that the Zero Division was up to some seriously screwed up shenanigans and that’s why she and Starlight make a pact to do... all of the crap they’ve done up until now. Steal the Hogyowhatsit from Discord, prod all of the circumstances leading to us getting our powers, framing Celestia and Luna so they could steal a bunch of stuff from Soul Society, including that giant flaming chicken stick and the creepy laboratory base, then run off to Equestria. All part of some big plan to take on the Zero Division and save this Sunburst guy.”

“Do you trust it?” Sunset asked after a moment, meeting Rainbow Dash’s eyes with a blunt and serious look. “What your mother has told you?”

She could see the tight jaw muscles clenching in Rainbow Dash, and the way tension just shot up through the young athlete's body as she looked away, eyes filled with a heady mix of conflicting emotions. “That’s what I’ve been trying to process. I want to believe her. For once in my life I got a reason, you know? A reason she left that I can at least kind of understand!” The girl’s face was reddening with embarrassment as her ruby eyes grew wet and she looked away from her friends with clear shame weighting her shoulders down.

“Dammnit this is so lame. I shouldn’t be crying like a baby over this.”

“Hey, hey...” Applejack went straight up to Dash and put a firm, strong hand on her shoulder, “Sugarcube, ya got nothin’ ya need to feel ashamed of in front o’ us! Ya remember how much I was bawlin’ when I finally got ta talk ta my mom properly? Ya see me holdin’ my tears back then, hun?”

“Gah, dangit AJ, its still feels so...” Rainbow Dash wiped at her face, and managed an awkward smile. “Not lame, but good. It feels too good to just have all that anger I’ve been holding onto drain out of me. I want to believe my mom because for once I believe in the idea that she loves me and that when she left it wasn’t because she didn’t care, but because she did. So maybe I’m just, uh, being biased or whatever. But yeah, I do believe her.”

“That’s good ‘nough fer me.” said Applejack.

“For me too.” said Sunset, her mind racing. “The real question is, what does this mean? Even if Starlight Glimmer has a reason to be doing what she is, she’s still threatening other people’s lives and possibly the balance of two realities to get what she wants. She still has to be stopped.”

“Don’t think anyone’s arguing on that count.” Rarity said, pale features grave as she stood up and brushed herself off. “I for one think we should leave these weighty matters to be discussed until our return. Certainly we could ask questions of certain Soul Reapers we trust such as Miss Clover, or Captains Luna or Celestia. However any such questions, no matter how careful we were in asking them, might run the risk of reaching the ears of this Zero Division, no? If they truly are so dangerous I think it best we pretend everything is normal for now. Perhaps Mr. Discord has more information. I certainly have questions of my own for him.”

“Like what?” Sunset asked.

“For one, did he know about this Sunburst fellow and that his unfortunate descent into, um, ‘H E double hockey sticks’ was the motivator behind Starlight Glimmer’s actions? If he did he certainly failed to tell us, and if I remember Miss Doo’s reactions she didn’t know about this either. I’m curious how much more he may have been keeping from us.”

A cold stab of guilt hit Sunset then as she recalled her conversation with Discord just shortly before they’d left to come to Soul Society. “That’s... not all on him. I, uh... I’m sorry to say this girls, but I knew a bit about Starlight Glimmer before we even came here. Discord told me about her and how she stole the Hogkyoku from him.”

“What!?” Applejack shouted, “When’d that happen!? An’ why didn’t ya tell us!?’

“I’m sorry Applejack. It happened just before we left. He didn’t say anything about Sunburst, but he did explain to me a bit about Starlight and that he suspected she was behind the situation with Celestia and Luna being framed. I didn’t say anything about it because I wasn’t certain it mattered, at first, and by the time we knew for sure Starlight was involved things were happening too fast for me to really slow down and bring it up. I’m sorry, girls, I wasn’t trying to hide anything, it was just everything that happened in Soul Society the past couple of days has been one crazy mess of a train ride and there just wasn’t much of a moment to stop and say anything.”

“It’s okay Sunset.” said Fluttershy, smiling in understanding. “it has been pretty crazy. I’d have forgotten about it myself.”

“Besides, it all turned out okay!” Pinkie Pie said with a grin, then blinked, “Mostly.”

A flash of disgruntlement still sapped Applejack’s face into a deep frown, but she burst out with a grunt and said, “Dang it Sunset, ya still should’ve told us what ya knew the first chance ya had, but what’s the point o’ stayin’ ticked off about it now? We got so much more ta worry ‘bout right now I can’t even spare any anger fer this. Just hearin’ ‘bout the Zero Division is makin’ me wanna bash some heads, but guess they’ll have ta git in line at this point.”

“It does appear we’re accruing an alarming number of potential enemies.” Rarity said, “Although I suggest we don’t quite yet rush to label this mysterious Zero Division as a threat just yet. Whatever has happened between them and Starlight Glimmer doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with us.”

“Except my mom is dead set on fighting them alongside Starlight,” Rainbow Dash said with a tightly clenched fist, “And if they really are sending people to Hell who don’t deserve it, can we really say my mom and Starlight are wrong to try and do something about it?”

“If they’re tryin’ ta break the world doin’ it, yer damn straight we can.” said Applejack, “I ain’t sayin’ I don’t understand why they’d want ta take on a broken system, but look at all the chaos they caused just tryin’ ta steal the things they need ta do it! An’ how much more damage are they gonna do ta Equestria while pullin’ the same crap over there? Doin’ what’s right sometimes gets messy, I know that, but what Starlight is doin’ still feels wrong ta me. Sorry Dash, but if yer ma is a willin’ part o’ that, we’re gonna need ta take her down too, when push comes ta shove.”

“I know, AJ, I know! Kinda why I was taking my time processing things. I wasn’t planning to go jetting off to switch sides, I mean c’mon, do you take my loyalty that lightly!?”

“Nah, Rainbow, I don’t. I know ya would never turn on yer friends.” Applejack said softly, eyes as serious as they were solemn. “Just hopin’ next time ya got ta tussle with yer ol’ lady, ya let them same friends back ya up. Let us help carry that burden, so ya don’t gotta face it all alone.”

“I hear you, and I will, don’t worry.” Rainbow Dash said, finally seeming to relax a bit, her posture slackening to one that seemed both relieved and quite a bit more tired than before. “I just really needed to get all that off my chest. Thanks for listening.”

“Hey no problem Dashie. Heh, I mean, imagine how super-duper sucky it’d be to stew on all that for the next arc or two, letting the pressure build and build until it made you pop like an angsty pinata.” Pinkie Pie giggled.

“Yeah, not gonna let this drag me down. Especially not now that I’ve got my swanky, newly upgraded Fullbring.” Rainbow Dash said, pumping her fist, apparently trying to clear the air to a more light hearted topic.

“It looked pretty impressive.” said Sunset, then shook her head with a light laugh, “Your attacks were one of the few ones I saw that made Starlight strain a little.”

“To be fair, darling, you weren’t able to use your full power.” Rarity said, “And we were all rather drained from all the battles prior to that point. I prefer to optimistically believe that once we all catch up to Rainbow in completing our Fullbrings and you get a better handle on your Bankai we shall be able to make a better showing of ourselves the next time we face Starlight Glimmer.”

“So what can yer Fullbring do now, anyhows?” asked Applejack, eyeing Rainbow Dash curiously. “Looked ta me like it was more or less doin’ the same, only bigger.”

“Sorta, yeah. I mean, I haven’t used it much, but with it complete its like I have this stronger, innate sense of how to use it without having to actually do it first. I even know its name somehow. Anyway basically the new rainbow wings make me way faster than before, and can also bust out direct energy beams kinda like those big red Hollow ones. I don’t just generate a bunch of lightning now, but I also can totally control the weather to make way more than ever before. I’m not sure how much juice I can pump out, but you might as well start calling me Thor at this point. Oh, then there’s the sweet lightning spear I can bust out. Don’t know how, but it makes the lightning, like, physical and solid like its an actual blade that can pierce things. Not sure about all it can do yet but I feel like that spear can do some special moves if I test it out some more.”

Sunset found herself happily smirking, “Sounds like you’re eager to jump right back into training.”

Dash’s own lopsided, confident half-grin nearly mirrored Sunset’s own. “You know it. After all, aren’t you feeling the same way, Miss I-Got-Bankai? First thing I wanna do once we get back home is take my Fullbring and stack it up against your Bankai and see who comes out ahead.”

“Heh, not sure Discord’s training area could handle that.” Sunset said, feeling herself relaxing a little now. “But I’m game if you are.”

“I wonder how long it will take the rest of us to unlock our Fullbrings?” Fluttershy said with a thoughtful and slightly concerned look. “It sounds dangerous, if there’s a violent chance of exploding when it happens.”

Rainbow Dash shot Fluttershy a confident look, “No worries Fluttershy, I got that figured out. Kind of. Before we went our separate ways, mom showed me how to control those excess energies, so as long as I’m near you girls when one of you goes True Fullbring, I’ll be there to help. That’s part of the reason mom goaded me to fight in the first place, so she could teach me how that’s done.”

“True Fullbring?” Rarity queried with a quirked eyebrow, “Your term or your mothers?”

“Oh, uh, heheh, mine. I figured we needed to call it something to distinguish it from the powers we had before. Hey, what do expect? I like naming stuff!”

“Oh, I wasn’t criticizing, dear, merely clarifying. It’s a simple yet striking term, and I must say your ‘True Fullbring’ was quite lovely and inspiring. I share Fluttershy’s sentiments that I can only wonder what form our powers will take when all of them are complete. Hopefully we can find a way to accelerate the process.”

To that Rainbow Dash just shrugged. “Beats me, Rares. For me it was kind of a personal thing. Had to realize a few things about myself and what my loyalty means to me before it all just... clicked. Like a door opened up in me that I didn’t even know was there, let alone had been locked shut.”

“That corresponds to what Ditzy Doo told us earlier.” Sunset said, rubbing her chin, “It sounds like there’s an emotional component to achieving True Fullbring that can’t be sped up with regular training. Your mother clearly had an idea of what kind of stimulus you needed, but its probably going to be harder with everyone else. I mean, there’s no telling when the right emotional stress might happen that’ll trigger the change.”

Applejack made a small ‘tch’ sound, “That’ll make keepin’ Dash nearby ta deal with the explosive side effects kinda hard, won’t it?”

Suddenly a new voice cut into the conversation, gentle and soft, yet still carrying with it a great strength. “I might suggest then that all of you young ladies stick together as much as possible from now on, then.”

Everyone turned to see Celestia standing not more than a few paces from them, as if she’d been standing there in plain view the whole time. Sunset certainly hadn’t heard or even spiritually sensed the woman’s approach. Celestia was no longer wearing the plain white robes she’d had on for her execution, but was now changed into the formal black robes of a Soul Reaper, with her stark white Captain’s overcoat worn over the robes, prominently displaying the kanji for the Thirteenth Division upon its back. Her twin Zanpaktou were sealed and sheathed through her sash, resting there comfortably. Celestia’s expression was near painfully nostalgic for Sunset, carrying that level headed and motherly look of encouragement that also seemed to twinkle with just a hint of mischief that was so similar to the look Sunset had so often seen from her teacher back in Equestria it could have been a mirror image.

Somewhat awkwardly Sunset smiled and waved, “Hey, uh, Captain Celestia. How long have you been listening in?”

Celestia’s smile didn’t waver, yet her eyes warmed with amusement. “Please, just Celestia. None of you are under any obligation to refer to me by my rank. As for your question; long enough to know you girls must have many questions and may be unsure if its safe to ask even me about them.”

Applejack’s eyes narrowed, “Ya know ‘bout the Zero Division, then?”

“Not much, sadly.” Celestia’s expression turned sympathetic, “Certainly not enough to corroborate anything that Firefly or Starlight Glimmer may have said about them. Jigoku is, for all intents and purpose, a spiritual prison for souls too damaged by their own sins to function inside the cycle of reincarnation. I have never heard of a soul sent there that was not guilty of crimes worthy of that bleak place, yet I have never much cared for its existence either. I was not heavily involved with the matters involving Starlight Glimmer or Xcution. I knew Discord well, even counted him as a friend, but his exile soured his relationship with Soul Society. As a result I only know rumors and scant details about the falling out he had with our first Substitute Soul Reaper. The name Sunburst... I think I may have heard it once before, but certainly nothing to suggest why he met the fate he did.”

“Is there anything you can tell us about why the Zero Division might have done something like that? Anything at all?” Sunset asked, desperate to know anything concrete.

Celestia shook her head, eyes closing sadly. “I’m sorry, but no. Even among Captains such as myself, knowledge of the Zero Division is limited. We know their names, of course, their reputations and abilities, but their day to day activities and even elements of their history are unknown to all save for the Central 46 and the Captain Commander himself. However I can give you my word that I will look into this matter myself and when I know more I will pass along what I learn to you. In the meantime I suggest keeping your cards close to your chests, and focus on recovering from your ordeals. On that note, I actually came here to tell you that the Senkaimon Gate should be ready by tomorrow at noon, so we shall return to Canterlot City then.”

“So ya are comin’ back with us then? Luna too?” asked Appejack.

A shadow passed over Celestia’s face, “Unfortunately my sister will have duties to attend to that will prevent her from rejoining me in the living world. Scorpan needs the Stealth Corps fully mobilized for a number of operations that Luna will need to oversee. So I shall return alone, and for the time being also send Lieutenant Cheerilee back here so she may assist her Captain in the Second Division’s missions. However with Lieutenant Flash Sentry currently trapped on the other side of the portal I am also lacking a Second Seat officer. As such I’ll be bringing with me Third Seat Inkwell to take up the slack. Captain Starswirl has also generously offered to allow me to ‘borrow’ Third Seat Clover for additional support, and given her experience with you girls the Captain Commander approved her long term posting to Canterlot City. Given the Twelfth Division will be conducting studies on the portal more directly I wouldn’t be surprised to see others from that Division arrive as well.”

Applejack groaned, “Great, more hidden Soul Reapers at school. Least we know Clover’s on the up and up, an’ that Inkwell gal didn’t seem so bad.”

“Indeed.” Celestia smiled, “Inkwell will take over duties as ‘vice principle’, while Clover will officially be assigned an identity and gigai to pose as a student. I trust you’ll all help bring her up to speed on how to act like a modern high school girl?”

Sunset couldn’t help but flash a return smile, as did the other girls. “I think we can make her feel right at home.”

Pinkie Pie was practically vibrating in place, “Ooooooh, she’s getting such a party when we get back! I wonder if I should count it as her official birthday?”

A part of herself that Sunset hadn’t realized had been tense suddenly unraveled into a pool of cool relief. With everything else so uncertain and up in the air, it was good to know that Clover was going to remain close to them. She’d all but become another member of the group as far as Sunset was concerned, and after the loss Clover had suffered with Chishiki being stolen she was grateful she’d be able to be there for Clover. Well, that they all would be, of course. Not just Sunset personally. Huh. Where had that thought come from?

Either way, it was good news. Now if only they could find some way to get Twilight back from the Quincy...

As if sensing Sunset’s thoughts, Celestia said, “Its clear that there’s still much that weights heavily on all of you, but rest assured that for the moment you’ve done all you can, more than anyone could ever have expected of you. The Captain Commander wanted me to tell you all that you have clearance to go as you please around Seireitei and do what you must to recover your strength.” She cast a knowing glance at Applejack, “And spend time with those you wish.”

A grateful look overcame Applejack, “Glad ta hear it. Uh, do ya know where my ma is at? I know she had ta deal with some Soul Reaper business, what with that meetin’ an’ all, but I’d sure like ta take some time ta just... talk with her.”

Celestia nodded in understanding. “I was able to speak with your mother before coming here. She is dealing with some matters involving her Division, but she told me to let you know that as soon as she has those affairs in order she will come here and the two of you can spend as much time as you need together.”

Hesitance glinted across Applejack’s eyes, “Don’t suppose ya know if she’s plannin’ ta stay on with you Soul Reaper types, or...”

“Return to the living world?” Celestia finished the unasked question. “Sweet Cider did not tell me her mind on that matter. Truthfully I’m uncertain if she could return for any long period of time without a gigai to sustain her, although I don’t doubt Discord would be able to help her in that matter. I also imagine the Captain Commander might turn a blind eye to the matter, given he’s made it very clear how much we all owe you young ladies. Still, its a matter for Sweet Cider to decide at this point.”

“I figured. Thanks, Celestia.” said Applejack, shading her face with her stetson. “Was meanin’ ta give this back ta my ma, but reckon she’s got her own hat she’s wearin’ now, figurative like.”

“You sound like you already know the choice she’s going to make.” Celestia noted, and Applejack just gave a knowing smile.

“Ma didn’t raise me ta ignore responsibilities, or ta do one whit less than I oughta fer the good o’ the community. Yeah, figurin’ I know what she’ll do, but I’ll hear it from the horse’s mouth when the time comes.”

“Well, I for one could do with some proper R&R, and I think we all could use something extensively and overtly pampering.” Rarity said, “Given that you say we have the run of the place, Celestia, I don’t suppose you know of a halfway decent spa in this place?”

“I think we can accommodate your needs.” Celestia said with a wink.

“Um, I think we all might have things we want to do.” said Fluttershy, face reddening with a faint brush of heat. “I think I should talk with Posey at least once before we go.”

A surprisingly serious look overcame Celestia’s face, though her voice was no less kind for it. “I will not say you shouldn’t, but I would also give you a few words of caution, Fluttershy. As hard as it may be for you to understand, and as equally hard for Posey to accept, the fact that you are a reincarnation of her mother’s soul does not place any responsibility upon you to behave as such. If that were the case all of us would have such responsibilities. With the exception of Sunset Shimmer, you are all human souls who have dwelt in the cycle of reincarnation for a long time. You’ve lived other lives, likely had lovers, spouses, and children during those lives, but those lives are not the ones you live right now and you hold no ties to them.”

Fluttershy slowly rose from where she’d been sitting, a calm air surrounding her that gave the girl a sense of strength that went well beyond her seemingly fragile exterior. “I understand what you’re saying Celestia, and I don’t want to meet with Posey because I feel as if I must act like the mother she remembers. I just can’t ignore someone who’s in pain. That’s all. If I can do anything to set her at ease, I feel like I should. As her friend, I hope. Besides, I want to make sure Kyoki is behaving.”

Celestia paused a moment, then nodded in understanding. “Then I’ll so no more. As I said, you girls are free to wander Seireitei as you will, but of course my Thirteenth Division’s doors are open to you if you wish to just rest and recover here some more.”

“Thank you Celestia, we really appreciate it.” Sunset said, “After the last few days, even if I want to chew my way to Equestria if I have to, it’ll still be good to try and unwind for a bit.” After a moment of thought she added, “I think I’ll go check on Clover. She probably needs some company to take her mind of things.”

“Oh, why don’t you invite her to come along to join us at whatever spa or spa-like accommodations we happen to find?” suggested Rarity, “Nothing helps wring out the blues than some old fashioned, decadent pampering.”

“Yeah, you guys have fun with that.” said Rainbow Dash, “Me, I’m taking myself for a test flight. I want to really give my new wings a stretch!”

“And I’m gonna go see if there’s any proper party supplies around here.” chimed in Pinkie Pie, zipping up next to Celestia with a very intense look in her unblinking eyes. “Tell me there’s at least a bakery around here.”

“Not inside the Seireitei, but I’m sure we can find something in one of the Rukon districts.” Celestia said.

With that the girls gradually went off in different directions, all eager in their own ways to shake off the worries and uncertainties of future conflicts and to take what time they could to enjoy whatever brief moments of peace fate was going to afford them. But the dust had finally settled on the chaos in Soul Society, and at least for now there were no more battles to fight.

----------

Pain exploded across Adagio’s body as she was slammed through the thick stalagmite, but despite the blow rocking her senses she still recovered fast and with a flick of her fin tail she flew around in a tight circle, soaring back at her foe with a guttural howl of challenge, one that was mirrored by a chorus of howls from the fierce battle she and her companions were engaged in. Blood already stained her claws, even as she slashed them in a rending arc...

----------

Pain still ached in her shoulder but the wound was mostly healed, and Twilight slowly slipped out of her hospital gown to start putting her Quincy uniform back on. Piece by piece the military uniform enfolded her slim body, and with a uncertain sigh she looked at herself in the mirror of the recover ward room. In her mind’s eye she could see a flash of Midnight Sparkle’s looming shadow interposing itself over her. Shaking her head to wipe the image away she placed the military styled cap atop her head, the Quincy five-pointed cross blazing silver...

----------

Adagio’s claws raked hard across the chest of her opponent, a heavily muscled bipedal Hollow of the same Adjuchas’ class as she was, its face covered in a bull-like mask sporting sizable, goring tusks. Her claws drew dark blood, the bull Hollow screaming in pain even as it took a meaty, boulder sized fist to hammer at Adagio with reckless abandon. She retreated, growing in frustration at the sight of the shallow wounds she’d inflicted. Hunger burned inside her like a roaring fire.

Nearby Gaw’s titanic form wrestled with another near equally tall Adjuchas that held the form of a massive, forty foot tall avian bird with dark, dusky wings that fired a hail of bony barbs at the dinosaur-like Hollow while Gaw roared and tried to bite through the other Adjuchas’ rib-like bone armor.

D-Roy and Ember were occupied keeping a small horde of lesser Hollows back, ones who served the Adjuchas that had claimed this section of the Forest of Menos. With the Gillians not proving to be sufficient sport for her aims, Adagio had chosen to seek bigger game.

Now it was do or die...

----------

The Quincy Academy was no less active despite the losses among the cadets from the recent battle. For Twilight it was as if she could see the fresh anger and determination burning among her fellow recruits, and a deep seated and solemn conviction radiating off of the instructors like Spitfire who didn’t let up on her training methods. If anything she now pushed the trainees harder than ever before. As Twilight summoned forth her bow, facing off against Sunny Flare in her fifth sparring match in that hour alone, sweat poured off Twilight’s brow, but she found she could hold her bow more steady than ever before.

Her arrows came faster, the speed of her Hirenkyaku smoother, and her ability to switch between deflecting Sunny Flare’s rapid-fire reishi darts with Blut Vene and empowering her own strikes with Blut Arterie was happening with less and less conscious thought on her part.

Every time she felt her focus slipping her mind showed her an image of Midnight Sparkle, and of the horrifying blood and fire the Hollows had brought to the Quincy, and Twilight’s resolve sharpened and her mind worked faster than ever before...

----------

With greater and greater speed Adagio circled her weakening foe, but the bull-masked Hollow was not going down easily, even as she snaked in with darting slashes that tore yet more bloody cuts across his thick hide. As she made one such pass he caught her by surprise with a sudden and powerful backhand that clipped her already injured side. As she hit the ground the bull Hollow raised a massive, cloven foot and smashed it towards her face. Her own eyes alighting with ferocious indignation, she opened her maw and disgorged a point blank Cero blast.

The crimson beam enveloped the other Adjuchas’ and blew him backwards. He’d crossed his thick arms in front of him, absorbing as much of the destructive beam as he could, but his right leg was a charred ruin and his arms showing bleeding, burned patches as he stumbled back from her. An enraged roar tore itself from his throat.

“Damned bitch! You think you can keep hunting in our turf without consequence!?”

His meaty fists smashed into the ground, tearing up a giant, ten meter wide chunk of stone to hurl at her like a fastball. Adagio with a swift flick of her tail had little trouble evading the crude projectile and swam up into the air to look down on the Adjuchas with a disdainful and imperious look in her eyes.

“The only consequence I see is more opportunities for me and mine to grow ever stronger feeding on fools who can’t defeat us even with such a numeric advantage. Really you should have brought your whole tribe, not just a few weaklings.”

Even as she spoke Ember and D-Roy combined their Ceros into a blazing trail of destruction that tore a ragged chunk out of the pack of lesser Hollows that had been obeying the bull-like Adjuchas’ command. As for the Adjuchas’ other two Adjuchas-class companions, one found its wide, ant-eater shaped face bitten into by Gaw’s massive jaws and shaken like a wolf tearing apart a rabbit, while the remaining Adjuchas took one look at the savagery in front of it and turned its own avian form around to fly off in abject retreat.

Seeing this, the bull Adjuchas, his mask seeming to tremble with his twitching rage, opened his mouth in a wordless roar of defiance and started to charge Adagio with his horned head lowered with clear intent to gore her.

Adagio just smiled behind her own Hollow mask, her red siren gem gleaming with lustrous, ruby light. She could feel its pulse like her own heartbeat, her power ever growing with the conflicts around her. Even if she wasn’t an Arrancar yet, the power was singing in her blood with a fervent tenor, a sound she matched with her own voice as she broke out into a feverish chant of battle and bloodlust as she flew to meet her foe.

As tired as she was from the constant fighting, as much as she chafed at her current situation and desired nothing more than to become stronger, a part of Adagio was strangely jubilant. With every battle she grew ever stronger, and it was clear that the battles were far from over...

----------

Sunny Flare pulled off an impressively acrobatic front flip that took her above Twilight, her dart pistols firing down in a thick rain of flashing blue reishi darts. Twilight responded with breakneck speed, leaping back from the barrage with the darts passing by her nose by inches. Without conscious thought she hardened herself with Blut Vene, her speed increasing again as she kicked off with a burst of reishi to soar higher than Sunny Flare, bending her own body into an angled shot from her gleaming bow of azure light.

One arrow snatched a dart gun out of Sunny Flare’s left hand, while the next one caught the edge of the girl’s uniform pants and pinned it to the stone floor of the training ring as she landed.

Sunny Flare winced and tore her pant leg, her balance thrown off for just a moment. A moment long enough for Twilight to appear behind her in an instant, bow leveled at the other girl’s head.

A sharp whistle sounded from the edge of the ring, where Spitfire stood with numerous other Quincy trainees who were watching the bout. Spitfire’s eyes were hidden behind a pair of aviator sunglasses, but there was a faint smirk on her face.

“And that’s match! Thirty two seconds, a new record for you, Sparkle. Flare, pick up the pace next time! Or have you guys forgotten what those Hollows did to your fellow recruits? Soon enough you’ll be seeing more Hollows up close, so no slacking off!”

Breathing hard, Sunny Flare retrieved her disarmed dart gun and gave Twilight a sidelong look. “You’d think we hadn’t been doing this non-stop since we got back to the Academy, the way she yells at us.”

Twilight offered an apologetic smile, her concentration draining out of her. “I know, but it makes sense that we’re being pushed. If we’re going to Hueco Mundo soon, we need all the training we can get.”

“Hmph, some of us seem to be learning faster than others.” Sunny Flare said with a sideways smirk.

“Hey!” called Spitfire sharply, “You ladies don’t have time for gossip! Sparkle, stay in the ring, Flare you too. Zest, Zapp, get your butts in there. We’re doing a two vs two this time! No breaks! Move it!”

Lemon Zest, freshly recovered from her own injury but still sporting a tight body cast around her chest, winced as she limped into the ring alongside Indigo Zap. As the girls all moved to square off across the ring, Twilight took a deep breath and focused once more on her bow.

She was tired, but she had to keep pushing herself. She needed all the strength she could muster in the days to come, because as far as she could tell the battles were far from over...

Episode 59: Ripples

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Episode 59: Ripples

The air was pleasantly cold against her skin as Rainbow Dash soared high above the shining streets of the Seireitei. She couldn’t go too high otherwise she’d run face first into the dome-like ward that encompassed the Soul Society’s inner sanctum, but her spiritual senses were sharp enough now to easily feel where that barrier was and she avoided it while enjoying stretching her new wings. Celestia had told her that if she wanted to go flying outside the barrier all she had to do was ask and she’d be supplied a ward pass, but Dash didn’t want to go too far away from the other girls for now.

She still didn’t fully trust that the more jerkish Soul Reapers might not try to pull something. Maybe that was paranoid, but what her mother had told her still sat at the back of her mind like a sharp pebble stuck in a shoe. She’d kind of hoped that once they’d put a stop to all the nonsense around here with the attempt to execute Celestia and Luna that things would settle down and make life simpler. Instead it only seemed that everything was even more complicated than they’d known and Rainbow Dash wasn’t really sure what think.

She let out a short laugh into the wind, doing a lazy roll through the sky to fly lower over a set of small hills dotted with trees that hugged the north western corner of the Seireitei.

Dash figured she was thinking too hard about all of this. She just needed to stick by her friends and keep them safe. As long as she did that, the rest would shake out alright. Even if she had to scuffle with her mother again, she only felt a surge of confidence, and even some anticipation. A lot of her anger was gone, and while confusion remained, she figured it wouldn’t last.

Casually looking around below her she noticed that the small hills were dotted with tall, white markers of stone, perhaps four or five per hill. Curious, she flew lower, intending to get a closer look, but pulled up short as she saw someone was already standing atop one of the hills. Hovering, she frowned as she recognized the heavily muscled man with dark blue skin and stormy gray hair. Hurricane was wearing his robes and Captain’s overcoat, but also carried a large gourd in one hand and Dash could smell the thick odor of alcohol even from thirty feet up.

“Either fly off somewhere else, or quit staring and land, Ryoka.” Hurricane grunted, tilting his head just enough to cast a flat glare at her.

Normally Rainbow Dash would’ve been just fine leaving this grade-A butt-nozzle to drown in whatever it was he was choosing to drown in, but morbid curiosity about the stones and what Hurricane was doing out here gave her pause. The idea that she could annoy the crap out of the bastard that tried to off her and her friends and rub his face in the fact that they were all still alive got her to actually land next to him, arms crossed over her chest.

As she did so Hurricane continued to eye her, then almost with a reluctant glower, he offered her the gourd that smelled like whatever it contained it had enough alcohol in it to knock out an ox.

“Dude,” said with a wrinkled nose, “I’m like, totally a minor.”

“No age limit in Soul Society.” Hurricane said bluntly, still holding the gourd out. “What, you afraid of a little drink, oh mighty Ryoka?”

Oh, so that was how it was going to be? Rainbow Dash’s jaw clenched and she snatched the gourd from his hand. “Gimme that. Afraid of a little drink, pfft, stuff is probably so watered down I won’t even feel it.”

She took a swallow before she could second guess herself. To her credit she managed not to sputter as the liquid burned a path down her throat to land in her stomach like a ball of hot coals. Through sheer will and determination she didn’t even cough as she glared and handed the gourd back to Hurricane, who was smirking at her with an exceedingly punchable look.

“Hmph, seems like I keep underestimating you Ryoka.”

Ignoring the burn of the drink Dash glowered, “The name is Rainbow Dash, you thick skulled musclehead! Drop the Ryoka crap already.”

Hurricane took a long pull from the gourd, some of the faintly red tinged liquid staining his chin and robes as he chugged from it. Finishing with a bored wiping of his mouth with a sleeve he muttered, “You still bark loudly for such a short, skinny thing. Has gaining that new form increased your arrogance further?”

“You’re the last jerk around here that should be talking crap about being arrogant.” Rainbow Dash shot back, smirking herself, “And hey, anytime you want to test me out, I’ll kick your butt all over this place!”

She wasn’t sure it was smart to pick a fight by herself, and literally just after they’d already stopped the fighting elsewhere, but damn did Hurricane have a way of getting under her skin that made her want to plant a fist upside his jaw. Could she actually take him, one on one, even with her complete Fullbring? She didn’t know. But she was sure as hell willing to find out if he kept provoking her!

However Hurricane’s expression turned withdrawn as his scoffed, took another drink and said, “Much as that might be entertaining, I have my orders. A good soldier follows orders, yes? Besides, even without orders, to fight here would be in poor taste. The dead don’t need us breaking anything around here.”

Rainbow Dash’s scowl turned to a brief look of bemusement as she glanced around, “The dead? Huh?”

Hurricane nodded to one of the nearest standing stones. Looking closer at it, Dash saw that what looked like names were chiseled in small but clear letters upon the sides of each stone, hundreds of them if not thousands. She started to notice now that other, smaller stones were situated between the hills a well, score upon score of them.

“What, do you think ‘death’ is a concept exclusive to you of the ‘living’ world?” Hurricane said, gesturing at the graveyard, “When a soul ‘dies’ we still have our own funeral rites to perform, ways for us remaining to mourn those lost.”

“Yeah, but... it mean, it's all part of this big reincarnation cycle or something, right?” Dash said, looking around at the stones, wondering just how many names were carved into the multitude.

“Certainly. We deal with death as our trade. It is our purpose to maintain that cycle of reincarnation so it may perpetuate unto eternity.” Hurricane swallowed some more of his drink, approaching the stone he’d been standing in front of and running his other hand over it. “Doesn’t mean we don’t mourn in our own ways. A soul, upon ‘death’, leaves a body for only a limited time before it will be absorbed into the ambient reishi of the Spirit Realm. We use cremation to hasten the journey to reincarnation, so we don’t bury our dead. We just carve remembrances of them. After all, they won’t, or at least shouldn’t look or act the same upon returning here after living their new life in the living world...”

He tossed the gourd aside, which Dash noticed was now quite empty. “They shouldn’t look or act the same at all...”

The light of realization flared up in Dash’s eyes. “You’re talking about Fluttershy.”

Rainbow Dash saw Hurricane straighten himself up, as if he hadn’t realized he had slumped at the grave marker. His look towards her was challenging, clearly angry. “Yes, what of it? I have no desire to speak with that girl. She isn’t my wife. We have nothing to do with one another. In fact I seem to clearly recall burying one of my blades through that girl’s shoulder, quite nearly killing her, so I rather think that precludes any notion whatsoever that I view her as anything other than a stranger at best, any just another enemy at worst.”

Despite his rather vehement words, Rainbow Dash detected a hint of guilt when he recounted how badly he wounded Fluttershy in their battle. Of course remembering that same thing made Dash’s own anger flare up hotly, but one look at Hurricane’s drunken face and the empty gourd on the ground told her he was more bothered by Fluttershy than he was trying to let on.

Unsurprisingly she found a name near where he’d first touched the grave marker.

“So, her name was Pansy?”

The glare Hurricane gave her could likely have cut diamond, but Rainbow just kept her arms stubbornly crossed and glared right back at him. After a few moments his glare cracked into an annoyed but relenting glower. “Yes.”

“Well, tell me about her.”

“And why should I do that?” Hurricane shot back.

To this Rainbow Dash kept matchings his challenging look, “Listen dude, you want to sulk here by yourself be my guest, but you’re the one who invited me down. I’ll jet on off and forget I ever saw you here drowning your butt in cheap booze, but if you want to friggin’ talk, then talk. Far as I’m concerned this Pansy chick must’ve been a damn saint to put up with your moody ass, but if Fluttershy really is her reborn or whatever, then that figures, doesn’t it? Only by what you’re saying I’m getting the feeling it's not supposed to work that way.”

He almost seemed ready to draw his Zanpaktou, the way his hand twitched and a vein pulsed on his forehead, but it seemed that Rainbow Dash words sunk in at least somewhat because instead of attacking her or tossing more harsh words her way he simply turned back to the gravestone, eyes contemplative.

“It's not. People are not supposed to retain much between cycles. Some traits, perhaps, but not nearly so... so close to who they were. Yes, your friend is so much like Pansy it is hard to not see her in everything that girl does. I ignored it, because to do otherwise would interfere with my duty, and I didn’t want to believe it either. I even choose to strike her down, hoping to remove that damnable confusion from inside me. It doesn’t matter at any rate. Your battles here are done and soon all of you will return to the living world, taking that girl with you. Neither I nor Posey will have to see her again, and the better for it.”

“Yeah, I’m not big on you and my friend having history either, buddy.” Rainbow Dash said bluntly, “I know she’s got this thing for being all compassionate and wanting to help people, but yeah if there’s one thing you and I agree on it's that it's waaaaay better if you and that Posey girl just kind of keep your distance from Flutters. We got enough on your plate without adding that kind of baggage to the mix.”

“Hmph, then yes, at least we are agreed upon one thing, Ryoka... Rainbow Dash.” He paused, then shrugged, “A shame we won’t likely face one another in battle again. You and your friends were the first decent fight I’ve had in far too long. With your increased strength I imagine I might break a sweat, if we were to fight once more.”

“Break a sweat? Yeah right, I’d be impressed if you even kept up with us.” Rainbow Dash said with a short laugh, then her eyes got serious once more. “So you didn’t answer my question. What was she like?”

Hurricane gazed at the gravestone, unblinking. “The worst soldier I ever knew, but by far the bravest. She would drive me to madness one moment with her endless acts of kindness, even to the enemy, and then leave me in blind awe to the lengths of courage she’d display to aid her comrades. In moments of peace there was no gentler soul, yet when properly riled I knew no woman more fierce in pursuing her convictions. How could I have not fallen in love with her?”

He closed his eyes. “How could I have let her fall?”

Rainbow didn’t speak, only waited patiently.

“I blame the defensive stance we’ve taken in the war.” Hurricane said, jaw tightening. “We should have been on the offensive, pushing the Hollows back into Hueco Mundo’s depths, not merely seeking to hold ground both here and in the living world. It's a fundamentally defeatist strategy. We will never beat the Hollows by attrition. I have told Scorpan this, but he believes our role as protectors also means we shouldn’t partake in an offensive war. So of course our strongholds are the target of raid after raid, and the Eleventh Division shoulders the burden of repelling these attacks. In such a situation casualties are only a matter of time. Especially when an Espada becomes involved.”

His hands clenched to fists, “One of these days I will destroy that Espada, but until today I had felt nothing but frustration at my fellow Soul Reapers for accepting the passive state of affairs. If nothing else I am grateful to Starlight Glimmer and you other Ryoka for shaking things up so much around here. Maybe finally Scorpan will consider taking the offensive. He seems convinced enough that he must render you human girls all aid, so perhaps my Zanpaktou will finally drink of Hollow blood upon Hueco Mundo’s sands.”

“Is that why you were so into being a giant jerkface during this whole fiasco? You wanted Soul Society to get riled up?” Dash asked flatly.

Hurricane chuckled, retrieving his gourd and slinging it over his back. “Perhaps. Or maybe I was just bored. I didn’t care if Celestia and Luna were traitors or not. Seemed ridiculous, but if it meant trouble, then at least I’d have something to carve my blade into. On the off chance it’d lead to the Captain Commander changing his stance on the war, I saw no reason to interfere with the course of events. Hate me if you want, but I don’t regret it. I got to cross blades with Sweet Cider, something’ I’ve wanted for some time, and I found a few more worthy foes where I least expected it. I suspect, even if I don’t see you girls again, that you’ll leave enough of an impact around here that the change I wanted may well come.”

He turned and started to walk away, speaking over his shoulder, “As for my departed wife, she remains a memory to me, and nothing more. My daughter might feel differently, but that is a foolishness I can’t correct. I imagine it shall be up to your friend Fluttershy to do that.”

----------

Fluttershy discovered that it wasn’t at all difficult to find where Lieutenant Posey was. Despite the fact that just a short twenty four hours ago she’d needed to sneak across the Seireitei alongside her friends, now she could walk the streets openly. Word had not only spread about what the now former Ryoka had done in general, but Fluttershy herself seemed to had earned some regard for her efforts to heal the wounded.

A few simple inquiries had lead her to where the Eleventh Division’s headquarters and barracks was located. It wasn’t far from the southern gate into the Seireitei, just off of one of the widest main streets cutting through the area. The Eleventh Division headquarters was second only to the massive central fortress in terms of size. A large stone foundation rose up over fifty feet tall, as wide as a city block. From this sprang a feudal pagoda fortress no less than ten stories tall. The thick main gates had the cross and slash kanji symbol for the number eleven stained in black calligraphy across the gate’s huge wooden doors.

Fluttershy felt a touch of nervousness as she spoke to the Soul Reapers guarding the gate, sensing that tense air surrounding the Reapes of the Eleventh Division. Few of them seemed happy to see her, in fact at best she got neutral looks or a few grudging nods of respect from those she passed while being escorted to Posey’s office on the top floor of the fortress. She supposed it made sense. While most of the other Soul Reaper Divisions had only had minimal contact with her and her friends, the Eleventh Division had fought them directly, including their Captain. It made sense that distrust was still a factor here, whereas most the rest of the Soul Reapers were more easily accepting of the humans in their midst.

Much of the lower levels of the fortress had seemed given over to training halls, or large, common sleeping and eating areas. Everything was darkly lit by hanging paper lamps, but she couldn’t help but notice that among the barrack sleeping areas there were actually quite a number of wounded being tended to within. When she asked her escorts why they were here and not being treated at the Fourth Division hospital the sullen Soul Reapers refused to answer and only continued to take her further up into the fortress.

On the top floor she was taken to a simple, humble room that already had its sliding wooden door open. One of her escorts paused at the door’s threshold and offered a salute to the person inside. “Lieutenant, you have a visitor. Its one of the Ryoka.”

From inside Fluttershy heard Posey’s voice respond, “I do? Um, which one is it? And please stop calling them Ryoka. They’re no longer our enemies.”

The other Soul Reaper stood more stiffly, his face a stone glower. “Yes, ma’am. It is the one named Fluttershy, ma’am.”

The response was an almost immediate noise of a chair nearly being knocked over and rapid steps to the door as Posey appeared there, bowling over the escorting Soul Reaper in her enthusiasm as she appeared with a wide smile. “F-Fluttershy!? Oh do come in! Please! Do you want some tea? I could have some sent up to us if you like.”

Politely coughing and smiling, Fluttershy said, “That would be lovely, but, um, you’re kind of standing on your subordinate.”

Posey blinked, and looked at the pour Soul Reaper she had essentially body tackled out of the way and was now partially standing atop. Her face reddened and she hid part of her face behind her dark pink hair. “Oh, um, sorry about that, Eighth Seat Ironhelm. Are you alright?”

“...Quite so, Lieutenant. Can I assume you would like for me to send for tea for you and your guest?”

“Yes, please.”

Once Posey got off of him the dour looking man got up and dusted himself off, managing another salute before leaving with stiff shoulders. Fluttershy watched him go for a second, but was quickly pulled into the office by Posey, who was still smiling from ear to ear. The interior of the office was fairly humble, with sections of soft interwoven straw mats rather than hardwood flooring. Either wall held several shelves for scrolls or books, flanking a plain desk and chair behind which was an open paper door that led to a short balcony with a commanding view of the eastern half of the Seireitei. Fluttershy noticed that on that balcony were several pots with plants blooming from them, what she recognized as small bonsai trees, each one well cared for.

The walls to either side of the balcony door had wall scrolls hanging from them, upon which were the careful and gracefully curved lines of calligraphy, none of which Fluttershy could read but found herself strangely drawn to. Seeing this, Posey said, “You like them?”

“Yes, they’re very pretty. I can’t read them but I can tell a lot of practice must have gone into such careful lines.”

This seemed to please Posey as her face all but glowed and she went behind her desk to stand by one of the calligraphy scrolls. “I’m so happy to hear you say that. Um, you know you’re the one who taught me calligraphy?”

At Fluttershy’s look, Posey quickly glanced away, saying in a quieter voice. “I mean, you know, my mother taught me. The bonsai trees too. She showed me how to properly care for them. I’d always hoped to show her how far I’ve come since then...”

The quiet pain in Posey’s voice stung Fluttershy’s heart, but she’d come here to help and she wasn’t sure it was a good idea to allow this poor girl to keep feeling confused. “I don’t doubt she would have liked that. May I sit down? I’d like to talk with you, if that’s okay?”

“Yes! Yes, of course.” Posey said, quickly taking a seat behind her desk, awkwardly shuffling some papers aside and putting away pen and inkwell. Fluttershy took a seat from one of several available before the desk and took a second to smooth out her clothing before meeting Posey’s nervous gaze.

“Um, well, first of all how are you and Kyoki doing? Do you remember everything that happened?”

Posey’s face blazed with rosey bashfulness as she patted an unsteady hand on her Zanpaktou’s hilt. “I remember. Not all of it, but I remember trying to defeat you and then falling asleep. Then... then seeing you inside Kyoki’s Inner World. I didn’t hear everything you said to him, but I remember you so kindly sitting over me and waking me up. It’s when I realized who you were...or had been.”

Fluttershy nodded slowly, trying to be encouraging in a way, but not too much so. “I just wanted to know if Kyoki was still bullying you or not.”

“Oh, uh, I don’t think so?” Posey glanced at her blade curiosity. “Something is different about him. During the last of the fighting I faced Third Seat Inkwell from the Thirteenth Division. I called out to Kyoki, but when he transformed it wasn’t like normal. U-usally I get really angry and violent as Kyoki and I go kind of... blood lusty. This time, though, Kyoki felt distant and I couldn’t feel him clearly. Even his blade wouldn’t spin. I don’t know what’s happening. I’m hoping I can get him to talk to me so I can find out what’s wrong.”

“Hmm, sounds to me like he’s sulking.” Fluttershy said with a frown, “I gave him a very stern talking to about how he was treating you.”

“A-and I’m grateful.” Posey said, her face showing a conflicted tide of emotions. “I never liked the way I would lose myself every time I used him to fight. I don’t like being that kind of person. B-but it made me so strong! I could match anyone in the Division besides father. Now... now I don’t know if I can fight nearly so well. I relied so much on that change in mindset. Without it, I feel like I’m of no use to father at all.”

The self-deprecation and crippling lack of confidence in Posey’s voice was a tone that Fluttershy herself knew entirely too well. She herself had spoken in that faltering, unsure manner countless times before when faced with frightening and difficult situations. She’d been fortunate to have friends who’d so often given her reasons to dig for wellsprings of confidence she’d never suspected she had, and the recent trials of battle against Hollows and Soul Reapers alike had slowly been forging a new sense of calm and purpose inside Fluttershy.

She couldn’t stop an upwelling of deep affection for and need to help Posey. Fluttershy didn’t question whether these feelings stemmed solely from her own kind nature and desire to help or from something altogether deeper and more maternal. Either way, she reached out and placed a warm hand over Posey’s and looked at her with comforting eyes.

“You know that’s not true at all. You are far from useless and never let anyone tell you otherwise. And if your father is even half the man he claims to be he would never treat you as useless either! Maybe Kyoki is acting different now because he’s starting to see he doesn’t need to make you act in such a dreadful way in order for you to be strong. Show him the confidence and courage I know you’re capable of and he’ll come around, but you have to believe in what you can do, Posey. Trust me, I’m talking from experience, nothing comes from moping around and doubting yourself.”

Posey shuddered upon hearing Fluttershy’s words, and for a moment Fluttershy feared she may have said something wrong, because Posey looked ready to break into tears right then and there. With a visible effort of will Posey composed herself and managed a halting smile, slowly grasping Fluttershy’s hand before letting go.

“I’m sorry. You’re trying so hard to be nice to me, yet it sometimes hurts so much to hear the way you talk, because you sound like her. Everything you say, even the way you held my hand just now...” she wiped at her face, before any tears could get out. “It’s like having her alive in front of me again. Which I know is wrong, but I can’t help it! I look at you and all I see is... is you, mother.”

The raw pain and need in Posey’s voice tore at Fluttershy, only increasing the want to go and wrap the girl up in a calming, parental hug, but she knew she couldn’t do that. She couldn’t keep feeding into this unhealthy obsession. Only she wasn’t sure how to stop it, either, save to separate herself from Posey, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it in such an abrupt and harsh way. Closing her eyes, she spoke in an understanding but firm tone.

“I’m sorry too. I don’t mean to hurt you this way. It isn’t fair of me to keep reminding you of someone you loved so much, especially when I can’t really be her anymore, even if in some other life I was. All I can do is say, from the bottom of my heart, that if your mother was still here she’d love you every bit as much today as when she was with you and she’d want you to live your life as free and honestly as you can, without hurting yourself with all of this self-doubt. I’m not her, but I hope that someday when you look at me you see a friend in the present, instead of a ghost from the past.”

Posey gulped and gave a gradual, tiny nod, clearing her throat in an attempt to keep any sobs down. “I... I hope so too, Miss Fluttershy. I think I would like having a... a friend like you. Its just going to take a long time, I think, before I stop seeing my mother in you.”

Fluttershy took that with quiet acceptance. Just a moment later Ironhelm returned with tea in hand, respectfully pouring for both ladies and retreating from the room in silence. After a few minutes of quietly taking sips of tea together Fluttershy ventured to ask, “I saw a lot of wounded people downstairs. Um, may I ask why they’re here and not at the hospital?”

Posey blinked, “Oh, it's just that the Fourth Division is so short staffed right now, with all the casualties they took in that surprise attack. Because Eleventh Division is the most experienced front line combat unit many of our members have at least a little training in field medicine, so we can handle the bulk of our own wounded, a long as the injuries aren’t so bad.” She frowned in concern, “Although we do have a few cases we can’t properly treat. We can only make them comfortable until there’s room available at the hospital.”

“Well, I have some healing powers of my own. Maybe I can help your worst cases, until they can be sent to the hospital?” asked Fluttershy, to which Posey looked momentarily worried.

“I don’t see why not, but some of the soldiers are still touchy about having who they still see as enemies nearby. Still, that’s foolish of them, and maybe if you’re seen helping... yes, yes I think that’s a great idea moth...um, Fluttershy.”

Not long after they finished their tea, Posey and Fluttershy went down to the barracks level where the majority of the wounded were being tended to. Most of the injuries had been suffered either in the fight with the Thirteenth Division, or during the final clash at the First Division headquarters. Terrible burns from destructive Kido or deep sword gashes from Zanpaktou were the most common, and while some were lighter than others more than a few Soul Reapers were bedridden with injuries that would have killed a normal human by now. The area reeked of blood, sweat, and dull antiseptics. Fluttershy girded her stomach, forcing down her ill ease at seeing all the horrible wounds, and went to work.

She transformed into her Fullbring, which gained nervous or hard glares from many of the Soul Reapers present, but Posey kept them in check and made it clear Fluttershy was there to help. So Fluttershy went from wounded to wounded, targeting the most injured first. She would speak soft, kind words, even to the unconscious, as she let her power flow into them and willed their spirit energy to start mending their bodies while boosting their recovering ability with her own power.

Progress was slow. Hers was not a healing power that worked fast, but it did work relentlessly and very efficiently. One by one she took terrible wounds and transmuted them into less serious injury. Soul Reapers pale with fever started to grow colored and healthy. Blood soaked bandages were redressed over freshly scabbed over cuts. Without realizing what she was doing Fluttershy had begun to sing a simple, gentle tune as she worked and healed. A lullaby she’d known since childhood, even if she couldn’t quite remember where she’d heard it from.

“Hush now, quiet now...”

As she sang and did her work among the injured, the mood of the room changed, even though she was too wrapped up in what she was doing to notice. More and more of the Eleventh Division’s Soul Reapers looked at her with their expressions of distrust and anger waning into looks of mutual confusion, then surprise, then respect.

Posey stood to the side, watching, eyes wide. Fluttershy couldn't have known it, but the song she was singing, that old lullaby, it was something Lieutenant Pansy had sung to the troops when she’d been looking after them. While Pansy had not had Fluttershy’s healing powers, she had been the Division's best battlefield medic, and had used this song to soothe many injured warriors over the years.

Now, just as Posey had seen, every member of the Eleventh Division was seeing this human girl didn’t simply have Pansy’s appearance, but her soothing and healing heart as well.

----------

“Oh my, this tea is just pure divinity in a cup!” Rarity exclaimed, settling in contented ease in her seat at one of the few occupied tables of the inn and tea house’s large common room. It was the very same inn she and Captain Blueblood had battled in the courtyard of, and all she had to do was turn her head to look out one of the open windows to the pond with the small island and single cherry blossom tree.

Damage from that fight still littered the inn, from holes in the ground to bits of debris from broken parts of the walls, but the staff were working swiftly and diligently to affect repairs. Rarity had partially come here just to make sure that the inn was being taken care of. Fortunately it sounded as if the cost of repairs was being soaked by the Gotei 13 and the inn proprietors weren’t being charged anything. The business oriented part of her mind had eagerly engaged the inn owner in a bit of financial talk. She was curious how Soul Society’s economy worked, and as it turned out it wasn’t so very different from the world of the living. People performed tasks, offering services and goods in trade for pay or barter. The biggest difference was in what was valued and why. Basic needs like food and shelter were less of a concern because spirit bodies normally required less of both than living ones did, but comforts, luxuries, and entertainments were highly prized as the biggest commodity of all were ways to alleviate boredom.

The inn itself was much more a place for creature comforts and entertainment than a place of rest for those visiting the Seireitei, hence its reputation as serving some of the finest tea available in all the Spirit Realm. As she sipped upon the marvelous beverage, with its near perfect blend of flavors, she could hardly dispute the claim. The inn proprietor, a kindly and elderly lady by the name of Lotus Wiles, seemed delighted to have Rarity as a guest and had even recommended a hot spring bathhouse and massage parlor that was supposedly of as high quality in its reputation as the inn.

Rarity sincerely hoped some of the girls would join her there later, although everyone seemed to have their own things to focus on. Rarity wished the all luck in tying up their own loose ends, but Rarity was mostly just feeling the need to relax after all they’d endured over the past few days. She wanted to enjoy some peace and quiet with no interruptions-

“Is this seat taken, my lady?”

Upon hearing that voice, Rarity pinched her eyes shut and set her tea down with a faint shudder. “If I said yes, would that make you go away?”

Standing across from where she was seated, Captain Blueblood’s eyebrow twitched but he maintained a polite smile as he spread his hands in a passive and universal gesture of peace. “Come now, dear lady, surely with the hostilities at an end we can enjoy each other’s company without the need for any lingering grudges. After all I do recall you saying that if I worked on my attitude you would at least consider giving me a chance.”

“I believe I said that would require a lot of work...” Rarity said under her breath, but gave the man a considering look. There was still a very clear and present aura of arrogance about him, and a certain hint of frustrated petulance... yet the smile he wore seemed genuine enough and his expression was not without a certain earnestness. And once again, much as she hated to admit it to herself, he was painfully handsome. As long as he kept himself civil she supposed there was no harm in sharing some polite company.

“That said, it would be rude to toss your offered olive branch back in your face, so if you wish you may sit. Just don’t think this entitles you to any further liberties than my company. I expect nothing short of gentlemanly conduct, Captain Blueblood.”

His smile flashed with equal amounts warm pleasure and a boyish cocksuredness that Rarity couldn’t yet decide was charming, or worthy of a good slap. “Perish the thought that I would overstep my bounds, my lady.”

With a simple and yet elegant flourish of his Captain’s coat he sat opposite her and quickly called for the innkeeper. “Miss Wiles, please bring me my usual, plus a bottle of your finest sake.”

At Rarity’s immediately raised eyebrow, Blueblood held up a forestalling hand, “Only for myself and in moderation, I swear. I am aware that by the standards of modern mortal law you are ‘underage’.”

“Yes, well, don’t tell anyone this but I have tried a nip or two of wine on certain occasions.” Rarity said with a small, clandestine smile. “My part time job at Miss Prim Hemline’s boutique sometimes involves helping her host parties for numerous important people among fashion circles. I intend to build myself a future career and in order to do some networking I need to blend in with the older crowd. Heh, most of the people at those parties have no idea I’m as young as I am.”

“Quite industrious of you. I’m impressed. Are any of your friends so keen on building their careers as you?”

Rarity gave the question a moment of thought, “I don’t consider it my place to judge, really. We’re each different. I imagine Rainbow Dash will end up in one professional sport or another. Applejack has her family’s farm, and I don’t see her ever wanting to do anything else. Fluttershy is a shoe in for becoming a veterinarian, as long as she learns how to handle people better. I have no idea what Pinkie Pie might end up doing, but she seems happy doing anything, really, so I don’t really worry about her. As for Sunset and Twilight, why they’re both so incredibly bright that I find it hard to imagine them not working in some field of science in the future. Why do you ask?”

A momentary look of seriousness crossed Blueblood’s features as Lotus Wiles brought both more tea and a bottle of sake. Blueblood carefully poured himself a cup from the tea, offering Rarity the same. The smell was of a distinctly more spicy flavor than what she was already drinking, and out of curiosity she accepted the offered cup. The tea was quite warming and soothing, despite the sharp spice of it. After a moment of taking a sip himself, Blueblood answered her question.

“I was only wondering about whether recent events have given you any pause in considering your career options. Surely your lives have become far less... mundane than before. Not that there is anything to look down upon in, say, pursuing a fashion career, but with your powers and skills, combined with how unlikely it is that you or your friends will ever be entirely safe from the dangers the Hollows represent, have you thought about the possibility of working with Soul Society in a more official capacity.”

Rarity licked her lips and slowly set down her tea, turning her eyes towards him, her thoughts sharp and pointed. “I recall Platinum talking a similar tune before all this unpleasantness. Are you just parroting what she said then?”

His face colored, “No! Not at all. Trust me when I saw no one is more... ashamed than I am that Platinum turned upon Soul Society.” A frustrated sigh exploded from him as he hunched down in his chair, lips pursing as he drummed fingers on the table. “Her family and mine were allies for generations. We still are, technically. Even with her and Lord Pipsqueak gone, the Platinum Noble House has other members who will need to work hard to recover from the loss of honor from Platinum’s actions. As the head of the Blood Noble House I could either sever my ties with them, or work to help them recover. I have decided honor dictates I ensure the family recovers as best it can. Which may cause my own family some trouble, but that seems a fair price for allowing myself to be so easily taken in by Platinum.”

He grimaced, offering her a helpless shrug, “I only ask what I did because regardless of how you or your friends feel about Soul Society right now, it is in everyone’s best interest to be allied against a common enemy like the Hollows.”

It also probably helped that such an alliance would afford him the chance to continue to be around her to one degree or another, Rarity mused. In fact she imagined that might be Blueblood’s sole motivation for wanting to encourage her towards the idea of focusing her life on combating Hollows and working with Soul Society, as that would mean they’d likely see much more of each other. Of course Rarity didn’t entirely disagree with his logic. It was impossible to think that with the changes that had happened to her and the other girls that they could entirely return to their normal lives. Which weren’t all that normal even before they’d awakened their spiritual powers. Rarity had no intention of giving up on her fashion career, but it would be naive to think she could have a totally normal life at this point.

And would it be so terrible to have allies against brutes like Grogar, or the more extreme Quincy like Fleur De Lis? Clearly not all Soul Reapers were zealots or muscle heads like Hurricane. Indeed with a few exceptions most of the Soul Reapers Rarity had met seemed fine enough people. Having them as friends to count on in helping in future battles was both sensible and even appealing to a degree. After all, Platinum was gone now.

There was that slight tripping point of the Zero Division, but Rarity imagined that was a rather massive bridge to be crossed when it came up. Hopefully at a much later point.

Sipping her tea again, Rarity said, “I don’t entirely disagree, Captain Blueblood. Of course some of my friends may feel differently, but I like to think of myself as practical girl, and there is some practicality in us working with Soul Society. As long as we maintain our own freedom, of course.”

“Of course.” Blueblood agreed, “After what’s already transpired I can’t see the remaining Captains wanting to try to control you or your friends.”

She knew Celestia had warned against asking too many questions, but she hadn’t said they couldn’t ask any questions. Rarity gave Blueblood a shaded look, slowly sipping her tea before asking, “Does that also apply to the Zero Division?”

His pale, marble skin went practically ashen before Blueblood quickly recovered his wits, looking at her with wide eyes. “You are a well informed woman, Miss Rarity.”

“One picks up things.” she said coyly, “I’m afraid I know little else than their name and that they are a tier above on Soul Society’s totem pole of authority. Which is of course why I’m curious what they might think of all this.”

Nervously Blueblood reached for the sake bottle and poured himself a generous cup, downing it quickly. A moment later he seemed to consider taking another shot, but then set the bottle and cup down. “I can’t say much, my lady. They very rarely interact with the Gotei 13 directly. No doubt they will take an interest in what’s happened down here, but what they will do, I can’t even begin to guess. They may do nothing at all. That’s usually their response to things down here.”

“I see. That’s not terribly encouraging, but thank you for answering honestly.” Rarity said.

Blueblood seemed hesitant before he spoke again, yet there was a strange light in his eyes, and a note of sincerity. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you more, my lady. I don’t believe you or your friends are in any danger, but... on the very off chance something were to happen in which the Zero Division took on untoward interest in you ladies I give my word as head of the Blood Noble House that you will be defended to the utmost of my ability.”

She offered him a small smile, “Quite the turnaround, given our first meeting, Captain Blueblood.”

He settled back in his seat, “It was a meeting that gave me much to think about. These past few days have been... humiliating in more ways than one. On one hand I won’t lie, I hate having to partake of any slice of such humbling pie. I am not used to accepting fault. But following Platinum blindly was a mistake, and I have but myself to blame. My defeat at your hands, however much as it stings me to admit, was also my own doing. On the other hand, I am trying to look at this as an opportunity to do as you suggest and... work on myself. I intend to make myself more worthy of this Captain’s rank I bear, and perhaps of one day being equally worthy of turning the eye of a certain stunning lady who’s passion for fashion seems equal to her skills in battle.”

“I suppose we’ll see.” Rarity replied, hiding her smile behind another sip of tea.

The rest of their time passed with far more idle talk, mostly Blueblood easing into talking about the various delights of Soul Society with not so subtle hints that he’d very much enjoy showing her the sights, while Rarity enjoyed providing coy evasions while taking mental notes on anything that sounded genuinely interesting. Before long a messenger from Blueblood’s Division arrived with a missive summoning the Captain away on business, to which he made a grumbling but polite exit while giving her a final forlorn look. Clearly he’d much rather continue relaxing and working on wooing her than going back to work, but he did go, and Rarity surmised that was probably as much a sign of progress as anything else where the man’s attitude was concerned.

As she finished off her tea, Lotus Wiles started to clear her table and gave Rarity a measuring but smiling look.

“It seems you’ve certainly lit a flame underneath that boy’s feet.” the elderly woman commented.

“Apparently he was in a thorough need of a proper whack upside the head to get it done.” Rarity replied, tapping her chin thoughtfully, “Honestly I can’t yet tell if his claims to turn himself around are genuine or merely a temporary mask he’s putting on in hopes of impressing me.”

Lotus Wiles nodded solemnly, “If you want the take of an old woman who has known that boy for some time now, I can say this much. For many years I’ve seen little Blueblood come into my teahouse, always making himself the center of attention, and never taking anything seriously. Often he’d have a girl or two attached to him, and yes he would certainly put on masks as he played with them.”

Rarity frowned, easily imagining the young Captain acting like the foppish playboy that Lotus Wiles described.

“However,” Lotus Wiles said, “He never looked at any of those girls like the way he was looking at you.” At Rarity’s questioning gaze the elderly woman shrugged, “I’m not saying he’s going to be a changed man overnight, or perhaps ever at all, but you’ve certainly sparked something in him. Take that as you will, as the simple observation of an old woman.”

After a moment Rarity gave a dainty shrug. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

----------

“Hey there Troubleshoes.” Applejack said with an embarrassed chuckle at the tall and bulky Soul Reaper, whose head was still wrapped up in thick bandages. “How’s the ol’ noggin’?”

With a deadpan stare Troubleshoes said, “Been better. Been worse.”

They were talking at the front steps of the Tenth Division’s headquarters, which was bustling with Soul Reapers heading in and out in work crews being assigned to help with rebuilding and repairs to the various damages done during the fighting across Seireitei. It was hard not to see her mother’s stamp of hard, honest work imprinted on the focused faces of the Tenth Division's Soul Reapers, not a one of them slowing down or wasting any time as they set about their tasks.

Even the wounded like Troubleshoes seemed too eager to work to let little things like injuries get in their way, although Troubleshoes was regulated to easy administrative tasks on account of his head injury made him dizzy if moved around too much. Applejack was a little regretful she’d had to give him such a hard thrashing, but at the same time she accepted that he hadn’t given her much choice. Still, she could at least not give him a hard time about it.

“Sorry ‘bout the lump on the head, but hope it’ll be water under the bridge. Don’t suppose ya seen my ma about?”

“Sure did. Just my luck she had a mountain of paperwork to hand off to me. Was just going to get some more ink to deal with it before you showed up at the door.” he said in a gloomy tone before gesturing to the interior of the building. “You’ll find the Captain at the end of the main hall, first door on the right. Try not to kick anyone into a coma on your way there.”

“Gee, ain’t you just full o’ sour apples? I didn’t kick ya that hard.”

“My concussion says otherwise, but guess you’re right, I shouldn’t take it personally. You were just doing what you had to. Shoulda figured I couldn’t stop the Captain’s kid in a straight up fight.”

“Everyone ‘round here know ‘bout that then?” Applejack asked, having already noticed some of the looks she was getting. Far from hostile, many of the Tenth Division Soul Reapers were looking at her with equal parts curiosity, awe, and respect. More than a few of them had paused in what they were doing long enough to bow to her as she’d passed by, which really just served to make Applejack feel extremely awkward.

“Yup. Once the word got out, wasn’t like it was gonna stop, and the Captain ain’t the sort to hide things from us.” Troubleshoes said with a shrug, “Anyhows, I got to get back to work.”

As it turned out she hardly needed Troubleshoes directions to find her mother, as she heard Sweet Cider almost as soon as she entered the headquarters building. Her mother had quite the booming, commanding voice, and Applejack simply followed it to the source.

“Don’t care what them Kido Corps fellows are bellyachin’’ over, tell ‘em we’re sendin’ the materials over fast as we got bodies ta carry ‘em!” Sweet Cider was telling to a group of Soul Reapers, who quickly bowed and rushed off while next to her Silverstar was carrying a rather long list from which he was scratching off items.

“Next up we got requests from the Academy that are needin’ repairs ta the grounds ya’ll tore up with yer daughter, Captain.” Silverstar said, just as he spotted Applejack rounding the corner. “Speak o’ the devil.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow, “That a thing? The devil?”

Sweet Cider huffed out a laugh, cracking a half-smile at her daughter. “Y’know I thought o’ askin’ the same thing, but figured I ain’t needin’ ta get worked up over theology. If there is a’ fellow who match’s ol’ Scratch’s description, he’s probably on the Hollow end o’ things.”

Silverstar glanced between the two women and coughed politely, “Actually, if yer talkin’ serious-like, then reports on the First Espada peg ‘im as a kinda large, red, an’ horned.”

Sweet Cider rolled her eyes, “Well there ya go. I’ll add the bastard ta the list o’ people I need ta apply my boot ta their backside, although he’s got ta git in line behind Hurricane and Platinum.”

“Fer now, Captain, I’m suggestin’ we focus on more productive things, like finishin’ our work here.” Silverstar said, then stroked his moustache as he looked at Applejack, “O’ course I figure ya can take a break an’ I’ll handle the paperwork fer a spell, ma’am.”

“Thank ya Silverstar.” Sweet Cider said, then turned and clapped a hand on Applejack’s shoulder, “Well girl, ya wanna go fer a walk? Figure ya need ta get some things off yer chest, right?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Applejack said, “A walk sounds mighty fine, yeah.”

“I’ll leave you ladies to it then.” Silverstar said, “I’ll be in yer office once yer done, Captain.”

With that Sweet Cider led Applejack back outside, seeming to choose a random direction down the streets beyond the headquarters. Both Apples were silent for a time, not uncomfortably so. Applejack remembered plenty of times wandering around the orchards back home with her mother, just enjoying the day. It was almost possible to imagine that’s what she was doing now, but Applejack was just too stuck in the reality to fully get lost in the memories. The white washed, clean streets around them, with the otherworldly air of the Seireitei being drawn with every breath, combined with the constant reminder of her mother’s position from the Soul Reaper robes and Captain’s coat she wore to the large Zanpaktou sheathed at her side all kept Applejack rooted in the now.

Eventually she broke the silence.

“Ya decide what yer doin’ yet, ma?”

Not one to mince words, Sweet Cider replied quickly. “Yeah. Weren’t as easy as I thought it’d be. I’m still angry somethin’ fierce towards the old man fer keepin’ my memories locked up, but after talkin’ to him I also get it weren’t as simple as just lettin’ me run loose. This Zanpaktou o’ mine is mixed up with my Fullbring powers, an’ he don’t know just how that’s gonna shake out without a seal. I’m gonna have ta let Starswirl tinker with it a bit ta see if a’ better solution can be found ta keep them Hollow powers from messin’ with my head.”

“Still don’t figure why they had ta keep yer memories locked up.”

“Didn’t want ta risk the danger I’d go rogue like Firefly did, I’m figurin’. But seems like the old man has learned from that mistake, an’ he ain’t plannin’ ta try an seal up my memories or my Fullbring no more. An’ he told me straight up that if I wanted ta walk away, he wouldn’t stop me.”

Applejack was sullenly silent for a moment, “...But yer not gonna, are ya?”

“...Eenope.”

They’d reached a wooden bridge passing over a small canal, and Applejack paused there, leaning on the rail. Her mother stopped, watching her. After a second Applejack’s hands gripped the railing so tight they cracked the wood, but she otherwise showed no other sign of what she was thinking as she looked at her mother.

“Will ya at least come back fer a bit? Ta see the farm, an’ the family?”

“Was thinkin’ ‘bout it.”

“Just thinkin’?”

Sweet Cider turned with a heavy look, leaning against the bridge rail beside Applejack. “Guess I’m just a’ bit scared. I know if I see ‘em again its gonna be hard ta do what I got ta do when its time to come back. I wanna see ‘em though. How big my baby Apple Bloom’s grown. What kind o’ handsome young man my Big Mac is now. An’ o’ course how well ma is. Couldn’t be easy on ol’ Granny takin’ care o’ things with me an’ Hard Nail gone, an’ it’d be good ta see her one more time ‘fore she ends up on this side.”

“Then come back with us!” Applejack said emphatically, waving a hand, “Don’t have ta be long! Ya don’t even need ta use one o’ them fake body things, ya can just come as ya are!”

“I know, hayseed. I just wonder if it’ll hurt ‘em more than if I didn’t. I already know Granny’s got a’ hint o’ the truth, an’ I don’t know how much they already know ‘bout you an’ yer powers.”

“After Grand Fisher, they know pretty much all I know, save fer what’s gone down here in Soul Society.” Applejack said. “They’d wanna know ‘bout you one way or another, an’ I’ll be tellin’ them the truth anyway. So why not come an’ at least let ‘em know in person yer doin’ alright?”

“Heh, yer as stubborn as yer pa when he knows he’s right ‘bout somethin’... ah, ta heck with it, yeah, I’ll come.” Sweet Cider said, but her expression was still serious. “But only fer the once. The afterlife might not be what I thought it oughta be while rasin’ ya, but the dead got to stay that way, an’ much as there things I ain’t likin’ ‘bout Soul Society this is where I belong now. I got people here who depend on me. The Tenth Division is full o’ decent folk, and I’m thier Captain. Might not’ve come by the job in the way I would’ve liked, but it's still mine an’ there ain’t no Apple who shirks a job once she starts it!”

Applejack sniffed, blinking back a tear. “Ain’t that the truth? I’ll tell ya this much, ma, I ain’t keen on the idea o’ trustin’ Soul Society, but long as yer here keepin’ ‘em honest then I’m thinkin’ I can give this place another chance ta earn my trust.”

Sweet Cider nodded firmly “Ya better believe I ain’t gonna tolerate no shenanigans ‘round here. If they thought I was a hardcase before, they ain’t met the real Sweet Cider yet.” She paused, looking up at the sky with a suddenly subdued and wistful, yet uneasy expression. “An’ if you an’ yer gals are plannin’ ta go to Hueco Mundo, then yer gonna need backup. Don’t plan nothin’ without tellin’ me first, ‘cause there ain’t no way I’m not going there with you lot. We Apples got unfinished business with them Hollows.”

Applejack swallowed past a suddenly dry mouth. “Pa...”

Sweet Cider’s hand rested calmly upon the hilt of her Zanpaktou. “As a Soul Reaper I got a’ responsibility ta set his soul ta rest. If he really is a’ Hollow now... me n’ him will need ta sort it out.”

“Do ya think that he... that he remembers us? He didn’t get no memory seal like you did.”

“True, but if he’s a Hollow, that’s a whole ‘nother bag o’ snakes ta deal with. Ain’t no way to know what state o’ mind he’ll be in ‘till we find him. An’ even if he does remember...” Sweet Cider’s expression turned sullen but determined. “Don’t change what I gotta do. I ain’t lettin’ my husband spend eternity as a devourer o’ souls.”

Applejack was slow to respond, but when she did it was with a firm, agreeing nod. “Just promise me, ma, that ye’ll let me be there when it happens. Ya won’t try ta shield me none.”

Sweet Cider looked at her evenly and offered her hand, spitting into it. “Ya got the word o’ an’ Apple, girl.”

Without hesitating Applejack spat into her own palm and clasped it with her mother’s.

“Then it's a’ deal. We’ll save pa’s soul together.”

----------

Pinkie Pie happily bounced along the busy street of Rukon District 72. Hundreds of people filled the street, many of them wearing a colorful mix of clothing from various eras ranging from ancient Rome to the Middle Ages, all the way to modern European fashion. Pinkie Pie had half listened to Cheese Sandwich describing the way the different Rukongai, or Wandering Soul City, was broken up into different Districts based off a combination of real world cultures and subcultures, but also historical periods. Of course there was a lot of mixing between Districts, and some Districts were actually built to be cross-sections of these mixed cultures or time periods. Pinkie Pie didn’t really get it, but she loved how upbeat and colorful everything was compared to the grimy and gloomy District she and the girls had seen when they’d first arrived.

“Why do all those people live in that grumpy place if there’s cool Districts like this?” Pinkie asked as she giggled, poking at a merchant booth where a woman in a toga was selling various sweet smelling pastries.

“That’s a bit of a conundrum, and mostly our own fault.” Cheese Sandwich said with a sigh, hands lazily resting in the sleeves of his Soul Reaper robes as he followed behind her. He wasn’t wearing his Captain’s coat, so he didn’t attract too much attention while escorting Pinkie Pie around the Rukongai. “There’s so many souls that end up here and we can’t regulate every District as well as we’d like. Just don’t have the Reapers to spread around, especially with the war and all. So some Districts get taken over by souls who aren’t as content with the afterlife as others. Crime skyrockets, things don’t get as well regulated or maintained, gangs start to rule the streets, and not enough Soul Reapers to enforce peace. As a result we get some nastier Districts that pretty much are all full of the dregs that seem attracted to that kind of lifestyle. Doesn’t help that, as you might have noticed, these Districts are pretty crowded already, so some souls just don’t have anywhere else to go.”

“That’s sucky. We oughta find a way to make those other places less frown filled and brighten things up!”

“Love to, and if we weren’t in a state of war I could probably get my Division focused on its real job of maintaining morale and functioning as peacekeepers.” Cheese Sandwich said.

Pinkie Pie picked out a pastry, a rather large honey cake stuffed with fruit, and paid for it with a few oval shaped copper coins provided by Cheese Sandwich for this little excursion. Munching away, Pinkie Pie walked on down the street, her mental wheels twirling along in their own unique ways. “Huh, there’s so many people here I figured you could just hire a whole bunch of them to be like a party patrol, going around putting smiles on faces and cracking down on any grumpy gusses. I mean, it's not like you need snazzy Soul Reaper powers to make someone else smile or stand up to a meanie pants.”

Cheese Sandwich actually took that with a thoughtful expression, “Not a bad idea, if there weren’t pretty strict rules against there being armed groups besides the Gotei 13.” He snickered, “Guess we could get around that rule by not ‘arming’ this party patrol of yours, except with sweets and jokes. A well timed pun can be just as effective as a sword strike.”

Pinkie Pie turned to him, walking backwards with a wide grin. “Are you saying they can be quite punishing?”

Cheese Sandwich immediately stumbled in place, pretending injury as he clutched at his chest. “Oh! The pain! That was so horrible I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut!”

Pinkie giggled, “And if I delivered it with better timing it’d also be puncutal.”

Abruptly pink mist flowed out of Pinkie Pie, forming into Pinkamena who with a sour grimace on her face proceeded to walk away from the laughing pair, “Okay, that’s it, I’m out of here. Even hearing that from your subconscious was painful.”

“Don’t you mean punful?” Cheese Sandwich asked, and Pinkie Pie clutched her gut with laughter. Pinkamena shuddered like a frazzled cat.

“I think I liked you better when you were trying to kill us.”

Cheese Sandwich’s face went from jolly to grimly serious in an eyeblink, his voice not unkind but oddly edged. “I was never trying to kill you girls. Trust me.”

Pinkie Pie’s own expression turned a bit uneasy and crestfallen as she hung her shoulders, sighing. It was easy to forget what had happened between her and Cheese Sandwich because he seemed to have such a relaxed and friendly attitude, and Pinkie really didn’t want to dwell on her fight with him. She’d lost, and that stung, because she really wanted to be helpful to her friends and some part of her felt like maybe she was falling behind them, but at the same time it just wasn’t worth it to get depressed. Especially because of the dynamic between her and Pinkamena that meant that any negative feeling she had would get shouldered by her other half. She wanted to take on those feelings and get even closer to Pinkamena.

Bouncing over to her doppelganger, Pinkie hugged her from behind, “It’s okay, Mena. Cheese ain’t a bad guy, and the fighting is done.”

“Which means you don’t need me right now.” Pinkamena said, but Pinkie shook her head into the doppleganger’s back, hugging her tighter.

“No way, I want you around even more when we’re not fighting! In fact, new rule, I want you hanging out as much as possible from now on! You don’t have to go vanish into my headspace.”

“Hmph, what makes you think I want to hang out here?”

“Weeelll, I mean if you’re in my head you’re stuck hearing all my silly puns and jokes, right? But this way we can hang and have fun, but if you want to go do things for yourself you totally can!” Pinkie said, turning Pinkamena around and sweeping her arms out at the town around the, “In fact if there’s anything you want to go do, you’re totally free to do it! Let’s go do what you want to do to have fun!”

Pinkamena licked her lips, flashing her sharp teeth, “Ooooh? You remember my idea of fun usually involves screaming and bloodshed, right?”

“Uhh, well, maybe we can find some MA rated video games for you to play to work out those feelings in a constructive way?” Pinkie Pie asked, then blinked and looked over her shoulder at Cheese Sandwich, “You guys have those, right?”

“Maybe? Honestly if your violent other wants to get her headbashing in, we are in a District with Roman ties, which means there is a Coliseum around here somewhere. Killing isn’t allowed, but there’s plenty of folk around who enjoy a good maiming for fun and profit.”

Pinkamena’s face split in a lip stretching grin showing all of her teeth. “You don’t say?”

----------

Sunset found the Fourth Division’s hospital even more busy than she suspected it’d be. It was clear the fighting between the Soul Reapers during that final clash at their primary headquarters had been intense and left many wounded to look after, ensuring practically every room at the hospital was filled to capacity. She wished she could do something to help, but it seemed best to just keep out of the way as much as she could while looking for Clover.

A little questioning yielded where Clover was visiting Lieutenant Meadowbrook in the south wing of the compound, and Sunset carefully made her way there while avoiding any of the many beleaguered Fourth Division members rapidly moving about to take care of the many injured. The groans of pain that haunted the air alongside the ever present coppery scent of blood was an unsettling reminder of the chaos Starlight Glimmer’s plans had caused. Whatever her motivations, that woman had much to answer for. It was also a cold reminder of what Starlight could unleash on Equestria if not stopped.

Finding the room she was looking for, Sunset paused outside as she heard Clover’s voice in soft conversation with several others.

“Captain Starswirl might find a way to restore damaged soul sleeps. It’s been a branch of research he’s talked about before.” Clover said, and Sunset saw she was standing between several beds with wounded Soul Reapers laying in them. One of them she recognized as Clover’s immediate superior, Lieutenant Meadowbrook, but the other two were people she’d never seen before. One, a beige girl with a head of long, straight hair of a plain red color streaked with a line of purple, looked at Clover with a waning, barely enthused smile that was more like a pained wince.

“That’d be nice, but I’m not going to get my hopes up. Even if you guys in Twelfth Division were going to give that research a shot, you got more important things to focus on, like getting that portal working.”

“Moon Dancer, don’t just give up like that.” said Meadowbrook, sitting up in his bed while grunting in discomfort. His body was almost completely covered in bandages, and it was clear any movement hurt him, but he made it a point to sit up and look at Moon Dancer squarely, although she looked back at him with with sharp pain in her eyes.

“It's not giving up, it’s just accepting the reality of things. I don’t want to fool myself into believing in a miracle fix that might never come. It’d just... depress me even more. I’d rather just focus on finding other ways to be useful, even if I can’t serve as a Lieutenant anymore.”

The other injured woman, darker of skin and with a short clipped blonde set of hair, closed her eyes and said in a measured tone, “Our duties don’t change merely because we lost our Zanpaktou. It is unlikely replacements for us as Lieutenants will occur any time soon, Lieutenant Moon Dancer. Our work emcompaces more than the powers of our blades.”

Moon Dancer let out a huff and rubbed a hand over her face, “If you say so, Lieutenant Smart Cookie, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t replace us in the ranks if we can’t actually fight as Soul Reapers. Even Clover and Meadowbrook are better off than us, because their Zanpaktou were just stolen. They still have their spiritual powers, and not only might be able to get their Zanpaktou back, but they can still use Shunpo and Kido. You and me can’t even do that anymore!”

A heavy quiet came over the group then, and Sunset decided she couldn’t just eavesdrop anymore, and politely cleared her throat while giving the doorframe a short knock. “Um, sorry to interrupt, but may I come in?”

All eyes turned to her, Clover quickly shaking off her surprise and saying, “Sunset! It's okay, you can come in. I don’t think you’ve formally met anyone yet.”

“I believe I briefly saw you in the living world.” Meadowbrook said with a weak, apologetic smile, “Not that there was really much time for introductions back then. I’m Lieutenant Meadowbrook, Twelfth Division. And please, before anything else, just let me thank you for looking after my subordinate during all these recent troubles.” He bowed his head to her and Sunset just held up her hands.

“Hey, it was nothing. Clover and me are friends, and she’s been as much a help to me as I have to her. Without her to teach me about being a Soul Reaper I’d have been totally lost.”

Clover offered a self-conscious smile, “I’ve done the best I can. I’m not sure if I have much left to teach you at this point. You’ve achieved Bankai of all things, and defeated a Captain in single combat. Not sure there’s any lessons I can still give.”

“Hey, Bankai or not, I still have plenty of gaps in my knowledge. Kido especially.” Sunset said, and then gave a flickering glance towards Moon Dancer and Smart Cookie, “But we can talk about that stuff later. I just came to check on you Clover, see how you were. And, uh, didn’t mean to butt into what sounded like a heavy conversation.”

Moon Dancer’s brooding look faded as she let out a long sigh like a hiss of steam. “It’s fine. I was pretty much done grousing about what can’t be changed, so feel free to chat with Clover about whatever.”

Sunset’s expression softened along with her voice, “I’m sorry about what’s happened.”

“It’s not your fault.” Moon Dancer said, a sad lightness coming over her face as her anger slackened and she looked over at Meadowbrook. “We were trying to find the truth, and I guess we got close enough that we were a problem. Never got a look at her face, but I’m going to guess it had to be this Starlight Glimmer who took me and Meadowbrook down.”

Meadowbrook nodded, “From what I understand Platinum was elsewhere at the time, and I don’t think the Espada Chrysalis could use Kido spells, even if disguised as Captain Zecora.”

“What did you two find?” Sunset asked, “I mean, to warrant attacking you like that.”

Moon Dancer made an off hand gesture, “Enough evidence to suggest someone, probably Platinum, maybe the disguised Chrysalis, took a book from the Daireishokairo that provided critical info on the Queen’s Key. Also there’s a strong chance that they used the library’s security system to siphon spirit energy from any previous Soul Reaper who used it, which might have allowed them to fake the ‘proof’ Platinum supposedly had to suggest Captains Celestia and Luna were traitors.”

Sunset frowned, thinking, “Wasn’t Chrysalis impersonating Zecora, though?”

Smart Cookie jumped in then, “While that’s true, if anyone tried to double check the evidence, regardless of what ‘Zecora’ said about her Zanpaktou confirming it, then there would have needed to be a genuine sample of Celestia and Luna’s spirit energy to create a convincing fake. Taking that from the Daireishokairo’s system for checking out materials may have worked. I imagine had Moon Dancer and Meadowbrook managed to get to the Captain Commander with that information it may have blown the lid off of Starlight Glimmer’s plans before they fully came to fruition...” She briefly touched a point on her chest, where bandages covered her wound. “As with me, had I gotten to Captain Commander Scorpan in time to relay what I and Starswirl had suspected. That’s why she intercepted me and removed me as a threat.”

Sunset filled the following somber quiet with her own determined voice, “I know it doesn’t make up for anything you people have lost, but I swear I will stop her. And if I can, I’ll get back the Zanpaktou she’s taken, too.”

Meadowbrook nodded his thanks, “I hope you can. If anything Clover has told me about you and your friends is true, I think you girls might even pull it off.”

“Speaking of which, have you heard I’m being assigned to Canterlot City for the long term?” asked Clover.

“Celestia told me about it.” Sunset said, cracking a quick grin, “I hear we’re to show you the ropes of being in high school.”

A nervous laugh escaped Clover as she ran a hand through her hair, “I’ve read a few texts on the subject and I have gone through the proper training for blending in while using a gigai, but I get the feeling those texts were at least a generation out of date.”

“No worries, me and the girls will walk you through the basics.” Sunset said.

“I’ll trust myself to your instruction.” Clover said with a formal bow, “It’s going to be busy. Between working on the portal issue, maintaining a cover identity at the school, and my new studies I’ll barely have time for rest.”

“New studies?” Sunset asked with a quizzical gaze.

“Ah, my suggestion to her.” Meadowbrook said, “Since we’ve both had our Zanpaktou stolen, I had my own plan to make up for the loss and pitched the idea to Clover as well.”

“I don’t know if I ever mentioned the Kido Corps.” Clover said to Sunset, “It's a relatively small group compared to the Divisions, but as the name implies they are a branch of the Soul Reapers singularly dedicated to the development and use of Kido spells. They barely even use their Zanpaktou, and some don’t even know Shikai. Meadowbrook intends to train with them, and while I may be stationed in the living world, I plan to request as many texts on Kido from the Corps as I can so I can study advanced Kido as well. It seems the most sensible way to ensure I can still be of help in battle right now.”

“I think that’s a great idea!” Sunset said, feeling a warm wash of relief to see that Clover was focusing on how to move forward despite the loss of Chishiki. “If there’s anything I can do to help, just say it.”

“Well, if you want to learn more Kido too, we could study together when time permits.” Clover suggested, and Sunset found she rather looked forward to the idea. She was eager to learn, equally eager to help out a friend, and she did enjoy having Clover as a teacher. The idea of spending some time together and helping each other learn had plenty of appeal.

“Ahem.”

Turning, Sunset saw a woman with faded pink hair tied back into a bun, with marble white skin and blue eyes standing in the doorway behind her. Sunset noticed the woman wore the wooden arm badge denoting her as the Lieutenant of the Fourth Division. “My apologies, but visiting hours will end shortly. I merely came to ensure our patients would be ready for rest.”

“Hey Redheart,” said Moon Dancer, “Been doing nothing but rest, thanks. How’s Radiant Hope doing?”

“Calmer, now that she’s been able to see her Captain.” Redheart said, glancing at Sunset with a note of professional guard, “I don’t think I can say much more than that. Now, normally visiting time would be over at the end of this hour, but I can give you some more time if you all wish it and can keep quiet enough not to disturb our other patients.”

“It's okay.” said Sunset, “I was mostly catching up with Clover. I can head out anytime.”

“Besides, Lieutenant Redheart is correct that we need our rest.” said Smart Cookie, “Although it was good to meet you in person, Miss Shimmer. On behalf of my Captain Commander I feel as if I should offer my apologies for all the trouble that’s been caused to you and yours.”

Sunset shook her head, “I appreciate it, but I don’t blame any one Soul Reaper for everything that’s happened. Starlight screwed with all of us, and she had plenty of help to do it. Right now all I want to do is get stronger, get to Equestria, and make sure she doesn’t cause any more damage.”

“A goal I think I can safely say everyone in Soul Society now shares with you.” Meadowbrook said.

With that, Sunset and Clover spent a brief time longer in the room so Clover could bid her wounded comrades a proper farewell, then together they left the hospital and headed out onto the streets of Seireitei. Sunset noticed Clover’s overall mood seemed to slump somewhat now that she wasn’t trying to keep other’s spirits up, and Sunset was swift to pipe up with, “So Rarity wants to get together for some mutual pampering. Spas, hot springs, general decadent laziness for the evening. Want to give it a go?”

“Heh, I’ve never been to a spa or anything remotely close.” Clover said, “Always seemed a bit much, and I’ve always had work to do. Not sure I’m in the mood...”

“I won’t force you, Clover, but I think it’d be good to give it a shot.” Sunset said, her look encouraging but her voice gently understanding, “But I get it if you don’t want to. You got to have a lot on your mind. Just so you know, I’m glad you’re not giving up. Studying advanced Kido is a smart move.”

Clover gave the barest of nods, looking at her empty hand with a faraway look. “I know Chishiki would lecture me judiciously if he saw me standing still during a time like this. I’ve relied on his quiet wisdom for getting me through all sorts of difficult moments. It's just so... so strange to think I can’t speak to him, and hear his calm and powerful voice in my head when I need to.”

“We’ll get him back.”

“I know. Your word means a lot to me, Sunset. When you say you’re going to do something, you always put everything you have into seeing it done. Makes me feel like I can do anything too, as long as just throw all I’ve got into it.” Clover said, her sallow look brightening somewhat. “Of course it won’t be easy. Kido spells get ever harder and more complex with each tier. I can go pretty high, as long as I do a full incantation, but many of those spells are only useful if you can do them without the incantation and that is a feat usually only Captains have the experience to pull off. Yet I need to match that power, if I’m to keep being of use to you and the others in the battles to come.”

Clover’s eyes grew heated, like bonfires. “Next time I face that woman, she won’t be able to take us so lightly.”

“You got that right.” Sunset said firmly, and held out a fist to Clover, who after a moment of confused hesitation held out her own fist to tap it lightly off of Sunset’s.

“So, spa?” Sunset asked encouragingly, to which Clover gave a relenting nod.

“Spa.”

----------

Dusty and dry winds swept across hundreds of miles of barren, sun cooked desert. What Equestria referred to as the Bone Dry Desert was vast, and inhospitable region of land where few thing lived and fewer still traveled across. Its only known settlement was the patchwork trading hub of Klugetown on the desert's southern border, where a few intrepid and brave caravans stocked up on supplies to make the arduous journey to Equestria and back, hoping to make a tidy profit on rare goods from the pony inhabited lands. But not many in Klugetown saw ponies very often at all, to the point where most of the various species and subspecies of beast people, from the bulky fish-men and lizardfolk to the scampering rodent folk ever saw one of the colorful quadrupeds.

So more than a few eyes had watched with curiosity as a pegasus pony with a soft pink coat and light blue mane traversed the town, circling it several times before flying off eastward along the desert edge. As Firefly left behind the ramshackle sights of the trade city she flew lower across the desert, adjusting her wings carefully, still getting used to the natural limbs. Once she was certain she was out of sight of any prying eyes she tapped into the core of her power, summoning forth the armor and bladed wings of Ace of Sky. The smooth, dark purple armored plates of armor conformed to her new pony shape, and the mechanical looking wings swept up and over her natural ones like a sheath, essentially replacing the pony wings.

In this state she rocketed off at supersonic speed, her form blurring into a purple streak of light as she zipped a booming path across the desert that kicked up dust in a trail behind her. She ate up the miles ahead, turning gradually north until she was flying into the heart of the Bone Dry Desert. Less than an hour later she arrived at a set of deep fissures, massive canyons that stretched like the spiderweb cracks of a broken piece of glass for miles in all directions.

Inside one of the deepest canyons she flew down and found the tower of the Hitsuyo Aku research facility, both the tower and its many underground chambers now occupying the canyon surface and displacing the area beneath the cold stone during its transport here via the Crossgate. Sunlight from a noontide sun managed to beam down into the otherwise gloomy canyon, reflecting of the top of the Hitsuyo Aku tower. There, Firefly spotted Starlight Glimmer, sitting on the edge, awaiting her arrival.

Firefly landed easily, dismissing her Fullbring and ruffling her natural pony wings. “Think I’m getting used to this whole mini-horse deal. Didn’t have any problems flying at all today, even when I wasn’t busting out Ace.”

“What did you find?” Starlight asked while Firefly settled down next to her, dangling her hind legs off the edge of the tower.

“We’ve got ourselves a town a few hundred miles away, and then a whole lot of nothing in all other directions. Sand, more sand, then just to break up the monotony there was totally a skeleton that I think might've been some kind of cow person. I thought about naming him Mr. Bones.”

A smooth chuckle rose from Starlight, “So about as isolated as we could have hoped for short of dropping ourselves in the middle of the ocean. Good. Were you seen?”

“Oh yeah, definitely, but that’s part of the cover I’m going for. Skyflame, intrepid explorer and adventurer! What do you think? Gives me the right excuse to be wandering around, asking about artifacts.”

“Better than if you were trying to keep a low profile.” Starlight agreed, “That’s just not your style, and it’d look even more suspicious than an adventuring pony seeking fortune and glory. So far everything is going smoothly. Still, we can’t expect that to stay the case forever. The powers of this world will be looking for us. Fortunately Trixie is in position.”

“Oh I bet she’s just loving the attention.” Firefly smirked, and Starlight shrugged.

“I think she didn’t expect to lose so quickly. She wanted to face the alicorn sisters, even had a grand entrance she wanted to make in Canterlot. Instead she was taken down by the newest alicorn, one of her friends, and one of the Soul Reapers that came through the mirror.”

Firefly sniggered, “I would’ve liked to see how that went down. Trixie getting her butt whooped by the Princess of Friendship. Must have poked some holes in her ego.”

Starlight’s sidelong look was touched by a ghost of a smile, “Take it easy on her. Trixie has lost as much as we have, and I didn’t give her an easy job. She’s putting a lot a risk to be our eyes and ears close to the ponies. There’s always the chance that this world’s Celestia will surprise me by being harsher on her than I expect.” Starlight brushed some hair from her face with a hoof, her face twitching with a slight wince. “There have a been a lot of things I haven’t anticipated already.”

Noticing a slight trickle of dry blood trailing down Starlight’s scalp, Firefly nodded towards the other mare. “The fight rougher than you expected?”

A look of consternation crossed Starlight’s features, “I think I managed to play it off as easier than it actually was. Your daughter actually made my hand go numb.” She shook her hoof as if for emphasis, “Then Ditzy went all out on me for a second, and that was as harrowing as you might expect. I’m lucky we fought in such an enclosed area, forcing her to scale down somewhat. As for those girls, it’s rather shocking to see how far they’ve come, even though that was part of the plan. Call it another point of luck in my favor that Platinum forced Sunset Shimmer to use up her power and she couldn’t use Bankai against me.”

Firefly just laughed and slapped Starlight on the back, nearly knocking the woman off the tower, to which she gave Firefly an annoyed look. Firefly just held up her hooves, still laughing. “Hey, I just find it funny how sulky you get even when everything goes off without a hitch. Relax, Starlight, we made it. We’re in the land of magic and friendship. So far, so good, right? We knew from the get go this plan was going to be like riding a roller coaster on a greased up track and missing half its wheels. The fact that we haven’t crashed and burned yet is a miracle in and of itself.”

“Gee, your confidence is inspiring. But, yes, I suppose you’re right. Things have gone rather well, and those girls, as long as they see that gap of power between us, will continue to push themselves to grow stronger.” Starlight said musingly, “They’ll make a good backup in case we fail. Assuming they aren’t the reason we fail.”

“You did push the megalomaniacal villain persona a bit far, Starlight.”

“Hmm, from some perspectives it's not a persona. We’re here to steal power from this world, Firefly, let’s not kid ourselves into thinking we’re clean and innocent in our intentions.” Starlight replied cooly, then glanced at the mare next to her, her voice turning concerned. “Aside from succeeding in completing her Fullbring, how did things go with Rainbow Dash?”

A soft grumbling sound came from Firefly as she frowned deeply and laid down on her back, staring up at the sky beyond the gloomy edges of the canyon. “I figure it went better than it could have. I think she understood, but not sure if she’s really forgiven me yet for leaving.”

“How much did you tell her?”

“Enough, I think. I mentioned Sunburst, and what happened to him, but not why. Honestly not sure I should’ve told her that much, because it might get the Zero Division’s attention if she and her friends start asking questions of the Soul Reapers... but I had to say something Starlight.”

Starlight nodded in understanding. “No, I get that. I approve, in fact. I wish you could have had more time with her.”

“Meh, I suck at being a mom. It's awkward and leaves me feeling totally off balance. Geeze, Starlight, I couldn’t even talk to her straight without framing it around a freakin’ fight! What kind of mom can’t talk to her kid without giant energy blasts and explosions being involved!?”

“Seems to fit your style, you have to admit.”

“Blargh. I sometimes think, even things hadn’t gone the way they had and I could’ve stayed with her... I still would’ve sucked at being a parent. She might have had reason to hate me just as much, even if I hadn’t left, only it’d be because I couldn’t do any of the stuff a mom is supposed to do. Make lunches for school, or pick her up on time from soccer practice, or remembering what she wants for her birthday... all that responsibility. Feels easier to jet off with you on a crusade to fight the powers that be than to be a stay at home mom. Man, I suck.”

Starlight, giving Firefly a sharp look, lit up her unicorn horn with a wash of teal light, picking Firefly up with a glittering wreath of magic until she held the mare upside down and bonked her head on the tower roof.

“Ow! Hey what was that for!?”

“Because you’re being depressing. Cut it out.”

“Hey, I can brood if I want to. You’re not the boss of me!... Oh, wait, guess you are. Fine, fine, you win. Now put me down. And when did you learn to do this magic stuff?”

As Starlight set Firefly down she took a deep breath, wiping a bit of sweat off her brow. “You’re not the only one who's been practicing her new form’s innate abilities. That said, I’ve only figured out the levitation, and it's a lot harder than I just made it look. I keep getting these headaches when I use it, too. Not sure what that’s about.”

“Its due to you using too much energy for such a simple task.” spoke a creamy smooth and amused voice from behind the pair, and both Firefly and Starlight looked to see the approach of a tall, dark equine figure with emerald eyes, a faded teal mane and tail, and distinctive insectile wings flowing from her back. Yet Chrysalis still retained elements of her Arrancar form, as well, including the bone white horn contrasting with her black chitin, and the spiked crown-like crest of bones rising from her brow.

Much like with Starlight and Firefly, Chrysalis’ clothing had adapted to her new shape, the black edged dress of white conforming to the Espada’s body with tight fitting curves.

“Been practicing as well, have you?” Starlight asked, “I’m surprised you’ve stuck around, Chrysalis. Do you not need to return to Hueco Mundo soon?”

Chrysalis licked her lips with the darting of a forked tongue and purred out, “Oh, there’s no rush. My precious Thorax knows his job well, and will keep things well in hand for a few days more. I rather like the idea of spending some time in this world to get a proper... taste for it. I think I’d like to bring some of my children here for a vacation. Or orgy of violent feeding.”

“They’re one and the same for you, aren’t they, Chrissy?” asked Firefly sardonically, “You remember the bit where me and Starlight told you we’d kick your ass thoroughly if you went on a murder spree, right? We’re here to jack power, not slaughter the locals for fun.”

“More to the point, I’d like us to keep our heads down in this world.” Starlight said diplomatically, “At least until we’ve gained our footing and have better idea of just what defenses they have here.”

“Sounds positively boring.” Chrysalis said, yawning, “Yet I suppose there’s a certain pinch of sense in not spooking the hens until the fox knows the farmer isn’t packing a rocket launcher. I’ll leave the mind numbing task of reconnaissance to you, Firefly, since you seem to be so good at gathering heaps of generally useless information. As for me, I think I’ll go look for my own amusement before returning through the Crossgate. I wonder if the me of this world is anywhere to be found? I’ve always wondered what my own soul might taste like.”

“Chrysalis, don’t make any moves that will compromise us.” Starlight said, “Seeking your counterpart is too risky at this stage. Consuming her would be doubly likely to draw unwanted attention from others.”

“You’re just determined to suck all the fun out of this, aren’t you?” Chrysalis said with a smirk, then waved the question away, “Oh don’t bother giving me that look Starlight, I understand your concerns. I’ll find more subtle ways to enjoy myself, without causing a scene. Just understand I am not under your command. I do as I please. Our alliance is based upon mutual desires, not one of us commanding the other.”

“As long as you keep your amusements subtle and don’t consume any souls.” Starlight said with deathly cold seriousness, turning to approach Chrysalis with a hard stare that the Espada matched. “We don’t want to create a trail that could lead to this location. In fact I’d prefer it if you didn’t do anything that might clue the local powers into realizing we’re here. Do as you will, I know your appetites and I understand the nature of our relationship, but do not test my patience by breaking this one rule; no souls are to be consumed by you or any of your brood while you’re here. Am I clear on this?”

There was a flare of reiatsu from Starlight, one that clashed evenly with a burst of power from Chrysalis, the two facing each other with unbreaking stares for several long seconds. Then Chrysalis laughed, and with a flutter of her insectile wings she rose into the air and floated back towards the doors to the interior of the tower. “Oh do calm yourself, Starlight Glimmer. You’ll give yourself stress lines. You can keep what little virtue you think you have in the firm knowledge I won’t brutally and voraciously eat the poor innocent souls of the local unsuspecting population. I might find other amusements with them, but I won’t cross that particular line, just for you.”

She paused, eyes gleaming with emerald fire in the shadows of the doorway as her voice gave a cold tickle to the air. “For now.”

Once Chrysalis was gone, Firefly hung her head and groaned. “Why did we have to team up with that bat-shit crazy bug?”

“Because the plan wouldn’t have worked without her.” Starlight said simply.

“Yeah, in Soul Society, but do we still need her now? We could take her down together easily enough, Starlight. You know she’s going to turn on us eventually, so why keep her around?”

“She won’t turn on us until she can get the maximum benefit from it. Or at least when she thinks it will benefit her the most.” Starlight replied, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, “Until then we can still use her, the same way she believes she’s using us. We still need a line into Hueco Mundo, and she’s it. The fact that she’ll inevitably betray us is just... part of the package deal.”

“Grreaaat. So we’ve got a soul eating bug who’s going to eventually turn on us, and a one-armed sullen Soul Reaper who is about as much fun to hang out with as a bag of frozen crap.”

Starlight rolled her eyes, “When you put it like that if almost makes me think you don’t approve of my choice of allies.”

“Nah, it’s all good Starlight. I just like complaining. Chrysalis is a giant pile of creepiness in a can, Platinum is so angsty right now I can’t get two words out of her that don’t make me want to shoot her, her kid is still unconscious and I’m thinking that’s probably for the best, and Trixie is stuck playing prisoner to the ponies. And this is when everything is going according to plan. Remind me again why we’re doing this?”

“...Because one of our friends is still in Hell, and the people responsible will do the same to us and countless others if we don’t stop them, no matter the cost.”

“...Oh, right, that. Okay, nevermind then, complaints shelved. What’s next?”

Episode 60: Departures

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Episode 60: Departures

Built into one of the towers adjoining the Gotei 13’s central fortress, the Senkaimon, or “World Penetration Gate”, was a humbly simple affair compared to the complex machine the Crossgate had been. Near as Sunset could tell the Senkaimon was essentially just a large gatehouse built into the top of a circular, white stone platform surrounded by a series of brass colored arches. She and her friends from Canterlot City, along with Clover and Captain Celestia were walking up the curved stone stairs leading to the platform from the fortress. It was nearly noon of the day following the end of the battles, and the time had come for them to return to the living world and Canterlot City. Ditzy Doo, who Sunset hadn’t seen barley at all since the fight with Starlight Glimmer, had met with the girls at the Thirteenth Division barracks just long enough to let them know she wouldn’t be returning with them through the Senkaimon. The way Ditzy put it she had “Some stuff to check on” before she’d return to the living world on her own. What Ditzy intended to check on or why she hadn’t elaborated on and Sunset didn’t feel the need to push any questions. If anyone had earned a little trust from her, it was Ditzy Doo.

So it was they’d had a rather calm and relaxing morning to spend waiting until noon for the Senkaimon to be prepared for their departure, and then at noon after walking through the Soul Reaper’s main headquarters, which was still undergoing repairs, they arrived at the Senkaimon.

On the landing leading to the gate Sunset saw that they had quite the going away send off waiting for them. Judging by the white coats on some and the wooden badges on the arms of others it seemed every Captain and Lieutenant in Soul Society who wasn’t either still confined to the hospital or otherwise now exiled traitors was now standing in an ordered line in front of the gate. At the head of the group was a positively ancient looking man with leathery brown skin, a mostly bald head save for a circle of long brown hair peppered with gray that fell down his shoulders, and penetrating yellow eyes. She hadn’t met him, but she’d heard enough about him to recognize Captain Commander Scorpan, and even if she could tell he wasn’t trying to he still carried a heavy aura of power about him that made her glad she and her friends hadn’t had to fight him during the past few days.

Upon seeing them enter the platform, Scorpan took a deliberate step forward, and both he and the Soul Reaper officers behind him appeared to tense. Sunset cast a confused look towards Celestia, but the other woman wore a reassuring smile and walked to join her fellow Captains. As one each Captain and Lieutenant bowed respectfully to Sunset and the other girls, and as they stood there looking on bewildered at the display, Scorpan spoke.

“For all that you have done that has aided Soul Society, whether intentionally or not, please accept our gratitude. For all that we have done that may have brought harm to you and yours, please accept our humblest apologies. It is my sincerest hope that from now on you can consider the Soul Reapers of the Thirteen Court Guard Divisions as allies in your endeavors to protect both this world and our neighboring realm of Equestria against the threats we now face.”

Sunset glanced at her friends. Rainbow Dash wore a small, satisfied smirk with her arms crossed cockily, but she nodded. Applejack held a look of quiet acceptance, as if to her the water was already passed under the bridge. Fluttershy’s smile was warm and a bit embarrassed. Rarity nodded with gracious dignity. Pinkie Pie stifled a giggle and winked happily to Sunset. Clover looked taken aback slightly, probably unused to have senior Soul Reapers bowing towards her, but gulped and gave Sunset a small thumbs up.

Sunset, clearing her throat, turned and walked towards Scorpan, who was still bowed. Slowly she extended her hand towards him, smiling as he looked up at her. “Help us keep both our worlds safe and we’ll call it even.”

A light breath of a chuckle escape Scorpan as he stood upright and gripped her hand with his own mountain tough grip.

“Then it shall be done, Miss Shimmer. I believe many of my officers have individual parting words they wish to give, and Captain Starswirl has something he wishes to give to each of you as well.”

Sunset’s interest shot up a notch as she looked towards the man with the smooth white beard, who human or not she could see the clear resemblance to the commonly known depictions of Starswirl the Bearded from Equestria. She saw him carrying a small wooden case under the crook of an arm. “Oh? What’s that?”

The eight year old filly in her was a bit giddy at having even an alternate universe version of one of Equestria’s most famous, if not the most famous wizard approach her and her friends as they walked up. He held up the case in one hand, displaying it casually.

“I’ve modified some talismans I hope you ladies will find useful.” Starswirl said, opening the case to show that within was a set of six medallions shaped from what looked like dark iron. Each was in the shape of a circle with a skull pattern set into it that looked familiarly like the one Discord used for the ward pass to get into his shop.

“What do they do? And what’s with that skull shape? Discord used the same thing.” Sunset said as she and her friends gathered around to peer at them.

Starswirl frowned ever so faintly. “He does, does he? The skull-mark is literally for denoting an affiliation with Soul Society. Discord may be an exiled former Captain, but I suppose he still uses some of our symbolism, either out of habit, irony, or residual fondness. Take your pick. I’ve always found the man difficult to predict, let alone understand. In any case, these talismans can be used to open a pathway through the Senkaimon. With them you young ladies will be able to enter Soul Society at any time you wish.”

As each girl took one in turn, Applejack turned a heavy look towards Sweet Cider, who was standing nearby. “So with this I can see ya pretty much anytime, that right?”

“Anytime I ain’t neck deep n’ work, hayseed. Them shiny trinkets’re fer makin’ sure ya’ll can come n’ go as ya please, but also fer knowin’ in a’ emergency ya can call on backup.”

“Which I was about to mention as the talisman’s secondary function.” Starswirl said, “Normally you press the left eye of the skull to activate the Senkaimon gate. But if you press the right eye it will activate a distress beacon and homing signal, which will allow us to send help in the event of some manner of emergency. Granted it will only work while you’re in the human world, so if you find yourselves in Hueco Mundo or the like, then none of the talisman’s functions will work, I’m afraid.”

“That’s quite alright.” said Rarity, pocketing her talisman, “I’m certain that they will come in handy, regardless. Just how promptly will help arrive in an emergency?”

“It does take time to prepare the gate for departures, as opposed to its ability to receive arrivals at pretty much any time. I’d estimate twenty minutes at the fastest.” Starswirl said.

“Not exactly speedy,” mentioned Rainbow Dash, tossing her own talisman up and down and catching it. “But hey, better than nothing. Not that we couldn’t kick the butts of anyone who’d come to mess with us on our home turf!”

“Please, Rainbow, let us not jinx things.” Rarity said, “I’ve had quite enough surprises for one lifetime. Or two.”

By and large Sunset agreed with Rarity, but she did share some of Rainbow Dash’s brash confidence concerning their ability to handle whatever might come their way. Whether it be Hollows, Quincy, or something else entirely they wouldn’t find Canterlot City to be an easy target with Sunset and her friends around.

Scorpan stood back and allowed others to come forward to speak to them. Some, like the towering form of a hulking man Sunset learned was Captain Thunderhooves of the Seventh Division, offered more personal apologies for not doing more to stand against Central 46’s execution orders. Others seemed more carefully observant, though not precisely standoffish, like the mustard skinned woman with the dark hair, another Captain by the white overcoat she wore although Sunset never caught her name.

Captain Amore wasn’t present, the only Captain hospitalized from the battles.

“Her injury remains grave, even with all the healing efforts I gave.” explained Captain Zecora, who still looked a little pale and waxen faced herself, but she spoke with a strong and determined voice. “Whether she shall walk again is unknown, a fate even my keen foresight has not shown.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Sunset said, “I wish I could have done something to help her. It all happened too fast.”

Beside Zecora another Soul Reaper, the Lieutenant with flowing blue hair and the light purple skin, bowed her head with a crestfallen cast to her features. “Captain Amore was conscious long enough this morning to ask me to thank all of you personally for fighting so hard to save Captains Celestia and Luna. She truly cares for Soul Society, and wishes she could have fought better to protect it.”

“From what I saw she did what she could. It's not her fault she got taken by surprise. We all were.” Sunset said.

“I just hope we can prevent any more damage being caused by those... people.” the Soul Reaper replied, then blinked and gave a small start. “I know it must be strange to introduce myself just as you’re leaving, but I’m Lieutenant Radiant Hope, Fifth Division. I look forward to doing all I can to support your efforts in the fights to come. Oh, and Lieutenant Meadowbrook asked me to ask you to please look after Third Seat Clover.”

“I’ll try.” Sunset said with a bemused look.

Nearby Cheese Sandwich was handing Pinkie Pie several mysterious bags. “One of these is for you Pinks, just to help you get through any rough days that might be coming up.” Cheese Sandwich said with a wink, “And the other one is for your, uh, more violently inclined other half. Tell her next time she enters the Colosseum to look me up so I can make even better profits off of betting on her.”

Pinkie Pie bounced the one bag, which jingled like it was full of coins of some sort. “I bet Mena’ll like that. She seemed to have a good time. Hmm, what could be in this other bag? Its so nicely tied up and I think I’m smelling something cheesy.”

“Let’s just say I’m giving you one of my own recipes. Not sure it will translate well to living world ingredients, but give it a go and see how it turns out.”

Across from that scene Rainbow Dash was approached by a man Sunset recognized from his well groomed blue moustache and proud bearing, even while using wooden crutches to walk. Fancy Pants had a ashen cast to his face, but despite what had to be a deep blow in discovering his Captain had been a traitor to Soul Society he seemed to be holding together. He offered Rainbow Dash a respectful nod as he hobbled up to her.

“Miss Dash, I am to understand you are friends with Miss Fluttershy, yes?”

“Uh, yeah, what’s it to you, dude? How you holding up?”

A stiff grimace hit his features, “As well as can be expected for a man who has failed so completely in his duties as I have. I’m uncertain how much longer I’ll be wearing my Lieutenant badge, but while I still have the strength and time to do so I wished to say something to both you and Miss Fluttershy, if you’d be so kind as to introduce us.”

Fluttershy was staying the middle of the group, seemingly avoiding looking towards either Lieutenant Posey or Captain Hurricane, both of whom were standing off to the side. Hurricane appeared to be very intentionally imitating a statue, having bowed along with the rest of the officers earlier, but now just seeming to want nothing more than for this brief set of farewells to be over with. Posey tried to remain at her father’s side with equal impassiveness, but she kept sending looks towards Fluttershy and it was clear to see the unrestrained love in that gaze. Sunset didn’t envy Fluttershy’s position.

Dash frowned, but nodded and led Fancy Pants over to Fluttershy, who looked over at the man with open curiosity as he tried to manage a bow, even with crutches.

“P-please, you don’t have to do that.” Fluttershy said, “What did you want to say?”

Fancy Pants’ eyes flickered between both Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, and he took a deep breath. “I wanted to thank both of you on a more personal level. While the pursuit of my duties put us in conflict with one another, and led me to be blind to my former Captain’s... treachery, all of that is irrelevant to the fact that I owe you both a debt of honor for the role you played in aiding my comrade, Lieutenant Posey. Without you, Miss Dash, showing such dedication in defeating us I don’t know if Posey would have been pushed to pursue you, and face Miss Fluttershy. And without Miss Fluttershy’s kindness, Posey would still be at odds with her own Zanpaktou, perhaps even losing herself to it in time. So thank you. I swear I will one day repay this debt.”

“Whoa dude, who said anything about debt? We’re all more or less playing on the same team now. Let’s not make it weird with honor debts and stuff.” Dash said, holding up her hands.

“Besides, we only did what felt right.” said Fluttershy.

“While I understand what you are saying, it remains a point of honor I cannot readily ignore.” Fancy Pants said, only to have Rainbow Dash come up to him and give a light punch to his shoulder, which caused him to wince.

Rainbow had the presence of mind to look a bit embarrassed as she said, “Look man, its like this. If us and you Soul Reaper types are going to be buddy-buddy from now on, its best not to build that on stuff like ‘owing’ debts. Its awesome you care enough about your comrades to get all honorbound when someone helps them, but you and me, the next time we’re in a scuffle side by side... it’s best if you’re there because we’re comrades too, and not just because you felt you had some honor to satisfy.”

That got Fancy Pants looking contemplative, one hand stroking his moustache. “An interesting thought. I’ll think on those words, Miss Dash. I believe I’ll have a great deal of time to do so, for the immediate future.”

“Aww chillax, buddy. They can’t come down on you too hard for working for that crazy icebox.” Rainbow said, “Heck, maybe they’ll make you Captain instead?”

“I lack the qualifications for such a lofty position, but I suppose if recent events have taught me and every other Soul Reaper in the Seireitei anything, it's that we cannot so easily predict what will happen next.” Fancy Pants replied humbly.

Meanwhile Blueblood had approached Rarity, who gave him a coyly questioning look as he offered her a formal bow and presented her a small object carefully wrapped in white and gold filigree silk cloth.

“A token, my lady Rarity.” Blueblood said, confidence in his smile but a wisp of nervousness in his eyes. “Something to demonstrate I shall not soon forget our meeting.”

One delicate purple eyebrow crawled up Rarity’s brow, but she took the offered item, daintily unwrapping the silk to reveal what lay within. Blinking, she held it up between thumb and forefinger. It was a rose, but made from a familiar crimson crystal, carved with surprising detail and care, all the way down to the thorns.

“Is this...?” Rarity began to ask, and Blueblood nodded.

“Carved from the very crystals you used in our battle. I carved it to remind myself that a rose is not to be underestimated, and that no matter my talents, a careless man like me can easily prick himself on that rose’s thorns. It is a lesson I promise you I won’t forget, and this is the symbol of that promise. Keep it or discard it as you will, but I swear to you I will be a new man the next time we meet.”

Rarity turned the crystal rose over in her hand, a thoughtful gleam in her eyes, her voice giving away nothing of what she was thinking. “We’ll have to see what happens, won’t we? I warn you, Captain Blueblood, I am not an easy girl to impress, but I’ll admit this is a start.”

He took her hand gently and gave it a light, gentlemanly kiss, to which Rarity smiled but revealed nothing else. Once Blueblood moved away, Sunset slid up to Rarity and with a small smirk whispered, “Really? He’s your type?”

Rarity carefully tucked the crystal rose into the breast pocket of her dress, “Perhaps, perhaps not. But a girl can appreciate some honest effort, if nothing else. There is something both oddly and terribly romantic in nearly killing each other.” She frowned, “What a morbid thought. Sunset, do promise to give me a well earned slap if I start to develop a complex for men whom I end up fighting duels with, will you?”

Sunset gave her friend a heartfelt pat on the shoulder, nodding. “Of course. What else are friends for?”

Nearer to the gate, Applejack stood beside Sweet Cider, the two sharing a few quiet words.

“When’re ya thinkin’ ye’ll be comin’ by?” Applejack asked with a shaky tone.

“Soon as I got everythin’ in order ‘round here.” Sweet Cider said, “Give it a’ couple o’ days. An’... just don’t say nothin’ yet ta Granny. I gotta work out in my head how I’m gonna deal with this. Ain’t somethin’ I wanna rush. But I’ll be seein’ ya again soon, Applejack, don’t ya fret.”

There was a ironic, bittersweet note in Applejack's laugh. “Guess I can live with that.”

An awkward silence fell between the two, but it was soon crushed by the strong, lung bursting hug Sweet Cider swept her daughter into, no more words really needed between the pair of Apples.

Celestia and Luna were facing each other with both of them wearing bittersweet looks.

“It looks as if we may not see one another for a time, sister.” Luna said, a touch of shadow in her eyes. “I have a sinking feeling that the war with the Hollows and Quincy is going to escalate, and my duties will likely only multiply, preventing any return to the school in the near future... if ever.”

Only kind understanding shone in Celestia’s eyes as she embraced Luna tightly. “Don’t doubt we’ll see each other again, Lulu. We’ve been apart on separate assignments before. This time will be no different, you’ll see. I know you’ll excel at any task you and the Second Division are sent on. You bring your courage and determination to anything you do, and those you command emulate those qualities. Just promise me that you’ll not be too hard on yourself either, please? All work and no play makes Lulu a dull, girl, remember?”

Luna hugged Celestia back, while making a small snort even as she smiled. “You’re the perfectionist, sister. I worry more about you. What will you do without me to keep you grounded, I wonder? More plans like your ‘panty escape’ no doubt.”

Celestia gulped, letting out a forced laugh as she looked around for any eavesdroppers. “Hahah! Such a kidder, Luna! Shhhh, not so loud about that. I still have an image to maintain with the impressionable youth.”

“That is exactly what I fear.” Luna said with a smirk, breaking out of the hug with a playful jab at her sister, “All those vulnerable young men and women at the school, with no Vice Principal Luna to hold you back. What kind of trouble will you get up to?”

“Nothing at all! I am the soul of professionalism.”

“Is that why there’s a stack of reverse harem manga inside your desk drawer at the office?”

“...I have no idea what you’re talking about and I deny everything. Note to self; clean out desk first thing on returning to the school.”

The two shared a brief laugh, but it soon petered out as it became clear they soon really did have to part. The length of the Senkaimon gate was starting to light up with a wave of incandescent brightness. The light spilled out over the gathered crowd, and from the interior of the light a flutter of dark butterflies wafted out, the Hell Butterflies that would guide the travels through the gateway and across the Precipice World beyond to their destination.

Luna sighed, turning one last time to her sister. Her eyes were shadowed by a touch of doubt. “Tia, about what... she said. You know I’ve put it all behind me, right? I don’t feel that way anymore.”

Celestia’s hand came up and patted Luna on the head, much as any big sister might do with their younger sibling. A simple, warm, affectionate gesture, devoid of pretense or judgment.

“You don’t have to tell me, Luna. I trust you. I’ll always trust you. Nothing will ever change that.”

Luna looked away, mostly to hide the bit of wetness appearing in her eyes. “You’d best get going. Farewell, sister.”

“Take care, Luna.” Celestia said, and joined Sunset and the others as they gathered in front of the brilliantly shining Senkaimon. Behind them the Soul Reapers all formed back into a line to watch them depart, Scorpan leading his officers in one final, parting bow to the ones who had helped bring the chaos infecting their home to an end.

“I guess things could’ve gone worse, huh?” said Rainbow Dash, elbowing Sunset.

“Given’ we weren’t even sure we was gonna walk outta this place when we first decided ta come chargin’ here, yeah I’d say yer right on the money there, Rainbow.” said Applejack.

“There’s still quite the conundrum left to resolve, but it doesn’t hurt that we have some potential allies now.” said Rarity, glancing to Celestia and Clover.

“It always feels nice to make new friends.” agreed Fluttershy, eyes giving Posey a final, warm look, “Especially in places we don’t expect.”

“I know right!?” shouted Pinkie Pie, “Who knew that intense fight scenes were the best place to make friends!? It must be a shounen trope.”

“Show what?” asked Clover, blinking.

Sunset patted her shoulder with a knowing smile, “Its best not to question the Pinkie Pie.” She then turned to the portal, facing its threshold with a renewed sense of strength and resolve that was mirrored across the faces of her friends as they all stepped through.

Sunset wasn’t certain what was coming next. The challenges ahead only seemed to grow ever larger. However she knew without a doubt that she and her friends were up to those challenges. It wasn’t simply because they were friends, or because they worked so well together. That helped, and was probably one of the key reasons they were all still alive despite facing some of the afterlife’s most deadly warriors. No, after all she’d experienced, facing Captains like Hurricane and Platinum, and going head to head with her own Zanpaktou to obtain Bankai, while both seeing and hearing of her own friends accomplishments, Sunset felt surer than ever that what strengthened them all was even more elemental than friendship.

She didn’t have a word for it, but she saw it clearly regardless; she and her friends left impressions on everyone they met, like... ripples swaying across still water. And those ripples seemed to return to them, forming bonds that strengthened both them and the people they touched. Sunset didn’t think this was some supernatural power, or mysterious energy, but rather a simple elemental force that just happened to be amplified by the fact that Sunset and her friends were touched by the magic of friendship from Equestria. The bonds they shared translated into an impact they had on others, and through that they could leave impressions that would turn enemies into potential allies.

And Sunset wasn’t naive enough to think they could end the war between the spirit realm factions or stop Starlight Glimmer without allies. Now more than ever she felt determined that it would be the connections they made here and elsewhere that would decide things, come the end, whenever and wherever that end would be.

With that thought in mind, Sunset couldn’t help but wonder...

What had become of the human world’s Twilight Sparkle, and Adagio Dazzle?

----------

For all that the range of the leash Grogar kept around her neck, metaphorically speaking, he still delighted in reminding Adagio of the hold he still had on her. Every now and again, in the midst of her ever increasingly savage battles in the Forest of Menos, pain would rack her body in hot, tearing waves. It was Grogar’s way of telling her to return to the laboratory for further experimentation.

Di Roy and Gaw would remain in the Forest of Menos on those days, the cocky shark reassuring Adagio that he and his massive saurian counterpart were adept at surviving and wouldn’t let the local Adjuchas tribes find and kill them so easily. That particular campaign of antagonizing the Adjuchas Hollows who called the Forest of Menos home was progressing as well as could be expected. It had started with ambushing a few loners out hunting Gillians, but had quickly escalated to the kind of full blown battles like the one the other day, where several Adjuchas had brought a small army of tamed lesser Hollows and even a few Gillians to come after Adagio and her little crew.

It had ended poorly for the tribal Adjuchas.

She’d been learning more and more of Hollow culture from Ember, giving the situation more context. It wasn’t unusual for Hollows of any class outside of the relatively mindless Gillians to band together into tribes, whether it be hordes of lesser Hollows acting like herds of wild animals with a few more intelligent and willful types like the late Grand Fisher and his cronies leading the pack, or smaller but far more powerful tribes of Adjuchas-class Hollows carving out entire territories across Hueco Mundo’s endless sands to rule over like self-styled barons of old nobility.

Then there was the exceedingly rare Vasto Lordes, practically legends among Hollow-kind, who could claim rule over the Adjuchas “baronies” in the manner of kings or queens, subservient to none... save the Espada of Las Noches.

Arrancar occupied a unique position in Hollow society, practically a different nation and species, viewed with distrust and jealous anger by most the rest of Hollow-kind. Some Adjuchas actually disdained the human-like forms Arrancar possessed, seeing them as a perversion of Hollow nature to take on human form again, despite the power an Arrancar obtained with their Zanpaktou. The few Vasto Lordes who ruled their own domains apparently did so distantly from Las Noches, far enough as to ensure they essentially stayed out of the Espada’s hair and vice versa.

Ember had spoken of far off parts of Hueco Mundo where Vasto Lordes influenced the land to form their own realms, such as the dark valleys of “Gehenna” ruled over by the Vasto Lorde Shadowlock, or the mountainous territory of “Naraka” controlled by another Vasto Lorde who called herself Sable Spirit. Within their own territories such Hollows commanded vast power, but it was only the distance of their realms that protected them from Las Noches’ influence. According to Ember none of those Vasto Lordes, for all of their great power, could match the might of the top Espada. Perhaps some of the lower ranked Espada would have trouble facing such ancient and well established Vasto Lordes, but surely Ember’s father or those ranked above him would have little trouble subduing even those lord’s among Hollow-kind. Or at least that's how Ember put it.

Besides the Vasto Lordes who ruled their own territories, there were also a number of Arrancar who similarly took territory out in the endlessly vast deserts of Hueco Mundo. Some were rogues who for reasons of their own preferred to avoid Lord Tirek's rule, but in other cases some were former Espada who had lost their positions to stronger or more crafty Arrancar that had taken their place. These "Privaron Espada" number less than half a dozen, according to Ember, and were of little consequence.

Adagio didn’t feel any need to gainsay Ember on that point, and most of this information mattered to her only in that it might prove useful for her own future plans. Whether to claw to the top of Las Noches, or to strike out on her own one day to carve a realm of her own from this desolate world, Adagio intended to use every scrap of power she could find; including knowledge. If she ever did have to break away from Las Noches, it was interesting to know she might find allies among the independent Vasto Lordes, or even these Privaron Espada. However, right now the most important thing she’d learned was the feudal nature of the Hollow tribes. Whether lesser Hollows, Adjuchas, or Vasto Lorde, the fact remained that no one who claimed a territory for themselves could ignore a challenge or threat to that domain.

Adagio had made herself a threat to the Adjuchas tribes of the Forest of Menos, and did so with the full intent of taking them on with the ultimate goal of forcing her own evolution through the resulting battles. Thus far such evolution hadn’t occurred, but she did feel a growing power inside her that only became more pronounced with every battle... or more specifically with every gorging feast she enacted upon her slain foes.

It was chilling, to a degree, how used to feeding on other Hollows she’d become. She’d always fed on others in a sense, with the dark magic of her siren gem, yet that had never felt nearly so personal as physically consuming another in a bloody, brutal fashion. She thought back to the day Grogar had fed her that one woman’s soul, and she wondered if she’d have found the act so repulsive now? It wasn’t a pleasant thought. Even at her worst, she wanted to maintain some semblance of control. She wasn’t a beast. She was herself, in full control of her actions. Even if those actions became more.... messy as time went on.

But perhaps that was simply part of existence as Hollow, and she would need to continue to adapt if she was to not just merely survive, but thrive in Hueco Mundo.

“You look like you’re doing some heavy thinking there.” Ember commented with a wry note of amusement. The pair of them were treading across the pale sands within the shadow of Las Noches’ walls, near where Adagio would usually part ways with Ember to proceed to Grogar’s labs while Ember returned to her father’s camp. Now, Adagio slowed her floating pace, casting a musing glance at Ember.

“Just considering the future. Contemplating that if becoming an Arrancar does not pan out, that won’t stop me from carving out a place for myself, or eventually serving Grogar a cold plate of vengeance. Or hot. I’d settle for burning, rage fueled vengeance too. I might even prefer it.”

“Damned straight. I never got the whole ‘best served cold’ thing. Like if I was gonna pay some asshole back for experimenting on me and keeping me like a lab pet, ooooh man would I go for the most brutal, savage way of killing them I could! They’d be finding pieces of the jerk scattered around Las Noches for months.” Despite her hearty laugh Ember’s eyes held a hint of concern. “But hey, don’t get too frustrated. If it was easy to become an Arrancar, every Hollow would do it.”

“Oh, but you said some Hollows, especially some of those far flung Vasto Lordes, actually look down on Arrancar for being ‘too human’.”

“Pfft, well what do they know? They live so far away from Las Noches because they’re afraid of us! That goes to show how powerful we are! My dad would wipe the floor with any of those punk ass, wannabe ‘Kings’ and ‘Queens’ of Hueco Mundo. And Lord Tirek? Pffftt, forget about it. Nobody can go one on one with him!”

Adagio looked thoughtfully at the black sky, eyeing the milk white crescent moon hanging there like an ever present scythe of bone. “Not even the King of the Quincy?”

Ember hesitated, then looked away with a huff. “Meh, I'll believe it when I see it.”

“Hmm...” Adagio wondered about that. She’d only felt a hint of the Quincy King’s power during the retreat from the attack on the Quincy training grounds. It had been imposing, even from a distance. She had yet to see this Lord Tirek or what he could do. Her curiosity was keen, however, for he represented the highest tier of power among Hollows, a benchmark to aim for and a threat to be wary of. Thinking of such things was getting ahead of herself. Adagio understood she had to focus on dealing with the immediate concern of surpassing Grogar, before she got any lofty ambitions about the Primera Espada.

Reaching the ever static copse of dead trees that marked their usual meeting point, Adagio turned to Ember and said, “Assuming Grogar doesn’t do anything to leave me indisposed, shall we meet here the same time as usual tomorrow?”

Instead of answering, Ember instead looked off in the direction of Grogar’s underground labs, her eyes slightly narrowing. After a second Adagio gave her a questioning look.

“What?”

“Weird. I sense my dad’s reiatsu... coming from Grogar’s place.”

“Really?” Adagio turned her attention inward, activating her own Pesquisa and then reaching out with her Hollow senses. She’d grown more and more attuned the Hollow energies. Where once all of Hueco Mundo echoed with a indistinct buzz of Hollow reishi, now Adagio could differentiate with fairly accurate skill between distinct reiatsu. She could even pick out the flickers of very minor Hollows amid the background hum of Hueco Mundo. However she couldn’t sense either Grogar, or Torch for that matter. With a frustrated growl she said, “I’m not sensing anything.”

Ember blinked, then gave her a brief, apologetic look, “Don’t worry about it, it’s not something you could sense. Uh, because I’m his daughter there’s a connection between us that resonates pretty strong. I can sense my dad more clearly than anyone else could. I don’t know why, but he’s in Grogar’s lab.”

“Are they fighting?”

“Nah, I’d sense that right off the bat.” Ember said, frowning thoughtfully, “He must be there to talk about you. I mean, one of the reasons he’s letting me train you to be an Arrancar was because you’re supposed to be joining our horde, right? Guess he decided not to wait until your training was done. Which doesn’t surprise me. Dad can get pretty impatient.”

A moment of nervousness passed through Adagio. If Torch was here to collect her, how would Grogar react to that? He wanted her to infiltrate Torch’s horde to provide information on the other Espada’s actions, but Grogar might react negatively to having his space violated and have Torch make demands of him. He might choose to abandon the plan altogether and kill her out of spite for Torch.

“I’d best return swiftly then, and find out what’s happening.”

“Want me to come with you?” Ember asked, but Adagio shook her head.

“I imagine enough egos will be in the room with Grogar and Torch alone. I’d rather you not be in the crossfire. If I survive, I’ll be seeing you soon enough.” Adagio said, to which Ember shot her an uneasy nod.

“True. Here’s hoping I see you at camp, then.” Ember said, and proceeded to head off towards Las Noches after giving Adagio a final wave of encouragement. That done, Adagio took a deep breath and with a determined look floated off rapidly towards Grogar’s laboratory lair.

----------

The chamber had five sides, each corresponding to one point of the Quincy cross engraved into the floor in pure silver, a symbol encompassing nearly all of the chamber’s ten meter diameter. At the very center of the cross Twilight Sparkle stood, dressed in her full Quincy uniform despite the stifling warmth of the chamber and the sweat dripping down her face from the extent of her supreme concentration.

Not far away Cadence stood patiently by the room’s only entrance, a towering stone door that ran up towards the roof of the tall chamber. Her arms were crossed sternly but the woman’s expression was kind and encouraging as she spoke, “You need to completely visualize every particle of reishi as it takes the shape you want, Twilight. Visualization leads to actualization, but only if you can first conceptualize what you desire.”

Next to Cadence, Shining Armor scratched the back of his head. “Honey, you might want to pull back on the ‘izations’ there. Twily seems to learn better when she can work it out with trial and error.”

Cadence let out a tiny sigh and turned a warm but pointed look towards her fiance. The marriage between the two had only just been publicly announced the other day, and while Twilight had more than a little expected it she still sort of mentally reeled at the idea of her brother and his longtime crush finally officially deciding to tie the knot. It also meant they kept using little pet names for each other.

“Shining, sweetie, its my day to help train her, so I’d appreciate it if you kept the backseat teaching to a minimum? We’re lucky Spitfire is even letting us have a few hours with her each day, so let’s not spoil it with arguing over methodology, shall we?”

Shining Armor held up his hands in surrender, “Okay, okay. Just saying, she got the basics down pretty much with just me needing to give her a little push.”

“Well this is more advanced than the basics. Crafting one’s personalized bow is not something to take lightly.” Cadence replied, then returned her attention to Twilight.

In Twilight's hand was her bow, the long, straight beam of slightly curved blue energy that she’d been summoning since first picking up her mother’s old Quincy cross. That cross was still around her wrist, acting as her focus. She’d been told that such foci were not strictly necessary for many advanced Quincy, and she wasn’t certain she actually needed it anymore either, but she took a certain comfort in its presence around her wrist. Her mental focus was not just on her bow, but on the constantly flowing river of reishi around her.

The giant cross symbol in the floor was an collection seal, designed to draw in ambient reishi to make it easier for a Quincy to access. This room was designed to hone or develop Quincy techniques, whether it be alchemy or spiritual weapon based. In this instance it was helping her by providing all the reishi she needed to train in constructing her own personalized bow.

However she was having trouble with it. Fundamentally she had more than enough power to do what needed doing, but Cadence’s words were essentially correct. Twilight wasn’t having an easy time conceptualizing and visualizing what she wanted for her bow. From what she heard from her fellow cadets, the process shouldn’t be this hard. Indigo Zapp had pulled it off on her first try, and most the others on their second or third. Today was Twilight’s third attempt, and it wasn’t going any smoother than the previous two.

What was the problem? Indigo Zapp had said all she needed was to think hard about wanting to blast her enemies with lightning, and her bow had flowed into its unique shape with ease. Even Lemon Zest, who’d needed three tries, had said she just let her mind ‘go with the flow’ and she’d gotten her admittedly unusual bow to take shape.

So far all Twilight could do was form this basic bow of energy. When she tried to think about visualizing what she wanted, however, her mind couldn’t seem to focus. Was it because she didn’t know what she wanted? That wasn’t entirely untrue. The bow was a weapon, and Twilight was not particularly keen on fighting. She recognized the necessity, but her true goals were those of peace and understanding, not of participating in the war any more than she had to. That made it very hard to focus on the qualities of a weapon meant to destroy her enemies. Twilight didn’t even want any enemies to begin with!

But she had to push forward! Sunset and the girls were counting on her to bridge the gap between the Quincy and other factions. She couldn’t do that if she stayed as nothing more than a failed cadet! To rise in the ranks she needed a bow that would help her defend herself, the lives of her fellow cadets, and ensure she could continue to do her duty to the Quincy while not crossing any moral lines.

Yet how was she supposed to visualize that? It was a contradictory concept; fighting to bring peace.

Frustration crept up into her mind, melting her already limited focus, and her pale blue blow faded away.

“I...I don’t know how I’m supposed to do this.” she admitted miserably.

“Let’s not give up just yet.” said Cadence, stepping forward and coming around behind Twilight. Cadence’s arms wrapped around her and gently gripped Twilight’s hands and brought them up. “Form your bow.”

Gulping, Twilight did as she was told and reformed her plain blue bow of energy. Cadence’s touch was as gentle as a brush of summer wind, her voice a drop of soothing honey. “I know it isn’t easy for you to think like a soldier. It isn’t your nature. It wasn’t mine either. In your heart, you don’t want to wield a weapon. But you must. You must see it, to survive. I can’t bear you getting hurt any more than Shining Armor. So please, Twilight, try to visualize it. Form it in your heart, what kind of weapon you need to survive.”

The older woman’s warm hands slipped down Twilight’s wrist and encompassed the girl’s own hands. A flash of heat bloomed there and Twilight felt a strange moment if dizziness. Before she could question it, however, she felt a sudden sharpening in her mind, accompanied by a sudden mental narrowing of focus... almost like her brain had gained tunnel vision. Abruptly extraneous thoughts like morality and the possible toll killing might have on her psyche were pushed aside and it seemed only logical that she should focus on creating a weapon to promote survival. After all she’d seen the devastating results of a Hollow attack already, and she knew that in a scant few days she and her fellow cadets would be participating in a significantly larger battle.

She needed a bow that would ensure maximum chances of survival by both eliminating threats quickly, and being able to detect those threats before they got too close to effectively counter.

With that mental block temporarily removed, the floodgates of her mind opened, and suddenly the reishi was dancing to her will. It was so easy now! Why had it been hard before? No point in thinking, no need to think at all, just make a bow to ensure maximum chances of survival! She didn’t notice the strangely cold smile creeping across her lips as she used one hand almost like a conductor at an orchestra, direction the flows of reishi into her bow. The spirit particles wove in a physical symphony, starting to create a hardened, physical shape in place of the translucent blue energy. Dark purple metal, striped with flickers of flickering lines of teal, started to form into six distinct spars, slowly forming towards each other.

Twilight’s mind, in its narrow tunnel of absolute focus, didn’t notice the way her eyes changed to a more luminous solid purple, or that Shining Armor was saying something in sudden alarm, or that Cadence was looking at her with sudden worry. Didn’t matter, she had to form her perfect bow!

Speed, precision, power, lethality, and the capacity to detect incoming dangers to better eliminate them before they could strike. The four smaller spars, two coming off either side, would act as both a detection and guidance system, utilizing resonance with surrounding reishi to find threats and then mark them for elimination. The two primary spars of the bow would form her arrows in a central channel to accelerate the condensed reishi like the electromagnetic shot from a rail gun. She estimated at least being able to fire at two hundred and thirty percent past the speed of sound while maintaining the auto tracking-

“Twilight!” Shining Armor was right there in front of her, shaking her with both arms. Cadence had let go of her and was now standing beside Shining Armor with wide eyes.

As if rising up from a dazed dream, Twilight blinked several times and that odd narrowness in her mind faded like a popping bubble. She saw a half formed bow dissipating from her hands. She saw it was large, elegantly curved, formed of dark violet metal with teal stripes, with the main curve of the bow forming two large spurs, but with four shorter spurs arcing from a central circular point with a handle she’d been holding that had two sharp, blade-like fins aimed outward from it like the open beak of a... raven?

But the bow faded into base reishi particles in moments and she couldn’t even properly remember how she’d formed it so suddenly. Looking at her brother and sister-in-law to be, she could only offer a bewildered, “I don’t know what just happened. What did I do?”

“You were forming a bow, but...” Shining Armor traded a look with Cadence, who in turn met Twilight’s questioning look.

“You weren’t acting like yourself, and what I can only assume was magic poured out of you and into the bow along with the reishi. We tried just calling your name, but you didn’t respond, so Shining gave you a shake, which seemed to snap you out of it.” Cadence said, but there was a hesitance to her tone that Twilight picked up on. She looked as confused as Twilight felt, however, and asked, “Do you remember how you formed the bow?”

“I... maybe?” Twilight rubbed her forehead, feeling a chill run across her back as she faintly recalled her sudden focus, a narrowing of thought and desire that pushed aside rational or moral thinking. She’d felt that way before, when Midnight Sparkle had manifested. “I'm not sure why the magic inside me responded that way, but I need to figure it out.”

“You don’t have to do it at all, Twily.” Shining Armor said, his eyes still lingering on Cadence, “At least let’s wait until tomorrow.”

Twilight shook her head, “I want to try again today, but I need to prepare some analysis equipment to better monitor my mental condition and scan the magical patterns inside me. I told Sombra I’d figure this magic out, and I will. I just wasn’t expecting it to crop up so fast on its own. I need more data. Can you two meet me back here in an hour? That should give me time to whip something up to monitor myself with.”

Shining Armor got that stubborn, protective big brother look as he crossed his arms and looked down at her. “I don’t think it's a good idea to push this too fast. Besides, Spitfire is going to want you back at the Academy sometime today.”

“Brother, please, this is important. Can’t you talk to her? What’s the point of me continuing to train with the other cadets if I can’t even form my own bow like they can? I have days before the attack on Las Noches. I have to do this now, because there may not be a later...”

It hurt to see his face grow so sullen, and she just wanted to go up and give her brother a huge hug, especially as he said in a pained tone, “Don’t talk like that Twily. Nothing is going to happen to you or the other cadets. I’ll make sure of it. I’ll be there, this time, and nothing is breaking through my Bastion to get at you, I promise.”

“You’re both right.” Cadence said, a note of guilt in her voice that Twilight couldn’t place. “Shining Armor, of course you’ll do all you can to protect her, just like I will. But Twilight is also right that she both needs to advance her skills by forming her own bow, and pursue understanding the magic inside her as His Majesty has ordered.”

Twilight couldn’t be sure, but she thought she heard a heated undertone of anger somewhere in Cadence’s voice too, which was something she’d never heard from the almost always kind and loving woman. Had she just imagined it?

Shining Armor, looking less than pleased, clenched his jaw tightly but gave a shallow nod. “Fine. I’ll speak with Spitfire and see if she’ll give you the rest of the day to work with us here. Just promise me you’ll be careful about this Twilight.”

“I will. I promise.” Twilight said with a cautious but energetic nod. She was certainly frightened of what the magic inside her could do, especially the way it could alter the way her mind worked so readily and quickly. Yet in some ways she saw how it could be used as a tool if a method of control could be found. What little she remembered of the bow that had been forming hadn’t been a poor design. Far from it in fact, her mind was keenly interested in how it was using a combination of both magic and reishi to generate advanced detect systems built into the bow that would allow her to predict and counter incoming attacks or accurately gauge an opponent’s location. Granted the cold lethality the bow’s arrows would have when fired at such speeds was less than ideal, she couldn’t fault the practicality of it.

If she could reform that bow under her own, conscious will, with a few tweaks to suit her own needs, then she’d be that much closer to achieving her goals.

She left Cadence and Shining Armor waiting in the training room while she went to go acquire some supplies to mock up some data collection devices. King Sombra had essentially given her free reign of the quartermaster’s office, and the Quincy had ludicrously deep pockets, with the Silburn itself incredibly well furnished with nearly anything the Quincy might need in its seemingly infinite storerooms. With a few expertly filled out requisition forms and the looming orders of His Majesty kicking the logistics people into high gear, Twilight knew she could get what she needed in no time.

She knew this because aside from her training she had one other project she was already working on. Something more personal, but perhaps even more important than furthering her Quincy training. She just hoped she could finish it for Sugarcoat in time before the assault on the Hollows...

----------

After Twilight had left, Shining Armor turned towards Cadence with a heated look in his eyes that matched the bubbling ire rising within. He’d occasionally had his spats with her, but this was one of the few times he could say he felt truly mad at the woman he loved.

“Cadence, what were you thinking!? You used the Lust on her!?”

She looked hurt, her serene, angelic features creasing in a pained wince as if his voice was scalding her. He didn’t let the stab of guilt in him force him to soften his expression or his tone, however as he went on, “You had no idea how she’d react to having a Schrifft used on her, let alone one that alters her brain chemistry! Secondly, after all that’s happened do you think its right to go behind her back with something like that!? She doesn't need us lying to her anymore!”

“I know Shining... I... I know, but I had to do something!” Cadence shot back, her voice strained, her expression heavy with a mix of both guilt and, surprisingly, anger. “His Majesty has ordered her and those poor cadets into the middle of what’s going to be an all out battle! I can’t let her go into that unprepared! I just thought if I used a sliver of the Lust to help her along, help her focus, that’s all she’d need. I didn’t think it’d trigger the magic inside her like that...”

Shining Armor closed his eyes, issuing out a rough sigh laden with his own fear and frustrated, impotent anger. “You think I don’t feel the same way? The idea of Twily being sent into the kind of battle His Majesty is planning, it makes my blood cold, Cadence. I don’t know what the King is thinking. Why does he even want the cadets there? Its too much for them, even if they’re just meant to be on the sidelines.”

“And yet its not like we can countermand His Majesty’s orders.” Cadence said, walking up to Shining Armor and placing her arms around his waist, looking at him with a deeply worried pout. “I love Twilight as much as I love you. The thought of losing her... I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have used the Lust without telling her and asking permission first. I’m just used to being subtle with it. Can you forgive me?”

“It’s not me you need to ask that to.” Shining Armor said, stubbornly glancing away from her. “Tell Twilight what you did, and why you did it, then apologize. Then we’ll see.”

Cadence made a small, frustrated noise. “Okay, but she’s not going to be happy.”

“We’re done with lies and half-truths with her. If we’re going to be a family, then there’s no more secrets between us.” Shining Armor was firm, but not unkind, or without a loving hint in his voice. After all it was difficult to stay mad at Cadence with her so close, pressed up against him like that. He knew she could be subtly manipulative at times, and maybe was very intentionally playing up her vulnerable, alluring side to earn some forgiveness points, but he didn’t mind that. As long as she fessed up and apologized to Twilight.

“I said I’d do it, Shining, you don’t have to twist my arm. But I shouldn’t do it today. She needs all of her focus for manifesting her bow. I’ll tell her tomorrow morning.”

He eyed her, and Cadence pulled him closer to her. Shining Armor let out a final sigh and nodded. “Fine, but make it the first thing in the morning. I’ll be there for moral support.”

She gave him a kiss on the lips, quick and tender as a brush with a moth’s wings. “Thank you, sweetie. I really am sorry. I’m just worried about her. She’s having to deal with so much, so fast. I want to do everything I can to help her.”

“I understand. Believe me, I do.” Giving her a last, tight squeeze, he let go with a grave shadow on his face. “I’ve been thinking of asking His Majesty to reconsider his plan to take the cadets with us into battle.”

“He won’t, Shining. His Majesty never changes his mind once its made up. You think I wouldn’t have already tried to convince him if I thought there was a chance it’d work?” Cadence asked. At Shining Armor’s silence, she went on to say, “Our only choice is to do what we can to protect her and the other cadets.”

“Assuming we’ll even have the opportunity.” Shining Armor said with a hint of bitterness. “His Majesty’s plan keeps me busy maintaining the Bastion over a wide area, and you’ll be with the team tracking down the Espada that bypassed our wards.”

“You’ll be in a position to watch out for the cadets,” she said, “And the Bastion is quite flexible. I trust you can think of something if it comes to that. As for myself, my hope is that we can find and finish off the target fast enough to ensure the cadets never face serious danger.”

He wished he could feel more confident, or at least as optimistic as Cadence sounded, but it wasn’t easy. He knew how strong even the lower ranked Espada were, and it would be foolish to underestimate the numerous other Arrancar and lesser Hollows that would no doubt be waiting in ambush for the Quincy army. In truth Shining Armor questioned the wisdom of the entire attack plan. Certainly he wanted to enact some proper vengeance on the Hollows for the deaths of the cadets who’d perished in the attack on the Academy, but he wanted to go about avenging them in a way that was smart and risked the least number of Quincy lives. Stepping into an obvious trap, attacking the Hollows at the heart of their realm, seemed a foolhardy move. Even more so to bring the remaining cadets who’s training was yet to finish...

But what choice did he have save to trust and obey His Majesty?

“There’s a lot that can go wrong out there, Cadence.” he said grimly. “Whatever happens, however bad things might go, I swear I’ll make sure you both make it out of there safely.”

“How about instead you swear you’ll make sure we all make it back, instead? I don’t plan to become a widow before we even finish tying the knot, Shining.”

He managed a razor thin smile, “Such a demanding woman...”

She replied with a wry smile of her own. “You knew that when you proposed. No backing out now.”

“Never.” he said, and while he found himself relaxing slightly as he and Cadence slipped into a comfortable silence as they waited for Twilight to return, he couldn’t help but dwell on the dangerous road ahead and the unmistakable premonition of dread that just wouldn’t leave him.

----------

Adagio entered the laboratory to find Grogar leaning casually against one of his lab desks with a look of dry and faintly irritated detachment as he stared at Torch, who was doing his best to loom over the other Espada with a towering flex of muscles and a ever thick blanket of reiatsu that she was embarrassed she hadn’t been able to feel until she got close to the lab.

With a twinkle in his eyes that sent shivers of disgust and unease down Adagio’s spine, Grogar turned upon seeing her and gave a paper thin nod. “Ah, arriving just at the proper time. Your punctual nature impresses, as always.”

Torch’s own broadly muscled form turned to her, massive arms crossing over his chest like a pair of pythons coiling around an ancient redwood pine. “Hey, if you got any things to grab, grab ‘em! You’re coming with me and getting out of this ugly, dingy dump!”

Hiding a deep breath, Adagio quickly assessed the body language of the pair. Torch was irritated, practically all of his muscles bristling with unreleased tension, hiding a current of murderous rage. Grogar on the other hand was largely relaxed, only sporting a fraction of the irritation Torch was radiating. The old bastard looked like a man in control of the situation, and whether that was what was annoying Torch or not, Grogar seemed to be reveling in the fact.

Despite her uncertainty, Adagio decided to play this smoothly and with confidence.

“So, ‘master’ Grogar, it seems our time together is coming to a close then? Lord Torch has informed you of my acceptance into his horde?”

Grogar didn’t nod, but his eyes seemed to flick downward in the briefest indicator of one. While Adagio’s tone had been borderline flippant, like a testing jab of a foil at the start of a fencing match, Grogar’s own tone wasn’t defensive of offensive, but horrifically vague, presenting no clues as to what was going on behind his withered features. “He has indeed. Given he is the Fifth Espada, and I only the Eight, he has the power and right to offer you his protection. Of course the thought occurred to me to just eliminate you, since I do so love to spite Torch here...”

Torch’s rumbling growl actually shook the ceiling as he leaned over Grogar like a volcano. “If you did I’d string you up by your own guts.”

“If you did that, without me directly provoking you, then Lord Tirek would consume your flesh by the day’s end.” Grogar said back pointedly. “Adagio remains my property. She’s essentially ‘on loan’ to you, even if you’ve taken her into your little band of barbaric, half-brained, inbred idiots. I won’t disparage your right to stomp in here, beat your chest, and declare her under your ‘protection’. Why, I’ll even be generous and remove the pain inducers I’ve implanted in her. But do spare me the banal threats, Torch. Unless I attack you first, you can’t attack me. And if I really want to, I can kill Adagio at a whim without suffering any consequence, so her continued existence is solely because I still find her amusing and fascinating to watch, which I can do regardless of whether she resides in my lab or among your collection of clowns.”

Adagio listened with a growing arctic chill blooming in her blood. While Grogar’s words if taken at face value made sense, he’d never struck her as a particularly reasonable person. He was making it plain he’d have killed her already if he didn’t still have a use for her. On the surface that use might sound like just what he said; amusement. But no, she knew him well enough by now to know that wouldn’t be enough. She’d be dead already if he didn’t have a specific plan in mind, something he intended to use her for that went beyond just observing her among Torch’s horde for personal amusement. Sure, there was the fabrication of the plan to spy on Torch for him, but he must have guessed by now that she’d made that up to try to get out from under his thumb?

So what else was Grogar up to?

Grogar gave her a flicker of a look, a momentary flash of true, genuinely dark amusement and she realized he knew what she was thinking and was reveling in the fact that she couldn’t do anything about it. She had to go with Torch, because to do otherwise would risk the Fifth Espada’s wrath. Even if she could somehow convince Torch that she wanted to remain under Grogar’s control, which she damned well didn’t, all that would accomplish was leave her stuck right where she’d started. Adagio had to move forward and try to anticipate what Grogar might try to pull. She wasn’t sure what advantage he expected to have by turning her loose in Torch’s camp, but clearly he had something in mind beyond the supposed “spying”.

For his part, Torch snorted, trails of smoke and flame curling from his mouth and nostrils as he glared down at Grogar. “You’ve always had a large mouth, Grogar. Larger than that brain you’re so proud of. One of these days you’ll slip on all that crap you spew out of your withered face hole, and when that happens I’m really hoping I’m there to see it. Mostly so I can make sure you land face first on my axe.”

“My, how frightening. Are you quite done? If you are then do leave my lab. As I said, I will remove the pain inducers from Adagio and have a few last words with her before sending her your way. Rest assured I won’t try anything at the last minute. I’m mostly done with her, so you can make what use of her you feel you can.” Grogar said while making a dismissive wave with his hand at Torch.

Torch snorted again, and then with lumbering, ground shaking steps the giant Espada made his way out of the lab, passing by Adagio with only a brief glance before departing. Once he was gone Grogar, casual as could be, made for one of the sizable lab’s large operating tables. “Come my dear, let us prepare you for service to ‘Lord’ Torch.”

She floated towards the table apprehensively, her eyes locked on Grogar. Her mind turned over possibilities as she said, “I didn’t imagine you’d let me go so easily.”

“Hardly easy, but Torch, moronic as he is, understands the basic politics of Las Noches well enough.” Grogar said as he started to strap her onto the table. She didn’t bother to resist, knowing there was no point, but she still felt a slimy coldness whenever she was on one of these tables. “His higher rank means he can take what he wills from the lower ranked. As the Eight, my only recourse would be to either challenge Torch directly and be able to best him, hence proving he is undeserving of his rank. Or to destroy what he wants before he can take it.”

The last was spoken with a pointed look right at her, and Adagio didn’t flinch from that look, instead meeting it with her own challenging gaze. “Then why haven't you destroyed me?”

“You already know the answer to that.” he said with a heavy eye roll, “Don’t insult both of us by pretending you don’t.”

“Then what are you planning you geriatric goat? You intend to use me, of course, but in what manner I can’t tell.” Yet, she added silently. She didn’t expect him to explain anything, but perhaps if he imagined she wasn’t able to pierce the veil of his machinations he’d become overconfident enough to let something slip.

“What manner indeed?” he grinned at her, giving away nothing. “I’ve told you so many times already, Adagio Dazzle, you will always belong to me. Even in ‘freedom’ you will remain my creature, whether you intend it or not. Your actions will further my goals, no matter what you ‘choose’ to do. That is why I can give you to Torch without concern. Now...”

He went to the computer attached to the operating table and used it to activate the dizzying and twisted array of devices that descended from the ceiling on spindly arms to surround Adagio like the legs of a metal spider.

“Let’s begin. You might experience some slight...discomfort.”

Adagio was not surprised by the irony that the removal of the pain inducers did, in fact, involve a rather ludicrous amount of pain. But she endured it, just as she endured everything else she had thus far. No matter what Grogar said, no matter what he planed, she resolved to tear his plans to shredded pieces. She’d make him regret choosing her as his tool, and when he finally learned the extent of his error, when his ambitions were reduced to ashes fed by his own tears and blood... only then would she grant him the release of oblivion.

Author's Notes:

And with this chapter the Soul Society arc has officially ended, and we begin our next arc, giving Adagio and Sci-Twi some much needed screentime. Poor girls have been waiting in the wings for their time to come for months and months now. That doesn't mean we won't take peeks at Sunset and the girls, or events in Equestria as well, but we're talking a good 80% Adagio/Sci-Twi for the next... eh, I'm not going to guesstimate the number of chapters this next arc will take (because whenever I do I'm always totally off), but it'll be awhile. Maybe not as long as the Soul Society arc was, but still sizable.

And because I get a kick out of digging up these old videos and sharing them, here's something more on Privaron Espada:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYAh0wbnK6A

This may or may not be on the test later.

Anyways hope you folks enjoyed and thanks for reading. As always comment away, ask questions, lambaste me with critique, whatever you fancy I appreciate it all. 'Till next time!

Episode 61: Path of Thorns

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Episode 61: Path of Thorns

Day to day life among the horde of Lord Torch was normally an unending blurr of carousing, brawling, and hunting. With word spreading of an impending attack by the hated Quincy the horde’s usual routine was largely halted in favor of everyone forming warbands and competing to see who would lead each warband, which consisted of no-holds-barred smashing of faces and drop-kicking of heads while Torch watched on with great amusement. Ember, of course, wasted no time in picking out the strongest from the horde to form her own warband, and gleefully breaking the jaws of anyone who wanted to challenge her for leading the pack. All out battles with the Quincy were usually rare, but she was lucky enough to get a double crack at it, what with the previous raid and now this retaliation by the Quincy giving even more chances at some well earned glory.

She ought to be in a good mood, but two notes soured the otherwise warm rush of anticipation of the violence to come.

One was that Adagio still hadn’t become an Arrancar yet, and while Ember wasn’t going to admit it out loud, she worried about the spunky Adjuchas. It was almost against her own will, really. Ember wasn’t one to get too attached, but she’d taken a stronger and stronger liking to Adagio’s ambitious and oftentimes passionate demeanour. The woman didn’t do anything by halves, and while she was a little too much of the thinking type for Ember’s tastes she had to admit that Adagio had guts. It was just that aside from her father there weren’t a lot of people Ember actually liked. Respected, sure. She respected every Espada for their power, even dirtbags like Grogar. But Adagio was about as close as Ember had ever gotten to considering someone a ‘friend’. Which meant she wasn’t keen on losing said friend. This fight with the Quincy, it was gonna be rough. Even her father was showing more caution and seriousness in his demeanor than she was used to, and that actually scared her a bit. Not that she’d ever let anyone know that she was nervous.

The second thing souring her mood was...

“Hey! Hey Ember, I’m talking to you! Are you listening to me or what?”

Ember was taking a break from kicking around her forming warband into fighting shape and was lounging under one of the hordes massive cook tents, munching on some Hollow leg that had just been roasting over the bonfire. Her eyes rolled as she turned her head from its position leaning against the back of her hand as she lay on her side and gave the speaker an annoyed glare.

“What, Garble!? If I want a footstool, I’ll let you know, otherwise could you keep it down?”

He snorted, resting his one good arm on his hip while glaring at her. His left arm was still just a stump, one of several wounds leftover from the bout with the Quincy. He also sported a scar across his left eye, a long, slim rift in his otherwise smooth flesh. “Real funny. Look we need to talk.”

“Uh, pretty sure we don’t. Unless by talk, you mean I ram my fist somewhere between your throat and sternum.”

The male blinked in dull confusion. “The hell’s a sternum? Pfft, nevermind. Look you don’t like me and I don’t like you, but you know who I like even less? That freak Adagio.”

Ember’s eyes narrowed to crimson slits as she sat up, taking a large meaty bit of the roasted leg of Hollow in her hand, chewing very loudly and deliberately as she spoke around the mouthful. “And I care about that, because...?”

“Because I’m telling you that you can’t trust her, that’s why!” Garble snapped, and in a rather unusual move for him he stopped looming over her and instead went and plopped down cross-legged next to her. Ember considered that it’d be pretty easy just to kick him in the side of the head from this position, but she was eating and didn’t want to ruin a perfectly good meal just yet. Instead she settled for continuing to glare at him.

“Yeah, ‘cause I’m just supposed to take your word on that? You’ve been nothing but a pain in my ass since forever, Garble. Now, what, you’re supposed to be worried about me?”

“I ain’t worried about you.” Garble huffed, “I’m worried about the horde! I don’t like the way Adagio smells. She’s manipulative, an’ I swear she did something to you when we were attacking those Quincy punks. Letting her into the horde is a mistake, but no way I can get Lord Torch to see that. Maybe if you did, you’d get him to listen.”

“Fat chance.” Ember replied, tearing off another chunk of meat. “You’re just pissed she’s got dad’s favor instead of you. Like you’d ever be running this horde one day.”

There was a tight clenching of Garble's fist as his whole body tensed, his own eyes flashing with anger. “And of course you think you’re gonna be running things around here eventually, right? Lord Ember, future Espada? But here you are spending all this time helping some weak Adjuchas become an Arrancar for no good reason. What are you getting out of the deal?”

Ember pulled back her lips in a barring of fangs, “Maybe I just like the idea of having someone else to kick you around with.”

He met her look with a open barring of his own sharp teeth. “Cute, but you can’t tell me straight that you remember what happened when you decided to fight me during the Quincy raid, eh? A bunch of that is still a blur to you, ain’t it?”

Heistance gave a fleeting shade of doubt across Ember’s mind. She really couldn’t fully recall all of the events during the Quincy raid. A lot of it was still fuzzy, including why she’d gotten so angry at Garble that she’d decided to fight him all out. Not that she needed much reason to want to punt Garble through a wall or two, but even in the many times she’d sparred with him or even got into legit fights over one thing or another, she’d never felt the need to go all out like she had during the raid. She’d even used her Resurreccion, and she’d never done that against a fellow horde member, even one as annoying as Garble.

She shook her head, “Whatever. So what if it don’t remember everything? It was a rough fight with a bunch of Quincy. Really chaotic. You forget stuff sometimes.”

Garble’s snort was thick with derision. “You seriously believe that?”

At Ember’s silence he snorted again and stood up, looking down at her with an expression that almost equated to concern. “Look, believe me or don’t, whatever. I know something about that damn Adagio isn’t right, and if you don’t want to see it then that’s your problem.”

“You don’t know the first thing about her.” Ember shot back, standing as well and jabbing a finger into his chest. He ignored the finger and just kept glaring down at her.

“Oh yeah? And you do?”

“Sure I do. I mean, I know she finds you just as annoying as I do, and that’s a pretty good start in my book.” said Ember, pushing past him and stomping away from the cook fire with an aggravated huff. Garble, however, followed after her.

“So if you’re all so buddy-buddy with her, then where is she right now?”

Ember paused, mostly because she was considering punching Garble in his stupid face, but also because his question did make her wonder where Adagio had gotten off to. They’d been planning to head back to the Forest of Menos, but Adagio hadn’t shown up yet. Ultimately Ember shrugged the question off, saying gruffly, “I’m not her babysitter or leash holder. She can come and go as she pleases, same as any other Hollow in the horde. Now unless you got anything actually interesting to say how about you quit bugging me and let me get back to whipping my warband into shape, since some of us actually care about the upcoming fight.”

Garble growled defensively, “Hey, I got a warband too, and we’ll be taking down more Quincy than anyone else out there.”

“Looking to beat your high score of zero?” Ember spat back, and at Garble’s frustrated look she let out a satisfied sigh and marched away. However as she did so she did wonder idly about what Adagio was up to. Just where had the siren gone?

----------

Her pale claw ran over the smooth surface of one of the many stone pillars lining the room’s semi-circular width. Along the circumference of the room a set of stone steps cut a path through lines of carved seating, like some ancient Roman forum, leading down to a wide stage where Adagio imagined any crowd of people seated on the stone benches could be addressed and be heard clearly due to the room’s acoustics. Indeed the musically inclined part of her could view this chamber as an excellent place to hold a concert, as her steps echoed with such powerful yet clear reverberation that she imagined even a simple whisper would carry clearly to every corner.

A thick layer of dust pervaded the room, signaling how long it had been since anyone had used the vast chamber. The far wall on the other side of the forum stage held three tall, rectangular windows that actually opened up into Las Noches’ lit interior with its artificial sky. White, semi transparent curtains fell around the windows, hanging still in the breezeless air.

From the chamber’s entryway, which consisted of a large stone door with a carved handle, her three Arrancar... employees? Servants? Minions? ...Minions. Her three Arrancar minions stood watching her curiously. Dumbbell cleared his throat after a moment.

“Uh, so what do you think? Not bad, right?”

She turned contemplative red eyes towards the trio, who stood eagerly waiting her response. She reflected that their attitude was in stark contrast to their bullying arrogance when they first met, but after so many days of being consistently fed not only did the three young male Arrancar look less thin but she saw their old conventional hunger replaced by a new one; the hunger to please. She imagined it never occured to the three of them that without Ember around they were still stronger than her and could probably kill her if they all attacked at once. But it was clear there was no such thought in their heads now. Adagio provided them purpose and sustenance, and having lacked a consistent source of either they now served willingly, even eagerly.

She favored them with a smile, gracious as she nodded. “It will suit my needs quite well, I think. Good work.”

The three boys all grinned at each other, exchanging fist bumps. Hoops chuckled, “Told you dude’s she’d like it. Even if its-”

Score quickly elbowed Hoops in the ribs, “Dude shut it!”

Adagio cleared her throat loudly, looking at the three sharply. She’d already suspected they might have been omitting something and had been planning to ask some questions regardless, but she decided to let them think she was only now seeing something amiss. “Is there something you boys want to tell me? Perhaps the reason why such a perfectly good chamber is sitting here, clearly unused for some time, amid Las Noche’s outer wall?”

Hoops and Score started to immediately talk over each other in an incomprehensible jumble, but Dumbbell quickly gave both of them a smack upside their heads and then turned back to Adagio with an embarrassed look. “Okay, so, uh, you’ve probably noticed there’s like a bunch of rooms like this built into this part of the wall, but not really anywhere else.”

Adagio nodded, for she had in fact taken note of such. Las Noches’ incredibly thick outer walls were largely devoid of chambers, just hallways connecting to paths and stairs to the city-sized fortress’ entrances and gates out into its vast interior space. However when the three boys had taken her to the hallways running along the wall’s interior length she’d noticed that there were several other chambers situated in a tight cluster near the south west end of the wall, and that this forum was at the center of that cluster of rooms.

“I would guess that all of these rooms near one another were all owned by the same Hollow.” she said, “The question I have is why are they now abandoned?”

“Uh, I don’t know, like, the whole story but there used to an Espada who used this as her personal pad. She was the old Number Two before the big bad Queen Chrysalis came along. I don’t remember what her name was, but everyone called her the Queen of Thorns. There was a huge spat between her and Chrysalis back in the day, and the Queen of Thorns lost. I don’t think anyone knows for sure if Chrysalis killed her, or if this Thorns chick ran off and became a Privaron Espada. At least I don’t know. Either way, she’s gone, and Chrysalis is the current Second Espada.”

Adagio’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Intriguing, but that still doesn’t explain why no one else has claimed these chambers since then.”

Dumbbell looked at her with a thousand mile wide stare. Then Score cleared his throat and raised a hand, “Err, I think its just that nobody wants to chance pissing on Chrysalis’ shoes. I mean, if any other Espada moved in here, where one of Chrysalis’ old rivals lived, wouldn’t that kind of be like putting up a giant target on their forehead.”

“Is this Chrysalis really so petty as to see any claim to these chambers as a challenge to her authority?” Adagio asked, and all three of the boys stared at her.

“Yes.”
“Yeah.”
“Totally.”

Adagio sighed deeply, “So what then was the point of bringing me here, other than to waste my time?”

Dumbbell was quick to raise his hands, shaking them, “Whoa, hold up! That stuff only counts if you were, like, some big time Espada. You know, someone who’d be on Chrysalis’ radar. But since you’re just a regular Hollow looking for a spot to crash, then nobody would even notice you’re here. And even if they did, I don’t know, Chrysalis probably wouldn’t care.”

“That or she’d have you summarily executed.” Hoops said frankly.

“Dude, shut up.” Dumbbell said, glaring at the other Arrancar. “Adagio’s, like, tight with Lord Torch and his crew. That’s got to count for some protection.”

“Against the Second Espada if she goes on an enraged bender?” Hoops asked, “Didn’t the last time she got, uh... playful and bored we lost half the Warrens?”

A spark of irritation lit Adagio’s eyes. “The Warrens?”

“Las Noches’ slums.” Dumbbell said, “It's a whole mess of tunnels and crap underneath the fortress. Pretty much one big maze. Lot of Arrancar who aren’t part of an Espada’s group end up living down there, along with a bunch of low class Hollow that just sort of drift in. Lord Smooze actually runs the place, but doesn’t really claim it as his own, which is why when Chrysalis feels like screwing around or sending her horde out to play, they use the Warrens as the playground. Days like that it's best to come topside to lay low.”

“The three of you lived there?” Adagio inquired.

“Yeah, before we decided to chance living up here where a lot tougher Arrancar might decide to kill us, but the opportunities to get food are better.” Dumbbell said, shrugging as if it’d been a simple choice. He then glanced away from her, his hair hiding part of his face. “Which you’ve been doing your part in helping us stay fed, so not exactly complaining over here. Anyway, like I was saying, you’re probably fine shacking up here. It's really the only place that fits what you were asking for. Long as you got some big shot like Lord Torch’s support then I don’t think even Chrysalis would do anything about you using this place. Still, if you don’t like it we can always keep looking.”

“No...” Adagio said, her eyes turning back across the forum’s length. Something about the room appealed to her on more than just an aestitch level. She felt strangely comfortable here, the danger of earning Chrysalis’ ire be damned. “This will do. I’d like to examine the other rooms when time allows, but Ember and I are returning to the Forest of Menos so that will have to wait. In the meantime why don’t the three of you see about acquiring some furnishings for this place?”

“What, you mean like... chairs or something?” Dumbbell asked with a confused look and Adagio bit back the urge to groan.

“Chairs, tables, preferably a bed of some sort. I’m not planning on sleeping on stone for the rest of eternity. Surely there’s a source of such things somewhere in this fortress?”

The three boys all looked at each other and briefly leaned their heads close to whisper in breif conference. Eventually Dumbbell said, “We’ll ask around. Never really thought about where stuff like that comes from. Not like there’s, uh, stores in Hueco Mundo.”

Adagio slapped a claw to her masked face, her thinning patience clear in her voice. “If you can’t find anything here then use a Garganta to slip into the living world and raid a shopping mall!”

Dumbbell, Hoops, and Score all blinked at that, then grinned.

“Hey boss, that’s pretty smart! We can totally do that!”

“Can we get a tv, too?”

“Hoops, there’s nothing to hook it into here.”

“Well, yeah, but we can still hook up a game console to it.”

“And power it with what, genuis? Electric farts? Do you see any outlets in here!?”

“What if we stole a generator. Like one of those gas powered things?”

“Right, and we’ll just hop on down to one of the many gas stations in Hueco Mundo to get fuel for it.”

“We can steal that from the living world too.”

Adagio just stared at them for a few seconds with a hefty raise of her brow, “You three seem surprisingly familiar with the human world all of a sudden. Don’t tell me you’ve done something like this before?”

Score let out a deep throated chuckle-snort, “Heheh, yeah, when we get really bored we used to hop into the living world and mess with people. You ever see that video with the dude freaking out about all the lights in his house turning on and off? That was us.”

“...I see.” Adagio said with a flat, dumbfounded monotone. Had she really found individuals who were collectively more airheaded than Sonata? Was she really going to rely on them as competent help? Well, she’d managed to survive Sonata for years (recent events notwithstanding), she’d manage with these three for now.

“At any rate, do what you have to do, but I’d like to see this place start to look comfortable in the near future. Just try not to burn any malls down in the process. The last thing I need is for some Soul Reaper or Quincy to take notice of you lot.”

Or a certain bacon headed girl and her band of friends for that matter.

----------

Twilight was starting to forget what sleep was like. Restful sleep, at least. Not only was her training at the Academy draining and time consuming but she wasn’t allowing herself much time outside of those lessons either. She had entirely too much that needed doing and barely enough time in the day to get it all packed into those previous, fleeting hours. The lack of sleep compounded an already grumpy mood that left her hair frazzled and her eyes bloodshot and bleary as she worked at a bench she’d had moved to her room, now strewn with various electronic parts. She wa focused on putting together the last components of a special prototype device she intended to test as soon as her guest arrived, but in the meantime she was putting on the finishing touches while trying very hard not to think about what had happened that morning.

Spike, however, was not so keen on letting Twilight fume, and he could have smelled her conflicted anger for several kilometers no matter how hard she tried to hide it. Snuggled up against her chair Twilight was sitting in the dog wagged his tail encouragingly. “You can’t stay mad at her forever.”

Twilight bit her lip, hands tightening around the soldering iron in her grip. Flecks of sweat beaded her violet brow. Spike let out a light canine whine, “I mean, I get it. Cadence really shouldn’t have messed with you like that, especially without saying anything. Not making excuses for her, and you totally got a right to be mad. I’m just saying you shouldn't stay mad. It's not good for you.”

Twilight, hissing out a deep sigh, set aside the soldering iron and picked up a carved ceramic casing that she started to fit over the crescent of wires, circuits, and glass she’d been assembling. Her voice was quiet and tight with strain. “Thank you Spike. I know you’re just worried about me. I’ll be fine. I just need... time to cool my head, that’s all.”

It was more than that, and Twilight knew it, but she didn’t want to worry Spike. The poor fella was having a hard enough time adjusting to life in this cold, unfamiliar place, and she hardly wanted to add to his stress. Most the time he was stuck cooped up in her room. She really needed to take him outside sometime soon, if only to just stretch his legs. Twilight needed every distraction she could get, which was partially why she’d focused on finishing this side project.

Her anger didn’t feel right. Justified, yes, but unusually intense for her. Twilight just didn’t get mad that often, or for that long. Yet when Cadence had revealed what she’d done during the training session to form a personalized bow, and that it had likely led to that magical surge inside her... Twilight had nearly snapped. As it was she’d given Cadence a frosty shoulder and had refused to talk to the woman for the rest of the day. Cadence, while clearly hurt by this, had quickly taken the hint and given Twilight plenty of breathing room. Yet Twilight still felt almost irrationally angry the entire day. It had come out during the training at the Academy with more than a few instances of having to force herself to hold back from injuring fellow cadets or accidentally blowing holes in Academy buildings with sudden spikes in power when practice firing her bow.

She wanted to try forming a personal bow again, but didn’t trust herself to do that while feeling this way. So to combat the anger she’d thrown herself into finishing this project, letting all that chilling emotion pour out of her as she lost herself in the technical challenge of constructing the device in front of her. It was nearly done, too, which surprised her. She thought this would take a lot longer, but her work on the spirit energy scanners she’d made for her friends had helped out quite a lot. All the design principles were the same here, only with an emphasis on focused and detailed readings translated into sensory information a human nervous system could interpret.

All she needed was to test it and make sure it would do the job.

“Spike, what time is it?” she asked, not looking up from her work.

Spike hopped up onto her bed and peered at the grandfather clock, “Nearing seven. You still got an hour before visiting hours are over.”

“Good. More than enough time.” Twilight said, finishing the last touches and tightening down the outer casing, making sure it lined up with the glass band along the front of the device. Double checking the power supply and running a quick test to make sure there were no failing circuits, Twilight sighed in genuine contentment. Her anger at Cadence wasn’t entirely gone, but spending an afternoon and a good chunk of evening building something in the same of science and friendship did wonders to temper her mood.

She held up the completed visor with a critical eye. It was a white ceramic half circle, padded with comfortable linings of black leather. The front held a band of sapphire blue glass, which acted as the visors focusing lens. The internal structure was very similar to the devices she’d built for Sunset and the girls back in Canterlot City, with a number of fine tuned adjustments to make it more exact and detailed in its ability to process and display sensory input. That, and the cortical nodes meant to allow it to sync with a human nervous system directly. That was by far the trickiest part and something Twilight had needed to rely more on the spiritual side of things to make up where her understanding of science left gaps. Reishi, spirit particles, were sensed differently than any other form of sensory input and as such could bypass limitations in the human nervous system. Including damaged parts of it.

Looking the visor over one last time for any defects, Twilight carefully placed it in a shoulder bag along with a monitoring tool designed to hook up to it. “Alright Spike, wish me luck.”

“You got it. Say, when you’re done, do you think we could get outside for a bit? Starting to feel like the walls are getting closer around here.”

She went over to the bed and reached out to give the dog a loving pet on the head, “Of course. I’ve been meaning to do that for awhile now. Just, you know, busy.”

Spike licked her hand affectionately, his tail wagging rapidly. “I know. Don’t let it get to you. I’ll be here when you get back.”

Giving Spike one last farewell pet, Twilight hurriedly left her room and made her way through the cavernous, quiet hallways of the castle. She was used to her family’s mansion, so the vast and empty hallways were rapidly starting to feel like something akin to home. And admittedly they weren’t entirely empty. She passed by a number of other Quincy on her way to the hospital wing. The sheer immensity of the Silburn just made it feel empty, despite how many people must have called the castle home.

All of that training must have been paying off in more ways than one, because the long trek across the castle didn’t even leave her slightly winded by the time she got to the wing of halls containing the hospital. Never the athletic type, Twilight was secretly pleased at how fit she was getting. Maybe next time she had to play Rainbow Dash in soccer she might actually hold her own a bit? The lighthearted thought passed quickly, not only due to the realization that she would likely never return to Canterlot High or just hang out with her friends, but also because she’d reached her destination.

The door was plain white, like most of the doors in the hospital wing, with a simple number label in black. Twilight gave a light, polite knock and waited a moment. She heard a muffled female voice inside say what sounded like, “Come in.”

Opening the door she found a plain hospital room no different than the one she’d been recovering in, with the only difference being that this room had a window looking out into one of the castle’s many interior gardens. Not that the room’s occupant could enjoy the view of the evening sun casting shadowy rays on the gardens pleasant arrangement of colorful flower bushes.

Sugarcoat was sitting up in her bed, arms crossed, head leaned back. It was strange seeing her hair not done up in its usual pig-tailed style, but instead hanging in loose, wavy strands down her back. However Twilight barely noticed that, her eyes instead locked on Sugarcoat’s face. Sugarcoat had always had the world’s most frank and deadpan stare. Twilight had once always feared to meet Sugarcoat’s eyes, because of the blunt and often uncaring truth they contained, never hesitant to state things as they were without much care for others feelings. They had been strong eyes, if not kind ones. You always knew where you stood with Sugarcoat, just by looking at her eyes.

Not anymore. The Arrancar’s blade had ruined those eyes, and now Sugarcoat wore a simple gray blindfold to hide the empty sockets that were left behind. The image left Twilight feeling cold, remembering seeing that viscous blow and feeling nothing but guilt for the knowledge that it’d been received defending her.

Though blind, Sugarcoat’s hearing was just fine and her head turned towards Twilight as the door opened and closed. “Who is it? If that’s you again mom, I’ve had about all the crying I can take for one day so seriously no more waterworks.”

“It’s, uh, it’s me.” Twilight said, and Sugarcoat’s head tilted slightly.

“Twilight Sparkle. I didn’t expect to s-... expect you to visit.”

“I hope you don’t mind.” Twilight said, taking a hesitant step further into the room. “I’ve been meaning to come see you. Spitfire has us working even harder at the Academy than normal, but I was able to find time to work on something. Something I hope can help you.”

Even without eyes Sugarcoat could certainly still manage a coy eyebrow raise that conveyed her incredulity. “I doubt anything can actually help me unless you’ve managed to develop the spontaneous power to grow me a new pair of eyes. Which I’d find hard to believe.” A pause, then,”You haven’t, have you?”

“Uh, well, no not exactly. But maybe the next best thing? Do you mind if I come over to the bed?”

“Why would I mind?”

“I don’t know, personal bubble, maybe?”

“I don’t have one of those. They seem pointless. So what precisely is it that you have?” Sugarcoat said, making a vague gesture towards the side of her bed, indicating Twilight should walk on up. Twilight did so, pulling up one of the room’s small sitting chairs to take a seat by Sugarcoat’s beside. She took the visor and the corresponding monitoring device out of her shoulder bag.

“Before coming here I helped my friends by building devices that detected spiritual particles. I based them loosely off of the magic detection device I had during the Friendship Games. Since then I’ve refined the designs in my head and with some time I’ve managed to build this...” she gently raised her hand and placed the visor in Sugarcoat’s. The other girl flinched, her hands running over the visor in a clear attempt to figure out what it was. When realization hit Sugarcoat’s face it was quickly replaced by skepticism.

“I think you’ve watched too much sci-fi. There’s no way you could build something that will actually let me see, let alone do it in a matter of days. I appreciate the effort, but there’s zero chance this would work, whatever it is.”

Twilight’s face flushed to a peak of crimson, and a spark of craftsman’s pride welled up in her. “I assure you the device should work just fine. In theory. It’s not quite what you think. It won’t let you ‘see’ exactly, but... well just put it on. I’ll show you. Assuming it does work, which it will!”

“I still think this is silly, but it doesn’t cost me anything to humor you, and the thought is appreciated. Alright, fine, I’ll put it on.” Sugarcoat raised the visor to her face and Twilight lent her own hand to help the other girl get it strapped on. The ends of the visor with the cortical nodes lined up with Sugarcoat’s temples, and the rest of it covered her eyes, but the blindfold had to come of first.

Sugarcoat hesitated when Twilight moved to take the blindfold off.

“I don’t want you to see that...” Sugarcoat said.

“It’s okay.” Twilight said soothingly, “Please, trust me.”

“For the records this whole situations is seriously uncomfortable.” Sugarcoat said, allowing the blindfold to come off. Twilight didn’t let herself look away from the empty eye sockets. She had to learn to deal with things like this. Taking a deep breath she focused on adjusting the visor so it sat comfortably on Sugarcoat’s face.

“Okay, now there’s a button here to switch it on or off, and a small dial here that you can use to adjust the intensity. I’m going to hook up a monitoring device so I can take readings to help with further adjustments, since I don’t expect this to work perfectly from the get-go.” Twilight said as she ran a short cable from the PDA-like monitoring device to a connector on the right side of the visor.

Sugarcoat patiently waited until Twilight was done. “So now what? I just turn it on?”

“Please do. And, uh, don’t be surprised if there’s a bit of pain from sensory feedback. It should pass, if there is any.”

“That’s comforting.” Sugarcoat deadpanned, “Only it’s not. But whatever, let’s do this.”

Twilight waited with bated breath as Sugarcoat reached up and flicked the visor on. There was a soft blue glow from the glass front of the visor, lighting it up. Sugarcoat immediately winced, “This feels like someone’s poking a finger into where my eyes ought to be.”

“The visor is making connections between your natural capacity to sense reishi and your eye’s remaining nerves, then translating it into images your brain can process.” Twilight said, already making slight adjustments as her monitoring device was fed data. “It doesn't look like there’s any abnormalities so far, and your brainwaves are normal. Can you see anything?”

“No, not yet... wait...” Sugarcoat’s face went still, then her mouth slowly dropped open as she turned her head left and right, finally settling right on where Twilight was sitting. “I can... I can see you. Not exactly you, but all the spirit energy inside and around you.” She held her hand in front of her face. “I can even see me.” A glance at the rest of the room was followed by a smirk. “Everything else is so much dimmer, but I can still make out rough shapes. It’s all in shades of black and white.”

“Sorry about that,” Twilight said timidly, “Basic sensory input is all I can manage right now until I have a better grasp of spiritual mechanics and biology. You won’t be able to discern writings, or colors, or any kind of fine details. But if you’re patient I’m sure someday I can build something much better than this-”

She was cut off very abruptly by a pair of slim by strong arms wrapping around her and yanking her into a crushing hug of surprising strength and intensity. Twilight gasped for breath, shocked at Sugarcoat’s actions, but not really able to resist, even as the hug went on for some time.

“S-Sugarcoat, need air...”

“Shut up. I’m not done hugging you.”

Eventually she did let Twilight go, who sucked in much needed lungfuls of air. Sugarcoat coughed, her own face briefly flashing with a hint of red as she said, “Sorry about that. Just really wanted to do that. You have no idea what this means to me and I’m sorry I doubted you. You’re literally a genius, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Hey, no biggie. And just Twilight is fine. We’re friends after all.”

“We are?” Sugarcoat said, then paused and nodded. “We are.”

Twilight smiled, glancing back at her monitoring device. “Okay, I’ve got my baseline with these readings. Now I’m going to make some slight adjustments, and you just let me know if any of it makes things clearer or not, okay?”

They spent the next ten minutes running through different frequencies and intensities of the visor’s sensory input, not unlike an eye doctor might flip through various lenses to try and find a patient's ideal lens type. Once Twilight was satisfied they’d adjusted the current visor design as best as they could she said, “I know its not perfect, and I don’t know if this will allow you to keep being a full fledged Quincy, but I had to do this.”

“Why? Because I lost my eyes defending you and the others? That’s a dumb way to think about it. It was a fight, and we all risk bodily injury and even death in battles like that. Its what we were training for. Blaming yourself for it is completely pointless.”

“But if I hadn’t gotten injured first-”

Sugarcoat cut her off sharply, “Then the same thing might have happened. Or worse. Battles aren’t predictable, Twilight. For all you know if you didn’t get injured someone else might have been hurt even worse in your place, even killed. It's a miracle we all made it out of that fight alive. Others didn’t. You remember that.”

A frozen chill trickled down to her heart, flashes of memory entering her mind of the mangled remains of the Quincy cadets who hadn’t been as fortunate as her and her team. “I... I remember. I wish I could forget.”

“Don’t.” Sugarcoat said with the firmness of a hammer on an anvil. “Never forget what you saw. That’s war. A war we’re all a part of. Don’t you ever turn away from or try to forget that truth. If you do you’ll just end up making a real mistake that could get yourself or anyone around you killed.”

Twilight silently looked at her hands clasped in her lap, nodding without a word. Sugarcoat looked at her, then let out a slow sigh and reached out to hesitantly touch Twilight’s shoulder. “I know I can be... blunt about this stuff, but its true. You’ll get hurt if you can’t deal.” Her other hand touched her visor, a very small wisp of a smile appearing on her face. “But a soft heart isn’t always a bad thing. Thank you for this. It means a lot to me. I might even be able to fight again with this.”

“Are you sure?” Twilight asked.

“Yes. All that matters is that I can identify and hit my target, which I can do with this.” Sugarcoat said confidently, “I’m sure they’ll let me back into the Academy as long as I prove this works.”

Twilight shook her head, “That’s not what I meant. I mean are you sure you want to go back? Sugarcoat, you just made a point of how horrible this war is, and this is your chance to get out of having to fight!”

Sugarcoat was quiet for a long moment. With the visor it was hard to read her expression, but Twilight thought it looked like the other girl was thinking hard on how to explain something. “Twilight, your family kept your Quincy heritage a secret from you, but mine didn’t. I grew up knowing my parents were fighting against monsters for the sake of humanity. My father died only two years ago.”

Twilight gulped, “Sophomore year, I remember. I thought he died in a car accident?”

Even behind the visor Sugarcoat could manage to convey a flat stare. “You ever notice how many students at Crystal Prep lost a parent to a ‘car accident’ or ‘boating accident’ or any other kind of ‘accident’?”

“...Oh.”

Sugarcoat’s voice softened, “I always knew I was going to be a Quincy. Most of us in the Shadowbotls did. I think maybe Lemon Zest didn’t, but that’s just because Lemon Zest doesn’t pay attention to anything outside of her music. Honestly I’m shocked so many students could keep it a secret there, but then again nobody paid attention to the crazy magic stuff happening at Canterlot High either. I think that whole city has a blind spot for the strange and unusual. Anyway my point is that I want to fight as a Quincy. There’s no way I could just move on to some boring life, knowing my family, my classmates, all of them were busy doing something so much more important.”

“And dangerous...”

“And worth it.” Sugarcoat touched the visor softly, “Losing my eyes sucked. I thought this was the end. I felt like utter garbage. Twilight, you just gave back to me something I can’t even figure out how to tell you how important it is to me. Don’t question whether I’ve got the resolve to fight. The better question is how am I ever going to repay you for the favor you’ve done for me.”

Twilight sat there in stunned silence for a moment. She hadn’t expected quite this level of gratitude, nor had she been seeking to make Sugarcoat feel beholden to her. Making the visor had as much been a way to meet an interesting scientific challenge as it had been about trying to help someone who needed it. And it hadn’t hurt that focusing on finishing the project today had helped keep her mind focused on something other than being angry with Cadence.

“You don’t have to repay anything. Just keep being a friend, and we’ll call it even.” she said.

“I can do that.” Sugarcoat said, slowly waving her hand in front of her face and giving a dry laugh. “This is going to take some getting used to, but I know I’m good enough to compensate for this different kind of vision. I’ll be back at the Academy in no time.”

An unpleasant thought crossed Twilight’s mind like the intrusion of a wasp, “Have you heard about the battle that’s being planned?”

Sugarcoat leaned forward curiously, “Haven’t heard much of anything since getting stuck in here. What’s going on?”

Twilight took a minute to briefly explain. Sombra was leading the bulk of the Quincy army in a direct assault on the Hollow’s main fortress of Las Noches. Twilight wasn’t privy to many details of the plan, all she knew was that this was in direct response to the Hollow’s own attack on the Quincy cadets and that the primary objective of the assault was to destroy the Espada responsible for creating the portals that were capable of slipping past the Academy’s defensive wards. That, and the fact that Sombra intended the remaining cadets to be present at the battle. Why that was she had no idea and hadn’t the opportunity yet to ask Sombra himself.

Sugarcoat took the news with her usual upfront and straightforward fashion. “That’s either a move that’s going to pay off for us in a big way, or lead to a serious disaster, depending on just how much His Majesty is underestimating the enemy. We’re basically countering a trap by stepping right into it intentionally. If that catches the Arrancar off guard, we could win a victory that would tip the balance of the war. If we miscalculate just how hard the Hollows will hit us, we could be the one’s getting decimated. Not the kind of coin toss I’d bet the future of the Quincy on, but I’m not the King.”

“I have my doubts as well, but while I don’t really know Sombra that well he doesn’t seem like the type to make rash decisions.” Twilight said, and Sugarcoat’s eyebrows shot up.

“You talk really familiar about His Majesty.”

Twilight blushed, shrugging, “He seems to prefer it that way.”

Sugarcoat adjusted her visor with a single finger in a gesture very much like what she used to do with her glasses. “Interesting. In any case I need to talk to the doctors and make sure they release me from this place ASAP. There’s no way I intend to miss this fight.”

“I hope we won’t have to fight at all. At least not us cadets.” Twilight said with a pained whisper, “Too many people have been hurt already. Sombra’s plan sounded like he intended us to stay out of the way of combat.”

“Yeah, as if that’ll happen.” Sugarcoat said with a snort, “All the more reason for me to get back out there. I need to make sure you and the others don’t get in over your heads.”

“I can’t talk you out of this, can I?” Twilight said, her concern stamped squarely on her face.

“Not even remotely.” Sugarcoat replied, once again showing that small subtle smile.

Twilight spent the rest of the hospital’s last visitation hour taking down further data and making more minor adjustments to the visor with Sugarcoat helping by providing her own insights. Like most the Shadowbolts Sugarcoat was far from undereducated, and quite intelligent. Twilight might have been the science specialist, but the other Crystal Prep students were highly proficient due to the high standards the school had held them to, and Sugarcoat was no exception. It was a relaxing hour that went by, and it reminded Twilight of how much she missed her friends from Canterlot High.

But while she did wonder when she might see Sunset and the girls again, she left Sugarcoat’s hospital room waving and smiling, filled with a renewed sense of purpose. She’d joined the Quincy to find a way to bring peace out of this war, and thinking of Sugarcoat’s small but genuine smile Twilight felt like making friends here was a good step towards one day accomplishing that goal.

Now all she had to do was survive so she could keeping making those steps.

----------

The day had been going too well for it to stay that way, Adagio reflected dryly. The prospect of having something resembling a real place live in again combined with how smoothly the past few days of hunting in the Forest of Menos had lifted her mood despite a continuous hanging paranoia concerning Grogar’s schemes. So far she hadn’t raised her concerns with Torch, mostly because she wasn’t certain how the bombastic and quick tempered Espada would respond. Adagio didn’t want to act until she was certain she could control that situation. That aside, things were going well.

Which meant it was about time for something to go wrong, by her estimation.

It started with her noticing that Ember was acting slightly off. Usually the Arrancar girl brimmed with eager energy and a near palpable enthusiasm for the hunt to come. Adagio had come to appreciate that lightheartedness and the banter that tended to come with it, as it did much to temper her own frustrations in having yet to evolve her powers. Today, however, after meeting up with Ember at their usual spot by the copse of dead trees Adagio immediately picked up that Ember’s mood was distracted. None of the usual quips or eager talk of competing for kills or whether or not today would be the day Gaw finally grew so tired of Di Roy’s chatter that she just stomped on the guy. Instead Ember had giving a subdued “Hey” and began walking towards the distant entrance to the Forest of Menos without saying much else.

Adagio mulled that over for a few minutes of silent travel before deciding that given Ember’s personality it was best just to deal with this directly rather than bother with trying to be subtle.

“Okay, what’s wrong? Something is clearly bothering you.” she said simply, continuing to float alongside Ember while glancing sidelong at her.
Ember blinked in surprise, as if she hadn’t realized how quiet she’d been being, and quickly waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. “What? Hell, it’s nothing. Just Garble being stupid, and I guess his dumb is infectious.”

Adagio managed a short laugh, despite a warning hint in her gut that while Garble was stupid that that didn’t mean he should be underestimated. He hadn’t liked her from day one, and it was clear he was not only to continue to be a problem, but a growing problem. One that would need to be dealt with sooner rather than later, apparently.

“So just what did the fool do this time?” she asked casually.

“Just shooting off at the mouth like usual.” Ember said, shrugging, “Nothing he hasn’t said before, he’s just so damned insistent on it. Keeps saying I can’t trust you, that you did something to me during the raid on the Quincy, blah blah blah. He’s just trying to get me to go against you because he’s jealous that you’ve got dad’s favor and he doesn’t...”

Despite Ember’s words she trailed off, and Adagio could see in Ember’s eyes that the Arrancar was thinking hard, trying to remember. She’d seen the look before, on other victims of her siren song. Sometimes when a victim was done acting out whatever discordant actions the siren song pushed them towards, or any other form of control for that matter, they would struggle with the jumbled memory or simple blank spaces in their mind that resulted. Ember had come out of raid with the Quincy with little memory of the event and Adagio had believed Ember had written it off as just getting lost in battle lust at the time. Apparently Garble was planting enough doubts in the girl to make Ember think over the events of the raid, and notice how fuzzy her memory well was.
“Adagio, would you mind giving me the play by play of that day?” Ember asked, “I mean, just enough so I can fill in the murkier parts I don’t remember well and finally tell Garble he’s full of it?”

Adagio knew any hesitance on her part would only enflame Ember’s doubts, so she didn’t miss a beat, putting a smile into her voice as she said, “Of course. It was all rather intense, and you got really into hunting down those Quincy. I’m not surprised it's a bit of a blur for you.”

She quickly recounted her “version” of events, keeping it all simple. The simpler the deception the easier it was to believe. In fact most of it was the truth, a factor far too many self-styled manipulators forgot to do; blend as much truth as you could into any lie. She described their arrival, their hunt of Quincy cadets, which led them to encounter Grable’s group attacking a particularly juicy looking group of Quincy that Ember had wanted to claim the kills on, and hence had gotten into a fight with Garble over. That fight had gotten out of hand and both Ember and Garble had been badly wounded, and by that point the Quincy King had shown up and the call for a retreat had been made.

Ember’s face was accepting as Adagio told the story, but still flashed with a cloud of confusion. “Yeah, that all makes sense, and that’s more or less what I remember. It’s just... okay I don’t like Garble. Like, at all. He’s a loudmouth jerk and is full of himself to the point that I’m shocked he doesn’t tip over from how big his head gets. But for all that he’s still part of the horde and while I’d smack him around any normal day of the week... I just don’t get why I’d get so angry at him that I’d go all out fighting him when we’re in the middle of a battle against the Quincy.”

Ember’s voice held a note of pained self deprecation to it that Adagio didn’t like hearing. “It isn’t like me to do something that stupid. I just don’t understand why I went that far when we had bigger fish to fry. Would’ve been smarter to just either let Garble and his pals have the kills, or split the kills between us. But because I fought him, those Quincy girls got away, and we could’ve killed each other. Dad might not have chewed me out that bad, but I could tell he was seriously disappointed in me and... and he’s right to be so, because that was seriously idiotic of me to do and I just can’t remember why I did it. I don’t remember getting that angry... I just remember being there, with you, watching Garble move in on the Quincy and then... then you said something and I can’t remember what... then nothing.”

Adagio kept both her nervousness and her guilt from showing as best she could. There was a time she wouldn’t feel much of either when manipulating others, but Ember had been nothing but helpful and a friend since she’d met her and it wasn’t sitting right with Adagio to do this... but what choice did she have? The truth would cause a rift Adagio couldn't afford right now. That and she didn’t want to lose the only real friend she had around here. Damn that Garble! Adagio had either underestimated how crafty he could be or he’d just blindly stumbled into doing exactly the right thing to cause friction between her and Ember. Adagio was betting on the latter, but just in case it was the former she made a mental note to find a way to deal with Garble as soon as an opportunity arose. But how to handle this situation with Ember? Continuing to pursue the lie seemed the most logical choice. Ember’s doubts had to fade eventually, right?

Adagio couldn’t tell the truth, could she? Ember would have no reason not to turn on her, and even if Ember didn’t immediately end any friendship with Adagio as a result there would always be a rift of mistrust between them after that point.

For some reason Adagio’s mind conjured an image of Sunset Shimmer, and she could all but hear the annoying bacon-head saying something about the importance of honesty in friendship. It was even more annoying because some part of Adagio imagined Sunset Shimmer was probably right. Well, maybe in Equestria, or the human world, but this was Hueco Mundo...

“Ember, you’re overthinking this. If your father didn’t want fights like that then he shouldn’t have framed the raid like a competition. And aren’t you always telling me that competition is part of what makes Hollows stronger? Sounds to me like you were just following what’s natural for a Hollow to do in that situation. You claimed those Quincy as ours to take down, and Garble got in the way. Simple as that.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Ember said, “I just wish I could remember.”

“Try not to let it distract you. We’ve got the attention of the Forest of Menos’ Adjuchas tribes now, so we can’t afford to lose our focus today can we?”

The shadow of doubt gradually cleared from Ember’s eyes and she managed one of her more naturally eager smiles, “You’re right. Garble’s full of it, and we got more important, and fun things to do than think about what’s already done. Thanks Adagio. You’re a real pal.”

Those words hurt more than Adagio thought they would to hear. Again Sunset Shimmer’s shade spoke in Adagio’s mind that “real friends” didn’t lie to one another.

Shut up you self-righteous figment! Maybe if I was still living in your world and had my sisters by my side I could afford your little friendship lessons, but I’m here in the realm of Hollows, and survival means I need to do whatever it takes to keep what allies I can. If I tell Ember the truth she won’t forgive me just like that! I...need her to trust me...

Now it was Adagio’s turn to become sullenly quiet as they traveled, Ember’s mood brightening as she started to chat more about how many Hollows they’d take down and consume today, but Adagio having trouble getting into the spirit of things as her own mood soured. Fortunately Ember wasn’t the most observant sort, so she didn’t seem to notice. However what Ember did notice was something approaching them from the direction of the Forest of Menos.

“Hey, Adagio, did you hear that?”

Adagio paused, listening. There was some distant sound, like loud booms of thunder. Then Ember touched the sands of Hueco Mundo with her hand, and Adagio saw the white grains tremble under regular impacts of something distant, but getting closer. Several nearby dunes started to shake, with sand rippling down their length as the impact tremors started to get louder. Adagio felt out with her Pesquisa, and detected a closing Hollow spiritual pressure. One she quickly recognized.

“I think it's-” she began to say, but a booming roar that was just beyond the dunes ahead answered her.

”Gaw!” the giant Adjuchas Hollow bellowed, the only verbal sound she was capable of making as she stampeded across the dunes, her hundred foot saurian frame crashing through the bulky sand dunes just ahead with her massive, desert shaking steps.

Immediately Adagio could see that Gaw was wounded. Mauled, practically. Her hundred foot tall frame was covered in numerous lacerations and deep, bleeding wounds from what looked like claws, blades, or any number of other large cutting weapons. The huge dinosaur-like Adjuchas was favoring one leg with a limp, but seemed to be ignoring the pain to maintain a fast, headlong charge that only upon seeing Ember and Adagio did Gaw come screeching to a slow skidding stop that shot up a wave of sand over the other two.

Shaking sand off of her, Adagio floated up to the panting Gaw’s face, noticing that the other Adjuchas’ mask was bearing some small fractures along its length. Blood dripped from Gaw’s jaws, and Adagio could tell it wasn’t the Adjuchas’ own from the way Gaw’s teeth were stained crimson.

“What happened?” Adagio asked, looking around, her eyes narrowing. “Where’s Di Roy.”

A mournful sound somewhere between a pained whine and an enraged growl escaped Gaw, and while Adagio was only slowly learning to read Gaw’s body language there was little to no way to mistake what was being said here. Adagio’s own voice now boiled with a low growl herself.

“Just answer this, is he dead, or was he taken?”

To that Gaw raised her head and let out a coughing, and most of all insistent call, one that was as much a plea as it was a statement of intent. With that Gaw, despite her injuries, turned and started to stomp off back towards the Forest of Menos with such rugged determination that it was obvious that she was saying ’I don’t care if you follow and help, but I’m going to rescue the stupid shark’!

Floating down to Ember Adagio said, “I think the Adjuchas’ tribes have captured that foolish shark boy.”

Ember nodded, drawing her Zanpaktou. “Hey, at least he’s being useful; he’s leading us right to the dudes we want to fight.”

“Which will no doubt be a trap.” Adagio sighed, then smiled behind her Hollow mask. “Well, what are we waiting for? Follow that dinosaur.”

----------

Di Roy was pretty used to the crumby way his life tended to go. He had a unique relationship with lady luck, and he was resigned to the fact that he was one of the universe’s favorite whipping boys. He tried to keep a plucky attitude despite that, actually especially despite that. So despite the fact that was literally nailed to the wall of a large stone cavern at the back of a snaking collection of tunnels within the Forest of Menos, surrounded by a small army of pissed off Adjuchas Hollows that wanted nothing more than to tear him limb from limb and were only not doing that because their leader wanted Di Roy as live bait for her friends... well Di Roy had to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” asked his primary captor. The Adjuchas’ Hollow was much larger than most of its brethren. His body was heavily muscled and masculine, like a gray skinned ten meter tall bodybuilder with meaty fists, abs for miles, and a lower body only partially covered (thankfully) by a cloth of Hollow hide. His Hollow hole was on the left side of his burly chest, and his head was covered completely with a mask that resembled a grinning jester, with a wide smile of bony teeth and purple lines of color splashed across the mask’s eyes. Large side horns smoothly protruded from either side of the mask, and the Hollow’s yellow eyes regarded Di Roy with cool amusement as he crossed his thick arms over his chest.

“I mean, I suppose you could be laughing at how hopeless your situation is, which I admit is pretty hilarious, but I don’t think it’s quite ‘Ha-Ha’ funny. Maybe if I do this...”

The Adjuchas stepped up to where Di Roy’s arms and legs were pinned to the stone wall via giant spikes of bone that the Adjuchas had created from a large bone-like shell on its back where a huge segmented, sharply tipped tail was present. From the shell a spear-like length of bone extended and the Hollow removed it, then turned the spear in his hands until the sharp end was pointed at Di Roy’s abdomen. The Hollow slowly inserted the spear, twisting it around as Di Roy’s laughter turned to a teeth grinding scream.

“There we go. That’s better.”

Di Roy coughed, blood trickling from his lips, but he turned a grinning look towards the Adjuchas’ Hollow and still managed a weak laugh. “H-hey buddy, what’s wrong with a little laughter, especially at a joke like you?”

“Oh yeah, keep insulting the dude with a spear inserted into your gut. This is a smart thing to do that should improve your situation greatly.” The burly Adjuchas grinded the spear around, just for emphasis. “You do realize the only reason I haven’t killed you yet is that I need your spiritual pressure to act like a beacon to draw your companions here, right? The moment they’re in the noose we’re going to close around their necks, I’m going to eat your face. Literally.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, you're the ‘Big Bad’ here and I’m totally filled with despair or something.” Di Roy said past clenched, bloody teeth as the spear in his gut sent waves of agony through him. “D-dude, you’re not even a speed bump. What do you think is gonna happen when my pals get here?”

The Adjuchas’ swept a huge hand out towards the small army of several dozen other Adjuchas-class Hollows, several hundred lesser Hollows, and a contingent of Gillians that all occupied the vast stone cavern like a teeming horde and said, “I was thinking my friends and I would sit them down for a nice round of tea, crumpets, and talking about our feelings.”

A round of unpleasant laughter rumbled among the Adjuchas’ Hollows, while the more instinctual lesser Hollows all howled eagerly for blood. The leader Adjuchas yanked the spear out of Di Roy’s gut and licked the blood from the tip. “Mostly my feelings of being royally pissed off that this arrogant newbie Adjuchas bitch has the gall to treat the Forest of Menos like her personal playground! I run this Forest! I was fine with her screwing with the Gillians, because who gives a crap about Gillians, but the second she started going after my Adjuchas vassals... she done screwed herself. If you’re lucky I might let you watch what we do to them before I finish you off.”

“Nice thought.” Di Roy said, cracking a bleeding grin, tugging at the spurs pinning his limbs to the wall. “You let me know how that works out for you. I’ll just be hanging out here, watching the show.”

Episode 62: Under Her Spell

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Episode 62: Under Her Spell

Nothing stood in their path as Gaw’s heavy footfalls echoed through the Forest of Menos, the gargantuan sized Adjuchas Hollow not even slowing when the occasional stalagmite clipped her shoulders. The rock pillars merely exploded into dust as Gaw proceeded headlong forward, following the faint trail of Di Roy’s scent and residual spiritual pressure. Adagio and Ember rode on Gaw’s broad, saurian back. Since Gaw seemed to know where she was going Adagio didn’t bother to tell the other Adjuchas to slow down. Besides she had no idea how much time Di Roy might have left. How much she actually cared about that was something she’d already asked herself several times, never quite reaching a satisfactory answer with herself.

She told herself that rescuing Di Roy was largely about protecting an investment. She’d gone through the trouble of convincing him and Gaw to cooperate with her and that they would make useful subordinates, so it only made sense to keep them alive. Furthermore she had wanted a confrontation with the Forest of Menos’ Adjuchas tribe in the first place so she didn’t need to justify going after Di Roy beyond simply getting the fight she’d been picking. Yet neither reason sat entirely well with her, either.

First of all, there was zero chance this wasn’t a trap. Their foe would be prepared for them coming. That alone meant the smart, pragmatic part of Adagio said it’d be better to just leave Di Roy to his fate and fight again another day on her own terms. Sure she’d likely lose Gaw as well, who no doubt would go on alone to try and save Di Roy, no doubt to her own doom, but Adagio imagined she could find others like them, in time, to serve her cause. After all, only fools and self-styled ‘heroes’ rushed into battles they knew they were likely to lose solely for the sake of rescuing others...

Pretty much exactly like how Sunset Shimmer and her damned annoying friends had risked everything to rush to rescue her sisters from Grand Fisher’s clutches.

But Adagio was no hero. She wasn’t even particularly fond of Di Roy. His antics were faintly amusing and reminded her in some slim fashion of Sonata, but that was it. So why was she so willing, even eager, to face this battle? Neither pragmatism nor any budding sense of fondness could adequately explain her willingness to throw her existence on the line against what was likely going to be dire odds.

Perhaps she was simply desperate? The thought left a bad taste in her mouth, but it didn’t entirely lack a ring of truth either. Grogar, despite having supposedly cut her loose, was still manipulating her in some way, she was sure of it. She wanted to be free of him so badly, to be done with him, that any desperate gambit to gain power seemed more appealing than doing nothing. Either she’d survive this battle and become stronger for it, or she’d be destroyed. Such a do or die scenario was exactly what was supposed to trigger the evolution to an Arrancar.

In the end she imagined there wasn’t any one reason for her doing this, but rather shades of all of the above. It just troubled her because she wasn’t sure how much she could afford the attachments she could feel herself forming versus just how much she feared becoming as twisted as the likes of Grogar.

“Adagio, I think we’re getting close.” said Ember, breaking Adagio from her mental wanderings. The Arrancar girl pointed with her blade towards where the dark caverns of the Forest of Menos sloped into a massive bowl, like a naturally formed quarry. It spanned easily a city block in diameter, oblong in shape with a smattering of large cave entrances scattered around the circumference.

Opening up her Pesquisa, Adagio could sense the blatant flaring up of literally scores, perhaps hundreds of Hollow reiatsus. The air was thick with cold, Hollow energy. And amid the various spiritual pressures she could just barely pick out the flickering flame of Di Roy’s reiatsu as well. It was weak, but not gone yet. Gazing into the huge quarry Adagio didn’t see any Hollows, but she could easily imagine they were lying in wait within the various caves dotting the area. They must lead to various tunnels and caverns further down, no doubt where Di Roy was being kept.

“No doubt they’re expecting us.” Adagio said, “If we can lure them out then we can thin their numbers from up here before getting-”

Before she could finish speaking Gaw turned sharply towards the edge of the quarry, and lunged into a soaring leap that took her and her unwitting passengers sailing straight to the center of the quarry with a titanic crash that cratered the stone beneath her talons. She then sucked in a breath and let out a air shaking roar that made rocks fall loose from the quarry walls and ceiling high above.

“-...surrounded.” Adagio finished with a hissing mutter, edging over the side of Gaw’s head to peer at the giant Adjuchas’ eye. “Have you never heard of the word ‘tactics’?”

Gaw snorted heavily through her nostrils, slamming her tail to the ground. Apparently no, she hadn’t heard of that particular word, and thought it sounded dumb anyway. There was a wild look in Gaw’s eyes that suggested she was at the end of her self-control. Adagio sighed, floating down from atop Gaw’s head while Ember, dryly chuckling under her breath, hopped down as well, both of them landing in front of their towering companion.

“To be fair if we tried to play this your way we’d still end up fighting the same number of enemies, and be more likely to get split up in the process.” said Ember, bouncing her sword off her shoulder casually, “At least this way we can more easily stick together.”

“We’re not precisely flush with options are we?” Adagio admitted ruefully, hearing the echoing howls of many Hollows rising like specters from the various cavern mouths, “We’ll see just how large our welcoming committee is soon enough. If they wish to posture and talk for a moment, let me take the lead.”

“Sure, knock yourself out. You just say when, and I’ll start the murder spree.” Ember said, cracking a grin that Adagio sensed belied a hint of nervousness. Ember had to be able to feel the number of enemies they faced, just like Adagio could, and knew how high the odds were stacked against them.

“Perhaps you should enter that Resurreccion form of yours now? Might intimidate them.” Adagio suggested, but Ember shook her head.

“If I’m going to bust that out, I’d rather wait until they’ve got me on the ropes. The transformation alone can regenerate some wounds, so if I hold off a bit, I can get the most benefit from it in the middle of the fight instead of right now.”

“Right, I’ll leave that part to you then.” Adagio said and with a deep breath put on a confident smile, “Game faces on ladies, it's time to start this show.”

Hollows began to pour out from the cavern mouths surrounding the quarry in a teaming tide. Adagio didn’t bother to count their numbers, but she estimated several hundred of the lesser Hollow variety were forming a wide circle around her, Ember, and Gaw. From the largest of the cavern mouths, easily near fifty feet tall, the huge shadowy masses of Gillians emerged, rising to their full height and stamping forward in a long line of several dozen. Then, emerging from around the feet of the Gillians were forms larger than the lesser Hollows, but no less varied in shape. These were Adjuchas Hollows like Adagio and Gaw, though not a one of them came up to a third of Gaw’s immense size, and none of them were quite as small in stature as Adagio.

She guessed maybe twenty Adjuchas in all made up that group, and at the head of that cluster was who Adagio guessed had to be the leader. He was an exceptionally tall and muscle bound bipedal Hollow, and the grinning jester mask on his face was locked right on Adagio. She saw he had a segmented, bony tail that extended from a turtle-like shell on his back, and coiled in that tail and held up for all to see was Di Roy’s sagging, bloody form. Adagio might have thought him dead if Di Roy didn’t manage to twitch his head up and glance at her, Gaw, and Ember with a bleeding half-grin.

“Yo boss. I found the leader of the local Hollows like you wanted.” Di Roy said, “Do I get a cookie?”

The burly Adjuchas holding Di Roy slammed his tail, and subsequently the half-Arrancar, into the stone with enough force to make a small crater. Di Roy grunted in pain and Gaw growled loud enough to reverberate off the quarry walls, taking a threatening step forward. Adagio held a claw up to forestall Gaw for the moment and floated forward to face the heavily muscled jester Hollow.

“That’s my-” Adagio was about to say ‘minion’, but suddenly the word didn’t sound quite right and she changed it at the last second, “-vassal that you’re smacking around. I will give you one chance to release him without consequence, otherwise I’m afraid things will become unpleasant.”

She had expected the laughter that rolled in from the Hollows intelligent enough to grasp humor, although Jester Face, as she’d mentally dubbed him, looked exceedingly less amused as he lifted Di Roy up in his tail again and forward enough so that the Hollow could reach up with one of his sizable fists and clasped it around Di Roy’s head.

“How about I just tear this insufferable moron’s noggin’ off and punt it to you like a football? I’ve been seriously doing nothing but dream up ways to kill this annoying asshole for the whole two hours we’ve had his dumb-ass pinned to the wall. Now that you’re here, I don’t really need him as bait anymore.”

As Jester Face began to apply pressure to Di Roy’s head, Adagio was quick to feign as genuine a laugh as she could, putting all of her uncaring mirth into it as she could. This caused Jester Face to pause briefly, which was all the hesitance Adagio needed to press on further, her voice marinated with cold sarcasm.

“By all means provide me some entertainment, o’ Jester of Fools. Do you know nothing of what that creature you’re holding actually is?”

Jester Face glanced at Di Roy, who offered nothing more than a shrug as if to say ‘don’t look at me’, and he then returned his now considerably narrow eyed gaze back to Adagio. “He just looks like a half baked Arrancar to me.”

Jester Face reached to the cloth of leathers at his waist where Adagio noticed that he had Di Roy’s shark-tooth shaped Zanpaktou sheathed like a trophy, and patted the hilt. “So weak he couldn’t even use this thing like a real Arrancar could. Was thinking of splitting him from neck to navel with it, just for the irony.”

“That would be even more amusing than watching you crush his head, I suppose, but the end result would still be just as... how shall we say, explosive?” Adagio said coyly, “You do realize that what you’re holding is one of Lord Grogar’s errant experiments, yes?”

It made her internally gag to use the term ‘Lord’ Grogar, but she sold what she was saying with all the cool, arrogant sincerity she could muster, not giving Jester Face much time to pause and overthink her words. “Why do you think I allowed you to capture him? For fun? You’re holding living bomb.”

What she was saying wasn’t entirely untrue, which was exactly what made her words carry an honest ring to them, just enough to make Jester Face hesitate and turn his attention back to Di Roy once more. Distracted, for just a brief second. In that second Adagio cast a meaningful glance at Ember, who picked up on the signal and didn’t need to be told what to do. As an Arrancar she had Sonido, which made her faster than any of the Hollows present, including Jester Face.

Ember snapped from view and crossed the distance to where Jester Face held Di Roy in his tail, flickering into view with her blade already swinging. Her Zanpaktou bit through Jester Face’s tail at one of the segmented joints, causing Di Roy to drop. To Jester Face’s credit even as he bellowed in pain he reacted with swift reflexes and took a crushing swing of his fist at Ember, which she barely ducked as she caught Di Roy over her shoulder and immediately used Sonido to instantly leap back to Adagio and Gaw.

“Nice move.” Adagio complemented her, “I’d hoped you’d take advantage of my distraction like that.”

“I’m starting to get a feel for how you operate.” Ember said with a wink, “Way to fake that bonehead out, although I was half convinced you really were ready to just watch him off Di Roy.”

“Y-yeah, real glad you were kiddin’ there, boss.” Di Roy said, his breaths pained as he clutched as his stomach. Adagio suppressed a cold shudder upon seeing the still bleeding wound in the half-Arrancar’s gut, the open gouge looking like a bloody second Hollow hole.

“Can you stand?” she asked flatly, trying to keep an eye on Jester Face, who was now staring daggers at them from across the quarry.

“Ugh...k-kinda? I’ll manage.” Di Roy said, forcing himself upwards, but then Gaw lowered her muzzle over him and snorted heavily on the man, forcing him back down. “Uh, Gaw?”

The dinosaur-like Adjuchas made a low growl and a soft barking noise, butting him on the head with her chin with a clear message of ‘stop moving, stay down’. Di Roy glanced questioningly between the hundred foot tall Adjuchas, and Adagio, who ended up shrugging.

“It appears Gaw prefers you to sit this one out. Probably for the best. It’d be a shame to go through all this trouble rescuing you only for you to expire on your own. Leave cleaning up this trash to us.” Adagio said, giving Jester Face a pointed look that parried his murderous glare.

Jester Face brought his tail’s severed end up to his face and inspected it casually, “You’ve got to be one of the most delusional Hollows I’ve seen come through my Forest in a long time. You’ve got one Arrancar gal in your pocket, sure, but she’s not going to be able take all of us at once. You’re over sized lizard pal still sporting all the wounds we gave her when we took the babbling idiot, and he’s near dead already. And what else do you got to throw at us? Yourself? You look like one of the runtiest Adjuchas I’ve ever seen.”

The turtle shell on his back twitched and groaned with a crack of bone, and two large, pale white spears of bone extended out from the shell, which Jester Face then took out to hold in both hands. The spears were twisted like screws, with prominent, stinger-like points.

“Just what in the hell do you think you’re going to be able to do?”

Adagio didn’t cower from the question, instead rising upwards with a flick of her tail fin and imperiously looking down on Jester Face and his crowd of Adjuchas’ cronies.

“What I will do is offer you and any who follow you one chance to surrender and swear loyalty to me. Those who do shall be treated well and fairly, sharing in the spoils to come. Choose to oppose me, and I swear to you that you won’t leave this quarry alive.”

Jester Face just stared at her for several seconds, before huffing out a disbelieving laugh, “Alright, so not delusional. Just flat out crazy. Like, padded room and straight-jacket crazy. I’d almost feel bad about what’s about to happen, only I’m really, really looking forward to biting into that smug face of yours. I’d ask your name, but truth be told, I’d forget it by the end of the day.”

“How appropriate, I never even cared what your name was, Jester Face. Now are you done? Shall the killing commence?” Adagio asked in her best mind numbed bored tone, which served to clearly irritate and egg on Jester Face if the way his muscles twitched was any indication.

“Music to my ears.” he said, and with a gesture of one of his bone spears he sent his small horde hurtling towards Adagio and her allies. She noted that he himself stayed behind while the rest of his minions advanced. Either he wasn’t as confident as he was putting on, or he was simply being pragmatically cautious. Far more so than she was, that was for certain.

“Stick close to each other.” she told her companions, “Don’t get separated.”

“No problem.” said Ember, sword raised at the ready as the horde of Hollows came rushing in.

Gaw let out a challenging bellow just as the first of the lesser Hollows, whipped up into a malevolent feeding frenzy, charged in the final distance. With her colossal size and reach Gaw struck first, sweeping her tail around like a giant hammer and punishing the Hollows most eager to spring ahead of the pack. Bodies and masks shattered alike as a score of lesser Hollows were scattered like broken twigs from the tail sweep, but more piled onward regardless.

Ember, not holding back with the initial onslaught, brought a crackle of red energy arcs around her left fist, forming a circle of static energy. She then started to fire out a blindingly fast series of small bullets of Hollow energy, what Adagio recognized from Ember’s descriptions as ‘Bala’. They used the same destructive energy as a Cero, but compacted and miniaturized for rapid fire shots that, while lacking Cero’s impressive force, was ideal for blasting clusters of foes or catching opponents off guard with its speed. Ember’s Bala’s fired into the oncoming horde like a machine gun, decimating a dozen lesser Hollows in mere seconds.

Lacking such a technique, Adagio wasted no time floating at about Gaw’s chest height and directing her attention to the thickest cluster of Hollows, just ahead of where the score of more slowly advancing Adjuchas’ were. They were the real threat, but the lesser Hollow needed to be cleared out fast, otherwise even such weak foes would simply dog-pile on them and drag them down so their more powerful masters could easily finish Adagio and her allies off.

Tapping into the deep rooted, dark place where she coiled her hatred for Grogar and carried all the pain she’d endured thus far, she easily brought out the potent Hollow reiatsu within her. Her spiritual pressure shot upwards as the siren gem suspended in the blackness of her Hollow hole pulsated with arcs of baleful red light.

Her Cero discharge was a wide, devastating beam of ruby death that swept through the center of the Hollow horde like the scythe of a vengeful demoness. Easily another thirty or forty lesser Hollows were incinerated to black ash by the beam’s assault. However her Adjuchas-class foes were not so easily vanquished. Four of them at the front of the group of Adjuchas all stood shoulder to shoulder. One looked like a four winged avian with the head of a great hawk, while another bore a bulkier, hunched bipedal body with a head and mask reminiscent of a beetle. The third was a misshapen brute with arms like bony, gnarled cudgels, its head disproportionately small and shaped like a malformed human skull. The fourth Adjuchas was almost entirely covered in a bone colored cocoon with spindly legs and arms sprouting from its body, with a head and mask like some necrotic moth.

These four all raised hands or similar appendages to take the brunt of Adagio’s Cero, and four Adjuchas versus the power of one the outcome was clear enough. They, together, deflected the fury of her attack upwards and away, the beam finishing by impacting the lip of the quarry's northern end, blowing chunks of stone for dozens of yards. Adagio, while frustrated, did note with some satisfaction that not only had it taken four other Adjuchas to block her Cero, but each one’s hand was smoldering somewhat with scorched marks to show for their effort.

So it hadn’t just been her imagination or ego. She had been growing more powerful from all the Hollows she’d been consuming, to the point where she could match any one of these other Adjuchas and defeat them easily. Except there were twenty of them, so what elation she might have felt was tempered by the reality of the situation.

Adagio didn’t have time for another Cero blast before the first of the oncoming lesser Hollows reached her companions. They came in from all sides, a slavering horde of gnashing fangs and grasping claws, all howling mindlessly for blood. Gaw’s roar pierced the air as the towering saurian Adjuchas went into a frenzy, stamping her feet like a potato masher to pulp Hollows beneath her talons. Her massive claws swept down like threshers through a field, scattering viscera, blood, and limbs alike. Yet dozens of lesser Hollows still managed to leap up on Gaw’s hide, clawing up her legs like viscous ants assaulting a spider and Gaw’s roars quickly turned pained.

Ember was a blur on the ground, weaving between Gaw’s stamping feet to lure Hollows to be crushed beneath them while spinning about with her Zanpaktou slicing apart the faces of lesser Hollows in gouts of blood. She never stopped, never ceased her powerful, swift movements, like a frantic dancer at a rave. The lesser Hollows were clearly no match at all for the Arrancar girl, whose blue hair trailed like sapphire flames as she dove amidst the throng of slashing claws and punching limbs, slaying with impunity and leaving severed husks in her wake.

Even Di Roy, barely able to move, still forced himself up enough to deliver a powerful punch to the face of the first Hollow that got close to him, smashing its mask entirely in the process. He shook from his wounds, but a wild eyed look was clear to see behind his own partial mask as he shouted, “Ain’t dead yet assholes, c’mon and just try to finish me off!”

For Adagio’s part she had a somewhat calmer, cooler head and a better view of the situation. The lesser Hollows were being destroyed in droves, but they weren’t the real threat. They were the distraction. The expendable pawns. From her position floating over fifty feet up she could easily spot that the enemy Adjuchas, under Jester Face’s direction, were moving to surround them alongside the tall and dark forms of the Gillians that had emerged from the caves. Once they had Adagio’s group surrounded she could easily imagine they’d just Cero her and her allies into oblivion. After all, it’d be what she’d do in Jester Face’s place.

Knowing she had to act quickly she immediately soared over towards Gaw and started to savagely claw and bite into the lesser Hollows trying to swarm the giant Adjuchas. She employed every natural weapon at her disposal, ripping throats out with her talons while tearing limbs off with her teeth. Her blade-like tail fin slashed like a scythe, severing some Hollows neatly in half as she flew around Gaw in a spiral, slaying dozens of Hollows in seconds. She ended her killing spree up near Gaw’s head. The towering Adjuchas was breathing hard, having already suffered wounds before the battle had even started, and taking more injuries by the moment. Each wound was small, but in time they’d mount up and bring even the hundred foot tall reptilian Hollow down. Adagio was not planning to let things reach that point.

“The Gillians, Gaw! Kill the Gillians!”

Gaw turned one angry eye towards her, but Adagio was quick to shout, “I’ll grab Di Roy and put him on you’re back. Now don’t argue with me and deal with the Gillians, before they encircle us!”

She didn’t wait for a response, because she didn’t have time to let Gaw think of disobeying. Instead she soared downward while her siren gem started to blaze with charging power. She found Di Roy headbutting a Hollow that had started to gnaw on his arm, and as that Hollow got knocked away with a fractured face Adagio swept down and grabbed Di Roy with her tail.

“What the!? Boss?”

“No questions, just hang on.” Adagio commanded, discharging a lighter but still devastating Cero out in a sweeping line to clear out the lesser Hollows in front of her before flying straight back up with Di Roy still coiled up in her tail. Reaching the top of Gaw’s back she tossed Di Roy onto the Adjuchas’ broad, bony hide, and shouted, “Don’t fall off!”

She then flew over to Gaw’s other side, where Ember was slowly but ferociously whittling away at the Hollow horde, and bellowed, “Ember, grab on to Gaw! We’re moving!”

Ember cast a glance upwards, and immediately nodded and jumped up with a powerful leap that took her up to height of Gaw’s sides where she grabbed onto one of the Adjuchas’ bone-like armored plates. And not a moment too soon, for Gaw broke into a headlong charge for the Gillians flanking them on the right, plowing through the ranks of lesser Hollows like a toddler kicking aside piles of Legos.

The Gillians instinctively sensed the threat barreling their way and many of them opened their vast mouths where the deadly and baleful spheres of bloodlight took shape. Adagio and her companions charged their own Ceros even faster. Ember, clutching to Gaw’s side with one hand, used the tip of her sword as the focus for her Cero. Gaw, not breaking stride, opened her own fanged maw where a widely circulating Cero sphere bloomed. Even Di Roy, clutching his bleeding stomach with one hand, still raised his other with a small, flickering orb of red burning in his palm. Adagio, flying alongside Gaw, built up another Cero herself, her siren gem looking like a crimson beacon.

They all fired at once and a pulverizing wave of energy ripped into the Gillians just moments before they fired their own Ceros. Gillians fell, torn apart by the consuming ruby light, even as they discharged Ceros as well. Cutting ribbons of destructive energy tore towards Gaw, but the barrage that had hit the Gillians threw their aim off wildly. Some careened into the quarry walls, blasting huge chunks of rock out and showering the area with thick clouds of dust, while other Cero beams went up to detonate into the ceiling high above. Several beams did still converge towards Gaw, but despite her size the saurian Hollow was deceptively agile. She juked left and right in her headlong charge, narrowly avoiding the brunt of several Cero blasts, while her thick armored hide withstood the one or two beams that struck her.

Gaw then threw her whole titanic weight into a body slam that rammed into one Gillian, then barreled it like a battering ram into several others, upon which Gaw, like the gigantic predator she was, started to tear into her prey with reckless abandon.

Ember and Adagio threw themselves into the attack as well, Ember flashing towards the next Gillian in line and ramming her Zanpaktou into the huge Hollow’s mask with enough force to blast a hole straight through it. Meanwhile Adagio avoided the large, grasping hand of one Gillian, spinning in mid air and slashing with her tail to sever the Gillian’s limb, before flying up to its face and ripping with both of her talons in a rending attack that removed half of the Gillian’s face.

Yet there were still more. Howling with frozen rage and hunger, the Gillians still closest to Adagio’s group stampeded inward, while dozens upon dozens of lesser Hollows swarmed behind them in the path of destruction Gaw’s charge had created. Gaw was still busy ripping apart the Gillians she’d knocked down, and would get overwhelmed in seconds by the other Gillians if something wasn’t done. Adagio saw Ember launch herself into the lesser Hollows like a bowling ball making a perfect strike through the pins, scattering them with a combination of blindingly fast swordplay and equally blazing Bala shots. This left Adagio to handle the Gillians, at least the ones closest to jumping Gaw.

She soared across their field of view, letting out a piercing howl of challenge as she fired another Cero blast, raking it across the Gillians and slaying at least one in the process. This got their attention and in seconds Adagio was facing a firing line of open maws, all filling with deadly energy. The Gillian’s Ceros blanketed the air, and Adagio wove between the beams with an aquatic grace. The Gillians attention on her bought Gaw the few seconds she needed to finish the prey she’d brought down, and covered in thick streaks of steaming Hollow blood the giant dinosaur Hollow lifted her head in a earth shattering roar. Her body glowed with crimson light, and Gaw’s signature attack manifested as spikes of energy erupted from various joints on her body, turning her into a hundred foot tall cuisinart.

Still distracted by trying to shoot Adagio out of the air, the remaining Gillians never saw their doom coming as Gaw, now covered head to tail in viciously cutting energy spikes, tore through them like a rabid animal. Even Adagio was briefly entranced by Gaw’s brutality as the dinosaur’s jaws ripped Gillian heads clean off with single bites and large sweeps of her tail tore through three of the Gillians at once. Yet Adagio could sense the gathering of multiple Hollow reiatsu’s nearby, and saw that the enemy Adjuchas had not been sitting idle. They now had Adagio’s group boxed in near the quarry walls, and Jester Face himself had taken up a position high on the opposite wall, and Adagio could see him aiming one of his bone spears at Gaw just as she was finishing off the last Gillian.

“Gaw, get down!” Adagio shouted, flying forward. Too late.

Jester Face cast his spear, and the white spur of sharp bone rocketed towards Gaw. It was a paltry looking weapon compared to Gaw’s size, yet as Adagio watched the bone spear grew more than triple in length and thickness. What was once a ten foot spear was now more than thirty feet long, and impacted with Gaw’s side with enough force to crack her armor and sink in almost halfway. Gaw let out a howl of agony, but didn’t so much as stagger before turning fully towards Jester Face and unleashing a powerful gout of Cero energy towards him. However once more a cluster of Jester Face’s loyal Adjuchas followers leaped before the attack, and much like with Adagio’s Cero they combined their efforts to block the beam of energy. The moment they did so and moved aside, Jester Face had another spear ready and hurled it into Gaw, this time sinking it into her lower chest and now Gaw did stagger backwards from the blow, yet still refused to fall.

Now the other Adjuchas moved in, each one eager for the kill. Gaw, with labored breaths, set her legs stubbornly to resist, but Ember flickered into view in front of Gaw’s face. The Arrancar girl was equally coated in blood now, having devastated so many of the lesser Hollows that only a score or so remained, and all of them fleeing rather than continuing the fight.

“Take a breather girl,” Ember said, shooting a brief grin at Gaw, “Let me and Adagio handle these bozos. You’ve done your part. Just focus on protecting Di Roy now.”

Gaw’s face wasn’t particularly expressive behind the thick bone plates of her Hollow mask, but it was clear she still wanted to fight, but Adagio floated in beside Ember and gave an affirming nod. “She’s right. Ember and I can handle the rest of this. Conserve your strength for now.”

“C’mon Gaw, listen to the boss lady.” said Di Roy, still clinging to Gaw’s back. “I don’t need you sporting more holes than I got. Takes away from my cool wounded guy image, you know?”

Gaw let out a snort that clearly said what she thought of the situation, but she did back off, taking several lumbering steps back towards the quarry wall. However she did give Adagio a flat look with her gleaming yellow eyes that seemed to communicate; ”I’ll do as you say, but only to wait for an opening to strike down our prey.”

That was good enough for Adagio, as long as Gaw let her and Ember take the brunt of the rest of the fight. With the lesser Hollows and Gillians out of the way, it was down to Jester Face and his pack of fellow Adjuchas. Adagio held no illusions in her head that this was going to be easy. Jester Face was chuckling darkly from his position on high, casually twirling another spear of bone in his meaty hands. His cronies had now surrounded Adagio and Ember in a semi-circle, each one of them an imposing and large figure.

“Look at you, trying to keep your cool, trying to act like some brave and noble leader.” Jester Face said with a shake of his head, “Never ceases to amaze me how idiots like you survive even a day in Hueco Mundo. You rushed headlong into my turf thinking what, that you’d just overpower all of us? Bet it felt really good wasting all those trash Hollows and Gillians, didn’t it? But each and every one of them was disposable. I could gather up more of their kind in a week. If you’d been smart...” he aimed his spear at Adagio, his eyes narrowing to hateful slits, “You’d have come right for me from the start.”

He cast his spear at Adagio, the weapon increasing its size in mid-flight, but she didn’t try to dodge aside. Instead, with anger flaring up in her own eyes and her lips letting out a deep throated growl, she said, “Thanks for the advice.”

Her Cero thundered out from her siren gem, consuming the spear and reducing it to flaming bone shards. Then, without taking her eyes off Jester Face, she said, “Ember, can you deal with the lackeys? I believe Jester Face has invited me to a personal dance, and I’d hate for others to interfere.”

Ember practically beamed with unbridled anticipation, “Leave them me. You go rip that mouthy bastard’s spine out.”

Adagio was already shooting forward like a white arrow before Ember was done speaking, flying straight for where Jester Face looked on from the top of the quarry wall with a gaze of mild surprise that she was charging directly at him.

“This is adorable,” he said, gesturing, “Alright guys, feel free to dogpile these morons now.”

In response the gang of Adjuchas Hollows sprung into motion. Half a dozen of them used speed almost on par with the Sonido technique to leap up into Adagio’s path, brandishing a lethal array of blade-like arms, or barbed tentacles, avian claws, or simple giant crushing fists. Yet Adagio did not slow her flight, heading straight for the wall of death in her path. Not because she believed she could so easily crash through it, but because she knew she didn’t have to.

Ember zipped ahead of her, flipping in the air to deliver a punishing kick to the head of one Adjuchas that had a narrow faced skull mask like some deranged anteater. It was sent hurtling downward from the blow, and Ember flowed into a spinning sword slash that cut the arm of another Adjuchas while simultaneously delivering a knee-strike to the chin of another that sent it smashing into one of its comrades with enough force to throw both into the quarry wall in an explosion of rock chunks.

This cleared the way just enough for Adagio to slip through the barricade of surprised Adjuchas and make a bee-line straight for Jester Face. His look of faint surprise soon transmuted into prideful anger as he tore a fresh spear free from where it grew from the shell on his back, brandishing the weapon. Knowing that those spears could grow Adagio was able to anticipate the way Jester Face’s first thrust extended the spear toward her with sudden speed, and she dodged aside with inches to spare.

“If you really think you’re Hollow enough to take me one on one, you damn guppy-” Jester Face roared, spinning his spear around to try to catch her on the backswing. She dove under the blow and then surged up towards his throat, her jaws open to try and rip it out. He got his spear in the way of her bite however, her teeth snapping onto the bony shaft of the spear with enough force to crack it nearly in half. Jester Face didn’t miss a beat, however, and rammed a fist into her stomach, sending Adagio flying backwards with a burst of pain that would have made her cry out if she didn’t clamp her mouth shut to prevent it.

“-then you’re only getting one chance to prove it.” he said with the dry, stone cold certainty of a natural born killer who knew only one Hollow was walking away from this fight.

----------

Ember lost track of Adagio once she’d cleared the way for her friend to get through to attack the Adjuchas gang’s leader. After that she was entirely too busy taking on the rest of the enemy to spare even half a glance towards Adagio’s fight. Ember just had to trust that Adagio would be able to win. She had to believe that.

Landing on the ground after she’d had her brief aerial skirmish, she found herself surrounded by the hulking shadows of her many foes. Each Adjuchas was, much like the lesser Hollows they’d evolved from, as diverse in shape as they were uniform in their murderous intent. Each skull mask bore different shapes, some bulbous like a puffer fish, others oblong like someone had stretched white gum over a football and given it eye sockets, while others still were various human-like shapes. Their bodies were just as varied, with the very first one to strike at Ember being a centaur-like Hollow with a lower body like a many legged scorpion but with a humanoid upper torso with limbs ending in sharp pincers.

She blocked this Hollow’s first strike with her blade, the Zanpaktou sparking off the pincer’s grasping chitin. The other pincer came in from the side, opening to reveal a small orifice within that gave Ember barely a half second to dodge before firing a stream of sickly blue-green acid at her. She avoided most of it, but got a few burning drops on her shoulder as the acid splashed across the ground where she’d been standing. Her Hierro was not as strong as her father’s, but still a hard ‘iron-skin’ that kept the acid from doing more than cause superficial pain.

In retaliation she bared her fangs and let out a draconic roar and dove right into the attack, hacking at the scorpion Adjuchas with inelegant but brutally powerful two handed sword strikes. This all but butchered the Hollow in front of her, but its comrades were coming at her from all sides now and for a moment all Ember could do was focus on blocking or dodging.

She flipped over a serpentine tail from a tall, slim Hollow that used its tail like a bull whip. She threw herself to the side to avoid a hunched over Hollow that rolled itself into a ball like some kind of spiked armadillo and tried to run her over. Then another Adjuchas, looking like a six armed man with a wolf-like Hollow mask let out a howl that was accompanied by a blast of cutting wind that tore gouges from the quarry floor. Ember had to block that attack with her Zanpaktou, pushed back slightly before whipping it away and retaliating with a point blank Cero blast that tore about half of the wolf Hollow’s torso apart.

Yet that brief moment it took her Cero to charge allowed another Hollow, this one the bizarre cocoon shaped one with the spindly limbs, to get in behind her. Several parts of its body opened up like pulsating spinneret and suddenly gouts of moth silk burst out and wrapped around Ember.

“Get your filthy crap offa me!” she snarled, using her not inconsiderable body strength to twist around and, despite being bound tightly by the cocoon shaped Hollows silk, literally used the leverage of her own body to send him flying like a tether ball into several of his comrades and bowling them all over. Then she flexed her arms and started to tear herself free, but not before the armadillo-like Adjuchas sent its rolling body bouncing straight into her.

The armadillo Hollow’s body ground into her like a buzz-saw, her heels breaking into the stone floor as she was pushed backwards by the relentless roll. Then, with her eyes flashing with rage, she bit her fangs straight into the armadillo Hollow’s spinning body and stopped him dead in his tracks. She then finished tearing her arms free and proceeded to ram her Zanpaktou through the Adjuchas’ body, spearing him like a shish-kebab. She then proceeded to kick the Aducahs’ writhing body with sufficient force to crater him into one of the quarry’s far walls. His attack hadn’t left her uninjured though, as her torso bore a purpling bruise that even her Hierro couldn’t do anything about.

Ember wasn’t given a second to catch her breath as more Adjuchas piled in towards her. She prepared to defend herself, but then a shadow fell over the other Adjuchas as Gaw’s form thundered in, literally having leaped from where she’d been waiting on the sidelines. Her landing impact sent several Adjuchas sprawling, and her massive jaws clamped down on the one with the serpent tail, nearly biting the Hollow in two bloody pieces.

“Gaw! Hey, these are my kills! I told you to take a breather!” Ember shouted, but Gaw just gave her a look that said ’I took a breather. Now I’m killing things again. If you don't’ want kills stolen, kill faster.’

Up on Gaw’s back, Di Roy shouted, “For the record this wasn’t my idea!”

Ember might have said more, but the enemy Adjuchas were fast recovering from the surprise of Gaw entering the fight once more, despite still sporting a pair of giant spears stuck into her. Howls filled the quarry as several Adjuchas either raised hands or opened their mouths to fire their Ceros point blank at Gaw. Ember used Sonido to intercept one of these Cero beams with her Zanpaktou, but a number of others smashed into Gaw’s side and sent her stumbling to the side with chunks of her armored hide blasted off.

Gaw fired back with a Cero of her own, a punishing spiral beam that lashed through at least one of the Adjuchas gang, but another Adjuchas took that time to leap onto Gaw’s side, grab hold of the bone spear stuck there, and jab it in even further. At Gaw’s scream, Di Roy’s eyes bugged out and ignoring his own terrible wound he rushed to the side of Gaw’s back.

“Get the hell off my dinosaur!” Di Roy shouted as he catapulted himself off of Gaw and drop-kicked the Adjuchas holding the spear. He yanked the spear out of Gaw in the process, and in mid-air spun it around and used it to impale the enemy Adjuchas through the head, impacting the ground hard enough to drive the spear through both Hollow and the stone ground beneath.

However his efforts were only rewarded by yet another of the Adjuchas gang, this one a misshapen hulk with club-like limbs, rushing him from behind and smashing both gnarled limbs into Di Roy’s back. He was sent sprawling, and the Adjuchas with the club-arms stood over him with limbs raised to crush Di Roy’s skull, but Ember appeared above the Adjuchas just in time to bring her sword down hard enough to split the foe in half from skull to groin. Blood showered her and she let out a triumphant howl, but it was short lived as half a dozen Cero beams converged on her from behind. She would have used Sonido to evade, but Di Roy was still on the ground in front of her, too dazed to move. For a split moment she considered leaving him to his fate, but a combination of stubborn pride and budding camaraderie with the loudmouth idiot made her turn to face the oncoming Ceros instead.

She didn’t have time to counter with a Cero of her own, so instead she braced her left hand behind her Zanpaktou and held it vertically in front of her, coiling her spiritual energy around the blade just as the Ceros hit her. The wave of explosive light split around her Zanpaktou like a raging river around a stone, but Ember could feel the energy, the combined powers of at least half a dozen Adjuchas together, burning away her Hierro. Grunting she dug her heels in and shoved back with her reiatsu, letting out a last roar of defiance as the Cero beams then engulfed her in an explosion that showered most of the quarry with rock dust.

However when the dust cleared Ember was still standing, with Di Roy largely unharmed behind her. Her arms were scorched raw and red from absorbing the blast, her Zanpaktou smoking slightly, and Ember’s showed numerous other burn marks with the combined Ceros had marred her flesh. Breathing hard, sweat not dripping from her chin, Ember saw that it hadn’t just been six Adjuchas shooting at her, but most of the remaining gang. Between her, Gaw, and Di Roy’s efforts maybe a third of the Adjuchas had been killed, but the rest were now lined up against her. While she’d been saving Di Roy the other Adjuchas had ganged up upon Gaw. Ember saw the massive dinosaur Hollow laying on the ground behind the enemy Adjuchas, struggling to try to stand but now covered in so many wounds it was harder to see unmarked flesh rather than torn or lacerated hide.

Di Roy wasn’t doing any better. His last efforts to help Gaw, combined with the blow he’d taken to the back, had left him nearly unconscious, just barely managing to keep his eyes open let alone stand. On top of that Ember had been expending a lot of energy in this fight, and hadn’t killed nearly enough foes to tip the scales solidly in her favor.

No choice then. I was saving this for the right moment, and now’s looking like it. she thought, raising her Zanpaktou, which started to glow with a deep azure glow.

However before she could release her Resurreccion she heard something off to her left, up on the quarry wall where Adagio had been fighting Jester Face. At first she was so confused by what she was hearing she didn’t register what it was, since it was so... out of place in Hueco Mundo, let alone a viscous battle between Hollows.

But it was clear to hear as the ring of falling crystals shards; a melodic yet powerful and foreboding feminine voice raised in song.

Adagio’s voice.

----------

Just a few minutes earlier...

“Just one chance, you say?” Adagio barred her teeth in a cross between a smile and a razor sharp leer, doing her best to ignore the pain from Jester Face’s punch. “As if I needed more than one!”

She came in low at him, swimming through the air in a slippery pattern to try to throw off Jester Face’s aim as he chucked another bone spear at her. The spear clipped her, drawing a painful red line down her side, but Adagio didn’t slow down. Jester Face looked at her contemptuously as he grew another spear from the shell on his back and swept it towards her, but at the last second Adagio flew upwards, her tail fin digging into the ground and cutting up chunks of rock that she then flung into Jester Face’s eyes.

“Grr! Bitch!” Jester Face grunted, shielding his face and lashing out blindly with the spur of bone in his hands. Adagio flew over the attack and raked her claws over Jester Face’s chest. It was like trying to cut through steel. Jester Face might not have had an Arrancar’s Hierro iron-skin, but the sheer thickness of his muscles and hide combined with his not inconsiderable spiritual pressure hardened his body to an impressive extent. Adagio’s claws still scored bloody marks across his muscle-bound chest but not nearly as deep as she’d hoped. To make matters worse Jester Face had only been distracted by the rock dust she’d flung in his eyes for a moment, and now lashed out with a kick from one tree-trunk thick leg.

Without time to dodge Adagio crossed her arms in front of her to absorb the blow, but the impact was shockingly strong, numbing her limbs and sending her shooting upwards until her pack smashed into a twenty foot wide stalagmite. Stars burst in her vision but she shook off the daze with a growl, just in time to duck Jester Face’s spear as it extended to its full thirty foot length and smashed into the stalagmite. He left the spear in there, extending two more from his shell and grabbing one in each hand as Adagio circled to his right, her siren gem blooming to ruby life.

She discharged a Cero, but Jester Face leaped over the beam, arching upwards while spinning about to cast one spear and then the other in rapid succession. More spears rose from the shell on his back and Jester Face threw them one after another, forcing Adagio to weave her way around the deadly barrage until she could charge another Cero. This time she waited until Jester Face had landed from his arcing jump before firing, catching him just as his feet touched the ground and wouldn’t be able to easily dodge. However he’d anticipated this and had been charging up a Cero of his own in one broad palm, and fired his just as Adagio fired hers.

The two crimson beams collided, the torrents of destructive power smashing apart an entire section of the quarry wall and causing it to collapse in an avalanche of stone. Now separated by a gap of collapsed rock, Adagio squared off with Jester Face, surrounded by a small forest of his giant bone spears that she’d evaded.

Jester Face had his burly arms crossed over his still bleeding chest, eyeing the gap their combined Ceros had just blown apart. “Hmm, I’ll admit I’m surprised. You’re about as strong as I am, and I’ve been at this for centuries. But no matter your potential, you’re just too naive.” He pointed down into the quarry. Down there Adagio could see the intensity of the battle taking place, with Gaw having jumped back into the fray to support Ember. But as she watched Adagio could see Ember and Di Roy get separated from Gaw, and the way the majority of Jester’s Face’s gang of Hollows swarmed on Gaw.

Adagio swore under her breath, and Jester Face chuckled.

“There it is. That naive caring. You see me crying over the Gillians you killed, or any of my own gang falling to your Arrancar friend? Of course not. They’re all replaceable. Useful tools for survival, but literally nothing more. But I can see how much you give a shit about those who follow you, which is exactly why you lost this fight before it started.”

Adagio was about to retort, but Jester Face snapped his fingers, and suddenly she felt piercing pain explode all over her body. At first she wasn’t sure what had just happened, the pain was almost mind numbing, but as she looked around she saw that the spears she’d evaded, the ones impaling the ground all around her... had suddenly grown additional spikes that shot out around her like a patch of needles. None of them penetrated deeply, but her limbs, tail, and sides were all stabbed by the needle-like growths and held her fast like nails.

“Yeah, I must have forgot to mention I can control the growth of the spurs I make. Neat, eh?”

He leaped across the chasm their impacting Ceros had made, and landing in front of her. Growing another spear from his back, he twirled it around and aimed it for her chest. Before he could thrust, however, she let out an ear splitting howl and tore with all her strength. Grogar had tortured her far worse than the pain this fool’s little spikes could induce. She’d merely been waiting for him to get close and drop his guard. The spurs shattered around her as she yanked herself free, ignoring the pain rippling through her body, and then bit down on Jester Face’s spear with her teeth, crunching it like a matchstick. She then surged forward, slashing with her blade-like tail fin and ripping with her claws. Jester Face was now the on swearing under his breath as he backed up, trying to parry her attacks with his spear haft.

She scored several bleeding wounds upon Jester Face but he recovered from her assault quickly, and since she was now entirely focused on offense she wasn’t really prepared when he tossed his spear aside and proceeded to clasp both hands together to hammer her in the back, driving her into the ground like a railroad spike. Still refusing to quit Adagio immediately spun over and sunk her fangs into his leg, tearing viciously with all her might. Jester Face roared in pain, toppling over as Adagio drug him to the ground. She then flew for his face, hoping to smash his mask to pieces, but then a spear of bone shot from the top of his turtle shell, nailing her through the shoulder.

Adagio hung, half impaled on the bone spear, clutching at the weapon as Jester Face stood. He left the bone spear attached to his shell as he hobbled, favoring his now torn leg, and shot her an enraged glare. “You really don’t know when to die. I’d say that makes you a good Hollow, but not really in a complementary mood right now. So instead...”

The pale red energy of a Cero started to fill his palm once more as he pointed it towards her, “I think I’ll just end this.”

Behind him Adagio could see into the quarry. There she saw that Ember was now standing alone against the majority of the Adjuchas gang, having just survived a massive barrage of Ceros. Gaw was down, her hulking form covered in wounds. Di Roy lay barely moving just behind Ember, who herself was looking fairly injured herself. Adagio saw Ember raising her Zanpaktou, knowing the Arrancar intended to unleash her Resurreccion. Jester Face saw it too, and instead of looking worried he simply laughed.

“Good, was wondering how long it’d take her to do that. Now I can call in the reinforcements.”

“W-What?” Adagio said past clenched teeth.

“Oh yeah, didn’t you notice the lack of Hollows in your way as you came here? I rule the Forest of Menos. The Hollows here are just my main gang, but at my call I can summon practically every Gillian and lesser Hollow in the entire Forest. Even that Arrancar girl will get overwhelmed!”

Refusal burst through Adagio in a hot, angry wave. The only reason Ember, Gaw, or Di Roy were even in this mess was because of her ambitions. They were her responsibility, the same as her sisters had once been. She’d failed that responsibility once, she’d be damned if she was going to fail again, and certainly not because of this bastard! A wash of cool headed calm intertwined with her anger to form a deadly clear state of mind. She realized she’d been going about this battle all wrong. She was fighting on this Hollow’s terms, matching brute strength to brute strength, as was the Hollow way...

...But Adagio wasn’t just a Hollow. The red gleaming gem at her center pulsed brightly, but not with the light of a Cero. No, this light was a power more innate and familiar to Adagio.

Time to top fighting like a Hollow, and fight like a siren.

Her mouth opened and a deep, resonate set of notes flowed out, weighty with seductive and dominant octaves. Jester Face blinked, the sound of Adagio’s lyrical voice taking him aback. At first it was just a second or normal hesitance that most might feel when an impaled foe about to die just starts singing out of nowhere, but within mere moments Adagio’s siren magic started to penetrate the Hollow’s unprepared mind. Soon the wordless melody turned to words as Adagio poured her power into each enchanting syllable. Without her sisters to back her up she had to focus three times as hard to make her voice carry, but it was as if her Hollow reiatsu had fused so thoroughly with her siren magic that it amplified her voice to an echo that reached out through the Forest of Menos.

”Listen to me now
I’m going to make you bow
My reign is neigh
All you can do is die!”

It was clear Jester Face knew something was wrong by the distressed, confused look on his face, yet his arm carrying the deadly Cero sphere didn’t raise any further. In fact after a moment the arm started to lower, shaking in weakening resistance. Furthermore Adagio could see that all of the Adjuchas down in the quarry heard her voice and were looking towards her. She could feel her power like strands of web reaching out to engulf the minds of Jester Face’s gang as well. She willed her power away from her allies, for what she was about to do was solely for her foes. She just hoped Ember, Gaw, and Di Roy enjoyed the show.

Strengthening her song further with layers of controlling tones she slowly edged herself off of Jester Face’s spear, forcing herself to sing through the blinding pain as she removed herself from the spur of bone. Once free she floated towards Jester Face’s slowly slacking body and ran a talon under his chin.

”Hear my voice and see
All you’ll know is me
My word is your command
Now your end’s at hand!”

Willing him to follow her she led Jester Face down into the quarry, and though his steps were shaking with clear attempts to resist her call, her magic was thoroughly entrapping his mind just as it was his followers. She hadn’t tried singing to this extent or to affect this many victims since she’d had her sisters with her. Ember had been simple enough because she’d been by herself, the same as with Grogar. Now she wasn’t just affecting Jester Face and his gang, but her voice was reaching out into the Forest of Menos, and just as Jester Face had claimed he could call down many more Hollows waiting in the wings... so could Adagio.

As she led Jester Face to the center of the quarry, where his fellow Adjuchas all stood entranced by Adagio’s voice, there were distant howls and footfalls, and soon scores upon scores of Gillians and lesser Hollows were gathering around the quarry. The swarmed in from all sides, not to attack, but brought forth by Adagio’s echoing song, haunting and chilling as it pulled upon the simple minds of the lower-caste Hollows.

Nearby Ember stood in shock, watching what was happening with an open mouth. Di Roy still lay where he was, but he too watched, eyes glued on Adagio with amazement. Further back the wounded Gaw raised her saurian head in confusion but also interest, as if the song resonated with her on some primal level. Adagio favored her companions with a smile and wink, although some part of her understood she may well have been tipping her hand to Ember concerning her siren powers. But it was necessary. This was the only way to end this fight and save them all, so if this revealed the truth to Ember... so be it, she’d deal with the fallout of that when the time came.

Seeing as she had her captive audience with all of their attention her, Adagio turned a satisfied smile as she gazed upon the Hollows all slowly swaying to the beat of her song, eyes dulled with her entrancing voice wrapping their minds like chains. She could do anything she wanted with them for as long as she kept the song going. It didn’t take her long to decide what, and a particularly macabre grin graced her face. It was a terrible thought, but oh so appropriate for a Hollow. Both her Hollow essence and her siren gem were about to garner quite the feast.

Rising higher into the air, sweeping her arms out as if addressing and adoring crowd, with a gathering glow of ruby light eclipsing her body, Adagio’s voice rose to an even more powerful height, seeming to shake the very walls of the quarry.

”I shall be obeyed
And now you’ll dance for me
My hunger won’t be stayed
It’s time for all to see
Indulge your need
It is time to feed
So consume each other now!”

For many Hollows the desire to consume one another is as innate as living creatures need to breath. What Adagio was commanding through the power of her song was made all the stronger because it played straight into the very nature of Hollows to consume one another. Even the band of Adjuchas led by Jester Face were barely what one would consider allies, let alone friends. The very strength Jester Face had toted to Adagio, that he didn’t treat his subordinates like anything more than tools, meant that none of them had the capacity to resist Adagio’s command.

The Gillians and lesser Hollows fell upon each other first, tearing into each other with teeth and claws in a howling orgy of violence. The Adjuchas barely lasted a few moments longer before the alluring siren song, commanding them to give into their base nature's, turned on each other in brutal displays of violence. Only Jester Face resisted, and even he only for a short while before he leaped into the fray, slaying his own comrades in a bloody display of thrusting spears and crushing fists. All the while a thick green mist started to fill the area, flowing down from the quarry walls where the lesser Hollows and Gillians ripped each other to bleeding pieces. The mist soared and swirled across the wrestling and tumbling Adjuchas who slew one another in ever more violent displays. The mist flowed up and gathered around Adagio, pouring into her siren gem, which now shone like a crimson star.

Adagio could feel the power filling her. All of the negative energy produced by the Hollows orgy of violence and feeding, from now hundreds of lesser Hollows and Gillians and the score of powerful Adjuchas was now flowing into her body. The heat of the power was incredible, yet also in some ways darkly unpleasant. A reminder of the path she’d walked that doomed her and her sisters to exile in an alien world. Yet her sisters were safe and free now, she was sure, and if she had to walk the dark paths once more to gain the power needed to survive Hueco Mundo long enough to destroy Grogar. She’d just have to ensure she didn’t let this ambition destroy her, or those she cared for...

As the power filled her she saw that almost all of the Hollows had slain and eaten one another, only a small few remaining Gillians and lesser Hollows left still gorging on the bloody remains of their kin, while among the Adjuchas only Jester Face still stood. He had slain his own gang, and taken horrific wounds in the process. Now he stood bloodstained among the corpses of his followers, breathing heavily and his eyes in a green hued daze from Adagio’s song.

She floated down towards him, eyeing him with cold satisfaction. She floated closer, taking both her talons and cupping his face as she stared into his eyes. She allowed his mind just enough freedom to speak, just enough to realize what had happened.

Those eyes of his went wide behind his jester mask.

“What...? How...?”

She put a talon to his mouth, shaking her head. “Shh, don’t think about it too hard. You don’t have a reason to think about anything anymore.”

Her jaws opened wide and bit his mask, and half of his head, clean off. She allowed herself to fulfill her own hunger upon Jester Face’s flesh, the most powerful Adjuchas she’d encountered in Hueco Mundo. Now she added his power to hers by consuming him, while the power of all the many Hollows slaying each other by her song continued to rush into her siren gem like a emerald tide. As she did so she felt her body tremble. Heat filled every pore of her body, shaking like a volcano moments from eruption. Yet at her core she felt a strange, still cold, a feeling that spread to the very center of the Forest of Menos and touched upon something dormant in the long dead stones.

Soon the ground itself was shaking, a tremor that grew in intensity with every passing second.

“Adagio...?” Ember said, blinking in equal parts fear and wonderment.

Adagio looked back at her. Her eyes had turned almost solid red, and cracks were appearing across her skin, letting out blinding light.

“Go. Take Di Roy and Gaw from here, quickly.” She held up one of her claws, looking at the fractures spreading across her limb. The tremors in the ground were only growing stronger, with crevasse starting to tear open across the quarry and the Forest beyond. “I don’t know if I can control this.”

Ember looked ready to argue but then from one of the fissures opening around the quarry a sudden fountain of cascading water erupted upwards. One after another dozens of geysers started to explode from the stone floor of the Forest of Menos, and Ember could only take one last look at Adagio’s form, now so bright with pulsating crimson light that she could barely make out Adagio’s outline. Gritting her teeth, Ember grabbed up Di Roy and used Sonido to rush over to Gaw.

“Can you stand Gaw?” Ember asked.

Gaw, having been watching Adagio with odd intensity, slowly nodded and forced her wounded body to stand. Ember used another Sonido to take herself and Di Roy up onto Gaw’s back, and the giant Adjuchas turned and thundered out of the quarry just as more water erupted up from the ground and started to fill not only the quarry, but wash out in a wave through the rest of the Forest of Menos.

----------

Ember now stood on a dune a fair distance away from the giant hole that lead into the Forest of Menos. Gaw had sat her massive form down, licking her wounds as Di Roy patted the giant on the head, where he sat.

The ground was still shaking, and Ember stared at the hole into the Forest of Menos, trying to feel Adagio’s spiritual pressure. It was hard to tell just what was happening down there.

“Crazy freakin’ day, huh?” said Di Roy.

“Shut up, this isn’t done yet.” said Ember, eyes unblinking. Di Roy shrugged, laying back on Gaw’s head and clutching his stomach.

“Yeah, but the hell is going on with boss lady? Looked like she was about to explode.”

Gaw barked a coughing grunt, as if telling him to shut up. Which he did, but not because of Gaw but because the hole leading into the Forest of Menos, and a large chunk of the surrounding desert, was collapsing.

Ember watched on in awe as more and more desert folded in on itself, sand bursting upwards for several moments before water started to shoot up into Hueco Mundo’s dark skies. The ground roiled in an earthquake, and Ember nearly lost her footing as she watched multiple kilometers of Hueco Mundo’s desert collapse into a gigantic, circular hole that endless cascades of dark waters filled with thunderous noise. The process took about a straight ten minutes, but by the end of it Ember, Gaw, and Di Roy were no longer just standing in a featureless desert of white sand, but were standing upon the banks of a large, frothing lake. After a time the churning waters stilled, and Ember looked out upon at least several miles of glistening black waters, with rock cliffs that were once the deep walls of the Forest of Menos now surrounding two thirds of the lake’s circumference.

“Holy shit...” Di Roy breathed, and this time nobody told him to shut up.

After a moment Ember shook off her daze, “Where are you Adagio?”

As if in response something rose from the lake waters about a hundred meters offshore. This figure wasn’t the Adagio that Ember knew, yet she could feel Adagio’s reiatsu clearly stemming from this new being. It was overwhelming. Ember felt her mouth go dry as she tried to recall how to breathe. Meanwhile this new figure walked across the water, causing smooth ripples over the onyx surface as she walked to shore.

She was more humanoid in shape now, and as tall as Ember was, which was to say human sized. Bone white armor covered her in a feminine figure, yet none would think the sharp ridges along the shins and elbows would be soft. A tail still extended behind her, covered in fine, white scales and tipped with a bladed fin that was larger and more curved now. Her slim hands and feet still bore wicked claws, and her face still bore a Hollow mask like that of her aquatic siren origin. Yet the mask was smoother now, the snout less prominent. The crest of the mask swept back slightly to display a prominent trio of crown-like spikes. Most striking was the long mane of hair that now flowed from the back of her head, a brilliant orange and yellow striped length of curly strands that hung in two long bangs to either side of her mask yet also filled out a knee-length plume behind her. Her Hollow hole remained where it was prominently at the center of her chest between her armored breasts. There her siren gem hung, somehow more polished and radiant than ever in its blood red glory.

Adagio’s eyes regarded them calmly and with no small amount of confident purpose.

“I take it from your gawking expressions that my new form is sufficiently striking? I’ll need a mirror to truly appreciate it, perhaps decide how to accentuate it, but I’m feeling... powerful right now.”

“Bwhuh?” Di Roy said, and Gaw barked a similarly toned grunt.

Ember approached Adagio, trying to hide her apprehension. Which wasn’t too hard because she was still trying to get over what she was seeing, so shock was a good mask for nervousness. “Adagio, do you know what just happened to you?”

Adagio’s head turned to regard the lake behind her where the now former Forest of Menos once was. “At a guess I’d say I just blew past my training mark for the day. Hmm...” she looked at her slim yet strong hand, flexing her claws. “Not an Arrancar, but I feel like this is the next best step.”

“You’re a freakn’ Vasto Lorde!” Ember blurted, “Do you have any idea what this means!?”

“That the next time Garble decides to open his mouth at me I can tear it off?”

“No! I mean, well, yes that too, but it means that... that if you do become an Arrancar you’ll be able to challenge for a position among the Espada! Do you have any how long it's even been since an Adjuchas evolved to Vasto Lorde? My dad was the last one to do it and that was nearly a thousand years ago!”

Sighing contentedly Adagio said, “I know, I’m incredible. And I feel very much like celebrating. Only something’s missing... I need something to complete this ensemble.”

As if she knew what she was doing without needing to think about it, Adagio held her hand out. Something else rose from the lake. This object flew from the lake as if following Adagio’s command, and suddenly a large, bone white trident was clasped in her waiting hand. The trident was a good head taller than Adagio was, its haft carved in an elegant, spiral pattern like ocean waves. Its three gleaming white prongs bore deadly barbed tips. Adagio held the trident with the ease of one holding a lifelong lover.

“Ah, this will do nicely. Not a Zanpaktou, but I feel this deadly lady is a part of me. A part of my power.”

She turned to Di Roy and Gaw, her eyes softening. “You both have suffered grievous injuries in my service. Let us take you to Las Noches to have them tended to. Now with the Forest of Menos gone, you both shall need a new home. I offer you my own, along with my protection and patronage, if you wish to swear fealty to me.”

Di Roy chuckled dryly, which turned into a pained cough. “Ow, hurts to laugh. Like you gotta talk so formal to us, boss lady.” He bowed his head, “I’m your dude, one hundred percent of the way.”

Gaw rolled her eyes, but then settled them upon Adagio. There was no words to pass between the two, only a clear understanding. Gaw as a predator, once an alpha herself, but she recognized superior strength when she saw it and would follow the new alpha of the pack for as long as Adagio held the power to maintain that role. With the understanding that if Adagio ever faltered, Gaw would gladly take the position of alpha from her. Gaw let out a soft, accepting rumble as Adagio nodded to her.

Adagio then turned to Ember, “Well, it would seem we need to go speak with your father now, shouldn’t we?”

“Yeah, looks like.” Ember said, taking a deep breath and gesturing towards distant Las Noches, “He’s not gonna believe this.”

“I’m afraid he’ll have to. But not to fret, I don’t plan on leaving his horde quite yet. I intend to repay my debt to him before striking out on my own, hopefully with the understanding of our continued alliance and partnership.” Adagio said, and paused briefly, “And hopefully continued friendship between us?”

Ember hesitated, but only a moment before nodding, “Yeah.”

But as firm as she tried to say it, she couldn’t help but remember Garble’s words, and think of what she’d just witnessed of Adagio’s power of song. The power to control minds. She swallowed and nodded again, “Yeah, of course we’re friends.”

Episode 63: Child Soldiers

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Episode 63: Child Soldiers

That day the training was focused upon aerial combat. Especially in the human world it was not uncommon for battles between Quincy and their adversaries to take to the sky. In the living realm it was simply easier to do this than it was in the spirit realm, and with the wide range of powers Soul Reapers and Hollows had it was almost natural for them to seek open areas to make full use of these powers. For Quincy it was equally natural, as the sky’s open, three-dimensional space granted their bows a powerful range advantage. After all the sky had no cover an enemy could use, unless it was an unusually cloudy day.

However air combat was confusing at the best of times specifically because of its three dimensional nature. Certainly attacks could come from above and below during ground combat as well, depending on the terrain, but while in the sky you were vulnerable in a full three dimensional sphere all around you. Hence situational awareness was far more important to develop for such battles in order to keep track of enemy and ally movements, and to always been conscious of where one was aiming one’s bow.

The combat exercises had started early, an hour before sunrise, and had been going with very little in the way of breaks until mid-afternoon. Endurance was another quality being trained in this case, many of the cadets being pushed to the limits of their ability to control their own reishi and that of the reishi around them to keep forming the Hirenkyaku needed to stay in the sky.

Twilight was certainly feeling the strain. Not as much as some, but she was definitely sweat soaked and breathing hard. Her control and sense of her own spiritual energy and the reishi particles around her seemed to jump up every day, and more than a few times when other cadets had seemed too tired to even lift their bows while she continued on she’d heard mutterings of her ‘Pureblood’ talents. After all both of her parents were Sternritters, and most considered her brother a prodigy. Few seemed surprised she was advancing at a rapid rate and leaving several other cadets behind in terms in spirit energy and stamina.

Still, Twilight didn’t feel particularly well prepared for what was coming. Stamina or not she had still not formed a personal bow, and while she was doing well pacing herself with the day’s exercise she was only barely keeping pace in terms of accuracy with her basic Quincy bow.

As was typical of much of her Academy training, her opponents were her fellow cadets. Each of the Academy instructors had taken a group of cadets and grouped them into squads of ten, then set an engagement zone using reishi barriers to generate a massive cube of blue light within which the squads would fight one another. Each instructor threw in their own complications to each match. Spitfire created random storms of fire that needed to be avoided, while Lightning Dust had created several reishi mines that would explode with enough force to send any given unlucky cadet for a dizzying spin. Fleetfoot brought in some of the few remaining caged Hollows from earlier exercises to turn loose during the matches she oversaw, which had left Twilight shuddering. No one was hurt, but it had spooked everyone, hearing those Hollow howls. Fleetfoot had simply shaken her head and told them they needed to get used to it.

Fortunately Twilight’s group had ended up with instructor Soarin for the majority of the day, and his idea of adding complications to the match was to personally participate as a “random element”, which by his standards meant pranks. Out of all the instructors Soarin seemed to have the least strict attitude, reminding Twilight a little of the more laid back teachers at Canterlot High such as Miss Cheerilee. He seemed to keep up a joking smile even when pointing out mistakes, and even his pranks seemed more designed to instruct than distract.

Such as the noxious gas bomb he’d hit Twilight and her squad with, just as they were trying to surround the opposing team. Twilight wasn't certain if this was Quincy alchemy or just good old fashioned chemical science, but the smell was overwhelmingly awful and made both her nose and eyes sting.

“C’mon girls,” Soarin said while Twilight and her squadmates coughed and sputtered, “You never know what kind of powers a Hollow might have or a Soul Reaper’s Zanpaktou might unleash. Gotta react fast to stuff like this or you’ll be in trouble.”

“Ugh, easy for you to say, you’re not the one dealing with this crap!” Indigo Zap groused, flying backwards out of the billowing yellow stink cloud while the rest of the squad followed one by one.

“Guh, I can taste it in the back of my throat!” Sour Sweet spat, and just then Twilight saw a shadow flicker up above the girl.

“Sour, above you!” Twilight called, brining her bow to bear, but someone beat her to it as the rival cadet who’d appeared above Sour Sweet with his bow aimed at her unguarded back was struck by another arrow that knocked him back like a bowling pin.

Sugarcoat, her visor reflecting the afternoon light, calmly stated, “Instructor Soarin is right, we can’t let ourselves get distracted.”

Having been allowed back into the Academy to finish her training, Sugarcoat had been going out of her way to prove her capability despite her handicap, and so far had been showing that Twilight’s visor was doing its job admirably. She’d fallen right back into the natural role of leading the squad, which consisted of all the girls Twilight knew from Crystal Prep. Even Suri Polomare was part of their squad, alongside a few others Twilight wasn’t as familiar with but were holding their own. The opposing team were also all Crystal Prep students, although all of them individuals Twilight had had little to no contact with.

The leader of the opposing squad, Vanity Mane, was a blue skinned lad with a well cut head of black hair in the shape of a pompadour and wore a pair of glasses of a thinner, more rounded cut than Twilight’s. He’d taken full advantage of the stink cloud Soarin had tossed in, having his squad position themselves both above and below the cloud to catch Twilight’s squad as they came out of the cloud. Even as Sugarcoat had taken down the one boy, a hefty hail of arrows started to streak towards them from above just as another volley came from below. Twilight and her squad started to evade and fire back, but she saw one or two of the squad take painful hits in the process.

None of the cadets were using lethal force, of course, and were also making use of Blut Vene to reduce damage further, but enough hits would still knock a person senseless. The instructors worked double time to make safety nets of reishi to catch any cadet that lost consciousness and fell from the sky.

Twilight could see the crossfire they were caught in was going to be hard to break away from if they tried just moving further from the cloud, and quickly had an idea. “Sugarcoat, everyone, hold your breaths and use the cloud!”

Sugarcoat quickly picked up on what Twilight intended, and just nodded. “You heard her, everybody get back into the cloud.”

“Augh, do we have to?” Sunny Flare said, then yelped as an arrow brushed past her, taking a few strands of hair. With a disgusted look she took a deep breath and dove into the stink cloud, and soon Twilight and the others followed suit.

Inside the cloud Twilight’s eyes stung and she could still scent some of the horrible sulfur stink while holding her breath, but they only needed to endure for a few seconds. Obscured by the cloud the other squad’s arrows lost their accuracy, firing more at random now. Twilight, coughing slightly, managed to say, “Hit those above us first. Then take the ones below.”

“Oh, I get it, the dudes downstairs won’t see their buddies getting creamed up top until it's too late. Sweet move, Twi!” Lemon Zest spouted cheerfully, apparently having all but forgotten the injury she’d suffered on Twilight’s first day of training.

“You heard the plan. Wipe the out up top, fast!” Sugarcoat said, managing to only sputter slightly due to the gas. As a group the squad burst upwards and emerged from the top of the stink cloud. From the looks on the faces of the five or six from the rival squad that had taken position up there they hadn’t expected Twilight’s team to use the stink cloud for cover or come after them wholesale like this.

Twilight felt the wind rush past her as she reinforced her whole body with Blut Vene and used a high speed Hirenkyaku to zoom past the opposing Quincy. As she did so she pulled out a pair of ginto tubes and splashed alchemical reishi water out in a curtain above two of the rival Quincy team. She then charged her bow with a smaller arrow, laced with a cluster of reishi shards. She’d been studying a few different Quincy alchemy techniques, and this was her first time trying this one.

”Weise Wespe!” (White Wasp)

The arrow fired into the curtain of prepared reishi water and sparked into a brilliant white web of shocking tendrils. It wouldn’t be fatal, as Twilight hadn’t prepared a charge nearly powerful enough for that, but the rushing fingers of pale light caught the two rival Quincy completely by surprise and made both convulse painfully from the shock of reishi energy they injected. Twilight felt a little bad about the discomfort, but this was a full contact, competitive engagement. Besides she was enjoying learning more alchemic techniques to fortify her skills with, since her bow still needed work.

The others had taken their training no less seriously and were demonstrating their own prowess.

Small targeting reticles formed from reishi appeared upon each of Sunny Flare’s dart guns, creating small beams of light she used to target the Quincy crosses that the enemy cadets used to form their bows, disarming one with a well placed shot. Indigo Zap turned her bow in a semi-circle, the arrow she held charged there creating multiple stationary balls of electricity that then followed after her arrow like little homing missiles after she fired it, catching one unfortunate rival cadet from all sides and effectively tasering her into submission.

Sugarcoat’s own arrows were as direct and blunt as the girl herself, her own form moving with swift bursts of speed that confounded the last of the enemy squad up top, Vanity Mane, whose own bow looked much like a traditional crossbow save for its unusual drum shaped clip, like some gangster tommy-gun. He was firing rapidly, trying to keep up with Sugarcoat’s movements, but his stream of arrows always seemed a moment behind her. In return she fired careful, precise shots that battered Vanity Mane, although to his credit his Blut Vene kept him in the air and conscious despite taking painful shots to the sternum, head, knees, and back.

Meanwhile Sour Sweet and Lemon Zest, along with Suri and the rest of the squad had taken aim down below, targeting the other half of the enemy squad which was just now realizing what was happening to their comrades up above.

Lemon Zest charged up her bow with two arrows that fired at once to form a corkscrew spiral of reishi that exploded down below like a firework, disorienting the Quincy cadets trying to rush up to help their squad leader. Sour Sweet had set up her massive crossbow, propping it against her shoulder before firing a shotgun-like blast of several dozen reishi arrows at once, catching at least two of the enemy squad. Suri, more alchemically inclined, pulled out her own ginto tube and popped it open. Pouring the reishi water straight down, she touched the stream for a moment and invested her own spirit energy into it while speaking the invocation.

”Seidenfaden.” (Silk Strands)

The reishi water transformed into a spreading cone of razor thin beams of blue light, which when they struck several of the rival cadet squad the light appeared to pierce through their limbs. No damage was visible, nor any obvious pain caused, but the strands of reishi light paralyzed any limb they shot through, effectively immobilizing those they hit. Suri then easily used her own bow to easily knock the caught opponents out with well placed shots.

At that point Vanity Mane was bruised and barely standing, and only a handful of his squad were still conscious. Before anything further could occur a sharp whistle rang out form Soarin, causing all the cadets still conscious to look his way.

The Sternritter instructor was twirling a silver pocket watch in his hands as he walked across the air, observing them all with a critical eye but a relaxed half-smile.

“Calling time on this one, ladies and gents. Everyone pick up a unconscious comrade and take a breather.”

Various grunts and groans sounded out as various cadets stretched out and rubbed sore bruises. Nobody complained about the fight being cut a bit short. This was, after all, just one of dozens they’d already done. There wasn’t a cadet among them who wasn’t sporting some minor wound or another. Even Twilight still felt a nasty bruise on her ribs from a shot she’d taken about two matches ago when she hadn’t been paying enough attention to her blind spots.

Soarin touched the wall of the reishi barrier that encased them for the match and it broke apart like so much dust, with motes of blue light fading downward. In the distance across the sky above the vast forest Twilight could see the faint glowing cubes of other such barriers where other teams still battled. There was another group that looked like they’d just finished up as well, the one being run by Fleetfoot, Twilight thought.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, glancing to see that Sugarcoat had come up to her, expression neutral but somehow softer than usual.

“Good thinking with the cloud. Took a disadvantage and turned it into something we could use.”

“It was nothing. Just seemed the most logical course of action.” Twilight replied, glancing away.

“Whooo, I’m am freakin’ wrecked.” said Lemon Zest, stretching this way and that, “Feelin’ like I went on a weekend bender, only minus waking up next to any cute guys. Also pretty dang hungry. Yo teach, we gettin’ any grub soon or what!?”

Soarin glanced over his shoulder at her, raising an eyebrow. “I keep telling you to call me ‘instructor’, not ‘teach’. Seriously, Zest, this is a military, not a high school. And you guys can eat when Spitfire gives the go ahead. Right now just catch your breath.”

“That sounds just delightful.” Sour Sweet muttered, shouldering her crossbow, “If you consider low grade torture a delight, that is.”

“It's not that bad. They’re just making sure our endurance is up to snuff.” came the eased tone of Indigo Zap as she brushed her uniform off, “It's not like the Hollows are going to give us a lunch break. Once things get hot, it's either win it or you don’t eat ever again. Because of the whole being dead thing.”

“Oh thanks for that cheerful reminder.” Sour Sweet grimaced, scratching at her neck on the side that had been burnt during the Arrancar attack. Her skin was fine now due to the Quincy’s potent medical techniques, but Twilight kept noticing that Sour Sweet kept fidgeting since she’d been wounded, as if she could still feel the burns.

“So does anyone know for sure just what we’ll be doing during this battle that’s coming?” asked Suri, her own nervousness clear in her tone as she idly put away her spent ginto tube back into her alchemy pouch.

“A whole lot of not dying is my plan.” said Lemon Zest, “Besides that, you’re guess is as good as anyone’s, Su.”

“Ideally we won’t be doing anything.” said Sugarcoat plainly, carefully adjusting her visor, which had gotten slightly knocked askew. “But given how such battles, historically speaking, tend to go I’m not putting much hope in that. My suggestion would be for all of us cadets to stick close to each other and be prepared for anything.”

“Does that include getting pummeled repeatedly by someone who doesn’t sit still for two seconds so I can hit them?” inquired Vanity Mane, laboriously cracking his back and grunting in pain. Sugarcoat shrugged at him.

“Do you think the Hollows will go as easy on you as I did?”

To this Vanity Mane opened his mouth, then closed it slowly and with a melancholic look shook his head, looking at the rest of his battered squad. “No. No I don’t. Which is why these exercises are getting under my skin. We were supposed to have much more training before dealing with real battle. Surly I can’t be the only one that thinks we’re not ready for this?”

“Ready or not it's happening, so what’s complaining about it going to accomplish?” Sugarcoat stated firmly.

“Um, well, perhaps I could speak with So...uh, His Majesty?” Twilight said, trying to avoid using Sombra’s name too openly, as it seemed to unnerve her fellow cadets when she did so. “Even if I can’t convince him to remove us from the battle, maybe he’ll at least tell me why we’re being sent with the rest of the Quincy forces.”

Despite the humble tone she tired to keep she still got various looks of incredulousness from the other cadets, who stared at her like she’d just suggested she could talk to the sun and convince it not to rise in the morning. Twilight still didn’t understand why Sombra was treated as if he were unapproachable. She cast a defensive look around her, “What? It's not that crazy a thought, is it?”

Sunny Flare coughed politely, “I don’t imagine anyone here would try to stop you, Twilight, but you have to admit its highly... odd that you can see yourself just so casually approaching our King and asking him to his face to change his plans.”

“I say go for it.” said Indigo Zap with a brash smirk, “I mean the worst he can do is strip you of your Quincy powers and toss you in the dungeons like Principal Cinch.”

Twilight’s eyes flared wide, “Is that what happened to her?”

Indigo Zap shrugged, reaching into a pocket and pulling out some gum to pop into her mouth,”Who knows? Not like anyone’s seen her since the fiasco at Canterlot High. Wouldn’t surprise me if she’s hanging in some dark dungeon in the bottom of the castle somewhere.”

“Duuuude, that’s creepy weird to think about. Like, what if the castle does have secret dungeons and stuff?” said Lemon Zest, staring off at nothing, “That’s be, like, totally screwed up if Cinch was getting tortured and crap right beneath the halls we walk around in. Man, I’m gonna have nightmares over this now.”

Sugarcoat cleared her throat loudly, “Principal Cinch was likely just stripped of her powers and rank and removed from the Sternritters. I doubt anyone, least of all His Majesty, felt the need to waste a dungeon cell on her.”

“Oh, so there are dungeons?” asked Sunny Flare.

Twilight tapped a finger to her chin, thinking. “Maybe I could ask him about that too...” she said to herself, and Sour Sweet groaned.

“Oh come on Twilight! It's not like you can just waltz into the King’s chambers to strike up a game of twenty questions! You’d at least have to wait for a summons, and why in the world would he summon you out nowh-”

Suddenly a Quincy soldat, in full white uniform and cap, appeared nearby from a full speed Hirenkyaku and saluted to Soarin.

“Sternritter Soarin, I bring a request by His Majesty that cadet Twilight Sparkle be sent to the war room immediately.”

All the cadets eyes stared at the soldat for a moment before slowly sliding over towards Sour Sweet. For her part Sour Sweet paused in stark shock for a second, but quickly recovered and looked up at the sky.

“It's not like a million dollars and a oiled up, half naked adonis are going to fall into my lap...” She waited, and after a few moments when nothing happened she sighed, “Damn.”

Soarin glanced at the soldat, then at Twilight Sparkle. “Well our exercises weren’t done for the day, but if it's from His Majesty there’s nothing for it. I’ll send her along ASAP.”

Soarin and the soldat exchanged salutes and the soldat turned to Twilight, “If you’ll follow me, cadet.”

Twilight was extremely self-conscious of the looks she was getting as she started to leave, but before she flew off to follow the soldat, she gave everyone a nervous wave. “See you guys soon. I’ll, uh, see about bringing up what we were talking about.”

Most of the cadets watched her go with various levels of surprise, or worse, unease. As if they were starting to fear her due to this strange connection with Sombra. However at least Sugarcoat seemed steady and gave Twilight a parting nod of encouragement. This eased Twilight’s spirit and made it easier to focus as she used Hirenkyaku to speed off after the soldat, heading for the distant Silburn.

----------

The war room was neither as large as Twilight’s imagination conjured it to be, nor was it as crowded. In her mind’s eye she’d seen a vast chamber filled with big monitors that would fill the walls, with dozens of operators at consoles relaying commands to units in the field, while perhaps Sombra would stand on some huge overlord's chair on a mechanical swivel mount. She should have expected something simpler, and more in line with medieval architecture of the Silburn, but even this seemed humble by comparison.

The chamber stood no more than perhaps forty feet across at either side, and on one end stood open to a balcony that overlooked the lake beyond the Silburn. No furniture adorned the room’s stone floors, and in moments Twilight understood why. The floor, the walls, and the ceiling itself were carved with maps. Some were maps of the world she knew, but others showed continents and masses of terrain she couldn’t match to any part of the Earth she was familiar with. To her utter fascination these maps shifted in shape, as if the stone that made up the carvings were mere water, at a mere look. It was as if her thoughts shaped the map, for when she thought of Canterlot City one portion of the floor near her shifted into a near perfect representation of the city, making her give a startled yelp and jump.

“Twilight?”

It was her father, Night Light. He stood tall in his blindingly white Sternritter uniform, his cape gently fluttering behind in from a breeze coming in from the balcony. Aside from him, the only other person in the chamber was Sombra himself, who was clad in his dark armor. In his right hand Twilight saw Sombra carried a sword, its blade as smokey dim as his armor. It seemed he’d been using it to point to the maps on the wall he and Night Light stood by, which showed what looked to Twilight to be a vast desert plain with a strange, symmetrically square building with tall cylindrical towers rising from it sitting squarely in the center of the map.

“Um, hi father? Hello Sombra.” she took a hesitant step forward, managing an awkward salute. “I was summoned?”

Sombra turned to her, a knowing yet frustratingly vague smile appearing on his charcoal features. “Yes, I sent for you. My apologies Night Light, I neglected to tell you the guest I was expecting was your daughter.”

Night Light maintained an ever professional air as he inclined his head stiffly, “Apologies are unnecessary, my King. However might I ask why you have summoned her here?”

“A trifling matter, actually.” Sombra said with a dismissive wave, “I’d near forgotten I’d intended to do this today, but time grows short. I wished to give her a... gift, of sorts. Something of use for her future studies. Nothing more.”

“I see.” Night Light said in a voice that suggested he did not. He looked as if he wished to ask more, and Sombra raised a thin eyebrow at him.

“If you have further questions, do speak.”

Night Light’s eyes flickered between Sombra and Twilight, and it seemed to Twilight that her father drew in a deep breath to steady himself before saying, “No, my King. No questions. I merely thought that it has been some time since my family and I were able to share much time together. So instead of a question, I was merely hoping to request that, before the eve of battle, you might grant Twilight a reprieve from her duties at the Academy to spend the evening with her family?”

Sombra’s smile was less vague now, somehow brighter yet still setting Twilight on edge. “An easy boon to grant, given I intended to allow all the cadets a day off before we set out for battle. I hope you and your family enjoy it.”

Night Light bowed deeply, “Thank you, your Majesty.”

“Of course. Now, I believe you need to organize the battle plan further with your detachments. I would enjoy a moment to speak with Twilight alone.”

At Sombra’s words Night Light hesitated a moment, but managed a crisp salute. “As my King wishes. Twilight, I hope to see you soon. And, if I may suggest, please speak with Cadence. I’m not certain what’s gone on between you, but she’s been worrying about you.”

Twilight tried not to look too sour at the memory of Cadence’s confession and said, “I know, dad. I’ll talk to her, once... things settle down.”

Night Light looked at her with no little amount of concern himself, but nodded silently and stroke from the room after giving her arm an affectionate, fatherly squeeze. Twilight suppressed a sigh. She wasn’t sure if she’d look forward to an evening with her family as a chance to break the tension that’d built up between them, or just another awkward way for that tension to increase.

After Night Light was gone, Sombra was looking at her with his eyebrow still raised. “Should I even ask what that was about?”

Twilight almost enjoyed the feeling of having something over on Sombra, even something that was causing her grief. She tried to pull off one of his mysterious smiles of her own, saying, “A trifling matter, actually.”

To this Sombra let out a velvet laugh, waving his free hand, “So be it, I’ll grant you your secrets, Twilight Sparkle, since your attitude is quite refreshing. Planning our battle to come is a necessary task, but any break from it is a moment to savor.”

She found herself sending a roving gaze over the map Sombra and her father had been standing before, unable to fully contain her curiosity. “What is this?”

“Oh this?” Sombra gestured with his sword at the desert map and its large, imposing fortress. “Las Noches, situated in the eastern hemisphere of Hueco Mundo. Or perhaps you were referring to this room in general and its rather useful feature?”

“A little of both.” Twilight said with a sheepish smile, running her hand across the stone. It was strangely warm to the touch, and after a second she instinctively pressed her spiritual senses into it and was surprised to find just how rich in reishi the room was. “There’s... there’s reishi flowing through all of the stone.”

“Is that so surprising? Yes, with spirit particles this whole room can change shape, but it is designed to serve as an ever updating system of maps for strategizing.” Sombra said, gesturing at the map of Las Noches, “Of course it can only show what we have information on, and this is not a current view of Las Noches and its environs, but only what our last intelligence reported on the area. Understandably its difficult to keep regular tabs on the heart of the enemy’s forces without losing valuable scouts.”

With a curious frown at the map Twilight said, “You mentioned Hueco Mundo’s southern hemisphere? Does that mean that world is actually a globe, just like Earth?”

Again that laugh, and she couldn’t tell if Sombra was laughing at her or simply out of genuine mirth. “Yes. Both Hueco Mundo and the Spirit Realm are spheres, just as our world is. If you were to look at Hueco Mundo from a far enough distance it would look like pearl of dead white hanging in even deader blackness.”

“There’s no water there? Its all desert?” Twilight asked.

Sombra’s grin turned coy. “If there is it must hide below the surface, for no lake nor ocean has graced its pale desserts since... well, since a time long before you or I lived.”

Twilight gulped, finding something strangely ominous in the way Sombra had said that. Pushing the thought aside she turned to him and set aside her apprehension, working to school her voice to something resembling calm confidence. “Sombra, I know you summoned me, but I also have been meaning to talk to you. About the battle.”

He nodded, and the sword in his hand went to his side, where Twilight saw the blade literally merge with the shadows clinging to the folds of his cloak. Then, dusting his hands off as if he’d just put away a broom instead of a blade, he gestured towards the balcony. “Come, let us take in some sun while we talk. I do wish to see your reaction to your gift, but if you have concerns to bring to me let us be done with that business first.”

With at first a few tentative steps, but then with greater confidence Twilight joined Sombra at the balcony. Admittedly the view was magnificent, with the late afternoon sunlight turning the lake waters beyond the castle into a gleaming field of gold. She’d have enjoyed the scenery more if her mind wasn’t already turning towards what to say to Sombra and the dire topic of the looming battle with the Hollows. Clearly sensing her unease, Sombra leaned against the balcony rail and hands resting upon it casually, and spoke in an inviting and disarming voice. “Go ahead and speak your mind. I can already guess at what this is about, but I’d like to hear it from you.”

“If you already know I’ll be to the point then; why are we cadets being sent into this battle and would you be willing to let those that aren’t ready stay behind?” Twilight said in as quick and pointed a manner as she could while still feeling quite nervous.

Sombra responded with an understanding nod, but closed his eyes and shook his head. “To the request I must say ‘no’, I require every cadet be on the field when we enact our plan against Las Noches.” He quickly raised a hand to forestall a protest already forming on her lips, “Before you say anything further, allow me to answer your first question.”

Opening his eyes with a grave look, he gestured at the surrounding landscape beyond the balcony. “For a long time the defensive wards and barriers I’ve placed on this territory has kept it safe from Hollow attack. However the raid on the Academy has proven those wards are now ineffective, at least to the powers of the one Espada capable of pushing the Hollow’s Garganta portals to such new heights of versatility. That means these lands, even this opulent fortress, are no longer safe from incursion. Even the half of the Silburn in Hueco Mundo may be compromised. Until that Espada is dead, no Quincy holding is entirely safe, and hence there is no safe place for the Academy’s cadets to be housed until we eliminate the Espada in question.”

His hand pointed with one black finger towards the map depicting Las Noches, “Except for where there will be the most Quincy present to guard them. Ironic, perhaps, that the safest place will be amidst a battle, but I can not guarantee forces to guard them in any other location where ambush might not lie in wait. If I left them here, with a few Sternritter to guard them, then Tirek might seize the chance to launch another raid while the bulk of our own forces are tied up engaging his. Any of our other holdings across the world could be just as easily compromised. The only place I can be absolutely sure you cadets are well protected by a large number of Quincy is if I take you into the battle with me.”

“But... but couldn’t we wait in the Hueco Mundo half of the Silburn?” Twilight asked, trying to find any holes in Sombra’s logic.

“And what if Tirek is already aware of that half’s location and when I engage with the bulk of the Quincy army, he sends one or two Espada there to crush it? An empty building can be reconstructed, but if it was you cadets alone, with but a few Sternritter or soldats to guard you, would you last against the might of an Espada? However if you are with the majority of our army at the battle, I can personally ensure each Espada is present, countered by one or more of my own Sternritter, and that you cadets are kept safely towards the rear of the action.”

Twilight chewed her lip, thinking. It seemed logical, yet also paranoid. Surely this Tirek fellow couldn’t possibly guess at where Sombra might hide the cadets, and might not even care about wiping them out if he had the rest of the Quincy army to deal with. Eyeing Sombra, she ventured to say, “That appears like sound logic, but I feel like there’s more you’re not telling me. The odds that we cadets would get caught in some kind of ambush seem very low versus the odds of us getting caught up in unexpected fighting in the middle of such a large battle.”

Sombra’s expression turned still for a moment, then he chuckled, shaking his head. “Your mind is as sharp as your father’s. Sharper, I would venture. I am not lying, Twilight, but as you suspect I have additional motives for wanting you cadets involved in the battle.”

He held out his hand and placed it on her shoulder. “The truth is nothing sinister. It is simply this; you cadets are ready. Normally the graduation from cadet to an anointed soldat involves tests set by the Academy’s Master or Mistress, but there is no need in this case. While some perished in the raid, many more survived against the Hollows and Arrancar that came to bleed us dry. Twilight, such is proof to me that despite what fears you may have, you and your fellow cadets are as prepared as you can be made to face our foes in open battle. I still fully intend to keep you as far from the worst fighting as possible, and ensure at least two Sternritter are present to guard you, but it is time for those wearing the mantle of cadets to cast off the raiments of children and don the title of ‘soldier’. That is all I intend. No grand scheme, no deception, only a final test; the only one that matters in war. Battle.”

Twilight quieted for a moment, looking forlorn as she thought on his words. She didn’t sense any lie in them. Indeed Sombra’s voice was clad in sincerity like the armor he wore. Did it hide something beneath, or could she trust that earnest look of his? Again, aside from a nagging fear that she and her fellow cadets weren’t as ready as Sombra thought, she couldn’t really find any gaping holes in his logic. They’d been training to fight Hollows. It only made sense that at some point that training would end and be put the final test. She had only been training a short time, but the others had been at it longer than her, and if anything the skirmishes in today’s exercises showed most of them knew all and more of the basics for Quincy powers and techniques.

What else could she say?

“I see...” she said finally, “I don’t know if I feel as confident as you do, but you’ve answered my questions and I can’t ask much more than that, can I?”

“You can always ask me anything you want, Twilight, at any time. I wish more would.”

“Why don’t they?” Twilight suddenly asked with interest. “Everyone treats you with fear, but you’ve been so... reasonable with me.”

Sombra’s laugh was a light one, somehow made dour with a note of self-mockery. “My own fault, of course. I am far older than I look, young Twilight, and in my ‘youth’ I was not as restrained as I am now. Sadly I earned the fear and the respect shown me, in equal measure, by having a quick temper and an impulsive mindset back then. The deference my Quincy show me is something I all but hammered into them, long ago, and even though it's been generations the legend of ‘His Majesty’s Wrath’ remains one of many shadows I bear. Not... entirely without some modern reinforcement. I may not strike off the heads of those who displeased me as I once did, but I am not one who takes disobedience or incompetence lightly.”

That reminded Twilight of the other question she’d been curious to ask, and with a hesitant gulp she said, “I’ve been meaning to ask, but what did happen to Principal Cinch. She was a Quincy, wasn’t she?”

Sombra’s eyes went dark, and for a moment Twilight felt exactly why her father, her mother, and every other Quincy still treated Sombra with such fearful yet reverent deference. For just that instant she saw a spark of pure, unimaginable rage hiding in Sombra’s dark eyes, like staring into a frothing abyss that could crush her to atoms in an instant. She felt like she could drown in shadows, like sinking into the depths of the darkest ocean, and still not feel as trapped or helpless as catching a glimpse of what she saw in Sombra’s eyes in that instant.

The moment passed as quickly as a breath, and Sombra’s eyes were back to normal. Just the eyes of a man, albeit one who still looked somewhat disgruntled as he sighed. “Yes, Cinch. You could say she is a prime example of the kind of person whose head would have decorated my castle wall, during my more impetuous and youthful days. The manner in which she brazenly disregarded my instructions to not interfere with any magical happenings at Canterlot High earned her the stripping of her title as Sternritter, the removal of the Schrift I granted her, and a very simple choice; exile or joining the Strafbattalion.”

“Strafbattalion?” Twilight echoed, her mind giving her a gentle tickle. She’d heard that term before somewhere in school. History wasn’t her greatest subject, compared to the sciences at least, but she devoured books like few could and had an almost encyclopedic memory of the knowledge she’d absorbed. That term, clearly German, was tied to the Second World War. What was it in reference to...?

Suddenly her eyes widened, “The penal companies the Germans used in World War Two?”

Sombra nodded gravely, “The idea of it, at least. Those damnable wars were a mess for us Quincy. You have no idea how much two different world wars, within mere decades of each other, caused a population explosion among the Hollows. It was one of the few times in history Quincy and Soul Reapers were able to set aside our own war to focus on dealing with the sheer number of new Hollows born from so many horrific deaths. We of course still stayed out of each other’s way, and there were still skirmishes, but for the most part all were busy fighting legions of new Hollows. As for the Strafbattalion, while I take no pleasure lifting an idea from that time period, honestly the notion of penal companies existed far earlier, as far back as Napoleon’s time.”

“But isn’t it a bit... amoral to force convicted criminals into battle?” Twilight asked with a leery look.

“Considering that the alternatives I used in the past were various forms of execution, I think I’m being rather progressive.” Sombra said simply, “It is a choice I offer, and only as the ultimate punishment to those who failed as completely as Cinch did. The condemned can either accept exile, in which they are stripped of their Quincy powers completely and sent to live in a guarded colony... or they can attempt to redeem themselves by joining the Strafbattalion. Four years of service there earns them freedom to rejoin the Quincy ranks properly. In truth I am far gentler with the Strafbattalion than such units have been used historically. Normally such condemned soldiers would be sent into suicide situations, but I tend to give them tasks that while difficult and dangerous are still quite within their capabilities. Still, some consider exile preferable.”

“So, did Cinch...?”

“Choose exile? No. Despite her failures, the woman doesn't lack for ambition or stubbornness. She joined the Strafbattalion, and who knows, perhaps in four years time she’ll earn her way back into my good graces.”

From his tone of voice Twilight wasn’t so sure that would ever happen. Shaking her head as if to dismiss any more thoughts for her former principal, Twilight took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Whatever she’d seen in Sombra’s eyes was long gone now, but she still felt rattled by it. She’d known this man was dangerous, but she was starting to believe she had no idea just how dangerous he really was. Or even what he really was. Suddenly the caution other Quincy showed him seemed entirely within reason.

Still, she wasn’t about to start acting the scared mouse. Summoning up her courage, she kept her voice steady and said, “Well I think that covers what I wanted to ask. So what is it you wanted to give me? You said it was something to help with my studies?”

With the swiftness of a rising dawn Sombra’s demeanor quickly brightened, an almost mischievous look flooding his features. Compared to the dark mood of moments before this contrast nearly gave Twilight mental whiplash. It seemed he could shift gears in an instant, and looked near giddy as he reached into the shadows of his cloak to draw forth a humble, rectangular box with a silver latch. Twilight gave his cloak a curious look, feeling as if she could see the shadows there moving on their own accord.

“I confess I had not intended to give you anything like this until you had developed more, but after hearing of your accomplishment with young Sugarcoat’s eyes I reassessed my plans.” Sombra said, holding the box towards her.

Remembering seeing Sombra’s sword vanish there, she glanced at him with frank curiosity, not yet taking the box. “First, I have to ask, just what is going on with your cloak?”

He seemed genuinely surprised for a moment, blinking at her in honest confusion a second before looking down at his cloak as if he was only now recalling he wore one. “Oh. I suppose I’m so used to everyone else not paying it any mind it never occurred to me you’d find it strange. There’s nothing special about my cloak. This is merely an aspect of my powers. What you’re seeing aren’t even really shadows so much as...hmm, call them ‘byproducts’ of how my personal Schrift affects the space around me.”

“Okay, but what is it exactly? In fact I’m not wholly clear on what Schrifts are and where they come from, as they seem separate from normal Quincy powers-” Twilight started to rev up into a bit of a rant of scientific inquiry, but Sombra, in a move she didn’t expect at all, placed one finger gently on her lips. She went silent immediately.

Sombra smiled and took his finger away. “All questions in their proper time and place, Twilight. You’ll learn of Schrifts when you earn the title of Sternritter.”

“You mean if I earn the title of Sternritter. I’m barely a cadet as it is.”

“Well, as I said, all things in their proper time and place. Now then, enough of making me wait, open your gift already.” Sombra said with a boyish chuckle, pushing the box towards her. Somewhat reluctantly she took it. The box was cold to the touch, and with a careful, deft hand she opened the silver latch and swung the lid up.

Inside was black velvet cushioning a single, pale white glove, long enough to nearly go up to her elbow. The glove was strange in that its surface was covered in dark blue lines, one down the center of the arm that then split into a cross at the wrist, and a twin fork at the back of the hand, extending further to the point of the index finger and the ring finger. The thumb and index finger both were also dyed blue, in contrast to the rest of the glove’s white coloring. Upon closer examination she saw that at the center of the cross of blue lines was a small silver ring, embedded in the cloth.

She looked up at Sombra with a quizzical tilt of her head. “What is this?”

“It’s called a ‘Sanrei Glove’. A relic of a bygone age for the Quincy. One part training tool, one part last gambit, these gloves could help Quincy refine their skills through forcing them to exert more reishi control, almost like a training weight. However the gloves also built up a powerful feedback loop of gathered reishi, and could act as an outlet to vent a great deal of spiritual energy from its host if the glove was ever removed. Such an explosion of power created what was called, in that long gone time, the ‘Letzt Stil’.”

“The Last Style?” she said, trying to translate the German.

Sombra nodded, “Yes, although due to the transformation’s particular drawback it also came to be known as the ‘Final Form’ of the Quincy. Final, because any Quincy that used it might enjoy a brief burst of incredible power, capable of defeating a Soul Reaper Captain with a single blow, but after using such power their abilities as a Quincy would be burned out completely, rendering them permanently powerless.”

Twilight looked back at the glove with wider eyes filled with more respect and appreciation for what she was holding, but also no small lack of apprehension mixed with a hungry curiosity. “This glove could do all that? Incredible. How does it work? Can I take it apart and find out?”

“I should think so, that’s why I’m giving it to you.” Sombra said with a flash of a smile, “I don’t intend for you to actually use this old thing. If you put it on you couldn’t remove it without burning out your Quincy powers, and we certainly can’t have that. However since I heard you were having trouble with manifesting a personal bow I thought you might benefit from studying the construction of the Sanrei Gloves, since once upon a time they were utilized for rapidly training Quincy and were good at focusing reishi into just such improved bows. Given how swiftly you managed to construct a very impressive visor for Sugarcoat I imagine you might develop a similar device to aid your bowmanship using this glove as a base.”

“I’m shocked the Quincy haven’t already developed something to remove or at least lessen the glove’s drawback.” Twilight said, and Sombra laughed once more.

“We have, in fact. Most recently.” He held a finger up to his mouth, “Shh, it's a secret I’ve been keeping from our enemies. Another reason I’m confident of confronting Tireks’ forces in open battle; my Sternritter will reveal a power the Espada will not be expecting. But let’s just keep that between us, shall we? In the meantime, I hope you enjoy your gift. Study it, take it apart if you wish. Use what knowledge you can from it. Just... don’t put it on, alright?”

He gently closed the box’s lid for her and re-latched it, but patted the top of the box as she held it and his smiling expression waned as he glanced at the sun, now dipped further in the sky. “Now, I’m afraid we’ve likely spent as much time as we can talking. I have my own preparations to continue making for the battle, and you’d best return to Spitfire before she starts to make that moniker a reality.”

“Oh, right. I hope the rest of the girls have been doing alright without me.” Twilight said, wondering if Soarin had forced the rest of her team to continue training short one member while she’d been gone. As she turned to leave she paused a few steps away, glancing over her shoulder at Sombra, clutching the box in her hands. “Um, thank you, for the gift. I’m sure it’ll help.”

“That was the idea.”

She paused, considering, then looked him in the eyes. She found a bit harder to do now, seeing what could lie in wait in those dark orbs, but she refused to let fear keep her from being as open with this man as she could and equally honest with herself. “I know a cadet shouldn’t make demands of the King, especially after being given a gift, but can I ask a promise from you?”

He crossed his arms, armor gently clinking as he raised a charcoal black eyebrow at her, “I’m finding myself in a magnanimous mood today, so go on.”

“Promise me that you will do everything in your power to protect my fellow cadets during this battle.”

Searching his face for any trace of deception, she watched him nod solemnly, not a hint of anything less than total sincerity in either those eyes or his voice.

“You have my word, the oath of your King, that I shall do all that I can to ensure every Quincy cadet returns alive and well.”

She believed him. The only question that remained in her mind was if even such a promise would make a difference in what was to come.

----------

That night Twilight sat awake at a workbench she’d pulled up next to her bed. Spike lay in her lap, sound asleep, while she continued to go over data as it streamed into her computer from several monitoring devices she’d hooked up to the Sanrei Glove.

As far as she could tell the glove was an insanely complex construct of densely packed reishi particles arranged within a very thin layer of cloth treated with an alchemical concoction that for all intents and purposes made it as strong as steel while remaining flexible. Pulling reishi in through the glove to form a bow would be an incredible strain on the Quincy wearing it, yet the glove generated even more powerfully charged particles once they were taken in by the glove and then regulated them through the Quincy’s body and any bow they’d form. The Quincy not only got a form of reishi gathering exercise that would eventually boost their ability to acquire such particles, but it also refined the particles into a higher grade form that would enhance all Quincy abilities.

She’d already more or less grasped how the “Letzt Stil” worked, as use of the glove continuously packed in ever more potent reishi into the Quincy, but if the glove was taken off all of those particles would be vented outward, along with whatever spiritual energies the Quincy naturally had. For a few minutes the Quincy would have access to more reishi than ever before possible, easily in the range of ten to twenty times more, if not greater. Yet once it was open, the vent wouldn’t stop. There was no way to prevent one’s reiatsu from being drained completely. Not fatal, but certainly problematic.

She wondered how Sombra and the Quincy had fixed this issue? Some kind of built in stop-gap? But how would you make one strong enough to prevent that level of venting? Furthermore even if you could, wouldn’t that cripple the power of the transformation and render it useless for combat?

The problem nagged at her, but it wasn’t what she needed to be considering right now anyway and while tantalizing it was a distracting tangent. Her real focus needed to be on how to utilize the structure of the glove to assist with her bow.

Or perhaps with controlling magic?

The thought stuck in her mind as she stared at the scrolling lines of data. Could the gloves same principles be applied to magic energy, instead of reishi? If she could do that it might give her an avenue to train herself to control the magic, the same way the glove was meant to boost a Quincy’s control of reishi. Or perhaps... if she used the Letzt Stil, converted to venting magic instead of reishi, could she rid herself of the magic inside her? Permanently?

No more Midnight Sparkle. No more reason to be afraid of what was inside her.

But clearly Sombra wanted her to learn to control magic, not merely remove it from herself. And didn’t she need to have an understanding of magic to be better able to help her friends back in Canterlot City?

So absorbed was she in her thoughts she didn’t hear the window to her room opening, but Spike did. Even asleep the dog’s keen ears picked up the unusual noise of Twilight’s window being unlatched and swung open, and he cracked his eyes open, ears perking up. He saw a pale shadow in the window, and he didn’t need to sniff it to sense its malicious intent.

He barked, loud as he could, “Twilight, watch out!”

Despite being a small dog by most standards, he still leapted up and pounced on Twilight’s chest, knocking her backward’s in her chair just in time for her to avoid a blue reishi arrow that smashed into the wall beside where her head had been.

Startled and shocked, Twilight fell to the floor but all of the recent training with her fellow cadets had given her much faster reflexes and combat instincts than she’d ever had in her life. Without questioning what was happening she immediately rolled to her feet and dove over her bed, seeking cover while holding tightly to Spike. Just in time as it turned out, for her unknown assailant sent another arrow of blue light towards her, missing by scant inches as it blasted a hole in her bed.

She’d caught only a brief glimpse of the person attacking her as she went over her bed. A slim figure, bundled in white robes and cloak, with a face covered by a wrapping like some desert assassin. The eyes had been covered by a pair of black goggles, and no hair showed either from under the cloth wrappings covering the figure’s head. No clue to their identity at all, not even if they were male or female, as the robes were too baggy to tell. Even the assassin’s bow was just a normal, plain bow of pure blue energy, much like the one Twilight summoned, or indeed any Quincy with basic training. Was that because they were another cadet!? Or was that because they were merely trying to further conceal who they were by revealing no clues, such as a personalized bow?

Whoever they were they were either very smart, very brazen, or both. But why were they trying to kill her!?

There was hardly any time to think about that, and she doubted her would-be killer was up to answering questions. Her mind worked quickly, assessing what needed to be done in the fraction of time it took for her to get behind the bed. Spike was still in her hands, and she had to set him down to summon her bow. The dog was shaken, eyes wide as she said, “Spike, run for the door, now!”

Confusion might have kept him rooted in place, but Spike was nothing if not a loyal breed and while Twilight rarely used a commanding tone with him, when she did it triggered deep rooted and trained reflexes. He obeyed, and started to rush for the door, despite it still being closed.

In the same instant Twilight rolled onto her back, her bow of pale blue light snapping into form in her hands. Power rushed into her legs as she activated Blut Arterie, enhancing her strength. She kicked the bed, and despite her frail form the power of the reishi flowing her limbs gave the strike superhuman force and the bed catapulted up like it’d been flung by a charging rhino. A split second later Twilight fired her bow in an arc, blasting several holes through her bed while sending one final arrow to her door, splintering it.

Feathers exploded out of her bed along with shards of wood, and she heard her assailant let out a grunt. Twilight was already leaping to her feet and sprinting for her shattered door as a hail of arrows sliced through the remains of her bed. Fortunately the fact that she’d already blasted it first had created enough cover that the assassin’s shots struck where Twilight had been an eyeblink earlier rather than catching her.

Spike and Twilight got through the remains of her door and out into the hallway beyond. Spike, ears flat and eyes fearful, looked to Twilight for further instructions. She only had one to give.

“Run!”

All they had to do was find help. Twilight wasn’t about to try to stand toe to toe with an assailant whose abilities she wasn’t sure of. If this wasn’t a fellow cadet then whoever they were would almost certainly have superior skills to her. And even if she felt confident of winning, Spike was here, and she didn’t want to risk him getting hurt.

Heading deeper into the castle Twilight headed left, sprinting down the hall with Spike keeping pace behind her. She heard the faint buzz of noise behind her followed by a spike of spiritual energy. The assassin had used Hirenkyaku to flicker out into the hall and give chase, their own bow already aiming for her back. Twilight threw herself to the side while aiming her bow backwards, firing a desperate volley.

Her arrows didn’t hit their mark, but they served to throw off the assassin’s aim ever so slightly, enough that their own arrow grazed a painful trail past Twilight’s shoulder, cutting flesh but not embedding itself as it might have. She gasped at the pain but didn’t lose her focus, continuing down the hall and nearly skidding along the carpeted floor as the hall bent to the right towards a flight of stairs that went both up and down.

“Somebody help!” she managed to shut, despite being low on breath. She didn’t know how many people actually lived in this wing of the castle, but at this point anyone showing up might deter the assassin.

She considered using Hirenkyaku, but the problem was that she’d end up leaving Spike behind. She couldn’t carry him and use that high-speed power, because Spike would have no Blut Vene to protect him from the breakneck momentum of the technique. She’d just have to keep running and hope to run into someone before-

With a rush of wind the assassin appeared next to her, not at all burdened by anything that kept them from using Hirenkyaku to its fullest. Twilight spun to react but was too slow to avoid taking a kick straight to her gut that was strong enough to smash her into the wall with enough force to crack the plaster. Fortunately her training reflexes had kicked in enough enough that she’d been able to activate Blut Vene to absorb some of the blow. A good thing, too, given the assassin had clearly been using Blut Arterie to boost the strength of their blow, and if Twilight hadn’t similarly enhanced herself for defense she’d probably have several ruptured organs instead of just some painful bruising.

Not allowing the cobwebs filling her head from the blow to keep her still she immediately ducked, one arrow from the assassin passing right over her head as she did so. Kneeling she fired a trio of shots straight ahead, forcing the white clad mystery killer to evade with Hirenkyaku’s speed. She’d anticipated this, and had already aimed her bow for the ceiling where she calculated her foe would appear and unleashing several arrows. The assassin flashed into view again, bow at the ready, but Twilight’s arrows were already striking the ceiling and blasting out a shower of stone and plaster chunks that rained down on the cloaked person.

Several chunks hit the individual, and Twilight heard a muffled, and possibly feminine grunt, but it didn’t slow the assassin down much and even as Twilight made a leap for the stairwell heading down she felt an arrow pierce her left leg. She let out a short, sharp scream, tucking into a roll down the stairs that battered her, although Blut Vene kept that from doing any real harm. Her leg, however, burned with intense pain and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to put weight on it.

She turned, bracing herself against the wall, and tried to raise her bow in time to target the assassin. She could see she wouldn’t be fast enough. The assassin had already reached the top of the stairs before she’d even turned around, and as Twilight raised her bow the other Quincy already had theirs trained on her for a shot that would likely pierce right to her heart.

“Twilight!” Spike jumped from the side, growling as his bit into the assassin’s arm. The arrow meant for Twilight’s heart instead hit the wall beside her head while the assassin let out a frustrated, if still muffled, howl and flung Spike hard down the stairs. Twilight gasped as she saw him smack into the wall beside her and crumple to the floor.

“Spike!”

Now ignoring the pain, she forced herself up and her bow seemed to flare with teal light. She could feel magic boiling up inside her now, her eyes taking on a darker purple hue as flickers of teal magic trailed around them like flame.

“How dare you!?” she screamed, her bow blasting out a powerful arrow wreathed in an aura of flaring magic. The assassin used their own bow to block the arrow, which burst like a ball of witchfire. Her attacker seemed taken aback by this, staggering back and brushing off the embers clinging to their robes. Twilight managed to stand now, despite her bleeding leg, and aimed another magic engorged arrow.

However now the assassin reached behind them and withdrew something from their robes, some sort of slim and flattened silver tube with a square hook on the end. As this was drawn out in their left hand a beam of deep blue light shot from the open end of the tube. To Twilight’s surprise this light formed a slim blade of light.

When Twilight fired her next arrow the assassin used this light blade to slash the arrow out of the air, the reishi particles of the arrow seeming to be cut apart and lose their cohesiveness. What in the world was this!? She thought Quincy didn’t use swords, only ranged weapons?

Well, her answer shortly came as the assassin spun the blade in their hand and actually notched it in their bow, pulling back to turn the seeming sword into a rather large and imposing arrow as several jets of light appeared from the tube to form the ‘feathers’ of the arrow.

Twilight’s anger was only matched by a sudden realization that she couldn't block or avoid this next shot. So she resolved to take her killer with her, preparing to fire her own arrow and gladly invite the boiling dark magic inside her to lend her hand in striking vengeance on whoever this person was that had attacked her for no reason and hurt her best friend!

Suddenly arrows flew in from above, fired from the upper stairwell, one a potent and focused bolt, two more a twisting pair of twins that moved at odd angles. The assassin was forced to dodge backwards from the shots, abandoning the shot at Twilight and instead using that strange blade-like arrow to cut down the arrows coming at them. Up above Twilight saw Sugarcoat leap over the stairwell’s banister and land on the hallway, already firing another arrow at the assassin while another girl, Lemon Zest, waved to Twilight from the next floor of stairs.

“Hey Twi, s’up? You having some late night sparring or what?”

“Lemon, cut the small talk and get down here!” Sugarcoat said sharply as she kept up a steady stream of shots at the assassin, who was still deflecting them with that unusual blade of light but was now also slowly backing down the hallway. Lemon Zest zipped down down, vaulting over the stairs to land beside Sugarcoat and add her own bow’s power to the attack.

Twilight, still surging with dark emotions from the magic inside her, started to go up the stairs, but even the cold focus of that anger didn’t allow her to ignore how injured her leg was and she stumbled to her knees. Her mind now narrowing to a black tunnel of focus and logical thought dedicated to destroying the enemy that attacked her in her home, she instinctively yanked on her reiatsu, bringing out strands of reishi from her body and attaching them to her wounded leg like puppet strings. Despite the horrible pain, which her mind kept trying to refuse to acknowledge, she now used the reishi strings to pull her leg along and stiffly walk up the stairs.

However by the time she got up there the assassin had apparently had enough of Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest. Still blocking the cadets’ arrows with the shining blade of reishi, the assassin dismissed their bow with their other hand and pulled out a ginto tube from the fold of their robes. Tossing the tube, the assassin cut it with the reishi blade and scattered its alchemic water into the air. The water then reacted with the air, charged with reishi to burst into a field of dense grayish blue smoke that billowed out into the hallway.

Twilight growled and fired a arrow of teal magic fire into the smoke, but it seemed to only burst harmlessly against the end of the hall. When the smoke cleared a few moments later the assassin was nowhere to be seen.

She was not interested in allowing an enemy that had tried to kill her to walk free. Destroying such distractions was a necessity. She stepped forward but felt hands on her shoulder. She turned cold eyes towards Sugarcoat, ready to brush this new distraction aside, but Sugarcoat’s voice reached in past the black tunnel with pointed words that snapped Twilight right back to reality.

“Twilight, Spike needs help!”

Spike. Much as had been the case on that dark day at Canterlot High, the thought of her oldest and closest friend tore right through the chill fingers of the magic that gripped her mind. Teal fire faded from her eyes and she all but tripped over herself trying to get back down the stairs to Spike. She forgot how she was even using the reishi strings she’d formed to control her wounded leg, having to now grip the banister to keep from falling. Sugarcoat was at her side instantly, wrapping Twilight’s arm around her shoulder to help her down the stairs to where Spike still lay.

Twilight dropped to her knees beside the still canine, very careful not to shake him. Depending on his injuries any movement might make things much worse. She instead very gently checked him for breathing and a pulse. Finding both she sighed in relief, but only briefly. He could still be suffering from any number of internal injuries. She didn’t see any blood, but her breath caught as she saw his front left paw was twisted at an angle that clearly showed the bone was broken.

As she examined Spike, Sugarcoat glanced back up the stairs. “Lemon Zest, any sign of the attacker?”

Lemon Zest, bow still out and pointed down the hallway, shook her head while blowing a bubble with her bubblegum, afterwards saying, “Nope. Can’t even feel a trace of them. Either they’re waaaaay long gone, or are, like, crazy good at masking themselves.”

By now there were distant shouts coming from both above and below, as more people had woken up to the noise and were investigating. Sugarcoat stood, “I’ll go get medical help. You two stay put and don’t move. Lemon Zest, keep watch.”

“Can do!” Lemon Zest replied with a somewhat lazy version of a Quincy salute.

Sugarcoat sighed, giving Twilight’s shoulder a brief squeez, “I’ll be back with help soon.”

As Sugarcoat left Twilight just remained by Spike, not able to do much more than very tenderly stroke his head.

Episode 64: Familiar Faces in Unexpected Places

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Episode 64: Familiar Faces in Unexpected Places

Her new body felt as comfortable and natural to her as her original siren form, despite its smaller, more humanoid appearance. For the first time since being banished from Equestria Adagio had a profoundly potent sense of control and power that quite frankly even dwarfed the height of magic siphoning she and her sisters had achieved as sirens back in their homeworld. She felt like with every step she could crack the stone floor of Las Noches' vast corridors beneath her feet, or a simple sweep of her hand could level the hundred meter tall walls to piles of rubble. Adagio, being nobody’s fool, was aware that feelings didn’t equate to reality, but she was eager to test out if she was as strong as she actually felt at this moment.

She’d led her companions back to Las Noches as quickly as she dared allow the massive, but injured Gaw move, with Di Roy resting on Gaw’s broad back while Ember kept pace behind the group. Adagio could feel Ember’s eyes on her, and didn’t bother looking back to acknowledge her friend’s continued stare. There’d be time enough for that confrontation when Di Roy wasn’t bleeding from a hole in his stomach and Gaw wasn’t dripping her own blood like rain from a rooftop across the ground she trod over. Unfortunately Adagio’s evolution to the Vasto Lorde form had not come conveniently pre-equipped with healing powers.

At least she didn’t think that had been added to her bag of tricks. She thought of the vast, dark blue depths of the lake her transformation had brought forth into Hueco Mundo’s endless dry desert. A lake that had both been there, and hadn’t. Even Adagio wasn’t entirely certain what had happened down there in the Forest of Menos, when she’d put that fool Jester Face and his cronies to the slaughter and consumed their power.

Her siren gem had resonated with the power that saturated in that place. Not just her spiritual power as a Hollow, but the siren magic inherent in her gem. Her transformation had been a matter of Hollow evolution, but powerful Equestrian magic had awakened both inside her and inside that underground cavern. That lake wasn’t really a lake. Adagio couldn’t be certain, not yet, but she suspected it was-

“Hey, Adagio?” Ember’s voice cut through Adagio’s thoughts, and she turned her had to cast a look back at the Arrancar without breaking strike.

“Yes?” she replied with smooth calm, expecting to be questioned on the nature of her power over song and how it could manipulate others. There was no way Ember hadn’t considered what had happened to her during the Quincy raid.

To Adagio’s mild surprise Ember said, “I know you want to meet with my dad first, but I don’t think these two will last long enough for that. The horde doesn’t exactly have any healers among us, so either Gaw or Di Roy might bleed out if we chat up my old man first.”

Adagio didn’t need to give Gaw or Di Roy’s wounds any further inspection to agree with Ember’s assessment. She hadn’t been planning to call in on Torch for simple courtesy's sake, she’d been hoping the man either had a competent healer on hand, or could point her in the direction of one. More to the point, Ember and Garble had both been badly wounded in their fight during the attack on the Quincy, and had recovered quickly enough.

“How did you heal so fast after fighting Garble if your father’s horde lacks any healers?” Adagio asked, slowing her stride.

“That’s just good breeding.” Ember said with a shrug, “I pretty much inherited dad’s toughness and quick healing. Long as I’m still breathing I can eventually recover from almost anything on my own, no outside help needed. And Garble’s still down an arm, last I checked, so I wouldn’t say he healed quickly. He’s just too stubborn and stupid to know when to stay down.”

A problem that can be easily fixed, given the right timing and provocation, Adagio thought with a rueful grin. “Ah, well then what are our alternatives? Do you know anyone in this place who does have healing skills?”

She didn’t much like the look of uncertainty that bloomed like a shadow crossing the moon over Ember’s face. “Uh, only two, and both of them could be a problem.”

“Speaking as the guy whose intestines are trying to go on holiday, let me just say I think we can handle whatever problems crop up.” said Di Roy, half hanging off of Gaw’s back. Gaw, for her part, swished her long tail behind her and seemed to just be concentrating on remaining standing.

Adagio turned to Ember and leaned on her new trident, a weapon that seemed to smoothly fit into her hand as easily as if it was a part of her limb. “Go on, Ember, let’s hear it.”

“Well, the first one is Grogar-”

“No.” Adagio said.

“Not just no but Hell no!!” Di Roy agreed.

“Gaw.” said Gaw, rather noncommittally.

Ember sighed heavily, “He is one of the only people in all Las Noches who is an actual expert on Hollow biology. Don’t get me wrong, I understand he’s a sick old bastard and we can’t possibly trust him, but if we’re talking medical expertise...”

“There is no way in this hell or any other version of it that I’m letting that rotting waste of flesh touch any of my people!” Adagio said with the sharp intensity of a thunderclap that echoed through the massive entry corridor. Ember finished, but held Adagio’s gaze firmly.

“You think I like the idea either? But I’m mentioning him first because I don’t know if the second option is any better.”

“Any option is better than crawling to that filthy goat for any favors, especially considering I’m quite certain he’s not done trying to manipulate me.” Adagio said, gripping her trident tightly and wishing for a moment she did have Grogar here, just to see if she could ram the weapon through his throat. It was a passing fancy, as not only would that have drastically negative ramifications to her standing among the Arrancar, but she still desired to make his end prolonged and appropriately agonizing. Still, never hurt a girl to have fun fantasizing, so she contented herself with a few imagined throat stabbings... for fun.

“Besides, even if I was willing to seek his...ugh, ‘help’, we could never trust that he wouldn’t do something to either of their bodies besides just heal them. We could find one day he’d planted a bomb in one of them, or put a chip in their brain.” Adagio went on, recalling all that he’d done to her and not wishing that on those who were now sworn to her service.

“Not disagreeing with you Adagio, just pointing how limited our options actually are. Now about our second possibility, well...” Ember’s unease grew as she rubbed the back of her head and said, “How much do you know about the Fourth Espada?”

“Less than I’d prefer.” Adagio replied with interest, “Which is to say nothing at all. Do tell.”

“He’s the most recent addition to the ranks of the Espada, and from everything I’ve heard my father say of him he’s... moody.” Ember said with a distinct tension in her body that made her look like a wound up spring. Adagio sensed a flicker of anger in Ember in talking about the Fourth Espada, and the knowledge that this man was the most recent addition to the Arrancar’s top ten elite was interesting, given his high position among their number.

“Just how recently are we talking about?” Adagio asked.

“I dunno, five or six years ago, I think, is when he first showed up in Las Noches. Nobody knew where he came from, and at first he didn’t do anything.” Ember seemed unnerved by her own memories, “He just sort of wandered the fortress like some damned phantom. Butchered anyone that gave him trouble, but as long as you were smart enough to keep out of his way he’d just wander aimlessly. The Espadas ignored him at first, but then the old Sixth Espada, Ahuizotl, decided he’d had enough of this new upstart and decided to try teaching him a lesson.”

Her interested piqued, Adagio leaned forward, “And?”

“And nowadays Guto’s the Sixth Espada and Ahuizotl is slumming it as a Privaron out in some far flung region, minus a couple of limbs.” Ember stated frankly, hissing through her teeth in one part admiration, one part apprehension. “That’s what clued everyone into just how powerful this new guy was. Lord Tirek himself had to get involved at that point. Now when those two duked it out I could feel the whole fortress shake. It was the only time I’d ever seen dad look kind of... scared. Lord Tirek won, of course. He’s the First Espada. But he didn’t kill the new guy. Nope, Tirek was impressed enough to offer him a place among the Espada. Now normally, since he kicked Auiztol's ass, that would’ve meant he’d have become the new Sixth, but Lord Tirek had sussed out his power enough to decide he belonged higher than that. Kinda irked my dad, but it wasn’t like he could gainsay Lord Tirek on the matter.”

It was an impressive story of a rapid rise to power that Adagio appreciated, but she remembered something Ember had said earlier that didn’t seem to match this series of events.

“Wait, you said your father was the last Vasto Lorde to become an Arrancar, so how could this Forth Espada be younger still, and yet stronger?”

Ember’s lips pursed sourly, “He’s not stronger than my dad! Ugh, it’s... okay this is frustrating to admit, but nobody knows what class of Hollow the Fourth Espada was. He arrived here as an Arrancar, and his reiatsu is weird. He might have been a Vasto Lorde, but its hard to tell. And again, not as strong as my dad, but Lord Tirek put him ahead on the totem pole because according to rumor the Fourth has some kind of special ability that’s considered worthy enough of a higher ranking than his power alone would suggest. In terms of raw reiatsu, my dad is stronger, but because of... argh, reasons he’s been losing ground in the Espada rankings. First Grogar’s bullshit poison from a duel ages ago weakened dad from being the previous Fourth, then this new guy shows up and claims the spot, blocking dad from getting the position back! It’s frustrating!”

Adagio felt a strong stab of sympathy for Ember. The girl was clearly agitated and angry by just talking about this Fourth Espada. And as emboldening as it was to hear a story of a relative newcomer being able to rise so far so fast in the Arrancar’s ranks Adagio noted the story didn’t make this mysterious Espada sound like the most helpful sort. No doubt this, combined with the issue of her father’s lost rank, was why Ember considered going to the Fourth Espada to be a secondary option, but why was he even on the table to begin with?

“I understand your frustrations Ember. I can see why you might prefer Grogar over this other Espada. But how does this relate to our current issue of terminally bleeding colleagues?”

“I’m getting to that. Just needed you to understand that we’re dealing with a weirdo who has a lot of power and a history of killing people that cross his path, while also happening to be one of the biggest roadblocks to my dad regaining his old rank.”

“From the story you tell it sounds as if he only kills when provoked.”

“Provoked, or someone just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Fourth’s moods are strange, Adagio. Everyone says he’s touched in the head. You don’t have to actually do anything for one of his mood swings to suddenly decide you’re a threat and then-” she make a cutting gesture across her throat. “Shrrrk, decapitation. I’ve seen bodies left outside his tower, okay? He’s not stable.”

Ember sucked in a deep breath and held up a finger, “However, he’s got one of the few actual healers in Las Noches as one of his Fraccion.”

“Really?” Adagio tapped one of her long, elegant clawed fingers against the chin of her mask, “I’m surprised he even has Fraccions, if he’s as antisocial as you suggest.”

“There happens to be one big gap in that rule.” Ember said, pointing to herself, “You remember how I said I’m a natural born Arrancar?”

“Yes, something along the lines of a one in a million rarity, yes?”

“Weeeellll, kinda. You see, it’s true when two Arrancar get it on, the chances of a child resulting from that are extremely low.” Ember’s face briefly reddened as she coughed, and glanced at the floor. “But, well, you might have noticed that there isn’t really much to do around Las Noches except either spar, eat, or...”

Di Roy sniggered from up above, “Or enter the bone zone.”

Ember huffed out a growling sight and glared up at him. “I’m forbidding you from using the term ‘enter the bone zone’ from henceforth, on pain of groin stomping.”

“Agreed.” Adagio said flatly, and Gaw gave a grunt of agreement as well.

Di Roy scoffed, “I’m unappreciated in my time.”

With a sigh Adagio gave the bleeding man a rueful glare, then returned her attention to Ember. “So you’re saying natural born Arrancar are not that uncommon, despite low fertility rates, due to simple lack of Arrancar having nothing better to do with their time than fight or fornicate?”

“Pretty much. I don’t go in for the casual flings the way others do, but just trust me, you want to avoid certain parts of the Warrens if you have a... prudish temperament.”

Adagio didn’t, but that was neither here nor there. “So what does this have to do with the Fourth Espada’s Fraccions?”

“He’s got a soft spot for orphans.” Ember stated simply, a brief note of sadness entering her voice, “As it turns out, most Arrancar are shit parents. Or rather they’re not inclined to be parents at all. Most abandon their offspring not long after they’re born. Some have enough Hollow instinct to survive on their own. A lot... don’t. I’m one of the lucky ones who had a pair of parents that were worth a damn. But there were others who weren’t so lucky, and had to scrap by to survive any way they could.”

Understanding flashed in Adagio’s mind and despite herself she gave a knowing smile beneath her mask, “Ah, until the Fourth Espada came along.”

“Exactly. He started gathering up many of the abandoned Arrancar children in Las Noches. There weren’t many, mind you. I think maybe a couple dozen, tops. But he gathered them in his tower and raises them as his own. Now the two oldest among those children are his Fraccion, and from what I’ve heard one of them has pretty powerful healing abilities. Granted that’s just what I’ve heard, I got no proof of this, but if you really want to risk it we could try seeking an audience with the Fourth and see if he’d be willing to have his Fraccion heal our friends in exchange for... I don’t know, the negotiations will be up to you I guess.”

Ember didn’t sound like she was thrilled with this idea and Adagio could see why. If the Fourth Espada was as mentally unstable as the stories claimed he might react violently to being approached for a favor by complete strangers, especially ones who might not have anything of value to offer him. It wasn't as if Grogar was a better option, however, and Adagio was willing to take a chance with the Fourth Espada if it meant not having to deal with her former 'master.

"I'm not sure yet what I might offer him in exchange for his help, but perhaps at the very least he may have some respect for your father, given he seems to care about how natural born Arrancar are treated. Perhaps our connections to your father will at least encourage the Fourth to hear us out?"

Ember glowered at that, crossing her arms under her breasts, “Maybe. I... guess dad’s never actually said a word to badmouth the guy. Argh, I may have even heard dad say once or twice that he respected the Fourth’s attitude.”

“A cause for common ground, then.” Adagio said, her mind already working towards the meeting to come. She’d already decided she vastly preferred to take her chances dealing with this unusual Espada rather than go seek any favors from Grogar. “Where is his tower? And also does he have a name, or what? You just keep calling him the Fourth.”

Ember blinked, “Oh, right. Well his tower is easy to find. Northwest side of the inner fortress, big black thing with a cracked dome at the top. As for the name, far as I know he didn’t have one when he got here. Lord Tirek named him ‘Lament’ after raising him to the Espada ranks, but only he and the other Espada really ever use it. To everyone else he’s just ‘the Fourth’.”

Strange, but Adagio had heard stranger. With a shrug she turned back down the corridor that would eventually lead out into the vast interior area of Las Noches. “Very well, to the Fourth it is, then.”

----------

Twilight Velvet was about ready to rip the Silburn down brick by brick and raze every corner of its foundation until she found whoever was responsible for the attack on her little girl! Fury poured through her as she paced the meeting room, her husband watching her with concern from his seat at the table.

“Velvet, you’re going to ignite the carpet if you keep pacing like that.” Night Light said, and Velvet nearly exploded at him.

“How can you joke about this Night Light!? Somebody tried to murder our daughter! We ought to be dismantling the grounds searching for the culprit, not mildly awaiting His Majesty’s pleasure!”

Night Light folded his hands beneath his chin and observed his wife. She gave him a challenging glare. She loved the man dearly but he had always had a bad habit of keeping his emotions hidden, even from her, when he was upset. And she knew he was as upset as she was! He was just forcing himself into that stone faced mask to keep up appearances. She wasn’t in the mood for that.

“Don’t give me that look. You know we should both be out there with the investigation team.” Velvet’s hands clenched until she felt her nails scraping past the skin of her palms. “At the very least we should be by Twilight’s side until the culprit is found.”

“His Majesty is wise to keep us on standby, Velvet. We’re too close to this to be trusted to maintain a clear and objective mindset, which is what a proper investigation needs. Considering this has happened so close to a major operation we can’t rule out this being part of a larger sabotage plot against us. His Majesty is merely enforcing some caution.” Night Light said, voice strained but reasonable. Velvet just wanted to blast the meeting table he was sitting at apart, so he couldn’t lean on it with his chin propped on his hands like that.

“And why not let us see our daughter!? She must be shaken beyond belief by this, and with her... condition I’m more worried than ever about her safety.”

Velvet had hated the notion of Twilight delving into studies on the foreign magic that had infected her from that damned other dimension. Between the incident with Cadence the other day and what had happened just now with the assassination attempt, Velvet was seriously questioning the wisdom of the King to encourage Twilight to pursue studying the magic. It was clearly too dangerous!

“Right now Twilight needs to rest, my love.” Night Light said, rising from his seat and coming around the table towards her. Velvet still glared at him, but didn’t stop him from putting his arms around her. Damned man could look so dopey eyed and understanding when he wanted to. “She’s already asleep, right next to Spike, and I don’t imagine either will wake until the morning.”

Mention of Spike’s name did cause Velvet to relax somewhat and draw out a resigned sigh as she leaned into her husband. “That dog deserves a medal. And to think I thought it was foolish to let her have a pet, back then. Let it never be said I can’t admit when I’m wrong about something, we should get her a whole pack of dogs, if all of them could be as loyal and brave as that one.”

Spike’s injuries would have been severe in any situation where he’d have needed to rely on conventional medicine. The courageous canine would live to bark another day, although he’d need some extensive reishi infusions to help replenish and reconstruct fractured bones and cracks along his skull. A week or so of treatment would see him at Twilight’s side again. It would have been faster were he a Quincy and not a magic infused animal, but the doctor’s would work around his unusual physiology as best they could. Once he was awake Twilight Velvet hoped the dog might shed some clue on the identity of the one who attacked her daughter. A scent trail would be nice.

The door to the meeting room opened and both Velvet and Night Light turned to see two other Sternritter enter the room. One was an older man, perhaps five or six years senior over Night Light. Heavyset but with a build more like a boxer who’d gone a tad soft in the middle rather than being overweight, the man’s dark purple-blue skin worked well with his slicked back head of silver hair. Faded green eyes looked with sympathy at Night Light and Velvet as the man’s strong chinned face offered an apologetic smile of greeting.

“Velvet, Night, how you two holding up?” the man asked in a rich, faintly drawling accent.

Night Light returned the man’s faint smile with a wane one of his own, “Been better, Gladmane. Not every night someone takes a shot at one of my kids. Hoping somebody out there is busting their ass figuring out who it was. Any word on that yet?”

“Not as of yet, I’m afraid.” said the other Sternritter as she drew the door closed and went to lean a hip against the meeting table while eyeing the rest of the room as if faintly foul odor was hanging in it.

She was a tall willow of a woman, with pale, mint green skin. Dark blue eyes hung large and expressive behind a thin black, see through veil. Her hair, bleached to a stark white save for one deep purple band in the middle, hung in a voluminous ponytail that nearly reached down to her ankles. Even her Quincy uniform was a bit ostentatious, with silver rhinestones embedded along the sleeves and pant legs, with her jacket collar popped out, along with a deeper V-cut in front that showed off some of the woman’s not inconsiderable figure.

She looked at Velvet with a small but not disingenuous smile, “We’ll discover the responsible party in due time, Velvet, don’t fret.”

“Is that why you and Gladmane are here, Coloratura? To keep me and my husband reassured?” Velvet asked, somewhat pointed, and Gladmane stepped forward holding up a placating hand.

“Now, now, no need for that kind of tone. We’re not your keepers, we’re just here to keep you company while the others investigate.”

“In other words you’re to guard us in case one of us,” Night Light flicked his eyes towards Velvet, who rolled hers, “Decided to take matters into their own hands and started, I don’t know, tearing up the Silburn in a fit of parental rage.”

Coloratura’s smile turned thin as a sheet of black ice. “Company, dear Night Light. We’re just here to keep you company.”

“And never pay any mind to the fact that your Schrift just happens to be one of the only ones capable of counteracting my own.” Night Light said with a heavy nod, “Sure, I’ll buy that.”

Her dainty shoulders merely shrugged, her razor smile never faltering nor her voice being one shred less polite and friendly. “I suppose it is a strange coincidence my Octave can counter your Command, or that Gladmane’s Weight can effectively prevent Velvet from using her Vengeance. But we’re all friends here, so why dwell on that? His Majesty just wants to ensure the rest of the night proceeds with no further... drama. Your son and soon to be daughter-in-law would be here too if they weren’t already neck deep in final preparations in the Hueco Mundo side of the Silburn.”

Velvet’s mood turned volcanic once more, heating her skin as she took a step towards Coloratura. “Drama? Someone tried to murder my little girl!”

Coloratura nodded gravely, the strands of her lengthy ponytail bobbing with the motion. “And no one is more upset by the fact than you, understandably, but believe me Velvet when I say that His Majesty’s fury is nearly your equal in this matter. I have known the man somewhat longer than you and I know his moods.” The pale woman’s face grew grave, darkening with deep shadows. “It has been a long time since I’ve seen him quite this... incensed. Whoever thought targeting your child was a good idea, Velvet, I can assure you they’ve made a severe error in judgment and it is only a matter of time before they are found. Then I’m certain His Majesty will give you all the bloody vengeance your heart could desire.”

“And on the bright side, you could use this as an excuse to patch things up with your kid.” Gladmane said, and at the look both Velvet and Night Light gave him the broad shouldered man just cracked a welcoming grin, “Hey now, I’m just saying, everyone’s heard the rumors. You and your little tike have been having some friction, but you may as well use this as a chance to smooth all that over. Family bonding in times of danger, right?”

Velvet was ready to snap at him for bringing up something that wasn’t any of his business, but Night Light interjected first, with a much more even handed tone. “Thank you Gladmane for the advice. I was hoping before all this to ease my family’s tensions anyway, so as you say this may give us all the more reason to come together as a family.”

“What can I say, I’m a people person, and I just hate seeing people not getting along, especially family.” said Gladmane, smoothly walking over to one of the seats at the table to spin the chair around and sit down, leaning his bulk over the chair’s back. “So in the meantime, how we gonna pass the time before His Majesty gives the all clear? Anyone here like playing cards?”

----------

Sombra stood like an onyx sculpture in the hallway where the attack upon Twilight Sparkle had taken place, watching with eyes of hard flint as several of his Sternritter finished examining the area. He had already swept the area himself, but was not so arrogant as to assume his subordinates couldn’t see something he hadn’t. Still he wasn’t surprised when he saw Prim Hemline approach him with a sour look on her face. Small statured with short cut, faded pink hair and unremarkable gray skin the woman seemed positively plain compared to some of her compatriots, but Prim was one of the sharper among his Sternritter, with a fine eye for details.

“Report.” he commanded simply, and Prim gave a crisp salute.

“As you no doubt have seen for yourself already Your Majesty, the perpetrator left no trace of their reishi behind on the premise.” she began in a swift, simple tone that didn’t belie the frustration in her eyes. “We’ve checked all areas of the hall, Twilight Sparkle's room, and much of the area outside her window and along this entire wing of the Silburn. There are no trails of unusual reishi that don’t belong to people who already belonged in the area. The soldats I’ve dispatched to check the armory have reported back that no Seele Schneider's were missing from storage, either.”

Sombra wasn’t surprised. It’d have been incredibly sloppy of the assassin to use a Seele Schneider taken from the actual armory. It had to have been one the would be killer had constructed themselves, off the books. That didn’t narrow the list of suspects too terribly much, but it did largely eliminate any of Twilight’s fellow cadets as possible suspects. None of them should have the expertise necessary to build such a weapon on their own. Unless of course one of the cadets was receiving training beyond Spitfire’s Academy. Many of them had parents who were either high enough ranked soldats to know the use and construction of a Seele Schneider, or in a few cases were children of some of his Sternritter. An ambitious enough conspirator could use an easily influenced cadet as a tool for this attempted murder.

If indeed that was what it was, and the attack upon Twilight hadn't an intent besides her death. After all the attacker had fled before finishing the job. That might be due to the heroic arrival of cadets Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest, or it could have been due to the assassin having already achieved their objective.

Which was what? To sow chaos? To generate suspicion among his people before a critical battle? To frighten Twilight specifically?

King Sombra was not used to being put in the position of the one not in the know. He detested this situation for that almost as much as he did for the threat to Twilight Sparkle’s safety. Indeed he was a bit surprised at his own bubbling wrath. It reminded him of early days in the Germanic countryside, ravaging any enemy that dared to slight him and his budding kingdom. Right now a part of him desperately wanted to find the one who had spat upon the very sanctity of his home and put them to the torch. Perhaps quite literally.

The anger, he knew, was out of proportion to the level of threat to his resources. Twilight Sparkle was still just a cadet. An exceedingly promising one, with powers he wished to see come to proper bloom, but he shouldn't be this angry about an attempt on her life. It was a feeling altogether too personal for someone of his position to afford, and he knew the reason was because the girl reminded him of another from those early days...

For a moment he could see a similarly purple, youthful face, sporting a idealistic smile filled with life. So very much like Twilight’s.

Enough of that, his mind chided him sternly. You have more pressing concerns. Deal with this matter, and put girls long dead out of your mind. And currently living ones for that matter.

Sombra kept his face neutral, considering the situation. For all his people’s great fear of him, for all of his admittedly vast power, he was far from omnipotent, and not even remotely omniscient. Sometimes he thought it would be nice to be able to divine the future, as much of a headache as that would be, but among his many powers that was not one of them. As such he was ill suited to actually help in the investigation. Not unless he wished to strip every single Sternritter of their powers and enact the kind of tortures upon his people he hadn’t unleashed in generations, and Sombra was not willing to sink back to that level just yet.

Not that it wasn’t tempting.

Prim Hemline was patiently awaiting his command, and Sombra kept his darker thoughts clear from his voice as he said, “I want every Sternritter, 1st rank soldat, and Academy cadet to be questioned for established alibis. Search quarters for any materials that could be used for the construction of a Seele Schneider.”

“It shall be done, Your Majesty. Shall I interrupt Shining Armor and Cadence’s preparations as well?” Prim asked, referring to the fact that the engaged couple were working closely together on establishing the operations staging area in Hueco Mundo. Neither one of them would have been notified yet of the attack on Twilight. Sombra was nearly one hundred percent certain neither had anything to do with the attack, either.

“Send a message conveying what has transpired, but they are to remain on their tasks.” Sombra said, “Once you’ve done that, continue the investigation and keep me informed of any new developments.”

“And what of the girl herself, Your Majesty? She is currently being watched over by Soarin, but I’ve already been getting requests from some of her fellow cadets to visit her. Shall she remain isolated until the investigation concludes?”

Sombra harbored concerns that one of those cadets might be the culprit, yet he already knew that if he tried to keep Twilight Sparkle isolated that she’d resist it. Out of the members of his Sternritter who might be suspect, Soarin was near the bottom of the list. He was a loyal and straightforward warrior, his only weakness being his lack of personal initiative compared to his contemporaries like Spitfire and Lightning Dust. Sombra trusted Soarin to keep watch on Twilight, and it was doubtful the assassin would be foolish enough to try another direct attack.

“If they wish to see her, they may.” he said, “But not until the morning after she’s had a chance to rest.”

“As you will, Your Majesty.”

----------

Adagio sensed they were drawing attention to themselves. Gaw couldn’t really help it, being the hundred foot tall dinosaur Hollow that she was. The bleeding likely didn’t help, spreading a scent across the air of Las Noches’ miles wide interior that could likely be smelled in every corner of the fortress.

As Gaw had stomped along the flat sands, Adagio walking ahead of the group and Ember just a step or so behind, it was impossible not to notice the way several flitting shapes kept pace with them at a distance.

“I don’t suppose you know who our new friends are?” Adagio asked Ember, her eyes watching and catching the occasional glimpse of an Arrancar’s shape darting between the small dunes.

Ember’s nose twitched as she sniffed the air, “Hmm, with that musky scent I’d saw we’re dealing with some of Guto’s people.”

“The Sixth Espada, right?” Adagio asked, and Ember confirmed with a nod. “What are his servants doing tailing us?”

“I’m surprised we don’t have more following us by now.” Ember said, glancing at Adagio, “It's not everyday a new Vasto Lorde shows up in Las Noches. Guto’s horde probably caught Gaw’s blood scent and were coming to hunt fresh meat, but now that they sense you they’re keeping their distance and watching what we’re doing. We’re probably a confusing sight for anybody checking us out.”

“Ah, that would make sense. We’re an odd group, and we’ve clearly been through a fight. I suppose anyone seeing us would be curious and cautious.” Adagio said.

“I wouldn’t count on it lasting.” said Ember, “Give it enough time and they might take a crack at us, just for the fun of it. My dad’s protection doesn’t extend too far from his territory. Luckily once we’re in the Fourth’s area they’ll hold off for fear of him.”

“Speaking of which, is that not his tower?” Adagio pointed with her trident.

They were on the left side of Las Noches’ giant central tower, the one that pierced all the way up to the interior’s sky-like ceiling. It was almost directly to their right now, and an interior wall curved across the sandy expanse like a barrier, with multiple gatehouses built within. Past that, however, Adagio could clearly make out a tall, thin spire of black stone. not as tall as some of the towers dotting Las Noches’ interior, but still quite large, with a rounded dome top that was cracked down the center.

“That’s it.” Ember said, “Once we’re past the wall it should be a short walk to the tower itself. Doubt those tailing us will want to go past the wall, but they’ll probably be waiting for us once we come back the other way.”

“Hmm, well we’ll see about that when the time comes.” Adagio said, flexing one of her clawed hands, “I really do need to take this new body for a spin. Break it in properly.”

She was eager to flex her newfound powers and test just what her newly evolved state could do. It might be unfortunate to make an enemy of Guto by thrashing some of his people, but if he was going to set them on her anyway then that was hardly her fault. Besides, perhaps he had something of Torch’s attitude and would appreciate the demonstration of power more than for any injury his servants suffered.

Regardless, the opportunity didn’t present itself by the time they reached the separation wall that portioned off this quarter of Las Noches. The Arrancar following them kept a maddeningly safe distance, and didn’t do anything to reveal themselves more clearly besides one glimpse Adagio caught of one of them. A girl with dusky brown skin who looked no older than Ember, but with a wild head of short, tomboyish white hair, tipped purple. The only other detail Adagio caught was that the girl’s eyes were yellow, with a distinct avian quality to them.

Their stalkers didn’t follow Adagio’s and through the wall, the gatehouse of which stood open and empty. On the other side Adagio felt the air become almost immediately more chilled, and even the sand beneath her feet seemed to darken under the shadow of that looming black tower. No other buildings or towers were anywhere to be seen in this quarter of the fortress interior, the single black spire looking more and more like a gravestone the closer Adagio and her party got to it.

“Okay, this ain’t freakin’ ominous at all...” muttered Di Roy past painfully clenched teeth. “If I wasn’t bleeding out, I’d say we really shouldn’t be here.”

Gaw gave an unimpressed bark, glaring at the tower as if daring it to attack.

Up close the tower was perhaps thirty meters wide and easily three times that in height. The entrance was immediately obvious to see in the shape of a grand archway that reminded Adagio of the entrance to a cathedral, with several wide stone steps leading to two thick iron doors beneath a steepled arch. Perhaps the entrance to a tomb would’ve been more apt, given the cold atmosphere.

“So how do you plan to play this?” Ember asked, licking her lips.

Adagio stepped forward, “I’ll go in and... be very polite.”

“Alone?”

“If something goes wrong I’d prefer none of you be any closer to ground zero than necessary.” Adagio said, glancing at her companions with a imperious but equally soothing look. “Remain here and await my return.”

There was no ‘if I don’t’ scenario to add to that sentence. Adagio intended to come back, one way or another. This was just meant to be a simple negotiation, not a fight. Ember half raised her hand as if to offer some gesture of encouragement, but she faltered, eyes clouded with unease and doubts as she simply nodded to Adagio.

“Remember what I told you, and don’t get cocky. You might be a Vasto Lorde, but that’s not the same as being invincible.”

“The advice is appreciated.” Adagio said.

“Good luck, boss lady.” called down Di Roy, his words fading into a fit of pained coughing.

Gaw simply sat down on her haunches and snorted in a gesture that could have been encouragement or complete indifference. Oftentimes it was hard to tell with that one.

Adagio put all distractions from her mind as she walked up the steps and approached the doors. Large iron rings set at head height could be either knockers or used to perhaps pull the tall doors open. For politeness’ sake Adagio raised a claw to grip one of the rings and gave it a firm knock, the clang of metal on metal echoing over the still air.

At first nothing happened, but Adagio then heard a faint brush of motion as one of the doors opened with a disturbing lack of noise, just wide enough for her to slip into the dark interior beyond. Taking a deep breath Adagio took the seeming invitation and moved through the opening. The door closed just as silently behind her.

She found herself standing in a dimly lit, circular chamber that clearly took up the entire base diameter of the tower. The ceiling was perhaps twenty feet up, with several iron chandeliers providing faint light from flickering candle flame. Pillars rose in a circle around the edge of the chamber, and at the far end of the room two sets of stone stairs rose to meet each other at an apex where another set of doors waited. Adagio took several steps into the center of the room, looking left and right. She knew she was being watched. She could feel the eyes on her.

“Why have you come here?” asked a voice from the shadows. It was a woman’s voice, mature and calm.

“Better make it good, otherwise you won’t be taking another step in here.” said another voice, this one also belonging to a female, but far younger and brasher sounding. And also strangely familiar, in a grating sort of way.

Adagio couldn’t quite pinpoint where the voices were coming from, but reaching out with her Pesquisa she could sense that there were multiple reiatsus inside the chamber with her. The whole area was saturated with a thick miasma of something cold and heavy, like a fog drifting in from a stagnant sea, and that made it hard to determine specifics. She thought there were two reiatsu of some strength nearby, and a number of much weaker ones hiding near the edges of the room. She only saw a few shadows here and there, however. With a sigh she decided to stick to her plan of politeness, but to put a bit of her own... personal touch on it.

“While I appreciate a certain level of theatrics, I prefer to speak to people face to face.” she said, “Would you not at least do me the honor of showing yourselves to me before we parley?”

“We don’t have to-” began the brash, younger girl’s voice, but she was interrupted by the older one.

“That is acceptable. Fenice, let us greet our guest.”

“...Fine.”

From behind the pillars closest to the stairs two forms emerged. Both wore thick white garb that consisted of voluminous cloaks and hoods that obscured their other clothes and figures to the point where seeing more than a hint of the bottoms of their faces was impossible. Both were armed, however, one with a long but thin dagger, and the other with a massive and broad bladed greatsword nearly as tall as she was.

The woman with the dagger swept one arm across her chest and bowed courteously. “I am Roka. This is my sister, Fenice. We serve our Father as his eldest children and Fraccion. Now, Miss Adagio, what has brought you to our Father’s hall?”

Out of the corner of her eye Adagio saw several small shadows clutching to the edges of the other pillars of the room, poking little heads out to peer at her curiously with wide eyes. They were all cloaked in heavy white clothing, but she could tell they were children. However while they all had a look of curiosity, some of them looked at her with undisguised hunger as well. Adagio wondered what their ‘Father’ usually fed them. Well, Hollows usually had a very... one track diet.

Knowing well not to show any weakness she placed one hand confidently on her hip while tapping the end of her trident on the floor with just enough power to make it echo loudly through the chamber.

“You know my name? I’m honored. I hadn’t expected to quite be on the Fourth Espada’s radar yet.”

The girl with the greatsword made a scoffing noise, and something in that brash, insolent tone really tickled at Adagio’s brain. Where had she heard this girl’s voice before?

“You were barely worth Father’s attention, but me and Roka keep tabs on anyone who might be a threat to the children, and that especially includes your master.”

Adagio’s eyes narrowed dangerously, “Watch yourself. I no longer call that goat faced freak anything of the sort. I serve as an ally to Lord Torch now.”

“Sure you do.” spat the brash girl, and Adagio caught just a hint of flame orange hair beneath the hood, causing Adagio’s brow to shoot up behind her Hollow mask. It couldn’t be...?

Roka took a step forward, “You must understand Miss Adagio, Grogar is no friend to our Father, and we are all to familiar with his deceptive methods and manipulative nature. Given how long you’ve been his... pet, we can’t just take anything you say at face value, no matter how much you’ve apparently grown in power.”

Adagio’s grip on her trident tightened with an audible strain of clenching muscles. “I’ve been obtaining this power for the purpose of gaining freedom from that wretch, and exacting a proper vengeance on him in due time. I do not serve his ends, willingly or otherwise. Now I am here because I have vassals whose service to me has been loyal and dear, and they have taken grievous injuries while in my service. I have been told one among you is skilled in the healing arts, a rare gift among Hollow-kind. I wish to negotiate for those services.”

Fenice laughed, and that laugh more than anything confirmed what Adagio already suspected, but she said nothing while the girl made a dismissive gesture. “Oh please, what do you have to offer that would make us want to help you? Even if you weren’t probably still working for the old goat, you still don’t have anything Father would want.”

“How will you, or he for that matter, know unless you’re willing to hear me out?” Adagio asked simply, “Surely it costs you nothing to allow me to speak with him and make my offer?”

“Make your offer to us, Miss Adagio, and we will determine if it is good enough for Father’s ears.” Roka said.

“I think not.” was Adagio’s swift reply, “I didn’t come here to be rejected by the door greeters. I came to see the Fourth Espada. He can either accept or reject my offer, but I will see him before I go.”

It was a risk, but a calculated one. She knew that if she tried to negotiate solely with these two that they could stonewall her for as long as they wanted, and ultimately leave her and her allies hanging out to dry regardless of what kind of offer she made. Since the Fourth Espada was the only real authority here, his was the only opinion she really needed to affect, which she couldn’t do if she didn’t see him. Besides, she was getting tired of the attitude of this pair. She was seeing the Fourth Espada, one way or another.

Fenice spat to the side, one of her hands going to the protruding hilt of the greatsword over her right shoulder. “We could always toss your skinny, fish fillet butt right back out the door if you want to do this the hard way.”

“Are you truly willing to risk your life for your vassals in such a manner?” asked Roka, not going for her own weapon but instead remaining calmly still.

“I’ll do what I must for those who have sworn themselves to me. A leader cannot afford to do any less. Now will you allow me to see the Fourth or not?” Adagio demanded.

In answer Fenice drew forth her humongous blade with one hand, as if it weighed next to nothing. Without warning the girl sprang forward, and Adagio felt a moment of surprise when she realized the girl wasn’t using Sonido to move at such speed but some other power, one that produced a flicker of faint green light around her feet.

The girl came straight for Adagio, her greatsword swinging in a air splitting overhand chop. Not fearful, confident in her own newfound strength, Adagio raised her trident one handed to meet the attack, catching the blade between the left two prongs. There was a titanic crash of noise and blast of air from where the two weapons connected, the stone beneath them cracking from the blow. Adagio held firm, her one arm only straining slightly against the massive blade the girl was driving down with both arms.

“Urgh, tough one, aren’t you?”

“Be careful Fenice, she is a Vasto Lorde. I would not underestimate her.” said Roka, clearly not intending to join in the fight as she remained where she was, observing.

Up close Adagio could see more details about this girl’s weapon. The greatsword’s metal had a folded, wave-like pattern to it, forming ripples all up and down the blade’s length like blood veins. Its crossguard was a wide slab of red hued metal with either end shaped like a grasping bird’s claw. The handle was wide and thick cylinder of carved stone, the end of which was capped in a jutting spike. Feeling the weapon’s reiatsu, Adagio could tell this was no Arrancar Zanpaktou. It felt faintly of Hollow power, but this energy was something different.

It was much more akin to what Sunset’s friends wielded. What had they called it? Fullbring?

“Is this all you have?” Adagio asked casually as she held the girl’s weapon at bay, and underneath the girl’s hood she saw her opponent smirk in a way that was entirely too familiar. Adagio had only ever known one girl who smirked like that. But what was going on here!?

“Girl, I haven’t even started yet!” Fenice twisted on the handle of her sword, and suddenly the blade turned smoking red as unbelievable heat built up in the metal. The ripples in the sword pulsed with a flow of lava-like light, as if they truly were veins, carrying forth volcanic heat.

Adagio jumped back as multiple, curving claws of liquid crimson metal emerged from the greatsword and tried to rip into her. Adagio’s body moved with much faster reaction speed than her old one did, and she evaded the attack easily enough, but was still impressed by the way the living molten metal consumed parts of the ground in bubbling pools of melting rock. It was if Fenice’s sword was blossoming with live lava, dripping from the sword in a sizzling hiss.

The girl didn’t give Adagio a moment to breathe, laughing as she jumped in with another burst of emerald light and spun her oversized blade in a massive arc. Molten liquid boiled around the blade, coating it as swung. Adagio, not interested in dragging this affair out, raised her trident and drew forth her own power.

She felt herself connected all the way back to the lake in the deserts beyond Las Noches. She felt that cold, deep dark place and the power residing within. She drew it out, drew it through herself, and felt the heat of the flames dissipate around her as the air grew cold and wet.

Water, brackish and dark, formed into a tight, compact sphere at the tip of her trident and Adagio unleashed it in a thin beam of highly pressurized liquid. The water struck Fenice’s sword and the water hissed and bubbled against the trails of magma flowing from the blade while the sheer water pressure halted Fenice’s swing in mid-air.

The girl let out a surprised shout, but Adagio was already moving. She flew above Fenice and waved her trident. More water formed, this time in a wide wave that she then sent crashing down towards her foe. Fenice saw the wave coming and Adagio saw her smirk turn into a snarl.

“Piss off with your waterworks! This ain’t SeaWorld!”

She slashed with her blade, which now blazed from edge to tip like a solid shard of magma, and cleaved the water wave in half, but Adagio just gestured with her trident and the water flowed around the girl like a living snake, circling her and then compacting into a sphere that engulfed her.

“I’ll try not to drown your sister, but I do hope you can calm her down so we can resolve this waste of time.” Adagio told Roka, but the woman just smiled and shook her head.

“I wouldn’t underestimate Fenice, either, Miss Adagio. Her sword is not so easily quenched, and the more angry she becomes-”

Adagio’s sphere of water began to bubble and steam, until a crimson light shone through it and then exploded in a pillar of blood red fire and geysering lava.

“-the more potently her power erupts.”

Fenice was wreathed in a cloak of pure red fire and dripping molten metal. Neither her flesh nor clothes were touched by the flames, but they clung to her like a second cloak. Her blade was similarly covered in a roaring inferno of the deep red flames, the edge of the greatsword bleeding with droplets of liquid fire that boiled the ground beneath her feet.

Beneath the hood of her cloak, Fenice’s eyes flared their rage at Adagio.

“Let’s see your stupid squirt gun handle this!” Fenice said in a seething hiss as she inverted her greatsword in front of her and stabbed the lava coated tip into the floor.

Adagio wasn’t certain what the girl was planning, but she didn’t let her guard down and carefully watched for the attack to come. When it did happen, it came from behind Adagio, slightly to the left of her back where one of the pillars suddenly boiled red and a jet of lava shot out of the stone like a bullet. Adagio turned swiftly and deflected the attack with her trident, wreathing it in a tight coil of water that steamed on contact with the red hot liquid.

More spots on other pillars began to turn molten red, and more along the ceiling and floor, all apparently under Fenice’s direction as more small jets of lava started to fire at Adagio from all sides. She bent and twirled through the assault, moving with sensual grace to narrowly avoid what blasts she could while using her trident to deflect the ones she couldn’t.

“I’m growing tired of this.” she muttered, and with a burst of power she pushed her aura outward. A compact and powerful sphere of jet black water formed around her body, and acted as a shield against the incoming lava jets. She floated there for several moments, letting Fenice’s barrage wash itself over her shield of swirling water as she gazed down at the girl with a challenging smirk.

“Tch, fine, we’ll play it your way.” Fenice said and hefted her sword, leaping up into the air and thrusting its molten tip straight into the sphere of water. Adagio’s trident intercepted the sword, and the water boiled around her and then burst from the heat, but Adagio herself remained largely unharmed as she held the sword at bay.

“Any more cards to play, little firebrand, or are we reaching the end of this dance?” Adagio asked. She could feel Fenice’s reiatsu pressing against her own. The girl was hardly weak. If Adagio was a betting woman she’d have laid money down on this not being Fenice’s full strength. As angry as the girl was she was clearly holding back to keep from causing too much damage to her Father’s home. Still, Adagio couldn’t help but taunt her. It was just... fun, considering who this girl continued to remind her of.

Fenice just snarled in response and pushed back with her blade, green light sparking off the soles of her feet as she skidded across the air. Then crimson fire and bubbling bursts of lava flowed over her sword as she charged right back in at Adagio at full speed, throwing an unsubtle but devastatingly strong overhead chop. Adagio grinned and flew forward to meet the attack, trident thrusting.

Trident and greatsword clashed in the air above the chamber, spitting flames and steam downward. The two women broke off and clashed again, each time stalemating in the air as one tried to find a weakness in the other’s guard. Adagio found one first, spotting the way Fenice was starting to overextend her swings as she tried to put more power into them. With a well timed Sonido she evaded rather than parried the girl’s latest swing and spun around behind her, delivering a powerful, sweeping strike with her tail.

The thick tail cracked like a whip, hitting Fenice squarely in the back and sent her spinning to the floor with a hefty impact. Adagio landed on the ground before the girl, trident at the ready.

“Ugh, freakin’ cheap shot.” Fenice growled, standing back up and hefting her sword like it was a baseball bat. “I’m going to chop that smug head of your’s clean off!”

Adagio, unable to help herself, raised her other hand and made a ‘come hither’ gesture with one finger, “Do come try, little firebrand...”

Fenice growled and a massive sphere of compacted flame and molten metal formed at the tip of her sword. Feeling the strength behind the blow Adagio gathered her own power, her body glowing with an aura of deep blue light as she drew deep into her newfound power as a Vasto Lorde.

With a concussive shock wave Fenice fired her sphere of empowered lava like a miniature sun. Adagio’s power snapped through her and she called forth a great geyser of black water, a barrier that intercepted the molten sphere. The two clashed in a burst of steam, and then the sphere broke apart, pieces of crimson flame flying around the room like shrapnel.

Adagio’s eyes went wide as she saw one of those flame pieces fly right for one of the child-like shadows that had been hiding around the pillars, watching the fight in awe.

Without a moment of hesitance she used Sonido to put herself between the figure and the piece of stray flame, using her free arm to block the fire. The flames burned hotter than any normal fire could and even her freshly strengthened body still felt a scorch of pain from the fire burning her white armored flesh. Still she was left with little more than a slight burn, and she could see the child was unharmed.

It was strange seeing an Arrancar child. Small, wearing little more than a floppy white robe, the child had big, green doe eyes and a rather adorable half-skull resting across the side of her face like something out of a Halloween store. The little girl stared at Adagio for a moment, then with a frightened squeak went and hid further behind the pillar where several other children huddled.

Adagio sighed, then turned her attention back to Fenice, who was staring at her openly, not attacking. Her sword was held limply at her side, as if the fight had gone out of her.

Roka stepped forward, “I think we’ve seen enough. Fenice, you shouldn't let yourself get that worked up.”

The flames vanished around Fenice and her sword and Adagio heard the girl’s self-deprecation as she muttered, “Sorry sis, I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s alright, it’s as much my fault for letting the fight escalate without stopping it sooner.” Roka said and turned to Adagio, “My apologize, Miss Adagio. I wanted to see your resolve, and allowed my sister to be a test of sorts.”

“A strange test.” Adagio said, brushing herself off, “What did it tell you?”

“For one, you’re no mere slave to Grogar’s whims. None of his servants would have risked their lives in a battle they could just run away from. For another thing, you just put yourself in harms way for one of our many siblings, and that alone has earned you our Father’s ear. And finally, your power has been sufficiently demonstrated that I can accept you may have something of worth to offer Father for his time.”

Roka raised one of her long fingered hands to her hood and drew it down. She was a plain looking woman under the hood, perhaps nineteen or twenty in terms of how she looked, with pale white skin and straight black hair. Half of her face was covered in a near full skull mask, while the rest was exposed, with one dark brown eye looking at Adagio with open respect.

“Allow me to more formally welcome you to the home of the Fourth Espada. Fenice, greet our guest properly now.”

The other girl let out a deep sigh, “Okay, okay, fine.”

She drew off her own hood, and what Adagio already knew was confirmed, yet some part of her still couldn’t believe it.

Orange skin around a youthful, energetic face, with the same pert and somehow devilishly charming features framed around two light blue eyes. Her hair was the same orange and yellow streaked flame as usual, through cut shorter, in a more tomboyish fashion around her shoulders. But there was no mistaking Sunset Shimmer’s face as she gave Adagio a challenging look of begrudging respect and held out a hand.

“Like my sis has said, my name’s Fenice. Don’t get the wrong idea, you can talk to Father but you’d better be on your best behavior, or he’ll put you down way faster than I could.”

Adagio took the offered hand, feeling its warm grip while her mind raced. So this was Sunset Shimmer, but there was no chance it was the one she was familiar with. The immediate and logical conclusion was that this was her human counterpart. Looking over Sunset... Fenice’s features, she saw no hint of a Hollow mask’s remnants. Sniffing the air she could all but taste the girl’s blood.

“...You’re human. A living human.”

Fenice scowled, pulling her hand away, “Yeah, what of it!? I’m as good as any of you Hollows!”

Roka approached and put a calming hand on Fenice’s shoulder, “Easy there, sister. I’m certain Miss Adagio was merely expressing her surprise. Yes, Fenice is human, but she’s one of our family and well adapted to life here in Hueco Mundo. Please treat her as you would any other Hollow.”

Adagio nodded, but couldn’t help but look at Fenice with unabashed curiosity, “Of course, but how did you get here, of all places?”

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.” Fenice said, eyeing Adagio suspiciously as her free hand went and scratched at her neck in a nervous gesture. To Adagio’s surprise she noticed that around the base of Fenice’s neck there was an ugly coil of scar tissue, as if the flesh had once been burned. It didn’t go far up her neck, but Adagio couldn’t tell how far down the scar went either, or how much of it might cover the girl’s body beneath those robes.

“My sister’s history is not a pleasant, nor relevant topic of discussion.” Roka said with quiet resolve, nodding towards the stairs leading upward to the next floor, “If you wish to speak with Father, follow me.”

Adagio would have liked to press for more information, but it was clear Fenice wasn’t keen to talk about her past, nor was Roka interested in encouraging the line of questioning. Furthermore Gaw and Di Roy were still in desperate need of treatment and Adagio had wasted enough time just getting an audience in the first place. She had to move this along.

“Very well, lead on.” Adagio said, and allowed herself to be led up the stairs by Roka, although she did spare a final glance back at Fenice as the girl started to gather up the other children in the room.

Sunset’s human counterpart. Adagio never would have expected to encounter her in Las Noches of all places. Even as she was led up the tower to her fateful meeting with the Fourth Espada, Adagio’s mind was distractedly turned towards how she might use this latest development to her advantage.

----------

Twilight sat in a chair beside a short, child-sized medical bed where Spike lay sleeping. She’d been told he wasn’t likely to wake up for some hours yet, and that even then he wasn’t to be moving around on his own for at least a week. All she could do in the meantime was remain close by and watch over him. She wasn’t fearful of another assassination attempt. In fact she’d almost welcome it, as it would give her another chance to catch the person responsible for putting her best friend in this hospital bed!

She was being guarded, of course. Soarin remained in the room like a statue, silently doing his best not to be obtrusive while standing against the wall in one corner of the room. He’d attempted a few moments of small talk, but Twilight hadn’t been in the mood and the Sternritter had thankfully taken the hint quickly and left her to her thoughts.

Twilight still couldn’t believe this had happened. Why would somebody want to hurt her, let alone kill her? She was having a hard time conceiving of a motivation beyond petty jealousy for the fact that she’d been perhaps taking too many liberties with her interactions with King Sombra.

Sombra... could he have something to do with this? It seemed improbable, yet she couldn’t rule out the chance this was all some sort of test on his part. Yet she somehow doubted the thought, even as it panned across her mind. If he was going to test her she somehow imagined it would be more harrowing than even this attack had been.

Could it be one of her fellow cadets? Some of them seemed uneasy about her rapid progress in her Quincy training. Still she couldn’t imagine any of them actively trying to harm her. Perhaps that was naive on her part, but she just couldn’t bring herself to suspect the people she’d been training with and in a few cases started to make friends with.

So who did that leave? A high ranked Quincy, to be sure. The assailant had been too skilled to be just a regular soldat. Yet not that skilled, either. Surely not a Sternritter, right? If Twilight had been facing a Sternritter she likely wouldn’t have survived the first few moments, even with Spike’s warning. Unless the Sternritter was holding back for some reason, but why bother? Why attack Twilight at all if they weren’t intending to go all out and finish the job? Could it be they’d been limiting their power to avoid being detected, but had simply underestimated Twilight’s abilities and had reduced their power too much to make a quick enough kill?

Even assuming that was the case it still left a large question of motivation. Who had anything to gain by her death? An enemy of her family? Did her family even have enemies among the Quincy? Was that kind of infighthing possible, or allowed? She’d have to ask her parents, or Shining, when the chance arose. From what Soarin had explained to her Shining Armor was indisposed at the moment, along with Cadence, and her parents were being kept aside for the moment until things settled down.

With a frustrated sigh she leaned back in her chair, eyes closing in exhaustion. She hadn’t slept all night. She’d been working too hard on studying the Sanrei Glove, and then all this madness with the assassin had happened. The adrenaline was long gone and now she just had a bone deep weariness to contend with. Yet she didn’t want to sleep. If anything she wanted to go back to her quarters and resume work on the Sanrei Glove. The next time she faced that kind of danger she needed to be stronger, so those dear to her didn’t have to risk so much just to keep her safe. Next time she wouldn’t be such easy prey.

That’s right, a deceptively encouraging voice spoke within the recesses of her mind, Never let others take anything from you.

She opened her eyes, glancing around the room for a moment. That voice almost sounded like it hadn’t been her own dour thoughts...

When the voice returned, this time with a coldly amused laugh that echoed off the room’s walls, Twilight knew it wasn’t just her own thoughts and jumped up from her chair. She turned towards Soarin, but only to find the Sternritter suddenly wasn’t present in the room anymore. Whirling to the bed, she saw Spike was now abruptly missing as well!

“Spike?” she breathed, fearful as that disturbingly familiar voice laughed again, the sound chilling her skin as she looked around the room. In a burst of speed she ran for the door, throwing it open-

Only to lurch at the void of space outside the open portal.

“W-what!?” she staggered back, but as she did so the floor beneath her feet crumbled away, and the room itself soon was torn asunder like paper mache, leaving Twilight floating in a vast, dark void twinkling with distant starlight.

”Look at you, helpless at a little dreamscape play. Pull yourself together, Twilight, you’re embarrassing me.”

At first only a spark of pale, teal flame appeared in the vast, black starfield. The flames writhed like the pulse of a heartbeat, growing in size with each deep thump through the void. Soon the flames expanded, growing long, slim legs and arms. A curved, feminine body took shape, wrapped in dark violet wisps of clothing that clung to her slightly lighter shaded purple skin. Her equally dark violet hair flowed like an eldritch river, streaked with the same line of pink Twilight’s had. The woman’s eyes blazed solid teal light, the same as the flames that wreathed her eyes like a flaming mask, and mimicked the color of the jagged horn of energy that protruded from her brow. Twin wings, dark and feathered like a raven’s, spread widely from her back in graceful curves. The woman practically radiated with confidence, power, and a certain self-assured sultriness that was as different from Twilight as night and day, despite their clear resemblance to each other.

The woman looked at Twilight like someone hungering for their favorite treat, and she walked across the void to a slowly backing up Twilight with all the confidence of a cat cornering a mouse. Unable to outpace the woman, Twilight found herself standing stock still as her double reached out and cupped her chin between two slim fingers.

Midnight Sparkle smiled like a glacier.

”Long time no see, Twilight. We need to talk.”

Episode 65: The Devil You Know

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Episode 65: The Devil You Know

For a moment nothing but fear gripped Twilight Sparkle as she stared into those fathomless mirrors to her own eyes. Midnight Sparkle’s gaze filled her with dread, because she could so easily see the unmitigated hunger for knowledge and power that filled them like a swirling vacuum, cold and more than capable of sucking in everything around it with no care at all for those who got hurt in the process. However the fear only lasted as long as it took Twilight to remember the bright warmth of Sunset Shimmer who had saved her once from this madness and had shown her, along with her other friends, the strength that came from the friendship of others.

Midnight Sparkle’s hand still cupped her chin, but Twilight batted it away and shot a fierce look back at her dark double.

“We have nothing to talk about! Get out of my head, now!”

A momentary flash of surprise crossed Midnight Sparkle’s features, but then it was replaced by an amused and confident smile. ”Oh it won’t be that easy to cast me aside this time. And I will be heard, whether you like it or not. You’ve been getting a free pass because I’ve found this excursion with the Quincy to be rather enlightening, but now that it's threatening both our existences I’d say its time we discuss our... relationship.”

Twilight shook her head, backing up another step and taking a ready stance as she held out her hands. She knew this was some kind of dream, and that it was all taking place in her head, but from what little she’d learned of how Sunset interacted with her Zanpaktou Twilight wasn’t going to underestimate the effects conflict in her mind could have. Nor her own power within her mind. In an instant she summoned the plain blue glowing hue of her Quincy bow and aimed it at Midnight Sparkle.

“We don’t have anything to talk about, unless its concerning you slinking back into the deepest part of my mind you can find and never crawling back out again. You nearly killed dozens of innocent people, including my friends, because you wanted to tear open a hole into Equestria to learn more magic.”

”Strictly speaking we did all of that. You and me together, because in case you missed the rather obvious, or in serious self-denial, I am you and hence you did all of those things you’re being so self-righteously angry about. Now seriously, stop waving that silly bow around. I’m not intending to harm you. That would be counterproductive to my goals.”

If Midnight Sparkle showed any particular fear of Twilight’s bow she didn’t show it by the way she held herself calmly and with an imperious look of self-assurance crossed her arms under her breasts and gave Twilight a smile that seemed to dare the young Quincy to fire her bow.

Twilight chewed her lower lip, keeping her bow steady but not firing it yet. If she was being honest with herself she wasn’t at all confident she could so easily win a mental battle with this version of herself. On top of that, for all of her fear of Midnight Sparkle and what this phantom might do if she ever took control of her body again, Twilight was curious about Midnight as well. In all the time after the Friendship Games she’d spent a lot of effort to try to forget what had happened, to get over it and become comfortable with her new friends, yet some back part of her mind was always curious on a basic scientific level to learn more about her alter ego. Was she a split personality? An alternate entity created by the magic Twilight had unleashed? How did the magic interact with her mind to create these effects, and why had Midnight Sparkle manifested in the specific manner she had?

Twilight never had any opportunity to experiment on or study Midnight Sparkle, but it was clear she was innately tied to the magic that still permeated Twilight’s soul. Sombra had tasked her with learning how to harness that magic...

But there was no way she could possibly trust Midnight Sparkle! Yet... maybe trust wasn’t needed in this case.

One thing was clear enough, she had to choose now between either fighting Midnight Sparkle to try to force this dream to end, or indulge her alter ego’s desire to talk and see where that discussion went.

Taking a deep breath Twilight let her bow fade away. If it came down to it she could always fall back on violence as a last resort. Meeting Midnight Sparkle’s eyes with as much bravery as she could muster, Twilight said, “Okay, I’ll hear what you have to say, but there are some rules I’m setting down first.”

Midnight Sparkle’s voice echoed over the dreamscape. ”Oh? What rules would those be?”

Twilight held up a finger, “First rule; stop doing that thing with your voice and talk like a normal person.”

”What thing?”

“That thing!” Twilight near shouted, “The weird and entirely unnecessary echoing quality. Just talk in a normal voice, otherwise I’m going to be distracted the entire time wondering how you’re even doing it in the first place.”

Midnight looked at her, then let out a chiming chuckle and her voice shifted from an ethereal echo to a merely smug and still vaguely sultry soprano. “Fine, ruin all my fun why don’t you? So what other rules are you going to be shackling me with, hmm?”

With a withering look towards her alter ego Twilight held up a second finger, “Second rule; there will be absolutely no attempts to take over my mind and body. The second I even suspect you’re trying, its arrow time, got it?”

Midnight made a throwing away gesture with one hand, rolling her eyes, “If I was going to try to brute force this I wouldn’t have even bothered trying to talk to you in the first place. Do we have a number three?”

“Yes,” Twilight said with an irritated huff, holding up her third finger, “Third rule; this exchange goes both ways, if I have to listen to you then you have to listen to me, and I got a lot of questions for you, clear?”

“Crystal, as long as you understand I either might not want to answer them or may not know the answers myself. Anything else?” Midnight Sparkle asked, raising a slim purple eyebrow at Twilight.

Twilight blushed slightly and raised a fourth finger, “Uh, rule four; could you wear something a little less, uh... revealing? Please?”

Midnight blinked at her, and looked down at the clothing she was wearing, which largely consisted for a ornate dress of dark violets and purples, streaked with elements of pink. The dress was cut low to reveal quite bit of bare leg, and was a halter top that exposed the shoulders and cleavage a fair portion. With a snort Midnight looked back at Twilight and smirked.

“Oh grow up and deal with it, Twilight. I’m the total sum of all of your repressed desires and emotions, and in case you totally missed the symbolism of this, you’re a teenage girl well past puberty who spent most of that time locked up alone in a lab. So either go get laid so I don’t have to deal with all your repressed sexual tension, or deal with the fact that this is how I dress.”

Twilight sputtered, eyes popping wide as grapefruits as her face went from purple to crimson in the blink of an eye. “W-w-w-w-waaaah? N-no way, I couldn’t, can’t possibly, wha...?”

Midnight Sparkle smacked her face with a heavy palm, “Seriously, it wouldn’t even be that hard. I’m sure one of your friends would be willing, if you had the guts to proposition one of them. Or if you’re just that flustered at the idea of the real thing, why not do what everyone else does and use mechanical assistance? You wouldn’t even have to buy anything, you could build one yourself. It’d probably be more advanced than what’s on the market.”

Twilight plugged her ears, redder than a cherry and saying, “Not hearing this. We are not having this conversation. Nope, can’t hear a thing, la la la la la!”

“Ugh...” Midnight Sparkle sighed with the weight of a thousand hormonal teenagers. “Great, guess its more fun repression for me. So can we have an actual conversation now or do you want to keep complaining about how I dress due to your excessive prudishness?”

Hissing through her teeth, Twilight took her fingers out of her ears and tried very hard to get her heated features under control while giving her double a reproachful glare. “Yes, fine, dress how you want. Now what is you actually wanted to talk about so badly you dragged me into this dreamscape for it? For that matter, let me start by asking how? How are you even still a thing after Sunset Shimmer’s magic banished you.”

“Obviously because that’s not what Little Miss Friendship Angel actually did.” Midnight Sparkle said with a scalding tone, “Her ‘magic of friendship’ couldn’t destroy me, or banish me, or do anything actually harmful to me, because like I’ve been trying to tell you, I am you. Harming me would be like harming you, and the kind of magic Sunset Shimmer was wielding can’t be used to do harm. It only heals, seals, weakens, or purifies. It can’t be used to destroy. Besides you can’t really destroy magic. You can alter its properties almost infinitely, but just like matter and energy you can’t destroy it.”

Despite herself Twilight started to get drawn into the topic, her natural curiosity and desire to know overriding her discomfort. “So you’re saying that you were weakened, then? You certainly don’t seem purified.”

“Weakened, yes. I think the magic wanted to seal me, but it couldn’t because of how, heh, intimately I’m tied to you.” Midnight Sparkle said with some satisfaction creeping into her voice, “By sealing me, it may have done irreparable harm to your psyche, so instead it merely weakened my hold over our collective mind so you could control yourself. In the meantime I’ve been stuck observing everything that’s been happening to us on the outside. All the time you’ve spent become closer friends with those girls, and eventually the advent of all this fascinating but ultimately dangerous interacting with the spirit realm. I’ll admit even I was shocked to learn our family are Quincy, and I’ve been eagerly absorbing all the lessons we’ve learned about Quincy techniques and spirit particles the same as you have.”

Midnight pursed her lips and frowned deeply, “However the reason I decided to take the risk of talking to you is because things are clearly becoming far too deadly. In case you haven’t quite figured this out yet, if you die, I die. Not an experience I’m eager to have, even if there is a confirmed afterlife now.”

“Is that why...” Twilight gulped, “Is that why you took over during the Hollow raid on the Academy?”

Midnight gave a thin smile, “Of course. I’d been trying to take over earlier, but was only able to when your emotions got so out of hand when we saw...” Midnight’s smile faded, “All those other dead students, their bodies torn to shreds. Like I said, Twilight, I’m where all the emotions you don’t want to acknowledge go. Including anger and hatred. I wanted to destroy those Hollows because you wanted to destroy them. So I did. And it felt good didn’t it?”

Twilight remembered all too well that moment when she and her fellow cadets had broken into that clearing, and she’d seen the horrors that had been visited upon some of the less fortunate Academy students. The memory of those torn, bloody bodies made the bile rise in her throat and she could clearly recall every feeling that’d rushed through her then. Frozen terror, but also an undercurrent of rage filled denial and righteous fury. She remembered vividly the way she’d destroyed the Hollows that had appeared before her then, laughing all the while.

But she wouldn’t say it had felt good. More like being trapped in a fever dream.

“I won’t say that what we did wasn’t what those Hollows deserved, but I never want to lose control of myself like that. I can’t have you taking over every time my emotions get out of hand. I don’t want you in control at all.”

Midnight gave her a cold, level look, lips pressed to a thin line. “It doesn’t have to be a binary thing, Twilight. You in control, or me in control. I have access to all the magic you absorbed from that moment during the Friendship Games, and a great deal more latent magic that’s been growing inside you since then. I can... open the faucet a little, if you’re willing to cooperate with me. With my help we can both survive the coming days.”

“And is that all you’re after, survival?” Twilight asked dubiously, “I don’t believe that for an instant. You say you’re a part of me. Well, if that’s true then you’re forgetting that when you came out at the Friendship Games I remember everything we thought and felt at the time. I know you’re only interested in growing more powerful and controlling all the magic you can find. Why should I trust a thing you say?”

A shrewd look crossed Midnight’s face, “Let me answer that with another question; do you really think you can survive without me? You’ve seen how strong the Arrancar are, and you’re days away from walking headfirst into a war with them. Assassins from your own people are popping out of the woodwork trying to kill us! And you still only have access to a fraction of your power, because in case you haven’t figured it out one of the reasons you can’t use all of your internal reishi is because the magic inside you is acting like a blockage against it. You won’t be able to get at all of your spiritual energy until you also can control the magic. And guess what? I’m the one in control of that power, because I am that magic, and you can’t just get rid of me or ignore me!”

Midnight’s voice had grown more heated with every word and she’d taken several threatening steps forward, raven wings spreading behind her like a looming dark cloud. Twilight summoned her bow again, but cut herself short of aiming it, instead just meeting Midnight’s gaze with her own even look.

“You’re the one who seems desperate to me.” she said, “I’ve been doing fine so far on my own, and I can figure out a way to control the magic in me, control you, without having to cut a deal with a devil like you.”

There was a cold fury in Midnight’s eyes, and her voice dropped to a low, spiteful octave. “Really? Tell that to Spike.”

Midnight’s words lanced right through Twilight, leaving a frozen pit in her chest as she remembered Spike valiantly trying to protect her and being thrown into a wall for his efforts. Midnight’s voice rasped across her ears, angry and... pained?

“Do you remember, Twilight? Did you feel me rising up when that bitch hurt Spike? I wanted to kill her, and couldn’t because you’re holding me back. If you worked with me, we could have beaten that assassin, and Spike would be okay right now.”

“What... what do you care about Spike!?” Twilight shot back scornfully, tears entering her eyes as she aimed her bow, “He’s my friend. My best friend, who's been with me my whole life! Don’t pretend you care about him! Don’t you dare!”

“Don’t I dare...?” Midnight grit her teeth and looked away, “You’re an idiot. Why do you think you got control back so easily back then? We could have beaten Sunset Shimmer. We were overpowering her! I was so close to being free to go and absorb and understand all the magic we could ever want, but then Spike... all he had to do was say our name with those little green eyes of his and... argh! Don’t you get it!? I stopped us back then, not you! I held back because I care about Spike just as much as you, because I keep having to say this; I AM YOU!”

The last came out like the roar of an exploding star, the entire void of the dreamscape quivering as Midnight Sparkle appeared to grow in height along with her explosive anger, teal fire erupting in sheets from behind her in a pale corona.

Twilight held her ground, not stepping away from the display, but her mind reeled. Could what Midnight was saying be true? Twilight only remembered that seeing Spike back then had snapped her back to her senses, but it had never really occurred to her that the nearly instant manner in which she’d come to her senses might have been due to the Midnight Sparkle persona actually willingly letting go instead of Twilight reasserting control. Twilight didn’t think Midnight was lying, either. There was far too much raw emotion in her other self’s voice to be so easily faked.

“I... I’m sorry.” Twilight said.

Midnight blinked, the flames lowering around her. “What?”

Twilight hesitated a moment, then said again, “I’m sorry. I had no idea you cared about Spike as much as I do.”

Midnight grimaced, but her voice softened. “Of course I do. He’s the best dog ever.”

“He is. He really is.” Twilight wiped a tear away from her eye and sighed heavily, letting her bow vanish again. “Midnight, I... I don’t know if I can do this. I’m scared of you, and I can’t just let you take control of our body. I can’t trust you to not go do more crazy things with it.”

Midnight looked at her carefully with a slightly raised eyebrow, “I hear a ‘but’ in there.”

With a reluctant nod Twilight said, “But I also can’t refute what you’re saying. Things among the Quincy are just getting more and more dangerous. I’ve been lucky so far. Statistically speaking I’ve already blown way past the point of expecting that luck to hold out. So, yes, I... I do need your help.”

She looked at Midnight warily, slowly holding out her hand, “If you can show me that you’re able to work with me without trying to take more control than I’m willing to give, then I’m equally willing to try to make this work. I don’t want to lose Spike, or anyone else for that matter. My family, my friends, I need more power to get through this without losing any of them.”

Midnight had a surprisingly tired look as stared at Twilight’s offered hand. “You’re going to need more than power. You’ll need to learn how to deal with all the emotional parts of yourself you don’t like. There is a lust in you for understanding everything, and a cold angry side of you that wants to hurt those who hurt you. There’s a part of you that wants to cut loose and not care about everything around you so much. And yeah, there’s a part of you that’s tired of being the frumpy nerd who never gets any action. Bottom line, Twilight... I’ll take care of the power, if you agree to take care of unchaining some of that repression.”

Twilight winced slightly, licking her lips. “I can’t make any promises. Especially about that last part. But, I’ll try, as long as you try not to go mad with power again.”

Midnight laughed and clasped Twilight’s hand, and the world of the void seemed to grow brighter around them. “Heh, like you I can’t make any promises except to try. But hey, better the devil you know, right?”

----------

Twilight woke up half laying on Spike’s bed. She felt a wet tongue licking her face and she turned to see Spike looking over at her with worry filling his canine eyes.

“Twilight, you okay?” were the first words out of Spike’s mouth, despite his paw still being in a cast, his head wrapped in bandages, and his face still clearly showing a great deal of pain despite being awake now.

“Oh Spike, yes I’m fine, but you-” Twilight started to say, but Spike huffed and leaned back in his bed.

“I’m cool. Ugh, just... remind me next time to go for the ankles or something. Getting thrown into a wall sucks, big time.”

“Good to see you both awake.” said Soarin, yawning fro his corner of the room, where he’d pulled up a sofa and was laying on it. “I was this close to taking a nap myself, except then His Majesty would super-murder me. How you feeling, Spike?”

“Uh, like I have multiple broken bones and a mild concussion.” Spike drawled with a hefty note of sarcasm and settled into his bed with a sigh, “And like I could use about another week of sleep.” He opened one eye and wagged his tail while smiling at Twilight, “Which of course will require many pettings and treats while the brave hero recovers, right?”

Twilight chuckled, wiping at her face, “Of course.”

Soarin stood up from the sofa and stretched, glancing out the window, “Going to be morning soon. I’ll call in the nurse and she can do a check up on Wonder Dog. In the meantime you might want to go grab more than a power nap yourself, Cadet Sparkle.”

“Would that even be safe?” Twilight wondered aloud, and Soarin nodded.

“As long as I stick nearby it will. No wannabe assassin is going to get past my Schrift’s detection abilities.” He frowned and gave a slight groan, “Aww, I’m catching Lightning Dust’s blabber bug. I shouldn’t be talking Schrift powers with a cadet and her dog.”

A soft laugh escaped Twilight as she adjusted her glasses, “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything.”

Although it did explain why Soarin had been set as her bodyguard. She’d known he was a Sternritter, and had assumed it was simply a matter of him being powerful enough to protect her from just about any attack combined with the fact that he was acting as her instructor for that day that had led to Soarin being given the job of watching over her. However if his Schrift was specialized for detection and sensory powers it made that much more sense why he was watching her instead of one of her parents or her brother.

She looked back to Spike apologetically, “I want to stay, but Soarin is right I could also use some rest.”

Spike nodded and waved his one good paw, “No worries, I’m not going anywhere. As long as this nurse brings me something to eat and maybe a comic book or two, I’m golden.”

“I don’t know if they have comic books around here, Spike.” Twilight said. Ever since Spike had gained the power of speech through the magic mishaps at the Friendship Games, Twilight had also taught the dog how to read, and ever since he’d been delving head first into the realm of comic books.

Soarin smiled, scratching the back of his head, “We technically don’t, buuuut I might have a few stashed in my room. What? Don’t look at me like that. I don’t spend all of my time chewing out cadets or fighting Hollows. I got hobbies. Just don’t tell Spitfire that, otherwise she’ll think I have too much free time and find more work for me to do.”

Spike made a zipping motion across his mouth, “My lips are sealed my good man, as long as you bring me some awesome comics.”

“Done and done, Wonder Dog.”

Twilight leaned over and very gently stroked Spike’s head, careful not to aggravate his injuries as she did so. “I’ll be back to visit soon.”

Spike nodded, but a serious and concerned light entered his eyes. “Be careful out there.”

She gave his uninjured paw a soft squeeze, “I will.”

As she and Soarin left the hospital room, leaving Spike to go back to sleep, Soarin heading for the nurses station with Twilight following close behind. She looked at her hand and flexed it, feeling a slight, ever so chilly tingle there.

I really hope I can trust you... she thought, wondering if Midnight heard, and on impulse she snapped her fingers, concentrating on that soft tingle of power.

To her equal parts surprise, delight, and trepidation, a flicker of teal flame appeared for a moment, the tiniest but very real spark of magic.

----------

Adagio followed Roka’s slim form up the stairs that ran in a central spire through the entire tower. Their steps echoed up and down the shaft far louder than they should have, by Adagio’s reckoning, but perhaps that was just her nerves. Now that she was moments from meeting face to face with the Fourth Espada she did her best to beat down the butterflies of unease in her stomach and ensure she had a powerful and confident face to show.

Of course for all she knew that might trigger this supposedly unpredictable Espada and cause him to attack her out of hand. She supposed she’d cross that bridge when she came to it. Adagio didn’t know how to do anything other than approach each situation with confidence and a certain level of smug arrogance. Humility wasn’t her style, and if the Fourth was going to require much of that from her then negotiations were going to go south rather quickly. She’d had more than enough bowing and scraping when dealing with Grogar, and that had been out of pure necessity.

If worse came to worst she’d open a Garganta to flee, then come back to collect her allies. Then they’d seek another solution. Adagio shook her head ruefully, refusing to think further on the possibility of failure. She’d simply just have to not fail. No matter how mentally unstable the Fourth Espada might be he couldn’t be entirely without reason, otherwise he’d end up slaughtering his so-called ‘children’.

Still, never hurt to do a little probing while she still had a minute or two to do so.

“So, Roka, was it?” Adagio began with a calm, honeyed but casual tone, “It's interesting your Father has gathered so many of you. I take it you were the first he rescued?”

Since half of her face was covered by the remainder of the skull mask Roka’s expression was harder to read than most, but Adagio detected a hint of cautious optimism in the slight twitch of a smile on Roka’s visible features. “I was, in a sense. I wasn’t alone when he adopted me. I had already been trying to take care of several orphan Arrancar by myself back then.”

An unpleasant shadow of pained remembrance entered her one visible eye, “Existence was bleak, and unlike many of our kind, I had an uncharacteristic desire to care for others. I had found and started taking care of several abandoned children, but keeping ourselves safe was far from simple. We had to run and hide many times from other Arrancar that wanted to prey on us. My knowledge of the Warrens kept us one step ahead for a time, but eventually we were cornered and would have been consumed had Father not intervened.”

“I see. Has ever ever told you why he saved you, or is so adamant about taking care of other orphans?” Adagio asked, keeping her voice politely curious.

Roka took several moments to respond, her pace up the stairs slowing until she paused, glancing back at Adagio. “Family, I believe. He’s never said as much in words, but I’ve always felt that having a family matters a great deal to him, and so he made one from those who should have had a family from birth, but were abandoned.”

“Hmm, and he’s never sought a consort? If he desired family so much wouldn’t that have made sense?” Adagio didn’t actually care what the Fourth did one way or another to make his little family unit, but it stood to logical reason that if that had been all he cared about there were easier ways to go about it than crusading to protect Las Noches’ orphans.

It was well enough she asked, because the answer came quickly and with a somewhat sharper tone from Roka, “Family is more than blood relation, and Father has always responded... poorly to any female that’s tried to suggest that kind of interest in him. I’d suggest not doing the same if you had the notion in your head of trying to seduce him to get his cooperation, otherwise I’m afraid your friends won’t be seeing you again.”

Adagio hadn’t been planning on using seduction tactics in the first place, but it was good to confirm at least one of the Fourth’s potential violent triggers. Interesting that such a thing would set him off. Adagio wondered what that meant? Was he simply not interested in that kind of thing or was there a deeper reason behind it? Either way, the information might prove useful.

“Perish the thought,” she told Roka, “I was merely curious, and can you blame me? I’d like to have some notion of the kind of man I’m about to negotiate with, and you clearly know him better than anyone else here.”

Roka didn’t fully hide the tinge of pink on her cheek as she looked back up the stairs and started walking again, “I do know Father well. Enough to say that the most useful thing I can tell you is that whatever you do, be honest with him. He has no tolerance for liars or those who even play with half-truths. Be up front and earnest in your words and you may live to leave this tower, Adagio. Attempt to manipulate Father or play games, and I fear the clean up I’ll have to do afterward.”

Adagio tried not to make a face. Great, an honest psychopath. He might kill her out of hand, but he’d do it honestly. More irritating was just that Adagio was entirely too used to using half-truths and subtle manipulations to get what she wanted. Being upfront about things wasn’t her usual style at all. She could handle a situation where she had to use careful word play and twisting of meanings and intent to gain a favorable outcome to a conversation. How was she supposed to control the situation if she could only afford to be honest?

Then again, how many reasons did she have to lie in this situation? She honestly did just want to secure medical aid for her vassals and was willing to offer any number of favors in return for the service. Perhaps she could, just this once, forgo the word games and just speak plainly.

If nothing else this cinched that she wasn’t even going to attempt use her siren song in this instance. She’d likely be killed before she got out the first verse.

She could see they were nearly to the top of the tower now, where the stairs spiraled up into a clear opening where she could see a patch of Las Noches’ blue-sky interior ceiling. So they were going all the way to the roof? Before they reached that opening she did have one more thing she wanted to press Roka on.

“I appreciate the advice. I have one more thing I’d like to ask about. You’re sister, Fenice, how did she end up here?”

Roka halted again, this time her one eye boring into Adagio with measuring weight. “...You know her, don’t you?”

Adagio blinked, then opened her mouth to deny it, then recalled that if the Fourth valued honesty then it was likely his ‘children’ adopted a similar attitude. Not that she was going to tell the whole truth, but she could afford to explain some of it. “I know her face, if that means anything.”

Roka’s eye narrowed, “From what I understand you have not been among us Hollows for very long. Fenice came to us years ago. How do you know her?”

“I never said I knew her, only that I know her face. I remember a girl who looked like her, once, in a place called Canterlot City. I don’t know if it was her, or just a girl that looked like her. I’m only curious because I know its extremely unusual for a living human to be here and I can’t fathom how she’s here, or where she got the power to wield a sword that spews lava. You can’t say my curiosity isn’t warranted, can you?”

Roka’s eyes continued to weight her, then the woman sighed and provided Adagio with an reserved stare. “Fenice arrived here some time ago, badly burned, delirious, and barely alive after fending off many Hollows that tried to devour her. When several Arrancar ruffians tried to finish her off at the gates of Las Noches, Father intervened the same way he has with the rest of his children. None could dispute the Fourth adopting her into his family, and she’s since adapted to existence here. I make trips into the human world to take food and water to bring here to her, among other knick-knacks she sometimes requests. I know little of her unique powers, aside from the fact that they are somehow related to us Hollows and have only grown more powerful over time as she’s trained to master them. As for her life before coming here, or how she came to be here... that is not for me to say. Fenice does not like thinking about it and I respect her choice to keep it to herself, so I’d appreciate you not bringing the subject up again. Does that suffice to satisfy your ‘curiosity’, Adagio?”

By her flat tone it was clear Roka considered this the end of the conversation, so Adagio could only nod and offer a polite, “Yes, it does.”

Which wasn’t entirely untrue. Adagio was exceedingly interested in finding out just how Sunset’s human counterpart ended up here, although even she wasn’t entirely sure why. Certainly it was interesting, but ultimately the knowledge of this Fenice’s existence didn’t directly help Adagio in any way. So why was she so curious? Perhaps... did she miss Sunset Shimmer?

No, that was ridiculous. Whatever budding feelings of... friendship? Acceptance? Tolerance? Whatever it was, those feelings had been small and rendered relatively obsolete by Adagio choosing to become a Hollow. She sincerely doubted she’d be seeing Sunset Shimmer again any time soon. She supposed some small part of her imagined Sunset might be planning to do something foolish like try to come ‘rescue’ her from Hueco Mundo, but that would be madness. Surely Sunset was smart enough to realize trying to storm the home base of one of the major spirit realm factions would be suicide. Even that smug, overconfident girl and her crazy band of friends wouldn’t do something so blatantly insane.

Still, the thought was oddly pleasing as well, and that bothered Adagio. Did she really want to see Sunset Shimmer again that badly? She’d much rather see her sisters again, but they seemed even further out of reach. Perhaps the only reason she found this Fenice so interesting was because after having dealt with so much new and unfamiliar things in Hueco Mundo she was feeling a tad nostalgic over what she’d left behind.

Whatever the reason she put aside those thoughts for now, as Roka had led her to the top of the stairs where they opened up onto the tower’s roof. Adagio followed the Arrancar woman out into a stiff, chilly breeze, and she looked around at her new surroundings with shrewd eyes.

What struck her first was the dirt. Not the white sands that were ever present throughout all Hueco Mundo, but actual, dark brown earthen soil. It covered the roof’s surface as if someone had painstakingly filled in the rooftop in some attempt to turn it into a garden. The roof was circular, with a high rampart wall surrounding it, and Adagio imagined the dirt filled in about one or two good feet of space beneath her. The only reason the dirt hadn’t spilled out down the opening to the stairs was because someone had built a wooden barricade to keep the dirt from doing so. Speaking of wood, the next thing Adagio noticed were the trees.

They were bare, dead things, but not like the near ashen white or charcoal black trees of Hueco Mundo. These were real trees, some small pines, others more willowy deciduous types. All were lacking leaves and seemed to sag lifelessly in the dirt, but they were there, all in neat, ordered rows, like an orchard.

Looking around, trying to keep the surprise off her face, Adagio finally noticed that one side of the roof, built up against the ramparts, was a small log cabin. The humble affair couldn’t have been more than thirty feet across and maybe half that deep, but it was well built, obviously with loving hands. A small chimney of worked stone rose from the cabin’s side, gently smoking from a fire within. The cabin had a simple front porch that ran the length of it, and sitting in a small wooden chair by the cabins door was a man reading a book.

His tall and athletic frame was clad in the same white clothing typical of the Arrancar, although the styling of it was somewhat different from what Adagio had seen thus far. What appeared to be an open white duster was left with frayed and tattered edges, as if it had suffered damage from both the elements or battle and had never been repaired afterward. An almost too plain white shirt was tucked into a red sash around his hips, which in turn covered the top of loose slacks that covered his legs. A pair of black boots like the kind any blue collar worker might wear finished off the outfit, which altogether gave the man a simple and rugged appearance. His skin was pale, like polished marble, and Adagio saw that a small Hollow hole sat at the base of his throat. The man’s face featured a strong jawline combined with what might have once been a boyishly handsome face if not for a certain rough harshness that instead gave the man a wolfish look, accentuated by sharp green eyes that scanned the pages of his book with an hungry speed. A long wave of unkempt hair, a shade of red just a touch lighter than fresh strawberries, spilled down his shoulders and back. Adagio couldn’t see where his Espada number was tattooed, and the only evidence she saw of his Hollow mask fragments were a few small spurs of bone that ran across the top of his right eyebrow.

At his side, resting against the wall of his cabin like some trusty shotgun, was a long curved sword in an apple red sheath. The sword, too long to be considered a normal katana and more akin to a nodachi, had a hilt of dark oak wood, with a bronze guard in the shape of two small, curved horns. The sword’s sheath carried a leather strap that was clearly meant to allow the blade to be worn over the shoulder.

He didn’t immediately respond as Roka approached, with Adagio following a step behind. His eyes just stayed locked on his book, which had no title that Adagio could see on the spine, but it was a thick affair with a hard cover. The man flipped the page silently as Roka politely cleared her throat and bowed her head to him.

“Father, I hope the afternoon finds you well. I’ve brought you a guest who wishes to speak with you.”

The man’s eyes flicked up from his book, and Adagio realized just how still he’d been sitting the whole time, like a painting or photograph. Even when he moved his eyes, those were the only part of him that moved, at least until he spoke. His voice was... pleasant, like what one might expect from a charming next door neighbor greeting you on a lovely spring day. Rich, not quite baritone enough to be deep, and with a faint twang of an accent that didn’t infect his speech so much as lightly brush it with a country flavor.

“Heard you kids playing all the way downstairs. Sounds like Fenice had quite the tussle. Better have made sure she knows to clean up afterward. You know how I don’t like messes in the house.”

Roka rose from her bow, “Of course Father, I’ll ensure she knows to tidy things up. May I introduce our guest?”

Those sharp green eyes moved towards Adagio, the man still having not moved so much as a millimeter, yet Adagio suddenly had the sensation of being placed firmly under a microscope ten times more penetrating than the most exposing of Grogar’s scientific devices. For all her increased power as a newly evolved Vasto Lorde she had a profound sense of danger stemming from that one look. It wasn’t even a matter of reiatsu. She sensed nothing from the man. It was just in his look, a certain weight that didn’t have any logical explanation besides some innate force of will. Still, Adagio stood her ground against it and eyed the Espada back just as levely, not flinching from the look.

“I reckon she can speak for herself, Roka. Why don’t you head on back downstairs and take the rest of the kids off Fenice’s hands so she can clean up? Its getting on to supper time and I’d like to take care of business quick so the whole family can eat.”

Adagio couldn’t decide if that was meant as a subtle threat or not, but decided to not comment on it while Roka bowed again, “Yes Father.”

With a quiet glance at Adagio that may have been a look of encouragement, or simply a farewell, Roka quietly retreated from the roof, leaving Adagio alone with the Fourth Espada. He was still looking at her with those measuring eyes, and she decided that whether this was going to go smoothly or not she may as well get this over with.

“To get introductions out of the way, I’m Adagio Dazzle.” she said with a careful balance of formality and self-confidence.

The Fourth Espada showed the barest hint of a nod before rising from his chair, dog-earring the page of the book he was reading and setting it on the sill of the cabin window beside the chair. His motions, now that was moving, were seemingly slow and casual but Adagio could sense the ready energy about them. He might look almost lazy in his motions, but she realized it was a mask for a man in a state of constant, battle ready tension. He yawned, almost exaggeratedly, and scratched the back of his head.

“Pretty enough name. If I had one to give back to you I would, but haven’t known it for a long time. Folk around here either call me Lament, of the Fourth, unless you're one of my kids. Take your pick, don’t much matter to me either way.”

“I’ll use Lament if you don’t object. Calling you ‘the Fourth’ continuously seems entirely too formal for what is going to be essentially a personal request.”

“Well let’s hear it inside.” he said, turning to open the door to the cabin. Before he went inside he snatched up his Zanpaktou in one smooth motion and carried it with him into the cabin. Adagio might have found that alarming if she wasn’t already familiar with the fact that Arrancar rarely, if ever, left their swords far from their person.

Following Lament into the cabin she was taken aback by just how homey and warm it was inside. The interior consisted of one large room that ran the whole length of the cabin, and it was furnished like one might expect from a well lived in home. A dining table dominated the center, with a small kitchen running along the back left corner by the fireplace. A checkered red and white rug sat in front of the fireplace and to Adagio’s surprise there was a dog laying by the fire. A Hollow dog, as the brown furred canine had a full Hollow mask covering its face, although the mask mimicked the dog’s retriever breed features quite closely.

The dog’s head rose and its tail wagged with a welcoming bark as Lament entered. It then saw Adagio and sniffed the air, making another, more inquisitive bark as it rose and padded closer to her. Lament made no comment, and Adagio was left wondering what to do as the Hollow dog went right up to her and sniffed at her feet. It then barked happily and sat at her feet, wagging its tail and looking up at her with its tongue lolling out in a smile.

Adagio had never been a dog person, but deciding the creature was harmless she reached out and gave it a smooth pat on the head. “Good... boy?”

The dog gave another happy bark and Lament glanced back at her from where he’d gone to the kitchen and started to pour a dark liquid that after a moment Adagio realized was coffee into a waiting mug.

“Looks like you pass the second test. Winston seems to like you.”

“Second test?” Adagio asked, petting the dog Winston again.

Instead of answering her question Lament turned a firm look towards her and nodded behind her. “Close the door.”

Adagio blinked, then turned and closed the door she’d left open behind her. With that done Lament took a deep sip of coffee and gestured at the dining room table. “Take a seat and we’ll talk. Coffee?”

Adagio was starting to become slightly... weirded out by the sheer normality of the situation. Whatever she’d been expecting of the Fourth Espada, a casual chat in a warm cabin over coffee wasn’t it. Refusing the coffee might set him off for all she knew, but she recalled Roka’s advice on honesty and decided if she was going to follow that advice there was no point splitting hairs on it.

“No, but thank you. Not a huge fan of coffee.” she said while slowly going over to sit at the seat indicated. It was a tad awkward, what with her tail somewhat in the way, but she managed to adjust it so it wasn’t too uncomfortable as she sat. Lament watched her sit, and glanced at the rest of his kitchen.

“Ought to get you something. Bad manners to sit a guest down without breaking some bread, even if I don’t got any bread here to break. Ah, I got it.” He opened up a cabinet, which was surprisingly full of various foodstuffs and cooking ingredients, and pulled out a small sack. From this he drew out a crisp, crimson apple and tossed it to her.

Adagio caught the fruit without a second thought, looking at it in surprise.

“Can’t say no to a ripe apple.” Lament said, taking a seat opposite her while setting his Zanpaktou down to lean against the table next to him. “Don’t have many left, so I’m going to have to go wrangle up some more soon.”

“Where do you get them?” Adagio asked, still looking at the apple in surprise. She hadn’t eaten any ‘normal’ food in... how long had it been since she’d become a Hollow? She’d lost track of the days, but surely it hadn’t been more than a month. Yet it had felt like an eternity since she’d tasted anything other than the flesh of other Hollows. She hadn’t even been sure she could eat other food, but seeing Lament’s kitchen she figured it couldn’t hurt to try.

She bit into the apple, and was shocked at just how sweet and juicy it was. She had to control herself to keep from moaning a bit at the contrast of taste from the Hollow’s she’d been consuming day in and day out. Eating Hollows held a primal satisfaction that satisfied her belly, but she’d forgotten just how good something with some actual sugar in it could taste, and this apple was sweet indeed.

The side of Lament’s mouth twitched in what might have been a smirk as he said, “The world of the living. I pop in every now and then to snag some proper food for the young ones. Hollow meat might be what makes them grow big and strong, but I’ll be damned if I’m not going to make sure they can eat a proper meal when I can.”

Adagio took another bite of the apple, savoring the taste before setting it down on the table. “A wise choice. Now about why I’m-”

She didn’t see him move. She didn’t even feel the brush of air from the motion. Just one moment she was setting the apple down and talking, feeling more comfortable with the situation and imagining that Ember was exaggerating Lament’s mental state, and the next she felt the cold edge of his Zanpaktou against the side of her neck.

He’d stood, drawn the sword from where it rested next to him, and had the long curved blade against her neck in the span it had taken her to drawn in half a breath. Adagio went still and silent as she stared at him, and his eyes held a strange, frozen light to them. His voice sounded different too, like someone had drawn a razor over the strings of a guitar instead of a gentle pick.

“Finish the apple.”

Winston made a soft whining sound and laid down by the fire while Adagio suppressed the urge to run or retaliate. She doubted it’d do any good here. Instead she carefully picked the apple back up and without a word starting eating again. She didn’t stop until there was nothing but core left.

Lament nodded and sheathed his sword, sitting back down again, his voice going back to a pleasant twang like nothing had happened. “Can’t go wasting food. Not polite. So let’s hear it, what brought a newly minted Vasto Lorde to my doorstep?”

Slightly shaken but still determined to do whatever it took to secure help for her companions, Adagio took a deep, steadying breath and said, “I won’t mince words. I have two allies outside your home who have suffered grievous injury while in my service. I heard that you have a skilled healer among your children, and wish to request permission for them to heal my companions.”

Lament took another sip from his coffee and said, “Why come to me? If you have injured who are hurt too bad to recover on their own, why not let them die, or consume them for their power? Isn’t that how Hollows usually deal with things like this?”

Adagio tilted her head, but she heard the raw distaste in his voice and knew well why he was asking that question. Again following Roka’s advice, she stuck to the truth. “It’s not for the sake of altruism that I seek their recovery, I’ll admit that. It’s rather I take my role as a leader seriously, and these individuals have offered me loyal and good service. It’s only natural that I reward that in kind by doing all I can to ensure their survival. After all what good are dead vassals to me?”

“Hm, think I see why you run with Torch’s crowd.” Lament said, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms, “You have some of his attitude.”

His eyes gained that frosty look again, but his voice seemed to stay pleasantly neutral. “I’ll tell you true I considered taking that head right off your shoulders the second I sensed you walking up to my home, girl. You still got Grogar’s stink all over you, and I’d as soon cut that bastard down as look at him, if Tirek wouldn’t burn my home and all my children down in retaliation for getting rid of his favorite mad scientist. Yet here you are, Torch’s girl attached to your hip, and looking to take care of your own. Either you’re one smooth actress, or you really are cut from a different cloth than your master.”

It was impossible for Adagio to keep some of the disgust out of her voice, or the acidic venom. “He is no master of mine.”

“I believe you. Now the question is, should I help you?”

Adagio didn’t miss a beat, “In exchange I’d be willing to help you. I may be in Torch’s service currently but as far as I’m aware there is no rule against me owing favors to other Espada.”

Lament held up his hand, “I’m not interested in games of favors and alliances. All the power squabbles in this place are worse than a waste of time. They just go to show how much trash occupies Las Noches, as if the number of abandoned kids didn’t show that already.”

Adagio couldn’t help but want to probe, despite a legitimate fear of triggering him again, “I take it you’re not a fan of Hollow culture?”

“Culture is putting it generously. It if wasn’t for Tirek and his ‘Queen’-” a particular note of vehement distaste rang through his voice at that point, “-I’d have taken the kids and packed up to find someplace far away from here where they could be safe and I wouldn’t have to worry about any Hollow backstabbing power plays. Torch is a decent buffer between me and the rest of the lot below us, but much as I might respect his family values and no-bull attitude, I know he doesn’t like having me above him and I can’t discount he’d be just as happy as the rest to see me taken down.”

“Is that why you stay in this tower, not interacting much with the rest of Las Noches unless it's to save another abandoned orphan?” Adagio asked, and felt a chill of fear as Lament went very still and spoke in that soft, razor tone again.

“If it is what reason do you have to care? I can smell the ambition coming off you, Adagio Dazzle. It stinks to high heaven. Whatever else you might be, a ‘good’ leader or a girl looking to get revenge on those who wronged her, I can see the lust for power coming off you like a smog. You fit right in here with the rest. Might be I’d be doing you a favor just to end you here and now, before you hit that point where you realize whatever lies you're telling yourself to justify your climb to power were just words to comfort yourself, before you become just another monster.”

She hadn’t felt any reiatsu from him before, but she felt it now. It was thick as tar and wide as an ocean. It was like standing at the precipice of a massive, dark chasm, one that seemed to pull at her as if daring her to fall off the edge. It echoed with an almost lonely, desperately painful air, and for some reason Adagio felt like she could put a name to that power; Regret.

Yet she didn’t let herself drown in that reiatsu. As vastly more powerful as the Fourth Espada was, Adagio was a Vasto Lorde, and not without her own vast reserve or spiritual energy. She didn’t move, but her own reiatsu formed a hard, cold shell around her and pushed back the crushing feeling of Lament’s power. Not enough to remove it or actually counter it, but enough for her to maintain a calm breath and look at him evenly, her voice steady.

“Judge me however you wish, but I’ll point out that you have a less than clean reputation yourself. I’ve been told you’ve killed without a moment’s thought. Perhaps I should be afraid of that. Perhaps I am afraid of that and have the strength to admit it. However, your daughter Roka told me you value honesty, yes? So here is some honesty for you...”

She leaned forward, hands folded beneath her chin, “Whether you like it or not you are a part of Las Noches’ power structure. Scorn it if you wish, but understand that as powerful as you are, there are still those above you with more power, and those below you who may still have enough power to be a threat to you and those you hold dear. If you want to protect your family then you cannot afford to hold yourself apart. Those ‘games’ you disdain are very real and very dangerous, and if you keep ignoring them then eventually, one way or another, you will lose without having made a single move. I do not claim to be a ‘good’ person, only one who has no interest in allowing this place to crush me down or those I choose to care about. I will rise, or die trying, so I and those who aided me can have a better future in this bleak realm. And unless I’ve completely misjudged you, I think you’re a man interested in a similar future.”

The overwhelming weight of Lament’s reiatsu remained for a moment longer... then receded like a black tide. He remained exactly where he was, having not moved a muscle, but Adagio noticed his eyes had gone from cold to measuring again as he weighed both her and her words. Off to the side there was a dull thumping as Winston wagged his tail and gave a soft whine. Eventually Lament let out a sound that wasn’t quite a laugh, but more like a bemused huff.

“You believe what you’re saying. Don’t know that it's right, but you believe it. There’s something to be said for someone that’ll stick to their guns, even when it might get them killed. Alright, Adagio Dazzle, you want your people healed? I’ll do it, in exchange for something in return.”

Adagio managed not to let out an explosive sigh of relief and maintained her dignity while she nodded her head, “Name it.”

There was something decidingly wry in the look on his face as he said, “You make friends with my eldest daughters and help out with watching the rest of the kids.”

She wasn’t certain she heard him right and asked on reflex, “I beg your pardon?”

“Pretty sure I was speaking plain English there, girl. You want my help, the price is you make a point of coming back here and making friends with my two oldest. You know, the gals who greeted you at the door? One of them tried to bash your face in?” Lament’s pale features became shadowed with the ghost of a frown, “Hate to say it but might be some truth to your talk about needing to get out there more, if only to be visible to the other Espada and make it plain I’m not to be taken lightly. Thing is, I’ve been keeping the girls cooped up here too, for their own safety. Maybe that ain’t what’s best for them. Maybe I’m thinking they need a friend, one who’s savvy to trouble and can keep an eye on them while also giving them the kind of fun kids ought to have. On top of that the little ones need plenty of looking after too, and even Roka and Fenice get a bit overwhelmed at times, so you can help out on that front.”

“I don’t know if-” Adagio began, and Lament’s voice dropped an icy note as he smiled thinly.

“Of course I could boot you face first off my tower, if you prefer.”

“...Your negotiating skills are a bit rough around the edges but I think you’ll do better than you think dealing with your fellow Espada’s cutthroat ways.” Adagio said dryly. “Very well, I accept. I’ll make a point of coming over when time permits, say once or twice a week?”

“That’ll be fine. Don’t want to rush this either, especially with the excitement we’ve got coming our way.”

“You’re referring to the imminent attack by the Quincy I assume.” Adagio tapped one claw on the table, frowning, “I’ll be with Torch’s forces during that battle. Might I suggest you consider aligning yourself close to Torch during the conflict? You may believe the Fifth Espada would gladly see you fall, but it might go some length to alter that view if you show a willingness to stand beside him and his own. A show of solidarity between the Fourth and Fifth Espadas would do wonders to curb the ambitions of those below you and incite some level of caution from those above who might have their own plans.”

Lament let out a soft, bitter breath. “You sure do sound like you belong here, but at least you own who you are. I’ll think about it. In the meantime we’d best see to your friends. I can suss out some spirit energies in the area that are none too friendly watching the place, and they’ll move sooner or later.”

He must have been referring to the Arrancar that Adagio had sensed following her and her companions here. Had they moved beyond the threshold wall to get closer to the tower? “I thought few would dare challenge the Fourth’s territory by snooping around?”

He gave her a slightly raised eyebrow, “You did, so not too surprising others would too, especially if its Guto’s people. They’re a belligerent bunch. None of my concern as long as they don’t try to get into the tower, and they’re wise enough not to try after I send a few heads rolling when I first moved in. Still, that’s not going to stop them from taking a crack and you and yours when you leave here, I’m thinking.”

“You could perhaps help drive them off.” Adagio suggested, but Lament shook his head.

“No need. You managed to go head to head with Fenice. I’m thinking you’ve got the power to deal with this yourself, especially with Torch’s girl helping you. Besides if you can’t handle a few of Guto’s thugs then how can I expect you to keep my daughters safe when your hanging out with them?”

Adagio sighed and rose from her seat, “I can’t really refuse, can I? I need your daughter’s healing skills. I suppose I’ll deal with these so-called thugs when they make their move, but shall we see to my people first? We do have an agreement, yes?”

He rose as well, shouldering his Zanpaktou, “That we do. That we do. Let’s go get Roka so she can patch up your friends.”

Adagio kept needing to suppress a twitch every time he used the word ‘friends’. She’d been trying hard not to think of them in that light. Ember was, in a way, a friend, but was really more of an ally Adagio felt she could trust. But that might change soon depending on just how Ember dealt with the revelation of Adagio’s siren powers. As for Di-Roy and Gaw, they were vassals. Useful, capable subordinates. Friends was... not a word she was sure she could afford to believe in. Yet she may well have to revise that thinking, if she was to do what Lament wanted. Make “friends” with Roka and Fenice? She could certainly talk the talk and even walk parts of the walk, doing what was needed to ingratiate herself with them, show them a good time, and essentially act the part of a friend.

But would it be real? Could she afford that level of trust again, especially when in the end she may have to use any of them at any time to achieve her goals?

The thought unsettled her, especially as she recalled Lament’s words. Had she sacrificed herself to save her sisters, felt that moment of realization of how empty her search for power using the darker siren arts was, only to slide right back into that same ambitious lust for power? She’d convinced herself it was worth it if only to gain revenge on Grogar, that nothing else mattered but seeing him destroyed. But she’d never really expected to encounter others who might be... of more value than as mere pawns for her to use as she saw fit.

“Wait a moment...” Lament said as Adagio reached the door, and she turned as he tossed her another apple from the kitchen. “One for the road. Be sure to finish it.”

She couldn't’ tell if his eyes were unreadable and faintly pleasant, or unnervingly sharp and cold as a blizzard. Either way she hold the apple firmly and nodded, “Of course. Now, about my... friends?”

The word didn’t quite feel right as she said it, but she found she could do so with a straight tone.

----------

The monitor glowed with a dull red light, casting Grogar’s aged, leathery face with a bloody hue. He leaned back in his wide metal chair with a ponderous look as he watched the scene unfold on the screen, which showed an exact view from Adagio’s perspective as she and the Fourth Espada departed the rooftop of the Fourth’s tower and descended back down to find that ‘Roka’ woman.

He’d rather hoped Adagio might have bitten the proverbial bullet and returned to him to heal the failed experiment and the bizarre, giant aberration. Grogar was eager to have either one back under his knife again. The half-breed experiment had survived long past his expiration date and Grogar was curious to cut it open to find out just how it had sustained itself despite being designed to explode after a certain period of not having the process of being reborn as an Arrancar finished. As for the giant saurian aberration, it was oddly unique itself from the scant data Grogar could gather through the limited sensors he’d left in Adagio’s body. Oh, he’d taken out the pain receptors and even the more obvious tracers and probes... but he’d left just enough in to observe and hear her actions and do some limited scanning around her.

Grogar never let go of a promising specimen, and Adagio clearly had so much more still to give to Grogar’s continuous quest to dissect, understand, and forcibly improve the Hollow condition. Mostly for his own benefit. Actually exclusively for his own benefit, but that was besides the point.

Adagio’s budding potential was now entering a stage where it would start to bloom, and Grogar was interested to see how far she could go. A possible alliance with the Fourth Espada might prove problematic in some regards, but Grogar knew the Fourth’s weakness was his so-called “family”. That was a lever he’d find a way to gain leverage over in due time, likely with no lack of help from data Adagio was unwittingly gathering at this very moment.

Grogar felt a presence opening a Garganta into his laboratory lair and with a casual flick of his wrist he shut the monitor off and turned in his seat, already knowing who the interloper was before... “she” showed herself.

Chrysalis stepped through the Garganta’s dark, yawning mouth and looked at Grogar with an exaggerated level of poisonous mirth. “I’m not interrupting any ‘personal’ time am I, dear Grogar?”

Grogar rolled his eyes, his voice basted in disdain, “Spare me the pointless quips ‘Chrysalis’. Are you going to take the disguise off or am I going to continue to have to pretend you’re your Queen? Does she know half the things you do when wearing her skin, I wonder?”

“Chrysalis” pouted and then laughed, her body becoming enveloped in a curtain of emerald flame as she stepped forward. As “she” stepped out of the flames a body more humble and stature and masculine in frame revealed itself. He had Chrysalis’ dark onyx skin, and while clearly male in build he still possessed a rather thin and feminine figure. He wore a white vest lined with emerald, leaving it open to expose a smooth chest and thin waist. Tight fitting pants were held up by a green sash and a white hilted, straight and single edged Zanpaktou akin to a cutlass was sheathed at his hip. His face was much like the rest of him, vaguely feminine while still clearly having male features. Mossy green hair topped his head in shoulder length curls, spilling out from a helmet of bone that had two long protrusions shaped like the mandibles of a stag beetle. Teal colored eyes sparkled with amusement and he spoke in a high and perpetually laughing tone.

“So you prefer me to look like this, huh? Didn’t know you swung that way, and honestly your too old to be my type-”

“Oh do be quiet Thorax!” Grogar snapped, “I’m in no mood for your juvenile games. I trust you’re here for a suitably important reason?

“Spoilsport.” Thorax, Fraccion to the Second Espada and one of Chrysalis’ most trusted servants, said with a mock whine, then winked, “Of course it’s important. My Queen is returning within the day and she’ll demand word of your progress. You have been making progress, haven’t you? Your continued existence may well be dependent upon you pleasing our Queen. You know how she gets when she’s grumpy, and nothing makes her more grumpy than plans that don’t bear tasty, succulent fruit.”

Grogar had difficulty not rolling his eyes again at Thorax’s flamboyant manner, waving his arms dramatically as if delivering lines at a play. Grogar blew out a snort and rose from his seat, walking over to another table filled with monitors where his cracked, aged fingers punched a few keys to change the screens to an overlay of Canterlot City.

“The girls in question have returned to their homes after making quite the stir in Soul Society. Unfortunately my attempts to establish a means to spy upon the city have been hampered by... unforeseen complications. However it's of little concern.”

“Little concern?” Thorax asked in a dubious voice, placing one hand petulantly on his hip, “Your entire task was to capture one of those girls! What have you been doing all this time?”

“Correction, Chrysalis’ task was for me to study the power of magic. Those girls were merely the most convenient source of magic to potentially take and study.” Grogar said as if talking to a simpleton, which in his mind he was. A few more keystrokes brought up new images on the monitor, displaying biological diagrams of Adagio’s Adjuchas form, and a slowly forming composite of her Vasto Lorde state. Other images showed elemental charts and subsections of Adagio’s siren gem, alongside reams and reams of data on energy wavelengths and frequencies.

“However I have found a far, far more useful and convenient subject with which to study magic and how its power can enhance Hollow kind.” Grogar said with a deep, appreciative smile at his own work. Adagio was his growing masterpiece, but even she would pale in comparison to the power he’d unleash from himself once his ‘prototype’ was complete.

Thorax approached the screens and looked at them with undisguised curiosity, his eyes lighting up. He licked his lips, revealing that his Hollow hole was in a truly odd place, in the center of his tongue. “Oh my, isn’t she a pretty one? Where did you snatch up a treat like her?”

“She comes from the very realm whose magic we wish to study and make our own. Her ability to adapt to Hueco Mundo and existence as a Hollow is matched only by the extraordinary manner in which her magic empowers her Hollow abilities and vice versa. Soon the secrets of that power will be laid bare before me, and you can tell Chrysalis that my progress has been swift on that front. I expect a working prototype to be finished within a few days.”

“What kind of prototype? What manner of toy are you building?” Thorax asked with an eager smirk and the air of a child interested in seeing what was under the Christmas tree.

“Something I believe Chrysalis will gain a great deal of use out of.” Grogar said, and silently added, As a field test so I can refine the more advanced model for myself. He went over with long strides to the other side of his lab where a large metal box lined with pulsing circuits of red energy sat attached to a work table running with cables. A quick press of a button on top of the box caused the upper half of it to open in four separate portions while a shimmering red force field rose up around a small platform within.

On the platform was a device shaped like a white metal ring with four prongs jutting inward towards its center. The ring buzzed with small arcs of red energy, and the prongs held suspended between them a gleaming, flawless red gem.

A near exact replica of Adagio’s siren gem.

Episode 66: What's In a Friend?

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Episode 66: What’s In a Friend?

Contemplation was not Ember’s element. When it came time to take action, she usually did so without hesitation, following her gut when it told her what to do. Only the problem now was that her gut was being irritatingly silent and uncertain, leaving Ember with no recourse but to... think things through. Work out her “feelings”, which just made her stomach ache and her face to scrunch up in general confusion.

What was she supposed to do about Adagio? The more she thought about the power of song that Adagio had displayed and the way it had controlled the minds of those Adjuchas Hollows, the more it became obvious that Adagio had used the same power on Ember. But what should she do about this revelation? Her brain was a tangled snarl of conflict. One part of her wanted to tear Adagio a new one. How dare she play with Ember’s mind like that! Worse, Ember wasn’t sure exactly why Adagio had done it. The only reason that fit was that Adagio had been trying to protect the Quincy, but that didn’t make any sense. Why would Adagio do that?

Despite the vicious boil of anger in her gut, Ember only had to glance up at the tower looming above her to feel an equal swelling of respect for Adagio. The woman was scrapping and struggling for power like a proper Hollow should, and by all accounts was succeeding. It continued to floor Ember that Adagio had evolved into a Vasto Lorde, and how could she not respect such a quick and potent rise in power? But more than that, the fact that Adagio was up there in that tower, facing the Fourth Espada at the risk of her own life in order to try to help those that had helped her was strangely not typical of Hollowkind... and earned even more respect from Ember.

After all, her father would’ve done the same for her, or anyone else of his horde. Ember took a lot of pride in the tight knit, family-like nature of Torch’s horde, no matter how violent or competitive they got with each other sometimes. It seemed like Adagio at least understood the importance of that kind of loyalty.

So why the manipulation with that song power? Why violate the trust Ember put in her by doing such a thing!?

Being honest with her own emotions wasn’t easy for Ember. It would be even harder to be honest with Adagio about them. Mostly because Ember was afraid of what would happen when that confrontation occurred, and she knew it had to happen soon otherwise these feelings would drive her nuts to keep them bottled up inside.

“Yeash,” Di-Roy’s voice echoed from up where he lay stretched on Gaw’s back. “Why is it we’re the one knocking on the door of our second death, but you look like the one with a hole in their gut?”

Ember crossed her arms hard over her chest and shot a venomous glare up at him, “Zip it! Save your breath for staying alive. Not that I’d care if you croaked up there before Adagio saves your butt.”

Di-Roy let out a weak laugh, “Okay, okay, message received. I’ll stop trying to be social while bleeding out. Still, if you ever want to talk about it-”

“I don’t.”

“Aaaaand back to quietly dying...”

The blessed silence didn’t last long, however, as the giant’s yawn of the iron doors to the tower opening drew Ember’s attention from the stewing mire of her thoughts. Emerging from within was Adagio’s pale form and alongside her walked an Arrancar woman in thick white robes, with the hood drawn back. Ember didn’t recognize the woman’s simple features or the thick half-skull mask across the right side of her face, but she had to assume this was one of the Fourth’s Fraccion. The woman took one look at Gaw and Di-Roy and without a word immediately started a fast walk towards them.

Ember’s instincts were to go on the defensive, but a glance from Adagio settled her down as the Vasto Lorde approached.

“It’s alright Ember. This is Roka, one of Lament’s children. She’ll be tending to Gaw and Di-Roy’s injuries.”

“That right? Guess things went well with the Fourth.” Ember said, doing her level best to keep the mad swirl of emotions off her face. She was glad that Adagio was safe. More than she imagined she’d be, but at the same time the confusion and sense of betrayal was back as well. She really did need to talk to Adagio, and soon.

Meanwhile Adagio gave her a flicker of an understanding glance, as if she was sensing Ember’s thoughts, and spoke in a soft but nonchalant tone. “You were right to warn me about his mood swings. He’s reasonable enough on the surface, but the man’s got issues, no denying that.” For some reason Adagio rubbed at her neck, which made Ember raise an eyebrow, to which Adagio just muttered, “Just trust me, when the Fourth hands you an apple, don’t stop until you’ve finished eating it.”

Well that certainly was an odd statement to make, and Ember could only imagine how the conversation between Adagio and the Fourth must have gone down, but at least everything seemed to have worked out. Only...

“So you got him to help us out, but what was the price? There must have been one.” By Ember’s reckoning even if the Fourth Espada was a total nutjob he still wouldn’t be the sort to give away help for free. Adagio’s Hollow mask obscured most of her smile, but it was a crooked and wry one from what Ember could make out of it.

“Oh, there was. It seems our esteemed Fourth Espada wants me to make friends with his eldest daughters.”

“...Huh?” was all Ember could say in response to that as her face screwed up in even more confusion. However before she could try pursuing more questions Roka had approached Gaw and Di-Roy, drawing Ember and Adagio’s attention away from their conversation. Roka observed the wounds on both the massive Adjuchas Hollow and the battered half-Arrrancar on Gaw’s back, and her one visible eye swam with sympathy.

“The two of you must be in a great deal of pain. If you remain still I shall do Father's bidding and do my best to heal these wounds. I ask that you bear with me and try to move as little as possible.” Roka said, and held her right arm out to her side. From within the confines of her robe’s heavy sleeves Ember saw a glitter of needle and shimmering thread appear. She felt Roka’s reiatsu quiver and rise, filling the air with a placid and soothing resonance.

Both Ember and Adagio watched as Roka gestured with sharp yet easy motions. The needles and thread started to twitch through the air in a pale ballet, and Ember realized that both needles and thread were of a sapped ivory pigment like old bones. Roka was likely producing them with her own body, or at least that’s what Ember guessed. Gaw stiffened as the needles approached her, but Adagio was quick to bark out, “She’s going to heal you, so do as she says and remain still, both of you!”

Gaw snorted, but settled down, and Di-Roy mumbled something weakly along the lines of, “Ain’t going anywhere...”

Then Roka went to work in earnest. Ember watched with rapt, fascinated attention. More and more needles and thread spread out of Roka’s robed sleeve until it looked like a gleaming spider-web pattern of writhing threads were cocooning both Gaw and Di-Roy. Ember could feel that Roka was sending carefully concentrated portions of her spiritual energy through the threads and needles as they stitched and patched up wounds with amazingly fast efficiency.

“Hmph, I’m almost glad I didn’t fight her instead,” said Adagio under her breath. Ember gave her a sidelong glance, wondering just what had happened inside that tower, but she could guess well enough by the context of what Adagio had said. She also couldn’t disagree with the assessment. Roka’s ability might have currently been used to repair the injuries of their comrades but Ember could easily imagine how that same ability could be used offensively. Those needles and threads, both of which were likely reinforced by Hierro, could be deadly if employed to tear things apart rather than sew them back together. Roka certainly moved them with calm, unerringly swift precision as she relentlessly sewed up Gaw’s many wounds, and all but plunged them into Di-Roy’s gut to stitch up internal injuries before closing the wound’s exterior.

All told the process too maybe fifteen minutes, Ember and Adagio remaining quiet the rest of the time as they watched Roka work. By the end of it Di-Roy and Gaw might have had enough stitch marks to make good on a Frankenstein cosplay, but both were looking remarkably better off than they had before Roka’s tender care. Roka herself simply held her arm up and let the multitude of glinting bone needles and thread retracting back into the depths of her sleeve and proceeded to levy a soft smile at the pair she’d just treated.

“I have done the most I can, but the rest will require you two to get as much rest as possible and plenty of food to eat. Especially you.” she nodded at Di-Roy, “The wound in your stomach is not going to heal fully for some time. I’d suggest taking it easy for at least one week.”

“Hey, I was born to take it easy.” Di-Roy said, lazing on his back and making it clear he was perfectly comfortable with not moving any time soon.

“Good,” Roka said with a firm note of approval before turning her attention to Adagio. “I recommend leaving them here in my care for a few days anyway, just so they recover enough that I can feel comfortable letting them walk on their own. I’ll ensure they have plenty to eat in the meantime, and when they’re ready I’ll have Fenice escort them to you. Are you currently residing with Lord Torch’s forces?”

“No, as a matter of fact.” Adagio said, “I’ve acquired accommodations of my own in the south wall, west of the main gate and about four floors up. I’ve been told the rooms used to belong to someone called the Queen of Thorns.”

Roka’s eye twitched for a moment. “Oh. I see. An interesting choice, but one I cannot fault you for. Very well, I shall send them there once I’m confident its safe for them to move on their own. Will that be acceptable?”

“It is, and thank you for your assistance Roka. I know you do it only on your father’s orders but it's appreciated nonetheless.”

To this Roka merely offered a short, courteous bow and said, “Then I’ll take my leave. The children are likely already driving Fenice up the proverbial wall. If you’ll excuse me.”

As Roka returned to the tower, Adagio flew up so she was level with Gaw’s head and looking at both her and Di-Roy. “Alright you two, you heard the lady. I expect you both to be on good behavior while you’re recovering here, and I that you’ll return in one functional piece.”

Di-Roy’s voice was lightly marinated with sarcasm. “But I thought I’d challenge the Fourth Espada’s daughters to some friendly strip poker. You don’t think he’d mind, do you boss?”

Gaw responded before Adagio could by huffing out an irritated bark and rolling her shoulders to knock Di-Roy off her. He gave a warbling cry before hitting the ground, groaning in pain. “Heeeey, I’m recovering from serious injury here, Gaw! What are you trying to do, kill me!?”

One of Gaw’s heavy talons lifted casually and then landed on top of Di-Roy, pinning the irksome half-Arrancar down to flail his arms uselessly. As Di-Roy continued to utter various protests Gaw looked at Adagio with a clear expression in the saurian Hollow’s eyes that perfectly communicated; ‘Don’t worry, I’ll keep the idiot from doing anything too stupid.’

Adagio patted Gaw’s snout in acknowledgment, “Good to know I can count on at least one of you. Recover, and then return to me, both of you. I should have our new home sorted out by then.”

----------

Sombra loomed over the proceedings like a storm cloud. Around his throne the Sternritter sat along the ends of the five sided table of the Silburn’s grand meeting hall, all silent as Sombra’s voice echoed heavily.

“So we have nothing?”

Prim Hemline kept her posture steady and her voice professionally neutral as she spoke, “After interrogating every soldat of the First Rank and all Sternritter we’ve established that every one of them has an alibi for their location during the attempted assassination. We also have not discovered any materials that could be used to create a Seele Schneider, nor the weapon in question in our investigations.”

“Destroying the weapon itself to remove it as evidence would have been easy enough.” said Night Light, his eyes glittering like gold daggers as he looked upon the numerous other Sternritter seated around the table. “We also know that establishing an alibi could be quite simple if the assassin was not working alone and had accomplices who could corroborate a false narrative. I think there’s little point in continuing a normal investigation when this matter could be solved quickly with more extreme measures.”

From across the table a woman with bright blue skin and a radiant head of long orange and yellow striped hair quirked an eyebrow at Night Light and spoke in a cultured voice, “Are you suggesting we start torturing our own now? At random?”

A low snarling sound pulled itself from Twilight Velvet as she shot a look at the woman, “If it was your daughter who was threatened, Sassy, would you stop at anything to find the one tho tried to murder her?”

A flinch crossed Sassy Saddle’s elegant features. The woman was among the older of the Sternritter, but still held the figure and looks of a model who’d appear in magazines, even with some of the hints of crow’s feet around the edges of her eyes. “If it was my Sunny Flare I’d be as upset as you Velvet, but I’d like to know exactly what your husband means by ‘extreme measures’.”

Sombra’s voice cut across the room, sharp and solid as a thrown spear. “Night Light, if you have an idea, I shall hear it. Time is short, let us not waste it.”

Night Light gave a firm nod and said, “As you say, Your Majesty. I wish for permission for Cadence to use her Lust on all potential suspects in order to establish whether they were truly involved in the attempted assassination of my daughter.”

This was met with several raised voices among too many Sternritter to even suspect whether one of them was making an outcry out of outrage or legitimate worry.

“Preposterous!” Spoke a gray skinned man with curly dark hair and spectacles perched on his nose, “I’ll not have my or my wife’s minds violated just to prove that we are loyal Quincy!”

Seated next to him a much younger looking woman with pale yellow skin and a elegant sweep of light purple and white streaked hair spoke with a nervous but cultured tone, “But if His Majesty insists, Jet Set, shouldn’t we be willing to go to any extreme to prove our innocence?”

On another branch of the five-pointed table a tall man with light brown skin, an unbelievably well groomed head of shining gold hair, and thick white glasses flipped his hair with a slight ‘humph’ and spoke in a loud, nasal voice. “I for one must point out that while Cadence’s power is truly potent it is not without failings. It can be resisted by a strong enough mind or reiatsu, which many of us Sternritter possess, and in the event she could break through those defenses the devotion the Lust creates would mean she could convince anyone go confess to the crime whether they were guilty or not.”

“Exactly,” said Filthy Rich with a heavy sigh, eyes grim as he looked at Night Light and Twilight Velvet with sympathy, “I understand how you feel. If it were my little Diamond who’d been attacked I’d be outraged beyond belief. But Trender Hoof brings up a good point that Cadence’s power could be resisted, or worse, abused. Indeed the only thing we know for certain is that the attacker was a woman, so wouldn’t Cadence be on the list of suspects?”

Velvet’s eyes widened, then narrowed to slits, “How dare you even suggest Cadence has anything to do with this!? She would never harm Twilight!”

“Are you so sure of that?” asked Fleur De Lis, leaning on one elbow, chin propped against the back of her hand as she looked sidelong at Twilight Velvet. “You’ve always been so trusting of Cadence. Has it never occurred to you that her trying so hard to get into your son’s pants could just be a calculated move to gain control of your household? And wouldn’t getting rid of your daughter nicely remove any question of who’d inherit the family holdings after Cadence pops out a child with Shining Armor?”

Velvet slowly stood from her seat, hands twitching, “You go too far, Fleur. Perhaps you found a way to strike at Twilight after you got embarrassed by her and her friends in the human world. How’s that scar, by the way?”

Fleur’s eyes flashed. The burn marks from her encounter with Sunset were long since healed and all but invisible against her pale cheek, but the fury in Fleur’s eyes were pure as she glared back at Velvet. “My scar’s are none of your concern, and it was that young Soul Reaper stand in that has earned my ire. Your daughter did next to nothing in that battle, and barley earned my notice.”

“Enough.”

Sombra’s one word, spoken with the weight of a breaking tidal wave, was enough to make all fall silent as the man drummed his fingers on the arm of his throne, his eyes making a slow pan across those seated around him. “If one sought to sow rifts among us they have already clearly succeeded. I shall tolerate no more bickering on the approaching dawn of battle. Night Light, Trender Hoof’s points concerning the nature of Cadence’s power are legitimate. The Lust can force anyone to obey her will, but to such a degree that one would willingly confess to crimes they did not commit just to please her. It cannot be relied upon in this case. No, this assassin, whether they worked alone or as part of a group with a larger agenda, has hidden themselves well. I’ll not distract us from our present goals by tearing our ranks apart in search of these cowards. Instead I shall ensure the safety of Twilight Sparkle by placing those I trust to guard her. If the assassins wish to try again to take her life, they will find it more difficult the second time around.”

He turned his gaze to Twilight Velvet, “You will accept this as sufficient for now and I will hear no more outbursts.”

Velvet sat back down, looking haggard but still giving an accepting nod. “As you will, Your Majesty.”

“Good, now to the matter of our assault upon Las Noches...” Sombra gestured at Night Light, “As the commander of our forces already present in Hueco Mundo I am placing Night Light in command of overall operations under myself. We shall be deploying in three divisions, and Night Light shall assume direct command of the first, which will consist of our six lead soldat battalions, his expeditionary battalions, and our air forces. The second division will be under Filthy Rich’s command and serve as our primary reserve force, with five battalions held to reinforce the front line where necessary. Our cadets will be placed with this second division in an observation role, guarded by Fleet Foot, Soarin, and Fleur De Lis.”

The woman in question looked like she wanted to jump out of her seat, opening her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Sombra looked at Fleur and said, “A question?”

Fleur grit her teeth and let out a small hiss, “No, Your Majesty. I'm merely... surprised I’m being held in reserve. Am I not one of those bested suited to front-line battle?”

“Indeed, your power as the Tempest is extraordinary. That is why I wish to keep you in reserve and to guard the cadets. Consider this an honor, for it shows I trust you to protect our most valued young Quincy and that I believe you are not possibly involved with our shadowy assassins.” Sombra said, and Fleur took that with a less than pleased but acknowledging nod.

“Not to question your decisions, Your Majesty, but I’m also surprise you’re sticking Fleet Foot in the back,” spoke up Spitfire with a considering frown, “She’s also a major front-line hitter that I’d think we’d need for when those Espada crash into us.”

“A fair point, but considering our opponents will have both home ground advantage, along with the ability to rapidly form Garganta portals to hit our flanks or rear, I believe keeping a strong force in reserve will be needed to counter the Arrancar’s mobility,” Sombra said plainly, “We are not going there to crush their hordes, only occupy them long enough for Cadence’s search and destroy team to find and eliminate the Espada capable of creating such powerful Garganta portals.”

“Speaking of which, has she told you what her team is going to be, Your Majesty?” asked an older woman with sharp cheekbones, sallow gray skin, and swept back, short white hair.

“She has, Zesty Gourmand. However I do not intend to reveal that information at this time. Given the possibility remains that the assassin is among the Sternritter I consider it advantageous that Cadence’s team remain unknown until the moment of deployment. She will inform her selected members at the time we depart the Silburn.”

“I see,” Zesty Gourmand leaned back in her seat, lacing her fingers together, “Prudent, if a bit cloak and dagger if I may say so, Your Majesty. How are we to plan our tactics if we don’t know fully who will be facing the Hollows openly and who will be following Cadence on her hunt?”

“I trust my Sternritter to be able to adapt,” said Sombra simply, “Now, for the leader of the third division...”

----------

Adagio felt the presence of hostile reiatsu clearly, even though she could tell that the ones stalking her and Ember were trying to hide themselves. The strength of her Pesquisa had simply grown leaps and bounds sharper since her evolution, but more than that she sense her more potent connection to the element of water was making it much easier to feel where others were located simply due to the water contained in their blood. Or rather whatever stood in for water amid the spirit particles of the afterlife.

“Do you feel them?” she asked Ember in a quiet tone, and Ember nodded with an annoyed look on her face.

“Yeah. They’re not doing a very good job of masking their reiatsu. How do you want to play this?”

Adagio had been considering that very question for the duration of their walk away from Lament’s tower, making their way back south towards the dividing wall between the quarters of Las Noches’ interior landscape. They were nearly in the shadow of that wall now, its white stone length stretching to the right all the way to the fortress’s exterior wall and to the left all the way to the massive central tower that shot up to Las Noches’ roof. Adagio considered the gatehouse situated in the middle of the wall, with a rooftop several dozen meters higher than the rest of the wall and broad as half a football field.

“If they’re going to try anything I don’t feel like waiting for them to decide when it suits them. Let’s get this over with,” she said and took to the air, easily leaping skyward and having little trouble reaching the top of the gatehouse. Its roof was as flat and shining white as the rest of the wall, and Adagio landed in the center of it. Ember appeared a moment later, zipping up to Adagio’s side with the speed of Sonido.

“Let’s see if they take the invitation,” Adagio said, idly cradling her trident and waiting to see if the Hollow reiatsu that she’d sensed following her and Ember would make a move. They did.

With a soft buzz of noise two Arrancar women appeared on either side of Ember and Adagio. One was a tall girl of an exceedingly athletic build, with golden brown skin. She wore a baggy set of white pants and didn’t bother with any shoes, while her toned torso was clad only in a short sleeved, button up shirt that was only buttoned across the chest, leaving an ab laden stomach bare and putting her well muscled arms on full display. Her hair was stark white and cut short with a long front bob, the tips of her locks tinted a deep purple shade. Gold, hawkish eyes fixed on Adagio with brazen aggression mixed with hungry curiosity.

The other Arrancar girl could have been the other girl’s sister, sharing very similar facial looks and build, although she was shorter by a good few inches and had hair with green tinted tips rather than purple. The green also extended to a pair of unusual circles around her eyes, and Adagio wasn’t sure if that was paint or just some natural trick of skin tone, the rest of which was more a reddish brown hue as opposed to the taller girl’s golden brown. She wore a longer sleeved white shirt that was fully buttoned up, and slimmer pants over a pair of dark black shoes, showing off none of her figure.

Both already had drawn Zanpaktou in their hands, the purple fringed girl’s blade bearing a steeper curve towards the tip that gave it a talon-like appearance, while the green eyed girl’s was straight and short, like a ninjato, which she held in an inverted grip.

“Evening ladies,” said the girl with the purple tinted hair, licking her lips, “Enjoying a nice, quiet stroll?”

“What do you want, Gilda?” asked Ember flatly, “Unless Lord Guto has some business with my father, I can’t imagine you have a reason to be bothering me.”

“Maybe it's not you I’m interesting in,” Gilda said, taking a looming step forward, twirling her curved blade in her hands. “Maybe it’s the newbie that’s been tagging along with you all over the place that’s got our eye. Right Greta?”

The other girl, Greta, maintained a more passive stance, although Adagio could tell it was a deceptively passive one as she said, “She’s an interesting one alright. Lord Guto’s been paying attention to her ever since she kicked those three dogs around and sent them scurrying all over the fortress.”

“By those ‘three dogs’ I assume you’re talking about Hoops, Score, and Dumbbell, yes?” Adagio said with a heavy sigh, “Is this about something those three did while running errands for me?”

Gilda burst out a snort and pointed a finger at her, “It's about there only being so much territory around here and you starting to snap up a bit too many scraps to be ignored. The second you waltzed in here as a shiny new Vasto Lorde he felt it best to make it clear to you what your place is in the pecking order, especially if the rumor that you’re shaking up where the old Queen of Thorns used to be is true.”

She’d already suspected that she’d get a response like this from one or more of the Espada, but she hadn’t expected it to be quite so open and blatant. Adagio didn’t feel like beating around the bush, not after that rather harrowing conversation with Lament and already dealing with proving her strength to Fenice. She took a step towards Gilda, holding her trident out to the side in one hand as she met the Arrancar’s gaze with a hard one of her own.

“You can inform your Lord Guto that I have gotten his message and that if he wishes to discuss ‘territory’ he can feel free to visit me personally for such a conversation. However as of now I am claiming the Queen of Thorns’ former accommodations for myself, and won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. Also, those three boys are my vassals and I’ll look upon any harm done to them in the least favorable of lights, so do consider leaving them to their own devices whenever you see them, as they’ll likely be doing further errands for me.”

For a moment a disbelieving blink crossed Gilda’s eyes, then very quickly turned a sharpened anger matched by a thin, predator's smile. “Ballsy. I bet you’re feeling pretty much like a top dog with being a Vasto Lorde, but you’re still no Arrancar, and Las Noches is for Arrancars. Just because Torch is playing nice with you doesn’t mean you should get too comfortable.”

“Be careful Gilda,” Ember said, resting her hand on her own Zanpaktou, “My father is still stronger than Guto, and right now Adagio is our ally. Don’t start a fight you or your Espada can’t finish.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t your father also the Fourth Espada not so long ago, and before that he was the Second?” pointed out Greta, “And now he’s the Fifth. Who’s to say he can’t fall even further? Espada numbers can change. Maybe you should be careful about what fights you take on. Right now we don’t have a direct beef with you or Lord Torch, so you could just walk away and leave us to finish our chat with your friend here. I promise we’ll leave her alive-”

“Greta...” Gilda said in a warning tone, and Greta rolled her eyes.

“- we’ll leave her mostly alive. Guto just wants us to make sure your pal has got the message that she needs to know her place and not get a big head. Leaving the Queen of Thorns’ old quarters would be a nice symbol of that. All she has to do is agree. And why not? She can bunk with you and your dad’s horde. Why take digs that nobody wants anyway. Seriously if it wasn’t us doing this, you can bet that Chrysalis would be sending some of her drones to ask a lot less politely.”

Adagio was getting tired of this. The last thing she needed was to back down from what little scraps of power she was gaining. If she balked now it’d just be showing the kind of weakness that’d jeopardize her alliance with Torch, Lament, and leave her at the mercy of going back to Grogar’s dubious service.

It was time to make a statement.

Power rushed out of her in a torrent of reiatsu. Both Gilda and Greta winced at the spiritual pressure bursting out of Adagio as her body became rimed in a sea blue aura of flickering power. Adagio’s voice was clear and resonant.

“Since neither of you are listening very well let me make this abundantly clear. I am not bending to any demands, from you, or your Espada. If Chrysalis wishes to discuss my choice of claimed territory, she can come do so herself, the same as Guto. Now if you’re going to press this issue physically feel free to do so. I’ll gladly educate you both on your place in the pecking order.”

Both Gilda and Greta shared looks from either side of where Adagio and Ember stood, their gazes measuring. Adagio knew that both of them were waiting to see Ember’s response. If Ember stood to fight beside Adagio, the odds would be even. If Ember decided to leave Adagio, then likely the two other Arrancar could overpower even her evolved Vasto Lorde form if they went all out. Just a day ago Adagio wouldn’t have worried about whether Ember would stay. Now, however, having seen the power of Adagio’s song and likely connected the dots about what that meant... would Ember really stick by her?

She needn’t have worried. Ember’s reiatsu rose to meet Adagio’s, the pair of powers forming a united front to press down on Gilda and Greta. Ember’s own body gleamed with a deeper blue aura than Adagio’s as she drew her Zanpaktou and went back to back with the Vasto Lorde.

“That goes double for me. If you two want to fight, bring it on. Adagio is with me, and an ally of my father. Getting at her will mean getting by me first.”

Adagio was more surprised by the warm feeling that struck her on hearing those words than by the decision itself. And there was a moment of shame that came with it, because now she knew she had to talk things out with Ember as soon as possible to clear the air between them. She owed Ember that much, especially now. Perhaps the word ‘friend’ wasn’t something she had to be so nervous about after all.

As for Gilda and Greta, the two’s shared look lasted a moment longer, then Gilda’s smile turned fierce and Adagio could feel the woman’s power surge upward as well. Adagio would have been lying if she said she wasn’t surprised at how much reiatsu started to pour off of Gilda and Greta. Of the two she sensed that Gilda was the stronger one, but not by a wide margin. Adagio had become gradually better at estimating the strength of spiritual pressures, especially compared to her own power, and she gauged she held the edge over either Gilda or Greta alone. Together they might prove a challenge, but fortunately with Ember here that evened things out, since she also estimated Ember as an even match for Gilda. If these two wanted to test her, she’d make a point of holding nothing back. She had to make it clear to the denizens of Las Noches that Adagio Dazzle was quite done with being pushed around.

Her tail raised behind her, its scythe shaped fin poised to strike, and she raised her trident, where condensed spheres of water formed around each prong’s tip. In response Gilda’s eyes narrowed to golden knife-edges and braced her legs to pounce while Ember and Greta also tensed to burst into motion...

“Now what do we have here?”

Adagio blinked, as did Gilda, Greata, and Ember as a smooth male voice spoke off to their right. Adagio turned to see a man casually sitting on the edge of the roof, his legs dangling off as he leaned back to crane his head to look at them curiously, as if he’d been sitting there lounging the entire time. Yet Adagio hadn’t felt his presence at all. In fact she couldn’t quite read his spiritual energy even as she was looking right at him. He was clearly an Arrancar, from the large helmet of bone on his head with two long horns like the mandibles of some large beetle. His effeminate form with pitch black skin was striking, and he moved with a sinuous grace as he rolled and back flipped to his feet, turning around with an extravagant pose and bow to them.

“Oh, deepest apologies for interrupting what I imagine was going to be quite the fierce and engrossing bit of blood sport, but I just couldn’t help myself. As an ambassador of love I just die a little inside whenever I see my fellow Arrancar about to engage in such meaningless trivalites when there are so many more interesting ways to work out our differences.”

Adagio had no idea who this was, but Gilda’s reaction was an immediate twisting of her features into a sour and disgusted look as she hunched her shoulders and seemed to bristle and deflate all at once. “Thorax...”

That one name seemed to carry an eternity’s weight of history behind it as Gilda looked around as if trying to decide the fastest route of egress while looking as if she’d just caught the scent of a midden pile.

Meanwhile Greta’s response couldn't have been more opposite, the woman quickly sheathing her Zanpaktou with a faint tint of red on her cheeks as she said, “H-Hello Thorax! Um, what brings you all the way out here?”

As for Ember, she just looked somewhat confused and flabbergasted, and Adatio leaned over and whispered, “Who is this?”

Ember’s return whisper was guarded and uneasy. “Thorax. One of the Fraccion of Chrysalis herself, and her most trusted servant.”

Thorax turned a pleasant smile towards them, his whole face lighting up with a child’s delight. “Oh are people whispering about me over there? Come now Ember, no need to be impolite. I’m an open book and keep no secrets! Oh, and hello to you too, Greta. Radiant as ever I see. And of course I haven’t forgotten you Gilda, I see you’ve kept yourself in such good shape. Trying to impress Lord Guto still, or has that flame died off?”

“Die in a fire.” Gilda said simply, and Thorax laughed like a chocolate bell.

“Charming as usual.” Thorax sauntered over to the group, and Adagio could tell his motions were well practiced to the point of being all but natural. Every move of his slim figure was an invitation to look, to draw closer to possibly touch. She knew the motions herself, and had used similar tactics plenty of times to entice others into a state of mind that made them easier to influence. For just a moment Thorax’s eyes met hers and she saw the flash of understanding there. He knew she understood his motions for what they were and his eyes shined approval and his head made a near imperceptible nod of acknowledgement.

“What do you want, dweeb?” Gilda asked in a heavy tone, her own Zanpaktou still barred. He held up his hands in a placating gesture, his smile flashing white teeth.

“Only to head off an explosive and no doubt fatal confrontation before it could have truly unfortunate consequences. You see since the Quincy will be trying so hard to send all of us to oblivion soon enough I just can’t imagine the value in making their jobs easier.”

“Isn’t any of your business to stick your nose between us and whatever prey we choose. Right Greta?” Gilda said, only to blanch at Greta’s less than enthusiastic look as she kept giving Thorax half-lidded glances.

“Well, sure Lord Guto wanted us to deliver a message to the new Vasto Lorde, but we technically already did that,” Greta said, licking her lips, “And if Thorax thinks we shouldn’t fight right now we can always do this another day.”

Gilda ran a hand over her face, which was a picture of pure irritation. “I can’t believe this lameness. Thorax don’t you have anything better to do than screw around!?”

“Not really, no,” Thorax said with a wink and turned to Adagio and Ember. “Ember, a pleasure as always. How’s your father?”

“...Fine,” Ember said in a cool tone, not sheathing her Zanpaktou either. Thorax closed his eyes with a sheepish grin.

“Still haven’t forgiven me for that incident with my brother?”

“Pharynx and me are cool, no thanks to your meddling.” Ember said with a deep frown, “Next time you feel like playing pranks like that, me and him have agreed to how we’ll get back at you.”

“Oh, scary. Gives me chills to think about.” Thorax shuddered, but was smiling as he did it, “I’m glad to hear you two are still getting along. Poor Pharynx just doesn’t get out enough. Nooooow...”

He turned his gleaming eyes onto Adagio, “We haven’t gotten a chance at proper introductions, although my name has been getting ping ponged around enough already. I am Thorax, Fraccion to Queen Chrysalis, the Second Espada, consort to our ever tall and imposing Lord Tirek, and it is my distinct pleasure to meet you Adagio Dazzle. Believe it or not your name has been making its way across several lips in Las Noches’ halls, and today in particular the gossip has spread like blood soaking into hungry sands. After all it's not everyday a Hollow walks out of Las Noches as an Adjuchas, then walks back in the very same day as a Vasto Lorde. I confess I’m dying of curiosity to know how you achieved that particular feat.”

“I’m afraid a lady doesn’t just share her secrets,” Adagio replied while offering her own thin smile, making a slow show of relaxing her stance as she lowered the points of her trident and allowed her tail to hang at a more lazy posture by her side. She kept her smile up, an entirely different kind of weapon readied and at guard. “Not without ensuring she’ll be getting something out of it. A pleasure to meet you, Thorax. I suppose I shall thank you for sparing me the trouble of educating others on the drawbacks of overestimating themselves. It would have been tedious.”

Gilda’s growl echoed loudly over the rooftop, but Thorax ignored it with a hearty laugh. “Indeed I sense you’re more than capable of handling yourself, Miss Dazzle, but it’s good to know there’s at least one more Hollow within these walls who understands not every disagreement has to be settled with blades and fists. I take it Lord Guto was making an issue of your choice of territories?”

“You’re well informed. I’m starting to wonder if every Espada is sending eyes to keep watch on me,” Adagio said, baiting a response, but Thorax merely turned his smile into something altogether too amused.

“It's best to assume nothing you do goes unnoticed in Las Noches, Miss Dazzle. Part of the price of boredom around here, I’m afraid. We have precious so little to gossip about it's practically an art form to keep tabs on one another. In fact you’ve already started doing the same yourself, have you not, sending your faithful errand boys around to gather information for you?”

“You’ve got me there. I do hope I’ll not have to have a repeat of this conversation concerning my choice of home with Queen Chrysalis? I understand the previous owner gained the wrath of the Second Espada, but I’d like to think that ire doesn’t extend to mere rooms, nor whoever decides to make use of them.” Adagio imagined that this issue with the Queen of Thorns had just been a pretext for Guto to try to send his thugs to strong arm Adagio into giving up any territory at all, and was willing to bet Chrysalis couldn’t have cared less about a bunch of dusty, empty chambers.

“While I can hardly speak for all of my Queen’s thoughts and whims, her old grudge with the former Second Espada is long since become dust in the wind. I think I can give you some level of assurance you won’t be bothered on the matter as long as you can secure your place from less... reasonable rivals,” Thorax said, and Gilda’s glowering face broke into a thunderhead as she stormed a step forward.

“And you shouldn’t assume we’re done here just because you show up, Thorax! You may be Chrysalis’ favorite, but you’re still weak in a fight and me and Greta could kick your ass right alongside these two.”

“Gilda, c’mon, let’s just drop it,” said Greta, “Even Lord Guto wouldn’t want us pissing off the Queen.”

“Arrgh, you’re just saying that because you’re sweet on his ass!”

“N-no I’m not! I just don’t think it's worth it to tick off Lord Tirek’s Queen just because you’re hot for a fight. Seriously if you want to blow off steam that bad there’s plenty of guys back in the aerie. We can deal with this chick,” Greta jerked a thumb at Adagio, “Any other time we feel like.”

“Do try, whenever you feel like,” Adagio said with steel in her tone.

With a hissing breath Gilda finally rammed her Zanpaktou back into its sheath, “Fine! Another day, dweebs, when you don’t got an irritatingly sexy bug-boy looking over your shoulders.”

“Hey, before you leave, ladies,” said Thorax as Gilda turned to depart, “I want to invite all of you to a little get together I’m hosting. You see with the Quincy coming to knock on our door any day now I just can’t stand the thought of not having a night of feasting and revelry to ease the tension and boost morale. Why for some of us it might be our last hurrah before meeting oblivion, so as they said in the living world ‘eat, drink, and be merry’. Tomorrow night, at our Queen’s hall. You’re all invited.”

“Really!?” Greta perked up, then at Gilda’s glare she composed herself, “I mean, if Lord Guto allows it, we might attend.”

“Pass,” said Gilda flatly, “Like, triple freakin’ pass.”

“The party just won’t be the same without you’re glowing presence,” Thorax said with a tone pricked with needles of sarcasm. He turned his attention back to Adagio and Ember. “And what of you two lovelies? We’ll have music, fine foods taken from all over the living world, and more than a few of the Fraccion of other Espada will be there. Quite a chance for an up and comer like you to rub elbows with your soon to be peers.”

Adagio didn’t think for a second that Thorax didn’t have an ulterior motive, likely multiple ulterior motives for inviting her and Ember to this ‘party’, but much as she’d advised Lament not to ignore the games and politics of Las Noches, she wasn’t about to ignore her own advice. Besides, Lament wanted her to show Fenice and Roka a good time. This sounded like a good opportunity to test those waters.

“I can’t speak for Ember, but I for one would be delighted to attend,” Adagio said with her own graceful bow, “In fact would it be alright if I brought some guests with me?”

“Oh?" Thorax raised and intrigued eyebrow, “By all means, I’d love to meet whoever you brought. And what of you Ember? Shall we expect your shining presence to bring some much needed spunk to the proceedings?”

Ember looked not too far off of Gilda’s general disinterest in the idea, but she gave Adagio a quick glance before nodding. “Yeah, sure, I’ll be there. Just to make sure nobody tries anything funny with my friend here.”

Thorax placed a hand on his chest in mock pain, “I assure you the only funny business at the party will likely be watching my brother try to dance. I’ll look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow then, sans our grumpy Gilda, although I do hope she reconsiders and attends.”

“Fat chance of that happening. Let’s go Greta, I’m getting a headache from all this talking.”

With that Gilda hopped off the roof, and after a second longer where Greta gave Thorax a shy smile, she followed her compatriot. Thorax watched them go with his smile transmuting into a slight smirk before he wiped it off his face and gave Adagio and Ember a final bow, “Until tomorrow evening then, ladies, farewell.”

After he was gone Ember let out a long held breath and grunted, “I don’t like that guy.”

Adagio quirked an eyebrow at her, “I sensed a bit of history there.”

“Ugh... just, yeah... back when I was younger he set me up with his brother. Without his brother being aware of it. Thorax thought it was funny as hell to watch us awkwardly butt heads, and when we found out it was a prank neither of us was exactly happy about it. Pharynx is a solid dude, but his brother doesn’t have a serious bone in his body and is always playing games. You can’t trust anything he says or does.”

Ember rubbed the back of her head, “This party is just going to be him screwing around with you, you know. He probably just sees you as a new toy to play with.”

“Which is exactly why I’m going,” Adagio said with a confident smirk, “I don’t mind showing him he’s not the only one who can play. Besides, if there are other Fraccion there it will give me a chance to gain and even better understanding of my potential allies and rivals. Hmph, that Gilda is certainly a piece of work. Is she always that direct?”

“Usually she’s less subtle. Be careful of her, Adagio. On a good day I could probably take her, but she’s Guto’s top Fraccion, and there’s rumors she’s getting strong enough to challenge for the rank of Espada, if one of the lower rankers got axed or showed enough weakness to warrant a challenge.”

“Does that mean you’re strong enough to challenge for the Espada rank as well? I know you’re at least as strong as her,” Adagio said and Ember flinched for a moment.

“I am. And maybe I will challenge, one day. Right now my dad needs me more. Besides there’s no openings in the ranks anyway, and I’m not sure either I or Gilda could actually take Squirk or Smooze. Especially not Smooze. That guy kind of creeps me out.”

Adagio took all that in with an accepting nod, then said, “Well, let’s get moving. It’s been a long day and all I want is to see if those three have found me a bed in the living world.”

“Alright,” Ember said, and Adagio sensed that she wanted to say more, but wasn’t sure how to to say it. Adagio was willing to give Ember some time if she needed to sort out her thoughts. Today Ember had proved where she stood, and now all Adagio wanted to do was clear the air between them and make it clear that she considered Ember a friend, and wanted to make up for what she’d done. But that conversation might take a bit of time before Ember worked out when and how to have it. Adagio resolved to be patient and look for the right opportunity as soon as possible.

After all, they were running out of time before the Quincy arrived, then there might not be any more opportunities...

----------

“Hope you know what you’re doing, because you’re playing with fire.” said Sugarcoat with her usual plain and pointed manner. “Magical fire that ripped holes in reality the last time it was released fully.”

Twilight Sparkle’s eyes didn’t so much as blink, a bead of sweat crawling along down her nose as she focused on the monitor in front of her, which was filled with an symphony of activity as her hands worked a plastic electronic pen on a flat drawing pad hooked up to the computer. The designs came together in her mind less like puzzle pieces being fitted together and more like the strokes of paint on a master’s canvas. She wasn’t sure why, but after her conversation with Midnight Sparkle her mind had a sharper focus than before. Twilight had always had little trouble designing new devices as is, but this was coming together almost too fast, to the point she was worried she was forgetting key safety features.

At Sugarcoat’s words her hand hesitated on the electronic pen, halting the dancing flow of design diagrams on the screen. Twilight turned to look back at Sugarcoat with an earnest but frazzled expression.

“Nobody knows that more than me. I’m not taking Midnight lightly, but she... she made some convincing arguments as to benefits of cooperation at this juncture. One of the reasons I’m designing this glove is to ensure I have a method of releasing magic in a controlled manner, and if needed have an emergency valve to cut off the power if Midnight doesn’t keep to her word about not taking over my body. In fact...”

She turned back to the screen and pointed to a particular part of the object that was coming together on the monitor, a node along the side of the mechanical glove that looked somewhat like a small metal spindle. “If things truly get out of hand I’ll have a means to shut off the magic entirely.”

“Yes, along with all your Quincy powers as well.” Sugarcoat said, “Using that in the middle of a fight will get you killed, you know.”

“Sure, but isn’t that better than her going all Dark Phoenix on us?” said Lemon Zest, who was sprawled out on Twilight’s bed, laying on her back with a handheld game system beeping away in her hands. The three girls were alone in the room, which had been repaired and redressed with a new bed. The window was gone, replaced by reinforced wall. Apparently King Sombra wanted her room secure, if Soarin standing guard outside wasn’t enough. The other girls from the Academy had visited over the course of the morning, but only Lemon Zest and Sugarcoat had stayed, although Sunny Flare had left a plate of freshly baked bran muffins before she left, which Soarin had tested first for poison, just in case. Twilight still shuddered a bit inside that now she had to have her meals tested like that.

“It is preferable.” Twilight said, interjection before Sugarcoat could respond. “Even if I have to sacrifice my abilities, I won’t be taken over again. I think perhaps the presence of that option alone might act as a deterrent, in any case. Still, so far I think she’s being cooperative.”

To emphasis this she raised her hand and concentrated upon her fingers. She could definitely feel a resistance inside her as she tried to bring out the tingling sensation of magic inside her, but she could feel gaps in that resistance open up and allow some of the magic to flow out. She could only imagine Midnight was helping the magic move past the reiatsu that interfered with it. She could feel some intermixing of those energies as well, like the way water might pick up a color pigment from certain minerals in it. She wished she had more time to examine and experiment with these two energies to better understand how they interacted, at least before the upcoming battle. She’d have to settle for those studies until after she survived the next few days and could form her research team.

A teal tongue of magic coiled up from her fingers and flickered about in flame-like life for a few seconds before Twilight dismissed it. Sugarcoat’s eyes may have been obscured by her visor, but there was an uneasy purse to her lips. Lemon Zest looked up from her game, shrugged, and resumed playing.

“Has it occured to you that she’s just letting you have a taste of the magic so you’ll let your guard down?” Sugarcoat asked flatly.

Twilight held back a sigh and said, “I have, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take. I won’t make any progress by second guessing myself, and if Midnight does try anything I’ll have fail safes in place.”

“And if those ‘fail safes’ fail?” Sugarcoat pressed, to which Twilight gave her an earnest look tinted with a grave shadow.

“Then you and the other girls will have to stop me. Stop her. She can’t be allowed to run rampant, not with the kind of damage she can do with so much magic at her command. So if things do go wrong and it turns out Midnight can’t be trusted, then I’m instead going to have to trust that you can make sure she can’t do any more harm. No matter what that might take.”

Sugarcoat raised a hand to her visor and adjusted it in much the same way she often did with her glasses. “Are you suggesting if there’s no other way and Midnight has completely taken you over that we... kill you?”

It was one of the only times Twilight had ever heard hesitance creep into Sugarcoat’s voice. Normally the girl never had much hesitation in anything she said, but this tripped her up a bit. Twilight gulped and glanced away. “That’s something you’d have to decide yourself, if it ever came to that. I don’t want to put that kind of burden on you. I also know Midnight has the potential to be dangerous. I’m trusting her for now, because I want to believe she can be. Cooperating with her is my best chance to study and understand the magic inside me right now.”

“Ain’t that magic supposed to be, like, the magic of ‘friendship’ or whatever?” asked Lemon Zest, not looking up from her game. “Figured you’d be all about doing friend-type stuff to learn about that. So maybe getting buddy-buddy with your hot evil twin is a good thing? That’s a friendship type deal, right?”

Sugarcoat crossed her arms and said, “I don’t think it’s that simple.”

Twilight blinked, “Hot evil twin? Uh, well, whatever the case may be, you do have a point, Lemon Zest. Sunset showed me that her bonds with her friends was the crux of the magic that helped subdue Midnight before, and I’d already been theorizing that very same magic was enhancing the girls’ developing spiritual powers. I wish I’d been able to stay with them long enough to test those theories out more.”

“Hey, why not do that with us?” Lemon Zest said, rolling onto her stomach to get into a more comfortable position while still keeping her eyes glued to her game. “We’re, like, kinda friends right? You can do friendship magic study stuff on us.”

“Again, not sure it's that simple,” Sugarcoat said, holding up one finger after another, “For one, we haven’t known Twilight like that for very long. For two, we were never exposed to that other world’s magic the same way those Canterlot girls were. For three, there’s been zero indication we can do anything like the ‘pony up’ transformation they’ve done. And finally, for four, we’re engaged in a war; not ideal for friendship studies.”

“Man, just harsh my buzz why don’t you?” Lemon Zest said with a pout, “I was just trying to say, we’re like, starting to become pals with Twilight here. I mean, I kind of think she’s neat, and you seem to dig hanging out with her. Haven’t heard the other girls throw her any shade since we fought together at the Academy ambush. Figure we’re as close to friends to her as those other girls could be. Not like they knew her for super long either, right?”

Sugarcoat looked ready to argue the point, but Twilight perked up and said, “You know, you may have something there.”

“Uh, duh.” Lemon Zest said, then blinked, “What do I have again?”

“The conditions are not exactly identical, but in many ways my situation here mirrors certain elements of the friendships I was forming with the girls from Canterlot High.” Twilight said, reaching over to a notebook and grabbing up a regular pen to star scribbling notes. “Joining a new center of learning where I had to make quick bonds among a group that had only recently gotten to know me, like I have at the Academy, mirrors parts of what I went through when I transfered to Canterlot High. Then there’s the shared bonds through mutual exposure to danger, both of which has happened here and back in Canterlot due to the Hollows. On top of that, and uh, not to sound weird here but you girls also share a lot of similarities to my friends from Canterlot.”

“Oh?” Sugarcoat said, raising one of her eyebrows in an almost identical manner to the way Twilight had seen Applejack do so.

“W-Well not to say you’re copies of each other or anything, just that there are a few shared personality traits. Uh, Indigo Zap’s competitiveness matching Rainbow Dash’s for example. Or, um Sunny Flare’s cultured mannerisms in comparison to Rarity’s. You know, things that on the surface make you similar to my other friend’s, but not identical. I merely bring it up because the parallels could be a factor to consider in any study of the magic of friendship. It's possible certain people with specific traits resonate more strongly with said magic than others.”

Sugarcoat looked at her for a second, then nodded, “Right, I seem to recall Sunset rattling off a list of virtues before she transformed that day. Is that what you’re talking about?”

“Yes, although I don’t know if any of us really exhibit any of those traits, at least not to strong enough degree to affect the magic. Still, it's worth noting for later study.” Twilight’s eyes turned towards the computer screen where the half finished design of a new glove still floated in digital conception. “Of course right now what I need to do is finish my work on this.”

“You gonna be able to build that in just a couple of days?” Lemon Zest sounded dubious even as she asked the question.

“Less than that at this point,” Sugarcoat said, “We should be leaving by tomorrow morning.”

“I don’t know,” Twilight admitted, feeling the weight of the time crunch on her shoulders, “I don’t think so. Even if I finish the design process by this afternoon, I doubt I can manage a functional prototype by tomorrow.”

“Why not let us help?” asked Sugarcoat, “Me and the other girls could get a lot of the basic work done while you’re still finishing the details.”

Twilight glanced at her with a surprised look, “Could you do that? I mean, this may look fairly straightforward at first glance but this glove is going to be one of the most complex gadgets I’ve ever made. There’s a lot of delicate engineering involved, not to mention some pretty theoretical science.”

“Twilight we all were selected to participate in the Friendship Games. Just because you were the honor student doesn’t mean the rest of us were slouches,” Sugarcoat said with a hint of sass in her usually bland tone, “I got top marks in both robotics and physics. Sour Sweet was literally right behind your marks in the engineering classes. Sunny Flare knows things about chemistry that sort of frighten me. Indigo Zap... can carry things for us.”

“And I can offer moral support,” Lemon Zest said proudly, to which Sugarcoat gained a deadpan look as she turned to the girl on the bed.

“Zest, you programmed that game you’re playing.”

“Uh, yeah, so what? What do you want me to do, program Twilight a video game?”

Twilight gave Lemon Zest a curious and appraising look, “If you could, there’s actually some code that I’ll need to operate the glove’s power regulation system that I’d appreciate help with.”

“Sounds kinda boring... buuuuuut I guess I’d like to not get another hole shot in me, so better help you get a handle on your powers.”

A warm sense of relief passed through Twilight and she felt like the weight pushing down on her got just a little lighter as she smiled, “This really helps. Thank you, both of you.”

“Let’s not get premature with the thanks just yet,” said Sugarcoat, leaning over where Twilight sat to get a look at the computer screen, “There’s still a lot of work to do on this, and don’t you have some time you need to spend with your family tonight too?”

“Oh, right...” Twilight had almost forgotten about that, what with the attempted assassination, her confrontation with Midnight Sparkle, and the overriding desire to get this modified Sanrei Glove made. She was supposed to be spending tonight dining with her family. She hadn’t even seen Shining Armor or Cadence in days, and wasn’t sure they’d even heard about the attack on her. Both her father and mother had visited earlier in the morning, but that had just been to check on her before duty had pulled them away...

Although her mother had seemed strangely quiet. It worried Twilight, now that she thought of it. There had been something reserved and harried about her mother’s manner that morning that set Twilight on edge. Her father had been kind but stoic, but her mother had looked like she’d had something to say but not the time to say it.

“I guess I can’t miss that. It might be the last time we get a chance to sit down together like a family,” Twilight said with a heavy heart, and Sugarcoat grasped her shoulder in a tight but comforting grip.

“Even if you can’t finish the glove, Twilight, we’ll be there to back you up in the field. Spend tonight with your family.”

“Yes,” Twilight said, casting one more furtive look at the design suspended on the computer screen, “You’re right. I’ll try to finish this, but if I can’t, I can’t. Even then I’ll be with you and the others, and we’ll pull through together. Like friends.”

To this Sugarcoat and Lemon Zest both gave affirming nods, and Twilight felt herself relax the tension that’d been winding up inside her even more. Everything was in flux. It was uncertain if she’d even live to see next week, let alone ever see her friends back in Canterlot City again. She had an alter ego inside her mind that controlled a powerful force she had yet to truly understand, and it might try to take her over at any time. On top of that there was at least one person out there, waiting in the shadows, that wanted her dead, and for all Twilight knew that assassin was just the first of many.

Yet despite all that she felt calm, and warm, just sitting there in her room with two newfound friends. Maybe that was part of the magic of it all, although a part of her found that sappy notion silly compared to the overriding need to scientifically break it all down and study it. Still, she cherished the thought. No matter how dangerous or mad her life got, Sunset and the girls had taught her how to make friends, so as long as she could do that she could face whatever was about to come.

Episode 67: Elsewhere Across the Mirror

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Episode 67: Elsewhere Across the Mirror

This hadn’t been the first time Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had visited Twilight’s castle, but it was certainly the first time under such unique and trying circumstances. Normally Twilight would be enough of a nervous wreck just trying to make sure everything was spot on perfect for such a royal visit, quadruple checking her checklist to ensure that all from the table wear to the exact placement of the chairs was absolutely up to her standards. Today, however, she’d had to toss the check-list out. Or rather Starlight had hidden the first one, burned the second, and then gave up on the third, which Twilight eventually tossed aside when she realized there wasn’t any established protocol for handling incidents involving interdimensional invasions.

Twilight made a mental note to either find a book on that, or failing such, write it herself. She didn’t want future generations getting caught without a properly written down set of instructions for how to deal with these kind of things, after all. Why hadn’t Starswirl written one, she wondered? He was the apparent expert on the subject of other realities. Then again, he was the expert on everything. Twilight sincerely wished she had any kind of reference for what to do, and still had no real idea of how to handle the present situation even as she walked the two royal sisters into the vast, central meeting room of her castle. It seemed the best place to have this discussion.

The room was much the same as ever, with its central dominating table of smooth crystal displaying a magical (if not at all to scale) map of Equestria. The table was surrounded by tall backed crystal chairs, each stamped with a cutie mark that matched either Twilight or one of her dear friends, all of whom were seated already, including Spike who had his own small chair next to Twilight’s. Space had been made for two quickly fashioned, tall and regal chairs for Celestia and Luna, set to sit opposite Twilight from across the table.

Flash Sentry had refused the need for a seat, seeing how crowded the table was getting, and was simply waiting standing beside and a bit behind Twilight’s chair when she entered with Celestia and Luna. He still wore his black Soul Reaper robes, despite some rather insistent badgering from Rarity to offer him any number of well tailored suits for the occasion.

Finally, Aria and Sonata maintained a steady hover up near the hanging roots of Twilight’s old library, now turned into a glittering array above the proceedings, its roots speckled with gems. Both sirens looked down on the proceedings, Sonata with a bored look as she batted idly at one of the hanging tree roots, and Aria with a heavily guarded stare.

Each of Twilight’s friends looked uneasy in their own way, save for Pinkie Pie who was animatedly talking to Flash Sentry when Twilight and the other Princess’ walked in.

“-so I tossed them out the window, and I feel much better, but now what do I do with all these letters?” Pinkie said, and Flash Sentry let out a hefty laugh. Twilight didn’t get it, but then again punch-lines usually needed context. As she approached the table Flash Sentry got his laughter under control and, upon seeing Princess Celestia, seemed to unconsciously stand at attention in a manner not unlike the Royal Guard.

Celestia offered him a kind smile, “You must be Flash Sentry. Twilight has told me much about you.” She turned a sly wink towards Twilight, “She certainly seems to enjoy your company. Allow me to welcome you formally to Equestria and extend my deepest gratitude for the part you’ve played in defending my little ponies from a most dire threat.”

Twilight swiftly took her seat, as did the royal sisters, and both her and Flash exchanged quick glances and briefly tinted cheeks before Flash said, “I’m honored by your words, Princess Celestia. I was only doing what my duty as a Soul Reaper dictated, but I was happy to play my part. Honestly though, Twilight and Rainbow Dash fought just as hard as I did, and Twilight actually landed the blow that ended the fight. I just gave her the assist.”

“And a hard fought battle it was, by the account we received,” said Princess Luna, both her deep cerulean features and heavy tone filled with grave focus. “I too give my thanks to you, but I hope not to spend too much time on pleasantries when we face matters of such serious import. Equestria is in danger, and I wish to come to grips with that danger as swiftly as possible. Every moment wasted gives our foes more time to gather power.”

At Flash’s blinking expression, Luna’s brow raised, “What?”

“My apologies,” Flash Sentry said, shaking himself, “I’m just surprised at how similar you and your sister are to the Captains I know. Our Luna also prefers to get down to business.”

“Then she is wise,” said Luna before turning a questioning look towards Twilight, “Just so I know, where do you have the prisoner secured?”

Twilight perked up, nodding her head upward, “I have Starlight and Trixie, our Trixie, watching her in one of the guest rooms. I, uh, don’t really have a dungeon to throw her in, but she’s bound very, very thoroughly in not only enchanted chains but within a reinforced barrier spell that also has an astral lockdown spell layered onto it. No movement, no teleportation. We even took her hat, since I suspect that’s where she summoned that strange armored stallion from.”

“My sister and I both brought a contingent of our guards with us,” Celestia said, mostly to Twilight’s friends since Twilight already knew this, “I hope not to disrupt the lives of Ponyville’s citizens any more than necessary, but I’d like to keep these guards stationed here for your safety. Twilight, I shall leave the guards at your command.”

“Y-Yes, of course,” Twilight said, trying not to fidget. She wasn’t even sure how to command guards. That was more her brother’s thing. Still it’d be nice to give Starlight and Trixie somepony to relieve them from watching the other Trixie. Bount Trixie. Twilight was at once both fascinated and still somewhat unsettled by what little she’d heard from Flash about these Bounts.

“Well then,” Celestia said, “I believe our first order of business is to determine whether or not we can safely re-open the portal to the realm of humans. Twilight, knowing you I imagine you’ve already experimented somewhat with the mirror?”

A broad if somewhat embarrassed smile crossed Twilight’s face, but it was fast replaced by a frustrated frown as she nodded, “I have, with Starlight’s help and Flash Sentry observing us with his spiritual senses. His senses are disrupted a bit by how much magic is present in Equestria, but he’s adapting to it quickly.”

Luna’s eyes grew shadowed, “That means our foes will also be adapting. We may not be able to rely on magic obscuring their senses for much longer. What did you learn of the portal?”

Twilight gulped, “Well, the human, or rather Bount, Trixie wasn’t exaggerating when she said we can’t force the portal back open with magic. The ritual she performed has plugged the portal with a barrier of spirit energy that renders the portal effectively inert. Now I’ve discovered magic and spirit energy can interact. In fact my magical barriers worked just fine to deflect Trixie’s hex abilities. Still, this barrier doesn't budge when either I or Starlight tried forcing magic through the portal. We tried combining our magic as well, but that... well there’s a whole other problem with that. When too much magic started to press on the barrier, it started to react with a violent resonance. I’m certain if we’d continued the portal would have, well, exploded. Or at least vented a dangerous amount of energy, enough to either destroy half of Ponyville, or wipe out Canterlot High and a good chunk of the town its in, depending on which way the energy traveled when it explodes. I don’t think we can safely tamper with the portal without knowing exactly how to take the barrier down.”

As she spoke Twilight’s horn lit up with a soft lavender glow, streams of wispy magic forming basic shapes in the air depicting two mirrors, one for both Equestria and the mirror in the human world. Her image showed a tunnel of multi-colored magic connecting the mirrors, surrounded by void. In the middle of the bridge of light was a massive knot of dense blue energy, opaque compared to the magic’s translucent nature.

“Basically Trixie’s barrier is a solid mass of intentionally unstable energy that is designed to explode if somepony tries to brute force their way past it. Now, all of us alicorns together could probably do so, and form a barrier of our own to protect Ponyville from the explosion, but that wouldn’t help the human world. In order to get past the barrier we’d need to know the right ritual to disable it. Trixie suggested enough spirit energy might be able to break the barrier, but to my knowledge nopony in Equestria has that kind of power. Um, unless either of you know how to access spirit energy, Princesses?”

Celestia and Luna exchanged quick, sidelong glances at one another, and Twilight could tell the two sisters shared a wealth of communication in just that one look. It was easy to forget just how old either royal alicorn was, and that they’d lived for many centuries together. Twilight had a momentary spark of hope that perhaps either Princess held secret some ancient knowledge of spirit energy that might help, but she saw the look pass between the two sisters in an instant before Celestia solemnly shook her head.

“I'm afraid that the mysteries of such power are of... realms beyond the experience and knowledge either I or my sister presently have. I don’t believe we can assist on that front.”

That seemed an odd way to put it. Twilight trusted Celestia implicitly, yet she couldn’t help but find the elder alicorn’s phrasing odd. Beyond the experience and knowledge they ‘presently’ have? She put it from her mind for now. After all, Celestia would surely tell her anything if it was important.

“Well, it was a long shot anyway,” Twilight said, her wings sagging slightly, “As it stands, that means any tampering with the portal should be put on hold until we learn more, otherwise all of Ponyville would be put at risk, not ot mention what might happen to the human realm.”

“Nothin’ against the Trixie over here, but dang if her dopplewhatsit ain’t livin’ up ta her name,” muttered Applejack, “Fixin’ up a’ nasty trap like that is pretty downright low.”

“Knew I should’ve hit her harder,” Rainbow Dash huffed, pounding her fore hooves together, “Next time it’s gonna be a Sonic Rainbow straight to the face.”

The prismatic flier had bounced back from her injuries sustained against Trixie and Eisenwand fairly well, but she still bore a cast over her right foreleg and had bandages wrapped around her head. Twilight would have preferred to still see Rainbow recovering at home, but it was all but impossible to keep her from wanting to attend the meeting.

“It certainly is more than a little concerning that we’re essentially sitting atop a potential town leveling bomb,” Rarity said, frowning at the portion of the room’s map that depicted Ponyville’s quaint, rustic buildings, “I don’t suppose it might be safer just to dismantle the portal entirely until we’ve found a way to diffuse our little interdimensional bobby trap?”

With a quiet raise of her hoof, Fluttershy said, “I, um, could see if maybe Discord would help us with it.”

Celestia turned to Fluttershy, the sagely alicorn’s expression knowing, “You needn't ask, Fluttershy, for I’m certain Discord has been considering the matter the entire time we’ve been talking. Right, Discord?”

Suddenly a deep chuckling voice radiated down from above, filled with a dark mirth. Aria and Sonata both looked at the tree they were hovering around in shock, floating back quickly as the rooted chandelier turned around with a cartoonish face popping out of its surface with a wide grinning snaggletooth, bushy white eyebrows, and deep red on yellow eyes that gleamed down on the gathered ponies and alicorns.

“Why Celestia your perceptive prowess never fails to amaze, although you spoil my fun too early. Oh well, I suppose the cats are out of the bag.” On cue a burlap sack appeared in a flash of light, upending and dumping a veritable rain of screeching cats onto the proceedings.

Celestia sighed wearily and used a wash of golden magic to catch said cats and quietly deposit them safely on the ground, where they proceeded to either start licking themselves or wandering around to rub against the ponies in hopes of being pet. Fluttershy glanced up at the Discord face in the tree with a slightly peeved but understanding and patient look.

“Discord, what have I told you about eavesdropping?”

“That it was impulsive and manly?” Discord suggested, and at Fluttershy’s water freezing stare he coughed and quickly added, “And that I shouldn’t do it. Yes, yes, but you have to admit you were about to invite me into the conversation anyways, so I was just saving you the trouble.”

“And I appreciate you were thinking about me,” Fluttershy said with a small smile, which didn’t remove the steel from her eyes, “Now please come down and join the conversation properly. Also, please don’t drop small defenseless animals from high places.”

Discord emerged from the tree like a phantom in all his lengthy, asymmetrical, draconequus glory. Few creatures in all Equestria could boast such an unusual and unique appearance as Discord, and that was exactly how he liked it. A oblong, goatish face caped off a long serpentine body that went from coarse, dark brown fur to smooth red scales forming a whip-cord tail. None of his limbs matched, whether pawed, scaled, or cloven, and even the horns sprouting from the crown of his white haired head didn’t match shapes, one conical and another twisted like an antler.

He popped in a top hat out of nowhere and tipped it to the two sirens, who were both staring at him, “Ladies, my belated condolences on your late sister. It wasn’t often someone came along who could cause as much mischief as I could in my hayday.”

“Yeah... thanks,” said Aria, barely containing a scowl that said she could care less about Discord’s words. Sonata tilted her head curiously.

“You knew Dagie?”

“Not personally, but...” Discord’s eyes flashed red for a second, “Let’s just say I once moved in circles familiar to your big sister.”

With that bit of cryptic phrasing Discord floated down beside Fluttershy’s chair and with a snap of his fingers dismissed the small army of felines, after which he cast an apologetic look to the pegasus beside him, “They weren’t real cats anyway.”

“Still, thank you for cleaning thing up, Discord,” Fluttershy said with an approving nod, “Now, um, I don’t suppose you might be able to help us would you?”

“You know there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you at your merest request, but as much as it makes me gag to admit it, there’s not a whole lot I can do here,” Discord said, slumping in the air as if he were lounging on an invisible hammock.

“What do you mean there’s nothing you can do!?” Rainbow Dash blurted, “Aren’t you, like, the ‘do anything’ dude? Snap your fingers and bam, impossible stuff comes flying out of your eye sockets?”

Discord turned a smarmy snaggle-toothed grin towards the pegasus, crossing his miss-matched arms over his serpentine chest, “Why I certainly am, Skittles. I didn’t earn the title ‘Master of Chaos’ because I happen to look stunning in a zoot suit. I can imagine things into reality that’d turn your brain into a good approximation of scrambled eggs, but for all of that phenomenal cosmic power, and believe me I’m gagging inside as I admit this, I do have limits. Perhaps you remember the time a certain treacherous and utterly unsuave centaur was able to drain yours truly of all his chaos magic? Yes, sadly my powers do have a finite limit, and in this particular case snapping my fingers to remove your little cross-dimension roadblock is firmly on the side of ‘no can do’.”

“Awww, but why not? It’d make everything way super easy for us and the plot wouldn’t, like, take a bajillion years to progress,” Pinkie Pie said out of nowhere, drawing several glances, although little surprise that the party pony would say something more than a little weird.

Discord certainly wasn’t bothered by Pinkie’s odd words and leaned towards the mare, “I’m not much on exposition, and I tend to agree with you on matters of plot so I’ll keep this brief. My chaos magic can do just about whatever I want it to do, but it’s still magic. My power will make the barrier explode the same way the Princess’ magic would. Sure I might be able to snap away the explosion before it destroys either Ponyville or that delightfully marketable high school, but do any of you want to bet lives on how fast I can snap my fingers?”

“I think I can speak for most of us when I say we’d prefer not to risk lives on anything not firmly assured to diffuse this volatile barrier without the chance of anything exploding,” said Celestia, and Luna leaned forward intently, blue eyes glued to Discord.

“That being said it occurs to me that during your rather memorable attendance at the Gala you demonstrated the capacity to open portals to other realms, Discord. Perhaps you could allow us to bypass this problem altogether by opening such a portal to the human realm?”

“Sadly, o’ Princess of the Night, that too is... well it’s possible, but exceedingly unlikely,” Discord said, and he rubbed his talon and paw together for a moment before reaching out with the talon to rip into the air. A shining hole in the very fabric of reality was torn open, showing a dark void filled with a swirl of shifting colors that made Twilight’s eyes hurt just to look at. She saw random pieces of floating rocks and landscape hurtling across that churning maelstrom of chaotic colors, some of which Twilight was pretty sure couldn’t possibly exist on any color spectrum, and she spotted an oddly shaped ‘house’ sitting upon one of the floating rock formations.

“You see it's easy to open a portal to anywhere I’m familiar with and have been, like my old homestead,” said Discord, and with a casual flick of his wrist closed the portal to the chaotic realm. “However opening a portal to somewhere I’ve never been isn’t something I can do. If I open a portal with no knowledge of where I’m going...”

He tore the air again, and this time the world beyond the gleaming, blue rimmed hole was one of a twisted, vomitous green landscape, with a burning red sky and what looked like a shattered purple moon. Before Twilight could even register much more than that there was a horrific screeching sound as something fast, writhing, and made largely of barbed tentacles tried reaching through the portal with its hungry, slimy limbs.

Several of Twilight’s friends screamed, while both Princesses’ horns immediately lit up with magic, forming protective barriers around everypony present, while Flash had his Zanpaktou drawn in an eyeblink. However Discord closed the portal just as fast as he’d opened it, and all that was left of the tentacled horror was a single, flopping limb on the map table.

“...and, well, the portal opens up to a random dimension, as you just saw,” said Discord, casually filing his paw in a bored fashion, “I’ve gone on a few random interdimensional jaunts that way, just for funsies, but the chances I’d land on any specific world are trillions to one.”

Slowly Rarity poked her head up from under the table, eyeing the flopping tentacle piece with distaste, “You really could have just said so. The demonstration was not necessary.”

“Not necessary, but entertaining,” Discord replied casually, then blanched at Fluttershy’s stare, “But I do apologize. I trust you all understand, yes? I can’t magic away your problems in this case.”

“Even if you can’t help with the portal, there are other things you could help with,” Twilight said, turning a glance towards the map, “Such as finding out where the human world’s Starlight Glimmer and her troupe of troublemakers have hidden themselves.”

“Sounds dreadfully boring, but since I know I’ll be pestered until I agree I’ll just head off that boring conversation and say I’ll keep my eyes and ears out for them,” Discord said, popping his eyes out of his head and snapping his fingers to create an open window which he then proceeded to toss his eyes out of, which Twilight saw spout wings and fly off into the sky. Their eyes were shortly followed by a pair of hairy ears. By the time Twilight managed to tear her eyes away from the bizarre sight, Discord had already regrown his eyes and ears and was back to lounging in the air with a yawn.

Flash Sentry was blinking at him with a barely contained astonishment as he leaned towards Twilight and whispered, “Is he always like this?”

“No, he used to be worse,” Twilight replied in a low mutter.

Celestia cleared her throat politely, “Any assistance you lend us is much appreciated, Discord. Twilight, you’ve kept in contact with Sunset via the journal I gave you, correct?”

“Of course. Without that journal we wouldn’t even be aware that the human Starlight Glimmer was in Equestria, or that she’s brought such... dangerous individuals with her.”

“Good, then we at least can try to coordinate our efforts with our counterparts in the human world and share information. I’d like to know all I can about not only Starlight’s human counterpart, but all of those who serve her, starting with this ‘Bount’ Trixie. Luna and I will wish to speak with her soon, and see if we can’t convince her to tell us more about the ritual she used.”

“Before that, however,” said Luna, “We must decide how to deal with finding these invaders. No offense intended to Discord, but I’d rather not rely solely on his skills in this matter.”

“Hey, if there’s scouting to be done, totally count me in!” Rainbow Dash declared firmly.

“I could get in touch with Ember and Thorax and see if the dragons and Changelings would be willing to pitch in,” added Spike, pointing a thumb at his chest, “I am the official Friendship Ambassador to the dragons, and Thorax is a good pal. I bet we could get some volunteers for the search.”

“That’s a good idea Spike, although aren’t the dragons a little, er, testy, except for Ember?” asked Twilight, but Spike shrugged.

“They’ll do what Ember says, so if she tells a few of them to start flying around looking for anything weird, they’ll do it. And adult dragons can fly a loooong distance.”

“That’s an excellent start,” said Celestia, gesturing at one of the eastern portions of the map, “And although there’s no guarantee they will be willing, it may be of use to send word to Griffinstone to ask the griffins keep watch around their lands as well. After all, Starlight Glimmer could have gone anywhere.”

Twilight nodded, then gave the map a thoughtful look towards the south, “There’s still a lot of territory we can’t cover easily, given how far from Equestria’s borders some lands are. I’m not even certain what’s to the south of us beyond the Badlands. Hmm, maybe I should ask Zecora? She knows all sorts of mysterious things about far off lands.”

“By all means do so. Every extra hoof can only help in the search,” Celestia agreed.

“Oooh! Oooh! Does that mean I can go say hi to the yaks and ask them for help too?” asked Pinkie Pie excitedly, “I bet they’d love to help out!”

“By all means, Pinkie Pie. I’m sure Princess Cadence will need help watching the North, as there’s no small amount of icy wasteland to cover, and those frozen reaches would prove a most ideal place to hide,” said Celestia, and Pinkie grinned with a happy little ‘squee’. Considering how rough the party pony’s first foray with the yaks had been, Twilight was glad to see how much Pinkie Pie had warmed up to Equestria’s... unusual northern neighbors.

“But do we even have a notion of where to start looking?” asked Rarity, gesturing at the map, “It's not as if the map is conveniently displaying to us where these poor guests are hiding out.”

“Be nice if they had a big, giant, evil fortress with crazy storm clouds over it,” said Pinkie Pie, “You see this is what was nice about Chrysalis, she just had this huge hive in the middle of an open desert that all but shouted ‘Hey, I’m the bad guy and I’m over here!’, why can’t more villains but that easy to find?”

“She did steal an entire research lab that contained a tower, according to Sunset’s account of events,” Twilight said, turning to give Flash Sentry a questioning look, “I don’t suppose there’s any way you could find this lab with your spiritual senses? Once we find a way to adjust you to our world’s magic, that is.”

Flash returned a pensive look towards her, rubbing his chin, “I don’t know, Twilight. Even when I get my senses sorted out with all this buzzing, background magic, I’m not even certain what I’ll be looking for. This research facility was pretty top secret stuff by Soul Society standards, and if Starlight Glimmer is half as smart as Sunset’s report indicates she’s going to be taking precautions against any casual searches. At this point I’d recommend just casting as wide a search net as you can, while doubling up on any security measures you have around magical items or knowledge Starlight might be after.”

Celestia responded to this with a nod towards the map’s northern region, “We’ve already contacted Princess Cadence in the Crystal Empire to appraise her of the threat and she has increased the protections around both the castle and the Crystal Heart itself.”

“Crystal Heart?” Flash asked, and Discord snickered.

“A floating love battery shaped like a gaudy trinket from a child’s playset, but still quite powerful regardless. Properly charged with the love of the Empire’s citizenry the Heart can perform all manner of deus ex machina feats. You’ll discover, young Soul Reaper, that Equestria is filled with those kind of one-shot, instant win artifacts. Including the Elements of Harmony. I trust, Celestia, you haven’t left that silly tree unguarded?”

“Of course not,” Celestia said, giving Discord a flat stare, “We’ve ensured the Tree of Harmony is thoroughly protected, and any attempts to get close to it will trigger not only spells to alert myself and Luna, but will make the attempted intruder sorely regret their choices in life.”

“From Canterlot to Manehattan we have started to increase our defenses,” said Luna with flared wings, “But such defense will only serve for so long without a proper offense. Once we discover these fiends we require a suitable plan of attack for dealing with them.”

Flash Sentry cleared his throat, leaning up on the table with his forehooves so he could more easily look the two royal sisters in the eyes, although Twilight could tell from the slight, drooping flutter in his wings and twitching tail that he was nervous, “About that, I feel as if I have to seriously stress just how dangerous and powerful the people who’ve invaded your world are. I know you both are long lived and potent alicorns. I’ve seen Twilight’s magic and I won’t lie, I’m impressed with her-”

Twilight suppressed an embarrassed grin and blush at that, twiddling her hooves as Flash went on.

“-and from what she’s told me both of you are even more experienced and powerful in the ways of magic than she is. Still, that said, I’m not sure if you understand the full extent of what you’d be up against going head to head with Starlight Glimmer or those following her. Especially our world’s Chrysalis. Twilight’s explained to me you’ve already defeated the Chrysalis of your world a couple of times-”

“Three,” Twilight put in, “Once when she assaulted Canterlot, once when she tried to harness power from that meteor and foalnapped some local foals, and the third time when our world’s Starlight and several others faced her in her own hive, ultimately turning most of the Changeling race against her.”

Flash nodded to Twilight with a slight smirk and cleared his throat, “Right, and that’s impressive. The thing is, my world’s Chrysalis shouldn’t be underestimated. She’s the Second Espada, the second most powerful Hollow among a legion of monstrously powerful individuals. Pound for pound she’d be a match for any Captain, maybe any two Captains in the Gotei 13, which she proved by facing our world’s Celestia and Luna both at the same time. Even if this invasion was just her, I’d be sweating bullets. But by all accounts Starlight Glimmer and her pal Firefly are strong enough together to keep a leash on Chrysalis, and on top of that one of our own Captains, Platinum, has defected to the enemy’s side. That’s not a lineup to take lightly.”

Her frosty eyes regarded Flash critically as Luna spoke in a calm but slightly edged voice, “We hear your words, and understand the sincerity behind them. Understand that neither I nor my sister take any threat to our realm lightly. However perhaps you are underestimating us, Flash Sentry? We have defended Equestria against numerous threats in the past, and we are not unaccustomed to battling those with the strength to crush mountains and move oceans.”

“I’m not doubting your courage, dedication to protecting your world, or even your vast experience, Princess. I only want to make it very clear that you may never have faced opponents like these before, and when we find where they are a headlong confrontation might not be our best move.”

An understanding nod came from Celestia, along with an equally understanding and soothing tone, “I believe I understand your concerns, Flash Sentry. It makes perfect sense you’d advise caution, because you’re aware of what our foes are capable of. You’ve fought battles against such beings your whole life, as I understand it. Looking at a peaceful world like ours, I imagine it's easy to think our powers couldn’t match those from your realm, and the concern for our safety is admirable. I doubt my sister is advocating for a foolhardy assault once we locate Starlight Glimmer’s lair. When that happens we shall plan an appropriately thought out strategy, which I sincerely hope you’ll aid us in planning. However I suspect you want more than just words of assurances, don’t you?”

The last was said with a wink, and Twilight wasn’t sure what Celestia was talking about until Flash laughed and cracked a huge smile, “I should’ve known you’d guess at what I was after before I said anything. You really are like my Captain, Princess Celestia. So when would be a good time for you?”

Twilight tilted her head slightly, “What?”

Celestia let out a warm chuckle, “Well, Flash, I find these things are best done somewhere secluded, away from prying eyes. How about this evening, after dinnertime?”

Twilight’s head tilted even further, “I reiterate; what?”

“Evening after dinner sounds fine to me,” said Flash, “How about we do it in the Everfree Forest? I hear nobody goes in there, so we’re not likely to be interrupted.”

Face now shining like a fresh red apple, Twilight’s wings flared out and she reared up on the table, “Flash Sentry! Explain yourself!”

“Whoa, easy there sugarcube,” said Applejack, raising a placating hoof, “Thinkin’ they ain’t talkin ‘bout what ya think they’re talkin’ ‘bout.”

Celestia’s chuckle turned into an entirely immature giggle as she put a hoof over her mouth and glanced with glittering eyes at Twilight, “My apologies. Flash Sentry was merely challenging me to a duel. That is what you want, correct, Lieutenant?”

Flash coughed in embarrassment, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, “That’s right. Both you and your sister, if that would be acceptable.”

“I don’t mind,” said Luna with a small shrug, “Although you may want to consider dueling us one on one, if only to gain a better gauge on our individual abilities.”

“Oh my, won’t this be interesting?” Discord said, perking up, “A spot of violence to curb the boredom?”

“Naaaah,” said Pinkie, “This is more like going into practice-mode. Flashy just wants to see how amazingly badflank the Princess’ are!”

“More or less,” said Flash Sentry, giving Twilight an apologetic look. Which she accepted with a faint, if somewhat huffy nod. It was hard to stay mad at that innocent, shy grin. “Sorry Twilight, I just think that for me to really get a feel for how strong the Princesses are, its easiest just to have a sparring match.”

“It will help us as well,” said Celestia, “While Twilight has told us of the strength of spiritual powers, and we’ve heard much from Sunset Shimmer through the journal, it will be much simpler to gauge such powers by witnessing them in action ourselves. Luna and I shall likely learn much from a practice duel with Flash Sentry, and I suspect he’ll learn much of us and our powers as well. From that knowledge can be born a better understanding of each other, and hence a more complete strategy for when we face Starlight Glimmer and her comrades.”

“Dudes, I can totally get front seats for this, right?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“I see no reason not to allow certain spectators that wish it,” said Luna.

“Awesome!”

Rarity cleared her throat and said, “Yes, well, I suppose there may be some value in watching such a duel unfold. I’m uncertain what help I can be with such overwhelming foes, but let it never be said I wasn’t willing to do my part.”

“Think that goes fer all o’ us, Rarity,” said Applejack, glancing at Twilight and the other Princesses, “I figure it goes without sayin’ that I’m in fer any brawl ta protect Equestria.”

Celestia nodded in acknowledgement, “I don’t doubt all of you will wish to do what you can to help in the coming days, and I invite you all to come observe my sister and I duel with Flash Sentry. It should be enlightening for all of us.”

“Well, I’ve already seen the dude in action, and he’s not bad. Still, I’m putting my bits on the Princesses,” said Rainbow Dash, which caused Applejack to roll her eyes.

“It ain’t a competition, Rainbow...” the farm pony said, then leaned towards Dash and whispered, “But I’ll put five bits on Flash.”

“You’re on.”

Luna cleared her throat loudly, “With that settled, I believe it's time I visit our prisoner to see if there is any more we can glean from her.”

Twilight raised and eyebrow, “If you feel you can. Trixie’s been pretty tight lipped since we caught her. Starlight suggested mind magic to make her talk, but I’m against using such methods, and I don’t think Starlight really wants to either, she just brought it up the one time.”

“Oh,” Luna smiled in such a manner as to make Twilight’s wing feathers ruffle and the fur on the back of her neck stand on chilled ends, “I won’t need any mental magic to get information from her. If she indeed knows anything, she shall tell me by the end of the night.”

Celestia smiled as well, but her look was a grave one, “Do what you must, sister, but practice some restraint as well.”

“You needn’t remind me, sister. I know what the boundaries are. I have no intention of pushing anything too far, but this Trixie has played a key role in endangering the lives of all of our subjects. She shall not enjoy a gentle rest this night, not while she has me to deal with!”

Twilight let out a nervous but polite cough, “Ahem, I’m sure you’ll, er, do what is necessary, Princess Luna. Now, um, does anypony have any other ideas or suggestions at this point?”

There was a round of silence across all sides of the table, and Twilight turned to Celestia, “Then for now may I suggest we adjourn and start putting to work what plans we do have? We have allies to contact, a prisoner to question, and-” she gave Flash a brief, cheeky glance, “-apparently a duel to conduct after dinner.”

----------

“Well, that was boring,” Aria commented dryly, floating back into the sizable library in Twilight's castle with Sonata flying in behind her.

“I dunno, this world’s Discord is way more fun to watch than the one in the other place,” Sonata commented idly as she swam through the air with small, deft motions of her fins, returning to a table where she’d left some half eaten chips and dip and proceeded to dig back in.

“He’s creepy is what he is,” Aria said, floating over to a table near where Sonata sat, where she’d left a few cracked open tomes before the meeting had been called. Sitting at it she rested a finned hoof on the side of her head and glanced in irritation at the books in front of her. “Not that the other one wasn’t. At least he tried to help us, though.”

“Yeah, I guess so. Mmmph, these chips are really good, Aria! You should try some!”

“Not hungry.”

“...Aria, you gotta eat more. We don’t have our gems.”

Aria blanched, her muzzle twisting in a sneer, “I know, Sonata! I can kind of feel the hole where they ought to be!”

“Geez, sorry, you don’t need to yell at me,” Sonata said, while snatching up the bowl of chips and dip and floating over to Aria’s table, setting them down next to her agitated sister. “C’mon, snack away. If Princess Bookhorse is giving us free food, no reason not to take advantage of it, right?”

“Ugh, okay, okay,” Aria muttered, hoofing some of the salty chips into her mouth and chewing them with a glare, talking around the mouthful, “There? Happy?”

“Yup.”

Sonata settled in next to Aria and they both looked over the books before them. They’d already pored over most of what Twilight had in her library on ancient magical knowledge and artifacts. So far none of it had given even the smallest clue on a way to help their sister. The frustration was building in both sisters as the days had gone by, but Twilight had been quick to point out it hadn’t been that long since the sirens’ search had started and that Equestria was a land filled to the brim with magic. Twilight’s library was hardly the only, or largest, collection of tomes in the realm.

“So if we don’t find anything here you think we should go to Canterlot next?” asked Sonata, to which Aria heaved out a sigh.

“I don’t know. Why not, I guess? Can’t be any more useless than here.”

“This place has been kinda a drag, even with all the free food,” Sonata agreed with a nod, plopping her head down on the book in front of her, “I always sucked at reading stuff all the time. Dagie always did the hard, thinking work.”

A pause stretched out to a heavy silence before Sonata whispered, “I miss her.”

Aria stiffened, then with a grimace slowly reached out to stroke the top of Sonata’s head fin, an old gesture of calming and comfort for the siren. “I know. Same here.”

She took a deep breath and then picked up the next book, “Alright, let’s finish what’s here, then we worry about screwing around with Canterlot.”

Just then a familiar and smugly amused voice echoed through the library, causing both siren sisters to float up in surprise and look around.

“Oh I wouldn’t bother with Canterlot. You won’t have any more luck there than you are here,” Discord said as his head emerged from the table, looking down at the books for a moment with an air of quaintly amused condescension. “Not that our resident Princess of Friendship doesn’t have a suitably expansive and unimaginatively educational materials, as does Canterlot’s ever grander repository of dust ridden ‘knowledge’.”

There was a fractal of light in Discord’s eyes that made them shine like freshly polished dice as he grinned, “Yet none of those books will do you ladies any good.”

Sonata’s face screwed up in confusion, “What do you mean they won’t? Twilight said she, like, had books on ALL the magic! And Canterlot’s supposed to have even more. There’s gotta be something in them we can use to help out Dagie!”

“Sonata, calm down,” Aria said, turning a look filled to the brim with mistrust towards the draconequus in the table, “Alright, cut the crap, what are you after?”

“Moi?” Discord held a paw to his fuzzy brown chest, batting his eyelashes, “After something? Why isn’t it enough that I want to help two flying fish people in need? Couldn’t I just desire to spread the magic of friendship?”

“Yeah, and I got some magic beans to sell you, buddy,” Aria snorted, crossing her scaled arms over her chest, looking down at Discord’s mock innocent face, “Just because you’re playing nice with the ponies doesn’t mean you can’t still mess with people for your own kicks.”

“Ah, well, we all have to find our entertainment somewhere, don’t we? It’s true I’ve cast aside notions of making Equestria my personal playground in favor of actually having a friend for a change, but that doesn’t mean I still can’t have fun when the opportunities present themselves.” Discord rose up from the table fully now, floating rapidly between the two sirens and snaking his arms around the pair, hugging them close despite Sonata recoiling slightly and Aria glaring death at him.

“As it happens I genuinely want to help you girls, and it just so happens to also correspond to keeping me entertained.”

“Ack, dude, it's called deodorant. I’m pretty sure Equestria’s invented it,” Aria said, wiggling free off his paw, with Sonata managing to do the same. Aria floated in front of Discord, pointing a hoof at his chest, “And I still don’t buy it. Why do you want to help us? The truth, otherwise I’m not listening to a thing you say.”

“Pfft, as if you have much choice. Go ahead and check Canterlot’s archives. After you waste days, if not weeks there, maybe then you’ll be more interested in hearing what I have to say.” Discord said with a huff, looking away from the pair.

Sonata glanced at Aria and held up a hoof, forestalling any scathing remarks Aria had ready to go. Sonata then floated towards Discord, peering over his shoulder at him, “You said you moved in circles that Dagie was familiar with. Does it have something to do with that?”

Discord glanced at her, and slowly stroked his beard, “Hm, perhaps you’re not as dull as you first appear. Yes, I may never have met your sister, but she and I share some... mutual acquaintances. Including the individual who taught her to use siren magic to sow chaos and absorb power from that delightful disharmony.”

That got Aria’s attention. A siren’s gem was a natural part of her being, but how that magic was used varied between individuals. A certain level of mind control was inherent in the songs of a siren, but the method of generating and fostering negative emotions to create havoc, and then feed on the resulting negative energies was not a natural use of the gems. Adagio had taught that magic to Aria and Sonata, but Aria had never discovered where Adagio had learned the magic herself. Despite herself Aria found she was leaning forward intently.

“So what if you know whoever taught Adagio?” Aria challenged, “How does that help us?”

“Why, because this individual owns a piece of your sister’s soul,” Discord replied simply.

“What!?” Sonata blurted, floating back in shock... then paused and glanced upwards in thought, “Uh... what does that even mean?”

Discord raised one bushy brow at her, “Perhaps I was premature on that ‘not as dull as you look’ comment. What it means is that it's entirely possible one of the reasons your dear sister couldn’t return to her normal body all that time wasn’t simply because her soul was injured, but because it was already missing a piece before you lot were even flushed into the human world. Get that piece back and return it to her and...”

“And we can save her!? She’ll be able to go back to her normal body!?” Sonata was practically shoving her face into Discord’s with how intensely she flew up to him. Discord, for his part, floated back and gave a casual shrug.

“Maybe, maybe not. I’m no expert on matters of the soul. It sounds more as if my counterpart is more qualified to answer that question, if what I read while peeking over Twilight’s shoulder as she wrote back and forth to that Sunset Shimmer pony was any indication.”

“Did she know you were reading her correspondences with Sunset?” asked Aria.

“Why would she? I was enjoying being a literal fly on the wall. Or a ceiling fan. It’s surprisingly relaxing to be a ceiling fan. In any case, I don’t know if returning your sister’s missing soul fragment will help her or not, but it's a far better prospect than you’re likely to find with hitting the books for weeks on end. And as a special bonus to myself, I get to watch you girls try to retrieve it from its current owner.” Discord’s face split in an anticipating grin, “That should be quite the show.”

Aria’s eyes narrowed, “Who has it?”

“Her name has changed a few times over the centuries, but if memory serves the last name I recall her wearing was Charybdis. Or was it Scylla? I can never keep those two straight. Either way she’s the one you’d want to see about your sister’s soul,” Discord chuckled as dryly as old sandpaper, “Although I should mention she’s not the friendliest sort, nor the easiest to reach. Even if you do find her, convincing her to give up her prize won’t be as simple as just asking. She’s rather fond of the trinkets she collects.”

“Our sister’s soul isn’t a trinket,” Aria growled, but Discord just shrugged nonchalantly.

“To Charybdis, it is.”

“So where are we supposed to find this Charry chick anyway?” asked Sonata. To this Discord made an off hand gesture and the table with the books on it suddenly shifted in a flash of light into a remarkably realistic map of what appeared to be Equestria’s eastern coastline and ocean.

“She roams from place to place, but there is one particular spot that is her ‘territory’, a deep and dark trench at the bottom of the world’s coldest ocean...” Discord said in an ominous tone, and Aria for a moment thought it was her imagination that the room was getting darker until she realized it actually was darkening as Discord loomed over the map, his talon pointing like a dagger at a patch ocean off the south east coast of the continent, where it seemed there was nothing but patches of ice drifts amid the frozen waters.

“...The Abyss.”

----------

The small, blue ball was tossed, bounced off the ground and up into the shimmering field of translucent teal magic, and then landed back in Trixie’s hoof as she lazily stretched out on her back on a large couch. She idly tossed the ball again, which repeated its process of bouncing off the floor, hitting the magic barrier, and landing back in her hoof. Again and again, filling the guest room with a monotonous sound of repeating bounces.

“Will you stop that already!?” shouted the other Trixie, who was sitting in the middle of the magical, dome shaped barrier. She was bereft of her hat and cape, with her hooves tied to the floor with steel manacles. A single metal ring engraved with several magical symbols was placed on her horn, effectively blocking magic. She was about as thoroughly imprisoned as she could be until she would be eventually moved to a more secure and dedicated incarceration facility.

Equestria’s Trixie didn’t respond save to turn a sardonic look towards her counterpart and pointedly continue to bounce her ball off the magic shield. Nearby Starlight Glimmer, who was sitting on a chair by the door and reading a book, glanced over the rim of said book and said, “Do I have to put a mute spell on you two?”

“I wish you would!” said the Bount in pony form, turning her nose up and sniffing, “That would be infinitely more tolerable than listening to this simpleton bounce that toy around.”

“It helps Trixie maintain her incredible hoof to eye coordination,” Trixie said idly, not even stopping her pace as she yawned and turned over on her side on the couch to prop her other hoof under her chin and smirk at the prisoner, “A magician ever needs to practice deftness of hoof, even while distracted.”

“I know that, I do practice stage magic too,” Bound Trixie matched pony Trixie’s smirk pound for pound in terms of arrogance, “And I require far less practice to achieve equally amazing results!”

“You mean the result where you’re chained to the floor, inside a magical barrier? Oh yes, I can only dream to match your accomplishments,” Trixie drawled, laughing dryly, “Perhaps for my next performance I’ll add your trick of getting my tail kicked by Twilight Sparkle and her friends.”

“I imagine you’ll find that trick easy to perform, given that Twilight Sparkle at least has some real power, whereas you are about as magical as a thumbtack!”

Trixie scrunched her muzzle up and glared at her counterpart, “I don’t even know what a thumbtack is and I feel insulted. Starlight, doesn’t that shield have, like, a magical shock feature or something?”

Starlight sighed, “No, Trixie, it doesn't, and even if it did, we’re not shocking the prisoner. Even if she’s kind of earned it.”

Meanwhile Bount Trixie was blinking in bafflement, “How do you not know what a thumbtack... oh, right, ponies. Ugh, don’t tell me they’re called hooftacks here?”

Before Equestria’s Trixie could answer that the door to the room swung open under a golden glow of magic and Princess Celestia strode in, her towering form having to duck to fit in through the doorway. Starlight immediately set her book aside and stood up.

“Princess Celestia! What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to talk with our guest,” said Celestia, turning a pleasant smile towards Starlight, “I trust she’s been behaving?”

Starlight glanced back at Bount Trixie, who was doing her best to look defiant and uncaring, but couldn’t disguise the way she looked sidelong at Celestia with curiosity. “She’s been a bit annoying, but otherwise she hasn’t given us any trouble.”

“That’s good. If you two would excuse me, I’d like to speak with her alone.”

Starlight looked uneasy with that, but Trixie just rolled off the couch, somehow managing to swiftly secret her bouncing ball away under hat as she poked Starlight’s shoulder, “I’m hungry anyway, aren’t you Starlight? This is one of the Princesses we’re talking about, so I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

“Yes, yes of course,” Starlight said, and after she and Trixie left the room, Princess Celestia approached the magic barrier and peered down at the Bount within.

“I hope by now you have had some time to consider your situation,” Celestia said in a quiet tone, “I’ve been told a little of your kind from Lieutenant Flash Sentry, but even he seems to be mostly in the dark as to just what a Bount is.”

“Hmph, and you think I’ll tell you anything? I think not! My lips are sealed as tight as a straight jacket!” Bount Trixie declared, turning away from Celestia, or rather trying to but the chains around her legs made that rather difficult and she ended up stumbling.

Celestia cleared her throat, hiding a chuckle, “What you do or don’t tell me is entirely your choice. My sister will be visiting you tonight, and I warn you, she lacks my gentle disposition, but I suspect you resolved yourself face such things when you came to my world. I don’t want to know anything compromising, Miss Lulamoon. It is still Lulamoon, yes?”

Trixie didn’t respond, but Celestia saw the unicorn’s eye slide curiously towards her.

“I understand you serve your world’s Starlight Glimmer. She must have offered you much, or been quite charismatic, to secure the kind of loyalty needed for you to come here alone, all but sacrificing yourself to block the portal between here and the human world. I don’t want to know Starlight Glimmer’s plans from you. Luna will do so, but for now I’ll forgo the interrogation,” Celestia said with a gentle voice, setting herself down to sit next to the barrier, “Instead I just want to know about you. Tell me of the Bounts. Tell me of yourself. Nothing you're not comfortable telling. Nothing that you think would put your cause in danger. Just tell me what you feel you can.”

“And why would I do that? Why ask at all?” Trixie asked with a snort, “If this is some attempt at using that so-called ‘magic of friendship’ on me, I’m telling you now it won’t work! I won’t be swayed from my mission by kind words or trying to treat me kindly. In fact I’d rather just skip to the real interrogation and torture.”

“I assure you, no matter how severe my sister may be, torture will never be on the list of acceptable means we use. Not here in Equestria,” Celestia said, never wavering in her calm, understanding voice, “As for why, I won’t lie; I hope to establish some trust between us. I could toss you in the deepest dungeon available to me any time I wish, but it costs me nothing to talk to you first, so why shouldn’t I? If nothing else I’m incredibly curious, and satiating curiosity is a joy I share with my former student. So I ask again, won’t you tell me of yourself?”

Trixie looked at Celestia for a very long, measuring moment, slowly going from frosty dismissal to slowly chewing her lower lip, before finally turning to face the alicorn and sitting down. Trixie’s face was a mask of disgruntlement, but she started to talk, slowly at first but gradually with greater ease. And Celestia listened, learning all the while.

----------

Evening fell over Ponyville with its usual easy stillness, but the town itself was not quite as relaxed as it usually was when Celestia lowered the sun and Luna’s moon started to take its place in a dusty sky. There was both and excited and slightly nervous buzz in the air as ponies went to one of the towns’ few taverns, talk of the events of the past couple of days on everypony’s lips. Not many knew much of what was going on, only that somepony had gotten into quite the scuffle with the Princess of Friendship and her friends at the edge of town, and now the other Princesses were in town with an entourage of guards. Twilight Sparkle had made a publish statement assuring the town that everything was well in hoof, but hadn’t given many details beyond that. Not that many of Ponyville’s long time residents were all that worried. By this point they were all quite used to the many unusual events that tended to happen around town, especially when it comes to the adventures their resident alicorn and her friends.

If Ponyville could weather Ursa Minors, bugbears, parasprites, rampaging dragons, and Pinkie Pie, then those living in the town assumed they could handle anything that might come their way. So while they chatted with somewhat nervous smiles about what kind of crazy trouble Twilight and her friends were getting involved in this time, they were still a little uneasy every time they glanced out the windows of their homes or taverns to see Royal Guard ponies, and even more than a few of Luna’s far less frequently seen Night Guard patrolling the streets.

Beyond the outskirts of Ponyville the Everfree Forest was as thick and foreboding as ever, the kind of place most ponies in town still thought of as a place to avoid despite many of them knowing that the forest housed at least one friendly zebra. The forest was larger than most gave it credit for, large enough that Twilight was completely confident that she, her friends, the two royal sisters, and Flash Sentry wouldn’t be disturbing anyone with the evening’s events.

“I still can’t believe you’re dueling the Princesses. I’d call it irresponsible if Princess Celestia hadn’t already agreed to it,” she chided, to which Flash Sentry managed another apologetic smile.

“I guess I did spring it up out of nowhere, but seriously I think it’ll be useful for both of us. I need to know what level of strength the Princesses are at, and they should at least get an idea of what a Soul Reaper can do. Besides, it might be fun.”

“Yeah Twilight, I brought popcorn and everything!” Pinkie Pie said, producing an outrageously sized bucket of freshly buttered popcorn, which Twilight blanched at, but Rainbow Dash was quick to snag a hoof of.

“Exactly Twi, you got to get into the spirit of things,” said Rainbow Dash, winking at Flash, “Try not to lose too fast.”

“Heh, we’ll see how it goes. I have no idea what either Princess is capable of. Kind of the whole point of this, gaining knowledge. You can dig that, right Twilight?”

Twilight gave a begrudging nod, “Yes, I suppose I can’t deny that. Still, if you so much as put a scratch on Princess Celestia...”

Flash held up a hoof defensively, “Hey, I’m more worried about what she’ll do to me. Remember, in my world Celestia’s my Captain. I still got memories of the bruises I took in the Academy from her kendo lessons. I’m sure the alicorn Princess version is no slouch in a fight.”

Further ahead, leading the party’s way through the forest, Celestia and Luna themselves strode closely to each other’s sides, sharing a quiet conversation of their own.

“Hmph, spending hours talking with our enemy. You never much change, do you sister?” Luna said with a wry half smile, “Did you even learn anything from the exchange?”

Celestia wore a knowing smile of her own, “While Trixie said nothing that we could use against Starlight Glimmer or her plans, I did find the conversation... enlightening. The young lady has many barriers around her ego and feelings that she doesn’t lower easily. I suspect she’s had to keep others at a distance for so long she doesn’t even know where the ego ends and her real self begins. Still, she told me much of what she is, and that in and of itself helps me understand our enemies better. Bounts are fascinating, and share much with Changelings. Both are species that hide among the population to feed on others, but where Changelings were once forced to feed on love, Bounts must feed on souls.”

Luna bristled at that, but Celestia went on to say, “I asked her if Bounts consume souls entirely, and she said that while they are entirely capable of doing that, it is taboo among them to do so. Even feeding on a living person’s soul is considered a crime among their kind, although she admitted she’d heard of a clan of Bounts that once broke those taboos in an attempt to fight the Soul Reapers. It ended poorly for that group of Bounts. Trixie herself claims to be from another clan, one that was hunted by both Quincy and Soul Reapers until she was the only survivor. While she didn’t say so directly, the reverent way she talks of Starlight Glimmer suggest to me the crux of Trixie’s loyalty is that Starlight saved her from those hunts and helped her hide. She’s young, by Bount standards. Apparently the Bounts don’t age, as long as they feed, but Trixie isn’t much older than she physically appears.”

“All interesting, I’m sure, but ultimately useless for our own cause,” Luna said, but Celestia shook her head.

“Not entirely, sister. With time I feel I can break down more of her walls and gain some measure of trust from her. Not enough, perhaps, to turn upon her allies, but enough that when the time comes she may be a bridge towards helping end the conflict... more peacefully than it otherwise might end.”

“Shall I forgo tonight’s intended questioning?” Luna asked.

“Oh no, I still want you to pay Trixie a visit as well,” Celestia said with a wink, “I’m sure she’ll find conversing with you... stimulating.”

Luna cracked a wider smile at that, “Oh, I intend it to be more than merely stimulating. While I do have sympathy for those who’ve gone astray due to... understandable reasons, I still don’t intend to take it too easy on this Trixie. She’s put much of Equestria at risk, and I want her to understand that we are not taking such a threat lightly.”

“Well, you needn’t always play the Princess of the Night routine quite so severely, Luna, but I suppose there’s value in the old carrot and stick routine. I dangle the carrots of understanding, you bring the stick of not-so-understanding.”

“A stick I am most familiar with wielding,” Luna said, through her expression turned thoughtful and introspective, “I’ll not bludgeon her too hard with it. I was given a chance to redeem myself, so I can grant the same consideration to others. Not that I feel we can afford to go too soft on those who challenge us. Speaking of which, do you truly wish to have both of us duel Flash Sentry at the same time, or shall one of us begin and wait to be tagged in?”

“Hmm, he seemed to want to test us both simultaneously, but I suspect he may be somewhat underestimating us. Would you like to start, sister? You seem eager to blow off some steam,” Celestia said with a sidelong look of amusement. Luna laughed under her breath and shook her head.

“By all means, go first, Tia. Once you’ve had your fun you may tag me in and I’ll finish the job.”

“Heheh, you know me so well, Lulu.”

The walk through the forest didn’t last much longer before they reached a rope bridge over a wide, foggy chasm that was quite familiar to many of those present. Twilight had a moment of brief reminiscence as she remembered Rainbow Dash stringing up this very same rope bridge, that long night when she and the ponies that would become her best friends went to face Nightmare Moon. She supposed she shouldn’t be surprised how long ago that felt, despite it not really having been that many years ago. Her life had just become nothing but a nearly non-stop roller coaster since then to the point that each year had felt like a lifetime in and of itself.

Glancing at Flash Sentry, she wondered just how much crazier her life was going to get. She’d thought she’d hit peak when she’d earned her alicorn wings. But the world kept growing, and along with it the threats to Equestria’s peace. Looking back at her friends, she could only hope that, like always, she and them would be up to the challenges to come.

Then there were was the question of exactly what she felt for Flash Sentry. That was a tangle she had yet to unwind. She hoped there’d be a few quiet days while they waited for the search for the human Starlight to bear fruit where she could spend a bit more time with him to maybe work out exactly what the felt about each other and what they were going to do about it.

Crossing the rope bridge the group soon found themselves at the entrance to a vast and moss entwined ruin. The one time castle would have been a grand sight in its glory days when it had been the home of the royal sisters, its tall spires of ancient stone acting as a beacon of glory in a deep sea of trees. Now it was a fallen and faded collection of stone walls, cracked floors, and small piles of rubble cloistered around broken windows and empty hallways.

“You know I keep thinking it would be a lovely idea to restore this old castle,” said Rarity, looking the ruin over with a critical eye, “A few choice rugs, the right tapestries, and a little TLC to get the walls and roof repaired and this could be quite the scenic summer home.”

Celestia laughed lightly, “I believe the castle is still technically owned by the crown, even through neither I nor Luna have been here for more than nostalgic visits in centuries. To be honest if anypony truly wanted to restore this place I wouldn’t object to the attempt, but I believe it would be a project of no small time and effort.”

Rarity made a thoughtful ‘hmm’ as she looked the castle over again, clearly considering the prospects. Meanwhile Twilight glanced at Celestia and said, “Now that we’re here, are you sure you all want to do this?”

“It will be quite alright, Twilight. You needn’t worry,” Celestia said, and turned around to face Flash Sentry, spreading her wings out. “I believe right here should give us more than enough space to conduct this sparring match. Twilight and the others can observe us from the castle steps. Shall we set the rules of our bout?”

Flash looked around, noting the size of the rather large clearing between the rope bridge chasm and the castle itself. It was roughly the size of the training fields back at the Academy, with the chasm extending off to the castle’s right side. The forest trees were quite sparse here, with only a few clumps of shrubs hugging the area and providing no obvious cover or obstacle to movement. He nodded firmly.

“This should be fine. As for rules, let’s keep it simple; we fight without restriction until either someone yields, or is incapacitated. Go all out and fight like you mean it, just holding back enough to avoid any serious injury.”

“That’s acceptable to me. However, while I know you wished to fight my sister and I both at once, would you be willing to begin with just me? If needed I’ll tag Luna in, but I’d like to start testing you out myself,” Celestia said, smiling thinly. Flash raised an eyebrow, but nodded.

“If that’s what you want...”

“Very well then,” Celestia looked behind her to ensure that Twilight and her friends had all gathered to sit on the steps leading up to the castle’s entryway. Pinkie Pie was sharing her popcorn with Rainbow Dash and Spike, who seemed to be the only one’s interested, while Pinkie herself had somehow managed to procure a foam, pink wing she was waving on her hoof.

“Yeaaaah, go team Princesses! Alicorn’s gonna take Soul Reaper boy down!”

Fluttershy coughed politely and said, “I, um, am rooting for everypony. G-good luck Flash Sentry.”

Pinkie Pie nodded, “Oh, I am too. Check it out!”

She raised her other hoof, which somehow had a foam Zanpaktou attached to it. Flash couldn’t even grasp where or how Pinkie Pie got a foam copy of his sword.

“Yeaaaah, go team Flash! Go Bankai!”

How does she even now...ugh, I’m not even going to think about it, Flash shook his head, and instead just focused his attention on Princess Celestia as he drew his Zanpaktou. It still felt incredibly awkward in his hoof, but he was getting used to holding it with the fingerless limb. Steadying himself, he took a deep breath and looked Celestia in the eyes. “Ready when you are.”

Celestia stepped forward, and assumed a wide stance. Flash blinked in surprise. Despite her quadrupedal form, the stance immediately struck him as familiar.

She holds herself the same way Captain Celestia does, he thought, but it was more than just the stance. It was the demeanor. It was like with just assuming that stance Celestia’s entire body language instantly shifted, transforming entirely. One moment she’d been a gentle, welcoming presence that held not a trace of ready violence in a single hair or feathers on her body... but now, with that one stance, Celestia’s posture radiated power and deadly lethality. It wasn’t a matter of spiritual pressure, either. This was just Celestia’s sheer presence that was striking Flash, and instantly took him back to being a raw recruit facing Captain Celestia that first day of sword training.

He gulped, feeling sweat bead his forehead. I think I might’ve made a slight miscalculation.

His thought only became confirmed as he saw a gleam of golden magic not only appear around Celestia’s long horn, but also wreath her entire body in a radiant aura. He couldn’t really feel magic clearly yet, as the whole world still buzzed with that background sensation of it, but now that buzz felt like an overwhelming roar, and he realized that while he might not be able to discern specifics about magical auras yet, he could tell Princess Celestia’s magical might wasn’t just stronger than Twilight's... it was was in a league of its own.

There was a clarion ring in the air as Celestia’s magic glowed brighter and in the air on either side of the Princess there was a heated shimmer. A second later a blazing pair of white flames appeared, extending and solidifying until they become two ornate golden longswords that all but bled sunfire, lighting up the entire night.

Celestia’s lips quirked in a smile, “I’m quite ready, Flash Sentry. May I suggest that perhaps, for your own sake, that you don’t hold back and activate your Zanpaktou’s Shikai now?”

Flash Sentry gulped, now more than a few beads of sweat on his forehead, as he nodded, “Y-yeah... that sounds like a good idea.”

Taking a deep, steadying breath he intoned, ”Serve faithfully; Kochi Yojinbo.”

His Zanpaktou flowed into the shape of the large, bladed tonfa strapped to his foreleg and he braced himself, letting his reiatsu flow out of him as he prepared for what he suspected was going to be an even harder battle than he’d anticipated. Just out of habit from his many practice sessions with Captain Celestia, he offered the Princess a formal bow.

“Ready.”

It warmed him a bit that she returned the bow just as formally, making him feel like he was back home a bit.

“Ready.”

The two faced each other for a tense, silent moment, then a swift wind passed over the area, stirring the trees and whistling through the old, ruined castle, shifting loose a single small rock from a windowsill. When the rock clattered to the ground both Flash and Celestia burst into motion at the same time, and the duel began.

Episode 68: Catching Up to Now

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Episode 68: Catching Up to Now

One of the most fundamental techniques a Soul Reaper needed to teach themselves to even have a hope of reaching the rank of a seated officer was Shunpo. The Flash Step was an almost necessary building block upon which most Soul Reaper combat doctrine was built around, with the only exception to the rule being the uncommon Kido specialists who focused upon Soul Reaper spells above all other techniques. Flash Sentry knew his limits with Flash Step fairly well. He’d been teased about his name enough at the Academy that he’d driven himself to learn the technique faster than most in his class, but his actual overall skill was still average, at best. If he was being honest with himself he considered himself average at just about all aspects of being a Soul Reaper, to the point that he still wondered why Captain Celestia had made him her Lieutenant. He didn’t think he was worthy of that rank yet, despite being told by the Captain herself that she thought he was more than qualified, and had potential to grow further.

He didn’t see it that way, but he’d never slacked off in his training, especially with Flash Step itself. Which was why, despite the hair raising sense he had that he’d just gotten well in over his head with this practice duel, he still felt confident he could give Princess Celestia and her sister Luna a good match. He shot forward, his body an instant dark streak that no mortal eye should have been able to track as he rushed to meet Celestia’s own charge. She seemed slower than him, by his estimate. He wasn’t using his wings, since he was still largely unfamiliar with this pegasus body of his, but even on hoof he was swift enough to Flash Step behind Celestia’s charge, avoiding those dangerous looking blade’s of searing white fire. Not wanting to inflict any serious injury, he aimed the flat side of his bladed tonfa at the back of one of the alicorn’s legs, striking hard-

And only hitting air as Celestia’s entire form vanished in a pop of golden light, leaving Flash blinking in momentary surprise.

Did she just teleport!?

He knew magic could do that, but how had Celestia been able to pull it off that quickly? Before he could wonder that he had to throw himself into a side long dodge as Celestia, who’d appeared directly above him, speared down with both of her hooves. He managed to get out of the way of the crushing strike, and his eyes went even wider as the impact of Celestia’s hooves on the ground shook the earth and sent a ripple of cracks spreading out for dozens of yards. Before he could do more than regain his balance both of Celestia’s swords, which were flying independently under the alicorn’s gleaming gold magical grip, came swinging at him in a dizzying pattern of incinerating swordplay. For a few heart stopping, sweat soaked moments it was all Flash could do to just parry that blazing assault, his Zanpaktou heating up from even momentary contact with those flaming longswords. He could feel the burning, intense heat just from proximity, and he knew even a glancing blow from either sword would ruin his day real quick.

However, swift as the blades were coming for him Flash was quickly adjusting to their speed and tempo, and found himself an opening to break away and utilize another Flash Step to zip to Celestia’s left side - or at least he tried to until he ran face first into a translucent barrier of radiant gold light that had been invisible until he bounced off it. Amid his ringing head he heard Celestia’s amused chuckle.

“As a friendly suggestion, as much an asset as your speed is you’d do well to slow yourself down until you learn to sense magic use better. With patience you would have noticed I’d put a barrier up and been able to plan accordingly,” Celestia said with the encouraging tone of an instructor, taking Flash back to his Academy days. Captain Celestia spoke in the same manner, using every opportunity to teach and encourage growth among the lower ranked Soul Reapers.

But he also wasn’t an Academy student anymore, and he had learned more than a few of his Captain’s lessons from those days. While the barrier had surprised him, he hadn’t let it distract his focus on the fight. Taking Celestia’s advice, he leaped away to put distance between himself and her, assessing his surroundings instead of just charging back in. His spiritual senses may have been confused by the presence of all of Equestria’s ambient magic, but he was starting to figure out how to pinpoint differences in that ever constant buzz of energy he felt. If he concentrated he realized he could feel the barrier Celestia had formed. It didn’t just cover her front, but had encased her in a dome. She was right, if he slowed down and paid attention he would’ve sensed that before running face first into it.

It covers her from all sides, but does it just halt physical attacks? Could my Zanpaktou...? Flash let a small smirk bloom on his face.

Celestia’s swords hadn’t remained idle, and came spinning in towards him in a intersecting pattern that left trails of white fire behind them. He sent himself catapulting into the air just as the swords would have impacted where he was, the blades cutting melting furrows in the ground as Flash soared upwards with his hooves bouncing off the air. His went sailing over Celestia and her barrier, and he spun, slashing with his Zanpaktou. His perceptions twisted, like looking into a fractured mirror as he activated his weapon’s power.

Abruptly two more Flash Sentry’s appeared from distortions in the air on either side of Celestia, and Flash felt a moment of surging elation as he realized his Zanpaktou’s power could bypass the barrier and create his mirror forms within it. True to the way his sword’s ability functioned the mirror Flash’s were performing his exact motion, since in reality they weren’t copies but literally Flash himself being mirrored in multiple locations simultaneously. He was once again aiming the flat of his blade at Celestia’s legs, not wanting to actually harm the alicorn in case this move did manage to catch her off guard.

It didn’t.

Celestia’s horn flared, and Flash soon learned she could teleport more than herself. Her swords instantly appeared next to her and intercepted his attack, blocking both of the mirrored Flashs, and in the same moment Celestia turned and lashed out with a surprisingly quick buck with her hind legs that caught one of the Flashs in the chest. Since all three were essentially the real Flash, he felt the blow full on in his gut, and while the mirrors of him vanished his original body went flying backwards until it rammed into one of the walls of the castle. Fortunately his reiatsu hardened his spirit body firmly against the blow, so while it hurt it hadn’t left any serious damage and he recovered in an eyeblink, letting himself fall towards the ground while slashing downward with his tonfa blade. His mirrored duplicates appeared again, this time both at an angle in front of Celestia. She blocked once more with her own flaming blades, but then Flash turned his body so he could kick off the castle wall and altered the positioning of his duplicates with a mere thought.

Both mirrored forms vanished and reappeared behind Celestia, and Flash slashed the air in front of him, his duplicates mirroring the attack.

In a bright burst of light Celestia teleported again, this time appearing high in the air above the castle. Flash landed on the ground and turned to face her, seeing that she was glancing at a small cut that’d scored her left flank. He winced, even though he’d certainly pulled his attack to just leave a light mark. Celestia’s bright eyes met his with a nod of acknowledgement.

“A solid hit. So far we're one for one with each other. However I trust you won’t hold it against me if I... turn things up a notch?”

Flash felt his mouth go dry. Oh yeah, he’d heard that tone of voice from his Captain before. “Be gentle...” he whispered.

Somehow he wasn’t surprised that Celestia heard him as she chuckled, “No promises.”

A fountain of gold light wrapped around her horn, and then circle after circle of shining light appeared in the air around her, filling with complex magical crests and runes. Flash counted dozens, then stopped counting as a practical wall of magic circles now filled the sky around Celestia. He had all of a second to start evading before each magical circle started to discharge a rainstorm of flame coated meteorites. Each chunk of super heated rock was large as a beach ball and impacted with earth cratering force. It was all Flash could do to outrun the barrage, jumping and leaping with flickering Flash Steps to keep ahead of the explosive rain that tracked him all the way along the front of the castle.

At the castle’s steps the spectators all gasped, save for Luna who watched the match unfold with a critical eye. Twilight was sweating slightly, tail twitching nervously. “Sh-she’s not trying to kill him is she?”

“Of course not, Twilight Sparkle,” said Luna, “My sister is merely testing his reflexes. His speed is more than sufficient to avoid an attack this simple.”

“This is simple!?” Rainbow Dash gaped at the display of explosive geysers of earth rocketing into the air as the meteorites blasted a destructive path around the area. “Why didn’t she pull moves like this back during Twilight’s brother’s wedding!? Queen Bugeyes could’ve been paste!”

Rarity frowned, eyeing the destructive display of magic with a contemplative look, “Rainbow dear, I suspect Princess Celestia couldn’t possibly have used such power back then. In such a crowded room, filled with ponies, who knows who could’ve been hurt?”

Luna nodded, lips pressed into a thin line, “Indeed, Rarity speaks the truth. Celestia held back her power for fear of injuring her little ponies. I’m not so certain I’d have done the same, and risked all of Canterlot to the Changeling’s mercies... but I wasn’t there. Sadly. I must learn to use modern alarm clocks.”

“All that aside, anyone see where Flash is n’ all that mess?” asked Applejack, squinting, “Lost track o’ the fella.”

“I haven’t been able to keep up with this at all,” Fluttershy said, eyes wide, “Everything’s moving too fast.”

“Oh, Flashy is juuuust fine,” chirped Pinkie Pie, chomping on some popcorn, “He’s even about to use one of his limit breaks!”

She pointed with the foam Zanpaktou on her hoof and all eyes were drawn to where a form flew up from the dust and dirt flung up by the barrage of meteorites. Flash Sentry emerged from the cloud and leaped from point to point in the air, narrowly avoiding the now focused rain of flaming rocks. He held his tonfa blade up before him horizontally while placing his other hand to brace behind his weapon bearing arm.

“Hado Number Thirty Two: Okasen!” (Golden Flash)

At the same instant not two, but three mirrors of himself appeared at different points surrounding Celestia. All Flash Sentry’s had yellow orbs of light form at the center of their blades, which then swiftly expanded into blazing lines of energy that then sliced out in wide, fan shaped paths that converged on Celestia’s position. The alicorn responded with a rapidly cast spell, horn alight with throbbing magic. Suddenly multiple, giant chunks of rock were teleported and held telekinetically around her like shields, intercepting the Kido spells. The rocks were blasted apart into chunks, but Celestia was left relatively unharmed, save for a few rock bits pelting her with no visible harm. She was smiling in approval at Flash.

“Creative use of your abilities. I trust you're observing me as well? Take note of the differences between your Kido and Equestrian magic. For example...”

Flash abruptly felt a pressure all over his body, as if he'd suddenly been dunked deep underwater. He saw Celestia's magical aura coated him with gold light and he realized she was holding him still with telekinesis. At the same time from the rubble of broken rock below from her meteorite barrage Celestia grabbed even more rock chunks and raised them in the air around Flash, while at the same time both her flaming blades zipped up and poised on either side of him with their deadly blazing tips.

"I need not chant, nor take any significant time for most of my magic. A unicorn can cast as many spells as their font of mana and focus allows, and an alicorn's level of magic is on a higher level still, with only rare exceptions like Starlight Glimmer representing unicorns with magical talent to match."

Flash struggled against the telekinesis, testing it's grip. It was like pushing against being buried underground. He could feel a bit of give here and there, but he wasn't certain he could break free. However he did realize that Celestia was testing him and also seeking to see just how far his own spiritual power went, so he deiced he'd show her. Digging into the core of his being he brought out as much spiritual pressure as he could, pouring his reiatsu out and trying to Flash Step against Celestia's telekinetic grip. There was a blast of air pressure from the strain he exerted on the magic grip, and he felt it give more, but not quite break. However it gave him enough range of movement to create a duplicate of himself above Celestia, inverted so the duplicate was upside down as he kicked out with a hind leg.

He didn't strike Celestia's horn directly, just grazed it, but it was enough to disrupt her focus for a moment. A moment long enough for him to Flash Step away from the telekinetic aura just before the barrage of rocks could slam into him. Celestia's focus was back in an instant and her swords of fire streaked in brilliant arcs at him, forcing him to focus on defense again, doing all he could to parry the incinerating swords. His Zanpaktou was starting to gain a set of bright red, heated spots on it from where he kept parrying. Meanwhile Celestia teleported again with a brilliant yellow spot of light and appeared behind him, her horn wreathed with another layer of gold light as a white rune appeared on her right front hoof and she struck out with it. Flash spun to block the blow, which was strong was enough to send him rocketing backwards, but only for a short distance before Celestia's telekinesis grabbed him again.

"Ugh, you're not the only one who can bind people up! Bakudo Number Fifty One: Koiru-jo no Hebi!" (Coiled Rock Serpent)

Using chunks of the very same rocks Celestia had magically gripped the Kido re-shaped the rock and broke them free of her telekinetic grasp just long enough to turn into living serpents of rock that rushed to try and coil around Celestia. She glanced at the rock serpents trying to wrapped around her, and with an even brighter flash of magic from her horn her entire body seemed to erupt with golden flames. The rock serpents were melted to nothing in mere instants, and Flash Sentry was left starring in shock even as he jumped back from the vastly intense heat that exploded out from the display of magic. His robes were even smoking slightly, and he could feel the moisture being burned out of the air. He'd only been able to move because Celestia's magical grip on him had lessened just a fraction as she'd exploded his rock serpents, and it'd still taken most of his strength to pull free.

When the flames around Celestia lessened and she summoned her swords to her side, she looked at Flash Sentry curiously.

"I am noticing you're capable of pulling free of my telekinesis far more effectively than I would have expected. Its almost as if my magical grip on you slips on something. I'll assume its your aura of spiritual energy that pours out from your body. 'Reiatsu', I believe you called it?"

"Yeah, the spiritual pressure our power exerts is called reiatsu," Flash Sentry confirmed, not lowering his guard as he spoke, "Its what makes our bodies harder to damage and boosts our reflexes and strength as well. It's sort of like an aura that grows wider the more energy we pour out. Your telekinesis is still ridiculously strong. It's hard to push out of it, but I'm guessing my reiatsu is what's letting me do that at all."

"Well, I'm not trying that hard to hold you, either, but you're right, your reiatsu aura seems to grant you some resistance to the telekinesis, and I'll assume against opponents like your world's Chrysalis or Starlight Glimmer, who have much higher auras of reiatsu I'll have to be careful about relying on my telekinesis. Hmm, so have you noticed anything else about how my magic works? I'd like to know about any weaknesses so I can prepare countermeasures in a more serious battle."

He had, in fact. Given the entire purpose of this duel was for both him and the Princesses to become familiar with each other’s combat prowess he had been paying attention closely to the speed at which Celestia could cast her spells, the manner in which she handled her longswords, and the flow of magic as best he could sense it as the battle progressed. He was impressed with the ease at which Celestia used her magic, often multiple forms of it at once, and with remarkably swift speed. He suspected even a high-level Kido specialist would have trouble keeping up in a battle of pure spells. Granted he hadn't seen any spells as strong as, say, a high end Kido like the Kurohitsugi, but he also didn't doubt Celestia was holding back and had yet to show her full power. However he'd seen two weaknesses that an opponent faster and more skilled than him could use against the alicorn.

"First, let me confirm something... can you cast magic without your horn?" he asked.

Celestia's expression turned grim as she shook her head, "Not in any controlled manner. A broken or severed horn becomes a horribly difficult if not outright impossible font of magic. We can still channel out of the horn's remains, but what comes out is largely formless, directionless, dangerous to both the caster and anyone nearby. One could, given practice, learn to control that font of chaotic energy, but only in so much as one could direct its destructive energies, not so one could form actual spells. You were correct to strike at my horn earlier, as even a glancing blow can disrupt even the simplest of spells."

Flash nodded, suspecting as much. The other thing he'd noticed was that when he'd unleashed his multi-directional Kido earlier Celestia had countered by using rocks to shield herself instead of summoning a magical barrier.

Why do that? Wouldn't a magical shield have been faster and more potent? She'd formed a full barrier around herself at the start of the duel, so why not do so again against his Kido?

Pondering, he said, “Hmm, one other thing then, if you don’t mind me confirming a theory-” he said and abruptly flung a palm out, “- Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!”

The wave of blue, punishing energy fanned out from his palm and slammed towards Celestia. She raised an almost instant field of magic, the barrier holding fast against the Kido spell like a solid boulder amid a waterfall. Without missing a beat Flash followed up with another Kido, this time forming mirrors of himself once again around Celestia.

“Hado Number Ten: Onsen Yajirushi!” (Hot Spring Arrows)

Pools of steaming water formed before him and his duplicates, then proceeding to fire high speed darts of scalding water, once again forming a barrage that came at Celestia from all sides. This time Flash noted that instead of a magical barrier Celestia’s magic flared and she teleported out of the way of the arrows of boiling water, which splashed harmlessly against one another as the alicorn safely evaded. She appeared with a pop of golden light not more than a few meters from Flash, her swords now flying up to her side and poised to strike at him. He spun just in time to meet the twin strike of Celestia’s swords with his tonfa blade, and Celestia wore an approving half smile as they locked blades for a moment.

“Very good, Flash Sentry. I take it you realize why I haven’t used magic shields against certain attacks?”

He grunted under the strain of keeping her swords back, not to mention the horrific heat pouring off them making him now sweat rivers. “Ugh, I... I figure magic barriers aren’t good at handling multi-directional attacks?”

“Hm, quite so. A magic barrier is strongest at a single point. It's an intrinsic part of magic formed from a horn. Spells are generally most powerful in the direction the horn points. That isn’t to say the barrier can’t resist damage from all sides, as you've already seen, but a concentrated attack at a weaker point on the barrier has a better chance of penetrating than one aimed at the front.”

“Not much of a weakness. I’m guessing your shields could hold up against my Kido anyway, no matter which direction I attack from... but you’re trying to teach me, aren’t you?”

Celestia’s swords flared with more fire, and Flash had just a moment to use Flash Step to throw himself backwards away from the sudden burst of fire. He then felt a sudden grip around his hind hooves, and turned to find that a pair of thick gold chains had appeared from a pair of magic circles that had taken shape behind him while he’d been focused on Celestia’s swords. The alicorn winked at him.

“Gotcha. Of course I’m teaching you, and you’re teaching me too, but this is still a fight. Don’t get distracted by too much idle talk.”

“Aw crap-” Flash said as the magical chains swung him around like a frisbee and sent him hurtling towards the ground. Celestia’s voice chased him down

“Just let me know when you want to switch to fighting my sister.”

Flash managed to throw his wings out and slow his rapid descent, but he still hit the ground hard, losing the air in his lungs. While he was still dazed the chains around his hind legs contracted, dragging him along the ground and then whipped him towards one of the outlying trees standing out by the ravine. He hit it with a dull thud, his hardened spirit body weathering the battering well enough. With a grunt he turned himself over and before the chains could throw him again he swung with his Zanpaktou and sliced at the golden bands. The blade managed to slice through the magic that formed the chains, severing them and making them dissipate, but by now Celestia was preparing her next spell, and from the blinding glow around her horn, it looked like this was going to be a big one.

He’d already seen that certain spells generated magical circles containing complex script and patterns in them, while others seemed to just key off of auras, so he wasn’t sure what the difference between such spells were... however certain things were just straight up common sense. Such as bigger probably meant more powerful. The circles that had created the meteorites and magic chains had been perhaps a meter in diameter.

The magic circle appearing in the air around Celestia at that moment spanned about forty meters across, and contained multiple five meter circles arranged in a complex pattern within the larger circle, all with intersecting lines of light that glowed so brightly they were like solid bars of sunfire.

Among the spectators Twilight Sparkle’s eyes dilated slightly as they reflected the corona of golden magic in the sky, her mouth opening silently for a second before she managed to get her wits about her. “I’ve read about this! Its one of Starswirl’s original High Arcane Incantations! I didn’t know any of them survived to the modern age!”

Luna sighed, “The original texts containing the proper circles and runes have been lost. Only my sister and I retain the memories of our teacher’s lessons on using High Magic, with the only writings left being what we put into our own notes and journals from those days. Even you, her most favored pupil, were still considered too young and inexperienced to learn of such things. I think my sister is showing off perhaps a bit too much...”

Flash felt an immense tremor of magical power. Beyond a mere buzz, beyond even a roar, his spiritual senses picked up a cacophony of magical vibrations that felt like the entire Everfree Forest should have been shaking, even if there wasn’t any visible sign of the power being gathered other than that gigantic and ominous circle of flaring gold magic. In seconds it was so bright he could hardly look at it, let alone pick out the individual component circles or any of the rune-like patterns within. There was no way to tell what kind of spell was about to be unleashed on him, although he felt confident Celestia wasn’t actually trying to kill him, or use anything that would endanger the other ponies nearby. But what could be set lose from such intense magical power that wouldn’t flatten everything in the vicinity?

Of course just standing there and letting Celestia do as she pleased wasn’t what he intended to do. Even if all he could do was just dodge, he wasn’t going to sit still. He was impressed with more than just Celestia’s power, however. She was clearly an intelligent fighter. She’d already grasped that his Zanpaktou’s ability required line of sight for him to mirror himself, because this massive magical circle also blocked her from view. After only a few times seeing him use his power she’d already figured that much out. Furthermore she was still teaching him, demonstrating that more powerful magical attacks needed long charge up times. As much as she may have been showing off her power, she was also giving him ample time to counter.

If I can’t see her to attack directly, and I can’t predict what kind of spell she’s summoning, then my only real option is to not give her a target at all.

So with that thought in mind he pushed Flash Step to its utmost limit. He moved with as much raw speed as his reiatsu could push out, launching himself upwards. But he didn’t stop with just going up, he immediately altered his direction, once, twice, three times, each instant changing his direction so that he was never in the same spot for more than a bare instant.

No matter how powerful the attack, its meaningless if you can’t hit me!

He was moving too fast at this point to trust himself to attack Celestia without risking harming her. His Flash Step was focused solely on evading as swiftly as possible. At that speed any attempt to slash at Celestia, even when he got behind the magic circle to see her clearly, would just be too fast, carry too much momentum, to reliably pull the blow. A Captain might have had the skill to do so, but Flash just wasn’t that skilled. So he just kept moving, trusting in his speed to keep him ahead of Celestia’s spell. Once it was cast, he’d slow down and go on the offensive, hopefully against a more drained and tired alicorn princess.

The massive magical circle abruptly transformed, becoming an open portal from which poured forth a torrent of thick, bright tendrils of sunfire. The streams of fire moved with incredible speed and like a swarm of enraged bees the dozens if not hundreds of ribbons of sunborn flame converged around Flash. They first blocked off his forward path, and as he tried to Flash Step away in the opposite direction yet more fire merged behind him to block that direction. Even with all his speed it was as if the fire could predict where he was going and bit by bit all his paths of escape were cut off, until he was surrounded on all sides by an impenetrable sphere of raw, molten sunfire. Yet oddly he felt only minimal heat, until he got close to any edge of the sphere, at which point he could feel the temperature rising astronomically. No doubt actually touching the flames would result in instant incineration, but as long as he stayed inside the sphere he was safe. Relatively speaking.

Some kind of imprisoning spell, then. Like a high-level binding Kido, only Celestia had summoned the literal flames of the sun to encase him, even with all his high-speed evading.

“Damn...” he said, hanging his head and sighing, “Guess that’s my loss, then.”

“Oh, you did well enough,” Celestia said as she teleported inside the sphere of flame and offered him a bowing dip of her head, “And all things considered I would say we’ve learned much from each other in just this short exchange.”

“This is impressive, Princess,” he said, gesturing around at the sphere of fire boiling around them, “If you can pull things like this off I’m surprised you’ve had any trouble with foes in the past.”

Celestia turned a weary gaze at the barrier of fire around them, and made a shrugging gesture with her wings, “Impressive, yes, but slow to cast, as you saw. Tirek would have eaten my magic long before I could have used a High Magic spell like this. Discord would snap his fingers to turn my magic against me before I even got half a circle finished, and I know this from personal experience. High Magic is powerful, but limited by requiring time to use properly. Had you actually attacked me during my casting of it you could have disrupted me.”

“Yeah, I figured that but... well I didn’t want to risk injuring you. I’m not so good at controlling my strikes when I’m moving that fast,” Flash said, rubbing the back of his head.

Celestia shook her head, “You needn’t have worried, and come at me full force. An alicorn’s body isn’t as fragile as all that.”

“You’re right, and I apologize for taking you lightly, Princess.”

“No need for apologies,” Celestia said with a dismissive hoof gesture, then she smiled impishly, “Besides you’ll find my sister a far less forgiving opponent than I.”

“Uhhh...” Flash suddenly felt a distinct chill as Celestia dismissed the sphere of sunfire and he saw that Princess Luna had spread her wings and was flying up in the air to meet them. The younger sister may have been the shorter of the pair, but she somehow managed to exude a heavier aura of menace than Celestia.

“If you’re done toying with him, sister, I dare say it’s my turn.”

“Of course, Luna, by all means,” Celestia said with a bow, then turned to Flash and said, “Remember what I said; you needn’t hold back.”

“Verily,” Luna agreed as Celestia flew off down to where the spectators still sat, leaving Flash to face Luna in the middle of the sky. The Princess of the Night’s eyes locked on Flash and narrowed, “I would be most displeased if you restrain yourself like you did with Celestia. We are not delicate, and you will need all your skill and might to last long.”

Punctuating her statement was a rapid and dramatic change around the lunar Princess, her horn wreathed in a penumbra of pale blue light. The air grew frigid and the already dark evening seemed to grow even more shaded as a nimbus of shadow encased Luna. When she stepped forth from it she was clad in intersecting plates of midnight armor rimmed in chunks of black ice that formed curved, sharpened blades across the armor’s joints, shoulders, and flanks. She wore a helmet in place of her tiara now, her wafting star-field mane passing through the dark metal to still spread around her. The breastplate covering her chest blazed with a glowing crescent moon mark. Shadows and ice both grew from the edges of her hooves, the shards of darkness melding with the ice to form curved claws. Then if those didn’t look deadly enough, in flashes of incandescent blue light a pair of crescent bladed axes of black iron took form on either side of Luna. The axe heads were covered in fine runes, which started to light up with cerulean magic.

“My sister prefers a ranged battle with her spells,” Luna commented dryly, her magic twirling her twin axes as she flexed her shadowy ice claws like a waking mountain cat, “I on the other hoof have always liked to do things up close.”

That was all the warning Flash got before the Princess of the Night turned into a dark blur of whirling axes and rending claws, rushing him with the ferocity of a typhoon.

----------

“Ow...” Flash laid on the bed in one of the castle’s guest rooms, wincing as Rarity used her magic to sew in yet another stitch on his wounded arm.

“You’re lucky that I’ve had to do this more than once for my sister or one of her CMC friends,” the seamstress said without breaking her concentration on her work, “Really you should have known better than to challenge the Princesses like that. What were you trying to accomplish?”

“Seriously,” said Twilight Sparkle as she sat on her haunches on the other side of the bed, “Any of you could have gotten hurt far worse. What if an accident happened and Luna had taken an arm off?”

“I’ve had worse- ow!” Flash winced again as another stitch went in, and he looked earnestly at Twilight, “It wasn’t a waste, and well worth the bumps and scratches. I know a lot more now about what alicorns can do, and they know a bit more about what Soul Reapers can do. I even got a hit or two in on Luna.”

“Yeah, because she was totally going all in on offense and not caring about defense,” said Rainbow Dash, who was chilling next to the doorway, “And she ain’t the one getting stitched up right now. By the way, thanks for losing, totally won my five bits off AJ.”

“Laugh it up, Rainbow, but that fight wasn’t about who won or lost, it was about learning how we fight,” said Flash, sighing, “It means we won’t be quite as up the creek when we have to go after Starlight Glimmer’s crew. We’re still in a tough spot, though.”

“How so?” Twilight asked, “If anything I’m way less worried than I was before! The Princesses are even more amazing than I thought! Either one of them would have beaten that Bount Trixie in no time. How much more powerful can Starlight Glimmer and those with her really be?”

“Enough that I’m going to recommend to the Princesses that whatever plan we come up with, we plan for trying to isolate one of the enemy away from the others and take the one individual on as a group,” Flash replied in a frank tone, gritting his teeth as Rarity finished the last stitch on his arm. Experimentally he flexed the wounded limb. He was surprised the injury wasn’t worse. Luna certainly hadn't seemed to hold back much against him, and he hadn’t against her, just as Celestia had suggested. He’d barely been able to keep up with her, and when she’d used some manner of rune based spells to boost her speed and strength even further he’d been completely overrun. The fight had been much shorter than his duel with Celestia, and Luna had been true to her word in that she hadn’t bothered with any ranged spells and assaulted Flash purely with overwhelming melee prowess. He estimated she’d fit in just fine in the Eleventh Division.

“Do you really think we’ll need to stack the odds that heavily in our favor?” Twilight said, looking unconvinced.

“I can’t say for sure, but it's the best option we have,” Flash said, “It's just a matter of figuring out how to isolate one of them so they can be taken down.”

Rarity made a pondering noise as she put away her stitching kit with deft motions of magical telekinesis, “Hmm, well Sunset Shimmer did say they were likely to be hunting for magical artifacts, didn’t she? So couldn’t we use such an item as bait to draw them out?”

“That’s... not a bad idea actually,” said Flash, glancing between Rarity and Twilight, “Do you know of any magic artifacts strong enough to tempt Starlight Glimmer to send one of her people after it?”

At that moment the door to the guest room was flung open and Trixie poked her head inside with a faintly indignant air about her. She glanced about for a second before settling her eyes on Twilight. “There you are. Starlight sent me to tell you that those siren girls are in a tiff about something.”

“In a tiff? About what?”

“Trixie doesn’t know! Starlight just seemed to think it was important you know,” Trixie paused, clearly thinking, “She may have also suggested you come find out what’s happening. Something about a quest and an Abyss. Trixie wasn’t paying much attention. Anyway, message delivered, ta-ta.”

With that the magician twirled around, sweeping out of the room, and leaving Rainbow Dash, who’d been smacked into the wall when Trixie threw the door open, to slowly slide to the ground. The pegasus staggered to her hooves and rubbed her sore snout, glaring at where Trixie went. “Why is she allowed in the castle, again?”

“Her attitude does still leave something to be desired, although its quite a bit improved over what she was like when she had that...” Rarity halted mid-sentence, and she and Twilight shared a knowing glance.

“The Alicorn Amulet!” Twilight said, smiling.

“It’s in Zecora’s keeping, no? Do you think that would make good bait?” Rarity mused.

“I think it’d make perfect bait. We’ll have to work out a plan with the Princesses, but first I’d better go find out what’s happening with the sirens,” Twilight said, heading for the door. Flash moved to join her, but she gave him a worried look, “You should probably rest.”

“I’ll be fine. Really it was barely more than a scratch, and Rarity has done a fine job patching me up. Thanks again, by the way, Rarity,” he said, patting his stitched arm.

“Oh think nothing of it, Mister Sentry. Like I said, I do the same for my sister and her friends all the time. Why you’d be shocked how often they got injured while trying to get their cutie marks. I could start up a career as a nurse if I wasn’t so busy running my boutiques,” Rarity declared with a note of pride in her voice.

Twilight still wore a worried frown, but she conceded with a nod, “Alright, if you’re sure. Let’s go see what has the sirens riled up.”

----------

“The Abyss...” Luna’s voice carried with it a heavy, disquiet quality as she and her sister shared a glance while Sonata, oblivious to both alicorns’ concern continued to blissfully pack her bags.

“Yup! Discord says that’s where we need to go to find this Charry chick and get our sister’s soul thingie back! Yo Aria, where did you put my hairdryer?”

Aria, who was also packing a bag but with a far more deliberate and less haphazard manner, rolled her eyes at her sister, “We don’t have hair over here, why would you need a hairdryer. Why did you bring a hairdryer?”

“For defrosting waffles in the morning, duh!” Sonata said as if it was the most obvious of answers, leaving Aria to just blink at Sonata while the other siren rummaged through one of the drawer cabinets in their guest room, exclaiming in glee as she found said hairdryer and tossed the appliance into her duffle bag.

Celestia, after sharing a knowing nod with her sister, stepped forward and said, “It might be best if the two of you reconsider just swimming into one of Equestria’s most deadly oceans. I understand that what Discord has told you has made you both eager to help your sister, but you’ll not sever Adagio well by getting yourselves hurt. Even if we don’t account for Charybdis herself there are countless dangerous creatures inhabiting that stretch of ocean.”

“Don’t care. Dagie needs help,” Sonata said stubbornly, yanking a golf club out of the closet and after examining it for a second, shrugged and tossed it into her bag, “And I don’t care what it takes, I’m not stopping until I get her back!”

Aria had a more reserved look as she eyed Celestia and Luna, “We get that what we’re doing is dangerous, but do you got any better options? You know this Charybdis or what?”

“We know her,” said Luna, graveness coating her voice like moss on a tombstone, “She is not to be trifled with. Were it not for an ancient agreement that she keeps to her domain and leaves certain seaways alone my sister and I would have fought to remove her dark stain from Equestria’s oceans. As it is she’s kept to her waters and left ships outside them alone... but those that stray too close to her territory are rarely heard from again. If you swim into such depths alone, I fear we shall also never hear from you again, and then who would help your sister then?”

Sonata just started packing her bag harder, opening up an entire cabinet full of food taken from the kitchens downstairs and using one finned arm to sweep it into her bag as she gave Luna a mulishly stubborn look, “We totally get it, but, like, what else can we do? Just gotta swim there, find Charry, and figure out what she wants to cough up Dagie’s soul. Doing anything else is just a total waste of time!”

“Whoa, let’s back this up a second,” said Starlight Glimmer, who had been the one to spot the siren’s packing earlier while she and Trixie had been walking down the hall, heading for the kitchens for dinner. She’d sent Trixie to go get the Princesses, and Celestia and Luna had shown up first. Hopefully Twilight wouldn’t be far behind. “Consider what me, Discord, Trixie, and Thorax were able to do I’m not going to say any desperate mission has no chance of succeeding, but that doesn’t mean you can’t slow down and plan. Or give other ponies a chance to offer to help.”

Both sirens looked at the unicorn with a mix of disbelief and mistrust, Aria crossing her arms over her scaly chest, “First of all, ponies can’t breathe underwater, so it's not like we can expect anypony to come with us. And second of all, why would you help us?”

“Because it's the right thing to do?” Starlight offered with a hint of sarcasm, “And I’m sure I can find a spell for breathing underwater. How hard could that be?”

Celestia nodded, “It's true magic to make such an underwater journey possible exists. I think the real concern here is having a way to secure this fragment of Adagio’s soul from Charybdis once you find her, and surviving the journey to reach her through a ocean that will be rife with predators. I think you’ll find there are those willing to volunteer to help, but I fear whether or not any normal help would be enough...”

Luna sighed, “I shall go.”

All eyes turned to the Princess of the Night.

“Princess Luna, are you sure?” Starlight asked, “I mean, can Equestria afford to be short one alicorn while we’re worried about what my human counterpart is up to?”

“All the more reason for me to go so that I can hasten this journey,” Luna said, eyeing Starlight Glimmer, “Discord shall be busy searching for your other self, and Celestia is needed to guard Canterlot just as Cadence must guard the Crystal Empire.”

“Then let me go instead,” said Twilight Sparkle as she entered the room with Flash Sentry, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash all in tow, “If seeing you both duel with Flash Sentry taught me anything it's that we’ll need both of you together to stand a chance against the invaders from the human realm. Whereas I still have a lot to learn before I can really be of use in those battles. However I do have some experience with adventuring beyond Equestria, as does Starlight here. Between the two of us I’m sure we can help the sirens get their sister’s soul back from this Charybdis’ person.”

“Uh, you mean the seven of us, right?” said Rainbow Dash, “No way you’re going anywhere without us, egghead.”

“Quite so,” said Rarity, “I can’t imagine letting you gallivant off to such a dangerous place without your friends as support. Even if this Abyss place does sound a tad... unpleasant. I’m sure the other girls would say the same if they were here.”

“Hold up! Hold up!” Aria shouted, holding out her hands, “I don’t remember signing up for the pony help brigade. Having a bunch of ponies, using whatever magic to breathe underwater, is still gonna be a pain in the tailfins. Me and Sonata know how to handle ourselves underwater because we were born there. You newbs would just slow us down.”

“Actually there may be a solution to that problem,” said Celestia thoughtfully, “If you’re willing to accept the help, then I may know of someone who could make the journey swifter, if no less dangerous.”

“Still doesn't mean we want help,” said Aria with a tight set to her jaw, but Starlight stepped towards her, drawing the siren’s attention.

“Look, I understand if you want to try doing this alone, but hear me out. Having us along increases your options. Twilight and I can use teleportation to get everyone out of a jam if things get tough, and we both know all sorts of spells to neutralize potential dangers. You and your sister don’t have your siren gems, so you can’t rely on your singing like you used to, so what’s your plan for dealing with trouble when it shows up?”

Sonata licked her lips and glanced at Aria, “That kinda sorta got a point, you know.”

“Urgh...” Aria still looked unhappy with the situation, then Sonata added.

“Besides if we run into anything that wants to eat us, we can let the ponies get smacked on first! Win win!”

Starlight put a hoof to her face while Twilight’s eye twitched. “I think we need to work on your definition of ‘win-win’.”

Pensively Luna turned her gaze towards Twilight’s friends, “If you’re intent on aiding the sirens, then preparations must first be made for your departure. I still think I should be the one going, however. Twilight Sparkle, you are not familiar with the level of danger Charybdis represents. She’s easily as difficult a foe as Chrysalis was.”

“Yet Starlight Glimmer and her friends defeated Chrysalis. I know you’re worried about our safety Princess Luna, but we can do this. Besides, it’s not as if we’d be much good here while searching for Starlight... although we were just discussing a plan to lure her or one of her allies out.”

Flash Sentry nodded, “I thought that’d be the best plan, but we can talk it over later. First of all, if you’re all going after some dangerous underwater beast, then you’d better count me in too. No way I’m letting you all go without backup.”

As if she’d expected as much Celestia nodded with an agreeing smile, “I would expect no less from you, Flash Sentry. I’ll entrust the safety of Twilight Sparkle and her entourage in your capable hooves.” She turned her attention back to the sirens, “If you’ll both concede to delaying your departure for several days, perhaps a week, I can make arrangements to make your journey easier. I’d also like to hear this idea as to how to draw out the human Starlight Glimmer.”

Sonata didn’t look happy about it, but after sharing a look with Aria she said, “Okay, okay, we’ll wait. But just a day. I don’t want to wait to get this done.”

----------

’Dear Sunset Shimmer... Twilight wrote in her magical journal, whose twin existed an entire dimension away in the possession of her friend in human form. It was fully nighttime now and she sat at her desk in her room, quill pen scratching away at the journal before her while Owlicious stood on his bird stand nearby, watching her write.

A lot has happened in just the past twenty four hours. Flash fought the Princesses if you can believe that! I never knew how strong they both were! Have you ever heard of High Magic? I’ve only read the rumors and bits and pieces of it, but that was the first time I ever saw such spells being used. When I asked Princess Celestia about it, she agreed that now that I was an alicorn and the need was dire enough she’d teach me what she knew of High Magic. I’m departing on a dangerous journey in just under a week, so I don’t have much time to learn, but I’m going to absorb every lesson I can!

Oh, right, Sonata and Aria are going on a journey, and my friends and I intend to go with them to help. Starlight and Trixie even volunteered to come help us. Trixie’s counterpart is being moved to Canterlot so the Princesses can keep a closer eye on her. I suppose that’s better than keeping her locked up in my castle, but I still worry about what the Bount might do.

In any case, Celestia is sending us south to a place called Mt. Aris to find the queen of the hippogriffs. Apparently she has a magical pearl that can change us into aquatic forms that’ll make our journey much easier. Theoretically. There’s still this Charybdis to deal with, and according to the Princesses she’s an ancient siren sorceress who long ago transformed herself into a giant sea monster and rules over a dark ocean trench called the Abyss. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, but I know my friends and I can manage. If we can’t do this, then what could we hope to do against the human Starlight and her cronies. Besides we’ll have Flash Sentry with us, so I think we can handle whatever comes our way.

Rainbow is trying to give him pointers on how to fly. It's kind of adorable to watch him flail about in the air. Reminds me of when I was trying to learn to fly. I... don’t really know what to think about him being here. I never thought Flash would come to Equestria, and this certainly isn’t the circumstances I wanted him to come here for a visit for! I’m glad he’s here, but at the same time I just... feel really off with him around, too. Do you know what I mean, Sunset? Maybe not. Sorry, I shouldn’t be bugging you about personal problems when we’ve got a interdimensional crisis on our hooves, with crazy people trying to steal Equestria’s magic for some war in another world!

Speaking of those people, we’re formulating a plan to possibly draw out one of them. Remember the time I told you about when Trixie went a teensy bit power mad because of the Alicorn Amulet? Well Flash has the idea that if we put out rumors about the artifact and that it’s being moved to a ‘secure location’ via train, that Starlight won’t be able to resist trying to hijack the train to get it. Celestia and Luna plan to ask for Princess Cadence and my brother’s help, and try to ambush whichever of Starlight’s cronies she sends after the Alicorn Amulet, assuming Starlight doesn’t go for it herself. I’m... nervous about that. I want to be there, but I can’t let Sonata and Aria go into a place like the Abyss alone. While they live under my roof they’re my responsibility. Besides, I know how much what their sister did meant to you, so anything I can do to help restore her is a no-brainer.

I hope everything is going alright on your end. I plan to leave the journal here so you can stay in touch with the Princesses on any further developments. Spike will check the journal each morning to see if you’ve sent any messages, and write any replies from the Princesses. You really should consider writing Princess Celestia. You know, talk to her, mend those old fences. I know she’s worried about you.

Anyway, write back soon. We’re leaving the day after tomorrow, so I can still write back until then. Be safe.

Your friend, Twilight Sparkle.

----------

The cold dimness of the empty hallways was echoed by their crypt-like silence, making every single hoof step on the sterile floors seem loud as a thunder strike. The pale white unicorn mare moved with deliberate steps on her three hooves, her front right leg missing and leaving her to walk at an awkward hobble, although she somehow managed to make the movements look dignified. Her mane fell in light purple ringlets around her dour face, her sharp aquiline features mirroring some of the more high society unicorn’s ideal image of beauty, although it was marred by terrible burn scars covering part of her face. Unlike most ponies, this unicorn bore no cutie mark, and she wore the plain dark robes of a Soul Reaper. Her Captain’s coat was gone, and she had no intention of ever putting it on again. Her Zanpaktou, however, remained ever sheathed through the white sash of her robes.

Platinum reached a plain metal door along the corridor and knocked upon it, “I’m coming in.”

Her announcement was met with silence as she opened the door with a groaning yawn of scrapping metal and proceeding inside. The room within was one of many living quarters in Hitsuyo Aku’s tower area, with no windows but well appointed and comfortable furniture. Plain fluorescent lighting coated the room in a film of pale white light.

Pipsqueak sat on the edge of the room’s bed, his form that of a tiny colt with white and brown patchy fur, with a moppish top of brown mane. He barely glanced up at her as Platinum entered the room, a tray of food balanced on her back. With magic she was only just barely getting used to using Platinum floated the tray of food to a table in the middle of the room and looked at her son.

“It’s time for breakfast, Pipsqueak.”

He didn’t say anything, but with a slow, automatic motion he went to the table and awkwardly sat at it, looking at the food with no enthusiasm. Platinum held back a sigh and sat at the other end of the table, setting out plates for them both and serving the food with slow, careful motions. For a few minutes the only sound passing between mother and son was the cold clinking of silverware. Eventually Platinum said in a quiet tone, “You can’t remain indoors all day. It isn’t healthy. You should take a walk outside and get used to your new body.”

The young colt’s desolate eyes looked up towards her briefly, momentarily flashing with a volatile mix of emotions that he refused to speak of or show to her beyond these quick looks. He then silently nodded and, his food barely a third eaten, pushed himself away from the table and silently trotted towards the door out of the room. Platinum’s jaw tightened.

“I won’t apologize for saving your life. Hate me... if that’s what you feel you must do, but you’re alive. That’s all I care about.”

Pipsqueak’s back remained turn to her, and he paused in the doorway for only a few moments before leaving, still quiet as a phantom, and leaving Platinum to stare at her cooling food with no appetite, and a growing chasm inside her where certainty used to be.

----------

It was by far more a matter of coincidence rather than intent that Pipsqueak found the exit to the tower, and he found himself glancing up behind him at the tall, plain stone protrusion that thrust itself up from the canyon floor solely by reflex as opposed to any curiosity about where he was. Ever since he woke up a day or so ago he’d gone almost entirely numb inside, his mind unable to process all that he’d learned in such a short span of time.

How?

How could his mother have done this? It didn’t make sense. None of this made any sense.

A faint tremor passed through the small colt and he turned his attention to the bare canyon ground that stretched out ahead of him. There was no point in trying to flee anywhere. No doubt his mother or one of the people she now worked with would track him down in no time. And where would he go? He was in a foreign world filled with alien beings. How could he possibly explain his situation to any of the residents of this realm? And even if he could, wouldn't he just be putting them in danger? Even if his mother had abandoned all of her responsibilities and pride as a noble, Pipsqueak would not. He couldn’t. He didn’t have much left to hold onto other than the faint sense of identity that as the only remaining noble of House Platinum he had to persevere...

But it was hard to focus on that when everything else was a vast gulf of confusion. And anger. He’d never had much of a temper, but ever since he’d woken up and his mother had tried to explain everything to him, explain to him the reasons for her utter betrayal of everything she had ever taught him or claimed to stand for... he’d been noticing a growing anger that threatened to break through his deep malaise. It was alarming, and as he looked at one of his tiny, equine hooves he felt his teeth clench and the anger rise again. In raw frustration, imagining his mother’s face, he slammed the hoof into the ground, and was surprised when the blow actually dented the stone canyon floor. He jumped back, blinking.

Suddenly a friendly and chatty female voice spoke behind him, “Watch it there kid, or your Inner Hollow is going to get riled up as much as you are.”

He whirled around to find that pink skinned woman with the purple hair looking at him. She was a pony now, much like he was, but unlike Pipsqueak she bore a pair of wings sprouting from her back. A pair of goggles rested on her swept back mane and she was wearing a casual smile as she eyed him. Pipsqueak frowned, clenching his jaw not unlike how his mother tended to. These people were the last individuals he wanted to talk to! The woman just chuckled at him.

“Wow, you really do take after your mom. Angst fest galore. Look, kiddo, if you don’t want to chat, that’s fine, but just take some advice from someone who’s been down the ‘estranged family’ road. Don’t let your bonds get severed, no matter how justified you might feel in being angry. Because that feeling of justified anger ain’t gonna last, and when its gone, you’re just going to be alone.”

As much as he wanted to maintain silent dignity, it was hard to as his emotional numbness was finally being shaken off by this woman’s easy manner and his growing need to vent everything he’d been keeping in. “What do you know about it? About anything? My mother turned her back on every single lesson she ever taught me about honor and nobility! I... I’ve looked up to her my whole life! She’s everything to me, but she...she...” he held a hoof to his chest, which was starting to feel heated, like a fire was burning under his rib-cage. There was a stinging in his eyes and he felt tears there, and he fought to keep them in check. A noble shouldn’t break down like this. He had to be strong. He had to-

A hoof patted his head, and he looked up at the pegasus who was sighing sadly at him, “Geeze kid, just let it out already, or it's going to poison the crap out of you. You’re what, twelve? No point trying to be an adult about this.”

He broke, then, and without even caring that this was technically an enemy to him, he just buried his face in the mare’s chest and let himself go. As he cried she kept patting his head.

“Your mom loves you, kid. I might barely tolerate the woman, but I know a loving parent when I see one.”

“She... shouldn’t have...”

“Shouldn’t have what? Moved heaven and earth to save her little boy from a fate worse than death? Kid, if the love a parent has for their child isn’t reason enough to defy all laws and traditions, then what reason would be good enough?” The mare looked at him frankly, in a manner that suggested she saw him as more than just a child, “When her only other option was to watch you waste way to nothing I’m not gonna blame her for taking any lifeline she could find. Just a twist of bad luck that lifeline meant turning on Soul Society. You can’t always pick between a good option and a bad one. Sometimes you just got to pick between the lesser of two crap choices. Your mom went with the option that kept her son alive.”

Getting his sobbing under control, Pipsqueak held up his hoof again, looking at it as if seeing it for the first time. While emotionally he may have been a wreck, physically he felt... strong. Healthy. There was a rush of vigor in his limbs he’d never known before, which reminded him of all the times he’d watched other children run and play and wished he’d had the health to join them. Now he felt like he could play all day and not even be remotely tired. Yet that energy didn’t feel wholly natural. His mother had barely mentioned it, yet he knew that whatever process had healed him of his disease had left him with a lingering price.

“You said Inner Hollow... what did my mother let you people do to me?”

“Nothing you can’t bounce back from,” the mare said, “And it’s Firefly, not ‘you people’. Might as well learn our names, kid.”

“Fine, Miss Firefly, what did you do to me? What am I?”

“Starlight and Discord’s term for the condition is ‘Vizard’. Basically what you get when you mix in some Hollow with another soul. The Hollow reishi inside you counteracted the disease that was degenerating your body’s spirit particles. It's not an even, fifty-fifty split, but your at least part Hollow now, the same as Starlight.”

He trembled on his hooves, feeling his mouth go dry, “Am I going to have to eat souls now?”

Firefly burst out laughing, “Hahah! No, of course not. That’d be seriously screwed up. Your Inner Hollow isn’t going to start trying to devour souls or whatever. Heck in your case it’s probably not going to do much of anything unless you specifically try to bring it out. Starlight refined the whole process of mixing Hollow energy into souls so that the Hollow remains dormant unless it’s somehow agitated into going active. If that happens, well, Starlight could probably train you to control it.”

Pipsqueak felt his mind want to shut down again. This was entirely too much to take in. Sensing his distress Firefly elbowed him, “Hey, don’t think about it too hard. Better to try and enjoy the ride. I mean c’mon, you’re in a whole new world filled with crazy magic critters!”

“It looks like a box canyon in the middle of nowhere.”

“Well, okay, the cool stuff’s hundreds of miles away from the barren wasteland we’re hiding out in, but somewhere out there is a kingdom of multi-colored magic ponies. Its nuts.”

Pipsqueak felt a headache coming on and he stared at Firefly with a flat look, “Right. So, where is your leader. I may as well meet my true captor face to face.”

“Starlight? She’s out. Doing recon on nearby places of power,” Firefly said, waving a wing, “There’s some mountain sticking out of the ocean to the south that piqued her interest, so she’s looking into it. In the meantime I’m here making sure we’re not discovered. Which is incredibly boring. Luckily since Chrysalis has up and left back to Hueco Mundo for now that means I got some free time, and your mom is still busy mopping around about you. Soooo...” Firefly grinned at him, “How do you feel about taking a trip?”

“W-where?” Pipsqueak asked uneasily.

“There’s this cool looking town not far into the desert. Long as you promise to behave and stick close to me I was thinking we could go check out some of the local color. Its got to be better than hanging around her being bored, and I’m sure your mom wouldn’t approve, so hey, bonus,” she said, winking at him. And much as Pipsqueak didn’t want to, he found himself faintly liking this mare. And doing something to irk his mother did appeal to him, and getting out of this canyon for a bit appealed even more. He didn’t think he could escape Firefly at all, but he could maybe take this as a chance to take stock of his situation and just... decompress.

Taking a deep breath and regaining at least a fraction of his noble composure and bearing, he held his head up and nodded to Firefly. “Considering you're one of my captors and not someone I'm inclined to trust, I still find your proposal more appealing than remaining here, so I accept.”

Firefly’s grin was genuine and stretched all across her face. “Awesomesauce! Hang on tight then, and let’s jet!”

Before he knew what was happening she had lowered her head and with a toss she flung him onto her back. Pipsqueak let out a yelp and held onto Firefly’s neck as she spread her wings and instantly zoomed into the sky, going from zero to wind whipping speed in an instant. Pipsqueak tried to shout something to her, probably along the lines of ‘put me down you nutcase’, but most of that was swallowed by the wind and he soon learned to just hold on while the madwoman flew out of the canyon and out across a vast desert of sun bleached dunes.

As he held on for dear life, Pipsqueak wondered if anyone else in the vast multiverse was having as rough a day as he was.

----------

“Why am I in jail!?” Sunset Shimmer’s shout filled the storefront and made Discord wince slightly.

“Technically you’re not in jail. Chappy’s in jail,” Discord said, holding up a finger.

“Yeah, with my body! When did this happen!?”

The shopkeeper pursed his lips and looked up at the ceiling as he ponderously stroked his beard, “Hmm, well it all started when Chappy, using your body of course, decided to throw a block party-”

“I mean how did the police get involved!? Skip the friday night comedy routine and just tell me what felonies she committed that got her arrested, again I reiterate, with my body!”

Discord hold up a hand, “Now, now, there’s no need to get so upset. No felonies were committed. The charges against Chappy, and I suppose technically you-”

“Stop. Saying. Technically!”

“-ahem, the charges were relatively light and mostly consisted of multiple counts of disturbing the public peace, underage consumption of alcohol in I quote ‘vast quantities’, a few counts of indecent exposure-”

“Indecent what?”

“-resisting arrest, improper use of a fire hose, jaywalking, and attempting to seduce a police cruiser. Um, I think that’s most of it. Oh, and one count of excessive profanity against a judge of the court.”

Sunset hung her head, slumping like a rain cloud was already dumping its contents over her head, her eyes bleak, “My life is ruined. I’m going to murder Chappy, and my life is ruined.”

“Now darling don’t be such a drama queen,” Rarity said, much to the silent stars of everyone else in the room. Rarity coughed politely, “What I mean to say is, surely there’s a way Discord can make these unfortunate matters, ahem, ‘go away’?”

Discord gave her a indignant look, “Of course I can, and I was in the middle of doing damage control on that matter when the unfortunate business with Trixie and the Equestrian portal occurred.”

“Was gonna ask ya ‘bout where yer attention was at when that dang two-bit stage tart went skipping across the portal,” said Applejack in a heated tone of voice that usually presided gut punches. Discord coughed and took a slight step away from the farm girl.

“I assure you if I hadn’t been dealing with Chappy’s rambunctious antics I may have been able to intercept Trixie, although you can perhaps understand that when Sunset Shimmer’s body was being taken for a joy ride around town I considered keeping Chappy from going to far to be a high enough priority to warrant my attention for an evening. Quite frankly I’m... surprised Trixie managed to hide her nature. I had no idea at all a Bount was a student at the school,” Discord said while narrowing his eyes in ponderous thought, “She must have refrained from feeding for some time to avoid detection. That or she found some other means of sustaining herself. Either way, I fully admit fault for failing to notice her and stop her from going through the portal, but on the plus side I’ve been able to alter the memories of every police officer in the city so that they think Sunset Shimmer is under arrest merely for one count of disturbing the peace. She’ll get off with a minor fine, which I’ll provide the payment for. All we have to do is pick Chappy up at the station in the morning.”

Sunset heaved out a massive sigh, rubbing her head, where she could feel a severe headache building, and wondered if anyone else was having as bad a day as she was?

----------

Twilight hadn’t slept. She’d tried, but it simply hadn’t been possible to relax and drift off to sleep. So instead she’d used the last of her time, burning the midnight oil, to put the final touches on what she hoped would be the device to give her the edge against the Hollows. It sat on the table in front of her, freshly assembled, the very last seam put in place over its gleaming metal surface.

On the surface it bore a resemblance to the Sanrei glove it was based upon, but it was somewhat more bulky, as it was built from multiple, flexible ceramic and metal interlocking plates with a soft white cloth and velvet interior covering, making the glove look more like a lightly armored gauntlet than a mere glove. Its sleeve would go up to her elbow, and three distinct nodes formed from amethyst quartz gems, which after some experimentation she’d discovered had the best conducive properties for magical energies, were embedded at the elbow end, the base of the wrist, and on the back of the glove’s hand. Internally the glove contained numerous reishi forged fiber tubes connected to circuitry that was designed to regulate power flow and shape reishi particles, while channels in the hand itself would act as conduits for magic. She had installed a safety trigger to act as an emergency cut off valve in case anything went wrong and she had to shut the glove down, ending the flow of all energies into it.

She’d only had time to give the glove a single test run with Sugar Coat and the other girls there to observe. They’d helped out greatly in working on the glove’s components for Twilight, aiding her in assembling it even when they too needed rest. Twilight was at a loss for words to express gratitude to them, but in a way she felt just pulling off one successful test had been her way of showing that.

The glove worked, at least the one time. Now she just had to hope it’d work under duress... and that Midnight would continue to be cooperative.

”Still doubting me? I’m not about to ruin a useful partnership, unless you start doing something stupid.”

Twilight’s bleary, tired eyes looked over at a mirror on the wall by her workbench, where her reflection looked back at her with a distinctly different expression than her usual one, smirking and rolling her eyes.

“I won’t be the one to break our agreement first,” Twilight said, suppressing a yawn, “And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t just appearing in my own reflection. People are going to start thinking I'm crazy if they see me talking to myself.”

”Crazy is just other people’s word for admitting they don’t understand a higher intellect. That aside, I was going to suggest you try sleeping, but behold it’s already morning, so too late for that.”

To Twilight’s mild surprise she saw it was true, the light outside her reinforced, now very heavily warded window was growing brighter. She wondered if Soarin had been outside guarding her door all night, or if he’d gotten anyone to relieve him? Chances were he didn’t, but the man didn’t see to tire easily. Not that being guarded had helped in the getting sleep department. Aside from fearing another assassination attempt, it just left her feeling awkwardly self conscious on top of all of her anxiety. Working on the Hexenfaust was almost relief by comparison.

Hexenfaust; Witch Fist. Twilight wasn’t sure what part of her tired mind had conjured up the name, but it was what she was calling her new device. The Quincy seemed to favor German terminology, so she’d gone with that for the name. It seemed to fit. Wiping a bit of old sweat off her brow she swayed to her feet and turned to consider trying to catch a few winks, but just then the door knocked, then opened as Soarin poked his head in.

“Yeash, you didn’t sleep at all? You’ll have to snag a power nap after we reach the flipside Silburn, but get your things together cadet, because we’re deploying in half an hour.”

“Yes sir,” she managed to saw past another yawn, and went to retrieve the rest of her uniform, as she’d discarded the jacket in the middle of her work. It only took her about five minutes to get herself together, and place the newly minted Hexenfaust over her left hand. She flexed her arm and fingers, testing the grip and range of motion. Smooth and comfortable, at least, and it fit over her uniform sleeve easily.

“Ready?” asked Soarin, and Twilight nodded wearily.

“Yes, let’s go.”

Feeling the weight of exhaustion press on her shoulders amid fears of the battle to come and her mind churning with thoughts about all the many things that could go wrong, she wondered if anyone else was looking to have as bad a day as she was?

----------

Adagio wasn’t sure how she could feel much better than she did right at that moment, wrapped up in the fluffy embrace of a full sized and impossibly plush bed, the first she’d been able to sleep in for what felt like forever. She didn’t even care that her Vasto Lorde body didn’t seem to need as much rest as her previous form, she was just enjoying the sensation of a cozy warm bed after days and days of making do with floor.

Those three boys had really outdone themselves. Not only had they procured this divine bed for Adagio’s room, they’d managed to secure a rather shocking amount of furniture and other accommodations to properly fill out the various rooms that Adagio had claimed for her new territory. After she and Ember returned from visiting Lament she’d been surprised to find Score, Hoops, and Dumbbell hard at work getting things set up after a successful trip to the human world to “borrow” furniture and other luxuries. She’d taken it upon herself to oversee the proceedings from there on out, while Ember had left to return to her father’s horde.

Adagio had considered asking Ember to stay a little longer, perhaps get the other Arrancar to breach the topic that was clearing bothering her, but Adagio knew she had the whole day before Thorax’s party the next evening to confront that issue. After the day she’d had she’d wanted to put that new bed to use, and as soon as she and the boys had finished appointing each room she’d collapsed into the sinfully soft bed and drifted into a pleased slumber. Now she yawned awake and rolled herself up in her blankets, her tail poking out the edge of the bed and lazily swaying about happily.

“Mmm, never leaving bed again...” she murmured into a plush pillow.

A firm knock came at her door and Adagio made a sound somewhere between a growl and a groan. Maybe if she buried herself in the blankets deep enough the annoying knocking would go away?

The knock came again. Nope, no such luck. As appreciative as she was for the boys’ hard work the other day, if this was one of them waking her from some much deserved beauty sleep, she was sincerely hoping their Sonido was fast enough to avoid a point blank Cero.

“I’ll be there in a second!” she shouted irritably, “Just quit knocking!”

Rolling from bed, disentangling herself from the blankets, which was much harder when your bone-like body fused armor had sharp productions, Adagio started a slow, stomping stroll towards her door. Her room was right above the large forum chamber one floor below, which she’d converted into a meeting chamber with a large table and chairs. Next to that the boys had set up a lounge, and last she’d checked they’d been trying to piece together how to get a generator going with stolen gas from the human world, while hooking up an electronic entertainment center. As long as they kept the volume down she didn’t care what they did. Out of all the rooms on this floor, all of them had been converted into sleeping chambers, but Adagio’s was the largest, and while it was still a bit bare at the moment she had plans to improve it. For now it felt cozy enough.

When people weren’t waking her up from a perfectly pleasant sleep. What could this even be about? Were the Quincy attacking early? She hoped so, she was in the kind of mood now where she could stand with a spot of violence.

“What is it!?” she snarled, flinging open the door, only to blink at the person smiling back at her.

Somehow Adagio instantly knew who this was. She’d never met her before, but it was impossible that this tall, onyx frame of sultry beauty clad in smooth fitting white cloth, radiating this much of a overpowering aura of acidically malevolent danger while also appearing as alluring and sweet as a venus flytrap could be anyone other than the one person Adagio wasn’t eager to meet.

“Good morning sleepyhead,” said Chrysalis, smiling like a honey coated razor blade, “I don’t suppose you have a moment to spare for a quick...chat?”

Episode 69: Heart to Heart

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Episode 69: Heart to Heart

Adagio’s mind immediately switched to high-gear, threading through dozens of possible reactions and plans in the span of a second. She considered and discarded the possibility of launching an instant, full powered attack in the hopes it might catch Chrysalis off guard and allow Adagio to either finish her off or escape. First of all Adagio didn’t doubt Chrysalis would be prepared for such an attack, and even if she wasn’t and by some very narrow trick of chance such an attack would work it’d leave Adagio in an awkward position no matter whether it resulted in Chrysalis being killed or being wounded enough to allow Adagio to escape. With the former Adagio would be catapulted to a rough position in Arrancar society that she didn’t have the power yet to survive, in the later scenario Adagio would have to flee Las Noches and go into hiding, which was not an appealing prospect.

So fighting was right out, unless Chrysalis initiated, in which case Adagio didn’t make much of her chances, but in that event she’d use all of her power to try to create an opening that’d allow her to form a Garganta and escape to the human world. Not ideal, but neither was fighting Chrysalis.

Fortunately it didn’t seem Chrysalis was here to kill Adagio. At least not immediately, otherwise she’d have already struck. Unless Chrysalis liked toying with her prey, which seemed likely, but Adagio saw little choice but to put on her most welcoming smile and play this cool.

“I was expecting you, but not quite this soon. Shall I send one of my boys to fetch us something to eat? Perhaps you’d like some refreshment? They managed to secure a working refrigerator from the human realm and have it stocked with an assortment of drinks.”

She knew there was no way Chrysalis wouldn’t see through the false courtesy, but she’d be damned if she was about to cower either. If Chrysalis wanted to walk into Adagio’s home and start throwing her weight around then Adagio was going to met it head on with every scrap of charm and dignity she could muster.

In response Chrysalis swept past Adagio into the room with the slick grace of a panther, a laugh on her lips that stuck in Adagio’s ears like honey. “Oh, I made sure to feed before I came over. I do so hate to talk shop on an empty stomach. Hmm, I do like what you’ve done with the place.”

The Second Espada all but stalked her way across Adagio’s room, her slim black fingers caressing the furniture, lightly brushing aside the dark violet drapes from the window, not even glancing back at Adagio. It was like a cat marking a room as hers, and the woman’s posture was flush with restrained amusement hiding a deeper edge of menace that Adagio felt like a knife on her throat.

“I thought it could do with some sprucing up. Grogar wasn’t the most accommodating host, and as much as I enjoy some of the company among Torch’s horde I had no intention of sleeping among them.”

Chrysalis slipped around Adagio’s bed and playfully sat on its edge, arms braced behind her and legs crossed before her as she looked at Adagio with coy but hard eyes. “So you decided to take up residence in chambers once owned by my former rival, and what... expected me not to take issue with it?”

The onyx beauty examined her fingernails and cast a sidelong look of piercing daggers at Adagio, “Why should I not do to you what I did to the Queen of Thorns? Just to make sure all Las Noches gets the message that those who displease me will drown in their own screams before I’m through with them?”

At least she wasn’t beating around the bush. Adagio’s heart was pounding away rapidly in her chest, but outwardly she forced herself to maintain her calm, courteous look, and even a bit of feigned surprise as she held one arm out in a questioning gesture. “I’m quite curious as to why my claiming these empty chambers should matter to you at all, Lady Chrysalis.”

The use of the title was a calculated risk. While many seemed to speak of Chrysalis in terms that put her on near equal standing to Lord Tirek, the term ‘Queen’ wasn’t one she’d heard used any more than the word ‘King’ was much used where Tirek was concerned. As such calling her ‘Queen Chrysalis’ might appear too much like sucking up, while ‘Lady Chrysalis’ still denoted some respect without overdoing it.

It seemed to at least partially work as Chrysalis leaned forward with interest, “Others have avoided these dusty halls for so long because when I removed the Queen of Thorns from her lofty position, I didn’t merely defeat her. I destroyed her. Not in the mundane, traditional sense. No. I broke her from the ground up, starting with those that chose to follow her. One by one I tore open her followers, eroding her spirit before we so much as exchanged the first blow. I butchered those close to her, until only her inner circle remained, and when she tried to send them away for their protection I hunted them down anyway and sent her their bodies in pieces. Then, when she could endure no more, when the time came for us to fight openly, only then did I indulge in breaking her physically. By the time it was done there wasn’t a soul in Las Noches who didn’t hear her screams, and when they finally stopped... I never told one person what happened to the Queen of Thorns, but there was certainly no body to be found. I still laugh at the stories I hear, sometimes, from those musing over what I did to her. That perhaps I devoured her whole. Or kept her alive somewhere as a personal plaything for eternity. Only I know the truth, but the point is this; people stay away from here out of fear. Fear of me. And because of that fear I command more respect and power here than anyone besides Tirek, and even then some people wonder who truly rules Las Noches.”

She paused then, as if to let it all sink in for Adagio, before saying with an arctic frozen tone, “So tell me again why I should allow you to challenge that by shacking up here, exactly?”

Given the next words out of her mouth would likely decide her fate Adagio thought she’d be more nervous, but she’d just recently dealt with Lament. She was becoming rapidly experienced in the art of diplomatically handling psychopaths who could kill her out of hand. Part of the key seemed to be maintaining initiative in the conversation, so Adagio didn’t even pause long before answering in cool, collected words.

“Challenge? Hardly. If anything my being here is doing you an incredible favor, Lady Chrysalis.”

An amused eyebrow shot up Chrysalis’ brow, “Oh? Do tell.”

Adagio spread her arms out around the room, turning as if to encompass it before facing Chrysalis again, “Why should you, with all of your great power, all the respect you just said you command, allow the shadow of the Queen of Thorns hang over these chambers? She is gone. Dead, or a suffering slave in some dungeon of yours, what does she matter now? By keeping these rooms empty her shadow remained, but with me here even the name ‘Queen of Thorns’ will soon be forgotten. As it should be, is it not? Why let the past linger? Let it die, I say. If others talk as if my presence here is a challenge to you, that misconception is easily corrected. After all I intend to secure myself here, and I can hardly do that while opposing those so far above me, so instead of my being her being seen as a challenge instead consider it a declaration of support. Erasing the last remaining figment of your old enemy, and replacing it with new blood that supports your own power base.”

“Aaaaah, and in exchange for me not eviscerating you and parading your corpse around for all to see as a warning, instead the idea is that I parade you around as... a protege, is that it?” Chrysalis queried, giving no hint on her face whether she liked or detested the notion, but since she hadn’t torn Adagio’s head of yet the siren figured she had nothing to lose by running down this rabbit hole.

“Protege, ally, or just a curiosity to be tolerated and amused by,” she said in a breezy tone, “Spin it however you like. However most benefits you. What I’m saying is that there’s no reason to view my being here as a threat to your authority, because ultimately the Queen of Thorns is gone, buried, and by allowing her shadow to hang over this place for so long I dare say you’ve done yourself no favors. Let me erase that shadow for you, and why wouldn’t I openly support you? I have my own goals, I won’t deny that, but as long as they don’t run counter to yours I see no reason for us to be enemies.”

Chrysalis let out a giggling laugh that sent ice cold shivers down Adagio’s spine like someone was running oil down it. Chrysalis stood to her full height, which Adagio couldn’t help but notice rose a good half a foot taller than her. Even the small steps she took forward towards Adagio dripped with equal amounts of sensual promise and utterly deadly radiance. In some back part of Adagio’s mind she felt a stab of jealousy. It was irrational, she knew, but a part of her wished she had her human body back, if only to show Chrysalis she wasn’t the only one who could turn movement into a seductive weapon. Such petty rivalry wouldn’t serve her purposes at all, but it was hard to be in this woman’s presence and not feel a competitive desire well up in her.

Chrysalis was an undisputed alpha female, and Adagio’s own inner alpha was struggling to get out past her diplomatic common sense.

When Chrysalis got close she leaned in so she was not only looming over Adagio, but was nearly touching noses with the siren.

“Enemies? The only way you could be my enemy is if you had the power to threaten me. You don’t. Not yet in any case, and mmmm that yet is such a delicious word, isn’t it?”

Adagio went stock still as Chrysalis’ hand rose and ran those smooth, silken fingers across the side of Adagio’s Hollow mask. Those fingers were surprisingly warm, Adagio noted, even as she stared into Chrysalis’ cold and fathomless eyes.

“You’ve hardly led a charmed life, have you? I can all but taste the frustration, anger, despair, and ambition coursing through you. A woman like you is always gasping for more of what she wants, and when she gets it, she just keeps going. I should know, I’m the same way. And what a unique and swift rise to this precarious position you’ve found yourself in. Born out the gate as an Adjuchas, surviving Grogar’s experimental attentions. Then making swift allies with Torch’s whelp, a smart move. Seeking to evolve yourself forcefully in the Forest of Gillians was a bold course, made bolder still by the allies gained there alongside this fresh new coat of Vasto Lorde paint. Now you’re claiming a slice of territory to call home, and have even made a splash by being one of the few to have a ‘friendly chat’ with the Fourth Espada and live.”

Chrysalis laughed again and patted Adagio on the head, “No wonder my Thorax is so enamored with you.”

It was one part vehement distaste for being treated like an inferior, one part reaction to her personal space getting invaded, and one part calculated risk that Chrysalis would be more impressed than offended, but Adagio pushed Chrysalis’ patting hand aside. Not harshly, but enough to make it clear she wasn’t keen on being treated as a child.

“Thorax’s interest is flattering, but he’s not why you’re here. I’d appreciate it if there is a point to this visit that we get to it, Lady Chrysalis. If you intend to kill me over some perceived slight, I’d like to get that bit of unpleasantness over with sometime before lunch. If you’re not going to kill me, then please spare us both the verbal sparring and tell me what it is you do want from me?”

“A sharp tongue to go with a sharp mind,” Chrysalis said musingly, her smile thin but genuine, “Yes, you’ll do nicely. As you say, I could kill you. It’d serve to reinforce the fear the lower ranked already have of me, but it’d do little to affect things with my... let’s be generous and call them ‘peers’. On the other hand you’re in a rarely unique position in Las Noches’ turbulent society. Not an Espada, but powerful enough to be a either a painful thorn in one’s side, or a useful tool to another.”

“And if I was the former, I’d already be dead, yes?”

Chrysalis tapped a finger to her nose.

“So what is it you want, exactly?” Adagio asked in a flat tone, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Nothing I imagine will be outside your disposition, talents, or ambitions,” Chrysalis replied with a devil’s smile, “In fact you may even enjoy what I have in mind.”

----------

It was a staircase, yet its sheer size and grandeur left Twilight Sparkle halting in her steps for a moment as she reached its threshold.

“No gawking, rookies! Keep in formation!” shouted the masked soldat, his stark white greatcoat contrasting sharply with the dark stone and flickering cobalt light from reishi torches flickering along the tall walls. His goggled mask and beret bearing the five pointed cross of the Vandenrich covered his features and made him look imposing, but Twilight suspected the soldat was a nervous as the cadets he was herding along. From the two sword patch on the lapel of his coat he was a second-class soldat, essentially a squad leader. Twilight had done a quick cram session on Quincy ranks and tactical structure in between working on the Hexenfaust, so she was at least somewhat familiar with who was what.

Aside from Sombra’s elite Sternritter the rest of the Quincy army consisted of either cadets like Twilight and her newly growing group of friends, or soldats, who were full fledged soldiers but not commanders or elite warriors like the Sternritter. Soldats came in three ranks, third to first. The third-class soldats were the rank and file warriors, and were organized in squads of ten. Each squad was led by a second-class soldat, a more capable combatant but mainly a tactical leader. Squads then were grouped into companies of one hundred and twenty soldiers, commanded by a first-class soldat who was often trained not only in superior battlefield tactics, but also using more advanced Quincy weapons and alchemy.

Beyond that, companies formed battalions, usually between six to ten companies strong. First-class soldats still ran battalions, but a battalion commander’s rank insignia had a black enameled edge to denote their command over a larger unit over their company leading brethren. Of course a Sternritter could also be assigned battalion command, like in the case of her father. Night Light was well known for leading the Hueco Mundo expeditionary battalion of soldats who were responsible for all reconnaissance and first response operations in Hueco Mundo itself.

He was also the primary war leader for this current operation, just under Sombra himself.

All the surviving cadets were grouped like their own company, separated in squads and given a second-class soldat for each squad to oversee them along with the three Sternritter’s set to guard them. As a whole unit the cadets marched, their company moving along with others down the vast stone steps that were situated deep within the halls of the Silburn. The pounding echo of marching boots filled the cavernous staircase, reverberating through the very stones. Before and behind Twilight was a sea of bobbing white forms, and Twilight felt an uneasy sense of being blended into a seamless river of bleach, as if her identity was being left behind on this slow flowing stream of identically uniformed bodies.

She could look to her left and right to see her companions were nervous as well. Sunny Flare’s eyes darted about as she kept smoothing her own uniform as they moved. Lemon Zest, usually so laid back, had hardly blinked since they’d mustered together to march, kept licking her lips. Fists clenched like she was afraid to let go of something Indigo Zap had a slightly pale cast to her features. Twilight was fairly certain the faint grinding sound she was hearing was Sour Sweet’s teeth, although the girl’s jaw was locked tight as she marched right behind Twilight. Then there was Sugarcoat directly ahead of Twilight in the marching formation, and while Twilight couldn't see her friend’s face, she could see how stiffly Sugarcoat walked. Nobody was eager or joking. They all knew where they were going and what was coming.

The stairs were wide enough to accommodate thirty people walking side by side with shoulder room to spare. Towering marble pillars kissed a vaulted ceiling that rose high enough that giants could march down the stairs if need be. Twilight’s eyes caught the gleam of metal veins in the ceiling and higher portions of the wall, which if she hadn’t missed her guess were for conducting reishi particles. Something below them was consuming a great deal of spiritual power, being filtered in from above.

“How much deeper does this thing go?” muttered Sour Sweet after they’d been marching down the staircase’s broad steps for nearly five minutes.

“Like any of us would know,” grunted Indigo Zap, but Twilight was quick to interject.

“Given the angle of the slope, the comparative length and depth of each step, combined with the fact that we’ve covered approximately two hundred of them thus far I’d estimate we’re about ten stories underground.”

“Hey! I said keep it down!” barked the soldat watching over their squad and the girls went silent.

Fortunately it seemed Sour Sweet’s question carried a faintly prophetic quality, for just moments later the stairs ended in a large, wide landing that then abruptly terminated in a vast chasm of darkness. Twilight sensed immediately this chasm wasn’t natural, that she wasn’t just looking at some huge underground fissure but rather something unnatural. Spreading across that darkness was a shining bridge of incandescent blue light. The metallic veins that Twilight had seen in the ceiling now crawled down the walls in thicker portions, ending at the edge of the chasm where the reish fed through them formed the bridge of reishi particles that the Quincy could march across. But what was this chasm?

After a moment Twilight realized she’d felt something similar to it before, during the invasion of Canterlot City by the Hollows. When the realized clicked she gasped slightly.

It’s a Garganta! This whole, huge chasm is one gigantic Garganta! But that doesn’t make sense. Only Hollows can create Garganta portals, so how-

Her thoughts were cut off as her squad reached the bridge of light, and she looked to her left and right. Here the physical stone of the landing extended outward like a half circle, granting just enough space to either side of the chasm that one could walk along it a good fifty or so feet.

And mounted on either side of the wall were the towering forms of two Gillian-class Hollows.

Twilight did gasp then, in equal parts surprise and horror, and she wasn’t the only one of her fellow cadets to do so.

“Holy crap!” Indigo Zap almost summoned her bow.

“The heck are those things doing here!?” came a cry further back, sounding like Suri Polomare.

“Ease it down, cadets,” called the soldat, “They’re just husks. Completely harmless. Keep marching.”

Despite his words Twilight could see the two Gillians were more than mere husks, though the word wasn’t far off either. They lacked the huge, voluminous dark cloth that covered other Gillians, revealing emaciated and pale white naked bodies beneath that lacked sex or any defining features besides a horribly skeletal rib-cage and spindly limbs that seemed to just loosely hang off their bones. Each Hollow was nailed to the wall by massive silver spikes the size of buses, each spike capped with a five pointed Quincy Cross. Beyond that, however, Twilight saw cables and tubes flowing from the walls and injected into the Gillians, including connections to a circlet that surrounded each Gillians’ brow like a crown.

A control device? I sense reishi and alchemic fluid being pumped into them. Those Gillians are still alive, but in some manner of hibernation. Yet the power to create this Garganta is coming from them.

By now it was clear to Twilight that these two Hollows were being used to create this portal to Hueco Mundo they were now to march across. She’d always assumed the Quincy had portals of their own, some specific method of making their own interdimensional crossings. It’d never once occurred to her to ask how the Quincy actually got to Hueco Mundo to wage war on the Hollows.

Now she wished she didn’t know. While the Hollows were the enemy, and she’d seen them do horrific things... this didn’t seem right to her at all. The mere sight of these two poor creatures, imprisoned and enslaved to the Quincy’s ends, left her feeling chilled inside.

Yet the cold practicality of it somehow fit the Quincy mold, too. Use their enemy’s power against them.

Still, this is horrible. There has to be a better way to get to and from Hueco Mundo than this! And if there isn’t... she glanced at her left hand where the Hexenfaust covered her limb, and she clenched it into a fist, Then I’ll make one.

Leaving the unsettling sight of the Gillians behind Twilight and her squad found themselves marching along the wide, opaque bridge of light which crossed the seemingly infinite void of blackness surrounding them. Yet for all its seeming endlessness the void abruptly came to a close at the sight of a bright opening ahead. Twilight gulped, not at all sure what to expect when she marched out the other end.

The first thing that struck her was the cold. The air beyond the portal wasn’t freezing, but it was devoid of anything one could call warmth, clinging to her skin with a dull, dry chill. Indeed the air had a dead quality to it that went beyond merely sterile. Some instinctive, gut part of Twilight told her this was a place life was not meant to be. This was a place for the dead, not the living.

Above her hung a sky so featureless and black that she was almost convinced they hadn’t left the Garganta, but a glance over her shoulder showed a tall, naked metal wall where the yawning mouth-like portal still stood as more Quincy soldats marched out behind her and her fellow cadets. That wall was merely the first layer of what was a soaring, multi-tiered tower fortress of shear metal. It gleamed with pale silver light, but besides that it shared not qualities at all with the Silburn in the human world. Where that Silburn was a castle out of some child’s fable, this place looked like a fortress plucked straight from the pages of science fiction.

She counted at least three tiers of higher walls, built inward towards the central tower, the structures lacking windows but possessing multiple mechanical turrets bearing the sleek barrels of some manner of cannon, or the box shaped configurations of missile launchers. There were the thin metal webs of catwalks crossing along parts of the wall, often bearing the occasional sentry walking patrol. The main tower itself rose up in a silver blade, cutting into the dark sky. With a five sided base, it reminded Twilight of some alien obelisk, its roof splitting into three separate towers linked by glittering sky bridges. She could barely make out clusters of antenna and dishes at the top of these towers, no doubt some manner of detection and communication system.

The Garganta had opened up into an expansive tarmac that spanned multiple football fields of length and width. A huge exterior wall extended around this area, fifty feet tall and lined with more sentry turrets. Within the walls were dozens of smaller buildings, usually no more than one or two stories tall, all forged of simple metal and concrete and clearly of utilitarian, military design. Most notable of all was the large set of metal doors built into the ground, at least two dozen of them, all arranged in neat rows in the far right corner of this fortress courtyard.

Even as Twilight looked upon these, wondering what they were, she saw several open up, signal lights blaring red around the edges, and elevators rose from the depths. Upon these lifts were gleaming, sleek craft. Twilight had seen military helicopters before in pictures, but these machines bore only the vaguest resemblance. V-shaped tilt wings bore powerful looking turbine engines, and the narrow nose of the crafts had bubble-shaped dual cockpits and an unusually shaped weapon mounted under the chin that looked more like a silver arbalest than any kind of firearm. Small cylindrical missile pods were mounted close to either side of the forward fuselage, four in total. Upon the slightly curved backs of the vehicles a small version of the fortress gun turrets was mounted. The main body of the crafts was wide and almost diamond shaped, leading to a stabilizing tail bearing both an additional set of smaller turbine engines, and the Quincy cross symbol emblazoned upon the tail fin. A boarding ramp could be seen beneath the tail, leading into the main body, indicating the vehicle's purpose as a troop carrier.

Even as Twilight and her companions were marched forward she could see more lifts opening and bringing up similar vehicles, but there was a deeper, grinding sound to her left and she turned, eyes widening further as she gulped.

In that direction another section of the ground had opened up, like someone had raised a portion of the tarmac to reveal a large underground bay. From inside the whine of deep engines and rumble of treads could be heard, and one by one what could only be described as futuristic tanks began to roll out.

Each one was formed of bright metal, shaped into low riding, sharp angled forms that ended in bladed wedges at the front. The main barrel of the tanks extended out in a strange, hexagon shape, and Twilight didn’t think the barrel was wide enough for a conventional shell. An electromagnetic rail gun, perhaps? No, as she stretched out her spiritual senses, she realized these tanks, the gunships, even the fortress itself were all largely formed from reishi particles. The weaponry here was spiritual in nature, not conventional. Those tanks probably fired reishi projectiles similar to a Quincy arrow, and she didn’t doubt the missiles on the gunships or on the fortress turrets fired similar ordinance.

This was all part of an army forged to wage war on Hollows and Soul Reapers, and clearly the Quincy were taking advantage of every piece of human technology they could while doing it.

The fortress was already a beating hive of activity even before Twilight’s squad, along with so many others, were brought to a halt in the central tarmac area. It was hard to get a grasp on how many Quincy were present. Hundreds. Possibly thousands. Was this the whole Quincy military force mustering here? Twilight took a deep breath and tried to steady herself and quiet her thoughts. It wasn’t long before a soldat approached their formation, bearing the insignia of a first-class soldat.

She had a feminine form just barely bulging through the thick cloth of her greatcoat, and as she paused in front of the lined up cadets she pulled down her cloth mask and put up her goggles around her beret, revealing a deep, bubblegum pink face with a pointed, upward turned nose and middle-aged features around tired teal eyes.

“I am Soldat First-Class Spoiled Rich,” the woman said with a haughty yet somehow subdued tone, “I am in command of overseeing your cadet company alongside Sternritter Fleur De Lis and Sternritter Soarin. You will follow my commands carefully and without question. Your survival in the upcoming battle depends upon you listening to your betters and benefiting from our experience in the field. I’ll not have any of you doing anything stupidly foolish and getting yourselves or any of the rest of us killed, am I clearly understood?”

After just a moment of hesitant silence the cadets let out a chorus of “Yes ma’am!”, Twilight included. Spoiled Rich turned her gaze over the lines of cadets, and for a second Twilight thought the woman’s eyes stayed locked on her, but the moment passed and Spoiled Rich turned to one of the second-class soldats in line.

“Get them to their quarters. I don’t want anyone roaming, so they’re to stay in quarters until briefing at 1400, then they’re to return to quarters until lights out at 2100.”

The soldat saluted, “Yes ma’am! You heard the lady, get moving!”

As it turned out their quarters were not up top, but down below. One of the buildings was a large elevator leading down into chambers built beneath the surface, like some massive underground web of bunkers. Twilight suspected the underground facilities were at least as large as the fortress above, if not larger. Even as they were being moved down tightly packed hallways towards their quarters she caught sight of open hatchways that looked like they led into large hangar bays, likely to store the tanks and gunships she’d seen.

Eventually Twilight and her squad were assigned to a plain rectangular room filled with plain bunks and footlockers. As the soldat in charge of them told them to stay in quarters until they were summoned for the operations briefing, the soldat was gently pushed aside by a familiar face.

“Hey there kiddos,” said Soarin, giving the second-class soldat a wink, “Why don’t you go take a coffee break buddy? I got this.”

“But sir-”

“His Majesty’s orders,” Soarin said in a less casually friendly tone, “I’m to guard this particular squad of young ladies until told otherwise. Now scram.”

The soldat stiffened, gave off a salute, and left the Sternritter with Twilight and the rest of her squad. Each squad as nominally ten, and besides Twilight herself, Sugarcoat, Sour Sweet, Indigo Zap, Lemon Zest, and Sunny Flare there were four others, although Twilight was only familiar with Suri among them. The other three were girls as well, although not from Crystal Prep, near as Twilight could tell. From what she understood Crystal Prep was one of the primary schools for children of Quincy families, but there were several other such schools throughout the world, and these three were from one of those other schools. She didn’t know their names yet, but by the way two of them both shared nearly identical dark, blueish gray hair and lanky builds Twilight assumed they were sisters, one with dull purple skin darker than Twilight’s own, and the other with a lighter shade of sea-foam skin. The last girl in the group glared at the other two, keeping to one corner of the room, bearing rusty red skin and a darker such shade on her curly hair.

Soarin looked them all over and cleared his throat with a hint of embarrassment, “Sorry I got to stick around you young ladies, but no doubt you all understand why His Majesty wants me to keep an eye on things.”

Sugarcoat nodded curly, “You’re here in case someone tries to assassinate Twilight again.”

Suddenly one of the sisters, the purple skinned one, blurted out in an odd accent, “Holy molly, she’s that Twilight!? I thought she weren’t even gonna be goin’ on no deployment!”

The girl’s apparent sister kicked the other girl in the shin, “Quiet down Hacksaw! Ain’t you got no respect!? We’re n’ the presence of a’ Sternritter.”

“Ow! Whatcha kick me for Buzzsaw!? I was just sayin’ I’m surprise she’s here, on account o’ folk tryin’ ta kill her and all.”

With a snort the red headed girl in the corner let out a laugh, “Pffah, just like you dang Mccolts! Can’t keep yer gobs shut fer nothin’!”

Like they were one entity the two sisters spun on the red head, anger plastered on their faces as they said at the same time, “You shut yer mouth Cotton Barrel Hooffield or we’ll shut it for you!”

There were several groans from some of Twilight’s other squadmates, especially Sunny Flare who was rubbing a hand across her forehead as she closed her eyes in pained disgruntlement. “For the love of His Majesty why were we assigned members of... of those two families?”

Twilight just blinked, “What?”

Indigo Zap, who was closest to her, leaned in and whispered, “You’re looking at the products of two Quincy families that, uh... took the idea of ‘pure breeding’ a bit too seriously.”

The implications made Twilight’s mouth go dry as she said, “Are you serious?”

“Well, that's the rumor,” Indigo Zap said with a shudder, “Sad thing is, while the family members aren’t exactly what you’d call geniuses, they’re a powerful bunch. Big Daddy McColt and Ma Hooffield aren’t Sternritter, but they own the largest manufacturing facilities the Quincy operate. Those huge ass tanks and sleek VTOLs you saw up top are built by those families.”

As if to confirm this Cotton Barrel let out huff and spat at the two McColt sisters, “Don’t you go sassin’ me you ground poundin’ muckrakers! Yer tanks ain’t nothin’ but overweight pillbugs with crap guns an’ ain’t good fer nothin’ but target practice fer Hollow Ceros.”

Hacksaw all but blew steam out of her nostrils, taking a menacing step forward, “Oh like them flyin’ coffins you Hooffields nail together are so special! Them metal mosquitoes are just gonna get swatted by a few blind Gillians, while our tanks will be blastin’ Hollows ta smithereens!”

Before things get get any further Soarin appeared between the feuding girls with his hands held out, a pleasant smile on his face, “Now easy there ladies. Let’s save it for the Hollows, eh? Why, I’m sure such fine specimens of Quincy youth will both acquit your families well in the field, so no need for fighting among ourselves.”

Whatever feud existed between the three girls’ families, the presence of a Sternritter seemed to quench the flames of their ire for one another rapidly as all three glanced at each other, then at Soarin, before they mumbled apologies and went back to silently glaring at each other from across the room.

“That’s better. I think.” Soarin let out a sigh and turned back to the rest of them, eyes settling on Twilight, “Again, sorry you’ll need to put with me a bit longer. His Majesty really is worried someone might take another crack at you, so he wants me here as insurance.”

“If His Majesty is so worried then why is Twilight here at all?” asked Sugarcoat, “She’d be safer just about anywhere else, wouldn’t she?”

Twilight shook her head, “I talked about this with Sombra. As strange as it may sound, I might actually be safest here, where he can keep people like Soarin close by to watch me.”

“Makes sense to me,” said Lemon Zest, who’d laid out on her bed and was bouncing one leg crossed over her raised knee as she nodded her head to music only she could hear, “You’re, like, surrounded by loyal Quincy soldiers, and His Majesty can watch over you himself if he really wants to, here. Anywhere else and you’d be a sitting duck.”

“Yeah its soooooo nice that she’s all safe and cuddly here,” said Sour Sweet, rolling her eyes, “Only it puts all of us in the crosshairs too.”

“Can’t take the heat?” Indigo Zap said with a smirk, then almost immediately grimaced as she looked at the other girl, who still had the faintest of burn scars leftover from her close call with a Cero. “Uh, sorry...”

“I can take the heat just fine, thank you very much, Indigo. It’s just that if I’m going to die horribly I’d prefer it not be at the hands of my own freakin’ people! Sorry if the idea of some assassin strapping a bomb to our VTOL because little miss prodigy is on it with us doesn’t fill me with warm, fuzzy feelings of camaraderie!”

Twilight’s eyes sunk in apology towards the floor, “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to put anyone in danger.”

“It's not your fault and Sour Sweet’s just scared,” Sugarcoat said, and before Sour Sweet could get a rebuttal out Sugarcoat held up her hand and added, “We all are, Twilight included. Think about it, Sour Sweet, if you’re worried about getting caught in the crossfire, imagine how Twilight must feel being the one actually being targeted?”

The other girl sucked in a deep breath and let it out in a begrudging hiss, ‘Yeah, yeah I get it. But what are we supposed to do about it, huh!? I just can’t pretend like I’m alright walking next to a giant bullseye. What the hell are the Sternritter even doing about this!? Shouldn’t they be able to catch whoever's after Twilight?”

As if suddenly remembering there was a Sternritter in the room, who reported directly to Sombra, Sour Sweet’s face turned a few shades paler as she looked at Soarin. “Um, n-not that I’m criticizing the Sternritter or His Majesty-”

Sorain chuckled without mirth and shrugged, “Relax, I’m not offended. Quite frankly, cadet, you’re right. It's frustrating that our investigation has turned up nadda on the assassin’s identity. Whoever they were, they were being careful about leaving no evidence behind. One of the reasons I’m specifically assigned as cadet Sparkle’s guard is that if the assassin, or assassins, make another move I’m the best suited to countering and capturing them.”

“Wait,” said Sunny Flare, blinking in astonishment, “Are you saying His Majesty wants them to try again?”

“Beats me,” said Soarin, “I don’t pretend to know what’s going through His Majesty’s head. All I know is that if I was trying to catch the assassins then sticking next to the intended target is the ideal way for me to do it, so my assignment here makes perfect sense.”

One of the McColt sisters, Buzzsaw Twilight thought, cut in with a confused look, “I dun get it, why’d someone wanna off Twilight Sparkle here? What’d anyone get outta doin’ that?”

Cotton Barrel let out a grunt, “Could be somefolk see her gettin’ buddy buddy with the King an’ are thinkin’ that’s too much favor fer one family. If she got made Sternritter, that’d make fer five o’ the same family in the top o’ the Quincy pile. First time in history any family had that many Sternritter at once.”

“Pfft, ya can’t count fer a damn, Hooffield,” said Buzzsaw, “Only four in the Sparkle family would be Sternritter if Twilight got promoted.”

“An yer a’ straight idjit who’s fergettin that her brother’s gettin hitched wit The Lust. Wit her in the family that’s a bigger block o’ power than any other Quincy family’s ever had. Ain’t no other family be able to oppose the Sparkles fer influence, then, not even us Hooffields or you McColts.”

Accents aside Twilight was easily following the conversation and she rubbed her chin, “Which means someone who wouldn’t want my family gaining that much power might think it worth the risk to try and kill me, since I’m still relatively weak and vulnerable compared to any other member of my family.”

Cotton Barrel nodded sadly, “‘Fraid so. Ain’t envyin’ yer position, Sparkle, but I’ll say that unlike yer yellow bellied pal over there I ain’t gonna be scared o’ no assassins neither. They come gunnin’ fer ya, I’ll plant a’ boot upside their backsides faster n’ ya can say ‘spit on jam’.”

“Y-Yellow bellied?” Sour Sweet muttered under her breath, “I’ll show you ‘yellow bellied’, you inbred little trollop.”

“That’s enough,” said Soarin, “If you girls can’t play nice I’m going to be tempted to start with the spankings.”

Before anyone could respond to that particular comment there was a soft knock on the door, startling almost everyone in the room except for Soarin, who reacted by turning to the door and striding towards it as if he’d already been expecting a visitor. Given that Twilight remembered he’d insinuated his Schrift’s power involved sensory ability she imagined he’d sensed whoever was coming long before they knocked.

When he opened the door Twilight was surprised to see the familiar form of Cadence standing there. Her face was lacking the usual confidence that Twilight was used to seeing lighting the woman’s features and instead Cadence glanced towards Twilight with an unsettling amount of demureness.

“Sternritter Soarin, I was hoping to speak with cadet Sparkle, if I might borrow her for a little while?” Cadence said in a quiet tone.

Soarin took a deep breath, face stern, but in a way that suggested he wasn’t very comfortable with being stern. “You know I can’t let her out of my sight, or at least out of range of the Echo. What’s this about?”

“I just wanted to talk to her on a private matter. I understand you have your orders from His Majesty, and its okay if you want to follow us, as I only request you give us enough space to talk privately. Fifteen minutes, that’s all I ask,” Cadence said.

Soarin rubbed the back of his head and gained the look of a man experiencing a slight headache, and he turned a look towards Twilight, “Up to you.”

Twilight wasn’t sure what Cadence wanted to talk about. They’d hardly spoken a word with each other since the incident during Twilight’s attempt to manifest a personal bow. Certainly Cadence had been there during the dinner she’d had with her family, but she’d been quiet during most of that and they’d barely exchanged two sentences with one another.

She’s trying to mend fences, some practical part of Twilight’s mind told her, Would it cost you anything to hear her out?

Truthfully she was tired, so very tired of the separation she’d been keeping with her family since joining the Quincy. The mistrust she felt might have been justified, but it wasn’t serving her on any practical level, and Twilight missed the sense of warmth she’d once felt towards them. Maybe it was time to give a chance to rebuilding bridges.

“We can talk, Cadence, as long as Soarin is okay with it,” said Twilight, to which Cadence let out a held breath and nodded gratefully.

“Thank you, Twilight.”

“Alright then,” said Soarin, “Lead the way, but I’ll be sticking close by.”

----------

Soarin may have said he was sticking close by, and Twilight didn’t doubt his words, but she was impressed with how easily he vanished from sight to allow her and Cadence a semblance of privacy while they walked. Twilight kept silent as she followed her once upon a time babysitter, soon to be sister in law, and one of the few people she considered a friend before she’d met Sunset and the girls. Cadence led her into one of the large interior bays that Twilight had seen in passing on the way to her quarters. It was even larger than she thought, now that she was walking through it.

The bay had slightly slanted walls that were covered in mechanical scaffolds that housed dozens of the Hooffield built gunships. Twilight imagined there was another similar bay that was filled with the McColt tanks. The scale of the fortress and the weaponry on display boggled her mind, but she reminded herself that the Quincy controlled a great deal of real world wealth, and likely funding a place like this was only a minor dent in their finances. Still, she was curious...

“Why haven’t I seen or even heard about this kind of equipment in the Quincy arsenal?” she asked, mostly to break the ice with Cadence.

Cadence found a set of metal supply crates and seemed to choose it as the spot to stop and converse. It was situated just beneath one of the holding scaffolds on the wall, and Twilight could see tech crews performing maintenance on one of the gunships about a dozen yards above, but they were out of earshot so she and Cadence could talk undisturbed.

“The VTOLs and tanks are exclusive to the Hueco Mundo expeditionary battalion,” Cadence said, leaning against one of the supply crates, “In this realm’s open deserts we need swift, armed transport for our soldats, and armored companies are used for hunting herds of Hollows that soldats are unsuited to destroy due to their numbers. Remember, the Hollows always outnumber us, especially in their home realm. The tanks and VTOLs equalize that to a degree. We simply don’t use them in the living world because they’d be much more difficult to conceal from the public eye, and Hollow activity is usually in smaller numbers we can handle. Cadets aren’t trained on either machine because they’re specialized units limited to Hueco Mundo, so there’s no reason you would have heard of them until now.”

“I see...” Twilight said, then trailed off as she looked at Cadence with an awkward scuff of her boots on the floor. “So... what did you want to talk about?”

A tremor of uncertainty crept back across Cadence's face and she crossed her arms beneath her chest, tapping her fingers on one arm in a bout of nervous energy before speaking in a hasty voice, “I’m sorry, Twilight. I’m sorry for what I did to you. And I don’t just mean using the Lust on you, I mean all of it. Keeping secrets from you all these years, bugging you with a tracer without your knowledge, treating you like a child instead of a young woman capable of making her own choices and protecting herself. I’m just... sorry.”

It was a lot more direction than Twilight had been expecting. She’d figured there’d be at least several minutes of uncomfortable dancing around the subject before they got to this part. She swallowed and took her glasses off, giving them a nervous cleaning with the hem of her uniform jacket before putting them back on.

“Oh.”

She stood there silent as seconds ticked by, trying to get her mind and heart in order. Slowly she began to speak with carefully weighed words.

“Cadence, I need you to understand why I’m angry. It's not because you lied to me my whole life. I’m pretty much over that by now. It's not because of the tracer. Again, kind of over it. I even understand why you did those things, now. But what you did with the Lust wasn’t just stupidly dangerous, it showed a complete lack of trust in me. I joined the Quincy to try and understand things better, including you and my family. But even with me making that leap of faith, you still couldn’t put any faith in me? You felt you had to influence my mind without my consent, just to get me to manifest a bow? That... hurt, Cadence. How are we supposed to be sisters-in-law if you can’t trust me, and I can’t trust you?”

Much like Twilight it took Cadence a few stretched out moments of silence, likely considering her words as carefully as Twilight had. She could see doubt on Cadence’s face, and not a small dose of fear and stress as well. Cadence had often times been the person Twilight had turned to in times of her own distress, confiding her own fears and doubts when needed. She wasn’t used to seeing the same vulnerabilities in Cadence. In some ways Twilight realized that ever since she’d learned of her family’s connection to the Quincy she’d separated them in her mind from ‘normal’ people who got scared or worried about things. She’d started thinking of them as these immortal, powerful titans of mysterious power and secrets beyond mortal ken, whom she had to play the role of the neonate with while proving herself their equal.

She’d forgotten they were still human, and that they could make mistakes just like she could. It was written all over Cadence's face that she knew she’d screwed up, and it was tearing her up inside. Cadence wasn’t Sternritter L, the Lust, right now. She wasn’t some monstrously powerful warrior in a war between humanity and demonic spirits. She was just... Cadence. And she was scared of losing Twilight.

“You’re right, Twilight. About all of what you just said. I’ve... I’ve had the Lust ever since I was eighteen, one of the youngest to ever be granted the title of Sternritter at the time. Using it sometimes feels like breathing, and I don’t think about it like I should. I didn’t think about how what I did might hurt you. There’s no excuse, and I just don’t want... I don’t want us going into this battle without it being said how sorry I am for what I did. All I wanted was to protect you. I’m scared of what might happen in a battle that’s going to be this chaotic, especially because I won’t be there for you in case you need me. I wanted you to be able to defend yourself properly, and that made me forget you deserved my trust.”

At Cadence's miserable expression, Twilight went over and leaned against the cool metal of the supply crate next to the older woman. Slowly the two found themselves sitting down next to each other, knees pulled up, in a manner that reminded Twilight of many times she’d sat next to Cadence during long babysitting nights where the two talked long into the evening about whatever was bothering the in life.

Things might never go back to those simpler days, but Twilight realized she really didn’t want to lose the people who’d been a part of her life. Cadence, her brother and parents, they were still dear to her, despite all that had happened.

“I probably could have given you a chance to say all this sooner, before we were in the middle of-” she gestured at the giant bay of military vehicles, “-all of this. I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, and I’m not going to lie, I’m pretty scared. So I’m glad you came, and I’m sorry too, for just... not letting you say anything until now.”

“Does that mean...?”

“Apology accepted,” Twilight managed a small smile, even as she looked at Cadence with serious eyes, “Just never do anything like that again. Let’s just trust each other form now on.”

Cadence returned the smile, and then glanced down at Twilight’s arm, which was still clad in the smooth metal plates of the Hexenfaust. “Speaking of trust, how are things working so far with your, um... mental guest?”

That seemed to be the polite way of saying ‘split personality’. The topic of the Hexenfaust, and of course Midnight Sparkle, had come up with her family during the dinner they’d shared. One of the reasons it had been a quiet meal after a while, given neither of her parents had approved of Twilight’s move to forge a pact with her alter ego. But since Sombra approved of it, there was little either Twilight Velvet or Night Light could say on the matter. Shining Armor was more cautiously optimistic, pointing out during the dinner that it was a sign of progress and that Twilight’s mission to understand and research magic was an achievable goal, but the dinner had remained an awkward affair.

Looking at the metal and cloth glove on her left hand, Twilight gained a musing expression. “She’s been cooperative so far, as much as I imagine a magical and unstable mental construct can be. I’m remaining cautious in regards to just how much I can trust her, but as long as she continues to cause no trouble I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. That being said, I’m still nervous. There’s a lot of unknowns concerning Midnight, and I don’t like dealing with unknowns. On the other hand this may be my best chance to effectively study the magic within me, and hence understand magic in general. Once I learn more about magic who knows what kind of amazing discoveries I’ll uncover and the kind of good I’ll be able to do for not only the Quincy, but everyone! As dangers as this is, it could be the first step to making real progress in ending the war.”

Cadence’s smile was a warm one, and took Twilight back to simpler days.

“If there’s one thing that always remains adorable about you, Twilight, it's how excited you get about learning new things. Just promise me you’ll be extremely careful. I know His Majesty has put his stamp of approval on this project of yours, and that you’ll be primarily leading a team to study magic once this battle is over, but I want you to always be cautious. Speaking of which, have you decided who will be part of your research team yet?”

Twilight had been thinking about that, when she had time to think about it amid everything else that had been happening. Hugging her arms around her knees she said, “I was hoping Sombra might approve of me setting up my lab in... in Canterlot City.”

A look of understanding passed Cadence’s kind eyes, “You want to bring your friends into it, don’t you?”

“I was hoping to. I don’t know if Sunset or the others will agree, and honestly Sunset is really the only one among them who has a scientific mind, even if she’s more the ‘field research’ type than I am. To be fair, I also want some of my new friends involved too, like Sugarcoat. They helped me with making the Hexenfaust after all, and they’re all smart girls. Do... do you think Sombra would approve?”

“He might,” Cadence said after a moment to think about it, “It’d raise a few eyebrows around here if we had a research team cooperating with a Soul Reaper, but then again Sunset Shimmer isn’t exactly like other Soul Reapers.” Cadence paused again, frowning slightly, but more with concern than disapproval, “Just be prepared for complications, Twilight. You haven’t seen your Canterlot friends for awhile, and things may have changed by the time you get the chance to.”

“Why do you say that? Do you know something I don’t?” Twilight asked, also frowning, “No more secrets between us, remember?”

Cadence held up her hands, “No secrets, and I haven’t heard anything concrete. All I know is that there have been reports from our spy network, such as it is, that there’s been... an incident of some kind in the Soul Society. We don’t know what, exactly, but the reports indicated some kind of battle has taken place, but we have no idea who was involved. That said, given the situation we left behind in Canterlot I wouldn’t be surprised if your friends had some kind of altercation with the Soul Reapers.”

That worried Twilight more than even what might happen in the upcoming battle or with Midnight Sparkle, and she felt herself shudder slight, “I hope they’re okay.”

“I think they’ll be fine. From what I’ve seen of them they’re all very capable young ladies, much like yourself. All I’m saying is we can’t be sure what the situation will be once you get a chance to return to Canterlot City, so just keep a flexible mind for your future plans. For now, just focus on surviving tomorrow.”

Taking a deep breath, Twilight looked out across the vehicle bay, eyes roving over the sight of tech crews loading missiles into one of the gunships, and she licked her dry lips. “You’ve been doing this a lot longer than I have. How bad is it going to be, Cadence?”

A look of deep worry shaded Cadence’s face, “I won’t lie, it’s going to be bad. I can’t remember the last time we’ve mobilized this much of our forces to attack Las Noches directly. Even if the larger battle is just a feint to distract attention from my hunt for the Espada that facilitated the ambush on the Academy, that doesn’t change that you and the rest will be facing nearly the full might of the Hollow hordes. Even with you cadets being kept in the back there’s a strong chance you’ll still see action, given how many Hollows the Espada can throw at us. All I can say is stick close to your fellow cadets and stay aware of our surroundings. And one more thing...”

Cadence raised her hand and held it towards Twilight, palm up. Twilight blinked as she felt Cadence’s spiritual energy shift, and focus on the point of her index finger. She saw a small flicker of pale blue reishi light as spirit particles shifted and took shape into a nearly invisible dark speck on Cadence’s finger tip. At first Twilight didn’t recognize it, but after a moment of focusing her own senses on the miniature spirit construct, she realized what it was.

“That’s the tracer you placed on me!” she exclaimed, then blinked in confusion, “Why are you showing me this?”

Cadence’s expression turned deathly serious, “I want you to memorize how this tracer is made and commit it to memory. The battle will be dangerous, and also incredibly chaotic. If there’s any moment the person targeting you will strike again, it will be during the battle. Since I can’t be there to protect you this is the next best thing I can do. If you’re attacked again, try to get this tracer on the assassin.”

Twilight adjusted her glasses with interest and peered more closely at the tracer, focusing her spiritual senses to a laser point on the small construct of reishi. It was very simple in design, and Twilight grasped its construction with only half a minute of careful study, after which she nodded at Cadence, “I think I’ve got it.” Just to be sure she raised her own hand and focused on her finger, carefully drawing out reishi from herself and from a few stray spirit particles in the air around her. Soon enough she had a replica of the tracer on Cadence’s finger gracing her own index finger.

Cadence let out a small laugh, “You really are amazing Twilight. Just be careful. If the assassin strikes again prioritize protecting yourself, but if an opportunity to put the tracer on them presents itself...”

“I will, and thank you Cadence, for trusting me.”

“I should have done it long ago,” Cadence said, and the two girls shared a quick but heartfelt hug.

The moment was interrupted by a light, derisive laugh.

“Aren’t you two a cute pair?” said Fleur De Lis, who’d silently come around the side of the supply crates, looking at them with a quirked eyebrow and faintly amused smile. “Sharing a heart to heart before the eve of battle are we?”

Twilight felt a prickling shiver at the woman’s look, remembering all too keenly how close Fleur had come to killing her friends, and destroying a good chunk of her hometown. She could clearly see in her mind’s eye the sight of Clover with a reishi arrow through her chest, fired by Fleur. Looking at the white, elbow length gloves that Fleur wore Twilight wondered if her arm still bore any burn scars from Sunset’s Zanpaktou. As if reading Twilight’s mind Fleur gave her an unpleasant and thin smile, but before she could say anything Cadence rose to her feet with a flat look on her face.

“What do you want, Fleur De Lis?”

“Want?” the other Sternritter held a hand to her chest, “I don’t want anything. I was just passing by and saw you two having a chit chat and thought I’d pay a friendly visit. After all, I’ll be one of the ones guarding little Twilight here, so why shouldn’t I say a friendly...” her eyes turned to Twilight, “Hello.”

“H-hello,” Twilight said, and stood alongside Cadence, and swallowing her unease and summoning up her courage she managed to meet Fleur’s gaze with a steady one of her own, “I hope everything goes well tomorrow. On behalf of all the cadets let me thank you for helping guard us.”

She hadn’t actually meant the comment to nettle the woman but Fleur’s eyes twitched at Twilight’s words, “Oh, think nothing of it. His Majesty’s will is my pleasure to enact. Even if it does keep me from participating in the lion’s share of the fighting, where I’d do the most damage. If we’re lucky perhaps we’ll get enough stray Hollows coming our way that I can get some decent exercise and you cadets can put in some target practice.”

“Do remember your primary goal will be to protect the cadets, not rack up kills, Fleur,” said Cadence firmly, and Fleur merely chuckled.

“Killing Hollows will protect them. Besides somebody around here has to show these impressionable youths how its done.”

“I think they’ve got the basic idea, Fleur De Lis,” said Soarin, appearing just as smoothly and swiftly as he’d first vanished, yet showing now that he’d never been far off during Twilight and Cadence’s conversation. He came up next to Fleur with a casual and personable air, which seemed to just irritate the woman further as he went on to say, “Why I’m willing to bet before long our young prodigy here might start threatening your kill record.”

“We’ll have to see, won’t we?” said Fleur, smiling politely but not without a hint of venom in her eyes. “She’s got potential, I won’t deny that. But she’s got a long way to go before she can match a Sternritter. Perhaps if she watches us closely during the battle she’ll learn something.”

“You more than me, I’m sure,” Soarin said, again with an air of pure casualness, but there was a hint of steel in his eyes, “We’ll both be on guard duty, so let’s do our best and make sure all our cadets get back home. His Majesty would likely be very displeased if we failed in that duty.”

“Yes, I imagine he would be,” Fleur De Lis said in a granite tone, then flashed one last smile towards Twilight, “See you on the battlefield, cadet.”

As she strode away, Twilight gulped, whispering, “I get the impression she doesn’t like me.”

“She’s just got a stick up the rear end because she’s stuck guarding you cadets instead of getting to cut loose on the front lines,” said Soarin with a shrug, “There’s nothing that woman loves more than killing Hollows, except maybe killing Soul Reapers.”

Twilight couldn’t help but ask, “Why?”

Soarin and Cadence shared a look with one another, a poignant look that clearly communicated more than Twilight was able to guess at. Eventually Cadence said, “Many Quincy have suffered at the hands of either Hollows or Soul Reapers, Twilight. Fleur is no different in that regard. Some of us just channel our emotions differently. She channels them in a very...um, direct manner.”

“Yeah, don’t let her get to you. Or follow her example. Fighting to destroy the enemy is one thing, that’s just a soldier’s duty, but in Fleur's case she’s taken it to an unhealthy level,” Soarin said, then glanced at Cadence, “So, you and Twilight manage to patch things up?”

Cadence eyed him with a level stare, “You were listening in the whole time, so you already know, don’t you?”

“Eeeeheheh, yeeeeeah, I guess I was. Can’t help it if I’ve got good hearing. Echo, you know?” Soarin said with a small laugh, “Still, glad you two are on better terms now. Bad luck to go into battle while bearing a grudge.”

Twilight nodded, “That’s true. I suppose I should get back to my squad now. Hopefully they haven’t started bickering again.”

“Heh, good idea. With Hooffield and McColt cadets in the same squad you’ll be lucky to get through tomorrow without that bunch spending half the battle aiming at each other instead of the Hollows,” said Soarin, rolling his eyes, and Cadence tilted her head.

“Hooffields and McColts in the same squad? That’s a tad odd, isn’t it?”

Soarin shrugged, “Not really. Spitfire likes to mix squads with cadets who get along with ones that don’t, hoping to get the cadets to work out their differences. Even for a serious fight like this one its not weird for Spitfire to stick to her training methods.”

“You may be right...” Cadence said with a thoughtful and curious voice.

Twilight glanced at Cadence, “Is something wrong?”

“Probably not. Still, Twilight, be watchful of your new squadmates during the battle. Just in case.”

----------

When Ember arrived back at Adagio’s home she was met by Dumbbell, who near as Ember could tell had taken defacto charge of the three males that now seemed so eager to please their Vasto Lorde mistress. Ember couldn’t help but admire how thoroughly Adagio had those three wrapped around her finger now, especially considering that their first meeting had involved them trying to kill her.

“Lady Adagio thanks you for coming and says I should show you to the lounge,” said Dumbbell, trying for a formal bow but mostly looking utterly awkward. Ember looked at him with one part baffled amusement and one part irritation.

“Dude, skip the formal crap and just take me to her.”

“Uhhhh, right, this way,” he said, and quickly walked off down the large hallway. They didn’t go far, passing only a few doors before reaching one that led into what Ember knew was the room Adagio had the boys set up as a general living and hang out area. Ember had left the other day before they were done setting it up, so now was her first time seeing the whole room fully furnished.

The square chamber had a lowered area in the center with stone steps leading into it, creating essentially a circle in the middle of the room that was lower than the rest. This space was lavished with a dark blue carpet and a trio of very plush looking leather couches surrounding a black coffee table. On the left of the room a pool table was set up alongside a few dart boards, with a few standing tables in the corner, one of which had a stereo system set on it. On the right side of the room a longer, thin table with several stools were set up, with shelves of drinks and a large refrigerator. Filling the back portion of the room was another cough, flanked by two recliners, where a rather sizable flat screen tv was mounted on the wall above a entertainment center from which several game systems were set up.

The room was lit with a few installed ceiling fan/lights, and Ember saw wires, held up with duct tape, criss crossing the ceiling and walls, where the wires coiled through several holes bored in the walls. She knew there was another chamber a room or two down the hallway that was basically the generator room, which supplied all the power for this place. As long as Dumbbell and his pals kept stealing gasoline from gas stations in the living world this place would have all the electricity it needed.

Adagio was waiting for Ember at the bar, and Ember saw two glasses set out with a bottle of what looked like expensive wine. She sighed, wondering, and rather suspecting, what this was all about. She didn’t want to do this, but if Adagio was going to force it...

“Alright, I’m here. You,” she jabbed a thumb at Dumbbell, “Scram.”

It kind of irritated her that Dumbbell looked to Adagio first, and waited for the Vasto Lorde to nod, before doing another awkward bow and leaving. Ember looked at Adagio and stiffly walked over, not sitting on one of the bar stools and instead just leaning on the table.

“Okay, I’m here.”

“Yes, you are. Thanks for coming,” Adagio said, holding up a glass, “Drink?”

“What’s this about, Adagio? I don’t mind dropping by, but what’s with the formality?” Ember was trying to keep her emotions out of her voice and simply sound chill, because she wanted to be chill. She didn’t like having all these conflicting emotions bubbling inside her and it was aggravating beyond belief that she knew Adagio was going to start poking into that mire, because why else would Adagio call her over this early and be busting out the wine?

In a way Ember appreciated that Adagio dropped any pretense the moment she got a good look at Ember’s face and set the glass and wine aside, as if it was never there. “Alright, let’s get it done then. We need to talk, and we need to do it now. We’ve both got a lot hanging between us and the last thing either of us need is any of it dropping on our heads when we need to keep those same heads clear. So... you heard my song. You saw what it did. You know what it means.”

Ember surprised herself with just how angry even hearing what she already knew being openly admitted by Adagio and she felt her teeth grind together in her mouth as her deep red eyes flashed, “Oh, do I? Do I really!? If I know so much already why don’t you just sing at me again, huh!? Why not erase my memory of this too, or can’t you do that perfectly every time? Can’t control someone so easily when they already know what you can do or something?”

Adagio, to her credit, didn’t look away from Ember’s blazing stare, and placed her hands to lean on the table. “It is easier to affect a mind that isn’t expecting to be manipulated. The song isn’t more powerful or anything, its just easier to affect a mind that doesn’t have its defenses up. Part of what made affecting those Adjuchas so simple.”

“And me,” Ember snarled, and after a second Adagio nodded with a heavy look in her eyes.

“Yes, and you.”

The two of them stared at each other, Ember all but drying to bore her way through Adagio’s skull with her eyes. Eventually Ember let out a sound somewhere between a sigh and a broken steam pipe, and asked the question that had been at the core of her boiling anger, “...Why?”

“Not an easy question to answer, that one,” Adagio admitted.

“Try. Try hard,” Ember said, one hand gripping the table and pressing hard enough to bend the metal lip. Adagio flinched slightly, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“The simplest way I can put it is that I felt I had more to gain by risking the manipulation than I had to lose if I was caught,” Adagio said plainly, not sounding proud of herself, but laying it out bluntly as well.

“You would have been killed if you were caught!” Ember said just as bluntly, then added with a quieter but no less heated, “It might still.”

“I’m aware of that. You want an explanation, or do you want to go get your father in on this?”

Ember’s eyes flashed, “Do you think I’d need him?”

“If you’re serious about it, Ember, I promise you I won’t go down quickly or quietly... but you came here, willingly, so I’m going to take the chance and assume you’re also willing to hear me out, otherwise why are we even having this conversation?” Adagio asked, doing well to keep any fear out of her voice. Again Ember was reminded of why she liked and admired Adagio, even despite the manipulations. Adagio was strong, and even when faced with threats that’d make other Hollows quail in fear, she just stood firm and faced forward.

Ember let go of the table and finally took a seat, and in response Adagio did the same.

“Alright,” Ember said, “I’m listening.”

At that moment Adagio took a few seconds to compose herself, and from what Ember could tell the other Hollow was sorting through things internally, because her voice held an introspective note as she began to talk.

“On the surface I was just trying to avoid killing humans. Before you say anything, yeah, I know, they’re the enemy. Believe it or not, I wasn’t a saint before I became a Hollow. Manipulating others to get what I wanted was par for the course for a very long time, and that hasn’t changed much for me now. I hurt others, and if I’m brutally honest with myself there’s a strong likelihood my actions in the distant past probably led to others getting killed. I just never got the blood on my hands directly. Not until... until Grogar put me under his thumb. The first person I ever killed myself was because of him. I’ve mostly gotten used to eating other Hollows, but that was the first time I ate a soul...”

Adagio’s eyes narrowed, both in acidic anger, and a faint pain, “Its hypocritical of me, I know, but I hate being controlled by others. I can try to claim some half-assed moral motivation for looking to avoid killing Quincy, but I think a large part of it was that I saw myself as giving Grogar the middle finger. Dong something of my own choice rather than being what he was trying to make me.”

“And you didn’t tell me any of that, because...?” Ember asked.

“Ember, I barely knew you at the time. You’d agreed to help me, sure, but you made it clear back then you were mostly motivated by the idea of pissing Grogar off. Do you really think I could have just up and asked you if we could avoid killing Quincy when that was the whole point of us going on that raid in the first place? Would you have honestly agreed to go along with it?”

Ember was forced to quietly admit, “No.”

“So that being the case, it was either use my song, or do what I didn’t want to do. At the time it seemed worth it.”

“And what about making me fight Garble?” Ember asked, eyes narrowing, “You didn’t have to kill any Quincy in that case. You could have just hung back. Sure he’d have butchered those Quincy, but you wouldn’t have had to do it, so why did you make me fight him?”

Adagio glanced away for a second, “It's complicated. There was a girl there. Purple skin, glasses. Do you remember?”

“Very, very vaguely. Your song really screws with memory, so it's all pretty blurry, but yeah I think I remember someone like that.”

“Her name is Twilight Sparkle. I don’t really know her, per se. She’s not a friend. Barely an acquaintance,” Adagio said, her tail twitching around behind her in a lashing pattern of agitation, “But she’s friends with someone who... who I owed a favor to. Multiple someones. These people saved the lives of my sisters, back when I wasn’t a Hollow. Twilight wasn’t there, but that doesn’t matter. I might not have owed her, but I owed Sunset and those other girls for saving Sonata and Aria. So when I saw Garble and his boys about to kill Twilight and those other Quincy, I did the only thing I could see to do to stop it.”

“You mean you had me do the only thing that could be done to stop it,” Ember said, still heatedly, but not as much as before. Oh she was still mad, but a part of her did understand what Adagio was trying to say. Even if the other part of her didn’t want to understand.

“Yes,” Adagio said, not bothering to mince words on that point, “I used you. There wasn’t anyone else I could have used, because I doubt anyone else could have stopped Garble.”

“You could have used your song on him, instead of me.”

“Possibly, but there were too many ways that could have gone wrong. One of his buddies could have resisted and blasted me before the song took affect. One of the Quincy might have killed me while I was focused on Garble. I might have lost control of you while trying to control them. The bottom line was that I already had you under control, so changing the tune of the song was the fastest, simplest way to achieve my goal.”

“And that’s what mattered, right? Achieving your goal.”

Adagio’s calm demeanor broke a little, a bit of anger crawling into her own voice, “Ember what do you want from me? I never once claimed to be anything other than focused on achieving my own ends. Around here that’s hardly a sin, is it?”

“No, dammit! One of the things I admire about you is that you’re always striving to obtain what you want, even with all the odds in the world stacked against you! Its just that... that...ARRRG!”

Ember kicked the stool aside and with red puffed cheeks she started to stalk around until she kicked the wall, shaking the area and causing a small crack to form. Adagio looked at her, not saying anything as Ember tried to get words out past clenched teeth.

“I’m just so... upset, okay!? I don’t like dealing with this touchy feely crap and if you were just another random Hollow I wouldn’t have to feel this way because manipulations and power plays are all part of the damn game and I wouldn’t be taking it so personally! But because it was you I’m so... so mad because...”

“Because...?” Adagio sounded encouraging, if anything.

Ember hung her head down, eyes closed as the anger subsided just enough for the pain underneath to be laid plain. “Because I trusted you. Because I like you, for crying out loud! You’ve seen my dad’s horde. Most of them are rowdy, rough, crude bastards and I love them for it, but none of them are really what I could call friends. None of them are close to me, besides dad. You’re... you’re the first, Adagio, the first person who I felt like ‘hey I dig this chick, I want to hang out with her more’. Sure I might have started helping you just because I wanted to stick it to Grogar, but I kept helping you, even when I started to suspect what you did to me, because we’re friends. Or I thought we were...”

She was left breathing heavily after that emotional tirade, feeling tired and drained, and utterly off balance. Ember just wasn’t used to dealing with these kind of feelings. And she’d been keeping them bolted up inside entirely too much.

Adagio was silent for a few moments, then stood up as well and faced Ember, her eyes earnest, and finally showing a sense of apology in them. “Friendship is dangerous, Ember. Here in Hueco Mundo it’s probably the most precarious thing of all. Trust, real trust, means exposing your back and hoping the other person won’t stick a knife in there.”

Adagio’s voice quieted, “And that’s what I did to you. I’m sorry. I’m not asking you to forgive and forget. I respect you too much for that. Instead I’m going to ask that you give me a chance to earn your trust again. Because crazy as this may sound, I feel the same way Ember. Your a solid person to have around, and believe it or not, I trust you as much as you did me. After all you could have left me to deal with Gilda and Greta alone, but you didn’t, did you?”

Ember shook her head, “No, I didn’t. Maybe I was just sticking it to Gilda, same as with Grogar, hmm?”

“Well, that’s fine by me. That’s how our relationship started, so it can start from there again, can’t it?”

Ember let out a groaning sigh and slapped a hand to her face, rubbing it, “Grraah, you’re so aggravating sometimes, Adagio! Can’t you just say ‘I’m sorry’ and leave it at that!? For Tirek’s sake if I have to go through all the crap we went through all over again just to feel like I can trust you I’d rather go face the Quincy army alone, thanks!”

Adagio laughed, although it was small and kind of awkward, and it occurred to Ember that Adagio was probably no matter at dealing with these kind of emotions than she was.

“Let’s try to avoid that, shall we? The Quincy might not survive an emotional Ember on a rampage, and I’d like to still score some points with your father.”

Ember choked on a laugh, then just giggled, some of it tinged with relieved hysteria, “Bloody hell, Adagio, how did you sisters put up with you while you were alive?”

“Honestly? They kind of didn’t. We gave each other crap constantly.”

“Shocking.”

“Shut up.”

As if the pair had run out of steam the pair went quiet, then Adagio gestured at the couches, and with a grateful smile Ember went over and all but through herself onto one of the thick, impossibly comfortable couches. Adagio set herself down with somewhat more grace, and the two just enjoyed a minute of companionable silence for a moment, letting the dust settle between them.

“So... we’re cool now?” Ember asked.

“Isn’t that what I should be asking you? You’re the one who had every right to be angry with me.”

“Ugh, Adagio I’m... I’m just no good at this emotional stuff. I’m still a bit mad, but I’m sooooo just wanting to be over this crap now. We’re cool, okay? As long as you don’t use your freaky song on me ever again, we’re cool. Damn, now I got to worry about what to do with Garble!”

“Leave him to me, Ember,” Adagio said, but Ember held up a clawed finger.

“Not a chance. We’re doing this together from now on. Part of the deal for me forgiving you is that you bring me in on everything from now on. You got a plan for something, you tell me. You plan to pull some scheme, you tell me. You got an idea for how to handle Garble. Tell. Me. Understood?”

Adagio paused for a moment, then nodded, smiling, “Deal. Admittedly I haven’t formed an exact plan for Garble, but I know his type. He’s not going to sit on his hands for too long, and quite frankly I’m fine with him making the first move. I’ll leave it up to you whether we keep him alive or not.”

“Geeze, not making this easy are you?”

“You want in on the scheming, you get to make some of the touch choices, Ember. Fair, no?”

“Right. Anything else you want to tell me, while we’re having this chat?”

Just then a very odd look came over Adagio’s face. Granted it was hard to tell with the Hollow mask, but it was amazing how much unease could be shown with just the eyes. Adagio’s voice was equally hesitant as she said, “Well... I was visited by Chrysalis this morning-”

“WHAT!?”

“-and as it turns out, in order to avoid any unpleasantness with her, she has a little job for me.”

Author's Notes:

I know, right Ember? Ew, feelings. Poor gal is not suited for such conversations. Meanwhile Twilight is patching things up with Cadence, but her squads got a few more colorful characters in it. I'm not sure why but I find it oddly appropriate and amusing to have the Hooffileds and McColts be with the Quincy, if only to balance out the Quincy's otherwise high-society air. We also see the Quincy do use some modern technology, converted to their purposes. The vehicles wouldn't be much use in the living world, where most fights with Hollows take place near or in cities, but in Hueco Mundo the vehicles can be quite useful for the Quincy cause. This is a bit of lore exclusive to this universe, since in the anime the Quincy never really used much technology (unless you count that crazy cyborg Sternritter. Seriously, what was up with that guy?)

Anywhos, hope you folks are enjoying the story, and thank you all for reading. As usual feel free to leave any comments, questions, or critiques you wish, they're all highly appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 70: Final Preparations

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Episode 70: Final Preparations

Canterlot’s downtown shopping mall was busy for a weekday, but Rarity hardly minded the crowds. She enjoyed the tingling buzz of a busy public place. It really added to her good shopping vibe, and she needed the break. She imagined all the girls did. Not only were they all shaking off the stress that still clung to them from their adventure in Soul Society, but each of them were adapting to new living circumstances which consisted of an intensive training regimen, extended nightly patrols, and...

“Oh my, is so much bigger than I would have imagined,” Posey said in a starkly amazed tone as the Soul Reaper looked about at the teeming crowd and colorful storefronts lining the long stretch of mall the two girls walked down. She was wearing a gigai that was identical in appearance to her soul body, but instead of a Soul Reaper’s black robes she wore a tastefully short light blue skirt decorated with an ocean wave motif, while her upper body was sporting a well cut blouse of darker blue hues. Rarity had tried to convince the poor dear that there was nothing wrong with showing a little midriff, but Posey had insisted on a conservative outfit, so the blouse was longer and tucked into the skirt. On her legs she wore near knee high white socks and a pair of wooden sandals very similar to the ones worn by Soul Reapers. Fortunately eastern chic was in, so nobody gave the sandals a second glance.

The only unusual thing about Posey’s ensemble was the Zanpaktou looped through a belt at her waist, but since it was invisible to everyone present by her and Rarity that was hardly a problem.

“Are there always so many people around?” Posey asked in an unsteady tone, and Rarity nodded with enthusiasm she hoped might spread to Posey.

“This is quite normal, if a bit busier than normal for today. You really must come on the weekend when things get really busy, then you’ll see crowds.”

“Wow. I knew the living world was crowded, but its still much different from how I imagined it.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t been, before. Don’t Soul Reapers do training missions here, at least?”

Posey licked her lips and nodded, “Y-yes, but that was only once or twice, at night, when there weren’t many people around. I’m just not used to such big crowds. At least not ones that aren’t more, um... disciplined like my father’s men.”

The poor girl really was so much like Fluttershy! And Rarity had spent plenty of time trying to get her used to public places. She wasn’t looking forward to repeating those lessons, but needs be, and the need was to help their new ‘guests’ get used to Canterlot City. Besides, it was the neighborly thing to do.

And this was much easier than having Sunset’s job of dealing with Chappy. That was an entirely different can of worms, and Rarity was just as glad to be outside the blast radius of that particular conversation. That was why Rarity was here with Posey. All the girls were entertaining different members of their Soul Reaper guests while Sunset was... dealing with Chappy.

Rarity imagined she was in for an interesting recounting of events once they reconvened with Sunset at Discord’s shop. For now she was blowing off steam with some shopping of her own and helping Posey see the sights. Fluttershy had wanted to come, but had been called away by a bit of an emergency at the animal shelter she worked part time at. Well enough by Rarity’s thinking, she wasn’t sure how to handle Posey and Fluttershy in the same place.

“Well my dear you’ll get used to things in no time, I’m certain, and once you do you’ll be an experienced mall goer in no time. I bring Fluttershy and the other girls here all the time.”

“Mother... I mean, Miss Fluttershy comes here?” That knowledge alone seemed to steel Posey’s spine and she held her head higher, “Very well, I can do this too! Um... why are we here again?”

Rarity smiled, “Clothes, Miss Posey. We’re here for clothes. Now I do like to sew together my own, but one cannot understate the value of observing the season fashions! And the summer season is just around the corner! Hehehe! I cannot wait to put together some lovely outfits for everyone to beat the heat and enjoy the beach.”

“That sounds nice. So, um, Miss Rarity, a question?”

“Fire away, my dear.”

“Is it normal for stores to have broken windows and men with badges standing outside them?’’

“Wha-wha-whaaat!?” Rarity exclaimed in dismay as she saw that, just up ahead there was not only a store with a completely shattered front window display, but two police officers were out front addressing the shopkeeper. The woman looked frantic, waving her arms and exclaiming at the police as Rarity and Posey approached.

“I’m telling you officers that I’m not drunk, I’m not on any drugs, and I’m not crazy.”

“Which the yelling part is really helping with, lady,” said one officer, glancing with a sidelong look at his partner, who had a notepad out, “Now tells us again what you saw, exactly?”

The shopkeeper looked ready to go into a literal hissing fit, but she managed to compose herself enough to say in clipped, near hysterics, “I was minding my store, helping a customer with a dress, when the window exploded! Then, before I could so much as blink, cloths start just... just flying away! Lifting themselves off the racks and piling up in the air like some kind of ghost robbers were taking them!”

“And then they just disappeared?” asked the officer with the notepad, his own eyebrow scraping the top of his head in pure incredulity.

“YES!” the shopkeeper shrieked, “The clothes all just up and vanished into thin air! I swear to you officers I’m telling the truth! Ask my customers, they saw it all too!”

As the interview went on, Rarity and Posey hung nearby, but not so close as to appear suspicious. Rarity, frowning, touched Posey’s arm and whispered, “You don’t suppose it could be what it sounds like, do you?”

Posey’s nervousness at the crowd had vanished utterly and she now wore a far more serious expression, her eyes closing briefly, “Give me a moment... yes, I sense the residual spirit energy of a Garganta. Hollows.”

Rarity just blinked in disbelief, not that there were Hollows appearing in Canterlot. That had been normal since day one. But that they were here, raiding the mall... for clothes?

“Miss Posey, in your experience do Hollows normally care about fashion?”

----------

Adagio laughed in delight as she tried on the shimmering dress of deep purple accentuated by lighter strands of violet. Around her were piles of other clothes, covering her bed, table, and the comfy velvet couch she kept in her bedroom.

“Mmm, I’ve always looked good in purple,” she said with a grin beneath her Hollow mask, “Those boys have earned some kind of pay raise for a haul like this. Hah, and right out from under the noses of Sunset Shimmer and her gang!”

Off to the side by the bed Ember picked up a random, leather halter top studded with steel, and gave Adagio a sardonic glance. “I’m happy your so jazzed about petty theft, but is this really necessary? We’re going to a party, not a ballroom dance.”

Adagio rolled her eyes, but there was a note of fondness and nostalgia there as well, “You’re starting to remind me of Aria. Never underestimate the value of dressing to make a statement. We’re not merely going to a party, Ember, we’re on a mission. A mission to make an impression on our peers, both potential allies and rivals alike.”

“Uh-huh...” Ember said, picking up a piece of black, lacy lingerie that looked too thin to cover much of anything, “And what exactly are we starting with stuff like this?”

A chortle, soft and amused, came from Adagio as she walked over and smoothly took the silky strip of cloth from Ember and tossed it back on the bed. “Confidence. Power. Flavored with sufficient allure, charm, and approachableness that we don’t merely paint ourselves as targets but instead attract possible allies while still making it clear to our enemies that we don’t fear them.”

“Enemies like Gilda, I’m assuming?” Ember queried, picking up another offending piece of revealing clothing with a look of distaste, “Sure she’s going to be super intimidated by our cleavage.”

“It’s not about making her afraid, it's about projecting our own lack of fear. Trust me, Ember, few things get under a person’s skin than thinking their presence doesn’t affect you. Whether it be Gilda, Garble, or even Thorax, the idea is to show them we’re at the party to enjoy ourselves and that nothing is going to rattle us.”

“And sexy dresses do that?”

Adagio smiled widely, eyes gleaming with anticipation, “They certainly don’t hurt.”

Ember sucked in a breath and let it out in a reluctant sigh, “Fine, I’ll buy into this, but you’re picking the dress. And please, please, please pick something that isn’t going to make me look stupid. Oh, and make it something I can fight in. I don’t think you realize how rowdy Hollow parties can get.”

“I’ll make sure I find you something that lets your legs breathe. I’ll be doing the same. I’m not foolish enough to assume violence might not be on the table for tonight, but I’ll let some other idiot start that dance. I’ll just finish it,” Adagio said with a smirk and went back to examining the piles of clothes that Dumbbell and the other boys had brought her.

It’d been risky of them to hit the mall in Canterlot City, and while part of Adagio was most pleased with their boldness and eagerness to serve her, she was admittedly hiding a bit of concern. She didn’t need those boys getting into a scuffle with Sunset and her crew, so while it was immensely amusing to have them steal stuff out from under Sunset’s “territory” it was probably best to redirect the boys efforts to another, less guarded city. She did have a rather growing shopping list of items she’d like for further renovations and expansions to her new home, especially if tonight went as planned and she started to attract more followers. More followers meant she’d need places to house them, but it also meant an expansion on her influence in Las Noches, and for when she eventually managed to evolve into an Arrancar and claim a place as an Espada. At that point she’d be established enough to start enacting her longed for vengeance on Grogar.

“You’re drooling,” Ember said.

Adagio snapped back to reality and quickly looked away, pretending to examine another dress in the vanity mirror.

“Was not.”

After another roughly another hour of careful searching, sorting, comparing, and trying on, Adagio had four outfits carefully laid out on the bed. One was the purple ensemble she’d tried earlier. There were several other dresses that she liked, but purple really was her color, and this dress was split along the sides to allow her to move her legs freely. The dress’ top left her shoulders and arms bare, just cupping the breasts, such as they were in her current form. It was unfortunate that while her Vasto Lorde form had all the curves her human body had, it was still encased in bone white, hardened armor. Still, Adagio was determined to make it work. She had to alter the dress a bit to allow for her long, sinuous tail to freely extend from the back, but she’d been the only one of her sisters to even bother learning how to sew, so the modification was easy. Given the claws nature of her feet most shoes were right out the window, but she found a rugged but stylish pair of tall sandals with leather straps that went up to her knees that was perfect for her.

As for Ember, Adagio lucked out on that front. Apparently eastern clothing styles were in this year, for the mall had stocked some interesting choices in far east fashion. Ember still made a fuss about it but Adagio convinced her to try on a slimming jade and black dress with a short cut skirt that left her legs nearly entirely bare, save for enough room on the thighs for something resembling modesty. The top fit tightly and laced up to the neck, but the fabric was flexible enough that Ember lost no range of movement from it, even in her arms, which the dress covered all the way to the wrists. Yet the dress fit in such a way that while it covered plenty, it left little to the imagination. More pleasingly to Aagio’s mind, it was covered in beautiful, detailed depictions of serpentine eastern dragons, sewn in fine gold thread. It felt quite appropriate for Ember, and while the Arrancar didn’t want to admit it, Adagio did catch her looking at herself in the mirror a few times after trying it on.

As for the other two dresses...

“You’re seriously going to do this? I mean, I know he wants you making friends with his daughters, but taking them to this party sounds like a great way for something to go wrong, and for the Fourth to chop your head off,” Ember said with a dubious look at the other outfits Adagio had picked out.

Both were significantly more modest than what Adagio or Ember wore, while still being just revealing and stylish enough to draw attention, one of them black, the other red. The black dress was intended for Roka, while the red would go to Fenice. Assuming Adagio could convince the sisters to wear them. Further assuming Lament didn’t take issue with Adagio bringing his daughters to Thorax’s little soiree.

“He wants me to befriend them, then I do it my way. They’ve spent who knows how long locked up in a poorly lit tower with nothing but their fellow orphans for company. If they’re going to survive they’ll need to know how to handle themselves socially. I’ll show them, and give an assist if things start to get out of hand.”

“Your call, but I reserve the right to say ‘I told you so’ if this all goes sideways,” Ember replied in a dry tone.

“Oh, it most assuredly will,” Adagio commented, not without a certain dribble of anticipation in her voice, “But that’s what will make it fun.”

----------

Unlike the Silburn of the human world, this portion of the fortress in Hueco Mundo held no throne room. Instead its heart was a blinking hive of a command center, built in shining steel that gleamed blue under the wash of countless reishi empowered lights and screens that blinked upon several rows of consoles filling the front half of the vast rectangular chamber. A street-light tall flat screen dominated the wall before the consoles, displaying a complete topographic map of Las Noches and its environs.

Raised above the rows of consoles where a number of men and women sat to softly communicate through head pieces to various parts of the mobilizing Quincy army there was a large platform with a jutting forward portion that had as close to a throne as Sombra possessed here; a simple metal and leather chair on a swiveling mount that gave him access to either the wealth of displays on a command console in front of him, or the ability to turn an address those seated at the massive briefing table behind him.

At that moment only the battalion commanders for each component of upcoming battle were present. Three of them, Night Light, Spitfire, and Filthy Rich had arrived with Sombra with the majority of their marching forces. The fourth at the table had been present at the Hueco Mundo Silburn for some time, for it was where his “battalion” was currently stationed alongside Night Light’s expeditionary forces.

Wind Rider was an elderly man of sky blue skin, hardened yellow eyes, and a weathered face that bore the early aged lines of stress that still didn’t detract from his easy manner. His hair was once a lush brown, but now faded to a oaken gray, nearly white around the fringes of his temples. His uniform was neat and complemented by a white bomber-style jacket with a high neck of fluff.

Like all in Wind Rider’s battalion, he’d once disgraced himself, and been stripped of the Schrift that had made him a Sternritter. The very same Schrift of “I” that Spitfire now bore. Yet over time Wind Rider had regained enough favor in Sombra’s eyes to earn some level of respect and had been granted command of the very same Strafbattalion that he had been punished by joining. Now the penal legion was, under Wind Rider’s guidance, more competent than it had been under any previous commander who hadn’t been part of the unit to begin with, and had been tasked with maintaining reconnaissance efforts on Las Noches.

The updated map on all of their screens, each chair at the briefing table having its own personal terminal, was what drew all of their attention and why Sombra’s questioning look was darkened by a hint of displeasure.

“When, exactly, did this lake appear?” he asked, referring to the large splash of darkness on the overhead map view of Las Noches and the area around it.

Wind Rider shrugged in a slight gesture, “Couldn’t have been there for more than a week, which was the last time we ran a spotter team close enough to get a good look at the area. My guess it must have popped up over the last couple of days.”

“Do we know why it is there?” Sombra inquired further, eyes boring into Wind Rider, who held up under his King’s scrutiny quite well as he met Sombra’s gaze.

“Negative on that, My King. At least...” Wind Rider trailed off, and Sombra leaned in intently.

“Go on,” he commanded, and Wind Rider made an off hand gesture.

“The scouts didn’t stick around long, but they did check out the lake edge to see if the water was somehow being brought in from the living world, or if it was spirit realm reishi water. They took samples for analysis, and... well one of our more recent recruits insists that the water is [infused with a hint of power not native to our realms. Magic, My King.”

“This recent recruit wouldn’t happen to be Cinch, would it?” Night Light asked, frowning deeply. Understandable, Sombra thought, given what Cinch had done to Night Light’s daughter. Sombra himself still felt a red hot stab of anger at the once proud Sternritter “J”, who’d disobeyed his decree to leave matters at Canterlot High well enough alone until they knew more about the nature of magic.

Hypocritical, perhaps, given his now current encouragement of Twilight Sparkle's studies, but since the proverbial genie was already out of the bottle he believed it better she study the magic inside her, since there certainly seemed no easy way to extract it. Make lemonade from lemons, as it were. As for this latest development...

“Is Cinch absolutely certain this lake that’s appeared outside Las Noches is magical in nature? What makes her so sure?” inquired Filthy Rich, “Her reliability isn’t exactly top notch at the moment, is it?”

To this Wind Rider gave the other man a cutting gaze, “She’s been competent enough since joining the Strafbattalion. I haven’t had any reason to complain, at any rate.”

Sombra raised an eyebrow at the hint of a personal note in Wind Rider’s tone. Were those two...? Well, no matter. Sombra didn’t much care what his Quincy did on their personal time. Although given how the Hooffields and McColts turned out, perhaps he should pay more attention to who was sharing who’s bed. As Sombra mused, Wind Rider spoke on.

“Her claims about the lake are based on the data she collected during the Friendship Games incident. She admits the type of magic isn’t identical, it's still the same basic flavor of energy that’s been leaking in from that other reality. The lake only had trace amounts on the surface, but Cinch has constructed a copy of the scanning device that kid made and swears to me up and down that there’s a stronger magic source somewhere down below the lake.”

He looked back to Sombra, Wind Rider’s expression somewhere between apologetic and up front, “Would’ve gotten this to your attention sooner, but somebody didn’t think my priority message needed reaching you until it was time for the tactical meeting.”

Night Light’s eyes hardened, “Its a tactical matter. I’m not going to waste His Majesty’s time, Wind Rider. We’re discussing it now because now is when and where the information matters. This lake hardly presents a problem. It’s several miles from Las Noche’s walls, and offers no tactical value to us or the Hollows. If anything its presence will hamper Hollow movements on our right flank, making our jobs easier.”

“Still, its incredible that it's there at all,” Filthy Rich said, eyes gaining a familiar, industrious gleam, “If we could figure out how it was produced, then we might replicate it ourselves to create an easy access water source of our own! How much easier would that make dealing with this dreadful desert of a realm! I say Cinch is to be commended for having the initiative to gather samples and start studying this miraculous lake...” He paused, glancing nervously over at Sombra, “At My King’s leave, of course.”

Sombra cleared his throat, eyeing his commanders, “The nature of this lake intrigues me, but our focus must be on the battle. Wind Rider, communicate to Cinch that her actions have gained her some small favor and that she is to continue studying the nature of this lake when time permits. For now our efforts are to be directed towards the assault on Las Noches. Night Light, display our present deployment plans.”

“Yes, My King.”

Night Light’s fingers pecked over the controls on his chair’s arm mounted terminal in dancing strokes, keying up a holographic map on the briefing table that shimmered with the deep blue reishi particles that made up the map’s intricate light display. Las Noches dominated the center of the image, a brutish and square fortress of tall stone walls that spanned the length of a metropolis, its towers rising from within the imposing edifice like monoliths. Miles of short, sandy dunes stretched around the Hollow fortress, with barely a few copses of dead trees marking the landscape... save for the large crater shaped lake a few miles south-southeast of the fortress walls.

Also to the south a series of blue wedges appeared, some on the ground, others dotting the air, and translucent arrows started to indicate movement for these wedges towards Las Noches.

“My Expeditionary Battalion will spearhead the assault,” Night Light began, “Our goal is to draw the main enemy force out from the fortress. Since we know the Hollows are expecting us its likely we’ll be engaged somewhere around here...” a point of flashing red light appeared about one mile directly south of the fortress, “This is maximum effective Cero range from Las Noches’ walls, and I imagine they won’t waste time opening fire the moment we enter that range. Shining Armor’s Bastion will provide shielding until our air units an land and deploy our forces, while Filthy Rich I’m relying on you to use your Schrift to harden our defenses one we’re on the ground.”

Filthy Rich gave a thin smile, “Your son defends from the air, I defend from the ground. Its an old tactic for us, and I don’t doubt it’ll work well while both our battalions get boots on the sands. Where is Spitfire going to be during all this?”

“Was wondering that myself,” Spitfire said, “You better not be planning to hold us in reserve, Night Light. This isn’t a fight for your usual cautionary tactics. We need to hit these bastards hard, otherwise we’ll get overrun even with Shining Armor and Filthy Rich providing defense.”

Night Light gave her a curt nod, eyes lighting up, “I want the Hollows to show their hands first. This is a jab and uppercut scenario. Me and Filthy Rich’s forces will be the jab, making the Hollows extend themselves towards us hoping to overwhelm us like you say, and subsequently leave their flanks open. Then you come in with your battalion from the west and hit them with best uppercut you can muster.”

Sombra watched as more wedges indicating Spitfire’s forces swooped in from the west on the map, engaging a theoretical spread of red blocks indicating possible Hollow horde positions. His eyes roved over the display, its lights reflecting off his crystal red eyes like ghost fire.

“Tirek will expect this,” he said simply, “He will make it appear that he is doing as you wish, extending his forces towards our battalions to fall for your ‘jab’, but it will be a feint. He will keep a powerful force in reserve to intercept Spitfire’s ‘uppercut’ and hope to divide our forces.”

Sombra smiled knowingly at Night Light, “However I know you well enough to expect you’ve already anticipated this.”

Night Light returned the smile, nodding in respect, “As you say, My King. Spitfire’s uppercut is also a feint. I want Tirek to throw his hardest force at a mirage, essentially. Spitfire will be present with several Sternritter to give the strike enough power to make it seem real, but they’ll fall back when Tirek, or whatever Espada he sends, come at them. That’s when the Strafbattalion, along with our armored corps, will reveal themselves and catch the Hollows in a crossfire.”

Wind Rider let out a huff of a laugh, crossing his arms and looking at Night Light with a sort of resigned amusement, “Was wondering what you’d be having us do. So we’re playing vanguard to the big guns, are we? And what if Tirek himself gets involved? Or this new dynamo Fourth Espada we know so little about? Your banking a lot on our tanks making a difference.”

Night Light met Wind Rider’s stare with stoic calm, “We just need the Hollows off balance long enough for Cadence’s kill team to get their job done. Between the Strafbattalion, Spitfire’s force, and the tanks, I’m trusting you can hold the west flank and make the Hollows hurt while the rest of us hold the main line to the south. Remember, the plan is to pull out the moment we get confirmation that Cadence’s target is dead.”

“I hear you, and far as plans go I’ve seen worse,” Wind Rider said, then gave Sombra a sidelong glance, “And of course if things go sideways, as they tend to do in a fight this big, there’s always that new trump card the Sternritter have to turn things around.”

There may have been a hint of jealousy in his tone, as Wind Rider himself was no longer a Sternritter. Sombra ignored that and merely nodded, his voice thick with a hint of anticipation.

“Yes, and I suspect that even if things go according to plan we may still have need to use it. But only when I provide the signal, and not a moment sooner.”

There were a series of acknowledging nods from those at the table, then a questioning shadow passed over Filthy Rich as he scratched his chin, “Can’t help but notice there’s no indication here where the cadets are being deployed.”

Before Night Light could speak Sombra cut in, “That’s because I’m keeping that information classified. They will be present, but I don’t want the information of where they will be observing the battle from trickling to anyone, even within this room. Only I and Night Light will know the cadet’s positions.”

Filthy Rich’s eyes widened slightly, “But, My King, my wife is with the cadets. If they’re attacked, how are we to reinforce them if we won’t know where they are?”

“They will have three Sternritter with them,” Sombra said with a final, iron hard voice, “That will be sufficient protection. If they require rescue then Night Light will know of it and can issue the appropriate orders. This secrecy is for the cadet’s safety. That is all you need to understand, Filthy Rich.”

Filthy Rich was silent for a heavy, tense moment, then gulped and nodded, “Yes, My King.”

The discussion went on for a time longer, mostly refining smaller details of the plan and theorizing on the Hollows likely counter moves. Eventually the plan was finalized and the battalion commanders departed to oversee the final preparations for tomorrow, except for Night Light who lingered a moment longer. The man cast a tired look at the map, and while few would notice it in his usually vital features, there were faint circles of darkness underneath his often vibrant gold eyes.

“You’re troubled,” Sombra said, inviting Night Light to speak on the matter before he pried any deeper.

“Yes, My King. I’ve planned many battles before. It isn’t even new to have my own flesh and blood taking the field with me, where I might give commands that could lead to any of their deaths, even if I don’t make a single tactical mistake,” Night light closed his eyes, leaning back in his seat, “But this time feels different. Its not simply that this will be my daughter’s first battle. It's not even that there is still someone out there, some damned traitor, seeking to murder my little girl. It's just this gut feeling I have that I can’t shake, a sense of... imminent catastrophe that I can’t place. It's foolish, I know, but as the old saying goes; ‘I have a bad feeling about this’.”

Sombra nodded in understanding, “Not mere pre-battle unease, but something deeper. I know. While I put no stock in prophecy, I put great trust in the strength of human intuition. Trust that instinct, Night Light, and be alert. I cannot see the future, but I can swear to you that I will not allow harm to come to your daughter, even if I must protect her myself.”

“You... you do me honor, My King, but forgive me for saying so but won’t your full strength and attention need to be devoted to occupying Tirek’s attention? I don’t like to dwell on the fact, but he alone has power no Sternritter can match alone. Even as a group we’d be hard pressed to fight him. Only you have that power. If you were distracted by anything-”

Sombra raised a hand, silencing Night Light instantly.

“As I said, I cannot foresee what will happen. Neither I nor Tirek are so easily slain by the other. If that were the case this war would have ended centuries ago. Have faith, Night Light. Whatever disaster may come, the human spirit will endure. The Quincy will endure.”

“Yes, yes of course...” Night Light still sounded like a man being pulled down by a heavy weight, but he managed to sit straighter in his chair. His eyes went back to the map display, eyeing the lake that had so mysteriously appeared near Las Noches.

“Should we change we we intended to place the cadets?” he asked, “I can’t say I’m not concerned that lake has appeared nearly directly on where we intended to place their observation post.”

“It is admittedly quite the unusual coincidence,” Sombra admitted, “I’d hoped to keep the cadets far enough back from the fighting that they could be easily evacuated if needed. With that lake there we do need to revise the plan somewhat. We could put them closer to our battle line, but the last thing I want is them in the direct line of fire.”

“Agreed. Hmm, well as I’d said, it does screen our right flank. Hollows aren’t exactly known as great swimmers. We could place the cadets on the lake’s south west shoreline. That puts them behind our battle line and gives them cover from the lakeside.”

Sombra gave a ponderous nod after a moment’s consideration.

“Then it shall be so. Now go get some rest, Night Light. Spend some time with your wife. You look like you need it.”

“But I still have preparations-”

“Which can be delegated to another. Must I make this an order?” Sombra said, brow furrowing. Night Light coughed politely and stood from his chair, saluting with a crisp, swift motion.

“That won’t be necessary, My King. And if I may add... you should rest as well. I’m not the only one who’s been pushing himself, lately.”

Sombra raised an eyebrow at them, then let out a minuscule laugh, muttering, “Now I know where she gets her boldness from. As you say, I’ll try to get some rest myself.”

Night Light finished his salute and with quiet respect departed the command center. Sombra watched him go and then turned back to observing the map. Despite his words to Night Light he knew sleep wouldn’t come tonight. Not that he needed much in the first place, although Night Light had a point that since the assassination attempt on Twilight Sparkle he hadn’t bothered with even the minimal rest his body required.

Even so, he wished he could sleep. Everything was in place. All that was left to do was wait.

----------

“Awww c’mon boss lady, why can’t I come too?” Di-Roy exclaimed with a drawn out and petulant pout. Adagio promptly prodded the half-Arrancar’s stomach. Not hard, but enough to elicit a sharp grunt of pain as Di-Roy clutched at his still healing wound and nearly doubled over.

“That’s why,” Adagio said tersely, but softened her tone as she went on to say, “I don’t need you cutting up the dance floor if it means cutting up your insides further. Stay here, heal. You’re not much use to anyone in this condition, so focus on recovering. Besides all the clothes we got from the human world are for those of the female persuasion. No tuxes.”

“Hey, I’d totally rock a thong if it meant not having to sit around on my ass for another week,” Di-Roy grumbled, still rubbing his stomach, “Man does being wounded suuuuuck. I mean, that Roka is a grade-A doc, with the bedside manner of an angel. Kind of a creepy stoic angel, but an angel regardless. But that other lady, Fenice? She keeps looking at me like I pissed in her shoe or something. I haven’t done that to anyone in years.”

Ember, looking like she was trying to hide an amused grin, patted Di-Roy and the shoulder with a nod of mock sympathy, “Hang in there. We’ll have you with us in spirit.”

“By the way, how is your...” Adagio made a vague gesture with her hand like a small explosion, “Explosive condition holding up. You were reliant on feeding on the Gillians to keep it under control, were you not?’

Di-Roy’s face stilled to a serious look for a moment as he turned and went to sit down on the steps leading to the higher floors of Lament’s tower. They were meeting in the central tower entry hall. Roka and Fenice were upstairs, getting changed, while Lament was not present. Roka had explained their Father had taken Adagio’s advice and was attending a meeting among the Espadas, the first time he’d ever done so. In the meantime while Fenice had been exceedingly vocal against going to any parties, Roka had seemed quietly enthusiastic and convinced her sister to give the notion a try.

“I’m holding up,” said Di-Roy after a moment’s uneasy pause, “Old man Grogar didn’t want me exploding without doing the tasks he and Grand Fisher wanted me to do, so it's not like I’m on a fast timer. It takes awhile for the weird instability with my reiatsu to start really going haywire. Eating up Gillians kept that in check, but I can go... I dunno, couple of weeks maybe before I start feeling like the ticking time bomb I am. Here’s hoping we can rope some Gillians entrees, or hell get me and Gaw evolved to Arrancar before that becomes a problem.”

“Speaking of Gaw, where is she?” Ember asked, “We didn’t see her outside anywhere.”

Di-Roy flashed a wide smile from inside his shark-shaped Hollow mask as he stood up again and jabbed a thumb towards the doors. “Oh she ought to be back any minute. C’mon, check it out.”

Adagio and Ember exchanged glances, and after Ember shrugged Adagio nodded and the pair of them followed Di-Roy outside. When they reached the foot of the steps leading up to the doors, Di-Roy looked off to the west, towards Las Noches’ distant center tower. At first Adagio didn’t see anything, but soon enough a tall, hunched over saurian formed emerged from amid the taller dunes.

Gaw was moving not quite at a dead run, but at a fast pace for her massive size. Adagio quickly started to feel the ground shake from the hundred foot tall Hollow’s titanic steps as Gaw stomped towards Lament’s tower, only stopping at a sand churning skid at the last dozen yards.

At that point Adagio heard the laughter of children, and with a shocked blink noticed that Gaw had an entire gaggle of small Arrancar children, quite possibly almost all of the younger orphans taken in by Lament, riding on her sides and back like a pack of laughing monkeys. The children seemed enthralled by the ride, many of them jumping up and down, clamoring for more after Gaw had stopped.

For her part Gaw seemed to take the pack of howling children on her back with a deadpan look somewhere between reluctant acceptance and hidden enjoyment. When she saw Adagio and Ember, Gaw let out a loud bark of greeting and lowered her head to examine them, subsequently bending her neck and back downward enough that the Arrancar children could use her back like a slide, which they promptly began to do so with shrieks of happiness.

“Ah, Gaw, I see you’ve discovered your calling as a babysitter,” Adagio quipped, and Gaw gave her an annoyed snort, to which adagio laughed and shrugged, “Hey, just calling it like I see it.”

The gigantic dinosaur Hollow just rolled her eyes, then turned her attention to the dresses Adagio and Ember were wearing and let out a questioning growl, to which Ember sighed and glanced away with embarrassment.

“We’re going to some dumb party Thorax, Chrysalis’ Fraccion, is throwing. Adagio insisted on the dresses, so blame her.”

“Hey I’m not complaining,” said Di-Roy, who was standing behind them and tilting his head as if trying to get a better look from that particular angel, “The view is spectacular.”

“Do you want to be fed again. Ever?” Adagio asked, and Di-Roy held up his hands in surrender.

Gaw issued a disinterested grunt and sat down fully, allowing the rest of the children to dismount. Or rather she shook herself a few times to dislodge them, since many seemed eager to still cling to her back like she was an over-sized jungle-gym. Gaw’s glance towards Adagio combined with her half-hearted grunt easily communicated Gaw’s lack of interest in any ‘parties’, and Adagio chuckled.

“Understandable. While you seem to be recovering faster than Di-Roy, I’d just a soon you stayed here to keep an eye on him. Besides, I don’t think we could find a dress in your size.”

The rough coughing noise Gaw made was probably laughter, though it was always a little hard to tell with her.

Just then the doors to the tower swung open and out stepped Fenice and Roka. Or rather Roka stepped out, while having to coax Fenice out with gentle words of encouragement.

“Its okay Fenice, you look just fine, and no one is going to make fun of you.”

Fenice’s response was a frustrated whine followed by, “I don’t care of they make fun of me! I just don’t want to do this. I don’t see why Father is insisting we leave the tower, or make friends with... Oh, hello Adagio.”

The last was said with an admirable attempt at politeness coming from a girl who clearly didn’t want to be there. Adagio, being as graceful as possible, smiled and gave a slight bow to the two daughters of Lament.

“Hello to you as well, Fenice. Roka. I see the outfits I picked out fit you both quite well. I hope you like them?”

“They’re lovely, thank you,” Roka said, returning Adagio’s bow, and after she gave her sister a sidelong look Fenice sighed.

“Yeah, thanks.”

“I’d also like to thank you, Gaw, for helping us look after our little brothers and sisters,” Roka said, walking down the steps and giving Gaw a grateful smile. Gaw just snorted again, looking away as if she didn’t care either way, but Adagio was fairly certain she saw a pleased wag enter Gaw’s long, thick tail.

“Now I do hate to impose, but since myself and Feincie will be accompanying Miss Adagio and Ember to this party, could I trouble you and Di-Roy to keep an eye on the children a while longer?” Roka asked, and many of the children clamored their enthusiasm for this idea, mainly if it meant more rides.

Gaw shrugged her massive shoulders, barking in agreement, and Di-Roy laughed.

“I think we can keep the kids out of trouble for an evening. Uncle Di-Roy will show the tykes how to shoot Ceros.”

A rough grunt from Gaw made him hold up his hands, “What? Its a useful skill and blowing up stuff is clean, wholesome fun for the whole family.”

Gaw gave the ground near him a rough slam with one talon, and Di-Roy hung his head in defeat, “Okay, okay, we’ll find something less dangerous, and entertaining, to do.”

“You won’t have to watch them long,” Roka said, “Father is due back from his meeting in a few hours, so you’ll just have to make sure they don’t burn down the tower until then.”

“Here’s hoping he doesn’t decide to randomly decapitate us when he gets back,” Di-Roy said, and Fenice glare at him.

“Father is not going to kill you at random. Perhaps if you do something stupid to annoy him, but not at random.”

“Oh, good, that really makes me feel better,” Di-Roy said, hanging his head.

“At any rate,” Adagio cut in, “We’d best be going. Nobody try to die while we’re gone.”

“You got it, boss lady. Operation Don’t Die While Babysitting the Fourth Espada’s Kids is underway!” Di-Roy said, throwing an exaggerated salute. Gaw let out a quick bark of farewell, and soon Adagio, Ember, Roka, and Fenice were making their away swiftly across the sand dunes of Las Noches’ interior.

Ember was leading the way, as she knew the fastest route to where they were going, although Adagio had received a written invitation from Thorax earlier that day with directions as well. They walked in companionable silence for a time, until Adagio gave Fenice a curious glance.

“Not that I’m complaining, as it hardly goes with your dress, but where’s your sword?”

The massive blade was absent from Fenice’s back, and she gave Adagio a smirking return glance as she idly touched something hanging around her neck. It was the only addition to the outfit that Adagio had noticed, a pendant hanging from a fine black length of small chains. The pendant itself was oval shaped, and pressed from what looked like copper. On it was etched a familiar pattern, a flaring sun that was split down its center.

The same mark Sunset tends to wear on her clothes. I wonder what else these two share in common? Adagio wondered while Fenice spoke.

“I’ve always got my weapon on me. If someone tries anything, they’ll be in for an unpleasant surprise if they think I’m helpless.”

“Good. While I’d like to get through tonight without needing any direct confrontation, I wouldn’t be surprised by it either.”

“Probably for the best,” said Ember, “You’ve never been to one of Thorax’s little get togethers.”

“You have?” Adagio asked, raising an eyebrow, “You didn’t say anything before.”

“Wasn’t sure I was even going with you until we had our ‘talk’,” Ember said without apology, “Its not really my kind of scene.”

“The heck does that mean?” asked Fenice with a sour grimace, “And is it too late to just go back to the tower and call it a day?”

“Sister, please, let’s give this a chance. I’m most curious about this party, myself,” Roka said with a small smile, “I imagine this will be an interesting experience.”

Ember blinked, then frowned, “You could say that. I only went to one party Thorax threw. Its where I met his brother, Pharynx.”

“Is this the blind date thing?” Adagio asked, and Ember snarled under her breath.

“Oh, that came later, but thinking back on it I can see Thorax laying the groundwork for it then. Guy loves to mess with people, that’s for sure. Just be ready for that, is all I’m saying.”

Adagio managed a confident smile, “I think we’ll manage.”

As they reached the base of Las Noches’ main tower, Adagio looked up the wall of the massive circular base of the structure, imagining that the ceiling had to be hundreds of meters up. A tall, rectangular entryway led into the wall, but Ember cut to the right and started taking them towards one of the long adjoining walls that stretched out towards Las Noches’ exterior.

“Are you sure this is the fastest route?” Adagio asked, “This seems a bit roundabout.”

“Trust me, it is. We’re heading into the Warrens. There’s entrances to the Warrens all over the place, but it's such a maze that even if you take an entrance that’s closer to where you’re trying to go, all the twists and turns can make the walk take a lot longer. The entrance we’re taking here drops us to a tunnel that’s technically further away, but it's more of a straight shot to Thorax’s little party cavern,” Ember said, and then paused as a sound reverberated through the air.

Adagio, Roka, and Fenice stopped two, all of them looking confused. The sound shuddered in the air with heavy, deep notes, and to Adagio’s ears it sounded very much like some colossal war horn was being blown.

“Ember, I hate to keep asking questions, but what was that?” she said, and Ember frowned.

“Just wait...”

Adagio cocked an eyebrow, but a few moments later the sound was repeated, more distantly, and in multiple places.

“Right,” said Ember, “That was Lord Tirek’s servants blowing the summoning horns. That sound will attract the wild Hollows out in the desert. By this time tomorrow we’ll be swamped with herds of lesser Hollows and Gillians, following the sound of the horns.”

Fenice blinked, “What’ll keep them from freaking out and going on a rampage?”

“Lord Tirek’s will, along with all the Espada, will cow and bind the other Hollows. While each Espada brings their own Arrancar to battle, its their will that collects and binds the thousands of other Hollows that will come. Guess the Quincy must really be coming soon, for the horns to be blowing now.”

Adagio heard the horns again, and stroked her chin thoughtfully. She wondered if binding lesser Hollows was a skill an Espada had to learn, or if it was a natural talent, like knowing intuitively how to open Garganta? It was a power that would certainly be useful for her in the future, especially if she wanted to keep Di-Roy around long enough to fix his problem.

While the horns continued to echo over Las Noches, Ember led them to a much smaller entrance into the main part of the fortress marked by a stone door that she rather easily pushed open. Within was a spiraling stairway heading downward. While the top of the stairs was well worked stone, it didn’t take long for the stairs to take on a much rougher quality much closer to natural caverns than chiseled stone, and the air grew somehow drier and hotter. Adagio’s eyes adjusted to a darker gloom as they reached the bottom of the stairs to emerge into a natural cave system. There was a sense of familiarity here to the Forest of Menos, but the confines were generally more cramped as the tunnel they were in shot forward into the darkness, but sported multiple side alcoves and passages.

As they walked Adagio noticed Fenice and Roka both growing more tense, Fenice stroking her pendant as she walked in a stiff gait, and Roka’s hand didn’t stray far from her sheathed dagger-shaped Zanpaktou as her own eyes darted towards every corner they passed.

Upon seeing Adagio’s questioning glance, Roka sighed and offered an apologetic smile, “Sorry. I spent too much time in the Warrens to feel entirely comfortable here, and Fenice has heard all of my stories of this place.”

“It's not as dirty as I thought it’d be, but still feel like we’re being watched,” Fenice said, and Ember quickly cut in.

“We are.”

Adagio, upon hearing that, made a point of more carefully observing her surroundings. Bare of light sources it was solely her Hollow eyes that stripped away enough of the shadows around her for Adagio to make out the forms huddling in the crevasses and side passages she and her companions walked past. Some were Arrancar, through scrawnier and more ragged than what Adagio was used to seeing. A few others held the more varied shapes of lesser Hollows, sniffing the air like beasts but quickly retreating into deeper shadows upon sensing the strength of Adagio’s group.

“There are more down here than I would have thought,” Adagio commented. Roka turned eyes that echoed a certain old fatigue towards her.

“Those who can't find a patron among the Espada are left with the choice of either taking their chances in the endless deserts beyond Las Noches’ walls, or to eek out an existence down here. For some the Warrens are the more acceptable choice. Its somewhat less dangerous than the wilderness, and since this is Lord Smooze’s territory some feel more secure here.”

A curious frown crossed Adagio’s face, “In what way does Smooze control the Warrens? I've seen no guards. No sign anyone other than the squatters live here.”

A knowing look entered Roka’s eyes, her voice heavy. “You will see. Our path passes by the factories and pens.”

On that ominous note they walked on in silence for a time. Soon the passages of the Warrens started to show a greater diversity in size and shape. They crossed high stone bridges that passes over large caverns where cloth and stone shanties made makeshift homes for scatterings of Arrancer. Other times the tunnel would open up at the bottom of various oblong caves occupied by small herds of lesser Hollows that didn’t dare challenge the passing of Adagio’s entourage. She at first wondered why these Hollows weren't responding to the horns from above, but then surmised it was simply that the sound didn't reach this deep beneath Las Noches.

She was about to ask what Roka had meant by factories and pens, but that was soon answered as their path took them along a wide wall-side walkway where a expansive chamber opened up on their right. In this cavern a smokey haze filled the air, which was hot and stifling. Rising up from the cavern floor were a series of perfectly square, stone buildings from which complex pipework rose in a snaking tangle to vanish into the ceiling, where a great, circular hole had been carved. Steam hissed and burped from these pipes, creating the caverns haze. Each building lacked windows, but had large iron doors on each end, one of which was open to admit or let out a stream of lesser Hollows, all overseen by strange looking Arrancar. Or at least Adagio assumed they were Arrancar. Each one was entirely clad in form fitting white garb, with pulled up hoods. Within those hoods Adagio could only make out the faint gleam of faceless, smooth metal masks. Instead of blades or any other kind of obvious Zanpaktou these guards were armed with lengths of spiked iron chains, which they would lash at any Hollow that moved too slowly for their liking. Adagio saw that those leaving the buildings were being herded into dug out pits that circled the entire cave, which were then covered by iron grates once any given pit was full.

“What is all this?” she asked, trying to hide her distaste behind her curiosity.

“You got the idea to jack the stuff you wanted from the human world, but that doesn't really work if everyone in Las Noches did that,” said Ember, “The Quincy and Soul Reapers would be all over it if Arrancar were hitting up the realm of the living all the time. So most of the clothes, furniture, doors, hell just about anything you see in Las Noches that was ever built is manufactured down here. The factories use raw reishi particles broken down from mined stone, then the Hollows you see down there work special smelters to turn that reishi into materials to make just about any basic thing we need. Each Espada contributes ‘workers’ from hunting Hueco Mundo’s deserts, and in exchange get all the basic items they need from the factories. Lord Smooze runs the whole operation, with Lord Tirek’s backing.”

“I see. If Smooze is in charge of such an important task, why is he merely the Tenth Espada?” Adagio wondered aloud, “One would think he'd have more clout if he provides such basic amenities to all Las Noches.”

Ember shrugged, “Dude is a mystery, and far as I know has no interest in raising his rank. Seems content to run things down here, out of sight, and not be bothered by anyone. And since he's got Lord Tirek’s personal backing nobody messes with him, even Espada hopefuls looking to challenge their way into the ranks. Anyone looking to do that would have to bypass Smooze and challenge someone higher up, like Squirk.”

There was a brief and uneasy look from Ember then, and Adagio just met met it with her own knowing and assuring gaze. The look, and the reasons behind it, we're lost on Fenice and Roka, although Adagio suspected Roka at least noticed it. Fenice seemed too distracted with her own attention focused on watching the Hollow workers, slaves really, being marched around. By the human girl’s look of disgust it was clear she didn't approve.

Adagio didn’t much like it either, but knew better than to say anything. Soon the passed through the factory cavern and entered a slightly ascending and curving tunnel that was rather wide and smooth. After a minute the tunnel leveled out and became a broad avenue that shot straight ahead for some distance, with several side passages appearing until the tunnel ended abruptly at a massive, circular chamber with no ceiling, but rather a shaft stretching upwards, marked by a narrow stairway of carved stone. However instead of going to the base of those stairs Ember led them to a archway on the opposite side of the shaft chamber, an archway marked by carvings of ornate pillars. Beyond the archway was was a shirt tunnel, and the moment Adagio entered it she could feel a deep, throbbing tremor in the ground, accompanied by archway distant reverberating beat.

The tremor and the vibrating beat only intensified with every step they took further past the archway, until Adagio’s ears perked up as she finally picked out the distinct notes and tempo of music. The sound only got louder as the group approached a tall set of iron doors, engraved with the motif of rose vines.

Flanking the doors were two dark skinned Arrancar males with burly chests and eyes that were solid blue orbs without pupils. They both held naked blades, but didn't raise them as Adagio and the others arrived. In fact all these guards did was take one expecting glance over them and without a word the one on the right nodded in acknowledgement and with one thickly muscled hand opened up the large iron door.

They were blasted by a wall of noise. The thump of techno music hit the air like a maddened heartbeat, while the oceanic sound hundreds of voices talking and shouting all at once filled the air. Light stabbed in from the room beyond, and lit Adagio’s face as she smiled and stepped inside, her companions following her lead.

Controlled chaos was Adagio’s first impression of what lay before her, although she wasn’t entirely sure on the “controlled” part. In the human world Adagio had seen a few frat parties and raves, as those had been ideal spots for her and her sisters to use their talents to feed on some negative emotions. This reminded her of those gatherings, only with occupants whose physical abilities didn’t conform to human norm.

The entire cavern was dome shaped, easily the size of a decently large stadium, and carved in such a manner that it immediately made Adagio think of a gothic cathedral, assuming someone had taken the concept and decided to fill it with a mish-mash of modern amenities. Thorax had clearly had Adagio’s idea of taking things from the human world long ago, as the cavern was decked out in sets of steel catwalks that looked like they’d been taken from any number of dance cubs and nailed to the cavern walls in a twisting maze. Lights ranging from stark white construction site lighting to deep red strings of mood lighting filtered in from the ceiling and walls, competing with the roar of several bonfires that burned around a central stage raised in the middle of the room. The music wasn’t just being filtered through speakers set up on the walls, but was being controlled from that stage by disc jockey set up being controlled by a young looking female Arrancar who shared the same dark, near onyx skin of the guards outside, while being little more than a slip of a girl with a crest of punkish pink hair.

Arrancar filled the room, dozens of them, many dancing with wild abandon around the fires near the stage, or occupying the catwalks in a rowdy mass. Their movements weren’t quite human, but rather danced with a hardened grace and exaggerated roughness that could only come from a species with superhuman reflexes and durability. Half the time it looked less like dancing and more like fighting, or more intimate actions, but Adagio soon noticed that there were more than few carved out side alcoves covered in satin curtains where she could imagine that more explicit liaisons were occurring.

The catwalks extended all the way over one side of the chamber that had been given over to what looked like a giant stone pool, or perhaps even a naturally occurring cavern lake that’d been converted into a pool. The reveling Arrancar would leap off the catwalks into the pool, even colliding with each other in mid air with mad whoops and hollers as they did so.

Dancers aside there were plenty of other Arrancar who were mingling around large stone tables that looked like they’d see better use in an occultist gathering than a party, if not for the fact that the tables were piled with countless forms of junk food snatched from the human world, and Adagio had little trouble identifying stacks of beer kegs and bottles of finer forms of liquor covering the tables, all of the drink flowing in abundance as Arrancar drank, ate, and caroused. Some of the drinks, however, were of a kind Adagio didn’t recognize, mainly because she’d never run into a liquid in the human world that consisted of luminescent, glowing purple liquid.

Aside from the mingling and dancing there were also several spots towards the back of the dome shaped room where Arrancar had gathered and were apparently participating in vigorous physical competition with each other, be it wrestling, boxing, or just straight up sword fighting with each other in what looked like literal wrestling rings that Adagio imagined Thorax must have lifted from actual pro-wrestling arenas. It was almost comical, but the Arrancar gathered around cheering their heads off at the competitors who fought seemingly without rhyme, reason, or rules seemed to be enjoying the shows put on by their fellow party goers.

“Well this is... loud,” Roka said with a combination of fascination and self control. Fenice was nearly pulling her pendant off her neck with an nervous tug as she looked like she wanted to be anywhere else. Adagio gave them a reassuring look having to shout a bit to be heard over the noise.

“Best foot forward, girls. Let’s go have some fun.”

----------

Miles from Las Noches the sound of the fortress’ war horns echoed still.

The sound traveled further and further, like a rumble of thunder. More than a mere vibration of noise, the horns carried a unmistakable resonance of raw Hollow spirit energy, courtesy of Tirek himself. As a result the noise, even when it traveled so far it was just a faint note carried by Hueco Mundo’s cold, dead winds, it still carried power.

The desert sands, shining white, played home to dozens of small collections of rocky outcroppings and desert caves. These homes to lesser Hollows stirred now with the howls of its denizens, hearing the war horn’s call and the irresistible draw of power that came with it. As much as the lesser Hollows feared Las Noches and its Arrancar lords, so too could they not resist the authority filling that distant sound.

Few in number at first, but gradually joined by their brethren streaming in from countless other small camps and caves, Hollows started to move in a inextricable tide towards Las Noches. Rising from the sands were also dozens upon dozens of towering Gillians, moving like the masts of dark ships amid the sea of gathering Hollows.

And watching this exodus were several sets of eyes, hidden by powerful and subtle Kido spells that hid them from the senses of the passing Hollows as they watched from atop one of the higher dunes.

Lieutenant Cheerilee tapped her fingers on the hilt of her Zanpaktou, turning to look at Nocturn who was giving the passing horde of Hollows a sour look.

“Looks like you owe me a drink there, Nocturn.”

He sighed, managing a wry grin, “Yes, yes, rub it in why don’t you, Lieutenant? Figured the Quincy might get the drop on the Hollows, for once.”

Cheerilee let out a rich chuckle, “Nah, Tirek is too experienced and canny to get caught with his pants down. I kind of figured he’d have sounded the horns sooner, but I imagine he didn’t want to tip Sombra off before the Quincy were already committed. Speaking of which, we’d best report back to Captain Luna. She’ll want to know about this.”

With a nod Nocturn knelt down and removed a small wooden box from his robes, which upon opening proved to be well of ink. Glancing at his one arm, he winced slightly and looked at Cheerilee, who gave him an understanding smile and came over. She dipped her fingers into the ink well as he held out his arm, and she traced a series of sharp, geometric lines on his bare flesh.

"Thanks, Lieutenant."

"No problem. How long until the replacement is ready?"

"Given how overworked Twelfth Division is right now, I'm not expecting it anytime soon," a dire look stained his eyes for a second, "Besides there are others who are in more need than I am. I lost a mere arm. Others lost their Zanpaktou or spiritual powers entirely."

"True, but at least we know how to grow and attach new limbs. Regrowing a soul sleep, or reclaiming stolen Zanpaktou... that's something that could take Twelfth Division years to figure out," Cheerilee pointed out, but Nocturn just shrugged and focused on what he was doing.

Focusing his spiritual energy he held his palm out and intoned a Kido spell.

“Bakudo Number Seventy Seven: Tenteikura.” (Heavenly Charged Sky Net)

In front of his palm a glowing square of light appeared, then from it stretched veins of blue energy that vanished into the sky, still cloaked and hidden by the other Kido that Cheerilee was maintaining to keep them hidden from the senses of the Hollows. The Tenteikura was a long distance communication spell, linking the user to nearly any number of targets within an exceedingly long range. The spell was presently aimed at the other Second Divisions recon teams, which were spread out scouting Hueco Mundo to observe the Hollows.

“This is Third Seat Nocturn to all Stealth Corps teams and reporting directly to Captain Luna. Large numbers of Hollows confirmed as moving towards Las Noches in response to a war call from the First Espada. Suspect preparations for repelling impending Quincy attack.”

A mere minute after the message was sent both Nocturn and Cheerilee could hear Luna’s voice replying, using the same Kido technique.

“Report received. Good work. Can confirm that we have eyes on the Quincy fortress and that there is a large gathering of military force. I imagine the attack will occur in less than twenty four hours. Return to our primary base camp, I’ll meet you there.”

“Understood Captain, we’ll be there,” Nocturn said, then released the Kido, the square of glowing blue light vanishing. Sighing he stood up and glanced at Cheerilee. “So, what do you think?”

“That I’m already missing teaching classes to overly emotional and overbearing teenagers,” Cheerilee said, then blinked, “Oh, you mean about what’s happening right now? I think we’re going to be in for one heck of a show.”

“You really think she’s just going to have us watching from the shadows?”

“We’re the Stealth Corps. It's kind of our modus operandi. We’re under strict orders from Captain Commander Scorpan not to expose ourselves. We’re out here alone, no backup. Trying anything now would be foolhardy, reckless, dangerous, exciting... oh crap, the Captain is totally going to do something, isn’t she?”

Episode 71: Descending Storm

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Episode 71: Descending Storm

Eyes were drawn to them within moments and Adagio drank the attention in as she waded into the crowd with swaying steps. The dancers parted as if pushed by invisible hands, but their looks were of equal parts curiosity, apprehension, and measuring hunger, like a pit of vipers all carefully teaming around what they weren’t certain was competition, a larger predator, or fresh prey. She could all but smell the fear hidden behind their eyes, but none of them had decided where she belonged in the pecking order yet. Well, she’d fix that soon enough. Adagio winked at the Arrancar staring at her and her companions behind her, flashing a sharp smile.

“I don’t mind if you all want to stare at me all night, but the walk here was long and I could use a drink. You-” she pointed a claw at a random, somewhat muscular Arrancar male nearby, “-be a dear and grab my friends and I something from the table, will you?”

He blinked confused brown eyes for a second, pointing at himself, “What? Me? Why should I-”

“Now,” Adagio said, voice as cutting as any blade, and before he seemed to know what he was doing the errand boy was off to fetch drinks.

Ember came up beside Adagio, arms crossed, eyeing the dancers, “What? You guys never seen a Vasto Lorde before? Quit your starring and either get back to dancing or find something else to gawk at!”

“What’s a human doing here?” one of the more belligerent sounding Arrancar said, pointing towards Fenice.

“None of your freakin’ business, that’s what!” snapped Ember, and Adagio stepped in, letting her smile turn into something closer to a challenging smirk.

“She’s with us. Those who have an issue with that, I do encourage you to try doing something about it. I’m hungry, as well as thirsty, and some of you look just so... robust. Of course I’d hate to sully Thorax’s dance floor with too much blood this early in the evening, so perhaps you should take Ember’s advice and get back to enjoying the party?”

Some of the crowd stared at her incredulously. A few others gave her measured nods of approval. Most shrugged and did exactly what Adagio said and went back to dancing, seeming to have accepted the newcomers in their midst. A few others still stared with open interest, until sauntering out of the crowd was the tall and lean form of Thorax, slipping through the crowd with the smooth skill of a schooner navigating thick coral reefs. His obsidian features were lit up by a honey coated smile, his voice bright, loud, and carrying over the crowd.

“Adagio! Ember! So glad you two made it! I hope my little pleasure den wasn’t too hard to find?”

“I’ve been here before,” Ember said flatly, “It's not like you move the place.”

“True, true, oh but wouldn’t be fun if I could? Make it a game just to find the place? Ah, but then I wouldn’t have nearly as many guests to entertain, and where’s the fun in that?” Thorax’s eyes positively gleamed with amused delight, then they fixed upon the two girls standing slightly behind Adagio and Ember, “And speaking of guests, whom do I have the pleasure of meeting here? Adagio, you really have brought me two visions of beauty, haven’t you?”

Fenice’s face flushed to a rosy shade and she looked away with an angry glare, teeth grit as she only paid Thorax a sidelong, heated glance. Roka, smiling politely, stepped forward and offered Thorax a courteous bow of her head.

“The pleasure is ours. I am Roka, and this is my sister Fenice, Fraccion to our Father, the Lord Fourth Espada.”

Thorax placed a hand on his chest, teeth barred in a pleased grin. “Then let me introduce myself as well. I am Thorax, humble Fraccion to Lady Chrysalis. It is a distinct and absolute honor to welcome the Fourths own daughters to my humble hall of entertainment. I do hope you find this evening enjoyable and if there is anything,” his eyes slide over Fenice for a moment before turning back to Roka, “And I do mean anything at all I can do to make your experience here more to your liking then you have but to ask.”

“You flatter us with such attention,” Roka said, her eyes carrying a knowing glint of amusement, but also a flash of protectiveness as she stepped closer to her sister, “Rest assured if I think of anything I shall let you know immediately. However we’ve only just arrived and I believe my sister and I wish to take our time and look around at what is already offered.”

“By all means,” Thorax said with an exaggerated bow, throwing his hands out to gesture grandly around the vast chamber, “Eat, drink, dance, and be merry, for tomorrow we may well die.”

This was met by a number of dark chuckles from the nearby Arrancar who’d mostly gone back to dancing to the heavy beat of the music coming from the central platform. The young Arrancar girl up there running the music hadn’t even stopped from bobbing her head and waving her arms to the music, sweat dripping off her dark skinned brow. Thorax noticed Adagio’s look and smiled affectionately.

“My sister Ocellus. She’s far more musically inclined than I am, and without her talents these parties would be much duller affairs.”

“Would that make her another of Chrysalis’ children?” inquired Adagio, glancing towards where she saw the male Arrancar she’d sent off for drinks returning. The man was managing to balance a tray filled with tall glasses filled with what looked like wine on the palm of one hand while managing to twist and turn his way through the dancing crowd with remarkable dexterity.

To her question Thorax merely winked, “Our Lady Chrysalis has many children who serve in her horde, even if we don’t all bear the distinction of being her Fraccion. Or even carrying her blood.”

“How many males even survive her attentions, besides Lord Tirek?” Ember quipped, and Thorax let out a rich laugh.

“Only our Queen knows. Oh, I see you’ve already met Rep! Hey Rep! Did Adagio wrangle you into getting drinks? For shame, Adagio, poaching an Espada’s Fraccion for your service already? And here I thought I was your one and only!”

Adagio rolled her eyes with a slim smile, partially at amusement at Thorax’s pouting tone, and partially to hide her surprise at his words. An Espada’s Fraccion? She’d just picked her errand boy at random from the crowd, not knowing he had any special standing. It was still hard to see it, even as she gave the man a closer look.

Of average height the man was well muscled but otherwise unremarkable in appearance. His skin was the color of milk chocolate, his eyes hazel and fixed in a slim, plain featured face. He had a well groomed but otherwise almost unnoticeable head of dark green hair that just went past his ears. He wore white, like most Arrancar, in the form of well cut suit pants tucked into dark shoes, and a long sleeved, open shirt that exposed a fit chest. His Hollow hole sat just above his belly button, and along his nose was a fine and smooth fragment of his Hollow mask that looked like a part of an avian creature’s beak.

The man stopped and offered the tray towards Adagio, speaking in a somewhat nasally but not unpleasant voice, heavy with affected courtesy, “Madame’s drinks, as she requested?”

It was hard to tell if he was being sarcastic or genuine, so Adagio just decided to play it straight and took one of the drinks, inclining her head, “Thank you. Such prompt service must please your Espada. Rep, was it? Thorax was just telling me about you. Ember, Roka, Fenice, don’t by shy, go ahead and drink up.”

“Is that alcohol?” Fenice asked, eyes suspicious, “I’m not into getting plastered.”

“I can find you something more sugar laden, if that’s your pleasure, madame,” said Rep, barley missing a beat.

“Rep just loves to serve, don’t you Rep?” said Thorax, chuckling as he went up and stroked the other man’s arm, “And so well sculpted. I mean, does Catrina know how to pick her Fraccion, or what?”

A deadpan look crossed Rep’s face as he said in a quiet voice barely audible over the music, “You haven’t even gotten drunk yet and already with the touching. Thorax, we talked about personal space, didn’t we?”

“Yes, yes. Well, I mean, you talked. I mostly nodded my head and wondered about carpets and drapes-” at Rep’s groan Thorax laughed loudly, “Hah, I meant for in here! Don’t you think we need to liven the place up with some proper carpeting? I want purple velvet, personally.”

“Aaaaand that’s my cue to be elsewhere,” Ember said, “When the innuendos appear, so does Ember disappear. Adagio, I think I spot a few guys from my dad’s horde screwing around over by the wrestling rings. I’ll be over there, pile driving someone into the mat if you need me.”

“Mind if I come?” asked Fenice, and Ember looked the human over briefly, then smiled and shrugged.

“Sure, why not?”

As Fenice smiled gratefully and went to follow Ember, Roka touched her sister’s shoulder briefly. “Be careful, sister.”

“You too,” Fenice replied with a soft smile and nod before disappearing with Ember through the crowd. Thorax just watched them for a second before letting out a snorting laugh, snatching a drink from Rep.

“Pile driving someone into the mat. Heh, and she says she doesn’t like innuendos.”

“I think in this case it was meant quite literally,” Roka said, coughing politely, “And if it wasn’t, then I’ll have to have a talk with her about where she takes my sister in the future.”

“So am I done getting people drinks now, or what?” Rep asked, and Adagio responded by taking a long swig of the drink in her hand, letting the fine red wine slip down her throat, and then with her tail she snaked it around another drink to grasp it off the tray.

“I’d say so. Thank you. So you serve Catrina, I heard that right?”

Rep glanced at the one remaining drink on the tray in his hand, shrugged and grabbed the drink while tossing the tray over his shoulder, and took a hefty gulp himself before gasping and wiping the wine away with the sleeve of his shirt. “That I do. Me and an entire army of miniature, fuzzy death machines.”

Adagio recalled the very strange looking Hollows that had born Catrina’s palanquin during the meeting with Torch, just before the Quincy raid. Those odd looking patches of stark white fuzz hadn’t made her do more than blink at the time, but now she was curious.

“It seems its not uncommon for Espada to have their own, unique servants. What’s so special about Catrina’s, if you don’t mind my asking?”

A hint of nervousness twitched in Rep’s eyes, “They’re not that special. Las Noches might as well be the center of Hueco Mundo, but there’s a lot of endless desert out there, and in a few places you get tribes of Hollows that are a bit... different. The Bushwoolie tribe is like that.”

“Mmmhmm, and just how did you end up in Lady Catrina’s employ? I’ve only met her once, but she seems to be a woman of, how shall I put it, exacting tastes?” Adagio inquired. She watched as Rep raised an eyebrow at her, his own gaze turning towards weighing her.

“Let’s just say me and Catrina go way back and leave it at that, eh? What about you? Not exactly the typical Hollow, are you?” He gestured at her chest, where her Hollow hole prominently displayed her gleaming ruby siren gem. “Crawled right out of Lord Grogar’s science labs, went from Adjuchas to Vasto Lorde faster than anyone could blink, walked into the Lament’s tower, and now you’re shacked up in the Queen of Thorns old rooms while paying a social call to Thorax’s den of all places, with the Fourth Espada’s Fraccion in tow? Do you have any idea how weird this all looks from the outside?”

Adagio couldn’t help but laugh, “I imagine it looks like a lot of things. I like the idea of people guessing. What’s your take on it, as one on the outside looking in, hmm?”

Rep glanced between her and Thorax, and Thorax only grinned and gulped his drink, saying, “You’re on your own for this one, Rep. I’m not giving any hints.”

Rep puff a sigh out the side of his mouth and fixed Adagio with a earnest stare, arms crossing over his chest. “If I was going the paranoid route I’d say this all looks like an Espada power play. Grogar made you, or found you, or did something to you, and has turned you loose to cause havoc in Las Noches’ power structure. Only I don’t think the old goat is going solo on this venture. He’s got approval from up top. No way he’d have the guts to try shaking things up otherwise, not unless he knew his wrinkled butt was protected. As for you, Adagio, I feel like you’re either way smarter than you look and are playing those that are playing you, or you’re significantly dumber than you think you are and you’re being used without realizing it. Coins still in the air on that one, I think.”

“And that’s the paranoid assessment? What’s the non-paranoid one?” Adagio asked, not wanting to say too much and rather just keep Rep talking. The truth was that Rep’s assessment wasn’t entirely wrong. She more than suspected Grogar was still trying to use her for his own ends, and Chrysalis had already made her wants known, to a degree. Adagio knew she still had strings attached to her, despite her growing freedoms, and that even her being here right now might be playing into one or more plans that others had for her. She was just banking on her, as Rep had suggested, being smart enough to play those trying to play her.

“Non-paranoid? That doesn’t exist here,” Rep said with a wink, “But closest to it I get is just assuming you’re a very unusual Hollow who’s managed to not get crushed underfoot yet by the giants she in the playground with.” His eyes glazed over for a moment with the veil of distant memories, “Hasn’t been the first time someone’s worked their way up from nothing around here, so best of luck to you, Adagio. Now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to go find a hole to hide in.”

He moved off with rather incredible agility, impressing Adagio once again with how smoothly he managed to move through the roaring mass of dancers. At his quick exit, however, she blinked and glanced at Thorax.

“What was that about?’

Thorax just laughed and pointed off in another direction, “The prey flees when scenting predators nearby.”

In the direction Thorax pointed Adagio saw an exceedingly tall beanpole of an Arrancar girl scanning the crowd with her eyes shaded by a large hand. The girl’s proportions seemed all off, with too large a hand on far too slim a wrist and long, noodle arm. Her head seemed a bit too narrow, her nose a bit too long. Her hair was a tomato soup red, and completely unkempt, left in a rounded, shaggy mass to fall down her back. Even her Arrancar clothing seemed off, shaped like a pair of white overalls and suspenders. Her lower left jaw was marked by a Hollow mask fragment shaped like the jutting jawbone of a large hunting cat, complete with large saber fangs.

“Reeka,” Thorax said in a low murmur of quiet amusement, “She’s one of Hydia’s daughters. Quite the improvement over her mother, I’d say. Her sister Draggle ought to be around somewhere too. They’re largely harmless, unless on a mission from Hydia. Right now, however, she’s likely looking for Rep. Hence his disappearing act.”

“Do they not like each other?” asked Roka.

“Oh, quite the opposite,” Thorax replied with a wry half-grin, “But enough about that. Roka, would you care for a dance?”

He turned to her and dipped low, offering Roka a hand with a panther’s grace and a smile to match. Roka eyed his hand with another curious raise of her eyebrow, eyes giving away nothing with their placid surface. Slowly she took his hand, her ghostly white skin all but reflecting off his onyx surface.

“A short dance,” Roka said, then turned a glance towards Adagio, “If my escort does not mind?”

Adagio considered. She saw no real issue letting Roka enjoy herself with Thorax, although she recalled Ember’s warning about how Thorax enjoyed messing with people. Still Roka was a grown woman and could likely take care of herself. Besides, Adagio imagined out of all the people Thorax might cross, the Lament was not on the list.

“Go enjoy yourself,” Adagio said with a nod, “I’ll see what trouble I can get into on my own.”

“Don’t bring the cavern down. Oh, and why don’t you check out the pool? I think you’ll like it,” Thorax quipped with a wink and then proceeded to spin Roka off, hand in hand, in what looked to Adagio like someone doing their damnedest to bring swing back. Not that any of the Arrancar dancing had any uniformity to what they were doing. She saw as many different styles form as many different time periods, almost none of it matching the wild techno music that Ocellus was pumping out. So why not swing? Roka seemed to enjoy it from the smile Adagio caught on the woman’s face as she followed Thorax’s lead as they spun off into the crowd.

Now that she was left to her own devices, at least for the moment, Adagio finished the one drink she had in her hand with one long gulp. Then she considered the empty glass, and seeing the general chaos around her she shrugged and tossed the glass aside with nary a care as her tail coiled forward and she took a sip from the other drink she had there. Hollow constitution aside the alcohol was making for a pleasant warmth as she sashayed her way through the dancing crowd and headed for the nearest ramp leading up to the catwalks.

She wanted a more commanding view of things. As she went she swooped by one of the food tables, remembering vividly just how good that fresh apple at Lament’s tower had been. Attempted decapitations aside, of course. What was available on the table was a truly chaotic spread consisting of piles of college dorm junk food, assortments of seemingly random fast foods, and stacks of freshly barbecued meats of every description. Her eye caught a familiar logo on a wrapped burger and on impulse she snatched it up as she breezed by the table.

Yup, the same fast food joint she and her sisters had been working at back in Canterlot City’s mall. Was that just coincidence, or did Thorax know more about her than he was letting on? Either way she devoured the burger in short order. There’d been a time not long ago she’d hated her free meals at lunch break, as it reminded her of where she was trapped in life. Now the taste just made her smile at remembering the way her sisters would bicker over the food.

Reaching the ramp leading up to the catwalks Adagio was caught by a whim and just decided to leap the rest of the way up, balancing on the twenty foot high catwalk’s railing as she continued to sip her wine held by her tail. Arrancar were up here as well, dancing away, or chatting around small tables as they ate. She had a perfect view of the “pool” across the back of the chamber, as well as both the central dance floor and the areas beyond. With sharp eyes she could pick out where Roka and Thorax continued to dance, creating a small, clear area around their swift and smooth motions.

She spotted Ember in one of the wrestling rings, apparently tag-teaming with Fenice on a pair of Arrancar who looked to be from Torch’s horde. Apparently it was a no-swords-allowed affair, but that wasn’t stopping Ember or Fenice from slamming their competitors around. Despite being merely human it seemed Fenice was no pushover.

Well, neither of Lament’s daughters are getting themselves killed, and Ember seems to be enjoying herself. I’ve already gotten a broader picture of who’s who around here. So far so good...

She saw that she was drawing more than a few looks from the Arrancar nearby, and with a winning smile Adagio didn’t skip a beat, winking at those staring at her and finishing her second drink, then casually tossing the empty glass with her tail while proceeding to do a back dive off the rail to sail towards the pool below. She’d seen enough of the other party goers jump off the catwalks into the waters to know it was deep enough, and she had a sharper sense for these things ever since her evolution anyway so she had no doubts as she dove into the obsidian water.

She could hear the noise of the party even underwater, taking a minute to simply revel in the feeling of the cool embrace of the water around her. Other Arrancar were swimming above, engaged in contests of wrestling and quasi-violent water jousting with the occasional clash of swords and bloodletting. Adagio could smell the blood in the water, her senses sharp as any sharks. She swam the circumference of the pool, feeling out its depths, curious.

Aside from her lake she hadn’t noticed any water sources in Hueco Mundo, and only now was wondering where this pool had come from. Stretching out her senses, feeling the water around her like a bat might sense a dark cavern with its sonar, Adagio could tell the pool was connected to a set of underground tunnels, which in turn fed into a large subterranean reservoir. It might even link to the depths of her own lake. If she concentrated hard enough she could almost feel an echo of familiar dark magic in the distance, and felt more certain this underground water reservoir would eventually link up to her lake.

Hollows didn’t need food or water the way mortals did, but it was a useful luxury, and suddenly it made more sense to her why Las Noches was built where it was. If what she was sensing was accurate there were numerous small wells, probably connected to the inner chambers of a few Espada holdings.

She somehow doubted many Hollows, let alone Arrancar, could sense the paths of these maze-like tunnels the way she could, or breathe underwater like she could. Her eyes shined and her smile was pleased as a cat with a fresh caught bird.

I could use these underwater tunnels to get into almost anywhere in Las Noches. Even Grogar’s... hah... hahahahah! ‘Why don’t you check out the pool?’ Thorax, you cad. What do you want from me that you’re giving me a gift this nicely wrapped?

She doubted he could have known just how strong her aquatic affinity actually was, but given her appearance he’d probably guessed she might have a chance of realizing and piecing together the facts about this little party pool and what it really meant. In fact she imagined it wouldn’t just give her access to various parts of Las Noches, it might give Thorax and his ilk serving Chrysalis similar access, if they had the means to traverse the underwater tunnels. Perfect for spying. Also Chrysalis’ story of being able to murder the various friends of the Queen of Thorns suddenly had more weight if Chrysalis had a means of getting around undetected.

Her mood higher than ever she swam up to the surface at high speed, breaching the water to do an elegant flip through the air before splashing back down. Invigorated, she smoothly flowed to the pool’s edge and burst out with a single easy leap, stretching languidly as she wrung the water from her dress and hair. She got a few catcalls as she did so, and with a smokey grin she just winked at the admirers and for simple fun she made a gesture with her hands, taking control of some of the water within the pool and setting it to creating a tall wave to crash over the swimmers, eliciting hoots and hollers of equal consternation or delight from those in the pool.

Laughing to herself Adagio walked towards the other side of the large chamber, drawn by the curious sound of energy blasts going off. A few dozen meters from the wrestling rings and its cheering crowd of onlookers there was a carved out, rectangular portion of wall. Here she saw what looked to be the world’s most deadly game of dodge-ball being played. Some Arrancar, perhaps a dozen, were set up along the far wall of the carved out area. Each one looked battered and bruised, some bleeding profusely from more severe wounds, yet each one was grinning like crazy as they drank from big metal kegs of booze they were carrying while dodging around like mad. Lined up at the entrance of the carved out area were other Arrancar who were all laughing uproariously as they took turns taking aim with their hands and firing hardened ‘bullets’ of reishi at the other, keg-totting Arrancar.

Coming up behind one of the onlookers, Adagio asked, “What’s this about?”

The pig-tailed female Arrancar glanced over her shoulder at Adagio, still snickering over seeing one of the living targets of the game taking a hit to a leg and hopping about, and blinked in surprise. “Whazzat?”

Adagio wrinkled her nose. This girl’s breath absolutely reeked of alcohol.

“This,” she pointed down the shooting gallery, “What am I looking at?”

“Ooooooh, thisssh! Hehehe! Thish ish Bala Ball! Stupid fishy don’t know nuthin’.”

“And the chances of getting an intelligent response have dropped to zero,” Adagio muttered, wondering if there was someone less drunk nearby. Meanwhile the pig-tailed Arrancar girl had started to sway back and forth while following Adagio’s tail, which was idly swaying about as well.

“Yush got a tail, did’ja know dat?” the girl said, pointing.

“Your powers of observation astound me, miss...?”

“Draggle! I’mma Draggle!” the girl burped and then turned a fine shade of green. Adagio wondered if she’d need to rapidly avoid some projectile vomit, but Draggle seemed to get whatever internal battle was occurring under control and simply burped again, louder this time. Adagio took a moment to more carefully observe this one, now that she had a name and recognized it as one Thorax had mentioned. This was Hydia’s other daughter then? She could only wonder what Hydia herself must look like.

Draggle was... broad. Adagio got the sense there was more muscle than flab, however, to this girl. Her frame was like a boulder, with stout legs and arms that didn’t jiggle with fat so much as look like cannon fire would bounce off the hardened hide of these limbs. She was dressed similarly to her sister Reeka, although Draggle had made an attempt at more flowery dress with the addition of an actual skirt to the ensemble. Her short pig-tails were coarse and black colored, matching surprisingly well with skin the color of blood oranges. Her left eye and brow was covered in a large fragment of rather human looking Hollow mask.

Adagio, despite herself, put on a diplomatic smile. “Adagio Dazzle, a pleasure. Now while I might be asking too much, could you explain what, ahem, ‘Bala Ball’ is?”

Draggle’s eyes blinked slowly, not both at once, but one at a time, then she pointed, “Shoot Balas at the balls. Them’s dudes with the booze is the balls. Shoot ‘em.”

“That’s...it?”

“That ain’t enough?” As if to prove her point Draggle raised one hand, the one not carrying a large, clear bottle of what Adagio suspected was pure moonshine, and red energy crackled around the girl’s hand. She then punched out, and with a snap of sound a red burst of small but concentrated Hollow reishi shot out. One of the Arrancar ‘balls’ yelped as the shot clipped their shoulder, spinning them into the wall. Laughter from both the lined up shooters and spectators, as well as the other ‘balls’ filled the air and each ‘ball’ took a drink from their kegs.

Adagio observed the game for a minute, and started to catch on to the rules on her own. They weren’t complicated. The ‘balls’ were all volunteers, dong so to get their hands on their own beer kegs. They could take a drink every time they dodged a ‘Bala’ shot. Dodge enough in a row and they got to walk off, keeping the keg. Of course that didn’t happen very often as they got more and more drunk, so some gave up and let others try. Eventually beer kegs would run out and somebody would bring in fresh ones, with a new batch of volunteer ‘balls’. Meanwhile the shooters also drank, became worse shots, and gave up, to let fresher volunteers take a crack at the game. Everyone got drunk and had a good time, injuries notwithstanding.

“How does one do these Balas?” Adagio asked. Now that she had watched the technique being performed for a little while she recognized this as the same attack Ember had used during the fight with the Adjuchas tribe in the Forest of Menos. While clearly not as outright destructive as a Cero, the rapid speed of the shots looked useful. She wanted to learn how to do the technique as well, but couldn’t quite figure it out just by watching.

Draggle, however, was not proving to be all that helpful as she just shrugged and fired off another Bala without looking at her target, “I dunno. You jush do et.”

“Ah, of course, how foolish of me,” Adagio said with razor thin sarcasm.

“I could show you.”

Adagio looked over her shoulder as she saw Roka approach. Her pale skin was glistening now with sweat and Roka’s cheeks were a faint shade more red, but otherwise her expression was a cool and collected as ever as she walked up and offered a small smile to both Adagio and Draggle.

“Done dancing already?” Adagio commented with a questioning raise of her eyebrow.

“I did tell Thorax it would be a a short dance,” Roka said, coughing slightly as she glanced away, “He is exceptionally skilled. I wouldn’t want to take his attention the entire night, merely trying to correct my lack of experience.”

Draggle was staring at Roka, then her eyes slid over to Adagio, blinking again in that one-two slow combo, then she pointed at both of them. “Holleeeee craaaap yur that freaky Vasto chick an one uv the Foursh kids!!!”

“You’re only now noticing I’m a Vasto Lorde?”

“I jush thought you wus a real ugly chick.”

“...Excuse me?”

Roka smiled with the politeness of a porcelain mask, patting Adagio’s shoulder, “Now Adagio, I’m sure she didn’t mean it like that. She’s clearly had... quite a bit to drink. Father imbibes, but only in moderation.”

“Whoa the Foursh ish a’ drinker too!? An’ he cuts dudes heads off! Thash so raaaaad! Heheh!”

Roka’s polite smile wavered slightly, “Yes, it is indeed, um... rad.”

Adagio ran a clawed hand over her Hollow mask, “I think we’ve found Di Roy’s soul mate.”

“I was under the impression he and Gaw were...well, never mind that,” Roka said, clearing her throat as she rapidly changed the subject, “But as I was saying, if you’re curious about the Bala technique, I could teach you the basics.”

“I wus jush sayin’ ish easssy! You fling out yur hand an bam, boom, zap. Ya know?” Draggle added with a helpful smile, flailing her hand around and firing off a few random shots, much to the yelling irritation of several nearby spectators.

Roka nodded in courteous fashion, “As you say. However Adagio is not an Arrancar yet, so the technique may be more difficult for her.”

“Seriously?” Adagio asked, and Roka nodded.

“Your power is great, and Ember has told me you have no difficulties with Cero. However Cero is a raw, unrestrained blast of destructive power. Bala requires more refined control of one’s reiatsu, which generally isn’t found outside of Arrancar. However you're talented enough you might be able to do so without the evolutionary benefits of being an Arrancar. Let me show you... here, stand like this.”

Roka showed Adagio to an open spot on the firing line, and with practiced and gentle touches of her fingers Roka positioned Adagio in a straight posture with her right arm out. Roka was standing just behind her, head beside Adagio’s as she spoke just loud enough to be heard over the buzz of the party.

“Instead of unleashing your power like a unrestrained wave, try taking hold of just a portion of it, like imagining a pebble in the palm of your hand.”

Adagio did so, focusing on the center of her palm and imagining just a sliver of her power pooling there. For a moment she felt that small bubble of pressure building, but as she did so it was like the power inside her leaped for release, pushing itself through her hand in eager need to destroy. Adagio pulled it back, but lost focus on the bubble in the process.

“Do you see what I mean?” Roka said, not chiding or accusing, but encouraging, “Your reiatsu wants to escape and destroy, as is normal for Hollows. To restrain it isn’t easy, isn’t natural for us. Arrancar are not merely human appearing, our natures are closer to reflecting the will and control of humans. Hollows are beings of innate negative emotions, and as a Vasto Lorde you must feel them more strongly than ever, yes?”

It was true, Adagio was frustrated and angry, immensely so, at just one small failure. She pushed the feeling down, as she’d been practicing doing that since practically the day she’d been captured by Grogar, but she understood what Roka meant.

“So when I become an Arrancar my emotions will be easier to control, and in turn my reiatsu as well?”

“More or less. We are never fully free of the negative emotions that make us what we are, but Arrancar are the pinnacle of controlling that power and making it our own. When you evolve, you’ll be able to feel the difference.”

That gave Adagio an idea. She was a Hollow, true, but she wasn’t like any other Hollow in all Hueco Mundo. She had ways of calming herself, and aspects of her soul she understood better than most. She closed her eyes and thought of the ocean. She thought then of her cold, dark lake, and how at home she’d felt there. Even in the simple water of this chamber’s pool she’d felt a sense of calm and elation both at once that set her at ease. Water was her domain, her element to control.

Touching upon a part of herself that was connected to her siren gem and furthermore connected to the depths of the lake that was her domain, she summoned water into the palm of her hand. The water formed there from thin air, a condensed sphere no larger than a golf ball.

Roka saw this and watched curiously, as did several other Arrancar as Adagio focused her reiatsu once again into her palm, but this time tied the power to the sphere of water.

Now the water started to pulse red, surrounded by an aura of Hollow reishi, and interlaced with the water she could feel her aggressive Hollow power being restrained inside the water. The calmness of working with the water counteracted the raw aggression of her Hollow power. Snapping her eyes open, Adagio took aim and fired.

The water bullet combined with condensed reishi fired off like a shot from a sniper rifle. She missed the Arrancar she was aiming at down at the other end of the shooting gallery, but that was probably for the best because her shot impacted the wall and cored out a meter deep hole in the raw stone, blasting rock chunks everywhere.

Adagio let out a loud laugh, “I think I’ll call this one ‘Aqua Bala’. What do you think, Roka?”

----------

With spittle flapping from his lips the short Arrancar male with the punkish crop of red hair performed a flying dropkick at Fenice’s head. Grinning, despite her relatively foul mood, Fenice kicked off the wrestling ring’s floor for just an instant, her spirit energy and the reishi of the floor reacting and propelling her with higher speed than any human could normally move. She then grabbed her opponent by the ankle, and shouted, “Ember, catch!”

Ember, who had her own opponent in a firm headlock, saw what Fenice was doing and shared the same grin as the human girl, suddenly spinning her own foe around and launching him like a javelin just as Fenice was throwing her own already airborne opponent straight towards Ember.

The two Arrancar who’d stepped into the ring with them collided with each other head on with a loud, wet smack, and both bounce to the floor in dazed heaps. Without missing a beat Ember jumped up onto the corner turnbuckle and launched herself into an elbow drop, while Fenice went for the side ropes. The moment she hit the ropes she once again reached out with her spirit energy, bringing out extra power and spring from the ropes so they’d launch her with more force as she joined Ember in elbow dropping upon their stunned opponents.

Moments later they were tossing both unconscious Arrancar out of the ring. There were no ‘referees’ down here to do three counts. Fenice was fairly sure the Arrancar didn’t really know, or care, what referees were and that this whole wrestling thing was, at best, about the same as what one might find in the back yards of some of the less safety conscious members of society.

Still, rough as it was, it proved a good outlet for her frustrations and anger. She still couldn’t believe Father wanted her to get friendly with this Adagio woman! Ember seemed alright, at least, but Adagio just rubbed Fenice the wrong way. Something about that confident, smug look that was always in her eyes. Reminded Fenice of... other people she used to know.

Unconsciously her hand touched the small amulet around her neck. Her face twitched as she remembered fire and agony. And before that the pain of loss followed by a ravenous hunt for the truth.

I thought she had all the answers. But she abandoned me just like everyone else did. Everyone before Father, Roka, and the other kids.

A hefty clap on her shoulder shook Fenice out of her thoughts as Ember leaned over to look at her, “Hey, wake up! You good to keep going or do those scrawny human muscles need a break?”

Fenice put on a scowl that she didn’t entirely feel, sort of half-grinning even as she tried to glare at Ember, “A break? As if. I was going to ask you if you were okay to keep fighting without your sword. I know how you Arrancar are just so helpless without your Zanpaktou.”

“Pfft, you’re thinking Soul Reapers, girl. Arrancar can kick ass with or without a weapon. It's the Soul Reapers and Quincy that are defanged little babes when deprived of their fancy toys,” Ember said, flexing an arm and patting her bicep with the other hand.

“Well then let’s kick the next poor schmuck’s butt who climbs into the ring with us, because I sure ain’t done,” Fenice said, smacking a fist into her palm, looking out at the crowd and shouting in challenge, “Who’s next!?”

Before the eager crowd could finish arguing over who’d go after Ember and the human next Ember herself narrowed her eyes and walked over to the other side of the ring, peering out towards where Fenice could see a bunch of Arrancar lined up in front of some kind of shooting gallery. She’d been hearing the Bala’s being fired, it was hard to mistake that distinctly deep and echoing boom, but she hadn’t paid what was going on over there much mind. Now she strode up next to Ember, looking in the same direction the Arrancar girl was with a wondering stare.

“What are you looking at?”

Ember’s eyes grew heated as she grumbled, “What does that idiot thing he’s doing?”

It took Fenice another few seconds to spot what Ember was looking at, or rather who. Walking in swift strides across the crowded party room as if they owned the area was a group of Arrancar, but they didn’t look like they were among the usual festive guests. There were maybe eight or nine all together, but at the very front of the pack were two in particular. One was a tall and brutishly muscled female with a stark shock of white hair with purple tips.

Gilda, Fenice recognized Lord Guto’s top Fraccion, although she’d never really formally met the woman.

The other Arrancar was a male, a fellow with rusty red skin and missing one arm. Fenice didn’t recognize him, but Ember seemed to.

“The hell is that?” she asked.

“Garble. What is he doing with Gilda? Here?” Ember’s eyes flicked to the right, towards the line of party goers firing away at the shooting gallery, and she swore under her breath, “Dammit, there’s Adagio! C’mon, I’m smelling trouble.”

----------

Adagio was gradually getting the hang of her jury-rigged new technique. She discovered she couldn’t fire it as fast as the more natural Bala’s the Arrancar used, as forming the ‘water bullet’ took a second more time and concentration, but it packed a bit more punch as well while still being a much faster attack than a Cero. Her aim was still all over the place, but she imagined with a few weeks practice she’d be able to snipe an apple off someone’s head at a hundred paces.

Or just take their head off, whichever she pleased.

“Thas prutty gud n’ all, buuuut shtill think Bala’s better,” slurred Draggle as she went through a fresh bottle of a lime green drink the origins of which Adagio could only guess at.

“I’m impressed at your ability to improvise,” said Roka, tapping a slim finger to her chin, “I wonder if perhaps I could try new things with my strings.”

“We could always train together,” Adagio suggested, “Considering your Father wants us to spend time together as friends why don’t I offer one of the rooms in my territory as a place for you and Fenice to train with me? I’m certain Ember would agree to join as well.”

“That sounds like a lovely idea. I could always stand to sharpen my skills...” Roka said with a smile, but then the smile bled off and her eyes grew serious as she saw something behind Adagio, "And it seems an opportunity may be soon arriving.”

Adagio turned, although she felt their presence before she did so. There were so many different Arrancar reiatsu filling the chamber it’d been nearly impossible to pick them out from the crowd, but now that they were close she could distinctly sense Gilda, Garble, and Greta’s spiritual pressures. As well as about half a dozen others which she assumed belonged to the motley collection of thuggish Arrancar that flanked Gilda like her own personal posse. None of them wore friendly faces, although Adagio noted that Greta at least looked like she didn’t want to be there in the first place.

Garble and Gilda were both at the very front of the group as it came to a stop in front of Adagio and Roka, and the pair started talking at the same time.

“How’s it going trash-”
“Fancy seeing you here-”

The both paused, shooting glares at each other for apparently missing out on the other one’s intended script for this encounter. They continued to glare for a moment before Garble rolled his eyes and made an ‘after you’ gesture to Gilda, to which she snorted and stepped forward one more step, arms rippling as she crossed them under her chest.

“Hey trash, figured I’d come to the party after all. Might be at least one thing halfway entertaining down here.”

“Yeah,” shot Garble, “Wouldn’t want anyone thinking we’re not sociable.”

“Garble what the hell are you doing down here?” Ember called loudly, appearing with a flash of Sonido beside Adagio. A moment afterward Fenice appeared as well, her feet briefly glowing with motes of green light from her own swift movement technique. Fenice pointedly slid close to Roka, her hand on her amulet.

“What’s going on?” she asked her sister, and Roka’s face remained a stoic mask.

“I’m not certain, but stay close.”

“Shur, I’ll be riiiight here...hic.”

“I didn’t mean you, Miss Draggle. Could you please remove your hands from my waist?”

Meanwhile Adagio had stepped forward in similar commanding fashion as Gilda, although she kept her posture casually relaxed and her voice pleasantly smooth. “I’m glad you decided to join us, Gilda. I was afraid the prospect of a gathering that didn’t involve the immediate threat of violence wouldn’t appeal to your tastes. And Garble, how good to see you. How’s the arm?”

She could see the raw anger shoot across his eyes like a laser, but he surprised her by managing to keep his voice level as he smiled in anticipation of something.

“I only need one to take care of snarky little puffer fish that don’t know when to back off. You might have Lord Torch and Ember fooled by your helpful act, but I see right through your BS. As for you, Ember, I can go wherever the damn hell I want. What are you even doing at this lame party with her anyway? I keep telling you she can’t be trusted.

“And I keep telling you to mind your own business,” Ember said back in a heated voice, hands clenched as she looked over the other Arrancar present, “Which clearly you can’t take a hint on. What’s with you!? Guto’s people aren’t our friends, Garble, so what are you doing with them?”

Gilda cracked a smirk, “Oh, me and Garble ran into each other just the other day, and while I’d normally rather kick around a dweeb from Torch’s horde I got to hearing about his troubles with the walking tuna here and realized we had quite a bit in common. Decided to ask him to come along for a bit of partying to... let off some steam.”

They’re up to something, Adagio thought, But if they just wanted to fight it would’ve made more sense to ambush us either before we got to the party, or after we left it. Why confront us here, openly, where Thorax could interfere?

Not more than a heartbeat after she had the thought Thorax himself came swiftly slipping out from the crowd, which was starting to gather and grow around the confrontation as more and more Arrancar realized something was going down. Thorax was all smiles, his twinkling eyes revealing nothing as he sauntered up between the two groups.

“Ah, I do so love to see such camaraderie and budding bonds forming between my fellow Hollows! Warms my heart. Gilda, I’m just thrilled as can be you mustered up the courage to come join us other social butterflies. And Greta, you’re looking radiant this evening.”

He blinked at Garble, “And you’re here too... you.”

“Garble!” Garble near shouted and Thorax waved his hand.

“Garble, of course, was just on the tip of my tongue. I also see Gilda’s brought some other strapping friends with her. Welcome, welcome, feel free to join in our revelries!” His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, his voice not changing a whit form its friendly tone yet somehow carrying a hint of warning, “As long as you don’t forget whose house you’re in, of course.”

Gilda looked at Thorax as if she was considering scraping something filthy off her heel, but kept up her mockingly friendly grin, “What do you think we are, Thorax, a bunch of fresh off the desert idiots who don’t know the rules of Las Noches?”

She gave Adagio a sharp, hawkish look at those words, and Adagio’s danger senses kicked up a notch. Gilda and Garble clearly had a plan, but she didn’t know enough about the customs of Las Noches yet to get a fix on what that plan was. Starting a fight with her seemed to be their agenda, but could they really risk that in what was essentially Chrysalis’ back yard? Granted she didn’t know how much Chrysalis might actually care, one way or the other, but Thorax clearly wasn’t eager for a real fight to break out here. For a moment he dropped the friendly mask and had a more severe look on his face as he eyed Gilda, voice dropping an octave or two.

“Of course not, but we both know you have such a unique sense of humor. Might be someone wouldn’t take a joke quite as well as if they knew you. Wouldn’t want there to be any misunderstanding leading to trouble.”

Gilda shrugged, “Hey, I won’t break truce first. If some idiot can’t take a joke, that’s their problem to start. Rest assured, Thorax, I’ll finish any trouble that gets started.”

“And just to show we’re not here to be poor guests,” said Garble, “I took a trip to the human world to hunt some fresh souls, and look at what I brought for you all.”

He snapped his fingers from his single hand, opening up a Garganta portal. Adagio didn’t recognize what part of Las Noches it opened to, but there were a few more Arrancar waiting on the other end who she imagined were more of Guto’s warriors. They pushed through a group of disheveled looking humans... or rather human souls, Wholes, by the intact soul chains dangling from their chests.

They were of varied age and genders, but every single one of the souls looked horrified and confused, huddling together in this strange place filled with even stranger people. They clearly didn’t understand what had happened to them or what was going on.

Thorax’s eyes dilated, his nose sniffing the air, “They smell... fresh.”

Garble shrugged, “Couldn’t find any who were already dead, so I had to make a few myself. Car accidents are really easy to cause. Heh, you should see how easily humans scatter when you drop an overpass on a highway.”

Adagio’s blood was frozen, but she kept herself in check. The callousness of Garble was sickening and infuriating, but she had to remind herself she’d done horrible things herself. Somehow that excuse was losing its potency, however, as she looked at the terrified, recently murdered humans, and realized that this was all because Garble was trying to provoke her.

It was working. She could see the other Arrancar weren’t bothered by this, but many were looking at the fresh human souls with hungry eyes. Even Ember seemed enticed, but her deep frown and furrowed brow suggested Ember saw the trap for what it was. Roka and Fenice were both stock still, Roka’s face a stone mask, while Fenice’s disgusted, furious shock was plain for all to see.

Garble, grinning like a chef presenting an entree, grabbed the youngest human soul and shoved him forward, a boy who looked barely into his teens. One of the other souls, an older woman, shouted in fear but was smacked across the back of the head by one of Gilda’s other flunkies and shoved to the ground.

Meanwhile the boy stumbled forward, looking around in horror, while Garble kicked him in front of Adagio.

“As a sign of no hard feelings why don’t I let you take the first bite, Adagio?” Garble said, ignoring the human soul’s blabbering questions about what was going on and what was happening. “Whaddya say, he’s plenty fresh and juicy. And it’s not like you have a problem with eating humans, right?”

Adagio knelt in front of the human soul, cupping his chin with one hand and making a show of inspecting him, while her mind ground its mental gears. So this was Garble’s game? He knew she’d interfered with the Quincy hunt. He must have suspected she had some sort of squeamishness about killing humans. This show was to provoke her into action, either trying to rescue the humans, or otherwise offer him some insult by refusing his ‘gift’, creating the pretense needed to start a fight here and now.

Calculating the odds, Adagio concluded she might be able to save one or two of the human souls with some fast talk, perhaps turning Garble’s plan against him by claiming more of the ‘gift’ than he intended and shuffling the souls off to be ‘eaten’ later. She didn’t see any way to save them all without starting the very fight she’d prefer to avoid until she could stack the odds more heavily in her favor. She didn’t really owe these strangers anything to begin with, she just really hated being challenged like this and... and if she was going to brutally murder someone she was going to do for better reasons than food from now on.

She rose, opening her mouth to start spinning any number of quick persuasions to collect at least a couple of these humans for herself... but the room exploded into intense, skin scalding heat before she could get a single word out.

Fenice had ripped her amulet free of her neck and an eruption of magma rushed out in a flash of blinding light, her broad greatsword bursting forth into her hand. In an instant the girl moved, eyes alight with righteous fury, green motes of light rippling around her feet as she vanished in one split second and appeared between Garble and the human boy’s soul the next.

Garble had been expecting an attack, just not from Fenice, and his eyes shot wide as he raised his one arm to defend himself as her sword slammed down with enough force to crack the stone floor beneath his feet. His Heirro reinforced skin kept the blade from severing his limb, but Garble’s skin was still cut deep, and Fenice wasn’t done.

With a roar of pure rage Fenice’s blade gleamed red and a blast of flame and lava poured from it, point blank onto Garble.

Adagio didn’t flinch from the flames, nor hesitate while the rest of the room was still busy staring in shock at Fenice’s sudden actions. Adagio was not going to fool herself that she could salvage this situation with fast talk anymore, not with Fenice launching into a rampage. All that mattered now was to act, and act decisively to get herself, her people, and if possible maybe a few of those human souls out of here intact.

The blast of flame and lava sent a smoking Garble flailing backwards, burned by still very much intact and alive. For all his poor qualities, Adagio had to admit he wasn’t weak and Fenice’s attack, while devastating, had still only managed to injure him. Recovering, he whipped his Zanpaktou out with a snarling grimace.

“You worthless human bi-”

His focus had shifted to Fenice, so he didn’t see Adagio’s kick coming as she crunched her heel to his face at full speed, sending him catapulting through the crowd of onlookers to skid to a stop at the foot of Ocellus’ sound stage. For her part Thorax’s sister just shrugged and switched discs to change the music from one techno beat to another, this one with a faster beat that somehow seemed... appropriate for the violence about to break out.

The air was filled with ringing steel as Gilda and most of her cronies drew their own Zanpaktou. Only Greta kept her blade sheathed, glancing uncertainly at Thorax.

Thorax was fastest to recover among the rest of the crowd that was watching, shaking his head and running a hand through his thick, moss colored hair. “Not what I had in mind for the evening, but this kind of dance has its charms, too. Everyone! Truce has been broken, give the combatants space! Anyone who steps into this tete-a-tete is going to get added to my list.”

Whatever that meant it had an immediate effect on the crowd, which parted further back from Gilda and Adagio’s groups to form a much wider circle of eager onlookers. Adagio even heard a few placing bets on which side would come out on top, but most watched with eager bloodlust, just as happy to watch the violence as they were dancing and partying a moment earlier. Adagio was fine with that. It meant she didn’t have to divide her attention and could focus just on Gilda’s group without worrying about others joining in. It also clearly meant Thorax wasn’t going to step in either and stop things like last time, not that Adagio expected him to do so. Clearly certain rules had been violated when Fenice attacked Garble that meant they no longer had any kind of special protections, at least not from Garble and Gilda. Thorax had done what he could by making it clear no one else was going to interfere either. Good.

There wasn’t any time to coordinate a plan with her allies. Gilda grinned like a hawk spotting the plump rabbit it’d been hunting and her eyes locked onto Adagio. In short order her and her pack of goons were flickering across the distance between them and Adagio’s group with swift Sonidos, and everything turned into an explosive melee.

Gilda went straight for Adagio, her heavily curved talon-shaped sword striking down hard at the seemingly unarmed Vasto Lorde. Adagio raised her hand, water swirling into a long shaft in her hands which then solidified into the shape of her trident. Zanpaktou and trident clashed, Gilda momentarily taken off guard by the sudden appearance of Adagio’s weapon. Adagio took advantage of that by pushing off with her trident to back Gilda up a step, then lashed out with her tail, the scythe-like blade on the tip cutting across Gilda’s chest.

Adagio blinked as her tail blade sparked off of Gilda’s exceedingly hard Hierro. Gilda grinned fiercely.

“Not as soft as the Hollows you been getting easy pickings on,” Gilda said as her body was surrounded by a thick aura of bright purple energy, her reiatsu pouring out of her with hefty pressure, “I’m Lord Guto’s best warrior and the one who’s going to be the next Espada!”

The woman’s spiritual pressure hit Adagio hard, but she sucked in a breath and then pushed back with her own reiatsu, power surrounding her with a brilliant blue nimbus that matched Gilda’s. She spun her trident to the ready and struck hard, thrusting for Gilda’s heart, “I’ve survived conversation with the Fourth Espada. You’re going to have to try a lot harder than that to impress me.”

Meanwhile Fenice found herself surrounded by Gilda’s thugs, but as one of them leaped to get behind the girl while she was busying fending off the foes in front of her a set of thin strings reached out and ensnared the bald headed man and snapped around his arms and neck.

“Urk!”

Roka, hand outstretched with only a few glints of light displaying the strings attached to them, gave the man a placid, glassy look as she constricted the strings and choked him at the same time she pulled herself towards him. Her other hand flicked and her dagger Zanpaktou appeared in it as she flipped over her victim’s head and jabbed down. The dagger cut a deadly stroke across the man’s face, splitting one eye. As he screamed Roka landed in front of him, and she yanked with her strings to end him flying into another of the Arrancar attacking Fenice, slamming both of them to the ground.

“Fenice!” Roka shouted in warning. Despite her efforts Fenice was still dealing with three other Arrancar, and while Fenice was swinging her sword in great, flaming arcs that splattered magma around to keep them back, one of them was charging up a Cero with a deep red glow.

Fenice saw it and swore under her breath, swinging her sword around to prop it like a shield, but it turned out she didn’t need do as Ember burst in and swung down with her own Zanpaktou, severing the Arrancar’s hand clean off before he could fire his Cero. The energy already gathered turned unstable and glowed brightly before exploding, Ember jumping away while Fenice guarded herself with her greatsword.

“T-thanks!” Feince shouted to Ember, who in turn just growled and shook her head.

“Save it for later! The hell were you thinking, attacking like that!?”

Fenice’s face reddened with both anger and embarrassment, “What else was I supposed to do, watch that crap keep unfolding!?”

“This isn’t the time for discussing it,” Roka said with stone smooth calm, dagger raised at the ready as Garble finally recovered and came roaring back into the fray, body still smoking from Fenice’s attack by his own rage hardly deterred by the fact.

“That’s it! I’m done screwing around with all of you! Ember, last chance to back off from this! That Adagio bitch isn’t your friend, she’s just using you and our horde for her own power grab!”

Ember seethed with a heavy breath, matching Garble’s stare with her own, “You don’t know what you’re talking about, and if you’d just back off and listen instead of flying off the handle you’d realize Adagio’s a worthy ally. But I can tell you’re going to be a stubborn idiot about this until you either kill her or she kills you, so you know what... let’s just get this over with.”

Ember, her Zanpaktou still dripping blood from the Arrancar whose hand she’d severed, pointed the blade at Garble. He hesitated for a second, seemingly torn on whether he wanted to face her, or go after Adagio. A moment later he let out a ragged growl and said, “Your mistake.”

No more than an heartbeat passed between the two before they charged at each other, a blinding storm of blue clashing with red as the pair launched into a deadly blaze of sword strikes. Fenice and Roka were left to face the remaining Arrancar thugs, but the two sisters were back to back now, and Gilda’s posse was now faced with a dangerous bulwark formed from the combination of Fenice’s potent strength and deadly lava fighting alongside Roka’s murderously precise, swift dagger and unpredictable strings.

Adagio couldn’t keep tabs on that portion of the fight, however, as she was locked toe to toe with Gilda in a lethal dance of her own, and the difference in their strength was so slim that any slip up could easily mean a swift and fatal end. That didn’t mean she wasn’t concerned with her allies, nor with the human souls who were now gathered together around the young boy, all of them cowering like sheep frozen by a war of wolves around them.

“What are you looking at?” Gilda laughed darkly at Adagio’s distracted glance, “You don’t have time to worry about others, trash!”

Gilda’s speed was admittedly faster than Adagio’s, and it was only the fact that Adagio had a longer hafted weapon good for defense, combined with having an additional limb with the use of her tail that was letting her keep up. Gilda never slowed, leaping from point to point around Adagio in a constant press to find a weakness in Adagio’s guard. Adagio trying to assess the situation with her allies created a window and Gilda, like the experienced warrior she was, used that window.

Adagio felt a burst of pain in her side as Gilda’s Zanpaktou cut through her bone armor and drew blood. Fortunately Adagio had abilities Gilda wasn’t aware of, and just as Gilda was grinning at her well struck blow, a cascade of compressed water that Adagio had been forming above them came crashing down and rammed into Gilda with crushing force.

Gilda screeched like an enraged eagle, pushed to the ground by the water pressure. Even as she was pushing back to her feet Adagio struck, driving her trident down towards Gilda. The woman reacted with the speed of warrior born instinct, twisting away from Adagio’s blow, but one spoke of the trident still struck Gilda’s leg as she leaped away, and this blow managed to draw blood. The strike still jarred Adagio, sparks flying once more from the sheer hardness of Gilda’s skin, but the reiatsu within her trident was more concentrated than that in her tail, and this was no grazing hit. The barb of the trident took a chunk of skin with it and Gilda stumbled.

Adagio rushed to capitalize, jabbing low, then high in rapid succession. Gilda, eyes blazing, swatted aside one attack with her blade, then managed to grab the trident just below the forks with her other hand, handing it in place.

“You know your problem? You keep stepping in crap you don’t understand,” Gilda said, pushing Adagio’s trident upward, “Lord Guto’s struggled for centuries trying to carve out a place for himself and us, and you just walk in here and think you deserve the same respect and power we’ve struggled all that time to build!? This ain’t no fairytale fantasyland, princess! Time to wake up!”

Gilda slammed her knee into Adagio’s gut, the blow almost sending Adagio flying but she managed to maintain her balance and instead skidded back, taloned feet grinding furrows in the stone floor to halt her. She saw Gilda extend a finger, a throbbing purple orb forming at the tip of the finger as Gilda prepared a Cero.

Adagio raised her trident, focusing on what she’d just learned to do. Small golf-ball sized orbs of water formed at each tip of her trident and she encased them in a shell of hardened reishi, letting the water stabilize the otherwise free flowing Hollow power.

The Aqua Bala’s fired in a rapid storm, faster than Gilda could finish charging her Cero. With wide eyes Gilda was forced to dodge with several fast Sonido movements. Adagio’s aim was terrible with this technique, but she was firing as quickly as she could, tracking Gilda like one might when just hosing down a foe with a machine gun. The water bullets rocketed everywhere, several spectating Arrancar having to duck or dive out of the way.

Gilda went high, flying upwards as Adagio tracked her, and one of the bullets managed to strike Gilda’s shoulder, blasting away the cloth of her vest and bruise the flesh beneath, but Gilda didn’t stop charging her Cero and now flung her finger out, firing a fairly compact purple beam down at Adagio.

Adagio took to the air as well, stepping off the small reishi particle in the air with several quick steps that got her just clear of the Cero, which blasted a deep hole in the ground where Adagio had been standing. Adagio heard Thorax groan at that, something about repair bills.

Streaking right for Gilda, Adagio spun her trident in readiness to strike, and Gilda rushed to meet her, but before the two met in mid air there was a clash of flashing forms between them as Ember and Garble appeared. Both were sporting several fiercely bleeding cuts, Ember’s brow bleeding to cover half her face while Garble’s chest showed a long cut that stained his dusky skinned chest a darker red. The two were pressing their blades against each other, red and blue sparks of energy arcing between them before they broke apart in a burst of air pressure and ended up facing each other with Gilda and Adagio forming a cross between them.

For a second all four combatants flicked eyes around each other.

Then Garble, with a wicked grin, flashed towards Adagio. His one arm swung his falchion shaped Zanpaktou out to the side and a deep orange glow pulsed within the blade.

”Explode, Despecho!” (Spite)

A storm of dark orange fire engulfed him, and both that spiritual mass and his own changing body smashed into Adagio like a meteor. She felt a sense of pure vertigo as she shoved bodily across the entire domed chamber and then slammed straight into the wall with enough force to shake the room and explode out a decent sized crater in the wall.

“Hey!” shouted Thorax, “Watch the collateral damage. I’m not letting you ruin my party den, so either do this without Resurreccion or take this outside!”

“Yeah, sorry Thorax, little late for that,” Garble said as the flames cleared and his transformed body was revealed, one large claw pinning Adagio to the wall. He was twice his normal size now. His body was clad in thick plates of bone white armor, his legs turned into reverse jointed, taloned appendages. Curved spikes rose in a row down his spine, and his thick crest of red hair now spilled from a draconic shaped helmet bearing fanged jaws. He still only bore one arm, even his Resurreccion form not compensation for that old injury, but the one limb he did have was now bearing machete sized claws and spiked knuckles.

Adagio felt that claw grip around her, trying to crush her in a squeezing vice. Garble’s eyes glared at her like twin pools of blood as he whispered, “She can’t see what you are, but after I turn you into paste it won’t matter. Now hurry up and die.”

Ember had rushed to try and help, but found herself confronted by Gilda, who nearly took Ember’s head off with a swift blind-siding strike that Ember barely dodged, losing a few strands of cerulean hair in the process.

“Hey, let Garble have his fun. He bitched at me about wanting this all day and much as I’d like to gut the fish myself, I don’t care who does it as long as she’s out of the way.”

Ember didn’t slow down, catapulting herself straight towards Gilda like a battering ram, and the two exchanged a swift storm of sword strikes as Ember tried to batter her way past Gilda, only finding herself stonewalled by the other Arrancar’s tenacious parries and equally furious counter strokes. Even so, Gilda glanced downward where she could see the gang she’d brought with her was struggling against Roka and Fenice. Jets of lava careened around from Fenice’s broad swings, burning the flesh from one unfortunate Arrancar’s chest while the magma clung to him. At the same time Roka parried a blade coming for her face, then unleashed a swarm of strings that wrapped her opponent around one leg and proceeded to saw the limb off with surgical precision.

“Greta, the hell you waiting for!? Get your ass in the fight!” Gilda shouted to her companion, who still hadn’t moved to draw her weapon.

Greta shot a hesitant look between Gilda, the fight, then Thorax. Then with a begrudging sigh she pulled her short, straight Zanpaktou and tucked it into an inverted grip, moving with a swift Sonido to appear next to Roka, striking with serpent speed. Roka spun in a twisting evade, Greta’s sword cutting through her robe. Fenice shouted an angered cry and turned around, her greatsword trailing splatters of magma as she swung at Greta, who with incredible agility flipped over the blow.

Roka landed from her evasion, her robe torn and showing a bleeding wound beneath, but Roka ignored the injury with little more than a flicker of pain on her face before sending a wave of strings back at Greta.

As all that was happening Adagio was pushing back against Garble’s crushing claw, flexing her arms and grunting with effort as she forced the sharp talons around her open. She’d felt Garble’s Resurreccion before, and back then when she’d still been an Adjuchas the power of an Arrancar’s transformation had seemed overwhelming. Yet now she could tell the difference between her and Garble, just as clearly as she’d been able to sense the difference between herself and Gilda. She and Gilda were pretty evenly matched, even if Adagio had to admit Gilda still had an edge over her.

But Garble was not on the same level as Gilda, transformed or not.

She let her reiatsu burst out of her, shattering more of the crater behind her, and now it was her claw gripping Garble’s and pushing it back. He grunted with the effort to try and force her back down, his eyes twitching with disbelieving fury, but Adagio just sighed and looked at him with a cutting gaze.

“The window of opportunity you had to get rid of me has already long passed, Garble,” she said, taking her trident and with enough force to generate a shockwave she slammed the prongs into his arm. He roared in pain, but the roar quickly turned to a higher pitched cry as Adagio twisted the trident, gouging into his muscles.

“I’ve no more patience for fools. My plans extend beyond your petty little grudge, and if you want to end this so badly, I’m pleased to do so.”

She yanked him around, still attached to her trident, “But on my terms. Let’s go for a swim.”

With a powerful swing of the trident she tore Garble free of the weapon, and sent him flying like a cannonball into the pool with such force it exploded a massive geyser into the air. She followed him down, diving into the waters with significantly greater grace. Enveloped by the cool depths she sensed Garble immediately. He was proving his resilience, if nothing else, but quickly recovering from being stunned and getting his bearings underwater. He sensed her presence and swung his claw out, firing a crimson Cero that scalded and steamed the water in a cascade of bubbles as it shot towards her.

Adagio was underwater now, in her element, and with a gesture of her hand she generated a powerful current of water that bent the Cero beam upwards to shoot harmlessly upwards. Well, harmless save for the way it impacted the roof and sent chunks of stone hurtling down into the pool. Garble grabbed one of those large stone chunks and swam towards Adagio, swinging the stone like a club.

The gloomy, poor lighting down in the pool threw off his aim considerably and Adagio was far more agile than he was underwater. She slipped around the slow attack and got behind Garble, and her tail wrapped around his neck like a hangman’s rope, clenching tight. He struggled in place, his large claw scraping at her tail. She winced as it managed to draw blood, cutting gouges in her soft tail’s flesh, but she kept her grip tight as she dragged him deeper, heading for the hole at the bottom of the pool she’d sensed earlier.

As Garble kept trying to claw himself free Adagio swam down, dragging him behind her, until she was within the winding networks of underwater tunnels. Using her water senses she found an alcove not far away, a tunnel dead end where she slammed Garble against the wall. His struggles were weakening. Even in an empowered Resurreccion form, he still needed to breathe, and by now his endurance was flagging.

Drowning him would have been as simple as keeping him still for another couple of minutes... but Adagio had other plans.

With a gesture she pushed enough water away from the wall, drawing in air all the way back at the pool, as to create a bubble around both her and Garble. She loosened her tail just enough for Garble to gasp for air, but before he could slice at her tail with his claw any further she rammed her trident back into the already injured arm, pinning it to the wall.

“Grraaa! You... you little piece of-”

“Spare me the insults, you have no more air to waste on them,” she said, grinding her trident into his arm for emphasis and cutting off his words with a garbled scream. “Now, just to clear up any confusion, yes I’m using Lord Torch’s favor for my own purposes. Nice deduction, genius. Everyone in this place uses each other, it's just the nature of the beast. That said, I happen to be rather fond of Ember, and I don’t intend to do her any harm.”

“Lying sack of crap... I know you turned her against me! I know you did something to her head, so you can stop pretending to care about her. If you’re gonna kill me, just get it done.”

“Oh? Admitting I’m the stronger one are you? I could get used to that,” Adagio said with a smile, “And about what I did to her? You’re right about that too. Oh don’t look too excited, me and her sorted that out already, you can’t use it as a wedge against us. Ember was angry, true, and if you’d proven what I’d done before I talked it out with her you might’ve convinced her to turn on me. Just a little too slow on the draw, there, Garble.”

“Yeah, how about now?” he said, opening his mouth and firing a point blank Cero from it.

Adagio slammed her free hand into the beam, parting the wave of burning orange energy around her. Water vaporized to steam, but when the steam cleared Adagio was still there. Her hand was blemished and charred by taking Garble’s Cero, and it stung fiercely, but it was still intact. Playing off the pain she brushed her hand off on her chest, ignoring just how much that actually hurt as she hid a pained grimace with a smooth smile.

“Nice try. Let’s finish this up quickly. I still need to deal with Gilda before she kills one of my friends. Which in case you haven’t noticed, includes Ember.”

“What are you...” he started to ask, but she clenched his throat with her tail, choking off the words.

“I don’t need you to talk. I need you to listen, even if you only have a pea-sized brain to do it with. The Quincy are coming, and Ember and I will be in the thick of that. I’m not going to lose what I’m building here. So, I can either kill you, or...”

She leaned forward, the gleam of her siren gem brightening as her voice turned melodious, “You can do what I say.”

----------

Ember breathed hard as she ducked beneath Gilda’s blade and drove her own forward. Gilda used her elbow to knock Ember’s sword aside and kicked out with one heavily muscled leg. Ember raised her own leg to block the blow, pulling her sword back and freeing one hand to fire a Bala at Gilda’s face. Gilda took the blow head on, literally, but the strike only seemed to piss the woman off more as she snapped her head back into a harsh headbutt that struck Ember square in the nose and sent her reeling back.

Before she could recover she felt Gilda grab her leg, the other woman quipping, “What’s wrong, don’t have you dad around to hide behind?”

Gilda flung Ember down with impressive force, cratering her into the ground. Dazed, Ember rose to her feet while not far away Thorax cleared his throat, “I do hope you realize whoever wins this fight is cleaning up afterward.”

“Little busy Thorax, can you save the bitching for later?”

“I literally have pools of burning lava in the middle of my dance floor. This isn’t what I meant when I said I wanted this party to be hot.”

“You could always do something you giant blowhard!”

As Ember shouted at him, Gilda came in from above, chopping down with her sword and forcing Ember to abandon yelling at Thorax to defend herself. As the two clashed, Rep appeared out of the crowd, handing Thorax a drink and taking a sip form one himself as he said, “So who’s winning?”

“Well Adagio tossed Garble into the pool. That was amusing. They’ve been down there a spell, so either one of them is dead by now, or they’re having some kind of heart to heart chat,” said Thorax, accepting the drink with a grateful nod and taking a long swig before gesturing off to the side, where Greta was alone battling against Roka and Fenice, since the last of the other thugs Gilda had brought were already down for the count.

“Greta’s managing to keep those two busy. Not sure which I’m more impressed by, her or the Fourth Espada’s children.”

Rep idly scratched his chin, “That human isn’t doing half bad. Never seen one with a power to summon a sword like that. Is she even human? Her reiatsu feels... a bit Hollow like to me.”

Thorax nodded with a knowing gleam in his eyes, “I’ve heard of this phenomenon before. Chrysalis took an interest in their ilk a long time ago. Fullbringers. They’re kind of like our watered down, mortal cousins.” He licked his lips, glancing towards the pool, “Speaking of water, I do hope our aquatic guest hasn’t fallen prey to any ill fate.”

“Hmph,” Rep laughed, “Did you see how she fast pitched Garble into the water? I was skeptical about the whole ‘Vasto Lorde’ thing, but I felt her power. She’s the real deal. Just a question of whether she survives long enough to ascend to an Arrancar like us... then I think Gilda’s going to have competition for the next Espada slot to open up.”

“Ah, getting vibes similar to those of your Catrina?” Thorax asked, and Rep took another drink, unblinking.

“Honestly? She reminds me more of your Espada than mine. Take that how you will.”

“Is it her stunning good looks?”

Rep snorted, “Its the vindictive streak. She could have killed Garble by now. For most of us that would be enough. But no, I think for this Adagio it’s not enough to kill her enemies. She either has to humiliate them, break them, or make them hers. Possibly all three.”

Thorax nodded, then a large smiled crept onto his face as he saw the water of the pool stir. “I think you may be right about that, Rep.”

Out of the pool Adagio rose, standing on the water and walking along it. Behind her she dragged a barely conscious Garble, still pulling him by the neck with her tail. She unceremoniously dumped him onto the floor, where he lay coughing.

The fight slowed as everyone saw this, Ember and Gilda pausing in mid-swing of their swords. Roka and Fenice still faced Greta, but Greta backed off, keeping her blade at the ready but not pressing the attack as all eyes turned to Adagio standing over a battered and defeated Garble. Adagio walked forward, pressing trident against Garble’s back as he rose into a sitting position.

“Garble has surrendered,” Adagio declared, “Anyone who still wants to fight, feel free, but I’m only accepting one surrender tonight, the rest of you are going to be finding me quite out of mercy to hand out.”

Gilda let out a harsh laugh, “You think I care? I can take all of you at once if that’s what I need to do.”

At her words Thorax took a step forward, raising a finger, “Actually Gilda, the breaking of truce was between Garble and Fenice. If Garble is done fighting, then the rules are back in force and I have to say I’m not going to look too favorably on anyone else starting fights in my home. At least not fights that I don’t approve of and can possibly start a betting ring on.”

Gilda’s eyes narrowed and she sent a venomous gaze towards Garble, “So, what, you get your wimpy little butt handed to you and you just cave like a craven coward?”

Garble didn’t respond, eyes downcast, looking completely defeated. Gilda spat in disgust.

“Well I’m not coward, and I could give two craps about your little ‘truce’ Thorax. Come at me, Adagio. I’ll settle this here and now!”

“You will do no such thing.”

The speaker’s voice tore across the room like a spear, arresting attention from all present and making a large portion of the crowd part. Gilda and Greta both looked a shade paler as they spun around and knelt immediately as a man strode through the crowd. Adagio looked him over, not recognizing him. He had bronzed skin, and youthful, aquiline features. Thick brown hair obscured parts of his face, yet couldn’t entirely hide the tattoo covering the left side. She might not of recognized him, but she could stab a guess easily enough. After all how many men in Las Noches would have the number ‘6’ tattooed around their left eye? This had to be Guto, the Sixth Espada. If there was any doubt, from the way Gilda and Greta were both kneeling, or the number on the man’s face, the rest was dispelled by Thorax turning and presenting a welcoming smile to the man.

“Lord Guto, we don’t see you down here very often. Or at all. Drink?”

“Silence, I’m here to discipline my flock, not indulge in your pointless frivolities.”

He approached Gilda and Greta, who kept their heads bowed low, although Adagio could see Gilda was shaking. Not from fear, but from barely constrained anger. Guto glanced Adagio’s way, his sharp orange eyes calculating but mostly furious. He barely looked at the rest of the scene, just scanning over Ember, Roka, Fenice, Garble, and the still huddled human souls once, then dismissively snorting as he stood before his two Fraccion.

“Get up,” he commanded, and both Gilda and Greta rose quickly to their feet. Guto glanced around at the other Arrancar Gilda had brought. All were either unconscious or dead from their fight with Roka and Fenice, and Guto made a disgusted sound.

“Pitiful. Eight of you, four enemies, and this is the result?”

“Lord Guto, this wasn’t over! I was about to finish the-” Gilda began, but the back of Guto’s hand silenced her with a cracking blow loud enough to echo through the chamber. Gilda remained standing, but she was staggered by the hit, her lip starting to bleed profusely form it as Guto grabbed her by the neck and hauled her off the ground.

“Finish them? Is that what you were about to say? Perhaps so, but did you not consider what slaying the Fifth Espada’s daughter while under the Second Espada’s roof might cause? Or one of the Fourth’s children? Did you think, for even a second, about the ramifications of your actions?”

“But... but this upstart Adagio, you said we should teach her a lesson.”

Guto dropped her, only to drive a knee into her gut and leave her sputtering on the floor. “A lesson, yes. Where in that concept did it seem to you that you should let some sniveling little wyrm con you into doing his dirty work for him!” Guto gestured with clear distaste towards Garble, who shrunk away from the Espada’s attention. Most the rest of the room was backing away from the man as well, and Adagio could smell the fear in the air. Guto wasn’t even exuding any heavy reiatsu, but the presence of an Espada alone seemed to command a great deal of fear and respect in an of itself.

Gilda, coughing, looked up at him, “I... apologize, my lord, for my indiscretion.”

Each word fell out of her like a cement block, her voice forced and filled with humiliated ire. Off to the side Greta spoke up, fear in her voice.

“Lord Guto, our comrades need healing...” she nodded towards some of the beaten Arrancar still lying on the ground. Guto huffed, rolling his eyes.

“They can crawl their way back to the aerie tower, if they can. If they can’t, then they’re not worth our time. As for the two of you, you will return with me, now. This matter is over.”

He then turned to leave, his eyes passing over Adagio only for a moment as he did so. There was nothing but heated ire in that look, and Adagio knew she’d risen in the Espada’s estimates as a threat. Gilda and Greta followed behind like two whipped dogs, although Gilda made a show of holding her head up and glaring at anyone who stared at her as she left. Greta moved slower, still worriedly eyeing her wounded comrades, until Thorax got her attention with a gesture and gave her a reassuring nod. Greta managed a small, grateful smile before she followed Gilda and Guto out the doors.

Silence followed for a few moments before Thorax clapped his hands and said, “Okay, that was distracting! Ocellus, put on something with some pop to it. Let’s get this party moving again.”

Minutes later the music was going strong, the party goers were back to dancing, drinking, and general shenanigans, which left Adagio and her own companions standing in front of a pack of very scared, confused human souls with Thorax overseeing proceedings with an amused grin.

“Far as half-time shows go, that wasn’t too bad,” he said, nudging Adagio, who tilted her head at him in a sass filled look.

“And I do so wonder how Garble knew to go to Gilda with his grudge over me. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you Thorax?”

“I haven’t the faintest clue what you’re talking about,” Thorax said, “But I do so love to see people work out their problems. On that note, what happened between you and Garble? One moment you’re trying to kill each other, now he’s running around my party as a serving boy, getting people their drinks or food.”

“Part of a deal we’ve worked out. Don’t concern yourself with it further,” Adagio said, glancing at the human souls, “Now about them...”

One of the humans frightfully said, “Someone, please, tell us what’s happening? What are all you people?”

“Whew, I don’t do exposition. The party could use some extra entrees,” Thorax mused, then at Fenice’s heated look he added, “Buuuut I suppose if any of you wanted to claim them for, I don’t know, your personal snack pantry, or whatever else, I could call it a gift. Garble did bring them for my party anyway, so they’re technically mine. How about I hand them over to you, Adagio, as a housewarming gift for your new digs?”

Adagio nodded thoughtfully, “That works for me.”

“What are you going to do with them?” Fenice asked.

“Not certain yet, but I have an idea or two, but that will have to wait until I check on a few things,” Adagio said as she approached the scared human souls, looking squarely at the one who spoke.

“You lot, follow her,” she pointed at Fenice, “And do what she says. Your continued existence depends on it.”

“Wait, me?” Fenice said, blinking and pointing at herself.

“Yes, you. You started this mess by attacking Garble, you can deal with the consequences of looking after this lot until I figure out what to do with them. Got a problem with that?”

Fenice slowly nodded, face hardening with resolve, “None whatsoever.”

“Good, then if that’s settled, I need a drink or five,” Adagio said, and Thorax let out a happy chuckle.

“Let me go get my good stuff. How bad do you want your hangover to be in the morning?”

In short order Adagio was lounging back by the pool, a bottle of something fruity and exceedingly alcoholic in one hand while Roka tended to her wounded tail, which had admittedly taken quite a thrashing from Garble’s claw before things had been settled. Roka’s strings stitched up the torn flesh not just on Adagio, but on Ember and Fenice as well, who were all resting nearby. Fenice was trying to calm the human souls and explain their situation, but Adagio was barely paying attention.

Her eyes slid towards where across the room Garble was stiffly serving other party goers, and the two briefly met eyes, Garble quickly looking away before going back to his work. Ember saw this and shook her head in wonderment.

“The hell did you do to him, Adagio?” Ember asked, her voice lowering to a whisper, “Was it... you know...?”

Adagio sighed and gave a slight nod, “In part. I could have killed him, but he has a use, and I’m loath to waste a potential resource. My song can be very convincing.”

Ember had a contemplative look of mixed emotions, “I could have dealt with him myself.”

“You shouldn’t have to. He’s my problem.”

Fenice let out a low grunt, “You should have killed the murderous bastard.”

“Dad certainly wouldn’t have cared if you did,” put in Ember, “It was a fair fight, and you proved yourself the stronger. Far as my dad would’ve thought it would’ve just been the natural order of things for you to off Garble.”

Adagio shrugged at their words, “That may still be the cards, but as long as I can use him, I will.”

“Whatever you might’ve done with your song, he might still cause trouble. Nobody carries a grudge quite like Garble,” Ember said, then frowned, “Except perhaps Gilda, and her Lord Guto. Bloody hell, Adagio, you’ve really got this talent for pissing off all the wrong people, you know that? Gilda’s never going to forget how you humiliate her tonight, and Guto’s not going to take this slight lightly either.”

“Problems to deal with when I get around to it. Right now, I’m going to call this a win,” Adagio said, gulping from the bottle in her hand and enjoying the warm alcohol hitting her gut.

“Today, yeah. What about tomorrow?” Ember asked.

“Tomorrow, as they say, is another day.”

----------

In a world with no sunrise the only thing determining the time was the base’s own clocks, and Twilight Sparkle saw the digital readout on the monitor in one corner of the room slowly switched to read “0458”. Almost five o’clock. Almost time.

“Couldn’t sleep either?”

Twilight rolled over in her bunk to see Sugarcoat sitting up in hers, reaching over to grab her visor from the top of the foot locker at the back of the bed and put them on. Twilight rose, trying to stretch the tense ache from her limbs as she found her glasses and put them on as well.

“I slept a little, but not very well,” she said, remembering fitful dreams as she’d slipped in and out of sleep over the night.

“Nothing to be done about it now. I doubt we’ll feel the fatigue when we’re busy fighting for our lives,” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight suppressed a shudder.

“I hope it doesn’t come to that.”

“So do I, but I’m not expecting it,” Sugarcoat replied with her usual bluntness.

As the clock struck the fifth hour a loud and insistent klaxon blared through not only their room but the entire base, echoing like the wail of a choir of banshees. Soon enough all of Twilight’s other squadmates were awake, and they scrambled to get dressed. Uniforms went on, various gear was assembled, mostly alchemic ginto tubes and in Cotton Barrel Hooffield’s case a medical kit. Soarin, who’d been standing guard outside, poked his head in after he was sure the girls’ were all dressed and said, “Better get a move on. We’re due up on the tarmac in ten.”

Every girl went over a final check of their gear, with Twilight slipping on the Hexenfaust and double checking the armored glove was in good condition.

“Okay gals, we ready to do this thing!?” Indigo Zap shouted, pumping her fist in the air, “I know I am!”

“Oh, I’m totally ready,” said Sour Sweet with a smile that soon twisted into a rictus grimace, “I’m certain nothing is going to go horribly wrong. Nope, not at all.”

“Relax Sour, if anything does go wrong, we can always throw you at the problem and you can annoy it to death,” said Lemon Zest.

“Ya’ll just leave any trouble ta me n’ ma sis!” said Buzzsaw McColt, “We’ll keep an’ eye on all ya soft skinned city folk.”

“Don’t cha’ listen ta this thick skulled jabbersack,” said Cotton Barrel, patting her medkit, “Gonna be me that’s fixin’ any trouble any o’ ya’ll git into.”

“Pffah, what’s a Hoofield know ‘bout stitchin’ folk back up?” snorted Hacksaw, “Yer liable ta put an’ arm where a’ legs supposed ta be. Ya know, ‘cause ya don’t know yer head from yer a-”

“Move it ladies!” Soarin said, tapping an invisible watch on his wrist, “Times wasting.”

Soon they were all as ready as they were going to be and Twilight found herself at the head of the group as Soarin led them out down the base’s underground corridors. The base was filling with Quincy moving this way and that, most of them gathering up the stairs that lead out onto the large courtyard. The moment Twilight got outside she felt the air stirring with the sound of dozen of revving up turbine engines. Looking up into the dark sky she could see that many of the VTOLs were already airborne, circling the fortress as more Quincy loaded up into VTOLs that were still rising up from their underground hangars.

Tanks were rolling out from their own bunkers, crossing by twos out of the open main gates to rattle into the desert like a swarm of silver scarabs. They were joined by other vehicles Twilight hadn’t seen before, longer and more narrow in shape than the tanks, and she saw Quincy soldats loading up into both back and side doors on these vehicles, leading her to realize they were armored personnel carriers.

It looked like the cadets would be flying, however, as Soarin led them to the area where the VTOLs were being raised up to the surface landing pads one by one. Each VTOL seemed big enough to carry at least four squads of soldats, and Twilight saw that among some of those boarding the VTOLs there were unique Quincy, who often work more elaborate or stylized uniforms, She hardly knew every Sternritter, but could guess that those were who she was seeing, especially since she did at least recognize Spitfire and several other Academy instructors among those boarding.

They had to wait for their turn, minutes tensely dripping by as they, along with other squads of cadets, were slowly moved forward until a pair of VTOLs became available for them. As they were shuffled up to the landing pad they were met by a number of Sternritter. Fleur De Lis looked like a hungry shark, eyes shining as she watched the cadets approach. Next to her Fleet Foot stood, eyes hidden behind mirror shade sunglasses. Twilight didn’t know Fleet Foot very well, as the instructor hadn’t been assigned to her group of Academy cadets. Swept back white hair contrasted with light blue skin, and Fleet Foot showed a casual stance, one hand on the hip of her white leather pants. She wore a similarly Quincy white bomber-style jacket.

There was one other Sternritter present, and Twilight blinked as her mother stepped towards her.

“Twilight.”

“Mother...?”

Soarin gave Twilight Velvet an awkward salute and stepped aside, joining Fleur and Fleet Foot as Velvet went up to her daughter. Twilight’s mother had a pensive look, glancing at the rest of Twilight’s squad briefly as if embarrassed to be doing this in front of them, but she then looked back to Twilight. She raised her hand as if to put it on Twilight’s shoulder in a motherly gesture, but then hesitantly lowered it and instead stood straighter and performed a simple salute.

“Take care of your squadmates and yourself, daughter.”

Confused, Twilight returned the salute, feeling a mixed storm of emotions. She hadn’t really talked to her mother much since... well since learning about her heritage as a Quincy and her decision to join the Vandenreich. Things had just been too awkward between them, and there had never seemed to be any time to talk things out. But after she’d managed to sort out her feelings with Cadence, Twilight realized she really needed to try and patch things up with her parents as well. But they were leaving to go to battle, and there wasn’t any more time right now.

“I will, mother,” she said, swallowing her feelings and meeting her mother’s gaze evenly. Twilight Velvet nodded, a hint of both pride and fear in her own eyes. She looked as if she had more she wanted to say, or to even give Twilight a quick embrace, but instead she finished her salute and then with a final nod to Twilight and her squad she turned and marched towards another VTOL, where Twilight could see Cadence was waiting. Cadence, even at a distance, managed to give Twilight a final wave before the doors to the VTOL closed on both her and Twilight’s mother.

“Okay, enough teary eyed farewells. Get loaded up, kids,” said Fleur De Lis with a heavy lick of her lips, “We’ve got Hollows to hunt.”

The cadets were broken into two groups of different squads, Fleet Foot going with one group onto one VTOL, while Soarin and Fleur De Lis loaded onto the next VTOL with Twilight’s squad and the other half of the cadets. The interior of the VTOLs passenger area was remarkably well lit and consisted of two rows of well padded seats with safety straps on either side of the wall, with another double sided row of seats built along the center, enough room for seating forty. There was a second deck with a see-through grating floor, where Twilight could see multiple doors that could open, presumably for Quincy to fire out of, or deploy from. The cockpit area was sealed off by thick metal doors from the passenger compartment.

As Twilight and her fellow cadets strapped in the loading doors started to close, and Twilight felt a strange feeling of being watched. Glancing towards the doors she saw, distantly on one of the fortress walls, a tall and dark figure watching her VTOL, or rather... watching her.

She couldn’t make out his face at such a distance, but somehow knew Sombra was nodding to her as her VTOLs engines revved up and the doors finally closed. As she felt the VTOL rise into the air to join its dozens of other brethren, she tried to still her fears. There certainly wasn’t any going back, now.

Episode 72: Opening Moves

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Episode 72: Opening Moves

An unending choir of hungry howls rippled across Las Noches, filling the air with unearthly song. Adagio did her best to drown it out with her pillows, but the constant drone of howling was impossible to entirely cancel out. As such sleep was minimal and irritation was high for the young Vasto Lorde. Retiring to her abode after the events of Thorax’s party had made the most sense, but there was little rest to be had with Las Noches packed nearly wall to wall with a teaming tide of Hollows called in by Lord Tirek’s war horns. They were out there, covering the vast sands of Las Noche’s interior in a rowdy, howling mass. If Adagio cared to she could glance out her room’s windows to see the thousands of Hollows scampering around in a carpet as far as her eye could see, with the towering Gillians like swaying algae rising from the masses.

Controlling so many Hollows and keeping them from devolving into a feeding frenzy upon each other was the work of the Espada, and the massive horde of Hollows was being divided up piece by piece as each Espada laid claim to a portion of the feral Hollows, often through sheer dominance of their reiatsu. She’d paid the work little mind, favoring getting what rest she could. Rumors had it that the Quincy would be attacking any day, perhaps even today, and she didn’t want to be caught without some proper beauty sleep.

Not that such was possible with all the damned racket!

When Adagio heard something land on the banister of her open window, she assumed it was yet another of the winged lesser Hollows peeking inside out of curiosity, so she didn’t even look up from her pillows or get out of bed before sending her tail out to slash at it.

She felt her tail be blocked by a hand, however, followed by Ember’s voice, “You’re one of those grouchy morning types, aren’t you?”

“Is it even morning?” Adagio groaned, rolling over in bed as she pulled her tail back. Ember hopped in through the window, rubbing her hand where she’d blocked the bladed fin of Adagio’s tail. Seeing the gesture Adagio muttered, “Sorry. Thought you were another small fry pecking at my window. They’ve been doing it all night.”

Ember shrugged, “No worries. Just reminds me that if I ever need to wake you up to do it at a distance. And yeah, it's morning, more or less. Who keeps a watch around here anyway?”

Adagio rose from her bed, rubbing the back of her neck and yawning, “Fair enough. So what brings you through my window? Any fallout from last night?”

“Nah,” Ember shook her head, “Not yet. Gilda won’t make a move too soon after getting chastised by her Espada. As for Garble...”

Ember licked her lips, rubbing her arms, “He’s why I’m here. We didn’t have time to talk much after everything went down last night, and I want to know what you did to him, Adagio. He’s acting way too subservient. I know you used your song powers, but just how much did you screw over his head?”

Standing up and stretching, arms languidly arcing over her head, Adagio said, “I didn’t hit him nearly as hard as you might think. All I did was plant the idea that by backing off he’d be earning your respect, and that he ought to keep an eye out for your safety when the Quincy attack.”

“Huh? Wait, why would he even care about that?” Ember asked with a confused tilt of her head, and Adagio’s lips quirked in amusement.

“Oh, you haven’t noticed? That he’s... into you?”

Ember’s head tilt only got more pronounced, “What?”

Adagio ran a hand through her hair, chuckling lightly, “Ember we’re going to have to do something about your perception skills. Look, don’t worry about it. Garble shouldn’t be much of a further threat, and I somehow doubt he’s going to figure into any future equations, outside of perhaps being a useful errand boy if he continues to behave himself. Its Gilda and Guto I’m concerned with now. Well, them and Grogar.”

A dark expression swept across her eyes, “And Chrysalis.”

Ember’s confusion about Garble gave way to a swift look of equal dourness, “Yeah, Chrysalis. Still can’t believe what she wants you to do. Are... are you sure we can even pull this off?”

“You could always back out, Ember. It's my task, not yours, and you don’t have to risk anything on my account,” Adagio said but Ember held up a hand before she was even done speaking.

“No, I’m in. One hundred percent. Just feels like a tall order, and if even one thing goes wrong, we’re both basically dead meat. Even my dad couldn’t protect us if we screw this up.”

“I’m equally dead if I don’t follow through, so its something of a moot point,” said Adagio, walking over to her window and peering outside. “Still, your concerns have merit. I’ve been thinking about our game plan, and as it turns out Thorax showed me a means to pull it off.”

“Thorax?” Ember frowned, then nodded thoughtfully, “Yeah, I guess that pans out. I mean, weird as the guy is, he’s still got to be loyal to Chrysalis, and probably knows what we’re doing for her. What exactly did he show you that’s gonna be of any help?”

“Question, have you have ever thought about where Las Noches gets its water from?” Adagio asked, and Ember’s face screwed up with confusion.

“Not really. I mean, water’s a nice luxury, but its not like we Hollows need it to survive.”

“Yes, but that doesn’t change that its available, if for no other reason than as you said, a luxury,” Adagio said, pointing downward at the floor, “And it all comes from below. A deep underground reservoir.”

“Yeah,” Ember nodded, “Dad’s got a well in back of his throne spire...” she blinked, “Waitasec, your lake...?”

“Bingo,” Adagio tapped her snout, “Its connected. Using that I can get anywhere I need to in Las Noches without being detected.”

“Well that’s handy. Problem, I can’t breathe underwater.”

“No worries, I can manipulate water to create air pockets. How do you think I kept Garble from drowning?”

“Okay, makes sense. How are we going to know where to go?” Ember asked, clawed fingers tapping on her arm, “There’s still a lot of holes in the plan.”

Adagio nodded at that, turning from the window to lean against the banister, “There’s no way to plan for what we have no way of knowing. When the battle begins we don’t know who’s going to be fighting where. It's possible we won’t even have an opening during the battle itself and will have to wait until it's over and strike during the aftermath. No matter how things develop, my plan is to use the advantage of those underground water tunnels to get to wherever we need to be. The key here is for us to stick close to each other, and be able to slip away when the opportunity presents itself.”

“Won’t Garble be a problem then? You know, if he’s staying near me the whole time we’re going to need a way to ditch him.”

“That won’t be an issue. If need be I can use my song on him again,” Adagio said, but anything further was interrupted by a shaking that reverberated through the floor and walls, causing both her and Ember to glance at each other with momentary confusion.

“What was that?” Ember said, even as the tremors were repeated with an accompanying echo of distant booms and crashes that sounded to Adagio like they were emanating from outside the fortress walls. She could only think of a handful of things this could possibly be, and she somehow doubted it was the boys downstairs getting rowdy again.

“Ember, is there a way to the top of the fortress walls?” she asked, voice now deathly serious. Ember gave a swift nod, already rushing for the door.

“Follow me.”

Out in the hallway they both saw a warily confused Dumbbell poking his head around the next turn, “Hey, what’s going on? You all feeling those shakes?”

“Get Score and Hoops, and prepare yourselves for a fight!” Commanded Adagio sharply, “I think we’ve got Quincy knocking at our doors.”

That got Dumbbell’s eyes to shoot wide and he scrambled away to go gather his two cohorts while Adagio and Ember swept past him to go down another bend in the hallway. Adagio’s territory essentially occupied an area right along the innermost portion of Las Noche’s south wall, west of the center. If they were being attacked from the south then those impacts had to be happening right outside!

“How did they get this close without being spotted? Didn’t Lord Tirek have scouts posted?” Adagio said as they hit a spiral stairwell going upwards.

“He did. They must have been overrun before they could get a warning out,” Ember said, face grim. Even as they went up the stairs the impacts got louder and the shaking that accompanied them more severe. This was followed by a blaring, deep and resounding cry from Las Noches’ war horns. Ember nodded at the sound.

“That’s the signal we’re under attack. Even if the rest of the fortress didn’t realize it yet, that should get everyone moving.”

At the top of the stairs was a sealed door that didn’t lead to the rooftop so much as it led into a bunker-like room with lines of small window slits showing the view outside of Las Noches. Here Adagio could hear the impacts more clearly now as a peppering of explosions, some close, some distant. Rushing to one of the open window slits she peer out to see what was happening.

At first she didn’t see much, but after a moment she saw streaks of fire trails, like distant lightning bugs at first, which rapidly grew with the accompanying shrieks of missiles as dozens of the projectiles smashed along Las Noches’ walls in fiery bursts. The massively thick stone walls were holding up under the barrage, showing some pockmarks from the hits but staying largely intact. Adagio strained to get a look at where the attacks were coming from and could only barely make out distant points of light on Hueco Mundo’s dark horizon. But there were many of them, and whatever they were, they were approaching quickly.

Ember was watching out the window as well and her eyes narrowed, “Guess this is how the Quincy announce their attacks these days. Never seen them actually roll right up on Las Noches like this.”

“Can those missiles even do anything?”

“To these walls? Not unless they got thousands more to throw at us. Nah, this isn’t the trying to breach the walls. This is them saying ‘Hi Arrancar, come out and play’.”

“And we’re going to, aren’t we?”

“You better damn well believe it!” Ember said with heat in her voice, “If we stay in here, they’ll get bored of poking at us and hit the wall with something harder. Might as well get out there and make them sorry they dragged their holier than thou asses to our doorstep. C’mon, let’s get to my dad. He’ll already be mobilizing the horde.”

Adagio gave a shallow nod and followed Ember back down the stairs, where they were soon joined by Dumbbell, Score, and Hoops, all three of which bore jittery looks as they filed in behind Adagio.

“Is it really the Quincy? Like, all of them?” Score asked with a nervous twitch.

“It certainly isn’t a tax audit,” Adagio replied with dry certainty, “You three just stick close to me and don’t do anything without my say so. Good help is hard enough to come by around here, I don’t need any of you getting separated and picked off.”

“What about those other two? You know, the fish-guy and the big dino?” asked Hoops, “They gonna be able to fight or what?”

That was a good question. Adagio had no intention of having Gaw or Di-Roy participating in this battle, given they were both still recovering, but she also had not given them explicit orders in regards to an attack on Las Noches. She doubted there was time to go to the Fourth’s tower and check up on them. She’d just have to hope they were smart enough to stay put. Or rather that Gaw was smart enough to stay put, and had the wherewithal to sit on Di-Roy if he got dumb and tried to head out to fight.

“They can take care of themselves,” was all she said, and hoped it was true.

----------

“Do you think we got their attention yet?” asked Coloratura with a sing song note of sarcasm in her voice as she draped herself off the wing of the Quincy fleet’s command VTOL, dangling her legs with lazy kicks as she watched the light show several miles ahead as hundreds of missiles detonated across Las Noches’ seemingly indomitable walls.

“I rather think that’s a moot question,” said another woman who stood next to the ethereal looking Coloratura. This woman was older, but hardly showed it in her own lithe dancer’s figure, light yellow skin contrasting with a head of curled neon blue hair that swayed down to her mid-back. She wore an odd and more dazzling version of a Quincy uniform, much as Coloratura did. Puffed out elbow poofs extended to lacy sleeves, and a slimming dress flared out to gold trimmed leaf-like petals along the edge of the dress, while an adornment ruffles went up her back and chest. All was capped off by a tall, white top hat she wore at a slight angle. Gold eyes, bearing long lashes and heavy eye-shadow, observed the bombardment with a hint of disdain, “Kind of a waste of a good light show. All we’re doing is rattling the hornet’s nest.”

“That’s the point, Sapphire. We want them to come out to us,” Night Light said, perched on a raised deck platform atop of the central fuselage of the command VTOL, looking through a pair of thick, digital binoculars that showed him a zoomed in view of the fortress and the missiles impacting it. “We’re not about to run out of missiles with so much reishi to refuel our ammo stores with, so we can keep this up for as long as it will take Tirek to respond. And he will, because even if this barrage can’t break his walls, this is a challenge he can’t afford to ignore.”

The missile barrage was stemming from the flights of VTOLs approaching Las Noches in formation. The pods on either wing could disgorge a steady stream of explosive warheads, fueled by internal mechanisms that converted raw, stored reishi particles into additional ammunition reloads for the launchers. They were firing from extreme range, well beyond the point of any effective accuracy, but Las Noches was such a large target it hardly mattered. They were also beyond the engagement range of the enemy’s Ceros, but that wouldn’t last much longer at the rate they were advancing.

Night Light glanced behind him. The command VTOL was nearly twice the size of the normal models, with a third deck dedicated solely to command-and-control with numerous communications and monitoring equipment. The wider wings allowed for additional weapons, while the broader top of the VTOL acted as an observation platform for not only command officers and Sternritter such as Night Light, but a high-backed throne from where His Majesty could also observe the battle.

“My King, shall I commence landing operations?”

Sombra nodded at Night Light’s words, making a small gesture, sweeping his hand out, “Begin deployment. Convey my words to every member of our army, Night Light.”

Night Light saluted, and closed his eyes as he concentrated upon his own unique power, the Schrift of ‘C’ that gave him his title as a Sternritter; the Command. Simple and yet wholly potent in a large scale battle such as this, the Command had many uses, one of which was the ability to link with the minds of every individual within an allied force to both witness and construct a full mental picture of the battlefield, but to also convey orders across all of those subjects at once.

Within moments his mind was linked to the hundreds of Quincy riding along in the large flotilla of VTOLs, as well as the advancing ranks of tanks and armored cars in the desert below. Each Quincy would feel Night Light’s power as the lightest of touches on their minds before Night Light’s voice spoke to them.

“Warriors of the Vandenreich, take heed for His Majesty, your King, has words for you all...” Night Light said, then looked to Sombra as he nodded, letting Sombra’s mind join the link so that when Sombra spoke, his voice reached every single Quincy through that link.

“Do you see it, my Quincy?” said Sombra in a low yet powerfully resonant tone, “Do you see the hovel before us, where our enemies lair like slinking rats? Are we coming upon it in secret? Do we ambush it in sudden silence to slaughter children? No, we come forth boldly, with the light of righteous fury heralding our arrival for every filth stained, murderous Hollow to see and hear our coming!”

He rose from his throne and began a slow, deliberate march across the shining steel roof of the command VTOL, reaching the front and flinging his hand out as if to grasp the distant, fire engulfed walls of Las Noches, his voice rising to a rich bellow.

“Within those bloodstained walls are the very beasts whose existence plagues the souls of all mankind, and they think themselves safe in their multitudes, safe in their corrupt power. Today, my Quincy, we shall rip asunder that fragile illusion for them. We shall educate this rabble of fallen spirits on the error of their judgement, the profound misstep they made in assaulting and butchering our children.”

He drew forth his sword, the thick black steel reflecting the pale light of Hueco Mundo’s crescent moon as he pointed it at the approaching Hollow fortress.

“My Quincy, my children, I only ask one thing of you; to fight as your hearts dictate. It is not my fury the Hollows must fear, but yours. Let them feel the wrath I know courses through your veins! From lowest soldat to highest Sternritter, all of you bear the blood and pride of the Quincy! Does it burn as hotly as my own? Do you feel the righteous heat welling inside you? That is justice, my children. Let that fire burn within you as you bring that justice to bear upon the monsters before us. For the fallen. For the Quincy!”

Even without Night Light’s power conveying the response to him Sombra would have sensed the thunderous reply of cheers and stomping feet from countless of his Quincy, and Night Light himself gave an approving nod as he settled the link and proceeded to start directing the landing process. Squadrons peeled off from the formation, beginning to deploy the troops on the sands below.

“Well said, My King,” said Sapphire Shores, tapping a finger to her lips, “I can feel the passion burning brightly across our little stars. Why even my heart is pumping a bit faster now.”

‘Little stars’ was her pet name for the vast majority of the Quincy, and Sombra ignored most of Sapphire’s more eccentric comments usually. He turned a glance at her, creeping a small smirk onto his face, “I don’t speak idle words. I want all of you to give this everything you have. No slacking off, Sapphire. You too, Coloratura.”

“Why do I get lumped in with her?” Coloratura said with a huff, rising to her feet and jutting a chin at Sapphire Shores, “I take everything seriously.”

Sapphire rolled her eyes, “We know. That’s the problem. Well My King, shall I stay by your side? A King should remain close to his prophetess, shouldn’t he?”

He waved her off, eyes fixed upon Las Noches. He could sense the growing waves of Hollow reiatsu within. The fortress was fit to burst with countless Hollows, a veritable ocean of them with the large sharks of the Espada swimming among the shoals. It wouldn’t take them long to respond to the attack on their walls.

“I want you and Coloratura to focus your efforts upon Chrysalis, should she appear,” he said, “The Quintessence and the Octave combined can keep her pinned down while Night Light directs things from here. Tirek, of course, is mine when he shows himself.”

Sapphire Shores, Sternritter ‘Q’ the Quintessence, and Countess Coloratura, Sternritter ‘O’ the Octave both saluted and bowed to him at the same time. Neither looked particularly pleased to be working together, but Sombra knew both women were more than capable of fighting as a team despite their rivalry over trivial matters of music. Perhaps dealing with their occasional childish escapades was his punishment for making two pop stars Sternritter, but talent was talent, and whatever their side hobbies were both were counted among the stronger tier of his Sternritter, and some of the few he’d trust to keep the Second Espada occupied without getting themselves killed.

“My King,” Night Light drew his attention, gesturing for Sombra to look towards Las Noches’ walls. Sombra took the binoculars from Night Light, not that he really needed them to sense what was happening.

While Las Noches has largely flat, featureless walls, there were in fact numerous places where doorways both vast and small could open both within the wall itself and from the numerous large, square stone openings dotting the sands near the walls. The Quincy bombardment had gone unchallenged for several minutes now, while the VTOLs swooped down in teams to start deploying the soldats in swift moving squads that started taking defensive positions among the nearest dunes.

Now the walls of Las Noches boiled with a wave of motion. From dozens of exits swarms of Hollows emerged like the sluices gates had opened on a dam of brackish sewage. Lesser Hollows in their multitudes of thousands poured out in a howling, stampeding mass. They were joined by hundreds more of the tall, uniform black behemoth forms of Gillians, trudging with wide steps amid the thousands of their lesser brethren. Fewer in number but still noteworthy were the large and varied forms of Adjuchas-class Hollows, commanding their lesser brethren like sergeants, whipping the lesser Hollows into a higher frenzy.

Sapphire Shores made a face of distaste, brushing off her dress as if the Hollows were already getting it dirty, “What a rabble. I do hope Tirek doesn’t believe we’ll be satisfied crushing these dregs.”

Coloratura gave her companion an eye rolling look, “Of course not. Aren’t you the one who goes on about being a prophetess? It doesn’t take any fortune telling to see this is nothing more than a sacrificial offering to distract us and test our defenses. The Arrancar will wait until we’re busy slaughtering this lot before attacking.”

“Which is why we must appear to take the bait,” said Sombra, glancing at Night Light, “Tell Filthy Rich to begin with the fortifications, and Shining Armor to deploy his Bastion. Signal all forces, ‘engage at will’!”

----------

On the ground hundreds of Quincy soldats waited among the dunes, their white clad forms blending in with Hueco Mundo’s pale sands. Cloaks rustled stiffly as the soldats tensed, preparing themselves as the Hollow horde drew ever closer. Their faces were hidden behind the goggles and gas masks of their uniforms, but every man and woman wore expressions of varied tension, some with eager bloodlust and need for revenge, otherwise with a more solemn visage.

For many of these soldiers the Hollows represented the pinnacle of the spirit realm’s hypocrisy and unfairness. A ‘natural’ order that allowed human souls to become corrupted into bestial monsters that fed on other souls. A vast majority of the Quincy soldats had lost friends, lovers, and children at one point or another to the war with the Hollows. Quincy may have detested Soul Reapers, but that was nothing compared to their hatred of Hollow-kind.

As the wall of oncoming Hollows got within five hundred yards a shining beacon of light cut across the sky, an arrow of potent reishi loosed from the bow of Shining Armor himself. The soldats sent up a cheer as Shining Armor’s arrow burst in the air three hundred meters away and the light from it expanded into a brilliant white dome that encapsulated the Quincy army in its protective barrier. The power of the Bastion set, Shining Armor descended from the VTOL he rode upon to land amid the center of one of the Quincy company formations, where Filthy Rich waited.

“You left enough room at the bottom for them to slip through, yes? We can keep the Gillians out, but His Majesty wants us to have target practice on the small ones,” Filthy Rich said, and Shining Armor nodded.

“They’ve got about ten feet of clearance. The Bastion will absorb any incoming Ceros for now. Better get to giving our soldiers something to fight from, Filthy. The first wave of guests are already past the welcome mat.”

Indeed the Hollow horde passed beneath the opening that Shining Armor had left in the Bastion’s dome. The Gillians were too large to pass through, and in frustration started howling in rage and battering against the gleaming white wall, only to find the energy of it burning them as they made contact. Some fired Cero beams upon the dome, but the Bastion absorb the blows readily enough. It was just the lesser Hollows and some of the smaller Adjuchas getting through, now, still closing with the soldat formations.

Filthy Rich cracked an easy grin and pulled back the wrists of his uniform like a magician about to go to work. His silver Quincy cross dangled from his right wrist, and it flared with silver-blue light as Filthy touched the sands beneath his feet with the palm of his hand. Suddenly a ring of blue reishi spread out around him, until he stood upon a disc of light that sand tendrils into the ground.

Shining Armor watched as Sternritter ‘M’, the Mason, went to work.

Within moments the sand dunes beneath the feet of the waiting lines of hundreds of soldats gleamed with ethereal reishi light, and suddenly thick metal walls were rising from the ground in multi-layered tiers. Prepared for this, the soldats weren’t tossed aside, but instead were readily and easily able to find new perches on fortified metal ramparts as these new fortifications rose from Hueco Mundo’s desert. In front of the walls the tendrils of cobalt light spread out, converting more sand into constructs; long, spike-lined pits and other jagged metal obstacles that barred the path of the advancing Hollows.

This was Filthy Rich’s Schrift, the Mason, in action. While all Quincy learned the techniques for manipulating spirit particles form their weapons and alchemy, and a larger scale version of those arts was used in building vehicles like the VTOLs and tanks, Filthy Rich’s power took the concept to a much higher level. The Mason could rapidly deconstruct and reconstruct inanimate reishi particles on a large scale, and with remarkable strength and precision.

That was how, inside of a mere ten seconds, the battlefield was transformed with the addition of massive fortified walls that the numerous Quincy companies now stood upon facing the Hollow horde while the Hollows suddenly found themselves struggling to get through an abrupt field of deadly traps and obstacles.

Wiping sweat from his brow, Filthy Rich stood, still grinning, “Whew, don’t tell your father, boy, but I’m getting a bit too old to be doing so much at once.”

“I’m sure my father wouldn’t agree. You’ve done a fine job. Now let’s get up there before the regular soldats get to have all the fun,” Shining Armor said, leaping up towards the top of the new fortified wall. Filthy Rich joined him after a moment, only pausing to glance back to the south with a faintly worried expression.

Upon the wall, which consisted of three stepped tiers, each wide enough to hold hundreds of Quincy, Shining Armor could see the mass of incoming Hollows tearing through the obstacles Filthy Rich had put in their way. They were tearing themselves apart to get through, but their sheer mass of numbers was more than enough that before long those behind could walk over the bodies of their fellows to bypass spiked pits or razor wire.

But the horde was slowed, and now were perfect targets. Already First Class soldats were calling orders to form bows and commence firing, and Shining Armor joined the ranks alongside Filthy Rich, each summoning their own bows. Their bows stood out uniquely among the more common, plain energy bows most the soldats formed. Shining Armor’s with its wide curved spar and the shield connected to its center, and Filthy Rich’s which was less a ‘bow’ and more a long barreled, old fashioned musket of ashen colored wood and silver filigree.

As one the Quincy took aim, and as one unleashed their wrath. A incandescent tidal wave of reishi arrows blasted into the Hollow ranks with unmatched fury. Hollows fell by the score, their bodies pierced by dozens of blue reishi bolts. Each individual soldat could maintain a high rate of fire, simply drawing out more reishi to repeatedly shoot without needing to concern themselves with running out of ammunition. Aiming was hardly a necessity, for the Hollows were packed so densely that it was near impossible to miss.

The damage to the Hollow horde was further compounded by the VTOLs that were still airborne bringing their weapon pods to bear and raining down a stream of missiles and gunfire that strafed across the Hollows.

Then there were the Sternritter themselves.

Shining Armor’s bow let loose a white volley of arrows that arched upwards and rather than fall among the Hollows, they instead burst in mid-air. The power of the Bastion caused each bursting arrow to form a wide pillar of light, each one trapping dozens of Hollows apiece and incinerating them with a cascade of reishi within each barrier.

The musket Filthy Rich held blasted out a silver reishi bullet that then rapidly multiplied into a bush-shot style storm of flechettes, hundreds of them that cut out a large swath of the advancing Hollow horde on the first shot. And unlike a normal musket Filthy Rich didn’t need a complex reloading process, as his own reishi created a fresh bullet for him to fire a moment later, cutting down even more Hollows.

They were not the only Sternritter present upon the wall, either. Appearing next to them was the broad, heavy set figure of Gladmane, his perfectly coiffed hair barely stirring as he twirled in his hand a large gold chain bearing his own Quincy cross.

“Hello gents, don’t suppose you mind me cutting in on the action a little here?”

Filthy Rich shrugged between musket shots “Not at all.”

“Thank you very much,” Gladmane said and twirled his chain and cross up into the air. It shined with golden light and formed into a gold plated, long barreled revolver. The revolver still bore a bow of reishi energy sprouting from its barrel, but otherwise looked very much like an ornate hand cannon that would’ve fit right in with some old cops and robbers action flick. Gladmane caught it with a stylish ease and fired from the hip, fanning the trigger with six rapid shots.

Each individual ‘bullet’ didn’t at first seem to do anything as they landed among the Hollows, until a split second later when sudden deep craters formed as if giant fists were crushing down the desert and Hollows alike in wide chunks. This was the power of Sternritter ‘W’, the Weight. Shining Armor knew well that Gladmane could change the gravity in an area to either crush opposition to dust, reverse gravity to send them flying out of the atmosphere, or anything in between. The total area he could affect was limited, but even so it was a deadly power when used right.

“Got to love the simplicity of Hollows,” Gladmane said, giving his handiwork an appreciative look, “They ain’t much for subtly.”

“I wouldn’t drop our guard,” Shining Armor said, “They outnumber us by a wide margin, and this here is just the appetizer.”

As if the horde was eager to prove Shining Armor’s point the Hollows began their retaliation in earnest. Despite the withering hail of fire coming from the Quincy the hundreds of slain Hollows barely slowed the multitude of thousands pressing towards the fortifications. While many of the lesser Hollows lacked a means of ranged attack, many others were more than capable of returning fire at their hated Quincy enemies. Some Hollows sprayed globs of acid or poison from open maws, while others could shoot lethal spines or spikes from their hides. Others still had more eccentric powers, disgorging swarms of insects or worms from their bodies that exploded upon contact with their prey, or others that could shriek out waves of devastating sound.

There were plenty of flying Hollows that went after the VTOLs, swarming towards the craft like flocks of demented birds, and while the turrets on the VTOLs cut down dozens upon dozens, it was impossible to get them all and some Hollows started trying to chew or claw their way through VTOL armor.

The Adjuchas-class Hollows were far more dangerous than their lesser kin, and were smart enough to hang back from the vanguard, instead firing upon the fortifications or VTOLs with well aimed Cero beams. Shining Armor saw one such beam strip a VTOL in half and sent it tumbling from the air in a burning wreak, while another beam blasted away a portion of the fortification walls, taking several soldats with it.

If he wanted to keep casualties light, Shining Armor would need to focus most of his attention on defense. Of course his father was already well ahead of him.

Shining, we’ve snagged enough of them in our net, so go ahead and close the Bastion. I’ve got Jet Set ready to be the hammer to your anvil. Keep the Adjuchas off our VTOLs in the meantime.

His father’s voice spoke clear and calmly in his mind through the power of the Command, and Shining Armor responded both mentally and with a quiet whisper, “Understood dad, I’m on it. How’s Twilight?”

She’s fine. The cadets just landed. Keep your mind focused on the fight, son. This is just the opening move. The real fight hasn’t even started yet.

That much was obvious. So far it was just the easily disposable Hollows being thrown at them, and while a few Quincy soldats were being injured or killed here and there the Hollow horde had hardly made a dent in them yet. But Shining Armor knew the Arrancar would soon be joining the fray.

As per his father’s orders Shining Armor closed the openings at the bottom of the Bastion, effectively cutting the Hollow horde in half and separating those still pouring in from outside from those now trapped inside the Bastion’s massive dome. Now the inside became a true killing field, with the soldats and Sternritter redoubling their fire into the mass that was now just a few dozen meters from reaching the wall.

Shining Armor focused his efforts on defending his people from the Adjuchas’ Ceros, firing his own arrows out to create small individual barriers of light to cancel out the destructive crimson beams. Meanwhile Gladmane and Filthy Rich both continued to destroy Hollows en masse, Filthy Rich going so far as to use the Mason to forge all new spike fields to impale Hollows trying to climb the walls.

Then at the back of the cut off horde, near the wall of the Bastion, a sudden and massive wave of glowing blue tendrils appeared, dozens of meters wide. The tendrils acted like living things, spearing into, sweeping aside, or coiling around to crush Hollows with impunity. At the center of this moving wave of reishi tendrils was a handsome, gray skinned man in a sharp Quincy uniform and black hair tucked into his military cap. His bow was shaped much like a circular halo from which sprung the dozens of large reishi tendrils, like the arms of a vast underwater monstrosity.

Which was appropriate for Jet Set, Sternritter ‘K’, the Kraken.

Within the area that Jet Set cleared out several VTOLs managed to swoop in and land, unloading squads of soldats to take up advancing positions around Jet Set’s tendrils as they fired into the backs of the Hollow horde. This assault from behind threw the Hollows into confusion, stemming the tide even further. Shining Armor imagined they’d be able to clean up this portion of the Hollow horde in short order, but he didn’t feel any boost of confidence from that.

As far as they knew this was exactly what Tirek wanted them to be doing. They’d taken his bait, hook, line, and sinker. It was only a question of whether by doing so they’d effectively dupe Tirek into taking their bait in turn.

And to compound Shining Armor’s worries, his sister was out there somewhere observing this whole battle, and he wasn’t there to guard her. On top of that the love of his life was tasked with finding and killing one of the Espada during this whole battle, and his mother was on that very same team. Ironically for the one member of the Sparkle family on the front line of the battle, he was least worried about his own safety. And much like his father before him, Shining Armor was starting to get a very bad feeling...

----------

The scenes of battle played out on the clear image being projected by a large device being carried by a pair of misshapen half-Arrancar under Grogar’s direction. The elderly Espada stood before his fellow Espada, who in turn occupied the wide exterior walkway atop the wall extending from Las Noches’ central tower to its distant outer walls. On either side of the interior wall, waiting for their leaders’ commands, scores of Arrancar stood in silence. The screen Grogar’s machine projected had been large enough for all to see, and now Tirek’s voice spoke loud enough for all to hear.

“A pitiful display. They come to attack the greatest bastion of Hollow might in existence, and this is what they muster to battle us?”

Every inch of his imposing red figure bristling with mirth, Tirek strode across the wall, looking out at the gathered Arrancar, then back at the other Espada.

“Perhaps in the spirit of sport we should only attack one at a time, to give our Quincy guests a fair chance?”

There was a chorus of dark chuckles from the gathering of warriors, while among the Espada several laughed out loud, such as Guto and Torch, while others remained impassive, such as the exceedingly silent Lament. Hydia, one of the ones laughing, elbowed the Fourth Espada jokingly.

“Hey, lighten up you morose nutter. You’re finally out of your man-cave and you’re going to spend the whole time looking like a walking can of depression?”

“Do not touch me,” was the terse reply.

“Pfft, heard that before.”

“Be kind, Hydia,” said Catrina with a smokey tone to her voice as she eyed Lament up and down, “The poor man has had little time to adjust being out among his peers. Dispense with the jibes for once, as we do have somewhat more pressing matters to attend do. Don’t we, Lord Tirek?”

The First Espada and undisputed ruler of Las Noches smiled with ruthless and hungry light blazing in his pitiless yellow eyes, “We do indeed. The Quincy have stepped into our trap, now we must close it around them.”

Torch’s massive frame stepped forward, huge axe already in his meaty fists, “I’m more than ready to split some Quincy skulls! That said, seems likely they know we’ve got a trap ready for them. What’s our countermove?”

“Sombra will expect us to try and surround his forces while they’re busy slaughter our weaker pawns,” Tirek said, gesturing at the screen still showing the images of the battle between the lesser Hollows and the Quincy, “He’ll have another force ready to sweep in on us once we’re joined in battle, hoping in turn to flank us. That is why when we attack it will be with only half of us.”

Guto bristled slightly at that, “And who receives the honor of being in on the attack and who will be stuck twiddling their thumbs...hrrk...”

His grunt was the result of Tirek turning his eyes towards Guto and exerting a crushing hammer of spiritual pressure that choked off the Sixth Espada’s question as Guto struggled to remain standing under the wave of unimaginably dense reiatsu.

“Whomever I choose, with no argument. Fortunately for you, Guto, I’m aware how ill suited you are towards any task that requires patience, so you shall be joining the initial attack, as shall Torch, Hydia, and Lament.”

Guto accepted that with a gruff nod, while Hydia made a more sour face.

“Aw, Groggykins isn’t going to be out there having fun alongside me?” at Tirek’s look, shortly followed by Grogar making a small choking sound in the background, Hydia quickly raised her hands, “Oh I’m joking, Tirek, you know that. I wouldn’t want poor Grogster to strain himself against those nasty Quincy. No fears, my honeybear, I shall slay them all in the name of... I don’t know, love or something like that. Is mild lust a good reason for slaughter? I think so!”

Tirek pinched the bridge of his nose, eyes closed as he said, “Do as you will, as long as you kill Quincy in the process your motivations don’t concern me.”

“Noticed you said half of us are going out there first,” said Torch, “But you listed off four of us.”

“The fifth is myself,” Tirek said, “A necessity, given that their so-called ‘King’ is with them. Sombra will be mine to deal with while you handle his lesser servants. Once the Quincy spring whatever counter-trap they have planned for us, that will be when Chrysalis shall take Smooze and Catrina and launch a counter of their own.”

All eyes turned to Chrysalis, who stood with regal and predatory eagerness, like a wolf that’d just found the gate to the sheep pen left hanging open. She licked her lips, a throaty purr on her lips as she said, “You always give me the most enjoyable tasks, Tirek. I love surprises, especially when I’m the one giving them. Oh, and I get to work with Catrina, what fun. Do try to keep pace, dear, I’d hate for some Quincy harlot to get a lucky hit in on you.”

Catrina bristled but controlled herself quickly, putting on a smile of frozen honey, hiding her face partially behind her metal war fan, “To you as well, Chrysalis. It would be tragic anything happened to that perfect face of yours.”

“You think it perfect? Such a complement, you’re going to make me blush, little Cat,” Chrysalis said, laughing heartily while Catrina continued to grit her teeth in a snarling smile.

“We are wasting time,” Lament’s cold voice cut across the conversation, “Our own kind are slaughtered while we talk.”

“Trash,” said Guto, gesturing at the screen, “Lesser Hollows and Gillians. A few Adjuchas. All disposable while they lull the Quincy into a false sense of accomplishment. I’m more curious what Grogar and Squirk’s role will be in all this.”

“Grogar will be on reserve in case any Quincy do penetrate to Las Noches’ interior. Squirk’s task is to coordinate the movement of our forces with his Garganta, which is another reason I want Grogar here as well. He can continue to monitor the battle and provide Squirk the information needed to place his Gargantas exactly where they will be most effective,” Tirek said, glancing at Squirk, who puffed out his chest at the sense of importance he felt at being the keystone of the battle plan.

“It's my pleasure, Lord Tirek,” Squirk said, “just give the word and you’ll have all the portals you need.”

“Then let us begin. You won’t be able to penetrate the space beyond the barrier one of Sombra’s so-called ‘Sternritter’ has erected, but that’s no matter...” Tirek’s scarlet arms flexed as he reached behind his back and drew forth the massive, gold hilted claymore that was his Zanpaktou. Fully drawn one could see the blade itself was edged in gold, while the core remained black as obsidian glass. The gesture of drawing his blade alone exuded a wave of power from the First Espada, and all the hundreds of gathered Arrancar warriors bowed their heads in respect, reverence, or simple fear.

Tirek grinned, the gold iris of his eyes filling with infectious confidence, his voice a gravely promise. “That supposed ‘Bastion’ will not withstand me.”

----------

Adagio stood among the ranks of Arrancar that served Torch, and while she kept one steady eye on the meeting of the Espada taking place up on the wall leading from the central tower, she was also paying attention to the gathering of Hollows around her. They were grouped in loose clusters, each one clearly serving their individual Espada. Torch’s people were easy enough to spot from their general rowdy appearances, and the fact that many of them sported the draconic horns, frills, or faint scales.

She saw scores of the strange masked warriors that served Smooze standing in eerily stock still rows. Beyond them was a group of nearly a hundred Arrancar who had to serve Guto, since Gilda was at the very head of the ranks. Unlike Torch’s somewhat disorganized horde, the warriors of Guto stood in well organized blocks of six by six. Somebody apparently was a bit obsessed with their Espada number. Adagio didn’t miss the glare Gilda shot her way when she saw Adagio looking towards her. Adagio just blew the irritable woman a cheeky kiss, daring her to try anything here and now. Gilda just scoffed and looked away.

“Man, she hates you,” Ember said, and not far away Garble grumbled.

“Gee, wonder why.”

“You still talking?” Adagio asked, and Garble shut up.

“This is nuts. Never seen everyone, like, literally everyone in Las Noches gathered up like this,” Dumbbell said, shading his eyes as he looked out across the length of the wall, “Look at them! How many of this weird fuzzballs does Lady Catrina have?”

He was referring to the hundreds of short, unusual white furry Hollows that Adagio wasn’t even sure were Arrancar. With beady, glowing red eyes peering from their fuzzy faces, the squat creatures had Hollow holes in their seemingly formless bodies, but she saw no Zanpaktou or other indicators of them being Arrancar. Yet this ‘Bushwoolie’ tribe served Catrina exclusively. The only Arrancar among them was Rep, who gave Adagio a slight nod of acknowledgement but nothing else.

“At least Hydia’s host is waaaaaay over there away from us. You can smell them from here, and I don’t wanna know what they’re like up close,” said Hoops, and Adagio glanced towards the far end of the gathered Espada hordes. There she saw perhaps a couple dozen of Arrancar. To a one they all seemed misshapen in some way, with either withered or enlarged limbs, strangely shaped heads, giant bodies that were still somehow asymmetrical, or otherwise seemingly just borderline humanoid in shape.

Adagio shrugged, “Their appearance or smell is irrelevant to whether they can fight. Besides, I can appreciate that Hydia doesn’t seem to care about form so much as function. Shows she’s practical.”

“I also hear she’s sweet on Grogar,” said Ember, and Adagio blanched.

“Well, no accounting for taste,” she said, suppressing an urge to gag. She looked towards the opposite end, where among the largest gatherings of Arrancar was located. These Arrancar were notable in the fact that whether they be short or tall, male or female, each and every single one of them had onyx black skin that matched that of their Espada, Chrysalis. At the head of that horde she spotted Thorax, who true to character was relaxed in his stance with his hands clasped behind his head as he happily chatted with a tall Arrancar next to him. This man was like looking at a masculine mirror opposite of Thorax, his towering form shaped like a carved, black Adonis of muscle that was more lean and finely toned more than just bulging. A square jawed face held deep purple eyes and a wild crest of red and black stripped hair fell down to his shoulders.

Between that man’s pure testosterone appearance and Thorax’s more ethereal and feminine handsomeness, Adagio had to admit she wouldn’t mind getting that pair alone sometime...

Ugh, I must be getting stressed if I’m letting myself get distracted with those kind of thoughts. Although those two aren’t too shabby to look at. Bah, focus Adagio Dazzle, you have work to do.

“Seems like things are getting started,” she said as she saw the Espada had broken into two groups, with Tirek gathering with Torch, Lament, Hydia, and Guto.

Squirk moved to the side of the wall, joined by Grogar and his pair of deformed servant Arrancar who were carrying that projector device. Adagio couldn’t make out much of the battle being displayed by the screen, but it looked to her like the unfortunate lesser Hollows that had been sent out not so long ago were getting handily demolished. She imagined that was all part of Tirek’s plan.

Now she had to see if the next move he made would make her task more or less difficult. As if her thoughts drew the Second Espada’s attention Chrysalis gave Adagio the briefest of smirking glances, and Adagio cringed.

Yeah, I haven’t forgotten, you damned hag. I’ll keep my end of the bargain, don’t you worry.

One by one the Espada who’d be sallying forth first leaped from the wall and landed before their gathered forces. Torch shook the ground with his landing as he turned and swept his axe out to address his horde with a wide, fang filled grin.

“You slayers ready to spill some Quincy blood!? Finish the job we started!?”

Deep throated roars and cheers was accompanied by dozens of Zanpaktou being drawn with a clamor of steel. Adagio, figuring she might as well play her part and appear enthused, summoned her trident and raised it in the air alongside the numerous Zanpaktou, though she refrained from making any noise. She was too busy calculating. Squirk was remaining on the wall, and closed his eyes and concentrated, beginning to create dozens of Garganta portals all at once in front of the gathered Arrancar hordes.

“He’s staying here...along with Grogar...” Adagio muttered, and Ember leaned towards her.

“We figured he would, but Grogar is a complication, isn’t he?”

Adagio’s eyes narrowed, “Not if something, or someone, distracts him at the right time.”

“Any ideas?” Ember whispered, even as Torch started to lead the horde through their own set of Garganta portals.

“Oh, a few,” Adagio replied, but she said no more. Not only because Garble and her own three stooges were too close to risk much further talk about things she didn’t want any of them involved in, but because there was no more time for discussion. The hordes of Arrancar, both Torch’s and the many others that were being sent forth as the vanguard to face the Quincy, were pouring through the Garganta portals. Beyond them would be a near instant trek across the Precipice Realm, then straight into the threshold of battle.

A battle Adagio fully intended to ensure she and her people survived.

----------

As the hordes poured through the portals, Chrysalis walked casually away from the other Espada remaining behind. She watched with keen eyes shining with anticipation as she watched her new favorite little toy vanish through the Garganta amid Torch’s horde, the loyal dragon-girl by her side. If Adagio wasn’t killed, she was going to be so much fun to keep teasing and playing with. Chrysalis hadn’t been this happy to find a new toy since she’d stumbled across Luna and Celestia all those centuries ago.

She passed by Squirk, who was concentrating so hard on his Gargantas he didn’t pay her any mind. Well enough, Squirk was a tragedy in action. So very, very talented at one or two things, but apocalyptically lacking in all other areas. A shame.

Grogar turned a flicker of a glance towards her as she stood beside him, making a show of paying attention to the projected screen of the battle with the Quincy.

“I see you didn’t take my gift,” he said with a dusty chuckle, “Who did you foist it on as a test subject?”

“My sweet, loyal Pharynx,” she said, “He’s always been the most... straightforward of my children.”

“Ruthless as ever,” Grogar commented with an amused ghost of a smile. Chrysalis’ eyes narrowed dangerously.

“Only if your ‘gift’ doesn’t work like its supposed to. I trust you have fail safes in place if it doesn’t. I might be rather put out if you turned out to be that stupid.”

“As stupid as one who plays both sides against the middle and continues to think she’ll escape the notice of others?” he asked, and at her acidic look he just laughed in a disarming fashion, “Relax, my ‘Queen’. I know which horse to back in this race. I have since the day you first arrived in Las Noches. No need for us to nettle each other so. Let’s just... enjoy the show, shall we?”

Smiling as thin as a sliver of glass, Chrysalis watched the screen as the battle unfolded, “Yes, let’s.”

Episode 73: Fires of War

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Episode 73: Fires of War

A cold sense of sickness ran its claws over Twilight’s guts as she observed the unfolding carnage with as close to a detached frame of mind as she could muster. Yet no matter how hard she tried to maintain an analytical mindset, her heart kept clenching every time she saw a streaking, crimson Cero beam smash into the fortifications that had seemingly miraculously sprang up for the Quincy army to use. Practically speaking she knew the Hollows presently engaging the Quincy forces were too weak to pose a serious threat, and that her family were all exceptionally powerful Quincy, but the fear for their safety was a hard instinct to kick.

“Wow, will you look at them go at it?” said the impressed, shockingly easy going Indigo Zap as she shaded her eyes to peer at the battle taking place about a kilometer distant. “There’s gotta be tens of thousands of Hollows out there getting their butts whupped.”

“I wouldn’t take this lightly, Indigo,” said Sunny Flare, her own hands clenching nervously as she paced behind them, “There’s enough Hollows out there that some of them could easily come our way.”

“Wish they would, then we’d have something to do other than watch,” said the other girl with a smirk that only partially served to hide the nervousness bubbling in Indigo’s eyes, her hands playing around the dark blue metal of her bow.

The rest of the squad was nearby, all of the girls sticking close as they stood at the rim of a dune stretching along the edge of the slope that led down to the lake, which stretched behind them in its vastness. The other cadet squads were similarly stationed behind dunes much like Twilight’s squad was. The regular Quincy soldats accompanying them were keeping watch at regular intervals, while the three Sternritter in chrage of their protection remained near the center of the group, standing atop the middle most dune, deep in hushed conversation. Twilight couldn’t make out what they were saying, but Fleur De Lis looked agitated, while Soarin and Fleetfoot seemed to be trying to keep the other Sternritter calm.

“She really wants to join the fight.”

Twilight looked over her shoulder to see Sugarcoat was standing just a few paces behind her, arms crossed and her visor-covered gaze focused on the three Sternritter.

“Fleur De Lis?” Twilight asked.

“Yes,” Sugarcoat tapped her visor, “This thing is pretty handy. Can’t hear them any more than you, but I can read their lips.”

“Greeeaaat,” drawled Sour Sweet, who was cradling her large crossbow as she glared towards the distant battle as if trying to repel the Hollows with sheer bad attitude, “So one of the people in charge of protecting us is a battle-crazy psycho, and one of our squatmates has assassins after her. Could this get any w-”

Lemon Zest zipped over and clamped a hand over Sour Sweet’s mouth, rolling her eyes, “Geeze, Sour, are you totally not genre savvy or what? You don’t say stuff like that unless you’re asking for trouble.”

Sour Sweet yanked Lemon Zest’s hand off her mouth with a scowl, “Asking for trouble? Are you blind!? Look at where we are!” She flailed one arm around them, forehead breaking out with stressed veins.

Twilight couldn’t blame Sour Sweet’s stress. They were closer to the battle than she’d have imagined. The VTOLs carrying the cadets had landed right along the edge of the lake. The sleek vehicles remained there, right up against the lapping dark waters. They were southeast of the large wall fortification that had been created from what Twilight assumed was one of the Sternritter’s Schrifts, and at a kilometer distance the battle taking place felt uncomfortably close.

Her brother’s gleaming white barrier encased the whole area, including the spot the cadets were deployed at. Twilight could see the partially translucent wall of white energy extending over a small portion of the lake next to where they were. It was some comfort to see the power of the Bastion at work, yet with Hollows already within the barrier Twilight could hardly feel relaxed. She wasn’t sure what tactical purpose allowing any of the Hollows inside the barrier served, but then again she was woefully lacking in military knowledge. Something she’d have to fix someday soon, assuming she survived this. However, her best guess as to why the battle plan had involved allowing some Hollows inside the barrier was in order to thin their numbers in a controlled manner that didn’t leave the Quincy forces too vulnerable.

Twilight was just worried some stray Hollows might end up coming their way. With so many thousands out there, a portion of them capable of flight, it seemed a likely possibility.

In fact, even as she had that thought, she could see a portion of flying Hollows break through the screening force of VTOLs in the air and start to swoop in their direction.

“Look lively cadets,” called one of the soldats watching over them, Spoiled Rich if Twilight as remembering the name correctly, “Seems as if you might get some target practice after all.”

However before even one cadet could so much as begin to aim their bows there was a billowing gust of wind that blasted around them as Fleur De Lis took to the air with one prodigious leap. The advancing flock of lesser Hollows didn’t stand the remotest chance. Fleur didn’t even bother to use her bow, instead sweeping the Hollows out of the sky with a barrage of wind blades summoned forth with a simple rake of her hand, the pressurized air cutting dozens of Hollows in half in a single blow.

As those bodies, or rather body parts, rained down to the sands, Fleur De Lis flipped her hair and snorted in disgust, landing back amid the cadets and giving Spoiled Rich a sharp look. “Don’t encourage the kids to fight. His Majesty ordered us to protect them, and that is what we shall do, even from flotsam like this.”

Spoiled Rich’s face was unreadable behind her soldat gas mask, but she nodded with stiff shoulders, “Yes, of course.”

Twilight frowned slightly, caught between being relieved that even someone like Fleur De Lis seemed to be taking the task of protecting the cadet’s seriously, and irritated that she didn’t have an opportunity to field test the Hexenfaust.

“Whew,” Sour Sweet wiped her brow, “Maybe with the Sternritter around we don’t have anything to worry about?”

As if the girl’s words acted as some sort of universal jinx Twilight and the other cadets all shivered involuntarily as their spiritual senses were assaulted by a sudden cascade of numerous reiatsu signatures appearing. Twilight looked rapidly around her, taking in the sight of not just a few, but scores of Garganta portals opening up. The portals were, thankfully, outside the Bastion, but the number of them was alarming, along with the fact that they were all surrounding the domed barrier in four distinct clusters, each to the north, south, east, and west.

Then Twilight saw the forms that were emerging from those Garganta portals weren’t normal Hollows. Instead these were the distinctly human-like forms of Arrancar. Their intense reiatsu filled the air like the on rushing waves from a tropical storm, and Twilight could see her fellow cadet’s paling at the sensation. Amid those many Hollow spiritual pressures were blazing beacons of power, towering tsunamis of reiatsu compared to the smaller waves of the other Arrancar. Those had to be the Espada, and Twilight could only feel chilled at the mere sensation of their power.

She felt... four of them? No, five. Amid the emerging masses of Arrancar there were five spiritual pressures far greater than the rest. It seemed like a small number compared to the number of Sternritter that Sombra had brought to the battlefield, but Twilight could get a rough gauge on the strength of the Espada’s reiatsu and knew immediately that these Hollows didn’t need numbers to be a threat.

Especially the strongest one out there, which dwarfed all the others by such a degree that Twilight felt weak in her knees just sensing the reiatsu at a distance. Could that be...?

“Well isn’t this a pleasant surprise?” said Fleur De Lis, licking her lips, “Seems like their own King decided to come out first.”

Standing next to her Fleetfoot lowered her mirror-shades enough for her eyes to gaze northward with intense trepidation, “Damn, first time I’ve felt the Primera’s reiatsu. I’m not even thinking Shining Armor’s Bastion can take one hit from that. Holy balls.”

“Relax,” said Soarin, “Tirek’s not the only King out here. We just focus on our job and let His Majesty handle that monster.”

Fleur De Lis’ lips turned into a curved scythe of a grin, “His Majesty has right to claim that duel, true, and there are plenty of other worthwhile targets out there. Assuming any of them decide to come this way. We can only be so lucky.”

“Nice that she’s so concerned with our safety, isn’t it?” Sunny Flare muttered under her breath, and Indigo Zap gave the other girl a sidelong look before turning uneasy eyes at the growing horde of Arrancar pouring from the dozens of black wounds in the sky.

“Yeah, I’m starting to think us being out here isn’t the greatest idea ever.”

“I-It’s gonna be alright,” said one of the McColt girls, Hacksaw, visibly unnerved by the sight of the Arrancar, “Plenty o’ McColt firepower out there ready ta’ ambush that lot.”

“Gettin’ nervous? Figures it’d be a’ McColt that’d lose faith n’ His Majesty’s plan first,” grumbled Cotton Barrel.

The two McColt sisters both shot glares at the Hooffield girl, but before any argument could break out there was flare of uprising reiatsu that instantly silenced all the cadets. This was accompanied by the sight of a saturation of hellish orange and red light that started to coat the dunes from high above, and everyone’s eyes were drawn skyward to witness a corona of light directly above the gleaming dome of the Bastion. Twilight noticed that all the Arrancar had turned their eyes upward as well, not in fear, but in something akin to reverence. The host of Hollows, even the ones still being slaughtered by Quincy within the barrier, all stopped acting, and just looked upward at the growing beacon of unholy might gathering high above. Twilight felt a copper taste in the back of her throat, and acidic bile rising as her heart started to hammer in her chest.

The Sternritter nearby were silent, Soarn’s eyes somber and granite-like, Fleetfoot taking off her glasses and licking dry lips. Even Fleur seemed subdued by the sensation of power gathering above them, her own perfect jawline clenched in dire resolve.

The cadets around Twilight were all looking at each other or upwards with mixtures of fear and disbelief. They’d all felt this reiatsu a moment ago and it had felt titanic. Now, however, the sensation was so overwhelming that Twilight could see some cadet’s quailing and falling to their hands and knees, struggling to breath, even with the Bastion acting as a buffer between them and what was outside.

“Wh-what is that!?” Sour Sweet said, sweat pouring down her brow, “There’s no way that’s a Hollow!”

Lemon Zest chuckled in an almost manic manner, “Oooookaaaay, can we, um, not be here now? Please?”

“...We... we can’t survive this, can we?” Sunny Flare said, eyes like violet lakes as she stared upward, “If that monster hits us with something like that, we’re all dead.”

“Stay steady everyone,” said Sugarcoat, no less pale faced, but clenching her fists tight around the pearl handle of her bow, “This is what our parents have had to face every day of their lives. We’re not going to embarrass our bloodlines by cowering like children, are we?”

Lemon Zest raised her hand, “I kinda want to.”

Indigo Zap, her legs shaking, grit her teeth and sucked in a breath while slapping her cheeks with her hands, “Okay, right, Sugarcoat’s got it right, we got to put our game faces on girls.”

Twilight was controlling her breathing, and inside her she felt an ethereal surge of energy as Midnight’s voice whispered across her mind.

So much power. Don’t you want to just take it apart and find out how it works?

I’ll be happy with surviving with everyone else, thank you very much, Twilight replied, steadying her breath as she kept her gaze locked on the growing corona of dark orange light high above the Bastion dome.

That had to be Tirek. Was he intending to try and wipe out the whole Quincy army with a single attack? With the sheer amount of spiritual pressure building above, Twilight could honestly believe that may be the case. Regardless, it was clear there was nothing she or any of the other cadets could do but sit tight and have faith that Sombra knew what he was doing.

Because otherwise this battle was going to be over in seconds.

----------

Shining Armor aimed his bow skyward while Gladmane and Filthy Rich both continued to lay into the Hollows that had just been assaulting the fortifications, although now had all but halted their activity with the arrival of the Arrancar.

“You’d best give that fancy shield your all, boy, because I think its about it get its greatest test,” said Filthy Rich, not fully hiding an underpinning of fear. Shining Armor could’t blame the man. He knew the capabilities of the Bastion, but what he was sensing from Tirek made him feel as if he was trying to hold a sheet of glass in front of an oncoming rock-slide.

A pure white arrow streaked upward, a trail of light in its wake, fired form Shining Armor’s bow. It struck the shield and reinforced the Bastion with a brilliant flare of light just as Tirek took action.

Standing several hundred meters up, the undisputed King of Hueco Mundo was merely holding one finger up. Upon that finger hovered an ever growing sphere of dark orange and crimson energy, flaring with streaks of black lighting. His chiseled features showing faint distaste for the ants crawling around on the sands of his realm below, Tirek merely curled his finger downward, barely moving.

The enormous beam of raw Hollow power that cascaded downward from that one gesture was a Cero half a kilometer wide and containing enough force to reduce a city to ash in an instant.

Only Shining Armor diverting all of his focus to reinforcing the Bastion with all the power he could pump into his Schrift allowed the barrier to withstand the earth shattering assault, even if just for a few seconds. Shining Armor’s bow became a beacon of light rays as he fired dozens of reinforcing arrows, impacting at key points around the crumbling Bastion, trying to keep it up for even just a split second longer. The explosive shockwave of power from Tirek’s unmatched Cero impacting the Bastion created hurricane force winds billowing across Hueco Mundo’s dunes, and the ground heaved beneath them. Shining Armor felt the blow on his very soul like a sledgehammer, dropping him to one knee as he saw cracks form all across the Bastion’s dome.

He raised his bow, hoping to form a secondary barrier before the first one failed, but the Bastion shattered a moment before he could fire another arrow.

However instead of the torrent of Tirek’s Cero falling upon them, there was an instantaneous distortion in the air, forming into a rapidly expanding umbrella of writhing, ink black nothingness that swallowed the Cero like a gaping maw. In counter to Tirek’s crushing reiatsu rose an equally monumental wave of spiritual pressure. Only for the Quincy this pressure was not crushing, but rather a relieving, uplifting force, as if a great hand was lifting the weight of a mountain off of their shoulders.

Night Light’s voice spoke through the power of the Command, reaching Shining Armor and every other Quincy as the Bastion crumbled in shards of fading light.

His Majesty Sombra will deal with the enemy’s leader. Take heart, Quincy of the Vandenrich! Our true foes now reveal themselves, and we shall not relent in the face of our duty to punish these fiends. Now, the true battle begins!

----------

The incredibly wide disc of darkness that had swallowed Tirek’s Cero undulated like the waters of a turbulent ocean, the air around it distorted with shimmering waves as Sombra’s armor clad figure rose from the disc’s center. The disc then collapsed inward, seeping into Sombra’s own body like a sponge absorbing ink.

With his crimson eyes still and unblinking Sombra rose upward into the sky, smoothly halting when he reached Tirek’s height. The two Kings stood mere meters apart, Tirek’s own gleaming gaze like the glow of an active volcano compared to the artic, still cold of Sombra’s eyes.

Even as the thunder of battle broke beneath them, the two leaders of the clashing armies stood still as they took stock of each other, their standoff framed by the silver crescent of Hueco Mundo’s ever pale moon.

“Remind me, when was the last time we stood like this?” Tirek said finally, his voice a hot rumble.

There was a near imperceptible twitch in Sombra’s jaw, his hard eyes briefly showing a waver of unbridled hate.

“I’m not here to reminisce about the past, Tirek. You’ve spilled the blood of my people. I’m here to return the favor.”

“And so our cycle of self-destruction continues while the Soul Reapers prosper. I enjoy destroying your toy soldiers, boy, but how long do you intend to continue this war while our real enemies sit on high, enjoying the fruits of their betrayal while watching us slaughter one another down on this wretched world?”

Tirek extended a hand, “My offer remains the same as it was then. Abandon your quest to ‘save’ humanity. Ally with me and within a fortnight the very gates of the Soul Palace would fall to our combined might.”

Sombra’s hand slipped into the darkness of his cloak and withdrew the long, dark steel of his sword. As he did so the blade sprang to life with a bright sheen of blue reishi, edged with silver flickers of light like fire. His features were like iron, as was his voice, “To ally with you would be to betray humanity, and that I will never do.”

Tirek smirked, “As if you care about humanity. What you really mean to say is that you refuse to let go of your hatred of Hollows. It wasn’t by my hand that your woman died-”

There was less time in a heartbeat than there was in the time it took Sombra to form his bow by extending a second blade from the hilt of his sword, and both ends curving into a sharp crescent. The arrow of solid darkness flew at Tirek’s head an instant later, distorting the air around it. With equally instantaneous speed did the King of Hueco Mundo bring his own long, gold edged claymore down upon the arrow. A cacophonous blast of conflicting forces emanated from the blow, the air wavering and shimmering around the point of impact as if something was shaking the very foundation of space itself.

Tirek barely had a moment to blink before Sombra followed up that first attack by sweeping one hand out and creating a veritable swarm of small, black discs that were like torn holes in the fabric of reality, surrounding Tirek. He fired another arrow through one of these discs in front of him, and suddenly the same arrow was duplicated through the many scores of other holes in reality, the dark shafts converging on Tirek from all directions.

Tirek responded by erupting with a gigantic sphere of raw reiatsu, similar to a Cero yet expanding like a wave around him. The arrows sunk into this sphere of destructive energy, many of them penetrating deep into it, but still eventually being consumed by the incredible outpouring of power from the First Espada.

“Are you even trying?” Tirek asked, but noticed Sombra wasn’t standing where he’d been a second ago. Glancing over his shoulder Tirek spotted the King of the Quincy behind him, now several dozen meters away as Sombra pulled out a trio of onyx black ginto tubes from the shadows of his cloak. At a glance Tirek saw that at least ten other such tubes had already been tossed into the air by Sombra while Tirek had been busy deflecting the Quincy King’s arrows, and now Sombra threw the final three and all thirteen ginto tubes opened and exposed a glittering sheen of alchemic, reishi charged liquid.

Sombra’s hand became wrapped with distorted darkness as he touched the falling liquid, and invoked a command phrase as he sent his reishi flowing into alchemical catalyst.

”Heiliges Heiligtem” (Holy Sanctuary)

In the span of milliseconds a massive curtain of darkness expanded around the pair, with spectral bands of brilliant incandescent blue forming a complex, weaving web of geometric patterns running through it. The sphere surrounded Sombra and Tirek completely, and within its confines the pair found themselves standing upon a seemingly much larger plane, with its internal borders quite possibly being hundreds of miles wide. Externally the sphere would be no larger than a football field, a perfect black orb hanging above the battle unfolding below.

Tirek looked around with a small, impressed grunt.

“You’ve copied our Negacion fields, and quite thoroughly too. I imagine it’d take me... ten, fifteen minutes to break free from this sub-dimension.”

“I have no intention of giving you those ten minutes,” Sombra said, raising his bow, which now flared with a much brighter sheen of blue and silver than before as a crushing wave of his own reiatsu surged out, “Now that we’re inside this space, I don’t need to hold back in fear of harming my own people.”

Tirek flashed white teeth. Between the bleached bone horns curving up from his brow an orb of dark orange power swirled into being, “I too needn’t restrain myself. Fortunate, since rebuilding Las Noches would be tedious. Let’s see if you’ve grown any stronger since the day you failed to protect your woman.”

A fusillade of hundreds of simultaneously firing Ceros exploded outward from Tirek’s horns, filling the air with the deep rumble. Sombra’s bow similarly unleashed a torrential deluge of obsidian reishi arrows that tore space around them as they flew into the barrage of Ceros. The sub-dimension shuddered with the clash of power, and the combined spiritual pressure of two god-like beings now starting to try to annihilate one another in earnest.

----------

Clouds of Quincy arrows rocketed across the sky. Arrancar advanced into the swarm of reishi arrows with reckless abandon, many relying on the strength of their Hierro iron skin to protect them as they rushed towards the fortifications the Quincy forces occupied. Even so, a number of weaker or simply less lucky Arrancar were still riddled by dozens of gleaming blue arrows, blood falling from the sky like rain as their bodies impacted with the sands below. Retaliation came in the form of dozens of thick, red Cero beams or bursts of rapid-fire Bala bullets. The crimson beams swept lines of destruction across the fortifications, consuming soldats in screaming blazes, while the hardened bullets of Balas blew chunks of stone out to tear into any soldat not fast enough to evade or harden their skin with Blut Vene.

Filthy Rich continued to pour the power of the Mason into the walls in order to build up the fortifications from a mere wall to a multi-tiered, square fortress. Swiftly reconstructing the very spirit particles of Hueco Mundo’s sands, Sternritter M had given the Quincy soldats thick, tall walls to use as cover while keeping up a steady stream of fire into the oncoming foe. Quincy arrows flew out in deadly clouds while Cero beams tore into those walls, creating a field of criss-crossing red and blue as the two armies tore into each other with equal fury. To add to the army’s firepower, Filthy Rich also created multiple turreted cannons; simple in design, but capable of firing powerful reishi blasts similar to his musket that ripped some Arrancar out of the sky. These cannons were fed by a steady stream or reishi pulled from the surrounding desert, and Filthy Rich controlled them himself, though this required so much of his focus he couldn’t afford to leave the center of the fortifications.

Meanwhile the VTOLs circled above, directing their missiles and gunfire down on the advancing hordes on all sides of the battle, but were just as often forced into desperate evasive maneuvers as ever more Cero beams cut crimson lines upward and smashed more than a few of the vehicles into exploding wreaks.

At the very head of his horde of Arrancar was Torch, the Fifth Espada’s massive, muscle bound form barreling through the rain of Quincy arrows with locomotive force, many a soldat’s arrow simply bouncing off the Espada’s insanely tough Heirro. Torch bellowed laughter, sweeping his axe in wide arcs that generated blasts of wind that knocked aside even more arrows.

“Whoohahah! You all trying to tickle to me to death!? C’mon, where’s the Sternritter! I want a fight, not an exercise in pest control! Hey, Spitfire, where you at, woman!? I want to finish what we began back in the world of the living!”

Not far away Adagio was beside Ember, both of them avoiding the barrages of reishi arrows in their own way, Ember through sheer speed and Adagio with carefully controlled waves of summoned water that shielded her and no small number of other Arrancar. She kept a steady stream of water flowing around her, summoning more with waves of her trident to act almost like an umbrella against the descending arrows. Many arrows could still get through, but with less power or altered courses.

Adagio’s focus was largely on keeping herself alive, but she kept a steady eye to the south east, where the distant, dark form of her lake was clear to see like a splotch of ink upon the stark white desert.

One way or another she’d have to get to that lake amid all this chaos, but she couldn’t make it look like her and Ember were abandoning the battlefield. Fortunately the flow of the battle was already moving towards the Arrancar surrounding the Quincy forces. Torch’s horde was advancing in from the north, while Adagio could see to the west that Hydia was moving in with her smaller but no less destructive collection of deformed Arrancar. She couldn’t see them but she could sense that Guto and his forces had come out of their Gargantas to the south and were moving in behind the Quincy.

Not that “behind” meant much now that the Quincy had formed that makeshift fortress of white, stone walls. Adagio was impressed it had been created so instantaneously. Whichever Quincy was responsible for that had to be pretty dangerous. She’d just as soon avoid facing any of these Sternritter, but Torch seemed eager to call them out.

Torch wouldn’t have to wait long for a challenger.

Tentacles of raw blue reishi rose up into the air and snaked towards Torch. Rising up beneath the advancing horde of Arrancar, a Quincy was surrounded by a writing mass of reishi tendrils that lashed out not just at Torch, but at any of the Arrancar nearby. One such tendril stabbed towards Adagio, and she sent forth a blast of condensed water from her trident to intercept it, only for the tendril to cut right through her water with ease.

Swearing under her breath, Adagio jumped back from the grasping limb of reishi, narrowly avoiding it. Other Arrancar weren’t quite as fast, and Adagio saw several tendrils stab into Arrancar of Torch’s horde, each tentacle like a spear as it lanced into even Hierro hardened flesh. Ember, faster and stronger than most, avoided the pair of limbs coming after her, the flash of her Zanpaktou cutting off the tip of one such tendril. However the limb regrew almost instantly, stabbing for Ember from behind. A Cero beam blasted in from the side, pushing back the tendril.

“Dammit don’t move so far ahead if you can’t watch your own damned back!” growled Grable as he rushed up beside Ember, slashing another tendril that came towards them. Ember rolled her eyes and fired a Cero of her own, forcing back another set of tentacles thrusting towards her.

“If you can’t keep up then don’t bother following me.”

“Guys, this is not the time for arguing,” Adagio pointed out as the central mass of reishi tendrils rose up to their level in the air, the Quincy at the center of them regarding them all with smug indifference as he adjusted the glasses perched on his gray nose.

“Oh don’t mind me, continue doing what you’re doing. I’ll just keep impaling all your companions in the meantime,” the Quincy said, making casual gesture with a strange, halo shaped bow around his right hand to direct the seemingly unending mass of reishi tendrils under his control at Torch’s horde.

However Torch himself rushed down like a descending meteor, and the dark haired Quincy had to redirect the majority of his tendrils to form a shield in front of him to defend against the mass of iron that was Torch’s axe-shaped Zanpaktou as it slashed down at the Sternritter. Scores of tendrils were severed apart by the blow, and the central mass quivered as Torch pushed the whole thing, the Quincy man included, down to the sandy ground in an explosive impact.

Adagio, Ember, and Garble were left blinking at the sight, as Torch, still laughing, cocked his axe back like a golf club and swung it once more into the Sternritter’s mass of tendrils. The Quincy blocked again, losing another dozen or so tendrils, but the wriggling limbs of blue reishi reformed almost as fast as they were severed.

Torch looked up at Ember in the meantime, “Sorry kids, but I get first dibs! You go find your own fun!”

“I don’t recall saying anyone was allowed to leave,” the Quincy said, sending a swarm of tendrils to streak up towards Ember, Adagio, and Garble, but Torch took one swing of his axe and broke the tendrils as thoroughly as a hammer upon an ice sculpture. Torch turned burning eyes towards the human as a deep purple aura of reiatsu formed around him, his spiritual pressured now ratcheting up to full force.

“And I don’t remember any small fry like you being worth called Sternritter, but I guess Sombra’s standards have dropped recently. What do you call yourself, dead man?”

“Jet Set, Sternritter K, the Kraken,” the Quincy said with lips pressed tight in clearly annoyance at being dismissed as a ‘small fry’.

“Well then, you’ve got the honor of being the first Sternritter who’s blood gets to satisfy my parched axe,” Torch said around a battle hungry grin, spinning his heavy weapon with a whistle of air as he barreled towards Jet Set like an living battering ram.

Adagio watched carefully at the movements of Jet Set’s reishi tendrils as they coiled into a conical mass like some deep sea urchin that then thrust towards Torch. The Fifth Espada’s axe hammered into the mass of reishi, creating a shock wave that tossed Adagio’s hair and made her shield her face with one hand. Jet Set, tendrils and all, were blasted backwards by the sheer physical might of Torch’s blow, and the gray faced Quincy went slightly grayer as he adjusted his glasses in momentary surprise.

He recovered quickly, eyes narrowing as he gestured towards Torch and sent a number of tendrils stabbing forward with blinding speed. Torch swept them aside with his axe, but those tendrils had simply been covering a number of smaller off-shoot tendrils that then slipped past Torch’s guard to wrap around his limbs in an instant.

“Hah, you may be strong, but you’ve got no other assets besides brawn, do you?” Jet Set said, raising his hand to send out a massive, pointed tendril out to thrust towards Torch’s head. While focused upon Torch, Jet Set hadn’t lowered his defenses elsewhere. One of the benefits of the Kraken was that the unique reishi tendrils the Schrift created were an omni-directional offense and defense. Any of Torch’s horde of Arrancar that would have tried to get around or behind Jet Set would’ve have found dozens of more tendrils ready to fend them off.

However not a one of Torch’s horde were moving to help their Espada. They instead had swept around the confrontation between Torch and Jet Set, focusing their attacks upon the Quincy fortifications, which still rained out a constant storm of arrows and cannon-fire. Even Ember was only watching her father, making no move to help.

Jet Set assumed this was merely because Hollows weren’t inclined to help one another. It didn’t occur to him that it was simply because every one of Torch’s subordinates knew better than to get close to where their Espada was fighting.

Jet Set, fall back now! Night Light’s voice ordered in Jet Set’s mind, You can’t take that Espada alone. Pull back and link up with my son and Gladmane.

But I have him! This will be over in a- Jet Set started to mentally reply to Night Light’s commands, but paused as the massive reishi tendril he’d sent flying towards Torch’s head was caught and stopped dead in its tracks... by Torch’s teeth.

Torch chomped down and broke the tendril in half, the reishi breaking up into its composite particles. He then flexed his roiling muscles and started to rip his limbs free from the tendrils holding him. Jet Set prepared to send out more, but Torch just turned a sneer towards the Sternritter and opened his mouth. Bright red flames ejected from his mouth in a wide, incendiary Cero that rushed in at Jet Set.

Before it could impact a white arrow streaked by, detonating in a searing flash of light as a thick, square barrier formed in front of Jet Set and absorbed the flaming red Cero.

“Didn’t you hear my father?” Shining Armor said, standing a few dozen meters behind and above Jet Set, “You trying to get yourself killed?”

Jet Set grit his teeth in a sour glower, swiftly backing away from Torch as he eyed Shining Armor, “I’m trying to prevent them from reaching our fortifications! We’ll lose hundreds of soldats if these beats get too close!”

“Let Filthy Rich worry about our fortifications. We can’t fight these Espada one on one,” Shining Armor said, raising his bow to fire a bolt of white light towards Torch. The arrow split into two, forming two facing barriers that tried to encompass Torch, but the Fifth Espada smashed his fists out to either side and crushed the barriers like windows.

“You can’t fight us two on one either, boy!” Torch said, and with a blur of Sonido he appeared above Shining Arm, axe hammering down.

Shining Armor raised his bow, angling the shield portion of it to block the blow, but the immense strength behind Torch’s doubled handed blow split the air with a sonic boom as Shining Armor was sent straight down into the ground, sending a fifty foot geyser of sand into the sky fro the impact.

Torch threw his head back, bellowing laughter, but a second later a trio of blazing white arrows shot upward from the smoking crater and surrounded Torch, forming into a three sided pillar of light that then exploded with white flame.

Shining Armor, bleeding from a cut on his scalp, stood from the crater he was in, and noticed he was now surrounded by quite a number of lesser Hollows. Thousands of such Hollows still remained on the battlefield, and now that the Arrancar were fully engaged with the Quincy the lesser Hollows and Gillians were more free to move and make a nuisance of themselves.

Shining Armor’s face was marble still as he started firing around him in a rapid circle of brilliant white death, arrows blasting through the Hollows coming towards him. Jet Set landed nearby, the tendrils of the Kraken clearing out more Hollows with wide sweeps.

“Okay, I admit it, I underestimated this Espada,” Jet Set said, “Let’s join our compatriots before things get worse.”

“It is too late for that.”

The words were spoken by a soft voice, stemming from a new arrival that calmly walked from amid the horde of Hollows like a wraith. Any Hollow that got too close to this red haired man was cut in half by strikes from his long bladed katana that were too fast to clearly see. Neither Shining Armor or Jet Set recognized this newcomer, but the man’s obvious strength marked him as an Espada.

The white flames from Shining Armor’s earlier attacked cleared, revealing Torch with minor singes on his arms, but otherwise the Fifth Espada was barely damaged. Seeing the man with the red hair, Torch smashed down onto the ground beside him, stabbing out a thick blue finger.

“Don’t even think of poaching my kills, Lament!”

Lament regarded Torch coolly, “I won’t debate who kills who while we’re in the middle of a battle. If you want them, then kill them. Otherwise get out of the way.”

“Bah,” Torch spat, “You can have the boring one in the glasses. The white one is more interesting. I’ll take him. Never let it be said I can’t share.”

Lament shrugged, facing Jet Set with cold, unblinking eyes, “So be it.”

Shining Armor wasn’t certain who this ‘Lament’ was. Their reports had indicated, however, that the Espada had a new number four, and Shining Armor had a sinking feeling that was the ghostly pale, red hair man they faced now, as well as Torch.

Father, I’ve reached Jet Set, but we’re now facing both the Fifth and who I believe is the Fourth Espada. Some reinforcements would not go unappreciated, Shining Armor thought, knowing Night Light would be listening in through the Command’s link.

Gladmane is busy elsewhere. Hold out for a few minutes, I’ll direct Harshwhinny and Upper Crust your way, came the swift reply, and Shining Armor could detect the growing tension and stress in his father’s mental voice. Night Light’s mind was likely being taxed to its utmost extent, directing what was now a battle on at least three fronts.

Focusing his attention in front of him, Shining Armor raised his bow, not intending to let the Espada decide who fought who. He directed his next arrow towards the one called Lament, the bar of bright white reishi parting the sands with the speed of its passage. Lament vanished form view, evading the arrow while simultaneously appearing behind Jet Set within the span of the same instant. Jet Set’s tendrils flashed up, trying to strike the Espada. Lament weaved his way through the tendrils with flickers of motion so quick he seemed to split into multiple images as he strode forward. The Espada then move in a lightning swift motion, his long katana cutting a blinding white arc at Jet Set’s head level. Jet Set’s eyes went wide behind his glasses as Lament’s blade seemed to effortlessly cut through his mass of reishi tendrils, and Jet Set’s skin turned red with Blut Vene lines as he crossed his arms in front of him, blocking even as he jumped back with a swift Hirenkyaku.

Even then, Jet Set screamed as deep gouges were cut into his arms, spraying blood. Even Blut Vene hadn’t stopped all of Lament’s blow, and while Jet Set could still control his reishi tendrils, his arms now like bleeding, limp noodles at his side.

Shining Armor took aim to fire upon Lament while the Espada has his back turned, but Torch charged in from the side, and Shining Armor was forced to make a prodigious leap away to avoid being crushed by Torch’s earth shaking axe swing. Shining Armor turned his bow towards Torch, foregoing precision for sheer volume as he unleashed a full barrage of hundreds of scintillating arrows.

Torch weathered the blows partially with using his axe as a shield, and partially with just the sheer hardness of his supreme Heirro, but the barrage kept him pinned down for the moment. Shining Armor was seeking to buy as much time as he could for other Sternritter to arrive, but he could tell the battle was rapidly growing chaotically out of control.

Jet Set was swiftly retreating form Lament, leaping from spot to spot. Lament kept easy pace, Jet Set’s reishi tendrils being cut to ribbons as they tried and failed to impale the coldly advancing Espada. Meanwhile Arrancar by the dozens were reaching the fortification walls on the north side, despite the vast volume of arrows, missiles, and cannon fire blasting into the hordes. Shining Armor could see soldats now fighting in desperate melee with Arrancar, and both sides were using their own high-speed movement techniques to turn the battlefield into a storm of fast moving forms.

Still the fortifications were holding, and enough reishi arrows were still steadily being fired by soldats on higher tiers of the wall that the Arrancar or the many lesser Hollows still on the field could manage to gather together for a solid push. Shining Armor could also sense that other Sternritter were already engaged with the other Espada on other fronts, likely why Gladmane had been too busy elsewhere to help him and Jet Set.

And as desperate as his and Jet Set’s situation was, Shining Armor knew this was all part of the plan.

High above, Sombra was locked in battle with Tirek within that huge black sphere, and Shining Armor had faith in His Majesty’s plan.
----------

An explosion from a reishi shell pelted Adagio with sand as she moved with swift leaps, heading around the eastern edge of the battlefield, Ember following at her side and Garble just a few steps behind them. Dozens of other Arrancar form Torch’s horde were making their away around this side of the Quincy formation’s flank, most not seeming to care about any losses their side was taking as they whooped and hollered insults at their Quincy foes, firing Cero blasts into the walls.

Adagio saw how fast the Quincy fortifications seemed to repair themselves and figured most of the Arrancar were wasting their time trying to blast the makeshift fortress apart. For every Cero beam that smashed into those walls they likely only got a few Quincy for the trouble, while the walls would rapidly repair, and the Quincy could in turn continue to fire relentlessly with those unending arrows of theirs.

Adagio had barely dropped her barrier of water, guarding herself, Ember, and as many Arrancar nearby as she could as she followed the charge around the east side of the fortifications. She didn’t feel much, or any, guilt at leaving Torch and Lament behind to deal with the Sternritter. Even Ember had understood to let her father have his fun, and Adagio was hardly worried about the big fella. And as for Lament, she sincerely doubted she had much to fear in regards to his safety. She felt sorry for the Quincy stuck fighting him.

Fortunately, as she’d imagined would be the case, the chaos of battle was actually exceedingly helpful for her own plans. The Arrancar horde, along with the still significant number of regular Hollows around, naturally started to move to surround the Quincy positions, which meant all Adagio had to do was move with the flow to the east and south. Already she could see her lake getting ever closer. All she had to do was get to the southeastern edge of the battle, then look for an opening to break off and head for her lake with Ember in tow. She knew Garble would be a problem, but imagined she could either lose him in the confusion of the battle, or failing that use... alternative means to ensure his silence as to what she and Ember would be really doing while the Arrancar and Quincy were busy trying to exterminate each other.

Adagio winced as one Quincy arrow game a little too close, even through her barrier of water, the blue bolts of reishi sparing off her hardened bone-like armor. A moment later several explosive reishi shells detonated upon the barrier of water she was keeping up and Adagio had to concentrate to summon forth more. It looked as if whoever was controlling the cannons in that fortress realized she was shielding a number of Arrancar and was concentrating fire on her.

Oh is that how its going to be!? You, sir or madame, have just made quite the error in judgment, Adagio thought with a hard smirk as she instantly leaped upwards into the air, shifting her barrier from an umbrella like dome of water and into a series of compact spheres. Carefully and quickly picking out the lines of cannons mounted amid the tall white walls of the Quincy fortifications, Adagio directed her water to fire out in a barrage of high pressure beams, slicing up into the fortifications like hots knives through butter.

She ignored the fact that she likely was striking down several Quincy soldiers with those barrages. This wasn’t like fighting those child cadets. This was full blown warfare, and Adagio was a survivor first and foremost. Any Quincy soldier that came at her now was not going to find her particularly inclined to hesitate.

Her attack had destroyed half a dozen of the fortification cannons, and the Arrancar of Torch’s horde around her roared approval as they swiftly started to charge the walls, firing Balas and Ceros while braving straight into the volleys of arrows form the Quincy still on the walls. Adagio nodded in satisfaction at her handiwork. The Quincy whose power was rebuilding the fortification walls would likely be able to rebuild the cannons as well, but it’d take them time to do that, and with Torch’s forces advancing rapidly that meant the Quincy had bigger problems than focusing on her. She also noticed that caught up in the heat of the charge, Garble had gone ahead, apparently assuming Ember would be joining the attack. This would be as good an opening as any, Adagio thought.

“Ember,” she said, nodding toward the distant lake, “This is our chance.”

Ember glanced at Arrancar charging the Quincy walls, and Adagio could see Ember’s hesitance. Ember wasn’t fully comfortable leaving her father’s forces, her comrades, to fight the Quincy without her. But Ember knew what job Adagio had been given and had agreed to help, and Ember had a remarkable streak of loyalty to her own word that Adagio found admirable, even as it seemed unfortunately exploitable.

“Right behind you,” Ember said.

However before either of them could start heading further south, a gust of air billowed around them and from above a series of golden reishi arrows hammered down on Torch’s horde of Arrancar. Blood splattered the sands as several Arrancar fell like broken puppets, the precise reishi arrows piercing heads or hearts with remarkable ease. The charge stifled to a halt as a single Quincy flew down from above from a single VTOL that had flown out above the eastern side of the battle.

Several Arrancar brought their Zanpaktou to bear, shouting out release phrases for their Resurreccions. Adagio saw these Arrancar take on various changed shapes as their reiatsu exploded outward. One gained whip-like arms, while another grew in size as spurs of curved bone formed over his body, while another Arrancar’s form became akin to a thin, spindly centipede, but regardless of what form the Arrancar took Adagio felt the same potent uptick in power that came with such transformations. Yet she saw Garble hang back, as if he instinctively sensed something about this Quincy that warned him off while the rest of the more reckless Arrancar sought to surround her.

Whoever she was, she had dusky gray skin and short, clipped pink hair, and a strong jawline. Her uniform was unremarkable by Quincy standards, with a military waist jacket, trousers, knee high dark boots, and a flapping white mantle. Her bow was formed of two almost scissor-like spurs connected by a central spherical joint, all of a faintly golden hued metal.

As the transformed Arrancar rushed her, this Quincy moved with incredibly quick, precise motions and fired golden arrows into each one. As each arrow hit, it was as if the Arrancar lost all momentum, seemingly becoming paralyzed in place as they fell out of the air.

“What the hell? How did she do that?” Ember breathed, face darkening, “We have to stop her before she wipes out everyone here.”

“We’ve got to go, Ember,” Adagio began to say, not wanting to have their opening to get to the lake interrupted, but it was too late. The Sternritter looked right at them, her pale pink eyes narrowing as she spoke in a cultured tone.

“A Vasto Lorde and a powerful Arrancar, stronger than the rest of these rabble? I imagine at least one of you is a Fraccion then. Vasto Lordes are also incredibly rare. Fortunate you’re not an Arrancar yet. Eliminating you before you can evolve would be quite beneficial, I would say.”

“Oh crap,” Adagio grunted as the Sternritter vanished with a burst of high speed movement, and only Adagio’s freshly sharpened battle instincts, built up over her recent battles, allowed her to narrowly avoid getting struck by a golden arrow fired by the Sternritter as she flickered by at high speed.

Adagio flung her trident out and fired a Cero, but the Sternritter was so fast that the potent beam crossed the sky harmlessly, exploding close to the lake near a kilometer distant.

“Adagio!” Ember cried, zipping in with her Zanpaktou, her own form blurring with the speed of Sonido as she tried to catch the Sternritter, only for her blade to just hit an afterimage as the Quincy woman appeared in the air several dozen meters away.

“Hm, impressive. I take it from your appearance, young lady, that you’re related to the Fifth Espada.”

“I don’t have to answer anything from you,” Ember spat.

The Sternritter shrugged, “A fair point. I can’t help having a certain level of courtesy to those I deem of interest. Prim Hemline, Sternritter Z. Might I know your names, young ladies, before we continue?”

“...Ember,” she grunted reluctantly.

“Adagio Dazzle, if you happen to survive long enough to remember the name,” Adagio offered, not uncourteous herself, and more than happen to buy a moment of time to size her opponent up. The other Arrancar stood poised to jump in as well but Ember held her arm out.

“Don’t! The rest of you go after that damned fortress! Move it!”

That galvanized them to action, the Arrancar leaping away with speedy Sonidos to resume charging at the Quincy fortifications. However Garble remained behind, much to Ember’s clear irritation as she glared at him.

“What are you still doing here?”

“Like I’m going to let you steal the big kills for yourself,” Garble groused, baring his blade at Prim Hemline, “I bet I can take this one down faster than you!”

Prim made a small shrugging gesture, “I have no interest in you, but if you wish to join the dance, I don’t object either. Shall we? I’m eager to see what a young Vasto Lorde and one of the Fifth Espada’s Fraccion can do.”

Even as Adagio brought her trident to bear, water swirling around her in dense, serpent-like rivers as she prepared her attack, part of her gaze was still locked on her lake... so close, yet still so far away.

----------

On the western side of the battle the Quincy were faced with an advancing, billowing cloud of thick purple gas that crawled across the sands, obscuring from view the Arrancar hidden within. This gas indiscriminately killed lesser Hollows unfortunate enough to be trapped within, their bodies withering, disintegrating, or otherwise melting under the corrosive poison, but the lumbering and looping forms of the Arrancar within were unharmed.

That was because Hydia spent years if not decades introducing bits of her poison into the system of her loyal Arrancar followers. Every one of them was unusual in shape, deformed in some way from the more normal human shape most Arrancar possessed. Which was fine by Hydia’s standards. She didn’t care what anyone looked like, as long as they served her faithfully and weren’t boring sticks in the mud. One of the reasons she so loved to relentlessly troll Grogar was because of the ancient oak branch the old bastard had crammed up his butt. Teasing him was an endless source of entertainment.

Since most of her boys and gals were immune, or at least healthily resistant to her poison, Hydia had no qualms pouring the stuff out of her in a continuous haze of raw, dark purple mist that covered the western side of the battlefield. The Quincy were having trouble targeting her and her horde due to it, which let them gradually march ever closer to those fortification walls with relative ease. It was slow going, admittedly, since she had to spread her cloud gradually to ensure it stayed thick and potent, but what could the Quincy do to stop it?

“Hey mamma, you think we can keep a few Quincy as pets when the battle’s done?’ asked Reeka, walking alongside Hydia, who stood on a literal moving blob of sludge that Hydia created from secreting pores in her feet.

“If you manage to snag a few, feel free to keep them, dearie,” Hydia said with a thick laugh, “Just as long as you remember to keep them fed and clean up after them.”

“Blech, why’d you wanna keep any of these ugly bastards as pets anyhow?” asked Draggle, lips twisting in a grimace, “I swear each n’ every one of them looks the damn same. No personality at all.”

Reeka frowned, crossing her arms, “I just like the idea of having a pet! You don’t got to judge everything I do.”

“No girls, no arguing. We’re doing business stuff,” Hydia said jovially, but then she frowned, eyes focusing ahead, “Oh ho, speaking of work, looks like they’re just not gonna let us waltz on up and coat their big fancy walls in poison gas.”

These words were followed by a rumble in the ground as the sands ahead of the poison cloud gleamed with bright blue light and the reishi particles of the desert were quickly reconstructed into new shapes. Hydia sensed the presence of the Sternritter responsible for the fortifications at work, his reiatsu flowing through the sands ahead of them as a series of large white windmill-like fans sprang into being and began to spin rapidly, blowing away the lead elements of Hydia’s poison cloud.

“Well ain’t they clever? But it’s going to take more than a little wind power to stop my poison...” Hydia said, raising her arms and focusing her own spiritual pressure as her body started to become surrounded by an ever deeper miasma of dark purple light. More poison flowed out of her in a growing cloud, rising into the air like a thick fog wall.

However before it could get too large a new Quincy prepared ahead, a giant bear of a man. He was easily eight feet tall, with ludicrously broad shoulders, on par with Torch himself. Shaggy rusty reddish brown hair fell around his head, obscuring the man’s eyes, and flowing into a thick beard tied by a gold clasp. His Quincy ‘uniform’ was more like thick, furred viking garb, with a cloak of gray lined fur and an actual helmet bearing huge, curved yak horns.

“The heck is that? Bigfoot?” Draggle said, chuckling, “He’s just gonna choke on momma’s fumes.”

Hydia wasn’t quite so certain. No one’s fool, she knew a Sternritter when she saw one, and figured this huge shaggy bear of a man wouldn't’ have come out here so boldly if he was going to drop from mere contact with her poison.

Before she could muse further the man bellowed in a loud, thickly gruff tone, “I am Rutherford! Sternritter G! You get to know that before being smashed, Hollows!”

Then without any preamble whatsoever Rutherford flexed his arms and started to expand. Hydia looked up, and up, and up, and up as the Sternritter who started out as a fairly large eight foot tall man transformed into an massive titan easily fifty or sixty meters tall.

“So... uh, did anybody bring their anti-kaiju spray this morning?” asked Reeka as Rutherford, Sternritter G, the Giant, smashed his foot down to the ground with enough force to create a shockwave that billowed away a large portion of Hydia’s gas cloud, and sent dozens of her misshapen Arrancar forces flying.

----------

Guto snorted at the sight of the Quincy giant that had appeared on the western flank. He imagined Hydia was going to have a ball with that one. He wasn’t envious of her, however, as he’d focused his attention on the larger battle and knew soon enough he’d be facing more than enough worthy opponents.

“We’ve boxed their air forces in, my lord,” said Gruff, his oldest and most experienced Fraccion.

Guto stood on the air well above the majority of the fighting, more interesting in directing the fight more carefully than his compatriot Espada even as he was eager to look for the right opportunity to swoop into the battle personally. Gruff, a wrinkled looking old Arrancar with thick, bony protrusions rising from his brow and bearing a gnarled sword-cane for a Zanpaktou, remained close at Guto’s side, providing direction to fast moving couriers who’d relay orders to Guto’s disciplined forces.

Unlike the other Arrancar who charged in at random, Guto’s horde fought in tight moving formations, and Guto had been direction them to slowly box in and start picking apart those VTOLs the Quincy had in the air. Missiles and thick streams of gunfire from turret mounts made the VTOLs tough opponents, and more than a little anti-air fire was coming from the fortifications below, but ultimately that wouldn’t have been as large a problem if not for the one Quincy who was moving among the VTOLs and keeping Guto’s forces off balance with deadly precise shots from a revolver whose bullets seemed to create pockets of high gravity wherever they struck. Guto’s keen eyesight picked out the details of this man, a bulky fellow with purple skin and a ridiculous pompadour haircut, and Guto imagined this had to be a Sternritter. So far the man hadn’t done more than be a nuisance to Guto’s attempts to wipe out the Sternritter’s air forces, and Guto was debating whether to deal with the man directly.

Guto had been cautious with that one, not letting his people charge in too close and instead using concentrated Cero beams to slowly force the VTOLs to bunch together in a narrow space above the Quincy fortifications. HIs caution wasn’t simply because he was concerned with facing one Sternritter, but because among the VTOLs there was one much larger than the others that hung near the center of the battle. That VTOL, Guto sensed, was carrying even more Sternritter, and most of them had yet to make move. His own swift tactical mind surmised that the general of the Quincy forces was on that VTOL, and that he was intentionally keeping Sternritter in reserve to send out as reinforcements when needed.

This was confirmed to Guto when he saw two Quincy, both female, one a dark skinned woman with blond hair and another with buttery yellow skin and a two toned pink and white head of hair, leave a side hatch on that command VTOL and head north where Torch and Lament were fighting.

Good, knowing where the enemy kept their command center was important, and under the right circumstances Guto could take advantage of the fact.

“Well done,” he said in response to Gruff’s comment, “Focus on keeping these flying insects boxed in above their fortifications. We need to limit their movement and ability to provide air support. Tell Greta to take her unit and begin bombarding the fortifications from above. I want Gilda to then-”

“My lord!” a courier appeared with a burst of Sonido, kneeling in front of Guto, “A report from our scouts.”

Guto raised a sharp eyebrow. Caution and common sense had told him to detach several of his horde to scout the area, in case the Quincy had any surprises waiting for them. Given that not even half of the Quincy Sternritter had appeared on the battlefield yet, he wouldn’t be surprised at all if a surprise attack was coming. It made him admire Tirek’s choice to hold Smooze, Catrina and Chrysalis in reserve, while using Squirk primarily to move forces with the Garganta portals. Anything the Quincy tried would get almost immediately countered. It was galling to admit that Tirek’s position was earned not just by raw power, but by cunning as well. It’d almost be shame if the Quincy’s ‘King’ managed to kill Tirek.

“Speak,” he told the courier curtly, expecting to hear a report of some Quincy strike forcing moving in on them from behind.

“We’ve spotted a small group of Quincy hidden near the lake formation to the southeast,” the courier said, “We estimate less than a hundred of them, the majority of them seemingly quite young.”

Guto’s eyes flashed with a sudden, hungry light.

The Quincy’s young generation of cadets!? The one’s Torch, Catrina, and Squirk failed to annihilate completely! He couldn’t stop the sharp, predatory smile creasing his harsh, avian features.

“Is that so? Are they alone?”

“No, my lord, the scout spotted perhaps two or three Quincy among the young ones who appeared to be quite strong, perhaps even Sternritter,” the courier replied swiftly.

Fingers rising to his chin, Guto considered. He wasn’t inclined to rash action. Discipline and well executed tactics was the key to victory in battle. Yet one who ignored opportunity when it came calling was doomed to obscurity. He couldn’t fathom why the Quincy would bring their young, vulnerable cadets out to a battle such as this, but at the same time guarding them with multiple Sternritter was an admittedly effective deterrent. Could Guto afford to abandon his attack on the fortifications to go after the cadets?

His keen eagle-like eyes scanned the battlefield.

Torch and Lament were engaged with Sternritter on the north side, but Torch’s horde was making swift progress in assaulting the fortifications. Hydia was stalled by that giant of a Quincy, but Guto knew she could hold her own. His forces were keeping the VTOLs busy, but he could leave that to Gruff and Greta’s units while he redirected Gilda elsewhere. Much as he was displeased with Gilda’s brash stupidity from the other day, the fact remained he’d been grooming the promising girl for a long time. Her power was a rival for the lower ranked Espada, and given time she might even match him one day. Between the two of them they could likely face off with a few Sternritter... at least long enough for the rest of Gilda’s unit to decimate the Quincy cadets. Furthermore, he doubted the Quincy general sitting upon that command VTOL could afford to ignore a threat to the cadets, which meant that any Sternritter being kept in reserve to fight elsewhere would possibly be sent to stop him, which while dangerous for Guto, would make the battle much easier for his compatriot Espada. He didn’t actually care about their well being, but the glory and praise he’d receive for possibly turning the tide of battle filled Guto with a hungry avarice.

It was too good an opportunity to pass up, he decided.

“Send word to Gilda. She’s to abandon the bombardment plan and regroup here with me,” Guto drew his Zanpaktou and smiled with raw hunger, “We’re going hunting.”

----------

Far from the intense maelstrom of battle, the dunes on the west side of Las Noches stirred with the faintest touch of motion. White sand softly poured down dune slopes as invisible forms passed by with fleet movements that brought them right up to the monolithic fortress walls.

Shimmering camouflage cloaks were pulled back, hoods drawn down as Cadence placed a hand on the flat, cold stone in front of her.

“Nothing nearby,” she said, and her two companions removed their own hoods.

Twilight Velvet gave the faintest of disquiet shuffles as her eyes were drawn south towards the sounds of battle, but Cadence touched the other woman’s arm in a comforting gesture.

“They’ll be okay,” Cadence said.

Velvet nodded, then glanced at the third of their troupe, Sassy Saddles returning the look with sympathy in her eyes.

“I know how you feel. Let’s just do this job as fast as we can. As soon as we confirm that our target is dead, the battle will be over.”

A small nod came from Velvet and she turned her attention to the wall. “Then let’s make short work of this. Sassy, you’re up.”

Up until recently they’d been within the sphere of Night Light’s Schrift, and had been receiving updates on the developing battle. They knew at least half the Espada were already engaged in the fight, but more importantly that the Garganta portals being used to move the Arrancar into the battle were the same as the ones that had brought the raid to the Quincy Academy. It was very likely their target was still inside Las Noches, and if he was actively using Gargantas then his reiatsu would be easy to track once they were inside the fortress. Cadence had selected Sassy Saddles for her team because Sassy’s Schrift would let them get inside the fortress with the greatest ease. As soon as they’d surmised the Espada controlling the Gargantas was still within Las Noches, they’d moved out, using camouflage cloaks and suppressing their reiatsu to avoid detecting while approaching the fortress from a spot far from the battle.

Now with the majority of the Quincy and Arrancar forces locked in deadly combat, Cadence and her kill team could infiltrate with very little chance of being spotted.

Sassy Saddles extended her hand, the Quincy cross around her wrist twinkling with blue light as she brought forth her bow. It was a long and elegant recurve bow formed from metal with a pink hue. The central portion of the bow had a circle of condensed metal mounted upon it, and as Sassy drew her arm back, a pink string of reishi energy forming on the bow and forming an exceedingly thin reishi arrow, that circle expanded into a cone of ever smaller rings.

When Sassy released the arrow it didn’t so much fire as it did transform into a continuous and persistent, thin beam that instantly cut into the wall of Las Noches as if the thick stone was nothing more than paper. With simple motions Sassy Saddles drew a circle with the pink beam of light, and when she was done she simply stood back and made a quick bow.

“One instant door, ladies.”

“Good work Sassy,” Cadene said, pushing on the spot where the circle had been cut. Blut Arterie enhance her strength as her arm pushed on the tones of stone that had been cut through, and a five meter thick circle of stone fell inward as Cadence pushed it. Beyond was a darkened corridor, and another cut circle in the opposite wall. Sassy Saddle’s ‘arrow’ would have cut hundreds of meters into the fortress, making getting into the interior a snap. What would have taken a great deal of time and effort to find another entrance had instead been a matter of seconds.

All thanks to Sassy Saddles, Sternritter N, the Needle.

“Alright, let’s get in there. We’ve got an Espada to kill.”

----------

Cheerilee looked upon the distant battle with faint awe and a distinct look of hapless humor, “You know if we weren’t knocked on our asses by what went down back home, this would have been the perfect chance to step in and really put the hurt on both the Hollows and Quincy.”

“That, or lose uncounted Soul Reapers by making an already chaotic battle even more devastating for all sides involved,” said Luna, her own eyes taking in the scene miles away with careful calculation, “I’d not so casually toss lives into that burning pyre.”

“Really? What do you call what we’re doing now, then, Cap?” asked Cheerilee with a cheeky grin, “We’re not exactly out for a pleasure stroll, are we?”

Luna crossed her arms and glanced away with a small hint of embarrassment coloring her cheeks, “This is completely different. We’re being covert.”

“Without orders,” Cheerilee pointed out.

“...Captain Command Scorpan didn’t not order me to do something if I saw a chance to take advantage of any distractions in Las Noches’ defenses,” Luna said defensively, then snorted and gave Cheerilee a small smirk, “Besides you can’t tell me you don’t enjoy this, Cheerilee. You missed out on all the action back home.”

“Hey, I like playing teacher,” Cheerilee said, sighing she looked up, eyes glazed, “I had a comfy apartment, all the coffee I could drink, and the joy of disciplining unruly teenagers. I was perfectly happy not dealing with the malkavian insanity that went on in Soul Society, your incarceration notwithstanding, Captain.”

“Your concern warms my heart.”

“Oh don’t be like that, you know I was worried half to death for you and Celestia. I’m just grateful those girls managed to unscrew that situation,” Cheerilee said, crossing her arms as she tapped a foot impatiently, “What’s taking Nocturn so long?”

“You rang?” the man himself said as he suddenly appeared with a Flash Step beside the two, saluting with his one arm, “Captain, Lieutenant.”

Luna nodded, returning his salute, “Did you find a way inside?”

“I believe so, Captain,” Nocturn said, nodding back towards Las Noche’s towering walls, “All normal entrances are locked down, and would require so much force to penetrate that we’d reveal our presence if we tried to brute force our way in. However I’ve discovered a series of small vents along the east side. They’re too small to crawl through normally, and quite a bit of steam and smoke is rising out of them. That said, with your Zanpaktou, Captain, I believe we have our way in.”

“Perfect,” Luna said, patting the tanto and katana hilts of her dual Zanpaktou. With the power of her Shikai she could convey herself, her Lieutenant, and Third Seat into any shadowed area, moving along the lines of darkness with swiftness and ease.

“Great,” said Cheerilee, “Now that we have a way in, anyone want to remind me what we’re actually planning to do?”

“What, you didn’t get the briefing?” Nocturn said with a joking smirk.

“I must have been on lunch break when that happened,” Cheerilee said, and Luna groaned at both of them.

“You two are worse than my sister. Look, I understand we’re not acting under orders. Regardless we cannot pass up this chance. No Soul Reaper has ever explored the interior of Las Noches, and we’ll never get a better opportunity to do so while the majority of the enemy is distracted. More than that, there’s another reason for us to go inside, something Starswirl brought up at the last Captain’s meeting before we came here...”

“Oh?” Cheerilee raised an eyebrow, “Care to fill us in on what that was, Captain?”

Luna’s eyes focused somberly upon Las Noches, “Starswirl believes it would be beneficial to study the power of Garganta portals and if one could be used to reopen the way to the realm of Equestria. So we’re going in there to capture a live Arrancar.”

----------

Di-Roy sneezed, ignoring the Arrancar children climbing over him like a living jungle gym as he patrolled the front doors to Lament’s tower.

“Soooooo bored, why do Adagio and Ember get to go have all the fun? Hey kids, you guys want to go take a peek at the battle with Uncle Di-Roy?”

His question was met with enthusiastic shouts, but soon Roka stepped out from the open doors into the tower, smiling pleasantly yet with such arctic chill that Di-Roy froze in place.

“I think it would be better to continue to wait here patiently, children, for Father to return from the battle. Its too dangerous to go peeking at anything. And Di-Roy?”

Di-Roy turned his head slowly, smiling with frightened pleasantness, “Y-yeah?”

Roka was smiling, but her eyes were closed like the pleasant slits of a murderer, “Don’t encourage the children.”

“H-heh-heh, s-sure, no problem,” he said, gulping as he set the children down, many of whom made disappointed ‘awww’ noises, but he shooed them off, “C’mon kids, it was a fun idea, but let’s not get Uncle Di-Roy axe-murdered by your protective big sis.”

“Go play inside, children. It’ll be lunch time soon anyway,” Roka said, and the kids shuffled into the tower. Meanwhile Fenice came wandering out as well, glancing at the passing kids with a momentary soft smile before her look turned sour as she joined Roka and Di-Roy on the steps leading up to the tower proper.

“I hate waiting like this,” Fenice said, “Why didn’t Father just take us with him?”

Roka sighed, shaking her head, “Do you honestly think Father would have been comfortable taking us into battle? He cares for our safety above everything, Fenice. He’d never allow us to fight by his side. Especially given that when he uses his full power, he has little control over what gets destroyed around him.”

“I know, I just...” Fenice’s fingers brushed her pendant, “I hate not being able to do anything. Adagio and Ember are out there too.”

“Ah, and you’re starting to take a liking to them...”

“So what if I am?” Fenice grumbled irritably, her eyes glancing towards Di-Roy, and then towards the foot of the steps where Gaw’s massive form was laying down, sleeping, “Hasn’t been bad having someone else to talk to, even annoying one’s like Di-Roy.”

“Hey, I’m the life of the party!” Di-Roy said, grimacing as his stomach wound acted up, “When I have only the one hole in me that I’m supposed to, anyway. Anyways, you gals don’t need to be worrying about Adagio or Ember. They’re not going to drop from some asshole Quincy. And your old man? Whew, forget about it. I feel bad for whoever’s stuck fighting him. Talk about drawing the short end of the stick.”

“Indeed,” Roka said, giving Di-Roy a somewhat fond smile that was quite different from her threatening one of moments ago.

And unbeknownst to any of them, on the wall of Las Noches’ interior not far from Lament’s tower, a hole was cut open by a thin pink beam, and a trio of cloaked Quincy entered the fortress on the hunt.

Author's Notes:

Writing a chapter like this is kind of like juggling geese. This is a different ball game from the fights back in Soul Society, because in a battle like this components can shift so rapidly and quickly. Characters can drop in and out of different parts of the fight, and everyone is kind of going at it all at once instead of in a series of easy to focus on, one at a time kind of fights. Also there's just a lot to cover all at once, so in terms of perspective we're shifting around a lot among different character's viewpoints as the battle unfolds. We're really just in the opening set up here, things are about to get a whole lot messier and chaotic. But that's kind of how war is.

Fun bit of trivia on the side, the track from Evangelion I'm using here was composed by Shiro Sagisu, a fellow who's done a lot of work on the Bleach soundtrack as well. So while its not strictly Bleach music, I find a lot of the more epic tracks from Evangelion totally fit within the spirit of Bleach, and are pretty fitting for some of the Quincy focused scenes coming up.

I sincerely hope you folks are enjoying things so far, and by all means let me know what you think through any and all comments, critiques, or questions you my have. Either way, thanks for reading! 'Till next time.

Episode 74: Chaotic Battlefield

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Episode 74: Chaotic Battlefield

Dumbbell stuck his head through the archway to the empty stairwell leading down into the cold Hueco Mundo desert, and tried very hard not to tremble with as much fear as he was feeling. Fear not born of hearing the constant staccato of blasts, explosions, and screams from the battle that echoed in the distance, but rather of what he and his two pals Hoops and Score were about to do. But Adagio had given her orders, and Dumbbell wasn’t about to disappoint her. He didn’t think it very odd that, not so long ago, he and his buddies had tried to kill the very Hollow they now loyally served. Things had changed. She’d proven herself not only to be top dog, but she’d kept every promise she’d given them about keeping them fed and improving their lot.

Far as Dumbbell was concerned that put Adagio on a level higher than the Espada. Because of Adagio he and his friends had a nice place to stay, and hadn’t run out of lesser Hollows to eat. Life, for the first time ever, was good. Like hell he was going to let her down now, even if what she’d asked him to do was... well not quite suicide, but definitely not an easy task.

What was weird was the way she’d given her orders.

He looked again at the slip of paper in his hand. He, Hoops, and Score had been following Adagio and Ember out to join the massing Arrancar for deployment in battle, but she’d slowed down, her tail sneaking this slip of paper out of her hair and carefully giving it to him without her looking at it. He’d opened his mouth to question, but as if sensing what he was doing Adagio had simply gestured backwards with her hand for him to be silent and look at the paper.

The paper had a crude map of some underground area drawn on it, with a few lines of instructions that had made Dumbbell’s skin turn clammy with sweat as he'd read it.

”Don’t speak. You three are to slip away from me and Ember at the first opportunity during the battle, and go to a collection of rocks south of the copse of trees we used to meet at. You’ll find a hidden entrance to Grogar’s laboratories there, which I’ve sketched this map of. His main lab is marked with the X. Go there. Search his lab for anything you can find pertaining to how he artificially creates Arrancar. Steal anything that looks important pertaining to that. Then hide in the human world until I come for you.”

Dumbbell gulped, taking the first hesitant step down the stairs that was built within the rock formation Adagio had mentioned. He half expected to hear some kind of alarm or get cut apart by some devious trap, but nothing happened and after a second he glanced back at Hoops and Score.

“O-okay, step one, complete,” he said, giving a thumbs up.

“You know, kinda thinking it’d still be safer to be fighting the Quincy right now,” Score said, nervously licking his lips as he and Hoops joined Dumbbell as the trio headed down the winding stair well.

“What? We’re just breaking into the home of an Espada,” stammered Hoops, “The one who’s got a reputation for horrible, torturous experimentation on his own kind. N-no biggie, right?”

“Relax, he’s not here right now,” said Dumbbell, trying to convince himself as much as his friends, “You saw it. He’s back in Las Noches keeping an eye on Squirk. So, uh, this place should be empty.”

“What if it’s not?” asked Hoops, and Dumbbell grimaced, sucking in a deep breath and letting it out as he rubbed his hand through his thick hair.

“Then we wing it. Like Adagio would do. She doesn’t let anything scare her, so neither will we! We just got to follow the map, find the stupid lab, and look for anything useful about making Arrancar.”

“I know how to make Arrancar and it's a lot easier and more fun than sneaking into a creepy lab,” Score said with a joking leer, and Dumbbell rolled his eyes.

“You know what Adagio means! She’s talking about how that Di Roy guy is all, like, weird and only half-Arrancar. Grogar made him that way, so it's all smart and stuff to think he’s got a way to do the rest.”

“Yeah, but how are we going to find it?” asked Hoops, “We don’t even know what to look for, do we?”

“I dunno, let’s just find the lab first. We’ll figure out the rest after that,” replied Dumbbell curtly, wincing slightly as the ground shook from some massive impact from the battle up above. He hoped Adagio was going to be okay. She was super powerful, and a Vasto Lorde to boot, but it had looked like the whole damn Quincy army was up there. And just feeling Lord Tirek start to go at it with the Quincy King had been... well, humbling wasn’t quite the term. Dumbbell had never felt more insignificant or ant-like than when those two monsters had started their duel.

Really just about everyone and everything in that battle was stronger than him and his friends. They really were the bottom of the Arrancar barrel. But... but Adagio believed in them! She didn’t think they were useless, like everyone else in Las Noches had. She treated them like they mattered. She’d given them this important job to do, and dammit they were going to do it!

Reaching the bottom of the stairs the trio exited onto a wide, dark hallway. Each had their hands grasping the hilts of their Zanpaktou, drawing them in uneasy silence as they exchanged nods and Dumbbell led the way, following the map Adagio had drawn for them. Following a dizzying set of twists and turns they came upon the hallway that would lead to the lab’s entrance.

The three skidded to a halt as they saw they weren’t alone in the hallway. The hall’s ceiling stretched high above, and was wide enough for a pair of semi-trucks to pass through it. Which made sense given the hall was being guarded by two hulking brutes that towered over Dumbbell and his friends. Each one was an Arrancar, but clearly experimented upon by Grogar, given their strangely misshapen bodies. Arms with thick bulges of artificial muscle mass hung down and long like those of a gorilla's. One had a bulbous, thick body that was almost as round as a balloon, while the other had a wide, flat body like a living brick wall. Both had faces mostly covered by thick, rounded Hollow masks bearing wide bug-like eye holes. Only the mouths were left open, and each massive giant looked down at the three Arrancar youths that had just entered the hall with clear confusion.

“Strangers...” the rounded one said, scratching its head of coarse black hair.

“Strangers in master’s place,” agreed the other, sniffing the air.

“Master says destroy all strangers.”

“Smash and mash them up, that is what master says.”

As the two massive Arrancar took long steps forward, Dumbbell, Hoops, and Score all looked at each other. Dumbbell, pushing down his fear, hardened his face with resolve and nodded at his friends.

“Okay guys, game time! Whatever it takes, we’re not gonna fail Lady Adagio!”

His words were punctuated the rounded Arrancar's massive, car-sized fist striking Dumbbell full on and sending him smashing into the far wall in an explosion of rock and dust.

Hoops and Score blinked at that, and made to run, but Dumbbell, coughing, pushed himself away from the crater his body had just made in the wall and shook himself. He was bleeding from his scalp, and wobbly on his feet, but he shot a glare at Hoops and Score, "You guys better not be thinking about running! We're doing this!"

As if to prove his own words to himself he launched himself towards the two massive, deformed Arrancar guards, slashing hard with his sword at the bulbous one that had struck him. That Arrancar raised its thick, bulging arm to block. Dumbbell's sword scored a shallow wound, drawing blood but barely getting far through the layers of heavy muscle making up the enemy's arm.

The Arrancar shook its arm and flung Dummbell off, who landed on shaky feet, but held his ground. Hesitantly Score and Hoops both gulped and stood by his side, readying their own blades as the two deformed giants charged the trio.

----------

Adagio suppressed an urge to sneeze that seemed to come out of nowhere, and swore under her breath at even that small distraction in the face of an opponent like the one before her. Prim Hemline had yet to make a move, and was just standing there observing Adagio, Ember, and Garble with intelligent, unblinking eyes.

She’s waiting for us to make the first move. No doubt intending to take advantage of any openings we give her, Adagio thought, still puzzling over what kind of powers this Sternritter might have. The Arrancar she’d struck with her arrows earlier were utterly unmoving, but not in the manner of those dead, but rather like paralyzed statues. Was it some kind of toxin contained in the arrows? If that was the case then Adagio couldn’t afford to get even grazed, which meant she’d have to avoid getting hit at all costs.

Regardless of how powerful she is, she’s still human, and that means she’s subject to human weaknesses.

Neither Ember or Garble were attacking yet either, remaining tensely poised during this brief standoff. Adagio wasn’t surprised Ember was smart enough not to rush in, but was a little shocked Garble hadn’t. Perhaps beating him senseless had knocked some caution into his thick skull? More likely the suggestion she’d planted in his mind with her song to protect Ember was making him hold off on charging in head first. Either way, Adagio was grateful, since it let her take the initiative.

She held her trident with both hands and swept it in an upward arc, pouring forth her reiatsu to summon a vertical wave of water that burst forward at high speed.

As before Prim Hemline fired a single arrow into the wave of water, which seemed to make it halt instantly and then splash down harmlessly. However Adagio had already moved with all the speed she could muster, appearing above Prim with her trident aimed downward. A heavy barrage of Aqua Bala fired out of the trident’s tips, the small spheres of condensed water and reishi impacting like a torrent of gatling gun shells.

There was a flicker of gray behind her and Adagio whirled in time to see Prim Hemline, quite unscathed, flashing into view while hanging in mid-air. Her bow was aimed at Adagio’s back and the woman had a small, smug smirk on her face as she fired the gold colored bolt. Adagio spun to try to deflect it with her trident, but knew she was going to be a hair too slow.

Ember, having already been tensed to move, managed to be faster and in a blur of Sonido appeared next to Adagio and fired a Cero straight into the arrow. The wide crimson beam was split by the arrow, but still managed to stop the golden bolt. Ember didn’t skip a beat, following up her Cero with another blast that forced Prim to dodge aside as the blood red beam cut a twenty meter wide swath of destruction across the desert, exploding in a small mushroom cloud a quarter mile away. Meanwhile Prim’s sheer speed sent her flickering upward and launching a deadly crescent array of golden arrows that flashed down at Adagio and Ember both.

With a wave of her arm Adagio sent forth a curtain of high pressurized water, trying to throw the arrows off course as she and Ember both sought to evade the lethal rain. Again Adagio noticed how her water, when it was struck by the arrows, halted immediately as if all the the momentum and pressure the water had built it simply vanished.

As she bent and twisted away from the arrows falling around her, one grazed her left leg, and she felt as if she’d slammed that leg into some kind of wall, as if the entire limb just halted in place. The result actually cartwheeled her into the ground, but Adagio recovered fast, hand springing up and away as more arrows slammed into the spot she’d just occupied. Ember was dodging just as many arrows, trying to fire back with Ceros, but never coming close to tagging Prim’s incredibly fast form.

Garble then leaped into the fray as well, trying to get in behind Prim Hemline and strike her back with his falchion. She almost casually, without even looking, fired an arrow into his gut and Garble dropped like a stone. Quite literally, as Adagio couldn’t help but notice it wasn’t that Garble had fallen like someone struck dead, but rather as if all his momentum vanished the moment the arrow hit him and he just hung cartoonishly in the air for a second before falling, stiff as a board.

“Shit! Garble!” Ember growled, drawing back one hand and then flinging it out to fire a barrage of swift, red Bala bullets at Prim.

Adagio hesitated for a second, then shouted, “Ember, can you keep her busy for a moment? I have to check something.”

“Keep her busy!? Are you cra... ugh, never mind. I got it!” Ember halted her Bala barrage just long enough to place her hand on her Zanpaktou, which became enshrouded in intense blue light as her reiatsu built up and started to shake the ground, “Eviscerate, Espina!”

The explosion of blue spirit energy engulfed Ember as she transformed into her Resurreccion state, the pyre of sapphire light swirling upwards into the black sky until it dissipated a few seconds later to reveal Ember fully changed. Her torso was now clad in segments of bone white armor, only leaving her midriff bare, while her waist was coated in a wide skirt of similar bone armor, and knee high, thick boots of bone. Two new horns swept back from her brow, joining the forward swept ones she usually had, and she now had two large draconic wings with blue membranes and white spurs of bone, tipped with thorns. Ember brought her blade to bear in its new form, that of a five foot long triangular blade with a cross-guard of two outward swept thrones.

“Whatever you’re doing, don’t take long! Not sure how long I can hold her, even like this,” Ember said, then took to the air in a magnificent burst of speed, wings flaring as she charged Prim Hemline.

The Sternritter let fly a gleaming hail of gold arrows, but with Ember’s transformation came a hefty boost to the Arrancar’s speed, and Ember’s draconic body zipped in and out of sight as a series of rapid Sonido’s brought her through the storm of gold arrows to get within melee range of Prim. Ember’s piercing blade thrust out, but Prim held out a palm and blocked the tip of Ember’s blade with just her hand alone. At Ember’s wide eyed look Prim offered a thin smile.

“Physical attacks are useless on me, unfortunately for you.”

Ember didn’t quite comprehend what had just happened. If Prim had just stopped her attack using the power of Blut Vene, then that would have made sense to her. She still would have felt the impact of her sword on the Quincy’s flesh, even with Blut Vene acting as armor against the attack. Yet just now it was as if all of the kinetic force of her thrust had simply vanished the instant the sword had made contact with Prim’s palm!

Before she could wonder the how’s and why’s of that, Ember was forced to nearly bend over backwards to avoid a streak of blue light that could have taken her head off if she hadn’t dodged in time. Acting on instinct alone she swung her thorn-shaped Zanpaktou out at a threat only her gut combat sense had perceived and she managed to deflect a follow up strike from the same source. Backing away, she saw Prim had drawn a long silver tube with a square hook on one end and an opening at the other from which extended a blade of glowing blue reishi.

“Since you’re having difficulty figuring out my Zero, I’ll keep this sporting and exercise some of my fencing skills,” Prim said, holding her bow aloft in her right hand while holding the glowing blue blade in her left, spreading her feet in the air in a fencer’s pose.

Before Ember could so much as blink Prim came at her in a blinding series of thrusts that were so quick that a single strike felt like three as Ember struggled to parry them.

Meanwhile down on the ground Adagio had run up to Garble’s body, kneeling down to check him over. He wasn’t moving a single muscle, not evening breathing. Yet his eyes were open, twitching ever so slightly, and Adagio sensed his spirit energy struggling with some foreign spirit energy that had seeped into him. He was slowly turning blue in the face, and Adagio imagined he had a few minutes, tops, before asphyxiating. Fortunately for him Adagio still had a use for him.

Focusing on the arrow planted in his gut, she aimed her trident at it. The wound itself was likely quite painful, but nowhere near fatal. She’d given him worse in their own scuffle. No, the true danger of these golden arrow was what they did to those they struck. It wasn’t poison, of that much Adagio was certain. The arrows had robbed her water of all motion, so she surmised what they were doing was somehow negating physical movement. Garble couldn’t breathe, because he couldn’t move any part of his body with that arrow stuck in him. His heart was still beating, but Adagio theorized that might be because Prim’s power could only affect things on a surface level.

Regardless she couldn’t risk touching the arrow, but an energy based attack? Prim had dodged her Aqua Bala, and Ember’s Cero. That may well mean she couldn’t affect anything comprised of raw spirit energy. Testing two theories out at once, Adagio fired an Aqua Bala straight into the arrow at point blank range. The water around the bullet of reishi instantly lost momentum and fell harmlessly to the sand, but the reishi itself smashed into the arrow and broke the glowing shaft of Quincy reishi in half. Thus broken the rest of the weapon lost cohesion and vanished from Garble’s body. He instantly sucked in a hard, desperate breath and convulsed, sitting bolt upright as he gasped for air.

“Gggaaaah! Pfffa! W-what the hell did that bitch hit me with!? Argh!” Garble clutched at his bleeding gut, wincing hard.

“Suck it up,” Adagio told him, “We don’t have a lot of time.”

As if to emphasis her words there was a blast of air from the clash of Prim and Ember’s blades as the Quincy continued to toy with the Arrancar girl, pushing her back further and further until Ember was forced to the ground, barely holding off Prim’s incredibly swift strikes. Adagio didn’t know what kind of weapon the glowing blade sprouting from that silver tube was, but she didn’t want to wait to see if Ember’s Heirro was up to deflecting it. She turned to Garble, eyes deadly serious.

“I think I have her power figured out, and a way to beat her. But I need you to do exactly as I say.”

He gave her a hesitant look, and for a second she saw his hand twitch towards one of his pants pockets. Adagio tensed, preparing for if Garble had some sort of plan to turn on her, but after one glance at Ember’s situation Garble removed the doubt from his face and he nodded, standing up. “Tell me what to do.”

----------

Night Light was excellent at multitasking and removing distractions from his thoughts while still maintaining a keen sense of his surroundings. He was fully aware of the viscous aerial battle the Quincy VTOLs were engaged in with the contingent of Arrancar that had come in from the south. The explosions of streaking Ceros and missile barrages alike filled the turbulent sky around him and the command VTOL, yet Night Light was neither disturbed nor distracted by the maelstrom.

He directed the army of His Majesty as only he could. Even if engagements of this size were a rarity in the war, Night Light had trained for this his whole life and sharpened his skills on numerous smaller battles. He had honed his familiarity and connection to his Schrift through uncounted hours of use, the Command as thoroughly a part of him as his ability to breathe or walk. In Night Light’s mind he saw the battle like a series of moving tapestries, each a window into a different slice of the chaos. Information was processed in his mind at breakneck speed, and with each moment he sent his mental commands to dozens across the battlefield, ranging from warning a simple soldat squad of an incoming group of Adjuchas-class Hollows and redirecting their fire to counter the move, to warning Fleur De Lis and the contingent guarding the cadets that one of the Espada was heading their way.

That concern, the fear for his daughter’s life, trembled across the void of his concentration, but Night Light let the feeling pass through him. He was His Majesty’s General now, Sternritter C, the Command. He had to manage the entire battle, not allow his focus to slip to one portion of the fight. It was just one Espada, plus around twenty to thirty lesser Arrancar. Fleur, Soarin, and Fleetfoot ought to be able to handle that. Especially considering the Sternritter had yet to reveal their trump card.

Sombra had been specified in his instructions. The Vollstandig was to be reserved until they could confirm the majority of the Espada were engaged and that Tirek had no significant reinforcements left to throw at them.

Which meant it was time to enact phase two of the plan.

Spitfire, it’s time. Move in.

Night Light’s words reached out instantly to where he could sense Spitfire’s presence, along with a whole battalion of Quincy that had hung back from the battle, maintaining a low flight pattern half a mile away on the west flank of Las Noches. Spitfire, along with Lightning Dust and Hoity Toity, would lead that battalion in a flanking maneuver that should draw out the remaining Espada.

Then the Strafbattalion and Wind Rider would be ready to launch a surprise attack with the armored corps.

Night Light sensed them moving, Spitfire giving a curt, mental ”Affirmative!” over the Command’s link.

That done, Night Light’s attention shifted to the clashes between Sternritter that had found Espada opponents. He sensed Rutherford was having difficulty targeting his foes. His massive form, courtesy of his Schrift, the Giant, was allowing the titanic man to stomp and scatter the masses of deformed Arrancar on the ground, but a cloud of thick purple fog was not only obscuring Rutherford’s vision but was having a corrosive effect. So far Rutherford’s raw durability, enhanced by the power of the Giant, was keeping him relatively protected, but Night Light sensed that the burly Sternritter’s foe was going to try to run his endurance out rather than fight directly.

Hydia was being clever. A bad matchup to Rutherford, but Night Light wasn’t going to count the big guy out yet.

Jet Set on the other hand? Night Light saw the relatively weaker and inexperienced Sternritter had cleary bitten off more than he could chew with this Espada named Lament. Shining Armor was too busy handling Torch to provide Jet Set any support, but that was acceptable. Night Light had already sent Harshwhinny and Jet Set’s wife Upper Crust to go help the hapless Kraken. If Jet Set could survive for a minute or two his desperate fight would become a more manageable three on one affair.

Night Light wasn’t terribly concerned about his son’s ability to fight Torch. While young, the boy was almost as much a prodigy as his sister was, and he had far more experience than Twilight did.

That just left the curious affair of Prim Hemline’s opponents. Night Light couldn’t fathom what was taking Prim so long to deal with two non-Espada level Arrancar and a single Vasto Lorde. Granted the Vasto Lord appeared the strongest of the three foes Prim faced, but Prim should have been able to dispatch the three quickly with the power of the Zero. Night Light felt a stab of annoyance, seeing Prim fencing with a Seele Schneider.

Prim, stop toying with them and kill those Hollows quickly. Rutherford is going to need support soon, and Spitfire is already moving in to draw out the other Espada. You don’t have time for playing games.

His mental command was pointed and sharp. Prim’s response was quick and filled with a understanding resignation.

Yes, you’re right of course, Night Light. Improper of me to let myself get carried away, but how often do I get the opportunity to stretch my legs? No need to repeat yourself. I’ll take this seriously now. A shame, I rather like this Ember’s spunk.

Night Light didn’t care what Prim liked, as long as she stopped playing around and finished her opponents off.

Turning his attention to the west, he watched as the sky filled with the silver lights and blazing contrails of the approaching VTOLs from Spitfire’s battalion, sweeping in on Hydia’s forces like a storm of avenging valkyries as they cut loose with a swarm of missiles.

----------

“Here they come!”

The terrified shout came from one of the cadets that Twilight couldn’t see, but she shared in their feelings, cold sweat beading her forehead as she saw the Arrancar swooping in like a flock of deadly hawks. They came from the west, moving with such speed as they stepped across the air that they looked like a streak of phantom raptors. She heard the Arrancar’s shrieking, whooping war cries, filled with bloodlust, and her mind flashed back to the burning forest of the Academy exercise and the smell of human blood filling her nostrils. She saw the images of torn apart Quincy cadets in her mind’s eye, and felt a cold fire course up from inside her as she looked at the fearful looks on the faces of her comrades.

No. I won’t let it happen to them!, she thought, and there was a sinister chuckle inside her mind that answered that thought.

Then let’s tear our enemies apart first. Show me, Twilight Sparkle. Show me what we can do together.

She could feel the magic welling up inside her, a wild flame that tugged at the leash. Warmth and cold both mixed around her insides, and she could see trails of blue witchfire dancing around her left arm, filing the edges of the Hexenfaust before she even activated the armored glove.

Seeing as how the rest of the cadets were quickly summoning their own bows, Twilight saw no reason to wait any longer herself. Taking a deep breath to steady herself she closed her eyes and focused on her internal reishi, letting the spirit energy flow into her arm. She carefully allowed the trickle of magic at her core to join that reishi, building like water behind a dam along the length of her arm. She then let that power out, and the Hexenfaust responded to her outpouring of reishi.

The amethyst gems along the glove’s length flared with circles of pale blue witchfire and brighter blue motes of Quincy reishi, and the combined energies expanded outward and elongated to take a solid shape. She kept the shape clear in her mind, focused with intent on the bow’s structure and purpose, allowing the Hexenfaust itself to complete the task of forming the bow’s energies while she kept her mind clearly picturing the bow in her mind.

It was very similar in design to what she’d accidentally summoned before when Cadence had used the Lust on her. The long and curved spurs of the bow were made from a deep purple colored, metallic substance, shot through with pale blue lines that conducted the flame-like energy of her magic like small rivers. The center portion of the bow consisted of a handle mounted between two long, beak-like protrusions on either side of the handle, extending out a foot in length. Unlike the previous bow, this one mounted twin, large amethyst gems that glowed brightly directly above and below the handle area, and two smaller such gems appeared near the tips of the spurs, which in turn formed a long, flickering blue string of pale energy.

Exhilaration now battled Twilight’s fear like warm sunlight on frozen snow. While the terror of the sight of dozens of powerful Hollows rushing her and her fellow cadet’s position still quavered inside her, she just couldn’t help but feel a sensation of simple awe and satisfaction at the beautiful yet precise and functional creation in her hands. Magic and spirit particles were fused together in her bow, the object so much more than its mere appearance suggested. She could feel its power ready to be unleashed.

She just hoped it would be enough.

Beside her, Sugarcoat gave her a look with an appreciative quirk of her lips and an acknowledging nod. Even with just the flat visor covering her face, Sugarcoat still managed to look impressed, although Twilight thought Sugarcoat’s own bow was now less impressive. The short, compact pear bow was so simple and efficient in its form that Twilight highly approved of it.

A smattering of reishi arrows were being fired by other cadets, but the Arrancar were only just now entering effective range, and were moving so fast that they easily dodged such volleys. Twilight intended to hold fire until she could be more sure of a hit, but she wondered if the Sternritter would even allow for the Arrancar to get that close?

Her answer came in the form of a colossal whirlwind that whipped around the cadets, causing many to cry out in alarm as they ducked down. This was followed by the sight of Fleur De Lis launching herself into the air on a swirling tornado of air that bore her straight towards the advancing Arrancar, her composite bow held in front of her.

She was joined by both Soarin and Fleetfoot, who were only a sliver behind Fleur and leaping into the sky. Soarin held out his hand, a trail of cerulean reishi extending from his palm to take the shape of a bow with spurs shaped like long, outward curved wings forged from blue steel. Fleetfoot balled her hands into fists and both the fists and her feet glowed with soft yellow light, her own reishi forming what looked like deeply curved, fin-like crescents on the backs of her hands and on the top of her booted feet.

From the head of the flock of Arrancar charging towards them, one pulled ahead with such speed that the air cracked from multiple sonic booms, and Fleur rushed to meet this foe. Twilight could see this man was a leanly muscular an of darkly tanned skin, sporting a sharp nose and aquiline features, bearing a prominent “6” tattooed around his eye. She felt her mouth go dry as the Sixth Espada went headlong for Fleur De Lis, his scimitar-like Zanpaktou slicing for her flesh. Fleur countered with a point blank blast of slicing air from her hand, clashing with the Espada’s blade with a deafening clash.

Soarin and Fleetfoot split up, Soarin heading to the right while Fleetfoot went left, both seeking to head off the charging Arrancar squadron. In seconds Twilight saw Soarin fire compact, short bolts from his wing shaped bow, bolts that vibrated in the air and exploded among the charging Arrancar with what looked like sonic emissions that shook the very air and made it ripple. Several Arrancar clutched at their suddenly bleeding ears, screaming as they tumbled from the air.

Fleetfoot was brutally direct in her attack, and Twilight at first wasn’t sure what to make of it. Instead of firing arrows out of the small crescent shaped ‘bows’ on her hands and feet, Fleetfoot fired what looked like hooks that shot out on strings of yellow reishi. These hooks snagged an Arrancar apiece, and suddenly with seemingly incredibly power the four Hollows were reeled in towards Fleetfoot, who proceeded to deliver earth shattering punches and kicks that rocketed her targets into the ground in geysers of sand.

Twilight winced, seeing at least one of those Arrancar had been hit hard enough to bend their head at an impossibly twisted angle.

Fleur and the Espada still clashed in the sky, Fleur becoming a pink and white blur of motion as she zipped around her foe and fired arrows that created shockwaves of wind with each shot. With a regal poise and arrogant grin plastering his features the Espada spun his blade in an elaborate dance that turned aside Fleur's arrows with apparent ease, yet the moment he tried to go on the offensive, streaking towards Fleur in a burst of Sonido, the Sternritter matched his speed and slammed a claw of wind into him, pushing him back.

Twilight wasn’t sure which of the two was stronger. Fleur and the Espada’s reiatsu clashed against each other with equal fury to Twilight’s senses, but she had a sneaking suspicion both were holding back, probing each other’s defenses and warming up to the fight.

On one hand that at least meant that the most dangerous foe in the vicinity was being handled for the moment. On the other that meant Fleur was so occupied with the Espada that Soarin and Fleetfoot were stuck trying to deal with the rest of the Arrancar that had attacked, and while it was clear both of them were powerful enough to take on many at once, that wasn’t enough to get all of the Arrancar.

“This is going to suck so much,” Sour Sweet seethed under her breath as she fired first, her large sniper-pattern crossbow unleashing a powerful arrow that streaked out and actually managed to tag one of the Arrancar that had gotten past the Sternritters and was now rushing the cadets. The blow spun the Arrancar around, but the woman kept coming on, whooping like a madwoman all the way.

“Just focus on one at a time and take them down!” Sugarcoat said past clenched teeth, and as if her words were a command that spread through the rest of the cadets, arrows started to fill the sky. The soldats with the cadets joined in the shooting as well, reishi arrows launching out in sweeping volleys.

Twilight took aim as well, taking a deep breath, remembering how Shining Armor and Cadence had taught her to still her heart and mind. She sought a target, seeing a burly, flaxen haired Arrancar she picked out of the group still heading for the cadets. She ignored her fears welling inside her, pushed aside the anger at the Hollows that might hurt or kill her friends. She let her mind connect to the target, seeing the Arrancar’s features like through a microscope lens.

In essence this was just science. Trajectories, wind speed, distance, timing, velocity, acceleration. All the calculations passed through her mind in a nanosecond, an her bow responded. It was designed to respond, projecting her shot and calculations in her vision like a holographic display. She knew she wouldn't miss before she even pulled back on the string of her bow, a flickering arrow of pale blue witchfire and reishi taking form.

When she loosed the arrow it streaked out like a ghostly comet, perfectly aimed to catch her charging opponent square in the chest.

The magic enhanced reishi arrow burst upon the Arrancar like a missile, halting him in mid-air, scorching even his Hierro hardened skin, and causing him to flip end over end into the sand. Twilight blinked, surprised at the effectiveness of her own shot. She felt a rising heat from her Hexenfaust glove, and a titter of laughter in her head.

That felt good. Tell me you didn’t think that felt good, Twilight? Do it again.

As she was blinking at her own handiwork, her squadmates were also opening fire.

Lemon Zest raised her strangely shaped bow consisting of two hexagon shaped protrusions at either end of an awkwardly bent pair of struts and fired a cascade of dozens of arrows that flew out at odd angles and changed direction on the fly, like a swarm of drunk hummingbirds. Arrancar blurred through the swarm with Sonido, but one or two did get struck by the haphazard arrow storm, wounded by still charging in.

Stormy bolts of lighting shaped arrows from Indigo Zap’s bow joined the focused, straight and powerful arrows that Sugarcoat fired, the pair of them focusing fire on the Arrancar Sour Sweet had wounded, slowing that one down even further.

Meanwhile Sunny Flare worked alongside the McColt girls and Cotton Barrel, all focusing on another Arrancar that was coming in from a higher angle. Sunny Flare’s dart guns made an elegant, lady-like zapping noise with each small reishi dart fired, but the Arrancar she was firing at was easily dodging the barrage. Buzzsaw was living up to her namesake, her ‘bow’ taking the shape of a flat, rifle-like weapon with a wide barrel that fired spinning, buzzing discs of reishi. Hacksaw used a bow shaped like a thin, serrated band of metal similar to her own namesake as well, which when drawn back and fired sent out compact, sawtooth waves of reishi.

The Arrancar they were targeting, a female with dusky skin, white hair tipped purple, and a unusually muscular physique, was batting aside the McColt girl’s attacks like an adult knocking aside the flailing jabs of children. So far only Cotton Barrel Hooffiled hadn’t opened fire, but Twilight could see that the girl had her own bow out, an arbalest shaped weapon of white wood and a ashen colored wheel on top that she was cranking with a handle that seemed to condense more and more reishi into the weapon with each turn of the wheel.

Cotton Barrel didn’t have time to finish charging up her weapon, however, as the female Arrancar rushed down in a burst of speed, plunging into the ground between the cadets like a descending meteor. The resulting shockwave as the Arrancar smashed her fist into the ground sent Cotton Barrel, Buzzsaw, Hacksaw, and Sunny Flare all flying like flipping crash test dummies.

Twilight instantly used Hirenkyaku, flying into the air to catch the nearest girl, which turned out to be Cotton Barrel, and landed safely with her. Sunny Flare managed to recover in mid-air, managing a somewhat graceful flip and landing, skidding along the sands. Buzzsaw hit the ground hard and tumbled for near twenty meters before stopping, spitting out sand as she staggered to her feet. Hacksaw went further, landing in the dark lack behind the dunes the cadets had been using for cover.

“Hack!” Buzzsaw shouted, turning and rushing towards the water to rescue her potentially drowning sister.

The Arrancar woman, smiling viscously, vanished in a burst of Sonido and appeared behind Buzzsaw, blade poised to impale the girl from behind.

Cotton Barrel shook off her daze and fired her arbalest, sending a spinning, drill-like bolt flying at the Arrancar. The heavily muscled woman spun and caught the drill bolt with her free hand while turning her thrust with her sword into a side slash. Buzzsaw was struck, but Cotton Barrel’s shot had distracted the Arrancar just enough that a blow that could have cut her in half was reduced to a terrible gouge through her hip that still caused the girl to collapse in a heap.

Twilight aimed her bow, quickly saying to Cotton Barrel, “Help them! I’ll keep her busy!”

She didn’t wait for a response, nor did she have time to see how the rest of her squad was doing. The air was now filled with the sound of shouts, screams, and explosions. Twilight could see flashes of red light and hear the horrible sound of Ceros firing behind her, Arrancar now launching destructive beams into the ranks of cadets.

She wanted so badly to turn, to see if her friends were okay, but she didn’t dare take her eyes off this foe. This Arrancar girl was generating more reiatsu than any other Hollow nearby save for the Espada himself. It was like a sickening, hot gust of wind on Twilight’s face, filled with murderous intent. She didn’t hesitate, her mind calculating her shot instantly and honing in on the Arrancar who’d turned to face her.

Her first bolt flew in, and the Arrancar turned it aside with her sword without batting an eyelash, but Twilight had expected that and had fired a second bolt right after the first at a slightly off angle. That bolt then altered its course, using small bursts of magic to change its trajectory at a near right angle to slam into the Arrancar from the side.

The explosion of brilliant teal fire made the Arrancar stumble a bit, but she took the blow like a brick wall, sliding to the side and sporting a few burn marks on her shoulder, but otherwise was left unharmed by the solid hit. Twilight couldn't help but gulp, struggling to maintain her calm, focused composure.

Meanwhile Cotton Barrel hesitated, a look of distaste twisting her lips as the Hooffield girl looked at Buzzsaw’s fallen form and then at the lack where Hacksaw had fallen. Then with a resigned growl she nodded to Twilight and jumped into the air, using Hirenkyaku to leap across the sky towards the lack, clearly intending to go try and rescue Hacksaw first before the poor girl drowned.

The Arrancar saw that and sneered, aiming a palm up and charging a deadly red Cero, but Twilight shouted, “No!” and burst into action. Pushing her speed as high as she could, the red lines of Blut Vene covering her body as she took the heavy G-forces of the high speed movement. She appeared around the Arrancar in multiple places, moving so fast her form blurred into multiple images. This was, honestly, faster than she’d expected to move, and she could feel the welling magic inside her struggling to burst out. The Hexenfaust glowed with a blaze of teal fire, and she felt her eyes sting with the edges of magic energy slowly pouring from them.

She tried to ignore it, focusing on calculating her attack. In her mind’s eye a complex series of shifting trajectory lines entrapped the Arrancar in an inescapable trap of arrows. She fired one arrow after another, eight, nine, ten, each one zipping in at rapidly shifting angles until they all started to impact upon their target. The Arrancar woman had moved with shocking speed and grace herself, despite her bulging muscles that didn’t seem to slow her down in the least. Easily half of Twilight’s arrows were knocked aside before the rest managed to break through the Arrancar’s guard and explode upon her in a growing set of blazing pale blue balls of magical fire and reishi.

As Twilight paused, catching her breath, she saw Cotton Barrel managed to dive into the black waters of the lake. She hoped the Hooffield girl would find Hacksaw in those cold depths before it was too late.

However before she could think about going to help, she heard a deep, gruf female voice laughing and Twilight paled as she saw the Arrancar woman step out of the flickering fires left by her arrows. Though sporting some more burns and bruises, the Arrancar still didn’t look terribly harmed by Twilight’s barrage, and was brushing a few embers off herself as she chuckled and looked at Twilight with fierce golden eyes.

“Not bad for a four-eyed dweeb. Here I was thinking Guto was going to have all the fun, but looks like I found myself a halfway decent punching bag to keep me entertained. What do you call yourself, four-eyes?”

“T...Twilight Sparkle.”

“Pfft, okay, not exactly the badass name I was hoping my opponent would have, but whatevs. Names Gilda. Pleasure to kill your acquaintance.”

“I don’t think that’s how that turn of phrase wor-” Twilight began to say, but Gilda vanished in a flash of Sonido and instantly appeared in front of Twilight, ramming a knee into Twilight’s gut. She managed to concentrate her Blut Vene in her abdomen in time to absorb the blow, but she was still rocked back a dozen meters and nearly lost her breakfast from the painful blow to her stomach.

Coughing, she raised her bow and took careful aim while Gilda laughed again.

“Ha! Good! You don’t die fast. I like that! Let’s have some fun!”

As Twilight unleashed another arrow at Gilda, all of her focus now on this powerful foe, she didn’t notice that amid the chaos of battle among the cadets behind her one of the Quincy soldats had broken off from the fight, and was slowly taking aim at Twilight’s back with their own bow.

----------

The squadron of VTOLs had been keeping low to the surface of Hueco Mundo’s desert, hovering in place while waiting for the signal to move. Now, at Spitfire’s sharply barked orders, the engines of the VTOLs erupted to life, sending jets of sand blasting out around them as they rapidly climbed into the air and began a headlong charge towards the battle’s western flank.

Missiles belched out of weapon pods, streaking well ahead of the VTOLs to impact in blossoms of fire amid a wide bank of violet fog that coated the west end of the battle. Spitfire, riding atop the nose of the lead VTOL, narrowed her eyes at the sight of Rutherford’s giant form stamping and smashing amid that purple cloud.

“Idiot can’t even see what he’s trying to step on!” Lightning Dust laughed, shaking her head, “Doesn’t he get that the Giant slows him down as much as it makes him strong?”

Spitfire shot a hard glare towards the younger woman, “He’s not as stupid as you think, and you’re not one to talk, miss ‘I babble my powers to my enemies’. Stay frosty. We’re expecting an ambush to our little charge here.”

Lightning Dust frowned, face reddening, but she nodded and clamped her mouth shut, eyes focused ahead. Behind them both a tall man with bluish gray skin and a well groomed head of white hair idly rubbing his chin as he peered at the upcoming fight behind dark rimmed, purple glasses.

“I just hope it really will be Chrysalis who comes out to greet us. That’d be quite the feather in our caps to take out the Espada’s number two, don’t you think?”

“What I think, Hoity Toity, is that we can’t drop our guards,” Spitfire said, her eyes narrowing as she sensed a disturbance of spirit energy appearing in front of her battalion's advance.

She’d been hoping she might be able to engage Hydia to provide Rutherford a bit of support before Tirek’s forces made their countermove, but just as His Majesty had predicted the Hollows were ready for Spitfire’s flanking move.

Akin to wounds in the sky, the cavernous black openings of Garganta portals opened up several hundred meters ahead of Spitfire’s VTOLs. From one of these portals a small fuzzy horde of white puffball creatures boiled out in a leaping swarm. Spitfire would’ve thought these small furry Hollows were ridiculous with their beady red eyes hidden behind fuzzball faces, but each one bristled with harsh spikes and razor-like claws that sprouted from their puffy bodies, and many opened watermelon sized mouths lined with teeth as they emitted ear piercing howls as they charged the VTOLs. Behind this fuzzy tide of death Catrina emerged lounging upon her gilded palanquin born aloft by a number of larger puffball Hollow servants.

From another portal a haphazard horde of Arrancar clad entirely in neck high, large collared cloaks emerged, all wearing plain white masks that hid their faces. Following this crowd of Arrancar was a gangly, tall specimen whose unusually elongated, oblong face was similarly hidden by a mask. His whole body, in fact, was clad in a tight white jumpsuit and rubber-like gloves and boots. Smooze, Spitfire identified the Espada from intelligence briefings on the known Espada. His servants, clad so similarly to Smooze himself, formed into a rough semi-circle formation and started to join Catrina’s fuzzy servants in advancing on Spitfire’s VTOL squadron.

Both these things were concerning, but nowhere near as arresting as the simple sight of the portals that had opened up above Cantrina and Smoozes, from which poured out the largest and most intimidating Hollow horde of all.

These dark Arrancar began to cover the sky, their black chitin-like skin blending in with Hueco Mundo’s inky atmosphere. Through largely human in appearance, these Arrancar were disturbingly uniform and androgynous, making it hard to tell male from female. All had pale blue or green gem-like eyes, although their hairstyles and colors were more varied. Spitfire stopped counting their numbers after the first few hundred. By regular Hollow standards that might not have been many, but by Arrancar standards this was likely the largest concentration of enemy forces on the field. And Spitfire had it all to herself. Well, until she signaled Wind Rider. But she had to make sure these enemies had their attention entirely on her unit for the Strafbattalion’s counter-ambush to work.

Fortunately she and her fellow Sternritter did have one ace in the hole to use, and the time to use it was nearly upon them.

At the head of the dark horde of onyx skinned Arrancar three stood out. One was a rather feminine looking fellow with green hair, who stood with an air of lazy amusement. Next to this man was his polar opposite, a mountain of obsidian skin over taut, toned muscle with a ruggedly masculine face with a strong jaw, prominent brow, and long mohawk of blood red hair that complimented keen purple eyes. Both already carried drawn Zanpaktou, the more feminine man twirling a cutlass while the muscular man at his side carried a large bladed glaive.

Between the two men stood a woman whose presence demanded attention and seemed to make the rest of the Arrancar horde seem small and insignificant by comparison. She wasn’t hiding her reiatsu, which while still not on the crushing level Tirek’s had been still marked her as the strongest of the Espada besides the Primera.

Chrysalis looked upon the Quincy with the eyes of a cat about to pounce upon the mice. She licked her lips, hands dancing with delighted eagerness over the hilt of her long, curved Zanpaktou as she drew the blade forth. She cast a glance at the two men who stood at either side of her, like male reflections of her own primal beauty, despite how opposite the two males were from each other.

“I trust you boys know what to do?” Chrysalis cooed, running a slim finger under Thorax’s chin, then tracing a similar long across the other man’s shoulder, “Thorax, Pharynx, I know neither of you will disappoint me, will you?”

Thorax let out a light, musical laugh, gesturing at the oncoming squadron of Quincy VTOLs, “Entertaining party guests is one of my greatest pleasures, mother. You didn’t need to bring Pharynx along, really.”

The well muscled man, Pharynx, rolled his eyes and huffed out a snort, his voice a gruff and grumbling mirror to Thorax’s musical tones, “I’m here to make sure you don’t get into trouble, and don’t you forget it, ‘brother’. Bad enough we’re taking you into battle, I have to keep an eye on you while testing... this thing out.”

Pharynx frowned deeply while scratching at a spot on his left bicep, pulling back the cloth of the long sleeved white shirt he wore to show his Hollow hole there on the left side of his chest. A small red gem was suspended there and held in place by a complex looking circular device with metal prongs that were planted into his flesh. The gem pulsed with small flickers of light, like a miniature heartbeat. Chrysalis bobbed Pharyn’s nose in an affectionate gesture.

“Quite picking at it. Just kill a few Quincy and see if the gem works as advertised. If you sense any unusual fluctuations, just fall back from the fight.”

Pharynx sighed and gripped his gliave tighter, “Yes, mother. Shall I commence the charge? Catrina and Smooze’s forces are already getting ahead start on on us.”

“By all means, let’s go enjoy ourselves, my children. Tear and gorge yourselves on Quincy souls. Indulge in every violent whim. This is not a battle, it's a celebration. An orgy of death. Let’s show the Quincy how to have a good time.”

At Chrysalis’ proclamation her horde exploded into motion, Thorax and Pharynx taking the lead alongside her as the hundreds of Arrancar joined their fellow Espada’s hordes in a headlong charge at Spitfire’s formation.

“My my my, we really did get the most interesting task, didn’t we?” Hoity Toity said, “Shall I, Spitfire?”

“Not yet. Wait until they’re closer...” Spitfire said, drawing out her bow. The four bars of intense orange, fiery beams formed around her hands and as the VTOLs flew onward, disgorging missiles and now cannon fire in equal measure, she added her fire to the mix. Beams of piercing orange energy flew out from her four pronged bow, piercing dozens of the fuzzy Hollows of Catrina's horde and cutting several of Smooze’s forces in half. She felt a sick feeling in her stomach as she saw those particular Arrancar didn’t so much seem to bleed as they burst into bubbling splashes of dark filth, as if Smooze’s Arrancar weren’t made of flesh and blood so much as some horrible, sewage-like dark fluid.

The doors on either side and behind each VTOL opened, and Quincy soldats leaped out, taking to the air using Hirenkyaku. Keeping in tight squad formations these soldats immediately opened fire on the oncoming Arrancar forces, adding their own reishi arrows to the thunderous combination of missile explosions and gunfire that was slowing the Arrancar tide, but hardly stopping it.

Then they enemy was close enough that Spitfire and Lightning Dust knew it was time to move.

“Hoity, give it sixty seconds, then do your thing. Dust, deal with Smooze. I’ll take on Catrina.”

Lightning Dust grit her teeth, clearly having wanted to take on Catrina again in a rematch, but dutifully nodding her head and summoning her own ‘bow’, the boomerang appearing in a flash of light as she leaped off the VTOL and flew towards Smooze’s forces. Spitfire, glanced once at Chrysalis’ horde, specifically at Chrysalis herself, and resisted the urge to charge at the Second Espada.

That wasn’t her job. His Majesty had designated others to deal with that one, so Spitfire followed orders like the loyal soldier she was, and jumped off the VTOL as well, streaking towards the onrushing force of Catrina’s strange, furry Hollows.

Meanwhile Hoity Toity checked his gold plated watch, and as the Quincy forces and Arrancar smashed into each other in a firestorm of destruction, he calmly vanished.

----------

Wind Rider lowered his high-tech binoculars, grimacing sourly at the insane melee that broke out in the western sky. He stood atop one of the quietly rumbling Quincy tanks. To either side of him scores of the tanks sat waiting, several ranks deep, their cannons aimed skyward. Most of them were manned by McColt loyal crews, but waiting upon or between the tanks were the black cloaked members of the Strafbattalion. His troops wore the same white uniforms of normal Quincy soldats, but their mantles were colored black with silver edges, a mark of their shame as a penal unit. Each and every one of them had disgraced the Quincy in some way. Perhaps through cowardice in battle, or assaulting a fellow Quincy. Some had committed fairly mundane crimes, theft or dealing in drugs, while others had committed acts of greater severity.

Each one, however, was spared death by His Majesty and instead sent to Wind Rider’s unit. In a twisted, ironic way, he was proud of his Strafbattalion. The dregs of the Quincy were his to command, yet he gave them discipline, and purpose. They followed him, and for being a disgraced commander himself Wind Rider was strangely content in his role, even if he always carried a sense of bitter jealousy towards those like Night Light and Spitfire who rose to glory while he remained in the shadows.

“We’re out of time.”

The voice beside him made Wind Rider turn to look at the woman who stood respectfully a little behind where he stood. Her skin was a similar light blue tone to his, perhaps a shade lighter. Her hair as always was done up in a perfectly maintained bun, bearing multiple shades of violet, pink, and purple. A sharp angled face bore a perched pair of thin glasses, which the woman adjusted as she held up a small device with a screen on it as she gave him a pointed look.

Wind Rider gave her a hard look, “You sure you want to do this? His Majesty isn’t going to be forgiving twice.”

Cinch let out a tired, dismissive laugh, “I don’t make the same mistakes twice, as I hope I’ve demonstrated sufficient to you by now. If I don’t do this now, there won’t be another opportunity.”

“I won’t cover for you if you screw this up,” he said, then frowned, “It’d be safer to just stick with me, you know.”

“Spare me the concern. I’m a grown woman,” Cinch gave him a slightly sardonic smirk, “As I thought you’d noticed by now. Now there’s no time. Are you going to let me do this, or are you going to get in my way.”

Wind Rider actually laughed then, shaking his head, “As if I could get in your way, even if I wanted to. Go for it, Cinch. Just don’t get that pretty little butt of yours killed out there.”

Still wearing that smug smirk, Cinch gave him a brief salute, then affixed a soldats mask over her face and vanished at high speed. He knew where she was going, but he couldn’t afford to join her or send any assistance. A part of him wondered if he should have stopped her. Or told His Majesty. But there was no proof of what Cinch had told him, only her suspicions and her overriding need to somehow prove herself right. Really Wind Rider couldn’t grasp why Cinch was so obsessed with that Sparkle girl.

But that obsession, that passion, was part of why he’d become so... involved with her. He just hoped she didn’t get herself killed. Then again, given the nature of this battle, he wasn’t expecting a high rate of survival for himself or the Strafbattalion either.

Where was Hoity Toity anyway?

“Having fun, Wind Rider?”

He tried not to jump at Hoity Toity’s sudden appearance, gritting his teeth and turning to salute the Sternritter, “No. This isn’t my idea of fun at all. You ready to do this?”

The flashy Sternritter bowed with a flourish, “Of course! Let’s draw the curtain on this most fabulous of military maneuvers and I can admire all this fine McColt hardware in action. Nothing so gloriously flash as a full artillery barrage, is there?”

Wind Rider refrained from commenting on Hoity Toity’s priorities and instead called out to his troops, “Its time, Strafbattalion! Time to prove again that we’re worth His Majesty’s mercy and faith! Prepare to fire on my mark!”

Bows and tank cannons raised as one, and with a happy chuckle Hoity Toity jumped up into the air and reached out with his hands. Strands of light flowed from his fingers like the strings of a puppeteer, and those strings of reishi hooked upon the air in front of the tank formations like fishing lines. A space nearly two city blocks wide suddenly shimmered and morphed as Hoity Toity, Sternritter X, the Xenomorph, used his power to alter the composition of the air. Where once was a mirror like cloak that obscured the Quincy tanks and Strafbattalion from view now was an opening like a literal curtain being pulled back.

Hoity Toity’s power always unnerved Wind Rider a bit. It wasn’t simple illusions. The Xenomorph changed how certain forms of matter worked. It wasn’t like Filthy Rich’s Mason, which rebuilt from already present reishi to construct new objects. Rather the Xenomorph changed what the composition of an object or space was, so that even the air could be altered to not reflect light. Thankfully, by Wind Rider’s reckoning at least, Hoity Toity couldn’t forcibly alter the composition of a person. He could do it to himself, or a willing subject, but he couldn’t force it on another. Which far as Wind Rider was concerned was a good thing because given Hoity Toity’s tastes Wind Rider shuddered to think how he might alter other people if given the chance.

And at least in this case the power had been used in a simple manner to hide Strafbattalion and the tanks so that now when they appeared, the Arrancar hordes engaging Spitfire’s forces never saw it coming.

With a device wave of his hand, Wind Rider shouted, “OPEN FIRE!”

And Hueco Mundo was filled with the hammering roar of over a hundred tanks firing at once.

----------

Prim Hemline had tested Ember enough and was growing bored. The Arrancar girl was strong and fast, perhaps even powerful enough that had a weaker Sternritter faced her then it would have been a more even fight. As it was Prim might not have been ranked among the Sternritter “elite” but she was more experienced than most and her Schrift, the Zero, was deceptively powerful when used properly.

She imagined she could end this fight at any time, and now that she sensed the battle was becoming more intense elsewhere it was time to finish these Hollows off and go see where else she might be needed. Besides she didn’t want to get yelled at by Night Light again.

With a deft twist of her wrist and side step she reached past Ember’s guard and thrust her Seele Schneider towards the girl’s throat. Ember surprised Prim by sacrificing her left hand to block the sharp blade of glowing reishi, literally grabbing the blade with her palm to halt it while suffering a grievous cut in her palm that sent blood trickling down her arm.

Ember tried to capitalize on this by raising her large five-foot long blade and slamming it down onto Prim’s shoulder. The blow would normally have cut a person from neck to hip easily, but Ember’s Espina was halted instantly, all kinetic force lost from the blow the moment it made contact with Prim’s skin. Only Prim’s uniform was cut, which annoyed her enough, since she hated have to get fitted for another. Such a hassle.

“I told you, physical attacks are pointless,” she said yanking her Seele Schneider back. Ember let go of it, jumping away from Prim, gripping her wounded palm tightly.

“Bullshit,” Ember spat, “There’s got to be a limit on how much you can take. Nothing is invincible!”

“Technically true, with the exception of His Majesty, I imagine. However even his blade couldn’t cut me if he relied solely on physical force. That is why I am Sternritter Z, child. The Zero... oh, I was about to do Lightning Dust’s thing. No more explanations. It's time for you to enter oblivion.”

”Explode, Despecho!”

A wash of Hollow reiatsu followed by a blast of hot air behind her told Prim the other Arrancar had somehow broken free of her paralyzing arrow and had released his Zanpaktou. Looking back, Prim saw Garble transforming into his bulky, long clawed Resurreccion form, and she cast him an unimpressed snort. He was weaker than Ember, and transformation or not, he wouldn’t be a problem. As to how he’d escaped her arrow, she saw the Vasto Lorde Adagio rushing to the side away from Garble, and surmised Adagio had broken the arrow. That was an unfortunate weakness to the Zero, she had to either be in contact with her target or her arrows did. Destroying an arrow ended the Zero’s effects. Still, as long as she tagged all three of these Hollows at once there wouldn’t be any problems.

She turned to fire at Adagio, but found Garble rushing towards her. Finding nothing but contempt for the brute’s idiotic tactics, not learning from experience at all, she turned her arrow towards him, intending to just piercing him through the head. However just as she fired Garble cut loose a Cero blast straight down at the ground, launching himself into the air and above her arrow. Annoying, but Prim just aimed again, while easily dodging a Bala that Ember fired at her back. She could handle both Arrancar at once. She fired at Garble, and frowned in irritation as he fired another Cero, this time at her arrow. The arrow still easily cut through beam, its strength relatively weak compared to the potency of Prim’s arrows, but Garble used the obscuring nature of the wide red beam to change direction again. Now he used Sonido to get close to her, slashing with the one large claw he had. Prim didn’t bother to block it, letting the claw lose all its kinetic force a it hit her, but rather than stay put so she could lop the arm off with her Seele Schnicer, Garble backed off and fired anther Cero, this time at Prim’s feet.

She leapt above the blast without trouble, and then side stepped with similar ease as Ember joined in with a Cero beam of her own.

Huffing out a sigh of pure agitation, Prim upped her speed, firing rapid arrows back and forth at both Garble and Ember, forcing both Arrancar to focus solely on evading themselves. It was starting to seriously get under Prim’s skin that she wasn’t landing any solid hits yet, but even with her speed advantage it was difficult to hit an opponent who seemed determined to just dodge and only throw half hearted attacks. She’d noticed a look pass between Garble and Ember, almost as if they knew what tactic they were using without having to communicate with each other. Probably a result of being part of the same horde of Hollows. But if their plan was just to dodge and try to tire Prim out then they’d be sorely disappointed...

Wait... where had that Vasto Lorde gone?

Prim stopped paying attention to Garble and Ember, instead looking around for Adagio. What she found was from above her an entire swarm of compacted water spheres had formed, Adagio flitting about the sky, creating the balls of water with sweeps of her trident. Then with a gesture the spheres descended towards Prim in a rush. Prim smiled, but shook her head. A fine enough distraction tactic, but the water spheres, no matter how much force they contained, were easy enough to stop with her arrows. She wouldn’t let them hit her, of course, because if she let that water surround her then the pressure alone, not to mention the inability to breathe, would be a problem, but a few arrows would rob the spheres of their kinetic force.

She fired her volley of golden arrows in a streaking curtain of golden pin pricks. Each one expertly aimed to pierce a water sphere to make it lose all momentum, and hence fall usellely around her.

Only the very last sphere, when Prim’s arrow hit it, revealed a gleaming crimson sphere suspended within that had been hidden until the water lost its momentum.

Taken off guard, Prim dodged a shade too slow as the ball of destructive energy that Adagio had placed in her last water sphere kept going and exploded less than a meter from Prim Hemline. It wasn’t quite a Cero, rather that Adagio had taken a portion of a Cero’s power and kept it contained in one of her water spheres. She’d seen how physical attacks did nothing to Prim and had guessed that the Sternritter’s power somehow halted kinetic forces.

But that didn’t mean a thing to attacks made of pure spirit energy.

The explosion hit Prim and sent her crashing to the ground. Adagio didn’t waste a second, diving down and enacting the second part of her plan. All of the water from the spheres that had lost their momentum now leapt to her command, swirling together into one large sphere, encasing the stunned Prim Hemline. Adagio had figured her little partial-Cero bomb wouldn’t do much damage, but as she’d guessed it had dazed Prim just long enough for Adagio to surround the Sternritter with her water, which had fallen around the Quincy at just the right moment.

Now Prim Hemline found herself being encircled and crushed by a heavily pressured sphere of water, and Adagio, landing on the ground next to the sphere, placed her trident inside it and summoned even more water, making the sphere larger, making its pressure more intense. Prim might have been immune to attacks that relied on raw kinetic power, but the pressure on her now was from the weight of the water alone.

Adagio was willing to bet the lack of air was also a problem.

“Arrogant,” Adagio laughed, “I love having arrogant opponents. You could have killed all three of us right from the start, but you just had to toy with us. Now... let’s see how long you can hold your breath.”

“Screw that noise,” said Ember, approaching the water sphere, “Garble get your ass over here and let’s fry this Quincy! Just keep her still for a few seconds Adagio. Then we’ll hit her with Ceros all at once. No way she’s surviving that.”

Adagio considered this proposition, found no fault in Ember’s logic to end this matter quickly, and nodded, “A fine idea, Ember. We’ve got a schedule to keep.”

As Ember approached the sphere where Prim was trapped and started charging up a Cero in her hand, Garble did the same on the other side, although Adagio noticed that before he did so he gave a pat at the pocket of the torn pants he wore and she heard him mutter, “Still got this...”

Adagio raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was talking about, but shrugged. It didn’t matter, as long as he kept following her orders. She’d just keep an extra eye on him, just in case. As her two Arrancar companions charged their Ceros, Adagio started to do the same. Prim remained trapped inside the sphere, unable to move, unable to fire any arrows, and slowly drowning.

----------

The interior space of the sub-dimension that Sombra had created shook with the shockwaves of titanic clashing forces. Though the ‘walls’ of this space were essentially barriers of distorted sub-space, the sheer spiritual energy that they were trying to contain as the two Kings battled was starting to destabilize and crack the foundations of this dimensional prison.

Sombra’s form never stayed in the same place for more than a partial second, darkness cloaking him as he moved. The arrows his shining bow of silver and blue unleashed were spears of void that pulsed with unnatural silver light within the dark cores, each shot exploding in a distortion of space like a miniature singularity.

Tirek had nearly gotten caught by such detonations dozens of times in this short skirmish, reminding the Hollow King just how deadly a foe Sombra was, for even his supreme Hierro could not guard against the way Sombra’s weapons tore at the very fabric of space itself. Yet Tirek felt no fear, only exaltation as he roared his joy at the battle, his horn disgorging an endless stream of unparalleled Ceros that tore across the starless space they fought across, each one detonating upon the distant barriers of the prison like miniature nukes.

He pressed Sombra relentlessly, a red blur of motion beyond the speed of sound, his massive sword little more than a metallic streak that sought Sombra’s flesh. In response Sombra did the impossible, breaking his bow into twin swords to deflect Tirek’s colossal rain of blows and reassembling the blow within the same motions, firing and striking, firing and parrying, all without pause, so fast he may as well have had eight arms instead of two.

Neither monarch was unwounded. Near misses from Sombra’s distortion arrows had caused ripples in space that could cut Tirek’s flesh, leaving several warped lacerations that stained his red skin even darker crimson. Yet Sombra was not unscathed from Triek’s assault, close calls with Tirek’s Cero beams, like brushing against a solar flare, had scorched at Sombra’s flesh and burned his armor, even as the darkness surrounding the man had deflected much of the harm.

That darkness was no mere shadow, Tirek knew. It was the manifestation of Sombra’s personal Schrift, the strongest of the powers the Quincy King could dispense to others, yet kept for himself. ‘A’, the Absolute. And Tirek knew Sombra wasn’t close to using that power to its full extent yet, but that was fair enough, Tirek hadn’t even released his Zanpaktou yet. Sombra wasn’t going to take this seriously until then, but Tirek was in no rush. This dimensional prison wouldn’t survive their clash forever, and he knew his Espada wouldn’t fall easily to Sombra’s Sternritter.

He could take his time to enjoy this.

With immense speed and force he appeared behind Sombra and delivered a overhead chop that would’ve diced a skyscraper in half. Sombra didn’t block the blow but rather flickered in and out of his shadows, the Absolute distorting space so that Sombra instantly appeared several meters away, whereupon he raised his bow and fired a cloud-burst of a hundred arrows at point blank range. Tirek flew backwards, swinging his blade to deflect the storm of dark arrows, weathering their ripples of tearing space that shook his body like the winds of a typhoon trying to batter a mountain. Grinning, Tirek let his supreme Hollow reiatsu pour into his blade and lashed out, sending out a orange and black crackling shockwave that ripped apart the last of the cloud of arrows, causing a cascade of expositions that rocked the sub-dimension.

“We could do this for days, but you know your fragile servants don’t have the endurance for a prolonged battle like this,” Tirek said with a knowing smirk, his words not distracting him or slowing him down as he rocketed across the void and delivered a hurricane-force slash. Sombra coiled distorted shadows around his arm to block the blow, the null-space absorbing the monstrous strength of Triek’s blow, yet the First Espada’s strike still carried enough force to propel Sombra back.

Rather than crash into the side of the dimensional prison, Sombra instantly flowed into the warped space of the darkness that enveloped him and appeared above Tirek, extending one hand towards the Espada. Coiling lances of darkness, each one a rip in space that would pierce nearly any conventional material, sprang down and tried to impale Tirek.

“I’m aware of my people’s limitations. I did not bring them here just sacrifice them without purpose,” Sombra said, his eyes narrowing as Tirek vanished at high speed, escaping the stabbing rain of attacks his distorted space was creating.

“Sacrifice. What an interesting turn of phrase,” Tirek rumbled a laugh, his body exploding with a wave of reiatsu that pushed back against the grasping spears of darkness as he started to more casually walk towards Sombra, sword aimed at the Quincy King as a large ball of converging energy gathered at the tip, “How many of them are aware of what happens to their souls, once they’ve ‘sacrificed’ them to your cause?”

A gargantuan wave of a Cero fired from the tip of Tirek’s sword, and while Sombra warped into his own shadows to evade it, the massive beam of roaring orange energies collided with the walls of the sub-dimension and started to cause fractures of white light to appear across the void-like space. Sombra appeared a few dozen meters behind Tirek, face bearing a heavy look.

“Every Quincy who bears the title of Sternritter knows of my true nature. I wouldn’t trust their loyalty if they didn’t.”

“And you still hate us Hollows? For what? Being soul devouring monsters?” Tirek scoffed, and when he rushed Sombra again his sword strike was even faster and harder, yet when Sombra moved to block it Tirek took one hand off the sword and with a punch beyond super-sonic speeds delivered a haymaker blow to the Quincy King, catching him straight across the face and knocking him backwards hundreds of feet.

“You’re such a hypocrite.”

Sombra recovered with a flip, then rubbed his chin where a small trickle of blood pooled down from his cracked lip. He closed his eyes with a sad smile, “Perhaps I am. That will be for my people to judge, on another day. Today, they fight to show your people that atrocities like the attack on the Academy will not be tolerated. The world of the living does not belong to Hollows.”

A roar of laughter came from Tirek, “Your rhetoric is boring me, boy! At the end of the day your army of toy soldiers will be broken. Even the fancy powers you’ve granted your Sternritter barely makes them a match two on one with my Espada. You should have stuck to your guerrilla tactics in the living world and kept your army far away from my domain.”

“Do you honestly think I’d have brought them here if I thought I was leading my people to slaughter?” Sombra asked, “You’ve always been overconfident Tirek. That’s why you continue to fail, and you’ve passed that error on to those who follow you.”

All the while during this ongoing duel with Tirek, Sombra had a small part of his mind focused elsewhere. While the sub-space prison of the ‘Heiliges Heiligtum’ was an ironclad pocket of reality that separated itself from all other realms, mimicking a formerly unique Hollow power known as Negacion, Sombra had designed this particular prison with one microscopic hole in its construction. This hole would be imperceptible to Tirek, but it’d allow just a fraction of reishi through from Hueco Mundo that would allow Sombra to remain connected to Night Light’s power of the Command.

So he’d been able to continuously keep updated on the progress of the battle via reports from Night Light. And now Night Light’s words once again reached Sombra with crystal clarity.

My King, the Espadas Chrysalis, Catrina, and Smooze are now on the battlefield and are engaging Spitfire’s forces. The Strafbattalion has begun its counter attack.

There was a moment of hesitance in Night Light’s voice, The cadets are under attack by the Sixth Espada, Guto. Fleur De Lis, Fleetfoot, and Soarin have engaged the enemy there, but the cadets won’t last long.

Sombra could sense Night Light’s fear for his daughter, even past the general’s otherwise ice smooth and coldly detached voice. Well, Sombra wasn’t going to leave the man hanging in fear any longer. Now that the majority of the Espada had come out to fight, it was time.

“I know how strong Hollows are compared to humans, Tirek. That’s why I’ve spared no effort in closing the gap that existed between your Espada and my Sternritter until now.”

While Tirek raised his eyebrow at those cryptic words, Sombra responded to Night Light with a wide, almost mad smile.

Relay this order to all Sternritter, Night Light. Reveal your holy wings and bring ruin upon the souls of evil. Activate Vollstandig.

Author's Notes:

Gah, I soooo wanted to get to the Vollstandig reveal this chapter, but just didn't have the time. Too many pieces that still needed to be moved into place for things to work the way I want them to. I swear this is as complicated as trying to orchestrate an actual battle. The chess analogy is actually very appropriate since at this juncture we've got the whole gamut of low level paws like Dumbbell and his crew moving alongside the rooks and knights like the Sternritter and Espada, all the way up to the two Kings facing each other... okay actually that's not much like chess at all, but you guys get the idea. As for those who might be seeking a body count, all I can say is... be patient. A battle this huge isn't ending without some casualties, but I got to arrange things to have the impact I want them to.

Anywhos, as always hope you guys are enjoying the story, and by all means tell me what you think via any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 75: Angelic Host

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Episode 75: Angelic Host

Las Noches - West Inner Wall - Seven minutes ago

While on a mission of utmost importance, where every second of delay meant the possible deaths of any number of their Quincy comrades, the three women still had a moment of pause once they were all through the hole in the shear stone wall that Sassy Saddles had cut. They said nothing, only took a second to observe the strange interior of the Hollow race’s vast fortress. Cadence, Twilight Velvet, and Sassy Saddles were all equally aware that they were the first Quincy to lay eyes on this place, and even they, as experienced Sternritter, were somewhat taken aback by Las Noches’ bright, day-like interior. The false sky and artificial desert of the fortress’ huge inner area was not what they’d been expecting.

Still they were professionals, with a job to do. A look passed between the three and they all stretched out their senses to get the lay of the land.

The sensation of the battle outside the fortress’ south wall felt like the heat of a distant forest fire, smokey and ominous, but indistinct now that they were inside Las Noches. The fortress itself felt almost devoid of life, with almost all of its inhabitants battling outside. However it wasn’t entirely empty, and within seconds they felt distinct spiritual pressures dotting the wide landscape before them.

“There’s not many here,” Cadence said, eyes still closed in concentration, “Most far too weak to be an Espada. But I’m sensing two that are strong enough to be our target, and fortunately they’re both close together so we don’t have to waste time looking for them one at a time.”

Sassy Saddles nodded, patting her bow with affectionate warmth, “Just get me within a hundred meters and I might dispatch him with one well placed shot.”

“Let’s not get cocky, ladies,” said Twilight Velvet, “We can’t afford any mistakes. Now, looks like the fastest route to our target is this way.”

She pointed east and a little north, a direction that largely had no obstacles in their way, safe for one bleak, dark tower that rose from the ground some distance away. “We’ll either have to circle around, or sneak past that. There’s a few Hollows still occupying that tower.”

“Who cares?” said Sassy, one hand resting on her hip, “We shouldn’t even have to sneak past. Just destroy it on our way by, easy as a stitch. Wouldn’t even take us a moment.”

“And announce our presence? I’d rather we get the drop on the Espada we’re after so he doesn’t have a chance to escape,” said Velvet, and Cadence gave a nod of agreement.

“Velvet is right. We’ll sneak past the tower, keeping our distance. Come on, let’s go.”

The three struck out across the sands, keeping low and moving quickly. They looked like little more than streaks of motion, barely disturbing the sand under their boots as they went. Moving around the south end of the tower, they were keeping a solid distance of a couple hundred meters, yet even then Velvet suddenly slowed.

“Wait, do you two feel that?” she asked, eyes flickering with a glint of concern.

“Feel what?” asked Sassy Saddles, face creasing into a frown, “I thought you didn’t want to stop and mess around with that tower?”

“I don’t, but...” A moment of concentration passed over Velvet’s features, followed by a shocked look, “There’s human souls inside that tower!”

Cadence shot a furtive glance towards the tower, then a reluctant but forced calm look at Velvet, her voice kind but firm, “That’s not surprising, Velvet. The Hollows probably are keeping a few extra souls around for food.”

Velvet’s lips twisted in a sour grimace, “And we don’t have time to rescue them, do we?”

Cadence’s expression turned heavy, “Even if we did, how could we protect a group of helpless souls while also accomplishing our mission? I’m sorry, Velvet. I hate leaving them to their fate, but we have a job to do.”

“Not to extend our distraction, but I only sense relatively weak Hollow spiritual pressures in the tower,” said Sassy Saddles, “So one of us could deal with that lot, rescue the poor dead folk being kept in the pantry, and then send them back through the holes I cut in the wall. It’d take a few minutes, tops, for one of us to do that while the other two continue to go after the Espada.”

Velvet looked to Cadence, “You’re in command of this mission. I’ll do as you say, but if possible, I’d like to rescue any stray souls we can.”

Cadence’s frown deepened. She was fairly sure their target was a lower ranked Espada. Judging from the reiatsu she was feeling which was emanating close to the base of the massive central tower rising from the middle of the fortress their target was powerful but nowhere near as strong as the Espada fighting their comrades outside. She was reluctant to try doing this with just herself and Sassy Saddles, considering there were two such reiatsu she was sensing. Two Espada, even lower ranked ones, would be a dangerous fight.

But Sassy was right, Velvet could easily take down the Hollows inside this smaller tower and rescue the human souls inside, and probably accomplished the feat in a matter of minutes. Once she sent the human souls on their way out through the entrance Sassy had cut through the walls, Velvet could catch up with the pair of them fast enough.

It was feasible. And a worthy cause. Destroying Hollows was only part of the Quincy’s mission. Protecting human lives, and human souls was a part of what it meant to be a Quincy. Cadence had every intention of fulfilling the task of destroying the Espada they were sent to kill, but if they could save some souls that had been captured for food without compromising that mission...

“Do it,” she said, letting out a breath she hadn’t noticed she’d been holding, “Just don’t take long. We’re going to need your help with the Espada, since your Schrift can strike him even if he manages to escape through a Garganta.”

Velvet smiled with a quiet aura of confidence as she raised her arm and formed her bow in a burst of blue reishi, the large arbalest and canon hybrid resting easily on her shoulder as she faced the small, dark tower.

“Don’t worry. This won’t take me long at all.”

----------

Las Noches - North side of central tower - Six minutes ago

From a open, circular tunnel in the base of the huge tower wall the shadows of the tunnel’s ceiling began to drip like oil. The dripping shadow pooled together, then writhed until it expanded to the very edges of the light outside the tunnel.

From within this pool of dark, Cheerilee emerged first, her keen green eyes scanning around quickly before she hopped fully out of the shadow and moved to the edge of the tunnel, hand on her Zanpaktou. She was soon joined by Nocturn as he checked the other side of the tunnel, both Soul Reaper’s silent but giving each other quick ‘all clear’ hand signs.

Finally Luna emerged from the shadows, her hands clasping the handles of her already released Zanpaktou, the twin scythes resting comfortably in her grip as she dismissed the shadows that had transported them from the steam vents on the exterior of Las Noches all the way through countless lengths of tunnels until they found this exit.

“Not sure which side of the fortress we’re on, Captain, but it looks like we ended up close to the center,” said Cheerilee, “And hey, marks for speed. I thought we’d be lost in those tunnels for way longer.”

“Have a little faith in my abilities, won’t you Cheerilee?” asked Luna, “I have a much better sense of direction than my sister.”

“Now that we’re here, what’s our move?” asked Nocturn, eyes narrowing at the expansive desert forming Las Noche’s interior, “I’m feeling a few Hollow reiatsu out there. We just need one, yes?”

“Preferably an Arrancar of mid-rank,” Luna said, “Starswirl wants one that will be easy to contain.”

Her sharp gaze hovered to the left, and she stepped out from the tunnel entrance with a confident stride. “I think we have a few candidates in that direction. Let’s go have a closer look.”

----------

Exterior of Las Noches - Northern battlefront - Five minutes ago

The opaque white barrier of energy cracked under the monstrous blow of Torch’s axe, yet even as one shield shattered, Shining Armor already had another one in place to absorb the rest of the axe’s momentum. Shining Armor moved in a pale blur, his bow alternating between offense and defense in equal measure. Torch raged, his own axe a titanic force of fury that time and again came within inches of cleaving Shining Armor in half if not for well timed shields that kept the young Sternritter one step ahead of a gruesome death.

However Shining Armor’s return fire was having little effect on the tireless Espada. Shining Armor was certainly hitting Torch with his arrows, but the gleaming white bolts of reishi were at best causing superficial damage, and that was on a good hit that caused any damage at all. Most of them were bouncing off Torch’s ludicrously hardened skin, the toughest Hierro of any Arrancar that Shining Armor had ever encountered.

“Getting real tired of playing whack-a-mole with you, boy!” Torch grumbled, a sound like an irate volcano, “You got any other tricks up your sleeve other than these pansy little barriers!?”

In response Shining Armor boosted himself in a tall leap above Torch, unable to help himself as he broke out in a taunting grin, “No, but we’ll see if you still think they’re weak by the time we’re done here.”

Drawing back on his bow, the white line of reishi energy that formed its bowstring flared with wisps of light as his next arrow shot out and formed a hexagon shaped barrier. In short order Shining Armor fired twenty more arrows, each one layering another hexagon the size of a train engine upon the next. Then with a gesture Shining Armor sent the layers of barriers flying down at Torch like an oversized hammer trying to smash a bug.

Torch was not so easily squashed. The burly Espada spat as he set his axe aside and used both hands to absorb the crushing blow of the layered barriers, the ground shaking under him as he held the barrier’s up.

“Not bad, but still waiting for this to get challenging, kid,” Torch said with a huff as he opened his mouth wide, and from it a thick beam of flame-like ruby power exploded out. Torch’s Cero crashed through the barrier layers one after another, until they punctured through and forced Shining Armor to dodge to the side.

As Shining Armor grimaced, considering his next move, he glanced to the side to see how Jet Set was doing.

On the bright side, Upper Crust and Harshwhinny had both arrived to help. On the down side, Jet Set was barely standing by the time they got there. He was covered in blood, both his arms cut open, and one of his legs punctured in multiple places. It was clear he was only still moving and fighting because he was utilizing reishi strings to force his damaged limbs to move, like a puppet.

He’d been entirely on the defensive against the Espada called Lament, who’d continued to advance through every attack Jet Set’s reishi tendrils could throw at him.

Jet Set was near beside himself with something approaching panic. He couldn’t understand how none of his attacks were getting through to this Espada! No matter how many piercing tendrils his Kraken was able to form and strike with it was like this ‘Lament’ knew exactly where and how to counter them, whether that be through evading with ridiculous speed, or slicing the tendrils to pieces with powerful strikes of that overtly long Zanpaktou.

It was only with minimal relief that Jet Set saw his wife arrive alongside Harshwhinny, and even that was only minor relief because now his beloved Upper Crust was standing in the pathway of this insanely strong Espada.

“You look dreadful, dear,” Upper Crust said with her customary nonchalant mien, although Jet Set knew her well enough to hear the concern underneath the casual airs she put on, “You should fall back and let Harshwhinny and I handle things from here.”

Much as the fear in him more than agreed with the idea of running away, Jet Set shook his head, “I’d hardly be a man if I left my wife behind to face a monster like this.”

“Ooooh, that’s so sweet!”

“Ahem,” Harshwhinny cleared her throat, “I demand some level of professional focus from you two, especially with an enemy right in front of us.”

Strangely, Lament had not advanced as the two extra Sternritter had arrived. Instead the ghostly white Arrancar had simply stood still and observed the trio without any hint as to what might be going on behind those placid eyes. However when he spoke it was with a chilling, smooth calm, as if he wasn’t at all concerned about facing three of the Quincy’s finest.

“You two are married?” he asked, nodding to Jet Set and Upper Crust.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes,” Upper Crust said, one of her butter yellow hands rising above her head as she summoned her bow. It took on the shape of an exceedingly tall recurve bow, its slim spurs like the neck of a swan. As she drew the string back the entire length of it formed arrows, which in turn bore strange lengths of cloth tied to them. “And given the grievous wounds you’ve given my husband I think I can judge you worthy of swift and painful execution.”

Lament didn’t look the least intimidated, more as if he held a hint of sympathy instead as he said, “A battlefield is the last place you should bring someone you love.”

He vanished, appearing behind Upper Crust in the flicker of half an eyeblink, “You’ll only see them die in front of you.”

His sword flashed for her neck, but he hesitated as a unimaginable wave of apathy overcame him. Lament jumped back, shaking his head at the unusual and unnatural sensation of absolute apathy filled him, confusing his thoughts.

Upper Crust gasped, touching her neck, which had just been lightly cut before Lament pulled back. Her head would’ve been severed, had he completed the strike. She glanced at Harshwhinny, who now had her own weapon out, which took the form of an unusual, arm mounted flamethrower-like device with three nozzles with tubes that actually fed into her own arm.

“N-Nice save,” Upper Crust gulped.

“Do pay better attention. My Schrift won’t be able to work for very long on this one,” Harshwhinny said as she aimed her weapon at Lament. When it fired, the three nozzles didn’t disgorge fire, like their appearance might suggest, but instead what came out was akin to a reishi based acid. Unnaturally neon blue liquid shot out in three streams shot out at Lament. Despite the unusual sense of apathy gripping him, Lament still forced himself to move and dodge aside, watching as the liquid sizzled and hissed, melting a rapid and several meter deep furrow in the sand.

Lament’s eyes narrowed to a blade’s edge, “I don’t know how you’re affecting me like this, but I assume if I kill you, the effect ends.”

He raised his left hand and pointed a finger at Harshwhinny. A deathly pale, emerald sphere of energy that bathed the nearby area in a sickly light was charged into existence at the tip of Lament’s finger. Harshwhinny visibly broke out in a sweat, while Upper Crust swore silently with wide eyes and grabbed her injured husband, leaping out of the way.

A titanic wave of an emerald Cero exploded out from Lament’s finger, temporarily illuminating the entire battlefield. Even many low ranked Arrancar and Quincy soldats paused in their violent, bloody murdering of one another to gaze in frightful awe of the display as the giant green beam cut across the sands and ended up impacting with Las Noche’s wall some distance away. The resulting explosion ended up cracking a near two hundred foot tall gouge through the thick stone wall.

“Hey, newbie! Watch the damn fortress will ya!?” shouted Torch, “Aim that crap up if you gotta go all out like that! You trying to blow up the whole damn army at once!?”

“My... apologies,” Lament said quietly, “But that woman was making it difficult to focus.”

From above there was a pained grunt, and Lament looked up to see that Harshwhinny had escaped his blast, but not unscathed. The woman was managing to stand on thin air, but was missing most of her left leg and was sporting burns across the left side of her body. Her face was twisted up in pain, but she was maintaining a remarkable amount of composure, given her injuries.

“I’m surprised you could act at all, Espada. My Schrift should have removed any willingness to act at this range. Yet you managed to dredge up killing intent, despite being this close to me.”

Nearby Jet Set and Upper Crust both looked at Harshwhinny with varying degrees of concern.

“Harshwhinny, um, I don’t mean to alarm you, but you seem to be, uh, missing a limb...” Upper Crust pointed out, and Harshwhinny rolled her eyes.

“That had not escaped my attention, thank you. Since my Uncaring is being resisted here, I’m afraid I’ll be of limited use in backing you two up, but I’ll try. It’d be unprofessional to retreat without orders.”

“We’ll just have to make do,” Jet Set said, his limbs still coated in blood from the wounds Lament had given him earlier as he summoned up a fresh set of several dozen reishi tendrils, “Until we receive word form His Majesty.”

Lament, seeing his three opponents readying themselves for a renewed attack, raised his Zanpaktou before him in preparing to receive their assault.

Shining Armor, too, was readying to launch a fresh series of arrows at Torch, yet at the same time all four Sternritter paused, looking up as if hearing something. Lament tilted his head in mild bewilderment, while Torch scratched his head.

“Eh, what are you loons doing? Hearing voices?”

As once the expressions upon the Sternritter all changed, Jet Set looking near delirious with relief, Upper Crust smiling brilliantly, and Harshwhinny adopting a small half-smile of satisfaction. Shining Armor himself didn’t smile. In fact his face had become a marble sculpture of grim seriousness as he looked at Torch and raised his right hand.

“Yeah, hearing voices, you could say that. His Majesty’s words, delivered from on high. I hope you’re ready, Espada, because the rules just changed.”

The white of his glove burned away, the cloth drifting off into ash as beneath it was revealed a second, pitch black glove upon which a blazing silver, five pointed Quincy cross was embedded. Silver lines extended up and down the glove’s fingertips, and these lines and the cross itself started to glow with a intense, phosphorus white light.

At the same time Jet Set, Upper Crust, and Harshwhinny all exposed similar dark gloves beneath their normal gloves, each one blazing with an identical light as the spiritual pressure of all four Sternritter started to build and build towards...

----------

Exterior of Las Noches - Western battlefront - Four minutes ago

The sky was erupting in apocalyptic fire and light. VTOLs alternated between spitting endless streams of death at swarms of Hollows and Arrancar, and being torn into burning balls of wreckage crashing to the desert floor. Quincy soldats moved in expert formations, unleashing streaking flurries of deadly reishi arrows that stabbed into their foes, while the Hollows retaliated with unmitigated fury.

The fuzz-ball creatures serving Catrina could open cavernous mouths of buzz saw teeth to devour metal or flesh alike. The faceless, masked soldiers serving Smooze, all identical, fought like fearless automatons, bleeding horrific, corrosive blood upon any too close to them. Chrysalis’ horde of eerily similar yet distinctly and wildly different, dark skinned Arrancar fought like a swirling swarm of locust, tearing apart anything they came into contact with.

Yet even those hordes were rocked by the explosive hurricane of tank shells that tore into them from the advancing, revealed ranks of war machines below. Wind Rider’s Strafbattalion led the charge, firing pin point suppression fire with their bows while McColt trained tank crews coordinated their fire to target the thickest clumps of Arrancar forces while avoiding hitting their own troops.

Within moments the Arrancar tide was stemmed, yet quickly redirected itself, Chrysalis’ forces moving like a well oiled machine to reorient towards the tanks. In moments concentrated Cero fire was raining down on the tanks, the thick beams ripping into the vehicles reinforced armor. Yet the tanks, and the Strafbattalion, charged on, ignoring casualties as they continued to pour fire into their hated Hollow enemies.

And amid all this chaos, individual battles between the opposing army’s most powerful combatants raged on.

Rutherford’s sixty meter form roared out in titanic wrath, even as he coughed from inhaling the deep violet fumes permeating the air around his colossal form. “If giving me flu is best Espada have, then Espada never see what elbow drop from living mountain be like! Yaaargh!”

Sixty meters and roughly twenty thousand tons of massively enlarged Quincy proceeded to leap up into the air and extend his elbow, which abruptly formed a large, silver colored elbow spike on it as Rutherford dropped upon the center of the poisonous fog mass.

Hydia, having kept herself concealed in the fog, gulped as the castle sized mass dropped towards her and some of her minions, which she quickly directed to scatter as she flung herself with a full speed Sonido away from the huge Quincy.

Rutherford’s impact shook the whole battlefield, but more importantly the sheer wind force of his fall created a blast of air that dispersed much of Hydia’s poison cloud, so even as she appeared unharmed a good few hundred feet away from the point of impact, she was now exposed.

“Hahah! Got ya!” Rutherford’s giant, grinning face said as his hand reached out to try to swat Hydia like a bug, but she evaded the attack and landed on top of the giant’s arm, her own broad face sporting a toadish grin.

“Got me indeed, young man! You think my gas is bad? Wait until you taste my spit,” she said as she opened her mouth and proceeded to start drooling on Rutherford's exposed skin. Where her saliva made contact, the thick, bronze brown skin quickly withered and turned black.

As Rutherford yelled in pain from that, Lightning Dust flinched at the sound but didn’t lose track of her own opponent.

“Why are these Espada so disgusting?” she complained as she swiftly evaded a lashing object of bone white segments that moved faster than a striking cobra.

The object in question was a whip of sharp bone fragments, the wielder of the weapon being Smooze, whose lanky frame bent and twisted like that of his whip as he lashed it at Lightning Dust again. The weapon was akin to a sharpened human spine with a hilt not unlike a small rib cage, and the entire thing dripped with a viscous black fluid that Lightning Dust didn’t doubt was toxic.

Which didn’t mean she wasn’t going to expose herself to getting hit by it to gain a power boost. She wasn’t afraid of this creepy looking, noddle-limbed pus bag. And for once she wasn’t talking smack about her abilities. She’d taken that lesson after the skirmish with Catrina, and right now Lightning Dust wanted to prove herself by being the first Sternritter to take out an Espada in this battle.

She flung herself towards Smooze, deliberately lowering her guard, and as she expected he responded by whipping his weapon at her in a rattle of bones, black fluid flying off it. The risk of exposure was so high that the power of her Daredevil Schrift immediately kicked in, boosting her power and speed in a split second. It let her dance through the droplets of toxic sludge and avoid the reach of Smooze’s whip as she in turn spun into a sideways strike with her boomerang as she threw it straight at him as she rushed by.

Her boomerang flew around in a powerful arc, cutting by Smooze and managing to catch his side even as the strangely silent Espada dodged away. Lightning Dust caught her boomerang, but almost dropped it as she saw that, whatever Smooze had bled on her weapon, the black liquid was eating away at the metal of the reishi forged weapon. The ichor hissed as it burned pockmarks in Lightning Dust’s boomerang, and she gagged as the smell of it hit her nose. The horrid stuff smelled like month old garbage marinated in dog vomit. It took all of Lightning Dust’s will to keep her nausea under control, staying focused on the battle.

Smooze ignored the brackish ichor leaking from the cut in his skin tight suit and extended his left hand. From the sleeve of his suit more of the sickening goo emerged from the seams, and glopped together in a ball of unspeakable sludge that was then hurled at Lightning Dust faster than a cannonball. She spat out a harsh curse as she jumped up to evade the ball of terrible muck, only to find the ball undulated and changed course in mid-air to follow her.

Lighting Dust used her boomerang to block it, but the sphere splattered against the weapon and bits of the sludge got on her face and other exposed skin. She screamed as the stuff sizzled her flesh, and she dropped from the air, hitting the ground and twisting in pain.

Meanwhile Spitfire tore across the sky as she chased her own foe, spears of bar-thin fire bolts flying from her bow in a machine-gun torrent. Yet as fast as Spitfire sent her blazing arrows out, hundreds of them per second, Catrina remained a step ahead of the deadly rain.

“These fireworks are impressive, but I’m afraid your aim is entirely too slow to keep pace with me,” Catrina’s purring voice taunted as the Third Espada cut a blindingly fast path across the sky and then came at Spitfire with such speed that Spitfire barely had an instant to activate her Blut Vene at full strength before she felt the force of the blow on her chest.

Spitfire grunted, feeling the hot lance of pain from the cut that went from her midriff up between her chest. Blut Vene kept the cut shallow, but it bled profusely. Catrina, halting for a moment, licked blood off the sharp prongs of her war fan Zanpaktou, her feline eyes glinting with violent delight.

“I’ll admit that you are at least, more capable than your loudmouthed fool of a subordinate. I doubt she’ll last very long even against one as lowly as Smooze.”

“Lightning Dust can handle herself,” Spitfire said, ignoring her injury and not taking her eyes off the wickedly swift Espada for even a single eyeblink, “She may be a braggart, but she’d never have made Sternritter status if she was incompetent. Now how about you stop flapping those gums of yours and try giving me more than a scratch, huh? I’m getting bored here.”

“Cheeky. Let’s do that. I wonder how your face will look without a nose, hmm?” Catrina said, caressing her war fan.

Spitfire almost didn’t see it. In fact ‘see’ wasn’t the right word, because from a purely visual standpoint, Catrina didn’t move. But Spitfire felt the nanosecond of bursting reiatsu from the Hollow, sensed the instant change in air pressure, and reacted as fast as she could by leaping away and firing her bow in a rapid burst of white hot fire arrows.

She felt burning pain across her face as a cut tore up her cheek and nearly took her eye. Had she not moved it would’ve cleaved her nose right off. Her own fire arrows passed right through Catrina without so much as leaving a mark on the Espada, and Spitfire growled in frustration.

There was no trick or illusion to this. It might not have looked like Catrina hadn't moved, but she had. It was just insane, raw speed that had allowed Catrina to strike and dodge, all without seeming to move from where she was standing.

“Oh, so close. Let’s try again,” Catrina laughed, and Spitfire threw herself aside once more, feeling the wind pressure from Catrina’s super-sonic movements as her only warning. A bloody line tore across Spitfire’s midriff again, this time crosswise to her earlier wound, only adding to the blood dripping from her. Again Spitfire countered, by this time she tried something different.

She fired around Catrina, and her lances of flame halted in a cloud around the Espada, which Spitfire then detonated with a snap of her fingers, creating a series of large mid-air explosions that shouldn’t have left any room to dodge.

And for what satisfaction it might have given Spitfire, Catrina didn’t dodge. She still emerged from the flames of the explosions with a bounding leap, and the Espada let out an irritated yowl of frustration as she patted out the flames singing her dress.

“These aren’t easy to have made, you know!?” Catrina hissed, “Smooze charges like you wouldn’t believe for the cloth alone!”

“Complain to someone who cares,” Spitfire said, raising her bow and peppering the air with more arrows that quickly converted into explosive bombs of incinerating heat, but now that Catrina was wise to the maneuver she didn’t let herself get surrounded again, appearing behind Spitfire before the first arrows were even done exploding.

Catrina moved in, slashing with her war fan. The move was still faster than just about anything Spitfire had ever dealt with before, but she noted it was a slower attack than what Catrina had been doing earlier, and she was able to swing her bow around to deflect the blow, knocking herself away from Catrina in the process.

That insanely quick high-speed attack she does, she only does it when she’s already standing still. I don’t think she can do it when forced to maneuver normally, she’s got to be able to concentrate. So I just can’t let her stand still to gain that concentration.

Grinning savagely now, Spitfire started to pour more and more rapid fire arrows from her bow, the four bars of light comprising it glowing almost pure white from the intensity of their heat as they unleashed hundreds of arrows per second. Catrina began to dodge, never getting hit by the incredible rain of searing destruction, but she was clearly now stuck on the defensive, at least for the moment.

While this was occurring the hordes of Arrancar serving Chrysalis had become locked in combat with the Strafbattalion and the corps of tanks it was escorting. Fierce melees were occurring between small clusters of Quincy troops trying to keep the Arrancar off the tanks. The tanks themselves had switched form long range bombardment with their main cannons to extending multiple small gatling barreled turrets that fired bursts of reshi shells into their attackers at close range.

Even so, despite their thick, alchemic reinforced armor the tanks were getting picked off by Arrancar who used both Zanpaktou and point blank Ceros to tear through the machines.

One such tank was lifted straight off the ground by the bulging muscles of Pharynx as he hurled the tank into one of its brethren, causing both to explode in a billowing pillar of fire.

“Hmm, this is too easy,” Pharynx muttered, then rubbed at his chest where the strange red gem was held by the device over his Hollow hole, “Or is it this thing that’s making it feel that way?”

He didn’t much like this little accessory that Chrysalis insist he use. Sure it was making him feel strong. With each Quincy he killed he could feel the gem absorbing spiritual energy and pouring it into him. But it didn’t feel natural, like the gem just didn’t belong as a part of his body, and he really wanted to just tear it out and toss the damn thing. Why was mother so interested in testing out this toy anyway?

A scream of noise behind him clued Pharynx in to a tank shell coming at his back, but before he could react there was a blur of movement and Thorax appeared, cleaving the tank shell in half before it could detonate.

“Watch yourself, brother. It’d be the death of me if anything happened to that exceptionally toned butt of yours. Every female Arrancar in Las Noches would be after my head, especially Ember.”

As Thorax waggled his eyebrows at Pharynx, the larger of the two brothers just let out a small groan and rubbed at his face, “How we’re related I will never understand...”

“Well you see when a mommy Espada and a daddy Espada screw each other very much-”

“You know that’s not how we were made, and stop giving me weird mental images of mother. Gah, you’re so irritating. Just concentrate on the battle and stop saying weird stuff.”

Pharynx’s words came on the heels of him blocking several reishi arrows from a squad of attacking Quincy soldats. With a snort he flung a concentrated, purple colored Cero in their direction. The resulting explosion burnt away several of those Quincy, but a few evaded the shot and charged in, two firing arrows while another drew forth a silver tube that ignited with a blue reishi blade.

With a whistling spin of his glaive, Pharynx blocked the blow from the reishi blade and proceeded to hammer his fist into, then through the Quincy soldat’s chest. To the Quincy’s credit, even fatally wounded he still pulled out a small, silver ginto tube and detonated a point blank explosion on Pharynx. The blast certainly hurt, but not enough to make Pharynx remotely worried, and he felt the red gem in his chest pulse as it absorbed some of the power from the Quincy as he expired.

He then turned his attention to the two other soldats, which were still pouring arrows into him. Some of the reishi bolts scored his flesh, but most bounced off. He was no third-rate Arrancar, but one of Chrysalis’ eldest children and personal Fraccion. He was on a different level than any mere fodder that would fall to attacks such as this. He also had tricks most regular Arrancar didn’t.

Demonstrating as much, he extended his left arm and the thick muscles undulated and morphed, transforming in a flicker of emerald fire into a massive, insectoid scythe claw. He then used Sonido to appear behind the two Quincy and with a single reaping blow, cut the pair into bloody halves.

As the red gem pulsed with light once more, absorbing yet more energy from his fallen foes, Pharynx flinched at the unnatural feeling of the gem, then glared at Thorax.

“You could have helped.”

“What, and cheat myself of watching my fabulous brother at work?” Thorax asked innocently, a hand to his chest in mock hurt.

Pharynx rolled his eyes and morphed his arm back to normal, seeking a fresh target, only to find someone was moving past him at rather impressive speed. This Quincy zipped right on by him and charged Thorax, a pair of what looked like heavy semi-automatic pistols barking with streaking silver bullets formed of reishi.

Thorax responded swiftly despite his casual stance, blocking the bullets with blurring motions of his Zanpaktou. The Quincy flipped into the air, flying over Thorax, firing all the while. As Thorax blocked those, however, Pharynx noticed a trio of small dark, metallic objects land at his brother’s feet and recognized the grenades for what they were.

“Thorax, move!”

Thorax took heed and in a blink of Sonido flashed away from the spot he’d been standing in just as the grenades detonated with bursts of silver shrapnel and blue fire, more Quincy alchemy at work.

“Yeeash, you two are a pair of tough nuts to crack,” said the Quincy, an elderly looking man in his late middle years with graying hair, wearing a white bomber jacket over a more normal Quincy uniform that, like many of the Quincy in this area of the battle, he wore a black mantle in sharp contrast to the white ones Quincy were known to wear.

“Wind Rider, Commander of the Strafbattalion,” the man said with a small nod, “Going to guess you two are in charge of this bunch.”

“More or less,” Thorax said, cracking his neck, “I’m more of a supervisor than an ‘in charge’ kind of guy.”

Pharynx spat, “Ignore the idiot. I’m the one leading this attack. And I don’t really care who you are. You’re just going to be another body in a few minutes.”

“Few minutes? Well glad you’re being generous...” Wind Rider’s eyes narrowed dangerously as he aimed his pistols at the brothers. The weapons were essentially his Quincy ‘bow’, forged into the shape of a pair of long barreled ‘Mauser’ patterned pistols. “I was thinking this’d be over in a few seconds.”

Finally, high above all the churning maelstrom of battle, Chrysalis stood watching it all with the look of someone enjoying a late night horror movie. It didn’t seem to matter to her whether it was seeing her own kind torn to shreds by Quincy arrows or cannon fire, or seeing the Quincy in turn being mauled and cut down by the rampaging Arrancar, Chrysalis just licked her lips and relished the spectacle taking place below her.

Yet she hadn’t gone down to participate herself, remaining standing some several hundred feet up, just watching.

After a moment she closed her eyes with a small laugh.

“You’re a polite pair. I have my back turned, but you haven’t attacked yet.”

Her words were spoken to the pair of women standing a few dozen paces behind her, who had just appeared there a second ago. Sapphire Shores and Coloratura both appeared as relaxed as Chrysalis, although the air between the three was starting to shimmer with the build up of reiatsu pouring from Espada and Sternritter alike.

“We’re not rude dance partners,” Sapphire Shores said, offering a gracious bow, “It’d be the height of unsightly barbarism to strike at your back.”

“Besides, such tactics are hardly necessary,” added Coloratura with a self-assured smile, “His Majesty selected us for the honor of dealing with you because we’ve no need for underhanded methods.”

“Nor is there any rush,” commented Sapphire, making a casual gesture at the battlefield below, “We’ve time yet to see how our comrades perform on this grand stage, before beginning our own part in the show. One wouldn’t want to miss what’s coming next, after all.”

Chrysalis turned to face the pair, licking her lips as she did so, “Oh I know all about what your boy-King has up his sleeve. I’m not interested in that. I’m sure my fellow Espada will have fun with it, though.”

This caused Sapphire Shores and Coloratura to exchange a brief glance with one another.

“Is that so? How do you know that, Chrysalis?” asked Coloratura.

One slim, dark finger raised and waggled as Chrysalis smirked, “Tut tut tut, I’m not in a questions answering mood, I’m afraid. The two of you seem a poor substitute for the last pair of women I fought, but I suppose it's unfair to expect anyone to compare to those sisters. Still, I imagine you’ll entertain me for a time.”

“We’ll endeavor not to bore you,” Sapphire Shores said dryly, and waved her hand through the air before her. As if forming from drops of liquid silver, a bow took shape that was not so much solid as it was a shining crescent of mercury metal that sparkled with a thousand light fragments.

Coloratura held out her own hand and before her a semi-circle of light appeared that formed into the shape of a curved set of luminous floating piano keys.

A quiet rasp of metal signaled Chrysalis drawing her Zanpaktou, eyeing the two Sternritter’s ‘bows’ with a curious eye and cocked eyebrow, “Sparkly liquid metal and a ghost piano? I swear you Quincy just need to learn to stick to simple swords like the rest of us.”

“Your mocking words are merely the beginning chords of the symphony we shall be playing, Chrysalis. Do try to keep up with the beat,” Coloratura said with a feverish light appearing in her eyes as her fingers began a sensuous ballet of motion across her keyboard.

A haunting melody filled the air, deep resonate notes that sounded like a mix between a funeral dirge and a slow techno beat. The air wavered and began to be filled with warped bands of light shifting across numerous dark color spectrums, Coloratura's playing accompanied by the formation of what could only be described as sharp bands of pyrotechnic light that Chrysalis could sense were not just for show, but filled with deadly reishi.

Sapphire Shores’ own bow moved like a living river, the liquid metal shifting from sparks of pulsing gold to bleeding red as power built within it.

Despite there being no way for Chrysalis to know what manner of attacks this pair could unleash upon her, there wasn’t a look of fear or unease on her face, only delighted eagerness as she raised her Zanpaktou and stepped forward.

----------

Las Noches Exterior - Lakeshore - Three minutes ago

Calculations flew through Twilight’s mind. She blinked to Gilda’s right, sending an arc of arrows flying both straight at Gilda and arcing above in perfectly planned trajectories. Not to actually strike the Arrancar, but to create the response that Twilight wanted.

She’d already realized two things about her opponent. One, Gilda was stronger than her. And two, Gilda was dumber than her. Twilight’s only avenue to victory lay in exploiting the latter while doing everything she could to prevent the former from being used against her.

The initial barrage of arrows swept in, and as Twilight expected Gilda used Sonido to flash away from them.

She’ll move at a 67 degree upward angle to avoid the higher trajectory arrows, aggressive mindset will mean a 90% chance of attacking me from the front after utilizing Sonido to reach my exposed right side, which means I fire an arrow...NOW!

Twilight moved and fired without thinking, aiming to her right. Her arrow was already in flight as Gilda appeared there with another Sonido, blade poised to strike just as Twilight had calculated. However Twilight hadn’t counted on just how fast Gilda’s real reaction speeds were, because even being caught off guard by the arrow barely an inch from her face, Gilda bent her body backwards and essentially limboed below the shot, slid on her knees with the forward momentum she still had, and changed her strike to aim a slice for Twilight’s legs.

With little more than a split second to react herself, Twilight boosted herself up with Hirenkyaku, bending in mid-air to fling out a ginto tube down at Gilda. She gathered reishi in her right hand in a stream of blue light then cast it out at the ginto tube a second before it reached Gilda.

”Gritz!” (Five Pronged Restraint)

Twilight’s invocation was followed by the liquid in the ginto tube reacting with her specifically charged reishi to create an immediate encapsulating prison of steel with the arms of the Quincy cross around Gilda, like an instantly summoned coffin.

Landing behind the coffin, Twilight turned to fire an arrow towards it, but before she had a chance to get the arrow off, the binding prison glowed at one point with melting crimson light, and a Cero beam fired out of it, nearly catching Twilight head on if she hadn’t thrown herself to the side at the last second.

“Urgh, I hate tricks like this,” Gilda bellowed, smashing her way out of the reishi binding, “Just for that you’re getting a double dose of face pounding!”

This time even Twilight couldn’t calculate fast enough to predict Gilda’s movement, although she still tried. A punishing hammer kick rocked Twilight backwards, sending her skidding across the sands towards the lakeshore, and would’ve ruptured organs if she hadn’t instinctively used Blut Vene to blunt the blow.

She coughed, forcing herself to flip to her feet, firing blindly with only her calculated predictions of Gilda’s follow up attack to guide her bow. This time she was more fortunate, catching Gilda as the Arrancar rushed her, this time Twilight’s arrows striking in several pale explosions of witchfire. Not that this stopped the juggernaut of an Arrancar as Gilda charged through the hits, taking a few light wounds, but still reaching Twilight with her sword raised high to strike.

Only a glowing disc of reishi and a charged up reishi arrow caught her, both from the back and the front, while a barrage of lighter reishi darts peppered her from the left. The attacks didn’t do much damage through Gilda’s thick Heirro, but the attacks did distract her for a second, giving Twilight a second to burst away at high speed.

“Didn’t ferget us did ya now!?” shouted Buzzsaw McColt, bleeding profusely for her deep wound in her side, but sitting up and firing with her disc flinging weapon.

“Even a weak McColt won’t drop so easy,” shouted Cotton Barrel, crawling out of the lake, dragging a coughing and sputtering Hacksaw behind her as she aimed her own bow.

“More to the point, you’re not fighting Twilight alone, you bloody neanderthal,” said Sunny Flare, advancing with both dart guns at the ready.

Twilight swallowed back a rise of fear, seeing a glimpse of the battle taking shape around her. Even while she tried to face Gilda, there were scenes of intense combat taking place all over the small dunes and beach area. The cadets were barely holding their own against the handful of Arrancar that had gotten past the Sternritter guarding them, and from what Twilight could see of the tornado swirling in the sky, filled with flashes of Cero beams, Fleur Des Lis was still locked in combat with the Espada.

She couldn’t see Sugarcoat, or any of the other girls besides Sunny Flare amid the chaos of the battle, and that frightened her more than the prospect of continuing to fight Gilda. But she had no choice, she had to defeat Gilda to have any chance of rallying the rest of her squad, so she adjusted her glasses and aimed her bow once more. She knew Sunny Flare’s reishi darts weren’t ideal for penetrating Gilda’s Heirro, and she didn’t want Buzzsaw to keep trying to fight while that injured, so she was quick to take charge.

“Cotton, try to patch up Buzzsaw! Sunny, keep your distance until you see an opening!”

“R-roger that!”

“Ya got it!”

Twilight exploded into motion, not intending to give Gilda a chance to pick her own targets. She needed Gilda’s attention focused on her. She sent a cluster of arrows towards the Arrancar, just as a means to force Gilda to look her way. It worked, as Gilda deflected the arrows with her Zanpaktou, then rushed to meet Twilight with so much speed she created a sonic blast of air as she went.

Twilight fired a pair of arrows in a spiraling pattern, each arrow adjusted with carefully calculated bursts of reishi to adjust their flight pattern erratically. They converged on Gilda, exploding in a combined blast of ghostly teal energy, but as usual Gilda powered through it, some of her flesh scorched but roaring in angry defiance as she slashed out with a powerful arc that created a shock-wave all on its own.

Twilight sidestepped the shock-wave, crossing her arms to try and absorb the blow, but still felt a laceration of pain across her arms and chest as the shock-wave alone cut at her, even past Blut Vene.

“Gah!” she cried out in pain, and the momentary distraction cost her further as Gilda rushed in with a thrust took her glasses off. She managed to dodge, but her cheek was cut and her glasses struck the sand. Gilda’s foot crushed them a second later.

“Hah, take that four eyes. I guess just two eyes now,” Gilda laughed, seemingly distracted. That was enough for Sunny Flare to take action.

With her own remarkably quick Hirenkyaku, Sunny dashed behind Gilda, dart guns aimed at the back of the Arrancar’s head, and fired at point blank range.

However Gilda in a blinding motion, ducked the darts, spun around within the same instant, and wrapped her free hand around Sunny Flare’s throat, lifting her off the ground.

“You know, prissy looking chicks like you really piss me off,” Gilda said, choking Sunny Flare with an iron grip, “I mean look at your freakin’ hair! I bet you spend more time on that shit than you do on training to fight.”

“Put her down!” Twilight shouted, and her mind echoed with Midnight’s otherworldly voice.

Let me out some more, you need more magic!

Twilight grit her teeth, trying to ignore the voice as she fired an arrow at Gilda’s feet, exploding a massive cloud of sand around the Arrancar and Sunny. She didn’t want to use any more magic than she had to! But still, Midnight wasn’t wrong. She needed more power against Gilda.

Okay, just a bit more, she thought, and she felt Midnight’s pleasure as a flare of greater magic worked its way from her core and into the warm metal of the Hexenfaust. The glove flared with an ever brighter aura of magic which seeped through her bow, making the amethyst gems glow bright violet.

Her next arrows flickered with even more phantom-like witchfire, and seemingly on their own they transmuted into what looked like the claws of a raven. Some of these claws stabbed in at Gilda, causing the Arrancar to grunt in pain as the ghostly limbs impacted her with both explosive force and lacerating energies. Another such claw grasped Sunny Flare and yanked Gilda’s hand off her.

Sunny cried out in pain, because the witchfire burned her too, but the claw deposited her safely away from Gilda before dissipating.

Gilda, snarling in frustration, batting away the flames still licking at her and glared at Twilight, “Alright! Getting tired of the weird light show from you, dweeb! I’m ending this crap right here and now.”

She started to reach her free hand to grasp the blade of her Zanpaktou, which then glowed with an intense purple radiance, but then a voice shouted from nearby.

“Twilight! Get down!”

Someone tackled her from the side as a Quincy arrow that had been aimed at Twilight’s head flashed by. She looked to see it was Indigo Zap who’d rushed in, yanking both of them to the ground just in time for Twilight to avoid having a fresh hole through her skull.

“W-what?” Twilight blinked in shock, but immediately concluded what had happened and looked in the direction the arrow had come from.

She just barely saw a flickering white clad form, a Quincy soldat, readjust their aim and send another reishi arrow towards her. She shoved Indigo out of the way of harm and raised her own bow, firing just in time to intercept the arrow coming for her.

The moment the assassin’s second arrow failed, the mask wearing soldat stiffened and turned, fleeing into the confusion of battle.

Remembering the reishi tracer that Cadence had taught her, Twilight realized she might only have this one shot at finding out the assassin’s identity. But Gilda was right there!

Before she could consider her options, there was a lull in the fighting as almost every Quincy and Hollow present felt a shift in the air. A massive upsurge in gathering reiatsu.

“The hell is that-” Gilda started to ask...

Then the sky exploded in light.

----------

Across the vast black horizon of Hueco Mundo, spears of light shattered the dark. One after another eleven pillars of untarnished white radiance shot high into the unnatural black sky of the realm of Hollows. Each pillar rose hundreds of meters and ended in a blazing halo that was then interposed by the symbol of a five pointed cross.

A gust of sighting air washed over the deserts for miles from the distant air pressure of such a massive and concentrated burst of multiple spirit energies. The pillars’ light was so illuminating that it touched upon the white dunes for dozens of miles away, turning the white sands silver.

Such light had never been seen in Hueco Mundo before, and as the pillars of light faded it was as if they were signaling the coming of an angelic host.

----------

Torch used his axe to shield his eyes from the blinding light in front of him. Where the Sternritter had been standing were now massive pillars of pure white light that pierced the sky.

The moment those pillars started to dissipate, Torch could sense the change in the air. A deadly charge of energy, like the quiet moment before an avalanche hits.

Wings of radiant light unfurled, each of the Sternritter he and Lament faced now transformed as they stepped from their vanishing pillars. Not a one looked alike, but all bore similar traits, most notably the wings and halos of blinding blue and white incandescent. Torch didn’t get a good look at the three facing Lament, only felt the massive surge of spiritual pressures and the explosion of force as they attacked.

But he sure got a good look at Shining Armor, who was now more than living up to that name.

Silver plate mail clad Shining Armor’s form, from long gleaming greaves all the way up to a full Roman-style helmet with nose guard. The armor was well fitted and left no obvious gaps, as if in places the metal molded to Shining Armor’s skin. Five wings of light shaped like vast, elongated heater-style shields spread from floating points around his back and shoulders, evenly spaced. The shield on his bow had also grown longer, taking on an appearance more akin to a lance now. A circular halo floated a few inches above the crown of his helmet, with five smaller circles forming the pattern of the Quincy cross within it.

Torch could feel the power cloaking Shining Armor now, and couldn’t help but grin and heft his axe, “Now that’s more like it! Let’s see what you can do now, kid!”

With a full speed Sonido he burst towards Shining Armor, not wasting a second on subtly as he brought his axe down with enough force to nearly break the sound barrier.

Two of Shining Armor’s shield-shaped wings bent around and blocked the axe, stopping it dead in its tracks. Shining Armor didn’t move so much as an inch. He just looked at Torch with silver fury pouring from his eyes, and aimed his bow. An ‘arrow’ that was more like a ten meter long pillar of solid barrier energy slammed into Torch’s gut hard enough to send half a dozen shock-waves rippling through the air as the Fifth Espada was launched backwards with such speed that he impacted with Las Noche’s walls merely a second later, hitting hard enough to create an impact crater near ten times the size of his body.

And across the battlefield, the tide of combat shifted once more...

----------

Adagio tried to blink away her blindness, not even certain of what had just happened.

One second she, Ember, and Garble had been about to incinerate Prim Hemline with a combined trio of Ceros while the Sternritter was still trapped in Adagio’s sphere of water, the next... light, blinding, searing light.

She found herself on her back, her ears ringing. She must have been blasted back by the massive surge of reiatsu she sensed. Even as she blinked her eyes, rising to her feet, Adagio could make out the rough shape of the desert around her, and see that Garble and Ember had been knocked back too, both of them also stumbling to their feet. But everything was bathed in insanely bright, pale light, and Adagio shaded her face with one clawed hand as she looked towards the source.

Where Prim Hemline had been trapped was now a massive pillar of light that shot into the sky, and Adagio could sense nothing but overwhelming spiritual pressure from it. Not just that pillar, but many more that were shooting into the sky across the battlefield. Four to the southeast, at least half a dozen trailing behind her to the west.

The Quincy fortress that had sprung up out of nowhere had a pillar rising right from its center, and Adagio could see the walls of those fortifications glowing with the pillar’s same radiance, then turning from simple white stone to a burning gold, as what looked like four massive wings formed from interlocking square cubes spread out from the fortress top.

What in the name of the Abyss is that? Adagio wondered, then looked towards the pillar of light right next to her, noting the Quincy style five pointed cross at its apex, hundreds of feet up.

Slowly the pillar and its many cousins dissipated, making Hueco Mundo seem positively dismal but comparison to that insane light, but what was revealed within the vanishing pillar was far more unsettling than the pillar itself.

“What’s wrong my Arrancar friends? Is the sight of my Holy Form, my Vollstandig, truly that unnerving?” Prim Hemline asked, stepping forth from the vanishing pillar of light that had surrounded her.

Solid azure light coalesced into the solid form of three smoothly curved, angelic wings that spread from Prim’s right shoulder, spanning over twenty feet long. Her uniform had changed, gaining bands of blue light that crossed her body like wrappings of cloth. Large silver needles pierced her limbs, yet certainly seemed to cause no discomfort, as if the sharp pieces of metal were grafted into her as a natural part of this new form. A particularly large needle, more a twisted spike of silver, extended from her left shoulder, and from it extended a golden thread that tied itself into the string of her bow, which remained largely the same except for an increased size and the presence of more silver needles embedded along its spurs. Above her head hung a circular halo of light, with five spikes extending downward from it in the same rough arrangement of a Quincy cross.

“Vollstanwhat?” Ember blurted, “Why do you suddenly look like a holy pincushion with wings?”

Prim smiled in such a way that made Adagio feel cold all the way to the core of her gem.

“Let me answer that with actions, child.”

A single sweep of her wings moved Prim like a bolt of light, a single backhand blow cracking across Ember’s unsuspecting chin and catapulting her into the ground with such force that her body blasted a massive furrow through the sand for the length of a city block. This, before either Adagio or Garble could have so much as twitched a muscle to react.

Adagio gathered her wits quickly, leaping back to put distance between herself and Prim, raising a towering wall of water in front of herself to be both a shield and to obscure her from view. She hoped if she could buy just a few seconds she might rush to grab Ember from where she lay prone, and just make a run for it. She could already tell from the way Prim had moved, and the chilling and thick reiatsu pouring off the Sternritter, that there was no longer any way to overpower her. They’d lost their chance to win this fight, so Adagio’s only goal now was to get herself and Ember out of there. Garble could fend for himself.

However all of her thoughts of flight were halted immediately by the way Prim Hemline gestured with her wings and Adagio’s barrier of water simply fell apart. This wasn’t the power of the Zero, but rather just raw spiritual pressure canceling out Adagio’s. In desperation Adagio growled, leveling her trident in front of her. She didn’t have time to think of any kind of plan, and she poured all of her anger and frustration into pulling up as much of her Hollow power as she could. Her siren gem flashed brightly, arcing with forks of ruby energy as a trio of scarlet Cero orbs formed, one at each tip of her trident.

The triple Cero she fired was stronger than any other she’d tried before, and she didn’t particularly care if Garble was partially in the way of the massive wave of destruction formed by the three nearly combined beams.

Like a living shield of light Prim Hemline’s three wings curled around her, cocoon-like. Adagio’s triple Cero broke upon the shield in a thunderous torrent, melting sand to glass and burrowing a crater across the desert for nearly a mile distant. However when the energy finally slacked off, Prim remained standing, her wings unfurling, smoking slightly, but leaving the Sternritter all but unscathed.

“I’ll commend you for this much, Adagio Dazzle, for the first Hollow to act as a bench test for my Vollstandig, I do feel like I’m getting a decent breaking in of this Holy Form,” Prim said as she flexed her wings like a boxer taking a few test punches, stretching their limbs, “I wasn’t certain how well this transformation would live up to His Majesty’s expectations, but I certainly have no complaints so far. The boost to speed, power, and defense are superb. Let’s see how well it’s upgraded my Schrift, shall we?”

She raised her bow, and Adagio saw the sands around Prim start to break down as the base spirit particles turned from sand into motes of blue light that streamed into the large needle on Prim’s left shoulder, which then absorbed into the gold string that ran to her bow.

Garble had managed to avoid the edge of Adagio’s Ceros a moment ago, and Adagio saw him release his Resurreccion form. His draconic transformation vanished like melting wax as he adopted his normal appearance once more, his Zanpaktou taking shape from the waxy white substance that melted off from his previous form.

What was he doing? What point was there in letting go of his empowered state? Not that the Resurreccion was strong enough to help against this strange new Quincy transformation, but some power boost was better than none. Adagio saw him sheath his Zanpaktou and reach into his pocket, hiding something in the palm of his hand, but she couldn’t see what it was.

Meanwhile Prim’s bow flared with a golden aura, and in an instant a stream of needle-like gold arrows flashed out. They didn’t fly towards Adagio or Garble, but rather spread into a wide circle around all of them, even Ember who was only just now barely pushing herself upright. Adagio tensed to try dodging whatever attack might be coming, but the second the needle shaped arrows formed their circle she found herself rooted in place. Any attempt to twitch her muscles one way or the other resulted only in her staying still as a statue. It was hard to even breathe, her lungs barely able to draw any air in.

“Hm, it seems my control over kinetic forces improves considerably. Still not enough to stop you from breathing or cause your heart to stop beating, but I can finely tune how much or how little kinetic energy you can exert,” Prim said, almost to herself as she walked between Adagio and Garble, tapping her chin thoughtfully, “I wonder if I can change the parameters for each body part? Let’s see...”

With a gesture from Prim, Adagio found she could move her mouth and breathe easier. She wasn’t sure if she could speak, but a moment later she heard Ember shouting.

“Grrr, that was a cheap shot! Try that again without this, ugh, damn cowardly trick!”

“While I would normally have no problem being the courteous opponent and finishing things the ‘fair’ way, as you wish, I’m afraid that I’ve been given orders to end this quickly,” Prim Hemline said as she turned towards Adagio, ignoring Ember as she walked towards the Vasto Lorde, “And sadly that means our time together has come to an end. I apologize for having to end you in such an anticlimactic fashion, but I do promise I’ll try to make it relatively painless.”

Adagio could move her mouth, but not turn her head, otherwise she might have tried firing a Cero at Prim the second the woman got in range, but Prim was being careful not to go directly in front of Adagio, coming at her from an angle where Adagio wouldn’t be able to target her.

But Adagio wasn’t without options, now that she knew that Prim’s little experiment with testing out what she could do with the Zero allowed her to use her voice.

But my song probably won’t affect her fast enough. Dammit, what other choice do I have? I just need to buy time.

If her song could even give Prim Hemline pause for a moment, it might purchase Adagio the time she needed to try summoning more water to try and trap Prim again. She didn’t have to move to create the water, but Prim’s reaction times had clearly increased with this ‘Vollstandig’, so Adagio knew she’d need the element of surprise-

“I imagine you’re considering how to trap me in water again,” Prim Hemline said, causing Adagio grit her teeth in further frustration, “You’re welcome to try, but I don’t intend to give you the time. A shame. I find you a curious one, Adagio Dazzle. That gem you possess is unusual for a Hollow. I wonder what would happen if it was torn out of you?”

Prim drew back on her bow, forming a large, thin arrow that she aimed straight for Adagio’s head. Knowing it was now or never Adagio opened her mouth to sing, hoping against hope that she could give Prim enough pause to gather water for a high pressure jet stream that might manage to penetrate the woman’s defenses, but before she could somebody else spoke.

“Oh, sure, a talentless moron like you would go for her first,” crowed Garble with a voice heavy with a mocking drone, “Start with the weak ones first. Pfah, go for it, I’ve been wanting to see that bitch bite it since I first saw her. Why don’t you get a little closer to her, make sure you don’t miss, since you can’t aim for crap!”

There was a slight twitch in one of Prim’s eyes as she glanced back towards him, “If you prefer to die before them, I can oblige.”

Garble’s voice turned up the mocking whine to ear grating levels, “Oh would you? Pretty please? Sure you can hit me from over there, Primmy? I’d paint a target on my chest to help you out, but you’re such a pathetic wimp you got to freeze us in place to have a chance of hitting us.”

Adagio couldn’t parse out what he was trying to accomplish, rather than be the first one to die. Then she noticed something odd. Just like her and Ember he’d been paralyzed by Prim’s power, but apparently before that circle of arrows had formed around them he’d brought his hand up to his chest, hovering right above his Hollow hole. Why? It must have had something to do with that object she’d seen him take out of his pocket, but what could he be holding that’d be of any use here?

And why taunt Prim Hemline into focusing her attention on him?

She didn’t like Garble in even the remotest sense of the term. She hardly respected him either. But if one was to twist her arm she might have admitted that Garble had demonstrated moderately more intellect than she’d have given him credit for upon first meeting him. He was a loudmouth braggart and overtly violent jerk, but he had a low cunning that she couldn’t deny. One of the reasons she hadn’t outright killed him when she had the chance back at Thorax’s party was because she figured he wasn’t entirely useless.

So she imagined he had a plan, and she kept a close eye on Garble as Prim Hemline turned towards him, clearly trying to look cool and collected while keeping her anger at Garble’s barbs under control.

“Do you know what it feels like to have several hundred needle thin objects boring through your skin at the same time? Because I can arrange that,” Prim said, stepping closer to Garble. Her back wasn’t turned to Adagio, and Prim’s stance was guarded, but Adagio prepared herself all the same. It didn’t matter if the distraction was coming from her song or Garble, if she could get an opening to use her water powers, she’d take it.

Meanwhile Garble was laughing at Prim’s threats, carrying of current of hysteria in it that left even Adagio wondering if he was being genuine or acting, “Come over here and do it then you hatchet faced, namby-pamby little knob-headed priss! I’ve passed gas that was scarier than you!”

“Garble what in bloody hell are you doing!?” shouted Ember, clearly struggling to move from the look in her eyes, but she wasn’t having any more luck than Adagio or Garble were. “She’s gonna kill you!”

“Good! Means I don’t have to keep looking at her ugly potato face for another second!”

Prim had taken another step closer to Garble, close enough to reach out and close his mouth with a simple gesture, silencing him immediately as she took away what ability she’d granted for them to move their mouths.

“Blessed silence,” Prim said, letting out her anger in a long sigh as she walked behind Garble, “If distracting me with anger was the goal, you near succeeded. You have a talent for being infuriating.”

She drew back on her bow, aiming a bolt for Garble’s back. Adagio saw her chance, with Prim’s eyes focused on Garble. With all the speed she could manage she summoned a concentrated, condensed sphere of water, then shot it out in a highly pressurized jet, aiming for Prim Hemline’s head. Even if the blow didn’t kill the Sternritter, it might knock her out long enough to escape.

Adagio nearly screamed in frustration as Prim simply stepped back, avoiding the jet of water. Adagio twisted the jet, trying to take Prim’s head off at the neck, but the Sternritter ducked under the blow, and with a snort she sent a golden arrow back at Adagio. The arrow embedded itself into Adagio’s right arm, boring into it and causing a hot boil of pain to rip through her. Concentration thus broken, Adagio lost focus on her water.

Determined not to give up, Adagio forced herself to ignore the pain and opened her mouth, starting to sing an entrancing melody, but Prim merely cut her off with another gesture, freezing Adagio’s mouth in place.

“Seriously, A-marks for effort. I sincerely wish more Quincy had that level of never-say-die attitude you have, child. No, I suppose child isn’t appropriate for you. Adagio. I may be about to kill you, but I can give you that much respect, I think,” Prim said, then turned to Garble and fired an arrow straight through his back.

“Him on the other hand, not so much.”

“Garble!” Ember shouted in a furious wail.

The hole Prim had blown through Garble’s chest wasn’t large, but the arrow had still torn a decent sized gap right above where his Hollow hole was. Though his body was frozen in place, the shock and pain in Garble’s eyes was plain enough to see. But so too was a strange glint of satisfaction. Because Prim was standing behind him, she couldn't see his face, but Adagio could. She could see him looking back at her. Adagio was good at reading people, and while neither of them could speak, a single look could speak volumes on its own.

Garble had known they were dead, and had intentionally provoked Prim into killing him first, because he had a trump card she wasn’t aware of.

As a Hollow dies, its form tends to dissipate to ash. The same is generally true of Arrancar, minus the occasional exception. This vanishing also tends to occur from the extremities inward, so the outer limbs are the first to go.

Including hands.

As Garble’s hand turned to ash, a black cube that he’d been holding there now fell free, and landed right inside his Hollow hole.

Instantly the black cube flared with purple energy, and like a flash of lightning a series of energy bands sprang forth, blinding white on the outside, violet rimmed blackness on the inside. They seemed to scrub the air around Garble, and subsequently Prim Hemline, erasing the space they stood in like a massive hand brush painting over reality.

Prim had all of a second to shout, “What!?” before the space around her and Garble was completely enshrouded by this reality warping energy, and as fast as it had begun it was over... and both Prim Hemline and Garble were gone.

Adagio found she could move and breathe normally the moment Prim Hemline was gone, as the circle of golden arrows the Sternritter had created seemed to lose power and vanish into motes of gold light. As Adagio caught her breath, Ember scrambled over to where Prim and Garble had just been, a look of pale shock on her face.

“Garble, you freakin’ idiot, what the hell did you do that for?”

Blinking in her own state of befuddlement, Adagio asked, “Just what exactly did he do? What was that cube?”

Ember, teeth grinding, and stamping her foot with a torn growl of mixed anger and grief, looked over at Adagio, “It’s something Lord Tirek gave the Espada to punish subordinates with. Caja Negaccion. Makes a prison out of a sub-dimension. Kinda like Garganta, only not. Damn Garble must’ve...” Ember rubbed at her eyes and seemed to try to growl her emotions away, “Grrr, he must’ve stolen the one my dad has. Had. Dad never used the thing, just kept it in some junk pile because he never gave a crap.”

Adagio frowned, thinking, “He couldn’t have known it’d be useful against a Sternritter. And does it only work on Hollows?”

“I guess? You got to toss it inside a Hollow’s hole to make it activate.”

"Is it going to trap her permanently?" asked Adagio.

"I don't know," Ember replied, "I always heard that someone as strong as an Espada could escape the prison in a few hours, but weaker Hollows would be stuck in there pretty much forever."

Understanding blossomed in Adagio’s mind, and her begrudging respect for Garble went up a notch, “Wily little bastard. He was planning to use it on me. He baited in that Quincy instead, played her like a fiddle.”

Ember took several shuddering breaths, shoulder’s tense, arms hung at her side. Her blade tip rested on the ground, sagging.

“Yeah, I... I guess he did.”

Adagio went up to Ember, hesitating a moment as she raised her hand, but then put it on her shoulder, “I’m sorry.”

Several nearby explosions forestalled further talk, and both Ember and Adagio saw that the Quincy fortifications, in their changed, golden state, were also gaining new weapons. More advanced cannons, and even various missile pods were now emerging, built up in lines of golden light from the upgraded fortress, and were firing out fresh salvos across the battlefield. More than a few such explosions were rocking the area not far from where Ember and Adagio were.

“I’ll mourn him later,” Ember said, her sadness giving way to fresh energy and anger as her red eyes flashed and she took up her Zanpaktou again, “Right now we’ve still got a job to do, don’t we?”

Adagio managed a small smile at her friend, and nodded, “That we do.”

She glanced towards the lake to the south east, where now she could see that the battle there had gotten even more intense, with the distant sight of more gleaming Quincy wings in the sky, as the Sternritter there had clearly also activated these ‘Vollstandig’ transformation.

“And it looks like it just got a whole lot harder.”

Author's Notes:

Vollstandig is an odd duck in terms of Bleach tansformations. Essentially the Quincy version of a Bankai, but with a much more uniform style and appearance, which does fit the Quincy mold of being a more ordered army than the Soul Reapers were. Wings and a halo, basically, but they could take all sorts of shapes from the standard...

To the not so standard...

At any rate, the battles are far from done. The Quincy aren't the only one's who can transform, after all. And we've got pandemonium aplenty set to begin inside Las Noches as well. Oh, and an assassin still trying to kill Twilight.

Wonder what Sunset and the girls are doing during all this? Probably having a hot springs episode.

Oh, and kudos to the person who called Garble having a Caja Negaccion.

It only gets used once in all of Bleach, but I thought it was a neat little device. Pretty much the group's best shot at being able to get past a Sternritter using Vollstandig. Garble was totally going to use that on Adagio, but faced with letting the Quincy kill Ember, he went ahead and used himself as bait to take Prim out of the picture... at least for now.

Thanks for reading folks and hope you continue to enjoy the story. As per usual I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 76: The Blood of Comrades

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Episode 76: The Blood of Comrades

Adagio and Ember sped along the desert, heading rapidly away from the now gleaming gold Quincy fortifications and moving directly south east towards the lake, still nearly a kilometer away. Adagio could see the flashes of light and explosions indicating the fighting over there was intense, and she could feel the oppressive reiatsu of not only many Hollows, but of at least four strong Quincy.

Which struck Adagio was strange, given she’d only seen three pillars of light form that direction. That meant only three Sternritter should have been over there.

So who was this fourth Quincy reiatsu? It wasn’t as strong as the Sternritter, but it still felt much stronger than the other Quincy Adagio could sense. She shook her head, tossing the question aside. It didn’t really matter. All she and Ember had to do was get inside the lake as fast as possible, and fight their way past whoever got in their way.

Her only real worry was for Ember, whose expression had turned darkly intense with Garble’s death. Even without her companion saying anything Adagio could tell Ember’s bloodlust had risen and she was running on anger as much as determination. This could be a problem, if Ember let her emotions get in the way of the task at hand.

“Ember,” Adagio said as they were running along, “He did that to keep us alive. Don’t lose sight of that.”

Ember’s eyes were like burning blood as she shot a glare back at Adagio, her voice a raspy whip. “I know! I’m not going to flip out! Just... don’t be surprised if I blast a few Quincy along the way. I got some venting to do, one way or another.”

Yes, that’s what has me concerned, Adagio thought, but knew better than to press Ember on the matter. If worse came to worst, she could drag the girl along if necessary. She just hoped it wouldn’t be.

----------

Like the sweeping breath of a god the winds surrounding the area near the lake were being swept up into a constant swirl reaching ever higher speeds. These air currents weren’t affecting the forces on the ground, instead all the wind concentrated on the fierce battle taking place several hundred feet up.

While Fleetfoot and Soarin were wholly engaged with keeping the larger portion of Guto’s Arrancar forces at bay and from completely slaughtering the Quincy cadets, Fleur De Lis was locked in singular combat with the Sixth Espada, and up until this point neither opponent had been able to turn the tide against the other.

That had changed with the release of Vollstandig.

Fleur's Vollstandig was a thing of aching beauty and elegance. Four gossamer wings of painfully bright white light spread from behind her and were meticulously layered with such detail that one could make out individual fibers within the feathers, despite the wings just being constructs of spirit particles. Two of the wings were high upon her shoulders, while the lower two spread more from her waistline, but all four were large as Fleur's own body. The shear and tightly form fitting dress that now replaced her standard uniform was similarly detailed with shimmering patterns of light within its threads of reishi, covering her form while strategically revealing just the right amounts of flesh that one would think the dress didn’t belong on a battlefield but instead a dance floor. Silver gleaming leggings and high heeled shoes covered her feet and legs, and similarly shining gloves rose up to her elbows. The halo above her head held the distinct form of a winged tiara, akin to what a valkyrie might wear if said headgear was made from glowing light rather than metal.

She held no bow, now, but she didn’t need one. In this form, all the air around Fleur was her bow.

With but a gesture she sent a storm of air blades cutting through the sky towards Guto, each one a large crescent of compressed wind that could cut through steel beams. The Espada charged into that storm, a conceited sneer on his avian face as he smashed one air blade after another with his Zanpaktou, yet even so some air blades got past his guard and cut his flesh. Even Guto’s Hierro was unable to fully withstand the high speed air cutters that Fleur was firing. Despite this Fleur noted that Guto didn’t look worried about his position.

Well she’d just have to give him something to worry about, wouldn’t she?

With a single flap of her wings she generated a pair of swirling tornadoes that launched out like massive hammers from an angry sky god. A thunderclap of noise echoed as the tornadoes impacted Guto from both sides, then proceeded to drill him into the ground, tearing up a hundred meter gouge in the sand dunes. Fleur remained in the air, standing imperiously over the crater as she watched Guto rise and brush sand off of himself.

“Tough bastard...” she muttered.

Guto looked up and jumped, shooting up into the air and halting once he reached her height. He was a bit bruised, and still bleeding from some of her earlier cuts, but again he had a look of unconcern mixed with mild interest on his face as he casually removed his shirt, which was tattered now, and examined it. He then sneered and tossed the garment aside, leaving his chest bare.

“Congratulations, woman. You’ve managed to stall me by your lonesome for five whole minutes. Is it concern for your comrades or overconfidence in your own abilities that made you decide to fight me alone?”

If there was one thing Fleur and Guto matched each other on, it was the contempt in their mutual scowls, and Fleur's was scathing as she raised a hand towards Guto, currents of air spinning around it in gathering intensity, “Does it matter? You’ll be dead long before the answer would do you any good.”

The air currents around her hand changed, the air literally glowing a fierce indigo blue as Fleur snarled, “Sturmkralle Drei!” (Stormtalon Three)

Her fingers and thumb bent to take on the shape of a claw as she thrust her hand out and a twisting blast of air shot out, creating a sonic boom with its force. The glowing blue blast of air took the shape of three massive talons, spinning like a drill as it flew at Guto at a slightly curving angle, like a fastpitch curveball.

Guto swing his sword just in time to meet the attack, the spinning claw of air sparking against the Espada’s Zanpaktou as it drove him backwards, his feet digging against the air. Although it looked as if he might have stopped the attack from reaching his flesh, Fleur just grinned with sadistic glee and turned her hand upward, making a gesture with her index finger.

“Burst,” she commanded.

The claw of air sudden exploded into a spread of cutting wind fragments, cutting into Guto and leaving dozens of small lacerations across his bare chest and arms. He grunted in pain, knocked down a few dozen feet before he recovered, and his eyes flashed with anger as he thrust his sword towards the distant Fleur.

She had only a second to react before multiple points of yellow light formed around Guto and then exploded into a insanely rapid barrage of Bala shots. Fleur crossed her wings in front of her, and a massive sphere of wind took shape around her, shielding her from the massive barrage of Bala reishi bullets. She couldn’t even come close to counting how many Bala were being fired, but she was certain she’d never seen an Arrancar fire so many, so quickly before.

Even with her wind powers enhanced by her Vollstandig, she could feel her barrier of wind being worn through by the intense barrage of unending Balas.

Hmph, this fool doesn’t realize yet who he’s messing with!

The stream of Bala shots burst through the shell of wind protecting Fleur, but she was no longer inside it, or rather she had immediately flown free of the sphere as Guto’s energy bullets tore through her barrier. Pushing her speed to near its limit, flowing along on a stream of wind, she all but instantly appeared behind Guto. Air curled around her slim, shapely leg as she spun around in a powerful kick that impacted with his side. A combination of sheer strength from using Blut Arterie, and exploding air pressure from her wind powers catapulted Guto away at high speed. Yet Fleur had no trouble keeping up with his tumbling body, appearing above it and raising her hands up in a cupping gesture as she gathered a sphere of compressed wind there that she then hammered into him, driving him back into the desert like a nail.

Not satisfied, she curled her lips into a leering grin as she snarled, “I will never forgive what your kind have taken from me! Now die!”

The four fingers of her right hand turned into a knife shape as she drew back, her left grasping out as if holding a bow once more. A crescent of air in the shape of a giant, ornate bow took shape as an equally large arrow of churning, concentrated air and reishi took shape along her right hand. The tip of the arrow expanded to take the shape of an eagle's talon as a vortex of wind started to form above Fleur, funneling its power into her arrow.

“Sturmkralle Vier!” (Stormtalon Four)

Unleashing the arrow it struck nearly as fast as lightning, impacting upon where Guto had fallen and flashing for just an instant before exploding into a massive, expanding sphere of cutting, destructive wind blades. The blast was almost too large, nearly hitting the area where the cadets and Fleur's fellow Sternritter fought, but she’d made sure to hit Guto far enough away with her earlier blows that this attack wouldn’t strike her allies. She was bloodthirsty, not stupid.

Looking at the rising pillar of sand and dust her attack had thrown up, she probed the area with her spiritual senses, seeking Guto’s reiatsu. She felt it a bare moment before a cloud of Balas rose from the dust, dozens of them surrounding her and hovering like small stars. She glared as the small reishi bullets started to assault her from all directions, and she threw herself into the defensive as she swung her wings and her hands, creating small but dense shields of wind to deflect the Balas. Even so the volume of them was such that several managed to strike her, causing stinging pain with each blow, but thankfully her Blut Vene was quite strong in this form.

Still, the idea of her perfect skin getting bruised infuriated her to no end. It made the faint scarring remaining from Sunset’s flames feel as if they were burning anew. It only made her want to kill Guto all the more as a certain other scar also started to tingle beneath her dress.

“Well, I’ll give you this much, you’re certainly vicious enough to be a Hollow,” Guto said as he rose back into the air to stand level with her. He was bleeding from quite a number of wounds now, yet his eyes remained as sharp and deadpan as ever, “I see why you felt so confident to face me by yourself. What was your name again?”

This Arrancar was truly starting to stir her ire, and Fleur De Lis spat to the side in disgust, “I’d sooner introduce myself to a Soul Reaper than to a Hollow. At least they have some tiny semblance of worth, whereas your kind are nothing but pathetic monsters. I’d sully my name, speaking it in your presence.”

Guto shrugged, “So be it. I prefer to remember the names of those who prove themselves capable foes, but if you find my kind so repugnant then I’ll drop the pleasantries. And since I don’t want those cadets escaping, if it's all the same to you I’ll end this duel quickly.”

“Have you been paying any attention, Espada? You’re the one bleeding profusely here, not I.”

“True,” Guto admitted, and raised his blade in front of him, “Your transformation is truly a splendid thing. Almost as splendid as mine.”

Fleur uttered a sharp swear under her breath, gathering wind for another attack, but before she could stop him Guto’s blade gleamed with a thick golden aura as he intoned the release phrase of his Zanpaktou.

”Plunder their corpses; Conquistador! (Conqueror)

A scintillating geyser of almost liquid metal-like aura erupted up from around Guto, engulfing him in a cauldron of intermixing hues of blinding gold and sickly brass. Fleur was struck to her core by a thick and gut churning spiritual pressure that drove home to her why this Hollow was one of the Espada. These creatures were simply on a different level than any other Hollow, and the fact that she could feel such a chill even while in her Vollstandig state was a testament to the power an Espada commanded. And Guto wasn’t even in the top five.

His reiatsu made her skin crawl, not simply from its strength, but the simple feel of it was wrong, not at all like the pure feeling she got from the spirit energies she and her fellow Quincy wielded or even the kind the Soul Reapers used. Hollow reiatsu always felt wrong, but the Espada’s was distinctly more acute, as if she could taste something foul on the back of her tongue.

As the pale, radiating aura of gold and darker metallic hues faded she could see the liquid-like energy dripping off of Guto’s new form, like a mold of molten gold pouring off of a freshly pressed statue.

She immediately got the impression of the eagle warriors from Aztec culture. He possessed an eagle's head all the way down to his neck and shoulders, where dark brown feathers were dusted with golden tips, forming a large crest and sweeping down to take the form of a long feathered cloak down his humanoid torso, which remained bare chested and lean muscled with bronzed skin. The rest of his face was a stark white Hollow mask in the shape of a fierce bird of prey, his yellow eyes gleaming behind it. Rather than wings, his back sported a set of what looked almost like the turbines of a jet, if forged from conical shaped bone and sporting four large blade-like fins that swept into hook shapes on either side. His waist was clad in a feathered set of leggings and rather than any footwear, his feet had turned in avian talons. His hands were more human, though still sporting claws, and instead of a sword as his weapon now both arms were bearing large, thick gauntlets that sported a pair of huge, curved blades.

He cracked his neck in his new form with an audible series of pops, and regarded Fleur De Lis with a renewed light of hunger in his eyes.

“I doubt you care to know, but out of all the Espada I’m the only one who’d prefer to conquer your kind rather than merely eradicate them. Lord Tirek has sought alliance in the past, but I think he’s long abandoned that. All the better I think, since alliance is not the same as conquest. I’d like to keep your kind around, in your proper place as servants to us-”

He moved with supple speed and grace, deflecting a blast of concentrated air fired by Fleur with one of his gauntlets.

“I thought you were skipping the pleasantries?” Fleur snarled.

“I was. I say this only to make it clear to you that by the time this is over I will have you in chains, serving me, as the first Quincy to become an Arrancar’s slave. Proof of concept to my peers. The same fate awaits any of your young cadets who survives my warrior’s attentions.”

More wind gathered around Fleur in a furious tempest worthy of her Sternritter title, sharp blades of air forming around her hands as she bared her teeth at Guto.

“You’ll have nothing from me, except death.”

“Yours or mine? Come on then, let’s lay our cards on the table and find out who wins that gamble.”

----------

Twilight was transfixed by an icy lance of hesitation. Did she pursue the assassin, perhaps her one chance to catch whoever was responsible for the attempt on her life? Or did she ignore the fleeing assassin and focus on defeating Gilda, a foe who was by far the more immediate threat? She might be able to outrun Gilda long enough to place a tracker on the assassin, but if Gilda chose not to pursue her and instead attacked one of her comrades then Twilight wasn’t certain at all how long they’d survive. Thus far while she’d not done any real damage to Gilda, she had been holding her own, and not to overestimate herself she realized at this juncture she might be the only one among her squad who could stand up to Gilda.

Her indecision was temporarily relieved when, from out of the hazy fog of battle that had been kicked up from so much sand being tossed into the air from the constant fighting, emerged several fast moving figures.

Sugarcoat flashed in front of the assassin, her stout pearl colored bow already up and aiming as she fired a point blank arrow. While the assassin was fast enough to barely tilt her head aside to avoid the arrow, Lemon Zest appeared behind her and fired a criss-crossing dual set of arrows that forced the assassin to halt entirely and spin around to face the attack, pulling out a bright glowing Seele Schneider to deftly deflect Lemon Zest’s twisting arrows. Then Sour Sweet flickered into view above the assassin, her hefty crossbow braced in both hands as she fired directly down at the unknown soldat.

The assassin barely jumped away from the powerful bolt, which exploded right at her feet where she’d just been standing. With a swift motion the assassin reached into her mantle and threw out a ginto tube, touching it with the tip of her Seele Schneider. The alchemic tube exploded with a flash of blinding light, and Sugarcoat and the other girls had to shield their faces against it. While Sugarcoat’s visor would normally not be affected by light, the burst was also reishi based so it likely would have momentarily overloaded the sensors.

“The hell’s all that about?” Gilda asked with annoyed bemusement, “Somebody trying to poach you off me, four-eyes?”

Twilight didn’t respond to the Arrancar, struggling to choose her course, but then she heard Sugarcoat shout, “Twilight, go after her! We’ll handle the Arrancar!”

“But-” Twilight began to say, but Indigo Zap shoved her towards the fleeing assassin, already aiming her sparking electrical bow towards Gilda.

“Move it you doofus! You can’t let her get away!”

“Hey I didn’t say anyone could go anywhere!” Gilda roared, and had to swipe with her sword to block one of Indigo Zap’s blazing lightning arrows. The other girls appeared around the Arrancar, bows trained on her. Even Sunny Flare had managed to stand back up, wincing in pain from being choked earlier and singed by the proximity to Twilight’s magical witchfire, but no less determined than the other cadets.

Meanwhile Cotton Barrel had dragged the two McColt girls away from the fight and was quickly trying to treat Buzzsaw’s wounds with her medical kit, profusely swearing under her breath as she did so.

“Go!” Sugarcoat said firmly to Twilight while sending a streaking bolt towards Gilda, “Now!”

Twilight hesitated for only a split second longer, seeing the assassin’s fleeing form nearly vanish into the dusty swirl of sand that coated the battlefield. She then grit her teeth and said, “I’ll be back as fast as I can! Please be careful!”

There was no more time for words, and even as Gilda shouted something at her and tried to make a move for Twilight the Arrancar was swarmed by the other Quincy girls. Arrow shots came in at Gilda from all sides, and she growled in frustration as she was forced to defend herself rather than pursue Twilight.

Rushing after the assassin, Twilight tried to shut out the sounds of fighting behind her, praying silently that her friends could hold out if only for a couple of minutes. With swift bursts of Hirenkyaku she quickly followed the fleeing assassin, keeping the soldat in clear view. With so much conflicting spiritual pressures covering the area from so many Hollows and Quincy fighting for their lives it would be all but impossible to track the assassin by her reiatsu, so Twilight had to rely on keeping her in visual range.

She found she was more than just keeping up, she was quickly closing the gap! Was it the magic that was giving her this boost? She could feel the warmth of the magic welling inside her, frightful in its strength and the sparks of anger it stoked inside her, yet she could also sense the magic fusing into the spiritual energy inside her. She felt lighter with every step, and with a moment of alarm she noticed that around her feet were small magical circles, filled with complex runes.

Relax, said Midnight’s voice in her head, I remember a lot more about magic than you do. I’m just using a few simple acceleration spells to enhance our Hirenkyaku. Just focus, I’ll keep helping where I can. See? I can be nice, too.

J-Just warn me before you start casting random spells on us! Twilight thought back, but said no more as she had nearly caught up with her target.

They were beyond the crucible of the battle itself, but Twilight could still catch a glimpse of what had been occurring while she’d been focused on Gilda. The cadets had fallen back down the dunes towards the bank of the lake, using the VTOLs parked there as both cover and additional firepower. Twilight could see that Soarin and Fleetfoot were streaking back and forth across the dunes themselves, and while Twilight couldn’t make out details she knew they’d transformed in some manner. She could see glowing wings and halos, but details eluded her as the Sternritter threw themselves into the Arrancar that had been trying to get at the cadets. There were places among the sands that were stained red with blood, and Twilight could see a few broken bodies here and there, cadets not so fortunate to fall back with their comrades. Twilight wasn’t sure how many of the bodies she saw were Quincy or Arrancar, however, so gauging casualties on either side was difficult at that point.

All she could tell was that the Arrancar were being kept back by the Sternritter, and if she could get a tracer on the assassin and then return to help her friends fend off Gilda, they may well be in the clear!

Now that she had the assassin within a few dozen paces, she took aim with her bow while continuing to run. She calculated her shot and sent her arrow flying, the teal bolt of witchfire cutting across the air, aiming low for the assassin’s legs.

With a sharp motion the assassin jumped to the left, narrowly avoiding the arrow, but Twilight had already predicted this and had sent several more arrows streaking after her target. For a few seconds a nerve wracking contest of speed and wit took place, Twilight’s arrows moving on shifting trajectories to try and box the assassin in, while her foe in turn moved with a series of blazingly swift flips and shifts to twist her body out of the way or use her Seele Schneider to deflect Twilight’s arrows. Twilight’s speed might have increased to be an even match for the assassin, perhaps even surpass her, but it was clear this assassin still had a vast advantage in terms of experience. There was no flaw in her defensive moves, no opening her in guard. Twilight’s shots were expertly timed and aimed, but no matter how many times her arrows got close, they never managed to actually strike her target.

But they had slowed her down. The assassin had been forced to stop fleeing and turn to face Twilight, which was good enough for Twilight to finish closing the distance.

The assassin readied her Seele Schneider, her stance radiating confidence as Twilight rushed her. Clearly the mysterious soldat believed she could take down Twilight easily at close range using the glowing reishi blade. Well, Twilight had a surprise for her. She’d taken the liberty of studying the composition of Seele Schneiders while she’d been working on the Hexenfaust. She knew they weren’t really swords so much as specialized beams of reishi designed to break down and absorb other spirit particles. Their resemblance to certain high-tech laser swords from a popular sci-fi series was purely coincidental. Probably. Maybe the Quincy who designed them was a fan.

Either way, Twilight had memorized the design and then added some features of her own.

When she closed to within a meter of the assassin she reached to the amethyst gem that was furthest up on the Hexenfaust. Sensing her mental command the gem detached and flew to her waiting right hand, and reishi and magic combined to form a new construct, taking the shape of a deep lavender and teal streaked, narrow sword hilt. From this sprang a reishi blade, gleaming a luminous teal.

With a swift swing she used this, the Hexen Schnider, to deflect the assassin’s Seele Schneider, teal blade glancing off the blue one in a burst of reishi particles.

This caught the assassin entirely off guard, creating a moment of shocked hesitance. A moment Twilight took advantage off as she quickly slashed out with her Hexen Schneider, aiming for the assassin’s shoulder. She was sure she’d get a solid hit in, but at that very instant there was a gigantic burst of wind from somewhere nearby, a massive slashing dome of hurricane force wind exploding outward and almost slamming into Twilight and the assassin’s position.

The air currents hit hard enough to pick Twilight and her foe off the ground and send them both tumbling, but at the last second Twilight controlled her fall enough to reorient on the assassin and thrust her sword again. The assassin saw this and spun away, Twilight’s reishi blade only catching the woman’s mantle.

But it was enough for Twilight to place the tracer she’d created at the tip of the blade on the assassin’s cloak.

The wind threw them a fair distance, but both landed on their feet. Twilight wasn’t certain what that dome of wind had been, but she imagined it was the result of Fleur De Lis and that Espada fighting. She could sense both of those overwhelming spirit energies nearby. Putting that aside, she focused on the assassin, who’d stood and aimed her bow at Twilight. Her Seele Schneider was now notched like an arrow, and Twilight gulped involuntarily. She’d known the Seele Schneiders were actually designed to be used as arrows, but had thought the assassin would need to absorb more reishi before using it that way.

It also occurred to her that now that she was a fair distance away from her friends or any other Quincy, the assassin now had a window of opportunity to kill her without any witnesses.

She wasn’t running away. She was luring me out!

That realization didn’t help her much as the assassin let fly, and the Seele Schneider arrow flew at Twilight at insane speed.

Can’t dodge-! Twilight’s mind raced as she tried to leap to the side, but didn’t think she’d make it in time, not at this range.

“Licht Regen!” (Light Rain)

Suddenly a wall of arrows, hundreds of them, cascaded down upon the Seele Schneider, knocking it from the air in a series of explosive impacts. Both Twilight and the assassin looked up in surprise as a form flew in from above, flipping in mid-air to land between Twilight and her assailant.

“Really, Miss Sparkle, I’m surprised at you. You are far too bright a young lady to have fallen for such a pedestrian trap.”

Twilight blinked, her voice stuttering in bafflement, “P-Principal Cinch!?”

With a faint air of self-assured control Cinch adjusted her glasses with one light blue finger. She looked much as Twilight had remembered, save for the stark white Quincy uniform, sans a black mantle in place of a white one. Her hair was done in that same neat and proper bun, and her eyes still held that light of cold superiority mixed with ambition. In her left hand she held a bow formed of one straight spur melded to a perfect circle, all of it made from solid, bright reishi.

Cinch cast one cool glance with half an eye toward Twilight without looking away from the assassin, “Do pick your jaw off the ground, Miss Sparkle. Its unbecoming of a student of mine to look like a bewildered fool, although given I’m no longer your or anyone else’s principle anymore makes it a somewhat moot point. Still, try to focus, will you?”

Twilight shook her head, composing herself as she nodded and quickly walked up beside her former principal. She felt a mixture of uneasy emotions, seeing Cinch again. This woman had goaded Twilight into releasing dangerous magic, and was largely responsible for endangering Twilight, numerous students from both Crystal Prep and Canterlot High, not to mention putting the very stability between realities at risk. The fact that Cinch’s actions may well have been motivated by her position as a Quincy and not due to just ‘school reputation’ didn’t change anything. That said, Twilight knew she couldn’t afford to let any of that get in the way of dealing with the circumstances in front of her. Whatever she might have felt about Cinch, she was an ally right now.

Wasn’t she?

“How did you know I was in trouble?” Twilight asked, tensing herself to flee in case either Cinch or the assassin made a move.

A flicker of annoyance crossed Cinch’s face but she didn’t hesitate to answer, “I placed monitoring devices around that lake as part of my research into its magical properties. Those clued me in to the fact you cadets were in danger. It wasn’t a difficult conclusion to arrive at that the assassin’s seeking your life would use that as an opportunity to make a move. Hence I came here as fast as I could, and a good thing I did, for if I hadn’t you’d be skewered by now, Miss Sparkle. Some gratitude would be appropriate.”

“...Thank you,” Twilight said, meaning it, but still quite uneasy, “But when did you hear about the assassination attempt on me?”

“Even the Strafbattalion isn’t entirely out of the loop. We do receive news of important events, like say the daughter of one of our most prominent Quincy family’s being attacked. Now are you done doubting me? Because we’re just giving our attempted murderer over here more time to plan an escape with all these asinine questions.”

Cinch had a point, so Twilight just nodded again and turned her attention to the assassin. This was already taking far longer than she’d wanted it to. Her friends were stuck fighting Gilda and she had to get back to them as fast as possible!

However Cinch’s words turned out to be all too accurate, for while Twilight had been questioning Cinch, the assassin had reached into her cloak to remove several more ginto tubes. Now she flung them forward, the alchemic water spreading out into the air as the assassin gestured with a hand and sent out a string of reshi particles. Upon contact with the water there was a flash of light, and a massive sheet of reshi-forged metal took shape, acting as a wall between them and the assassin. Cinch scoffed and fired her bow, sending out a wide fan of arrows that pierced through the metal sheet. But as the sheet was cut to ribbons after a few seconds, it revealed that the assassin was gone, having used the distraction to escape from view.

“Oh... bugger all,” Cinch grunted, “I should have just shot her instead of answering your blasted questions!”

“How could she escape so quickly?” Twilight shook her head, “She got away just as fast the last time.”

“Some Quincy specialize in stealth and evasion techniques,” Cinch sniffed like she smelled something unpleasant, “This one only had a stomach for an easy fight. The moment the numbers were against her she fled. If you hadn’t distracted me-”

“It's not important,” Twilight said quickly, “I can track her. I put a tracer on her mantle.”

“What!? Then hurry up and follow her!”

Twilight gulped. Cinch still had a very... intense way of looking that made Twilight feel somehow smaller. Taking a deep breath she shook her head, “There’s no time for that! I’ll track her down later. First I have to go back to my friends! I left them fighting a powerful Arrancar, and they need my help!”

Cinch looked at her hard for a moment before pinching the bridge of her nose and muttering, “Of course you did. Because nothing is ever simple with you, is it, Miss Sparkle? Very well, lead on.”

At that moment there was a unnatural saturated golden glow that burst in the sky not far away, and Twilight felt an oppressive and sickeningly overpowering Hollow reiatsu emanating from that location. She felt nauseous at the sensation, as if the reiatsu was somehow inducing vomitous dizziness. Cinch was beside her quickly, her voice sharp as a knife and filled with the kind of cold calm that felt like a icy splash of water.

“Resist it, Miss Sparkle. You’re still far too inexperienced to deal with these levels of reiatsu, but you must fortify yourself against it.”

“What... is that?” Twilight swallowed, taking deep breaths and focusing on pushing the feeling of sickness away.

“That is what it feels like when an Espada releases their Zanpaktou. It is not a fight you or I can interfere with, I’m afraid. Leave dealing with it to the Sternritter,” Cinch snorted, “Assuming Fleur is up to the challenge. Damn girl has always liked biting off more than she can chew. Never mind that, let’s go assist your fellow cadets before they get themselves killed.”

Twilight gave a shallow nod, wiping sweat from her brow and quickly turned, rushing back across the dunes towards the beach where she’d left her friends. Cinch kept easy pace with her. Retracing her route from chasing the assassin, Twilight once more got a clear look at the bodies, broken and bloody, dotting the battlefield. She shuddered slightly, able to make out a few more details. She saw perhaps four or five bodies that might have been Quincy cadets, although some she could only tell as much from the fact a burnt, severed arm still had some traces of uniform left on it. It was small comfort that there were many more Arrancar bodies littering the area, some crushed or twisted beyond recognition, while others looked as if they’d had their blood burst from inside them, leaking from ears, mouths, noses, or dead starring eyes. Twilight shielded her mind against the sight, trying to remind herself she had to prevent her friends from suffering similar fates.

From what she could see as she crested the last dune reaching the beach, the majority of the cadets were clustered around the two grounded VTOLs, no longer engaging the Arrancar. There only seemed to be a few Arrancar left, maybe eight from the dozens that had attacked, but those eight must’ve been the strongest of the lot since they seemed to be keeping Soarin and Fleetfoot fully occupied. Which meant there was no one to help Twilight’s squad against Gilda, since none of the other cadets seemed willing to step out to help. Twilight couldn’t blame them. Gilda’s reiatsu was almost as oppressive as the Espada’s, clearly the strongest among the Arrancar present besides the leader.

“You do pick out the most troublesome of rivals, don’t you?” Cinch said as they both took in the scene.

Fortunately all of Twilight’s friends were still standing. Well, the ones that had been when she’d left. Buzzsaw was still laying on the ground, the terrible wound in her side being stitched up by Cotton Barrel. Hacksaw was up, but looked reluctant to leave her sister’s side, crouching by Buzzsaw defensively. Meanwhile Sugarcoat and the other girls stood among a field of small craters, each of them breathing heavily and sporting a number of bleeding cuts, or in Sunny Flare’s case a clearly broken arm hanging limply. By contrast Gilda didn’t even look winded, and at best had a few scratches and minor burns, most of which had come from Twilight earlier.

As Twilight and Cinch arrived Gilda turned to them, sporting a predatory half grin, “About damn time! What kept you, four eyes? And hey, you brought another pal, and a total nerd by the look of her. Ew, old too.”

Cinch narrowed her eyes, then calmly glanced at Twilight, “This buffoon was giving you trouble?”

“She’s strong,” was all Twilight said to that, then looked to her friends, “Are you all alright?”

“Oh yes, we’re just peachy keen!” Sour Sweet said with a shaking smile, which then broke out into a deep scowl, “Do we look alright to you!? We can’t even scratch this bitc-”

“Language, Miss Sweet, language,” Cinch said, cutting Sour Sweet off, but the girl just glared at Cinch and proceeded to give the former principle the finger.

“Outburst aside Sour is right that we’ve been unable to injure this one,” Sugarcoat said, “And I’m certain she’s just been toying with us.”

Gilda licked her lips and grinned even deeper, “Hey, points to the observant cyclops. Didn’t want purple-smart here to miss any of the juicy stuff, so I’ve been sandbagging you guys a bit until she got back. Speaking of which, now that she’s here... let’s get to the good stuff.”

Gilda vanished with breakneck speed, appearing behind Indigo Zap, who didn’t even have time to turn her head before Gilda swung her blade low and with all the ease of someone removing the wing from a fly she severed both of Indigo’s legs cleanly off. It had happened so quickly that Twilight had barely had time to blink, but now that Indigo’s scream hit her ears, Twilight burst into action, flying straight for Gilda with her arrows leading the way.

Gilda smiled with feral glee as she kicked the shocked and prone Indigo towards the arrows, but Sugarcoat was fast to catch the other girl and jump both of them out of the way as Twilight’s arrows streaked past and impacted with Gilda. Gilda laughed heartily even as Twilight’s arrows exploded around her. She cackled with pure, violent mirth as she rushed out of the wall of teal flames and went straight for Sour Sweet, who did manage to turn with a exclamation of, “Oh hell no!” and fired her sniper pattern crossbow at point blank range.

With a single swipe Gilda batted the shot aside then slashed down with her Zanpaktou. Sour Sweet dodged back, blocking with her crossbow, and found the weapon got severed in half by the blow. Swearing profusely Sour Sweet tried to pull out a ginto tube, but Gilda grabbed the girl by the face and proceeded to ram a knee so hard to Sour’s gut that blood burst out of her mouth as she was sent flying backwards.

Cinch caught the girl, then proceeded to set her down and in the same smooth motion rise and unleash a waterfall of arrows at Gilda, who was forced to rapidly dodge the deluge as the arrows blasted apart an entire swath of the beach. Twilight rushed to follow Gilda’s movements, realizing that the Arrancar was exclusively targeting her friend’s now.

She saw Gilda, just a few meters ahead of Cinch’s barrage, heading for the shocked looking Lemon Zest.

“Stay away from her!” Twilight shouted, bringing her Hexen Schnider to bear.

Midnight, I need more speed. Please!

She felt the magic rise inside her, the magical circles appearing around her legs one more and she felt herself nearly triple in speed, to the point where even her Blut Vene couldn’t fully compensate for the G-forces that were tearing at her body. But she made it in time, the teal blade of energy from her Hexen Schneider just barely managing to intercept and block Gilda’s Zanpaktou before it hit Lemon Zest’s neck.

“Whoacrap!” Lemon Zest shouted, scrambling back as Twilight and Gilda pressed their blades against each other. Twilight was quickly forced back, her physical strength nowhere near Gilda’s.

“L-leave my friends alone!” Twilight demanded, but Gilda just laughed in her face.

“Pisses you off, doesn’t it? Seeing your comrades bleed?” Gilda’s eyes flashed with a merciless light, “Pisses me off too. Want to guess how many comrades I’ve seen bleed and die fighting you Quincy!? Payback is a bitch-”

She took one hand off her Zanpaktou and aimed it towards where Cotton Barrel was still tending to Buzzsaw’s wounds. A dark, blood red sphere of Hollow energy took shape in Gilda’s palm, “-and so am I.”

Twilight screamed a warning, but wasn’t able to stop the huge beam of crimson energy from firing out as Gilda sent a Cero straight for the Hoffield and two McColts. Twilight didn’t have time to do anything, and even Cinch, who had started to rush towards the endangered trio, didn’t look like she be fast enough.

Twilight could see all three girls witness the oncoming beam, Cotton Barrel grabbing onto Buzzsaw but not able to lift her up in time. It was Hacksaw who acted faster, hitting the Hoffield and her sister with a full body tackle that knocked both of them several meters out of the way... but not herself. Hacksaw McColt vanished into ash under the glare of bloody Cero light, the beam taking the girl and exploding a few dozen meters away in a hefty shockwave.

Twilight’s breath caught in her throat, and for a second she forgot to breath, but Gilda didn’t give her time to absorb one death before punishing Twilight with a backslash of her Zanpaktou that would have taken Twilight’s arm off if Sunny Flare hadn’t yanked her back.

“Twilight! Snap out of it!” Sunny Flare shouted in Twilight's face.

“But she... she just...”

“Yes! I know! We’ll be next if you don’t get it together!” Sunny Flare said.

Breathing hard, eyes dilated, Twilight glanced around. Sugarcoat was trying to use torn off strips of her uniform as a pair of makeshift tourniquets, tying them around the bleeding stumps of Indigo Zap’s legs, while Lemon Zest was nearby, slowly backing away, eyes wide, her bow limp at her side as the girl’s nerve seemed to start cracking. Sour Sweet was struggling to stand, blood still trailing from her mouth as she stared at her own broken crossbow, fear and desperation clouding her features as she sank back to the ground. Cotton Barrel was holding tight to Buzzsaw, who was screaming her sister’s name and trying to crawl towards the smoking crater where Hacksaw had been, her motions only opening up the wound Cotton Barrel had stitched shut, her blood staining the white sands and their white uniforms both.

Only Cinch seemed composed, and furious, as she attacked Gilda with another barrage of arrows, forcing Gilda to flicker away with quick bursts of Sonido to avoid the rain of arrows. It was keeping Gilda busy for the moment, but for how long? Could Cinch even make up the difference here? Twilight only knew that Cinch wasn’t a Sternritter, and that Gilda hadn’t released the power of her Zanpaktou yet.

The weight of realization crushed down on Twilight. Her friends were being maimed and killed in front of her, and if she didn’t do something right now then Gilda wasn’t going to stop until more of her comrade’s blood was spilled on Hueco Mundo’s pitiless desert sands.

It wasn’t calm that came over Twilight, nor any kind of epiphany. It was just simple decision, applied by cold logic into action.

Midnight, if you have more magic to give, then give it to me now. I need you to slow Gilda down.

The response was both eager and carried a hint of warning, I won’t argue about getting to stretch my muscles more, just don’t come complaining to me if I take a bit more headspace to do it. I need more room to operate in here if I’m going to start slinging any spells that will affect something as strong as her.

There was no hesitance as Twilight replied, Do what you have to. We have to stop Gilda. Now.

She could feel the press of Midnight on her mind, and the growing, searing heat of the magic burning inside her. It reminded her of that terrible moment when she’d unleashed the magic during the Friendship Games, feeling all of that incredible yet overwhelmingly hungry power sear its way into her soul. For a second she could see it all again, that vast and unmitigated power that could so easily burn away her consciousness if she let it. But the power didn’t envelop her like a drowning woman going under the waves. Instead it just nestled its way into more of her mind with the feeling of a satisfied sigh, Midnight’s presence settling through Twilight in a manner that was not wholly uncomfortable. Midnight wasn’t taking over, it was more like she was settling over Twilight like a cloak, an aura. Twilight’s mind did a few calculations and she settled it out as being something of a seventy, thirty percentage split between her and Midnight’s personalities. She did feel a sort of bubbling desire to start pulling things apart, to revel in her magic, but it was balanced out by her overriding need to protect her remaining comrades and put an end to Gilda’s threat.

She couldn’t quite see herself clearly, but Twilight had gained the flaming teal eye aura from her Midnight form, and while the horn of magic hadn’t formed yet, there were flickers of witchfire streaming from her brow in an almost horn-like shape. There were no wings, no unnecessarily revealing dress, but more small flickers of teal magic outlined the hint of raven wings, and traced around her body like a swarm of fireflies.

Both Gilda and Cinch took note of this, Gilda tilting her head quizzically at the changes coming over Twilight, while Cinch gained a ghostly expression of both intrigue and just a hint of fear.

With Midnight’s mind more entwined with her own Twilight had a solid idea of what magic she could and couldn't perform at the moment. She was nowhere near the reality warping level she’d been when Midnight had been fully manifested during the Friendship Games, but knowledge of various spells were burning their way into Twilight’s mind and she concentrated for a second, letting Midnight handle the details of the spellwork while she focused on what results she needed.

Teleportation would’ve been useful, but it was too advanced a spell for what she and Midnight were currently capable of, otherwise she could have just teleported Gilda away. However telekinesis was a far more basic, but still powerful spell, and as Twilight narrowed her eyes at Gilda she reached out with her magic.

“What the-!?” Gilda exclaimed, feeling a thick aura of teal magic wrap around her. The Arrancar struggled against the telekinetic grip, but Twilight gestured downward, and Gilda was slammed hard into the ground. Twilight poured more magic out, trying to hold Gilda in place. Gilda’s physical strength was incredible, and even as Twilight pushed upon her with crushing telekinetic force Gilda still wouldn’t go down entirely, only dropping to one knee as she pressed her sword point first into the ground to try and keep herself upright.

“Piss off with this! What even is this crap!? Some kind of Quincy trick?” Gilda grunted, while Cinch laughed, bringing her bow to bear on the immobile Arrancar.

“Actually this is a power far removed from anything that exists in our world. I’m surprised at you, Miss Sparkle. I didn’t think you’d ever use magic again after the... incident.”

Twilight’s eye twitched, “That’s not important right now! Just shoot her while I’m still able to hold her down!”

“Ah, quite right,” Cinch replied, her bow disgorging a thick barrage of arrows that flew in at Gilda, who being largely immobilized had no immediate defense as the reishi arrows slammed into her. Her Heirro served to still protect her to a degree, but arrows still punctured her in multiple places, leaving many standing out from her shoulder, arms, legs, and side.

“Grrraa!” Gilda screeched, “Okay, that’s it! I’m done playing fair!”

The blade of her Zanpaktou grew painfully bright with a pulsing saffron light, and Twilight knew exactly what Gilda was about to do. And she wasn’t planning on having any of it.

“Rend, Bes-” Gilda began to say, but suddenly found her voice cut off as a magical symbol imprinted itself on her throat from a stream of wispy magic sent out by Twilight. Gilda’s mouth worked soundlessly for a second, shooting Twilight an uncomprehending glare.

“Silence spell,” Twilight said with a grim cast to her features, “I don’t plan to play fair either.”

Fury etched itself over Gilda’s face, and she opened her mouth again, only rather than speaking this time a Cero erupted out from the girl’s throat in a deep red wave. Twilight crossed her bow and her Hexen Schneider in front of her, letting Midnight pour more magic out into a half dome barrier of teal magic. The Cero beam impacted the magic barrier, the impact driving Twilight backwards even as the barrier held under the onslaught. The beam finished, leaving the barrier cracked but intact, however having had to shift her focus to maintaining the barrier Twilight had lost her hold on her telekinesis.

Gilda moved, rushing Twilight in a series of swift, zipping motions. Cinch tried to intercept, flying above the pair and sending down a hail of arrows, but Gilda slipped through the shots and appeared behind Twilight. Her Zanpaktou flashed, and Twilight spun. If not for Midnight quickly shifting magic into boosting Twilight’s speed she’d never parried in time, and her teal reshi blade sparked off of Gilda’s Zanpaktou. But Gilda drove on harder, spinning into a punishing series of curving slashes. While matched in speed, Gilda was clearly the better melee fighter, and Twilight found herself barely holding the Arrancar back, and took several nasty cuts in the process.

Twilight did have time to use this as an opening to reassert her telekinesis, gripping Gilda’s body with it and slamming the Arrancar into the ground, dragging across the sands for several dozen meters like drilling a plow through a field. She followed this up by drawing back an arrow of teal energy with her bow and infusing it with an explosive cap of magical power, making the arrow’s tip glow with a humming sphere of light as she released it. In mid-flight the arrow split into dozens of copies, the duplication spell Twilight had infused into it activating to make it multiply many times over before each arrow curved in and exploded upon Gilda.

Battered, but not done, Gilda’s bloodshot eyes were filled with murderous hate as she let out a silent screech, the brand still forcing her to silence, but her whole body lit up with a writhing crimson aura as her Hollow reiatsu spiked upwards. Her strength was such that even with Twilight binding her with telekinesis Gilda was still able to force her body to move, fueled by pure fury at this point.

Cinch circled around behind Gilda, but Gilda threw an arm back towards the woman and from her open palm a crackle of red energy sprang out before she fired multiple swift Bala bullets towards Cinch. While Gilda kept up this barrage, forcing Cinch to evade, the Arrancar forced her sword arm up towards Twilight, pointing the blade’s tip at her. Hollow reiatsu gathered in the sword, a swirl of red light gathering in several vortex-like lines of power. Twilight didn’t need to sense it to realize this was going to be an even larger Cero than before, using Gilda’s Zanpaktou as a focus.

She could dodge, but with a cold start she realized that her friends were behind her now, Sugarcoat trying to gather the squad together and fall back, with Lemon Zest carrying Sour Sweet while Sugarcoat carried Indigo, and the rest of the girls limped alongside them. If Twilight dodged, the Cero beam would hit them instead!

Do or die, Midnight. Cut the telekinesis and pour all we’ve got into the Hexen Schneider, fast! Twilight thought, and she reversed her grip on the reishi blade.

Midnight said nothing, just responded with a rising tide of magic, and as the telekinesis cut off from Gilda, a blaze of teal magic flowed from Twilight and into both her bow and the Hexen Schneider. Much as the assassin had done, Twilight took the ‘hilt’ of the weapon and held it like an arrow, drawing it back upon her bow’s reishi string. Arcane energy and reishi combined together as the Hexen Schneider burned brightly, its light intermixing with the crimson flare from Gilda’s charging Cero.

Both girls fired simultaneously.

Twilight’s Hexen Schneider pierced through the cascade of power from Gilda’s Cero, boring through it like a drill through rock. This cleaved the Cero into two diverging beams that split to either side of Twilight, and fortunately also to the side of her fleeing friends, who stopped to watch in awe as the severed Cero beam flowed off in two direction. One exploded in the dunes, while another burned across the surface of the lake. Meanwhile the Hexen Schneider had cut its way towards Gilda, breaking down and absorbing parts of the Cero’s reishi as it went. Her sword still pointed outward, Gilda turned it to try and guard against the attack. When the Hexen Schneider hit it, the blade turned arrow was only halted for a bare second before the Zanpaktou’s blade cracked, not quite splintering but a portion of it breaking off as the arrow drove past it and slammed into Gilda’s chest near her right collarbone.

The blow drove Gilda backwards and to the ground, where she convulsed and screamed silently from the wound the Hexen Schneider tore into her. After a second the arrow’s energy was spent and the energy blade disappeared, the hilt of the weapon falling to the ground. Twitching, Gilda, wounded badly but still very much alive, rolled over and slowly rose on shaking feet, blood pouring from the deep wound that showed a hole punched clean through her.

Cinch, blinking, glanced at Twilight, “Well done, Miss Sparkle. I believe cleaning up here should be a trifling matter now.”

Gilda, eyes wild like an injured animal’s, shot looks between Cinch and Twilight, then looked at her damaged Zanpaktou. Rage clearly battled with the sudden realization of fear as Gilda looked around, almost as if searching for any allies nearby, but there were none to be had. As Cinch raised her bow, Gilda flinched, then vanished, using a full speed Sonido to flee.

Cinch moved to follow, but Twilight, sinking to her knees in exhaustion said, “Don’t follow her.”

“Whyever not?” Cinch asked, perturbed, “I don’t like leaving loose ends.”

“Then see to helping my friends get to the VTOLs so we can get out of here,” Twilight said, “Everyone’s so badly hurt, and I feel so... so tired. If another Arrancar shows up...”

Cinch frowned, but nodded, “A fair point. Wouldn’t do to leave you unprotected. How are you faring? You look pale.”

Twilight wasn’t sure. She’d had Midnight pour everything they had into firing the Hexen Schneider. She felt dizzy, and her legs and arms were numb. The warmth of magic still filled her, but it was like a distant warmth, like the memory of a summer sun that had just set, rather than its noon heat. Twilight was trying hard just not to fall over and pass out then and there, the aches of all her injuries and tortured muscles now coming back to her in a painful flood.

We’re going to need to work on your endurance, commented Midnight dryly, I could release more magic, but I don’t know what that’d do to your... our body. It's odd.

Odd? Twilight frowned, whispering, ”What’s odd?”

Midnight hesitated a few seconds, and Twilight sensed her alter ego’s unease.

I’m not sure. When fusing magic with your Quincy powers I felt... something. Something off.

Twilight frowned, thinking. Could you be more specific?

No, Midnight sounded irritated, and the unease was only increasing, I don’t know what I felt. Just something off. I’ll look into it. In the meantime I suggest you focus on not tackling any opponents as strong as that Gilda was. We can’t handle another fight like that.

Cinch had approached her. Twilight’s squad remained nearby, Sugarcoat calling out, “We really need to go. Twilight, can you move?”

“Y-Yes!” Twilight called back, forcing herself to stand. She waved on her feet, nearly tipping over. Only Cinch’s steady hand on her shoulder kept her from falling over. Twilight looked with a mix of gratitude and awkwardness at her former principal. Cinch didn’t look particularly gentle, rather she looked at Twilight with keen interest.

“Were you just talking to yourself?” Cinch asked pointedly.

“...Maybe?” Twilight said, and at Cinch’s look she glanced away, “I can’t explain it right now.”

Cinch looked like she was about to press further questions, but the woman suddenly spun, her bow raised. Twilight looked to where Cinch had turned, and felt her stomach drop. Standing atop the nearest dune right above them stood two Hollows. One was clearly an Arrancar, with a head of unkempt blue hair and dragon-like horns curving down from the sides of her head, while the other was a Hollow the likes of which Twilight had never seen or heard of. She seemed humanoid, but was covered in plates of bone white armor, with a face the bore a faintly aquatic predator motif to its mask. This Hollow carried a trident in one hand, and behind her feminine figure a long tail swished, bearing a fine like a scythe blade.

Most notable, however, was the glowing red gem floating in her Hollow hole, right between her breasts, and the distinctive and familiar wide poof of impossibly large orange and yellow streaked hair.

“Hello girls,” said Adagio, “I don’t suppose we can just pass on through and you can pretend you never saw us?”

----------

Adagio wasn’t one to put much stock in the concept of ‘higher powers’, but she had to admit there had to be some pretty high odds against her running into Twilight Sparkle again, and in yet another desperate battle between Quincy and Hollows. She wondered what the Quincy had to be thinking, sending their young cadets onto a battlefield like this, but questioning the logic of these people seemed like a waste of time. The real question was whether she and Ember could get past this group without any trouble. Her lake was right there, less than fifty meters away. The only reason she didn’t just make a break for it was because she wasn’t sure how strong the Quincy woman with the prudish bun and glasses was. If it had just been Twilight and those cadets Adagio might have paused for a quick quip, maybe enjoy the shocked expression on Twilight’s face for a second, then be on her way.

But Adagio wasn’t about to drop her guard around an unknown quantity. Still, she felt confident. She and Ember had been beaten up a bit from the run in with Prim Hemline, but they were nowhere near as thrashed as this group looked. Twilight appeared about ready to collapse from exhaustion, and the other cadets were either looking to be suffering from near mortal injuries, or carrying those who were. Either way the only real danger seemed to be the woman Adagio didn’t recognize.

“You must have met Gilda,” Adagio continued, sniffing the air, “Yes, I can still feel her reiatsu in the air. Did you actually manage to kill her?”

“Who are you?” said the woman with the bun, her odd looking bow of a circle of reishi energy bisected by a slightly curved bow spur was aimed squarely at Adagio and Ember.

Twilight looked like she was about to say something, but Adagio saw the hesitance in Twilight’s eyes.

Ah, you don’t want to admit to knowing a Hollow in front of your fellow Quincy. Smart girl. Don’t complicate things more than needed, Adagio thought.

“Bad news,” Ember said in response to the woman’s question, “Like my friend here said, let us pass, and you don’t have anything to worry about.”

“Oh I don’t think so,” said the woman, “It's far too unusual to see a Vasto Lorde of such strange qualities, and it’s quite suspicious the way you seem so keen on getting by us. Why? There’s nothing but a lake behind us. What makes that lake so important?”

The intensity of the woman’s question suggested she had an interest in that lake well beyond mere curiosity, and Adagio realized it wasn’t likely this Quincy was going to back down. Furthermore she was likely keeping the conversation going to buy time. Adagio had seen some of the Quincy Sternritter nearby, one of them battling Guto, while the other two were finishing off a small cadre of Arrancar that Adagio assumed were what was left of the force Guto had attacked the cadet’s with. She’d seen more Arrancar, likely from Guto’s horde, heading this way, but they were being slowed by cannon and missile fire from the Quincy fortifications. Either way, she wanted to get into her lake and be away form this mess before anyone else took notice of her and Ember.

Rather than risk a protracted fight, Adagio had a better idea.

“Ember, follow my lead and stick close,” Adagio whispered, and tensed.

The Quincy woman must have sensed Adagio was about make a move because the woman’s bow gleamed brightly as she intoned, “Licht Regen!”

A unfathomable amount of reishi arrows burst from her bow, but Adagio was already moving, Ember staying close to her side. She leaped up, and swung her trident in a wide arc. A small tidal wave of water smashed down from her trident, flooding the beach and catching many of the cadets, and the Quincy woman, off guard. Adagio had to spin her trident to deflect a few arrows that got close, but for a split second the flood of water she’d summoned distracted the Quincy. Adagio swooped down swiftly, pouncing upon Twilight Sparkle.

“H-Hey!” Twilight gasped as Adagio's tailed wrapped around her waist and Adagio used her trident to bar the girl’s neck.

“Anyone tries anything foolish, and I can’t promise what will happen to this young lady’s neck,” Adagio said, putting on a deathly cold tone.

The other Quincy all stiffened, one cadet who was wearing a strange visor turning red faced with anger as she shouted, “Don’t you dare touch her!”

“I’ll dare all I want,” Adagio said, pressing the shaft of her trident tighter against Twilight’s neck. As she’d suspected, Twilight was utterly drained from what was likely a recent fight with Gilda, and had no strength to resist. “But keep your distance, because if you so much as take a step or raise one of those shiny bows of yours...”

She didn’t finish the sentence, letting the gurgling sound Twilight made as the trident pressed into her throat speak for itself.

The Quincy were frozen, and the one with the bun narrowed her eyes to slits at Adagio and Ember, “You’re making a mistake, taking that one hostage.”

Adagio shrugged, “Seems to be working so far. Ciao.”

With that she made a prodigious leap towards the lake, dragging Twilight with her. Ember joined her with a swift Sonido, and while some of the Quincy cadets shouted after their friend, Twilight wasn’t able to say much of anything as Adagio dragged her into the lake’s depths.

Episode 77: Unstoppable Forces

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Episode 77: Unstoppable Forces

Enveloped by the freezing embrace of her lake, Adagio dove only a short distance into the darkness before crafting a bubble of air around herself, Ember, and their struggling hostage.

“Stop it,” she commanded in a swift, sharp tone as Twilight squirmed in her grasp, “If I actually wanted to hurt you, Twilight Sparkle, I’d just let the water take you.”

She made sure the bubble of air was large enough to hold all three of them and had enough internal pressure to let them stand at the bottom of it like being on a somewhat rubbery surface. Her control over the water around her let her move the bubble down at a respectable speed, and she kept her senses spread out in case any of the Quincy decided to try swimming after them. She did sense several spikes of reiatsu from the shore, but no one diving in after them. It wasn’t long before they were deep enough that they were surrounded by total darkness, but Adagio generated some bright, pale red light from her siren gem.

That done, she turned her attention to her hostage.

“L-Let me go!” Twilight said, trying to wriggle out of Adagio’s grip, but the Vasto Lorde had the girl beat in the strength department and had little trouble keeping a tight hold on her. Meanwhile Ember snorted, bringing her Zanpaktou bear.

“How about we just kill you and let your corpse float back to your Quincy pals, instead?”

“Ember,” Adagio said in a warning tone, “I need her alive.”

“Why? Who is she to us, except another damn Quincy?”

“Remember what I told you about the raid? This girl is the one I was talking about. Twilight Sparkle.”

She felt Twilight’s struggles slowly cease and the girl turned her head, eyes still showing a fearful light but also swimming with a rapid stream of thoughts. “Adagio... I thought maybe it was you, but... how? How did you get here!? And you’re a Hollow!?”

Ember grunted, “She’s observant, ain’t she?”

Adagio met Twilight’s questioning gaze with a long stare of her own, her voice dropping to a calming, dulcet tone, “At the risk of sounding cliche; it’s a long story. If you promise to behave yourself I’ll tell you what I can, and promise to let you go in due time. There’s just a few things I need from you first.”

Twilight had stopped struggling, but there was an uneasy, suspicious look on her face that didn’t quite mesh with the naive geek that Adagio briefly remembered from her time spent back at Discord’s shop. How long ago was that? A month? It felt like so much longer. The hard lines around Twilight’s eyes, the slight darkening of shadows within them, suggested Adagio wasn’t the only one who’d gone through some rough times recently.

“What, exactly, are you after?” Twilight asked, “In fact how can I trust you?”

“Well, for one I haven’t let my friend here gut you like a fish and leave you for dead,” Adagio said, “As you can tell, she’s not in the best of moods.”

“At all,” Ember said for emphasis, stroking her Zanpaktou, “If it were up to me, you’d already be dead. Adagio is all that’s between you and a gruesome death right now.”

“Dramatics aside, I’d also point out that you don’t have to trust me to cooperate with me. Consider it in your own best interests.”

“Would you really let her kill me if I don’t agree to cooperate?” Twilight said, tensing up.

“Twilight, Twilight, Twilight, please understand that I’m being as reasonable as I can about this. We could go back and forth all day about who might kill who and who should trust who, but people are dying up there, on both sides, and for the moment none of us are among them. Can that be sufficient evidence of goodwill for you to listen to what I have to say?”

She heard Twilight take in a deep breath, trembling slightly, and then let it out as she gave the barest of nods. “Yes, okay, I’ll listen.”

“Good,” Adagio said as she slowly let go of Twilight, careful to keep a close watch for any sign that the girl might try to make a move. Twilight didn’t. At least not to escape. Instead she turned around so that she was standing between Adagio and Ember, facing Adagio moreso, and a strange series of emotions played over her face.

Again she asked, “What happened to you, Adagio? The last thing I remember was that Sunset and the rest of the girls were going to go rescue your sisters from Grand Fisher.”

Adagio nodded, snorting slightly, “Yes, no thanks to your family. At any rate, yes, Sunset and her little Scooby gang managed to save my sisters and finish off that damnable bastard. It's in gratitude to them that I saved your life in turn, during the raid on the Quincy.”

“So that was you I saw!” Twilight exclaimed, lightly smacking a hand into her palm in a ‘aha!’ gesture, “I thought you looked familiar, although you look different now. Is this how Hollow evolution works? Your body goes through significant changes? Is it always from non-humanoid to humanoid? How did you achieve the evolutionary changes? Where you a Gillian-class before all of this? How do you still have your siren gem after it was destroyed by the Elements of Harmony? How did you become a Hollow in the first place?”

“Whoa, whoa! Slow it down!” Adagio held up a clawed hand, “I swear it's like you’re a nerdier version of Sonata when she gets on a sugar rush. Look, I don’t have time to play twenty questions. Ember and I have something we need to do, and I’m using the underwater tunnels connected to my lake to get inside Las Noches. I’ll take you somewhere safe where you can hide until this battle blows over. After that I’ll come back and use a Garganta to take you to Canterlot City. In exchange I need you to answer to questions, and pass along a message.”

“Um... okay... but will you still tell me what you can about how you became a Hollow? Just the basics?” Twilight asked, and Adagio ran a claw over her snout in a frustrated gesture, and nodded.

“Fine, just the abridged version,” Adagio said, and quickly recounted the details of the fight with Grand Fisher, the damage to her soul chain, the final desperate run back to Discord’s portal, then Grogar’s interference and Adagio’s subsequent choice to tear her soul chain out and transform.

Twilight’s eyes grew wider and wider the longer the story went, and even Ember looked gradually more shocked. Ember had only known the bare bones basics, after all, and hadn’t heard the full story yet either. By now they were deep within the depths of the lake, and moving into the yawning mouth of one of the tunnels that connected to the passage system beneath Las Noches.

“Ever since then, I’ve been surviving as best I can here,” Adagio finished, “I’ve had to deal with many unpleasant things. Grogar’s experiments, proving myself to Torch and his horde, risking my neck against every Gillian and Adjuchas in the Forest of Menos, not to mention nearly getting my head taken off by a mentally unstable Espada! Now I have to survive an army of Quincy here to wipe out my new home. So, yes, it’s been a busy month, Twilight Sparkle. How about you? Care to tell me how life with the Quincy has been?”

Twilight gulped, her voice eerily casual and conversational, like they were sitting at a cafe having conversation over frappuccinos, “Oh, you know, brutal training where I almost accidentally killed one of my classmates, a horde of Hollows attacking during a training exercise, assassins trying to kill me for reasons unknown and hurting my dog, striking a bargain with my magical possibly crazy alter ego, and just now surviving another assassination attempt and a fight with an Arrancar that tore into my comrades and murdered one of them in front of me. So, you know, not exactly peachy keen on my end, either...”

Adagio let out a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a tired sigh, “Want to bet that Sunset Shimmer has been taking it easy, enjoying the quiet life back in Canterlot City?”

It was a strained thing, haunted by the pain and fear of recent events, but Twilight did manage a small smile, “I suppose statistically speaking its highly unlikely the girls back home have been having it as rough as we have.”

“Ah, so you still consider Canterlot City home, instead of being with your fellow Quincy?” Adagio asked, and Twilight glanced away, adjusting her glasses.

Twilight flinched, but there was only a moment of consideration in her eyes, wistful but hardened by practicality. “It is, in some ways. But the Quincy are a new family as well, and one I’m not going to turn on, if that’s what you were thinking of asking.”

“Not quite,” Adagio said, her tone becoming more business-like, “You don’t have to betray anyone. All I want is information.”

An uncertain wince passed over Twilight’s features like a veil, “What kind of information?”

Adagio made an off hand gesture, “About Quincy, of course. Details on how your powers work, how your military is structured, the names and known powers of these so-called ‘Sternritter’. Oh, and anything you happen to come across concerning plans for future attacks like this one, or just troop movements in general. I’d like to know which cities have the most Quincy oversight, for one. I’ll probably think of other things I’d like to know down the road, but that’s a good starting baseline.”

Twilight’s eyes went to roughly the size of grapefruits, her mouth hanging open for a moment in shock before she got her wits about her with a hard shake of her head and said, “Adagio, you’re asking me to spy for you!?”

“I prefer the term ‘intelligence gathering’, but whatever floats your boat.”

“I can’t do that! For multiple reasons! One; it would be wrong and involve betraying the trust my fellow Quincy have put in me! Two; I’m only a cadet, I don’t have access to any sensitive information like how many Quincy are stationed to watch which cities. Three; even if I agreed I’d make a terrible spy! I can’t lie to save my life!”

Adagio hardly missed a beat, holding up her fingers one at a time while smiling with sensuous grace and calm behind her mask, her voice soothing, “Let me address those points one at a time, little miss negativity. One; you don’t have to give me any information that you feel compromises the safety of your comrades, I only want to know ways to better protect myself and my followers against Quincy for self-defense. Since I intend to offer you something equally valuable in return, consider it not a betrayal but a separate, independent exchange between yourself and a neutral party. I don’t have any desire to kill Quincy, Twilight, only in keeping myself and those who’ve sworn loyalty to me from being killed.”

Before Twilight could mull that over Adagio went on, holding up a second finger, “Two; you’re a cadet for now, but in time that will most certainly change, won’t it? If you have power to confront Gilda and send that arrogant thug running for her life, then you’ve got the kind of potential that will lead to swift promotion. I don’t doubt that before long you’ll be in a position to gather quite a bit of useful information.”

Her third claw rose, “Finally, three; if you’re worried about lying, then don’t. I’m sure a girl of your level of intellect can gather quite a bit of information purely from observation and deduction alone. You don’t have to tell a single lie, just watch and keep me informed of what you see your fellow Quincy doing. Given your talents you can tell me all manner of things about Quincy powers, and in time you ought to become familiar enough with the Sternritter to be able to tell me about them without having to spout a single fib to your comrades.”

Twilight was still shaking her head, “I can’t do this, Adagio. These people are my friends, and family. If there’s even a chance you might end up hurting any of them because of what I tell you...”

“Consider this then,” Adagio said, eyes glittering, “I’m not asking you to do this for free. I’m offering something in return. If you agree to gather information for me, I’ll do the same for you.”

“What?” gasped Ember.
“What!?” blurted Twilight at the same time.

Adagio turned her head to regard Ember with an even look, “Ember, tell me, what’s the first rule of Hueco Mundo?”

Ember scrunched up her face, still looking rattled from what Adagio had said, “Not like anything’s written down, but if I had to say there was one it’s ‘survival of the fittest’. Least that’s what my dad lives by, and the rest of us in the horde do too.”

“So let me ask you this then, what fit Hollow wouldn’t be willing to do a little spying in order to obtain invaluable information on a group whose entire mission statement is to exterminate us?”

There was a frustrated growl that bubbled up from Ember’s throat, “But you’re talking about giving info to the enemy!”

“In exchange for info on the enemy,” Adagio pointed out, and smiled thin as a sheet of ice, “Think about it Ember. How much do you really care about any Arrancar outside of your father and your horde? I’m not proposing giving Twilight anything terribly compromising to people we care about, but how much would you object if I happened to provide information on, say, what Grogar does in his labs, or where his labs are located? What skin is it off our backs if the Quincy decide to destroy said labs? For that matter, even if the Quincy kill an Espada, so what? Its ‘survival of the fittest’, as you said. Any Espada who dies to a Quincy ambush just wasn’t very ‘fit’, were they? And that opens up a slot for your father to advance in rank. For us to advance in rank.”

Ember’s jaw tightened, “But... to work with the Quincy...”

“Don’t think of it like working with the Quincy. Think of it like using the Quincy to accomplish our own, independent goals, Ember. Just as I’m not asking Twilight to give me any information she feels might endanger her friends, I don’t plan on giving her any information that will put the Arrancar we like at risk. But if we can screw over Grogar with this, then why wouldn’t I go for it?”

Uncertainty swam like a droplet of oil upon water in Ember’s eyes. The dragonish Arrancar looked between Adagio and Twilight, flexing her clawed hands with unease as she worked over what Adagio was saying. Slowly Adagio could see Ember reaching similar conclusions that Adagio had, her tension easing as Ember sighed, long and hard.

“You are a ludicrously devious, and crazy, bitch Adagio,” Ember said, running a hand through her wild head of blue hair, “No wonder Chrysalis has gotten so interested in you. You realize if we get caught doing this, Lord Tirek won’t hesitate to fry us. Hell, my father might do it.”

“Oh, I think Torch might appreciate the subtle strength inherent in turning an enemy into an ally to be wielded against an ally who is actually an enemy. I’m an ambitious woman, and such ambition entails risky gambles,” Adagio said, turning her attention back to Twilight, who met the Vasto Lorde’s gaze with a searching look of her own. It was clear that, much like Ember had, Twilight was working over the proposal in her mind. And unlike Ember, Twilight was taking her time with it. Examining it from every angle. Adagio could see how nervous the girl was, but there was a fierce intelligence burning in her eyes.

“Let me ensure I have this straight, with no miscommunications,” Twilight said slowly, “You propose that I provide you with information on the Quincy, ranging from the fundamental nature of our powers, to the names and techniques possessed by our strongest members, and even troop positions across the globe. In exchange you will provide me with equally detailed information about Hollows, the Espada, including information we could use to stage attacks and ambushes on specific Espada?”

“That’s more or less the jist of it. I want to be better prepared to survive the Quincy’s attempts at murdering me and mine. I also wouldn’t mind certain Espada being in the line of fire, and I imagine you might benefit from being able to bring such valuable information to your superiors.”

“Maybe, but what am I supposed to tell them about where I got it from? If I tell them I have a Hollow informing me they’ll want to know why, and I can’t lie to them. I’d have to tell them I’m giving you information for it in exchange.”

Adagio tapped a claw to her chin thoughtfully, “True. Your Quincy comrades have an irrational hatred of Hollows, so revealing you have a connection to a Hollow would be dangerous. Then again, you could always spin it that you cleverly tricked a Hollow into spying for you, and all you have to do is give a few relatively useless tidbits on information in return. Alternatively you could just tell the truth, and let them know the full score. This deal benefits the Quincy as much as it does me. After all, it’d give them a potentially free shot at least one Espada I want very, very dead. That’s no small bargaining chip. So the real question is if there’s any of your superiors that’d go for the deal if you proposed the idea to them.”

That got Twilight to pause, her hand raising to stroke her chin, “I... don’t know. Some would object, most definitely. The hatred of Hollows runs very deep among many Quincy families. But... maybe if I brought it to him first...”

Him? Adagio watched Twilight’s face carefully, looking for any hint of what the girl might be thinking.

“It might work,” Twilight said, “If I present the idea in the right way to the right person. But I don’t know about this Adagio. I understand you want to protect yourself and your own friends from Quincy attacks, but what you’re asking of me is a huge risk and I still don’t like the idea of being used to spread information that could get people killed.”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “Twilight, you joined an army dedicated to the eradication of an entire species of spiritual beings. Just how much moral high ground do you think you have?”

“I...” Twilight choked slightly, glancing away, wetness forming in her eyes, “I just don’t want anyone else to die.”

“Ship’s sailed from that dock already, but if you want to make yourself feel better than look at it this way,” Adagio said, crossing her arms over her chest, “By giving me the information I need, you’ll probably be saving a lot of Hollow souls from being sent to oblivion, except a specific one that trust me is more than deserving of the fate. Whether you see my word as trustworthy, I give it anyway when I say that I swear to you I won’t use your information against any Quincy save in defense of myself or my immediate allies.”

“Then why do you want to know which cities Quincy are deployed to watch?” Twilight asked, to which Adagio let out a tired laugh.

“I don’t know, maybe because I want to know which cities are safe for me to go to without having to worry about being ventilated by arrows? I’d like to actually see the sun for a change, or take a dip in the ocean, or procure some food that isn’t the flesh of another Hollow. I can only do that in the living world, Twilight, so yes I’d like to know which cities to avoid, and which ones might be safe for me and mine to go to when we’re not busy fighting for our lives against Quincy, Soul Reapers, or each other.”

There was no deception in that. Adagio was being completely sincere. After sending Dumbbell and the boys out to Canterlot Cit, Adagio had been toying with the idea of visiting the living world to enjoy some honest to goodness RnR. The last thing she needed was for some Quincy jerk to try perforating her skull while she was enjoying a swim at the beach, or raiding a five star restaurant for some decent food.

There must have been a fairly strong note of honesty in Adagio’s voice, there, because Twilight gave her a look of open sympathy as she nodded, “You... haven’t been able to even eat normal food since becoming a Hollow have you? And there’s no sun here. It’s so empty and depressing in Hueco Mundo. Yeah, okay, I see what you mean.”

She paused a second longer, still hesitant, but ultimately Twilight gulped and said, “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll bring this to someone I think I can trust, who can make it happen if anyone can.”

Just who did Twilight know among the Quincy ranks? Adagio assumed Twilight was talking about her parents, which was whom Adagio figured Twilight would bring this to anyway. She’d surmised the pair were high ranking among the Quincy, maybe enough to make this plan work, assuming they didn’t freak out about the idea. Yet, Twilight seemed to be talking about someone else. But who?

Well, it didn’t matter, just as long as she did it.

“Still not big on this plan,” Ember said with a heated undertone, her eyes glaring with restrained bloodlust at Twilight, “This could go wrong in so many ways, Adagio. The Quincy could feed us false information, for one. Oh, yeah, sure that city is safe, no Quincy there. Then BAM, second you show up in town to relax and poach goods off the locals you get a Quincy death squad on your ass. And let’s not even begin to get into what’ll happen to us if anyone else in Las Noches catches wind of this. Lord Tirek would be doing us a favor by just blasting us into oblivion with a Cero. If we’re not that lucky, he’ll hand us over to Chrysalis.”

“I’m willing to take the risk,” Adagio said, gripping one hand into a tight fist, “There’s only so much I can do by playing it safe. The benefits outweigh the risks in this instance. But if you want to back out-”

Ember held up a hand, “I’m already here helping you with that other thing, ain’t I? If I was going to turn on you Adagio I should’ve done it well before now. I’m in, I just... really wish I could kill a Quincy or two today, is all. I don’t like playing nice with any of them, even one you think you owe.”

Twilight looked at Ember with a mixture of open fear and a bit of sympathy, “If it helps, I really do want to find a way to stop this whole war. It’s why I joined the Quin-”

“I don’t care,” Ember said flatly, eyes boring into Twilight, “About you, or anyone else besides my family and the very small list of people I consider friends. One of which has already died today because of you and your people. Whatever deal Adagio works out with you I’m only going along with because she’s earned my trust. You haven’t. Far as I’m concerned, if I see you again after today, I’m going to kill you, deal or not. So just... hope we never see each other after this is done.”

“Diplomatic,” Adagio drawled, but shook her head at Ember’s look and turned to Twilight, “Its been a rough day for all of us. Let’s just be glad we’ve come to an accord. Now about that message.”

“Oh. Right, you did say something about that,” Twilight’s nerves were overridden by a look of curiosity, “What is it?”

“It’s for Sunset Shimmer and her friends. Once I drop you off in Canterlot City, you can find her easily enough I imagine. Just tell her...” Adagio paused a moment, thinking of her wording, then said, “Tell her; ‘Don’t even think of trying to rescue me.’.”

“Don’t try to rescue you?”

“Excellent listening comprehension. Yes, don’t try. I don’t need rescuing. I don’t need help. I don’t want her or any of that crew of misfits trying to break into Las Noches on some well meaning but quite pointless attempt at saving me,” Adagio said, and she placed a firm hand on her trident, stroking it slowly for emphasis, “It's far too late for something like that to matter. I’m a Hollow, a Vasto Lorde, and I mean to make myself an Espada.”

Confusion and a fair bit of sadness, which Adagio didn’t really expect to see, played over Twilight’s face. “But why? If you could leave, and go back to your old life, why would you choose to stay here?”

“I don’t expect you to understand,” Adagio said, “And you don’t have to. Just deliver the message.”

Twilight was silent for a moment, searching Adagio’s eyes for a moment before she gave a resigned nod, “Okay.”

“Good, now with that settled, I believe we’re getting close to our destination.”

Adagio had been paying close attention to where she’d been directing the bubble. Her sonar-like sense of the water tunnels provided her with a near complete map of the passages into Las Noches, and they were nearing a tunnel that would lead into the outer wall structure not far from where she had claimed her territory. She could drop off Twilight there, and let the girl hide out in her rooms until the battle was done with. The chances of anyone discovering Twilight there was nearly zero, given even Dumbbell and the boys knew better than to actually go into Adagio’s room, and it was unlikely they’d finish their mission before the overall battle was over anyway. It was the safest place to stash Twilight, far as Adagio figured. She’d considered taking her to Lament’s tower, but had ultimately decided against it. She trusted that Di Roy and Gaw wouldn’t say anything, and it wasn’t likely Roka would either... but she didn’t want Twilight knowing about Fenice. That’d raise too many questions that even Adagio wasn’t sure how to answer, and until she decided how to use her knowledge of Fenice’s existence to her best advantage she didn’t want Sunset Shimmer knowing about her human counterpart.

That aside, Twilight’s question of why Adagio wouldn’t want Sunset and the others to try rescuing her lodged in the back of her mind, but Adagio didn’t let it bother her any more than a pebble in one’s shoe. She’d already thought the notion over several times, and there were too many reasons for her to stay at Las Noches. For one, Grogar had to die. She’d never leave Hueco Mundo until she was certain she was rid of that bastard. After that, she had grander ambitions. She couldn’t very well have Sunset and those girls upsetting those plans with a premature rescue operation.

Later on, when the time was right, perhaps Sunset Shimmer and that team of oddballs would prove useful, but not until Adagio had finished establishing her power here in Las Noches.

Assuming she survived today...

----------

It had been some time since someone had been able to crater Torch into a wall. He took a moment to savor the unfamiliar sensation of pain before he peeled himself off the dented stone wall of Las Noches. With a cocksure grin he rubbed the aching back of his head with his free hand and chuckled as he eyed Shining Armor.

“Rung my bell a bit there. Guess that shiny transformation isn’t just for show.”

Cracking his neck, he swung his axe around and hefted it over his shoulder like a fireman prepping to chop through a door. “Still gonna need to hit me a lot harder to put me down, boy!”

Muscles bulged around his arms, and his axe ignited with a sanguine glow of blood red flame. Then with enough strength to break the sound barrier in a wide shockwave he threw the axe like a blazing tomahawk. It carved a straight path towards Shining Armor, its flames of purest red roaring higher until the spinning axe looked like a incoming comet.

Shining Armor gestured in front of him, panning his hand in a swift arc. Reishi particles broke down from the sands of Hueco Mundo below, and flowed up in silver blue streams into his five wings. The particles then reformed in darts of white light, shaping into a thick half dome barrier formed of hundreds of small, interlocked hexagon shields. This process took all of half a second, just in time to intercept Torch’s axe.

The huge, brutish weapon, surrounded by its destructive aura of Hollow fire, struck Shining Armor’s barrier like a combination between a out of control airliner and a chunk of volcanic rock. Even through his shield Shining Armor could feel the heat and impact, but it didn’t distract him from noticing that as the axe spun like a saw and tried to grind through his barrier there was also a dark blur of motion to the side.

Torch, using Sonido, slipped behind Shining Armor, his mouth grinning still as red flame poured from between his white teeth. Shining could feel the build up of reiatsu, and reacted by crossing his wings behind himself to act as another barrier just before Torch threw his head forward and fired a point blank Cero blast, one that was laced with swirling crimson fire.

The wings on a Vollstandig were among its most durable parts, and Shining Armor’s were extraordinarily tough even by those standards. Still, a full power Cero beam, at that range, fired by an Arrancar as powerful as Torch, was not something to laugh at. As Shining Armor’s barrier still held off Torch’s spinning axe, his wings took the brunt of the Cero, but they couldn’t shield Shining Armor entirely. His back still got scorched by the raw heat and power of the Cero, even as it was split apart into multiple streams of energy as it was parted by his wings. Pain shot through Shining Armor and he grit his teeth to keep from crying out as he focused and raised his bow to fire straight up.

The arrow he fired burst only a few meters in the air above him, its reishi particles shaping into a series of rod-like barriers that fell back down like precisely aimed rain. The hexagon barrier rods smashed into the axe, knocking the weapon aside. Another cluster of rods hit Torch, smashing into his body like high speed javelins of rebar. None of the rods penetrated his insanely tough flesh, but they did drive him downward and interrupted the flow of his Cero, sparing Shining Armor a moment to recover. He used this to fly upward, turning to aim his bow down at Torch as he drew back another brilliant white arrow. The Bastion was not solely a defensive power. By forming barriers into shapes suitable of offense, Shining Armor had a versatile repertoire of attacks he could potentially unleash.

One such example was when he fired his arrow, it acted as a central catalyst for forming a barrier shaped like a pyramid the size of a whale, its pointed top aimed right for Torch’s chest. The Espada let out a rough laugh and with a gesture from his hand his axe came spinning of its own accord to Torch’s waiting grasp. With a mighty swing he brought the axe blade around to meet the pyramid-shaped barrier as it speared towards him. The two struck with seismic force, making the air tremble.

Torch held the pyramid at bay, but Shining Armor wasn’t done. He rapidly fired another arrow that shaped itself into a cylindrical barrier, like a giant hammer’s head, which rammed itself into the bottom of the pyramid and drove it hard into Torch like an over-sized railroad spike.

Sparks flew as the pointed head of the pyramid scrapped by Torch’s axe, jabbing itself into the Espada’s right shoulder. His supreme Herrio caused even his skin to erupt with sparks as the pyramid’s point bored into him. Shining Armor directed the cylindrical barrier around, intending to hit the pyramid again to try and break through Torch’s defenses. However a second later Torch managed to get a solid grip on the pyramid barrier with his free left hand. While the barrier’s energies burned Torch’s skin, this didn’t slow the Espada at all as he used his raw might to pry the pyramid out of his shoulder, leaving his first actual, bleeding wound of the fight. He then shoved the pyramid back, and proceeded to take his axe with both hands and raised it above his head. The axe flared with red light before Torch brought it down in a powerful stroke that hit the pyramid like a bunker busting missile striking an iceberg.

The pyramid cracked, the barrier’s energies shattering. Shining Armor still sent the cylindrical barrier flying at Torch, but the Espada swung his axe like a baseball bat and did to that what he’d just done to the pyramid. As shards of dissipating barriers fell around him like snow, Torch held his axe over his shoulder in a resting position and laughed up at Shining Armor.

“You’re not half shabby, boy! Here I thought I drew a short straw getting a whelp like you for an opponent, but you’re putting up a decent scrap so far. This sparkly, wannabe angel transformation is packing some punch. I like it! Now keep up the pace and don’t disappoint me!”

Torch literally started marching up into the air towards Shining Armor, like a floating terminator. He clearly wasn’t in any rush to end the fight, and was deliberately taking his time to advance upon Shining Armor, who couldn’t decide if the Espada was being overconfident or not. Torch clearly had power to spare.

Have to pin him down and immobilize him. He’s too strong to try and keep trading attacks with, even with the Bastion helping on defense. I need to take him out before he uses his Resurreccion.

Shining Armor was confident in the power of Vollstandig, but not arrogantly so. It was no great secret that in terms of raw power, the Espada were likely the strongest of the “elite” warriors fielded by the three factions of the spirit war, and it wasn’t hard to see why. The Espada were the ten most powerful Hollows in all of history, and it was a bloody history filled with an endless struggle of natural selection that ensured whoever held a place in their ranks were not there by accident. For the longest time the Sternritter only matched them by virtue of the Schifts granted by His Majesty, and their superior numbers. Rarely had a Sternritter fought an Espada one on one, the way Shining Armor was, and had an even chance of emerging the victor. Vollstandig improved those odds considerably, but considering this was the transformation’s first real test in battle it was up in the air whether it’d provide enough power to ensure a Sternritter could even the playing field, at least where the upper ranks of Espada were concerned.

Yet Shining Armor couldn’t afford to call in backup. He could sense his fellow Sternritter were almost one and all engaged with their own fights, and some of those fights were against Espada even stronger than Torch. He feared for Jet Set, Upper Crust, and Harshwhinny. He didn’t have time to see what was happening with their battle, but he could sense parts of it. Even with Vollstandig it felt like they were having trouble with that bizarre Espada named Lament.

Even if he was stuck fighting Torch by himself, Shining Armor wanted to end this fight as fast as possible to go help his comrades.

Which meant he couldn’t afford to hold anything back. With a deep, calming breath, he drew back on his bow once more, forming a gleaming arrow.

The rays of pearly luminescence that flowed from his arrow only grew brighter as Shining Armor fired it straight down towards Torch. Well before it struck Torch the arrow halted as if it had sunk into a solid surface, and it was soon joined by five more precisely fired arrows that hit locations at equal distances from Torch, forming the framework of a simple, three-dimensional diamond pattern. Blazing lines of light strung themselves between the six arrows, the space between them filling in with nearly opaque barriers of pure white energy. This effectively trapped Torch in a floating, diamond shaped barrier that took up the volume of a modest mansion.

He immediately followed this with more arrows, eight this time, that formed the key corners of a square shaped barrier that encapsulated the diamond barrier. And he wasn’t done then. The square barrier was then enclosed by a spherical barrier that formed from thirteen arrows fired in a pattern that matched the positioning of the Ursa Major constellation. Sphere, square, diamond, all layered one upon the other.

Shining Armor’s five wings flared with a corona of white light, absorbing reishi from all around him in a glittering tempest.

This was currently his strongest offensive technique, developed specifically with his Vollstandig in mind, since he’d lacked the power to pull it off properly when using it before the advent of Vollstandig’s development. Before today this technique had existed solely on paper. Shining Armor hadn’t even had a chance to properly test it, but now was as good a time as any.

Sweeping a hand towards his multi-layered barrier prison, Shining Armor’s eyes narrowed in concentration and he intoned, ”Ausfuhrungszelle.” (Execution Cell)

All five of his wings flared to a larger size as they started to exude a thick rain of reishi bolts that flew into the prison and were absorbed into the barriers. The energy from these bolts transformed into swiftly moving lines of light that gained momentum with every second as they passed along a complex series of geometric pathways across the outer barrier. This energy then turned into straight beams as they transferred from the sphere to the cube, causing waves of radiant light to flow over the cube before the energy flowed into the diamond. With each transfer the reishi particles gained more power, pulsing brighter and brighter.

Finally the energy absorbed into the innermost diamond barrier holding Torch, who had been watching the display with open curiosity as to what this technique was. Torch had tried breaking the innermost barrier with an axe swing, but these barriers were much stronger than the ones from before, formed from the lion’s share of Shining Armor’s might, the young Sternritter pulling out all the stops with this technique. Torch’s axe bounced off the diamond barrier with a spark of radiant white energy that burned Torch’s hand.

Now, with the power gathered to focal points at both the top and bottom of the diamond, the technique unleashed its deadly strength.

Almost all of Shining Armor’s barriers were designed to destroy Hollow energies, damaging Hollows that touched them. The Ausfuhrungszelle took this to the next level by creating a multi-layered enclosure that amplified reishi to generate a concentrated field of this Hollow burning power. It was akin to a giant, anti-Hollow microwave.

From the top and bottom of the diamond a twin blast of pulsating white energy was disgorged, bathing Torch like he was caught between two waterfalls. The raw, scouring reishi covered Torch, causing the massive mountain of a man to growl in pain as sparks of white energy and flaming blue reishi chewed at his body. Tough as his Heirro was, this wasn’t the kind of direct physical attack that the hardened skin was ideal for defending against. The bath of destructive reishi particles tore at him on a more fundamental level, and it was proving effective.

Burns, like angry welts, started to appear on Torch’s skin. Within seconds he was starting to look like someone who’d been out in the sun too long, parts of his skin blistering from the continuous barrage of anti-Hollow energy.

And Shining Armor didn’t let up, sweat beading his forehead as he pushed out more of his power, wings continuing to let out a stream of reishi bolts that flew into the barriers to keep the pressure on. He had to destroy Torch before the Espada broke free. If he could just keep this up for a minute longer...

“Heh...”

Even with his teeth clenched tightly in pain, Torch’s laugh still reached Shining Armor as the Espada’s voice grew from a half grunted snort into a full bellied roar of laughter. “HehehahahaHAHAHA!”

There was a dangerous light in Torch’s eyes, like the stirring glow of an awakening volcano on the verge of eruption. Even as his body bore the brunt of the blistering damage being done to it by Shining Armor’s attack, the towering muscle man raised his axe and grinned with pleasure.

“Alright, boy, you’ve shown more than enough worth. Enough that I oughta stop calling you ‘boy’ and acknowledge you as a man worthy of being called a warrior. So, warrior, I’ll acknowledge you in the best way I know how...”

Torch’s whole body and his axe lit up with a deep, sanguine glow, a ruby wreath of energy engulfing him. The steel of his axe became so heated it looked like a shard of molten metal, steam wafting from its edges.

”Ravage; Guerra.” (War)

There was a single bloody spark of light, then a flash followed by a cacophonous detonation. Shining Armor’s prison was obliterated under the explosive outpouring of power, a shockwave throwing up a sea of sand and coiling up into the sky like a mushroom cloud. Indeed to Shining Armor it looked as if someone had all but dropped a small, tactical nuke on the battlefield, Quincy soldiers and Arrancar alike still locked in combat across the desert being thrown off their feet by the shockwave released by Torch activating his Zanpaktou.

As the wall of sand that had been thrown hundreds of meters into the air began to settle, Torch emerged from the billowing shroud of dust, a titan reborn.

He was unmistakably larger than his already massive previous form had been, standing now easily twenty meters tall. His thick, powerfully muscled body was covered in large, bony scales, like a phalanx of interlocked shields. Sharp spines protruded from these scales, giving each one a jagged look, as if mere contact with Torch’s hide could rip and tear a foe. A draconic mask filled with gleaming fangs covered a broad face bearing two gigantic, curled horns and a spiked crest, and a prominent and sharp horn rose from the tip of the mask’s snout. A long, thick tail was covered in more barbed scales, ending in a mace-like protrusion of gnarled bone. Reverse jointed legs led to large, saurian claws, the powerful muscles shaking the ground with each step. Torch’s goliath-like chest sported not two, but four arms with olympian muscle build, ending in meaty claws as large as pickup trucks. Each clawed hand bore a different weapon. The upper right hand carried a larger, more heavily curved version of Torch’s original axe. The upper left bore a long, dark spear with a barbed tip. In the lower left hand was a nordic style broadsword, long as a semi-truck trailer. Finally the lower right hand gripped a spiked flail, the ball dangling from chains as big as horses and thick as barrels.

Torch stood there for a second, as if to give those looking upon him a proper moment to tremble, before sucking in a deep breath and letting out a titanic roar that would’ve made a tyrannosaurus rex sound like a mewling kitten by comparison. Alongside the roar came a heavy weight of spiritual pressure that hammered on Shining Armor, making him feel like his bones were rattling down to the marrow.

Well, at least I know he doesn’t have any more transformations beyond this. Not that that’s going to keep me from getting my butt kicked in the next couple of minutes. Shining Armor thought with a sort of cynical inner humor.

He wasn’t counting himself out of the fight. Torch was disgustingly powerful, if his reiatsu was anything to judge by, but he wasn’t so far ahead of Shining Armor that he couldn’t make a fight of it. Still, he didn’t have anything stronger than his Ausfuhrungszelle to use, and Torch wouldn’t get caught by that move twice. If Shining was going to have a chance, he’d have to find a chink in Torch’s armor, some weakness he could exploit.

After roaring, Torch fixed Shining Armor with a hot blooded gaze, and Shining Armor prepared to defend himself.

“You held up pretty good against Lord Tirek’s Cero,” Torch said in a voice that was now loud as a brass orchestra, “Do me a favor and let me know how well mine stacks up to the Primera’s, will ya? Been awhile since I’ve cut loose.”

“Ahh crap...” Shining Armor muttered as he sensed the insane power build up from within Torch, the Espada opening his draconic maw where a deep, hellish light bled up form his throat.

Shining Armor immediately created a multi-layered barrier in front of him, firing multiple arrows to create several stacked domes. He’d expected a Cero discharge from Torch, perhaps something of similar style to the humongous beam that Tirek had unleashed. Instead what he saw was Torch expel a inferno blast of dark crimson fire, but not at Shining Armor. The flames of bloody red fire were instead aimed at Torch’s spear. The Espada bathed his massive spear in the river of red fire, and the weapon almost instantly started to turn a solid, pulsing red as its metal was heated. Rather than melt, it looked to Shining Armor like the spear drank in the fire, pulsing with a heartbeat throb of power, gleaming rays of blood light flowing across its surface.

What is he doing? Shining Armor wondered, while Torch just grinned and raised his spear, which now shone an almost solid, bright red with the energy contained inside.

”Cero Fragua” (Cero Forge)

Torch flew upwards, his huge bulk still able to move with the blinding speed of a Sonido. Appearing in front of Shining Armor, Torch rammed his spear straight into the barriers Shining Armor had created. The blazing spear tip penetrated into the multi-layered shields of reishi, and would have been stopped by the Bastion’s power, despite Torch’s boosted physical strength. However just a second after the spear broke part way through the shields, the Cero energy contained inside the spear was released.

Shining Armor had to throw himself back from the giant donation of power that cracked his remaining shields and filled the air with a twisting sphere of explosive Cero energy. Even moving with a full speed Hirenkyaku, Shining Armor still felt a concussive force slam him backwards, almost knocking him senseless. He barely had a second to recover before Torch advanced on him in a whirl of weapons. His four burly arms worked in tandem, and each individual weapon came at Shining Armor in a storm of thrusts, slashes, and crushing blows.

For a few moments it was all Shining Armor could do to just defend himself. Every narrow miss still caused pain from the shockwaves generated by the raw strength of Torch’s blows. Quickly formed barriers kept him from taking direct hits, but the barriers were broken like panes of glass from single blows. Worse, each weapon struck at different ranges, with the spear and flail making it hard to get any distance due to their reach, but the axe and sword making it exceedingly dangerous to stay at close range.

Shining Armor had to resort to allowing himself to take the brunt of a flail strike, softening the blow with a barrier but still getting knocked aside hard by the flail’s spiked head, just so he could put a few dozen meters between himself and Torch. Now bleeding from a wound on his scalp, Shining Armor turned and fired a barrage of several scores worth of barrier rods, each one blasting towards Torch as fast as cruise missiles.

Torch took the blows like an ice breaker surging through the arctic waters, each barrier rod impacting with his thick, scaled hide and either breaking or bouncing off with seemingly little damage. Shining Armor grit his teeth in frustration, but not surprise. He figured that since Torch’s Hierro was the strongest of the Espada’s, that his defensive power was skyrocketed to new heights with the unleashing of the Arrancar’s Resurreccion. Those scales covering Torch were so saturated by the Espada’s massive reiatsu that they were essentially the ultimate defense. Shining Armor wasn’t going to be able to penetrate them, no matter what attack he threw.

Which means instead of trying to break through them I need to find a way to bypass them altogether, he thought, but he had precious little time to formulate a strategy as Torch breathed more fire upon his weapons, this time crossing all four of them in front of his mouth. The storm of ruby flames got all the weapon glowing solid red. Torch spun the flail, so fast its glow created a bright circle of light in the air before he hurled it towards Shining Armor. The chain extended, letting the gleaming flail head extend all the way towards Shining in a split second.

Hurting to the side, Shining Armor just barely dodged, but was caught by surprise when the Cero energy detonated anyway, apparently able to explode out simply by Torch’s will. So the flail head essentially became a bomb, an explosion of energy buffeting Shining Armor and sending him flying into Las Noches’ wall, ironically not far from where he’d slammed Torch not so long ago.

“Ugh... not looking good, Shining, get it together,” he told himself, shaking his head to clear the ringing and fog the impact had created. He did so just in time to see the spear coming like a red thunderbolt, and he threw himself downward, all but running along the wall. The spear impacted above him and blew out a massive chunk of Las Noches’ wall, sending multi-ton chunks of rock flying outward and raining upon the ground. Shining Armor dodged several of these rock chunks, some of them the size of large trucks, and he used one to spring off and fly across the desert, skimming the sands as he spotted Torch and took aim with his bow.

Concentrating on the reishi of the sands around him, his wings shone with bright light as multiple rivers of spirit particles broke down around him and he gathered the power in order to form a barrage of seven pyramid barriers, even larger than the one he created before. It took nearly all his focus to gather the power as fast as he could and shape the seven huge, pointed constructs, the Bastion’s power being the only thing making it possible to form these strong, complex barriers within a handful of seconds. He fired them, six in a circle around a seventh one in the middle, and sent the pyramids hurtling towards Torch.

Torch recalled his spear with an outstretched hand and flew down towards Shining Armor and his barrage of pyramid barriers. The still glowing sword and axe swung down, and Shining Armor’s pyramids were met with twin explosions of destructive Cero power, filling the sky with a blanket of red energy. Torch sailed through the explosion, having ripped through four of the seven pyramids. The remaining three struck him, hammering at his scales. For a second Shining Armor felt a surge of accomplishment as he saw one or two scales break free, but with a twist of frustration on his face he saw that beneath those broken scales was another layer of scales.

Now Torch unleashed his fire upon Shining Armor directly, mouth vomiting a waterfall of scarlet destruction. Shining Armor formed a dome shaped barrier around him to deflect the flames, but these weren’t really normal flames, but the raw power of a Cero distilled into a form that happened to look like fire. That meant they didn’t just burn, but hit with great impact, and continued to push in on Shining Armor’s barrier as long as Torch disgorged the flames. This effectively kept Shining Armor pinned down until Torch landed, crashing feet first upon the barrier. The barrier still held, but Torch brought all four of his weapons down at once, breaking the barrier like a dinner plate.

Shining Armor narrowly avoided getting crushed by those weapons, but still took a taloned kick to the gut as Torch lashed out with a foot. Skidding backwards, Shining Armor used his bow to grind himself to a halt, and sank to one knee, breathing hard.

“You done? I hope not. You’re one of the toughest I’ve gone up against in awhile. I don’t want this to be over too quick,” Torch said, breathing fire upon his axe this time, lighting it up like a blazing beacon.

Shining Armor rose back to his feet, wiping blood from his face, and stood tall. He wasn’t about to give up just because he was in a pinch. If nothing else he was keeping Torch occupied, and while he was wounded he wasn’t running out of spiritual energy any time soon. Vollstandig was a tiring transformation, but Shining Armor’s reserves of power, and the amount of reishi he could draw upon from the Hueco Mundo desert around him, ensured he could endure Torch’s assault for awhile.

Son, we have a problem.

His father’s voice almost startled Shining Armor, but not so much that he wasn’t able to dodge Torch as the Espada swung his Cero-charged axe, detonating a fifty meter wide crater in the desert as Shining Armor zipped away, firing arrows in a thick hail at Torch’s face, more to irritate his foe than any hope of hitting a soft spot like an eye.

Dad? What’s happened? Shining Armor asked, alarmed by the dire note in his father’s mental voice.

Rather than hear his father respond through the mental link of the Command, Shining Armor instead saw a flicker of movement above him. Torch, who had started to give chase after Shining Armor, instead found himself halted by a massive spear sized reishi arrow that struck him squarely in the chest. While the powerful arrow didn’t manage to punch through Torch’s scales, it still halted the Espada in his tracks, and even drove him back a step.

Shining Armor knew those arrows well, his father having always focused on perfecting the basics of the Quincy techniques rather than relying on complex tricks. There was no special power to Night Light’s arrows, they were simply the result of taking the basic reishi arrow to a near perfect level of construction so that even one of them packed the power of dozens of lesser arrows combined.

“It’s Twilight,” Night Light said, landing next to Shining Armor with a dour, hard look casting his features in stone, “She’s been taken.”

Those few, simple words were enough to put more fear and distress coursing through Shining Armor’s veins like a winter breeze than facing off one on one with a full power Espada had.

“Taken!? What do you mean taken!?”

Night Light’s grim look flinched, “I was careless. Too busy orchestrating the battle to see what happened until Cinch reported to me. A Hollow took her. She’s alive, but I can’t sense where she is, other than she was taken beneath that lake.”

Shining Armor turned southeast, ready to abandon everything to go after his sister, but his father laid a wire hard hand on his shoulder.

“Wait.”

“No! If Twily’s in trouble, I’m going after her!”

“And leave this-” Night Light nodded towards Torch, who was brushing off his chest and giving the pair of Sternritter a grumpy look, “-unfinished? No, we must defeat this one first before we can chase your sister. That’s why I’m here. Between us we can end this quickly, then proceed to find Twilight.”

Shining Armor felt a mix of cold rage and heated denial form into a tight ball in his gut, held back only but the steel hard logic and duty that spoke in his mind, no matter what his heart struggled to go do. His father was right. They couldn’t leave Torch in his Resurreccion state to wreak havoc on the battlefield. They had to defeat him first, before mounting any attempt to go rescue his sister. Shining Armor hated that fact, but it made it no less true.

“Yes, father,” he said dutifully, but there was a hard edge to his voice.

“Well, can’t say I like getting sucker punched, but I’m always willing to let more people join in the sport,” Torch said, rolling his shoulders, “The more the merrier, eh?”

Night Light and Shining Armor both regarded the Espada heatedly, the pair forming up in ready combat stances. Torch cracked his neck, his eyes ponderous as he regarded the two silent Sternritter.

“You blokes need to learn to loosen up. I got my own daughter fighting out here and you don’t hear me moaning and groaning in worry over her. She’s a tough gal who can take care of herself. What, you got no confidence in your own daughter’s ability to survive? Don’t you know a father’s supposed to give their kid room to grow?”

“You’ll understand if I don’t take any parental advice form a soul eating monstrosity,” Night Light said, raising his bow, “Shining Armor, follow my lead.”

“Yes father,” Shining Armor said, and the two moved as one, leaping into the fray as Torch chuckled darkly and charged to meet them.

----------

To Lament the constant, unending sensation of the battlefield was dulled to a narrow tunnel of gray. The thickly layered staccato of roaring explosions, sharp screams of the wounded or dying, and an undulating sea of numerous other noises might as well have been little more than static white noise. Even his spiritual senses, capable of feeling every movement of the other Espada, and picking out the individual Sternritter moving against them, along with the shifting sensation of hundreds of other combatants, didn’t do more than garner passing notice from him.

Part of that was because Lament just didn’t consider any of that information relevant to himself. Any or all of his fellow Espada could die and Lament would feel nothing about it. The only reason he cared about this battle at all was the knowledge that the Quincy had to be defeated in order to ensure his family’s safety.

The other part was that he knew that strange Sternritter, Harshwhinny, was affecting him with an ability that was dulling his emotions. He knew this because the ocean of painful regret that defined his being felt like it had a insulating layer between it and Lament’s consciousness, like a thin sheet of plastic wrap over a rotted apple pie. It left him off balance, but also in a way, more focused. He hadn’t intended to do more than was necessary to drive his opponents off, but now that he felt even less emotionally attached than normal, he saw no reason not to kill those in front of him. He didn’t hate the Quincy the way he hated his fellow Hollows, but they were a threat, and threats needed to be removed.

No different than exterminating vermin on the farm. He twitched. What farm? There wasn’t a farm. An orchard of dead trees on his tower, and his family in the tower. His children, who needed their father’s protection.

A stream of acid nearly splattered across his face if he hadn’t ducked aside at the last second, and his eyes slide casually towards Harshwhinny. His thoughts, fragmented as they were, were still able to track his three foes, even in their newly transformed state.

Harshwhinny had probably changed the most, her body covered in glowing tubes that gleamed with an inner churning light of intermixing blues and greens. She had two wings that looked as if they were forged out of a combination of luminous blue metal and clockwork, exposed gears turning between the long, bolted feathers. She wore a halo that was also vaguely gear shaped, slowly spinning in place above her brow. The multi-nozzled device on her right arm had now been mirrored by another one mounted on her left, and these had been responsible for discharging a constant jet stream of acidic liquid that had kept Lament busy dodging almost as much as the tendrils from Jet Set.

Jet Set himself had gained a pair of wings that were essentially like two large, thinned out tendrils that glowed with a golden aura around their otherwise blue coloring. These wings appeared to be able to spawn more than twice as many grasping and striking tentacles of reishi as the man had been producing before, and even his circular halo of light writhed with small tendrils that floated in the air as if he was underwater. Between Jet Set and Harshwhinny there were enough attacks coming at Lament that a literal fog was filling the air from just how much sand was being kicked up constantly.

Still, if it had just been those two Sternritter, even with these new transformation, Lament felt he wouldn’t have so much trouble. It was the third Sternritter, Upper Crust, who was tipping that balance.

”Urteilspfeil!” (Judgment Arrow)

A reishi arrow shaped like a large iron javelin topped by the five pointed Quincy cross landed next to him and instantly expanded a field of white energy that blanketed him before he could dodge. The field of energy caused no damage, but in a small flash of white light a brand in the shape of the Quincy cross appeared on his the flesh of his right arm to join another brand that had already been placed there by a similar arrow a few moments earlier.

He felt the brand take effect instantly as Upper Crusts voice speak imperiously from above.

“For your crime in injuring my darling husband, I, the Judicator, find you guilty! The sentence is pain!”

And pain lanced through Lament, stemming from the brand. He didn’t respond to this, not even with a grimace. He was used to pain, but it was an irritation. With the first brand she’d proclaimed something similar, citing his crime of ‘Being a Hollow’ and stating the punishment was locking away his Cero. Just to test it he’d tried firing a Cero at her right afterward, and found that there was a block of powerful reiatsu limiting his blasts. His own reiatsu was strong enough to push past the block but his Cero’s power was reduced by about half, he estimated. The fact that her next brand was inflicting raw pain on him suggested to Lament that Upper Crust realized she couldn’t limit his powers too much with her own, so the pain acted as a more indirect attack in hopes of distracting him.

Well she would be sorely disappointed if she thought mere pain would slow him down.

Even as Jet Set sent a dozen flashing gold and blue tendrils spearing for him and Harshwhinny unleashed multiple streams of melting acid at Lament’s other side, with the barest motion he sent himself soaring upwards, aiming right for Upper Crust.

Like the other two Sternritter, Upper Crust had transformed into that odd winged state. Her wings were strangely shaped, formed from a latticework of small beams of light that took a vague, bent wing shape around what appeared to be two flat, horizontal discs, one on either side of her. Lament had noticed that over the course of the fight the discs changed their positioning in complete disregard for how Upper Crust moved, one lower or raising in no pattern than he’d been able to figure out. Her ‘halo’ actually looked more like a shroud of glowing light blue cloth around her eyes, like a blindfold. Not that this seemed to impede her vision, because she saw Lament coming and let out a small yelp as she threw herself to the side at high speed, trying to avoid his blade.

To her credit she was faster in this form than she’d been before, and instead of getting her head cut off she instead got a deep cut across her shoulder that sprayed blood through the air. Strangely, the moment she got injured, the disc in her left wing went lower, and the disc on her right raised. Lament took note of that as he pressed his attack, swinging for Upper Crust’s neck again.

This time she blocked, bringing her ‘bow’ to bear. It’d changed shape to seem less like a bow and now had the shape of a broadsword with a white blade and hilt of blue energy. Yet the blade’s hilt also extended into a laurel shape that acted as the ‘bow’ of the weapon. As she barely managed to block his sword strike the laurel portion of the weapon flared and she leaped back, firing a stream of arrows from the tip of the sword. He deflected them with blurring parries of his long bladed katana, and would have rushed her again, but a cascade of tendrils flew up from below and nearly speared through Lament if he hadn’t flickered out of the way with Sonido.

“Get away from my wife you filthy Hollow!” Jet Set shouted as he soared up around to Lament’s side, a continuous swarm of tendrils expanding from his Vollstandig wings. These tendrils flowed around Lament in a complex web, hundreds of them surrounding him. Each tendril of the Kraken pointed inward at once, like being encased in an iron maiden, and they all stabbed in at lightning speed.

Lament dodged and parried in a blur of precise motions, his perceptions narrowed to laser focus. These new tendrils, empowered by the Vollstandig, were much harder to cut than before. Lament couldn’t easily sever them, but he could still knock them aside as they sought to pierce Lament’s body. He deflected dozens per second, his sword constantly ringing as he parried a stream of hundreds of striking tendrils. While he did so he noticed that Jet Set had left an opening in his wall of tendrils, one where Harshwhinny appeared with all of her acid throwers aimed. Instead of concentrated sprays, the nozzles now unleashed a rapid barrage of acid globs. These flying orbs exploded in bursts, filling the area with acid droplets.

Even with Lament’s speed, he was still stuck either choosing to evade the acid, or the tendrils. There just wasn’t room for both. So instead of bothering to dodge, he instead thrust a finger towards Harshwhinny. As he did so acid burned his skin, and several tendrils managed to pierce into his body, but Lament ignored that and fired a focused, emerald Cero at Harshwhinny.

Even at half power, his Cero was focused enough to force Harshwhinny to quickly evade, and even then the tight beam still managed to burn a painful chunk out of her side. Lament wasn’t done, either. He kept the beam going, whipping it around and pushing as much power as he could through the brand’s lock. The sickly green beam tore through the wall of tendrils around him like pruning shears, and Jet Set was caught off guard, left staring at the beam that cut towards him.

Upper Crust swooped in at the last second, yanking Jet Set aside before the beam could bisect him. Even so, the beam still grazed the two Sternritter, searing Upper Crust’s leg to blackened flesh and causing her to scream out in pain.

Jet Set also cried out, but in fear for his wife as he grabbed her and bore her to the ground, where she could barely stand on the hobbled leg.

Lament moved to take advantage of the situation, but something was starting to bother him. He didn’t understand what it was, but seeing Upper Crust and Jet Set trying to protect each other was causing a stir within him. The deep, dark well of intense regret that formed the core of his being was trembling. The only thing that seemed to be keeping the emotion at bay was Harshwhinny’s own ability, which kept the sensation to a dull, unpleasant throb. As Lament charged down at the two Sternritter, appearing before Jet Set and Upper Crust in a snap of Sonido, he had the strangest image in his head of a field of apple trees. He had a wavering sensation of deja vu, and heard the sound of a woman screaming in his head. But it wasn’t Upper Crust’s voice, but someone else. What was she screaming? Why did the sound fill him with even more anguish and uncertainty?

He pushed the feeling aside. It didn’t matter. He had a family to protect. Whatever strange feelings were being stirred up by seeing Jet Set and Upper Crust struggle against him was irrelevant compared to the lives of his children.

Even as Harshwhinny gave chase to him, firing streams of acid at him which forced Lament to flicker left and right with Sonido, he still advanced on Jet Set and Upper Crust.

Upper Crust, hobbling on her one good leg, stood to face him, but Jet Set grabbed her arm and said, “Upper Crust, fall back! You can’t fight with that leg.”

She threw off his arm, shaking her head, “If I leave, the Judicator will stop working.”

“It's not doing enough good anyway! Damn it, Upper, get out of here, while there’s still time!”

“I’m not leaving you!”

Hearing the two words, Lament felt another shaking feeling inside him, as if he’d heard a similar argument before.

”Run! Cider, get out of here!”

“I ain't leavin’ ya behind ya dang dolt!”

The voices in his head caused more pain than Upper Crust’s second brand did, like a spearing headache. Lament grunted, pushing past it as he doggedly advanced on the pair. He fired another Cero, this time back towards Harshwhinny, forcing the Sternritter to back off for a few seconds to avoid the deadly beam. This gave him an opening without having equally deadly acid being sprayed at him so he could focus upon Jet Set and Upper Crust.

Simple cold logic told him that Upper Crust needed to be eliminated first. He suspected her brands would vanish once she was dead, and he’d gain full use of his Cero again and lose the distracting pain. Even as he raised his katana horizontal next to him and raised his reiatsu to boost his strength, he felt a moment of hesitance, as if some part of him was fighting against what he was doing. He shoved the feeling down. His family had to be protected at all costs.

He burst forward with all the speed he could muster, his blade aimed straight for Upper Crust’s heart. She and her husband had still been distracted with their own argument, so Upper Crust didn’t see the strike coming fast enough.

But Jet Set did.

Upper Crust was shoved aside and it was Jet Set who got impaled rather than her, blood bursting out with the blade that stabbed out through his back. Crimson droplets of blood dripped upon the white sands, and Jet Set’s eyes wavered widely at the long blade gaping through his chest.

“JET!” Upper Crust screamed.

Jet Set, blood pouring out of his mouth now, gripped Lament’s sword and said, “Upper... run!”

He then used the last of his strength to unleash a swarm of point blank tendrils on Lament, piercing multiple parts of the Espada and shoving him back with a titanic impact through the desert. Lament tore his sword free as he was pushed back, ripping a wider gape in Jet Set’s chest, which caused the Sternritter to gasp, a blossom of blood spraying form his lips as he fell.

As Upper Crust shouted again in wordless cry and went to her husbands fallen side, Lament took stock of his own damage. He had numerous holes punctured through him, but unlike Jet Set, Lament’s wounds weren’t bleeding. Not even a single drop of red escaped the void-like, dark wounds.

“What... what is this?” Lament heard Harshwhinny whisper as she landed behind him, her acid throwers aimed at him but her eyes hesitant and curious as she stared at Lament’s perforated body.

Lament gave her a flat look, his voice carrying a hint of the growing unsteadiness inside him as he heard Upper Crust crying over her fallen husband.

“Of the Espada, my body is different. Deathless. I don’t regenerate as fast as others, but wounds mean little. Even if you punctured all of my organs, they simply don’t matter. Unlike yours, which bleed.”

He didn’t know why that was. It was true each Espada developed unique and powerful versions of regular Hollow abilities, like Torch’s near impregnable Hierro, but in Lament’s case he wasn’t certain if his own unusual body was the result of a similar effect or something else. All he knew was that no wound he ever suffered bled, nor did it seem like his lungs, or heart, or any other organs even functioned. The wounds would heal, slowly over time, but as far as Lament knew unless someone destroyed his body entirely he simply wouldn’t die.

A higher pitched scream from Upper Crust drew his attention, and he turned to see her cradling her husband. Jet Set’s head was limp, his eyes now sightless in death. His blood coated the ground and his wife, staining her white uniform red. The pain in her eyes was now matched only by a red hot rage as she stared at Lament.

“How dare you! You’ll pay! You’ll PAY!”

In some calm, rational back part of Lament’s mind he noted that her left wing’s disc was now tilted fully down and the right one tilted fully up, and both were pulsing with flares of white light. Upper Crust stood, setting her husband’s body gently aside, and aimed her sword/bow at him.

“For the crime of murdering my Jet Set, i find you guilty! The sentence is death!”

The two discs suddenly snapped to equilibrium, and a fresh iron javelin, this one blazing with pure white light, flew towards Lament with a sonic boom of speed. He raised his free hand and caught the arrow, stopping it with a concussive shock wave of force. Even so the energy field extended around it, and a third brand appeared, this time over his heart. He felt a cutting pain pass through his body, but in moments it was gone. It took him a second to realize that what Upper Crust had tried to do was halt his heartbeat with her unusual power of judgment.

But she’d been too busy mourning her husband to hear what he’d been telling Harshwhinny, who of course immediately knew what had happened.

“Upper Crust, it won’t work! His organs are already dead! We have to destroy his body!”

“What?” Upper Crust blinked in shock, stunned her power had failed her.

It would have been the perfect opportunity to take her head off.

Yet Lament didn’t do so. Instead his eyes flickered towards Jet Set’s body, and then at Upper Crust’s tear streaked, horrified face.

An image in his mind appeared of another woman’s face, similarly marred by tears, filled with familiar anguish. And regret swelled inside him, unbidden.

Harshwhinny saw Lament’s hesitance as well, and in her own cold, practical mind she added things together and came to a conclusion. She didn’t know why, but it was clear that something about seeing Upper Crust’s pain and Jet Set’s death was affecting the Espada. Harshwhinny didn’t care why this was, only that it was clear that Lament was feeling severely disturbed by his own actions. And she realized her own Schrift, the Uncaring, was actually limiting the impact of those emotions.

So she shut the power off.

The effect couldn’t have been more severe. For Lament it was like a tsunami of emotions, held back by a tide-wall, was suddenly unleashed on him. Feelings that had only been frustrating and distracting suddenly became a full blown wave of unimaginable pain and sorrow. Black regret swept through him, hammering his mind. He wasn’t prepared for it, and within seconds he was backing away from Upper Crust and Jet Set in horror, his eyes dilating as he stared at the bloody corpse in front of him. But he wasn’t really seeing what was in front of him now, he was seeing something else. An apple orchard, and the blood stained body of a beautiful, strong red skinned woman. He didn’t know her, and yet he did, and her death wracked his mind and made him feel an arctic cold in his chest.

In a matter of moments Lament, muttering incoherently, ripped open a Garganta and backed up into it. Upper Crust and Harshwhinny were too surprised by Lament’s sudden change of attitude to respond before the Garganta slammed closed, the Fourth Espada having retreated from the battlefield. Yet it could hardly be counted as a victory with Jet Set’s blood cooling into harsh Hueco Mundo sands...

Author's Notes:

Choosing which characters fight who can sometimes just be a factor of what I think will be most fun, sometimes its a matter of whoever is most convenient to use, but other times is very deliberate as was the case with Jet Set and Upper Crust fighting Lament. Ironically while two of the weakest Sternritter, they were the pair with the best chance of 'defeating' Lament. Not that they knew this, but hey, you can't help it if your opponent has... mental issues.

And Adagio is really tossing the dice with her plan with Twilight, but from her perspective she's got a lot to gain, and not as much to lose, given she's already neck deep in schemes involving Chrysalis anyway. Why not go for broke, especially if it might let her set up Grogar for a painful fall down the road?

Anywhos, hope you guys are enjoying the story, and as always thanks a bunch for reading. As per usual leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques if you have them. 'Till next time.

Episode 78: Immovable Objects

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Episode 78: Immovable Objects

Di Roy leaned over the edge of the tower’s roof, peering down at the pale form of Gaw resting on the ground below. Beside him several of the Arrancar orphan children giggled as they watched him start to hock back a prodigious loogie.

“The real trick, kids, is to make sure you really pull back and put your whole body into the launch,” he said around a massive wad of spit. Proceeding with his demonstration, he leaned back while still keeping his hands on the edge of the tower rampart, then threw himself forward with a loud “Patooie!”

The blob of phlegm went sailing like a slimy meteor through the air, trailing downward until it plopped into the distant sands below, only a few feet from Gaw’s muzzle. The sleeping Adjuchas let out a large, slumbering snort, unaware of the near miss. The Arrancar children who’d watched the descent let out a series of ‘Oooos’, and one of them, a rambunctious looking lad with brown hair, a scar across his nose, and a half portion of skull mask riding high on his scalp, raised a hand.

“Boss Roy! How many points for hitting Auntie Gaw?”

Di Roy stroked his chin, “Hmm, ten points for the body, twenty if you get her in the head! I’ll snag some loot from the human world for whoever gets the most points!”

Enthusiastically the children started to hock back loogies of their own, challenging each other for who would get the most points. Di Roy grinned at the display, hands on his hips as he watched the growing delinquents with pride.

“I like your attitudes, kiddos. Now, ready... aim...”

Before he could say ‘fire’ and let the children cut loose there was a loud and coldly polite clearing of a feminine throat behind him. The kids all froze, several swallowing unshot loogies, and Di Roy broke out in a sweat as he turned to see Roka standing behind him, near one of the withered apple trees spotting the tower rooftop.

Roka was smiling politely, but it held that distinct note of ‘potential imminent stabbing’ to it as she said, “Di Roy, are you teaching the children inappropriate behavior?”

In complete unaware mimicry of a certain actor’s famous bad line, Di Roy said, “Whaaat? Nooo.” He glanced back at the half dozen children who all looked like deer caught in the proverbial headlights, “I was just... uh, about to tell them not to hock loogies at poor Gaw. You know, because that would be rude while she’s sleeping...” And totally hilarious, he thought as an aside, but kept that to himself.

“Ummhmm,” Roka glanced at the kids, her smile softening, “Now children, you know you’re not supposed to play around the roof. You don’t want to worry Father, do you?”

There was a collective chorus of “No, sister Roka.”

Her smile now truly warm, Roka said, “Good. Now run along downstairs and play with your brothers and sisters. Fenice is getting lunch ready. You can play more with Mister Di Roy later.”

Obediently the children ran off downstairs, many of them just as enthusiastic about lunch as they were about spitting loogies off the tower roof. Di Roy watched them go with an amused grin, one that only faltered a bit as Roka gave him the stink eye.

“Hey, they’re not bad, for a bunch of half-pints. Can’t blame me for wanting to have a bit of fun with them.”

Roka nodded, slowly walking up to stand beside him at the tower edge, “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t instill in them any bad manners. Do remember you and Miss Gaw are guests here, and that my Father would not appreciate any poor habits his children picked up due to any untoward influences.”

Di Roy rubbed at his neck, “Yeah, fair point. I do like having my head attached to the rest of my body. Still, how are they going to learn to be proper Arrancar if they can’t stretch their legs and be a little bad? Let those little monstrous tendencies run wild.”

“I do believe it is my Father’s intent that they do not grow up to be like ‘proper’ Arrancar,” Roka said, placing her hands on the ramparts and staring out across Las Noches’ vast interior, “He wishes for us to have a better existence than what our nature and circumstances dictate.”

Di Roy shrugged, “He can intend away. We are what we are, you know? We eat souls and kick ass. That’s just the Hollow way.”

“And yet it is not all we need be,” Roka replied, turning a curious stare towards him, “After all, do you not care for your large, silent companion?”

Blinking, Di Roy glanced over the edge, “Gaw? Well, yeah, sure, I dig the dino-gal’s style. We’ve looked out for each other. We give each other crap all the time, but I’d still be bummed out if she bit the big one. What of it?”

Roka raised a hand and touched his chest, right above his Hollow hole. Di Roy flinched at the touch, but there was no hostility in Roka’s stance or eyes, just a sort of soft, sad look of thoughtfulness. “We are souls with holes torn out of us. ‘Hollow’, as they say. But even that void within struggles to remember the things that made us human while we were alive. They’re not gone, only... damaged.”

“Okay, getting a bit existential here for my taste,” Di Roy said, stepping back, frowning behind his shark mask, “I ain’t trying to make some philosophical hullabaloo about Hollows, Roka. Just saying that being soul devouring, violent monsters is kinda our ballpark. Playing Brady Bunch in this tower won’t change that. Those kids are gonna grow up, eventually, and have to deal with the asshole Espadas and their cronies, and the fact that they won’t have anyone to rely on but themselves and maybe each other. So if I want to encourage a bit of independent thinking by having them spit off a freakin’ tower, I think I’m doing them a favor.”

There was the smallest of laughs from Roka as she raised a hand to her mouth, smiling, and Di Roy tilted his head at her.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, nothing. You’re an unusual individual, Mister Di Roy. I appreciate that you are looking out for the children. You do seem to be quite good with them. A fortunate, and altogether uncommon quality.”

“Uhhhh...okay?” Di Roy said, not quite understanding, but glad at least she’d gone from ‘stab face’ to quiet laughter. Honestly he found Roka weirdly unnerving, and wasn’t sure she didn’t have some of Lament’s loopiness about her. He understood Gaw way better, and she didn’t even speak.

Roka’s expression turned more serious a moment later, her eyes glancing towards the south, where even here it was possible to feel the faint blanket of spiritual pressures from the battle taking place outside. “We should go back inside.”

Di Roy shared her trepidation. He was almost glad he’d gotten a horrific stomach wound. It gave him the perfect excuse to not be involved in any of that craziness. He was relieved Gaw wasn’t out there either. Adagio... well, Adagio he wasn’t too worried about. The boss lady wasn’t the kind of person to be taken out that easily, and Di Roy knew a survivor when he saw one. He had a sneaking suspicion that Adagio would outlive all of them.

Blowing off Roka’s worries with a wave of his hand, he said, “Aw, don’t sweat it. That fight’ll be over before you know it, and the Quincy will be heading back to the human world with their sorry asses sore from all the boots being shoved up-”

The doors on the tower’s ground floor exploded, the massive iron slabs blasted right off their hinges in a burst of blue reishi. The entire tower was rocked by the explosion, and Di Roy was nearly shaken off his feet, but caught himself on the rampart and looked over the edge just in time to see someone rushing inside the tower. He couldn’t see who they were, only that they were wearing white. Which meant nothing, given Arrancar and Quincy alike wore white, but since Di Roy didn’t sense any Hollow reiatsu, that left only one other option.

“Quincy,” he swore under his breath, “How the hell did they get inside!?”

Roka’s eyes were wide, “The children!”

She turned and rushed for the hatchway that’d lead down into the tower, and after taking a second to spit out another curse, Di Roy drew his sword and followed her.

----------

Twilight Velvet wasn’t interested in wasting time. Every second spent here was a second that Cadence and Sassy would be left one member short, and with two Espada to potentially deal with they couldn’t afford to have their team split up for long. Fortunately she didn’t sense any especially potent reiatsus within the tower. The Adjuchas that was sleeping outside wasn’t even worth the trouble to kill, so Velvet had just blown off the doors and rushed inside.

The plan was to find the human souls, wiping out any Hollow that got in her way, and lead them to safety. If all went smoothly, it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes.

Entering the tower’s ground floor, Velvet took in her surroundings in a moment. A circular entry hall lined by stone columns, stairs carved into the wall leading up to a doorway, and a few shadowed side doors. Everything was as plain and bleak as she might have expected from a Hollow’s abode. She didn’t take more than a second to look around before leaping up to the door at the top of the stairs. She sensed the human souls further above, and wasn’t about to slow down to search every room of this tower.

She kicked open the doors easily enough, finding a winding stairwell circling upward. She saw more doors dotting the stairwell’s expanse, and took a moment to focus her senses to divine the locations of the reiatsu she was sensing. There was a large cluster of Hollow spiritual pressures about a third of the way up, with a pair of stronger pressures near the top of the tower. The human spirit energies were in-between, around halfway up the tower. Twilight rushed upward at full speed, propelling herself up the tower in an eye-blink.

She reached the doorway situated halfway up the tower just as it opened, a figure appearing at the landing of the stairs with a truly massive sword in hand.

Twilight Velvet had her arbalest aimed and ready, but froze as she recognized the face of the person in front of her.

“You!?”

Her exclamation came right on the heels of Sunset Shimmer, wielding a broad bladed sword as tall as her own body, attacked with a powerful overhand swing and a look of bright fury in her eyes. Even shocked as she was to see the girl who’d become her daughter's friend here, Twilight Velvet’s combat instincts and reflexes were more than swift enough for her to turn her arbalest around to block the blow. Her weapon, forged from powerful reishi and reinforced with her own spirit energy was more than up to the task of absorbing the blow, but because she wasn’t fully braced for it the strength and momentum of the strike still drove her down the open shaft in the middle of the tower.

She caught herself about twenty feet from the bottom, halting in mid air as she looked back up at Sunset Shimmer, still trying to shake off her surprise. What was Sunset Shimmer doing here!? Had the foolish girl’s own battles with the Hollows led to her capture? It wouldn’t be that shocking to Velvet if that had been the case. The last time she’d seen Sunset, the girl and her friends had been intending to come to Hueco Mundo on some ill advised rescue mission. That must have gone wrong, and led to her capture.

Yet, if that was the case how was it that Sunset Shimmer was clearly free of any bonds, and armed? In fact why was she attacking Twilight Velvet at all? To further compound the mystery, the sword Sunset was holding was not a Zanpaktou. Velvet knew what the spirit energy of a Zanpaktou felt like, and that sword wasn’t one. In fact, the reiatsu of Sunset Shimmer felt quite different than the last time Velvet had seen her. Still human, but with a faintly Hollow tinge.

Has she somehow been turned to the Hollows’ side?

Whatever the truth was, Velvet didn’t have much time to consider it as Sunset Shimmer strode to the edge of the stair landing and leaped straight off, dive bombing towards Velvet with her giant blade swinging up with both hands then crashing downward. As this happened the sword spewed forth steam and heat, glowing orange veins of magma spreading over its surface. Not inclined to just sit on the defensive this time, Velvet set her face in a cold frown and aimed her arbalest up.

Very well, if you want to attack me blindly, Sunset Shimmer, you won’t find me an easy target.

She could save her questions until after she defeated the girl. At this point she had every intention of capturing Sunset Shimmer and dragging her back to the Silburn for interrogation. if Sunset had switched sides, she might have valuable intel. Besides, she could hardly let a human traitor walk free, especially one that had nearly dragged Velvet’s own daughter into a suicide mission.

A sphere of reishi fired out of her arbalest cannon muzzle and rocketed up towards Sunset. The girl barely had time to adjust the angle of her blade in order to block it, but even then the sphere halted Sunset’s descent and then it exploded in a shower of reishi arrows. Sunset’s body took several wounds from the shrapnel arrows, which flew all over the tower shaft. The explosion also slammed Sunset into the wall, where she almost fell but instead managed to right herself and land on the stairwell, where she pulled an arrow free from her leg and stood with an angered glare.

“I don’t know who you are, but I’m booting your ass straight back out the door!” Sunset shouted, extending her sword out. Magma grew from the blade’s edge and pooled at its tip.

Velvet paused, frowning in confusion. Did Sunset not recognize her? They hadn’t exactly exchanged much in the way of words, but she doubted Sunset could have so quickly forgotten what Velvet looked like. If that wasn’t confusing enough, she soon heard something she never expected to hear in Hueco Mundo, let alone within the walls of Las Noches; the voices of children.

“Hey! Big Sis Fenice is fighting somebody!”

“Whoa! Awesome! Go Big Sis, kick her butt!”

“Wow, is that a Quincy? I’ve never seen one before. She’s got a scary face.”

Back on the landing for the door that was halfway up the tower a number of young faces peered over the side, a gaggle of children who looked like they could be anywhere from six to twelve watching the battle unfold with wide eyes. What was even more unexpected was the fact that many of these children had partial skull pieces or other bone fragments on their faces that were the tell tale traits of Arrancar.

Arrancar... children?

She nearly froze at the sight. Of course the Quincy had, over the centuries, made a study of their most hated foes. Hollows of all stages of evolution had been captured and dissected in Quincy labs for the sake of garnering greater knowledge of how to better combat them. So it was not unknown to the Quincy that the Arrancar, who possessed the most human-like traits among Hollows, were theoretically capable of producing offspring in the same manner more normal souls could. However while they knew it was possible, there’d never been an actual encounter with an Arrancar child. It was generally assumed what few, unfortunate progeny were produced in Las Noches rarely lived long in the cut throat society of the Hollows, and certainly never left the fortress unless they grew to adulthood.

As such it was shocking enough to see just one Arrancar child, let alone a whole pack of them, seemingly in good care, and excitedly spectating the battle. If Twilight Velvet wasn’t as experienced and well trained as she was her moment of distraction would have left her vulnerable as Fenice unleashed a blast of spreading magma towards her. Fortunately Velvet shook off her surprise in a mere moment and dodged aside, hitting the wall and running up it in long strides as the magma splashed down behind her.

Now that she was getting over her initial shock of both seeing Sunset Shimmer and the Arrancar children here, Velvet was tapping into more of her power and used a much faster Hirenkyaku than before to rocket up the tower shaft and appear behind Sunset. She grabbed Sunset by the back of the head before the girl could react, and proceeded to spin Sunset around and slammed her face-first into the tower wall. Sunset managed to keep hold of her magma coated blade, and despite being shoved headlong into a stone wall, she swung back with the giant sword and forced Velvet to evade. She flipped over the swing easily and used her arbalest like a makeshift club, smashing Sunset into the wall once more.

Before Sunset could recover, Velvet shoved the muzzle of her cannon-like weapon into the girl’s chest and fixed her with a hard stare.

“What are you doing here, Sunset Shimmer? Have you joined the Hollows?”

Eyes like bright pools of spring water glared back heatedly, but Velvet saw the confusion, recognition, and fear in Sunset’s eyes as she said, “My name is Fenice! I don’t know who you think you’re talking about, but I’m not her. Now leave, before I burn you to ash!”

Velvet felt a spike of reiatsu from the girl, and saw that her sword’s tip was touching the floor next to her. She sensed the heat a second before a jet stream of lava shot up from the ground, but that second was enough for her to leap out of the way. Sunset, or Fenice, or whatever she wanted to call herself, charged forward with her sword swinging in a wide arc. Velvet once again had little trouble avoiding the attack, already having garnered a sense of Fenice’s skills and fighting style. She was able to wield that huge sword far easier and swifter than Velvet would have thought possible, but was still much slower than Velvet. The only real danger was from the unpredictable splashes of magma coming off the blade, but even that was something Velvet could readily avoid

She’s stronger than a first class soldat, certainly, but she’s not an equal to a Sternritter like myself. She wields that sword with ferocity but not much finesse.

It was strange. This power and fighting style didn’t at all match with what little Velvet had seen of Sunset Shimmer before. There wasn’t even a trace of Soul Reaper powers left. Was it possible this really wasn’t Sunset Shimmer, but just a girl who bore a striking resemblance? No, she’d recognized her name, even if she was denying it was hers. This so called ‘Fenice’ had to be lying. Yet there were still things about this that didn’t make any sense.

Doesn’t matter. I’ll just capture her and get the truth later. I’ve wasted enough time here.

Despite having that thought it hadn’t even been half a minute since she’d entered the tower, so she wasn’t that strapped for time. Still ‘Fenice’ was a distraction Velvet could ill afford, so she quickly enhanced her left first with the glowing red veins of Blut Arterie and proceeded to duck under another of Fenice’s swings, delivering a hammer blow to the girl’s sternum. Fenice’s eyes went wide for a second, spittle flying from her lips as she hung motionless, stunned from the hit.

Since carrying the girl normally would be a pain, Velvet used the opportunity to utilize a variation on the Quincy ability to create reishi strands. What was usually a technique for helping a Quincy move in spite of injuries was easily adapted to a binding technique not unlike some Soul Reaper Kido spells. Small, but strong strands of blue reishi particles extended from Velvet’s hand and in a flash bound up Fenice and her sword like a cocoon. Velvet wanted to bring the girl’s sword so it could be studied. She suspected it was a Fullbring. It had a similar feel to the ones her friends from long ago used.

Which was another oddity. The Fullbrings her friend’s daughters used had a distinctly different sensation to them, probably due to the magic from that other world. This Fullbring, however, felt more like the ones used by Xcution, without any trace of the magic affecting it.

Shaking off the nagging questions in her mind, Velvet started floating upward with the stunned Fenice in tow, much to the cries of dismay from the Arrancar children. However a bare instant later Velvet sensed the two Hollow reiatsu from before descending towards her at a rapid pace, and frowned as two forms appeared on either side of her, blades drawn for battle.

“I will give you only one chance to let go of my sister and leave this tower of your own accord, Quincy,” said a young Arrancar woman. She wore a similar voluminous dark robe to what Fenice wore, and held a dagger in an inverted grip.

“Yeah, Roka, I don’t think this chick is gonna listen to reason,” said an odd looking Hollow that seemed like a strange hybrid between an Arrancar and a lower evolution species. Humanoid form aside, his most prominent feature was the ludicrous looking shark-mask that was covering his head, with his human features and eyes just barely visible within the shadows of the shark’s mouth. He carried a blade that looked like a curved, serrated shark’s tooth.

Velvet’s frown deepened, sparing a glance between these two. Neither one felt particularly powerful, and she wasn’t interested in engaging in a conversation with Hollows. She spun, firing two shots, one at both Hollows. The blasts were the same concentrated spheres of reishi her arbalest normally fired, with one major modification. When they burst, the spray of arrows was focused in a shotgun style spread towards their target rather than a more random all around spread.

Hollows or not, Velvet didn’t want to risk hitting any of the children.

The female Arrancar was surprisingly fast enough to zip out of the way of most of the blast sent her way, although she had to ditch her cloak, which got pierced by multiple arrows. However she was still struck by glancing arrows that cut her flesh as if her Heirro was practically not there, and tore into the clothes beneath her robe, which consisted of a slimming dark green dress.

The shark faced male fared worse, using his sword to shield the main part of his body and head from the spread of arrows but getting several embedded in his limbs while the impacts knocked him into the wall.

“Gah!” the male spat out in pain, clutching at the reishi arrows piercing his arms, “I immediately regret this decision.”

“Di Roy, be careful,” said the female, who rushed Velvet from the side with a fairly quick Sonida, twirling with minimalist grace as she slashed with her dagger. Velvet used her free hand to turn the attack aside, gripping the Arrancar woman’s wrist and flipping her around to slam her down into one of the lower portions of stairwell.

The Arrancar managed to turn the throw into a somewhat controlled landing, the stairwell cracking in half under the impact of how hard Velvet had thrown her, but the woman stood and reached out with a hand. Velvet saw the glint of light off of what looked like over a dozen needles fly out from the sleeves of the Arrancar, trailing with them glittering threads that Velvet imagined were likely razor sharp. Not content to let her opponent do as she pleased, Velvet fired another shotgun style blast from her arbalest, the spread of arrows shredding through the strands and forcing the Arrancar woman to dodge aside to avoid the deadly barrage.

“Be careful, she says,” muttered the odd male, tearing arrows out of his arm one at a time, “Like I wasn’t already trying to do that, Roka!”

“I don’t have time for this,” Velvet muttered, not interested in either Di Roy or Roka’s interference. The only reason she wasn’t using more of her power to just eliminate either one was because she didn’t want to bring down the whole tower. Much as she hated Hollows, she was hesitant to risk side casualties among those children, and on top of that she was here to rescue the human souls she still sensed somewhere above her. If she did too much damage to the tower she’d be putting those souls in danger. It meant she had to scale back her attacks, to a degree.

But only to a degree.

As Di Roy removed the last arrow from his limbs, both arms shaking as blood dripped from them, he gripped his sword and used his legs to propel himself off the wall towards Velvet. She side stepped his thrusting blade, and then proceeded to turn her arbalest around and smashed him across the head with the butt of the weapon. The blow drove him like a nail towards the bottom of the stairs, his spinning body caught by Roka who skidded nearly to the floor to absorb all that momentum.

Velvet used the moment to make sure the reishi threads she had binding up Fenice were tight and secure, then flew upwards with the girl towed behind her. The Arrancar children backed away from the stairs as Velvet sailed past them, at least one or two of the children shouting obscenities at her that certainly would’ve warranted a spanking if they’d been her kids.

She reached the higher stair landing that led to a smaller door beyond which she sensed the human souls. Velvet wasted not a second in kicking the door open and stepping through.

Meanwhile Roka was setting Di Roy down, face drawn up with waves of anxious worry, “Stay here, Di Roy, she’s too strong for you to fight.”

Groaning in a daze, Di Roy gripped her arm and hauled himself up onto his unsteady feet, “Bitch is too strong for you to fight, too. Don’t try to pull any heroic crap, here.”

Roka shook her head, her one visible eye not covered by her skull mask hardening with resolve, “Its nothing like that. I’m just protecting what’s important to me. Now stay put, otherwise I’ll sew your legs together.”

Di Roy gulped at that, entirely certain Roka wasn’t joking. He gave her a dull nod, and Roka offered him a small smile before turning her attention upward and leaped upward, bounding from one wall to the next as she chased after Velvet.

Velvet herself had entered into what looked to be an almost normal living chamber, shaped like a curved rectangle that followed the curvature of the tower. It was filled with several basic beds and drawers, a couple of wood tables and dressers, all very simple like some spartan barracks. She saw what looked to be half a dozen confused and scared looking humans, deceased individuals whose soul chains were clearly visible hanging from their chests.

One of them, a haggard looking middle aged man, stood up from one of the beds as Velvet entered, his voice stammering, “W-who are you?”

Velvet didn’t immediately answer, turning back to the doorway she’d come through and pulled out a pair silver ginto tube. She popped the top and upended the alchemic water upon the ground while infusing it with additional reishi. The water flowed unnaturally, not splashing in a puddle but instead expanding into a circle that then blazed with blue fire as it carved that circle into the floor.

“Spiegelwand,” (Mirror Wall) Velvet intoned, finishing the ward. It wouldn’t hold off Roka for very long, but it’d do the trick for the couple of minutes Velvet needed. Turning to the human souls, she tried to put on as reassuring an expression as she could.

“I’m a friend, and I’m here to rescue you from these soul devouring monsters,” she said, not waiting for a response before raising her arbalest and aiming it at the wall opposite from the door. With a focused blast she was able to hit the wall with a sphere of reishi that exploded a large chunk outwards, forming a hole large enough for several people to go through.

“Wait, what are you doing!? Seriously, who are you?” asked the man with a sound of rising panic in his tone, while a woman just a few years younger came up next to him, staring at Velvet.

“Miss, I don’t know who you are but I think you might be mistaken-”

“There’s no time for chit-chat,” Velvet snapped, extending her reishi outward and utilizing some of the spirit particles within the rubble of the wall to form a large platform of blue energy. It was essentially the same kind of technique the Quincy used to walk on air, only extended to a larger scale. She made sure to make the blue shining disc large enough to fit all of the human souls and turned to them, “Anyone who doesn’t want to stay here should get on, now!”

There was a buzz of noise behind her and she turned to see Roka had reached the door, but had been knocked back by a shimmering wall of translucent blue force stemming from the circle Velvet had created. The Arrancar was now staring hard at the barrier, then beyond it to where Feniece was hanging in the air, floating next to Velvet while still wrapped up in reishi strands. Fenice was moaning slightly, her stunned, unconscious state starting to wear off.

One of the human souls, a younger boy in his early teens, pointed at Fenice, “What are you doing with her? She’s one of the people who’s been looking after us.”

“Looking after you?” Velvet blinked, then took another look at the room. Normally she would have expected prisoners to be in cages, or chained up. If these humans were intended as food, why weren’t they restrained in some way? This room didn’t look like a prison, but just a sleeping quarters. She even noticed there was some food and drinks on one of the tables.

These human souls didn’t look like prisoners at all, but rather cared for guests. But that didn’t make any sense! Hollows only had one use for human souls, and that was as food. What in the world was going on here? With a soft growl under her breath she said, “Whatever’s happening here, you’re all in danger from these Hollows and you’ll be safer getting out of this place and letting my people take you in.”

Her sentence was punctuated by a crack of noise as Roka extended a hand out towards the ward and multiple threads started testing it, bouncing off the barrier of energy with flares of light.

The human souls were all giving each other unsure looks, and Velvet was quickly losing her patience. If need be she’d wrap all of them up in reishi threads and drag them out of here herself! Before she could either start doing that or make another plea to convince the souls to come with her, Fenice awoke with a few bleary eye blinks. Taking in the scene around her, Fenice’s expression flared with rage and she let out a ferocious shout.

Her sword, which Velvet had been towing along with the girl, all but exploded with a wave of magma. The burning liquid rock flowed seemingly like a living thing and slammed towards Velvet, filling the room with a wash of potent heat. With little room to evade, Velvet was forced to leap out of the hole in the wall she’d created, jumping over the stream of magma that splashed out after her. With a grimace of focus Velvet yanked Fenice after her, pulling on the reishi strings constricting the girl. However the magma had burned away enough of the threads that Fenice got an arm free to grab her sword, so that as she was being pulled outside she was also able to swing the large weapon around and unleash another spraying wave of magma at Velvet.

Thoroughly out of patience at this point, Velvet ducked under the molten stream and proceeded to grip the reishi threads she had wrapped around Fenice. She then used them to spin the girl like a yo-yo and launched her into the exterior wall. Velvet flew downward, dragging Fenice along the wall all the way to the bottom, smashing her into the sandy ground. Fenice coughed and sputtered, utterly knocked senseless as her sword fell in a spinning mass, stabbing into the ground a few meters away.

Velvet huffed out a heated breath, her ire rising. Hopefully she hadn’t injured Fenice too badly, but the girl was becoming a real nuisance. She didn’t want Fenice dead, just... tenderized enough to be a nice, compliant level of unconscious. She glanced up the tower, a bit of dust smoke still pouring from the hole she’d blown out of it.

Damn it all, what’s going on here? Those souls weren’t prisoners at all. They clearly didn’t want to leave. But that’s madness.

She’d already wasted too much time, more than she’d wanted to. Yet she couldn’t just leave things as they were, either. She needed to get to the bottom of what was happening in this tower. Perhaps the Hollows were planning something for those souls that was worse than just eating them? Whatever the case, Velvet couldn’t leave without finding out the truth.

Fortunately, now that she was outside the tower again, she could afford to cut loose. Once she’d put down the Hollows guarding the tower then she could drag this irritating Sunset Shimmer copy and every human soul in the tower back outside of Las Noches, and sort out the details later. To that end she started striding towards Fenice, who was twitching on the ground, but not quite unconscious yet.

Huh, would’ve thought being used as a paint roller on that wall would’ve knocked her out. Tough girl. Oh well, just going to have to do this old fashioned way, Velvet thought with a annoyed sigh. However before she got to Fenice, a wavering beam of red energy blasted in at her from the right side, engulfing her in a small explosion.

As the dust from the explosion cleared, Velvet stood there, her skin covered in the gleaming red lines of Blut Vene, which had resisted the relatively weak Cero without much trouble, but her uniform was signed. She shot a sharp eyed glare towards the direction the beam had come from, “Okay, now what!?”

Near the main doors to the tower, which still sat in a mangled heap on either side of the building, a bleeding and sweating Di Roy stood, his hand still raised from his Cero beam. He let out a shaking laugh, “Hah... was kinda hoping a sneak attack would’ve done more. Starting to seriously regret getting out of bed today.”

“You and me both,” Velvet said flatly, “But if you want to go back to sleep, I’m not stopping you. In fact here’s a sleep aid, to help you rest. Eternally.”

She swung her arbalest around and fired a swift series of spherical blasts at him. She was sure he couldn’t dodge them, and admittedly he didn’t. Instead a massive pair of jaws snapped down like a mamma bear snatching up her cub and yanked Di Roy out of the way. The reishi spheres did still impact and explode in showers of arrows, but most of them missed Di Roy and instead impacted into the tower. A few of the arrows struck the hide of the huge Adjuchas Hollow that Velvet had seen earlier, making it stagger away from the tower it’d been using as cover. Apparently the dinosaur shaped Hollow had woken up, peered around the corner of the tower, and yanked Di Roy out of the way in time to save him from getting turned into a pincushion.

“Whoa, Gaw!” Di Roy said, hanging from the dinosaur Hollow’s mouth, “Nice save!”

“Yes,” Velvet said with a hard edged smile, “Nice save.”

Di Roy’s eyes widened, “Gaw, running right now might be a good idea-”

Velvet, quite done with this whole affair, flew straight into the side of Gaw with a Blut Arterie enhanced kick that sent the hundred foot tall, two hundred ton Hollow flying like a pinball. Both Gaw and Di Roy hit the ground in a cratering impact while Velvet dusted her hands off.

“Ah... that felt quite palette cleansing. Do me a favor and neither of you get up,” she said, aiming her arbalest at the fallen pair. Then she paused, glancing behind her. “Oh, great, you got through the ward.”

Roka, who was standing a few dozen feet behind Velvet, brushed some hair from her face and fixed Velvet with a flint-like gaze, her voice devoid of humor. “It's more accurate to say I went through the wall next to the ward.”

Velvet sighed, “Yes, that’d do it. Look I’m on a tight schedule and I’ve already spent more time on you and your little circus act than I’d intended. Just stand aside and I’ll leave you Hollows be, because I literally have bigger fish to fry today. But the girl and the other humans are coming with me.”

“No, they’re not,” Roka stated plainly, raising her dagger. Velvet rolled her eyes.

“Oh please, the only reason none of you are dead yet is because I didn’t want to risk injuring those children or the humans I’m trying to rescue. Now that we’re outside, I have zero incentive to hold back, which means you low-class Arrancar have lost what little advantage you had. Even if you did manage to injure me...” she smiled thinly, “Trust me, it’ll end up hurting you more than it’ll hurt me.”

Roka closed her eyes solemnly and nodded, “It’s true I can sense your power far exceeds ours. I’ll have to educate Di Roy on the meaning of ‘staying put’, if we survive this. Yet that doesn’t matter. This is my family. You’re not taking any of them while I can still stand...”

A soft, smokey aura of white energy flowed along her danger and gradually engulfed Roka’s body as her reiatsu increased. Velvet knew what this meant, and considered just annihilating Roka before she could enact her transformation, yet the woman’s words had struck a chord with her. She remembered a time from many years ago when another young woman faced a similar fight...

”Not to put too fine a point on it, but you’re a bunch of children, both figuratively and literally, compared to me,” said Platinum, a slim cold smile of distilled, confident smugness on her face as she strode forward. Her Zanpakuto was already in its released state, frost spreading across the forest, turning the nearby trees of the Everfree into towering icicles. “Now we can do this one of two ways, either you can be good girls and surrender willingly, or I can drag all of you back in icy chains. Well, minus the Quincy, who I’ll just be killing.”

Already sporting wounds from the battle, Sweet Cider drew up her Fullbring, a slab of rock in the vague shape of a sword with a skull shaped hilt and said, “Ya ain’t takin’ none o’ us ya gosh dang stuck up witch!”

With a contemptuous sneer Platinum swung her Zanpaktou and sent a cascade of ice shards flying straight for Sweet Cider, but a rain of reishi arrows intercepted the shards, clearing enough of them that the farm girl was able to avoid damage.

“Whew, nice save, Velvet.”

“I’d prefer it if you had done what I suggested to Firefly earlier and fled while the option existed,” Twilight Velvet said, breathing hard from having already expended much of her energy in the fight, her uniform torn and blood stained. “I could convince my fellow Quincy to take you in.”

Most of the team was already down. Cloudy Quartz was still conscious, but her Fullbring was little more than a tar-like shadow around her, unable to take proper form anymore. Firefly was lying up against a tree, half of her Fullbring shattered by Platinum’s sword, but Ace of Sky’s cannon was still intact and Firefly was trying to raise it. Soft Spoken and Cookie Crumbles were behind Velvet and Sweet Cider, unconscious. For the moment it looked like Velvet and Sweet Cider were the only ones still standing, and Platinum had barely broken a sweat.

“Oh yes,” Platinum said, “Go to the Quincy. They’d just love you Fullbringers, what with your Hollow powers. I’m sure they wouldn’t abuse you or experiment upon you.”

“Like what Soul Society did!?” Velvet growled, raising her arbalest, “You’ve done nothing but use them from the beginning!”

“Yes, but the difference is that we created them in the first place and have an invested interest in keeping them alive. Going with you Quincy would be taking a shockingly large gamble. But that’s neither here nor there, considering I’m going to be taking them back to Soul Society, and there is literally nothing a Quincy of your level can do to stop me. Really, I’d tell you to get out of my way, but I’d hate to leave any of you filthy Quincy alive if I can help it.”

Velvet spat to the side, “That’s fine by me. I wasn't going to run anyway. These are my friends you’re threatening. You’re not taking them while I’m still standing...”

She pushed the memory away. Too much had changed over the years. She wasn’t that same idealistic, brash young woman who fought alongside her friends in Xcution against Captain Platinum. Now she was a Sternritter, a mother, and a Quincy with a duty to perform. Yet she couldn't deny seeing an element of herself in the determined eyes of Roka as the Arrancar faced her down. Velvet could have likely destroyed Roka easily, but she couldn’t bring herself to do so quite yet. She could at least let Roka fight with all of her strength, even if it was ultimately going to be pointless.

Just like with Platinum, who I couldn’t beat back then. Tch... now there’s a distasteful comparison...

Roka’s energy reached its peak, the white glow around her solidifying as she invoked her Zanpaktou’s release phrase.

”Dance in ecstasy; Telarana!” (Cobweb)

A swirl of light flowed from Roka’s body, and surrounded her like a cocoon forming from thousands of small strands of light. Once the cocoon formed it pulsated with several heartbeat flares of light. Then it exploded, rippling sand out in a ring around it. As the light faded Roka was revealed in her newly transformed state. The physical changes were fairly minimal, compared to some Arrancar.

She wore now close fitting white cloth around her body, wrapping her waist and chest but leaving her arms, legs, and stomach bare. The skull mask that had covered the right half of her face was replaced by a cloth wrapping. Four long legs like those of a giant spider’s sprouted arching from her back, the limb joints also covered in wrappings of stark white cloth.

Roka took a deep breath and focused her one eye upon Velvet, and without another word aimed her four spider-like legs towards the Quincy, and a literal storm of razor sharp strings attached to hundreds of needles exploded out towards Velvet, recommencing the battle.

----------

The door to Adagio’s room opened and Twilight Sparkle walked inside, glancing around at the room curiously. “You took all of this from Canterlot City?”

Adagio chuckled with a dry amusement, “Not me, but servants of mine. Still, tickles me to think of Sunset Shimmer wondering who’s been raiding the local department stores.”

Twilight gave Adagio a raised eyebrow, “You have a very unusual relationship with Sunset.”

“And you have a unusual face!” Adagio snapped, then coughed and glanced away, “Well whatever, just stay here and don’t touch anything. Once the battle blows over I’ll come back and open a Garganta to Canterlot City for you.”

“And if another Arrancar comes looking in here?” Twilight asked, taking a seat at the dining table taking up one of the room’s walls.

“That won’t happen. Everyone is busy either killing Quincy or getting killed by Quincy. On top of that, the only other people who come to this part of the fortress are my aforementioned servants and they won’t come into my room. Look if you’re that worried about it, you can always hide. There’s lots of space around here for that. Any other questions?”

Twilight shook her head, her expression so tired that Adagio wouldn’t have been surprised if the girl fell asleep sitting in that chair, “No, I was just going to say... be careful.”

A faintly coy smirk touched Adagio’s face, “That’ll be next to impossible, given the task ahead of me, but consider your concern noted.”

With that Adagio left Twilight in her room and joined Ember down the hallway. Ember fell into step beside Adagio as they started heading back towards the stairs that’d lead down to ground level. There, within what had recently been an empty chamber they would find a pool of water that Adagio had opened up with a combination of her water control and a focused Cero.

“Not worried Dumbbell and those other idiots might stumble across her?” Ember asked as they walked.

“Unlikely. Assuming those three are doing what they’re supposed to be doing, they won’t be back until well after everything is going to be settled,” Adagio said, frowning slightly, “Right now this is the safest place to stash her. If anything goes wrong I’ll deal with that if and when it happens. We’ve got bigger problems to worry about.”

“Right, Squirk,” Ember said as they reached the room they were heading for, which was little more than a circular chamber not much bigger than the average bedroom, with a rough hole torn in the center of it that was filled with water. The shaft would lead down several scores of meters into the underground water tunnels beneath Las Noches.

“Yes, Squirk,” Adagio agreed, placing a hand on her hip as she drew up water to form a bubble of air for her and Ember to enter. “He ought to still be near the base of the central tower.”

“With Grogar,” Ember pointed out.

“Yes, with Grogar.”

The pair of them entered the bubble, and it descended into the water shaft. Adagio drummed her fingers on her hip as she thought, eyes narrowing, “If things go like Chrysalis thinks they will, this shouldn’t be too difficult.”

“He might only be the Ninth, but he’s still an Espada, Adagio. Squirk won’t go down easily,” Ember said.

“Oh, I know that, but I also know that there’s other people gunning for him, and all we have to do is... wait for our moment of opportunity.”

----------

Squirk sneezed, and rubbed his nose. Nearby Grogar was continuing to monitor his device that showed a holographic image of the battle taking place. Upon the wafting, shimmering image were multiple hazy screens showing different parts of the chaotic war taking place outside the fortress. Using this Squirk was able to maintain as many Gargantas as needed to move Arrancar around the battlefield. Not that any of the Espada was taking much advantage of that besides Guto, who near as Squirk could tell was the only Espada who understood what tactics were. Everyone else, even the great Lord Tirek, seemed to envision battle as “Everybody split up for one on one battles, continue until all enemies dead!”

“Because it’d be too much of a smart thing to do for us to gang up on these Sternritter before they did the same thing to us,” Squirk muttered.

“Oh stop such whinging, Squirk,” said Grogar, gesturing at the images of battle on the holographic screen, “In case you weren’t paying attention we presently hold the advantage.”

Squirk narrowed his eyes as he glanced sidelong at Grogar, pretending for the moment to focus on his Gargantas. Guto’s troops, well trained, were using the portals to fall back with any that were badly injured, while allowing Arrancar who were freshly rested to take their place, creating something of a milling group of Guto’s warriors who remained on ground level next to the long interior wall that Squirk and Grogar stood on. From what Squirk could see on Grogar’s screens, while the Espada were largely engaged in personal battles, the rest of the Arrancar warriors were fighting at a disadvantage due to the fact that there were still several Sternritter out there that didn’t have any Espada to worry about. There was one blue skinned bastard who was using some kind of gravity ability to crush weaker Arrancar with ease, while another Sternritter who’d formed all those fortifications out of seemingly nowhere was essentially holding the entire center of the battle and making it impossible for either Guto, Hydia, or Torch’s hordes to break the Quincy’s center line.

Pound for pound we Espada have the Sternritter on the ropes in one on one combat, but these damned Quincy peasants are outfighting our own common warriors. And the human animals can breed faster than we can, so we can’t replace these losses as fast as they can theirs. Am I the only one smart enough to realize we might be winning in the short term, but losing the larger war of attrition?

Ultimately this was why he’d made the decision he had. The choice to back Catrina and her plan to eventually remove Chrysalis from power. Because Squirk knew Tirek was smarter than this. Smarter than to let the whole of Las Noche’s hordes get drawn into a fight that could inflict crippling casualties on them that they couldn’t recuperate from nearly as fast as the Quincy could. But Chrysalis? That hedonistic psychopath? This was the kind of carnage filled bloodbath that was right up her perverted alley. This whole battle had her fingerprints all over it, to the point where Squirk wouldn’t have been surprised to find out if she’d suggested the idea to the Quincy in the first place.

Squirk had never liked Chrysalis, purely because he could smell crazy, and crazy wasn’t good for long term survival. He sorely missed the Queen of Thorns, who’d been far more reserved and intelligent as a right hand for Tirek. Lord Tirek, Squirk respected him and his immense power, but he knew the Primera Espada needed a cooler head advising him, rather than a blood crazed nut-job who didn’t seem to care what happened to the rest of Las Noches as long a she got her jollies on.

So when Catrina had approached Squirk about forming a group among the lesser ranked Espada to overthrow Chrysalis, well... he hadn’t immediately agreed. He didn’t like Catrina either. Vain, self-absorbed drama queen that she was. But she wasn’t nearly as dangerous to the Hollow’s continued survival as Chrysalis, and Catrina did have the power to make a proper go of a coup d'etat, so when given a choice between either serving the status quo until Chrysalis got them all killed or agreeing to back Catrina, Squirk made the choice easily enough.

Survival was what mattered, and right now he was seriously doubting Las Noche’s continued ability to survive as long as Chrysalis was whispering words of bloodlust into Tirek’s ears. Even if the Arrancar won this battle, they were going to be in a vulnerable position afterward in case the Soul Reapers came calling, or the Privaron Espada decided to band together and come knocking.

Of course he didn’t know which other Espada Catrina might have recruited. She was playing her cards close to her chest on this, and Squirk couldn’t blame her. After what Chrysalis had done to the Queen of Thorns, he’d be cautious about going against her too. If only it wasn’t necessary. Now, if Squirk was a betting man, he’d guess that Catrina would have approached either Hydia or Smooze. Both of them had powers that would counter Chrysalis’s insane regenerative ability. Catrina also probably approached one of the bigger numbers, like Torch or maybe that creepy Lament guy. Just for the extra firepower for when they moved on Chrysalis.

He looked suspiciously at Grogar, not sure about that one. Grogar and Torch hated each other, and he wasn’t exactly on good terms with Hydia either. Also Grogar was so tight with Tirek that it seemed unlikely Chrysalis hadn’t already dug her claws into him. Yeah, if Squirk was the one in charge he wouldn’t trust Grogar either...

...Which made him suddenly rather nervous he was here alone with the guy. It made sense, tactically speaking, for Squirk with his Garganta powers to remain close to Grogar who could control the device that gave them a decently complete view of the battlefield, but Squirk suddenly realized he was in a remarkably vulnerable position if he happened to be alone with one of the Espada he couldn’t at all be sure wasn’t working with Chrysalis.

“Squirk,” Grogar said, making the large, red skinned Espada nearly jump.

“W-what!? I’m concentrating here!” Squirk growled, gripping his harpoon shaped Zanpaktou tightly as he glanced between Grogar and his Garganta portals. A troop of Guto’s warriors were marching back through one of the Garganta’s, rejoining the battle after having rested, and a few wounded were coming back through another portal, dropping from exhaustion and injuries.

“You might want to form a Garganta to your left,” Grogar said, almost too casually, “If you don’t want to be struck by the attack coming from that direction, at any rate.”

Attack? What was he-? Squirk’s eyes shot wide as he realized Grogar, out of all the Espada, had the most potent Pesquisa, and could sense spiritual energies far better than he could. Without questioning it further, Squirk formed a Garganta portal about his own size immediately to his left. He did it just in time, too.

A thin, needle-like beam of reishi flew from what had to be nearly a kilometer away and would have hit Squirk straight in the side of his head if he hadn’t formed his Garganta when he had. Squirk had no idea what kind of attack that was, but it felt like a Quincy arrow if one had been focused to a ridiculous degree into a small beam, and despite its size Squirk sensed the power of the attack and knew if it’d hit him the beam would’ve gone straight through his Heirro as if it wasn’t there.

“HOLY BALLS!” Squirk shouted, nearly falling onto his ass in surprise.

“It seems we have rats inside the walls,” Grogar said, turning from his monitor and gesturing to several of his misshapen servitor Arrancar, “Go! Find the sniper.”

The deformed looking Arrancar servants, their minds programmed to follow Grogar’s commands without question, immediately turned and leaped off the small interior wall and started rushing across the desert in the direction the beam had come from. Inside of seconds multiple other beams appeared, piercing each servitor’s head with ease, and all four of them dropped like puppets with cut strings. Grogar frowned.

“Well, I suppose we can rule out any common Quincy.”

A kilometer away, kneeling down on one knee atop one of the smaller dunes of Las Noche’s interior desert, Sassy Saddles huffed out a sharp breath and drew back another thin arrow on her pink hued recurve bow. As she did so she spoke into a small communication device on the lapel of her uniform, “Cadence, first shot is a negative kill. My position is compromised. Let me secure their attention, then you move in.”

“Copy that. Be careful,” Cadence replied, and Sassy let out a light laugh.

“But of course.”

The hope had been that Sassy’s Schrift, the Needle, could dispatch Squirk with one shot and allow the team to extract themselves from Las Noches without getting drawn into a battle. Somehow the tall, lobster red bastard had either sensed her attack incoming or had been warned of it, because he’d formed a Garganta portal that absorbed her arrow. The other Espada up there had directed some servants to rush Sassy’s position, but they were easily taken down by the Needle. Now Sassy directed her attention to that other Espada, since Squirk was still hidden behind his portal.

This Espada was an old, withered looking man of darkly tanned skin, wispy white hair, and ram horns curving from his brow. If their intel on the Espada was accurate then his name was Grogar, and he was the Number Eight. Sassy suppressed a frown. Frowns caused wrinkles, after all. Two Espada, even low ranked ones, would be a problem in an open fight. Fortunately both her and Cadence’s abilities were suited to breaking past an opponent's defenses and ending fight’s quickly. It was a shame Velvet was busy with that tower, but Sassy couldn’t imagine Velvet would take much longer over there, so one way or another all she had to do was keep these Espada busy for a few moments.

“Very well, if it’s to be a dance, let’s make it a stylish one,” Sassy Saddles said, standing up and focusing upon Grogar, unleashing half a dozen thin, penetrating beams towards not the Espada himself, but at the large device that was displaying some kind of holographic image, being held up by several more of those horribly deformed looking Arrancar servants.

She couldn’t see what the images being displayed by that device were, but she could easily take a guess, and destroying it seemed like a good way to deny a tactical advantage to the Hollows.

Grogar, not having any of that, proceeded to kick the device out of the way of Sassy’s arrow beams. This did nothing to spare his servants, who were perforated by the powerful beams and reduced to twitching masses, but Grogar didn’t even spare them a single glance as he fixed Sassy’s distant position with a mildly annoyed glare and with his arms clasped behind his back like an irate school teacher he jumped into the air and proceeded to start flying in her direction.

Sassy responded with another barrage of beams, which sliced up the air like shards of glass, but Grogar was shockingly spry for such an old looking fellow and flew around, weaving between the shots as he closed in on her. At the tips of his two ram horns a crackling circle of dark green energy formed, and he unleashed a swift barrage of Bala’s shots at Sassy, the condensed bullets of reishi impacting towards her like the strafing shots from a gatling gun.

She dodged easily enough, but heard the distinct buzz of Sonido behind her as Grogar finished closing the distance and appeared at her back, bringing one hand around to instantly draw his sword and slash at Sassy’s spine. She swung her bow around, using it deflect the oddly stone-like blade of Grogar’s, but the blow alone still sent her skidding back across the dune.

Grogar observed her for a second, then gained a knowing smirk,”Rather old for an assassin, aren’t you, my dear?”

Sassy Saddles’ eyebrow twitched slightly. She was in her early forties, thank-you-very-much, but she knew he was just trying to rattle her. So instead she put on a sympathetic look and said, “You would know all about being too old for one’s position, wouldn’t you?”

Grogar’s laugh had a rasping, chilling quality to it, “You know, I haven’t had the pleasure of having a Sternritter to experiment on. Lesser, Quincy, yes, but never one of you vaunted ‘Star Knights’ with your fascinating Schrifts. Since one of my experiments is nearing the culmination of fruition, I should be looking into acquiring another specimen. Care to volunteer? Oh, wait, your consent isn’t required.”

He vanished with a blindingly swift Sonido, and Sassy drew back an arrow to fire, hoping that Cadence would be able to take advantage of the distraction she was providing, because she wasn’t sure just how long she could hold out against this disturbing fellow.

Meanwhile, Squirk was peeking from behind his Garganta to see if it was safe. It looked like Grogar was handling the sniper, and he nearly breathed a sigh of relief, but then saw a shadow pass over him. He turned just in time to see some ludicrously pink Quincy flying over him in a graceful flip, aiming a wrist mounted crossbow at him.

“Crap!” Squirk raised a hand, forming a tiny Garganta in an instant. A small, pinkish reishi arrow went through the portal, just narrowly missing him. But the Quincy wasn’t done. With incredible speed she appeared around him in multiple places, firing more of those small pink arrows at him.

“Crapcrapcrapcrap!” Squirk spun around, forming Gargantas as fast as he could, until he was essentially surrounded by an entire field of small portals. No other Arrancar, not even Tirek, could have that kind of fine control over Garganta portals as to be able to form so many of varying sizes so fast. Now standing within a sphere of protective portals, Squirk chuckled and shouted, “Yeah! Try getting past these, you sneaky tart! Stupid Quincy sow! I can just stand in here all day until Grogar finishes your sniper friend.”

There wasn’t a response from outside, which bothered him because the Quincy were usually the sort to love to shoot banter back. What was that tricky Quincy doing out there? Well he wasn’t about to remove any of his protective portals to look. The moment he did she’d probably be waiting out there to blast him.

Tapping his foot in impatience, he almost didn’t notice the build up of reiatsu from outside. Was she charging up some kind of larger attack? So what? It still couldn’t get past his Garganta portals. They’d just absorb all that energy into the Precipice Realm.

...Unless she wasn’t aiming at him.

“Uh-oh-” Squirk said just as Cadence unleashed a powerful, charged up reishi arrow at the wall beneath his feet.

The arrow struck the wall hard, blasting a long, cylindrical hole through it, and also dropping Squirk down through the shattering wall.

“Ugh, sonuvabitch,” Squirk grumbled, shoving huge multi-ton chunks of rock off himself, “What did I ever do to deserve this!?”

He felt a prickling sensation on the back of his neck, and turned to see Cadence standing upon a chunk of destroyed wall right behind him, her wrist mounted crossbow nearly touching his skin.

“It might have something to do with the fact that you helped murder our children,” Cadence said, “Just a thought to take with you before you die.”

Just before she fired, however, shadows sprang up from the ground, engulfing both Cadence and Squirk. The shadows parted to reveal three individuals, all Soul Reapers gauging by their black robes, and the tall blue-skinned woman in the center wore a Captains white coat.

Squirk felt his blood run cold as the Soul Reaper Captain raised a pair of large, dark scythes and smiled politely at the Quincy.

“Hello Cadence,” said Luna, “I don’t suppose you’d mind if we took this Espada off your hands?”

Well, Squirk thought with a cynical sigh, It’s official. This day can’t possibly get any worse.

Author's Notes:

I feel like I ought to explain Roka Paramia a bit. She shares something important with Di Roy, in that she's also one of the few canon Bleach characters I've let slip into Friendship Souls. I tend to do this only with characters that were pretty minor and didn't get a lot of development. In Roka's case, in the manga she was nothing more than a one-shot character without even a spoken name, supposedly "killed" by the Tenth Espada, Yammy. As it turned out, that wasn't the end of her story, though. You see there's actually a series of light novels in the Bleach universe, one of which actually has Roka as a main character, alongside of all people freakin' Don Kanoji. Now those novels were never translated into English, so at best all I've seen of them is a rough synapsois. But in that story Roka was taking care of some orphaned Arrancar children after having escaped Hueco Mundo, after Syzael had revived her for experiments of his own.

(Both these sketches are I believe from the actual light novel itself, and were too cool not to include here)

So that was the inspiration for the idea of having the Lament run an orphanage, and have Roka be the big sis of that group. Just one of those examples where I've taken something rather obscure from Bleach lore and decided to expand upon it for my own story. Now if only those light novels would get translated into English at some point...

Anyway things are getting just as crazy inside Las Noches as they are outside. These events are happening, time-line wise, just little behind the fight with Torch and Lament. I'm starting to wonder if I need to put time stamps on these. At any rate, hope you guys are enjoying the story and thanks for reading! Leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you want down below, they're all very appreciated.

'Till next time!

Episode 79: Attrition

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Episode 79: Attrition

The writhing screams from the foolish Sternritter elicited little response from Smooze as he turned from Lightning Dust and started to stride away in search of other targets to vent its pain upon. Smooze halted in his steps as a surge of reiatsu from behind him was followed by a towering pillar of brilliant blue light, topped with the symbol of the Quincy cross, thrust upwards into the sky. Smooze took note that other such pillars were appearing as well, but that did not concern him, only the one directly in front of him. He heard Lightning Dust before he saw her amid that shining pillar of light.

“Where do you think you’re going? Show’s just getting started, you fugly bastard.”

Smooze tilted his unusually shaped head to the side, his voice a burbling squelch that barely sounded like anything remotely human. His speech pattern was rough and simple, as if he had trouble stringing a full sentences together, “Alive? In pain. Disease spreads, eats at insides. Must be so much pain.”

Lighting Dust laughed, and it was mixed in with a pained, rasping cough, “Heheh, yeah, this hurts like a bitch, whatever crap you got on me. Real life threatening stuff. Funny thing about me is-”

She emerged from the fading pillar of light, surrounded by a nimbus of crackling blue and light orange light.

“-I get off on danger!”

Lightning Dust’s Vollstandig gave wings not to her back, but to her arms and legs. They were shaped like sharp Vs extending from her elbows and knees, more akin to blades than actual wings. Her uniform had transformed into a tight fitting jumpsuit, from which lines of blue and lighter orange reishi traveled across her body in rivers that had a faint, electrical flicker to them. Her halo was a triangular shape, much like her wing-blades, and shuddered with small bursts of orange and blue arcs of lightning. She carried her massive boomerang, which had only grown in size and gained a more distinctly blue metallic sheen, along with half a dozen vent ports along the back of the weapon’s mass.

The only remaining signs of Smooze’s black blood on her was a faint dark mark on her neck, form which veins pulsed visibly with the rot of the diseases carried by Smooze’s fluids. This should have been causing Lightning Dust unimaginable pain, and perhaps it was, but as far as Smooze could tell the Quincy was not just enduring the pain, but growing excited from it. He could sense her spiritual energy continuing to rise, even after the transformation was done.

Considering her words, Smooze raised his bone whip Zanpaktou and said, “Irrational. Pain is misery. Nothing sane seeks pain. You’re not sane.”

A derisive snort exploded from Lightning Dust as she casually raised her boomerang with one arm, “Sane? Who the hell cares about that!? You either enjoy the shit you do in life, or you sit on your butt wishing you were someone else! I know which I’m going for! Now let’s do this thing!”

The woman’s words bounced around in Smooze’s mind, quite incomprehensible to him. Clearly this was an utterly irrational human who was mentally ill. Not caring about pain? Not valuing preserving her own life? To Smooze that was as antithetical to sanity as one could be. He’d do anything to avoid pain if he could. Somewhat problematic because his existence was nothing but pain, save for when he received relief from Lord Tirek’s ability to consume Hollow energies.

Smooze would have gone mad centuries ago if not for Lord Tirek. As much as avoiding risk and pain was natural, he was willing to engage in battle if it meant he could continue to serve Tirek. Such was only natural. Not at all like this madwoman and her ramblings.

“Madness. Killing you is mercy. Insanity cannot be left to breed.”

All Lightning Dust did was grin as currents of reishi exploded out of the vents in her boomerang, “Let’s see who drops first!”

She swung the boomerang forward with titanic force, and it flew towards Smooze in such a spinning fury that it spread out a cloud of sand for dozens of meters around it, creating a small sand storm in its wake. It was far faster than even Smooze expected and his Sonido wasn’t fast enough to avoid the blow, so instead he drove his Zanpaktou in front of him to intercept the attack.

The impact was well and above what he had expected, the spinning blade driving into his Zanpaktou and shoving him back across the desert for nearly a hundred yards. Yet he didn’t have a second to recover, because Lightning Dust had flown with potent speed, zipping in a blue and orange bur beyond Smooze where she bounded off the metal husk of a destroyed Quincy tank as if it were a spring board. She flew at Smooze’s back, rolling into a spin kick.

He took the kick to the head, but held firm and shoved back against the boomerang with his blade deflecting it up into the sky. Lightning Dust flipped up to grab it, but Smooze cocked back his arm and launched it forward. His Zanpaktou extended, each individual bone segment now igniting into a sickly purple and black haze as acidic, diseased liquid splattered out from the bone whip in a rotting spray.

Lightning Dust used her boomerang as a shield, the tip of Smooze’s weapon deflecting off it and the dark splatter of ooze marking the boomerang’s blue metal in a hiss. She whipped the boomerang around and proceeded to drop upon Smooze like an avalanche. He got his Zanpaktou up to block, but the overwhelming force of Lightning Dust’s strike drove him down to one knee.

He hadn’t expected this transformation of hers to make such a difference in their strength, but that was okay, Smooze’s power wasn’t in his physical abilities. He was neither the fastest or strongest of the Espada, and his position as the Tenth did mean that even his spiritual powers were only strong when compared to normal Arrancar. Yet the reason for Smooze holding a position of favor with Tirek, and why Smooze feared no interference from his fellow Espada, had nothing to do with raw power.

Smooze was unusual, perhaps even unique among Hollows. He was a mutation. An aberration. In some ways he might have been considered a failure of a Hollow. Sometimes failures could breed unusual powers. Smooze had come into being when the usual process of evolution had gone terribly wrong. Normally when a Gillian is formed, it is formed from the amalgamation of hundreds of lesser Hollows, then that Gillian proceeds to eat other Hollows until it becomes an Adjuchas. Smooze was formed when the Gillian he once was had evolved in an aberrant fashion, merging with hundreds of other Gillians in a horrific mass of flesh and fluids.

He hadn’t even had a consciousness. All Smooze had been was a vast, shifting mass of liquefied Hollow parts, writhing in constant agony, consuming whatever was foolish enough to get close to it, until Lord Tirek had found them. The Hollow King could have destroyed Smooze with ease, but had seen potential in the mutated mass. Calling upon the services of Grogar’s scientific genius, a chemical had been devised that, when consumed by Smooze, had controlled the shifting mass of merged Hollows into a single conscious mind and body. His endless agony had ended, for the most part. Pain remained a constant of Smooze’s existence, but it was tolerable, and his mind was now a unified whole, all thanks to Grogar’s cure and Lord Tirek’s patronage.

As a result Smooze was endlessly loyal to Tirek, although one might also call it dependence, for without continued service Smooze would lose access to the supply of the chemical that allowed him to maintain his present form. If he didn’t receive it regularly he’d devolve back into an agonized mass of partially merged Hollows. So there was no question of whether he’d fight to the last to serve Lord Tirek’s schemes.

It also was why he couldn’t fathom the mindset of this crazy Quincy woman. Did she not understand how lucky she was to be born with such a pristine, attractive form? She didn’t live every day in constant pain, so how insane was she to constantly and willingly seek it out?

Madness, utter madness. Smooze couldn’t stand it. Voices from a thousand enraged Hollows gibbered in his mind, demanding he destroy this crazed creature. As Lightning Dust’s boomerang ignited with more bursts of energy thrusting it harder onto Smooze’s Zanpaktou, crushing him down to the ground, his body became encased in a pulsing dark light. His spiritual energy erratically rose, and amid the miasma of dark aura surrounding him emerged numerous howling, distorted images of Hollow faces.

“You’re one ugly bastard!” Lighting Dust shouted with a sharp smirk, “But at least you ain’t weak!”

She pulled back, flipping backwards and swinging her boomerang down and around into a powerful uppercutting blow that struck Smooze back to slam into the flaming wreckage of a downed VTOL. The flames licked at Smooze’s white clothing, burning charred holes from which black and purple liquid oozed out. Ignoring the fire, Smooze pushed himself out of the wreckage and reached one hand up to the smooth, tall mask of white metal covering his head.

“No point talking. Only death cures crazy.”

A flare of purple light moved in a line across the center of the mask, circling it vertically, and air hissed as the front portion was removed and cast aside. Even Lightning Dust flinched a bit at the sight.

“Yeah, I know what i just said, but damn, that’s even worse than I was expecting.”

Smooze didn’t comment. He knew what he looked like. It was as if someone had taken a malformed skull and dipped it in a bubbling mass of sludge black and purple gunk that throbbed and pulsed like a heartbeat. Eyes dotted the pulsing ooze-flesh, a dozen rheumy pupils that squinted with lidless focus in all directions. One eye, larger than the rest, protruded slightly from the left eye socket, its pupil a stark green against the darker colors around it.

Taking off his mask wasn’t something Smooze did casually. Or at all, really. He wouldn’t have, but he needed to for what he was about to do. His Zanpaktou was a bit different than others. Like himself, it was a bit flawed, and didn’t activate purely form a release phrase. He needed to consume it, to bring out its power.

So with a rictus rattle of his bony skull, the ooze bubbling across his face bursting in small sprays, he opened his mouth wide and raised his sword above his head, inverting it so he could down the bone blade like a professional sword swallower.

“Oh? You about to do your Resurreccion thing?’ Lightning Dust said, shouldering her boomerang and making no move to stop Smooze, “You know what? Go for it. I want to see how well I stack up, and honestly I’m kinda curious just how much more screwed up your appearance is gonna get.”

Well, let it never be said Smooze wouldn’t give a lady what she asked for. He plunged his Zanpaktou down his bony, goo dripping gullet, which given he didn’t vocalize normally anyway hardly impeded his intoning of the blade’s release phrase.

“Spread unstoppably; Pestilencia.” (Pestilence)

His body began to distort and bulge like a tumors balloon. From the seams of his gloves and shoes that thick sludge of mixed black and purple fluid burst forth, and a geyser of it erupted upwards from his neck until his head was lost in the deluge. More and more foul smelling, writhing crud exploded forth from Smooze’s body, until the bulbous form popped like an overloaded boil, unleashing a flood of filth far beyond what should have been possible.

Lightning Dust immediately flew upwards to avoid the tidal wave of bubbling ooze, rising over a hundred feet before stopping and looking down with a disgusted grimace.

“Okay, gotta admit, this is gross, but I was expecting a little-”

The spread of nearly a hundred meters of shuddering goop proceeded to start rising upward as it disgorged dozens of twisted skeletal limbs that clawed at the air and rose with shocking speed to slice at Lightning Dust. She evaded like a hummingbird, and had to spin away from globs of filth sizzling through the air with each claw’s strike. She then saw the central part of the pool of ooze bulge upwards, forming into the shape of a filthy, yawning head covered in alternating boils of eyes and gnashing mouths of cracked teeth.

From those mouths spat forth glowing purple orbs of slime, forcing Lightning Dust to zip to the side to avoid being coated in their acidic touch. Yet in doing so she was left vulnerable to the grasping claws tracking her through the air, their bony forms slashing at her from all angles as she tried to avoid the acid globs. Pain ripped through her as one or two claws tore bleeding lines across her legs and side. The pain went beyond the wounds and she could feel the sickness infecting her from mere contact with this monstrosity.

Yet despite the pain and the mortal danger she was in, or perhaps because of it, Lightning Dust just grinned and the aura of her wings glowed all the brighter. The Daredevil thrived on exactly this kind of incredible risk. The closer Smooze came to killing her, the more powerful Lightning Dust was going to become.

It was a just a question of whether it’d be enough to destroy him before she ended up getting killed herself.

----------

Winds flowed like crushing avalanches, each one an arrow of earth shattering force fired from Fleur's hands as she unleashed a relentless cascade of air blasts at Guto’s streaking golden form. Each arrow’s impact resulted in a out of control tornado, ripping across the desert and hammering everything in their path. Guto was thrown around even by near misses, yet he was equally unrelenting in his assault.

He flew through the tornadoes, the turbine-like protrusions on his back blasting out jets of red energy that catapulting him around at high speed while a continuous rain of golden Bala bullets formed around him and fired toward Fleur in a furious flurry. She formed a shell of hardened air in front of her, and knowing it couldn’t hold up to the barrage of Balas forever she instead dove through them while charging to meet Guto, sending streaking lines of cutting air at him as they flew to meet each other.

Guto’s forearm blades cut through the wind blades sent his way and he spun into a twirling attack that was aimed to slash right through Fleur's shell of air, which was so thick it obscured her from his vision. His blades cut through the barrier, burst it like a bubble, only to find that Fleur had kicked off the shell of air a split second earlier to launch herself above him. She flapped her wings towards him, the motion generating a concussive burst of wind of such strength it was akin to a bunker buster bomb exploding on Guto. He was slammed downward, but his clawed avian feet grinded against the air and slowly halted his descent.

Grinning, Guto shouted, “Struggling only makes you a finer jewel worth adding to my collection. Now keep struggling, until you must accept your fate!”

He extended his arms upward, and the turbines on his back gained several glowing lines of gold light from which shot forth numerous shining chains of golden metal, each one tipped with clamping manacles. The chains snapped towards Fleur, who waved her hands and generated massive blasts of air to deflect them. Yet the chains didn’t cease, coming at her from all sides. Forming a cone of wind around herself, she launched herself towards Guto, relying on the currents of air to keep the chains off her while she focused on delivering her next attack.

Guto raised his blades to meet her, slashing in a blurring gleam of metal. Fluer just barely ducked the twin blows, pieces of her hair severed by the near miss. She pulled back on a bow of air, creating an extremely condensed bolt of wind to fire at Guto’s chest. He moved to dodge, only to find that Fleur had shifted the cone of air around herself to become a larger half sphere that surrounding him, blocking his movements.

He tore at the barrier or air, forearm blades cutting the swirl of wind like a knife through silk, but not before Fleur's arrow hit him. He twisted to avoid a hit on his chest, instead taking the arrow on the shoulder. The exposition of incredible wind force tore off parts of his armored cloak and twisted his flesh, yet despite the wound Guto neither flinched nor retreated. Instead the turbine-like protrusions on his back flared with deep red light and he rocketed into Fleur, body-slamming her with bone shattering force.

Spitting and blood flew out of Fleur's mouth from the blow that sent her reeling. Disoriented she shook her head and spun around, quickly recovering, but not before her momentary distraction resulted in one of the gold manacles clamping around her right wrist.

“Got you,” Guto said with a satisfied smile, the chain yanking backwards and dragging Fleur along with it.

Growling in feral abandon, Fleur pulled back her free hand and shaped it into a three pronged talons with her fingers. “Sturmkralle Drei!”

Slamming her hand forward she unleashed a glowing eagle's talon of wind, but Guto countered it by raising one of his forearm blades. A swirl of yellow light flared into being at the blade’s edge, and he then swing it with hypersonic force.

“Cero Cotar!” (Cero Severing)

A crescent shaped blast of Hollow energy shot out of is blade, cutting through Fleur's wind talon and then slamming into her with cutting force. She activated her Blut Vene at full power, absorbing the blow, but it still cut a ragged line cross-wise down her chest and stomach. Bits of ragged, bloody cloth fell away, revealing pale marble flesh, some marred by the fresh wound, but other parts marked by a much older scar.

Guto raised a curious eyebrow at the sight. “Oh, what’s this? Looks like someone tried to gut you like a fish at one point. I admire you survived such a wound.”

Fleur, for her part, was still. Her eyes were twitching slightly, pupils widening with cold fury. She could feel the scar on her stomach like a burning brand, along with the feeling of her own blood cooling on her skin. All restraint drained from her, burned away in an instant. Her world narrowed to the red tunnel containing only Guto, and she gripped the gold chain holding her right arm, veins pulsing on her forehead.

“Admire this you insufferable prick!” she shouted as she transferred full power from Blut Vene to Blut Arterie, giving her arm all the strength she could as she yanked back on it and pulled Guto towards her.

Caught off balance by the move, Guto was pulled across the distance between them almost as fast as if he’d used Sonido. His chin was met by a snapping knee strike from Fluer that rattled the Espada’s senses, just long enough for Fleur to follow up her attack by starting to spin around. Wind came at her call, aiding her speed as she spun faster and faster, dragging Guto with her with building force. She then burst towards the ground, pulling Guto like a living flail as she slammed him into the desert hard enough to utterly destroy several nearby sand dunes in a wave of rippling sand and wind.

She didn’t wait to see if he’d been taken down or not. Fleur simply bent the fingers of both her hands into claw shapes and proceeded to thrust them rapidly to fire a barrage of hundreds of wind blades into the spot Guto had impacted, kicking up and even larger storm of wind around her. After several seconds of that punishing barrage, however, she noticed Guto’s reiatsu flaring upwards and saw a golden glint of light amid her windstorm.

Slowly, with wounded steps, Guto stood and moved towards her. Balas by the hundreds were appearing around him and firing at the direction of his outstretched arm, countering her rain of wind blades. Fleur grit her teeth and redoubled her efforts, and a brief tug of war ensued between the pair. Wind blades and Balas slammed into each other with equal speed and ferocity, some exploding on impact, others deflecting off to explode among the nearby dunes. Each combatant made slight changes to the aim of their attacks, trying to break through the other’s barrage, but for a moment they seemed stalemated. In the meantime the shear overwhelming volume of slashing wind blades and potent Balas colliding with each other or ricocheting off each other were ripping apart the landscape as if it was being hit by continuous artillery.

Then Fleur took advantage of the Quincy’s ability to use reishi from around them and started breaking down spirit particles from the nearby desert sands to form even more wind blades in a broader arc around Guto. Doing this tipped the balance, forcing back his wall of Balas, and Fleur was sure she’d have him overwhelmed in just a few more seconds...

At that moment she noticed something. The golden lines of energy around Guto’s back turbines were extending chains, but not towards her, but into the ground. Into the soft, malleable sand beneath their feet.

Fleur realized the danger a moment too late, reacting a fraction of a second too slow before Guto’s chains burst out of the sandy floor beneath her. One clamped down upon either of her legs, her remaining free arm, and a final one around her neck. Then all of the chains around her pulled taut, wrenching her arms and legs and causing her stream of wind blades to falter, then halt. At that point nothing stopped Guto’s storm of Balas from slamming into her. Fluer was knocked around like a crash test dummy, battered by each bullet of Hollow energy that struck her.

By the time the barrage wore off Fleur was a bruised, bleeding mess, sucking in pained breaths as she fell to her hands and knees, just barely staying conscious.

Guto observed her for a second, the nodded in satisfaction, though not without a grimace of pain himself. His own body was bleeding from numerous wounds now, his regal appearance marred by broken pieces of his feathered armor and a profuse amount of blood covering half of his face from a nasty head wound where one of the wind blades had gotten through. Still, he was standing, and Fleur was not.

With an impressed look at his own injuries, Guto grinned at Fluer, “You nearly had me, my dear.”

He started to drag his chains towards him, dragging Fleur along the sands. She tried to pull back, but much of her strength was spent and Guto’s Bala’s had broken bones and torn muscles, making meaningful resistance difficult.

“But this is not where, or how, you die. As I said, I intend to make a prize of you. My finest battle trophy.”

“Like...hell...” Fleur spat, blood coating her teeth. She twisted around and dug her heels into the sand, dredging up her remaining power and drawing in yet more reishi from around her. She managed to halt herself, if only briefly, and fired a focused wind arrow that sent out a shockwave as it flew towards Guto. He swung one of his forearm blades to deflect it, but even he underestimated the desperate last shred of power in that arrow. Upon impact the blast of concentrated wind force was enough to shatter the forearm blade in half and twist Guto’s left arm around with bone breaking speed.

He growled in pain, and savagely kicked the now utterly spent Fleur across the face, slamming her to the ground.

Looking at his busted left arm, the Espada huffed out a light laugh, “Had you fought a little smarter you might have beaten me. You certainly had the power for it. But that will be the last bit of defiance I’ll tolerate from you.”

He pulled back for another brutal kick, this one aimed at Fleur's ribs, but then a streak of blue soared in and instead kicked Guto square in the jaw, the blow sending him sprawling out to the full length of his chains, which still bound Fleur.

“Yeah? How about some defiance from us, asshole?” said Fleetfoot, the one who’d planted the kick on Guto, as she landed beside Fleur's battered form.

On the other side of Fleur another form appeared, Soarin, who had his bow out and aimed cleanly at Guto. “Take those chains off of her, and if you’re lucky we’ll finish you off quickly.”

Both Sternritter had their Vollstandigs active, illuminating the area with a combined coating of pale blue light. Fleetfoot’s looked like she had active swirling vortexes of reishi circling her arms and legs, the energy running up to her back where it sprung into two vibrating crescent shaped wings. Her halo looked like a pair of sunglasses made out of burning energy perched on her forehead. As for Soarin, the wings of his Vollstandig looked like a pair of constantly shifting cloud streaks forked through by lines of light. His halo a similarly cloud-like circle above his head, trailing with wisps of smoky blue mist. Both of them radiated aura of potent reiatsu that, while not quite as strong as Fleur's had been at the peak of her fight with Guto, were still more than strong enough now for Guto to realize that in his wounded state he wouldn’t be able to continue the fight against two fresh opponents.

Guto glanced beyond the two newly arrived Sternritter to see that the Arrancar that’d joined his attack on the cadets had either fled or been killed. That wasn’t too concerning, as that had only been a small number of his total forces, most of which were still engaged back towards the Quincy fortifications, but he was annoyed his troops hadn’t kept this two busy longer. And where was that fool Gilda?

He briefly sensed around with his Pesquisa until he found Gilda’s reiatsu, quite some distance away now, slinking back towards Las Noches. Guto’s blood boiled. How had that girl failed so utterly to accomplish anything today?

To make matters worse, he could see a pair of Quincy VTOLs lifting off and flying east across the lake, and sensed the many weak Quincy spiritual pressures within. The cadets had escaped, probably having suffered only minor casualties.

It seemed this attack was a wash, but at least he could still claim his other prize for the day.

“The two of you seem confused,” he told Fleetfoot and Soarin, rubbing his sore jaw, “You won’t be finishing me off today. In fact you’ll be saying a fond farewell to your comrade, as she now belongs to me.”

Soarin eyes hardened, “Not happening, buddy. If you’re not going to take the chains off yourself, we’ll bust them off her after we put you down!”

A near invisible arrow fired from Soarin’s wing-shaped bow, a streak of sonic force that Guto could sense was no normal reishi arrow, but instead contained some odd power. Likely the Sternritter’s Schrift. Guto laped back from it, pulling his chains backwards as he did so.

Fleur was yanked towards him as Soarin’s arrow exploded in a sphere of vibrating sound waves. Guto hadn’t leapt far enough back to avoid the waves and felt them shake his bones, and immediately disorient his senses. Yet the Espada didn’t falter and despite the disorientation he maintained his focus as he summoned up a fresh storm of Balas around him and fired them at the Sternritter as he continued to drag Fleur towards him.

Fleetfoot and Soarin were forced to dodge aside or get torn apart by the barrage of reishi bullets that ripped up the landscape as they both took to the air. Fleetfoot coiled her legs beneath her and muscles bulged as she launched herself at Guto, arms cocked back to punch. He charged up a line of golden energy in his remaining forearm blade and swung it to unleash another Cero Cotar. Unlike most Ceros that tended to expand into wide beams, Guto’s attack was designed with penetration in mind.

Fleetfoot met it with a punch that created a pure shockwave that managed to deflect the Cero Cotar and deflect it off course until it cut a gouge across the desert, and then a swath through the lake without stopping. Guto whistled, impressed. No way that Sternritter’s strength was the result of simple muscle mass. So the male had a Schrift based on sound, and this white haired female’s had a Schrift that gave her ungodly strength? Either way he couldn’t afford to stand and fight them head on. Perhaps if he hadn’t used up so much power on Fleur... but either way, it was time for a tactical withdrawal.

Guto quickly fired a set of Balas up into the sky, specially modified to burst with a pattern of specific colors, not unlike fireworks. This was a coded message that Gruff, who Guto had left in charge of the rest of his forces, would see. They were simple orders to disengage and regroup on Las Noches’ southern wall. Since Guto had troops shifting in and out of combat using Squirk’s Gargantas it would be easy for Gruff to relay the info to Squirk and coordinate the redeployment of Guto’s troops. As for Guto himself, he began to form his own Garganta right behind him. At the same time the chains springing from his back continued to drag the struggling Fleur towards him while he resumed a constant stream of Balas targeted to keep Fleetfoot and Soarin at a distance.

To their credit the pair were undaunted by the Balas, charging through the barrage in a last ditch effort to save Fleur, even as Guto stepped back into the Garganta and gripped the chains with his hands and pulled her the last few feet to the yawning portal’s entrance.

Fleur, eyes wild, wasn’t going without a fight either, and as battered and drained as she was she dredged up a final attack at Guto. As it turned out, while Guto had been dragging her towards him, she’d been gathering reishi infused wind into a focused sphere concealed in her left palm. She now slammed this sphere towards his face, hoping to blow his head clean off with the concentrated burst of air. It struck, hitting Guto on the right side of his face as he twisted away from the blow. Blood flew as Guto growled in pain, but his head remained intact, only his right eye being turned to pulp by the attack. With his remaining eye blazing in anger he gripped Fleur by the throat and pulled her into a headbutt, shattering her nose and dazing her, leaving her hanging limp.

The Garganta started to close around them, and Soarin shouted, “Fleur!” as he made a dive for the portal, firing an arrow, but it didn’t make it before the Garganta closed.

“Goddamnit!” Fleetfoot shouted, punching one fist into her palm hard enough to create a shockwave, “We got to find out where he took her!”

Soarin, looking beyond frustrated, looked towards the rest of the battlefield with a sour look pinching his features, “How?”

Fleetfoot uttered a rough curse, shrugging, “I don’t know, but we gotta do something!”

“I’m all for that, but what are we going to do while this battle’s happening?” Soarin said, voice heavy, shoulders sagged, “We’re still under orders to protect the cadets. Even if they’re falling back from the battle, we have to stick with them, just in case the enemy makes another go for the kids.”

She certainly looked as if she wanted to argue, but Fleetfoot gave a stiff nod and said, “I hate that you’re right. Dammit...”

----------

Above the western battlefront the sky was alight like it was boiling. Most of the Quincy VTOLs form Spitfire’s battalion had retreated due to the shear spiritual pressure emanating from the few elite combatants currently battling in the sky, the machines hovering half a kilometer away and providing limited fire support to the tank units on the ground.

The battle on the ground was a field of constant motion and explosions, the expert tank drivers keeping their machines mobile and encircling the Arrancar and not presenting still targets for Ceros. Already the area was a pockmarked field of smoking craters, burning wreckage, and torn bodies, but amid the chaos it was still possible to make some sense of the flow of battle.

Spitfire, even while dedicating most of her attention to her opponent, could still quickly analyze the situation down below. The tank units were holding firm, gradually stretching thin the Arrancar hordes of both Catrina’s violent little fuzz balls and Chrysalis’ uniformly dark and fanged children. The key factor was discipline. The tank units were falling back in swerving, leap frog motions, backed by well timed pushes by Quincy soldats that prevented the tanks from being overwhelmed. Meanwhile the Arrancar fought like a pack of animals. Ferocious, but without coordination. They got in each other’s own way as often as not, sometimes even devolving into fights breaking out between Catrina’s strange fuzzy servants and Chrysalis’ forces.

Then there were the one on one battles. As if by instinct Quincy and Arrancar alike were avoiding the spots where Sternritter and Espada’s were dueling. Spitfire could sense Lightning Dust, and feared for the cocksure young woman as she felt Smooze release his Zanpaktou. She didn’t think Lightning Dust would last much longer.

As if I’m one to talk, she thought with a sardonic, self recriminating grin as she narrowly avoided a series of strikes from no less than what appeared to be four different Catrina’s. There was no illusion to this, the Third Espada was just moving fast enough to literally be multiple places at once.

Spitfire was keeping up due to the boost, and nature, of her Vollstandig and Schrift.

Some religious texts referred to chariots, or wheels of fire when describing angelic beings, and if such folk saw Spitfire now they’d likely be reminded of such texts. Her ‘wings’ were the shape of a large, perfectly shaped circle of blindingly bright white fire, five meters wide. Six small vestigial wings sprouted from the edges of the wheel, each flap from them generating shimmering waves of heat. The wheel was connected to Spitfire’s back via a curtain of flames, akin to a cloak. The halo sitting atop her brow was a six pointed star of alabaster flames, extending across her brow into a visor. The bow in her hands had turned into a living inferno, and much like her halo was a star of six points, the tips of each point ending in a small wheel of fire so bright they left constant trails of phantom light in their wake.

In terms of speed her Vollstandig had most assuredly given her a significant increase, but Catrina was still faster. This was not what was allowing Spitfire to match the Third Espada. It was the fact that her Schrift, the Inferno, let Spitfire control the heat she generated with incredibly precise and deadly effect.

Even as Catrina’s multiple speed clones tried to surround Spitfire, a incandescent stream of laser-thin heat beams flashed out from Spitfire’s wings and bow, each bar of light so hot that they’d instantly melt steel. This web of incineration would have burned smooth lines through any number of other opponents, and it was only Catrina’s supreme specialization in speed that kept her from being speared through hundreds of times over in the span of mere seconds. To any casual observers of the battle it would have looked as if the sky was being torn open and boiled by constant streaks of white, fiery light, and sonic booms of sound as Catrina and Spitfire danced in intricate death dealing patterns where either one could have potentially ended the other with the slightest misstep.

Which was why Spitfire continued to crank up the intensity of her attacks, pouring more and more atom demolishing heat out from both her wheel of fire and her bow. Along with the intersecting beams, she added small spherical bombs that hung in the air like fireflies. These mines were triggered by the slightest proximity of Catrina’s Hollow reiatsu, blossoming into small suns as they exploded. Yet Catrina lithely flowed through it all, with all the grace and agility of her faintly feline features might suggest, although Spitfire noted a distinct frustration burning in the Espada’s emerald eyes.

She’s getting more and more angry she can’t hit me, despite all her speed advantage, Spitfire thought, not losing any concentration on maintaining her stream of heat beams, Which makes me wonder why she’s still holding back. I’ve got her at a stalemate for now, but if she transformed as well she’d gain the upper hand. So why isn’t she?

The answer to that question came in two parts, not that Catrina was going to tell her Quincy opponent anything. The first reason was simply that Spitfire’s impressive heat beams were coming so rapidly and with such accuracy that Catrina didn’t want to risk speaking her Zanpaktou’s release phrase. Taking the few seconds that would require might well be the opening Spitfire would need to land a telling hit, and Catrina wasn’t foolish enough to trust her Hierro against heat attacks of this level. She wasn’t Torch. Catrina, while weaker only in comparison to Lord Tirek and that hussy Chrysalis, still relied on her speed for defense. Even lower ranked Espada like Guto had stronger Hierro’s than Catrina did. For the most part she was fine with that, because her Sonido was so unmatched she rarely ever feared taking damage to her beautiful flesh. Unfortunately this Quincy was capable of such a vast volume of attacks that even Catrina had to focus to avoid the densely packed barrages.

Catrina wasn’t worried. She was confident the Quincy would run out of stamina and make a mistake before Catrina did. Which was why she didn’t feel too embarrassed about the second reason she didn’t release her Zanpaktou. Catrina, on a very personal level, hated her appearance in her Resurreccion form.

It wasn’t horrific like Smooze’s was, but Cantrina detested the way her transformed state changed her body from the sculpted beauty she was into something more... feral and altogether animalistic. She’d avoid using it at nearly any cost, if she could. But if Spitfire did push her that far then Catrina would take great pleasure in ripping her to tiny shreds with her bare claws.

But first she wanted to see if she could win in a more elegant and beautiful manner.

Just as Spitfire was increasing the intensity of her attacks, Catrina pulled out all the stops on her speed. Normally she’d have enjoyed exchanging more words of banter with her foe, but for a battle like this, at such insane momentum and deadly speed, there was no time for talk. Each passing second involved the exchange of dozens of micro-instants of near death for either of them as Catrina started moving fast enough to effectively create scores of speed clones, while at the same time Spitfire was lancing the sky with so many beams of earth melting heat that some might have confused that portion of the sky for the surface of the sun. Some of Spitfire’s heat beams speared through the speed clones rushing her, but each time the speed clone merely vanished, Catrina herself unharmed by attacks that were only striking her afterimage. In fact Catrina was letting a growing number of her speed clones fall prey to Spitfire’s attacks, forming a pattern, a rhythm, within the overall pace of the fight.

At the same time some of her speed clones struck at Spitfire with Catrina’s war fan, spinning in a constant dervish of steel around the Sternritter, who was starting to take small cuts and wounds. Which Spitfire was intending, following her own pattern, injecting her own rhythm, to draw Catrina in.

Unbeknownst to each other, the two women were thinking along the exact same lines as their attacks drew closer to each other and the beat of their battle increased into a savage tempo that both were conducting against one another.

Just a little more... Catrina thought...

...and I’ll have you right where I want you, Spitfire thought at the same time.

Faster and faster they went, streaking across the battlefield’s skyline, Catrina’s speed clones falling one after another, while Spitfire’s body started taking more and more wounds. Then, abruptly, Catrina’s speed clones halted, all of them getting torn asunder at once by beams of raw heat. To an observer it would seem as if Catrina’s multiple forms vanished to show just one left, reeling back, apparently stunned.

Eyes sharpening at the opportunity, Spitfire fired a single, focused beam of white heat from the center of her six pointed bow. The beam instantly lanced through Catrina, burrowing a ashen hole through the Espada’s chest.

Only this, too, was a speed clone, the bait on the hook that Catrina had been preparing, getting Spitfire focused so much on the idea that she was gradually overwhelming Catrina’s speed clones that she could lure the Sternritter into believing she’d exposed the real deal.

So in that moment of distraction, that moment of assumed triumph, Catrina appeared behind Spitfire and raked her war fan across the back of Sternritter’s neck. The razor sharp blades of the fan-shaped Zanpaktou tore through the slim neck, neatly severing the head from the body, and Catrina grinned widely in victory.

“What are you smiling at?”

Catrina froze, spinning around at Spitfire’s voice. The woman was standing a good distance away, wagging a finger at Catrina, “You didn’t think you were the only one with a clone technique, did you?”

Just as Catrina had been trying to lure Spitfire in with the idea of losing all those speed clones gradually, Spitfire had lured Catrina in by allowing herself to take several small injuries, convincing the Espada that she was genuinely at the extent of her ability to dodge. What Catrina didn’t count on was that Spitfire’s control of heat allowed not just for intense beams of incineration, but much more subtle forms. Including heat’s ability to create mirages, which she used to conceal the fact that she moved away while crafting a replica body out of concentrated fire.

A body that now was losing its mirage that made it look like Spitfire and was exploding in a expanding sphere of earth scorching white fire, the explosion catching Catrina at point blank range.

For a second there was too much heat and light for Spitfire to see much of anything and even she had to shield her eyes for a second against the blaze her fire clone’s explosion unleashed. However she never lost her focus on Catrina’s spiritual pressure, and knew well before the light faded that the Espada had survived the attack.

Survived, but not unscathed.

Even knowing just how fast Catrina’s Sonido was Spitfire was still surprised that the woman had managed to avoid being burnt to cinders. Catrina’s left side was scorched, much of her arm and leg on that side now showing bleeding, blackened skin, and even part of her face on the left side was left blistered and raw from the narrowly escaped bomb. Catrina made a choking noise somewhere between unimaginable rage and shocked pain, her eyes wide and twitching as she touched her face.

“You... you disgusting cow. You wretched little piece of gutter sputum! Marring this perfect body is unforgivable!”

“Perfect?” Spitfire smirked, “You’re a high eight at best. Well, closer to seven now. I’d still do you, but I wouldn’t brag about it afterward. Kind of a ‘I’m bored on a Friday’ sort of lay.”

Spitfire had to all but vanish with lightning speed to avoid a powerful and thin Cero of a dark green hue that would’ve pierced a hole straight through her if she’d been a millisecond slower. Catrina, her finger still pointed and crackling with bolts of green energy, had a furious heat filling her eyes. Her mouth was wracked in a twisted expression of rage that barred feline teeth.

“Laugh for the few moments you have left, Quincy. I was hoping to give you a beautiful death...”

Her whole body was shrouded by a fiercely flickering aura of deep emerald light, and she took her warfan and cut her palm upon its razor edge, flinging her bleeding hand out where the blood mixed with a growling swirl of gathering emerald energy.

“But now it will simply be brutal. Gran Rey Cero!” (Grand King Cero)

Space itself was distorted by the power and speed of the blinding emerald Cero that flooded the sky in a beam hundreds of meters wide that shifted and twisted through the air as it was compressed by the weight of its own spiritual pressure. Spitfire didn’t have any time to try evading an attack like this, which crossed the space to her in a literal flash. All she could do was hold her bow in front of her and try to counteract the Gran Rey Cero’s power with her own arrow of unrestrained, blinding white heat and light.

Every wing on her wheel shined like a reborn star, and the air lost all its moisture as unimaginable heat flowed through Spitfire and into her bow as she shouted, “Gottesfeuer!” (Godfire)

Aside from the clash between King Sombra and Lord Tirek, there hadn’t been an equivalent unleashing of raw destructive force on the battlefield to match what occured between Spitfire and Catrina at that moment. The Espada was using the strongest Cero technique reserved solely for Espada to use, one forbidden for them to fire while still inside the confines of Las Noches. Meanwhile Spitfire was using the strongest technique she could muster in such a short timeframe to counter, shunting all of her heat control from the Inferno and personal reishi into a focused beam of sunfire. She had stronger attacks, but all of them would have required charge time that she didn’t have.

There was no moment of struggle between the two colliding forces of spiritual energy, only an overwhelming bright light as the Gottesfeuer and Gran Grey Cero tore into each other and then intermixed, the volatile clash of Quincy and Hollow energies creating a detonation of force and heat that flattened many of the combatants fighting on the ground hundreds of feet below. The resulting shockwave of force and flame saw both Catrina and Spitfire being flung away from the epicenter in opposite directions like blazing comets, both of their bodies trailing smoke. Each one impacted with the ground at angles, gouging out large swaths of desert and resulting in both women laying in craters on either side of the western battle.

Spitfire rose first, coughing and clutching her side, where stray energy from the explosion had opened up a seeping wound.

“Note to self; trying to cancel out a giant ass beam with another giant ass beam while standing in close proximity to said beams equals a bad time,” she muttered, wincing but straightening herself out and assessing the damage. She wasn’t as bad off as she expected after tanking an explosion that size, but it helped that her Vollstandig enhanced her Blut Vene and that her Schrift made her nearly immune to heat based damage. The wounds she had were almost purely from the raw force of the explosion and the Hollow energies of the Cero.

Across the field of battle she could just make out Catrina standing up as well, the Espada looking battered and burned, but still very much mobile and if the way Catrina’s head of bright coppery red hair bristled was any indication, Spitfire had really only succeeding in making the Third Espada even more pissed off than she already was.

This just ain’t my day. Some reinforcements would be great right about now. Where in the damn hell is Hoity Toity anyway?

She hadn’t seen him since the fight had started, though that wasn’t necessarily unusual. Hoity was an expert in stealth techniques, even without the use of his Schrift, so most likely he was slinking around the battlefield taking advantage of any opportunities he could find for glory. Just would have been nice to have some backup against this damn Espada. Oh well, no point complaining. Just suck it up and keep the fight going. She could sense Lightning Dust not too far away, fully engaged with another Espada, and if the other Sternritter’s spiritual pressure was anything to gauge by the fight was either going really well, or really poorly. Either way, Lighting Dust wasn’t far off from death. Which by that girl’s standards could have been exactly what she wanted.

Either way, we can’t take much more of this. C’mon Cadence, Velvet, Sassy, hurry your asses up!

----------

Groaning as he slowly picked himself off the ground, Wind Rider dusted sand out of his graying hair and glanced bleary upwards, where the last vestiges of light and flame were dissipating from the sky.

“So was that one of ours, or one of yours, setting off nukes right above our heads?” he asked.

Smacking the side of his head to dislodge some sand from his ears, Thorax said in a quite casually conversational tone, “At a guess, I’d say both. Probably Catrina getting testy. Mother wouldn’t be so reckless as to use a Gran Rey Cero this close to her own kids.”

“You’re giving mother more credit than I would,” said Pharynx, spitting out sand.

All three of them had been slammed to the ground by the recent explosion in the air, which had caused a temporary lull in the fighting as Quincy and Arrancar alike had to collect themselves and shake off their shock. Windrider was glad for the brief reprieve, as it let him assess his troops for a brief second. Things were going better than he expected, but that wasn’t saying much. He’d been locked in combat with Thorax and Pharynx somewhere around the center of the battle, but the lines of combat had shifted somewhat an he was now left maybe a hundred or so meters from his troops’ central line, which was now shaped more or less like a horseshoe with its sides encircling the main Arrancar hordes.

“Well gentlemen, shall we get back to trying to murder each other?” Wind Rider said, taking aim with his twin pistols.

A soft sigh escaped Thorax, “That does seem to be the trendy thing to be doing today. Honestly I’d much prefer to be engaging in some pleasant debauchery, but since you Quincy decided today was a great day to start lobbing explosive ordinance at my home, I’ll have to settle for enjoying a spot of violence. Which, I’ll note, hasn’t been going well for you, Mister Wind Rider.”

Wind Rider couldn’t argue with him there. Between himself and his two foes, Wind Rider was by far the more severely injured at this point. He was favoring his right leg due to a clean sword thrust from Thorax that had struck right above the knee, while he sported a even deeper gash on his left shoulder down to his mid-chest, courtesy of Pharynx’s glaive. Compared to that the two Arrancar only sported a few bruises, burns, and light grazes from Wind Rider’s own efforts.

Hefting his glaive up in a ready stance, Pharynx spat and said, “No point talking with him, Thorax. If you’re too much of a wimp to finish things, then just stand back while I do it.”

“I was going to ask him what those pillars of light were about, but I suppose we can just get back to bloodletting, sure,” Thorax said with a shrug.

“Wouldn’t matter if you asked, he clearly can’t do it himself, otherwise he would’ve already,” Pharynx pointed out.

“We don’t know that for sure. Maybe he’s just waiting for the right moment to unleash his true power?” Thorax shot back, “You know that’s how a lot of these top fighters like to do things. Waiting for the dramatic moment to go all out. So stupid.”

Pharynx frowned, looking at his brother deadpan, “Uh, you do realize neither of us have used our Resurreccions yet, right?”

“Of course not, it's not dramatically appropriate yet!”

“...Are you being serious right now?”

“I’m always serious, brother. This is my serious face, see?”

“You’re an idiot-” Pharynx’s comeback was interrupted by the sound of multiple clinking metal objects that landed between the two brothers; a batch of grenades tossed by Wind Rider.

Multiple blasts of bright blue spirit energy rocked the area, and Thorax and Pharynx were both knocked back by the explosions, each taking some damage from the deadly detonations of reishi, but none so bad that they weren’t able to still land on their feet.

Wind Rider vanished and flickered into view between the brothers with a swift Hirenkyaku, crossing his arms to fire his pistols in both directions at the pair. Thorax and Pharynx both twirled their respective weapons to deflect the quick, stinging bullets of reishi, but Wind Rider only used this as a distraction as he quickly ceased firing with one hand and yanked out another grenade, this one of a different shape. He tossed this one straight down as he jumped into the air, and the canister burst into a thick white cloud of smoke. No normal smoke, this was a creation of Quincy alchemy that diffused spiritual energies, making it not only hard to sense reiatsu through it, but slowly weakening pure spirit beings that remained inside the smoke for long.

Coughing and sputtering, both Thorax and Pharynx rushed out of the cloud, looking up to see that Wind Rider had gained a good hundred feet on them, now standing in the air and looking down on the two brothers.

“Say boys, since you both seem to damn chatty, you want to hear a story?” Wind Rider asked, reaching into the breast pocket of his uniform.

“No,” said Pharynx.

“Kinda, yeah,” said Thorax.

“Don’t worry, won’t take long. Just thought I’d clue you two in on why I was put in the Strafbattalion.”

“That what?” Pharynx tilted his head, making a pinched, confused face.

“Oh, I know them,” said Thorax, “King Sombra’s punishment detail. You did something horrible against your fellow Quincy.”

“That’s right. Each schmuck in the battalion earned His Majesty’s displeasure in one way or another. Usually by committing a crime against another Quincy. My crime was stealing a technique from one of the Quincy’s long ago allies; the Bount. You familiar with them? Doesn’t matter, they’re nearly all dead now, but once upon a time we Quincy fought alongside them. The Bount were a interesting bunch. They could consume the souls of others to gain power and stay young. Eventually that soured our relationship with them, but personally I rather liked the idea of a quick and easy way to get stronger. So I found a way to replicate the technique and distill soul power from people. Norma humans at first, but I figured out how to do it to other Quincy, and got an even bigger power boost out of that.”

“Neat, but what’s your point?” asked Thorax.

“Glad you asked,” Wind Rider said as he withdrew something from his breast pocket, a small vial of glowing blue liquid. “You see, when I was found out, and sentenced to the Strafbattalion, I had to give up all the soul essence I’d collected. All but a couple that I managed to hide a couple of vials. I swore off ever creating more of the juice, but figured that since I had some left, I might as well save some for a rainy day. Well, shit sure is raining today boys, so bottoms up!”

As he popped the top on the vial and upended its glowing contents down his waiting gullet, Pharynx thrust his glaive upward and concentrated a vibrating Cero blast at the weapon’s tip, unleashing the beam in a bloody wave of red light. The beam crossed over where Wind Rider stood, but the Quincy had already vanished with another burst of high speed motion and as the Cero faded, Wind Rider’s body started to emit curls of steam and a pulsing aura of blue.

With grunts somewhere between pain and pleasure Wind Rider’s body shook as it underwent subtle yet clear changes. His graying hair with a receding hairline became fuller and turned to a rich, dark brown. The lines of age around his face tightened to filled out to the strong features of youth. His eyes brightened and his muscles bulged with new tone and mass, his aged body gaining the vitality of a much younger athlete. Even his voice changed, going from rugged and strained to twanging and energetic, the voice of a young man in his prime.

“Whoooboy! That’s the stuff I’m talking about! Man I missed this feeling. Mmmm, damn, soon as I’m done kicking your asses, I’m going to find me Cinch and have ourselves some quality time because damn does this put some sauce back in the old banana!”

“That was entirely more information than we needed to know,” Thorax said, crossing the distance to Wind Rider with a single swift Sonido and lashing out with an equally quick horizontal strike with his cutlass.

Wind Rider, with renewed speed and vigor, ducked the blow and thrust one his pistols past Thorax’s guard, firing point blank at the Arrancar’s exposed chin. Thorax ducked back, the bullet, which was empowered by Wind Rider’s boosted reiatsu, grazed his cheek and drew a long and bleeding gash there. Wind Rider followed this up with a incredibly fast and brutally strong snap kick, its strength increased with Blut Arterie.

The blow struck Thorax in the stomach, making him skid back across the air, but the lithe Arrancar maintained his balance and countered with a devious smile and stuck out his tongue. In a flash that tongue speared outward, moving in a blur a it tried to pierce Wind Rider. He dodged with expert timing, but still took a cut on his arm as Thorax’s tongue passed by. The tongue was hard and abrasive, like it made out of sharp thorns. Wind Rider zipped around Thorax, firing his pistols, forcing the Arrancar to evade. As he did so he still directed his now shockingly prehensile tongue to extend out further, chasing Wind Rider.

Wind Rider kept ahead of it easily enough, but Thorax had just been herding the Quincy into position. Pharynx, who’d been gathering his strength down below, now burst upwards, his body lined with violet light as he shouted a deep throated battlecry. His glaive formed a shockwave around itself as it slammed it towards Wind Rider, who’d been moving in just the right path due to Thorax’s attacks.

For a second Pharynx thought he’d made a clean hit, expecting to cut Wind Rider straight down the center. Instead what happened was that his glaive clashed into a pair of glowing blue Seele Schneider blades. In an instant Wind Rider had seen the attack coming, and whipped his pistols behind his back where bayonet rings on the bottom of each pistol attached to a waiting Seele Schinider tube. He’d then brought both blades, connected now to his pistols, and crossed them in front of him to block Pharynx’s blow. Wind Riders freshly empowered reiatsu and youth let him match the massively muscled Arrancar pound for pound.

Thorax came in from behind, leading with his spearing tongue, but Wind Rider pushed off from Pharynx’s blade and flipped out of the way of the attack. Thorax ended up next to his brother once more, squaring off with Wind Rider as he sucked his tongue back into his mouth.

“Now that’s just gross,” Wind Rider said.

Thorax shot off a cheeky grin, “But the ladies love it. Some men as well.”

“Heh, now who’s proving too much information?”

The three faced each other, slow seconds ticking by as they all tensed their bodies to resume the lethal dance of battle. Only both Quincy and Arrancar alike paused when in the distance a spectacular sight and sense of spiritual pressure became visible, not stemming from the already active battlefield, but coming from Las Noches itself.

The roof of Las Noches was blown open in several points by pillars of light, two of them the wide, white, cross-tipped pillars of activating Vollstandigs, and the third a harsh crimson pillar filled with Hollow energies. Amid those three pillars was a fourth spiritual pressure, no visible sign of it given but its spiking power clear to feel amid the others.

“Oh crap, that’s Lord Squirk’s reiatsu!” said Pharynx, his expression darkening, “The Quincy sneaked some bastards inside the fortress!”

“Not just Quincy...” Thorax breathed, licking his lips, “You feeling that? That’s a Soul Reaper. A Captain, if it feels this strong, this far away.”

“What do we do?” asked Pharynx, but before he could get an answer Wind Rider cut in with a barrage of bullets that forced both Arrancar to dodge out of the way.

“I’ll tell you boys what you’re going to do. You’re going to finish this dance with me. You don’t have time to worry about anything else!”

With that he launched himself at the pair, bayonet blades swinging. He wasn’t under the delusion he could readily or easily win against the pair. Even with his old, ill gotten power from his disgraced actions in the past he figured he’d, at best, only match these guys when they went Resurreccion. But that didn’t matter. Now that the gig was up and the assassination team had been forced to use Vollstandig, revealing their presence within Las Noches, this whole battle was a race against time.

----------

Chrysalis would have been bored if it wasn’t for the fact that she actually had to pay attention to a degree in order to keep pace with Coloratura and Sapphire Shores as the two glamorous Sternritter were doing their level best to annihilate the Second Espada. Well, as much as they could given neither one had transformed like their comrades had.

“Would it be horribly hypocritical of me to point out that neither of you seem to be taking this very seriously? Its starting to hurt my feelings,” Chrysalis said in a relaxed drawl as she casually slung a dark jade Cero beam towards Sapphire Shores that was near as strong a Catrina’s Gran Rey Cero had been, without Chrysalis putting any more effort into it than a flick of her wrist.

The devastating beam did not have its desired effect of disintegrating matter and ripping asunder the Quincy’s existence. As had every other time Chrysalis had fired an energy attack at the woman, Sapphire Shores stuck out a hand and used it to part the cascade of energy. At the point of contact Sapphires hand was glowing a blinding, incandescent blue, like a thousand blowtorches fused together. Chrysalis could both see and feel the way her Hollow energies within the Cero beam were being broken down and reassembled into harmless spirit particles that vented out behind Sapphire in an annoyingly cute and glittery stream of golden motes of light.

“Our deepest apologies, Chrysalis,” said Coloratura as she appeared above Chrysalis, fingers dancing across the glowing bars of her spectral keyboard, “But we won’t transform unless you do first. Strict orders from His Majesty. You see we’re a bit different from our... well let’s be polite and call them ‘lower tier’ Sternritter comrades. Sapphire and I are part of a special group. No transforming unless absolutely necessary.”

A painstakingly beautiful symphony of sound, far beyond what could be a achieved by a mere piano, soothingly flowed from Coloratura’s keyboard and all the sky around her rippled with waves of multicolored light. Bands of light pulsed in rhythm to the music, and even though Chrysalis knew it was coming it was still difficult to dodge as she felt the vibrations in her skin.

A spirit being’s defenses began with their reiatsu, the spiritual pressure that flowed out of them from the massive amounts of spirit energy within their soul bodies. That pressure meant that most spirit based abilities, regardless of form, had to be able to overcome that pressure in order to function. There were of course exceptions and loopholes, and most powers could still have some effect even against a superior reiatsu. Chrysalis’ personal reiatsu was rivaled by few, eclipsed by even fewer.

Today she had to begrudgingly add these two Quincy women to the list of those with enough reiatsu to affect her, although she didn’t think either one was stronger. Regardless, it was enough that Coloratura’s Schrift could penetrate Chrysalis’ Heirro entirely, and still affect her body even through the weight of her spiritual pressure.

Muscles and bones ripped and tore themselves apart as sound vibrations, minuscule but finely controlled to an insane degree, literally broke apart the bonds between particles. The result was that even as Chrysalis evaded with Sonido, the near invisible bans of sound produced by Coloratura’s playing still turned her left arm into an explosion of meat and gore.

“Ugh, really?” Chrysalis said as the ripped muscles and exposed bone pulsed and bulged, her regeneration kicking in and rapidly rebuilding her arm. “How many times are you going to do that? You’re far too slow, Rara, to get all of me with that attack. And also, do you have to be playing such wretchedly yawn inducing music? Throw in some death metal, hun. You literally rip people apart with your music, you might as well make the music match.”

She could see the irritated vein appearing on Coloratura’s brow, and Chrysalis smiled. Whether it was the nickname Chrysalis had picked out of the ether, or just having her music mocked, Coloratura was remarkably easy to rile up. The woman flipped her ridiculously long ponytail while glaring down her nose at Chrysalis, “That’s Countess to you, plebeian! You’ll appreciate my music better once its torn your very soul into screaming pieces.”

“Screaming Pieces. Now that’s the perfect name for a death metal band,” Chrysalis said, flickering in and out of view as she evaded more of Coloratura’s symphony of carnage. The only visual cue for the incoming waves of destructive sound were those shimmer bands of multi-hued light, like someone spilling watercolors across the sky. She was relying more on her Pesquisa to sense the onrushing waves of Quincy energy to time her movements. Each time some small part of her was still struck and liquefied, but her high-speed regeneration took care of the wounds as fast as they were made.

If she’d just been facing Coloratura alone, Chrysalis knew she’d have had the upper hand.

Sapphire Shores worked in perfect tandem with her partner, maneuvering into just the right position to take advantage of Chrysalis’ evasions by attacking right where Chrysalis was dodging. The silvery liquid bow that Sapphire wielded like a living stream fired bolts of the mercury-like substance high speed. The bolts snaked through the air like fingers of frost on a car window, spreading out and growing branching points that converged on Chrysalis.

Fortunately for Chrysalis, avoiding these wasn’t a much of an issue as the sound waves. They were, after all, physical bolts, despite their unusual properties. Instead of evading them, which would’ve slowed her down and made it easier for Coloratura to hit her, Chrysalis swung her Zanpaktou at Sapphire Shore’s liquid arrows. Each swing created a raw shockwave of physical force that dispersed or deflecting the branching arrows of silver liquid, creating openings for Chrysalis to fly through.

She knew she couldn’t afford to get even one of those liquid arrows on her. Just to confirm it to herself again she fired a quick, focused Cero at an arrow that’d gotten past her sword’s shockwave, and saw the arrow alter the Cero’s energy upon impact, dispersing the power into inert blue reishi particles.

Whatever the details behind Sapphire Shore’s Schrift, it clearly let her and her arrows disperse or alter spirit energy upon contact. Chrysalis wasn’t sure of the extent of it, but she had a guess, and if she was right then it made sense that Sombra sent these two specifically after her.

The loudmouth Countess’ sound powers can inflict quick and devastating injuries, which isn’t an issue as long as I have my wonderful regenerative prowess. Meanwhile the flashy one has a power that disrupts or alters spirit energies. Which means if she lands a hit, she might be able to disrupt my regeneration. Either one alone would be annoying, but the pair combined is a neat little ‘anti-Chrysalis’ package. Oh Sombra, you really do know how to show a lady a good time.

Yet despite this realization, Chrysalis was not worried for her life. If anything she was simply more excited. She enjoyed a challenge. It made toying with people so much more fun when they thought they were the ones in control. Besides, Chrysalis hadn’t even begun to fight back seriously, and had been preparing a little surprise for her two dance partners.

As she’d been taking and regenerating injuries from Coloratura’s murderous chords, Chrysalis had been leaving quite a few bits of blood and viscera floating about in the air, and neither Sternritter had quite picked upon on the fact that blood globs weren’t supposed to float. Sending out sparks of her power to those bits of floating material, Chrysalis activated one of her more unique powers as she grinned like a malicious shadow.

”Nacimiento Sanguinario.”

The bits of blood were wrapped in a blood red aura as they pulsated and bubbled with new growth, increasing in size numerous times over in a the span of a couple of seconds. Vague humanoid bodies took shape as jagged, clawed limbs exploded out of thin bodies so skeletal the ribs could easily be seen past the onyx black chitin of their skin. Faces halfway between a human’s and a fierce insectoid let out inhuman howls as several dozen blood drones were born and launched themselves towards Coloratura and Sapphire Shores both, while Chrysalis looked on like a proud parent.

These creatures were not like her other children, and were little more than barely conscious constructs formed rapidly from her own flesh. Even the basic drones in her army had more will and individual personality. And these things were certainly nothing like her precious true borns, like Thorax and Pharynx, and even little Ocelus. All these creatures were, were highly disposable yet deadly extensions of Chrysalis’ will. If she’d wanted to and had time she could have invested more power and independent personality into them, but that wasn’t needed here.

The blood drones moved with impressive speed for being such simple constructs, and both Sapphire Shores and Coloratura clearly hadn’t been expecting to suddenly be set upon by dozens of vicious creatures wielding long, scything talons. Yet each Sternritter reacted with incredible speed and calm acumen, not allowing themselves to be taken off guard.

With an elegant backflip that showed off just how limber and long legged she was, Sapphire shores swept her bow around and hammered eight or nine blood drones in a flash, liquid arrows splattering through the drones. Upon contact the silver liquid seemed to instantly spread through each drone, breaking its body down into a screaming mass of incandescent reishi particles.

Coloratura responded to her assailants with equal ferocity and lack of pity, fingers twirling across her keyboard with a smooth dance of motion, Coloratura’s body swaying both head and hips in rhythm to her beat. Like spilled wine on a tablecloth a wave of prismatic light spread out around Coloratura, expanding out in a sphere of vibrating sound as her symphony reached a high strung, screeching crescendo. The blood drones that had flown to assault her all started to shudder and pop like mites caught in an active microwave, bursts of blood raining from the sky.

Just like that most of Chrysalis’ drones had been destroyed, but that was alright by her. She only needed the Sternritter to take their eyes off her for that one, brief moment.

Catrina might have had the fastest Sonido, but if there was a spot for second place on that list, Chrysalis probably owned it. Tirek was more of a ‘offense as defense’ kind of guy, so Chrysalis would have placed herself as even a shade faster than him. Not that she’d ever make that claim to his face.

Even before the first drops of blood from her massacred blood drones started to properly fall, Chrysalis was appearing behind Coloratura. Her sword slashed out so fast it even parted several blood droplets just as gravity was starting to take hold on them. Coloratura sensed the attack coming, miraculously, and managed to pull an impressive move halfway between a bending dodge and a dance move as she spun away from the attack. Even so the raw force of Chrysalis’ strike turned into a cutting shockwave that still lacerated a painful line of red across Coloratura’s left shoulder, staining the woman’s uniform with blood. Impressively, Coloratura didn’t flinch or hesitate, her fingers blurring over her keyboard as her eyes narrowed with anger and focus.

Yet Chrysalis had seized the momentum, and fully intended to keep it. She moved with such speed that the sound waves that cut through the air where she had been barely reached her before Chrysalis was already above Coloratura, one long, smooth leg extending upwards above her head in a near even split before she brought her heel down in a punishing kick that tore the air as it came down.

Unable to dodge in time, Coloratura barely got her arms up to block, veins pulsing red with Blut Vene. The kick struck full force and with a cracking of the sound barrier sent Coloratura catapulting earthward.

Coloratura recovered with speed and aplomb, flipping several times before controlling her fall with her feet grinding against the air with controlled reishi. Her long fingers slammed hard, harsh notes over her keyboard, her face twisted with a violent smile as sh sent a shuddering wall of sound up towards Chrysalis, making the air itself appear to bend and ripple.

With a wry half-grin Chrysalis charged an overpowering Cero in her outstretched palm and sent it cascading down. The wave of jade power ripped through the destructive field of sound and continued towards Coloratura, but Sapphire Shores appeared in front of her fellow Sternritter, bow aimed skyward, and fired a literal river of silver liquid up like a massive geyser. Appearing from the geyser were the leaping shapes of dolphins, riding the stream as it collided with Chrysalis’ Cero.

The liquid silver dolphins swam through the Cero blast and ate parts of it, morel like hungry giant piranha than smiling dolphins. As the strange reishi constructs ate the Cero they grew fatter and larger, until about a dozen big rounded dolphins of liquid silver floated lazily in the air. Chrysalis looked at them with a deadpan expression.

“Well, I think I’ve just about seen everything now.”

Then the dolphins opened up their bottle-nosed mouths and proceeded to belch back her own Cero energy at her in a barrage of swift jade beams. Chrysalis didn’t try to dodge, simply swinging her sword and using the pure shockwaves of her swings to turn these smaller versions of her own Cero aside.

Apparently having expended themselves, the dolphins lost shape and melted into streams of silver that returned to Sapphire Shore’s bow, and she glanced at Coloratura, who’s shoulder wound was still bleeding profusely.

“You quite alright there, Coloratura?”

With a sniff and another toss of her hair Coloratura turned her nose up and said, “A scratch such as this doesn’t even register to me as an injury.”

“Still, its not like you to get struck in the first place. Perhaps you should step back and let me handle matters from here,” Sapphire said, eyes gleaming as she pointedly eyed Chrysalis.

“As if I’d like let you take the glory for yourself. We kill her together, or not at all!”

“Pfft, so stubborn. I’m only concerned for your health. Whatever would I do if you lost that pretty head of yours? I’d have no one left to tease except Night Light.”

Chrysalis cleared her throat loudly, “If you two are having a lover’s quarrel, I can literally find a million other things to do with my time than watch. At least if its going to be tame like this. Get to some clothes ripping and some slapping going on and I’ll stick around.”

Sapphire Shores and Coloratura exchanged looks with each other, then looked at Chrysalis, then back to each other, both of them wearing the flat expressions of a pair of women who were quite fed up.

“It really is a shame we can’t use our Vollstandigs just yet, but perhaps its time to more thoroughly combine our talents?” Sapphire Shores said, and Coloratura nodded.

“Yes, you are the only partner who can create a worthy performance with me, so let us give our snarky friend here a show. Just don’t miss any steps Sapphire, and this time let me lead.”

“Oh, if you insist...”

Chrysalis raised a curious eyebrow as both women took up individual poses back to back with each other as if they were a pair of pop stars about to take the stage.

Which wasn’t that far off from the truth.

Sapphire Shores raised her bow, which shifted into a swirling pool of silver liquid that started to expand above them.

“Sapphire Shores, Sternritter Q, the Quintessence.”

Coloratura played a swift and upbeat melody upon her keyboard, a building set of uplifting notes growing into a stronger set of chords as the two women rose up through an expanding field of silver that was now taking the shape of a large square stage above them.

“Countess Coloratura, Sternritter O, the Octave.”

As they dipped up through the stage it itself grew more defined features, including large ornate speakers containing complex carvings of waves and dolphins, a massive lighting system covering the back half of the stage with disco-ball shaped lights that glittered like stardust, and a raising central dais with multiple steps from which emerged a silver sphere. This sphere opened up and out stepped Sapphire Shores, now wielding a long handled gleaming silver microphone in place of her bow. Coloratura remained at the sphere, which continued to open until it transformed into a full, three hundred and sixty degree keyboard.

Both women were wearing augmented versions of their uniforms with significantly more glitz and more revealing elements.

Chrysalis had no idea what in the name of Hell itself was going on, but she felt that Sapphire Shores’ and Coloratura’s reiatsu had somehow been combined. This was no transformation like what the other Sternritter had undergone, but rather a manner in which these two women had fused the power of their bows and Schrifts together to generate this ridiculous looking stage construct.

“Are you prepared, Chrysalis?” asked Sapphire Shores on her microphone, her voice amplified to new heights, “To experience a once in a lifetime performance?”

“Because it will be the last of your pathetic existence!” said Coloratura, spinning with elegant grace as her fingers lit upon the keyboard around her, creating the beginning of a fast, powerful beat of sound that shook the very air, “We play this funeral march just for you!”

Sapphire and Coloratura spoke as one, their voices intermingling.”

”Todesrhapsodie!” (Death Rhapsody)

As the pair began to play their literally soul crushing music, Sapphire Shores’ voice rising in song like a mad angel and Coloratura’s hands wracking her keyboard with a demon’s intensity, the stage itself lit up and disgorged a legion of destruction towards Chrysalis. Every speaker flowed with rings of silvery sound that tore through the air, while every light fixture and disco-ball started to flood the sky with a riot of painfully bright silver beams, arrows, and streams of liquid that practically burst with dolphins. All to the tune of some unholy mixture of techno-pop and hard metal.

Seeing this coming at her, all Chrysalis did was pinch the bridge of her nose, sigh, and say, “I miss Celestia and Luna.”

-----------

Thundering through the air with the constant, furious swings of an out of control helicopter blade, Lightning Dust spun through limb after oozing skeletal limb that rose from Smooze’s undulating body of horrific dark goo and shifting Hollow parts. Her boomerang shone with multiple jets of blue reishi that kept her moving like a top, hacking down twisting arms and claws that grasped for her with ever greater speed and frequency. It was as if for every limb she severed, two or three more rose with echoing screams from the mass of filth coating a near football field long pool beneath Lightning Dust.

She was coughing and sputtering, her lungs burning with mucus as disease spread through her, her blood feeling as if it was boiling and her body drenching itself in sweat. Yet none of it slowed her down, and in fact Lightning Dust only got faster and faster the closer her body came to death’s doorstep, her strikes getting stronger by the second.

Smooze protected his central body, the large bulbous head with its many shifting eyes and cavernous mouth, by raising entire entwined masses of limbs from the slime around him, so any time Lightning Dust made a run for his head she was stopped short by a wall of grasping talons and claws. She had more than just the sharp, slashing limbs to worry about too, as each one was a conduit for Smooze’s spirit energy and as some arms struck at her physically, others appeared like turrets and fired sickly purple Cero beams that bled fragments of goop as they flew at her.

Lightning Dust wove through these beams, evading most of them, but still getting grazed several times by near hits that still managed to melt parts of her uniform and burn her skin and turn parts of it putrid with sores. Lightning Dust wasn’t thinking on a conscious, tactical level anymore. She was functioning on pure combat instinct and the sheer, overwhelming buzz of her adrenaline rush. No matter how much her body hurt, it just didn’t matter to her. She was alive, every nerve in her body drenched in fiery, lovely adrenaline. Lightning Dust was so utterly high on her own rush that despite the fact that her body was slowly being worn away by disease didn’t even register to her as a problem. All she could feel was the thunderous crash of her own heartbeat and the need to destroy her opponent.

She just needed an opening. Whacking all these limbs was getting her nowhere. She flung her boomerang in a spiral arc that streaked like a cobalt cleaver around Smooze, circling him and annihilating dozens of his limbs at once before it returned to her, but more limbs started to rise from the ooze below even as the other severed limbs were still falling.

“Grrrr!” Lightning Dust growled, quite fed up. She wasn’t a thinking kind of fighter. She was a kicking ass kind of fighter, and if this Smooze guy wanted to keep playing defense on her to try to wear her own, well... she’d just have to stop playing his game.

Her boomerang lit up with more reishi jets and she blasted in towards Smooze’s main body, flying straight for the bulbous, goop coated head. Its many dozens of eyes all made sicking squelching sounds as they focused on her, and Smooze’s void-like cave of a mouth opened in what might have been a raspy, wet laugh. Limb after white skeletal limb shot up and entwined, forming a wall between her and his head, but unlike every other time where she backed off, this time Lightning Dust charged right into the wall and started spinning away. Like a living buzzsaw she started chewing through the barrier of limbs.

Behind her others limbs rose and shot towards her, but she didn’t stop spinning. Some were chopped apart by her constant spinning attacks, but others reached through and tore at her flesh, cutting deep bloody lines on her back, arms, and legs. Yet despite the wounds Lightning Dust didn't’ back down and certainly didn’t slow down. Instead she just got faster as more of her blood was shed. There was a moment where several limbs tried to grasp her arms to halt her spinning attacks, but whether by intention or luck that was the moment Lightning Dust broke through the limb wall in front of her and spun right towards Smooze’s head.

She aimed her boomerang for the center of his head, at the large central eye that stared at her with its wide, vieny expanse. She thought she would burst right through, but just before she reached the eye something stopped her with a cold, hard feeling right in her gut.

She looked down to see that a long spur of bone had impaled her through the gut, a spur that had shot out from Smooze’s mouth like the tongue of a frog.

Smooze’s central eye narrowed slightly, purple and black slime dripping down it like an eyelid. His voice echoed with nauseating, dripping echoes from the back of that cavernous throat.

“So eager to die. So stupid. Value your own life more. Too late now, mad, mad Quincy woman.”

The spur started to retract, pulling Lighting Dust into the shadowy mouth as if it was about to chomp down on her. Just as she entered its threshold, Lightning Dust’s hand shot up and grasped the spur, her body gleaming with a rising aura of gold and blue light.

“You’re right, dumbass, it is too late. For you. ‘Cause I don’t think you’re gonna dodge this.”

At the moment her body hit a terminal point in terms of damage, that was when the Daredevil reached its peak power. It was the moment, just when she was about to die, where Lightning Dust could use her full power and her strongest technique.

Her hand crushed the bone spur, and she ripped it free of her body in a spray of blood. She gripped both halves of her boomerang and yanked, tearing it in half. As she did so, each half of the boomerang grew in size and bent, each one becoming an individual boomerang, leaving Lightning Dust wielding one in each hand. Additional vents opened up along both sides of the twin boomerangs, and became an eye blinding pair of light beacons as a massive amount of spirit energy erupted from those vents.

”Glanz des Ruhms!” (Blaze of Glory)

Lightning Dust and her twin boomerangs spun, doing so with such speed and force that a literal slashing tornado of destructive reishi was born around her.

She did this while still inside Smooze’s mouth.

To an outside observer it would look as if Smooze’s many eyes all bulged across his body at once as fiery streams of blue light shot out of his mouth, then started breaking through every part of his shifting mass of an oozing head. Then that head exploded, the black and purple bits of filthy slime being consumed by a sudden, colossal pillar of swirling blue reishi that resembled nothing more than a flaming tornado that shot up into the sky for hundreds of meters. The size and force of the twisting pillar of energy was so great that most of Smooze’s body and the large pool of slime he’d created was blown away, sent flying in sizzling goblets for kilometers.

After about twenty seconds the huge swirling burst of reishi subsided, leaving a large crater where Smooze used to be.

From the sky fell Lightning Dust, her body slamming into the ground in the center of the crater in a broken heap. She was pale and blood drenched, the hole in her gut seeping her life blood into the sand.

Lightning Dust could feel her heartbeat slowing and her body growing numb and cold. Her eyes flickered open slightly, looking up at the dark sky above, and Hueco Mundo’s silver crescent moon. Not the ideal spot to die, but she wasn’t bummed out about it. This was fine. This is what she’d wanted. To fight, and feel the rush, until the fire burned its brightest... then went out.

She sighed, letting out what she figured was going to be her last breath.

Then she felt a spike of rather annoying pain, and the sensation of a hand on her shoulder.

“Glugh...gaaah! That...that hurts...dammit...” she turned her head, trying to spot her tormentor.

Hoity Toity knelt by her side, one gray hand on her shoulder, the hand glowing slightly as he used his Schrift upon her. Lightning Dust could feel the strange, alien sensation of Hoity Toity’s power, the Xenomorph, fiddling around with her insides. Being able to change the properties of what he touched let him do a lot of things, and she’d heard this extended to restoring injuries or even curing diseases.

“You... asshole...” she said.

“My, my, is that the way to address someone who’s helping you?” Hoity Toity said, giving her an amusing half smile, “I’d think the appropriate response should be ‘thank you’, or ‘I’m ever so grateful’. I’d even accept stubborn silence in lieu of actual appreciating. Perhaps I should alter your voice box to make you silent while I treat you?”

“Ugh...sunuva...bitch. You ruined...it.”

“What, your death? I knew you were somewhat unhinged, but I didn’t imagine you were actually that crazy. Perhaps the poor late, Tenth Espada was right to call you a madwoman.”

Lightning Dust grunted, “Ain’t...the point. Just would’ve been... perfect, y’know? Don’t wanna die old. This would’ve been a good way to go.”

“Well, His Majesty doesn’t appreciate losing servants unnecessarily, and I could use the brownie points, so you’ll just have to suffer through me saving your life,” Hoity Toity said, “Although you are quite the mess, so you’re quite out of the rest of the battle. I’ll do enough to keep you from dying, but don’t expect to do much else other than lay there for awhile. Even upon our return home I imagine you’ll be enjoying some time in a full body cast drinking through a straw.”

“Piss...off. Sound like freakin’...Spitfire.”

Hoity Toity took his hand from her shoulder, apparently having finished what healing he could, and adjusted the sunglasses he wore, “Speaking of which, it seems our dear Academy Mistress is having trouble with the Third Espada. I’d best go render her some assistance. Try not to move. I don’t enjoy putting together the same people twice in one day.”

With that he vanished with a high speed Hirenkyaku, leaving Lightning Dust to lay there and contemplate whether she ought to ignore him and try crawling out of the crater, or just lay back and take a nap, because either way she was done for this battle.

Author's Notes:

Hydia - "What is this crap!? Where's my scene!? Are you going to deprive the audience of seeing more of my sexy self?"

Rutherford - "I am agreeing with stupid toad faced Espada. This is clear author bias that you no show our amazing battle!"

Look, guys, I get it, I didn't have time to get to you two this time. I was kinda strapped for time and already a week late due to Smooze apparently somehow infecting me from beyond space time with yet another cold. I promise I'll get to you... eventually.

Hydia = "Eventually!? What's that supposed to mean?"

Well, you know, we're reaching the endgame of this arc, and a lot of important stuff is happening inside Las Noches, so I don't know if I should halt that to show you two fighting when, let's be honest, you two aren't exactly the most plot critical element-

Rutherford - "I am exceedingly plot critical!... What does plot critical mean?"

Hydia = "He's saying we're not important, Ruthy-boy. He's saying we're side characters. Bit players. Side shows."

H-hey, c'mon, you two are super...uh... important to the story. You're just, um, not directly important at this very second. Look, how about this, if I don't get to you guys this arc, I promise to give you a real nice one-on-one battle in a future arc. You might even get to fight one of the main characters.

Rutherford - "We get to fight protagonist?"

Maybe? Or at least one of the protagonist's friends.

Hydia - "Oh, make it that Rarity chick and I'll be good. You can skip over me as much as you want long as I get a crack at her down the road."

What'd Rarity ever do to you?

Hydia - "Nothing at all, but I see how thing're developing between her and that Blueblood fella, so I'm thinking if I fight her, he'll show up to save the day, then I'll be able to...heheheh..."

The look on your face is scaring me, but okay, I'll think about it. Now can I please get back to some proper author notes?

Hydia - "Hey, this was your stupid idea anyway, boy. We're just figments of your imagination. Its not like we control what you're doing."

...I sometimes wonder about that. Well, anyway, uh...

Hey everyone, sorry for being a week late on this update, but as I said, my body chose this month as the month to be consistently sick, so I've spent the past couple of weeks dealing with a serious headcold and being in a constant Nyquil daze. Don't mind the above insanity, that's just sort of what it's like in my head at times. Not sure if this is true of every writer, but at times my characters seem to take on a mind of their own. Besides I did feel kinda bad about leaving Hydia and Rutherford out of the action, but I really was kind of strapped for time. They might just have to wait for another day to shine, because things are about to seriously heat up inside Las Noches, and we're fast approaching the climax of this arc.

At any rate, hope you're all still enjoying the story and my most sincere thanks for continuing to read. I appreciate any and all comments, critiques, or questions you guys might have, so don't hesitate to let me know what you think! 'Till next time!

Episode 80: Anomaly

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Episode 80: Anomaly

“Do I really need to point out that this is blatant overkill!?” cried Squirk as he scuttled away from a rain of floral pink arrows that peppered the ground he’d just been standing on. So far running was all he was able to do with one pissed off Sternritter, a Soul Reaper Captain, and two more lower ranked Soul Reapers chasing him like hungry teenagers going after the last slice of pizza in the box.

“You brought this fate upon yourself,” Cadence said, zipping ahead of him, her wrist crossbow flaring with more arrows that Squirk literally threw himself to the side like a cannonball to dodge. “Quit running and surrender to it, and I promise to make it painless.”

“You suck at negotiations!” Squirk shouted, running like a bat out of hell with swift steps of Sonido, only to find a curtain wall of shadows stretching out into his path. “Grraah!”

He flailed backwards as Luna emerged from the shadows, scythes in hand, a ribbon of dark blue speed as her black, curved blades descended towards Squirk. He only barley evaded, and even then he couldn’t fully match Luna’s speed and took two bloody cuts across his lobster red chest. He grunted in pain and flung his harpoon forward. The weapon flew towards Luna, but she easily flickered out of the way with a Flash Step. A small tie of red energy connected Squirk to his harpoon and he flicked his fingers to direct it towards where Luna appeared a few meters next to him, but she easily vanished from the weapon’s path and came at him again.

However a fusillade of pink arrows diverted Luna away and the Soul Reaper Captain shot a faint glare at Cadence, “I already told you I need this one for Soul Society, Cadence. The Quincy can slake their vengeance elsewhere.”

“And I told you, dear Luna, that my mission doesn’t end until this one dies. I appreciate your openness in telling me your mission, but it doesn’t change that for the moment we’re at cross purposes.”

Luna shook her head, returning her attention to Squirk, “That’s unfortunate, but changes nothing about what I must do.”

“Oooooh, you gonna take that guff from a Soul Reaper, Quincy?” Squirk said, retrieving his harpoon and pointing a finger between Cadence and Luna. Cadence rolled her eyes, her wrist crossbow flaring with wafts of pink light as she collected reishi for a fresh burst of arrows.

“Don’t bother. I may not let Luna capture you, but I’m not going to fight her long enough to let you escape through a Garganta.”

“Well it was worth trying,” Squirk grunted, his frustration mounting at just how screwed he seemed to be. Grogar was still busy with that other Sternritter, and Squirk didn’t have time to create a Garganta big enough to escape through without exposing himself to a killing blow. He could still create small ones to use as defensive portals, which was helping keep him alive, but that was it. He needed a way to get out of the open! He’d been trying to run for one of the entrances to Smooze’s Warrens, because down in that maze he could possibly lose some of his pursuers long enough to get a full Garganta going, but so far they’d blocked him.

Bad enough he had a Sternritter and Soul Reaper Captain on his ass, but the Captain had brought along a pair of extra irritations!

”Coil tightly; Shibaru Hebi.” (Binding Serpent)

The Soul Reaper with the magenta skin and bearing a Lieutenant’s badge on her arm appeared behind Squirk, her Zanpaktou transforming from a short tanto form in a wash of blue light to become a coiled length of thick white leather; a whip that was tipped with a wicked looking steel barb. She grinned with an almost too friendly flash of teeth before snapping the whip towards Squirk, the steel barb glinting.

At the same time her partner, the dark blue skinned fellow, appeared at Squirk’s other side, his own Zanpaktou already transformed into a straight bladed set of arm claws, slashing for Squirk’s legs. Through neither were Captain-level, they both moved with surprisingly fast Flash Steps that made Squirk think the pair had been especially trained for speed. Regardless he was still able to create a pair of small Garganta portals to place in the way of those attacks, and although it forced the male with the claw bladed Zanpaktou to leap back, the female with the whip Zanpaktou twisted her wrist and the whip moved like a living thin, snaking around the portal and striking at Squirk with its barbed tip.

He used his left hand to bat the barb aside, but flinched as his hand made contact. The blade itself didn’t penetrate, or even really scratch his Hierro, but his hand felt oddly numb anyway, as if some kind of anesthetic had been administered. No doubt part of her Zanpaktou’s power.

“This is ridiculous. All this effort to kill me, and I haven’t even killed any Soul Reapers lately!”

“Strictly speaking we’re just here to capture you,” said the magenta female, winking, “So be a good boy and give up and we’ll protect you from the big bad Quincy.”

“Although we will still be taking you to our R&D department for study,” said the male.

“Nocturn, you don’t have to tell him that!”

“Oh, sorry Cheerilee. Um...” Nocturn blinked at Squirk, then said, “You probably won’t be dissected. Much.”

Cheerilee slapped her forehead, “Well now he won’t come quietly, will he?”

“I don’t think he was going to anyway.”

Cadence cleared her throat politely and turned a sardonic glance towards Luna, “Your subordinates... they’re quite relaxed, aren’t they?”

Luna was sporting a stone masked frown, “I don’t necessarily encourage it.”

To this Cadence offered an apologetic smile, “Well, don’t take this personally Luna, but I really can’t accept any more interference. Time is precious, at the moment, so...”

Cadence vanished in a burst of speed, and Luna tracked her motion, vanishing as well with a swift Flash Step to keep pace with the Sternritter. Cadence started to unleash a series of arrows in short bursts, first at Squirk, which Luna quickly deflected with one scythe while trying to cut the Espada’s legs out from under him with her other scythe. He leaped back from the strike with a yelp, taking shallow cuts that, while painful, didn’t disable his legs. Still, Luna’s scythe treated his Hierro like paper, and it only reinforced the idea in Squirk’s mind that this group being here for his head was straight up overkill, and he cursed his foul luck while he struggled to think of a way out of this predicament.

While he had dodged back, Cadence’s barrages had continued, only these ones were aimed at Cheerilee and Nocturn. Both were just barely fast enough to dodge, but it soon became clear that was only because Cadence hadn’t been aiming to strike them. Instead she’d been aiming her arrows to pepper the sands in a heart-shaped pattern, and with a wink and a mock gesture of blowing a kiss, Cadence fired two arrows, one into the center of each heart shaped pattern.

“Liebe Dunst!” (Love Haze)

The heart patterns of arrows lit up with rose pink light and then burst into rapidly expanding clouds of equally pink gas that quickly engulfed both Soul Reapers. The pair coughed and sputtered, moving out of the cloud with swift Flash Steps, but the gas had already been inhaled and Cadence smiled as she spoke to them.

“Listen carefully my dears, it’d most please me if you two would fight each other.”

There was a brief second of confusion and resistance on both Cheerilee and Nocturn’s faces as they struggled against the influence of the Lust. When distributed using the Liebe Dunst the power of Cadence’ Schrift was reduced, but it could spread over a wider area. A Captain like Luna or even a lower ranked Espada such as Squirk wouldn’t likely have trouble resitting the gas, but a Lieutenant or lower ranked Soul Reaper like Cheerilee and Nocturn were much more vulnerable to even a diluted version of the Lust.

Within a few seconds Nocturn and Cheerilee’s eyes clouded over and with adoring looks on their faces they obeyed Cadence’s command and faced each other, Zanpaktou at the ready. As they both moved to strike, Luna flickered into view between them, her scythes whirling in a powerful arc and striking away both combatant's Zanpaktou. As she did so her feet also moved in a blur, snapping out two expertly timed kicks to both her subordinates stomachs, knocking them back from each other. Luna sent a darkly sharp glare towards Cadence.

“This is a low blow, Cadence.”

“I’m sure they won’t hurt each other too badly as long as you chaperone them,” Cadence replied with a curt but apologetic tone, then immediately turned and streaked towards Squirk, who’d been edging away from the gas cloud. Luna swore under her breath. She couldn’t afford to leave her two subordinates alone under the influence of Cadence’s Lust, which would lose her precious moments while Cadence would be free to engage Squirk.

That being the case, Luna didn’t waste a single instant. While Cadence assaulted Squirk with more stinging flurries of pink arrows, any one of which carried the lethally controlling power of the Lust within it, and Squirk desperately sought to guard himself with hastily formed Garganta portals, Luna focused on subduing her enthralled comrades.

Both Cheerilee and Nocturn were slowly getting up, their Lust hazed eyes still locked on each other, minds clouded with the order to battle one another. Luna Flash Stepped behind Nocturn and swept his legs out from under him, toppling him to the ground once again. She then instantly stepped on his one arm, pinning it, and him along with it, while she gestured with one scythe towards Cheerilee.

“Bakudo Number Sixty One: Rikujokoro.”

The six flat panes of intense yellow light summoned by the Kido slammed into place around Cheerilee’s mid-section just as she’d been about to send her whip flying towards Nocturn. The Kido left Cheerilee thoroughly paralyzed, and would remain for quite some time or until Luna released the Kido. Nocturn was struggling under her foot, but Luna’s physical strength readily eclipsed that of her Third Seat officer. With a swift, practiced motion she knelt down and set a scythe aside just long enough to strike a precise point at the back of Nocturn’s head. He would be out for only a few minutes, but long enough for Luna to deal with Squirk and Cadence.

Grabbing up her scythe once more she cast her attention back to her target. Squirk was struggling against Cadence, trying desperately to get any kind of offense going by hurling his harpoon at the Sternritter while directing with with harsh hand gestures. At the same time he kept summoning small Garganta to absorb the swift pink streaks of arrows that rained down on him. Cadence kept the pressure up, not giving him any time to grow a larger portal he could escape through, and Luna noted that amid her barrages of arrows she’d been constructing several more heart shaped patterns on the ground around Squirk.

It was possible if she created enough of the Liebe Dunst it’d affect even an Espada. Even if it didn’t affect him fully, it might slow him down enough for Cadence to land a hit with one of her arrows. If that happened, she’d likely have him, and be able to kill Squirk at her leisure.

Luna rushed forward, her shadow shivering like a waking beast and expanding in an ink stained tide around her. If she could entrap Squrik in her shadows, she could subdue him while keeping Cadence away, but she had to move swiftly. Fortunately speed was Luna’s key strength.

Squirk barley saw her coming, eyes widening as shadows flowed around him and Luna’s body all but disappeared from the Espada’s senses as her speed took her up and over him. The Garganta portals he was using as shields made her strike difficult, her scythes having to move at awkward angles to pass by the hastily male holes in reality, but she struck a severe blow on Squirk’s right arm, causing him to snarl in pain and lash out with a hastily thrown Cero. Luna saw it coming and had little difficulty maneuvering out of the way, but it did force her back for a moment. A moment long enough for Cadence to finish her last heart pattern in the sand and unleash the triggering arrows.

In a bright glow of pink the gas appeared, swirling out in its choking embrace. Luna held her breath, focusing upon the shadows she’d gathered underneath Squirk while she’d been striking at him. All she had to do was open up her shadows and let them rise up around him. Even with the gas trapped inside, as long as Cadence remained outside the shadows, Luna ought to have enough time to disable Squirk.

Squirk, however, had no intention of going silently, and as Luna focused a rising a wall of grasping shadows around him, and Cadence paused for her gas to take effect, the Ninth Espada started to panic and grew desperate. He’d avoided doing this earlier because he’d wanted to flee into the Warrens, and his body would be too large to do that if he release Zanpaktou, but with shadows creeping up around him and horrible mind controlling gas surrounding him, he was utterly out of options. In that moment it was easy to cover up his fear with a growing, seething feeling of hate for this people who’d come to kill him, along with this entire damnable war! Damn the Quincy for being such vengeful pricks! Damn Tirek for letting this war drag on forever! And while he was at it, damn his own foolish self for ever thinking this Espada gig was a good idea! He could have carved out a comfortable little kingdom for himself out in the far deserts of Hueco Mundo, like some of those Privaron Espada. With his Gargantas he could have easily fled any attackers and stayed safe. But no, he’d wanted to have the high life of eating as many souls as he wanted and the prestige of being an Espada. Fat lot of good that was doing him now that he had a Sternritter and Soul Reaper Captain on his ass!

Well, he wasn’t going down quietly or easily, that was for damn sure!

”Boil over; Odio!” (Hatred)

His harpoon began to hiss and steam, its metal coating over with bubbling boils of melting metal. It then burst in a coating of melted iron that flared red hot and covered Squirk’s body as it started to emit a towering column of raw, crimson reiatsu. The column shot up into Las Noches’ false sky, impacting with the roof in a manner that made it look as if the blue sky was cracking like an eggshell.

Luna looked on with a frown curving her dark lips. She’d wanted to deal with this quickly, but this would complicate matters. Hopefully the battle outside Las Noches was so intense that it would take them time to notice what was transpiring within, or at least take them some time to send reinforcements. In the meantime she readied her scythes. Squirk’s unleashed reiatsu was enough to create a powerful swirl of wind that was sweeping away Cadence’s pink gas, but it was also pushing back Luna’s shadows. She’d have to wait until the transformation was complete before bringing the shadows back into play.

Cadence apparently had been thinking along similar lines Luna had, not desiring to let this battle last too long either. She and her team had been instructed to avoid using Vollstandig unless it was absolutely necessary. As things stood, this situation applied, far as she was concerned.

“Sassy,” she spoke into the small communications device in her ear, “We’re out of options. Go all out.”

Sassy’s reply was strained, and Cadence could only imagine the difficulties her friend might have been having against Grogar.

“Don’t need to tell me twice. Ugh, this ruffian is proving rather difficult.”

“Hold out as long as you can. I’ll finish our target as fast as possible,” Cadence replied, feeling a moment of even deeper concern. Where was Velvet? Why was it taking her so long to deal with whatever was in that tower?

She shoved aside her worries and took off her right glove, revealing the silver embossed Quincy cross embedded into the darker glove beneath. Luna saw the gesture, and had a moment to wonder what Cadence was about to do, when the Sternritter was utterly engulfed in a blinding pillar of white light that shot up into the air just as high as the crimson pillar from Squirk.

Luna blinked, then blinked again as a second pillar of light emerged from where she’d sensed Cadence’s Sternritter companion fighting another Espada.

What in the name of the Spirit Queen is this? Luna wondered, feeling the surge of reiatsu from Cadence. Was this a Letzt Stil? No, the glove looked different than the reports on the Letzt Stil transformation. The Quincy have been hiding a nasty surprise, it seems, she thought, and realized that besides capturing Squirk, it was now also important for her to return to Soul Society and report this development.

By now the liquid metal surrounding Squirk had boiled up with bubbling pops, billowing out clouds of steam alongside its pulsing aura of red spirit energy. But as the aura of red tapered off the mass of metallic liquid gained new shape and definition, cooling off until it took on the more traditional white, bone-like consistency common to Hollows.

A hulking body about twelve feet tall possessed a curved, hunched back consisting of a thick shell sporting three rows of conical spikes. Two large, segmented arms of white shell ended in huge pincers, snapping in clacking spasms and edged sharply as any blade. A sprouting of thick, powerful legs, six in total, supported the body like thick trunks of white bamboo. Then within the front of the large crustacean body, Squirk was embedded like a living statue up to his torso, his body below the waist fused to the larger whole, and his head merged with the tip of the shell into the shape of a pointed helmet. His own arms had become smaller versions of the large pincers, snapping in rhythm to their larger cousins.

Squirk let out a breath that released small plumes of steam, eyes starring heated daggers at Luna and Cadence both.

Cadence emerged from her own pillar of light on scintillating wings of pulsating white and pink gossamer, shaped in the wide, elegant curves of a monarch butterfly. Patterns of hypnotic light darted in mind numbing patterns across the wings, painful yet enticing to look at all at once. Around her head glowed a halo of crystalline blue, shaped into a heart. White, crystalline armor coated her chest in a fine breastplate, and her arms and legs in segmented greaves with faint traces of the same butterfly patterns from her wings. Her wrist mounted crossbow remained unchanged in shape, but now bore the same blue crystal composition as her armor.

The unmitigated ire didn’t leave Squirk’s eyes as he looked upon Cadence, “Cute wings.”

“Nice...” Cadence paused, a small smirk touching her lips, “Crab shell.”

A small moment of heavy silence fell between the three, thick with ready violence. Then all three moved at once, snapping into motion.

Luna swept one scythe out, creating a line of swirling shadows that spun across the sands towards Squirk. Cadence’s wings flared with saturated, bleeding neon color and emitted a pair of spiral shaped prismatic beams.

Squirk raised his two larger pincers and opened them, and upon doing so Garganta portals snapped open along with the pincers, the gaping dark maws as wide as the pincers could open. At the same instant Squirk began the slow process of forming a larger enough Garganta for him to escape through behind his now large body. It started as a thin black line that gradually started to creep wider. Meanwhile the Garganta portals formed by his pincers did something wholly different than any of his previous portals; they started to suck in air at high speed as if they led to a total vacuum.

This was a property of his Resurrection, allowing him to create special spaces within specific Garganta portals formed by his pincers. In this case opening them into a void-like sub dimension, similar to the ones made by Caja Negaccion, only larger and existing as vacuums that would create a suction effect outside the portal.

He shoved the two portals into the paths of Luna’s advancing shadows and Cadence’s beams, letting the Gargantas absorb the attacks. At the same time smaller Garganta portals opened up a meter above the apex of each conical spike on the back of his shell. Identical portals then opened up in sphere-like patterns around both Luna and Cadence. Then each cone shaped spike generated a Cero beam at their tip and fired them into the portals hanging above them, instantly transferring the destructive beams through their counterpart portals surrounding Squirk’s two foes.

The beams converged in a pair of earth shaking explosions that sent pillars of sand flying dozens of meters upward, yet neither Luna or Cadence were struck. Both had used superior speed to fly out of the trap of beams, Cadence in a bursting streak of multi-colored light, and Luna all but vanishing from Squirk’s senses for an instant. He grunted as he felt pain on his left arm, seeing a shallow cut on the pincer as Luna flickered by, a cloak of shadows trailing behind her.

He turned his massive body towards her, but had to pause as light shone down from above and Cadence’s wings ran with pulsing lines of line that hurt Squirk’s eyes and started to numb his mind. He could feel Cadence’s power pushing at the edges of his brain, the mere sight of her pulsating wings now creating a low-key infection of the Lust, hypnotic and dizzying to look upon. He growled in heated frustration and hate as he flung a pincer upwards, opening it along with its Garganta portal, and doubled the suction power, trying to pull the Sternritter in.

She stubbornly stayed airborne, but fluttered unevenly in the sudden wind pulling her towards Squirk. Her wrist mounted crystal bow aimed and created a blue crystal arrow, with a pulsing core of pink energy. She fired it and Squirk assumed it’d go into the Garganta portal, just like those spiral beams had, but this time the arrow seemed to move like a self-aware thing, bobbing around his portal in a insect buzz. It flew towards his face but he used one of his smaller pincers to block the arrow, slapping it out of the air... only to find the crystal shatter and unleash pink gas, just like the Liebe Dunst, right onto his face.

He resisted the urge to let out a string of non-family friendly language and instead wisely held his breath as the gas stung his eyes, but wasn’t breathed in. He turned away from Cadence with surprising speed for his bulk. The armor of his shell was like an enhanced Hierro, and could resist plenty of punishment. He was willing to bet on it resisting her arrows or beams, at least for a moment, while he focused on where Luna had gone.

The Soul Reaper had gone for his main Garganta portal that he’d been opening for himself. She stood before it, and had summoned up a wall of writhing shadows to wrap around the portal. When one got down to brass tacks both Squirk’s Garganta portals and Luna’s shadows were powers formed from their spirit energy, so they could interact with and interfere with one another. It was just of question of which was stronger.

In his released form, his reiatsu should have been stronger. Strictly speaking, it was, but by nowhere near as large a margin as he would have liked. Luna’s shadows could slow the progress of his Garganta, but not stop it. Which still put him at a disadvantage, since he could already tell that he was out of his league here. Cadence’s reiatsu had shot up considerably, and he couldn’t hold his breath forever. And this damnable Soul Reaper Captain hadn’t even used her Bankai yet and was still giving him trouble!

Squirk knew without a doubt he was finished unless he either got incredibly lucky, or help arrived.

----------

Adagio crept up to the edge of the exit to the Warrens and peered outside into Las Noche’s harshly lit interior desert landscape. It hadn’t taken any refined sense with her Pesquisa to feel the massive amounts of reiatsu flowing over the area like the currents of earthquakes releasing tidal waves through the ocean.

Behind her Ember knelt and peeked around the corner of the wall as well, wearing a troubled frown.

“Adagio, that’s a Soul Reaper.”

“I can see that.”

“And another Quincy Sternritter.”

“I can see that,” Adagio mumbled, eyes narrowing in rapid, concentrated thought. She'd somewhat expected a situation like this to develop, but not quite like this. One of those Sternritter gunning after Squirk made sense, but the Soul Reapers being here was a wild card she hadn't counted on.

Not more than a couple hundred meters away she could see a titanic struggle taking place. She assumed the giant crab-like form currently hammering the ground in front of a wall of shadows encircling what looked like a Garganta portal had to be Squirk. She assumed the fast, flitting shape that was avoiding Squirk’s pincer blows was the Soul Reaper. This was the first time she’d really felt a Soul Reaper’s reiatsu. It was a rigid and oppressive feeling, like touching a concrete wall, or the hard wood of a coffin. It didn’t have the cold, acrid taste of Quincy reiatsu, but it still felt distinctly unpleasant to Adagio’s senses.

Not to mention sharply powerful, like her finger had cut itself on the edge of a knife. This Soul Reaper was powerful. As strong as the Quincy Sternritter that was raining crystal arrows upon Squirk’s shell, filling the air with pink gas. It was hard to tell if this Sternritter was stronger than Prim Hemline, but Adagio could see the light of the Quincy’s wings and knew she’d activated the same transformation Prim had.

Adagio knew without a doubt that she and Ember didn’t stand a chance in a stand up fight, even if they joined forces with Squirk.

Well, let’s not give them a stand up fight, she thought ruefully. She and Ember had just one purpose here, and that was to ensure Squirk’s death.

Perhaps that meant they wouldn't have to do anything at all and the Quincy or Soul Reaper would do the job for her. She accounted for that possibility when she'd imagined only one Sternritter would be present to target Squirk. In that situation teaming up with him to eliminate the Sternritter, then finishing him off when he dropped his guard, would have been the most sensible plan. With the Soul Reapers here, that made things significantly more difficult. Not to mention she could sense other Quincy in the area, though she felt Grogar nearby as well, so he must have been fighting one of them. The other Quincy rieatsu was more distant and hard to pinpoint, so Adagio wasn't certain where that one was. Given the situation it made sense to wait and see if Squirk would be eliminated, sparring her the trouble... but if Squirk managed to escape through one of his portals, then that’d be a serious problem. There'd be no guarantee of being able to find him again. A plan started to take shape in her mind as Ember tapped her shoulder.

“Any ideas on what our play is going to be?” asked Ember, and Adagio nodded, grip tightening on her trident.

“I’m thinking.”

“We could just wait and see how the fight turns out,” Ember pointed out.

“Already thought that myself, but if Squirk runs away through a Garganta, we won’t be able to track him down again quickly.”

Ember grimaced, “Good point. So what do we do?”

The pieces of the plan fell into place in her mind, haphazard but workable. It wasn’t as if she had a lot of time to rethink things or second guess herself. Success or failure, it’d all ride on how well she could adapt and how lucky she was on tossing the dice. There were too many variables, too many ways things could go wrong, to let worry and doubt force her to inaction. Do or die, Adagio had to move forward.

She explained the plan to Ember. Ember looked incredulous, but nodded, willing to follow Adagio’s lead. It wasn’t like Ember had any better ideas herself. Quietly the two readied themselves, and moved out from the tunnel exit.

----------

Twilight paced the room, her limbs filled with agitated, restless energy. This felt far too much like when she’d been stuck in her room back home while Canterlot City had been under attack, not sure if her friends were alive or dead. Now she was stuck in another room, unable to help, unable to do anything, wondering if a different set of newly forged friends were okay, or at that very moment being killed by Hollows.

Unbidden scenes of death floated across her mind. The torn apart and ravaged bodies of cadets from the attack on the Academy. Hacksaw’s face, filled with fear as the Cero erased her. Indigo’s legs, torn away in a spray of red.

Twilight shivered, clutching herself while taking several deep breaths. Within her mind she heard Midnight speak in a distracted but chiding tone.

Will you relax? I’m trying to examine something in here and all this mental disturbance is rocking the metaphysical boat quite a bit.

A moment of uncharacteristic snark and partially manic irritation boiled up inside Twilight, “Oh I’m sorry, I’m just a little freaked out by watching people die right in front of me!”

It's not like you knew any of them. You barely said two words to that Hacksaw girl.

“That doesn’t mean I wanted to see her get disintegrated!” Twilight said with a sharp, acid edge of panic touching her tone. On some level she knew Midnight was at least partially correct. While she’d been a part of the battle she’d been able to focus on the fight at hand, and even when talking with Adagio she’d at least had the conversation as a distraction. Now that she was by herself, with only her troubled thoughts and a near sociopathic alter-ego for company, the stress and mental wounds of seeing so much death and destruction was pressing in on her like a vice.

She tried to take a few calming breaths, but they came out more like half-born sobs. “I didn’t know her, but I didn’t want to see the look on her face as she died, Midnight. I didn’t want any of this...”

Correction, you didn’t want it to be this bad. You still chose to join the Quincy and be a part of their war. This is just the natural result of that decision. You need to accept it and adapt. How many more deaths are you expecting to see before this is over? Not just this battle, but the whole war?

Midnight’s voice was cool, calm, collected. Utterly practical. Yet there was a faint strain there. Why? Was Midnight more affected by this than she was showing, or was the strain due to whatever it was she was ‘examining’? Twilight took another shuddering breath and sat down on the room’s bed, holding her face in her hands.

“I know. I know. I have to... deal with this. I will deal with this. It’s just hard. I can’t think straight right now. I wish I had some kind of problem to focus on. Something to keep me from thinking about the way Indigo’s legs just... flopped on the ground like that, like they were just pieces of meat.”

Her gorge rose, and Twilight struggled not to vomit. She felt a warm energy spread through her as Midnight’s voice sighed, the magic seeming to stead Twilight’s mind almost like a drug.

Easy there little miss weak stomach. I can reduce the nausea, but I can’t make your mental issues vanish for you, so please try to get your head in order. Like I said, I’m kind of busy at the moment.

“Busy doing what?” Twilight asked, closing her eyes and trying to empty her head of all the horrible thoughts and images of war and death scratching at her. Perhaps just talking with Midnight might help. Something, anything else to focus on.

Examining something. I told you that already.

“Yes, but what are you examining?” Twilight pressed, feeling slightly better as her curiosity was piqued. Granted she was also concerned. What could be diverting Midnight’s attention like this?

After a moment of pause that Twilight felt held a sense of hesitation from Midnight’s end, the alter-ego said, Come to the mirror. I’ll show you. Easier than just explaining it.

Considering this to be a far better way to spend her time than continuing to let her mind remained trapped in the murky spiral of dwelling upon the carnage she’d witnessed, Twilight rose from the bed and quickly padded over to the room’s single, tall standing mirror. For just a bare moment she saw her own haggard, dust stained reflection staring back at her, but soon that image wavered and faded like mist clearing out by a stiff breeze.

In her place within the mirror stood Midnight Sparkle in all her dark, scantily clad glory, but the alter-ego wasn’t wearing the usual haughty, self-assured look Twilight was used to but instead had a quizzical and even pensive look on her features.

I don’t know what it is yet, but have a look...

Midnight stood aside and gestured to something to her left. Twilight could see the mirror was showing an image of the same endless starscape that seemed to make up a portion of her inner mind. Only now she could see numerous glowing pathways of light crossing among those stars and the spaces between, some swooping in elegantly curved patterns of bright teal magic, while others moved in sharp geometric angles of light blue spirit energy, her Quincy powers. And at several points these patterns of light intersected, merging into gleaming stars of blue and teal light, pulsing as one. Only there was a small cluster of these stars that weren’t pulsing, but instead were still with a gloom of shadow wrapping around them. Only two or three out of the large multitude, but enough to darken a portion of the inner world.

And at the center of that cluster was... a box? It was a pure cube shape, pitch black in color, its dimensions no larger than Twilight’s fist. It sat motionless in space, yet the gloom that covered some of the nearby stars of energy seemed to be emanating from that box.

“What... is it?” Twilight asked with apprehension coating her tongue.

I told you; I don’t know, Midnight replied sharply, annoyance heating her voice, That’s why I’m examining it. I have no clue what it is, and I didn’t notice it until just a short time ago during your battle with that moronic Gilda woman.

Twilight blinked at that, trying to think over the fight with Gilda and if there’d been anything unusual about it. Musingly she said, scratching her chin, “I remember you said something about sensing something off after the battle. That was the first time we put the Hexenfaust through a true combat situation. Furthermore we utilized far more magic than we have at any point prior to the Friendship Games. Could any of that be the catalyst for this anomaly?”

Midnight paused as she turned towards the cube and the mirror’s image showed Midnight moving to hover around the object, her hands held near it as if Midnight was trying to feel it at a distance. Dark violet eyes narrowed in thought.

I doubt either the Hexenfaust or our increased magic use is the direct cause of this, but it is why I noticed it. It was reacting to my... our magic. Or maybe a more accurate to put it is that our magic revealed it, like a light can reveal an object hidden in shadow. I’m thinking that when I let you use more of our magic, the pathways through us that both our magic and your Quincy powers passed through hit this spot and got snagged.

“Snagged? You mean this anomaly is blocking both our magic and my Quincy abilities?”

Eh, poor choice of words. Truth is I don’t know what this is or what it’s doing, only that this particular portion of our metaphysical landscape can’t be passed by any energy, be it magic or spirit energy. It's like this cube is a total null-space. However, here’s a concerning tidbit; this thing was reacting to your mental state.

Twilight felt a cold tingle in her spin as she gulped, “Um, how so?”

Midnight met her eyes with a flat look, The more upset you were getting, the more I sensed a vibration from the cube.

Well, that wasn’t creepy at all, was it? Twilight took a calming breath to try to stifle a moment of rising worry, and adjusted her glasses as she looked at the cube more closely. It was such a small, innocuous thing, but the idea that this little black cube was hanging inside her mind, or soul, or whatever her metaphysical landscape represented left Twilight feeling distinctly chilled. “Keep calm; check. Can you tell me anything else about it?”

Not much, sadly. So far all I’ve been able to determine for sure is that this isn’t a recent addition. This thing has been here for awhile... Midnight hesitated, frowning deeper, Possibly since you were born.

Concern; rising. “H-how can you be so sure?”

Hold the stammers, they make us both look bad. As for how I know that, I’ve had plenty of time to get a good look around our spiritual and mental insides, as it were. I’ve gotten familiar with telling the difference between, say, old memories or new memories, or how old, faded emotions feel compared to fresher, intense emotions. Everything in here sort of has a sense of its age, of how long its been in here to leave its own metaphysical imprint. This cube’s imprint is old. As old as your earliest memories or emotional influences. That means it either appeared in your infancy, or at birth. Or...

“Or...?” Twilight asked pressingly.

Or its older than that. As in, given what we know of the cycle of life and death, this is from a previous life your soul lived, either in the living world or afterlife.

Now that was a notion Twilight hadn’t even considered, and wasn’t sure if it made her less nervous, or more nervous. Doing her best to still her unease she said, “Okay, so putting that unsettling bit of information aside, can you confirm if it's actively doing anything besides vibrating when I get emotionally distressed?”

Midnight gave a dainty shrug, Near as I can tell it isn’t doing anything other than just sitting here, taking up space. I haven’t been able to penetrate the cube with my senses to see what’s inside, if there even is anything inside. Rest assured I intend to keep a close eye on this. I don’t like surprises, and given this is as much my soul and mind as it is yours, I don’t like the idea of leaving this mystery unanswered. As for you, I suggest you just try to stay calm, don’t think about death, blood, and battle, and just concentrate on staying alive until this mess blows over. Then maybe consider asking your Quincy King what he might know about this.

That wasn’t a terrible idea. Sombra had been pretty open with her so far, and if anyone was likely to know what this strange anomaly might be, it would probably be him. Unless he was the one who’d put it there in the first place, and didn’t want her to know about it?

Midnight gave her a vixenish grin, eyes gleaming, Suspecting tall, dark, and handsome are we? And here I thought you were a lost cause and would trust anybody.

“I... I do want to trust him,” Twilight protested, “And who said anything about him being handsome?”

Your lack of self awareness depresses me. All I’m saying is that its good that you’re not totally trusting the man and realize he might be behind this strange cube. Keep that mistrust close in the coming days, Twilight, or we both might end up paying the price.

“I don’t know if I want to live my life mistrusting everyone around me,” Twilight whispered, and Midnight let out a dark chuckle.

Says the girl with assassins trying to kill her.

Before Twilight could respond to that, she froze. She’d just heard voices from outside the door. Distant, but rapidly getting louder, along with heavy footsteps. Hadn’t Adagio said this place would be empty!? Trying to stifle her panic and think clearly, Twilight looked around the room for a hiding place. She couldn’t be certain whoever was out in the hall was coming to this room specifically, but she wasn’t going to take any chances.

There were really only two possibilities, either the armoire or the bed. She imagined the armoire would be full of clothes and tough to fit inside, but the bed was ludicrously large (way larger than Adagio should need, Twilight thought), and it should be easy to hide under. As silly and juvenile as it seemed, a hiding spot was a hiding spot, and Twilight quickly scrambled to the bed and slipped under it. Just in time, it turned out, because the door swung open just as Twilight managed to pull herself fully beneath the bed.

“Shit should we be doing this, man!?” came a rough, panicked, but young male voice.

“I don’t know! I don’t know! Where else are we supposed to take him!? Oh crap, that’s a lot of blood! Dumbbelll! Hey, man, can you hear me still!?” this voice was higher pitched than the other, but still sounded like it came from a young man.

“Du...dude... stop yelling... freakin’ hurts... my head,” this voice was as young as the other two, but was spoken in a weak, slow tone of someone either incredibly tired, or near death’s door.

Twilight’s nose wrinkled as she smelled blood, and her eyes widened as she saw blood dripping on the pale stone floor as three pairs of feet crossed the room, two walking, one being dragged weakly between them.

“Dammit! Boss lady ain’t here yet! What do we do Hoops!? He’s dying!”

“Sh-shut up, Score! I’m thinking! Arrgh, I don’t know! This wasn’t supposed to happen!”

“Gu...guys, just put me... down. It’s okay.”

“Dude, like hell it is! You’re bleeding out!”

“And that’s...fine... got what we needed for...for Adagio. That’s all that matters... now put me down.”

There was a moment’s pause, followed by a sharply barked curse from one of the uninjured, or at least less injured young men, and they went to the table and sat their friend down into the chair. Twilight remained silent and still as a frozen mouse under the bed, but her mind was racing like an out of control speed boat.

She didn’t know who any of these three were, but it was obvious the injured one, Dumbbell, was wounded to the point that he may very well have been dying. Clearly neither of his companions had the remotest medical knowledge, and had clearly been hoping against hope that Adagio might be here to render some kind of aid. Now it seemed like all they could do was stand there and watch their companion bleed out. Twilight couldn’t see the extent of his wounds from her position, but she could see the blood trickling down his legs and seeping onto the floor.

Twilight was hardly a medical expert, but she wasn’t wholly bereft of medical knowledge either. Being the bright, knowledge hungry young woman she was, she’d devoured all sorts of information over the course of her studies. The medical fields weren’t of particular interest to her, but she had a strong grasp of biology and had taken courses on both basic and emergency first aid. She’d even perused more than a few of the more complex books on medicine and surgery when she’d gotten bored during those long, agonizing summer months when school was out.

Which didn’t mean she could claim to be a doctor or even a passable medic, but it sure meant she knew more about medical treatment than anyone else in the room right now, possibly enough to save this Dumbbell’s life.

Midnight’s voice hissed across her mind, Don’t even think about it! They’re the enemy. If we reveal ourselves, they’ll try to kill us!

Gathering her courage, Twilight spoke back in her mind, They might. Or they might not, if we use Adagio’s name. Midnight, he’s dying. I might be able to-

To WHAT!? Get us killed over some stupid, useless Hollow we don’t even know!? What guarantee do you even have that you can save him? We’ve never treated injuries before in our life!

That’s not true. We’ve treated cuts on Spike when he’s gotten hurt playing.

Oh, yeah, sure, totally the same thing, right? I think this Arrancar might need a bit more than a band-aid and some Neosporin! Which, in case you haven’t noticed, we don’t even have that much in the way of medical supplies. How do you plan to help him, kiss the wounds better!?

Twilight took a quiet, deep breath, and mentally shoved back against the sensation of Midnight in her head, and put a hardness into her mental tone she wasn’t fully aware she’d been capable of, I’m doing this Midnight. Either help, or get out of the way... but I’m through with watching people die in front of me.

With that, she rolled out from under the bed and stood in a slow and hopefully non-threatening motion, holding her hands up, palms out, in a peaceful gesture.

The two standing Arrancar whirled towards her, surprise and fear in their eyes as they tore swords from their sheaths and bared them at her. The third didn’t move much, given his condition, but blinked in shock at her sudden appearance. Twilight took in their appearances at a glance. They looked like they couldn’t be any older than she was, although with Hollows that didn’t mean much. They didn’t look like much, one a tall orange fellow with thick brown hair covering his eyes, another short and gray colored with wavy black hair. The injured one was browned skinned, at least where it wasn’t stained red with blood or bruised purple, and his creme colored hair fell over a face that was burned red across its left half, his remaining features twisted in pain. The rest of his body wasn’t in much better condition, his right shoulder swollen from an impact that must have broken bones, and blood still seeping from a pair of deep cuts that tore ragged valleys through his left arm. Also, Twilight was fairly certain his right knee was dislocated, if not outright crushed. But the worst wound was a deep puncture in his right side, just above the abdomen, which seeped dark red blood in a slow stream. An injury like that might not kill immediately, but without treatment he’d likely die within twenty four hours or so. Twilight couldn’t come close to properly treating that wound, or even half of what she was seeing, but she could render enough basic first aid that maybe he’d live long enough for someone with more power or skill to help.

That would have to wait for a moment, given his two standing companions looked like they were about to either panic, attack her, or panic then attack her.

“Holy crap, a Quincy!? How did they get inside!?” sputtered the tall orange one, Hoops she guessed,.

“How should I know!?” shot back the short gray one, Score, “J-just kill her!”

Knowing her next sentence could be the difference between being able to help or having to fight for her life, Twilight spoke fast, and with confidence she certainly wasn’t feeling. “Adagio sent me. I’m here to help.”

Well, she’d been right that using Adagio’s name would have an affect. All three Arrancar looked at her with incredulous shock, the injured one, Dumbbell, coughing and grimacing in pain as he leveled himself up a bit from where he’d been slumping in the chair his friends had dumped him in.

“H-how do you know the boss lady’s name?”

Technically speaking I could have heard it while eavesdropping on you guys while under the bed, Twilight thought, but it didn’t look like any of these three were super bright. That might work to her advantage, or not, depending on whether they would jump to the wrong conclusions. Putting on a smile she hoped was easing, but much more likely came off as horrifically awkward, she said, “I’m helping her with, uh, spy stuff.”

“Spy stuff?” Dumbbell said with a wince as he raised an eyebrow.

“Yup, spy stuff. You know, I tell her stuff, she, uh, helps me with things in return. She told me to hide out here until the battle was over,” Twilight said, and mentally muttered , And didn’t mention anyone showing up while she was gone. Putting that thought aside, she went on to say, “I hid because I didn’t know who might be coming in here. Adagio mentioned having, um, servants, but not that they’d come into her room.”

Looks passed between the three young men. With a sudden sound of fear, Hoops said, “Crap, forgot we’re not supposed to go into her room. She’s gonna be so mad at us.”

“Ugh, whatever, it's an emergency and we needed to find her,” said Score with a worried look, peering at Twilight suspiciously, “And how do we know you’re not lying?”

Twilight was quick to say, “If I was really meaning to harm any of you, why would I show myself at all? I could’ve kept hiding and either stayed safe, or ambushed you.”

“She’s got a...a point...” said Dumbbell, his one good eye looking at Twilight with a measuring gaze, “But why’s a Quincy helping...ugh... helping Adagio in the first place?”

“Would it be okay if I left it at ‘it’s complicated’?”

He gazed at her, then a tired look passed his face as he smiled in resignation, “Yeah... complicated fits her. I buy it, Quincy spy. So... why show yourself?”

No deception this time, Twilight’s voice just rang with simple sincerity, “I want to help you. I know a bit about medicine, and while I can’t heal your wounds, but I might be able to do enough to keep you alive until somebody better can look at you.”

“You’d do that?” he asked, and his two companions both looked even more nervous.

“Dude, Dumbbell, I don’t know that we should trust her! She’s a Quincy,” said the short one.

“Yeah, this is weird,” said Hoops, “Like, freaky to the next level kind of weird. Quincy don’t help our kind, they kill us.”

“So, geniuses, why ain’t she... she killing us right now?” asked Dumbbell, to which his two companions looked at each in baffled silence, not having an answer to that. Dumbbell coughed again, settling back into his chair, and looked at Twilight, “Alright, Quincy, if you’re gonna try and, ugh... do something, better get to it... before there’s nothing left to heal.”

A second passed where Twilight looked to see if the other two might object more, but they seemed beyond bewildered by the turn of events at this point and were both slowly lowering their swords. With a relieved breath she nodded and said, “I need clean water and any kind of clean, absorbent fabric you have. Towels, bed sheets, doesn’t matter as long as its clean. If you have anything remotely resembling a medical kit in some closet somewhere, that’d be fantastic.”

Score and Hoops both blinked, pointing at each other, “You talking to us?”

Twilight looked at them frankly, “Yes, who else? Your friend can’t move and I don’t know where anything is around here. Water. Towels. Medical supplies. Alcohol if you have it. Quickly!”

Hoops gulped and glanced at Score with a nervous, thinking twitch of his brow, “I, uh, think we took some stuff like that for the stash. And didn’t you snag something with one of them first aid symbols from the department store?”

“I dunno! We’ll have to look.”

“Well get looking!” Twilight said, a bit more snappy than she’d intended and she managed to nod politely and add, “Please. Anything you can find will be helpful.”

As the pair scrambled from the room to get searching for what Twilight asked for she approached Dumbbell and started to more carefully examine his wounds. As she did so he coughed again and glanced down at her with a curious look, his voice weak but mirror his eye’s curiosity.

“So seriously... why are you doing this? Not... not that I’m complaining... but even of your helping Adagio for whatever reason, that’s...guh... that’s got nothing to do with us. Kinda risky to... to just reveal yourself, not knowing if my pals would’ve... ganked you before you got a chance to say anything.”

Frowning in daunted consternation at how much worse the injuries looked up close, and realizing she had quite the uphill struggle here, she just glanced up at him and said, “Does it really matter why somebody helps you? Even if it’s for selfish reasons, you’re still getting more help than if that person chose to ignore you.”

At that he let out a pained, ragged laugh, “Heh...hah... that’s true, I guess. Stupid question...”

She didn’t say more on the matter, but as she started making a mental list of what she’d need to do to stop his bleeding and treat the wounds as best she could, she realized that his question did have some merit to it. Her motivations weren’t entirely pure, here. She didn’t want to watch people get hurt, suffer, and die anymore, but at the same time she was going to continue to be part of a war that’d all but guarantee more death and suffering would occur. It was a contradiction she couldn’t quite figure out how to resolve. Perhaps she was selfishly motivated here, helping Dumbbell only to make herself feel better and take her mind off of both thinking about the battle, and the disturbing discovering of the strange anomaly inside her.

But regardless of motivation, she’d chosen a course, and she was going to stick with it... and pray to whoever was listening that things didn’t get any worse.

----------

The explosion of reishi, scattering arrows like shards of glass, tore off the upper right spider leg of Roka’s Resurreccion, shedding a fresh spray of blood onto the sands. A pained half-scream tore itself form Roka’s already bloodied lips, but her eyes narrowed in determined defiance as she bounded to the right with a swift pair of Sonidos and tried to trap Velvet in a fresh spawning of razor sharp threads and needles that burst from her two remaining spider legs on her left side. By now both right ones were missing, and her silken clothes were bled from white to red by spatterings of blood from half a dozen arrow impacts.

Scores of needles flew through the air in glittering arcs, thread sharp enough to cut through stone weaving a deadly web around Twilight Velvet.

The Quincy, expression heavy as lead, just shook her head and with speed well surpassing Roka’s vanished from the center of the web before the threads got within an inch of touching her. The threads tore through the sands where Velvet had stood, cutting sharp paths dozens of meters long. Roka, focusing all of her senses as acutely as possible, tried to track Velvet’s movement. She barely saw a streak of white before the Quincy Sternritter was at her side, ramming the butt of her massive arbalest into Roka’s gut in a blow that sent the Arrancar girl reeling.

Yet Roka didn’t drop, spitting blood and planting her feet with a resolved cry, raising her hands in front of her and gathering the deep red sphere of a charged Cero.

Velvet watched, seeing the needles and threads expand from Roka’s spider legs once more. The needles dipped into the Cero sphere, gathering portions of it until the sphere was broken into dozens of smaller spheres, then they shot out at her in a wide pattern forming a large web of cutting red beams.

“Cero Tejedor!” (Cero Weaver) Roka’s voice was nearly lost amid the high pitched buzz of the altered Cero beams, whose size and complex patterns vaguely reminded Velvet of the laser security systems from some spy movie, only these were cutting lethal lines through the ground as the web rushed her.

Velvet sighed. This had gone well beyond what she expected to deal with, and she could sense Cadence and Sassy Saddles needed her help. Things couldn’t be going well if both of her comrades had resorted to Vollstandig. Velvet didn’t need to do the same here. Truth be told, she could have killed Roka within the first exchange of attacks, even after the young Arrancar woman had activated her Resurreccion.

It was just that Velvet was facing a conundrum she’d never expected to find herself in. She didn’t want to kill a Hollow. It was preposterous and utterly without precedent for her, but it was true nonetheless. In fact, the more Roka fought on, doggedly determined to protect her family against overwhelming odds, Velvet couldn’t help but find herself respecting this young lady.

Which was annoying because it was remarkably hard to kill someone you respected. Killing Hollows was usually a no-brainer, as for the longest time they were nothing to Velvet but savage monsters. Roka was nothing like any Hollow she’d encountered. Not in terms of power, of course, but in terms of the strength of her character? Velvet had never met a Hollow that had courage, integrity, or the smallest care for anyone other than themselves.

It presented a problem. She needed Roka out of the way to at least finish capturing Sunset Shimmer, or “Fenice” as she seemed to think herself now. She’d been trying to disable the girl, but Roka was showing quite a bit of resilience, despite several injuries that should have been crippling by now. It was looking like the only way to get Roka to stop was to kill her.

This has dragged on too long already, Velvet thought sadly as she bent and twisted her body in swift, dancing motions, evading the dense web of Cero beams projected by Roka’s needles.

She’d just have to hit Roka hard enough to put her down for good, and hope that it wouldn’t utterly destroy this strange Arrancar girl that Velvet, begrudgingly, had to admit she was starting to like.

To Roka’s credit, Velvet had to concentrate for several seconds on simply evading the complex weave of thin Cero beams that cascaded around her in an ever swirling and changing web, leaving dozens of scorched lines in the sand. Such an attack would’ve devastated a platoon of soldats and might have even given some of the weaker Sternritter trouble, but Velvet moved through the forest of beams like a hummingbird, zipping through narrow gaps and openings with easy contortions of her body.

With a final burst of speed faster than the wind itself, Velvet appeared through the dense maze of Cero beams, directly in front of a surprised Roka. Velvet gave the girl a grim, unhappy look as she shoved the barrel of her arbalest against Roka’s chest. There wasn’t time to convey anything in words, only to do what needed doing, but in Velvet’s mind she said, I hope you survive this, but if not... sorry.

There were numerous ways she could modify the reishi blasts fired by her arbalest. Her most common technique was the shotgun effect of arrows bursting out in either a wide arc, or flying out in all directions. It was good for clearing out large numbers of foes, or overwhelming a single opponent with difficult to dodge attacks. In this case such a technique would lack the precision Velvet desired, so she altered the reishi so that it would explode in a concentrated form, rather than bursting into a swarm of arrows. When she pulled the trigger, her arbalest fired a single, compact sphere into Roka’s chest.

The sphere impacted like a literal cannonball, carrying the shocked Arrancar in a short, high speed flight straight into the wall of the tower, where it proceeded to explode in a small but highly focused sphere of powerful blue white light.

“R-Roka!”

Velvet glanced to her right, where she could see that shark faced Hollow struggling to stand, trying to prop himself up on his sword. His whole body was shaking from his injuries, and Velvet noted that what looked like an older wound from before this fight had opened up across his gut, oozing blood.

The ground shook as the large dinosaur-like Hollow with the shark faced weirdo also tried to stand again, growling deep, but even as it got its feet under it the beast’s body trembled from its own wounds. Velvet didn’t sense anywhere near enough reiatsu from either one to consider them a threat and kept her attention focused on where her explosion was fading. She needed to confirm that Roka was out of the fight, one way or another.

As the smoke and dust slowly wafted away from the spot where Roka had been slammed into the tower, Velvet saw a shadow form emerge. Roka took one shaking step, then another. Her body was scorched, her clothing in tatters, with blood flowing from a deep wound in her chest where the reishi blast had hit. Of her two remaining spider legs on her back, the lower one was snapped in half, and the top one twitched, twisted at an awkward angle.

Velvet’s eyes narrowed, somewhat glad Roka had survived, but prepared to hit her with another such attack if the Arrancar girl so much as lifted a finger to continue the fight.

It turned out that wouldn’t be necessary. Roka took one more step on shaking feet, her whole body trembling, her eyes unfocused, but filled with equal measures of despair and sorrow. Her mouth worked silently as she tried to turn towards where Fenice remained trapped and unconscious inside Velvet’s reishi strands. Velvet thought the words might have been ‘I’m sorry’. Then Roka collapsed face first into the sands, unmoving. Velvet felt a flicker of her spiritual pressure remaining, but Roka wasn’t about to get up again anytime soon. This was further evidenced by the way the spider legs and cloth wrappings of her Resurreccion started to fade, swirling into a white mist that coalesced back into the form of Roka’s dagger, just out of reach of her pale hands.

Velvet sighed, “Thank His Majesty that’s over with...”

“You bitch!” shouted Di Roy, spitting up blood as he kept trying to stand, “If she’s dead, I’ll-”

A reishi sphere flew past his face and proceeded to detonate a few paces behind him, slamming him to the ground and nearly knocking Gaw over in the process as well. Velvet, holding her arbalest still aimed towards the pair, turned cold eyes their direction.

“That was the one and only warning shot I’ll give you, and I only give that much out of respect for this young lady’s courage in facing me to the very end in order to protect all of you. Don’t test my patience.”

With that Velvet turned to start striding towards Fenice, who only now was starting to twitch and groan, not quite conscious yet but probably a few minutes away from waking up. Velvet would need to get her out of here swiftly and rejoin Cadence and Sassy. Unfortunately there wasn’t time to try and convince the other human souls here to flee with her, since they seemed so stubbornly determined to remain here, but at least she could get Sunset out and later figure out just how she came to be in Hueco Mundo and why she was with these Hollows.

She only got about three steps before halting in place, frozen.

Her soul shook as an ocean of spiritual pressure crashed down from above, a wave of writhing malevolence and bitter tasting madness laced with a reiatsu so strong that for a second in blanketed out Velvet’s senses from detecting anything else around her.

Turning her head upward, her light blue eyes wide as two icy pools, she saw a figure standing atop the edge of the tower. It was indistinct, cowled in the shadow of a Garganta portal, but as the portal closed Velvel saw him more clearly. A tall, lithe man in a trailing white duster, pants, and dark boots, stood as still as a marble statue as he stared down at her, his long red hair slightly stirred in Las Noche’s faint interior wind. He held a naked blade in his right hand, longer than any normal katana, and still wet with fresh, red blood. Green, wolfish eyes seemed to glow within his pale white features.

She didn't immediately recognize him, though he looked incredibly familiar, but judging from his reiatsu, this was an Espada. One of the stronger ones.

What he was doing here, now, she couldn’t guess, but Twilight Velvet’s priorities changed the instant she realized what he was.

Sunset will have to wait for another day. I have to get to Cadence and Sassy, kill Squirk, and then get us the hell out of here as fast as-

It was only her own incredibly sharpened senses and reflexes that even allowed her to see him move.

One moment he was atop the massive tower, and within half an eyeblink he was in front of her, that long katana of his little more than a bright streak of metal tearing through the air. Instinct and extremely honed combat experience saved her life, moving with equally instant and incredible speed. She still felt the cold kiss of that steel edge for a bare instant, not enough to cut skin, but enough to know that if she hadn’t reacted with speed equal to his own, this Espada would have taken her head clean off in that attack.

She ended up standing a dozen yards away, arbalest aimed, but she didn’t fire. Now that he was closer, she had a much better look at him. His body was sporting several injuries, including a number of stab wounds on his lean chest that looked deep enough that they should be bleeding, but not a single drop of blood could be seen. While that struck her as strange, it was small potatoes compared to the fact that now that she could see his features more clearly, she recognized them.

He wasn’t looking at her. He was kneeling next to Roka now, having moved to the fallen girl in the bare moment between Velvet dodging his attack and her taking a second to aim her weapon. His back was turned to her, as if she wasn’t even there anymore, as he knelt next to Roka and placed a shaking hand on Roka’s shoulder.

Roka twitched, turning her eyes upward, bleary. Her voice was a pained, exhausted whisper.

“F...Father...”

Velvet felt her mouth go dry.

“It’s okay, hayseed, I’m here,” the man said in a voice that sounded entirely too... wholesome and normal to belong to someone spilling out that much cold, violent reiatsu. His strong, marble white hand rose to pat Roka’s head, ruffling her hair like any parent might their child to comfort them.

“Sorry...Father... I tried...”

“Shh, you did good, protecting the family. I’ll take care of it from here.”

He then stood, and turned towards Velvet. HIs eyes radiated pure murder.

Di Roy, gulping, glanced at Gaw, “Uh, Gaw... we might want to clear out of ground zero.”

Gaw gave a faint growl of agreement, and bent down to snatch up Di Roy in her jaws like a mother cat with her kitten, taking swift, limping steps away from the Sternritter and Espada.

Velvet stared down the Espada, taking a deep breath and keeping her arbalest trained squarely on him. She didn’t say anything. Didn’t make any introductions, ask any questions, or even conceive of trying to solve this diplomatically.

There was no point. She’d hurt his family, and she knew what kind of man Hard Nail was.

He didn’t look that much different from when he’d been alive. The skin, so white as to be almost pearl-like, was new, and his hair was a bit longer and more unkempt than Sweet Cider would’ve ever let him live down, but it was him. It was in the eyes mostly. Few men had eyes as intense as Hard Nail’s, and while she saw none of the warmth, kindness, and boyish charm that’d once been the man’s trademark, she sure recognized his fury. It was doubtful he had any memory of who he was, but Hollow or not, Espada or not, it looked like the shear rage that came about from someone harming his family was still clear and present.

Which meant Velvet wasn’t going anywhere without a fight, and she knew it. And very likely it was going to be a fight one of them wouldn't be walking away from.

Episode 81: Cost of Victory

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Episode 81: Cost of Victory

Canterlot City, many years ago...

“So, do you plan on telling me anytime soon what it is you’re doing when you stay out until the small hours of the morning, or is this one of those weird boyfriend things I’m not allowed to ask about?” Night Light said as he and Twilight Velvet exited one of Crystal Prep Academy’s side entrances to briskly enter one of several parking lots situated around the expansive school compound’s edges.

Velvet cast a quick, furtive glance at the face of the young man walking beside her. Night Light had that irritatingly persistent look in his eyes, but diffused it with a charming smile and raise of his eyebrow that was cute enough to let her forgive the fact that he kept asking this question. “A girl has to have some secrets kept to herself, otherwise where’s the mystery?”

“That sounds like something Sapphire Shores might say, and I don’t buy it coming from her either,” Night Light replied with a crisp half chuckle, but raised his hands quickly in mock surrender, “Buuuut I’m smart enough not to push it with you, Velvet. Whatever misadventures you’re getting up to with those girls in town, just don’t forget to take care of yourself. Graduation is coming soon, and with it, a lot of changes.”

Velvet saw him reach for her hand, and didn’t resist as he took it with a shockingly gentle and loving squeeze. They’d been dating for most of the year, but in many ways that was almost a formality as far as their families were concerned. The marriage had been decided already, but perhaps in an all too rare stroke of luck she’d already had eyes for Night Light, and he for her, before all of that had been arranged. It’d made the past year with him a pleasure rather than a prison, although she hadn’t told him about her activities with a certain group of other young women.

With graduation around the corner, his and her other schooling would only intensify. She’d likely have to leave Canterlot City, and her friends, behind for a much heavier and constraining set of duties.

She squeezed his hand back, “I’m always careful. And as for those girls, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention them to anyone among our peers.”

His knowing smirk was equal parts endearing, and slappable.

“What makes you think others don’t already know? Velvet, its not as if people higher on the ladder than us wouldn’t notice that the local Hollow population takes a steady dip around here whenever you go out with those five. They might not know the details, but people can make educated guesses. Personally I don’t mind not knowing, as long as you stay safe, but eventually someone higher up than us is going to start asking questions, Velvet.”

“Tch... okay, fair enough, but my parents clearly don’t know yet, otherwise they’d have stopped me by now. So let’s keep it that way for as long as we can.”

“Mums the word,” Night Light said, making a ‘zipping my lips’ gesture as he turned to head for his car, a sporty, dark blue convertible he hopped into with ease, “Dinner tomorrow, pick you up at seven?”

“Sounds lovely,” she said, and went to her own vehicle, a sleek street motorcycle. She didn’t bother with a helmet, enjoying the thrill of wind in her hair as she peeled off onto the streets. She was going to the Apple family farm just outside of town. It was the usual meeting place for her and the girls to relax and hang out before going on patrol for the night.

Things had been quiet lately. Fewer Hollows. Fewer jobs from that shady Discord fellow. The last one to the UK had left her trusting the man less and less. Xcution was at their best fighting Hollows, not tracking down remote members of Soul Society’s other mistakes, like that poor rogue Mod Soul. It was distrustful acts like that which made Velvet wonder if it was possible to make peace with the Soul Reapers in the first place. She wanted to still believe it was possible, but the way Discord used her friends in Xcution-

She’d been so distracted by her inner grumblings that she almost didn’t see the Hollow until she zoomed past it, but the moment she realized what it was she turned her motorcycle into a hard skidding turn. She took in the scene as fast as she was summoning reishi to form her spirit bow into her hands, a plain, simple crescent of blue energy springing around the silver cross around her wrist.

There was a moment’s hesitation before she fired as she saw the Hollow crouched over the form of a young man, lying beside his wrecked old car. It looked as if the Hollow had attacked the car and knocked it off the side of the road. The door was open, so the young man must have run out before the Hollow had pounced on him. That was unusual behavior for a Hollow, to attack a live human in broad daylight.

Stranger still was the Hollow itself. Velvet had never seen anything like it.

Its body was completely black, as if carved from obsidian glass, with a Hollow hole planted squarely in its chest. It was taller than a human, but still had a roughly humanoid shape, with two blade-like arms and long, spindly legs. Most notable was its small, near human shaped skull mask, from which two sharp angled, forward pointed horns extended. For a heart freezing moment of terror she thought it might have been a Vasto Lorde, simply judging from its small size and humanoid appearance, but she calmed herself as she realized its reiatsu wasn’t anywhere near that powerful. Strong, yes, but not to the point where she didn’t think she could take it down.

Even as her bike skidded backwards she kept it under control and fired a pair of reishi arrows that were perfectly on point. However the Hollow must have sensed them coming, because it managed to leap over them with savage grace. Not to be daunted, Velvet stood up on her motorcycle and jumped off, firing arrows as she went. Her Crystal Prep uniform was quite well suited to athletic motions and didn’t restrict her in the slightest, very much so by intention of its design.

She landed lightly on her feet and was moving at a dead run, pumping reishi into her legs with the Blut Vene technique to keep her bones from breaking or her muscles from tearing from either the impact or her sudden burst of speed.

To her annoyance the Hollow was proving incredibly adept at avoiding her arrows, and it turned into a black streak as it charged towards her in a haphazard zipping motion from side to side. Its first strike with one of its bladed arms came close to taking her head off, but Velvet dove into a slide under the blow as she fired an arrow at point blank range, hitting the Hollow’s body and forcing it back several paces.

As the Hollow howled in pain, Velvet rushed to the side of the fallen young man. He was wearing a fairly simple outfit of jeans, boots, and a plain shirt under a brown leather jacket. Velvet was a bit taken by his long red hair and strong features, but shoving all that aside she checked him for wounds. He was bruised up and only half-conscious, and he’d taken a deep wound on his right shoulder that looked like... tooth marks? Had the Hollow bitten him? Either way, blood was soaking into his clothes and he’d likely need medical attention.

Stark green eyes flickered open as he looked up at her, “Wha...? What’s goin’ on?” His voice carried a faint country twang to it.

“Stay down,” she said firmly, “You’ve been in an accident. Help’s on its way.”

All technically true. A Hollow attack in the middle of the day certainly counted as an ‘accident’, and Velvet wasn’t disguising her spiritual pressure at all either. Which meant this close to Sweet Apple Acres, Velvet’s reiatsu ought to be easy to feel. Which meant help was on the way.

The Hollow, having recovered from the wound Velvet dealt it, turned to her and howled again, blurring towards her once more. Velvet aimed her bow to start firing, but it wasn’t necessary. Help wasn’t on the way. It was already here.

“Hyyyyyaaaaa!”

With all the subtly of a mountain of bricks, but also with a similar level of effective impact, a red skinned girl with sunny blond hair poking out in waves from underneath a stetson hat came falling out of the sky with a giant sword of roughly carved rock in her hands. She slammed it down at the Hollow with force well beyond even her tall frame of toned muscle, and though the Hollow barely managed to dodge, the raw impact caused enough of a cratering shockwave that the Hollow was still knocked back into the road.

Sweet Cider was wearing simple, faded jeans, work boots, and a checkered red and white flannel shirt, and heaved her massive rock sword, her Fullbring “Hearthstone”, over her shoulder as she grinned back at Velvet. “Yo Velvet, ya need a hand?”

“Help would not go unappreciated,” she said, and turned her head down the road as she heard the loud roar of a motorcycle, this one deeper and much more guttural than her sleek street racer. This was the full throated rumble of a Harley, and Velvet saw the bolt of shadowy darkness curling around the motorcycle before she made out either the vehicle or its rider.

Or riders, in this case.

“Clooouuuddyy! Slow doooown!” cried Soft Spoken, magenta hair flapping wildly as the plump, short yellow skinned girl clung for her life to the waist of Cloudy Quartz, who leaned forward as she drove her motorcycle straight for the Hollow while howling like a banshee with a madcap grin on her wild-eyed face.

Any casual glance would show the motorcycle wasn’t normal, but was wrapped in an unnatural, thick darkness, like someone had mixed tar and shadow into a living, writhing thing. Numerous sharp edged tentacles streamed out around the motorcycle, and as Cloudy Quartz howled a battle cry at the Hollow, those shadow tendrils sprung into action, spearing out ahead of the motorcycle in a razor storm.

The Hollow responded with precision and speed, its blade arms deflecting dozens of strikes as the motorcycle charged right towards it. For a moment it looked like Cloudy intended to ram the Hollow, but the shadows clinging to the front of the motorcycle extended out and took the shape of a ramp. Soft Spoken let out a high pitched shriek as she was nearly launched from the motorcycle, only her tight death-grip on Cloudy keeping her stable as the vehicle went soaring over the Hollow’s head. Cloudy Quartz laughed the whole way, turning the Harley into a tight, sideways skid as it landed on the other side, bringing the motorcycle to a halt.

She stepped off, Soft Spoken still clinging to her. Cloudy was wearing what could only be described as vintage 80s punk leathers, complete with silver studs that matched her ear piercings. In contrast Soft Spoken was dressed in subdued whites and soft greens of plain, almost librarian dress style and blouse.

“You can let go Soft,” Cloudy said, trying to pry the other girl off her.

“O-oh, sorry! Oh my, did you have to drive so fast?”

“Wouldn’t have made it in time if we didn’t. Hey, Hades Shadow, get over here! We’ve got a Hollow to slaughter!”

The shadows around her motorcycle quivered, and seeped into the concrete like oil, then slid over to join with Cloudy Quartz’s own shadow where it rose behind her in a faint, feminine and human shape. The shadow person wrapped parts of its tar-like being around Cloudy’s body, not quite a second skin, but more like a cloak, and multiple tendrils grew from it and transmuted into claws as a distorted mimic of Cloudy’s own voice spoke.

“Slaughter... fun...”

Cloudy grinned, “Yup, lots of fun!”

The Hollow seemed to agree, letting out a sharp howl as it moved in a burst of speed towards this new challenger. Its blade arms sung in the air as it swiped at Cloudy, only for Cloudy’s Fullbring, “Hades Shadow”, to intercept it with a half dozen shadow claws.

Meanwhile Sweet Cider glanced at Velvet, pointing at the fallen man, “Keep that fella safe, we’ll deal with the Hollow.”

“That Hollow isn’t normal!” Velvet protested, “You’ll need me to help take it down.”

“She’s right!”

This came from above as a figure shot overhead, clad in dark violet, metallic armor sporting multiple bladed wings that glowed with luminous purple energy. Firefly was carrying another girl in her arms, Cookie Crumbles, and quickly flew down to drop the girl off next to Velvet and the wounded young man.

Looking like she’d just stepped out of a new age convent, Cookie Crumbles wore a tie-dyed shirt and large cargo shorts, and sported small sunglasses perched on her neon pink nose as she swiftly knelt down next to the man the Hollow had attacked and pulled out a deck of tarot cards from a noticeably generous cleavage.

“Heya Velvet, I’ll, like, look after this dude,” said Cookie Crumbles in a calm tone that suggested she’d been busy with some recreational herbal enjoyment before being picked up by Firefly. “His chakra feels totally messed up, but I’ll heal him right up.”

The tarot deck glowed with soft green light in her hands, and two cards rose from it, seemingly on their own, the Star and the Hermit, which Cookie made a small gesture with her hands and sent the cards to covering over the man. The tarot cards started to emit a field of pale green radiance on the young man, and he immediately gasped, eyes still closed, but his breathing already easing.

Firefly gave an approving smile, “Good, you keep an eye on him, Cookie, the rest of us, let’s get to it! We’ve got a Hollow to exterminate.”

Velvet and Sweet Cider both nodded agreement and the three charged off, Firefly taking to the air once more. Cloudy was fully engaged with the Hollow, and emitting a feral growl a she lost ground to it. Even with her Fullbring generating a deadly arrow of sharp shadow talons and blades to strike with, the Hollow’s speed was so fast that its two blade arms alone were enough to press Cloudy and Hades Shadow.

Meanwhile Soft Spoken had grabbed a small, brown cloth pouch from her belt and pulled out a small handful of seeds. Tossing the speeds to the ground, she spoke in a voice gentle as cotton, “Please help me, Verdant Pack.”

Green light rose in powerful motes from where the seeds had been dropped, and then vines and thick roots burst out of the ground. They coiled up and grew, taking the shape of a small pack of three large wolves, all made up of thick vines and plant matter. Each wolf sported thick wooden claws that emitted eerie green light, and emerald flames made up their eyes.

Shaking the air with ghostly howls, the wolves moved in on the Hollow with speed far beyond the prowess of their predatory basis, almost vanishing from view with how swiftly they pounced towards the Hollow’s back. The Hollow responded with calm calculation and accuracy, bending away from one wolf’s snapping jaws and all but flipping in place to try to avoid swipes from the other two. Even so one wolf’s claws cut a bloody line in one of the Hollow’s spindle-shaped legs even as the Hollow retaliated with its blade arms, cutting one of the wolves in half while using its other arm to keep Cloudy’s shadow talons at bay.

The severed wolf fell in two pieces, but even as it lay there, its vines started reaching for each other to knit the creature back together, although not so fast that it wouldn’t take it several minutes to do so.

Cloudy pressed in hard, trying to drive the Hollow back, but met only with a stalemate, at least until a deep lavender beam of energy cut in towards the Hollow and exploded against it, tearing off one of its arms.

“How’d you like that, asshole!?” Firefly shouted, flying overhead, the hexagon shaped cannon from her Fullbring still sparking in her hands, “How about a few of these to wash that down with?”

Missiles fired from ports along her armored legs, and the wounded Hollow danced away from them, flickering out of view with high speed motions as the missiles detonated around it, blowing holes in the thankfully still empty street.

However as the Hollow evaded the missiles, it was off balance and couldn’t evade Velvet as she snapped into place a dozen paces behind it and fired a barrage of arrows at its legs. The Hollow tried to twist out of the way but took several arrows to one leg that bend awkwardly as it landed, leaving it even further off kilter as Sweet Cider rushed in from the side.

“How ‘bout eatin’ this ya ugly scarecrow!” Sweet Cider yelled, thrusting Hearthstone forward. As she did so, small ports along the edge of the blade opened, and tiny but powerful jets of gold energy fired out. This spun the blade in place, turning it into effectively a giant drill as Sweet Cider rammed it into the Hollow’s stomach. The spinning drill blade tore apart the Hollow’s lower half, but even as this happened the Hollow pointed its horns at Sweet Cider. A sphere of crimson energy swirled into existence between the tips of those horns, a Cero that would have fired point blank into Sweet Cider’s surprised face if not for Velvet, using a high-speed Hirenkyaku, landed on the Hollow’s chest. The Quincy girl aimed her bow straight at the center of the Hollow’s mask and fired from less than an inch away.

The arrow pierced through the Hollow’s mask and skull, and drove it to the ground. Even as this happened, the sphere of Cero energy started to go wild, and Velvet threw herself as hard as she could into Sweet Cider, shoving them both away from the impending explosion.

Cloudy Quartz let out a sharp and filthy curse, swirling the darkness of Hades Shadow into a shield around her and Soft Spoken. Firefly, still high in the air, turned to try and dive to pull Sweet Cider and Velvet away from the self-destructing Hollow, but at the last second a small green glowing object flew across the street and appeared in front of th two.

The Tower card from Cookie Crumbles tarot deck, arriving from one hell of a threw from the girl still kneeling close to the wounded man. The card flashed, and grew a small stone bastion around Velvet and Sweet Cider just as the Hollow detonated in a fierce, crimson explosion.

As the smoke cleared, the stone wall was revealed to still be intact, if blackened and cracked, with both girls still safe on the other side. Collective sighs of relief were had all around, with Sweet Cider helping Velvet up with an offered hand.

“Hoowee... ya really know how ta find the good fights, don’t ‘cha Velvet?” said Sweet Cider with a friendly grin. Velvet, dusting herself off and letting out another heaving sigh, just shook her head at her friend.

“I could do with a little less of this in my life, honestly, but since that won’t happen anytime soon I suppose I’ll settle for having good friends I can rely on to help me out of a jam.”

“Think nothin’ of it, gal,” said Sweet Cider, tipping her stetson, then turned to look towards the Hollow’s intended victim, “Now just what’d we got here?”

“Good question,” Firefly said, landing lightly in the street. Without even a gesture the high-tech looking, winged armor covering her vanished in a wash of light, returning to the shape of a simple pair of aviator goggles she wore on her head, “Even better question is what are we going to tell the cops if any of them drive by?”

Cloudy Quartz snorted, letting the inky blackness of Hades Shadow return to her Harley, “Who cares about the cops? Just tell them it was a gas leak or some shit. They’re dumb enough to buy that.”

Soft Spoken went up to her wounded wolf as the other two gathered around her, giving it a gentle pat on the head, “There there, you did very well. Thank you all, you can rest now.”

The wolves vanished in motes of green light, and Soft Spoken secured her seed pouch back to her belt while giving a concerned look towards the crater where the Hollow had exploded. “W-what kind of Hollow was that? It didn’t look like any kind we’ve seen before.”

“Should I do a tarot reading to learn more?” asked Cookie Crumbled, and Firefly waved hand in a negative gesture.

“No offense, Cookie, but your Twist of Fate isn’t so hot at actual predictions. Last time we tried that we ended up lost for three days in Tokyo.”

Cookie’s face burned rose as she stroked her tarot deck self consciously, “That’s, like, kinda harsh Firefly. And we had fun that time anyway, so it's, like, we still found something of value even if it wasn’t what we were looking for, you know?”

“Uhhh... point still stands, Soft’s right, that Hollow was weird. Hey Velvet, you got any clue what it was?”

Velvet shook her head, “It's nothing the Quincy have run into specifically. At a guess I’d say it was a mutated Adjuchas-class. Its strength was around that level, but a bit higher.”

“Who cares what it was?” said Sweet Cider, approaching the fallen young man, “It’s dead, we ain’t, end o’ story. Now let’s git this fella some help. Cookie Crumbles might’ve healed him up some, but he’s still gonna need a hospital.”

“Um, about that,” Cookie said nervously, “I, like, felt something off in his chakras while I was healing him. I, uh, think the Hollow infected him somehow.”

“Say what now!?” Cloudy exclaimed as the girls gathered around the young man, “Infected him with what? And do we got to back away before that shit from Alien happens?”

“I got no idea,” Cookie admitted, licking her lips, “I just felt it inside him.”

At that point the young man let out a groan, turning his head, his eyes fluttering open and closed as he began to awaken. Firefly gave all the girls a sharp look, nodding to the remaining Fullbrings and Velvet’s spirit bow. Soon enough all metaphysical weapons were swiftly unsummoned. The man groaned again, not fully awake yet, but moving his arms now.

“What do we do?” asked Soft Spoken, “If he’s infected with something dangerous, he can’t go to a hospital, can he?”

Sweet Cider frowned, her eyes now locked on the young man’s features, and with a nod to herself she gently picked him up in her rather strong arms. “Ain’t nothin’ for it, we gotta take him ta Discord’s place.”

“Makes sense,” said Firefly, frowning, “He can probably tell us more, and if anyone can heal a Hollow infected wound, it’d be the Old Man.”

“Wait,” protested Velvet, “You can’t be sure that... that man won’t report this to his superiors. What if the Soul Reapers decide a Hollow infected human is too dangerous? Let’s take him to my home instead. Quincy alchemy might be just as good if not better at curing him.”

Firefly looked thoughtful about it, but Sweet Cider shook her head, “Ain’t nothin’ personal Velvet, but yer the only decent Quincy we’ve run into so far, an’ much as I ain’t sure how much I trust Soul Society these days, ‘least Discord’s been straight with us so far.”

After a second, Firefly nodded, “Hate to say it, but Sweet Cider’s right, Velvet. The Quincy don’t have reason to help us, but Discord’s basically our boss. He’ll help out. Going to your people is a bit more of an unknown factor.”

There was a twist of pain inside her, hearing those words, but Velvet nodded, knowing at least to a degree that what they were saying was true. Aside from herself the girls of Xcution hadn’t had any good encounters with Quincy. But she didn’t like or trust Discord, that shadowy Soul Reaper that sponsored and oversaw Xcution’s activities. She wasn’t fond of Soul Reapers on matters of principle, but Discord seemed even less trustworthy than usual for their kind. Yet her friends owed him much, and at least for now they seemed to trust him.

“Ugggh... did I die or something?” said the young man as his keen green eyes finally opened and stayed that way. He looked up at Sweet Cider’s face, and blinked, “Well heck, I must’ve died, ‘cause I’m getting carried to Heaven by an angel.”

Sweet Cider rolled her eyes, “This angel is gonna drop yer butt back on the ground if ya don’t stow that talk right here an’ now, mister.”

As several giggles came from the other girls Sweet Cider face only grew more cross, and the young man just grinned up at her with open warmth, “Yes ma’am. Name’s Hard Nail, by the by. Who’re all you girls, and if you don’t mind my asking, just what in tarnation happened to me? Last thing I remember was driving into town...”

As the long process of trying to explain things to Hard Nail began, Velvet was left wondering if she should have pressed harder to have the girls take him to her family’s estate. But it was too late now, and for better or worse Hard Nail’s care would be left with Discord. There, predictably, Discord would alter the young man’s memory of the crash to remove any trace of the Hollow, or of seeing any unusual powers being used by a certain group of young ladies. Furthermore, the Hollow energy that had somehow infected him was “quarantined” within his soul, or at least that’s what Velvet heard from Firefly sometime later.

Velvet didn’t think much on that day, too distracted with her own trials in the Quincy Academy, and starting her new life with Night Light. Years passed, she became a mother, as did many of her friends, and Xcution itself eventually rebelled against and was disbanded by the Soul Reapers that had created them.

Life and all its many struggles and complications went on, and Velvet didn’t think much about the young man she helped save, who went on to marry one of her best friends and start a family of their own. She’d known Hard Nail well enough, but had cried more for Sweet Cider when she’d learned of their death, and had hated the fact that she hadn’t been there to save them that fateful night.

She never thought she’d see either of them again...

----------

Las Noches, present day...

Standing in front of the Espada, known as Lament to some, and Velvet knew without a doubt to be Hard Nail, she could feel the same Hollow reiatsu that she’d felt all those years ago. The same cold, off kilter spiritual pressure that the strange Hollow from back then had radiated off of Hard Nail like a miasma, yet she could tell it was different than before. Not just stronger by unimaginable leaps and bounds, but it fluctuated and shook like a tremor, and it seemed clear to her that there were two spiritual pressures here, each intertwined to the point of being one and the same.

It made sense to her. Whatever that Hollow had been, when it had infected Hard Nail, it had joined a part of its soul to his. When he died and became a Hollow, that “quarantined” Hollow infection had joined with his soul fully, making something new and altogether more potent than a regular Hollow. It was the only explanation she had for how Hard Nail had become an Arrancar, and an Espada, in the few short years since his death.

Of course that explained nothing of where that Hollow had come from. The theory that it had been a random mutation, even if it had been one Velvet herself had first postulated, had never set right with her. Perhaps it was paranoia talking, but she suspected it to could have been another Soul Reaper experiment gone awry.

Not that it mattered now. In this moment, why Hard Nail had become what he had was secondary to the fact that he was here, and a clear and present threat to Twilight Velvet and the mission she and her comrades had been sent to accomplish. Velvet could still feel Cadance and Sassy Saddle’s reiatsu as they fought elsewhere within Las Noches. If Hard Nail was allowed to run rampant on his own he’d ruin what chance they had of killing off Squirk.

Do you really have time to worry about that? she chided herself, At the moment your own survival isn’t looking too likely.

It was true that Hard Nail’s reiatsu was murderous in its focus upon her, and beyond impressive in its capacity. It was a lucky thing he’d run into her first, since she didn’t think Cadence or Sassy could’ve stood up to this. Then again, if Velvet hadn’t come to this tower in the first place then its possible Hard Nail wouldn’t be seeking to fight at all. Hindsight and all that.

The standoff between them hadn’t lasted more than a few seconds as the two assessed one another. Hard Nail’s face was a off putting mixture of stone cold flatness to his features that was utterly offset by the shrunken pupils and glowing rage pouring from his eyes. Velvet prepared herself to evade his opening move, since she didn’t doubt he’d make the first one.

Even being ready for it, she almost didn’t see him move. His Sonido might not have been the fastest on record, but it was still leagues above what Velvet was used to dealing with. His blade was a white streak heading for her neck before she could barely blink, but her own reflexes were keyed up to full strength at this point so even with this blinding speed she was able to respond. She ducked the blow, still feeling a light cut across her cheek from the close shave, but she angled her arbalest towards Hard Nail’s chest and pulled the trigger.

The reishi sphere blasted out, shredding dozens of meters of desert, but Hard Nail had evaded right through the blast to come at Velvet from behind with a thrust towards the back of the neck. Anticipating the move, she’d already been spinning, her let hand glowing with red lines of power as she pushed Blut Vene to maximum strength.

A shockwave of force blasted sand for hundreds of feet as the back of her hand met with the flat of his sword, deflecting Hard Nail’s Zanpaktou. Roka, barely conscious, covered her face from the blast of sand hitting her, while Fenice struggled to tear herself free from the reishi bonds holding her.

Hard Nail and Velvet were thrown back from each other, Velvet firing a barrage of reishi spheres that twirled in hard to follow, zig zagging patterns as they swarmed in at Hard Nail. Like a darting shadow he evaded them all, ending up leaping high into the air to avoid the last cluster of spheres detonating below him. He extended his finger and a sharp emerald glow glinted upon the tip. Velvet burst to the side just in time to avoid a thin, cutting Cero that sent a ripple of explosions across Las Noches’ inner desert.

For a second she assumed he was just testing her reflexes, but then realized the Cero had been carefully aimed to force her away from the tower. She saw him vanish with a Sonido and appear next to Fenice, and with a swift cut of his blade he severed the reishi strands holding her.

“F-Father!” Fenice blurted, eyes wide, but she quickly shook herself and stood, grabbing up her fallen blade and hefting the giant sword, which steamed and hissed as bright magma started to cover it like veins. “I’ll help take her-”

“No!” Hard Nail said with an almost feral ferocity, one that made Fenice flinch away from him. His eyes were shaking, his pale hand gripping his Zanpaktou even tighter, “Take your sister and other siblings and go into the basement shelter, now.”

“But-”

“Don’t make me repeat myself!”

His voice rose only one or two octaves, but it seemed to serve as a literal whipcrack to the young girl, and Fenice nodded with wide eyes, rushing over to Roka and carefully helping the Arrancar girl up. As the pair started to retreat into the tower, Hard Nail turned his attention back to Velvet.

She’d watched the exchange with no thought of using it to attack or run away. His senses were clearly too sharp for her to launch a surprise attack, and his speed was such that any attempt to run would be pointless. Instead she used the moment to consider her options. For the time being it seemed they were evenly matched, but that could change in an instant. Even with her Vollstandig, she wasn’t sure if it’d stand up to his Resurreccion, if he used it. Her Schrift was more likely to be the key to victory, here, but to use it she’d need to be able to lay a hand on him.

She needed him off balance, if only for a moment.

Velvet didn’t think she could avoid a fight by talking, but maybe she could unsettle him enough to get an opening to bring the Vengeance into play. She doubted he had any actual memories from being human, but if he cared this much about the surrogate family he’d somehow forged for himself here, then perhaps...

“Hard Nail, its been a long time,” she said in loud, pointed words, “I don’t think Sweet Cider would have appreciated you adopting children without her say in the matter.”

She carefully watched for his response. There was a tremor in the placid surface of his features, but it was hard to tell if it was recognition, more anger, or something else. His step towards her was menacing enough, however, and his voice held plenty of unmasked violence to it... but there was also a trace of his old accent.

“I don’t know no Hard Nail or Sweet Cider, Quincy. All I know is you hurt my children,” his eyes started to lose focus, and his voice took on a freezing and haunted quality as his reiatsu flared out. “My family! I won’t let it stand! Hurtin’ my kids! Disappear!”

Velvet could all but choke on the rush of thick, heavy spiritual energy pouring from Hard Nail. It was sour and rancid, cold and writhing, and it felt like staring into a deep chasm of sorrow and regret given tangible form. His eyes looked far more wild, even as his face turned back to something chilling and stone-like, his voice returning to flat, merciless tone as he repeated, “Disappear.”

When he came at her again it was with far more frenzied strength and terrifying speed than before. He didn’t do one strike, but instead unleashed a torrent of thrusts and slashes that made his arm become a haze.

Velvet employed her arbalest like a shield, dodging as much as blocking with the large, bulky weapon. She was keeping up with Hard Nail’s incredible pace, but not enough to avoid mounting cuts appearing on her arms and legs from the blazing storm of sword strikes. Yet even as she was pressed back, she found herself smirking. Her words might not have gotten through to any real memories, but it had ignited enough emotion in Hard Nail that his fighting was just a shade more sloppy than before. Potent and fierce to the point that a lesser Sternritter would’ve been rendered to blood stained ribbons by now, but still sloppy.

To finish creating her opening she took one split second between the hail of blades to point her arbalest at the ground and fire, jumping back as she did so. It was a shotgun style spread of arrows this time, creating a wave of sand to explode outward. Nothing that would harm Hard Nail, obviously, but the moment of obscured vision, combined with his aggressive stance leaving him less focused on defense, was all the opening Velvet needed.

Flying forward with all the speed she could, becoming little more than a lightning bolt of white, she slammed the palm of her left hand onto Hard Nail’s stomach. She’d boosted her strength with Blut Arterie, ensuring the blow had enough force to knock even him back twenty or thirty paces, but she knew the hit didn’t do any real damage. But that wasn’t the point. She’d just needed to make contact.

Hard Nail looked down at his stomach where he’d been struck, eyes narrowing slightly as he looked back up at Velvet, who was holding her left palm up. Her entire hand was glowing with a misty stream of reishi, wafting upward like thick smoke. Upon her palm was a gleaming silver stardust pattern consisting of a circle with a stylized ‘V’ contained within. The same brand was mirrored on Hard Nail’s stomach where she’d hit him.

“Since you’ve forgotten me, Hard Nail, I’ll be polite and introduce myself. I’m Twilight Velvet, Sternritter V, the Vengeance. Even if you kill me here, I’ll be taking you with me. You’re not the only one with family to protect.”

Although dying was far from her intention. If she could find any opening to defeat Hard Nail, or escape, she’d take it. Velvet was just practical minded enough to realize that in a fight against a foe like this, being able to take him down with her might be the best she could manage, barring backup arriving. From what she was sensing of Cadence and Sassy’s fights, she couldn’t count on that backup arriving in time.

However, now that the Vengeance was in play, she might have a chance.

“Lament.”

Velvet blinked as Hard Nail spoke, and at her look he merely gave a shrug, an oddly almost too human gesture coming from him.

“It is what I’m called here, other than ‘Father’ by my children. You gave your name, and even if I intend to kill you, that’s no excuse to be impolite.”

What kind of logic was that? From the feverish look in his eyes Hard Nail, or Lament, wasn’t playing with the usual full deck of cards. His speech pattern kept shifting, sometimes spilling forth rage, or showing hints of his accent, or now with its almost too calm and reasonable tone. If his mind was that fractured, was there something there she could exploit? She decided to keep working the memory angle, since he was still chatty.

“We don’t need to do this, Hard Nail. You weren’t always a Hollow-”

“Oh I know that,” Hard Nail spat, the rage returning full force, “I know what I’ve become, even if I don’t remember what I was. Destructive, covetous, power hungry, soul devouring monsters, that’s what Hollows are. But the children can still laugh. Laugh just like...”

His eyes lost focus and for a second he stumbled, gripping his head, “Ugh, my... my little hayseeds... where are they? There’s blood. Family, it’s comin’ fer my family! Get away from them!”

Velvet had been getting ready to make a break for it while it looked like Hard Nail was having some kind of mental breakdown, but even her small motion was enough to set Hard Nail off, his wild eyes focusing on her with laser accuracy and with fresh, violent intent. Whatever he was seeing, whatever crossroad of madness he was at, he’d painted Velvet as the source of his fear and anger, the threat to his family.

Great, was hoping to get him distracted, but all I’ve done is cement me as the target. I’m sorry Hard Nail, but if I have to put you down, I will.

He flew towards her like a ballistic missile, and his overhand sword slash howled through the air with a screaming contrail, hitting with such force that a literal shockwave flew out in a cutting line for over the length of a city block. Velvet had barely side stepped the attack, but even so she’d caught the edge of the sharp pressure wave and taken a bloody cut across the left shoulder. Hard Nail... no, Lament came at her without so much as a microsecond of hesitation, giving her no breathing room. Yet Velvet refused to stay on the defensive, launching herself over the powerful horizontal slash Lament threw out that blasted a huge football field large semi-circle of sand out. Inverting in mid-air, Velvet aimed her arbalest at nearly point blank range and sent out a withering rain of explosive reishi spheres. At that distance even Lament couldn’t fully dodge them all, getting battered several times by powerful bursts of reishi that knocked him into a sand dune some distance away.

He didn’t stay down for even a second, flipping to his feet with a swift backflip, unleashing a tight beamed Cero in an emerald streak towards Velvet as he did so. She took to the air with a prodigious leap, the Cero exploding behind her, and she aimed her arbalest down at Lament. With a few quick shotgun styled blasts she filled the sky with a thickly packed cloud of reishi arrows, but Lament simply rushed headlong into the cloud, his sword a dancing blur that deflected the multitudes of arrows like a snowplow.

He reached her, and one quick feint with his sword left her unguarded long enough for him to catch her with a surprise snap kick across the face that would have torn the head off a normal person. Fortunately Blut Vene reduced the blow to a star burst of dazed pain as she spun to the ground. Velvet flipped at the last second to land on her feet, skidding across the sands as she raised her arbalest and concentrated reishi within the barrel, even drawing additional power from breaking down the reishi in the desert around her.

She ended up firing a large, pulsating sphere around the size of a pickup truck, which flew towards Lament at past the speed of sound. He swiped his sword to try and deflect it, but at the last second the sphere broke apart into a cluster of smaller spheres, each tied together by a small reishi strand. When they surrounded Lament, the strands tightened and brought the spheres together to detonate in one large explosion that rocked the desert and shook the nearby tower.

Velvet didn’t assume for a second that attack had finished the job, and wasn’t surprised when Lament walked out of the explosion. His duster was tattered and falling off his body, leaving his chest and stomach now largely bare. With the duster gone, she could now clearly see the number ‘4’ tattooed in dark ink along the right side of his collarbone.

That’s...exactly where he’d been bitten by that Hollow.

Setting aside whatever that meant, it was little wonder she was having so much trouble with him. Even that last attack had only managed to scorch some skin and leave him looking slightly battered. But if he was truly the Fourth Espada, then even inflicting that much damage on him was impressive enough. And she wasn’t done yet.

As he flew down towards her to resume his assault, she raised her left hand and the Vengeance brand there flashed. This flash of light was mirrored by the brand on Lament’s stomach, and his headlong charge faltered as a burst of reishi exploded from within, like a flaring spike that pierced itself outward from inside the brand.

It didn’t slow Lament down as much as Velvet had hoped, but it was enough for her to meet his charge head on, slamming her arbalest into his chest and firing straight into him. The reishi sphere was of the same concentrated strength as the blast she’d used to finish the fight with Roka, and while it was strong enough to launch Lament into the ground, Velvet didn’t expect it to do more than rattle him.

Her prediction proved accurate as before even the pillar of sand sent up by his impact had settled down a powerful, wide beam of green, searing light flew up faster than the eye could follow. The Cero almost caught Velvet head on. She got most of her body out of the way in time, but her arbalest was broken apart by the beam and a large portion of her right arm and shoulder were seared red by the blast.

The pain wracked up and down her body, but Velvet didn’t lose her concentration as Lament flew up from the impact crater he’d been standing in. His long katana made a shining arc through the air, and while she avoided being cut in half, she felt the hot bite of that blade on her chest, leaving a shallow but painful cut.

Yet those wounds served her purpose well enough. Every bit of damage she took fueled the Vengeance, and the fissures of reishi forming into spikes only grew upon Lament. They spiderwebbed out from the brand, forming jagged patterns across his flesh. The more Velvet was injured, the larger the web of reishi spikes would become, both in scope and in the size of the spikes. Furthermore the brand itself would grow, and in certain circumstances would allow her to do more than just inflict harm on her enemy.

A good thing, considering the harm the Vengeance was doing didn’t seem to be slowing Lament down much at all. Even as the spikes and brand spread, he kept coming at her full force, as if his body wasn’t even in any pain. That said, his swings were coming in wider arcs than before, probably because he saw that her arbalest was destroyed and assumed that without the weapon she couldn’t block.

He clearly didn’t understand Quincy.

As she barely dodged one slash, Lament brought another one across diagonally from right to left, but instead of evading, Velvet stepped in towards Lament, her right arm lifting. In the blink of an eye reishi particles flowed up from the ground and formed a new arbalest around the light from her Quincy cross, and she blasted Lament backwards with a rapid fire burst of reishi spheres.

“You might not have realized this, but as long as Quincy have reishi to use, we’re never unarmed,” she said, and shouldering her arbalest for a moment, she used her teeth to peel off the glove of her left hand. The Vengeance brand remained visible there through the cloth of the black glove beneath the white one she’d had over it.

“Last chance, Hard Nail. Back away, and we go our separate ways. If not, I’ll stop holding back.”

Not that she’d really been doing that much to begin with. Velvet had been fighting all out, short of using Vollstandig, which was exactly what she was prepared to utilize now. She didn’t expect him to let her go, but for a slow, hopeful second, she wanted him to. Not because she feared death. She did, of course, she was only human after all, but mostly she just didn’t want to have to kill the man one of her best friends had loved. Hard Nail had been a good man, and deserved a better fate than this. If he’d just walk away now, maybe Velvet could somehow get in contact with Firefly again, find some way to help him...

The way his body trembled, then went utterly still as he looked at her told Velvet that her notions had been a fool’s hope.

“Leave? After spilling my children’s blood? Makin’ my hayseed’s cry like that!? Ya don’t chase vermin off yer farm...”

Thick black reiatsu intermixed with flecks of deep violet and harsh emerald energy poured off his body. His eyes were blazing jewels of green in a sea of seething black.

“You exterminate them.”

He raised the long blade of his Zanpaktou over his head and drew his palm along it, the blade turning into a jade beacon of light.

“Fade to black; Lamentar.” (Regret)

----------

Twilight rubbed sweat from her brow, looking over her work on Dumbbell. As luck would have it, among the random assortment of goods these Arrancar had stolen from the human world had included one of those medical kits designed for wilderness treks, common to most sporting goods sections in department stores. Apparently these boys hadn’t been too specific in their robbery, piling whatever they thought looked neat through a Garganta portal. Twilight had to admit, petty larceny aside, it was kind of ingenious in its simplicity, and she wondered how many other Hollows did such raids on human establishments?

At any rate, the simple medical supplies, combined with some clean water and towels, had let her stem the bleeding on Dumbbell’s worst wounds. She didn’t know if Arrancar suffered from infection, but she’d cleaned the injuries before binding them with gauze and medical tap, using the towels to clean or as a compress on the wounds she wasn’t working on. It was all basic first aid and emergency wound care, nothing that anyone who hadn’t spent ten minutes reading a proper guide couldn’t have done, but it was more than Dumbbell would have received otherwise and his chances of survival were all the better for it.

“Try not to move until you can get someone who actually properly treat these injuries,” she told him, pausing before asking, “Is there someone that can do that?”

Th Arrancar youth looked remarkably calm, despite his condition, “Adagio might be able to arrange something, same as she did for a couple of others who serve her. If not, well, doesn’t really matter, long as I got the job she gave me done.”

For a moment Twilight was tempted to ask what that job had been. What was so important that Adagio had risked the lives of three of her... friends? Servants? Minions? Regardless, she’d clearly put them in mortal danger for some goal, and while Dumbbell and his companions had apparently succeeded, it had nearly cost him his life, and might still if he didn’t get real medical care.

Somehow she doubted she’d get an answer if she asked. There was an odd, fervent light in Dumbbell’s eyes when he said Adagio’s name, and Twilight suspected there was a loyalty there that wasn’t going to appreciate prying into Adagio’s business.

“Well, I hope she can help you,” she said, approaching the room’s only window to look out into Las Noches’ interior. Her spiritual senses were still fairly new to her, but she could tell there were battles taking place out there. She could hear distant thunder, and see the flashes of explosions far off across the many kilometers of this vast internal environment. She looked at its expanse, and at the artificial blue sky filing what she knew to be the “ceiling” of the fortress, and was struck by how similar this place was to Discord’s training area beneath his shop.

That train of thought was utterly derailed by the sudden and gigantic weight of reiatsu that abruptly floored Twilight’s senses, making her choke for a second as a bile-like taste hit the back of her throat.

What in the world-!?, she half formed the thought as she clutched the window’s edge, her eyes staring out to the northwest section of the fortress. There, towards a distant tower, she could make out what looked like a trembling geyser of dark black and green spiritual energy, rising like an eruption of oil that started to blot out the sky in a black boil.

Before she could begin to comprehend what that malevolent spiritual pressure was, she was hammered by another sense of reiatsu, this one stemming from a towering pillar of light that shot up right next to the oily darkness. This light she recognized as the pillar resulting from a Sternritter releasing their Vollstandig, and even as it hit the ceiling of Las Noches and pierced through, she could make out the five pointed Quincy cross forming at the pillar’s apex.

“Crapbaskets, do you feel that!?” blurted Score from across the room.

“Feel that? I think I’m about to vomit that!” replied Hoops, clutching his stomach.

Despite his injuries, Dumbbell stood and hobbled over to the window, eyes wide and sweat touching his forehead as he looked out at the scene near the far off tower, “Wow... whatever Quincy is over there is dead. Like, the deadest. One way ticket to Deadsville.”

Twilight was shaking, her hands light violet turning to near white at the knuckles as she gripped the windowsill. “What is that?”

“The Lament. It’s gotta be,” Dumbbell said, “He’s the Fourth Espada, and that’s him releasing his Zanpaktou. I don’t care what fancy powers the Quincy are busting out these days, there’s no way any of them is taking that monster down.”

Twilight's trembling didn’t stop, but she did reach one hand over to grip the Quincy cross she still wore on her right wrist. Even if she had the Hexenfaust now to focus her bow, she kept her mother’s old cross as a good luck charm. She didn’t feel much comfort as she held it now.

“He’s... he’s just the Fourth, though, right? There are stronger Espada. And... some Quincy are really strong, too.”

Dumbbell gave her a look, “Maybe, but you’re feeling that, right? You tell me who you think is gonna win. Hope that Quincy fighting him ain’t a friend of yours, because whoever they are, they’re not going to last long against the Fourth.”

His words shook her like running headlong into an iceberg, chilling her gut and squeezing her heart with cold fear. Somewhere inside her mind, she heard Midnight say something, but it felt partially drowned out by white noise.

Twilight’s fear wasn’t simply of the monstrous reiatsu stemming from this “Lament”, but because she now recognized the Quincy reiatsu fighting him.

Her spiritual senses weren’t sharp enough for identifying specific people at a distance yet. She’d thought she might have felt Cadence’s reiatsu nearby, but hadn’t been sure. Now, however, with that pillar of light fading against the slowly slackening cloud of dark reitsu, she could feel who it was more clearly. Perhaps it was just as simple as a bond between parent and child that made it easier to recognize now, but for Twilight there was no mistaking that it was her mother who was fighting the Fourth Espada.

And she was terrified for her mother’s life.

WhatdoIdowhatdoIdowhatdoIdo?

Her mind whispered in an icy repeat, her whole body rooted in place as she screamed internally over her inaction.

Finally Midnight’s voice managed to break through, cutting across that cold void like a hot knife.

Get a HOLD of yourself! Think things through, Twilight Sparkle and calm down!

Twilight’s mouth felt like a desert itself as she gulped, thinking, How? How can you expect me to be calm right now? Mother’s in danger! She’s going to get killed!

You don’t know that, Midnight’s voice replied flatly, but there was a measure of doubt there, For all you know she’ll either win, or escape. But if we do anything foolish, I can almost guarantee you we’d end up making things worse.

She was right. Twilight knew that Midnight was right. It was only cold logic, but true logic nonetheless. At her level of strength, she was nothing against a power like the Fourth Espada. She’d be less than useless if she went to try and help her mother fight. She’d be a distraction, a burden. She might even be the factor that got her mother killed, if she went out there.

Yet the idea of staying put, remaining in Adagio’s chambers while her mother fought for her life against... against that. The thought tore a hole right into Twilight’s chest and left her standing in mute denial.

There had to be something she could do! But what? She couldn’t fight against a monster like that, even if she somehow managed to gain the element of surprise and get the drop on him, any attack she’d launch would be utterly fruitless, just by the laws of reiatsu and how overwhelmingly strong ones negated attacks by sufficiently weaker powers. A direct hit, even to a vital area, would be meaningless.

So what could she do?

Think... think... you’re the smartest person you know, so think, Twilight!, she mentally howled at herself, and consequently, Midnight as well.

Gah, do you have to think so loud!? Be nice if I could just teleport myself out of this head for a change.

Twilight’s eyes shot wide, her mouth gaping open.

Teleport, that’s it!

Midnight, picking up immediately on what Twilight was thinking, was fast to say, It won’t work. Teleportation is too advanced for us to handle without me dumping way more magic into you than you’re ready to control.

But it can be done, Twilight thought back, eyes narrowing, You understand magic better than me, and you know how to do it. You just have to give me enough magic to make it happen. We can teleport mom to safety.

In theory, yes. But if I pump that much magic into you, our mind might not be able to handle it. This isn’t the Friendship Games. I won’t be in control like I was then. Sunset’s little magical girl ‘purification’ stole enough of my control that I can’t regulate the magic for us like I did then. If you try to use too much before you can manage it yourself, we might end up doing anything from turning ourselves into a teacup, to just straight up imploding. And that’s assuming we get close enough to even try teleporting mother and ourselves to safety before this Lament freak destroys us. Are you willing to risk all of that?

Twilight was silent only for a second before replying, Aren’t you? She’s your mother too.

...I really hate you right now, you know that?

----------

Squirk’s time was numbered in moments, and every participant in the fight knew it. The only real question that remained was whether Luna would succeed in capturing him, or Cadence would succeed in destroying him. From Cadence's perspective, she all but had that question answered. Her Vollstandig was giving her all the advantage she needed. Even as a prototype transformation seeing its first use in battle, it was performing to projected specifications, which was to say against a lower tier Espada it was more than enough for her to have the upper hand.

That said, while Squirk wasn’t able to land any hits on her, his Resurreccion did have a surprisingly tough defense in the form of that large carapace, and he wasn’t fighting stupid. He knew her crystal arrows and the gas that stemmed from them would subject him to her Lust, so he was doing all in his power to keep his huge armored shell pointed towards her while holding his breath. That couldn’t last, however, as Luna was occupying his attention by gradually severing pieces of his legs with her scythes, and moment by moment Squirk’s motions were getting more sluggish.

While Cadence’s arrows hadn’t penetrated his shell yet, she just needed one crack in that armor for her to make use of the beams fired by her wings. The reishi of her wings conveyed the power of her Schrift even more potently than the arrows did, so even a glancing blow on a breach in the armor should do the trick. Assuming he didn’t just run out of breath and take in some of the gas that now covered the area like a thick, pink fog.

Even Luna had to hold her breath to keep from falling under the Lust’s sway, although the Soul Reaper Captain’s stamina for that kind of thing seemed quite vast, as she hadn’t slowed down her assault upon Squirk at all even while holding her breath.

Squirk’s Garganta was slowly getting wider, despite Luna’s shadows trying to hold it closed, but it wasn’t opening nearly fast enough for Squirk to escape through it with his Resurreccion form’s massive body. Cadence figured she had more than enough time to crack his armor, affect him with the Lust, and force him to give her a clear head shot to end this whole affair. After he was dead, she imagined Luna could be convinced to retreat. Cadence had no real desire to fight Luna, and if Squirk was who Luna was here for, then his death would remove any reason for her to remain.

Then Cadence could go help Sassy with Grogar, and once either eliminating or fending him off, the pair of them together would go help Velvet fall back from the Espada she was fighting.

Just as long as no more complications arose.

Later on Cadence would reflect that if there was a force in charge of fate, it had to have been snickering at her in the moment she had that thought.

Unbeknownst to her, no more than fifty yards away, the pale form of Adagio, along with the shuffling Ember, had carefully crept along as fast as they could without making their presence obvious. This was the distance Adagio had judged was the closest they could get and still allow for her to sense and control the water in the many caverns beneath Las Noches. Adagio was well aware that every single second counted, because as soon as she began to extend her power to take hold of that water that her reiatsu would start to spike upwards.

She was banking on the Sternritter and Soul Reaper being too focused on Squirk to notice what was happening until it was too late.

She was banking on a lot of things, in fact, but she had no time to refine a more subtle plan. This became even more obvious as Luna, dashing like a barbed shadow, cut a onyx path with her clothes and all but severed one of Squirk’s front right legs in a fountain of blood. Squirk screamed and almost collapsed on his side. In desperation he fired another barrage of Ceros from his back spikes, transferring them into small Gargantas to try and catch Luna or Cadence in the intertwining, raking beams. It was a futile effort. Both Luna and Cadence were simply too swift to be caught, even by beams appearing from multiple angles.

Squirk’s unbalanced stance left his main body at the front open, and Cadence was quick to zip around to his front, more than happy to take the shot provided.

However this was also the moment that Adagio’s power reached a peak, her spirit energy rising high enough that even the supremely focused Sternritter couldn’t help but feel the Vasto Lord’s reiatsu spiking behind her. Luna felt it as well, along with a rumble within the sands beneath her feet.

As both turned, a lot happened all at once, within the span of mere couple of seconds.

First, water erupted from the ground in a great, billowing set of geysers. It had been brought up to shallow levels within the Warrens, then pulled up through the sands by Adagio’s power and will, leading to a wave consisting of hundreds of tons of water blasting up into Las Noches all at one.

Adagio and Ember were caught at the top of the wave, riding it forward, Adagio more skillfully than Ember, but Ember still managed to maintain her balance due to Adagio’s careful manipulation of the water that kept the other girl buoyant. The wave itself rolled forward at high speed, breaking and thundering like a waterfall.

Ember fired Balas as the wave surged ahead, the small reishi bullets aimed at both Luna and Cadence. The attacks were far too weak to do much, but they did force the pair away from Squirk, if for just a fraction of a second. Long enough for the wave to crash right into him.

“What the hell-!?” Squirk got out as the water cascaded over him and shoved his body backwards with the wave’s shear weight.

Before he knew what was happening, he saw Adagio dive into the wave ahead of him, her trident thrust towards the Garganta portal he’d been opening up. A thick red Cero beam shot out, boiling water as it went, but it also struck the portal... or more specifically it struck the shadows holding it closed, severing enough of them that the portal was able to open a little wider. Just wide enough for normal, human sized proportions to fit through.

Squirk was a lot of things, but slow witted wasn’t generally counted among them, despite the opinions of some of his peers.

If he stayed in his current form he’d get caught on the edges of the Garganta and get stuck. So he released his Resurreccion form, the large shell and limbs of the armored crab body dissipating in a wash of white slivers which reformed into his harpoon, which he grabbed as he, along with Adagio and Ember, were swept through the Garganta by the rushing waters.

As stunned as she was by what had just happened, Luna wasn’t slow to react. In the span of a half breath she realized her quarry would get away and there was only one way to pursue. She also knew she couldn’t leave her Lieutenant and Third Seat behind. Fortunately her Shikai was well equipped to deal with the situation. Shadows snapped out from around her, flooding across the ground in an instant to engulf Cheerilee and Nocturn and pull them in. At the same moment Luna herself was enveloped by shadow, which flowed towards the closing Garganta portal that already had her shadows surrounding it.

Cadence reacted quickly as well, but she was less equipped than Luna to handle the circumstances. Despite her vastly increased physical abilities in Vollstandig, she didn’t have anything that’d let her bypass the fundamental slowdown that water had on mass. While Luna’s shadows were in no such way hindered, Cadence was innately slowed as she flew into the water and tried to reach the Garganta before it closed. Unfortunately even with her extra speed, physics were against her, and though the surging waters only slowed her down a fraction, it was enough to leave Cadence staring at thin air as the Garganta snapped shut.

The water, cut off from Adagio’s control now, stopped flowing and fell to the wet, muddy sands, leaving behind a soaked, and exceedingly frustrated looking Cadence.

A rare look of jaw clenched fury crossed Cadence's features for a moment, but she soon took a calming breath, and forced her mind to calm, cool focus. Squirk might have escaped with the help of some unexpected comrades, but he wasn’t in the clear yet.

After all, when she’d struck him with her first crystal arrow, she’d taken the liberty of attaching a tracker to the arrow that had transferred over to him.

Focusing her senses, she located the tracker’s signature. It was still inside Las Noches, northward, she sensed. There were a cluster of small, squat and cylindrical buildings of bright red stone that way, near Las Noches’ north wall. That must be where Squirk’s personal quarters were located. It was far away, but with her speed she could still get there reasonably fast. He might think he was safe, but that’d just play to Cadence's advantage. Assuming Luna didn’t manage to capture him by the time it’d take Cadence to catch up...

Cadence froze, shivering as she felt a spiritual energy erupt behind her, to the west. Back in the direction of Velvet and the Espada she was fighting.

With wide eyes did Cadence look at the humongous outpouring of inky black reiatsu that was eclipsing the tower Velvet had gone to, coating the sky in that direction like a diseased blemish. Then, rising to meet that ocean of dark reiatsu was a thin pillar of white light, the sign of a Quincy Vollstandig being released.

Velvet...

Cadence was struck through the heart by a moment of pure indecision.

She knew Velvet was stronger than she was, but that hardly seemed to matter next to the colossal monstrosity that Velvet seemed to be matched against. That thick, malevolent reiatsu made Cadence shiver and feel sick to her stomach, like her skin was being coated in cold grease. Velvet couldn't stand against that. Not for long, at any rate.

If I go after Squirk, Velvet may well be dead by the time I finish the mission. Even if I ignored Sassy Saddles and went right now, I might not make enough difference by myself...

Maybe, maybe if she went right this second and pulled Sassy away from Grogar within a minute, and they both rushed to Velvet’s aid, perhaps then they’d make it time to save Velvet’s life. The three of them together would be enough to at least force even that monstrous Espada to disengage. But Velvet by herself? It’d take Cadence five, maybe ten minutes to catch up to Squirk. Could Velvet survive that long?

She couldn’t hesitate. Cadence knew that much. Whatever choice she made, she had to make it now.

The mission. Or Velvet.

One life, or the life of every Quincy that’d already been sacrificed to see Squirk dead.

Cadence’s duty to her people, or her duty to the family she loved.

An image of Twilight Sparkle’s face, heartbroken and devastated, crossed Cadence's mind, followed by an image of Shining Armor, and finally Night Light. Then the image of dozens upon dozens of broken, dead Quincy, the numerous lives sacrificed in this battle whose sole purpose had been to slay Squirk.

Twilight, Shining...I...I’m sorry...

The plain, unnatural lighting of Las Noches’ interior reflected tears from Cadence's eyes as she hardened her features, and her pained heart, and made her choice.

----------

Water splashed unevenly around a large sand-bowl chamber. Adagio saw that they were inside some kind of cylindrical building, its walls rising up dozens of meters and encircled by many stone walkways and stairs. The ground was, oddly enough, covered in sand much like the outside. In places this sand had been sculpted into sandstone, which rose up to form rough tables, chairs, all in the shape of some long, large feasting hall. At the back of the chamber was a tall sandstone throne.

“Its empty,” Adagio said, the first thing that struck her as odd. If this was Squirk’s chambers, she’d expected there to be at least one or two Fraccion or other servants hanging around. She’d intended to deal with them, if necessary, but was somewhat relieved that wouldn’t be necessary, even if she wasn’t sure why no one was here.

Squirk, his red frame dripping wet, turned a look towards her that was somehow both withering, and grateful at the same time, “I don’t let the help hang around my throne room. When I want company, I send Krang to fetch it. Otherwise they know to stay away. Besides that, anyone worth a damn in a fight is out fighting the Quincy.”

Convenient. Not that Adagio was complaining. It made her job that much easier. Speaking of which, “Well that makes sense. In any case, Lord Squirk, I hope you didn’t mind myself and my friend here interfering with your battle. You seemed to be in dire straights.”

Squirk snorted, looking away as he stomped over and kicked a nearby sandstone chair, breaking it into dust, “You mean I was getting my ass handed to me. You can go ahead and say it! I know I was losing. Pffah! I’m done with this place! Tirek, Chrysalis, Catrina, they can all go to hell! And you can tell them I said that! I’m through with Las Noches, through with Quincy, through with Soul Reapers, and through with everything else for that matter!”

As he was ranting, Adagio turned a look to Ember and nodded. With a grim light in her eyes, Ember nodded back. She hadn’t released her own Resurreccion form since the fight with Prim Hemline, and she hefted her large, thorn shaped blade as Adagio slowly approached Squirk from behind.

“I’m sorry to hear that, Squirk. Had you decided this sooner, I sincerely doubt I’d have to do this.”

“Do wha-urk!”

Perhaps had he not been so exhausted from his fight he’d have reacted faster, or sensed Adagio’s hostile intent in time to do something. As it was, Squirk was so tired, and so caught up in his rant, that by the time he realized he was in danger, Adagio’s trident was already piercing his chest. The white bone tips of the trident punctured through him, emerging from his back in a spray of blood, leaving him impaled and transfixed like a speared fish.

Even with that mortal wound his eyes remained focused, if bloodshot, and he gripped the trident with one hand as he stared at Aagio. Suddenly recognition sparked there, “Y-you... you’re that...damn Adjuchas...”

“You must have missed the gossip about my recent evolution,” Adagio said, holding her trident tightly and keeping it pressed hard into Squirk, even as he weakly tried to remove it, “Not that I suspect recognizing me earlier would have helped you here. For what it's worth, this isn’t personal. I’m just doing what I have to in order to survive. I imagine that’s a motivation you can understand.”

Blood spurted from his mouth in a choking cough, some of it spattering Adagio’s face. His mouth twisted in an ugly grimace, “Not... dying...”

He raised his other hand, forming a Cero there in a swift, crimson ball, but Ember was there in a flash of Sonido, her blade slashing. Squirk screamed as his arm was cut off, and with the momentum of the same slash that took Squirk’s arm off, Ember spun around and slammed her blade into his back, impaling him from behind.

With that blow what little fight was left in Squirk left him, and he sank to his knees. Ember withdrew her Zanpaktou, but Adagio kept her trident firmly embedded in his chest. Not out of cruelty, but simple caution. She and Ember had managed to do this only because he’d exhausted his spiritual energy fighting that Sternritter and Soul Reaper, and had let his guard down. Even fatally wounded, Adagio wasn’t about to underestimate an Espada until he was full and truly dead.

Which didn’t look like it was going to take long, because wisps of ash-like energy were starting to flake off of his body as he weakly looked up at her. She almost felt bad, if only because she knew what it felt like to be at this dire point of helplessness. It was true that this wasn’t personal, just survival, but she did resent Chrysalis more for putting her in this situation.

“Who...?” he asked, and it was fairly clear that he’d realized she was just the instrument of his demise, not the root cause. In a moment of charity she decided to give Squirk one parting gift.

“Chrysalis,” she said.

He coughed up more blood as he laughed, an empty, bitter sound.

“F...figures...”

And that was the last thing the Ninth Espada ever said as he slumped upon Adagio’s trident, his body starting to fade to ash.

However at the very moment of his death, something occurred that Adagio did not remotely anticipate. Her siren gem glowed a radiant, piercing red that filled the whole chamber. Arcs of green and red energy flew from around the gem, and gripped Squirk’s body like hungry tendrils. Adagio felt a burst of both pain and ecstasy rush through her, and she threw her head back, her eyes filling with solid crimson energy as she let out a scream that was both agony and pleasure mixed into a unimaginable tied. She had no idea what was happening! It was as if her gem was alive and hungry, feasting upon the spirit energy of Squirk’s dissipating form.

The energy seared through her, making her twist and bend as she struggled to contain it. Her gem was both funnel and devourer, its tendrils of red eagerly stripping Squirk’s body piece by piece until it became nothing but a final few motes of ash drifting through the air.

Adagio was left lying on the ground, panting in rough breaths as her body crackled with surging energy. After a few seconds the power, and pain, subsided, but it still left Adagio feeling dazed and shaken, like she’d just taken a bath in molten lava.

Ember quickly stood above her, worry etched over her features. “Adagio! What... what the hell just happened!?”

Still trying to get her breathing under control, Adagio said, “I have no idea.”

Ember offered Adagio a hand up, which she gratefully accepted. The second she stood, however, she sensed a rush of air and a motion to her left and quickly spun, crossing her trident before her. She did so just in time to catch a blow upon her trident, a large, black metal scythe that hit hard enough to numb Adagio’s arms and send her skidding back across Squirk’s chambers until she smacked her back into a sandstone table, cracking it in half.

Ember leaped away with a fast Sonido, appearing at Adagio’s side as she faced this new threat, blade at the ready.

The Garganta Squirk had opened was vanishing with its creator now dead, but shadows were pouring out of the closing portal like dark blood. The scythe extended from those shadows, and pulled back to greet a dark blue hand as Luna emerged from the darkness beneath her feet. Beside her rose Nocturn’s dusky skinned form, rubbing the back of his head, and Cheerilee, who held her coiled Zanpaktou whip with a distinctly fed up look.

“Did you have to hit me so hard, Captain?” Nocturn asked.

“Both of you are clear of Cadence’s power, aren’t you?” Luna asked, and without waiting for answer she went on to say, “Then yes, I did. Now let’s address the dead Espada in the room.”

Cheerilee’s face pinched in a sour frown, “Looks like we were a step too late. Sorry, Captain, if you hadn’t had to grab me and Nocturn-”

“It's no matter,” Luna said, stepping forward. Her Captain’s coat billowed out behind her as she spun her scythes, eyes narrowing like a thin sheet of ice towards Adagio and Ember, “We might not have an Espada, but there’s an Arrancar right here that’ll suffice for our mission.”

Uneasy glances passed between Adagio and Ember, and no words needed to pass between them for them to understand each other. There was no way to easily escape the chamber, even with a Garganta, which would take several seconds to open. Perhaps if they were just facing normal Soul Reapers and not a Captain, there’d be a chance to get out that way, but it was unlikely. That said, neither one of them was going to abandon the other. This was a fight they’d do together, one way or another.

Adagio could still feel the energies absorbed from Squirk inside her gem, but at the same time she felt like some kind of funnel had directed at least some of that energy elsewhere. Her gem felt hot, like a coal in her chest, but she didn’t think it would interfere with her ability to fight.

More importantly, she recognized Luna for who she was, but she wasn’t sure that Luna had recognized her yet. Not that Adagio had had much contact with Luna in the past. In fact, besides the day she and her sisters had brainwashed Canterlot High’s principal and vice principal, she hadn’t seen Luna since then. The revelation that she was a Soul Reaper, let along a Captain, well... Adagio wasn’t as shocked as she imagined she otherwise would have been in her earlier life.

Given the things she knew about the spiritual realms now, it just stood to reason the Soul Reapers had at least one bigwig around that school.

A fight seemed inevitable here, but Adagio wasn’t one to toss aside a chance to talk her way out of trouble. She took a step forward, alert and her trident at the ready, but spoke before any of the Soul Reapers attacked.

“Vice Principal Luna, right? It’s been awhile. How’s your sister?”

The casual tone, combined with the simple recognition itself, was enough to make Luna pause in her own hostile advance. Those keen, ice blue eyes regarded Adagio more carefully, and there was a flash of recognition now combined with a swift look of guarded interest.

“Adagio Dazzle. I’d heard what had happened to you, but didn’t recognize you in that form. I suppose the hair should have been a dead giveaway, but you’ll forgive that I didn’t quite connect that dot until I heard your voice to go with the hair. I do hope you won’t be trying any of that singing this time around. You’ll find my mind better prepared for it this time.”

Nocturn blinked, leaning towards Cheerilee, “I’m afraid I don’t understand. Do these two know each other.”

Cheerilee shrugged slightly, “Three fish girls from the world beyond the portal tried to brainwash the school. Long story.”

“Ah,” Nocturn said with a nod, then frowned, “Does that change anything for us?”

“Knowing the Captain, probably not,” replied Cheerilee.

Luna raised one of her scythes, pointing it at Ember, though her eyes remained on Adagio, “My Lieutenant speaks the truth. My mission is to capture an Arrancar alive. With Squirk gone, this one remains our last viable target.”

“Surely we can come to some kind of arrangement,” Adagio began to say, “Perhaps I can find another Arrancar to-”

“No,” Luna said pointedly, “There is no more time. The battles outside will end soon, and I’ll not risk waiting longer. Because I am aware of your situation and bear you no specific ill will, Adagio Dazzle, I shall grant you the chance to stand aside... but that Arranar is coming with us.”

To emphasis her point, Luna let her reiatsu pour out of her. The spiritual pressure pressed in upon all in the chamber with its hefty weight. Though Adagio remained standing, her own spiritual pressure not inconsiderable, she was all too aware of there being enough of a power gap that this would be no sure fight.

But it wasn’t a fight she could run away from.

With a prideful rise of her head and mirroring of Luna’s stance as she thrust her trident out, Adagio said loudly and clearly, “So be it. I will not stand aside. You will have to do this the hard way.”

And hopefully the time consuming way... Adagio thought, realizing that her and Ember’s only real chance of making it through this was to last long enough against three Soul Reapers, one of which was a Captain, for some manner of help to arrive. As Luna had pointed out, the battles outside Las Noches had to be ending soon, which meant Luna couldn’t afford to stay much longer or risk being surrounded by more Espada than she could handle.

From the look in Luna’s eyes she was having the exact same thoughts Adagio was, and she thought she noted a hint of respect flash in those blue depths.

Without another word Luna vanished with a godly Flash Step, her scythes curving in black arcs to try and cleave through Adagio.

----------

Pharynx and Thorax’s stalemate with Windrider was persisting to the point of exhaustion for both parties. Thorax was just about to abandon his loving flair for the dramatic and just recommend to his brother that they both go Resurreccion, when something Thorax had half expected, and fairly well dreaded occurred.

Pharynx was in mid-swing with his glaive, coming at Wind Rider from the side while Thorax had been keeping the Quincy occupied with a barrage of Ceros to dodge, when Thorax’s burly brother suddenly sized up with a cry of pain.

Coiling lines of red energy flowed from his Hollow hole, where the small, artificial red gem Grogar had provided was located. The metallic, ring shaped devices around the edges of Pharynx's Hollow hole sparked and sizzled, while more energy poured out of Pharynx’s seizuring body.

“Brother!” Thorax shouted, rushing to catch Pharynx as the larger Arrancar fell out of the air like a moth tazzed by a bug zapper.

“Grrrgaaa!” Pharynx clenched his teeth, eyes squinting with the struggle to resit a chorus of pain singing inside him, “Da...damn it, what’s going on!? It was, grr, working fine until just now. Arrgh!”

Thorax only needed one look to see the small crimson gem had cracked, but was still pouring out unstable energies into Pharynx. He’d feared something like this might happen, but this was his mother’s and Grogar’s experiment and he hadn’t the nerve or power to gainsay them. He just had to trust his brother was strong enough to survive the backlash.

Furthermore, this confirmed that Adagio had just succeeded in her mission. Squirk was dead, and at least half of the late Espada’s power was pouring haphazardly into his brother through Grogar’s malfunctioning prototype. Clearly the artificial siren gem wasn’t up to snuff to transfer that much power all at once.

Seeing the gem crack even more, the small crystal pulsing with ever brighter red light, Thorax took the only chance he could. He forcibly reached in and tore the gem out with his bare hand.

His scream joined his brother’s as the gem seared his palm, but Thorax bore through the pain and hurled the pulsating gem straight at a very confused Wind Rider. The Quincy, no man’s fool, used a swift Hirenkyaku to flew away from the gem. Just in time, too, as the gem exploded with a detonation big enough to knock all three combatants to the ground.

Grunting, Thorax stood up while hefting his injured brother with one of Pharynx’s arms slung over his shoulder. Pharynx was wincing in pain, his body limp, but he was still conscious as he looked up, “Brother... look out.”

Thorax turned in time to see a slightly burned Wind Rider aiming one of his pistols, firing a reishi bullet that flew right for Thorax’s head.

Fortunately a swift moving teal blue streak intercepted the bullet and deflected it out of the air. With a graceful flip, a young Arrancar blue of teal skin with a soft pink mohawk landed in a defensive pose before the two brothers, her darker ocean blue eyes sparkling as she brandished a curved kukri blade in one hand.

“Heya, Big Brother Thorax, Big Brother Pharynx. You guys are looking kinda beat up. Need help?”

Thorax offered the girl a wide smile of gratitude, “Excellent timing Ocellus. And yes, we could use a spot of assistance. Pharynx is in poor shape to continue fighting. A tactical withdrawal is in order.”

For all the cheerful candor on Ocellus’ youthful features, there was a tint of seriousness hidden in her eyes’ as she looked at Pharynx’s limp form, then at Wind Rider, who’s guns remained trained on them.

“You better get going, then. I’ll cover you.”

“Was rather thinking this would be a family retreat, all together and such,” Thorax said, face breaking out in a cold sweat, “I don’t wish to imagine the things mother will do to me if I allowed you to get hurt by some past-his-prime Quincy.”

“I can hear you, you know.”

“Yes, Wind Rider, I’m well aware.”

Ocellus tensed, raising her kukri as Wind Rider licked his lips and looked at the three Arrancar thoughtfully, then regarding the larger battle around them. It had mostly left them behind, the flow of the fighting pushing to the south, leaving him and the trio of Arrancar siblings standing amid a sandy field strewn with blackened wreckage from tanks and VTOLs, and dozens of fallen corpses from both sides.

“Well, how about this,” Wind Rider said, “The way I see it, the odds haven’t shifted much in either of our favor, and since I still got a battalion to command, and you want to skedaddle so badly, let’s just call this one a draw. We can kill each other some other day.”

“It’s as if you read my mind, as I was considering making the same offer,” Thorax replied flatly, “Do feel free to leave first. No offense, but I’m not terribly comfortable turning my back to you.”

“Oh, as if exposing my back to you has any more appeal to me?” Wind Rider said, then chuckled and used a Hirenkyaku to all but vanish from the vicinity, rushing back towards the battle lines. Thorax waited a moment to make sure he could sense the Quincy’s reiatsu rapidly falling back from them. Thorax suspected that even if he’d been inclined to try and shoot Wind Rider in the back with a Cero or Bala that the Quincy could have evaded them and made good an escape.

That concoction of his must have been close to running out, otherwise I don’t think he’d have let us go so easily, Thorax theorized, but ultimately Wind Rider’s reasons for offering a mutual retreat mattered little to him. Right now Pharynx’s safety was paramount.

Ocellus came over and slung Pharynx's other arm over her own dainty shoulders, and to Thorax it looked rather adorable to see his little sister’s petite frame shouldering Pharynx’s massive bulk. Just one of Pharynx’s biceps was larger than Ocellus’ entire head.

“Alright, show’s over, at least for us,” Thorax said as he began to open a Garganta for them to step through, “Time to exit, stage left.”

----------

Boiling with the churning essence of cold fury and absolute regret, the cloud of densely negative and ink black reishi covered enough of the artificial sky around Lament’s tower that the area was coated in gloomy dark for kilometers.

The center of that cloud was still connected to the ground by a flowing black strand of energy, but that now cascaded back down like a terminated faucet, the spirit energy billowing out like a fog from around where Lament had been standing.

Twilight Velvet stood waiting to face him in all the resplendent glory and power of her Vollstandig, but even she doubted whether it’d be enough to face what was coming.

Her uniform remained unchanged, but she’d gained a painfully bright mantle of pure white energy that covered her back and shoulders, and from which extended several bands of light that trailed up and around her right shoulder to connect to her new weapon. Her arbalest had transformed into a brilliant silver and pearl cannon with six rotating barrels surrounding a small, central spike of metal; a pile bunker that worked on similar principles to a hydraulic pile driver.

Six wings of light rose high from her back, all positioned on her left side. Each wing was gently curved and widened at the tips with a circular flare of light that within the center of each a small marble colored cannon barrel formed, each with a spherical body that allowed them to rotate along the wing-tip nearly a full three hundred and sixty degrees.

The halo above her head consisted of three faintly flaming five pointed stars connected by a shining band of light, the tips of each star meeting in the center of the halo.

She already had her gatling cannon aimed at the spot Lament had last been standing in, along with her six wing cannons, each of which’s barrels were already glowing with deadly white light. Slowly the dark, oily reiatsu from Lament releasing his Resurreccion started to clear, and Velvet saw a form emerge from within.

His size had not increased much, save perhaps gaining a few inches of height, but that did nothing to lessen the imposing figure that now faced Velvet, and gave her sharp flashbacks to the day she’d first met Hard Nail.

Lament’s face had become covered in the long, ivory mask of a wolf’s skull, its eye sockets twin pits of blackness that bore only the smallest pin-pricks of pale green flame as irises. Sharp angled, edged horns curved from the wolf skull’s head and pointed forward, similar in shape to the horns the Hollow that’d infected Hard Nail all those years ago, but longer and slightly thicker. Lament’s upper torso was bare and pale as polished bone, but black stripes curved from the back to encase the Hollow hole around his throat, and a shoulder mantle of thick, coarse black fur wrapped his shoulders and draped down his back, like a wolf’s pelt. His waist was similarly clad in a black furred wolf’s pelt, leaving his lower legs bare. Both his hands and his feet were tipped with black, obsidian claws, wickedly curved. A tail of segmented bones extended from behind him, each segment all the way down to the tip consisting of sharp protrusions like blades. His hair spilled out from behind the wolf skull mask, a curtain of wild red strands that were now more starkly crimson than their earlier lighter, strawberry coloring.

The final component of Lament’s Resurreccion was his sword, the same long bladed katana as before, only now it lacked any visible guard or hilt, and looked like one solid shard of metal, all of it the black of starless night.

There could be no hesitancy here. Velvet didn’t so much as wait half a second after she had a clear target before raising her gatling cannon. The barrels spun in a blur, and the cannons along her wings opened fire at the same time as the gatling cannon itself. The air shattered under dozens of concussive blasts of force as a flood of explosive reishi shells hammered the spot Lament was standing in with enough destructive force to bring down a mountainside.

Velvet had to dig her heels into the sands to keep from getting pushed back too far from the shear explosive force of her barrage, her hands both gripping firmly around handles both above and to the side of her gatling cannon. She even had to use Blut Vene to reinforce her body just to keep the weapon steady and protect herself from the shockwaves of the hundreds of rapid, point-blank impacts.

She felt Lament’s reiatsu barely waver under the assault and sensed the painfully keen focus of that power as it cut straight through her barrage. Pain ripped through her and her eyes widened as she looked to a set of four deep cuts through her energy mantle and into even her Blut Vene enhanced shoulder.

She staggered backwards, glancing behind her.

Lament stood there, a dozen meters away, having used a disturbingly quick Sonido to move through her hail of fire and strike her with the claws of his left hand. The four curved, onyx claws dripped with her blood, and Velvet felt hot pain in her shoulder from the cuts that had treated her Blut Vene like paper.

Eyes narrowing, the six cannons on Velvet’s wings reversed direction and immediately fired backwards at Lament, exploding multiple wide spheres of searing white light at the Espada. At the same time she coiled her legs and sprung upwards into the air, seeking to get some distance from Lament and his clearly potent melee prowess. As she flew upward she suddenly found her vision turning sideways, and to her shock she had just a fraction of a moment to register that Lament had flown up next to her, smashed his palm across the side of her face, and was literally throwing her like fast ball before she went sailing past the speed of sound towards the side of Lament’s tower.

Pouring more power into her Blut Vene she just managed to mitigate the impact as she smashed through the tower, crashing through multiple interior walls until she exploded out of the other end and went cartwheeling into the ground in a long river of churning sand geysers, her body tearing a ravine into the desert.

Her muscles and bones strained under the incredible forces being pressed upon them as Velvet, utilizing all of her focus, managed to spring up from her out of control path and send herself flying back up into the air. She didn’t have time to let the pain register, even as blood streamed down her face from a profuse wound on her scalp. She felt Lament coming her way, and while her eyes couldn’t track his swift movements, she could sense him clearly enough to track his path as he flew over his tower and rocketed down towards her.

The six cannons on her wings pointed their barrels towards a point in front of her, and fired beams of white energy that coalesced together into one large cannon ball of shining light that she then fired towards Lament. He tried to flow past it with an instant Sonido, but the sphere tracked him and changed course with equally instantaneous speed. So instead of trying to evade again, Lament swung his dark sword and unleashed a concussive wave of force that knocked the sphere of light careening off course to detonate on the ground half a mile away. Its explosion sent a pillar of light flooding into the air, cracking more of Las Noches’ ceiling.

The sphere had served its purpose as a distraction, however brief, to allow Velvet to appearing behind Lament. The pile bunker spike at the center of her gatling cannon pulled back, power gathering within the weapon as she slammed the gatling cannon forward. Lament turned within a heartbeat, his sword coming around with a backswing with as much concussive force as before. The blade met with the pile bunker spike as Velvet triggered it in a blinding blaze of white light, vents along the back of her gatling cannon letting out massive bursts of blue reishi as her power shoved the spike out fast enough to crack the sound barrier.

”Licht Pfählung!” (Light Impalement)

Upon Velvet’s invocation the air was split by a spear of light that rushed from the impact of the spike, and even Lament found the force of his blade countered by the strength of an attack the drove him straight into the ground. The spear of light sheathed the spike itself, which had extended out to ram Lament down and grind him into the sands, and upon the impact the reishi started to spin like a drill, creating a storm of wind and force that ripped out a crater dozens of meters deep and several times that wide.

Yet when the dust cleared, and Velvet’s spike returned back to the center of her gatling cannon, she grit her teeth in frustration as she saw that Lament remained in the center of that crater, standing with his blade still held out. The blade was unbroken, though Lament himself had suffered a torn wound in his upper stomach that, while not bleeding, was deep enough that had it been any other Espada that’d taken the wound, they’d be in agony. Velvet also noted that while Lament’s sword had withstood her attack, his arm had a piece of broken bone stick out from the wrist. However even that wound didn’t seem to remotely bother Lament as he looked up at her with the empty black pits of his eyes within the wolf mask giving Velvet’s soul a chill. The wolf mask’s mouth opened and a ear bleeding howl poured out, and Velvet wondered if there was anything left of reason inside Hard Nail’s mind at this point.

It pained her more than her physical wounds to see him this way, but she could afford no sympathy at this point. It was taking all of her concentration, skill, and power to keep up with him, and that was a state of affairs she knew wasn’t going to last long.

Lament hurtled upwards like a shadow-clad comet, and though Velvet’s senses were adjusting to his insane speed, she still barely had time to react as his blade cut the air. Extending the spike of her pile bunker, she turned it just in time to catch the sword on the silver spike, but raw force alone was enough to send tremors into her bones and blow her backwards. Automatically tracking and targeting, her wing cannons unleashed a punishing round of exploding reishi shells. Lament’s bone tail spun in a scything buzz of motion, cutting down the shells as he flew towards her.

Grunting, her right arm in scathing agony from its earlier wounds as she hefted her gatling cannon, she flew backwards and joined its fury to that of her wing cannons, filling the sky with blinding explosions. Lament flew through it all, his sword and tail working in tandem to cut apart any attack getting close to him as he soared after her. Both of them moved like supersonic jets in a dizzying pattern across the air above Lament’s tower, spheres of reishi darting across their wake like a swarm of bees that formed a trail of explosions wherever they went.

Velvet was only barely keeping ahead of Lament. The two flew no more than twenty feet above the top of the tower, blowing past Lament’s cabin and dead orchard. Velvet thought she saw a small Hollow dog sitting at the cabin’s door, barking away at them as they flew by.

Hard Nail always loved dogs. It saddened her even more to know there were parts of him still inside the monstrosity he’d become, but she shut those feelings out. However even that instant of mental distraction let Lament close the gap between them.

He reached her with a powerful overhand swing, the black sword descending with all the strength and fury of a cruise missile. This time Velvet wasn’t able to completely block the attack, the spike catching Lament’s sword at a poor angle. Molten pain reached past her mental defenses and she let out a scream as part of her left mid-riff suffered a bloody gouge that spilled a gush of blood through the air as she was sent spinning down to the ground.

She recovered at the last second, landing on her feet and springing away as Lament, having followed right on her heels, just barely missed with a thrust of his sword that still hit the ground like a meteor and created another fresh crater around his tower.

Raising her left hand, Velvet let the power of her Schrift, now increasing with her wounds, pour out from the brand on her palm and rush into Lament. Only this time, instead of the spikes of light growing from within, they extended out from Lament and became charged with bands of light, forming multiple halos around his body that started to constrict upon his form. The Vengeance could be adjusted to switch from inflicting damage, to acting as a binding force, limiting the powers of its victim. Since wounds seemed to do next to nothing to Lament, Velvet hoped this might work better.

Unfortunately even the bindings from the Vengeance did little more than slightly slow Lament’s movements as he turned toward her. Still, slightly slower was better than nothing, and it suited Velvet’s next move just fine.

She’d already realized that most of her attacks just weren’t powerful enough to do worthwhile damage to Lament. Except for her Licht Pfählung. That had hurt him, even if his body was capable of ignoring that kind of damage. This meant that if she could get a clear shot in with the Licht Pfählung on one of his limbs and tear it off, that might make a critical enough difference and allow her to escape. Or a direct hit on his head might be able to kill him. Surely he couldn’t ignore losing his head, right?

And binding his powers, slowing him down if only by the smallest percentage, gave Velvet the only opening she knew she’d have.

So as he turned to her to renew his assault, Velvet threw herself forward with all the speed and strength she had to muster, cocking her gatling cannon back while the pile punker spike retracted for one more strike. The moment she did this, she saw Lament lower his head so his twin horns were aimed right at her.

Absolute darkness formed between those horns, a circle of energy that drowned out all color and light around it, as if it was turning the world around Lament into washed out gray. Velvet knew this was a Cero, but she’d never seen, or even heard of one that consisted of such pitch black coloration, nor ever felt one filled with such singular reiatsu that dripped sorrow and rage in equal measures.

Yet she could not dodge. Could not even afford the thought to evade. She was committed to her attack, the vents already opening along her gatling cannon to expel their streams of reishi as the white sheath of energy formed around her pile bunker’s spike.

At the very least she could look at one silvering lining... Lament was making his head an easy target.

“Licht Pfählung!”

At less than a few meters from Lament, she slammed her weapon forward, firing the spike and its spear of light straight into Lament’s Cero just as the Espada howled his own fury and fired it, drowning the world in black.

----------

Sassy Saddles was not having a good day.

Her Vollstandig surrounded her in a white cloak, quite stylishly cut, and trimmed with gold. Its trailing edges spread into three distinct tails that held a curved, wing shape. The cloak itself extended down part of her chest into a fine chest piece that complemented her uniform with its silver markings and tight fit. The cloak of course had a hood, which in turn acted as her halo as the top of the hood blazed with a smokey light in the form of a Quincy Cross.

Her bow had transfigured itself into the form of a very long barreled sniper rifle, one with a slim, elegant body and a sophisticated looking scope formed from holographic light.

In this form she’d gone from having trouble keeping herself uninjured while facing Grogar, to essentially playing an extended game of cat and mouse with the cagey Espada. The frustration painting Sassy’s middle-aged (but still well cared for!) features was that Grogar was not playing the game very fairly.

She knew she was strong enough to get a certain kill-shot on the old goat if he’d just stay still enough for her to get him in her sights. The Needle would do the rest at that point. But he wasn’t presenting her with a clear target. The moment she’d gone into her Vollstandig he’d shifted to purely evasive tactics, and most annoyingly the man appeared to have an endless supply of those horrendous and grotesque Arrancar servants to throw at her.

Quite literally so. She’d seen him pull a set of capsules from within his clothes and throw them into the air, from which ugly little balls of flesh popped out and rapidly grew into the mutated, misshapen Arrancar that kept coming at Sassy, no matter how many she blasted into oblivion.

She was just finishing off another set of such foul creatures, her sniper rifle sending out a sparkling, needle thin bullet that ripped through the unfortunate souls like little more than soggy tissue paper, when she finally spotted Grogar some distance away, back near the wall extending from Las Noches’ central tower.

Trying to run, old fool? You could run for miles and still be within my range.

Sassy took aim, her rifle’s scope magnifying Grogar’s location as if he were standing right next to her. It looked as if he was trying to recover that device she’d shot at earlier, the one with all the holographic view screens. Odd that he seemed so interested in that one device, more so than fighting her. He hadn’t even bothered to use his Resurreccion. If he had she’d be in more dire straits.

Well, no matter, she had him in her sights. Just line up the head and-

Every single danger instinct Sassy Saddles had went off all at once, alerting her to the immediate need to move!

Not questioning her own instincts, she rushed to the side with as fast a Hirenkyaku as she could manage. And just in time, as a markedly massive beam of utter, night black energy rolled across the desert like an avalanche. It destroyed a near two hundred meter wide section of the fortress’ inner wall, and consumed a large pathway across the sands, including the area Sassy Saddles had been standing in a second earlier.

Sassy landed a score of meters away, her eyes blinking in complete astonishment as the obsidian beam, a Cero of gigantic proportions, continued to rip apart a path across Las Noches until it finally struck the exterior wall, many kilometers in the distance. The resulting explosion shook the very ground like a localized earthquake, and Sassy saw a large chunk of the exterior wall crumble like dust under the power of that Cero. When it was done she could literally see outside Las Noches.

Finding herself panting in fear, her heart quaking in her chest, Sassy quickly composed herself with a steadying breath and looked back in the direction that blast had come from.

She’d known Twilight Velvet had been in that direction, fighting a disturbingly powerful Espada... but Sassy had been so focused on her own fight that she hadn’t realized just how dire things were over there. And now... was Velvet even alive?

She wasn’t sure anything short of His Majesty could have survived a direct hit from that Cero.

Shaking her head, Sassy reminded herself that whatever was happening, she still had her own job to do. Cadence was dealing with Squirk, and as afraid as Sassy was for Velvet, she couldn’t let Grogar...

Wait, where was Grogar? She scanned the area with her sniper rifle. The portion of the wall Grogar had been on was about fifty meters short of where that giant, dark Cero had hit, so that clearly hadn’t killed him. But she didn’t see him anywhere. In fact, she didn’t see the device he’d been trying to pick up, either. On top of that, she no longer sensed his reiatsu at all.

“Bloody hell...” she breathed. He must have taken the device and fled through a Garganta.

Not ideal, but on the other hand, at least he wasn’t in the area any longer. That gave Sassy the freedom to rejoin her comrades.

Assuming either of them were still alive at this point.

----------

Adagio wasn’t certain how she managed to block that first attack from Luna. Her speed as a Vasto Lorde had certainly improved by leaps and bounds, but even she was surprised that she managed to react in time, crossing her trident in front of her to catch both of Luna’s scythes as they’d come in at her far faster than any mortal eye could have hoped to see.

Even so she was still rattled by the impact and didn’t have so much as a chance to blink before Luna skillfully turned one of her scythes downward, planting its blade into the ground, and used it like a pole to lift herself up and around and kicked Adagio square in the side of the head. The whole move had happened in a split second, in one smooth flow of motions that left Adagio spinning across the chamber to smash into Squirk’s throne, shattering the sandstone construct in the process.

“Cheerilee, Nocturn, subdue the Arrancar girl and begin opening a Senkaimon Gate. I want to be out of this place within five minutes.”

“Yes Captain!” both rang out, Flash Stepping to surrounding Ember.

Adagio shoved a large chunk of sandstone off of her and rose to her feet, snarling, “You’re not taking her!”

Thrusting her trident forward she formed multiple Aqua Balas, firing the reishi enhanced water bullets in a sweeping arc at Luna.

Luna blinked in and out of view with Flash Steps that left Adagio struggling to correct her aim, and then in the next moment the Soul Reaper Captain was above her, descending like an angel of death with her twin scythes slamming down as firmly as guillotines.

Adagio leaped away with a Sonido, but still felt the biting cut of those scythes on her flesh. Even her hardened Vasto Lorde body with its thick bone armor couldn’t fully withstand those Zanpaktou, and though the cuts were shallow Adagio was still left with two bleeding wounds down her chest.

Meanwhile Ember was stuck dealing with being flanked, both Cheerilee an Nocturn assaulting her from either side.

Cheerilee’s whip flashed in with cracking strikes, Ember twisting and springing across the chamber to avoid the blows, some of which shattered sandstone tables and chairs like so much kindling. Ember wasn’t certain what the Zanpaktou abilities of either Soul Reaper were, which made her cautious enough to fight defensively for now. Nocturn came in at Ember just as she was dodging one of Cheerilee’s whip strikes, slashing in a downward cut with his Zanpaktou, the twin claw blades whistling through the air. Ember leaned back from the blow, the claw blades only cutting a bit of cloth from the simple vest she wore.

However the moment that happened she felt her upper body had trouble moving, because the fabric of her vest was suddenly as hard and rigid as steel.

“The hell-!?”

Ember twisted and rolled her shoulders, her strength while still in her Resurreccion form sufficient to bend even the hardened fabric of her vest, but that still left her off balance for Cheerilee to Flash Step above her and send her whip coiling down towards Ember. The Arrancar managed to raise an arm to block the whip, but the white leather still coiled around that arm and Ember felt the metal, barbed tip bite her skin.

With a look of surprise she felt her whole left arm go utterly numb, and fall limp.

Not letting that distract her, Ember saw Nocturn appearing behind her and ducked under the swing of his claw blades, spinning around and lashing out with her own sword in a punishing slash. Nocturn managed to raise his Zanapktou to block, bracing that arm with his other one, but even so Ember struck with enough force to pummel the dark skinned Soul Reaper into the ground and send him bouncing into the wall. He smacked into the wall with a hefty impact and fell to the ground, but Ember couldn’t appreciate that fact much because the numbness in her arm was spreading further down her shoulder as Cheerilee pulled her whip tighter around Ember.

Having no intention of just letting the Soul Reaper have her way, Ember spun her head around and opened her mouth wide. A fiery red orb formed between her teeth, and she spat out a wide, red Cero beam that spiraled with traced of flame-like energy. Cheerilee wasn’t crazy enough to try and keep her whip’s hold on Ember in that circumstance, and quickly Flash Stepped away, letting go of Ember with her whip. The Cero beam blasted a hole through the wall of the throne chamber, crumbling away a rounded section from which light now streamed in.

Appearing a dozen feet from Ember’s right side, Cheerilee snapped her whip low, aiming for Ember’s legs. Ember flipped over the strike, or tried to, but the steel hard vest she wore slowed her down and while she managed to avoid Cheerilee’s Zanpaktou whip, she landed off balance.

“Grr, dammit!” Ember swore. She would have torn her vest off, but her left arm was utterly numb and dead at this point from the power of Cheerilee’s whip. She wasn't sure if it was poison or something else, but the mere touch of that whip had a paralyzing effect.

Pointing her sword at Cheerilee, she started to spin the blade in preparation to perform her Espina Perforadora technique, but while she’d been focused on Cheerilee, Nocturn had recovered and managed to push himself up to one knee. While there he’d moved his hand in a series of rapid gestures, creating streaks of blue light in the air that formed curving sigils as his body became clad in a misty blue light.

”Bakudo Number Twenty Nine: Boseki!” (Gravestone)

The sand at Ember’s feet suddenly transmuted into a gray, cement-like substance and rose up around her like a living ooze. Within a split second it covered her lower half and reached up to encase most of her body except for her head and part of her right shoulder and arm. The cement hardened to stone, encasing and binding those parts of Ember’s body while dark inked sigils identical to the ones’ Nocturn had gestured earlier appeared all over the stone and flashed with light as the binding spell started to work to suppress Ember’s reiatsu.

Of course she was an Arrancar with her full power released, so the spell couldn’t hold her fully, which is partly why it had failed to cover her body entirely. Even within a few seconds the cement started to crack from Ember’s struggles. However this game Cheerilee time to add her own Kido to the mix.

Coiling her whip around her right hand, Cheerilee’s left palm glowed with faint yellow light as she drew a triangle of energy in the air in front of her.

”Bakudo Number Thirty: Shitotsu Sansen.” (Beak-Piercing Triple Beam)

Upon her own invocation the corners of the triangle glowed brightly and formed three yellow, beak shaped shards of spirit energy that shot out and embedded themselves into Ember, one on each arm, and the third around her waist. Ember growled in pure rage as she felt her body being further bound, and her spirit energy being suppressed even harder. She struggled to raise her sword, to swing it at the cement binding her, or aim a Cero at one of the Soul Reapers before her, but by now she was slowed to the point that even getting her sword arm up was proving difficult.

And she was more than immobile enough at this point that when Cheerilee lashed out with her Zanpaktou, the whip coiled around Ember’s neck without any trouble. Ember choked, struggling now just to draw in breath as Cheerilee’s Zanpaktou went to work, numbing Ember from the neck down, and then finally knocking the Arrancar girl unconscious.

“Got her,” Cheerilee said, sighing, “I’ve had easier dates, I must admit. Nocturn, hurry and get that Senkaimon open!”

Nocturn, rubbing his bruised ribs as he stood up fully, Flash Stepped over to the unconscious Ember, and gave Cheerilee a nod, slowly reaching out with his own Zanpaktou. The claw blades sunk into the air as if it were water, and started to create a gateway in the air consisting of multiple, circular paper rice-wall sliding doors.

While this had been happening, Adagio had not been idle, but she’d been thoroughly unable to help Ember. Luna was simply proving to be too powerful an opponent to require anything other than Adagio’s full attention, and even then Adagio was struggling just to defend herself, let alone think of going to Ember’s aid.

Everywhere Adagio turned, Luna was the specter of death, scythe and shadow alike seeking to tear into Adagio. She fought back with trident and water, pushing herself to the furthest heights of speed and strength she could, and felt like she was barely keeping pace. Luna’s twin scythes formed a black storm that Adagio’s trident sparked off of as she twirled and spun the three-pronged weapon, but for every parry Adagio managed she felt a cold strip of pain from another cut or laceration upon her flesh. She summoned bursts of water in high-pressurized streams that tore through the sandstone of the chamber, but Luna conjured shadows in jagged masses to consume the blasts of water.

Those shadows sprang at Adagio from practically every direction, painting the ground and walls black, and Adagio knew that letting those shadows catch her would spell the end, so she moved with blindingly swift Sonidos to keep one step ahead of the darkness. Luna’s shadows formed thin, tearing ribbons that sliced at Adagio from both sides and from behind. With a spin of her trident, Adagio summoned spheres of water as large as her own body that intercepted them. At that same moment Luna hurled one of her scythes at Adagio’s exposed side. Adagio’s tail flicked with strength enough to crush boulders, but she still felt every inch of her body shudder from the impact as she deflected the thrown scythe. Luna didn’t even miss a beat, following right behind the scythe she threw while wielding its twin with both hands in a massive spinning attack.

Adagio managed to turn around and cross her trident in front of her in time to catch the scythe, but found herself being driven straight into the ground by the strength behind Luna’s blow. Adagio held the scythe back just barely as Luna pressed in, the edge of the blade a bare inch from Adagio’s chest. Grunting in concentration, Adagio summoned a burst of water in front of her, trying to use the wall of water to push Luna back, but the Soul Reaper Captain must have anticipated such a move because she Flash Stepped away instantly, grabbed the scythe she’d thrown earlier, and then swung both scythes down at once to cut Adagio’s water wall in half and hit Adagio with a pressure wave that shoved her back into the wall next to what was left of Squirk’s smashed throne.

So this is what a Soul Reaper Captain is capable of? These are the other enemies we Hollows must face, in order to survive?

Between this, and the previous fight with Prim Hemline, Adagio was starting to see why the Espada were so necessary. Not just their power, but the way they obtained and maintained that power. Hollows only got stronger through consuming each other, and competing with each other. If the Espada didn’t exist in such a state of constant natural selection, then they couldn’t possibly be strong enough to face foes like these Soul Reapers and Quincy.

And I’ll obtain those heights of power! she thought with keen resolve as spearing shards of Luna’s shadows stabbed towards her and Adagio jumped over them, letting them smash the wall behind her as she rushed towards Luna. She swung and stabbed with her trident, trying to force her way past Luna’s defenses, even bringing her tail into the assault with wide, hefty swings of the blade-like fin at the tail’s tip.

I sacrificed my old life, and only have this one left to live. I will never let anyone else take this from me again!

For just a few seconds she thought she might have been gaining the upper hand. Luna had taken a few steps back under Adagio’s attacks, her scythes working in perfect tandem to parry the blows coming her way, but without any sign of being able to mount a counter attack. But soon that proved to just be Luna’s ploy, as she lured Adagio into overextending herself, and in that moment of confidence, Luna slipped inside Adagio’s reach with unbelievable speed, showing that all of her previous Flash Steps had been the Captain holding back.

Adagio simply didn’t see Luna, even within the span of her spiritual senses, for a microsecond, and suddenly her trident was only touching air and Luna was standing behind her, blood dripping from her scythes.

“Your power is great as a Vasto Lorde, Adagio Dazzle... perhaps enough to threaten even a Captain such as myself,” Luna said, regarding Adagio with respect, but grim firmness, “But that alone will not bring you victory.”

Blood gushed from Adagio from a cross of cuts over her chest, reaching all the way to her hips and shoulders. While deep, the wounds weren’t fatal, but they left Adagio staggered as she used her trident to keep herself propped up. Teeth clenched, eyes glaring, Adagio tried to turn a hand around to point a Cero Luna’s way, but by now Luna had gotten her shadows beneath Adagio’s feet, and a literal cascade of shadowy limbs rose and bore Adagio up in a curving arc into the wall, pinning her there as firmly as if she was melded with the wall.

“I know Sunset Shimmer bears you in some fond regard, including a desire to save you from your fate as a Hollow. While purifying you with my Zanpaktou would technically accomplish this, I don’t think Sunset would appreciate the gesture,” Luna sighed, “So while it may go against my purpose as a Soul Reaper, I shall spare you this once, Adagio Dazzle.”

Her eyes hardened to glaciers, “But only once.”

With that Luna turned and walked over to her two subordinates, ignoring Adagio now, even as her shadows continued to keep Adagio bound to the wall. Adagio struggled against the shadows, but it was like trying to push her way out of quicksand while buried up to the neck. She saw that Ember was unconscious, and was being carried by Cheerilee, while Nocturn had finally opened the Senkaimon Gate.

“What are you bastards planning to do with her!? Give her back, damn you!”

Luna didn’t even respond to her, instead saying to Cheerilee and Nocturn, “Good work securing the target. Let’s go home. I’ve more than had my fill of Hueco Mundo. Cheerilee, you go first.”

“Yes, Captain,” Cheerilee said, patting Ember on the head, “She’s a pretty tough cookie. Hope the RnD folk aren’t too hard on her.”

“That will be up to Starswirl,” Luna said, “I don’t know what he intends for his research. I only hope it proves worth our time.”

The Soul Reapers began to enter the Senkaimon Gate, small black butterflies fluttering about the gateway that would guide them across the Precipice World, and eventually to Soul Society. Adagio watched Cheerilee enter first, carrying Ember, and everything inside her screamed in denial. Ember had done nothing but help her since her earliest days in Hueco Mundo. Adagio didn’t doubt that she’d have died a second death by now many times over if not for Ember’s presence. More than that, thinking of all the things she’d done, things she’d held back from Ember, and even after confessing the ways she’d used or manipulated Ember, she’d still chosen to stick by Adagio’s side as an ally... well there wasn’t anyone else in all Hueco Mundo like Ember.

And through all of this, the only reward Adagio could give to pay back Ember for such loyalty was to halfheartedly watch her get dragged off to an unknown fate by Soul Reapers.

No. She couldn’t let that pass. Not without more of a fight!

But cold facts were cold facts. She wasn’t strong enough to fight the likes of Luna, not even as a Vasto Lorde.

So she had to become more than a Vasto Lorde, and Ember had already told her what she needed to do to accomplish that.

She’d been too afraid of the risks. She’d wanted a surefire, safe way to ascend. That had been the real reason she’d sent Dumbbell and the other boys to fetch information from Grogar’s lab. She hadn’t wanted to risk the natural path to Arrancar evolution, and had wanted a more secure manner to obtain more power.

What hogwash. Power was never gained without risk. And the kind of power Adagio wanted, the kind of power she needed? She’d never gain it if she was still afraid to risk her own existence on rising to those lofty heights of strength!

To become an Arrancar, all a Hollow had to do was remove their mask by their own will. The reason so few Hollows ever tried such a feat was that the breaking of their mask was almost always fatal, as it scattered their Hollow essence. Only supreme will could keep that essence together, and trigger the change to an Arrancar. That was why desperate situations usually brought forth the change, which was what she and Ember had been trying to achieve in the Forest of Menos.

But instead she’d become a Vasto Lorde. A useful step forward, but not the one she needed to take now. And she would encounter no situation more desperate than this. No need greater than to keep the one and only real friend she had in this place of violence and backstabbing.

If she wasn’t willing to risk absolute destruction of her soul now, then there’d be no other time. She’d just have to accept her weakness for the rest of eternity.

And that wasn’t who Adagio Dazzle was, a weakling who sat by while she had ambitions to fulfill!

Her limbs were pinned, but that didn’t matter. She still had her element of water. So she summoned it, forming a stream of flowing water that curled out and took on the shape of a grasping talon. That talon of water gripped Adagio’s face, squeezing around the edges of the Hollow mask that took on the shape of a siren’s features.

This act was not unnoticed by the Soul Reapers, Luna turning to look with at first confusion, then dawning realization.

“What is she doing?” Nocturn asked, but Luna just held a scythe out to usher him and Cheerilee both further into the portal.

“Don’t stop!” Luna commanded, “Go now, and leave this matter to me!”

Cheerilee and Nocturn both shared mutual looks of uncertainty, but the command in their Captain’s voice could not be questioned, and so both started to head deeper into the Senkaimon Gate.

At that same instant, Adagio’s mask began to crack under the pressure of the water talon.

Luna gestured with a scythe, the shadows around Adagio constricting, but she ignored that pain as bones bent and her armor strained against the pressure. She just focused on the agonizing yet somehow cleansing feeling of her own mask, the Hollow mask that had been a part of her since she’d chosen to transform her soul into this new state of being, crumbled under the grip of her own will... then shattered.

It was like ripping out her soul chain all over again. The pain roared through her like the wrath of a sun, ripping through her essence as the fragments of her mask spun through the air. Her whole body started to crack apart, seams bursting up and down her form in lines of deep cobalt light. Adagio could feel herself breaking apart not just in form, but in mind, in spirit. It was like without the mask, the Hollow essence had nothing to keep it together, and hence it was spilling out like a canteen with its cap torn off.

The only thing to keep herself together with was her will, her emotions, her refusal to lose herself, and the clear focus upon the desires that drove her.

Power erupted out of her, blue light spiraling out in a torrent, at the center of which was a single bright red light, Adagio’s siren gem pulsing with a furious crimson heartbeat. The broken fragments of her Hollow mask turned to streams of energy that flowed into and object that flew out of the torrent of energy, Adagio’s trident. The rough hewn weapon of bone blew apart into motes of blue dust, then reforged itself anew, still a trident, but this one a long and elegant weapon with a shining white shaft of pearl and three large blades forged from ruby crystal the same color as Adagio’s siren gem.

Smoke and dust clouded the spot, but only for a moment before a burst of force sent it all spiraling away as Adagio rocketed outward. She grabbed her new trident as she went, and in a streak of speed rushed the Senkaimon Gate. Luna was there waiting for her, and trident and scythes clashed in a combined embrace so forceful that it shattered the walls on either side of the chamber, blowing out multi-ton chunks of rock for hundreds of meters.

Adagio now looked much as she once did when in her human body. A full, well endowed body of feminine curves, now lean and hardened with muscles that did nothing to take away from her beauty. The only allusions to her Hollow, now Arrancar nature, was the Hollow hole still in the center of her chest, bearing its gleaming siren gem, and the three small but gracefully curved spikes of the crown-like crest she’d borne as a Vasto Lorde, joined together by a single band of bone across her brow.

She was also presently without clothing, but that was a minor detail, and there was some strategically placed dust and smoke about, so if there had been any onlookers present, they’d be getting a show, but one well within a PG-13 rating. Mostly. Luna probably had a better view.

Luna strained under Adagio’s strike, and had to respond quickly because Adagio moved in a dance of blazing motion, her trident screaming through the air. In the span of an eyeblink over a score of blows were exchanged between the two.

Adagio saw the Senkaimon Gate closing, and her body wreathed itself in red light as she threw her newfound strength behind a thrust that created a conical burst of air around it as she aimed it straight at Luna’s head. Luna in turn spun one of her scythes around in an air splitting strike while slamming her other scythe down upon Adagio’s trident. The parry was strong, pushing the trident aside, but shockingly to Luna not enough to keep from getting a deep, scarring cut across her cheek and brow, right across her left eye, if not quite enough to take the eye itself.

Meanwhile Adagio twisted her own face aside as Luna’s other scythe passed by, cutting a similar deep cut across her right cheek and eye, a near identical wound to what she’d just given Luna.

The twin blows pushed both of them backwards, Adagio skidding back until she shoved her trident into the ground to halt herself. Luna was pushed back into the Senkaimon Gate itself, and by now the paper rice doors had closed to the point that all Adagio could see was the Soul Reaper’s bleeding face. She couldn’t see Ember anymore, and was left with the sure knowledge her friend was somewhere deep within the portal, being taken to Soul Society.

Rage churned inside Adagio, as she knew that Luna had won this skirmish and was escaping. But she didn’t want to let the Soul Reaper part without a final promise.

“I will get her back.”

As the Senkaimon Gate closed, all Adagio could see was Luna’s hardened, resolved eyes as she replied, “I expect nothing less.”

----------

Dust was settling quietly near Lament’s battered tower. Somewhere deep below the tower, Roka, Fenice, and the many young Arrancar children were huddled in a fortified basement that Lament had built specifically for the purpose of holding up to the powers he might unleash if he ever needed to battle near the tower itself. They had felt the incredible shaking in the very walls of the cozy, heavily reinforced stone basement, and Roka and Fenice could only exchange fearful looks with each other. Both felt their Father’s reiatsu, felt that overwhelmingly potent and dark aura of sorrow and regret. Only Roka had ever seen her Father’s Ressureccion before, and knew the danger of it. Not because of its incredible power... but because while in the throes of that transformation she knew her Father lost himself and became a true death-bringing beast, a feral wolf that even she not ought approach.

The fortified basement was as much to protect Lament’s family from him as it was to protect them from any potential enemy.

On the surface, falling clouds of sand were gradually blown away by the interior breezes of Las Noches to reveal a wide, carved path of destruction that trailed off eastward. A hundred meter wide expanse was melted to seared chunks of glass and burning sand, widening even further as it moved eastward.

Within that large portion of burned out sand, Twilight Velvet twitched, and slowly raised her head. She was lying on her back, blood coating her. She was covered in burns, her uniform tattered. The gatling cannon was half melted, four of its barrels twisted beyond use. The pile bunker spike was broken off, its partially melted tip laying in the ground next to her. Three of her wings were blown clean off, their torn stumps bleeding shards of reishi. The other three were damaged, but intact, for all the good that would do her.

Coughing, she stood on shaking legs, blood dripping down to splatter like thick raindrops on the blackened sands beneath her feet. Blood covered eyes looked ahead toward the origin of the crater, the place where Lament stood.

He growled, a menacing sound that vibrated through the air with frozen menace.

Velvet saw that he wasn't entirely unharmed by her final, desperate attack. Her spear of light had managed to do two things. First, it had kept her alive. That unbelievable powerful, black Cero would have destroyed her completely if the Licht Pfählung hadn’t carved a relative bubble of safety within the destructive river of dark energy. Even then, the proximity had torn through her weapon, burned and ripped her flesh, broken bones, shattered her wings, and left her barely able to stand. The second thing the attack had managed to do was break Lament’s right horn, severing it at the sharp bend near the brow. Not that this seemed to bother Lament much as he growled once more and took a step forward, brandishing his black sword.

Velvet huffed out a humorless laugh.

She had no more delusions concerning her survival. She only wanted to await the final blow, so that she could fully enact the power of the Vengeance to put Lament down for good.

I can do that much for you... for both of you, Sweet Cider... Hard Nail.

She couldn’t pretend not to be afraid. She certainly couldn’t pretend to lacking any regrets. She had enough of those to probably compete with Hard Nail. Velvet dearly missed her friends. She’d left them so long ago, afraid for her own family, and perhaps just as afraid to interfere with theirs. But now more than ever she wished she could have seen them all, one last time.

Beyond that, the thing she regretted most was that she’d made an utter mess of her time with her daughter. All she’d wanted to do was protect Twilight from the harsh world she knew awaited her one and only daughter, but she’d been so focused on trying to isolate Twilight from the the people Velvet feared would hurt her, that she’d only ensured she was isolated from Twilight as well.

Can’t be helped now... but at least I can make sure this monster can’t be a threat to anyone else, neither my fellow Quincy, my old friends, or my family, Velvet thought as Lament drew close, sword poised to strike. She had nothing left to throw at him that would do any good, but for the sake of defiance, to die with some measure of pride, she let her last remaining three wing cannons let loose with what they could.

Lament deflected the reishi shells with contemptuous ease, not breaking stride.

But that was alright, she had one last card to play, and as soon as he struck the fatal blow, he’d discover the full measure of her Schrift's power.

Then she heard something that froze her blood in shock and fear.

“MOM!”

No, no she can’t be here!

But her eyes were not deceiving her. A teal arrow, coated in as much magic as reishi, flew down and impacted with Lament in an explosion of witchfire. It was followed but several more that flew in at strange angles, impacting upon Lament from half a dozen different directions. The only reason Velvet imagined he hadn’t deflected them was simply that the Espada was momentarily confused and curious about this new opponent.

“Mom, hold on, I’ll get you out of here!” Twilight Sparkle said, landing next to Velvet, reaching out her hand.

While Velvet stared at her daughter in abject horror, she still noticed the strange way her daughter’s form was slightly different. Her eyes were surrounded by the pale, teal colored flames of magic, and similarly colored motes of magical energy flowed from her shoulders like the ghosts of wings. She could tell that her daughter was exhibiting higher spiritual pressure than before, an impressive leap, all things considered... but it was meaningless. Twilight couldn’t possibly match the Lament as he was now, or even if he hadn’t been using his Resurreccion. Her daughter had just committed herself to death by being here, and Velvet’s heart tore apart in denial of Twilight’s very presence.

From Twilight’s perspective, the terror in her mother’s eyes was attributed to facing this horrible looking Espada and being near death. She felt a clench in her chest, a terrible tremble of pain and regret, at seeing how wounded her mother was, how badly her skin was burned and how much blood covered her. All past angers and issues in that moment were forgotten. Now all she wanted to do was save her mother.

Midnight, I need that teleport NOW! she screamed mentally.

Magic churned inside her and Midnight’s voice let out a strained reply, I’m working on it! Just need a second! And will you calm down!? That anomaly is shaking like crazy!

Twilight’s hand touched Velvet shoulder and she closed her eyes, Please do it fast, Midnight!

Almost- Midnight started to say, but then Twilight felt a sharp rise in spiritual pressure from Lament, and looked over i time to see him swing his sword towards her. He wasn’t close enough to physically strike her, but he didn’t have to. The pressure wave alone hit like a blast of hurricane force winds, and both Twilight and Velvet were blown away from each other, both sent tumbling away and rolling across the crater in different directions.

Twilight rolled to her feet, aiming her bow and firing off a quick set of four arrows that flew in at Lament from several zig-zagging angles, but now that he’d taken his measure of this new threat, Lament didn’t waste time and in a single Sonido avoided all of those arrows and appeared before Twilight.

Only her ability to think and calculate quickly let Twilight react at all, her mental voice shouting at Midnight.

Teleport us to mom, then teleport us outside!

I’m not even sure I can do one safely, let alone two, but there’s no choice. Hold on to your internal organs, this is going to be bumpy!

Magic flared up as Lament’s sword descended and Twilight felt the world distort in a flash of teal energie, her senses feeling as if they were burning in light as her body was warped from one spot to the next. Dizzy, Twilight glanced around to see she was now next to her still shocked looking mother.

One more teleport, then we’ll be safe, Twilight thought, and reached out to grab her mother, magic flaring up around her body once more.

And then Lament, with even more speed from before, was simply next to her with his sword making a dark flicker through the air.

Twilight blinked. She’d been reaching out for her mother with her right hand, but now she suddenly didn’t have a hand.

It’d been looped off at the wrist.

“Huh...?” Twilight blinked, not sure she comprehended it. Her logical mind was listing off random statistics on blood loss and how long she’d need to keep her hand on ice if she wanted it reattached. Midnight was also screaming something, but Twilight couldn’t really hear that.

She saw her mother’s eyes look impossibly wide, then felt a shadow over her and looked up. Lament had inverted his sword in his grip and now poised it above her head, about to impale her. Twilight couldn’t react, and felt rooted to the spot as that impossibly dark blade started to descend.

Then she felt herself being pushed, and her back hit the ground numbly. She rose to a sitting position with her one remaining hand, ignoring the blood and pain from the stump of her right wrist, and starred.

Her mother had pushed her out of the way, and now sat kneeling in front of her.

Lament’s sword had shoved its way in through Velvet’s left collarbone and protruded out of the right side of her ribs, red blood dripping from its tip.

Velvet made a small sound, blood seeping from her lips. She raised a hand to Twilight, eyes tearful, pain etched over her face as she choked out one word. “...Run...”

Then Lament twisted his sword and ripped it out of Velvet’s chest sideways. Blood in an impossibly large curtain of red fountain out, splattering the ground, and Twilight’s face. Her eyes shook, pupils shrinking as they reflected her mother’s body falling to the ground in a limp, dead heap. Blood continued to flow out, bathing the ground.

For Velvet, consciousness had not entirely faded as she felt the coldness of her body as the heat of her blood left her. She could barely think, but her final thoughts were keen and clear.

She would protect her daughter. She’d protect her little girl, to the very last breath.

The Vengeance had two simple modes, inflicting damage and agony, or binding power. She’d intended to let her death activate this final ability in the form of a last explosion of power that would probably have destroyed Lament. However with Twilight here, Velvet couldn’t do that, because it’d kill her daughter too.

So instead she used the power in its binding form, in the last hope it’d give Twilight a chance to escape, to go on living.

Twilight Velvet’s last fragment of thought was for her family, as she breathed one last time and invoked her Schift’s full power.

”Letzte Rache...” (Final Vengeance)

Then she was gone.

As Velvet’s body went still, the brand on her left hand ignited to a blaze brighter than the sun, covering the area in pure white light.

Lament let out a howl that pierced the air as the brand on his stomach also filled with blinding light, and every spike that had pierced his body now exploded in the form of hundreds of small, binding chains. The chains wrapped around Lament in their multitudes, piercing in and out of the Espada’s body again and again, doing no damage but instead embedding themselves into the essence of his spiritual energy.

Finally the chains fully melded with his body until they vanished inside it, and Lament’s Resurreccion form broke away from him like shards of glass. He now stood in his normal state, the shards of energy from his Resurreccion reforming around his sword to transform the Zanpaktou back to its unreleased state. The chains were gone, as was the Vengeance brand. But in the brand’s place where two silver nails, one impaled through each of his palms. The nails caused no harm, but they acted as the seals on his power, suppressing his reiatsu and preventing him from releasing his Resurreccion again.

How long the seals would last was anyone’s guess, but for now Lament’s power was limited to his normal state.

But far more importantly, his mental state was returned to something resembling normal, if incredibly confused. Lament knew he’d blacked out during his Resurreccion, and even his memory of the fight with Velvet up to its release was fragmented and unclear. His head hurt fiercely and he looked at the scene before him with utter confusion.

A dead woman lay in a bloody heap at his feet, and a short distance away a girl sat with a severed hand, and her face obscured by the fall of her hair that left her eyes hidden.

Within Twilight Sparkle there was no conscious thought. Everything had simply stopped inside her. Everything except a small piece of white noise that occasional resolved into Midnight’s frantic, shouting voice.

”-snap out of-”

“-otta do somethi-”

“-its opening, Twilight!”

Opening? Some tiny voice inside Twilight mentioned an ‘anomaly’.

Then what little conscious thought Twilight had left was swept away as something inside her did open up with the sound of a primal scream that shook her very soul.

Author's Notes:

Well, this marks the longest chapter of Friendship Souls to date, and hopefully it worked out alright, despite its size. I don't plan to make chapters of this length a regular thing, but there was a lot I wanted to fit in here, and even then I didn't quite get to every scene I wanted to. This chapter was all about the consequences of the fights inside Las Noches, so there wasn't much room to show anything occurring outside except for the one scene with Thorax, Pharynx, and Ocellus that showed the affects of what happened with Adagio's gem.

While this marks the climax of this arc, there's still a fair amount that still needs to be covered, mostly dealing with the fallout of what's occurred here. Granted there's still Torch, Night Light, and Shining Armor's particular battle I want to attend to next time, but mostly what we're dealing with is immediate aftereffects of what's going on with Twilight Sparkle, and wrapping up the larger battle in general.

Hope you folks enjoyed, and as always thank you all for reading. Please leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you have down below, they're all very much appreciated. 'Till next time!

Episode 82: Repercussions

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Episode 82: Repercussions

With the power of a thousand avalanches Torch’s axe crashed down towards Night Light. He nimbly avoided the edge of the titanic blade, the axe shattering a length of desert several football fields long with just its impact alone. Yet Night Light didn’t just avoid it, but danced on its edge, then with a fractional second of time he used a Hirenkyaku at such high speed that he was beside Torch’s head before the sand had even started to fall from the axe strike.

Night Light’s large, crescent moon shaped bow fired a punishing arrow at a mere meter away from Torch, the perfect arrow hitting like a cruise missile. Yet Torch took the blow without barely rocking back, his unimaginably hardened Heirro scales tanking the attack with only moderate damage to show for it. Granted, any damage at all was a surprise to Torch. He was used to his Heirro being all but impenetrable, save for a rare few exceptions like Lord Tirek’s might, or, Torch recalled with an angered growl, Grogar’s underhanded methods.

Torch had figured the Quincy must have had heavy hitters who could injure him, and was pleased to know he’d found one of them. Possibly two. Shining Armor wasn’t out of the fight yet, and had proven his worth already, and Torch could smell the blood relation between the younger Quincy and this elder fellow, Night Light. So all the pain really did was excite Torch more, causing him to bellow with something between a mountainous roar and thunderous laughter.

“Keep it coming, Quincies! I’m starting to feel this, so don’t hold back now!”

He raised his upper left arm and jabbed his spear at Night Light in a shockingly quick series of thrusts for one his size, generating pressure waves of air akin to powerful wind gusts with each stab. Night Light flowed around the attacks like a sparrow, lightly stepping off the edge or shaft of the spear as he dodged, firing his bow in return with a series of powerful and pin-point arrows that hit with tremendous force, blasting scales off Torch’s chest, yet never seeming to penetrate deep enough to actually wound. Torch’s armored body had layer after layer of hardened scales covering him, and each of Night Light’s attacks blasted off another layer, yet Night Light could tell those layers were slowly regrowing as well.

Shining Armor in the meantime had circled around to Torch’s right side, flying to get behind Torch. The Fifth Espada spotted him and was having none of that. He lashed out with his lower right arm, the gigantic spiked flail there snaking out towards Shining Armor with rock crushing force. Shining saw the flail coming his way like a dark iron meteor, and swung his bow around to fire an arrow that created a concave barrier in the flail’s path. The flail still smashed through the barrier, shattering it like a sheet of ice, but that slowed the flail enough for Shining Armor to dive out of its path and continue circling behind Torch.

Once in position he followed the instructions his father was giving him via the power of the Command and withdrew a Seele Schneider from his belt. Activating the blade of blue reishi he, rather than attack Torch, dropped the Seele Schneider so it would plant itself face down in the sand around Torch. He then proceeded to continue circling Torch, working to do the same thing in other spots around where the Espada stood.

Torch was wise to what the young Sternritter was doing and snorted a laugh as he brought the sword held in his lower left hand into play and effectively doubled the strikes coming Night Light’s way. This forced Night Light to pull back, suffering a light wound on his thigh from a near miss of the sword. Even when Torch’s blade didn’t touch flesh, the shear reiatsu and air pressure along the blade’s path created a cutting force, and Night Light kept up his Blut Vene to ensure the wound he took was only a small one, rather than losing his leg altogether.

Night Light, opening up the distance from Torch, now aimed his bow and the blue energy around the silvery weapon grew to a brilliant, circular halo.

“Licht Regen.”

On the surface level, one might have considered Night Light a weak example of a Sternritter. His Schrift was of limited use in a one-on-one duel, more suited to his role as a battlefield commander. He possessed no unique techniques or abilities that were exclusive to himself. Indeed many of the very cadets currently in training knew merely as many techniques as Night Light did, with one or two exceptions, for his skill was focused upon the fundamentals of the Quincy power set.

The difference was that Night Light had perfected those fundamentals to a level of mastery unmatched by any other Quincy save for Sombra himself.

The Licht Regen was a rapid fire technique favored by many first-class soldats. It could usually produce hundreds of arrows at once, sometimes thousands for more skilled and powerful Quincy.

Night Light’s produced over a million arrows of light in a torrential rain beyond any typhoon. A galaxy of arrows in a unrelenting mass crashed into Torch like a literal tsunami, with the resounding crash of such a wave breaking over a mountain. Each individual arrow didn’t possess much strength, far less in fact than the usual concentrated, spear-like arrows he usually fired. But the sheer number of them bore down on Torch like a irresistible weight, a flood that broke upon his scaly hide and actually drove the monstrous Espada back a step or two.

“Urgh, well now, this is something,” Torch said, crossing his four weapons in front of him like a shield against the constant deluge of arrows, “Ain’t seen one of you Sternritter pour out this much firepower in... huh, don’t think I have, actually. Kudos. But it doesn’t matter if its one arrow or millions, if none of them can get through my armor! Now how about you take a little something in return?”

He sucked in a breath, and then opened his mouth to belch out a fire laced, spiraling Cero beam of deepest red. The Cero cut through the swath of reishi arrows like a plow through snow, driving the rain apart and homing in on Night Light. For his part Night Light ceased firing with his bow and with his left hand drew a Seele Schneider of his own. Yet much like with the Licht Regen, this Seele Schneider was different than the one commonly used, as it had been personally tuned by Night Light himself. The silver tube was broader, and at one end extended into a wider, cross shaped guard. When it activated, the blade it formed was both longer and lager across than a regular Seele Schneider, and its edge had an almost physical looking quality to it, as if the reishi inside the blade itself was denser.

Night Light swiped that Seele Schneider through the oncoming Cero, splitting it in half around him. The beams of red energy still flowed off to either side and impacted into the battlefield behind Night Light, creating twin explosions that rocketed up a towering distance into the sky, shaking the desert.

Torch, mouth still flickering with smoke and wisps of red energy, grinned and huffed out a chuckle, “You really ain’t shabby. Why haven’t I fought you sooner?”

“If you had, you wouldn’t be standing here today,” stated Night Light firmly, then brought his sword up in a perpendicular stance, still holding it with one hand while he kept a grip on his bow with his left hand. He then streaked into a cutting haze of high-speed motion as he assaulted Torch with a flashing series of strikes with the Seele Schneider.

Torch, while larger and slower than Night Light, still had four arms to work with, and swiped his massive weapons in a shockingly quick series of parries and counter-strokes for someone his size. More often than not Night Light’s glowing blue blade was deflected by Torch’s giant weapons, and he had to block more than a few powerful and swift counter attacks. Yet despite that Night Light didn’t let up, and at first one, then two, then ever more of his own strokes broke through Torch’s guard and the Seele Schneider cut blazing blue lines over Torch’s armored body.

White scales flew off, sheared cleanly through. More took their place, the layers of Torch’s body seemingly impossible to fully penetrate, yet Night Light didn’t cease his striking for nearly a solid minute before he was forced by back off by a particularly powerful chop of Torch’s axe. Torch brought the axe down in a punishing blow that while Night Light parried it, the force alone still drove Night Light into the ground like a pitched fast-ball.

Night Light skidded across the desert, feet digging into the sand, and he looked carefully for where his son was even as he sent a mental command to confirm Shining Armor’s status.

Are they ready, son?

Shining replied not through the mental link of the Command, but by appearing next to his father, his own Seele Schneider in hand as he planted it into the ground.

“Just finished, father,” Shining Armor said, winking.

As Night Light had been keeping Torch occupied, Shining Armor had used five Seele Schneider blades to form a pentagram pattern around Torch, all five of the glowing blades of reishi planted firmly in the sands of Hueco Mundo.

Night Light nodded, and pulled out his own ginto tube, a thick silver flask that he turned over upon the final of the Seele Schneiders that had been placed in the ground, “Good work. Let’s see him withstand this.”

As Night Light tilted the ginto tube, Torch himself saw what was happening and laughed, “I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but I’m not as dumb as you think, Night Light! I saw what your boy was doing!”

Torch jumped up into the air, an impressive feat for one as large as he was, leaping backwards away from the circle of Seele Schneiders just as Night Light’s alchemic water from his ginto tube hit the top of the last Seele Schnier that had been planted.

A stream of blue light from potent Quincy reishi flowed along the sides of the Seele Schneiders, and streaked out to form a pattern that connected them all together in a massive pentagram form. The reishi from each Seele Schneider, combined with reishi gathered from within the circle of energy itself, transmuting all the potential reishi within the sands between the blades, fused with Night Light’s own reishi and became a sudden and humongous explosion of brilliant phosphorus light.

“Sprenger.” (Explosion)

The Sprenger was an exceedingly potent, if still basic Quincy technique. It was difficult to use in battle due to the time it took to set up, requiring five Seele Schneider to act as a focus for the alchemic circle that would transmute massive amounts of reishi both form the user and the area within the circle to create a concentrated and whirling storm of explosive reishi.

Shooting high into the dark sky of Hueco Mundo, there was little doubt such an explosion would have been painful for even one as ludicrously tough as Torch. But Torch had seen the move coming and had leapt out of the way at the last second, jumping back and landing at the very towering walls of Las Noches. He grunted and cracked his neck.

“Impressive, but a move like that is pretty useless if you can’t hit me with it.”

“I agree,” said Night Light, just as the light from the Sprenger’s explosion faded. “That’s why I set up two of them.”

Something streaked like a shooting star through the remains of the first Sprenger’s fading light, passing by Torch’s face in an eyeblink and stabbing into the wall of Las Noches behind him. Torch looked back, only just now registering that the object was Night Light’s own Seele Schneider. It was implanted in the wall, a ginto tube tied to its hilt that opened up and dripped its alchemic water onto the Seele Schneider’s hilt in the same moment the blade hit the wall.

Blue light, blazing brighter than the first Sprenger, flowed out and connected to four more Seele Schneiders that were planted across the surface of the wall, forming the pentagram in an instant.

Torch had no time to react, only to realize what had happened.

The Licht Regen. All those hundreds of thousands of arrows Night Light had fired earlier. They hadn’t been meant to damage him at all. Only blind him to the fact that Night Light had fired four Seele Schneiders amid the torrent to form the base for another Sprenger on the wall. Night Light had predicted Torch would see Shining Armor setup the first one, and logically dodge away from it.

Son of a bitch, Torch thought, not with any malice, but genuine respect as a second, even stronger Sprenger exploded upon him.

The titanic blast of white and blue energy shattered a large portion of Las Noche’s wall, while utterly engulfing Torch. Night Light and Shining Armor had to each dodge to the side to avoid the stream of power as it ripped apart a wide swath of area, exploding outward from the wall. Now standing on the air a good distance up, Shining Armor wiped his brow and glanced at his father.

“How did you know he’d dodge backwards anyway?”

Night Light shrugged, “He’s an instinctual fighter from what I’ve observed. It's just instinct to dodge backwards when you dodge at all. Move away from a threat. I just guessed, and it paid off.”

Shining Armor accepted that with a nod, looking back at the dust settling around a near fifty meter wide section of what had been part of Las Noche’s wall. “Do you think that got him?”

“I doubt it. I used my Seele Schneider to weaken the reishi particles bonding his scales together, but even so I don’t think an Espada of Torch’s level will die from just this.”

“...Freakin’ monster,” Shining Armor muttered.

“They’ve survived centuries of warfare with us for a reason, son. Remember that, and never forget to respect their power. Had I not arrived when I did, you could very well be dead right now.”

Shining Armor nodded in agreement, then looked at the clearing trails of smoke and dust from where Torch had been standing and his grip tightened on his bow, “Not gainsaying you, dad, but kinda glad I’m here to back you up too, otherwise I’m not sure you could take this guy alone.”

His words were punctuated by Torch emerging from the fading dust and growling in such a manner that the two Sternritter could feel it in their bones. The Fifth Espada stood tall, but far from unscathed. In fact he looked distinctly mauled by the blast he’d taken at ground zero. His back was a blackened mass of charred scales and bleeding red wounds that ran with oozing blood. His lower left arm, the one that had held the sword, was twisted and hanging limply, several of its fingers missing. The burn marks rolled over Torch’s neck and scarred the right side of his face with raw crimson burns, and his right eye was burned to a milky white, clearly blind. And for all that he stood to his full height, it was clear he was breathing heavy, labored breaths, and favoring his left leg, which shook under the strain of keeping himself standing upright.

Torch was too proud to show the pain he was in. The Sprenger was bad enough, having hit as hard as the strongest Cero Torch could’ve mustered himself. He knew only his specialized defensive qualities, his insanely hard and layered Hierro scales, had kept him alive through that attack. Even someone higher tier than him like Catrina might not have survived that blast. Then again, Catrina probably would have dodged it, Torch imagined with a rueful grin.

He briefly assessed himself. He was hurt, no doubting that. Almost all the scales on his back were gone, leaving just bare, scorched skin. They weren’t growing back quickly either. Not after losing that many, that fast. Worse, his old injury was acting up. His left leg was in horrific pain, and cramping like crazy. Torch could barely stand on it. Damned Grogar. The wound had never fully healed.

He wasn’t about to let the injuries, ancient or fresh, make him back down from a fight. Torch grit his teeth and let out a challenging roar, beat his axe and spear together in a clamorous clash of metal, and called out to the Quincy, “Is that all you got!? My daughter hits harder than that!”

She didn’t, but Torch would take any opportunity to talk up his Ember. He hoped she was doing alright out there. He’d gotten a bit caught up in the fight and lost track of how his horde was doing. Torch wasn’t exactly the most tactical leader, but he did encourage a lot of independent thinking among his horde, so they generally didn’t need him to lead them around by the noses.

Night Light and Shining Armor exchanged brief looks with each other, the younger Sternritter holding up one hand in a helpless ‘what are you gonna do?’ gesture.

“Don’t suppose you can just go Vollstandig, dad?”

“The rest of you have His Majesty’s leave to do so. He hasn’t given I or my particular subset of peers permission to do the same.”

A small twitch of a frown crossed Shining’s face, “I don’t understand that. What makes our Vollstandig’s different from yours?”

“Ours are more... extreme in their design,” was all Night Light said before he paused and looked up sharply, eyes focusing on Las Noches itself. His golden eyes turned to narrow channels, then shot wide. Shining Armor could see the sudden ratcheting up of tension in his father, and didn’t miss the implication of how abruptly Night Light was focusing upon the interior of the Hollow fortress.

“Dad? Dad what is it?”

Night Light himself couldn’t be certain. The hole that had been blasted into Las Noches had made it easier to sense some of the spiritual pressures inside. Much like all his other basic Quincy abilities were refined to mastery, his spiritual senses were similarly honed to a fine edge. He’d been out of contact with Velvet and her team after they’d gone into Las Noches, but now that he was close to the fortress, able to sense its interior clearly with that large hole punched through it, he could tell more or less what lay within.

He sensed Cadence and Sassy Saddles readily. He knew their spiritual pressures well. He also knew Twilight Velvet’s reiatsu intimately. Out of all the Quincy, he could’ve sensed her more clearly than anyone else, even if she was trying to hide her spiritual pressure.

...And he didn’t sense her presence at all.

----------

There was an all to quiet instance after the Soul Reaper’s portal had closed where Adagio just stood there, her hand gripped so tightly around her ruby tipped trident that she thought she could hear her bones grinding. A roar of guttural, deep frustration tore itself from her lips as she smashed her left fist into the ground, taking out her fury in a cratering punch that sent a shockwave through what was left of Squirk’s former abode, literally cracking apart the wall in front of Adagio and letting in light from outside.

Adagio could feel her newfound strength flowing through every muscle and sinew of her new body. It was a feeling that married itself well to her anger as she stood, examining her new Zanpaktou. Instinctively she knew the white shafted, crimson tipped trident in her hand was the new wellspring of power for her Arrancar form, and even knew its name without having to think about it. Instinctively she knew she could release its power like any other Arrancar, and silently kicked herself for not thinking to do so against Luna right off the bat.

But no, there had been no time for that. Even taking a few seconds to call out her Zanpaktou’s name and undergo the transformation of a Resurreccion would have taken seconds that Ember hadn’t had to spare. Adagio had done the only thing she could by charging Luna and trying to fight through to her friend’s side, but the Soul Reaper Captain had simply been too powerful and skilled to be overcome. At least for now. The next time they met, however?

Adagio intended to give Luna more than a mere scar.

Looking over her new form, taking stock of herself, Adagio was almost a tad disappointed. She looked just like she had when she’d been trapped as a mere naked monkey, save for the Hollow hole still in her chest, with her siren gem suspended perfectly in the center. There was a crown-like fringe of bone on her brow with three spikes, which Adagio hardly minded. It had a regal feel to it. She also didn’t mind the hair, the only part of her human body she’d actually missed. It’d been fine enough in her Vasto Lorde form, but now it somehow felt a bit longer, and if anything, poofier. Adagio could work with that.

She could use some clothes, however. Naked didn’t bother her, but it made social interaction with most people tiresome if they were distracted. At least if she was once again going to have a human shape, she could take some small pleasure in knowing it was a hot human shape. She did have the boys gather clothing from the human world in preparation for when she'd evolve to this state, so clothes wouldn't be a problem once she had time to go about raiding her own wardrobe, but she wasn't exactly in a position to do that right now.

In a few seconds she ran over her options. She had no intention of rejoining the battle, if she could help it. She’d accomplished her goals, and she’d do Ember no good if she got herself injured or killed by fighting more Quincy. Ideally it seemed the smartest move was to return to her quarters, get Twilight out of her room and back to Canterlot City, then return to Las Noches to deal with the fallout of the battle, after getting herself a proper outfit and checking up on her own people. She needed to know if Dumbbell and the other boys had accomplished their goal, and she needed to check on Lament’s tower, where she’d left Di Roy and Gaw.

She’d sensed a battle taking place in that direction, which was worrying. Should she go there first to check on that before anything else? Lament was an ally at this point, and she had multiple people there to be concerned with. Could clothes and Twilight wait? She almost laughed at the notion of her showing up to the fight stark naked, but it wasn’t as if she could just summon clothes out of thin air.

Bah, I’ll never hear the end of this from Di-Roy, but I’d best check the tower first, in case my help is needed there. Damn, I’d settle for a bedsheet at this point. I can rock a toga look with the best of them.

“Well, can’t say this is what I was expecting to find...”

Adagio whirled around towards the opening in the wall her earlier outburst had created, trident at the ready, and found herself facing the vaguely familiar, pink skinned Sternritter she’d seen battling with Squirk before. The Sternritter woman stood in her blue, crystalline armor, and equally crystal wrist mounted crossbow pointed at Adagio. Her four glowing butterfly wings shone with a dance of a thousand colors, and Adagio had a gut instinct to look away from those luminous patterns, lest they bewitch her. A temptress knew another temptress when she saw one. This woman likely had powers similar to her own siren song.

“Oh?” said Adagio, “And what were you looking for? If its companionship, I must warn you, I’m not a cheap date.”

A flash of impatience crossed the Sternritter’s eyes, her pretty mouth set in a harsh line, “I don’t have time for games, unfortunately. Where is Squirk?”

“You just missed him. Can I take a message?”

A flash of pink was the only warning Adagio had, but her new body had even more improved reflexes than before, and her trident spun once, deftly knocking aside the arrow that had been aimed for her throat. The Sternritter spoke again in a tone of poison syrup.

“I only sense a residual amount of Squirk’s reiatsu, but that doesn’t mean anything, as he could have used a Garganta to escape again. So I’ll ask one more time, to give you the chance to answer willingly; where is he?”

A long couple of seconds ticked by as Adagio considered things. Was it really worth it to start a fight with this Sternritter if all she’d been after was Squirk? Adagio had better places to be, after all. She wasn’t even completely certain that if she fought with this woman that victory was a guarantee. She felt strong. Adagio hadn’t really stretched her new powers yet, so she wasn’t sure if this Sternritter was an even match for her or not. She didn’t feel overwhelmed, like she had with Prime Hemline’s reiatsu, but was that because Prim Hemline had been stronger than this pink woman, or was Adagio just that much stronger herself now?

Either way, a fight wasn’t really worth it, if one could be avoided. She considered lying and saying it was the Soul Reapers that had killed Squirk, but that wouldn’t make any sense. Luna had been adamant about capturing Squirk, so the lie would pan out. It seemed she was stuck with the truth, but no matter, it wasn’t as if this woman was going to tell any other Espada who had offed Squirk.

Not letting her guard down, but lifting her chin and meeting the woman’s eyes, Adagio said, “He’s dead. I killed him myself.”

A confused frown passed over the Sternritter, “Is that what made you evolve into an Arrancar? No, don’t answer. It doesn’t matter. I believe you.” She paused, Adagio all but seeing the gears turning in the Sternritter’s mind, then the woman lowered her crossbow. “As long as he’s dead, that’s all that matters. I won’t ask what happened here or where the Soul Reapers went either. Now, I have somewhere I’m needed. Are you going to cause trouble for me, or shall we part and pretend we never saw each other?”

“I’m all for pretending I never saw you, and in fact have places I need to be myself. So...”

“So...”

The two stared at each other, neither one willing to trust the other enough to turn their back and leave first. That standoff could have lasted for some time if not for the abrupt manner in which the Sternritter jerked as if struck by an electric shock, but in truth was was just that she was clearly surprised by something she sensed, by the way her head whipped around, staring off to the southwest with eyes wide.

Adagio heard the Sternritter whisper, “Velvet!? No!”

And with no further hesitation the Sternritter was off like a pink lightning bolt, streaking across the sky. Adagio walked out of the shattered hole in the wall of Squirk’s palace and noticed the Sternritter was heading in the direction of Lament’s tower. She pushed out with her Pesquisa, sensing the reiatsu in that direction. She felt Lament. His presence was still overwhelmingly strong, but not at the dark heights its had been just minutes before. What had happened over there?

I don’t sense the Quincy he was fighting... did he emerge victorious? There’s still too much of his reiatsu around for me to sense Gaw or Di Roy, or even Roka or Fenice. Crap, and the other Sternritter is making right for them. Why does this day keep getting more complicated?

There was nothing for it. Adagio, with her newfound power and speed, burst into a series of Sonido assisted leaps that sent her all but hurtling across Las Noche’s inner desert, pursuing the pink Sternritter towards Lament’s tower... and whatever awaited her there.

----------

He gathered his thoughts like trying to pull in cold waves from the sea. Lament’s mind still felt scattered, as if he was only half awake. This day, this battle, it had hammered parts of his psyche that he hadn’t realized were even there. Names and images he didn’t know still hung there, like low hanging apples he could pluck from the tree, but not hold onto them, the thoughts tumbling from his grasp.

Orchards. A farm, touched by autumn. A woman’s smiling face, framed by golden blonde hair. The sound of children laughing. Hayseed. Yet for every thought there was an ocean of deep pain and regret attached to it, sweeping the thoughts (memories?) away.

And those memories were intermixed with what he knew was solid and real. His home, the large, obsidian tower behind him. His family, beloved daughters Roka and Fenice, hurt and in danger, along with all the other little ones he’d sworn to himself he would protect. The Quincy woman, whose power and threat had required he unleash his own dangerous might to defeat...

She was dead. She’d said her name was Twilight Velvet. The name itself seemed to scrap at his mind with hints of memory, but like all the other thoughts they slipped into the darkness of his regret and remained cloaked in shadow. But he somehow still understood he’d known this woman, who now lay dead at his feet, her blood soaking into the ground, much of it still coating the steel of his Zanpaktou.

Lament shook his head. He needed to stop thinking about this. Not right now, with his family’s safety still in question. He turned his attention away from the woman he’d killed and focused upon the young girl who sat a short distance away, still spattered with the blood from Velvet.

Judging by her uniform she too was a Quincy, though clearly no Sternritter. The girl’s right hand had been severed at the wrist, yet the wound had ceased to bleed. Strange. In fact the girl, purple skinned and wearing glasses, struck Lament was very strange indeed. She wore an unusual gauntlet of thin metal plates upon her left hand. Some kind of new Quincy weapon? It didn’t seem to matter. What drew Lament’s attention was that the girl was sitting completely still, with her eyes shadowed by the bangs of her hair, and the Quincy spirit energy that Lament had been sensing from her had quite suddenly vanished.

Lament considered whether he should kill this one too, or simply allow the girl to flee? He had no desire to take another life, but he had to ensure his family’s safety against any potential threats that remained. But she was young, clearly still a child in most ways that counted, and Lament was not inclined to be harsh towards a child, Quincy or otherwise.

He was about to tell the child to flee while she could, but before he’d opened his mouth to speak, the girl moved. Lament frowned, hand tightening around the hilt of his Zanpaktou. The girl’s motions seemed... wrong. Halting, jerking, as if she was standing under the tugs of a hundred puppet strings, all trying to yank her in different directions. She took one, shaking, unnaturally shifting step towards Velvet’s body, her boots dipping further into the pool of blood surrounding the fallen Sternritter.

Lament took a step back, and wasn’t sure why. He still felt no reiatsu coming from the girl. Yet something deep rooted and primal in his soul was telling him that this Quincy child was a threat. A deadly threat.

The girl stepped again, her one remaining hand twitching at her side, her head still hung so that her face was cloaked in the shadow of her hair. She reached Velvet’s body, and knelt down, knees becoming coated further in blood. That twitching hand reached out and touched the corpse, tracing a path up to Velvet’s face and resting there for a moment.

Finally Lament did feel something. It wasn’t reiatsu. Not spiritual pressure as he knew it. Yet the air was stirring with an energy he’d never felt before, something that made his skin feel cold. He thought he saw the air wavering around the girl, like a heat distortion, yet somehow more twisted. His sense of danger was only increasing, further and further by leaps and bounds by the time the girl finally raised her head and looked straight at him.

Utter black. Her eyes had no color, no pupil, nothing but black, and that darkness poured out of her eyes like globs of living ink. When she opened her mouth, more of that total, complete shadow poured out as if she was vomiting it out along with a scream that didn’t belong to a human throat. More of the ink black substance flowed from her nostrils, the edges of her fingernails, her ears, practically any part of her exposed skin. At the same instance the gauntlet on her left hand started to spark and flare with teal flames, and that same pale blue fire rose around her, coating her feet and legs and rising up her body like a cloak.

Lament took another step back and readied himself, raising his blade. He could feel more of that unusual, cold and unnatural energy rising around the girl. He had no true sense of how much power was gathering, but he was certain enough that he shouldn’t underestimate it. Especially considering his own power was still weakened considerably by the seals that Velvet’s last actions had placed upon him. He still possessed a great deal of his own power, but he knew he couldn’t activate his Resurreccion right now.

As the teal fire engulfed the young Quincy’ form, he saw that the black substance spurting from her body like a shower of blood was pooling upwards, rising like strands of oil and forming into a oblong pool above the girl’s head. That tar-like substance stretched out, forming a giant, near perfect oval, hanging fifteen feet tall and suspended about five feet above the Quincy girl’s head. It was connected to her by a obsidian black string of darkness that emerged from the back of her neck.

As for the girl herself, her own body had changed. Her Quincy uniform was gone, replaced by a uncomfortably sensual dress of midnight purples mixed with strands of the same tar black substance that poured out of the girl. Rivers of teal fire proceeded to form boots and elbow length gloves, all dripping with strands of inky darkness. The girl’s solid black eyes became framed by more of those pale, otherworldly fires, and a bubbling of more black tar combined with the fire to form a jagged horn from her brow. Finally, a pair of magnificent and large raven wings, dark purple save for where they seemed coated in more of that black substance, spread from her back. Strings of that darkness formed up from her wings, connecting to the giant oval of shadow above her head.

Then that oval quivered, and with a wet, squelching sound, it opened to reveal a massive white eye. The eye was shot through with veins of dark, but its pupils were a rich, raw violet color. The eye shook and shifted, looking around like some manic beast before fixating upon Lament.

Then the girl spoke, and her voice held the distorted howl of three voices mixed together, one the pain filled cry of a girl who’d lost her mother, another that of a crazed madwoman, and the other the deep resonance of something primal, ancient, and furious.

“Treasonous murderer! I welcomed all to my Palace and was repaid with betrayal!? My dearest ones slain at my feet!?”

A tick of the girl’s head, and the voices distorted again, “Mother, he killed mother-”

She twitched, the voice turning into twisted laughter, “Hahah, but we can fix everything Twilight! Just let me out! I’ll fix everything with enough magic-”

The primal voice boomed out now, louder, so much so that it shook the ground and made Lament flinch. “Silence! Voices in my head! Where is this place!? The Hollow Realm? Why am I here? I will have answers!”

“NO!” Once more the anguished cry of the girl rose over the distorted mingle of voices, “He killed her! I won’t let him get away with it! Midnight, please, help me!”

Abruptly all three voices merged into a single, murderous and vengeful whole, “Kill him. Kill him. Kill him. Killhimkillhimkillhimkillhimkillhim!”

That was the last warning Lament received before the twisted, changed girl attacked. She didn’t charge at him, or summon a Quincy bow to fire arrows upon him. No, she simply gestured, and reality buckled and tore apart at the motion. It was as if the air itself was cracking like broken glass, spearing towards Lament in a jagged line of shattering space.

Fortunately for Lament whatever the girl was doing, it didn’t surpass his pure speed, and with a Sonido he vanished out of the path of the tear in reality. Landing a dozen meters away he observed the attack with a keen, cold eye. He could see the edges of the cracks, like purple glass that continued to break off in small pieces. It opened up in a long, haphazard line, a hole in the air that looked very much like a portal. He could even see a strange, alien landscape beyond, like some aired green tundra with a yellow sky.

Twilight screamed in three voices at him, and beneath her feet the ground cracked. Not with raw power creating an indent, but rather the same ripping in space occurred beneath her and he saw a literal hole tear itself open under the girl’s feet. The hole widened to several meters in mere seconds, flecks and shards of space breaking off like fractured pieces of ice. It was just a dark void within that hole, and the girl rose into the air upon her raven wings, black eyes still oozing darkness. Velvet’s body would have fallen into the void, but tendrils of the dark substance stemming from the girl reached out and coiled around Velvet, cradling the body and drawing it up along with the girl. The giant eye above her remained utterly focused upon him as she raised the stump of her right hand. From the stump poured out teal fire in a condensed, near solid jet stream that poured at him like a high pressure water hose.

Lament’s unease was not gone, but he was gaining a sense of this girl’s ability, and while he had no idea how she’d gained this power, he was not going to flee from it while his family remained in danger. He swung his Zanpaktou, using such force as to create a shockwave. He’d hoped the shockwave would disperse the jet of pale blue fire, but it only slowed it down enough that Lament could block it instead.

His blade held against the stream of power, but he felt a distant pain as the hand holding his Zanpaktou started to burn under the mystical heat. Strangely, he still didn’t sense reiatsu from the girl. This power, whatever it was, was either based in some other form of energy, or was of a transcendent quality that surpassed his ability to sense it.

He saw her gesture again with her other hand, and this time saw a trio of distortions in the air behind him as a fresh set of tears in reality came spiking towards him, leaving ragged holes in the very fabric of space as they came. Lament pushed back the stream of teal fire with his Zanpaktou and jumped to avoid the oncoming rips in reality, but they twisted to follow him, joining into one giant wound in the sky that flew towards him in a choppy, erratic motion.

Though he managed to avoid it, he could tell these tears being created by the girl were getting faster and more accurate by the second. Worse, they didn’t go away. Each tear remained like a pulsing wound in the air, and each one grew slowly larger on its own, its edges breaking away piece by piece to widen the tear. If he left things like this, they’d consume his tower, and his family along with it, in due time. The hole underneath the girl had already widened to over a dozen meters wide, a yawning void that was already consuming the desert sands around it.

He had to end this threat. Now.

He rushed her, full speed. There was a deep, pained regret in his heart as he moved, sword poised to strike the girl’s head clean off. Conflicting memories still tried to push their way through his mind, screaming at him to stop. But his family needed him. He’d make it quick, painless.

Lament’s sword swung, but hit nothing but air. He blinked.

The girl had vanished in a burst of violet sparks and teal flame, only to reappear an instant later, higher above him. That hadn’t been a high speed maneuver. That had been literal teleportation. He didn’t think the girl’s reflexes were quick enough to respond to his motions, but he suspected that huge, unblinking eye had something to do with it. That eye hadn’t so much as moved a centimeter away from his position, and even when he’d moved to strike, he saw the eye track his movement.

Before he could ponder that further the girl lashed out again, this time with a sweeping gesture that ripped open and entire wave of tears, easily more than twenty this time, that cascaded down at Lament in a barrage that was accompanied by the sound of thousands of breaking pieces of glass. Lament felt a twist in his gut as the air around him wavered, as if reality itself was starting to groan and bend under the weight of so much warping of space.

As Lament flickered in and out of view, dodging the relentless rips in reality that were seeing to carve into him, he realized that if he didn’t deal with this girl soon, not just his own family, but possibly the entirety of Las Noches was in grave danger.

----------

Sombra’s first indication that something had gone wrong in his predicted plans was the abrupt and all too familiar sensations that accompany the death of his Sternritter. While he had a connection to all of his Quincy, it was only with his Sternritter that he could discern the exact moment of their deaths, due to the potent and almost intoxicating feeling of a portion of his own power returning to him in the form of the late Sternritter’s Schrift merging with him once more. Their Schrift, and one other rather important thing, but Sombra didn’t like thinking about that, especially while facing off with Tirek.

He could identify the Sternritter’s who were dying as well, and while he’d been disappointed when he’d sensed Jet Set’s death, that at least had been within the realm of casualties he’d predicted possible. Not Jet Set specifically, of course. Sombra was not prescient. Rather he knew it was likely he’d lose at least one, maybe two of the weaker Sternritter in a battle this open and intense against the full might of Las Noches. It was saddening to lose one as young as Jet Set, but that death hadn’t distracted Sombra from his battle with Tirek.

The prison dimension was nearing its limit at this point, countless cracks of white light forming over the cavernous void’s edge like glass fracturing under water pressure, only this pressure was from the constant outpouring of spiritual energy from Sombra and Tirek.

Sombra had abandoned a defensive posture in favor of seeking to keep Tirek off balance with an all out assault that involved conjuring a set of three mansion sized spacial warps that looked like perfectly shaped spheres of solid shadow that Sombra was using to crush towards Tirek from all sides. Each sphere was essentially made from compressed space that was rotating at high speed, creating its own deadly, ripping gravity well. Mere contact with these spheres would tear apart normal matter, but this wasn’t enough to kill Tirek, only slow him down. Even the Primera Espada had to push back with the lion’s share of his own strength and potent reiatsu to keep himself from being smashed between the powerful spheres. He was using his sword on one sphere, while holding back another with his free hand, while firing a continuous Cero from between his horns to fend off the third sphere, and while Tirek was holding them at bay readily enough, this had created a temporary stalemate between the two.

Sombra knew this was only buying time, and that this kind of blunt attack would never overcome Tirek’s incredible raw power. But Sombra just needed this to keep Tirek occupied for a few minutes more. He couldn’t imagine the battle would take much longer, if the information he was getting from Night Light was accurate. Guto had been forced into retreat, Smooze defeated if not outright killed, and the other Espada were still being held off by Sombra’s other Sternritter.

All they needed was confirmation that the Espada with the Garganta specialization had been eliminated.

Yet in the span of a mere minute, everything about Sombra’s priorities changed.

First, quite disturbingly, he felt Twilight Velvet’s Schrift return to him. Sombra was not a man used to being surprised. Feelings of genuine shock were rare for him. For a fraction of a moment he felt his senses had to be wrong. There was certainly no way one of his most capable and competent Sternritter had been killed while dealing with a lower tier Espada. Unless another Espada had managed to interfere? The Fourth Espada had retreated from the battle outside, and that one was strong enough to be a respectable threat to three Sternritter together.

His surprise lasted only for a second before he took firm hold of his emotions and remained focused. Even a second of distraction had allowed Tirek to shove back on the spheres, his Cero blasting the one sphere backwards towards Sombra while almost shoving away the other two. Only Sombra’s iron discipline allowed him to regain composure and control enough to hold firm and push back.

As much as it seemed improbable, he couldn’t deny what he felt in his soul. Twilight Velvet was dead. He just had to look within to confirm as much. It was a horrible pity. Remorse for what young Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor were going to have to endure now tried to strike, but Sombra shut the door on those emotions. He was even more regretful for Night Light, who was such a loyal and diligent servant. Sombra knew well the pain Night Light was about to go through, but just as before he kept the iron door of mental control shut tight on those feelings.

Not now. Later.

At least that was what Sombra wanted, but less than a minute after sensing Velvet’s death, his control was broken but a far, far more dire sensation.

Sombra had a few contingencies in place in case of certain emergencies. If the Silburn was compromised, he had a tie to that castle that went straight to his soul and would alert him if the Silburn was directly attacked, no matter where Sombra was within the living world or even the Spirit Realm.

He also had a similar tie to Twilight Sparkle, to alert him in case a specific thing ever happened, although at the time he’d forged the tie he’d imagined he was just being paranoid. He’d even felt a bit guilty about forging the spirit tether without her knowledge, but it’d just been a precaution, nothing more. He thought he’d have far more time to work on her before this ever came up as an issue.

Clearly he’d been wrong. Horribly, monumentally wrong.

The “Eye” had awakened. How and why didn’t matter. All the mattered was that Sombra could sense the severing of the spirit tether he’d put on Twilight, the warning that the Eye had woken up, and only a moment of concentration on the remains of the tether told him where Twilight Sparkle was. Inside Las Noches.

...Why was she inside Las Noches!?

Then Sombra put two and two together and realized what might have caused the Eye to wake up from its dormant state inside young Twilight, and break free of the bindings he’d placed upon it. If Twilight had witnessed her mother’s death, then that would cause unimaginable tremors within her psyche that’d weaken the seal Sombra had put on the Eye, and given it plenty to wake up to, like an earthquake waking a hibernating bear from slumber and giving it plenty of rage to break a few chains placed on it.

I have to go to her, NOW!

Sombra’s distraction was all Tirek needed. The Primera Espada let out a volcanic roar and with a hefty slash of his golden sword he cleaved one of the dark spheres in half, and then smashed his fist into the second one. The fist blazed with an aura of power, orange and black energy crackling around the fist like a solar nimbus as he smashed it into the sphere of darkness and sent it flying backwards like an oversized beach ball.

Then Tirek focused upon his Cero, shoving even more power into the torrent of energy that poured out from between his horns. The raw beam of utter destruction bored its way into the third sphere, drilling through it and blasting out the back of the sphere. The Cero beam continued on, cascading towards Sombra, who saw it coming barely in time to vanish into a spacial shadow and emerge a few dozen meters away to avoid the beam.

Tirek didn’t give Sombra a second, recognizing the Quincy King’s distracted state, and in an instant Sonido he appeared in front of Sombra, two handing his massive gold-edged blade as he slashed it down with cliff shattering force.

“Something on your mind, boy!?” Tirek taunted.

Sombra blocked Tirek’s strike with his shadow stained bow, its own spurs sharp as a blade themselves. The warping energies encasing the bow were sufficient to hold up against the devastating power of Tirek’s sword, and the clash of the two weapons sent ripples of black and orange energy sparking all over the void.

Nearly face to face with his arch-rival, Sombra only narrowed his eyes to red slits and spoke in a harsh whisper, “I don’t have time for you anymore...”

“What!?” Tirek snarled, clearly offended by the insulation, but Sombra simply stepped back. He moved into the shadows coiling around his body from his cloak as he warped space and with the power of the Absolute he vanished from within the prison dimension.

Tirek was left just blinking in his own moment of astonishment, now alone in the void.

Not that this was a problem for the Primera Espada. Without Sombra present to provide a worthy foe that Tirek couldn’t ignore, he was now free to smash his way out of this prison dimension. Given how much damage it had already taken from his scuffle with Sombra, Tirek figured he would be able to finish shattering the prison and break free within a few minutes. He was wise to a possible trap, but after a few seconds of waiting, he sensed nothing of Sombra’s presence. The bastard had used his Absolute to essentially teleport away.

But this didn’t make any sense. What would cause Sombra to retreat like this? Was this some kind of trick? Tirek had not become the King of Hueco Mundo through power alone. He had a quick and cunning mind. He couldn’t immediately fathom what would make Sombra quit the field so abruptly, but something had clearly distracted the Quincy. Something had suddenly taken priority over fighting Tirek, or indeed ensuring Tirek stayed imprisoned so he wouldn’t use his overwhelming power to annihilate Sombra’s army.

The whole point of Sombra confronting Tirek was to ensure neither King could be free to destroy each others armies.

So what could possibly have been more important to Sombra than protecting his army?

----------

The area around Lament’s tower was starting to look as if some great beast had taken its savage claws and mauled the air itself to split apart into dozens of bleeding wounds in the form of jagged portals, each one slowly expanding as pieces fell away form their edges. Within each portal lay the landscape of some other reality, some alien world or unknown realm, not one of which Lament recognized. Most seemed bizarre, or even difficult to look at with his eyes, as if the colors and shapes beyond weren’t meant to be perceived by his senses. Some of the realities beyond the portals seemed almost normal. Almost. One of them looked like, for all the world, like some idyllic country town, only with brightly colored ponies trotting around, many of them staring in bewilderment at the portal.

That was all Lament had time to see, however, as he sought to put down the monstrosity that had become of the Quincy girl. For all of her rage, she was proving a cunning and unrelenting threat.

He had slipped through her barrage of reality tears, bringing his sword to bear with series of viper swift strikes that left him little more than a blink of motion. The eye, that unblinking eye, tracked his every motion, and the girl teleported in rapid succession. She almost avoided all his blows, too, but he’d split her shoulder open with one strike that managed to catch her amid her flickers of purple, flashing teleports. She bled like any other human, despite this strange transformation, so Lament was encouraged.

What was less encouraging was when the girl started to cackle like a psychotic and bloodthirsty madwoman and proceeded to summon forth a thin beam of teal light wreathed in fire that he tried to block with his hand, thinking it a weaker version of the flames she’d summoned before. It wasn’t. In fact it didn’t burn at all, but instead the beam started to turn his arm to stone, even the tattered sleeve of his duster!

Surprised, but not to the point of inaction, Lament used Sonido to back away and avoid the rest of the beam, giving his left arm a brief glance. It had been turned to stone up to the elbow. Irritating, but not critical.

Deciding to test her defenses against his own energies, she lifted his sword and pointed with the index finger of the hand holding it. An sallow and sickly green light formed before he discharged a Cero towards the girl, not imagining it would harm her but carefully observing her manner of defense.

Her dark raven wings made a flapping motion, and more of that flickering teal energy flowed from them to form a barrier around the girl that looked as solid and angular as a crystal. It absorbed the Cero, although cracks formed along the crystalline shield even as it withstood the blow. So there was a limit to her energies, Lament surmised. Had he still been in his Resurreccion form, he could likely overwhelm her, strange powers or no. But he was weakened, both by his battle with Velvet and Velvet’s parting gift, so Lament couldn't overpower this girl by force alone.

Indeed the problem wasn’t killing her, it was doing it fast enough before those out of control rifts in reality she kept creating consumed his tower, and his children along with it!

Even as he thought that the Quincy girl let out a feral scream of vengeful anger, and with a gesture sent a series of rippling portal tears towards Lament from both above and below. Then, just as Lament was about to dodge, the girl gestured and a strange field of pale light snapped into being around him, accompanied by odd arcane sigils. Suddenly gravity itself felt reversed, disorienting Lament for a moment as he struggled to adjust his Sonido so he could still dodge properly.

He managed it, barely, only avoiding the cascade of portals by a narrow margin. In fact one of them still managed to catch his side, ripping cleanly through a good two inch section of hip. The damage meant little to Lament, but confirmed what he’d suspected from the start. There was no way to block or parry these portal attacks. These holes in reality would go through any physical defense like a Hierro as if it wasn’t there. Dodging was the only means of defense. Perhaps an overwhelming amount of spirit energy might disrupt the portals, but Lament wasn’t about to try that unless he had no choice.

The large portal in the ground the girl had made at the start was now less than fifty feet from the wall of his tower.

Lament turned towards the girl, raising his sword up to his mouth. Since his other hand was made of stone at the moment, he had to use another appendage for this. He opened his mouth and jutted out his tongue, cutting it with the edge of his Zanpaktou.

The blood welled up at the tip of his tongue a vast and a pulsing circle of intermixed green and blue energies swirled together... the beginnings of a Gran Rey Cero.

He doubted her shield could hold up to that, but he wasn’t aiming at the girl. He was aiming at the eye. Whatever that thing was, he surmised if he destroyed it, that would likely end this faster than trying to kill the girl. It might even get rid of those portals.

However, just as he started to fire, he felt a swift approaching reiatsu and didn’t have much time to react as a streaking pink form rocketed towards him like a thunderbolt of multi-colored light. A Quincy woman, pink of skin and with blazing eyes, rushed Lament from the side and with an impressive kick, boosted by Blut Arterie that left red veins of light pulsing along her long leg, booted him square in the side of the head.

The block rocked him to the side and his Gran Rey Cero, already discharging, instead went stampeding off to the side and upwards, streaking past the young Quincy girl and eventually blasting a massive hole through the roof of Las Noches.

“Get the hell away from her!” the older Quincy woman snarled with keen fury.

Lament’s bell had been rung a bit, but the kick hadn’t done any real harm, and he regarded the new arrival with a cool and level gaze. If the armor and glowing butterfly wings were anything to go by, this was another Sternritter, transformed much as Velvet had done.

He was about to recalculate his odds and priority targets, but that was interrupted further by the arrival of another individual who zoomed in with such high speed it was hard to even follow her motions. Lament saw Adagio appear behind the Quincy Sternritter, swinging her trident in a wide arc as streams of water formed around the trident’s prongs. That water expanded, then exploded in a pressurized water cannon that hit the Sternritter in the side and sent her flying away from Lament, tumbling end over end for a second before she righted herself, now hovering in the air between Lament, Adagio, and the still out of control Quincy girl.

Adagio planted her trident and spoke in a huff, “How about everyone back off from one another and...” Adagio blinked at the literal dozens of random, haphazard portals that had been ripped open around the area and whatever she’d been about to say trailed off and she gave Lament a deadpan look. “Do I even want to ask?”

Lament just pointed at the Quincy girl, and didn’t fail to notice Adagio’s look of pale faced recognition, followed by Adagio swearing in an exceedingly unladylike fashion under her breath upon seeing the girl. The situation was not helped by the fact that Adagio was, for reasons unknown to Lament, stark naked. And an Arrancar. He realized he had questions for her too, at this point, but that could wait.

“Now is not the time for questions. We must deal with that girl before she destroys everything nearby with these... wounds in the world she’s making,” he said, raising his sword. He paused, glanced at her sidelong, and added, “Okay,one question; why are you naked?”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “As it turns out, evolution into an Arrancar doesn’t come with a free set of clothes. I imagined you’d knew that already.”

“...Fair enough,” he replied, returning his attention to the Quincy, somewhat surprised the crazed younger one hadn’t resumed her attack yet.

He could see the reason she hadn’t was that, mad or not, her intelligence wasn’t significantly impaired by her altered state, and she was clearly assessing the new arrivals. Her eyes were shifting between Adagio and the Sternritter with a shaking recognition that had temporarily halted her rampage. Her gaze eventually settled on the older Quincy, her voice still distorted, but carrying a stronger note of the original, frightened and mourning young girl.

“C-Cadence? Help... mom, she’s...”

The Sternritter, Cadence apparently, was sweating bullets while trying to maintain her composure, trying to keep one widened eye upon Lament and Adagio while looking with horrified shock at both the girl and the body of Velvet being held in tendrils of darkness beside her.

“Twilight, I don’t know what’s happening to you, but I need you to listen to me. We have to run from here, as fast as we can.”

“Run away? But mother... he hurt her... killed... NO! I have to fix this! We have to fix this! Cadence, help us? Help...?”

The girl’s confused voice gave way to that deep, primal voice, resonate and echoing, yet still somehow feminine. The giant eye fixated upon Cadence, narrowing slightly with slits of darkness.

“You. You carry a trace of his power? What are you, child? Answer me. Why do you carry a fragment of my consort within you? Why do you battle with the gods of the Hollow Realm? The wars were to end! Tell me what is happening!”

A cloud of utter bafflement battled with the distress and sorrow on Cadence’s face as she stared at Twilight with incomprehension. “What? What on earth are you talking about, Twilight? You’re not... Twilight, are you?”

“Answer me!” the primal voice boomed, and snaking tendrils of inky black shot out towards Cadence, who swiftly evaded, using short but smooth motions like a hummingbird on fast forward.

“Twilight! Whatever’s happening to you, you have to get a hold of yourself! Please! I... I can’t lose you and your mother on the same day!” Cadence pleaded, a set of prismatic beams of let firing from her wings at Twilight. The girl made a gesture with her hands, forming another barrier of crystalline energies to absorb the beams.

While this was occurring, Adagio had turned to Lament and grasped his arm, “Leave them to deal with their own issues. We should take this chance to clear out while we can.”

“I can’t. My family is still inside the tower,” he said, pointing with his sword at the portal that was now barely ten feet away from the edge of his home. “If we don’t stop that Quincy, the portal will consume it.”

A sound not unlike a growling cat rushed up from Adagio’s throat, “Nothing can ever be easy, can it!? Go get your family out of the tower, Lament, NOW! I’ll keep the portal at bay.”

He was about to ask how she intended to do that, but Adagio answered by gesturing with her trident, and he heard a familiar yawning noise as a stunningly large Garganta portal opened up and stood in the path of the advancing rift the Quincy girl had made. The Garganta was larger than what Lament had thought Adagio could manage, but perhaps her evolution to an Arrancar had made her stronger than he’d thought. He questioned the wisdom of using one rip in reality to block another tear in the fabric of space, but surprisingly enough, it seemed to be working.

The crumbling edge of the rift Twilight had created halted at the entrance to the Garganta portal, almost as if the two differing portals couldn’t interact with each other. The rift flattened itself against the Garganta portal and just... stopped.

Even Adagio sounded surprised as she said, “Well okay then, I’m suddenly very glad that worked and I didn’t accidentally destroy Hueco Mundo by crossing the proverbial streams.”

“You didn’t know that would work?” Lament asked, faintly incredulous, one slim eyebrow raising.

There was a distinctly madcap manner to Adagio’s smirk as she said, “Didn’t give myself time to doubt. Now get your family out of harm’s way. I really don’t know how long this will hold.”

He was about to do precisely that, when multiple things of note happened nearly all at once.

First was that yet another Quincy appeared on the scene, an older woman with light blue skin and flaring orange hair, carrying what looked like the world’s largest sniper rifle. This woman took one look at the collective scene in front of her, and proceeded to move to aid Cadence against the grasping tendrils stemming from Twilight.

Second, Cadence was grasped by the tendrils, so many of them swarming around her it was like a school of black squid had gotten a whole of her.

Thirdly, Twilight, head twitching this way and that, started to summon forth a growing sphere of coalescing teal energy that in short order grew to the size of a modest hill and aimed it towards Lament and Adagio.

Then, finally, a simple and slim shadow, like a small doorway opening, appeared and Sombra, King of the Quincy, stepped out, barring his glowing silver and blue edged blade.

Without a word or a split second of hesitance, Sombra severed the tendrils holding Cadence, the tentacles of tar-like darkness falling away. He then instantly turned and made a sharp cutting motion with one hand, and a wall of darkness spread from the shadows of his cloak and washed away the sphere of energy Twilight had been summoning as if he was popping a bubble.

The eye above Twilight focused upon Sombra, the primal voice exploding from Twilight’s throat.

“You! You imprisoned us!? Why!? What has become of you? Why do you inhabit that shell?”

“No,” Sombra said, his form vanishing and appearing in front of Twilight in an instant, “No questions. You are not meant to awaken until you are reunited with the rest of yourself. You will sleep, and you will not harm the girl. Her body and soul are her own, Eye, and you will not take either for yourself! Now begone and return to slumber once more!”

Lament didn’t need to be told that this man with charcoal skin and even darker armor, contrasted by a streak of red from a regal cape that matched his hardened eyes. Sombra’s reiatsu alone would have marked him as the Quincy’s King, leaving even Lament feeling the brush of it on his soul like having a great fist pressing in on his chest. That spiritual pressure only sharpened further as Sombra raised his left hand and spoke in swift, decisive words that reverberated with purpose and power.

“Erstes Siegel; Speak no Evil.” (First Seal)

In stark contrast to the depths of shadow that clung to Sombra’s body like a miasma, rising columns of light shot up from his outstretched fingers and coiled together into spectral bands that spun around like a helix as they wrapped around the massive eye. The eye twitched and quivered, jelly-like, as the primal voice bellowed.

“Why are you doing this, my love!? I don’t understand!”

Sombra shook his head, “I am not who you think I am, and your own memories are incomplete. You are not complete. Just sleep.”

More thick bands of light rose from his hand, “Zweites Siegel; Hear no Evil.” (Second Seal)

The light took the shape of two spikes, almost solid in their form like they were forged from partially transparent ivory. They slammed into the eye, piercing it from either side. The eye quaked, as if trying to tear itself away from Twilight Sparkle’s body. The girl herself screamed in the eye’s elemental voice, but her own voice, scared and confused, came out as well.

“S-Sombra... what’s happening to me!? I can’t see!”

A note of pain entered Sombra’s voice, even as he spoke in a low, reassuring voice, “I will take care of things, Twilight, please trust me. It’s going to be okay.”

He moved closer to her, placing his hand, which was now surrounded by a halo of light beams, right over her heart. His eyes closed in concentration, sweat appearing on his brow, as if the power he was enacting was causing even him a fair amount of strain, “Drittes Siegel; See no Evil.” (Third Seal)

A bar of white energy shot from his palm, right through Twilight’s heart, and appeared from her back in the shape of a five pointed Quincy Cross. The girl convulsed, mouth agape, her whole body going into seizures.

Cadence shouted, “Twilight!” and rushed to go to her side, but Sombra held a hand out.

“Stop! Don’t interfere, otherwise the Eye could break free again.”

Cadence stopped in her tracks, but not without giving Twilight an anguished look of fear and concern. But she obeyed her King and stayed still as Twilight started and twist and scream. It was the eye’s voice that was screaming, however, babbling incoherently as the bright bands of light around it started to constrict it and reduce it in size. The tar-like ooze of darkness started to burn away and constrict on itself, flowing back into Twilight as the eye grew smaller and smaller.

Finally the eye was reduced to a size no larger than a normal eye, hovering above Twilight’s head like a small, trembling dot. Then the light surrounded it and formed into a cube. The cube transmuted from light to darkness, then darkness to light, as if it was pulsating between the two states, before it sunk into Twilight’s head and vanished within. The Quincy Cross sticking from Twilight’s back then was absorbed into her body, and disappeared as well. Twilight Sparkle was left with her body returned to its normal state, though still missing her right hand. Her eyes stared blankly for a second, tear streaked, but she then closed them with an exhausted sigh and fell unconscious.

Before she could fall from the sky, Sombra caught her, and cradled her like a child in his arms. He then turned to Cadence and the other Sternritter, while Lament and Adagio watched on cautiously.

“Cadence, Sassy, we’re leaving.”

“But Velvet-” Cadence began, but Sombra simply nodded towards the body and the shadows flowed from his cape, encasing Twilight Velvet’s body and then returning to Sombra.

“I wasn’t going to leave her behind,” Sombra stated, “She has served me well, and her body will be treated with respect.”

He then glanced towards Adagio and Lament, and the Fourth Espada prepared himself, just in case the Quincy King intended to enact some form of retribution before departing. Instead Sombra turned his attention to the dozens of portal rifts Twilight had opened, and with a tired sounding exhalation, his reiatsu flowed out to blanket the area.

Shadows exploded form Sombra, reaching out and coiling around each portal until every single rift was covered in Sombra’s darkness. Whatever power the Quincy King was using Lament didn’t know, but he saw the tears in reality being forced closed by Sombra’s shadows. Within a few seconds there were no rifts left, and Sombra’s shadows flowed back into him. He looked once more at Lament and Adagio, eyes narrowing.

“Consider your lives gifted to you by the necessity of time, Arrancar.”

He then raised an eyebrow at Adagio, “And for goodness sake, woman, put something on.”

He then turned away from them, shadows encompassing himself, Twilight Sparkle, Cadence, and Sassy. All of them vanished a moment later, taken away by Sombra’s power. Adagio, a vein pulsing on her forehead, shouted at the space they’d just occupied.

“Do you see a damn clothing shop around here!?”

----------

Night Light had been about ready to abandon the fight with Torch in favor of rushing into Las Noches in search of his wife, when his King appeared before him.

Sombra stepped from a doorway of absolute black, the power of the Absolute twisting space to instantly teleport him and his passengers to Night Light’s location. Beside Sombra stood a haggard, distraught Cadence, and a confused, worried looking Sassy Saddles.

But Night Light’s eyes were torn towards the sight of his unconscious daughter held in the King’s arms like a sleeping child.

“My King, what’s happened? Where’s my wife?” Night Light said, and felt his heart freeze over as Sombra gave him a heavy look that could only mean one thing. For a moment Night Light felt his world threatening to crumble away to dust, but a long life of training and a sense of duty as solid as steel kicked in and took control, keeping him from breaking down as Sombra spoke.

“I’m sorry, Night Light, Shining Armor.”

“Wait, what?” Shining Armor blinked, looking from Night Light to the King, “What do you mean by that?”

“Shining...” Cadence looked at him with broken eyes, but a plea in her voice.

Sombra didn’t give Shining Armor time to absorb what was happening and turned to Night Light, “Order the withdrawal. We’re done here.” He glanced at Cadence, “The target is dead.”

Though he’d said it as a statement more than question, Cadence confirmed it with a nod, “He’s dead.”

Down below, there was a bellow form Torch “Hey! Are you all ignoring me up there!?”

Sombra didn’t respond to the Espada, instead just willing the power of the Absolute to expand around him. In seconds all of the present Sternritter and himself were whisked away by shadows that cut across the battlefield’s sky. Suddenly they were above the main Quincy fortified line, standing upon the top deck of the command VTOL, which remained airborne through the entire battle.

“Night Light, the withdrawal. Quickly,” Sombra said, and on the heels of his words there was a noise like the breaking of a thunderstorm from high above. Many eyes, Hollow and Quincy alike, turned upward as the giant black sphere that had constituted the sub-dimension Sombra had imprisoned Tirek in gave a groan like a dying whale and then light erupted in multiple blazing fissure across its surface.

The sphere broke like a shattering light bulb, and crumbled to nothing as Tirek flew free, a fiery comet of raw orange and black crackling reiatsu.

Sombra glanced at Night Light, and his training continued to remain in place, making his body move and his voice speak, even as his soul screamed and his mind sought retreat from the reality of what he’d just lost.

Through the power of the Command he issued orders across the entire Quincy army.

This is Night Light. Our mission is accomplished. All battalion commanders, begin primary withdrawal procedures. Fall back and proceed to rendezvous point alpha. All Sternritter, disengage from your personal battles and cover the withdrawal.

The results weren’t immediate, but they were swift. The Quincy, from lowest soldat to highest Sternritter, had been expertly trained for coordinated maneuvers and combined tactics. It was one of the greater advantages they had over the Hollow hordes they faced, and so what could have been a messy and deadly retreat was instead a highly skilled, well timed, and orderly withdrawal. Surviving VTOLs released final salvos of missiles to cover soldats falling back across the desert, not bothering to land for pick ups, given there weren’t enough to effectively lift away all the remaining soldats, but having more than enough firepower left to keep the Arrancar occupied while soldats used high-speed Hirenkyaku movements to get distance from Las Noches.

The tank units, ridden upon by the surviving members of the Strafbattalion, rolled backwards while still firing their guns in coordinated salvos, blasting apart chunks of desert and driving back the fuzzy horde of Catrina’s servants, or the dark, chitinous lines of Chrysalis’ warriors. That flank of the battle was further supported by fiery beams of light from Spitfire flying overhead, wounded from her scuffle with Catrina, who was hesitant to pursue when it became obvious no other Espada were chasing after the Quincy.

High in the sky above, Chrysalis was still facing off with Sapphire Shores and Coloratura upon their shining, floating stage. Parts of the stage were broken or mangled, melted off in sections, but it was still intact, and the two Sternritter were still standing upon it, largely uninjured. Chrysalis herself wasn’t particular injured either, but she was showing trickles of blood leaking from her ears and mouth, as if she’d taken an internal battering. Yet she somehow made the blood a fashion statement and twirled her Zanpaktou lazily in her hand.

“Looks like the party is over for today ladies. Such a shame. I was starting to enjoy the combination of mating cats and banging kitchenware you call music.”

Sapphire Shores chortled, “Says the woman with several smashed internal organs.”

“They’ll heal.”

“But not as fast as usual,” noted Coloratura, “Isn’t that right? I do hope you’ll think of us as you enjoy all that pain.”

“Pain is the fond seasoning that spices up my nights, girls,” Chrysalis said with a rich, unfazed laugh, “Now run along, before your fellow Quincy leave you behind. Wouldn’t want any more Espada to block your retreat, would you?”

Sapphire Shores let out a dainty snort and hopped off the stage, followed by Coloratura as the huge, ornate stage dissipated in a glittering hail of blue reishi particles.

“Just remember, Chrysalis, today was just a demonstration. You haven’t yet seen our full might.”

To this Chrysalis just let out a derisive chuckle, holding up her Zanpaktou, “Did you see me release my power either? Run away little Quincies, before the spider decides she’s hungry.”

Such was the scene in similar mirror across the battlefield. A limping Rutherford, returned to his normal size, fled with the covering assistance of Gladmane from the still very present and poisonous fog cloud generated by Hydia. Torch’s hordes were held at bay by the still functional weapons built within the golden Quincy fortifications, controlled by Filthy Rich even as he helped organize the battalions falling back from the center line. Harshwhinny, still maintaining her Vollstandig, swept the field with streams of acidic liquid, holding the right flank while Upper Crust fell back with her husband’s body held in her arms.

Tirek, face cast in a red glower, watched the Quincy army falling back from his fortress, and decided to provide a final parting statement. He raised his huge, gold edged blade and aimed it at the cluster of VTOLs flying away over the lines of retreating Quincy forces. Raw orange and black energy coiled together into a crushed down sphere, then released in a Cero as large and destructive as the one that had begun the battle.

Sombra, standing upon the front of the command VTOL, made a sharp gesture with his left hand and cast out a wave of shadows just as wide as the oncoming Cero. The wall of spatial warping from the Absolute collided with the Cero in a world shaking crash, sending hurricane winds across the desert and buffeting Quincy and Arrancar alike.

Tirek and Sombra’s power, as it so often had before, essentially canceled each other out, doing little damage to either side. But damage hadn’t been the point. Tirek had simply been making a point.

The battle might have ended, but the war was far from done.

Episode 83: When All is Said and Done

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Episode 83: When All is Said and Done

Adagio stepped back out of Lament’s tower, her bare feet poking out from beneath a thick white robe. This wasn’t exactly the kind of outfit she intended to wear for long, but it’d do to keep the comments and stares to a minimum until she could get something better together. Roka had insisted. Which was disturbing because Roka shouldn’t have been able to even be standing, with the shape she was in, but once the Arrancar girl, along with Fenice and the other orphaned children, had been let out of the basement hideaway and given the all clear, Roka had all but dragged Adagio to get something put on her.

“Such immodesty wouldn't... wouldn’t do around the children and Father,” Roka had said, her face twisted in pain. Honestly Adagio didn’t even know how the young woman was moving around at all. Apparently the Quincy Sternritter that had attacked the tower had done a serious number on Roka. Even as she walked, Roka’s threads and needles were slowly moving about, stitching up wounds across her body. Her eyes all but feverishly burned with a need to correct Adagio's lack of cloths.

Eventually Fenice had to practically sit on her sister to get Roka to sit down.

“Do you know why the Quincy attacked the tower?” Adagio had asked, but Fenice had just shaken her head, muttering something under her breath that Adagio could only barely hear.

“She knew me. I don’t know how, but she knew me...”

Hmm, that stood to reason. Adagio was still unclear on the details, but the description of the woman who’d attacked the tower, combined with Twilight’s mental state upon the woman’s death, was enough confirmation for Adagio that the Sternritter had been Twilight’s mother. Adagio didn't have any particular feelings concerning that, other than a faint twinge of what might have been sympathy for Twilight.

Talk about an absolute mess. Never could Adagio have imagined things turning out that way. What even had that strange Eye thing been? Was Twilight Sparkle even capable of recovering from having her body taken over by such a thing? What was it even doing inside her in the first place? These questions bounced around Adagio’s mind, but ultimately any search for answers was a moot point right now, as Adagio had her own plate full dealing with the aftermath of the battle. She had to confirm certain things, and figure out a plan. Twilight could wait until later.

She found Lament sitting on the bottom steps leading up to his tower. His white duster was even more tattered than it had already been, the sleeve of the right arm all but burned away. For all his power, he looked exhausted now. Yet Adagio still approached him cautiously. This was Lament, after all. He’d already shown himself to be more than a bit unstable. Beside him, his Hollow dog, Winston, was laying, wagging his tail as Lament pet the creature in absent minded fashion.

She went down the steps to stand a few paces away from him, and said, “The children are alright. Fenice is seeing to them, while Roka attends her own wounds. The tower itself has a few extra holes in it, but I imagine it's all repairable, given time.”

He didn’t so much as turn his head towards her, but his voice was steady, if unnervingly flat, “That’s good. I can’t lose any of them. Not the children...”

His hand paused in petting Winston, and the dog let out a small whine of worry. For a moment Lament was like an alabaster statue, a form of utterly still marble. Then he spoke with an intense certainty in his voice, “You knew the Quincy girl.”

It wasn’t a question. And given Adagio knew how much Lament detested lying, she wasn’t about to try to bluff her way through this, and instead nodded, moving so that she came around to the ground, facing Lament with an even stare, “I do. She’s not exactly a friend, but I don’t consider her an enemy either.”

“She nearly destroyed my home. My family,” Lament’s words were like dark ice, cold and level, but Adagio held her ground, planting her trident in the ground at her side.

“Do you honestly believe she was in control of herself while in that state? I have no idea what happened to Twilight Sparkle, but that wasn’t a natural event. Regardless, if you harbor her ill will, that’s none of my business. I’ll only point out that whatever injury she managed to do to you and yours, you did more to her. The Quincy you slew was her mother, after all.”

It was a bit of a gamble to take this track with Lament, but she didn’t need him getting fixated on going after Twilight Sparkle because of this incident with the tower being attacked. It wouldn’t serve Adagio’s purposes to have him distracted like that, nor for the additional complication in the event there was even a remote chance Twilight Sparkle would recover from what happened to her and Adagio could still use her as a potential spy among the Quincy.

Most of all she needed Lament focused on more constructive things, even at the risk of agitating him further.

It was hard to tell just what he was thinking as her words sunk in. He resumed petting Winston, but there was a twitch in his cheek right below his left eye, and his voice became distant.

“A child shouldn’t lose a parent that young. If that woman hadn’t attacked my family I wouldn’t have...” he shook his head, his free hand rubbing at his face like a man waking up with a hangover, “I wasn’t thinking straight. I believe another Quincy used an ability on me that screwed around with my head. Doesn’t matter, I suppose. The result is the result.”

He stopped petting Winston again to stand up, resting one hand on the hilt of his Zanpaktou as he turned to look at Adagio. His expression was as inscrutable as ever, like looking upon a block of carved frost that was hewn into the shape of a dour man’s visage. Adagio tensed her body, just in case. It was impossible to tell if Lament was seconds from violence, or just staring off into space. He was looking her over, but in a way that made her wonder what he was really seeing.

Eventually he said, “A part of me wants to blame you for the danger to my family, because it was your suggestion I join the Espada in their battles. If I hadn’t been out there, fighting, I could have been here, protecting my family. However, you continue to be honest with me. I appreciate that. I appreciate the fact that, come the end, you and your people helped guard my family as well, and so I’ll continue to trust you, Adagio Dazzle. For now. And from that shrewd look of yours, I suspect you have plans?”

She couldn’t help but let out a light, relieved laugh. Freshly evolved to an Arrancar or not, she didn’t think she’d be a match for Lament in a stand-up fight. For now at least he seemed to remain more on the side of reasonable than not, but she couldn’t help but notice his hand didn’t leave his Zanpaktou’s hilt.

“I do, but before I get too ahead of myself I have several things I need to deal with first,” she said, gesturing at herself, “Not that I lack appreciation for Roka allowing me to borrow some robes, but I need to acquire an outfit that suits my style a bit more. And before that, I need to confirm my own subordinates are alive and well. Once I do that, I’ll return here and we can discuss our next move.”

“I believe I saw the two you’d dropped off here for healing retreat in that direction once the battle here got too dicey,” Lament said, nodding off to the east, “I don’t blame them for that. They stayed and fought until I arrived, at which point leaving the area was the smart choice.”

Adagio nodded, noticing the rather gigantic pathway of partially melted desert that trailed off in the distance in one direction, and the prodigious amount of smaller craters and other scorched lines in the sands in various other places. She didn’t blame Gaw and Di Roy for running off either. If either of them had stayed, they’d likely had been killed.

“I knew you were powerful, Lament, but seeing the aftermath of you on a rampage is still rather impressive,” she commented, and he sighed bitterly.

“I don’t take any pride in that power. I lose control of myself when I release it fully.” His eye twitched again, and he looked behind him, up at the top of his tower. His eyes lingered over the damage over the tower, melancholy painting his features as he starred at the top. “I’ll be in my cabin, once you’re ready to talk about your ‘plans’. Do remember to knock, otherwise I might be... jumpy.”

With that, Lament vanished with the swiftness of a nearly impossible to track Sonido, even for Adagio’s improved senses. She knew he’d gone to the top of his tower to go back to his cabin, but it still made her shudder to see how fast he moved. It was important to remember that, powerful ally or not, if she ever made an enemy of that man she’d be in quite a bit of trouble.

Pushing that thought aside, she went about searching for Gaw and Di Roy. They weren’t remarkably hard to find. After all, a hundred foot tall Hollow-dinosaur is kind of easy to spot, even in a place as large as Las Noches.

“Holy crapbaskets on buttered toast, boss lady, you don’t do anything by halves, do you?” exclaimed Di Roy, looking Adagio up and down after she’d flagged the pair down and brought them up to speed on events. “You bag a Sternritter and a Espada all in one battle, while also going toe-to-toe with a freakin’ Soul Reaper Captain!? What are you trying to do, fill out some kind of ‘life achievement’ list? Want to tackle the Soul Queen, next?”

Adagio sighed, giving Di Roy a flat stare, “Technically we didn’t ‘bag’ the Sternritter. Garble, and it’s only with the utmost begrudging respect I say this, sacrificed himself to temporarily stop Prim Hemline. And let’s not make a habit of talking about Squirk, hmm? He died by my hand, yes, but only after he’d been exhausted fighting other opponents, and I rather got the drop on him. As for that damnable Soul Reaper Captain, all I could do was land one scratch on her, which hardly stopped her from taking Ember away...”

Really if she looked at it logically, she may have achieved her objectives and survived the battle, but Adagio hardly felt like she’d come out of this one on top. Evolved, yes. In a good position to further her plans, somewhat. But Ember was taken, and she had no idea how Torch would respond to that.

Or rather she feared she knew exactly how he’d respond to it, and she had to find a way to forestall such ill-advised action until she could formulate a better plan for recovering Ember.

Indeed Adagio’s mind was swirling with plans, but she also needed more information. She needed to see how the battle had shaped up for the rest of Las Noches, whether or not Dumbbell and the boys had accomplished their mission, and then see just how Lament and Torch would both respond to her next intended move.

Gaw, standing above Di Roy, let out a sharp, attention grabbing bark that seemed to say ‘Stop thinking so hard’, as the large saurian lowered her head and snorted at Adagio in an almost affectionate manner. Adagio looked up at Gaw and let out a quick chuckle, patting Gaw’s snout.

“Right, one thing at a time. Di Roy, Gaw, I want you both to return to Lament’s tower and focus on recovering. You were already wounded, and scuffling with the Quincy hasn’t helped in that regard.”

Di Roy laughed, then winced in pain as he clutched at his still stitched up stomach, “Don’t need to tell me twice, boss lady. Last time I plan to go head-to-head with a Sternritter if I can help it. C’mon Gaw, carry me back to the tower and the sweet, tender embrace of Roka!”

Gaw looked down at him, huffed out an amused breath, and proceeded to start walking back to the tower without him. Di Roy blanched, turning with a loud, “Heeeey! Don’t be like that Gaw! I’m injured! Carrrry me!”

As he chased after Gaw, Adagio watched the pair for a moment, just to make sure that, injured or not, they seemed able to reach Lament’s tower. She then headed off in the direction of her home territory.

In doing so she got a good look at the damage done to Las Noches. She saw the rubble strewn around from a large portion of shattered inner wall, likely form one of Lament’s attacks if she looked back along the trail of destruction. Multiple holes were punched in the ceiling as well, from the explosions of power from either transformations, or blasts gone off course. Then there were at least two massive openings in the outer wall itself, which shocked Adagio, because she knew full well just how thick that outer walls was! On both the east and south walls there were colossal holes blown open, with huge piles of rock and rubble piled around them. Dust still rose in streams from the hole in the south wall, and it made Adagio feel a tad chill to note that the hole was perhaps five hundred meters from the portion of the south wall containing her claimed territory. A bit of bad luck and she’d have lost her home.

Was it an Espada or a Sternritter responsible for the blast that did that much damage? From what she’d witnessed, it could go either way.

Arrancar were returning to Las Noches’ interior now. Adagio could see them either coming in through side entrances and tunnels, or filtering in through the freshly made holes. Some made their own personal Gargantas, but none were coming in through the large, coordinated Garganta portals Squirk had made. For obvious reasons. By now Lord Tirek must know Squirk was dead, or at least suspect something was wrong, given Squirk wasn't around. The question of whether he’d learn how the Ninth Espada had met his end was paramount in Adagio’s mind.

She hadn’t left any evidence of her presence in Squirk’s palace, but that wasn’t really important, since she wasn’t certain she should hide the fact she was there. Instead, since it seemed likely Tirek would learn of the fight between Squirk, that pink Quincy Sternritter, and Captain Luna, then Adagio had to play her lie as one tied up deeply with the truth. She was there, with Ember, and tried to “save” Squirk. Sadly the Soul Reaper Captain had followed them through Squirk’s Garganta with strange shadow powers of her own, and despite a hard fought battle, Squirk was killed by Luna, and Ember captured.

Adagio only survived through virtue of evolving into an Arrancar and striking a painful blow to the Captain. Sadly not enough to save Ember, but a valiant effort nonetheless.

Yes, enough truth in the lie to be believable. If she could explain why she and Ember were inside Las Noches and not outside fighting in the battle in the first place. Adagio had to think a bit more on that part of the story, but imagined she had some time before it’d be necessary. Right now Las Noches was licking its wounds and taking stock. For all Adagio knew, Chrysalis already had a story to concoct for Tirek’s ears concerning Squirk’s death.

Or Chrysalis was going to hang Adagio out to dry... but no, Adagio didn’t think so. Chrysalis was certainly capable of that, but the woman struck Adagio was not one to dispose of a new toy so soon. Which is clearly how Chrysalis saw Adagio.

That one is probably the most dangerous person in Las Noches, possibly even more so than Lord Tirek.

To Adagio’s shock, among those returning to Las Noches she saw Torch, and what surprised her was the state of the Fifth Espada. He was gigantic, for one, obviously still in the state of Resurreccion, but his body was heavily damaged. Blackened, charred scales marked his body, and his back was a burned and bleeding mass of red. Even his face showed signs of damage, with one eye burned white.

It was a disheartening sight, for a few moments at least. But if there were Sternritter who could give Lament a fight, it made sense there were those who could severely injure Torch. At first she was discouraged by the thought, but it occurred to her this might play into her hands better than if Torch had come through the battle unscathed.

An injured Torch would be easier to manage than one that was hale and hearty. Also, desperate. Desperate was easier to manipulate. And if that failed and Torch was still too belligerent to see things her way... well... Adagio wasn’t exactly sure how powerful she’d become now that she was an Arrancar, but she was fairly certain she was strong enough to challenge for a position among the Espada.

Who knew what rank she’d obtain? Squirk was dead, but it was possible other Espada had fallen in the battle. Clearly they hadn’t lost the battle, otherwise the place might be flooding with Quincy right now, but at the moment, regardless of how many Espada had survived it was a fair certain bet most of them were wounded and weakened.

If she was going to make a move, it had to be soon, within the next couple of days, perhaps even the next twenty four hours, before any of the injured Espada had time to recover too much strength.

Turning her mind away from those thoughts, she reached a window that led into the hallways connection to the rooms of her territory, and she quickly made her way to her bedchamber, already considering clothing options.

To her surprise, once she opened the doors she was greeted by the sight of Dumbbell, Score, and Hoops all within her room. The two latter boys nearly jumped in fright at her sudden appearance, both of them having been leaning against the wall on either side of the door. Dumbbell lurched in the chair he was sitting in by her table, his face contorting in pain as he tried to rise. At a glance Adagio could tell that Dumbbell was in terrible shape, his body coated in wounds. There had been some rudimentary first-aid performed on him, and Adagio didn’t have to think hard to guess as to who might have done that. If she ever got the chance to thank Twilight later, she would. Still, first-aid or not, Dumbbell’s injuries were to the point that Adagio was shocked he was still conscious, and most of his bandages were soaked red with blood.

“Miss Adagio,” Dumbbell said, trying to lift something in his hand, “We accomplished the mission you sent us on.”

“Y-yeah,” Score said with a nervous look at Dumbbell, “But Grogar totally had way stronger guards than we thought he’d have! We barely got out alive!”

Despite an undercurrent of immediate concern for Dumbbell’s injured state, Adagio still had to fix Score and Hoops both with a sharp, questioning glance first. “Did you leave any witnesses alive?”

Admittedly there was no doubt Grogar would likely know who had raided his labs, and knowing him he probably would have had the means set up to record video evidence of the attack, but she was still hedging her bets that if all his guards had been taken out, that Grogar might be embarrassed enough about the breach of security that he wouldn’t try to expose her attack. After all, Lord Tirek might favor Grogar, but Las Noches was still ruled by the laws of strength above all. If Grogar lost too much face, it wouldn’t do him any favors.

“We didn’t,” Dumbbell said, grimacing, “I knew you’d want us to get them all, so we didn’t stop until the job was done.”

“Even if we had to drag Dumbbell back here barely alive...” Hoops muttered, but Adagio didn’t comment on that, instead approaching Dumbbell and reaching out to take what was in his hand.

Grogar’s technology held some faint resemblance to the kind she was familiar with from the human world, but it was still very much a thing of Hollow origins. The disc was intact, and more like a circular tablet of bone than a traditional disc, but Adagio knew it contained information that the computers in Grogar’s laboratory could read. By itself it wasn’t very useful to her, but...

“Did you manage to grab the other item as well?” she asked, and Dumbbell nodded.

“It’s in the lounge. Only spot it’d really fit,” he said, sighing in pain as he clutched his side. Adagio frowned.

“Score, Hoops, take Dumbbell to Lament’s tower. Di Roy and Gaw are there, and can introduce you to Roka. See if she’s able and willing to patch Dumbbell up some more.”

The pair looked uncertain, but quickly moved to obey Adagio’s commands, carefully lifting Dumbbell between their arms and helping him to the door. Before they left, Adagio called to them, “And boys... good work. You’ve served me well, and will be rewarded appropriately.”

That seemed to lighten their moods, even Dumbbell managing a smile despite his injured state.

It was useful to ensure the help knew their efforts were valued. Adagio intended to count on those three continuing to be useful errand boys, although she needed to be a bit more careful with sending them out in the future. The raid on Grogar’s lab was a good test of their competence and abilities, since Adagio knew Grogar wouldn’t leave his lab unguarded. If they’d died, well... that only meant they weren’t really strong enough to survive what was coming. But since they had, even if only barely, she supposed they could handle serving an Espada.

With the boys gone, she went to the lounge, and found what she was looking for there. It was one of the smaller computers from Grogar’s lab, one she’d seen him use on occasion, if not as often as the lab’s main terminal. She’d watched Grogar using these devices for hours while he’d experimented on her. She was about as familiar with their operation as he was, probably. They had internal power sources, so hooking them up to anything was unnecessary. Much like computers from the living world, these did have password protections, but Adagio had observed those as well, carefully out of the corner of her eye.

Grogar might have noticed her observations, but perhaps he didn’t care if she had watched him? Grogar’s arrogance was often something that seemed to overshadow his caution.

Or maybe he anticipate she’d do this? Grogar had, time and again, shown little care for her continuous rise to power and defiance of him. He almost seemed to enjoy her struggle against his control. Could he really have predicted she’d get this far?

Adagio shook her head. There was no point in wondering about that too much. This raid was a gamble, but it wasn’t as if her plans hinged on this working. It’d just be a tasty bonus on top of everything else.

Turning the computer on, she smiled as its screen lit up green, and the password prompt appeared.

Moment of truth, she keyed in the password she’d observed Grogar using many a time, a strange password that made her raise an eyebrow when she’d first seen it:

Tambelon.

For some reason the word sounded vaguely familiar, as if Adagio had heard of it once, long, long ago. Shaking the thought off, she let out a pleased laugh as the computer logged on. She doubted she’d be able to access any useful data or systems, since she was fairly sure Grogar’s computers were all hooked up to a laboratory database, and with this one unhooked form that it had no way to access it wirelessly. But that wasn’t what she wanted it for. She wanted it to access the data on the disc, which she’d sent the boys to find and download certain information onto.

Once she inserted the disc it only took a matter of seconds for the information to pop up on the screen, and Adagio let out another happy laugh as she licked her lips and pored over it.

The data on how to create artificial Arrancar.

---------

“Victory?”

Tirek’s voice carried with it a distinct weight of displeasure that would make even another Espada cringe from his glower and fiercely arresting eyes, “Is that what you call it, Guto?”

The Espada were gathered at the base of Las Noche’s monolithic central tower, standing upon the same tall, stone rise that connected to the southern inner wall, which now was missing a sizable chunk form near its center. Not every Espada was present. Smooze was missing, though not presumed dead. Tirek doubted much of anything short of utter annihilation would actually kill Smooze, but the mutated monstrosity’s current whereabouts was a mystery. Grogar was also not present, which irked Tirek but at least Grogar had the presence of mind to send one of his deformed servants with a message that he was cleaning up some sort of damage done to his lab and would report back as soon as he could. As for Squirk, it’d just been confirmed the damned fool had gotten himself killed, after Tirek had sent scouts to confirm all Espada’s locations and they had found the Ninth Espada’s palace a mess and a distinctive remnant aura of death intermixed with Squirk’s reiatsu.

There were other reiatsu present in Squirk’s palace as well, but harder to identify, beyond that several of them were Soul Reapers, of all things. Normally Tirek would have found it all somewhat baffling, but he already suspected he knew what had happened. After all, out of his remaining Espada, only one of them hadn't shown any surprise at Squirk's death.

Torch and Lament were also not present, Torch because he was licking his wounds and searching for his daughter, who apparently had gone missing as well. Tirek knew Torch well enough to know not to bother calling upon the man at the moment. Tirek cared not for matters of family, but knew better than to try to make Torch budge on it. Not because he feared Torch’s power, but because Torch was one of the few Espada worth any real respect, so Tirek allowed the man time to seek his child, and mourn if it turned out shed fallen in battle.

As for Lament, it seemed the Fourth Espada’s tower had been attacked, and the Fourth was dealing with the aftermath of that. From what Tirek had learned at least two Sternritter could be added to the Fourth’s list of kills, which in Tirek’s mind more than earned Lament his keep, and so Tirek would give the Fourth his space for now.

As for those still gathered, Hydia, Guto, Catrina, and Chrysalis, Tirek was not bothering to hide his ire, and Guto’s comment had only sparked it higher.

To his credit, despite his injuries, Guto managed to meet Tirek’s stare without flinching and kept his composure as he stood there in a stance of rigid pride. “Well, Las Noches still stands, does it not, Lord Tirek? We have beaten off the Quincy army, and slaughtered many of their number, despite them unveiling new powers. Indeed their morale must be in shambles, for even with such potent new transformations they were no match for the hordes of Las Noches and we Espada!”

Catrina, curling one dark finger through her shining red hair, managed a soft purr, “I am in agreement with Guto. Certainly we may have taken a few losses, but surely the Quincy’s noses were bloodied more than ours. I’d say we taught those arrogant humans a lesson they won’t soon forget.”

Tirek’s sword slammed into the stone floor, point first, with such force that the stone cracked in multiple directions and made several of the Espada present stumble. His breath came in deep, rumbling gusts as he said, “Our fortress was breached, one of our number assassinated, either by Quincy or Soul Reapers, and we lost nearly a third of our hordes’ numbers.”

“Riffraff,” Guto said with an off hand gesture, “Squirk was a weakling by our standards, and while he had a useful ability, yes, it’s not as if he was critical to our war efforts. As for the rest, what do we care how many lower class warrior die? The Quincy lost far more in terms of overall battle power.”

“Truly?” Tirek said with a voice laden with the tone one uses upon someone missing the obvious, “Those ‘riffraff’ warriors you casually dismiss us losing, do you know how we are going to replace them?”

Guto paused, face pinching in a frown of consternation, “Well... we can eventually find more Arrancar, given...um, time, Lord Tirek.”

“Yes, time. Centuries of time, possibly, given how long it takes Arrancar to evolve naturally, you fool! And weak as Squirk was, his Garganta powers were a tactical advantage we could have used to launch surprise attacks on Quincy and Soul Reaper alike, weakening their forces until we could have a decisive advantage! Something none of the sides in this war have been able to achieve. With him gone, we’re back to square one in how we can move upon our enemies. And in case you weren’t paying attention, while we did kill several Sternritter, the damned Quincy can replace them far faster than we can replace Espada! All Sombra has to do is toss a Schrift on any Quincy he likes. I can hardly turn any idiot into an Espada. They also succeeded in testing out those new transformations, which have reduced our advantage of power over the Quincy.”

At his words Guto shrunk back, but continued to persist, “Y-yes, Lord Tirek, but not so much that they eclipse us in power. By all reports the Fourth Espada alone faced three such transformed Sternritter and handled them ably!”

“Three of their weakest Sternritter, but all reports as well,” Tirek said darkly, grinding his teeth, “Smooze fell to just one. Catrina, you were stalemated by another single opponent. And Guto, all those injuries also came from a single foe, did they not?”

Guto’s head rose pridefully, “One that I defeated, and now is chained within my palace as my personal trophy!”

“Oh, good for you. I’m sure that will assuage your wounded pride after you ran from the other two Sternritter that came after you, after you had your horde retreat from battle due to the casualties they were suffering from the Quincy main army,” Tirek said with a fierce glower. He looked at the other Espada, eyes resting on Hydia, who looked a bit bored, but did have the presence of mind to wince at Tirek’s stare.

“And you, Hydia? Anything to add to this?”

She let out a half-hearted chuckle, shrugging her broad shoulders, her belly jiggling as she laughed, “Nah, Lord Tirek, you kinda got the right of it here. I might’ve gone toe-to-giant toe of one of them Sternritter boys, but unlike Guto here I’m not gonna downplay that Vollstandig. With that power boost, even if a Sternritter isn’t a match for one of us, there’s a lot more of them then there are of us, and while we killed a couple sure... we still lost Squirky-boy, and Smooze is still missing. If you ask me, since one Espada rates more than one Sternritter, us losing two to them losing three still means we came out the worse for it.”

Tirek huffed out a breath with a pressure valve releasing steam, “Finally, one of you shows some brains. This battle was, at best, a draw.”

His lips curled in a frustrated sneer, “Like always. All this battle did was hammer home the stalemate that we’ve been trapped in for so long! We must find a way to break it! I will no longer stand for this war being stuck in an endless mire of battles with no clear victor.”

Especially because Tirek suspected that this battle had triggered something unexpected. He hadn’t discovered exactly why Sombra had left their duel so suddenly, but given the unusual and faint energy Tirek had sensed after breaking free of Sombra's prison dimension, Tirek had an inclining as to what it may have been. And he didn’t like it one bit.

His eyes locked back on his Espada, “Go now. Tend to your hordes and recover your strength. Tomorrow we will meet in the throne room to discuss our next move. We will not remain idle.”

As the Espada bowed to him and turned to leave, he added, “Not you, Chrysalis. Follow me.”

He didn’t give her a moment to respond before turning and marching towards the large opening into the central tower. Chrysalis had been silent during the meeting, but he’d seen her emerald eyes shining with amusement. His heavy feet made loud, echoing stomps upon the floor as he entered the vast entry chamber to Las Noches’ main tower. The chamber was a huge, dark hall, with towering, fifty foot wide pillars of marble rising on either side as the hall moved towards a giant staircase leading to higher levels.

Chrysalis smoothly walked in behind him, her voice affable as she spoke, “It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you in such a tizzy. Did your playtime with Sombra not go as usual?”

His hand was around her throat in less than an instant, Tirek’s massive arm wheeling about to slam Chrysalis head first into one of the marble pillars. The stone cracked under the impact, and Chrysalis’ legs dangled a good two feet off the ground as he brought his face up to hers, his eyes burning with yellow light.

“Don’t. Test. Me.,” he said, voice like a boiling furnace.

Chrysalis’ head bled slightly from the impact, but the wound healed in seconds, and she licked the blood trickling down her face with a remarkably long and sensual movement of her tongue. Her eyes positively smoldered as she looked at him, and almost writhed in enjoyment as she let out an ear tickling laugh.

“Oooooh, but I thought you liked it when I give you lip, Tirek. You certainly seem to enjoy it when we’re in the bedroom-”

He slammed her against the pillar again. Not because he thought it actually hurt her. Just to make a point.

“I was bored of your games centuries ago, woman. Your position is based solely upon your strength, and the usefulness of yourself and your brood to me. Nothing more.”

“Aw, but you always seem to have so much fun helping me with the ‘brood’ part of that equation,” Chrysalis said, still smiling, her teeth somehow showing more prominent canines, almost akin to fangs. She raised her slim, onyx arm and gripped Tirek’s hand. She gave it a squeeze, and even Tirek felt the pressure there. Not as strong as his, but strong enough to still grind muscle and bone. “Besides, we both know that if you meant to kill me, I could still make a fight of it, Tirek. Too much of a fight to be worth the trouble. So let’s dispense with the posturing and why don’t you just tell me what has you so upset, hmm? I have things to do.”

He let out a long suffering sigh and with an exceedingly flat look, he dropped her. Chrysalis landed with such smooth ease and grace it was as if Tirek had never smashed her head into a pillar in the first place. She didn’t even have to smooth out her white, silken dress as she placed a hand on her hip and looked at him with patient expectation.

Damnable woman. He hated her as much as he desired her. The only female in all creation who was a match for him, in mind, body, and ambition. He’d have been rid of her ages ago if some small portion of him didn’t think he might actually miss her.

“Have it your way,” he said, “But if I don’t like your answers, never forget that even you still wouldn’t survive my wrath, and your children even less so.”

Chrysalis waved a hand, “Yes, you’re the strongest. Even I don’t deny that. Now what is this about?”

“As if you don’t already know.” His eyes narrowed at her, “Why have you had Squirk killed?”

For a moment he thought she might try to deny it, which might have made him decide to try to kill her then and there, no matter what consequences that action might incur, but instead she just smiled that devilishly attractive smile and crossed her arms under her exquisitely perfect, obsidian bosom.

“He wasn’t ever worthy of being an Espada in the first place, but more importantly, he made the poor choice of deciding to work with Catrina instead of myself. His death is a message to Catrina.”

A deep growl filled Tirek’s chest, “You dispose of one with such a useful power merely to slap Catrina’s useless efforts to supplant you? Isn’t she supposed to be the vain one?”

“Oh, I don’t deny Squirk’s power was handy to have around, but it came attached to a man with less intelligence than a sack of stones, and let’s face it, he barely qualified as an Espada. Guto’s little upstart, Gilda, might have had enough power to defeat him in an open challenge.”

Tirek made a non-committal grunt at that. He’d heard of Guto’s right hand protege, but hadn’t evaluated Gilda’s power for himself yet. If she’d challenged Squirk he wouldn’t have denied her the right to do so, but would have likely preserved Squirk’s life, if only to keep him around for those extremely handy Gargantas of his. He couldn’t deny Chrysalis’ other points. Squirk hadn’t been the brightest of fellows, and minus the proficiency with Gargantas his power wasn’t anything overly remarkable. Higher than the average Arrancar, yes, but if Smooze didn’t insist on remaining number Ten, then Squirk would’ve fit that spot instead.

He eyed Chrysalis, the yellow on black orbs narrowing, “Be that as it may, killing him was a foolish move. His power remained useful. You could have humiliated him, and Catrina, without his death.”

His sneer returned, “There is more to this. I know you, Chrysalis. You have another ploy at work.”

There was no concern on her face, only that wry twinkle of amusement, “Of course I do. I know you dislike it, Tirek, but for the moment I beg your indulgence and let this play out. I promise you’ll enjoy the show.”

“Show?” he asked, intrigued, despite himself.

“I already anticipated everything, my oh-so prickly lover. I didn’t have Squirk dealt with without knowing exactly how it would benefit both of us, and trust me,” Chrysalis winked, “You’ll like what’s coming next.”

He loomed over her, letting just enough of his crushing reiatsu out to make even Chrysalis flinch slightly.

"Perhaps I will. You should hope so, because my displeasure can still cot you much if it turns out this scheme of yours doesn't benefit me more than having Squirk around would have," he said, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

Chrysalis' eyes narrowed as well, her poise unbroken, "I wouldn't worry about it. Before long, we'll have his replacement."

----------

She floated upon an ever shifting ocean of fractured, midnight dreams. Not truly conscious, nor wholly asleep, Twilight Sparkle was barely aware of her own identity as she was pulled along a current of fragmented images, formed from the haze of memories she didn’t think were her own.

She saw a formless landscape that took any shape she desired, with a mere brush of her fingers and a force of will.

But she was alone. So alone. A marrow deep loneliness so prevalent that it left even the most beautiful creation shaped from her hands as dead and gray as ash.

The current of memory floated faster, no sense of connection between sight, smell, and image. Twilight’s barely conscious mind couldn’t fathom it all.

A man, his visage so familiar, yet so alien, her hand entwined with his. One second he was a stranger, clad in gold, the next he was Sombra, formed from a multitude of shadows.

A palace in the sky, stretching to an infinite blue horizon, its spires and halls soaring above her in gold and jade splendor.

The same palace in flames, her chest a spire of heaving pain as a blade was impaled through her from behind. The word ’Traitors’ so thick on her tongue she could drown in its bitter, bile taste.

Her left eye was in agony as she ripped it from herself and threw it into the void, casting it out...

The memories became sharper, gaining a strange shade of color, like watery oils, and she felt her breath in her chest with vivid, painful reality. Yet Twilight’s mind, slowly awakening to more conscious thought, realized she was still trapped in a sea of memory. Memories that most certainly weren’t hers.

Now she was a young girl? Younger than she already was? Springtime, the field of green filling her nose with countless scents of blooming flowers. She was on horseback? Riding alongside a young boy of sooty black skin, and even darker, ashen hair. Sombra.

She saw him age in flashes, her alongside him. There were men in white uniforms and armor, almost like the modern Quincy, but showing the traits of the noble clothing and armor of knights from the middle ages. How long ago was this? The knights knelt to their King, and Twilight saw herself by his side, hand held in his.

Battles. First against monsters in white masks. Hollows. Then later, against ranks of flickering men and women in dark robes. Soul Reapers.

Fields burned. Towns were flattened. Castles fell. Yet the Quincy kept fighting, and Sombra eye’s harsher, save for when he looked at her. Not Twilight, someone else.

Who?

Twilight gasped in the darkness, her consciousness slipping towards some distant surface. Yet her soul was cold. She was afraid. Her heart clenched with the piercing grip of fearful claws. She didn’t want to remember! She didn’t want to wake up! If she did... if she did...

She’d have to face what had happened. She’d have to remember.

No...

Don’t wake up.

”You have to.”

“Midnight...?”

”You have to wake up. We need answers.”

“But... mom...”

”I know. But if we don’t wake up, that thing is going to try and take our soul again. We need answers. Answers from him. Wake up, Twilight.”

Wake up.

She didn’t want to. But she knew she had to. Wake up, and face reality...

----------

Twilight opened her eyes to a dark room, laying in a large bed, covered up to her neck in thick, heavy sheets. Only a little light trickled in past vast curtains covering windows somewhere to her left, leaving much of the room cloaked in shifting shadows. It was warm, stemming from the dying coals and embers of logs that had recently finished burning through in a fireplace across from the bed she lay in.

For a moment Twilight lay there in the dark, staring at nothing.

There was no slow return of memory. No slow wondering what had happened.

She remembered everything. The desperate attempt to save her mother. Her mother’s blood spraying across the ground. That last second of life in Twilight Velvet’s eyes before they’d gone dark. Then the terrible, swift rush of crushing emotions of pain, fear, rage, and confusion as something alien and vastly stronger than Twilight had reached up through the depths of her soul to take hold of her mind and body.

Only Twilight’s near crazed mental state and Midnight’s interference had kept Twilight’s mind intact enough to focus that power on the source of her pain. And even then the Fourth Espada had survived her, until Sombra had appeared to end matters.

She didn’t remember anything after that, but it wasn’t hard to surmise she’d been taken to the Silburn. Even without seeing much of the room she could tell the interior design was similar to what she’d seen of the palace.

She thought she’d start crying the moment she woke up, remembering the painful reality of her mother’s death, but for the second it didn’t feel real. Or rather she was still in too much shock for it to register fully. That or some part of her was refusing to acknowledge it. As long as she lay her, totally still, she didn’t have to acknowledge reality at all.

“Twilight?”

The voice cut through the stillness inside her like a hot knife. She hadn’t even noticed the additional weight on her stomach, so heavy were the sheets and blanket of the bed itself.

“Spike...” she whispered, the small dog raising his head from where he protectively lay over her. His eyes shone with worry in the darkness as he slowly crawled up to her face and gave her cheek a lick.

“I didn’t know when you were gonna wake up,” he said, his voice filled with careful apprehension, guilt, and entire oceans of concern and sympathy. “Twilight, I...”

With awkward slowness she rose, pulling her arms from under the blankets to wrap them around in a tight hug as Spike nuzzled her. She tried to pat his head, and froze as the hand that was supposed to be there, wasn't. She'd almost forgotten she'd lost in in the fight with Lament. Yet she didn't stop holding Spike, and with her still intact, shaking left hand, proceeded to pet him. His small whine carried with it more meaning than any amount of apologies or sympathies could ever manage, and the sound alone broke the dam in Twilight’s heart.

She sobbed as she hugged her dog. She buried her face in his head and wept.

A hundred memories pricked at her mind. Her mother sitting on a couch in front of the fireplace watching with a smile as she corrected her brother’s homework, one rainy Monday evening. Velvet’s sharp scolding for letting Spike run around the house shaking water off him after he’d escaped a bath. A look of pride in her mother’s eyes after dropping Twilight off for her first day at Crystal Prep. Watching her parents leave home for a ‘business trip’ dozens upon dozens of times, her mother always turning to give a reassuring nod and wave from the driveway before stepping into the car.

There was no counting time amid the wracking sobs of pain and regret as she held onto Spike and let it all flow through her in a heated torrent.

She and her mother had had their differences, yes. She’d felt a sense of anger and betrayal when she’d learned how much her mother and father had kept from her, or their refusal to help her friends when they’d been in need. Yet Twilight had already forgiven Cadence, and had every intention of patching things up with her family once the chance arose.

Now her mother was gone.

“Twilight, um, you’re... kinda squeezing a little tight here. Still injured, remember?” Spike said, his fuzzy face giving a pained wince. Twilight gasped and quickly let go of him, gulping as she wiped at her face, which was stained with tears.

“Oh, I’m... I’m sorry, Spike. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“It’s okay, I’m mostly healed up, but still kinda sore,” he said, then flinched at his own words, looking at her with eyes that practically burst at the seams with worry, his gaze lingering on her missing hand, “Is it... okay? I mean, are gonna be...?”

It was a question she couldn’t possibly answer. Twilight wiped at her face some more with her left hand, sniffing as she looked away from him and reached out to scratch his head weakly. “I don’t know. I don’t think so. I don’t... I don’t think I’m going to be okay today. Or tomorrow. Not for awhile.”

Her brain was still in a phase of only partially processing events. Her sadness welled up in her like a surging tide, but to her surprise and dismay it was matched almost equally by an even deeper well of anger. It wasn’t a focused anger. It was a clawing, scratching thing, demanding to be set free at some viable target.

The problem was that Twilight had no idea who to direct that anger at. At Sombra, for sending her mother into the battle that killed her. At the Fourth Espada for doing the deed. At herself for failing to save her mother. At her father for not being there to protect his wife. At the Quincy and Hollows in general for perpetuating this stupid, stupid war!

A part of her wanted to keep crying. Another part of her wanted to go find something to destroy.

And another, quieter, analytical part of her mind was telling her she had far more pressing matters that needed addressing. Like what in the world had that Eye been? No, not been. Was. It was still inside her. Somehow, on some deep intuitive level, she knew the Eye was still in her. Along with...

”Midnight...” she asked, casting her voice inward into her mind.

”About time you woke up,” replied her alter-ego, Midnight’s presence in Twilight’s mind rising to the surface in a sluggish manner, as if Midnight herself was still exhausted from the events that had transpired. Her voice had this tired echo to it. ”Spike’s been looking over you the whole day. Others have been through checking up on you. Father. Shining. And Sombra...”

There was a distinct heat of anger and annoyance in Midnight’s voice at mentioning Sombra’s name, and Twilight found her own anger was only a simmer below that point. Sombra had answers he owed her.

“Sombra... what haven’t you told me?” she whispered, causing Spike’s ears to perk up.

“Huh?”

“Oh, um, sorry Spike, I’m talking with Midnight,” Twilight said.

Spike’s apprehension translated into a nervous whine, “Is that a good idea?”

A heavy sigh escaped Twilight as she patted his head, still feeling awkward having to do so with her left hand. “It's either that, or I go back to sobbing. I need something to focus on, or I’m going to break down even more.”

”Which isn’t good for either of us right now,” Midnight said, ”Not to put too fine a point on things, but right now your mind is a mess and I’m working cleanup duty.”

Forcing her thoughts into some kind of rational, logical order, which was several magnitudes harder than it’d ever been in her life, for obvious reasons, Twilight said, “Okay Midnight, do you have any idea at all what happened to us?”

”What, you mean being taken over by a horrific Eye of unknown origins that tried to use our body like a sock puppet? No, I have no faffing clue what that was! It wasn’t magic based, I can tell you that much, but once it got a look at me it was able to instantly understand and control magic as easily as I can. That’s how we were tearing apart reality with portals re-purposed for combat.”

Twilight was silent for a stunned moment. “What?”

”I don’t have any other way to describe them, Twilight. It was like that Eye took the portal spell and instantly rehashed it for combat purposes. Literal rifts torn in reality that could theoretically rip apart just about anything they hit. I’m not even sure I can duplicate them if I tried.

“But... we were using them. To attack the Fourth Espada,” Twilight said, searching over her memories. The experience had been horrible and bizarre, as if she’d had a will, but couldn’t control all her actions, or at least not from moment to moment. The closest she could think to describe the sensation was as if she’d been a video game character with three separate players, all fighting over who got the controller.

Midnight must have picked up on her analogy, because Twilight got the sensation of her alter-ego nodding, ”More or less. I was able to act as a buffer between you and that... that thing. That let your own will guide us for the most part, but the Eye was able to slip some control through. And I was... also a bit out of it. Basically I think we all agreed on the goal of killing Lament, but our body was being yanked about by all three of us.”

Twilight took a shuddering breath and asked the big question, “What do you think the Eye was?”

Midnight took longer to answer than Twilight was comfortable with. ”I don’t know. It was inside that anomaly. When... when mother died, the shockwave our mental state took from that busted the cube clean open, and the Eye came pouring out. Like I said, it's not magical in nature. It’s a spirit entity. But its energy is on a totally different spectrum from what I’m used to seeing from spirit beings so far.”

“How different?”

”I don’t think we’re talking about something that’s monstrously more powerful than what we’ve already seen, but it was operating on dimensions beyond the spirit energy we’re familiar with. It’s still spirit energy as far as I can tell, but it's like the difference between...”

There was a long, airy pause, and Twilight couldn’t tell if Midnight was hesitating, or just searching for the right words, but soon enough Midnight’s voice echoed with a sort of uneasy clarity.

”Like the difference between regular magic and what the Elements of Harmony are.”

Before Twilight could question Midnight any further on what she meant by that, she heard muffled footfalls from beyond the door, and within moments they swung open to reveal her father and Shining Armor standing there, brightly back-lit by a large hallway outside.

“I thought I heard voices,” Night Light said, a look of relief on his face that soon became a stormy war of guilt and pain that was quickly overrun by the relief again as he swiftly walked to the side of the bed, “How long have you been awake?”

“Twily...” Shining Armor said, coming over to the bed’s other side. Her brother’s face was even more conflicted than her father’s, and far less masked as he looked at her with equal parts relief at her being awake, and pained apprehension, combined with a barely contained sorrow that was every match to the turmoil that Twilight had been feeling.

She looked between them, feeling tears returning to her eyes swiftly as she tried to speak, and needed a few times to actually get words out past the cold lump in her throat.

“Dad... Shiny... is mom really...?”

Night Light met her eyes, and looked for all the world as if he wanted to be anywhere else and say anything else, but instead he reached out and held her shoulder tightly, in the same manner he had whenever he wanted to comfort her as a child and tell her there weren’t any monsters under the bed.

“I’m sorry.”

It wasn’t as if she didn’t already know that, but somehow hearing it from her father’s lips made it a more concrete, solid reality. She tried very, very hard not to break down again. She lasted maybe ten seconds before the small choking sounds she made turned to fresh tears. This time she had her brother holding her much as she had held Spike minutes earlier. Her father’s hand remained a steady, pillar-like presence on her shoulder, and she knew he’d do so for hours if need be.

But it wasn’t hours, but likely less than a minute before Twilight started to wrestle herself back to self-control, or at least some semblance of it. Not because she was anywhere near close to “okay”, but because she sensed the presence of two others at the entrance of the room. One of them was Cadence, who looked, if anything, even more miserable than either Shining Armor or her father did. When Twilight met Cadence’s eyes, the other woman’s face conveyed such a sense of guilt, one would have thought she’d been Twilight Velvet’s murderer instead of Lament.

The other one standing in the doorway was Sombra.

Their eyes met. Twilight had seen Sombra be anything from inscrutable to intimidating, but this was the first time she’d seen him look apprehensive, even... afraid? He still wore his kingly bearing, and his facial expression gave no hint of such fear, but his eyes glinted with a uneasy strain as he looked at her. The strain of knowledge. With a single look he conveyed that he knew that she was aware of what had happened to her, that she remembered everything, and that she was going to get answers from him.

She hadn’t felt herself leave the bed, or throw the covers off, along with her brother. Her motions were powered by a heated burst of anger and determination in her chest, almost like a fire stoking itself against the cold of her sadness. Tears could wait.

Now was the time for answers.

“T-Twilight!?” she thought she heard her brother say, and her father say something else which might have been a question. She wasn’t listening.

Cadence, wisely, stepped aside and away from the King.

Twilight would learn later it was because Sombra had told her what would happen here, and asked her not to interfere. Apparently he’d done the same with Night Light and Shining Armor as well, which is why none of them tried to stop her, why her father had taken his hand off her shoulder instead of clamping it in place, along with her.

Twilight Sparkle used her one remaining hand to slap the King of the Quincy across the face with all the strength she could muster... including Blut Arterie.

In response he stood there like an iron statue, his eyes unchanging as he raised a hand, is voice apologetic.

“Your glasses,” he said. Twilight had forgotten she didn’t have them on. Hadn’t asked for them, but Sombra was holding them out for her.

She snatched them out of his hand, calmly put them on. It was harder with one hand than she would've guessed, but she managed. Then she proceeded to slap him again... but this time he caught her hand. She was breathing hard, her legs trembled, half asleep.

“How long...?” she asked, glaring up at him, noticing the way his hand gently held hers, despite having stopped her slap dead cold, “How long have you known that thing was inside me?”

He only hesitated for half a second before saying, in a voice that sounded almost as tired as that of man far older than Sombra appeared, “Since you were born.”

One question down. Countless more to go. With a shaking breath she pulled her hand free of his. He didn’t try to hold her.

“And my mother? Could you have saved her?”

“Twilight, that’s not-” her father began, but went silent as Sombra raised his hand.

The King’s voice was quietly subdued as he said, “I couldn’t have without knowing precisely the danger she’d been in. The only reason I disengaged from my duel with Tirek was because a spiritual tether I had tied to you alerted me to what was happening, and by then it was too late to save your mother.”

“Twilight, please,” said Cadence suddenly, “Don’t blame His Majesty. This was my fault.” Her face contorted with guilt, eyes wet, “I made the decisions that led to this. I let Velvet split from the group, I choose not to go to her aid even though I knew what kind of foe she faced. I...”

Shining Armor went to Cadence, arms wrapping around his fiance’s shoulders as she shuddered and tried to contain her own tears. Sombra looked at her with a solemn sigh.

“You performed your duty. You couldn’t have foreseen the outcome. No blame is to be cast upon you for prioritizing the mission you were given. Velvet would have understood.”

“She would have,” Night Light agreed, though his words held a bitter, sour coating to them as he looked down at the floor, “If anyone deserves blame, it’s me for not anticipating the flow of battle properly.”

His hands clenched tightly at his side and self-reproach and regret clung to her father’s words in a thick cloak as he shook his head, “I should have known the moment the Fourth Espada left the front lines that he would return to Las Noches’ interior, endangering the team we’d sent inside. I was too focused on the fight in front of me. I... I failed, and Velvet...”

“Dad, no,” said Shining Armor, “If I’d been able to take on the Fifth Espada by myself, you wouldn’t have been distracted by helping me. I couldn’t even protect myself, let alone mom.”

“That’s enough! Both of you! All of you!”

All eyes turned back to Twilight, whose voice had cut through the chorus of blame. She was still breathing hard, like she’d run a marathon. Spike jumped from the bed to the floor and padded up to her to give her leg a comforting nuzzle. She took a deep breath and looked around the room.

“I don’t care who’s to blame. I don’t even blame Sombra for this. If I have to blame anyone, I might as well blame myself...” she closed her eyes in a pained grimace, “I rushed headlong into a fight I had no business being in. Mom might have been able to escape if she hadn’t been trying to protect me, because I, like an idiot, acted without thinking.”

She wiped tears that hotly burned past her closed eyes and then looked at Sombra with a hard gaze. “Right now I can’t focus on that. I don’t know how to deal with that. Instead of losing my mind thinking about mom, instead I’d rather tear some answers out of you, Sombra. I need to know what that Eye was, and why it was inside me. You said it was there since birth?”

He nodded with a grave weight, “Yes. In a sense.”

Twilight took in a long, steadying breath, feeling as if her brain wanted to crack open her skull and find a hole to hide in, while her heart was still wrapped up with crying in the corner. She didn’t know where she was finding the strength to even stand, let alone have any mental focus at the moment. Perhaps it was simply because she found seeking answers to be such familiar territory, like eating comfort food. As long as she was concentrating on this, she didn’t have to think about anything else.

Sombra’s answer gave her pause, as she glanced back at her father questioningly. Night Light was giving Sombra a strange look. Reserved, and disquiet.

“You didn’t know about this, did you, dad?” she said, and Night Light continued to fix Sombra with a uneasy stare.

“I didn’t. Neither did your mother. This is something our King apparently decided we didn’t need to know.”

There was resentment and a low, heated anger now in her father’s voice too. Shining Armor didn’t look particularly thrilled either, and even more uneasy with the situation. Cadence and him were holding hands, steadying each other.

Sombra’s face slackened somewhat from its mask to something more approaching apologetic, but his tone was firm, “I’ve already explained to the rest of your family, Twilight, as to why I didn’t share this information. They have understood-”

“But not necessarily agreed,” Night Light interjected, which surprised Twilight. Her father interrupting Sombra wasn’t something she’d have imagined he’d do, but given what had happened, perhaps it was even more impressive Night Light wasn’t going further than that.

Sombra looked at him and nodded solemnly, “Yes, understood, but not agreed with my reasoning. Had I told Night Light or Twilight Velvet what was within you, I feared they’d have treated you differently, growing up. I wanted you to be able to live your life normally, up until the point of your introduction to the Quincy, which happened sooner than I’d anticipated it would. Even then, I wished your integration to our ranks to be as normal and smooth as possible, until you were ready. Unfortunately the Eye was awoken before you were ready for it, and I take full responsibility for that error in judgment.”

“Taking her into battle, when emotional stress was one of the triggers for that thing to wake up, strikes me as more than just an error in judgment,” Shining Armor growled, then after a second added, “My King.”

Sombra sighed, “She had to remain close to me at all times, Shining Armor. What if something had happened to trigger the Eye, and she was here at the Silburn? Or all the way back in Canterlot City? I couldn’t have renewed the Eye’s seals in time to prevent it from taking her body and soul completely.”

“Hold on, hold on!” Twilight said, “Let’s keep this focused. I still don’t know what this ‘Eye’ even is. Whatever your reasons for not telling my family about it are, that’s a different argument entirely. I want to know what is inside me, and how I can keep it from coming out ever again.”

”Not until we can control its power, at least,” said Midnight darkly, but Twilight ignored her alter-ego, eyes remaining fixed on Sombra.

For a moment she thought perhaps Sombra was going to refuse to tell her, as his eyes gained a darkened cast to them and his whole frame tensed. Yet after a contemplative few seconds he turned and swept is arms to gesture down the hallway, “Come with me, and I’ll explain everything.”

She raised a wary, quizzical eyebrow, “Why?”

“Because I’m tired, and this is going to take a long time. I’d rather do this in a different setting and give you a chance to change into something other than pajamas.”

Twilight blinked and looked down at herself. Given the turmoil of the past few minutes, she hadn’t really paid any attention to her current state of dress. She was barefoot, in a pair of simple, somewhat oversized white pajamas, with pink hearts. Cadence cleared her throat.

“This is my room, Twilight. We agreed it’d be the safest to keep you in, since its right between your brother’s and parent’s quarters. I figured I’d let you borrow some nightclothes until you woke up.”

“I see...” Twilight cleared her throat, suddenly feeling far too drained to argue Sombra’s point. She probably did need to dress, and drink something. Her throat was sandpaper dry, and she probably looked like a mess. If she was going to interrogate the King of the Quincies about mysteries eldritch Eyes, she probably needed to take a minute to arrange herself.

“When you’re ready, we’ll go someplace private and talk,” Sombra said, placing a hand over his heart, “I give you my word I’ll answer any question you have to the best of my knowledge. Just be forewarned... I don’t have all the answers you’re likely seeking, and you may not like all the answers you get, regardless.”

Twilight slowly readjusted her glasses, not taking her hardened eyes off of Sombra, “Fine. Before that, there’s two things I need to check on.”

Amid all the pressure on her mind she was a little shocked she even remembered, but equally embarrassed that it took her this long to think of it, but there were two key matters completely separate from the Eye and her mother that needed addressing. Well, three, but the third one she’d save for much, much later once the rest was dealt with. If it wasn’t for the almost clinical way her mind could sequester information and poke her about it over time, she’d probably have forgotten entirely. Sombra looked at her curiously, but also with some level of understanding.

“I can guess at least one of those issues is the state of your fellow cadets?”

‘Yes,” she said, with a small, bare nod of gratitude that he’d guessed that much, “I left them under... duress, and was hoping they were alright.”

“Leaving the matter of how you escaped the Hollow that captured you aside for now, I can assure you that your cadet friends are alive,” Sombra said, frowning, “Save for the loss of Hacksaw McColt. Both Sour Sweet and Indigo Zap are in the hospital currently undergoing treatment, as their injuries were the most severe of the group, but they are expected to live.”

“You did well, Twilight,” Night Light said with a beam of pride pushing through the regret still tinting his voice, “Your friends reported you fought and defeated the Arrancar that attacked them. I... I think your mother would have been proud.”

She’d have preferred her mother be alive, rather than proud, but Twilight gave her father a downcast nod and with a steadying breath looked back to Sombra, “I’ll assume you’re also aware, from either my friends’ report or Cinch’s, but I was also targeted by the assassin again.”

“We know,” said Night Light, voice heated, “You fought that one off as well.”

“But that’s not all I did,” Twilight said, and while she couldn’t bring herself to smile, she did have a bit of a satisfied look as she glanced at Cadence, “That tracer you taught me. I managed to sneak one onto her.”

Cadence’s eyes widened, “That’s incredible! If you create a duplicate tracer, it will act as a beacon to point you towards the other one, or allow any of us to track it to the source.”

Twilight lifted her finger and produced a second tracer, “Take it, Cadence. While I’m talking with Sombra, you can find out who’s been after me.”

On a trembling hand, Cadence swiftly took the second tracer, eyes closing as she let out an exhausted breath. How long had Cadence been awake, Twilight wondered? Had she slept at all? The guilt still dominated Cadence’s features as she looked at Twilight.

“I’m sorry I didn’t go after your mother, Twilight.”

Twilight just shook her head, taking her hand and clasping it around Cadence’s, “Stop it. I don’t blame you.”

Shining Armor cleared his throat, looking at the tracer, “It’s been a little over a day since the battle. If the assassin was a first class soldat, then they might have noticed the tracer on them by now, or disposed of whatever article of clothing you put it on. But we can still locate where that clothing is, and get some clues, even if we can’t pinpoint who it is. I’m going with you Cadence, to find this bastard.”

“I’d go as well,” said Night Light, “But because of the situation with the McColts and Hooffields, I have to depart soon.”

“What situation?” Twilight asked.

The grimace touching Night Light’s face was a deeply sour one, “Because of Hacksaw McColt’s death, presumably while saving the life of a Hooffield, the tensions between the two families has escalated. There’s a standoff at one of the Hooffield factories that the McColts have seized in retaliation for what they perceived as a Hooffield getting one of their daughters killed in action.”

“That’s... that’s insane,” Twilight breathed, momentarily stunned, “Hacksaw saved Cotton Barrel and her sister’s life! How could her family interpret that as Cotton Barrel trying to get her killed!?”

The dire look on Night Light’s face was only matched by the disdain in his voice, “The Hooffields and McColts are not overburdened with an abundance of common sense. Or any sense at all, save when it comes to engineering new weapons for the war effort. I’m afraid they can easily misinterpret a brave sacrifice as some kind of Hooffield plot to get one of their youngest and brightest killed. Regardless, I stayed here to wait until you woke up so I could ensure you were alright, Twilight, but now I have to go sort this mess out between those families before things devolve into shooting. We can’t afford civil war among our own right now.”

Twilight slowly went over to the bed and turned around, sitting down on it as she ran her hand through her bedraggled hair, “My...my head hurts.”

“Sombra?” Night Light asked, and the King shook his head.

“It's not the Eye. The renewed seals won’t break anytime soon. The only reason I suspect they did before was because they’d had time to weaken, and the shock of events were simply too much for them. For now they shall hold.”

Sombra made no mention of the fact that Night Light had just called him by name, which to Twilight’s remembrance her father hadn’t done before. It seemed there was a different air between the two men now, a loss of something. Trust, likely.

Twilight waved her hand, pausing only when she realized she was waving her stump, and with a red faced grimace waved her left hand instead, “I’m okay. I just, need to think. Sombra’s right, I need a minute to get myself together before we get into this Eye business.”

Her stomach gurgled, in complete ignorance of how little she really wanted to eat. But it’d been a day, and her body didn’t care about her feelings, it needed food.

“I’ll have someone send breakfast,” Sombra said, “And coffee.”

Twilight looked up at him, “Then answers.” Her tone was firm, brooking no argument.

Sombra had none to give, he simply nodded in agreement, “Then answers.”

Episode 84: A Time For Answers

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Episode 84: A Time For Answers

Torch sat upon his throne, ruminating. His hands clasped his axe in a white knuckled grip, and he barely felt the throbbing pain that coursed over his body. His wounds meant little to him, now. He wanted to know where his Ember was!

The butcher’s bill of the battle was an extensive one, but nowhere near as bad as it could have been. His horde had taken a good chunk of losses, but there wasn’t a one of his warriors that wasn’t sporting a freshly collected set of Quincy crosses to show their own kills, so he knew his people had given as good as they gotten and then some. The problem was that, for all those they could confirm had fallen to Quincy arrows, there were plenty more who were simply missing.

And maddeningly, his daughter was among that number. So were Adagio and Garble, who were the last two to have been seen with Ember.

A thick, deep growl built in his chest as his nostrils steamed and his eyes glowed with smoldering rage. He was ready to ignore the pain of his injuries and go scouring the aftermath of the battlefield, but even as he was rising from his throne, he spied a figure approaching through the throngs of his resting, recovering warriors.

At first he didn’t quite believe what he was seeing, and his ire was quenched somewhat by his surprise.

“Adagio Dazzle. Hmph, I see the fires of battle have forged you anew. I’d be more inclined to congratulate you...” his eyes narrowed, darkening with a promise of violence, “...But I don’t see my daughter with you.”

The woman stopped before his throne and offered a courteous bow, although one that Torch noted was almost as shallow as one might give an equal, rather than a superior. There was no doubting her fresh status as an Arrancar, from the now near human appearance she bore. Her form was largely hidden beneath heavy white robes, but Torch wasn’t shocked by that. Probably the only thing the woman could find to wear on such short notice. Usually custom clothes came from Smooze’s textile forges in the Warrens. Still, he couldn’t deny that Adagio, even in mere robes, managed to cut an impressive figure, and she held her new white and ruby tipped trident with an easy confidence.

“My Lord Torch, Ember yet lives, but I regret to bring news that she’s been taken,” Adagio said, not bothering to cast any looks to either side of her, where the less injured of Torch’s warriors were gathering in a large, circular throng to observe the show.

Torch rose from his throne, and ignoring his injuries he leaped down from it and landed before Adagio in an imposing tower of muscle. He glowered down at her.

“Taken?” he said, one fist clenching around his axe.

If Adagio was afraid of him, she wasn’t showing it. In fact there was nothing but a combination of raw confidence, and if anything a hint of honest regret in her eyes as she said, “By Soul Reapers. Specifically one of their Captains. Luna. Are you familiar with her?”

For a moment Torch was taken aback enough by news of Soul Reapers within Las Noches that he forgot any immediate notion of pounding Adagio into the ground like a perturbing railroad spike. As Adagio’s words penetrated his mind, he thought of the Soul Reaper Captains he knew. There’d been a few over the years, but unlike the Quincy Sternritter, which tended to change generation to generation the way humans died and bred, Soul Reapers often held their positions for much longer.

He knew the two sisters, though not particularly well. Had he crossed blades with them before? The elder one, Celestia, once or twice, but he didn’t think he’d had the pleasure of fighting the younger sister. Chrysalis had something of a thing for that one, but that was all he knew.

“I know that one only by name,” he rumbled, leaning over Adagio, smoke boiling out of his nostrils to stir her hair, “Tell me what has happened. Everything. I want to know why it is you stand here before me, an Arrancar, unharmed, while my daughter has been... taken.”

The word left an unsettling and cold feeling in his gut. He’d have been furious with grief if Ember had died in battle, but at least it would have been a clean and proper death as a warrior. To be taken captive, however? To be held prisoner by the Soul Reapers, for who knew what kind of wretched experiments? It was a fate that made his blood boil like freshly spewed magma. He’d burn ALL of Soul Society to the ground if that’s what it took to get his Ember back!

Adagio met his heated gaze and while Torch knew he was no bastion of intellect, he couldn’t tell whether her eyes were hiding any deceit in them. Her words, when she spoke, sounded sincere enough, but Torch wasn’t fool enough to fully trust those, either.

She described the battle herself, Ember, and Garble had undertaken against a Sternritter. Torch was briefly impressed, most so by Garble’s final moments. A worthy death, for a member of Torch’s horde. It also meant he ought to send scouts to keep an eye on that location, in case this Prim Hemline hadn’t escaped the Caja Negacion yet.

The next part of Adagio’s story was... suspect. Apparently they’d seen Guto’s forces struggling with Quincy near the lake and had gone to lend some support. According to Adagio, during that battle they heard one of the Quincy boast about the presence of an assassination team sent to kill Squirk, and both Adagio and Ember had decided to sneak into Las Noches through the waterways beneath the fortress to try and stop the assassination plot. They hadn’t been able to inform Guto about this because the man had been in the thick of a fight with multiple Sternritter, and they didn’t think there was time to waste.

It sounded plausible enough, but Torch couldn’t help but wonder what Quincy would’ve known about such a hit-team, and would have run their mouth about it in the middle of a battle. Yet the fact that Squirk hadn’t been around to use Gargantas to retrieve warriors after the battle suggested that the next part of Adagio’s story was true.

She and Ember had arrived back inside Las Noches just in time to witness Squirk battling not just a Quincy Sternritter, but several Soul Reapers, including this Captain Luna. She and Ember tried to save Squirk, helping him escape through a Garganta back to his palace, but the Soul Reapers managed to follow them, and in a pitched battle Squirk was killed, and Ember taken.

“The only reason I survived, I suspect, was because the Soul Reapers wanted to escape Hueco Mundo as fast as possible and didn’t think they had time to fight a freshly born Arrancar,” Adagio said, running a finger over a wound mark on her cheek, “Although I did give the dear Captain a parting gift matching this one before she fled through their Soul Reaper portal.”

“...With my daughter,” Torch growled, and Adagio didn’t look away, only nodding confirmation.

“Yes, with Ember. You do understand, Lord Torch, that if I could have done more, I would have.”

That sounded true, if nothing else, and Adagio went on to say, “As it stands, I dearly wish to rescue Ember. She’s been a reliable ally and it is not an exaggeration to say I wouldn’t have come this far without her help. I owe her a debt I intend to repay by recovering her as fast as possible. Which is, of course, why I’m here.”

“You think I need your help to save my own blood?” he asked, “If she hadn’t been with you then this wouldn't have happened in the first place!”

The air shimmered around his body as his anger burned within him, and a certain deadly tension filled the immediate area as multiple of his warriors started to put hands on swords, a chorus of growls emanating from their throats. Adagio didn’t show any fear, and only planted her trident’s blunt end in the sand next to her as she kept her eyes fixed solely on Torch, and didn’t give even a brief glance at the dozens of Arrancar surrounding her.

“Battle is always a risk, Lord Torch. I would think you, of all people, would understand that. Ember is a warrior born, is she not? Should she have cowered here inside Las Noches walls? Should she have hidden behind your strong back, out of harm's way?”

Her voice grew louder, carrying itself over the ranks of the horde.

“Warriors fight, and risk death or capture by the enemy! That is war! Ember fought valiantly, but was taken by a foe who’s might surpassed hers and mine combined! A Captain among the Soul Reapers! Would any of you, other than Lord Torch himself, fared any better? Indeed would any of you faced such an enemy and lived to tell of it, as I have?”

Torch could tell her words were having an affect on his people. There was a combination of uncertainty and even respect rippling over the faces of his gathered warriors. Like him they couldn’t be certain she was telling the truth, yet if it was true, and she’d fought both a Sternritter and a Soul Reaper Captain, and survived to tell the tale... then by the standards of the horde then she was a woman worthy of respect. More than that, her words concerning Ember were correct. Even Torch couldn’t deny that. Ember was a warrior. His little girl, yes, but a warrior, and he’d never allowed himself to overly coddle her.

If she’d fallen in battle, or been taken as Adagio said, then he couldn’t rightfully blame Adagio for that. At least if what Adagio was claiming happened was true.

He still sensed something off about all this. There was more to the story that she wasn’t telling, but he couldn’t put his finger on what. If Ember was dead, there’d be no reason to lie about it. No, he suspected that what she was saying about the Soul Reapers, and Ember being taken by them was true. He could even sense the very faint lingering of Soul Reaper reiatsu around the wound on Adagio’s cheek.

The part he suspected was off had to do with the reason Ember and Adagio had returned to Las Noches in the first place. Had it really been to save Squirk? Torch was not interested in Las Noches’ power struggles, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew Catrina was working on an alliance against Chrysalis to try to advance to the rank of Second Espada, and had been building support among the lower ranked.

Had Squirk gotten on the wrong side of that conflict?

Torch liked Adagio. She was ambitious, strong, and not afraid to face tough odds. He’d found her interesting ever since Ember had brought the spunky little Adjuchas Hollow to his horde. But Adagio was also a schemer. He’d sensed that much too. Adagio had a lot of similar traits to Chrysalis, and it wouldn’t surprise Torch at all if the canny Second Espada had found Adagio to be a capable cat’s paw to use.

“Hmph...” he blew more smoke out of his nose with a heavy snort, “You speak truly enough that I suppose it’d be poor form to smash you into pulp here and now. But if you’re going to help me get my Ember back you’d better be ready to storm the very gates of Soul Society, because that’s where I’ll be going as soon as I catch my breath from this little scuffle.”

There was a round of firm nods among his horde and even a few chuckles at Torch referring to the massive battle as a mere ‘scuffle’, but Adagio looked at him flatly and said, “That would be unwise.”

“What?” Torch demanded among the sudden silence of his warriors.

“Lord Torch, I understand the urgency of the situation, but you won’t help your daughter by getting yourself killed in a direct assault upon the Soul Reaper’s capital. Indeed you might only further endanger Ember by doing so."

“And what would you have me do!? Sit here and wait for the Soul Reapers to torture and experiment upon her!? No. Don’t take me for a fool, Adagio, or you’ll fast learn the limits of my patience! I know well enough I can’t storm through Soul Society and face the entire Gotei 13 by myself! But a swift, precise raid on their Twelfth Division headquarters can bust Ember out, sure enough!”

Adagio shook her head, replying sharply, “A swift raid? Were Squirk still alive, such might be possible, but he’s dead. I may not know much about the Soul Reapers, but it stands to reason that they’d have similar protections as the Quincy, and hence you’d need something akin to Squirk’s power over Gargantas to be able to launch a raid into the heart of their territory with any hope of success. Furthermore, you don’t even know for sure where they’re keeping Ember. It could be she's at this Twelfth Division, as you say, but what if she's not?”

Torch let out a frustrated snarl, “Where else would they keep her? It’s their research group, a bunch of little squirrely bastards in lab coats! They must have taken her there, if they plan to toy with her to figure out how she ticks!”

It boiled his blood just to say that, but Adagio just kept looking at him with a firm stare, shoulder’s square, and somehow managing to not make it look as if he was towering over her with his gigantic frame.

“Unless of course they have other labs elsewhere to secure her in, given she’s a dangerous and powerful subject. They might not want to risk keeping her in their headquarters. Did you not consider this? Torch, you will not rescue your daughter with foolish, rash action!”

“How dare you question-”

Shockingly, she cut him off. Nobody had risked doing that in... a long time.

“I dare because I care about getting Ember back alive!” she rose into the air, until she was nose to nose with him, leaning in on him, “And I would assume you do as well, so stop acting like a thick-headed, wool-brained idiot and listen to me for a change! Or did you think you were going to go storming off in your condition and batter down Soul Society’s door with half your body in shambles? Can you even lift that axe of yours right now?”

He just stared at her, blinking dumbly.

Then, with a pained grunt, he lifted his axe. It wasn’t as smooth or as high as he would’ve liked, but his pained muscles still lifted it above his head, poised to strike. Yet Adagio didn’t flinch from him, didn’t so much as bat an eyelash as she said, “Good. Now hit me.”

“Uhhhh...” Torch blinked, “Come again?”

“Did I misspeak? I said; hit me. Without holding back.”

Technically impossible without activating his Resurreccion, but he had strength enough to spare, even in this state, and if Adagio wanted to be hit, then Torch didn’t mind obliging. He needed to blow off some steam anyway. He probably wouldn’t kill her. Maybe.

“Suit yourself!” he shouted, and with a feral roar gripped his axe with both hands and smashed it down towards Adagio as hard as he could. Which admittedly wasn’t nearly as hard as normal given his injuries and depleted reiatsu after the battle, but he still knew this was the kind of blow that’d fell any of his regular warriors in one clean strike, and probably wound a fellow Espada of a weaker tier.

Adagio caught it with her hand.

A shockwave of concussive force billowed out across the gathered horde, billowing heads of hair and causing several Arrancar to raise their hands to shield their eyes from the wind.

Torch stood there, staring, rather blown away himself by what he saw. Then he blinked again at what he sensed as Adagio’s body was covered in a thick aura of blue light, her spiritual pressure pouring out of her in an incredible display. Many among Torch’s gathered horde were forced to take steps back, a few even falling to their knees under the massive weight of Adagio’s reiatsu.

Torch himself bore it readily enough, but he could feel it pressing on him. Adagio was easily strong enough to qualify as an Espada. And not a lower ranked one, either. Torch didn’t think she’d be able to defeat him if he were at full power, but weakened and injured as he was, she might very well give him a fight he couldn’t easily win.

Guto probably had a surprise coming in the near future though, if Torch was gauging Adagio’s reiatsu right. Grogar was probably going to be sweating bullets soon, too.

“I see...” he said, slowly removing his axe. Adagio lowered her hand, hiding it somewhat amid her robes. Probably to hide the bit of blood on her palm from where Torch’s axe had managed to cut her. Powerful, but she’d probably not quite realized how much strength Torch still had left. Torch was satisfied enough at that, but was still amazed at Adagio’s power and potential.

He looked her over one more time, then shook his head in wonderment, “I had a feeling you were something different when Ember brought you to me. Don’t go getting cocky. Whoever you’re fixing to replace won’t give up their seat easily, including me.”

“Oh I have no interest in taking your position, Lord Torch. Squirk is gone, and a seat is already vacated. We’ll see soon enough just how this upcoming round of Espada musical chairs will play out, but before that I needed you to understand that when I say I will rescue Ember, I’m not making an idle boast. I also mean it when I say if you try doing anything stupid, I will personally sit your ass down and take care of the matter myself.”

“Heh...Hehehahahaha!” his bellow of laughter echoed like thunder, and he suddenly clapped her on the shoulder, “I figure you might at that, Adagio Dazzle! I take it you have a plan, then, to get my Ember back? Come on then, let’s hear it over some drinks. I’m damned parched and if I’m going to get over these mosquito bites the Sternritter gave me, I’m going to need to be good and plastered while I do it!”

Their leader’s attitude dispelled the tension among the gathered Arrancar horde, and soon multiple voices were raised and cheering agreement at the idea of drinks and feasting. After all, they’d survived a battle, and beaten back the enemy. Losses aside, for most of them this was cause enough for celebration.

As for Adagio, she followed along in Torch’s wake, shouldering her trident and speaking in a low pitched voice meant for his ears alone, “I do have plans, as you say. As long as I can count on you to back me on them, then I swear to you we will get Ember back alive and safe. Can I count on you, Torch?”

He looked at her sidelong as he resumed his throne and grabbed a keg of alcohol sitting along the side of it to crack open and pour some of the drink generously down his gullet. Wiping his mouth he said, “Doesn’t seem like I’ve got much choice, now, does it?”

Adagio’s smile was distinctly cat-like, “That was the general idea.”

----------

Food and coffee did little to settle the exhaustion Twilight felt. Sure, the caffeine helped a bit, but it also made her remaining hand jittery, and the food in her stomach, rather than ease her hunger, just sat there like a lead lump. She wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep and pray she’d wake up to find it had all been a horrible dream.

No such luck. Reality was reality, and the longer she tried to hide from it, the worse it would hit her down the road.

She’d dressed into a clean uniform, a process that took much longer than normal with just one hand, and examined herself in the mirror of the bathroom adjoining Cadence’s living quarters. Everything in the bathroom was entirely too pink, but somehow all very, very Cadence. Even the soap was heart shaped. It almost brought a smile to Twilight’s face, her soon-to-be sister in law’s almost obsessive habits in decoration.

Then she looked at herself again and felt the humor, brief as it had been, flicker away like a dying candle. She looked terrible. Her hair, even while tied back in a neat bun, was sporting numerous stray, split ends. Her eyes were marked by dark circles beneath them. Her skin looked somehow more pallid than usual, less vibrant and colorful. Her shoulders sagged slightly, as if pressed down by a great weight.

Mom... why did you... why couldn’t I save...?

The thoughts themselves were slow, tired, and barely formed in her mind before she was leaning over the sink, eyes pinched close as she tried to fight back the tears. This pain was too new, too raw, and wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. Yet somehow she had to make herself function. She had things that needed doing. No matter how much she wanted to just crawl into a corner, curl up, and cry herself into dreamless oblivion.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up, but saw no one there.

”Over here, numbnuts.”

She looked back at the mirror to see Midnight Sparkle standing beside her reflection in the reflective glass. The other girl, her magic-born mental twin, had a hand on Twilight’s shoulder, her face pensive and unsure, as if Midnight didn’t really know how to offer comfort. Yet even as there was a certain level of derisiveness still in Midnight’s visage, the arrogance that seemed to make her who she was, there was also echoes of regret in her eyes.

”There wasn’t anything we could have done differently. You know that, right?”

“I... know that.” She didn’t.

Midnight let out a hissing sigh, ”This is stupid. Human feelings are stupid. This is why I like magic. Raw power, understanding the cosmos, no wasted time on all these icky feelings like pain. I don’t see how you put up with them.”

“I don’t think I have,” Twilight said, looking down at her hand, still braced on the sink edge, “I think I’ve tried to avoid them a lot, most of my life. Science was easier. Nice clean science. Numbers and laws. It all made sense. People didn’t. This didn’t. The pain...” she held her hand over her heart, a few tears spilling out of her eyes, despite her best efforts.

“Mom just wanted to keep me safe. I wished she’d... that I’d just... talked to her more.”

Midnight looked away from her, clearly uncomfortable, and her hand left Twilight’s shoulder and crossed over her own chest as the magical shade started to pace in the mirror.

”You know, necromancy is an interesting field of study in regards to certain magical-”

“No,” Twilight said, shocked at the hardness in her own voice as she looked up at the mirror, fixing Midnight with a spear-like gaze, “We are not using magic like that.”

Midnight paused, frowned, then shrugged, ”Probably for the best. Zombies aren’t known for their conversational skills anyway.”

Twilight rubbed her head, “How do you even know magic like that exists, anyway?”

”Twilight, when I was at full power I was connected to the very essence of Magic itself. I knew a lot. Fields of magic beyond what even modern unicorns in Equestria might know. Magic is old, Twilight. Old and fundamental. Modern Equestrians have forgotten as much magic as they’ve discovered or invented. Necromancy is a drop in the bucket compared to some of the... darker forms of magic out there. Trust me, if I’d stayed in charge back then, our little portal fit at the Friendship Games would’ve been small potatoes compared to what I could have done once we got to Equestria.”

Well, that was a delightfully disturbing thought. And as firm as her denial had been, it disturbed Twilight even more that a small part of her was intrigued by what Midnight had to say. But no, there was absolutely no way she was allowing Midnight that much control, nor let her use magic to try to defile her mother’s body with magic in some Pet Sematary-style insanity. That was one morality play she’d just as soon avoid, even if she did desperately want to see her mother again.

The conversation with Midnight did at least serve to distract Twilight’s mind from her despair sufficiently enough that she was able to wipe her eyes clear of tears and said, “Fascinating as that all is, Midnight, we’ll have to shelve the conversation for later. I shouldn’t keep Sombra waiting.”

Midnight nodded in agreement, hands going to her hips, ”Good. Weep later. Get answers now. I’m hungry to learn more about what that Eye was.”

“You and me both,” Twilight said, and with a final, heavy breath, steeled herself and went through the door to the bedroom.

Cadence and Shining Armor had already left, along with her father. Spike remained on the bed, and his head raised at her entrance. He frowned a bit, gulping as he tilted his head towards the door.

“He’s still outside. Been waiting out there, like a creepy statue. Twilight, do you seriously trust that guy to tell you the truth after he’s already lied to you?”

Twilight gave the dog a pensive look as she came over to scratch behind his ears, “I don’t really know anymore, Spike, but what choice do I have? He’s the only source of answers available, even if I can’t necessarily trust all those answers to be truthful ones.”

“You could always blow this popsicle stand,” Spike said, “Make a run for it. Get back to Sunset and the others. Maybe that weird Discord guy has answers.”

Twilight paused, then shook her head, “I’m not even sure I’d be allowed to leave, now. As for Mr. Discord, I can’t say for sure he’d know anything about my condition either. And it's not as if he was bursting with trustworthiness either.”

Spike sighed out a little whine, “This is the pits, Twilight. But whatever you decide to do, I’m there for you, one hundred percent.”

She smiled. It was a small, tired thing, but a smile nonetheless. “I know you are, Spike. Be good and I’ll be back soon.”

She gave him one final pat on the head and then walked to the doors that led out into the hallway. Like most hallways in the Silburn it had a tall ceiling and was grandiose, with white walls and fine, dark carpets. Sombra stood by one of the windows along the right side of the hallway, a shadowed statue of obsidian, much as Spike had said.

He stirred as she left Cadence’s room, turning two somber red eyes towards her.

“Are you ready?”

“As much as I can be,” she replied.

There was a certain, heavy finality to the slight nod he gave her as he said, “Follow me.”

She did so, as he walked at a brisk pace down the hall. However as he reached the end of the hallway, rather than turn down one of its two branches, the shadows dripped down from his cloak and expanded around him. Twilight paused in momentary fright, but Sombra’s words reached her with an oddly fragile tone.

“Don’t be afraid. Where I’m taking you, we cannot get there by walking. This won’t hurt. It’s merely a manifestation of my Schrift.”

She wanted to trust him, but it was still decidedly unsettling to watch the shadows sweep over the hallway around her, creep beneath her feet, drowning out the fading light from an evening sky outside the windows. Soon there was nothing but darkness around her. Yet before Twilight could feel more than a momentary chill, the darkness receded around her. The shadows washed away under warm, amber lights, and flowed back into Sombra himself.

Abruptly they were elsewhere, standing in a well lit, dry room of stone that looked as if it could have been anywhere from a medieval catacomb to a castle’s enclosed study chamber. The walls had an old, polished look to them. Twilight saw no windows, and the only light came from a set of softly burning lamps hanging from pegs at the room’s four corners. It wasn’t a very large room either, perhaps the size of a normal bedroom, though there was no bed in evidence. In fact as she looked around, this room appeared to be some kind of small library and reading chamber.

Three of the walls were lined with bookshelves, each stacked to near bursting with books of every variety and subject. Twilight saw everything from science texts on biology and astronomy, to more esoteric tomes that looked like they might have been penned centuries ago. To her surprise there was even an entire shelf or two dedicated to what looked like nothing more than fiction novels, all with spines so well worn and bent that they must have been read hundreds of times.

The only wall without bookshelves had a thick oaken desk shoved against one side, piled with papers and an old fashioned inkwell and quill. A plush leather chair of faded, cracked leather sat in front of the desk. Beside that a thick wooden door was set in the wall, but Sombra ignored the door and instead went to the chair, though he didn’t sit in it and instead leaned against the desk, gesturing at the chair.

“Sit, if it pleases you. I don’t have any spares. No one but me comes to these rooms.”

Twilight glanced at the chair with uncertainty, but slowly nodded and went to sit down. Once she was settled she said, “What is this place?”

“My... sanctuary. For when I need to be alone,” Sombra said, taking his cloak off and tossing it almost haphazardly on the desk. He stretched, then seemed to slump in on himself. It was an entirely human gesture, and Twilight realized she hadn’t ever seen the King of the Quincy look even remotely relaxed since she’d met him. He still didn’t, but she could see him trying to pull down the usual walls of regal power and aloof mystique he usually had erected around himself.

For a moment neither of them spoke, then Sombra said, somewhat awkwardly, “I don’t rightly know where to begin with this, so I think it’s best you just start asking questions, and I’ll try to answer them.”

“Has anyone else ever been in here before?”

“...That wasn’t the question I was expecting you to start with.”

Twilight sighed, “I’m trying to ease into this, Sombra. I’m nervous. Scared. I don’t know exactly where this is going to go. Figured I’d start small.”

A ghost of a smile touched his face, “No. You’re the first one I’ve allowed into these chambers. It's not even possible for another to reach them if they lack my Schrift’s power. Aside from some ventilation shafts to keep air flow, there’s no actual entrances to these chambers that can be accessed normally.”

“Gee, so I’m trapped here until you let me out?” Twilight said, raising an eyebrow, and Sombra winced.

“Not exactly how I meant it to seem. I just thought this... this was the best place to have this discussion while ensuring absolutely no one else could interrupt or overhear.”

“That doesn’t really make it sound better, Sombra,” Twilight pointed out.

“I guess it doesn’t. Still, I’d like to think that if I were planning to do something dastardly to you, I’d have the sense of style to do it somewhere a bit less...” he ran a finger over his desk, “...dusty.”

Twilight didn’t exactly laugh. She was too tired for that. It was more just a exhalation of breath that relaxed some of the tightness in her chest. She leaned back in the well worn chair, and closed her eyes for a second, thinking. When she opened them again, Sombra was looking at her expectantly.

“Well, no point in wasting any more time with it. What is that Eye inside of me?”

“The Left Eye of the Soul Queen.”

Twilight looked at him. He seemed completely serious. She gulped and found her hand trembling a bit on the arm of the chair. She was fairly certain her stomach had decided to hop out of her and go on a long, long vacation to the center of the Earth.

“Oh? Is that all? I thought it was going to be something important and terrifying.”

“I suppose I should elaborate,” Sombra said.

“Yes. Elaboration would be nice.”

Sombra rose from leaning on his desk and started to slowly walk the library. He paused near one of the bookshelves, gesturing a hand at a number of texts that, from what Twilight could see, were all drawn from various world religions.

“People have wondered about the nature of ‘God’ since humans could first question the nature of reality. I sometimes wonder if it was meant to be that way, or if the Soul Queen never intended humanity to be left so... ignorant of things.”

He turned from the books, his eyes filled with a troubled glint.

“Keep in mind, Twilight, that even I don’t really know that much. My knowledge is fragmented at best, but I will tell you what I know, as best as I can. In the beginning, there was just... her. She did not create the universe. The universe already existed, and she strode upon its formless mass without knowledge, or understanding. She was the First Soul. Unique. Alone. She could imagine what she desired, and the formless mass of reality would react to her will, taking whatever shape the First Soul wished. However she was without others to share any of her creations with. She was alone, and that loneliness drew her to tear herself in half, and form another. Her Consort. The First Soul and her Consort then discovered that together, they could create children. These were the first ‘gods’, the first beings who would one day form what many mythologies would in time record as the various pantheons of the old world.”

“Wait, like the gods of Greek or Norse mythology?” Twilight asked, and Sombra nodded.

“And Egyptian, and Chinese, Japanese, African. All of it. All of those beings were children of the First Soul and her Consort.”

“Then... how is it nobody hears of them anymore? Why is it that Soul Society, and the Hollows exist, but we’ve heard nothing about a bunch of gods from some random pantheon showing up in this war?” Twilight said with rising interest, but also confusion, and Sombra let out a small, tired chuckle.

“Patience, Twilight. I’m getting to that. Like I said, I don’t have all the answers either. From what I know, I know that for a time, the First Soul, her Consort, and their children existed in a state of balance with one another. Conflict existed, but it was rare, and each group of gods more or less handled their own slice of the reality. But here’s where things get muddled. You see, this was still when ‘reality’ only consisted of the Spirit Realm. The world as you know. Earth. It didn’t exist back then.”

Sombra paused, rubbing his head, “What I think happened, was that this world was discovered.”

“Discovered?”

“Yes. You see, the First Soul and Consort, they weren’t really immortal, and neither were their Children. In the occasional conflicts that occurred, sometimes one god or another would die. The only thing was, they didn’t know where those gods went after ‘death’. In searching for those lost souls, they found this world. With mankind already upon it, developing naturally. My theory is that all of our souls, all human souls, are what happened when the gods that did die fell to this realm and scattered the pieces of themselves across it.”

“How... how do you know any of this?” Twilight asked, trying to soak it all in, and having more than a little trouble with it.

“I’ll get to that part too, just bear with me, Twilight. I haven’t spoken of this to anyone other than yourself, and my closest Sternritter. Besides you, only your father, and two others in my court know any of this,” Sombra said, then seemed to take a second to collect himself.”

“My memory gets even more fragmented after this point, but this is what I think occurred. I believe the First Soul decided to claim the Living World, realizing that it was connected to her Spirit Realm. Remember, the First Soul didn’t create the universe. She didn’t know why there were two Realms in the first place, so it stands to reason she was curious. At this point her children also started claiming territory on Earth, both for their own amusement, and to study the various forms of life that existed here. It didn’t take them long, I imagine, to notice that living creatures, human or otherwise, when they died their souls couldn’t interact with living matter anymore. Some remained whole, others became... hollow. Hollows. Demons. I think the name changed over time. Regardless, the conflicts between the gods only became worse as time went on. Some found Hollows to be better, ideal forms of souls. Others thought Hollows should be destroyed. Some gods thought to claim humans as worshipers, others wished to remain apart from the Living Realm. To compound matters, the gods were having children of their own, each successive generation being closer to ‘mortal’ than the last. Conflicts turned into wars, which only lead to more dead gods fragmenting into hundreds of lesser souls.”

“That sounds like absolute chaos,” Twilight shook her head, “Didn’t the First Soul do anything about it?”

“Of course she did, just not enough. She... valued freedom, Twilight. She didn’t want to quash her children’s choices, only mitigate their damage. So she tried to regulate the fighting, limited the conflicts, and encouraged the factions emerging among her children to seek peaceful solutions with each other. However nothing stopped continuous conflicts from arising over any petty thing the gods wanted to fight about. On top of that, a section of the newer gods were developing their own society. An ideal society that regulated the souls of mortalkind, which were only increasing in number as more gods died, or had children who were just a bit lesser than themselves, leading to more humans being born. This society of gods had no formal name, but they created the means by which souls of dead mortals could be ‘guided’ to the Spirit Realm, and because their tenants were so opposed to that of Hollows, which consumed mortal souls, they also developed weapons to fight Hollows.”

Twilight rose with a start, “You’re talking about Soul Reapers!”

“They didn’t go by that name in those days. The formal creation of Soul Society as it is today didn’t happen until much later, but the foundation for what they’d become started during these... Godwars, I suppose you’d call them. During that time other discoveries were made as well, such as the existence of the Beast Realm, which seemed to be separate from the other realms, almost like a cosmological sister world, but not quite the same.”

Twilight deeply frowned, settling back down in the chair, her mind a mire of thought, “Could that have anything to do with Equestria? Is the Beast Realm like a separate world entirely?”

Sombra shrugged, “Who can say? My memories don’t show much about the Beast Realm, and Equestria was an utterly unknown thing back in those days, although I think the First Soul and her Consort both suspected there were realities beyond this one. After all, if the First Soul didn’t create this universe, it stood to reason someone or something had, and may have created others. Or it could be cosmic coincidence. At any rate, to try to cut to the chase here, the wars between gods continued until there were practically no pantheons left, and only really two major factions; those that favored the Hollows, and those that favored the society that would become the Soul Reapers.”

Sombra paused then, crossing his arms and his expression growing shadowed and worn, “At that point my memory is the most fractured of all. I know that the First Soul and her Consort, finally sick of the endless fighting among their remaining children, and perhaps wanting to finally settle matters moving forward for the now teaming masses of humanity, decided to forge a truce between the remaining two factions. The leaders of both the Hollows and the forebears of Soul Society were called to the Soul Palace for a meeting that would forge this new peace.”

Twilight’s voice was a tense whisper, “And what happened?”

The soft lamplight reflected off Sombra’s eyes like flecks of blood.

“Betrayal.”

In Twilight’s mind she heard a sharp, wailing cry. Nothing really, just a faint memory of the Eye’s anguished, enraged shout, the fury it had felt due to some manner of treachery. She felt her mouth go quite dry as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat as Sombra continued, his voice softening.

“I don’t know who, or how. I just know that the Soul Queen and the Consort were betrayed. What was supposed to be a meeting to discuss peace turned into a bloody revolt of child against parent. The Consort was slain, and the Soul Queen overwhelmed before either could properly fight back.”

Twilight also keenly remembered the sensation of a blade being shoved through her back as she looked out upon a shining palace engulfed in flames. She resisted the urge to touch the spot where she could almost feel the wound through her heart.

“But who did it? Was it the Hollows, or the Soul Reapers?” she asked.

Sombra just looked at her with a level stare, “Why not both? Certainly to take down the Consort and the Soul Queen it may well have taken cooperation between both factions.” His eyes flashed with momentary anger, “And Tirek was there.”

“H-he was?”

“Oh yes, Tirek was among the strongest Hollows, now and then. He may even had once been among one of the godly pantheons once worshiped by humans. Who can say which? But he was there, the day the Soul Queen and the Consort were betrayed. Whether he took part himself, or merely bore witness, I honestly don’t know. I certainly have never trusted his word on the matter.”

He returned to the desk and grabbed some of the papers there, looking them over, “Most of these memories I’ve tried writing down hundreds of times, trying to piece it all together. What I’ve just told you constitutes the most I’ve been able to recall over the years, and honestly I’m not even sure how much I can trust it.”

“But why do you have this memories in the first place?” she asked.

He glanced at her sidelong, a somewhat self-deprecating and wry grin touching his face, “Isn’t it obvious? Because when the Consort died, he cast his soul into the Living Realm to be reborn, as intact as he could manage. It attached and fused with a human soul. Mine. I’m the Consort of the Soul Queen.”

He laughed at her, and actually reached over to prop up Twilight’s open jaw, closing it. “Don’t drool on my chair.”

“S-sorry, but... WHAT!?”

“Okay that probably came out more dramatic than I intended,” he said, and she actually kicked him in the shin.

“Don’t lie, you very much intended that to sound dramatic!”

“Alright, I did. But what I should probably say is that I’m not so much the Consort himself, so much as I’m a human whose soul has been bound to the remnants of the Consort in the same manner your bound to the Left Eye of the Soul Queen. The major difference is that in my case, the Consort and I are fused evenly into one being. I have my own free will, my own soul, and for the most part only the fragmented memories of the Consort and a large chunk of his power.”

“Oh...Oooooooh, so that’s why you’re so powerful!” Twilight said, her mind working its gears at high speed, “Is that why you can grant Schrifts?”

“Among other things. In fact the Consort’s power is largely the basis for all Quincy abilities. His knowledge allowed me to create all the Quincy techniques and infuse other souls with additional power to control reishi. Because, as you recall, the Soul Queen could reshape the world to her liking. Reshape spirit particles.”

“Just like the Quincy do! So the Consort’s power was the same. To control reishi.”

“Precisely. I passed that knowledge and power on, so at their most basic form, a Quincy is someone who has a fragment of the Consort’s power. Schrifts are just specific extensions of this, larger portions of the power to reshape reishi.”

For a moment Twilight’s apprehension and anxiety were quashed by a giddy wave of enjoyment at learning so much and several pieces of information she’d always wondered about coming into place. However that was quickly overshadowed by the big question still looming in her mind.

“Right, so, all of this is fascinating, but that still doesn’t explain why the Left Eye of the Soul Queen is inside me.”

“Yes, I was just getting to that. You see, the Consort died that day of the Betrayal, but the Soul Queen did not. She was captured. However, before she was imprisoned, I believe she was able to tear a piece of herself off to cast into the Living Realm, not unlike what the Consort did with the whole of his being upon being slain. That piece, the Left Eye, bonded to a human soul.”

“Me?”

“No...” Sombra said, “This was millennia ago. You weren’t born yet. The Left Eye bonded to a particular family line, and remained dormant for a long time. It didn’t have enough power to awaken on its own for some centuries... but eventually it did.”

He looked more tired then than he ever had before, hands propping on the desk as he leaned over it. “It awakened in my wife, Radiant Hope.”

----------

A few steady breaths got Adagio’s heart rate back to something resembling normal. Her left hand still hurt slightly from where it had caught Torch’s axe. That had been far more of a risk than she’d allowed herself to show on the outside. She’d known challenging Torch’s authority so brazenly, in front of the majority of his horde, could only really have one of two results. Fortunately she’d guessed correctly that he’d been both injured enough and desperate enough to rescue his daughter that he wasn’t willing to choose the option where he just bralwed Adagio to the death right then and there, in an attempt to save face in front of his people.

It wouldn't have worked if she hadn’t made enough of an open display of her own power to make it clear that she and Torch were something approximating equals, now, and that she wasn’t just some crazy upstart that needed her head crushed. Adagio hadn’t been certain at all that it would work, but she didn’t have time to play this safely.

Besides, it’d sufficed as a way of testing her new level of strength. Measured against Torch, she still pegged herself as being overall weaker, at least when Torch was at full strength. His wounds and battle exhaustion might have leveled the playing field enough that she could have taken him if it’d come to a fight, but once he recovered she sensed she’d still be a solid step below his level.

...But not by much.

It was both exhilarating and more than a little terrifying. She was solidly on the Espadas level now, but that had as much danger attached to it as potential power and privilege. Chances were Chrysalis suspected Adagio would reach this point, and wouldn’t be done toying with her. Grogar likely had plans of his own, but that was fine. So did Adagio.

She’d spoken with Torch at length, laying out her plans, and he agreed. To most of them, at least. He grumbled to no end, but he seemed willing to let Adagio take the lead on this, but he’d made it clear that the second he thought that her schemes weren’t going to pan out towards successfully restoring Ember to him, he’d go his own way. Fair enough, Adagio didn’t need him to follow her for long, just long enough to secure her position.

Returning to Lament’s tower, she found Gaw resting at the foot of the tower’s entry stairs. Loud snoring, like a damaged billows, blew out of Gaw’s nostrils as she slept off her injuries. Adagio swept past her, briefly giving the Hollow’s snout a quick, affectionate pat.

Inside the tower she found a bustle of activity as the orphaned Arrancar children of Lament worked to remove debris from the ground floor that had fallen there from the battle. Despite the large chunks of stone, the children lifted them in teams rather easily. They were Arrancar, after all, children or not. They had strength to spare, and seemed to be making a race of which team could clear more rubble, faster.

A brief inquiry told Adagio that Roka was upstairs, tending to Adagio’s servants in one of the rooms. Quickly making her way up the stairs, Adagio spotted Di Roy relaxing by the door to where Roka was treating Dumbbell. His own body was covered in more stitch-work from Roka’s needles, almost giving him a mummified appearance as he turned a sharkish face towards her, his shadowed face cracking a small grin.

“Hey boss lady. Still going for the Jedi robes look?”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “I’ll find something appropriate when the time comes, but I’m rather busy at the moment trying to plan for my future empire. How’s Dumbbell?”

“Breathing. Beyond that I’ve got not clue,” Di Roy said with a shrug, “Roka’s pretty good at what she does, but I wouldn’t expect Dumbbell to be doing any pirouettes anytime soon.”

“If all goes according to plan, he won’t have to,” Adagio said, “I’ll have you and Gaw to do my heavy lifting for me.”

Di Roy tilted his masked head at that, “Am I going to have to play twenty questions with that one, or is this one of those things you want to save a big reveal for later?”

A smooth smile flashed across Adagio’s face, “Let’s just say that Dumbbell and his friends acquired something for me that you and Gaw will benefit from greatly. Just be patient for now, and try to remain a courteous guest here. Lament and his family are going to be cornerstone allies for my plans, and I wish for them to remain that way.”

“Yeah, I hear you, boss lady. I’m always on my best behavior...” Di Roy’s voice trailed off for a sec, a moment of hesitation before he added, “And hey, maybe I’ll help out around here with the rebuilding of the tower. You don’t need me for anything immediately, right?”

Adagio’s eyebrow only slightly rose. Not that she objected to the idea Di Roy proposed, only that it seemed a bit odd coming from him. “That sounds like a reasonable way to repay them for the help they’ve given us. I don’t think I’ll be needing you or Gaw’s help in the immediate future. This business coming is mostly going to be on me. If I fail, you’ll probably be in the market for a new boss.”

“No thanks. Most the candidates for that around here are a lot less reasonable, and nowhere near as easy on the eyes,” Di Roy said with a wink, and Adagio snorted and waved a dismissive hand at him as she strode past, heading further up the stairs towards the tower’s roof.

She’d considered asking Roka first, before coming up here, but didn’t want to distract the woman from her medical work. Besides, she knew Lament could sense her approach. If the man was going to be belligerent at this point, Adagio doubted having Roka around would change much.

She approached Lament’s cabin. On the wooden patio out front, next to Lament’s empty rocking chair, Winston wagged his tail and raised his canine Hollow mask towards Adagio. She paused long enough to kneel down and pet the Hollow dog before standing again and giving the cabin door a polite knock.

He knew she was here already, but Adagio would observe the courtesies here. She didn’t need Lament going screwy in the head with her right now.

There was a longer pause than she would have expected, and she almost knocked again before Lament’s voice from inside bid her to enter. When she did so she found him at the kitchen. There was a very strange sense of juxtaposed wrongness in seeing the fourth most powerful Hollow in existence trying to, by all appearances, bake an apple pie.

And from the amount of pie mix strewn about and the smell of burned dough, he was rather failing at it.

“I feel like I used to know how to do this,” Lament muttered as he stared at the partially charred almost-pie. “No, I have done this. I just don’t know how many times. Or if it was here, or somewhere like here.”

Oh boy... Adagio thought sardonically, If he tries to make me eat that, this whole conversation is going to go sideways.

Clearing her throat politely, she said, “Is this a bad time? I can come back later.”

He stood over the bitterly charred apple pie, sighed, then said, “No. I’d prefer to get this over with. Please, sit. I’ll try again with the pie, but you have plans, and I suppose I ought to listen to them. Whether I follow them or not, I still have yet to decide on that.”

“Of course,” Adagio said as she went to take a seat at the table in the middle of the cabin. Lament spent another second or two forlornly looking at his failed pie before striding over to sit opposite her, in essentially the same position he had when they first met.

Their eyes met, and Lament’s left Adagio, as before, feeling distinctly cold and ill at ease. Even now that she was an Arrancar, she wasn’t confident that if at any time Lament decided to kill her that she’d stand much chance. Yet his stance wasn’t overtly aggressive and the staring, forlorn quality of his eyes seemed more focused on thoughts outside of this cabin than on anything Adagio had to say. That could either be good or bad, depending on how this went.

“So let’s have it,” he said.

“No mincing words,” Adagio agreed, crossing her arms in front of her on the table, careful to keep her elbows off it. Politeness, always politeness, when speaking with Lament. “I intend to claim a seat among the Espada. To do that I would like the backing of yourself and Torch. I have Torch’s support already, so that just leaves you.”

“That would mean I’d have to actually appear in front of the other Espada in open support of you,” he said, expression nor voice showing any hint of whether he approved of the notion or not.

“Yes, it would. I could hint at your support all day and it’d garner me nothing. But you appearing alongside me in the throne room, voicing your support, well that would lend a lot of weight to my claim.”

“Tirek doesn’t care about politics. Only power. If you can’t demonstrate that, he’ll eat you alive,” Lament said, “Literally.”

Not the most pleasant thought, but Adagio had expected as much, and nodded agreement, “Power I have, and can demonstrate. I just need to be able to do it without any other Espada thinking that I’m a lone upstart.”

“Why not? I was.”

“Lament, you and I both know you’re something of a special case. You fought Tirek directly, and I suspect it wasn’t because you were seeking a spot among the Espada.”

Lament’s voice grew chilling, “Damned straight I wasn’t. I was just doing what I thought was right. The bastard could have killed me, and the children I wanted to protect. He offered me a deal instead. Work for him, and I get to look after any children discarded by other Arrancar I want. That was the whole point of my position among the Espada. Tirek could use me as a weapon, and in exchange he’d allow me my sanctuary here.”

“But Tirek doesn’t control all the Espada’s actions, and eventually, one way or another, as long as you stand alone, your family would be targeted,” Adagio pointed out, and Lament’s eyes narrowed.

“They were anyway.”

She frowned at that, but conceded the point with a nod, “Yes, but our alliance proved fruitful in helping protect your home and family.”

“True...” he conceded, “I already acknowledged as much, and said I was willing to support you. Most of what I want to know is what your actual play is, and what your long term goal happens to be.”

His eyes took on a drilling stare as he looked upon her intently, “What’s your endgame, Adagio Dazzle?”

She considered him carefully. Lament held no love for Hollows, or rather the way Hollow society was in its current state. His tower, his ‘children’, this cabin, it all seemed like an attempt to grab for something closer to the life he’d likely left behind and only dimly remembered in the broken corners of his mind. Adagio wasn’t sure she pined for the past anymore. She loved her sisters, and hoped fervently they were well, wherever they were now. But she’d chosen to embrace her new existence as a Hollow and had no delusions about reclaiming an old, lost life.

That didn’t mean, however, she wanted to just play second fiddle to Tirek and his war. Quite frankly Adagio found the whole war quite foolish, if necessary as long as Quincy treated Hollows as objects solely of extermination. But in time? Well... Lament liked honesty, so no reason to hide the truth of her ambitions form him.

“I intend one of two things, Lament. Either to take over Las Noches in its entirety, or to gain enough power and followers that I can break away from it and make a place for myself and other Hollows like me that are quite and thoroughly tired of the status quo.”

There was little reaction on Lament’s face, but she saw him lean forward slightly, “For power’s sake?”

“For freedom’s,” Adagio replied, “I’ve been used time and again, and seen others being used, or forced into positions where their only choice was to fight to stay alive. I don’t intend to allow that to continue. I won’t lie, I intend to keep gaining in power, until I can be strong enough to be free of all of this. However I don’t mind freeing as many other people as I can along the way, anyone who wishes to follow me.”

“And those that don’t follow you? Will you be as much of a tyrant as Tirek is to those who don’t want to follow a Queen of Hueco Mundo?”

Adagio leaned back in her chair and held up a hand as if to hold up the question itself, “I’m not planning to conscript slaves. I’m also not an altruist. I want to live my new life as freely as I can. That’s it. If that means fighting, then I fight. If that means negotiating peace with the Quincy and Soul Reapers, then I negotiate. Either way, I need power to do any of that. And I have it now, more than I ever have. I don’t intend to miss the opportunity it presents.”

“And if you happen to be able to visit a painful, humiliating death unto the likes of Grogar, all the better, right?” Lament said, again showing no sign in his stony expression to indicate approval or disapproval, merely the statement of fact.

“I won’t deny it, his death is on the docket. Not today, nor tomorrow, not yet... but soon, and growing closer,” Adagio said with a cold, edged promise in her voice.

Lament merely nodded, as if he’d expected as much.

“Then the only other thing I remain curious about is how you got Torch to agree to follow you. I’ve never noticed him to be a follower of anyone who couldn’t prove themselves stronger than he, and as strong as you are now Adagio Dazzle, you’re not above Torch...” he left out the ‘yet’ that seemed to hang in the air after that, and just watched Adagio with his usual intent stare.

Again, Adagio couldn’t imagine a reason not to be honest about this. It was starting to get to be a sickening habit. Perhaps she needed another conversation with Chrysalis, just to get her daily dose of pointed innuendo, double-talk, and outright lying. Then again, even honest conversation with Lament had its dangers.

“His daughter was taken by Soul Reapers during the battle. He needs my help to retrieve her. I had to remind him of the fact, yes, but now that he understands it, he’s also understanding of my other plans. It's an arrangement of mutual benefit.”

Lament’s marble still face finally showed some expression, a open look of genuine surprise. “Soul Reapers took his family...?”

There was something off about the way he spoke those words, like he’d seen or heard something that drawn his attention away from the conversation. Adagio frowned, but nodded, saying, “Yes, although I’m not certain for what purpose. Experimentation of some kind.”

Whatever was going through Lament’s mind, she could see the visible tension in his hands now, the darkening glower in his eyes. He didn’t draw his Zanpaktou, but she could sense the imminent violence rising in him.

“Did you intend for that to happen, Adagio? Did you let the Soul Reapers take Torch’s kin so you could use that as leverage to gain his cooperation?”

For a rare instance, Adagio was so utterly taken aback by a question that she was actually rendered speechless. She hadn’t even thought of such a manner of looking at the situation! She wasn’t sure if it was a sign she was slipping as a scheming manipulator or what, but the notion of her intentionally getting Ember captured to use as a lever on Torch hadn’t even entered her mental radar. The fact that Lament had considered it a possibility was a tad disturbing. It also meant others might think that too. She sure hoped Torch never got that notion into his head, or she might not survive the day.

Her look alone must have been answer enough for Lament, because the sense of killing intent fled the room almost as fast as it had risen and he took a deep breath, “I see. I keep misjudging you. I think...” he raised a hand to his head, “I think recent events have done little to enhance my mood. Especially talk of Soul Reapers.”

That got Adagio curious, and she risked asking, “Have you ever met a Soul Reaper?”

Lament’s response was slow in coming, his eyes distant, “I don’t know.”

He didn’t elaborate further than that, so Adagio said, “Well, that aside then, you will help me?”

“I will. Roka has grown fond of you and your companions, and I believe Fenice has even become a bit more lighthearted, in her way. I think you’re overly ambitious, and underestimate the likes of Tirek and Chrysalis, and even Grogar... but I think you are also the best chance I and my family have of finding something better than this continued existence of isolation and fear. As long as you don’t abuse my trust, and don’t succumb to the temptations of power, I shall support you.”

Adagio sat back and a small laugh escaped her, “Good, because if you didn’t, I wasn’t sure this was going to work.”

----------

Twilight needed a moment to process what Sombra had said. This was becoming a habit during this conversation. A part of her whispered in her mind that she ought to have been prepared for anything while talking with Sombra, but thus far it’d proven to thwart her expectations. Still, Twilight was nothing if not intelligent and rational, so it was with great astuteness that she calmly adjusted her glasses, starred at Sombra frankly, and said, “...Huh?”

Sombra blinked at her softly, “Should we take a break? Give you time to mull?”

A vigorous shake of Twilight’s head managed to jostle lose a few stuttering thoughts, “No, it’s fine. I was just temporarily brain-locked there. Happens sometimes when there’s too much information, too fast. Just had to process it. I’m okay now.”

She sat there for a moment longer, collecting her thoughts. “So, you were married, and your wife was part of the Quincy bloodline the Eye became attached to. How, precisely does that work? The Eye is passed through hereditary lines?”

“Not exactly,” Sombra said, and she could see a visible tremble of nerves crawl up his spine as he stiffened. Whatever he was about to talk about next, it clearly made him exceedingly uncomfortable. There was also an old, faded but still clear pain in his eyes. Twilight could readily enough guess that talking about what happened to his wife wasn’t a topic involving fond memories.

“You see, Twilight, because the power Quincy possess is tied to the power of the Consort, all of it is tied directly to me. The power is cultivated within a human’s soul and grows, so the power of the Quincy is not a finite thing, with myself being a limited well, but rather much closer to being a garden that I tend to, growing ever stronger crops of Quincy. However, have you noticed something... peculiar about the battles in which you’ve seen Quincy die?”

The question made her wince, but she thought about it and couldn’t quite think of anything out of the ordinary. You know, other than the horrible maiming, screams, blood, and death. She shook her head silently. Sombra just gave her a nod, like a teacher who understood the student missing a detail in the lesson.

“I’m not that surprised. You didn’t spend enough time with your Soul Reaper friend for it to become a rote thing, something you’d actively look for. But since you are a Quincy now, and can see souls, what has always been missing from a Quincy battlefield?”

The wording of his question prodded Twilight’s thoughts, galvanizing her to a string of logical questions, leading to equally rational answers. Particularly one answer that sprang into her mind with a whole host of unsettling implications.

“The souls! I’ve never seen a Quincy’s soul!”

When people died, their souls left their bodies, wandering the world as ‘Wholes’. If not sent to the Spirit Realm by a Soul Reaper, they’d eventually become Hollows. That was the doctrine set down by the Soul Reapers, and Twilight could recall Clover teaching Sunset about the process of ‘Soul Burial’, aka ‘Konso’. Yet every time she’d witness Quincy dying, or come across their bodies... she’d never seen a single wandering soul.

With so many people dying on that battlefield, there should have been dozens, no, hundreds of lost souls of Quincy who’d just lost their lives. But there’d been none. Not even a hint of them.

“Where, um, do the souls go, if they’re not to be seen anywhere?” she asked.

Sombra, his face filled with a grave and weary weight, tapped his chest.

“Into me.”

“That’s...but... how? Why?” Twilight said in a breathless tone, her mind back-flipping in trying to comprehend this. There was a distinct, rising fear in her as well, along with a sense of confusion at what she was learning. Sombra consumed the souls of the Quincy? Or was she misinterpreting things? She wanted to let loose a flurry of panicked questions. That or run away and find somewhere to hide. Instead she barely managed to control herself, clutching the arms of the chair she was sitting in, and starred at Sombra while waiting to hear his response.

He didn’t look proud or satisfied with his revelation. Only tired. Infinitely tired.

“It was a side effect of tying Quincy powers to human souls. That tie allows me a certain... command over the souls that bear Quincy abilities. Taking their souls into myself upon their deaths is one way that manifests. It doesn’t add to my own power, and the souls are not harmed by this process. They sleep, Twilight. Peacefully. More so than if they were taken anywhere else, chased and eaten by Hollows, or pressed into the Soul Society’s bureaucratic structure.”

“Does everyone know about this!?” Twilight asked, perhaps more forcefully and fearfully than she’d intended. Sombra flinched at the question, but didn’t look away from her.

“Only the Sternritter. The majority of the Quincy are unaware.”

“But surely they noticed that their souls aren’t just leaving their bodies like normal? Surely somebody asks questions.”

“They do. And what most believe when they can’t find answers is that a Quincy’s soul is just different than a normal one, and passes to the Spirit Realm on its own, without Soul Reaper assistance, where they are quickly reborn. Which isn’t entirely untrue. They are reborn, rather rapidly usually.”

At Twilight’s questioning look, he was fast to explain, “At any given time I don’t actually have that many Quincy souls inside me, Twilight. Most of them get reborn swiftly. As you may have heard, I encourage... a certain amount of fecundity among Quincy families. Large families. More soldiers. More bodies for Quincy to be reincarnated into. That’s how the power of the Quincy grows gradually over time. Each soul, reborn, gains a little bit more power. That’s why we could manage to create a stable Letzt Stil transformation in the shape of the Vollstandig. This generation finally produced Quincy strong enough to withstand the release of energy without burning out their powers.”

Taking this in context with what she already knew, Twilight put more of the pieces together herself, her voice growing distant even to her own ears as she spoke.

“So that would mean that your wife, Radiant Hope, is a reborn Quincy, and that the Eye, being attached to that particular soul, was reborn with her over and over again. When your wife passed on...”

Twilight fidgeted, drawing the only conclusion she could, “She was reborn as me.”

Sombra was quiet for a second, then raised a finger, “Almost. There’s one point that you’re unaware of. When Radiant Hope-” a shadow crossed his face, his eyes briefly wet for a second before the shimmer of those tears passed, “-died, her circumstances were different. The Eye acts as an anchor of sorts, preventing her soul from entering me naturally as other Quincy souls do. I have to claim her soul actively with my power. I’d always kept an eye on the soul with the Eye attached to it, but I’d only ever fallen in love with that soul when she was Radiant Hope. It was just... bad luck that the Eye woke up during that time.”

“What happened?”

“I...don’t wish to recount the details, if that’s alright, Twilight. Suffice to say that while I could suppress the Eye, things still went awry that day. Due in no small part to Soul Reaper and Hollow interference alike, Radiant Hope died. However when she did, a Soul Reaper tried to perform Soul Burial upon her before I got to her. I activated my... well the name of the power doesn’t matter right now, but it's one way I can more actively claim Quincy powers and souls. When I did so, my power and the power of the Soul Reaper performing the Soul Burial got into a state of tug-o-war with Radiant Hope. The result was that her soul was split.”

“That doesn’t sound good. I mean, souls operate a lot like mortal bodies, don’t they? Being split couldn’t have done anything pleasant to her,” Twilight said, grimacing as she said it.

Sombra just shook his head, “It wasn’t as bad as you think, but it was bad enough. Her Quincy powers, and the Eye, came to me, but the rest of her... that went to the Soul Reapers. As far as I know that part of her soul remains with them, and is even a part of the Gotei 13. But she’s not the Radiant Hope I was married to, and wouldn’t have any memory of me. As for the part of her that stayed with me, well the same rules that governed souls I absorb still applied. That part of her was reincarnated, eventually. Usually Quincy souls tend to follow the bloodlines of their families, dead ancestors being reborn in their descendants. In Radiant Hope’s case, well... we had no children, so the part of her soul inside me waited for a suitably powerful host. That was you, the child prodigy of the Sparkle line.”

“So... what exactly does that mean? Am I just a partial soul?”

“Oh no, you’re a whole soul, Twilight. You’re own soul, likely from one of your distant ancestors. I don’t actually control which souls get reborn where, and can never be sure who decided to get reincarnated. I just know that when you were born, I felt the Eye specifically go, along with that fragment of Radiant Hope and her Quincy powers. Not only are you a prodigy of your family, but part of your power stems from having Radiant Hope’s Quincy powers layered atop your own. Then of course there’s the unwanted passenger that came with it. I ensured the seals on the Eye were intact once I could confirm it was inside you. Your parents were never the wiser.”

“Until now...” Twilight said, the hurt in her voice still there as she felt a surge of anger that came from not only having the truth withheld from her, but knowing her family had been lied to as well by the man they’d sworn loyalty to for so long.

Sombra, for his part, closed his eyes with a pained look and said, “Yes. Night Light will likely never fully trust me again, and I can hardly blame him for that. I also doubt Shining Armor or Cadence will look upon me the same way anymore either, but that’s not something I’m in a position to complain about. I did what I did because I thought it was the best way to protect you and them both. Knowledge of the Eye would have brought nothing but painful burdens onto you during your most important years of development. If you were ever going to be able to shoulder what was to come, I thought I had to wait until the time was right to let the truth be known.”

“And when was that going to be, precisely?” Twilight asked, voice a little sharper now.

“Radiant Hope was in her twenties when I told her, the night after we’d married. She was... less than pleased with me as well,” Sombra said, then let out a breath that might have been a laugh or a sigh in equal measure, “She forgave me eventually, but she certainly had her ways of getting back at me, too.”

The pain in his own voice softened Twilight's anger a bit, cooling her head, “You... miss her, don’t you?”

“Every single day,” he whispered, then shook himself, shaking his head, “But to actually answer your question, I was going to tell you after you officially graduated from the Academy, which would have been just after this last battle. I wanted to wait longer, but could tell there wasn’t time. I just didn’t expect the Eye to awaken quite that soon. If your mother hadn’t...”

He trailed off, not that he really needed to finish the sentence. Its meaning was plain enough. If her mother hadn’t died, then likely the Eye would have remained dormant. Sombra hadn’t calculated that risk. Twilight wrestled with a rise of her own mixed emotions, fighting back sadness and anger in equal tides until she could control her voice again.

“My mother, is she inside you now, too? Her soul?”

Sombra just nodded silently.

Twilight gulped, “Can I... see her? Is that possible?”

The shake of his head was barely perceptible, “No. I can’t summon or control the souls at will. It doesn’t work that way. She’s... sleeping, now, Twilight. As safe within me as I can make her and every other Quincy that’s passed in my service. One day, she’ll be reborn again. Probably to either a child or grandchild of your line.”

For a moment the shear surreal nature of that thought lingered in Twilight’s mind. Would she even know it, if one of her own children or grandchildren was actually her reincarnated mother? Not that Twilight precisely had plans for children anytime soon, but it was an odd thought nonetheless.

“I know this a lot to take in,” Sombra said, “We can stop here, if you like, and you can take some time to rest more-”

She held up her hand to forestall him, taking a second to breathing deeply as she got her mind back on track, “Yes, this is a lot, Sombra. In the span of one conversation I’ve learned you’re a reincarnation of what basically equates to the second soul that ever existed, that you absorb the souls of any Quincy who dies, including my mother, while I’m the reborn partial soul of your dead wife, and oh by the way I have a semi-sentient Eye locked inside me that once was part of the closest thing this world has so far to a God. Have I forgotten anything?”

“You still have assassins trying to kill you?” Sombra offered in what he might have intended to be a helpful tone. Twilight just gave him a look and he coughed sheepishly and looked away. “Sorry, but you asked.”

Twilight took off her glasses for a second, just to rub at her eyes before putting them back on, “I think I’m so far beyond the shock of all this that there’s no much else you could add to it that would put me in any more of a reeling mental state than I already am. Part of me wants to find the nearest available dark hole and vanish into it in a curled up, bawling mess, and stay there for the next year or so. Another part of me realizes I can’t afford to do that and that I have to somehow keep myself together. Right now I don’t know which part is winning...”

“Well, you’re not trying to run away, or screaming incoherently, or bawling, so I’d say you’re doing better than could be reasonably expected of you,” Sombra said, meeting her eyes once more, this time with a fresh tension in them, “Which brings us to an impasse. Now that you know all that I have to tell you, you must decide what to do with that information.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked apprehensively.

Sombra made a gesture at the room around him, although Twilight imagined the gesture was more about encompassing all of the Silburn, or perhaps even the Quincy themselves, “I mean only this; what will you do now, Twilight Sparkle? You know the truth now, so what shall your course be from here? Will you remain with the Quincy, or will you leave to return to the life you once had, or seek something else entirely?”

“I’d... be allowed to do that?” Twilight’s voice carried a hint if disbelief, but Sombra just waved it off and shrugged.

“If you think about it, I don’t have much recourse if you did. Oh, I could certainly kill you, if I so choose.” He paused, a sour look passing like a brief billow of fog before it passed, “I won’t, but I could. I suppose I could also keep you prisoner, against your will, but that wouldn’t work out well for me either. To say nothing of the fact that I don’t want to do either option, on what little moral principles I still manage to hold onto these days, the fact is that if I tried to keep you here or sought to harm you that would absolutely sever the already damaged loyalty your family has to me. I’ve already lost enough Quincy for one day, I don’t plan on setting at least three of my best Sternritter against me.”

“That’s a rather coldly pragmatic way to look at it,” Twilight said, gulping.

“It is, but it’s the truth,” Sombra said, and Twilight heard a rusty, strained note enter his voice, “I’ve hurt you, given you reason not to trust me, so I don’t sincerely believe that I have much right to stop you if you choose to depart. I think your father would support such a move as well, although he might have his own reasons for wishing you to stay. I certainly believe there would be more benefit to you staying than not, but I recognize this isn’t a choice I can make for you. You have to decide for yourself what it is you want, Twilight.”

She’d have been lying if she said the idea hadn’t already crossed her mind to leave the Quincy and return to Canterlot City. She missed her friends from Canterlot High. She could still remember the warmth and acceptance she’d found among the girls back home, and sorely missed that sense of belonging that had eluded her for so long. For a second she could practically hear them, Pinkie Pie’s bubbly laughter, Rarity’s swift wit, Applejack’s frank tone, Fluttershy’s gentle whisper, Rainbow Dash’s brash bragging, and Sunset’s steady, caring voice.

She missed them so much... to see them again...

But the image of them in her mind was washed away by a trickle of blood. She saw Indigo Zap’s legs cut out from under her. Hacksaw consumed by crimson light. Sugarcoat’s eyes torn away. Her mother’s blood spraying across her face.

If I leave, my new friends here, my family who still lives... they’ll still be here. Still be fighting. Still dying...

It was a hard, shuddering breath the left her as she closed her eyes tight and clutched a hand to her chest. Pushing all her fears, all her pain, deep down inside her, she took one more breath to steady herself and stood up from her chair, facing Sombra directly with eyes shimmering from unshed tears.

“I can’t afford to leave.”

Sombra opened his mouth to speak, but Twilight cut him off, “Don’t. Don’t say anything yet. I have to get this out, first.”

Her eyes hardened as she looked at him, “First off, I still don’t trust you. I understand why you did what you did. A part of me even accepts it, on a rational level. But you lied to me, and that doesn’t go away, even if you had your reasons for it. If you want my trust again, this time you’re going to have to earn it. As for my staying here, as a Quincy, I have conditions, otherwise I’ll be packing my bags tonight.”

She raised her hand and held up her fingers, one by one, “One, I need your guarantee that you will help me get the Left Eye under control. You may have sealed it up again, but that’s a temporary solution at best. Eventually it will wake up again, and even if it doesn’t I’ll only end up passing it on to my next reincarnation when I die. That’s not good enough. I won’t let this thing take over me or anyone else, so we’re going to find a way to control it, and if possible, remove it.”

The next finger came up, “Second, the original plan for me to research magic with my own team goes forward, with no interference in how I set my team up or how I go about that research. I need your full backing on that, and any and all resources I might need to be made available to me.”

Sombra looked like he wanted to say something, but kept his peace as Twilight went on.

“Third, I have something I want you to hear me out on concerning an arrangement with one of the Arrancar,” at his surprised and disapproving grunt she was fast to add, “I know you hate them, Sombra, but I just want you to hear what I have to say. It’s an proposal made by... well, not someone that’s a friend, exactly, but she’s shown herself to be more reasonable than most Hollows I’ve met, and I agreed to bring her idea to someone I thought might be able to make it happen. That’s you. So all I ask is you hear me out on it.”

Sombra broke his silence with a low, grumbling, “I’ll listen, but that’s all I can promise on that one. The other two conditions are fine, since I was going to suggest the same myself. Anything else?”

“Just one more,” Twilight said, taking a deep breath and meeting his eyes directly, her voice dead serious, “I want you to make me a Sternritter.”

Twilight had been unsure about this one, but she'd considered it from every angle. Becoming a Sternritter would have a host of complications, putting her in a difficult position in which she might have more authority among the Quincy, but also more responsibilities. It'd tie her more completely to the Quincy than ever, and in some ways it'd expose her to further danger as she'd be in a more exposed position. However Twilight knew she needed more power. She needed to be able to protect her friends and family. She wasn't going to let happen to Shining Armor or her father what happened to her mother. So she'd become a Sternritter, and gain the power of a Schrift. It was a frightening prospect in more than one way, but from a pragmatic perspective, it only made sense.

She’d expected Sombra to balk at the condition, but was surprised to see him grin.

“What a coincidence, I’d been planning to do that anyway.”

“Wait, really?”

He nodded firmly, still smiling, “Of course. Twilight, you must understand by now that among Quincy, you’re something of a prodigy. In a short span of time you’ve gone from a barely trained girl, to a young warrior capable of taking on not only an Arrancar who was near the level of an Espada, but you did that after fighting off and placing a tracer on an assassin who was at the very least the same level as a first-class soldat. You’ve literally built, nearly overnight, a gauntlet that channels your unique magic into your Quincy powers, and as a side project you made a device that gave back partial sight to your wounded comrade. You’re Sternritter material, plain and simple. And given our losses in the battle, replacements need to be found.”

“Who did we lose, exactly?” Twilight asked, curious, in a morbid sense, as to what letters might be available. She knew the one she wanted, but she didn’t know how the process of becoming a Sternritter worked, so she wasn’t sure if she’d even have a choice.”

Sombra seemed to pick up on why she was curious, and said, “Aside from the Vengeance, your mother, we also lost Jet Set, the Kraken. And while Lightning Dust survived her battle with the Tenth Espada, being exposed to the core of that creature has riddled her with such disease that even our best medical techniques are only enough to allow her to keep her life. It’s unlikely she’ll ever be able to fight properly again, and so I’ll have to remove her Schrift, the Daredevil, and find another to bear it. We nearly lost Prim Hemline, too, but luckily she was able to sneak her way to safety. So that leaves V, K, and D to find new Sternritter for. And before you ask, I choose which Schrift is bestowed during the ritual to create a new Sternritter. Can I assume the one you want is...?”

Twilight silently nodded, a lump suddenly developing in her throat. After a few tries she managed to say, “...V, if that’s alright. Will my power be the same as hers was?”

“No, the power changes each time it’s passed to another. Your Schrift will take its own shape, Twilight, but I suspect you’ll carry it with pride, regardless of the form it takes.”

Those words were enough to almost made her sit back down again, feeling the sudden weight of all that was happening, so quickly. She still felt like she could easily break at any second, but those feelings were for the child she’d been. Twilight Sparkle wasn’t that child any longer. She had too much to do and too many people counting on her to be anything other than a woman grown, now. So instead of sitting down, she straightened her back and nodded to Sombra.

“I will. How soon can we do this?”

He held up a finger of his own, “One week. Use that time to rest, spend time with your surviving squad, mourn your mother, and let everything settle. I need to make arrangements, at any rate. That’s my condition. You rest, and do what you can to recover. Once you’ve been made Sternritter, there will be little to not time for it, so I hope you’re prepared.”

She’d better be, because she wasn’t turning back now.

Author's Notes:

This chapter is an exceedingly talky one, but there was a lot of points that needed to be covered, especially between Sombra and Twilight. Poor girl's brain is getting some serious information overload here. At any rate, next chapter will be the final bits of this arc, and likely the second half or third of it will actually be transitioning back to Sunset and the girls. For those who were wondering if we'll get a glimpse of Ember's POV, I'm kinda holding off on that for now.

Hope you folks enjoyed the chapter, and as always thanks for reading. Feel free to leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you may have, as I appreciate all of the feedback I get. 'Till next time.

Edit: And one last thing, our good friend FeatherBook has been drawing again, this time bringing us a fine sketch of Adagio's shiny new Arrancar form.

Episode 85: Three Fated Souls

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Episode 85: Three Fated Souls

“So what happens now?”

All things considered, after the conversation she’d just had, and all the things she’d learned, Twilight wasn’t sure she was actually prepared for whatever came next. The time for doubts, however, had largely passed. She was set on her course and there was hardly any room to wonder if she’d be able to handle it. That didn’t stop her mind from generating a nice, long laundry list of things to worry about, including her missing hand, still having an assassination plot aimed at her, and the fresh fear of knowing she had a sentient piece of the Soul Queen playing piggyback with her soul.

But, you know, baby steps. Deal with the problems one at a time, try not to die in the process.

Sombra may as well have read her mind, or simply had a good idea of what she was thinking, for he said in a reassuring tone, “For today, rest. Go visit your friends. Indigo Zap and Sour Sweet are both still in the hospital wing, and the rest of your squad is likely taking turns keeping them company. I suggest taking some time to do the same and collect your thoughts. As for your larger concerns, the assassin is unlikely to strike again so soon after botching an attempt on you. I’ll have Soarin keeping watch on you, just in case.”

“I don’t suppose you heard from Shining Armor or Cadence before bringing me here about if they found my tracer or not?” Twilight asked. She couldn’t imagine it’d take Cadence very long to backtrack the second tracer Twilight had made, although admittedly she’d taken less than an hour to eat and gather herself before having this conversation with Sombra, so it could be her brother and soon to be sister-in-law were still searching.

“Actually they did, just before you came out of your room. I avoided mentioning anything because I didn’t wish to distract you from the more pressing conversation at hand,” Sombra said, and Twilight huffed out a strained laugh.

“Is it sad or scary that I can’t even disagree with you that learning what I have about the Soul Queen and you actually was more pressing than the assassin trying to kill me?”

A trace of a sardonic smile quirked Sombra’s mouth, “I would say both. At any rate your tracer was found on a damaged uniform turned in to a waste disposal facility at the Hueco Mundo side of the Silburn.”

Twilight frowned, “What does that mean, exactly?”

“During any battle, large or small, it’s understandable that uniforms are damaged. Sufficiently damaged ones are usually turned in to be disposed of, if they happen to be beyond repair. More often than not the damaged uniform materials are recycled, or in the cases of scraps beyond such salvage, they are incinerated.”

Gears turned with smooth, oiled efficiency in Twilight’s mind, only slightly gummed up by the misty hazards of stray thoughts pressing in from darker corners. “I didn’t inflict that kind of injury on the assassin. Neither did Cinch. Could they have suspected a tracer and been looking to dispose of it?”

“Possibly, but I doubt it. Finding a tracer is extremely difficult, even for those who know what they’re looking for. There are experts who can, but I don’t believe the assassin knew it was even there to look for. More likely the assassin wanted to remove evidence they were present in your location at all. Conversely its possible something did cause damage to the uniform after the assassin escaped you and Cinch.” Sombra frowned, “Hmph, I still need to consider a reward for that woman, for coming to your aid. How... faintly irritating.”

Twilight raised and eyebrow, “Do you hold a grudge against her?”

“You don’t?”

“Not really. Not anymore at least. I may have still had a problem with her if things were different, but I’ve got so many other concerns on my plate now, having a grudge against my former school principal just feels... small, you know? Besides, she did help me. Goes a long way in my book to square things away.”

All Sombra did was simply nod at that, “I cannot disagree with that reasoning. Back to the matter of the assassin, the uniforms are not coded or have serial numbers, so we cannot identify the wearer based on that uniform alone. That said, every individual who turns in a uniform for disposal does have to check in with the facility’s records, so we’ll have a list of Quincy who sent in uniforms for disposal at that site. Unfortunately, given the size of the battle, and the number of casualties, that is going to be a long list indeed.”

“But a narrower one than we had before,” Twilight pointed out, “Combine that with the fact that whoever went after me was at least on par with a first class soldat, and we should be able to narrow the list even further.”

Satisfaction gleamed in Sombra’s eyes, “Which happens to be what your brother and Cadence are doing as we speak. They promised me a full list of suspects by this evening, at which point I intend to have said suspects placed under surveillance.”

“And if they make a move, we’ll be able to nab them,” Twilight said, feeling at least a little more at ease now that progress was being made, “I don’t suppose I could be in on the surveillance?”

“You’re going to be busy with quite a number of other things,” Sombra said, “I won’t tell you no, but please make sure you don’t overdo it, Twilight. If you end up targeted again, your ability to defend yourself is somewhat compromised at the moment.”

He gave a pointed look towards the stump where her right hand used to be, and Twilight self-consciously tucked it towards her stomach, hiding it with her left hand. “Oh. Right. I... kinda forgot about that.”

“I’m sorry,” Sombra said, “I shouldn’t have brought it up so bluntly, but I did need to speak to you about that. I can’t have a Sternritter whose battle prowess is weakened like that, so restoring you to full functionality is paramount.”

Twilight raised her eyes hopefully, “You can do that?”

“Well, yes and no,” Sombra admitted, “It’s more accurate to say that you can probably do so, with assistance from our own medical technology and a specific Quincy technique. Our prosthetic limbs are not on par with what Soul Society can do, but I believe that if you can engineer that visor for young miss Sugarcoat, then engineering an artificial hand is not beyond your ability. Especially if I show you a technique Quincy use to manipulate limbs with reishi strands.”

Something in Twilight’s memory flashed through her mind, “Reishi strands... wait... I think I’ve seen something like that before.”

“Whether you have or not, I can show you the technique in more detail. From what Cadence has told me, you’re quite good at picking up techniques swiftly, after only being shown once or twice,” Sombra said, “I’ll bring you back here tomorrow and demonstrate it.”

“And you really think that will be enough for me to restore my hand? Or... or at least build something that will work just as well as one?” It wasn’t as if Twilight hadn’t already thought of the idea of trying to build something cybernetic that might suffice. She was already one of the best students in the country in regards to advanced robotics, and while cybernetics was a very, very new field that was still largely experimental, but Twilight had read enough on the subject to feel like it was worth a shot. Then again that was all before reishi manipulation came into the mix, and if Sombra could show her that technique for creating reishi strands, then...

“Hmm, that would be perfect. In fact I think I already have a design or two in mind. I’ll see about jotting it down as best I can later tonight,” Twilight sighed, “My right hand was my writing hand, though. The notes are going to look so sloppy.”

“I could always assign you a scribe,” Sombra suggested, but Twilight waved it off.

“No, someone else might get something wrong. Best it's my own notes, even if they’ll be harder to read,” her stomach gurgled and Twilight winced, “Yikes, I’m hungry again. How long have we been talking?”

“Long enough, I think, for today,” Sombra said, “I’ll send you back to the hallway we came from. Soarin will be waiting for you there to escort you to wherever you wish to go.”

“I think I’ll take your suggestion and visit my friends in the hospital. I... I hope Indigo will be okay. Her legs...”

Sombra nodded, “Even with prosthetics it's unlikely she’ll be combat effective. Unless of course you develop a more advanced means of restoring her, but I don’t think you should worry about that for now. Just be supportive and deal with matters as they come.”

He paused, a saddened cloud crossing his dark features, “Which reminds me, the day after tomorrow will be funeral rites for all those who lost their lives in the battle. It’s customary for the family of the deceased to carry the casket...”

Twilight looked at him, and he quickly added, “That said, I doubt anyone would question it if you didn’t take on that particular duty-”

“I’ll do it,” Twilight said, her voice sounding somehow different to her own ears, as if the more child-like spark that lit up her voice once had changed into a sharper, quieter, yet somehow more matured flame, “She took care of me most of her life. The least I can do is take care of her, now that she’s gone.”

To this Sombra only gave her a silent, respectful nod, and said nothing more.

----------

Adagio imagined it was a good sign she could still get nervous. It meant she hadn’t become arrogant to the point of stupidity. She was planning on walking into a room filled with some of the most powerful entities in the world, and for all intents and purposes declare herself their peer. Granted she’d already proven to herself that she was strong enough to do this with her little stunt with Torch, but that was still a whole different affair than what was about to go down.

There were just so many ways this could go wrong, and Adagio was trying very hard not to dwell on any of them as she ascended the ludicrously long stairwell that led up the vast expanse of Las Noches’ central tower. Somewhere above lay Tirek’s throne room. The meeting place of the Espada. The place where she was either about to make her mark on Hollow society, or get herself brutally killed. Again.

What happens when you die twice? Did Hollows killed by other Hollows just fade away into nothing? Well, assuming one of them didn’t eat her. Either way, it sounded like a form of oblivion, and Adagio wasn’t planning to meet such an end today. But plans and expectations so rarely met with reality, didn’t they? It’d be just her luck to struggle and strive for all this time, only for something to go wrong now of all times.

Stop sabotaging yourself, Adagio. You’ve gotten this far. This is just another step. A risky step, but a necessary one. And besides, you’re not alone.

If there was one comforting factor in her long ascent up the stairs, it was that just ahead of her walked the towering figure of Torch, his footsteps echoing like a giant’s hammer on an anvil, followed closely by the entirely silent Lament, who moved with ghostly grace up the steps. They went ahead of her, as was proper for their power and position, but Adagio made sure she wasn’t far behind them, as to make it clear to any observers who she was with. This first entrance was going to be important. First impressions always were.

Which was why Adagio was dressed to impress. A thorough raiding of her wardrobe, along with quite a bit of creative sewing help from Roka over the course of the previous day, had afforded Adagio the outfit she currently wore. It was a combination of regal refinery, carefully chosen sex appeal, freedom of movement for combat necessity, and a few personal touches that Adagio sorely missed from the outfit she wore back in the human world.

She had to admit, while she’d loathed much of her time spent as a human, she had to appreciate the way clothing could work wonders for creating one’s image. Even ponies didn’t quite get as much out of clothing the way the human form did.

Given the shear size of Las Noche’s main tower, Adagio had expected to be a tad winded by the time they climbed to its greatest height, hundreds of meters above ground level. She wasn’t even short of breath by the time they reached the last step, leading into a wide antechamber, at the end of which stood a pair of tall and thin doors of carved white stone. Adagio felt like she hadn’t done more than take a pleasant, short walk. Arrancar stamina at work.

Despite how thick the doors ahead looked, Adagio could hear voices beyond them. Her hearing was much better than it had been before as well, it seemed. More than that, however, her spiritual senses were remarkably sharpened. It took only a casual use of her Pesquisa ability to easily pick out the different spiritual pressures of the Espada waiting within the throne room. She could even guess at their identities, based on the feel of that spiritual pressure.

Grogar’s was an old, dry, and fetid power, wriggling like a pile of centipedes. She imagined the more bloated, noxious reiatsu seated near him, slightly stronger and somehow giving off a jiggly sensation of wry humor was Hydia’s. Then there was a rigid pillar of power, feeling grasping and possessive and radiating with pride, which Adagio made as Guto’s reiatsu. So close to her own level of strength now, too. Was she stronger? She couldn’t be sure.

Torch and Lament she felt next to her easily enough, Lament’s a closely controlled miasma of dark regrets punctuated by storms of other conflicting feelings. Torch’s, although still somewhat weakened from his injuries, was like a huge, steady bonfire of strength and battlelust, like an ever present heat on her skin.

Beyond that, she could feel the top three Espada like individual towers of monstrous reiatsu, each flavored slightly different. Cantrina’s had a glass-like, reflective quality, as if it took in everything around it and reflected it back in Catrina’s image. Chrysalis’ reiatsu, by contrast, was an amorphous mass of ever shifting shadow that felt so solid and thick that Adagio almost felt like she was being pulled into it, just by sensing it. It was backed by this deep rooted sensation of endless amusement as well, leaving Chrysalis’ spiritual pressure with the impression of a black hole that sported a constant, madcap smile.

It was a collection of monsters, to be sure, but none of them held a solitary candle to the overwhelming sensation of power that emitted from the back of the throne room. If Torch was a bonfire, then Tirek was a blazing sun whose consuming corona would vaporize anyone foolish enough to challenge it... and this was just from a casual sensation of his suppressed reiatsu.

And here I am, about to demand a seat at his table, Adagio thought, then grinned to herself, Well, no one ever accused me of lacking ambition.

Torch stood by the doors, hand raised to push them open, but paused to look back at Adagio, his voice low.

“Last chance if you want to back out of this. You’re not going to be much help to me getting Ember back if you’re killed today.”

Adagio shook her head, placed one hand on her hip while lightly spinning her trident in a lazily but confident pose, “If I was going to back down I’d have already packed it in and left Las Noches. I’m committed to this course. Open the doors, if you would, Lord Torch.”

He gave her one last look, then shrugged his shoulders as if to say ‘up to you’ and pushed the doors open wide with an eerily quiet grind of stone. Lament, silently, stood at Adagio’s side, eyes focused ahead with unreadable intent. Adagio had gone over the roles Lament and Torch were to play here, but there were so many unknown factors with how the next few minutes were going to play out that Adagio could only give them general instructions. She hoped things would proceed smoothly, but knowing her usual relationship with lady luck, that wasn’t going to be the case.

This was proven almost immediately, for as the doors opened, Adagio heard Guto’s strong, proud voice ringing out in the chamber beyond, the indistinct words now given clarity with the doors swinging wide.

“-suggest that my top warrior, Gilda, be considered to replace the late Squirk. She’s easily strong enough to...”

Guto’s voice trailed off as Torch and Lament entered the throne room, almost walking shoulder to shoulder. They both turned towards their respective thrones, mounted high along the rising stone tiers of the chamber, and in doing so revealed Adagio who’d been walking just behind them. This afforded Adagio her first clear look at the room where the Espada met and kept their thrones.

It was a bit drab, in her opinion. Could really do with some sprucing up with some decent lighting and maybe some tapestries. if she were in charge she would mount some candelabras, perhaps a nice fire pit in the center, put in some fountains towards the back (small waterfalls, maybe?) and definitely get some color in here with a few tasteful banners or some such. The plain stonework and dark lighting, while adding a certain sense of vast and intimidating space, just sucked the life out of things.

She did like the pointed arrangement of the thrones, however, spaced out on either side, with lower ranked Espada clearly seated on lower tiers than their higher ranked peers. Tirek, of course, had the highest throne, at the very back of the chamber, presiding over all like a proper lord. Chrysalis’ throne was also remarkably well positioned, close to Tirek’s but just a shade lower. It made it clear to all what their place was in the hierarchy.

Aside from the obvious lack of Squirk and Smooze, all other Espada were present, and all of them were looking at the new arrivals, giving particular interest to Adagio herself. On top of that, most were surprised enough to be silent for a second, although Adagio noted that Chrysalis didn’t look even remotely surprised, and Tirek only wore an expression of bemused interest. Good, that’s exactly how she needed this to start, so she could get the first words in. She needed the momentum in this situation.

As Torch and Lament took to their thrones, Adagio strode to the center of the chamber. With a swift gesture of her arm she swept out her cape, and with her other she firmly planted the end of her trident on the ground with a clamorous ring. At the same moment she let her reiatsu flow out of her, holding little to nothing back as she spoke in a clear, confident tone.

“My Lords and Ladies of the Espada, I am Adagio Dazzle, and I am here to claim my rightful seat among you!”

Short, to the point, no obfuscation of her power or purpose. She hadn’t needed Torch to tell her it was the kind of approach Tirek would appreciate, even if it’d cause a scene. And it certainly did that, as Hydia barked out a howl of laughter, while Adagio could actually hear Guto’s teeth grinding as he glared absolute daggers at her. Probably because he sensed how even his power was with hers. Catrina’s eyebrows shot up and she gripped the arms of her throne as she leaned forward with keen interest.

Grogar’s expression was blank, save for the smallest of knowing smirks, which annoyed Adagio to no end, but she wasn’t surprised the bastard of an old goat would have predicted this.

Chrysalis leaned back, looking pleased with herself, while Tirek rested his chin upon one fist that was in turn resting on the arm of his throne as he said in a voice that reverberated through the chamber, “A bold claim, Adagio Dazzle. I see you arrived with two of my fellow Espada leading your path. My condolences to you, Lord Torch, about your daughter.”

Torch grimaced but waved a hand, “A matter I’ll be attending to shortly, you can be assured, Lord Tirek. Once this present matter is resolved, in fact.”

“I see...” Tirek smiled, like an old wolf who smelled a fresh game trail, and his gaze slid to Lament, “Good to see you finally joining us for these gathering’s, Lord Lament. I thought you preferred to stay out of Las Noche’s day to day affairs?”

Lament looked almost awkward, seated on his throne, but still sat with his customary still, statue-like demeanor. He only turned his eyes towards Tirek and said plainly, “It’s solely thanks to Adagio Dazzle’s help rendered to my family that I agreed to her suggestion of becoming more active. Don’t expect me to have much to say at these meetings, but I will attend them, as long as Miss Dazzle is also present.”

“Oh please,” scoffed Guto, turning a red-faced look of anger first towards Adagio, then at the rest of the room as he made a derisive gesture towards her, “Are we supposed to just hand out the title of Espada to every cocksure Arrancar that waltzes into these chambers and says a few bold words? Even if she has gained the favor of you, Lament, that’s hardly proof of her worthiness to sit beside us as an equal!”

Lament cut a glance towards Guto, but said nothing, which is exactly what Adagio had asked him to do if challenged. She’d also asked Torch to only speak up if it was absolutely necessary. The reason for this was because this was Adagio’s challenge, and if she let others speak for her, it would only make her seem weak. Torch and Lament were there only to give her credibility, but the the task of convincing the other Espada to accept her belonged to Adagio. Anything less and she’d just be proving Guto right.

So on the heels of Guto’s words Adagio turned to face him, and with little preamble she raised her free hand.

The water came swifter than it ever had before, forming from her own will and appearing as a swirling, compressed sphere in her upraised palm. Adagio could feel her reishi imprinting upon every particle of the water as it flowed from her essence. Her command over the element was so absolute at this point that she barely had to think about it, the water just acted as she willed.

The sphere burst into a line of insanely pressurized water, infused with Adagio’s Hollow reiatsu to enhance its already impressive cutting edge.

It didn’t strike Guto, but instead cut right by his face, boring a hole in the stone wall of the throne room behind him, punching a perfectly shaped hole through which the dull artificial light outside the tower could pour through. Which was more impressive when one realized that the outer wall of the tower was over a hundred and fifty feet away, and Adagio’s water had just punched through multiple chambers of thick walled stone.

“My apologies, Lord Guto,” Adagio said in a sweetly unconcerned tone that suggested she wasn’t sorry at all, “I have a terrible habit of responding poorly to those who talk around me, rather than to me. If you have an objection to my claiming my rightful seat, then you say it to my face. Otherwise my hand might slip a little next time.”

Hydia’s laughter redoubled as the large, toadish woman clutched her giggling belly, “Whohoohoo! She’s a firecracker, ain’t she? Groggykins, what were you doing hiding this gem from us?”

Grogar made a off hand gesture, resting in his seat as if more bored than interested by the proceedings, “Hardly hidden, Hydia. I’ve monitored Adagio’s progress from the first day I brought her to my labs. Her growth, I’ll admit, surpasses my expectations, but given our circumstances I’d say that’s fortuitous. Well, for us as a whole, if not for poor Guto and his favorite protege.”

Guto snarled, “If this one is a pet of yours Grogar, then how can we even trust her loyalty to Las Noches instead of just being your puppet?”

Adagio reflected it was probably because Guto’s attention was focused on Grogar, and that he was almost intentionally going out of his way to ignore her that she was able to get as close to him as she did. She was fast, but she knew Guto had to be just as swift, yet with one single burst of speed she’d vanished and reappeared in front of Guto with the ruby tips of her trident aimed an inch from his throat. Guto went very still, his eyes now fixated on her with a death glare. Adagio leaned towards him, her own eyes like twin magenta stars.

“What did I say about ignoring me?”

Guto’s teeth flashed in predatory fury, but to his credit his own motions weren’t that of an out of control berserker, but a very well controlled and swift flash of his hand as he battered her trident aside. He was out of his throne, his sword blazing into his hand, almost before Adagio could react to parry.

The clash of trident upon blade echoed loud in the Espada throne room, and Adagio and Guto both flashed in and out of view several times with clashes of sparks as Guto sought to quickly overwhelm Adagio. Yet she kept pace, parrying each attack with fast, coordinated movements of her trident, and a moment later she and Guto were both standing in the middle of the throne room, facing each other.

“You arrogant whelp. You may have the power, but you haven’t the experience,” Guto said with a harsh promise in his tone, “Face me and you will die, Adagio Dazzle.”

“Oh good, you’re finally addressing me directly. I was getting annoyed,” Adagio said, not relaxing her stance but pitching her voice to address the room, “If anyone here is doubting my power, I trust this demonstration has sufficed to get all of your attention. How many Arrancar walk in here that can rile the Sixth Espada and block his blade? I may be newly minted, and weaker than some of you, but I know damned well you need more Arrancar like me, given those empty seats.”

“Then know your place and fight for that right,” Guto growled, standing to his full height, “If you have the spine for it.”

“Spine, she seems to have that in abundance,” spoke up Catrina, tapping a slim finger to her chin as she leaned forward in her throne, emerald eyes glistening, “Whether she has sense to match it remains to be seen. Tell me, Adagio Dazzle, which spot among us do you think you have the power to take?”

Now was the critical juncture. Adagio had thought about this aspect of the plan more than any other, because it was by far the most pertinent and potentially dangerous. She knew she had enough power to roughly match Guto, possibly even surpass him, but Guto himself had brought up the vast difference in experience between them. In a stand up fight, Adagio might have the advantage of power, but he had a much larger advantage in terms of skill and battle experience. Without something else to give her and edge, Adagio imagined she’d probably lose a fair fight with Guto. Not that she ever intended to fight fair.

Conversely, if she sought to claim the position of Ninth Espada, her only competition would be Gilda. In such a battle, Adagio was confident she could win. She’d been close to Gilda’s level of strength as a Vasto Lorde. Now that she was a full fledged Arrancar, she couldn’t think much of Gilda’s chances if they came to blows. From that standpoint, claiming the Ninth seat would be the easiest, safest course.

Which was exactly why she couldn’t do it.

To take the easy route, when it was obvious she had far more power than the Ninth Espada’s position required, would be a show of weakness that may well cripple her position with the other Espada. She needed their respect, which would only be won by shooting for the highest seat she could manage. The problem was that taking on Guto in an even match was too much of a dice toss. But then, she suspected she knew a way around that problem.

Without lowering her guard or taking her eyes off Guto, she said, “Lady Catrina, I’ll take the highest damned seat here I can get, and there’s only one way to know which one that is for certain...”

At that point she did raise her eyes, only enough to meet the intrigued gaze of Tirek, sitting high above, “And that’s by challenging the strongest.”

There was a moment of stunned silence, although Chrysalis never once looked surprised, only flashing a small smirk of satisfaction. Tirek himself broke the silence with a rich, thunderous bark of a laugh, raising his chin from his fist and inclining his head towards her in an acknowledging nod, “Ha! Tell me truthfully, do you even remotely expect to win such a challenge?”

“No, Lord Tirek, any fool could sense your power surpasses all present,” Adagio replied quickly, but with no lack of her own confidence, “I challenge you not out of expectation of victory, but because there is no other way to fully determine the extent of my own power.”

Guto spat, “You’re just too cowardly to fight with me!”

It was Adagio’s turn to smirk, “I’ve faced a Quincy Sternritter and a Soul Reaper Captain, and survived. I’ve broken bread with Lament himself, and came out with my head still attached. My bravery is not in question, Guto, only my place among you. Who better to determine that place than the one who stands at the pinnacle?”

A deep rumbling ‘hmm’ emanated from Tirek, his fingers drumming on the arm of his throne as he gazed at her with a measuring look, “It is no casual thing to even think of challenging me, young Adagio Dazzle. Perhaps I might destroy you out of casual boredom for displaying such gall?”

“Not gall, but respect, Lord Tirek, as well as simple common sense,” Adagio replied, which got Tirek to raise an interested eyebrow.

“Challenging one you know you cannot possibly defeat, and will likely face annihilation against, is common sense?”

“Consider this, Lord Tirek; I know you need powerful Arrancar to fill out vacancies among the Espada. We’re at war, and neither the Quincy nor Soul Reapers are likely to give us much time to recover our losses. Guto and I could fight over the Sixth Espada seat, but you can already tell our powers are fairly well matched. He has the experience, I don’t deny that, but it would still be a coin toss which of us would emerge victorious. Such a battle might even get one of us killed, and while the rule of Las Noches is survival of the fittest, that doesn’t always mean slaughtering one another is particularly useful when you need to fill out a roster of the ten strongest Hollows. I am one of those ten. It only makes sense that to determine which of those ten I am, I measure myself against the strongest there is. You have done this before, in the case of Lament.”

Now was when she’d given Lament some instruction to step in, and he wasted not a moment, saying concisely and clearly, “She speaks honestly, Lord Tirek. You and I fought, and you determined my place among the Espada. I never fought Torch, but took his seat.”

And right on cue, Torch spoke up, his voice believably grumbling, although Adagio imagined that might not really be an act on his part, “And that still rankles me a bit, Lament, but damned if I could argue with Lord Tirek on the matter. Even I’m not that hot headed. So far as I figure, if Adagio is looking to find her place the same way, why not have fun with it? Hell, take on her and Guto’s warrior at the same time! We got two Espada slots to fill, so let’s fill ‘em!”

Even Adagio was caught a bit off guard by that suggestion. She’d not considered Gilda taking one of the Espada positions, even if it was one lower than hers. Part of that was because from what she’d heard, Smooze was not confirmed to be dead. Then again, he was still missing as well. Adagio glanced between Torch and Tirek, wondering how this would play out.

Guto, eyes narrowing, spoke first, “We don’t know that Smooze is gone. Can we just offer up his seat so readily?”

With a soft, purring sound, Catrina licked her lips, “True, not that’d I miss that repugnant creature, if he is good and properly dead. Since we don’t know, however, we’ve got something of an unpleasant issue with the Warrens. Smooze was so good at keeping that disgusting riff raff under control and working the factories down there. We need a replacement, if only a temporary one.”

“For once you make an intelligent point, dear Catrina, “ said Chrysalis, reclining in her throne, and ignoring Catrina’s bristling glare as she went on to say, “However all we need is someone to replace Smooze’s position as an Espada. My children are already working to get the Warrens under control, with my dear Thorax taking over the task of overseeing the factories.”

Catrina’s eyes narrowed to burning green slits, “I was not aware of this. I was going to suggest my beloved Bushwoolies would be better suited to such work.”

“Oh, well, perhaps you should have mentioned something sooner,” Chrysalis said, yawning, then flashing a devil’s smile, “Of course you’re welcome to try to take it by force if you want it so badly.”

Catrina let out a sound very close a literal feline growl, but Tirek silenced the room with a single motion as he stood up from his throne. Every eye turned to him, Adagio’s most of all. She did everything in her power to maintain a straight, standing position as Tirek’s reiatsu poured over the room in a crushing wave. It was mind numbing how overbearing and monstrously encompassing his power was, especially now that he was letting it flow out of him.

For a moment she thought she might collapse, but somehow Adagio managed to stay standing, and even maintain eye contact with Tirek as he looked down upon her. Those eyes were calculating. Intelligent. Tirek didn’t rule through power alone, and for an instant Adagio caught a faint glance between him and Chrysalis, and Chrysalis give the slightest of nods.

“I grow weary of this talk,” Tirek said, “Adagio Dazzle, you’ve caught my interest. This may prove more dangerous for you than you know, for I don’t have a wealth of patience, and I do not long suffer fools and sycophants. However I am not blind. I can see your power, clear as day. You wish to test it against me? So be it. Guto, the warrior you’ve been grooming can participate as well. I’ll test them both.”

Tirek licked his lips, a sudden, deep, unfathomable hunger entering his eyes that left Adagio feeling as if she may have just bitten off far more than she could chew.

“Best you don’t disappoint me, Adagio Dazzle, otherwise rather than an Espada, you’ll become dinner.”

----------

It had always seemed to Twilight that more often than not, funerals were depicted in the rain. People dressed in black, under a procession of equally pitch black umbrellas, all walking under a depressing torrent from a gray sky.

Twilight might have preferred that. It would have fit the mood better than the sun shining in her eyes from an entirely too clear, painfully blue sky. The weather was that perfect late spring blend of warmth and cool breeze, the kind that let you know summer was just around the bend. Her mother would have loved it. It was the kind of day Twilight Velvet might have called for an all too rare family picnic or barbecue.

Somehow, it made the casket feel so much heavier.

Her father and brother held the front corners of her mother’s casket, while Twilight and Cadence held the back ones, Twilight on the left side due to her left hand being the only one she had to carry with. They marched at the head of a column of caskets, with Jet Set’s following behind them, carried by his wife Upper Crust, a pair of grieving parents, and a younger brother Twilight hadn’t known Jet Set even had. Those caskets that came behind were of the various lower ranked Quincy lost during the battle, some of them lacking bodies due to the inability to recover remains during the retreat from the battle.

The column didn’t march alone, and was joined by lines of surviving Quincy who carried banners bearing the Quincy cross that stirred in the wind in time to a dire funeral march of drums that fell into sync with their marching boots. At the head of the column was a mounted group on horseback, the Sternritter themselves, led by Sombra who rode on a tall, black charger.

Their destination was a long, wide field that took up a well tended square mile or so of area situated along the far banks of the lake that the living world’s Silburn stood at one end of. It was still possible to see the shining white, fairy-tale style castle fortress in the distance across the sun kissed lake waters. The cemetery itself bore no obvious gates or fence, and Twilight got a sense of tingling warmth over her skin as they passed through what she assumed was some manner of reishi ward. Space was being bent to one degree or another here, because what she saw was a cemetery much larger than what should have logically been able to occupy the field they’d entered.

Hundreds of silver, five pointed crosses stood in neatly arranged rows. Then Twilight counted further, and realized that hundreds stretched out to thousands. Possibly tens of thousands.

Every Quincy who’d perished over centuries of ongoing warfare was buried here, or at least bore a cross and grave commemorating their death, if no body could be found or recovered.

Prepared for their arrival was a waiting line of empty graves, with an honor guard of Quincy soldats present at attention, awaiting their arrival. The mounted Sternritter, led by Sombra, peeled off and each took up position on a small hill rise above the open graves. The marching soldats moved into formation at the foot of the hill, while Twilight and the many other casket bearers moved to their assigned graves, carefully carrying their solemn burdens to waiting scaffolds that would lower the caskets to their final resting places.

Before this it was the duty of the casket bearers to also remove and fold the white flags bearing the silver Quincy Cross from each casket, and Shining Armor had practiced with Twilight the previous night to teach her the motions. Twilight’s hand felt cold and numb as she did her best to fold properly, even with just one hand to do it with.

Sombra was speaking as this happened, but Twilight wasn’t paying much attention to the words. They sounded ritualistic, as if he’d spoken them times beyond counting. She thought she heard something about sacrifice and honor, but it all just sort of washed over her in a static drone of white noise. She didn’t blame Sombra for that. What was someone supposed to say at these funerals that held any real meaning for those left behind? Twilight didn’t need to know why her mother died. She knew that already. Twilight Velvet had died protecting her daughter. Saying anything more than that was superfluous.

And still, Twilight went through the motions, standing with her surviving family as she watched her mother’s body lowered into the ground. She thought she’d be crying, but maybe she’d shed all of the tears she had in her already. Or maybe there would be more to come, in the quiet, dark, private hours of the night. Twilight didn’t know. She only knew she felt hollow inside as she saluted the graves on cue, along with the other gathered Quincy, and watched as Sombra and the Sternritter at the top of the hill formed bows, and fired arrows into the sky in salute to the fallen.

No, not quite hollow. That was the peripheral sensation around her. The numbness of being in so much pain, one couldn’t register it properly.

If she looked beyond it, deeper in, she realized that something still sparked within her, hotter and stronger than ever before, fueled and tempered by watching her mother being laid to rest.

She was going to end this war. At any cost, in any way she could.

----------

“Uhh, no offense boss lady, but are you sure this is going to fix me and Gaw up as full on Arrancar?” Di Roy asked, looking at the computer screen dubiously.

Adagio just gave him a sidelong smirk, “What, afraid of a few needles?”

“Look, I’m just not much for more of old man Grogar’s pseudoscience crap, especially if its being performed by someone who’s literally trying to pull this off from the equivalent of a glorified instruction manual,” Di Roy replied, and Adagio could see his face twitch beneath his shark shaped mask, a faint grimace of pain. She turned to him, swiveling on the bar stool she’d been sitting on, and crossed her arms as she stared at him in a frank look.

“Feeling a bit explody, are we? You don’t have time, Di Roy. You’re a half baked Arrancar that’s always close to blowing if you don’t get a fix of Hollow to eat. As an Arrancar, full and truly, you’ll be free of that pain and fear. Isn’t that worth a little risk?”

“Ugh... you’re not wrong, but damn if I wish you had something more solid to go off of,” Di Roy groused, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Well, I don’t,” Adagio shrugged, “This is the best I have to work with. Roka has already agreed to help with the procedure. This the only shot you and Gaw are going to have at evolving, Di Roy. Take it or leave it, but have an answer for me by the time I get back.”

With that she stood and grabbed her trident from where it’d been leaning against the lounge bar. Di Roy watched her head for the door, his eyes not doing much to conceal his worry, “You’re seriously going to take on the Primera? I mean, hell, even if he’s just trying to test you out, that’s kinda crazy. He could literally kill you with, like, a pinkie finger, you know?”

Di Roy held up and waggled said pinkie finger, as if for emphasis. Adagio glanced back at him.

“He could. I’m laying my bet that he didn’t become the Primera Espada by being stupid enough to casually kill someone who would make a more valuable ally. He needs new blood in the Espada ranks. Killing me won’t benefit him. That’s why I challenged him in the first place. Any other Espada, and they might seek to kill me to remove a rival. Tirek has no reason to view me as a rival, only another useful addition to his elite warriors.”

“Yeah, assuming you live up to his expectations. Screw it up, and he might still wipe you out,” Di Roy said.

“The dice have already been thrown. All that’s left is to see where they land. Look on the bright side, if I get killed here, at least you won't’ have to worry about this sketchy business with artificial Arrancar evolution,” Adagio said, opening the door and leaving Di Roy to stew on that.

Tirek, for the single most powerful Hollow and the man so many feared, was surprisingly reasonable. He’d given Adagio a day to prepare herself for his ‘evaluation’, and given her instructions to meet him at the appointed hour on the roof of Las Noches. Most of Adagio’s preparation had involved sparring with Torch at his horde’s territory. This had the dual benefit that apparently such sparring helped Torch work out the kinks in his injuries, and he claimed it helped him recover faster, while Adagio got a chance to get a proper handle on her new powers.

While she held no delusion in her head at all that she’d be able to be any threat at all to Tirek, she thought she might have a few surprises for him that would only cement her as worth keeping around.

Reaching the roof of Las Noches was as simple as finding one of the holes in the roof that had been punched out during the battle and essentially flying up to it. Well, it wasn’t actual flight per se, but Adagio found that with her current level of power, kicking off of the reishi particles in the air let her leap to such prodigious heights, and control her direction with such ease, that this was essentially no different than being able to fly.

The roof of Las Noches was one gigantic dome, many kilometers in diameter, so wide that even though the roof was technically curved it practically felt like level ground. The central tower of Las Noches extended beyond this roof, towering another hundred meters or so into the black sky of Hueco Mundo. Several smaller, but still massive towers flanked the central one like marble sentinels.

Adagio approached the central tower, and sensed a nearby presence.

“Hmph, so you didn’t chicken out,” Gilda said, watching Adagio approach with a sour look on her face and a unfriendly, narrow eyed glare.

“Of course not,” Adagio replied coolly, casually twirling a finger through her hair as she looked Gilda up and down, “What do I have to fear? I’m not weak, and if Lord Tirek requires proof of this, I’ll deliver it happily. Rather, I’m surprised to see you take on this challenge, Gilda. Didn’t you fare rather poorly in the battle with the Quincy?”

“How did you-?” Gilda began with wide eyes, then rapidly narrowed them again, her voice tight with anger, “Who says I had trouble? I did just fine, and you’ve got nothing to prove otherwise, so can it, you skank.”

“Please, such petty insults only make you sound weaker,” Adagio said, and at Gilda’s growl she only laughed and added, “You should focus that aggression on survival. Just because this is a test doesn’t mean Tirek may not kill whomever he finds to be lacking.”

“Indeed.”

Both Adagio and Gilda turned quickly to find Tirek standing behind them. Neither had felt his approach, which left Adagio feeling a tingle of cold down her spine. No one with that much power should be able to hide themselves so completely, yet Tirek’s reiatsu was so perfectly masked, Adagio couldn’t sense him even with him standing right there. His smile only showed that he knew what she was thinking.

“Mastery of many disciplines is but one route to power, my young Arrancar. Never forget that power comes in countless forms, including the form of being able to sneak upon an enemy to crush them before they even know you are there.”

Gilda visibly gulped, then managed to stand straighter, “Yeah, that’s, uh... pretty cool, Lord Tirek.”

Adagio tried not to roll her eyes, “Impressive. This was a test of our senses, wasn’t it?”

“In part. I didn’t expect either of you to detect me, but one never knows. Each Hollow possess hidden talents, and if properly evolved those talents will express themselves in numerous ways. I once knew an Arrancar who could detect even the finest details in the world around him. Not that it helped him much when faced with overwhelming power that annihilated him, but it was good to know he sensed it coming. Another lesson, there. Never rely on just one power, no matter how impressive it may be. That is the strength of Hollows. Infinite evolution, tempered by equally infinite conflict. Weak traits lead to death, strong traits lead to survival and growth. A simple notion that our enemies like the Quincy and Soul Reapers would deny out of misguided notions of ‘order’ and ‘stability’.”

It sounded a lot like some of the things Adagio had heard Grogar drone on about. No wonder Tirek liked keeping the damned goat around. They seemed to share similar world views. Adagio kept her inner thoughts to herself and simply said, “Misguided, but no less dangerous for it, and hence why I am ready and able to do my part to deal with such threats as an Espada.”

“That remains to be seen,” Tirek said, turning as a Garganta opened next to him, “Both of you, follow me.”

Though she was unsure what Tirek was planning, Adagio wasn’t inclined to question a man that could destroy her with a casual Cero blast. She was wary, just in case, but she didn’t hesitate to follow him into the Garganta portal, and though Gilda showed a similar nervousness behind her rigid posture, the tall, muscle-bound woman followed as well.

The Garganta almost instantly opened up onto a wide, sandy plain, somewhere within Hueco Mundo that was far enough away from Las Noches that Adagio couldn’t even see the massive fortress anywhere on the horizon. As the Garganta portal closed behind her and Gilda, Adagio looked around to note that this particular expanse of bleached white desert was pockmarked by dozens upon dozens of craters. Amid those craters, strewn about at random, were small pieces of ancient cloth scraps, all black. Some just lay in tatters, while others hung like limp flags from the tops of small dunes.

“Where the hell are we?” Gilda asked, apparently having worked up enough nerve to speak.

Tirek, hands clasped behind his back as he looked out over the terrain with a shadow of satisfaction, replied, “An old battlefield, where once the Soul Reapers thought to build a foothold in my domain. I taught them the error of that folly, as I shall to the Quincy once I find out where their own base of operations are hidden.”

Adagio used one foot to nudge a scrap of nearby cloth, noting that the color and material was consistent with what she’d seen the Soul Reapers wearing. “They didn’t try to conceal themselves?”

“No. They were even more arrogant in the old days than they are now, and at the time the expedition was led by their Eleventh Division, captained by one who bore the title Kenpachi. Do you know this title?”

“That’s supposed to be, like, the biggest, baddest swordsman among the Soul Reapers, right?” Gilda said, scratching her head, “Which doesn’t make any sense, because isn’t their Commander dude supposed to be the strongest?”

Tirek smiled, but it wasn’t a particular friendly or pleasant one, as he turned to face them, “The one who bears the title Kenpachi is known as the strongest warrior, but skill with a blade is just one source of power, if you recall my lesson. Captain Commander Scorpan,” Tirek said the name as if it were meant to be a joke, “Is the most powerful Soul Reaper among the Gotei 13, but not by his skill with a Zanpaktou alone. It’s of little matter. I killed the Kenpachi from those olden days, who recklessly challenged my might with her forces. It was rather amusing, once the Soul Reapers realized the Eleventh Division was outmatched, they rapidly retreated, forcing that cocky woman to sacrifice herself and her Division to cover the retreat. A glorious day, although it certainly didn’t take the Soul Reapers long to recoup their losses. I even hear the present Kenpachi is even stronger than the one I slew. I’d be most interested in seeing if that rumor is true.”

As Tirek had been talking, Adagio had been puzzling over why he’d bothered to take her and Gilda out this far. He might have wanted to reduce potential collateral damage to Las Noches, but she somehow doubted he’d have to use that much power in testing her and Gilda in combat.

“You’re wondering why we’re here,” Tirek said, more statement than a question, and Adagio cleared her throat and nodded.

“I was pondering that, Lord Tirek. You could have tested us on the roof easily enough, couldn’t you?”

“Not in the manner I intend to, no,” Tirek said, unclasping his hands from behind his back and slowly cracking his neck, “This won’t be as you expect it. We will not be fighting.”

“I see,” Adagio said, “Then what form will this test take?”

“Yeah, I was kinda expecting to just have to go all out and show you what I've got,” Gilda said, frowning deeply, “This isn’t going to be one of those weird ‘written test’ things, right? Because I got shit handwriting.”

A dark chuckle escaped Tirek, his eyes flashing, and his smiling showing a tiger-like gleam of teeth, “Don’t worry. The test is very, very simple. Remain standing for sixty seconds. Do that, and I’ll acknowledge you as an Espada. Fall to both knees...”

He licked his lips, “And I will devour you.”

Tirek gave them no time to question what he meant by that. He showed them.

In an instant his body became engulfed in an intense, solid glow of deep orange light, crackling with motes and arcs of black energy. The spiritual pressure that exploded from him in a tidal wave hit Adagio and Gilda with bone crushing force. Adagio felt it in the pit of her stomach like a red hot sledgehammer, while at the same time all the world’s mountains were dropping on her shoulders.

She’d thought she’d had a solid gauge on Tirek’s reiatsu from sensing it during the battle, and again while in the throne room. Now she understood she hadn’t been feeling anymore than a trickle of what the King of Hueco Mundo was capable of. Now he was actively focusing his reiatsu upon crushing her and Gilda into the sand, without so much as lifting a finger to do so.

Adagio had been caught off guard enough that she nearly sunk to her knees within that initial moment. However regular exposure to other overwhelming spiritual pressures like Torch and Lament had given her a swift and near instinctive response of self defense. Even as her knees shook and started to sag, she immediately straightened them and forced herself to remain standing. A part of her was tempted to lean on her trident, but this wasn’t a matter of physically bracing herself. Tirek wasn’t actually putting any physical pressure on her. This was a matter of raw, spiritual power, and while Tirek’s stood head and shoulders above her at a seemingly incredible pinnacle, Adagio had been doing nothing but gain in power herself since she got to Hueco Mundo.

She hardened her soul against the ocean of power bearing down on her. With grim, tight lipped focus she let her own reiatsu pour out and push back against the tide. It was not far off from trying to swim up a thousand foot tall waterfall with her bare hands, but Adagio was nothing if not stubborn. Sweat broke out on her skin, cold and clammy.Her body trembled but she held firm, at least until she realized that all of a couple of seconds had passed and that was it.

She had to endure this for an entire minute? It seemed trivial, until one was in the midst of being ground down by such insane power.

Adagio chanced a glance at Gilda, curious how her rival was faring.

Gilda was already down to one knee, shoved there by the initial shock of Tirek’s reiatsu. The athletic, brutish Arrancar girl’s eyes were wide, her face a mask of sweat, but she’d smashed one fist hard into the ground and was not only keeping from falling to both knees, but gradually forcing her already fallen knee back under her. Still the toll of Tirek’s spiritual pressure was clear on Gilda’s strained face and pained grunts as she tried to rise.

Tirek remained impassive, watching them both with an imperious gaze, his hungry smile never fading.

Wind kicked up around them in a storm, billowing sand and long discarded scraps of cloth all around them as Tirek turned up the pressure even further, commenting dryly, “Ten seconds down, fifty to go. Hmm, I wonder, will I be feasting upon fish, or bird? Did you know each Hollow has their own unique flavor? I can usually smell how good an individual will taste before I take the first nibble.”

His taunts were meant to distract, Adagio knew. It took a great deal of concentration to maintain one’s own output of reiatsu to maintain one’s very being under such crushing spiritual weight, so no doubt Tirek was testing to see if things like fear or doubt would cripple those seeking to become his Espada. Even if Adagio had the power to qualify, if she lacked the mental discipline to handle this, then she’d probably make a poor Espada anyway. In that sense, she appreciated the nature of this test.

On the other hand, this was significantly harder than just a mock battle, and they weren’t even to the halfway mark.

Tirek continued to crank out more reiatsu, as if he were some infinite faucet. Gilda let out a growl of pure effort as she struggled against this force, and still sank back to one knee, now having to use both of her hands to keep her other knee from bending. Adagio hadn’t fallen that far yet, but her whole body felt like it could buckle at any second. Her muscles were screaming at her, trembling in protest. Her heart beat out a terrible, swift rhythm of fear in her chest, but Adagio quashed it with a feral snarl. She was not falling here! Not after coming this far!

Her own body became wreathed in indigo blue, droplets of water rising from the ground and forming in the air around her. Not for any purpose, but merely a manifestation of her own reiatsu as she pushed it to further heights, struggling against the power seeking to snuff her out.

Gilda’s own form was showing a flickering glow of violet and red light as the Arrancar girl dredged up her own reserves of reiatsu to remain in her precarious position, unable to get back to both feet, but still not sinking to that final knee.

Adagio couldn’t count the seconds. Her mind was wholly dedicated to the task of remaining standing. Yet it felt as if every moment was a struggle of a decade, sweat pouring out of her now as she stood under that unrelenting flood of soul crushing spiritual power.

Then, just as immediately as it had appeared, Tirek’s reiatsu vanished, leaving Adagio in a momentary state of shock as she staggered, gasping for breath. Gilda similarly let out a gasp, but was in even worse shape as she soon doubled over and vomited into the sand, sinking almost entirely to the ground, only propping herself up at all on one arm as she struggled to breathe.

Tirek remained exactly where he was, though his smile had faded to an expression that was more ponderous than anything else. “It seems you both pass. How unfortunate. I could have used a snack.”

“D-does that mean...?” Gilda started to ask, but couldn’t quite finish the sentence as she was still trying to remember how to breathe and stand up at the same time. Tirek silenced her with a look, his lips twisting in a disdainful sneer.

“Do not get too presumptuous. You only just barely avoided becoming my next meal. In less desperate times I’d still likely just consume you for wasting my time, but since you did pass by the smallest of margins and there’s no other candidates, you can suffice for the Tenth Espada. At least until Smooze crawls back out of wherever he went. Then you can take the matter up with him.”

Tirek’s cold smile returned, “I could tell you how I think that conversation will go, but I’ll just let your imagination take care of that. Do you still want the seat?”

Gilda looked genuinely afraid for an instant. Adagio didn’t really blame her. Smooze may have been the mere Tenth Espada, but everything Adagio had seen and heard suggested he was not one to underestimate. Yet for all Gilda’s bravado, there was also equally real resolve in there, as her eyes hardened and she finally forced herself to stand again, wiping the remains of vomit from her mouth and flicking it away in disgust.

“Yes, Lord Tirek.”

He made a small laughing noise in his chest and said, “Far be it from me to curb ambition, however reckless.”

Tirek raised a single red finger and a small blaze of orange energy, no larger or thicker than a needle emitted from it. Gilda grunted but otherwise showed no sign of pain as the beam of energy traced along her thickly muscled abs. In the beams wake, black markings were left, until the number ‘10’ was tattooed upon Gilda’s stomach.

“Welcome to the Espada, Gilda, for however long it lasts. However long you manage to hold the position with your own power, until another takes it from you,” Tirek said, with the voice denoting a tone of ritual. He then turned to Adagio.

She raised an eyebrow at him, “I don’t suppose I get to choose where you stick that number? I’d look terrible with it on my face.”

A small scoff escaped Tirek, “Not even curious what the number will be?”

“It will be whatever it needs to be,” Adagio said, “I don’t care what it is to start. I’ll be improving it, given time.”

Gilda muttered something along the lines of ‘cocky bitch’, but kept it low enough that it was little more than a whisper.

Tirek’s eyes flared with deep rooted amusement, “Yes, I suspect you will. Such hunger for power is an admirable trait, just so long as you never forget who rules in Las Noches. Aspire to whatever height you desire, but know that I am the final limit against which that ambition will be measured... and I won’t grant a second chance, Adagio Dazzle. Now then, about that number.”

----------

“Miss Shimmer? Ahem... Sunset Shimmer!”

Sunset’s eyes flew open and she cast a fitful look around the classroom. A number of students were giving her looks that ranged between snickering to sympathetic, while Mr. Cranky stood at the whiteboard with his arms crossed in a most unamused fashion, his lips drawn down in an even deeper, more grumpy frown than his usual. The teacher was looking at her expectantly, and Sunset knew he’d likely just asked her a question.

Sunset sat up straighter in her desk and resisted the urge to rub at her tired eyes and suppressed a yawn. Her eyes felt scratchy and heavy, as if dusted with sand, and her muscles ached. Sleep had been an infrequent companion of hers, lately. Part of it was the training, a daily thing now. Half of the sessions were spent working with the girls on boosting their Fullbrings, hoping to trigger another one of them completing theirs as Rainbow Dash had. They hadn’t had any luck yet, but as Ditzy had explained this was a factor of mental barriers more than physical. Still the training helped each of Sunset’s friends get ever more familiar with their abilities and sharpen their skills, while also helping Sunset get accustomed to her Bankai. The other half of her training sessions were either focused on intense one-on-one bouts with Discord, to boost her skills in dueling even further, or spending time with Clover and the volunteer instructors from the Kido Corps in working on Kido spells.

Then, when Sunset wasn’t training, she was patrolling. Screwloose and Screwball could only cover so much of the city, and strangely enough rather than Hollow activity lessening with a bunch of extra Soul Reapers in town, it was only going up. The Hollows were generally of a lesser variety and not incredibly dangerous, but to keep locals safe Sunset and the girls had been pulling long hours of patrol into the night, leaving only so many hours for schoolwork and sleep. And graduation was just around the corner, too...

“I’m sorry Mr. Cranky,” she said, managing a small, apologetic smile, “What was the question?”

“Ugh, sleeping in class is a detention worthy offense, but since I’ve already given you that for being late, again, I suppose I’ll just have to settle for having you read aloud to the class, starting from the top of page one hundred and sixty,” Mr. Cranky said with a grumbling huff.

Sunset nodded and with bleary eyes opened up the textbook in front of her, the same one on eastern mythology that they’d been reading through that entire school quarter. Finals were next week, and Mr. Cranky was going over all the bullet points that would be on the tests. As Sunset began reading, she caught a glimpse of Clover, several seats over, casting her a small wave. The Soul Reaper was in her gigai, the artificial body all but identical to Clover’s normal, gray skinned and green haired form. She looked a bit younger in her gigai, to help with her cover of being a high school transfer student, and of course she was wearing civilian clothes as opposed to a Soul Reaper uniform. Rarity had helped Clover with a wardrobe for everyday life, along with a number of other Soul Reapers who were now in town, undercover, to work on studying the portal to Equestria.

Sunset kept reading, but gave Clover a small smile in thanks for the encouragement as she kept another yawn down and kept reading.

It was surreal, being back in school after all that had happened. Nothing felt quite real, now, as if walking through Canterlot High’s hallways or sitting in its classrooms like this were some kind of odd dream. But perhaps that was because Sunset couldn’t forget everything that’d occurred in Soul Society. The memories were so sharp and clear. She could remember every sharp, cold and biting blow from Platinum’s Zanpaktou. She could recall with crystal clarity the feeling of helplessness as Starlight Glimmer had stolen away to Equestria. Every battle, every moment of tension or fear, triumph and struggle. The pungent smell of Fluttershy’s blood in the air after Hurricane had wounded her, or the heat on her skin from facing Hokori in the struggle to achieve Bankai.

Now she was sitting here reading a textbook in class, with an irate teacher still glaring at her and a few of her fellow students still giggling at her misfortune for being caught sleeping in class.

Yeah, surreal felt like the right word for it.

It’d been about three weeks since she and the girls had returned from Soul Society. Sunset had been keeping in contact with Equestria via her journal, but thus far all she knew for certain was that Princess Twilight had left with her own friends on a quest to help Sonata and Aria find a missing piece of Adagio’s soul, somehow held by a mysterious sea creature called Charybdis. Meanwhile the other Princesses, with Discord’s help, were heading up a search for the human world’s Starlight Glimmer... so far with no success.

It worried Sunset. Her exhaustion was only partly due to the few hours she had to get to sleep. A lot of it was because even in those limited hours, she was having trouble falling asleep, instead laying awake, staring at her ceiling, worry over what Starlight Glimmer might be doing to her homeland.

Eventually the school bell rang with a loud blaring series of rings, and Sunset let out a heaving sigh as she closed the textbook and shuffled along with the other students out of class.

“Remember, detention!” Mr. Cranky called after her as she left, and Sunset’s face bunched up in a grimace as she shot a short glare over her shoulder.

“Yes, I know Mr. Cranky, thank you.”

As she walked down the hall she let a frustrated sigh growl out of her throat.

Detention my butt. I fought a freakin’ god of death! And won! But oooooh, I end up twenty minutes late to class, and I have detention. I have more important things to be doing!

Which was why she wasn’t going to detention and slipped down a side hall as soon as she could. Grinning to herself she walked a bit easier, at least until Clover caught up to her.

“He’s going to find out eventually that you keep skipping,” Clover said.

“Pfft, whatever, I’m graduating in a couple of weeks. And I have way more useful ways to spend my time than sitting in a classroom bored out of my mind.”

“I can’t disagree with you there. I was actually just going to suggest that detention might be a good place for you to catch up on your sleep,” Clover replied, her eyes softening with concern, “You really should try to get more rest.”

“In case you haven’t noticed Clover, I haven’t had time for rest,” Sunset replied swiftly as they exited out of the school building and started walking around a small garden area towards the front of the school. “Between training, dealing with all these extra Hollows that keep crawling out of the woodwork, and still doing my schoolwork and studies for finals, I literally have, like five hours to sleep each night, if that!”

“You don’t have to patrol as much as you do, and you always spend at least an hour longer training than anyone else among your friends,” Clover pointed out, “You’re pushing yourself.”

“Well I have to!” Sunset said, a bit louder than she’d intended. At Clover’s look Sunset took a deep breath, trying to calm herself as she said, “You were there Clover. You saw how powerful Starlight Glimmer is. She... she took Chishiki from you.”

Clover nodded slowly, her eyes briefly glancing away with a pained look, “I know, but do you really think driving yourself to exhaustion is going to help?”

“What else can I do? I have to close the gap. If you’ve got a shortcut other than training my butt off, I’m all ears.”

“Not as such, but still, you’d do well to let yourself have more time to recover. Do me a favor,” Clover made Sunset pause by putting a hand on Sunset’s arm, not particularly hard, but rather a gentle touch that got Sunset’s attention, “Just try taking it easy for the next week or two?”

Something in Clover’s voice made Sunset raise an eyebrow and look at the Soul Reaper a bit more closely. “Why? Is something going on?”

“Not exactly, but I’ve heard from Meadowbrook that Captain Starswirl will be coming here soon, with some kind of ‘addition’ to the portal project. I also heard from him that we may be shifting locations soon, although I don’t know the details. I overheard Meadowbrook talking with Captain Celestia the other day about it. Apparently they have a plan that involves you and the girls helping out with the project. I thought it might be best to give you a heads up and suggest you take a day or two to rest, just in case whatever they have in mind requires you to be alert, and you know, awake.”

Sunset thought about that for a moment, then nodded, “Alright, I’ll try to get some early shut eye tonight, but we’ve still got training to do. Kido work today, right?”

Clover smiled then, “Yes, we’ll be moving on to working on your level fifties today, and as for me...” her eyes suddenly gleamed, “A special instructor is arriving to teach me how to control a level ninety Kido. I can hardly believe it. Usually only Captains are allowed to try Kido of that caliber! It’s a real honor. And it’s going to be the head of the Kido Corps himself that’ll be here to teach me! Can you imagine? He barely ever leaves the Kido Corps complex, not even for emergencies, but Captain Starswirl made a personal request for him to come out and oversee my instruction! Gah, what if I screw it up!? What if I embarrassed myself in front of the legendary Puddinghead!?”

Sunset’s head tilted severely, her expression dumbfounded, “Legendary...Puddinghead?”

Clover’s face was brushed with rosy hues as she put her hands on her cheeks, “He’s known as the grandfather of Kido, the Kido genius who invented eight of the ten level ninety incantations! Only top students at the Academy who specialize in Kido are allowed to meet him! But he’s coming here for me. I’m so going to screw this up.”

“Whoa there, calm down Clover,” Sunset said, placing a hand on the girl’s shoulder, “Yeesh, and you say I’m overdoing it. Take a breath, girl. Huh, Puddinghead... who’d have thought?”

Of course Sunset knew Puddinghead from Equestria’s own history, although she couldn’t quite get her mind wrapped around the idea of the historical figure always depicting in plays as an utter bumbling dunce was somehow a Kido master here in the human world. Go figure.

Clover took Sunset’s advice, taking deep breaths as they rounded the corner to the front of the school, “Yes, yes I need to focus. Can’t go losing my head over this. It’s just Kido instruction, which I’ve even done myself when I subbed at the Academy. I can do this.”

“Damn straight. Just take it easy, and you’ll do just fine. Huh, wonder what the guy will be like? Can’t be anything like what Equestrian history says.”

“What’s Equestrian history have to do with it?” Clover asked, but Sunset waved her off as she spotted her friends gathered at the sidewalk near the front of the school.

For a moment, as it so often did, seeing her friends together lifted Sunset’s spirits. Still, the notable absence of Twilight Sparkle dampened the feeling somewhat. She couldn’t help but wonder what Twilight was doing, and if she was okay. Sunset hadn’t heard anything since Twilight had left with her family, and the silence was worrying.

As she and Clover reached the cluster of other girls, Pinkie Pie waved at them, “Heya Sunset, heya Clover! Did Mr. Cranky give you detention again?”

Sunset blanched, “Is it getting that common?”

“Well you have been arriving to school a teeny bit late rather regularly, Sunset,” said Rarity, holding up a finger, “If you’d like I can recommend you a particularly good coffee blend to use in the morning that I favor. Always perks me right up.”

“Ain’t no good ta rely on caffeine,” Applejack put in, arms crossing as she nodded firmly, “Only cure fer sleepyheads is turnin’ in good n’ early.”

A snort exploded from Rainbow Dash, “Says the girl who literally sleeps for three hours and somehow feels awake each morning. I don’t know how you do that.”

Applejack shrugged, “Just them solid Apple family genes I reckon. Been gettin’ up just fine myself, but I s’pose I can see if ya’ll are havin’ trouble with it. We’ve been pretty busy lately, ain’t we?”

“And not getting any less so,” Fluttershy said, yawning and blinking her own eyes sleepily. “I’ve been having trouble lately myself.”

“Bet you still stay awake in class,” said Sunset, sighing, “I’ll try to get to bed earlier, but I still don’t want to leave the city too unguarded.”

“Could always ask some of those Soul Reapers working on researching the portal to spend a bit more time patrolling,” suggested Rainbow Dash, but Sunset shook her head.

“I don’t want them wasting a second on anything other than figuring out how to get us to Equestria,” Sunset said with a certain sharp intensity, “Every day we’re stuck here is another day Starlight could do something horrible over there. Stopping her is our top priority, and until we can actually get to Equestria, we’ve got to keep the city and the portal safe, while also increasing our strength however we can.”

“Workaholic city, we hear ya,” said Pinkie Pie, “Buuuut in the meantime we can still try to have some fun, right? I was thinking we could bake ourselves up some cookies to fuel our training session today!”

Normally any kind of baking would probably take up too much time out of training and Sunset would’ve curbed Pinkie’s enthusiasm, but considering Clover’s words about pushing herself too much, Sunset managed a weak smile and said, “Okay, sounds like a plan. But we’d better hurry if we’re going to get to Discords in time to-”

“Heeeeeey! Sunset!”

At the rather high pitched, energetic feminine voice, Sunset shuddered and rapidly glanced around. Most of the students were already well on their way walking home or had already driven off, leaving her and her friends as the only ones near the school entrance. Which was good because as much as the kids at the school were used to weird, magical happenings, Sunset still didn’t want to have explain Chappy to anyone.

The voice in question was coming from the nearby bushes, which rustled as a head peeked out. A small, fluffy white head of a stuffed rabbit plushie. It had small, pink button eyes with girly black eyelashes, a cute little nose and smiling mouth, and as she hopped fully out of the bush, Chappy struck a pose making a squeaky noise as she did so. Her body was a bouncy, plush affair with stubby legs, with a visible zipper on her back.

This was Discord’s notion of a ‘solution’ to Sunset’s Chappy problem.

Ever since Sunset returned and discovered Chappy had run rampant with Sunset’s real body, Sunset had become exceedingly reluctant to use Chappy for her intended purpose of occupying Sunset’s body while running around in her spirit form. Fortunately the badges she and the girls had been given back in Soul Society could also work as a means of exiting her human body so she could enter her spirit form. This did leave her body defenseless, but Sunset was still hesitant to let Chappy take her body for another drive. Sure, Chappy had said she was sorry for what she’d done, but Sunset wasn’t about to trust the erratic Mod Soul quite so readily again.

She’d still felt bad about just leaving Chappy as a little orb, so Discord had suggested putting her in a doll-based gigai. He also said this doll was specially modified with monitoring and analyzing devices, which allowed him to track Chappy’s movements and also study the unusual nature Chappy was exhibiting, which involved far more independent thought than a Mod Soul like her should be capable of. So far it seemed like a workable compromise, although Sunset still wasn’t sure why Discord insisted Chappy live in her apartment.

“Behold, master!” Chappy declared as she zipped down the zipper on her chest and whipped out from her fluffy insides an envelope, “A mysterious letter was delivered to our domicile, and I, your ever lovable and loyal Chappy, have brought it to you forthwith! Aren’t I considerate? Praise would be most appreciated!”

Sunset ran a hand over her face while her friends all had a small giggle fit at her expense. With a suffering sigh she went over and knelt down in front of Chappy, “This could have waited until I got home, you know? I told you not to go running around in broad daylight. If someone sees you I’m going to have a heck of a time explaining it.”

“The danger is understood, master, but this letter didn’t look like it could wait, given who it’s from,” Chappy said, waving the letter at Sunset’s face, and causing Sunset to actually look at the letter more closely. It looked like it was made from rather fancy looking paper, and with a sudden shock Sunset snatched it out of Chappy’s hand.

Looking it over, there was no mistake. The symbol of the Quincy cross was on the envelope. As her friends gathered around her curiously, Sunset opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. It consisted of just one slip of paper, with a short note written in a clean, steady hand that Sunset recognized even without the signature that sat beneath the letter’s message.

“Sunset? What is it, darling?” asked Rarity, peeking.

Sunset stood, holding the letter loosely as she read it one more time, her voice filled with equal amounts trepidation and hope, “It’s from Twilight. She’s back in town.”

Author's Notes:

And so our arc focusing on Adagio and Twilight comes to a close, and we're moving right along with Sunset Shimmer and the gals from Canterlot High. But don't fret, it isn't likely to be very long before Twilight and Adagio get right back into the mix as our three main heroines' paths start to become entangled once more. And what about Equestria? Well we'll be checking in there fairly soon too, so those interested in seeing what's going on there won't have to wait too much longer.

And since it's somewhat pertinent to the events of this chapter, have another Arrancar Encyclopedia:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xJAlGGH_Co&index=5&list=PLmgWOh3g343ItfK0PXi6KQcHdvY_ZMwTc

Hope you folks enjoyed reading, and as always thanks for taking the time to check out my story. Any and all comments, questions, or critiques are highly appreciated. 'Till next time!

Episode 86: Reunion

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Episode 86: Reunion

“Doesn’t this all seem a little... odd, to anyone?”

Rarity’s question was met with a number of looks from her friends, to which she quickly amended, “Not that I’m not absolutely happy that Twilight has returned and wants to meet with us, but why this particular venue?”

She was referring to the fact that they were walking through a rarely used bike trail on the edge of the Everfree Forest, not at all very far from the highway heading towards the mountains. They weren’t far from they city, and in fact the taller buildings of downtown were still visible through the thinner parts of the forest. The trail was fairly scenic and didn’t go deep into the forest, but there was a small gazebo area sometimes rented out for picnics and the like, that was deeper in. It was this location that Twilight’s letter indicated they should meet, giving an appointed time two hours after the end of the school day.

“Hey, maybe she’s just tired of being cooped up wherever her family stashed her, and she wants to get some fresh air,” Rainbow Dash said, shrugging, “I don’t care where we meet her, personally, I just want to see that she’s okay.”

“As do I, I’m merely finding it just a tad unusual that she’d send a letter, asking us to meet her in some remote location, conveniently out of view of the general public, instead of just meeting us at the school herself.”

“What are you trying to say, Rarity?” asked Sunset, “You think this is... what? A setup?”

“Heavens no! W-well, probably not. I mean, couldn’t someone have forged the letter?”

Suddenly Rarity felt her head being rubbed on both sides of her temples by a pair of pink knuckles as Pinkie Pie made soft ‘oooom’ sounds, “Relaaaaaax Rares. All that craziness back in Soul Society has got you par-i-noid! If there was something super skullduggery about to go down, I’d be feeling it with two shakes of my left eyelid and a buzz in my stomach. Twice, if its something really bad, or I ate too many cupcake flavored pancakes that morning. But neither, so we’re good.”

Rarity sighed, gently removing Pinkie’s massaging hands and said, “Yes, I am quite likely overthinking things. Its just, the timing, the location, the fact that the letter requested just us and asked that Clover not join us. That’s unusual isn’t it?”

“Well, could just be Twilight ain’t wantin’ ta make Clover feel awkward,” said Applejack, “I mean, she bein’ a Quincy now an’ such, maybe she’s worried it’ll make talkin’ ta Clover feel a mite weird.”

“Perhaps...”

“It’ll be okay Rarity,” said Sunset, “This is Twilight we’re talking about. Whatever’s happened to her since we last saw her, she’s still our friend.”

As Sunset spoke the girls came upon the gazebo itself. The structure was fairly typical of its type, mostly made of wood painted in various dark shades of green or brown to help it blend in with the natural beauty of the forest around it. It was situated on a short, offshoot path from the main bike trail, up on a small rise that was too small to really call a hill, even by a generous soul. There was just enough space there, between the trees, that the afternoon sunlight lit up the gazebo brightly, and a swath of blue sky could be seen overhead.

At first Sunset and the girls all looked confused, as they didn’t see Twilight there, but a moment later they all felt a faint spiritual presence and Sunset raised her hand to touch the air. It glittered before her like light reflecting off water.

“Some kind of ward,” Sunset said, and a moment later the air where she’d touched the barrier was marked by twin trails of blue light that expanded into the rectangular shape of a door-like opening. Now, beyond that opening, they heard a voice call to them.

“It’s okay, I’ve opened up the screen, so you can come in. I would have done it earlier, but I can’t afford to leave it open for too long.”

There was no mistaking that voice, and trepidation about the circumstances aside, Rarity was as eager as any of the girls in moving past the barrier and entering the gazebo, and as expected Twilight was there waiting for them.

Twilight was fully dressed in the stark whites of a Quincy uniform, and Rarity couldn’t stop a twinge of her inner fashionista crying out in need to give her friend a much needed makeover. White was so not Twilight’s color, and it was a travesty of fashion to force the poor girl into such a utilitarian and downright spartan ensemble! At the very least the Quincy could allow some accessorizing! And why so much white!? Why!? Where they deathly allergic to color?

However Rarity did note a few odd differences from what little she’d seen as the norm for Quincy outfits. Just about everything looked like standard Quincy issue, with the white military jacket and slacks, tall black boots, white military style cap, ect. However the finely made gauntlet consisting of slim, segmented armor on Twilight’s left arm was of a dark purple shade, and bore several colorful amethyst gems. It distinctly looked non-standard issue for Quincy. There was also a glove on Twilight’s right hand, though a much simpler affair of black leather. Twilight’s belt was laden with several pouches, more so than what Rarity had seen before on the uniforms worn by other members of Twilight’s family.

Perhaps more than her outfit, Twilight’s stance was off. She’d never been the most relaxed sort, but Rarity was fairly certain one could confuse Twilight with a stalagmite with how rigidly and stiff she was holding herself now. On top of that, it was impossible to miss the tired, dark shadows underneath Twilight’s eyes, as if the poor dear hadn’t been sleeping a worthwhile wink in ages. Well, there was one thing Twilight was sharing with Sunset, at any rate.

Whatever misgivings Rarity had, they were put on the proverbial shelf as Twilight’s eyes warmed upon seeing them. There was a sea of trepidation underneath that warmth, but it was still a genuine look, and a very real, if still awkward smile that touched her face as she said, “Sorry for calling you all out here out of the blue, but-”

Twilight’s words were swallowed up by a small ‘Ack!’ of surprise as Sunset proceeded to throw her arms around the girl and crush her in a tight hug, quickly followed by a group dogpile from the other girls, Pinkie Pie diving in with a cry of, “Super-glad-to-see-you-back-I’m-gonna-cry-group-huuuuuug!”

It took several minutes for the girls to extricate themselves from the group tangle, everyone alternating between various degrees of laughter and a few tears. Eventually they managed to pull themselves up, and Sunset offered Twilight a hand up, who took the offered hand after only a moment or two spent adjusting her glasses and fixing her cap.

“Yeah, I should have seen that coming,” Twilight said, giving a waning smile as she made a gesture towards the opening in the barrier, upon which it sealed itself shut again. Twilight looked between the girls, and Rarity could see the girl struggling to both relax and compose herself at the same time.

“It’s good to see you Twilight,” said Sunset.

“Yes, we’ve been so worried about you,” said Fluttershy, “You didn’t contact us at all.”

“We missed you soooo much, you have no idea!” Pinkie still looked like she was ready to jump on Twilight all over again, but was managing to control herself as she rather animatedly waved her arms around, “So much happened! It was crazy around here after you left! There was violence and kidnappings and conspiracies coming out the wazoo, and a few other unmentionable places! Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna were nearly executed by a giant flaming chicken stick, and we had to go to the afterlife and fight like, a bajillion battles to save them, but then this crazy purple chick (totally not you, by the way, different purple chick) was all like ‘Mwhahah I am the ultimate bad guy who you must face’ and we were all like ‘no waaaay’ and she was all ‘yes way’ and then more things exploded, and Rainbow Dash’s mom as there for some reason-”

Rainbow Dash got behind Pinkie Pie and clamped a hand over the other girl’s motor-mouth, face flushing as she said, “What Pinkie’s trying to say is that you missed a lot, egghead. Some of it private, thank you.”

The last was said while Rainbow Dash ground a heel into Pinkie’s foot, to which the other girl tilted her head, said a few more muffled things, then quieted down. Twilight blinked at them and Sunset was fast to interject into the awkward moment, giving Twilight a relaxed if somewhat nervous smile as she crossed her arms and looked Twilight over.

“I figure we’ve both got stories to swap, but seriously, how are you Twilight? You’re looking more, uh... formally dressed since we last saw you. Did things work out with your family?”

No one among the girls could have missed the shadow that crossed Twilight’s features, or the way her eyes seemed to darken with a flash of unmistakable pain, all quickly swept under by a stiff mask.

“I’m... okay. My situation is complicated. Like you, a lot has happened, and I’m not in a position to share all of it with you. I’m sorry. I’ll explain what I can, but please understand I have certain things I can’t discuss with you, even if I wanted to.”

That got all of the girls exchanging awkward looks, Rarity stepping forward, eyes filled with concern and her voice soft with understanding, “That’s fine, darling. We’re just glad to see you. After what happened none of us were sure when we’d ever see you again. It’s understandable that you’re position is a mite complex, and we won’t pry any further than what you’re comfortable with, right girls?”

“Of course not,” said Fluttershy, “As long as you’re okay, that’s what matters.”

“Darn tootin’ it is,” put in Applejack, coming up and giving Twilight a firm pat on the shoulder, “We ain’t here ta interrogate ya, we’re here ‘cause yer our friend an’ ya called us here. Anythin’ ya need or wanna talk about, we’re here for ya, plain n’ simple.”

“Exactly,” said Sunset, “Whatever you do or don’t want to talk about is up to you. We’re here to listen and support you, no matter what.”

The other girls all gave nods of agreement, and at this point Twilight’s formal mask started to crack, her face contorting in a pained, rough twist of inner turmoil. Seeing it left Sunset and the girls with clenched hearts of their own, each wondering what had happened to their friend. When Twilight spoke, it was just an octave above a heavy whisper.

“Thank you. I’m sorry. I really wish I could just... say everything that’s on my mind right now, but if I did, I’m afraid I’d turn into a mess, and I need to keep my wits about me. But thank you, it means a lot to me that you all are here if I need you. Eventually I might be able to talk about everything that’s happened. For now I just wanted to see you all again, and to... well I wanted to get some information. About Soul Society.”

Sunset’s head cocked to one side, and she shared a sidelong glance with Rarity. Was this the reason Twilight had requested the girls come without Clover? There was no suspicion in Sunset’s voice, but a hint of wariness in her eyes, “I’m not sure if I’ll know the answer or not, but go ahead and ask.”

“Well, first let me confirm some things. One, do you have regular contact with the Soul Reaper contingent in the city?”

Within Sunset’s mind a few warning flags were trying to raise, but she pushed those feelings down. This was Twilight. Quincy or not, she wasn’t an enemy. “We do. Like you, our situation is a bit complicated, but the long and short of it is that Soul Society has posted a number of Soul Reapers in town to help research the portal to Equestria, which is currently blocked.”

“Blocked?” Twilight’s expression turned curious, “How? By what?”

“It’s a long story, but we can give you the abridged version, if you’ve got the time?”

“Oh, I love the abridged version!” said Pinkie Pie. It was perhaps a testament to the other girls being used to Pinkie Pie that no one even raised a question or gave her more than a second glance at the remark.

A thoughtful frown passed over Twilight’s face as she raised a hand to her chin, rubbing it in consideration, “I made sure I’d have a few hours time to catch up with you girls, if need be. I’m not due back to the mansion until dinner, and even then, I’ve... got some authority of my own now, so even if I’m late, not many people can gainsay where I’ve been. So yes, why don’t you bring me up to date on what’s happened since I left.”

With that the girls decided to settle down on the various benches in the gazebo, and they got to really talking about the adventure they had in Soul Society. Each girl took turns explaining different parts, from their personal struggles and battles, to the moment of regrouping to save Celestia and Luna from the execution, and the final, harrowing confrontation with Starlight Glimmer in the depths of Hitsuyo Aku’s research base.

“...Since we got back we’ve had almost nothing to do except train, deal with the increase in roaming Hollows, and wait for the Twelfth Division’s research team to figure out a way through the block Trixie put on the portal,” said Sunset, finally concluding the tale. “A few other Soul Reapers are in town besides Celestia. Lieutenant Posey is here as the ‘security attache’ for us, along with a few Eleventh Division members.”

“I still can’t believe that this Posey person is somehow Fluttershy’s daughter from a previous life,” Twilight said, shaking her head in wonderment, then she gained an oddly self reflective expression, “Although I suppose it’s not the weirdest story about reincarnated souls I’ve heard lately.”

Sunset could only wonder what that comment might mean, but Fluttershy interjected as she bashfully twined a finger through her long, pink hair. “I, um, try not to think about it too much. Posey is a very nice girl, and I think she’s starting to accept I’m not really her mother, but it is still strange having her here.”

“Where is she staying at?” Twilight asked, “Not with you, is she?”

“Oh no, she and most of the other Soul Reapers have a house they rent out in town,” Fluttershy said, and Sunset nodded.

“Yeah, seems like Captains like Celestia have access to pretty deep bank accounts here in the living world for when they need to fund long-term operations like this, where multiple Soul Reapers are using gigais to pose as humans. Clover is posing as a transfer student, and I think Posey is working at a flower shop in the mall.”

“Mmmhmm,” Fluttershy confirmed, “I took her there to recommend her to Rose as a temp hire. Oh, that reminds me, did anyone ever find out who was robbing the mall?”

At Twilight’s questioning look, Sunset was fast to explain, “The mall and a few other local stores and gas stations experienced burglaries, and the methods used by the burglars makes us think that maybe it was Hollows doing it.”

“Really? That doesn’t sound like...” Twilight trailed off, then her eyes widened, “Oh. Oh that’s what she meant.”

“She? She who?” Sunset asked.

Twilight suddenly gulped, looking away nervously, hands fidgeting in her lap, “Oh, um, heheh, I guess I was supposed to deliver a message to you as well, but I’ll get to that in a minute. Right now I want us to stay focused on the Soul Society. So the researchers from the Twelfth Division, as far as you know they’re only here researching the portal to Equestria?”

“As far as I know,” Sunset said, then she thought about what Clover had told her earlier, that she’d overheard Meadowbrook and Celestia talking about some kind of change coming, “Although it might not stay that way. Clover heard Celestia and Meadowbrook talking about a change coming.”

“Meadowbrook?”

“Oh, he’s the Twelve Division Lieutenant, right above Clover on the command chain. He’s basically overseeing the portal research in lieu of Captain Starswirl himself,” Sunset provided, and as delicately as she could she went on to ask, “Just why are you so curious about this, Twilight?”

“Duh, because she’s spying, you dorks,” said Pinkamena, who’s head had manifested from a fine pink mist wafting from Pinkie Pie, who in turn flailed a hand at her doppleganger’s head.

“Mena, it's rude to eavesdrop!”

“And Twilight’s not spying on anybody!” said Rainbow Dash, glaring at Pinkamena, who simply rolled her eyes.

“She totally is.”

“Is not!” Rainbow Dash shot back.

“Oh, wow, what a convincing response. I may be only half of Pinkie’s mind, but I’ve still got more going upstairs than you.”

“Why don’t you come all the way out here then and say that to my face!?”

Before things could devolve further, Twilight cleared her throat loudly and spoke up, “Ahem, I think it would be best if I stop you there and simply come out and explain why I’m asking these questions. I hope you’ll understand, but in a sense, Pinkie Pie’s Fullbring is right, I’m gathering information on the Soul Reapers.”

“Ah-ha!” Pinkamena said, then delivered a raspberry towards Rainbow Dash with a tongue far longer than strictly anatomically possible, “Told you she’s spying.”

“I wasn’t trying to hide it,” said Twilight defensively.

“It’s alright, sugarcube,” said Applejack, sighing and shaking her head, “We ain’t accusin’ ya of nothin’. Well, most o’ us ain’t.” The last was said while giving Pinkamena a bit of a sidelong, hard stare, bot which the doppelganger rolled her eyes.

“Not my fault you guys can’t spot the obvious. I’ll just go back to sitting in Pinkie’s snowglobe brain and let you all play Breakfast Club with each other.”

With that Pinkamena’s head dissolved back into pink mist and flowed back into Pinkie Pie, who gave Twilight an apologetic smile while rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment. “Don’t mind Mena. She’s a bit cranky lately, because she’s having to do chores around the house.”

Twilight blinked, “You’re having your violent alter ego that likes to literally eat her enemies do... chores?”

“Mmmhmm, mom insisted. I have Mena hang out with the family all the time now, but mom and pop thought it would be bad for Mena to get used to loafing about, so they started giving her work to do. She helps Limestone do yard work, and Marble with laundry, and even helps Maud with cooking. She complains a lot, but I think Mena secretly enjoys it.”

Pinkie Pie’s right eye suddenly twitched and she whispered, “Mena, that wasn’t a nice thing to say. Oh, fine, be that way, but let me talk to Twilight. Heheh, sorry Twi, it can get weird having a voice inside my head that’s actually real.”

With an uneasy look on her face, Twilight muttered, “I can empathize.”

Clearing her throat, Rarity said, “So not to be a spoilsport, but I think we really need to clear up why you want to know about the Soul Reapers in town. No offense intended, but if you’re a fully fledged Quincy now, doesn’t that make them your enemy?”

With that question hanging in the air, Twilight carefully placed her hands in her lap and looked at them for a moment before raising her head to meet Rarity’s gaze, then shift her look to her friends, one at a time. “By definition; yes. One of the reasons I’m keeping even this meeting secret for now is that I haven’t gained full authorization to meet with anyone even related to the Soul Reapers. However I do have permission to pursue certain secondary goals how I see fit, which gives me some leeway, as long as I’m not too blatant about my actions until Sombra arranges certain things for me.”

“Sombra?” Sunset said, her mind tickling at her memory upon hearing the name. It sounded faintly familiar, as if she’d heard it in one of her classes back in Equestria... but she just couldn’t quite recall the context.

A strange look came over Twilight, a sort of odd mix of respect, apprehension, and fondness all rolled up into one half smiling, half cringing expression. “He’s... well, no point in hiding it, he’s the King of the Quincy. He is effectively the sole ruler of the entire Vandenreich, the Quincy military, and the one whom I’ve sworn allegiance to.”

“Waitwaitwait!” Rainbow Dash held up her hands in a halting gesture, “Like, what are you saying, that this Sombra dude is the head honcho of all the Quincy?”

“Yes.”

“And you’ve, what, sworn some kind of oath to serve him? Like a knight?”

“Almost exactly that, yes,” said Twilight.

Rainbow Dash’s face screwed up with confusion, “But why would you do that? I mean, I get you wanted to go with your family to understand them better or whatever, but they were totally pressuring you into that and I kinda figured you might be looking for a way out once you learned what you needed about Quincy mojo. What gives?”

“Things have changed, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said, a quietness entering her tone that had nothing to do with the timid nerd the girls’ had once known, her tone containing a steady steel to it that none of them had ever heard before, “I’ve changed. Perhaps I might have once considered turning away from the Quincy, but that’s no longer the case. I’m still me. I’m still your friend. But you also must understand that I am a Quincy, loyal to King Sombra, and I have my own duties to fulfill in that role now.”

“It’s okay Twilight, we understand,” said Fluttershy, reaching out and putting a hand on Rainbow Dash’s arm, “Right?”

“Y-yeah, I guess...” Rainbow Dash settled back on her side of the bench and crossed her arms over her chest, looking sour, “So what’s this Sombra guy got you doing that needs you to get info on the Soul Reapers?”

“This is something of a delicate situation,” Twilight said, “So bear with me as I try to lay it out. Several weeks ago a battle took place in Hueco Mundo. It was the result of a raid the Hollows made on the Quincy training grounds. A raid that killed a number of cadets...”

Twilight’s expression darkened, and while all the girls looked concerned, it was Fluttershy who spoke first, sensing Twilight’s distress far faster. “Oh no, you were there?”

“Yes,” Twilight confirmed somberly, “I was participating in a training exercise with my fellow cadets when the Hollows attacked. It was... bad. But not as bad as the battle that took place later. The Quincy wanted revenge for the loss of those cadets, and specifically wanted to kill the Espada responsible for getting Garganta portals past the training ground’s wards. So Sombra organized and led a full scale attack on the Hollow fortress of Las Noches.”

She went quiet for a moment there, eyes growing distant and cold. Her hands clenched, and Sunset noticed that Twilight’s right hand, the one covered by the plain leather glove, gained an erratic twitch.

“Twilight?” Sunset said carefully, “You don’t have to tell us if it’s too painful.”

“No. It’s okay. I just need to explain the context. Yes, just the context...” Twilight blinked, shook herself, and went on talking as if she hadn’t paused at all, “The results of the battle aren’t as important to why I’m here as who I met in the middle of the fighting. Adagio.”

Twilight may as well have tossed a live hand grenade into the middle of the gazebo, for the reaction she received. Most of the girls were on their feet in an instant, questions flying from their lips in such an overlapping gaggle that Twilight could barely make them out.

“What!?”

“Is she okay!?”

“What n’ flamin’ tarnation was she doin’ there!?”

“How the heck did that happen!?”

“Does it really just take three licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?”

“Were you able to talk to her?”

The last question came from Sunset, whose hands clenched at her sides as she stepped towards Twilight, her eyes filled with pained intensity. Sunset was feeling a swell of emotions ranging from freshly dug up regret over Adagio’s sacrifice to save them in Hueco Mundo, to a spark of elation at the prospect that Adagio was still “alive” (for lack of a better term), to a nagging fear over what news Twilight might have to relate.

Twilight took the barrage of questions in stride, adjusting her glasses as she held up her left hand in a placating gesture, “Please, just give me a second. I’ll explain. Yes, Adagio is... okay. As much as she can be, given her circumstances. The details of how we met in the fight aren’t really important. What is important is Adagio’s position, and the arrangement she’s made with me.”

She paused to give the girls a moment to collect themselves and gradually sit back down, although Sunset remained standing, her expression still anxious. Twilight looked to her, softening her tone, “First thing’s first; Adagio told me to tell you you’re not to go to Hueco Mundo to try and rescue her, under any circumstances.”

“Huh? But... why not?” Sunset asked, perplexed, “She can’t honestly want to stay a prisoner of that monster, Grogar.”

Aside from the inevitable confrontation with Starlight and her allies sometime down the road, the other reason Sunset and the girls had been training so hard was because rescuing Adagio from Hueco Mundo had been a much closer goal on their list, one Sunset felt like they might be able to pull off before the Soul Reapers were done researching a way to get to Equestria.

Discord had been working on a way to improve his artificial Garganta so it could stay open longer, and been providing some coaching on how to handle fights against Arrancar. He still expressed concern over them going to Hueco Mundo, but he hadn’t been planning on stopping them either. Primarily his concern was that Sunset and the girls would still be outmatched by the upper echelon of Arrancar, the Espada. He’d admitted that Sunset was improving her skills greatly, and sharpening her mastery of her Bankai at an impressive rate, but that she still was, at best, a solid match for the Eighth Espada, possibly even the Seventh if she really pushed herself. Rainbow Dash was on par with Sunset with her completed Fullbring, and they’d sparred enough times now with Sunset using her Bankai that she could readily admit that Dash, while not quite as strong as Sunset, was actually the faster between them.

But that still left Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie behind the power curve, with Discord estimating that, at best, if all four of them fought together they might match the Tenth or Ninth Espadas. Maybe. Possibly. If they were lucky. Of course they were all getting stronger, but until they completed their Fullbrings there’d only be so much good the training could do to push their powers. At the moment they were mostly working on expanding the range of their skill with Fullbring, getting used to using it on the air for high-speed movement and actually ‘stepping’ on the air, or finding new ways to use the powers they already had.

What that basically meant was that, at full strength, Sunset and her friends would only be able to handle the lower tier of the enemy’s top fighters. But that was fine by Sunset’s reckoning. Grogar was only the Eight Espada, after all, and it was him they’d need to beat to rescue Adagio... or so she thought. But clearly things had changed.

At Sunset’s question, Twilight explained in a apprehensive tone, as if even she couldn’t fully believe what she was saying, “I know this might be hard to hear, but it’s the truth. Adagio has, for all intents and purposes, fully integrated herself into Hollow society. She’s no longer under Grogar’s thumb. Quite the opposite, she’s essentially free of him, near as much as we can tell at any rate. She’s an Arrancar now... and... well, I’d like to say, but she made me promise not to tell the rest. She wants to reveal that bit herself.”

Sunset felt a confusing sensation, like being punched in the gut combined with an odd release of relief in her chest. It made her feel lightheaded and she found herself swaying over to Twilight and plopping down next to her while running a hand through her hair. The other girls all looked various levels of stunned as well.

“Seriously?” Rainbow Dash said, eyebrows shooting up her scalp, “We’ve been worried sick over that chick and she’s up and jumped into bed with the same jerks that kidnapped her sisters and made her go all Hollow in the first place? The heck!?”

“It’s not that simple,” Twilight said, “Adagio had to do whatever it took to survive, and things just turned out they way they did. Besides, I don’t think I’d say she’s ‘in bed’ with the Arrancar so much as she’s looking to make her own bed, one where she calls her own shots. And believe me, she’s as eager to kill Grogar as anyone, she just hasn’t had a good enough opportunity to do it yet.”

“Ya said somethin’ ‘bout her havin’ an arrangement with ya, Twi?” Applejack asked, “That part o’ why yer here, askin’ after the Soul Reapers?”

Twilight nodded, “Yes, it is. You see, during the battle, one of friends Adagio has made among the Arrancar, Ember, was captured by... um... Captain Luna.”

Sunset sat up from where she’d been sagging, mind still trying to absorb things, but her eyes freshly sharp and alert now, “What was Luna doing there?”

“We’re not sure,” Twilight admitted, “Adagio fought her briefly, along with two other Soul Reapers. Miss Cheerilee, and someone else whose description I didn’t recognize. At any rate, Adagio failed to stop Luna from taking Ember, and it’s only Adagio’s best guess from the context of what Luna was saying, but she thinks they wanted a live Arrancar for some kind of experiment purposes.”

Sunset would be the first to admit she wasn’t quite as naturally brilliant as Twilight was, but she was still one of the sharper tools in the drawer, and her mind quickly started connecting dots and putting together the pieces in front of her. “Wait, so you’re saying the Soul Reapers took this Ember person to experiment on, while at the same time the Soul Reapers are working on experiments on the portal to Equestria here in town. You’re thinking those two things are related, aren’t you?”

Twilight’s smile was small, but genuine. “Right on the nose, Sunset. Adagio and I figure its possible, even likely, that Ember might be used for an experiment involving the portal. That’s why I’m here, to try to determine if Ember is here or not, and if she is, to work out a way to rescue her.”

“Twilight, I hate to be the one who keeps bringing up the more unpleasant sides of a conversation, but I have to ask; why?” said Rarity, “Why are you, a Quincy, agreeing to help Adagio, who you’ve just pointed out is very much embracing her Hollow nature.”

“Rarity!” Sunset exclaimed, and Rarity flinched, but Twilight held up a calming hand.

“Its a valid question, and the answer is a simple one. I’m helping Adagio because she’s helping me. Our arrangement is one of exchanging information, mostly. It’s mutually beneficial, although made complicated by the fact that neither of us can afford for our cooperation to be exposed to our respective factions. I’ve gained Sombra’s permission, after some... convincing, to allow me to do this, but he can’t risk making it public knowledge to the other Quincy yet.”

“Why not? Ain’t he the King or whathaveyou?” asked Applejack.

“Yes, and strictly speaking his word is law among Quincy. However things are strained among the Quincy at the moment. The battle was, officially, a ‘victory’, but we...” Twilight’s eyes lowered, her voice becoming stiff with barely controlled pain, “...we took many casualties. Tensions are high, as a result. Worse, because of one particular death, two families in the Quincy are in open fued with each other, and even with my father trying to quell matters, there’s still a very real chance of it breaking out into bloodshed. Sombra doesn’t want to add any more sparks to the proverbial tinder pile at the moment, so for now my arrangement with Adagio has to be kept secret. She’s in an even worse position, because if any of her peers among the Arrancar learned she was providing a Quincy with information on them, she’d probably be executed on the spot. So she’s having to be even more careful than I am.”

The girls were silent for a few seconds, each of them mulling over what had been said. Finally Fluttershy spoke up in her usual, quiet but supportive tone, “I know I can’t speak for everyone, but I personally would be happy to help Adagio get her friend back safe and sound.”

“Yeah,” said Rainbow Dash, “Not sure how cool I am with her playing ‘Game of Thrones; Hollow Edition’, but least it fits her style, I guess. So what’s the plan once we figure out where this Ember chick is?”

“To be honest I was hoping that once you acquired that information that you’d mostly just let me and Adagio take care of the rest,” said Twilight, “There’s no reason for you girls to be involved more than need be.”

“Beg to differ, Twilight,” said Sunset, “If we get that information for you, that makes us responsible for anything you and Adagio do to save Ember. Which means if this goes down, we’re involved, period. Better let us help out all the way. Honestly it might make things go smoother that way.”

“Heeeey, not sure if anyone’s thought of this, but like here’s a crazy thought, why don’t we just ask Celestia, or even the old dude Scorpan if they’d just let Ember go?” asked Pinkie Pie, “I mean, doing this all James Bond style sounds super-duper fun and all, but wouldn’t just asking be way easier and avoid a whole bunch of misunderstandings?”

“Pinkie Pie has a point,” said Fluttershy, “We could avoid a lot of trouble by talking openly with the Soul Reapers about letting Ember go free.”

“Yes, assuming they’d actually listen,” replied Rarity with a soft frown, her eyes sympathetic but filled with a practical cynicism, “Let’s not forget that the Soul Reapers have very little reason to view Hollows like Adagio or Ember with any fondness, and they’d have no reason to consider Twilight anything other than an enemy right now either. Why would they let Ember go, just because we asked? They’d want to know our reasons, after all, and are we supposed to just tell them we’re doing it to help out our Hollow and Quincy friends? I doubt that will go over very well.”

“Maybe,” said Sunset, thinking hard as she tapped her fingers on the bench beside her, “Soul Society owes us one for helping them with the Starlight incident, and we know at least some of the Captains are pretty reasonable. Scorpan himself might listen to us, if we lay out the details and explain why we want to help Adagio and Twilight.”

“On the other hand, if we do this, and the Soul Reapers say no, then there goes any chance at all of rescuing Ember the old fashioned way,” said Rarity, “They’ll double or triple whatever security they have on her. So it's quite the risk, for an uncertain chance of success.”

“Ideally it’d be nice if we could get Ember back without a fuss,” said Twilight, “But Rarity makes a good point. You could ruin any chance we have of recovering Ember if you went to the Soul Reaper authorities and asked for her return. Adagio and I have a plan in the works that we’re confident will succeed, if we can just confirm if Ember is here in the city or not.”

“What if she’s not?” asked Sunset, “What if they have her in Soul Society?”

Twilight gave her a pensive look, “Adagio and I have a contingency plan in that event, but I think my hunch about her being brought here is accurate. When researching something like the portal to Equestria, you need to conduct your experiments on site. There’s just no other way to get decent, accurate data. If that’s why they took her, Ember has to be brought here. We just need you to confirm it, then play along with the plan from there.”

“And what does the rest of the plan entail?”

“I’d rather wait until we know for sure Ember is here before telling you,” replied Twilight, “I still need to refine the details, honestly. Adagio and I have only been able to contact each other once since the battle, due to our circumstances, so it’s been difficult to hammer the plan’s details out, but once we confirm Ember’s location we can move much faster. Will you help us?”

Sunset closed her eyes, then nodded, “I think... I think it goes without saying that we will. But I want you to trust me on something, Twilight. At least let me talk to Celestia about this. She’s not the sort to go blabbing if we ask her to keep things under wraps, and I think she’ll understand better than most about the situation. If we can get her on board to help, one way or another, it’ll make everything easier.”

There was plenty of uncertainty in Twilight’s eyes, but after a moment she nodded agreement, “If you really feel that’s the best course, but please be careful. We may have only one chance at this.”

“Don’t worry, Twi, we’ll pull it off. We’ve already been in way worse pickles,” said Rainbow Dash with a burst of confidence, “Just leave it to us!”

“Thank you, I will,” Twilight said, then stood up from the bench, “At any rate, I’d best return to the mansion now.”

“Hold up,” said Sunset, “You said you gave yourself a few hours time, right?”

“Well, yes, but-”

“But nothing,” said Sunset, standing up and reaching out to grasp Twilight’s hand. She was struck by how odd the hand felt beneath the leather glove. Somehow stiff, with odd contours, but perhaps that was just the glove itself. Twilight herself looked uneasy with Sunset’s contact, but Sunset gave her a reassuring smile, “You just go back to town and we haven’t seen you in forever. If you’ve got a couple of hours, I say we go grab some grub. You don’t look like you’ve eaten much lately.”

“I...uh...” Twilight stammered, gulping, and soon the other girls were chiming in.

“Ooo, lunch sounds great! Or is it dinnertime? Call it ‘lunner’,” said Pinkie Pie, “We can get sushi from the place Sunset works! Or used to work before they canned her for missing too many days.”

Sunset blanched, “It’s not my fault I’ve got to focus on training. I don’t have time for a day job, even part-time.”

“Food does sound rather divine right now,” said Rarity, “And really it’d be nice to actually catch up a bit with you Twilight, and not talk about any messy business. Just food and girl talk, yes?”

“That does seem like a good idea,” added Fluttershy, and Applejack gave a nod as well.

“Gotta be a better idea than just galavantin’ off back ta Quincy central, eh?”

Defeated by the eager looks and smiles of her friends, Twilight just sagged her shoulders and nodded, “Alright, alright. I’ll go. I just need to, uh, change into something more civilian appropriate. Which means I still need to go back to the mansion, if only for a few minutes. Don’t worry, I know where the sushi place is. I’ll meet you there.”

“Sounds good,” Sunset said, letting go of Twilight’s hand, unable to shake the sensation of how unnatural it’d felt. It had to be her imagination, right? “We’re not strangers, so I suppose say hi to your brother, Cadence, and your parents for us.”

For just a split second there was a frozen look on Twilight’s face, like someone had rammed a blade through her, but the look vanished almost as fast as it had appeared as she said, “I’ll do that...”

----------

“Why didn’t you tell them?” Sugarcoat asked Twilight about ten minutes later. They were sitting in Twilight’s room at her family’s mansion, Sugarcoat leaning against the wall by the door while Twilight grabbed clothes out of a dresser.

Twilight’s back went rigid, her hands pausing over a light purple blouse she was thinking of throwing on. “How could I? They don’t need to have something like that dropped on them out of nowhere. They were so... so happy to see me, Sugarcoat. I couldn’t ruin that by making them feel sorry for me, and I don’t think I could stand hearing... hearing all of the apologies that’d come after.”

“So it's better to just keep the pain locked inside you and deny yourself any help from the girls you claim are your friends? Yeah, that makes sense.”

Twilight flinched, then shot a small glare towards the other girl, “I thought you’d understand. You lost your parents too.”

“Which is why I know holding that stuff in hurts more than letting it out. Look, take my advice or not, you’re an adult now, and a Sternritter on top of that. You can feel free to ignore me. But I’m still going to speak my mind. Don’t like it? I can leave.”

“No... no you don’t have to go, and I’m sorry, Sugarcoat. I know you’re just giving me your honest thoughts. I just... I’m not ready. I’ll tell them when I can, but I just can’t do it right now.”

Sugarcoat nodded at that, her visor hiding enough of her face to give little of her expression away as she watched Twilight finish picking her outfit. “Fair enough. I’ll drop it for now. So why the secrecy in meeting them, if you’re just going to go out and have lunch with them anyway?”

Twilight glanced over at Sugarcoat. She hadn’t told the girl, or any of her other fellow former cadets, about her meeting with her friends in secret. Her official line was that she’d called them to arrange a lunch/dinner meetup. Nobody was supposed to know about the meeting in the gazebo. At Twilight’s look, Sugarcoat sighed and tapped her visor.

“You made this thing work a little too well. I followed you and saw the ward you put up, and those girls entering it. I won’t ask what you were talking about in there, it’s not my business, but I’m not sure why you were bothering with trying to hide it in the first place.”

“Why were you following me?” asked Twilight.

Sugarcoat shrugged, “I was worried. You’ve been distracted, and there’s still an assassin out there after you. Can you blame me for wanting to watch your back?”

“I suppose not,” said Twilight, then she smiled, “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

“Cool. So...?”

“So... would you trust me enough to accept that there’s things I can’t tell you? All I can say is that what I’m doing, I’m doing it with Sombra’s blessing. He just can’t make it official. It’s complicated.”

“I’m seeing complicated is kind of your shtick. Fine, I’ll leave it alone. But does this have anything to do with our agenda here? You’ve put together this research team, but I’m not seeing us do much yet in the way of researching your magic,” Sugarcoat said, referring to the ‘official’ reason that Twilight was back in Canterlot City.

With her mother gone, and her father dealing with the increasing tensions between the Hooffields and McColts, the mansion was essentially unused, and hence was an ideal location for Twilight to set up her own operation. She already had laboratories in the mansion anyway, so it wasn’t a huge stretch for her to remodel and expand some of that labspace to convert it for exclusive magical research, and there was plenty of living space to support her team. Though a part of Twilight knew she’d picked them partially just due to familiarity, the fact was that Sugarcoat, Sunny Flare, Lemon Zest, Sour Sweet, and Indigo Zap were all intelligent girls with their own fields of expertise to contribute to the task of magic research, and more importantly they were all aware of Twilight’s situation with Midnight.

Ostensibly the idea was that Twilight was in charge of determining the nature of each experiment to expand her magical skills and the ways in which she could combine that magic with Quincy reishi control, while each of her ‘research team’ would be the ones to assist in facilitating the experiments while acting as a think tank for further ideas. In practice Twilight just wanted her new friends close because the idea of letting them drift off to different Quincy battalions where they might get horrible slaughtered in another battle left her waking up in a cold sweat at night. She’d noticed Sunset had looked as if she’d been sleeping well, and Twilight could relate. She hadn’t had a single night of true rest since her mother’s death.

Still, as much as the real reasons she had the girls from Crystal Prep here were purely personal ones, they were far from useless in regards to the purpose of research. They’d only been here a few days but already not only was much of Twilight’s main lab converted into a testing area, but so had some of the fields outside the mansion. The plan was to start conducting tests on different spells and how they interacted with Quincy techniques, using the fields for focusing on teleportation and other larger scale spells, while using the labs for smaller stuff, primarily transmutation spells. Indigo Zap in particular was understandably eager to get to work on the transmutation experiments, since that magic was the one most closely tied to what Twilight had achieved with her right hand.

‘Ransotengai’ was the technique Sombra had showed her, just a day after their conversation. It’d been invented by a Quincy of Japanese descent, hence its break from the usual German naming conventions of most Quincy abilities. In essence the technique was meant for allowing wounded Quincy to continue to fight well past the point that their bodies would refuse to obey them, using reishi to create strings that could be mentally controlled to contort the body at will, like a puppet. Much like the tracer technique, Twilight had learned the Ransotengai fairly quickly, but she’d spent numerous hours in the late night hours in the previous weeks to adapt it to her own purposes.

Looking at her right hand, she ‘flexed’ it, although there were were no muscles involved in the process. The sensations from that hand were rough and cold, and her ability to move it was a matter of mental discipline rather than natural reflex. Beneath the black glove, the hand moved, grabbing the skirt she intended to wear. She could feel the cloth, but not with the kind of definition her real nerves would, but rather with a dull feedback along the reishi strings she was using to control the polymers and composite metals making up the hand’s construction. Much like with the normal Ransotengai, Twilight was creating reishi strings, but unlike that technique she’d experimented with several transmutation spells with Midnight’s help to form those strings into tighter bunches and coils, more akin to bones and muscle that filled up the otherwise largely hollow artificial hand.

As of now, she had what she calculated to be around sixty eight point nine percent of her original dexterity and efficiently with the prosthetic, enough to perform basic tasks and even perform in combat. She’d need to keep working on it to refine the technique further. She also hadn’t figured out how to teach another person to do the same thing, given someone like Indigo Zap didn’t have access to magic to create the needed spells to condense the reishi strands and bind them to the artificial limb. Twilight’s hope was to find a way to permanently bind the magic to a prosthetic so that she didn't have to supply the energy on her own, and allow the artificial limb to smoothly interface with any person they were attached to.

But that goal was a ways off, and for now Indigo Zap was getting around in a wheelchair. The girl did her best to hide her frustration and embarrassment at that, but at least the other girls were treating her well, and patiently.

As to Sugarcoat’s question, it was true they hadn’t actually started with direct research yet, and that was because a lot of Twilight’s attention had been focused on setting up the meeting with Sunset and the girls. Sombra had made it clear that until things calmed down among the Quincy, she had to keep the connection between her and Adagio under wraps. Rescuing Ember was a high risk scenario, but one that had to be done, because Adagio wouldn’t help them without it.

And they needed her help if they were ever going to get Fleur De Lis out of Hueco Mundo, or strike a critical blow against Grogar.

So Twilight couldn’t afford to put that mission at risk, and Sugarcoat and her other fellow Quincy friends had to be kept in the dark for now.

“For now all I can tell you, Sugarcoat, is to trust me. I may have to rely on you girls to turn a blind eye if I have to vanish every now and then to take care of certain things. In the meantime, our research here is still very important, and will take up most of our focus here. Which reminds me, I want to begin testing Sunny Flare’s theory on multiple teleports this evening, so if you could, tell her to get the field ready for when I get back?”

Sugarcoat was quiet for a moment, but nodded and leaned off the wall, “Sure, I can do that. So how are those Canterlot High girls doing, anyway? Last I saw of them was when that Rarity girl awakened that freaky blood power. Hadn’t heard much since then.”

Twilight paused, her mind wandering over the story Sunset and the girls had told her of their adventure in Soul Society.

“They’ve been busy, that’s for sure. Made quite the ruckus in Soul Society.”

“Are they really on the Soul Reaper’s side? Or are they, what, some kind of independent group and that’s why you’re comfortable meeting up with them for secret get togethers?”

“Honestly I’m not sure,” Twilight admitted, “Sunset seems to really trust Captain Celestia, and it's pretty clear they’re working pretty closely with the Soul Reaper contingent here in town. At the very least they consider the Soul Reapers allies now, but I think the girls still are operating independently, at least for now. Why so curious?”

“No real reason, just thinking that you trust them a lot,” Sugarcoat held up a hand to forestall Twilight saying anything, “Not that I’m saying that’s a bad thing. They’re your friends, before me or anyone else in the Quincy got a chance to really get to know you. Still, just try to remember that they if they really do think of the Soul Reapers as friends, things have the potential to get really messy around here, real fast. So just be careful, okay?”

The words caused Twilight to turn towards Sugarcoat, wearing a look of equal parts appreciation and worry, “I know, but thanks for the warning. I’m not going to take the Soul Reapers lightly, and I’ll make sure that if things do get complicated that things don’t escalate out of control.”

“As long as you’re aware. Guess I’ll give you space to change, then, and get out of your hair.”

With that, Sugarcoat left Twilight’s room briskly, and Twilight went about quickly getting out of her uniform and into the outfit she picked out. As she finished dressing she looked at herself in the mirror and found herself frowning deeply.

She didn’t recognize the girl in the mirror anymore. Somehow the simple blouse and skirt, the everyday shoes, it was like she was playing dress up rather than wearing something natural. As brief as the transition had taken, really less than a month overall, she’d become used to the Quincy uniform. It felt like it more accurately reflected her, rather than the civilian clothes she was now wearing.

“...I’m still me,” she said, although the sound of her own voice had a somewhat dishonest ring to it, even to her own ears. She shook her head, trying to banish those thoughts.

She was going to go out and spend time with her friends, and just try to let herself relax, just like old times. Even if some part of her knew it would never be like it was before. But at least, for a change, there wouldn’t be any Hollows to worry about.

----------

The Garganta portal opened like a dark wound, exposing its darkness in the middle of a small forest clear at the very edge of an expansive and sparkling lake.

Adagio stepped through the portal’s edge and her eyes flinched at the bright sun and sapphire blue sky above. It’d been awhile since she’d seen sunlight, and she took a second to enjoy the sensation of warmth before turning to watch her companions exit her Garganta.

“Man, look at this place. Talk about pristine,” said Di Roy, rubbing the back of his head with one pale arm, “What do they call this place again.”

“Camp Everfree,” Adagio replied, looking out across the lake. On the other side she could see a collection of numerous cabins and sheds, part of the recreational camping facility that operated in this track of preserved wilderness, a number of miles north of Canterlot City. The Everfree Forest was one of the largest in the state, as she recalled, and while Canterlot City skirted the forest’s southern edge, Camp Everfree itself was in the forest’s very heart.

It was also nearly defunct, underfunded, and barely used. She knew this because she and her sisters had hidden out around here a few times, back before the incident at Canterlot High. It was a good spot to come into the living world close to the city, but not so close that her presence or those of her comrades would be detected by the Soul Reapers.

“Neat,” said Di Roy, “Think they got any food over there? I’m starving. Hey Gaw, why don’t we go looking for something to snack on, soul-based or otherwise?”

Upon his query, a woman, or really more of a young girl, stepped out of the Garganta. Both her and Di Roy now bore the human-like shapes of full fledged Arrancar. Adagio regarded them both, infinitely glad that the process taken from the data stolen in Grogar’s lab had worked, at least as far as she could tell. She was elated to be able to empower her allies, although the means of doing so had been a touch and go affair. As it turned out, Grogar had discovered that if an Arrancar of sufficient power, such as an Espada, allowed a strong enough non-Arrancar Hollow to drink their blood, this triggered a process by which that Hollow could start converting into an Arrancar. It wasn’t a clean process, however, as the triggered mutation would only create a half-Arrancar unless they drank quite a bit of the Espada-level Arrancar’s blood, while also enduring a direct strike through their Hollow hole by the Zanpaktou of the Arrancar they were drinking from.

Grogar detailed the process as being similar to how certain Soul Reapers could infuse their powers into a non-Soul Reaper by stabbing them through the heart with their Zanpaktou and intentionally transferring the blade’s energy straight into the recipient.

The risk was that if the Hollow receiving the power transfer was not of strong enough will, the process would cause the power to become unstable and explode, just like Di Roy would have in his half-Arrancar state eventually if he hadn’t been transformed fully.

The process had weakened Adagio for a number of days after she’d done it to both Di Roy and Gaw, but she’d recovered swiftly enough. But now she’d made her two allies all the stronger for it, so the risk had been worth it.

Di Roy was a fit looking man in human form, with a rough mop of white hair that hung down from a large helmet of bone on his head that was reminiscent of a hammerhead shark. Perhaps most bizarrely, his teeth still had a bit of a shark-like pattern to them. His Zanpaktou also retained a faint shark tooth shape, serrated on either end. He wore a plain white shirt, left open to expose his chest, and Hollow hole in his lower chest. Aside from that he wore baggy white pants and black shoes, keeping his outfit simple.

As for Gaw, her appearance once evolved into Arrancar form had been a surprise. Mostly because of her apparent age.

Adagio had expected the humongous dinosaur-like Hollow to turn into someone akin to Torch. Huge, bulky, like some muscular, massive amazon warrioress.

Instead what Gaw turned into was a lanky young girl of perhaps fourteen or fifteen years of age in appearance. Her limbs were long, true, especially her legs, but they were thin, if thin in a very tough, wiry fashion. Her skin was dark as well, beyond a mere tan, and something more akin to a Pacific islander, with her Hollow hole being fairly small and situated where her navel would've otherwise been. Her hair was the color of spilled blood, and was a long, wild, and shaggy mane of spiky strands that hung all the way down Gaw’s back. Her eyes were golden in color, keenly alert. The remains of her Hollow mask consisted of a necklace-like formation of bone white fangs encircling her neck, like some hunter’s trophy. She kept her Zanpaktou sheathed by a leather cord strapped around her back, the weapon looking for all the world like a giant raptor talon in the shape of a sword, and when held the blade was curved inward rather than the more typical outward style of most curved blades.

It’d taken some work to convince Gaw of the need for clothes, as the girl didn’t seem to care or comprehend the point of them. Eventually between Adagio’s command and Roka’s insistence, they got Gaw to agree to wear what basically constituted a vest and waistcloth, and it’d taken quite a bit of effort to get her to agree to even that much. Apparently Gaw didn’t like the way the cloth felt on her skin, which Adagio sort of understood, having once been a species that didn't’ bother with clothes either, even if she vastly appreciated the use of clothes now. At least Gaw didn’t argue about the matter anymore, although Adagio noticed that the clothing was frayed now, as if Gaw had shredded some of the edges with her claws. And Gaw still had claws, tiny ones tipping her fingers. Fangs as well, although for some reason she often only sported a single uni-fang if one glanced at her casually. Adagio didn’t get it, but she didn’t question it either.

At Di Roy’s words, Gaw just turned her head to look at him sidelong, said absolutely nothing, then proceeded to crouch down and sniff the air like an animal seeking to understand the scents around her. Di Roy’s expression turned to an exaggerated grimace of mock annoyance as he said, “I know you can speak now, Gaw! C’mon, don’t ignore me!”

Gaw yawned and ignored him, scratching at her head as she kept sniffing around, taking particular interest in a nearby cluster of plants near a towering pine tree. Di Roy groused and kicked at the ground, turning to Adagio.

“She’s become impossible now that she’s turned into a pint sized brat- OW!”

He started shaking his leg, which had a Gaw attached to it via her fangs. She growled like a miniature wolf, doggedly staying attached to Di Roy’s leg as he shook her in a blur.

“Gah, dang it Gaw, I was joking! I know you’re sensitive about your size, GAH! She’s drawing blood! Adagio, do something!”

Adagio looked at them both, then said, “Gaw, don’t cripple Di Roy. At least not until we get back home.”

Gaw growled a bit more, then let go of Di Roy and stood up, licking bloodied lips while Di Roy rubbed at his slightly injured leg.

“Geeze, it’s not my fault you went form a hundred foot tall tower of dinosaur badass to a four-foot-nothing chibi with a unitooth.”

Adagio raised her eyebrow, “You do realize that Gaw is still stronger than you, right?”

“Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. Hey, wasn’t Roka right behind us?”

The woman in question stepped out of the Garganta then, dressed in her usual thick white robes and carrying a duffel bag over her shoulder. She nodded to Di Roy as she set the bag down, “I was just checking behind us to make sure we weren’t followed.” She looked to Adagio, “I didn’t see anyone following our trail, but it’s still possible one or more of Guto’s people could have marked where we’ve gone.”

With an understanding nod, Adagio said, “I think I hid our departure well enough, but with Guto’s thugs breathing down our necks I can’t discount the chance one of them would’ve spotted us leaving. Thank you, Roka, for volunteering to help out. Both you and Fenice.”

“It’s quite alright. We’re allies now, and friends. Let’s not concern ourselves with formality. I do hope Fenice will be alright while we’re gone.” Roka couldn’t stop a concerned look from touching her features, and Adagio gave her a confident nod.

“She should be fine. Guto’s people know she’s one of Lament’s children, so they won’t be crazy enough to strike at her. She’s helping out immensely just by house sitting for me. Dumbbell is still weak from his injuries, and I don’t really think him or either of the other boys could stand up to an attack from Guto’s forces, so having Fenice keeping an eye on things provides a layer of protection that’s needed right now.”

The situation was still tenuous, however, and Adagio wanted to get business over with as quickly as possible here in Canterlot City. She was here far sooner than she and Twilight had agreed upon. She was supposed to wait until Twilight got word to her about Ember’s location, but the situation had changed. Tirek, in his damned infinite wisdom, had given his newest two Espada a task. Another test of their capability and loyalty. Chances were Gilda was already on the move, but in true Hollow fashion Adagio was under no obligation to directly work with or help Gilda, so chances were the freshly minted Tenth Espada was taking care of her own tasks in her own way.

It would complicate matters with rescuing Ember, but Adagio was adapting the plan to compensate for it. For now, having her people hide out around Camp Everfree and set up a small base camp was step one. Step two would be for her to sneak into town and try to update Twilight on the situation, and maybe pay a certain shopkeeper a visit...

“Come,” she told her three companions, “Let’s find a suitable spot to set up camp. If I remember correctly from when my sisters and I stayed in the area, there should be a cave deeper in the forest that would be be perfect for our needs.”

“Sounds good to me. Hey Roka, you pack any stuff for s’mores in there?” Di Roy asked, pointing at the bag.

“Not as such, but we can easily acquire something with a simple trip to the store,” Roka said with a small wink, referring to the ease at which invisible entities such as them could grab whatever they desired from a human-run establishment.

“Remember we’re here to keep a low profile, until need dictates otherwise,” said Adagio, “Let’s go.”

With that she led her companions deeper into the forest. Gaw paused, taking up the rear, looking back at the bushes she’d been sniffing earlier. Her nose still twitched as the girl sniffed the air again, but at a call from Di Roy she shrugged and walked off after the others.

...

...About ten minutes after Adagio and the other Arrancar had departed, the bushes around the pine tree shook and trembled. They flowed away into the ground like a living wall of greenery, revealing behind them a trembling woman with pink skin, two toned neon pink hair that flowed past her shoulders, and wearing a simple summer yellow shirt and blue hiking shorts. Around her neck was a necklace of multi-colored geodes, faintly glowing as she clutched it, her breaths coming in terrified, short gasps.

Gloriosa Daisy had no idea at all who those... those ‘people’ were, but she knew that they probably meant trouble, and she was just grateful the strange powers of the geodes she’d discovered not so long ago had been enough to hide her. But what was she supposed to do about this?

Everything had started getting strange since she’d found the stones in the forest cave. Not only had she discovered the geodes gave her an almost instinctual command over nature, but she’d started to see things. Things that shouldn’t exist. She’d thought she was going mad at first, but it hadn’t taken her long to realize there was no way the sights she’d been witnessing could be some product of her imagination. Every time she went into the city to buy supplies for the camp or argue with Filthy Rich over the status of Camp Everfree, for at least the past month, she’d been witnessing sights of strange, masked monsters roaming the streets. And groups of people in black robes, battling those monsters. Yet no one seemed to be able to see the black robed people or the masked creatures, as if they were all invisible.

She’d told her brother, Timber Spruce, about this of course. He already knew about the geodes, and had even been willing to help her get a handle on the stone’s unusual power over plant life. At least he could see the effects of that and know it was real. He was having more trouble believing the stories about the masked monsters and black robed people who fought them, but he was keeping an open mind.

But he’d also been suggesting that they shut down the camp for awhile, and give her time to get a handle on the geodes and maybe just take a break. But Gloriosa couldn’t do that! Even a short ‘break’ would probably bankrupt Camp Everfree! Her family had run this place for generations! She wasn’t giving it up. Not to anyone, or anything.

Luckily, she had something coming soon down the pipeline that would fix the camp’s financial problems. Someone had offered her quite a solid sum of money to not only host a summer camp for the students from the local Canterlot High, but the principal of the school had offered a further and substantial bonus if Gloriosa was willing to allow the school to use the camp for an extended period over the summer for some sort of ‘summer extracurricular activities’. Gloriosa didn’t really know what Principal Celestia was intending to have her students do out in the Everfree forest all summer, but honestly for the money the school was offering, Gloriosa didn’t care.

For that kind of money, Celestia could do whatever she wanted with the camp, just as long as it didn’t endanger anyone and still followed all camp regulations.

But now that even weirder people were popping out of holes in the air, who clearly weren’t human... should Gloriosa just call the whole thing off?

No, she couldn’t do that. She needed the money. She’d just have to keep an eye on things, and hope for the best. And plan for the worst, she thought, as she stroked the glowing geodes around her neck, not noticing the way her eyes briefly turned from their natural pale green, to a much deeper green, with strands of blackness entering the whites of her eyes like an infection.

Author's Notes:

And so we begin with what is basically going to be my version of the 'Legend of Everfree' arc, now with 100% higher chance of explosions.

For those into the Bleach anime/manga might've noticed I tweaked Di Roy's Arrancar appearance slightly to emphasize the shark aspects. No reason, I just think its a bit cooler that way (and I get to actually give him a Ressereccion appearance too, which he never got to show in the original source material). Gaw's Arrancar form is meant to be kind of a 'wild child' archetype, and she's depicted as an adolescent since that was technically the age she was at when she became a Hollow.

Anyway, hope you folks are enjoying the start to a new arc, and as always thanks for reading. All comments, questions, and critiques are highly appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 87: Planting the Seeds

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Episode 87: Planting the Seeds

It was rare for Grogar to leave his laboratory stronghold for any reason that wasn’t required for his plans. He wasn’t exactly what anyone would describe as the social type, and unless it involved his work he was disinclined to visit another Espada’s holdings. Unfortunately this time Chrysalis was involved, and he had to bite the proverbial bullet and obey her summons. One does not simply refuse the Second Espada after all, especially not the lowly Ninth.

He scoffed under his breath as he walked his gnarled, thin form down a long and regally carved bridge of marble stone, shot through with faint traces of bioluminescent, green resin. His new position was due to Adagio’s fresh appointment to the Espada’s ranks, and he could appreciate the irony of his own creation surpassing him. At least in terms of simple numbers.

If Adagio truly thought herself superior to him, now, she would be in for an unpleasant surprise, but Grogar was not intending to show his hand just yet. There was still work to do, and Adagio had a part still to play, even if she only suspected it. She was no fool. Grogar had admired that of her since day one. Adagio was intelligent and cautious, but also knew when to the risk was right to strike. It’d served her well, and hence served Grogar well, thus far.

Her usefulness would soon be at an end, however. Regardless of whether or not Chrysalis considered her to be amusing. Such a caustic ‘ally’ Chrysalis was. Her unpredictability was a draining and wearisome trait, but her influence over Tirek could not be denied. Chrysalis was powerful, and useful, and ruthless enough to turn upon Grogar in an instant if he ceased to be useful himself. But those were all fairly standard factors for dealing with his fellow Hollow. What set Chrysalis apart was her appreciation for Grogar’s work. Tirek merely saw the surface of what Grogar offered. Trinkets and toys for Tirek’s war effort. Chrysalis saw the greater goal of Hollow evolution at the heart of Grogar’s work.

It made being called out to her abode a tolerable annoyance, where with any other Espada besides Tirek himself Grogar may have forced them to come to him.

The bridge lay across a rare and unusual chasm within Las Noches’ interior, where the sands parted into a deep, dark canyon where waterfalls of white sand still fell. Suspended in the center of this chasm was a floating palace structure of twisted and bent ivory structures, like a diseased chunk of sea coral. Several different bridges connected the palace to the rest of Las Noches, but otherwise the structure appeared to hang in the air by itself. If one looked upon the walls of the chasm one could see a honeycomb of cave openings and smaller coral structures built along the depths, going down where Grogar knew the chasm connected to the Warrens.

Small dark forms could be seen flitting about between cave entrances, or lounging about the coral structures. Chrysalis did boast quite the sizable horde, and even the losses from the recent battle had done little to reduce just how many ‘children’ comprised the Second Espada’s swarm.

What a fascinating specimen she was. If it wouldn’t result in his destruction Grogar would have loved to have put Chrysalis under a microscope centuries ago. While all Hollows of their level of power developed unique abilities, Chrysalis was an unusual creature. Her regenerative powers were noteworthy, but one could argue Smooze was nearly her equal in that area. Grogar would argue Smooze didn’t regenerate so much as merely shed damaged parts of himself until only his core remained. Where that ‘core’ was now Grogar couldn’t guess. Another noteworthy trait was Chrysalis’ ability to transform her body and even reiatsu signature to appear as another. Grogar had rarely seen other Hollows display such an ability, and it seemed the stronger of Chrysalis’ children, such as Thorax, were allowed to inherit that power of transformation. Then there was Chrysalis’ unique reproductive capabilities to consider.

Any Arrancar female was capable of reproducing, technically, but the fertility rate was so abysmal that it could take a hundred years for even a determined individual in Las Noches to have a child.

Chrysalis could literally create an army from herself, and had unprecedented control over the traits her children inherited.

Such mutability and control over inherited traits could also allow a means of directing the flow of Hollow evolution, hence Grogar’s keen interest in working with Chrysalis. He sought a means to push Hollow’s to a higher stage of evolution, and Chrysalis possessed a means through which such evolution could be directed as she pleased. All that was missing was a catalyst to speed the process up, and allow what would could take thousands of years to occur significantly faster.

Like, for example, the speed at which Adagio had evolved from a mere Aduchas into an Arrancar powerful enough to claim a place among the Espada.

Grogar had thought those girls possessing unusual powers from Equestria were the key worth studying, but as it turned out Adagio had been the real prize. Or rather, the function behind her siren gem and its capacity for absorbing power both magical and spiritual. It wouldn’t be long before he’d perfected a means of duplicating that power.

There was no traditional ‘gate’ or the like into Chrysalis’ palace, just a large archway the bridge led to, guarded by tall, musclebound Arrancar of onyx skin who held dark, reflectionless eyes that watched Grogar pass in utter silence. Drones, given the least mental freedom, but no less deadly for it. It was impossible not to see the physical resemblance to Tirek in their sculpted features and thick muscles. Grogar wondered if Chrysalis preferred them so uniform or if that was just a coincidence? Grogar liked his own servants better, with their own unique deformities that were useful in different circumstances. Too much uniformity only led to stagnation, but he supposed Chrysalis saved the unique traits for more favored children.

“Oh hey, it’s Geezer Grogar!”

Speaking of which... Grogar suppressed a long suffering sigh and set his face in a flat, unfriendly stare as a young Arrancar girl with a small, pink mohawk came bounding up to him as he passed the archway into the palace.

“Hello Ocellus. I’m here to see your mother. She summoned me.” Grogar said, tight jawed.

A coy gleam lit up Ocellus’ eyes as she peered up at Grogar, “That so? You’re way older than her usual type.”

Grogar managed not to roll his eyes, “This is a matter of business. Do you know where she is or not?”

“Yeah, yeah. Man, you’ve got no sense of humor, you know that? It wouldn’t kill you to crack a smile every now and then. Mom’s down below. I’ll show you the way.”

“Unnecessary. I know the path.”

“Maybe you do, but I’m bored, and you can’t touch me otherwise mom’d take your head off and use it as a wine goblet, so looks like you’re stuck with me,” Ocellus said in an entirely too cheerful voice. Grogar briefly debated the value in attempting to argue the point with the exuberant little brat, but he had infinitely better things to do with his time, so he decided it best just to suffer her presence and nodded at her to lead the way.

Ocellus literally started to skip down the hall, Grogar following several paces behind as they moved through the palace’s winding passages. Everything within the interior had a curving, organic look to it, as if the ivory walls had been carved to resemble the interior of some vast beast’s body. The deeper they went, the more the white stone was replaced with smooth, translucent globs of emerald resin, casting a faint green glow across the otherwise dark hallways. Chambers sprouted off at random directions and places, giving the interior a truly labyrinthine feel. The stronger of Chrysalis’ brood made their homes in such chambers, and if the sounds coming from many of them were any indication the majority of Chrysalis’ children shared her sense of decadence and hedonism.

“So what are you and mom scheming about these days?” asked Ocellus, “It’s got something to do with that freaky red gem you had big brother Pharynx using during the Quincy scuffle, doesn’t it?”

Grogar remained silent, leaving Ocellus to either go quiet herself, or continue speculating aloud. She went with the later.

“I don’t know what it did to him, but it sure seemed to hurt him when it went haywire. He’s better now, but for a few days he was pretty out of it. I’m not used to seeing Pharynx like that.”

Almost idly Ocellus drew her kukri shaped Zanpaktou and started spinning it in her hand, “I don’t really appreciate my brothers being used like test hamsters, you know? Makes a dutiful little sister think all kinds of violent thoughts.”

This time Grogar did roll his eyes, “Complain to your mother if you take issue with how she allocates duties to your siblings.”

“Maybe I’d rather blame you?”

He paused, halting in the middle of a three way juncture. Ocellus paused too, her hand still idly spinning her blade with casual ease. Grogar looked at her flatly, his voice equally deadpan.

“Your feelings are irrelevant, child. Your mother’s protection does not extend as far as you think. Attack me if you will, but rest assured that if you do, I have no shortage of experiments that I’d like to perform on an offspring of Chrysalis, and none of them require I administer any anesthesia.”

Truthfully he wasn’t certain how accurate his threat actually was. Chrysalis could be strange about her children. Drones would be sent in droves to be expended for any goal Chrysalis desired with no second thought given, but for the more unique offspring such as Thorax or Ocellus it was a different story. Still, he was an Espada, and was not about to be intimidated by some half-pint girl with brother issues. So while he may have had his doubts, none of that was in his voice, and he saw a unsteady light of fear enter Ocellus’ eyes at his threat.

He did have a reputation, after all, and the girl knew it.

With a stubborn snort she sheathed her Zanpaktou back into the sash around her waist and said, “Yeah, yeah, I get it. You’re scary mad scientist man. I’ll still cut you if you screw with my brothers again.”

“Duly noted. Now either continue walking or find another adult to pester.”

She made a face at him, but resumed leading him through the palace, this time much more silently, which suited Grogar just fine. They reached a large room at the center of the palace which consisted of a huge ring around a vast pit, one that led straight down into the depths of the chasm with a spiraling series of stone platforms. This was the way down into the real home of Chrysalis. The palace was little more than a flashy front, where favored drones and offspring like Ocellus were allowed to live.

Chrysalis herself kept her personal chambers in the depths below.

Grogar started down the stone platforms without a thought, following Ocellus who flitted down the platforms with practiced ease. Given the separation of space between each platform they couldn’t be considered stairs, but for an Arrancar that was hardly an obstacle. Down they went, until shadows swallowed them. Then further down still, until the sides of the chasm showed clear tunnel openings into the Warrens.

It was here that a green glow softly reached upward, revealing at the bottom of the chasm a primal structure of carved resin emanating its sickly emerald light. Its shape was hard to define, like a wasp’s nest that was tortured into the jagged and rough appearance of a pyramid. Its angles were all wrong, however, and it wasn’t easy to look at, as if the eyes tried to slide off the structure.

Even Ocellus didn’t look straight at the pyramid as they landed in front of its yawning entrance. Grogar didn’t hesitate, striding within, with Ocellus following slowly behind.

The inside was hollow, revealing a vast area with multiple raised tiers of stone along the walls, all sharing the bioluminescent glow of the putrid green resin that formed the building. In neatly ordered rows on each tier and upon the ground floor were scores upon scores of pale green eggs. Most had shells so thin and translucent Grogar could see the shadowed shapes of the unborn drones within. The drones were always hatched from these eggs, he knew that much about Chrysalis’ means of reproduction. Stronger and more independent than the ones made straight from her blood, but nowhere near as potent as those like Thorax, these were the mainstay of Chrysalis’ horde. Grogar knew from observations and study that just one coupling was generally enough for Chrysalis to produce around a dozen of these eggs, give or take.

She and Tirek must have been busy this past week or so.

Suspended from multiple thick strands of resin on the ceiling, hanging down from the very center of the pyramid was a huge spherical structure roughly the size of a large house. Its exterior was carved with windows and balconies, including several entryways, so indeed the house comparison was apt. This was Chrysalis’ personal chambers, where she spent most of her time when not engaged in pursuing one scheme or another.

As Grogar and Ocellus approached, a figure emerged onto one of the balconies and hopped down to meet them, striking a graceful bow.

“Always a pleasure to see you get out of the old laboratory and stretch those aging legs of yours,” said Thorax with a smooth, buttery smile, “I trust my sister hasn’t been too much of a bother?”

“I threatened to cut him,” Ocellus said, and Thorax laughed warmly and ruffled her hair.

“So the picture of a perfect young Arrancar. Run along, Ocellus, and go check on Pharynx for me. Bring him something to eat, would you? The big lug has been refusing to practice any sensible self-care.”

Ocellus glanced between Thorax and Grogar, “You’re not coming?”

“No, I’m afraid I and Grogar here both have business to discuss with mother. You’d be bored stiff by it.”

“Okay, fine, I’m going. You all enjoy... whatever it is you’re doing,” Ocellus said and left with clear reluctance.

After she was gone, Grogar eyed Thorax and said, “You shouldn’t encourage her.”

Thorax put a slim hand to his bare chest, blinking his eyes innocently, “Whatever do you mean?”

“Her self-preservation sense is woefully underdeveloped due to your encouraging such behavior. It will get her in trouble, someday.”

“Why Grogar, I didn’t know you cared.”

“I don’t. I merely detest wasted potential, and you seem to make a game of encouraging waste wherever you go.”

Thorax's smile was razor sharp, “Someone has to keep things light hearted around here, otherwise I fear Las Noches would explode in a pyre of repressed angst and fragile egos.”

Grogar just snorted at that and proceeded to leap up to the nearest balcony to Chrysalis’ abode, Thorax only half a step behind him. Entering through an open doorway, Grogar came upon a ludicrously lavish chamber. The ‘furniture’ was formed from sculpted molds of the green resin, taking the shape of smoothly organic seats, tables, and a large bulbous bed, all of it draped in silks and thick pillows.

Chrysalis was across the chamber, where a portion of the wall was carved out to contain rows of books. Grogar was mildly surprised to see Chrysalis with her nose in one of the thick tomes, but upon seeing him and Thorax enter she shelved it with one fluid motion and turned to face them with a knowing smile.

“Prompt as always, Grogar. I’ve always appreciated that you don’t waste my time.”

“It is my time I try not to waste, which happens to mean I don’t waste others much, either. At least not my allies. In that vein, I presume the reason for my being here is to discuss the results of testing the prototype?”

There was a subtle, cold shift in Chrysalis’ smile. Her voice mirrored this, turning an octave lower, “Your ‘toy’ nearly cost me one of my more dear and competent children.”

“I hear Pharynx remains in good health, despite the malfunction of the gem,” Grogar said with an air of calm dismissal. He was not interested in being rattled by Chrysalis any more than by her children. He smoothly walked over and planted himself in one of the luminous, organic chairs dotting the room, eyeing Chrysalis flatly as he did so.

Thorax mirrored his motion, but took a chair opposite him, making the motion somehow look indulgent as he leaned back, one arm thrown over the back of the chair in a lazy pose. “If I hadn’t acted as fast as I had, that device would have exploded right on top of my brother. I don’t call that a mere ‘malfunction’.”

“Thorax dear,” Chrysalis said with a syrupy voice, “Allow Grogar to explain himself.”

Grogar chuckled in a sound like crunching sandpaper and folded his thin arms across his chest, “Explain what? A prototype device had an predictable overload when hit with an unpredictably high surge of energy. Prior to that point the gem was performing exactly as I had intended. Indeed, even the overload was not unexpected. You did command Adagio to slay Squirk, after all. We knew the gem would get hit with a high level of energy. I merely wasn’t certain how much until it happened.”

Thorax’s eyes narrowed, but he kept silent and glanced back at his mother, who in turn walked forward to stand between him and Grogar. Her motions betrayed no hint of whether she was angry with Grogar, or simply toying with him. For all Grogar knew it was both.

“So you knew it would explode like it did?” she asked, and he shrugged.

“I’d calculated a less than thirty percent chance of the possibility. An acceptable range of risk, given the benefits of such a field test. Before you continue to throw hints of displeasure with me, perhaps you’d like to hear what those benefits have been?”

“Do tell. I like to know what benefits come with risks to my children’s well being,” Chrysalis said smoothly, eyes unblinking as a spider’s.

“Risks you accepted before the test, but that’s no matter now. Here,” Grogar reached into the inner pocket of his white vestments and withdrew a freshly made replica of Adagio’s siren gem. The smooth red crystal glittered and reflected the green bioluminescent light around it.

“That field test has allowed me to refine my process and create an even more potent gem that I estimate will be nearly eighty percent more efficient and durable than the previous prototype. The readings i obtained from Pharynx’s test gave me all the data necessary to further adjust its crystalline matrix. Once I finish the newly designed housing device, I believe this new gem will allow an Arrancar using it to absorb even more power, faster and more effectively, from those they kill.”

That had essentially been the point of the field test. Pharynx was Chrysalis’ strongest soldier, and he’d killed plenty of Quincy during the battle. Each kill had allowed the gem to absorb just a little more power from the reiatsu of the slain, although Quincy souls were always rather mysteriously absent after ‘death’. Furthermore, Grogar had linked the prototype device to Adagio, using the same link that allowed him to remote view her senses. That meant that when Adagio had killed Squirk, the surge of power that she’d absorbed from the former Ninth Espada had also reached through the link and into the device connected to Pharynx. Hence the overload.

Chrysalis listened to his words with only the barest of nods, “And I suppose you’d like assistance with testing this new prototype as well?”

“Ideally. I’m confident of my projections for the new gems capabilities, but testing is always preferred to ensure the projections match the actual data. As powerful as these gems are, they still aren’t capable of obtaining our true goal. Not yet.”

“I don’t suppose either of you wish to clue me in on what that goal is?” asked Thorax, earning a sharp look from Chrysalis. He flinched, but held her gaze, “I only ask because ultimately, mother, you know I’m the only one you can trust to continue the needed masquerade of your presence here, when you inevitably head out back to Equestria. I assume that since we haven’t torn apart and devoured Grogar here that we’re giving him another chance to impress us with these toy gems of his. That means you need me to oversee the next ‘test’, yes? So perhaps it might be best that I understand why we need these gems in the first place?”

Chrysalis’ laugh was laced with an unpleasantly thorny quality, “My dear Thorax, I do so love to see that you’ve grown confident enough to demand things of me. You know what you need to know, nothing more.”

“...As you wish, mother.”

“Good. Now, as for testing this new gem, I don’t suppose Pharynx is in any condition for such a task,” Chrysalis said, tapping her chin in thought, “I’ll not risk Thorax either. His skills are needed here.”

“You’re departing back to play with that Soul Reaper child in the land of magic?” Grogar asked.

“Starlight Glimmer is no mere distraction. Her plans coincide with our own, and quite frankly I find Equestria a delightfully enticing target, even if dear little Starlight is determined to keep me on a tight leash over there.”

“You should take Ocellus,” said Thorax, “I think she’d rather enjoy seeing that realm, and I doubt your Soul Reaper friend could object to just one extra Hollow tagging along with you as a ‘handmaiden’ or some such excuse.”

“Hmm... that’s not an unpalatable idea,” Chrysalis said musingly, “Yes, I think Ocellus might have fun over there. Besides, that boy of Platinum's could use a playmate.”

Grogar cleared his throat rather loudly, and Chrysalis regarded him sidelong, “Oh don’t be a curmudgeon.”

“I’m not. I would prefer we focus on more immediate matters than you playing around in the land of ponies. If Pharynx and Thorax will not be testing my gem, then who will?”

Chrysalis’ smile thinned out to a keen edge, her voice dead serious.

“Why... you will.”

----------

“You’re worried about her.”

The words were phrased in such a way that Sunset knew they were more statement than question, but Clover still left enough of a questioning tone in her voice that it was a clear invitation to talk, if Sunset wanted to. She and Clover were at her apartment, Clover sitting in the kitchen by the door to Sunset’s room while Sunset herself was over in the adjoining living area, sprawled out on the couch in her soul body. Chappy was off for a night on the town. In order to keep the energetic Mod Soul under some level of control Sunset had agreed to let her use Sunset’s body once a week, under the strict understanding that if there was even a hint of shenanigans like before that Chappy was going to enjoy a new career as a permanent paperweight sitting on Sunset’s desk. So far Chappy had been well behaved, but Sunset still felt a nervous itch every time she let Chappy take her body out like this. Still, no reason to hold onto her body either when she was going to Discord’s to train. There was still a little time before they’d be due at Discord’s for that evening’s training session, and after a late lunch with Twilight, Sunset had decided to return to apartment to unwind and sort some things out in her head.

Clover had already been there, waiting for her, clearly anxious to hear how Twilight was. Sunset hadn’t even been sure how to respond to Clover’s queries. Partially because she wasn’t sure how much Twilight really wanted her to say to Clover, and partially because she wasn’t sure herself just how ‘okay’ Twilight professed to be.

“I guess I am,” Sunset said, shifting on the couch so she could face Clover better, “It’s hard to put my finger on. She went through a lot, obviously. Battles where she saw people die, you know?”

Clover nodded slowly, her features not unsympathetic, “That’s hard on anyone, especially for the first time. Twilight hadn’t even the benefit of being used to fighting Hollows like you and the other girls were getting. She’s had to deal with a lot in a short span of time. It’d be more worrying if she seemed totally fine.”

“But that’s just it, she’s trying so hard to act like everything’s okay, and it clearly isn’t,” Sunset said, frustration heating her voice as she sat up on the couch, throwing a hand out, “Like at lunch today, we were at the sushi place I used to work at, and Twilight was sitting there and we were eating and chatting, practically like normal. Then a mother and couple of kids come in the front door, all laughing and normal everyday smiles, and I swear Twilight gets this look like she’s just been stabbed in the gut. Of course we all ask her what’s wrong, but she just blinks, shakes her head like she’s in a daze, and just brushes off the question. Changes the subject like nothing happened.”

“What do you think might be the cause?” asked Clover, eyes thoughtful, “I admit I haven’t known her very long, so I don’t really know for sure what might count as ‘normal’ for her. This could just be`a case of fairly regular post-battle trauma. It’s not uncommon among young Soul Reapers, still fresh out of the Academy. But it sounds to me like you’re saying you think this is something deeper, and more specifically wrong?”

Sunset threw her hands up in a helpless gesture, leaning back on the couch and letting out a rough sigh of consternation, “I can’t say for sure, but that's the thing...I guess you could say I just feel like she’s hurting. Way worse than she’s letting on. More than what would make sense, even for having gone through the fights she has. It bothers me. Before I met you, Twilight was my newest friend, and dammit I wanted to make her feel as accepted as possible here. Now I feel like there’s this huge distance between us, keeping me from helping her with whatever it is that’s hurting her. It’s driving me nuts.”

“I can see that,” Clover said, propping her elbows on the kitchen table and plopping her chin there as she took on a look of deep thought, “What were the Elements your friends had, again?”

“Huh?”

“The Elements. You know, the Harmony ones that derive from the magic of your homeworld?”

“Oh, uh, well there’s Loyalty, which is Rainbow Dash’s thing. Honesty is AJ. Pinkie’s got Laughter, obviously. Fluttershy, Kindness. Then Rarity’s got Generosity. Which leaves Magic as Princess Twilight’s, and maybe it might be tied to this world’s Twilight as well. I haven’t been able to conduct any tests on that front. Why do you ask?”

“Well I was just wondering,” Clover said while eyeing Sunset curiously, “What’s your Element?”

The question caught Sunset off guard, her own eyes just staring back dumbly at Clover for a second. Then she smiled with a light chuckle, “I don’t have one. I mean, it's clear the other girls are tied to them, but I’m not.”

“But you’ve been at the center of several instances of that Harmony magic, haven’t you? I know I wasn’t there, but I’ve read the reports from Captain Celestia. You literally turned into a glowing, angelic being of magic when you faced Twilight’s own uncontrolled magical form. How could you do that and not be tied to one of those Elements? Or tied to an Element you don’t know about?”

“Look, Clover, you’re reading way too much into what happened, okay?” Sunset said, getting oddly nervous. She wasn’t sure why, but talking about this left her feeling embarrassed and on edge. Maybe because somewhere, deep down, she’d been asking herself the same question, but had no way to find an answer. “I was just a... a channel for the power of my friends. That’s all. And there’s only the six Elements of Harmony. If there was a seventh, it’d have been found long before I came along. Besides, what would I be, the Element of Pride? Doesn’t sound quite right.”

“I was thinking more the Element of Unity, personally. You’ve got this talent for bringing people together. Speculation aside, the reason I ask is because it occurred to me that these Elements are all about ‘Harmony’ from what I understand, and if someone in your circle of friends is in a state of ‘disharmony’ wouldn’t that weaken all of you? Maybe that’s why you’re feeling so out of sorts about Twilight?”

“I think that’s looking for too complicated an explanation where a simpler answer is that I’m just worried about my friend,” Sunset said, shaking her head. It was a nice thought to think she had a deeper connection to the Elements that was cluing her in to some sort of issue with Twilight, but far more likely it was just that Sunset was just concerned, and possibly letting those concerns run wild without need. Yes it was clear something was eating at Twilight, but it didn’t have to be anything more complicated than just dealing with the fallout of experiencing a bloody battle.

“I imagine you’re right,” said Clover, but she still didn’t look convinced, and her eyes had a fascinated gleam in them, “I’m probably overthinking it, but then again I don’t really know that much about how the magic from your world works, Sunset. I was thinking that since we’re spending so much time training Kido together, maybe you’d teach me a bit about Equestrian magic?”

Sunset wasn’t opposed to the notion. It was true that she and Clover had been spending more time together, mutually working on refining their skill in the Soul Reaper art of Kido. Their skill levels were pretty far apart, still, with Clover being both talented with Kido and having a lot more experience with it than Sunset had, but Sunset’s drive to improve alongside the grueling training schedule she’d given herself was certainly help close that gap. On top of that, Clover was a patient and helpful instructor. It was easy to see why she’d spent so much time subbing for instructors at the Soul Reaper Academy. Seemed fair to repay the favor by sharing what knowledge Sunset could on Equestrian magic.

“I’d be happy to, although since you’re not a unicorn the best I can do is just explain magical theory and lore,” Sunset said, and Clover just smiled with an enthusiastic nod.

“That’s fine, I’m curious to learn what I can, even if its just the theories if not the practice. Besides, hasn’t it occurred to you that if I come with you and the girls to go after Starlight Glimmer in Equestria, I might end up as a unicorn while I’m over there? Might be handy to already have a foundation of spell knowledge if I end up with the appropriate anatomy to use it.”

That... was an exceedingly good point, and suddenly Sunset found herself imagining what Clover might look like as a unicorn. It was a surprisingly cute mental image, and Sunset found herself laughing, much to Clover’s chagrin.

“Hey, what’s so funny? I think I’d make an elegant looking unicorn.”

“I’m sure you would, I was just laughing because I remember how embarrassed you got over me changing my clothes. You do realize as a unicorn you’d probably be walking around naked most the time?”

With a startled look Clover quickly said, “I-I’d still have my Soul Reaper robes, wouldn’t i?”

“Which probably wouldn’t cover your rear.”

“How did this conversation turn towards that!?”

Sunset, stifling her chuckles, just held up a placating hand, “However it did, I needed the laugh. I’m so wound up over Twilight that I think I just needed a random change of subject to let the tension out.”

“Well, always glad to help a friend, although now I’m not so sure I’m eager to go to Equestria if it means I’m stuck showing my butt off to everyone I pass by,” Clover muttered, “How do you ponies deal with that?”

“What can I say? Our cultural norms are different. I’ve come to accept the benefits of pants, but just an FYI warning, when summer hits in full I’m probably going to have a much looser dress code in my own apartment, so knock before coming in unless you want an eyeful,” Sunset warned, and Clover reddened.

“Consider me warned. You know we probably should get going soon, if we’re going to get to Discord’s on time. I’d hate to actually make someone of Puddinghead’s prestige wait on me, especially since he’s doing me such a favor by coming out to the living world to teach me.”

“Fair enough, let’s get going then,” Sunset said, hopping off the couch and stretching, “I’m curious to see what your world’s Puddinghead is like.”

“I’m not sure why you’re so curious. Is he different according to Equestrian history?” Clover asked with wide-eyed honesty as she joined Sunset in heading out the front doors of the apartment and into a pleasantly warm spring evening.

“Eh... let’s just say that he’s considered to be somepony with a... unique personality, as far as Equestria’s history goes,” Sunset said, not wanting to pop Clover’s mental image of this supposed Kido ‘genius’. It was entirely possible Puddinghead was some kind of incredible Kido master in this world. Far be it for Sunset to pre-judge until she met the man herself.

As they hit the sidewalk and started to make their way to Discord’s shop, Sunset did found she felt a little better, having talked with Clover. She knew her other friends all shared similar worries about Twilight, but it was somehow a bit easier talking with Clover about it, possibly because Clover was a new enough addition to their group that Sunset felt like she could provide a fresher perspective on things. Besides, Sunset also felt a bit guilty that Clover was being kept out of the loop concerning why Twilight was here. Until Sunset had a chance to talk to Celestia directly she didn’t want to put Clover on the spot by talking about the situation with this Ember person. It wasn’t that Sunset wanted to keep it a secret, it would just put Clover in a tough spot if she knew about things and was asked to keep it a secret from her superiors too, at least until Sunset could explain things to Celestia.

Assuming she should do that. Should she do that? There was a kernel of doubt inside her on that front. She wanted to trust Celestia, to believe that the Soul Reaper Captain was someone who was firmly on the right side of things and was reasonable enough that she would at least hear Sunset out. After all, it made sense to see Ember freed, didn’t it?

Unless what if they really did need to experiment on an Arrancar to reopen the portal to Equestria? What if that turned out to be the only way to get there and stop Starlight?

Could Sunset afford to put all of Equestria at risk for the sake of one Hollow?

She had to clear her head and really think things through. There could be alternatives she hadn’t considered yet. On top of that her friends might also have ideas of their own. She needed to talk to them, and also get Celestia’s take on things. It was too soon to panic yet over a choice she might not have to make.

----------

When most people thought of forests the image was often of a relatively defined and limited area where trees grew freely and there might be some local wildlife. It wasn’t possible to really appreciate the shear size of some forests until one experienced them for oneself, and realized just how many countless square miles of untamed wilderness is actually still left in some parts of even the developed world.

The Everfree Forest was such a place. Mile upon mile of untouched, dense forest carpeted the landscape around Canterlot City, surrounding the mountain chain that spread both north and east of the city. Getting lost in that forest would be exceedingly easy for a normal person who wasn’t prepared, which was why ranger stations were situated with fair regularity around the forest’s borders and at key points within its interior. There were several locations specifically owned by private groups or families, leading to the occasional dirt road that spread through the extensive forest, leading to small cabins or the like.

The largest collection of buildings sitting upon the sea of wilderness was Camp Everfree, and the only real road leading into the Everfree Forest lead straight to the pristine campsite situated upon the shore of a sparkling clear lake.

Gloriosa had fallen in love with the camp, even as a kid, and hadn’t thought twice about taking over running the camp from her parents after they passed. Few things mattered to her more than preserving this wonderful place, and the idea of losing it was a thorn in her mind, ever pressing inward.

“Are you sure about what you saw, sis?” Timber Spruce asked. They were both standing on the end of the dock leading out into the lake, Gloriosa staring across the waters towards the opposite bank where she’d encountered the strangers who’d come out of the portal.

“Yes, Timber, I’m sure,” she said, eyebrow twitching in slight irritation, “Whoever they are, they’re connected to those... those monsters I’ve been seeing. Something is happening, and I mean to make sure it doesn’t affect the camp. We’re going to have a lot of guests soon, and I can’t afford anything to go wrong.”

Her brother gave her a pensive look, scratching the back of his head of twin shaded, pine green hair. He was younger than her by a few years, but tall and athletic, with skin somewhere between orange and tan. Few people knew the Everfree Forest as well as Gloriosa did, but she had to admit that her brother wasn’t far behind her, and if anyone could help her find problems in the forest, it was him. Really she didn’t have anyone else in her life she trusted. Or interacted much with, for that matter.

“Sis, I’m trying to see things from your point of view here, and I know you’re serious about what you’ve been seeing, but have you considered... talking to someone about the things you’ve been seeing?” Timber Spruce said in a halting and delicate tone. Gloriosa shot a sidelong look at him.

“I’m not crazy, Timber.”

“I know that, I’m not talking about a shrink. I’ve seen what those gems can do, so I know something way beyond normal is happening to you, but it is real. But there’s got to be someone who knows something about all of this! Somebody you can get help from.”

Gloriosa put her hands on her hips and faced her brother, “Who, Timber? Who’d know anything about this? It’s not as if I can just go the police. Or try looking things up at the library.”

With a frustrated sigh her brother put a hand to his head and looked away from her. Gloriosa felt a stab of guilt for her short tone with him. Her brother really was just worrying about her, and the camp. But it was frustrating that she could see the masked monsters and black robed people, but he couldn’t. It was even more frustrating that she didn’t understand what was happening around her camp, or where these mystical gems had come from.

“All I’m saying sis is that there has to be an explanation for what’s happening, and that until we figure that out maybe we, uh... shouldn’t have a bunch of high school kids coming out here?”

Her eyes flashed with stubborn light as she said firmly, “You know we can’t afford to turn away paying guests, Timber. The school’s already given me a deposit.”

“But if you think things are going to be dangerous-”

“We’re not turning the school down, and that’s final,” she said, and had the presence of mind to wince a bit at his hurt look. She quickly softened her tone and put a hand on his shoulder, “It’ll be okay, Timber. Trust me, I got this. I just need your help to keep things... normal around here, okay? The students will be here next weekend, and I want to make sure their time at Camp Everfree is as fun and memorable as possible. Whatever those strange creatures and people are doing out in our forest, I’ll make sure it doesn’t touch the camp. You focus on just being the best camp counselor you can be. I can’t count on you to do that, right?”

He still looked worried, but he did offer her a brief smile, “Of course you can. I’m serious, though, we should at least try to find out if something like this has happened before. You don’t mind if I do a bit of checking on my own, do you?”

“I suppose it can’t hurt, but what do you plan to do?”

“I’ll go into the city, maybe check the city archives. Has to be a record of it, if anything like this has happened before,” he paused, looking hesitant before adding, “Have you thought maybe this is connected to... you know... the legend?”

Gloriosa's eyebrow shot up, “You mean Gaia Everfree.”

“Yeah,” Timber said, clearly embarrassed, “I mean, you listened to those old stories as much as I did growing up, so you can’t tell me there isn’t at least a little similarity. She was a forest spirit with crazy nature powers, right? Those gems give you power over plants. Gaia was described as a pale being with black and yellow eyes and a barely human appearance. Isn’t that kinda similar to these masked creatures you’ve been seeing? Or at least a bit like those people you saw earlier today?”

She couldn’t discount what Timber was saying, not entirely. The legend of Gaia Everfree was such an old story, and one she’d heard about so much from her grandparents and parents, that Gloriosa had all but forgotten it. Yet Timber was correct that the gems did give her a connection to nature that was eerily similar to what the supposed forest spirit possessed. She also could see what he meant concerning the tales of Gaia Everfree’s appearance. She was usually described as something more primordial than person, with only a vague human appearance, a pale face with black pits for eyes, containing only small yellow pinpricks for pupils.

If one imagined the pale face as a pale mask instead, the similarity to the masked creatures she’d been seeing was almost spot on.

Rubbing her chin thoughtfully, she said, “Okay, go to the city and see what you can learn, just make sure you’re back before it gets dark. Those monsters seem to mostly come out at night.”

“Mostly,” he said, affecting a child-like, feminine tone, and she elbowed him with a smirk.

“Ha ha. Now get going, and keep your cell phone on you, in case anything happens.”

“Fine, fine. What will you be doing while I’m gone?”

Gloriosa’s eyes glanced back across the lake towards the opposite shore, narrowing dangerously, “Planting a few seeds...”

----------

A sense of surreal disconnect marked Adagio’s return to Canterlot City. She passed the streets filled with evening crowds of people enjoying the warm weather as they went about their daily business, and couldn’t have felt more apart from the scenery around her. Which was just as well that these humans couldn’t see or sense her. She really didn’t belong here anymore, assuming she ever did.

I’d always wanted to escape this world. In a way, I suppose I have.

She wasn’t moving too openly, and instead was using side alleys and crossing through buildings when she needed to. Being able to phase through solid mater in the living world was a handy trait, and one that Adagio found came as naturally as most of her Hollow abilities. She was making it a point to keep out of sight in case there were any Soul Reapers nearby. Adagio was making use of her Pesquisa to continuously sense around for any errant spiritual pressures, while also forcing her own reiatsu to as low a level as she could manage.

She knew it was risky coming into the city, but she needed to get the lay of the land, and didn’t want to leave this task to any of her subordinates, or Roka for that matter. Di Roy and Gaw would almost certainly get into trouble on their own, and Roka wasn’t familiar with the city at all. Best to let those three hold down the fort at the cave in the Everfree Forest they found. Di Roy and Gaw could check the forest to make sure the area around that Camp Everfree place was clear. That would keep them busy and out of trouble until Adagio returned.

She had a vague notion of where Sunset Shimmer lived, but the apartment looked empty when Adagio went by. That probably meant she was at Discord’s shop. Adagio considered checking out the high school, but that was too risky. No doubt there’d be a concentration of Soul Reapers there, watching the portal if nothing else. On top of that the last thing Adagio needed right now was to run into Celestia or her damn sister.

It was only a matter of time before Gilda would likely make a move, and Adagio would have to follow suit. She wanted as much information on the situation in town as possible before then.

So far her exploration had revealed that there was an unusual amount of stray Hollows of the lesser variety that kept cropping up around the city. Even as she moved between buildings in the downtown area she spotted at least half a dozen such strays, and had to duck into a small mini-mart to avoid being spotted as a familiar cloaked figure leaped from rooftop to rooftop, dispatching the strays with relative ease using an oblong cannon.

The regular human populace didn’t notice a thing, of course, and Screwloose went about her patrol, none the wiser that Adagio had been present and watching.

Hm, there’s one of Discord’s flunkies. The other one is probably out patrolling as well. I’d better be careful, otherwise-

“What’cha doing hiding behind the ice cream freezer, Adagio?”

“What the-!?” Adagio nearly swung her trident in a full arc before holding it just a scant centimeter from Screwball’s grinning face. The young, short pink girl with swirly eyes and even swirlier hair just ignored the trident that nearly took her head off and looked Adagio up and down without breaking her smile.

“Wowie, you’ve changed a lot. Or is it that you haven’t changed at all? You look the same, only more scantily dressed, and with a hole in your chest. Oh, right, Hollow. I heard about that. So sad. So what’re you doing sneaking around? Afraid the Soul Reapers’ll get you?”

Adagio didn’t immediately answer, focusing her Pesqusia upon Screwball with a deep frown. She just barely sensed the girl’s reiatsu, so heavily suppressed and cloaked it was a wonder she could sense even that much. Had the girl always been this good at keeping herself hidden? Then again, the last time Adagio was around either of Discord’s servants she hadn’t been in much of a position to know.

Taking a calming breath and composing herself, Adagio withdrew her trident and said, “As a matter of fact, yes, I’d rather avoid dealing with any Soul Reaper entanglements. I was on my way to your master’s shop and was trying to do so quietly, without raising any alarm. How did you spot me?”

“Oh don’t be silly, spotting things is what I do best. I always like to watch Screwloose’s back when she’s patrolling. Even with her out here busting Hollows, there’s always more of them. Weird, huh? You know anything about that?”

As a matter of fact, Adagio did. One of the perks of being an Espada meant she was in on most of Tirek’s strategic planning sessions. The increased Hollow activity wasn’t random. The lesser Hollows were being herded towards the world of the living, pushed out into numerous population centers, including Canterlot City. Tirek was trying to increase the pressure on both the Soul Reapers and Quincy in preparation for a larger move, although he hadn’t explained what that move would be.

Still, given he’d sent Adagio and Gilda to test Canterlot City’s defenses, among other things, she had her suspicions.

Her expression revealed none of her thoughts as she said in a flat tone, “If I do, its not something I’d be telling you. I do need to talk to your master, however, so perhaps you’d be willing to take me there? I was planning to just knock on his ward, but if you let me in that would make things easier.”

“Hmm,” Screwball tapped her chin, spinning around in place like a bored child, “It’s usually more fun to follow Screwloose as she blows things up. But there’s some neat people back at the shop too, so sure, I can take you there and watch the show unfold.”

“Wait, what people?” Adagio asked.

“Oh, you know, Soul Reapers. They’re usually so boring, but one of them is a real funny guy who really knows how to make things explode. I bet you’d like him. C’mon, let’s go.”

“On second thought, I can wait until Discord doesn’t have guests around...” Adagio sighed. Great, Soul Reapers visiting Discord. She could wait until they left, she supposed, but who knew how long that would take? She had quite a few questions for Discord, but they could wait for another time, she supposed. She eyed Screwball carefully. Could she trust this kid not to go blabbing about meeting her?

Briefly Adagio considered the possibility of silencing Screwball swiftly and decisively. One quick thrust of the trident, right through the heart, should be simple enough.

On the other hand, she did still need to stay on Discord’s good side, and indiscriminate murder was more her fellow Espada’s ballpark than her own. It wasn’t like Adagio cared if Screwball told Discord about her presence, just as long as it wasn’t brought up to any of the actual Soul Reapers still serving Soul Society.

Screwball was either far more perceptive than she looked, or could literally read minds, because the girl gave Adagio a devilish little smile and giggled, “Oh, you were thinking some rather nasty thoughts just now weren’t you? Don’t worry, I’m no tattle-tale.”

“I appreciate it. It’s fine if you let Discord know, but don’t tell anyone else.”

Screwball put a finger to her lips, “It’s fun keeping secrets. Discord does it all the time.”

I’ll just bet he does, Adagio thought, but kept it to herself and let Screwball skip on out of the store to continue following Screwloose on the woman’s patrol.

With that bit of distraction out of the way Adagio considered her next move. It was lucky she’d met Screwball, considering without it she’d have blundered right up to Discord’s shop and revealed herself to the Soul Reapers there. She could try back tomorrow. In the meantime her only other objective was to get in touch with Twilight and let her know that Adagio had arrived early, and that there was going to be a wrench tossed into their plans in the form of Gilda’s imminent arrival, plus the task Adagio herself had been given by Tirek.

Adagio dared not approach Twilight’s manor as it was likely well monitored and guarded by Quincy forces, but in case of an emergency Twilight had provided Adagio a means to contact her the last time they met for an information exchange. Slipping through the wall at the back of the mini-mart, Adagio stood in a darkened alley and pulled out a small device that had been slipped into the sash around her waist. It looked like a small, white plastic earbud that Adagio easily slipped into her right ear, pressing the small button on it. The communication device was built by Twilight, and designed to send an encoded signal to a similar device Twilight owned. It only had a short range, so it was only useful for situations where they were both in the same general area, such as the city, but more importantly it would be very difficult for anyone to pick up or trace its signal, allowing Adagio and Twilight to communicate without risk.

It took a minute for Twilight to respond, and when she did she sounded a tad breathless, “Adagio?”

“Who else would it be?” Adagio said with a snort, “Why do you sound out of breath?”

“Sorry, was working on an experiment when you called. Kind of draining to be doing multiple teleports in a row.”

“Are you clear to talk?”

“I am now. If you’re using the communicator, you must be in the city now. You were supposed to wait until I contacted you after confirming Ember’s location.”

“Plans have changed,” Adagio said, “Tirek seems to think his two shiny new Espada need further tests to prove our competence, so he’s sent me and Gilda here to probe the city’s defenses. We’re expected to get exact numbers on the Soul Reaper and Quincy presence.”

“That doesn’t sound too difficult, actually. As long as you maintain a low profile and just observe-”

“This is Gilda we’re talking about, Twilight. You fought her. Did she strike as as the ‘low profile’ type?”

Twilight made a ‘hmm’ noise over the line, “That’s an unfortunately good point. But she’s only the Tenth Espada now, and I’ve already beaten her once before. How much damage can she do?”

“Depends on how many Arrancar warriors Guto’s lent her to cause trouble with,” replied Adagio tersely, her voice deadly serious, “Also don’t underestimate Gilda just because you lucked out once in a fight with her. You had help, and she hadn’t used her Resseurccion. She’s not a lightweight.”

“I know that, but still, if she attacks she’s going to be facing at least one Soul Reaper Captain, that being Celestia, and from what I’ve heard there may be another Soul Reaper bigwig in town. On top of that, I’m not the only Sternritter here. Sombra sent Soarin’ to back me up in case I needed it.”

“Which might not help us as much as you think, when you consider that if you and this Soarin’ fellow decide to engage Gilda, there’s no telling if the Soul Reapers will attack you as well. Furthermore we can’t afford for you to get entangled fighting Gilda when what we need to do is find Ember and get her out from under the Soul Reaper’s noses. Going to be hard to do that if you’re busy fighting Gilda. Worse, it's going to look suspicious for me if Gilda makes a move and I don’t lift a finger to help her. Questions might be asked about what I was doing while she’s getting thrashed.”

A series of more grumbles and assorted ‘thinking’ noises emanated from Twilight’s end of the line, with her finally saying, “How long do we have before you think Gilda will do something stupid?”

“Depends on whether or not anyone with her has half a brain and can talk Gilda into trying to be stealthy, first. Even then, I’d say we have a week, at most. Way less if we’re unlucky. The only thing working in our favor is that Tirek didn’t give us a strict time frame to do this, so Gilda probably needs to puff up her courage before making a move.”

“Time’s short, either way,” Twilight said, “As soon as I can confirm where Ember is, we’ll need to act. Sunset and the girls have agreed to help.”

Adagio’s face gained a rough grimace, “I’m sure they have. Did you explain to them how much more complicated that could make things?”

“I did. You want to guess how they responded?”

“Love and friendship saves the day, right? Ugh, there’s no talking sense to that group. We’ll just have to plan around them. Suppose I ought to talk to Sunset...”

“You sound like you don’t want to,” Twilight pointed out, not really asking a question, but leaving her statement open for Adagio to elaborate. Adagio didn’t really feel like doing that. A part of her wanted to meet Sunset Shimmer again, if only to smugly show off how much stronger Adagio had become after saving those girls and her sisters from Grogar. At the same time she was uneasy about meeting Sunset, because before everything had happened with Grogar, Sunset had been reaching out to Adagio, trying to form something vaguely resembling a friendship. Adagio wasn’t sure she needed that conversation starting up again.

She had some mixed up, tangled feelings concerning Sunset Shimmer. It could prove distracting. But if Sunset and those other girls were determined to stick their noses into this business with Ember, it was inevitable that they’d have to meet up. Maybe it’d be better just to get that conversation over with, rather than wait for it to crop up at an awkward moment.

“I’ll get around to it. For now just find Ember. We’ll work out the rest after that.”

----------

The school had emptied of loud, rambunctious teenagers hours ago, and even late club and sports activities had long since ended for the day. Still, Celestia felt the need to do a thorough sweep of the school to make sure there were no stragglers around before she returned to her office. Once there, she went to her desk and sat down, casually reaching over to the bottom right drawer, where hidden underneath several stacks of disused old paperwork would be her trove of ‘exotic’ manga.

“Am I interrupting?”

Celestia didn’t jump, but she did close her eyes and let out a long sigh before turning around with a bright smile, not at all tinged with a hint of razor sharp consternation.

“Lulu! What an expected surprise! You’re not interrupting anything at all. I was just about to get some paperwork done.”

Luna finished stepping out of the shadow that had been clinging to one of the room’s corners and smirked at her sister. “Paperwork? Is that the euphemism you prefer?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m a respectable school principal who is dutiful in her work and certainly doesn’t take breaks at the end of her day to enjoy any light reading of questionable erotica. Anything you’ve heard to the contrary is lies and slander.”

The two looked at each other seriously for a moment, but only for a moment before both broke out into a short fit of laughter. Celestia stood and went over to embrace her sister, hugging Luna warmly. “It’s good to see you made it back safely, Luna.”

“Hueco Mundo holds few surprises for me anymore, sister.”

“Still, I read the reports. The fighting there was intense, even by the standards we’re used to. Its fortunate you weren’t caught. Really, Luna, sneaking into Las Noches was incredibly risky.”

Luna shrugged, breaking the embrace and going over to lean one hip against Celestia’s desk, “A calculated and necessary risk. We needed a test subject for Starswirl’s work. I acquired one.” A small, sardonic and bitter smile touched her lips as she raised a hand and traced a finger along the new scar she wore over one eye now. “Not the target I was originally after, but better than nothing. I also ran into a familiar face.”

Celestia frowned at the scar. She knew her sister wouldn’t have it on any gigai she wore, so the students would’t have anything to question. For the moment ‘Vice Principal’ Luna was on vacation anyway.

“I’m surprised you’ve kept the scar. It’d be easy to remove.”

“Oh no, I intend to keep this as a reminder for the time being. At least until I face the one who gave it to me again.”

“Do you really hold a grudge against Adagio Dazzle for trying to protect her comrade?”

Luna shook her head, “Not at all. This isn’t a grudge, Tia. It’s simply that I know Adagio Dazzle will be coming for the girl we took, and I intend to respect her as a warrior. I won’t remove the scar she gave me until we settle our match properly. It’s as simple as that.”

“Are you so sure she’ll be coming?” asked Celestia, taking her seat at the desk once more. “Without even knowing where her comrade was taken?”

Luna gave off a dismissive huff, “Adagio is no fool. It takes no great mind to guess she might come here, seeking that very information if nothing else. I’d be shocked if she wasn’t already in or near the city.”

Celestia couldn’t think of anything that would gainsay Luna’s speculation, and she fond herself rubbing her chin in thought. “Is that why you came back?”

“Captain Commander Scorpan agrees with my assessment and allowed me to be temporarily stationed here once more, at least until the experiments get off the ground,” Luna said, “Starswirl came through the Senkaimon with me, and is waiting for you with the prisoner.”

Celestia stood up quickly, “Then we don’t have time to waste. We need to finish moving the research site tonight.”

“Have you told the girls yet?” Luna asked pointedly.

“I was going to tomorrow morning, after we’d finished arranging everything,” Celestia replied quietly, “If I’m being honest with you, Luna, I’m not sure how well they’ll react.”

“Why would they have a problem with it? They want the portal to Equestria opened as much as we do.”

Celestia offered a kind if somewhat saddened smile to her sister, “You forget, they don’t have the long history we do with the Hollows. When they look at the prisoner they’re not going to see a twisted, wayward soul like we’ve been trained to our whole lives. They’ll see a girl, just like themselves. Do you honestly believe, knowing those girls like we do, that they won’t have objections?”

Luna’s eyes grew thoughtful, but also hard, “Hmm, you may be right, but I don’t see any other way for us to proceed with finding a way through the portal. Sometimes unpleasant things are necessary to achieve a greater good, and perhaps it's time those girls learned that particular lesson.”

“Maybe...” Celestia said, but in her mind and heart she didn’t believe it was going to be quite so simple.

----------

Tingling across her senses, Twilight wove the magic through the Hexenfaust, following the gentle (and sometimes not so gentle) nudges from Midnight in her mind that showed her the correct ways to interweave the magical forces coursing through her. There was a growing strain and pain within her as well, like a rubber band being stretched tight. She’d been at this for several hours after returning to the manor after her get together with her friends, and Twilight wasn’t certain if it was the strain of continuous magic use or just her disquiet mind that was causing her so much trouble.

“Readings are steady but I’m getting a lot of fluctuation within the reishi particles in your vicinity, Twilight,” said Sunny Flare. She was standing at a small fold-out table situated out in the field behind Twilight’s family manor, a computer set up on it that was in turn hooked up to a set of large, dish-shaped devices that Twilight had constructed to provide readings for this particular test.

Nearby the other girls were watching the experiment, all of them standing a good distance away for safety reasons. Well, most of them were standing. Indigo Zap was sitting in a wheelchair, her two prosthetic plastic and metal legs not up to the challenge of regular movement yet. The stray thought only made it harder for Twilight to focus, and Midnight spoke harshly in her mind.

If you can’t get it out of your head, then we might as well stop now. Your magic is tied to your emotions, and if your emotions are jumping all over the place then the spell won’t come together.

Twilight’s face hardened into an iron cast and she forcibly pushed down her guilt, instead letting the magic and her desire to make it work surge upwards, gripping onto the flame of anger ot help fuel her focus, and Midnight’s voice changed to an approving coo.

Better. Its easy when you’re fresh and rested, but it gets harder when you’ve been doing this for hours. The more magic you use, the more emotional investment is demanded to keep it focused and controlled.

“Readings are growing steady. You alright out there, Twilight?” asked Sunny Flare.

“I’m fine! Keep an eye on the readings and pay particular attention to the distribution of reishi when I teleport. I’m going to commence the firing test. Sugarcoat, are the target scanners ready?”

“They are. Fire away, Twilight,” said Sugarcoat, holding a portable version of the larger dish shaped scanners, aiming it at a series of targets set up about fifty yards away.

Twilight nodded firmly and lifted her bow, channeling magic and reishi through it to form a blazing teal arrow. She let the arrow lose, and at the same moment focused upon weaving the magic of the spell around the arrow. There was a static flash and sizzling pop of violet colored magic, and the arrow teleported. It appeared above one of the targets, losing none of its momentum as its trajectory was instantly altered and it slammed down onto one of the targets. The pain increased in Twilight’s head as she strained to continue weaving the spell energy flowing through her, firing more arrows.

Several more flashes of eldritch light filled the field, darkened with late evening, and one by one half a dozen arrows were teleported to different locations, smashing apart circular targets in small explosion of teal flame.

Sweat running down her face, Twilight gasped and leaned down, hands on her knees.

“How... how are the readings?

Sugarcoat checked her scanner, face unreadable behind her visor, “We’re sitting around forty eight percent stability between the reishi particles and the magic particles. Seems like we can’t push it much higher than fifty percent or so, even when you’re fresh.”

“The way the two energy signatures are interacting here suggests to me that we’re dealing with some kind of friction between the two,” Sunny Flare put in, hands flying over the keyboard on her computer, “I mean, there’s a lot of waste energy flaring off of each spell you cast. Not sure what causes it.”

“Okay, one more set...” Twilight said, getting her breathing under control with a few deep breaths, but Sugarcoat spoke up.

“Its almost fully dark, Twilight. I doubt we’ll get any better readings for today. Why don’t we pack it in and go over the data inside?”

Twilight frowned, but after a moment’s consideration, seeing that the other girls looked fairly tired, she nodded in agreement. They’d all been up since before first light that morning, so perhaps it was time to take a break. After getting that call from Adagio she could use some time to think things over anyway.

“Alright, we’ll resume this tomorrow morning.”

As her fellow Quincy let out varying degrees of sighs of relief, Lemon Zest grinning and quickly delving into talking about what they’d have for dinner, Twilight sensed a presence approaching and looked over just in time to see her family’s butler, Robert, appear a respectful distance away, bowing.

“Madam Twilight,” he said, nodding his head to her. Robert was an elderly man with well groomed, snowy white hair, and a well trimmed moustache that reminded Twilight of a certain chicken fast-food chain’s founder. He wore simple glasses and a black butler’s outfit, a uniform that she’d never seen the man out of in all the years she’d known him. Robert had been her family’s butler since as far back as Twilight could remember, which made a certain sense, given she’d also recently learned that Robert directly served her father. Twilight had kept her inquiries impersonal, but now that she was a Sternritter, she’d had access to files she couldn’t obtain otherwise. Apparently Robert had once been a Sternritter as well, but had abdicated the position after making use of the Letzt Stil transformation in defense of her father during a battle long ago. Since this was prior to the development of Vollstandig, the use of Letzt Stil had burned out Robert’s Quincy powers. Now he was just a butler, with only a small fragment of leftover of his original Quincy abilities.

His capacity to just appear out of nowhere Twilight was willing to attribute to Robert merely being good at his job as a butler, which seemed to entail always being in the right place at the right time to serve the family’s needs.

“Robert, what is it?” she asked, holding up a hand for her friends to keep going into the mansion and not wait up for her.

“I was asked to deliver you a message, Madam. It arrived just minutes ago from the Rich Foundation.”

Twilight’s eyebrows shot up as she accepted the letter Robert held out, and he went on to say, “Both myself and Sir Soarin have examined the envelope to ensure no trickery is afoot.”

A good thing, too, as Twilight reached for the envelope with a pensive hand. The Rich Foundation? As in the Rich family. Filthy Rich, and his wife Spoiled Rich. Twilight gulped. The investigation into the identity of the assassin trying to take her life had not yet yielded anything conclusive, but it had been progressing. The list of individuals who’d made use of the disposal facility for the uniform she’d tagged with the tracer was now known to her, and those individuals were being monitored.

Including Filthy Rich and Spoiled Rich. That, in and of itself, was not proof of anything. The fact Spoiled Rich was the soldat in charge of Twilight’s platoon was suspicious, but not conclusive, especially considering Spoiled Rich did have several other soldats that could confirm she’d been engaged fighting Arrancar warriors during the time Twilight had been fighting the assassin. Filthy Rich also had a similar alibi, confirming he’d spent the entire time maintaining the front line bastion he’d created with his Mason Schrift. So there was nothing pinning proof to either of them, but both were being watched.

But what could they want with her? If they were the ones trying to kill her, this couldn’t be good. If they weren’t, it was a distraction from her research she didn’t need. Taking a deep breath, she opened the envelope and examined the contents.

As she scanned the words on the letter within, she found herself asking, “Camp Everfree? What’s that?”

Episode 88: Unseen Pressures

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Episode 88: Unseen Pressures

Briefly Twilight went over what she’d been able to learn about the Rich family, mulling the information over in her mind as the sleek limousine pulled up in front of what was perhaps the tallest of the buildings in downtown Canterlot City. Twilight had never given the tall edifice and glass and steel much thought before, even though she knew academically that it was the corporate office for Rich-Mart, one of the countries largest retailers. And land owners. And pharmaceutical manufacturers. And Twilight was pretty sure they had their fingers dipped into some medical research foundations as well.

Cross-Tech was the primary business front for most Quincy monetary ventures, but individual families like the Rich’s were financial powerhouses in their own right. It was the same with the McColts and Hooffields. It boggled even Twilight’s mind just how much money the various Quincy families, especially the old ones, controlled. It surpassed the wealth of many nations, even first world ones. A rather unsettling thought, but at least she understood that the money was less about a conspiracy to control the world and more something that was funneled into a ongoing, multi-century long war effort.

...Actually that didn’t make it much better, but perhaps if she could end the war then all the wealth and power of the Quincy could be used for bettering the world instead of just fighting.

As for what else she knew about the Rich family, it wasn’t very much. She knew Filthy Rich and his wife Spoiled had a daughter, Diamond Tiara, that went to school at Canterlot High. Which struck her as highly unusual. Why wasn’t Diamond Tiara at Crystal Prep? Wouldn’t that make sense for the daughter of a high profile Quincy family, especially if her father was a Sternritter? Twilight knew Filthy Rich was a very active and ‘hands on’ businessman, as just about every scrap of information on the company made a point of showing just how much effort he spent making public appearances and taking a direct approach to influencing city politics. It was pretty heavily rumored he’d run for mayor at some point.

Her own father did do business with Filthy Rich, since both her family and the Rich’s owned quite a bit of local real estate. In fact it was both of their families that funded a lot of the parks and recreational facilities in the nearby Whitetail Woods and Everfree Forest. Which seemed to be the crux of Filthy Rich’s letter. With Twilight’s father across the country dealing with the McColt and Hoffield feud, and Shining Armor on assignment guarding the Hueco Mundo Silburn, that left Twilight as the remaining member of her family in easy reach for discussing business. Apparently since she was now a Sternritter, Filthy Rich considered her an equal and worth at least passing along a business venture idea to her father.

As to what the venture entailed, Filthy Rich had only said it involved a piece of land Twilight’s family technically owned. Technically, because the land had been on lease to another family for several generations now, and it was entirely possible someone along the lines had forgotten who actually owned the land. As it stood, the land itself was mostly empty, except for a certain nature camp that had been established there some time ago.

“This is suspicious as all get out,” Soarin said as the limousine came to a stop. Like Twilight he was in ‘civilian’ garb, consisting of a deep blue business suit and slacks that just did not work at all with the man’s more easy going features. Soarin looked distinctly uncomfortable, and probably not just because of the out of place clothes he was wearing.

“It is, but at the same time I can’t really ignore Filthy Rich’s letter either,” Twilight said, smoothing out the gray skirt she was wearing along with a similarly colored suit blouse. Her ‘business’ attire wasn’t something she’d ever really worn before, and only owned it for those occasions her parents had taken her and Shining out to dinners at upscale restaurants. She wondered how many of those instances had been Quincy business in disguise.

“At least you were smart enough to bring me along,” Soarin replied, stepping out and offering Twilight a hand, which she took gratefully. High heels were part of the ensemble, but she felt incredibly awkward wearing them. She wasn’t about to trip, but just getting out of the limo was an annoyance.

“On the off chance Filthy Rich is the one trying to kill me, I imagined having another Sternritter around might be the best deterrent. Although I’m worried about leaving the others alone...”

“Don’t worry too much. You might not know this, but your house is kind of a fortress in and of itself. Your brother knows wards better than anyone I know, and I’d feel sorry for anyone trying to bust their way into your home uninvited,” Soarin said, his voice carrying a strong tone of admiration that got Twilight glancing sidelong at him as they walked up to the skyscraper’s main entrance.

“Do you know my brother well?”

“Not super well, nah. Me and him were at the Academy, trained together at the same time. But we both had our own circles, even back then. I respect the dude, though. His Bastion has saved many a Quincy's butt, including mine. I consider it a privilege to pay some of that back by keeping an eye on his little sis.”

She offered him a swift smile of thanks before they went through the doors, “I appreciate it.”

Once inside Twilight found herself looking at an almost beat-for-beat stereotype of corporate life. Everything was utilitarian in design and furnishing, yet glazed over with a gloss of silvery modernness that felt faintly surreal. A bored looking secretary with wide red rimmed glasses and a swirl of done up blonde hair greeted them from behind a black desk about twice as large as it needed to be. As soon as Twilight mentioned her name the secretary lady blinked in surprise and very hastily made a call, just as swiftly sending her and Soarin to the ‘executive’ elevator that apparently went straight to the top floor suite.

On the ride up, Twilight wondered if she could survive it if the elevator suddenly gave out and plummeted back down to ground level.

Probably. Blut Vene alone would absorb most of the impact, and that was if she didn’t just try teleporting away.

Conversely they could have planted explosives in the elevator. Something strong enough to wipe out half the floor, and me along with it..

The sour thought was dismissed as fast as it had come. Twilight didn’t want to be that cynical yet. If the assassin was connected to Filthy Rich, or was him, attacking her here would be idiotic, as it’d just paint him with more suspicious. Now, if the assassin wasn’t him, and the real culprit wanted to pin it on Filthy Rich-

“Stop it, Twilight,” she muttered, and Soarin glanced at her.

“You alright?”

“Oh, um, its nothing. Just thinking aloud,” she coughed, looking away. She was talking to herself. Not a good sign.

The elevator ride was rather short, given the size of the building, and it opened up into the polar opposite of the spartan, simple design of the front lobby. The room was warm and luxuriously appointed. Thick, dark carpeted filled a wide, square room. The wall to the right was filled with a clear window that gave a spectacular view of the city below, thickly bathed in the approaching sunset light. The left wall was lined with glass cases, some low and long, some tall and square, each containing seemingly random artifacts that intrigued Twilight. She saw everything from old weapons to scraps of pages that could be from any number of old books or scrolls. Most of what she saw looked like they certainly belonged in a museum, rather than the office suite of a real estate tycoon.

There was a huge desk at the back of the room, but more prominent was a table taking up a large portion of the room’s center area. Upon this table was a scale model of the city and much of the surrounding area, and as Twilight approached it she was amazed by the detail put into the model. It was accurate, down to the street lamps and bushes on the sidewalks. She couldn’t imagine how much time it took to make a model with such exacting detail.

“I see you admire quality craftsmanship, Miss Sparkle.”

Filthy Rich sat at his desk, but stood up with a smooth and easy motion and approached her and Soarin with a friendly smile. He had on a navy blue business suit that was brighter in color than the one Soarin wore, and had a finer cut to it that Twilight imagined made it worth more than most people’s entire wardrobes. She searched his eyes, wondering if this was a man capable of seeking her death. Unfortunately she couldn't see anything there other than a simple friendliness, mixed with a deeper sense of calculation.

“It is impressive,” she said, nodding to the model, “Did you build it yourself?”

There was a hint of a sad frown on his face, which passed almost instantly, “Only the most recent additions, I’m afraid. My grandfather started this project when the family acquired its first holdings in the city, then my dear old dad did the lion’s share of the rest. I was just a kid when he put the last touches on it. Most of what I’ve done is keep it up to date over the years.”

“Does it serve a purpose, or is it just a hobby?” Twilight inquired, resisting the urge to reach out the touch the model.

There was a wry twist to his lips, “Granddad was a big believer in keeping an eye on his holdings. The model is tied to the Quincy crosses my family and I carry, so in case of emergency they can be tracked anywhere in the city.”

As proof of this he made a slight gesture at the model, sending out a mote of blue reishi that lit upon the model's surface. The moment it did, a trio of soft blue lights shot up like miniature pillars. One of them was inside the tower. Another was within a large, elaborate mansion around the same part of town Twilight’s family kept their manor in. A third was in the downtown area, at one of the malls.

“Looks like my little girl is still out with her friend Silver Spoon,” Filthy Rich noted, nodding his head with a fatherly smile, “Those two have always been thick as thieves. And as you can see, my darling wife is at home.”

“Handy,” Soarin said, “I didn’t think your kid was clued in to the Quincy yet.”

It was impossible to miss the discomfort that hit Filthy’s eyes for a moment, and the hesitance in his voice, “She hasn’t been. I gave her the cross as a birthday present, but she doesn’t know what it is yet. Not rightly sure I want her knowing until she’s a fair bit older.”

That brought up unpleasant memories for Twilight, and after a moment’s thought she said, “Is that why she’s at Canterlot High instead of Crystal Prep? To avoid too much possibility of her stumbling across the truth?”

Filthy Rich was silent for a long, heavy moment before he said, “I wanted to give Diamond Tiara a chance to be a normal girl before laying out the truth for her. Spoiled disapproves, but I just feel my little girl deserves to enjoy a real childhood for awhile. When she turns eighteen, I’ll tell her everything then.”

Twilight hesitated a moment herself before saying, “I understand, but as a word of advice, coming from someone who was in the same position as your daughter not so long ago... the truth should probably come sooner rather than later. The longer you keep the truth from her, the more trouble she’ll have accepting it.”

He looked at her solidly for a moment, then glanced away with a sight, “Yes, well, I didn’t ask you here to talk about my family. Please, Miss Sparkle, have a seat. You too Soarin. I’m not surprised you came along. I understand Miss Sparkle is still under threat. Terrible business with that assassin.”

“Don’t worry, they’ll be caught, sooner or later,” Soarin said as he and Twilight followed Filthy Rich to a set of large leather chairs set before his desk. Once they were all seated, Twilight placed her hands on her lap and eyed Filthy Rich carefully. His body language was relaxed, and gave no indication that he was nervous or tense. Was he really not connected to the attempt on her life or was he just a good actor?

“So, what exactly is it you wanted to talk to me about?” she asked.

Filthy Rich propped his elbows on his desk, hands laced together in front of him as he wore an easy smile.

“It’s all fairly simple. There’s a plot of land out in the Everfree Forest that your family owns, Miss Sparkle. My family also owns land out there, bordering the territory owned by your own. On that land is a certain Camp Everfree. Nice place, very scenic. The camp is mostly used by kids over the summer or spring, but it hasn’t turned much profit lately and has been in some financial trouble. More importantly, its extremely well isolated while being almost perfectly self sufficient and well appointed for housing well over a hundred guests at once.”

Twilight glanced back at the model. At the very edges of it, deep in the modeled trees and mountain slopes of the Everfree Forest, she saw a modeled lake with a handful of a dozen or so buildings clustered along the shore of the lake.

“I follow you so far. Why is this important?”

“I have a proposal,” Filthy Rich said, his eyes glittering with a sharp business savvy, “I know you have the ear of His Majesty, and this idea of mine I think may prove fruitful for us, given recent events. Even with the Espada responsible for breaching the Academy wards being dead, we have no guarantee something similar can’t happen again. So I believe we should move our training grounds. I want to use Camp Everfree as the site for this new training area. All I need is for your family to be willing to trade the territory to mine so I can use that as leverage to get the owners of Camp Everfree to sell out to me, then we have a training site that’s already equipped to house the next generation of cadets.”

Twilight took a second to wrap her head around the proposal, exchanging a look with Soarin, who shrugged at her with a bemused look. She turned back to Filthy Rich, her mind buzzing with questions.

“That’s an interesting idea, but wouldn’t having our training camp there be even more dangerous? Canterlot City is a hotbed of Hollow and Soul Reaper activity, due to the portal located at the high school. How would they react to the Quincy setting up a training came in the Everfree Forest?”

Filth Rich’s smile deepened, “But that’s the beauty of it, Miss Sparkle. Because both the Hollows and Soul Reapers maintain a strong presence in the city, they act as guard dogs against one another. We already have Crystal Prep right in the city, which has been a staging area for educating Quincy youth for generations, and the school has remained safe specifically because neither the Hollows or Soul Reapers can afford to attack while the other faction watches. I merely propose that we use Camp Everfree as an extension of Crystal Prep’s purpose. It’d be a lot more efficient than shipping them overseas to the Silburn castle in Europe.”

After a second of considering, Twilight realized Filthy Rich’s words did make a fair amount of sense. If the Hollows wanted to attack Camp Everfree then they’d not only be dealing with Quincy defenders, but also it was likely it’d provoke a response from the Soul Reapers, and vice versa. Having a training camp so close to the city might actually be safer than one near the Silburn.

“Hmm, I see what you mean, but still, I don’t know if I can make any land deals on my own. Father is still the head of the house, so anything like this would have to go through him.”

“I understand, but since you’re the only one here I can talk to, I thought it’d be best to run the idea by you and then if you thought it an equitable arrangement, you could contact Night Light about it. He’s busy with that McColt and Hooffield fiasco, but I’m sure a quick call and a good word from you would smooth everything over. Including if you spoke with His Majesty to get his approval for the idea... perhaps mention who the idea came from?”

Ah, so it was as much a matter of getting on Sombra’s good side and earning some prestige as ensuring the safety of future cadets. Twilight had expected there to be something political in here, but even if she didn’t care at all about the Rich family’s prestige, one way or the other, she couldn’t say it still wasn’t a half-bad idea. She couldn’t see any harm in asking her dad about it at any rate, and run the notion by Sombra.

“We’ll have to work out the details, but I don’t see a reason not to offer a hand of cooperation, one Sternritter to another,” she said, giving a pointed reminder that her status was equal to his own. Filthy Rich didn’t seem to mind said reminder and gave her a friendly nod, extending a hand to her over the desk.

“Well then, Miss Sparkle, one Sternritter to another, it’s a pleasure doing business with you.”

----------

There weren’t many times in Sunset’s life where she could claim to be genuinely fearful for herself or others. Most of those times were from the recent series of battles her life had become, facing down the likes of Captain Platinum or Starlight Glimmer.

Now she could add standing in the same room as Puddinghead, Chief of the Kido Corps, to that list.

The training area shook like an earthquake as explosions of every shape, color, and size rocked the vast and rocky terrain underneath Discord’s shop. Sunset shielded her face with one hand, her hair being blown about by the shockwaves and backwash of air pressure emanating from the continuous storm of Kido spells that were flying across the landscape. The spells were only loosely being “aimed”, as if their caster considered the idea of having to aim beneath his notice. This was concerning enough, as Sunset had needed to dodge a few errant Kido spells already, but she was doubly fearful for Clover’s safety, as she was the intended target of the furious spellstorm.

“Are you dodging or dancing out there, apprentice!? I’m waiting for you to throw something back at me already!”

The words were taken between breaths, and Puddinghead immediately resumed chanting Kido incantations, speaking so fast that it was hard to keep up with each spell he was flinging out. He was skipping most of the incantations, only invoking names, and saying them with such fluid speed that one word flowed right into another.

He wasn’t a tall man, but he was a wide one. Lime green skin gave stark contrast to a frizzed head of swirl shaped, bright pink hair, streaked with periwinkle blue strands. He had a rotund shape and square features, his body bundled up in a highly unusual robe and coat that had a wide, circular collar that framed his head. The clothes were still of the contrasting black and white most Soul Reapers wore, but he added splashes of blue and gold around the edges, and in diamond patterns along the arms and sides of the robe. Instead of a Zanpaktou he carried a tall golden staff, tipped with a circle that held several metal rings that clinked and clamored with every gesture he made. His free hand remained pointed outward to where Clover continue to struggle to defend against his spells.

Clover herself was barely visible through the smoke and dust of the spells impacting around her. A barely tangible barrier, like a pane of glass, had been erected between her and Puddinghead, a high level Bakudo spell called “Danku”. But even with the defensive Kido, Clover had to keep moving to dodge larger blasts, or any Kido who’s energies were designed to wrap around defenses or attack from unusual angles.

This had been going on for over an hour now, and Sunset was noticing Clover’s reiatsu was flagging. She’d been purely on the defensive since the training had begun, and it was clear it was all Clover could do to keep defending herself, let alone mount a counter attack.

Yet after catching a glimpse of Clover’s face, Sunset could see the other girl was grinning from ear to ear. Clover looked positively exhilarated as she flung her own arm out, ducking around the defensive barrier of her Danku, and sent the curling bolt of a Byakurai firing towards Puddinghead.

“Fast and easy. I concocted the Byakurai for shooting down squirrels that kept trying to steal my baked peanuts! Try again, apprentice!” Puddinghead scoffed, twirling his staff and generating a small disc of yellow energy at its end to block the spell, then immediately returned fire with the incredibly potent and loud crack of lightning from a Raikoho that he threw with casual ease.

Even as Clover threw herself to the side, barely dodging the spell, she shouted, “Of course, sir! I’ll do even better, sir, just you wait!”

Sunset frowned, caught between worry and a certain level of pride for Clover, who really did seem to be enjoying herself.

Beside her, Discord leaned on his cane and chuckled under his breath.

“Puddinghead’s training style hasn’t changed much over the years. If Clover keeps up, she’ll learn more doing this than spending months training on her own. Assuming Puddinghead doesn’t blow her up by mistake.” A flaming red Shakkaho bolt flew overhead, exploding somewhere behind them, “Or on purpose.”

“Isn’t he supposed to be teaching her high level Kido?” Sunset asked, “Level ninety ones or something?”

Discord winked at her, “Of course he is. Puddinghead isn’t going to waste his time with an amateur, and he isn’t going to let Clover fry herself with a spell she can’t handle. What do you think he’s trying to accomplish with his current method?”

“Other than possibly explode my friend?” Sunset quipped, but put a bit of thought into it, speaking her thoughts aloud as she mulled it over, “I suppose this is giving him a clear idea of what Clover can do currently.”

“Mmmhmm... go on,” Discord prompted, clearly wanting Sunset to work it out herself. She couldn't help but give him a bit of a sassy, sidelong look. Even now, he was still the teacher, even if he was being a tad annoying about it.

“Well, Kido spells do take a lot of spiritual energy. Clover’s pretty tired, but she’s been at this for awhile too and is still going. I’m willing to bet anything that’s level ninety or higher probably takes up a huge amount of energy to cast. Puddinghead is likely trying to tell how strong her reserves are, and pushing them even further. It’s so she can cast a level ninety Kido without being totally drained by it.”

Discord gave an approving nod, tapping his cane to his head, “Good thinking. You’re quite right. Our resident self-proclaimed master of Kido wouldn’t even be able to teach Clover if she can’t handle the drain such a high level Kido entails. A few days of this and she’ll be in tip-top shape, and then assuming she hasn’t gotten accidentally crispified he’ll start in with the real training. Speaking of which, we ought to get started ourselves.”

When she and Clover had arrived at Discord’s shop, they’d met up with the other girls and Ditzy Doo. Ditzy had been largely absent since the return from Soul Society, but she’d apparently just gotten back to town after finishing what she claimed was “personal business”. Now she and Sunset’s other friends were off training on their own back at the same mountainside that they had trained at before. It made sense to Sunset to separate the training like this, mostly because they’d all become so strong that training all together in one area was a bit problematic in terms of collateral damage. That said, she and Discord both agreed that she and her friends still needed to train together in group tactics, so there were plans in the works to do training sessions with everyone together at least once a week.

But today wasn’t one of those days. With the girls off at the mountains with Ditzy, and Clover getting put through the paces by Puddinghead, she and Discord pretty much had the rest of the training area to themselves. Even Screwloose and Screwball were often out on patrols, so Sunset hadn’t seen much of them either, except for the times Discord’s two assistants threw together a lunch or dinner after a hard training session.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Sunset said to Discord, “I just wish I felt like this training was doing some good.”

As the pair left Clover and Puddinghead to their own devices and started making towards a larger, empty patch of the training area for themselves, Discord wore a half-smirk, his eyes flashing with dry amusement.

“You’re a talented girl, Sunset Shimmer, but you really do need to stop putting the weight of the world on your shoulders. You achieved Bankai at an accelerated pace that the vast majority of Soul Reapers can only dream of. Don’t get frustrated now that you have to work a bit harder to refine that power further. It took even most of the current Captains years of training to properly control Bankai.”

A soft growl rushed up from Sunset’s throat, her steps growing a shade harder, “Is Starlight Glimmer going to give me years to train? Is Chrysalis? Or Grogar? Or Tirek?”

“No, which is why I’m working on my own creative solutions to the problem of the present power gap between you, your friends, and the enemies that remain to be faced. In the meantime, however, training is the only option available. It is helping, even if you can’t fully see the ways in which it’s helping.”

With a slow breath, letting it back out again with a calming gesture she’d been shown once by Princess Twilight, Sunset tried to get her frustration under control. “Sorry to get snippy at you. Just worried that no matter how hard we train, it won’t be enough.”

Reaching the wide, relatively flat area of ground about a football field in length where they’ve been having their sparring matches, the pair moved into position to square off. Sunset drew her Zanpaktou and took comfort in the familiar, warm weight in her hand. She could feel the steady, calming pulse of power between her and Hokori no Hikari. It was a good balm to the cold worry that had been creeping over her, both from concerns of Starlight Glimmer’s threat to her home realm, and the recent worries about Twilight and Adagio.

She hadn’t told Discord about the situation with Ember yet. She hadn’t wanted to risk bringing it up while Puddinghead was nearby, and might overhear. Better to wait until training was done. Unlike with Celestia there was next to no risk that Discord would spill the beans, and he might have a means to help. If things went well with that conversation, she’d consider going to Celestia as well.

“Something other than training is on your mind,” Discord said, and Sunset blinked, feeling the cold steel of his Zanpaktou on her throat. He’d crossed the distance to her in less than an eyeblink and stood with his cane exposing the blade within. “Want to talk about it? If you’re not focused then there’s not much point to us trading blows.”

Sunset flinched, but then a bright smirk lit her face and she snapped her Zanpaktou up in a flash, deflecting Discord’s blade and she instantly Flash Stepped behind him, instantly going on the offensive. He moved with liquid grace, bending as if his spine was made of taffy, his hat managing to stay perfectly poised on his head as he ducked her blow and spun around, slashing. Once again their Zanpaktou clashed, sparks flying as they went skidding away form each other, both wearing smiles.

“I do have something I need to talk to you about, but it can wait until we’re done here,” Sunset said, flicking her eyes towards the now distant echoing booms where Puddinghead was training Clover. “Once our guest has left for the day.”

Discord raised a bushy white eyebrow, but nodded in understanding, “Say no more. Let’s get started.”

He spun his sword can lazily in his hands, and the gnarled wood shimmered as the blade itself flowed with a river of painfully shifting hues of light. ”Rip through all boundaries, Konran Arashi.”

Sunset responded in kind, releasing her own Zanpaktou, ”Ignite, Hokori no Hikari.”

As they faced each other, Discord in a relaxed stance, Sunset more tense and ready to jump into the fray, she asked a question that’d been bouncing around her mind, “So we’re training my skill with my Bankai, but why don’t you use your Bankai? You’ve got one I assume?”

A glitter of amusement played across Discord’s eyes, “I do, and I’m afraid you’ll have to keep wondering about it. My Bankai is unfortunately ill suited for training. One thing I share with Celestia is that neither of us can really afford to have friends or allies close by when we use our full power.”

“But you could just tell me what your Bankai does,” Sunset said, and Discord responded with a snaggle toothed grin.

“I could, but I’m not.”

“Hmm... how about if I win this match?”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Fair enough,” Sunset responded, her blade and shield becoming wreathed in a thick aura of deep, fiery orange and red light that extended to her whole body. Her training had helped her control the energy outburst from this, so she didn’t drill a hole through the ceiling every time she did it.

”Bankai.”

Still, training or not, it was impossibly to fully control the swell of spiritual energy or the pillar of flames that roared out of her as she transformed into her Bankai state, the red and gold armor shaping around her body in a wave of flames as Hokori transmuted into its larger flamberge form and Hiarki flowed in a wash of white and gold light into the gleaming phoenix shield. Sunset’s heart still raced with the incredible feeling of warmth and pulsing hot power that lit her veins afire with activating her Bankai.

Discord wore a look of approval as he held up the scintillating gleam of his own Zanpaktou in a ready stance, “Your reiatsu is more stable than it was when we first started. Ideally you want to be able to maintain your Bankai for extended hours, if need be. With more control, both the ability of your Shikai and Bankai will increase.”

“Hokori and Hikari have been showing me some new ways to use them, including a new technique I’d like to try out today,” Sunset said, tensing herself, eyeing Discord’s stance to look for an opening. He might only be using his Shikai, but she knew just how quickly that Konran Arashi’s power could turn a battle in Discord’s favor.

“Then by all means, show me,” Discord said, and Sunset complied with an eager smile, the two halves of her Zanpaktou practically signing in her hands as she charged him.

----------

The girls collapsed, Fluttershy especially drawing in huge lungfuls of much needed air. They were all covered in sweat, a few of them bearing light bruises and cuts from the exertions of their evening training session. The sun was almost down, dusk just starting to paint the sky with a palette of purple and rosy hues. The mountain air itself was brisk and chill, even with the late spring day warmth still clinging to it. Fluttershy was on her back, just enjoying the sensation of letting her muscles relax, while each of her friends either knelt or lay around her in a similar state of exhaustion.

Around them the artificial arena Ditzy Doo had created, the same as it was when they’d first trained with her, whistled with the cold wind, many of its walls and empty stone seating smashed to rubble from the rather intense training battle.

Sitting on one of the piles of rock rubble, casually swinging her legs like a pleased child, Ditzy Doo whistled in appreciation and gave the girls a warm look with her golden eyes, which were only now bleeding back to a normal color after she’d removed her Hollow mask.

“Wheeeeew, very good, girls. A fair bit better than good, actually. You’re all way above where you were before.”

“D-don’t dang well feel like it,” Applejack said, down on one knee, but just barely managing to push herself back up to both legs. The farmgirl still breathed heavily, the armored gauntlets and boots of her Fullbring sporting numerous dents and cracks from the training battle. “You were still runnin’ circles around us.”

“Not around me,” Rainbow Dash said, sporting a cocky grin, despite leaning against a chunk of rubble and sucking in breaths between words. Her own Fullbring crackled with electrical energy around the chest armor, and prismatic light flowed from between blade-like, steel blue wings, but the energy seemed duller after the long fight and Rainbow Dash was as sweat covered and battered a the rest of them. Still, Fluttershy had to admit she admired Rainbow Dash’s new form. It was quite beautiful, especially in flight.

Applejack rolled her eyes, but there was also a competitive smirk on her lips, “Didn’t see ya landin’ any more hits than we were, Dash.”

“I got close like, at least a dozen times!” Dash said defensively, “How close did you get to hitting her?”

“Ugh, all the talking makes me hungry, “ complained Pinkamena, all but laying in a heap with her mouth drooling over the Pinkie Hammer, “Neeeeed foooood. Someone catch me a rabbit, or a squirrel...”

At Fluttershy’s alarmed look, Rarity was quick to say, “We brought plenty of snacks to replenish ourselves with. Perhaps we should partake before returning home?”

Out of all of them Rarity was the least exhausted and wounded, mostly because her fighting style required a lot less movement compared to the other girls. She could all but unleash an army’s worth of weapons from her whirlpool of blood, all without having to take a step. Rainbow Dash might have been the strongest of them currently, having completed her Fullbring, but Rarity still seemed to have the most skill in manipulating her spiritual energy. She was also quickly becoming the team’s tactical brain, having directed most of their actions against Ditzy Doo.

“Yeah, you girls have more than earned a break,” said Ditzy Doo, hopping down from the chunk of rubble she’d been sitting on, “Even if you don’t feel like you’re making progress, trust me, you are.”

She approached them, stretching her arms above her head as if the hours long training battle had been little more than a healthy afternoon jog for her, but it did let Fluttershy see that the woman bore a few bruises herself. They might not have landed any solid hits on Ditzy, but there’d been a few grazing blows and one or two instances shockwaves from their attacks had managed to knock Ditzy around.

Ditzy Doo looked between them, pointing to each girl in turn.

“Applejack, you’ve improved a lot on controlling your Fullbring’s energy output. Those rapid fire beams really caught me off guard. You’re still telegraphing your big attacks too much. I get that your bigger guns take some charge up, but look for ways to create better opportunities to use them. That’s where teamwork comes in. Rarity, you’ve got some serious talent as a tactician. I wasn’t expecting that maneuver with the electrified pillars, or the way you used Fluttershy’s Fullbring to complete the trap with Pinkie’s ability to basically turn anything into a joke. Your only major issue right now is that I’m sensing hesitance when you’re on the attack.”

Rarity’s face flushed red for a second, and she got a look on her face Fluttershy had seen before when Rarity really didn’t want to talk about something, “I assure you it's nothing, Miss Doo. I just have a very healthy respect for how... deadly my ability could be.”

Ditzy Doo looked at the girl for a second, but said nothing, turning to Rainbow Dash, “As for you, you’re right, you did nearly have me about a dozen or so times this fight. With your Fullbring in its complete form, your speed is something else. If I wasn’t as good as I am with Flash Step, I wouldn’t be able to keep up with you. As it stands, you’re probably faster than half the current Captains.

At Dash’s beaming look, Ditzy frowned and said, “Your problem, as always, is that you’re still too reckless. You’re fast, sure. You have control over lightning like few others do, and can hit with it like a literal thunderstorm. But you leave yourself open a hundred times over, and fast or not, you’re going to run into foes fast enough to capitalize on that weakness. So with you, we need to seriously teach you some defense, or you’ll get injured worse than you did when you fought Fancy Pants.”

With the wind taken out of her sails, Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and blew out a huff, looking away. “Isn’t the best defense a relentlessly awesome offense?”

“Not when all it takes is one stab through the heart to end it all for you,” Ditzy replied in simple tone of stating a fact, “You girls are powerful, but never forget that you’re still human. One wrong move in a fight, and it’ll be over.”

“Okay, yeesh, I get it. You’d think you could give us some credit after whooping so much butt back in Soul Society,” Rainbow Dash said, glancing away from Ditzy’s gaze.

“You girls did good back there, no question. I’m not trying to tear down your confidence, but I need to make it clear to you girls that whether you go up against Starlight Glimmer again, or end up facing down one of the Espada, there’s no guarantees. I want to make sure I’ve trained you as best I can, refining your strengths and shoring up your weaknesses. Which kinda requires you understand you have weaknesses to begin with, right Rainbow Dash?”

It took a moment, but Rainbow Dash sighed and reluctantly met Ditzy’s gaze, “Right.”

“Good, okay then, moving on to our resident garbage disposal,” Ditzy said, pointing at Pinkamena.

“Pass,” Pinkamena said, and Ditzy glowered.

“It’s a training evaluation. You can’t ‘pass’ on a training evaluation.”

“Just did. Gimme food, or I don’t care. We can all die in a flaming spaghetti explosion for all I care.”

“Aw, don’t be like that Mena,” said Pinkie Pie, her hammer form bouncing on the ground underneath Pinkamena, “I promise if you’re a good girl and listen to Ditzy’s evaluation, I’ll get you an extra large order of those chocolate drizzle glazed donuts you like so much.”

At that point it was less that Pinkamena was drooling, and more like a small waterfall was pouring out of her mouth as she stood on swaying legs and stared at Ditzy with hungry eyes. “Evaluate away, but know that if I do not receive my promised sacrifice of donuts that my wrath will consume you all.”

Ditzy looked more amused than concerned by the words, although to Fluttershy’s ears it sounded as if Pinkamena was being dead serious.

“Right, so with you two your biggest strength is your unpredictability. At the same time that unpredictability is your largest weakness. It's extremely hard to guess what you might do in a fight, and the nature of your Fullbring makes you the biggest wildcard on your team’s side. Problem is, it's impossible for your teammates to predict what you’re going to do either, and if you’re stuck in a one-on-one fight you can’t fully control the flow of the fight, having to rely on whatever comedic form your power decides to take.”

Pinkie Pie’s voice became a shade crestfallen, the huge pink hammer dropping its head, “Oh man did you nail it on the head! Heheh, nail. I’m never gonna get over that. But yeah, I felt super-duper bad we couldn’t do much against Cheesy, even after trying sooooo hard.”

“Don’t feel too bad,” said Ditzy, “Cheese Sandwich is one of the top Captains. You lasted longer than most would have. Still, the point stands that you need to work on a way to more reliably control what kind of effects your Fullbring creates, while doing your best to synergize with your ever-hungry alter ego here.”

“Okie dokie lokie! Mena, we’re on team building and trust exercises from now on!”

“Oh... goodie.”

Finally Ditzy Doo’s eyes rested on Fluttershy, and the girl self-consciously forced herself to at least sit up. “So, um, it’s, uh, my turn now?”

“Yup, and honestly I don’t have much to say where you’re concerned, Fluttershy. You’ve got a pacifistic streak that I know won’t be going away, so I won’t harp on you holding back or not going for lethal strikes. I get that’s never going to be your style. Still, that’s not the real thing I sense is holding you back. Your Fullbring is insanely powerful and versatile, allowing you to debilitate and control enemies and seriously boost your allies. Problem is I feel like you're hesitating with using your Fullbring to its strongest potential, especially when trying to command enemies.”

Fluttershy gulped, feeling a lightness in her stomach. It was true that while her power to control others had grown stronger as her Fullbring had evolved, she still very much feared using that power at its strongest limit. She’d held back considerably against man of the Soul Reapers back in Soul Society, fearful of damaging their minds if she used too much power on them. On top of that she simply was not comfortable with controlling others like that. She’d do it, for the sake of her friends, but it always felt wrong to invade and erase the free will of others.

“I, um... can’t say you’re wrong, Miss Doo. I really don’t like controlling other people. What if I went too far? What if I used so much power that they didn’t go back to normal afterward? I... I could really, really hurt people if I wasn’t careful.”

Ditzy Doo gave a solemn nod, but she crossed her arms under her chest and eyed Fluttershy with a level gaze. “It's a fair concern, and I understand it's not in your nature to hurt people. But consider this; how many times has your power failed? How many times have you commanded someone, someone strong like Hurricane, and the power just didn’t work?”

Fluttershy looked at her hands folded in her lap. There’d been plenty of times her power of command had failed, especially against strong foes. She’d hoped to just excuse it as the enemy being too powerful, but the truth was that more often than not she’d still been holding back.

Ditzy took her silence in stride, “I think you already know the weakness you need to work on, Fluttershy, and I won’t blow any sunshine up your skirts about it being an easy problem to solve. You have to decide for yourself just how much you're willing to risk versus how important your morals are to you, and I won’t tell you which is the right call. Just be aware that it is holding you back right now, and before you go up against something like an Espada you’d best find your answer.”

With that Ditzy Doo took in and blew out a long breath, “Okaaaay, evaluations over! Training is done for the day gals. Since you’ve all made some decent progress, I say take tomorrow off and blow off some steam. I got personal business to deal with anyway.”

“Oh? What’cha got going on, teach?” asked Rainbow Dash curiously.

“Eh, it ain’t exactly a secret, so might as well tell you. I finally got Time Turner to get off his skittish, if well toned, ass and come here to the world of the living to spend some quality time with Derpy. We’re going out to the beach tomorrow, a nice little family outing.”

Ditzy Doo’s eyes shone with a glow of motherly affection as she gazed up at the sky, “Figure now is a good a time as any, since who knows how long the current quiet is gonna last? Got to enjoy it while it's here, girls. Oh, which reminds me, if any damn shenanigans happen while I’m out with my hubby and kid, I will literally tear the head off the perpetrators, so I’d appreciate it if you gals spot any trouble, deal with it nice and quietly. You know, in case you or your Quincy pal were planning anything.”

All five girls froze.

Slowly Rarity spoke first, sweat beading her forehead, “So... you know?”

Ditzy Doo smiled thinly, licking her lips. “Discy relies on me as his primary intelligence source for a reason, girls. I’m kind of insulted Twilight thought she could get away with a private meeting without me or Discord noticing. Tell her, next time you see her, she needs to adjust her stealth wards to account for wind flow. Any Stealth Corps member would’ve spotted that. Lucky for you only me and one of Twilight’s Quincy friends was around to spot it.”

“Wait, whaddya mean one o’ her ‘Quincy friends’?” asked Applejack, and Ditzy Doo shrugged.

“Blueish skin, pigtails, wearing a techish visor. Think she was at the Friendship Games on Crystal Prep’s end.”

“Hmm, sounds like Sugarcoat. So... she’s a Quincy?” said Rarity, musing.

“Wouldn’t surprise me if all of those Shadowbolt chicks were,” said Rainbow Dash, “Wonder why one was following Twilight around?”

“Do you think it will be a problem?” asked Fluttershy nervously.

“I don’t think so,” said Ditzy, “She looked more worried about Twilight than you, and I don't’ think she actually heard any of your conversation with her. Unlike me.”

The girls exchanged looks. Sunset had talked about going to Discord for help or advice, so perhaps it was for the best that Ditzy already knew. Rarity stepped forward, eyes hopeful.

“If you already know the situation, then maybe you and Discord can help us rescue Adagio’s friend with minimal trouble?”

Ditzy, arms still crossed, said, “Discord might have an idea or two, but things are dicier than you girls realize. I suggest being extremely cautious here. I spent a lot of time in Soul Society after you girls returned, working with Time Turner to keep an eye on things. We knew shaking things up in the Seireitei was going to get unwanted attention drawn our way, and it has.”

The woman paused for a moment, as if gathering her thoughts, before dropping, “There’s a Zero Division member currently in Soul Society, keeping watch on things. Discord and I think they’re on the lookout for any more unusual activity on our end. They might suspect Discord and you girls of being a potential ‘rogue element’. So any false moves on our part might end with them dropping the hammer on us. Hard.”

Pinkie Pie broke the following, heavy silence by blurting out, “Wow, that sucks.”

“And the award for understatement of year goes to...” Rainbow Dash said, shaking her head as she looked at Ditzy, “Okay, seriously, what’s up with these Zero Division bozos? According to Starlight they basically banished her boyfriend to Hell, and sounds like you and Discord have got some history with them too.”

Her fierce ruby eyes hardened with pain and anger, her voice bitter, “My mom too. Zero Division is behind why she ran off.”

“What exactly is this Zero Division member keeping an eye for?” asked Rarity, “Why are we worth watching?”

“You girls need to understand that the Soul Society was built from the ground up by the Zero Division, so anything that might upset what they consider a carefully controlled balance is something they watch for. I have no idea how true it is about what happened to Sunburst, but Starlight believes it. I also don’t know for sure just how connected Discy is to them, other than I know he doesn’t like them. Now, Zero Division doesn’t step into the war, for reasons I don’t really grasp, but if one of them is hanging out in Soul Society that’s a big deal. Word I got from my sources in Seireitei tell me she’s basically hanging over Scorpan’s shoulder twenty-four-seven right now. I know the Captain Commander has gone to bat for you girls, basically singing your praises for helping fight Platinum and Starlight. As of now this Zero Division member is just... watching. Keeping apprised of news concerning you girls, including the whole research project on the portal. As long as you all look like reliable allies of Soul Society they won’t have a reason to move on us...”

Ditzy let the rest unsaid, but Rarity filled in the blanks.

“But if we’re caught helping rescue an Arrancar prisoner of war, down comes the proverbial hammer.”

Ditzy nodded, face a gray mask of dead seriousness, “Won’t say don’t do it. Won’t say Discord might not help. Just saying that if you girls do this, be prepared for the worst.”

“Can... can we beat them? If it came to that?” asked Fluttershy.

“Discy and I might be able to handle one of them if we worked together and got real lucky. Each Zero Division member is in the same weight class as Scorpan, so if you girls went toe-to-toe with one... yeah, miracle wouldn’t even begin to describe what you’d need to win. If things do go south, the plan should be to run. Preferable through the portal to Equestria.”

One by one each of the girls looked at each other, their expressions all equally grave.

Things had just gotten a lot more dangerous.

----------

It was dusk by the time Timber Spruce was walking hastily down the street towards the parking lot where he’d stuck the station wagon. He knew Gloriosa would have an earful for him when he got back, since she didn’t like him being out after dark with all the things she’d been seeing around town. He didn’t really mind it that much. His sister was a worrywart by nature, but she was usually right about things. He was just worried about her, too.

Everything had really gotten out of whack ever since she found those crystals in the forest. Timber still didn’t know what to think of all this. Crystals giving his sister weird nature powers? Her seeing bizarre spirits and robed people around the city? Even weirder strangers popping out of portals near the camp? And Timber couldn’t see any of it himself, but he knew his sister wasn’t crazy or lying to him. Gloriosa was not prone to flights of fancy, and Timber had seen her using the magical power of the crystals. He hadn’t discounted the magic was still somehow affecting her head in some odd way, but he couldn’t just tell her that, or she’d probably dismiss it.

It’s still so dang crazy. Few weeks ago life was pretty normal. Sure the camp was losing money and Glori was stressed out, but at least she wasn’t talking to plants and seeing mysterious boogeymen nobody else can see.

Honestly Timber Spruce just felt a tad helpless with the situation, and he didn’t know what to do. And it wasn’t like he could go to anyone else about it, looking for help. His and Gloriosa’s parents were both gone, and had been for a long time. Gloriosa had just barely been old enough to inherit the camp and start running it herself, and more than once Timber thought that taking on so much responsibility at that age had taken its toll on his sister. He just tried to help out as best he could. Like today, with hitting up the library and searching through the archives for information about Gaia Everfree.

Unfortunately he didn’t turn up anything he thought would prove useful. The first record of the Everfree Forest having its own “guardian spirit” dated well back before modern day civilization encroached on the area. The native tribe that called the forests and mountains home a few centuries back had legends about the Everfree Forest, how it was a place of primal power, deeply connected to the forces of nature and beasts. There was even a few tales about there being a ‘gateway’ between this realm and a realm of primordial spirits, hidden somewhere deep inside the Everfree.

Supposedly it was from that realm of primal spirits that Gaia Everfree emerged, an immortal being fused to the very soul of the forest. The natives worshiped her as a goddess, and even claimed she would emerge to battle evil spirits or monsters that threatened their tribes.

With a shudder he also recalled one or two tales that suggested a darker side to Gaia Everfree. That she was not an entirely benevolent guardian spirit, and at times had demanded sacrifices in exchange for her protection. That she consumed the souls of her hapless foes to fuel her wrath, and took bloody vengeance on any who threatened her forest domain.

The only thing that seemed to connect this to the crystals that Gloriosa found was that the stories of Gaia Everfree did suggest she had power over the plants of the forest, and that some of the native tribes had long ago used the caves as sites for worshiping her. But no mention of multi-colored geodes, or monsters with skull masks, or people in black robes.

Strangely, Timber did stumble across an article about more recent news, about several citizens claiming to see the strange sight of girls flying around town or jumping around rooftops, but that was just dismissed as local tabloid gossip. Still, it made Timber nervous. Life was getting well outside the boundaries of what he was normally comfortable with, and he just hoped that one way or another this would all blow over and life could go back to-

He felt a sudden chill down his spine. With a gulp, Timber looked around. He’d been almost to his station wagon, at the far end of the library parking lot. The sun was down, and although there was still a shade of twilight in the sky, things suddenly looked very dark in the parking lot and Timber Spruce realized that he was alone. There was nobody nearby, yet he felt like he was being watched.

“Okay Timber, stop freaking out. You just spent hours reading a bunch of about crazy spirit stuff, you’re just wound up, that’s all,” he told himself, fishing in his pocket or his keys while trying to ignore the increasing chill he felt and the sensation that something was watching him. Just nerves. That was all. Just-

He was grabbed from behind by something large and powerful, pinning his arms to his side. He heard his keys clatter to the parking lot concrete as he was lifted off the ground by an invisible force, his whole body turning cold. Timber screamed, but even that noise was fast coked off by the powerful crushing force that was squeezing him tightly and turning him around.

Timber couldn’t see what was holding him, only a vague, hazy outline of something huge, at least ten feet tall. He had the faint impression of glowing yellow eyes, and heard a horrific, ear piercing howl fill the air. Pain stabbed into his chest as he felt his ribs crack, the pressure on his chest increasing as the thing holding him started to crush the life from his helpless body.

He tried to struggle, to kick, to do anything, but there was nothing he could do. Nothing but wait for the end to come.

Glori...

Before consciousness faded, he saw a streak of blue light. An arrow? The unearthly howl in his ears turned into a scream of pain, and suddenly the pressure on his chest went away. Timber fell to the ground in a boneless heap, his chest burning with pain. His vision was blurred by he saw someone nearby, and several more streaks of blue light flew across the parking lot. The howling abruptly ceased, and in seconds Timber heard voices.

“Oh no, were we too late!? Soarin, hurry, help me turn him over.”

Timber heard footfalls, then through his darkened vision he saw a blurry, purple shape next to him. A girl? He felt gentle hands on his shoulder, turning him onto his back, and he groaned in pain.

“S-sorry. Try not to move. I need to see how bad it is.”

Yup, definitely a girl’s voice. She sounded young, and very concerned. Timber tried to talk, but his lungs just coughed and hacked up some blood. That probably wasn’t a good sign.

Suddenly a male voice, older than the girl’s but still sound, and oddly ‘surfer dude’ sounding spoke up, “He doesn’t look good, Twilight. A rib must have punctured a lung. We should get him to a hospital.”

“No. A hospital doesn’t have the same medical advancements we do. Even my family’s manor has a better set up.”

“He’s a civilian. He’s going to have questions if he wakes up at the manor.”

“I’ll take responsibility. I’m not letting someone die just because we were too slow to realize a Hollow was attacking someone nearby...”

Timber Spruce heard the man say something in response to that, but he couldn’t make it out. His consciousness was falling into cold, cold darkness. He only got one last, blurry look at the girl kneeling over him, her face swimming with worry behind thick glasses. Before darkness took him, Timber’s last thought was that she was way too cute to look that sad.

Episode 89: Struggle Upon Two Worlds

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Episode 89: Struggle Upon Two Worlds

A harsh midday sun was beating down mercilessly upon the sand swept desert. No clouds touched the endless blue sky, the air lacking even the smallest drops of moisture. Waves of heat rose in curling waves off the horizon in all directions, leaving the terrain a featureless ocean of dunes.

Save for the single, colorful line of figures traipsing across the desert wastes in a steady southern march. Encapsulating the traveling troupe was a translucent bubble of shifting, teal magic, maintained by a set of crystals that glowed with a steady stream of energy. The crystals were mounted atop of a rolling, purple and blue painted caravan being pulled by an irate looking mare who pulled her magician’s hat closer over her eyes to shield them from the sun.

“I don’t suppose it would’ve been impossible for you to add some kind of sunblock to this shield, Starlight?” asked Trixie for the thirty seventh time, by Starlight Glimmer’s count.

Riding atop of Trixie’s caravan, Starlight was examining the crystals to make sure they remained properly attuned, and rolled her eyes for the thirty seventh time, “I’ve already explained to you Trixie that I could only calibrate Canopius’ Climatis Controlus to cover a wider area, not deflect actual sun rays. Be grateful. The temperature out there is insane. At least the spell is managing to maintain a relatively cool sixty five degrees inside the bubble.”

“And we’re most grateful for the efforts, Starlight darling,” said Rarity, trotting along in front of Trixie’s caravan while wearing a stylish sun hat and purple rimmed shades, “This desert trek would be absolutely appalling without this ingenious bit of spellwork.”

“Might’ve also helped if somepony packed less,” muttered Applejack, further ahead in the group as she pulled along a large wooden wagon that was heavily laden with supplies and luggage of various sizes. Applejack herself suspected half of it was Rarity’s “essentials”, which for some reason seemed to include enough sunscreen to drown in.

“Oh ppffft,” Rarity gave a lady-like snort, “I’ve learned to pair down quite considerably since our last camping trip. Besides there are eleven of us in this intrepid expedition! I had to ensure we’d have proper supplies.”

“Which fer some reason includes how many dresses?”

“You never know when we might need to impress some locals, darling. First impressions are key in diplomatic affairs, and you don’t want to meet with the Queen of the hippogriffs under dressed, do you?”

“Trixie would be happy enough to just get to Mt. Aris,” Trixie said, wiping sweat off of her brow, “I may have traveled from one end of Equestria to the other, but even one as greatly seasoned as I in the ways of the road have never been this far south before! Most ponies are smart enough not to walk into this endless sandtrap.”

“Nothing for it, Trix,” said Starlight, “This is the only way to get where we’re going. There isn’t even any shipping trade that goes all the way to the continent's southern tip. I’m pretty impressed we’ve made such good time.”

The group certainly had, all things considered. They had departed Ponyville two weeks prior, taking a train down to Appleloosa before setting out overland, heading steadily south long very old and rarely used caravan roads. The first week of travel had taken them through dry mesas and plains, then into a thick and fog laden jungle. Progress had been swift, if a tad winding through those dark jungle paths, but eventually they’d crossed out of the thick green landscape and into the dry, arid wasteland they now crossed, and had been doing so for an entire other week.

Aside from Trixie’s caravan and Applejack’s wagon of supplies, the group traveled light, carrying only their own small saddlebags. Trixie’s caravan was more or less in the middle of the group. Behind it trailed Fluttershy alongside a bouncing Pinkie Pie, who seemed to find something interesting every two minutes to comment on, even in a place as featureless as the desert. Flying at the rear of the group was Rainbow Dash, who on Flash Sentry’s suggestion was acting as a ‘rear guard’ to keep a wary eye out for any dangers that might try to sneak up behind the party of travelers.

And there had been some dangers, albeit ones the group had dealt with readily enough. The jungle had had its fill of ravenous creatures, but Fluttershy was ample counter to such threats, able to tame even the fiercest jungle cat with a friendly smile, or if needed, a hard Stare. In the open desert on their first day the group had been accosted by a group of scorpions the size of large dogs, who seemed so utterly hungry that even Fluttershy hadn’t been able to dissuade them from attacking. Fortunately the group had no shortage of skilled unicorns among them, plus a Soul Reaper Lieutenant. The scorpions were sent packing in short order, with hardly a scratch among the ponies.

Yet the closer they got to their initially intended destination, the more a small, unseen tension was building among them. Each knew the real danger was not animals on the road, but a powerful group of otherworldly invaders, and an eventual confrontation with an ancient undersea sorceress. The trip so far had been a breeze, but hardly representative of the danger they’d eventually have to face.

Perhaps that was why those at the head of the group moved with such dogged determination in their steps. Or, in some cases, the way they floated through the air.

Aria and Sonata were at the very front, both siren sisters seemingly pulled along by an ever growing need to see the quest before them through. They had mostly kept to themselves through the journey thus far, although it was impossible for Sonata at least to remain quiet for long, and indeed within the first few nights of the journey she’d discovered a certain pink party pony who had a similar disposition to herself. It was either to the amusement or exasperation of their traveling companions when the pair got ot sharing jokes around the campfire at night.

“-and so then the walrus tells the sea cucumber, ‘No thanks, I’m a vegetarian’. Heheheh!”

At Sonata’s peal of giggles, Aria sagged and let out a long, pained groan.

“Uggggh, I think I should have just let the scorpions eat me. You meeting that walking pink disaster has got to be the low point of my life, and that’s including the time we got zapped to monkey land.”

Sonata’s cheer was unconquerable by any amount of grumpiness from her sister, so she just kept giggling as she sashayed through the air and gave Aria a playful elbow, “Gotta lighten up sometime, Aria. Pinkie’s a riot, in this world or the other one. Hmm, wonder how they’re doing over in Huquestria anyway?”

“Huquestria isn’t a word. It’s never been a word. Stop trying to make it a word.”

“Well we gotta call it something other than ‘Monkey Land’. Oh! Hutopia! That’s a good one!”

Aria rubbed at her forehead with a hoof, “I can tell you this much, whatever they’re doing over in the human world (which we are not calling Hutopia either), it’s got to be less boring than all this walking.”

“But Aria, we’re not evening walking!” Sonata said, turning over and waving her tail fin through the air for emphasis.

“You know what I mean. Flying still takes up energy, more for us than even walking does for the ponies. I’m tired. I’m hot. I’m hungry. And listening to bad pun-based humor for two weeks straight has done things to my psyche that I’m fairly sure aren’t covered by normal therapy.”

“If you’re hungry,” called Twilight from a few paces behind the sirens, “There’s still lots and lots of dried fruits and vegetables to eat. Applejack packed a bunch!”

“If I have to eat one more apple I’m going to go on a arson spree across every orchard in Equestria,” Aria said with a huff, “Your friend does realize there’s other foods in existence, right?”

“I didn’t hear that!” called Applejack from the middle of the group, and Aria raised her head to shout.

“Good!” then, blowing out a sigh, she grumbled, “Stupid vegetarian ponies. What I wouldn’t give for something with actual meat on it right now.”

Sonata’s mouth started to water, a line of drool trailing down her blue chin, “I have been craving them chicken sandwiches from that place we worked at the mall. Mmmmm those were so good.”

Twilight cleared her throat loudly, “Well, sorry our vegetarian diet isn’t to your standards, but I don’t think Fluttershy would have appreciate us appropriating her chickens as food supplies.”

“OMG, she had chickens and she didn’t tell us!?” Sonata cried, “We could be having fresh roasted chicken right now. You ponies are so mean, holding out on us!”

“The chickens aren’t for eating, they’re for eggs...” Twilight blinked several times, as if something was sparking and sputtering behind her eyes, “Which now that I think about it it’s odd we don’t have any cultural issues using eggs for a food source, especially in baking pastries. Can vegetarians eat eggs? Do they count as meat if they’re unfertilized, or are they considered a dairy product? They’re definitely not vegetables. But our dietary requirements all but standardize high levels of sugar intake, that’s why there’s multiple bakeries in almost every town in Equestria. I need to research this as soon as possible. It’s within reason to think there is a baking conspiracy that could have originated during the founding days of Equestria and-”

A yellow wing bonked her on the head, and Twilight blinked again. It was possible a bit of steam could be seen wafting out of her ears. “Huh? What was I thinking about again?”

“Nothing, Twilight,” said Flash Sentry, the source of the wing-bonk and the Twilight reset, “Nothing at all. I don’t suppose you know how much further we’ve got to go to reach our destination?”

“Oh! Not much farther I believe,” Twilight said, her horn flashing with magic as she teleported a map from her saddlebag out in front of her and stretched it out with her telekinesis. “Granted the maps of this region aren’t the most accurate or to scale that we’d like, but ponies so rarely travel this far outside of Equestria that this is the best we’ve got. Even so, I’ve calculated our distance traveled down to the half-mile, so even accounting for any variations in topography I can still say with accuracy that we should reach Klugetown some time either today or tomorrow.”

They didn’t know much else about the settlement than its name, and even that name had taken hours prior to departing Ponyville to dig up in Twilight’s research. It was supposedly some kind of trade hub for the region, but that wasn’t saying much, given there weren’t very many settlements in the desert to begin with. Aside from that Twilight and her companions knew next to nothing about Klugetown. Not who ran the place, or what kind of species even lived there. Still, it was the last dot of so-called “civilization” before hitting the southern coast, so it was an ideal spot to stop, restock supplies, and gather any information they could concerning Mt. Aris. If they were lucky they might even find a ship captain that could take them to the island mountain.

“By tomorrow, sounds good,” Flash said, glancing sidelong at Twilight, and at one of the books poking out of her saddlebags, “How’s your studying going? You going to be ready if we run into anything more serious than the local fauna?”

With a small gulp, Twilight licked her lips and eyed the book as well. It was a simple affair, bound in dark blue artificial leather and silver rim bindings. Most of its pages were old and wrinkled, the script within written in a swift, messy style. Who knew Princess Celestia had such bad penmanship back when she was young? It felt odd, having an old note/spellbook of her mentor’s from when Celestia was, well... young. Even the mental image of a young Celestia just didn’t click in Twilight’s mind. She tried picturing the ruler of Equestria as a gangly teen and it just wouldn’t form. Celestia was just always Celestia in Twilight’s mind.

Still, there was no doubting the book’s contents were genuine, and contained no shortage of insights into the realm of magical study. Specifically it was a notebook from when Princess Celestia and her sister were being taught the secrets of High Magic by Starswirl himself. For the entire two week journey to the south, Twilight had stayed up long hours into the night studying the old, smudged pages, utterly absorbed.

“Sort of?” she said awkwardly, smiling self-consciously at Flash, “I think I grasp the basic principles of forming High Magic circles, but the runes are more complex than anything I’ve ever encountered before. Modern unicorn magic doesn’t even come close to comparing. Its like... like... if I tried to show an ancient cavepony how a steam engine worked in comparison to just a simple campfire. It's not just a matter of the power of High Arcane Invocations, its the way they manipulate magical energy itself. These spells do things with magic that I wouldn’t have thought were possible, even for something as innately versatile as magic. I feel like I’m reading about the building blocks of creation, not just another spell.”

Which honestly frightened her. She thought modern Equestrian magic was the best in the world, yet the Princesses had been sitting on magical knowledge that would, if spread, change the entire face of magical study and understanding in Equestria. High Magic just flat out bent or broke rules and limitations that Twilight thought were ironclad when it came to magic. Sure, the amount of power it took to cast even a basic High Magic spell was ludicrous, to the point that Twilight wasn’t so sure she could pull off one of them, but that was besides the point. High Magic was a tool that could conceivably remake Equestrian civilization. And the Princesses had kept that knowledge secret.

For good reasons, obviously. Twilight had seen how awry magic spells could go with even good intentions behind them. She didn’t want to think about how badly things could go if somepony equipped with High Magic lacked the proper caution.

It reminded her of what had happened with Starlight and her time traveling shenanigans. That could have destroyed all of Equestria and that wasn’t even High Magic... was it? Now that Twilight thought about it she wasn’t certain where Starlight had gotten the spell knowledge to cast her time travel spell. Could it have been some form of High Magic that even Starlight hadn’t known about?

She shook her head, feeling an uneasy weight on her shoulders. She loved learning about magic, and that certainly extended to learning the mysterious of High Magic. But she was also scared, to be entrusted with such dangerous knowledge.

Flash was watching her, and his face bore a kind, and worried look. Twilight gave him a reassuring smile, “Sorry if I seem down. Just a lot on my mind.”

“Hey, don’t worry about it. Hasn’t exactly been a normal, slow month, has it? Just because you’re used to this kind of world shaking stuff doesn’t mean it isn’t still going to affect you. Heck, I’m still trying to figure out how these work,” he wiggled his wings about, grinning, “I can’t imagine how much harder it is to dive headfirst into a whole new level of magic while also working out how we’re going to complete our mission. As always Twilight, you’re pretty amazing.”

She tried hard not to show much pleased she was, even at such simple words of praise, and played it off by double checking the map, practically burying her face in it to hide the heat on her face. “Yes, well, I try. You’re, um, not bad either. I mean, it's good to have you. Along! Good to have you along! For this adventure. And stuff.”

Somewhere ahead of them Sonata giggled and Aria groaned something under her breath about ‘getting a room’. Twilight didn’t get it, and continued to triple check her map. Yes, very important, topography.

Coughing in pure awkwardness, Flash spread his wings and took to the air, “And on that note, I think I’m going to go scout ahead.”

“Oh, you should probably take Rainbow Dash with you,” Twilight said, but Flash shook his head.

“No way. Last time I did that, she challenged me to a race to the next set of dunes, and I nearly ended up breaking my neck. I may be getting more comfortable with flying, but its still all I can do to just go in the direction I want. Anyway, I should be back soon, just going to make sure there’s no surprising waiting for us in the next few miles.”

With that, Flash took off, not particularly fast and not very gracefully either, but Twilight watched him go with a certain feeling of admiration for how fast he was adjusting to his new pegasus form.

And it didn’t hurt that he had a very... aerodynamic body. So lithe, and athletic.

Twilight blanched and batted at her wings with her hoof, trying to get them to go back down. Stupid wings. Why did she ever get them in the first place? Finally getting them to tuck back down at her side she sighed and put away her map, figuring there wasn’t any need to check her calculations a fourth time.

A swoosh next to her caused Twilight to look up and see Sonata flying beside her, grinning mischievously.

“What?” Twilight asked.

“You liiiiike hiiiim,” cooed Sonata, snickering.

Why did Twilight suddenly feel like she was back on the playground in kindergarten? Frowning, she looked away from Sonata’s smiling face and made a point of trotting a bit faster, “My relationship with Flash isn’t anypony’s, or siren’s, but my own.”

“I don’t know why you’re acting all embarrassed. It totally makes sense. I mean, he’s not my type, but I can still see the appeal of the handsome, supportive prettyboy. You should totally go for it! Its super obvious he’s into you too.”

“Okay, first of all, there’s far more to Flash than just being some ‘prettyboy’. He’s much smarter than he looks, and he’s steadfast, kind, loyal, and sure maybe he did hide some things from me but I think I can forgive that considering he’s literally jumped into another world to help me protect mine. As for him being into me... um, do you really think so?”

Before Sonata could respond there was a billow of air as Flash Sentry returned in a rush, landing in front of them. “Really think what?”

“Flash!” Twilight nearly tripped over herself as she jumped back, face somewhere between a firetruck and a strawberry in color, “Wha-what are you doing back so soon?”

He cast a slight frown between her and Sonata, who just grinned impishly, but he shrugged and said, “I found something. I think your calculations might be a bit off. That town is just over the next ridge, but...”

“But?” Twilight asked, and as she had stopped, soon the rest of the caravan was joining them, the other ponies all giving curious looks.

“What’s all the hubbub?” asked Applejack.

“Pleeeeease tell Trixie that there’s an oasis that’s been found? Or even a mudpuddle.”

“C'mon, Trix, we’re not even low on water supplies yet, so chill out,” said Rainbow Dash as she flew over the group, hovering overhead as she eyed Flash, “Saw you jet off, man. You spot something?”

“Its best you all just come take a look. Not sure what to make of it myself,” said Flash Sentry as he turned and started to trot ahead, taking the lead of the group. Various glances were exchanged among the rest of the party, but they all started to follow him.

It didn’t take long to find what Flash was talking about.

“Whoooo, someponies had a real serious party last night and nopony was the designated driver,” commented Pinkie Pie, breaking the silence of the group as the stood atop a small ridge, staring at the sight in front of them.

It looked like what was once a large, functional airship. Its dull purple and dark iron hull was now cracked apart and scattered like so much burned eggshell across several hundred meters. From the large furrow in the desert and the trail of wreckage it was clear the ship had crashed, but the cause of the crash was also evident in the fact that what intact parts of the hull could be seen had been blasted open with multiple, clear blast marks from what might have been explosions or magical beam impacts. The ship lay largely in two pieces, a crushed aft section and a crumbled forward section, with numerous bits of scattered debris stretching between the two like entrails.

“Oh my, we should go see if anypony needs help,” said Fluttershy, starting to trot down towards the wreckage, but Flash Sentry held out a wing to stop her.

“I already looked, and there’s no one there, Fluttershy,” he said, his face bearing a grim look, his eyes glancing away from her as he quietly added, “No one alive at any rate. You probably don’t want to get too close.”

The kind pegasus mare looked stricken, putting a hoof to her mouth. Nearby Starlight had hopped down from Trixie’s wagon and with a frowning look came up beside Twilight, pointing. “Look, see that banner there?”

Twilight peered, and saw a tattered black banner on the prow of the ship’s remains, bearing a symbol of what looked like some kind of bright, icy blue pair of fangs, or perhaps a pitchfork. Squinting, she said, “I don’t recognize the emblem. Whoever they were, they’re not known to Equestria.”

“Is it just me, or does this look pretty recent, too?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Like, the sand hasn’t even buried the little bits and pieces yet. That means this has only been here, what, a day or two?”

“Don’t that mean we would’ve seen or heard somethin’?” said Applejack.

“Not necessarily,” said Twilight, “We’ve been covering at least twenty miles a day. This could have been well out of sight or earshot even if it just happened yesterday. I’m more worried about who could have done this. Flash, you’re sure there’s no survivors?”

Flash nodded, face still grave, “I checked before coming back. I’m getting good enough at sensing spiritual pressures now through all the magic interference that I can pick out your guys’ life force even at a distance. I don’t know how big the crew was, but if there were survivors, they left the crash site, and left behind the... remains of those who didn’t make it. Plus, there’s more.”

“More what, bodies?” asked Sonata with a wrinkle of her snout.

“Probably,” said Flash, “But I meant more ships.”

He led them around the wreckage, which had been blocking their view of what lay beyond. Twilight felt her hoof strike something solid and looked down to see deep brown cobblestones emerging from the wind swept sands.

“Is this a road?” she wondered aloud, and after a moment realized it was a road, or at least the ancient remains of one, trailing along their path southward. In just a minute or two they got around the airship wreckage, and there were several gasps from the gathered ponies.

“Well, that can’t be good,” said Aria dryly.

Beyond the first airship crash were four more airships, all in similar states of destruction. They littered the desert field, dotting the golden sands like so much broken foal’s playtoys. The collective wreckage covered an area of at least a mile, all trailing towards the distant sight of a large town emerging from the heat haze.

“That’s got to be Klugetown,” said Starlight, swallowing nervously as she looked at the destroyed airships, “But what in the world happened here?”

The town itself looked unharmed, near as Twilight could tell at this distance. It was quite the unusual sight. She’d never witnessed a town quite like it. Klugetown was built within what appeared to be hollowed out remains of a huge redstone mesas, with dozens upon dozens of buildings built up along the mesas' interior and exterior walls like growths of fungus. Each ramshackle, dusty building was straightforward and haphazard in its construction, and it looked as if there was zero planning that went into the town’s layout, with one building piled atop the other, catwalks and rope bridges strung around and between them seemingly at random. Colorful banners and shade cloths were hung around with equal lack of symmetry, like discarded pieces of clothing left tossed about on a whim. Several huge windmills spun lazily in the desert breeze, some as large as airships themselves.

Speaking of airships, Twilight noted that on the town’s western edge there was a set of what appeared to be docking scaffolds protruding from the higher points of the mesas, and that there were at least two or three vessels docked there, though not one of these airships bore any resemblance to the ones laying in scattered pieces in the desert near the town.

“This is way weird,” said Sonata, shivering, “I’m getting all kinds of creep-o factor here. Anyone else?”

Pinkie Pie raised a hoof, “No Pinkie Sense warnings yet, but I’m definitely on your page with the creepy vibe.”

“Well I sincerely doubt we’ll make any headway in learning just what’s happened around here by standing and staring,” said Rarity, “Perhaps we should see what the locals have to say?”

“Trixie will literally walk over fiery coals if it means being able to purchase a mango juice, so yes let’s ignore the highly concerning airship graveyard and just get to civilization already.”

“Seconded,” agreed Starlight.

With that the group headed towards the town, passing by the extensive airship wreckage with uneasy looks.

----------

The worst thing about Klugetown wasn’t the residents, who would cheat their own mothers for the clothes on their backs, then sell their mothers to the highest bidder if they could. It wasn’t the endlessly complex and labyrinthine streets that one could get lost in with just one wrong turn. It wasn’t even the eternal presence of dirt and sand that got into every building and inevitably got into every little nook and cranny on one’s body if one lived in the town long enough.

No, Tempest Shadow decided it was definitely the smell that was the worst part of this rat infested mudhole that she was presently stuck in.

The mare sat at one of the town’s many exterior bars, underneath a canvas of striped leather that did little to keep the heat or dust off of her cloaked form. A barely touched clay mug of some horrifically unidentifiable liquid sat in front of her that the bar stall owner claimed was alcohol, but Tempest had her doubts. At least it smelled alcoholic enough to keep out some of the rest of the town’s stench. Oh for the wonders of indoor plumbing.

“You gonna drink that or are you having a staring contest with it?” asked her companion, Grubber, the squat creature looking for all the world like a plump, bipedal hedgehog with a hawk of white hair and dark, grayish blue fur.

Tempest turned eyes glittering with deadly intent towards him, and Grubber wisely coughed and looked away, leaving Tempest to return to staring at her drink and contemplating her failures in life.

Perhaps she was being overly dramatic, but the past few weeks had just been the pits. And everything had been going so swimmingly well, not so long ago, too. She’d been the battlefield commander for the entire army of the Storm King, leading his forces in conquest after conquest. They’d secured nearly the entire southern continent of Abyssinia and were poised to strike north towards Equestria itself, Tempest’s long abandoned and despised homeland. It was there she hoped to make herself whole again, and with luck enjoy a long and prosperous military career in the Storm King’s newly forged empire.

The fragmented stump of her broken horn sparked with angry motes of magic as she remembered just how swiftly things had gone wrong, her hooves clasping the clay mug in front of her hard enough to send cracks along its surface.

It had been so simple. The fleet had flown north across the southern ocean channel, making record time. The plan was to strike the hippogriffs of Mt. Aris first, securing a southern supply point for the fleet and possibly confirm the existence of the treasured Pearl of Changing, reputed to be in Queen Novo’s keeping. Once that was done they’d strike north swiftly and launch a surprise raid on Canterlot itself. The magical artifacts gained in Abyssinia would aid in defeating the arrogant, overconfident, so-called ‘Princesses’, and with their capture the Storm King would be able to drain their power into his staff and obtain all the power he desired, and needed to restore Tempest Shadow’s horn.

Getting past the hippogriff navy had been disgustingly easy. The hippogriffs weren’t quite as soft and weak as her pony brethren, but admiral Seaspray’s naval forces weren’t prepared for facing such a large and well trained airship fleet, and Tempest had routed the sea-bound hippogriff navy with barely any casualties. Mt. Aris had seemed theirs for the taking!

Then... then she had shown up! One pony. One.

The clay mug shattered in Tempest’s hooves, and the barkeep glared and yelled at her, but she wasn’t paying attention. She was remembering, growing more furious at the memory by the second.

Mt. Aris had been surrounded. The yeti shock troops of the Storm King were dropping upon the verdant city occupying the mountains grand slopes, sweeping aside defenders with ease. Tempest Shadow went down with them, at the vanguard of the attack. Her martial prowess was honed from a lifetime of hard survival in harsh lands and years more of concentrated training in the Storm King’s army. No hippogriff warrior could stand against either her martial fury, or the chaotic storm of magical energy her broken horn could summon. She had little control over her magic, but her fury certainly fueled its potent energies, and when she pointed it in the rough direction of her foes, they generally regretted facing her.

She’d certainly never lost a fight, not until that damnable purple maned mare had stepped out of the chaos of battle to face her. Tempest had been shocked to see another pony after so many long years away from her people, but she had not thought much of it initially. Just some dumb tourist or traveler, probably, or so Tempest had thought.

But no, this mare, with pink fur and a two toned mane of purple and teal, had not only stood in Tempest Shadow’s way, but single hooved turned the entire tide of the battle! Never before had Tempest seen anything, pony or otherwise, move with such speed! Never had she seen a mere pony strike with such power! She hadn’t even drawn the oddly thin, curved sword she carried sheathed at her side, this mysterious pony had simply used her bare hooves to demolish Tempest’s yeti shock troops with contemptuous ease.

When Tempest herself had tried to strike this pony down, she’d blocked every strike Tempest made, and evaded every arc of uncontrolled magic from her horn. She’d then casually back hooved Tempest into a hippogriff dwelling with the ease... Tempest shuddered, the same ease the Ursa had smashed her horn all those years ago as a filly.

Tempest, barely conscious, had watched as this strange mare had launched herself among the fleet, and began throwing bizarre, foreign magic of her own. Incantations that Tempest had never heard before had led to explosions of elemental power that had ripped airships apart like so much paper mache.

Retreat was the only option, galling as it was. Tempest Shadow had gathered survivors and gotten back aboard one of the smaller airships, ordering a rapid withdrawal signaled to the whole fleet. During the retreat, Tempest Shadow had seen the Storm King’s own flagship get torn in half by the mysterious mare’s spells. She would have thought the Storm King finished if she hadn’t seen the strange purple maned mare using another odd power to literally step across the sky at high speed, carrying the Storm King’s unconscious form on her back and his magical Staff of Sacanus in her hooves.

That must have been what the mare was after, because once she had the Storm King and his staff, she paid the fleet no more attention. Tempest had taken the opportunity to get what ships would still respond to her signals as far away from Mt. Aris as possible.

What ships hadn’t been destroyed or ran in other directions followed Tempest north. After the disaster with the hippogriff’s, Tempest thought the best course was to go towards the desert settlement of Klugetown, where reconnaissance reports indicated they had airship docks and repair facilities. She still had enough troops that she imagined she could subdue the town and force the to provide repairs and supplies. From there she intended to take her time figuring out a new pan of action.

Only that had gone terribly wrong as well. As soon as Tempest Shadow’s splintered fleet arrived in the skies near Klugetown, and she advanced upon the settlement with the intention of hitting the town fast and hard without giving the residents a chance to form an organized resistance, the fleet was attacked again. This time it was a different pony, a pegasus instead of a unicorn. Yet this one was no less incredible in her combat prowess. Wearing what appeared to be a fantastical suit of winged armor, and bearing weapons the like of which Tempest had never seen, this pegasus cut Tempest’s remaining airship forces to ribbons with incredible precision. Her main weapon had been some manner of energy cannon that tore through airship hulls like so much sodden tissue.

Tempest wasn’t even sure how she’d gotten lucky enough to survive the crash, but after she pulled herself out of the wreckage it was clear the Storm King’s army was done for. What few survivors there were from the devastated armada all deserted her and left, all save for Grubber who seemed to want to stick with her for reasons she couldn’t quite fathom.

If the Storm King had any forces left that had returned to Abyssinia, then they’d be leaderless and likely unable to hold the territory they’d conquered in that land. As for the Storm King himself, he was captured by a ludicrously powerful enemy that Tempest Shadow couldn’t have imagined encountering in her most wild nightmares. The situation looked well and truly hopeless.

It was a feeling she was all too familiar with, and hated with a passion. Hence her rage at her current situation. After years of harsh travel, barely surviving off the land, in search of anything resembling purpose she’d thought she’d found a place to belong at long last. She thought she’d found someone who would, if not be a ‘good’ leader, would at least be one who’d value her efforts and reward her hard work.

But it was all gone in the span of days. Yet Tempest was made of stern stuff, and wasn’t about to let this completely crush her. She still had in her possession one trump card to play.

In a simple brown sack tied to her side beneath her cloak rested the small, glowing green spheres of the Misfortune Malachite. The potent stones were to be her ace in the hole against Equestria’s Princesses, the one thing she could use to guarantee their rapid defeat, for nothing in her experience could withstand the petrifying power of the stones, not even alicorns.

But without an actual army to back her up, or the Storm King’s Staff of Sacanus to drain the alicorn’s magic power, there was no point going to Equestria now.

She needed to rescue the Storm King. Or at least recover his staff. But how? She had no idea where the ponies responsible for destroying the armada even were. She had no doubt the unicorn and pegasus were in cahoots with each other. It was impossible to think that two stupidly overpowered ponies would show up one after another to decimate the fleet like that. But how to find them, and even if she did, how would she get past them to rescue her boss?

The Misfortune Malachite might defeat them, but if she used the stones up on them there’d be nothing left to use on the Princesses.

Stealth. She’d have to rely on covert tactics to do this. Dig for information first. Any rumor on where these strange ponies might be hiding. Such ponies of extraordinary ability couldn’t remain hidden entirely without drawing someone’s attention, so Tempest would just have to be patient and wait.

“Okay, so you’ve been staring at the bar counter for, like, at least ten minutes straight not saying a word,” Grubber commented, “Are you have a flashback? That looks a lot like a flashback face to me.”

“I’m planning, you moron,” she said with a harsh snort, “If you’re just going to distract me you could go elsewhere, you know.”

“Oh I know it. But really, wasn’t keen on walking across a desert by myself, or even with the big guys. Seriously, yeti fur and hundred plus degree temperatures don’t mix. Nah, I figure you’ve always known what you’re about, boss lady, so I’ll tag along and see what you cook up. Can’t be worse than my chances out there on my own. Seriously, this town isn’t exactly ‘people friendly’, know what I mean?”

“Then if you insist on staying under my command, I require you learn when to remain silent while I think,” Tempest said, propping one hoof on the counter and placing her chin on it as she thought hard, and aloud, “We have to recover the Storm King, somehow, which means learning where those damned ponies have gone. Given they could be literally anywhere, I have to think long and hard about how to go about finding them-”

Meanwhile as she talked, Grubber glanced casually off to his right, towards the road leading into Klugetown, and blinked. He reached over and tapped Tempest’s side with a finger. “Hey, boss lady?”

“-which could take days, weeks, even months of tracking rumors this way and that! I don’t have that kind of time to waste! Who knows what they’re doing to the Storm King right now, so we have to find them quickly! But how? There’s only two of us-”

“Seriously, Tempest, if you’d just look over-”

“-and you’re not exactly what I’d call a prime recon asset! I’m going to have to do most of the legwork myself. Maybe if I start with the top gangs in Klugetown and shake them down, they must know the most out of anyone here who comes through the region. Any rumors from caravans must eventually pass on up to them. Of course they’ll probably resist, so I’ll have to crack a few heads together-”

“Tempest!” Grubber somehow shouted and whispered at her at the same time, his tapping becoming so insistent that she couldn’t ignore him anymore.

“What!?” she roared, turning towards him with a fierce look. He just grabbed her head by the cheeks and turned her to face towards the road.

A sizable group of ponies were cantering into town, drawing along with them a colorful caravan and wooden wagon. Among the group of colorful pastels that stuck out terribly among the dull browns and grays of Klugetown, there was also the rare and strange sight of two floating sea serpents the likes of which Tempest had never seen before. However far more arresting to her attention, and the reason she didn’t immediately pummel Grubber for pinching her cheeks (she hated it when people did that!), was the sight of a certain unicorn mare with a light pink coat and purple mane with a teal streak through it.

It’s her!

There was no mistaking it. The mare might not have been wearing that tacky coat with too many belts on it, and she wasn’t armed with that odd curved blade, but there was absolutely no way this was a different pony. She looked exactly the same, even down to the somewhat smug way she trotted along.

What she was doing here, in the open, unarmed, just walking into town amid a caravan of other ponies Tempest had no idea. None of the other ponies resembled the pegasus that had finished off the fleet outside town. Perhaps these other ponies were also associates of the mare, or perhaps she’d just come in with a random group of travelers. Regardless of what the truth was, the fact was that one of Tempest’s targets had literally just walked right into town!

Tempest grabbed Grubber and immediately flipped over to the other side of the bar counter, scattering a few plates as she dragged him down to hide with her beneath the counter edge. The bartender, a tall, burly blue fishman let out a rough, “What the blazes are you louts doing!?”

Tempest silenced him with a look that said ‘shut up or you’re face is going to be intimately acquainted with the dirt’. The fishman bartender gulped at that look and wisely decided to go back to cleaning a random mug from the counter.

That done, Tempest and Grubber crawled to one side of the bar and peeked around the corner, just in time to watch the purple maned mare and her troupe trot by. Though her eyes were mostly locked on the unicorn who’d caused the disaster at Mt. Aris, Tempest wasn’t so blind as to not see who else was among the group.

“What in the world is an Equestrian Princess doing here?” Tempest asked aloud.

“Who’s a what now?” asked Grubber, and Tempest rolled her eyes, nodding towards the darker purple unicorn with the obvious pair of wings.

“She’s an alicorn. I don’t recognize her, but if she’s got wings like that she’s either a Princess, or one very dedicated cosplayer.”

“Coswhat?”

“...Nevermind,” Tempest said, cheeks burning slightly. So what if she’d been into Daring Do conventions as a foal, before everything in her life went wrong? She examined the rest of the group and saw little among them that seemed remarkable, at least until she spotted the sole stallion in the group. He was one of only two in the caravan wearing clothing, the other being a snooty looking mare in a gaudy magician’s getup. The black robes he wore were plain enough, albeit of a style she wasn’t familiar with. What she did recognize was the style of the sword he wore sheathed through the sash of his robes. The same thin, curved style of blade that the unicorn mare had carried.

If Tempest had had even a sliver of doubt, that pretty much cinched it for her.

“Right, so what now, boss lady?” asked her stout companion, and as the caravan of ponies and two strange floating sea serpents passed by through the crowded streets, Tempest Shadow rose to her hooves, a determined and eager smile curling her lips.

“What do you think? Follow those ponies.”

----------

“Sooo, the Staff of Sacanus. It do anything fancy besides drain magic from stuff?” asked Starlight Glimmer as she casually twirled the large, darkwood staff in her hooves, admiring the rather large white crystal embedded in the top.

The question wasn’t immediately answered, so she sighed and went to grab a bucket of ice cold water, and proceeded to use her magic (she was getting better with it by the day) to splash the stuff across the shaggy, disheveled form hanging from chains in the room’s ceiling.

The Storm King coughed and sputtered awake, blinking bleary blue eyes, “Huzzahwha? Are we in Canterlot yet...? Oh, wait, no we’re not because SOME CRAZY PONY RUINED EVERYTHING!”

Starlight coughed politely, rubbing at her ears, “Okay, remember that talk we had about volume control? Do I need to get Platinum back in here to remind you about it?”

The mention of Platinum caused the Storm King to hush up rather fast, his simian features growing pale. He still had a bit of frost coating his furry, ape-like form from Platinum’s previous interrogation methods.

“Seriously lady, what do you want from me?” he pleaded, “I already told you everything I know about the staff. Listen, you seem like an appropriately level-headed kind of gal with clear lack of moral compunctions, which trust me I totally appreciate. How about instead of hanging me here like a side of beef you just let me down and we can totally partner up for some old fashioned world conquest fun. I have a growing brand and a LOT of pull down south, so really it’d be in your best interest to-”

“Quiet,” Starlight said, the simple, plain coldness of her town causing the Storm King to clamp his mouth shut immediately.

Starlight got up from the plush chair she’d been sitting in and set the Staff of Sacanus aside before slowly trotting up to where the Storm King hung. She looked up at him, eyes gleaming and wearing a thin smile. “I’m not some small minded despot looking to take over the world. I don’t care about ruling anything. I have a much higher goal in mind, one a shallow would-be king like you could never grasp. All I want from you is what information I can squeeze out about this world’s magic and what you were planning to do with this staff. If you’re fortunate, once I have that, I’ll let you go and you can pursue whatever petty conquests you want. It won’t matter to me.”

“Going to be kind of difficult to pursue conquering anything short of a Bed and Breakfast with my whole armada reduced to a fine pile of firewood,” grumbled the Storm King.

“Too bad, you shouldn’t have tried to attack the hippogriffs while I was busy making friendly with them,” Starlight said, but her smile did warm slightly as she chuckled, “Although I’ll admit it was a rather well timed invasion. Your attack made me something of a celebrity with the hippogriffs, and Queen Novo was so grateful for my heroics that she didn’t even ask me why I wanted to see where she kept the Pearl of Changing. I wonder how long it took them to realize the Pearl was gone after I left?”

Despite himself the Storm King whistled in appreciation, “You’re a whole different pile of crazy, but I like it. Devious, powerful, kinda nuts, huge chip on your shoulder. You remind me of my second-in-command.”

“That’s nice and all, but I’m not interesting in getting buddy-buddy with you, so let’s cut the chit-chat and get back to the staff, shall we? You say it can drain magic from objects or creatures, but you haven’t really told me what you intended to do with it once you reached Canterlot.”

“Yeah, kinda hard to keep talking when some insane, ugly mare has frozen my jaw shut!” said the Storm King, referring to when Platinum had gotten a tad carried away with the other day’s interrogation. “Seriously, where’d you find that psycho? I’m an evil world-conquering overlord and even I think that mare’s straight up out of her noggin’.”

“Platinum is going through a phase right now,” Starlight said, waving a hoof, “Sort of a personal and existential crisis. I think she’ll come around eventually, but even if she doesn’t, she’s still a useful member of the team. She’s not your concern right now, unless you keep dancing around the subject that is. So either tell me what you planned to do in Canterlot, or this room is about to get quite a bit chillier.”

“Alright, alright! Look, the staff is pretty useless unless you drain a lot of magic into it. A little magic and it can do a few nifty tricks like control some weather, or zap out a bit of lightning, but to get it really juiced up you got to drain something HUGE. Like, we’re talking a major league source of magic. Pull that off and BAM, you’ve got yourself a ‘I win’ button on a stick.”

“Hmm, I like the sound of that,” Starlight said, eyeing the Staff of Sacanus briefly before turning back to the Storm King, “And I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess you knew of such a magic source in Canterlot?”

“Oh yeah, big time. The Princesses. Tall, shiny flowing manes, horn and wings, control the sun and moon. Can’t miss ‘em. Also there’s a pink one who’s like, all about hearts, or kissing, or some lovey dovey crap, but really the ones you want are Tall White and Moopey Blue. I think that’s their names.”

“Celestia and Luna,” Starlight said, rubbing her chin, and the Storm King pointed his two fingers at her, even with his arms chained above his head.

“That’s the ones. Drain them dry, and you’ll be rocking even more power than you already have. So, that’s all I know. Can you just let me down now so I can blow this joint? If you’re taking Equestria, I at least want to get back to Catland and set up shop, figure out if there’s another land ripe for conquering; preferably far away from here.”

“I’ll consider it. For now you might as well hang around,” Starlight replied, wearing a small half-smirk as she gathered up the Staff of Sacanus and trotted for the thick metal door leading out of the room.

“Ha-ha-ha, I get it, because I’m not wearing pants, right?”

Starlight rubbed a hoof to her forehead, suppressed an urge to obliterate the cretin, and left the room, banging the metal door shut behind her as she left. She got perhaps ten paces down the hallway beyond before a familiar, oil-slick voice spoke from the shadows.

“I see you’ve been busy while I’ve been gone. Making friends with the locals, and acquiring such lovely, shiny new toys.”

Starlight stopped and turned a smug glance towards Chrysalis as the Espada slide out of the gloom of one of the adjoining hallways. She gave the Staff of Sacanus a playful spin, “I do like collecting other people’s things. Feels like I can always put them to better use than their previous owners. As for ‘friends’, I wouldn’t go that far.”

“Oh, but I’ve heard you’re such a star, now, among some of the inhabitants of this realm. The hippogriffs seem to just love you. Well, they did until they realized you stole their precious national treasure,” Chrysalis laughed, like the chiming of slime coated bells as she came up beside Starlight and they both resumed walking down the hall.

“Of course,” Chrysalis went on, “I have to question the wisdom of such overtly provocative actions. I thought the idea was to be covert in our stealing of Equestria’s magic. I somehow don’t see the stealth aspect of obliterating an entire army and making oneself a celebrity to an entire kingdom. Or is this one of your brilliant ‘chess’ maneuvers I’m unfamiliar with?”

“I already have a headache, Chrysalis, can you save the sass for another day?” Starlight replied, reaching one of Hitsuyo-Aku’s research labs, one she’d been converting for her personal use on studying the magical artifacts she’d started to gather. Going inside and placing the Staff of Sacanus inside an apparatus designed for such study, she turned to Chrysalis and nodded to another item in the room, placed within a similar apparatus. The object in question was a shining, luminous orb that shone with a radiant spectrum of bright colors.

“Between this Pearl of Changing and the Staff of Sacanus, we’ve already make more progress than I could have expected in this short a timeframe. If Platinum comes back successful, we’ll have another artifact in our growing arsenal.”

Chrysalis examined the staff and orb with mild interest, but perked up at the mention of Platinum, “Oh? You’ve sent our dear ex-Captain out on a mission? Is the poor dear feeling any better these days?”

The far too sweetly affected tone of sugary concern in Chrysalis’ voice suggested she didn’t remotely care about Platinum recovering from the mental funk she’d been in since betraying Soul Society, but instead rather delighted in the idea of the Soul Reaper’s emotional distress. Starlight fixed Chrysalis with a hard stare.

“She’s dealing with it. Honestly I wasn’t eager to send her out, but keeping her cooped up in this place wasn’t doing her any good.”

“One has to wonder if she’s in such a poor frame of mind if she can even accomplish anything useful.”

“I sent Firefly with her to keep an eye on things and act as backup,” Starlight said, “They’ll be fine. Even if this situation has ‘trap’ written all over it.”

“Oh? Do tell,” Chrysalis said, leaning over one of the lab’s tables with her chin propped in her hooves, licking her lips, “I love a good trap.”

“A trap for us, but couldn’t resist the bait,” said Starlight, waving a hoof dismissively, “Firefly caught rumors of a train transporting a prominent artifact. Some kind of ‘evil’ amulet. The papers all over Equestria were jabbering on about it. Too much so, really, to make me think it isn’t some kind of set-up. The Princesses have probably set the train up to draw us out, but that’s fine. Platinum and Firefly can handle whatever is thrown at them, and if the Princesses themselves appear, then that means they won’t be in Canterlot. Makes fine timing for your arrival.”

“Are we going to go play in the ponies fairy tale playset while the Princesses are busy springing their ‘trap’ then?” Chrysalis mused, then smirked in understanding, “Oh, you want your Bount back, don’t you?”

Starlight flinched, “Trixie did her part blocking the portal. We’d be in a much worse position without her help. I owe it to her to spring her free if the opportunity presents itself. Besides, this is the perfect opportunity to use test out the Pearl of Changing. Between the two of us we can impersonate whoever we want, including the Princesses.”

“I do like the pink one. She has quite the figure on her. A girl can get jealous,” Chrysalis said, snickering under her breath.

With a slight eye-roll, Starlight went to examine the readings that had been taken earlier that day on the Pearl of Changing, making sure she understood how the artifact was to be used. While she did that she said, “All that aside, did everything go well back in Hueco Mundo?”

“Squirk is dead and both the Hollows and Quincy forces were quite mangled by the exquisitely violent battle. Not quite as many dead Sternritter as I’d have preferred, but one can’t have everything. Yet.”

A non-committal grunt escaped Starlight, her eyes scanning the data on the pearl, “As long as Squirk is out of the picture and can’t be used to crack through our portal block, that’s all that matters. Having the Arrancar and Quincy damage each other is just an added bonus. Less we have to worry coming after us. I’ve got the Queen’s Key mostly figured out, and the Cross Gate still has plenty of juice for another trip. Few more weeks, maybe a month, of to gather the power we need here and we’ll be ready to hit the Soul Palace.”

“Your confidence is inspiring,” Chrysalis said, stretching herself out and turning to leave.

“Where are you going?” Starlight asked, eyes narrowing slightly as she looked up from the data.

“I hardly had time to go exploring when we first arrived. Since I’ve got some time, I thought I’d go for a stroll. Stretch these beautiful wings,” Chrysalis extended the thin gossamer appendages from her insectile form. “After all, I brought some of my family along this time. I thought I’d show them the sights.”

“Chrysalis, we are not here to indulge your hunger. Our only goal is to acquire the power to deal with the Zero Division.”

“Lighten up, Starlight dear. I know the rules, and I’ll play by them so you can feel all nice and squeaky clean of responsibility. But you must let a girl go have some fun and blow off steam. I won’t devour a single soul, or let my children run too rampant. However, in these new forms, mmm... there’s more we can devour than souls. Considering you’ve gotten to have your fun by blowing up an army, you can’t deny me the right to go have a little fun too, yes?”

Starlight flinched at that. She hadn’t really intended to go quite so ‘all-out’ against that armada of airships, but when she’d seen them attacking a peaceful kingdom of people who had no obvious defense against such an assault, she’d just gotten... so very, very angry. It’d been difficult to control herself. She’d probably used more force than had been necessary to end the threat, only snapping out of her anger induced rampage when she’d realized the Storm King’s staff was a potent magical artifact, and that it made more sense to capture him rather than just flat out kill him.

It’d been awhile since she’d had such a lapse in control. Not since she’d watched Sunburst’s soul dragged into Hell itself.

Still, her own misadventure with the Storm King’s armada had nothing to do with letting Chrysalis run wild in Equestria.

“I’m concerned your idea of ‘fun’ is going to involve innocent lives. I dealt with a conquering despot. No real loss to this world, there. That’s different than if you descending on some hapless town to wreak havoc.”

“Aaah, so you wouldn’t mind it so much if the target of my fun happened to be what you could justify as ‘bad guys’, would it?” Chrysalis said, batting her eyelashes innocently. “Why I do feel like I’ve seen the light and want to lay waste to the twisted and wicked today. I’ll go get my white hat and crusading gear.”

“Chrysalis, this isn’t a joke.”

“No, it’s not. I’m bored, and I’m going to go enjoy myself. If it appeases your conscience, I’ll enjoy myself upon someone you can construe as guilty of some wrongdoing. That way everyone wins. Except whoever the object of my fun turns out to be. I’m sure I can find some bandits, or slavers, or something of the sort out there somewhere. Does that sound fair to you?”

Starlight considered the matter for a moment. She still needed Chrysalis on her side, and with Firefly and Platinum away from the base there wasn’t anyone Starlight could send to keep a leash on the Espada, unless she decided to go along herself.

Could she afford to leave Hitsuyo-Aku unguarded to go keep an eye on Chrysalis?

As if reading her mind, Chrysalis said, “If you want to come along and make sure I don’t play too rough, I’d actually enjoy the company. If you’re worried about our little hideout, or perhaps Platinum’s son running off on his own, I brought my daughter Ocellus with me. She can watch things here while us adults have a Girls Night Out.”

Starlight raised and eyebrow, and Chrysalis flashed an amused smile at her as she turned to slide closer to Starlight. Starlight couldn’t help but notice the fangs jutting from Chrysalis’ lips gave her a distinctly spider-like visage, not helped by the hungry alien gleam in her eyes.

“You’re so uptight, Starlight, you really should learn how to enjoy yourself more. Come with me. You can make sure I stay a good girl, but perhaps you’ll find that there’s more in this world to enjoy than just the magic you can plunder from it.”

“Chrysalis, seriously, this is creepy, even for you,” Starlight said, putting out a hoof to push Chrysalis back, which didn’t seem to bother the Espada turned Changeling Queen. In fact it only seemed to amuse her more. Starlight took a deep breath and said, “I’ll come along, but only to observe. You want to toy around with some idiot bandits, it’s not skin off my back, but I’m not joining in any of your idea of fun. Now, you said you brought your daughter here? I thought all of the Hollows you spawn are your ‘children’.”

“Ocellus, like her brothers Thorax and Pharynx are very special to me,” Chrysalis said with a strangely fond and motherly look on her face, “Unlike most of my children, they are not expendable tools of my will. They’re quite independent of me, really.”

“Uh-huh, and I’m supposed to trust this Ocellus around Pipsqueak? She’s not going to try to eat him?”

Chrysalis busted out with a guffaw, holding her chest as she laughed, “Oh, wouldn’t that be hilarious if she did? The look I can imagine on Platinum’s face. Ah, but no, Ocellus is a sweetie. She only eats boys that irritate her, and I don’t think Pipsqueak is likely to do that. She knows she’s a guest here and that its her job to keep the place secure while I’m away.”

Starlight made a small ‘hmm’ of thought, then a reluctant sigh. Platinum and Firefly weren’t due back for at least a day. The train route between Canterlot and Manehattan wasn’t long, but it didn’t depart until tomorrow morning. Platinum and Firefly would wait until the train crossed a relatively wide and empty span of foothills before ambushing it. If anything was going to go wrong, it’d happen then. Enough time for Starlight to go chaperone Chrysalis around and be back the next day.

“Why do I have a feeling I’m going to regret this? Fine, let’s go.”

----------

Sunset Shimmer contained her frustration, swallowing it as she picked herself up off the ground. Not an easy feat when all of her senses were scrambled like eggs due to Discord’s Zanpaktou. He’d managed to tag her twice with Konran Arashi’s power so far, and each time had thrown her entire sense of perception off balance in a new way. Her body moved in all the wrong directions now and she’d had to adjust rapidly to that, while at the same time her eyes had ceased to perceive the world around her clearly and instead was showing her a mishmash of negative colors and blurry shapes.

She’d been fighting mostly on raw spiritual senses and her hearing, which miraculously had escaped being scrambled. Even with the massive boost in speed and strength her Bankai granted her she was still having trouble keeping pace with Discord. Yet she was also doing better than she had in some of their previous training bouts. When Discord got serious, he could usually outpace her in short order. The match had been going for a solid hour, and normally it only took Discord half that time to leave her disabled completely.

Not this time. Sunset wasn’t sure if the training was paying off, but so far she’d been giving as good as she’d been getting and hadn’t allowed Discord to get a third hit in. Was her spiritual pressure strong enough now that she could resist some of Konran Arashi’s power? That would make sense. The rule of thumb was that all spiritual abilities, regardless of the form they took, still had to overcome their target’s innate reiatsu to be effective. Since Konran Arashi was only in Shikai form and Sunset was using Bankai it made sense she had some resistance, but even so she could tell that resistance had been increasing over the time of their training.

On top of that her skill in manipulating her fire had gone up by leaps and bounds. Unable to properly see Discord, she’d shifted from chasing him physically to rapidly flying over the training field to rain down a torrent of fire in various patterns. An avid gamer, Sunset Shimmer was familiar with the ‘bullet hell’ style of video games, and so had taken to swinging Hokori’s flamberge around in various arcs to generate bolts and spheres of fire that shot out in complex patterns to impact on the ground below.

She didn’t have to see Discord for him to have to dodge such widespread attacks. She just had to sense enough of his reiatsu to know the general spot he was in, and unleash a continuous hail of flaming bolts and explosive spheres of fire. Sunset discovered it was glowingly easier to fine tune the shape and intensity of her flames, leading her to also gradually try to encircle Discord with a constricting wall of fire.

However Discord had his own counter to that. Konran Arashi didn’t just disrupt biological orders. It disrupted all natural orders. So when he turned his Zanpaktou’s radiantly chaotic energies upon Sunset’s flames the walls of fire started to dissipate into puffs of randomness, sometimes exploding, sometimes turning into water, other times burst into clouds of sand or smoke.

This had left the pair at a standstill until Discord had ceased playing defensively and showed just how much his Zanpaktou could really do. Sunset had been used to him firing off swift but small bolts of wavering, prismatic energy, like slim slicks of gasoline. However this time he thrust Konran Arashi upwards and the stream of chaos energy shot up in a fountain that then expanded above Sunset Shimmer in a large curtain of scintillating colors. Before she knew it, gravity itself had ceased working properly and she went careening down into the ground, even her flame wings unable to keep her in the air as the fundamental forces allowing her to fly were shattered.

She’d just managed to stand back up when Discord appeared before her, rainbow light trailing from his blade as he sliced it towards her. She couldn’t see it, only feel it coming, and had to fight her instincts in order to get her body to move enough for her to interpose Hikari between herself and Konran Arashi. The shield and blade impacted with a clarion ring, and Sunset felt a gut twisting sensation as Konran Arashi’s power surged into the shield half of her Zanpaktou.

Suddenly flames ejected randomly out of Hikari, draining power from Sunset’s sword, weakening the flames coating Hokori. Sunset still swung Hokori in a harsh, potent arc, using her flame wings to boost her swing’s momentum. Discord chuckled dryly and leaped up over her swing, Flash Stepping away even as Sunset’s sword hit the ground, melting the ground and shattering it in a wide crater.

“You’re still moving quite well for having your entire sense of direction and balance thrown out of whack,” Discord said, appearing a few dozen feet away with one hand on his hat while the other casually held up his Zanpaktou, “The more you use Bankai, the better your reiatsu will concentrate itself, rather than radiate out. Though don’t neglect training with your Shikai, still. As I hope I’ve provided ample examples, a Shikai can still be very effective, especially considering its less draining than Bankai.”

Sunset managed a cocky smirk, “Oh, I haven’t forgotten my Shikai. Been training a bit on my own with it, and Hokori no Hikari has helped me learn a few new tricks...”

With a sweeping motion she dragged Hokori’s tip through the stone ground beneath her feet, igniting a series of emerald sparks.

”Midorihi Hashira!” (Green Fire Pillar)

Abruptly the ground beneath Discord’s feet glowed with a fiery green light, and then erupted upwards in a series of thick pillars of yellow-green fire. This technique took a little work on Sunset’s part, as she had to implant the ground with her flames and let it build strength for a few minutes. That was part of the reason she’d been sending so many fire attacks down from above earlier. Not just to attack Discord, but to hide several such nodes of flame energy in the ground where they’d wait, essentially like land mines, just waiting for her to send a spark out to detonate them.

Sunset wasn’t certain why they flames took on a green color, but it seemed a lot of her Zanpaktou’s abilities changed the color of her fire. As she watched the multiple pillars of soaring green flame burned out. Even if she couldn't’ see it clearly, she could sense the flames dissipating as Discord swept his Zanpaktou through them, Konran Arashi breaking apart the pillars in short order.

“Impressive. More versatility is always a good thing,” Discord said, though Sunset wasn’t wasting a second. Even as he spoke, she rocketed towards him, her speed fast enough to tear the ground apart as she went. Zipping behind Discord, she spun Hokori in a upward arc, but Discord side-stepped with the blow and tapped her blade with his own, knocking Sunset off balance.

“Looks like my win again,” Discord said, slipping his blade up under her chin before she could regain her balance. Yet Sunset’s eyes gleamed as she smirked again, and Discord saw that the girl’s form flickered around the edges with motes of white flame.

“Did you?” she asked, only from behind him as she knocked Discord’s hat off his head with Hokori’s edge, while the Sunset Shimmer that Discord thought had been her turned into a copy image of her, only now fully bathed in white fire.

”Shiroihi Yume.” (White Fire Dream)

The flame clone vanished in a swirl of pure white fire, and the real Sunset Shimmer, who’d used the distraction of the earlier flame pillar attack to create the clone and hide herself behind some nearby rock outcroppings, twirled Discord’s hat on one finger and kept grinning at him. “I told you I’d been practicing with my Shikai, and my Zanpaktou’s been helping me develop some new tricks.”

Discord glanced back at her, then closed his eyes with a pleased laugh under his breath and slowly returned his Zanpaktou to normal, sheathing it within his gnarled wooden cane. “That you did. Well done. I thought I sensed a slight difference in your reiatsu, but didn’t realize it was a clone. That takes a rather precise amount of control of both your reiatsu and your fire, and you did it while your senses were being scrambled by Konran Arashi. You truly have improved.”

Sunset let out a happy sigh, letting her Bankai dissipate and allowed her Zanpaktou to return to normal as well. Her sense returned as Discord deactivated his Zanpaktou, and she breathed in relief now that her head wasn’t hurting from her senses being tossed around in a blender. “Thanks, I’d like to think all this hard work was producing some results. Still, kinda frustrating how hard it is to even get the drop on you once with my Bankai, while you’re still using Shikai.”

“I’ve been in the game for centuries, Sunset, do try to give me a little credit,” Discord said, holding out his hand expectantly. Sunset tossed him his hat and Discord plopped it back on his head. “You should have sensed it when you fought Platinum just how large a difference there is between those who’ve had countless years to refine their powers versus those still discovering them.”

“Yeah, but I beat Platinum,” Sunset said, stretching her arms. These practice bouts always left her sore, and apparently working out a spiritual body required just as much stretching as a physical one.

“Oh, you gave Platinum a proper kick in her haughty posterior, so don’t take this as discouragement. That said, Platinum was hardly fighting at her best during your one-on-one with her. Emotionally distraught, likely filled with doubts about the course of her actions, and not thinking straight I don’t think Platinum had the frame of mind to use her skills to the fullest against you. Even then, you saw how much control she had over the ice palace her Bankai formed. Your fight with her was a very close thing.”

“You know, you say not to feel discouraged, but this really does take the wind out of my sails,” Sunset groused, but Discord just smiled like a grandparent who was amused by their grandkids antics.

“Just looking to give you proper perspective, Sunset. You need to respect your opponents abilities, and not assume that Bankai is an end-all be-all power that will get you out of every jam. You’re strongest weapons are this-” he poked his cane at her head, “-and this.”

The cane poked her chest, right above her heart.

“More than anything else, your battles are won in the mind and heart before blades even cross. Never forget to use both.”

“You’re starting to sound like Celestia.”

“I’d like to think I’m far prettier than her,” Discord said, waggling his eyebrows. Sunset let out a light laugh, but then fixed him with a satisfied grin.

“And don’t think I forgot our bet. I won the match, so fess up, what’s the deal with your Bankai?”

“Oh, we did make that bet, didn’t we? Well I suppose I can tell you a little about it, but I’m not revealing everything. Some secrets need to be saved for the proper time,” Discord said, but soon the lightheartedness drained from his face and he suddenly gained a very serious expression, leaning on his cane. “I’ll tell you why I won’t use my Bankai during our training sessions, or indeed when I have allies nearby. In that sense, I and Celestia are alike. My Shikai is easy enough to use in pinpoint fashion. My Bankai is not. In fact my Bankai is very much an all or nothing kind of ability, and if misused has dire consequences.”

Sunset looked at him curiously, “How so?”

A momentary look of shame crossed his face, “You’re familiar with my assistance, Screwloose and Screwball. Do they strike you as entirely normal?”

“Errr... I guess they’re a bit eccentric? I mean, Screwloose tends to treat everything like a game, and Screwball acts way more childlike than somebody as old as most Soul Reapers should. I guess they’re both kinda odd, but I just figured that’s how you roll with the people you recruit.”

“There’s more to it than that,” said Discord, “They were both a tad unusual, true, even when they were my subordinates in the Twelfth Division. However they didn’t become like they are now until they got caught in the edge of my Bankai’s effects. I didn’t realize they were too close until after I’d released it.”

“Wait, when? Against who?”

“Starlight Glimmer, when I tried to prevent her from stealing the Hogyoku,” he replied, lips thinning into a distant frown, “She’d already destroyed my lab and used the Hogyoku on Screwloose, Screwball, and Ditzy to infect them with Hollow reiatsu. She fled and I chased her, forced her into a confrontation. The Hogyoku was already making her stronger than I could have anticipated, so I resorted to my Bankai to try to stop her. I didn’t realize that Screwloose and Screwball, having received a lower dose of Hollow energy than Ditzy, had recovered enough to try to come to my aid... so they were caught in my Bankai’s radius.”

“That’s... I’m sorry, I didn’t realize. You don’t really have to say anymore if you don’t want to. I can guess Starlight got away somehow.”

Discord nodded, “Yes, even back then she was crafty, and I underestimated her. A lesson I’m trying to pass on to you; never assume you’re more powerful than your opponent, or that even if you are that victory is guaranteed. Nothing is ever guaranteed. My arrogance and assumptions have cost me much, and I don’t want you or your friends to experience the same failures I have.”

He looked at her straight in the eyes, “Which is why you must be very careful how you handle this situation with Twilight Sparkle and Adagio Dazzle.”

Sunset gave a start, eyes snapping wide before she quickly got control of herself and rubbed the back of her head, “So, you knew. Ditzy Doo?”

“Ditzy Doo,” Discord confirmed with a nod.

“Riiiight, guess I should’ve figured. I was actually going to tell you tonight before heading home, and try to get your take on all of this. I want to help Twilight and Adagio out, but I’m not sure how to pull this off without making things complicated with Soul Society. I was hoping Celestia might be able to help.”

Discord cast a glance off towards the direction where Puddinghead and Clover were still training, his eyes narrowing slightly. “If you want my opinion, I’d suggest not involving Soul Society at all. Celestia may be one of the most reasonable women I know, but you’d be putting her in a difficult position if you informed her of what was happening. She wouldn’t turn you in, but if things went poorly, she’d be implicated. Stealth and deception are your allies in this venture, Sunset.”

“What about you and Ditzy? Can you guys help?” Sunset asked hopefully.

“Ditzy has family matters to keep her occupied, and I wouldn’t pull her away from her plans with her family even if all of Hueco Mundo were about to invade. That said I have a few ideas that might make things easier for you and your friends. You and your friends should come by tomorrow night. I’ll show you what I have, and you can work out plans from there. Just be prepared for the worst. Things are afoot around this town, and I get the distinct feeling things will get far more complicated than they already have.”

----------

Well, that hadn’t been quite as helpful as Sunset had hoped, but at least Discord had said he’d try to help in someway or another. She supposed she couldn’t fault Ditzy Doo for wanting to spend time with her kid and...husband? Lover? Baby daddy? She wasn’t sure what Time Turner was to Ditzy, and it wasn’t any of Sunset’s business. She had a lot more on her mind than that.

She’d left Discords with Clover and her other friends, all of whom were exhausted from the evening’s training. They’d stopped by a strip mall with several food places, getting pizza to fill up, and stopping by a doughnut store to appease a particular promise made to Pinkamena. Then, after enjoying some relaxed conversation, they’d all bid each other good night and gone their separate ways, although Clover stayed with Sunset almost all the way to Sunset’s apartment. The house Clover was staying at with Posey and several other Soul Reapers wasn’t far from where Sunset lived.

Clover had chattered excitedly over all the Kido spells she’d seen Puddinghead use and didn’t seem to mind at all that she was sporting numerous burn marks and heavy bruises from all the near misses and close explosions from the Kido Corps Chief’s training.

“Tomorrow he says he’s willing to show me how to try a level ninety Kido, now that he knows I have enough stamina to handle one!” Clover said, beaming, “I can’t wait! I wonder which one it will be? A Hado, or a Bakudo?”

“Mmmhmm,” Sunset said, her mind still wandering around the problem of what to do about rescuing Ember. How to pull it off without alerting Soul Society?

“Uh, Sunset? You in there?” Clover leaned forward, waving a hand in front of Sunset’s face.

“Wha? Oh! Yeah, Kido! Puddinghead’s going to teach you some tomorrow, rather than just trying to explode you?”

Clover gave her an odd, searching look, but nodded, “That’s the idea. He’s rather intense, but he’s definitely a Kido genius. I’ve never seen someone invoke incantations that fast. Most Captains can’t even compare to that. It’s an honor he’s giving me the time of day at all. So how are things going with you and Discord? I was too busy with my own training to see how yours has been going.”

“I’m definitely getting better, but still not as fast as I’d like. I’m going to try to relax a bit, like you wanted, but I still got to keep some of the pressure up. New techniques are swell and all, but it’s going to take more than a few green pillars or a flame clone to be able to take down Starlight Glimmer or an Espada.”

“True, very true,” Clover sighed, “And much as I’m eager to learn high-level Kido, I’ll admit I have no idea if I’ll be useful in fighting such powerful opponents. Sometimes I feel like I’m just going to hold you and the others back. Without Chishiki...”

“Hey,” Sunset turned to her. They were less than a block from her apartment, standing beneath a street lamp at a street intersection. “You’re never going to hold us back, Clover. Ever. You’re part of the group, and its as a group that we get anything done at all. Maybe you can’t solo an Espada, but hey, I probably can’t either. It’s as a team that we’re going to win, Clover. So don’t knock yourself, okay?”

Clover’s head bobbed in a shallow nod, but there was a hesitance in her eyes and voice as she asked, “I believe you, but... can I ask why you and the girls have been acting off since you met with Twilight, then? If I’m part of the team, you can tell me what happened, right?”

A moment passed in silence as Sunset hesitated. She really didn’t want to get Clover involved in this. If things went wrong, then Clover might be in a much worse position than even Sunset and her friends would be. “Clover, I... look, I want to tell you, but can you trust me or now and understand that if I’m not saying something, it’s for good reasons?”

For a second Clover looked hurt, but she took a deep breath and said in an understanding tone, “I do trust you, Sunset. You’ve earned that. Just... whatever it is, know I’m on your side, no matter what.”

Sunset couldn't help but smile warmly at the other girl, “Thanks, Clover. If it comes to that, I know I can trust you too.”

They parted ways, and Sunset walked the rest of the way to her apartment with slightly lighter steps. As always, the challenges looming ahead looked ever more complicated and difficult, but she just had to trust in the people closest to her and realize that no matter how bad things got, they’d find a way through it.

Since she was still in her spirit form, she didn’t even have to open her door to get into her apartment. Chappy would be out with her real body, but should be back soon. She’d probably grab a quick drink and sit down with a video game or something to unwind for the rest of the night, get to bed a little early and wake up early, refreshed, and-

A woman Sunset didn’t recognize was sitting in her kitchen. A burly, buff teenage girl with white hair, tinged purple, and fierce golden eyes. A huge number ‘10’ was tattooed on the girl’s well muscled abs, and her white clothing and the Zanpaktou sitting across her shoulder was clue enough to her being an Arrancar even before Sunset saw the Hollow hole in her chest.

“Hi,” the woman said with a malicious, tooth-barring grin as she raised a finger and charged a deep red Cero at the finger’s tip, “Bye.”

The Cero discharged at Sunset at nearly point blank range.

Episode 90: Differences of Strength

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Episode 90: Difference of Strength

Red as freshly spilled wine, the Cero’s glow enveloped Sunset Shimmer’s modest apartment. It all happened in the span of time no longer than a hummingbird’s wingflap, yet for Sunset the moment between realizing what was happening and the instant the ruby beam of destruction discharged from the Arrancar’s finger was slowed to a glacial crawl.

She could sense everything around her, from the flaring, angry heat of the muscular girl’s reiatsu and that of her Cero, to the tiny and fragile pinpricks of spiritual energy given off by the other people living in her apartment complex. It was evening. Almost everyone was home, well over two dozen souls clustered inside a building that was about to be blown to bits.

Perhaps it was the intensity of her experiences in Soul Society, or the honing of her skills through the exhausting training she’d been putting herself through afterward, but whatever the cause it seemed to Sunset that her ability to react let her take all the time in the world to respond to the threat in front of her.

There wasn’t any real thought process, either. Her motions were on instinct combined with experience, leading to instantaneous action. The moment the Arrancar’s Cero fired, Sunset already had Hokori no Hikari in her hands, swinging the Zanpaktou, still in its sealed state, upwards in a curving arc. At the same instant, her spiritual pressure rushed out of her in a concentrated wave, roiling up the length of her arms and into her sword. Without thinking she pushed with that reiatsu, like a shell around her Zanpaktou, hardened and layered as she pushed up at an angle.

The result was that the powerful beam of consuming, sanguine energy parted around Hokori no Hikari’s edge and Sunset’s reiatsu buffered her against the deluge while simultaneously directing the lion’s share of the Cero’s might at an upward angle. The split, distorted beam still annihilated the kitchen around Sunset, smashing through the walls into the hallway beyond and through her bathroom. The blowback shattered windows, crushed her couch and bed, and warped the ceiling and walls behind the Arrancar. Painfully, the tv and entertainment center sparked and exploded in the process.

The curving upward, split beams bored holes through the ceiling as well, and thankfully Sunset’s apartment was on the top floor, so there were no further apartments above her getting destroyed, but Sunset feared that the beam could have easily torn the roof right off of her neighbor’s apartment across the hall.

Her own body withstood the beam’s proximity without noticeable harm, her Zanpaktou diffusing most of the energy and the hard shell of her reiatsu guarding her against the rest. It was a lucky thing Chappy was out on the town with her human body, otherwise this whole situation would have played out quite less favorably. Still, Sunset was, in a word, pissed. A blindingly hot sensation of elemental rage was now boiling up inside her chest as the dust settled and she got a clear look at her now thoroughly trashed apartment.

Her home. Her home.

Perhaps it didn’t look like much, just a simple one bedroom apartment in the cheaper part of town. It wasn’t as if she’d lived her whole life here. But she’d made a life for herself here, and this apartment, with all its little quirks, was where she’d started to put her new life together. Now it was ruined. Violated, by some cocky intruder who’d just tried to murder her without so much as a fair fight.

For her part the Arrancar girl looked surprised to see Sunset still standing there in the smoking ruins of ceiling and wall where the doorway had been, and blinked in mild shock.

“Okay, that wasn’t how this was supposed to go dow-”

The girl didn’t get to finish her sentence, as Sunset was in front of her with a blazingly quick Flash Step, and gripped the girls’ face with her free hand. Face snarling in a twisted sneer of utter fury, Sunset shoved with all of her might and ended up throwing the Arrancar into, then through the far wall of her apartment.

The Arrancar exploded through the wall and out into the open air above the street in front of the apartment. She spun a few times in ungainly fashion before finally planting her feet in the air, reiatsu grinding against the air particles in a long skid across the sky. The Arrancar, grinding her teeth, rubbed at her sore face.

“The hell is this!?” she said with her own ire coloring her voice, “That Cero should have dusted you!”

Sunset walked out of the hole in her apartment wall with measured steps that belied the volcanic pulse of anger inside her, although her eyes were all but shining with the flames within. She walked across the air towards the Arrancar, Zanpaktou in her right hand, which at this point was coated in a aura of inferno red and orange even without being released to Shikai yet.

“You destroyed my home,” Sunset said, voice level as a razor and twice as sharp. “I’m going to give you one chance to tell me who you are, apologize to me, and maybe I’ll let you crawl back to Hueco Mundo with one or two of your limbs still attached to your body.”

“Tch, don’t get full of yourself because you caught me off guard,” the Arrancar replied and jabbed a thumb towards her well muscled chest, “I’m Gilda, the Tenth Espada, or did you not see the number? I came here to put you and your team of color-coded dorks in your place!”

“I see...” Sunset said, her voice never losing its knife-edged calm, and she vanished.

Gilda had half an instant to feel the shift in spiritual pressure and sense the attack coming from above, raising her own Zanpaktou even as Sunset’s shadow passed over her. She barely made it in time as Sunset descended from above like a careening meteor, her blade striking with titanic force that sent Gilda cartwheeling to the street below despite having technically blocked the attack.

With not inconsiderable skill and fortitude of her own Gilda recovered enough to land on her feet, impacting with the street in a half-crouch. The concrete of the street buckled under the landing, crunching down and then breaking in an uneven crater that broke water lines and caused a nearby utility pole to snap. Electrical wires sparked and a transformer exploded, showering the area.

Despite her rage, Sunset internally winced. While every part of her was screaming inside to crush this interloper into her city, she didn’t want to break the city to do it. Lesser Hollows were easy to dispatch without any trouble these days, but this was still an Espada she was dealing with. Even if Sunset could feel the advantage she had over Gilda in terms of reiatsu, Gilda clearly wasn’t going to go down without a fight, and given how little the girl cared about firing off a Cero in a crowded apartment complex there was little reason to think Gilda would hold back from causing collateral damage in a populated suburban area.

Dammit. I can’t afford to lose my temper. I have to lead her away from the populated areas, otherwise if I try going all out to defeat her fast, we’re just going to cause way more damage to the city.

Such was much easier thought than accomplished, however. Despite a clear power difference, Sunset didn’t think she could easily force Gilda away from the residential area without risking damage to the houses around them. She also didn’t think she could just run and hope Gilda would chase her, because if Gilda knew where Sunset lived then it stood to reason the Espada knew where Sunset’s friends lived as well, so there’d be nothing stopping her from going after any of them if Sunset didn’t keep her occupied.

I have to drive her off or kill her here, and do it without getting any innocent bystanders killed as well.

It somewhat concerned her how readily the thought of cutting Gilda down came to her mind, but she didn’t try to overly analyze it. She would only do it if she couldn’t force Gilda to run, and if it came down to not having any other option, she’d deliver the final blow and worry about soul searching and morality after she’d ensured the threat to her home and friends was dealt with.

It wasn’t like Gilda was giving her time to think things over much anyway, as the Espada immediately shot up into the air and came right at Sunset, letting out a piercing battle cry akin to that of an eagle swooping upon its prey.

Sunset blocked the first hefty blow, and found that even with her reiatsu surging stronger than ever, Gilda wasn’t exactly a lightweight. No longer taken off guard, Gilda was pouring out her own power into her blows, and was hammering with her blade in a withering series of blows. Sunset stepped into swift, rhythmic motion, her Zanpaktou intercepting each strike with practiced precision. All those training sessions really were paying off. Gilda was strong, but Sunset was holding firm and wasn’t even being pushed back by the assault.

They ended up with blades locked together, energy sparking between the pressed together swords as Gilda’s muscles strained to try and push Sunset back, with no apparent success. The woman’s golden eyes were filled with frustration and bitter anger, voice tight with disbelief.

“This doesn't make sense! A month ago you barely took out some half-baked scrub like Grand Fisher! Grogar wiped the floor with you wimps! How did you get this strong!?”

“Exercise and eating healthy,” Sunset replied in pure deadpan fashion, which only served to clearly enrage Gilda as her head popped with multiple veins and she let out a fierce, guttural roar before pulling back fist and ramming it towards Sunset’s face.

Sunset ducked the blow, vanishing with another swift Flash Step as she appeared on Gilda’s left. Her sword cleaved towards Gilda’s shoulder, looking to cut her arm off at the base, but Gilda surprised Sunset by leaning into the blow. This threw off the angle of Sunset’s strike enough that while it did leave a deep cut, it didn’t sever the arm, and Gilda’s shoulder slammed into Sunset with tremendous force.

This time it was Sunset that went spinning to the ground, but she recovered even faster than Gilda had, easily landing atop a street light. She didn’t waste a second, throwing her free hand out, palm up, and focused on Gilda as she chanted.

”Hado Number Fifty Five: Yasei-o no Tsume!” (Talons of the Wild King)

As she spoke she drew the fingers of her hand in a harsh, slicing motion, as if they were a claw, and lines of serrated, shifting blue energy formed in their wake. These lines then exploded into four swirling arcs of blade-like power that flew up with a sharp buzzing noise as they swarmed towards Gilda.

This was about as potent a Kido as Sunset could handle at the moment, and it was one Clover had taught her only a few days ago while practicing her own Kido in preparation for Puddinghead’s arrival. The Kido's main strength wasn’t in its raw attack power, but rather in the fact that each of the four spinning claws of energy could be directed with just a little mental focus and a gesture. Sunset sent them towards Gilda, but at the last second had them split off and fly around the Espada until she had one coming from above, below, and both the front and back.

Gilda’s response was as ferocious as it was immediate.

Once more surprising Sunset with her willingness to just take bodily harm, Gilda severed one of the energy blades in half with her Zanpaktou, but used her bare fist and feet to smash the others, twisting in the air to backhand one while scissor-kicking the remaining two. The Kido spell’s spinning blades were still sharp enough to dig into Gilda’s hardened skin, drawing sprays of blood, but the power behind Gilda’s blows still shattered them before they could do more than shallow wounds.

Still, this distracted Gilda more than long enough for Sunset to zip up to her opponent with another Flash Step, and deliver a swift overhand chop towards Gilda’s already injured arm. The Arrancar vanished with her own high-speed Sonido, but Sunset still felt her Zanpaktou bite flesh, and when Gilda appeared a few dozen feet away, standing on the air, her arm sported a fresh and long cut down from the shoulder to the elbow. The arm didn’t hang limply, but Gilda’s grip on her Zanpaktou was visibly weakened and shaking.

“Give it up,” Sunset said in a flat tone, hard as granite, “The difference between us ought to be obvious by now. I haven’t even gone Shikai, and you’re bleeding from half a dozen places. Go back to Hueco Mundo. Tell Grogar or whoever you work for that this city is under my protection, and the next time I see one of you skulking around it, I’m not going to give a warning. I’m just going to end them.”

The look on Gilda’s face ebbed and flowed rapidly between various forms of anger. Sunset wasn’t sure, but she saw a swift combination of acidic frustration, unguided fury, and a hint of self-loathing, all in the span of a few twisted expressions as Gilda ground her teeth together before speaking in a husky, low tone.

“You think you’re so damned special, don’t you? Your just like that bitch Adagio! You’ve got all this power you don’t deserve and look down on me like I’m nothing! Well I’m not nothing! You hear me!? I’ve worked my ass for for decades to get to where I was at under Lord Guto, and finally I get my shot at the big leagues and what happens? A pair of orange, bacon-headed floozies keep screwing me over! And while I’m at it, I’m going to add that dumb four-eyed Quincy dweeb to the list! You got that!? I’m making a list!”

“Uh...” Sunset blinked, “I’m starting to feel like you’re projecting a bit here, and that maybe there’s some misplaced anger issues at work-”

“GRRAAAAAAAA!”

Gilda promptly aimed a fist at Sunset, red arcs of energy spiking around her hand, then a stream of crimson Bala reishi bullets came fling out like someone had opened up a floodgate.

“Ah crap!” Sunset blurted, immediately throwing herself into a series of rapid Flash Steps to try and avoid the machinegun-like hosing of reishi spheres. Sunset flinched as several stray spheres impacted with the ground, one of them smashing a parked car and causing it to explode.

Double crap! Adagio, what did you do to piss this girl off so much!? Sunset wondered as she pushed off the air to send herself flying upwards, forcing Gilda’s aim to track her higher into the sky and away from the ground.

Once she’d reached several hundred feet of height, Sunset realized she had a good distance from Gilda, and that it was probably high time to take off the kid gloves with this fight. She really didn’t want things to escalate further, which was why she’d held off on this, but if Gilda wasn’t going to run even after a clear difference in power was demonstrated, then Sunset was running out of options.

”Ignite, Hokori no Hikari.”

Flames erupted from her Zanpaktou and swiftly transmuted into the broadsword and shield of her Shikai. The warm, familiar power flooded her and Sunset smiled a she flipped around in the air and just as the stream of Balas from Gilda caught up to her, Sunset interposed Hikari.

The shield took the barrage of Hollow reishi bullets quite readily. Sunset felt each impact, but her shield held firm, and she could feel the rapid transfer of power as the kinetic energy of each impact flowed from Hikari to Hokori. The broadsword in Sunset’s right hand flared to fiery life as dense flames wrapped around the blade, and the red cloth flowing from the hilt glowed with orange intensity.

The Balas charged up Hokori so much that Sunset was tempted to try that other technique she’d been working on. The green flame pillars and white fire clone were neat tricks, but Sunset felt like she needed something for dealing with enemies that had massive stamina and defense, like Captain Hurricane had. So she’d been testing out a few theories and developing a skill for such foes, but she’d hadn’t quite gotten it down yet. Perhaps now was a good time?

No, not here. If the technique goes wrong, all that power is going to spill out randomly, and there’s too many people down there to risk it. I’ll just have to stick with the old standby, she thought as the Bala barrage slacked off, probably because Gilda was tiring out. Sunset used that moment to pull off the fastest Flash Step she could, reaching Gilda in the fraction of a heartbeat.

Gilda looked shocked Sunset could move that fast, or withstand such a hefty salvo of Balas, and was slow to react as Sunset pulled back her blade and started to swing it forward. The fire around her sword turned a deep azure.

”Aoihi Senko!”

The strike would have been near perfect, unleashing the powerful blast of blue flame at less than a meter away from Gilda, and at an angle that’d ensure none of the houses below would be touched by the fire.

The only problem was that as Sunset struck, so did someone else.

The water hit her from the side, utterly blindsiding Sunset with a powerful deluge that hit harder than a dozen riot hoses combined. Her Aoihi Senko still went off, but the flames were unfocused by Sunset’s surprise and went shooting off upwards, the pillar of azure fire piercing through a thick cloud and vaporizing it.

Gilda was left standing in stunned shock while Sunset gradually regained her balance and got her blade to slice into the water cannon, parting the stream as her feet ground across the air until she managed to stop.

The water slackened off and Sunset was left staring in silence as the perpetrator strode with confident steps across the air to stand beside Gilda.

“...Adagio?”

Sure, Twilight had told Sunset about Adagio already, but it was still a shock to see the siren girl once again, especially like this. It was surreal how similar Adagio looked like her former self, yet so radically different. And Sunset didn’t merely consider the differences in terms of the Hollow hole in Adagio’s chest, or the crown-like ridge of bone across her brow, nor the elegant white and ruby colored trident or massive Hollow reiatsu that flowed off of Adagio like a royal cloak.

There was something infinitely harder and yet more refined in Adagio’s stance and expression. Adagio had always been arrogant, and acted like the queen of any patch of ground she stood upon, but in the past it had always felt a tad forced and puffed up, like a balloon.

Now? Now Adagio wore power like a mantle she wasn’t merely born to, but had earned by her own hand. Confidence and assurance rippled from her in a near palpable aura.

Sunset couldn’t imagine what Adagio had endured to change so much, but for the moment it left her speechless.

Adagio’s smile dripped with satisfaction. “Sunset, how good to see you getting along with my new colleagues. Giving Gilda a workout, I see.”

“W-what the hell do you think you’re doing, Adagio!?” growled Gilda, “I have this under control-”

Adagio didn’t even look at Gilda, she merely slammed the back of one, balled fist into Gilda’s stomach with enough force to send the other Arrancar stumbling back, clutching her gut. Adagio’s voice turned into a smoothly chilled timbre, pointed as an icicle.

“You have absolutely nothing under control. In case it escaped your realization, you were picking a fight with an opponent who outclasses you. If you’d been thinking, you’d have taken the time to observe your potential targets to gauge their strength before exposing your presence. Now...” Adagio snapped her fingers and a sizable Garganta portal opened up behind her and Gilda, “We’re leaving before the hornet’s nest you’ve stirred up arrives.”

“Hey, I’m not someone you can just order around-” Gilda started to speak again, but Adagio just placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder and proceeded to shove her like a sack of grain through the open maw of the Garganta.

As Adagio strode towards the portal, Sunset finally found her senses and called out, “Adagio, wait!”

Adagio paused at the mouth of the Garganta, glancing back over her shoulder. Sunset’s mind swirled with questions, but a part of her realized she couldn’t really ask any of them right now. Adagio was right, Gilda’s attack had stirred up the city. Aside from the wail of sirens from emergency vehicles rushing to the scene of what would appear to be some kind of accident, Sunset could feel the spiking reiatsu from multiple incoming individuals. She could easily pick out her friends, but she sensed Clover and several Soul Reapers as well, including Celestia. They’d be here in mere moments. Adagio didn’t have time to answer any questions Sunset might want to ask, so instead she just kept it simple.

“It’s good to see you, too.”

Adagio’s expression remained supremely confident, even arrogant, but there was the barest hint of a real smile tugging at the side of her lips. Adagio silently mouthed something, nodding to Sunset, before her voice spoke in a haughty tone of smug superiority.

“No doubt, but don’t forget that we’re no longer allies, Sunset Shimmer. The next time we meet, we’ll be enemies. And as powerful a you’ve become-”

Adagio turned and strode through the Garganta, but a stiff and oddly well timed breeze billowed out the white cape she wore, exposing her back.

“-I’ve become stronger.”

And frankly Sunset couldn’t tell if Adagio was boasting or being truthful in that regard, for it was impossible to miss the large, prominent number ‘6’ tattooed on Adagio’s back.

The Garganta closed, and Sunset was left standing there, catching her breath and mulling over what she’d just seen. She’d already know about Adagio becoming an Espada, but it was hard to believe that she’d reached a rank even higher than Grogar’s among that elite group. Sunset remembered all too clearly how overpowering Grogar had seemed when she and the girls had fought him, or rather tried to fight him after they’d dealt with Grand Fisher.

Now Adagio stood on a level even higher than that.

But she wasn’t an enemy, whatever words she’d just spoken, likely just to keep Gilda from suspecting anything. Indeed right before that Adagio had mouthed something, and Sunset thought the words had been ‘Talk later’.

Adagio was working her own angle with Twilight, seeking to rescue Ember. Chances were Gilda showing up now had been a surprise to Adagio as well, although Sunset wondered if Adagio interfered because she wanted Gilda for another purpose, or if it was just because it might reflect poorly on Adagio if she let her supposed partner on her mission for the Espada get defeated so soon?

I’m... too tired to think about this... Sunset thought, her earlier anger draining out of her as she restored Hokori no Hikari to its Shikai state and sheathed the Zanpaktou. Looking down she saw fire trucks and ambulances had arrived, as well as several police vehicles. Parts of her apartment complex were smoldering, but Sunset was at least somewhat relieved to see the majority of the damage had been restricted to her own personal apartment.

Hopefully no one had been hurt.

With a thunderous flash, Rainbow Dash bolted up right next to Sunset, her Fullbring materialized around her and her lightning spear already drawn as she looked around with eager eyes.

“Got here fast as I could Sunset! Where’re the bad guys!?”

Sunset managed a small smile, shaking her head, “Already skedaddled. I’ll tell you and the girls all about it in a sec, but you need to get to the ground and hidden before somebody sees you. You’re not invisible like me right now, remember?”

Rainbow Dash had the presence of mind to briefly blush as she spotted the crowds of people gathering below, though thankfully none of them were looking her way yet. “Riiiight, eheh, guess I just kinda rushed here without figuring for that. Meet you on the ground!”

Rainbow Dash zipped off once more, a cobalt streak of speed that even Sunset had a hard time following. Rainbow Dash’s speed had certainly always been top notch, but with her Fullbring completed, she had the whole group beat in that department. Sunset followed her friend’s reiatsu more than her form and followed Dash to a spot behind the apartment where there weren’t any people yet. Dash powered down to her regular civilian form, and as Sunset landed, she asked, “So I felt, like, two pretty strong Hollows here. Who did this? And did you beat their faces in appropriately for trashing your place?”

Sunset sighed, gradually realizing the numerous problems having her apartment destroyed caused her. She’d need a new place to stay, for one. Discord would no doubt lend her a room, but it wouldn’t be the same as having a home of her own. She’d need to track down Chappy and make sure the Mod Soul knew what had happened.

“It was an Espada. She was waiting for me when I got home, and shot a Cero practically the second I walked in the door.”

Rainbow’s ruby eyes shone with fury as she smacked her fist into a palm, “That’s a dirty way to start a fight. She ambushed you! Tell me you kicked her butt!”

“More or less,” Sunset said, “I think she didn’t expect me to be as strong as I was. She had information on us, but it was pretty outdated. Guess this means the Espada don’t really know what happened in Soul Society.”

“And the fact that we got two thousand percent more awesome while we were there,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin, “So which Espada was it? I felt two of them. Did you thrash the other one too?

“Not exactly. The one who ambushed me was the Tenth Espada, and said her name was Gilda.”

With a curious tilt of her head, Rainbow Dash scratched her head, face taking on a look as if something was tickling at her brain. “Gilda? Huh...Gilda... Gilda... why does that name sound familiar?”

“Someone you know?” Sunset asked.

“I don’t know, it just kinda sticks out in my head,” Rainbow Dash said, then shrugged, “Meh, probably not important. Anyway, who was the other Espada that showed up?”

“Oh, no one special, just Adagio.”

“Whahuh!?”

“That was about my thoughts on it. She basically gave Gilda a dressing down, then proceeded to boot her through a Garganta before heading through herself, pretty much half a minute before you got here,” Sunset said, somewhat glad she wasn’t the only one to be surprised by the siren’s sudden arrival. “Oh, and she’s the Sixth Espada now.”

Rainbow Dash just stared at her for a moment with a look that slowly went from flabbergasted, to mildly put out as she crossed her arms and nearly pouted, “Sixth!? Seriously!? What cheat code has she been using? Or maybe the Espada are just wimpier than we thought?”

“I don’t think so. I felt Adagio’s reiatsu up close. She’s the real deal. Honestly Gilda wasn’t exactly what I’d have called weak either. If we’d fought her before going to Soul Society she’d have mopped the floor with us. I’m not even sure how well the other girls would stand up to her. Me and you might be the only ones able to stand up to her right now, the Captains notwithstanding.”

Rainbow Dash nodded, then glanced behind Sunset and perked up, pointing over Sunset’s shoulder, “Speaking of Captains.”

“Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, are you both alright?”

Sunset turned to see Captain Celestia had arrived, with Clover right beside her, along with Posey and half a dozen other Soul Reapers from the Eleventh Division garrison stationed in town. All of them except Celestia had Zanpaktou drawn and looked wary, as if expecting an attack to come out of nowhere, but Celestia appeared calm and soon held up a hand.

“Stand down, I no longer sense Hollow reiatsu. Or should I say, Arrancar reiatsu?” Celestia asked Sunset, who returned a shallow nod.

“That’s right. I’m fine, Celestia. One of the Espada tried to... well, basically assassinate me, but as you can see, I’m still here.” Sunset hung her head slightly, a tired note entering her tone, “Same can’t be said for my apartment.”

“An Espada?” Clover’s concern was palpable as she approached Sunset, “And you’re okay? You weren’t injured?”

“Still got all my body parts intact,” Sunset replied, showing Clover a brief, reassuring smile.

“I’m sorry we didn’t arrive sooner,” Celestia said with a deeply apologetic tone, “I was overseeing a delicate matter well outside of the city limits when I sensed the disturbance. I would have arrived faster, but I had more ground to cover than if I’d been at the school.”

“She overtook us just as we were arriving,” said Posey, sounding embarrassed, “And we’re so much closer. Truly Captain Celestia is nearly as fast a her sister.”

Posey bowed towards Sunset and Rainbow Dash, face colored nearly pink, “I can’t apologize enough for how slowly we reacted. I can’t believe an Espada was able to slip into town without our notice.”

“Hey, it's not like you guys have wards set up the way you do in Soul Society,” said Sunset, holding up a forestalling hand, “It's not like an enemy can’t just suppress their reiatsu while skulking around. I didn’t even sense her until I walked into my apartment and found her in my kitchen. No reason any of you should’ve sensed her from across town.”

“True,” admitted Celestia, her eyes narrowing in thought, “But if the Espada have grown this bold, we can’t afford to take any further chances. The safety of you young ladies is of paramount importance, and right now the same Espada could strike at any of your homes. I’m going to have to recommend having Lieutenant Posey delegate members of the garrison force to guard your residences. I may even suggest you girls start living together for the time being, at either one of your homes or at Discord’s shop.”

The suggestion made sense, but it wouldn’t exactly be easy to explain to those parents of Sunset’s friends who were still clueless as to what had been happening over the course of the last month or so. Pinkie Pie’s family was in the know, and Applejack’s was at least somewhat clued in, but for Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash, as far as their families knew (minus Firefly of course), nothing was out of the ordinary with their daughter’s lives.

“It’s going to look kind of odd to a few my friend’s families if we suddenly start living together under one roof,” Sunset said, “We’d need to come up with a pretty plausible excuse.”

Celestia nodded in agreement, her alabaster features turning pensive, “A fair point. I don’t suppose we can just inform them of what’s actually happening, either. Not without consulting with Fluttershy, Rarity, and you Rainbow Dash on how well your parents would handle the truth.”

“My dad would, in a word, freak the hell out,” Rainbow Dash said, gulping, “I really don’t want to make him worry about me any more than he already does. Can’t speak for Rarity, but I know Fluttershy’s parents pretty well. They’d probably have simultaneous strokes if they learned what Fluttershy’s been doing with us during our ‘after school activities’.”

After a second, Posey cleared her throat, “Um, excuse me, Captain Celestia? I have an idea.”

“Yes, Lieutenant?”

“W-well, we’ve appropriated that campsite for the school to act as a summer activity center for the students, so that Miss Shimmer and her allies could be close by and assist the research teams efforts at the new testing location. Could we, um, just move them there early and make an excuse that they’re... I don’t know, ‘camp counselors’ in training or something?”

Sunset hadn’t the faintest notion what Posey was talking about, but Celestia’s eyes lit up as she stroke her chin thoughtfully.

“Hmm, yes... that’s actually an excellent idea, Lieutenant Posey. Good thinking.”

Just as Celestia spoke, a voice called from around the corner of the apartment.

“Oh thank goodness! Sunset! Girls, she’s over here!”

It was Fluttershy, looking quite relieved, and with a swift motion she came running along, the rest of Sunset’s friends only a step behind her. All of them were tense, and Applejack in particular was looking at the remains of Sunset’s apartment with a shocked, and then furious expression filling up her features with hot outrage.

“Who dun it? Who’s the low-down dirty rotten scumbag that’s got a date with my fists!”

“Applejack, simmer it down,” Sunset said, although she felt a bit awkward saying so, given she was still struggling with a kernel of residual anger and pain over the loss herself, “I’ve already driven them off. You’ll have to wait until next time.”

Fluttershy was already wordlessly checking her over for wounds, and nearby Posey watched Fluttershy with not so well disguised interest, which Fluttershy either didn’t notice or was intentionally trying not to react to. Meanwhile Celestia glanced towards the street, where one of the police officers cordoning off the area had finally taken notice of the visible human girls and was coming their way.

“We’ll have to reconvene later after you’ve given statements to the human authorities,” Celestia said, “But once you’re finished, come to the school. We’ll discuss matters there.”

----------

The Garganta opened up within the Everfree Forest, not far from the cave Adagio and her team had chosen as their hideout. Gilda stumbled out, shortly followed by Adagio, and as the Garganta closed, Gilda roared and rounded on Adagio. Her fist flew straight for Adagio’s face, but she caught the blow before it got close. There was a concussive burst of air from the blow that stirred the leaves of the trees, and sent several birds squawking into the sky from their disturbed perches, but otherwise Adagio was unharmed and just held Gilda’s fist as the other Espada glared at her.

“What is wrong with you!? I could have taken that half-assed Soul Reaper!”

“No, you couldn’t,” Adagio stated in a tone dry and harsh as sand, “Not without taking too much time. Even if you did manage to kill her, which I sincerely doubt you could have, by the time you did you’d be surrounded by her friends, the local Soul Reapers, likely including at least one Captain, not to mention possibly drawn the attention of any Quincy forces in the area.”

“So what!?” Gilda said in a snarl, “That’s our job, isn’t it? To figure out how many enemy forces are in the city.”

Adagio wanted to smack herself. Or Gilda. Possibly both. She rolled her eyes and spoke slowly, pointedly, as if addressing a child.

“Yes. Covertly. At least at first. The idea being that you survive long enough to report back to Lord Tirek what we discover of the city’s defenses. Which I’m not certain how you intended to accomplish that after the entire city’s defensive force annihilated you.”

The look on Gilda’s face, making her features jittery and twitch like a caged animal, was easy enough for Adagio to read. Utter, bitter frustration that spilled off of Gilda in waves. Gilda knew she’d screwed up and was desperately trying to save face, but the fact was she couldn’t argue against Adagio’s plain logic and she knew it. More than that, there was a deep seated, anger fueled pain in the Espada that Adagio could see she was striving to hide. There was even the barest hint of wetness in Gilda’s eyes as she tore her hand away from Adagio with a pent up growl and turned away from her.

“Then why didn’t you kill that bacon headed dork yourself, oh Mighty Miss Number Six!? You could have, but you just let her walk!”

Yes, because she and her gang are going to be instrumental in helping me rescue Ember, and perhaps in the future toppling Tirek, but you don’t need to know that, Adagio thought with a mental snort. She hadn’t intended to meet Sunset again this way, saving Gilda. Indeed she’d only been in the area because she’d intended to do exactly what Gilda had done, which was sneak into Sunset’s apartment. Only to meet and talk with her rather than toss a Cero in the girl’s face. Adagio had wanted to avoid exposing herself, but had also been interested to see how much stronger Sunset had become since they’d last met, so she’d remained hidden and observed the battle until it became clear Gilda had gotten well in over her head.

She'd have to find another time to speak with Sunset, which could prove difficult now that Gilda had tossed a proverbial rock into the beehive, but Adagio would worry about that later.

“Perhaps I could have, but not instantly, and not before reinforcements arrived,” Adagio said calmly, shouldering her trident and starring at Gilda’s half-turned back with a frank look, “Our mission isn’t to eliminate any specific targets. It’s information gathering. Get that through your thick skull.”

“Or what, you’ll kill me? Then damn well do it, or am I not even worth killing to you!?”

“Oh for the love of... stop acting like such a child!” Adagio said, this time actually smacking a palm to her forehead in pure exasperation, “Are you that bothered by my being stronger than you that you’d rather get your idiot-self killed than just accept your position for what it is? You’re still an Espada. Get over yourself and start acting like one!”

“What would you know about it?” Gilda shot back, voice laced with a caustic edge, “You’ve been an Arrancar for barely a fraction as long as I have! Do you have any idea what I’ve been through to get where I am? How long I’ve fought, and bitten, and clawed my way through Guto’s army to earn their respect and a shot at reaching the top! How many years I’ve done nothing but train, and fight, and train, and fight just to get this far... then you show up and like a damn golden child you steal not just my glory, but Lord Guto's too!?”

The pain was less disguised now, more raw, along with the rank, rancid anger in Gilda’s tone, like long spoiled meat. She was shaking, hands clenched, eyes almost wild as she sucked in hard breaths, not even paying any mind to the wounds from her fight with Sunset that still bled.

“Lord Guto gave me everything I have, and you stole his position away from him, and shamed me at the same time. And you did it without even trying. No effort. You just walked into Las Noches like you owned the place... I’d have preferred it if Tirek had made us fight for the position and you’d killed me. At least then I wouldn’t feel so... so damn worthless!”

At last she seemed spent, and let out a bitter grunt of a laugh as she looked at Adagio, “Go ahead, laugh.”

“Do I look like I’m in a laughing mood?” Adagio replied, neither cold nor warm, just maintaining a cool, neutral expression.

“Hmph, no, you look just as arrogant and full of yourself as ever. Damn I wish I could just wipe that smug look off of your face. Crush your damn pretty little mouth in. But I can’t, because I’m the Tenth, and you're the Sixth, and it’d be impossible for me to beat you.”

For a moment Gilda was silent, then seemed to shake herself, “I don’t even... this is dumb. Why’d I even spill my guts to you on this? I never talk about this crap with people.”

“Frustration breaks down a lot of walls,” Adagio said, “And it’s pretty obvious I’ve been frustrating you since we met. You really hate that I’ve risen to power this quickly, don’t you?”

“Of course I do. You didn’t earn it. I’ve spent decades earning it.”

“I suppose from the outside looking in that’s how it’d seem,” Adagio said, her voice thoughtful, considering.

She’d prevented Sunset from continuing her attack because Gilda was still useful for Adagio’s plans. She wasn’t certain if Sunset’s next attack would have actually killed Gilda, but it certainly would have wounded the Tenth Espada and made her role in the days to come more difficult to perform. Mostly Adagio just wanted to avoid an all out brawl in the city and the likely event of Gilda getting destroyed by the Soul Reapers. At least not this early. Once Gilda fulfilled the role Adagio wanted her for, then whatever happened after that was none of her concern.

Or at least it hadn’t been. It wasn’t precisely sympathy for Gilda that got Adagio thinking so much as it was a basic empathy for Gilda’s frustrations. Feeling powerless was a sensation Adagio knew all too well, due to Grogar. She still fully intended to make use of Gilda, but perhaps she could find uses that extended beyond the well timed distraction she originally intended? Gilda was clearly not used to dealing with her own emotions. At least not outside of punching things to express anger.

The emotionally distressed were usually easier to manipulate, and Adagio was fairly certain she knew how to bait the hook in this instance.

“I know I’ve grown in power at a rate far beyond what most Arrancar are capable of,” Adagio went on, “But do you know about any of the things Grogar did to me in his laboratory?”

Gilda made a disgusted face, “No, and I don’t really wanna know. That sick goat-faced bastard creeps me right the hell out and I don’t wanna even think about the twisted crap he must get into.”

“I understand you’ve fought hard for your position. Now try to imagine what I had to endure under Grogar’s ‘care’. I am no stranger to pain, Gilda. I might not have your long years of experience, but believe me, Grogar can fit a year’s worth of pain inside of a single day of his experimentation. You really don’t want to know all the things I've been through.”

A small grunt of agreement escaped Gilda, her words quiet and reluctantly spoken, “Fine, so it sucked for you. Doesn’t mean you deserve the power you’ve managed to get your hands on, or that I can accept that you’ve knocked Lord Guto down in the ranks without properly challenging him first. Lord Tirek should’ve made you two fight it out. It would’ve been the proper way to do things.”

“I’m pretty sure I’ve got that fight coming sooner rather than later,” Adagio said with her own bitter snort, “Guto won’t let me retain the number on my back for long without doing something about it. And I’m well aware he’s likely told you to keep an eye on me and report to him about any unique powers I’ve developed, or on my fighting style.”

Gilda wasn’t very good at hiding her thoughts, especially not while still trying to get herself back together after her emotional outburst. The lie was easy to see in her eyes and hear in her voice as she said, “I, um, don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Adagio laughed, shaking her head, “I don’t actually care, Gilda. Guto and I will fight one day soon, and I fully intend to win. Tell him whatever you wish before that happens, it won’t change my own plans.”

“Hmph, that confident, huh?”

“I never aim to lose, that’s for certain. But just because your former Lord and I are at odds, that doesn’t mean we have to be.”

Gilda’s face walled itself up, her voice guarded, “Yeah right. I’m not that much of a fool, Adagio. I’m the Tenth. Without Lord Guto’s support I’d just be fresh meat and easy pickings for any upstart looking to get a shot at one of the thrones. And I’m loyal to him. I’m not about to turn on him, especially not for you.”

“Who said anything about turning on Guto?” Adagio said, offering a polite shrug, “Understand, Gilda, I don’t have a personal grudge against Guto like I have with Grogar. My ascension to the position of Sixth Espada was not my choice, but that of Lord Tirek’s. I’d have easily settled for the Seventh.”

That much was very true. She’d have infinitely preferred it if Tirek had given her Hydia’s former position instead of Guto’s. While she didn’t know Hydia very well, she had far more confidence she could deal with Hydia as an enemy than Guto. The power difference between her and the former Sixth Espada was still too narrow for her to feel comfortable she could beat him in a fair fight. Which of course meant she had no intention at all of fighting fair, but that was a problem for another day.

“Of course I won’t be giving up my position without a fight, but that doesn’t necessitate I destroy Guto if I emerge victorious.”

“I wouldn’t rely on mercy to make Lord Guto any less determined to kill your ass and take back his seat,” Gilda promised darkly, but Adagio shrugged it off.

“Obviously not, but perhaps if someone were to express the value of alliance over the pursuit of a grudge, everyone involved would benefit from it. Someone Lord Guto trusted.”

Gilda’s golden eyes narrowed in shrewd, predatory fashion, “And why should I do that? Why not just let Guto off you? I’d go up in rank that way.”

“The same would happen if I destroyed Guto, but that would only change your ranking number, it wouldn’t actually increase your power, would it?” Adagio said, and she’d added a hinting lilt to the question in her voice that she hoped Gilda would pick up on. She saw the spark in Gilda’s eyes and knew she’d gotten the girl’s interest.

“On the other hand,” Adagio went on, “Let us say that Guto and I came to an understanding with one another instead of a wasteful duel to the death. The one who helped facilitate that alliance would be well rewarded I would think, both by Guto and myself. Her position would be secure, and she’d have time and allies to rely upon through which to gain more power, perhaps even rise in the ranks past a certain goat-faced bastard that none of us truly like, and I happen to have a very real and vested interest in disposing of.”

Even before she could see the gears turning in Gilda’s head Adagio knew she had her, hook, line, and sinker. Gilda might have hated Adagio, but it was hate based on feelings of frustration at seeing all her hard work getting tread upon by a newcomer. If that newcomer, instead of stepping all over Gilda’s pride, could instead open a door towards getting her desired power and respect, then what reason did Gilda have to refuse?

The fact that Adagio mostly just needed Gilda’s cooperation to rescue Ember was a complete side factor at the moment. If Gilda survived, she’d be a potentially useful ally. If not, no real skin off of Adagio’s back, she’d still be in the same boat as she was now where Guto was concerned and she’d have one less angry Espada looking to put a blade in her back.

For Adagio, everything was win-win. Or at least win-break even.

“Huh...” Gilda made a small face, as if she didn’t like having to think this much, “You talk a good game, I’ll give you that. I’ll... think about it. Ugh, all this talking is making me tired.”

“Well, my people are set up nearby. Why not come rest with us, and we’ll work out a plan for actually observing the city without exposing ourselves further or getting ourselves killed by the Soul Reapers or Quincy?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever. Just don’t go acting all friendly and stuff. It’s weirding me out.”

“Not friendly, just courteous. If it makes you feel better I can go back to smiling smugly and making jabs at you.”

“That’d be good... skank.”

“Of course... muscled headed moron.”

As the two Arrancar strode off through the brush, heading for the cavern that was about half a kilometer further into the woods, none of them took any particular note of the deep purple rose jutting from a nearby set of bushes. The rose hadn’t moved during the entire conversation, but now it twitched slightly, turning towards the direction that Adagio and Gilda had gone, as if watching.

A flicker of bright, verdant magic spilled through the flower like a pulse, and went into its thorn-covered stem, flowing down into its roots. There the magic connected to a vast network of vines that spread through the ground for numerous square miles around the Everfree Forest. This network flowed around the area in a spider-web of interconnected vines, some of which were so large that they were practically subway tunnels. Apt, given several were hollowed out and had pathways that humans could walk through without having to bend over. The roots themselves sported large thorns that dug into the earth, some as large as five to six feet long.

The heart of the network lay deep underground, beneath the very bottom of the lake upon the banks of which Camp Everfree was built. Here, a the very center of the network of natural vines, they came together into one giant, bulbous shape. Within this cocoon of plant life, something stirred.

It sensed the magic being used, but it wasn’t her power. It was connected to her power, however, and she continued to sleep, while feeling the disturbed, hungry and frantic thoughts of the one whose soul she had reached out to.

The vessel was using her power. Both of her powers. The one born from her empty soul, and the one born from the gems she’d discovered long ago. The vessel was worried. She didn’t know by what, she was still too deep in her dreamless state to truly know all that was happening to the vessel. But she had sensed the use of the power known as ‘magic’, and knew the flower had been recently planted. The energy was relaying something to the vessel.

Hmm, still too weak to properly awaken. Both her and the vessel. But she tasted a hint of the old, familiar power nearby. Others of her kind had come. So long since she’d tasted their souls as empty as her own.

Soon. More power needed to gather, and the vessel properly prepared.

But soon, she’d awaken. The one who’d put her here had thought her broken, had thought her beyond recovery, but patience was a virtue, and she’d been very, very patient. She could wait just a little longer.

She laughed as she drifted back into slumber.

----------

Gloriosa woke up hearing the sound of distant, sharp laughter, and looked around the dimly lit counselor's room in the camp’s central building. The shadows gathered around the window told her that the sun had gone down, and the pile of papers on the desk in front of her showed she must have drifted off while going over the camp’s expenses. The docks needed a massive refurbishing, the third bunkhouse had a leaky roof (again), and she wasn’t sure how but some forest critter or another had broken into the storerooms and made off with a week’s worth of canned beans.

Camp Everfree’s budget was dancing dangerously around the red line. It really was a godsend that Canterlot High had been willing to rent out the camp for such a long period, throwing in a suspiciously large bonus for the camp’s exclusive use. If Gloriosa wasn’t so desperate, she’d have really wondered where a high school principal like Celestia had gotten such funding, or why she was so insistent on establishing this summer long camp program for her students.

Checking her cell phone, Gloriosa frowned. She had a notification for an email from Filthy Rich, and she instinctively sneered at the screen even as she opened the message to read it. He’d been making overtures to buying Camp Everfree on and off since before Gloriosa’s parents has passed. The man really didn’t seem to understand the notion of giving up, or that no might actually mean no. Her face creased in a frown as she read the words on her phone’s screen. It was politely worded, Filthy Rich was nothing if not consistently courteous, but this message was different than his other usual politely worded attempts to convince her of the “wisdom” in selling her family’s legacy for a pittance.

This time he was inviting her to dinner. She’d have found that vaguely insulting, only this also mentioned it’d be a mutual business dinner to discuss potential dealings with a third party. Twilight Sparkle? The name didn’t sound familiar to Gloriosa Daisy, but it did tickle something in the back of her mind.

Her head hurt and she massaged her temples for a moment, sighing. Before she could reply to the message, not sure yet whether to just flat out tell Filthy Rich no, or just let the man buy her dinner and see what this Sparkle person might have to say, she felt warm pulse of energy from the necklace of geodes she wore. Still learning the nuances of this strange magical power she’d discovered, Gloriosa still recognized the pulse of magic as a signal. A very specific signal she’d set up earlier that day while planting seeds around the camp’s perimeter.

Something had triggered one of her specially crafted spy flowers. It seemed every day she practiced with the magic of the geodes she was learning new tricks, and this one allowed her to set up flowers connected to the roots running through the forest that would detect unusual sounds or movements and relay that information back to her.

With a moment of concentration she took hold of the geodes and held her hand over the table, willing the magic forth. Green wisps of energy curled from the geodes to her fingers, sparkling along the edge of the table then into the ground. There, roots beneath the earth responded to her call, and the pulse of magic that had traveled through those roots to her from the spy flower in the forest rose upward. Vines pushed through the floor, then curled up to stand before Gloriosa, uncurling to form a purple rose that opened its petals to emit a sheet of green light. This light turned into a projected image, showing Gloriosa the picture of two of those strange people with the holes in their bodies talking.

She recognized one from before, but the other, exceedingly muscular girl was a new one.

As she listened to the conversation, Gloriosa’s face grew ever more confused.

Espada? Soul Reapers? Quincy? What were this two talking about? It was hard to follow the conversation, but it was clear these two didn’t exactly get along, despite seeming to come to some sort of agreement with one another before they walked off. There was also a mention of a cave nearby that they were hiding out in. With a start, Gloriosa realized it was very likely the same cave she’d found the geodes in.

“What are you people, and what are you doing around my camp?” she wondered aloud, but shook her head. She had a more pressing concern at the moment, that being that it was nightfall, but Timber Spruce still hadn’t returned. If he had, she would have heard the station wagon arrive, and a quick look out the window confirmed the car wasn’t in the camp parking area.

Under normal circumstances Gloriosa might have been a tad worried and annoyed that her little brother wasn’t home yet, but it wasn’t like she was his mother and he was old enough to do what he wanted, including staying out to any hour of the night.

But that was before all these strange events had started occurring, and Gloriosa became aware of the fact that there were monsters out there, prowling the streets, that nobody else could seem to see. Nobody else normal anyway.

Fortunately Gloriosa had anticipated that something might happen to her brother, and unbeknownst to him, just as she’d planted the spy flowers around the camp, she’d planted a little something else on him. A small seed, infused with just enough magic for her to sense and follow, even at a distance.

Going outside, Gloriosa threw on a jacket and went to a shed near the parking lot. Inside was her old motorbike. She hadn’t ridden much lately, but it had a full tank of gas, and as she mounted up she touched the geodes once more, activating the magic within to link herself to the seed she’d placed on Timber’s own jacket. In an instant she saw the faint traces of emerald magic swirling out into the night, pointing her in the right direction. With a worried look, hoping her brother was alright, Gloriosa started the motorcycle and drove out into the night.

Author's Notes:

So yes, for those who'd been wondering, Adagio is the Sixth. Tirek really doesn't believe in playing games with his Espada, you sink or swim on your own and he's not about to let Adagio slide by with a lower number, even if Adagio very much would've preferred to keep a lower profile. I see her and Gilda as sort of the Ulquiorra and Yammy of the setting, at least in that they'r two people who really don't belong as a team somehow getting tossed on the same team. Even did a bit of an homage to Ulquiorra hitting Yammy in there.

And who be that gal sleeping under Camp Everfree? Things are about to get a little thorny around here, I think.

Hope you folks continue to enjoy the story and thank you all for reading. As ever I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time.

Episode 91: Complications

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Episode 91: Complications

When Timber Spruce woke up, his first thought was that he must have gotten into a car accident. His memory was muddled by a thick mental fog, and he couldn’t quite remember what had happened to him, but his chest was filled with a small army of aches and twinging pains that made him think he must have broken something. Possibly multiple somethings.

He was laying in a clean bed large enough to accommodate a small country’s population, and it was sinfully comfortable. The room was dark, lit by only a few computer monitors, one of which was next to his bed and hooked up to a number of wires and tubes snaking their way up to his body. With a very uncomfortable realization, Timber realized he had needles in him, and what looked like an IV set-up, with bags dripping liquid into him. Only he’d been to hospitals before, and knew that IVs usually didn’t contain luminous glowing blue fluid.

He was pretty sure nothing glowing ought to be going into his body, and he felt a stab of mild panic as his brain started to organize itself and recall recent events.

The parking lot, the invisible force that had grabbed him and started to crush the life out of him, then the strange rescue by people he’d never seen before, including the cute girl with the glasses.

He tried to sit up and immediately regretted that decision. Whatever was being pumped into his body might have been helping him heal, but not to the point where moving was going to be on the itinerary anytime soon. He lay back with a pained groan and tried to work out where he was.

This didn’t look like any hospital room to him. Too fancy and large. Now that his eyes were adjusting to the gloom he could see the furnishing were rather lavish. Was he in some rich person’s mansion? But why? What had even happened to him? His memories only came to him through a pea-soup haze. Those people he’d seen must have brought him here, but who were they?

“Huh, you’re awake. Figured that was you groaning,” said a young male voice that came from somewhere near the right side of the bed, followed by a yawn, “Wake a poor dog up why don’t you? I was having the nicest dream, too.”

“Who’s that?” Timber asked as he tried to peer over the side of his bed, grimacing at the pain of the effort. When he looked over he came face to face with a small, purple canine who’d reared up to look up over the bed at him.

“Yo,” said the talking dog.

Timber starred, his eyebrow twitching slightly.

“Hey, if you keep staring at me like that I’m going to start feeling awkward, buddy.”

With a very slow gesture, Timber edged an inch away from the small, purple canine.

“C’mon, I’m just a talking dog. This can’t be the weirdest thing you’ve seen lately.”

“...I’m going back to sleep. Maybe then my mind will stop being crazy,” Timber decided out loud and laid back down in the bed, trying very hard to close his eyes and pretend he hadn’t just seen and heard a talking canine.

Unfortunately his hallucination hopped up onto the bed and padded over to his head, poking it with a paw, “Dude, seriously? Ignoring me is super rude. Twilight set me here to keep an eye on you.”

“Just ignore it, Timber. It’ll go away if you just ignore it,” Timber told himself, convinced that whatever drugs were being fed into his bloodstream had to be the explanation for this disturbingly real figment of his chemical addled brain.

“Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. I’m going to go get Twilight. Don’t do anything dumb like try to get out of bed while I’m gone,” said the hallucination, and Timber felt it jump off the bed and heard its disturbingly real sounding paw shuffles as it went to the door. Timber didn’t question how the dog managed to open the door, but he heard the door open and close, after which he chanced opening his eyes again.

He seriously considered just yanking out the IV from his arm. Healing him or not, if that stuff was making him this loopy, he didn’t really want it in his system. He was working up the courage to pull the needle out when he heard the door open again, and looked up in time to see a familiar girl entering the room. Timber recognized her quickly from his hazy memory. Foggy as those memories were, the image of her face was shockingly clear. Purple features, youthful yet somehow cast in a older light by intelligent and surprisingly intense eyes. Her hair was a dark shade of violet than her skin, worn in a loose ponytail, and bearing a bright neon pink stripe.

He still couldn’t help but think she was cute, and the glasses only added to the charm. He shoved that thought aside quite quickly as he noticed her manner of dress was... odd.

It was almost entirely white, and styled in some manner of military uniform complete with emblems in the shape of a silver five-pointed cross that Timber didn’t recognize. She also wore black gloves, which struck Timber as kind of odd for being indoors.

He was so taken by her appearance that he didn’t notice the dog hallucination was with her until the mutt jumped up on his bed again and smiled in a strangely smarmy manner as the canine looked at the girl and gestured with a paw at Timber, “See, told you he was awake.”

When the girl spoke it was in a breathy, soft tone, “He shouldn’t be. Even with our alchemy aiding his recovery it should have been at least one more day before he woke up.”

Timber cleared his throat, “Well, uh, ‘he’ wouldn’t mind another week or two of sleep, plus some replacement ribs, but he’s not complaining. Also, Timber Spruce, good to meet you, cute girl and talking dog. Am I having a drug induced fever dream, out of curiosity?”

“Cute girl...?” The girl blinked, then quickly shook her head, “N-no, you’re not having a fever dream, although I can understand why you might think that. Spike probably should have just come to get me the moment he realized you were awake.”

“Hey, I just wanted to chat with him a bit,” Spike said, “Guess I’m just used to the people around here that are used to me.”

Timber felt his brain trying to process things and it’s subsequent desire to shut down, and let out an awkward laugh, “Haaaa... so, what you’re saying is that I’m not crazy, the dog is talking, and you’re the one that saved me from an invisible monster that tried to kill me in the library parking lot?”

The girl nodded slowly, approaching the side of his bed. She checked the monitor there that the IV was hooked to, then glanced at him with a look somewhere between wary and concerned. “So you do remember. Yes, we saw you being attacked and stopped the Hollow before it could do any worse to you than it already had. After that we brought you here to tend to your injuries. A regular hospital would have been... inadequate to heal you in time, given that you were suffering from punctured lungs in three places, and had every rib in your body crushed. Had we not intervened you... would have likely died before conventional medicine could have saved you.”

“Okay, okay, hold up, I think you’re seriously overestimating my ability to keep up with what you’re saying here, so let’s slow it down a bit. In fact let’s put the brakes on everything and start over with ‘Hello, my name’s Timber Spruce, and you are...?’”

His words seemed to catch the girl off guard as her eyes fluttered in a momentary, and Timber would admit somewhat adorable, expression of flummoxed surprise. “Oh, um, right I suppose introductions should come before anything else. My name is Twilight Sparkle. This is my dog, Spike.”

“Yo,” said Spike, scratching his ear with a hind leg.

“Alright, cool. I’m happy to meet you both, although I’m still trying to decide if I’m clinically insane or not at the moment. So, next step in the ‘Get Timber Up to Speed’ plan; what the blazes is a Hollow?”

Twilight and Spike exchanged a questioning glance with each other, and Spike shrugged, and Timber noted it was utterly surreal to see a dog shrug.

“Your show, Twilight,” said Spike, “You want to clue him in, or is this one of those Men in Black ‘flashy thing’ moments?”

“I don’t even think we Quincy have ‘flashy things’, but we probably should,” Twilight said, and she slowly took off the military cap she’d been wearing, setting it aside as she ran a hand over hair and looked at Timber Spruce with a calculating gaze that made him feel uncomfortably naked despite being fully clothed. It was like she was weighting his entire future with that gaze, and he saw both empathy and pain in equal measures pass through her eyes before she spoke again.

“A part of me think it would be best to tell you to forget what happened today and try to go back to your life as if nothing happened. But this is your choice to make, Timber Spruce. I can tell you the truth, but there won’t be any going back once you learn it. Or I can make sure you get home safely after you’ve healed up, and you can move on with your life as if we never met.”

“Right, red pill or blue pill, I get it...” Timber said, taking a second to think about it. Not that he really needed to think that long or hard about the situation. For him, life had already gotten strange before Twilight had saved him. Gloriosa was seeing monsters and weirdos all over town, and was toying with powers she didn’t understand. Timber had gone into town hoping to find something that might help his sister get a handle on the situation. He hadn’t found it in the library... but apparent the answer had found him instead. If this girl had answers, answers that could help Gloriosa and shed light on what was happening, then Timber’s path was already set.

“Okay, red pill it is. Lay it on me.”

----------

Sunset Shimmer lost herself in the simple act of cooking, letting the atmosphere of energy in Discord’s shop kitchen help her forget the mountain of troubles that had piled onto her shoulders in the past twenty four hours. The soft sizzle of cooking oil and the sweet smell of cooking pancake batter filled the air. Sunset moved at her own, relaxed pace, while around her Pinkie Pie was a neon blur.

“Here Mena, keep an eye on the bacon for me while I whip us up some more biscuits!” Pinkie Pie chirped happily, all but planting her doppelganger in front of the oven beside Sunset, where a frying pan was already set up with lines of bacon cooking away.

Pinkamena wore a less than enthused expression, but surprisingly didn’t complain as she took to poking at the bacon with a spatula, while Pinkie resumed storming around the kitchen getting other elements of the “breakfast for dinner” ready. Sunset glanced at Pinkamena with a small, amused smile. “You look like you've adapted to Pinkie’s pace.”

Pinkamena cracked a sardonic grin of sharp teeth, licking her lips, “Where food’s concerned, I can give her some leeway.” After a short pause, Sunset heard Pinkamena say in a much quieter tone, “It’s not so bad, feeling like part of the family.”

The windows on one side of the kitchen showed it was already night outside, several hours since the attack on Sunset’s apartment. It’d been a mess, getting things sorted out afterward. Fortunately finding Chappy hadn’t taken long, and the fact that Sunset hadn’t technically been at home meant that she hadn’t needed to talk to the authorities for long. Once Sunset was back in her own human body and Chappy was returned to her rabbit doll gigai, she and the girls had gone to the school to talk with Celestia.

Well, Celestia and Luna, as it turned out the Second Division Captain had returned, however briefly, to Canterlot City.

It was there that Celestia had explained to them the plan. It wasn’t particularly complicated. The Twelfth Division had moved its portal research from the school to the Everfree Forest, for the sake of the city’s safety in case anything went wrong with their experiments. The entire statue in front of Canterlot High had been moved to this new research site, and a replica made in Soul Society put in place outside the school to allay suspicion. In order to both better protect Sunset and her friends, and to more easily gain their assistance in any portal experiments, they would take on the roles of camp counselors at a summer camp; Camp Everfree. Celestia had already acquired the camp for the school’s use, and intended to use a long term ‘Summer Fun Program’ as the cover for Sunset and her friends to be there. That also meant that a lot of students would also be there who had no idea what was going on, but with Sunset and her crew present, along with much of the Soul Reaper garrison, plus Celestia herself, Luna, not to mention Starswirl, it seemed plausible to say that any threat from the Arrancar of Las Noches would find no easy targets.

Which didn’t mean Adagio, Gilda, or any other Espada wouldn’t still be a threat. Sunset wasn’t sure what Adagio’s plans were, but if she was working with Twilight to try and rescue Ember then it stood to reason that that’d have to make some kind of move on the camp. And while Sunset couldn’t confirm it without asking suspicious questions of Celestia, it stood to reason to conclude that Ember was at this research site in the Everfree Forest.

Which means one way or another there’s going to be trouble at Camp Everfree... Sunset thought, almost flipping a pancake onto her own head, which Pinkamena caught with a stretching out hand that plopped the pancake onto its proper plate.

“Worried about what your Quincy and Arrancar pal are going to try and pull?” the doppelganger asked.

“Just wishing I could have had a chance to actually sit down and talk with Adagio. I get she had to keep up appearances with that Gilda girl, but if we’re going to manage anything at Camp Everfree without it turning into a gigantic mess, we’re going to need to have a serious sit down with Twilight and Adagio to hash out what our actual plan is.”

As if by teleportation, Pinkie Pie appeared in Sunset’s field of view from above, shaking a battered caked spoon at her, “Relax Sunset! We’re always super good at winging it, so even if we don’t make a plan we’ll figure something out as we go along.”

Ignoring that Pinkie Pie was somehow defying gravity for the moment, Sunset started to organize the plates of pancakes along with the rest of the food that they’d be ferrying over to the dining room, where the rest of the girls waited hungrily. “We are good at adapting on the fly, but I’d rather not leave this up to a coin toss. We really do need to play this carefully, Pinkie. Fortunately it seems like Discord is willing to help, so we’ve got that in our favor. I just don’t want any of our friends in Soul Society getting hurt, and from what I saw of Gilda, she’s not exactly the delicate type.”

“But you were kicking her butt, so pretty sure big shots like Celestia or Luna could handle her, no problem,” Pinkie Pie pointed out, having popped up on Sunset’s opposite side, snatching up plates and balancing them on her hands and head as only a world-class waitress could pull off. “So chiiilllll. Tonight's for unwinding and getting you settled in with a Sorry Your Home Blew Up And You Have To Couch Surf At Discord’s Party!”

Sunset sighed, but smiled at Pinkie Pie, “Okay, okay, no more worrying for the rest of the night, I promise.”

In short order she and the two Pinkies transported a veritable feast down the hall and through the sliding paper doors into the sizable dining lounge, where much of the residency of Discord’s shop was waiting for them. Discord sat with Screwloose and Screwball at one of the floor tables, while Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy were at the second table, with Chappy lounging in the middle of the table.

“Move aside Chappy, foods incoming,” Sunset said as she got to setting the plates down. The rabbit doll leaped to her feet and deftly hopped up onto Sunset’s shoulder, balancing there with ease as Sunset set the table.

“Need a hand there, Sunset?” asked Applejack, but Sunset just waved the question off.

“Nah, I got this. Worked at a sushi bar, remember? I can handle a few plates.”

Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had set out their own plates of food at the other table, Screwball all but salivating on the table while Screwloose gave the smaller woman a thwack on the head to keep her from digging in immediately. Discord, eyes shadowed by his green and white striped hat, fanned himself with a paper fan and took a deep breath of the sweet smells of fresh cooked breakfast for dinner.

“This looks wonderful, girls. I should put people up more often, if they can cook like this.”

“Yeah, you’ve been officially banned from the kitchen since your last attempt gained sentience and tried to devour us,” said Screwloose, showing an amused flash of teeth, “This is why I swear by takeout.”

“One can’t live off of convenience store food forever,” Discord commented.

“I think that is a debatable theory, at best,” Screwloose shot back, and Pinkamena leaned over her from behind, licking her lips.

“If you don’t want any, I’ll gladly eat your portion.”

To this Screwloose quietly and pointedly started putting pancakes on her plate, and soon enough everyone was seated and eating. Sunset took up a spot at Discord’s table, while Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena sat with the other girls. Conversation was briefly stalled by the simple enjoyment of good food, and Sunset tried to let the tension roll out of her as she filled her belly. Still, it was inevitable that the quiet, contented atmosphere wouldn’t last, and Discord looked at her meaningfully from across the table.

“So Celestia intends to keep you girls under her watchful eye by having you play camp, while our wayward siren has teamed up with young Miss Sparkle to crash Starswirl’s research site. A dangerous and chaotic situation to say the least, isn’t it?”

“Ain’t like we got much we can do ‘bout it, Discord,” Applejack groused, stuffing a slice of bacon into her mouth and munching with furious abandon, “We didn’t ask fer the Soul Reapers ta nab one o’ Adagio’s friends. We’re just tryin’ ta do what we can ta help out her n’ Twilight outta a’ jam.”

“Of course, and I quite agree that you girls wouldn’t be yourselves if you abandoned your friends in their time of need. That said, school ends soon, and you’ll not likely have much time to plan once you’re at Camp Everfree, so you might wish to work out a plan while things are still calm.”

“Kind of hard to do that unless we can work out a way to get in touch with Adagio and Twilight without getting caught,” Sunset said, and at Discord’s look she let out a sigh, crossing her arms and giving him a frank look, “You’ve got something, don’t you?”

Discord’s smile was quite innocent, even as his eyes gleamed, “I do so love being able to pull one over on Starswirl’s designs. You girls do recall those tokens you received before you returned from Soul Society?”

“Ah, you means those darling little badges that use the same skull pattern you use?” Rarity said, “While a bit garish, I did think they were just this side of tasteful.”

“I guess,” Dash said with a shrug, “I haven’t really looked at mine since we got ‘em. Don’t they open up those fancy gate things the Soul Reapers use so we could go to Soul Society if we needed to?”

“That and act as emergency beacons if we ever got in trouble,” Sunset said, and now that she thought about it she’d been keeping hers in her back pocket most of the time, and hadn’t really thought about them since, but now that she checked, it wasn’t there. “Discord, what did you do?”

“Hehehe, Discord wanted to tinker with them, so he had me go and snatch them from all of you,” Screwball said, giggling around a mouthful of pancake, which earned looks from all of the girls. Applejack’s frown was the deepest of them as she eyed the short, swirly eyed girl.

“Now how n’ tarnation did ya pull that off?”

“I’m very, very hard to notice when I don’t want to be,” Screwball said, still giggling under her breath.

“Must be, if I didn’t smell you crawling around the family home,” Pinkamena said, with a surprising amount of chagrin and protectiveness in her tone. Sunset glanced at her sidelong, then noticed how Pinkie Pie gave Pinkamena a friendly little elbow and smile, to which Pinkamena eye rolled but settled down like a rattlesnake ceasing to rattle its tail. Perhaps all that time spent with Pinkie Pie’s family was doing Pinkamena some good?

“Screwball only acquired the tokens for me to make some modifications to them,” Discord said, “I promise you she didn’t snoop around into anything private. Now, Screwloose, if you would?”

Screwloose nodded and reached under the table to pull out a cloth-wrapped bundle, which once opened revealed eight medallions of dark iron, each with a skull carved motif in the center. They looked exactly as Sunset remembered them, only they’d originally been given six, not eight. Also she couldn’t help but notice that the medallions looked thicker by perhaps half an inch. Nothing one would pick up on at a casual glance, but noticeable on a closer look.

“Go ahead, each of you take one,” Discord said, and the girls, after looking at each other, did exactly that.

“What are the extra two for?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Those will be for Adagio and Twilight,” Discord replied, “I suspect we’ll find opportunities to bring these to them soon enough. Once done this should allow for communication.”

“How?” asked Fluttershy, examining her medallion, only for the answer to come on its own as she pressed on the top right side of the badge, which turned out to be a hidden button. The medallion flipped open, revealing an internal mechanism with a small screen and tiny buttons within. “Oh my? Was I supposed to do that?”

“You made magical cell phones,” Sunset said, chuckling under her breath, “Just like what Twilight made when we first started hunting Hollows.”

“I will say I have taken some inspiration from young Miss Sparkle’s design. I’ve, of course, provided my own upgrades. First of all the medallions will work just as Starswirl originally intended, allowing you to make Senkaimon Gates to Soul Society, and activate an emergency beacon to call for help from Soul Society. However I’ve also installed a communicator that allows you to speak to each other through the badges, and also contact me at the shop. They have video function as well, plus my own installed scanner that should pick up on magic signatures. Should make tracking each other easier if you have to hide your reiatsu.”

“Nifty, does it get wi-fi as well?” asked Rainbow Dash, and Discord smirked.

“Cute, but I don’t want you girls downloading porn on my data plan. No, these mostly just have the communication function, but most importantly its a very long distance communication function that also happens to be encoded to make their signals difficult to trace. Once Adagio and Twilight have theirs, you can talk to them without fear of eavesdropping. That should make coordinating efforts to rescue Miss Ember much easier.”

“Oooo hey! You’ve got pong on here!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed happily as she started playing on her medallion’s screen. Discord just blinked.

“I... don’t remember installing pong.”

“Don’t question it. It’s Pinkie. Anyway, I’ll hold onto the spare two,” Sunset said, picking up the extra medallions and slipping them into her pocket. “Figure if Adagio’s going to show up again, she’ll probably show up here. As for Twilight, we can probably pull off another clandestine meeting before the end of school.”

“Well then, no point worrying about things further, is there?” said Rarity, “We can’t really plan much without our co-conspirators, and really I think it's best we take this last week of school to unwind before our lives get complicated again.”

“Assuming no more dang Espada go ‘round tryin’ ta blow up our homes,” muttered Applejack, and there were silent nods of agreement all around.

As they all resumed eating, looking for lighter hearted topics to discuss, Sunset found her thoughts drifting towards Equestria. Things were quickly looking as if they’d lead to another dangerous battle here in the human world, but how was Princess Twilight doing on her own quest, and was it going any smoother than things were over here?

----------

“Oh my, I must say that there is absolutely nothing about this dreadful place that I’m enjoying thus far,” Rarity said, using the soft glow of her magic to stretch out and start dusting off the blanket to the bed within the room of what could generously be termed the ‘inn’ that they’d purchased lodging at for the night. Amid the cloud of dust wafting off the moth eaten blanket, there was a swarm of fleas that dropped off as well, and Rarity wrinkled her nose while in the next bed over, Applejack flopped down on her own bed without so much as a moment’s hesitation.

“It ain’t that bad,” Applejack commented, yawning as she tossed her stetson onto the nightstand, which was little more than an empty barrel set between the two beds, “This here city’s pretty lively, an’ once ya get past the smell, an’ the fleas, an’ the unfriendly locals, an’ the overcharged prices on everything, an’ the sand that gets everywhere, this town is... huh, kinda just forgot what I was going for here.”

“I’m just glad Twilight won’t be forcing us to stay here for more than a day,” Rarity said, finally giving up on the blanket and simply folded it and set it aside, resolved to just tough out the night’s chill.

“Ain’t like we were gettin’ anywhere with questionin’ the locals. These folks ain’t exactly the chatty types.”

“It’s hardly as if we needed to, Applejack. It seems quite clear to me that Starlight and her dastardly minions are responsible for the destruction we witnessed outside of the town. The only real question is whether or not they remain in the area,” Rarity said, going to the room’s only window, which consisted of little more than a wooden board covering an oblong opening in the wall, and threw it open to try and air the musty room out. It did little to help, given that the window looked out onto a narrow alley, with only a few feet between the window and the wall of the next building.

“If they are, I’m hopin’ we can mosey on to the hippogryph’s kingdom without bein’ noticed,” Applejack said, propping her forehooves behind her head when it turned out the ‘pillow’ on her bed was little more than a potato sack with hay stuffed in it. “A fight’s the last thing we need right now.”

“Fortunately with how many creatures pass through this place I imagine we blend in as well as can be,” Rarity replied, then chuckled under her breath.

“What’re ya chucklin’ about over there?” Applejack asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“Oh, I was just thinking, while it’s quite nice that Twilight planned ahead and ensured we had ample gems and coins to rent out so many rooms at the inn, it’s quite interesting that there were only four rooms left available.”

“What’s so interestin’ about that?”

“Well, you and I are sharing a room. Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash are sharing another. Our siren friends are in the third, while Starlight Glimmer and Trixie are using Trixie’s caravan outside. Which leaves the fourth room...”

Applejack blinked for a second, then shared Rarity’s chuckle, “Heheh, oh, right, wasn’t even thinkin’ about that. Bet Twilight wasn’t either, when she paid fer the rooms. Still, ain’t that big a deal. Flash seems a right gentlestallion by my recokin’.”

“Most certainly. I only hope they work themselves out before we reach our eventual destination. They do make for a nice couple.”

“I ‘spose. Ain’t my place ta be gossipin’ on my friends relations.”

“And yet you’re speaking to me about it.”

Applejack’s cheeks heated to a rose hue and she turned over in her bed, facing away from Rarity, “Yeah, well, I’m goin’ ta sleep now, so ain’t no more gossip comin’ outta me. You can go on imaginin’ whatever ya want to.”

“Oh, you’re not fun,” Rarity said, but laughed lightly again as she settled onto her own bed, getting ready for a long and much needed night’s sleep.

Neither mare noticed that outside the open window, atop the roof of the next door building, a pair of shadows crept quietly out of view.

----------

“So the Princess is alone, except for one bodyguard,” Tempest Shadow mused aloud, her features calculating and contemplative as she crawled along the rooftop, eyeing the other windows to the different rooms of the inn. She’d already made a mental map of the building and was working out potential points of entry.

Beside her, Grubber gave her a look halfway between worried and bemused, “So what’s the plan? We try to nab the pony princess and make a break for it?”

Tempest’s eyes narrowed in deep, rapid thought. From what she’d seen and eavesdropped, it seemed that the exceedingly powerful mare who’d done so much damage at Mt. Aries was staying in the wagon parked in front of the inn. Tempest was extremely wary of alerting this ‘Starlight Glimmer’ to her presence. If they were to take Princess Twilight Sparkle, it needed to be both swift and relatively silent. A risky proposition, but Tempest was in a desperate situation. By capturing the Princess, she’d have a bargaining chip to use against Starlight to get back the Storm King.

But how? If Twilight Sparkle was staying with the one stallion in the group, then the chances of making a quiet foalnapping was low, unless she was able to hit them with the complete element of surprise. If she could find a way to isolate the Princess from her bodyguard, that would be ideal.

“Capturing the Princess is key, but we’ll need a distraction,” Tempest said, turning her contemplative look towards Grubber, who in turn gained an uneasy smile as he pointed at himself.

“You mean me, don’t you?” he said, expression sinking rapidly as one who already knew the answer to the question he’d asked.

To this, Tempest only gave him a knife edged smile.

----------

The two ponies sat staring at each other from across the unoccupied bed. Flash Sentry, with a exasperated breath, nodding to the bed and said, “It’s okay Twilight, just take the bed.”

“No, I couldn’t. You’re still adjusting to being a pony and need the rest far more than me, I insist you take the bed tonight, Flash,” Twilight’s voice had a strained, higher pitch to it as she waved her hooves in front of her and then patted at the ground beside the bed where she’d already laid out a thin blanket, “The floor’s just fine for me! I swear, I slept on the floor all the time back in the library when I was too busy reading to bother with a bed.”

Flash wished he still had hands so he could pinch the bridge of his nose to help relieve the oncoming headache he felt. Instead he settled for flattening his ears, which he wasn’t entirely conscious of doing, and shook his head. “There’s no way I’m using a bed while you’re stuck on the floor. I’m a Soul Reaper, Twilight. I barely need sleep anyway.”

“Right now we don’t even know if your body works the same way while you’re a pegasus, and helloooo, I’m an alicorn. We’re not exactly built delicate. I could probably stay up all night and not even feel it.”

“I could stay up all night and not even feel it, too. And I will, if you’re not going to take the bed!”

“Well I’m not taking the bed either, so I guess we’re both staying up all night, aren’t we?”

Flash ran a hoof over his face, “Alright, look, this is silly. Why don’t we just both use the bed?”

Twilight blinked, “You mean, as in... together? At the same time?”

Flash could only wonder why her wings spread out like that, but he put the question aside and took a deep, calming breath. “Twilight, we’re both mature, sensible, adult individuals. It’s just coincidence that we happened to end up in the same room, and there’s only one bed. Yes, I’d like to be a gentleman and let you have the bed, and I’m sure you’ve got plenty of perfectly rational reasons to let me have the bed instead, but we’ve both had a long day and while we could stay up all night, that’s just not sensible at all, is it?”

“N-no, I guess its not.”

“So here’s the plan. We can both climb into this bed, in a purely platonic and not at all awkward fashion, and go to sleep with zero problems. Right?”

“Right.”

“...Right. Okay then. We’re agreed.”

“We are.”

“...”

“A-aren’t you going to get into the bed?”

“Well aren’t you?”

As they stood there, staring at each other in red faced, awkward silence, each waiting for the other to make a move, Twilight’s nostrils twitched as she picked up the scent of smoke.

“Is it just me or is that a fire?” she asked, sniffing the air some more.

She turned towards the window, but Flash held out a hoof, “Wait, let me check it.”

Twilight didn’t argue with him and watched as Flash went to the wooden board covering the window opening and carefully peeked outside. The smell of smoke was growing thicker in the air, and Twilight had a sinking feeling in her gut.

“What is it?” she asked, and Flash opened the window more and gestured for her to look. Their room’s window looked out on the street in front of the inn, and across the muddy road several of the merchant stalls hugging the ramshackle buildings were now thoroughly ablaze. Even in the middle of the night, Klugetown was filled with people still awake, so the fire had hardly gone unnoticed. Amid its orange glowing lights, numerous creatures were calling out warnings and rushing to get water from local wells.

However Twilight knew how fast fires could spread, especially in dry climates like the desert. On top of that, so much of Klugetown was wood and cloth, rather than stone. If the fire wasn’t dealt with quickly then it could threaten the entire town.

“We have to do something!” she said, and Flash nodded agreement, but his face was wary.

“I’m on board, but something’s not right about this. It’s too coincidental this started right across from where we’re staying.”

“We can worry about that later. We have to stop the fire, now!” Twilight said, and before Flash could say anything else, she was already leaping out the window, spreading her wings to glide down to the street. Flash let out a curse under his breath and jumped out the window after her, gliding down less gracefully but reaching her side just as the side window on Trixie’s wagon opened and the magician mare poked her head out.

“What in the name of Starswirl is- AAAAH! FIRE!” Trixie shouted, waving her hoof at the flames that were already licking up the side of the building.

The door to the wagon burst open and Starlight stumbled out, soon followed by a panicked Trixie.

“Where did that come from!?” Starlight asked, but Twilight just shook her head.

“It doesn’t matter. Starlight, Trixie, help me keep the fire contained. Flash, go get the rest of my friends up to help form a bucket brigade.”

Flash Sentry’s expression remained worried, and Twilight felt a warm rush as he quickly put a hoof on her shoulders, “Just be careful. Something about this doesn’t feel right.”

“O-okay, I’ll be fine,” she said, and Flash nodded and rushed back into the inn. Twilight didn’t doubt her friends were probably already awake, but hopefully Flash could work with them to get a bucket brigade going fast. She had a few spells that could readily contain the fire, but putting it out would have required something so powerful that it would also be dangerous for the nearby buildings. Large swaths of ice, or water was something she or Starlight could conjure, possibly, but the force would be too much.

She could tell Starlight was thinking along similar lines, although the other mare had a far more ready look on her face as she looked at the fire, “I don’t know what idiot started this, but we can stop it without needing to rely on some bucket brigade. Twilight, if you can get up high and conjure water from above, I’ll surround the fire with a force field that’s open up top so the fire can’t spread and will get doused quicker.”

“No Starlight, if there’s anyone still inside those buildings they’ll be trapped if we try to use any barriers to contain the fire. Hit it with ice or water down here and support the people bringing water from the wells. Trixie, do whatever you can to help.”

“Wait a minute, I don’t know any kind of spells for this this!” Trixie said, “Unless you want me to conjure fireworks, or impress the fire with my dashing good looks, what am I supposed to do?”

“Help the bucket brigade then,” Twilight said, then paused as she heard screams coming from above, “Oh no, somebody is trapped up there!”

“Twilight, wait!” Starlight shouted as Twilight went flying up the side of the building. Whether Twilight didn’t hear or or didn’t care, Starlight was stuck watching the fire start to spread, and with no other option started to wreath her horn in magical light. Elemental conjuring was actually one of the harder types of magic for unicorns to pull off, but Starlight was certainly exceptional when it came to magical talent, so in short order she had a steady stream of water hosing down the nearest inflamed merchant stalls.

Trixie, in a fit of panic, just started levitating clumps of mud to try and smother what parts of the fire she could. Moment’s later Flash Sentry came rushing back out of the inn, with both the rest of Twilight's friends and a pair of very confused sirens in tow.

"Aww, why did someone start a fire without telling me?" asked Sonata, "I could have gotten some marshmallows to roast. Super inconsiderate!"

"Stop thinking with your stomach, Sonata, we need to clear out of here before this thing spreads," said Aria.

"I think what yer meanin' ta say is that we gotta help put the fire out" said Applejack, who was already running to join the slowly forming bucket brigade. Aria shrugged, looking less than enthused with the prospect of doing anything other than keeping a distance from the flames, holding out her tail protectively in front of Sonata to keep her sister from making any hasty moves.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. You guys have fun with the fire, I think I'll keep my sister here where it's safe."

As most of the group moved to help with dousing the fire, Rainbow Dash grabbed Flash Sentry and said, “Follow me, newbie. It’s time you learned how to rustle up rain clouds like a real pegasus!”

“Hold on, where’s Twilight?” Flash said, looking around for the Princess.

“Probably doing something better than standing around, dude, not c’mon and help me! With some rain we can keep kick this fire’s butt in no time flat!”

She all but yanked Flash Sentry into the air, consequently flying in the opposite direction Twilight flew when she went up the side of the building earlier.

As for Twilight, she’d gotten to the top of the building without any trouble, and had cast about searching for the source of the scream she’d heard. The fire was still contained to the lower levels, and she was worried there might be more people stuck inside the building. Hopefully her friends would be able to handle the fire and help anyone out through windows, but if anyone was on the roof, she’d be there to get them to the ground safely. Landing on the roof, Twilight looked around desperately.

“Hello!? I’m here to help! Where are you!?”

The roof wasn’t flat, but was rather strewn with protruding sheds, clothes lines strung up with dirty laundry, and ramshackle chimneys. Amid the tangle, a shadow stirred to Twilight’s left, a oddly strong and calm feminine voice speaking.

“Thank you, Princess, for rushing to help. It was very predictable.”

“Huh-!?” Twilight spun towards the voice, her sense of danger spiking, but also a second too late to respond to the shadow as it struck with the speed of a serpent.

Pain exploded across Twilight’s face as a hoof struck her solidly and with expert force. She barely had half a second to comprehend she’d been hit before her assailant rushed her, slamming another hoof into Twilight’s chest so hard that it knocked the air right out of Twilight. A sudden sweep of hind legs knocked Twilight’s own hooves out from under her and she hit the ground hard, head dazed.

She started to conjure magic, the beginnings of a teleport spell, but her shadowy foe lashed out and struck Twilight’s horn. The blow was nowhere near strong enough to break the horn, but it hurt enough that it caused Twilight’s teleport to fizzle.

“No running away, Princess. Now come along quietly, or you’ll just make this hurt more.”

“Gugh!” Twilight attempted to backpedal, scrambling to her hooves and leaping to the side to try and get some distance from her assailant. The figure moved with smooth speed and the assurance of an expert fighter, easily keeping pace with Twilight and leaping over one of the laundry lines with one easy bound. A spinning kick hit Twilight in the side, sprawling her into one of the roof sheds with a dull thud.

“Got to admit I thought an alicorn Princess would have more fight in her than this. Or is it that you’re just nowhere near as strong as Celestia or Luna? Don’t even have to waste a Misfortune Malachite on you.”

Misfortune Malachite? What was that? And who was this mare!? Twilight pretended to be more hurt than she was, faking a groan as she hid her face with one of her wings. She still hadn’t gotten a clear look at who was coming towards her, but the sound of hooves on the roof suggested it was another pony. But why? Why would there be another pony here, and why were they attacking her!? Could this be one of the human Starlight’s allies?

Whatever the case, Twilight waited until she heard her assailant get a few steps closer before suddenly moving her wing and unleashing a powerful beam of purple magic from her horn, hoping to catch her foe off guard and stun them. The beam almost hit, she saw that much, but her opponent had jumped aside at the last second. Still, a bit of moonlight through parting clouds finally showed Twilight who she was facing.

She was definitely another pony, a unicorn mare with a rather athletic build only partially hidden beneath a dark cloak. Twilight saw what she thought might be armor under the cloak, and the mare’s deep purple coat nearly blended perfectly with the shadows around the rooftop. Other than the mare’s striking mane of magenta, her most notable feature was the clearly broken horn atop her forehead.

“Hmm,” the mare looked at Twilight with measuring eyes, “So you do have some fight in you. Shame it's not going to be enough.”

“Who are you? Are you with Starlight Glimmer?”

That seemed to confuse the mare, her face pausing with a questioning look for a hesitant second, “Starlight Glimmer? You’re the one with Starlight Glimmer. And I’m going to use you to get the Storm King back from her!”

“Huh!?” Twilight had only a moment to be equally confused before this mare with the broken horn lowered her head towards Twilight. A stream of barely controlled, bright blue sparks danced around the broken horn, then Twilight had barely a second to react before a stream of chaotic but powerful magic blasted out of the mare’s broken horn and came straight at Twilight.

If she hadn’t practiced so much with Starlight Glimmer after the incident with the time travel, Twilight might not have had the skill to pull off a barrier with such speed. Her horn lit up like a purple lighthouse and a bubble of protective magic encased her as the mare’s stream of destructive magic hit it. Arcs of blue magic bent and twisted around Twilight’s shield, shattering parts of the rooftop. Twilight’s barrier held firm under the onslaught, but her foe wasn’t letting up, only pouring out more and more magic from her broken horn in a barely controlled flood. Twilight could see the pain on the mare’s face as she struggled to control even a fraction of the energies pouring out of her, and could only marvel that the mare had even this much control with a shattered horn.

It had to be agony to channel magic like this through that broken stump. Why was she subjecting herself to this, just to capture Twilight?

“W-why are you doing this?” Twilight asked, struggling herself to keep her barrier up, and getting ever more worried as the arcs of magic from the unicorn were tearing up portions of the roof. It wouldn’t be much longer before the entire roof caved in at this rate!

Grunting in obvious effort and pain, the mare narrowed her eyes fiercely at Twilight, “Tell me where you and your pal took the Storm King, and I’ll consider letting you go.”

“I don’t know any Storm King!” Twilight shouted, and pushed back with her shield, shoving as much magic as she could into expanding the barrier. This seemed to catch the mare off guard, and she let out a yelp and ceased casting her own magic as the barrier hit her, knocking her back a half dozen paces.

Sweat now beading her brow, Twilight let down her shield and caught her breath, stamping a hoof as her own anger flared, “I have no idea who you are or why you want this Storm King, but I have no idea what you’re even talking about! People are in danger from this fire, so if you started it, you’ve put a lot of lives at risk for no good reason!”

There was a wet, pattering noise as rain started to fall. Twilight looked up to see that a dark rain cloud had gathered around a hundred feet above the building. She could see Rainbow Dash’s prismatic trail flying around the cloud, and spotted the slower form of Flash Sentry with her, helping corral the cloud into place. Twilight was glad Rainbow had thought fast enough to get into the air and get Flash’s help with the cloud. The rain would ensure the fire couldn’t spread any future until it was put out completely.

However, the rain had distracted her, and in having taken her eyes off the unicorn for even a split second, it gave the mare more than enough time to get back on her hooves and rush Twilight. The alicorn tried to get another barrier up, but the mare was already in hoof’s reach and while Twilight may have been training herself to be better at combat magic, her hoof-to-hoof skills still let much to be desired. She was tackled to the ground and before she knew it the mare had her in a neck hold that rapidly cut of her air. She tried to cast a spell to teleport, but the second her horn lit up the mare slammed Twilight’s head into the ground, disrupting it and dazing her.

“I don’t know who you think you’re fooling Princess, but I will get answers out of you, and if your friends want you back, they’re going to have to deliver the Storm King.”

Twilight felt her lungs burning for air, and her vision darkening, but she refused to give up. She was an alicorn Princess, and she’d faced worse than this. Ignoring her throbbing lungs, she got her hooves under her and with all of her strength she shoved herself towards one of the roof’s remaining, intact sheds. She slammed the unicorn and herself through said shed in a shower of wooden splinters. Twilight rolled as she did so, flailing back with an elbow that managed to catch the unicorn on the side of the face and knock her off. Then, before she came rolling to a stop, she focused a quick and simple spell, sending a flare of purple light into the sky to pop off like a firework.

Twilight then, coughing, swayed to her hooves, shaking dust and wood splinters off herself. The unicorn was on her back, but with no small amount of agile grace she kipped up and was on her hooves even faster than Twilight. Angry eyes a luminous shade between blue and green glared at Twilight.

“Okay, I’m done playing with you. Foals gloves are officially off,” the mare said, taking a menacing step forward.

However at the same instant there was a yellow streak of motion, and in a heartbeat Flash Sentry was there. His Zanpaktou was already held in his forehooves as he stood on his hind legs behind the unicorn mare, the blade poised against the side of her neck.

“Just FYI, if you’re trying to capture someone, probably not a good idea to spend so much time talking about it.”

“Flash!” Twilight said in relief, “I didn’t know if you’d see my signal or not.”

He gave her a quick, embarrassed smile, “Almost didn’t. With the smoke from the fire it’s hard to see anything clearly up in the sky, but seriously, good thinking Twilight.”

The unicorn mare, eyes narrowed, started to shift her balance, but Flash pressed the edge of his Zanpaktou firmer against her neck, “Don’t even try it, lady. In fact, let’s just go ahead and make sure you stay put, eh? Bakudo Number One: Sai!”

“Huh!?” the mare let out an exclamation as her forelegs suddenly bent under the invisible force of Flash’s Kido spell and were locked behind her back, causing her to flop to the ground. “Grr, so you are with that Starlight mare! She used the same kind of magic! Who are you people!? Why did you interfere with the Storm King!? Where is he!? Answer me!”

With the angry rise in her voice there was also a surge of magic that sparked from her broken horn. It didn't shoot out in a controlled burst, so much as shot randomly, as if the mare's growing anger was agitating her magic and causing it to surge within her like a barely contained maelstrom. Flash saw her straining against the binding effects of his Kido, and to his surprise the magic inside her, combined with a remarkable amount of physical strength, was allowing her to slowly start moving her forehooves.

“Wow, what’s this gal’s deal?” Flash asked, not taking the point of his sword away from the mare's neck, raising his other hoof and quickly moving it in a series of gestures. Red spiritual energy flowed around his hoof, leaving a trail of curved and straight symbols that combined into one complex sigil in the air as he chanted another Kido, this time putting the force of a full chant behind it.

"Disintegrate, ye black dog of Rodaninil! Look upon yourself with horror and then claw out your own throat!"

Twilight gave him a rather horrified look, but Flash just smiled sheepishly, "Uh, it sounds a lot worse than it actually is. Ahem, Bakudo Number Nine: Geki!" (Strike)

His body flared with a blood aura, which was then mirrored upon the struggling unicorn mare as her body was encased in red light. She was still struggling, her body twitching against the stronger binding Kido, but it seemed to be doing the trick. Her horn still sparked with magic, but Flash put his Zanpkatou tighter against her throat and said, "I'm trying to be nice here, lady, but if you keep this up I'm going to have to do something we're both gonna regret."

This finally seemed to get through to the mare and she cased struggling, albeit with harsh, angry breaths and a death glare shot at both him and Twilight. Flash sighed and looked over at Twilight, "Okay, who is this and why was she after you?"

“I have no idea. She just lured me up here and attacked me. She keeps going on about this Storm King, and seems to know Starlight...” Twilight’s voice trailed off as her eyes opened wide with realization, “Glimmer! She must be talking about the human Starlight!”

The mare paused in her growling struggles against Flash’s Kido to give them both a strange look, “Human what?”

----------

With the silver disc of the full moon and a wide carpet of stars filling Equestria’s sky, the night time landscape was nearly as bright as day. For many scores of miles in all directions the gently rolling hills and fields of Equestria’s eastern heartland spread in all directions, dotted by the warm lights of farming villages and numerous farmsteads. Rich and clear rivers cut across the land in glittering streams of silver under the moonlight, only adding to the enchanted and picturesque scenery.

Platinum was irritated by it to no end. Her mood was not inclined towards enchantment, this night. That said a part of her was glad to be away from the depressing, dark corridors of Hitsuyo-Aku, and the accusing eyes of her son. Her heart clenched every moment she thought of Pipsqueak, yet she couldn’t bring herself to feel any ire towards him for his attitude. His being alive was all that mattered. However, it was much easier to direct ire towards the woman next to her. Or rather “mare”, as it were. Platinum was still getting used to the notion that this was her life now, as some half-baked equine in a foreign reality.

“Will you quit glaring at me?” Firefly said, wearing an unapologetic smirk as he glanced sidelong at Platinum. Both of them were standing amid a small copse of trees atop one of the taller hills overlooking a portion of the hill lands where a dark and snaking length of railway passed.

“Who’s glaring?” Platinum said with a chilly huff, turning to look away from the irritating pegasus.

“You. You are.”

“I may no longer be a Captain, nor possess my noble title, but I am not so undignified as to glare at someone for no reason. You must be imagining things.”

“Uh-huh, because you’re totally not angry at me for spending time with your kid, right?”

A hard grinding noise issued forth as Platinum’s teeth treated each other as shifting tectonic plates, but she maintained an air of frigid detachment, her voice steady as glass, “On the contrary. I am grateful he seems to have taken such a liking to you over his own mother. It’s good that he speak with someone...” her voice turned to a low growl, “Even if he can’t spare a word for me that isn’t laced with contempt.”

“Platinum, girl, seriously, you need to have a heart to heart with the boy before both of you drift too far for anything to bridge the gap.”

“I don’t need parental advice from you. In fact, let us cease this pointless conversation and focus on the task in front of us,” Platinum replied with all the subtlety of grinding rocks between her teeth.

Firefly flopped down in an utterly undignified manner upon her equine belly and groaned, “You’re impossible. Whatever, I tried. As for our ‘task’, I think you mean ‘trap’, because that’s what this obviously is.”

“Trap or not, our duty is to ensure that if there is an item of power upon this train that is supposedly coming, that we acquire it intact,” Platinum said as she rested a hoof upon the hilt of her Zanpaktou, somewhat awkwardly sheathed through a sash around her black robes, “Any opposition we encounter is irrelevant. We’ll simply eliminate it.”

“Hmph, that confident, are we?” Firefly said, yawning as she flopped onto her side, propping a hoof on her chin as she idly flicked her tail, “Considering that this is almost one hundred percent a trap, that means the Princesses themselves are likely going to be waiting for us.”

“You can stop speaking as if I’m a fool, Firefly. I know better than to underestimate this land’s defenders, but it doesn’t change that, Princess or pauper, whomever stands between us and our goal must be dealt with. Or are you suggesting we retreat the moment we run into opposition?”

It was actually an honest question and not an arrogant, rhetorical question on Platinum’s part. Much as she disliked Firefly and was less than fond with how easily the woman seemed to get along with Pipsqueak while Platinum struggled to get even half a word out of her son, she did respect that Firefly was Starlight Glimmer’s second-in-command for good reason. Her casual demeanor was something of a front that hid a fairly keen mind, and much as it galled Platinum to admit it, Firefly’s tactical instincts were superb. If Firefly was worried about doing battle with Equestria’s Princesses, then it was probably for good reason.

“I don’t know if I’d go that far,” Firefly said, “It’d be exceedingly lame of us to give up the moment things got tough. I’m just saying, let’s not be cocky about this. Princess Celestia and Luna are probably at least on par with their Soul Reaper counterparts, otherwise this peaceful nation would’ve fallen to any number of threats over the centuries. We don’t even really know the limits on what magic can and can’t do. So if they’re the ones springing the trap, I’m saying we need to play this careful and be prepared to split the moment things go south. Chances are what we’re after won’t even be on the train, if this is a trap.”

Platinum let out a long, slow sigh of reluctant agreement, “I... can’t gainsay your logic, much as it pains me to say so. Of course, if the Princesses do show themselves, this could be an opportunity to remove future problems here and now. Because while we don’t know the extent of their magical powers, they also don’t know the extent of our spiritual powers.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see soon enough...” Firefly said, standing once more, her ears perking up, “I hear the train coming.”

Platinum had to wonder at just how keen Firefly’s senses were, because she hadn’t even heard the train yet. Yet at a moment later she heard it to, the distant and regular chugging of steam engines and the metallic, rolling clanks of metal wheels on rail-line. Platinum slowly eased her Zanpaktou out of its sheath with the still unfamiliar unicorn magic she was capable of now. She’d spent numerous hours since arriving in this world practicing with the magic, working out new sword forms with the unusual new power available to her. She still preferred using her hooves to hold her blade, but the telekinesis had its uses too.

Firefly cracked her neck and stretched her wings, “Remember the game plan, Platinum. We’re in and out fast, you take the front of the train, I’ll take the back, we meet in the middle. No casualties among the train crew if we can help it. If we don’t find anything, we’re out of there. If we do find what we’re looking for, we’re out just as fast. If it is a trap, we use my portal rods to make a getaway. We do not try to make a fight of it. Got it?”

“Yes, I understand,” Platinum said irritably, just as the train came into view.

Its lights were a tiny pinprick of light among the silvery glow of the hills. Platinum was struck with how gaudy the train looked, with its swirls of bright pinks and regal purples. It looked more like a toy than a modern conveyance of passengers and goods. Aside from the engine, there were nine cars. She saw lights on inside the cars, but couldn’t make out any passengers. With a deep breath she stretched out her spiritual senses. As always there was the annoying and prevalent background buzz of magic that made it hard to discern anything on a spiritual level, yet Platinum did think she sensed several living beings on the train. It wasn’t empty, at least.

“We’ll wait until it crosses that bridge over the river there,” Firefly said, pointing with a wing, “That’s when we make our move.”

Platinum nodded in silent agreement. Firefly reached up to the flight goggles perched on her head, and in a lime green glow of Fullbringer light, she drew out the form of her Fullbring. The dark purple, high-tech armor coated her body, and formed the wide, blade-like wings around her natural pegasi wings. Her head now clad in a full visor, Firefly focused on the train, small lines of data scrolling across the visor’s screen.

“I count thirteen life signs on the train. Wonder if that’s a normal crowd for a train this time of night?”

“We’ll find out soon enough anyway, so no point in speculation, is there?” Platinum responded, and Firefly shrugged, hefting the large energy canon of her Fullbring over her shoulder as she slowly hovered up into the air.

“True enough. Okay, its at the bridge. Let’s do this!”

The train had just reached a large, elegantly curved bridge of thick stones that arched over one of the wider rivers winding through the hills. As one, Firefly and Platinum vanished from the hillside they’d been watching from, Firefly streaking out on motes of purple light shooting from her wings, while Platinum strode across the air in leaping bursts of speed. As planned, Firefly split off to head to the train’s front engine, while Platinum used Flash Step to reach the back of the train even faster. The train was just reaching the halfway point of the bridge, and with a screech of wheels and magical runes flaring along its wheels to assist with the braking, the whole thing came to an instant halt.

“Uh-oh,” Firefly said, just as a burst of magic went soaring up from the now halted train’s middle car. This stream of light purple magic went up about two hundred feet into the air, then instantly spread out in a thick dome that encased the train, the bridge, and a good portion of the surrounding hills.

Then the area was bathed in radiant sunlight as a sphere of light appeared at the apex of the magical barrier. Just below the sphere were two forms descending on wide wings. Even at a distance Platinum could make out the sight of two tall, statuesque equine forms, one luminous and white as dawn-light, the other the deep midnight blue of the night sky above. Both were clad in armor, one of gold radiance, the other of icy black. Weapons floated at the alicorn’s sides, twin blades of fire matched by twin axes of darkness. Platinum's spiritual senses were filled with a heavy pressure, not form spiritual energy, but from the overwhelming background buzz of what had to be a truly incredible amount of magic now pooled into one location.

“Trespassers on Equestrian soil!” boomed a voice that spoke with the might of a thousand trumpets, “We are Princesses Celestia and Luna, rulers and guardians of these lands! Surrender yourselves immediately and you will not be harmed. Fail to do so... and face our full and unrestrained wrath!”

Episode 92: The Might of Sun and Moon

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Episode 92: The Might of Sun and Moon

“Do you think they heard you?” Luna asked, a hint of cheekiness in her tone. Celestia noted her sister didn’t look at her as she spoke, Luna’s sharp eyes carefully scanning the scene below them. Celestia was doing the same, not allowing her focus to slip for an instant.

As planned, the train that had been falsely rumored to be carrying the Alicorn Amulet had come to a halt upon the large stone bridge crossing the Greenbrook River. The massive barrier of magic encasing the train, bridge, and a portion of the surrounding hillsides was Shining Armor’s work. The stallion, along with a contingent of Canterlot’s finest, were hidden in the train. Their sole task was to maintain the shield, and Celestia couldn’t halt a flutter of worry in her chest for her little ponies. Shining Armor was a brave soldier, as were the stallions and mares of the Royal Guard with him, but they would be out of their depth in facing the foes that had come for the train.

While the alicorn Princesses were committed to the operation here, they’d ensured the defense of Canterlot and Ponyville through requesting Discord act as watchdog in their absence. Other allies were being called in as well, the Crystal Empire not only being safeguarded by Princess Cadence, but Dragonlord Ember was making a ‘coincidental’ diplomatic visit with a retinue of her strongest vassals. The fact that Princess Cadence had offered the dragons a healthy supply of crystal gems to indulge their appetites with had sweetened that particular deal. That covered the north, and the heartland. Meanwhile King Thorax had volunteered to maintain watch on other fronts, the Changelings acting as ideal eyes and ears to warn of unusual activity across the continent.

That was about all Celestia and Luna could do to protect their realm while still freeing themselves to go on the offensive like this.

Ideally the plan was to subdue the opposition before they could realize who was maintaining the shield trapping them here. Fortunately Shining Armor only had to periodically renew his barrier, so as long as Celestia and Luna dealt with the enemy before then, he would be safe. Speed was of the essence, regardless, but Celestia was wary of acting in haste. Besides, if they couldn’t subdue their foes fast, she and Luna had already prepared a whole different surprise for Starlight Glimmer’s cronies. It wasn't her first choice, as she preferred to capture the foe alive, if possible. But she was prepared to do what she must to protect Equestria.

She and Luna had proven superior in strength to a Soul Reaper Lieutenant such as Flash Sentry, but all reports indicated Starlight Glimmer and her allies were on a very different level than Flash had been. A combination of boldness and caution were needed here.

Celestia had already discussed tactics with Luna, and so despite Luna’s casual question, Celestia simply replied, “Most assuredly. Let’s not keep our guests waiting.”

As one the sisters moved together, rocketing downward like a gold and dark pair of comets. Their alicorn bodies could fly with remarkable speed on their own, but both Celestia and Luna had fortified their physical abilities with enhancement magic before teleporting into the barrier. Luna had always been a little faster than Celestia, especially with her enhancement magic being stronger, but Luna held back to keep pace with Celestia. The plan was to sweep the train back to front, sticking together as a pair. Celestia would prefer not to get separated from her sister during the fighting, even if she recognized the likelihood that it'd still happen. Ideally, they’d take the foe down together.

Their rapid descent took them towards the back of the train, and it didn’t take long to see motion there, a purple and pink form opening up the back of the train and heading into the back car.

“You take the roof, I’ll take the door,” Celestia said, and Luna just nodded.

If the enemy was moving into the train because they thought that might give them cover, or cause the alicorn Princesses any level of pause, they were in for a rude awakening.

Luna didn’t bother using her ice coated axes, she simply impacted with the back train car’s roof and pierced through it like a sport’s team breaking through a paper logo. Celestia used a little more delicacy than her sister, swiping once with one of her flaming longswords. The weapon, sporting heat enough to turn steel to liquid on contact, sliced the door readily and Celestia smashed through it a half second later.

Within the empty back car she couldn’t miss the pony who’d been standing there waiting for her and her sister. It was faintly surreal, seeing Firefly. Of course Celestia knew who the mother of Rainbow Dash was, at least in this world. Rainbow Dash being one of the bearer’s of the Elements of Harmony had been a figure of interest Celestia had studied up on, and while she’d never met Firefly, she was aware of who the mare was. But that was Equestria’s Firefly.

This mare was someone else, someone who for reasons of her own was serving Starlight’s human counterpart and offering threat to the stability of Celestia’s realm. Appearances aside, Celestia steeled herself to do what was necessary. Ideally she wanted to subdue and capture Firefly and whoever was with her, but Celestia was prepared to safeguard Equestria by whatever means were required, if it came to that.

Firefly was clad in what appeared to be elaborate, advanced armor of a dark purple coloring and smooth angles. Wings formed of numerous blade-like protrusions formed around her natural pegasus wings, and emitted wisps of purple light. Sunset Shimmer had provided information on those with Starlight Glimmer, and their abilities. So, this was a Fullbring, was it? Apparently the goggles Firefly wore were the catalyst for this manifested armor and weaponry.

If I destroy the goggles, will that break her power? Celestia wondered, but that was all she had time for, as Firefly had been standing in preparation for Celestia and Luna’s arrival.

“Hi there, your royal highnesses!” the mare said with forced cheer, already aiming a large cannon with a hexagon shaped barrel at Celestia. Even as Celestia had entered the train car, the barrel had been heating up with a bright purple light. Now Firefly triggered the cannon, and a large beam of purple light, crackling along the sides, launched out at Celestia.

With swift reflexes, Celestia crossed her swords in front of her and caught the brunt of the beam on them. Even holding the blades in her magic, the force of the beam pushed her right back out of the train. Her swords held firm under the beam, splitting its energy out around Celestia. Once the beam petered out, she heard a series of detonations inside the train and saw its windows blown out by explosions of purple flame. Then the roof of the train erupted upward as well, and two forms flew straight up out of it; Luna and Firefly both taking to the air while smoking slightly from the explosions.

The cause of the exposition became apparent as small hatches opened up around Firefly’s armor and expelled a swarm of small missiles that flew in at Luna. With a scoffing sound, Luna launched herself forward and ploughed through the missiles. Her axes hummed in the air, leaving trails of silvery lunar light as their magical edges cut through the missiles. Luna continued on through the trail of explosions and flew right at Firefly, axes smashing downward.

Firefly responded by using one hoof to reach to her side and pull out a purple sword hilt. The hilt then blazed to life with a beam of energy that she raised to block Luna’s strike, magical axes clashing with the blade of spiritual power. Magical symbols bloomed to life across Luna’s body and her icy black armor, the enhancement spells flaring to life in a set of sharp geometric patterns that glowed with incandescent azure light that matched the fierce gaze in Luna’s eyes. Firefly was strong, for her size, with her Fullbring boosting her physical abilities in a similar manner to Luna’s spells, but it became quickly clear that Luna was the stronger as she swung into a swift series of spinning blows and Firefly was rapidly driven back.

Firefly didn’t waste time allowing herself to be pushed back for long, however, and the energy flowing from her wings intensified as she burst away from Luna at high speed, putting distance from the lunar Princess while firing a blinding beam from her cannon. Luna would have dodged it, but the beam would have otherwise struck the train, so Luna instead lit her horn up like a fountain and generated a sparkling, dark blue barrier in front of her. The beam struck the shield, and Luna’s spell held up, albeit with noticeable cracks from the intensity of the cannon’s beam.

Celestia made her move then, having waited until Luna and Firefly were separated to launch a spell she’d been preparing. A wall of searing flames formed in a semicircle above Celestia's head, and from this wall a flight of blazing phoenix burst forth. These weren’t real phoenixes, but rather conjurations of flame that held enough artificial intelligence to actively follow a designated target, seeking to impact them and engulf them in flames. However this was a particularly favored spell of Celestia because each conjured phoenix also carried a small element of healing magic that was intended to prevent the deaths of those burned. It was still a very painful spell, and the wall of flame would keep spawning phoenixes until its energy ran out... which would take several minutes, at least.

Firefly saw the swarm of phoenixes coming, and without letting up with the energy pouring out of her cannon’s barrel that was keeping Luna pinned in place, she turned to focus on the incoming flaming birds. The blades of her wings folded out and parts of them detached, flying out in a swarm of about a dozen small, sharp drones. Celestia had read about these in Sunset Shimmer’s report; Firefly’s “Dragoons”.

The small drones moved with incredibly speed and precision, flying at the swarm of phoenix constructs. Thin laser beams of purple light shot out, picking off the phoenixes one after another and causing them to prematurely detonate in bursts of flame across the sky. Yet the flock was not so mindless as to ignore the danger the Dragoons posed, and the conjured phoenixes started to juke and twist in erratic patterns, seeking to avoid the piercing lasers. Even so, only around one in five of them were breaking past the Dragoons to soar in at Firefly. That was still enough to force her to evade, flying up and to the side in a streak of purple light.

This freed up Luna, since Firefly was no longer blasting Luna’s shield with her canon, and the Princess of the Night flapped her wings in a thunderclap that sent her soaring in pursuit.

Celestia would have joined her sister, but a flare of white magic appeared on her brow in the shape of a symbolic eye. A premonition spell, meant to give Celestia a partial view of events a few seconds into the potential future, let her know a second foe was making her move. Celestia had suspected that more than one enemy would go after the train, but hadn’t known who it would be. Chrysalis? Starlight Glimmer herself?

A wave of frost, thicker than clouds and plummeting the ambient temperature to a wintry low, cascaded down upon the wall of flame that Celestia had summoned. Flames and phoenixes both were flash frozen in mid-air, steam erupting from the clash of heat and ice. Celestia was impressed. Freezing such fires, conjured by her alicorn magic and fortified by her innate connection to the sun, was no small feat. There was no doubting who her new foe was, and Celestia’s premonition spell told her of the danger just in time for her to react.

The speed was even beyond what Celestia had anticipated, the form darting across the air with the ease of a hummingbird, and faster than lightning itself. Celestia’s flaming swords flashed around her in a dizzying pattern, and a curved sword of icy blue sparked off their flame clad steel.

Facing Celestia stood a unicorn mare, as tall and well proportioned as some of the most attractive noblemares form Canterlot, if not for the horrible burn scars covering one side of her body. Her front right leg was gone, replaced by an artificial limb of some manner of dull gray ceramic, jointed like a puppet’s limb. She wore black robes that were identical to the one’s Flash Sentry wore, although Celestia knew full-well that this mare had also once worn a white overcoat denoting her former rank.

“Captain Platinum, I presume?”

“You blocked Fuyukogo,” Platinum said, confirming her identity with the name of her Zanpaktou, already released to its Shikai state, “I suppose this world does have worthy defenders, after all.”

The sound of explosions and the harsh clash of magical energies resounding behind them as Luna and Firefly’s high-speed aerial duel continued, yet neither Platinum or Celestia moved as they sized each other up. Celestia’s blades floated readily at her side, bathing the area in harsh, flaming light.

“I offer you one last chance to lay down your weapon and surrender yourself to our custody,” Celestia said, “I give you my word you will not be harmed, nor will your son-”

Platinum’s hard voice cut her off as sharply as any knife, “I will not. My son and I will never be safe until Starlight Glimmer fulfills her plans. I will aide her until that day. Now, I offer you one chance to withdraw from this battle. Otherwise you will feel the full measure of my power.”

Celestia couldn’t help herself. She gave Platinum a cheeky little smirk and said, “You mean the power my student, Sunset Shimmer, has already defeated?”

It probably wasn’t all that smart to taunt a Captain-class Soul Reaper, but Celestia’s graciousness towards an enemy only extended so far, and this woman had caused her beloved student and her friends no small amount of grief. To be honest, Celestia would have accepted a surrender, but was happy enough to have the opportunity to teach this woman a lesson.

Of course being able to do that was a whole other matter, and Platinum’s face turned to a glacial mask of cold fury as she vanished from sight and came at Celestia so fast that even with the premonition spell, Celestia couldn't fully tell which direction Platinum was coming from first. Fortunately Celestia didn’t have to, her horn bursting with gold light as she encased herself in a magical barrier.

Platinum’s Zanpaktou struck the sphere of golden magic surrounding Celestia a dozen times in the span of a mere flutter of eyelashes. Celestia felt each blow like a physical pressure on her horn, and couldn’t deny the incredible potency the Soul Reaper displayed. In terms of speed and strength she was easily leagues above Flash Sentry. He hadn’t been exaggerating the power of Soul Reaper Captains at all.

And this is before she’s unleashed that second stage of her sword. Truly not a foe to be underestimated. Fortunately Luna and I haven’t.

Her magical barrier was showing cracks in it from Platinum’s strikes, and each swing of that large, curved tulwar left a blast of frost that further sapped the shield’s strength. However Celestia wasn’t idle within the shield and her horn blazed to even brighter gold light, casting several spells, one after another.

Small, condensed spheres of light appeared in the air around her, still within the barrier. Each one buzzed with barely contained magic, flickering with searing, white-hot fire. As Platinum appeared above and smashed her blade down on the shield, Celestia actually dispelled it, then instantly teleported.

The alicorn vanished in a flash of gold light, her magical shield gone, and Platinum left swinging at nothing but air. Right in front of her now was half a dozen spheres of magical energy, and now triggered by the proximity of one who wasn’t Celestia, the spheres buzzed louder and flared with bright light.

Platinum’s eyes widened, but she threw herself away with a masterfully swift Flash Step, just as the magic spheres exploded in a series of incinerating detonations.

Platinum appeared a few paces above one of the more central train cars, frowning as she cast about with her spiritual senses, trying to sense where Celestia had gone. Then gold light coated the two train cars behind Platinum, and the Soul Reaper turned to see the huge, multi-ton cars floating up in the air underneath a sparkling gold glow. Both cars then were hurled at Platinum, just as she spotted Celestia standing behind the train, smiling mischievously.

Celestia knew Shining Armor and his guards were in the car one more down from Platinum, so there was no danger in using the empty cars like bludgeons. She hurled them at Platinum with careful precision, ensuring that even if Platinum dodged, the cars wouldn’t strike any other part of the train.

Platinum responded with a derisive neigh, a sound that appeared to embarrass the Soul Reaper as she blushed in angry fury at the equine noise she’d inadvertently made. That didn’t stop her from leaping towards the hurled train cars, swinging Fuyukogo in wide, swift arcs. The sharp blade struck with bursts of what Celestia imagined had to be spiritual energy combined with sheets of ice, which cut through the train cars like so much soft bread.

Celestia had known Platinum would do this, and the train cars being cut in half didn’t change the fact that they were still under Celestia’s telekinetic magic. So the severed pieces simply turned and flew right back at Platinum, even faster than before. With a scowl on her face, Platinum disappeared with another Flash Step and landed on one of the train car pieces. She shoved Fuyukogo into the car, then ice burst outward in a white sheet, covering everything nearby. In an instant the four train car pieces were fused into one large chunk of ice which in turn was fused to the train itself, Platinum standing atop it all.

“Is this all you can do? A few magical tricks? Sunset Shimmer may have been an arrogant child, but she at least had far more power than what you’ve displayed so far,” Platinum chided.

“Oh, if it’s power you want, you’ll see it soon enough. I usually prefer to warm up when testing out a new dance partner,” Celestia chided right back. She wasn’t above some verbal sparring, especially if it just bought more time.

She wasn’t bluffing either. She had yet to break out any of her ‘big guns’ against Platinum. Partially because she preferred not to risk any friendly fire with her sister or Shining Armors squad. Partially because a portion of her magic was already being used elsewhere, but Platinum didn’t need to know that. Besides, it wasn’t as if Platinum was going all out yet either.

Unfortunately, despite her preference, she and Luna had gotten split up, but with luck Luna would be turning that around soon, and both Platinum and Firefly would be seeing the full might of the Princesses of Sun and Moon.

----------

“So, uh, anypony got any idea what we’re supposed to do with her?” asked Rainbow Dash, hovering around the heavily bound mare that had assaulted Twilight.

The fire was long since contained. The locals, despite being such a rough seeming bunch when the ponies had first arrived, now seemed rather warmed up to Twilight and her friends. Apparently fire was taken as a serious threat in Klugetown, and having prevented the fire from spreading further than one building had turned Twilight and the other ponies into minor celebrities. Their inn stay was now free, and apparently when the ponies wanted to do some shopping, discounts would abound.

Of course Klugetown was still Klugetown and more than a few locals had wanted to take Twilight’s prisoner to sell off parts of her at market for setting the fire. Twilight was having none of that, however, and since she and her friends had stopped the fire, the locals were willing to let the alicorn Princess deal with the arsonist with only some minor grumbling.

That still left Twilight and her friends to sit in the now largely vacated common room of the inn and stare at their tied up prisoner, wondering just what to do next.

For her part, the prisoner just glared at them with her eyes filled with such rancor that Twilight had to seriously wonder if she’d done something to personally anger this mare. What little conversation they’d managed on the roof between her and Flash Sentry had been too brief and confusing for any real answers to be had for either party.

It was time to change that.

“First I suppose we should ungag her,” Twilight said.

“Do we have to? She’s kinda snarly and decidedly unpleasant,” said Trixie, wrinkling her snout.

“Nopony’s makin’ ya stay, Trixie,” said Applejack, her orange coat stained with dark soot. Out of all the ponies on the ground she’d insisted on taking the lead on the bucket brigade and had been closest to the flames, which showed in the singed parts of her mane, tail, and stetson hat. “Ya could always go on back ta sleep, like the sirens did.”

“Hmph, and miss any important information you squeeze out of this ruffian? Not a chance. She disturbed my beauty sleep, so I want to at least know what she wanted.”

“Me, it sounded like,” Starlight Glimmer’s voice was uneasy, and she kept giving the bound mare measuring look. “Only we know there’s another me running around, so not exactly genius level deduction to figure out who she might really be after.”

“There’s only one way for us to get this sorted out, and that’s by talking, so I’ll ask that everyone let me handle the questioning,” Twilight said, and used her magic to carefully untie the cloth that had been gagging their prisoner.

The mare spat and licked her lips, then turned an disdainful snarl towards them, “Do whatever you like, but you won’t get any information from me. I don’t know what game you think your playing with this ‘two Starlights’ business, but I’m not some idiot foal who’d fall for a trick like that.”

“Heh, shows you’re the real idiot,” Rainbow Dash said, “Not that you didn’t already prove that by trying to take us on by yourself.”

“Rainbow, please,” Twilight said, and Rainbow quieted down with a sheepish grin. Taking a deep breath, Twilight met the mares eyes, “I think to start, we need to properly introduce ourselves. I’m Princess Twilight Sparkle. What’s your name?”

The mare just glared at her, and Twilight’s eye twitched slightly, “Look, I’m not your enemy. We’re not your enemy. Please, even if you don’t want to answer questions, there can’t be any harm in just telling me your name.”

A few moments passed where a contemplative look crossed the mare’s face, then with a soft ‘humph’ she said, “Tempest Shadow.”

“Seriously? That’s a fake name if Trixie ever heard one,” Trixie declared, earning a brief moment of stink-eye from Twilight, to which Trixie blanched but turned her nose up stubbornly, “Well... it does sound fake.”

“It’s the only name you’re getting, so deal with it, Blueberry,” Tempest Shadow said with a derisive glance at Trixie, who immediately rose to the bait.

“B-Blueberry!? I’ll have you know my name is the Great, and Powerful Trixie!”

“Trixie, hm? That describe your profession? I’m sorry, I suppose a mare with no other talents can only make her bits in one way...”

Trixie’s eyes bulged, “Excuse me!? Twilight, is torture off the table as an accessible means of interrogation?”

“No, Trixie, not torture. And Tempest Shadow, please stop teasing my friends-”

“...We’re friends?” Trixie said, somewhat bemused as Twilight went on.

“-and try to understand that we don’t want to harm you. We just want to understand why you lit that fire and attacked us. You keep saying you know Starlight Glimmer. How?”

Tempest Shadow’s eyes narrowed to sharp slits of suspicion, her face set in a disbelieving frown. “I don’t see the point of this, but fine, I’ll indulge you...”

She recounted the events on Mt. Aris, including her role as the military commander of the Storm King’s forces. She described the manner in which a unicorn mare who looked identical to Starlight Glimmer had single hooved taken down the majority of the airship fleet and halted the attack on Mt. Aris, while also taking away the Storm King. She further explained she’d taken the surviving fleet to Klugetown, but had been intercepted by a different pony, a pegasus with ludicrously powerful weaponry and armor that had decimated the fleet’s remains.

“That certainly explains the wrecks we saw on the way in,” Rarity said.

Fluttershy, gulping, turned worried eyes towards Rainbow Dash, “Um, s-so that pegasus... she was Firefly?”

Rainbow Dash’s face turned stern as she crossed her hooves over her chest, shaking her head, “That’s not my mother. My mother is awesome and would never stoop to working for some crazy pony trying to wreck the world. Sucks to be the human me, because if I get the chance I’m kicking her mom’s flank.”

Tempest’s brow creased as she looked at Rainbow Dash, then towards Starlight Glimmer, “Why this deception? You didn’t try to hide anything when you mangled my fleet and took my employer. You have me captured, so what do you want?”

Starlight gave Twilight a look, who after a pensive moment gave a ‘go ahead’ nod. Starlight coughed awkwardly and put on a painfully forced smile as she approached Tempest.

“Soooo, let me try to get this straight. You think I blew up a whole army and took your king, this big powerful yeti-like fellow who conquered whole nations already, right?”

“...Yes,” Tempest said, but a hint of doubt was creeping into her tone as she looked Starlight over. It was as if Tempest was finally noting the actual differences between the Starlight in front of her and the Starlight she’d seen on Mt. Aris. Not in appearance, but in poise and stance.

“So if I’m such an incredible, powerful pony, why didn’t I use any of that amazing power to stop the fire last night? Or sense Twilight was being attacked and swoop in to the rescue?”

Gears turned behind Tempest Shadow’s eyes and her lips drew down in a frustrated frown, “Perhaps you don’t know spells useful for putting out fires? And I ambushed the Princess after specifically ensuring she’d been drawn away from the lot of you. I caught you by surprise, that’s all.”

“Uh-huh, do you really think if I was a unicorn who could wipe out an army by myself that ‘surprise’ would make the slightest difference at all? Do I even look like I know how to fight an army?”

At Starlight’s words, Flash Sentry piped in, “On top of that, you didn’t see any of the rest of us at Mt. Aris. Why would Starlight wipe out an army there, send some other random pony to blow up the ships outside town, then just wander in from the desert with a completely different group of ponies and proceed to get rooms at the inn?”

Tempest Shadow’s voice grew more doubtful as she said, “But you wear a sword just like the one Starlight Glimmer had-”

“Which I don’t seem to have now,” Starlight pointed out.

“Well you could have just stowed it somewhere!” Tempest shouted.

“Why would I do that?”

“I don’t know! I... I don’t know...” Tempest finally looked truly bothered by the holes in her logic, her eyes all but burning with thought, “I have no idea why any of this is happening. Nothing’s made sense since the attack on Mt. Aris. If... if you’re not the same pony as her, then what are you? A twin sister?”

“Not exactly,” said Starlight, who then nodded to Twilight, “Your show now. You explain it to her. I’m not even sure I’ve got all the facts straight, myself.”

Twilight cleared her throat and looked Tempest Shadow straight in the eyes, putting on her most trustworthy smile, “Okay, so, um, how much do you know about interdimensional travel?”

----------

Luna was impressed, which didn’t happen often in battle. The last opponent who’d even approached a legitimate physical threat to her had been Tirek, in his heyday, and that was only because the thieving bastard could suck the magic right out of her before she could get in any good shots. Discord was a close second, but his threat was more a matter of circumventing his ludicrous chaos powers, not triumphing over him in physical battle. Sombra, unfortunately, had just been a one trick pony, easily dealt with by the Elements. No fun to be had, there.

Luna would have liked to have tested herself against Chrysalis, but the Changeling Queen had been defeated the first time while Luna had still slept, and the second time... well, the witch cheated and that was all Luna wanted to think about that. Stupid poisoned pancakes. She’d told Celestia that getting rid of taste testers for their food was a mistake, but nooooo, Tia wanted to be ‘modern’ and not rely on old fashioned methods like poison tasters. And she had no idea where Chrysalis had found a poison strong enough to render two alicorn Princesses so... reduced, but Luna had a serious axe to grind over the matter. Specifically one of her ice axes, meant for Chrysalis’ face if she ever got the chance.

However the indignity of that incident galled Luna, she put it aside to enjoy that for the moment she had a someone to properly test her skills against. Celestia held back too much in their sparring matches, and poor Flash Sentry had simply not been up to more than a light workout.

This Firefly, however? Quite the accomplished warrior, and Luna couldn’t deny she was smiling deeper and deeper with every exchange of blows between them.

A savage blizzard of attacks was being unleashed by Luna, making equal use of the claws of ice covering her fetlocks as well as the axes of black frost that twirled in the grip of her pale blue magic. Her wings beat a furious pace, keeping up with Firefly’s rapid, haphazard flight across the limited airspace within the magical barrier. It amazed Luna how well Firefly was fending off her blows. That brilliantly scintillating energy blade worked overtime to parry the ice axes, while Firefly herself bent and twisted her body in the air to avoid Luna’s claws.

Luna was still scoring glancing hits, cutting sparking gouges in Firefly’s armor, or drawing small, bloody wounds, but so far it was all superficial.

Conversely, Firefly had yet to score a meaningful hit on Luna, but not for lack of trying. Whether it was from the deadly lasers from Firefly’s Dragoons, or bursts of missiles fired from the hatches on Firefly’s armor, Luna had no lack of assaults to contend with while trying to pin down her opponent.

Four of the Dragoons arrayed themselves above Luna, while another four flanked her from below. Neon purple beams stitched a cat’s-cradle pattern at the Lunar Princess. Luna’s body shimmered with a flickering mirage pattern as she cast a spell that split her image with illusionary light, allowing her to easily twist through the laser beams while the Dragoons were left unsure of what to target.

She then swiftly cast another spell that retaliated against the Dragoons, summoning a circle of silvery blades of moonlight that flew out like shooting stars. The Dragoons moved to evade, but the swift moon shards cut at least three or four of them cleanly in half, causing the sparking remains to detonate.

Firefly took the momentary distraction to dive down, soaring towards the river while turning to fly backwards, her cannon thrust upward. Luna wheeled to the side as a huge beam of energy licked past her, heating up her armor and causing Luna to wince. She still hadn’t taken a direct hit from that cannon, and wasn’t eager to. Her smile bright with adrenaline, Luna dove after Firefly, her horn flaring to a fountain of azure light as she discharged a beam of her own.

Raw alicorn magic cut a thin line towards Firefly, and she banked sharply to avoid it, cutting across the surface of the river as she did so. Luna kept the beam going as she followed in hot pursuit, the blue stream of magic cutting a steaming swath through the river waters as it chased Firefly. The pegasus barrel rolled, the blue beam passing so close that it cut the tips off of several of her blade shaped wings. The beam kept going, cutting over the river shoreline, then gouging up the adjoining hillside, nearly severing through the whole thing.

Firefly glanced at the still hot, glowing metal where the tips of Ace of Sky’s left wing had been cut off, and whistled.

“Figured we might have been lowballing you alicorns, but damn, color me impressed anyway.”

Her eyes flicked towards the damaged hillside, narrowed slightly, then looked back in time to see Luna charging right in at her, axes barred. Firefly got her energy blade in position just in time to catch the axes, the water of the river exploding around her and Luna as the physical strength of the blow and parry combined caused a shockwave that rippled over the waters.

“If you have time to talk, you have time to reconsider my sister’s offer of surrender,” Luna said, “Although I’d be a bit disappointed if you did.”

Even as she spoke, Luna bent low and lashed out with a swift uppercut with her claws. Firefly pushed away with her energy blade and swung an elbow down to block the sudden strike, but Luna had been feinting. The moment Firefly moved to block, Luna gripped her elbow instead and levered herself up into a spin kick that smashed Firefly across the face and sent her reeling into the water.

Luna glanced up briefly to see how her sister was faring. She knew the plan had been to try to avoid being separated, but Celestia did always have an issue with understanding plans never actually panned out in practice. Especially in battle. Still, rejoining her sister was probably ideal, and although she knew Firefly was far from done with just one solid hit, it’d take Firefly a second to recover. So Luna flew upwards, looking for Celestia.

She wasn’t hard to find. The giant halo of fire that Celestia had summoned around herself, easily twenty paces across, kind of gave her away. Luna recognized the sunfire halo as one of Celestia’s more experimental invocations. It followed Celestia wherever she moved, keeping her at its center, while absorbing all heat outside of the ring and expelling it inward in a constant, searing wave.

Celestia was all but immune to the fire, fairly heat resistant even before placing further heat resistant enchantments on herself. Anyone else trying to battle her in melee was going to be contending with temperatures high enough to scald skin and rapidly melt solid ice. Top that off with the fact that Celestia could bend and turn the halo in any direction to use as a weapon, and it was a nasty piece of spellwork.

Little wonder Platinum was having difficulty with it and was making a point of keeping her distance. Luna could see the unicorn mare zipping around Celestia at a distance of several dozen meters. Luna only recognized Platinum based on second-hoof description, of course, but who else would be wielding a blade that generated gigantic spikes of ice to hurl at Celestia?

Luna felt vaguely insulted, as ice was one of her preferred elements.

For a second Luna wasn’t certain what Platinum was trying to accomplish. Even with shards of ice not much smaller than the train cars below, the sharp chunks of frost were melted rapidly by Celestia’s spell. Celestia even rather easily adjusted the angle of the halo to slice several of the ice shards to pieces. Water vapor was filling the air rapidly as Platinum hurled more and more ice at Celestia, which only got melted further.

Abruptly Luna realized what Platinum might be up to, and shouted a warning, “Tia! The vapor!”

Melted or not, the ice was releasing huge amounts of water vapor around Celestia. It’d eventually evaporate too, but with how much ice Platinum was throwing out, Celestia was surrounded by steam. More than that, the cloud of steam had extended down to the lake itself, and even as Luna shouted in warning, Platinum’s face bloomed with a haughty smirk and vanished.

Firefly was fast, but Platinum’s Flash Step was on a different level. Even Luna couldn’t sense where Platinum had gone, but she didn’t really have to. Platinum’s voice rang out from below.

“Kyokuchi Hana!” (Polar Blossom)

Platinum had appeared at the river surface, right where the cloud of water vapor was touching, and thrust her Zanpakatou into the water. In a instant a white flash of light flared out, and the temperature dropped to well below freezing. There was a crystalline shriek as ice erupted upwards in a huge pillar, the river using the water vapor as a bridge to freeze upward in a sudden, flash frozen pillar of ice nearly fifty meters tall. The top of the pillar was spread out, looking for al the world like a frozen flower.

Celestia would have been in the center of that flower, and from the satisfied look on Platinum’s face she certainly thought that was the case, but Luna knew better. Flash Sentry had already made it clear these people’s spirit senses couldn’t very effectively sense magic, so Platinum wouldn’t have felt what Luna did.

“Well, she certainly has a future as an ice sculpture artist,” said Celestia, who’d teleported nearby, just far enough away that her sunfire halo wasn’t endangering Luna.

“Don’t try to play it off, Tia, if I hadn’t warned you, you wouldn’t have teleported away in time. Do try to pay better attention to your opponent.”

Celestia smiled mischievously, “You’re one to talk. Incoming, by the way.”

“Wha-? HORSEAPPLES!”

Luna blurted a loud curse as she barely dodged aside of Firefly, who’d burst up from the river and flown straight for Luna’s undercarriage, nearly spitting Luna on her energy sword. Luna had managed to roll out of the way, but still took a painful cut on her barrel as Firefly soared past. She shot Celestia a glare.

“What?” Celestia asked innocently.

“Nothing. Nothing at all. Your concern for me is touching.”

“Love you too, Lulu.”

Firefly, still surrounded by her Dragoons, the destroyed ones having been regenerated, now floated before the two alicorn sisters, rubbing her sore jaw with the back of an armored glove. “Hell of a kick.”

“Thank you,” Luna replied dryly.

With a rush of air, Platinum appeared with a Flash Step beside Firefly, her face now drawn in a deep scowl at Celestia, “That attack would have finished you.”

“Would it? Such a shame you didn’t hit with it, then. I’ll remember to be more polite and evade a little less. I wouldn’t want you to feel embarrassed by losing twice in a row. First to Sunset, then to me, what an unfortunate losing streak.”

Rock could burst under the pressure of Platinum’s grinding teeth.

“We going to resume this fight, or are we all just going to pick on Platinum all night?” Firefly asked, eyes candidly amused behind her gleaming purple visor, “Because I could go either way.”

A venomous side-glare shot towards her from Platinum, “Do take this seriously, will you?”

“What? This is me being serious. See my serious face?”

A brief glance was traded between Luna and Celestia. The long lived sisters didn’t need words to communicate their intent to each other. The surprise they had been preparing before the train had even stopped and the trap sprung was nearly ready, but they needed a few moments longer of keeping these two busy. With barely a nod passing between the two alicorns they leaped into action, giving Firefly and Platinum no more than a split second to react.

Silvery lunar light flared around Luna in a spiraling cone, a spell flowing from her horn that created a drill-like battering ram of solid magical light. It was essentially an offensive version of a shield spell, tailored for penetration. She and Celestia had silently agreed to switch foes, so Luna crossed towards Platinum in a blue streak. The Soul Reaper saw it coming, if barely, and swung Fuyukogo in an upward arc. A thick slab of ice formed a circular shield in front of her, and Luna’s magical battering ram slammed into it, along with the Lunar Princess herself.

At the same time Celestia dove in at Firefly, angling her sunfire halo like a buzzsaw of searing flame, while her horn wreathed itself in golden, arcane might. Even as Firefly nimbly cartwheeled through the air away from the searing halo, a series of magical circles filled the air in a concave circle around her. In a similar rendition to the spell Celestia had used upon Flash Sentry, the sky was then filled with a disgorged swarming of flaming meteorites that slammed towards Firefly from multiple angles.

“Dragoon Purge, Full Spread!” Firefly shouted, and a set of additional drones detached and flew from her metal wings, making the wings grow smaller, but this was compensated with additional wisps of purple light flowing form them.

The now doubled swarm of Dargoons worked overtime to shoot down the meteorites coming in at Firefly, while the mare herself, rather than retreat from Celestia, charged right in. This almost surprised Celestia, but her premonition spell was still active, so she saw the move coming and had her flaming blades ready to counter Firefly’s energy sword as the woman slashed at her in a wide arc. Fiery swords of magic clashed with a blade of raw spirit force, and for a few seconds a dizzying display ensued. Meteorites fell among the pair, while Dragoons flew this way and that, lasers both piercing the meteorites and trying to ensnare Celestia and she and Firefly became a brief blur of motion, their blades crossing again and again.

The heat of the sunfire halo was clearly affecting Firefly, her armor slowly starting to steam, but the pegasus fought on doggedly, and Celestia had to conceded that without her premonition spell, she’d be in a much rougher spot. She wasn’t as skilled in close quarters as her sister, and Firefly was pressing her hard. Her meteorite spell ran out of juice, and suddenly the Dragoons, now many more of them than before, started to surround Celestia and fire from all sides.

She brought up a shield around herself, deflecting the beams, but that just gave Firefly time to set her cannon directly against the shield. Even as her armor steamed and her hide blistered from the sunfire halo, Firefly was grinning as she triggered the cannon at point blank-range, the blast of purple energy slamming into Celestia’s shield and cracking through it.

Celestia choose to tank the blow, letting the purple energy course over her fortified alicorn body as she surged forward and proceeded to headbutt Firefly in a undignified, but surprisingly effective move.

Meanwhile Platinum had continued to hold firm against Luna’s spell, and before she could be driven back more than a dozen yards, she let out a fierce yell and a storm of ice erupted from the Zanpaktou. Luna, even fairly resistant to cold, didn’t want to take the brunt of that storm, and so teleported out of the way. She appeared behind Platinum, her axes slashing from both sides at the unicorn’s vulnerable neck. Yet Platinum’s speed was not to be taken lightly, and she too vanished, as fast as any teleport. Luna’s instincts guided her and she crossed one of her axes behind her head, just in time for it to intercept Platinum’s blade, which came within inches of taking Luna’s head clean off.

Luna spun around, slamming out with her wings and her magic both. Her horn was a blue corona now, and her wings generated a godly gust of wind combined with a burst of azure magic that caught Platinum squarely, and sent the unicorn flying backwards. Platinum flipped in the air and skidded across it, raising her Zanpaktou high above her head. Now tendrils of ice ending in sets of wicked spikes flowed out of Fuyukogo’s edge, rushing at Luna like living serpents.

Twirling like a black tornado, Luna worked her axes upon the incoming tendrils of ice, smashing them one after another into shards that rained down upon the river and train both.

Celestia pressed her own advantage on Firefly, keeping the pegasus mare off balance with her swords while activating the last ability of her sunfire halo. The halo broke into eight pieces, each one straightening out into the shape of radiant spears of white fire. The spears aligned around Celestia, then darted in at Firefly. Each one contained a portion of the heat absorbed by the sunfire halo up until that point, so the entire time Celestia had been using it to fight, it’d actually been charging up for this attack.

Sensing the power of the spears, Firefly didn’t even dream of blocking them, and instead put all of her effort into evasion. She became little more than a line of purple light cutting across the air as the spears flew at her like missiles. One missed, and hit the river with a brilliant detonation that lit up the night landscape like a flash of daylight. A third of the riverbank was melted to glass by the explosion of searing solar fire.

Firefly streaked towards the hill Luna’s own magic beam had cut earlier, and rushed up the length of that gouge in the earth. Three more sunfire spears detonated in her wake, each one slightly closer to her than the last. She felt the heat on her back, melting her armor.

Finally she reached the crest of the hill, landed on it, and turned. The last four spears were nearly on her, and in a purely insane maneuver worthy of her own daughter’s daredevil nature, Firefly charged at the spears at full speed. The spears had been following her wake, but weren’t able to turn fast enough as Firefly flew through their formation at speeds that shattered the sound barrier.

The four spears exploded upon the top of the hill, all but melting away the top half of it into rivers of molten rock and dirt.

At the same time, Luna sensed a signal from her sister, a simple poke of magic that told her their preparations were complete. She teleported away from the icy tendrils that Platinum was still sending her way and appeared next to Celestia.

“It’s ready?”

“You should feel it too, your Simulacrum is out there, same as mine.”

“i’m not as practiced at this spell as you are, sister, but now that you mention it, I can feel it, yes.”

As the two Princesses had spoken, Firefly had flown above and around them, reaching Platinum’s side.

“Hey, Plat, eye’s sharp! I think they’re planning something big!”

“Obviously. And don’t call me ‘Plat’!”

As the pair watched, Celestia and Luna both flew, not towards Firefly and Platinum, but down towards the middle train car. They both landed atop the roof of the car, the same one that held Shining Armor and his squad of Royal Guard within. Shining Armor had been maintaining the shield around the area this entire time, and with no small effort given several spells and stray shots had struck it during the fighting. He and his guard ponies had been watching from the windows, none of them able to truly follow the speed and ferocity of the fight. To their normal senses the battle had been an insanely fast, haphazard series of streaking lights and cacophonous shockwaves of force, not one of the ponies able to make out any details of the high speed battle between the Princesses and their foes.

Now, however, Shining Armor saw the Princesses on the roof, and knew what was coming.

“Heads down everypony, this is about to get loud!” he called, following his own orders and bracing himself.

Celestia and Luna’s horns both lit up with twin lights of sunlit gold and midnight blue. Abruptly, the horizon itself started to lighten as the very sun itself started to rise, a good number of hours too early. At the same time, from the opposite horizon, the moon rose to greet its partner in the sky, both the fiery orb and its silver counterpart kissing the east and western skies.

Firefly and Platinum couldn’t have missed this, and both of them shared uneasy looks.

“Hell, they weren’t kidding about these two controlling the sun and moon.”

“Madness,” Platinum said, shaking her head, “But what are they planning to do with them?”

“We’re about to find out,” Firefly said, eyes narrowing, “Be ready with that Bankai of yours. I think this isn’t the time for holding back.”

At the next set of hills out from the ones surrounding the train and bridge, two gigantic magical circles had appeared in the air, each one easily half a football field across. The one facing the east was a magic circle of pure gold, filled with elegant, curved script and runes. The one facing west was of raw silver, its harsher angled sigils like gleaming spider thread. On those hills stood identical copies of Luna and Celestia, the alicorn’s horns blazing in mirror to the light of the magical circles they were creating.

These were Simulacrums. Clones forged using High Magic incantations, and made from a portion of Luna and Celestia’s own magic and a fragment of their souls to act as anchors and give the clones shape. They’d created the Simulacrums before the train had even stopped, and set them to invoking the magical circles now forming above them. The entire fight with Firefly and Platinum had been to buy time for this, a High Magic spell that Luna and Celestia had developed centuries ago in case they ever needed to subdue an invading army.

Granted, the spell took a long charge up time, so it wasn’t all that useful against a surprise attack, but as long as they had a good ten minutes or so to work, or have their magical clones do it, then attackers of Equestria would be in store for a nasty surprise.

Now, however, with the sun and moon both raised into the sky, the spell was ready, and Celestia and Luna both spoke as one, their voices overlapping in a loud echo as they used their Royal Canterlot voices to invoke the spell.

”Instar Solis Lunaeque!” (Might of Sun and Moon)

Single pin-pricks of light shone upon the distant celestial orbs. Then, ripping across the sky of false dawn, were two beams of light. A ray of roaring white and orange sunfire, and a equal beam of pure silver moondust. The two beams rushed over the sky from their respective celestia bodies, and struck the massive magical circles formed by Celestia and Luna’s magical clones. The magic circles absorbed the beams, then amplified and redirected them to collide at the apex of Shining Armor’s magical barrier.

Shining Armor then opened the top of the barrier, as he’d been directed. Above it, the colliding beams from sun and moon both fused together in a blinding sphere of barely contained energy that illuminated the sleepy countryside for dozens of miles.

Luna and Celestia cast a combined teleport spell, whisking themselves, and the train car with Shining Armor and his squad, away to safety.

In small snippets of time, Firefly withdrew one of her portal rods from a hatch on the side of her armor. Platinum, eyes wide at the mighty star of arcane power gathered above her, sneered defiance and thrust her Zanpaktou upward, uttering the only word she could under the circumstances; the only word capable of challenging the power about to descend upon her.

“Bankai!”

A glacier of ice burst into a thick and rapid spreading wave around Platinum and Firefly, the ice palace of Fuyukogo Sodaina Kyuden rushing to take form as Platinum’s reiatsu surged outward in an overwhelming burst.

However at the same instant the sphere of combined lunar and solar magic, easily larger than a full grown dragon, flared with one final pulse of light. Then it discharged a beam straight down into the earth, brighter than the dawn, yet darker than pitch midnight, light and darkness combined into a all consuming blast of magical might that transcended the normal limits of arcane law.

A kilometer away, Celestia and Luna saw the blast from where they’d teleported the train car carrying Shining Armor and his guards. The false dawn was turned into blinding day by the light from the blast, an explosion of swirling light and dark energies blasting outward in all directions. The river valley, the stone bridge, the surrounding hills, all were engulfed by the blast. The pressure wave of air from it flattened trees on the neighboring hills, and even a kilometer away, Celestia and Luna had to raise magical shields to guard themselves and the train car from flying debris.

“You know, sister, when you said ‘I want a spell to subdue armies with’, I still imagined something more subtle. A large scale sleep spell, perhaps. A tad less destructive, at least.”

“Lulu, you know I detest violence, more than anything,” Celestia said, face sullen but eyes hard, “But when people come to threaten our peaceful realm who are as powerful as they are, there’s very little else we can do except respond with equal power.”

As the wind died down from the shockwave, Luna narrowed her eyes at the column of dust and smoke reaching hundreds of feet into the air from the now smoking crater that was once the river valley, “Do you suspect they survived that?”

“If I’m being honest with myself, I wouldn’t be surprised. I sensed a massive surge of power right before the Instar Solis Lunaeque fired. I think Platinum used that second Zanpaktou release that Flash Sentry warned us of...”

As if answer to the two alicorns’ musings, there was motion within the column of smoke and dust. Sluggishly, but with increasing rapidness, ice spread from amid the cloud. It was melted and torn ragged along the edges, but the ice just kept growing, until it spread out into a massive floating island of pure blue ice. Four pillars emerged at each cardinal point of the island, spearing both up and down like grasping fingers. At the center of the island was a multi-tiered, eastern styled palace of gleaming frost... although its splendor was somewhat reduced by its half shattered, melted walls and sunken roof.

Clearly, while Platinum’s Bankai activated, it had taken damage from Luna and Celestia’s attack. Damage that it wasn’t quickly regenerating, as even as the island itself formed, the palace’s damage remained, and the island listed in the air like a wounded beast.

A look of chagrin dampened Luna’s features, “Perhaps we should have hit them with the Stellar Mallus instead?”

Celestia winced, “Lulu, we’re trying to protect Equestria, not break it. If Instar wasn't enough, we’ll just have to finish this up close. They can’t have withstood that without injury.”

“Hmph, you were hoping for this result, weren’t you?”

“Perhaps. Come, let’s not give them any more time to recover,” Celestia turned towards the train car, seeing the ponies within staring at the them and the huge crater a kilometer away with wide eyes, “Captain Armor, take your squad and proceed to the rendezvous point.”

Hesitant, Shining Armor said, “What about the enemy, Princess? Don’t you need my barrier again?”

“That gambit is passed, Captain. Luna and I will finish things ourselves. Get your squad to safety, if you please.”

With clear reluctance to leave the battlefield while his Princesses were still intending to do battle, Shining Armor still did his duty and followed orders, barking crisp instructions to his squad. As he and the guardponies vacated the train car and started a swift gallop down the hill, heading for the agreed meeting point with the Princesses once the operation was finished, Celestia and Luna both rose into the sky. Swift as they could, they flew towards the floating ice palace, careful of any attacks that might be thrown their way.

Nothing stopped them from landing upon the slick surface of the island, and they cast about in search for Firefly and Platinum.

The pair appeared from the top of wide steps leading up to the front of the partially ruined palace. Neither had escaped unscathed by the spell Luna and Celestia had unleashed. Even with Platinum activating her Bankai just in time, having the ice of the island surrounding them like a thick barrier, the impact and storm of magical forces had hit both of them hard. The wings of Firefly’s Ace of Sky were half slagged, and she bled behind crumbled pieces of armor and a cracked visor. Platinum was somewhat better off, but she still showed blood from torn skin on her scalp.

Still, both of them moved with strong motions down the steps to face the two alicorns, the fight not out of them yet. If anything, Platinum at least seemed to be moving with greater strength with each stride. Damaged or not, the palace of her Bankai was very slowly reforming, and the spirit energy coursing off of the Bankai and herself was a potent fountain that even Celestia and Luna could feel as a stiff pressure on their skin.

“If that was your trump card,” Platinum said, “it’s failed.”

“Has it?” Celestia asked, “You both seem less than fresh to continue fighting. Whereas my sister and I-”

There was a slamming sound as their magical Simulacrum clones landed beside them, and Celestia smirked, “-have power to spare.”

The clones began to turn into translucent auras of magic that flowed into and rejoined with their originals. The magic Celestia and Luna had invested in the clones now returned to them, refreshing the power they’d already expended fighting Firefly and Platinum. Twin pillars of light shot upwards from the two alicorns, one soft gold, the other dark blue, as the alicorns let their magical auras surge out.

“Do either of you really want to keep this fight going?” Celestia asked.

“Personally I’d be perfectly happy with you letting us go,” Firefly said, half-joking. Platinum scowled, raising Fuyukogo once more as her own body was wreathed in a frost white aura, her own reiatsu rushing out of her in challenge to the alicorn’s magic.

“Don’t underestimate my Bankai. We’ve taken your best. We can finish up your dregs.”

“Thanks for volunteering me for that with the whole ‘we’ thing, Plat,” Firefly said, “Never mind I think I’ve got some internal bleeding here. Let’s keep fighting the insanely strong magical goddess ponies instead of running away.”

“The’d never let us go.”

“If only one of us had portals they could use now, with that stupid barrier gone,” Firefly pointed out.

“I won't run if there's still a chance of victory.”

“Hey, crazy thought... I wasn’t asking,” Firefly said, and stepped in front of Platinum.

“What are you-” Platinum began to say, but Firefly ignored her and turned to the alicorns, “Yo, question for you, what’s small, purple, burrows through ice, and you haven’t seen floating around me like usual?”

Faintly bemused and confused expressions passed between Celestia and Luna, then the frosty ground rumbled at their hooves. Bursting from the ice, Firefly’s Dragoons appeared, a dozen of them surrounding the alicorns and spinning around at such speed that they formed a near solid circle.

“Dragoon Purge, Destruct Mode!” Firefly shouted, and suddenly all the Dragoon’s gleamed a bright, violent purple, the air filled with a harsh, rising mechanical buzz.

Luna and Celestia formed shields around themselves, each layering their barriers over the other, just as the Dragoons proceeded to self-destruct in a series of fast, potent explosions.

As this happened, Firefly twirled around and threw a portal rod at the ground behind Platinum. The rod opened and a purple rimmed, crackling portal opened up, connecting to the portal rods that Firefly had set up in the distant hills before they’d even engaged the train. Platinum’s eyes flared with anger, “But we can still win!”

“No, we can’t, you idiot! Maybe if it was just you and one of them your damn Bankai might do something, but two of them together, this is a job for Chrysalis or Starlight. We’re going. Now! Or I’m leaving your ass!”

She shoved Platinum roughly on the shoulder, pushing the Soul Reaper turned unicorn towards the portal. Platinum glared, resisting. Firefly growled in pure frustration, and turned back towards Celestia and Luna, as the detonation of her Dragoons has finished and the pair of alicorns was emerging from their magical barriers.

“Dammit Platinum this is no time for your pride! GO!”

Firefly took the hilt of her energy blade and inverted it. A slot opened up at the top of her hexagon barreled cannon, and she inserted the energy blade into it. The barrel reacted with a series of sharp violet lights flowing along its surface like circuitry, then the barrel itself extended and widened to double its usual size. Purple light like the deathly lanterns of the underworld formed ihe barrel’s depths.

Seeing this, Luna snarled and said, “Tia, get Platinum! I’ll handle this!”

She turned her axes around and connected their hilts, forming them both into a single double-axe. Then Luna’s magic shot up from her horn, turning from sparkling midnight blue to a shadowy black. This magic flowed like dark rivers into the double-axe, pooling within it and surrounding it like a cocoon until the axe was bathed all in shadow.

Celestia, face showing sudden fear for her sister, cast a teleport spell and flashed in and out of existence, appearing above Platinum. She sent her flaming swords whirling downward, but Platinum gestured with her sword and the island of ice heaved. Hands the size of thick redwood trees rushed up from the ground, brushing aside Celestia’s swords and trying to clap the alicorn out of the air like a mosquito. Celestia sliced into the ice hands with beams of pure gold head from her horn, but even as she did so, Firefly and Luna’s confrontation ignited to its finale.

“Exia Cannon, Fire!”

The ground broke apart around Firefly as her hooves dug into the ice, a sharp beam like an extending sword firing form her cannon, surrounded by arcs of erratic violet energy. At the same instant Luna reared up on her hind legs, wings flaring, and she slammed herself forward, throwing her double-axe like a boomerang shrouded in darkness so thick that it was like a physical void.

The void axe struck the beam of blade-like energy, and sliced into it akin to a surfer riding a wave. The beam still went on, reforming around the split, and Luna’s eyes shot wide as the beam rushed towards her faster than she could teleport. At the same time the double-axe, wreathed in its shadows, cut into Firefly’s canon and sliced past her, ripping armor and flesh alike.

Platinum paused, seeing the blood flowing from Firefly, and more than that, the way her cannon sparked as Firefly dropped it.

Indecision tore at Platinum for an instant, but she looked back at the portal Firefly had made, then at Firefly as she hit the ground, blood seeping into the ice from a horrendous and deep gouge in her side. Making her choice, Platinum vanished with a Flash Step, appearing at Firefly’s side and grabbing the pegasus in the uneasy grip of her unicorn magic. She then Flash Stepped away, rushing through the portal just in time to beat the explosion from Firefly’s overloaded cannon.

The explosion destroyed the portal, and a good chunk of the front steps of the ice palace.

“LUNA!” Celestia rushed to her sister’s side.

Luna was still standing, but her face was twisted in pain, her voice strained, “Tia, I’m... I’m alright. We need to give chase to the foe, before...”

Luna trailed off as she looked at herself, specifically at her left side. Where once was a beautiful, regal wing, was a severed, bloody stump. Firefly’s final attack had ripped the limb clean off.

“...Oh. That’s not good,” the Lunar Princess said, in something of an understatement.

Abruptly the ice palace began to shake. With Platinum having fled, with the true Fuyukogo in her grip, the ice palace itself had no further energy to sustain it, and so it was crumbling. Celestia gathered her sister onto her back, Luna only giving a faint, shocked complaint as Celestia took flight and flew away from the disintegrating island of frost. The ice melted into chunks that filled the crater of the river valley, where in time it would likely join with the remains of the river flowing into the crater to form a new lake where once a river had been.

----------

With a rustle of wind and leaves Platinum appeared beneath the sparse cover of trees at the base of one of the hills some distance from the site of the battle. Her back was slick with blood from Firefly, and with her face an rigid mask, she used magic to carefully lay the heavily breathing pegasus down on the ground.

"Quit moving," Platinum said to the squirming Firefly, "You're making the wound worse."

"Didn't know... you cared..." Firefly said, face sweat soaked. Platinum examined her, brow furrowing. To conserve energy, Firefly had deactivated Ace of Sky nearly the moment they were through the portal, leaving her bare save for the goggles on her forehead. Her right side bore a glaring, rough wound nearly half a foot across. Platinum's eyes narrowed as she saw the edges of the wound bore strange, black markings, almost as if the injury was infected already.

"I lack the skill of the Fourth Divisions, but I'll do what I can," Platinum said as she raised a hoof over the wound and quietly chanted a healing Kido, bathing the wound in wane, green light. Even as she could sense the spell repairing some of the damage, she also felt a strange, chilling resistance as well. As if something were resisting the Kido's attempts to restore flesh and stem blood flow.

"Guh, my own damn... fault, really," Firefly said, clearly trying to ignore what had to be agonizing pain, "Should've told Starlight that going after the train was too risky."

"You couldn't have been certain it was a trap," Platinum said, but Firefly, in horrible pain or not, still managed to give Platinum a frank and level look.

"Was pretty damn certain... we still went in anyway, and got our asses kicked for it."

"If it's any consolation I think you struck an equally painful blow to the blue one with that last exchange."

"...Okay, having you try to... to console me is weirding me out. Can you go back to being a...icy bitch, please?"

Platinum made a light, scoffing noise and shook her head, "Bleeding out and you still have energy to be insufferable. My healing Kido is proving less than ideally effective. We need to get you back to Hitsuyo Aku as fast as possible."

A soft groan of pain escaped Firefly's lips as Platinum lifted her up onto her back. There was a cold rush of air as Platinum turned Fuyukogo around, and used its power to create a patch of ice over the wound, helping to stem the bleeding. She then used further ice to create chains wrapping Firefly, securing the pegasus to Platinum's back.

"It's hundreds of miles back to base," Firefly said.

"Then I'd better move swiftly, shouldn't I? Try not to expire, in the meantime. My son would be most upset by that," Platinum said, then proceeded to rush southward with the fastest Flash Steps she could muster.

Episode 93: Internal Conflicts

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Episode 93: Internal Conflicts

Cool, night wind whipped by Gloriosa, stirring her hair as she rode her motorcycle swiftly down sparsely populated streets. This part of Canterlot City’s suburbs catered to its wealthiest residents. Although relatively small and remote compared to many metropolis in the country, Canterlot City’s ideal weather and beautiful, scenic vistas, nestled between forests and mountains, led many with wealth to own homes here. Gloriosa repressed an angry surge of venom in her heart as she passed by opulent mansions, segregated from the rest of the suburbs by thick fences and iron gates.

It seemed a crime her family had to financially struggle to maintain the beauty of Camp Everfree, while other families profited from any and all manner of corrupt business dealings. She tried to remind herself that profit had never been the point of Camp Everfree, but reality was reality, and the camp needed money to sustain itself. It made her wish her parents had been just a shade less idealistic and a touch more practical minded. When that storm had taken them from her and Timber, everything had been left to her, and sadly she'd ended up with quite the financial mess to untangle. She’d spent many frustrating, stressful years keeping the Camp Everfree afloat.

There were times, in her darker moments alone at night, where the anxiety was so great that she fantasized about burning it all down. Just leave it all to burn and take herself and Timber far away somewhere to start over again.

Gloriosa’s eyes briefly grew an oily wash of black in their sclera, but she didn’t notice, and as she took a calming breath to push back the negative feelings, the darkness fled her eyes as well. Right now her frustration had to take a back seat to finding her brother. The magic she was using to track him was leading her deeper into the affluent sector of the suburbs, and when the magic reached a potent, unmistakable spectral trail that led through the gates of one of the largest manor houses in town, Gloriosa knew she’d found the spot.

The Sparkle family? Why is he here?, Gloriosa wondered as she gazed upon the name in large metal letters across the top of the entry gate. She recalled the invitation she’d received from Filthy Rich, and it had mentioned a Twilight Sparkle that he’d wanted to introduce her to. It took her a moment, but now that she was here, sitting in front of the gates to such a large mansion, she connected the dots in her mind. The Sparkle family, it was the name of the actual land owners for the portion of the Everfree that her family’s camp was built on. Technically speaking Camp Everfree did belong to Gloriosa’s family, but the land itself had been leased from the Sparkle family, but that was so long ago and they’d had so little contact with the Sparkles over the generations that it was practically a forgotten detail.

Could Timber have come here because he thought the Sparkle family might be convinced to help with Camp Everfree’s financial troubles? No, wait, he’d gone to town to research the legend of Gaia Everfree, hadn’t he? Perhaps he thought the family that owned the land might have tall tales of their own concerning the matter?

Whatever the reason, the thread of magic she was using to track him led right here, so one way or another she’d soon find out what had her brother here in the middle of the night. The gate had no guard, but there was an intercom buzzer mounted on one of the two brick pillars housing the gate. Gloriosa parked her motorcycle in front of it and pressed the intercom’s button.

Rather than a voice from the intercom greeting her, a voice spoke behind her.

“Hello there miss, can I help you?”

“GAH!” Gloriosa nearly tripped off her bike, twisting around to see a young man standing just a few paces behind her. He had light blue skin, swept back dark blue hair, and rather intense green eyes housed in a youthful and energetic face. He was currently smiling at her in a cocksure manner that almost instantly irritated Gloriosa, as if he knew full well he’d scare her by speaking all of a sudden. How had he gotten behind her without her noticing, anyway?

Schooling her face to neutrality, although her mouth probably did quirk in an annoyed frown, she said, “Maybe you can. I’m here looking for my brother, Timber Spruce. I have reason to believe he’s here.”

The young man’s brow shot up in speculation. Gloriosa noted he was rather well dressed in a light blue business suit. Was he a member of the Sparkle family?

“I see,” he said, looking her over, which left Gloriosa feeling distinctly uncomfortable and even more annoyed as she pulled her jacket closed against the night chill, “How do you know your bro is here?”

“So he is here?” Gloriosa shot back, and felt a touch of pleased satisfaction at seeing the man’s faint wince, “Unless you have a reason to keep me from him, I’m asking you let me in to see him. He was supposed to be home some time ago.”

The man seemed to consider for a moment, then gave a plain shrug, “Guess it couldn’t hurt. I’ll escort you on in, miss...?”

“Gloriosa Daisy,” she replied, maintaining the veneer of politeness. It irked her that the young man had a very nice smile as he went and punched in a code on the intercom’s keypad that opened up the gate.

“I’m Soarin. A pleasure to meet you, Gloriosa. Might as well leave your bike inside the gate.”

It was a bit of a walk up the long driveway to the mansion’s front entrance, but Gloriosa didn’t complain as she parked her motorcycle alongside the side of the gate while Soarin closed it. They started walking towards the mansion, and Soarin glanced over his shoulder at her with a knowing spark in his eyes.

“So you dodged the question, but seriously, how did you know your brother was here?”

Persistent jerk, she inwardly snarked, but faked surprise as she picked her brain for a plausible explanation.

“Huh? Oh, well I just GPSed his phone’s location on mine. We’ve got them set up like that in case we ever get lost in the woods.”

It was a total lie. She and Timber knew the Everfree forest like most kids knew their home’s back yards. She also wasn’t exactly tech savvy, and had no idea if phones could locate each other like that. She supposed it was possible, with all these modern apps and such, so she was just guessing a feature like that was available. Hopefully Soarin would buy it.

He made a small, amused ‘Hm’ noise, and said no more as he led her up to the mansion’s front doors. Up close, Gloriosa felt vaguely intimidated and irritated by the mansion’s overbearing size. Who needed a house this big? The cabin she and Timber grew up in could fit inside the front entry hall! Gloriosa was floored by the wide, spacious area as she followed Soarin inside to the well lit hall.

“So why is my brother here?” she asked.

“Better let him tell it,” Soarin replied, “It’ll make things easier, I imagine. At any rate, wait here, I’ll go fetch the present lady of the house.”

“Wait, aren’t you one of the Sparkle family?”

That irksome, boyish smile was back, “Me? Nope, just a workplace associate. And friend, I suppose. Most of the family is... unavailable at the moment. Only Twilight Sparkle, the daughter of the family, is present in the mansion. Give me a minute, I’ll let her know you’re here.”

He went up the grand stairs across the entry hall, and Gloriosa was left standing there, wondering what in the world was going on? Soarin seemed to know more than he was letting on, and Gloriosa was getting a strange feeling. Her magic tracking spell was still going, and trailed up into the ceiling, suggesting Timber was on one of the upper levels of the mansion. The entire building felt eerily quiet, and Gloriosa was left feeling like she was being watched, even though she saw no one around but herself.

Around five minutes later a young girl appeared at the top of the stairs. She was dusky purple color, with even darker hair marked by a pink streak. Bookish glasses perched on her nose, but that was the mildest part of her outfit. Gloriosa raised an eyebrow at the rest of the girl’s clothing.

Is that some kind of military uniform? I’ve never seen one like that. It’s almost all white.

“Hello, and welcome to my home. My name is Twilight Sparkle. I understand that you’re Timber Spruce’s older sister?”

“Yes, Gloriosa Daisy. Where’s Timber?” Gloriosa’s voice held a distinctly confrontational note to it, her patience wearing thinner by the moment.

“He’s upstairs, recovering. He was involved in an incident and was injured,” Twilight said, and Gloriosa felt the blood drain from her face almost as quickly as heated anger surged through her heart.

“Is he okay!? Take me to him, now!” she was already halfway up the stairs, even as she spoke. Twilight Sparkle regarded her with sympathy, holding up her hands.

“Of course, just follow me. He’s alright. No longer in any physical danger. He just needs rest.”

“I’ll determine that for myself,” Glorisoa said heatedly, “Why is he here and not at a hospital, if he got hurt!?”

Fear warred with anger inside her. The very thought that her little brother had been injured by anything ignited a fiercely protective flame in the pit of her stomach. He was all she had left of her family. She’d looked after him practically his whole life, even when their parents had still been around. After their parents had passed, she’d sworn to never let anything hurt her family again.

The intensity in Gloriosa’s expression washed over Twilight, but she kept a calm look and tone as she turned and quickly gestured for Gloriosa to follow her as she answered the question, “I know this may sound difficult to believe, but a hospital would have been too ineffective in treating his injuries in time. I had to have him brought here, for his own safety, otherwise...”

Twilight left the rest unsaid, and probably for the best, given Gloriosa was already near foaming at the mouth. The girl led Gloriosa up another flight of stairs and into a series of well lit halls. They passed by one door that was hanging open, and inside it Gloriosa saw a group of teenaged girls hanging out in some huge, well appointed lounge, watching TV. One of them was sitting in a wheelchair, and Gloriosa realized with a startled feeling that the blue haired girl’s legs were missing! In their place were strange looking metal and plastic prosthetics. Another girl, this one with pig-tails, turned to look at them passing by, and she was wearing some strange, high-tech looking visor over her eyes.

“Twilight, is something wrong?” the visored girl asked, and Twilight paused at the door.

“It’s nothing you girls have to worry about. I’ll bring you up to date tomorrow.”

“You better not be bringing in both boy and girl toys for having a party without us!” said one girl with lime green hair and neon pink skin, grinning while seemingly listening to music on a pair of large headphones.

At Gloriosa’s scandalized look, Twilight’s face flushed red and she said, “Lemon Zest, this is strictly business!”

“Cool! Have fun with your ‘business’!” Lemon Zest replied with a thumbs up.

Twilight growled something under her breath, face still blazing cherry as she led Gloriosa past the lounge and deeper into the mansion’s halls. “I can’t believe that girl, sometimes. I swear she likes teasing me only because I... uh, had that accident with her during training.”

“Training? Who are those girls? What’s going on here?” Gloriosa pressed, her voice rising slightly, “What does my brother have to do with any of this?”

“Just be patient. He and I will explain everything. His room is just over here,” Twilight replied as she hastily turned down a branch in the halls, and brought Gloriosa to a simple white door. Beyond it was a very well furnished and luxurious looking bedroom. Beside the bed was some medical equipment, most of it hooked up to the familiar figure laying in the bed.

“Glori!?” Timber Spruce said, clearly surprised to see her. Gloriosa for her part crossed the space from door to bed in an eyeblink, her arms carefully but firmly hugging her brother.

“Timber, thank goodness you’re okay! What happened!? Do you have any idea how worried I was when you didn’t come home after it got dark!?”

Timber grunted in pain, still managing to return his sister’s hug as he said, “Watch it there, sis. Ribs are kinda tender. I’m sorry I didn’t get home, but there were some serious extenuating circumstances.”

As the two siblings parted, Gloriosa saw that Timber was giving Twilight Sparkle a questioning look. For her part, Twilight looked between the pair, her eyes settling on Gloriosa with hesitance.

“You may wish to sit down for this,” the girl said, “I can explain everything, and already have with your brother, but this won’t be quick or easy to explain.”

“She might believe it more than you think,” Timber said, “She’s already seen some things...”

“Timber!” Gloriosa said, surprised he’d just start mentioning the things she’d been seeing to a total stranger, but something about the looks in both his and Twilight’s eyes quickly quieted her as she said in a more questioning voice, “Will one of you start making sense, please?”

Timber gestured at Twilight, “Go for it. Honestly I feel like I could stand to hear it all again anyway. There’s... a lot to take in.”

“Are you sure?” Twilight asked, “She might be happier not knowing.”

“Already too little, too late for the most part,” Timber replied, “Glori here’s already seen some of it. This’ll finally give her context.”

“Very well then,” Twilight replied with a nod, eyes shifting back to Gloriosa, “Want to get that seat?”

Gloriosa just crossed her arms under her chest and sat on the edge of Timber’s bed, “I’m fine. Just start talking, please. This had better be one heck of an explanation.”

By the end of the next hour, as it turned out, it was one heck of an explanation.

----------

“G’night girls,” Sunset said, exchanging hugs with her friends as they departed Discord’s shop for the night. The evening had worn on with the long dinner, and plenty of hanging out afterward. It’d been a nice, relaxing way to spend some time before turning in, and Sunset felt a brush of melancholy at the realization she didn’t know how many more quiet days like this they might have left.

Quiet days? Your home got blown up. Nothing quiet about it, Sunset admonished herself, but realized that she was just feeling down that another battle was brewing before she and her friends could even get through the portal to Equestria.

She’d been hoping for smooth sailing at least until the time to go after Starlight came. Much as she was glad to see Twilight and Adagio again, the complications they brought with them were likely to get Sunset and the girls into trouble again. But she hadn’t come this far by bellyaching over things. Now was the time to put her nose to the grindstone, square her shoulders, and get things done.

“Ya’ll have a good night too!” Applejack said, smiling, and looking up at the night sky, “Dang sight later than I woulda wanted ta stay out, given how early I gotta get up, but it’s worth it fer some time ta relax with you gals.”

“Heck yeah, feels like all we’ve been doing is train. We need to do the hangout thing way more!” Rainbow Dash said, “I’ve forgotten the last time we just went and saw a movie together.”

“Well we are somewhat busier than we used to be,” said Rarity as she sent a curious glance Sunset’s way, “No rest for the weary, as they say.”

“Hey, I’m trying to pull it back a bit on the training front,” said Sunset defensively, and Rarity let a small smile touch her features.

“It's a fine line we must walk, I suppose. We need to all become stronger, but not by losing who we are as enterprising, youthful ladies in the prime of our years. Perhaps, despite all that’s happening, we should make more of a point to make time for ourselves. I... feel like I haven’t spent my time with my family either,” Rarity's eyes darkened, “I’m not even sure what Sweetie Belle is doing these days.”

“Hmm, that does sound nice,” Fluttershy said, looking thoughtful, “My brother is going to be old enough to get a job this summer, so maybe I’ll help him with that.”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, “Don’t you mean ‘do all of it for him’?”

“Um, well hopefully not,” Fluttershy looked away, an embarrassed droop to her shoulders, “But I suppose I should try to encourage him more to start doing things on his own. If he would just take things more seriously, and maybe pitch in some around the house...”

“Hey, since we’re doing this Camp Everfree thing soon, why don’t we all practice our outdoorsey skills by having a camp out at my place this weekend?” suggested Pinkie Pie.

“Last time we slept over at your place, Pinkie, Hollows happened,” Rainbow Dash pointed out, “I’m thinking what we really need to do is just take this whole next week off. Not like a few more days of training is going to make that much of a difference, so we spend it all just chillin’ with each other and our fams.”

As the girls all looked at her, Rainbow Dash frowned and said, “What?”

“Rainbow Dash doesn’t want to train? You sure you were replaced by a doppelganger or something?” Sunset asked, giving a good natured wink. Rainbow Dash just chuckled, shaking her head.

“Hey, even I know a good athlete doesn’t train constantly. Got to give the body time to recover from the intensive exercise. Besides, Ditzy Doo has pretty much told us that our Fullbrings aren’t gonna get much stronger from just physical training. You girls need to work on personal stuff, same as I did.”

“Well I already had my big, emotional bout with my ma,” said Applejack, “So no gettin’ stronger offa that. Ain’t sure what I gotta do to make my Fullbring git any fancier than it already is.”

“It's the same for all of us, Applejack,” Rarity said, eyes contemplative, “None of us know for sure what we must do to reach this final stage the way Rainbow Dash has. But I think her ideal is actually quite smart. If we take some personal time for ourselves, and spent time together, we should at least get an idea of what to do. Our friendship is part of what’s helped us make it this far.”

“Then it's decided!” Rainbow Dash said, “Starting tomorrow, we’re on vacation!”

“Well, as much of a vacation as we can afford to take,” Sunset said, “Still need to plan for rescuing Twilight and Adagio’s friend. But yeah, we’ll call it a ‘half vacation’.”

“Oh, could we go to the beach, maybe?” asked Fluttershy, “The sea turtle migration began last week, and I’d love to see some baby sea turtles.”

“And speaking of movies, ‘Alien Splatterfest Five’ is out this Fridaaaay,” Pinkie Pie said, nearly bouncing in place, “I saw Pinkamena eyeing the poster at the mall the other day and I think she deserves some time off too.”

Amid some stress relieving laughter the girls made some semi-official plans for how to spend the next few days, and parted from Sunset, leaving out through the front of Discord’s shop and past the concealing wards. Sunset was left in the silence for a moment, smiling after her friends. She then heard a cough behind her.

“Have I ever mentioned that you girls are, at times, almost too wholesome?”

Sunset snorted, “Oh can it, Discord. Some people might talk about you’re overly keen interest in the social dynamics of a group of underage girls.”

Discord smirked, tipping his hat to her, “Touche. Although I’ll note you’re hardly the age you appear, are you? Fear not, however, I’ve nary a thought for taking advantage of my pupils, only in ensuring the lot of you survive the trails to come. Speaking of which, I approve of this new course in taking some much deserved personal time before things become... chaotic, again.”

“It makes sense, I suppose,” Sunset said, sighing, “I just wish there was more I could do to help them get their Fullbrings completed.”

“That is a ball that is bouncing firmly in their court, my dear. The best you can do for them is continue to be their friend, providing that ever so useful XP bonus your friendship grants.”

It was Sunset’s turn to roll her eyes as she turned to him, “Don’t do video game references. Makes you sound like an old dude trying to sound hip.”

“What?” Discord put a hand to his chest in mock injury, “I’ve been known to Smash the Brothers on occasion, and Metal the Solid Gears.”

“Well, you do have a decent movie collection, so I guess I can’t call you too lame,” Sunset said, laughing, but the humor in it felt weak, even to her ears. It was easy to keep her smiles up in front of the girls, but harder with just Discord’s piercing yellow eyes gazing at her. “I... guess I’m scared, a little.”

“Good, you should be. An Espada nearly killed you today.”

“I was way stronger than her.”

“And it almost didn’t matter, because she sneaked into your home, the place you’re used to feeling safe, and brutally attacked you without warning. Destroyed the sense of security that was already fragile, while violating the personal space you've built for yourself."

Sunset winced, her face then gaining a defiant twist of anger, “Okay, you can stop helping now.”

Discord’s eyes were lidded with something between grandfatherly sympathy, and ‘tough love’. “Just don’t hold it in if you don’t have to. Your friends need you strong, right now. But I’ll not press the matter. I know a stubborn teenager when I see one, even if you’re hardly a ‘teenager’ in reality. Turning in for the night?”

She gave a shallow nod, uncomfortable with how easily Discord seemed to see through her. Yes, she was scared. It was strange. She’d readily kicked Gilda’s butt once the fight started, and she was confident in her power. But somehow the thing that rattled her was how easily Gilda had gotten the drop on her, and how brutal and straightforward the attack had been.

If she’d gone after any of my friends, or any of their families with that same brutality, would they have survived?

Taking a deep breath, she said, “Yeah, might as well turn in.”

“You know where your room is. Screwloose and Screwball are here to keep an eye on things while I’m out,” Discord said, twirling his cane as he went for the door.

Sunset raised an eyebrow at him, “Where are you going?”

“I may be limited in the ways I can help, but there’s some things I can still do, without drawing the Zero Division’s attention. Don’t fret about it for now, and just get a good night’s sleep, Sunset Shimmer.”

----------

Gloriosa Daisy wasn’t certain she’d ever have a good night’s sleep again. Her head felt like an overstuffed turkey left in the oven too long. She had to blink several times after Twilight Sparkle pressed a cold glass of water into her hands.

“Drink. You’ll feel better.”

At the girl’s words, Gloriosa stared at the glass for a moment, then quickly drained it in one go. Taking a deep gasp of breath afterward she set the glass aside on the table that she’d ended up sitting at somewhere halfway through Twilight’s long and winding exposition, and immediately wanted something more potent than just water. And she wasn’t even a drinker by habit.

“You’re...” she struggled for words, “You’re serious about all this, aren’t you?”

“Every word, I’m afraid,” Twilight said. Nearby, still in his bed, Timber Spruce raised his hand.

“I wouldn’t have bought it myself, but kinda had one of these Hollows pick me up and use me as a squeaky toy. Really helped with making me a believer.”

“And I’m grateful that Twilight saved you, but... but this is all just so hard to get my head wrapped around.”

Twilight nodded expectantly, as if she’d known that’d be the response, and simply sat down at the table folding her arms in front of her as she spoke in a soft, understanding tone. “I know exactly how you feel, because it wasn’t long ago I stood in your shoes, feeling the same things you’re feeling. Stunned disbelief, a sense of mental vertigo, as if the whole world I knew wasn’t what I thought it was. Believe me, I sympathize with every bit of confusion and doubt you must be feeling right now, Gloriosa.”

Conviction bloomed in her eyes and voice, “But every word I’ve told you is the truth. You’ve seen it with your own eyes already. The creatures with the skull masks. The black robed people with swords.”

Gloriosa swallowed, hugging herself against a faint chill, “Hollows, and Soul Reapers. That’s what you called them. And you, you and you’re people here... are Quincy?”

“That’s right. The Quincy are... well I’ll be honest, I don’t know if I’d call us the ‘good guys’ in all of this. I’m not certain anyone is, except my friends, who just want to protect people.”

“You Quincy don’t sound that bad. I mean, you fight Hollows, right?” said Timber, but Twilight just smiled sadly at him.

“It's not that simple, really. Yes we fight Hollows, but the Soul Reapers think we’re wrong to do it because they believe our powers destroy Hollow souls and unbalance the realms. So we fight them too. And Hollows want to feed on souls, but some of them don’t necessarily want to fight either, but have no choice because Soul Reapers and Quincy alike won’t give peace with them a chance. It's just this messy, endless cycle that nobody seems to be able to put a stop to...”

“You sound like you want to,” put in Timber. Twilight smiled, but weakly.

“I do, but I’m still trying to figure out how. I...” her eyes took on a pained, darkened cast to them. One that Gloriosa knew well, because she’d seen the same pain on her own face in a mirror more times than she could count, since her parents died. “...I don’t know if I can. Or if I’m the person who should.”

Timber looked like he wanted to get up and give the girl a hug, and Glorisoa frowned slightly at her brother’s expression, wondering if he didn’t seem a little too concerned for Twilight Sparkle. Gloriosa was grateful for what Twilight had done for her brother, but she wasn’t at the point of trusting the girl yet. There seemed a great deal many things fishy about the girl’s story, no matter how truthful it may have sounded.

“Alright, let’s say I believe you,” Gloriosa said, “What happens now with me and my brother? Now that we know all of these things mortal men and women weren’t meant to know, are you going to keep us prisoner here?”

She couldn’t tell if the surprise on Twilight’s face was genuine or if the girl was just a very good actor, but Twilight’s eyes widened as she said, “What? No, of course not! You’re free to leave whenever you like. The only reason I want to keep Timber here for a few days is to make sure his injuries are fully healed. I didn’t save him just to let him die from some internal bleeding we missed. Once he’s recovered, he’s free to do as he wishes as well.”

“So that’s it? You tell us these secret truths of the world, including the fact that our very town is in the middle of some spiritual war, and you’ll just let us go our merry way?” Gloriosa said, still sounding unconvinced, and wasn’t surprised to see a moment of hesitance on Twilight’s face.

“Strictly speaking, yes, but... you may have already received an invitation to speak with Mr. Rich...”

There it is. Gloriosa nodded, crossing her arms once again, “I have. I suspect he wants to discuss purchasing Camp Everfree?”

Twilight nodded, and Gloriosa nearly spat, only just barely containing herself.

“He can forget it. The camp isn’t for sale.”

There was a pause as Twilight looked at her, and Gloriosa saw the girl’s mind turning within those deep, violet eyes. “I understand your misgivings. I had intended to speak with you on this alongside Filthy Rich, but given you and your brother ended up coming to us, I’ll just lay our cards on the table here and now. The Quincy, or rather Filthy Rich, who is among our number, wishes to use Camp Everfree as a new training ground for young Quincy.”

Gloriosa tilted her head at that, “What? Why? With all of the resources at your disposal you could build a training camp anywhere, couldn’t you?”

Twilight frowned at that, then shrugged, “We could, I suppose. Filthy Rich seems to think it’d be more efficient to use an already established location, one that’s also close to Crystal Prep, which grooms children from prominent Quincy families. He also seems to think that the Soul Reapers and Hollows in the area cancel each other out and would make Camp Everfree relatively ‘safe’ compared to more remote locations we could use. To be honest I’m not sure I agree with his logic, but I didn’t see a reason to argue the idea with him. Would you consider agreeing to his proposal? I can promise a far more generous price than anything you would normally expect to get. Enough for you and Timber to build a new, even larger camp in any location you wanted.”

“Money’s not the issue!” Gloriosa said vehemently, “That land is our family's land! We’ve been on it for generations! My mother and father...” she gulped, pulling the words out from a deep, usually locked place in her heart, “My parents died in that forest. I buried them in it. Nothing, no force on this world or any other for that matter is taking my home from me. Understand that?”

Silence reigned for a minute, broken when Timber said, “Um, Glori, I get that its our home and all, but we’re having trouble keeping the place afloat, aren’t we? Maybe this isn’t the worst idea ever?”

“Are you serious? I know we’re having troubles, Timber, but that’s no excuse to abandon our home for a pile of cash!”

“What if you didn’t have to abandon it?” Twilight asked, and Gloriosa turned back to her with suspicious eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“Look, I can tell your home means a lot to you. I also can see a circular argument right in front of me and would rather avoid it. Filthy Rich will just offer money, and clearly that’s not important to you. So how’s this for a counter-proposal? You sell the camp to us, but retain it as your home. We Quincy will still use it as our new training ground, but you can take on the role of its groundskeepers. I know it won’t be the same as running a summer camp, but trust me, young Quincy will probably need somebody to organize some leisure time and activities anyway. I’ve been meaning to speak to our King concerning the need for easing up on the strict training regimen, and camp activities might actually help build teamwork anyway.”

Gloriosa’s eyebrows shot up, her voice filled with incredulity, “You’re saying you want us to run camp for a bunch of soldiers in training?”

“Well, more or less. Quincy training can be very... stressful. The Academy has its own teachers who instruct cadets in combat and Quincy techniques. What it’s lacked in the past was recreational facilities to let cadets unwind. That would be what you and your brother would be in charge of. The Camp Everfree you know might change a bit, but its core would remain the same. During off seasons when there’s no cadets to train, you could even still run it as a normal campgrounds. And while I know you said you don’t care about the money, I can at lest guarantee a proper annual salary for your work and ensure the camp always has the funds it needs to remain in operation. Fundamentally your lives wouldn’t change that much, if you agree to this...”

“It’s not a bad deal, sis,” Timber said, and Gloriosa’s brow furrowed deeply in thought.

She still wasn’t certain she liked this. The camp had never needed outside help before, and much as Twilight made it sound like nothing about their lives would change, Gloriosa wasn’t convinced. This was essentially like taking sides in this ‘spirit war’, if they were helping train Quincy soldiers; if only by providing the location for training and organizing recreational activities. And what if the camp was attacked by Hollows or Soul Reapers? She and Timber would be caught in the middle of a battle that had nothing to do with them!

But her mind turned back to the piles of bills and cost estimates sitting on her desk back home. Bills she was becoming ever more unsure of how to pay. Even after Canterlot High’s summer camp deal was done with, that money wouldn’t last for more than six months, tops.

Could this be the way to save her home?

“I... I have to think about this,” she said, “Even if I agree, and I’m not saying I am, this deal would have to wait until the end of summer anyway.”

“Why’s that?” asked Twilight.

“Because Principal Celestia from Canterlot High has rented the camp for most of the summer,” Gloriosa replied, not really thinking about it, “Which is a tad odd, but apparently the school has some kind of summer program they’re starting up and want to use the camp for. The pay for that can keep us afloat for awhile. I won’t lie, I’m desperate enough that your offer has merits, but I still want to look at my options. You can tell Filthy Rich that, too.”

She’d expected disappointment, or maybe argument from Twilight, but instead the girl stared at her with shock on her face.

“Camp Everfree... of course... it’s the perfect spot to hide her...” Twilight breathed.

“Excuse me?” Gloriosa asked, and Twilight shook her head.

“Nevermind. I, um, have things I need to take care of. As I said, you’re free to come and go as you please. I’ll let Soarin know to let you in in case you want to come back and visit Timber as he recovers. But I have to go now, so please see yourself out, bye!”

Twilight all but ran out of the room, leaving a bewildered Gloriosa and Timber to look at each other in confusion.

“What in the world was that about?” she asked, and Timber could only shrug in response.

----------

The cave was far more spacious than most of its type tended to be, and Adagio, after pulling some luxuries from her holdings in Las Noches, considered it comfortable enough to serve as a base of operations. A few tents and cots appropriated from local sporting goods stores served alongside a simple camp stove and a few lawn chairs. Not exactly paradise, but more livable than just laying on the cave floor. A few battery powered lamps provided light, although the crystals in the cave seemed to provide a fair amount of light of their own and Adagio had to wonder if there was magic at play here.

The cave did give off a faint “mystic” quality that Adagio had felt even when she and her sisters had hidden out here, some years ago.

“You’re certain you didn’t find any trace of Soul Reapers?” Adagio was asking pointedly of Di Roy and Gaw.

Gilda had left some time ago, returning to Las Noches to, as she put it “Get her crew together”. While it seemed for the time being that Gilda was going to be cooperative, to a degree, Adagio wasn’t counting on much from her besides a hopefully useful distraction when the time came. Their alliance was tenuous, at best, better described as a temporary agreement to not get in each other’s way. Gilda of course had no idea what Adagio’s true purpose here was, and as far as Adagio was concerned it was going to stay that way. If Gilda survived the coming chaos, fair enough, if not, Adagio wasn’t going to lose sleep over it.

But finding Ember was still top priority, and where Soul Reapers gathered, so too should be Ember. Only...

“Look, Gaw and me scoured all over this forest. Heck we even went further afield and checked out the mountains. If there are Soul Reapers out here, they’re doing a hell of a job hiding themselves,” Di Roy said, sitting in one of the lawn chairs as he roasted a hot dog over the camp stove. Adagio glanced from him to Gaw, and the scruffy girl, who was gnawing on the remains of a rabbit she’d caught and decided to devour, sans cooking, looked back at Adagio and grunted.

“No prey found. Smelled all over, but just tasty animals, no Soul Reapers.”

That was about as much as Adagio had ever heard Gaw say at one time, so accepted that as Gaw’s version of a thorough report. She sighed and started to pace.

“Then she must be hidden somewhere in the city. It’s the only place the Soul Reapers seem to gather. Damn, I was hoping to avoid a confrontation in a populated area.”

“Why?” asked Di Roy, “Not like its any skin off our backs if a fight breaks out in the city.”

“This will be hard enough with whatever forces the Soul Reapers already have guarding Ember. A fight over a populated area is just going to bring enemy reinforcements that much faster,” Adagio said, mostly meaning it, and ignoring the slight twinge inside her that also said she wasn’t really thrilled with the idea of collateral damage. After all there were maybe one or two people she halfway liked in that city. And it had some nice restaurants. Be a shame to see the explode.

“Ideally we can rescue Miss Ember quietly while Gilda provides a distraction, correct?” asked Roka, who was sitting on her knees with her hands folded in her lap, watching them from the flap of one of the tents. “And we have other means of providing distractions. Indeed, given the right circumstances couldn’t we draw off enough of the Soul Reapers away from the city that it should minimize damage while giving us cover to rescue her?”

Adagio nodded, “True. Lord Torch is raring to go, and it shouldn’t be hard to manipulate Gilda into doing what we want. If I can get Sunset and her friends to play along, we can cause enough chaos to keep the enemy occupied for awhile.”

She watched Roka’s face carefully when she said Sunset’s name, looking for any sign of reaction. Roka showed none, and Adagio wondered just how much Roka might know about Fenice. How would Roka react when or if she met Sunset Shimmer face to face? Adagio was tempted to try to arrange that, just to see what would happen, but it was a side matter, compared to the mission.

“Whatever we do, I have to be part of the distraction, to make it appear to Lord Tirek as if I’m following his directive to test the city defenses. The rescuing will largely be up to you three, plus any help we might expect from outside sources.”

“You really think those chicks are going to help us out?” asked Di Roy, and at Adagio’s look he held up a hand defensively, “Hey, I’m just saying, you and them were never really all that tight to begin with, and now you’re an Espada. What if they, you know, decide this is a great chance to thin out enemy numbers by turning on you? A ‘pretend’ fight can turn into a real one pretty damn quick, Adagio, and if they’re all buddy-buddy with the Soul Reapers, what’s stopping them from taking our plan and turning it into an ambush. We go in to rescue Ember only to WHAM, find like four or five Captains ready to pounce on us? Or maybe you’re play fighting with this Sunset chick, putting on a good show, and KAPOW, Zanpaktou to the back because their Stealth Corps snuck up on you?”

It would be hard to explain to Di Roy why Adagio trusted Sunset Shimmer. One had to know the girl to really understand how brutally earnest she was, or how much she clearly believed in the power of friendship. Adagio had no real fear Sunset would betray her, because while Adagio might have been one inclined to manipulate or backstab if it served her goals, Sunset just wasn’t the type for that kind of thing.

Twilight Sparkle on the other hand, Adagio was less certain of. Their partnership was grounded in how mutually beneficial it was, and while Twilight seemed honest thus far, it was hard to ignore the fact that Lament had killed Twilight’s mother. There had to be some level of grudge there, even if Twilight was doing a remarkable job at hiding it. Adagio was far more worried about the Quincy showing up to ruin things, rather than Sunset going to the Soul Reapers.

But that was the general problem with this whole scenario. There was just no way to guarantee things would go smoothly, according to plan. There would be far too many ways for it to go wrong, no matter how much Adagio planned and schemed. As always, she’d just have to play the cards she had and strive to overcome whatever problems would inevitably crop up.

“You occasionally do speak sense, Di Roy. There’s always the possibility of betrayal. However, we don’t have any better options than to rely on their help. This could turn into a mess no matter what we do, so I’m going to go with the plan that has the best chance of working, and Sunset Shimmer hasn’t given me a reason to doubt her.”

Gaw gave a tiny snort as she picked her teeth with a blood stained rabbit bone and looked to Di Roy, “Trust alpha. She smarter than you.”

“Not a high bar to cross, Gaw, but seriously, just making sure we’re all on the same page,” Di Roy said, checking to see that his hot dog was appropriately charred, as he seemed to like them, before chomping into it.

Adagio was about to say more, when the communicator that Twilight had given her began a rapid beeping. Frowning, she said, “Sounds like our Quincy friend wants to chat. I’ll be outside the cave if anyone needs me.”

“Ten four, boss lady,” said Di Roy around a mouthful of hot dog as Adagio strode out of the cave and into a warm summer night. The sky was near cloudless, showing a gleaming array of stars. Adagio wished she had time to appreciate the general beauty of nature around her, given so much of her time lately had been spent around Hueco Mundo’s bleak desert, but Twilight’s call likely couldn’t wait.

“Yes? What is it?” she asked, after answering the beeping. Twilight’s voice sounded breathless as she spoke over the communicator.

“Adagio! It’s Camp Everfree! It has to be! Or at least somewhere very close to it! There’s no other reason Celestia would rent the camp for the entire summer! I was wracking my brain wondering where the best place to put a dangers portal research project would be and the camp is nearly perfect!”

“Wait, Twilight, slow down, you’re speaking so fast you sound like a chipmunk on a sugar rush,” Adagio said, pinching the bridge of her nose, “Star over, slowly, form the top. And do try to remember to breath between sentences.”

She heard Twilight on the other end of the line take a few deep breaths, like someone trying to calm down after running a marathon. Really, this girl was far too excitable to be in the position she was in life. How long before she expired of a heart attack, Adagio wondered? Once Twilight could speak in a relatively calmer pace, she told Adagio about her experience in rescuing some boy named Timber Spruce (to which Adagio noted an unusual amount of warmth Twilight put into describing him, which she filed away for later reference). Then came the part about his sister Gloriosa Daisy showing up, and the fact that “Principal” Celestia had rented out Camp Everfree from the siblings for the summer.

“Hmmm...” Adagio said, and Twilight exclaimed in her ear.

“Hmm? Hmmm!? Don’t you see!? That must be where they’ve taken Ember!”

“It does suggest that, assuming the Soul Reapers aren’t using this as a decoy. Or for some other purpose,” Adagio mused, not as outwardly excitable as Twilight, but still intrigued by this news. “I had Di Roy and Gaw scout this area, and they’ve reported no Soul Reaper presence.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Twilight said, “Soul Reapers can use Kido spells to cloak themselves, or even entire areas from both conventional and spiritual senses.”

“That’s news to me,” Adagio replied, even more thoughtful, “I’ve seen one Soul Reaper who could use shadows, but I thought that was just her special power from her Zanpaktou.”

“Oh, there are Zanpaktou that can specialize in stealth, but there’s Kido that can do it as well. The Quincy have a fairly extensive database on previously encountered Kido spells and Zanpaktou powers. I’ve studied a fair number of them, and there’s several Bakudo-class spells that can prevent most means of detection. Your Fraccion could have walked right past the lab and never known it.”

“Damn...” Adagio muttered.

“What? I thought you’d be happy to hear this news. We know where Ember is now!”

“No, we know a general area she’s possibly in. An area that covers hundreds of square miles of forest,” Adagio replied with frustration as she realized the scope of the issue, “And if the Soul Reapers can conceal their base so thoroughly that an Arrancar’s Pesquisa can’t penetrate it, then we’re stuck trying to scour all those hundreds of square miles just hoping to stumble across it. Unless we try to smoke them out by burning the forest down, I don’t see how we can reasonably locate the lab.”

“W-well let’s not leap to drastic measures just yet. Remember, I’m working on research on blending magic with Quincy reishi control. Give me a week, tops, and I can probably get a device ready that could use magic waveforms to detect Soul Reaper spirit energies. I just need to refine the design on my old Hollow Detector to make it work.”

“I like the sound of that,” Adagio said, and then a voice spoke from nearby, a very familiar one.

“Agreed. Miss Sparkle has always impressed me with her ability to adapt her scientific knowledge. I would have killed for a Lieutenant of her talents back when I actually ran anything in the Twelfth Division.”

Adagio instinctively gripped her trident tighter for a moment, but relaxed more out of a desire to not appear startled, as she’d known this new visitor had wanted to do to her. She’d rather not give him the satisfaction.

“Hello, Discord.”

Over the line, having heard Adagio, Twilight blurted, “Discord!? Discord’s there?”

Adagio couldn’t see him immediately, not until there was a waver in the air like summer heat off of concrete. A hand appeared from thin air and pulled back a portion of the air like one might draw back a curtain, revealing Discord standing there in his customary shop outfit, clogs, and striped hat. He was leaning on his cane and smiled with mischief at Adagio. The space he was standing in beyond the warped, drawn back space glowed with spectral, multi-hued light.

“Hello Adagio, and to you as well, Miss Sparkle.”

“You can hear me?” Twilight asked, “I calibrated the volume on this device so that only the wearer should be able to hear me.”

“Oh, don’t underestimate these old ears. At any rate, I couldn’t help but overhear most of your conversation.”

“I’ll bet,” Adagio said, turning to face him fully, neither aggressive in her stance, nor humble. She stood with the poise of an equal addressing an equal, “That trick you're using, is that one of those stealth Kido that Twilight was mentioning.”

“One of them, yes. Not even a particularly powerful one. It's called Kyokko, or 'Bent Light', and it does exactly what it sounds like. Mostly good for hiding an individual or small group's physical presence and reiatsu. In all likelihood if Captain Starswirl is out here with a field research team and base, he’s using a higher level Kido to conceal the entire operation. As you said, you would have a rather problematic time finding it with normal means.”

At his knowing smirk, Adagio said, “But with Twilight working on a new detecting device, we have a chance.”

Discord nodded, “Miss Sparkle’s skills are extraordinary, and I don’t doubt she’ll develop something even Captain Starswirl’s Kido won’t remain hidden from.”

“Don’t suppose you already know where they’re keeping Ember? Save us the trouble?” Adagio asked.

“Sadly, no, I’m out of the loop on that one. That said, rest assured I’ll provide what help I can when the time comes. Sunset Shimmer and her friends are keen on aiding you however they can, and honestly I still owe you, Adagio, for the loss of your original body. I still have that, by the by. Kept in on ice, just in case.”

That surprised Adagio somewhat, and she raised an eyebrow quizzically, “Just in case of what? As you can see,” she gestured at herself, “I’ve rather grown into my new skin.”

He looked her over, and she felt no particular shame at it, if anything sticking her chest out a bit further as if daring him to make a comment. Instead he just shrugged, idly tapping his cane on his shin, “You do seem to have made yourself quite comfortable as a Hollow. I suppose that’s not very surprising. You’ve always struck me as a survivor, which ironically is a trait quite useful to Hollows. Still, I thought I should keep your old body around, on the off chance you ever wanted a... gigai, of sorts.”

“You could do that?”

“Both yes, and no. Your soul chain is so completely severed from that old body that you can never properly occupy it again. However, I can use the body as a blueprint to build a gigai tailored to your use, if you should ever have need of one. But that’s for the future. Right now we have more present matters to concern ourselves with, ladies...”

Adagio wouldn’t have minding hearing more about these potential gigais he was talking about, but Discord withdrew a pair of objects from within the wide sleeves of his dark overcoat, arresting her attention. They looked like a pair of palm sized badges, round and with a skull motif similar to the ward pass he’d once given Adagio and her sisters for coming and going from the shop.

“These here are handy little communicators,” Discord said, “I’m giving one to you, Adagio, and the other is for Miss Sparkle. While you may have your own means of talking to each other, these will let you keep in touch with Sunset Shimmer and the other girls, all of whom now have one of these.”

He handed the badges over to Adagio, who held them gingerly for a second, then slipped them into the sash around her waist, “Useful. Very useful. I can ensure Twilight gets hers soon. Twilight, if you’re still listening, I’ll leave this for you at our usual rendezvous point.”

“Understood,” she replied, “What are the range on the devices?”

“Long,” was Discord’s cryptic reply, but Twilight accepted it without further question.

“Not to sound ungrateful, but is this all you came to do?” asked Adagio, “With your power and abilities, you could certainly be a significant help in rescuing Ember.”

“Too much overt action on my part will most assuredly draw attention from people you don’t want getting involved in this affair,” Discords eyes gained a stone hard cast to them, “I will help as I can, but I’m already treading upon thin ice. The Zero Division already knows I’m involved with Sunset’s group of friends, and that’s bad enough. If they realizing I’m helping Arrancar and Quincy on top of that, it may well galvanize them to act.”

“Okay, you’ve mentioned this Zero Division once already. Just who are they and why do you seem scared of them? You, of all people?” Adagio inquired, having a sinking feeling she wouldn’t like the answer.

“For now all you really need to know is that they’re the real power behind Soul Society, and are not to be taken lightly.”

Twilight chimed in, “When the girls were telling me about their adventure in Soul Society they mentioned the Zero Division a little. Are they really that dangerous?”

“Yes, which is why I’m being careful about how I act, or allowing my compatriots like Ditzy Doo to act. Right now Zero Division is just... watching. I’m sincerely hoping to keep it that way. Which is why I suggest you both use equal caution in the coming days.”

“Oh that shouldn’t be a problem,” Adagio replied with a heavy, sardonic glaze to her voice, “We’re the soul of caution.”

To this Discord only provided a thin smile, his eyes shaded by his hat as he began to fade back into the shimmer of his stealth Kido, which he had never fully dropped. “Then I leave you to your planning. Keep in touch, and do take the time to give Sunset a call. She’s been a tad unsteady since losing her home, and could use a friend.”

Adagio’s eyes twitched at the word ‘friend’, which only seemed to make Discord’s smile deeper and more amused as he vanished from view behind his Kido. A moment later it was as if he’d never been there at all.

Twilight’s words summed up Adagio’s thoughts quite succinctly.

“I can never figure that guy out.”

----------

It was a normal night on the Apple Family farm. Applejack may have had dinner at Discord’s place, but she still got home in time to help Applebloom wash up the dishes from the dinner on the farm.

“I ain’t never been ta camp before,” Applebloom was saying as the last dish went into the washer, and Applejack gave her little sister a sidelong look.

“Ya camp out in the orchard all the time with yer friends.”

“Sure, but this is a real summer camp! With a’ lake, an’ boats, an’ hiking, an’ macaroni lanterns!”

“Huh?” Applejack blurted, and Applebloom looked at her like she was slow and went over to the side counter by the fridge and picked up a brochure, waving it at Applejack.

“Ain’t ya read nothin’ ‘bout the place, sis? Info’s been up on the bulletin board at school all week.”

“I ain’t exactly been payin’ attention ta that stuff, sugarcube,” Applejack said as she looked at the brochure. It was a nice enough looking affair, talking about Camp Everfree’s numerous activities, including the custom of making macaroni lanterns and floating them over the lake during dusk. Overall it looked like a fine place to spend some time during the summer... you know, if you didn’t included the possibility of Hollow attacks.

“Huh, that’s weird,” Applebloom said, “Half the school’s signed up fer it, easy. I know Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are goin’, fer sure.” Her young face soured somewhat as she added, “So’s that dang Diamond Tiara and Sivler Spoon fer that matter.”

“Language, Applebloom. Also, didn’t ya’ll stop payin’ them two bullies any attention after yer first year at school?”

“Been tryin’ to. Guess they ain’t been as nasty as usual lately, ever since cousin Babs visit, but figure it’s only a’ matter of time before they start in on us again.”

“Well you just come ta me if they start given’ you or yer pals trouble. Me an’ my friends’ll be at camp too, being counselors if ya can believe that.”

“Really!? That’s awesome! Wait, why’re you bein’ a counselor if yer just a student like the rest o’ us?”

Applejack made a hand waving motion, “Uh, just ‘cause its part o’ the special, er, summer class we’re doin’ fer Principal Celestia. Yeah...”

Strictly speaking it wasn’t a total lie, but Applejack never felt entirely comfortable obscuring the truth. It’d made things awkward between her and her two siblings, lately. They knew about what she did with her friends, to a degree, but the whole truth hadn’t really been lain out yet. Applebloom, Bic Mac, and Granny Smith had already known about the crazy magical events that had happened at the school, so learning about stuff such as the Hollows, Soul Reapers, and Applejack’s own powers hadn’t been that much of an extra stretch. But the details of what had gone down in Soul Society, plus the truth about their parents... Applejack wasn’t ready to drop those particular bombs on her siblings yet.

But it was damn hard when Applebloom looked at her with a remarkably mature expression of suspicion. “AJ, ya ain’t tellin’ me somethin’.”

“I, uh, might be... you know... havin’ stuff I can’t say...”

“I get it,” Applebloom said with a resigned sight, “Ya don’t wan me n’ Big Mac, or Granny worryin’ none. But you and yer friends are gettin’ into somethin’ dangerous again, right? Got somethin’ ta do with this camp thing?”

“That’s ‘bout the size of it. Wish I could tell ya, sugarcube, I really do, but I ain’t really sure it’d help. An’... an’ there’s somethin’ else I’m gonna need ta tell ya’ll about, but I just don’t got the words fer it yet.”

“Take yer time, sis. I ain’t goin’ nowhere, an’ neither are the rest of the family. So when yer ready ta say whatever ya need ta say, we’ll be here.”

Applejack sniffed, rubbing at her face a bit to keep the tears in check, “Thanks, ya little hayseed.”

She flinched the moment she said it, but Applebloom didn’t notice, and only smiled as she gave Applejack and hug and then went off to bed. Applejack needed to turn in too, but she stayed in the kitchen for a bit, leaning against the kitchen sink and staring out the window into the night, thinking.

Hayseed. She was starting to use her mother’s old word, now. Sweet Cider and her had both decided that they’d wait until the right time to tell the rest of the family the truth. They deserved to know. Sweet Cider wanted to visit, but much like Applejack, it was a matter of sorting things out internally before being able to do that. What was she going to say to the family she hadn’t seen in years? How was she going to explain to Applebloom and Big Mac that, even if she was able to show up for a visit, that she could never actually stay, now that she was a Soul Reaper.

I shouldn’t be feelin’ all this guilt, ‘cause ma has it even worse than I do, Applejack thought.

Then dark thoughts turned towards her father. A Hollow. She didn’t know where he was, or even if he was still around as a Hollow. She’d seen enough of Hollows to know what they were like. Sweet Cider even confirmed that it was possible he hadn’t survived long as a Hollow, although she’d searched the registries on souls and found none that came close to Hard Nail’s description, so he probably hadn’t been purified by a Zanpaktou yet.

It gnawed at Applejack, thinking her father was still trapped out there somewhere as a damned soul, and she couldn’t do anything about it. Not yet, at any rate.

And if she told the rest of the family about Sweet Cider, that meant that particular bit of unpleasant truth would come out with it.

The question was still chewing at her, sleepless, as the sky started to lighten to dawn.

----------

Sleep wasn’t coming easy for Rarity. Oh, she was tired, certainly. Ditzy Doo’s training sessions were getting no less intense, and even if her body was becoming far stronger than any normal human’s had a right to be, Rarity still felt the aches deep in her muscles. Hm, muscles. She’d never been nearly as dainty or weak as some might have assumed about her from her fashion obsession. After all, she’d practiced self-defense martial arts. Yet Rarity couldn’t help but notice as she’d gotten dressed for bed that night that her body had a lot more muscle tone these days than it ever had before. If she kept up this pace, she’d be on par with Rainbow Dash or Applejack.

She didn’t really have a problem with that. After all, it was good to be healthy and fit. It was just a reminder of how dangerous her life had become lately, and that whether she liked it or not it was changing her.

If Rarity let her mind drift at all, it seemed to instantly go to the memory of holding Blueblood at swordpoint. She could feel the simple, cold weight of the crystal rapier in her hand, held so steadily against that pretty white throat. It was impossible to forget how she’d felt in that moment. Elated that she’d won, yet so dead calm inside when she’d threatened to cut his throat if he so much as twitched in a way she didn’t like.

It seemed so silly, to be thinking about this. Yet her mind kept going back to it, no matter how much she tried to distract herself. Would she have done it? Killed in cold blood?

There was an uncomfortable fear inside her that the answer was yes, and that bothered her. After an unfruitful hour of trying to fall asleep, Rarity decided to put her mind at ease with some creative work. After all if the plan was for her and her friends to take it easy over the next week, she could afford a little loss of sleep, and if they were going to the beach at some point she had a few ideas for new bathing suits she wanted to experiment with.

Slipping on her red ‘work glasses’ she was halfway through designing a lovely frilled number that would look just perfect on Fluttershy when there was a sound behind her, a small brush of something dragging on the carpet.

Rarity didn’t even think about her actions. Instinct took over and she swung out of her chair and began to summon a sharp, crystal blade to her hand from a was of blood up her arm. She had the sword half formed, its jagged point inches from Sweetie Belle's throat before Rarity realized who had snuck into her room and stopped herself short just in time. Her heart was pounding, and her eyes widened as she stared at her sister, who had a piece of one of Rarity’s lipsticks from her nightstand.

Sweetie Belle gulped, shaking, and whispered, “S-sorry, I know you don’t like me using your makeup, but I really wanted to use some this weekend. Um, c-could you put the sword away now?”

Rarity blinked, looking at the crimson crystal sword now held in her hand. Gulping, she stood, setting the blade aside and wringing her hands together, “Sorry about that. What are you doing sneaking into my room in the middle of the night to steal makeup!?”

“Hey, I only do this sometimes, and you never knew those times!” Sweetie Belle said with a child’s pout, only to then shake her head and look at Rarity with a shocking about of earnestness, “Rarity, are you okay?”

“Yes, of course. I’m just tired, and you surprised me,” Rarity said, very much wishing to change the subject, quickly, and not think about how she almost stabbed her sister through the throat because she was apparently just that on edge. “Now why exactly do you want my lipstick for the weekend? Wouldn’t happen to be for a date, would it?”

She expected Sweetie Belle to deny it, but instead her sister said, “Kinda. I mean, not really. Maybe? Me and the girls are going to the movies, first time since, you know, when that Hollow thing attacked. And it turns out Rumble and a couple of his friends are coming with us. It’s not really a date or anything, we’re all just going out together. But still, you always try to look your best when you go out, so I thought I should too. I don’t even own any makeup of my own.”

The unsteady fear Rarity had been feeling, and her guilt, momentarily melted away as she smiled at her little sister and put a hand on her shoulder, “Well all you needed to do was ask, Sweetie Belle. You can borrow whatever you want. I’ll even help show you the best ways to apply it, how’s that sound?”

“That sounds great! But, um, are you sure you’re alright? You looked kind of freaked out there, for a second.”

It was impossible to miss the hint of fear in Sweetie Belle’s voice, although it was politely hidden, and Rarity felt her heart sink right back down. “It’s nothing, really. Just a tad jumpy, ever since... ever since everything. You will be careful out there, won’t you? You and your friends?”

That brought the childlike pout right back, “Duh we will. Those Hollows are scary. I know to call you and your friends if we ever get into trouble, and to take any chances. Wish we could tell mom and dad, but I get why we can’t. Don’t worry sis, I’m going to be fine. And I know you’ll make sure the town’s safe from all the bad guys.”

To this, Rarity could only smile, “Of course I will. I’d never let anyone hurt you.”

I’d kill them, first.

And that was both a comfort, and the source of her fear. Shaking the feeling off, she gave Sweetie Belle a final pat on the head and sent her sister off back to bed. Just as she was turning back to return to work on the swimsuit designs, a random thought occurred to her. Just when did Sweetie Belle get so skilled at sneaking around that Rarity hadn't heard her until she'd already grabbed the lipstick and was halfway out of the room?

----------

“Oh maaaaan, siiiis, just give me a break!” Zephyr Breeze said, something in is tone managing to get past all of Fluttershy’s usual mental defenses against anger and grate right against her nerves. “I can always get mom to do the laundry, like, whenever!”

Fluttershy took in a small breath, trying to calm her nerves. She didn’t understand why it was her brother was so readily and ably peeving her off, but his attitude sometimes just... just bugged her. He refused to do even the simplest chores, and their parents just let him get away with doing nothing the entire day. He was supposed to start job hunting, to learn some responsibility. It wasn’t as if he was being expected to move out anytime soon or anything, he still had to finish high school after all. But he was old enough to start doing his own laundry, instead of leaving a massive pile of dirty clothes sitting in the hall by the basement door that’d lead down to the laundry room.

“I understand you’re used to having mom do this for you, but you’re getting older, Zephyr. It’s time to start taking some responsibility for yourself.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I hear you sis. Say, do you mind going out to the store to get me some more soda? We’re out.”

It was rare that something snapped inside Fluttershy. She took great pains to maintain her self control. Yet there was just something in that flippant tone, the dismissive nature of her younger brother’s attitude, that cracked that self control like a karate chop to a plywood board. Fortunately Zephyr wasn’t actually looking at her as he talked, lounging on the living room couch as he browsed shows on the television. So he didn’t see the way Fluttershy’s Fullbring came out, her third eye opening up in a gleam of blue light.

“Zephyr Breeze,” she said, reaching out with her power, “You’re going to go do your laundry yourself right this instant. Then when it’s clean and dry you’re going to fold it properly, put it in a well organized manner in your dresser instead of tossing it on the floor, and then you’re going to come with me to start looking for a job this summer!”

She’d done it before she even realized what she’d done, and the moment the realization hit her she let out a horrified gasp and covered her mouth, forcibly deactivating her Fullbring. Of course it was a bit too late on that count, as Zephyr Breeze, suddenly gaining a very placid voice utterly unlike his normal, vibrant if annoying voice, said, “Yes, sister, of course.”

Like an automaton, he got up from the couch, and without another word he walked right past her and down the hall, going to his laundry pile and began to take it down into the basement. All the time Fluttershy watched with a mute, guilty silence. She knew better than to try activating her Fullbring again to try to counterman the orders, as that’d just cause confusion, but she couldn’t believe she’d just done that. To her own brother!

“Fluttershy, dear!” Her mother called from the kitchen, doing the night’s dishes, “Do you mind taking out the recycling for tomorrow morning? Oh my, Zephyr, are you doing laundry?”

Soft Spoken was peeking out of the kitchen door into the hallway just in time to see Zephyr robotically grabbing more laundry and taking it downstairs. Zephyr responded with that same serene, utterly unlike him voice, “Yes, mother. Sister told me to.”

A cloud of baffled curiosity crossed Soft Spoken’s face as she said, “Oh, well, that’s nice of you, dear.”

Zephyr didn’t respond, only continuing his task with single minded dedication, his will utterly overridden. Soft Spoken looked at Fluttershy, still appearing confused, and Fluttershy said in a quiet voice, “I’ll get the recycling mom, don’t worry.”

Her mother nodded with uncertainty and went back into the kitchen, leaving Fluttershy to slump her shoulders as she went for the nearby closet area where the recycling was kept for when it’d be taken out to the cans in the back alley. She could hear Zephyr down in the basement opening up the washer and piling clothes in. She shuddered.

Why did I do that? I didn’t even think about it. He just made me so mad.

It terrified her how easily her power just stripped someone of their normal mind and will like that. Using it in battle was one thing, but abusing it on her own family wasn’t something she ever wanted to do. Yet using it had been so easy. Ditzy had said Fluttershy was afraid of her power, and that was something she needed to get over, but it how could she not fear this ability? If she embraced it fully, completed it the way Rainbow Dash had completed hers, what more could Fluttershy do?

Outside in the backyard, wheeling the recycling can out to the alley behind the house, Fluttershy morosely wondered if the reason her Fullbring couldn’t evolve yet was because, deep down, she really didn’t want it to. After all, if right now she could use it to do that to her brother, what would happen if it got even stronger? She knew at least Zephyr would go back to normal once he was done with the task she’d commanded, but what if her power became so strong the people affected by it couldn’t go back to normal?

Even amid her thoughts she felt the arrival of a spiritual presence and turned to find Lieutenant Posey standing in the alley, looking at her worriedly. With a bashful look, Posey said, “Oh, I’m sorry. I was patrolling nearby and felt your reiatsu spike up there for a moment. Is anything wrong?”

Fluttershy glanced away, biting her lower lip, “Everything’s fine, Lieutenant Posey. I was started by shadow, that’s all.”

“Ah, I see.”

Posey continued to stand there, as did Fluttershy. Awkward silence ensued for nearly a minute before Fluttershy coughed and said, “Well, um, I should, uh, go back inside.”

“Oh! Yes, of course. Don’t let me keep you, Miss Fluttershy...” It was clear from Posey’s voice that it still was very difficult for her to use Fluttershy’s name instead of trying to call her ‘mother’. Fluttershy smiled apologetically and turned to go, only for Posey to speak up again.

“I... I wanted you to know, Kyoki and I are doing better, now. We’re, um, talking and stuff again...”

Fluttershy paused, turning to look back at Posey, whose face was now hidden behind the bangs of her neon pink hair like a shield, “He’s really sorry for how he treated me. I think you really got to him, you know. He was silent for awhile, but I think it was just that we both really needed time to talk, and couldn’t do that while... while he still thought he had to control me. I’m still kind of mad at him, but he’s my Zanpaktou. My partner, so I can’t stay mad. Now that we’re really talking to each other, I feel like I understand him better than before, but I know I have you to thank for that, Miss Fluttershy. I just wanted to say that, so, um... good night.”

Before Fluttershy could respond, Posey vanished with a Flash Step, leaving Fluttershy alone to wonder at all the very odd turns her life had taken and how she almost wished to go back to the days when all she had to worry about were magic apocalypses or sirens trying to brainwash the school.

Episode 94: The Start of Summer

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Episode 94: The Start of Summer

“Are you sure we can trust her?”

The question came from Aria, the siren watching Tempest Shadow through thin, unfriendly eyes as the unicorn came down the stairs to the inn’s common room, where most of the group had already gathered. Keeping her voice down, Twilight Sparkle simply whispered, “I’m willing to try. She’s agreed to help us with our problem if we help her with hers, so I can only hope she’s being honest with us.”

Aria let out a unimpressed snort, shaking her fined head, keeping her arms crossed over her scaled chest, “If she turns on us, I reserve the right to say ‘I told you so’.”

“Fair enough,” Twilight admitted, then cleared her throat and approached Tempest with a smile that she hoped wasn’t as forced as it felt. “Good morning. Glad you didn’t, you know, run off in the middle of the night, or try to attack us again.”

Tempest’s eyes were about as friendly as Aria’s had been, her tone losing little of its arrogant edge, “There’s no point in fighting when I’d gained nothing from it. As much as I have a hard time swallowing everything you’ve told me, I at least buy that the Starlight Glimmer that’s with you isn’t the one I’m after. The other one was much more intimidating.”

“H-hey!” Starlight Glimmer said from where she was helping Trixie carry supplies of fresh food and water out to the caravan wagon, “I’m plenty intimidating! I almost destroyed the world with temporal magic you wouldn’t believe!”

Trixie elbowed Starlight lightly, “Let’s not go bringing up past acts of villainy, shall we? I’m still reading self-help books from my time with that stupid amulet.” Trixie grimaced and shot Tempest a withering look, “Although I wouldn't mind having it back for a few minutes, to teach a certain mouthy pony a lesson.”

Tempest gave them a rich, dark chuckle with a challenge in her smile, “Anytime, anywhere, ladies.”

There was a loud hoof stomp as Applejack stood between the three mares, shooting glares at all of them, “Alright, ground rules, and rule number one is there ain’t gonna be none o’ this bickerin’ among ourselves! Starlight, Trixie, don’t let the gal git to ya! An’ you, Miss Shadow,”

“Just Tempest, if you have to call me anything.”

“Fine then, Tempest, if yer gonna be travelin’ with us, I ain’t expectin’ ya to be friendly, but if ya can’t say nothin’ nice, keep yer trap shut at least, got it?”

Tempest eyed Applejack up and down, and her smile turned just a tick more approving as she inclined her head, “Seems like not everypony in Equestria is spineless. Fair enough, I’ll keep to myself. I’m not interested in making friends, but I’ll stop jabbing at the... weaker elements of the team.”

As Tempest strode by the group and headed outside, Starlight was still grumbling under her breath, “Weak element? I’m probably the strongest magic user here right now. Turn you into a tea cup, and then we’ll see who’s a ‘weak element’.”

Trixie was patting Starlight on the head, “There there, I already know you’re amazing, and I am too, so let the grumpy mohawk head pretend. We both know we could take her.”

“Wow, and I thought I had an easily bruised ego,” Rainbow Dash commented with a deadpan look, then shrugged and hefted her saddlebags, “Welp, I’m packed. We’re not forgetting anything, are we?”

“Pretty sure we’ve secured all the supplies we can, and I’ve already doubled checked our own wagon,” said Rarity, who was now wearing a new cloak of a fine, long cut and ruby color that she’d picked up in the market.

Sonata and Pinkie Pie simultaneously came bouncing through the door, each carrying sackfulls of what looked to be baking ingredients.

“We’ve got snacks covered, so don’t anypony, or fishy, worthy about that!” chirped Pinkie Pie, and Sonata was giving Aria ane excited look.

“What?” Aria inquired halfheartedly.

“Eee, you’ll never guess what they had for sale out there!” Sonata said as she proudly held out a sack filled with something wrapped in paper, but the smell was pretty distinct, “Fish! It’s even fresh, brought in by airship.”

Aria blinked, and actually licked her lips, while the ponies in the room gave the pair of sirens odd looks.

“You guys like fish?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Ain’t that a little... uh, weird for you two?”

“What’s weird about it?” shot back Aria, “We used to eat fish all the time back when we actually lived in the ocean. What did you think we ate? Seaweed? These’s teeth ain’t for show, you know.”

For emphasis, Aria barred her rather sharp teeth, and Rainbow Dash gulped, nodding. “Got it. Say no more. So, we all ready to get out of here?”

Seeing that her companions were as prepared as they could be, and double checking her checklist to find it was all nicely filled out, Twilight nodded, “Yes, I think it’s time we departed. Klugetown is still several miles north of the coastline where we’ll find Mt. Aris. As long as we can ensure Tempest Shadow remains hidden with our caravan, we should be able to talk to the hippogryphs without any problems.”

The plan was to explain to the hippogryphs what the situation was with Starlight Glimmer, and her counterpart from the human world. It’d be a difficult story to believe, but Twilight had to imagine that too much duplicity on her part would just lead to trouble. Queen Novo had to be made to understand the severity of the situation and why it was important for her kingdom and Equestria to work together. Hopefully once the hippogryphs help was secured, they’d figure out how to get to the Abyss and face Charybdis. However at the same time, they had to seek out information on where the human Starlight Glimmer might have taken the Storm King.

They’d agreed to help Tempest find him, although she hadn’t explained exactly why she worked with him in the first place. Twilight was hesitant to help someone as potentially dangerous as this Storm King, but she had no intention of letting him just go free and be a threat to Equestria. Ideally if they ‘rescued’ him, he could be made to see reason, or failing that, become their prisoner who could be kept from harming others. Tempest might react poorly to that, but Twilight figured that was a bridge to be crossed when they came to it. Right now they needed all the extra firepower they could get, and Tempest Shadow, even with a broken horn, was strong enough to give Twilight a run for her money despite being an alicorn.

As the group gathered outside the inn, she noticed Flash Sentry wasn’t around. She’d seen him go outside earlier, but now where had he gone?

The question was soon answered as there was a rough yell from above and a short, stocky creature that looked like a dark gray hedgehog biped with spiky white hair was dropped unceremoniously on the ground in front of Twilight.

“Found him skulking around the rooftops, watching the inn,” Flash Sentry said as he flew down and landed, his Zanpaktou out and aimed at the creature that he’d just deposited in front of Twilight, “Given the uniform, I figure he’s with our new pal.”

“Grubber,” Tempest Shadow said as she trotted up, looking down at the hedgehog as he stared up at her. He grinned sheepishly and waved.

“Hey Tempest. I came to rescue you.”

Tempest rolled her eyes, “Consider me rescued. Get up, we’re working with these ponies now. They’re going to help us find the Storm King.”

Tempest gave Twilight a pointed look as if to say ‘And they’d better keep that promise’. Twilight’s eye twitched a bit as she smiled and nodded, “That’s right. We’ll help you find your, um... employer, while we’re working on our own quest.”

“Riiiight, I got it,” said Grubber, rolling over and standing up, dusting his squat form off, “Little bit of mutual back scratching. Smart thinking Tempest. Knew you’re the boss for a reason. Never doubted you for a second. So, hello friendly pony type people. I’m Grubber. Third in command of the Storm King’s army. Which I guess just consists of me and Tempest right now, so does that make me second in command? Hey Tempest, do I get a battlefield promotion, now that almost everyone else is either dead or deserted?”

Tempest’s only answer was a long suffering, tired sigh as she turned around and trotted towards the front of the group. Grubber waddled after, still babbling about ‘promotions’ and ‘pay raises’ and ‘vacation time’. Flash Sentry, watching this, glanced at Twilight with a questioning look. She just shook her head and smiled helplessly, and Flash shared the smile briefly as he sheathed his weapon.

“Going to be a long journey still, isn’t it?” he said.

----------

Starlight Glimmer looked around at the town, filled now with the barely contained chaos of a mix between a riot and a drunken bender the entire town’s population was in on, and shot Chrysalis a frank stare.

“Does the term ‘low profile’ mean nothing to you?”

Chrysalis, who was wearing the form of what Starlight could only assume was the unicorn equivalent of a hot supermodel, tall and slim, with black fur, a long and full mane and tail of neon green hair, and a cutie mark of a red heart with fang marks in it, just grinned at Starlight as she sat on an overturned cart and drank out of a mug filled to the brim with ale.

“Not really, no. What are you complaining about? My children and I are having a good time, ensuring the locals are having a good time, and not breaking your precious rules about not killing anypony or draining them of their souls. Or love. Did you know I can eat love, now? It’s wonderful!”

Starlight growled under her breath, observing the town once more. It was larger than many of the tiny villages that dotted the Equestrian landscape, but not by much. What was its name again? Hoofington? The streets were filled with partying ponies, most of them either drunk or close enough to it. It was difficult to tell which among the crowd were Chrysalis’ Arrancar ‘children’, since the group of a dozen that’d followed their Espada on this little trip had all taken on pony forms.

At first the excursion had been pretty straightforward and boring. Equestria was a unbelievably peaceful place. Bandits were seemingly non existent. There were a few random monstrous creatures roaming the deeper forest wilds, none of which posed much threat to Chrysalis and her children. Starlight had watched with some disgust as they’d picked apart and devoured a multi-headed creature she imagined was a hydra, or something close to it. She didn’t really care about local wildlife, but Chrysalis had grown bored with that quickly, even when they’d run across some strange wolf-constructs made out of animated wood that Chrysalis’ children discovered had souls that could be devoured.

Starlight had put a stop to that. Even animal souls she didn’t want to watch get eaten. If the Hollows wanted that kind of food, they could go back to Hueco Mundo.

With the speed they could move, covering hundreds of miles of territory was easy, and soon enough they were exploring more of the Equestrian heartland. Starlight had used the Pearl of Changing to take on the form of a pegasus, both as partial disguise, and to make traveling easier. The Pearl changed her body in a very real sense, so she couldn’t use magic, but the flight sure was a fascinating experience.

She kept her Zanpaktou on her, but had it hidden beneath her coat, which fortunately adapted with her new form so she could use wings without trouble. It kept questions to a minimum when they arrived in this town and Chrysalis hit upon the idea of getting the locals into a ‘partying mood’. Starlight wasn’t sure how it happened. She was certain Chrysalis had done something to affect the minds of the local ponies, because what started as a simple drinking binge at a local tavern very rapidly escalated to the town-wide equivalent of Mardi Gras.

Starlight was certain Chrysalis had used some manner of Hollow power to pull this off, but she couldn’t tell what, and was mostly just annoyed at the Espada’s antics, even if it wasn’t technically hurting anyone. The town might get a bit trashed, but so far she hadn’t seen any real injuries among the revelers. But the ponies clearly weren’t acting normal. They were far too rowdy, damaging homes and storefronts, and in more than a few cases were being entirely to... amorous with each other. Starlight had needed to look away from a few alleyways or bushes to avoid seeing too much.

“This may be your idea of a good time, but I’m fairly certain none of these people would get this into it normally,” Starlight said, dodging a group of hollering ponies riding a wagon down the street that was being pulled by an enthusiastic earth pony far too fast for safety’s sake, “Somepony is going to get hurt.”

Chrysalis stuck her tongue out and went ‘Pffft’, before hopping off her own overturned wagon, draining her mug of ale and throwing it haphazardly away to crash through a window somewhere, “Oh for the love of the Soul Queen will you pull the ram rod out of your rectal cavity? A few bruises or broken bones won’t hurt these poor defenseless little creatures you’re so worried about. This is tame compared to what I’d normally be doing, but I have to enjoy myself somehow, and this... this is the closest I can get to showing these poor creatures something beautiful for a change.”

“Beautiful? This chaos? It’s just wanton indulgence with no inhibition,” Starlight said, trying to find a spot on the sidewalk that wasn’t already covered in detritus, or vomit.

“Wanton, yes. That’s precisely what I enjoy,” Chrysalis replied with a purr, following Starlight as she gazed upon the destructive revelry with eyes that shined like emerald torches, “Strip away all the niceties and restraints, and underneath the skin everyone wants to let go. To feed, to play, to feel, to screw, to destroy, to create, to just do without worrying about petty things like consequences or who you’re going to hurt.”

Chrysalis laughed with husky amusement, continuing to follow Starlight’s agitated trot through town. She snatched a drink from a passed out reveler’s hoof and waved it in front of Starlight’s face, “Why not join in for a change, instead of shorting yourself on fun?”

“This is not my idea of fun,” Starlight said, nose wrinkling at the foam coated mug in front of her, “And I don’t drink.”

Chrysalis made a disgusted roll of her eyes and upended the drink herself, knocking it out in one go without breaking stride with Starlight, “You might actually enjoy yourself if you did.”

Something in Chrysalis’ teasing tone caused Starlight to give her a sidelong look of searching suspicion. “What did you do to the alcohol?”

“Why, whatever do you mean?” Chrysalis said, batting her eyes innocently, and Starlight stopped in place, turned to find the nearest mug of alcohol, which was laying half spilled on the ground from a passed out pony. She went up to it and picked it up with a wing, examining the contents.

She probed it with her spiritual senses, gaining a faint trace of Chrysalis’ Hollow reiatsu. Eyes narrowing dangerously, she turned to Chrysalis, holding up the mug, “Care to explain this?”

The Espada smiled like the proverbial cat with the cannery, and held up her hooves, “Oh don’t give me that look. All I did was let a few drops of my blood get into some of the barrels on tap. Doesn’t take much to circulate around, and soon everyone who’s taken a sip starts to feel less restrained. It’s no different than what alcohol already does, just faster, and more delightfully intense. Bigger hangover afterward, but what can you do?”

Her statement was punctuated by the speeding wagon from earlier tearing around the street, overcompensating and hitting a fence post, then overturning until it crashed into the side of a house. The drunken ponies, durable as they were, managed to crawl away with some bruises and continued to drink and party as if nothing had happened. It still made Starlight’s eye twitch as she glared at Chrysalis.

“We’re leaving,” Starlight declared, and Chrysalis groaned.

“You are the utter definition of a killjoy. No wonder you’re still a virgin.”

The eye twitching intensified as Starlight glanced over her shoulder at Chrysalis, “How would even know that? In fact, what has that got to do with literally anything!?”

“Please, I had virgins sacrificed in my name by civilizations that aren’t even in the historical record. I can smell them miles away. As for why it matters, it’s only so blatantly obvious that part of your problem is that you’ve never once in your life let yourself enjoy anything. It’s truly sad, and I’m only trying to help you.”

“No, you’re trying to toy with me, because it amuses you.”

“That too.”

It was Starlight’s turn to eye roll and groan, “Amuse yourself however you like, just don’t cross the line. We’ve wasted enough time in this town, disrupting these ponies lives. Call your children and let’s leave, before somepony notices just how unusual this kind of chaos is.”

Chrysalis pouted, but then shrugged and let out a shrill whistle that didn’t sound like it could be made by normal lips. Within mere moments the ponies that were her Arrancar children in disguise appeared before them, and Chrysalis said, “Alright my darlings, Starlight has decided we’ve partied enough for one day. I want all of you to return to the hideout. Use different routes, just in case you end up being followed. Starlight and I will be staying out a time longer.”

“We are?” asked Starlight, while Chrysalis’ children bowed their heads and swiftly vanished from sight.

“Why, we’re so close to Canterlot I imagined you at least wanted to take a look at the place. Don’t you want to recover your wayward Bount?” Chrysalis asked.

“I do, but I’m not crazy enough to try and bust out Trixie unless I know the heavy hitters aren’t around. We don’t even know for certain if that train is a trap, and if so, how many of Equestria’s Princesses might be defending it.”

“Seems like now would be the perfect time to peek in on the capital then. We don’t have to enter the city, we can just observe it from a safe distance. Come on, Starlight, don’t get cold feet, heh, I mean ‘hooves’.”

Starlight glowered, but nodded, “Fine. We’ll take a look, but only from a distance. The last thing we need is a fight near a population center. Even if we win, the risk of collateral damage would be too high.”

“Gee, wouldn’t want that, would we?”

“Stuff it, Chryssy.”

“Aww, you’re using pet names now. See, I knew we’d become friends, eventually.”

“...Ugh...”

They were about to leave, but at that moment Starlight noticed the sky change. It had been night, but now the sky was changing rapidly to brighten to pre-dawn. She knew that day and night changed quickly in this world due to the Princesses, but this was different. Once the sky turned a dusky purple, she could see that the sun was hanging close to the distant east horizon, but wasn’t rising higher. And strangely, if she looked west, the moon was hanging at an equally distance just above the horizon in that direction.

“What in the world...?” she asked.

“Ah, it seems the Princesses are out there doing something with their celestia toys,” Chrysalis said, rubbing her chin, “This is around the time that Platinum and Firefly would be hitting that train, isn’t it?”

Starlight nodded, then her eyes went a bit wider as she saw two beams, one of silver light from the moon, and one of fiery gold from the sun, shoot across the sky. The two beams met someplace off to the northeast, many scores of miles at least, if not further by Starlight’s guess. She didn’t know what was happening, but it couldn’t mean anything good for her companions she’d sent to investigate the rumored artifact on that train.

They watched for a minute or so. The drunken, partying ponies even halted their revelry a moment to watch the light show in a dazed stupor. Then there was a flash of light to the northeast, bright as a nuclear explosion. Starlight frowned, hearing the distant detonation nearly a minute later.

“Well, want to take a bet on whether or not your allies survived that?” Chrysalis said, wagging her eyebrows, “I’ll put good money on Firefly biting the dust.”

Starlight growled, “Enough. We’re not going to Canterlot. We’re going back to Hitsuyo-Aku. Now.”

“Aw, but I want to see the pony playset city,” Chrysalis complained, but Starlight just shot her a glare and the Espada relented with a smirk, “Oh fine, be that way. We’ll go make sure your little friends are alright. You really don’t have a stomach for this business, do you? Send them off into what you knew is likely a trap, and get all antsy when they spring it upon themselves.”

“Criticize later, leaving now!” Starlight said, and both she and Chrysalis vanished from sight.

The citizens of Hoofington remained staring at the distant light show a moment longer, but Chrysalis’ blood was potent and soon they went back to their drunken partying. In that chaotic plethora of drunken ponies who weren’t likely to appreciate the way their town was being wrecked, but were too far intoxicated by the tainted alcohol to care, there was one sober pony who’d been watching Starlight and Chrysalis as they’d walked around town. This pony was a demure and seemingly plain mare, but now that the pair that’d gained her attention were gone, the mare slide into an alleyway, then carefully and quietly departed Hoofington as well.

It wasn’t until this inconspicuous mare was into the woods and out of sight that she let her body be engulfed in emerald flames, revealing her true form. The tall equine of onyx chitin, shot through with holes in her long legs, and gossamer, jade wings, trotted further into the forest. Her teal mane and tail were haggard from living on her own in the wilds, with no hive to tend her every need, but she retained a regal bearing, regardless.

“Impossible. Who could impersonate me? Me!?” Queen (former; new title pending) Chrysalis spat, trying to wrap her mind around what she’d just seen. She’d been skulking around various towns in Equestria, gathering information for her eventual revenge scheme against the cursed Starlight Glimmer, and who should show up in Hoofington but a mare that looked and sounded exactly like Chrysalis’ hated foe, save for being a pegasus of course. A twin sister, perhaps?

Yet even stranger was the other mare. Chrysalis knew herself when she saw herself! The voice alone would have given it away. How sloppy to make a disguise that looked like simply an attractive, pony version of herself. She didn’t even change the voice! What a incompetent impostor. Yet also powerful. Chrysalis had eavesdropped in on the conversation, and while she hadn’t heard all of it, she’d heard enough to know the impostor her had used her own blood to somehow intoxicate the whole town.

How pointlessly frivolous. Chrysalis would never waste her time on such meaningless pursuits. But who was this impostor, and the one who looked so much like Starlight Glimmer?

The only thing she knew for sure was that something very strange was happening in Equestria. She’d seen the Princess using their power, just like everyone else in Equestria had likely seen it. Unlike the other Chrysalis and Starlight, she knew what that power was. It was one of the reasons she’d attacked Canterlot during the day, when Princess Luna would be asleep. Only a fool challenged both Princesses at once, without subterfuge or sabotage and the element of surprise.

If she hadn’t consumed Shining Armor’s love, she wasn’t certain she’d have been an equal to even just Celestia alone. Who were these foolhardy impostors?

Well, she wouldn’t find out by just standing around. One of them had mentioned returning to a place called ‘Hitsuyo-Aku’, whatever that meant. They’d departed with such speed that following would be impossible under normal circumstances. Good thing Chrysalis had taken a mug of the tainted ale for herself, and now that she knew some of it contained her impostor's blood, she knew more than a few spells she could use to track the fake... among other things.

----------

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Summer Vacationers!”

The three young girls all pulled off a mutual high-five as they left Canterlot High for the last time of that year. Freshman year; complete! It’d be tough, to be sure, surviving finals, heck surviving the whole year. High School classes were a whole different level of hard, compared to middle school. To make things worse, they’d had Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon to contend with at seemingly ever turn. Not to mention the excessive weirdness that had begun with some of their big sisters getting involved first with all that magic stuff, then with all the weird spirit world stuff.

Yet somehow the Cutie Mark Crusaders had weathered it all, and were now set to enjoy a nice, blessed three months of summer downtime. Which meant summer playtime, and the pursuit of future life goals.

A lot of other kids at school didn’t get the whole ‘Cutie Mark Crusader’ thing, but it was something that had brought the three together. Granted, it was kind of a childish thing to start a friendship over, but it’d happened. After all, ‘Cutie Marks’ were just a rather popular brand of washable tattoos, usually used to express what a person's passion or goal in life was. They’d been all the rage a few years back, although their popularity was slowly dying off.

Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo had all been new in school and lacked friends, but had met because when Cutie Mark tattoos had been popular, they hadn’t known and hadn’t gotten any, which Diamond Tiara and her pal Silver Spoon had teased them about relentlessly for that first month of school. So the girls, in a sort of rebellious retaliation, had decided to form a club at school all about finding their natural talents. To find their ‘real’ Cutie Marks, rather than some stupid tattoo.

The result had been a fast strong friendship formed between the three, and countless sessions of trying out different things to figure out what they were good at, often getting into trouble when their enthusiasm took them too far. None of them had really discovered their best skills, yet, although Sweetie Belle figured out she had quite the singing voice. She wasn’t sure singing was what she wanted to do, but it certainly was fun. Applebloom wasn’t half bad at building things, and Scootaloo, well... if her idol Rainbow Dash was anything to go by, Scootaloo was going to find one sport or another she loved.

Normally their afternoons were spent hanging out at their clubhouse, planning their next hobby try-out session. However, things had changed rather recently, in a big way. A way so big, none of them had told anyone about it yet, not even their families.

“Okay girls, the clubhouse is still no go,” Applebloom said, “AJ is gonna be workin’ around the farm today, an’ its too close fer us ta practice without riskin’ her seein’ what we’re doin’.”

Sweetie Belle wore a thoughtful look, slinging her backpack over her shoulder, “That’s no good. Maybe we could try Whitetail Park?”

“That place is way too crowded,” Scootaloo said as they reached the spot where the girls had their bikes tied up to a set of metal bike racks. Well, two bikes, and one scooter, which Scootaloo gave an almost loving pat as she unlocked it, “Why don’t we try Everfree?”

“That’s kinda outta the way, ain’t it?” asked Applebloom.

“Sure, we’d have to take the bus, but it’s like, a super short trip, and I got fare covered,” Scootaloo insisted, which caused the other two to look at her questioningly.

“Part time job?” Sweetie Belle asked, trying not to look too probing. Scootaloo coughed, scratching the back of her head as she looked away.

“Yeah, part time job.”

The exact nature of Scootaloo's ‘part time job’ had always eluded Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. It was made a further mystery by the fact that while the girls had played at Applebloom’s family farm, where their clubhouse was, and at Sweetie Belle’s house as well, they’d never been to Scootaloo’s home. Whenever the subject of playing at her house came up, Scootaloo invariably changed the topic to something else, often citing that her ‘parents were busy’ or something along those lines.

The other two girls had been too polite to question their friend too hard, but it was extremely odd.

“Oh look, Silver Spoon, is that a pack of losers I see?”

All three girls bristled as the familiar, haughty tone reached their ears, followed by another unfortunately familiar voice.

“Sure looks like it, Diamond Tiara. Look at them, stuck using dirty old bicycles to get home with. What’s wrong, Cutie Mark Crusaders, parents too cheap to give you a ride home?”

Scootaloo closed her eyes, muttering, “And to think, we were just minutes away from not having to hear either of those voices again for months.”

“I got this,” Applebloom said, clearing her throat and putting on a fake smile as she turned around to face the two girls watching them from the parking lot.

Diamond Tiara was about as stuck up looking as ever, somehow managing to gaze down her pink nose at the trio despite not being any taller than the rest of them. She was wearing a yellow jacket that, in Applebloom’s opinion, horribly clashed with her pale pink skin tone, and she didn’t think much of the rest of the girl’s frilly taste in clothing. Silver Spoon was the opposite of her flamboyant counterpart, wearing subdued tones that matched her gray skin and silver hair, although that did little to soften the smugness she wore on her face.

“Well howdy there, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, what a mighty fine coinkydink ya’ll happen ta come by an’ say hello.”

Diamond Tiara’s face screwed up in momentary confusion, not used to being talked back at, nor making much sense of Applebloom’s accent, “Coinky..what?”

“Coinkydink. Coincidence. A matter o’ happenstance. Ya see, I was just thinkin’ ‘bout both of ya when ya’ll just showed up, ya see?”

“You were?” Diamond Tiara blinked.

“You were?” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both echoed.

Applebloom’s smile stayed in place, but gained a hard edge to it as she walked towards Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, both of whom gained wary looks at the farm girl’s approach.

“Sure was. I was thinkin’, the two o’ you been callin’ us losers fer a whole year straight, an’ yet what’ve ya’ll done ta prove yer better than us, huh?”

Diamond Tiara’s face gained a look as if she’d just smelled a compost heap, “Prove? I don’t have to prove anything! We’re clearly superior to a bunch of rag-tag, talentless first years like you.”

“Technically they’re not first years anymore,” Silver Spoon pointed out, and Diamond Tiara shot her a stern look.

“Who’s side are you on?”

Silver Spoon rolled her eyes, adjusting her glasses, “Yours, obviously, but I am curious where the yokel is going with this. So spit it out, Appledumb, what are you suggesting?”

“Wow, what a witty nickname...” Sweetie Belle groaned sarcastically, but Applebloom held up a hand to forestall her, her eyes gleaming.

“I’m suggestin’ that before summer’s over n’ done with, we settle the score between us, once and fer all. I mean, c’mon, do ya’ll wanna just come back next year an’ do this bullyin’ routine all over again? Why not shut us up fer good, eh? Show how ‘superior’ ya’ll think you are. That way you don’t even need ta bother with us next year. ‘Course on the other hand, maybe it’ll be us that shut you up an’ you can go cryin’ home ta yer fancy schmancy houses and dumb families ‘bout how ya couldn’t beat three ‘talentless’ freshmen.”

A dark look entered Diamond Tiara’s eye, “I can tolerate your foul mouth about anything you say about me, but if you bring my family up again, I’ll do worse than just tease you a bit, next year.”

“I’m shakin’ in my boots.”

“You’re not wearing boots.”

“Not now, Scootaloo!”

Applebloom returned her gaze to Diamond Tiara, who glared back, until it almost seemed like sparks of invisible electricity were clashing between them as their respective friends looked on.

After a tense moment, Diamond Tiara said, “What exactly did you have in mind? I’m not saying yes, mind you, just curious how stupid this idea of yours is going to be.”

“Ah, don’t worry, it’ll be so simple even you could follow it,” Applebloom assured Diamond Tiara, much to the other girl’s annoyance, but Applebloom didn’t give Diamond Tiara a chance to spit a retort before laying things out, “Ya remember we’re goin’ to that Camp Everfree place next week, right? Been readin’ up on the place, an’ it’s got some interestin’ legends ‘bout it. Legends like the forest is supposed ta be haunted by spirits n’ such.”

“Oh please, nobody with an ounce of brain matter would believe in spirits and ghosts,” Diamond Tiara said, rolling her eyes and crossing her dainty arms over her chest as she smirked, “But then again, you believe it, apparently.”

“Well if that’s how ya feel then ya oughtn’ have any problem acceptin’ my challenge. ‘Cause what we’re gonna do is, durin’ camp, we’ll find out who’s got the courage ta go deepest into the forest at night. We go as a group, an’ whoever chickens out first an’ decides ta turn back, loses.”

“Tch, how childish, but what could I expect coming from you?” Diamond Tiara shook her head, “Why would I even agree to this? What’s in it for the winner, hmm?”

“The losers would have to do whatever the winner says for the first whole month of the next school year,” Applebloom offered, but Diamond Tiara snorted at the words.

“As if. I have competent servants to do things for me, I don’t need a bunch of losers following me around. How about something more tangible? Like, say, if I win-”

“You mean if we win,” Silver Spoon said.

“That’s what I meant, if, ahem, ‘we’ win then you have to dismantle that stupid clubhouse you keep playing your silly games in.”

Applebloom’s eyes widened a tad as Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo stepped forward.

“What!?” Sweetie Belle cried, “That’s outrageous! Why could you even want us to do that? How does that benefit you!?”

Diamond Tiara’s lips turned upward in a impish smile, “It doesn’t, other than the warm, fuzzy feeling I’ll have knowing you won’t have it anymore.”

“I’m trying to determine where you are on the 1 to 10 Evil Scale, and thinking there isn’t a number that fits,” Scootaloo said.

“Oh please, you started this little challenge, don’t go calling me ‘evil’ just because you don’t like something of real value to you being at risk. You could always back out, you know?” Diamond Tiara replied with a smirk that said she thought the Cutie Mark Crusaders would back down. Applebloom suspected the reason Diamond Tiara targeted the clubhouse was to get them to drop this challenge, because beneath her haughty exterior, Applebloom saw a hint of fear in the other girl’s eyes.

Could it be Diamond Tiara actually did believe in ghosts and was afraid of going into the forest? Applebloom smiled wickedly, and Diamond Tiara gained a bead of sweat on her forehead.

“You’re on. But if we win then you have to give us something equally tangible.”

“L-like what?” Diamond Tiara asked, clearly trying to play it off like she didn’t care.

“Well... how big is your allowance?” Applebloom asked, and Diamond Tiara blanched.

“Not that big, just a thousand dollars or so.”

“A THOUSAND!?” all three Cutie Mark Crusaders blurted at once.

“Ugh, you don’t need to shout. Yes, just a mere thousand. Barely enough to play with, really.”

“Like, a thousand a year?” asked Scootaloo.

“A month,” Diamond Tiara replied, and the other girls all stared at her for several seconds with their jaws open. Even Silver Spoon seemed a bit surprised.

“I only get a hundred a month...” Silver Spoon muttered.

“Yes, well, that’s the difference between your stingy father and my super generous one,” Diamond Tiara said, “I keep telling you you need to put your foot down with your daddy, Silver Spoon, and demand what you’re worth! Accept nothing less than at least five hundred a month!”

It was hard for Applebloom to decide if it was a glimmer of goodness in Diamond Tiara that she was sticking up for her friend, or a backhanded insult that what Silver spoon ‘was worth’ was still technically half of what Diamond Tiara got. Regardless, once she got over her shock at the economic unfairness of nepotism, she said, “Alright then, so if we win, then fer the whole school year ya gotta give us half o’ yer allowance. Five hundred. Got it?”

“But... but... but I need that money!” Diamond Tiara protested.

“For what!?” Sweetie Belle cried, “A gold plated stick to shove up your a-”

“Absolutely!” Applebloom interrupted before Sweetie Belle’s comment could derail the conversation, “I mean, it ain’t gonna kill ya, an’ seriously, how you spendin’ that much scratch each month?”

“I invest it, obviously,” Diamond Tiara said, sounding rather proud of herself, “Daddy says it’s important to learn business while I’m still young, and to recognize the difference between good and bad investments. My family didn’t get rich by accident, every Rich has business in their blood. I’m a Rich, and I plan to stay that way thank you very much. Which won’t happen with bad investments like this stupid little challenge.”

“Oh, so the second somethin’ ya value’s on the line, ya chicken out? Guess you wouldn’t have ever won the challenge in the first place then. An’ here I thought at least ya had some backbone, but guess next year I can go ‘round tellin’ everyone that Diamond Tiara was scared o’ a teensy little forest an’ some ghost stories.”

Diamond Tiara looked ready to grind steel beams with her teeth, but she took a slow breath and smiled thinly at Applebloom, “You know, I can see right through what you’re doing here, but it doesn’t matter. Another aspect of the business daddy’s taught me is that when a rival gives you a chance to crush them, don’t waste the opportunity. So have it your way, Applebloom. Challenge accepted. I hope you don’t cry too much about it later... oh, wait, I’ll happily record it for you!”

“Should I have this all put into writing?” asked Silver Spoon.

“No need,” said Sweetie Belle, holding up a cell phone, “It crossed my mind Diamond Tiara might try to renege on her deal when we win, so I started recording video of the conversation.”

She played back the part of Diamond Tiara accepting the challenge as proof, and Diamond Tiara rolled her eyes.

“As if I’d back out. A deal is a deal.”

“That another thing your ‘daddy’ taught you?” Scootaloo asked sarcastically, and Diamond Tiara blushed fiercely while glaring at her.

“We’ll see how much of a mouth you three have after Camp Everfree. Come, Silver Spoon, that’s Randolph pulling up now. We have better things to do than shoot the breeze with these losers.”

The two well-to-do girls got into a white limousine that had pulled up, driven by a balding old man in a butler uniform who politely greeted the children upon their entering the vehicle. Diamond Tiara paid the old man little mind, instead sticking out her tongue at the Cutie Mark Crusaders before the door closed and the limo pulled away.

“Well, that happened,” said Scootaloo, turning a sidelong look at Applebloom, “What got into you all of a sudden? We’ve been avoiding that crazy girl all school year, and suddenly now you want a make a fight of it?”

“Just got tired o’ her attitude,” Applebloom said firmly, “I ain’t toleratin’ it fer a whole ‘nother school year. We’re puttin’ her in her place, come heck or high water!”

“What does that even mean?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“I dunno, I just hear Granny say it sometimes. Anyhows, we still got practice ta take care of today! Since we’re goin’ ta Everfree anyways, this is the perfect chance ta get the lay o’ land before we trash Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon in that challenge!”

Sweetie Belle’s eyes lit up, “Ooooh, that’s clever. We can check out paths and stuff, and figure out the best way to go before we even get to the camp!”

“We could totally set up spooky traps, too,” Scootaloo said, grinning mischievously, “Scare those two right out of their wits, heh.”

“And ta top it off, we’ll have an’ advantage once we get better at usin’ our new pow-”

“Hey girls, what’s going on over here? Figured you three would already be gone for the day,” said Sunset Shimmer, who came around the corner of the bike racks, carrying a colorful red and orange colored sports bag.

Applebloom clamped her mouth shut and whipped around to face Sunset, while Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both jumped in shock, although they quickly recovered. As Sunset gave the three girls an odd look, Sweetie Belle elbowed Applebloom, who coughed said, “H-hey there Sunset! Hello! Hi! Howdy!”

“Uh... hi?” Sunset said, tilting her head in momentary bafflement. “Was I interrupting something?”

“NO! I mean, naaaaaah, we’re just, ya know, hangin’ out, doin’ kid stuff. Nothin’ ya need to inquire about. In fact, we’re just ‘bout ta head out an’ do extremely borin’ stuff that wouldn’t interest ya at all.”

“Knitting!” Sweetie Belle said suddenly, gulping, “Excessive knitting.”

“Followed by a yawn inducing round of Scrabble. Trust us, it's not even worth paying attention to us for, like, the next week at least,” said Scootaloo, smiling entirely too wide and forced.

“I see...” Sunset said, not remotely fooled by the girl’s, but not entirely sure what to make of their antics, either. She’d come over this way from helping Rainbow Dash finish cleaning up the gym and setting up some things for the summer sports clubs, but she’d sensed a momentary spike in spiritual pressure form somewhere over here.

She didn’t sense it now. She certainly didn’t see any Hollows, Soul Reapers, or Quincy around either. Maybe she’d imagined it? Frowning, Sunset looked to the three girls and said, “Look, I’m not going to pry into whatever you girls are up to this summer. I’m not that nosy. Just remember,” she lowered her voice a bit, genuine concern filling her tone, “You three know how dangerous things can get around town these days, so please be careful and if you see anything out of the ordinary, call one of us immediately.”

Ever since the Cutie Mark Crusaders had been brought up to speed on the weird spiritual happenings around town, Sunset and the other girls had made sure the three knew to call them if they even suspected they were in danger from a Hollow or something similar. Sunset wasn’t sure what she’d sensed a moment ago, but whatever it was, if she hadn’t imagined it, she didn’t want these kids in danger.

“We know,” said Applebloom, nodding her head, her pink bow bobbing, “An’ we’ll be super careful, ya can count on it.”

“Okay then. Well, I need to get going. Me and the others are hitting the beach today, so we’ll be out of town until evening. Try not to get into trouble while we’re out,” said Sunset, and walked away, still frowning a bit and trying to figure out what she’d sensed before.

When Sunset was out of sight, the three girls let out a collective sigh of relief.

“Yeash, I thought you were about to spill the beans all over the place,” Sweetie Belle said.

“Hey, I ain’t gonna crack that easily,” said Applebloom.

“You guys sure we shouldn’t tell them?” asked Scootaloo with a uneasy shadow on her features, “I mean, it’s not like we can’t trust them.”

“I know that, but that ain’t the reason,” Applebloom said, touching the bow ribbon tied into her hair, “I just don’t wan ‘em takin’ it away from us, an’ ya know they probably would. Or at least forbid us from doin’ nothin’ with it.”

“Rarity nearly caught me last night,” Sweetie Belle murmured, “It scared me stiff. I was lucky I convinced her I was just stealing her makeup.”

Scootaloo sighed, “Still worries me, but then again, I’m not the one with powers now.”

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked at each other, then went and both gave Scootaloo a hug.

“I’m sure you’ll get something soon. I mean, if we did, why wouldn’t you?”

“Well, you’re sisters have it, so it makes sense you two would,” Scootaloo said, her expression turning downcast, “Best I’ve got is a fangirl complex towards somebody that barely knows I’m there.”

“C’mon girls,” said Applebloom, “Let’s hit up someplace for grub and shake the frowns off! Scootaloo, yer critical ta me n’ Sweetie Belle’s trainin’, ain’t ya? Yer our coach!”

Scootaloo laughed half-heartedly, “Beats just sitting around watching you two stumble around trying to figure things out. And I do got some new training ideas we can test out today. Was making test dummies for it the other day.”

“Awesome, so what are we waiting for?” said Sweetie Belle, and the three girls shared another trio of high-fives.

“Cutie Mark Crusader Supernatural Superheroes!”

Somewhere in the distance, Sunset Shimmer got a cold shiver down her spine, and wasn’t sure why, but she didn’t think it was a good sign.

----------

The car might not have been a limousine, but its polished, steel blue surface and elegant curves just screamed money. Twilight Sparkle rather wished her family had more modest vehicles for the purpose of getting around town, or that the Rich family did as well, for that matter. Surprisingly, Filthy Rich drove the car himself, foregoing the use of a chauffeur. When she’d asked why, he’d simply grinned and said, “No point owning an expensive toy if I don’t play with myself, right?”

She supposed she couldn’t fault that logic.

Soarin was following them in another car, a larger SUV that carried Twilight’s friends and now research associates. Yet another vehicle, this one more a shiny, black van filled to the brim with laboratory equipment, was following at the back of the group and was driven by her own family’s butler, Robert.

The quaint wooden sign declaring the entrance to Camp Everfree loomed overhead, and Twilight looked around with growing appreciation for the beauty of nature that was seeping in from all sides. Camp Everfree was a tiny dot of civilization in a tapestry of well preserved, overflowing wilds. From the glistening lake to the mighty standing fields of pine trees, to the white caped distant mountains, there was an energy to this place that, for lack of a better word, Twilight could only describe as primal.

Camp Everfree itself looked like a modest affair to her, little more than half a dozen buildings and cabins situated along the western shore of the lake. It was easy to tell that while old and a tad worn, the Camp was lovingly cared for. Gloriosa and Timber Spruce had much to be proud of, having taken care of this place all by themselves.

And we’re taking it from them... she thought morosely, but then shook her head, No, we made a fair offer, and Gloriosa has accepted it. This is still their home. It will just serve a different purpose now.

She tried to reassure herself that she was doing the right thing, or at least the best she could under the circumstances. It’d taken Gloriosa some time to consider Twilight’s offer, but not as long as Twilight had feared it might. It was only the next day, but Gloriosa had called at the number Twilight had given her, and said she’d agreed to the proposal. Timber Spruce had been transferred back to Camp Everfree, as Twilight had given him one final check to ensure he was in healthy condition.

Now she was bringing Filthy Rich to the camp so they could both inspect it and work on deciding how to set it up for future training of Quincy cadets. Meanwhile Twilight and her research team would be setting up an auxiliary laboratory deeper in the forest. She knew Captain Celestia at least would be present at the camp for the initial part of summer, and she didn’t doubt plenty of Soul Reapers would be around. However she was confident she could keep her team’s lab hidden. She wanted to be nearby the camp, for when Adagio and Sunset made their move to rescue Ember. Twilight needed to be there to do her part for the plan as well, and an auxiliary lab for field testing away from a population center was as good an excuse as any.

Still, she was starting to feel like a juggler who was tossing around one too many knives. One slip up, and things could get bloody.

They parked in the grassy area just beyond the camp entrance, between two modest cabins with red roofs. Across a wider grass area there was a gazebo situated in front of the largest building in the area, a longhouse with a slanted green roof. Filthy Rich and Twilight got out of the car while her friends clambered out of the SUV. They all looked around with varying expressions of interest at the grand scene of nature around them. Even Indigo Zap seemed somewhat cheered as Sour Sweet helped her out of the SUV and into her wheelchair.

“This place is rather picturesque,” Sugarcoat said, “Which is what i would say if I was seeing it with actual eyes. Still, even just the spirit particles seem brighter than the ones in the city.”

“It is pretty, no doubting that,” commented Sunny Flare, her nose twitching before she let out a sneeze, “Ugh, way more plants around to mess with my allergies. The forest back at the Academy wasn’t this... pungent.”

“This land is perfect for our needs, young ladies,” said Filthy Rich, looking pleased with himself, but he also gave Twilight an appreciative smile as he gestured to her, “And you have my most sincere thanks for helping smooth over this acquisition, Miss Sparkle. Rest assured I’ll not soon forget the help, and I’m sure your father will be proud of how much initiative you’re taking.”

“I appreciate the thanks, Mr. Rich, but your gratitude should go to the owners of the camp. Gloriosa Daisy is the one who’s decided to accept my offer, and this remains her and her brother’s home,” she replied, and Filthy Rich nodded.

“Of course. Of course. I’m quite looking forward to meeting these siblings,” Filthy Rich replied as Soarin walked up.

“Say, don’t suppose you two object to me taking a bit of a walk about?” Soarin said, “I’d like to do a little recon of the perimeter. Get a feel for the area.”

Filthy Rich chuckled, waving a hand, “You don’t need to ask permission, Soarin. You’re a fellow Sternritter, so do as you feel is best. Speaking of which, Miss Sparkle, just how much about us do Gloriosa Daisy and Timber Spruce know?”

Twilight kept her face neutral as she said, “The basics, but not much else. They know you and I have a certain high status among the Quincy, but I haven't explained exactly what that status is or what it entails. I imagined once things were settled and I had a chance to speak with Sombra about it, we’d work out just what is or isn’t important for them to know.”

Filthy Rich gave her an odd look, “You do make a habit of speaking of His Majesty in familiar terms, but I’ve heard that he seems to prefer that, so I’ll say no more. At any rate, I suppose I’ll keep things simple with our new Academy caretakers. Spitfire is still mistress of the Academy, so once the transfer of cadets occurs it’ll be her that Gloriosa and Timber will be working closest with.”

“You guys have fun with that,” Soarin said, giving a mock salute, “I’ll let you know if I discover anything interesting out there.”

He vanished, a high speed Hirenkyaku taking him well out of view in a moment. Twilight trusted Soarin would be able to take care of himself out there. She was curious what he might find. Discord had said the Soul Reapers would be keeping their lab well hidden, but Soarin was Sternritter E, the Echo. If he’d been assigned to her due to the perceptiveness of his Schrift’s power, perhaps he’d discover the Soul Reaper lab and spare her and Adagio the trouble of searching? It’d be nice to have something to their way.

She was fairly sure the Soul Reapers wouldn’t be set up in Camp Everfree itself. The place seemed too small to house any kind of proper lab, although she didn’t know anything about what kind of equipment Soul Reapers used for their studies. If possible, once they found the place and busted Ember out, she wouldn’t mind taking some of the Soul Reaper’s equipment, just to pick at how it worked.

“Hey Twilight,” said Lemon Zest, jabbing a thumb at the van of lab gear that Robert had parked nearby and was opening up the back, “You want us to unload all this stuff here or what?”

“Wait until we’ve talked with Gloriosa,” Twilight replied, “I wanted to ask her about the forest and if there were any good clearings in the area we could use. Until then why don’t you girls just... hang around and enjoy the fresh air?”

“Can do!” said Lemon Zest, and immediately put her headphones back on.

With that Twilight and Filthy Rich started walking for the main building with the green roof while Twilight’s friends started wandering around, Indigo and Sugarcoat going to look at the small boathouse by the lake and it’s adjoining dock, while Lemon Zest and Sunny Flare wandered towards one of the cabins. Sour Sweet seemed content to stay with the vehicles, keeping an eye on things.

Before Twilight and Filthy Rich reached the entrance to the central building the doors opened and Gloriosa Daisy came out to meet them.

“Hello, Gloriosa,” said Twilight, nodding formally, then glanced around, “Where’s Timber?”

“Resting,” Gloriosa replied, “I know you gave him a clean bill of healthy, but I’d like him to stay down for another day or two, just in case. Now...” her eyes slide towards Filthy Rich with an unfriendly light in her eyes, “I suppose I should welcome you to Camp Everfree.”

Filthy Rich smiled with a flash of winning charm, approaching and offering Gloriosa a hand, “Thank you, thank you. I can’t tell you how happy I am that you’ve agreed to Miss Sparkle’s proposal. I assure you, Miss Daisy, that you won’t regret this decision. You may have your doubts, I understand. This is your home and you treasure this camp greatly. Let me give you my promise that although the purpose of the camp might change somewhat, you won’t ever have to worry about losing it ever again. On my honor as a Quincy, I swear to you, Camp Everfree will forever be your home, and as long as Quincy still stand to guard it, we will defend it to our last breath.”

Gloriosa raised her eyebrow at him, clearly not sure whether to take him seriously or not, but she gingerly took his hand and shook it, “I hope you’re right. I hope I don’t regret this, but if there’s anything that caused me to take this offer, it was the simple fact that if just one encounter with a Hollow nearly cost my brother his life... I can’t afford to do this all on my own.”

“Everything will be okay, Gloriosa,” said Twilight, “Trust us, the last thing any of us want is to see you or Timber Spruce harmed. If everything goes well, you won’t even notice we’re here...”

----------

“Well well well, this could be... problematic,” Meadowbrook said, sitting at his monitor. It was connected to a very delicate and sensitive spirit sensory array. It had a very short range, because it was designed for stealth operations to avoid detection. So all he could really scan was the area immediately around Camp Everfree, and even then, barely. Still, it was impossible to miss the Quincy spirit signatures in the area, an the small cameras they had placed on the boathouse, little more than a spider-sized box talisman with a spirit forged lens, showed a fuzzy picture of the Quincy in question.

“They look pretty young,” commented a Twelfth Division research at Meadowbrooks’ right shoulder, a woman with thick glasses, purple skin, and a head of curled orange hair, “Are they cadets, do you think?”

“Possibly. We’ll have to cross check their faces with our database, see what turns up,” Meadowbrook said, tapping various wooden keys on his terminal, “Still, better go inform the Captain. I’ll keep watch here.”

“Yes, Lieutenant,” the female researcher said, and quickly turned to scurry away from the monitoring room. It was little more than a bubble shaped tent sitting on a dry bed of sand. Outside it was a collection of similar tents, all field research tents arranged in a rough circle around a central research tent that was three times the size of the others. Everything was lit by glowing spirit lamps, and several other researchers in white lab coats worn over their black robes went hurrying about. Today was an experiment day, but Captain Starswirl might postpone it until they had a better handle on what the Quincy were doing here.

Within the main research tent, Captain Starswirl stood amid an arrangement of test equipment, pacing around a central platform that was hooked up to dozens of tubes and power cables. The elderly Captain was stroking his beard as he looked over a notebook, scribbling in it as he observed what was on the platform.

Up on the platform was the broken statue from Canterlot High School that contained the portal to Equestria. The Soul Reapers had moved it here recently, replacing it in the night with a fake statue that now sat outside the high school. The other thing on the platform was a large, circular containment ring, suspending within which was their ‘specimen’. Ward fields, glowing pale yellow, kept the female Arrancar in place, with further binding Kido keeping her arms and legs pinned in place with bands of crackling gold light. She’d been divested of her Zanpaktou, which was kept in a containment chamber in one of the other tents.

The girl couldn’t speak, given another binding spell was placed on her that consisted of a kanji symbol traced on her throat.

“Captain Starswirl,” the researcher said, “Lieutenant Meadowbrook wanted me to report to you that we’ve detected Quincy in the human summer camp.”

“Hmm?” Starswirl looked up from his notes, frowning, “Quincy, you say? How odd. How very odd. I suppose I’ll come take a look. We’re well safe behind our stealth wards, but I suppose this could be troublesome.”

He followed the researcher out of the central tent and back to the monitoring room where Meadowbrook waited. The Twelfth Division Lieutenant turned with a relieved look as his Captain entered.

“I hear we have some Quincy hereabouts?” said Starswirl, and Meadowbrook nodded.

“Looks that way, here,” he said, pointing at the monitor, “Eight of them. One has already gone off, probably to scout the area. Looks like two others are meeting with the camp owners, while the rest are just sort of wandering around the camp itself. I can’t get any readings on their reiatsu without making the sensor’s probing too obvious.”

“That’s fine, my boy, it’s not an issue,” said Starswirl, eyes keenly watching the monitors and cameras, “Captain Celestia told me something like this might happen. It was too much to hope that Camp Everfree would remain innocuous, although we were expecting Arrancar to show up, not Quincy.”

“We still haven’t picked up any Hollow readings, but these sensors are limited, Captain. They could be hiding out in the forest for all we know,” Meadowbrook pointed out.

“Quite true, Lieutenant. However, as long as we’re down here, and they’re up there, I suspect we’ll be relatively safe. And if they do discover us, well, we have myself, Captain Celestia, and Captain Luna present to deal with matters.”

“That is true sir, but what are the odds that they’ll find us here, of all places?” Meadowbrook asked, looking up at the tent’s roof, where a small opening acted as ventilation and window.

Up there was little more than deep blue darkness, barely punctuated by the barest hint of light. That was because, beyond the wards and barriers not only hiding the labs spirit energy and physical presence, there was also the thousands upon thousands of tons of water the barrier was keeping out as well...

After all, how else would they have hidden their lab at the bottom of Camp Everfree’s lake?

Episode 95: Life's a Beach

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Episode 95: Life's a Beach

“Nice of your brother to let us borrow his truck for this,” Sunset said, squeezed between Applejack in the driver’s seat and Clover in the passenger seat. Thankfully the deep, apple red truck’s cabin was spacious enough that she didn’t feel too cramped while the truck veered down a winding, well forested road between tall hills. Canterlot City was shockingly close to the continent's west coast, and all of an hour drive could get one to any number of pristine, sandy beaches. On an early afternoon summer drive, the air was fresh and warm, having shaped up to be the perfect day for exactly the kind of trip the girls intended.

In the back of the truck Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie sat alongside their one other Soul Reaper chaperone, Lieutenant Posey. Both her and Clover were wearing gigai false bodies designed to look like their spirit bodies, and Sunset knew they both carried gikon artificial soul candies so they could assume Soul Reaper form in case of danger. In Clover’s case, Sunset had invited her along, while Posey had been invited by Fluttershy. Her friend seemed uneasy with the Lieutenant around, yet also appeared to be making an effort to be open and friendly with Posey.

Sunset supposed she could understand that the two still had some issues to work out, considering the odd nature of their relationship. She hoped Fluttershy would be able to sort things through, and not hesitate to ask her friends for help if she needed anyone to talk to. At any rate, while the legality of her friends sitting in the truck bed was questionable at best, Applejack assured Sunset that the local police were pretty lax on this kind of thing, especially during summer when more than a few groups of kids would do this exact same thing. Sunset wasn’t too concerned on the safety front, either, given all of her friends were able to protect themselves in case of an accident, or a Hollow attack.

You’re worrying again, Sunset. Stop it. Today is the start of a week of decompressing. Don’t ruin it before you even get to the beach, she told herself, hugging the plushie rabbit sitting in her lap.

“Hey, not so tight there, boss, I’m not all stuffing, you know?” said Chappy, and Sunset patted her on the head.

“Sorry. You remember you need to keep out of sight when we get to the beach, right? Don’t go talking to people or walking around where others can see.”

“I know, I know. I’ll be good and keep out of sight. I’m just looking forward to checking out an actual beach with a real ocean. I bet there’ll be so many hotties out there to feast my eyes upon! Mmm, is a real shame Big Mac isn’t coming with us, he’d look great in trunks.”

“Sunset, could ya do somethin’ about yer plush doll droolin’ on the seat over fantasies o’ my brother?” Applejack asked through tight lips, taking a turn a tad sharper than she had to.

“Chappy, fantasize about somebody other than Big Mac, and save the drool until we actually get to the beach,” Sunset said, and Chappy let out a saddened sigh.

“My natural instincts are being unjustly curtailed...”

“You really shouldn’t have such instincts in the first place,” said Clover, glancing at Chappy with a curious eye, “I still wish we could examine you more closely to determine just what’s gone off about your programming. I know the Chappy model isn’t supposed to have any kind of hedonistic streak.”

“It’s fine as long as she doesn’t do anything rash,” Sunset said, eyeing Chappy sternly, “Especially when using my body.”

“How many times do I have to say I’m sorry?” said Chappy, folding her squishy plush arms across her chest.

“More, but we’ll leave it at that for now, I think I see the beach,” Sunset said, leaning forward and squinting as she caught sight of a flash of blue and white through a break in the trees.

This particular stretch of coast was called Dreaming Shores, and consisted of a gently curved, two and a half mile long bay nestled between two short peninsulas, it’s shore covered in a pristine beach of white sand. The heavy pine forests went up nearly to the beach edge, providing a verdant backdrop to the picturesque setting. Resort cabins dotted the hillsides on either peninsula, and small but well appointed strip mall and several restaurants serviced the beach itself and its regular visitors. Parking was available all across the beach front, and predictably for the first week of summer, the place was already looking packed.

Sunset could spot a veritable forest of beach umbrellas lining the shore even as Applejack pulled the truck down the last bend in the road to reach the street where the parking lots were located. Luckily she and the girls had left early enough after school that day, that while the beach was already swarming, parking was still only half full.

As everyone piled out and moved to the back of the truck to start unloading beach gear, ranging from an elegant white tanning chair for Rarity to a dizzying array of colorful inflatables for Pinkie Pie. Sunset saw both Clover and Posey looking at the beach with naked curiosity.

“You know it never occurred to me to ask, but is this both of your first time to a beach?”

“Oh, um, sort of?” said Posey, “Our Division sometimes trains near one of the lakes outside Soul Society, but we don’t have anything quite like this.”

“The spirit realm has an ocean, but its pretty far from Soul Society,” explained Clover, eyes never leaving the shining waters beyond the beach, “I’ve never been there, myself, so this is my first time seeing the living world’s ocean, or any ocean for that matter. Wasn’t expecting it to be quite this... big.”

“Yer spirit world’s got some odd geography if it’s only got the one ocean,” commented Applejack, shouldering a bag with her swimsuit packed inside. Most of the girls were still in their regular summer clothes, but would change when the mood to swim hit them. Rarity had actually provided some new swim suits for everyone, save for Clover and Posey, who were sort of last minute additions. Still, even the two Soul Reapers had been able to acquire suitable garments for the excursion. Clover sporting a forest green two piece swimsuit under a teal waist-skirt and loose, short sleeved shirt, which Clover left open since she had the swimsuit top on. Posey was more conservatively dressed with a pale white and yellow trimmed skirt and blouse, along with a wide, light blue sunhat.

“Our ocean is, from what I researched at the Academy, somewhat larger than this Pacific Ocean,” Clover replied, perhaps a tad defensively, “Since souls don’t require water, we’re not as dependent on it as living humans are. Mostly we just don’t have a reason to pay much attention to our ocean. It’s loosely connected to the Beast Realm, and is filled with dangerous predators. Not to mention the weather is often stormy and unpredictable. There’s almost no reason to have settlements near it, and its far enough away from Seireitei that Hollows can frequent the area as well.”

“Now now, let us have no talk of Hollows or anything else spiritual oriented today, shall we?” said Rarity, “We are here to enjoy ourselves, girls, so I say we get right to it!”

“Heck yeah!” Rainbow Dash said, spinning a volleyball on one finger, “Who’s up for a game?”

“I’d be down fer some competition. Hey Clover, Posey, why don’t ya both pick a team, an’ we’ll show you Soul Reaper gals how humans play volleyball?” Applejack said, standing beside Rainbow Dash.

Clover gave Sunset a questioning look, “What’s volleyball?”

Sunset chuckled, “C’mon, we’ll show you.”

----------

While the vast bulk of the Everfree Forest stretched for scores of miles beyond the city limits, branches of it still touched the edge of the Canterlot City outskirts. Camp Everfree itself wasn’t particularly far from the city either, but smaller, more public forest paths and campgrounds were accessible within the span of a short bus ride. It was one of these forest paths that the Cutie Mark Crusaders had selected for their use, going off path for a brief hike until they found a small hill that overlooked the gleaming blue lake Camp Everfree was nestled up against, still several miles distant.

The girls had packed lunch and other supplies into their backpacks, and were enjoying the view while eating a quick snack before they got down to business. Once that was done, Scootaloo opened up a sporty red duffel bag she’d brought along and started to remove various objects; several frisbees, a stack of rolled up target sheets, a bag of golf balls, a can of green spray paint, a pair of white blindfolds, and a pair of small dummies made out of paper mache that were mocked up to look suspiciously like Hollow masks.

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle watched as Scootaloo used a staple gun to attach the bullseye target sheets to several trees, the rest of the equipment set off to the side.

“Figure today we’ll go over all the basics we’ve figured out about your powers so far, then test out a few new ideas I’ve had,” Scootaloo said, “Since Sweetie Belle seems furthest along, we’ll start with her.”

“Now wait a’ tic, I should go first!” Applebloom piped in, “Since Sweetie Belle’s further along, I oughta get a’ chance ta catch up!”

“We’re not competing,” Sweete Belle said, “We’re just figuring these weird powers out.”

“Yeah, well, I wanna go first then, if that’s okay,” Applebloom said, finishing off a juice box and tossing it into a small trash bag they’d brought along, in order to avoid being litterbugs. The farm girl stood up from the log she and Sweetie Belle were using as seats and went over to where Scootaloo had finished setting up the targets.

“I suppose its fine if you really want to go first,” Scootaloo said, going over and picking up one of the blindfolds.

“What’s that fer?” asked Applebloom.

“We’re trying something different today,” Scootaloo said, “You ever see that one movie with the space ships and laser swords?”

“Ooooh yeah, ‘feel the Force’ or something, right? Ya thinkin’ if ya blindfold us, that’ll help us figure our powers out better?”

“Beats me, but figured it was worth a shot,” said Scootlaoo, going up behind Applebloom to tie the blindfold around the other girl’s eyes, “I’ve heard Rainbow Dash and her friends talking about ‘spiritual pressure’ and stuff, and it sounds like they learn to sense things without even seeing them.”

“Uh, Scootaloo, even if that’s true, how are we supposed to ‘sense’ the targets? They’re made of paper, not spirit stuff, right?” asked Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo just shrugged.

“Was thinking more that using your powers while blindfolded would just help you feel them out better. It’s not really about hitting the targets, just getting more familiar with what you feel when you use them rather than what you see.”

“I got it, I got it,” said Applebloom, “Now lemme try this out.”

Scootaloo joined Sweetie Belle by the fallen log while Applebloom reached up to touch the pink bow tied into her hair. She took a deep breath, stilling herself. Applebloom reached within, grasping a deep rooted desire and cherished memory, the only memory she had of her mother. It was a vague thing, painted in streaks of fuzzed out color. Applebloom couldn’t have been more than a toddler, possibly less, but she remembered the sensation of warm hands that smelled of farm dirt and grass patting her head and tiring this rose pink bow into her hair. If she focused, she could almost remember her mother’s voice, sweet as a fresh apple and strong as an oak tree.

Her power had first manifested the day after Applejack had vanished for those few days she’d been gone to Soul Society. Applebloom had been fearing for her sister, and had chanced upon an old photo of her parents. Amid all the confusing feelings that had welled up, she’d touched her hair bow and fervently wished her mother and father were still around. She’d silently prayed for the strength to look after her family, the same way Applejack looked out for her.

And now, as then, the bow in her hair came alive at those feelings, swirling into a torrent of radiant red colors. They flowed in numerous strands of light to form around Applebloom’s right arm, encasing it and then flashing into solid form. What appeared there was a hefty leather bracer the same rosy color as her bow, along with a deeper red leather handle that appeared in her hand and extended to a long, curled whip made of tightly coiled metal strands. The whip was capped with a small spike at the end, shaped almost like a pointed, miniature shield with an apple mark on its metal surface.

“Looks so cool, every time I see it,” Scootaloo said, “Okay Applebloom, just do like we did before, only this time try to feel out where the targets are, and just get used to what using your whip feels like.”

“Right then! Let’s do it!” Applebloom took up a perhaps overly dramatic stance as she snapped the whip out and lashed it towards where she imagined the trees and targets to be. Without any sight to work with, she instead tried to mentally visualize what she wanted the whip to do, and pulverize the target furthest to the left.

Much as she’d already discovered, the whip reacted to her impulses as much as her physically swinging. It all but shot forward like a missile, snapping around wildly to try and smash through the target in question. Applebloom’s mental focus was off, however, and the whip sailed past one tree, then smashed hard into anther. The shield-shaped spike on the end of the whip hit like a high caliber sniper round, blasting through the other tree and the whip kept right on going, it’s metal length seeming to infinitely extend from the handle Applebloom was holding. She let out a bit of a squeak as she grabbed the handle with both hands and tried to reign the whip in as it continued to pierce through about a dozen more trees across a length of a hundred yards down the forest length.

“I, uh, think you missed,” Sweetie Belle said, and Applebloom grunted.

“I noticed. Who’s idea were these stupid blindfolds!?”

“Jeeze, relax Applebloom, just try again,” said Scootlaoo while Applebloom struggled to pull her whip back, which was currently lodged in numerous trees.

“Dang it, git back here whip!” Applebloom yanked and yanked, not quite able to get the whip to contract back to her. Then with a frustrated shout from her, the whip’s length blazed with scarlet light, coating itself in searing energy that burned through the tree trunks it was stuck in. It spun around wildly, cutting through yet more trees. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle wisely hit the deck, covering their heads as the searing whip flailed around until it finally contracted back to normal length in Applebloom’s hand.

“Hey, did it work? Did the whip come back?” asked Applebloom. Her query was followed by the creaking sound of a dozen sliced in half trees toppling to the forest floor in a series of heavy crashes. “Uh... is that a yes?”

“Is it my turn yet?” asked Sweetie Belle.

----------

Summer heat made the ‘friendly’ game of volleyball a swiftly sweaty affair, especially given that any time Rainbow Dash and Applejack were on opposite teams, the term ‘friendly’ rapidly got reinterpreted into ‘fiercely competitive’. Fortunately both girls had met their match in the unlikely combination of Clover and Posey, the former on Rainbow Dash’s team and the later on Applejack’s. For two girls who’d never played the game before, they were both proving dangerous naturals at it, although for completely different reasons.

“Coming at ya!” Applejack shouted, leaping prodigiously to spike the ball down with a lot more force than a girl her size ought to be able to.

The ball skewed towards the side, but Rainbow Dash leaped to knock it upwards before it could hit the sand. Clover, standing in just the right spot, managed to strike the ball to send it sailing at an unusual angle over the net, faster than Applejack could compensate for. Clover wasn’t athletic, but she was quite good at calculating angles and knowing just where the ball was going to go at any given time.

“Posey, get it!” Applejack shouted, seeing Posey was starring off towards the ocean at the crowds of swimmers, barely paying attention. Yet the moment the pleasant faced girl turned and saw the ball, she held up a hand.

“I, um, got it,” she said quietly, and hit the ball. Whether she was just her father’s daughter or if her gigai was unusually modified for strength, her light ‘tap’ on the ball sent it blazing across the net, near scorching the top of it.

Luckily for Rainbow Dash and Clover, the ball kept right on going until it exploded into a trash can across the street. Sunset Shimmer, carrying over some freshly purchased snowcones for everyone, eyed the flaming ball and was thankful everyone else at the beach seemed distracted enough by their own fun not to notice.

“I see the competition has, uh, gotten hotter the past few minutes. Why don’t you guys take a break?”

“No way! We’re tied, and I refuse to accept a tie!” Rainbow Dash said, but Clover, fascinated by the snowcones Sunset was holding, had already walked over to check them out.

“What are these?” she asked, “They look a little like rice balls made out of colored ice.”

“They’re snowcones,” Sunset said, offering one up, which Clover took carefully, as if afraid to drop it, “That one’s mango flavored.”

Clover took an experimental bite, and her eyes widened with pleasure as she took another, “Mmm, this is really perfect for this weather.”

“I know, right? The rest of you guys want some, or what?”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash eyed each other with that smoldering look of heated competitiveness, but after a second they both shrugged, Applejack saying, “We’ll settle the score some other time, Dash. I’m more parched than a desert jackalope, an’ thinkin’ its high time we tried out Rarity’s new swimin’ duds anyhows.”

“Yeah, I could dig some swimming right now,” Rainbow Dash agreed, “But snowcones first.”

“So has anyone seen where everybody else has gone off to?” asked Sunset as the girls each grabbed a snowcone, “I brought enough for everyone.”

“Rarity’s getting her tan on over there,” Rainbow Dash said, nodding a few dozen yards down the beach where Rarity was laid out upon her white beach chair. She was wearing her own striking two piece swimsuit, a purple that matched her hair but with bright blue frills. Both pieces covered just enough for the get-up to be just the right, tantalizing shade short of immodest, as if Rarity knew exactly how much her appearance drew attention but was still maintaining an aura of innocence about it.

Given she already had a few of the local beach going men serving her drinks and providing fanning via large, novelty eastern-style fans, Sunset imagined Rarity knew exactly what she was about.

"Any sign of Chappy?" Sunset asked with a hint of concern. She'd told to artificial soul to do her best to stay out of sight, but still, it was worrying that she'd all but vanished altogether the moment they'd hit the beach.

Rainbow Dash grinned at the question, "Oh, last I saw of her, she was using a toy bucket as a hiding pot and was slowly cruising around the beach, checking out... well... you know." Rainbow jabbed a thumb towards a nearby group of young men, wearing nothing but bathing suits, who were engaged in rigorous construction of a sand fort. Sunset, looking, couldn't help but notice that all of the men were at least 7s or higher, but that there was a conspicuous blue sand bucket nearby that every now and then scooted about, as if trying to get a better angle on the men.

"What is wrong with that rabbit?" Sunset said with a hefty sigh.

"Might have something to do with her having a personality based on a rabbit," Rainbow Dash suggested.

"Well, whatever, she can't do any harm in a plushie body. Where's everyone else?"

“An’ last I saw o’ Pinkie Pie an’ Fluttershy, they were off lookin’ fer some sea turtles down the other direction,” Applejack said.

“Guess I’ll go look for them and bring them the snowcones before they melt. One of you mind bringing Rarity hers?” Sunset asked, and Applejack was quick to nod.

“I’ll take care o’ it. Once ya find Pinkie and Fluttershy, bring ‘em on back an’ we’ll all hit the water together.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Sunset replied, moving off down the beach, and noticing both Clover and Posey were following her, “Oh, you two want to help?”

“Honestly I’m just curious what these ‘sea turtles’ are,” said Clover, while Posey coughed and hid part of her face behind her hair.

“Um, I... just wanted to see Fluttershy, if that’s not a problem. I mean, if it is, that’s okay, I can go try swimming.”

A thought struck Sunset like a quarrel from a crossbow as she glanced back at the two Soul Reapers, “Do either of you actually know how to swim? I mean, if oceans and rivers aren’t common back in Soul Society...”

The two girls looked at each other as if they didn’t get the question, and Clover asked, “Do you actually have to learn how to swim? It looks pretty easy.”

“Right, well, let’s just say its a bit more complicated than it looks, but Pinkie Pie brought a lot of floaties, so I think we’ll manage. Just, uh, make sure you don’t try swimming without one of us around to help out. Just in case.”

Up the north end of the beach there were a number of short, sandy bluffs, some of them sporting tufts of tall, green grass. Sunset found Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy on the other side of these tiny bluffs, kneeling around a small depression in the sand between bluffs.

“Hey guys, got you some snowcones. Better get them before they turn into flavored watercones,” Sunset said, coming up to the pair and peering curiously over their shoulders, “What are you looking at?”

The depression in the sand was filled with an assortment of broken eggshells, and milling about in all their tiny, adorably glory was around two dozen baby sea turtles. Sunset wasn’t even all that into cute things, but could barely suppress an ‘aww’ as she looked at them.

Posey was not as restrained.

“Awwwwwwww! They’re so cuuuute!” The girl knelt down beside Fluttershy, not noticing the other girl’s look of distress, and reached out to touch one. Fluttershy’s hand moved quickly, halting Posey’s and causing the Soul Reaper to look up in confusion.

“I’m sorry, but its best not to touch them right now,” Fluttershy said, and Posey, face flushed with embarrassment, pulled her hand back and nodded, silently chastised.

“Is something wrong?” asked Clover with clear curiosity as she gazed upon the sea turtles, “Surely they’re not dangerous?”

Fluttershy shook her head, “Of course not. It’s just that when Pinkie and I found them, these poor babies were still here in their hatching nest, even though they must have hatched some time ago. I don’t know why, but they won’t leave the nest.”

“Afraid I don’t know much about sea turtles, but I’m assuming this isn’t normal?” asked Sunset, quirking up an eyebrow.

“It’s isn’t,” confirmed Fluttershy, frowning in thought. Meanwhile Pinkie Pie, smelling sugar, snatched up the two remaining snowcones, passing one over to Fluttershy.

“Mena said the little baby turtles smelled afraid,” said Pinkie Pie as she bit into her snowcone, then spoke around the mouthful, “Su ah sunt hur oot tu unvushtugate.”

“Huh?”

Pinkie Pie gulped the snowcone down and repeated, “I sent Mena out to investigate. Take a peek around. See if there’s anything out there to spook the babies.”

“Got it. But what could be scaring them?” Sunset closed her eyes and focused, letting her spiritual senses spread out around her. “I’m not sensing anything out of the ordinary.”

“Neither am I,” said Clover, having similarly started searching around with her spiritual senses, “If there was a Hollow in the area, it’d have to be extremely crafty to be avoiding detection.”

“Not everything weird around here involves Hollows,” Sunset said, “This might not even be anything unnatural. For all we know there’s a more rational, scientific explanation for some scared baby sea turtles.”

A pensive look toughed Fluttershy’s features, but she slowly nodded, “I suppose you’re right, but I still worry for the poor little dears. If they just stay in their nest, they won’t be able to survive.”

“Why not just pick them up and carry them to the water, if that’s where they need to go?” suggested Clover, but Fluttershy shook her head vigorously.

“No, we can’t do that. It’d disrupt their natural instincts. Furthermore, since we don’t know why they’re scared, simply carrying them to the ocean might make their fear worse.”

“Look,” Sunset said, kneeling next to Fluttershy and putting a hand on her shoulder, “I understand you’re worried about these little guys, but you’re not going to fix anything just sitting here. Why don’t we take our time and try and enjoy the day, and while we’re doing that keep an eye out for anything unusual? Whatever’s spooking them might go away on its own. If they’re still here in a few hours, we can take the time to do a more thorough search.”

“I...” Fluttershy paused, eyes struggling with some internal debate, eventually leading to her saying, “Okay.”

As the group all stood and got ready to move, Pinkie Pie pointed towards the beach, “Oh hey, Mena’s coming back! Hey Mena, over here!”

Sunset turned and blinked at Pinkie Pie’s doppelganger, wondering just where Pinkamena had gotten a hold of a swimsuit that had spikes on it. Then again, Pinkamena tended to manifest with her own clothes, so maybe this was just her idea of a proper bathing suit for a day at the beach? But seriously, black lace and spikes? Also while Rarity had been going for tastefully tantalizing with her suit, Pinkamena seemed to be going for ‘threatening the PG-13 rating’. Not that Pinkamena seemed to notice or care about the stares sent her way as she approached them with a bored gait, glancing at all of them gathered there with a critical eye.

“Sea turtles sure are popular, aren’t they? And here I was thinking they simply looked tasty, like cute little chicken-nuggets.”

“Meeenaaa!” Pinkie Pie chided, and Pinkamena rolled her eyes.

“Joking. So about that look around you wanted me to do? Didn’t find any big, obvious flashing signs saying ‘Scary Thing Over Here’. I sniffed around, and aside from a tantalizing amount of yummy looking people walking around all sweaty and scantily clad, I didn’t smell anything that seemed too weird. Water doesn’t have a lot of fish in it, though.”

“No fish?” Sunset asked, and Pinkamena gave her a flat look.

“I didn’t say ‘no fish’, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to grab a snack as I was swimming around,” she flashed a toothy grin entirely too much like a shark’s, “But there were a lot fewer than I would’ve expected to see out there.”

Sunset wasn’t sure what to make of that, and by the looks on her companion’s faces, neither did anyone else. She sighed, “Be nice if Twilight were here. She’s the one with the extensive mental library and head for theory.”

“You’re pretty smart too, Sunny,” said Pinkie Pie, “I bet you could solve the mystery.”

“I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I’m the kind of gal who prefers to be able to experiment and get my hands dirty to solve scientific problems. I’m not so much on theory-crafting without a chance to screw around with evidence... but this is starting to sound like a real mystery.” She shook her head, “But we’re here to relax, people, and that’s what I plan to do.”

“I can get behind that,” Pinkamena said, licking her lips, “Besides, looks like that Twilight girl is busy screwing around with her other friends, anyway.”

“Yeah, I... wait, what?” Sunset said, looking at Pinkamena in confusion. The doppelganger just gestured with a thumb over her shoulder, pointing towards the opposite side of the bluffs.

“Saw her down the beach a ways, hanging out with some other group of chicks. Not sure what they were doing. Looked like some kind of swimming lesson. I didn’t really bother taking a closer look.”

Clover and Posey exchanged meaningful looks, Posey saying, “You mean Twilight Sparkle, right? Isn’t she, um, working with the Quincy now?”

A flash of concerned looks also passed between Sunset, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Clover and Posey might know about Twilight being with the Quincy, but only Clover had known about her having contact with Twilight since then. Of course while keeping that a secret had advantages, it would also be suspicious if Sunset tried to act like she had no interest in talking to Twilight. If nothing else, Clover knew just how close Twilight was with the group, and was as much her friend as anybody else.

Sunset decided to take the lead, saying, “She is, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t still friends. Try to remember, guys, my friends and I aren’t part of Soul Society, so there’s nothing that says we can still hang out and talk with Twilight on occasion.”

Clover nodded, “Of course. You’re under no obligation to ignore a friend, just because she’s a Quincy. Posey and I won’t interfere if you want to talk to her. In fact I wouldn’t mind saying hi, myself.”

Posey looked less than enthused by this, but she glanced at Fluttershy with a trusting gaze before saying, “I suppose as long as they’re not engaged in any Hollow hunting activities then I can overlook their presence. Our primary goal is to guard you girls and the portal research project, but as long as the Quincy make no aggressive moves, we’re not authorized to engage them anyway. I’ll, um, go back and see that your other friends know what’s going on, if you want to go talk to this Twilight?”

“Actually, how about the rest of you go on back to the others?” said Sunset, “I think everyone’s planning ot hit the water for a good swim, and I’ll join you all shortly. Clover and me will talk to Twilight, see how she’s doing,” and what she’s doing out here, “And hey, maybe she and her new friends will be up for hanging out together?”

“That’d be super-duper niffy!” said Pinkie Pie, “We can make it one big beach party!”

“That would be nice,” Fluttershy agreed, “Everyone together, enjoying a nice, quiet day. I just hope these poor sea turtles eventually overcome whatever is making them scared and they go to the ocean.”

“Only time will tell. Come on Clover, let’s go say hi to Twilight,” Sunset said, and the group split, with Sunset and Clover following the direction Pinkamena had indicated. It took a few minutes, but eventually they found Twilight, who was quite a ways up the north side of the beach, at the curve where it started to become the ‘south’ shore of the northern peninsula.

This part of the beach was narrower than the rest, and hence wasn’t particularly populated by local beach goers. In fact Twilight and the group of familiar girls around her had a large stretch of beach all to themselves. As Sunset and Clover got closer, she recognized the girls that were with Twilight.

“The Shadowbolts...” she said, and Clover glanced at her questioningly. Quickly Sunset elaborated, “They were the girls from Crystal Prep who competed against us during the Friendship Games. I haven’t really seen much of them since then.”

Clover tensed slightly, nodding, “Crystal Prep. You do know that that school is essentially a preparatory academy for some of the most influential and powerful Quincy families, right?”

“I didn’t, but I’m not exactly shocked, either,” Sunset said, “In fact it makes perfect sense, all things considered. Chances are, each of them is a Quincy.”

Looking at the group, Sunset wasn’t sure what Twilight and the Shadowbolts were doing. Twilight herself was standing on the water’s edge, holding a device in her hand that looked like a large scanner of some sort, with multiple twirling antennae and several glowing crystals embedded in it above a circular screen. An irate looking Sour Sweet was sitting nearby on a beach towel, a half drained water bottle in her hands as she stared out at the water. Beside Twilight stood Sugarcoat, her ‘eyes’ focused on a point in the water where air bubbles were rising. What caught Sunset’s attention was that Sugarcoat’s usual glasses were replaced by some high tech looking visor, and that Sour Sweet had several prominent, nearly impossible to miss burn scars covering one side of her face.

What in the world...? Sunset wondered, then heard sputtering from the water. Turning to look, she saw that the spot where there’d been bubbles now burst with the appearance of the three other Shadowbolts. Indigo Zap was coughing and sputtering, supported on either side by Lemon Zest and Sunny Flare. Three girls started to awkwardly swim to shore, looking as if Indigo Zap was having trouble swimming and needed the other two to help her.

“Indigo,” Twilight said, concern deeply rooted in her voice, “I’m sorry. I thought the calibration was ready for a water test, but it looks like I still need more data.”

Indigo Zap, still coughing a bit, said past clenched teeth, “I’m fine, so stop apologizing! It’s... it’s just hard, that’s all. I can do this! We’ll just do another run. I think I’ve worked out what’s-waaaaa!”

She bleated out a haphazard shout as she tried to stand in the shallows, and her legs buckled beneath her. Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest were quick to catch her, and help Indigo walk out of the shallow water and back to shore. Sunset couldn’t quite tell, but it looked as if something was wrong with Indigo’s legs. She was wearing a full body scuba diving suit, one that covered her whole body down to her toes, leaving only her head and hands exposed. Yet even then, something looked off about her legs. Too bulky, not quite as toned and streamlined as Sunset knew the athletic girl’s legs to be.

In fact, it’s not too different form how off the gloves Twilight’s wearing look, Sunset realized, noting that while Twilight was wearing lighter clothes for the beach, she still had those same gloves on from before.

As she was puzzling that out, her and Clover’s approach was finally noticed, Sugarcoat turning towards them with that odd visor seeming to glint under the sunlight. She said something ot Twilight that Sunset couldn’t hear, but in short order Twilight had turned to spot them, Sour Sweet had jumped to her feet, standing as if ready for a fight, and the other Shadowbolts stumbled out of the shallows, eyeing Sunset and Clover with clear suspicion.

Gulping, Sunset walked into conversation distance and raised a hand in a friendly wave, “Hey there Twilight. Surprised to see you out here.”

Sugarcoat spoke first, fingers adjusting her visor much as she once had with her glasses, “It’s equally surprising to see you here. Especially with your Soul Reaper friend.”

Clover blinked, opening her mouth to make a denial, but then appeared to think better of it and asked, “How could you tell?”

Sour Sweet smirked, “Oh it was just a lucky guess... do you think we’re idiots!? Even half trained cadets are taught how to spot a gigai! I don’t know if you know this, but you Soul Reapers walk around in those fake bodies like you don’t know what walking even is!”

“Hey now, let’s just relax,” Sunset said, “We’re not here for a fight. I just saw you guys here and thought I’d say hi to my friend and see what she was up to. Twilight?”

Twilight looked nervously at the Shadowbolts and said, “Girls, settle down. Sunset and Clover are good people and can be trusted.”

“They’re both still Soul Reapers,” said Sunny Flare, eyes narrowing, “So what we’re doing here isn’t any of their business.”

“It’s also not a secret,” said Twilight, but her eyes flicked towards Indigo Zap, “Although given its a personal matter as well, it’s up to you whether you’re comfortable with it being explained to them, Indigo.”

To Sunset it still appeared as if Indigo Zap was having difficulty standing, partially leaning on her friends. The girl’s eyes held a wealth of frustration and buried pain, but she grit her teeth and appeared to force herself to let go of Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest, making herself stand on her unsteady legs. It was then that Sunset started to sense the spirit energy stemming from Indigo. Not a lot, but small stings of it that seemed to be concentrated around her legs.

“I’m never going to get over this if I’m just going around hiding it,” Indigo Zap said, “And it’s not like it’s some big Quincy secret we’re revealing, right? So screw it, you two wanna know what we’re doing here? Fine, take a look...”

Indigo, with some difficult, bent over and pulled up the edge of one of the legs of her suit, where a zipper could be unzipped to reveal the leg beneath. Only instead of human flesh, what was there looked like a combination of metal, ceramics, and plastic with smooth, articulated joints. As Indigo unzipped the pant leg more, it became obvious the artificial prosthetic went all the way up to her thighs.

Sunset was stunned for a moment, unsure of how to respond to such a sight. Indigo Zap certainly hadn’t been missing a leg the last time she’d seen the girl, and given that she was clearly having trouble with both legs, Sunset didn’t need to see the other one to imagine it was also a prosthetic. Immense sympathy welled up in Sunset and her voice became very soft and understanding, “I’m sorry, Indigo. You don’t have to say anything else. We’ll go.”

“It’s fine,” Indigo said, zipping the diving suit leg back up, “I don’t want to be pitied, here. And you don’t have to go anywhere. Like Twilight said, what we’re doing here isn’t some classified Quincy thing. She’s just helping me get used to these artificial legs, and working on making them better.”

“Is the spirit energy I’m sensing being used to manipulate the legs?” asked Clover,and at the less than friendly looks from most of the Quincy girls she blanched and added, “Just asking.”

“Yeah...” Indigo said, glancing at Twilight, “Twi here knows all the details and stuff. I’m mostly just following her instructions on how to move reishi strings to get the legs to move.”

“It’s a variation on the Ransotengai technique,” Twilight said, “Individual reishi strings can be used for a Quincy to control their body, not unlike a puppet. The original technique was for Quincy to fight while still having broken limbs, or being paralyzed by an enemy ability. The same basic concept can be applied to a prosthetic limb, too, but it requires a bit more fine control given the prosthetic isn’t a Quincy’s natural limb, so its harder to control. That’s why I’ve made adjustments to the leg designs to make reishi flow better through them, and I’ve added something extra to hopefully make limb movement smoother, that being a touch of magic.”

“Magic?” Sunset said, tilting her head curiously. “How, exactly?”

“Well,” Twilight adjusted her glasses and turned her attention to her scanner, motioning Sunset and Clover to come over and look at it’s screen, “As you can see here, I’ve embedded several gems into the legs at key points. Certain gems channel different magical energies, I’ve discovered, and if manipulated by reishi, the energy of a spirit particle and that of a magic particle can interact. The gems I’ve put in the legs act in two fashions. One is a gravitational spell that negates the extra weight of the materials to better simulate the weight and density of real flesh. The other is a propelling spell, in very minute amounts, that allow limb movement between the artificial joints to be smoother and more natural. Right now we’ve been doing swim tests with Indigo to make sure the magic continues to function when under continuous stress, and to help calibrate the legs so Indigo can manipulate them more naturally. I’m really hoping we’ll make enough progress today that the next set of adjustments will let her walk like normal again.”

“Be nice to say goodbye to that damn wheelchair,” Indigo said, sighing.

For Sunset, while she found what she was seeing on the scanner screen fascinating, and was also intrigued by what Twilight was saying, she was also a little concerned. “Twilight, you couldn’t have done this without having access to a source of magic, right? So, don’t take this the wrong way, but how are you using magic?”

Twilight blinked at her, then seemed to pause as if listening to a voice only she could hear before nodding, as if in reluctant agreement with that voice, “This might be a little hard for you to hear, Sunset, but please don’t freak out, okay? Promise me you won’t?”

“Uh... okay? I promise I won’t freak out, whatever you say,” Sunset said, raising a hand over her heart for emphasis.

Twilight gulped, and said, “The, uh, day you purged Midnight Sparkle from me? Well, it, er... turns out she wasn’t really ‘purged’ so much as just weakened. She’s still inside me, along with a lot of magical energy leftover from the Friendship Games. We’ve been working together for awhile now.”

“What!?”

“You said you wouldn't freak out!”

“This isn’t me freaking out! This is me having a very loud and concerned reaction! Twilight, do you remember what happened when you were like that!? Reality started getting holes punched in it like cardboard! Wait... waitwaitwait, when you say ‘working with her’, are you telling me this other you is, like, some alternate personality? Because last time it was sort of like you drunk on magic, but this is sounding like what Pinkie Pie’s got with her Fullbring.”

The other girls were all now starring at the pair of them, although from the looks on the Shadowbolt’s faces they already knew about Midnight Sparkle. Clover looked more confused. Although the Soul Reaper knew about the Friendship Game’s incident, she didn’t really grasp the implications of Midnight Sparkle’s return the way Sunset did. For Sunset, this was a frightening prospect. Twilight had been wielding magic on a level that had matched the alicorn Princesses, possibly even surpassed them, and had had zero restraint while doing so! Midnight Sparkle was a horrifying incarnation of pure magic without any rational or moral constraints, and it’d only been Sunset’s own ability to harness the harmonious magic inside herself and her friends that had let her even confront Midnight on even terms. Even then, Sunset may well have lost if Spike hadn’t brought Twilight back to her senses.

To say this news was unnerving was an understatement, and Sunset prided herself on the fact that she hadn’t made more of an outburst. Still, Twilight looked at her with obvious hurt, but also a sort of steel will that hadn’t been there before she’d left for the Quincy.

“I understand you’re worried, Sunset. It’s entirely understandable. Please, try to listen to me first, without pre-judging. Midnight is... is a little different than what you might think. She’s a part of me, and while she is a tad reckless when it comes to magic, she’s been nothing but helpful to me since I agreed to cooperate with her. She’s given me a chance to use and study magic, in the right way, cautiously and with proper experimentation rather than using it haphazardly. I... I’m heading up research on magic for the Quincy, Sunset, and helping Indigo here is just part of that.”

“Twilight, this may be straying beyond what we should be telling them,” Sugarcoat said, “I appreciate Sunset and Clover here are friends of yours, but that doesn’t mean they’re our allies, either.”

“Sugarcoat, trust has to begin somewhere,” Twilight said, and raised her gloved right hand. It clearly was something she was hesitant to do, from the pained look on her face, but she removed the glove, and Sunset gasped at the sight of a prosthetic hand in place of Twilight’s flesh and blood one, “We’ve all lost things precious to us because of this war. If its ever going to end peacefully, we have to start letting go of that pain and let trust take the place of fear.”

Sugarcoat sighed, touching her visor as if remembering something, and it occurred to Sunset that it was entirely possible that Twilight was the one who built the visor.

“I don’t disagree with your sentiment, Twilight. I do, however, think that a lot of other Quincy aren’t going to be as on board with it.”

“Quite frankly I’m not sure how much I am, either,” said Sour Sweet, shaking her head, “But Twilight’s the one with the unique perspective. If she wants to play nice with the Soul Reapers, I’ll keep my mouth shut about it.”

Sunset was still starring at Twilight’s artificial hand, her voice going quiet, “...How did...? I mean, when...?”

Twilight smiled sadly, shaking her head, “Not long ago, fighting the Hollows.”

“I’m so sorry, Twilight.”

“The hand was the least of what I lost, Sunset, but that’s not what matters right now. Please, I just want you to trust me, okay? Midnight isn’t bad. She’s helping me.”

Sunset swallowed a lump in her throat. She still had her doubts, but she couldn’t deny the sincerity in the plea in her friend’s voice, “Alright, I trust you.”

“Good,” said Clover suddenly, “Because I was going to bonk you on the head if you didn’t. Twilight, if I may take a closer look at that device of yours?”

“Oh, um, sure?” Twilight said curiously, handing it over to Clover, who looked over the readings on Indigo’s legs with a sharp pair of eyes.

“Hmm, yes... yes, I think I see what you Quincy are doing with those reishi strands. It’s funny, Soul Reapers can’t really control reishi that well, just our inborn reiryoku. Yet the actual function of the spirit energy remains the same when its contained inside a body’s reiatsu field. Soul Society’s artificial limb technology is more advanced, in some respects, but I think part of that is just that we use spirit particles cultured from the body of the person receiving the new limb instead of artificial parts. Still, I think our research might help you out here. If you want, I can acquire a copy of Soul Society’s artificial limb research. That should help you with the refining process.”

Twilight’s eyes were wide as she said, “You’d do that?”

“Wouldn’t that get you into hot water with your superiors?” asked Indigo Zap, wariness in her tone, but also hope.

Clover shrugged slightly, “The information isn’t classified, although I could get into trouble, yes. But Twilight is right. Trust has to start somewhere. You may be Quincy, but I have no reason to wish harm or difficulty on any of you. So if a little Soul Reaper research might help you get your legs back under you, so to speak, then I’m happy enough to help.”

A choked silence followed form Indigo, who’s expression showed too much gratitude for her to get any words out, but Twilight spoke for her as she said, “Thank you, Clover. I’ll owe you one.”

“Think nothing of it. I can only hope this might be a step in the direction of the peace you want to make between our people.”

“That’s going to be a long, bumpy road,” Sugarcoat said, but she was smiling, ever so slightly, “But if anyone is stubborn enough to walk it, it’s Twilight.”

“You make it sound like I’m too mule headed to know any better,” Twilight complained, and Sugarcoat chuckled.

“You’re the one that insisted we come all the way out to the beach to test out Indigo’s legs in salt water, because salt channels magical energy better than fresh water.”

Sunset’s eyebrow shot up, “It does? So, magic has been seeping into the water from the experiments here?”

“Hm?” Twilight perked up, “Only a little. According to my readings it hasn’t expanded very far, and only in trace amounts. Why?”

“I don’t know. Fluttershy is worried about the sea turtles. Seems like a few of the young are freaked out about something. Do you think your magic has anything to do with it?”

“I can’t imagine how. There’s so little of it that it couldn’t be having an adverse effect on the environment,” Twilight said, tapping a finger to her chin as she glanced towards the ocean, “Although I have noticed an unusual lack of sea-life out there.”

“Pinkamena said the same thing when she went swimming to look around for anything weird,” said Sunset, scratching her head, “I just can’t figure what might be going on.”

“We could always keep an eye out,” said Sunny Flare, “It’s not like we’re going anywhere.”

“Hey, when you guys are done testing Indigo’s legs, why don’t you come over to where everyone else is and hang out?” suggested Sunset, “Pretty sure the rest of the girls would be happy to make you all feel welcomed.”

“That might not be too bad,” said Indigo Zap, and Lemon Zest was fast to nod her enthusiasm.

“I’m always down for some fun. It’s been nothing but work, work, and more work lately. We’re at the beach, I say we cut loose.”

The rest of the Shadowbolts glanced at Twilight, who looked a bit unsure, but then looked to Sunset and managed a small smile, “I suppose we could spend some time relaxing. I just want to run Indigo’s legs through a few more tests, then we’ll be along. We’ll also keep an eye out for anything strange.”

“Sounds good to me,” Sunset said, letting a smile finally light up her own face. She still felt a twinge of sympathy for her friend. The missing hand, the reveal of Midnight, and the hint Twilight left that she’d lost even more precious things, this all sparked worry inside Sunset. Smiling or not, it was clear Twilight was hiding a great deal of pain. But then, maybe spending time with her friends would help lessen that pain?

Sunset could only hope, and with a quick hug and set of ‘see you laters’ exchanged, she and Clover went back the way they’d come, returning to the central portion of the beach. Meanwhile Indigo Zap went back into the water with the help of her fellow Quincy, Twilight taking readings as she used the artificial legs to try and tread water. Small traces of magic flowed from the gems embedded in the legs, aiding Indigo’s control, while radiating small amounts of magical energy like radiation.

And several miles off shore, deep within a canyon-like drop off in the ocean, that magic continued to stir something. Something large, that moved through the deep waters like a hungry shadow, scaring away all other sea life, and even keeping the baby turtles on shore planted firmly in their nests, too terrified to approach the water.

----------

Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had now switched places, after Scootaloo had hung up the targets again. Scootaloo had also added in the two Hollow-mask training dummies, hanging them from small ropes suspended from two different tree branches. She’d also collected the frisbees and was standing a few meters to Sweetie Belle’s side, while Applebloom watched from the sitting log, her brace and whip still summoned. Having the whip out felt kind of draining after awhile, but Scootaloo said that the longer Applebloom and Sweetie Belle got used ot using their powers, that tiring feeling would eventually go away.

“Okay, we’re going to start with the frisbees,” Scootaloo said, spinning the first one on her finger in a fashion very reminiscent of Rainbow Dash.

Sweetie Belle nodded and reached into her dress pocket. She pulled out a small, white compact, the kind that contained a mirror and makeup powder. It was old and a little faded, but the way Sweetie Belle held it spoke of how precious it was to her. She clasped the small makeup compact between her hands and closed her eyes, focusing her feelings upon the object. When she’d been much younger, not even into double digits, she’d stolen some of her sister’s makeup and tried to pretty herself up on her own for a birthday party. Her lack of skills had left her looking more like a clown than a beauty, and many of the children at the party had laughed at her. Sweetie Belle had spent hours crying over it, but Rarity had kindly cleaned her up and brought Sweetie Belle into her room. There, she showed Sweetie Belle how to properly put on makeup, and at the end of the lesson had given Sweetie Belle one of her makeup compacts as a final birthday gift.

Well past the point she’d used up the makeup in the compact, Sweetie Belle had kept it as a precious reminder of how great a sister she had, and how much she loved Rarity.

That feeling bloomed into power in much the same manner it had with Applebloom, with Sweetie Belle thinking of her sister one night during the time Rarity and her friends had been gone. The desire to protect her irreplaceable sister had brought out the power in the compact, transforming it as it was transforming now.

Bright sparks of white and soft violet glitter flowed out of the compact in a pixie dust wave. The dust churned about in a concentrated tornado around the compact until it flared brightly and elongated. In the blink of an eye a staff appeared in Sweetie Belle’s hands, bright purple in color, with pearl white wings spreading from the top around a shining, mirror-like orb that caped the top of the staff. The staff was about a foot taller than Sweetie Belle herself, as if made for someone of adult proportions rather than her still somewhat short and scrawny teenage years.

Scootaloo nodded in satisfaction at Sweetie Belle’s ready stance, hefting a frisbee, “You ready?”

“Yup!”

“Hey, why doesn’t she put on a blindfold?” asked Applebloom.

“Oh, nearly forgot that! Lemme grab one,” Scootlaoo said, but Sweetie Belle was fast to interject.

“I don’t know, I think I need to see what I’m aiming at, otherwise the power might not work.”

“Only one way to find out!” Scootlaoo chirped energetically as she snatched up a blindfold and went over to tie it around Sweetie Belle’s eyes. The other girl sighed in resignation as Scootlaoo went back to her original spot and held up the frisbee.

“Ready?”

“Ready.”

Scootaloo threw the frisbee at a high angel so it’d soar over Sweetie Belle’s head and fly out in a gentle arc above her. Sweetie Belle tried to listen to the sound of the frisbee passing over her, and mentally tried to visualize what she wanted to happen as she pointed her staff upwards. The mirror orb flashed with a gleam of light, then shot a thin, sparkling beam that flew up into the sky, completely missing the frisbee.

“Ugh, see, I told you I need to see what I’m aiming at, otherwise the beam just goes wherever!” Sweetie Belle said.

“Don’t get discouraged. Let’s try again. Just keep holding the staff like that and I’ll tell you when to shoot,” Scootaloo replied and tossed the next frisbee. A moment later, when its arc took it in line with the staff’s orb, she shouted, “Shoot!”

This time the small beam of incandescent white sparkles struck the edge of the frisbee. The moment it made contact, the beam became like a bungee cord, yanking the frisbee back towards the mirror orb. The frisbee bent and twisted like a swirl of water, then was absorbed into the orb. Sweetie Belle peeked out from under her blindfold, “Hey! I got it!”

“See!? I knew you didn’t need line of sight for the beam to work!” Scootaloo cheered, but Sweetie Belle was frowning.

“Yeah, but if I can see what I’m aiming at...” she said, pointing the staff at one of the targets off to her right. This time the beam actually bent and curved on its own, hitting the target dead center, even though Sweetie Belle was only roughly aiming at it, “I can hit without even trying!”

As the target was sucked up into the orb, Applebloom shrugged, “I figure Scoots is just tryin’ ta make sure we know what does or don’t work. I mean, least now ya know if yer blind or in the dark or somethin’ ya can still hit stuff.”

“Huh, good point. Okay, well, might as well try the other powers,” Sweetie Belle said, and touched the staff’s mirror-orb, “Mirror, mirror, change-up!”

“Do ya really need ta chant?” Applebloom asked, but Sweetie Belle wasn’t paying attention as a wash of glittering energy flowed over her body. Her body flattened out, morphing in a poof of smoke and glitter until a small, purple and white frisbee with cartoonish Sweetie Belle eyes was blinking up at them from the ground.

“So, uh... how do I look?” said the disturbing Sweetie Belle frisbee, which had no visible mouth, but was speaking like normal.

“Like a frisbee,” Scootaloo said, picking the frisbee up. The staff had vanished into Sweetie Belle’s changed form, but from previous experimenting the girls knew Sweetie Belle could change back any time she wanted, “It’s kinda creepy you can still looking around and talk like this.”

“Hey, it really helped me sneak into Rarity’s room the other night,” Sweetie Belle said, “I used it on a fly and buzzed right on in without her noticing a thing... well, until I changed back and tried to sneak out with some makeup.”

“Why’d ya do that?” Applebloom asked, “Ya coulda gotten us all caught!”

“I just wanted to test it out!” Sweetie Belle protested, face reddening, “And I really like her makeup. She buys the best brands, the kind I can’t afford with my allowance. Anyway, she didn’t learn anything. She just kinda of... I don’t know, freaked out a bit, but calmed down when she saw it was me. And she didn’t learn about my power, she just thought I snuck in normally. It's super handy I can change the staff's size, otherwise I might not have been able to hide it.”

With that the frisbee poofed with a burst of sparks and smoke, returning to Sweetie Belle’s natural form, staff still in hand. Sweetie Belle spun the staff around with a flourish, as if to show off, and with a glow of light the staff shortened in size and length to the size of a hand-held wand. Scootlaoo looked at her with curiosity, rubbing her chin in thought. “You know, if it works on living things like bugs, I wonder if you could turn into bigger stuff, like a bear?”

“I don’t know,” said Sweetie Belle, “I let the fly out after I was done, but I kinda feel bad for trapping living things in here. I don’t even know where they go once they’re inside the orb? It’s one thing to trap a bug, but a big fuzzy bear? Or a person?”

“Jeeze, I hadn’t even thought of trying that power on a person. I wonder if you could copy their whole form?” Scootaloo said, shaking her head in wonderment.

“Not sure I want to find out...” said Sweetie Belle, looking more than a tad uneasy at the prospect.

“Hey,” Applebloom said, standing up and going over to Sweetie Belle to put a hand on her shoulder, “Don’t worry ‘bout it so much. Ain’t like ya’d ever do that ta someone who’s a good person, right? Just bad guys.”

“Assuming it’d even work on people, or those Hollow things Rainbow Dash and her friends fight,” said Scootaloo, “Anything with enough spirit energy might resist getting pulled in.”

“How do you know that?” asked Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo was quick to cough and glance away.

“I heard Rainbow Dash talking about some of her fights, is all. She said powers, no matter how they work, can always be resisted by something with more spirit energy than the one using the power.”

“Huh, AJ barely ever talks ‘bout her own fights,” said Applebloom, looking at the ground with a sullen cast to her features, “Wish she’d say more.”

With the sudden sharpness of a knife tearing through silk, all three girls heard a keening, hungry howl echo through the forest. The Cutie Mark Crusaders all looked at each other, sweat beading their foreheads.

“Did ya’ll, um, hear somethin’ just now?” Applebloom asked, and the second the words left her mouth, there was another howl, much closer now, followed by several answering cries.

----------

All was fair in love, war, and water polo. What had started as a simple enough game of aquatic athleticism had gradually dissolved into a splashing melee, where girls riding on the shoulders of other girls rapidly lead to plenty of toppling into the warm waters and general laughter from everyone participating or watching.

Sunset was one of the last standing, or rather ‘riding’ on Clover’s shoulders while she wrestled with Rarity, riding on Applejack’s shoulders, both girls sparring to try and get at a big multi-colored beach ball floating between them.

“Please, darling, that ball is as good as mine!” Rarity declared, proving a rather canny opponent to Sunset. Rarity was much more athletic than she appeared at first glance, and was remarkably good at deflecting Sunset’s attempts to dislodge her from Applejack’s shoulders, or to make a reach for the ball.

“That right? I don’t see it in your hands yet!” Sunset shot back, her fiery competitive streak flaring up as she made a feint for the ball while swiftly reaching behind her to scoop up a huge splash of water to spray at Rarity’s face. What Sunset might lack in Rarity’s graceful technique, she made up for with raw enthusiasm, and Rarity caught a face full of water that nearly unseated her from Applejack, who was acting as a solid pillar beneath her friend.

Sunset made a grab for the ball, Clover side stepping to give her a closer reach, only for something to grab Clover from below and yank her legs out from under her. Both Clover and Sunset went tumbling into the water. The black and maroon two piece bathing suit Rarity had made for her fit like a second skin and left nothing dragging, so swimming was a breeze, and she quickly turned herself right-side up in the warm summer water and surfaced, spitting out salt water.

“The heck was that? Clover?”

She looked around a moment, then spotted Clover surface awkwardly nearby, barely getting her feet under her in the five feet of water. Clover was sputtering, spreading her arms out to keep buoyant like Sunset had showed her. Clover was learning the ropes of swimming fast, but they’d kept their game to shallow water just in case, to let Clover stand on the sandy sea bottom if she needed to.

“You okay?” Sunset asked, and Clover nodded.

“Yes. Someone grabbed my legs,” Clover said, looking about for the culprit. Most of their friends were swimming about nearby, having been waiting for either Rarity or Sunset to get their hands on the ball, but now they all were looking behind Sunset and Clover to where several forms surfaced.

“Heh, sorry about that, couldn’t help myself,” said Lemon Zest, wiping water from her face. The other Shadowbolts had surfaced as well, Indigo Zap being supported by Sunny Flare. Twilight Sparkle surfaced last, looking a tad apologetic, but also smiling.

“Sorry, when you said we ought to come over, I just intended to let everyone say hi and relax a moment, but the girls wanted to have a bit more fun.”

Seeing Twilight, Rarity smiled brightly, “Oh that’s fine, Twilight dear. A little prank never hurt anyone. It’s just good to see you. And the rest of your friends from Crystal Prep as well.”

“An’ since yer all here, an’ apparently feelin’ frisky, how ‘bout we make this a bigger game?” said Applejack, grabbing up the beach ball, “Think of it like a rematch fer the Friendship Games.”

“Never been one to say no to some competition,” Indigo Zap said, though her expression dampened as she added, “Not sure I can do much, though.”

“Nonsense,” Sunny Flare said, dipping beneath Indigo and then raising the girl up on her shoulders, “For now, I’m your legs.”

Indigo Zap’s face flared rose for a second, but she steadied herself on Sunny Flare’s shoulders and said, “Yeash, you’re sappy.”

The other girls swam over, all eager to greet Twilight and the Shadowbolts. Pinkie Pie nearly had to be pried off of hugging Twilight, mostly by Pinkamena, who’d remained manifested and seemingly eager to play.

“What can I say, there’s a real smorgasbord of flavors here, and I’ve never tried Quincy before,” the doppelganger said, much to the Shadowbolts nervous glances.

“Oh she’s kidding!” Pinkie Pie said, lifting Pinkamena up onto her shoulders, “And if she gets bitey, I’ll make sure it isn’t too serious. Right Mena?”

“Suuuuure.”

In short order the girls split into teams, using some of Pinkie Pie’s foam floaties as makeshift goalposts for their impromptu game. Tension melted away amid the intense laughing and splashing of chasing the ball around the water. For a short time, concepts like ‘Quincy’ and ‘Soul Reaper’ were set aside, and they were just a group of young women enjoying a fun, sun warmed day at the beach. An hour later, after they’d forgotten who was supposed to be winning the game, the girls were now just enjoying catching their breath on the beachfront.

“Heh, gotta say, you girls are a lot more fun when we’re not competing in some school games,” Pinkie Pie said, wiping sweat off her brow, “I’ve got some major munchies now, too. Anybody up to go with me to grab some food?”

“I’m all over that,” Lemon Zest said, “There’s an seafood truck that’s got killer fish n’ chips. You game?”

“Let’s do it! Anybody else taking any orders?” asked Pinkie Pie, and a round of requests went up from the gathered young ladies. As Pinkie Pie and Lemon Zest went off to fetch the food, Rainbow Dash was looking over at Indigo Zap, who was laying on her back and breathing hard.

“Looked like that took a lot out of you,” commented Rainbow, “Ain’t trying to pry, but felt you using up a lot of spirit energy.”

“It’s nothing, just the legs, even when I’m not using them as much, take up plenty of juice...” Indigo Zap replied, lacing her hands behind her head, frowning, “Chances are, even if Twilight tweaks these things to work like my old ones, I’m never going to be as good in a fight as I used to be.”

“That bites.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Ugh, let’s not even talk about fighting right now,” said Sour Sweet, “I get stomach issues just thinking about it these days.”

“Ya’ll can say that again,” agreed Applejack, tipping her stetson over her face as if she were ready to take a nap right there on the sand, “Fer a spell I’d say it’s nice ta just chat ‘bout nothin’. Though I am kinda curious how you lot ended up bein’ part o’ Twilight’s posse.”

“We’re not really a ‘posse’ per se,” Sunny Flare said, “Semi-official assistants would be more accurate. It’s a tad odd, really. We were cadets not so long ago. We’ve officially graduated, and would be rated as either third or second-class soldats, only we’re basically part of an unofficially ranked special unit at this point.”

“Sunny, stop talking about work!” Sour Sweet complained.

“To be fair, we don’t have much else to talk about,” said Sugarcoat, “In case you haven’t noticed, we don’t really have a social life these days.”

“That sounds terrible,” commented Rarity with a heavy note of understanding, “Don’t the Quincy ever get proper breaks or time off for family and friends?”

“Sure we do, but not when things are as messed up as they are now,” answered Indigo Zap, who then shrugged, “I can’t complain, though. Working with Twilight is a breeze compared to how things could be.”

“It's not that different for Soul Reapers,” said Clover, “We might get time off, but when everything is as tense as it is now, there isn’t a lot of opportunity to take days for yourself. Even being here with everyone is still technically supposed to be work for me and Posey, making sure they’re guarded.”

“Hmph, from what?” Sunny Flare asked, and the two Soul Reapers gave each other wary looks.

“Well... even before they got as strong as they are now, the girls got targeted by an Espada,” said Clover, “And it’s not as if the Quincy wouldn’t have a potential reason to look at them as potential targets.”

“Hey! We’re playing nice, here, aren’t we?” Sugarcoat said, and Fluttershy swiftly raised her hands.

“It’s okay, everyone, please. Clover didn’t mean anything by that. We really appreciate that you’re being so nice, and it’s been a very lovely time today.”

“Exactly,” said Sugarcoat, sighing, “It’s far too easy for us to fall back into patterns of distrust because, let’s face it, we’ve got three groups here; one from the Quincy, one from the Soul Reapers, and then there’s Sunset and the rest of you who are kind of your own thing. For us Quincy and you Soul Reapers, bad blood has passed between us for generations. Me, Sunny, Sour, Indigo, and Lemon were raised to think of you Soul Reapers like the boogeymen. But here we are, having a civil conversation, relaxing at the beach. I doubt something like this has ever happened before, and I’m fairly certain the reason it’s happening it is all because of those two...”

Sugarcoat pointed off to the side, where Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer were sitting together under a beach umbrella and quietly chatting, a little out of earshot of the others.

Rainbow Dash chuckled dryly, “Yeah, Sunset really has brought us all together, and sounds like Twilight’s done the same for you Crystal Prep gals. Without them, we probably wouldn’t be chilling together like this.”

“Hmm,” Clover pulled her knees up under her chin, looking thoughtful, “I’ve theorized that there’s a bit more to Sunset than an emphatic personality. That the magic from her homeworld is more at play here than we can really see.”

“Wouldn’t surprise me in the least,” said Rarity, “I may never have seen Equestria with my own eyes, but I’ve felt its magic work through me, and it was the power to move heaven and earth, all in the name of friendship.”

“Move heaven and earth, huh?” said Indigo Zap wonderingly, “Sounds like the only thing that even could put an end to the war, doesn’t it?”

To this, none of the girls had anything to add, but their eyes were drawn towards Sunset and Twilight.

As for the pair in question, they’d moved a distance away to talk between them, mostly because Sunset had asked Twilight to do so. Sunset was still worried about Twilight, and felt maybe she’d have an easier time opening up if the talk was just between them. For the most part they’d just been talking about nothing, just silly things like the way Sunset had needed to scramble to be prepared for school finals, due to her overworked training schedule with Discord.

“You’re way too bright to let your grades slip, Sunset,” Twilight was saying, admonishing but with a warm smile on her face, “I can’t believe you let yourself get a B in pre-calculus!” She shuddered, as if the very thought of a ‘B’ was some kind of horror tale to be told on spooky nights around a campfire.

Sunset snorted a laugh, grinning, “I don’t know how I’ll ever live it down.”

“Oh, don’t make fun of me.”

A light punch on the shoulder followed by Sunset’s good natured look told Twilight her friend was just kidding. Sunset sighed wistfully, looking out at the ocean as she rested her hands on her knees, “I’ve missed you, you know?”

“I’ve only been gone, what, a month?”

“Feels like a lot longer.”

“Well, it might be more than a month. I’ve been having trouble keeping track of the days...” Twilight said as she suddenly found the grains of sand at her feet quite interesting, “Training was a blur. I... hurt Lemon Zest, my first day.”

“You did?”

“Umhmm... lost control of my power briefly. I didn’t mean to, and my arrow went right through her. I thought I’d killed her, in that moment. Lucky for me and her both, Quincy medicine can’t be beat,” Twilight let out a weak, humorless laugh, “Then after that, I felt pretty isolated. The other Quincy cadets didn’t really trust me, much. I think part of it had to do with the way Sombra treated me. They all respect him as more than just a ‘king’, he’s more like... I don’t know, something more to them. But to me, he’s just Sombra. It’s strange, I was scared of him at first, too, and a part of me feels as if I can never really trust him fully, but he just seems so... alone. I think I keep acting as casually as I do around him because I feel like he needs a friend.”

Sunset shook her head, “I can’t even imagine the guy. I mean, if he’s the Quincy King, he’s part of the reason the war keeps going on. Does he have a good reason for that, or what?”

“If I’m being honest, I think he has trouble letting go of what the Hollows and Soul Reapers both did to him, long ago. He seems to truly believe that the Soul Reapers can’t be reasoned with, or the Hollows for that matter, but he’s been willing to let me try a lot of things that might lead to peace. It’s as if he’s daring me to try. Making a bet with me, that I’ll either succeed and bring him around, or fail and come around to the way he thinks... and maybe from his perspective either result is acceptable.”

Sunset took a moment to absorb that. So Twilight was Sombra’s toss of the dice for peace? It seemed irresponsible, to her. If Sunset was a faction leader, striving for peace, she’d rely on a bit more proactive action than just letting one of her subordinates do all the work. It didn’t seem fair to Twilight, but Sunset didn’t say so, instead asking, “What happened to your hand?”

Twilight flinched, but the blunt question didn’t put her off. After a quiet moment she said, “The same thing that happened to Sugarcoat’s eyes, and Indigo’s legs. Battles with Hollows. Arrancar, each time. I want peace, Sunset, but I can’t deny that the Hollows are so... relentlessly violent that it’s terrifying to see on full display.”

“Believe me, I know. I was there when we lost Adagio to Grogar, remember? I also just lost my apartment to an Espada ambush,” Sunset said, suppressing a shudder, “I’ve seen it firsthand how dangerous a lot of them are. Peace might be possible, but I won’t lie... some of those Espada are going to need to go, before we can get the rest around a negotiation table.”

Twilight’s voice went awfully quiet and cold for a moment, “I know. I... I’m not... there’s one among them I don’t know if I can ever forgive. Even if I might have to, someday.”

There was such raw pain in Twilight’s voice that it cut as thoroughly as a blade into Sunset, and she reached out to hold Twilight’s hand with her own. Twilight didn’t move away from the contact, simply squeezing back.

“Twilight... I won’t ask anything. Just know that if you never need to talk, I’m here. Always. No matter what happens, I’m your friend.”

A tearful sniff fell from Twilight and she nodded, “I know you are. When I’m ready, I’ll tell you everything. Just... not today.”

She then shook her head, taking off her glasses for a second to wipe her eyes before putting them back on, “Enough heavy talk, okay? Let’s switch to something easier to talk about, like how we’re going to rescue Ember.”

Sunset almost laughed at that, but held her tongue and nodded, “Fair’s fair, I’ve been waiting to hear from you and Adagio on what the plan actually is. Discord got those communicators to you both, right?”

“Yes. Adagio got hers, then she gave me mine after we met up at a secret location. That was just yesterday, actually. We had time to brain storm a few ideas, and the crux of the issues if figuring out where the Soul Reapers are holding Ember. I have good reason to suspect it’s somewhere near, or even in, Camp Everfree.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Sunset mused, “Captain Celestia has us doing some sort of ‘summer program’ there, and we’re supposed to be helping out with their research on the Equestrian portal. If Ember’s involved with that as some kind of specimen, then if you and Adagio can wait for the first few days of camp, we ought to be able to pin point the lab’s location for you.”

“Good, I-” Twilight began to say, but held off a she saw Clover was walking over, “I, uh, really love the new swimsuits. Rarity made them, didn’t she?”

Coughing, Sunset said, “Yup, she never fails to impress. Hey Clover, what’s up?”

“Nothing much,” replied Clover, “Fluttershy was going to go check on the baby sea turtles again. Figured I’d let you guys know, in case you wanted to do another sweep around the beach for any signs of something strange.”

Sunset glanced at Twilight, then shrugged, “Sure, why not? I’ve rested enough, and if it’ll make Fluttershy feel better we can go look for whatever is spooking the sea turtles.”

Suddenly Twilight perked up, looking out at the ocean as she stood, “Somehow I don’t think you’ll have to look very far.”

“Huh?” Sunset turned around, and blinked in surprise at the sight of something stirring the waves offshore. At first it looked just like another wave, only it was forming a wake that was going in the wrong direction, and a clear hump had appeared in the water beneath a dark shadow that was rapidly approaching the beachfront.

Normal beach goers had started to take notice of this, and frightened swimmers started to shout and scream as they scrambled to get out of the way, and those still on the beach itself stood, some frozen in shock, others backing away slowly before turning to run.

Sunset, Twilight, and their respective groups of companions only had a few seconds to react before the underwater shadow erupted to the surface in a massive spray of breaking water, and ten massive, black and ropy tentacles each as big around as a pinewood tree shot out of the surf and lashed towards them.

Episode 96: Attack on Kraken

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Episode 96: Attack on Kraken

Sunset narrowly dodged the slamming tentacle that crushed the area she’d just been standing in. Given she was in her normal, human body her speed and reflexes were a good deal slower than what she was used to. Writhing behind her, the large, slimming black limb swept after her, and Sunset saw that the tip of the tentacle had a arrow-shape, one end marked by suction pads.

A squid?, Sunset wondered, trying to outrun the tentacle as it rapidly swung towards her.

A flash of light followed by a crack of thunder sounded, and Rainbow Dash landed on top of the tentacle in a lightning clad storm of fury. Her Fullbring was already taken shape around her, energy wings buzzing and crackling the girl jabbed her lightning spear into the flailing tentacle.

“Sunset, Chappy’s over there!” Clover said, nodding down the beach, “Hurry up and grab her!”

Sunset saw the plush rabbit running from the beach, avoiding the stampede of beach goers who were now rushing away from the water’s edge. In the water itself a massive, dark shadow was emerging from the depths, still nearly a hundred yards out. Sunset couldn’t tell how large it was, but whatever this creature was it had to have been at least several hundred feet long, not including its tentacles.

Her friends, both human, Soul Reaper, and Quincy, had swiftly sprung into motion in response to the attack. At least a dozen tentacles were swinging and smashing around the beach, trying to grasp at the girls, but none of them were staying still.

Twilight and her fellow Quincy moved like a well trained military unit, not hesitating despite their surprise at the attack to immediately summon their bows and fall back to get distance. The only one who was slow on this count was Indigo Zap, her legs simply not cooperating under the stress of attempting a Hirenkyaku high-speed maneuver, ending up crashing to the ground. One tentacle was quick to snake around her, grabbing Indigo and raising her into the air as she let out a shout. The tentacle, however, was almost instantly impacted by a barrage of reishi arrows.

“Drop her, you slimy bastard!” shouted Sunny Flare, firing her dual dart guns while rushing forward. As she did so, however, another tentacle rose above her, and rather than physically strike, the tentacle wove its tip in the air.

Incandescent green light formed like a mist around the tentacle, taking on the shape of a circle with a weirdly jagged crest forming within it. Immediately Twilight Sparkle blinked in surprise as both she and Midnight felt the familiar energy at the same time.

Magic! Midnight breathed, sounding both incited and somehow insulted, That thing is using magic!

“Sunny, watch out! It’s casting a spell!” Twilight warned, raising her own bow as she swiftly formed a reishi arrow in her bow. Unfortunately she didn’t have the Hexenfaust with her, so she was only able to create a more standard bow of pure blue spirit particles, but she found she could pour much more reishi than before into the bow, its size larger and more solid than it’d been in the past. She almost felt as if she might be able to form the Hexenfaust’s bow on her own, if she could just figure out how to control the magic flow.

Regardless, even as she fired her bow at the magic weaving tentacle, it finished its spell and a globe of smoking green liquid took shape, roughly two meters in diameter. It fired like a cannonball towards Sunny Flare, who warned by Twilight was just barely able to leap away in time. The globe hit the ground and burst in a wash of green goo that splattered around. A few drops got on Sunny’s arm and she immediately screamed in pain as the goo turned out to be highly acidic, eating into her skin.

She used Blut Vene to fortify her arm, causing the acid to have to content with her reishi, but the acid was magical in nature and was still sizzling against her skin. Although it rapidly became apparent she’d avoided a far worse fate as the bulk of the globe’s acid swiftly melted a bubbling hole several meters deep in the beach front.

“Of you’ve got to be kidding me!” Sour Sweet was shouting, bracing her massive crossbow and taking a powerful potshot at another tentacle, “This was supposed to be a nice, quiet day at the beach, not alien tentacle acid horror!”

“Somebody shut up and help me!” Indigo shouted as the tentacle that still held her started dragging her into the water.

“I got ya, sugarcube!”

A golden streak of movement impacted with the tentacle with the force of a dozen wrecking balls. The vents on her Fullbring firing at full power, Applejack had propelled herself into the tentacle to deliver a double kick that created a shockwave through the water, causing the tentacle to drop Indigo Zap. As the Quincy girl fell, Rarity appeared in a flicker of movement, green Bringer light around her feet as she bounced off the air and caught Indigo. Rarity then just as swiftly landed on the beach and set Indigo down while raising her hand and bringing forth the whirlpool of blood from the rose bracelet on her left arm, the rest of her clad in her crimson battle dress.

“Interrupting our sunny day on the beach is the height of rudeness!” Rarity said with eyes like razor thin amethysts, “And I do not abide rudeness!”

A glittering array of ruby blades disgorged from the whirlpool, striking at the tentacles as more arose from the water, now twenty in total. The hide of this beast was unnaturally tough, however, as Rarity’s flying swarm of weapons might have cut the tentacles, but weren’t going remarkably deep. They still drew blood, a black, viscous ooze, but Rarity wasn’t able to sever any of the tentacles entirely.

Even the tentacle that Applejack had kicked swiftly responded, smacking towards the farm girl and forcing her to quickly use the vents on her Fullbring to propel herself out of the way, flying skyward.

Clover and Posey had swiftly taken out gikon jewels and eaten them, abandoning their false bodies to take on their natural, Soul Reaper forms.

“Oh my,” Posey said, drawing Kyoki with a gulping noise, “This isn’t a Hollow at all, is it? I can’t sense any Hollow energy.”

“Whatever it is, it’s attacking living people, so it’s our duty to stop it!” said Clover, holding her palms out and making a series of rapid gestures.

“Hado Number Sixty: Unarigoe!” (Vortex Roar)

Air condensed into her palms, then was unleashed in a swirling, concentrated cyclone that slammed into the tentacles trying to hit Applejack, knocking several into the water. Posey, only slightly more hesitant, held her Zanpaktou aloft and whispered, “O-okay, Kyoki, let’s try and help. Please be a good boy.”

After a deep breath she intoned, ”Frenzy; Kyoki.”

She closed her eyes as her Zanpaktou changed shape into a longer, straighter blade edged with sharp serrations. After a second she opened her eyes, not filled with bloodlust, but still her own, calm, if somewhat uneasy expression. “Thank goodness.”

The ‘teeth’ of Kyoki started to spin with a high intensity whine, and Posey leaped into the fray, her form flickering with a Flash Step that took her next to one of the tentacles slamming towards Sunset’s friends. The chain-saw blade swung, and tore a deep chunk out of the tentacle, albeit with a moment of work to saw through the mass.

Clover gave Posey a thumbs up, “Looks like you’ve got your Zanpaktou under control!”

“Y-yeah, I think so. I still feel kinda mad, but I think that’s normal, now? Uh-oh!” Posey dodged away as several more tentacles rose from the waves and took swings at her, forcing the Soul Reaper to Flash Step aside.

Meanwhile the Quincy girls were concentrating fire on a different group of tentacles to keep Indigo from being grabbed again, as the tentacles seemed to be focusing on her. Lemon Zest was using her strangely shaped bow to fire dual arrows that corkscrewed around to strike at the tentacles from odd angles, while Sour Sweet would use the confusion that caused among the tentacles to target them with heavier shots from crossbow. At the same time, Twilight and Sunny Flare both pulled out ginto tubes, rushing forward in preparation to use alchemy.

While this was happening, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie had both brought out their Fullbrings, separately engaged with tentacles of their own. Fluttershy was doing well to avoid them with quick, calm steps, while simultaneously striking back with hard hitting palm strikes as each tentacle flailed past her. She continuously inserted her will into the creature with each hit, trying to forcibly weaken its movements. She sensed it was working to a degree, but this beast, whatever it was, was intelligent, possessed of a powerful will, and infused with magic that was helping it resist her power.

Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie were managing to fend off three or four tentacles themselves, bouncing around the water like a twirling ice skater. Pinkamena opened her own toothy mouth wide to take a bite out of one tentacle, though she quickly spat it out with a disgusted, “Blech! This thing tastes like unwashed socks and moldy cottage cheese!”

“Then don’t taste it, silly, and let’s play some Whack-a-Tentacle!” Pinkie said as Pinkamena swung the hammer around and crunched it into one of the tentacles, which caused a loud *DING* noise as the strike forced the tentacle to drop into the water.

By now Sunset had caught up with Chappy, picking the plushie rabbit up quickly.

“Once you’re in my body, get it clear with the other people fleeing the beach,” Sunset said, and Chappy’s head bobbed with an enthusiastic if trembling nod as she stared at the chaos on the beachfront.

“You got it, Sunset! Leave it to me!” Chappy said, saluting with her squeaking plush paw. Sunset gave her a wary look.

“And don’t do anything stupid while you’re in my body.”

“Whaaaaat!? Of course not! I definitely wasn’t planning to do anything ‘stupid’. Far from it! I was going to make sure everybody would be nice and safe, especially any hot guys I may or may not have been watching all day-”

“Chappy!”

“Fine! Fine! I’ll avoid embarrassing you in public, but you have to admit there’s some fine pieces of-”

Sunset had heard enough and proceeded to reach into Chappy’s mouth, choking off the rabbit plushie’s words while also grabbing the marble-sized gikon jewel that was within. Yanking the jewel out, Chappy’s plush form went limp and Sunset tossed it onto a nearby beach towel. She then popped the gikon into her mouth and swallowed, feeling the familiar jolt of forward motion as her soul was displaced from her fleshy, human body.

Now in her spirit form, Sunset wasted no time drawing her Zanpaktou from its sheath, turning to give Chappy one last look, “Be back in a minute. Seriously, don’t do anything other than keep your distance.”

“I heard you the first time, boss!” said Chappy with Sunset’s voice, and gave another salute before turning and dashing off towards the street where the beach going crowd had fled, many of them now turning to watch what was happening on the beach itself. Sunset couldn’t help but notice that more than a few of the crowd had smartphones out, filming or taking pictures.

Oh boy, this is going to make life more interesting than it needs to be, Sunset thought, then put it from her mind as she turned to focus on the monster still attacking her friends.

Rainbow Dash had joined Applejack in the air, flying around with such speed that she looked like little more than a living lightning bolt. Every time her spear struck a tentacle, a cry of thunder and a burst of raw electricity shot outwards in all directions, causing the tentacles to seize up and jittery about like jelly. Applejack would then follow this up with by blasting by at high speed, the thrusters of energy from her boots causing massive swells in the water as she punched one tentacle after another, slamming them beneath the waves.

Twilight and Sunny Flare had reached the water’s edge with their ginto tubes, and both threw the Quincy alchemic devices like grenades. Making similar gestures with their hands, both girls sent reishi particles into the tubes to trigger the alchemy within, although each was doing a slightly different technique.

”Gefrorenes Feuer!” (Frozen Fire) shouted Sunny Flare, and her ginto tube exploded in a stream of expanding, silver fluid that transmuted into metallic cables that solidified into a literal web that entangled and encased several tentacles. The silvery metal then appeared to start burning into the tentacles, as if white hot.

“Asche Von Innen,” Twilight intoned, her own reishi triggering a different alchemic reaction with the ginto tube she threw, which landed right between the group of tentacles Sunny Flare had bound in place.

The tube burst into a cloud of silvery ash. Though it didn’t spread fast, the immobile tentacles couldn’t move as the ash touched them, and sunk into their flesh as if being absorbed. Then the tentacles began to shiver as their flesh appeared to start burning from within, their surface darkening to blackened char.

There was a deep, undulating sound that rose from the depths of the sea, so loud it vibrating the air.

“I think we’re hurting it,” Twilight said, “If we can just drive it away...”

“Doesn’t look like it’s planning to quit anytime soon!” Indigo Zap said, having been safely put back on the beach by Applejack, and now was standing back with her own Quincy bow drawn as she carefully tried to maintain balance on her artificial legs.

“Indigo, get back!” Twilight said in a surprisingly commanding voice, “It’s been targeting you, so you need to get to a safe distance!”

“But-”

“No buts! Do as I say and fall back!”

Indigo grimaced, but nodded and started to awkwardly force her legs to move as she went further inland. As if sensing its target getting away, the tentacles writhed, some that had fallen beneath the ocean surface bursting back up. Some moved with shocking speed trying to smack Rainbow Dash and Applejack out of the air, while others grouped together and started to form more magical symbols in the air.

“More spells incoming! Get ready to take cover!” Twilight said, but it was then that Sunset Shimmer made her move.

”Ignite; Hokori no Hikari!”

In a glint of motion, Sunset appeared in front of one of the tentacles and rammed her Zanpaktou’s blade through it. Oozing blood spurted out in a dark shower, but Sunset was already twisting the blade out sideways, tearing the wound open wider as she jumped straight up, kicking off the air to gain a few dozen feet of height over the tentacles as she raised her sword above her head. Fire coiled around it, and with a hard swing she sent a small inferno down on the tentacles that’d been trying to cast spells.

The fire baked the flesh and the tentacles flailed about, pulling back into the water to put out the flames.

At the same time the other tentacles retreated, pulling back to the ocean.

“Ha! Don’t run away, you disgusting imitations of calamari!” shouted Pinkamena, “You might taste like crap, but I’m gonna eat you anyway!”

“C’mon Pinkamena, don’t be so tentecruel,” Pinkie Pie said, giggling, “You don’t have to sea food everywhere you go.”

“...If I chucked you into the ocean, how fast would you sink in hammer form?”

“I rather think celebrating is premature at the moment,” Rarity said with her eyes not leaving the ocean as she carefully scanned its surface, “I can still sense something out there, and thus far I believe all we’ve managed to accomplish is make it mad.”

Rarity’s prediction proved immediately true. The water churned and swelled no more than a hundred feet off shore. A black shadow rose, gradually gaining definition in the shape of a humongous, dart-shaped mass. Then the water veritably exploded as the monster fully surfaced, its tentacles returning in a sweeping fan of flailing motion.

From up above, Sunset had the clearest look at it, and blinked as she recognized what she was seeing. She’d studied numerous books of magical lore during her time as Celestia’s student, and while she wasn’t nearly as fully versed as some of the more lore-oriented types like Twilight Sparkle, she’d still learned plenty of legends during her own personal studies on magical power.

Tales did speak of a rare breed of Equestrian sea beasts. True titans of the ocean world, they were supposedly largely restrained to living in the deepest, darkest areas of the sea, only very rarely coming to the surface for their own mysterious reasons. However, when they did come to the surface, it usually meant doom for some poor merchant ship, or coastal town.

The Kraken was larger than even the stories Sunset had read had said it’d be. It’s main body was a dark gray fortress of pebbled, slime coated flesh with parts of it covered in thick plates of shell-like armor that sported long spikes that Sunset knew were poisonous. It’s body was shaped like a squid’s, but a squid that had bulked up and done so while on high-performance steroids, with its flush bulging with muscle. Filmy white eyes the size of cards flanked its face, which split open in a triangular maw that showed a gleaming, black beak as large as a house. Besides the twenty relatively small tentacles Sunset and her friends had faced so far, the Kraken sported two significantly larger tentacles that extended from the bottom of its mass that it now brought forth, each one ending in a giant, scything claw and sorting several more poisonous spikes along their incredible length. These main tentacles were as large around as pickup trucks, and long enough that when they rose into the air, they easily shadowed the beach from the sun.

“Oh hell...” Sunset breathed before the Kraken let out an air piercing roar and swung its massive, main tentacles towards her.

----------

“This is the worst!” Sweetie Belle said as she and her friends ran down the forest trail, “I swear, nobody is having a worse day than us right now, at this very second!”

“You sure about that?” Scootaloo asked between panting breaths, “You sure that’s how that works?”

“Well who else is being chased by really creepy, howling monsters!?” asked Sweetie Belle, leaping over a fallen branch that nearly tripped her, “Right now Rarity’s enjoy a nice, relaxing day at the beach! I’d switch places with her right now in an instant if I could!”

“If y'all got time fer yappin’, ya ain’t runnin’ fast enough!” said Applebloom, having taken the lead of the trio as they tore down the forest path that bent and twisted down the hillside. They’d hiked a good distance from the main forest path that campers and hikers took around this edge of the Everfree Forest, so they were far from help or safety, and the howls were only getting louder behind them.

None of the girls had seen exactly what was chasing them yet. When the howls had gotten louder, they’d all made the swift and smart decision to just abandon their training area and make a break for it. At first they’d just walked very, very fast, but when the howls had sounded at the top of the hill behind them, all three girls broke out into a run. Now they were about halfway down the hill, having to mitigate their speed to avoid taking a painful tumble, and whatever was coming after them was drawing closer.

Each howl sent a shiver down their spines, the shear hunger and violent intent in the haunting cries plain to hear. Sweetie Belle, despite the cold fear in her chest, chanced a look behind her.

The creatures chasing them were only a handful of paces behind them, and weren’t like anything Sweetie Belle had seen before. She knew what Hollows looked like, and these weren’t Hollows.

They had an appearance akin to wolves, although larger and more heavily built up front. Yet their entire bodies looked as if they were made out living plant matter, as if someone had sculpted a giant, burly wolf out of branches, vines, and other earthly materials. Not that this made their sizable claws and sap dripping fangs look any less dangerous, or their glowing, solid greenish yellow eyes any less haunting.

She let out a dainty shriek and redoubled her speed, pulling past her two friends as her tiny legs pumped like miniature pistons.

“Climate change is real!” she screamed, “Nature is having its revenge!”

“They heck’re ya talkin’ about?” Applebloom said, turning to look as well, and making a loud yelp as one of the wolven creatures made a prodigious leap towards her.

“Aaaah!” Applebloom flung her arm, sending her whip careening out in a crimson snap.

The creature was knocked aside by the blow, but it had about four or five compatriots that were right behind it, snarling as they dove towards the girl. Applebloom stumbled backwards, tripping over a branch and went sprawling down the hill in a haphazard roll. While painful, this did save her life as the wolves pounced on the spot she’d just been in.

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo slowed and turned, seeing Applebloom roll into a tree and come to a dead stop with a groan of pain.

“Applebloom!” Scootaloo shouted, rushing to her friend’s side. Applebloom was trying to stand up, but was wobbling, blood trickling down her forehead from a crack she’d received when she’d hit the tree.

“Ugg... I don’t... feel so good...”

“Dang it, c’mon!” Scootaloo said, wrapping Applebloom’s arm around her shoulder as she started dragging her away, “Should’ve brought my scooter!”

“How’d that help? This ain’t no place fer a scooter,” Applebloom said, still dazed, and Scootlaloo waved the question off as the wolves came after them.

“Never mind that! Sweetie Belle, help!”

“H-how!? Turning into a frisbee isn’t exactly going to do anything, unless this mutts want to play fetch!” Sweetie Belle protested, but even as she said it she turned and pointed her staff at the oncoming wolves.

Having no other options, she sent a stream of silvery light shooting out of the orb. It struck the lead wolf dead on, raising it into the air like a magical tractor beam. The other wolves broke off their attack, clearly confused by what they were seeing. The wolf entrapped by Sweetie Belle’s ray of light snarled and wiped its legs about, but couldn’t move as the light drew it back towards the staff.

“Ah!” Sweetie Belle flinched as the wolf passed within inches of swiping her face off before it was drawn entirely into the orb. Staring at her staff for a moment in shock, Sweetie Belle shook her head to clear the cobwebs and quickly held her staff up, “Mirror, mirror, change up!”

“Why are you still chanting that, even now!?” Scootloo yelled a she ran past with a gradually recovering Applebloom.

“It’s my style! Stop complaining!” Sweetie Belle said as her body and the staff were suffused with glittering silver dust, and her whole body swiftly poofed in a cloud of shining smoke. When the smoke cleared, Sweetie Belle had turned into one of the plant wolves.

The branches making up her body were white instead of brown, the vines a soft violet color, and instead of glowing eyes she still had big, adorable, cartoonish versions of her own eyes... but at least she was of the same size as the wolf her orb had absorbed, with identical claws and fangs.

But, Sweetie Belle was still Sweetie Belle.

“Uh... growl? Snarl? Angry wolf noises?” she said, trying to sound intimidating.

It didn’t precisely work. Certainly the pack of wolves looked confused, but that confusion swiftly turned to anger as the all let out deep rumbling growls and started to stalk towards Sweetie Belle, who in turn began to back up.

“G-guys! Guys! I don’t know how to fight in this body! Heeeeelp!”

Injured or not, Applebloom responded to her friend’s cry for help by pushing away from Scootaloo and stumbling back up the hill, ignoring the blood on her face.

“Applebloom, wait!” Scootaloo said, but Applebloom ignored her, raising her arm and striking with her whip. The whip cracked the ground in front of the wolves, hard enough to actually blast out a small crater, but it was clear Applebloom had been aiming for the wolves instead. She stumbled, teetering left and right from her head wound as she tried to get the whip to swing where she wanted, but it flung all over the place, hitting trees and rocks, blasting apart both.

The plant-like wolves nimbly avoided the flailing whip, although only one was able to get close enough to make a leap for Sweetie Belle.

The girl turned wolf let out a shout as the creature tackled her. Its fangs ripped at Sweetie Belle’s shoulder, which thankfully being made of wood now, didn’t get savaged nearly as badly as it could have. And inside Sweetie Belle, instincts that weren’t wholly her own kicked in, eliciting a genuine snarl from the girl as she tore right back with her own teeth and claws. The two went tumbling away, slashing and biting at each other, while the rest of the back kept evading Applebloom’s haphazard swings with her whip.

All the while Scootaloo stood there, staring, utterly frustrated by her uselessness.

If only I had my scooter! Why did I have to leave it at the bottom of the hill!?

She’d left it there because it wasn’t possible to ride her scooter uphill, and it’d only been partially rideable down the trail through the forest. She certainly hadn’t expected her and her friends to get attacked by weird plant monsters! Yet, even if she had her scooter, could she have used it?

Her aunts warned her never to use it where people could see. Ever since they came to this city, the entire idea had been to remain as innocuous as possible. Even making friends with Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had been more of a happy accident than intent, and her aunts had only allowed it because it helped Scootaloo blend in to have some friends.

Friends she was about to lose if she didn’t do something!

She’d hoped to get to the bottom of the hill, at least, but... but maybe he’d hear her anyway? If she shouted as loud as she could, would she be heard, even at the bottom of the hill?

Sweetie Belle was losing her fight with the wolf on her, pinned down now beneath it as it tried to get its jaws around her throat, and she barely fended it off with her own paws. Applebloom was tiring, her swings getting slower, even less accurate, and it seemed she might collapse from her head wound at any second.

Screw it! I have nothing to lose by trying!, Scootaloo thought, and sucked in as much air as she could, then let out a shout at the top of her lungs.

“Alerion! Zeige Dich!”

Her voice echoed across the forest boughs, and distantly, just barely, the sound of it reached a lonely parked scooter at the bottom of the hill. And the moment Scootaloo’s voice reached it, a circular symbol blazed to life upon its surface.

Scootaloo was on her knees now, waiting in terrified horror as the seconds ticked by towards her friends’ imminent demise. Applebloom had stopped swinging her whip, falling as dizziness took over. Sweetie Belle’s throat was inches from being torn out.

Then a screech ripped across the sky, a sound of a predatory hunting bird as loud as a foghorn.

Wind blasted down amid the trees, slamming into the wolves, scattering them. Then a massive form dropped through the treetops, smashing apart branches as it came, then slammed into the ground with the force of a tank being dropped from an airplane.

The bird was cast from stone, and was only an “eagle” if one likened a human to a Sasquatch. It had all of the trimmings of an avian predator, but its body was wide and primal in shape, with a head large and sloped, its beak practically as big as a canoe. It’s wings sported massive hooks, large as swords, and the talons on its feet were larger still. Every inch of its gray stone body was interlaced with swirling, decorative patterns that glowed with orange light, reflected in its eyes which rather than organic, were twin amber gems that radiated light from within.

Before the wolves could even react to its presence, the stone bird struck with the fury of a storm.

It’s beak snatched the wolf off of Sweetie Belle and snapped it in half with one bite. It’s right wing swung down with the force of a dozen battering rams and smashed two others. It then let out a piercing cry and slammed its wings together, creating a blast of air currents that literally turned into scything blades of air that sliced apart several other wolves. The bird then jumped up then slammed itself down, using its talons to smash into the remaining wolves with deadly stomps that shook the whole hillside.

The whole affair was over in less than ten seconds flat.

With stone muscles creaking like an ancient cathedral, the bird turned its head to regard Scootaloo with its amber eyes. A deeply resonant, baritone voice spoke, “Calling upon me for such trivial creatures, little bird. How can you ever expect to survive without me?”

“Hey, that’s not important right now!” Scootaloo said, rushing over to Applebloom’s fallen form, swiftly kneeling down beside her friend, “She’s hurt! You have to take us to my aunts’ house!”

The bird raised a stone wing and pecked at one of its feathers, seemingly unconcerned with Scootaloo’s plea, “I only saved you because it alleviated my long growing boredom. Never forget, little bird, I am not to be commanded like some loyal dog. I serve you only at my whim, and if you are too weak to save your friends, then perhaps I should leave you to your fate?”

Scootloo ground her teeth, and carefully hauled Applebloom up so she was managing to steady the girl over her shoulder as she glared at Alerion. Behind that glare was fear, but she kept it as hidden as she could. She remembered her aunts’ lessons concerning Dolls, and if she showed too much weakness, her Doll would turn on her. So she stood up straight and put as much strength into her voice as she could.

“Leave me and I’ll never feed you another orange ever again, buster! My friends need help, and you’re going to take us to my aunts. Don’t make me stuff you back in the scooter, because I will.”

“Ah, better. I won’t serve a weak master, but keep that spirit and I’ll deign to honor your requests,” Alerion said as he turned his gaze towards Sweetie Belle, who was still in wolf form, “Now is this one a ‘friend’ or a ‘foe’. She smells unlike the others, so I wasn’t certain if I should crush her like the rest.”

Sweetie Belle, having just barely managed to get her paws under her, turned to look up at the nearly fifteen foot tall stone bird and let out a frightened yelp. In a poof of smoke she turned back into her human form, holding up her staff defensively, “Friend! Definitely friend! Let’s not do any crushing, okay?”

“Hmph, pity, my blood still boils with the lust for violence, but I suppose I’ll take what meager offerings I can,” Alerion said as he lowered his body and extended a wing down like a ramp. The ridge of his back was shaped with several wide grooves and arches that made for natural seats.

“Get on, and hold tightly. If you fall, I will not catch you.”

“Sweetie Belle, help me get Applebloom up there,” Scootlaoo said, and with wide eyes Sweetie Belle obeyed, coming over and taking Applebloom’s other side as the girls hauled their unconscious friend up the wing and onto the stone bird’s back.

“Scootaloo, what is going on?” Sweetie Belle asked as they sat down, holding onto stone handles around the partial arches on Alerion’s back, Applebloom nestled between them. “How’d you summon Big Bird here?”

“I’ll explain later, after we get to my aunts’ place,” Scootaloo promised, although she gulped and looked away with a worried frown, “Although they’re going to be sooooo mad at me for blowing my cover.”

Alerion turned his massive stone head around to look at them, and it seemed his beak turned up in a feral smile, “Hold on tightly, now. I have no intention of flying slowly or gently.”

Scootaloo used one hand to hold onto Applebloom, while Sweetie Belle did the same, doing their best to keep their friend stable between them. Then Alerion took to the sky with one solid beat of his stone wings, catapulting himself into the air and soaring up into the sky.

The girls were buffeted by the wind, and the world tilted as Alerion made a sharp turn to fly down the hill, soaring over the forest trail. He dipped down, picking up Scootaloo’s scooter with one talon before making a swift and powerful climb upward. Sweetie Belle was practically gluing herself to Appleboom and Scootaloo, eyes tightly shut as the Doll went higher and higher.

Scootaloo wanted to reassure her friend that everything was going to be alright... but wondering how her aunts would react to what had happened today, she wasn’t certain of that at all.

Back on the ground, as Alerion became little more than a gray dot in the sky, a figure emerged from behind several trees near where the confrontation had taken place.

“Huh...” Di Roy said, scratching his chin as he glanced from the scattered remains of the plant wolves to the now barely visible Alerion on the horizon, “That was weird.”

He’d been observing the three young girls from hiding ever since he’d detected their reiatsu while patrolling the forest in search of the Soul Reaper lab. He’d thought he’d found it, but it’d just turned out to be those three kids he remembered from the fight at the movie theater. Watching them train their powers, he hadn’t expected those odd wooden wolves to show up out of nowhere. He’d followed and observed, staying hidden the whole time.

He might even had interceded if that orange kid hadn’t summoned the huge bird golem out of nowhere like that. As it was, his interference wasn’t needed, and now he had some juicy information for his trouble.

“Better go tell Adagio we’ve got some new players in town.”

----------

Sunset felt the air pressure from the giant scything blades on the Kraken’s main tentacles as they whooshed towards her. She raised Hikari and spun to the side, the shield catching the edge of one of the claws as it slashed past her. The physical might of the Kraken was incredible, even a glancing blow to the shield numbing her arm. The tentacles continued downward, her friends still on the beach front scattering like ants as the tentacles slammed home, causing shock waves of sand to blast upwards for hundreds of feet. The distant crowd of onlooking humans screamed and many feel off their feet from the seismic shaking the impacts caused, even at a distance.

Swiftly, Sunset gripped her sword by the red cloth coming off its pommel and spun it over her head. The energy her shield absorbed from partially deflecting the claw a moment earlier transferred to her blade, and deep red and orange flames flowed from it as she spun the Zanpaktou around by the cloth.

"Akai Shobo-shi!" (Red Fire Destroyer)

Before she'd only been able to create multiple fire discs when using Bankai, but her skills had increased to the point that while even using Shikai she was able to create four of the bright red circles of concentrated flame that she now flung towards the two main tentacles that were now rising from the beach. The discs of fire buzzed in, two of each impacting with the pair of tentacles. The discs were hottest at their spinning edges, cutting into the thick tentacle's flesh before the discs exploded in bursts of fire, tearing out chunks. However despite the damage, the raw size of the limbs meant the wounds weren't enough for more than superficial damage.

"We're gonna need ta hit this thing harder," said Applejack, kicking away one tentacle that had swung towards her with a rocket powered spin kick while blasting a beam of energy from her hand to knock away another, "These limbs're tougher n' dirt an' we ain't even hit the main body yet!"

"Give me a sec and I'll fry the whole dang squid!" claimed Rainbow Dash, nodding towards the sky above them where storm clouds were starting to gather. Sunset glanced at her, eyebrow raised.

"You controlling the weather now?"

Rainbow Dash flashed a grin, "You're not the only one with fancy new moves. Give me a few minutes and I'll literally be raining lightning on this jerk's parade."

"That's nice, but I don't think he's giving us a minute," Sunset said, looking towards the Kraken as it's main body started to move.

The Kraken roared and heaved itself forward, and the shoreline was consumed in a maelstrom of water as the Kraken slammed its body forward, its bulk alone causing a small tsunami to cover the beach. Most of the girls were able to avoid it by taking to the air. While none of them wielding Fullbring were as skilled at the nuances of it as Rarity was, all of them could stand on the air with ‘Bringer light’ now, so Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were able to join Rarity in leaping upward and air walking to avoid the flood of water.

The Quincy girls were similarly able to use Hirenkyaku to get airborne, except for Indigo Zap, who’s artificial legs were simply too much strain on her concentration to pull that maneuver off. Luckily Sunny Flare went to Indigo’s aid, picking Indigo up and carrying her safely upward away from the flood.

However the Kraken didn’t give the group a single instant of leeway. It had pulled back eight of its tentacles and wove spell circles in the air, which all glowed with searing emerald light. Each circle discharged a different elemental spell, flinging a swatch of lightning, fire, acid, and ice at the girls in various spheres, beams, and blasts.

Applejack took a fireball head on, crossing her arms to defend herself as the sphere detonated on her. She came out of the flames bearing some injury, with burn marks on her clothes and face, but her eyes flashing anger as she aimed a gauntlet at the Kraken's main body and cut loose with a raw golden energy beam. It detonated on the Kraken's thick armor, blasting a portion of it away, but not penetrating to the deeper flesh.

Rainbow Dash actively aimed herself towards one of the Kraken's lightning spells and thrust her spear into it, absorbing the electrical energy into herself. Her body lit up with a nimbus of azure storm energy, and she cracked a grin and laughed as she zipped straight down to the waters and proceeded to shove her spear into the ocean; discharging all her store lightning at once.

The water surged with arcs of electricity thick as telephone poles, and the tentacles shook and the Kraken roared in pain, but kept on coming, its tentacles weaving spells even as they squirmed in spastic jerking motions from the electricity. Meanwhile the dark storm clouds grew larger in the sky, thunder rolling from them in loud peals.

Pinkie Pie laughed as Pinkamena swung her like a baseball bat, knocking acid orbs back at the Kraken with the sound of a bat hitting a home run, and the distant noise of crowd cheering. That might have been Pinkie’s Fullbring creating the crowd noise, or it might have been the actual crowd that was still taking video and pictures of the battle. Either way Pinkie Pie said, “Why not wave to the nice people, Mena? Give them a big smile!”

“Not now Pinkie, I’m busy!”

Fluttershy had gone to Rarity’s side, placing a hand on Rarity’s shoulder as she said, “I think if I can get closer to the head, I might be able to better use my power to affect it’s mind. Let me boost your power a bit, and then do you think you can get me close?”

“Of course I can, darling! This overgrown cephalopod will not be getting the better of us today!” She called towards Sunset, who had grouped up with Clover and Posey, “Do you think you three could use some of those lovely Soul Reaper binding Kido to tie up some of those tentacles?”

“We’re on it!” Sunset said, and then shouted to Twilight,”Hey Twilight, cover us while we chant the Kido!”

“Understood! Girls, focus fire on the tentacles nearest the Soul Reapers. Give them time to chant their spells!” Twilight shouted, raising her bow, and her fellow Quincy all exchanged looks, nodded, and followed suit.They moved swiftly, leaping and bounding across the air to take up formation around the tentacles on the Krakens’ right side. Twilight took a deep breath and spoke within her mind.

Midnight, I need the magic.

Midnight responded with a husky chuckle, Of course, just be careful with it. You don’t have your fancy glove to focus it like normal.

The power surged up inside her and Twilight felt its cool rush with a rapidly increased heartbeat. Her skin tingled as she narrowed her eyes and gestured with her left hand, teal magical light flowing across her palm. The magic was wild at first, but Twilight felt more familiar with it and the need to harden her will and almost grip the magic with her hand, directing it as she desired. The Hexenfaust made this so much easier, but ultimately the gloves’ design purpose was to combine the magic with her reishi to help her shape her bow, but in this case she was letting Midnight help direct the raw magic for a spell. Or rather multiple copies of the same spell.

“Girls, fire through the symbols!” she called, the magic flowing out of her as she crystallized her will in her mind to direct the magic to take shape.

Magical circles filled the air in front of her comrades, sigils drawn up with unfamiliar runic script, yet with Midnight’s knowledge flooding her mind she knew the symbols’ meaning. She was combining two types of Equestrian spells. One would accelerate anything, matter or energy, that passed through the circle, while the other spell would duplicate anything passing through by a factor of ten. She knew the other girls were still developing higher end Quincy techniques, so something like Licht Regen was still outside their ability, but with the help of magic...

The Quincy girls opened fire, even Indigo, being held by Sunny Flare, formed her bow and let out sizzling, lightning infused arrows while Sunny used one hand to fire just one of her dart guns. The barrage of various reishi arrows struck the magic circle, then shot out through the circles at four times the speed, multiplying many times over. The result was a huge barrage that struck into half of the Kraken’s tentacles like a missile salvo, blasting entire chunks off of several and causing other tentacles to flail about.

Meanwhile on the other side, Sunset, Clover, and Posey had used Flash Step to flank the Kraken on the other side, each chanting a different binding Kido.

“Bakudo Number Seventy Nine; Shikaze Saya!” (Four Winds Scabbard)

Keeping with her focus upon air-based spells, which was the element Puddinghead had suggested Clover was most skilled with, the Twelfth Divisions Third Seat swept her arms in a harsh downward gesture, creating a fan of hardened air that shot out and then split into four separate air currents. The currents took the form of vaguely shaped humanoids, each wielding a staff of air. They then surrounded a group of tentacles and spun their staves, creating a swirling tornado of binding air that crushed the tentacles inward, bunching them up and keeping them pinned in place through shear air pressure.

“Bakudo Number Fifty Five: Dosei Nigiri!” (Earthen Grasp)

Posey’s spell created a large stone hand that was over five meters wide, and with a gesture she sent the hand flying at another pair of tentacles, grasping them in its powerful grip and squeezing them together.

“Bakudo Number Forty Seven: Shitateya no Hoyo!” (Seamstress’ Embrace)

Finally, Sunset’s spell created a large metal needle in her hand which she cast like a javelin, striking through another pair of tentacles. As the needle went, it left a string of red spirit energy that was sewn through the tentacles and as the needle criss-crossed back and forth, it literally sewed the two tentacles together, binding them fast.

“Fluttershy, Rarity, go!” Sunset shouted, “Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, follow them and take care of the rest!”

Rarity grinned, “Hold on tight Fluttershy”

She then called upon her Fullbring, and the blood whirlpool sent out a thick stream of crimson that quickly formed to large, ornate blades on either side of Rarity, each one a sharp, double edged blade as large as a car. Rarity then formed a ruby hook over her right and left hands while creating a length of crystal that wrapped around Fluttershy to help hold her steady as she wrapped her arms around Rarity’s back.

Then with a fling of her arms, Rarity sent the hooks on her arms flying out, attached by thin but strong cables of red crystal. These hooked into the nearest of the tentacles still free, including the two large central tentacles that the Kraken had pulled back to guard its front. Rarity then drew the cables back and went flying forward like she was launched from an oversized crossbow.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack flew in behind her, while Pinkamena used the Pinkie Hammer like a pogo-stick in the air, literally bouncing the hammer’s head off the air to launch herself forward alongside the others.

The Kraken roared at this oncoming assault, and its remaining tentacles surged forward, slashing at the girls coming right at it. Rainbow Dash’s body became encased in a nimbus of electric light as she flew up and forward, and Applejack blasted a thunderous amount of energy out of her boots as she rushed to keep up with the girl. Both of them took one of the giant main tentacles, Rainbow Dash using her spear to blast out a massive pillar of lightning that caught the huge appendage and caused it to flop about and seizure in mid-air. Applejack took the scythe blade of the tentacle she charged towards head on, cocking back a fist and rocket powered it right into the scythe’s edge. There was a cracking sound like the start of an avalanche as Applejack’s fist broke the bony scythe claw in half.

This cleared Rarity to fly right by, swinging and flipping as she hooked another tentacle and twisted past it. Her ruby blades, flying at her side, spun and slashed, cutting tentacles as she flew by them. Her smaller weapons might not have done much damage, but these larger ones had enough mass to tear through the rubber-like flesh, leaving bleeding limbs in their wake.

Still, the Kraken had held back just enough tentacles to be a problem, and since Rarity was moving down a relatively narrow path, it’d saved four tentacles near its face which were swiftly forming spells. Rarity saw them coming and prepared to evade, but as the tentacles all fired raw beams of magical, emerald light, Pinkamena swing forward, spinning with the Pinkie Hammer.

“You are the food and we are the hunters!” both Pinkamena and Pinkie shouted together as Pinkamena opened her mouth open to a ludicrous size of sawing teeth, and Pinkie Pie’s hammer form mimicked the move, only with a cartoonish tongue and teeth. Pinkie’s hammer mouth literally ate the magic beams with a loud chomping noise, while Pinkamena went on to sink her massive, overblown mouth into the remaining tentacles, gnawing on them like a crazed wolverine.

While this got the tentacles out of the way, the Kraken itself was not staying still. It surged upwards, opening its massive beak wide in an attempt to swallow Fluttershy and Rarity whole. However Rainbow Dash had flown up into the sky above, where the banks of storm clouds she'd summoned now churned in a swirling mass. When she raised her lightning spear to the clouds, her energy wings flared from prismatic colors to a sheet of raw electric fury as dozens and dozens of lightning bolts flew down and arced into Rainbow Dash's spear. She then spun the spear around and aimed it at the Kraken.

"Stormwrath!" Rainbow Dash shouted, as usual naming her attacks. A torrential downpour of lightning lances fired from both her spear and flaring wings, splitting into several hundred individual bolts that lanced downward and impaled the Karken's main body. The massive creature shook and shuddered, its mouth left hanging open as Rarity used a combination of Bringer light and her grappling lines to swiftly maneuver away from its beak and fly up towards its head, nimbly avoiding the lightning as well.

As the lightning from Rainbow's attack subsided, leaving the Kraken momentarily dazed, Rarity spun up to the top of it's head, making an elegant twist as she gracefully landed on the creature’s massive body, right between its eyes.

“Quickly Fluttershy, do your thing, while it's still stunned,” Rarity said, and Fluttershy hopped off, landing and placing both her hands on the Kraken’s head.

Fluttershy’s reiatsu flared up, her three eyes turning pure white and blue with light. The halo around her flared brightly as well as she shoved as much of her will and power straight into the Kraken through her hands. Immediately a battle of minds and willpower began, with Fluttershy speaking in a clear, authoritative voice, “Return from where you came from and never try to harm innocent people again!”

The Kraken was massive in size, but its mind and will were not necessarily any stronger than normal. However there was more at play here than mere mental energy or emotional will. As Fluttershy’s will began to suffuse the Kraken, overtaking it now that she could direct her power more intimately at close range, she ran into something surprising.

The Kraken’s will wasn’t the only will present. There was another willpower, another mind within it, and for a second Fluttershy brushed against this will and felt a chill as deep and dark as the deepest part of the ocean.

”Hmm, what have we here? A budding enslaver of others wills? I approve, but this one is my slave, child. You’ll have to go get your own.”

Fluttershy felt that will crash into her own, but she refused to give in. She’d been wanting to be more useful to her friends, and was afraid of abusing her own power, but this was not an abuse of her power. She could all but feel the terror of the people on the beach. Stopping this monster was exactly what her power should be used for. She fought back, throwing her power and will against the new presence's mind like thrusting a sword.

“No! You don’t belong here! You or this fiend! Begone from here!”

“Fluttershy? What is it?” Rarity asked, realizing something was wrong.

Fluttershy’s will smashed back against the presence controlling the Kraken, and she felt it give ground, but then it held firm suddenly, as if digging its own heels in. She felt a cold wave of power rise up against her mind, seemingly bottomless.

”Oh you are strong, aren’t you? You remind me of a former student. Perhaps you’re interested in an apprenticeship? I charge very reasonable rates. Just a bit of your soul, and I can show you secrets of power you couldn’t imagine. I can taste your desire to be stronger. I can make those desires a reality.

“Ughn... get out of my head! Get out of this creature’s head! Get! OUT!” Fluttershy formed her will from a sharp blade into a blunt mace and slammed it against the defensive wall the entity controlling the Kraken had put up. Once more she drove it back, felt it give way in the mental battle, just another inch or so.

Then the will simply... side-stepped. That was the closest Fluttershy could imagine the feeling, as if her opponent had side stepped her deftly and left her stumbling. She was vulnerable in that moment, and felt her opponent hammer her back with a vast, dark will that filled Fluttershy with a sea of frozen pain, like needles of ice digging into her every nerve.

She screamed, but held on, refusing to lose concentration. Even in pain, she forced her will to push back, and felt the mental swing land, and even heard a distant echo of a watery cry, like from some ancient deep sea creature.

”Ah, it’s... been awhile since anyone’s given me the mental equivalent of a bloody nose. Fluttershy, such a lovely name. I want you for my collection now more than ever.

Fluttershy’s eyes widened, “My name?”

”One can’t clash minds without risking showing parts of oneself to one’s opponent. If you were more skilled at these mental battles you’d know more of me by now as well. In any case, doing this over such a long distance, worlds apart really, is rather tiring on my end. I’ll tell you what, I’ll withdraw for today, because I’ve already gotten the information I was interested in. I just want you to consider that we will meet again, Fluttershy, and my offer remains open. If you get tired of being a weak link among your friends... I can change that.”

Abruptly the mental contact was severed, and Fluttershy found herself lying on her back, Rarity cradling her. She felt blood leaking from her nose, and Fluttershy wiped it away. Her head started to ache a bit from the mental strain, but there was little time to consider that as the Kraken shuddered beneath her. The creature was pulling back into the ocean, sinking beneath the churning waters.

Rarity, not waiting to see if Fluttershy could stand or not, picked her up and jumped upwards, kicking off the air several times to gain a good distance of height before turning to watch as the Kraken fully sunk beneath the surface. It was still possible to see its large, dark body withdrawing into the deeper waters, a monstrous shadow beneath the curtain of blue.

“Oh no you don’t!” Rainbow Dash said, raising her hand and the sky responded with lightning flashing within her storm clouds, ready to leap to her call once more, but a moment later Sunset was next to her, putting a hand on Rainbow Dash’s shoulder.

“Don’t bother. Even with all the electricity you can summon, it's already sinking deep enough underwater you probably can't affect it. Besides, as long as it's leaving, that’s all the matters.”

“But...argh, fine! But I don’t want that Ray Harryhausen reject causing any more problems!”

“We’ll figure out where it came from and how to deal with it later, but in case you didn’t notice, Dash, we’re kind of on camera,” Sunset said, pointing at the crowd along the beach side. Rainbow Dash saw several flashes of phone cameras and blanched.

“Crap. Okay, uh, so how do we deal with this?”

Clover and Posey appeared nearby, both sharing a look of concern.

“The Soul Society is experienced with handling large crowds,” said Posey, “I’ll call in a clean up team that will intercept every living human present and work on altering their memories of this event and erasing any data on their devices.”

“I guarantee you there’s videos and pictures already uploaded online,” said Sunset, “Can you guys do anything about that?”

“No, but we can stop enough of it that none of the reports can be effectively confirmed, and by the time any authorities sweep this area, Soul Society will have used Kido to remove any physical evidence of the attack, including monster bits, impact craters, anything else they can find,” Clover said, running a hand through her mossy green hair, “Either way, you girls and the Quincy need to get out of sight. Maybe hide out at Mr. Discords?”

Sunset glanced out towards the sea, where in the distance she could just barely make out the last shadow of the Kraken as it vanished into the depths.

An Equestrian creature, here? Someone out there was opening portals. But was this because of the Soul Reapers’ experiments, or was another power at work? Sunset had a very sinking feeling about all this.

----------

Ember tried to ignore the pain, but it wasn’t easy. The energy the Soul Reapers would channel through her sometimes just sort of tingled, but other times it was like getting a jolt of fire through her veins. Today it was fairly mild, but the pain wasn’t really the part that bothered her. It was the simple, humiliating lack of power. The way she could feel the Soul Reaper’s devices poking at her spiritual energy, tugging at her Hollow essence. This, combined with the way most of them looked at her, like she was at best a bug on a pin, and at worst a dangerous and deadly bacteria best kept contained, that made her sneer at them.

“There it is again,” said the old Soul Reaper Captain, frowning at a data monitor at the base of the test chamber, “Another surge at .09 degrees. Meadowbrook, give me a closer look at this spectrum here and tell me if you think these surges are corresponding to our tests or not, because quite frankly I’m not liking how close in comparison they are to our time frame.”

Another Soul Reaper with sand colored hair leaned over the monitor, fingers drumming on the table, “The interval is off by anywhere from three to five seconds, which is close, true, but if there was a correlation then why haven’t we seen these before now? We haven’t been increasing the intensity, only altering the configuration of the Garganta energies. And since each test uses a different configuration, then why would these surges be happening with so many different ones? It should be consistent, shouldn’t it?”

“...Quite right, quite right, but this still bothers me. Magic, so unpredictable. This is why I recommended moving the experiments away from the city. It’s dangerous enough having to do them here in the human world. Bah, if only we could have moved this to Soul Society. This is too dangerous already. I’m thinking it might be best to recommend we suspend tests until we can figure out what’s causing these surges and if it's us or not.”

“I’m inclined to agree,” said Meadowbrook, “Especially with the Quincy sniffing so close by. We can suspend work, take the subject to Soul Society, and work out more on how to simulate Garganta at Division headquarters. If we’re lucky we can figure out how to simulate the Garganta without even needing to put the subject through these tests.”

“Hmph, sympathy for the enemy?” Starswirl inquired, and Meadowbrook pointedly did not look towards Ember.

“Not specifically. I just feel that if we can perform our work without needing to utilize the subject in this manner. That’s more efficient for everyone concerned. Her fate is ultimately going to be purification by Zanpaktou, but I don’t see why she need suffer until that time comes.”

“You’re right, as usual, Lieutenant. Very well, testing will be suspended until further notice. It’s going to take some time to clear things through Scorpan, but-” Starswirl began to say, but he was cut off as the ground shook. It wasn’t a large quake, but it was enough to knock several pieces of equipment off of tables and for several researchers to lose their balance.

“Starswirl, sir, you need to see this!” said another scientist, and Starswirl and Meadowbrook came over to the other monitor.

Ember craned her neck to try to see what was happening, not able to get more than a partial look, stuck suspended in her holding apparatus. Starswirl and Meadowbrook were now bent over the other monitor, the other researcher gesturing at the monitor excitedly.

“Look! The portal is widening! It’s only by a .003 percent amount, but if you look here, an unknown energy source integrated with the Garganta of the subject, and successfully merged with the Equestrian portal for a fraction of a second!”

“By the Soul Queen, are those surges actually helping us?” Starswirl muttered, stroking his beard.

“Captain?” Meadowbrook asked, and Starswirl looked not at him, but at Ember with a piercing gaze.

“I’m sorry Lieutenant, but I think we’ve just had a breakthrough. If these surges of magic energy are actually helping us open the portal, then I’m not certain we can suspend the testing now. Instead I want to locate the source of these surges and see if we can harness them. In fact, if those young ladies are going to be joining us in our efforts at the camp up above, their magic might be the key to understanding what’s happening here and securing the portal to Equestria. We can’t afford to stop now that we have something resembling progress.”

Meadowbrook cast a glance at Ember as well, something almost akin to an apology in his eyes, ‘I...understand, Captain. But I recommend we at least halt testing for the rest of the week, until we can investigate the surges, and we have Sunset and her friends on site to assist us.”

“Hmm, agreed. Well, let’s get to going over this data again...”

Episode 97: Scootaloo's Home

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Episode 97: Scootaloo’s Home

Alerion was not a gentle flier, making no concessions on speed or maneuvering as he sliced across the sky with his three passengers. How something seemingly made purely of stone could fly with such swiftness and able agility Sweetie Belle didn't know, she just knew that if she hadn’t been scared of heights before, she was making great headway on developing the phobia now.

Several times she felt Applebloom’s limp body try to slip out from between her and Scootaloo, and it was only Sweetie Belle’s utter terror that lent enough strength to her limbs to keep her friend held tightly and from sliding right off into open air. Well, terror, and perhaps a small bit of unconscious Fullbring use, solidifying enough of the air around her hands and legs to keep stable, but Sweetie Belle wasn’t self-aware of such usage of her power.

She kept her eyes shut tight for most of the flight, only daring to open them a handful of times. Each time it looked like Alerion was flying south, well beyond the city limits. The Everfree Forest was to the north, whereas if one went far enough south of Canterlot City, the landscape turned mostly into steep hills, lightly forested, with a highway that snaked its way through the landscape towards other towns and the wider world. Sweetie Belle imagined that to anyone down below who looked up, Alerion probably looked like either a small plane, or just a large bird. They were so high up, it wasn’t likely anybody would be able to make out size, or details.

Without checking her phone there was no way to be sure how long the flight lasted, but if she was forced to guess, it wasn’t even half an hour before Alerion made a sudden and sharp descent. Sweetie Belle screamed, holding onto Applebloom and to the stone bird for dear life. Wind tore past her like a wall of hands, grasping, threatening to tear her off and send her tumbling to a sudden, unpleasant demise. Sweetie Belle only held on tighter, face planted into Applebloom’s back.

Then, just as suddenly as the descent began, it ended. Sweetie Belle was jostled by the feeling of a heavy impact, and she nearly tumbled off if not for Scootaloo reaching back and grabbing her arm, steadying her. Alerion had touched down in a clearing, nestled between several hills that were thick with trees. A dirt road, broad but largely unpaved, wound its way between the hills, presumably towards a more mainstream road. Before them sat a two story, steeple roofed house, painted an almost garish yellow color. A large side garage and shed could be seen on the house’s left side, while the right sported a wide wooden porch with an overhanging roof.

An old looking, beat up red and yellow ‘beetle’ car sat in the front driveway.

Alerion lowered his wing, looking back at the girls, his deep voice echoing.

“We have arrived. You can stop screaming now.”

Sweetie Belle, face red, sucked in a deep breath and let the tension inside her explode out, “Oh can I!? Gee, thanks! And here I thought I was screaming in terror for your benefit, you overgrown garden gnome!”

The bird raised a stone brow with a grinding, earthy noise. “Shall I take you back up? Show you what a rougher flight might feel like, since you appear to have enjoyed it so much?”

Before Sweetie Belle could respond, Scootaloo stood up and placed her hands on her hips, eyeing Alerion head on, “That’s enough. Thanks for the help, Alerion. I’ll bring you some nice, juicy oranges later. For now, stow the sass and stay on guard.”

“Hmph, very well...” the bird said, and waited as Scootaloo helped Sweetie Belle carefully carry Applebloom down his wing and to the ground. Applebloom was frightfully quiet, and it was starting to scare Sweetie Belle. She could still see her friend’s chest rising and falling, so she was definitely breathing, but she wasn’t stirring at all, and just hung between her and Scootaloo like a dead lump.

“S-Scootaloo, is she going to be okay?”

It was impossible to miss the fear in Scootaloo’s eyes, but the other girl took a deep breath and put on a brave smile, nodding, “Of course she will! My aunts will take care of it. You’ll see. Now c’mon, they must have heard Alerion landing...”

Sweetie Belle had dozens of questions in her mind, but stowed them for now. Applebloom needed help, and she wasn’t going to waste any time before getting her that help by grilling Scootaloo on just what in the world was going on. It bothered her that her friend had been clearly keeping a huge secret from them, but answers could wait until Applebloom was safe, and hopefully awake.

As she and Scootaloo were hauling Applebloom as gently as they could up the stairs to the porch, a white door with an odd, almost Celtic symbol woven in wood on its front, swung open. The woman who came out onto the porch looked as if she was in her mid to late twenties, with a healthy, warm yellow skin tone and soft amber eyes. Her hair was a faded orange streaked with darker orange, curling past her shoulders. She wore a purple sweater, despite the early summer heat, and long, white slacks. The moment she saw the girls, her eyes went wide, one hand going to her mouth. On her index finger she wore a surprisingly large, silver ring with a bright, oval shaped blue stone in it.

“Oh my! Scootaloo, dear, what manner of trouble have you gotten yourself into!?” The woman’s eyes swept over Sweetie Belle and Applebloom, then to the sight of Alerion standing in the driveway. Her expression visibly became tighter, yet somehow her eyes were still soft with sympathy. “Oh... Oh I see... well then, best get inside. Put your friend on the sofa, while I go fetch Lofty. Oh dear, oh dear, this is going to be a rough afternoon.”

“Yes, Aunty Holiday,” Scootaloo said, in a far more demure tone than Sweetie Belle had ever heard her use with anyone before, even the teachers at school. It wasn’t fear, exactly, just an extreme amount of deference. Even Scootaloo’s expression was subdued in a way that Sweetie Belle had never seen as they followed ‘Aunty’ Holiday into the house.

The interior of the house was brightly lit, and furnished in a manner that Sweetie Belle could only think of as ‘grandmaish’, with pleats and floral designs plastered over everything. The doorway led to a short hall, with an open archway into a long and well appointed kitchen on the right, with windows looking out onto the porch. They went down the hallway instead, where a stairwell went up to the left, where Holiday quickly took the stairs two at a time to the second floor. Meanwhile Scootaloo continued to carry Applebloom alongside Sweetie Belle, leading down the hall through a door into a large living room.

Looking around Sweetie Belle saw some things that seemed normal, like several rocking chairs, a huge and plush yellow sofa, bookshelves, pictures on the wall, and a decent sized television on one side of the room. Yet there were other things that didn’t seem normal, or at least were somewhat out of place. Several shelves had strange jars and jugs on them that looked to be filled with liquids she couldn’t identify. One shelf had a line of bird skulls of varying sizes and shapes, all neatly arranged. A basket on one end table was filled with strange stones and crystals, while on another table incense burned amid a pot marked with strange symbols like the one on the front door. An actual axe was hung on one of the walls, of some very strange and ancient design that looked less like the shiny replicas Sweetie Belle had seen and more... authentic.

Then there were the pictures themselves. They weren’t exactly ‘family photos’ of the garden variety. They showed individuals from across the world, in various places Sweetie Belle didn’t recognize, but definitely looked like other countries. There were, however, at least two people who kept appearing in more than one photo. An exceedingly tall, willow limbed woman of almost painful beauty, with long, blonde hair, and a very rugged looking, handsome man with a well muscled build, and very distinctive, purple hair.

“Scootaloo, are those...?” she began to ask, as they set Applebloom down on the sofa.

“My mom and pop,” Scootaloo said, looking at the nearest picture with an almost painful look in her eyes. It showed the pair, the tall, stunning blonde, and her rugged, purple haired husband standing in front of some kind of pyramid structure, perhaps Aztec? Sweetie Belle wasn’t sure.

“Do they, uh, travel a lot?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Always...” Scootaloo said, carefully putting a blanket from the back of the sofa and putting it over Applebloom, making sure the girl’s head was placed gently atop one of the pillows sitting on the end of the sofa. “I’ve only seen them a few times my whole life. They’re... super busy, doing important stuff for... um, well, you’ll find out, if Aunty Holiday and Aunty Lofty think it's okay to tell you.”

A moment later Sweetie Belle heard footsteps on the stairs, followed by the voice of another woman, not Holiday, but clearly this ‘Lofty’ person.

“What in blazes has gotten into that girl!? She could blow our entire cover here, Holiday! There’s plenty of nasty folks crawling around town these days, and most of them aren’t exactly on our friends list, if you catch my drift!”

“Oh I know, Lofty, but let’s not blow our stack, shall we? Clearly Scootlaloo had a good reason to do what she did.”

As Holiday walked into the living room she was preceded by another woman. This one had a lighter but similarly yellow skin tone to Holiday, although that was largely where the similarities ended. Where Holiday was rounded in figure, in a short, pleasant manner, this woman was tall and had a harsh angled face and frame. Her expression was severe, but not without a hint of kindness about her eyes, as if she wasn’t used to frowning like she was now. Well groomed, sea blue hair was striped with lighter tones and cut short and neat around her head. She wore a striking blue blouse and denim jeans.

As she entered the room, she looked to Scootaloo, then the other two Cutie Mark Crusaders, and anger warred with concern on her face as Lofty let out a heavy sigh and said, “This looks like a right mess, Scootaloo. Just what happened out there?”

“I’m sorry, Aunty Lofty, I’m really, reaaally sorry! I had no choice! My friends were gonna die!” Scootaloo cried, tearing up as she looked at the two women pleadingly.

Holiday elbowed Lofty lightly, “Let’s leave off the questions until after we ensure the child is going to be alright. If you’d go brew something for her, I’ll get to work on the injury itself.”

Lofty was still frowning, but nodded, muttering, “Brew, right. Guess they’ve already seen Alerion, no point hiding anything else. But you’re on answers duty. I got no head for explaining things.”

With that she strode back to the hall and took the turn into the kitchen. Meanwhile Holiday approached the bed and knelt next to it, examining Applebloom. Sweetie Belle, looking nervous, asked, “Are you going to be able to help her?”

Holiday turned to her with a calming smile, and pat Sweetie Belle on the head, “Not to worry, my dear. Your friend is going to be just fine. Now, you and Scootaloo stand back. I need a bit of room to work.”

Sweetie Belle was still uneasy, but Scootaloo took her hand and drew her back to one side of the living room while Holiday stood and took a step back from the sofa. Sweetie Belle watched as Holiday raised her hand, the one with the large silver ring on it, and softly chanted.

“Dampfherz... Zeige Dich.”

A second later, Sweetie Belle also heard Lofty’s voice from the kitchen.

“Kessel, Zeige Dich.”

She gave Scootaloo a questioning look, but the other girl just shook her head. Sweetie Belle went back to watching, and saw a pentagram-like symbol appear in a glow of red light on Holiday’s ring, right in the center of the blue stone embedded in it. In a swiftly expanding swirl, steam emerged from the ring, twisting about and then coalescing next to Holiday. The steam hissed as it started to take solid shape, and from within it Sweetie Belle heard the grinding and clanking of metal and gears. Suddenly one long, spindly leg of bronze and copper emerged, decked in wires and clockwork. It was followed by another, then another, until eight spidery legs of metal had emerged from the cloud of steam. Then with a metallic groan, a body pulled itself forth, and Sweetie Belle gasped.

It was like some manner of centaur-like spider made of forged, gleaming copper and bronze plates. It had the lower body of a spider, with eight long but thin legs attached to a bulbous body with small arcs of electricity blasting between four large tesla coils on its back. The top portion was human in shape, but more akin to some steamwork droid than a person, with a thick barrel chest with several open bits showing the churning clockwork beneath, and a face that was almost perfectly spherical save for its overly large metal nose, and of all things, a metal tophat! Round, bright glowing yellow eyes blinked, and a mouth fixed in a permanent, gentlemanly smile said, “How do you do, mistress Holiday!”

He was speaking like some fancy English gentleman, complete with a thick accent. At his words he raised one of the two human-like arms of his upper body, each of which ended in a robotic claw, and took off his tophat in a friendly tip. Beneath the metal hat, his ‘brain’ was a glass dome filled with flashing gizmos and churning gears.

Holiday inclined her head to the strange construct, “And a good day to you, Dampfherz. I’m sorry to impose, but we have an injured young lady here that requires your attention, if you would?”

She gestured at Applebloom, and Dampfherz tilted his upper torso over to get a better look, his glass-like eyes clicking and buzzing as their ‘lids’ rose in a robotic expression of alarm, “My word, what a dreadful conk on the noggin’! Well marms, no need to fret, I’ll have this young lass set to rights in no time at all.”

Suddenly a rough female voice, not Lofty’s but one far more gravely and punctuated by the sound of crackling flames said, “Not without my Brew you're not, you overblown tinker toy!”

Steam hissed out of Dampfherz’s mouth as he sighed, “I see you’re in a fine humor as usual, Kessel. Try not to ‘brew’ anything that’ll poison the lass, otherwise I’ll become quite cross.”

“Bite me!” came the reply from the kitchen, which was now also filled with quite the racket of banging pots and pans.

Holiday cleared her throat pointedly and Dampfherz gave a quick nod, “Yes, of course, moving right along, marm.”

With clinking taps, his spidery legs moved, and he hovered over Applebloom on the sofa. Sweetie Belle gulped, not at all certain what to make of any of what she was seeing, but fearing if she tried to start asking questions would slow things down, she kept her peace and just watched. It was hard not to shout, however, when Dampfherz made a slight ‘hmm’ sound and placed his hand-claws on either side of Applebloom’s head, and pushed them in.

However there was no blood, no cracking noise like a skull breaking. In fact it didn't seem like his claws were making ‘holes’ so much as they were passing through without harm, as if they were without substance. Only a faint mist, much like the steam that perpetually wafted around him, could be seen around the edges of his claw.

“Hmmm... hmmm...” Dampfherz nodded, as if to himself, “Ah, I see. Poor lass has quite the concussion. Could be the kind that leaves her in a bad way, if ol’ Dampfherz wasn’t here to patch her up proper.”

“How long?” asked Holiday.

“Oh, not long I suspect. Give me a good hour or so and I’ll patch what needs patching, then I suspect Kessel’s god-awful tincture will finish the job up.”

With a relieved nod, Holiday said, “Good, thank you Dampfherz. Let me know if you need anything. In the meantime I will be speaking with my niece and her friend.” She turned a steady stare to Scootaloo and Applebloom. “I suspect we both have quite a bit of explaining to do.”

----------

“Anything?” Sunset asked Twilight, who peered closely at the device in her hands. Nearby Clover stood with a patient but furtive glance towards shore. All three girls were quite a distance from the beach now, air walking nearly ten miles from where the battle with the Kraken had taken place.

Things weren’t exactly quiet on shore, either. Rarity had taken charge of things among Sunset’s friends, organizing a quite search for wounded among the civilians, and once it was clear that nobody was hurt, they beat a hasty retreat to Applejack’s brother’s truck to get out of the area before any authorities arrived. Meanwhile Twilight’s group of Quincy friends had exited the area via of a vehicle of their own, Twilight staying behind to help Sunset with tracking the Kraken. Some words had passed between Twilight and her fellow Quincy, but Sunset hadn’t listened in on what was said.

Posey had departed to get a Soul Reaper cleaning crew out here to deal with the civilians as best they could, although Sunset was fearful there was no way to ensure everyone’s memory was altered or that every video or picture was deleted. Honestly she was fine with that. The ‘secret’ of magic had been all but out since the fiasco with Twilight’s crown, and with the advent of further incidents beyond that it felt to her like the citizens of Canterlot City just sort of accepted the goings on in town, taking it all in stride.

Then again, kaiju sized magical squids had never entered the equation before, and some of the people on the beach might not have been ‘townies’ but been folk from other cities, vacationing.

Either way, while she suspected this incident would garner some unwanted attention, Sunset’s present priority was to deal with the very immediate issue of there being a literal sea monster on the loose. She could worry about the government knocking on her friend’s doors with uncomfortable questions later.

“I think I have a lock on it,” Twilight said, adjusting several knobs on her device, which showed a steady line of energy that Sunset assumed was the Kraken’s magical signature, moving through the ocean due north east. “It’s moving pretty fast for something so big. I estimate it’s down to a depth of around eight hundred meters, too, and gradually lowering.”

“So any idea where it’s going?” Sunset asked, “Fluttershy said it was being controlled by someone...”

That part disturbed her even more than the mere presence of a legendary Equestrian monster in the human world. From what Fluttershy explained before she and the other girls left, the Kraken’s mind was being monitored by another presence, one far more powerful. This ‘presence’ had also said something about having learned what it wanted to know already, which was why it’d had the Kraken withdraw when the fight was turning against it.

“I can’t really speculate with any accuracy,” Twilight said, frowning at the waves far below. “Most likely it’s just trying to hide for now, until whoever is controlling it gives it further orders. Going deep like it is means we can’t effectively chase it.”

“Not without the proper Kido,” Clover said, her own face thoughtful now, “There are several warding Kido that could create a space underwater that we could breath and fight in, if necessary. Might not be worth the trouble, however. Instead it’d be easier to just lure it to shore again, or wait for it to come into the shallows.”

“Who knows how long that will take?” growled Sunset, frustrated that this dangerous creature was evading them. “There’s no telling who it might hurt before we can intercept it. It could attack ships, or another coastal town! No, we have to deal with this thing as fast as possible, before it ends up hurting someone. Twilight, how far can your device track it?”

“We’ve been needing to come out this far just to keep it in range, due to its depth,” Twilight said, almost apologetically, “If it goes much deeper, I’ll lose its signal... wait...”

“What is it?” Sunset asked, looking at Twilight with a spark of hope, her hand reflexively clutching Hokori no Hikari.

Twilight’s expression turned confused and ponderous as she moved forward with a swift Hirenkyaku, appearing about a hundred yards further ahead. Sunset was impressed. She might have been able to follow the movement, but Twilight’s speed had increased exponentially since the last time she’d seen her in a fight. This wasn’t a battle now, Twilight was just moving around, apparently occupied by something her device was detecting. She kept appearing and vanishing again, covering distances of several hundred yards with each movement.

Sunset and Clover exchanged looks, shrugged, and both followed her with Flash Step.

“Twilight, slow down!” Sunset said, “What’s going on?”

Twilight stopped, her eyes glued to her device, “I don’t believe it... look at this.”

Sunset and Clover peered over Twilight’s shoulders at the screen. The Kraken’s signature was weak, around nine hundred meters deep now, eleven miles northeast of the beach. However, its magical signature was joined by a circle of magical energy that was nearly as large as the Kraken was.

“What in Celestia’s name is that?” Sunset pondered, but her brain was already moving ahead of her mouth. She’d seen circles of magical energy like that before in her studies back in Equestria. “That’s a ritual circle!”

Both Clover and Twilight looked at her with queries clear in their eyes, and Sunset cleared her throat and quickly explained, “Okay, so you both get how unicorns use magic by channeling energy through our horns and visualizing the patterns we need to form a spell?”

“Yes, I remember asking the pony me about it the one time she visited before... all this started happening, “ Twilight said, “She said a lot of spells have complex components that unicorns who specialize in magic as a talent study from books, memorizing the patterns they need to visualize. Most simple spells like light or telekinesis don’t really require that, but anything more complicated like transmutations take a lot more mental focus and drive to both visualize the patterns and channel the necessary magical force to power the spell.”

“Right, will plus mental focus equals magical force. Starswirl’s most basic principle of magic. Now, rituals are sort of a ‘cheat’ in the system. Instead of visualizing the pattern, you make a physical representation of it, and over time invest magical force into the pattern. This let’s you skip the part where you’d need a ludicrous amount of mental focus and will to pull off a BIG spell, by just taking time, like, a lot of time and invest a trickle of power into a prepared circle that gathers that power. Given days, weeks, however long you want, you’ve got a circle patterned to cast a specific spell, and suddenly you can do something much more powerful than you could on your own.”

“So you’re saying this Kraken has made such a ritual circle at the bottom of the ocean?” Clover said, shaking her head, “That strikes me as something to be concerned about.”

“No kidding. What I don’t get is how it even got here in the first place,” Sunset said, racking her brain for anything more than she could remember about the Kraken’s species from her studies. “There shouldn’t be any portals after the Friendship Games was done with. Unless...” she glanced at Twilight, “You’ve got Midnight bouncing around in your head, right? Ask her if she remembers during that whole incident if any of that insane magic she was throwing around might have opened a portal all the way out here.”

Twilight’s face flushed red, her embarrassment at remembering the incident in question written on her face, but she nodded slightly and took a deep breath, closing her eyes. Sunset could only imagine what having a mental conversation with someone like ‘Midnight’ was like. Well, actually, given her experiences with Hokori, it probably wasn’t that hard to imagine.

A moment later Twilight opened her eyes, “She says while its technically possible, it isn’t very likely. All of her attention at the time was focused on the immediate area, and we weren’t sending magic this far out. Now she does say it's possible that portals besides the one in the Canterlot High statue might exist. She thinks this world’s barriers between realities have always seemed... thin. It’d be ‘foolish’ she says to assume that there aren’t other portals to other worlds besides the one we know about.”

Twilight paused, cocking her head, frowned, then added, “She also says that she isn’t even sure that Kraken is from Equestria.”

“What?” Sunset said, blinking, “But I know the legends about that beast. It fits the description! Also it was using Equestrian magic!”

“Yes, but Midnight says she was paying attention to it, and while it was definitely using Equestrian magic, its ‘reiatsu’ didn’t feel like it fit Equestria.”

“Reiatsu? I... didn’t actually pay attention to any spiritual pressure form it,” Sunset said, and glanced at Clover, “Did you?”

Clover hesitated a moment, then said, “Well, I didn't want to say anything unless I was sure, but yes, I felt spiritual energy from the Kraken. It was suppressed, however, almost as if it was trying to hide it from us.”

“Well, what does that mean?” Sunset asked, rubbing her forehead, “Is this thing from Equestria or here?”

Clover’s face seemed to light up with thought as she rubbed her chin, then said, “What if it's both?”

“Both?” Sunset and Twilight asked at once, and Clover seemed to grow more animated as she started to pace in the air in front of them.

“Yes... yes! This may just be a wild theory, but hear me out. This creature, this Kraken, has spiritual energy, and not in a small amount I suspect. It came to this world through some manner of portal most likely, but not necessarily from Equestria. However it is using Equestrian magic, and by Fluttershy’s statement is being controlled, likely by an entity fluent and powerful in Equestrian magic. What if this Kraken is a spirit entity that was granted magical power by a being from Equestria while not itself being from Equestria? What if... it’s from the Beast Realm?”

----------

Tea had been served and Scootaloo waited quietly as she sat at the table in the small lounge adjoining the kitchen. Applebloom was sleeping peacefully, recovering now that her Aunts Dolls had done their work to heal her wounds, but the farm girl was still unconscious. By the table, a being that looked like an iron cauldron with arms and legs made of solid red flames looked at those gathered at the table with an expectant expression on its face; a face formed in the surface of the cauldron from super-heated metal and giving it the look of an iron Jack o’ Lantern.

“Well, how’s the tea?” it, she, asked in an impatient tone, and Scootaloo swiftly sipped the tea. Next to her, Sweetie Belle did the same. It had a rich, honeyed flavor, and despite her extreme nerves at the moment she felt a warm, soothing sensation wash through her as the tea settled in her stomach. Aunty Lofty’s Doll, Kessel, could ‘Brew’ all sorts of concoctions in her head, most with miraculous effects.

That, combined with Aunty Holiday’s Doll, Dampfherz’s ability to deconstruct and reconstruct matter with its claws were what had saved Applebloom from what otherwise would have been a life threatening head injury.

“Mm, this is pretty good, actually,” Sweetie Belle said, “What’s it made from, Miss Kessel?”

Well, at least she’s adapting to this better than I expected, Scootaloo thought, glancing sidelong at her friend as Kessel puffed up her ‘chest’ and grinned.

“Bit of this and that. Herbs, spices, mildew, some chemicals I found under the sink-”

Sweetie Belle visibly paled, which was quite a feat given how pale she already was, but before she could spit the tea out, Lofty and Holiday entered the room and Lofty idly gave Kessle a kick in the cauldron’s ‘rear’.

“Stop poking fun at the girl,” Lofty said, “Why don’t you make yourself useful and go keep watch outside with Alerion? If this girls have lead any trouble our way, I want to see it coming.”

“Fine, fine. Just having some fun was all. When’s the last time I’ve gotten to screw with a normie?” Kessle said, and walked out of the room, heading for the front door. Despite her legs and feet being made of fire, they didn’t burn the floor, or even put off much heat.

Sweetie Belle’s face puffed in a frown as she set the ‘tea’ down, crossing her arms, “Who’s that pot calling a ‘normie’. I turned into a wolf today! See my magic wand!” She waved her Fullbring around, causing Lofty and Holiday to look it over, then look at each other, then at Scootaloo.

“So,” said Holiday as she took a seat at the round lounge table, Lofty instead remaining standing, “Shall you go first, Scootaloo, or should we?”

Scootaloo gulped, having dreaded this part, but there was no way around it. In quick, simple terms, she described what had happened that day. This, of course, led to further questions, in which Scootaloo had to summarize what she knew about her friend’s developing ‘Fullbring’ powers. Lofty and Holiday already knew about Sunset and the other older girls, because... well... Scoootaloo had been providing information practically since she’d arrived in Canterlot High.

Sweetie Belle looked at her askance at the admission,”Wait a minute, you mean you’ve been spying on us? On our sisters?”

“N-no! Not exactly. I mean, kinda?” Scootaloo’s face was flushed and her hands gripped the table edge nervously. Swiftly, Holiday interjected.

“Now before you think too sourly of our dear Scootlaoo, I feel its now my turn to explain ourselves, if you’ll listen, Miss Sweetie Belle?”

There was a heady storm of conflicting emotions in Sweetie Belle’s eyes, but she looked at Scootaloo with a clear desire to want to trust her friend, so she quietly gave Holiday a nod, and the woman continued.

“Thank you. You see, the day Scootaloo came to Canterlot High just this school year was also within the same time frame myself and Lofty bought and furnished this house. Before that, myself, Lofty, and Scootaloo were living in Budapest. And before that we lived in Hong Kong. Before that it was Argentina. We’ve traveled quite a lot you see, and it's been hard on Scootaloo, I’m afraid. She’s never had much chance to lay down any roots, make friends, feel like anyplace has been a home to her.”

Scootaloo swallowed dryly, and took some more tea, trying not to think too hard about the years before Canterlot City. There were times it felt like every other month it was a new apartment or cabin in some country where she didn’t know anyone or the language, and why learn when she’d probably be gone in another month anyway? She sometimes felt she spent more time packing and unpacking boxes to move than actually living somewhere.

“That was why Lofty and I were so happy when we heard she’d made such fast friends with you and young Miss Applebloom. We knew we might be here for a time longer than other circumstances allowed, so we encouraged the friendship,” Holiday said, and Lofty sighed.

“Even though I suggested it was better she keep a low profile... but yeah, it was better she made friends. Smiles a lot more than usual.”

“But why are you here and what’s with the crazy creatures you guys can summon?” asked Sweetie Belle, and Holiday chuckled in mirth.

“There’s no short answer to that, but I’ll certainly try, since I suspect you might not really understand the more lengthy version. Myself, Lofty here, little Scootlaoo and her parents, we’re not entirely human. We’re what are called ‘Bount’, a sort of accident of Soul Reaper research. Our ‘Dolls’ are our spiritual weapons, sort of like that ‘Fullbring’ you use, only with minds of their own. As to why we’re here, we’re looking for more of our own kind. You see, the Soul Reapers hunted us to near extinction for... reasons.”

Lofty made a disgusted noise at that, “Yeah, ‘reasons’.”

Holiday gave the other woman a long suffering smile, “Let’s not confuse the child with more than she needs to know. Suffice to say, Scootaloo’s parents spend much of their time traveling the world, looking for clues to the location of more Bount. Most of the time they have us move to various safehouses to keep us safe from discovery by the Soul Reapers, but in this case things kind of ended up reversed. Soul Reapers got on their trail, so my little brother Snap Shutter and his wife Mane Allgood had to ‘go to ground’ for a while to keep off their radar. In the meantime my brother sent a lead to me and asked me to investigate the possibility of a Bount here in Canterlot City. As it turned out, the lead suggested this young female Bount was posing as a student at the high school, so Scootaloo, bless her, came up with the idea of her also posing as a student so she could search for her.”

“That’s how I met you guys,” Scootaloo said, looking at Sweetie Belle, “I swear I never intended to be a spy or anything. I just wanted to make friends. My only real job was to look for the Bount who might be hiding at the school, but then all that crazy magic stuff started happening, and then your sisters and their friends got mixed up with the Soul Reapers. All I did was keep my Aunts up to date on what was going on. That’s it.”

She looked at Sweetie Belle with an apology all but swimming in her eyes. She couldn’t stand to lose her friends, the only friends she’d ever had. That was why she’d been willing to risk exposure by summoning Alerion to defend them in the first place.

Sweetie Belle’s face was unreadable for a moment, but then melted into an accepting nod, “Okay, okay, I forgive you, just stop giving me those tearful puppy dog eyes! I can’t stand feeling sad! Besides, if I’m going to be mad at you, I want Applebloom awake to be mad with me, and we can agree on your punishment together. I’m thinking buying us snacks for a week.”

Relief flooded through Scootaloo and she flung her arms around Sweetie Belle, crushing the girl in a tight hug.

“Ack! Scootaloo, be careful, my shoulder’s kinda tender from where that stupid wood wolf bite me.”

“Oh! S-sorry, I’m just...” Scootaloo wiped at her eyes, “Really, really happy you’re not going to stop being my friend.”

“Pfft, why would I do that? It’s not like you really did anything all that bad. I just wish you’d told us something was up earlier. You know you can trust me and Applebloom, right?”

“I know, I’m sorry...”

Lofty came over and patted the girl on the head with a remarkable amount of tenderness, “It’s fine, kiddo. You were only doing what me and Holiday asked you to do, and honestly it was probably dumb of us to put that much responsibility on your shoulders.”

Holiday nodded, “Indeed. What’s done is done, but we certainly have a more immediate conundrum on our hands.” She fixed Sweetie Belle with an almost frightfully frank stare, “Now that you know the truth, can we trust you to keep it a secret? Even from your family and friends?”

“Uhhh...” Sweetie Belle gulped, “Well, I mean, probably?”

The tenderness was gone from Lofty’s eyes now as she crossed her arms, “Kid, I know this might be hard for you to take in, but the bottom line is your sister and her pals are very buddy-buddy with the Soul Reapers, and we Bounts are officially ‘kill on sight’ to those black robed devils. We ain’t exactly on the top of the Quincy’s friend list either, and Hollows want to eat everything with a decent bit of spirit energy to them. We really need you and that Applebloom girl to keep hush hush on what we and Scootaloo here are. It’s going to be a world of hurt for us if you don’t, and not to be the bad guy here, but I care about protecting my family a heck of a lot more than I care about where I dump the bodies of blabbermouths.”

“Aunty!” Scootaloo shouted, and Holiday also gave Lofty a stern look.

“Let’s hear none of that talk, Lofty.”

“Sorry, just being frank here. We survive on secrecy. Secret gets out, we’re boned. So I want the importance of that made absolutely, crystal freakin’ clear, you get me?”

“I understand, but I shall firmly disagree,” said Holiday, “Secrecy may be important, and I care about our survival as much as you, but we will not be like what the Soul Reapers believe we are. We won’t make the same mistakes our clan’s former ‘leader’ made. That path only leads to destruction, Lofty.”

“Alright, alright, I take it back then,” Lofty said, then looked at Sweetie Belle, “But dang it girl, do you get why you need to make absolutely sure you don’t say anything?”

Shaking a bit, Sweetie Belle said, “I think I do. I won’t say a word. Neither will Applebloom, I promise.”

“Good... sorry kid, I...” Lofty seemed to look abruptly much older, her eyes having a look of wane, ancient exhaustion, “I sometimes forget how to be as... nice, as Holiday here is. I’ve spent a long time fearing for my family, trying to keep us safe. It hasn’t exactly been easy all these centuries.”

Sweetie Belle blinked. “Wait... what? Centuries?”

Lofty blinked as well, and Holiday chuckled dryly, “Now who’s the ‘blabbermouth’.”

Scootaloo coughed and glanced away, “So, um, yeah, I guess I might be a tad older than you and Applebloom...”

----------

Everyone had reconvened at Discord’s shop. Lieutenant Posey had reported the incident with the Kraken to her superiors, which meant Captains Celestia, Luna, and Starswirl all had been informed of what had happened. For the most part. Sunset wasn’t certain just how much Posey had actually said, but regardless it was enough to ensure that Celestia and Luna both had arrived at Discord’s shop, along with Kido Corps Chief Puddinghead, who’d actually been there to continue Clover’s lessons. The lesson was postponed so he could listen in on Clover’s notion that the Kraken was from the Beast Realm, a concept that the eccentric Kido master seemed to find fascinating.

“You know I’ve never trusted those Beasts very much,” Puddinghead said, popping a salsa dipped chip in his mouth and chewing furiously as he drummed his other hand on the table. They were all gathered in the largest room Discord had available to fit them all, the training grounds, and he’d set up a few picnic tables to make sure everyone had access to a serviceable lunch.

“What makes you say that?” Sunset asked, and the elder Soul Reaper just munched more chips before replying.

“They never let me play around with any of their fancy ju-ju, and the last time I was there they were very rude to me. Tried to bite my face off and everything!”

Luna coughed at Puddinghead’s outburst, looking severe as she pointedly ignored her sister’s offering of a slice of pie, which Celestia seemed to be relishing as she listened to the conversation.

“What Chief Puddinghead is rather inelegantly trying to convey is that even Soul Society’s contact with the Beast Realm has been... spotty, at best. To be honest, I find Third Seat Clover’s claim to be a little difficult to swallow, especially with so little direct evidence to support it.”

Clover visibly shrunk at the words, but kept her voice steady, seated at one end of one of the picnic tables with a half eaten sandwich in front of her, “I know it sounds rather far fetched, and I’m not claiming it as anything more than a basic hypothesis. However I think there is some rational logic to support it. It’s unquestionable that this ‘Kraken’ was using Equestrian magic. Sunset herself can confirm that from her own personal experiences with magic. Secondly, it's equally confirmed that while the Kraken did not utilize any obvious spiritual powers, it did put off spiritual pressure, at least enough that I and Lieutenant Posey both felt it.”

“Yet Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer did not?” Luna inquired.

Sunset, finishing off a soda, coughed, wiped her mouth, and said, “I was mostly focused on the fight. I’m still not used to feeling out spiritual pressures mid-battle like most of you who’ve been doing this for centuries have. From what Clover says, it wasn’t very much reiatsu, otherwise I probably would’ve felt it too.”

“That’s reasonable,” Celestia said, taking another bite of pie and making a delighted ‘mmm’ sound as she glanced at Discord, “There’s no way you made this.”

“Screwball’s cooking,” Discord confirmed, and Celestia nodded.

“Of course. Ahem, at any rate, Luna, while I appreciate your skepticism, I actually believe there may be merit to Clover’s theory. While our knowledge of the Beast Realm is limited, we do know that they guard their territory fiercely, and with powers we’ve never really understood. We also know that on rare occasions, rogue elements form that realm have entered the world of the living, giving rise to myths of werewolves, sea monsters, mountain beasts, cave monsters, ect. It’s entirely plausible this Kraken is a denizen of the Beast Realm.”

“But as strange as their powers are, none of them have ever resembled magic before!” Luna protested, “Magic only appeared in this world from the Equestrian portal. How is it that this Kraken is using it now, if it’s not directly from Equestria?”

“W-well, my further theory on that front,” said Clover, “Is that it's entirely possible that entities, perhaps the very entity Fluttershy felt within the Kraken’s mind, have found ways to make portals to the Beast Realm. Or perhaps such portals naturally exist inside the Beast Realm itself. Regardless, it's clear the Kraken was taught magic, and is presently using it for some ritual of unknown purpose.”

“Yes, information gleaned from your Quincy friend, it seems,” Puddinghead said, scratching his chin, “Dodgy lot, those Quincy. Not to mention total copy-cats, what with their fancy ‘alchemy’ trying to be third-rate Kido. Just how accurate can this Twilight girl’s information be if its coming from some half-baked Quincy device?”

A hot fire rose in Sunset, entering her voice as she said, “Twilight is my friend, and I can guarantee you she’s smarter than you could ever give her credit for. Her information is accurate. And I’m telling you, that Kraken is making a magic circle for a ritual. A big one. It didn’t have a lot of energy in it yet, but I’d bet dollars to donuts that it attacked us because it sensed magic and was looking to capture it, probably to drain it from Indigo Zap’s artificial legs, or even from Twilight herself. It’ll be looking for other magic sources to fuel its ritual, whatever it is. We need to stop it before that happens.”

“Now wait a’ tic,” said Applejack, who was leaning on the other table, having polished off a plate of sandwiches herself while the others were talking, “If this critter is fuelin’ that circle whatchamacallit with magic, then where’d it get the magic it’s already got?”

“Probably fueling it from its own magic,” Sunset said, “It honestly didn’t have that much magical punch to it. It’s spells were versatile, but the Princesses back home have way more juice than what it was tossing around. So I’m guessing it’s got a start with its own magic, but it needs a lot more to fuel a circle that big.”

“Yeah but what is it even trying to pull?” asked Rainbow Dash, “It is prepping some kind of crazy magical nuke or what?”

“Honestly it could be anything, with a circle of that size,” said Sunset, turning grave eyes towards Celestia, “If a ritual circle that big is fully charged, we’re talking the kind of spell that can do just about anything short of world ending stuff. But if it was turned towards a destructive means, the whole coastline would be in danger. Or, if it’s being used for making a portal, it’d be the kind of gateway you could move an army through.”

Celestia’s own expression was no less grave than Sunset’s own and she nodded, “Then putting a stop to this has become a top priority, regardless of what the Kraken’s ultimate origins and intent turn out to be. Chief Puddinghead, I trust you are well versed in Kido spells that would allow us to reach this creature, so deep underwater?”

He huffed, making an off hand gesture, “I could do it in my sleep. I do sleepwalk, by the by, so I might even prove it to you.”

“Then I see no reason for delay,” Luna said, “This matter should be easy enough to deal with, considering our combined force-”

“Wait,” Sunset blurted, and everyone turned their eyes towards her. She tried not to look unsteady as her brain began to race a thousand miles a minute, but she’d just had an idea, and wasn’t at all sure if it was a good one, but now that it was there, the idea wouldn’t go away. “The Kraken probably knows that now that it’s made its presence known, that somebody is going to be coming after it. It’s going to be prepared for a fight on its own turf, even with Kido spells allowing us to go underwater.”

“Yes,” said Luna, “But given the strength of our combined force, I believe we can overcome any disadvantages it might stack against us.”

“I don’t doubt that. Heck, you and Celestia by yourselves would probably be enough to take it out, but what I’m saying is that if we fight it on its terms, we run into several problems. One, it might lure the fight towards a coastal town, threatening innocent lives. We have to make sure the fight is far enough offshore than nobody will get caught up in it. Two, since the Kraken was working for something else, ideally we want to capture it alive, not just kill it, so we can question it about who it’s master is and what the ritual circle is for. Three, if we try to go after it right now, there’s nothing stopping it from just fleeing into the deeper ocean, and once its that far out, I doubt any of us could track it.”

Not far off, Discord was sitting cross-legged on a small rock, enjoying a bowl of jalapeno cream cheese and chips, and Sunset saw his eyes catch hers with a knowing wink. “I think young Miss Shimmer has a point, and I believe I see where she is going with this. Do go on.”

Luna gave him a mistrustful look, but said nothing as Sunset continued, “What I’m saying is, capturing this creature is going to probably require a planned out trap, complete with bait. My friends and I, we can radiate a LOT of magic when we play music, right? That’s bait it won’t be able to resist. We can choose any isolated, far off cove we want to set the trap in, too. Pick a time, pick a place, lay the trap, and make it come to us. If Celestia and Luna are both there, together, I don’t see how the Kraken would even stand a chance.”

That, of course, was only half of Sunset’s thinking on the matter. The other half was that if she could convince Celestia and Luna that the best time to set the trap was for a week or so from now, after Adagio and Twilight had confirmed precisely where Ember was, then they could time it so that ‘Operation Kraken Trap’ and ‘Operation Rescue Ember’ happened at the same time! That way Celestia and Luna would be away from Camp Everfree, as would Sunset and the rest of the girls, and presumably at least some of the other Soul Reapers.

If things were set up correctly, it’d greatly reduce the force present to guard Ember, and make it that much easier for Adagio and Twilight’s teams to break Ember out of captivity.

If the look in Discord’s eyes was any indication, he’d guessed what Sunset was thinking, and again he nodded his approval, “That isn’t the worst plan I’ve ever heard. Could use some work. We’d need time to plan the details of course, find a good ambush point, figure out just how to go about subduing the Kraken then transport it to Soul Society. Might take a week or so to plan out, but if it works, it’d be better than just rushing off to do battle with it now, without a plan at all.”

Luna sniffed, frowning, “There’s nothing wrong with ‘rushing off’ without a plan. It worked to help me catch an Arrancar from Las Noches, didn’t it?”

Celestia chuckled, “Luna, you’re supremely skilled at improvising your plans on the fly, but perhaps this time we can try a more cautious approach. Sunset did say this magic ritual is only being charged slowly, so it's not as if we’re under a particularly harsh time limit.”

“Besides,” said Discord, “I’m rather intrigued by this angle Clover has proposed concerning the Beast Realm and would like to investigate a few things on that front myself.”

“How, exactly?” Luna asked warily, and Discord just smiled at her with a cryptic, snaggle-toothed grin and held a finger to his lips.

“That is my own secret to keep, my dear, but suffice to say that while the denizens of the Beast Realm have no love for Soul Reaper, Quincy, or Hollow alike, I am a free agent and rub shoulders with all types. I’ll see what I can learn in short order, I assure you.”

Luna rolled her eyes, “I assumed you had spies everywhere, but I had no idea they extended that far. At any rate, while I am willing to go along with this plan, shall I point out, sister, that a week from now both ourselves and this young girls will be playing cover as camp counselors at Camp Everfree? How are we going to enact this trap from there?”

It disturbed Sunset just how much Celestia’s face could mirror Discord’s own devious smile, “Oh I imagine I can think of something in a week’s time, never you worry, Lulu.”

“With you, sister, I always worry, especially when you get that look in your eye,” Luna said with a sigh.

“So it sounds like you lot have a plan all nice and conjured,” said Puddinghead, yawning as he stood up, one last handful of chips happily munched, and he went over to Clover. “That means break-time is over, and it’s time for our lesson.”

Clover perked up, despite looking rather tired from the battle that day, “Of course, sir!” She glanced back at Sunset and the girls, “I’ll catch up with you all later?”

“Of course,” said Sunset, “We were planning to hit the theater tonight, so if you’re up for it after Puddinghead puts you through the wringer, hop on over and join us.”

“Pfft, I don’t call these light exercise I’m having her do ‘putting her through the wringer’,” Puddinghead said, eyes flashing, “The REAL training hasn’t even started yet.”

Clover nervously laughed, “I’ll join you guys later, if I’m still able to move. A prospect that appears to be in question.”

Not long after Luna and Celestia left as well, although Celestia paused by Sunset and gently touched the girl’s arm with a warm but questioning look in her eyes, “Is something bothering you, Sunset?”

Suppressing a sudden, nervous gulp, Sunset said, “Not really, uh, why?”

“You just seem tense. Not that you don’t have reason to be, given all that’s happened, but I just wished you to know that if there’s anything burdening you, you can talk to me about it,” Celestia said, eyes seeming to bore into Sunset right to the heart, even though her eyes held nothing but kindness in them, “Especially concerning your friend Twilight. I know it must be very hard to hear the way many Soul Reapers speak of Quincy, while being such close friends with one. I want you to know that I don’t have any ill feelings towards Twilight at all. In fact, hearing that she and her fellow Quincy fought alongside you and your friends today, it made me quite happy. Your friendship is something I feel is very important, perhaps even the first sign of potential peace we’ve ever seen between Soul Reapers and Quincy. So please, don’t feel as if you have to hold back with me, if anything is bothering you...”

Her friends were all watching her. So was Discord. None of them said anything. Luna was at the stairs leading up out of the training room, and was glancing back at them.

Sunset froze, wishing for all the world to just tell Celestia what was really going on. She’d already betrayed the trust of one Celestia, she wasn’t eager to do it to this one. Yet there was far too much risk involved, too many ways things could go very, very wrong if Celestia knew what Twilight and Adagio planned to do.

Then again, if Celestia turned out to actually be on their side and helped, then that might make things so much easier.

But even if she decided to do that, she couldn’t do it here, right now. Not until she was certain of how Celestia and Luna might react.

She returned Celestia’s gesture, patting the woman’s arm and saying, “Thank you. I might talk to you later, just to get some things off my mind, but tonight I’m just going to relax and spend time with my friends. Dang Kraken stole half our day at the beach, so I’ve got some relaxing time to make up. But... maybe we’ll talk later?”

In that moment, she knew Celestia suspected something. Celestia might not have known what, but it was there in her eyes that she knew that Sunset and the girls were holding back something from her. It wasn’t disappointment in her eyes, either, just a sort of mature and patient understanding that seemed to say ‘when you’re ready’. But she only gave a small nod, then joined Luna in heading up the stairs.

Sunset let out a heavy sigh, suddenly feeling much more tired than she had a moment ago.

----------

The shopping square in front of the theater was largely repaired from the damage that had been done during the fight that had happened there, over a month ago now. It struck Sunset just how much longer it felt since that scrape with the “half” Arrancar that had gone after her. She and the girls were killing time around the shops until it got closer to the time for their movie to start, but Sunset was too distracted to really pay much attention, listlessly following her friends while her mind mulled over things.

She still couldn’t decide whether to tell Celestia the truth or not. It just seemed like there’d be risks and consequences no matter which way she chose.

A cone of chocolate ice cream appeared in front of her face, courtesy of a smiling Pinkie Pie, who said, “Sunnny! The Earth calls you back to enjoy this delectable ice creeeam!”

“Gah! Ah, Pinkie, what is with you and just teleporting around like that? Where... where did you even get this? There aren’t any ice cream shops around here.”

Pinkie gave her a sagely nod, eyes filled with cosmic knowledge, “When it comes to treats, I have my ways. Now c’mon Sunset, get your head out of frowny town for awhile.”

As Sunset took the offered ice cream cone of mysterious origins, her other friends took note of her expression, and it didn’t seem like any of them had trouble figuring out what was eating her.

“Can’t say I’m much happy ‘bout keepin’ our Soul Reaper pals in the dark,” Applejack admitted, “ ‘Least where the ones we like ‘r concerned.”

“Well, what’s the worst that could happen if we let them in on what’s going to go down?” asked Rainbow Dash, glancing around a bit to make sure the part of the apparel store they were wandering around in looked empty. It mostly was, save for a very bored looking clerk who was engrossed with a phone and not paying the girls any mind.

“The ‘worst’ that could happen is that they try to stop Twilight and Adagio,” said Rarity with a level tone, setting aside a slimming black dress she’d been examining, “I trust Celestia and Luna well enough, and I’m entirely certain Clover would side with us, but we’re talking about a plan that involves attacking their own people. It simply isn’t something they can readily agree to.”

“Maybe they’d understand why we’re doing it and could help us so there’s less chance anyone could get hurt,” Fluttershy suggested, but Rarity just sighed, shaking her head.

“Even if they did agree, I can’t imagine that Captain Starswirl fellow agreeing to give up someone critical to his research. I’m sorry, but while I know it may leave a foul taste in our mouths, I think it's imperative we keep our plans, and the plans of Twilight and Adagio, a secret. Revealing it now could ruin any chance that Ember girl has of being broken free.”

“I just... don’t like it,” Sunset said, “This whole situation just feels wrong. We were fighting so well together with Twilight and those Quincy girls. That felt right! Friends and allies should be working together to do something good, not going behind each other's backs because of this screwy three-way war. Adagio and Twilight aren’t our enemies, and neither are the Soul Reapers, so it feels wrong to be having to set them against each other, or keep them out of each other’s way like this, all while deceiving people we should be able to trust and should be able to trust us.”

“I hear ya,” Applejack said, looking downcast, “My own ma is still part o’’ the Gotei 13, an’ part o’ me feels downright lousy that we’re trickin’ them like this. Don’t sit well with me at all, but I also ain’t seein’ any way around it. Bottom line is, Sunset, we either gotta tell ‘em now, or not at all, ‘cause come next week it’ll be game time, one way or ‘nother.”

“AJ’s right,” said Rainbow Dash, giving Sunset a confident smirk, “I’ll back whatever play you want to make, Sunset, but you need to make the call pretty quick.”

“You guys would follow me, whatever choice I make?” Sunset asked, a little surprised, “I mean, we could put it to a vote.”

The girls exchanged looks, and Fluttershy said, “Well, we could, but I think most of us feel the same way Rainbow Dash does. We trust you, Sunset. You’ve been making all kinds of hard decisions since this all began, even before you found your Zanpaktou.”

“Yup, you rallied us against the sirens and took the lead when Twilight went bonkers,” said Pinkie Pie, winking, “You’ve basically been the party leader from the get go.”

“What I believe everyone is trying to say, Sunset darling, is that we trust you,” Rarity said with a deep sincerity, “Whatever misgivings I may have about the notion of telling Celestia or Luna the truth, I will support whatever decision you make wholeheartedly. We’re in this together, one and all.”

There were firm nods all around from the gathered girls, and Sunset rubbed at one eye where she’d felt an itch of a tear forming, “...Thanks, guys. I mean it, I think I needed to hear that, to help get my head in order. I’ll decide what we’re doing before we go to Camp Everfree.”

There was suddenly a loud throat clearing from across the store as the clerk looked up from her phone and drawled, “Are you guys, like, gonna, you know, buy something or whatever?”

Sunset the girls looked at each other, and shared an embarrassed laugh as they quickly hurried out of the store, only pausing long enough for Rarity to pick up the purchase the dress she’d been eyeing. That done, they went out in the still fairly warm summer evening, with sunlight quickly draining from the sky. The movie would be starting in about fifteen minutes, just enough time to go get tickets and get seated. If Clover showed up soon, she’d be able to make it too.

As they headed for the theater, Rarity took out her phone and dialed a number, and after about twenty seconds looked at her phone with a raised eyebrow, “Huh, that’s odd?”

“What?” asked Fluttershy.

“Sweetie Belle isn’t answering her phone,” Rarity said, and glanced over at Applejack, who without needed to be told, got out her own phone and dialed. A few moments later the farm girl was also frowning.

“Applebloom ain’t answerin’ either.”

All of the girls stopped then, each giving each other worried looks as many of them felt a sudden, uneasy chill.

“I saw them at the school earlier,” Sunset said, trying not to let her mind run wild with what might have happened, “They said they were planning to spend the day at that clubhouse near your farm, Applejack.”

“Then there ain’t no reason not ta be answerin’ their phones,” Applejack said, eyes turning steely as she turned around and started to march towards the street, “If they’ve run afloul o’ somehin’...”

“We don’t know that, Applejack,” said Rarity, “But we should probably give your grandmother a call and make sure they’re okay, if they are indeed at your farm.”

“Hold up a sec,” Rainbow Dash said, yanking out her own phone from her pants, “I got Scootaloo’s number. I’ll give her a try.”

Sunset cocked her head at Rainbow, “Why do you have Scootaloo’s number?”

Dash was already dialing, but glanced up, “Huh? Oh, she’s the ‘president’ of my fan club. We exchanged numbers in case she ever wanted to call me in for a club appearance. Hold on, it’s ringing...”

Applejack had paused in her determined march and she along with the other girls watched tensely as Rainbow Dash listened to the ringing dial on her cell phone. Then there was a general round of relieved sighs as Rainbow Dash said, “Yeah? Scoots, that you? Hey, just checking in on you, scamp. Your pals’ sisters are about this close to a full-blown freak out because Sweetie Belle and Applebloom weren’t answering their phones. What’s up? ...Yeah? ...Uh-huh. No kidding? Okay, okay, I hear you. Just remember to tell those two to pay attention to their phones. There’s still creepy critters running around out there, and remember, we’re the cavalry. Right, catch you later, squirt.”

As she hung up, everyone else looked at Rainbow Dash expectantly, especially Rarity and Applejack. Chuckling to herself, Dash said, “The kids are fine. Just got bored playing at the clubhouse and Scootaloo apparently decided it was high time her friends saw where she lived, so they went to her house. Were having so much fun over there they lost track of time, and apparently your sister’s phones were on silent or something.”

Rarity sighed with relief once more, “Well, I’ll just have to remind Sweetie Belle how important it is that she be more attentive so she can be contacted in an emergency.”

Applejack looked more thoughtful, scratching her chin, “Huh, Applebloom’s usually more responsible than that. Ya said they went ta Scootaloo’s place? Say Rarity, ya ever even heard o’ where Scootaloo lives?”

“Well, no, I can’t say I have, but that’s hardly unusual. It’s not as if I keep track of where all of my sister’s friends live,” Rarity said, raising an eyebrow at Applejack, “Why do you ask? Do you suspect something strange?”

“Dunno, just got a’ weird feelin’ ‘bout all this,” Applejack said, still rubbing her chin in thought, then turned a questioning look towards Pinkie Pie, “Don’t suppose ya felt any o’ them Pinkie Twichin’ ya sometimes get?”

“Heheh, Pinkie Twitching, that’s a good one. Um, I don’t think so? I’ve been pretty twitchy in general lately,” Pinkie Pie admitted, “They come and go so fast and often I’ve kinda started to lose track of them. Got, like, eight just today alone, and most of those happened after the giant calamari tried to squash us!”

This was news to Sunset, and she turned a serious look towards Pinkie, “Why didn’t you tell us you were having all these Pinkie Sense incidents before now?”

Pinkie Pie flinched slightly, voice becoming apologetic, “Sorry, I just... I can’t keep them straight anymore. Most of the time they’re all new, all weird twitches I don’t understand like I used to. I just figured most of them were for those random Hollows popping up around down that the Reapers are dealing with, or for when you’re apartment got exploded, or just more random stuff I can’t explain. I’m sorry, wasn’t trying to hide it, just didn’t seem like we could do anything about it, either.”

Sunset absorbed that, and nodded at last, “Yeah, you’re right. If they’re that often and random to the point that you can’t make heads or tails of them, then they wouldn’t do us much good. Still, just... let me know if you get a big one, alright? Be nice to get some forewarning before something blindsides us, for once.”

----------

“Interesting, most interesting,” Adagio said, giving the maps laid out before her a close look. The maps had been acquired from various park ranger and visitor center locations around the Everfree Forest, providing various views of the forest ranging from topographic to color coded. They were laid out on a procured (ie, stolen) camp site table, and Adagio had taken one of the maps to be her “primary” map where she’d drawn out a grid to represent the search areas she’d been sending Di Roy and Gaw to check. Roka remained at their cave base to keep an eye on things, while Adagio either assisted in the search of the area, or worked on coordinating plans with Twilight via their communicators.

It was getting high time she paid Sunset a visit, but just as she’d been planning to do that, Di Roy had arrived with some intriguing developments.

“And you’re certain you’ve never seen anything like either these ‘plant wolves’ or the large stone bird?” she asked, and Di Roy held up a hand in a mock salute.

“Scout’s honor, boss lady. This was all new, but I’m near dead certain it was the orange chick that summoned the bird. She and the transforming gal grabbed the yellow one, hopped on the bird after it was done turning the wolves to kindling, and they flew off due south.”

In truth, Adagio knew more than Di Roy did at this point, but she was curious if creatures such as the Timberwolves had ever appeared in this world before. She was only familiar with them because she and her sisters had spent some time traveling around Equestria’s heartland, and Timberwolves were one of the more common dangers near the wilder areas, heavy in forest. But why were they here, in this world’s version of Everfree?

It didn’t seem possible there was an active portal here, at least not naturally. She, Sonata, and Aria had searched for signs of Equestrian magic for years before they’d sniffed it out at Canterlot High, and had spent time in this very forest! They couldn’t have missed it, could they? While she couldn't discount the possibility, it seemed more likely these Timberwolves were a recent development. She wouldn’t be surprised at all if it was directly related to the experiments being conducted on Ember, a thought which made her blood start to boil. She had to rescue Ember, and promptly!

To cover more territory, Di Roy and Gaw had been conducting their searchest individually. A risk, but Adagio trusted them to know when to retreat if encountering too much danger. Gaw especially had trouble with threat recognition at first, but Adagio had seen to it the unruly young Arrancar had learned that lesson before bringing her on this operation. Right now Gaw was still out, searching a grid on the north west tip of the lake, and was due back any minute.

Looking at the maps, she dug around for one that showed a broader area around Canterlot City. “Due south... not much out in that direction,” she noted, “A few scattered cabins and other isolated homes, but there’s nothing until one hits the major highway. If the bird took those girls that way, it must have either been planning to change direction to throw off pursuit, or was aiming to land at one of those isolated homes.”

“What makes you think that?” asked Di Roy, “For all we know the thing has a nest in the hills.”

“If it is a summoned creature, as you suspect, I doubt it has a permanent home anywhere, but that child... I recall she’s friends with the sisters of two of Sunset’s allies. Her home must be one of those scattered amid the hills to the south,” Adagio tapped a finger on the map, thinking.

Was this something she could use, or was this a threat to her plans? The knowledge that Rarity and Applejack’s little sisters had developed powers similar to that of their siblings was an interesting tidbit, but she wasn’t sure how she could turn it to her favor. Perhaps if they were trying to keep it a secret, she could make use of the girls? Hold the knowledge over them as a means to coerce them to help her in some way? But by Di Roy’s description they hardly had control of their powers. And what of this other strange power possessed by the other child?

I would dearly like to know if there’s another faction out there, and whether they could be an ally, or if not, what their potential threat as an enemy may be... she thought, and considered her options while Di Roy started to shift on his feet. She glanced up at him.

“Good work. Take some time to rest, grab some food. Roka has taken the liberty of setting up an ice chest in back that is adequately stocked.”

“No need to tell me twice,” he said, grinning, but paused and looked towards the cave entrance, “Gaw ain’t back yet?”

“Not yet, but she’s got some time yet before she’s due to return,” she said, quirking an eyebrow at him with a slight, coy smile, “You’re worried about her?”

“Pfft, about that bitey little twerp? Be more worried about whoever she ran into,” he said, clearly playing off his concern as he walked away towards the back of the cave, where Roka was quietly reading a book she’d acquired from one of their ‘supply’ trips to a nearby gas station. Adagio watched him go, and pondered if she should be more worried as well.

Gaw was her strongest servant, however, so anything she ran into that might be trouble, short of a Soul Reaper Captain, ought to be something Gaw could outfight, or evade if needed. She put the thought from her mind and resumed examining the maps. They’d checked off quite a bit of territory so far, but there was still a lot of Everfree left to cover. Wherever that lab was, they’d find it, eventually.

As for what to do about the three young children who were apparently getting themselves involved in affairs, Adagio did have an idea forming in her mind, but before she could take it beyond an inklining, she noticed Gaw’s return. The short, wiry Arrancar girl appeared at the cave entrance via a Sonido, flickering into view and walking inside, and it was immediately obvious that she was agitated, and injured. Her right arm was cradled by her left, and blood trickled down her brow from a cut. Her entire stance was tight with pent up aggression.

“Gaw? What happened?” Adagio asked, and immediately Roka and Di Roy came up from the back of the cave to check on her as well.

Gaw growled, looking away from Adagio with an almost apologetic hunch to her shoulders, like an animal demurring before it’s pack leader. “I search north lake, but on way back I run into... problem.”

“What problem?” Adagio asked, but as soon as she asked it an entirely too familiar voice spoke.

“She ran into me, and despite my best attempts at courtesy, she refused to lead me to where you were until I... convinced her of the wisdom of cooperation.”

And there, standing at the entrance to her cave, was Grogar. He stood with a simple, confident poise, arms clasped behind his back as he examined the cavern with a wrinkled nose, “What a lovely little hole you’ve chosen to house yourself in, Adagio Dazzle. I do hope the accommodations are better than they appear?”

Her voice rose to a fevered, heated pitch, “What are you doing here!?” She was annoyed at how swiftly she could lose control of her voice like that, at just seeing him, but there was good reason for it! Not only was Grogar here, but as she looked at his Hollow hole, she saw something that made her blood turn to both ice and a volcanic lava flow both at the same time; as if her disgust and rage couldn't separate themselves from each other.

Pulsing in the center of his Hollow hole was an identical replica of her siren gem, bright and painfully crimson.

Never before had Adagio felt such a profane sense of self violation, seeing something so intimately a part of herself being apparently copied and used by the person she hated most. It was enough to nearly make her fire a full-powered Cero directly at his smug, arrogant face!

Yet for all that her emotions were shaken, Adagio was in control of herself and her faculties. Grogar wouldn’t have come here unless he knew he would be safe, so as much as she wanted to rip him to shreds here and now, she kept her composure and waited for his response.

The oily, chill smile he provided matched his self-pleased tone, “I’m here on Lord Tirek’s instructions to assist you and Tenth Espada Gilda in your ‘assessment’ of local defenses and in turn provide my own expert advice on how to best proceed. You may outrank me in power, which Lord Tirek acknowledges by ensure you remain in command of your forces, but I am to act in an ‘advisory’ capacity while testing my own... project.”

Di Roy looked like he wanted to spit, “Screw that noise. You can ‘advice’ my freakin’ foot up your ass.”

“Charming sentiment,” Grogar drawled, “I’m certain Lord Tirek would love to hear it repeated.”

Adagio held up a hand, forestalling any more chatter from Di Roy or the others, and she turned spear-like eyes filled with spite towards Grogar, but she forced her voice to a cool, smooth neutrality, “Far be it for me to second-guess Lord Tirek’s command. As long as you understand you’re here to advise, and nothing more.”

“Of course, I’d hate to... step on your toes, Adagio Dazzle,” Grogar said with a slime slick smile.

Episode 98: A Mountain of Trouble

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Episode 98: A Mountain of Trouble

Morning over the southern sea created a horizon of crystal blue hues, stretching from ocean waves dusted gold by the rising sun to the encompassing embrace of the sky above. Twilight Sparkle wasn’t often struck silent by a vista, having grown up in Equestria’s heartland where incredible scenery was commonplace, but looking at the sunrise dawning over the ocean while riding at nearly two thousand feet in the sky was enough to make her speechless for a moment.

The deck of the airship creaked slightly behind her, and she nearly jumped as Flash Sentry trotted up next to her. He flinched at her movement, then offered an apologetic smile that served to only enhance his youthful charm as he sat down on his haunches next to her and said, “Sorry, wasn’t trying to sneak up on you.”

“That’s alright,” she said, taking a moment to make sure her wings were properly tucked in to her side. There’d been a couple of instances where they’d ‘poofed up’ unexpectedly around him, and while he might not know what that meant, Twilight’s friends certainly did, and Rainbow Dash was becoming unbearable with some of the teasing! Looking around the airship’s deck, she saw that aside from a few of the ship’s unusual, avian crew, she and Flash were alone.

“Is everypony else still asleep?” she asked, and Flash chuckled.

“Most of them. It’s still pretty early. Dash is up, exercising. So is Applejack. I think they’re competing to see who can do the most push-ups. They always like that?”

Twilight smiled fondly, “Ever since I met them.”

“Guess it’s a bonding thing,” Flash said, rubbing his snout, “Knew a lot of people back at the Academy who did the same thing. Wasn’t ever my bag, though.”

“You mean the Soul Reaper Academy, right?” Twilight said, and although she was a bit hesitant about it, she asked, “What was it like?”

She hadn’t really asked much about Flash’s life as a Soul Reaper. If Twilight was behind honest with herself, while her curiosity was as brightly hot on the topic as it was towards most things, she’d been afraid to ask because it really did act as a reminder that the two of them came from different worlds. Even more so than she’d first thought. And if she was being further honest with herself, while she couldn’t deny she was attracted to Flash, and might be slowly growing deeper feelings than that... there probably wasn’t any rational way for that to go anywhere. Was there?

What were the diplomatic protocols of an Equestrian Princess dating the equivalent of a foreign military officer? Of a different species, no less! Even putting aside whether they could ever find time for themselves between their respective duties in their differing worlds, would Flash even... want her, as a pony? He hadn’t shown any signs of being repelled by her since he’d come to Equestria, but he might not even be thinking about that kind of thing right now, what with so many more pressing concerns.

For that matter, why did she keep thinking about this!?

Yet one way or another, she knew that however things worked out, she still wanted to know more about Flash Sentry, and that meant getting to know his Soul Reaper side.

He took her question in stride, although there was a bitter half-smile on his face, “Rigid and regimented, although not all bad. I went in completely clueless, just a kid from Rukongai’s Thirty Third District who happened to show barely enough spirit energy to pass the entrance requirements.”

“Oh? How does entering the Academy work?”

“Anybody can apply for it, but you have to pass a test showing you have the potential to even become a Soul Reaper,” Flash said, leaning against the airship rail, looking over the ocean, “I did it on a dare. I never expected to get in.”

She almost laughed, but controlled herself, “A dare, really?” Then she saw the look on his face and said more quietly, “Was something wrong with that?”

“Not exactly, it’s just... once you’re in, you’re in,” he said, “You don’t ever get to ‘quit’ being a Soul Reaper, and I took the test never expecting to pass. I only did it because my sister dared me to one day. After that, I only got to see my family again rarely, since Soul Reapers don’t often get off time, either.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Flash. It sounds so... restricting," Twilight said, having a little difficulty warping her mind around a system that limited it's people's freedom so much. Yet as much as she wanted to ask more questions about that, it was clear it made him uncomfortable, so he tried to change the subject slightly, "So you, um, have a family? Despite being... you know...?”

“Technically dead?” He said with a half hearted laugh, “Yeah, although since natural born kids among spirits are pretty rare, most families in the Rukongai Districts are of the adopted variety. People who choose to live together, adults who take in stray kids, that kind of thing. My ‘mom’ and ‘dad’ where two kindly old folks who ran a food stall, and had a whole parcel of ‘kids’ like me under the wing. You could say it was a different kind of ‘family’ than most, but honestly... I liked it. I liked it a lot. Spent my days running around with my brothers and sisters playing whatever crazy games we could dream up, and went to bed content and surrounded by people who cared about me. I don’t think many people could ask for more.”

There was a hint of old sadness in his eyes, and she edged a bit closer to him, “I see. Then you ended up in the Academy...”

“Yeah. It wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t what I would have chosen, normally. Still, once I was there, I figured I’d put my all into it. Heh, although my ‘all’ was kinda haphazard. I was average at best in most of my classes. I hardly stood out or made any impressive marks, not like some of the students in there.” He waved a hoof, “You should’ve seen how fast Radiant Hope blew through Kido training! Or how awesome Cheerilee was in the hand-to-hand courses. Heck, me and Clover entered the Academy around the same time, but her scores blew mine out of the water! I couldn’t even touch Meadowbrook in the zanjutsu dojo.”

“Wow, you knew a lot of people, didn’t you?” she said, and Flash rubbed the back of his neck, sighing.

“Yeah, I was kind of that guy who just floated around, trying to make friends where I could. Heck, I needed the help! Without some of my fellow students offering advice and tutoring, I’d probably have had the lowest scores of my class. Honestly I still can’t figure what Captain Celestia saw in me. Taking me into her Division, making me a seated officer, even eventually her Lieutenant! And Inkwell, our Third Seat, is probably stronger than me.”

His voice played it off as if he was just jokingly complaining, not taking it seriously, but she could hear the real note of doubt in his voice, as if he didn’t really believe he had earned the position he had. Thinking about it, she wondered if he was just not looking at things the right way.

“I can’t speak for your Captain Celestia, but I do know my world’s Celestia. If the two think anything alike, then your Captain must see the potential you have, and wants it to grow. She also probably values the skill you showed the most talent for while you where at the Academy.”

“Really? What’s that?” he asked, and Twilight gave him a smile warmer than the morning sun.

“Making friends.”

He blinked at that, then laughed with equal warmth, “Hah, more like I’m the only one that’ll do her paperwork for her! But... yeah, maybe you’re right. Thirteenth Division’s all about cultivating the talents of fresh graduates and helping them find which Division they’re best suited for. Maybe Captain Celestia figures I’m good at making people feel at ease, so they make that transition better.”

“My Celestia’s good at that too,” Twilight said, and for a moment her heart sank. Flash saw this, and almost on reflex his wing extended around her. She nearly froze at the motion, and the soft brush of his feathers on her back, but she didn’t move away from him.

“You’re still worried about what we saw the other night?”

She looked down, whispering, “A little...”

Not long ago, just as they were making way for this voyage upon this airship they’d chartered out of Klugetown, the group had borne witness to the sight of both the sun and moon in the sky during the night, and the beams of energy that had traversed from each celestial body. Twilight knew that had to have been a High Magic spell cast by the Princesses. They must have been engaged in battle with either Starlight Glimmer or one or more of her servants. Twilight hated not knowing how that battle had ended. She had full confidence in the Princesses, but it was still a worry that slowly gnawed at her as the journey south continued.

“It’ll be fine,” he said, his wing protectively hugging her, “Remember, I sparred with both of them. I can personally attest your Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are total badflanks who won’t go down that easily!”

Twilight couldn’t help but let out a little cackle-snort at his terms, “Badflanks?”

He coughed in embarrassment, asking, “Is that, like, not a term ponies use?”

Still stifling her laughter, she said, “Not usually, no.”

The look on his face was just too precious.

Ah, to Tartarus with it... she thought, and leaned against him. He paused for a hesitant moment, looking down at her, then leaned back. They enjoyed a quiet few seconds, but it was cut entirely too short by a clearing throat behind them.

“You know, using my deck as a lover’s hangout is going to cost you landlubbers extra.”

The alicorn Princess and her pegasus companion couldn’t have separated themselves from each other faster if someone had lit them both on fire. Face bursting to scarlet hues under her otherwise lavender coat, Twilight looked at the speaker with a look halfway between regal consternation and youthful embarrassment.

“Captain Celano, please don’t let your imagination run away with you. We were merely enjoying the sights from the deck of your fine airship, and its a tad chilly up here, so we shared a friendly hug. That’s all.”

“Uh-huh, and my grandma’s a flying cactus,” Celano said with a cocksure grin on her parrot-like features. Twilight wasn’t quite sure if the airship captain was a hippogryph of some sort, or another type of avian biped like so much of her crew were. Twilight had seen so many species she’d never even been aware of in Klugetown that she’d lost track and needed to start filling a notebook or two with her observations. Regardless of her species, captain Celano cut a dashing figure in a simple but quite rustic set of pirate garb that only accentuated the blade-shaped ‘peg leg’ she had, along with an eye-patch that Twilight wasn’t sure actually covered an eye injury, or was just a fashion statement.

Celano and her ship had been the only one available for charter when Twilight and her friends had sought passage to Mt. Aris. Celano made no bones about the fact that her crew were technically pirates, but they’d apparently recently gone through a stint of unintended servitude under the very Storm King that Tempest Shadow had served. With the Storm King’s army scattered, Celano had taken the chance at freedom and decided to make her crew independent once more. While pirates, there wasn’t a lot of air traffic to pirate upon, so they’d put to port in Klugetown looking for any job that came their way.

As it happened Twilight had plenty of gold bits to pay for passage on the ship, and gold spent the same just about anywhere, regardless of where it was minted. So now they were well on their way to Mt. Aris, crossing the southern ocean upon a swift and able airship. Tempest Shadow had stuck to Trixie’s caravan to remain hidden from anypony that’d recognize her, which would have to stay the case until they were done with their business on Mt. Aris. Trixie wasn’t pleased by the development, but at least Celano’s airship had a big enough cargo bay to carry both the caravan and the group’s supply wagon.

With Celano still grinning mischievously at the two, Flash quickly cleared his throat and asked “How much further to Mt. Aris?”

“Not long. Heck, if you dopes were looking out from the bow instead of smooching here at the port deck, you’d probably already see it.”

“We were not-!” Twilight began, but caught herself, realizing she really didn’t need to defend herself from some random airship captain, “Ahem, no matter. Flash, let’s go see if we can spot the mountain, shall we, and leave the captain to her... fantasies.”

Celano chuckled but left them to it, proceeding to oversee her crew while Twilight and Flash trotted up to the bow of the ship. Indeed, once Twilight got a good look at the southern horizon, she saw a tall shape emerging from the haze of dawn’s light. The mountain rose like an elegantly curved whale’s tooth from the crystalline waters, its south side carved out with a wide basin that was filled with greenery and the pale shapes of narrow buildings. If she squinted, she could even make out the spidery fingers of a small set of dock piers and a slim strand of sandy beach at the mountain’s base. As the airship drew closer, she could make out the noble figures of stone statues carved along the sides of the mountain.

“Wow, quite the sight...” Flash said, making an odd face, “It is strange that I'm kind of glad Starlight Glimmer stopped it from being ransacked by that Storm King guy?”

Twilight had to admit it was an oddly mixed feeling, knowing the danger Starlight Glimmer posed, yet also being somewhat grateful that the hippogryph kingdom was saved from possible destruction by her. It made Twilight wonder if the human Starlight was someone that could eventually be reasoned with? She didn’t seem to crave destruction, and what motivation could she have had to stop the Storm King’s army other than a desire to protect the hippogryphs? It puzzled Twilight, but at the same time, it gave her hope.

“Uh, sorry, by the way,” Flash said, and Twilight glanced at him.

“What for?”

His own face was brushed pink as he coughed and looked away, “I was just sort of hugging you with my wing on a gut instinct. I didn’t mean it to look like I was trying to make a move or anything.”

Wait, that bothered him? It hadn’t bothered her. Then again, she wasn’t sure she wanted him knowing that, either. Coughing politely, she tried to wear a friendly, disarming smile, “Think nothing of it. The captain was just teasing us, after all. We’re friends, and friends can share a friendly bit of contact without it being something more, right?”

“Y-yup, certainly! Just a hug. Between friends.”

“Exactly. Just a hug. Friends do that all the time.”

“Totally. Extreme friendship here. Zero tension.”

“Yes, zero tension. I’m so utterly not tense that I could just melt right here and now.”

“I’m so even less tense that I might as well be air.”

“...Mmmhmm...”

“Uh-huh...”

Awkward silence ensued, Mt. Aris drawing ever closer, and the two ponies on the bow of the airship sitting next to each other, having barely noticed how they’d gone right back to leaning against one another.

----------

Unbeknownst to either Twilight of Flash, a two sets of eyes were peeping at them from beneath the crew compartment hatch. Sniggering, Rainbow Dash tried to keep her laughter quiet as she glanced mirthfully at Applejack.

“Okay, twenty bits says they’re together by the time we get back home.”

Letting out a quiet chuckle as she patted her hat, Applejack stuck her other hoof out, “I’ll take ya up on that bet. I’m thinkin’ they’re both too embarrassed ta admit nothin’ until well after we’re done with this here quest.”

“You’re on!” Dash shook the farmpony’s hoof, “Those twenty bits are good as mine, just you wait!”

----------

The denizens of Mt. Aris received them with a mixture of apprehension and curiosity. Understandable, given their nation had recently been threatened by airships, so seeing another one probably wasn’t a sight they were eager for. Thankful Celano’s vessel was different enough from the Storm King’s ships that they weren’t immediately fired upon, and once Twilight was able to explain things to the hippogryph warriors that had met them in the skies above Mt. Aris, they were escorted down to a place where the airship could tether itself to one of the taller trees within the city proper.

Tempest Shadow and her companion, Grubber, stayed hidden on board within Trixie’s caravan, while just about everypony else disembarked and were soon surrounded by the splendor of Mt. Aris.

“Oh my,” Rarity said in wonder as she gazed about that the canvas of trees in which the homes and businesses of the hippogryphs kingdom were naturally interwoven, “What an utterly enchanting locale! Canterlot has its charms, to be sure, but this place is simply divine!”

Several of the hippogryphs warriors escorting them puffed themselves up at Rarity’s praise, and the one leading them, Admiral Seaspray, beamed his pride at her. “Why it's good of you to notice the wonder of our humble home, Miss Rarity. We hippogryphs take great pride in the beauty we try to cultivate within our borders. I must say, it’s been ages since we’ve received visitors from Equestria, and I’m quite honored to have you and your Princess of Friendship here. I’m certain that Queen Novo will be equally delighted, despite recent troubles.”

“Yes, we’d heard in Klugetown of the attack on Mt. Aris,” Twilight said carefully. While Tempest Shadow and Grubber had stayed behind on the airship, Starlight Glimmer had come with them, although she was wearing one of Trixie’s stage cloaks for the moment. Twilight didn’t intend to hide their reasons for coming to Mt. Aris, and hoped just to avoid a commotion until they reached this Queen Novo. Then Starlight could reveal herself and Twilight could explain just what was going on. Hopefully things would go smoothly, but Twilight had to play this by ear until she’d gotten a gauge on what kind of personality Queen Novo had and whether she’d be inclined to help.

Admiral Seaspray sighed, nodding, “It was quite the predicament, to be sure. Our forces were utterly over-matched by these invaders from across the south sea. If not for the appearance of this... quite remarkable unicorn, we would have been in a very large pickle indeed. Although the sea itself only knows just who she was.”

He flinched at that moment, and Twilight sensed there was more he wasn’t saying, but she didn’t press him on it. Trailing behind the group, Aria and Sonata were floating along, but were giving longing glances behind them towards the ocean. It occurred to Twilight it must have been a long time since either siren was this close to the sea, and the look of homesickness on either of their faces was hard to miss. The sirens were also getting a lot of curious attention from Mt. Aris’ locals, many of whom came out of their homes in droves to look at the newcomers being escorted through their city.

“Wish they’d quit gawking at us,” Aria muttered, but Sonata just gave her a playful slap on the side with her tail fin.

“Don’t be that way Aria. Remember how much we used to like getting attention while on stage?”

Aria rolled her eyes, “Well we’re not on stage right now, are we? We’re gemless sirens wandering around the back end of the world, with our sister dead and stuck a literal world away. Sorry if I’m a bit cranky.”

Pinkie Pie, near the back of the group herself as she bounced along, started to bounce backwards in front of the two sirens and smiled rightly, “Hey, turn that frownie upside-downie! We’re about to meet the hippogryph who can help us find that Charmander we’re after!”

“Charybdis, you dunce, it’s Charybdis,” Aria grunted, shaking her head.

“Oh, did I not say that? I’m terrible with names, heheh.”

“Lucky for me, I’m really good with names,” Sonata said proudly, “At lest if they’ve given me food. Those ones are easy to remember.”

Aria floated on, looking like she was waiting for someone to harpoon her while Pinkie Pie and Sonata continued chatting. Thankfully the trek didn’t last much longer as the group was led halfway up the mountain slope, following a broad and well paved road to the foot of a beautifully carved palace of white stone. It wasn’t a tall building, but it was wide and oval shaped, with an arched front from which numerous balconies allowed access via flight. For non-fliers there was a circular opening at the front of the palace, wide enough for a dozen ponies to walk through side by side if need be.

Once inside they found themselves in a large, circular chamber, practically an amphitheater surrounded on the sides by stone seating situated high up along the curved walls. The floor was carved with a breathtaking design of hippogryphs in flight, yet also of an ocean scene depicting a kingdom below, filled with equine creatures of an aquatic bent. Twilight wasn’t sure what to make of that, but the details in the carving were exquisite.

At the far end of the chamber a throne of interlaced marble, gold, and sea coral rose from a raised pillar that was a good ten feet off the ground, with no clear stairs or ramps leading to the top. Seated on the throne was a graceful and well built female hippogryph with a coat and feathers of a creamy white coloring. Her head plumage was extensive, and largely of vibrant purple and violet shades. She wore jewels of a regal finery, but not in excessive amounts, and carried herself with a proud and strong demeanor that also hinted at a sharp mind, filled with amusement and... something else Twilight couldn't quite define.

She assumed this was Queen Novo, but it wasn’t confirmed until Admiral Seaspray ordered his troops to take up positions around the edges of the throne chamber, and approached the throne himself. He removed his helmet and bowed deeply to the hippogryph on the throne, “My Queen, may I present to you Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, in the company of her friends.”

He proceeded to name each of Twilight's companions, yet hesitated when it came to Starlight’s turn, where he flushed with embarrassment and said, “Actually, I must confess, in my haste I do believe I failed to acquire your name, miss...?”

Starlight cast a furtive glance towards Twilight from beneath the edge of her cloak’s hood. It wasn’t quite how Twilight would have preferred to do this, but since it would have been too suspicious for Starlight to keep hiding herself, Twilight gave a nod, “Go ahead.”

With a deep breath, Starlight raised her head and threw off her hood. The response was an instant series of gasps and shocked murmurs from the hippogryphs, Admiral Seaspray himself taking an amazed step back with his eyes wide as he exclaimed, “My Queen, it’s her!”

“I can see that, Admiral,” Queen Novo said, rising from her throne and making a sweeping gesture at her soldiers, “All of you calm down at once! I’ll not have news of this spread beyond this throne room for now. Close the doors, and ensure no gawkers wander by.”

Soldiers immediately moved to obey, drawing shut a pair of large, thick wooden doors that covered the main entrance while others pulled closed thick curtains over the aerial entrances. Starlight, along with the entire party, looked around uneasily and she quickly stepped up beside Twilight. Trixie trotted close behind, as if afraid to get too far away from Starlight.

“Look, Queen Novo, I, I know my appearance may be startling given who was involved in stopping the attack on your kingdom, but if you listen to our story, we can explain everything,” Starlight said, and Queen Novo looked at her with startlingly bright, but narrowed eyes.

“Must be one heck of a story. If you are who you appear to be I both have reasons to thank you, and reasons to suspect you of stealing something precious to my people...”

This earned confused looks from the ponies and sirens, Twilight tilting her head at the regal hippogryph, “Stolen, your majesty?”

Queen Novo’s face twitched with a grimace, beak twisting, “My kingdom’s greatest magical treasure, the Pearl of Changing. Mere days after your friend there defeated the army that tried to ravage my people, the very same mare was spotted by my guards taking the Pearl from the treasury. I’ve kept the Pearl’s theft a secret from most of my citizens, to prevent panic. The Pearl is among our strongest means of defense, allowing the whole of our species to change our form if we need it.”

“If it’s so strong, why didn’t you use it to defend yourselves from that airship army?” asked Trixie out of nowhere, earning her a sharp look from Twilight, but Trixie seemed immune to the glares from both the alicorn and Queen Novo, “Well? It’s a valid question!”

“Hmph, I suppose it is,” Queen Novo said, “Put simple enough for even a rude unicorn like you to understand, the Pearl takes time to gather the energy to change all of my people. Just one? Zap, just like that. Changing my army into, say, manticores or dragons? That takes some warm up. Your friend showed up and crushed the invading forces before the Pearl was ready for use. Any more stupid questions, or will you now explain why the mare that both saved my kingdom and stole from it is now back, in the company of a Princess from Equestria?”

“Please, allow me to explain,” Twilight said, bowing her head politely before raising it to the hippogryph monarch, “This may take some time, our story is a long one, and it may be difficult to believe at first, but I give you my word as a Princess of Equestria that every word of it is the truth.”

Queen Novo slowly sat back on her throne and made a gesture at Admiral Seaspray, “Admiral, have someone bring our... guests something to eat and drink. Oh, and bring some of the good stuff out of my personal stash. If I’m going to be sitting her a while listening to what I think is going to be one head-spinner of a tale, I’d like to unwind.”

“As you wish, my queen,” Seaspray said, bowing low.

In short order tables were brought in and laid out with a spread of fruits, vegetables, fresh cooked fish, and numerous drinks ranging from mere juices, to harder liquors. Twilight and her companions made themselves comfortable on offered sitting cushions while Queen Novo had a servant pour her a goblet of wine, and soon enough Twilight began the tale of events that had led them to Mt. Aris.

It’d be late into the afternoon before she even got close to finished.

The story engrossed the listening soldiers to such a degree that one of them, who really should have been paying closer attention to the window nearby, didn’t see two figures hovering outside, listening in.

Quietly, two young female hippogryphs flew away from the window, both of them abuzz as they whispered to each other.

“Oh! My! Goodness! Did you hear all of that!?” cried an excited Princess Skystar. She had a soft yellow coat and plumage, along with a crest of vibrant blue feathers. She wore little adornment to denote her regal status, preferring simple decorations made from colorful seashells she’d collected from the beach.

Flying next to her was a female hippogryph of similar age, her feathers and fur of a soft pink, but with a similarly colored crest of feathers, although of darker blue shades than Skystar’s. “You said it cousin! That’s the craaaziest story I’ve ever heard! Other worlds, super-ghost sword battles, invasions by creepy doppelgangers! Could all of that be true!?”

“I don’t know, but it’d totally fit with all the nuttiness that went down when those nasty yeti guys attacked!” Skystar said, remembering with equal parts fear and excitement the attack on Mt. Aris. She’d been terrified, but it’d also been the most excited thing that had happened in, well... ever!

“Wonder what your mom’s going to do now?” Silverstream said, tapping her chin, “Sounds like those ponies are planning to go after some kind of crazy powerful sea witch. You ever heard of ‘Charybdis’?”

Skystar tilted her head in deep thought. She had to study a lot of different things in preparation to take over the kingdom from her mother, one day. Subjects ranged from boring things like politics and trade, to more interesting stuff like battles and history. This included ancient lore that ranged from folk tales to stories relating to the dangers of the sea.

“Hmmm... Charybdis does sound kinda familiar. Like, I think she’s got something to do with the Pearl of Changing and why we have it in the first place? Can’t remember. I’d have to hit the books again.”

“Oh! Oh! We should go tell the ponies that! I bet it’s, like, something they’d totally want to know about!”

Skystar gained a mischievous glint in her eyes, “Oh no, we can’t do that.”

“Why not?” Silverstream asked, confused.

“Because if we did, then my mom would know we listened in, and if she knew we listened in, she’d ground me to my room and put a bunch of boring guards to watch me. And if that happened, heheh,” she winked and pointed at the airship docked down by the beach, “We couldn’t stow away on the ship and go have a real adventure for once.”

----------

That evening, Aria and Sonata found themselves drawn to the gently rolling surf of the beach. The sun was setting, and the two sirens were quiet as they lay on a rocky outcropping, letting the spray of ocean waves wet them. It was a quiet moment for the pair. They’d done this kind of thing all the time in a past so long ago it felt like it may as well have been several lifetimes.

“It was just us three back then...” Sonata said, waving a hoof through the water, “We’d chill on some rocks and watch the sun set with Adagio. Remember, Aria?”

Aria was quiet, staring out at the ocean with sullen eyes, hooves crossed under her chin as she lay on her own rock, the splashing water of incoming waves flowing over her. She sighed, then after a minute said, “...Yeah, I remember.”

“I wish she was here now.”

“Well... she’s not.”

“But we can kinda pretend she is, you know?” Sonata said, laughing a little under her breath, “I can totally see her sitting her, you know, with that impatient, irritated look she always got when she was really enjoying herself but was being too stubborn to admit it. You remember that look, Aria? She totally looked like a puffer fish, her cheeks getting all big!”

Sonata imitated the look, forcing a fake, Adagio-like frown as her cheeks puffed out and she imitated Adagio’s annoyed voice, “Now that’s enough sitting around staring at sunset’s, you two! We’ve got more important things to do!”

Aria sighed again, but this time with a small, fond smile, “Yeah, she was always dragging us off places. Always one scheme after another with her.”

Aria went quiet again, and after a few moments, Sonata heard a soft noise of sobbing over the ocean waves.

“Aria?”

“...We’re getting her back,” Aria said, looking away from Sonata to hide her face, “Even if I have to strangle this Charybdis witch myself, we’re getting Adagio back. Can’t stand how slow this all is, or letting the ponies lead. If it were just me,, I’d already be swimming north!”

“Don’t be dumb. We can’t do this by ourselves,” Sonata said, one hoof touching the empty nook in her chest where her siren gem should have been, “Especially without our gems, we’re super weak.”

“I know that! It just... sucks. It sucks royally. I hate this so much, being powerless. All we can damn well do is follow along and rely on others for help, and I hate it!” The tears welling in Aria’s eyes were hot as her anger and frustration.

“Same here, but what’re you gonna do? It is what it is, and we just got to go with the flow until we find an opportunity to do more.”

“Drives me nuts how easygoing you are, you know that? Always pissed me off about you.”

“Heh, love you too, sis... hey, what’s that?”

At Sonata’s question Aria raised her head, looking out to sea where Sonata had pointed with her tail fin. She narrowed her eyes, noticing the approach of what appeared to be several dozen shadows beneath the waves. Curiosity and confusion turned quickly to alarm, “Sonata, run!”

Aria and Sonata both floated up, just in time for dozens of twisted, finned humanoid figures to burst out of the surf, welding tridents and bearing maws of razor sharp teeth as they rushed the surprised sirens.

----------

The planning room was rarely used, given how rarely the hippogryph army actually went to war, but now it was lit with many candles, its wide table strewn with maps of the southern, eastern, and northern oceans. Around it stood Twilight Sparkle, Flash Sentry, Starlight Glimmer, Queen Novo, and Admiral Seaspray. Most of Twilight’s party had gone to enjoy the sights and luxuries of the city. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were restocking their supplies with local fare at the market, while Rarity and Fluttershy were shopping for anything else that might help with their journey. Pinkie Pie had bounced off to gather gossip from the locals, and Trixie had trudged back towards the airship to talk with Captain Celano about the group’s continued need for the airship. Aria and Sonata had gone to the beach to enjoy being near the ocean.

In the meantime, Twilight focused on the plans they were making. Once the story had been told in full, she was a little surprised at how readily Queen Novo had accepted it.

“Don’t be,” Queen Novo had said, “I’ve known Princess Celestia for a long time, and she wouldn’t have sent you if you were a liar. Oh, your story is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard, no doubt, but if you were going to come here and make something up to get my help, I figure you’d have come up with something more believable.”

So now they were planning the journey north. Queen Novo had promised the support of her navy, although in actuality there was little good so many ships could do. Rather the idea was to further charter Celano’s airship and provide additional escort in the form of a cadre of elite hippogryph warriors, with Admiral Seaspray in charge. He knew the oceans of the world better than anyone on Mt. Aris, and was familiar with the northern ocean where the so-called ‘Abyss’ was located.

“With an airship as fast as the good captain Celano’s, reaching the area should be a matter of less than a week,” Seaspray said, tracing the route they’d take from Mt. Aris, across the eastern ocean, and to the frozen climes of the north sea. “We’re not likely to run into too much trouble on our way there. Our griffin cousins from Griffinstone rarely bother with paying attention to the sea routes, with only a few rare pirate ships plying the waves. If any of those desperate rapscallions tried to take a crack at us, I assure you my warriors and I could scatter them with ease.”

“That’s all well and good, Admiral, but I’m more concerned with what we’ll do once we get to the north sea,” said Twilight, glancing at Queen Novo, “I believe Princess Celestia recommended I come here because she thought you still had the Pearl of Changing, which could have been used to transform my friends and I into bodies capable of diving down into the ocean to confront Charybdis. Right now I’m at a loss as to how we’re going to do that, with the Pearl gone.”

A shadow crossed Queen Novo’s features as she ran a claw over the map of the continent's southern tip. “This ‘human’ Starlight Glimmer who took the Pearl, with the kind of power she has she could have gone anywhere. Hidden anywhere. There’s nothing I’d like more than to track down where she went and get the Pearl back, but I’m no fool. Even if we could find her, I’m not sure we could face her down without help.”

“True, but if we did locate her base of operations, my fellow Princesses and I together may be enough, especially if we bring in other assistance from the likes of Discord or King Thorax,” Twilight said, her thoughts turning like smoothly greased gears, “Although finding her would be the problematic part. Normally I’d suggest trying to perform a tracking or scrying spell on the Pearl itself, but since I’ve never seen the Pearl, let alone studied it, I wouldn’t know enough about its magical makeup to be able to concoct a proper spell to locate it.”

“Yes, and sadly we hippogryphs aren’t the most magically inclined species,” Queen Novo admitted, “The Pearl is the only real form of magic we possessed, and it wasn’t even originally made for us.”

Although it was important to keep planning their next move, Twilight couldn’t help her academic curiosity from flaring up, “Oh? Where did the Pearl of Changing come from, if I may ask?”

“That’s a bit of a yarn, but it does relate to the quest you’re pursuing, so I can give you the brief version,” the queen said, taking a moment to consider her words before continuing, “The Pearl was made by the seaponies, a long time ago.”

“Seaponies?” Flash sentry shook his head, “Just how many different kinds of ponies are there?”

“The world is filled with all sorts of creatures,” Starlight said, elbowing him, “How about you let the Queen tell her story?”

“Okay, okay, just saying, I half expect to turn a corner and run into a slime-pony, a plant-pony, or even a pizza-pony at this point,” Flash glanced up thoughtfully, “In fact are we sure Pinkie Pie isn’t some kind of cotton candy pony?”

Twilight laughed lightly, while still trying to give him a stern look, “Pretty sure Pinkie Pie is in a classification of her own. Now then, Queen Novo, please continue.”

“Ahem, yes. As I was saying, the seaponies made the Pearl of Changing at the height of their civilization, around, hmm... twelve hundred or so years ago? I forget the exact time frame. It’s always ‘a thousand years ago’ or something like that Back then we hippogryphs had only recently colonized Mt. Aris and were establishing our sea trade across the various coastlines. We had friendly contact with the seaponies, but nothing extensive.”

The queen’s demeanor turned dour, then, her expression ominously shadowed by the flickering candlelight, “That was when the seaponies were split by a civil war. You see, their own queen died while leaving twin heirs; Scylla, and Charybdis.”

Twilight made a sharp intake of breath, exchanging worried looks with Flash and Starlight, “Charybdis? As in that Charybdis? The one we’re seeking?”

“The very same,” Queen Novo said, “She was once a seapony, and a powerful witch of the sea, by all historical accounts. From what I understand of the legend, her mother, Queen Allegro, died of a wasting sickness. Before her death she bade both her daughters to compete for the right to the throne. Both Charybdis and her sister Scylla sought ways to impress their mother to earn the throne. Scylla, a renowned warrior, plied the ocean depths for rare artifacts of power and charted unknown oceans to show her worth, while Charybdis researched ever more powerful magic to demonstrate her own worthiness. According to the story, Charybdis became so desperate to beat her sister that she began to delve into dark powers, and when her mother still choose Scylla over her, it snapped something within the seapony princess. She went truly off the deep end, and rather than abandon her dark magic, she only grew in power.”

“Let me guess, she tried to take over by force?” Starlight said, sighing, “And if I know how my old legends tend to go, the civil war broke the sea pony kingdom.”

“Hey, are you telling the story, or am I?”

“Err, sorry.”

“At any rate, you’re not that far off. Charybdis waged war against her sister, and while Scylla and her army fought back, they were at a disadvantage. Charybdis’ dark magic gave her dominance over other sea creatures, not to mention the ability to twist them in strange ways, making ocean monsters the likes of which still plague our waters today. Without help, Scylla and her forces would have been defeated. That’s where we hippogryphs come into the story. Scylla called to races on land for aid, and it was only the hippogryphs of Mt. Aris who answered the call. We relied on the ocean trade for some of our most important imports, so we couldn’t afford to have a crazy tyrant like Charybdis in charge, so we agreed to lend our forces to Scylla’s cause. That’s where the Pearl of Changing comes into play. Scylla stole the artifact from the sea pony capital of Aqualania, and used the Pearl to change the hippogryph army into seaponies ourselves. Suddenly Charybdis found her army outnumbered two to one! My ancestor, Queen Nimbus, fought beside Princess Scylla in a titanic battle that drove Charybdis’ army from Aqualania.”

Queen Novo tapped a finger on the map, some distance north of Mt. Aris, nearly in the middle of the eastern sea, “Here was where it was. Our forces had all but won, but Charybdis was a sore loser. She drew upon the full might of her dark magic and transformed herself from a seapony and into a massive sea monster, a horrific thing of tentacles and teeth, larger than the largest whale.”

“Given she’s still alive and kicking, I’m assuming she was beaten, but escaped?” asked Flash.

“Yes, Charybdis was defeated, but at horrific cost. The seapony army was shattered, and Princess Scylla did not survive the battle. In the aftermath, the seaponies couldn’t reform into a proper kingdom, they’d lost so many of their numbers. They scattered into small, isolated tribes, and that’s how it’s stayed to this day. We hippogryphs took possession of the Pearl of Changing, and returned to Mt. Aris. As for Charybdis, well... she faded into myth. A story told to frighten sailors. Few believed she died of her wounds, but at the same time, she’s never made any kind of major move in all those centuries, retiring to the depths of the Abyss. Most just believed she was content to stay down there, in the darkness...”

“Well she certainly isn’t quite as inactive as we might have hoped,” Twilight said, “But at the same time, as far as we know the deal she made with Adagio happened a long time ago, and Charybdis hasn’t made any overt moves we’re aware of. Hopefully we’ll catch her by surprise when we arrive. It’s just a question of how we’re going to get there.”

“As to that, while we’re not a magically inclined species, we do have contact with the various seapony tribes,” Queen Novo said, “There are still many active sea witches among their number. The magic that made the Pearl came from them, so its very likely if you find a strong sea pony witch, she can teach you magic to change your form or at least to breath and move underwater without effort. So I’d say your best bet is to go contact the largest of these tribes... here,” she pointed to the northern coastline of an island continent that Twilight knew well, just northeast of Mt. Aris.

“That’s the dragonlands,” she said, “The seaponies have a tribe there?”

“Just off the coast. The area is very rich in volcanic vents underwater that make ideal locations for the seaponies to make their homes. I can write a letter of introduction for you to give to chieftess Wavebreak. She’ll be able to help you find a sea witch that can-”

Just then a metallic cry floated in through the planning room’s open window, distant, but with an insistent and almost panicked frequency. Twilight’s head turned alongside Starlight’s and Flash’s, the two mares looking confused, but Flash’s eyes filled with a dread certainty of what they were hearing. After all, he was a trained soldier in an army and he knew what an alarm bell sounded like. His suspicions were almost immediately confirmed as Queen Novo breathed, “It’s the harbor alarm! Another attack!?”

Admiral Seaspray did not waste a single second, swiftly turning to his queen, “Your majesty, I’ll take the palace garrison and respond at once. If I leave half here to guard you-”

“Don’t be foolish, take the whole garrison!” Queen Novo said with steel command in her voice, “While you rouse them I’ll fetch my armor and sword.”

“Your majesty, I...” Seaspray was silenced with a look and he swiftly raised a talon and wing in salute, “Yes, of course, at once.”

Flash had gone to the window, his eyes trying to pierce through the evening gloom. The sun was barely a sliver of light coating the horizon now, but it was enough for him to see that there were several columns of oil-black smoke curling up from the harbor area. “Whoever’s attacking is already setting fires. Twilight, what’s your call?”

“M-my call?” Twilight asked, suddenly feeling her whole body clench up with nerves, but Flash just looked at her with eyes that seemed to reach out and steady her with their confidence.

“You’re in charge of this expedition. Do we round up your friends first to make sure they’re safe? Or do we go straight to the harbor to find out what’s happening? Between your and Starlight’s magic, and my Zanpaktou, I’m thinking we can handle whatever we find, but I don’t know about your friends.”

Twilight knew her friends all quite well, and they each had their own strengths. She was worried about them, of course, but they were quite able to take care of themselves. If Mt. Aris was under attack by unknown forces, then Twilight felt it was her responsibility as a visiting alley and Princess of Equestria to respond to the threat as swiftly as possible. Besides, she knew Aria and Sonata had gone to the beach front, and if any of their number might need immediate help, it’s be them.

She took a deep breath, putting a hoof to her chest and extending it out as she let out the breath, focusing herself and letting her nerves settle. Her eyes glinted with a new light of assurance, “We go to the harbor.”

“Good,” said Queen Novo, already out the door with Admiral Seaspray, who was calling for the garrison, “We’ll meet you down there, and throw back whoever’s decided to come after my home and my people!”

Twilight nodded, then looked to Starlight, “You’ve been practicing your flight spell and combat magic?”

Starlight Glimmer flashed a grin that lit up her face with ready eagerness, “You know I have.”

“Then let’s get moving,” Twilight said, flaring her wings and flying straight out of the window. Starlight followed a second later, her body coated in a sparkling, teal aura of magic. Flash came last, but swiftly caught up, his wings still moving a tad awkwardly, but with greater confidence as the trio rose into the air above the city slope of Mt. Aris.

Twilight could already see a cluster of hippogryph warriors arching up from the city and then diving towards the harbor, although they were few in number. A larger number were gathering at the base of the palace as the garrison got organized. Other hippogryphs in the city itself were quickly either barricading their homes, or gathering weapons and armor, clearly part of a volunteer militia that was fast responding to the crisis. Twilight couldn’t spot any of her friends through the threes and rapid movement of so many people down below, but she didn’t doubt they were down there and responding to the situation in their own way.

She wouldn’t have been surprised if, by the time she, Starlight, and Flash even got to the harbor if her friends weren’t already there, meeting the threat head on.

----------

“The heck is all the hubbub out there, do you think?” asked Grubber as he poked his head near a porthole in the airship’s cargo hold. He and Tempest Shadow had crept out of Trixie’s caravan when they heard the distinct sound of a ringing metal gong, clearly some kind of alarm.

“How should I know?” asked Tempest sharply as she pushed him aside and peeked out the porthole as well. The airship was tethered near the largest pier, nearly in the center of the docks. The buildings near the dock area were shrouded in dusky gloom, shadow clinging over everything like foam, but Tempest could still make out movement by the light of several fires that were busy consuming a trio of warehouses.

Small, spindly shapes rushed with jerky, strange motions around the docks as they surged up towards the market area beyond. Tempest caught the sight of gleaming metal reflecting from weapons. Tridents or spears of some kind. In one moment she got a better glimpse of one of the creatures moving below and saw the crest of a fine on the head, the large bulbous eyes of sickly yellow.

She sneered, “Whatever they are, they’re from the ocean. And it looks like some of them are coming this way.”

“What!?” cried Grubber, “Like, how many? A lot, or just a few? Because you, I mean we, can handle a few...”

Tempest narrowed her eyes, trying to count the shapes that were rapidly crawling across the dock, making their way to the airship. It was tethered fairly low, so that the loading ramp to the cargo hold and main deck could reach it. The ramp wasn’t lowered presently, but that hardly meant the mysterious attackers couldn’t get on board.

“Can’t tell, but more than a few.”

“Well what do we do then? I mean, I’ll punch and bite anything fishy that tries to poke us, but I ain’t exactly prime combat material over here.”

“Oh, trust me, I know. Don’t worry, these pirates are well armed, and I’m sure they’ll have things to say about intruders crawling on their ship. All we have to do is stay put, and deal with any stragglers that get in here...”

Suddenly there was a frightened scream from down below, and Tempest went back to the porthole, “What the blazes?”

She didn’t know who they were, but a pair of hippogryphs, two young females, had been apparently on the dock, hiding behind some crates. As the strange aquatic creatures rushed over the dock to get at the airship, the pair were exposed and while they tried to fly away, the creatures had hurled nets into the air, catching both. Now the pair of female hippogryphs were stuck on the dock, struggling in the nets, while several fish creatures dragged them towards the water. The rest were pouring towards the airship, and started climbing the tether ropes to get to the deck.

Tempest heard the ring of steel above and captain Celano bellowing out, “Get your briny little webbed hands off my ship!”

The clear sound of battle broke out above on the deck, but that did little to help the pair of helpless hippogryphs being carried towards what would probably be a swift, unpleasant drowning in the ocean. Tempest had seconds to make a decision on what to do. She should just stay put and hidden. The hippogryphs had no reason to be glad to see her, and exposing herself would only cause problems.

But those terrified cries for help were difficult for even her to ignore. The world was a cruel place, she tried to remind herself. Whatever pretty, colorful and peaceful lives some in idyllic countries like Equestria got to live, the real world beyond it was harsh and unforgiving. She knew this. She’d lived through it.

She also hated it. Even if on the surface she looked like she accepted the world’s uncaring, unkind nature and was tough enough to survive it... deep down she loathed that the world was like that, and nobody ever did anything about it. It was why she had such deep rooted ire towards Equestria itself. This sickly sweet, seemingly ‘perfect’ country of happy ponies that just went about their lives, blissfully unaware and uncaring of just how bad the rest of the world could be. And every now and then that uncaring world liked to seep into Equestria itself, the way it had on that day...

Tempest Shadow could almost feel the scar over her eye burning, and her broken horn twitched with pain and small, blue sparks.

“Uhh, boss?” asked Grubber over the sound of the two hippogryphs screaming for help, their helpless forms almost at the edge of the dock.

The hot anger bubbled up from her chest and into her brain like a broken steam pipe, turning her face into a dark thunderhead of rage.

“Not this time,” she whispered, and darted towards the bottom cargo hatch. The hold had this hatch for hoisting cargo directly up and down from the belly of the ship, and Tempest Shadow made a smooth, acrobatic leap through the air, her hoof striking the release lever on one of the side beams of the cargo hold. The hatch dumped open and Tempest Shadow all but flew down through it, flipping in the air as she landed hard on the dock, some twelve feet below.

Her impact was loud, and started a crowd of gawking fish-like creatures. Scaled, slimy skin was pulled over gaunt figures, the scales ranging from a deep sea green to darker patches of blue. Large fish heads showed mouths filled with rows of needle-like teeth, and webbed hands clutched deadly tridents or metal or carved bones. Tempest didn’t really care to notice any further details, nor give these creatures a moment to decide to either attack her or get out of her way.

Her horn flared, violent, blue arcs of uncontrolled, barely amiable magic surging up from her broken horn. The pain of the magic melded with her anger, and with a feral warcry, Tempest Shadow unleashed her rage upon the creatures in front of her, and a good half of the dock.

What few fish creatures weren’t bright enough to dive over the side of the dock and into the ocean were flash fried, with only a handful lucky enough to only get the periphery of Tempest’s magical onslaught and hence only get shocked to a twitching, but still alive mess. Then Tempest Shadow charged straight into the stunned survivors, her hooves like black hammers in the darkness. She moved with pure precision and unrelenting power, each buck or punch cracking jaws, splitting teeth, shattering bones, and sending entire bodies flying through the air like pins struck by a bowling ball.

Whatever these creatures were, they had not been prepared to deal with an attacker like this. A few tried to form a spear line, aiming tridents at Tempest in a wall of sharp metal, but she contemptuously turned her head down towards it and send another wild, barely controlled bolt of raging magical energies into the hastily constructed spear wall, scattering more bodies, both living and dead.

By the time Tempest got to where the two captured hippogryphs were, they were at the edge o the dock, the fish creatures that had grabbed them having fled in terror moment’s earlier.

Tempest glanced around, making sure there were no nearby enemies. Her assault had all but broken the group that had charged down the dock towards the airship, but it still sounded like captain Celano and her crew were fighting those that had managed to crawl aboard before Tempest had begun her assault. She trusted the pirates could handle themselves, and turned her attention to the two hippogryphs laying at her hooves.

The pair were clutching each other in naked fear, staring at her with wide, saucer-like eyes. It actually took Tempest a second to realize that the fear was directed as much at her as the situation, for the moment she reached out a hoof to help the pair out of the nets clinging to them, the hippogryph girls nearly fell off the dock, trying to scramble away form her.

“D-don’t hurt us!” shrieked one, covering her head.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Tempest growled out in a harsh bark, but quickly tried to take a calming breath and get her voice under control, trying again in a somewhat softer tone, “I need to get you out from under those nets before more of these guppies show up.”

“For real? You’re not going to zap us into crispy bits?” asked the same one who’s spoken before. In the deepening shadows she could barely make out the colors of the two hippogryphs, but she thought this one had a pink or very light purple color, while the other, quiet one was a light yellow. Tempest noticed that one was shaking near uncontrollably, eyes almost wild with terror.

She licked her lips, uncertainty creeping up her stomach to poke at her heart. She was a soldier. A warrior. Dealing with frightened civilians was well outside of her expertise. Still, she needed to get these two to safety inside the cargo hold. They were too exposed, out on the dock, and Tempest could tell from the sounds coming from the market area that the battle was going strong elsewhere, and that more foes might be coming up from the beach. She wrestled with her tone, trying to sound... comforting, and it came out more frustrated.

“Look, it’s okay. I’m not with those things. Now you see that airship? Once I get you out of these nets, I want you to fly into the cargo hold, close the doors, and don’t come out until I get back. Do you understand me?”

“Yes, uh, s-sure...” said the pink hippogryph, who elbowed the other one lightly, “Skystar, help me with the nets.”

“I....I... they were... trying to kill us...”

“C’mon Skystar, we need to do what the sparky-sparky-boom mare says,” insisted the other hippogryph as she yanked at the nets, trying to cut them with her beak and talons. Tempest Shadow helped, using her hooves to hold the net steady so the hippogryph could cut easier. Her voice softened a bit as she felt a pang of sympathy for both of these youngsters. Neither one sounded much older than their mid-teens.

“Your friend is in shock. She might need help to get into the cargo hold, but once you’re there, my friend Grubber will watch over you. Just stay quiet, and keep your friend warm. What’s your name?”

“Me? I’m Silverstream,” the hippogryph replied, finally cutting a hole in the net wide enough to get herself through, after which she helped the other one, Skystar, out.

Skystar was still shaking like jelly, but seemed to take hold of herself, visibly forcing her legs to steady as her whole body shuddered. her voice was cracked, and weak, but she managed to say, “I’m P-Princess Skystar. Thank you... for saving us.”

Her eyes turned up towards the city covering Mt. Aris’ slope, where several more fires had started up and the sounds of shouts and the clashing of steel from battle could be heard over the noise of screams wafting through the night air. “Oh no...”

Tempest put a steady hoof on Skystar’s shoulder. The hippogryph's princess? Tempest didn’t know if she’d just screwed herself over, or done the one thing that might keep her head from ending up on a pike by the end of this. “Don’t think about it. Just get inside, and stay safe until I come for you.”

“What will you do?” asked Silverstream, and Tempest Shadow eyed the city with flint-like eyes.

“What I do best.”

----------

Rainbow Dash slipped around the trident thrust with a swimmer’s grace, flipping her body up and over and then dropping both hind hooves right on top of the fish monster’s head. The creature let out a babbling gurgle and collapsed like so much wet sand, joining half a dozen others the agile pegasus had knocked out so far.

She then had to duck as another fish creature was sent flying overhead, nearly clipping her out of the air as it crashed into a food stall that, earlier that evening, she’d bought a rather scrumptious scone from.

“Hey! Watch it, AJ! You nearly hit me!”

Applejack grunted as she side stepped a wide thrust from another scaled monstrosity's twisted trident, and spun around for another solid buck with both back legs. Much like the last one that had almost clipped Rainbow Dash, the fish monster took both hind hooves to the chest and abruptly became airborne, flying into one of the large trees spread across the city. Snorting, Applejack adjusted her stetson and said, “Kinda too busy ta be lookin’ where I’m sendin’ this buggers flyin’, Dash. Just quit yappin’ an’ learn ta dodge.”

“I did!”

“Then why’re ya belly achin’ at me?”

“Ladies, please!” shouted Rarity as she backpedaled from a pair of fish monsters that rushed her from across the boulevard. With swift use of magic, she gathered a set of curtains from a nearby home and sent them flying out to wrap around the legs of her assailants, stopping them just short of her. She then swiftly tied the curtains around the beasts and hung them to dangle from a roof overhang, quite immobile. Huffing, she looked at the other two ponies, “I would prefer if we kept the banter to a minimum until there aren’t horrible, aquatic denizens of the deep trying to slaughter us!”

As if to punctuate her statement, there was a high pitched wail as Trixie went galloping off across the side street, about ten of the spindly armed creatures in pursuit of the stage mare. Trixie made a leap for a raised patio, scrambling the wooden railing before turning around and shouting, “Keep your filthy, grubby hands away from the Too Beautiful and Young to Die Trixie!”

Blue hooves flailed as multiple smoke bombs rained out from beneath Trixie’s cloak and smashed into the line of fish monsters, releasing bursts of choking gray smoke. The creatures let out rough, hacking and wet coughs, their charge stalled by the frightened stage mares gaseous assault.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash exchanged looks, and both gave each other nods before proceeding to charge into the disorganized group. Rarity rolled her eyes and came on behind them, her horn flaring up as she picked up a swirling group of small rocks gathered from the ground. Applejack and Rainbow Dash hit the confused fish monsters like twin battering rams. The creatures recovered quickly, jabbing with their tridents. Applejack let out a rough grunt as one cut her flank, and she gave the offending fish monster a punishing haymaker of a punch that sent it headfirst through a nearby crate. Dash had to bob about like a leaf caught in a storm, tridents stabbing at her from every which way. One jabbed into her right foreleg, not deep, but enough to cause her to yelp in pain and nearly lose her balance in the air. Fortunately Rarity sent the twenty or so stones she’d gathered in her magic flying into the creatures with the speed and precision she’d often used when sewing. The stones struck the fish monsters almost unerringly on the head, stunning many, and dropping several in unconscious heaps. This bought Rainbow Dash the extra second she needed to get over the shock of her injury and rush the stunned ones, laying about with punches and kicks.

In less than a minute the mares had dealt with the group of aquatic foes, bearing a few light, bleeding wounds, but still alive and breathing.

“Yer bleedin’, Dash,” Applejack said, and Dash just shook her head, keeping her injured leg off the ground.

“Nothing serious. Been poked worse by needles at the doctor’s. How about you?”

Applejack glanced at her flank, a trickle of blood from her own wound already drying on her fur, “Taken worse scrapes on the farm. Looks like we’ve cleared out the lot on this end o’ town, but now what?”

Trixie hopped down from the patio she’d scrambled onto, and near breathless said, “These things are everywhere! I was going to the airship, and they just came pouring out of the docks like some kind of horror play! I barely escaped with my life!”

Rarity cocked her head, ears twitching as she listened, “From the sound of it, there’s more not far away. We certainly can’t stay here. Where’s Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie?’

“I thought Fluttershy was with you!” Rainbow Dash said.

“She was, but we split up a few minutes before the attack.”

“We gotta find ‘em,'' said Applejack, “Then find everypony else.”

Rainbow Dash, squinting, looked up at the sky, “Well, Twilight, Starlight, and Flash won’t be hard to find. Look!”

Turning their eyes to the curtain of vibrant purple and darkening blue sky, speckled with stars, it was at first nearly impossible to spot what Rainbow Dash’s own quick eyes has spotted. Then a radiant flash of lavender power lanced down from the sky, cutting across a street a hundred yards away, and it was then possible to see the form of Twilight Sparkle flying across the city’s tree and rooftops. Her horn became a bright beacon of purple energy as the alicorn Princess fired more bolts of spearing magic down upon unseen enemies amid the streets. She wasn’t alone either. Flying not far behind was a nimbus of teal magic, Starlight Glimmer at its center. Rather than Twilight’s long, powerful bolts of magic, Starlight was lifting entire clusters of dozens of screeching fish creatures and slamming them back to the ground as she flew overhead. Flash Sentry was flying between the two mares, his form moving with the kind of flickering speed that could only be achieved with Flash Step, knocking aside tridents and smaller javelins that were being thrown up at the two mares.

“Tch, showoffs,” Rarity said, but she was smiling, “And it looks like the hippogryphs are finally rallying as well.”

As if following the Equestrian’s wake, the palace garrison, with Admiral Seaspray and Queen Novo leading at the front, dove down into the center of their city. There, the tight formation of several hundred hippogryph warriors joined the hastily gathered city militia in meeting what was several solid blocks of fishpeople warriors. Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer’s flyby had opened up a hole in the fish creature’s formation of tightly packed tridents, which the hippogryphs took advantage of, the garrison bolstering the militia in a charge that punched into that hole in the enemy ranks and started to split it wide, forcing the fish monsters to give ground.

“If they’ve got that well in hoof, we should go look for Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy,” said Rarity, and the others readily nodded agreement.

Even if the fish monsters had been put on their heels for the moment, the fight wasn’t over yet.

----------

Twilight couldn’t spot her friends amid the chaos in the city. While she was glad that at least for the moment it looked like Queen Novo and her garrison were pushing back the force that had moved into the market and prevented these monsters from spreading into the wider residential areas, she had a better picture of things while flying so high above the treetops and buildings, and she was still terribly worried.

There had to have been over a thousand of these creatures that had struck from the harbor, at least. A bulk of around five hundred were in the market, being pushed back by the garrison and militia forces, but Twilight could count hundreds more occupying the docks, and moving in tight packs around the edges of the city, setting fires as they went.

“What are these things?” Starlight shouted, her magic bubbling up in bright motes as she telekinetically grabbed up several large tree branches the size of pikes and started to use them to batter at fish creatures below. A few tridents flew at her, but Flash was there in an instant, his Zanpaktou battering them aside.

“I was wondering the same thing,” Flash said, “Your word seems way more full of hostile critters than I would’ve thought for supposedly being so peaceful.”

Twilight thought maybe she’d read a few passages on creatures like this, but the aquatic denizens of the world’s deeper oceans were largely a mystery to many Equestrian scholars, hence what information she did know was limited, and all hearsay at best, “I... I think they might be called sahuagin! Prehistoric fish people! They’re just supposed to be myth!”

Flash appeared next to her, his sword flashing to stop a javelin that almost struck Twilight in the throat. She gulped as Flash gave her a reassuring smile, “Seem pretty real to me. So why are they attacking?’

“How should I know? If we can stop them, we can worry about the ‘why’ afterward!”

He nodded, but added, “If we can spot any among them that look like a leader, we can capture them, and get answers.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” said Starlight, erecting a barrier on her left to block a few more javelins that came at her. They’d flown closer to the docks now, and the ‘sahuagin’ there had managed to start fortifying the area with crates and barrels, and taken to the roof of the few non-burning warehouses to gain height for throwing their deadly projectiles. “Of course how we’re supposed to find a leader amid all those fish, I’ve got no idea!”

As if in answer to her question, as the trio flew over the docks, still heading for the airship, which for the moment looked safe and intact, a deep fog suddenly rose up from the ground and starting spilling out both towards the marketplace and into the air. It obscured the three ponies, and Twilight shivered at just how cold the fog was. It was also clammy and filled her with a sick, uneasy sensation. It took her a second to realize the fog was magical, and the moment she realized that, she felt another spike of magic down on the ground, several, in fact, and she shouted, “Incoming!”

She banked hard to the left, feeling something frozen and gut wrenching streak by her. It didn’t hit her, but just the close call made Twilight feel ill, as if her magical senses were being dunked in a vat of cold, congealed grease. Whatever had been thrown at her, it was magic, but of a distinctly unpleasant and foul variety. She heard Starlight gasp, and couldn’t tell if it was in pain, disgust, or both.

“Starlight, are you okay!?”

“Ugh, I’m fine, but what is this? It’s like magic, but feels all wrong!”

“I think we just found the leader,” Flash said, “I can’t sense their presence, exactly, but even I can tell there’s something wrong with this magic. Can’t see anything through this fog, either.”

“Give me a moment,” Twilight said, channeling white hot power through her horn. An unfamiliar flare of warm outrage seeped up from somewhere deep in her soul that made her want to defeat this unnatural magic. It was as if the pure magic inside her railed and was aghast at the nature of this other magic, and wanted nothing more than to be brought to bear against it.

Twilight didn’t restrain herself.

The spell she cast was a simple one, but with the might of an alicorn who’s specific talent was in magic behind it. What may have otherwise been a simple breeze was now a hurricane of wind that blasted down from the sky behind Twilight, roiled beneath her like a wave, and hammered both the fog and the ground like a destructive fist. The fog was billowed away like so much smoke being churned aside by a titanic fan, while the wind tore into the sahuagin on the ground. Those behind barricades were able to take cover and hold on, but those exposed on the rooftops were swept off, as if by a gigantic broom.

The moment the fog was dissipated, Starlight unleashed her own spell that she’d prepared, aiming it at the thickest cluster of creatures below. A literal hammer of magic, the size of a small building, took shape and smashed the ground, exploding with raw telekinetic force that either smacked enemies flat, or sent them flying into warehouse walls.

However, while they’d scattered many of the enemy’s warriors, the one responsible for the magic wasn’t revealed until a moment later, and as it turned out it wasn’t one foe, but a group of five. They were standing behind the warehouses, held up on a platform of interlocked bones born by several muscular sahuagin. Some kind of mobile shrine, with the jaws of a truly colossal shark used as a backdrop for it, and a brazier of dark coral, was acting as a platform for five tall, thin fish people. They each wore chains of bone and mantles of either manta ray or shark skin. Instead of tridents they carried curved bone daggers, which they used to cut their arms and rip blood into the burning brazier. This sacrifice of blood looked at act as a catalyst for their magic as the creatures changed in gurgling, undulating tones and cavorted about the shrine.

The brazier flared with black fire, tinged with red, and Twilight felt the twisting sensation in her gut from the unnatural, dark magic being conjured. A spectral swarm of black piranha bubbled up into the air, hundreds of ghostly fish with red eyes and gnashing teeth that quickly flew up towards Twilight.

Growling under her breath, Twilight brought forth more power into her horn and swung it almost like a blade, violet light blazing out in a wide arc. Multiple interlocking barriers interposed themselves between her and the swarm of wraith-like piranha, which then expanded under her direction and moved to encapsulate the swarm in a polyhedral-shaped prison of transparent, purple energy.

Flash Sentry then descended towards the mobile shrine, his form blinking from view with a swift Flash Step that took him over to stand on top of the shark jaws mounted on the back of the shrine.

”Serve faithfully; Kochi Yojinbo!”, Flash said, invoking his Zanpaktou’s Shikai. As the blade transformed into it’s tonfa shape, he performed a front flip that took him over the shrine, even as the gathered sahuagin shamans started to turn towards him with startled cries. His Zanpaktou’s power bent space and allowed Flash’s body to appear in four places at once as he swung his Zanpaktou in a spinning strike. Four other Flash’s mimicked the move and cut down three of the five shamans in one go. One survived only because it stumbled off the shrine and landed in a heap on the ground, gurgling as it scrambled away.

The last shaman, larger than its brethren, took its dagger and dragged it across its palm, chanting as it shoved its bleeding limb into the brazier. Black fire erupted upward, and a massive claw of darkness, like some twisted, spiny lobster limb, shout out of the flames and smashed towards Flash Sentry. He crossed his tonfa-blade in front of him, taking the blow head on. The claw struck hard, much harder than Flash had been expecting, and it sent him reeling to the ground. He managed to land on his hooves, skidding across the rough pavement of the dock street, and soon found himself surrounded by dozens of sahuagin warriors.

He prepared himself to fight, but soon found a flash of bright blue light cutting across one half of his foes in an uncontrolled stream, electrocuting fish flesh with ease. Charging from the smoke of the still falling bodies, Tempest Shadow jumped and landed next to Flash Sentry, her horn sparking like mad as she blasted out more erratic magic, exploding a nearby portion of a sahuagin barricade.

“Yikes!” Flash had to duck as arcs of the barely aimed magic cut above his head, “Can’t you aim that any better!?”

“No,” Tempest replied, and looked over at the shrine, “What’s that?”

“Main bad guy, I’m guessing,” Flash said, jumping forward and lashing out with his Zanpaktou to cut a trident in half that had been thrust for Tempest’s back. He then spun, creating a duplicate of himself to the side of several sahuagin that he managed to cut down with one swift strike. Tempest saw this, and nodded.

“Not bad. Bad guy’s the big one, then? We want him alive, I’m guessing?”

“That’s the idea. How’s the airship?” Flash asked, ducking as Tempest lashed out with another whipping bolt of wild magic, frying more sahuagin that were coming up on their flank.

“Secure. Those pirates know how to fight. Got a hippogryph princess holed up there too. Figured the city needed more help.”

The lead shaman had poured more of hits blood into the brazier, summoning two more large, black claws. Each claw moved on tendrils of thick black flame, while their tips were almost solid, as if someone had taken black magic and forged it into a chitnous form that wafted with a dark, smokey aura. Even Tempest could feel how twisted and cold the magic was, her own wild magic arcing up on its own, as if in challenge.

Twilight and Starlight flew overhead, each unleashing wide beams of magic that raked the gathering horde of fish warriors, taking the pressure off of Flash and Tempest and giving them a chance to deal with the shaman. With a loud, wet and warbling cry, the shaman gestured at them with his bloodied dagger, and the three lobster claws of dark magic started slamming towards them. Flash and Tempest dove to the side, Flash easily zipping out of view with a Flash Step, while Tempest made an elegant combat roll that took her beneath one of the claws that smashed apart the ground she’d just occupied. With a deep throated shout, Tempest fired a wide and writhing arc of magic that slammed into two of the claws, ripping through one of them and causing the other to halt and shudder.

The last one the shaman used to try and whip around at Flash Sentry, who’d appeared behind the shaman, but Flash interposed his Zanpaktou again, and this time braced himself and brought up more of his spiritual pressure. Reiatsu clashed with dark magic as the lobster claw mashed into the Zanpaktou. However instead of being pushed aside, this time Flash was able to hold his ground and thrust out his other hoof at the shaman.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Three: Sajo Sabaku!” (Ethereal Binding Chain)

Swift energy of a deep yellow cast flew from his hoof and up into the air above the shaman, then descended in the shape of a thick, glowing golden rope. The rope wove around the shaman and bound him, both arms and legs, holding him fast and causing the creature to topple over and fall from the shrine to the ground. The four muscular sahuagin bearing the shrine looked confused, as if unsure what to do with their leader now bound at their feet. Twilight and Starlight’s magical beams and telekinesis were keeping the bulk of the warriors around the dock area from getting close, and Tempest Shadow moved to stand over the bound shaman, aiming her sparking horn at him with a nasty smile on her face.

“I don’t imagine you can understand my words, but you can understand this,” Tempest said, shoving her horn inches from the bound shaman’s face, “Call off your people, or there’s going to be grilled fish on the menu tonight.”

The shaman said nothing, just stared at her with unblinking, bulbous eyes.

Yet whether it was the threat, or something else entirely, a second later there was a series of distant, deep and drawn out cries, like the sound of a pod of whales turned to a haunting pitch. The sahuagin, all of them, immediately ceased movement at the sound of those calls, which to Flash’s ears sounded like they were coming from many miles out to sea. The cries continued, their pitch scraping at Flash’s ears and made him shudder.

Then the sahuagin, one and all, started swiftly retreating. They rushed with surprising speed, splashing into the water, jumping off the docks or rushing into the surf of the beach. And not just the sahuagin at the docks, but all of those that had been fighting in the streets of the market fell back from Queen Novo’s garrison, the hippogryphs all looking at each other in wonderment as their aquatic foes swiftly quit the field and ran back down the slope of Mt. Aris and to the embrace of the ocean.

Within all of five minutes the battle was over, just like that, with Mt. Aris clear of a single remaining fish creature that wasn't unconscious, a corpse, or conveniently bound by a Soul Reaper’s Kido spell.

Twilight and Starlight landed. The shrine had been dropped and abandoned, and Flash Sentry stood by Tempest Shadow over the silent, bound form of the shaman.

“What in blazes was that about?” Starlight asked, “They just... ran away?”

“I doubt it,” Tempest said, “That was likely a retreat signal. Whoever is out there, controlling this attack, either decided the fight was lost, or...”

“Or what?” asked Twilight, leaving the question off for the moment as to why Tempest Shadow had left the safety of the airship.

Tempest looked at her with grim eyes, “Or they already accomplished what they came here for.”

----------

Deep beneath the ocean surface, several miles off Mt. Aris’ coastline, the tip of a coral reef was the site of an underwater camp of several hundred sahuagin warriors, and an entire cabal of twenty shaman. The creatures hovered in the water, watching the return of their companion warriors. Many had fallen, but of the legion of a thousand, they still had well over seven hundred warriors. By sahuagin reckoning, that was acceptable loses.

One shaman who’d been sent with the attacking forces swam up and prostrated himself in front of a giant of his kind. This sahuagin would stand eight feet tall on land, and had a body of scales that all but bulged with rippling muscles, all of dark blue shades that blended with the night ocean. A necklace woven from carved shark teeth and the claws of other undersea predators adorned his neck, with a symbol in the center of an eye surrounded by eight tentacles.

“Great Morgawr, please forgive this one’s failure!” the shaman cried, “The air breathers possessed magic most powerful. Our creche leader was taken! I offer my heart to the Deep Mistress! Please tear it from my chest so that my soul may be sent to her to atone for my failure!”

The massive sahuagin waved a clawed hand and shook his head, “That will not be necessary, acolyte. Our Deep Mistress is in communion with me as we speak, and she is most pleased.”

“But... but we were forced to flee. You called the retreat horns, did you not?”

“Only because we have what our Deep Mistress desired, and now we must return swiftly to the Abyss, before the foolish air breathers realize what we have taken,” Morgawr said, gesturing behind him.

There, wrapped up thickly in nets, with manacles of bone already shacked over their hooves and fins, were Aria and Sonata. They’d put up as much of a fight as they could, but the sahuagin ambush had overwhelmed them, and now the two sisters were bound tightly and guarded by a dozen warriors and a creche of five shamans who kept close watch on the pair. One warrior had already lost a hand to Aria’s bite after getting too close, and even Sonata had managed to break a guard’s snout with a tail swipe when they’d let their guard down.

“These two spirited ones are all our Deep Mistress truly wished for us to acquire. Had we captured the Princess of the air breathers, it would have been a bonus, but I did not expect you to succeed with such few numbers,” Morgawr told the acolyte, “you served your role as distraction, and I am satisfied. You keep your heart for today.”

“Your mercy knows no bounds, Great Morgawr. May the Deep Mistress forever bless you!” the acolyte cried, bowing deeply.

Morgawr turned from the prostrate acolyte and spoke loudly to his legion, “We depart now to the north! The air breathers will no doubt give chase, and we have much ocean to cross.”

He smiled a smile filled with razor sharp teeth, “But if they are mad enough to chase us into the Abyss itself, then our people will feast well, and our Deep Mistress will have more souls to add to her collection.”

Episode 99: Zero Hour

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Episode 99: Zero Hour

Endless blue married an endless white surrounded a realm without end, but with a notable beginning. Sky above, and cloud below, yet neither held a distinct limit, even when stretched to their horizons. Within that space was the Soul Palace, a term unequal to the task of properly defining what was, in essence, neither a place nor an object. From the eye of an observer it would look like an object, but space was not what it seemed if one moved closer to it, or stood within its walls.

One unimaginably large edifice stood upon a floating plane of stone that could have been mere miles wide, or wide as a continent. Endless, pristine gardens of perfect splendor intermingled with swaths of primeval, wild forest, which in turn were mixed with countless hundreds of lakes, rivers, and streams. Then it all ran up right against a wall of gold and red sandstone, hundreds of feet high and carved with intricate designs of nature. A gate stood within this wall, led to by a long, wooden bridge that floated in the air and cut over the landscape until it extended even further into the void, flanked by floating pillars of stone.

Beyond the gate lay a palace of mind numbing size and complexity, its pagoda-like construction towering higher and higher in ever interlocked tiers. It did have an end, however, a top tower that sat uncounted miles up, and it was from here that a woman paced within a vast chamber. The chamber had no walls, only four pillars holding up its golden roof, allowing anyone to look out across the vastness of eternity beyond. Aside from the pacing woman, there was only one other occupant in the room, if indeed it could be described as an occupant.

A single crystal of opaque white, containing a human looking figure shrouded in shadow, its features indistinct past its crystal prison. It floated in the air, only partially suspended by golden chains and nailed through with several golden spikes. Scrolls of fine parchment, also lines in gold, were wrapped around the crystal tightly, their flowing script only ever so slightly moving, like a slow drip of water.

The woman herself was at once unremarkable, yet somehow captivating at a glance. Neither old nor young, her face held an ageless quality. Porcelain skinned save for the hint of freckles over her cheek, the woman had blue eyes that reflected the sky outside, and hair the matched the gold of much of the palace around her, worn in an elegantly done braided tail that hung past her back. She wore the traditional black robes of a Soul Reaper, with a white Captain’s coat, although devoid of any Division symbol save a blank diamond.

A Zanpaktou was set through the white sash at her hip, contained in a pearl white sheath. The handle was similarly wrapped in white cloth, with a diamond shaped hilt of gold.

Her pacing was even, her marble features turned in a contemplative and impatient hint of displeasure.

“What is taking her so long? Her report was due already.”

The words were spoken with a voice of a rich but hard edged feminine not-quite baritone; the voice of one as comfortable with authority as others were with their own clothing. It was not the voice of one accustomed to being kept waiting.

Then, as if on cue, a disturbance in the air at the foot of the long, wide set of stairs leading to this apex room of the palace appeared. The shimmer resolved itself into a circular paper-window of Japanese style, suspended in mid-air, which then opened. Beyond it was the scene of a different room, one the woman recognized as the office of Scorpan, Captain Commander of the Gotei 13. There was no sight of Scorpan within view, but instead of a much younger looking woman with minty green skin, a childish and mischievous face containing sparkling green eyes, and a curly shoulder-length head of sea green hair. She wore a similar outfit to the other woman, black robes and white overcoat bearing the plain diamond, lacking any symbol.

The porcelain woman narrowed her eyes, “You’re late.”

“By twenty minutes,” the girl replied with a flippant tone of amusement that said she knew exactly how little it bothered her, “Don’t go making a fuss over it. Scorpan had a meeting, and I didn’t feel like interrupting him. Unlike some of us, I rather appreciate he still takes his job seriously.”

With a long suffering, if barely audible, sigh the other woman said, “Then don’t waste any more time and tell me what you’ve learned.”

“Yikes, you’re in a mood. Did mother give you another bad dream?”

Diamonds could have been cut by the other woman’s hard edged tone, “Enough prattle, Medley, and give me your report.”

The girl, Medley, shrugged, “What is there to say? We already knew Starlight Glimmer stole Discord’s pet rock and fused it to herself, but looks like she’s plundering another world for goodies to rebel against us with. Scorpan got caught with his pants down, but honestly I don’t blame the guy. We’ve got him fighting a war down here that’s more than a tad distracting. Which is kinda the point, isn’t it?”

The other woman’s eyes grew flint-like, “You are protecting your area, are you not?”

“Oh by Mother, yes, of course I am. What do you take me for? Scorpan has no idea I’m even using his office right now to talk to you, and anyone nearby would have their brains scrambled before they could hear a word. Now are you going to listen to me, or pretend to be Mom all day?”

A sharp breath, let out slowly, “...Continue.”

“Thank you. Now, since we can’t get at Starlight, I’ve been checking up on our other areas of concern. Specifically your old flame and his new set of action gals.”

“He is not an ‘old flame’!”

“Whatever you say. You’re the one who invited him into our club, and then acted all scorned when he said no. Never seen you get that huffy and embarrassed. I half expected you to order him to be executed.”

White knuckles popped slightly from how hard her hands had balled into fists, “My offer to Discord was a cordial one, and I accept he has no interest in being a part of our work here. As long as he remains neutral and does not interfere, then I have no issue with him playing at retirement.”

“Yeah, just as long as he doesn’t know what we’re really doing or why, right? Because I seem to recall telling you I heavily suspected he learned a hint of the truth back when that Sunburst kid got interred in Jigoku. Which, by the by, I still think was a screw-up on our part-”

“Necessary. It was necessary. His line cannot be allowed to spread, as is the case with all imperfections and dissidents. That’s part of why Jigoku exists in the first place, Medley. And if Discord had learned the truth, what of it? He hasn’t spread the information.”

“Not yet. I know you’re fond of the guy, but he’s always been a risk to the plan, and you damn well know it. You should have given me the all clear to eliminate him back when he made that damn Hogyoku. Now Starlight Glimmer has it, and that alone could screw us over.”

“Please, she’s a child. Even with Discord’s novel invention, she can’t gain the power necessary to challenge us. Even if she drains that other world of every drop of this so-called ‘magic’...” for a moment there was a hint of doubt, but she quashed it immediately, “No, not possible. We are secure here, and Discord is of no concern either.”

“You sure about that? Because my investigation suggests to me he’s working entirely too closely with these new girls.”

“Also children, who are not nearly strong enough to be considered a threat.”

Medley’s tone gained its own sharp edge of exasperation, her child-like expression turning grim, “Children who in the span of a month and some change have gone from nobodies barely able to survive attacks by lesser Hollows, to powerhouses capable of taking on Captains. The Soul Reaper among them accessed her Bankai with a few days of training. You cannot stand there and tell me that doesn’t constitute a threat. Even you can’t be that confident. You’re not Mother, no matter how much you want to be, and even she wasn’t invincible... as we proved, didn’t we?”

For a moment the golden haired woman’s eyes twitched, turning towards the large, suspended crystal in the center of the room. “Yes, and with that, what is left to threaten us? The bastard ‘King’ and his army of zealots? Tirek, who is little more than a fossil of the old ways? Scorpan, who remains ignorant of anything outside the duties we’ve assigned him? This realm of ‘magic and ponies’ that has no interest in our affairs? Only Starlight Glimmer and her rebellious nature, and those of the rebellious bloodlines constitute a possible threat, and even then, were they to come here, of all places, they would fall to us. No, Medley, I do not perceive the ‘threat’ as you do. I suspect you’re merely bored with the mission you’ve been assigned and are looking for an excuse to stir up trouble.”

“While I’m not going to deny that I’m bored out of my mind, I actually do happen to think that if you were playing this smart, you’d give me the go ahead to take out Discord and those girls with him. Mark my words, they’re going to be trouble down the road. I wouldn’t even be surprised if Discord has already made another Hogyoku.”

That was a disturbing thought. For a moment she considered it, but dismissed the notion, “I will not order that without absolute proof that Discord and those children are a threat. Remember who we are, Medley. We are the architects of a better world. Some sacrifice is necessary, but I won’t order the murder of children without clear proof it is necessary to achieve our perfect world.”

“Pfft, you big softie. You were always Mom’s little angel, weren’t you? Easy to act all clean and noble when you’re up there, and you send me down here to the trenches to do the dirty work.”

“Medley...”

“Oh for Mom’s sake, I’m kidding,” Medley did an exaggerated salute, “I’ll keep observing things, Big Sis, and let you know if I find any of that ‘proof’ you want. But I want your word that if I do find it, you won’t hesitate to let me at least take Discord out of the picture. He’s not joining us, no matter how much you hold out hope.”

“Very well, I’ll consider it. Be well, sister.”

The window closed, vanishing from existence in a wash of sparkling dust, as if it never were. Then the woman turned and looked towards the white crystal. Her eyes dimmed, as if in memory, and with a soft sigh no louder than a gasp of wind, she approached the crystal. She laid one hand on it, looking at the shadowed figure within, her face cast in an iron look of resolution.

“We will fix the mess you made, Mother. If it takes us another ten thousand years, the imperfections you allowed will be ground out, one after another, until the world is... as it should be.”

She turned away and began to stride out of the room towards the vast stairs, leading hundreds of meters down from the tower. She paused as something within her pulsed for a brief second, like a distant cry.

Stop... please...

The woman clenched her eyes shut and shook her head, one hand going up to touch the spot over her ‘Heart’. The voice quieted as she shut out the pulse from the Heart. Gradually the pulse slowed, then became steady once more. The voice was gone.

“No, Mother, there is no stopping. Not until we’ve created the world you refused to.”

----------

“And you found no trace of those who caused the disturbance in Hoofington?” Celestia asked with a hint of incredulity in her otherwise forcibly calm tone. She was in her throne room at the palace of Canterlot, but rather than seated on her throne, the alicorn was pacing the hall, which was empty save for one other occupant.

Discord was doing a lazy backstroke through the air, conjuring a periscope which he used to peer at her with a comically over sized eye in the periscope’s lens, “I was keeping an eye out, Celestia, but you did ask me to protect Canterlot while you and Luna were off playing mouse-trap with that train. My attention was focused here, and by the time I caught wind of some rather delicious chaos running amok elsewhere, the instigators of all the fun had already vamoosed. I’m a master of chaos, not a detective. You really expect me to know how to track anything?”

“You tracked Tirek down, didn’t you?” Celestia shot back irritably, and Discord closed up his periscope and gave her a look as he conjured a book labeled ‘Equestrian Villains Almanac’ and opened it to the T section, showing her Tirek’s page.

“Because I’m familiar with Tirek and his magic stealing shtick. Made him very easy to find once I followed the trail of depowered ponies. This ‘human’ Starlight is a wild card, and it wasn’t as if I was expecting her to cause a whole town to go on a drunken bender. Although I do approve. Hoofington was in serious need of some livening up and once the fires were put out, I think everypony there had a good time.”

At Celestia’s look, which likely could have been used to smelt iron ore, Discord threw up his hands, “Oh please, I’ve said and done worse. Just because I’m on the team goody-good doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate some finely crafted chaos on occasion. Besides, why are you grilling me, when it was you and Luna who let the bad guys slip away from you?”

Celestia looked away, “Luna was injured. I had to get her back to Canterlot as fast as possible. As it stands, we took the enemy’s measure, and know what they’re capable of.”

“Yes, but somehow I doubt they’ll fall for such obvious bait again,” Discord pointed out, suddenly holding a fishing rod and lowering a hook with banana on it in front of Celestia, “They won’t bite twice. You’ll need to come up with a new plan.”

Celestia batted the banana away with a wing with an irritated neigh, “Then perhaps you could make yourself useful and help me think of one? Or... Luna’s wing...”

Discord cocked his finger and waggled it, “Tut tut tut, Celestia, you know that chaos magic doesn’t work that way. I can’t restore order to something, I can only disrupt and rearrange already existing orders, or create my own in place of another. Now, if you want Luna to have something other than wings, like, say, jet engines or a sweet new set of spider legs, I can arrange that. But healing her is on you.”

“I wish I could,” Celestia said, taking a deep breath, which did little to calm the storm within. True healing magic was a slow process. Transmutations often confused those unfamiliar with magic to think that changing a body was an easy thing, but in truth those transmutations used raw magic to create a sort of temporary ‘costume’ over an existing thing. These transmutations never lasted for more than a few days, and tended to be flimsy compared to the real thing. Luna could still fly via a spell to grant herself a temporary wing, but her speed would be much reduced due to the false wing’s fragility.

In the meantime, regenerating the actual, physical wing would be a process that would take months of slow, painful spellwork. Celestia was one of only a few in Equestria even skilled enough in the restorative arts to even accomplish a true limb regeneration. Most who practiced medical magic could only achieve healing relatively simple injuries, most of which could have been healed by conventional medicine anyway, with magic simply speeding up the process somewhat.

Distracting herself with the clinic details did little to put out the spot of solar rage that was tightly contained within her heart. Those fools had dared to hurt her Lulu! They were lucky she didn’t scour the land clean with the sun’s furious flames until she rooted them out of whatever pit they were hiding in!

“Ahem, Clestia, you’re ‘flaring up’ a bit there,” Discord pointed out, and Celestia gave a startled blink as she glanced up at her flowing mane. Its usual serene waves of ethereal colors had become tinged around the edges with red hot flames. With an embarrassed look, she forced her emotions to calm and watched as the solar fires died out from her mane.

No good. I can’t allow myself to become so rattled. Luna is fine. It’s a terrible injury, but she will recover. I must focus on the problem at hoof.

“Ahem, thank you for the warning, Discord. Now, while Luna recovers, I believe we need to shift the focus of our search. It’s clear our opponents are roving the land in search of magic to take, and if the latest report from Twilight is any indication, they’ve already gotten a start on that by stealing from the hippogryphs.”

That report had bothered Celestia for more than a few reasons, and she was glad she’d provided Twilight with another blank magical journal to maintain communication with, otherwise they’d have no idea that the human Starlight and her allies could potentially shapeshift with the Pearl of Changing, now. The existence of this ‘Storm King’ was also concerning. Starlight had captured him, but what if she turned him and what was left of his army to her cause?

“Yes, looks like your favorite student is in for quite the aquatic adventure,” Discord said, holding up what suspiciously looked like an Ogres and Oubliettes figurine of Twilight and the other ponies in her party, “Delving into the deep to face off against the ancient sea witch and her army of ocean horrors. Why, I think Spike ran us through that adventure not so long ago, only it was the Squizard’s long lost sister, Squizzette who was the villain in that campaign.”

“Discord, if you’re not going to take this seriously, you may as well just get back to patrolling the city.”

Discord tossed the figurines aside, crossing his arms, “Oh I am taking things seriously. Why, don’t forget my dear friend Fluttershy is among Twilight’s party. If for no other reason than that, I’m quite invested in the success of their mission, and dealing with this interdimensional interlopers. So, you had a train of thought going on how to change up our strategy?”

“Well, you said they won’t fall for the same bait twice, and I agree with you,” Celestia said, her face gaining a look of devious intent that Discord wasn’t certain he found disturbing on Celestia’s countenance, or surprisingly fetching. “So I think I have another kind of trap in mind...”

----------

Pipsqueak had no idea what to make of his companion. The Arrancar girl named Ocellus was not at all like any Hollow he’d been told of before. If he could ignore the hole in her stomach and the distinct presence of Hollow reiatsu, she pretty much acted like a mischievous big sister, and had made the passing days far more enjoyable than he would have expected. Mostly she’d played games with him through the various rooms and halls of Hitsuyo-Aku, while taking up some of what Firefly had been already showing him about controlling the surges of Hollow spirit energy now residing in himself.

However today he was in no gaming mood. He morosely hung outside one of the tower’s medical labs, looking through a window at the form of Firefly, sleeping on one of the many beds within. Firefly hadn’t woken up since being brought back from her and Pipsqueak’s mother’s failed mission to recover a magical artifact. Apparently Firefly had been badly wounded by one of this realm’s ‘Princesses’, and her life was now hanging on by a thin threat, aided by the medical technology of Hitsuyo-Aku, but little else. None one here was medically trained, after all. Even Pipsqueak’s mother could only do so much with healing Kido.

From what Pipsqueak had overheard, it wasn’t even a matter of the wound Firefly had taken being specifically all that bad, but rather that the wound had been struck using a form of this world’s magic that left the injury in a state of continuous festering. Firefly was essentially stuck with a incurable infection, and Starlight had surmised magic might be needed to cure it.

“Oh boy, you’re still out here?” Ocellus asked, poking her head around the corner. Compared to Pipsqueak’s relatively plain appearance of white and brown fur over his small, colt’s body, Ocellus was a slim equine with a pearl white carapace with soft pink elements around the protective shell around gossamer wings. She had a similarly pink colored frill, with a curved, pointed horn in front of it. It was still impossible to miss her Arrancar features, however, with the Hollow hole in her chest and the fringe of curved bone over her brows that looked almost moth-like.

She trotted up to him, leaning down a bit to ruffle his mop of brown mane with a chitinous hoof. He knew he was short, but it still bothered him how much taller Ocellus was than him, despite their ages not being that far apart. “You really need some cheering up.”

“I don’t much feel like being cheered,” he replied, pulling his head away from her head pats, “Although I do appreciate the thought.”

Ocellus turned a glance towards the window, looking at Firefly. Aside from shallow breathing, one wouldn’t even know the nearly still form under the sheets was alive. “Look, I get you’re in a funk over this, but what are you fixing by standing around here, watching her?”

“Shouldn’t somebody?”

“She’s hooked up to a legion of monitors. If she so much as coughed, Starlight Glimmer would know it and be here in a snap. Or your mom, for that matter. Pretty sure my mom doesn’t care.”

Pipsqueak frowned at the mention of Platinum. It was strange. He’d never seen her so... upset, as he had when she’d arrived back from the mission, her back drenched in Firefly’s blood from having carried her all the way back to the hideout. Platinum had maintained a professional calm, but Pipsqueak knew her well enough to tell that she’d been more than a little distressed over Firefly’s condition. Which was odd, because Pipsqueak thought his mother hated Firefly. What had changed?

“I don’t understand my mother,” he said, and Ocellus let out a thick giggle that, he had to admit, was rather charming and adorable. He quickly ignored that thought, however. It wasn’t proper.

“You think you don’t understand your mom? You should try figuring out mine, sometime! Did I ever tell you about the time she took me and my brothers to a gothic rave in the human world? Oh man, I’ve never seen so many teenagers in black lace run that fast, but I didn’t know back then that humans were so susceptible to fire.”

Pipsqueak just looked at her, blinking for a second, “Have you ever considered the possibility that your mother is a bit... insane?”

Ocellus just smiled, her eyes gleaming oddly, “Aren’t we all, a little?”

Before he could answer, she slapped him on the shoulder with a light, friendly pat, “C’mon, enough of being a worry wart! We’re going to go out and have some fun, you and me!”

He barely had a chance to respond before the shockingly strong Arrancar girl was dragging him by the arm back down the hall, heading for the elevators. “W-what kind of fun, exactly? Nothing involving fire, I hope?”

“I wish, but mom says I should play nice while I’m here, so nothing too exciting. Just thought we could go train up your Hollow some more by going out to blow up stuff at the end of the canyon! It’ll be fun, I’ll throw rocks at you and you try to explode them with a Cero.”

“I-I can’t do that!” he protested, hooves scrabbling on the floor, “I can’t even do that mask thing Starlight Glimmer does, so how could I shoot a Cero? Why would I even ever want to?”

“Well you’re never gonna learn with that attitude. And why wouldn’t you want a free, at-will giant freakin’ laser beam you can shoot whenever you want to? It’s only, like, the best thing about being a Hollow! Teacher gives you homework? Not today! CERO! Somebody bugging you during your nap? CERO! Too long a line to get into the club.”

“C-Cero?”

“Damn right Cero~!”

Pipsqueak tried to reassert some level of control, and reality, onto the situation by clearing his throat and planting his hooves, only somewhat slowing Ocellus’ determined advance. “Look, while I appreciate what you’re trying to do, I really don’t think this is a good time for it anyway. There are people out there still looking for us, and too much ruckus might attract undue attention, wouldn’t it?”

Ocellus made a face, with an admittedly attractive pout, “There you go, using ‘logic’ and ‘reason’ to ruin a perfectly fun idea. You’re like a tiny, not muscular version of brother Pharynx.”

He cleared his throat, trying his best ot put on a voice of confident, noble compromise, “If it’s fun you seek, I am not against it, I only think we should contain our fun to the premises for the time being.”

“He’s right.”

The both turned to look down the hall as Starlight Glimmer trotted into view. She had a dour look about her, eyes with faintly dark circles beneath them from lack of sleep. Pipsqueak recalled just how incensed she had been since learning of Firefly’s condition, and the woman’s twitching eyebrow made Pipsqueak nervous. Starlight was back in her unicorn form, but she carried the Pearl of Changing with her like some kind of talisman, ever floating next to her in an aura of teal magic.

She looked between Pipsqueak and Ocellus intently, “It’s good to try and learn more control of the Hollow energies inside you, Pipsqueak, and if I had time, I’d help you more with that. I owe you some thanks, Ocellus, for helping him on that front.”

Ocellus smiled, her changeling form’s wings fluttering, “Think nothing of it. Any friend of mom’s is a friend of mine.”

“Yes... that being said, Pipsqueak is right, I don’t want either of you straying far from the tower. It’s okay to go outside for a bit, get some fresh air, but don’t leave the canyon.” She paused, then fixed Ocellus with a hard look, “And no throwing rocks at Pipsqueak, especially to try and teach him things like Cero. That’s advanced Hollow stuff that he shouldn’t be messing with while he’s still adjusting to the changes in his spiritual makeup. I’ll handle that part of his education, when it comes up, but no jumping the gun.”

“Well he’s going to be needing to learn some way to defend himself,” Ocellus countered, “He’s, like, super small and his limbs are all gangly-”

“H-hey!”

“Well they are! Just saying, he’s the most vulnerable of the people here, so he ought to learn how to protect himself, shouldn’t he?” Ocellus said, and Starlight rubbed her chin.

“Hmm, a good point. Hmm, Pipsqueak, tell me, did your mother ever train you with an Asauchi?”

The question caught him a tad off guard, but he shook his coltish head and replied, “No. My illness always meant I was never going to joint the Soul Reaper Academy, so there was never a reason for me to even touch an Asauchi. Mother merely taught me matters involving diplomacy and administration, so I could run the household in her absence.”

A thoughtful look crossed Starlight’s face, “I’ve seen this facility’s inventory list, and they kept a few spare Asauchi on hand for experiments. You should take one, just in case.”

“I’ll... consider it,” he said, then with hesitance creeping into his voice he asked, “Have you figured out a way to help Miss Firefly yet?”

Starlight’s face became a dark thunderhead of frustration as she said, “Not yet. Nothing solid, at any rate. Her wound is infected with magic. We need an expert on magic to deal with it.”

“Why not ask the silly monkey man? Mr. Storm Weenie?” asked Ocellus, “He might be a total loser, but he probably knows about magic, given he was planning to use that staff thing of his to steal magic. Even if he has no clue how to heal magical wounds, he might be able to point us in the right direction on where to find someone who does.”

“That... is a remarkably good point,” Starlight said, looking at the young Arrancar with a critical eye, “Your name is Ocellus right? One of Chrysalis’ drones?”

“Ahem, I am not a drone. I am a proper daughter of Chrysalis, thank you very much,” said Ocellus, holding her head up high. Incredulity spread over Starlight’s face in a thin layer.

“As you say. Look, you just brought up an idea, and I think I’ll go pay the Storm King a social call to see if he actually knows anything useful. In the meantime, can I ask that if you and Pipsqueak go play anywhere, you stick close by?”

“Of course!” Ocellus wrapped a hoof around Pipsqueak, squeezing him perhaps a bit too tight, “Me and him are best of pals, and I’d never let anything happen to the little guy.”

“Ahem,” Pipsqueak cleared his throat, not quite extricating himself from Ocellus but managing to maintain some semblance of noble dignity as he said, “The concern is appreciated, from both of you. Now, i do think I could do with some fresh air, so perhaps if Ocellus would be so kind as to provide me some space to breath, we could... go for a walk?”

“Gee, make it sound boring why don’t you?” Ocellus said as she let him go, but she was still wearing a mischievous smirk, “But I’m sure we can think of something less boring to do with enough effort.”

“Just remember, no explosions,” Starlight said, trotting away down the metal corridor. Pipsqueak thought he also heard her mumble, “...almost as bad as her mother.”

----------

Chrysalis was tired, thirsty, even more hungry than thirsty, and wondering if traveling into the absolutely desolate wastes of the Bone Dry Desert was at all going to be worth it. Truthfully, it wasn’t much worse than the badlands she’d once had her hive located in, but that was made bearable by the fact that she... well, had a hive. A hive full of willing, loyal servants who tended to her needs. This was not the case now, she was unpleasantly forced to be reminded of every time she felt the instinctive need to demand someone bring her food or water, and there were no drones nearby to obey her will.

Now, she was far from helpless without servants. She wasn’t even in all that much danger of starvation, since her Changeling physiology didn’t require anywhere near the same amount of organic food or water to sustain her as weaker races did. She could go weeks still and technically be fine. It was just a pain in the flank and she didn’t like it.

Tracking her mysterious double and her odd accomplice has taken some time. They moved far faster than Chrysalis could steadily keep up with, at least without exposing herself. Luckily following a magical trail with her tracking spell was simple, and she could take things at her own pace. And with some effort, she’d finally found where the trail ended, within a bleak box canyon situated somewhere amid the dunes of the southeastern Bone Dry Desert.

With stealth only a Changeling Queen was capable of, Chrysalis had slithered into the shadowy crevasses of the canyon, changing her form to that of a cobra with dusty brown scales identical to the ground to blend in with ease. Now she sat coiled around a rock, the reptilian eyes of her cobra form staring unblinking at the edifice of a large, dark tower built within the deeper shadows of the dusty canyon. While far from the largest building she’d seen (her hive had been twice the size, easily), it was clearly not a natural construct that belonged in the canyon and Chrysalis couldn’t deny it exuded a distinctly cold aura.

So, this place must have been the ‘Hitsuyo-Aku’ the impostors had mentioned. But what was it? Just a base of operations? Why place it out here in the middle of the desert? If it was just for the sake of being hidden, there were better places to hide that also had more available local resources.

The trail of her doppelganger went into the tower, but Chrysalis had decided to hold off on venturing inside. She knew better than to just waltz into the stronghold of a potential enemy. Instead she had settled in to observe, and debate with herself on her next move. Her mind turned with slow deliberateness over her options, and which would offer the greatest benefit to her. She suspected that the petulant ponies of Equestria might find information on the location of this tower valuable, considering it seemed apparent the tower’s occupants were not allies of Equestria. However, Chrysalis rather hated Equestria, and a number of its most prominent denizens, so helping Equestria in any capacity didn’t exactly appeal to her. Besides, what would she gain from it? It wasn’t as if Celestia or Luna would give her her hive back, especially not with how friendly her traitor son Thorax was getting with them.

Conversely, she detested the idea of anyone trying to masquerade as her. It felt like a personal insult.

I have no desire to make allies of anyone, but if I’m to get my vengeance upon Starlight Glimmer and the traitor Thorax, perhaps I shouldn’t be too quick to judge these impostors. But before I decide anything, I require more information.

So she waited. And waited. And with growing impatience waited some more... until finally she saw movement by the front entrance to the tower.

Chrysalis’ confusion only grew as she saw a small colt emerge, one who couldn’t have been much older than ten or twelve. And with him was... was a Changeling? Only this Changeling was stark white, with elements of pink in her frill, torso, and wings. What kind of perversion of the Changeling race was this? Wait, why did she have a hole in her chest!?

The pair walked out and, chatting quietly between themselves, started trotting around the side of the tower, as if they were going for a pleasant stroll. Chrysalis was beyond baffled by what she was seeing, but she wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to learn more about these strangers and why they were here. She slithered away from her rock and proceeded to follow the pair.

As it turns out, one can learn a lot from eavesdropping.

----------

The week went by with Sunset just waiting for the other shoe to drop. She truly expected there to be some kind of horrible emergency, or another attack, or something as the days ticked by and brought her and her friends ever closer to ‘zero hour’ for their plan. Yet things were almost unbearably quiet the entire time, as if the Kraken attack had somehow used up their quota of weird for the month.

The Kraken hadn’t really gone anywhere, according to Twilight. It remained off the coat, not quite going out to the deep ocean, and not really straying very far from it’s magical circle either. Similarly, Gilda hadn’t shown her face again either, although by now Sunset knew that was because Adagio was keeping a close eye on the Tenth Espada and had convinced Gilda that randomly attacking Sunset and her friends was a bad idea. Not that Gilda had any idea of what was actually going on, but Adagio assured Sunset she had the burly woman under her thumb, for now at least.

Adagio... Sunset shook her head, still not sure what to feel about the siren’s situation.

It’d been surreal, seeing her again, but even more so now that she was sitting in an empty campground, some ten miles from Camp Everfree, and was waiting for Adagio to show up for a face to face meeting. They’d talked briefly over the communication devices Discord had installed into their Soul Reaper badges, but Adagio had kept this conversations terse and purely about coordinating the plan for rescuing Ember. Today, however, Sunset sensed Adagio wanted to talk about something more. At least, she’d insisted on a face to face meeting, alone.

Her friends hadn’t really liked that idea. Applejack had argued that going anywhere alone, especially near Everfree, was a bad idea. They knew now that Grogar was in town, too, or rather, with Adagio’s group in the Everfree Forest. His presence was a potentially serious wrench in their plans, but so far Adagio had managed to keep him in the dark while she and Twilight worked on their end of the plan.

A plan that was still missing one very key piece, that being where Ember was. Twilight seemed pretty convinced Ember was being held somewhere near Camp Everfree itself, possibly hidden in the camp, but so far she hadn’t found where. She’d set up her own lab just a mile from the camp, where apparently she continued her research on magic and its effects on spiritual powers. Sunset wasn’t sure how to feel about Twilight using magic in ways that might turn it into a weapon for the Quincy to use, but as far as she could tell so far, Twilight was mostly focused on fixing Indigo Zap’s legs.

As for coming to Everfree alone, she wasn’t that worried. While she’d dialed back her training to unwind with her friends, which had proven to be quite stress relieving and made her feel generally a lot more rested and alert, she’d still spent time training with Discord. She was confident in her power. She’d even made progress on developing her newest technique, although it still lacked precise control. She wasn’t sure it was ready for battle use, but it was getting there. Hokori and Hikari were both being helpful, and she’d meditated in her Inner World a number of times to just commune with the pair of differing spirits within her Zanpaktou.

She’d also gotten word from Equestria concerning how events were progressing there, and they left Sunset hoping against hope that even if they did rescue Ember, that Captain Starswirl would still figure out a way to get them to Equestria. The thought that Princess Luna had been so badly injured really worried Sunset, but even more worrying was all this talk of Charybdis and the trouble’s Princess Twilight’s expedition had encountered.

Aria and Sonata were taken by these sahuagin... do I even dare bring that up to Adagio?

It was not a pleasant thought to imagine Adagio’s reaction to that news, and considering how delicate the situation was here, and how much focus they’d need ot pull off rescuing Ember, Sunset wasn’t remotely certain it was a good idea to tell Adagio what had happened to her sisters. Then again, lying, even by omission, was starting to become so much of a staple of things lately it didn’t sit well with her to keep the truth from Adagio either.

Well, she’d cross that bridge when and if it came up. Where was Adagio anyway? Sunset had been standing her for at least ten minutes, and Adagio had said to be here at noon, sharp. Sure, Sunset was enjoying the warmth of a clear skied, summer day, and the forest filled the air with sweet, earthy and clean scents that left her feeling invigorated. But Sunset didn’t like being out in the open, if empty, campground. It left her feeling exposed.

A twig snapped nearby and Sunset spun, hand going for her Zanpaktou. She was in her spirit body, having let Chappy stay back at Discord’s shop, so she was fully ready to engage in battle if attacked.

“Jumpy, aren’t we?” Adagio said, wearing that cocky, smug smile that Sunset was so used to. Trying to hide her embarrassment, Sunset looked Adagio up and down, taking stock of Adagio’s less than modest outfit.

“I know its summer, but don’t tell me you don’t get cold in that get up back in Hueco Mundo?” Sunset quipped. Adagio let out a rich laugh, and rested her trident over her shoulder as she walked up to the campground table and leaned against it, just a few feet from Sunset.

“These clothes serve their purpose. I have no shortage of outfits, what with the supply runs my vassals perform for me.”

“Vassals?” Sunset rolled her eyes, but was wearing a wry smile as she did so, “You’re really getting into that Espada role.”

“Its no ‘role,” Adagio said, a note of seriousness pricking her tone, “I am an Espada. Period. End of sentence. Fortunately that confers no specific loyalty to my fellow Espada outside of following Lord Tirek’s orders, at least so much in that it keeps him from obliterating me. Besides that, I do have some wiggle room in how to handle my own affairs. That’s more than what can be said of you or Twilight.”

Sunset frowned at that, crossing her arms and turning a pondering look towards the sky, “Maybe. Soul Society doesn’t seem to want to tell me or the girls what to do, but I have no idea just how much we can act without them stepping in, either. As for Twilight... I don’t know. I trust her, and the new friends she’s made among those girls from Crystal Prep seem like they’re good enough people. But I don’t think I really trust the Quincy, or this ‘King’ of theirs.”

“Then you’re smarter than I was giving you credit for,” Adagio replied, and before Sunset could shoot off a remark to that, she continued, holding up a hand, “All I mean is that you’re smart for understanding that Twilight my be a Quincy, but she doesn’t represent the whole of them. Whatever influence she might have with their King Sombra, it doesn’t mean the Quincy won’t be a problem at some point.”

“Don’t you and the Quincy have some kind of info exchange arranged through Twilight?”

“To a limited extent, yes,” Adagio gained a stony look on her face, “And that’s all I’ll tell you past that. I have enough problems without you trying to get involved in any extra affairs beyond the current one”

“Speaking of which, isn’t it dangerous for us to meet in person like this? Aren’t you worried Grogar will find this meeting and listen in?” Sunset asked, as she’d been worried about that very thing.

Adagio’s eyes flashed with anger that wasn’t directed at Sunset, but seemingly rather at everything in general as she said, “Possibly. I can’t discount the chance he has some monitoring devices still implanted in me, but I can’t prove such either, and it would be impossible to rescue Ember without making plans with you and Twilight, so I just have to risk it. If he does have a means of monitoring me, it means he could have ruined my plans already. Instead he came here willingly to ‘assist’ me. I think he wants me to try to rescue Ember, so I don’t think he intends to interfere with anything I do. At least not immediately, and not in an obvious manner.”

“Still... that’s going to make it hard to talk straight with you, knowing he might... you know, hear anything we say.”

As Sunset said that, she noticed Adagio moving her left hand towards her, and turning it palm up to reveal a note. It read, ‘I know, which is why I want you to ask Discord about finding a way to counter any such devices Grogar might have planted in me. That’s why I asked for this meeting. I’m now going to shoot the breeze with you and make it sound like I just wanted to unwind and chat. Try to play along.’

That certainly explained why Adagio insisted on meeting in person. If Grogar was listening in on Adagio’s conversations, Adagio couldn’t verbally ask for Discord’s help without tipping Grogar off. Now Sunset could go ask for Discord to step in with something to counter Grogar with the Eight Espada being none the wiser.

“I don’t really care if he hears what I have to say,” Adagio spoke, doing a good job of sounding relaxed and casual, “Planning aside, I mostly just wanted to let off some steam and catch up a bit. Hard to do that in a cave with everyone else around, you know?”

Even if it was forced as an excuse to throw a potentially eavesdropping Grogar off the trail, Sunset rather appreciated the idea of just... talking to Adagio. Even before she’d become a Hollow, Sunset hadn’t exactly had much time to speak with the eldest siren. Besides, who knew when she’d ever get another chance to?

“Yeah, I can do that. I’ve been wondering how you’ve been, you know?”

“Hmph, well, don’t get too sappy on me. We’re hardly friends. You do make a convenient person to vent at, however,” Adagio said, her smirk deepening.

For a time they chatted about a whole lot of nothing consequential. Adagio told Sunset about Hueco Mundo in general, and life, such as it was, in Las Noches. Mostly Adagio complained about its utter lack of amenities or proper luxuries. She’d had her ‘vassals’ working plenty to recover items from the living world to fix that problem, and apparently Adagio had “big plans” for making an entire economy out of selling living world items to Arrancar in need of ways to be less bored.

“Wait, all this stuff you’re getting...” Sunset said, her mind going back to the string of robberies that had been plaguing Canterlot City over the past few weeks. Stores all over the place had been reporting missing clothing, furniture, food, even vehicles going missing from used car lots. “Have you been stealing from my city!?”

The utter, full throated belly laugh that escaped Adagio was all the answer Sunset needed, and she fumed at the siren turned Espada. Adagio, for her part, just looked at Sunset’s miffed expression, and burst out into further laughter, holding her stomach.

“Oh...hahah...oh sweet merciful ocean, I needed that,” Adagio said, “Your face is beyond precious, right now.”

Sunset let out a low grumble and looked away, saying, “Glad you got a laugh out of it. Seriously though, if you’re going to steal things, at least do it from a different city. This place has a lot more Soul Reapers than me stationed here right now, and I can’t protect your people if they get caught.”

A final laugh hopped out of Adagio’s mouth before she made a dismissive gesture, “My vassals know what they’re doing, but I take your point.”

“Why do you keep calling them ‘vassals’ anyway?”

“Because that’s what they are. They’ve sworn to serve me, and I in turn have sworn to look after them, as a proper leader should. It’s that simple.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow, “So you don’t see any of them as friends?”

It was Adagio’s turn for an eyeroll, “Oh please, don’t start with that. ‘Friendship’ is your shtick, little miss pony. I prefer more reliably defined relationships. Master and servant, for example.”

“Then what is Ember to you?” Sunset asked, leaning towards Adagio, eyes burning with an intense light, “You don’t see her as a servant, I’m betting.”

Adagio made an annoyed sound in her throat and glanced away, and Sunset couldn’t miss the hint of red on the siren’s face, “What she is to me is none of your concern. And even if I did think of her as something close to a... friend, or whatever, what of it? I’m not about to start acting all sweet and friendly towards just anyone, or shoot sparkly rainbow lasers. If I see Ember as a friend it is because she’s earned that distinction.”

“Mmmhmm, and the other Arrancar in your group haven’t? They’re just servants?”

“Ugh! By the depths of the Abyss you are the most annoyingly persistent twit I’ve ever met, Sunset Shimmer!” Adagio actually stamped a foot in aggravation, and Sunset couldn’t help but laugh at the way Adagio’s face popped a small vein on her forehead.

After the fit of laughter died down, Sunset smirked at Adagio and said, “Now we’re even.”

“Hmph, well played,” Adagio said, bringing herself under control, “You do seem to know how to push my buttons.”

A few moments of silence passed between them as they both composed themselves. While Sunset had been baiting Adagio a bit, she had meant her question earnestly. As for Adagio’s answer, it had been more or less what Sunset had expected. She didn’t think Adagio quite considered those Arrancar serving her as mere ‘vassals’ like she claimed. It was pretty clear she cared about them, more so than she likely ever would have prior to the changes she’d endured after becoming a Hollow. Back then Adagio only seemed to care about herself and her sisters, from what Sunset had seen. It was good to see that Adagio had formed connections with others, even if she didn’t necessarily define those connections as ‘friendship’.

“So,” said Adagio abruptly, “I imagine you have a means for maintaining contact with that pony Princess who helped you defeat me with that saccharine song. I’ve heard my sisters went back to Equestria, but I’ve heard nothing since. How are they? Do... do you know?”

There was a hesitant note of vulnerability in Adagio’s voice, as if just asking something emotionally sensitive of Sunset was a strain on her. As for Sunset, she was momentarily frozen

This was the last question she wanted to answer. Yet the earnest need in Adagio’s voice, that small moment of vulnerability, made Sunset hesitate on whether to tell the truth or fabricate a response. Even if she’d been leaning towards the truth, Adagio picked up on Sunset’s hesitance instantly and her soft tone immediately turned harder, “What is it?”

No hiding it now. Sunset took a deep breath, “Adagio, I don’t know if there’s a good way to tell you this, but there’s been some... developments in Equestria.”

Like the classic notion of ripping a band-aid off fast to just get it over with, she quickly went over the dry facts of what had been occurring over in Equestria. Adagio listened to it with ever widening eyes, and ever growing fury turning her face into a frightening visage of violence. Her hand gripped the park table so hard it broke the wood, nearly breaking the table in half as Sunset finished the last part of explaining the attack on Mt. Aris and the subsequent capture of Sonata and Aria.

“That worthless Princess lost my sisters!?” Adagio erupted, spiritual pressure exploding out of her in such a swift and potent wave that Sunset actually had to take a step back as the ground was stirred by the unbridled reiatsu stemming from Adagio’s now red wreathed form. “Princess of Friendship!? She ought to be the Princess of Incompetence! Idiot! Moron!”

Adagio swung her trident around and into the ground at her side, simply in pure need to destroy something, and the ground shook with tremors as a wide fissure was ripped through the ground from the impact, almost splitting the campground in half. Adagio continued to roar, “When I get my hands around that Twilight Sparkle’s throat there’s going to be a fresh addition to the nearest glue factory! How could she let Charybdis, Charybdis, have my sisters!?”

“Adagio, get a hold of yourself!” Sunset said, “It know it sounds bad, but Twilight and her friends are going after Aria and Sonata, and they’re going to get them back!”

“How!? How do you know that!?” Adagio stamped a foot, cracking the earth beneath her, death flaring in her eyes, “The sahuagin know the oceans better than that mush for brains Princess! How is she going to catch them before they get back to their mistress in the Abyss? Do you have any idea what Charybdis is capable of!? What she does to people? Because I do. I apprenticed under her.”

“I know that,” Sunset said, forcing herself to meet Adagio’s heated gaze without flinching, “The whole reason Aria and Sonata went with Princess Twilight to go after Charybdis was to get back something she took from you, a part of your soul.”

“Then they’re being idiots! I don’t need that little soul fragment anyway, and to think they’d even be able to get it back from Charybdis is utterly ridiculous! She’s not some two-bit hedge sorceress. She’s an ancient practitioner of several forms of dark magic. The spell song she taught me was just a drop of her full magic knowledge. Oh, and did I mention the armies of deep sea monsters at her command? What does your Princess Twilight think she’s going to accomplish with a handful of fools who can barely swim?”

Sunset’s unease was somewhat pushed back by a stab of her own anger at the insults towards Twilight, combined with a simple understanding that Adagio, while somewhat justified in her reaction, was still not seeing the big picture. She took a step towards Adagio, “Get your sisters back, for one. For two, take Charybdis down a peg,and maybe prevent her from being a bigger threat down the road. I don’t think it's coincidence she’s being so active lately. Not with a Kraken using Equestrian magic running lose in our oceans over on this world.”

Adagio’s otherwise furious expression underwent a brief moment of rapid thought, “The Kraken that attacked on the beach, didn’t your Soul Reaper friend suggest it was from the Beast Realm?”

“That’s Clover’s theory, yeah, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it didn’t originally come from Equestria, or that it didn’t get its Equestrian magic from Charybdis. Fluttershy even ran into some kind of controlling outside force when she tried manipulating the Kraken’s mind. And that Kraken is making a magic circle for some reason. Adagio, Charybdis might be trying to come here, to this world. Can you think of a reason she’d want to do that?”

Adagio’s eyebrow twitched, her anger still evident, but it was turning into a heated simmer rather than an eruption as she said, “The only reason she’d be interested in a world like this are souls. Out of all the forms of dark magic she showed to me during my time learning under her, it was her soul magic that was the most... unsettling.”

“What is it, exactly?”

“She never taught me more than what I needed to know to turn a siren’s spell song into a means of drawing power out of a soul’s emotions, specifically negative ones. That said, I saw her casually being able to reap souls from sacrifices made in her name, and using those souls to perform any number of rituals that suited her. I’m fairly certain she made herself immortal by consuming soul energy.”

Sunset shuddered slightly, a finger of invisible frost tracing its way down her spine, “And you let someone like that have a piece of your own soul?”

“It... seemed a worthwhile trade at the time, in exchange for learning the magic I desired to gain more power. Do recall I was much younger and more foolish back then. But do you understand now why I’m so furious with that friendship-brained alicorn for letting Charybdis’ forces take my sisters!?”

“Yes, I do, but I’m also hoping you understand now why they felt the need to go after Charybdis in the first place,” Sunset got closer to Adagio, not quite getting in her face, but definitely invading her personal space as she fixed her with an even stare, “If I had a sister, and a part of her soul was in the clutches of a monster like that, I’d go after her too. And it may not be as hopeless as you think. Princess Twilight has the help of the hippogryphs now, plus other allies. On top of that, she’s an alicorn. She’s not exactly weak, and neither are the ponies with her. Also, they’ve got Flash Sentry with them, who’s a Soul Reaper. They’re not going to face Charybdis without power of their own, or a plan. And they will get your sisters back.”

“You say that, but you still haven’t seen Charybdis in person. I have. I know what they’re about to face. It’s-”

“It’s nothing we can do anything about!” Sunset said, heat finally edging her own voice, “Adagio, I get it. But right now you can’t help your sisters by losing your cool. Or did you forget that Ember’s still counting on you?”

“That’s a low blow...”

“Maybe, but I’m just reminding you that we have our own problems here to deal with. We need to keep focused on them. Remember, my ultimate goal is to get to Equestria anyway, so when the time comes, we can both go there and make sure your sisters are safe. But we can’t do that unless we rescue Ember first, right?”

Adagio was silent, and Sunset pressed harder, “Right?”

“...Right,” Adagio said, her sigh like a hiss of steam, her eyes flaring up once last time at Sunset, “But I still plan to give that Princess of yours a piece of my mind, next time we meet.”

----------

Twilight had to admit, she did enjoy having the near limitless resources of the Quincy Vandenreich at her disposal. When she told Sombra she wanted to set up a ‘field lab’ near Camp Everfree, it hadn’t even taken a full day for a pair of large, silver, sleek looking trailers to arrive. The vehicles reminded Twilight of the ones she’d once seen in a movie about researchers on a island full of dinosaurs, where one of the trailers got pushed over the side of a cliff by the T.Rex. Not exactly a great movie in Twilight’s mind, but these field labs certainly were! She’d had plenty of equipment brought from her mansion, but these two trailers came fully loaded with some of the most sophisticated lab gear at the Quincy's disposal.

Twilight had her field lab set up less than a mile from Camp Everfree, situated north up a large game trail and nestled up against the foot of a hill that had a mostly clear top, and a wide creek burbling down it. A perimeter of sensors maintained security alongside a stealth screen similar to what Twilight had used during her initial meeting with her friends from Canterlot High, only this ward was maintained by silver poles filled with Quincy alchemic liquid that fueled the optical/spiritual screen.

A wide clearing along the edge of the creek was where Twilight and her team had set up their gear for testing Twilight’s various devices. In the past week she’d created several prototypes that worked off a new idea of hers in regards to fusing magic and reishi. Aside from the work tables, there were around a dozen silver cylinders of varying sizes situated around, which Twilight had spent hours checking and calibrating for today’s test.

She called these cylinders ‘Magicule Cells’. Each, like the standard Quincy ‘ginto tube’, was filled with alchemical liquid. However, this liquid was then put under pressure and run through a series of interlocking pipes throughout the cylinder, with nodes of crystal structures, smaller than the ones on her Hexenfaust. Since crystals of varying types were so good at harnessing and even acting as storage for magical energy, the idea was that by charging the crystalline structures in the M-Cells, the alchemic liquids that acted as a catalyst for reishi particles could be passed through the tubes through the crystal structures to absorb and combine with the magic within each crystal. Then by cycling the liquid through the tubes in a feedback loop, a constant stream of combined magic/spiritual energy is formed that can then be released through prepared vent ports on the end or sides of the M-Cells.

The notion was that these would act as batteries of fused magic and spirit energy for charging devices designed to utilize that kind of power. Only... in truth it was far, far more dicey and complicated a prospect than that. These cylinders were just Twilight’s base prototype design, and so far over half of them had failed to maintain a constant charge. She’d been working non-stop (or as non-stop as she could while coordinating plans with Adagio and Sunset) to go over the data from the failed tests and make adjustments.

She suppressed a yawn as she went over a datapad and said, “Okay Sunny Flare, let’s try Cell-7 with the Deflector Harness. Lemon Zest, help her out while I go check on Indigo.”

“Ten four, Twi!” said Lemon Zest.

“Hopefully this goes better than the last one,” sighed Sunny Flare, still brushing off bits of dust from her shoulder, “I think I’ve had enough of these things exploding.”

“Hey, its not that bad,” Lemon Zest said as she picked up one of the smaller M-Cells, about the size of a water bottle, and took it over to a mannequin shaped like a human torso and head made out of ceramics. “I’m kinda digging the mad science vibe. Sure, stuff might blow up, but it does it in spectacular fashion, and this is a way more fun thing to do with my summer than sit at home waiting for deployment orders.”

The pair worked together to strap a device around the mannequin that looked like a wide, metal triangle attached to four leather straps like a bandoleer. The metallic triangular object was about half as wide as the mannequin's chest, and a good three inches deep. Not an idea size, Twilight had to admit, but one had to get proof of concepts down before one could achieve miniaturization. She stayed long enough to see that Lemon Zest was loading the M-Cell properly into the Deflector Harness' port, and then started walking towards the left most lab trailer.

“If anything goes wrong, let me know,” she told Sugarcoat, who was helping her oversee the tests. Sugarcoat gave the simplest of nods, her visor glued to Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest’s work.

“I’ll make sure they keep a minimum safe distance. If it blows up, you’ll hear it before I could come tell you, anyway.”

Twilight chuckled dryly, “True.”

Within the lab trailer a set of fluorescent lights coated everything in uniform brightness. This second trailer was set up for heavier engineering work, with cables strewn about powering numerous heavy workshop equipment. Twilight tip-toed her away past open boxes of tools and strewn parts to reach a central workbench that took up the back half of the trailer. There, Indigo Zap was standing awkwardly on one leg while she had her other leg up on the workbench, hands delicately working a soldering tool inside an open compartment on the leg’s upper thigh. A glass microscope hung from a metal arm and provided Indigo a zoomed in view while she focused on the delicate work. Twilight’s approach wasn’t quiet, and Indigo glanced up at her as she approached.

“How’s the leg?” Twilight asked. The other day Indigo’s right leg had started twitching strangely, so both her and Indigo had gone over it to look for the problem. Apparently some of the reishi conduits had become warped during the fight with the Kraken, so Indigo was resoldering the conduits with alchemic silver.

“Almost done,” Indigo said, wiping her brow and turning back to her work, “Guess I should have known trying to move too fast with these legs would cause a problem.”

The young woman sighed deeply, “At this rate, I’m pretty much useless if a fight breaks out.”

Twilight considered placing a comforting hand on Indigo’s shoulder, but didn’t think Indigo would really take it as anything more than being patronizing. Instead she tried to keep her voice understanding as she said, “This is just a step in a long process, Indigo. These legs are important prototypes, but they’re not the finished design I have in mind. Once we understand more about how magic and reishi combine and work out the kinks, the next pair of leg models will be much stronger and easier to use, I promise.”

“I know that, it’s just frustrating, is all. In the past I didn’t even think about my legs. They were just, you know, there. Now I got to do maintenance on them. Heh, guess I really can’t skip ‘leg day’ now, can I?”

“Well, at least I don’t have to build a prosthetic replacement for your sense of humor, since that seems to be working just fine,” Twilight said, feeling a bit embarrassed at her own lame attempt at humor, but it seemed to cheer up Indigo as the girl cracked a small grin at her.

“I can believe you’d try, though. Seriously Twilight, don’t take this the wrong way, but it’s kinda freaky how good you are at all this science and tech stuff.”

Twilight used her remaining flesh and blood hand to self consciously rub at her artificial hand beneath its black glove, “I’m not that good.”

“You for real right now?” Indigo tapped the prosthetic leg on the table, “You literally built this within a week of me losing my legs. I’m pretty sure if we left you on a deserted island with nothing but a ball of twine and coconuts to work with, you’d have a working teleporter in a few days.”

“I can’t tell if you’re giving me a compliment or making fun of me,” Twilight complained, and Indigo smiled.

“Can’t it be both? So, did you just come in here to check up on me?”

“Sort of. I wanted to see if you’d finished resoldering the leg. I wanted to work on converting them to use the new M-Cells. Assuming the testing goes well, I think using M-Cells will actually solve part of the energy distribution problem we’re having with the legs. I can also start doing stress tests on other materials. I was thinking a composite of-”

There was a small detonation outside, followed by the sound of profuse swearing from Sunny Flare, and Lemon Zest laughing heartily, and Twilight sighed, “-and nevermind, looks like the Deflector Harness exploded again. I’ll leave you to your work, Indigo, and go make sure nobody else needs limb replacement.”

“Good luck,” Indigo said, waving as Twilight went back outside.

While she expected to see the smoke coming off of a flaming harness and mannequin, and was glad to see Sunny Flare and Lemon Zest unharmed as Sunny grabbed a fire extinguisher to put the fire out, what she didn’t expect to see were the two siblings standing outside the field lab’s perimeter.

Gloriosa Daisy and Timber Spruce were standing outside the ward, looking at it with confused faces. Strictly speaking it was surprising they could see the ward was there at all, since it should have provided an optical illusion that hid the lab. Then again, Twilight had told Gloriosa where to find the lab in case she needed to contact her, but she’d asked Gloriosa to call first. She glanced at Sugarcoat as she strode towards the perimeter.

“What happened?”

Sugarcoat adjusted her visor, “Hard to tell. The test on the Deflector Harness was actually going well, with the shield actually redirecting Lemon Zest’s reishi arrows, but then my visor picked up a weird energy surge just a moment before the M-Cell overloaded and the Deflector Harness went up like a badly wired circuit board. If you ask me, it happened right when those two showed up.”

She pointed at the Camp Everfree siblings, and Twilight frowned, nodding, “Well, everyone just clean up and I’ll go see what they want.”

As she went up to the perimeter, she noticed Gloriosa was carrying a stack of tupperware, and Timber Spruce had a bright red cooler with a white lid. What in the world...?

“Umm... hello?” Gloriosa said, close to shouted, “Is anybody here? We can’t see you, but this is the spot you said you’d be, Miss Sparkle. I hope me and Timber aren’t interrupting anything, but you and your friends have been out here for a few days now and we thought you might appreciate some actual food to eat.”

“Oh man, did somebody say food?” Lemon Zest said around salivating lips, eyes lighting up like little, hungry lanterns, “Twi, let her in!”

“Geeze, it’s not like I’ve been starving you guys,” Twilight said, but Sugarcoat gave her a level look.

“No, but we have been subsisting on rations for the past few days while trying to keep up with your pace.”

Twilight wondered at that, thinking over the last seventy two or so hours. She supposed she did get a little ‘in the zone’ when it came to research and invention, and she’d never had to consider the limitations of having other people doing that research with her. The girls had been keeping up, certainly, but now that she thought about it, they’d barely left the field lab, and their diet had largely consisted of meal bars and copious amounts of coffee. Even as she started paying attention to her body’s needs, her stomach gave a loud gurgle of protest.

Oh, she was sort of hungry.

Adjusting her glasses with an embarrassed cough, she said, “Well, understood. I’ll make a point of arranging food runs from now on.”

With that she went and deactivated the warding screens around the perimeter. Gloriosa and Timber both gave starts as the lab and its trailers just sort of appeared in front of them, as if the air itself was pulled back like a curtain.

“Whoa!” said Timber, “It’s like a cloaking device right outta Star Trek.”

Twilight glanced at him, “You... watch Star Trek?”

Gloriosa looked sidelong at her brother, “Don’t get him started. In any case, I hope this isn’t a bad time? We brought-”

“Food!” Lemon Zest was in front of Gloriosa in a flash, licking her lips as she gazed at the stacks of tupperware as if she were looking at treasure chests, “Please tell me you’ve got something in there with actual meat on it?”

With an unsure smile Gloriosa opened the top container, revealing stacks of freshly made, plastic wrapped sandwiches, “I’ve got tuna, BLTs, egg, bologna, and a few PBJs mixed in there.”

Lemon Zest barely waited for the woman to finish speaking before yanking a sandwich out and devouring it like a half-starved piranha. Between mouthfuls she said, “You, mmph, are a, mmm, domestic goddess.”

“You didn’t even ask which sandwich that was.”

“Don’t care. Gonna eat them all.”

“I wasn’t starving you guys that badly,” Twilight groused.

Timber cleared his throat and held up the cooler he was holding, “Where do you guys want me to put this? Got pretty much every soda under the sun, plus some variety of juices.”

It took a few minutes, but in short order an impromptu picnic was set up outside the trailers, with Twilight and her team all partaking of the gifts of homemade sandwiches and carbonated sugary drinks. Twilight had to admit that her body instantly felt better after she’d eaten a real meal, and made a mental note to ask if Gloriosa didn’t mind making more to bring on a regular basis.

“I’d be happy to,” Gloriosa said, “With the payment we’ve received already for agreeing to this deal of yours, I’ve been able to seriously restock our supplies. You think my sandwiches are good, you’ll be blown away when it comes to barbecue day.”

Twilight was pretty sure the sound Lemon Zest made at the mention of ‘barbecue’ was in no way decent for a young lady to make, and she focused intently on her sandwich. Meanwhile Timber looked around the field lab, nodding towards the now charred mannequin.

“So what’s the deal with the half-melted crash test dummy?”

“We were lighting things on fire for fun,” said Sour Sweet, having joined them from her own duties working on chemical experiments in the other trailer. She then fixed Timber with a flat look, “What do you think happened? Another experiment went bust.”

“Technically things were working just fine,” Sunny Flare said, “The Deflector Harness, that slightly less melted metal bit, was designed to generate a protective field of magic and reishi when detecting incoming attacks. Was actually working pretty good for a change, but then for no reason the power source overloaded.”

“Here, Sugarcoat, give me the datapad with the readings,” Twilight said, “I’m curious what might have caused the power surge.”

Sugarcoat nodded and tossed over the pad, while Gloriosa frowned at the charred mannequin, “Well, please be careful not to cause too many fires. The wrong spark and a good portion of Everfree could go up. We’re heading into a dry, hot summer, by the weather reports.”

“No worries, Gloriosa, we’ll be careful,” said Lemon Zest, stuffing her third sandwich into her mouth.

Examining the data, Twilight found herself making a curious noise under her breath. Sunny Flare was right. By the readings, the M-Cell was working just fine, providing the most stable power flow to the Deflector Harness in all their experiments to date. By the numbers, nothing should have gone wrong. And indeed, there was no indication in the data that the energy contained in the M-Cell went out of control, rather it showed a sudden spike of magical energy from an exterior source. Some sort of unknown pulse had offset the power flow and caused an overload.

An outside source of magic? But form where? And it happened exactly when Gloriosa and Timber showed up...

Her eyes slide up from the datapad and looked between Gloriosa and Timber. The pair were chatting with her friends, not noticing her scrutiny. Twilight's mind churned over possibilities. She rather swiftly placed Timber Spruce on a low suspicion list. He’d largely recovered from his injuries, and there was little about him that struck Twilight as out of the ordinary. Gloriosa on the other hand, while also seemingly normal, there were one or two unanswered questions concerning her that Twilight had been wondering about.

She’d said she’d located Timber Spruce at Twilight’s mansion via a phone GPS, but after talking with Soarin about it, he’d told her that the mansion had electronic countermeasures to prevent signals like that from getting in and out, as a precaution against spying. So Gloriosa had been lying on that front. Twilight hadn’t thought much of it other than to wonder just how she’d found out Timber was at the mansion, but it’d seemed a secondary concern until now.

If Gloriosa had access to some kind of magic, that would explain things. And it wouldn’t be hard to find out.

Midnight, have you been paying attention? Twilight asked, figuring Midnight would be monitoring her thoughts.

Midnight’s amused, chuckling voice reached her mind a moment later, Just who do you take me for? Of course I have. I was wondering how long it might take you to put two and two together and realize there’s more to this Gloriosa Daisy than meets the eye.

Twilight suppressed an annoyed huff, If you suspected something, you could have told me sooner.

Rich laughter echoed over her mind in velvet waves, If you’d taken much longer, I would have. Now then, how about we take a look at this woman on a magical level and see what we can see...

Fortunately there was no overt sign of magically reaching out with her senses, with Midnight’s help, to feel things out around Gloriosa Daisy. It also didn’t take long to almost immediately feel a very powerful sensation of condensed magic, multiple sources of it, all clustered together around Gloriosa’s neck.

Her necklace! Those geodes! They’re... so strong... Twilight couldn’t keep the surprise off her face.

Whether Gloriosa noticed Twilight’s look, or sensed the magical probing itself, was difficult to tell. She did look at Twilight, however, and saw the recognition there. As everyone else was still carrying on their conversation, Gloriosa’s expression went from surprise, to fear, to resigned decision all in the span of a heartbeat.

“Say, Miss Sparkle, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you. Perhaps we should go for a walk?”

“...Sure, that sounds like a good idea,” Twilight said.

“Huh? Gloriosa?” Timber asked, confusion in his tone. Sugarcoat and the other girls also noticed the change in mood.

“Something up, Twilight?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Nothing, me and Gloriosa are just going for a walk and talk. We’ll be back shortly.”

“Yes, we won’t be gone long, Timber. You all keep eating. We’ll be back in a jiffy.”

Confused stares followed them out of the camp, but nobody moved to stop them. Twilight and Gloriosa kept walking down the length of the creek, following a forest trail until it curved off south back towards Camp Everfree, a mile distant. Within five minutes they were alone, surrounded by nothing but trees and the sound of birdsong. Twilight stopped first, followed a moment later by Gloriosa.

“How long have you had magic?” Twilight asked, bluntly.

“Before I answer anything, I want your word that you won’t try to take this necklace,” Gloriosa said, placing her right hand over the necklace of multi-colored geodes, “It’s mine, and no one is taking it from me. Understand?”

Twilight could feel the buildup of power. It wasn’t reiatsu, no spiritual pressure at all, but a buzz of intense magical energy that surged through Gloriosa and the necklace.

Be careful, Twilight, Midnight warned, The power in those crystals is... it’s intoxicatingly strong. She’s unskilled as a welder, but if she’s powered by THAT, then even with my help, she’d be trouble for you.

I’m not planning to fight, replied Twilight mentally, But be ready, just in case.

She held up a placating hand and said, “I swear to you, Glorisoa, I don’t want to take anything from you. I just want to know what that necklace is and where you got it. You’ve probably already figured this out, but magic like that isn’t natural to our world.”

“Then where did you get yours?” Gloriosa asked, not at all relaxing her guard.

Twilight considered her response, and realized that if she wanted to build trust here, she needed to be truthful, “Probably from the same world yours comes from. This magic is native to another realm, and it’s come through to our world several times before. I collected a lot of it and went through a... change, that’s led to me having some of the magic left inside me. That’s how I can use it, and sensed it in you. I think the magic of your necklace caused the overload today. That’s what tipped me off, although I suspected something was up when you found Timber at my mansion so easily.”

“Didn’t buy the GPS story?”

“Sort of. Look, Gloriosa, I want us to be able to trust each other. I’ve given you my word that I won’t take your magic from you. If that’s not enough, we’re stuck at an impasse.”

For a solid minute the two ladies stood there, facing each other as a gentle breeze stirred the grass around them. Gloriosa kept her hand on the necklace of geodes... then slowly released it with a tired sigh escaping her lips.

“I suppose I was already willing to trust you far enough to take your deal with the camp. Little late for second thoughts. I’m... sorry I got so tense there for a moment. This power I’ve found, it’s important that I hold onto it. I thought it was the only thing I could use to protect my brother and my home, and for all I know, that’s still true. I want to understand it, learn how to use it.”

“Believe me, I know exactly how you feel,” Twilight said, smiling gently, “More than I can explain. I think we have a lot in common, Gloriosa. If you’ll let me, I’d like to help you learn more about this magic you’ve found, but first I need to understand where you obtained it. The geodes, they’re the source of the power, right?”

“As far as I know,” Gloriosa said hesitantly, “I found them in a cave my brother and I used to play in when we were little. I don’t know how they got there.”

“When did you find them?”

“Around six months, I think?”

The same timeframe as when the Friendship Games happened! “I see. Gloriosa, there’s a very strong chance the magic in those geodes stems from the same place my magic does. I won’t ask you to so much as take the necklace off if you don’t want to, but would you agree to allowing me to study the crystals themselves?”

“No offense, Twilight, but if my geodes make your experiments explode now, how much worse would it get if you started actively studying them?”

“That’s exactly why I would want to study them! If I can get a better handle on how the magic is affecting Quincy technology, my research will speed up by leaps and bounds! But... I understand the concern you’re raising, too. I’ll exercise every caution, I promise, and if you truly don’t wish to have the geodes studied, I’ll leave it at that. But this could lead to serious breakthroughs in my research.”

“...I’ll think about it. No promises.”

Twilight nodded, trying to contain her excitement, “I understand. Hmm, does Timber Spruce know about the geodes?”

“He does. I know he’s been worried about me, too, but I’m pretty sure I’ve got a handle on this. Mostly.”

“Just what can you do with the geodes?” Twilight inquired with intense curiosity, “How did you use them to find Timber?”

Gloriosa gained a wry smile, “How about we leave that for later? If we spend too long out here, everyone else will start wondering what we’re doing, and I hate worrying my brother. I’ll... provide a demonstration tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay, that’s fine,” Twilight replied, relaxing somewhat, as did Gloriosa. With that agreed upon, the pair started heading back to the lab...

----------

...And beneath the surface, many meters down, a wide root system trembled as the energies of the geodes nearly being used traveled back down the roots into the greater cluster that surrounded the Everfree Forest and its lake. At the nexus of these roots, the occupant of the gigantic root system stirred.

She’d felt her vessel’s emotions. The fear, the anxiety. Good. Those emotions only made the vessel more suitable for her intended purpose. She could also taste the presence of the old enemy, the Quincy. Unexpected, but not unwelcome. She’d need fresh food to gorge on when the time came.

The even older enemy in the form of the Soul Reapers were also nearby, yet their spiritual pressure was oddly obscured. Close, yet veiled. No matter, their turn to be devoured would come too, if they interfered.

Meanwhile she sensed her ally was excited. Across the tear between worlds, she felt the one who so long ago has touched upon her mind and together they had formed the plan for revival.

You stir... the time is coming soon...

Her thoughts were still slow, sluggish, but sharp enough. Her ally’s voice reached her, along with the deep rush of ocean currents.

I have guests that will be dropping in before long. An old acquaintance of mine will just be dying to hear from them, I think. Don’t fret, my friend. My pet is preparing the circle, and I have nearly everything I need over here. Soon, we’ll both have what we desire, and the festivities will begin.

She didn’t laugh so much as shake with anticipation. Yes, festivities. If that was what one would call a bloody slaughter. She didn’t even care much about the lives in the human city nearby, or the Quincy or Soul Reapers. Food and old enemies. They were nothing next to the true object of her fury. Once the revival was complete and her strength restored, the sweet, sweet taste of vengeance would be all she cared about.

But she still had to wait. Just a little longer.

Episode 100: Best Laid Plans

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Episode 100: Best Laid Plans

“And as a final note, let me just say that I’m absolutely thrilled to have all of you here at Camp Everfree!” Gloriosa said with no false cheer in her beaming tone. The unusual, and even dangerous nature of present circumstances aside, she was truly happy to see so many young folk here at the camp. Canterlot High had certainly arrived with quite the turnout, and seeing some excited, youthful faces out in the crowd as she’d delivered her welcoming speech had put a warm buzz alight inside her. It helped ease some of the tension from everything else that was going on.

“Now, my brother Timber Spruce will be working with our volunteer counselors to hand out tent assignments and arrange our first set of activities for today! Timber, if you please?”

“Got it, sis,” Timber said, stepping up from the other size of the small gazebo where the Canterlot High students were gathered. Among the various teenagers, Gloriosa spotted the six students that Twilight Sparkle had told her about. They rather stood out from the crowd a bit, and it helped that by coincidence, or perhaps not-so-much-coincidence, that they were the six ‘volunteer camp counselors’ that Principal Celestia had suggested.

As Timber Spruce called the six girls’ names, and started helping them sort the rest of the students into groups for each of the rather large tents set up on the north end of the campgrounds, Gloriosa considered them each in turn.

Sunset Shimmer... a Substitute Soul Reaper? A pony from another world? I’d call that ridiculous if I haven’t already seen so many other things. And the world she’s from, it’s the same world my magic comes from?

The energetic looking young woman certainly had a warm air about her, and Gloriosa found she immediately liked the girl as she enthusiastically went about helping the other campers. The other five all seemed like good kids as well. Rainbow Dash had an explosive amount of energy for sports, and would likely readily organize any athletic activities. The quiet, soft spoken Fluttershy clearly had an unmitigated love for nature that’d make her ideal for leading nature hikes. If the faint smell of pastries coming off of Pinkie Pie was any indication, all cooking activities would be in good hands. Applejack had already expressed interest in helping rebuild the rundown camp dock, which Gloriosa certainly didn’t object to. The only one who made Gloriosa raise a small eyebrow was the one named Rarity, who certainly didn’t seem like the outdoors type, and also had an unusual air about her.

Admittedly all of them did, and Gloriosa figured it was because of what Twilight had told her, that these poor girls were just as much stuck being involved with supernatural issues as she was. They all had a faint air of being on edge.

Twilight hadn’t gone into any excessive detail about the girls’ experiences, but did ask Gloriossa to treat them like any other campers. Easy enough. It wasn’t like she didn’t have plenty of other concerns on her plate, but she did have something she wanted to talk to Twilight about as soon as she knew the campers were situated.

She and Twilight had been working on and off with Gloriosa’s geodes, but Gloriosa hadn’t yet told Twilight about the network of observing flowers she’d planted around the Everfree Forest in a perimeter around camp. The flowers had been reporting back some... unusual things that had Gloriosa worried. She’d already told Twilight about the odd people with holes in their chest, and Twilight had explained that they were advanced versions of Hollows known as ‘Arrancar’. But even more recently, in fact just that morning, Gloriosa had been received images from the flowers that showed some unusual wildlife wandering the forest.

It worried Gloriosa, given they now had all these campers present, but she’d seen no sign that the creatures out in the forest were hostile. If anything they seemed to be keeping their distance from the camp. What they were, Gloriosia wasn’t sure. The images she got from the sentry flowers hadn’t given her any clear views. She only knew they were out there. She intended to inform Twilight as soon as she could. As for the Arrancar, Twilight had told Gloriosa that the particular group she’d seen wasn’t a threat, although she hadn’t elaborated further.

With Timber taking care of things with the students, Gloriosa saw the tall, stateresuqe form of Principal Celestia approaching, with Vice Principal Luna following right behind.

“Thank you for the lovely welcoming speech, Miss Daisy,” said Celestia with a warming smile, “I’m certain my students will enjoy their time here just as much as my sister and I did when we came here ourselves.”

“Oh, you’re both previous campers here at Everfree?” Gloriosa said, thinking that that must have happened as far back as when her parents were running things. Before that one, tragic night. She took the memory that wanted to rise and crammed it right back into her mental lockbox, with a few extra chains wrapped around for good measure. “Well I can only hope you’ll have a great time here again alongside your students.”

“I’m sure we will,” said Luna, her tone somehow more distant than her sister’s as she gazed around the camp, “I see the sundial my sister insisted we make back in the day is still here.”

The object in question was an old, stone sundial sitting not far from the camp center, slightly overgrown with moss. Gloriosa hadn’t even known who’d made it, but she did vaguely recall playing around it as a little kid.

Wait... I had to have been no more than four or five back then.

“Just how long ago were you two here, again?” she asked, and Celestia smiled pleasantly at her, while also shooting a quick, almost admonishing glance at Luna.

“Oh I don’t quite recall. Luna and I were quite young back then, not even to middle school yet.”

Gloriosa supposed that made sense. It was somewhat hard to tell just how old Celestia and Luna were anyway, so she supposed it wasn’t that unusual. She tossed the thought aside and said, “At any rate, while my brother is helping get your students situated I need to check on a few things to make sure our first day of activities goes smoothly. I’ve been doing some renovating around here, and still have a bit of maintenance to do on the trails, so unless there’s something specific you need...?”

“Oh, nothing at all,” replied Celestia with utmost civility, still beaming that warm smile all the while, “Luna and I will be taking a walk around ourselves, getting reacquainted with the camp. By all means, let us know if there’s anything we can do to help, Miss Daisy. I understand the number of students here is probably a bit more than what you’re used to handling, so we’re more than happy to help.”

“Of course, but don’t you worry, Timber and I got this.”

With that, the two heads of Canterlot High walked off towards the dock area, while Gloriosa turned to walk over to where Timber was helping the six volunteer counselors hand out tent assignments.

“Everything going okay over here?”

Timber turned to her after a pair of younger students, one with pink skin and another with light gray skin, drew colored cards from a bag he was holding.

“Aww,” said one, holding up a mauve card and comparing it to the other’s ochre colored card, “We’re not going to be in the same tent?”

The pink girl huffed and held her ochre card to Timber, “Unacceptable. Silver Spoon and I always stick together. Provide me with a card that matches hers.”

Affecting a polite cough, Timber forced a smile and said, “The random tent assignments are meant to help build up trust and friendship among the campers. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to have plenty of fun with your friend, but think of it like this, you get to make new friends with whoever you share a tent with.”

“Perhaps you didn’t hear me,” the pink girl said, her eyes flashing like diamonds, “I and Silver Spoon-”

“Silver Spoon and I,” said the gray girl.

“Not the time for grammar corrections! Ahem, as I was saying, we are an inseparable pair. Like tuna and mustard. You do not have one without the other.”

“For the record, I prefer mayonnaise with my tuna,” said Silver Spoon, “Diamond Tiara has very particular tastes.”

“And some of us are culinary heathens, but I care for you as my bestest friend, regardless. That being said, you, tall and vaguely attractive young man of indeterminate age, fix this issue with my card color at once!”

Timber looked at a total loss and gave Gloriosa a helpless look. Stepping in, Gloriosa knelt down a bit to get to eye level with the two younger girls, “How’s this for an idea? The tents we have here at Camp Everfree are pretty neat in that they’re designed to link up to form even bigger tents with each other. So you girls can find whoever has your matching cards, then link your tents into a shared one.”

“Hmm, very well, I shall accept this compromise. I’m Diamond Tiara, by the way. I heard you’re acquainted with my father, Filthy Rich?”

Gloriosa wasn’t able to entirely keep her eye from twitching a bit, but her voice remained polite, “Why yes, as it happens I’ve met your father a few times. He’s been very... interested in Camp Everfree.”

“Daddy has informed me that he’s already concluded a deal concerning this camp, so consider me pleased with the service thus far. Continue to impress me and I shall endeavour to tell my father you’ve done well.”

I have so many places in the forest where they’d never find the body... Gloriosa thought jokingly to herself, irritated but not that concerned with one spoiled child. She had far more on her plate at the moment. Besides, snooty or not, she did want everyone to enjoy their stay at Camp Everfree.

“Just try to have fun with your fellow campers is all I ask.”

After the two rich kids were on their way, Timber let out a sight, “Man, talk about being born in a gilded crib. Hope those two don’t cause too much trouble. They don’t seem exactly cut out for the outdoors.”

“Well it's not as if any of these kids were raised out here like we were, Timber. But seriously, everything going smoothly?”

“Smooth as smooth can be, sis. Those counselors we’ve got already have most everyone organized.”

Gloriosa could see as much. What had started as one big cluster of nearly a hundred students was now a rather well sorted set of several dozen clusters. The color cards were meant to do exactly has Timber said, provide a simple and fun way for campers to get matched up randomly to help foster bonds during the camp experience. Usually a tent could easily sleep four to six comfortably. The colors were numbered, which let them use more than one for when they had this many people to take care of. The tent grounds themselves was a spacious clearing just north of the main camp, with more than enough room to fit enough tents for everyone.

From the now organized crowd, the girl Gloriosa recognized as Sunset Shimmer came walking up. She had on a fairly simple outfit suited to the outdoors, with tight fitting jeans, black ankle boots, a red t-shirt, and black vest over the shirt.

“We’ve got everyone ready to go,” Sunset said, extending a hand towards Glorisa, “Sunset Shimmer, by the way. Pleased to meet you.”

“Gloriosa Daisy,” she said, taking hold of Sunset’s offered hand.

When her fingers brushed Sunset’s and their hands gripped, she felt an almost immediate sensation of rising warmth and the feeling of a tremor inside her that reminded her of the moment she’d first found the magical geodes. The sensation ran through her very bones, making her hand feel scalding hot, yet somehow not painful, but rather amazingly at ease. Even if Gloriosa’s mind wanted to be shocked and startled, it was like her very soul was being relaxed.

“Are... you okay?” Sunset asked, looking at her strangely, and Gloriosa almost too quickly pulled her hand back.

“Oh, I’m fine. Totally fine. It was good to meet you too, Sunset Shimmer. I want to thank you and your friends for volunteering to help out at camp this week.”

It was fairly obvious from the less than convinced look on Sunset’s face that she thought something was wrong, but the girl didn’t say anything about Gloriosa’s strange reaction and just said, “We’re happy to do it. From the sound of things you got a lot planned, so makes sense you’d need some help if it’s just you and your brother running the show here. If you don’t mind me asking, is it really just you two who’ve run this whole camp in the past?”

The sore spot still hurt, even when asked by such an open and friendly girl, but Gloriosa tried hard not to show that, maintaining her polite smile. She was, however, suddenly very self conscious of all the small things that were in need of touching up around the camp, from the faded and chipped paint on the buildings, to the run down and weather beaten dock, to the conspicuous lack of actual cabin space which necessitated the use of so many tents in the first place.

“It’s been just us for a number of years, yes. Before that my parents ran the camp and had a staff of assistants, but... well, you know what they say, you can’t have sun without a little rain. No worries, though, this will still be a great camp experience, I guarantee it. And before long we’ll be giving the place a fresh coat of paint.”

Among other things, if the Quincy keep their end of the bargain.

Sunset had a sympathetic look in her eyes as she nodded, and gestured back behind her, “Well I’d better get back to my friends and make sure everyone gets to their right tents. My friends also sort of elected me to be in charge of coordinating things with you, so how soon are we starting up activities?”

Timber answered that one, as he’d written up most of the activity plans for the week, “In about an hour, at one o’clock, we’re serving up a welcome lunch via a barbecue that’ll be cooked up by yours truly. After lunch the plan is to split the campers between those who want to hit the trails and get a feel for the forest with a nice, breezy hike, or those that want to check out the lake with some swimming or boating. We’ll split you consoulers between the two groups to supervise and Glorisoa and me will oversee one group each. Then come evening we’ll switch it up with a forest survival seminar, complete with campfire building, and some old fashioned s’more cooking and ghost stories. You girls can always check the full schedule in the camp center so you know what’s coming up for the rest of the week, too, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask me or Gloriosa.”

“Sounds like it's going to be a fun week,” Sunset said, and there was something odd in the girls’ tone that made Glorisoa wonder if she meant something else entirely. “I’ll be sure to let my friends know, and we’ll figure out who’s going on the hike and who’s sticking around the camp. Catch you at lunch.”

As the girl left, Gloriosa watched her with an intent gaze, until she felt Timber touch her shoulder gently.

“You sure you’re alright, sis? You looked kinda glaze eyed for a second there when you shook hands with that Sunset girl.”

“It’s... probably nothing,” she said, “I’ll talk to Twilight about it. Don’t worry, and just focus on the campers for now. You get started on the barbeque, I’m going to go see Twilight. I’ll be back soon.”

----------

“Oh my gosh, this place is amazing!” Applebloom said with excitement bursting in her voice as the girl all but skipped among the tent grounds. She took in a deep breath of air and let it out with a satisfied sigh, “Smell that nature, gals? Pristine!”

Sweetie Belle, sweating as she lugged a heavy bag behind her, said, “It’s literally the same air we were breathing a few days ago, and you weren’t freaking out over it then. We’ve been to the forest before.”

“I know that, but this is camp air. Totally different.”

“I swear, that bump to your head must have scrambled something...”

Applebloom just flashed a confident grin and tapped her head, “Nah, I’m fit as a’ fiddle now! Scoots vampire aunts fixed me up right as rain!”

“H-hey!” Scootaloo brought up the rear of the trio, but swiftly caught up and said in a scandalized whisper, “Let’s not use the V word, okay!? First of all...” She glanced around to make sure the other campers weren’t in hearing range, “The proper term is ‘Bount’, and we’re not actually vampires. Just a lot of legends about them got started because of us. Just, y’know, try to keep it down about that. It’s supposed to be a secret!”

“Eheh, sorry,” said Applebloom, grinning all the while. She then held up her ochre colored card and looked around, “Still ain’t seen nobody with my card color. Least you two both got mauve. Wonder who I’m stuck roomin’ with?”

“It’s supposed to be four people per tent, so we still need to find who we’re with too,” said Sweetie Belle, “And Rarity just said it’d be easiest for us to go to our correct tent and find out who shows up.”

“Makes sense,” said Scootaloo, hefting her scooter over her shoulder, “I don’t really care who we’re with. I’m just glad they let me keep my scooter.”

“Still don’t know why, of all things, you put the crest thingie that summons your crazy stone bird on your scooter,” said Sweetie Belle, keeping her own voice low, “Isn’t that really impractical? Your aunts put their crests on way more portable items.”

Scootalloo rubbed at her face with one hand, her camping pack nearly slipping from her shoulders as she did so, “Look, my aunts gave me a bunch of guff over that too, but I was really young at the time, and it seemed smart back then because I always had my scooter with me! I can’t change where the crest is, so I just deal with it.”

“But you’re older and wiser now, ain’t ya?” Applebloom said with a smirk, and Scootaloo blanched.

“You two are never gonna get over the age thing, are you?”

“Well it ain’t everyday ya find out one o’ yer best friends is near twice as old as you are,” Applebloom said, still sounding flabbergasted by the concept while also clearly taking a great deal of amusement in Scootaloo’s embarrassment over the fact.

Scootaloo did blush rather fiercely red, half hiding her face behind her scooter, “Argh, for the last time, I’m only twenty three years old, which in Bount years still makes me no older than you guys. We age weird, okay!?”

“Still, does that mean when we hit our mid-twenties you’ll still technically look like a teenager?” Sweetie Belle mused, and Scootaloo sighed heavily.

“Probably. Like I said, Bount aging is weird. Has to do with how much we.... uh... eat, and other stuff...” she got suddenly very quiet, which caused Applebloom and Sweetie Belle to exchanged concerned looks, but they were distracted when a new but painfully familiar voice spoke from ahead of them.

“Oh no, don’t even tell me you three are taking this tent?”

It was Diamond Tiara, looking less like she was going to camp and more like she was going on a Sunday picnic with an impractical pink and black striped dress under her yellow jacket, pink shoes that did not look suited to forest hiking, and a white sun-hat. Next to her Silver Spoon was more dressed for the situation, albeit only in that she had shoe-boots on and was wearing a less frilly dress in soft blues and gray colors. The pair were standing in front of an ochre colored tent... and Applebloom’s heart sank to ground level.

“Yer kiddin’ me! Which o’ you got an ochre card!?”

Diamond Tiara’s lips pursed like she’d swallowed a sour grape and held up her ochre card, eyes broiling. “This is just... utterly unconscionable!”

Silver Spoon glanced at her, “I don’t think that word means what yo-”

“Silver, please don’t finish that reference.”

After a brief roll of her eyes, Silver Spoon turned her attention to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and specifically to the mauve cards held by Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Her face pinching into a frown, she held up her own mauve card, “It seems we’re stuck together.”

“Ugh, this is the worst...” Sweetie Belle said.

“Oh it gets better,” Silver Spoon said with a sarcastic smirk, “The ever understanding and kind camp owner decided we get to share tents, since me and Diamond Tiara wanted to still be in the same tent.”

“Maybe we can just sleep outside, or light ourselves on fire? Either option sounds more pleasant,” said Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara sniffed.

“As if we like this any more than you do! But if you’re going to be little whining babies about it-”

“...you were whining your butt off about this earlier...” Silver Spoon muttered, but Diamond Tiara didn’t appear to hear her.

“-then it falls to moi to be the adult here and extend the first olive branch. You have my permission to share tent space with me for the duration of this ‘camp’ venture. Feel honored.”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at each other.

“Some olive branch,” grumbled Applebloom, then looked at her card, and the cards of the other girls, “So we’re still missin’ three more folk. Guess we oughta start gettin’ our two tents hooked together, an’ see if the rest turn up.”

The assembly of the two tents didn’t take long at all, especially when Applejack swung by to give the girls a hand. The tents were rather brilliantly designed to be so user friendly that even partially trained monkeys ought to have been able to assemble them; or in this case take down a side per tent and link the pair up via specially designed zippers. The interior of the tents were exceedingly roomy for what they were, and before long the Cutie Mark Crusaders and their long-time rivals had sleeping bags set out along with their various knick-knacks and camping gear they’d brought.

Around that time they’d also gained their missing members.

“I don’t see what your problem is,” said Snips with a huff as the pudgy, short boy with light blue/green skin frowned at Diamond Tiara, “What do you think me and Snails are going to see?”

“Anything! Everything!” Diamond Tiara shouted, using tape to put up a blanket between the girls side of the tent and sequestering off the two boys, “Ladies need their space! Privacy!”

“Hate to agree with Diamond Tiara, but, uh, yeah, sorry Snips, sorry Snails, but we do need at least a blanket up between our part of the tent and yours,” said Sweetie Belle, helping Diamond Tiara with holding the blanket up as it was taped.

“Eh, it’s alright,” said Snails, looking completely unconcerned with the proceedings, his eyes looking ever sleepy under his mop top of teal hair.

Snips still looked flummoxed, “Whatever.”

A gray hand patted him on the shoulder as a happy looking older teenage girl with bright blonde hair and gold eyes that didn’t quite line up right smiled at him, “Don’t feel bad. I don’t always understand what’s going on around me either.”

“Ugh, you should be more concerned with sharing a tent with boys! You’re older than us,” groused Diamond Tiara, “Aren’t you worried they’ll peek at you!?”

The blonde girl giggled, “Peek at me doing what? We’re just sleeping here, not taking a shower.”

“But you’ll be changing clothes here!”

“Sure, but not while they’re around. Heheh, you’re funny.”

“And you’re... you’re... uh, what was your name again?” Diamond Tiara said after blinking several times.

“Derpy! Derpy Doo! Pleased to meet you.”

“Right... can’t imagine where your parents got that name from,” Diamind Tiara muttered, finishing up taping up the blanket. There were two of them, allowing for a partition that one could get through.

“There, done. Now then, with that out of the way we can move on to more important matters,” Diamond Tiara looked at the Cutie Mark Crusaders, “I trust you haven’t forgotten our wager?”

“Like we’d forget,” said Scootaloo.

Snips’ head appeared through the blanket wall, “Wager?”

Diamond Tiara put a hand on his face and shoved him back through the blankets, then turned to the Crusaders, “Tonight then?”

Applebloom stood up from where she’d been unpacking her bag and gave Diamond Tiara a flashing look, “Tonight.”

“Uhh... guys?” Sweetie Belle said, ”Can we confer outside for a sec?”

Diamond Tiara gave them a suspicious look, but Silver Spoon chimed in, “Do what you want.”

The Crusaders piled out of the tent and got into a huddle.

“What’s the problem Sweetie Belle?” Appelboom asked.

Sweetie, wearing a remarkably serious look, tapped Applebloom on the head, “Did you forget what happened!? We got attacked by actual monsters in the woods! These woods.”

“Not exactly these woods. That happened way to the south.”

“Still, isn’t it possibly very dangerous to go hiking out there in the middle of the night?”

“Nah,” said Applebloom, “Scootaloo’s giant bird wiped those plant wolves out.”

“But what if there’s more?”

“Did ya ferget we got superpowers?”

“Did you forget how much those superpowers didn’t help and we needed to be bailed out by Scootaloo?”

“Who’s right here, so she could just do it again.”

“Only after you got really badly hurt and might’ve died if her aunts didn’t heal you.”

“Geeze, yer such a worrywart! This is our chance to finally show up Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Don’t ya wanna stick it to them jerks?”

Sweetie Belle was about to answer, but a fourth girl leaned in.

“What are we whispering about?” asked Derpy, and the three Crusaders all blinked at her. None of them knew how long the oddly airheaded seeming girl had been there.

“N-Nothin’ important,” said Applebloom, “We’re talkin’ about a, umm... video game we all play. Ya’ know, all online an’ stuff.”

“Oooh, I’ve seen those on the internet,” said Depry, “Heheh, they’re funny to watch. Do you girls do let’s plays?”

“No, but honestly we should,” said Sweetie Belle musingly, “I bet we could really get a channel off the ground.”

“We can do ‘Cutie Mark Crusader Let’s Players’ another day,” said Scootaloo, “For now let’s stay focused. Um, Derpy, if you don’t mind, this kind of a private conversation.”

The girl blinked, Scootaloo almost hypnotized by the way one eye stared at her with laser focus while the other wandered off in a completely different direction. Then Depry smiled bright as the morning sky, “Sure thing! Since I’m the biggest girl in the bunch, if you guys need anything, just let me know, ‘kay?”

“We sure will,” Sweetie Belle said, then after Depry went back into the tent she sighed and looked at her friends, “Okay, so just for the record, nobody saw her come out of the tent, right?”

“Nope, and Bount’s have really good senses,” Scootaloo said, “So... I have no idea. Anyway, Sweetie Belle, I get that you’re worried. We’ll be extra careful tonight, but we’ve already made a deal with Diamond Tiara. We can’t back out now.”

“Okay, okay fine, I just really got a bad feeling about this.”

“If it makes you feel any better I’ll make sure to have Alerion already summoned to tail us from the sky and swoop in if things go wrong,” assured Scootaloo.

Applebloom gained a twinkle in her eyes at that, rubbing her chin with a wicked grin forming, “Ya know, if we’re lookin’ ta scare them two, then I think there’s even more we could have yer Doll do...”

----------

Lines of suspicion creased Applejack’s brow as she finished helping lug some of the heavier bags of camping gear out among the tents, and she saw her sister and two friends huddled together outside their own tent across the way.

“Now what’d ya suppose them three are planin’ over there?” she asked, and beside her Rarity turned to look over her shoulder at the farm girl, having just finished showing some errant campers where their tent was.

“Come again?”

“Just seein’ our sisters an’ their third amigo are lookin’ awfully... schemey over yonder,” Applejack said, pointing the trio out. Rarity looked, her lips quirked in an amused smile, and she came over to Applejack and crossed her arms.

“Oh really now, Applejack, they’re just being their usual rambunctious selves. Why one would think we’d be used to this from them by now. Quite frankly seeing those three getting up to their usual Crusader related mischief would be a relief compared to what else we have on our plates.”

“That’s just it,” Applejack insisted, her frown not diminishing at all, “I just got this nasty feelin’ that it ain’t ‘usual’. Can’t put my finger on why, but my gut’s tellin’ me somethin’ is off.”

Rarity’s crystal blue eyes maintained a skeptical air, but they weren't dismissive either as she regarded the Cutie Mark Crusaders more carefully. The three young girls didn’t seem to notice they were being watched as they all nodded as a group, their discussion apparently finished, and went back into their tent. Rarity made a slight ‘hmm’ noise, tapping a finger to her lips thoughtfully.

“I suppose Sweetie Belle did seem a tad... reserved when she came back home after visiting Scootaloo’s house. Do you suppose something happened that they haven’t told us about?”

“Can’t prove it, but my sister’s intuition is ringin’ somethin’ fierce,” Applejack said, sighing heavily as she put a hand on her hat and shook her head, “Not like I can just go interrogatin’ my sis, through.”

“I suppose it would be rather goash to strap them to a chair, flash a lamp in their face, and start demanding answers,” Rarity said, chuckling dryly, “Why don’t we put a pin in the matter for now. They can’t possibly get into too much trouble in just one-”

“Rarity, fer the love o’ whatever or whoever’s actually in charge upstairs, don’t finish that sentence.”

Rarity smiled ruefully at Applejack, making a ‘zipping the lips’ gesture. “Perish the thought, darling.”

Not long after that the vast majority of the Canterlot High students were situated in their proper tents, and given the state of the early afternoon, many of them were rapidly becoming hungry in the endless way teenagers tended to. Fortunately the sweet, rich scent of char-broiled meat was already wafting in alongside a cool breeze from the main camp, and it was an army of salivating teenagers that soon descended upon Camp Everfree for their first lunch of the camping trip.

Timber Spruce and Gloriosa Daisy certainly didn’t skimp on the food. The first deposit of funds to the camp’s accounts from their new Quincy partners had allowed the brother and sister to get an entirely new set of large, modern grills to replace the aging ones they’d had. They’d also ensured the camp pantries were overflowed with fresh food, and that day’s barbeque was not about to leave anyone high and dry on having seconds, or even thirds.

For a good while Camp Everfree was lively with the sound of chatting, laughing teenagers enjoying a hearty meal amid the splendour of nature, underneath a clear sky and warm summer winds.

Sunset Shimmer and her group of friends were situated at their own table, located just to the side of the camp center building. For a few minutes talking had been minimal as the girls enjoyed eating, Applejack and Rainbow Dash digging in with gusto alongside Pinkie Pie, who would sneak bits of hot dog or burger underneath the table to allow Pinkamena to briefly manifest a mouth to take a few bites herself. Rarity ate far more daintily, and favored the spread of fruits and salad over heavy meats, while Fluttershy and Sunset both kept to the veggie burgers. Sunset didn’t actually... object, per se, to eating meat. She’d tried it, out of pure curiosity. After all, she was technically an omnivore now. Why not take advantage? But it didn’t really do anything for her. Smelled good, but just didn’t taste right on her palette.

Chips, however, were universal, and she enjoyed her fair share of those, alongside some very fine bean dip.

Once food was settling in their stomachs, it was time to get down to business. Applejack and Rarity had already brought up the idea of Clover watching the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and Sunset didn’t think that was a bad idea at all. The original plan was to have Clover with them when they lured in the Kraken, but given they’d also have Celestia and Luna there to battle the beast, truth be told Clover would be better used keeping an eye on things at the camp anyway.

“It might put her in the line of fire, though, depending on how Adagio and Twilight’s rescue attempt pans out,” Sunset said. She and the girls were all keeping their tone’s down, not that there was much of anyone nearby to hear. Gloriosa had gone off somewhere, and Timber Spruce was still cooking up extra food for the hungry campers eager for second helpings. Nobody else was nearby.

Sunset knew Clover would be arriving later that day to keep in touch with them, and that Celestia wanted to meet with them that evening. Until then, they were to act as camp counselors and just go about the day like normal. However, plans needed to be laid out and confirmed, so it was time to talk. They'd already hashed most of this out, but laying it all out so everyone was on the same page was important.

“We can’t really control how things go where Adagio and Twilight are concerned,” Rarity said, poking at the remnants of her salad with a black plastic fork, “Once we’re dealing with that dreadful Kraken, we’ll be too far away to do much about what happens here.”

“Not totally true, Rares,” said Rainbow Dash, “I’m fast enough that if need be I could zip across from the beach to here in like, a few minutes, tops.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Rarity said musingly, “However, fast as some of us have become, I know it’d take me a bit of time to get back even to just the city from the beach.”

Sunset nodded, “With my Flash Step I could probably come close to matching Rainbow’s time, but she’s still the fastest out of all of us. Which means if an emergency happens, if something does go wrong, it’ll fall to me and her to get back here pronto, and the rest of you need to keep things locked down with the Kraken.”

“What do we think might go wrong?” asked Fluttershy, “I mean, um, hypothetically speaking?”

Applejack grimaced, leaning her elbows on the table while casting a look across the wide, green campgrounds, where dozens and dozens of students sat around various picnic tables, eating and chatting away.

“What couldn’t go wrong?” she asked, “I know we ain’t got a lotta choice but ta move forward with this plan, but with that damned Grogar bastard out there, not ta mention this Gilda gal who took a’ shot at Sunset... well nothin’ personal against Adagio, but I ain’t sure I trust her ta keep them two under control.”

“Trusting Adagio...” Rarity shook her head, “Let’s be frank, we were never particularly friendly with her to begin with, and it wasn’t that long ago that she and her sisters tried to magically dominate our school.”

“Rarity, that’s water under the bridge at this point,” Sunset said, and Rarity nodded.

“I understand that, but I just want us to have proper caution here. Adagio may have her own goals, seperate from the other Espada, but that is not the same as being our bosom ally. We’re convenient to her at the moment, as a distraction, so she can rescue a ‘friend’ of hers. She has little reason beyond that to care what happens to us, any of our friends, or our fellow students.”

“Look, Adagio understands that any unneeded damage or casualties here is going to cause her more problems, and the plan doesn’t involve attacking the camp or harming any students. She’s even assured me she’s given her own people instructions to not kill any Soul Reapers they have to fight, if they can avoid it.”

“That is a very large ‘if’,” Rarity pointed out.

“C’mon Rarity, lighten up a bit,” Pinkie Pie said, “We managed alright so far, and if we burn our brainboxes thinking so hard about all the ‘what ifs’ then we’re just gonna hurt our heads. Let’s trust Adagio and Twilight to know what they’re doing.”

“That’s shockingly level headed, coming from you.”

“I know, right? I must be getting better at this whole planning thing.”

Pinkamena’s voice spoke from beneath the table, “No, you’re not. Now give me more burger.”

As Pinkie Pie slipped another chunk of hamburger under the table, to the sound of chomping, the other girls all looked at each other. Sunset wished she could shake the ever looming feeling of dishonest and general cruminess that came with knowing that no matter how this situation played out, chances were some Soul Reapers would get hurt, and as Rarity pointed out, possibly killed. She kept thinking back to the moment Celestia had asked her if something was wrong, beneath Discord’s shop.

Should she have confided the truth to Celestia?

Was she making a mistake, going ahead with this plan?

She shook her head. She had to lead, here, and get these doubts out of her head. “Right now the important part is that we confirm where the lab is. Twilight and Adagio have narrowed it down to two possibilites. One is the higher locations in the northeast mountain slopes. The ones that are directly opposite of the mountains Discord and Ditzy train us. The other possibility is the lake.”

“What, like on the lake?” Rainbow Dash asked quizzically.

“No, beneath it.”

“Is that possible?” asked Rarity.

“No reason it couldn’t be,” Sunset replied, “I’ve studied enough Kido at this point to know that Soul Reaper spells can create spaces that would keep water out and maintain a dry spot even while underwater. So it’s possible it’s down there.”

“Dude, how would we even check that?” Rainbow Dash asked, “I mean, I’m an awesome swimmer, but I think we’d be pretty obvious if we tried swimming to the bottom of the lake.”

“We might not have to,” Sunset said,”Remember, Celestia wants to meet with us tonight, and ostensibly the whole reason she arranged for us to be out here is so we could help with the research on the portal to Equestria. I think she’s likely to take us, or at least one of us, to the lab anyway. So the plan right now is to wait, see if the lab gets revealed to us, and if it does, contact Twilight and Adagio with the location. If that doesn’t happen, then we work on checking the mountains or the lake and see if we can find it ourselves.”

“Then after that, we do the Kraken thing as a distraction,” said Pinkie Pie, stabbing a hot dog with a fork and wiggling it about, “While we’re Krakening, Twilight and Adagio do the rescue.”

“Yeah, about that, has Adagio said what the other Arrancar are supposed to be doing during all that?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Because so far it sounds like that’s kinda a big deal.”

Sunset chewed her lip for a second, “Well, Adagio has been keeping me posted on that... and the plan on her end is...”

----------

Adagio cleared her throat loudly, making sure all present were paying attention to her. The little cave hideout was rather crowded now. Besides herself, Di Roy, Roka, and Gaw, both Gilda and Grogar were present, along with half a dozen Arrancar warriors working with Gilda that were essentially on loan from Guto. They all stood in a rough semi-circle around one of the side walls of the cave, where Adagio had used her trident to carve a map into the stone surface.

“The key to our mission from Lord Tirek is test the city’s defenses, which means we are not trying to defeat the enemy but rather gauge their strength.”

“Yeah, yeah, we heard you the first time,” Gilda said, “But Lord Tirek isn’t going to give two craps if we kill a few humans in the process.”

“My point is that blowing up random buildings is a waste of energy when the Soul Reapers and Quincy alike have proven they’ll respond to the mere presence of significant numbers of Hollows. Not long ago this city was surrounded by Gillian-class and that drew out Captains and Sternritter alike to defend the city.”

“Yes, but it takes time to wrangle that many Gillians together,” Gilda said, eyeing Grogar, “Took you, what, a few days at least?”

“True,” said Grogar, his face rather frustratingly neutral and difficult for Adagio to read.

She’d been looking for any signs of what Grogar was thinking, especially over the past few days after she’d been visited by Discord and had him clandestinely examine her for monitoring devices. Devices that Discord had found, and confirmed her fears that Gograr had not entirely released his clutches on her. It made her skin crawl just thinking about it. Fortunately Discord had also had little trouble removing the devices, as there’d only been two of them, designed to transmit visual and audio data. According to Discord he thought it was unlikely that Grogar was receiving the transmissions here in the living world. The devices would need special receiving equipment that was likely still in Hueco Mundo.

Regardless, Adagio was glad to have the things out of the body, and Discord’s confirmation that there were no other hidden surprises left in her from her former captor. Yet it remained an infuriatingly frustrating fact that Grogar was here, he had a copy of her siren gem, and she still didn’t know just what plan he had in mind or how much he might know of her plans.

Keeping all of that emotion off her face, she looked at both Grogar and Gilda, her voice icy cool, “We don’t need Gillians. It’s easy enough to gather lesser Hollows in numbers, and if we turn them loose around the city outskirts, it will provoke a response. I already know from the scouting efforts of my own vassals that there are at least a contingent of ten or so Soul Reapers, perhaps even twice that, occupying the city, with no less than lower ranking officers among them, and likely one Lieutenant. We also can confirm at least one Captain in the area, but it's very likely there are more.”

“What about the Quincy?” asked one of Gilda’s companions, who's white hair, with its tips tinged green, made her recognizable as Greta.

“Their numbers are more nebulous,” she lied, “I can’t give exact numbers, but given the response from the Gillian attack some time ago, there’s probably at least two or three Sternritter that will respond.”

She tapped her trident to the map of the city, “So what we shall do is divide and... well, not conquer, but divide and test. Releasing Hollow swarms here, north of downtown, here, south of the school, and here, just east of the upper class housing area, will be the most likely areas to provoke response. Gilda, your warriors will work with my subordinate, Gaw, to subdue any Lieutenant or lesser officers among the Soul Reapers that arrive.”

Gilda turned golden eyes towards Gaw. Gaw, lifting her chin, stared back with equally gold eyes. Gilda apparently liked whatever she saw there, and nodded with a fanged smirk.

“Fine by me. So I take it we Espada hold back until the big fish appear, then move out to grill them?”

“More or less,” Adagio replied, “Once we see Captains or Sternritter hit the scene, yes, we move out to engage them. However, we do this only until we know for certain no further forces are going to appear, and we confirm the strength of the enemies present. Our task is gauging these defenders, not destroying them. If Lord Tirek wanted that, he would have said so. That being the case, when I give the signal of three Ceros shot into the sky, all forces are to immediately retreat to Hueco Mundo.”

Gilda’s lips curled, “Still think that’s dumb. If we can beat an enemy, we oughta do it and do it proper so they’re damn well dead and no longer a problem.”

“Oh, I do believe Lady Adagio has the right of things,” said Grogar, and Adagio’s skin practically felt like it was bathed in rancid oil from the way he twisted the word ‘Lady’ from a proper term of respect for a superior to something entirely too... personal.

At Gilda’s look, Grogar continued, “Do keep in mind that we are merely the Tenth and Ninth Espadas. There are Captains and Sternritter that would be problematic for us to beat, and I doubt either of our enemies would send their weakest to guard this city.”

“Hence why Lord Tirek wishes us to probe the defenses in the first place,” Adagio said, “No doubt he wants to know just how dedicated the Soul Reapers and Quincy are to protecting that portal.”

She didn’t doubt there was more to it than that, however. Tirek did not strike her as a man who did things for simple, blunt purposes. Chrysalis might assume she was the most prolific schemer among the Espada, but Adagio suspected Tirek was far more canny than some might give him credit for. If she was the one ordering such a probe into Canterlot City, her own motivations would be not just to test how strong the defenses were, but to test the competence of two new Espada such as herself and Gilda. It would also serve as quite the distraction if she had other intentions, such as launching a strike elsewhere while Soul Society’s and the Quincy’s attention were drawn to Canterlot City.

Again she wondered at Grogar’s presence. Was he here totally of his own volition or was Tirek using Grogar as part of some further plan? Again, Grogar’s expression revealed nothing, other than a faint aura of self-assured smugness.

Be confident, if it pleases you, old withered wretch. You’re not the only one with hidden plans.

Keeping her own thoughts from turning her own expression into a wolfish grin, she instead forced a stern look towards Gilda and Grogar, “I trust there’s an understanding between us, now? I want no confusion once this kicks off. We engage, but only until we’ve confirmed what it is we’re up against in full. Then we fall back.”

Gilda still looked ready to chew rocks, but blasted out a sigh and grumbled out, “Fine. But what about those girls? You haven’t mentioned them yet, I’ve noticed.”

“Ah, yes, I’d nearly forgotten,” Grogar said in a tone that suggested he most certainly hadn't, “Those young human girls who’d gained such extraordinary powers lately. Shouldn’t we be making it a point to test their abilities as well? Why, I do believe Lord Tirek still might desire one of them captured for experimental purposes.”

Was that what Grogar was here for? Adagio wanted to sneer, but kept herself under control. “I haven’t failed to account for them. My vassal’s scouting confirms that they’re presently with their school’s class, attending a local ‘camp’. It’s far enough away from the city that if we make our attack, it would take them some time to arrive to interfere. If they do happen to show up, then leave them to me.”

“Why?” asked Gilda, eyes narrowing, “You interrupted my fight with that bacon-headed dweeb once already! I want another crack at her!”

“I already explained to you that Sunset Shimmer is too much for you, Gilda,” Adagio said flatly, “And if she has her friends with her, then altogether you’d certainly be no match. Instead you’re best off supporting Grogar against an enemy Captain of Sternritter. Lest either of you forget, I amd the strongest Espada present, so if those girls show up, leave them to me. Understood?”

Grogar merely nodded, while Gilda growled under her breath, “...Got it.”

“Great. Now that that’s out of the way, on to the matter of timing. I would order this attack to begin tomorrow, but recent intelligence gathered by Di Roy has brought to light the possibility of other forces at work in the region,” Adagio said, and as she’d hoped, Grogar actually looked faintly surprised and interested.

Good, he didn’t know. That or he’s acting, but I don’t think he’s that good an actor.

She’d debated whether or not to bring the information Di Roy had brought to her to light or not, but Grogar’s arrival had forced her hand. Gilda she knew she could browbeat into following her lead, regardless of whether Adagio gave a reason to delay the attack or not. Because they did need to wait, at least until the lab’s location was confirmed. With Grogar here, she needed another excuse. Fortunately what Di Roy had told her gave her the perfect excuse to use.

“It seems that we have some unusual guests in the woods, and an unknown force capable of summoning entities of exceptional strength,” she said, and described the scene that Di Roy had witnessed of the young girls battling the plant-like wolves. She did withhold some information, however, leaving out the identities of the three small children, whom she knew two of which were younger sisters to Sunset’s friends. She just described them as unknown young human girls with powers not unlike the Fullbrings, but also made it clear that the stone bird that had arrived to save the girls was likely not a Fullbring.

For once, Grogar’s smugness was gone, replaced by a speculative expression and one that also showed signs of... concern? “The wooden wolves don’t correspond to anything I’ve encountered or have recorded in my lab’s data.”

“So what? They sound weak,” Gilda said, and Grogar looked at her as if she were a simple minded child.

“As are lesser Hollows, yet here we stand as Espada. Just because we witness one group of weak enemies does not mean stronger ones do not exist, and since these plant-like creatures exuded no spiritual pressure, we must assume they use a different type of power. Magic, perhaps?”

Gilda’s eyes clouded over as she thought. It was quite remarkable, Adagio thought, to see the burly girl trying to think, like watching a monkey try to get the round peg into the right hole. “So, uhh... you’re saying there’s like... bigger magic things out there?”

“A distinct possibility, and a sign, I believe, that the Soul Reapers are playing around too much with that portal,” Grogar said, sniffing as if he smelled a foul scent, “Starswirl, no doubt. That half-baked amature. He’s as likely to tear open a wider hole in the fabric of space than actually learn anything valuable about the portal with his haphazard attempts at experimentation.”

“I don’t suppose you have any idea what the stone bird was?” Adagio asked, not liking having to ask Grogar anything, but she was admittedly very puzzled herself about where that creature had come from. That one, Di Roy had said, had exuded spiritual pressure, so she knew it wasn’t an Equestrian creature. Yet she didn’t think it was a Fullbring either. Di Roy had reported the girl, Scootaloo, had shouted a name, ‘Alerion’. Fullbring’s weren’t activated with a name like that.

Grogar’s smugness returned as he held up a hand in a speculative motion, saying, “You’re still very young and inexperienced in the lore of the spiritual realms, Lady Adagio, despite you’re impressive rise to power. While Hollows, Soul Reapers, and Quincy are the greatest powers at play in the living world, there have always been outliers. Groups so small an inconsequential they couldn’t be considered ‘factions’, just curiosities. Humans capable of wielding spirit energy in a form of ‘magic’, which gave rise to legends of witches and warlocks. Failed Soul Reaper experiments that were turned loose in the realm of the living, leading to folktales of ‘vampires’ and ‘werewolves’. Sometimes creatures from the Beast Realm end up crossing to this realm as well, responsible for countless stories of mysterious lake monsters or mountain yetis. This ‘stone bird’ could be the result of any of those things. A Beast Realm creature, a summoned guardian from a literal ‘witch’, or even the pet of some other similar entity.”

Adagio frowned. If what Grogar was saying was true, it meant that Alerion could have been anything. “That still leaves us with the question of whether this represents the presence of another group in the area that could prove a threat. For that reason alone I wish to spend at least a few more days performing scouting of the area. Once I can confirm no further threats exist to interfere, then we launch our attack.”

“Works for me,” Gilda said, glancing towards the back of the group towards Roka and Di Roy, “You said Gaw’s helping my warriors out, but what’re these two going to be doing when all this goes down?”

Hm, that’s a sharper question than I expected from you, Gilda, Adagio thought, smiling thinly, “Roka is merely here for medical support if needed, and is on loan from Lord Lament. Clearly I’d prefer the daughter of the Fourth Espada to be kept away from the fighting. As for Di Roy, he is Roka’s... escort. To make sure no harm comes to her. They will hold down the fort here while the battle takes place.”

Di Roy snapped a mock salute, “You can count on me, boss lady! I won’t let any dastardly Soul Reapers or scummy Quincy lay a finger on her!”

Gilda blanched, “Right, whatever. Sorry I asked.”

“If there are no further questions, I think that covers the plan quite succinctly,” Adagio said.

Grogar shook his head, and Gilda shrugged. At that, Adagio said, “Then do as you will for now, as long as you keep a low profile while doing it. Roka, I’m going for a walk for some fresh air. Care to join me?”

“Oh? Yes, of course,” Roka said, inclining her head. Adagio ignored Grogar’s stare as she left the cave, but fortunately he didn’t say anything. Once outside, Adagio made a point of getting a good distance from the cave itself and doing a quick check with her Pesquisa to ensure she and Roka were alone before letting out a sigh.

“I hate that man so unbelievably much...”

Roka closed her eyes, nodding, “I can only imagine. He put you through a lot, from what I understand.”

Adagio gripped her trident tightly, finding a comfortable spot to sit on a nearby boulder. They were on a short hill, heavily covered in trees. There wasn’t much of a view, but she could just barely make out the blue stretch of the lake some number of miles to the west. She looked at Roka with burning eyes.

“He did, and never will again. I’ll die before I ever let him touch me. I just wish I knew what he was doing here.”

“If it's not too prying a question, that gem he has...” Roka began, and Adagio felt cold, even under the bright summer sun, as if even those warm rays couldn’t push past the freezing feeling in her heart.

“The same as mine,” she said, touching the red gem gently pulsing in the center of her Hollow hole, “This gem is... a part of me in a way that is not unlike a Zanpaktou. Sirens are born with these gems. They contain the core of our essence.”

“Siren, the species you were before death, and what you were when you lived in the world beyond the portal. I wouldn’t mind hearing of those days, if you wish to share,” Roka said, voice inviting, but also not pressing. Adagio had to wonder at just how Roka ever became such a calm minded, open individual while growing up in Las Noches, or dealing with an unstable fellow like Lament as a father figure.

She smiled at Roka, but it was a small one. Adagio didn’t trust people very easily, but Roka did come close to fitting the bill. Then again, trust had also gotten her sisters into trouble back in Equestria, so Adagio’s heart clenched with a sensation of anger that made her want to shut that door to trust and never open it again. Which would be stupid, because she needed Roka’s help, and the help of her father.

“Someday, perhaps,” Adagio said, “But not today, Roka. We have far too much to focus on, and right now Equestra is... very far away.”

“I understand,” Roka said with a nod, then looked at Adagio with a piercingly frank stare, “Then what is it you wanted from me.”

“Heh, I couldn’t just ask you to walk with me to vent at?”

Roka shook her head, “No. Not you. You rarely do things without purpose, Adagio Dazzle. I appreciate that about you, in fact. You understand the value of give and take, without falling prey to the temptation of only taking.”

“Hmm, if you say so. But, yes, I did need something from you. I need you to be the lynchpin of our backup plan,” Adagio said, eyes glancing towards the distant lake, “If all goes according to plan, then you, Di Roy, and Twilight Sparkle will be able to enact a rescue of Ember from the lab while the rest of us are battling who knows how many Soul Reapers and Quincy. However, I’ve certainly come to understand that even the best laid plans rarely go as intended. Something will go wrong, and so depending on how catastrophically they do go wrong, we needed a backup. I spoke with your father extensively before we came here, and he has agreed to be that backup.”

Roka’s eyes went wide, “Father did...?” The Arrancar took a moment to absorb that, “He must trust you more than even I imagined. But I’m confused. Wouldn’t Torch have been a better choice? He was all but flaming at the mouth to come rescue his daughter.”

“Which is exactly why I don’t want Torch to be a part of this,” Adagio said, voice hard, “I want Ember rescued, but I’d rather half the countryside doesn’t get turned to ash in the process. Torch would come with his entire bloody horde and fall like a firestorm on the city, the forest, the camp, and burn everything in their path. That’s a level of destruction I’d just as soon keep out of the situation.”

“And you think Father is... less destructive? I love him dearly but even I know he can be... unpredictable,” Roka said, voice delicate.

“I’m aware Lament is unstable, Roka, but he’s still a better choice as backup than Torch. Besides, Torch is also still recovering from his wounds suffered fighting the Sternritter.”

“Yes, but Father also has had his Resurreccion sealed by that woman that attacked the tower,” Roka pointed out, “He can’t utilize his full power.”

“Given what I’ve seen of your father fighting, he won’t need his full power. Besides, his only role would be to act as emergency reinforcements in case things go wrong either with the rescue attempt, or with our battle at the city. I need you to be the one to send the signal. He insisted on that. If things go wrong, you make the choice, and decide if your father is needed. I’m trusting you with this duty, Roka.”

Roka was contemplative for a moment, a soft breeze stirring her raven black hair around the half-skull mask that still covered one side of her face. A twitch of uncertainty, and even fear, flushed across her pale features. “What about Twilight Sparkle? Have you considered how she would react to Father appearing before her again?”

“I have, in fact,” Adagi replied, keenly recalling the danger posed by a potentially out of control Twilight, “I wouldn’t have even considered this if I hadn’t floated the idea by her first.”

Roka’s voice was understandably disbelieving, “And she agreed?”

Adagio made an off hand gesture, expression tight with frustration, “Agreed is a strong word. It’s more that I think she recognizes the logic of using Lament over Torch as a backup, and if I were to guess, she’s forcing herself to remain logical rather than emotional about this. I wouldn’t have suggested it if I had a better plan, but the fact is, I don’t.”

“I suppose she must be trying very hard to control her emotions,” Roka said, sympathy lacing her words, “Even working with me for the rescue must be difficult for her. Still, I truly hope it doesn’t come to having to summon Father to battle. Both for Twilight’s sake, and Father’s. I still fear what might happen with his power sealed away as it is...”

Adagio nodded, but also tried to offer a small smile of confidence, “I wouldn’t worry too much. Even with those seals, Lament is incredibly powerful. I’m hard pressed to think of anyone who could seriously pose a threat to him.”

----------

“Captain Sweet Cider?” Celestia said in surprise as she saw the tall, red skinned goliath of a woman walking through the gates of Camp Everfree. The unbelievable tall and well muscled Captain would be entirely invisible to anyone normal, of course, but Celestia was still shocked to see the Captain of the Tenth Division just strolling on up in broad daylight without any apparent care in the world.

It was only an hour past lunch. The campers had all split into two groups, one that had been taken off into the forests for an introductory hike, and the rest already having a whale of a time swimming in the lake or taking out several canoes and boats out onto the shining blue waters. Celestia knew Applejack had gone with Fluttershy and Sunset Shimmer on the hike, while the other girls had stayed to oversee the lake activities. Luna was with Celestia at the camp center, going over the schedule for the next few days, and Luna looked up at Celestia’s exclamation and soon looked out the same window Celestia was and spotted Sweet Cider.

“What in the world is she doing here?”

“I don’t know,” Celestia said, glancing around quickly. The camp center was empty save for her and her sister. Gloriosa Daisy had gone... somewhere. Celestia wasn’t certain where and that bothered her, but she didn’t have time to go tracking down the camp owner. Her brother was cleaning up the barbeque with the help of a few or her more diligent students. So there was no one around who’d see it if Celestia slipped out the back of the camp center to confront Sweet Cider.

“Stay here, Luna, and cover me,” Celestia said, moving swiftly to the camp center’s side door.

Luna nodded and moved to the main entrance, keeping a lookout while Celestia hurried outside and swiftly walked to meet with the fast approaching Sweet Cider.

Captain Sweet Cider was fully dressed in her black robes and white Captain’s overcoat, her Zanpaktou hanging through the sash at her hip. Sweet Cider’s green eyes, so much like those of her daughter’s, found Celestia and gave an acknowledging nod.

“Afternoon, Captain Celestia,” Sweet Cider said.

“To you as well, Captain Sweet Cider,” Celestia replied with a polite bow, “I’m afraid that given I’m currently in a gigai, we should find somewhere private to talk before this goes any further.”

“Guess yer right on that. C’mon, we’ll head on inside, then we can chat it up.”

Celestia kept an eye out to see if anyone noticed her walking to the gate, seemingly to meet and speak with no one, before turning around. As luck had it, no eyes were turned her way, so she was able to just as quickly return to the camp center with Sweet Cider following close behind. Once inside Sweet Cider and Luna also exchanged quick greetings, and the three Captains found themselves clustered around one of the center’s long meeting tables. The camp center really wasn’t that large of a building, largely consisting of a main room with an almost classroom-like layout and atmosphere. There was a kitchen in back, and a pair of offices beyond the meeting room, and a small recreation room adjoining the kitchen. All was made of rich log wood that gave the walls a warm tone of natural brown.

It certainly wasn’t the kind of setting one would expect three Captains of the Gotei 13 to sit and have a talk.

“So, I’m somewhat surprised to see you here, Captain Sweet Cider,” Celestia said, “I thought Captain Commander Scorpan wished you and the Tenth Division to continue work on rebuilding in Seireitei.”

Sweet Cider leaned back in her chair, making the entirely too small, plastic and steel camp chair squeak under her bulk. “That’s what I thought too, but then the ol’ man comes inta my Division office himself, no word o’ warnin’, an’ asks me personally ta put work on reconstruction on hold an’ muster a hundred o’ my boys n’ girls ta come here.”

“That many?” Luna said.

“Yup, got Silverstar gettin’ them situated in the city right now, linkin’ up with them Eleventh Division already there. Hmph, bet Lieutenant Posey’s having a litter o’ kittens over havin’ a hundred o’ my people suddenly show up at her doorstep. Anyways, Scorpan said he wanted ta reinforce yer defenses here, an’ put me in charge o’ protecting both the city an’ this here camp.”

Celestia found herself feeling oddly ill at ease over this development. On the surface, having Sweet Cider here with so many additional Soul Reapers should have been a comfort, yet she was concerned whether or not this might provoke a response from the Quincy. One or two Captains might not raise the Quincy’s suspension very much, given the Equestrian portal was considered a strategically important location. However, with Sweet Cider here that would start to get the Quincy thinking. Thinking maybe the Soul Reapers had made some kind of breaththrough with the portal, and wanted to safeguard it better. Which wasn’t entirely untrue. Starswirl kept saying he was close to something akin to a breakthrough with the portal, but so far all Celestia knew for sure was that there were ever more strange fluxuations with the portal.

“There’s more to it than that, isn’t there?” Luna said, mirroring Celestia’s thoughts, and Sweet Cider gave Luna a wide, knowing grin.

“Ya don’t gotta be head o’ the Second Division to parse that out, do ya? Well, ol’ man Scorpan didn’t exactly spell it out ta me in words, but he made it clear that he was worried somethin’ was gonna go down here. He didn’t say what. I don’t think he rightly knows what is gonna happen, but he’s got somethin’ that’s makin’ him think you folks would need an extra Captain on standby with a whole bunch o’ reinforcements.”

Sweet Cider’s eyes gained a hard edge to them that gave their green surfaces a reflection like an emerald crystal, “An’ if I was a bettin’ gal, I’d say it’s got somethin’ ta do with that Zero Divison big wig that’s been hangin’ around Seireitei.”

Celestia and Luna exchanged looks. They knew about Captain Medley of the Zero Division, and that she was at Seireitei to ‘observe’ things after the shake up that Starlight Glimmer’s actions had caused throughout the Gotei 13. Celestia didn’t much trust Medley, and neither did Luna, but there was very little that could be done. The authority of the Zero Division superseded even that of Central 46. They were one step away from being the literal voices of the Soul Queen herself.

“What do you think has the Captain Commander worried where the Zero Division is concerned?” Celestia asked carefully, but Sweet Cider just shrugged.

“I ain’t a’ oracle. I just know the ol’ man’s been... grumblin’ ‘bout that creepy little gal, an’ quite frankly I don’t blame him. This Medley is the first Zero Division member I’ve met, an’ she straight up gives me the willies. Dang smiles too much, an’ it ain’t ever a smile that touches her eyes, ya know?”

“Well, at any rate, I am glad you’re here, but I sincerely hope your presence or that of your people won’t be needed,” Celestia said, and turned a glance towards Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou, “As an aside, how have you been feeling lately?”

“Huh? Oh, ya mean my Zanpaktou an’ my Fullbring bein’ all fused together. Eh, hard ta say. Starswirl told me that it’d be a bit ‘fore I started feelin’ any side affects o’ having that chain taken offa it. Ain’t gone nuts yet or nothin’.”

“I see, well that’s good. Do you intend to see your family while you’re here? Your daughters? Both of them are here at the camp.”

Sweet Cider’s expression grew more guarded then, although she didn’t let it stay that way long as she sank in her seat and looked away from Celestia and Luna, staring out one of the windows. “Don’t know. I want ta see ‘em both somethin’ fierce, but some part o’ me feels like it ain’t right if one o’ them can’t see me right back. Also ain’t sure it’s a’ good idea to distract myself while I’m on the job. I... I do wonder how big my little Appleblom’s gotten, or how the ol’ homestead is doin’...”

There was a weight of uncertainty in the otherwise usually very strong and confident Captain’s voice, and Celestia couldn’t help but offer a kind and understanding smile, “For what it’s worth, I don’t personally think there should be any reason to hesitate. You may have passed on to the next life, Sweet Cider, but they are always going to be your family. There is no harm in seeing them, and watching over them, even if they can’t see you.”

“Ah, don’t go gettin’ so sappy with me, Celestia. I... I’ll think ‘bout it, okay?” Sweet Cider said, standing back up, “Anywhos, only came by ta check in’ with you an’ Luna, so ya’ll knew I was here with part o’ my Division. Ya can let Starswirl know fer me, too? I don’t feel like vistin’ any creepy lab. Don’t much like what’s goin’ on with that Arrancar girl down there...”

Luna rolled her eyes, “Hollow, Sweet Cider. The enemy, remember?”

Sweet Cider’s nose exuded a frustrated snort, “I ain’t naive, Luna. Just don’t like it much. Stinks too much o’ the same kind o’ bullcrap that was done ta me n’ my friends back in the day. I’ve stuck with Soul Society fer now, but damn it all, it’s gettin’ ‘bout time we stop doin’ things that make us look no better than those we’re supposed ta be fightin’.”

Luna looked ready to argue, but Celestia stood and held up a placating hand, “I tend to agree with you, Sweet Cider. Perhaps a discussion we can continue another day. For now, I’m glad you’re here. I just sincerely hope your presence won’t actually be needed.”

----------

“You’re sure you felt a reaction from Sunset, and it wasn’t just your imagination?” Twilight asked, examining the geodes carefully under her most recent iteration of the magical scanning devices. She and Gloriosa were sitting in the alchemic lab trailer, surrounded by tables filled with the gadetry of Quincy alchemy, which really wasn’t that different from conventional chemistry when one boiled it all down to the brass tacks. Beakers and hoses bubbled with liquids, and silver ginto tubes spun in cylindrical mixers. The buzz of computers and the nose curling smell of chemicals filled the air.

Twilight sat across from Gloriosa at one of the center tables, the camp owner looking at Twilight with a hint of consternation as she crossed her legs, “Quite sure I haven’t felt anything like what I did when I touched that Sunset girl’s hand, yes. I’m not prone to letting my imagination run away from me.”

“Of course, sorry. I just want to make sure. So far all I’ve learned about this necklace and the geodes attached to it has added far more questions than provided answers. I’m not even sure what causes the random surges in the equipment we’re testing here at the lab. Your mere presence caused a M-Cell overload before, but we haven’t been able to replicate that effect consciously.”

Gloriosa chuckled self-consciously, “Not that we haven’t caused other things to go wrong. You did tell Sour Sweet I’m sorry about her computer?”

Twilight waved a hand, “I did. You did. Sour Sweet knows you're sorry. Really I don’t even know why the magic fried the computer. It’s not even Quincy based tech. Just normal, old fashioned human science. It’s like the magic is just... acting up at random. Like its a cranky, ornery baby going into random fits.”

“Could it be tied to those creatures I told you about?” Gloriosa asked carefully, and Twilight looked to give the matter some serious thought, one finger tapping the table while her other hand kept holding the scanner. Gloriosa couldn’t help but notice the way the artificial hand’s finger made a more metallic *tink* noise on the table than an organic one would, and wondered again how Twilight had lost her hand.

“Without having one of these creatures to study, I couldn’t say. You said your, um, ‘sentry flowers’ have seen wolves that look like plants?”

Glorisoa nodded, “Those are the most common ones, although I don’t think there are that many out there, and they’ve stayed away from the campgrounds. The only other thing they showed me I didn’t get a good look at. The flowers only send clear images and sound from things very close by, and whatever it was, it was far away in the deeper woods. Large, however. Bear sized, at least, but I could have sworn it had... wings.”

“These entities sound like they’re from Equestria,” Twilight said, “Same as the geodes, or at least the magic that powers them. It’s possible magic is unstable in this area. My scanners haven’t given me enough data to be certain of that, but there have been some odd fluctuations over the past few days.”

“So what should we do about this reaction I had to your friend?” Gloriosa asked, “Do you have any idea what it might mean?”

“Sunset and my other friends have all been heavily exposed to Equestrian magic. I have too. It’s possible the geodes react to that magic. I could always see if you have a similar reaction to me.”

Twilight switched the scanner to her artificial hand and extended her flesh and blood one to Gloriosa. After a hesitant second, Gloriosa reached out and took hold of Twilight’s hand.

It was both the same, yet different from Sunset Shimmer. The resonance was there, a sudden a noticeable shock of tingling sensation that rushed up and down Gloriosa’s arm. But where Sunset Shimmer had had a sense of unimaginable, pulsing warmth, the sensation from Twilight was more akin to a suffocating avalanche, threatening to sweep Gloriosa away.

With a cry she broke away from Twilight, and found herself laying on her back on the trailer floor, Twilight kneeling over her with concern.

“Gloriosa, are you okay!?”

The trailer door was flung open and Sugarcoat rushed inside, with Sunny Flare poking her head in right behind her.

“What happened?” asked Sugarcoat, “We heard a scream.”

“T...that was me,” Gloriosa said, rubbing her head as she looked at Twilight’s offered hand, and shook her head, “I think that would be a bad idea.”

Twilight, looking somewhat abashed, nodded and stood up while waiting for Gloriosa to pick herself back up. Twilight looked over at Sugarcoat and Sunny Flare, “Just confirming the theory that Gloriosa is having a reaction to people who have been exposed to high levels of Equestrian magic.”

“Well warn us next time,” said Sunny Flare, “Damn near made me have a heart attack.”

“I don’t suppose you two are making any actual progress on figuring out how Gloriosa’s necklace actually works?” asked Sugarcoat.

As Gloriosa took her seat again, Twilight remained standing, going over to a nearby laptop and turning the screen towards Sugarcoat. It displayed lines of data and several digital photos and videos showing Gloriosa. In one video Gloriosa held the geodes and directed soft green light into the ground, where a fresh patch of flowers suddenly burst from the soil. In another video, she changed the shape of a nearby tree so its branches formed simple circles of squares.

“So far we know the magic gives her incredibly fine control over plant life. Why this is I believe has to do more with Gloriosa herself than the geodes. The geodes are essentially batteries of raw magical power, containing a truly massive amount of energy. At a guess, I’d say these geodes represent the strongest collection of magic currently present in the living world, besides myself or my friends. As for the power to control plants... well, look at this.”

She pulled up a new screen, showing a digital graphic of Gloriosa Daisy herself, with multiple traces of green light flowing through her body, while the necklace of geodes formed several streams of multi-colored light that flowed into her.

“The necklace powers Gloriosa, but as the magic energy in its raw form enters her own body, it fuses with her spirit energy. Like any living human, she has a small amount of spirit energy at her core, but as we know with my friends, magic enhances spirit power and I also believe the opposite may also be true. From what I can tell, the magic of the geodes is granting Gloriosa a power that suits her spirit energy. It’s still technically magic, but Gloriosa’s soul focuses the magic through a sort of lens of spirit energy that makes it exclusively revolve around the use of plants.”

Sugarcoat glanced at Gloriosa, “So, what, you can’t do anything else with the magic?”

Gloriosa shrugged, “Not that I’ve been able to figure out. Every time I use the magic, it expresses itself through nature. I guess I’m just spiritually tied to nature then?”

“That’s not surprising, given your background,” Twilight said, “If you died, and became a Soul Reaper, I wouldn’t be surprised if your Zanpaktou took on nature based powers. I think the geode’s magic is just manifesting through your spirit in a similar fashion. And since the geodes contain so much magic, your command over nature is actually incredibly strong as well.”

“It does feel like every time I use it that my whole body is just... bursting with energy,” Gloriosa said, shaking her head and holding herself tightly, “Sometimes it feels like its a bit too much, like I can’t even see myself when I’m using it.”

“Which is why I recommend only using it in an emergency, at least until we understand the magic and the geodes themselves better,” said Twilight, glancing away briefly, “Believe me when I say that over using magic can lead to disastrous results. That’s why I’ve kept our experiments thus far as low key as possible.”

“Do you have any idea where the geodes or the magic inside them even came from?” asked Sugarcoat, “Because it seems very odd to me that something this powerful just happened to be sitting in a cave in the middle of the Everfree. Someone or something would have had to put it there, right?”

“An excellent question, Sugarcoat, and one I sadly don’t have an answer for yet,” said Twilight, adjusting her glasses and bringing up a map on the laptop, showing an overhead view of the Everfree Forest, “Gloriosa has shown me the cave’s location, and I’ve been considering checking it out, but we’ve had too many other things on our plate to deal with right now.”

Not to mention the cave in question was right where Adagio had her present base of operations set up, so the last thing Twilight could do was go there. She’d asked Adagio to look around, but Adagio had reported finding nothing of obvious interest outside of an empty pedestal-like rock formation that matched the description of where Gloriosa found the geodes. But no further clues as to what the geodes were even doing there.

“For now I’d like to just keep focused on the geodes themselves. Speaking of which...”

She walked back over to where she’d set her scanner down on the table after Gloriosa had fallen, and picked the device back up, “I need to go over this data, which may take a fair bit of time. Gloriosa, you’d best return to the camp before your missed. I appreciate you coming to me about the odd reaction to Sunset, and the creatures you spotted in the forest. I’ll be sure to have Sugarcoat take one of the girls on patrol to make sure none of those creatures get too close to the camp.”

“Thank you, Twilight,” Gloriosa said, pausing at the trailer door as if she wanted to say more, but instead just offered a small parting wave before heading outside. Sunny Flare and Sugarcoat watched her go, then Sunny hopped up into the trailer, closing the door behind her.

“Twilight, not that I want to sound like I’m questioning your judgment, but isn’t it a little dangerous to keep having her come into the lab like this?” said Sunny Flare carefully, “She may have agreed to work with us, but neither she nor her brother are actually Quincy.”

Twilight paused before answering, “Strictly speaking Sombra has made us a fully authorized and independent research unit under my juristic and command, with only him ranking above me on that chain of command. Filthy Rich and Soarin’ already know about Gloriosa and her involvement, because it’s not as if I could keep that secret, but because of the nature of our research I also have authority to put a gag order on that information going any further than who I authorize. In short, Filthy Rich had to know because he’s operating the conversion of the new training camp, and Gloriosa is directly connected to that. Soarin’ had to know because he’s my bodyguard and it's impossible to keep it a secret from him. Neither of them will spread the information further until I deem it necessary. To take a page from Sugarcoat’s book and put things more bluntly; it doesn’t matter if Gloriosa and Timber are Quincy because as far as their status is concerned, they have my confidence, which is good enough for Sombra. Hence, good enough for any other Quincy.”

“Right,” said Sunny Flare, “Just wanted to make sure we weren’t seriously violating any rules here. To also put it bluntly as Sugarcoat would, you seem to really like this Gloriosa and are very trusting of her, despite her holding onto a ludicrously powerful source of magic that has already proven to screw with our experiments.”

“I’m starting to feel uncomfortable with all these comparisons to myself,” said Sugarcoat, “I do know how to speak delicately. I just usually choose not to.”

Twilight smiled at Sugarcoat, “No offense meant. But, yes, I take your point, Sunny. I’m not trying to be reckless. I just can’t ignore what Gloriosa represents, either. She’s a unique magic user, with access to the very power our unit exists to research and understand. I’m already making incredible strides, and I believe with her cooperation, we’ll find entirely new avenues to grasping just what Equestria’s magic is and why it works the way it does. From there, the sky itself may not even be the limit on what we can achieve.”

Which for Twilight meant a whole host of things. It meant understanding the magic inside her that even with Midnight’s help still eluded her. It meant being able to help Sunset and her other friends. It meant having the leverage needed to truly affect change in the Quincy, because if she ushered in a new era of combined reishi/magic tech, backed by Sombra’s support, then she could make the other Sternritter listen to her when it came time to explain the benefits of partnership over war with the Soul Reapers and Hollows.

She just had to reach a little further, even if she was all too painfully aware of the dangers magic could represent. Already she suspected the overabundance of magic contained in the geodes might be affecting Gloriosa’s personality in subtle ways the woman probably wasn’t aware of. She hadn’t known Gloriosa long enough to really be sure, but her protectiveness of the geodes was obvious. Twilight knew magic was difficult to let go of, once its power was infused inside you. But there were good ways to channel it. Sunset, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy were all living proof of the good magic could accomplish.

The reaction of the geodes to her friends was interesting, and as she took the time to look over the data from her scanner, she started to suspect it wasn’t mere coincidence, either. It was almost as if the geodes were pulled towards the magic inside her, and Twilight imagined the reaction had been the same with Sunset. Were the geodes simply resonating with a similar form of magic, or was the connection stronger than that? If only she knew how the geodes even got where they were. That still struck her as incredible odd.

What connection did the Everfree Forest of this world have to Equestria?

----------

The girls rested on the shore of the lake, each of them taking a load off and sitting around several blankets that had been set out. The sun was starting to fall behind the mountains, casting a few last ember glows upon the lake’s reflective waters. Behind the girls, the camp still bustled with some activity, a number of campers still hanging out around the campfires that Gloriosa’s wilderness survival lesson had seen them building.

Many other campers had retired to their tents to wind down, since it was going to be an early morning. The next day’s activities would start with various craft projects, including kite making, wood carving, and how to make useful survival tools like fish hooks and lean-toos. Sunset was kind of looking forward to it, but her enthusiasm was somewhat dampened by the knowledge that she and her friends weren’t just here for the carefree fun of a summer camp.

“Has anyone seen ‘Principal’ Celestia?” she asked her friends after they’d all settled down, “She did say she’d come see us once the day’s activities were done.”

“Last I saw of her she was with Luna heading towards the camp center, but that was at least an hour ago,” said Fluttershy, offering a few nuts to a pair of squirrels that had wandered up to the group.

“I imagine she’ll be here soon,” said Rarity, “But she’s likely waiting until it gets fully dark and she can meet with us with fewer prying eyes or ears about.”

“At least we got a’ nice full day o’ normal ol’ campin’ in ‘fore all this Soul Reaper stuff comes up,” said Applejack, picking up a stone and giving it a quick toss across the lake. With her enhanced strength, the stone skipped nearly to the lake’s center, and the farm girl blushed, “Near as normal gits anymore, nowadays.”

“Well I definitely had tons of fun, and plan on having tons more, no matter how things go with our crazy plan to-” Pinkie Pie began to say loudly, until all the girls glared at her as one and she grinned sheepishly, rapidly lowering her voice to a whisper, “Rescueay the Emberay, secretlyay.”

“I wonder what the egghead is up to right now?” said Rainbow Dash, “Kinda sucks Twilight couldn’t play camp counselor with us. I’ve been missing her and her doopey glasses.”

“Well, she’s got her duties with the Quincy now,” replied Sunset, a tint of blue melancholy entering her tone, “It might be a long time before all of us can really get back to the way things were. If things ever go back to the way they were.”

“Personally I say we should be embracing the new, darlings,” said Rarity, giving her hair a brief toss out of her face, “Fashions change, and so too do our lives. Even if we get clear of all this spirit war nonsense, we’re also soon looking at moving on from high school. This year marred graduation for some of us. Fluttershy, I know you’re looking at veterinary school, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I’m going to be looking at the catalogues to find which university might be best,” Flutershy said, hugging her knees after she finished feeding the squirrels, “I don’t really want to move out of town, though, so I might just go to Canterlot University.”

“Yikes,” said Rainbow Dash, “I totally spaced that you’re basically the oldest of us. Well, you and technically Sunset. How old are you again?”

Sunset chuckled, “Ain’t ever answering that one, no matter how much you ask. Far as my ‘human’ birth certificate is concerned, I’m eighteen. Which also means I got to figure out what I’m doing next. If anything.”

“Oh c’mon Sunset, you’ll be awesome at whatever you decide to do, so don’t mope about it!” Rainbow Dash said, “in fact, let’s stop thinking about all this heavy stuff! Geeze, makes my head hurt. Where the heck is Celestia, anyway?”

“Hey everyone!”

All eyes turned to see a familiar head of green hair as Clover came running over, smiling and waving. Sunset had to raise her eyebrow as she saw the Soul Reaper had her gigai dressed up in forest green khaki shorts, with a thick overshirt that looked suited to a Daring Do novel, along with big leather boots.

“You look like you’re dressed for safari, Clover,” Sunset said, standing to give the girl a greeting hug once she was within arm's distance.

Clover’s cheeks popped with rose color as she looked at herself, “Hey, I’ve never been camping before. I picked whatever clothes looked outdoorsy. I tried reading up on modern camping techniques and dress, and this seemed appropriate. Sorry I missed most of today, too, but I had to deal with getting the new arrivals in town situated.”

“New arrivals?” asked Rarity, eyebrow shooting up.

“Yeah, the Captain of Tenth Division arrived today, along with about a hundred extra Soul Reapers. Took me and Posey quite some time to find places to stay for all of them.”

A quiet descended on the rest of the girls, their looks ranging from stunned to worried. Sunset felt like she’d just taken a punch to the gut. A hundred more Soul Reapers!? Alongside Captain Sweet Cider, of all people!? That... that might throw a remarkably giant wrench in their plans. She had to inform Adagio as soon as possible! Her and Twilight both!

Clover noticed their looks, her own face turning worried, “What’s wrong? You guys are acting like I just told you half of Las Noches was descending on us.”

“We’re just surprised, is all,” said Applejack, recovering from her shock first and approaching Clover, “So my ma’s here, eh? Wish she’d come ta see me.”

“Well, from what I understand she had duties of her own to perform, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she came to see you soon. I just imagine she didn’t want to interrupt your work here at the camp,” Clover said, casting glances towards the other girls, “Is... something going on? I don’t want to push it or anything, but you all have kind of felt off lately.”

Sunset licked dry lips and said, “Do you remember what I said before? That if it was something you could help with, I’d tell you?”

“Yes. And if it’s not, I understand, I just want to know if everything is okay.”

Sunset was very tired of having to lie to her friend. She glanced at the other girls, “Command decision here. We all trust Clover, right?”

“Abso-positively-lutey!” said Pinkie Pie with zero hesitaiton.

“She’s always been our friend, since day one,” Fluttershy said.

“Hey, Clover’s had our backs plenty of times. If we’re doing this, I’m game,” replied Rainbow Dash.

Applejack gave Clover a hard look, and sighed, “I trust ya, Clover. But ya need to understand that if we talk ‘bout what’s goin’ on, it’s gonna put ya in a hard spot.”

“Indeed,” said Rarity, “You may be better off not knowing, for your own protection. That said, you do have my trust.”

Clover looked nervous, but there was a warm look in her eyes as she smiled, “This has got to be the most terrifying moment of heartwarming trust anybody’s ever shown me. As in, I’m grateful for the vote of trust, but kind of scared as to what you might be about to tell me.”

Sunset looked at the Soul Reaper and put a hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing, “You went against Soul Society for us once. I don’t want to put you in that position again. You want the truth, we’ll give it to you, but I need you to understand this will put you in a very hard spot. You can still walk away-”

Clover’s own hand came up and touched Sunset’s over her shoulder, also gently squeezing. Clover’s smile was honest as she said, “Are you kidding? Me, walk away from you guys? Whatever’s going down, I’m in. No matter what it is.”

Well, that was that then. With a deep breath, and one last look to make sure no one else was around to listen in, Sunset sat down with Clover, with her other friends surrounding her, and told Clover in full what was happening and what the plan was.

By the end of it, Clover was wide eyed, and took nearly a full minute of silence with her face contorted into an expression of deep thought.

“Wow...” she said at last, “Okay... so, first off, thanks for telling me, and I get exactly why you were so hesitant to bring me in on this before. This isn’t quite like trying to rescue Captain Celestia and Luna from execution. That was saving fellow Soul Reapers form a clear injustice. This...? This is a much more sticky situation.”

“I know, the whole thing is a real mess-” Sunset began, but Clover went on as if she hadn’t heard.

“I mean you’re basically telling me that the plan is to rescue an Arrancar from my own Davison's research lab, an Arrancar we kind of need to have a chance of opening a way to your world. Celestia and Luna were innocent of treason, you know? I help you do this, I’d be completely, one hundred percent, no doubt about it, guilty of betraying Soul Society. They wouldn’t even have to throw the book at me. There's entire walls of scrolls containing laws that would describe in detail how screwed I’d be.”

“Hey, you’re the one who wanted to know so badly,” pointed out Rainbow Dash, and Clover let out a humourless laugh.

“Oh, I didn't say I wasn’t going to help you do it. If anything I’m extremely relieved you trusted me here. This way I can help you plan better, help you rescue this Arrancar in a way that ought to minimize potential damage. Honestly, I’m also relieved because... well... I’ve seen the experiments proceeding on the Arrancar in question. I’m not convinced Captain Starswirl is barking up the right tree.”

“What does that mean?” asked Sunset, but right then Rarity perked up and looked out across the camp.

“Girls, it’s Celestia,” Rarity warned, and everyone looked to see that indeed Celestia was walking their way, coming from the camp center.

They all quieted down and made their own attempts at acting natural, although Sunset was far from certain they pulled it off very well. Thankfully either Celestia didn’t notice, or assumed the girl’s uneasiness was due to the fact that she was there to discuss the portal with them and what purpose the girls were actually at Camp Everfree for... at least from the Soul Reaper’s perspective.

“I hope everyone had a good first day here?” asked Celestia in a plain, conversational tone, clearly trying to dispel their unease.

“It went great,” said Sunset, “Got to admit, I’m kind of wishing we’d come here just for camp and nothing else, because this place is just the kind of spot we’d need to really unwind.”

“It’s beautiful out here, and the animals are all very friendly,” agreed Fluttershy, “I would love to come here again sometime.”

“It is a wonderful place,” Celestia said, “I remember it well from the last time I was here with my sister.”

“Yeah, what’s up with that?” asked Rainbow Dash, “You two are, like, super old Soul Reapers, right? So how were you here before, as ‘kids’?”

Celestia laughed that rich, chiming laugh of hers, “Before there was ever an Equestrian portal discovered here, this city was still heavily utilized by the old Quincy family’s. Hence Soul Society still considered it worthy of observation. Luna invited me along on a recon mission here some years ago, and we used younger gigai’s back then. It made it easier to fly under the Quincy’s proverbial radar that way. Going to summer camp was my idea, however. I just wanted to get Luna to loosen up some and enjoy the living world while we were here. Remembering this camp is partly why I recommended Captain Starswirl move his lab to this area.”

“Speaking of which, that’s why we’re here, right?” said Sunset, “To help with the experiments on the portal.”

“That is the idea,” Celestia explained, gesturing for the girls to follow her along the lakeshore. As they started walking, Celestia continued to say, “Since the portal is formed of Equestrian magic, and you girls are the only source of that magic we know of, I believe Captain Starswirl thinks that having you present will provide a better means for him to understand the portal itself.”

“Which in turn means he believes that studying your magic and its relation to the portal will also make it easier for him to determine a means of utilizing an Arrancar’s Garganta to bridge a path to Equestria,” Clover added, “Although given how different Hollow energy is from Equestrian magic, I’m not certain it will work.”

“As Starswirl himself is prone to remind us, nothing is ever certain,” said Celestia, her expression growing shadowed and grim, but perhaps that was just a trick of the fading light as the sun went deeper behind the mountains and cast everything in violet dusk. “I do hope these experiments bear fruit sooner rather than later. I know how eager you all are to go to Equestria and help protect it from Starlight Glimmer’s predations.”

“So you’re taking us to the lab?” Sunset asked, and Celestia glanced back at her. “How far away is it? The Everfree Forest is a pretty big place to go hiking in the middle of the night.”

“Yes, and it may be closer than you think.”

Celestia stopped at a point nearly at the southern tip of the lake, which had taken a good fifteen minute walk to get to. By this point dusk was rapidly turning to full night, although there was just enough light between the last shreds of sunlight and the now vast array of stars in the sky to accompany the moon that Sunset found she could see almost as easily as in broad daylight. Celestia raised her hand to the air and touched what appeared to be a glassy shimmer. A rectangular hole opened up in the air, like a doorway through a mirror.

Within was a small stretch of beach that had been hidden from the outside by Kido wards. An ornate bridge of bright red wood led out onto the lake for about twenty feet, then swept straight down into the water, where the water itself was parted like a glass tube was set into it, even though the only thing Sunset could see holding the water at bay was an array of glowing paper talisman with kanji written upon them.

“Ooooh, swanky,” said Pinkie Pie, “You Soul Reapers would totally rock it at building your own Sea World!”

Celestia laughed lightly, “If only we were able to spend our energies on such pursuits, the world would likely be better for it. Come, the lab is below.”

“It’s at the center of the lake?” asked Rarity, “Why put it down there?”

“It’s far less likely to be stumbled upon by any local humans, wouldn’t you agree?”

Rarity thought about that for a moment, and conceded the point with a shrug. Sunset and the girls followed Celestia down into the water, the bridge turning into a stairway that led down at a sharp angle into the dark depths of the lake.

----------

“Today went pretty well, didn’t it?” said Timber, wiping his brow as he finished putting away the last of the kitchenware leftover from dinner into the dishwasher. When Gloriosa didn’t immediately respond, he glanced over at her and found his sister sitting at the small kitchen table, staring out the window. Her fingers were idly caressing the multi-colored geodes of her necklace. Timber Spruce frowned and went up to her, waving a hand.

“Hello? Timber to Gloriosa, you awake in there?”

“Huh?” she blinked, then gave him a sisterly smirk and batted his hand away, “Oh don’t tease me. I was just lost in thought for a moment.”

He could imagine. It seemed every day leading up to the campers arriving Gloriosa had spent over at Twilight’s field lab. He’d barely seen her for a lot of that time, and had needed to do nearly twice the prep work he normally did to get the camp ready. He wasn’t bitter over that, he knew how much Gloriosa wanted to learn more about those geodes and the powers they gave her... but he did worry about her.

“A lot’s happened,” he said, looking out the window as well. The moon hung over the lake, shining a wide, silver gleam upon its dark surface. “Finding that necklace has really been like throwing open Pandora’s Box for us. It seems like the whole world’s gone upside down since you found that thing.”

“It’s not a thing Timber,” Gloriosa said, with more heat in her voice than he’d expected as she clutched the necklace tightly, “It’s magic. My magic. I can use it to fix a lot of problems we have around here, once I learn to get a handle on it’s powers.”

“Whoa, didn’t mean anything by that, sis. Just saying, life’s gotten way more complicated than we’re used to, and... and I just want you to know I’m behind you all the way. I want both of us to be safe, no matter how dangerous things get, you know? We’re all we’ve got.”

His words seemed to make her relax, and she let go of the necklace and sighed as she reached out and squeezed his hand, “I know. With mom and dad gone, it really is just us. That’s why I don’t want to lose you, or this camp. I want us and our home to be safe.”

He squeezed back, “It will, sis. Just be careful, okay? I like Twilight-” realizing how that might sound he quickly amended, “I mean, I like Twilight in a ‘she seems okay’ sense and not in a, er, ‘more’ sense. Okay, starting over. I think Twilight can be trusted, and I like that she’s helping us out, especially you, with your whole nature magic thing. But still, just be careful. We still don’t really know much about what’s going on with these Quincy. The girls seem cool, but just keep an eye out and watch your back out there.”

Gloriosa looked at him, then nodded slowly with an amused smile, “I can do that. But perhaps I ought to ask you to keep an eye out too? You seem like you’d like to watch Twilight quite... closely.”

“Ugh, sis, please, I barely know her. And she’s probably underage.”

“Mmmhmm, and you’ve just been bringing sandwiches up to the trailers all week out of simple, platonic friendship.”

“How is that implausible? Sandwiches are very platonic!”

“Except I noticed that when Twilight mentioned she really likes tuna sandwiches, there always seemed to be a few more of those in every batch you brought to lunch.”

“Gah, you’re not going to drop this, are you? Fine, tease away, but just remember this for when you end up crushing on someone, because payback is going to be coming in spades, sis.”

She laughed, and it was a good, natural, tension popping laugh that made Timber Spruce relieved to hear. As long as Gloriosa could still laugh like that, he felt like they could handle pretty much whatever insanity life was about to throw their way. Glancing at his watch, he said, “Well, most the campes ought to be asleep by now. Best I go out and do a quick runaround to make sure everything is A-okay.”

“Good idea,” Gloriosa let out a yawn, “I think I’ll hit the hay a bit early tonight. I’m feeling bushed.”

“I won’t be far behind. Sleep well, sis.”

They parted ways outside the camp center, Gloriosa heading off to their family cabin, which was situated in a cluster of trees just south of the main camp area, while Timber Spruce headed north to the tent grounds. There was a short trail through a line of trees to get to the clearing where the tens were, and as Timber emerged there, he saw most of the tents were dark with sleeping campers. A few still had lights on, night owls staying up late to chat, read, play board games, ect. Timber didn’t bother them. There wasn’t a curfew or anything, so campers could stay up late at their own risk of drowsiness in the morning. His only job was to make sure everything was fine, no fires that weren't put out properly, or any rambunctious teenagers doing what they shouldn’t.

He’d gone from one end of the tent grounds to the other, and was halfway to making his way back when he spied the sight of a cluster of shadows just making their way from one of the larger tents. It was one of the few tents that had been assembled together from a pair of normal tents, and while Timber didn’t get a good look, it seemed like about half a dozen shapes quickly sneaking out of the back of the tent and moving off towards the thicker treeline north of the tent grounds.

Now what in the world are they up to?, Timber wondered, considering his options.

There was no curfew, and technically no rules against going into the forest, even at night. Everfree was a pretty safe place, with next to no hostile animals. But going into a forest at night was always somewhat dangerous. Terrain was rough in places, and people could easily trip and break a leg or arm. There were a few sharp ravines and even sheer cliffs around that an unwary teenager might tumble down, possibly fatally.

So, rules or no rules, he ought to go after these silly kids before they hurt themselves. Probably just a group that thought it’d be ‘cool’ to see the forest at night. Maybe they were even doing some kind of childish dare. Either way, it was his duty to make sure none of them got hurt.

Still, that didn’t mean he couldn’t teach them a bit of a lesson while he was at it. So instead of rushing off after them at full speed, Timber grinned mischievously to himself, and proceeded to sneak after the group.

----------

The laboratory was smaller than Sunset Shimmer had expected. Granted she wasn’t quite sure what she’d expected to see, but the rather humble collection of bubble shaped white tents surrounding a fairly simple metal platform and scaffolding that surrounded the portal statue was not the mental image she’d had. The more impressive sight was simply how effectively the Soul Reapers wards kept the lake water at bay, essentially creating a dome shaped ceiling of water where Sunset could still see the shadowy shapes of fish darting about.

The only other thing of real note was the containment device, shaped like a vertical ring, that was on the central platform alongside the portal statue. There, Sunset saw a girl who looked little older than she or her friends, with wild blue hair and a pair of horns curving down from her brow. The pitch black Hollow hole in her abdomen confirmed her as a Arrancar.

So that’s Ember. She’s not looking too good... Sunset thought, noticing the pallid cast to Ember’s skin, and the way she hung in a sagging manner from the restraints that kept her fixed to the containment ring. Glancing about, Sunset didn’t see Ember’s Zanpaktou anywhere, and imagined it had to be kept somewhere else, perhaps in one of the other lab tents. There were a number of monitoring devices and strangely shaped terminals hooked up to even odder arrays of cables and strange devices hooked to both the containment ring holding Ember, and the Canterlot High statue that held the Equestrian portal. Sunset could only guess it was all for the experiments being conducted.

When she and the girls came through along with Celestia and Clover, they were quickly greeted by a melancholy looking Lieutenant Meadowbrook. He looked tired, with faint, gray circles under his eyes.

“Captain Celestia, Third Seat Clover, young ladies,” he nodded to all of them in turn, “Captain Starswirl has been expecting you.”

“Please, take us to him, Lieutenant,” replied Celestia cordially, and Meadowbrook gave a swift bow without preamble, and turned to lead them around the side of the central platform. On the north side they saw Captain Starswirl sitting at one of the terminals set around the side of the platform, old fingers dancing over the keys as he worked on what appeared to be some kind of simulated model of portal physics. Sunset was somewhat familiar with some of the magic theory behind portals, but had to admit that even when she’d first discovered the existence of the mirror that would eventually take her to the human world, all that time ago, she’d never fully grasped how the portal worked.

It seemed like Starswirl had been learning a lot with his experiments, if the images Sunset was seeing on the large, oval shaped terminal screen was any indication. Granted she didn’t understand much of it, but from what she could grasp at a glance, the Soul Reaper Captain of the Twelfth Division had divined a lot of the fundamentals of how the portal’s construction worked. She also noted that besides the Equestrian portal’s simulated model, there was another that looked a lot like the Garganta portals she’d seen.

“Ah, good, you’re here,” Stariswirl said at their approach, turning in his chair and getting up, dusting himself off, “You’ll forgive my appearance. I’ve barely the time for proper hygiene when there’s this much work to be done. Captain Celestia, good to see you gain. And you young Canterlot ladies, thank you for coming. I think with your assistance we may well be able to crack this particular science egg wide open.”

“Just as long as you don’t crack anything else open while you’re at it,” Sunset found herself saying, “That portal still has a trap attached to it.”

Rather than any apparent offense, Starswirl gave her a wry look, “Oh yes, I’ve hardly forgotten the danger of setting that barrier off. Thankfully I do believe our Arrancar guest will end up providing a means of circumventing it.”

“Is she... okay?” asked Fluttershy, her own eyes swimming with sympathy as she looked towards Ember, “She seems almost sick.”

“Hmm?” Starswirl glanced at Ember as if he were looking at a specimen pinned under a microscope, “The Hollow remains alive. The energy drain from several previous attempts at simulating her Garganta has left her weaker than I’d like, but she’s in no danger of expiring. Each test has helped me refine our theories and provided a host of new data. I’m certain with you young ladies providing the next piece of the puzzle that we can form a proper connection with the portal to Equestria and link it to an open Garganta. It will just take some more trial and error.”

“Out of curiosity, why can’t this be done using the portals you Soul Reapers utilize?” asked Rarity, crossing her arms and giving the whole lab a faintly distasteful glance, “The Senkaimon, I believe they’re called?”

“An astute question,” Starswirl said, turning to Rarity, “The difference is largely in power and versatility. Senkaimon are engineered to lead directly to the Precipice Realm, which connects the living world and Soul Society. You need a means to navigate the Precipice Realm to then get to Soul Society, since the Senkaimon itself is not directly linked to it. Comparatively, Garganta are directly linked to Hueco Mundo, so one doesn’t require any additional means of navigation, one just has to cross through the Garganta to get to where you’re going. Theoretically speaking all we have to do is figure out how to substitute Hueco Mundo for Equestria in regards to the Garganta’s destination link, and that should allow one to use a Garganta to travel directly to Equestria.”

“Or,” Meadowbrook said, “We’re also working on the vice versa approach of linking a Garganta to the Equestrian portal we already have, effectively altering the portal into being like a Garganta. Since the space within a Garganta portal is nearly an infinite void, the trap that’s inside the Equestrian portal wouldn’t explode outward, as if shunted through a tube, but explode in all directions and lose most of its potency in the void, then allowing someone to cross through it like any other Gargnata, straight to Equestria.”

Applejack took off her hat for a moment and scratched her head, “I don’t quite understand what yer sayin’, but it all boils down ta doin’ more experimentin’ stuff with the help o’ our magic, an’ you’ll be able ta make a portal that’ll get us over ta Sunset’s home turf?”

“That is indeed the hope,” Starswirl said, moving back to his terminal and resuming his seat, “And a few hiccups aside, I do believe we’ve made great progress.”

“Hiccups?” asked Sunset, and Clover was quick to interject.

“With your permission, Captain, I could explain?”

“Ah, yes, please do Clover. I need to finish the adjustments to this model before we begin the next experiment anyway,” replied Starswirl almost absent mindedly as his eyes focused upon the screen in front of him.

Clover turned to the girls, and even gave Meadowbrook a quick glance, “The Lieutenant could also probably explain this better, but you should know there have been a few... unusual magical surges in our early experiments.”

“Surges? Like what?” Rainbow Dash asked with a tilted head.

“We’re actually not really sure,” admitted Clover, “I wasn’t here for all of them, but I was here for one of them. It was like when we tried outputting energy from the Arrancar and interface it with the portal, or even just increase the porals own output, we’d get random surges of energy from both the portal and the local area.”

“I’d suggested we hold off further portal tests until we learned more about these surges, but the Captain believes we’re too close to a breakthrough,” said Meadowbrook, and Celestia looked at him with a thoughtful gaze.

“Do you believe these surges represent a serious enough danger to warrant halting research?” she asked, not in a tone of accusation but rather honest curiosity and desire for the Lieutenant’s opinion. Meadowbrook cast a furtive look towards his Captain, Starswirl utterly absorbed in his work.

“So far there’s been no overt sign these surges are causing any harm, but I’m hesitant to say there’s no danger. Magic, no offense to the young ladies present, is a very unpredictable and dangerous form of energy. Doubly so because we don’t really understand it very well. Every day we’ve been here we’ve made strides, it’s true, in furthering that knowledge, but for all we know the next surge might open up a portal to somewhere we don’t want it to go. Or open up one we can’t close. That said, I’m aware it's important we complete this research, in order to stop a criminal who’s threatening both our world and this Equestria.”

“I wish there was a better way to go about this,” Sunset said, “Even in my world, magic research always carries an element of risk. Plenty of stories about unicorns that got on the wrong side of a magical experiment and ended up turning themselves into potted plants, creating a sentient ooze that ate their castle, or teleported themselves into a wall. Magic is unpredictable because it’s literally the power to alter the world to your whim. You can’t experiment with that without serious risk of unforeseen consequences, because it’s impossible to predict what magic will do once it decides to run amok.”

Meadowbrook gave her a serious look, “I’m inclined to take your warning to heart. If it were purely my call alone, I’d even suggest halting further experiments until we had a better grasp on the origin of the surges. As it stands, Captain Commander Scorpan has put this project entirely under Twelfth Division’s jurisdiction, so Captain Starswirl is the only one who can actually make the call, one way or another.”

“You do realize I can hear you all over there, right?” said Starswirl, apparently finishing what the was doing and standing up once more from his terminal, “I’m old, but neither blind nor deaf.”

“Sorry Captain,” Meadowbrook said with a smile of long suffering familiarity, “You have told me more than once to never hesitate to speak my mind.”

“Indeed. And contrary to what some may think, I do listen to valid points of criticism. I also am not dismissing young Miss Shimmer’s words of caution. In fact one of the numerous reasons I wanted her and her friends present here at the lab was so that someone with actual experience in the use of magic could provide some insight. That being said, Miss Shimmer, do you have any ideas what might be causing these surges?”

She went up to the terminal, “That depends, do you have any data on them?”

To that Starswirl gave her a smirk, keying up several new screens of information readouts, “As if I would fail to record them.”

Sunset couldn’t help but smile a bit and feel a tiny hint of giddiness, despite the circumstances. After all, what unicorn who spent any amount of time studying magic didn’t know about Starswirl the Bearded? Sure, this wasn’t actually her world’s Starswirl, but he did have that old, curmudgeonly wizard look that seemed to fit the mental image of the unicorn legend. She imagined if Princess Twilight were here, she’d geek out just a tad at this. Still, she shook the feeling off and turned her full attention to the data. It took her a few moments to parse out the Soul Reaper’s odd annotations, but she started to get a picture of things.

“Okay, so from what I’m seeing here, the ‘surges’ are... huh, they’re a lot like what happened when Starswirl, er, I mean, my world’s Starswirl first invented teleportation.”

Starswirl’s bushy white eyebrows rose, “Invented teleportation?”

“Yes, a lot of spells in the modern age stem from Starswirl’s work to expand magical theory. There’s books for practically every spell he invented, including copies of some of his original notes. Looking at your data here, it just reminds me of when he was working to develop teleportation, Starswirl noted that the spell would experience surges that would distort the area around him. He found out later this was due to the teleportation field lacking a means of restricting its fluctuations while in proximity to other sources of magic, which would cause refractions of magical energy. He had to move his experiments to the middle of nowhere until he developed a way to contain a teleportation spell’s energy to a limited field, to prevent surges.”

“Really? So what you’re telling me is that when we’ve activated the portal, increasing its energy output, the magic has lacked a means of containment and is refracting off of other sources of magic, hence causing surges?”

Sunset scratched her chin in thought, “I can’t be sure of that, but the surges sound similar to what I remember reading about in Starswirl’s notes.”

“Would you be able to replicate the kind of containment teleportation spells use to prevent that side effect and apply it to the portal here?” asked Starswirl, eyes alight with a sort of inner fire that Sunset had sometimes seen in Twilight when she got on a scientific bender.

“If I were still a unicorn, sure. My friends and I might have magic inside us, but I can’t use it the way I would as a unicorn. That said, the spirit energy used to cast Kido spells may be different than magic, but it can still interact with magic. It's not impossible a properly attuned Kido ward might have the right affect and keep the magic from causing those surges.”

She shook her head, “I’m not sure how to even start doing that, and there’s another question I’d rather answer first.”

“Allow me to guess. If these magic surges are caused by uncontained magic ‘refracting’ from other sources of magic... then just what are these other sources of magic?” supplied Starswirl, and Sunset Shimmer nodded.

“The girls and me only got here today, and you had these surges well before that. So that means there has to be another source, or even multiple sources of magic in the area.”

“Just how close would these sources need to be in order to cause the anomalies they have?” asked Clover, “Pretty close, right?”

“Yeah, I can’t say for sure, but definitely within the general area. Probably a few miles, I’d guess.”

“Hmm,” Starswirl stroked his beard in thought, “My suggestion then would be for you to work with my Third Seat and Lieutenant on developing a Kido ward for the portal, while the rest of you young ladies keep an eye out for anything that might consist of these other magic sources. We can delay further experimentation until then.”

“That sounds more than reasonable to me,” agreed Sunset, giving a questioning look towards Clover and Meadowbrook, “I’m afraid my Kido studies have mostly focused on Hado and Bakudo. Those wards you guys use I’m still pretty unfamiliar with.”

“That’s fine,” replied Meadowbrook with an encouraging smile, “They’re not actually that complex. Clover and I will give you a crash course, while you do the same for us on magic principles. Between the three of us, maybe we can work something up that will let us experiment on the portal more safely.”

“Here’s hoping...” Sunset said, wondering if this would even matter at all, considering that in a few days time, this whole lab would likely be raided, and their Arrancar 'specimen’ taken. Then again, even with Ember gone, they could still possibly find ways to experiment with the portal. Developing a Kido ward that would make that theoretically safer wasn’t a bad idea, no matter how Adagio’s rescue attempt panned out.

----------

Despite a truly amazing carpet of stars coating the sky, and an exceptionally bright moon out, the Everfree Forest quickly became dark for the cluster of young campers. The thick overhang of tall evergreen pines all but blotted out the light from the night sky, leaving on silver shafts of light that pierced the darkness periodically. Even so, navigation wasn’t overly difficult at first, if only because the Cutie Mark Crusaders had been smart enough to bring plenty of flashlights for everyone.

Even so, the tangled undergrowth was enough to trip up even the nimblest feet, and certain members of their group were hardly that nimble to begin with.

“Argh! How many tree roots stick up like this!? I thought roots were supposed to go underground and stuff!” exclaimed Diamond Tiara, having nearly fallen flat on her face for the fifth or sixth time since they snuck away from the tents. She was only saved from eating a mouthful of dirt by the proximity of Silver Spoon, who’s surprisingly swift reflexes caught her friend every time Diamond Tiara was about to faceplant.

“Ya could always chicken out an’ head on back,” drawled Applebloom with a sense of smug teasing clear in her voice.

“Not happening,” Diamond Tiara replied firmly, “We’re not backing out of this bet.”

An owl’s hoots echoed through the inky black of the forest, and Diamond Tiara nearly jumped, then gave Applebloom a fierce look with her face turning almost red enough to glow, “This forest isn’t that scary.”

“Heheh, I kinda like how everything smells so fresh and piney,” said the eldest of their number, Derpy Doo following along behind the Cutie Mark Crusaders and their rivals with a carefree smile on her face.

“Who invited her along, again?” asked Silver Spoon, and Sweetie Belle turned a flashlight towards her.

“She wanted to come, so why not? Thought maybe it’d make you scaredy cats feel better to have an older student with us. Call it a handicap.”

To that Silver Spoon just rolled her eyes, while Derpy laughed happily.

“I think it's kinda cute the way you girls are having a test of courage. You all must be really good friends.”

“We are not!” both Applebloom and Diamond Tiara all but shouted at the same time, then looked at each with disgusted expressions and pointedly went silent.

They were technically following a forest trail they’d been shown earlier in the day during the hikes around the forest near the lake. Timber Spruce had kept the day hike to the easiest trails, but had shown where several other, rougher trails started that led further into the deep woods, and towards the foothills at the base of the distant mountains. The campers might try some of the harder trails later in the week, but Timber warned that those trails could be tough on first timers. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo had taken some time during dinner that evening to work out their plan, and had decided to use one of the trails heading for the deep woods to the north. It wouldn’t be as rough or steep as the trail towards the foothills, but they reasoned it’d be ‘scarier’ there, especially once Scootaloo’s Doll came into play.

They’d actually snuck off after dinner to a hidden clearing they’d seen during the hike around the lake, where Scootaloo had summoned Alerion and explained the plan.

”This is utterly beneath me,” Alerion had said, managing to convey complete disdain despite his barely moveable stone features.

“C’mon Alerion, these girls have some frights coming, after the year they’ve put me and my friends through. It’ll be fun. Think of it like hunting practice, like we used to do all the time!” said Scootaloo.

Alerion turned his head to the side, “Scaring small children like a cheap Halloween decoration is an insult to my majesty and might! I should stomp you flat for such a disrespectful-”

“I’ll give you a whole, fresh box of oranges.”

“...” Alerion paused, then said,”Two boxes.”

And that had essentially been that. Alerion was up in the sky now, supposedly keeping track of the group’s progress. Sweetie Belle leaned in close to Scootaloo, and whispered, “You sure he can even see us through all the trees?”

“Don’t worry,” Scootaloo whispered back, “Alerion can sense where I am pretty much always. He’ll just wait until I give him the signal to swoop down and scare the pants off those two.”

“Three,” Sweetie Belle reminded her, “We’ve got Derpy here now. I kinda feel bad for her, she doesn’t deserve to be frightened or anything.”

“Hmm... yeah, I see you’re point, but not much we can do about that now. We can apologize to her later.”

“Hey,” said Silver Spoon, “What are you two whispering about over there?”

“Nothing you need to be concerned about,” Sweetie Belle said, “You just keep an eye out. Who knows what kind of spooky things might be lurking out there, just waiting for little girls to wander by for a snack.”

Silver Spoon visibly rolled her eyes, but Diamond Tiara glanced about the surrounding shadows, licking her lips.

“Do we know for sure there’s no wolves or bears or anything out here?”

“Getting nervous already?” asked Applebloom. They’d reached a bend in the trail that swung around a particularly thick cluster of trees, and as they did so, the ground started to fill with strands of fog.

“No,” insisted Diamond Tiara, “I’m just thinking in practical terms. I’d hate to see any of you get mauled by a wild animal. I don’t think there’s actual monsters that are real, I’m not a toddler, but wildlife is a real thing.”

“Well if we run into any wolves, maybe you can tell them how rich your daddy is and they’ll leave you alone,” chided Sweetie Belle.

“I think wolves are cute,” said Derpy, “But I like cats more.”

“Wolves aren’t the same thing as dogs, Depry,” said Scootaloo, who started to look around with an extra hint of nervousness as she noticed the fog was growing thicker. It now clung to the ground at hip height, making it even harder for the girls to see where they were going. The trail bent upwards, rising towards a low hill that was covered in overhanging branches from a pine tree that looked as if it had taken a lightning strike to the base of its trunk at some point. It now leaned over the trail, casting it in even deeper shadows.

“What was that?” Diamond Tiara suddenly said, swinging her flashlight to the left.

Applebloom rolled her eyes, “What was what?”

“I thought I saw something move through the trees.”

“Maybe it’s bigfoot.”

“Ugh, I’m not lying, I saw something moving out there!”

“Well,” Applebloom said, “Ya wanna turn back? ‘Cause me n’ the girls are still goin’, an’ if you go back, we win.”

Diamond Tiara was clearly struggling to control a rising fear, not helped by the sudden outburst of another set of owl hoots. Yet she swallowed the fear, eyes hardened as she suddenly picked up speed and walked ahead of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. As she passed by, Applebloom heard Diamond Tiara muttering, as if it were a lucky charm.

“I’m a Rich... I’m a Rich...”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders followed her up the small hill, Derpy and Silver Spoon following behind, but a moment later Silver Spoon herself paused.

“Wait,” she said, in a tone of voice that none of the Cutie Mark Crusaders had ever heard from the girl. It was sharp, and hard, almost like a command.

“Huh?” Applebloom glanced back at Silver Spoon, who’s eyes were looking towards the trees to the left of the trail. Oddly, she wasn’t using her flashlight.

“What is it, Silver Spoon?” asked Diamond Tiara from the top of the hill, “I’m not going back! I will not lose to these simple minded bumpkins.”

Silver Spoon’s expression remained fixed on the forest, far more serious than anything Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, or Scootaloo had ever seen on her face. Her eyes narrowed behind her glasses.

“Something isn’t right,” she said, slowly, as if carefully choosing her words, “We should go back.”

“No way, not a chance,” said Diamond Tiara firmly.

“Diamond-”

“I said no, Silver Spoon, I’m not-”

“Diamond! Look out!”

A shadow crept over Diamond Tiara from behind, blocking out what little star and moonlight there’d been. With her face draining to that of a pale phantom’s, Diamond Tiara turned around. All she saw was a giant, bestial shape looming over her, well over ten feet tall. She caught faint hints of a feline face, with dripping fangs. Incomprehensibly, the creature stretched bat-like wings from its back, and a scorpion’s tail swayed with eager menace arched over it’s head. But mostly it was that hungry maw that kept Diamond Tiara’s attention as she tried to scream, but no sound by a horrified squeak came out.

None of the other girls knew what the creature was, but the Cutie Mark Crusaders could only assume it was like those plant wolves. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were both taken aback enough to be slow on the draw in reaching for the focus items of their Fullbrings. Even Scootaloo had to shake her daze before she started thinking to shout for Alerion.

None of them would have been fast enough to stop this lionine monster from savaging Diamond Tiara, who was helpless at the top of the hill.

At least, none of them except Silver Spoon, who’d sensed the creature coming, and while this was no Hollow, she’d been trained since she was barely old enough to walk to be not just a playmate for Diamond Tiara... but a bodyguard.

Before even a second had passed, Silver Spoon snapped out her left arm, and a silver, five pointed cross on a shot chain shot out from under her sleeve, where it’d remained hidden for most of her life. She’d never even shown it to her best friend, who was ignorant of the truth, at her father’s behest.

No point hiding things now, Silver Spoon imagined, as blue particles of reishi flowed from out of her Quincy cross, and a rough, but solid bow of raw blue energy took shape. She was still too young and inexperienced to do more than form simple, single reishi arrows, but her own father’s strict drills had given her the speed do form her bow, drawn aim, and fire without even thinking about it.

The azure arrow streaked past Diamond Tiara’s face by scant inches, and embedded itself in one of the monster’s gleaming eyes.

An unimaginable roar of rage and pain split the night air, and the monster reared away. Diamond Tiara did scream then, all but falling back down the hill while the other girls all looked in in mute shock.

Whatever satisfaction Silver Spoon had at hitting her mark and protecting her charge was swiftly swept away by the answering roars of the wounded beast that echoed from the trees all around them. Then, as several more pairs of yellow eyes gleamed in the darkness, and massive shapes lurched forward from the deeper woods, it became very apparent that the girls were not only not alone in the Everfree Forest... they were surrounded.

Author's Notes:

One hundred chapters... how the heck did that happen? It hardly feels like it's been that long since I started writing this, pretty much on a whim to deal with anxiety over changes at my job. I didn't exactly expect it to get this far, but I'm certainly proud that it has. I'm also extremely thankful for all you fine folks that have stuck with me this far. This story has grown to ridiculous proportions, and we've still got a ways to go yet before the final curtain, so thank you all for indulging my crazy up 'till now.

So do I have any special plans for the 100 episode mark? Well, no, not really. Embarrassing to say, but I really couldn't think of anything I could do that wouldn't either disrupt the plot or feel out of place (already did a beach episode, and the hot springs episode will just have to wait until a more appropriate time). That said, I do have a side project in the works that is related to Friendship Souls, a crossover with another fanfic, one that actually did a lot to inspire me to write Friendship Souls in the first place. That story isn't quite ready for public viewing yet, but I'm hopeful I'll have enough of it hammered into shape (by my standards at least) that I can have it up soon...ish. So, look forward to that.

So, do I have anything to say about the actual chapter? Well, its one of those chapters that's mostly forming the connective tissue between plot elements, character developments, and the action to come. Pretty long, for what it is, but much as I want to get to the action it's important to establish everything and set the board first. That's mostly what this is, getting all the pieces in place.

With all that said, thank you all for reading, and as always I sincerely appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques you folks might have for me. 'Till next time!

Episode 101: Beasts in the Dark

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Episode 101: Beasts in the Dark

There was no time for questions, but Applebloom certainly had plenty. All that mattered in that instant was that monsters were stalking through the treeline on either side of the forest path, and that she the rest of the girls’ only chance of escape was going to be by working together. Whatever was going on with Silver Spoon and that glowing bow of blue light would have to wait.

“Back down the path, hurry!” she shouted while grasping her pink hair bow and through her panic focused on the memories so important to her that were tied into that bow. Within a mere moment the bow ignited into crimson energy and formed the apple red whip that snapped at the ready in her hand.

She spun as the first of the nearest hulking shadows reached the edge of the path. Applebloom could smell a musky, thick animal scent filling the air alongside a rumbling grow as the creature, looking much like the first one with the body of a great, burly lion but with the wings of a bat and the tail of a scorpion, emerged and raised a paw to swipe at Derpy. The older girl had an utterly befuddled look about her, and Applebloom yelled, “Duck!” just as she swung her whip.

Whether Derpy heard Applebloom and reacted, or just saw the beast about to claw her and reacted on instinct, Derpy instantly hit the deck, covering her head. Applebloom’s whip zipped overhead, its metal tip smacking into the monster’s jaw with what should have been bone breaking force. Applebloom had seen that whip blow through trees, after all. Yet the lion-like creature took the blow and only staggered back a step or two, clearly dazed, but no more wounded than if by a solid punch.

“Oh horse apples,” Applebloom breathed, rushing to yank Derpy to her feet, “We gotta run, girls, now!”

Sweetie Belle had already summoned her wand, but swiftly converted it to staff size and with a panicked look about her pointed it at other shadows in the trees, sending a line of sparkling lights zipping off. It missed the moving shadows, which parted with predatory precision, and the sparkling energy instead struck a dead and fallen log, absorbing it into the staff’s orb.

“Dang it! What am I supposed to do with a log!?” Sweetie Belle cried, backing down the path on shaking legs.

Silver Spoon, her eyes flat but her jaw clenched tightly, yanked a babbling Diamond Tiara up.

“Diamond, stay close, and follow me!”

“This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening. This isn’t-”

“Diamond, MOVE!” Silver Spoon gave the other girl a rough shove towards where Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were backing down the path, and as Diamond stumbled that way Silver Spoon spun and started slowly backing up as well, firing streaking arrows of blue light into the depths of the forest.

The first beast she shot wasn’t dead. In fact it roared louder than the rest as it sprung back to its feet. One eye was gone, blood dripping down its face, but the monster snarled with vicious and rending intent as it spread its wings and leaped down the hillside towards Silver Spoon.

On Silver Spoon turned and fired an arrow, striking it in the chest, but the creature still descended towards her with claws outstretched to rip and tear. Only Silver Spoon’s incredible reflexes, far faster than any of the Cutie Mark Crusaders could have expected, saved her as she jumped back. The beast’s claws still tore at her dress, ripping a light wound on the girl’s shoulder, but Silver Spoon was trained with Blut Vene, and had hardened her flesh with reishi enough to keep from losing the limb and instead just took a light scratch.

Still, more of the creatures were emerging from the treeline, and it was clear their escape route was about to be cut off. Scootaloo, who’d kept close between her friends, was shouting at the very top of her lungs, cupping her hands around her mouth as she pointed it at the sky.

“Alerion! I need you!”

Silverspoon had no idea at all what Scootaloo was doing, but then again, none of the CMC had any idea what Silver Spoon was either, so fair’s fair, she supposed. She could tell none of the CMC seemed all that well trained or comfortable with their powers, whatever that power was. Applebloom’s whip seemed the most useful, but it wasn’t hitting hard enough to do more than bruise and annoy these hulking beasts. She had no idea what Sweetie Belle’s staff did, at least until Sweetie Belle swung it, and that orb glowed with teal light, and a dead log came shooting out like a cannonball to smash into the face of one of the monsters.

The blow bowled the beast backwards, and fortunately it was one of the ones who’d blocked the path behind them, so Silver Spoon saw the opportunity that presented and spun around, pooling reishi around her feet. She wasn’t very good at Hirenkyaku, and couldn’t do one at full speed because she’d yet to learn how to properly do Blut Vene over her whole body to keep the g-forces from killing her. Still, she was able to boost herself up above the group in a tall jump, and rained down three quick shots down on the other linien monster that was blocking the way back.

The reishi arrows struck true, and while they didn’t penetrate deep, they drew blood and got the monster looking up at its new assailant.

“Applebloom, go for the legs!” Silver Spoon called out, and thankfully the farmgirl didn’t question it or argue, immediately taking action.

Her crimson whip came around with a powerful crack of noise, smacking one of the monster’s legs just above the knee. Whether by luck or intent, this managed to pop the knee out of its joint and the beast toppled with an agonized roar. Silver Spoon heard someone shout to run, and wasn’t sure if it was her or Applebloom doing it. Maybe it was both of them, but either way, she landed and grabbed Diamond Tiara by the hand, while Applebloom did the same for the older girl, Derpy.

Then the group made a break for it at a dead spring back down the trail. Behind them the girls all heard branches breaking and bushes shaking alongside hungry roars and the deep thuds of heavy feet moving to chase them. Silver Spoon chanced a look back to see that while the beast with the dislocated knee wasn’t going anywhere, at least four or five more of the strange monsters were crashing through the forest or down the path behind the.

They’re too fast! Silver Spoon realized, knowing that they’d never get far before the monsters were pouncing on them from behind.

Her only task was to make sure Diamond Tiara was safe. It was the entire reason her parents had had her start playing with the Rich family’s scion in the first place. While Silver Spoon considered Diamond a dear friend, she was also her ward. Her charge. She’d been a loyal friend for all these years, but also had always been there to be a protector in the instance that danger might rear its head from the spiritual realm.

She didn’t know if these beasts were spiritual or not, but whatever they were, they were a threat to the person she was sworn to protect.

That meant either grabbing Diamond and taking to the air with Hirenkyaku and leaving the other girls to their fate, or staying behind to buy time for the rest to escape. Silver Spoon knew she couldn’t defeat the monsters, not all of them, but she could keep them busy for a few minutes, at least...

“Diamond, keep running!” she said, shoving Diamond ahead of her as she turned around, taking aim with her bow.

While she was perfectly satisfied to see that Diamond kept right on running, Silver Spoon was completely irked to see the Cutie Mark Crusaders all turn around as well. “What are you idiots doing!? I said run!”

Applebloom’s face was the picture of stubborness as she spun her whip above her head, “Like we’d let ya take all them beasties on alone!”

Her whip shot out, but rather than go for the monsters converging on their position, the whip snapped around the trunk of one of the larger trees on the left. Applebloom pulled on the whip, and for a second Silver Spoon thought the other girl had to be crazy to think she could yank such a huge tree down. As it turned out, that was technically true. Applebloom knew she wasn’t physically strong enough to pull down the tree, but she didn’t have to be. As she learned more about her Fullbring, the more she understood the whip channeled energy through it, and part of why it could burst through things was because if she focused, she could make that energy burn into whatever the whip was in contact with.

So with a little focus, she got her whip glowing red hot, and it burned through the tree trunk it was snaked around, causing the tree to crack and fall onto the path in front of the oncoming monsters, actually managing to hit and pin one of them with a loud snap of bones.

Meanwhile Sweetie Belle aimed her staff at another tree on the right side of the path, and struck it with a beam of sparkling energy. The teal light wrapped around the tree, then distorted it until it sucked the whole tree back into the staff’s orb. Silver Spoon blinked as the teal light then engulfed Sweetie Belle herself, and swirled upwards. Within an eyeblink, a massive tree with light purple pine needle leaves, and a cartoonish pair of Sweetie Belle’s eyes in its trunk, appeared in the path.

Then the tree suddenly gained a mouth and spoke in Sweetie Belle’s voice, “I think it's time you monsters leaf us alone!’

Scootaloo groaned, “Seriously?”

However, the Sweetie Tree proceeded to demonstrate remarkable mobility for a plant, its roots moving as it shuffled towards the now very confused monsters and started to swing its lower branches at them. The branches didn’t exactly do a lot of damage, but the confusion among the monsters was apparent, stemming their charge.

Silver Spoon shared their confusion, but was well trained and disciplined enough to know an advantage when she saw one, and promptly made use of it. She timed her shots alongside Applebloom’s whip, both girls attacking the disoriented monsters while they were still trying to clamber over the one fallen tree, and be battered by the swinging branches of the now mobile Sweetie Tree.

However the creatures’ toughness and strength was truly beyond the natural. Silver Spoon’s arrows, accurate as they were, couldn’t seem to penetrate deep enough to inflict any significant damage. Appelbloom’s whip kept knocking them around, but the monsters recovered from those blows within seconds. The only one that was staying down was the one the tree had fallen on, thrashing and snarling beneath the heavy pine.

One pounced upon Sweetie Belle, its claws digging into her tree form with the loud noise of shredding bark. Sweetie shrieked and topped over, although she had the wherewithal to roll so she landed on top of the beast clawing her. She hit the ground with a titanic crash, and proceeded to rolling around some more, flailing branches everywhere until the tree was engulfed in teal light and Sweetie Belle’s human form appeared once more as the tree shape vanished.

“Ow, dangit, this hurts!” Sweetie Belle groaned, staggering to her feet as she held her left leg, which sported fresh claw marks. Fortunately the monster she fell on top of in tree form had fared worse, laying in a twitching heap.

That still left three more to deal with, though. Those three had finished getting over the tree Applebloom had crashed onto the path, despite both Applebloom and Silver Soon’s best efforts to keep them back. Right then a shadow passed overhead, and the girls felt a great gust of wind as an avian shape swooped down and snatched one of the beasts right off the ground. Silver Spoon caught a view of a huge, stone bird that swept back up into the sky, and proceeding to fling the beast towards the ground some distance off with such force that even the monster’s own bat-like wings couldn’t stabilize it before it smashed into the forest below.

“About damn time!” Scootaloo shouted, pumping a fist into the air. The motion apparently attracted one of the monsters attention more than the loss of one of its comrades, for it roared and made a prodigious jump over Silver Spoon and Applebloom’s heads towards Scootaloo.

It was stopped mid-air by the crimson whip of Applebloom, who struck it hard across the side and knocked it off course. The whip itself had blazed to life with crimson light, not unlike when it had burned through the tree. It wasn’t fire, but rather more akin to a damaging aura, and Silver Spoon couldn’t help but feel the faint Hollow energy stemming from it. Whatever power the CMC were using, it was somehow tied to Hollows. Well, except Scootaloo. Whatever that bird creature was, it was exhibiting a totally different aura.

The bird in question was sweeping back towards them, coming around for another pass at the creatures. It flew low, just above the treeline, and perhaps it was because it was so intent on the beasts it saw on the pathway that it didn’t see the other monsters that were lurking in the treeline. Another pair, probably part of the same pack that had held back in the forest in case the children had fled into the trees, now sprung from the very trees that they’d climbed up to gain high. With their bat wings they sailed right into the stone bird, using their combined mass to tackle it out of the sky.

“Alerion!” Scootaloo gasped as the stone bird veered off and smashed into the tree line. Several pine trees snapped in half as the stone bird ploughed through them. The beasts atop it raked at its stone hide with their claws, and now an eagle's cry pierced the night and a fierce and brutal brawl began in the trees as the bird rolled around and started buffeting the beasts upon it with its wings and stabbing with its beak.

Meanwhile, the girls were left to deal with the two remaining beasts on the path, and Silver Spoon could only hope at least Diamond Tiara had managed to get away, and that no more monsters were lurking out there in the dark.

----------

Timber Spruce could move through the forest trail much faster than the campers who’d wandered off, but that didn’t mean catching up with them was simple. He knew the trails around Camp Everfree with intimate detail, but he still had to pick his steps carefully to avoid getting tripped up by stray roots or smack his face into low hanging branches. Some of these trails were in dire need of better maintenance, but with just him and Gloriosa here, they didn't have the manpower to really do that as much as they’d like.

When he saw that the kids had gone up the north trail into the deeper forest, he got the idea that he could give them a bit of a fright. Sure he could just approach them normally and admonish them, but chances are they’d just see that as a challenge to sneak out again the next night. With a proper scare he might at least get the idea across that wandering the trails at night wasn’t a joke. Granted it wasn’t like the trails were actually dangerous, or that there was any serious chance of predators wandering this close to the camp, but they still couldn’t have campers sneaking off whenever they wanted.

So to that end, he actually went off the trail and cut through the forest, hoping to get ahead of the kids before they reached the hill with the overhanging tree. Timber could see well enough with what little ambient star and moon light reached past the pine boughs, and made steady progress until he reached a familiar landmark that was a small pond surrounded by tall grass. The hill wouldn’t be much further.

However as he passed by the pond, he froze as he heard something. A girl’s scream! It wasn’t far away, and it came from the direction of the hill! Had the campers gotten there already!? Maybe he wasn’t moving as fast as he thought? Shaking his head, trying to convince himself that one of the kids must have just gotten a spider in her hair or something, he picked up the pace and hustled through the forest undergrowth, careful not to trip and break his leg, but definitely hurrying himself.

Only long honed senses and instincts form having lived his whole life amid the Everfree Forest warned him of the danger coming his way. The sudden quiet of the forest around him, combined with a wave of thick, animal musk, warned Timber of danger and threw himself behind the nearest tree. Just in time, as it turned out, for something large, heavy, and breathing with rapid panting breaths came bursting through the bushes ahead of the path he’d been taking.

Timber Spruce ducked down, the portion of the tree above him being clawed out by a paw larger than his head!

He couldn't clearly see what was attacking him, but it’s momentum carried it past the tree he’d used as cover, and Timber sprang away from it immediately and darted towards the direction of the forest trail. He zigged and zagged between trees, hearing the beast behind him snarl and the heavy thuds of its paws as it began to give chase.

Timber’s mind whirled with fear choked questions. This wasn’t a bear was it!? It was too big to just be a wolf! It wasn’t another Hollow either, because Timber had seen it, if only cloaked in shadow. He was going for the trail, but that was only because he now heard even more shouting from that direction. Should he turn and try to lead the beast away somewhere else? But wait, if the campers were shouting, that might mean there were more creatures attacking them, too!

I have to somehow get to them and lead them back to camp! No, not the camp, that’d just put more kids in danger. Twilight’s lab! Those Quincy girls could protect the kids!

He knew it was a long shot even as he thought it. Even at a dead sprint, it’d take a few minutes at least to get back to the slit in the trails that’d lead towards Twilight’s lab. These beasts, whatever they were, could easily run them down before they got there, especially if Timber was leading kids not familiar with the trails in the first place. But he didn’t see another option, either. He couldn’t fight, and neither could any of the kids, so-

Timber’s thoughts were interrupted by an unimaginable crash from above. He dove to the ground as something large and vaguely avian shaped smashed through several trees, shrieking as it flung a large, lion-like beast off its back with its beak. Another creature leaped at it from the ground and wrapped powerful jaws around the bird’s leg. Timer saw sparks as teeth scraped on... stone?

And the bird, it was huge. Easily as big as a cabin. It’s eyes glowed like blue crystals. Wait, were they blue crystals!? The beast that had been chasing Timber came up behind him, but rather than pounce on him, it flung itself at the bird that was fighting its companions. Timber saw it, yet another strange, massive lion with something more akin to a bear’s proportions, land on the stone bird’s wing. Claws raked at stone, drawing sparking marks downward, and the bird shrieked again, spinning and flinging its wing out. It smashed the wing, and the lion beast on it, through a tree with an ear splitting crack.

Peering through the carnage, Timber spotted the trail, and the campers! He bolted to hsi feet and sprinted forward through the tulmet of the melee between the stone bird and the lion monsters. He ducked under the bird’s talon as it raked one at one of the beats, and Timber felt a hot spray of blood on him as the creature roared and yelped.

Then he was through the turmoil and onto the trail, only to find there was a fight taking place there too! Two more lion-like monstrosities were facing the girls, one of which was holding a blue, glowing bow. A Quincy!? One of the other girls was flailing around with a whip that seemed to periodically snap with red energy, while a third girl held a staff that looked almost ludicrously out of place with its somewhat cartoonish appearance.

Timber Spruce was behind the beasts facing the girls, and so thought to do the only thing that made sense. Distract them. He pulled out the flashlight he’d kept in his cargo short’s larger pocket, having not really needed it to navigate, but now turned on its bright strobe while shouting, “HEY!”

The beats and girls alike looked back at him, and Timber flashed the light at the creature’s eyes. Nocturnal by nature, the bright beam of light caused both creatures to roar and shake their heads in momentarily blindness and confusion. Then, hoping the beats might think the light was the cause of their distress, rather than him, Timber waved the light to the right and left, then hurled the flashlight into the forest towards the opposite side where the stone bird was fighting.

Whether by miracle or simple fact that the beasts’ couldn’t differentiate the light from a pretty or threat, the two monsters spread bat-like wings and leaped after the flashlight, crashing into the forest to get at it. Good thing Timber had a decent throwing arm, as the light had landed some distance in, and the lion-like monsters had left the trail entirely to get at it.

Timber took that instance to rush up to the girls, not really caring to ask questions in that moment, “Come on, we have to go!”

“Ya got that right,” said the girl with the whip in a firm take-charge manner, “Let’s git goin’ gals an’ catch up ta Diamond an’ Derpy!”

“Wait, what about Alerion?” asked one of the other girls, Scootaloo, Timber wanted to say. He was still learning all the campers’ names.

The one with the whip, Applebloom, if Timber recalled, said, “He’s made outta stone. He’ll be fine.”

“He can still be hurt, but... dang it, you’re right. Alerion! Keep them busy, but run as soon as you can!”

To Timber’s shock, he heard a booming, regal baritone respond from the direction of the fight, and could only assume the stone bird itself was somehow talking.

“Once again I must bail you out, little hatchling. You owe me many oranges after this!”

Timber wasn’t about to question this. His definition of normal had fled the country when Twilight had saved him from the Hollow, and it’d already been packing it's bags before then with Gloriosa’s discovery of that necklace. So he didn’t even so much as blink before saying, “Follow me!”

He led the girls down the trail, moving as fast as he dared without risking leaving any of them behind. The sounds of roaring, trees crashing, and general mayhem echoed behind them, but thankfully it seemed like nothing was following them. At least not yet.

Timber was near breathless by the time they reached the split in the trail that would lead either back to Camp Everfree, or towards Twilight's lab. At that split, they found four people. Two timber recognized as more campers, part of the group that had snuck off. Diamond Tiara and... Derpy? He really did need to learn all their names, but it’d only been one day.

The other two he recognized as Sour Sweet and Sunny Flare. Both were flanking the campers in a defensive posture, their ‘bows’ already out, although neither really wielded a traditional bow. Sour Sweet’s crossbow was more sized like a rocket launcher, while Sunny Flare held two dart pistols like she was in a Hong Kong action movie. Between them, Diamond Tiara was huddled on the ground, shaking and crying, while being held and comforted by Derpy.

The moment the rest of them arrived, Sour Sweet looked at Tiber, “Oh, how nice, you went and saved them. Now we don’t have to bury any bodies.”

“Sour,” Sunny Flare said with a sharp look, then more cooly at Timber, “Is there anyone else left behind you?”

“No,” Timber said with a breathless shake of his head, “This is everyone. There’s strange beasts back there, on the trail.”

“We know,” Sunny Flare said, “Your sister reported to Twilight about them earlier, and she sent us on patrol to keep an eye out for any possible danger. Well, seems like there’s danger alright. We found these two rushing down the trail like terrified rabbits.”

“We were having a brief debate on which of us should guard these two and which of us should go after the rest,” Sour Sweet said, then snapped her crossbow up towards Timber. He yelped as she fired, and a powerful bolt of reshi shout out with nearly sonic-boom levels of force. The bolt flew over Timber’s head and impacted with the head of a lion-like monster that had loomed up behind them. The bolt of reishi blasted right through the beast’s skull, splattering blood, bone, and brain matter across the trail behind it. As the beast flopped dead to the ground, Sour Sweet continued on casually, “But it seems like that won’t be necessary, since you came to us. Hey, Sunny, should we send them back to the lab for now? I want to go hunt these critters down.”

“Well, we can’t let monsters roam near the camp or the lab, that’s true, “ Sunny Flare said, but shook her head, “But for now let’s return to base with the civies and see what Twilight wants to do to sort this mess out.”

----------

Twilight stared at the group gathered outside her lab trailers with a mixture of shock, general consternation, and a fair bit of relief. The very first thing she said was to Timber.

“Thank you, for going after the kids.”

Timber Spruce glanced away for a second. He was sitting on one of the folding chairs set up by the engineering lab trailer, where most of the campers also now sat, and was cradling a cup of hot chocolate that Lemon Zest had brewed up for the shaken kids. He smiled at her gratefully after taking a sip to hide a blush amid the night’s shadows.

“I didn’t do much of anything other than distract a few of the... what did you call the?”

“Manticores,” Twilight said, “I spoke with my Equestrian counterpart briefly about the creatures of her world, and she described them as a not uncommon inhabitant of her world’s Everfree Forest. As much as it seems unlikely, somehow this world’s Everfree is started to team with Equestrian wildlife.”

“Are they always so mean and nasty?” asked Sweetie Belle, downing her hot chocolate like some binge drinker at a bar, holding out her empty mug for Lemon Zest to roll her eyes and fill it back up, “Because I’m telling you, if one more monster mauls me, I’m going to start developing a complex!”

“Oh, the wound isn’t that bad,” said Sugarcoat, using a Quincy field med-kit to heal up the girl’s small, but probably still quite painful wound. “These won’t even scar, and you’ll feel fine by morning.”

“It’s still a good question,” Scootaloo said, glancing outside the lab’s wards where Alerion sat. The Doll was intact, but his stone hide bore many claw marks, and his beak was slick with Manticore blood, “Are they supposed to be that violent? And what are they even doing here?”

“Hey, I have a question!” said the disheveled Diamond Tiara, whose eyes were wide, and her face streaked with tears, “What is HAPPENING!? If this is more of that crazy Sunset Shimmer’s magical shenanigans going out of control, I swear on my mother’s grave, who isn’t even dead yet, that I will SUE somebody! Everybody! Lawsuits for all! Litigation coming your way!”

The girl ended with near hyperventilating breathing, her hair haggard and sticking out at frayed ends. Beside her, Silver Spoon patted her shoulder in quiet comfort. Diamond Tiara had been little more than a crying mess when she’d arrived, but at least now she’d transitioned from fear to anger. Twilight wasn’t sure if that was better, but at least it was something. She felt rather sorry for the girl. This was why she’d suggested to Filthy Rich that perhaps telling his daughter the truth might be better to do sooner rather than later. It’d have made this transition somewhat easier.

“Diamond Tiara, I’m sorry you had to go through such an experience, and I assure you, in time, answers will come, but for now you should probably just try to rest and recover. I’m sure your father will be willing to explain more, when the time is right.”

“Daddy? What does daddy have to do with any of this?”

“Twilight, I assume you’d like to contact Soarin’ and Filthy Rich about what's happened?” Sugarcoat said, partially as a question.

Admittedly the situation was complicated. If it had just been Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon in danger, then contacting her fellow Sternritter, especially Diamond Tiara’s father, would be top priority. As it stood, Twilight wasn’t sure if having the Cutie Mark Crusaders present would raise more questions. She was shocked to see two of them utilizing Fullbring. She had no doubt that was what Applebloom and Sweetie Belle had used. The power would logically be inherited by the siblings of her friends, after all.

Scootaloo was the odd one out. She’d refused so far to explain what that bird of hers was, the one she called ‘Alerion’, but even a casual sensing of spirit energy from the bird showed that Alerion was not a Fullbring. Not that Scootaloo had any reason to have a Fullbring, but Twilight was at a loss to guess what the stone construct was. Unless...

Well, there was a minor resemblance in the power to what her pony counterpart had described as Trixie’s power to summon an armored servant entity. Could this be the same?

Putting that aside, there was also another issue, that of the starry eyed blond girl standing and looking around curiously. Derpy Doo, Ditzy’s Doo’s daughter. Twilight couldn’t begin to guess what the wall-eyed teen might be thinking, and was more than a little concerned what Ditzy Doo might do if she found out her daughter had been attacked. Probably not a good reaction.

Burying her uncertainty, she said to Sugarcoat, “We should, of course, contact Filthy Rich and Soarin in due time. With dangerous creatures confirmed to be far too close to came, we may need their help in performing a sweep to remove the danger. Besides, Filthy Rich is going to need to deal with the fact that his daughter has seen things that can’t be unseen. Still, before that I need to get ahold of Sunset and the girls. They deserve to know what’s happened too.”

“Wait!” shouted Sweetie Belle, “You can’t tell them what happened! Please. If they learn we’ve been using powers like they have, then our sisters will never let us use them again!”

“Yeah! AJ’ll never trust me ta fight along with her!” said Applebloom, “She’ll just keep tryin’ ta protect me an’ treat me like a little kid, like she always does. Please Twilight, ya gotta keep this a secret.”

Their voices rang with the genuine fear of the young who believed that adults will never understand them or treat them like equals. There was a deeper fear to it as well, Twilight sensed, and to a degree she thought she understood what it was. After all, these young girls knew their big sisters were getting into ever more dangerous battles. Each of them had experienced Hollow attacks at one point or another. They knew their loved ones were in danger, and it probably ate at them to not be able to do anything. Now that they were manifesting powers of their, it only made sense that they wanted to develop and use those powers to help protect those they cared for.

But...

“I’m sorry,” she said, “But I can’t keep this secret. Your sisters are going to find out about this sooner or later, and it's much better that they learn of it now, before you get yourselves into even more trouble than you already have.”

“But-!” Sweetie Belle began, but Twilight swiftly cut her off.

“Understand that your sisters care about you, and if they’re protective, its because they can’t stand the thought of you being hurt,” Twilight said, thinking of her own family. While she’d wished they’d told her about the Quincy much sooner in life, she understood that her parents and brother, and even Cadence, were motivated by love for her and a desire to keep her safe. That said, secrets could often lead to greater pains down the road.

That thought made her heart clench for a moment. She hadn’t exactly been fully honest with her friends either. She knew Sunset especially was worried about her. Her mother’s death was still very raw, and made worse by the knowledge that Adagio intended to use that man in her plans. Twilight was trying to keep herself together by bottling all of her own misery up inside, but perhaps it was time she opened up and was truthful with her own friends as well.

“The truth can hurt, girls, but trust me, getting it all out in the open will be better in the long run. Besides, it's not like they can take your powers from you. You’ll have to learn how to use them eventually, and while Applejack and Rarity might get overly protective, they’ll come around to understand that you’re powers are a part of you that can’t be buried. On top of that, have you considered your sisters and their friends know more about Fullbring than you, and could help you train much more efficiently?”

Sweetie Belle and Applebloom looked at each other, blinking. Then Applebloom coughed in embarrassment, scratching her head.

“Ya know, I hadn’t actually thought o’ that.”

“Hmm, training with Rarity might be fun, if she’ll actually let me,” Sweetie Belle said thoughtfully.

“And I’m certain that if I float the idea to them, they’ll come around to the notion that much easier,” Twilight added, offering the girls a kind smile. She then turned her attention to Scootaloo.

“Now, Scootaloo, I can tell your circumstances are different than your friends’ are. Would you be willing to explain them to me?”

Scootaloo’s response was guarded, her expression nervous for reasons well beyond the night’s events, “No offense Twilight, but I’d seriously consider it a favor if you just kind of pretended you never saw Alerion, or asked anything more. My parents already know, and the less you or anyone else knows, the better. If you’re worried about me or my family being a threat to you Quincy, trust me, we don’t want anything to do with Quincy, Soul Reapers, or Hollows. I just want to stick by my friends.”

“That’s... fair,” Twilight said, shoving down her burning curiosity. She suspected that Scootaloo was a Bount, like Trixie was, but she didn’t need to confirm that right now, and pretending Scootaloo was a normal kid probably made things less complicated for everyone.

She then finally turned her attention to Derpy, “Now, um, Miss Doo-”

“Yeash, just Derpy, please. I always seem to have to tell people that,” Derpy said with a happy, if exasperated giggle, “And before you ask, don’t worry, I won’t tell mom anything about this.”

Twilight blinked, “Wait, so, you know...?”

Derpy held up a hand and wiggled it, “Kinda sorta? Heheh, my mom’s super protective of me, and I love her to pieces because of it, but c’mon, I got a lazy eye, but i’m not blind. I’ve seen things. Ghosts. The scary skull mask guys. Then there’s all the magic craziness that happens at school all the time. I don’t, like, know know what’s going on, but I know stuff is going on. I know my mom’s part of it all, somehow, and she doesn’t want me knowing about it. I know my dad’s, like, not normal either, and that’s part of why he’s never around...”

For a moment she looked rather sullen, sighing briefly before continuing, “But whatever, you know? I get my mom wants me to live normally and pretend I don’t see things. So for her peace of mind, I pretend. I also know she can be really scary, and might get upset if she thinks you guys got me in trouble. So no worries, Twilight, my lips are sealed. You can say what you want, and I’ll just pretend I never heard or saw anything.”

“That’s... thank you, Depry. Really, I truly appreciate it if you did that. I owe you.”

“Heheh, I’ll remember that. I like muffins from this one expensive bakery, so you’d better pay up someday,” Derpy said with another giggle, and Twilight couldn’t help but share the carefree girl’s smile. If Derpy’s silence could be bought with muffins, then muffins she shall have.

“So what’s the plan now, Twi?” asked Lemon Zest, yawning, “It’s already pretty late.”

Twilight considered things for a moment, “I know it’s late, but I want to make sure if there are any surviving Manticores out there, that they won’t be a threat to the camp. Not to mention there could be other creatures out there. You might want to put on some coffee to go with that hot chocolate, Lemon Zest, because I want you, Sunny Flare, Sour Sweet, and Sugarcoat to perform a full sweep of the area. One kilometer radius from Camp Everfree.”

“Well, there goes my beauty sleep,” sighed Sunny Flare.

“Suck it up,” Sugarcoat said, “We can’t let hostile monsters roam around an area that’s supposed to be a fun summer camp for a bunch of kids. They may not be Hollows, but they’re clearly hostile to human life. I’d say our duty as Quincy is obvious.”

“Hey, if we make it quick, we should be able to pull off the sweep in an hour and make it back here for plenty of Zs,” shrugged Lemon Zest, “Not like we need to wake up early for anything anyway.”

“Just remember to be careful,” Twilight warned, “And utilize some level of stealth. Remember who’s with the campers from Canterlot High. I’d rather we not get Celestia or Luna’s attention.”

“I hear you,” Lemon Zest said, “We’ll keep it quiet. I mean, we didn’t even feel the small reiatsu spike from these kids earlier, so I don’t think anyone even further away at the camp would feel anything. Not unless they were, like, specifically looking for us. Should be cool, long as we don’t get crazy with it.”

“What about Filthy Rich?” asked Sour Sweet pointedly, “Are you going to contact him tonight, or in the morning, Twilight?”

“I’ll do it tonight, but only after I’ve gotten these girls situated back at the camp,” said Twilight, “And had a talk with Sunset and the others. I don’t need another Sternritter around complicated matters like that.”

Sour Sweet shrugged, “I suppose he might ask some uncomfortable questions if he saw those girls hanging around our lab. Also, have you considered how dangerous it might be for you to hang out by yourself? I mean, I know Indigo is around, but she’s not exactly combat capable right now.”

A ghost of a frown crossed Twilight’s features, “Why do you ask that?”

“Well, duh, you haven’t forgotten that you still have assassins aiming for you, have you?” said Sour Sweet as if it were blatantly obvious, throwing her hands out, “Because I sure haven’t forgotten that! And you don’t exactly have Cinch around to swoop in and save you if you’re targeted again! You just have us, and you’re saying you want us to go off to hunt beasts in the night while you sit here with a bunch of kids. What if you’re attacked again?”

Twilight paused, her frown deepening for a moment. Then her expression lightened as she said casually, “The lab is warded, Sour Sweet, and I doubt the assassin has any idea where I am right now. I appreciate the concern, but right now I really need you four to make sure the area around Camp Everfree is safe. If you like, I’ll even put you in charge of the operation.”

“Pfft, gee, thanks, more responsibility. Well you heard her girls, let’s get hunting,” Sour Sweet said, and started walking out of the camp. Lemon Zest yawned again and followed, waving at Twilight, while Sunny Flare stretched her limbs with a tired look before following suit. Only Sugarcoat stayed a moment longer, her visor covering her concerned expression as she glanced at Twilight.

“Is... everything alright?” Sugarcoat asked. She couldn’t be sure, but something seemed odd about that last exchange.

“Of course, Sugarcoat, don’t worry. I’m a bit tired myself, but once I sort things out with Sunset and these girls, everything will be fine. Just be careful out there. The Manticores may not be a match for fully trained Quincy, but they’re still dangerous, and you never know what else might be out there,” Twilight said, and Sugarcoat stared at her a moment longer before nodded and making a swift departure.

Once that was taken care of, Silver Spoon spoke up, “I’m sorry to bring this up, Miss Sparkle, but when you call Filthy Rich could you allow me and Diamond Tiara to remain here at this lab until he comes for us? I’d feel safer knowing we’re behind wards for the night, until your team confirms no more creatures are lurking out there.”

“Of course. There’s extra bunks in the trailers. You can take Diamond Tiara inside and get situated. Indigo Zap is already asleep in this one here, so take the other one so you don’t disturb her.”

Indigo had turned in early after some extensive experimentation with adjusting her legs. That kind of work was quite exhausting, so Twilight had no complaints about Indigo getting some extra sleep. Besides, it also meant she was unlikely to overhear any conversation Twilight might have with Sunset and the girls concerning certain delicate affairs and plans. This also applied to Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara, so Twilight had no problem with them going to sleep in one of the trailers, just to make sure they’d be out of the way for the time being.

“Oh, by the way, Silver Spoon, I’m curious, you must be from a prominent Quincy family to have been trained at such a young age. Who are your parents?”

Silver Spoon hesitated a moment, then said, “You wouldn’t know my mother, as she passed away some time ago. My father you’ve probably met, at least in passing. His name is Gladmane. He’s a Sternritter, like you.”

“I see. Thank you, Silver Spoon, for looking after a fellow Quincy.”

“I was looking after a friend, but yes... C’mon Diamond, let’s get you into bed.”

Diamond Tiara let herself be led away, her earlier fury having drained to simple exhaustion. As she was led into the trailer, the girl muttered, “I don’t understand any of this...”

Twilight’s heart went out to the girl. She was just starting a long, difficult road, and one Twilight was now all too intimately familiar with. She just hoped having a good friend close to her like Silver Spoon would be enough to help Diamond Tiara adjust to what was going to be a very swift set of life changes.

That done, all that was left to do was call Sunset and the girls.

----------

For those among the girls to whom the specifics of spacial mechanics and magic/Kido interactions held little interest, the next hour passed with an almost agonizing slowness. Rainbow Dash actually found a hammock inside one of the lab’s bubble-tents to nap in, while Applejack paced back and forth with careful steps, trying to avoid tripping over any of the lab equipment. Pinkie Pie seemed able to entertain herself, popping around the lab and sneaking peeks over the shoulders of various Twelfth Division researchers as they went about their business, asking questions or cracking jokes until Rarity pointedly tapped Pinkie on the shoulder and suggested they ought to give the Soul Reapers some space. Fluttershy remained near the central platform, her eyes focused on Ember, hanging limply in the restraining device.

“Would it be okay if I relieved some of her pain?” asked Fluttershy, and Captain Starswirl gave her a concerned look.

“Even restrained, I wouldn’t recommend getting close. She is and Arrancar, and relatively strong for her kind. That said, can I assume you intend to use your Fullbring ability on her?”

Fluttershy nodded, hands clasped in front of her, “Yes. I won’t do anything that would let her break free, but I can take away some of her exhaustion and pain with my power, if that’s alright. She just looks so... haggard.”

“I’ll admit, I’m curious to see how your power works up close,” Starswirl said, tapping a nearby set of keys on his terminal, “If you don’t mind me performing a scan or two as you use it, I won’t object to you trying. Just do be careful. Even suppressed, an Arrancar has the potential to be dangerous.”

“Are you sure about this Fluttershy?” asked Rarity, who stood nearby with Pinkie Pie, who as fidgeting in growing boredom.

“Yes,” replied Fluttershy simply, “I’m sure it will be just fine, but I also trust that if something goes wrong, my friends are here to help take care of it.”

On the opposite side of the set of metal stairs leading up to the platform was another terminal, where Sunset was sitting with Lieutenant Meadowbrook and Clover, all of them working on going over theoretical data on how to tune a Kido ward to act as an adjuster for magic energy. Sunset looked up at the turn of the conversation, and said, “How about I join you, and keep an eye on things. This can wait a sec anyway, since I think Clover and Meadowbrook here are onto something with or without me.”

“Nonsense,” said Lieutenant Meadowbrook, “Clover and I may be spitballing our ideas in a manner that’s gelling quite well, but you’re the key component here, Miss Shimmer. Still, I think we could do with a break, after going at this for an hour.”

“Agreed,” Clover said while stretching her arms over her head and cracking her neck, “While I could probably do this all night, I wouldn’t mind taking a breather until morning, too. I never imagined magic and Kido would have so much in common, yet operate on so many different principles. I feel like we need an entirely separate warded lab just so we could test out more ways the two energies interact. Heck, I really wish you were still a unicorn, Sunset, just so I could see your spellwork in action.”

“Hey, someday, maybe you will,” Sunset said with a wink, then joined Fluttershy in heading up the short set of stairs that led to the top of the platform. With the Canterlot High statue and the large containment ring holding Ember there, the amount of space available to walk around was limited to perhaps ten feet all around. Sunset hung back a bit to let Fluttershy take the lead, eyeing the device holding Ember. It was essentially a floating metal ring connected by several ceramic, half-orb shaped devices bolted to the platform. Kido spells wove spirit energy into multiple fields through the ring that held Ember in place and suppressed her own Hollow reiatsu. Even up close, Sunset could barely feel the Arrancar’s spiritual pressure. From the strange kanji script that flowed over the rings like ghostly apparitions, she imagined there were multiple wards in place to keep Ember in check.

She wondered how Adagio and Twilight intended to bust Ember free? Wouldn’t these wards be difficult to destroy without harming Ember? Perhaps one of the researchers had a ward pass to deactivate them? She did recognize several wooden blocks and badges carried on the belts and sashes of some of the researchers that suggested as much. Then again, it might be possible to brute force the containment ring without endangering Ember... but no harm in fishing for that info either.

“Captain Starswirl, out of curiosity, what’s keeping her from just trying to brute force her way free?” asked Sunset, “I mean, couldn’t she just break this ring?”

He chuckled dryly, “Not with how much her power is being suppressed and drained. Even if someone could break the ring, she’d be far too weak to move on her own for some time.”

“What if you needed to move her? Do you move the whole right, or what?” Sunset risked pressing, but Starswirl didn’t seem to find her questions odd. Perhaps he just thought she was being honestly curious.

“That would certainly be awkward. No, we’d sedate her, then remove her from the ring before moving both her and it.”

He didn’t elaborate further, but it did confirm to Sunset that it was likely they had a means of shutting the ring down, either via ward pass, or perhaps through commands on the terminals. Adagio and Twilight would have to figure that part out.

Fluttershy had walked right up to Ember, eyes filled with a deep rooted sense of compassion as she reached up and brushed some of the Arrancar’ girl’s spikey blue hair from her face. “I’m sorry I can’t do more than this...”

Fluttershy’s body was wreathed in soft, angelic blue light as her Fullbring activated. The halo of light formed behind her and her third eye opened, bathing Ember in a gentle glow. Ember stirred, her eyes fluttering open, showing their red iris’.

From Ember’s perspective, she’d been utterly, bone tired. Her whole body ached with the intensive drain of days of experimentation without any real rest or sustenance. Her spirit energy was either held down by an oppressive force from the wards in the containment ring, or drained out of her by other devices that all but forced her body to activate Gargantas. With various drugs used to keep her dazed and weak, it was little wonder that Ember had been hanging in a fog-like aura of pain.

It was a shock to have that exhaustion and pain being swept away by the warmest of tingling sensations that filled her body. She couldn’t help but let out a long sigh, completely taken with the sense of vitality that was washing away the pain like cold water filling an empty glass. When her senses returned to her, it was an even bigger shock to see a human girl she didn’t recognize, with glowing blue eyes, three of them, looking at her with such an intense expression of pure kindness that for a moment Ember forgot who she was or what she was doing. All she could see was the face of what looked like a divine being staring at her, making the suffering cease.

The moment didn’t last long as Ember shook her head and blinked. “Who in the hell are you!? Dammit, let me go! I’m going to kill the crap outta you Soul Reaper bastards!”

“Shhh...” the girl with radiant eyes and long, soft pink hair said, and the mere sound she made carried with it an unimaginable weight of command behind it. Ember could feel it inside her head, less like words to obey and more like a living desire to follow the suggestions of quieting down. So Ember did, looking at the girl in confusion. The girl looked somehow... saddened now, even apologetic.

“I don’t like making people do things, but it would be bad if you shouted a bunch and wasted all your energy. Please, I’m asking you to remain calm and not do anything to hurt anyone here... even if it happens you end up with a chance to do so.”

Ember could feel the implant of that suggestion lodge into her soul, but it somehow didn’t register as unpleasant. It was like the girl’s voice was a warm blanket over her mind and soul, and what she was saying suddenly sounding so much more reasonable than a second ago.

“My name is Fluttershy, since you asked. I’m really glad I could meet you, even if its under such poor circumstances. All I can do for you is to take some of your pain away, and make you feel... better. I hope it’s enough.”

Something about the way she said those words made Ember think this Fluttershy girl was referring to far more than she was letting on, but even in her muddled mental state Ember could tell there were some odd things going on. The girl wasn’t a Soul Reaper, and the other girl nearby with the bacon shaded hair had the feeling of a Soul Reaper about her, but wasn’t quite the same.

Wait, didn’t Adagio tell me about these girls? The ones that tried to help her, and rescued her sisters? They’re... friends of Adagio?

Ember looked at the girls, noting that there were more hanging around the lab that didn’t match up with the local Soul Reaper jerks. Slowly she thought she might have understood what was happening. Maybe. Could Adagio be planning to pull something off, here? Well, it was Adagio, after all. Ember should’ve known Adagio would be scheming something, and if there was anybody who could pull Ember’s butt out of the fire, it was her. So Ember, even without needing Fluttershy’s odd compulsion, calmed down and just gave the barest of nods.

Fluttershy smiled at her, and said nothing more before turning away and heading back down the platform. Sunset Shimmer followed her after only a brief glance held on Ember, and Ember thought she saw the smallest hint of an acknowledging nod form Sunset as well.

It was enough to give Ember hope.

Meanwhile, Fluttershy approached Starswirl and asked, “Did you get to scan my ability sufficiently?”

Captain Starswirl, his own eyes glued to his monitor, scratched his chin, “I did, young miss, and it’s rather fascinating to watch. Your ability to influence the spiritual energy of others is quite astounding. In our records only a rare few Soul Reapers, and maybe one or two Quincy have ever exhibited similar powers that let them affect spirit energy on this innate level.”

“Really?” Sunset asked, “The same kind of power as Fluttershy?”

“Well, not identical, obviously. I merely refer to spiritual powers that directly alter or influence other spirit energies on a base level,” Starswirl said, making an off handed gesture, “Take for example the two Quincy I mentioned. According to our data from previous combat scenarios, one could change how spirit energies worked, using her own reishi to change fundamental properties of active spirit abilities or even alter the reiatsu of an individual to appear as if it were another’s. A different Quincy could actually mimic other spiritual powers, creating almost exact duplicates. Hmph, fortunately that Quincy is dead...”

“How do you know?”

Starswirl smiled thinly, and it was the first time he looked less like someone’s grandfather and more like the trained and blooded Captain of the Gotei 13 he was. “Because I killed him, some two centuries ago. Rather glad that particular power hasn’t re-surfaced among the Quincy. Their abilities are changing all the time. Growing stronger with every generation, as well. Rather concerning, all things considered. At any rate, thank you for the data, Miss Fluttershy. It’s much appreciated.”

“Um, of course,” Fluttershy said, glancing at Sunset, “Since it’s getting late, maybe we should take Clover’s suggestion and turn in for the night.”

“I concur with my Third Seat,” said Starswirl before Sunset could answer, “I would absolutely love to keep watching you work with my Lieutenant and Third Seat on this idea of a modulated Kido ward, but you can’t work your mind at its peak with a tired body. Why don’t you girls all go turn in and return here after your work in the camp tomorrow?”

“You’ve given us plenty to get started on,” Lieutenant Meadowbrook said, giving Sunset a wink, “I dare say I’m going to be burning some midnight oil for awhile just to make sure I can keep up with you tomorrow and not look so befuddled as to how all this magic of yours works.”

She winked back, “You seemed to be picking it up pretty quick. Looking forward to working with you more, Lieutenant.”

“I’ll stay here tonight as well,” Clover said, barely looking away from her own monitor, “I’ve seen more of how magic works, and I want to try constructing a basic version of a new ward design tonight for us to test tomorrow.”

“Yikes, and here I thought I was a workaholic,” said Meadowbrook, “I just can’t keep up with my Third Seat here. You gunning for my job, Clover?”

“Oh now, Meadowbrook, the Lieutenant’s position is all yours. Less paperwork for me, more actual research. Soul Queen above, I’ve been in the field for so long I forgot how good it feels to just have a project to work on,” Clover said, and then looked at Sunset with a meaningful stare, “If we’re lucky maybe I’ll see something you haven’t.”

Her tone hadn’t really changed, but Sunset caught the double meaning. Clover would stay in the lab and look around for anything that might help them with their real mission, all while also working on the project with the portal. Sunset gave her friend a grateful smile and just hoped Clover wouldn’t put herself in any danger.

Captain Celestia had left earlier to go check in with her sister, so when Sunset and the girls left, they were essentially alone back on the shore of the lake. Starswirl had given them a small wooden block carved and imbued as a ward pass so they could come and go from the hidden lab entrance when needed. Sunset knew this would be incredible handy to give to Adagio or Twilight for the rescue operation, but was worried it’d make it entirely too obvious where the ward pass slipped to them from. Perhaps just telling them the entrance’s location would be enough. Heck, just knowing the lab was at the bottom of the lake was likely enough for them to break in.

“Don’t know ‘bout the rest o’ ya, but all this pretendin’ like stuff is normal is downright exhaustin’,” Applejack said.

“Let’s keep chit chat to a minimum until we know we’re alone,” Rarity said, “It is nice that Miss Gloriosa gave us a cabin all to ourselves. Perks of being camp counselors. Oh, and a shower.”

“I call dibs first!” said Rainbow Dash, and Rarity crossed her arms and shot the athlete a quick glare.

“You can’t call first dibs on the shower, Rainbow.”

“Why not?”

“Because... because... I want it first, that’s why.”

“Gee, and I thought you were supposed to be the generous one here.”

“I am! In all matters except showers. The cabin only has one, and only so much hot water, and my hair takes a lot of delicate care.”

Sunset laughed and held up her hands between the pair, “How about we all draw lots on shower turns?”

“Oh, very well, I suppose that would be fair, wouldn’t it?” Rarity replied. Rainbow Dash gave a short shrug.

“Works for me.”

The girls continued lightly talking about mostly what the next day’s camp activities would be as they walked back around the length of the lake on their way back to the campgrounds. Sunset was glad to see everyone was still in good spirits and seeming relaxed, even with everything hanging over them right now. She reflected that it did make sense, after everything they’d gone through already, that they’d all start getting used to the prospect of battles and danger. It was almost like the idea of fighting the Kraken again, while possibly getting roped into whatever craziness might occur during Twilight and Adagio’s rescue attempt of Ember, was almost normal for them now.

Even if Sunset had a bad feeling she couldn’t quite shake. A sense of doubt that, despite her best efforts, still clung on to the back corners of her mind.

Sunset nearly jumped as she felt the slight buzz in her left breast pocket from her jacket. Fishing into it she pulled out her bronze badge/communicator, and paused with the rest of the girls halting around her as she flipped it open.

“Hello?” she said, and Twilight’s voice spoke in reply.

“Hello, Sunset? Oh, good, I’ve been trying to reach you for the past ten minutes.”

“Oh, we were probably getting blocked by wards,” Sunset said, considering it likely that the Soul Reaper’s hidden lab had probably blocked any communications in or out except via specific means. She hoped Twilight’s attempts to call them hadn’t tripped any kind of signal alarms, but she didn’t remember anyone at the lab acting like something strange was happening. “What’s up?”

“Are the rest of the girls with you?”

“We’re here, sugarcube. What’s goin’ on?” Applejack said, loud and clear.

“Aheam, well, you see, it’s like this...”

----------

“What in tarnation were y’all THINKING!?”

Applejack’s roaring voice caused even Sunset to wince a tad, and she wasn’t even on the receiving end. They’d come to Twilight’s field lab, following directions Twilight provided, as soon as she’d finished explaining what had happened with Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and a few other campers that had apparently snuck out that night.

Sunset was a tad iffy on the details, but it seemed like Timber Spruce, who had spotted the kids sneaking off, had gotten involved as well, because he too was sitting there in the camp, looking for all the world like he wanted to be somewhere else.

Two of the other girls that had been with the CMC had apparently gone to sleep in one of the large sleek trailers set up as part of this field base, but the third one, who surprised the heck out of Sunset, was standing off the side with a very bemused look on her face.

Derpy looked frighteningly similar to her mother, Ditzy. In fact the only noticeable difference Sunset could discern was in the... curves, as it were. Derpy looked like a Ditzy who hadn’t fully ‘filled out’ yet, otherwise just about everything else was the same. Sunset wasn’t sure what to make of the fact that Derpy was here, and that Twilight didn’t seem to mind talking about clearly sensitive matters in front of her.

When she’d given Twilight a questioning look about it before the yelling between siblings had begun, Twilight had simply whispered, “She already knew.”

Regardless, the real show taking place was between Applejack, Rarity, Applebloom, and Sweetie Belle. To a lesser degree Scootaloo was involved, standing a bit behind her friends, while Rainbow Dash just looked confused at the entire affair.

At Applejack’s outburst, Applebloom looked over at Sweetie Belle, almost smugly, “Told ya she’d blow first.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sweetie Belle replied, “I owe you a soda.”

“This is not the time or place for such a flippant tone, young lady!” Rarity said, standing beside Applejack with a face turning bright cherry with outrage, “The two of you have put yourselves and others into considerable danger! Why didn’t you tell us you’d developed Fullbring powers!?”

“Pretty much because we knew you’d react exactly like you’re reacting right now?” Sweetie Belle said, gulping as she faced the full ire on her elder sister’s face, “You’d have just freaked out, and told us never to use them! But we want to learn how to use these powers.”

“That is out of the question! Sweetie Belle, you’re twelve.”

“Thirteen in literally two months,” Sweetie Belle pointed out.

“That’s besides the point! You’re a child. You’re all too young to be putting your lives at risk playing with powers that are well and beyond too dangerous.”

“Too young!?” Applebloom piped up, stamping her foot, “Y’all ain’t much older than us! What, just ‘cause yer a few years ahead ya think ye can throw yerselves inta danger like it’s nothin’? We’re only doin’ what you were doin’ yerselves not more n’ a couple o’ months ago!”

“Now hold yer horses right there, Applebloom!” said Applejack, holding up a hand, “That’s different. We didn’t git no choice ta pretend there weren’t Hollows comin’ inta town, or that we were the only ones sproutin’ powers ta deal with ‘em! We got roped inta all this mess with Hollows n’ Soul Reapers n’ Quincy nonesens, uhh, no offense Twilight.”

“None taken,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes behind her glasses.

“My point bein’, we did what we did ‘cause we had to. An’ ‘cause we’re doin’ it, that means you don’t gotta do it,” Applejack said, “Ain’t no reason at all fer you kids ta be screwin’ around with these powers. Ya think I want ya gettin’ into scrapes where ya might die, Applebloom? You think I want to lose any more family?”

“And what about me!?” Applebloom shouted with an undercurrent of held in pain and desperation, “Ya think I like knowin’ yer always puttin’ yerself in harm's way, and I can’t do nothin’ ‘bout it but wait!? No way, Applejack, I ain’t waitn’ no more. Not now, not ever again. This here power I got, I’m gonna figure it out, so when yer in danger, I can be there too, to protect ya!”

“Exactly!” Sweetie Belle chimed, looking at Rarity with less anger and more the swimming, tearful eyes of a well schooled puppy-dog face, although there was certainly genuine feelings behind it, “I hate knowing you’re always out there protecting me, mom, and dad, but I can’t do anything to help you. I don’t want to just pretend I don’t have this same power you have. I want to use it, so I can look out for you the same way you look out for me, Rarity. You’re the only sister I have! If anything happened to you, I’d...”

“Aw, dagnabbit,” Applejack took her hat off in frustration, running a hand through her blonde locks, “Wish I could make you girls understand, this whole spirit war kerfuffle ain’t no place fer young ‘uns. Heck, I don’t even disagree with ya, Applebloom. Me n’ the gals are too young ta be doin’ all we’re doin’, but that's only ‘cause we can’t afford ta turn back now. Can’t ya understand that if I knew you were gettin’ into fights like this, I’d only be fearful for ya even more than I already am? Hard ‘nough ta have to go into all these fights wonderin’ if you, Bic Mac, an’ Granny will be okay back home. Last think I want is you in the thick of the fightin’.”

“This is precisely what my sentiments are,” Rarity said with a heavy, yet somehow still very ladylike sigh, “I don’t doubt that, given time, you girls may well master your abilities the same way we’re striving to with ours. It’s not even a question of age, really, because compared to the likes of some of these Soul Reapers, we’re all essentially infants. The point is that you’re the very precious family we’re trying to keep safe. What good is all our efforts if we let you wade into the bloodshed alongside us? That’s not keeping you safe.”

“Might I offer a suggestion?” Twilight asked, and they all looked at her. She cleared her throat and continued in a calm, reasonable tone, “I'm aware that this is a family matter, but considering my own circumstances perhaps I can offer a differing perspective that you may not have considered yet?”

“Well, I ain’t gonna say no ta hearin’ ya out, Twilight, so shoot,” said Applejack, and Rarity nodded agreement.

“Thank you. This is how view this issue,” Twilight said, choosing her words carefully, “Each of you have the same goal; to protect each other, right? Sweetie Belle and Applebloom’s powers won't simply disappear because you find them inconvenient, either. These powers are a part of them now. And as an additional point, if they’ve developed Fullbring, then its no stretch to hypothesize that others like Big Mac might develop it as well.”

“Or Zephyr Breeze,” Fluttershy breathed in a sudden shocked look of realization.

“I get what you're saying, Twilight. This genie is out of the bottle, one way or another,” Sunset said, picking up on where her friend was going with this, “So you're suggestion that instead of trying to get the kids to stop using their powers, why not train them instead?”

Twilight looked at her with a grateful nod, "Precisely, Sunset."

“What? But that would just encourage them to use their powers more,” Rarity said, but Applejack bit her lip in thought and gave Sunset and Twilight a serious look.

“Yer both thinkin’ it’s better ta just make sure they can use their powers responsibly instead o’ tryin’ ta stifle ‘em?”

“Of course,” said Sunset, “It's not like I don’t understand why you and Rarity are concerned. They’re your little sisters. But think about it for a second. What’s going to make them safer? Being able to defend themselves, or not being able to defend themselves?”

"Furthermore," Twilight added, "I can speak from personal experience that having family help with training makes things much easier than having to learn on your own."

“Yes! Yes exactly!” Sweetie Belle said, and Applebloom echoed the sentiment, but Sunset was quick to cut them off with a sharp look of her own.

“Don’t get the wrong idea, girls. We're not suggesting this so you two can go off and fight Hollows like you’re trying to be superheroes, and not so you can come with us on any fights we get into. This training will be solely so you can protect yourselves and your families here in the city in case Hollows come to you. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

The pair looked at one another, at their respective elder sisters, then back at Sunset and Twilight.

“So what yer sayin’ is that, you’ll help us train our powers, but we can’t do nothin’ with ‘em ‘cept ta trounce any bad guys that come after us or our homes directly?”

Sunset rubbed her chin, thinking, “More or less. Honestly I wouldn’t hold it against you if you’re out in the city, and if you see a Hollow attacking someone, you step in. There’s a difference between looking for a fight, and protecting people that can’t protect themselves. Just don’t treat it like you’re going on patrols. Your powers are to defend yourselves and others only if you’re attacked or you see others getting attacked. Does that sound reasonable to everyone here?”

She could see Applejack and Rarity mulling it over, and it was clear that both girls were still apprehensive. Sunset supposed she could understand. She might not have any siblings herself, but she could still put herself in her friends’ place and imagine the fears they must still have about their little sisters getting mixed up in any dangerous affairs. Yet she felt her own logic was fairly ironclad. There was no taking the Fullbring out of Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. The reality was that now that the power was awakened, much as it had been with the rest of Sunset’s friends, the only path forward was to learn control. That didn’t mean the two young girls had to join in the battles already looming on the horizon, but it still meant that they could protect themselves in the event they were targeted.

Pensive looks crossed between Rarity and Applejack as they worked it through in their own minds, reluctantly coming to the same conclusion Sunset had, although by their own expressions it remained a difficult pill to swallow.

“I still have my reservations, but out of the available options, this does sound like the most equitable one,” Rarity said at least, looking towards Sweetie Belle, “But I must insist that you take this training with the utmost seriousness. This won’t be a game.”

The girls’ eyes lit up and Sweetie Belle flashed a smile, “Do you really mean you’ll train us?”

“Keep yer britches on,” Applejack said, “If we’re doin’ this, Rarity’s right, ya both gotta swear ya won’t treat this like a’ game, an’ listen to everying we tell ya. This is fer yer own good, not ta make ya feel like ya can go off usin’ these powers whenever ya please.”

Applebloom bobbed her head vigorously, “Mmmhmm! I promise! Won’t do nothin’ without yer say so, sis! But this is sooooo great! I’m gonna git ta train with ya an’ git strong ‘nough ta protect the farm!”

While the young girls were high-fiving each other, Rainbow Dash continued to give Scootaloo odd looks, then suddenly spoke up. “So, squirt, anything that’s got you looking so fidgety?”

Scootaloo stared like the proverbial deer in the headlights, then swiftly put on an entirely too large and forced smile, “What? Me? Nooooo. I’m fine. Just super scared from all those crazy monsters we ran into. Hehehe, not that I was, you know, that scared, because I’m not a wimp or anything.”

“Uh-huh, alright. Won’t poke you too hard, Scoots. Just wanted you to know if there was something you wanted to say, you’re pretty much in the most awesome, chill group of gals in the world right now to say anything. Especially about those weird bird tracks outside the camp.”

“Bird tracks? Hah, uh, just be some random crow or seagull, heheh...”

“That leaves five foot wide tracks?”

“...A really, really big seagull.”

Scootaloo was doing a poor job of hiding her nervousness, but Rainbow Dash just shrugged and looked at the rest of them with a ‘well, I tried’ expression. Sunset cast a questioning glance at Twilight, who made a small waving gesture that indicated they should probably drop the subject. Odd. So there was something going on with Scootaloo, too. For some reason that didn’t even surprise Sunset. Still, if Scootaloo wanted to keep her secrets, Sunset was on Rainbow Dash’s side on not prying. They had enough on their plate as it was.

“Okay, so now that we’re all on the same page, I think it’s time we get you girls back to camp, and we all get some sleep for tomorrow,” Sunset said, turning a glance towards Timber Spruce, “You’ve been kinda quiet. Did you and your sister already know about us, and, well, all of this?”

Timber looked almost shocked to be spoken to, but quickly cleared his threat, “Twilight... well, she saved me from a Hollow not too long ago. That’s how me and Gloriosa found out about things. Your school had already booked Camp Everfree, so we didn’t know about you guys at the time, but Twilight brought us up to speed, so yeah, Gloriosa knows. We’re mostly just wanting to make sure your classmates have a good time at camp, and that’s it, though.”

From the way he looked towards Twilight, Sunset suspected he might have at least one more motivation beyond that, but she wasn’t about to say anything on that matter. Instead she said, “Alright, well, you and your sister should probably just try to act normal then, and keep your heads down. But with Equestrian creatures wandering the forest, I have to wonder, should we even keep the camp going?”

“I have my squad patrolling the area for any further dangers,” Twilight said, “And I’ll make a point of having them provide escort to any outdoor activities. Quincy do have mantles that simulate the effects that prevent normal people from seeing Soul Reapers or Hollows, so we can keep an eye on the campers without being spotted, and make sure no more creatures cause problems.”

“But, um, just a question... does anyone have any idea why the creatures are here in the first place?” asked Flutteshy, “I mean, we had the Kraken at the beach. This can’t be a coincidence, can it?”

Timber Spruce gulped, “Kraken?”

“Ooo, I know, what if somebody is opening up portals like what happened when Twilight’s magic gizmo when all wacky-tabacky at the Friendship Games?” suggested Pinkie Pie.

“I don’t know about intentional portals,” said Sunset, “If it were that easy, you’d think we’d have run into this problem before now. With Twilight’s device, there was a lot of magic going haywire.”

“Well there was what you were talking about with the statue’s portal,” pointed out Rarity, “The, what did you call it, magic refraction?”

Twilight perked up, “Magic refraction?”

Sunset glanced at her, “Magical spells require a lot of control, otherwise their energies can leak out of a spell’s framework and refract off of other sources of magic...”

She looked at Timber Spruce and the Cutie Mark Crusaders, not to mention Derpy, who was still standing off to the side smiling like nothing at all unusual was going on. She sighed, “Maybe we should save this talk for later?”

“Hmm, I see your point,” Twilight said, “I have some calls I need to make, and Sunset, I’d like to talk with you a bit longer, if that’s alright? I know it’s late and you’re probably tired, but I don’t know if this can wait, but I also... kind of want to talk to you alone.”

Sunset raised and eyebrow, catching the hesitant, almost vulnerable tone in Twilight’s voice. “Alright, I’ll hang out a bit longer. Girls, why don’t you all head on back, I’ll catch up soon as I’m done talking with Twilight?”

“Fair ‘nough. C’mon Applebloom, let’s mosey on out of here,” Applejack said, and before long the camp was emptied out, save for Twilight and Sunset.

After Sunset saw the last of her friends vanish down the bend in the forest trail, she turned back to Twilight and said, “So what did you want to talk about? I mean, I know we’ve still got a lot to cover about our plans, and I’ve got things I need to both tell you and ask you about all that... but I get the feeling this hasn’t anything to do with that.”

Twilight’s face was briefly cast in shadow as dark clouds passed over the moon above, briefly dipping the camp into darker shades of night. When the moon was clear again, Sunset saw that Twilight’s face was drawn up in conflict and anguish. The pain in her friend’s eyes was raw, and struck Sunset hard.

“Twilight?”

“I should have done this sooner. And given what’s going to happen in a day or two, neither of us might have a chance to talk like this again. I don’t want to make the same mistake I did before, and assume I’m always going to have time to talk to someone. Talk to someone who might not be there, the next time.”

Twilight was trembling slightly, and Sunset could see the shimmer of wetness entering her friend’s eyes. Sunset could only try to smile reassuringly and said, “Like I told you on the beach, Twilight, whatever you want to say, whatever you need to get out, I’m here for you.”

“Good... good...”

Twilight gulped, seemed to draw in on herself, then clenched her eyes shut with a hard shake of her head and opened them once more with resolve.

“It’s... about my mother.”

Episode 102: Far From Healed

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Episode 102: Far From Healed

Grave silence hung between the two girls. A sensation of falling into a cold, winter river splashed across Sunset’s senses. Somehow, before Twilight said another word, she already knew what was coming. The way Twilight’s face twitched and struggled to contain the pain that was spilling from her eyes told it’s own tale without Sunset’s friend having to go further than she already had. Twilight suddenly looked far from confident or assured, but rather like she was teetering on the edge of breakdown. The facade of controlled command she’d put up in front of the other girls, both her friends from Canterlot High, and her friends from the Quincy, was slipping rapidly in that weighty silence.

“Twilight-” Sunset began, but Twilight cut her off.

“Let’s go somewhere else. I don’t want to wake anyone who’s asleep in the trailers,” Twilight said, her voice struggling to remain level, collected. Sunset just gulped and nodded.

Twilight led her away from the field lab, and went down the trail briefly until it reached the nearby stream. It’s gently flowing waters created a painfully peaceful atmosphere for what Sunset knew would not be an easy conversation. Yet she cared about Twilight and wasn’t about to flinch away from this. She squared her shoulders and looked for Twilight to set the pace, but kept her expression open and understanding. Twilight looked at the stream, and slowly sat down on the grassy bank. Sunset took a seat next to her. It wasn’t much different from how they sat together on the beach, the other day.

“I... don’t really know how to do this...” Twilight said, her voice strained, like a lost child calling for help, “I thought I’d cried so much already that it was over, and I could at least pretend things would be okay. But I just... now that I’m here, and I want to tell you, I... I can’t even get anything past the... the...”

Sunset could hear the lump there in Twilight's throat, the grief choking her friend. There was no more doubt in Sunset’s mind what had happened. At this point it really was all done, except the crying, and letting Twilight tell the details at her own pace, but even Sunset was shocked at just how much Twilight’s pain spilled over right into her. She didn’t even know Twilight’s mother well at all, yet her friend’s pain hit as hard as any physical blow.

She saw the break coming, and felt it herself, and scooted closer to Twilight.

“Here,” she said, voice filled with simple, clean empathy, and wrapped her arms around Twilight. That was all it took, and Twilight broke entirely. Her glasses fell from her face as she buried it in Sunset’s chest, and let the sobs come with uncontrolled, unbridled torrents. Sunset held her firm through it all, whispering quietly that it was okay, and to let it out. The babbling of the stream nearby swallowed the sobs, and Sunset found her own face getting wet with tears as she shared the sensations wracking her friend.

----------

Gloriosa was pacing rapidly around the camp center. Timber Spruce had just gotten back and told her what had happened. Her own worries and fears had now skyrocketed. Those creatures she seen were dangerous, after all. Despite Twilight’s apparent assurance that her Quincy would protect the campers, Gloriosa was tempted to go to Principal Celestia right then and there, and ask that camp be postponed. She couldn’t stand the thought of any of those kids getting hurt on her watch!

“Twilight said it will be okay,” Timber Spruce said, “And I trust her.”

“It’s not about trust,” Gloriosa said, more snappish than she meant to, and instantly felt bad when she saw Timber flinch away from her from where he was sitting on one of the camp center’s long tables. “It’s just...” Gloriosa took a deep breath, clutching her necklace, “It’s about doing what's best for Camp Everfree and the campers. This place is meant to be safe.”

“I hear you, but what would we even tell the campers? That magical creatures from another world have invaded the forest? Look, both Twilight and those counselor girls seem like they have things under control. But, if something else happens, then fine, I’ll back you on calling off camp. I don’t like seeing you worked up like this Glori.”

“I’m not worked up, I’m... I’m just tired. And stressed,” she said, taking a few calming breaths as she forced herself to stop pacing and plopped down next to her brother, “I just want our home to be safe, and whole. And lively. This camp is everything to me. It and you, Timber. People should be able to come here and have fun exploring nature and all the beauty that’s around here. I’m... wondering if I made a mistake agreeing to let the Quincy use it.”

“Well, they did say we could still run it like a summer camp when they’re not training here.”

“I know, I just don’t like our home being at the center of all this weirdness. If anything happened to one of our campers. Or if anything happened to you...” Gloriosa’s hand clenched tightly around the necklace of geodes, and for a second her eyes started to swell with darkness, “I don’t know what I’d do.”

Timer couldn’t see the literal dark that had entered his sister’s eyes from the angle he was sitting at, and when she turned to him, the darkness had already fled. Timber smiled reassuringly at his sister and patted her shoulder.

“It’s going to be okay, Gloriosa... huh, what’s that?”

“What’s what?” Gloriosa asked, and followed his gaze to look down at the necklace. “Huh?”

One of the geodes, the firey red one, was glowing brightly, like a lit lantern.

----------

In the depths beneath Everfree, she stirred. Something was wrong.

Her host was growing ever more desperate and fearful, and that was good. The host was all but prepared for her intended purpose. And the magic she carried, it had remained a strong, steady pulse, a source of fuel and strength as long as the host bore it.

Yet something was amiss. She’d sensed a spark of something off earlier, but had dismissed it.

But now that ‘spark’ was growing more powerful, and drawing the warm, potent magic away from the host!

No, I must have that power!

She called to the other, her ‘partner’ across the barriers of reality. She forcibly drew the other’s attention to her and got an annoyed response.

What is it now? I’m rather busy with matters of my own at the moment.

She seethed. The other may be facilitating her return, but so often acted with such incredible arrogance. She all but shoved the other’s mental perceptions towards the link to her host, and the magic she carried.

Look, fool! The magic is seeking another bearer!

She felt her partner observe, then made an almost dismissive gesture.

This is to be expected. That magic never belonged to your host, so now that others are near it that are more compatible, it will seek to go to them.

Raged seethed through her, Unacceptable! I’ve waited too long to wrap my vines around Chrysalis’ throat to be denied now!

She felt the other mentally snort, Calm yourself. My servant on your end has already gathered much of the magic you need, and your host will still serve her purpose. And if it happens you require more magic, well... let’s just say I will soon have guests of my own who may provide all you need and more by the time I’m through with them. Just remember your end of the deal.

She forced herself to calm down, to think rationally. It’d been so long, what felt like a grinding of ages, since she’d even had enough consciousness to think. Chrysalis had taken so much from her. If she was to take vengeance, she needed to remember what patients was.

I will wait, but only a fraction longer.

The response of her partner was carried along with a deep, echoing cold laugh, It will be enough.

----------

Sunset didn’t bother trying to keep track of how long she held Twilight for. Maybe minutes. Maybe hours. Well, probably not hours, given the moon’s position in the sky hadn’t changed that much, but still, Twilight took some time before her sobs had quieted to soft, tired breathing and she slowly raised her head from Sunset’s admittedly somewhat soaked chest.

“I’m sorry...” Twilight said, pulling out a handkerchief from a breast pocket on her Quincy uniform and trying to dry Sunset off.

“It’s okay, Twilight. Don’t worry about that,” Sunset said, still keeping her hands on Twilight’s shoulders in a firm, supportive gesture as she stared her friend in the eyes, trying to will her desire to help to be felt through her own gaze. “I’m here for you.”

“I know, and... and I need to talk, not just... just cry.”

“There’s nothing wrong with crying. Nothing at all.”

“You’re right. Still, however much more of that I have in me, I still need to get this out in words, too. To tell you what happened.”

Her left hand reached over and held her right, “You already know I lost my hand in a recent battle.”

Sunset nodded, but said nothing, in order to let Twilight proceed at her own pace. It took another minute or so, Twilight taking several deep, steadying breaths in readying herself. When she finally said the words, they came out like lead spears.

“I lost my mother in the same battle.”

Sunset had known it was coming, but it still hurt to hear the words. What does one even say to a friend to comfort them in a situation like this? It was impossible for any gestures or words to take away her friend’s suffering, despite how much she wanted to do exactly that. All she could do was say what she could, express in whatever way she could, that Twilight was not alone and didn’t have to bear the pain by herself.

“I’m so sorry, Twilight.”

The were simple words, but their purpose was sometimes underestimated because they couldn’t erase the pain of the one they were spoken to. But they did what they were meant, which was convey how much the speaker wanted to take whatever share of the burden of pain they could. Fortunately Twilight understood this, and hugged Sunset once more, this time not to cry, but to just be close to a friend.

“Thank you, Sunset. I have to tell you more, all of it...”

“If you’re okay with that. I don’t want you to have to do it if it’s too much.”

“It... will hurt, hurt more at least, but I want to do this. I was there, Sunset. Right there.”

Twilight looked away, and Sunset could see her friend was seeing it all again, the events of the battle that took her mother’s life. She felt Twilight shaking in her arms, a hard shivering from her core. Twilight’s voice grew distant, and quietly clinical.

“Everything happened faster than I could have calculated. There was nothing I could do. I tried everything I could think of, and it just wasn’t enough. All it would have taken was a few more inches. That’s it, and my hand would’ve reached her, and I could have teleported us to safety. But I lost her, Sunset. My hand, then her. All I could do was watch. Feel her blood on my face. Then...”

“You don’t have to keep going.”

“No, I do, because I want you to know everything, Sunset. The whole of it. After I saw my mother die, right there in front of me, something happened. A part of me that I didn’t know was there came awake. This is important, so I need you to listen carefully. Out of everyone I know, you’re one of the few I feel I can really, honestly trust. So while I don’t know if Sombra would want me telling you this... it’s my choice to trust you with the whole truth, at least as far as I understand it so far.”

What followed was a story Sunset had a difficult time grasping, which perhaps spoke more for her silence than anything else as Twilight told her of what Sombra had revealed to her. The Soul Queen, the distant and muddled history of the world, including the apparent rebellion against the Soul Queen and her Consort. Then, finally, the fact that Twilight bore a piece of the Soul Queen inside her, which had awakened upon seeing her mother killed by the Espada, Lament.

To say it was a lot for Sunset to take in was an understatement, but she did her best to absorb it all and get her thoughts together in the unsteady silence that hung between her and Twilight afterward. Whatever Sunset might have thought of the situation, what mattered to her most was that Twilight knew she was there for her.

“I don’t really know what to say, Twilight. It’s a lot to process.”

That almost got Twilight to smile. Almost. It was more like the remembered phantom of a smile, but it was something. “You’re telling me?”

“Heh, I guess it’s even harder for you. So, Sombra reasserted the seal on this Eye?”

“Yes, and Midnight’s studied it. As far as she can tell, it’s holding. It was just... seeing my mother die like that,” Twilight closed her eyes, and Sunset reached out to take the other girl’s hand, squeezing it tightly. Twilight squeezed back, “I guess the stress, between that, and the battle, it all just... shook it loose.”

“What about now? Remembering it all. It can’t be easy,” Sunset said, voice soft and gentle.

“It isn’t, but Midnight is observing the seal on the Eye right now, and it’s still intact. I think it failed before because it’d been gradually losing strength over time. Now that it’s renewed, it might be years before it’s weak enough to break again,” Tiwlight said, then winced.

“What is it?” Sunset asked, and Twilight rolled her eyes.

“Midnight. She said she could always look for a way to open it if we ever want to let the Eye out intentionally. I think I’m going to give her a firm answer of ‘no’ on that for now. I went a bit crazy last time. It was like the Eye had a mind of its own.”

Sunset just shook her head in wonderment, “If it's a piece of this Soul Queen, who knows what kind of powers it might have? And this rebellion that took place... you don’t remember for sure who started it?”

“No. I’m sorry, I don’t remember much. A beautiful palace burning, a sword stabbing me from behind. It’s too blurry. Sombra said it could have been anyone. Anyone the Soul Queen would have trusted enough to drop her guard around.”

Seeing Sunset’s expression, Twilight peered at her in curiosity, “Do you know something?”

“Maybe. I can’t be certain, but I know that some of the problems caused by Soul Society are because of a certain group that’s been pulling the strings from on high. The Zero Division. Has Sombra ever mentioned them?”

Twilight gave a stiff nod, holding Sunset’s hand even tighter, “He has, although he hasn’t said much. You believe they’re the ones that turned on the Soul Queen?”

“It’s looking that way. Which doesn’t mean anything good for us, if they’re really the ones responsible for what happened to Starlight Glimmer’s friend,” Sunset said, her mind churning. She ran a hand over her head, “For now, I think we just need to focus on getting Ember out with as little collateral damage as possible. Once that’s done... I want in on whatever arrangement you and Adagio have going on. We need to keep sharing information with each other. Stay in contact. Me and the girls, you and your team, Adagio and her people. I feel like we’re the only ones who truly want this war to end. And personally, I think if we all joined forces, we’d be strong enough to stand up to any of the other factions.”

Twilight’s eyes showed a combination of uncertainty and hope mixed into an inner light that helped push back her melancholy and sadness. “You might be right. It won’t be that easy, of course, but if we can show that Quincy, Soul Reapers, and Hollows can cooperate towards a common goal, maybe it’d be enough to get others to listen. I feel like I can get Sombra to look at diplomacy as an option, and through him, the other quincy. What about you? Do you think you could get the Soul Reapers to consider a cease fire?”

“I don’t know. I don’t have anything with Scorpan like the rapport you have with this Sombra guy. Adagio isn’t exactly friends with Tirek, either.”

Twilight let out a quiet laugh, “From what she’s hinted at to me, she has... other plans for how to deal with Tirek. If things work out like she hopes, the Hollows might not be that big of a problem in the future. It’d just be the Quincy and Soul Reapers we’d have to get to stop killing each other.”

“And I’m not sure how well that will work if the Zero Division is up there, breathing down Soul Society’s neck to keep forcing them into pursuing the war,” Sunset said, then with an extra dose of frustration, added, “And to make things worse, we still have to get to Equestria to stop Starlight before she does any more damage over there.”

“We can do it,” Twilight said, a sense of simple, pure strength entering her voice that was at odds with the pain she’d been venting just minutes earlier. It was as if letting go of holding in all that pain and allowing Sunset to share the burden had given Twilight newfound energy and purpose, her eyes lighting up as she said, “I know we can. You, me, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Adagio, even Clover and Discord. We can make it right. We’ll stop Starlight together, then after that, we’ll do whatever it takes to stop the war, even if that means going all the way to the Soul Palace and facing the Zero Division ourselves.”

Sunset couldn’t help but smile at Twilight’s sudden enthusiasm, “And before that, we pull off rescuing Ember.”

She raised a fist towards Twilight, who looked a bit taken aback at the casual gesture that was a bit outside Twilight’s norm, but then with a rather dorky smile, Twilight bumped her fist to Sunset’s. The moment passed quickly, however, as Twilight lowered her fist and cast a gloom filled look towards the stream, as if seeking answers within its bubbling waters.

“I want to stay positive, but there’s a lot of ways this can go wrong.”

“I know,” agreed Sunset, “Believe me, I’ve got so many doubts in me I feel like second guessing my own shadow. At least we’ve got a working plan.”

“It won’t last. Plans tend to fall apart fast,” Twilight said, “We need to adapt. I just... I’m scared of who else we might lose. Especially considering whom Adagio wants to use as additional muscel.”

This was the first Sunset of heard of this, and she immediately felt a foreboding sensation tense her muscles. “What do you mean?”

“Adagio has an... alliance, of sorts, with the same Espada that killed my mother-”

“What?” Sunset said, feeling a sense of disbelief flow through her. How could Adagio be so crazy as to work with someone like that!?

Twilight, as if sensing Sunset’s thoughts, looked towards her with a disturbingly calm expression, “She wouldn’t have done it if I had asked her not to. She came to me first, and gave her reasoning. I... actually agreed with her.”

“Why would you do that? If this Espada killed your mother, I’d think you’d want nothing to do with him.”

“I don’t,” Twilight’s hand clenched, her voice tight with the lid containing the shaking emotions beneath, “But the alternative is a different Espada who would likely cause even more havoc and damage. Lament... killed my mother, because he perceived her as a threat to his home. I still can’t deny I... I hate him for it, but I’m not so irrational that I can’t understand that my mother’s death was the result of two soldiers facing each other in a war, not some personal vendetta. Adagio fears our rescue efforts will face unknown dangers, and so wants Lament on standby as a trump card, and I can’t fault her logic on that. If I could, I’d have backup of my own, but I don’t trust any of the other Sternritter enough for that, not even my brother.”

“I’m so sorry, Twilight,” Sunset said, at a loss for anything else she could say. “I really wish things were different.”

That ghost of a smile returned to Twilight’s face, “So do I.”

A thought struck Sunset, “We should talk to Adagio as soon as we can, though. Not only to confirm the plan, but I need to let her know her suspicion that things could get diceier than we thought is right on the money.”

At Twilight’s questioning look, Sunset explained about Sweet Cider. Twilight's face grew paler in the moonlight, it was clear she understood the gravity of what Sweet Cider’s presence in Canterlot City meant.

“This... is bad. Potentially very, very bad.”

“Tell me about it,” Sunset said, “If Applejack’s mom comes to blows with this Lament guy, this could really escalate out of control. But it’s not like we can change the plan that easily. Adagio and those other Hollows still need to cause a big enough distraction for the rescue team to get Ember out.”

“And if Applejack’s mother is as powerful as you suggest, then Adagio would almost have to call in Lament as backup. She’s assured me she’s spoken with him about the plan and he’s agreed to avoid casualties, but against someone as strong as you say Sweet Cider is, I can’t see how he could afford to hold back. And if he loses control like he did with my mother...”

Sunset cut in, clasping a hand around Twilight’s arm, “We won’t let another of our friends lose a parent, Twilight. I promise.”

Twilight nodded, her face a mask of deep thought. Slowly she said, as if the words came piece by piece as an idea assembled itself in her head, “There’s too many variables in this scenario for us to control all of them, Sunset. I learned from the Quincy attack on Las Noches that there’s just no accounting for every possibility in battle. We just have to adapt however we can, and make the best choices we can in the moment. I won’t hamstring Adagio by saying she can’t summon Lament. That’s just asking for her to put herself in danger. She’s done enough for me that I trust her to make the call on her own on how to handle Sweet Cider.”

It didn’t entirely sit well with Sunset, but she understood what Twilight meant, “If we’re lucky, me and the girls can break away from the situation with the Kraken to get in there and do something to help. Maybe Applejack can keep her mother from going too far, and Adagio can keep Lament from going too far. I don’t know what else we can do.”

“Nothing, which was my point, Sunset. We just can’t control this. Once its started, this battle will take on a life of its own, and we just have to stay focused on our objectives first and foremost, otherwise anyone who does get hurt in this... or killed, will be doing so in vain.”

----------

“Here’s the readiness report ya wanted, Captain,” Silverstar said, approaching Sweet Cider from across the table set in the office of an ‘abandoned’ warehouse, one of two that the Tenth Division had appropriated in Canterlot City as their base of operations while in the living world. While abandoned on paper, the warehouse was actually quite clean and well appointed, looking far more like a large and brightly lit barracks than the disheveled affair it might have appeared on the outside.

Tenth Division Soul Reapers relaxed and chatted in the warehouse proper, below, while the office Sweet Cider and Silverstar were in was situated in an overlook reached by a simple set of stairs and a catwalk. Sweet Cider dwarfed the chair she was sitting in, and with a tense nod accepted the report that Sivlerstar handed over and casually looked it over. It contained mostly what she expected to find, a well written and concise patrol and watch schedule, along with evaluations on the company’s overall morale and combat readiness. Silverstar was always efficient and precise, never going into too much detail or skimping on the details that did matter. The report also covered Lieutenant Posey’s squad of Eleventh Division Soul Reapers also stationed in the city, and accounted for their own patrol situation.

It wasn’t normal for so many Soul Reapers to be assigned to one city in the living world like this, but Sweet Cider imagined Captain Commander Scorpan didn’t want to take any chances with the research on the portal getting interrupted. Not to mention those girls her daughter hung out with were still a prime target for Hollows. Sweet Cider’s only major concern was whether the Quincy would view her and her Division’s deployment as a provocation. So far they hadn’t seen any clear indication of movement from the Vandenreich, but that didn’t mean the Quincy weren’t doing something. Luna’s report on the battle at Las Noches suggested the Quincy had taken a mauling, and given one in return, but casualty estimates still weren’t high enough that the Quincy couldn’t field formidable force if the wanted to.

Then again, several of their intelligence gathering resources suggested the Quincy were also dealing with some kind of internal strife, tying up some of their Sternritter. So perhaps the Quincy were too busy to take note of a company of Soul Reapers taking up additional garrison duties in Canterlot City? Besides, with the ‘school year’ done, Crystal Prep wasn’t as important to the Quincy as it otherwise would be.

As for the Arrancar, Sweet Cider couldn’t guess on what they’d do next after the hits they took in Las Noches, but given the report on one of the newly appointed Espada taking a crack at Sunset Shimmer, it seemed likely they were shifting their focus to the living world.

Well if they dumb bastards come fer a brawl, me n’ my Reapers’ll give ‘em one, she thought with grim satisfaction as she set the report down.

“Looks good. What don’t ya take a break an’ go git some grub, Lieutenant? I’ll join ya, soon as I finish writin’ this report back ta Captain Commander Scorpan that we’re all settled in here.”

He saluted, but didn’t immediately move to leave, instead taking a seat across the desk from her. At her questioning look, he cleared his throat, “Permission ta speak freely, Captain?”

It wasn’t often he asked something like that, and Sweet Cider set aside her writing to lean back in her seat, well muscled red arms crossed as she said, “If there’s somethin’ ya want ta say, ya know yer always welcomed ta say it.”

Silverstar might have been a plain enough looking man, with simple, light brown skin, and a well kept and short cut head of brown hair, and equally well trimmed moustache, but that plainess could convey a surprising amount of emotion, transmuting him into a lively firebrand in an eyeblink. “What’re ya still doin’ here, Captain, when ya oughta be checkin’ in with yer family?”

Caught off guard, Sweet Cider took a few extra seconds to respond to that, her voice incredulous, “What do ya...? I mean, ‘course I can’t just pop in on ‘em outta nowhere! An’ I still got some responsibilities here ta take care of.”

“O’ course ya can. An’ ya know full n’ well any o’ yer responsibilities here could be delegated ta me fer a day,” Silverstar countered, his expression set in a frank and hard stare, “So what’re ya hesitatin’ fer? It ain’t like you ta pussyfoot around.”

She felt her anger rise, heating her face. “I ain’t hesitatin’.”

“Then what’s the problem?” He didn’t flinch from the rise in her tone, and kept looking at her straight on with those earnest eyes of his that wouldn’t give her anything but the truth. This was part of why he’d lasted as her Lieutenant. He rarely beat around the bush, and Sweet Cider knew she wasn’t going to be able to deflect this with her usual terse or angry response. It didn’t help that ever since Applejack had freed her memories, and removed the seal on her Zanpaktou, Sweet Cider’s moods had started to shift a lot.

Starswirl said it had to do with how her Fullbring and Zanpaktou were fused together, and he was working on a solution to the problem. He also said she’d likely experience more intense mood swings as time went on, but she had time yet before it became a problem.

Taking a deep breath, she met Silverstar’s gaze with what she hoped was an equally level look, “I told Applejack I’d see ‘em, and I meant it. It’s just... hard. I’m worried if I go home an’ see all o ‘em, my ma, my boy Big Mac, an’ my little Applebloom, all together like that? I don’t know what I’d do, or say, or... or anythin’. Most o’ all, I’m scared I won’t wanna leave. That I won’t have the strength ta leave ‘em all again. Last time I didn’t have no choice.”

“Captain Commander Scorpan did say if you truly wanted to leave the Gotei 13, it could be arranged-”

“No, dang it!” Sweet Cider’s fist slammed the table hard enough to crack it. A few Soul Reapers down below might have glanced up at the noise, but wisely chose to pretend they heard nothing and went back to what they were doing.

Sweet Cider sucked in a calming breath and let it out slowly, “No. I decided the dead gotta stay dead, an’ I got a job here with the Gotei 13 that I don’t only want ta do, but am good at doin’. Besides, after the stunts the Central 46 pulled, an’ just how much I don’t trust this ‘Zero Division’, I’m thinkin’ I want ta stick around ta keep this Soul Reaper business an’ honest operation. Point is, I decided, together with Applejack, that it wouldn’t be right fer me ta come back. It’d just make a mess o’ things. An’ even just seein’ my family again, I wonder if I’d be strong enough ta walk away from ‘em?”

“I can see how yer worried, but that still don’t mean ya shouldn’t see yer family. Captain, you’ve earned that. You deserve ta look at ‘em, even if it’s just one last time, an’ say yer proper goodbyes. That ain’t somethin’ ya ought ta fear. It’s just... closure. Closure ya’ll deserve ta have, from where I’m sittin’.”

The fire rose in him, his voice growing heated, “An’ ta be quite blunt, Captain, ye ain’t no coward, so stop actin’ like one. I git bein’ scared, but you ain’t that kind o’ woman, er, Captain, ta shy away from what’s hard. So if ya don’t mind me sayin’ so, Captain, you take the next day off. I’ll look after thing’s here. An’ you, you go see to yer family.”

“...Well, I did tell ya ta speak yer mind. Guess it’d be right hypocritcal o’ me ta git mad at ya fer sayin’ what I probably need ta be hearin’,” she replied with a snort of consternation. Soon she drew in a resigned breath and let it out, along with the tension and trepidation that had been nesting inside her. She offered Silverstar a slight smile.

“I’ll do it, so ya can stop given me the third-degree. I’ll go ta see ‘em tomorrow. My littlest, Applebloom, is with my other daughter at that summer camp. Guess I’ll see them first, try n’ catch ‘em around noon, then after drop by the homestead ta see how ma an’ Big Mac are.”

The decision made, she somehow felt... lighter. Still nervous, but with a course set she no longer had that twisted up feeling of uncertainty clawing at her. Silverstar gave her a nod and sharp salute.

“Very good, Captain. Then, just ta make sure ya don’t got nothin’ ta worry about, I’ll finish up that letter ta the Captain Commander, and let ya get some rest.”

“Hmph, yer gonna need some time off yerself if ya keep takin’ on all my paperwork like this. I can appreciate a good worth ethic in a’ man, but only if he ain’t so foolish as ta overdo it. Lost track o’ how many times I had ta smack Hard Nail upside the head and dang near force him ta come ta bed when he was on a project.”

Silverstar coughed, glancing away, “I’ll try not ta worry ya like that, then, Captain.”

“See that ya don’t. Welp, guess I’ll hit the hay. Give a yell if Hollows attack or somethin’.”

----------

It still amazed Discord how tiring it could be to sit in front of a monitor for hours on end. In his case it was about five monitors, all strewn about his workspace, within the hidden lab built inside his store. When he hadn’t been going out to check on things, he’d been cloistered in here. There were just too many things still left to do, and he somehow knew, with growing certainty, that time was running out.

For the girls he’d tried so hard to guide. For the wayward Twilight and Adagio, who were in more danger than they knew. And for himself and Ditzy, for he knew the Zero Division was watching.

Not enough time and too many angles to cover. If I didn’t thrive on this kind of chaos, it may well drive me a tad batty, he thought with a huff as his eyes scanned the monitors and his spidery fingers flew over multiple keyboards.

Some of the monitors were displaying the results of the latest tests on the new Hogyoku, still encased in its cylindrical tube in the center of the lab. He knew he’d rushed things, but there wasn't much choice. The girls needed this, if the Zero Division was really on the move. The Hogyoku wasn’t “complete”, per se, but it was as close to “ready” as he could make it. The rest was going to be up to Sunset Shimmer and her friends.

Another monitor showed the progress the cultivation chamber was at in concerns to the gigai he’d agreed to create for Adagio. She’d been rather... specific on a few of its features, and while a few challenges needed to be overcome, he’d actually enjoyed the tweaks he’d made. Adagio was an odd duck, but he rather liked her, and had ever since she and her sisters had first stumbled into his shop.

The last monitor was blank, but active, showing a plain blue glow. At least until it flickered with an image of a gray, cartoon cat prancing across it, making a musical ‘Nya!’ sound. Discord chuckled as he turned to the monitor, clicking a key to accept the incoming transmission. The screen changed to show Ditzy Doo’s face filling up most of it. It was hard to tell where she was, but Discord could make out a few elements. A wood panel ceiling, some kind of carved stone pillar in the background, laden with alcoves.

“Heya Discy. You said to contact you as soon as I had the info.”

“I think I said to contact me as soon as you had the info and were in a secure location,” Discord replied, leaning back in his seat, “Are you? I don’t recognize where you are.”

“Don’t worry about that. Even Luna doesn’t know all the hidden tunnels I had put in around here back when I ran Second Division,” Ditzy said, “Heck, there’s places down here even you don’t know about. Look, I’m coming back ASAP, so I can get back to snuggling my Time Turner and see how my little muffin is doing, but this couldn’t wait. I found what Starlight Glimmer discovered in the Central 46 archives, and wanted to contact you immediately. So I came to the closest secure terminal I could to transmit to you. I’m sending some data through now. You look at it, and tell me what you see.”

Discord felt his mouth go dry. This was what he’d risked sending Ditzy Doo back to Soul Society for, all while having her play the role of being on ‘vacation’ with her paramour and daughter. If Zero Division was watching, they’d have seen Ditzy spending time with Time Turner and Derpy, and then not paid as much attention for a day. A day Ditzy could then use to slip back into Soul Society, infiltrate Central 46, and look for whatever had triggered Starlight’s action.

Discord of course knew about Sunburst’s unfortunate circumstances, but Starlight had said things to Ditzy during the battle in Hitsyo-Aku’s depths that hadn’t made sense. Or at least hadn’t made sense to Ditzy, and when she’d talked about it with Discord, he hadn’t been certain what Starlight had been talking about either. He’d always wondered what the tipping point had been, for Starlight. She’d worked under him in the Twelfth Division for some time, and even after Sunburst had died and been dragged to Jigoku, Starlight hadn’t gone crazy all at once. It’d taken some time, and she’d grown more and more erratic. Or rather, perhaps, more driven.

Her split with Soul Society had been her attack on the Twelfth Division’s labs and Hitsuyo-Aku itself, stealing the Hogyoku, and infecting Screwball and Screwloose with Hollow energies. Yet Discord wasn’t sure what triggered that desperate move on Starlight’s part. There was nothing in the Twelfth Division’s own archives, or even in Hitsuyo-Aku itself that explained it. Then Discord considered the possibility that Starlight had used Firefly’s portal rods to infiltrate Central 46 even prior to the events that happened most recently in Soul Society. It was possible Starlight had studied Central 46’s security measures extensively before acting, and knew Firefly’s portal rods couldn’t be detected.

The same methods used to steal the Queen’s Key might have also been used to get into the depths of Central 46 earlier, seeking answers. If she’d gone looking for the reason why Sunburst had been taken to Jigoku, perhaps the truth of that was what had caused her to steal the original Hogyoku and set this whole chain of events into motion in the first place.

And among all the Soul Reapers Discord knew, no one was better at infiltration than Ditzy Doo. So he’d asked her to get into Central 46 and see if she could find the truth. He knew it was a terrible risk, but time was short, and with Zero Division looming, there might not be another chance to do this. Fortunately, it looked like Ditzy had succeeded.

Data came in over the monitor, and Discord’s felt an unsettling chill creep over him. He looked at the information carefully, making sure he wasn’t mistaking things. When he spoke, it was in a very quiet tone.

“I’m surprised Central 46 kept this information.”

“They probably were told to keep a copy, in case Zero Division ever needed it. I doubt anyone figured it’d come out, or better yet, knowing those guys, they didn’t care. Who would stop them? Scorpan?”

Discord closed his eyes, feeling himself nodding in numb agreement, “You’re right. Glory wouldn’t have even thought it... wrong.”

“What do you plan to do, Discy? With this, I almost want to say Starlight was right.”

“She’s still throwing too many lives into jeopardy with her actions.”

“I did say ‘almost’, didn’t I? But at this point if we had any doubts about who our real enemies are, they just went up in smoke,” Ditzy said with firmness.

“Yes, and I wish Starlight had just told me about this in the first place.”

“From the way she spoke to me, she clearly thought you were in on all this. I mean, Glory did offer you a position in Zero Division. You ran Hitsuyo-Aku, and let’s be honest, this kind of BS is exactly the kind of thing that would’ve been a project for them.”

Discord slapped a hand to his face and rubbed at it, “Ugh, I deserve that, don’t I? I’m never going to really make up for all the mistakes I made with that place? Oh well... at least I can try and make sure nobody else has to pay for old errors.”

Ditzy looked at him with flat seriousness, “Are you going to tell the girls? They deserve to know.”

“I will, but not until they finish up their rescue operation. They don’t need this dropped on them while their minds need to be focused on that. I need you to get back here immediately, Ditzy. I’m afraid this is going to get much worse, and if Medley moves, only you and I can give the girls a chance to survive it.”

At that, Ditzy gave him a feral smile, “Are we finally going to go toe-to-toe with Zero Divison? Because, quite frankly, I’ve been wanting to stick my foot up their keisters for awhile now. This latest bit of utter craptastic douchebaggery has really cinched my need to deliver some well deserved smackdown.”

“Timing, Ditzy. It’s all going to come down to timing. Believe me when I say that just taking on one of the Zero Division is going to be... hard, even with both of us. Our only goal is the safety of the girls. And if the worst happens I need you to promise me that you’ll keep guiding them-”

“Whoa whoa whoa! You hold that death horse right the hell up, mister. You’re not dying, and neither am I. We fight, we kick butt, and that’s all there is to it!” Ditzy said with flat conviction, “We’ve been through way too much for you to go all martyr syndrome on me!”

Discord couldn’t help but laugh, “Well, when you put it like that, perhaps I’m being a bit melodramatic.”

“You think!? Geeze, I really do need to get back there, quick. You go without me for too long, and start getting all doom and gloom. I’m heading out now, and I’ll be back by tomorrow night, best case scenario. Don’t do anything stupid until then! Or after then, for that matter! Ugh, you know what I mean. Ditzy out!”

The monitor with Ditzy’s face cut out then, leaving Discord to look at the remaining monitor with the displayed information she’d discovered. Discord stared at it, and then shook his head in puzzled disgruntlement. It explained Starlight’s actions to a degree, but he still had to wonder what Glory’s ultimate game plan really was. She couldn’t possibly think this was what the Soul Queen would want. Then again, Glory and the other members of the Zero Division lived in their own ideal bubbles. Maybe they really did think what they were doing made sense.

To Discord, it just left him feeling like he’d definitely made the right choice in declining the offer to join them. If he had gone along with it, and learned this was part of their grand design? He’d probably be in Jigoku right now too.

Briefly he considered whether or not to take this information to the Gotei 13 as a whole. He doubted any of the Captains were aware of what was really going on, at least none of the newer ones. Starswirl was old enough, from the time when Soul Society itself was being set up, that he might have known, or at least suspected. Then there was Captain Commander Scorpan, who truly was ‘old guard’, as in, one of the Soul Palace’s garrison prior to the formation of Zero Division. Could he truly not know what Glory and the others were planning? Discord had long imagined Scorpan was giving Zero Division the benefit of the doubt, doing his ‘duty’ to the Soul Queen, because Scorpan believed the Soul Queen was still in charge.

Discord might have believed that once as well, but if there was any doubt to the contrary, it was gone now.

Then there was Central 46. Discord knew the counsel was largely in the pocket of the Zero Division, but to what extent he’d never been sure. Most were drawn from the nobel families, either from the Five Houses or the familiest most closely associated with them. It seemed unlikely too many of them actually knew about Zero Divison’s grander designs, but the fact this information was kept in a secure archive meant at least a few of Central 46’s members had to be in on it. In all likelihood they thought they were ‘favored’ by Zero Division, destined for great rewards for their loyalty. It made Discord feel sick to his very guts.

He was no saint. His life had largely been spent looking for ways to make the world around him more interesting. His work in the Twelfth Division had largely been his way of keeping boredom at bay and testing out new theories on what made people tick and sparked growth, often through directly applied chaos. It wasn’t even until the events with Xcution that he’d really started to understand just how irresponsible he’d been, and that there was a much larger threat to everyone’s freedom in the world. He’d been self-assured, arrogant, and hadn’t acted nearly swift enough, and as a result lost the trust of Starlight, failed to help all of Xcution in time, caused subordinates under his command no end of grief, and even now Sunset and her friends were in danger due to events he’d been a part of.

Despite his ruminations, he was still left with the question of what to do with this new information. If he took it to Scorpan, it was entirely possible the consequences would spiral well out of control. Assuming Scorpan was ignorant of this, and not in on it, which was a terrifying thought. Best case scenario was that, if Scorpan didn’t know, then it’d trigger rebellion, and Discord didn’t think the Gotei 13, and especially not Sunset and the girls, were ready for that.

Zero Division would crush them all without a second thought. Glory might have pretended to a desire to resolve conflicts with minimum use of force, but Discord knew she’d order Seireitei burned to the foundations if she thought it was necessary. And that was before he had this data that showed just how far Zero Division’s plans really went. Again, he lamented that Starlight had fled with this knowledge rather than tell him, but he couldn’t really blame her for not trusting him. He’d dug that grave himself by his previous actions.

He fumed over it all for a minute, but soon enough squared his shoulders and went back to work on the new Hogyoku. Whatever mess he’d helped create, he was going to do his damndest to make it right, whatever it ended up costing.

----------

By the time Filthy Rich arrived at the lab Twilight had long since parted ways with Sunset for the night and had gotten her mind sorted out. Midnight remained an ever present sensation close to the surface of her thoughts, as if her alter ego was keeping vigil. Twilight wasn’t sure whether to be grateful or to find the fact somewhat unsettling. Either way she had regained her focus after pouring her heart out to Sunset. It had clearly been the right call, and she felt foolish for having not done so sooner with Sunset and the rest of the girls.

The pain of her mother’s death was still a raw wound, but by letting that pain out she felt the lightness within that suggested the healing process was starting, if far from finished.

Filthy Rich was dressed in his usual business attire rather than his Quincy uniform, which Twilight understood. He probably wanted to look familiar to his daughter and not overwhelm her with too much oddity right off the bat. As he entered the camp, he looked to her with weary eyes that turned swiftly grateful as he came up to her and offered a direct hand, surprising Twilight. As she took it, he shook it firmly.

“Twilight Sparkle, let me get this out of the way first; thank you for looking after my daughter. I wish this had happened differently, but I’m grateful you and your team were there to keep my Diamond safe. If there’s anything you need, any kind of backing, consider it done.”

“I...um, thank you, Filthy Rich. To be honest I didn’t do much of anything, and by all accounts it was actually Silver Spoon who did the most to protect Diamond Tiara.”

Filthy Rich smiled warmly, “Best decision I ever made was to suggest to Gladmane that my daughter and his pal up. Two daughters of such good breeding would complement each other, and since Gladmane was always more of the sort to believe his kids ought to be brought into the fold early, I thought Silver Spoon would be a good bodyguard for Diamond Tiara, given I wanted her to have a more... normal life.”

His tone shifted to one of resigned acceptance, and Twilight could well imagine he wasn’t happy with the fact that his daughter was now exposed to the truth. At least in part.

“I understand this isn’t how you wanted to do things,” Twilight said, “But I did suggest you tell her everything sooner rather than later.”

“Yes, yes you did. I won’t even be bitter over that. You called it, and a good businessman doesn’t get mad over someone else calling the shifts in the market. I ought to have seen that this was coming. It’s spilt milk now. All that’s left is to see to Diamond Tiara’s education now as a proper Quincy. By the way, where is the rest of your team?”

“Out hunting those creatures right now,” Twilight replied swiftly, “In fact I got a report from Sugarcoat barely five minutes before you arrived. Soarin has joined up with my team and they’ve... dealt with the surviving members of the pack of creatures that attacked the children. They’re performing a wider sweep now to ensure a kilometer wide perimeter is secure.”

“Good, very good. We don't want any further disturbances to the camp’s activities. So what’s your take on where these creatures are coming from, Sparkle? I read your report on that Kraken. Things are getting rather hot around Canterlot City. Between these beasts and the arrival of more Soul Reapers, I’m starting to think three Sternritter is not enough of us present here.”

“I’d argue the opposite. I think it’s only because there’s so few of us here that we’ve managed to go unnoticed thus far,” Twilight said firmly, “If Sombra were to deploy more Quincy to the city, it’d just trigger an unnecessary fight. As for the presence of such unusual creatures, I don’t have enough data to give you a solid hypothesis. The best guess I can provide with the information I currently have is that something similar to the events that occurred during the Friendship Games is taking place, but I haven’t discovered what that may be.”

Filthy Rich gave the field lab a concerned look, “Given rampant magic was the cause of the incident back then, couldn’t it be your experiments here are the cause? Not to say that I disapprove of your work. From what I’ve seen, these M-Cells you’re developing have great potential for the future of the Quincy. I’m just wondering if you’ve considered that all this magic is causing the issue?”

“Of course I have, and believe me, we are being exceedingly careful in our experimentation. I don’t have reason to believe my lab is responsible for the presence of these magical creatures. That said, I’m making it a priority to find out.”

“Very well, I won’t press you on it. At any rate, I’d like to talk to my daughter now.”

“Will you be taking her home?”

“She did seem eager to come and enjoy the camp, but she might feel differently now. I’m not sure where she’d be safer,” Filthy Rich replied with hesitance, “In the city there’s just too many Soul Reapers around, I’m afraid they might go after a young, nascent Quincy. Sure there’s magical critters running around the forest, but your team already seems to have that well in hand. It might be safer for Diamond Tiara to stay at camp for now.”

“It’s your decision either way,” Twilight said, “But before you wake her to talk to her, I have something I wanted to ask you. Several somethings, actually.”

“Name them.”

“First of all, I know that the power of our Schrifts are something we Sternritter sometimes prefer to keep secret, but I need to know if there’s a Sternritter out there who can imitate the form of someone else.”

Filthy Rich’s face twitched into a frown, “Does this have anything to do with the attempts on your life?”

“Yes, now please answer me.”

“There is one of us who can do such a thing, although it’d be useless for an assassination attempt because while he can change his physical form, he can’t alter his reiatsu. You’d know him by his spirit energy, no matter what form he wore.”

“I see. You won’t tell me which Sternritter?”

Filthy Rich crossed his arms, “First of all, explain to me what this is about.”

“I will, because I need your help, and I suspect I may come under attack again very soon. I’m trusting you, Filthy Rich, because I don’t think a man who cares about his daughter like you do would target someone else’s daughter.”

“Damned straight I wouldn’t. Night Light and I haven’t always seen eye to eye, but I respect your father and your family. I appreciate the trust. Now what is this about?”

“Well, I still don’t know who’s trying to kill me, but I have an idea, and I need your help to make it work. Do you think you’d let me take a closer look at the model of the city you have in your office?”

----------

The second day the student’s trip to Camp Everfree dawned with the vast majority of them being none the wiser of the strange events occurring around them. Some might have noted that some of the younger campers looked oddly sleepless, and that specifically Diamond Tiara was being rather quiet, as opposed to her usual bossy self. Other campers might have noticed that Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna were both acting more distracted than usual. The students of Canterlot High took these oddities in stride. These were the same kids who’d gone through multiple magical incidents at school, including one of their number turning into a she-demon, a magical rock-band battle, and portals to another reality being torn open by a completely different she-demon. So if a few rumors were spreading around that “something weird” was going on around camp, it didn’t do much to actually concern anyone.

However the extra tension in the air wasn’t lost on Sunset as she oversaw her morning activity with a group of the campers. They were climbing an artificial rock wall set up on the camp’s south end, and Sunset’s job was mostly making sure everyone was putting on their safety gear correctly and keeping watch in case anyone slipped. As it happened the Cutie Mark Crusaders where in her group, and Sunset noted that all three of the young girls were acting much more subdued that morning.

While she was helping Applebloom put on her climbing vest, Sunset asked, “How you three holding up?”

Applebloom licked her lips, suddenly quite focused on the straps of her climbing vest, “Why d’ya ask?”

“Just checking. I know what it’s like...” Sunset lowered her voice to a whisper so as to not be overheard, “First fights, I mean. You don’t have time to think about it when it’s happening, but I can tell you girls didn’t sleep much last night. Want to make sure you’re feeling okay.”

“I... guess I’m alright. Wasn’t actually our first fight,” Applebloom confessed, “Me n’ the gals had a tussle last week when we were tryin’ ta train ourselves.”

“Oh?”

“Y-yeah,” Applebloom said quickly, waving the question off, “Don’t really wanna talk ‘bout it. Anyhows, it’s weird. I ain’t that worried ‘bout me or my friends, but... an’ I know this is gonna sound weird, but I’m worried about Diamond Tiara.”

Sunset could see that the group of climbers currently on the rock wall were going to finish climbing back down soon, so she didn’t have a lot of time to talk with Applebloom, so she said quickly, “That’s not weird. You two might not get along, but she’s still a schoolmate.”

“Heh, we don’t not ‘get along’, she’s made me n’ my friends' lives miserable since we got here. Don’t know why I oughta care what she’s feelin’, but I guess I just don’t like seein’ her be all quiet n’ stuff. It’s easier when she’s bein’ all mean n’ arrogant, ya know? Easier ta not like her. But all she did this mornin’ is stare around camp like a lump. I couldn’t git no rise outta her.”

“She’s had her whole world turned upside down last night. That’s not easy to deal with, and she’s probably feeling very confused and alone right now,” Sunset said, offering Appelbloom a small smile, “I’m not saying you have to become besties, but right now she could probably use another friend.”

Applebloom made a face, “That’s a’ tall order, but... I’ll run it by the girls, hear what they think.” She then patted her cheeks as if to psyche herself up, “Okay, ‘nough worrin’, I’m gonna have a blast climbing this thing!”

Sunset spent the next few minutes getting Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle ready as well, and watched as the three Cutie Mark Crusaders raced each other up the rock face. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted the lake, and saw the numerous canoes lancing across the waters. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were in charge of the canoers, and she could actually hear Dash cheering on her team, urging them to row faster, as if it were a race. She knew Applejack was overseeing a game of football taking place in the camp’s main area, and by the sound of things it was getting pretty intense. She never knew Snips could run that fast, although that might have had something to do with having Bulk Biceps being the one trying to tackle him.

She knew Clover was still down in the lab beneath the lake, working with Lieutenant Meadowbrook. She wasn’t sure if she’d have time to join them that night, but she figured she’d be able to get ahold of Clover before anything kicked off. It might even but useful to have Clover in and around the lab, just in case.

Fluttershy and Rarity were leading campers on a scavenger hunt on the west trails, with Timber Spruce helping out. She had to give the guy credit, for having nearly gotten mauled by Manticores last night, Gloriosa’s brother was in good spirits and showing a cheerful demeanor to the campers. Speaking of Gloriosa, Sunset hadn’t seen her that morning. Timber had taken care of pretty much all the organization for the morning activities. Where was Gloriosa then? Perhaps with Twilight? Sunet had not seen Twilight that morning yet either, but they’d agreed that during lunch time Sunset would slip away and the pair of them could get in contact with Adagio.

Before she’d gone to sleep last night, she’d spoken with Celestia and Luna about how soon they could enact the plan to trap the Kraken, and both had agreed they could do this whenever Sunset and the girls were ready for it. Celestia had even planned ahead, picking an isolated cove several miles north of the beach they’d faced the Kraken at already, and had the Rainboom band’s instruments moved there, along with a hastily set up stage and speakers. That meant they could pull the trigger on this plan at any time, which was perfect by Sunset’s reckoning, since that meant she, Twilight, and Adagio could essentially pick what day of the week to do this.

Including that very night, which was what Sunset was considering. Better to do this as soon as possible, before something went wrong.

Almost as soon as she had the thought, she spotted Gloriosa. The owner of Camp Everfree was coming right towards her, walking rather swiftly and with a harried look in her eyes. Gloriosa’s right hand was almost reflexively holding that odd necklace of multi-colored geodes she wore around her neck.

“Hey there, Gloriosa. What’s up?” Sunset asked as casually as she could, trying to keep her curiosity and concern from showing. Gloriosa stopped in front of her, glancing around, almost nervously.

“Sunset Shimmer. Hello. Um, look this is going to sound strange, but can we talk? Alone?”

Why does she look so agitated? And those dark circles under her eyes? Did she sleep last night?

Showing none of the clenched worry in her gut, Sunset said, “Sure, but is it alright to leave the campers like this? I mean, giant rock wall. Somebody ought to supervise.”

She pointed a thumb towards the big rock wall, which the Cutie Mark Crusaders had finished scaling, for emphasis. Gloriosa looked at it with blinking eyes, as if only just now seeing it. Her magenta features heated and she said, “Oh, yes, of course. Good point. Maybe Principal Celestia can keep an eye on things for a moment?”

Suddenly a voice spoke from behind both of them, startling both Sunset and Gloriosa into nearly jumping out of their socks.

“I can watch the students,” said Luna in a dry tone. By the slight sparkle in her eyes, it was fairly clear Luna knew she’d snuck up on both of them. Gloriosa looked around as if trying to figure out where the ‘Vice Principal’ had come from. Sunset, more in the know, just gave Luna a sardonic look that all but flashed the word ‘Really?’.

Luna just smiled and stared at them, until Gloriosa, shaking off her surprise, said, “If you could, that would be great.”

With that taken care of, Gloriosa led Sunset away. Sunset expected her to go for the camp center, but instead Gloriosa walked north out of the campgrounds and started taking the path towards Twilight’s hidden lab. Only instead of taking the off-shoot trail towards the lab, Gloriosa just stopped at the cross area between trails and turned off the path itself, going and leaning her back against a tree as if exhausted and needing a rest.

“So, what did you want to talk about, exactly?”

Gloriosa looked around, as if trying to confirm that no one else was present. Her hand had never once left the necklace of geodes.

“Twilight told me about you girls, you know,” she said, and Sunset wondered why it was Gloriosa sounded so distraught when she said that.

Keeping her cool, Sunset said, “She let us know last night about that, after the incident with the creatures in the forest.”

A strained smile played across Gloriosa’s face, “Thank you for that. Protecting the campers. I... I don’t know what I'd do if one of them got hurt.”

She paused, clearly struggling with her thoughts, before she said in a voice brimming with conflicting emotions, “I can’t begin to guess what you and your friends have gone through. I don’t even come close to understanding everything that’s going on around me. All I want is to keep Camp Everfree, to keep my home. There’s so much happening that’s just... out of my control.”

Sunset took a step closer to the woman, offering a sympathetic look, “I know how you feel. Wasn’t long ago I was in the same place you were. But, Gloriosa, has something happened? Why are you telling me this? You don’t know me that well, and you’ve spent more time with Twilight...”

“I already talked to Twilight. It's because of that, that I’m talking to you,” Gloriosa said, taking her hand away from the necklace. Now Sunset knew why Gloriosa had been holding it. It wasn’t just a compulsive thing. Gloriosa was trying to hide the fact that the gems were now glowing, vibrantly pulsing with magic!

The refractions. The portal experiments! They’ve been refracting off of these gems! But... what are they?

Sunset looked at Gloriosa, straight in the eyes, “How long have you had these?”

“Some time, now. Before all of this started. Twilight thinks they’re tied to the magic from... from your world,” Gloirosa said, “She said there’s a strong chance these geodes are tied to you and your friends, somehow. Last night, one of the gems, the red one, lit up brightly. When I told Twilight this morning, she said it's very possible that had something to do with either you, or one of your friends, because the six of you have magic inside you as well.”

Sunset didn’t know what to make of that. She wasn’t blind to the magic within the geodes, or the fact that each one had a suspiciously color coded nature to it. She wasn’t stupid, she could see the corelation between the colors of the Elements and what she was looking at. But that still didn’t explain where the geodes had come from, or why there were seven geodes, but only six Elements that she was aware of. The last time the power of the Elements had been used, Sunset had been the focal point, and she’d assumed at the time that she was acting as a proxy for Magic, but she couldn’t account for why there were seven gems.

Maybe she was overthinking things. Maybe the necklace wasn’t actually representative of the Elements. For all she knew, this was an Equestrian artifact that somehow got tossed here, or it was some kind of naturally occurring set of magical crystals that resulted from Equestrian magic spilling into the human world.

“Okay, I’m not sure what these gems are, but again, why are you telling me this? Did Twilight ask you to?”

“No, not specifically. She suggested it might be a good idea, but I wasn’t sure I should,” Gloriosa’s hand went back to the geodes, although this time she just touched them lightly. Suddenly Sunset felt a surge of magic, like a warm prickling on her skin, and saw strands of green light flow from Gloriosa.

Her instincts nearly made her jump back, but she saw this wasn’t an attack. Gloriosa was using her other hand to touch the tree behind her, and for a moment nothing happened. Then the bark started to sprout flowers, and the grass beneath Gloriosa’s feet grew in size and luster. It faded quickly, and Gloriosa sighed.

“It’s just, now that I have this magic, I don’t want to let it go. I don’t know if you and your friends are actually tied to it, but it felt like the magic was trying to... to go to you, last night. But this magic is the only thing I have that’d let me protect my home. My brother nearly died because of those Hollow creatures that are stalking the city. Campers nearly died last night because of creatures from your world. Should I really just give up the only means I have to defend them?”

Sunset looked at Gloriosa, feeling a surge of understanding course through her. She remembered sitting with Fluttershy in Twilight’s manor, nearly breaking down with worry over how she’d protect her friends. She knew what it felt like to feel powerless in the face of looming dangers, and to want to stand between what she loved and those threats. She approached Gloriosa and despite the woman’s obvious tension, she just put a hand sincerely over her heart.

“Gloriosa, I promise you, I’m not your enemy. Me and my friends, we’re dedicated to protecting people just like you, your brother, and the people of the city from harm. I don’t claim to understand what this magic you’ve found is, or why it reacts to me or my friends, but I also promise you we won’t forcibly take it from you. That said, just please promise me in return you’ll be very, very careful with this magic you’re holding onto. Believe me when I say magic can be dangerous, and it doesn’t take much to go from you use it, to it using you. If Twilight’s helping you, great, she’s got plenty of experience with magic by now. But you’ve also got me now to help out too, and I’m on your side. I want to protect this came too, you know?”

Gloriosa’s look of worry and outright fear slowly relaxed into something closer to calm, and she smiled, “You really know how to talk to people, don’t you?”

Sunset shrugged, “I just try to see where everyone’s coming from.”

Both of them glanced down as a warm, red glow suffused the area, stemming from the red geode among the gems, which was now pulsating brightly like a miniature star.

----------

Fluttershy let out a tension relieving breath as she took in the raw splendor of nature around her. Up and down the gentle forest trails west of Camp Everfree, campers were happily going about searching for "treasures" hidden around the trail and nearby forest in a scavenger hunt. Apparently Gloriosa and Timber Spruce had set this up well prior to the campers arrival, as the scavenger hunt involved some clever riddles and clues as to where to search along the trail, and the "treasures" themselves were the ingredients for s'mores that the campers would get to cook up that night. Fluttershy and Rarity were there to help things along, but Timber Spruce himself was doing a lot of the actual work, heavily encouraging the campers and giving hints when a team looked particularly stuck. Despite his brush with death the other night (his second in as many weeks), he looked to be in good spirits and was standing near Fluttershy on a small hill by the north end of the trail as they watched students pick around the treeline.

"Its a beautiful day," Fluttershy said, smiling brightly as a flock of birds alighted on a nearby tree and started chirping away, and a family of squirrels scampered across the grasses, "This is exactly what a nature camp should be all about"

"Heh, minus the times campers almost getting eaten, right?" Timber said with a good natured wink. Fluttershy chuckled, but there was a hint of worry in her as well.

"I know it was scary, but I wish I'd been there. Maybe I could have calmed those poor creatures down. If they're really from Equestria, they must have been so lost and confused. Oh, its so sad that some of them got hurt."

She was trying hard not to think about that, in fact. She knew that animals could be very dangerous to humans in the wrong circumstances, but it wasn't their fault. They were just following their instincts. Although it was odd. Animals rarely attacked humans in groups. Granted she knew little of the nature of Equestria's fauna, but they couldn't be that different from Earth's, could they? it near broke her heart to think some of them had gotten hurt or killed the other night, although she couldn't fault the girls for protecting themselves. It was just all so very unfortunate.

There was some concern still that more magical creatures might be out there, ready to attack, and Fluttershy was resolved to make sure nobody, human or animal, got hurt. Which might be difficult because Twilight had sent some of her own friends out to "escort" the campers. The Quincy were wearing those uniforms that prevented normal people from seeing them, but Fluttershy could still spot them; Sour Sweet and Lemon Zest were following the campers and paroling up and down the trail, both with their unique Quincy bows out. Sour Sweet was the closest, and seeing Fluttershy watching her, the girl gave a grin and a thumbs up while shouldering that giant crossbow of hers.

Hm, Fluttershy didn't know Sour Sweet very well, but wondered if she always seemed so friendly?

Putting the thought out of her mind Fluttershy went back to enjoying the general smells and sounds of nature, until her nose picked up an odd, acrid stench in the air.

"What is that?" she asked, glancing around. Timber looked at her.

"What's what?"

"You don't smell it? It... oh, kind of smells like something that's, um... died."

Timber's nose twitched, and he shrugged, "Your nose must be better than mine because I don't smell anything."

"I'm going to go check," Flutteshy said, feeling a distinct unease rise in her, "It might be nothing, but it could be some poor creature in trouble."

"If it smells like it died, I'm not sure you can do much to help," Timber said, but since Fluttershy was already walking out down the hill, heading deeper into the woods, he threw up his hands and said, "But since it seems to be my destiny to follow people into random danger, I guess I'll just roll with it."

Fluttershy picked her way through the underbrush, Timber following close behind her. Her nose kept twitching as the smell grew stronger. It wasn't just the smell of death, but of general decay and rot. Then, after another few moments, her spiritual senses started to pick up on something nearby. She nearly froze in place. Was that... a Hollow? It was odd. It felt like a Hollow, but it was so weak. Weaker than even the lesser Hollows she was used to sensing. Should she go and get the two Quincy girls or Rarity?

Well, at least she could see what it was first. None of them were far away, but she'd better warn Timber. She glanced at him, "You might want to go back. This might be dangerous, and I don't know if I'll be able to keep you safe."

"Hey, smart money says me and my sisters should've packed up the left the city, let alone be trying to run a summer camp with all this weird stuff going on," he replied, "So way I see it, I'm in for it no matter where I go. Might as well keep close to the gals with the super powers."

Fluttershy smiled sheepishly at that and nodded, continuing on. After just another hundred or so feet, she found a steep gully, at the bottom of which a collection of mossy stones surrounded the entrance to what looked like a small cave, probably no bigger than a closet. The smell was coming from there, along with the faint spiritual signature of a Hollow. Looking at the gully, Fluttershy saw that the grass around it was all dead, and that there was a distinct trail of near blackened earth leading into the cave.

She gulped, and motioned for Timber to stay at the top of the gully as she climbed down to investigate. She approached the mouth of the tiny cave cautiously. She didn't activate her Fullbring yet, for fear of alerting whatever was inside. Carefully reaching into a pocket, she withdrew a small flashlight and shined it down into the cave as she knelt in front of the entrance. The light stabbed into the dark, and she saw something move. Whatever it was, it didn't move towards her, but rather seemed to shrink away from the light, as if afraid of it. She heard a low moaning noise, followed by a sludge-like dripping.

"Um... h-hello? Can you understand me?" she asked, not even sure what she was doing. If this was a Hollow, she should probably just get Sunset and the girls here. Yet whatever this Hollow was, it felt so... so weak, and it sounded like it was in pain. Against all of her logical brain's better judgement, Fluttershy's kind heart told her to try and communicate.

"I'm not going to hurt you. Please, can you come out?" she said, using the same voice she did when talking to a frightened or wounded animal.

Her words seemed to have the desired affect. The shadowy shape stirred again, and moved very slowly towards her. She tensed, just in case, ready to dodge attacks or activate her Fullbring at a moment's notice. She was kind, not naive.

What emerged into the soft pool of light from her flashlight surprised her. It... might have been a Hollow? It was so tiny. No bigger than a infant of maybe two or three years. Its shape was vaguely humanoid, but its body was made of a deep purple, sludge-like substance that hung off a barely discernible skeleton of mismatched bones. It's head was a bulbous shape containing a partial skull, with two, small pin-prick eyes of deeper purple light. It crawled on hands and knees, leaving behind a trail of slime behind it. From the fresh wave of smells, the death and decay was coming right from this small Hollow.

It tensed upon seeing her, raising a dripping hand to its face as if to shield itself from the light. To Fluttershy's shock, it spoke, in a staggered, gurgling voice.

"H...e...lp...too...m...uch...pain. Ple..ase...sto...p...stop...the...pa...in..."

Author's Notes:

We're almost there, folks. I know the build up has been taking awhile, but at this juncture we're basically this close to the spark that'll set off the powder keg.

Now in other news, got a couple of cool things I want to share here.

First off is that our good friend Feather Book has done another cool fanart sketch I'd like to show off:

Adagio, hanging out with her crew of misfits. She's come a long way over the course of the story, and wouldn't have gotten as far as she had without the help of some ~~friends~~ faithful vassals of her own. Thank you Feather Book, I always appreciate it when you do this.

In some surprisingly, directly Bleach related news, there's this: https://twitter.com/VIZMedia/status/1180146389029916673
I can't actually overstate how happy I am to know that the Bleach sequel novels, Can't Fear Your Own World, are getting an official English translation. I am pre-ordering these books as soon as I can. Now, does this mean anything for Friendship Souls? Well, not directly. I've already set most of Friendship Souls canon background and characters down, and it'd probably be pretty awkward to try to fit in stuff from these novels, especially considering they're still not going to be out for awhile. Still, depending on how things go, I might lift a few ideas or tidbits, if I can fit them in without altering too many of my own plans. Still, for any Bleach fans out there that weren't aware of this already, I highly recommend supporting the series and checking these books out. Who knows? Perhaps this will lead to a revival of the anime itself?

At any rate, thank you all for reading. As always I'm thankful for any comments, questions, or critiques you folks care to leave me. 'Till next time.

Episode 103: No Stopping It Now

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Episode 103: No Stopping It Now

His existence had always been pain. From his very first moment of consciousness, of self awareness, the entity known to most as Smooze had only known pain. Yet, despite that, he’d ever been filled with an unending will to keep existing. He truly had not understood the Sternritter, Lightning Dust’s, desire for an early death. For no matter how much pain he was in, Smooze yearned for the small pleasures of existing. So many simple, small pleasures, that utterly boggled him how others would take them for granted.

Take the simple, odd satisfying feeling of clothing over skin? Or the act of drawing in cool breath and expelling it from one’s lungs? What others never noticed, Smooze delighted in, because it wasn’t pain. Whether it be big or small, any other worldly sensation that he could experience, in even the slightest extent, brought unbridled joy to Smooze’s soul.

That was why he’d been so loyal to Lord Tirek. It was Tirek who gave Smooze the medicine, created by Grogar, that lessened the pained, dulled it to the point that Smooze could properly enjoy life’s small pleasures. For that, Smooze served loyally, desiring no greater position than Tenth Espada, and having no greater goal than providing for Las Noches’ basic needs such as clothing. Something few understood, acknowledged, or were thankful for, but Smooze simply hadn’t cared.

His defeat at Lightning Dust’s hands had been nearly complete. Had he not been what he was, her final attack would have been the end of him. Yet Smooze’s body, mutated and molded together from so many different Hollow bodies, was not something that could just “die” that easily. Even the smallest part of him remaining could survive, and potentially regrow in power. However that regrowth was nearly impossible without assistance, and stuck on a battlefield, surrounded by Quincy, Smooze’s survival was contingent on escape.

He’d had his power all but broken, but he’d had just enough to open a Garganta to flee, and in his dazed state, had fled to the human world. Specifically, the Everfree Forest. He did this because he knew who was imprisoned here. Chrysalis was not the only one with eyes and ears around Las Noches’ halls. He also knew that, because of the one who was imprisoned in this forest, lesser Hollows avoided the Everfree Forest. That was why he came here, so that lesser Hollows would not sense him and hunt him.

He was so weak that he’d be easy prey to even their ilk.

So he crawled and crawled, until he found a safe haven, and there he waited, resting, recovering. Yet the process was unbearably slow, and the pain unimaginable. Without the precious medicine it was all Smooze could do to just stay still and hold onto his own sanity. Hours, days, weeks, all of those words that marked time’s passage became meaningless. There was just him, the pain, and his own will to hold his mind together against it, like a sturdy bulwark standing against a tide.

Then, with no preamble, something changed. He heard a voice.

The voice alone was a shockingly smooth balm to his senses, filled with such gentle, soothing notes that it sounded almost unreal to Smooze’s senses. He couldn’t help but move toward that heavenly music.

There was light outside his dark cave, harsh and uninviting, yet kneeling in front of the cave’s entrance was a girl. The simple sight of her rocked Smooze to his core, for she was, to him, such a vibrant light that it made the sunlight behind her seem somehow lesser for the comparison.

He could only stand there and sputter, his own words distorted to his ears as he wailed in pain, yet wanted to say anything else.

The girl’s kind voice reached him once more.

“Oh my, you... you’re not like any Hollow I’ve seen before! You’re in pain?”

Behind the girl, a boy’s voice rose in alarmed concern, “A Hollow!? Should I go get help?”

“No, Timber, wait! I... I don’t know that this one is a threat yet. He sounds like he’s in terrible pain. Wait a moment, I want to see if I can help.”

“ Help!? Why would..." The boy shouted, then took a deep breath and continued more quietly if still quite uneasy sounding, "If you’re sure, but seriously, that thing so much as twitches wrong, I’m screaming for help.”

Smooze didn’t know what else to do. His body was so small and weak he wasn’t sure he could attack, even if he was so inclined. Dully, he realized this angelic form in front of him was in fact one of the young girls from Canterlot High that Grogar had taken an interest in. That information seemed rather unimportant at the moment, however, as the girl’s body became even brighter as a soft glow of blue light enveloped her. A third eye opened upon her brow which was made of solid light, and her back was surrounded by a gleaming halo as a soft shawl of purest white appeared and wrapped itself around the girl’s shoulders.

Smooze felt her spiritual energy like a sudden, warm beacon. Had he the capacity to consume her, his Hollow instincts all but screamed to dig into such a healthy, powerful soul. Yet the very thought also revolted him. Consuming his own kind gave him little pause, but there was little enough beauty in the world to tarnish what stood before him. Yet what did she intend to do? She said she wanted to help, but how could she...?

It happened so abruptly that it nearly shocked Smooze into unconsciousness. His pain, ever present in every fiber of his being, started to get pushed back. It was as if a steady stream of cool water was being trickled into the pit of his soul and allowed to spread out in small, persistent veins to ease the anguish that otherwise tormented his unnatural body.

The girl’s face was strained as she held her hand towards him, her third eye growing every brighter, some of the light spilling into her normal eyes as well. Tears budded at their corners, her voice rough with effort.

“There’s... so much... oh goodness... how can you stand it? You’re suffering so much... I can’t, I can’t push it all back.”

Despite her words, what she was doing felt akin to a minor miracle to Smooze. Even the medicine Grogar made never lessened his pain this much! It was still there, of course, but this girl’s power was dampening it to a degree Smooze had never felt before! He could feel the cold rocky ground beneath his feet now! He could feel the cool air on his slimy skin! It was... it was wonderful!

It took him a second to get his mind jarred back into thinking again, and now that he could think straight he looked to the girl and pulled back into the cave, his voice a wet rasp.

“You’ve done more than enough, human girl. I have not felt so little of the pain in... forever. Please, stop straining yourself. You cannot cure me of being me.”

“But if I stop, your pain will come back,” she said, her voice nearly cracking, and Smooze could only shake his head in wonderment at the simple selflessness on display.

“I’ve lived with it forever. I can continue doing so. You’ve taken the edge off enough that I can... think. And given who I am, I don’t think you’ll want to keep helping me. It might even have been smarter for you to let your friend call for help.”

For such an angelic face, the girl was remarkably capable of putting on a scornful look, “Nonsense! I don’t care who you are. Nobody deserves to have to endure that kind of suffering. I can keep this up for awhile, and I do want to know who you are. My name is Fluttershy.”

“And, I’m, uh, Timber Spruce,” said a boy just now coming into view as he came down a small ravine slope into Smooze’s field of vision. From his rugged attire, Smooze guessed he was part of the local campgrounds. Was that what was going on? Smooze had been out of the loop, but he’d thought the local camp was all but shut down and rarely used, but now that his faculties were back, he could now sense many nearby souls, some of which had strong enough reiatsu to be easy threats to his weakened state.

“I... am called Smooze,” he said, wondering if Fluttershy at least might have known the name. From her look, she didn’t recognize it. Oh well, it stood to reason they wouldn’t know every Espada’s name.

“What were you doing here, Mr. Smooze?” Fluttershy asked, and as he debated on just how much he ought to tell her, he froze.

He now sensed more spiritual pressures close by. Three of them, all Hollows! All Arrancar. And not only close by, but he sensed the distinct built up of reiatsu that suggested either a Cero or Bala!

On impulse, he shouted, “Get down!”

But neither Fluttershy or Timbre Spruce had been the target. The Bala bullet, crimson red, shot out of the nearby foliage across the down-slope of the ravine, and impacted with Smooze’s side. It didn’t destroy him, but his left half burst apart in a spray of purple gunk and sent him skidding to the ground outside the cave.

Then all hell broke loose.

----------

A few minutes earlier...

They’d been sent to do some observation of the camp and the activity surrounding it. According to Adagio, the plan was to begin the attacks around Canterlot City that night. Gaw’s part was to act as Adagio’s Fraccion and bodyguard, and to try to help keep damage around the town to a minimum while still making it look like a real assault.

Gaw didn’t exactly grasp the nuances of this plan. She was a simple soul, largely interested in the well being of her tribe and fulfilling her duty to support the alpha of the pack. If Adagio wanted to do her complex plans, it was no business of Gaw’s other than to follow the plan as best she could. She understood Adagio’s ultimate goal was to rescue the tribe’s ally, Ember, and to do so without making it obvious they were working with non-Hollows.

Of course plans are hard to follow when there’s more than one alpha. The presence of Grogar and Gilda really did much to make matters murky, and Gaw didn’t understand why Adagio didn’t just crush both of them to properly assert dominance. She knew it had something to do with the highest of the Hollow tribes alpha’s, Tirek, but Gaw wasn’t sure why Tirek extended protections to those as weak as Grogar or Gilda.

Gaw was even fairly certain she could match Gilda’s power herself, but she no longer desired to be alpha of her own tribe. Adagio’s tribe needed her more. Why, with Gaw, Adagio would have to rely on Di Roy for getting things done, and that male was far too silly to let Adagio deal with him alone.

Of course her present company wasn’t much better. It’d been Gilda’s idea to snoop around the camp, and after bugging Adagio about it, Adagio had acquiesced under the condition that Gilda take Gaw along as support. More likely Adagio wanted Gaw to keep an eye on Gilda, which went unspoken between the pair as they’d left via a simple look. Adagio was good at giving commands through a mere expression or gesture, which Gaw appreciated. Words could be very overrated, in her opinion. She’d never needed them before and tried to use them sparingly now that she was capable of speech.

But sometimes she did have to speak, like now, as she, Gilda, and one more Arrancar named Greta were hiding in the brush not far from one of the forest trails. Gaw didn’t trust Greta much, knowing she was allies with Gilda, and more than that, Great smelled... strange. But Greta wasn’t the issue right now, Gilda was.

“Bad idea,” Gaw said, never feeling quite right when she spoke.

Gilda turned sharp eyes no less golden than Gaw’s own towards her, “Oh yeah? I think we need to see what’s in that cave.”

Gaw was getting frustrated. Speaking wasn’t her strong suit, let alone convincing others to do something through words. They were already far too close to the trail, where she knew two of Twilight’s Quincy companions were escorting the human children playing in the forest. This was too dangerous. Too much risk of discovery. Gaw growled and tried this whole “talking” thing again.

“Not important what yellow girl sees in cave. We not here for that. Too close, too dangerous.”

Gilda snorted, but Greta spoke up in an equally quiet whisper to what Gaw had been using.

“She’s right, Gilda. Observing is one thing, but we’re too close to blowing our cover.”

Down in the ravine Gaw could see the yellow girl with the flowery pink hair start to glow. She sensed the brush of Fluttershy’s spiritual pressure, stronger than Gaw would have expected based on what Adagio had described of these girls. Aside from Sunset Shimmer, Adagio hadn’t given the others much credit, but Gaw sensed this Fluttershy’s power, while subtle, was more than potent enough to equal her own or Gilda’s.

“The heck is she doing down there? Dammit, I need a better angle,” Gilda whispered, and with admittedly skilled stealth, slipped further to the other side of the ravine. Gaw and Greta followed, after Greta gave an apologetic shrug to Gaw.

“Sorry about this,” Greta said, “Gilda’s always been impulsive.”

Gaw grunted, not caring to comment. She was frustrated because she knew this was exactly the kind of thing Adagio had sent her to prevent, but she was at a loss at how to handle this besides just physically dragging Gilda away, which would cause enough noise to blow their cover anyway. Joining Gilda on the other side of the ravine, still hidden from view through the thick bushes, Gaw could now see the cave entrance better.

It looked as if Fluttershy was using her power upon something standing in the cave mouth. Something small, and rather slimy looking. Gaw had been smelling something foul for some time and hadn’t been sure what it was, except maybe some dead forest animal. Now she could tell it was the thing, the Hollow, down in the cave.

“You’ve got to be kidding me...” Greta said in a surprised whisper, “How did that slick little pile of sludge end up here?”

The one in question was a small, almost child-sized figure of humanoid bones and purple slime. Gaw could sense the Hollow spirit energy of it, but it was so unbelievably weak that it wasn’t surprising none of them had taken note of it until now. Gaw wasn’t really sure who it was, but she’d never paid a lick of attention to Las Noches’ politics. That was Adagio’s business.

“Smooze,” Gilda said under her breath, laughing quietly, “Look at how weak he is. Must’ve snuck off here after getting his butt handed to him by that Sternritter. Well... this is an opportunity.”

Gaw cocked her head, noticing Gilda had raised a hand to point a finger at Smooze. Neither Fluttershy or the human boy now climbing down into the ravine had noticed them yet.

“What you doing?” Gaw asked, somehow sure that whatever Gilda’s answer would be it’d be something that Adagio would disapprove of.

“It’s it obvious? I’m the Tenth Espada. If Smooze comes back, he’ll try to take my position. Why the hell would I let him live long enough to get enough of his strength back to do that?” Gilda replied as if the answer should have been obvious. And in a way, it was. Gaw understood the law of the jungle. The strong thrived, and the weak lived at the sufferance of the strong. Gilda, technically speaking, had every right to defend her territory and position by eliminating a rival while they were still weak.

However, Adagio wanted them to keep their cover. Gaw had to do something.

“No, too many nearby. You make fight before needed.”

“Hmph, this won’t take but one Bala to do, and we'll be gone before the humans even know what happened. No one will be the wiser until nightfall, which is when Adagio wants to do her damn raid.”

“Gilda,” Greta said, “This isn’t a good idea. We can’t make sure we’ll pull this off quietly. You could spark off the whole powder keg around here-”

“Grow a pair, Greta. I’m not letting this chance slip by,” Gilda said, perhaps a bit louder than she should have, but the humans and Smooze were too busy with their own conversation to hear. Gilda had a... desperate look in her eyes.

“I’ve worked too hard to become an Espada to lose it now.”

From the sudden formation of crimson energies crackling around her hand, it was clear Gilda was done talking. On instinct, Gaw grabbed her hand, trying to stop the Bala from firing. All she really managed to do was wrench Gilda’s hand off aim enough to send the resulting Bala slightly off course, catching Smooze in his side instead of it being a direct hit.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing!?” Gilda shouted, wrenching her hand free of Gaw’s grip and then yanking out her Zanpaktou in one motion. Fluttershy and the human boy Gaw didn’t know had both reacted to the sudden attack and noise, the boy by leaping back and almost falling over himself, and Fluttershy by immediately turning and putting herself protectively between Smooze and the source of the attack.

Gilda turned desperate eyes towards her target and instantly her body vanished with a speedy Sonido. With a feral growl Gaw tore her own Zanpaktou off its cord strapped around her back and her own form blurred with a similar high-speed motion. Greta, blowing out a hard sigh, drew her own sword but didn’t rush to make any moves.

With a burst of buzzing noise, Gilda appeared behind Fluttershy and Smooze, driving her Zanpaktou down towards the wounded and now quite helpless former Espada. Gaw’s blade intercepted Gilda’s as she appeared next to them, the curved, claw-like weapon stopping Gilda’s sword cold. Fluttershy spun around, eyes confused upon seeing two Arrancar, one of which appeared to be trying to stop the other from killing Smooze.

“Get out of my way!” Gilda snarled.

“Idiot!” Gaw shot back, “We flee now before things get worse!”

“Too late for that, Hollows.”

A potent blue reishi arrow flew from the treeline and impacted hard with Gaw’s shoulder. It didn’t blast her off her feet, but the arrow did penetrate a half inch through her Heirro and staggered her back a few steps.

“Yikes, Sour Sweet, when did your arrows get that strong?”

“We’ve been practicing every day we haven’t been Twilight's lab gophers! It would be weird if our arrows hadn’t gotten stronger by now!”

Gaw saw two girls emerge from the trees, both wearing the distinctive white uniforms of Quincy soldats. She didn’t recognize either of them by sight, but Adagio had provided a description, via information gained from Twilight, as to who these two were. Sour Sweet and Lemon Zest were serving as part of Twilight’s miniature “research” tribe, which was part of the greater Quincy tribe, as Gaw understood it.

Great, this just made things so much more complicated! Adagio wouldn’t want these two killed either. Honestly Gaw wasn’t entirely sure Adagio cared what happened to Smooze, but Gaw was pretty certain that a battle here, now, was not part of the plan! That was why she’d hoped to stop Gilda and, if necessary, drag her away forcefully.

The only problem was that Gilda was still just a shade stronger than Gaw, and with more enemies showing up, it’d be impossible to force Gilda to go anywhere.

And it wasn’t like she had time to think of a plan, even if she’d been the thinking type.

Sour Sweet hefted the rather large crossbow she carried and aimed it next at Gilda, “Lemon Zest, help me with this one! Fluttershy, you’d better get Timber Spruce out of here and then go get help.”

“Back off you freakin’ twerps!” Gilda roared, letting her spiritual pressure spill out of her in an angered wave, “Small fry ought to stay out of my business!”

She rushed the pair, and Lemon Zest let out a “Oh crap!” as she raised her unusually shaped bow, the two prongs on either end of it firing a set of arrows that corkscrewed at odd angles towards Gilda. However Gilda was ready for them and knocked the arrows aside with deft swings of her blade and zipped between the two girls.

“I remember you shrimps from the big brawl at Las Noches! You weren’t strong enough to take me then and you sure as hell aren’t now!”

Her sword flashed in twin crescents. Lemon Zest cried out as she tried to leap back and still took a cut across her midriff that spurted blood. Sour Sweet fared better, using her crossbow like a shield, but even so the blow hit hard enough to slam her into a nearby tree, cracking the thick trunk and causing it to collapse. Gilda turned to drive her Zanpaktou towards the unbalanced Lemon Zest’s chest, only to have a white scarf wrapped around her wrist.

Fluttershy, hand out, eyes glowing fierce and blue, yanked with her scarf and swung Gilda around and slammed the Arrancar down into the ravine floor. Her voice was steel as she said, “You will stop hurting people this instant!”

Gilda’s eyes shot wide as Fluttershy’s power slammed into her like an avalanche of pure will. Even with her own will powered by frustration and rage, Gilda had a hard time even standing back up, let alone raising her sword again.

Gaw stood there, feeling a distinct sense of impressed respect wash through her. For such a gentle, frail looking thing, this Fluttershy spoke with the voice of an alpha. This was also her chance!

Ignoring the pain in her shoulder, breaking off the reishi arrow with one hand, Gaw leaped down to Gilda and grappled the Espada with her other arm while she was still stunned by Fluttershy’s power. She shot a look back at Greta.

“We go, NOW!”

Greta met her eyes and nodded, jumping down to grab Gilda’s other side as the Espada began to struggle more against Fluttershy’s power.

“Damn you! Let go of me! I have to kill Smooze, don’t you see!? I’ll lose everything if I don't! Everything!”

“Calm your mammaries, Gilda,” Greta snapped, “Gaw’s right, we need to split before we bring the whole damn camp down on our heads!”

Fluttershy had let go of Gilda with her scarf, and Gaw suspected that all Fluttershy had wanted was to keep Gilda from continuing to attack the Quincy. After all, Fluttershy must have known what Adagio’s overall plan entailed, and likely guessed this wasn’t part of the plan, and that Gaw was trying to get things back on track.

Their eyes met for a moment and Fluttershy gave a slight, imperceptible nod towards Gaw.

That was all Gaw needed, and she, with Greta’s help, began to haul Gilda out of the ravine, using Sonido to reach the top of it while dragging a still struggling and shouting Gilda.

Sour Sweet and Lemon Zest, however, didn’t seem inclined to let them go. Clutching her bleeding mid-riff with one hand, Lemon Zest could throw a ginto tube, and did so. The silver tube flew towards the Arrancar, and Lemon Zest flicked a finger towards it and sent out a string of reishi as the tube burst its alchemic water into the air.

“Eisboden!” (Ice Floor)

The water flash froze as it struck the ground, expanding in a swift flowing sheet of thick blue ice that rushed up the forest floor to entrap the legs of all three Arrancar. That wouldn’t be enough to stop them, and they almost instantly started to tear their feet free of the ice coating their lugs, but Sour Sweet had time to brace and aim her crossbow.

“This is for Indigo Zap and Hacksaw!”

Blue reishi particles gathered and the crossbow cut loose with a bolt that nearly broke the sound barrier. Yet even before Sour Sweet had fired, Gilda’s body had become surrounded by a deathly violet aura, her reiatsu shooting up even higher as she threw off Greta and Gaw, then hissed out the words, ”Rend, Bestia Herida!” (Wounded Beast)

The area was engulfed in an aura of mixed crimsons and flickering violets as a dual fountain of lights swirled forth from Gilda and her Zanpaktou. A blast of hurricane force winds billowed through the trees, and an unstable, ferocious spiritual pressure created a sound almost like a lion’s roar. The vortex of spiritual energy shot up into the air and also expanded outward, forcing Fluttershy back a step due to her close proximity. Sour Sweet’s full power bolt smashed into the explosive aura that’d surrounded Gilda, and failed to penetrate more than a foot before shattering in sparkles of reishi motes.

Mere Tenth Espada or not, Gilda’s reiatsu was still impressive enough for anyone present to understand she’d still obtained her rank by strength, and not just Guto’s favor.

Fluttershy moved to shield Smooze, who’d just barely regained his senses enough to stand. The humanoid pile of sludge rasped out, “You should... flee while you can...”

“I can’t do that,” Fluttershy said, “Just try to stay behind me.”

“You know,” Gilda’s voice spoke from within the fading aura of red and violet light, “If you’d just let me finish the slimeball off, I might’ve let it go at that. He’s the only one I want dead. The rest of you are just in the damn way. I mean, Quincy, sure I’d kill them any day of the week, but it’s not like I had a freakin’ grudge against you, butter-face.”

Fluttershy frowned, “Okay, for one? Rude. For two? You could still walk away from this. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Hurt me? Don’t worry...”

Gilda emerged from the fading aura and smoke of her released Resurreccion. Her lower body now looked like that of a lean, anthropomorphized lion with golden fur, thick claws grinding the ground beneath them and a barbed tail, not unlike that of the Manticores from the previous night, flicking behind her. Her upper body was as muscular as ever, and her clothing replaced by bands of bone-like white armor that wrapped around her chest, shoulders, and waist, akin to an ancient roman styled cuirass. She even now wore a centurion’s helmet styled like the head of lion, with a plume of her own white and purple tinged hair rising from the top of it. In her hands was a massive spear with a long, black shaft, and a large leaf shaped blade at the end. A thick tuft of golden lion’s mane sat at the base of the spear head, for some reason already dripping with sanguine droplets of blood. Then Fluttershy saw the blood sizzle and hiss as it dripped to the ground, smoking there as the blood ate into the ground like a corrosive acid.

Gilda grinned savagely, “You won’t hurt me at all.”

----------

Adagio felt the sudden upturn of Gilda’s reiatsu even as far off as her cavern hideout, and immediately slammed a hand into the rock wall beside her, cracking it.

“That moron! What does she think she’s doing!?”

She’d hoped that Gilda had wisened up enough to know not to fly off the handle and keep a low profile, and had sent Gaw along just to keep an eye on things. She hadn’t imagined there could be much out there that’d actually trigger a fight. Gilda might hate Quincy, but she’d known Quincy were around for days now and hadn’t acted. What had happened out there? Even Gilda shouldn’t have been this stupid!

As she fumed, Grogar smiled thinly from where he’d been all too calmly sitting cross-legged on the cavern floor near the back, reading a book that Adagio didn’t know nor care about. He set the book aside and rose, speaking mildly, “We should have expected this, Adagio, but what does it really change? An organized battle is nice, but our goal of testing the area’s defenses remains unchanged. The battlefield simply moves from the city to here. Unless of course... there’s some reason you don’t want to fight here?”

She cast a sharp eye towards the old goat, looking with undisguised loathing at his weathered, parchment features. Her mind raced, but she’d long grown used to thinking quickly and under pressure. It didn’t take her long to conclude that, in many ways, Grogar was correct. While she wanted the battle to take place at the time and location she, Twilight, and Sunset had planned for, her objectives had not changed, nor had the resources at her disposal. The only major hurdle was that Sunset and her friends wouldn’t be off dealing with that Kraken, subsequently keeping Celestia and Luna busy.

That could be problematic, and require her to call in Lament that much sooner.

But there was no point crying over matters. For whatever reason, Gilda had started a fight out there in the forest, and anyone with a lick of spiritual senses would be able to feel it. It wouldn’t be long before Soul Reapers and Quincy alike converged on the area.

There was no stopping it now.

“Di Roy, Roka!” she said with firm command, speaking to the pair that sat around their small camp’s fire, “Remain here and stay on guard. If worse comes to worse, we can fall back to this location. Your role in that regard has not changed.”

“You got it boss lady!” Di Roy said, hopping to his feet with an overexaggerated salute. Roka nodded calmly.

“Be careful,” she said, “And remember, if anyone gets injured, bring them to me.”

“Hey, what about us?” asked one of the belligerent Arrancar warriors that had arrived with Gilda, “Without Gildas orders-”

“Gilda is presently starting the damn fight we’d planned for tonight!” Adagio spat, “You lot can either follow my orders now to go save her idiotic hide, or I can just kill you now so you won’t be dead weight later!”

The Arrancar, almost all of whom served Guto, but essentially had no authority to gainsay another Espada’s authority, all looked at each other and then one by one gave her affirming nods.

“Good,” Adagio said, then looked at Grogar, feeling her muscles tense almost on their own. She knew she couldn’t trust him. The very thought of having to go into battle alongside him disgusted her. She was more than a little convinced he had some scheme in the works for this battle. The mere fact that he seemed so unconcerned with this turn of events set her further on edge. Yet she’d be damned if she was going to show weakness in front of him. No matter how unexpected the circumstances had turned, she was going to turn it back in her favor!

“You and I will deal with Celestia and Luna. Don’t forget our goal is to measure the enemy’s level of strength, nothing more. If more Captains arrive, or Sternritter, I give the order when to retreat to Hueco Mundo, and I expect you to follow that order, Grogar.”

His calm smile didn’t so much as twitch, yet his eyes held a knowing twinkle that stabbed at Adagio, “Of course, my dear. And fear not, I’ve prepared my own surprises for our... mutual foes.”

Because of course you did, you withered bastard, Adagio thought, “Oh? How about you tell me about these ‘surprises’ as we go? If we don’t leave now, Gilda might not survive long enough for us to save.”

“Hmm, I suppose we should move then,” Grogar agreed, rasping out a sand-paper laugh, “Of course I can’t imagine you’d shed that many tears over her if she fell. Oh come now, don’t give me that look, Adagio. This is the Hollow way, is it not? Survival of the fittest. Gilda lives or dies by her own strength, whether we arrive in time to ‘save’ her or not.”

Some of the Arrancar warriors muttered at his words, but more than a few others nodded agreement. These Arrancar all served Guto, and we're only here on loan to Gilda for this mission. Most of them probably knew Gilda on one personal level or another, but that just meant that while some might admire her strength at Guto’s former right hand, others were likely jealous of her becoming an Espada. It occurred to Adagio that some of them wouldn’t mind her getting killed either, as it’d just open up a slot for advancement.

It doesn’t matter. As long as we distract the Soul Reapers enough to rescue Ember, nothing else matters, she thought darkly as she, Grogar, and a half dozen other Arrancar left the cave and leaped into the sky. She trusted Di Roy and Roka would do her proud, but she worried that with things happening at this inopportune time if Twilight Sparkle would be able to adapt to the situation and arrive in time to do her part in all this.

She had the communicator still, but she certainly couldn’t use it with other Arrancar nearby. Putting that from her mind she turned her harsh gaze back towards Grogar as they all bounded across the sky towards the spiritual pressures of Gilda, and now several others she could sense.

“Answer the question, Grogar. What have you cooked up without telling me?”

He gave her a cracked grin, reaching into a pocket inside his white vest to withdraw an object that looked like a small, plastic signal button. “Like you, I thought this battle would take place in the city. Knowing you were... heh, concerned with how many enemies we’d face, I took the liberty of returning to some of my other laboratories. You keep forgetting, my dear, I’ve been at this much longer than you. I’ve had a long time to build upon my experiments, and the lab I held you in was just one of many I’ve had over the centuries. You may be my finest creation yet, but you’re hardly the first.”

He pressed the button, and Adagio felt a small but distinct spark of spirit energy leap from it and high into the sky. It burst in the air with a pallid green aura, then rapidly faded, but for a moment the intensity of the stored spirit energy was like a lance... or perhaps a signal.

A moment later Adagio felt the distant sensation of Garganta portals opening up. She looked to her right, towards the southwest where Canterlot City lay, many miles distant. First one, then two, then dozens of spiritual pressures spiked up alongside the Garganta portals she sensed. Seeing her look, Grogar chuckled.

“Never forget, Adagio Dazzle, I am the one who will evolve the Hollow race. That is my ambition, and I’ve had it for far longer than your simple desire to rule Las Noches, child. We’ll see how the Soul Reapers and Quincy handle my long line of experiments, dating back centuries.”

----------

“I’m headin’ out, Silverstar. Ya keep the fort held down tight ‘till I get back, ya hear?” Sweet Cider said, waving over her shoulder as she left the warehouse that her Soul Reapers were using for their barracks. It was a pleasant day out, and while she was still feeling a tight stir of nerves in her stomach over going to see her family, she realized her steps were somehow lighter than they’d been in a long time.

“Of course, Captain,” Silverstar said from the warehouse doorway, bowing.

She smiled and gave a last nod before turning, then halted with her next step as multiple Hollow reiatsu washed over her. She cast an angered glare towards the sky, then coiled her legs beneath her. With a powerful jump that cratered the sidewalk beneath her, she shot into the sky. When she got several hundred feet up, she stopped herself and planted her feet on the air, a burst of air pressure flowing out around her. Her face was a sour mask of rage as she saw first one, then two, then at least around six or seven more Garganta portals tearing open in the air. Each one was at a different location around the city, but she could spot them all clearly.

“Captain!” Sivlersar joined her, hand already on his Zanpaktou, “How many?”

“Enough to piss me off,” Sweet Cider growled, “Just when I was gonna work up the nerve ta see my family, these asshats show up! I’m going to enjoy shredding whoever was dumb enough ta crawl outta Hueco Mundo today!”

“Just try ta remember we’re in a city. Ya can’t cut loose too much,” Silverstar said, then paused as he looked at what was emerging from the Garganta portals, “What n’ the flamn’ pits o’ hell are those?”

While clearly Hollows, the creatures that started stepping out of the Garganta portals were each highly bizarre in their appearance, and even their spiritual pressures seemed odd, almost twisted. Sweet Cider had a hard time making heads or tails of some of them, and among the dozens slinking out of the Gargantas, each one was different.

One looked as if someone had cobbled together a mass of pale white limbs and skulls until they were just an amorphous blob. Another looked like a metallic skinned, vaguely humanoid shaped insect with a bulbous body that appeared to be a literal hive growing out of its back and torso. Yet another had the appearance of a unhealthily thin and frail human covered head to toe in black cloth, bearing a giant silver cross impaled through its own back by chains and spikes of bone, with pale blue flames flickering from its shrouded head. Then there was one that looked like a floating, white orb of stone, etched with the face of a skull, that sat within a field of flying, writhing black hair. There were too many other monstrosities to take them all in, but each sent a sickening feeling into Sweet Cider’s stomach.

“I don’t know what these tortured lookin’ buggers are,” she said, hand grasping her Zanpaktou firmly and feeling the spirit of her blade. It was almost scalding in its own anger, as if it recognized that these Hollows, if that was what they were, were utterly abnormal. “But it don’t matter! Gather the squad, Silverstar! We’re takin’ ‘em all down!”

----------

Sunset had just finished getting the next set of campers set up to climb the rock wall when the slap of Hollow reiatsu hit her senses. She whipped around, staring across the lake at the forest to the northeast. She could actually see the purple and crimson glow of light from a massive release of spirit energy, and recognized it right off the bat.

“Gilda!?”

“Huh? Who’s that?” asked Lyra, who’d just gotten her climbing harness on, but was now looking at Sunset curiously, “Is everything okay there?”

Sunset forced her mind to think swiftly but calmly, managing a smile of forced relaxation as she waved a hand at Lyra, “What? Oh, it’s nothing. Just, uh, remembered something all of a sudden. Say, Lyra, do you mind keeping an eye on things here a sec? I got to... use the restroom.”

“Uhhh, okaaaay...” Lyra replied with a drawn out tone of befuddlement, but then seemed to rapidly conclude something as the girl’s minty blue face grew knowing, “Oh, is this more ‘magic’ stuff going on? Because if one of you goes demony again, I’ve got my phone ready to snap some killer pics.”

Sunset wanted to groan her exasperation, but kept her cool, “Look, just keep an eye on things, and if stuff starts going... weird, start leading people to the camp center.”

It probably spoke volumes of how much the Canterlot High students had adapted to things that Lyra didn’t even look all that troubled as she nodded and said, “Sure thing.”

Sunset immediately started a swift walk towards the middle of the campgrounds, all the while stretching out her spiritual senses to get a fix on everyone’s location. She felt Fluttershy out there in the distance, and could tell her Fullbring was active. Rarity hadn’t activated hers yet... no, there it was, Rarity had just activated it as well. Beside’s Gilda’s reiatsu, she thought she sensed at least one, maybe two more Hollows in the same area. That was concerning enough, but why did Gilda’s spiritual pressure feel so much stronger now?

It must be that ‘Resurreccion’ thing that Twilight told me about. What’s going on!? This wasn’t the plan! The attack is supposed to happen tonight.

Something had clearly gone wrong, but that didn’t matter now. If there was a fight, and her friends were in danger, there was only one response for Sunset and the rest of them to make. Hopefully Adagio and Twilight had a means of adjusting their plans to account for this upcoming mess they were all about to jump into.

She saw that the canoes that Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash had been leading across the lake had shifted course, and were making their way back to the docks. No doubt they’d sensed the same thing and had come up with their own excuses for why the canoe racing had to end. Across the camp green, Sunset also spotted Applejack, who’d left another camper in charge of the football game and was making her way right towards Sunset.

At the same moment, Celestia, Luna, and Gloriosa all coming out of the camp center building. Celestia and Luna’s faces were both almost frighteningly calm on the surface, but Sunset could see from their eyes that they were aware of what was happening. Gloriosa followed just a step behind them, looking about wildly as one of her hands grasped the necklace of geodes.

They all met just short of the gazebo in front of the camp center, Applejack giving Sunset a questioning look, “Ya figure its the same gal that took a shot at ya at yer apartment?”

“No mistaking her,” Sunset said, not adding anything more.

Celestia and Luna exchanged looks after casting concerned glances towards Gloriosa, and Sunset quickly said, “It's okay, she knows what’s what.”

“She does?” Celestia asked, and Sunset just nodded swiftly.

“I can explain later, we don’t have time to get into it now.”

Celestia accepted that without questioning it further, “That makes it easier to talk freely. Gloriosa, I hope you’ll help us keep my students safe?”

“O-of course I will! They’re your students, but they’re also my campers! I'll do whatever it takes to keep them from harm!” Gloriosa said with conviction.

“If it's just a single Espada, we should be able to handle it easily,” Luna said quietly, “You girls should remain here while my sister and I deal with this.”

“Fluttershy’s out there, along with Rarity, ya really think we’re just gonna sit here an’ do nothin’?” Applejack said. Celestia held up a reassuring hand.

“Whatever is happening, the safety of the campers is our top priority. I want to entrust that task to you young ladies, while we go and assist your friends. There’s little time to discuss alternatives, so please listen to me for now.”

“Wait,” Gloriosa said, glancing towards the ground. Sunset sensed a disturbance as the ground stirred, and suddenly faint green motes of light rose from the earth. Vines rose from soft soil, then blossomed into open flowers, several of them, whose petals opened and then further wafting streams of light formed images. Sunset recognized several parts of the Everfree forest, and in the images saw packs of creatures rushing through it. She saw Timberwolves, several more Manticores, and what might have been a Bugbear, all in images from different flowers.

“What is this?” asked Luna with deeply suspicious eyes, and Gloriosa gulped. Sunset jumped in first.

"Again, I'll explain later. Magic geodes, plant powers. No time to go into it now!" she said, and Luna gave her an arched eyebrow.

“I, uh, planted special flowers around the forest to watch for danger," Gloriosa said, gesturing at the flowers, "These are connected to flowers much further out than others, but those creatures are still coming towards the camp!”

“There must have been more than the ones that attacked last night,” Sunset murmured, and Celestia gave her a sharp look.

“Attack? It really does sound like you and I are going to have a fascinating conversation once this is all over, Miss Shimmer," Celestia said.

Sunset felt her face flush and she met Celestia’s intent gaze, almost reliving several moments from her life as a pony under Princess Celestia’s tutelage. No one could give a disapproving stare quite like Celestia, in this world or any other. “I’ll explain afterward, I promise. We need to take action. I’ve got my gikon with me. You?”

Chappy hadn’t been happy about it, but in case Sunset needed to enter her spirit body at a moment’s notice, she’d been carrying Chappy’s gikon jewel in her pocket instead of letting the artificial soul run loose in her plushie body. Sunset had agreed to let Chappy have a vacation after this was all done.

Celestia and Luna both nodded, Luna flashing a gikon jewel from her sleeve, while Celestia... reached into her cleavage to pull hers out. Luna blanched at that. “Really, sister?”

Celestia just shrugged, “It’s a faster draw from there. I’ve never mastered the sleeve thing you do.”

Luna sighed, “Regardless, you girls stay here and protect the camp.”

No, bad idea, Sunset thought, tension rising in her chest like a hot knife. Celestia and Luna didn’t know what the real stakes were here, and would still likely see Adagio as nothing but an enemy. Sunset needed to go with them, to try and mitigate thing and do whatever she could to control the situation. Granted, the Equestrian creatures coming out of the deeper Everfree forest would be a problem, but Sunset knew the girls could handle that and keep the camp safe.

“Let me come at least,” she said, “You don’t know for sure how many enemies there are, and I can keep up with you.”

“Now hold on a’ tic,” Applejack began, but Sunset looked at her and put a hand on her shoulder.

“Applejack, if we all go, the camp will be nearly defenseless. I’m trusting you to keep everyone safe alongside Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. I’ll make sure Fluttershy and Rarity are okay, and bring them back here as fast as possible,” she looked then at Celestia and Luna, “Does that work for you? I’ll get my friends and the other campers out there to safety while you fight the Espada.”

Luna looked hesitant, but Celestia said, “That’s a fair plan, Sunset Shimmer. Let us go then, before anything else-”

A flare of reiatsu appeared in the distant sky, like a green lance bursting in the air. Celestia grimaced, “-...happens. Well, that can’t be good.”

“What was that?” Rainbow Dash rushed up to them, Pinkie Pie bouncing close behind, “Seriously what the heck is going on!?”

“No time, gals,” Applejack said, “We’re on camp defense against a’ whole mess o’ critters, while the Soul Reaper types are goin’ off ta pull our friends outta the frying pan.”

Suddenly Pinkamena’s thick, pink mist flowed out of Pinkie Pie and the straight haired, crazy eyed doppelganger licked her lips as she took solid shape, “Does this mean I get to finally eat something!?”

Sunset was more focused on trying to sense what that signal had been, and realized in the faint distance, back towards Canterlot City, she could pick up on the traces of emerging Hollow reiatsu, “Something’s happening back at the city.”

“We can’t do anything about that,” Celestia said, through her expression betrayed concern, “Captain Sweet Cider and Lieutenant Posey’s forces will have to deal with that until matters are settled here. Now we must go. We’ve delayed enough.”

With that Celestia and Luna popped in their gikon jewels into their mouths. Their spirit forms appeared from their gigai bodies in a stream of blue energy, both of them wearing their full black robes and flowing white Captain’s coats in their spirit forms. Their physical bodies both stepped back, in control now by their gikon souls, and unlike the Chappy model, these ones seemed far more serious minded and alert.

“Your orders, ma’ams?” said the one in Celestia’s body.

“Continue to act in our human roles, and protect the students as best you can,” Celestia said, who then looked to Sunset.

Sunset nodded and swallowed Chappy’s gikon, feeling the familiar sensation of being essentially “booted” out of her own body, accompanied by the oddly refreshing and lighter feeling of assuming her spirit body. Hokori no Hikari felt warm and eager at her side, it’s twin spirits more than ready for battle. Behind her, Chappy shook herself and rubbed her face.

“Man, Sunset, sitting in your pocket for hours sucked! Have I mentioned how much better it feels just to have limbs?”

“Cool it, Chappy, we’re in an emergency situation. You’re me for now, so help with keeping our fellow students safe, and don’t get my body injured if you can help it,” Sunset said.

“Dang it, I don’t want to stay here while the others are in trouble!” Dash said, but shook her head and took a calming breath, adopting a surprisingly practical look for the young, impulsive athlete, “But you can count on me, Sunset. Nothing’s harming this camp while I’m here.”

“Yuppers! We’ve got this,” affirmed Pinkie Pie, with Applejack nodding agreement.

“Just git goin’ already!”

That was all the prompting the three Soul Reapers needed. As one, Celestia, Luna, and Sunset all vanished with swift Flash Steps, rocketing into the sky and making their way across the lake, and towards the battle already underway.

----------

Filthy Rich looked to Twilight with a quizzical expression as she bent over the model of Canterlot City sitting in his office suite. They’d been there most of the night, and he was impressed with how little the lack of sleep affected the young lady. Then again, he’d sensed her use of reishi, small and subtle, and suspected she’d used her Schrift in some manner. The secret of her letter ‘V’ was being well kept, and he could hardly blame her for that. That kind of information was dangerous, especially with someone trying to take her life.

Twilight’s eyes were unblinking, focused entirely on her analysis of the model. “Simple yet effective construction. It works so much like the tracers Cadence taught me that it’s kind of disturbing. But that’s why this will work, I think. Knowing how to use the tracer, I can modify this to do what I need it to. In multiple ways...”

She reached out a hand and touched the model, just at the top of the small representation of Canterlot High, “You said that the person who changes their body can’t change their reiatsu, that’s true. But you never said there wasn’t someone who could also change reiatsu, or rather, reishi specifically. I’ve suspected for some time now several things about the plot to kill me. One; there’s more than one perpetor. Two; these perpetrators each have abilities that, when combined, allow them to get anywhere they need to without arousing suspicion. Three; they can’t impersonate my family due to my familiarity with them. Four; one of them is an amatuer, prone to mistakes, while the others are patient. And finally, five; they’ve infiltrated my team so they can strike during a battle while my guard is down.”

“Those are some interesting conclusions. Why are you so sure about them?” Filthy Rich asked, finding himself very curious how this young girl’s mind worked.

“It’s simple observations. The first attempt on my life was a desperate move. It was sloppy. Something someone without a lot of patience or skill would have tried. However the second attempt at the battle of Las Noches, was far more subtle. The assassin fought very differently, with greater skill. If I’d been as weak as I’d been before, or if Miss Cinch hadn’t arrived when she did, I’d have been killed. I think the first attempt was done by a mere soldat, while the second was a Sternritter. I know they can’t impersonate my family, because if they could go that route, they would have done it already. I think none of them know my family well enough to fake their mannerisms. That’s the only reason I can surmise that they wouldn’t try that. However, my newer friends, I’ve only known my team for a short period of time on any close level. I don’t know all their mannerisms well enough to spot a fake. That said, I think one or two of them have behaved... oddly, since Las Noches. Besides, infiltrating them would be one of the few ways to know for sure where I am and to be in a position to attack me in a moment where they could still easily slip away.”

“I’m following so far,” Filthy Rich said, eyeing his treasured city model, “But what does this have to do with using this?”

“My... Schrift gives me several ways in which I can affect things around me,” Twilight said with some clear hesitance, “That, combined with current knowledge of reishi, and reishi tracers, should allow me to modify this model so instead of tracking your family, it’s tracking every Quincy reiatsu in not just the city, but as far out as Camp Everfree. I want you to stay here, and watch for any Quincy reiatsu that either don’t match who we know is out there, or doesn’t match my team.”

“I see... you’re showing me a great deal of trust, Miss Sparkle. I appreciate that,” he said, then looked across the room, “What are your thoughts on this?”

Soarin, who’d remained silent as he leaned against the office’s wide window, wore a grim look, “I think Twilight’s on the money here. And you know as well as I do who among the Sternritter can change reishi, and who else can change their body.”

“I know, but to think that they would betray our King’s trust...” Filth Rich said, shaking his head, “I can’t fathom their motivations. I also don’t wish to truly accept this without conclusive proof. So far all we have is Miss Sparkle’s speculations, no matter how much sense that might appear to make.”

“Yes,” said Twilight, “Which is why we’re doing this. They’ll attack. I’m sure of it. And with this model, we’ll know for sure who it is and when the strike. I’m counting on both of you to be ready to back me up when it happens, and help me apprehend the assassins.”

“You can count on me,” Soarin said.

“As well as I,” said Filthy Rich, “I owe you my daughter’s life. Your life shall be safeguarded in return.”

Twilight nodded to the two, “Alright then, since I’m trusting both of you, I’m also trusting you to not pay too close attention to what I’m doing here, okay? I’d like to keep my Schrift relatively secret.”

“Honestly I’m not even sure I could tell what it is if I was paying attention,” Soarin said, throwing out a boyish grin, “It’s way too subtle, but seems like it fits you.”

Twilight chuckled a bit at that, and as the two men made a point of looking away, she went to work on the model. Soarin was right, in many cases her Schrift was subtle in what it did, but that was only because she’d only used it in small ways thus far. Potentially it was devastating in the full implications of its power. Sombra had said the longer she used it, the more she’d learn to expand what it could do, to the point that she might be an even match for his Absolute.

Her hand only glowed for a brief instant, a blue flicker as the power of her Schrift spread into the model of the city. It only took an instant, although in that instant Twilight’s mind went through numerous calculations to ensure she was doing things correctly. Understanding of fundamental principles was important for how her Schrift functioned, after all, and without Cadence’s help with learning the tracer ability, this might not have been possible.

“Okay, you can look now,” she said, and Filthy Rich and Soarin turned their attention back to the model.

It’s surface was much the same, but instead of just the points of light that had represented Filth Rich’s family, now a number of other points of blue light shimmered upon the model. They weren’t just static light’s either, they blazed with different levels of intensity and took slightly different shapes.

“These three here are us,” Twilight said, indicating the tower where three pillars of bright light wavered, “And over there at Camp Everfree you can see my team, Silver Spoon, and even Diamond Tiara.”

“Huh...” Filthy Rich said, “That’s strange. My wife isn’t at home.”

Twilight glanced to where he was pointing at the Rich family mansion, where there was no lights present. Twilight scanned the rest of the model. There were no more lights to be seen. “Could your wife have gone out of town for some reason?”

“Hm, Spoiled does like to take ‘shopping’ trips,” Filth Rich said, “Her idea of a fun afternoon can be hitting up stores in Paris before coming home. Still, she usually tells me when she’s going to do that. Then again, I suppose with Diamond out of the house, Spoiled might have decided to have a girls day out. Heh, she does that sometimes.”

Twilight didn’t say anything to that. She had enough supictions already.

An amatuer, but working with experts... but what would Filthy Rich’s wife possibly gain from wanting me dead...?

There were no guarantees, either way. Besides, with this in place, one way or another, the second the assassins struck next, she’d have them.

“At any rate, it’s time I got back to the camp,” she said, turning to Soarin, “Let’s go.”

He moved to join her in heading for the elevator, but in that instant all three of the Quincy in the room felt the sudden surge of Hollow reiatsu that washed over them. Shocked looks were exchanged and they all went to the window. Outside in the city skyline it was impossible to mistake the multiple dark slits of Garganta portals opening up.

No! Why now!? Did Adagio change the plan!?, Twilight thought in a near panic, but quickly took a grip on her racing heart. There was no way Adagio had altered the plan without telling her or Sunset. This had to be the doing of one of the other Espada. Probably Grogar. Her mind instantly kicked into overdrive, running through dozens of possibilities in seconds. Midnight joined in, her alter ego echoing her thoughts across Twilight’s mind.

Whatever’s coming into the city, Twilight, we can’t waste time dealing with it. Have that cute boytoy, Soarin, do that, while leaving the old man to watch our lovely trap.

Twilight nearly snorted, ’Boytoy’. Get your mind out of the gutter.

Midnight gave a sensuous laugh, It’s your mind too. You know what we have to do. Those Arrancar will be waiting for us to join them in rescuing Adagio’s little friend. And while we’re doing that, no doubt our assassins will look for their chance to stick a knife in us. C’mon, stop feeling so frightened. This is going to be fun

A soft hiss escaped Twilight as she saw the procession of horrific, unusually twisted and strange Hollows emerging from the Garanta portals, Battles aren’t fun. Not even slightly. But you are right, we can’t waste time.

“Soarin, whatever those things are, they’re Hollows. I know there are a lot of Soul Reapers out there, but if you can, protect the city. Filthy Rich, I need you to stay here and watch that model.”

“I understand that, Miss Sparkle, but this is my city, where my home and business lay. I’ll keep an eye on the model when I can, but I must insist I help Soarin deal with these beasts that are daring to show their misshapen faces here,” he replied firmly, and Twilight realized there was no arguing the point, so she just nodded.

“Where will you be?” Soarin asked, “Blast it, Twilight, my job is to protect you.”

“Your duty is to protect human life, and that’s what you’ll be doing by destroying those Hollows as fast as possible,” Twilight replied, “I’m going back to Camp Everfree, because if there’s an attack here, there may well be an attack there as well.”

“Crap, I hadn’t thought of that,” Soarin admitted.

“All the more reason for us to crush these Hollows here,” Filthy Rich said, “Besides, we can’t let the Soul Reapers do our jobs for us.”

Twilight was about to go to the elevator when Filthy Rich went to the wall and moved a hidden panel, pressing a button within. Then, an actual section of the office wall actually slide aside, opening a section to the outside. He smiled at her, “Who needs an elevator when we Quincy can make use of swifter exits?”

Despite the sudden dire nature of the situation, Twilight almost smiled, “Clever.”

And so the three Quincy all leaped out of the office, dozens of stories up, and rushed off into the midst of inevitable battle.

Episode 104: Into the Fray

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Episode 104: Into the Fray

She didn’t need eyes to see what was occurring on the surface. She could feel the blossoming spiritual energies like old, familiar scents. To her it smelled like fresh smoke and recently spilled blood. It awoke the hunger inside, the hunger she’d long suppressed save for rare instances where a morsel wandered its way into her tomb, or was offered to her, like some had done long ago as a way to appease her or seek favor. The humans who had dwelled in these lands in times past had sacrificed animals to try and call for her aid. She’d even sometimes given it. She may have been immobile, but she had ways of projecting her power, especially after feeding. In the past, it took a willing host. After her partner finished fulfilling her promise, it may not matter if the host was willing or not. Although she suspected her current choice would be willing, when the time came.

She could feel herself internally salivating at the sensation of so many bright souls, rushing to battle. It was agonizing to be immobile, all but powerless to influence events save for certain, subtle ways. The fight that had broken out in the Everfree Forest was certainly not part of the plan, at least in regards to timing, but now that it was happening, there was little reason to delay. She reached out to her accomplish across the veil of worlds.

The fighting has started. There’s so many souls nearby, Hollows, Reapers, and human. I haven’t felt the hunger like this in ages.

Hollows couldn’t perish from lack of satiating their hunger for other souls, but it could be maddeningly painful, and it was purely a matter of raw will, and her unbridled hate for Chrysalis, that had let her keep her mind relatively intact.

Her partner’s voice reached her bitter mind in a tone like oil sliding over ice, We expected something like this, but it’s happening a bit sooner than what’s ideal. Well, ride the current you’re in, as the saying goes. I’m already sending my beasts in. They should provide a distraction while my other servant finishes the ritual.

She quivered with anticipation, Then my vessel...

Yes, yes, your upcoming host. Don’t mispronounce the words of my spell. I’ve given you the necessary magic, but this is not like your brutish spiritual powers. Magic requires a firmer hand, or fin, or tentacle, to control.

Her partner’s chiding tone was grating, but she sent back a thought of agreement, I will not make a mistake. I have possessed bodies before, witch. This one is much like I am. Desperate at her powerlessness. I foresee no issues with her as my host, with or without your ‘spell’. That aside, you sound... strained.

Hmph, do not concern yourself with me. My guests are proving somewhat more problematic than anticipated, but it has nothing to do with you. Just fulfill your end of our agreement, and before you know it, we’ll be able to greet each other in person. Just don’t summon your host until my servant completes their task. You’ll know it when it happens

Her partner broke off contact then, leaving her pondering. She’d sensed a disruption across the link, if only momentarily. Whatever was occurring in the other world must have been quite significant if it was bothering one of such power. She put it from her mind, instead focusing on her anticipation. Her goal was nearly in reach. A true rebirth, with a host whose soul was akin to her own.

Just a little longer, Gloriosa Daisy, and you will become more than you could ever be as your present, powerless self. Just as I, with you, will become more than what Chrysalis made of me. Together, we’ll both obtain our soul’s desires. You, the power to keep your home, and I, the destruction of the one who stole mine...

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Deep beneath a shining blue ocean, a leviathan form circled a deep sea canyon. The Kraken paced in slow circles around a vast, square platform of stone. Old pillars so worn by water currents that they barely showed the signs of their unnatural architecture periodically sprouted from the edges of the stone rise, what had once been the base of a great temple so ancient that it likely predated any known historical record.

Carved within the stone was a complex circle of magical symbols. The symbols glowed with sickly emerald light, bathing the sea canyon in an unhealthy, shifting shade of green.

It’s showtime, came a familiar female voice in the Kraken’s mind. The massive sea beast slowed its circling motion and replied in slow, simple terms. It was quite intelligent, but had always had a penchant for carefully and deliberately choosing its words.

Mistress, there is not enough magic yet. I have fed the circle, but must find more sources of power.

His Mistress’ reply was swift and sure as a shark rising beneath its prey, I will provide it myself. We don’t have time to play this slow and quiet any longer. Prepare to receive my power, my servant. Use it well and do not fail me.

That was surprising. The Mistress was usually exceedingly stingy with her gifts of power. Something must have gone quite unexpectedly in order for her to be willing to sacrifice any amount of her personal magic in order to accelerate the timetable. It honestly rather disturbed the Kraken, who had never liked this plan much in the first place. Not that it mattered. He was an object belonging to his Mistress. Questioning her choices was not an option, even if he was inclined to do so.

Very well, Mistress. I am prepared

Good boy.

The magic arrived through his mental link with the Mistress, in a slow but steady trickle of inky dark power that gave the Kraken the chills, even while at the bottom of a lightless, freezing cold ocean canyon. It was both a rush and a terror, pleasure and pain all in one, this dark magic, fueled by sacrifice and souls. There wasn’t much of it, of course. Only so much could be transferred over the link in this manner, unless the Mistress wanted to create another portal, which was vastly draining.

This should be enough for you to finish charging up the circle and get the ritual underway.

The Kraken reached out with its longest tentacles and laid them at the edge of the magical circle, and began to let the magic seep out of him like black ink rimmed with emerald fire. It started to fill the circle, bit by bit.

Yes, but it will take some time, Mistress.

That’s fine. We can let our enemies over there slaughter each other for a bit, and I still have a few issues to tie up here as well. Everything goes right, and soon enough we’ll have two worlds’ worth of oceans to make our own.

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Sunset had long since gotten used to using Flash Step, and keeping her wits about her and her senses sharp enough to take in everything in her surroundings even while moving at speeds that defied conventional perceptions. She even believed she’d gotten pretty damn fast, all things considered. Rainbow Dash’s complete Fullbring was still faster, but other than that, Sunset knew she was well above average in the speed department now.

Luna utterly put her to shame, however. While Celestia was clearly holding back a bit to let Sunset keep pace, Luna had vanished even from Sunset’s sharpened spiritual senses as they crossed over the lake.

“Wow, I can’t track her at all...” Sunset said, and she saw Celestia smile slightly out of the corner of her eye.

“It’s not merely speed, Sunset. My sister is supremely skilled in cloaking her presence, and prefers surprise attacks. Stay focused, we’re almost there. My sister will jump in when she sees an opening...”

Sunset wanted to ask more about that, but there was no time. Already she saw several explosions on the ground that told of the battle taking place, as if huge impacts were smashing up parts of the forest. Several trees were falling over in almost a direct line away from the hiking trail on that side of the lake, and Sunset could sense Fluttershy’s reiatsu, alongside the surging, aggressive spiritual pressure from Gilda. But there were two other Arrancar down there as well, and after a moment of sussing out what she was sensing, Sunset could tell Rarity was engaged with both enemy Arrancar alongside two of the Crystal Prep Quincy.

At a glance, once she was directly over the trail, she saw that the campers who’d been doing the scavenger hunt were being led south along the trail at a quick pace, and saw it was Timber Spruce doing the leading. Sunset frowned as she saw he was limping, and that at least one other camper was being carried by two others. People had already gotten hurt. It rose a hot, burning anger in her. This battle wasn’t supposed to be happening here, with her fellow students around!

Her hand gripped hard around her Zanpaktou, and she began to zoom straight down towards where she sensed Fluttershy and Gilda were, but she barely got halfway before Celestia shouted a warning.

“Sunset, on your left!”

Sunset corrected course in time, briefly vanishing from view with Flash Step to avoid the relatively thin beam of a vomit green Cero that would have otherwise hit her straight on. As Sunset landed on the air and Celestia appeared beside her, the assailant responsible for the Cero lowered the hand he’d used to fire it and offered the two Soul Reapers a polite smile.

“Ah, Sunset Shimmer,” Grogar said in his raspy, rough, yet cordial tone, “It’s been some time, hasn’t it? And Captain Celestia, what an honor to actually get to meet you in person. I’ve heard so much.”

Sunset blinked at the old, leathery skinned Espada. He looked much as she remembered, with his parchment-like skin, wispy white hair in a fringe around his mostly bald head, and bone-bleached ram horns curling around his brow along with the fragments of a ram’s jaw on either side of his face. The only change was that the “8” that had been tattooed on his head was now a “9”.. He already had his Zanpaktou drawn, but held it loosely, it’s bell shaped hilt seeming to clang with every slight motion of his wrist. What caught Sunset’s eye was the red gem floating within the Hollow hole in his upper stomach. Adagio had made mention of it, but it was still an unsettling sight to see, and drove home that even if he was technically only the “Ninth” Espada now, this man was exceedingly dangerous.

Anyone who could recreate a siren gem and possibly find ways to modify it for different uses possessed a mind capable of just about anything. If he got his hands on Sunset or one of her friends, who knew what kind of mad things he’d be able to do after studying them?

“As have I about you,” Celestia replied to Grogar’s statement, already taking up a ready combat stance with one of her twin blades pointed directly ahead while the other was pulled back in a higher stance, “More than enough to convince me that there’s no reason to exchange further words with you.”

“My word, that strikes me as quite the hypocritical statement, coming from one who serves Soul Society. Should I list off the atrocities committed by Hitsuyo-Aku alone, or should I delve further back to the Rukon Rebellion? The Bount Extermination, perhaps? I’m sure your young student there would love to know your role in that particular affair-”

Grogar ceased speaking when a thin, black shadow extended across the air behind him, and Luna rose from it, her Zanpaktou already released to it’s Shikai state. Both darkened steel scythes slashed in opposite arcs, aiming to bisect Grogar from behind.

Water erupted in a sudden, high-pressure wall that dropped down from above. The highly pressurized water acted like a barrier, intercepting Luna’s blades. The water couldn’t stop the scythes entirely, not released Zanpaktou of a Captain-class Soul Reaper, but the wall of water slowed them enough for Grogar to vanish with a Sonido and reappear a score of meters above, where the one responsible for the water stood.

“Cut that a tad close, didn’t you?” Grogar asked Adagio, who sneered at him.

“The only reason I did it at all is because I need you alive for the time being. I’m not fighting multiple Soul Reaper Captains by myself. Next time, though, maybe I’ll let her slice you in half.”

Grogar smirked, “What, not going to give me the ‘only I get to kill you’ line?”

A sneer accompanied Adagio’s disdain filled voice, “As long as you died sufficiently horribly, I might not care who does it, although doing the deed myself would be pleasant. Still, don’t assume ‘death’ is the easy way out I intend for you, you worthless goat. I promised to crush you entirely, body and spirit. It’s a promise I do intend to keep, one day. Just not today, while you’re conveniently useful.”

“Ah, you grow ever more Hollow-like by the day. It warms an old man’s heart.”

Adagio’s expression could not have been more disgusted. Sunset could understand how Adagio must have felt. It had to be tearing her up inside having to even pretend towards any level of alliance with Grogar, let alone fight alongside him. It was a shame Adagio had been forced into a position like that, but Sunset knew why Adagio had protected him, however much it must have made her sick to do it. Without Grogar to keep either Celestia or Luna busy, Adagio would be in a bad position for this fight. Sunset still wasn’t clear on just how powerful Adagio was, and didn’t suspect Luna, at least, would be holding back much.

And sadly there wasn’t much she could do to diffuse the situation, but at least she could try to play her role as best she could. She needed to get to Fluttershy and Rarity, ASAP, but as far as Celestia and Luna knew this was the first time Sunset had seen Adagio since the incident at the apartment, so she had to react appropriately.

“Adagio! You don’t have to fight us,” she said, not finding it hard to sound like a placating friend trying to reach out to someone she knew. Wasn’t exactly a stretch for her. “We don’t have to be enemies.”

Adagio’s smirk might have looked dismissive, but Sunset could see the genuine spark of amusement in her eyes.

I hope she doesn't ham this up too badly...

“I’m afraid I’m not in a position to listen to your plea, Sunset Shimmer. This one-” she thrust the point of her ruby tipped trident towards Luna, “-stole someone of great value to me. I aim to get back what was taken, and I’ll gladly go through anyone who values their own life so little as to stand in my way. Including you. So I suggest, rather than make the friendship speech I know you must have prepared, you ought to attend to your friends down below before Gilda finishes them off. Her, or any of those fellows rushing to the Tenth Espada’s aid.”

“Huh?” Sunset blinked, then looked across below the area Adagio and Grogar were standing to see what looked to be about five Arrancar she didn’t recognize, all rushing towards the treeline from above. Sunset had been so focused on the Espada, she’d barely sensed these fives’ reiatsu. None of them felt particularly strong. They must have been foot-soldiers, brought along by Gilda. Adagio pointing them out gave Sunset the heads up she needed to intercept them before they ambushed her friends!

Thanks, Adagio. Good luck, Sunset silently thought as she gave one last look towards Adagio that she hoped conveyed gratitude without being too obvious about it before she said to Luna and Celestia, “I’ll deal with them! Whoever fights Adagio, please, just try to take her alive, okay!?”

“No promises,” Luna said flatly, readying her scythes.

“We’ll try our best,” Celestia promised, “Be careful yourself, Sunset.”

With that all three of them move, Sunset zipping off towards the five Arrancar that were descending towards the forest, while Celestia and Luna both sped right towards Adagio and Grogar. Sunset prayed silently for everyone except Grogar to be safe. She hoped Adagio knew what she was doing. She could see out of the corner of her eye that as the clash began, Celestia went straight for Grogar, and Luna had gone for Adagio. Celestia’s sword sliced with wind shearing force, one katana going high while the other curved low. Grogar bent backwards with remarkable limberness for someone who looked so old, and used his own bell-hilted Zanpaktou to catch and deflect Celestia’s lower slice upward. That might have unbalanced a lesser opponent, but Celestia easily turned her grips on her swords and reversed their course into a twin downward slash that Grogar was forced to block at an awkward angle. A thunderous crash resounded as Grogar was sent flying back, his feet skidding along the air for purchase as Celestia rushed after him.

Sunset couldn’t see more of that fight, however, and had been so focused on that she’d also lost track of Adagio and Luna, but she felt the impactful clash of their spiritual pressures close by, and heard several cacophonous booms from what had to be their weapons clashing from high speed attacks.

Then all of Sunset’s focus had to switch to the half dozen Arrancar warriors that she was rushing to intercept. She clenched her jaw and pushed a fresh burst of reiatsu into her movements, enacting a Flash Step that put her directly in the Arrancars’ path as she smashed the hilt of Hokori no Hikari straight into the sternum of the lead warrior. The hilt crunched home, and the warrior, a bronze skinned fellow with gunmetal gray hair and a half helmet of raven bone over his right brow, let out a gasp of air and spit as he was staggered back by her blow.

The other Arrancar halted at seeing Sunset standing in their way, and one of them, a female with messy, short purple hair and a right eye surrounded by bone fragments, pointed a curved dagger shaped Zanpaktou at her.

“What the hell is this? Some low rank Soul Reaper trying to get in our way while her Captain’s playing with the big boys?”

The gray haired one grunted and caught his breath, “Hit’s hard for a ‘low-rank’. Be careful, I think this is the one in the reports. That ‘Substitute’ Soul Reaper.”

Purple-hair just laughed, “Even better! We bag her head and Lord Guto will owe us all some serious favor! Gilda’s not the only one to get some glory today.”

Sunset shook her head, her face hardening into an iron mask that matched her voice, “No glory is worth your lives. I’m giving you all one warning. I’m not holding back here... Ignite; Hokori no Hikari.”

Potent fire erupted from her Zanpaktou, and her spiritual pressure spilled out in a raging wave. Every one of the six Arrancar warriors paused at the feel of her searing reiatsu pouring over them, several of them taking hesitant steps backwards. Whatever the ‘reports’ might say about her, they all knew a Captain-level reiatsu when they felt it. Hokori took shape in Sunset’s right hand, already alight with nearly solid flames, and Hikari formed into her left hand, the shield at the ready and surrounded by a smokey white aura. Sunset’s eye remained hard. Internally she was hoping against hope that these six would be able to tell the difference in their power and make the smart choice.

No such luck.

“Wh-what are you idiots standing there for gawking at her!? So what if she’s got a bit of power, there’s six of us and one of her!” blurted the purple haired Arrancar, switching her dagger to a reverse grip, “We are soldiers of Lord Guto! Surround her and take her down!”

That seemed to galvanize the others, and as one they all rushed Sunset... who just sighed sadly before unleashing her flames.

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“Okay everyone, listen up!” Gloriosa said in a loud, clear tone that carried over the northern tent area. There were only a few campers here resting after doing some of the morning activities, but they were the ones furthest out from the camp besides the hikers on the east trail. She silently prayed her brother was getting those campers back, and she was sick with worry, but she had to do her own duty to protect the campers here, and that meant getting everyone to the same place.

Her sentry flowers kept sending little alarm signals into her head via magic, but she’d shut down their audio/visual component so as to not freak out the campers. She was pretty freaked out herself. Magical monsters from another world were bearing down on her camp, while the spiritual monsters she and her brother had run afoul of were kicking of a miniature war right around her beloved Camp Everfree. People popping their spirits right out of their bodies with weird little gems and flying off to fight with magic swords? It was crazy, but no less crazy than the army of magical bow-wielding Quincy she’d already met. Where was Twilight, anyway!? The last Gloriosa had seen of her she’d gone into the city the previous night for some reason or another.

She hoped Twilight would get back fast. She wasn’t sure where Twilight’s other Quincy friends were either, other than the pair that had gone with the group on the scavenger hunt. Perhaps they were still at the field lab? There wasn’t time to go warn them of what was happening, but chances were they already knew.

As for the campers here, Gloriosa had all of a few minutes to work out a plan with the rest of Sunset Shimmer’s friends. They’d gather everyone up around the camp’s center building, under the pretext of lunch. It was a bit early for that, but teenagers were always hungry and wouldn’t question food. That gave Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash the space they’d need to go intercept the incoming monsters, if indeed the creatures stampeding from the deep woods were coming here. Gloriosa would stay with the campers as a last line of defense, using the magic of the geodes to erect a wall of plant-life around the building, if that’s what it came down to.

“We’re having ourselves an early lunch, on account of the evening activities probably being more... strenuous than yesterday,” Glorisoa told the campers looking her way, “Best to eat a hearty meal early! Come now everyone, don’t want to miss out, do you?”

Most of the campers didn’t question it, some shrugging as they got up and started heading towards the main area of the camp. However, it was notable that two remained where they were, and Gloriosa remembered them from yesterday as she quickly strode up to them, trying her level best to keep a calm and pleasant look on her face.

“Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, didn’t you hear me? Lunch time!”

“I’m not hungry,” Diamond Tiara said, sitting listlessly on a fold out nylon chair in front of her tent. Silver Spoon, standing by her friend with a worried look, glanced at Gloriosa.

“She’s been refusing to do anything all morning,” Silver Spoon said, and then turned a frightened look to the east as she added, “But I’m guessing ‘lunch’ isn’t why you want us moving.”

Gloriosa took a quick look to see the other campers were out of earshot, “I need everyone together at the camp center. Now. Quincy or not, you’re children, campers, and my responsibility. Please...”

“Quincy?” Diamond Tiara’s eyes turned almost frantic as her face paled and her hands gripped her chair, “What do you know about it? Does everyone know about it!? Why didn’t I know about it? Did you know my daddy was lying to me? That my ‘friend’ Silver Spoon here was lying to me?”

“Diamond...” Silver Spoon said, voice firm but also filled to bursting with worry, “We can work it out later. There’s something really dangerous going on. Let’s go with Miss Daisy-”

“Or what!?” Diamond shouted, voice cracking with a hint of hysteria, “How am I supposed to trust anything you, or she, or anyone says anymore!? For all I know none of this is even real and I’m hallucinating. Maybe if a monster shows up I should just see what happens if I let it eat me.”

Silver Spoon’s hand moved in a gray blur, the sound of Diamond Tiara’s cheek being slapped, hard, echoing between the tents.

“Get a hold of yourself, Diamond!” Silver Spoon said, “This is real, I promise you. I won’t lie to you another day of my life, but right now I need you to focus and do what I tell you, otherwise I will drag you kicking and screaming by the hair if that’s what it takes to keep you alive.”

Gloriosa was rather glad the other campers had already left the area by this point, but she was also starting to feel faint, distant reverberations in the ground, and noticed the weak echoes of some manner of explosive impacts to the east. Whatever was happening over there was getting more intense by the second.

“Please,” she said again, kneeling down and extending a hand to Diamond Tiara, who was holding her own stung cheek with a shocked look on her face, “I know you don’t have much reason to trust me, but I’m new to all this just like you are. All I want is to keep you campers safe, no matter what happens.”

Diamond Tiara looked at the offered hand, then towards Silver Spoon. After a second her frantic eyes settled down, “You’ve never hit me before, but I’d never hallucinate something that rude. This must be real. Still not convinced I’m not crazy, though.”

She took Gloriosa’s hand with a perturbed sigh, “The worst part of this all is, and you’re going to think this is stupid Silver, but it’s true... I hate that Daddy didn’t think I could handle this. Like, he’s taught me everything about the family business, except apparently the most important part of it. What does that say about me, as a daughter?”

“We can soul search the answer to that tomorrow, Diamond, if we’re still alive, okay?” Silver Spoon said, flinching at the now obvious sound of some distant explosion. Diamond Tiara frowned.

“Are those...explosions?”

A monstrous roar reverberated from the woods to the north, and Diamond Tiara gulped, “And roars as well? Okay, I’ll have a mental breakdown later. Moving sounds good.”

“Thank you,” Gloriosa replied, taking the hands of both girls and going from a fast walk into an outright run as the sound of roaring got closer and the noise of snapping tree branches was accompanied by the sight of swaying trees in the distance.

----------

“We’ve got incoming!” Rainbow Dash shouted into the badge/communicator. She was high in the sky now, her Fullbring fully activated. She didn’t particularly care if any of the other students saw her. They’d already watched her fight a giant plant from a pony-dimension on a dirt bike. She didn’t see the point of all these attempts at secrecy. They were superheroes. Might as well own it.

She’d taken to the sky and was over the north end of the campgrounds. She saw Gloriosa with those two rich girls in town, running back towards the camp center. About a few hundred yards behind them, crashing through the treeline of the north woods, were about a dozen small shapes followed up by at least four or five bigger ones, and one really big one that was making a whole heap of racket. Dash hadn’t gotten a clear view of what these critters were yet, but that changed the moment the treeline ended.

“Uh, I’m seeing a bunch of twig wolves, some of those scorpion cat things Twilight mentioned, and... I have no idea what I’m looking at. It’s like a panda bear got frisky with a hornet, and the mutant baby really ate their Wheaties growing up.”

“Dang it, how fast they comin’?” replied Applejack’s voice, “I got Pinks in the center getting food out ta everyone an’ keepin’ ‘em calm, but that ain’t gonna last if these critters are that close.”

“They’re coming on pretty quick, but don’t worry AJ, I’ll go give them some ‘discouragement’. We’ll see if I leave any left for you afterward,” Rainbow Dash said, altering course and rocketing towards the ground. She could barely hear Applejack over the screaming sound of wind that tore past her at the speed she was flying at.

“Don’t get cocky, Dash! We ain’t sure these critters are all there are out here, an’ we don’t know fer sure what they all can do!”

“Jeez, relax, these guys are small fry compared to what we’ve dealt with already!” Rainbow Dash said, almost rolling her eyes, but despite her words she did slow down slightly so she could better assess her targets. The amount of speed and movement precision she had now with her completed Fullbring was rather unreal, and she could see the Equestrian monsters moving in what to her was essentially slow motion, giving her plenty of time to take in details.

There were more of them than she’d originally thought. How had so many of these creatures gotten into the Everfree Forest in the human world? When Twilight’s science gizmo had gone haywire, the portals and what came through had been pretty random. This... this looked almost like an army, moving with coordinated intent. There weren’t just a few dozen of the wooden wolves, but closer to a hundred, all boiling out of the forest in a snarling, howling mass of sharp claws and teeth.

The scorpion-cat creatures, Manticores Dash thought she’d heard Sunset say, came behind, like they were driving the wood wolves forward. Whatever number had been hunted down last night didn’t seem to matter now, because there looked like a whole pack of about twenty now, their bat-like wings allowing them to make giant leaps and bounds to keep pace with the wolves’ headlong charge.

Then there was that gigantic half insect, half bear that was at the back of the whole miniature horde. It looked for all the world like someone had taken a giant hornet, slapped it together with a six armed, monstrous panda bear, and cranked its attitude all the way to eleven on the ‘maul everything in sight’ meter.

Even if they were still a few hundred yards back from the camp, the rate this group was moving at would have them crashing into Camp Everfree in no time.

Dang it, I know AJ’s right, but we can’t afford to be cautious here. These things are out for blood. Man, I know Fluttershy hates this kind of thing, but I can’t hold back here... maybe if I make my first move big and flashy enough, it’ll scare the rest off.

She reached to the sapphire gem embedded over the heart of her armor’s breastplate, and in a storm of lightning that crackled from the gem she withdrew her spear in all its thunderous glory. The bright, prismatic energy wings coursing from her back flared up within the metallic, blade like housing that contained them, and Dash all but turned into a bolt of lightning herself.

Storm clouds started to form in the sky above as the cobalt lance that had become Rainbow Dash crashed straight into the front of the formation of Equestrian monsters. As was Dash’s want, she couldn’t help but shout the name of her attack. She’d been practicing as much as Sunset had to expand her abilities, and had more than a few new moves up her sleeve.

“Thunder Goddess-” she said, having rammed her spear into the ground right through one of the wood wolves, which exploded into burning chunks from the raw force of the blow. Lightning arced around her and then spread through the ground in a devastation, circular tide, “-Earthshaker!”

The attack proceeded to live up to its name, the impact and energy coursing through the ground causing a localized earthquake that broke apart a widening semi-circle of earth while arcs and lances of electric power shot up and around to pierce through dozens of the wood wolves, and even rapidly fry several of the Manticores that had been furthest ahead in the pack.

Dash wasn’t done there, either, leaping up through a cloud of ashes from the nearest wolves that had fried to charred bits and back flipping in the air. The tip of her lightning spear grew in size and intensity as she swept it out in a wide arc, shouting, “Hundred Million Volt Rainstorm!”

She didn’t swing just once, but a score of times in a mere eye blink, and each strike let out an azure arc of energy that converted into a barrage of lightning bolts that fell among the monsters with shockingly unerring accuracy.

Dash landed in a styling, skidding backwards slide, spear held behind her, wings spread wide. She surveyed the damage with a satisfied smirk. In one go she’d wiped out half of the wolves, easy, and taken down the Mainticores by about a third. And as she’d hoped, the survivors had pulled up short, many skidding to a full halt in the face of her devastating assault.

“Oh yeah, I’m good... wait, where’s the bear bug?”

A shadow crossed over her and she looked up. She’d known the thing could fly, what with those huge wasp wings sprouting from its back, but she hadn’t known it could zip around quite that fast. Not as fast as her, but it was still impressive how the bear bug had gotten over her, flying right over her earlier attacks.

Then she noticed it’s body was now covered in weird, flowing script that glowed with emerald light, like living tattoos. All six of its fuzzy hands were surrounded by a black and green nimbus of light, yet Dash didn’t feel barely any spiritual pressure.

No reiatsu. Wait, is this magic!?

The bear bug responded to Rainbow Dash’s lightning in kind, with a barrage of lightning of its own. Six necrotic green bolts of power that thrust towards her with sizzling speed. Someone slower might have been caught by six such bolts of magical might, moving at lightning speed. Fortunately Dash was more than up to the challenge, leaving an after image of herself that was flipping the monster off as she zoomed skyward. The six emerald bolts of power crashed onto her afterimage and melted an impressive hole in the ground, but Dash was airborne and coming straight at the creature before the energy of its own attack had even finished dissipating.

“Rrrraaaa!” Dash thrust her spear forward towards the beast’s chest, but was surprised to find it halting in place as both the spear, and her own body, was surrounded by a sickly green aura. She felt a tight grip around her, and upon seeing the monstrous bear aiming a paw at her that had identical light playing around its digits, realized the thing had grabbed her with some kind of telekinesis.

Unlike the monsters below, this bear bug seemed intelligent, and actually licked its lips at her with a hungry grin as it turned towards her full. Rainbow Dash just snorted.

“What, you think you’ve got me where you want me? Try again, fuzz face!”

Her wings grew brighter, and from their rainbow colored surface bolts of raw prismatic power shot out in rapid bursts. The bear monsters, its grin now vanished, threw itself back and three of its hands wove magical patterns in the air, creating some manner of glowing green, arcane barrier. The beams of energy from Dash’s wings impacted with the barrier, cracking it in multiple places, and then penetrating to spear into the bear.

It howled in pain, bloodied from the blows, but far from dead as it snarled at Dash and redoubled it’s telekinetic grip, now seeking to crush her body.

“Aw dang! Ugh, okay, wanna play rough, we can play rough!” Dash grunted. Even being squeezed with the kind of force that’d crush a dump truck, Dash’s body was far more fortified by her reiatsu and Fullbring than this monster was apparently giving her credit for. It also didn’t know she also now had the power to control the weather, and had a nice, big, electrified storm cloud hanging above the fight.

She didn’t even have to gesture to bring a nearly twenty foot wide pillar of lightning rocking down from the cloud in a blinding flash of power. Magical barrier or not, that much electricity was enough to sizzle the bear bug’s hide to the point that Dash was pretty sure she got a good look at its skeleton in silhouette before it fell from the sky in a smoking, charred heap. The telekinesis around her faded, and Dash dusted herself off.

“Sorry, buddy, but you seriously had no idea who you were messing with.”

Her satisfaction swiftly turned sour, however, as she saw not only the bear bug’s body twitch, and the still smoking creature start to get back up like some kind of electrified zombie, but while she’d been fighting it the rest of the pack of critters had continued to stampede ahead. They’d reached the tent grounds, which were thankfully empty by now, but that meant the monsters were just that much closer to the actual camp!

“Aw dang it! Why are there still so many of you jerks!?”

She knew she’d taken out a whole bunch of them, but it looked like more had poured out of the forest while the bear monster had been distracting her. Rainbow Dash began to fly back towards the ground to intercept the monsters, but she was beaten to the punch. Literally.

“HYYAAAA!”

Applejack rocketed across the ground, energy thrusters from the back of her Fullbring’s shoulder armor and legs propelling her like a living cannonball into the front line of Equestrian beasts. Her right arm cocked back and delivered a rocket powered punch that hit a Manticore with so much force that the shockwave not only broke the ground for about a dozen meters in all directions, but it sent almost every tooth in the beast's mouth flying out as it was instantly propelled backwards, in turn becoming a battering ram that smashed through quite a number of the wooden wolves that had been scampering behind it.

Applejack followed that up by leaping into a spinning kick, golden thrusters of spirit energy turning her into a whirling tornado of destruction that swept through the front ranks of the charging horde. Bodies went flying every which way, not one among the magical monsters able to stand up to the farm girl’s any more than pins before a rocket propelled bowling ball.

Landing behind the thrashed and confused horde of creatures, Applejack finished her combo by spreading her hands out in front of her, gold sparks of energy gleaming in the skull shaped nozzles on her wrists and palms.

“Rapid Fire Harvest Cannon!”

In a move almost reminiscent of an Arrancar’s Bala, Applejack began firing a series of high speed energy pulses and swept her arms to the left and right. The massive velocity and number of blasts acted like twin gatling cannons, chewing apart the disorganized remains of the monster horde’s initial wave.

It also tore up a large portion of the pitched tents, and by the end of it, it looked like a literal warzone had swept through the area. Applejack winced a bit, simply glad no one had been around to get caught in the crossfire.

Rainbow Dash landed next to her, shouldering her lightning spear, “Yeash, AJ, overkill much?”

“Tch, like I need ta be hearin’ that from you, Dash,” Applejack replied past a small half-smile, “Besides which, the fight ain’t over yet, so I’m thinkin’ we can go a might harder on these fellas.”

Rainbow Dash and Applejack both turned their attention back towards the woods, where the still slightly sizzling bear bug was standing on wobbling feet and glaring at them while more wolves and Manticores gathered around it.

“Yeah, that bear dude is tougher than I figured he’d be, and the rest of the small fry just keep coming,” Dash said, readying her spear, “So maybe I oughta kick things into full power.”

“Don’t overdo it yet. I said a ‘might’ harder, not throwin’ all our cards on the table, “Applejack said, adopting her own battle stance, “I’m thinkin’ much worse is waitin’ in the wings, an’ we gotta conserve our strength. I reckon this fight’s gonna be a’ long haul.”

“Fine by me!” Rainbow Dash said, “These guys are wimps. How much worse can they possibly throw at us?”

Applejack was only halfway to giving Rainbow Dash a flat, unamused look when the sound of multiple roars from something much larger than the rest of the monsters echoed from the distant forest. Then, with the sound of trees being torn in half and thrown across a near kilometer of distance, the two girls could see first one, then up to five giant, serpentine heads rising above the treeline.

Dash, face coloring to a heated hue, groused, “Okay, seriously, one of these days saying that shouldn’t immediately cause things to get worse!”

“Uhhuh,” Applejack said in a dry tone, “Ya keep tellin’ yerself that.”

----------

The camp center was rather packed with the majority of its campers now within its walls. The excuse of lunch to get everyone inside had manifested in the form of swiftly made sandwiches, but it was clear to Gloriosa that none of these kids were buying the notion that everything was fine. Probably had something to do with the constant shaking and noise outside that sounded like a literal war taking place next door. Which was not inaccurate, all things considered.

Gloriosa was standing by the main door, looking out the window with her gut churning with worry. Her brother was still out there, along with a number of campers from the scavenger hunt. It took all of her willpower to not fling the doors open to go running out there in search of them, but she had to stay here to guard those already in the building.

Behind her a group of campers headed up by a pair of girls approached her. One of the girls had mint colored skin and similarly colored hair, cut short and swept forward, wearing a rather odd white and blue shirt with a picture of a unicorn on it that said ‘Unicorn Anthropology Major’. The other girl had creme skin and a blue and pink two toned head of curlier, longer hair, and had a light blue blouse and darker skirt on. Gloriosa thought over the names she’d learned of the campers so far and matched faces with the right names.

“Lyra, Bon Bon, you, um, should probably sit with everyone else to eat, and, er... stay away from the windows because there’s... bees...”

“Alright, Miss Daisy, not to freak you out or anything,” said Lyra, “But if we’re in danger from some crazy magical stuff going down, you can probably drop the act.”

“Wait, what?” Gloriosa turned towards the campers, and saw many sitting at the various tables set up in the camp center’s main room were all looking at her not with confusion, but general acceptance of the situation.

“Sunset Shimmer and all her friends,” said Bon Bon, “We’ve seen them do stuff like this a bunch of times already. We’ve had weird portals nearly drop our school into another dimension, and a trio of singing witches almost brainwash us. Weird stuff happens to our school, and it’s usually tied to those girls somehow.”

“Do you know about... other things, like the Hollows?” Gloriosa asked, feeling a bit light headed. The girls exchanged looks and the mint one shrugged.

“Haven’t heard that term before, but honestly the details have never really mattered,” Lyra said, “Not really important right now anyway. Point is, if there’s trouble, I’m not sure sitting here doing nothing is a good idea. Maybe we can help-”

“Whoa whoa whoa, hold the horses Lyra!” Pinkie Pie bounced into the room from the back kitchen area, carrying a tray of additional sandwiches which she set down on one of the tables before rushing up, “That would be the exact opposite of a good idea! Mena, what’s the term for that?”

Pinkamena stuck her head out of the kitchen doorway, “A bad idea.”

“Yes! That. Sorry guys, it’s super nice that you wanna help, but things are waaaaaay dangerous out there. Like, R-rated for gore and strong violence levels of dangerous,” Pinkie Pie said, but her words seemed to fall on deaf ears as Lyra, Bon Bon, and almost everyone else save for the Cutie Mark Crusaders who were guarding the back door stared at Pinkamena.

“Uhh... are there two Pinkie Pies now?” Lyra asked, sounding rather fearful, “Does that mean the world is doomed? I think it means the world is doomed.”

“Oh don’t be silly!” Pinkie Pie said, “That’s my doppelganger sister who was born from my brain and having crazy spirit powers because my mom got attacked by a freaky’ demon thing called a Hollow before I was born that was made by a secret society of Japanese-themed grim reapers who control the afterlife. Say hi, Mena!”

“Hi Mena.”

“Ohmygosh, was that you making a joke, Mena? I think it waaaaas~!”

“My whole existence is a joke.”

During the exchange the gathered Canterlot High students just stared with varying degrees of surprise and/or horror at Pinkamena, especially as she snaked a long, tentacle-like arm out of the kitchen, salivating with several tooth filled mouths along it’s taffy stretched surface, bearing a tray of sandwiches. It was a testament to just how inoculated to weird the students of Canterlot High were that aside from some shocked murmuring and a few students pointedly edging their chairs away from Pinkamena, the reactions to her were overall pretty mild.

“By the way, this is the last of the tuna, if anyone wants some,” Pinkamena said, following her long, stretched out arm into the main room. She glanced at the windows as the sound of what might have been thunder shook the frame of the building. “Sounds like they’re having a blast out there. Pinkie, why are we stuck on morsel-sitting duty? All this cooking is making me hungry, and I can smell blood outside.”

“Mena, protecting everybody is a majorly important duty that we can’t shirk!” Pinkie Pie said, crossing her arms, “We only leave if there’s no other choice. We can’t just leave Glori and the Crusaders to handle things here by themselves.”

“Hey, we’re totally cool going out there to help in your stead,” Scootaloo offered, but Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena both shot looks towards the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and the girls dejectedly went back to watching the back door. The trio of young girls were actually sitting at the same table with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, alternating between quietly talking and keeping a careful set of eyes on the camp center’s back entrance. Gloriosa couldn’t hear exactly what was being said between Applebloom and Diamond Tiara, but she was glad to see that Diamond Tiara appeared to be relaxing slightly.

Looking around at the campers, her charges, she took a deep breath and summoned up what courage she could to quell the quaking fear in her stomach.

“Listen, everyone, it’s good that you want to help, but if you already have experienced things like this before, then you must know that the best thing you can do right now is to remain calm and stay out of harm's way,” Gloriosa said, glad at least that her voice wasn’t wavering as much as her actual nerves were.

Many of the students looked at each other with mixed emotions, and Lyra voiced what many of them were likely feeling, “We get it, but it’s just... those girls keep protecting us, over and over again, and it feels like we oughta be able to do something to help them for a change.”

“YEAH!” came one enthusiastic cry from the back of the room, the sizable Bulk Biceps having stood up from his table, then rather bashfully clearing his throat and sitting back down as he said in a more appropriately toned down volume level, “What I mean is, um, I agree with the whole wanting to help them thing.”

“It’s been pretty clear that for the past month or so something different has been going on with you all,” Bon Bon said to Pinkie Pie, coughing and tilting her head at Pinkamena, “I mean, we all learned to pay attention to you gals when you’re acting weird or cutting class. Kinda a big red flag. So we know this time around things are weirder, and more dangerous, than normal. Heck, we’ve all seen news broadcasts about mysterious ‘explosions’ around town. Then there was the thing at the beach the other day.”

“Oh, did the Soul Reapers not get all the videos of that taken down?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Pinkie Pie, it’s the internet. Stuff spreads faster than juicy gossip about me and Lyra, there,” Bon Bon said.

“If you all know things are worse than usual,” Pinkamena said, licking her lips over sharp teeth, “Then you walking, talking McNuggets ought to understand that much as you want to help; you can’t. You’d just be serving your fresh, tasty selves up as snacks to whatever monster decided to sink its teeth into you first.”

“Meeena, we’ve talked about you using food euphemisms when talking about people,” Pinkie Pie said in a chiding tone, and Pinkamena shrugged.

“Sorry, haven’t eaten anything substantial in awhile.”

“You’re not wrong,” said Lyra, “About us not being in a position to help directly, but doesn’t change the fact that we want to. This isn’t a spur of the moment thing. We’ve all been talking about it this past week or so, and all of us, together, decided we’d ask you gals to... keep us in the loop from now on. Let each of us help in some small way, even if it's just making sure all of you get a heads up if one of us spots something weird.”

“Aww,” Pinkie Pie looked around at the crowd of fellow Canterlot High students, many of them giving affirming nods, “You all want to help us that bad? Well I’d be a real party pooper if I didn’t tell Sunny and the other gals about this, and long as you all agree not to do anything to get yourselves hurt, I’m all for accepting the support!”

“...Meh, if any of you get yourselves killed, don’t come complaining to me,” Pinkamena said.

“Seriously, what’s her deal?” asked Bon Bon, “It’s like you, Pinkie, if you were cast as a slasher villain from some B-grade horror movie.”

Pinkamena scoffed, her chest opening up into a maw of jagged teeth, “Bon Bon, I’m at least on the same level as a John Carpenter movie. B-grade, pfft, I’ll show you ‘B-grade’. Just wait until Halloween, then you’ll see some serious sh-”

“Shhhh!” Pinkie said, cocking her head, “I think I hear shouting outside. Glori, is anybody coming?”

Gloriosa whipped her head back around to look out the front door’s window, and was both startled and relieved to see the campers from the scavenger hunt were making their way across the camp green towards the central building. Leading them was her brother, and Glorisoa bit her lower lip upon seeing him limping, his left leg missing part of its pants which had been burned away, the skin beneath scalded. Other campers were injured as well, one of them needing to be carried between two other students, as she was limp and all Gloriosa could see was that her head was bleeding profusely.

“There’s a first aid kit in my office!” she shouted, “Someone grab it while I go get them inside!”

“On it!” Lyra replied instantly, dashing off while Gloriosa flung open the front doors and ran out. Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena were beside her in a flash, moving faster than Gloriosa could ever have imagined the pair moving.

“Knew I smelled blood,” Pinkamena said, halting in front of the approaching group.

“Gloriosa!” Timber Spruce said, staggering to a halt, panting for breath. He was covered in sweat, dirt, twigs, and looked near panic, “It’s those Hollow’s that look like people. Arransomethings! Fluttershy and Rarity are fighting them along with those Quincy girls!”

“I know. Get everyone inside,” Gloriosa said, “Including yourself. What happened to your leg?”

“B-big beam fired off by one of the angrier ones. Clipped me as I was running...” Timber Spruce said, his voice filled with shame as he clenched his teeth, both in pain and frustration, “I couldn’t do anything, sis. Fluttershy told me to run and get everyone else clear, so I ran.”

“Hey don’t look so down Timby, that was the smartest of smart things to do if the baddies were going in hardcore like that!” said Pinkie Pie, “Go on into the camp center and we’ll start getting you and everybody else patched up.”

“We have to be careful with...” Gloriosa searched mentally for the name of the injured girl. She had green skin, darker green hair, rather messily kept, and wore a very plain set of blue jeans and a brown striped sweater. For the life of her, Gloriosa couldn’t recall the girl’s name, “Her. Head wounds are dangerous.”

“Shouldn’t we call an ambulance?” asked Timber.

Gloriosa hesitated for a moment. Getting the authorities involved in this in any way could prove disastrous in more ways than one. But a girl’s life was also at stake, and that rather trumped any other concern, “You’re right, Timber. I’ll call right now. Just get her inside for now. We’ll figure out how to keep the paramedics out of danger when they get here.”

She reached for her pocket to fish out her cell phone to make the call, while Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena started to herd the confused and scared looking campers towards the center building, when Gloriosa felt an intense prickling sensation across her skin. The geodes of the necklace around her neck all started glowing at once, but she got the feeling they weren’t reacting to familiar magic like normal, but something else. This buzz... sharp and insistent, felt like the geodes were warning her about something.

“Pinkie Pie, I think something’s coming!” Gloriosa shouted, just as the air about fifty feet away, near the edge of the lake, started to waver and bend. A sound like a malfunctioning set of tesla coils crackled through the air, then a hole of sickly green energy swirled into existence. It was about twenty feet wide, and was like looking into a green tinted whirlpool leading to an inky black dot. Yet from this pool small forms rapidly grew in side as multiple creatures crawled out of the portal.

There were three of them, each one easily as large as a short bus. Craggy green and black scales were pockmarked by large protrusions of sharp, granite gray rock formations. Burly, long bodies ended at one end in powerful, thick tails, and crocodilian heads at the other bearing maws large enough to swallow a person whole in a single gulp. Strong limbs propelled the giant, rocky crocodiles forward as chest rattling hisses issued forth from their mouths as they scented prey, focusing their eyes upon the wounded campers.

“Uh-oh, I guess the GM rolled high on the random encounter table,” Pinkie Pie said, turning to Pinkamena, “It’s hammering time!”

“No argument here!” Pinkamena said, holding out her hand as Pinkie Pie jumped into the air, flipped, and in mid-flip transformed into a swath of pink mist that in turn solidified into the shape of her giant, pink, ornate hammer. The hammer continued to flip downward until Pinkamena caught in with a simple flourish, and turned to campers.

“What are you morsels waiting for!? Get inside, NOW!” the last was said with an unnaturally widened mouth with enough teeth to make a certain horror-movie clown blush.

“C-c’mon people, move it!” Timber said, and even while limping helped brace another injured limper on making a run for the camp center. As the campers all began to scream and run, the crocodiles started to charge, but Pinkamena leaped into their path, brandishing the Pinkie Hammer.

“Never eaten croc before. Hope it tastes good... uh, hey, Gloriosa, I told everyone to get inside!”

Gloriosa, who now stood beside Pinkamena in facing down the oncoming crocodiles, had her let hand firmly clenched around the geodes, her face a mixed storm of fear and determination, “I know, and they are. But I can fight. I will fight. This is my home, and these creatures...” magical light in all the hues of the rainbow spilled from between her clenched fingers as she raised her other hand towards the advancing crocodile monsters. Her eyes started to bleed to an unnatural black color, “...are not welcome here!”

The ground shook as powerful vines erupted up from the ground, whipping at the crocodiles in a wild mass. The crocodiles were halted as vines wrapped around legs and mouths, coiling down on their tough flesh. If these were normal crocodiles, this might have stopped them. It would’ve even been relatively easy for Gloriosa’s vines to choke them or throw them bodily around.

However these were not normal crocodiles, but Equestrian variants; Cragadiles. Far lager, and immensely stronger than any human world equivalent, save perhaps a few specimens from much more bygone eras.

Gloriosa grunted as her focus strained and the giant crocs started to tear apart her vines. She’d never tried to summon so much magic so fast from the geodes, and she was having trouble directing the energies. She’d practiced, sure, but never under pressure like this, and never in actual combat. She gasped as she felt a hint of magical backlash, but grit her teeth through it and drew out more, ignoring the pain in her mind at doing so.

More, thicker vines rose from the ground, entangling one of the crocodiles, but in having to focus on one, she’d allowed the other two to snap free of the weaker vines and they surged towards her.

“Hey Mena, let’s test how much stronger we’ve gotten!” said Pinkie Pie as Pinkamena jumped up and swung the hammer above her head. As she did so a colorful pink and blue, wooden meter rose up behind one of the crocodiles, with a bell at the top of it. The crocodile looked briefly confounded before Pinkamena slammed the hammer down on a mysteriously appearing button in front of it. The impact shook the ground as the crocodile was abruptly launched straight up, smashing through the bell at the top of the meter, and kept right on going until it sailed off into the middle of the lake with a distant splosh.

“You could really say we just rung his bell, eh Mena?”

“No. None of that.”

“Guys! Guys! One more coming towards me still!” Gloriosa said, backpedaling as the third giant croc turned its course towards her, its mouth opening wide. Gloriosa was still containing the first one with her vines, which had managed to haul that particular croc up and wrap it up like a proverbial mummy, but that left her with no focus to direct towards the one seeking to introduce her to its digestive tract.

Pinkamena whirled about and started to charge, but just then a series of bolts rained down on the croc from above.

“No worries everyone, we’ve got this!” Sunny Flare said, her twin dart guns spewing a quick firing barrage of reishi bolts that hammered the croc’s head, blasting off bits of rock and scale.

“We figured you’d be in trouble, and came as fast as we could,” Sugarcoat said, her own ivory bow sending a focused, powerful reishi arrow to strike the crocodiles’ right front leg, nailing it to the ground.

“Would’ve been here sooner, but my legs aren’t exactly up to high speed motion yet,” Indigo Zap groused, but still stood firm on her artificial legs as she sent a sizzling set of electrically charged arrows to impact with the crocodiles’ back, causing it to spark and spasm.

All three Quincy girls were standing on top of the camp center, giving them a good vantage point to shoot from, but their initial barrage had certainly halted the croc in its tracks.

“Is everyone okay?” asked Sugarcoat, and Gloriosa breathed a sigh of relief and smiled up at the Quincies.

“Me and Pinkie are, but there’s injured inside. One with a head wound.”

“I brought a Quincy medkit,” said Sunny Flare, “Better than anything conventional. I’ll go check the wounded.”

“Wait, hold up guys,” said Indigo Zap, “We’ve got more incoming!”

“Huh?” Gloriosa turned, looking past the still spasming crocodile the Quincy had downed, and the one she still had wrapped up. The portal had remained in place, and now even more of the huge crocodile monsters were emerging, more than Gloriosa could easily count.

Pinkamena started to sprout mouths all over her body, all of them watering, “Well, looks like the enemy wants to serve me up a full buffet!”

Sugarcoat frowned, aiming her bow, “Sunny, Indigo, focus fire and take them out one at a time! Don’t let a single one get near the building! Gloriosa, Pinkie Pie, we’ll count on you to take care of any that get through our barrage!”

“Okie Dokie Lokie!”

“O-okay!”

With that, the mass of gigantic crocodiles moved forward in a hissing wave, and Camp Everfree’s defenders charged to meet them.

----------

A sharp pain stung upon her bleeding brow, coating Fluttershy’s vision red from her life’s blood coating her face. Several acidic burns marred her arms and legs, some of the wounds still smoking from the caustic liquid that had been flung upon them. Yet Fluttershy’s breathing remained calm, her mind still as a pool of untouched water. Noise raged around her, from battles joined both upon the ground and in the air. Fluttershy could feel it all.

Rarity, nearby, summoning a cloud of crystalline daggers that she sent flying towards the swiftly dodging form of the Arrancar with green tinged hair. The forest floor was littered with red crystal weaponry that Rarity had already assaulted her foe with, and was pressing the Arrancar hard, but Fluttershy sensed the Arrancar was fighting defensively for the time being.

The same could be said of the young, red haired Arrancar, who had at the beginning of the fight leaped back from the fray, only to be pursued by Lemon Zest and Sour Sweet. The last Fluttershy had seen of the trio, the red haired Arrancar was evading reishi arrows from the two Quincy, leaping and bound around trees for extra cover, and not doing much to counterattack.

Only Gilda seemed truly on the warpath, and Fluttershy was grateful Timber Spruce had fled when she’d told him to. It was pure luck that he’d survived a stray crimson beam fired by Gilda that had been aimed at Fluttershy. If Fluttershy hadn’t jumped to force Gilda’s aim to the side, Timber wouldn’t have made it. And with him gone, she’d sensed him getting the other campers clear, so she’d been able to take that worry off her mind.

She also knew Celestia, Luna, and Sunset had arrived, but were being occupied by foes of their own.

For the moment, she was stuck facing Gilda by herself, and so far it’d been all she could do to keep a few steps ahead of the aggressive Tenth Espada’s rampaging strikes. Fluttershy was using all of her accumulated experience in the battles she’d fought up until now to keep Gilda’s whirling spear from making a solid connection, and to be one step ahead of several further Cero beams that removed entire chunks of forest from their destructive path.

Now, backed up towards the rise of a small hill covered in rock outcroppings, Fluttershy was feeling the strain as Gilda stalked towards her. Blood dripped from the lion’s mane tuft of fur at the base of the spearhead, and Gilda’s face sported a mocking smirk as she spun the weapon and flung a burst of the sizzling blood towards Fluttershy.

“What’s wrong? You said you didn’t want to hurt me, right!? Is that why you’re not fighting back, huh!? Or is that you keep dodging because that’s all you can do!?”

Fluttershy knelt down and then thrust herself upwards into a smooth back-flip, the blood missing her by scant inches. It hit the ground and ate through grass, dirt, and stone in equal measure. It was purely Fluttershy’s reiatsu that kept the bits of the acidic blood that hit her from actually going through her flesh and bones with similar intensity. As she landed atop a rock outcropping, Fluttershy readied herself in a bracing stance, and continued to watch Gilda calmly.

“All I need to do is prevent you from hurting anyone else. That doesn’t require me to do more than dodge,” she replied, and glanced towards her back, “Are you okay back there, Mister Smooze?”

Behind her, her shawl was moving under her mental direction to form a loose cradle, within which Smooze sat, clinging to the spiritually enhanced cloth. His pin-prick eyes looked at her with a mix of gratitude, but also consternation, “I am for now, but this is ridiculous, Miss Fluttershy. You can’t protect yourself and me at the same time. You’d be better off tossing me to this child’s mercies.”

“He’s right, you know,” Gilda said, thrusting her spear out with one hand to point it at Fluttershy, “I got my reasons to want him dead, but I don’t get why you’re so keen to save him. Not that it’d make a difference now. You’ve pissed me off, so I’m coating this forest in your blood. Even if you dropped the slimeball, it won’t mean you can beat me.”

A harsh rip of tearing air heralded Gilda’s Sonido, the Espada vanishing and appearing right above Fluttershy. She took her spear in both hands and cleaved downward with the blade. Fluttershy pivoted on her feet, letting the blade pass beside her and strike the rock she was standing on. Just as the rock, and a good portion of the small hill, was bisected by the strength of Gilda’s blow, Fluttershy had already lightly jumped up, using Fullbring to step upon the air. She contorted her body in a tight somersault, grabbing Gilda’s spear along the pole. Once again using Fullbring to harden the air beneath her feet, now standing horizontally in mid-air, Fluttershy spun herself around and delivered a precise heel kick to the back of Gilda’s neck.

The blow barely staggered Gilda, who took the hit with a feral growl, but the physical impact wasn’t the point. The point was making physical contact, as Fluttershy’s third eye flash a blinding blue, and the halo behind her gleamed brightly.

“There’s no reason to want Smooze dead. He isn’t a threat. Leave him be,” Fluttershy commanded, sending her power lancing directly into Gilda’s soul, hammering the Espada’s mental defenses like a bunker buster striking a fortified wall.

“Gugh!” Gilda stepped back, her eyes glazing over for a moment as she jumped away from Fluttershy, clutching her head with one hand, “S...stop that! He has to... has to... live? No, I want him dead, he’s going to take it from me!”

Gilda let out a feral cry like a mix between a shrieking eagle and roaring lion, eyes blazing as she launched herself towards Fluttershy, practically flying across the ground and tearing up the forest floor as she went. The first thrust was so fast and powerful that even though she was able to side step it, the simple force of wind from the near miss tore at Fluttershy’s chest, cutting it and causing a small spray of blood. Gilda stomped one foot onto the ground, breaking the ground in the process, and used it as an anchor to spin around and swing her spear like an overlong baseball bat.

Fluttershy normally would use her shawl as a shield to try to block or catch the blow, but with Smooze there she was forced to cross her arms and turn her body enough so she avoided the spear’s blade, but took the shaft nearly head on. The air resounded with a loud, peeling crack as Fluttershy was hurled several dozen yards at high speed, and smashed right through a thick pine tree.

The blow stunned her, causing blood to spurt from her mouth, and she felt her whole body wrenched by the impact. Only the reiatsu of her Fullbring fortified her body well beyond human norm kept her from being instantly pulped by such a monstrous impact. Indeed, all the training she’d done with her friends recently had increased her spiritual pressure considerably. Even just a few weeks ago during the battles in Soul Society, such a blow might have put her down for good.

Now, Fluttershy found that while she was in pain, she could still stand. More than that, her skill with her power was much improved, and she still found she could readily use it to accelerate the healing of her own wounds. Her body was suffused with an aura of solid blue light, and she could feel torn muscles rejoining and cracked bones knitting together as she stood up and faced Gilda once more.

Even the Espada seemed briefly dumbfounded by this, silently mouthing an obvious to read ‘what the hell’ upon seeing this slight violet of a human girl standing back up after taking a full blow from her Resurreccion form’s spear.

Taking a deep breath, Fluttershy resumed a ready stance, hands up, palms open but ready to strike, “I only want to help people. Human, Quincy, Hollow, Pony, it doesn’t matter to me. Whoever you are, whatever your pain, I want to help heal it.”

Gilda’s eyebrow twitched and her smirk held a bitter twist to it, “Help? Are you braindead? I’m trying to kill you! You want to help!? Then stand still!”

She raised her spear above her head, and the lion’s mane upon its shaft glowed red, and a torrent of blood grew from its roots and crawled its way up the spear until the blade was covered in a thick coating of smoking, acidic crimson. A similar sanguine glow suffused Gilda’s body as her reiatsu spiked.

“Derritiendo Venas!” (Melting Veins) Gilda spat, and slammed her spear forward. Tendrils of blood, moving in patterns not unlike blood veins, erupted out of the spear and flew towards Fluttershy.

As they converged upon her, Fluttershy spun into action. Her motions were neat, precise, and wasted no extra movement. Every twist of her head or hips left a vein of acid blood centimeters from striking her. Every twist of her body as she jumped and flipped about kept her a half inch from being impaled by the seeking tendrils of melting blood. Around her the forest became speared by the tendrils, trees melting in half or entire sections of ground being burned away into bubbling pools as the blood sought to entrap and melt the human girl dancing among them.

But it was impossible for Fluttershy to dodge forever, not with so many attacks coming at her from all directions. Soon enough, one tendril struck her leg, the intense acid searing through it, as this particular attack was especially boosted by Gilda’s reiatsu to burn ever more fiercely.

Fluttershy’s calm demeanor couldn’t quite avoid a scream from the blow, and it took all of her focus to twist so she tore her leg free of the acid tendril and managed to still land in a halfway prepared stance. Yet the tendrils now converged on her wounded form.

“Miss Fluttershy!” Smooze said, struggling to make his weak form move to try and protect this extraordinary human girl, not that he had any notion of how he’d protect her, given his diminished state.

“I’m here, darling!”

The acidic tendrils suddenly found themselves being sliced and diced by a veritable sandstorm of sharp, crystal blades. In seconds Fluttershy was surrounded by a protective barrier of glittering crystalline weapons, each more glorious and elegant in design than the last.

Fluttershy sighed a relieved breath and put a hand over her heart, “Thank you, Rarity. But where’s the one you were fighting?”

Rarity landed next to Fluttershy, her crimson battle dress somewhat worse for wear due to several cuts and tears. Rarity bore a few light wounds, but they were all fairly superficial as she flipped her hair out of her face and gave Fluttershy a wink, “She’s somewhat pinned down at the moment. I’m sure she’ll get out soon enough, but I just couldn’t bear to let you fight this more powerful brute alone.”

Gilda, withdrawing her blood tendrils back into her spear, let out a frustrated growl, “Bullshit! Greta wouldn’t let a snobby tramp like you get the best of her, even temporarily.”

“I beg your pardon!? Tramp!? I’ll have you take that back this instant you insensitive beast!”

Gilda, several veins popping out on her forehead, said, “I don’t have any patience for stuck-up twigs who think their pretty faces matter. You two are the worst kinds of wastes of flesh! A naive softie, and a vain tramp. Oh I am going to enjoy tearing you both to shreds!”

More reiatsu poured out of Gilda as she gathered strength for a renewed attack. Rarity formed a cadre of weaponry from her whirlpool of blood, which hovered just above her right shoulder. Her hand held its customary rapier at the ready.

“Flutteshy, can you move? Your leg looks as if it took a nasty wound.”

Fluttershy grimaced, but nodded as she stood, having poured some of her power into negating the pain in her leg and starting it’s healing process... although the depth of the injury and the extra potency of the acid meant it wasn’t going to recover nearly as fast as she’d like. It was definitely going to slow her down, but with Rarity here, there was still a chance.

“I’m alright. Rarity, I need you to distract her enough to give me an opening. I’ve already made physical contact with her once, so my power has a pathway to her soul, but her anger is acting as a barrier. If her mind is distracted enough, I think I can break through.”

“That shouldn’t be a probleaaah! What is that thing!? Flutteshy, you have a horrible, messy, exceedingly bad smelling thing on you!” Rarity shouted, finally actually noticing Smooze.

The small blob of a former Espada looked back at Rarity and waved a tiny arm, “Hello to you too.”

“Oh, that’s Mister Smooze,” said Fluttershy, “He seems grouchy, but he’s actually very considerate.”

“Human girls, not to interrupt, but she’s coming,” Smooze said, pointing out that Gilda had finished gathering power. The ground broke apart into multiple chunks as Gilda charged, barreling at Rarity and Fluttershy with murder in her eyes.

----------

Greta was pinned to a tree by about twenty different crystalline spears and other assorted weapons. A few daggers pierced her legs and arms as well, making moving rather painful.

Yet Greta was laughing under her breath. She could sense Gaw not far off. Adagio’s right-hand Fraccion was making a good account of herself, near as Great could tell.

She’s easily evading those Quincy girls, and not striking back, just waiting until they get exhausted. Well, at least she’s still on script. Oh, but Gilda, Gilda, Gilda... you really have made a mess of things, haven’t you?

Greta laughed again, and began pulling herself free of the tree. It’d been easy enough to make it look like Rarity had gotten the drop on her, and in all honestly it wasn’t a total act.

“That girl is every bit as skilled as I suspected. Hm, they all are, if what I sense is accurate.”

Fire blazed above, and Greta looked up. It seemed Sunset Shimmer was fully engaged with Guto’s other pawns. Poor bastards.

‘Greta’ smiled and put her hands on her hips, shaking her head, “The firebrand will be here soon. I wonder if I should pull Gilda out of the frying pan, or let her cook? Then again, that Fluttershy girl seems quite special herself. Saving Smooze. Who’d have guessed? Who knows how her fight with Gilda will turn out, assuming Gilda doesn’t get herself killed first?”

The wounds on Greta’s body began to heal, and she smiled, looking at the injuries knit themselves closed.

Not as fast as mother’s, but good enough. I’d best stay in character a bit longer. This ‘act’ has only entered its second stage, after all. I should hold off until the finale. Oh, but it’s going to be quite a show. I’m glad I decided to come.

Greta’s eyes briefly changed color, flashing to a soft teal as she smiled up at the sky, where bursts of power and flame showed the intensity of the battle occurring above.

“Show me what you can do, girls. I expect a wonderful performance.”

Author's Notes:

Don't you hate it when the enemy can just portal in reinforcements? With battle joined things are going to be pretty hectic, especially because there's still curve balls waiting in the wings. You know, it might seem weird I'm not trying to push Rainbow Dash and Gilda into a fight, given their history in Equestria, but in some ways Fluttershy is way better suited to this particular fight... and I also like having Gilda and Rarity being in the same space to piss each other off. Also looking forward to giving Luna vs Adagio a proper rematch. All they got to do last time was trade a few quick blows, but this'll be a full-on fight, where both can show what they can really do.

As always, many thanks for reading, folks, and I appreciate any comments, questions, or critiques you wish to provide. 'Till next time!

Episode 105: Bodhisattva

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Episode 105: Bodhisattva

Raging red and orange fire spread out in a thick fan from Sunset Shimmer’s swing, but she was already on the move before the flames even got close to the Arrancar warrior’s before her. As she’d hoped, they were distracted by the intense heat, some of them using their weapons and Heirro-hardened arms to shield themselves, while others instinctively leaped back. Those that tried to endure the fire found even their potent “iron skin” was not a total defense against the raw heat and spiritual power in Sunset’s fire. Granted she hadn’t built up much energy yet with her shield, but her overall power had increased so much of late she didn’t necessarily have to in order to produce potent flames.

Several of the Arrancar taking the brunt of her fire let out shouts of surprised pain as their skin was scalded. None of them saw her move, flipping over their heads and coming down on the purple haired female Arrancar. Purple Hair looked up just in time to get a face full of shield, Sunset bashing Hikari into the woman’s face hard enough to break her nose and sent the Arrancar barreling towards the ground.

Not slowing down in the slightest, Sunset swept Hokori out towards a stunned Arrancar on her left, holding little back in her swing as she aimed it for the man’s wrist. The blade’s flames hadn’t cooled, and the Zanpaktou’s edge was hot enough to cauterize flesh instantly as she cut the Arrancar’s right hand off, sending both it and it’s own drawn blade spinning off into the distance.

“AHHHRRGG!”

The man’s roar of pain seemed to snap his compatriots out of their daze, and they all swiftly moved with flickers of Sonido to try and surround Sunset, any that hadn’t drawn their weapons yet doing so. Sunset glanced at them, and at the man whose hand she just cut off, and took a deep breath before speaking loudly and plainly, “One chance. Run, now. I can’t afford to play nice here.”

Please, some of you, see some damn sense, she silently pleaded. She knew she’d do what she had to, but she truly didn’t want to end anyone’s life. Or afterlife, as the case may be. She knew, logically, these were still Hollows, no matter how human they looked. Slain by her Zanpaktou, their souls would be purified and sent to Soul Society.

Unless I get one like that snake Hollow, in which case I’ll see the gates of Hell claim another, she thought, unsure of how to feel about that. She was just a pony turned highschool girl who wanted to keep her friends and home safe. But she’d accepted the role and power of a Soul Reaper, so she had to accept all the baggage that came with that.

If these Arrancar persisted in fighting, she’d hold nothing back, and live with the consequences, come what may.

There was a moment of hesitance among them. Clearly none of them had expected her to be quite this strong. Yet the intense discipline ingrained in these warriors by their Lord Guto, and their loyalty to their Espada, won out over any fear or pervading sense that they were well out of their league.

The first one to attack was a burly fellow with black hair tied in a ponytail, wielding a big spiked set of iron knuckles for his Zanpaktou. His attack was fast, brutal. A straight up overhead punch with his whole body’s force behind it. Sunset could tell a hit like this might’ve demolished her or any of her friends in the early days of this strange adventure they’d fallen into... but now?

Hikari blocked the blow like it was a regular punch. Sure, Sunset felt some impact, like if someone had chucked a heavy rock at her shield, but it was nothing compared to the blows she’d endured from the likes of Captain Hurricane or Captain Platinum.

With a sullen sigh but fire blazing to life in her eyes she said, “Warned you.”

She rammed Hokori, full force, through her shocked opponent’s chest, right below his Hollow hole. She tried to ignore his pained grunt, or the blood that spewed out, and simply channeled her fire through her sword in an intense blast that fired out of Hokori’s tip. Given the Zanpaktou’s tip was pointing outside the Arrancar’s back, that meant it was aimed at yet another Arrancar, who barely had time to react to the more focused blast of flame that struck him.

As that Arrancar screamed and fell to the distant forest floor, smoldering all the way, Sunset yanked her sword out of her first target and kicked the stricken Arrancar away from her, where he tumbled down to the ground without so much as another grunt.

“That’s three down,” she said, “Any more takers?”

The response of those still standing was to start rattling off a litany of sword release phrases, each of the remaining warriors deciding that taking this fiery Soul Reaper lightly was their biggest mistake, and their only chance of survival was to correct it immediately. One by one blasts of power erupted from the surviving Arrancar, Resureccions activating on the remaining three, while the one whose hand was severed wisely decided to flee.

Oh well, I tried to give them a chance, she thought, and knowing that her friends were still in great danger, figured there was no point holding much back either. Her training with Discord had been about more than just developing new techniques, but about increasing her stamina and spirit energy to sustain herself for longer battles, fighting at max power.

She didn’t need Bankai yet, but it was time to really give her Shikai a proper workout, and put all her lessons to the test. Hopefully Fluttershy and Rarity could hold out until Sunset could reach them.

-----------

A prodigious swing of Gilda’s spear severed a tree at the base of its trunk. With a jump and spin, Gilda kicked that tree at Fluttershy and Rarity, sending the thing crashing through the forest with the force and speed of a runaway freight train.

Rarity gestured with her hand and a torrent of blood from her whirlpool crystallized into a frozen red wave, forming a barrier that the tree slammed into full force. As the tree splintered, Fluttershy set her shawl towards the ground and asked Smooze, “Can you stay near my friend Rarity? I’ll need my shawl to fight Gilda.”

“As you wish,” Smooze replied, sliding off the pure white shawl, which remarkably seemed to almost refuse to be stained by his bodies various fluids.

Rarity gave them both a look, “You said you needed a distraction, darling?”

“If you can,” Fluttershy said, but then sharply turned towards the crystal barrier as it was shattered by a titanic blow from Gilda’s spear, who had thrust it straight into the wave of crimson crystal.

A deep bellow was all the greeting Gilda gave, rushing both girls. Red droplets of her spear’s acidic blood coated the air with a caustic shower. Rarity had already seen the dangerous nature of that blood, and countered with a sheet of crystal that formed a diamond shaped barrier in front of her, while Fluttershy was able to jump aside, despite her injured leg causing her a moment of bursting pain.

Gilda spun her spear and used one end to try and trip Fluttershy while bringing the other end down to hammer Rarity’s shield, but both girls were already moving. Fluttershy flipped over Gilda’s strike and lashed out with her shawl, while Rarity ducked around her shield and came at Gilda hard with a fast series of thrusts from her rapier.

Gilda was forced to swiftly side-step and use the front end of her spear to catch Rarity’s rapier while trying to twist away from Fluttershy’s shawl. However she wasn’t quite fast enough, and the shawl wrapped around her right arm. Fluttershy pulled it tight, and adjusting her stance and planting her feet, she yanked Gilda into a shoulder throw that slammed her towards a nearby hillock. At the same time Fluttershy hammered her power into Gilda’s soul, weakening Gilda’s reiatsu and physical strength, which in turn would also weaken her Heirro.

This meant the impact with the hillock was quite a bit more painful than it normally would be as Gilda smashed into it in an explosion of dirt and rock. The Espada coughed and sputtered, rolling over and picking up the spear she’d momentarily dropped. She looked up in time to see both Fluttershy and Rarity coming at her, both mid-leap. Rarity’s weapon had shifted to a slimmer, more elegant spear of her own, and she was surrounded by a dozen various weapons that were slashing or thrusting in from various angles. Fluttershy was going low, arms pulled back for a two handed palm-strike towards Gilda’s chest.

For a moment Gilda’s eyes seemed shocked, but then something flashed in them, as if she was looking very far away. A roar as loud as the fiercest lion’s erupted from her as she pushed off the ground and ploughed into the girl’s attacks, smashing her spear forward. The blow caused such intense air pressure and wind force that Rarity’s own flying weapons were blown away and Rarity herself had to twist away from the sudden, tearing passage of Gilda’s spear. Even then, Rarity’s side took a nasty cut, gushing blood through her red battle dress.

The brunt of the attack, however, was aimed at Fluttershy, who barely had a moment to get her shawl in a guard position before the attack struck home and blasted her backwards. It was sheer luck that her shawl was able to turn Gilda’s spear tip away from her chest, but the hit still sent her tumbling back, smashing into the ground and skidding along for a few dozen yards before she halted herself.

Coughing, she forced herself to start standing back up while Gilda turned her attention to Rarity.

Rarity had jumped back to gain distance, and red crystal spikes burst out of the ground around Gilda, stabbing inward. Gilda wheeled about, her spear a blurring circle in her grip as she used it to parry and smash the crystals that came for her. She got most of them, but one or two of Rarity’s spikes cut into Gilda’s hardened flesh.

“One of you just die already!” Gilda shrieked in growing berserker rage, eyes bloodshot as she thrust a hand towards Rarity and a chain of blood red Bala spheres shot out.

Rarity formed a collection of crystal kite shields, similar in size and shape to the shield half of Sunset’s Shikai, and sent them flying to intercept the Bala. While this happened, Fluttershy regained her feet and reached out with her shawl, which extended well beyond the capacity of normal cloth and wrapped around a tree that had been damaged by one of Gilda’s earlier attacks. With surprising strength, Fluttershy used the shawl to yank the tree off it’s broken trunk, then commanded Gilda, “Turn towards me! Look only at me!”

The link between Fluttershy’s power and Gilda was still going strong, and Fluttershy’s eyes were nearly solid blue light now. Gilda felt the compulsion to turn, ending her Bala assault upon Rarity. She turned just in time to get a face full of hurled tree, courtesy of Fluttershy’s shawl.

The blow hurled Gilda to the ground amid the fragments of wood from the tree cracking in half. Fluttershy’s compulsion remained in place, muddying Gilda’s thoughts alongside the dizziness from the tree’s impact. Despite her best efforts, Gilda found herself still trying to look straight at Fluttershy as she staggered to her feet, unable to look away.

That didn’t mean she couldn’t attack, however, and as Fluttershy rushed her, Gilda raised her spear above her head and then smashed it into the ground in front of her. A tremor shook the land, and the ground split apart in a localized quake that moved in a wave towards Fluttershy.

Miraculously the girl moved with smooth steps, wasting no motion as she hopped from piece of broken ground to piece of broken ground, slowed, but not stopped. Gilda heard and sensed the reiatsu from Rarity coming at her from behind, but couldn’t look that way due to Fluttershy’s power. In a desperation move, Gilda thrust a hand backwards and fired a wide-beam Cero, sweeping it around blindly.

Rarity saw it coming but even then had to pull a power slide, knees hitting the ground and back arching backwards as the tide of annihilating red energy coursed right above her face. Her rapier thrust out, several additional daggers of crystal forming in the air around it to add to Rarity’s attack. Still unable to look away from Flutshy, Gilda had to plant the butt of her spear and use it like a pole to push herself upwards to avoid the brunt of Rarity’s blades. Still, the rapier itself and one of the daggers cut along Gilda’s calf, sparking along the Espada’s tough Heirro hardened skin. They still drew blood, deep enough to cause Gilda to growl her pain, eyes still locked on Fluttershy, who now jumped to meet her with shawl outstretched.

The shawl bound Gilda’s arms, pinning her for the briefest of seconds, but Gilda’s eyes flared with undiluted rage and before her body fell back to the ground, a deep glow of crimson power appeared at the end of her spear that was still stuck in the ground.

Gilda fired a point blank Cero at the ground, right where she, Fluttershy, and Rarity were all standing, with complete disregard for her own safety.

----------

Lieutenant Posey thrust a hand out, shouting orders in what she hoped wasn’t too loud and aggressive a voice, but was still authoritative like her father’s, “Protect the humans in the intersection! You two, clear the debris over there! The rest of you follow me, um, please?”

Despite her still somewhat lacking command presence, the Soul Reapers of the Eleventh Division that had come with her spread out to follow her commands. They were in a busy, chaotic intersection of Canterlot City’s downtown, and everything was a true mess. The Hollows that were on the attack were showing no regard for their surroundings, smashing through buildings and going after any living soul they could find. It was only the rapid response of the Eleventh and Tenth Division Soul Reapers that was managing to keep damage to a minimum, although “minimum” in this case still left far too many humans in harm’s way.

This particular intersection was in bad shape due to an overturned semi-truck that had crashed into an office building after one particular Hollow had smashed into its side. That Hollow now dominated the intersection, it’s unusual body filling the street with a mass of seething black hair. The twisted pile of melted skulls at the center of its body mass howled at the sky as it whipped its hair tendrils at anything moving close by.

Posey saw one tendril reaching for a helpless woman trying to crawl away, and she Flash Stepped into the tendril’s path, slashing the coarse fibers with Kyoki’s edge. She held out the Zanpaktou and hoped for the best as she called out, ”Frenzy; Kyoki!”

Her Zanpaktou was still behaving oddly, and she sensed his hesitation as the blade reshaped itself into the form of a serrated long blade. The teeth of the blade just wouldn’t spin, however, and the reiatsu boost from the Shikai release felt weaker than it should.

Why are you still acting this way, Kyoki?

Posey had no further time to think on it. The Hollow mass of hair sensed the Soul Reapers nearby and with a gurgling howl it frothed towards the largest group, which consisted of the ones who were with Posey trying to protect humans fleeing the area. Eleventh Division members eschewed Kido spells for direct combat, and all of them swiftly began to call out their Shikai releases, even as the Hollow erupted with a stabbing storm of tendrils strikes, using it’s coiled up hair like a wall of thrusting spears.

Entire chunks of the street were destroyed as Soul Reapers flickered away with evasive Flash Steps, some retaliating with Zanpaktou that possessed ranged powers, such as one that literally fired shards of itself like a railgun with every swing. Other Soul Reapers tried to rush through the thick wall of spear-like tendrils, hacking at the hair. The hair regrew faster than it was being cut, however, and Posey saw one of her people mistime a Flash Step and receive a spear of hair through his chest.

“No!” Posey grit her teeth and looked at her Zanpaktou with frustration as she jumped into the fray, slicing at the tendril that had speared one of her squadmates. Kyoki’s blade could still cut well enough, but it lacked the true severing power it was supposed to have.

She grabbed the bleeding, dying Soul Reaper under one arm and leapt away, setting him down as he hacked up blood. “Just hold on. I’ll get you to a Tenth Division member who knows healing Kido.”

However she was barely finished speaking the reassuring sentence before she noticed the man had already ceased breathing. She wasn’t unused to losing squadmates in battle. She’d followed her father into combat alongside the rest of the Division since she graduated from the Academy. But this was a loss she immediately felt more keenly for it could have been avoided if her Zanpaktou wasn’t being so... so... difficult.

What would mother do? She was always so sure of herself. She always knew what to do, no matter what.

Several cries from behind her drew Posey’s attention, and she gasped. While some of her squad had managed to clear away debris from the damaged office building to allow some trapped humans to flee, the Hollow had taken advantage of their distraction to grab them up with it’s tendrils and was dragging them towards its face. Melted together skulls were gnashing their teeth in drooling anticipation of a feast of Soul Reaper flesh, and despite her squadmates’ best efforts they couldn’t cut themselves free of the thick hair that kept regenerating as fast as it was severed.

They need me. They need me like I usually am with Kyoki!

She was frightened of that part of herself, but she needed it now, and it was high time she and her Zanpaktou hashed this out!

“Look!” she told her sword, eyes hardening with a volcanic sheen, voice tight with the restrained anger within, “That’s enough cowering! I don’t know if you’re scared to hurt me again, or if it’s something else, but I need your power, Kyoki, and I need it right now, buster! Get over yourself, and help me rip this thing to pieces.”

The response from Kyoki took only a second, and it felt like a melting of ice followed by a hot flash of prideful acknowledgement. It sounded in her head almost like the baying of a faithful hound, coming back to its master’s call.

Suddenly power flooded Posey, her body gaining a bloody red glow, and Kyoki’s serrated teeth howled to life as they spun around at high speed. Posey felt a familiar, but not uncontrolled, blood lust rise inside her. It wasn’t overwhelming her mind anymore, but felt natural, righteous, and focused. The Hollow, seeming to sense the power and the sudden violent intent nearby, paused in trying to drag its meals towards its mouth and turned towards Posey...

...Just in time for her to leap straight into its mass, screaming a banshee warcry as her Zanpaktou started to flash in swift, sure strikes that ripped into the Hollows form like a savage beast tearing through flesh.

----------

The explosion of Cero energy rocketed up into the sky, and blasted away about a fifty yard radius of trees. The detonation could be seen easily from Camp Everfree, which caused a brief pause in the fighting, but only brief before campers and their defenders alike resumed a desperate struggling against a growing number of magically enhanced Equestrian fauna.

At the epicenter of the explosion Gilda still stood, hand on her spear. Both weapon and Espada were smoking from the blast, their bodies covered in burns and bleeding wounds from the explosion Gilda had just tanked in an attempt to destroy her foes. Breathing hard, wiping blood and sweat from her burned brow, Gilda looked around, not expecting to see anything besides charred pieces of human flesh.

She blinked when she saw instead a red, crystalline cylinder about ten feet long and five feet wide laying at the far side of the crater she’d just created.

“The hell...?” she breathed, ripping her spear out of the ground and staggering towards the cylinder. Her balance was a bit shaky, but she growled at herself and ignored the pain, forcing her walk to steady to a stronger gait.

She felt the ground tremble beneath her, and took a swift leap back as spikes of crystal shot out of the earth. She spat and swept her spear around to smash the spikes, but more drove her further back as the crystal cylinder rose from the ground on a mass of red crystalline growth and stood upright. Then the cylinder opened like an elevator tube, and Fluttershy and Rarity stepped out, both looking a tad harrowed but otherwise unharmed.

“How in the hell did you two survive that!?” Gilda shouted, still swinging her spear to break the crystal spikes stabbing at her.

Rarity, breathing rather hard herself, said, “It’s all in the reflexes, darling.”

What had actually happened was not overly complicated. It had taken a second for Gilda’s Cero to properly charge up, and then discharge into the ground. Neither Rairty or Fluttershy were limited by normal human reflexes any longer, after this long developing their powers and combat instincts. They’d reacted together, each one playing off the other and trusting one another in regards to what needed doing. Inside of that single second, Fluttershy had whipped her scarf out to Rarity, pulling Rarity to her, while Rarity instantly understood the need for a encasing, protective shield against the Cero. The moment Rarity came into physical contact with Fluttershy, she formed the cylinder of protective crystal, and Fluttershy used her own power to boost Rarity’s, further enhancing the crystal’s hardness.

The result was that they might have gotten knocked around a bit by the blast, but the crystal cylinder absorbed the brunt of the damage.

While the two girls were largely unharmed, Fluttershy did have one greater worry on her mind as she looked around at the crater they stood within, where once there’d been a nice chunk of forest.

“Mister Smooze! Where...?” She couldn’t sense him, but then he’d barely had any reiatsu to sense, so that didn’t necessarily mean anything. She hoped he’d gotten clear during the fighting, but that Cero had caused quite a bit of devastation.

She spotted him at the top edge of the crater on the side opposite from Gilda, essentially putting herself between Smooze and Fluttershy and Rarity’s position. He was intact, but he must have caught the edge of the explosions, for his body was smoking slightly and the goop comprising most of it was bubbling strangely. He twitched his head up, however, and met Fluttershy’s eyes, so she knew he was alive.

Gilda noticed where she was looking and turned to spot Smooze as well, and she blinked for a moment, then barked out a laugh.

“Tenacious little pile of snot, aren’t you? You know what, it’s you girls lucky day. I’ve got bigger fish to fry, so I’ll go ahead and off Smooze, and you two are off the hook.”

“No.”

Fluttershy said the word with a note of absolute command as she hopped down from the mass of red crystal Rarity had made, and strode towards Gilda, “You will not hurt him! He’s suffered enough already!”

Rarity, also hopping down, said, “Besides, you uncouth beast, in case you haven’t noticed, you’re more injured than we are at this point. I’d say your odds are not favorable and it should be us considering letting you off the hook.”

Despite her words, Rarity was being cautious, and wished Fluttershy would slow down that confident stride of hers towards Gilda. Not that Rarity didn’t enjoy seeing her friend showing so much all-too often uncharacteristic backbone, but despite Rarity’s words she knew better than to underestimate an opponent. She hadn’t beaten Blueblood by being careless. Gilda was a far more straightforward, brutal fighter than Blueblood, but Rarity sensed the woman hadn’t quite used her full power yet. There was a fierce, feral energy about Gilda, despite her injuries... and a beast was most dangerous when it was wounded.

Just in case, Rarity called her whirlpool of blood back out of her bracelet, and readied a long line of blades in several floating rows.

Gilda laughed at the sight, including Fluttershy’s steady approach, “You think these scrapes are going to slow me down? I’ve taken a hundred times worse proving myself to Lord Guto. And you, you wilting flower, don’t get to tell me what to do, no matter what freakish powers you’ve got. Now...”

She cocked her spear back, aiming it towards Smooze. The acidic blood from the spear’s lion mane flowed out and swirled around the spear head, forming a giant set of sizzling, grasping claws that pulsed with arcs of energy as drops of the thick red fluid struck the ground and ate through it even faster than before.

Gilda’s toned, corded muscles tensed for her throw, one that would have enough power to send her empowered spear hurtling into Smooze to destroy him utterly and completely. That was the reason she was using her strongest technique, after all, to ensure not a drop of Smooze’s body remained to regenerate.

Even as she tensed to throw, Rarity swore under her breath and sent forth her readied array of blades, not hesitating to aim them towards all of Gilda’s vital points. There’d be no asking for surrender, like with Blueblood. Rarity was aiming to kill, this time, as Gilda had made it abundantly clear she wasn’t holding back either.

Yet despite all this, Fluttershy kept stepping forward, with a face of stillness akin to a calm winter morning after a fresh snow.

Inside herself, Fluttershy looked upon the scene around her, and asked herself; why? Why was she always so afraid of the harm she might cause? Was her kindness only to make herself feel better? So she could say to herself when she looked in the mirror ‘I’m a good person’?

It only made sense to avoid hurting other people, if only because you yourself don’t want to be hurt. But when that desire leads to inaction, to a denial of one’s own power to make a difference, then is it kindness, or cowardice? Fluttershy never wanted to use her power. She only did so because she couldn’t bear seeing her friends in danger. But as time went on, she just kept becoming more and more scared of that power inside her. It could do so much harm, if used improperly.

Her brother’s blank face as he mindlessly obeyed her commands flitted through her mind. The placid faces of Soul Reapers she subdued passed across her thoughts. Posey’s frustrated expression as she’d talked about how her Zanpaktou was behaving strangely echoed in Fluttershy’s mind.

Her power could have consequences she didn’t intend. Inside her was a will and desire to control, to command, to be in charge. There was a part of her that wanted to be less than kind. Those parts of her scared her, and that made her power all the more frightening because it could make those desires a reality all too easily.

But if she kept fearing it, then she’d be unable to keep standing beside her friends, and any kindness she tried to do would be easily overturned by those with more power and no compunctions about abusing it. It was time to stop being afraid of the thing she’d always been most scared of... herself.

“I. Said. STOP.

The words rang out with golden clarity as if sounded from the striking of a gong. A pulse of radiant blue light rushed out of Fluttershy, whose body was encased in a heavenly aura of gold, sparking with erratic lances of barely contained energy. Her spiritual pressure fell upon the area like an anvil, and Rarity could sense its erratic, explosive nature, and let out a wide eyed gasp.

Rarity knew what was happening, and what she had to do!

During their weeks of training with Ditzy Doo she’d gone over this very scenario with each of the Fullbring using girls. Every since Rainbow Dash had evolved her Fullbring to its completed form, the goal for the rest of them had been to achieve the same. However, there was great danger in this. Rainbow Dash had lucked out that her mother had been present at the time of her Fullbring’s evolution, because when a Fullbring became complete it also released a massive burst of Hollow energy that could injure or outright kill it’s user if another Fullbringer or someone with extensive familiarity with Hollow reiatsu wasn’t present to help contain it.

Ditzy Doo might not have been a Fullbringer, but she knew Hollow reiatsu, and the needed techniques to control it. She’d drilled what she knew into the girls alongside their usual training, so in the event one of them evolved their Fullbring, at least one of the others would be able to contain the resulting explosion of power. That was why the girls had agreed to try to fight together in pairs, in the event a battle broke out. It was why Rarity had gone out of her way to try and subdue her own opponent fast and get to Fluttershy’s side to help battle Gilda.

Now that it was happening, Rarity had seconds to act, and she didn’t hesitate to rush to Fluttershy’s side. Her feet glowed with green ‘Bringer Light’ as she kicked off the air and leapt the distance between her and Fluttershy, landing next to the glowing girl just in time. Fluttershy’s power was surging outward, and despite her almost frightfully calm features, it was clear the out of control energy was hurting Fluttershy from the twitches of her facial muscles. Following what Ditzy Doo had taught her, Rarity summoned up her own reiatsu and used it to form “funnels” around Fluttershy, meant to take in and channel the explosive energy that was about to come and shunt it outward in a controlled, and hopefully relatively safe manner.

She barely had time to do so before Fluttershy let out a piercing cry and a storm of brilliant gold energy burst out of her and shot into the sky. Rarity felt her hands heat up as if burning as she hardened her own reiatsu and tried to funnel the energy upward and outward from Fluttershy’s body, which was glowing so bright she couldn’t even see her friend clearly within the shining gold nimbus. The spiritual pressure was choking Rarity, nearly overwhelming her senses. Who knew Fluttershy contained so much raw power inside her soul? Was this the potential they all possessed? How much had the magic of friendship that bound them all together helped in creating this remarkable surge of energy?

It was a sobering yet electrifying thought to Rarity, and gave her hope that they truly could surpass the challenging hurdles in front of them, be it Starlight Glimmer, the Espada, or perhaps one day the mysterious Zero Division.

Gilda had been frozen in place by Fluttershy’s command, rendered utterly immobile. She too felt Fluttershy’s explosive spiritual pressure, and while she couldn’t so much as twitch a muscle, internally she boggled and seethed. It seemed utterly impossible that mild mannered slip of a human girl had this much power still hidden inside her! The difference between the reiatsu she’d sensed at the start of the fight and now was like a hill next to a soaring mountain!

This is insane! I was stronger than her! Stronger than both of them together! So why is my heart trembling like this!? Why can’t I move!? I’ve come too far to lose now! Not to some human who hasn’t suffered a day in her life! It’s not fair! It’s not FAIR! Move, damn you! MOVE!

It took everything Gilda had, every inch of her anger, spite, frustration, and painful memory of the trials that had led her to this point to get her arms to move even an inch. Indeed the only reason she was able to start moving at all was because Fluttershy’s power had needed to retreat from Gilda’s soul in order to finish it’s evolution, and was now concentrated around Fluttershy herself. It was simply the memory of the command and it’s lingering traces of power that had kept Gilda still.

Now, she moved, slowly unpetrifying herself. With a feral, growling war cry Gilda spun around and brought her spear, along with its still fully charged claws of acidic blood, to bear on Rarity and Fluttershy. She couldn’t see Fluttershy within that halo of gold, but Gilda didn’t care. She knew her target, and that Fluttershy was undergoing some kind of change. But if she could strike a fatal blow before the evolution was complete...

"Garra Rugiente!" (Roaring Claw)

Gilda threw her spear with all her might, and it left a glowing wake of crimson energy as it’s clawed tip soared towards its target. The claws of blood began to spin like drills, the arcs of energy sparking from them joining together in a net of power. The ground was ripped asunder by the spear's passage. Rarity moved to defend, about to summon a crystal barrier... but that wasn’t necessary.

A hand of golden light shot out with the fluid grace of a beam of sunlight and with a simple motion caught the forward tip of the spear. Energy surged from the five claws of acidic blood, melting the earth beneath them, but then another gold hand reached out and grasped one of the claws... then another, and another, until a dozen hands of gold light held the spear, which continued to grind forward under its own power like an animal struggling against a surging tide wall. From the five claws, the blood and energy inside them exploded outward in streaking geyser, the golden hands steadfastly holding the energy at bay as the streaks of acidic blood blasted apart and melted entire swaths of the crater to either side of Fluttershy and Rarity and for hundreds of yards beyond. Had the gold hands not stopped the spear the attack would've likely melted anything it struck to nothing, but the gold hands appeared to drain the power right out of the attack. The blood torrent gradually vanished, the crackling energies fading. The spear fell to the ground in a clatter, leaving Gilda blinking in shock.

The dozen gold hands withdrew back to the nimbus of light, and in their wake gold motes fell to the ground, and greenery blossomed from their touch, growing fresh, beautiful flowers of peach pink color.

Rarity took a step back, not in fear, but awe.

“Flutter...shy?”

The nimbus of almost sold gold light faded somewhat, and Fluttershy stepped forward.

She was glad in loose golden robes, interlaced with patterns of pink and green floral splendor, her feet bare. The halo behind her had enlarged to a pure golden disc, surrounded by beams of sunlight, and a smaller yet no less intense halo of gentle blue hung behind her head, framing it. Her hair was longer, flowing as if in a breeze, but with an elegant headdress upon her brow consisting of golden ovals embedded with pale blue gems that resembled eyes. Her own eyes remained pure and clear, with her third eye an open conduit to an endless, smoking stream of blue aura.

But most notable of all were the additional arms and hands. She now had three apiece on either side, held together in prayer-like gestures. These arms and hands were solid and the normal color of Fluttershy’s buttery yellow skin, but they weren’t the only additional limbs. She also carried a multitude of identical limbs of pure gold light that appeared around her halo, fading in and out of view like phantoms, but clearly no less solid and real for how she’d employed them against Gilda’s spear.

Rarity was most taken of all by the expression of Fluttershy’s face. Kind, calm, and serene in a way Rarity had never seen before.

“Oh my... that’s... quite the change, Fluttershy,” Rarity managed to say.

It was a tad unnerving the way Fluttershy seemed so relaxed as she turned to look at Rarity, her eyes absent of any hint of anxiety or fear. But her voice was still Fluttershy’s, and carried a bashful hint of embarrassment as she smiled at Rarity.

“Thank you. It’s, um, a bit more revealing than I’d like, but I feel really quite good right now.”

Rarity supposed she could understand Fluttershy’s feelings. The robes were quite loose and revealed more skin than any outfit she’d seen the shy girl wear before, especially around the shoulders.

“Honestly I think it’s quite fetching on you, darling. I’ve always said you ought to be more proud of your figure and show off a little more. No harm in turning a few heads, I always say.”

“Don’t ignore me!” Gilda roared, blasting forward with Sonido, grabbing her spear in the same motion, and thrusting it at Fluttershy’s back with supersonic speed.

“Excuse me, Rarity,” Fluttershy said, moving in the same instant. There was no wasted motion. She turned and three of her more physical hands gripped the spear and flipped it, and Gilda, up and down onto her back, smashing the Espada into the ground hard enough to break rock apart for meters all around.

Fluttershy’s eyes sparked blue, and her voice gained a resonant, echoing tone, “Enlightenment Technique; Thousand Palms of Compassion.”

Gold light flared as the limbs of radiant light moved with precision, forming a litany of palm strikes that rushed down upon Gilda’s still stunned form. There was shockingly little impact from the strikes, yet Rarity could see each palm hit a precise point on Gilda’s body and blast a pulse of golden light into the Espada’s frame. Each hit rang with the sounding of a massive gong, the golden hands moving in a dizzying flurry.

“Your pain runs deep,” Fluttershy said, looking at Gilda with no animosity, just sad empathy as she withdrew her golden hands and knelt beside the gasping Espada, “Your anger has nothing to do with me, my friend Rarity, or even Mister Smooze. It’s another that is the true source of this fury. Show it to me. Let me help free you from your own chains.”

Rarity wasn’t even sure Gilda could respond. The Arrancar’s eyes were almost blank, and the only indication she was even still alive were the ragged gasps as she lay there limply after Fluttershy’s potent assault. Fluttershy reached out her right hand and placed it above Gilda’s Hollow hole.

“Fluttershy, what are you doing?” Rarity asked.

“Can you go check on Mister Smooze, Rarity? This won’t take me long,” Fluttershy said, not actually answering the question. Rarity hesitated a second, then decided it was best to let Fluttershy do her thing.

As Rarity left to go take a look at Smooze, Fluttershy focused her attention upon the stunned Espada, and took a deep breath.

“Enlightenment Technique; Reflections Upon Still Water.”

It was amazing to Fluttershy how naturally the use of her Fullbring now came to her, although her mind felt quiet and calm as a void. Not an empty void, but one where all of her doubts, fears, and hidden angers had been allowed to pass through her, leaving behind a simple peace and acceptance of herself and her place in the world. She understood her power was a reflection of her soul’s desire to prevent and heal harm. A physical manifestation of her kindness, which at its most basic core allowed her to touch and influence others.

Her attack might have seemed powerful in how it had stunned Gilda into submission, but Flutteshy knew her power could inflict no real harm. Each palm strike wasn’t to Gilda’s body, but her inner spirit, breaking it’s violent intent. But it wasn’t enough to just subdue Gilda. In time she’d recover, and the source of her pain and hatred would remain. Fluttershy was a healer. Sometimes that meant showing tough love. Gilda was about to get all the kindness she could possibly handle and then some.

A gold light like liquid metal poured out of Fluttershy’s hand and into Gilda. This was akin to the link Fluttershy used in the past to try and influence and command others, but was far more potent, and connected her soul with Gilda’s in a nearly unbreakable conduit. A hint of this power had emerged when she’d faced Posey, and connected herself to Kyoki. It’d worked largely because Kyoki was a Zanpaktou Spirit designed with his own inner world. This power Fluttershy used now was much stronger, and could create such a reflective inner world inside anyone, allowing Fluttershy to enter it to confront the person’s inner self directly.

It only took a split second before Gilda’s eyes opened, pouring out with pure gold light as Fluttershy and her minds were taken to the inner world of reflections.

----------

Fluttershy saw a girl physically no older than eight, or perhaps nine. The young Gilda was wearing torn white rags, stained with dirt and blood. She had no weapon in hand, but her hands were indeed bloody, clenched into fists even as her gaunt face wore weariness like a familiar mask. Yet determined anger filled the child’s eyes as she struggled to push a massive stone block up a steep hill of sand.

Around her other children, Arrancar like herself, struggled with their own blocks, pushing until their knuckles bled. There were only six of them, all of similar ages, with perhaps only a few years separating them. Watching this torturous training were several adult Arrancar, one of them bellowing at the children.

“Hurry it up you misbegotten weaklings! You want to earn your dinner or not!? Only three of you get to eat tonight, and that’s assuming you can get those blocks to the top! Move it! There’s no such thing as failures in Lord Guto’s horde! Only warriors!”

A sharp cry came when the child next to Gilda slipped in the sand. The stone block she’d been trying to push up started to topple back on her. Gilda, seeing this, let go of her own block and dove to grab the other child, just barely yanking her out of the way in time. However both their blocks went tumbling down to the bottom of the hill. The other children briefly glanced at the scene, but doggedly continued pushing their blocks. Meanwhile, holding her fellow child, Gilda said, “You okay, Greta?”

“Mmmhmm...I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have slipped... just so tired...”

“Hey, morons!” the older Arrancar fired a Bala at the pair, striking near enough to send both children sprawling, “Is the point of this exercise to help each other be weak? Gilda, you should’ve let the weakling get smacked around by her own stupid mistake. A block that size won’t kill an Arrancar anyway, even one as pathetic as Greta. But I’m guessing neither of you want to eat tonight.”

Fluttershy was just a bystander in this memory, but she wasn’t alone. The adult Gilda was with her, looking strangely confused.

“What... is this?”

“You,” Fluttershy said, “Or rather, a part of you that you buried. You really were kind to help your friend like that.”

Gilda growled, “Get out of my head!”

“No. Not until we get to the bottom of this. Such cruel training. Why?”

Gilda looked at the images of herself and Greta as children and huffed out a heavy breath filled with spite and regret, “This is how Lord Guto builds the strongest warriors for the horde. Long before that soft hearted Lament showed up, this was the best chance any orphan Arrancar child had to make it anywhere in Las Noches.”

“There’s more,” Fluttershy said, “I can feel it. Let’s go deeper.”

“Wait, dammit-!”

The scene shifted in a golden blur, the space around them rearranging itself until it resembled a dimly lit interior arena, surrounded by stone columns and seating. Arrancar warriors cheered and jeered as other, younger Arrancar, most in the early teens, were pitted against one another in brutal battle. Fluttershy could see Gilda’s past self, now physically around twelve, wrestling with an older, sturdier male Arrancar. They possessed Zanpaktou now, Fluttershy noted, and were not holding back in using them. The larger Arrancar managed to pin Gilda under him and raised his blade high, aiming to impale her neck. She got her hand up in time to take the stab through the arm, blood spurting as she screamed. Yet Gilda grit her teeth and twisted her wounded arm, trapping her opponent’s Zanpaktou in it and pulling it aside so she could ram her own blade upwards, impaling the other Arrancar through the stomach.

His own pained bellow echoed through the underground arena, and Gilda twisted the blade hard, and kicked his squirming body off of her. Standing, she yanked his own sword out of her injured arm, and now bearing both blades she finished him off with a double slice that cut his throat.

“Enough.”

A loud, strong voice called out, and the fighting ceased. The arena floor was strewn with bodies, and a tall Arrancar male stood from a golden throne situated within a tall alcove overseeing the arena. He leaped down to the arena, and appraised the survivors with cool, calculating eyes.

“Twenty entered this arena. Twenty seeking the glory of joining my horde as fledgling warriors. Some of you were mere cast offs! Worthless spawn of weak Arrancar who had nothing better to do with themselves than fornicate until you came squirting out. Some of you are desperate leavings of other hordes, or those so pathetic that other Espada don’t want you. Others are survivors of Hueco Mundo's deserts, wisely seeking better lives here in Las Noches, yet with none to sponsor your rise to glory! Yet I, Lord Guto, have the kindness to grant you this chance to prove yourselves worthy! Some of you have struggled for years to earn this opportunity, and now... here you stand. Wounded, covered in blood...” his eyes gleamed, “But victorious. Twenty entered this place, but only the eight of you have proven worthy.”

He paced among the wounded, exhausted survivors, and for a second his eyes lingered on Gilda, “Do not forget, however, that you still must prove yourselves further. There will never be a time where your strength is not tested. Failure, weakness, these things must be purged from your bodies like flaws are beaten out of a blade being forged. Do not disappoint me.”

As Guto walked away, Gilda, barely standing, managed to hobble towards where Greta stood, almost as badly wounded. Gilda put a hand on Greta’s arm, “Glad you made it.”

“Almost didn’t... but hey, we’re in. We’re actually part of an Espada’s horde now.”

“Yeah, things are looking up,” Gilda replied, eyes growing fierce, “And I’m not stopping here! I’ll keep clawing my way up. All the way to the top.”

As the scene froze in place, Fluttershy turned to the real Gilda, who was sitting on one of the stone benches lining the arena with a sour look.

“Why did you want to prove anything to a cruel person like that?”

“You don’t get it.”

“Of course not, that’s why I’m asking,” Fluttershy said with a tone of infinite patience. To this Gilda bristled and turned on her with a furious glare.

“This is what’s normal where I come from! You think this looks ‘cruel’? At least Lord Guto gave us a fighting chance! Better than becoming easy pickings for any other Arrancar that would do whatever they wanted with us! Or being stuck taking our chances out in the desert. So what would someone like you know about it, huh!?”

“I couldn’t possibly know about it, which is why I’m here now, trying to understand. But I do know one thing, Gilda. It’s not me you’re really angry at.”

Veins bulged upon Gilda’s forehead, “Is that right!? I feel pretty damned pissed at you right now I’d say!”

“No, Gilda. I’m who you’re venting your anger at. I’m who you’re lashing out at. I’m not the source of it, and the proof is right here around us,” Fluttershy gestured with several of her arms at the scene around them, “My power is following the course of your anger into the core of your soul. These reflections are of what truly is the cause of your pain, and your anger. And we haven’t reached the end, yet...”

The scene shifted once more, a wave off golden light rearranging all so that they now stood in a brightly lit chamber infused with crimson and gold light from countless statues, tapestries, and other finery of carefully wrought gold and deepest reds. It was a lavish chamber, fit for the most debaucherous monarchs. An even larger, ornate golden throne flanked by statues of tall, regal griffins dominated one end of the chamber. Nearly naked female Arrancar, dressed in the barest pieces of colorful, transparent silk, poured wine and gently fanned Lord Guto as he sat upon his throne. Before him, Gilda knelt, her body covered in still bleeding wounds.

“My Lord Guto, I’ve finished off most of the Soul Reapers who infiltrated our hunting grounds in South Africa. We lost two of our own, but the Soul Reapers took far more casualties-”

Guto simply took a sip of wine from a painfully gold goblet shaped like a skull and then in several swift motions stood up, moved to Gilda, and backhanded her hard enough to send her sprawling several dozen feet.

“Most of the Soul Reapers, you said? Most!? My orders were to slay every single Reaper that disrupted our hunting ground in the human world. Worthless fool!”

“But my Lord, only one or two escaped!” Gilda said, getting back to her feet, only to get a swift boot to the gut that doubled her over, coughing.

Guto tossed his wine goblet aside, knelt down, and grabbed Gilda by the hair, turning her face up towards his thunderous expression of displeasure, “One or two is enough to report back to their Seireitei where our hunting grounds are. Now we must find another location with easy pickings. That isolated human tribe was perfect for our needs, now we are short countless souls to feed our troops, and all because you let ‘one or two’ Reapers escape. Gilda, I have been magnanimously patient with you. You do show promise, child. But you must learn that there is no room for failure when you serve me. Certainly not if you strive to attain the rank of Espada yourself.”

“I... I understand, my Lord.”

“No, you do not. But I excel in education,” Guto said as he snapped his fingers, and one of the servant Arrancar swiftly went to retrieve a weapon that looked like a cross between a whip and a spiked chain. Gilda looked upon the weapon, then Guto and took a deep, bracing breath.

“If this is the punishment my Lord decrees, I can endure it.”

“I know,” he said, almost too quietly as he raised the chain whip, “That’s why I chose you in the first place. I know you can endure, and in doing so grow strong. But each mistake must have its price.”

Fluttershy forced herself to watch what followed, and didn’t blame the real Gilda for remaining almost deathly silent next to her. The Gilda in the memory was good to her word, enduring the abuse Guto meted out with a hard, determined mien that refused to break even after she no longer had the strength to remain standing under the powerful blows that rained down upon her. For Fluttershy it was impossible to not have her heart ache at the echoing sound of chain striking flesh that filled the chamber for some time to come.

When it was done and Guto paused, looking reflectively upon Gilda briefly before he went and replaced the chain whip with no more emotion than someone putting away mere tool after use. He then turned to Gilda, who had fallen to her hands and knees under the bows, but stubbornly remained conscious throughout the ordeal. “You know it’s strange, you are... friends with Greta, yes? That child would be dead by now, if not for you, I imagine. Tch, she has so little of me in her. She far more resembles her mother.”

Gilda twitched slightly, but showed no other reaction as she looked up at Guto past a trail of her own blood coating her face. Guto just shrugged and returned to his throne, “It doesn’t really matter, I suppose. Blood means nothing in my horde. You and Greta have earned your places not through blood, but ability. Hmph, I think the wine has made me sentimental today. Begone, Gilda, and do not speak of this to Greta. And do not fail me like this again. Not if you intend to fulfill your potential. Serve me well, however, and you may one day become the Espada you desire to be.”

Things were silent for some time after the memory froze in place. Time meant little here, Fluttershy knew. Mere seconds had passed on the outside, while she delved into Gilda’s soul.

Gilda herself sat, looking at the image of her battered, bloodied past self, and there was nothing but loathing on her face.

Fluttershy sat next to her, not saying a word.

“Well...?” Gilda said, “Aren’t you going to say something? Try and tell me it wasn’t my fault? Say some stupid platitudes to try and make me feel better?”

“No,” Fluttershy said, “I think this is something I can’t say any words for that’ll make it go away. I wouldn’t, even if I could. This is something you have to face. Just, maybe not alone.”

“Tch, like I need help. I don’t need help. Maybe she needed help,” Gilda pointed at her past self, snorting in a manner that sounded almost like crying, “I mean, look at her. Look at that stupid face! Like a loyal dog. And then Greta...”

“You didn't know she was Guto's daughter?”

“No, and neither does Greta. And you heard him. It doesn't matter. What’s stupid, what’s so incredibly idiotic it makes me want to puke, was that she, I... back then... I actually thought he cared about his people. I thought that’s why he gave chances to people like me and Greta. That if we worked hard and proved ourselves that we'd be rewarded because we were Lord Guto's favored warriors. That moron bleeding on the floor there thought she was special. Well, she’s not...” Gilda wiped at her eyes and then shouted at the frozen image of her past self, “You’re not special! You’re an idiot! He doesn't give two shits about you! That’s why... that’s why...”

Gilda clamped her eyes shut against the tears and slammed a fist into the ground, “I have to hold onto it! Every scrap of power I’ve taken! This rank of Espada! I have to keep it! Because damn it it’s mine! Mine! Not his. I did this for me! I...”

She seemed to deflate upon herself, hunching over, “But I’ve lost. I lost to a stupid human girl who kicked my ass with kindness, and once this is all done, it won’t even matter if Adagio or Grogar win or lose, or if Smooze survives or not... I’m done. Lord Tirek won’t accept this failure. I’ll be stripped of my rank, and then I’ll be lucky if I can lick Guto’s boots hard enough for him to take me back into the horde, and a part of me would rather die than do that! So you'd better finish me off while you’ve got the chance.”

Her tirade was stopped by a very strong hug from a girl sporting six arms. Gilda couldn’t breath for a second, so fierce was Fluttershy’s hug.

“You know I’m not going to do that. I’m just trying to help you let go of all this pain and anger you’ve been carrying around. Why hold onto it so tightly?”

“How the hell should I know? It’s kept me going. Made me feel strong,” Gilda said, voice steaming with bitter heat, “I can’t stand being so weak. That’s why Adagio pisses me off so much. She’s so insanely strong, and she makes it look easy. I’ve worked so hard to be strong enough that nothing can hurt me anymore...”

Fluttershy pulled back a bit so she could look Gilda in the eyes, “Then don’t let Guto hurt you anymore. You’ve held this anger inside you for so long... don’t you think it’s time to let go of it, at least a little, and start living for yourself instead of these memories?”

“You’re just saying this crap because you want me to stop fighting. You don’t actually care.”

“Gilda, I’m doing this because I do care. If I didn’t, why wouldn’t I have let my friend Rarity take care of you instead of doing things this way?”

“I don’t know, because you’re a bleeding heart softie?”

“Well, yes, that too, but does that make anything I’ve said wrong?” Fluttershy said, gesturing at the memory, “Do you really think you should keep hating yourself and these memories, when you know you’re stronger than this?”

Gilda stared at the scene of her past, and slowly closed her eyes again and let out a long, slow breath like the sound one might make before diving off a cliff one isn’t sure there’s water beneath or rocks. “Funny thing is, that hate’s kept me going for so long, I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do without it.”

Fluttershy stood, and offered Gilda a hand up, “Don’t you think it’s time to find out?”

With a hesitant hand, Gilda took Fluttershy’s, and was lifted up, and the world turned to radiant gold.

----------

Fluttershy stood, pulling a now fully conscious, if somewhat shaky Gilda to her feet. Rarity had just reached Smooze, who seemed a little worse for wear but otherwise still alive. All of three seconds had gone by while Fluttershy and Gilda had linked souls. Gilda swayed on her feet, nearly falling over, until Fluttershy steadied her with with three of her hands.

“Fluttershy, darling, is everything alright over there?” Rarity called, warily creating several floating, crystalline weapons as she eyed Gilda cautiously.

Gilda blinked at the scene around her, and at her fallen spear. Then she looked at Fluttershy with a rather unsteady expression of mixed emotions. She slowly picked up her spear... and then sighed as it started to glow red. The spear had pieces of it fleck off into red motes until it faded into the form of Gilda’s sealed Zanpaktou. Her own body changed in a similar fashion, the armor and helmet vanishing in streams of red light until Gilda was left in her battered, torn clothing.

“I’m done here,” Gilda said, “I don’t have the energy to keep fighting, even if I wanted to.”

“Let me heal your wounds,” Fluttershy said, and Gilda looked her askance.

“Look, you might have pulled some weird mental power that’s... helped me see a few things, but that isn’t making us friends, and I don’t need help-”

Fluttershy’s eyes bored into her, “Let me heal you.”

Gilda blinked, turned, and sat down crossed legged without a thought. She then grimaced at Fluttershy, who offered her an apologetic shrug as she knelt in front of Gilda. Two of the golden hands of light moved out from her main halo and went to either side of Gilda. Soft light bathed the Arrancar, gradually causing her injuries to start fading. Rarity created a small crystal platform for Smooze to climb upon, and used it to bring both herself and Smooze down to where Flutteshy and Gilda were.

“Fluttershy, are you sure that’s a good idea? She was just attempting to murder us, I’ll remind you.”

Gilda made a soft grunt, glancing back at Rarity, “Don’t look at me. This wasn’t my idea. I told her to finish me off.”

Fluttershy let out a light, tingling laugh, “It’s okay, Rarity. After using my power on her, Gilda can’t attack me.”

“Huh?” Gilda said, and blinked, “Wait, what do you mean I can’t attack you?” She tried raising a hand, and it went right back down after twitching for a second. “Oh hell...”

“Sorry, I really do want to help you get over your issues, but in case you weren’t willing to overcome your problems or decided to start fighting again I did make sure to add a little insurance,” Fluttershy said, offering a kind but oddly hard smile, “I’m nice. Not stupid.”

Gilda looked at her... then smiled slightly, barking out a laugh, “Good. Would’ve pissed me off if I lost to someone who was a total naive dweeb.”

Just then, a fiery streak of light slammed down from above, landing a few paces away in the crater’s center. Flames washed off of Sunset Shimmer as she brandished her sword and shield, “Fluttershy, Rarity, I’m here to... uh... help?”

Sunset’s impressive entrance was somewhat dampened as she cocked her head and noticed Gilda and Fluttershy standing side by side, apparently talking quite casually with one another. Sunset blinked, taking in the sight of Fluttershy’s new form, then glanced at Rarity. “Um, soooo... what did I miss?”

Author's Notes:

Fluttershy's completed Fullbring is heavily inspired by the title of this episode, the 'bodhisattva' of Buddhist religion. They're basically those who are far along the path of enlightenment but remain in the mortal cycle so they can aid others in seeking enlightenment and be free of suffering. Specifically there's one called 'Avalokiteshvara' who's compassion for mankind was so great that in order to try to save every person from suffering he split into a thousand fragments, gaining his thousand armed form.

Definitely feels like something that fits Fluttershy to me.

At any rate, hope you folks enjoyed the chapter, and thank you all for reading. As always leave any comments, questions or critiques you wish to give me, as they're all quite appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 106: Duty Versus Ambition

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Episode 106: Duty Versus Ambition

A thunderclap of air pressure shattered glass across three different office buildings, spreading a hail storm of glass chunks down towards the crowded street below. Fortunately forward thinking Soul Reapers of the Tenth Division had already set up Kido spells that created several shielding barriers of incandescent blue reishi that prevented the deadly rain from reaching the confused and panicked humans still in the streets.

Sweet Cider swore under her breath, whipping blood from her sword from yet another Hollow monstrosity she’d just split in half with her latest blow, which subsequently had caused the blast of air that had broken all the windows. “Fer cryin’ out loud, I can’t even use a’ fraction o’ my strength, otherwise these flimsy buildings come apart just from swingin’ near ‘em!”

As the two severed halves of the Hollow fell to the ground behind her, a new Hollow dove at her from above. It was a pulsating mutation of a Hollow bearing a body of three split centipedes, with a centaurian overall shape bearing an upper body of eight scorpion pincer arms and a head more akin to a wasp, if a wasp had human teeth set in a skull mask over it’s bulbous face. Al eight of its pincers opened and fired jets of thick, black poisonous goo that Sweet Cider had already seen the deadly effects off when it had hit several of her squad earlier. She wouldn’t have any issue dodging, but it proved unnecessary as a chunk of rock the size of a small house careened into the path of the poison, not only blocking the streams, but continuing on to smash into the Hollow with a resounding crash.

“I figure that’s got to be part o’ the enemy’s intent, Captain,” said Silver Star. His Zanpaktou was already released to it’s Shikai state, shaped like a cavalry saber, as he directed its power to move more chunks of stone gathered from already broken portions of street to assault the mutated Hollow, “They know we can’t fight usin’ our full power in the middle o’ the city.”

“They’re just delayin’ us. Ain’t like we can’t take these buggers down, it’s just takin’ minutes we ain’t got!” Sweet Cider said past clenched teeth. The mutant Hollow weathered the storm of rocks Silver Star had thrown at it and let out a gurgling howl as it moved with speed akin to Sonido, flickering right towards her. It did surprise Sweet Cider these Hollows, despite not being Arrancar, could use Sonido, but while this thing was strong enough that it’d be a serious threat to lesser ranked Soul Reapers and probably even give a Lieutenant a serious workout... well, even if she was having to hold back her power she was more than a match for even these freaks of Hollowdom.

Her sword flashed once, twice, three times in a fraction of a second. Pincer arms went flying every which way and the Hollow howled again, opening its mouth and gathering a deadly sphere of pulsing red energy. Sweet Cider let out a deep, guttural snarl as she smashed the open palm of her left hand right into the gathering Cero and shoved the energy right back down the Hollow’s gullet. It’s head distorted, bulging hideously before the entire thing exploded with the release of the condensed Cero energy it had failed to fire and instead had been force fed.

Sweet Cider stood amid the smoking debris of the Hollow’s body that fell to the streets, her hand barely singed as she brushed it off and she looked to the northeast. She could sense the distant spiritual pressures off in that direction, and knew full well that Camp Everfree had to be under some kind of attack. She could feel Celestia and Luna’s reiatsu, along with the now familiar reiatsu from her daughter and her friends. She also could feel the presence of Arrancar, at least three with a noteworthy amount of power.

No doubt whoever is over there planned ta use these weird mutant Hollows ta keep us busy. An’ dang it, it’s workin’, ‘cause fast as we kill ‘em, more keep comin’!

So far she’d slain at least five of the mutants herself, and she knew her troops, along with the Eleventh Division unit under Lieutenant Posey’s command had taken down half a dozen more. Yet Garganta portals kept opening, revealing more freakish Hollows that came flying out to assault the city. That was the real problem. Sure, some of the Hollows went after the Soul Reapers, but the majority were targeting Canterlot City’s human population, and the only thing keeping them from outright slaughtering the helpless populace was the Soul Reaper’s swift response.

It infuriated and frustrated Sweet Cider, but the fact of the matter was that if she left the city to go to Camp Everfree, then people would die in the city for lack of her aid. Her Tenth Division was well trained and fighting with all the skill and dedication she could ask for, but her raw prowess as a Captain would make all the difference here, and she damn well knew it... even if her heart was torn in two between her duty here and the desire to go protect her daughters.

“Has there been a’ response from Seireitei yet?” she asked Silver Star as they both rushed towards the next crisis point, sensing three of the mutant Hollows attacking the front of a nearby mall.

“They received our alert, an’ I know they’re mobilizin’ more o’ the Eleventh an’ part o’ Ninth Division fer immediate deployment,” Silver Star replied.

“That’s it?” Sweet Cider said, but even as she said it she could fathom the reasons why. There were already four Captains in the general area, including herself. Considering Platinum’s betrayal, and Amore and Zecora being out of actions, that meant that only six Captains were left to defend Soul Society presently. Deploying even one more, with any amount of further support from the lower ranks, would compromise Soul Society’s defenses. Scorpan had to be considering the possibility that this attack on Canterlot City and Camp Everfree was a feint by Tirek, meant to strip Seireitei of its protectors.

It was too risky to deploy too many additional forces here, however dire the situation seemed. She could see it in the grave cast on Silver Star’s face that he had reached the same conclusion. Some additional reinforcement might be coming, but it wouldn’t involve any Captains, and they were largely on their own for the time being.

They reached the mall’s front parking area, where several cars had already been overturned by the Hollow mutants hunting for fresh human souls. Sweet Cider and Silver Star didn’t waste a moment before launching themselves into the fray, both targeting separate Hollows. Sweet Cider went after one she recognized from earlier, which looked like the strange flying wheel with multiple skulls embedded in it’s spokes surrounding a central, larger skull. Meanwhile Silver Star targeted one that looked much like a humanoid insect, bearing a deformed hump of a hive on it’s back.

Leaping up and hacking down with her blade in an air splitting slash, Sweet Cider was momentarily confused as the wheel-like Hollow began to rotate at high speed and start to let out a piercing shriek. The noise was like a physical vibration, breaking car windows all across the parking lot. Of more immediate importance, the sonic wave disoriented Sweet Cider, as if the sound was affecting her inner ear’s sense of balance. It threw off her swing just enough to miss the Hollow and crunch into the ground with sufficient force to send a fissure through half the parking lot.

“Damn noisy varmint! Cut out that racket!” she said, ignoring her normal senses and focusing purely on her spiritual ones. Disoriented or not, there was no way to fool her sense of spiritual pressures, and the wheel Hollow’s noise trick wouldn’t save it twice.

Of course it seemed intelligent enough to sense this, and was literally rolling away on the ground like some out of control, high-speed unicycle, shrieking all the way. It then charged energy up and down the length of its wheel and began firing off what looked like concentrated balls of sound at Sweet Cider. With an annoyed growl on her lips, Sweet Cider powered right through the barrage like a locomotive, catching up with the Hollow at the entrance to the parking lot after only taking four or five hits from the sonic blasts, which struck hard enough to rattle her teeth but didn’t do much more than that. She grabbed the Hollow by the end of it’s wheel, halting it dead in its tracks.

She then just halted it dead, period, when she raised it above her head, still shrieking, and smashed it into the ground hard enough to make the city’s street planners feel chills for the repair bills. Just to make sure, she followed up by impaling the mutant Hollow through its central skull with her Zanpaktou.

That done, she glanced to check on Silver Star. He was fighting toe to toe with the humanoid insect Hollow, which had sprouted claws from it’s fingers that it used like bunched up knives, stabbing and slashing at her Lieutenant, who was doing an admirable job of keeping the Hollow at bay while simultaneously using his Shikai’s power to control a series of concrete parking lot chunks as both shields and ballistic projectiles. Swarms of smaller insects, bearing saw-like mandibles, flew from the hive hump on the Hollow’s back, but Silver Star seemed to be handling them with the concrete chunks he was controlling.

Sweet Cider would have gone to help him, but the third mutant Hollow in the area was already ripping down the mall’s front entrance, and she could hear frightened human screams from inside. This Hollow had a form of unbalanced, oversized arms combined with almost atrophied, small legs, with a mold green body pulsating with vines across its grotesquely bulging muscles. It’s skull mask was shaped like a deformed bear’s, and it took great bites out of the wall with its humongous jaws.

Sweet Cider moved to strike, but paused halfway through her Flash Step as she saw three forms dart overhead.

A resounding crack like cannon fire sounded, and a blazing blue musket ball of reishi zipped across the distance to the Hollow in front of the mall in a series of sharp, zig-zagging angles. The reishi bullet pierced the Hollow multiple times, blasting holes across its thickly muscled body. This was followed an instant later by an arrow of reishi that struck the Hollow’s spine and upon impact released a circular pulse of sound that caused the Hollow to flop backwards, thrashing it’s giant arms wildly.

Finally, a barrage of three arrows coated in deep violet flames struck the Hollow, one in the eye, one in the heart, and one in the throat, each exploding simultaneously in gouts of incinerating reishi and ethereal purple fire.

As that Hollow began to disintegrate into ashen motes, Sweet Cider narrowed her eyes at the ‘help’ that had arrived.

She didn’t know any of them personally, but she knew two by reputation, and one by the stories Applejack had told her. The savvy looking middle-aged man with light brown skin and still wearing a business suit despite having stepped onto a battlefield was Filthy Rich, and he was wielding an ornate musket with practiced ease. Sweet Cider had known the man to a degree when she’d been alive, as the Rich family was famous in Canterlot City, and had even had minor dealings with the Apple family once upon a time. As a Soul Reaper Captain, she knew him by intelligence reports as a member of the Quincy Sternritter.

The younger man with blue skin and darker blue hair, wearing a more proper Quincy uniform, was unknown to her outside of a minor report that also pegged him as a Sternritter, although the name escaped Sweet Cider. The young lady by his side with her distinctive glasses and pink streaked violet hair, bearing an unusual looking bow and gauntlet on her left hand, was recognizable from Applejack’s stories as Twilight Sparkle.

All three Quincy landed not far from Sweet Cider, and while all three did spare Sweet Cider a glance, it was clear their attention was on the Hollow Silver Star was still fighting.

“Filthy Rich,” Twilight said, “Trap it.”

Sweet Cider wasn’t certain if it was simply that the girl had gained a commanding presence, or if Filthy Rich was just indulging her, but the elder Sternritter didn’t voice complaint or objection at the order and even gave a bit of a cocky smirk, as if he was enjoying himself. He placed his left hand on the ground, and blue veins of reishi stretched out through the parking lot to gleam beneath the Hollow. Silver Star seemed to sense what was happening and leapt back, just in time as the ground rearranged itself around the Hollow, becoming a dome of concrete that entrapped the insectoid mutant and it’s swarm of drones.

Twilight Sparkle then drew back on her bow, purple energy streaming down its string of reishi, to form another arrow of blue reishi coated in teal witchfire. Twilight’s eyes briefly glowed with the same energy as she released the arrow at the dome, but then gestured with her hand. With a flash of light the arrow vanished, and Sweet Cider sensed it appearing within the dome of concrete, as if it had been teleported there. The dome then bulged, cracks appearing all over it as teal flame shot out from the contained explosion within. Then the dome crumbled, showing the charred remains of the insectoid Hollow and its drones.

Silver Star blinked, then turned his attention to the Quincy, not dropping his guard as he held his Zanpatkou at the ready.

“Captain?” he asked, but she held up a hand.

“I ain’t rude ‘nough ta not thank ya fer the assist,” she told the three Quincy, “But what’re y'all doin’ here?”

“Why, defending human lives from Hollow predation,” said Filthy Rich, “That is our sworn duty as Quincy.”

Twilight Sparkle turned to her, holding up her right hand in a peaceful gesture. Sweet Cider noticed the hand wasn’t flesh and blood, but appeared to be made out of intricate ceramics, like puppets, and with a moment of concentration she could sense the strings of reishi inside it, controlling the hand’s motions. She hadn’t heard from Applejack that her friend had lost a hand, and for a moment her heart softened a bit. Clearly this young girl had gone through a lot.

“We’re not here to fight Soul Reapers,” Twilight said, “You’re Captain Sweet Cider, correct? You’re Applejack’s mother.”

“That’s right. Look missy, I ain’t got time fer chattin’. Hollows are still swarmin’, an’ if ye ain’t here ta cause trouble with us an’ yer only here ta kill Hollows, then fer now consider us as havin’ a truce,” Sweet Cider said, shouldering her Zanpaktou, “I’ll tell my people ta leave ya be, long as ya don’t start nothin’.”

“That’s incredibly reasonable, coming from a Soul Reaper Captain,” said Filthy Rich, smiling as he rubbed his chin, “But then I do remember you from when you were alive, Sweet Cider. You were always a sensible woman.”

“Save it, Rich. We both got work ta do.”

Twilight nodded, “Yes, the Hollows here need to be dealt with, but there’s more attacking Camp Everfree. I intend to go there and help, while Filthy Rich and Soarin assist in dealing with the Hollows here.”

Both men nodded, but Sweet Cider detected mixed feelings from both. The younger man, Soarin, was looking at Twilight rather protectively and with clear worry in his eyes. Filthy Rich looked... distracted, as if his mind was focused elsewhere than on the prospect of battle, and was also worried about something involving Camp Everfree.

Wait, that’s right, he’s got himself a daughter who’s probably at that camp right now, Sweet Cider realized.

“Twilight Sparkle, right? Applejack told me ‘bout ya. You go on then, an’ help out yer friends. Keep everyone there safe, if ya can, includin’ Filthy’s kid.”

Filthy Rich’s eyes showed a moment of astonishment, followed by gratitude, “I suppose, Soul Reaper or not, you’re still a parent. Thank you. Let’s destroy these Hollows quickly so we can all look after our families.”

“No need ta tell me twice,” Sweet Cider said, already sensing for the next group of Hollows to go after.

“Be careful, all of you,” Twilight said, turning to brace herself to leap into the air and start making her way to Camp Everfree. Just before she did so, Soarin touched her shoulder.

“You be careful too, Twilight. His Majesty will have my head if anything happens to you on my watch.”

“Heh, I’ll try, that’s all I can promise.”

With that Twilight jumped into the air and began dashing across the city skyline. Filthy Rich gave Soarin a wry grin, casually twirling his musket, “Looking to marry into the Sparkle family someday, Soarin?”

The younger Quincy blanched and shook his head, “That’s not funny, Rich. I take my job as a bodyguard seriously, and Twilight’s not making it easy, running off every which way while...” Soarin paused, glancing a Sweet Cider, “...While things are the way they are. C’mon, let’s just get to dealing with these Hollows already!”

Sweet Cider didn’t know what that was all about, but she didn’t much care. She as in agreement with Soarin. There were Hollows to kill, and as far as she was concerned if the Quincy wanted to help, the more the merrier.

----------

Less than a dozen yards from the lake shore, Di Roy and Roka lay hiding in wait amid a thick cluster of trees near a stream that emptied out into the lake itself. This was the designated rendezvous point where Twilight Sparkle was supposed to meet them, and they could begin the extraction of Ember from the lab. With the intel Adagio had gained, they knew where the warded lab entrance was. Getting in probably wouldn’t be that hard. Getting out on the other hand...

“Show’s started,” Di Roy said, looking at the clashes of power in the sky above, where concussive blasts of force were blowing away clouds and causing small eruptions of energy. “Here’s hoping that Quincy girl gets here soon. It’s kinda nerve wracking being this close to ground zero of a fight between so many powerhouses.”

Roka touched his arm gently, smiling behind her half skull mask, “Be at ease. Adagio will be fine, and so will Gaw.”

“I...I’m not worried,” Di Roy said, glancing away, then grumbling, “Okay, fine, I’m worried. Boss lady’s taking on two freakin’ Captains, with Grogar of all people as backup. Not exactly an inspiring combo. As for Gaw... hell, I like to think I can trust her not to do something crazy, but on a battlefield like this, who knows what’ll go down? And hey, I’m saving plenty of worry for us as well! I mean, there’s another Captain down in that lab. I know he’s supposed to be some kind of scientist, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be able to kill us in any number of gruesome ways.”

A stray Cero beam from somewhere off to their left exploded uncomfortably close, causing Roka and Di Roy to duck even lower. Roka then said, “It won’t be easy, I agree, but our sole goal is to get Ember safely back to Hueco Mundo. We don’t have to defeat this Captain Starswirl, just keep him occupied long enough to break Ember free and open a Garganta to flee through.”

“Yeah, and in theory that shouldn’t be impossible, but a Captain is a Captain. Even tangling with one for a few minutes is a tall order for us mid-tiers. Heck, I’m more lower mid-tier, if I’m being honest with myself. This whole situation is way above our heads, Roka.”

“We’ve been in similar situations before,” she reminded him with that comforting tone and soft smile of hers, “We do what we must for those we call our own, even if the odds seem stacked against us.”

“Yeah, I know. Laughing in the face of certain death, that’s me. Except for the part with the laughing, and more with the getting my ass kicked. At least I do it in style, though. Ain’t no one makes being a punching bag look as good as I do.”

Just then, there was a significant burst of power from above, and Di Roy and Roka both looked up. They could barely see it, but two forms moved in blinding streaks across the air just above the lake, the sound of their weapons clashing akin to echoes from a thunderstorm. Reiatsu was pouring out from both combatants like rising tidal waves, and Di Roy and Roka could both sense Adagio’s spiritual pressure rising alongside her opponent's, the darker skinned of the two Soul Reaper sister Captains.

“That’s getting damn intense out there,” Di Roy said, “If boss lady keeps this up, she’s going to force that Captain to get serious, and then she’ll have to get serious, and then say goodbye to the local topography.”

“I’m here!”

“AAAH!” Di Roy whipped his Zanpaktou around, having been taken off guard by a flash of purple light. He stopped himself just short of Twilight’s face as she stood there, rather suddenly behind him and Roka. She held up her hands and smiled sheepishly, her hair a tad frazzled and smoking.

“S-Sparkle!? How the-!? Why the-!?” Di Roy stammered, then took his blade away from her face. The Quincy girl let out a sigh.

“Teleportation. I studied this location before leaving for the city last night. I wasn’t certain I could make it such a distance from the city limits, but time was so limited, and Midnight and I thought it worth the risk. Hmm, I’m still a bit singed, it seems. Must need to adjust for relative elevations over long distances and account for changes in humidity...”

“It’s fine, as long as you’re here,” Roka said, “We were worried you might not make it in time.”

“What were you doing in the city anyway?” asked Di Roy, but Twilight’s expression grew guarded almost immediately.

“It’s purely Quincy related business,” she said, and the girl’s demeanor rapidly shifted to one something as solid and walled off as a bunker. Her eyes were especially... not cold, but somehow infinitely more flat when she looked at Roka. “Adagio has not called upon your father yet, has she?”

“No,” Roka replied, not as frosty as Twilight, but clearly adopting a purely neutral expression, “Hopefully it will not come to that and we’ll have Ember safely away before things escalate to that point.”

“Yes... let us hope,” Twilight replied, voice tightly controlled, now.

Di Roy would have been lying through his shark-like teeth if he said he liked this situation all that much, or even really trusted Twilight Sparkle. Adagio might have had some minor history with the girl, and seemed to think she could be relied upon, but Di Roy still remembered what had happened at Lament’s tower pretty keenly, even if he and Gaw had been making tracks by the time things had gotten seriously out of hand. It seemed impossible to him that this Twilight chick was just... okay working with Hollows after what had happened.

He wasn’t about to question Adagio’s call, but he planned to keep a close eye on Twilight, especially with Roka around.

“With you here, we can get this hand-basket to hell rolling,” he said, “We know the lab entrance is roughly over there, on the east side of the lake, all invisible and crap from some ward. Chances are the second we hit the ward, it’ll trip an alarm, or a trap.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Twilight said, “The moment we reach it, I’ll teleport us inside without having to actually touch the ward. So far spiritual wards haven’t proven effective at blocking magical teleportation, at least the Quincy wards I’ve tested the theory on.”

“Great, so you don’t actually know if Soul Reaper wards are different. Swell. If I end up with my insides scattered across several square kilometers, I’m blaming you,” Di Roy groused, and Twilight shrugged.

“It should be perfectly safe. Once we’re inside, they’ll likely detect us soon anyway, so it’s a moot point. If things go right, we can strike quickly, get to Ember, and I can teleport all of us out before the Soul Reapers can mount a proper response.”

“Is there any concern about the Soul Reapers recognizing you?” asked Roka, “From Adagio’s words, I imagine they must know your relation to both her and the human girls from the local high school. Won’t that complicate matters, if you’re seen?”

“Normally, yes, but...” Twilight paused, glancing at the pair rather seriously, “I can do something about that. I won’t ask you not to tell Adagio. Just consider this a sign of trust in her that I’m allowing you to see me do this.”

Di Roy wondered what the weird Quincy girl was going on about, until he saw her raise a hand and place it over her chest. He both saw and sensed traces of reishi flowing from her hand and coating her body like a sheet. He wasn’t sure what she was doing, but he sensed the reishi doing something inside her body, at least on a surface level.

Then swiftly, as if someone was painting a picture over her, Twilight’s body changed. It grew an inch taller. The color of her skin shifted to a darker shade of purple. Her... chest became flatter yet somehow broader, along with her shoulders. Her hair grew shorter, and become forward swept, with spiky waves, while also changing color to appear more blue with a red streak rather than it’s original purple with a pink streak. Her frame grew slightly more muscular as well, with her facial features becoming somewhat rougher, square and more... masculine.

“Oh, I am still very much not used to doing this,” Twilight said, in a voice that was no longer her usual soft, feminine lilt, but a clearly more masculine if still somehow soft voice.

“Did you... just become a dude?” Di Roy said, and Roka tilted her head in silent confusion.

“Ahem, well,” Twilight said, “You could say I changed a... variable, within myself, yes. Only temporarily, of course, for the sake of disguise. I do not intend to stay this way any longer than needed, but this should throw off any likelihood of my being recognized. Just don’t call me Twilight while we’re in the lab. If you have to address me use the name... hmm... Duskshine. That should work as an alias.”

“That’s quite clever. And if I may say so, quite handsome as well,” asked Roka, and Twilight... Duskhine, blushed.

“Um, can we just go now? This is actually extremely uncomfortable, and I’m just glad my uniform still fits.”

“Heh, bet it’s suddenly tighter in a few places-” Di Roy said, only to get a stern look from Roka where he quickly coughed and said, “But yeah, let’s do this. One rescued Fifth Espadas daughter, coming right up!”

----------

Water exploded around the titanic clash of ruby tipped trident against razor edged scythes as Adagio and Luna’s Zanpkatou met once again in a high speed flurry. The pair danced across the lake in eye tearing streaks of motion, creating sonic booms with their deadly movements.

For the moment Adagio was holding her own against the vastly more experienced Luna, but Adagio was no fool. She could tell that the Second Division’s Captain was still testing her, and had yet to get serious. Yes, Luna had her Zanpaktou released to it’s Shikai state, but Adagio could tell Luna was still holding back, and had yet to make use of any of her shadow-based powers. That was fine by Adagio’s reckoning. Unlike Luna, Adagio knew the real purpose of this battle was to buy time and nothing more. Much as she wanted to take Luna down a peg for abducting Ember in the first place, humbling the Soul Reaper was not the objective, so for the moment she was perfectly fine letting Luna test her. Adagio was enjoying truly stretching her Arrancar muscles for the first time.

Sure, she’d sparred a few times with her vassals back in Las Noches to get used to her new form, but this was her first real battle as both Arrancar and Espada. Like finally finding a good stretch of empty road when one had a new muscle car, it was time to open up the throttle and see just how much she could push the envelope. And if Luna gave her an excuse to go all out, just to see what she could do, then Adagio wouldn’t complain...

And so far, so good. She was keeping up with Luna’s speed, and while Luna’s skill was borderline otherworldly, Adagio was estimating she had an advantage in terms of raw physical power that was helping her hold the edge. It helped that her trident was an excellent defensive weapon, it’s long shaft perfect for spinning blocks and parries that kept Luna’s weapons at bay, although Adagio noted that Luna had only been using one of her scythes to attack so far, while relying on the other to defend with.

In a dark blue blaze of motion Luna caught one of Adagio’s trident thrusts between the prongs with her defensive scythe, and turned the scythe blade to the side to get the trident out of the way. She then stepped forward with a powerful motion, cocking her other scythe back. Adagio sensed the build up of reiatsu there, and saw shadows creep up around the scythe to form a blade-like layer around it.

Guess she’s done toying with me, Adagio thought, and yanked her trident backward with one hand and used her other to make a sharp gesture, calling up a frothing cascade of water from the lake right beneath them. The shield of water bled off some of the momentum of Luna’s scythe, but the shadow encased blade still cut through the barrier of water and struck Adagio in the side. She turned to roll with the blow, and even then it nearly knocked the breath out of her and she went skidding back. Fortunately her Heirro was strong enough to keep more than a shallow cut from forming, but Adagio suspected if she let a direct hit from a shadow-enhanced scythe land, it’d be bad news for her.

Luna immediately followed up by leaping into a spinning kick, her leg suddenly became coated in a spinning arua of white reiatsu. Adagio countered with her trident, swinging the shaft to crash into Luna’s descending leg. The resulting shockwave of force sent up a twenty meter geyser of water from the lake and left both combatants flying backwards. They quickly recovered and both Adagio and Luna flew upwards to meet each other at the apex of the still falling geyser of water. Adagio took control of that water, causing the geyser to halt in mid-air, then churn into a condensed sphere that then shot out bullets of highly pressurized water at Luna.

Luna flickered in and out of view with Flash Steps even Adagio had to struggle to follow, slipping through the literal shower of water bullets. She then saw Luna slash with her scythe while still at a distance. Shadows rose up in a wave that took the form of multiple knife-like shadows, all slashing in at Adagio at a single point.

Adagio thrust out a hand and formed a pulsating sphere of Hollow energy that was mostly red, save for a small core of blue. When she fired the Cero beam, the beam mimicked that coloring, with intense red on the outside, encasing a core beam of neon blue. The beam struck Luna’s shadow wave, and for a moment the blades of solid darkness cut into the beam, but Adagio’s Cero overpowered the shadows a second later and forced Luna to dodge upward, leaping ever higher into the sky.

Rushing in pursuit, Adagio pushed her Sonido faster, leaving a faint after image of herself as she caught up to Luna and launched into a rain of stabbing blows that turned one trident into a veritable avalanche of ruby tipped points seeking Luna’s flesh. Luna forced to use both her scythes for defense now, whirling about in a tornado of steel to keep Adagio’s hail of blows at bay.

“So what was that kick? Soul Reaper martial arts?” Adagio asked, partly out of curiosity, partly to annoy Luna by making it look like the fight didn’t require her full concentration and she had all the mental acumen needed to talk while Luna was trying to kill her.

It was impossible to tell whether that actually worked or not, as Luna was wearing a spectacular poker face, and spoke back with measured calm, “Hakuda techniques are practiced by all Second Division members, more so than any other Division. Its so that, even if we’re captured while scouting behind enemy lines, we have a means to fight if separated from our blades.”

Her face might have been as unreadable as a stage mask, but her tone did betray a hint of cocky satisfaction as she added, “It also happens to have a few techniques that work with a weapon in hand, as well.”

That was all the warning Adagio had before Luna extended her reiatsu aura around her two Zanpaktou and with a harsh, spinning parry knocked Adagio’s trident upward, then completed the spin by crossing her scythes in front of her. This created a dual, cross shaped pressure wave that slammed into Adagio and sent her reeling backwards. The impact disoriented her for a second, and was the first real strike form Luna that hurt, despite not actually causing an obvious wound. Her Heirro kept the sharp pressure wave from cutting skin, but she knew the hit would leave one heck of a bruise across her abs tomorrow.

Adagio didn’t see so much as heard the rush of air from Luna using Flash Step to get behind her, and didn’t hesitate to jab backwards with the end of her trident while bringing the sphere of water from earlier closer so it could shoot out a blast of water like a giant hose. Her trident was blocked by Luna’s left scythe, and while the Captain tried to get a strike in with the other scythe, the water blast came in too quickly and cascaded into Luna with full force.

Adagio immediately followed up by swinging her trident around, this time conjuring water forth with her own power, which roiled and churned around the tips of her Zanpaktou. Even as Luna was being pushed back by the water from the now shrinking sphere, Adagio added to the wave with another blast from her trident, causing Luna to lose her footing on the air particles she was using to stand. She went careening away and slammed into the lake.

Adagio didn’t imagine she’d done much damage to the Soul Reaper, but took a second to try and sense the overall situation around her. She sensed Grogar and Celestia had moved off to the north, and that they were clashing above the forest. It felt like their fight was moving towards the mountains. Probably Celestia’s doing, trying to lure Grogar far enough away to activate her Shikai.

There was a great deal of conflicting reiatsu coming from the closer forest trails to the south and east. Gilda was fighting what felt like two of Sunset’s friends, but one of them had suddenly gained a significantly higher reiatsu than normal. Adagio couldn’t sense Greta anywhere, and it felt like the Arrancar that had engaged Sunset had been largely cut down, save a few weak reiatsu from two or three survivors.

She sensed Gaw, but the sensation was... odd. She could tell Gaw was fighting something, but she couldn’t sense precisely who. It was as if something was interfering with her Pesquisa, muddying the sensation of reiatsu coming from that area. That was worrying, but she’d just have to trust Gaw to take care of herself.

Finally, Adagio sensed what she was looking for. They were hiding themselves well enough that unless one knew what to look for they’d be hard to spot, but Adagio knew Di Roy ad Roka’s reiatsu well enough to pick them out even while they were trying to hide. She could sense them, and another reiatsu that Adagio assumed was Twilight Sparkle’s, on the move near the lake edge.

Good. Then all I need to do is keep Luna busy, and provide them with a proper distraction.

Her optimism soon became readily misplaced as the lake began to grow... dark, and Adagio felt Luna’s spiritual pressure shake the air with a distinctly violent vibration. So far Luna had only made minimal use of her Zanpaktou’s Shikai powers, but it was clear that Luna was done testing Adagio. This new reiatsu wasn’t strong enough to be Luna’s Bankai, but it was clear the Captain had decided to finally take the fight seriously.

Adagio prepared herself, but there really wasn’t any preparation for facing a Captain of the Gotei 13. Luna’s attack was as fast as it was deadly. Adagio had been able to respond to Luna’s strike on Grogar because she’d specifically been looking for it, but Luna didn’t attack in the predictable manner of going for Adagio’s rear, but instead the lake erupted with a series of ink black shadow pillars that surrounded Adagio. Then in a blinding series of streaking motions Luna burst from one pillar, both her scythes flashing by Adagio, only for Luna to zip right into another pillar of shadow and appear out of another one from an entirely different angle. Dozens of times in the span of seconds Luna was a midnight storm of slashes, and even Adagio summoning forth barriers of water and spinning her trident to parry for all she was worth couldn’t keep those deadly scythes from striking home a few times.

To Adagio’s credit, each time she did manage to turn with the blow to keep the wounds to a minimum, but she was quickly accumulating a series of shallow slashes across her limbs and torso from the insanely fast barrage. Yet even so, Adagio was not without a plan to counter something like this, as she suspected Luna’s shadow powers would make it difficult to track her when combined with Luna’s speed. So while the water barriers she created did serve to deflect many of Luna’s scything strikes, Adagio was also using that as a distraction while she coated the air in an ever growing mist, until Luna noticed that amid her shadow pillars was now a thick, white fog. Fog being little more than water particles hanging in the air, Adagio now knew precisely where Luna was coming from, so on her next attack Adagio was now able to sense the motion through the fog and hammered her trident in that direction.

The strike caught Luna by surprise, who crossed her scythes to catch Adagio’s trident just barely in time, and even then the tips of the trident touched Luna’s flesh and stabbed small wounds in her upper stomach. Adagio concentrated a trio of Aqua Bala into the tips of her trident, and fired them at point blank range. Luna jumped back, literally falling into her own shadow to avoid the charged bullets of water and Hollow reiatsu, but Adagio saw one of them clip the Soul Reaper’s shoulder, blasting off chunks of uniform and bruising Luna’s shoulder.

The shadow pillars shifted now, swarming up around Adagio. She saw the shadows were growing smaller by the second. She suspected that when Luna just used her own raw reiatsu to create the shadows they could only function for so long under the light of the sun. She didn’t have much to base that assumption on other than observation, but so far Luna had kept her use of shadows to a minimum until now, and it felt like it was causing a bit of a drain on her.

Still, coalescing the shadows into a square shaped plane, Luna didn’t immediately appear from it, leaving Adagio to narrow her eyes at it and wonder what Luna was up to. She reached out with a hand behind her and began to call up swirling tendrils of water from the lake, summoning up ten of the heavily pressurized pillars of water and having them poised like cobras to strike the moment Luna showed her face.

However, Luna didn’t show her face. In fact there was no warning at all before from the floating plane of shadow a white streak of lightning shot out, almost catching Adagio square in the face if she hadn’t been fast enough to lean to the side just in time. Then a barrage of red spheres of explosive reishi shot out, although Adagio dodged those as well.

Kido spells. She’s hiding in her shadows, firing out Kido at me, Adagio realized, just as intense red light formed from several hexagon shaped symbols that appeared in the air beneath her, each filled with a different complex kanji script. From these hexagons rose what looked like red, wooden arches that Adagio recognized as torii gateways, akin to the kind that appeared around Shinto shrines. Crackling bands of crimson energy flew between the center of each tori gate, surrounding Adagio and once joined, generated a binding force that made movement difficult. Adagio cold feel the energy of the binding Kido pressing on her skin like she was buried underground.

Only then did Luna appear from her still shrinking plane of shadow and aimed her scythes at the Espada.

“I do not wish to cut you down, Adagio Dazzle, but as long as you stand before me as an Espada, my duty is clear. I’ll grant you one opportunity to return to Hueco Mundo, now. Otherwise your soul will be purified right here.”

“Your duty is irrelevant to me, and you’re not ‘purifying’ me either. I’ll counter your offer with my own; give me back the person you stole, and I’ll spare you the humiliation of making you kiss my feet after I’m done with you.”

Luna’s eyes narrowed with a dangerous glint, but she also wore a small, satisfied smirk, “I suppose I’d be disappointed if you gave up that easily. But this is the Ninety Second Bakudo, Shitai Geto (Corpse Gate), that I have you bound with. Even an Espada should not find it easy to wriggle free of, given it drains a Hollow’s own reiatsu to reinforce it’s binding field.”

Well, that would explain why Adagio was starting to feel oddly weary as she tried to muscle her way free of the pressure holding her body still. Focusing her Pesquisa, she could almost see the strands of her own spirit energy being dragged out of her and pulled into the gates in an intricate, web-like pattern, which then only strengthened the nearly invisible bonds on her. Casting a binding Kido like this from the shadows, while Adagio had been distracted with the attack Kido, had been a clever plan. But Luna hadn’t accounted for the fact that Adagio still controlled water, regardless of her own body’s ability to move.

The ten tendrils of water Adagio had already summoned went into action. Six of them swarmed at Luna, moving like living, high-speed battering rams. Luna was forced to Flash Step away, and even then the tendrils tracked her, their ends sharpening to drill-like points of such highly pressurized water that Adagio imagined they could readily penetrate steel walls. While Luna was being kept busy by those six tendrils, the remaining four all pointed towards the torii gates. Channeling her reiatsu into the tendrils, each one glowed red and blue, and proceeded to independently disgorge a Cero beam.

The four beams smashed the gates, and Adagio took a deep, relieved breath as she felt the pressure fall off of her and she could move again. By that point, Luna had been surrounded by the other tendrils, but the Captain showed off her physical speed and prowess once again, her dual scythes spinning in swift, dark arcs that cut the tendrils into several pieces. Normally that wouldn’t do much, as Adagio did control the water itself and it wasn’t as if the tendrils were living things, but Luna was using her spiritual pressure through her Zanpaktou to disrupt Adagio’s control of the water, at least in the areas Luna could strike and actually push some reiatsu into the water.

This caused the severed tendrils to fall back to the lake, inert, and although Adagio still had four others, and could easily summon more, she wasn’t in the mood to keep things going at this pace.

Luna had proven she was too crafty an opponent to take lightly, and with her allies entering the lab, Adagio needed to make sure that no one would be paying the lab any mind for the next few minutes, especially not Luna!

That meant kicking things up to the next level, laying all her cards on the table, and gambling that she could either beat, or at least force Luna to a draw so that Adagio’s allies would be free to focus on getting Ember out of this mess. That was all that mattered right now!

“Alright then, Captain Luna, I can tell this will drag on without either of us giving it our best... so let me be the first to ‘show you mine’, as it were.”

With those words she held her trident at a downward angle in front of her, and her body became touched by an outline of radiant neon blue energy as her reiatsu began to flood out of her in a wave that would turn the head of literally every spiritually aware person for miles around, even as far out as Canterlot City itself where multiple mutant Hollows and Soul Reapers paused in their fighting to glance towards the distant but intense beacon of spirit energy.

Adagio’s siren gem began to pulse, sounding like a heartbeat as the gleam of neon blue was joined by a boiling aura of red.

Luna was no fool. She knew exactly what Adagio was doing, but she’d been driven too far back by the tendrils to stop it. She braced herself as Adagio spoke.

”Strive; Ambicion!” (Ambition)

----------

“Captain, shouldn’t you go up there and help?” Clover asked Starswirl, glancing up at the darkness of the lake hanging above the lab’s wards. She’d been feeling the spikes in reiatsu up there, and everyone in the lab had been feeling the impacts and shaking of the ground from the battle taking place just above.

“No, not while we’re getting so many good readings,” Starswirl said, his eyes locked on his monitors, “Celestia and Luna are capable of handling things just fine. With so much magic pouring out of these strange portals, we can’t afford to miss a single iota of data! Whoever or whatever is making them must be connected the strange readings we were getting earlier. They wavelengths are nearly identical. I’m tempted to kick on our own experiment to see if we can get a resonance reaction. This might be the key we need... and oh, look at this! These magic readings are interlaced with spirit energy readings as well, coinciding with the Beast Realm!”

Clover kept glancing towards the lab entrance, knowing that the rescue party would be arriving any second. If she could just provide them with some kind of distraction, or convince Captain Starswirl to go help the other Captains...

And wait, did he just suggest...? “Captain! We can’t start up the portal now! That might tear open holes between the living world and the Precipice World, or worse!”

Then, rather abruptly, her words, and Captain Starswirl’s response, became rather moot as suddenly all of the water surrounding them exploded upwards like a titanic force of suction was vacuuming it into the sky.

----------

Raw blue and red light like a pair of twin stars exploded into existence where Adagio was standing, her body encased in an entwining of the two spheres of energy. At the same instant the entirety of Camp Everfree’s lake erupted upward, engulfing Adagio and Luna both.

Luna held her breath and grounded herself with her reiatsu, so she wasn’t swept away, and a moment later the water was past her and continuing upward. The lake water pooled in the sky above, forming a new lake in the air a good hundred and fifty meters above. Stretching down from the floating lake was a thick whirlpool that surrounded the still gleaming, intertwined twin stars of red and blue energy encasing Adagio.

Then abruptly the energies burst apart, along with the whirlpool of water, with an intense heat causing steam to pour out around the spot while the lake above began to rain, causing everything to fall into gray shades. Luna held her scythes at the ready and stared into the steam and rain, awaiting what she knew would be a potent foe. She could feel Adagio’s reiatsu well before she could see Adagio herself, and Luna had a moment to understand that she had been underestimating this new Sixth Espada.

In fact, she wasn’t sure Tirek hadn’t lowballed Adagio, with that number, but then again, this new released reiatsu felt stronger than it should, given Adagio’s power just moments prior. Was Adagio’s Resurreccion itself stronger than normal? Perhaps due to the woman’s unique origin as a siren, and the gem fused with her Hollow body? Regardless of the reason, Luna knew she was in for a difficult fight.

When the steam cleared and Adagio was revealed, she’d grown nearly twice her original size. Her upper body was still very much human looking, although her body was armored by form fitting segmented plates of white armor akin to sharpened scales. Her arms were further armored, with elegantly curved backswept blades extended from her forearm, elbow, and shoulders, while her hands were encased in smaller segmented armor pieces ending in sharpened talons. Her shoulders and a generous portion of cleavage were left to her bare skin, still revealing her Hollow hole and siren gem in the center of her chest. Her face was the same, but her crown-like crest had grown larger, with face guards on the side. A large, fin-like crest rose from her head and fell down her back, its tall spikes made of white bone, and the membrane in between a burning orange.

Her lower body was no longer human in shape, but instead the long, sinuous form of an armored siren, with a curved aquatic body tapering down into a powerful tail, all of it covered in thick, white armored scales. Like her arms, this body also bore a trio of curved, backswept blades, this one larger and along the sides, starting at her hips and going about halfway down her tail. The spiked fin-crest from her head extended down to her tail as well, somewhat smaller, but ending at the tip of her tail, which had transformed into a wide, fan shaped fin. The sides of this fine were formed from outward curved bone blades, like giant sabers. In between these, the spikes of the fin pointed outward like a trident, the membranes between the tips also orange like the head fin.

Finally, Adagio’s actual Zanpaktou, the trident itself, had doubled in size, and was now entirely forged from pure red ruby, like her siren gem. It’s three prongs had become joined through the center by a fourth blade that extended out to either side, gleaming lethally. The far end of the trident was now caped by a large, conical point, like the tip of some deadly sea shell.

Adagio held her trident out to the side while cracking her neck and stretching her arms. Behind her, her siren tail flexed, and then gave an experimental whip-crack of motion. The power of the motion alone created a blast of air force that cut down a long swath of trees in the forest behind her.

Luna felt her muscles tighten with her tension, holding one scythe in front of her and the other behind, ready to counter an attack from any direction, or step into her shadow as a defensive measure if neccessar-

Adagio was instantly in front of her. Luna barely had a moment to comprehend that Adagio had just slipped right past her guard before she felt Adagio’s left hand grip her face like a steel vice. With tremendous force, Adagio whipped Luna around and launched her upward hard enough to crack the sound barrier, sending the Captain hurtling up into the floating lake now hanging in the sky. Luna spun uncontrollably into the dark waters, crashing through it and bursting through the upper end. She managed to grip the air with her feet and scythes, grinding herself to a hand, but only an instant before she felt Adagio appearing behind her with a disgustingly fast Sonido. Adagio’s bladed tail came around with meteoric force, and Luna only got one scythe up in time to block, and even then the tremendous impact wrenched her arm to near break and sent her careening back into the lake where she was driven at an angle across the floating lake’s surface.

Still trying to regain her senses, Luna felt the water surge around her, and the lake itself seemed to come alive, gripping Luna and yanking her along as the edge of the floating lake reared up and formed an inwardly bent ramp that it accelerated Luna onto, and shot her out of it like a high speed cannon to go flying right back at a waiting Adagio, who thrust her trident forward with enough force to cause a localized windstorm as she tried to impale Luna.

Finally Luna had gotten enough of her wits back to properly respond, crossing her scythes in front of her to meet Adagio’s attack. Upon impact the weapons caused a burst of force that rippled through the floating lake, but even with both of Luna’s scythes she was driven back by the incredible strength in Adagio’s trident. She didn’t lose her stance entirely, but she was forced to the lake surface, skidding back across it in an explosive wake of water before she managed to stop herself.

Then Luna saw the water beneath her was glowing a baleful, pale blue as reiatsu surged from below. Adagio gestured with her free hand, raising a finger as if beckoning the power within the lake.

“Cero Abismo.” (Abyss)

A whirlpool formed beneath Luna, and at the center of it’s depth swirled a frosty blue sphere of Hollow energy that combined with an intensely pressurized sphere of water, which then fired upward in a mixed beam of destruction and raw, cutting force from the pressurized torrent of water. The beam shot up into the sky, and then cut downward, blasting away several clouds before striking one of the distant mountain peaks to the northeast. The beam cut into the mountain, until a half-circle shaped chunk of the peak was blasted clean through.

Of Luna, there was no sign, but Adagio didn’t make any assumptions, and simply glanced about, expecting the Captain to appear again soon. Luna didn’t disappoint.

Shadows spread across the surface of the lake, and from the center of the darkness rose Luna. She was clearly wounded, having not fully evaded the Cero Abismo. Her left side was missing most of its Captain’s robes and jacket, torn to scraps while her blue skin was burned and bleeding. Her reiatsu hadn’t been able to fully save her from the raw damage potential of Adagio’s attack, but at least it had kept the left side of her body intact, although she suspected her left leg was twisted to the point of uselessness, and her arm wasn’t much better off, just barely able to grasp her left scythe.

Luna’s face was grimacing, unable to hide the pain from her wounds, but she didn’t flinch from Adagio as she pointed her trident down at Luna.

“Well?” Adagio said, “As I see things, you only have two options; flee, or use your Bankai. Just how far are you willing to take this? The only thing I’m after is my ally’s safe return to Hueco Mundo. Let me take her, and I’ll withdraw, along with my own forces. That will allow you and your sister to deal with Grogar, if he’s too stupid to run, and allow you to help those humans who I can sense are having trouble with whatever is running amok from the forest. What will it be, Captain Luna?”

Luna stared back at Adagio, and gave a slow shake of her head, “I see... you don’t really understand what you’re doing, do you? If I was worried about my sister handling Grogar, I would never have bothered with you in the first place. If I was concerned for Sunset Shimmer and her friends, I would have already gone to help them. As it happens, I witnessed their capabilities back in Soul Society, and they’ve only grown stronger since then. They don’t need my help, and neither does my sister. As for your ‘ally’, you’d have to get through Starswirl to get to her, and he’s never given up a specimen willingly. But beyond all that, there’s one simple, inescapable fact of our situation, Adagio Dazzle...”

Luna raised her scythes above her head, crossing them together, “You are a Hollow. I am a Soul Reaper. My duty is to purify your soul and return it to the proper cycle of reincarnation. The moment we crossed blades, this became a fight to the end, yours or mine.”

Pure darkness enveloped both Luna and her crossed scythes, flowing outward like the spreading of a pool of oil. All around the area started to grow dark, as if night was starting to fall upon the land, despite the sun still being clearly visible in the sky.

Briefly Adagio considered stopping Luna. She could have. She'd already proven her speed in her Ressureccion form to be superior to Luna's, and even if she didn't feel like just blitzing Luna to keep her from invoking her Zanpaktou's full power, Adagio could just as easily have assaulted the Captain with the water from the lake, or water simply conjured from her own reiatsu, in any dozens of different ways. But Adagio held off for three reasons. One was that she'd told Luna she was going to humiliate her, and that meant defeating Luna entirely, not through technicality. Another reason was that now that the fight had escalated to this point Adagio wanted to find out just how much stronger she'd gotten, how far this new power of hers could really take her. If she couldn't beat Luna, then her ambitions to overcome even the likes of Tirek seemed foolish indeed, so this would be a true test of how far she'd come. And the final reason, Luna using her full power here would only add to the amount of conflicting spiritual pressures in the area, which would make it even more difficult for the Soul Reapers in the lab to detect her allies coming.

Besides, she wasn't that worried about Luna winning. If things did start going against her, she did have Lament as a backup plan.

Luna's face expressed a momentary look of surprise that Adagio wasn't making a move against her, as she suspected there must be a reason that Adagio either didn't mind or wanted Luna to unleash her full strength... but regardless of what those reasons were, Luna wasn't about to stop, and her voice rang out like a wolf's howl in the night.

“Bankai.”

Episode 107: Crimson Shadow

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Episode 107: Crimson Shadow

With wary eyes Sunset approached the unexpected group in front of her. She’d imagined finding Rarity and Fluttershy in the midst of mortal danger, and while the massive crater and general destruction of the forest surrounding her attested to a fierce battle having taken place it was apparent at least this specific battle was over. Gilda looked battered and exhausted, although nowhere near as badly wounded as Sunset would expect from the loser of a fight. She surmised Fluttershy’s power, and her newly completed Fullbring, had something to do with that.

As for the small, humanoid walking pile of sludge that accompanied Rarity, Sunset had no idea what to think about that. It’s (his?) spiritual pressure was clearly that of a Hollow’s, although so weak it was difficult for even Sunset to sense.

“I’m glad you’re both okay, but do either of you want to fill me in on what happened?” she asked, casting a concerned look behind her. She felt Adagio and Luna’s reiatsu clashing. It felt like their battle was intensifying by the second.

Rarity took a deep breath and nodded towards the sludge Hollow, “Fluttershy found this oozy fellow, and then Gilda attacked, alongside two other Arrancar. I pinned one to a tree, then helped Fluttershy against Gilda here, until Fluttershy became quite able of handling matters herself. Now it seems Gilda’s become a non-threat.”

Gilda looked like she wanted to argue about that, but gave Fluttershy a strange look, and just huffed out a puff of air, grumbling, “I’m done for today. As for tomorrow, who the hell knows? If I’m not executed for incompetence, I don’t have any idea of what to do next. Still say you’d be smarter to kill me, while the opportunity exists.”

“That’s not happening,” Fluttershy said with a kind of firm, steel calm that surprised Sunset. She’d known Fluttershy had a sort of quiet strength to her that sometimes came out in a pinch, but this felt like a different tier of attitude. Not just quiet strength, but resolved command and self-assurance. Fluttershy looked at Sunset with those eyes, and all of her kindness was still there, warmly shining, but it was joined by an intensity that made that kindness seem as unyielding as stone.

“I’d like to escort Gilda and Mr. Smooze here to somewhere safe,” Fluttershy said, “You and Rarity should go make sure Lemon Zest and Sour Sweet are alright. They were fighting one of the other Arrancar, last I saw. As soon as I have these two secured, I’ll join you, then together we can go help at the camp.”

“That’s a solid sounding plan,” Sunset replied, stretching out her senses for the two Quincy girls and the Arrancar in question. Adagio had given descriptions of the Arrancar working for her, so if this was one of them then Sunset would need to get Lemon Zest and Sour Sweet to disengage without tipping their hand.

Rarity must have been thinking along similar lines, as she moved close to Sunset to whisper, “The one I stuck to a tree was not among Adagio’s people, but the red-haired one our Quincy friends are fighting was. I think she’s likely okay, and seemed to be going easy on them. We can probably break up the fight easily enough between the two of us.”

“Alright then, works for me,” Sunset whispered back, then more loudly she said, “Fluttershy, where are you going to take Gilda and... Smooze, was it?”

Smooze spoke in his low, burbling voice, which was distinctly laced with the strain of pain, “Yes. I know you have no reason to trust me, but I’ll say it plainly... I won’t trouble Lady Fluttershy.”

“You’re right, I don’t have a reason to trust you, but lucky for you I trust Fluttershy, so you get a pass for now,” Sunset said, and then turned to look at Fluttershy for an answer to her question.

“I wasn’t going to take them far. Just deeper into the forest so they’re out of harm's way.”

“Hmph, surprised you'll trust me alone with Smooze,” Gilda said, “I could still bump him off, you know?”

Fluttershy just smiled back in a closed eyed, thin smile that made Sunset’s spine feel a moment of chill. “Oh, I’m not worried. The same thing that prevents you from harming me, also applies to Mr. Smooze. Play nicely, both of you, because I’ll expect to find you both alive and well when this is all over. Am I understood?”

Gilda visibly paled and gulped, “Yes, ma'am.”

Even Smooze shuddered a bit, his slimy body giving a quiver, “More than understood, Lady Fluttershy.”

“Good. Now then, come along, there’s no time to waste.”

As Fluttershy began to lead the pair away, Sunset spoke up, “Hey Fluttershy, just want to say, dig the new look. I can’t wait to see what you can do with the extra arms.”

“Oh, it’s nothing too special, but I’ll be happy to show you once we get everyone together again. Be careful out there. You too, Rarity.”

Sunset got at least a partial preview of Fluttershy’s new abilities as she created a pair of luminescent, golden hands from the enlarged halo that floated behind her, and used them to pick up and carry Smooze. Then she and Gilda departed the crater with swift leaps, and headed into the forest.

That left Sunset and Rarity to go track down the two Quincy, and after a few more moments spent trying to sense their location, she found them, but realized there was something off with both their reiatsu and that of the Arrancar fighting them.

“Hey Rarity, you having any trouble telling who’s who over there?” asked Sunset, and her friend gained a shadow of a frown.

“Yes, it’s as if they’re behind some sort of haze. It might be a new Quincy technique, or something the Arrancar is using. Either way, I suggest we move quickly.”

Abruptly a heavy wave of spiritual pressure rolled over both of them, and Sunset turned her head sharply in the direction of the lake. That reiatsu was Adagio’s! Sunset felt an electric sense of shock at just how fast and sharply it was rising. Had Adagio really gotten that strong!? Then she heard the crash of water echoing in the air as what looked like the entire lake of Camp Everfree went rocketing into the sky.

“Oh my,” breathed Rarity, putting a hand to her chest, “It would seem Adagio has taken the gloves off. I hope she knows what she’s doing.”

Sunset gave a worried look in the direction of where she sensed the battle, and gave a grim nod of her own, “So do I. Come on, the faster we do this, the faster we can help the others.”

She rushed into the forest, zooming by trees with Flash Steps she scaled back just a bit to allow for Rarity to keep pace, although she discovered she didn’t have to scale them back that much. Rarity was right behind her, using Fullbring with the ease now akin to breathing as she bounced off the air with high speed motion that readily kept up with Sunset’s Flash Steps.

“You’ve gotten a lot better at that,” Sunset noted, and Rarity smiled back at her.

“Our long hours of training haven’t been for nothing, darling. Once all of us catch up with Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, I dare say we’ll all be quite a force to be reckoned with.”

Sunset nodded, weaving between trees that rushed by in a blur of brown and green. They were fast approaching the area where she sensed Gaw’s reiatsu, and that of Lemon Zest and Sour Sweet’s. The odd distortion in the reiatsu was still present, however, and it was only growing. Keeping her trepidation under wraps, Sunset replied to Rarity, “Don’t know what I’d do without you girls. Once we finally get to Equestria, Starlight Glimmer is going to be in for a surprise if she thinks it’ll go the same way as before.”

“One step at a time, Sunset dear, one step at a time,” Rarity said, and the pair came to a halt as they both passed through a sudden screen of reiatsu that made both shudder.

“What was that?” Sunset asked, glancing behind them. There seemed to be a nearly invisible field of force in the air that did nothing to stop them passing through, but now that they were through it, her spiritual senses had returned to normal. Well, normal on the inside of the screen. Now everything on the other side felt off.

“I don’t know,” Rarity said, “But it looking at it I’d say it’s structure is similar to a Soul Reaper ward. Actually, it’s the same as the one Twilight was using to conceal her lab trailers!”

“You’re right, it’s a Quincy ward,” Sunset said, noting the faint blue color to the reishi screen, and she looked to see just how large an area it covered, forming a dome easily a mile wide. “There’s... no way Lemon Zest or Sour Sweet put something like this up, did they?”

“Let’s ask,” Rarity said, “I sense them just up ahead.”

Now that they were close, Sunset could hear the battle. Someone was letting out loud, roaring battle cries, and someone else was laughing, and Sunset could hear a tree getting cut down, watching it fall in the distance. Rarity and Sunset exchanged a nod and they both ran ahead, and it only took a second to reach the site of the conflict.

Firstly, they saw Lemon Zest laying on the ground, crumpled next to a tree that had several holes blown through it by reishi arrows. Sunset and Rarity both reached her at the same time, and Rarity knelt down to check the Quincy girl’s pulse.

“Alive,” she said, frowning, “Knocked out cold. Strange, she’s wounded, but the blow that knocked her out looks like this lump on the back of her head...”

“Nevermind that,” Sunset said, straightening up and narrowing her eyes at a short gully ahead of them, “Look.”

Just ahead they saw Gaw zip into view from a Sonido. The Arrancar girl was breathing hard, and sporting several reishi arrows stuck in her legs and arms. She held her talon-shaped Zanpaktou out at the ready, and swung it in a series of blurring motions to block several more reishi arrows that came buzzing from the forest with great speed and precision. Gaw managed to block most of them, but one slipped through and got her in the shoulder.

“My my my, you’re slowing down, pet,” said Sour Sweet’s voice, but her manner of speech felt all wrong to Sunset from what she remembered of the girl.

Sour Sweet herself emerged from the forest at a casual walk, and Sunset noticed she wasn’t carrying her usual, large crossbow, but something entirely different. It was made from pure blue reishi, and was formed from three rectangles arranged in a tri-pattern from which odd, spiral patterns in bright blue colors flowed along the rectangle's surface, forming at the center point to create a circular handle that Sour Sweet held.

“I’m giving you so many chances to use your Resurreccion, so I don’t know why you’re not,” Sour Sweet continued to say, but paused as she spotted Sunset and Rarity. Gaw saw them as well and looked at them with a combination of shock, irritation, and fear.

“Sour Sweet,” Sunset said, “We, uh... came to help? Kinda?”

Rarity cleared her throat, “It seems you have things under control, but even so, perhaps you’d consider taking Lemon Zest away from here and allowing us to handle the Arrancar? She does seem to be injured... from a strike from behind...”

“That her doing!” Gaw said, suddenly, growling at Sour Sweet, “She not Quincy fledgling! Something else!”

Sour Sweet turned narrowed eyes towards Gaw, then sighed and gave a helpless smile, shaking her head, “Ah, so that’s how it is. Miss Sparkle is working with all of you, isn’t she? That explains so much that seemed odd about her being here. I knew she still maintained ties to you girls, but I wasn’t certain she was actually working with Hollows, too.”

“Who are you!?” asked Sunset, brandishing her Zanpaktou, keeping her shield up and her blade alight with flames, “Where’s Sour Sweet?”

“Sour Sweet is fine, if a tad indisposed since Las Noches. As for who I am, I’ll refrain from introductions for now. Since you’re here, I might as well entertain you the same way I was entertaining this Arrancar female. After all...”

‘Sour Sweet’ looked at them all with eyes filled with lethal intent as her body flared with white reiatsu, “My real target isn’t in position yet.”

----------

The infiltration was going smoothly until there suddenly wasn’t a lake.

Twilight Sparkle, or “Duskshine” for the moment, had led Di Roy and Roka to the location of the hidden, warded entrance to the Soul Reaper’s underwater laboratory. Before she’d begun fiddling with anything she turned to the two Arrancar and held out her, or rather “his” hands.

“I need physical contact to teleport both of you with me,” he said, still feeling supremely weird at the sound of his own voice. He’d briefly attempted this earlier to get used to the body change, but Twilight was still immensely uncomfortable with all the shifts in mass, center of gravity, and... other things that had come with the switch in gender. Was it supposed to be that size, or perhaps just the uniform pants were too tight?

It’s only temporary, he reminded himself, I can change myself back to normal at any time. It’s just part of my Schrift, and it’s not like I couldn’t use the practice with using it.

Still, just as long as nobody he knew saw her- him- like this, it’d be fine.

“I don’t know if I want to be seen holding hands with a dude,” Di Roy joked, only to receive a polite elbow from Roka, “Ouch! Jeez, I’m just joking.”

“Don’t make it harder on ‘Duskshine’ than it already is,” Roka said, taking the offered hand, “I do apologize for Di Roy. Manners are not his strong suit.”

“It’s fine. Now just hold still, and brace yourselves. This can be a little disorienting, the first time,” Duskshine said, and Di Roy gave him a blank stare.

“You’ll be gentle, right?”

Duskshine groaned, and then just proceeded to teleport. As he’d suspected, Soul Reaper wards just weren’t designed to counter magical teleportation. The energies of spirit and magic might interact with one another, but in regards to certain rules there appeared to be loopholes. He suspected it had to do with the way teleportation essentially bent space to enact the transportation of energy and matter, whereas the portals Soul Reapers and Hollows used were more akin to ‘bridges’ that spanned the distance between two points and still required one to cross through. Wards could be designed to block the latter, like putting up a wall the ‘bridge’ couldn’t get across, but a magical teleportation just bent space to ‘hop’ the wall.

It occurred to Duskshine that this principle might be applicable to the block that the Bount Trixie used to seal up the Equestrian portal, but he’d need lots of time to experiment with that concept to find a workaround. Sadly, he doubted he’d have time to steal any data from Starswirl’s lab, let alone chat the Soul Reaper Captain up about magical portal and teleportation theory.

If things went well, they’d be gone before exchanging a word with Starswirl. If things went poorly, they’d be trying to kill each other. Duskshine was sincerely hoping for the former.

The teleportation itself had gone well, landing the three of them inside the ward and with clear access to the tunnel that led down into the lake itself. As Sunset had reported, there were no guards here, and if descriptions were accurate there would only be a handful of Twelfth Division researchers alongside the Captain himself. Clover was down there as well, but Duskshine just hoped she wouldn't do anything and would just pretend not to see them.

I really hope she doesn’t see me. If she does, I’ll have to find a way to get her to swear to secrecy before she tells the other girls. Ooooh, this is so embarrassing! Why couldn’t I just do a color swap and call it a day?

Because Twilight Sparkle hadn’t thought a color swap alone would be enough of a disguise. Duskshine had to be created as the more thorough cover.

That was what he told himself at any rate as he summoned his bow and began to creep down the tunnel alongside Roka and Di Roy. In all of Twilight’s earlier planning, it hadn’t occurred to her that gender and color swapped or not, they were still using the Hexenfaust and a uniquely shaped Quincy bow. There was no real helping that, however, as her Schrift power wasn’t controlled enough yet to change something like that.

He’d just have to hope Starswirl wouldn’t make the connection, if it happened the Soul Reapers had data on Twilight, or later on if they happened to run across each other again.

“Anyone else feel that?” Di Roy said in a low whisper, “Adagio’s about to cut lose.”

“What do you mean by that-” Duskshine started to ask, but then a distinct rumble vibrated through the water around them, and in the blink of an eye the lake water shot upwards in a wall, as if being ripped upwards by unbelievable force. Walls of water soared skyward around the trio, who looked around with surprise as within meter seconds the ‘tunnel’ of water they’d been sneaking down just... ceased existing.

“...Okay, so, apparently Adagio’s putting in for an application to become the next Moses,” Di Roy said, “Be nice if she’d warn us before she decides to move local bodies of water.”

Looking up at the lake that was now suspended quite a distance up in the sky, where both Adagio’s reiatsu and that of Captain Luna’s were flaring up with equal measure, Roka cleared her throat, “Perhaps, but I think she also just bought us a useful distraction. Look.”

Pointing ahead, down the long, wet slope of the now empty lake, it was easy to spot the collection of bubble-shaped, white tents, and the various equipment of the Soul Reaper laboratory. It was also pretty easy to spot the Soul Reapers down there, all looking up and scrambling about at the sudden loss of the lake around them. None of them were looking in the direction of the two Arrancar and one Quincy that had been moving down the length of the tunnel to the lab.

“No one’s looking our way,” Duskshine confirmed, “Now’s the perfect time to get Ember. Stay close, and move as fast as you can!”

Duskshine all but banished, using Hirenkyaku to burst into action. Roka followed with Sonido, and after a moment longer of hesitation, Di Roy shook his head and followed. He had a feeling this was about to go surprisingly well, or horrifyingly wrong.

----------

Gazing upon Luna with shrewd calculation, Adagio awaited what manner of Bankai the Second Division’s Captain was about to manifest. Unlike Sunset Shimmer and the other human girls from Canterlot High, Adagio had little experience facing the Zanpaktou of a Soul Reaper. She had a general idea of what to expect, but this seemed different than the transformations of a Arrancar’s Resurreccion, or a Quincy’s Vollstandig.

Both Luna’s reiatsu and that of her Zanpaktou were distinct, yet flaring with identical combined force. While Adagio’s Resurreccion was akin to exposing her full power like taking the lid off a well, and a Quincy’s Vollstandig could be likened to a cloak that draped around themselves, this Bankai felt more like two beings combining their powers in perfect unison, each enhancing the other.

Adagio supposed that made sense. Her Zanpaktou was just a storage unit for her power, essentially. Luna’s Zanpaktou was a pair of independent spirits that were more allies than tool.

The shadows pouring out of Luna and her twin scythes began to flow upward, coating her like tar. As they did so she threw one scythe straight up, the weapon spinning so fast that it formed nearly a solid circle of steel... and began to grow in size. At the same time Luna grasped her other scythe with both hands and spun it in front of her, which accelerated the speed of the pitch black shadows swirling around her, until the Captain’s entire body was engulfed in an expanding mass of darkness.

The scythe that had been sent skyward continued to grow in size until in seconds it had become as large as stadium, and Adagio realized it’d ceased being a scythe amid it’s high speed spinning and instead had become a solid mass of metal that now gleamed blood red. Solid red energy with a metallic sheen filled out the form until a crimson sphere hovered in the air, and it’s presence immediately darkened the sky and cast everything in sharp contrasts of black and red, as if light itself was being drained from the surrounding area. Even Adagio’s floating lake was made to appear black, with shades of red, under the light of this... artificial, miniature moon that was positioned to block out the sun over the site of battle.

Meanwhile the mass of shadowy darkness that had engulfed Luna now grew in size, and started to take a more defined and solid shape. Thick black fur with a metal sheen grew over a large, lupine form nearly twenty feet tall at the shoulder. Long limbs were coated in wisps of shadow and ended in paws capped with literal scythes for claws. A tail of flickering, twisted shadows that danced like black fire extended behind this new, beastly form. The head bore no eyes, but was a vaguely wolf shaped mass of solid darkness, from which an overlarge maw of shadow forged fangs were barred.

Upon its form taking full shape, Luna’s reiatsu crashed outward from it in a soul shaking tide, along with a black mist, and the giant shadow wolf raised its head to the crimson moon above, and howled loud enough to shake the air.

When the wolf turned its eyeless gaze back towards Adagio, Luna’s voice resonated from within.

“Shinku-Tsuki no Kage-Okami.” (Shadow Wolf of the Crimson Moon)

Adagio nodded an impressed if begrudging acknowledgement, “Looks intimidating. Now show me if its bite matches the bark.”

She’d given Luna all the time she felt like giving her, and now that the Bankai was released, Adagio had no more reason to give Luna another inch. She didn’t even have to gesture this time, simply willed the water within her lake to move, and multiple jets of water so highly pressurized they’d be able to cut diamond shot up and criss-crossed towards the twenty foot tall wolf.

The body of the wolf contorted like smoke, yet maintained a lupine consistency as it bent around the water jets and flowed towards Adagio so fast that she had to consciously stop herself from blinking or else risk not seeing the strike coming. The wolf’s claws came at her from both sides, the scythe blades comprising them seeming to pulse with solid shadows that Adagio didn’t doubt was Luna’s reiatsu adding to the weapon’s razor edges.

She threw herself backwards with her swiftest Sonido, and even then the wolf claws grazed her body’s armor, scraping along her abs and leaving marks in the hardened white scales from a burst of sparks.

My Hierro is much stronger now, but best not to count on it against those claws, Adagio thought, suspecting the claws of Luna’s Bankai would be more than sharp enough to penetrate even her Ressureccion’s armor if she got in a strong enough blow.

Having seen the wolf bend around the water jets, Adagio tried experimenting with a more concentrated assault. Still having the water under her control, she bent the water jets around to converge on the wolf from behind while simultaneously making several larger pillars of water erupt up from below, while also engaging directly with a swift forward thrust at the wolf’s head.

The wolf’s body contorted to the side, and several of the water jets coming at it from behind missed entirely, while several others shot through the wolf’s hindquarters. The wolf didn’t even react, seemingly unwounded by the jets of thin, cutting water passing through it as it’s jaws bit down solidly on Adagio’s trident. The water pillars from below mostly missed, but one struck the chest area of the wolf, and rather than pass through like the water jets had, this splashed off of solid matter. It drove the wolf upward through shear force, but didn’t seem to do any damage, and the wolf held on to Adagio’s trident as it raked at her with its claws.

Adagio, having none of that, adjusted her tail to sweep up and smack one of the wolf’s paws away, the impact strong enough to cause a burst of force from wind pressure alone. She held her trident with her left hand while she used the forearm blades on her right arm to parry the claws coming at her right side. The wolf’s physical strength was immense, and Adagio felt the blow jar her whole body, but she held firm, and giving the eyeless wolf a heated gaze, Adagio charged up her Hollow reiatsu through her body and into her siren gem.

Luna must have recognized the danger, because the wolf released the trident from its jaws and contorted downward, merging with its own shadow and vanishing in an instant to avoid the intense, blood red Cero beam that Adagio fired from her gem.

Now where did-? Adagio started to look around for where the wolf went, only to find it bursting out of fresh shadows that had appeared beneath her. Adagio was forced to throw herself to the side in a blur, barely able to counter the shadow wolf’s incredible speed, and once more felt the brush of claws, this time along her side. Still not deep enough to draw blood, but too close for comfort, too.

As the wolf flew up past her, it lashed out with its own tail, and Adagio grunted as she turned her trident to block it, noticing that hidden within the length of the tail were a series of smaller scythe blades, like some sharp, rigid spine. The tail struck the shaft of her trident, blocking the blades, but still hitting with sufficient strength to knock Adagio back along the length of her lake.

The wolf howled again, and shadows rose from the darkness of the lake, forming a seething mass of jagged shadow blades and spikes beneath it. Adagio smirked, snapping her fingers, and her lake heaved with fresh waves, along with additional water that began to appear in the air around her as she pushed out her reiatsu to conjure it, sphere after condensed sphere until she had several score surrounding her along with churning waves beneath.

“So that’s how you want to play it, Luna? Be my guest!”

Thrusting her trident forward, she sent the waves crashing towards Luna and her tide of shadows, while the water spheres she’d summoned began to fire entire barrages of her Aqua Bala in a focused storm aimed right at the shadow wolf.

With another howl, the wolf charged, it’s paws running atop it’s wall of creeping shadows, which in turn surged forward along with its host. The wall of shadows and the miniature tsunami and tempest of Aqua Bala all crashed together in a titanic clash. The wolf’s claws became shadowy currents in front of it, slashing at the Aqua Bala and smashing them apart as it charged. The tide of sharp, jagged shadows crashed into the waves of water like a ship trying to surge through a hurricane on the open sea, cutting through it but slowing at the same time. For all the strength in Luna’s Bankai, the shadows were slowed by the incredible weight of the water smashing into it, and not just that, but Adagio’s reiatsu permeated all of the lake’s water and the additional water she summoned. This made the clash all the harder, although Luna was certainly far from halted and would soon break through the tsunami.

Which was fine by Adagio. She was just doing this to buy herself a few moments. She could already tell several things about Luna’s Bankai at this point. One was that the wolf itself was only partially solid. She doubted Luna had become the wolf. In fact she suspected Luna was inside it, guiding it from within like the wolf was both weapon and armor. Which meant attacks on the wolf would be mostly useless unless she could pinpoint where Luna was inside it. Probably the chest, or the head.

The other thing Adagio suspected about Luna’s Bankai was that the red artificial moon that Luna’s other scythe had become was creating an entire area of enhanced shadows that was boosting Luna’s power. So far the “moon” was just hanging a few hundred yards up, shining crimson and coating the entire area in a sharp contrast of black, gray, and red lighting. It was essentially creating more shadows for Luna to use as weapons and making those shadows stronger.

So what happens if I attack it? Adagio wondered, and pointed her trident up at the red moon while Luna was still busy forcing her way through the waves Adagio had sent against her.

A red sphere of power appeared at the center tip of Adagio’s trident as she charged up a Cero, but right before she could fire it the wolf dove into its own shadow and instantly leaped from new shadows that expanded down from the moon itself. Adagio fired her Cero, but the wolf interposed itself, crossing its claws in front of it and slashing into the thick, ruby beam. Reiatsu to reiatsu, the strength of the claws were enough to part the Cero, but only with effort.

Well, that confirms that red moon is important enough that she’ll protect it. Her mobility has gotten ridiculously high with this Bankai. She just keeps making shadows wherever she wants.

This was further evidenced by how an entire cascade of bubbling darkness now descended from the moon and rose up from below, rapidly seeking to encase Adagio. She, deciding that standing still was not an optimal tactic, flicked her tail and burst upward faster than any bullet, and brought the lake with her. Water roared as it surged up, following Adagio’s wake. Luna wasn’t about to let Adagio go that easily, and the descending shadows turned into a ceiling of twisted, jagged shadow spikes that rushed at the rising Espada. Adagio responded by holding her trident in front of her and firing a Cero straight up without slowing down.

Her Cero impacted the shadow ceiling, partially ripping into the shadows, then Adagio impacted with it trident-first a split second later. The shadows were semi-solid, but Adagio’s body readily absorbed the impact and she burst out the other side of them, still soaring upward with the surging waters of the lake following her in a frothing mass.

Back in proper sunlight she could see the red sphere beneath her, the “moon”, which from above looked more like a metallic red orb than the real deal. The shadows churned beneath her, and the wolf rose from them like a demonic phantom, leaping to land atop its moon and stare at Adagio.

“I think I’ve got your Bankai more or less figured out,” Adagio said, aiming her trident down at the moon, “If that gets damaged, I don’t know precisely what will happen, but it’s clear it won’t benefit you. So let’s see just how dedicated you are to protecting it.”

This time instead of one Cero sphere, Adagio charged up three, one for each tip of her trident. And just because she could, she also caused the water of the lake to flow up behind her in a great wave, within which multiple swirling tendrils advanced outward like watery spears. If she attacked that red moon from every possible direction, it stood to reason Luna couldn’t stop all of the attacks. Even if she could, it’d keep Luna on the defensive, forcing her to expend energy protecting that moon, instead of attacking. In terms of raw reiatsu, Adagio felt like she still held the edge in a battle of attrition.

Yet Adagio soon heard Luna’s laughter rising up from the wolf.

“Have my Bankai figured out, have you? Is that what you suppose? Adagio Dazzle, you have deluded yourself. You gain a taste of power, and suddenly you believe yourself invincible. I, too, once held that arrogance. That is why I am glad I ended up facing you, for I know your hubris all too well, having made the same mistakes myself.”

The giant crimson sphere pulsed, and red light gathered around it in a misty embrace. Suddenly the darkness it cast below was now also being cast upward, filling the sky and darkening even the sun until it looked like little more than a gray splotch on a foggy day. Adagio felt Luna’s spiritual pressure start to permeate everything around her, like being dipped in the middle of a thick cloud of smoke.

Not hesitating, Adagio fired her triple Ceros, and sent dozens of spear-like funnels of water cascading down towards Luna, or at least where she’d last seen Luna and the red moon, for now shadows blanketed the area beneath her like she was staring down at an ocean of pitch black. Luna’s reiatsu was spreading out so much it was now masking her precise location, but Adagio figured she’d counter that with widening the area of her attacks... while still being mindful of where her Ceros were aimed so that they wouldn’t hit Camp Everfree, the lake laboratory, or anywhere she’d last sensed her vassals or Sunset and her friends.

To her consternation the Cero beams didn’t seem to strike anything until they hit the ground some distance away, as if Luna and the moon had instantly shifted places. She made a sharp gesture and sent the barrage of water funnels spreading out around her, stabbing and crashing about through what was a fast spreading curtain of darkness.

Still, she hit nothing, and before long Adagio couldn’t see anything either for all light had been removed from the area... at least until the sanguine glow of red shone down from above.

Luna’s crimson moon dipped down from the curtain of shadows, and the shadow wolf formed from the blackness around it’s edge, Luna’s voice edged with cold menace, “Let us see if you truly do understand my Bankai, if you survive long enough to show me.”

Adagio sensed the attacks coming as everything around her, every scrap of darkness, transformed into a claw, blade, spike, or gnashing maw of shadow. Attacks beyond counting came at her from every angle, the prison of pure black becoming a hellish gauntlet under Luna’s control.

The only chance Adagio had lay in her own power; the water. She dove with all speed into the depths of her lake, still present in the all encompassing darkness. Her whole body glowed with bright azure light as she pushed out with her reiatsu and conjured even more water, and filled the lake with her spirit energy. She could now more easily sense the storm of hundreds upon hundreds of shadow weapons closing in on her, but with the water under Adagio’s control she started using it to grasp and hold these living shadows with pressurized currents and near solid walls of swirling water.

Even so Adagio had to swim about to dodge many attacks that still go through, darting and diving amid the depths of the floating lake to narrowly avoid slashing blades of shadow or piercing spikes of solid darkness. She was actually faster in the water, which aiding in keeping herself one step ahead of the slashing shadows, but since the shadows existed inside the depths of the water itself, Luna was manifesting those attacks practically on top of Adagio, leaving her nanoseconds to react.

I have to get her somewhere that limits her movement. She’s inside that wolf, somewhere. If I can just pin her down long enough to get a hit in!

With that in mind, Adagio enacted her plan. She kept dodging the endless stream of shadows assaulting her from all directions. Her body was taking gradually more hits, her Hierro protecting her for the most part, but some cuts were getting deeper, drawing blood. Adagio twirled her trident about, letting her reiatsu flow out through it as she carefully started to churn the water of the lake. She was still using the water to form counter currents and barriers against Luna’s shadow barrage, but at the same time she was letting water splash upward as more and more of the lake turned violent, like it was being swirled about by a storm. She hoped Luna would just think this was from the clash between the waves and her shadow attacks, and wouldn’t notice how much moisture was being tossed up into the air.

Next, Adagio started to focus parts of the spirit energy she’d been letting leak out into the lake at several different points, careful not to let too much build up in one spot, lest it become noticeable. Just to help mask what she was doing she started to counter some of the shadow blades coming at her with Cero beams, firing them semi-randomly to make it look like she was starting to panic. If she could get Luna to buy into the notion that Adagio was running out of options, all the better.

Even as firing those Ceros slowed her down somewhat and let one shadow claw get a nasty gouge into her back, Adagio didn’t stop, and continued to keep up the facade while more and more water splashed upwards, coating the shadow prison with moisture and filling the air with every more water that started to become a thick mist.

Then, Adagio was ready. She spread her senses through the moisture she’d filled the shadow prison with, pinpointing the wolf’s location and the beacon of reiatsu inside it. Luna was inside the wolf’s chest, or at least that’s what the moisture clinging to small bits of the Soul Reaper indicated.

The moment Adagio had a target, she used the larger portions of moisture that had splashed up around the semi-solid walls of the shadow prison to join with the mist around the wolf and form a small but potent sphere of water that surrounded the wolf’s chest. Adagio remembered that part was more solid than the other parts from her earlier attacks, and suspected Luna’s presence there gave the shadow wolf more substance at that location, like an anchor point.

She felt the wolf struggle to break free, or enter its own shadow, but the water sphere was holding fast, at least for a few seconds... and a few seconds was all Adagio needed.

The reiatsu she’d been gathering at several key points around the lake now flared up, blazing with luminous blue and red light. Those points actually formed a circle, and the energy stored within them released into a sudden tidal tornado of water, crackling with destructive spirit energy. Adagio dove into the center of that rising water tornado, and rose with it, directing all the force of her lake and her own spirit energy into the massive, near twenty meter wide cyclone of water and sent it hurtling, along with herself, straight at where Luna and her wolf were stuck.

Which also happened to be still right next to the crimson moon.

Adagio had concocted this attack to use in the lake back in Hueco Mundo, if she could ever lure an enemy there to use that much water with. The shear weight and force behind such a giant mass of water, spinning at cyclone speeds, and filled with destructive reiatsu akin to her Cero beams, which she herself stood at the center of it as a focal point as she also struck with her trident, was a combination she hoped would be sufficient to kill the likes of Guto, if he challenged her. She hadn’t really tested it, and had only briefly considered a name for the attack, since that seemed to be the style of things...

She didn’t shout it out as she rode the watery tornado of destruction straight towards Luna at high speed. But Adagio did think it...

”Marea de la Muerte” (Death Tide)

Luna, and subsequently the shadow wolf, did break free of the water sphere holding them in place, but not in time to avoid Adagio’s attack crashing into them. The wolf’s scythe claws slashed out to intercept the lead of the attack, including Adagio’s trident, but the simple overwhelming impact of it all smashed right into the wolf and the red moon behind it with a sound not unlike the roar of a tidal wave hitting the shore.

From an outside perspective, Luna’s Bankai had created a several hundred meter large cloud of pitch darkness over where Camp Everfree’s lake once was. Observers, what few could afford to observe while many others were in the midst of their own life or death struggles, would see that shifting cloud of black suddenly roil as something large, spherical, and red was sent flying out of the cloud along with a gigantic tornado of water that speared downward with tremendous force.

The water tornado, and the thing it had hit, crashed into the forest with an impact that created a small earthquake, shaking all of Camp Everfree as thousands of tons of rock, dirt, and tree were sent flying upwards as if from an explosion. And it didn’t stop. The torrent of water, comprising all of the lakewater now focused into a singular stream, continued to smash through the forest. It tore through thousands of more tons of earth as it cut a swath north, continuing on for over two and a half kilometers before finally stopping. By the end of it there was a path of destruction dozens of meters wide and kilometers long that had been torn out of the forest, with debris and dust raining down for miles all around.

At the very end of that path of destruction sat a metallic crimson sphere, partially buried in the side of a large hill.

Rain poured down, water from the lake that had now dispersed into the air. For all intents and purposes, Camp Evrefree’s lake was no more, it’s water scattered across it’s northern forest, now.

Adagio laid a dozen or so feet from the sphere, grunting as she levered herself up with her trident and floated up into the air with a flick of her tail. She was a bit bruised from her own attack, the simple force of the impact having been a bit beyond what she’d expected. Then again, the attack had just been an idea in her head, and not something she’d actually practiced, so she was pleasantly surprised she hadn’t accidentally killed herself with it. Looking back along the path of destruction, even she was surprised by how much damage she’d done.

“With a little refinement, I think I’ll have a nice trump card against Guto...” she said to herself, then shook her head and looked around for Luna.

She knew she’d hit the wolf, and by extension, the Soul Reaper Captain. So where was she? That hit must have inflicted some damage! The red sphere that comprised half of Luna’s Bankai was right there, and since it wasn’t manifesting any more darkness, Adagio figured she must have done something to it. It didn’t look damaged, but it wasn’t glowing red like it had been, either. So what was the deal there?

Before Adagio could do much more than take that moment to wonder, she felt the sharp presence of Luna’s reiatsu appear, and lines of shadow bled from beneath the fallen moon like a spreading oil slick. The wolf climbed up from the pool of shadow, but as it took shape Adagio could tell the darkness coating it’s body was fading in places and that it was no longer as solid as before. In fact it’s form looked like a torn, emaciated specter, with its chest sunken in enough that Luna could be visibly seen partially submerged in the shadows. She was bleeding rather badly from rips in her chest, limbs, and scalp, and she was letting in and out heavy gasps of air.

“Not looking so good, there, Captain Luna,” Adagio said, “And it looks like your ‘moon’ isn’t producing as much shadow anymore either. You said I was arrogant, and perhaps there’s some truth to that, but it still looks like you had some hubris left in yourself as well.”

Luna gave her a strange look that Adagio wasn’t expecting; concern. Not for herself, but for Adagio.

“You should start running...” Luna said in a voice that sounded... odd. Distorted, as if her vocal cords were struggling with human speech. “...wasn’t protecting the moon because it’s vulnerable, stupid girl.”

Luna’s breathing became more ragged, and faster. Her face began to twitch, and her eyes grew glassy. The reiatsu pulsing from her became erratic as well, and the previously inert sphere of crimson metal suddenly gained a crack in its surface. The cracks started to spread, and thick, red spirit energy started to pour out of the cracks.

Luna spoke again, although it was clear it was taking her some effort to get even a few words out, “The moon contains... power and lunacy... siphoned from every Hollow my Zanpaktou... has slain.”

The Captain looked at Adagio with eyes that shifted from blue to the a wolven amber as the energy from the cracked moon started to pour into her. The shadow wolf contorted, and the shadows entered Luna as well. All that was left were the scythe blades from the claws and tail, which spun around Luna as her body started to change.

“Can’t control this power yet... didn’t want to use it, but no choice, if the moon is damaged... it releases it anyway. Can’t stop it now.”

Luna’s body contorted and grew. Midnight blue skin was replaced by thick tufts of crimson fur. Muscles grew out and formed powerful, rending limbs tipped with onyx claws. Her human face elongated and reshaped itself into a lupine snout bearing a fang filled mouth and tapered ears, all sporting blood red fur. Legs bent into powerful reverse jointed limbs. Most of her Captains robes were in shambles now, just black and white cloth torn loosely over a now much taller, muscular body.

The scythe blades that were floating around her then flew together, some stretching out to form a long metal shaft, while the others snapped together along its length to create a weapon nearly twelve feet long. On either end dual scythe blades joined together to form shapes like a crescent moon, while along the weapon’s shaft multiple smaller scythe blades sprouted like thorns.

Letting out a growl that vibrated the very air around her, Luna, in this beast-like new form, grasped the weapon and locked predatory eyes on Adagio.

“Well,” Adagio said, blinking and taking up a defensive stance, trident crossed in front of her, “That’s unexpected.”

Luna opened her wolf-like jaws and let out a howl that hurt Adagio’s ears, and caused the nearby trees to sway from the sonic vibrations of it.

Just her howl alone is that strong? Well, I wanted to test my limits. Looks like I’m getting my wish. Adagio thought, and rather than wait for Luna to come to her, she took advantage of Luna’s howling and decided to strike first.

The ground broke apart under Adagio as she rushed forward, her trident thrusting towards Luna’s chest. In a blinding flash Luna caught the thrust with the shaft of her own weapon, stopping Adagio’s strike dead. Luna then gripped the multi-scythe in both clawed hands and smashed it down, pressing against Adagio’s trident. Adagio felt the incredible strength in Luna’s new lupine muscles and felt herself driven back for a moment, but not inclined to back down, Adagio pressed harder herself.

Red reiatsu and blue reiatsu clashed as both fonts of spirit energy rose from the two combatants, their weapons becoming surrounded by sparking arcs of conflicting spirit energy as the two tried to overpower each other. Luna had already been fairly strong, but Adagio had held the advantage before. Now Adagio could tell that advantage had shifted to Luna’s favor, although not so overwhelmingly so that Adagio couldn’t hold her own.

However it was clear she was still getting pushed back. The ground was shattering beneath them, the area becoming an ever more rubble strewn pile of broken rock as the sanguine light of Luna’s reiatsu started to overtake the azure blue of Adagio’s, and with another bestial howl Luna slammed her multi-scythe down and simultaneously sent Adagio flying backwards, but also cut a bloody wound across the siren’s armored chest.

Adagio grit her teeth at the sudden pain, refusing to let it distract her as she flicked her tail and stopped her backwards momentum at the treeline. Just in time, as well, because Luna didn’t pause. Her pawed feet kicked off the ground and she zipped forward in a crimson streaked Flash Step, spinning the deadly, many bladed weapon in her hands as she cleaved a horizontal line at Adagio.

Adagio turned her trident into the blow and stabbed it down, catching the multi-scythe as she used the trident to lever herself up into the air, flipping over Luna and slashing with her bladed tail at the wolven Captain’s back. The blow struck home, cutting a deep gouge across Luna’s fur covered back and right shoulder, but it was as if the pain was inconsequential to Luna. She hurled herself around and slashed with her left hand, her onyx claws tacking a chunk from Adagio’s tail.

“Gggrrgh!” Adagio grunted, and spun away from Luna, charging up potent energy inside her gem. A ruby sphere, with a pulsing blue core, was aimed at Luna and Adagio fired a point-blank Cero.

Luna raised her multi-scythe up, and both red and black reiatsu crawled up it’s length before she slammed it forward into the Cero beam. A huge wave of shadow-lined crimson energy blasted out from the weapon and cleaved into the Cero, causing both energy attacks to detonate together. The explosive wave flattened nearby trees and knocked Adagio back until she herself had to dig her trident into the ground to stop herself. Luna was blasted back as well, finally stopping herself by smashing her left claw into a passing boulder to ground herself.

She then proceeded to pick up said boulder one handed and fast-balled it at Adagio. Not because of any tactical advantage, but just because Luna’s mental state was beyond rational combat strategy. Within Luna’s own mind she was drowning in dark anger. Her Zanpaktou was a dual natured one, just like her sister’s, and the reason for that dual nature was not a matter of public knowledge to many in Soul Society. Most of her fellow Captains were aware, since it wasn’t something that could be hidden from them, but much of the rest of the Gotei 13 had no idea that Celestia and Luna had a mixed heritage.

The wolven form she now wore, stemming from one half of her Zanpaktou, and the spirit energy it drew power from, was due to her Beast Realm heritage.

A heritage that made her Zanpaktou’s powers difficult to control. She’d mastered her Shikai long ago, but her Bankai was another matter, at least when the crimson moon’s power was unleashed. She knew Celestia had similar difficulty with the dragons formed from her own Zanpaktou, barely able to control her Shikai, and was so fearful of unleashing her Bankai that she all but refused to do so save in the worst of circumstances.

Not that Luna was much different. She avoided using her Bankai unless she knew she couldn’t win without it, and Adagio had proven far too strong a foe to hold back with. She’d merely hoped to avoid the violent power contained inside the red moon from coming out and forcing her into this state. It was not unlike the unfortunate mental state Lieutenant Posey had faced with her Zanpaktou, but Luna wasn’t entirely bereft of self-control. Violent rage pulsed through her, but it was a predatory thing, focused upon an animalistic drive to hunt rather than just pure psychotic bloodlust.

She couldn’t think entirely straight, but she still recognized who she was and what she was doing. There just wasn’t any ability to work out a plan or anything silly like that. The beast inside her howled for her to attack, and so attack Luna did.

For Adagio, all she could surmise was that Luna had clearly intended to avoid this outcome, and from her perspective it seemed the reason why was simply because as powerful as this form happened to be, it lacked all of Luna’s previous subtly and control. The boulder that was pitched at her like an oversized baseball was easy enough to smash out of the air with her trident, but Luna was already bounding towards her and gave Adagio practically no time to brace herself.

Luna charged while leaned down, using her legs and left arm to hurl herself forward while her right arm was cocked backwards to strike with the multi-scythe. Adagio got her trident shaft up in time to block the scythe blow, but Luna still barreled on forward and body tackled Adagio, carrying her along to smash through one tree after another. At the same time Luna bit down hard on Adagio’s shoulder, her fangs penetrating Adagio’s Hierro and drawing deep wounds.

Shoving the pain lancing through her shoulder aside, Adagio twisted her trident to the side to knock Luna off balance, and grounded herself by digging her bladed tail into the earth. She then cut across Luna’s chest with the bladed protrusions on her right arm and then pulled her trident back and spun it around for a straight thrust. Luna growled in deep, guttural anger, eyes flashing as she willingly sacrificed the palm of her left hand to catch the trident, letting the hand be impaled. She then gripped the weapon and tore it from Adagio’s grasp, and with her other hand slashed her multi-scythe across Adagio’s torso, ripping a line of blood form the siren that splattered the trees.

Yet Adagio didn’t back down, even as her body accumulated ever more wounds. She’d let Luna get close on purpose, drawn her in so Luna couldn’t readily escape. With the water of the lake largely dispersed now, Adagio had to rely on the water she could rapidly summon on her own, but with Luna this close, it’d be enough.

Water erupted from Adagio as her reiatsu flared and she conjured it from her body, surrounding herself and Luna with a pressurized sphere about ten meters in diameter. Adagio slipped out the top of the sphere and flew up, all while summoning more water to flow out in jets that slammed into the sphere and added to the crushing pressure of it.

She went and retrieved her trident from where it lay, stabbed through a partially broken tree trunk, and then turned to the condensed water sphere. She could see Luna trapped inside, struggling to move. Adagio raised a hand and conjured yet more water, adding it to the imprisoning sphere. Soul Reapers needed to breath, so eventually it stood to reason that Luna would pass out.

Only within a few moments writhing red and black spirit energy burst out of Luna, and the sphere of water was cut to pieces by the tearing energies as Luna screamed out a piercing howl. Heaving in and out great breaths, Luna glared at Adagio, who in turn stared back with a relentless resolve, unflinching.

“Come on then,” Adagio said, "I'm still standing. Bring everything you have, Luna! Crush my arrogance if you think you can. If I can't beat you, then my ambition to dethrone the likes of Tirek really is just a pipe dream, but after coming this far I'm not backing down, so COME ON!"

Adagio's words were hardly needed to spur Luna on, who almost seemed to smile while growling, barring flashing fangs and spinning her multi-scythe to a ready position before coming at Adagio like a crimson storm of lethal shadows. Inside of a bare instant Adagio found herself dodging and parrying for her life as Luna pulled out all the stops and came at her with renewed speed, force, and savagery.

For half a minute that stretched to an eternity for combatants capable of moving at speeds such as Adagio and Luna were, the pair streaked and clashed around the thick forest, heedless of obstacles in either of their path. Trees, hills, and boulders were rendered to chunks of wood and dirt as Luna mercilessly spun her multi-scythe in a black and red cat’s cradle of deadly strikes. Adagio was forced almost entirely on the defensive, working both arms to twirl her trident in a ruby barrier to deflect the blows seeking to rend her apart. Her only offensive ability came from conjuring more water, blasting at Luna from different directions to try and break the momentum of Luna’s attacks.

Both scored several more hits upon one another, yet while Adagio’s wounds were starting to slow her down, Luna seemed aptly able to ignore her injuries in her transformed state, as if the bleeding stabs and cuts meant nothing to her feral mindset.

It was rapidly becoming apparent to Adagio that without landing a powerful enough blow to put Luna down, the Captain was going to win through simple attrition. The only advantage she still had was that Luna wasn’t thinking clearly, focused entirely on offense and all but ignoring defense.

Adagio thought of one last plan, and without hesitation put it into motion.

With the full speed of her Sonido she broke away from Luna and zipped towards the spot where her Cero and Luna’s energy attack had clashed before, the explosion having created a relatively clear area in the forest. Luna came after her in hot pursuit, her Flash Steps matching Adagio’s Sonido readily.

Adagio took her trident and dipped its center tip in her most profusely bleeding wound, ignoring the pain, since by this point her whole body was in pain. She then took the blood tipped trident and hurled it into the air as hard as she could, sending it to fly up into the air above the clearing ahead. At the same time she conjured a jet of water and sent it up along with the trident, reserve a bit of mental focus to control the water.

Once she reached the center of the clearing she turned to face Luna, raising her arm blades and bladed tail to receive her foe. Luna didn’t disappoint, exploding from the forest like a super-sonic missile and coming straight at Adagio in a bestial fury. Adagio tried to block the multi-scythe with her arm blades, but without her trident she was forced to take the scythe blow painfully on arms with a Hierro just too battered to stand up to the punishment. She blocked the larger crescent blades on the end, but the smaller blades dug into her arms.

Adagio slashed with her bladed tail, cutting Luna’s legs, but the feral Soul Reaper didn’t budge and instead pressed harder on the multi-scythe, until Adagio was forced to the ground and pressed into the broken earth. Luna’s hungry, enraged eyes bored into her, but Adagio wasn’t fearful. Much. After all, this was exactly what she wanted.

Adagio controlled water. Any water. Even the water in blood.

Suddenly the blood leaking from both her wounds and Luna’s leaped to life! There wasn’t nearly enough to create much in the way of weapons or bonds, but there was enough to splash a near bucketload straight into Luna’s snout, face, and eyes.

As Adagio figured, Luna’s wolven form also had an overwhelming sense of smell, and the blood splattering up her nostrils, along with the blood blinding her eyes, was shocking enough to cause Luna to reel back and let out a startled cry.

That instant of distraction was enough for Adagio to dart backwards with Sonido, tearing her arms painfully free of the multi-scythe. She then concentrated on her trident.

The water she’d sent up with the trident she’d used to form a sphere strong enough to grip and suspend the trident overhead, it’s prongs pointed down... straight at Luna.

Adagio had one last attack she hadn’t used. One exclusive to Espada, and taught to her by Tirek after she’d ascended to the Espada ranks.

At the tip of the trident prong covered in her blood, a brilliant neon blue sphere of Hollow energy formed, drawn from the core of Adagio’s soul and enhanced further by her siren gem as it pulsed along with the Hollow energy and added it’s own magic and stored spirit energy to the mix.

The air around the trident distorted, as if space itself was getting partially warped by the build up of spirit energy present. Then Adagio unleashed it with the empowered Cero only Espada could use, and then added her own twist, since this attack was using more than just her Hollow energy.

“Gran Rey Cero; Octava Sirena.” (Royal Hollow Flash: Siren Octave)

An all encompassing boom of noise was followed by the expulsion of a torrential downpour of azure energy in the form of a titanic spiral beam, surrounded by crimson rings of sonic force not unlike the ones Adagio and her sisters could create in their siren forms. Like a chorus of trumpeting warhorns, the air split with the noise of the attack as the beam lanced down and impacted directly atop of the startled, unprepared Luna.

The resulting explosion created a pressure wave that threw Adagio back like a ragdoll, even though she’d braced for it. She had to dig both hands and arm blades into the ground to keep herself in place, squinting her eyes against the blast of wind and force that was flattening trees for quite a distance around. If she was the sort to care about that sort of thing she might’ve felt bad for just how much damage was being done to Everfree Forest, but Adagio had larger concerns on her mind. By the time she was able to get upright again, the clearing had become a crater, one around fifty feet deep and twice as wide as the original clearing had been.

She raised her right hand and the water sphere that had held her trident floated down to return the weapon to Adagio’s waiting grasp. Then slowly, cautiously, Adagio floated down into the crater, the trident at the ready. She couldn’t be sure that this attack had done the trick, and was prepared to strike if Luna came at her again. Granted, Adagio was wounded and had expended more energy than she’d hoped to in this fight, but she wasn’t out yet. If Luna still had fight left in her, Adagio was prepared to give it to her!

However, it turned out that wouldn’t be needed. As Adagio reached the smoking center of the crater, she found Luna, and it was clear the Captain of the Second Division was down for the count.

Luna had already reverted back to her natural form, with only a few streaks of crimson hair left through her usual blue locks to indicate the transformation into her beastly state. Some of her Soul Reaper robes and Captains jacket were leftover to provide a minimum of propriety, but they were little more than tatters at this point, and Adagio was surprised any were left at all. Reiatsu was a wonderful thing for surviving giant explosions. And Luna was certainly alive, coughing and stirring as Adagio approached. She let out a pained groan as she pushed herself over onto her back, her body scarred with burns and bleeding abrasions from head to toe. Her Zanpaktou was intact, but reverted to it’s sealed state, the two blades laying next to Luna with smoke rising from their surface.

Blinking her eyes open, Luna saw Adagio looming over her, and with obvious pain and effort moved to try to grab her swords, but Adagio put the tips of her trident against Luna’s neck in a heartbeat.

“Go for them, and your sister will be burying you by day’s end,” Adagio said flatly, then shrugged, “Or whatever it is you Soul Reapers do. Do you do burials?”

Luna just silently glared at her and Adagio rolled her eyes, “Don’t give me that look. You said I was the arrogant one? Well, that’s true, I am arrogant. However, I’m clearly not the only one. We both believed ourselves capable of winning this fight, and if you had better control of that beast-like state of yours, I’d likely be me on the ground right now, instead of you.”

“I... cannot deny that,” Luna said through clenched teeth, “Had you not triggered the change, my earlier Bankai form could have beaten you through attrition.”

“True, I was having a lot of trouble with those enhanced shadows. Without the lake to enhance my own powers, I might have lost, eventually. Pointless speculation, now. The real question to ask is this; what do I do with you? Oh... I know,” Adagio extended her tail so that it was poised over Luna’s face, “I don’t have feet in this form, but I’ll accept kissing my tail as an appropriately humiliating admission of defeat, my dear Captain.”

“You cannot be serious...”

“Oh, I don’t know, I can be very serious when I wish to be,” Adagio replied with a thin smile, “And let’s not forget, this began with you stealing my friend out from under my nose. Be grateful that a bit of humiliation is all I want as recompense. Well, that, and the fact that you’ll make a fine prisoner to use to exchange for Ember’s safety, in case the rescue doesn’t go as planned.”

Luna’s eyes flickered with understanding, “So that’s where your subordinates are. I thought it odd none of them were with you. In that case, I suggest you do take me prisoner, for whatever you might have planned for, Adagio Dazzle, I can guarantee you that you couldn’t plan for the danger of sending anyone to face Captain Starswirl.”

Episode 108: Miscalculations

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Episode 108: Miscalculations

“This is it,” Duskshine whispered to Di Roy and Roka, “Move at full speed. Don’t attack anyone unless you have to. When I grab Ember, immediately get in physical contact with me, and I teleport us all. Go!”

There was no time to waste, not even a single extra second. Any moment the Soul Reapers in the once underwater laboratory might spot them standing there, no more than a few hundred yards away. Speed and timing were all key, and Duskshine knew the moment they used enough spiritual pressure to make use of high-speed techniques, there was a strong chance they’d be noticed.

He built up the reishi beneath his feet and burst into motion with Hirenkyaku, careful to line his whole body with reinforcing Blut Vene. It was so easy to do now, it felt effortless, like breathing. The hundreds of yards of distance fell away in an instant, and Duskshine could see the lab clearly now that he was in the middle of it. The odd mix of old fashioned wooden construction and more modern metal alloys gave much of the equipment an otherworldly feel that was both organic and somehow mystic. Yet a science lab was a science lab, and while things didn’t look quite the same as they did with Quincy alchemy and engineering, Duskshine found he could readily surmise what much of the gadgetry around him was for.

Of course most of that didn’t matter. Only two things mattered; the fact that Ember was standing bound by bands of translucent energy within a circular apparatus atop a central, circular platform, and that the Soul Reapers within the lab all looked equally shocked at Duskshine, Di Roy, and Roka’s sudden appearance.

While the Twelfth Division was a research focused unit within the Gotei 13, that didn’t change the fact that these researchers were all still Soul Reapers who’d gone through the same combat training others of more battle-focused Divisions did, and each was armed with a Zanpaktou. The main difference was actual combat experience, with most of these Soul Reapers having not been in a real fight since their Academy days. Only three Soul Reapers were able to show any reaction at all besides utter surprise. One Duskshine recognized as Clover, who had been standing beside an eldery, gray skinned man wearing the billowing whie coat of a Captain.

Starswirl, Duskshine knew, already feeling an instant sense of unease upon seeing the man, even if his back had been turned due to gazing up at the floating lake several hundred feet above.

The other Soul Reaper that had enough accuity to react was a tall fellow with brown skin and stray blonde hair, bearing the armband of a Lieutenant. He opened his mouth to shout either a warning or a command, or perhaps invoke a Kido spell, given he was raising a palm, but Roka was faster. The Arrancar flicked her left wrist, and strands flickered out in silver, glinting waves. They wrapped around the Lieutenant’s robes, pinning his arms, and yanked him to the ground.

In that same moment, Duskshine grasped Ember’s arms. Torch’s daughter looked alert, and while a distinct light of mistrust shone in her eyes, she didn’t question who Duskshine was or show any resistance. Roka had grasped Duskshine with her other hand, disengaging the strands she’d wrapped around the Twelfth Division Lieutenant, and Di Roy had a hand on Duskshine’s shoulder, his own Zanpaktou up in a guard position but not attacking.

Which was all well and good because the entire plan hinged on being able to teleport out of here while everyone was still too surprised to do anything to stop them.

Midnight, help me focus. We’re going for the lab.

It was the location he was most familiar with in the local area, so the chances of a mistake in teleportation would be minimal. It also was behind Quincy wards, so once inside it should make them difficult to detect or follow.

Midnight didn’t respond with words, just the ready sensation of magic bubbling up inside Duskshine, eager to be used. He took a split second to focus those energies, crystalizing the image of the field lab in his mind, and began to will forth the magic of the teleportation spell.

Even as he did so, Starswirl turned around. There was no rush in his movement, no whirl of surprise. Duskshine’s eyes locked with Starswrl’s, and he instantly realized something with a sinking shock in his gut; Starswirl had been expecting them. Maybe not them specifically, but he’d been expecting a strike on his lab, and by the utterly placid and unconcerned expression on his face it was obvious Starswirl hadn’t been caught off guard at all.

A hundred fears and doubts rushed through Duskshine all at once, even as he completed the teleport spell and surrounded himself, Di Roy, Roka, and Ember in a brilliant flash of violet light. The moment of disorientation that accompanies a teleport lasted only a second, and then they were all standing outside the two lab trailers, north of Camp Everfree. Ember was still attached to the circular apparatus, the object having been yanked along with them through the teleport, and it teetered over with her in it.

“Urk! Hey, get me out of here!” Ember said, struggling in the still active energy bonds holding her, “Holy crap, Di Roy, Roka, you two have no idea how glad I am to see you! Where’s Adagio!?”

“Hold up, hold up, and quit squirming!” Di Roy said, using his saw-toothed shark blade to start hammering the apparatus, trying to break it enough to halt whatever energies were holding Ember, “Adagio’s fine. Er, well, as fine as she can be while fighting a Soul Reaper Captain.”

“What!?” Ember shouted, redoubling her efforts to break free, “Get me out of here! We have to go help her!”

“Adagio has matters in hand,” Roka said, kneeling down to use her own dagger-like Zanpaktou to pry apart pieces of the apparatus, “Her fight is providing us cover to rescue you. Now that we have you here, we just need to open a Garganta and escape back to Las Noches.”

Suddenly a cool, smooth tone spoke from nearby, causing every head to snap around to look down the path away from the lab, “Ah, so that was your plan.”

Standing there was Starswirl himself, carrying a baffled looking Clover over one shoulder and his Lieutenant over the other. Behind him was the open, paper and wood doorway of a Senkaimon gate, which closed behind him. He unceremoniously deposited both on the ground, Clover scrambling to her feet. Starswirl gestured at her, “Clover, help Lieutenant Meadowbrook out of those bindings, would you?”

“Yes sir,” Clover said, still looking confused, “How did we-?”

“Get here? Oh, I installed a tracking device inside our specimine’s spinal cord, allowing me to know her location at all times,” Starswirl replied, then drew his Zanpaktou. It was a long, straight edged blade, drawn from a dark sheath of polished brown wood. It’s guard held a distinct oval shape bearing a downward curving metal protector, while the hilt itself was wrapped in intertwined blue and yellow cloth.

Holding the blade up, Starswirl said, “I’ve modified my Zanpaktou to create Senkaimon gates that, instead of going to Soul Society, instantly lead to any number of locations, ranging from personal laboratories outside the Twelfth Division, or attuned to specific signals... like a tracking device.”

Duskshine shook his head, drawing a deep breath to steady his frayed nerves, and stood between the Arrancar and the Soul Reapers. He raised his left hand, clad in the Hexenfaust, and formed his bow. By now Clover had freed Lieutenant Medowbrook and both had taken up positions on either side of their Captain. Duskshine noted neither one had Zanpaktou, but that cooresponded to what Sunset had told him about what had occured in Soul Society. He didn’t necessarily think either one as being less dangerous for it, imagining both were proficient with Kido. While he knew Clover was actually on their side, Lieutenant Meadowbrook was another story.

“I should have predicted you’d have a means to follow us. I suspected Ember would be bugged in some manner, but I thought we’d have more time to escape than this. I clearly miscalculated.”

Starswirl made a throwing away gesture with his free hand, “It happens to the brightest of minds, Miss Sparkle, so don’t feel too bad about it.”

Duskshine gulped, face reddening, “W-who’s Miss Sparkle? I’m, uh, Duskshine.”

Starswirl stared back at him. Duskshine slumped his shoulders, “Am I that obvious?”

“Your disguise would fool those unfamiliar with you, I suspect,” Starswirl said, “But I’ve had your profile in my database for some time, Miss Twilight Sparkle.”

“Really? Why? I wasn’t even a Quincy until recently!”

“No, but you were born to one of the most prominent and powerful Quincy families, and showed great scientific aptitude from a young age. I made it a point to keep an updated database on as many figures of note as possible, among the Quincy, Hollows, my fellow Soul Reapers, and even other groups active in the world. Information is a powerful thing, isn’t it? Considering your clearly brilliant mind and talent for scientific pursuits, I did keep a close eye on your activities when I could, especially after that incident at the Friendship Games. Magic being such a new field of study for me, I knew one day your path and mine would cross...” Starswirl raised his Zanpaktou at her and smiled in a manner that only intensified Duskshine’s sense of dread, “I’m glad today is that day. I recover one specimen... and acquire a new, even more fascinating one.”

By now Roka and Di Roy had successfully smashed enough of the apparatus holding Ember that the energy bands holding her winked out. Ember leaped to her feet with a roar, throwing an arm past Duskshine and emitting a deep saffron beam as she fired a Cero directly at Starswirl.

The Captain caught the Cero with his free hand, and Duskshine could see the manner in which the Cero beam’s energies warped around the hand like a bubble. Starswirl’s spiritual pressure didn’t explode out of him, but rather shaped itself in a precisely controlled pattern that cupped the Cero and deflected it with the ease that could only come from someone who’d spent multiple lifetimes studying the energies of both Hollow and Soul Reaper. It terrified Duskshine to see the simple ease in which Starswirl controlled his reiatsu. It wasn’t more powerful than some other Captains, but the incredible skill at which he manipulated his aura was astounding.

The Cero beam was sent flying off as if it were rubber bouncing off of cement.

“Don’t fight!” Duskshine shouted, “Form a Garganta and get out of here!”

Intending to distract Starswirl for as long as possible, Duskshine aimed his bow at the Soul Reapers. He didn’t want to hurt Clover, or even that Lieutenant, Meadowbrook. But he did need to target them to a degree in order to keep up appearances in front of Starswirl. To that end, Duskshine tried a technique he wasn’t incredibly familiar with yet.

“Licht Regen!”

The shower of reishi arrows came out in a teal burst, each small arrow laced with some of the magic within. The blast of arrows wasn’t precise, but rather a shotgun cloud, meant to force the Soul Reapers to focus on defense for a moment. Clover and Meadowbrook both defended themselves with an identical Kido, throwing out their palms and invoking, “Bakudo Number : Danku!”

However Starswirl himself simply vanished with a Flash Step and appeared above the group, just as Di Roy was opening a Garganta portal.

“Can’t have you all leaving yet, my apologies. Bakudo Number Eighty Two: Setsudan-Bashi.” (Severing Bridge)

A white orb of light grew at the point of Starswirl’s finger, which then split into a series of inch-thick bands that snapped out to form the bars of a rectangular barrier that encased the area for around a hundred or so feet in every direction. Wooden slates formed at the edges of the rectangle, blazing with green kanji script for the words ‘Bridge’, ‘Cut’, and ‘Crossing’.

The moment this barrier formed, Di Roy let out a grunt of pain as his Garganta shredded itself and a bit of backlash energy arched back to his hand, burning it. “Crap! Oh this is bullshit! Can’t we catch a damn break for once!?”

Roka gave Duskshine a sidelong look, “Twilight, can we beat him? If not...”

Seeing no further point in the disguise, Twilight placed a hand back to her chest and reconverted herself back to being female; feeling a distinct sense of relief once she was finished. It’d been a good attempt, but it was clear she’d underestimated Captain Starswirl severely. She also knew what Roka was asking, and the question made her heart clench. She did not want to be in the same spot as... that man.

“If it comes to that, do it,” Twilight said around clenched teeth, “But I’m going to try and buy you all an opening to escape. Help fight, if you can, but keep an eye out for an opportunity to break free of this Kido and get away.”

“Screw that!” Ember shouted, eyes blazing, “I’m kicking this bastard’s ass!” Her hands clutched at her side, and her eyes widened, “And where the hell is my Zanpaktou!?”

“Back at our laboratory,” Starswirl replied, shrugging, “I don’t suppose you’d willingly surrender in order to get it back, would you?”

“Piss off you old fart! I’ll get it back after we’re done wiping the floor with you and your cronies here!”

Lieutenant Meadowbrook cleared his throat loudly, “First of all, we’re not ‘cronies’, we’re seated officers. Secondly, why is a Quincy helping Hollows? Even if you’re friends with Sunset Shimmer, I can’t see how that would extend to aiding Hollows.”

“That’s my business,” Twilight replied curtly, “I don’t want to have to hurt any of you, but if you won’t let us go, you won’t give me any choice but to respond with full force.”

“Hey Roka, are you getting deja vu here?” asked Di Roy, shaking his hand and readying his Zanpaktou, “Because this is giving me deja vu out the ass right now. I swear we were in this situation literally, like, two weeks ago.”

“We do seem to have a bad habit of running into unreasonable Soul Reaper Captains,” Roka said, standing beside Di Roy while giving him a coy look, “It must be some manner of karma for something you did.”

“What, why something I did!? None of this is my fault!”

“Perhaps, but it does seem every time you take me out somewhere, we get into a desperate battle for our lives. It does appear to be a pattern.”

Di Roy cocked a brow at her, “Take you out, eh? Didn’t know we’d progressed that far.”

Roka smiled at him, dark eyes shining with mystery, “Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves.”

“Right... hey Twilight, you just said ‘full force’, right?” Di Roy said, a faint blue aura surrounding his body, “Figure me and Roka ought to take that to heart.”

Roka nodded, her own body glowing gold as her own reiatsu began to pour out. Twilight glanced back at them, knowing what they were about to do. “Wait, I should be able to cover all three of you-”

“No can do, Quincy gal,” Di Roy said, “Adagio gave us the job of rescuing Ember, and that ain’t happening as long as Captain Bill Nye here is in the way. Ember’s right, it’s time for an old fashioned ass kicking, Arrancar style!”

Ember watched with frustration, lacking her Zanpaktou, whilst Di Roy and Roka’s spiritual pressure spiked to a fever pitch and both spoke the release phrases for their own Zanpaktou.

”Dance in ecstasy; Telerana.” (Cobweb)

”Laugh at death; Picaro!” (Rogue)

With the spread of golden, glowing threads around her body, Roka assumed her Resurreccion form, the white spider legs spreading from her back while her body became clad in form fitting white clothes, including her skull mask becoming replaced with a partial white veil.

Around Di Roy a blast of cobalt light burst from his body as his muscles grew, shredding his white vest. Liquid bone spun around his left arm and solidified into the shape of a massive, conical shell that acted as both arm guard and shield, tipped with a formation at the end that was reminiscent of a hammer-head shark with an outward facing row of teeth. Bands of white, armoring bone formed around his shoulders and chest, like a protective exterior ribcage. The helmet of bone that comprised his partial Hollow mask split and slid down his back, the two parts expanding in side to form two fins on his back like those of a shark’s. Finally, his shark-tooth sword grew in size until it was near twice its original size, gaining larger teeth along its extended length.

When their transformations were done, Ember sighed and said, “If I just had my Zanpaktou...”

“Don’t sweat it,” Di Roy said, hefting his sword over his shoulder and showing a devil-may-care grin to her, “You helped save my ass back in the Forest of Menos. Let me return the favor without hearing you bitch about it, okay?”

“He’s coming,” Roka said, nodding upward at Starswirl, who was walking upon the air towards them. Di Roy visibly gulped, but kept on his brave smile.

“I was trying to be polite,” said Starswirl, “Allowing you a moment to talk and prepare yourselves. Can I assume you’re ready for what’s next?”

“Does this answer your question!?” Di Roy shouted, swinging his blade while still on the ground, with a good fifty or so feet separating him from Starswirl. However, Twilight noticed that the front segment of the blade clicked, and then detached from the main portion, front half flying upward while attached to the back end by a fibrous black cord.

Starswirl moved his still sealed Zanpaktou to parry, but when he did deflect the front end of Di Roy’s blade, he found that the surface of the blade was suddenly gripping his own as tooth-like segments snapped around the sword and held it in place.

“Eat it, neeeerrrrrd!” Di Roy bellowed, the cord connecting the two halves of his Zanpaktou suddenly reeling in and yanking Di Roy towards Starswirl at high speed. Di Roy cocked his other arm back, punching forward with the shield on his left arm, the teeth on the end of it jabbing forward at Starswirl’s face.

“Hm, fascinating.”

Starswirl simply let go of his Zanpaktou, bending forward to duck Di Roy’s blow, and placed a palm on the Arrancar’s abs, “Hado Number Fifty Seven: Hammer and Anvil.”

A blast of pure concussive force blasted into Di Roy’s stomach, sending him flying back, while at the same instant a circular plane of orange tinted force appeared in Di Roy’s path that he slammed into, as if it were a wall of steel. The blow left the Arrnacar dazed as he fell towards the ground, but he shook his head and flipped over before landing on his feet. The impact from the Kido had hurt, but didn't cause any severe damage. That said, it’d broken his concentration enough that the grasping teeth on his blade had loosened and Starswirl had freed his Zanpaktou.

Still, that moment Starswirl took to do that, Twilight, Roka, and Ember had all moved as one, taking advantage of the distraction Di Roy’s reckless attack had created.

Twilight teleported behind Starswirl, charging a reishi arrow with magic within her bow. Roka came up from below, hundreds of strands flowing out from her arms and the spider legs on her back, spinning a constricting web around Starswirl to limit his movements against their razor sharp touch.

Ember, controlling her boiling anger, chose Clover and Meadowbrook as her targets. Given they all shared the same handicape of lacking Zanpaktou, it seemed to her the smartest move to keep the other two Soul Reapers busy while her fully equipped Arrancar brethren and Twilight dealt with the Captain. Ember blurred into motion with Sonido, appearing between Clover and Meadowbrook as she lashed out with a spinning kick at the Lieutenant.

Meadwobrook, not inexperienced in unarmed fighting, managed to cross his arms to absorb some of the kic’s impact, but was still knocked onto his back and sent skidding by the raw force in Ember’s strike. Clover Flash Stepped back, putting distance between herself and Ember, and gestured with her left hand.

“Bakudo Number Four; Hainawa!”

She sent the scintillating rope of yellow, binding energy flying towards Ember, knowing it wouldn’t be strong enough to hold the Arrancar girl for very long. That wasn’t the intent. Clover was stuck walking a fine line between appearing to genuinely fight, and still trying to allow for Ember to escape. Sadly, while Ember knew that some people, like Sunset and her friends, were likely on the side trying to rescue her, she didn’t know Clover was among that number.

Even as the binding rope of energy wrapped around her arm, Ember scoffed and used her free hand to grip the binding Kido and with a burst of reiatsu, tore it apart. She then punched at Bala towards Clover, who barely managed to dodge aside as the bullet of red Hollow energy took some of her robe off.

Meanwhile Twilight had finished charging her arrow with a spell that she laced into it with Midnight’s assistance. Within her mind, she felt Midnight give a warning, ”Don’t hold back against this one. He’s too dangerous to take lightly. You’re going to need more of my help, this time around.”

Twilight gave the smallest of nods as she released her arrow. The spell inside it activated almost instantly, duplicating the arrow a score of times in a flash. Then, just before they would impact Starswirl, Twilight reached out with her other power and sent a thread of energy through the reishi of the arrows.

The arrows shone abruptly with intense light, their power overloading with an unexpectedly larger yield. Explosions of blue reishi and teal witchfire hammered Starswirl, obscuring him for a moment.

At that same instant, Roka constricted her strands, slicing them through the shadow of Starswirl amid the explosions.

A moment later the smoke cleared, and Twilight frowned. In Starswirl’s place was a deflated, shredded... balloon?

“Well, that might have been painful.”

Starswirl was reclining a few dozen feet away, leaning against the air the same way he stood upon it. Twilight stared at him, and he smiled, “My apologies, it’s an easy trick to use for when I want to observe my opponents methods.”

He pulled out a rubbery gray object from his robes and held it to his lips, blowing into it. The balloon-like object inflated at an alarming rate, then with a popping noise, it took the shape of an exact replica of Starswirl. The puppet looked shockingly realistic as Starswirl held it out in one hand, “See? A unique decoy gigai I invented ages ago. One of numerous handy tools I’ve made.”

He tossed the clone aside as if it were a plastic cup aimed at a trash bin, and rubbed his chin, “Now, that power you just used. Some of it was magic, but that sudden increase in the intensity of your arrows at the end, that was something else. Your Schrift, perhaps? But you used it earlier to alter your gender. I wonder what the connection is?”

“I don’t intend to give you the chance to work it out,” Twilight said, mentally grasping the magic within her and calling out to Midnight. Her alter ego eagerly responded, flooding Twilight with the warmth of magical power while connecting more thoroughly to Twilight’s mind. Teal flames were born around Twilight’s eyes and faint waves of flickering witchfire spread from her back in the barest hint of raven wings.

This was about as far as Twilight and Midnight had gone when facing Gilda back in Hueco Mundo, and she was hesitant to push things further than this.

Still don’t trust me? Midnight laughed.

More I don’t want to risk overloading the Hexenfaust, or accidentally detonating any of the M-Cells. Remember we’re right next to the lab.

Twilight could feel Midnight in a phantom touch on her cheek, It’s just materials. The important stuff is inside our head. I say we use those M-Cells to give us an edge.

Twilight hesitated. The M-Cells were still fairly unstable and required extensive testing. Using them to any capacity could be dangerous in live combat.

More dangerous than facing a Soul Reaper Captain with anything less than every advantage we can grab? Midnight replied with fresh sharpness in her voice, Do you want to lose more people you care about?

“Hey Quincy gal, look out!” Di Roy shouted, warning Twilight just in time to let her avoid what looked like a wooden cylinder that Starswirl had withdrawn from his robes and thrown at her.

Even as the wood cylinder passed by her face, Twilight saw segments of it open, and sparkling blue dust burst out in a thick cloud. She immediately closed her mouth and held her breath, avoiding breathing anything in, but her eyes started to water and her nose lit up with an intense burning sensation. Almost immediately she felt her body start to weaken, her muscles seizing up with a paralytic effect.

Di Roy swore and aimed his hammerhead armguard at Starswirl, and red energy crackled around the teeth along its edge. A barrage of Bala fired out of the arm guard, forcing Starswirl to Flash Step out of the way. He appeared on the ground next to Di Roy, casually slashing with his Zanpaktou. Di Roy spun to block with his arm guard, but even then the force of Starswirl’s blow drove Di Roy back and left a deep gouge in the shield-like protector.

“Shit!” Di Roy grunted and swung his shark-tooth sword, the tip firing off again to coil towards Starswirl, who reached into his robes and flicked out another wooden cylinder.

This one struck the tip of Di Roy’s sword, and burst into an expanding bubble of gummy pink liquid that instantly solidified into a ball, trapping Di Roy’s sword inside as it hit the ground like a giant ball of cement.

“Oh come on!” Di Roy shouted, yanking on his sword, “Roka, a little help, please!?”

Roka hadn’t needed the urging, having already used Sonido to rush in around Starswirls’ right side. The spider legs on her back all wove an intricate pattern in front of her, and sent a cat’s cradle of razor sharp threads flying at the Captain. He threw yet another wood cylinder at this net of threads, which burst into a blanket of pale liquid that ate into the threads like acid. Yet within that same instant, Roka’s eyes narrowed and a series of threads she’d created from her hands had flown out around the net, which had merely been a feint. The threads meant to be the real attack all became charged with golden energy from Roka as she said, “Cero; Spiderweb.”

The threads, now charged with the same power of a Cero, flew in at Starswirl like radiant spears. For a moment Starswirl gained a mildly concerned look as he vanished with Flash Step a microsecond before impact.

And even when he appeared a good distance away, he examined his arm and a fresh cut through his robes, scoring his arm with a slightly bleeding wound. “An interesting use of Cero. I’ve never seen that level of control before, even among Espada. Intriguing, young miss. Very intriguing. You’re not a normal Arrancar, are you, unlike that riff-raff over there.”

“H-hey, who are you calling riff-raff, you wrinkly old creeper!?” Di Roy yelled, pulling back a leg and giving the cement ball holding his Zanpaktou a solid kick that managed to shatter it and free the tip of the blade.

Starswirl shrugged, apparently taking no insult, “You, obviously. You’re a painfully mundane specimen of an Arrancar, with no worthwhile ability. Meanwhile the young miss by your side interests me, with her remarkable level of reiatsu control.”

By then Twilight had fallen out of the cloud of glittering blue gas, hitting the ground in a heap. Starswirl glanced back at her, frowning, “Done already? I wouldn’t have thought just one canister of paralysing gas would have done the trick. Then again, the young do tend to overestimate themselves.”

However, even as he was finishing his sentence, Twilight was surrounded by a flash of purple light as she teleported. She appeared in mid-air over his shoulder, flipping as she unleashed a point blank arrow of blazing witchfire and reishi. It impacted Starswirl before he’d had a chance to blink, and this time Twilight made a point of probing his spiritual energy with her own senses to confirm this wasn’t a fake.

The arrow exploded in a ball of teal fire, and smashed Starswirl backwards with a pained grunt. His shoulder showed a scorch mark from the strike, but it was clear his own reiatsu negated the lion’s share of the damage. Twilight didn’t care, and went ahead to unleash another swarm of arrows with Licht Regen. This time she also put out strings of her own reiatsu to affect the swarm of arrows, utilizing her Schrift inside them.

Starswirl blinked as the arrow swarm started flickering and shifting about, every single arrow altering it’s trajectory at seemingly random, yet never without losing target on him. He invoked the Kido, Danku, again, but even as he did so a number of arrows were able to shift around the transparent barrier, forcing him to Flash Step away. And even then, as he zipped from one point to another, several arrows still altered trajectory to strike him.

He resorted to using his Zanpaktou to deflect the remaining ones coming at him, but it was clear from the bead of sweat on his forehead that he’d actually had to put forth some effort, that time.

Starswirl took a deep breath and eyed Twilight more cautiously, with a hint of respect in his eyes. “I think I’m starting to understand. I’ll need a few more examples, to be certain, but negating the poisoned gas, changing the movements of your arrows, increasing the intensity of your attacks, alering your gender... they all share a common thread.”

Meanwhile Ember had backed Clover up against the edge of the barrier containing the fight. Clover had been forced to keep evading Ember’s clawing hands or punishing kicks, which had left several small craters in the ground. Meadwobrook had gotten back on his feet and now came at Ember from behind, flinging an arm out.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Two: Hyapporankan.“

A bar of light appeared in his hand and he threw it like a jawline, where the hexagon shaped bar then split into multiples and rained down at Ember from an angle. Meadowbrook trusted Clover to get out of the way, and also anticipated it when Ember evaded the hail of binding Kido rods. He was already invoking another Kido, even as Ember used Sonido to get in front of him, her fist ramming towards his gut.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

Ember’s fist smashed into his stomach even as the Kido fired a ball of explosive, red spirit energy into Ember’s face. Both were blasted back, Meadowbrook clutching his gut, but still managing to cry out, “Clover, now!”

While Ember was still off balance from the Chakaho, Clover Flash Stepped next to Meadowbrook and rapidly thought of a spell to use that would hopefully make it look like she was trying to capture Ember without actually trying to do anything of the sort.

“Bakudo Number Seventy Three: Tozansho!”

A single point of pulsing blue energy appeared beneath Ember, then four lines of energy extended upward to form an inverted, pyramid shaped prison around the Arrancar. However, because Ember had been knocked back towards the edge of the barrier Starswirl had created earlier, one of the top edges of the pyramid pushed through that other barrier, making it so that about a five foot span of the pyramid edge was outside Starswirl’s Kido.

Clover just hoped Ember would notice that and realize it’d give her a way out, but for the moment Ember looked too pissed off to take note of that detail as she screamed and rammed a fist into Clover’s barrier. The Tozansho held, but Clover wasn’t sure it would for long, given Ember was definitely well above average strength for an Arrancar.

Starswirl cast a look towards that situation, then back at Twilight, Di Roy, and Roka. There was a loud, thunderous sound in the distance, and the ground beneath their feet shook. To the east, it looked as if something was ripping apart a large swath of the forest, and everyone could feel the intense spiritual pressures from what Twilight could recognize as Adagio and Luna.

Noting that, Starswirl sighed, “Hm, considering the gravity of the situation, I should probably take this more seriously. A shame. I hate rushing my observations.”

He inverted his grip on his Zanpaktou, holding it by the pommel like one might a walking cane. He tapped the tip of it to the ground, and Twilight felt his spiritual pressure intensify around him. Unlike other instances she’d felt other spiritual beings unleash their power, this didn’t feel like a storm, or sudden burst, but rather like Starswirl’s reiatsu was encasing him like an unbreakable sphere, his body rimmed with faint white light.

She would have tried to use a silence spell on him, but that trick wouldn’t work ona Soul Reaper Captain. It’d worked on Gilda because Arrancar usually needed to invoke their Zanpaktou verbally. Captains, however, who had access to Bankai, could activate their Shikai without a release phrase, if necessary.

She still tried to stop him by aiming and firing an arrow towards him, but he was already speaking as she did so.

”Pull apart; Jukuko.” (Contemplation)

What looked like grey ooze spilled out of the Zanpaktou’s hilt, then covered the weapon. The bubbling substance ten expanded and emitted acrid smelling steam as the grey goo took a new shape and solidified like hardening concrete. All the while Starswirl’s spiritual pressure encased him in an ever denser cloud that made Twilight feel as if she was sensing a newly formed gravity field.

When the change was complete, Starswirl was holding a weapon that was roughly five feet long and almost as wide. Twilight took a second to realize she’d seen this type of weapon before, and it technically wasn’t really a weapon so much as an object used by officers in Japanese armies from long ago; a ‘gunbai’, or war fan. Double sided, it looked like a large pair of butterfly wings attached to an iron rod, all solid black save for the gleam of sharp metal edges around the ends.

With his Zanpaktou released, Starswirl held it out to the side, and turned it so the fan was angled towards them.

Twilight tensed, trying to anticipate what manner of attack Starswirl might enact. There was no way of knowing, without having a notion of what kind of power his Shikai had. Starswirl wasn’t making any motions, but she sensed his reiatsu hadn’t flagged at all. He hadn’t relaxed his guard at all. So what was he doing?

An instant later she felt the smallest, most imperceptible fluctuation in the air, and then the acrid smell she’d noticed earlier intensified, her scientific mind immediately went to a deadly possibility.

“Move!” she shouted to Roka and Di Roy, who took her warning without hesitation and leapted away with her.

Just in time, as the air shimmered with what looked like the convergence of two different streams of gas, that once mixing together igniting in a blinding flash of light and head.

A hydrogen fluoride explosion?

Twilight couldn’t be sure, but the explosion seemed similar to a chemical reaction she was familiar with. And as her mind wondered about that, she saw Starswirl smile and turn his war fan slightly, touching it to the ground. She saw lines of spirit energy move into the ground beneath her feet, and she had to throw herself to the side as the ground erupted in a sudden burst of red, blinding energy.

Now red phosphorus!? But the reaction is far too powerful. These can’t be normal chemicals

Seeking to regain the momentum, Twilight took aim to unleash a set of arrows. Interlacing teleportation magic into the arrows, she shot off three of them that then popped out of existence and reappeared around Starswirl. However the air sparked around him with several blinding flashes from what Twilight could only assume were more chemical reactions, generating flares of white phosphorus.

Temporarily blinded, Twilight instinctively moved back, only to sense Starswirl moving behind her, having evaded her arrows with a Flash Step and gotten behind her while she was distracted by the flares.

More on instinct than conscious thought, she swung her bow to protect herself, and felt a shock course up her arm, jarring muscle and bone, as she caught Starswirl’s war fan just in time to keep him from having opened up her back. For such an old looking man, he was still quite physically strong, and Twilight was knocked off her feet by the blow. Her vision cleared in time to see Roka and Di Roy coming at Starswirl from behind, Roka slashing with her strings, while Di Roy thrust with his shark-tooth sword.

Starswirl swept his war fan around behind him, deflecting Di Roy’s sword, and at the same time emitting a blast of foul smelling gas from the fan, some odd mix of chemicals that left both Arrancar coughing and staggering back.

“I’ve deduced you can somehow alter certain factors in battle,” Starswirl said, “I’m not sure the extent of that power, but I suspect you’re limited to needing to be familiar with what you’re altering, and can’t readily alter something inside another person. As for myself, no doubt you’ve figured out my Jukuko can produce any number of chemical substances, be that solid, liquid, or gas, in any combination I desire. Of course, being Soul Society’s foremost scientist, I have knowledge of chemicals you’ve never heard of, as a human. I’m curious to see how you’ll fight, now, Twilight Sparkle. I wish to test your intellect as well as your power...”

He aimed his war fan at her as Twilight flipped back to her feet, readying her bow.

“Test all you like... but I won’t lose. As long as I know what ‘variables’ are in play, I can beat you.”

----------

Sunset’s was fed up with with this impersonator’s cryptic words and they’d barely even said anything yet. She felt her face tense with a heated glare as she said with flame in her voice, “Cut the crap, whoever you are! I don’t know why you took Sour Sweet’s appearance, and you know what? I don’t care! I can tell you’re bad news, and in serious need of a boot up the backside, so I’m willing to deliver!’

The person wearing Sour Sweet’s skin laughed in a manner that used the former Crystal Prep student’s voice to a perfect octave, but had none of Sour Sweet’s sugar laced tone of hidden razor blades. Instead she sounded posh, and... well somewhat flamboyant.

“Ho-hoh! I can see why Fleur De Lis was so wound up in a tight little murder-knot over you, Sunset Shimmer. You’re quite the firecracker. Normally I do prefer to focus on business, but I just can’t deny myself a little pleasure here and there. If you wish to dance, I gladly accept the invitation.”

Gaw flicked a golden eyed glance towards Sunset and Rarity, then popped next to them with a flash of Sonido. Sunset could smell the cooper scent of blood from the Arrancar girl’s wounds. Gaw said nothing, but made it clear from her stance that she didn’t view Rarity or Sunset as enemies, and was focused entirely on the imposter Sour Sweet.

“You still good to fight, injured like that?” Sunset asked, and Gaw responded with a snort.

“Just pain. Used to it.”

Sunset responded with an approving smirk and turned her attention back to ‘Sour Sweet’. Rarity had taken up position on Sunset’s left side, giving a crystal rapier in her right hand an idle flourish while the floating pool of blood next to her started to slowly disgorge a flotilla of curved daggers as she eyed the unknown Quincy. “You must be one of those Sternritter, the same as Fleur De Lis. I must say you’re remarkably confident for a three on one fight... and there’s something about your tone. Have we met?”

Sour Sweet’s expression turned into a disturbingly sharp smile, “Oh my, your perceptiveness is astounding, Miss Rarity. Even with my voice altered, you could still pick up on that much?”

“So we have met,” Rarity said, eyes glittering with narrow focus “Not recently, and certainly not since your recent misadventures. I’ll let you continue guessing. In the meantime I’ll be generous and allow you ladies the first move.”

Gaw growled, “Careful. They have strange ability. Change things. Make traps.”

“A Schrift,” Sunset said, “We know about them. Real wild cards. Thanks for the heads up.”

It’d been awhile since she’d fought a Quincy. Fleur De Lis had been strong, and Sunset had never been certain just how much Fleur might have been holding back during their skirmish back then. Sunset had managed to overwhelm her initially, or at least keep pace with her Shikai, but thinking back on it she got the impression she’d caught Fleur off guard. She couldn’t assume anything about this new opponent. They might be a Sternritter, like Fleur, but that didn’t really mean anything solid. They might be stronger. Their Schrift would be completely different, too. Gaw said something about changing things. Well, that made sense, given they were masquerading as Sour Sweet.

So they could alter things other than their own body? To what extent?

I won’t find out by wondering about it. Best bet is to hit fast and strong. If I can keep their attention focused on me, and reveal what their power is, then Rarity can set up a counter.

Her mind made up, Sunset braced her feet and kicked off the ground, her body vanishing with a Flash Step that took her right behind the Quincy. Hokori’s edge burst with raging flames as Sunset swung, carving a path of heated air at the imposter’s back. She wasn’t holding back on the speed or strength of her strike, and to her pleased surprise she saw her foe gain a flash of unexpected shock on their face as they spun away from her attack. They were a shade too slow to evade the edge of Hokori entirely, the flaming blade cutting through uniform and searing flesh beneath. Sunset felt the hard contact with skin, and noticed the glowing red lines of Blut Vene absorbing some of her blow.

As the Quincy imposter shifted back in a high-speed flicker, they retaliated with a salvo of streaking reishi arrows. Sunset raised Hikari, taking the arrows on the shield. Rather than bounce off, the arrows appeared to stick to the shield, and Sunset felt the reishi inside the arrows try to burrow into her Zanpaktou. Sunset instantly felt Hikari’s outrage at this invasion, and Sunset’s on anger fueled her shield as she pushed back against this invasive reishi with her own spiritual pressure.

Rarity and Gaw went on the offensive as well, Rarity throwing out a string of spinning crystal blades while sending more crystals across the ground to spear upwards and try to box the Quincy in. Meanwhile Gaw, using pure battle instinct to sense Rarity’s intent, took advantage of the crystals limiting the Quincy’s motions to charge in, despite her injuries. The Arrancar’s sword clawed downward, but ‘Sour Sweet’ smirked and sent reishi into the ground where her foot touched it. Suddenly the earth opened up and the Quincy vanished into it in an eye blink.

Gaw growled, then let out a cry as the ground where the imposter vanished suddenly grew stone spikes and shot upward. Gaw managed to evade, if barely, but both Rarity and Sunset also had to jump back as the ground shook and erupted with more spikes of rock. Rarity gave a lady like frown as she sent forth a wave of blood from her whirlpool to crystalize around the spikes, holding them fast, while Sunset used Hokori to smash the ones coming towards her.

“The heck kind of power is this?” Sunset grumbled as she swung Hokori’s blade to cut the reishi arrows from Hikari’s shield. She felt the pressure from the invasive reishi lessen, then gradually vanish as Hikari gleamed with white light. At the same time, extra power flowed into Hokori, the red cloth on her hilt glowing red.

Gaw growled again, “I tell you, she make stuff change. Make traps or other things. It’s dumb.”

“Be careful, both of you,” Rarity said, closing her eyes in focus as she grew more crystals to extend underground, “She’s moving around down there. I’ll try to flush her out before she tries any more tricks.”

The ground heaved as Rarity started sharpening her crystals underground to spear towards where she sensed their Quincy foe, but was irritated to discover that her crystals were ramming into something hard, like metal. Then, to her further surprise, that metal seemed to be growing. To everyone’s shock, a moment later the ground, grass, rocks, even the lower portions of the trees were surrounded by a gleaming blue glow, and then gained a metallic shade.

As Sunset touched the ground, she grimaced as she realized the grass, every single blade, was now a literal blade of metal. The entire ground had been altered to a metal hardness akin to steel. She felt the intense rise in reiatsu from underground, and realized their opponent was about to attack.

“Everybody, up!” she shouted, and Rarity and Gaw followed her in leaping straight up, just in time to avoid the stabbing of dozens of elegantly shaped, sharp blades that sprung up from the metallic ground.

Even the trees around them sprang keen edged instruments from branches that cut at the trio as they flew up above the treetops.

“Well, that’s a nasty ability,” Rarity said, “Although I think my own crystals are quite a bit more charming compared to whatever this rude individuals is doing.”

“I...think they’re altering whatever they touch with their reishi,” Sunset said, raising her shield, “They just tried to shove their spirit energy into Hikari. I was able to push back with my own energy, but the ground can’t really do that, so they can change it to their will pretty easily I’m guessing. Must be how they took Sour Sweet’s form, too. Just changed their body to match hers.”

“But why?” asked Rarity, keeping her eyes fixed below for any further attacks, “Who would want to replace Sour Sweet?”

“I don’t know,” admitted Sunset, “Spying on Twilight, maybe? She said something about a target that hadn’t gotten into position yet.”

“Target is a word that suggests... well, unpleasant things to me,” Rarity replied, then her eyes scanned beneath them with growing concern, “Wait, I can’t sense them any longer, can you?”

Sunset frowned and focused her senses. The Quincy’s spiritual energy had vanished. Sunset let out a sharp curse, “Dammnit! I’m an idiot! That attack was meant to force us up here so they could slip away!”

Gaw grunted, “So what? Dumb enemy runs away, makes for easier day.”

“But if they’re after a ‘target’ and that target is one of my friends, I can’t just let them run around free!” Sunset said, her Zanpaktou flaring up with her anger.

“If they can mask their spiritual pressure so well and so swiftly, finding them would be impossible, normally,” Rarity said, “But if we guess who their target is, we go to them instead. And really, who else could they be targeting but Twilight?”

Sunset considered it for a second. Twilight was a pretty unique case, among the Quincy. Brand new to their ranks, but with incredible potential and power, not to mention had enough of the Quincy King's ear that she could arrange having her own magical research unit and coordinate a secret operation in cooperation with Adagio. All things considered, it did seem likely that if another Quincy had some sort of target in mind for assassination, then Twilight made for one heck of a canidate.

Of course she could be overthinking it. The Quincy might be after any of the Soul Reaper Captains, as well. It wasn’t even impossible that the Quincy King was using Twilight as a means to draw out Espada and Captains alike to target for assassinations.

“There’s no way to be sure,” Sunset said, “But here’s what we’ll do. We’ll link up with Fluttershy, and go help the rest of the girls out at the camp. Once the camp is safe, we’ll move out as a group and try to find this assassin.”

Rarity glanced sidelong at Gaw, “And what about you?”

Gaw gazed off to the north, face set in a grim but determined look, “Adagio fight with Captain over, but she weakened. Rest of tribe still rescuing Ember. I go to Adagio, then hear what she command.”

“Aren’t you going to check on your friend I left down below?” Rarity asked, but Gaw shrugged.

“Not friend, just ally. If not dead, can take care of self. You leave other Quincy girl below, too?”

Rarity smacked her forehead, “Lemon Zest! I’ll go grab her, so Fluttershy can heal her up. Sunset, shall we?”

“Yeah, sooner we get everyone together, the sooner we can try to keep this mess from getting worse.”

----------

Sweet Cider didn’t trust the Quincy anywhere near as far as she could throw them if she got a good grip on one of them, but she had to admit they were damn good at eradicating Hollows. Sort of a shame their abilities supposedly destroyed Hollows, rather than purify them. Sweet Cider otherwise didn’t see any reason for the Quincy to actually be enemies... and given how much she’d learned about Soul Society’s shady side, she wasn’t entirely convinced the excuse of Quincy abilities destroying souls couldn’t be another lie, or at least a half-truth.

For the moment she was more than willing to accept Filthy Rich and Soarin’s assistance, and they’d certainly made cleaning up the Hollows in the city much easier. These strange mutant Hollows had a number of irritating powers, but none of them were strong enough to stand up to a Captain and two Sternritter for more than a few minutes, and the Quincy’s cooperation freed up more of Sweet Cider’s Division to focus on protecting human lives.

The last mutant Hollow to fall was the humanoid one with the nearly smooth, blank mask beneath it’s ragged black hood. Sweet Cider felt a hint of familiarity with this one, old memories of the day she met her husband coming to mind and the strange humanoid Hollow she’d fought back then as well. This one wasn’t quite the same, but it felt similar, somehow, as it came at her with long, clawed hands of darkness that tore through a metal street light as if it was paper.

This one was a bit stronger than the others, and fast enough to keep Sweet Cider on her toes, but she was much stronger than she’d been back during her Xcution days, so even if this Hollow was like the one from back then it wasn’t much of a match for her now. She let it pursue her to the edge of a small inner-city park, then with more room to maneuver and no civilians around to worry about, Sweet Cider struck with full force.

Her simple, overhead sword swing cleaved through Hollow and a good chunk of park alike, and when it was done, she took a deep breath and let her spirit senses stretch out.

Finally, that was the last of them, she thought, breathing a sigh of relief.

“Looks as if we’ve finished cleaning up, here,” spoke Filthy Rich as he appeared nearby, shouldering his ornate musket. Soarin arrived a second later, his bow still in his hand.

“The Garganta portals have closed,” Soarin said, “I think it’s safe to say that there aren’t any more Hollows coming to attack.”

The younger Quincy gave the city a morose look. Smoke from numerous fires waved between the rooftops, accompanied by the wailing sounds of emergency service sirens and human suffering alike. “We kept casualties down, but still not damned low enough!”

“Easy there, Soarin,” Filthy Rich said, “This was one of the worst attacks on a city I’ve seen in my lifetime. We’re lucky it turned out as well as it did.”

“Captain Sweet Cider!”

She turned from giving the Quincy a wandering stare to see both Lieutenant Silver Star and Lieutenant Posey approaching at a swift pace across the park. Both were injured to one degree or another, but neither seriously. Both also had their Zanpaktou in their Shikai states, which in Posey’s case somewhat surprised Sweet Cider.

“Got yer sword workin’, Posey?” she asked, and the pink-haired Lieutenant came up short and gave a shy nod.

“Kyoki and I are, um, better, now. He’s learning to be a good boy.”

Sweet Cider cocked an eyebrow, but nodded, “Glad ta hear it. Hey, Filthy, Soarin,” they both looked at her and she made a point of sheathing her Zanpaktou, “Ya help us out. Don’t care ‘bout our peoples feud right now, so I’m just gonna say thanks.”

Soarin wore an expression of surprise and uncertainty, but Filthy Rich’s features broke into a smile, albeit a strained one.

“Don’t mention it. At least for today, we’re on the same side.”

“A fine sentiment,” said Silver Star, “But what ‘bout tomorrow?”

Filthy Rich shrugged, “That’ll be another day. For now, I must return to my tower. Soarin, I assume you’ll be trying to catch up with Miss Sparkle?”

“I’d better, because if anything happens to her, it’s anyone’s guess which member of her family will kill me, assuming His Majesty doesn’t do it first,” Soarin said, and gave the Soul Reapers one last, wary glance before leaping into the air and stepping across the city skyline.

Sweet Cider frowned, glancing sidelong at Filthy Rich as she asked, “What’re ya doin’ in yer fancy skyscraper that’s more important than goin’ to yer daughter?”

“There’s more than one way to protect one’s family, and what I’m doing is, honestly, none of your business,” Filthy Rich said with no rancor in his tone, but also no compromise as he bowed, “Take care of yourself, Sweet Cider. If we run into each other again, it’ll probably be less pleasant than this, but those are the breaks.”

As he left, Sweet Cider couldn’t help but notice just how stiff the man’s words had been, and the way his eyes had kept shifting towards the direction of Camp Everfree. It was obvious he was seriously worried about Diamond Tiara, and possibly more. She had no idea what he was going to be doing in his business tower, but clearly it had to be important if it was keeping him from rushing to his little girl’s side during an active crisis situation.

And considering that crisis, Sweet Cider focused for a moment to try and get a feel for the distant reiatsu signatures from Camp Everfree. The distance made it difficult, but she could surmise a few things; none of them good.

“Silver Star,” she said, “I’m leavin’ ya in charge here. Secure the city, help out any livin’ folk that ya can with Kido, an’ then hold here ‘till I get back.”

“You’re going to Camp Everfree,” Silver Star said, offering a salute, “Understood, Captain. I’ll make sure nothin’ else goes wrong here, in case them Hollows come back.”

“Wait,” Posey said, stepping forward, “I’m coming with you, Captain Sweet Cider.”

“I don’t need no escort,” Sweet Cider said, “An’ given what’s over there at the camp, I ain’t certain ya can do much ta help, Lieutenant.”

“You don’t know that,” Posey said, “I am one of the few people in the Eleventh Division trained in healing Kido. If there are injured over there, you’ll want my help... um, you know, if that’s okay?”

She’d started out sounding bold and confident, but it hadn’t taken long under Sweet Cider’s staring eyes for Posey to gulp and shrink back a bit. But Sweet Cider nodded, conceding that Posey had a point, “Guess yer right, havin’ ya along wouldn’t hurt none. Just make sure ta keep up, ya hear?”

Posey gave off a warm smile, saluting and nodding at the same time, her Zanpaktou seeming to buzz eagerly in her hand. With that, Sweet Cider left Silver Star to go regroup their troops, while she and Posey took the same general route Soarin did a moment earlier, jumping into the sky and flickering with rapid Flash Steps towards the direction of Camp Everfree.

As they moved, Sweet Cider’s senses continued to probe for information from the camp grounds, her eyes narrowing with concern.

I can hardly feel any o’ Luna’s reiatsu, an’ there’s a’ Hollow near her that’s strong. Did she lose, or is she still fightin’!? Horseapples, an’ Celestia’s still tanglin’ with a different Espada, an’ if I ain’t goin’ crazy, that fella’s gettin’ stronger by the minute fer some reason. Hmm... there’s AJ an’ her friends. Dang, they’re scattered all over the place! Bad tactics, girls! Least AJ’s spirit energy feels alright. She’s goin’ strong, atta girl. Huh... Starswirl’s fighthin’? The hecks goin’ on over there!?

It all felt like one giant mess to her senses, or to borrow one of Granny Smith’s phrases, ‘Nuttier than a squirrel’s outhouse’. The term ‘fubar’ also came to mind.

Her Zanpaktou grew warm in its sheath, and she felt the rising tension within Kizuna’s spirit which translated to a hot anger burning up from within her, one she knew wasn’t entirely natural. The heated thoughts of violence grazed her mind like grasping fingers, and she fought to keep them at bay. She was angry her daughters were in danger, angry that Hollows had struck at her hometown, and angry that Soul Society hadn’t sent more help during a clear attack on human lives.

Even knowing that some of that anger was due to the unstable nature of her Zanpaktou fused with her Fullbring didn’t do much to curtail it, but Sweet Cider wasn’t planning to lose control.

She was going to Camp Everfree, and she was going to sort this mess out.

----------

Within the protective wards that surrounded his shop, Discord might not have directly heard or seen the fighting taking place across the city, but he had most certainly been observing it. Not only had he used various surveillance devices to keep an eye on the action, he’d had Screwloose and Screw Ball out there, ensuring the safety of Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Applejack’s families. Given there were only two of them, that task would have been difficult by remaining simply on guard, so the pair had been given specific instructions.

The result was that Discord’s shop was rather full at the moment, the entirety of those families now resting, rather anxious and confused, in several adjoined rooms that Discord had removed the walls from in order to make large enough for everyone. Convincing Applejack’s Granny Smith and brother Big Macintosh had been fairly easy, given their understanding of things. The same applied to Pinkie Pie’s parents and sisters, who had already been to the shop once before. Rarity’s parents, Rainbow Dash’s father, and Fluttershy’s parents and brother had required more convincing, but with the city under clear crisis, and a few Hollows beaten by Screwloose and Screw Ball, even the most skeptic among the girl’s families were at least convinced to follow to the seeming safety of the shop.

Discord had explained things as best he could, but he’d been busy monitoring the fight in the city and keeping an eye out for Ditzy Doo’s return from Soul Society. Bringing them all up to speed on the whole story would have to wait... although he didn’t intend to sit on that for very long. His feared projections were coming to pass. Even before seeing her, he’d sensed the awakened power inside Maud Pie, and Screwloose and Screw Ball confirmed the girl’s capacity to take out several attacking Hollows with a set of spiked, stone knuckles created from her pet rock ‘Boulder’.

Fullbring is awakening in the ones who weren’t even exposed directly to magic. If I’m going to keep the families safe, they can’t be left ignorant. And if the girls are going to keep them safe, they need to know everything just in case... something happens to me and I can’t do it any longer.

Those were his thoughts as he stood on the front steps into his shop, waiting. He’d made a call not long after settling the families in, and was waiting for two people to show up. This whole situation involved them, too, and he more than suspected that they’d be on the move even if he hadn’t called them.

And with the likelihood of the Zero Division becoming directly involved themselves, soon, Discord was going to need every shred of help he could pull together. Even then, he wasn’t certain what the outcome of the next few hours were going to be. His right foot tapped upon the steps as his hand gripped the cane containing his Zanpaktou.

Hurry up, Ditzy, and don’t take any unnecessary chances. Not with Medley in Soul Society.

Medley might have been the youngest of the Zero Division, but that didn’t mean she was the least dangerous. Discord knew that woman’s mind was cagey at the best of times. He’d once thought she had a similar soft spot for humans that he had, but for all he knew that had been an act. Most the Zero Division he felt he had pinned down in terms of their minds, even Glory, who had frustrated him at the best of times. Medley was the only one he couldn’t really predict. Probably part of the reason Glory had sent her down to Soul Society instead of any of the others.

The wards sparked with the arrival of someone outside, and Discord tensed for a moment before he saw who was coming through, feeling his stress flood out of him to the point that he almost felt weak in the knees.

“Heya Discy!” said Ditzy Doo, grinning in her cat form. She had a small bundle tied around her back, and she was riding upon the shoulder of one of two familiar faces that had come in with her, “Look who I ran into on my way in!”

“Discord, oh my, you look as if you’re about to pass out from stress,” said Holiday as she picked Ditzy off her shoulder and set the cat down, the Bount woman placing a hand on her hip as she cast an understanding gaze towards him. “Not that I don’t get it. It’s pandemonium out there. All those people getting hurt...”

Holiday shook her head, and beside her Lofty placed a comforting hand on the other woman’s shoulder, her own eyes glassy with remembrance. “Gives me the willies, how much this feels like being back in the Bount Purge. Too many Soul Reapers about. I’m just glad none of them senses us coming in. We’re taking a lot of risks, coming here.”

“There’s no choice, Lofty,” Holiday replied, squeezing Lofty’s hand gently, “Scootaloo’s in danger, and if what Discord said is true, it’s not safe to hide near Canterlot City anymore.”

Discord slipped from the stairs with smooth steps, sighing heavily as he knelt down to pat Ditzy’s cat form as he said, “I’m sorry it’s come to this, Lofty, Holiday. I’ve done my best to help keep your presence in the area hidden, but Canterlot City is too hot, now. After today, I might have to move this entire shop elsewhere. I appreciate you both coming.”

He unsecured the tied up bundle from Ditzy’s back, and examined it, feeling the object within. He cast an uncertain look at Ditzy, “You’re sure you weren’t followed?”

The cat rolled it’s shoulders, stretching herself out, “As sure as I can be, but it’s Medley we’re talking about, so who knows? I would’ve expected her to try and stop me at the Senkaimon Gate, if she was going to pull anything at all. I’m not going to waste time worrying about it, though, when we’ve got a more immediate crisis on our hands. Is Derpy okay?”

Discord gulped a bit at the raw intensity that came off of Ditzy’s golden, feline eyes, and quickly replied, “She’s okay...ish.”

“Ish?” Ditzy drew out in a frightening purr.

“There may be a bit of an intense battle taking place, uh, pretty much all around her location,” Discord replied, shaking a vague hand, “A few Espada here, a few Captains there, sprinkle on a few Quincy and a horde of magical monsters, Sunset and the girls caught between it all, you know... stuff.”

After a stretched out moment of silence, Ditzy Doo said, “I’m going to go check on her.”

“Ditzy, wait,” Discord said to the feline, who was already turning around. Ditzy paused, if only for a moment. Discord kept his voice as calmly soothing as possible, “You know if we make a ruckus at the wrong moment, it’ll cause trouble. We’re going, rest assured. That’s why Lofty and Holiday are here. But we have to play this smart.”

“It’s my daughter, Discy. Time Turner stays out of her life to protect her, and I keep so much from her for the same reason. But if she’s in the middle of all of this, I’m not pussyfooting around any more...” the cat changed shape, flowing into the unclad human form of Ditzy Doo, although her fierce expression somehow made her seem all but geared for war despite the bare skin. “If I have to act to protect her, don’t think I won’t, even if it brings the whole damn Gotei 13 and Zero Division down on our heads.”

Discord provided a solemn nod and held up the bundle in his hand, “All things considered, we seem to be on a collision course with that unavoidable point anyway. All I ask is that you wait for my signal on when to make our move. Now, Holiday, Lofty, I imagine you might be a tad confused-”

Lofty rolled her eyes with a snort, “It’s you, Discord. I’m not surprised everything is steamrolling towards craziness. Just tells us what we need to do to get our niece and her friends out of the frying pan.”

“For now, come inside and let me introduce you to some other individuals who are in a similar boat to yourselves,” said Discord, “And Ditzy can get some actual clothes on.”

Author's Notes:

It's possible Twilight may have underestimated Starswirl a tad. We'll see how that turns out, along with a Quincy assassin on the loose. And with an angry, incoming Sweet Cider rushing towards the fray, its a fair bet things are going to get even more hectic.

Now, before I close this out, I'm going to plug a new story of mine, if you'll all indulge me: Hunters and Hollows. What is it, you may ask? Well, it's a crossover, but not just any crossover, but one between this very story, Friendship Souls, and another story on this site. The Bridge, a Godzilla x MLP story written by Tarbtano. The story played a role in inspiring me to write Friendship Souls, and is among my favorite story's here on FimFiction. Now while I highly recommend checking The Bridge out, Hunters and Hollows is written in such a way that you shouldn't require any prior knowledge to read it. It's currently incomplete, but I intend to update it as regularly as I can, and it isn't necessarily a long story (well, compared to it's source fics at least), so I estimate it'll be around ten chapters give or take.

So give it look if you wish, I'd be happy to hear your folks thoughts on it.

In the meantime, thank you all for reading the continued shenanigans of Sunset and her friends, and as always I highly appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time.

Episode 109: Desperate Times

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Episode 109: Desperate Times

Miles eastward from Camp Everfree the sky was rocked by a clash of steel, breaking through clouds that hung close to the peaks of a small mountain range that ran north to south. The vibrations from the collision of blades caused snow to break from loose portions of the mountain peaks, resulting in an avalanche, yet this fact was hardly noticed by the combatants themselves.

Captain Celestia was unwounded and wasn’t even particularly breathing hard, yet. Her opponent on the other hand was clearly hard pressed, his brown, leather cracked skin showing half a dozen bleeding cuts through his white clothing. Grogar was breathing much harder as well, clearly exerting himself substantially more than the Soul Reaper was, just fending off her twin blades.

However despite this fact, Celestia detected no fear in the Eight Espada’s eyes. If anything, his expression looked as calculating and in control as ever, regardless of how hard she was pressing him or how many wounds she’d scored. Being no one’s fool, Celestia hadn’t relaxed her guard for even a split second during this fight. She knew she was more powerful than Grogar in almost every category. It should have been obvious from the start that without a backup plan, a hidden trick up his sleeve, or even releasing his Zanpaktou from the very start that Grogar wouldn’t be able to defeat her.

In terms of power, Celestia knew she only really ranked below a few of her fellow Captains, with her only major weakness being that she detesting having to release her Zanpaktou’s full power if there was any chance it might harm innocent lives. That was the primary reason she targeted Grogar and worked to drive him this far away from Camp Everfree. Near this mountain range, she’d be able to unleash her full power, if need be, without as much fear of harming anyone she didn’t mean to.

But now she was concerned that was a mistake. Grogar’s unflagging confidence gave her a sinking feeling that being at this distance somehow benefited him as well. Then of course there was that red gem inside his Hollow hole. Celestia didn’t need to press her critical thinking skills very hard to surmise that gem was a copy of the siren gem Adagio and her sister’s possessed. What function it served she wasn’t certain, but she’d noticed throughout their fight so far that the gem would keep pulsating at odd intervals.

“You’re wondering about this marvelous invention of mine?” Grogar asked in between their blades clashing. Celestia had been pressing the offensive, her swords crossing both low and high to offset Grogar’s defense. He was forced to make an awkward dodge while blocking the higher striking blade, taking another wound on his left leg as he hopped away from her.

“I imagine Starswirl will be thrilled to analyze it after I retrieve it from your remains,” Celestia replied casually, not wanting to rise to Grogar’s bait. The air cracked with the speed of her motions as she rushed in, zipping from side to side in a dazzling blur as she spun into whirrling set of slashes.

“Urg!” Grogar was struck hard, having to brace his sword with his free arm to absorb the blow that still cut a bloody line across his chest and sent him flying down into the mountain slope. Shaking off snow, he stood and gave off a self-satisfied smile.

“Why don’t you release your Shikai at least, dear Captain? These cuts aren’t going to be enough to kill me, and your sister seems to be in danger, so how long can you afford to toy with an old Hollow like me?”

Celestia kept the consternation off her otherwise placid features. She had been keeping a close watch on how her sister was faring against Adagio, monitoring the respecting combatant’s reiatsu. Sadly, Grogar was right, Luna’s reiatsu had faded greatly after an all too familiar spike that left Celestia fearful for her sister.

She still can’t control that bestial form we inherited from our mothers. I don’t think Adagio will kill her, but if Luna’s lost, that still puts her in a vulnerable position.

Celestia had already largely pieced together what was going on, here. Adagio was seeking to rescue the Arrancar girl, Ember, that Luna had taken during the Quincy assault on Las Noches. Somehow she’d forged some manner of alliance with Twilight Sparkle to accomplish this task, and roped in Sunset Shimmer and the other Canterlot High girls to help.

It’d pained Celestia to a degree that Sunset hadn’t just come to her with this information, but she understood why Sunset would have kept it secret. It wasn’t a lack of trust, but likely to avoid causing Celestia any further trouble. After all, if Celestia had decided to help in some fashion it might have caused a rift with Soul Society. Celestia could well imagine the difficulty she might have faced in trying to negotiate some kind of bargain for Ember’s release, and there would have been an even greater challenge and risk in trying to indirectly aid the rescue.

The girls wanted to solve this problem themselves, and avoid any dangerous complications. Unfortunately with so many unknown variables in play, it was inevitable that plan wouldn’t go smoothly. Now Celestia couldn’t be sure what Adagio might do with her defeated sister, or what was happening between Starswirl and Twilight Sparkle. She could sense that fight as well, but it was only heating up, and nowhere near a conclusion.

Then there were other factors to consider, such as the rapidly approaching Captain Sweet Cider, and that mysterious Kraken. Celestia hadn’t forgotten that creature was out there, and likely doing something nefarious. On top of that, the presence of so many magical creatures from Equestria targeting Camp Everfree was a serious concern. Were they there solely because of Starswirl’s experiments with the portal going awry? Or could they be linked to the Kraken somehow?

At the moment her main concern was dealing with Grogar, and hoping that Luna could still manage to fend for herself in the meantime. As long as the Eight Espada was in front of her, there was little else Celestia could focus on.

“It’s true my sister is in a tight spot,” Celestia admitted, inverting her grip on her Zanpaktou and using an index finger to trace a symbol of light in the air, “But I’m not convinced I need my Shikai to deal with you, Grogar, and you seem a bit too eager for it for my taste.”

The sigil of soft gold light began to sizzle with arcs of power, a set of nine additional smaller kanji symbols forming around the central one as Celestia invoked the Kido.

”Hado Number Eighty Three: Shori no Kiheitai!” (Triumphant Cavalry Charge)

From the sigil of light spawned a set of glowing golden gates, which upon flinging open emerged a line of ethereal horsemen. Dressed in armor akin to samurai, and carrying long naginata-style spears, the calvary of translucent gold light lowered their weapons and kicked their mounts into a charge straight at Grogar. Moving much faster than any mortal calvary could, the horsemen turned into streaks of light, raining down upon the Espada.

Grogar scoffed and threw himself backwards up the mountain with Sonido. This avoided several horsemen who lanced into the ground, and proceeded to detonate like living bombs. Others veered in time to chase Grogar up the snow-covered slope, homing in like missiles. With a glare, Grogar aimed his free hand and charged a crackling sphere of green and black energy. With several rapid burps of static noise, he fired well aimed Balas at the Kido spawned cavalry chasing him.

Each Bala that struck a horseman detonated it prematurely, lining the mountain slope with a series of golden explosions.

However the last horseman broke through Grogar’s barrage and slammed it’s lance right into the Espada himself, engulfing him in a blast of gold light. Celestia, not one to toss aside an opening, used Flash Step to rush down towards the explosion, swords poised to cut down the ancient Arrancar while he recovered from the Kido’s explosion.

Instead, just as she was ready to strike, a streak of motion rushed out of the smoke and falling snow faster than she’d ever expected and Celestia was forced into an off balance parry. Her swords crossed, deflecting Grogar’s blade, but was off angle enough that the sword still cut a painful line across Celestia’s shoulder, spilling her blood to the snow.

Both opponents landed on the snowy slope, and Celestia glanced at Grogar with confusion, but without dropping her guard.

Grogar’s body was wrapped in red light, pulsating in time with the siren gem. As he turned to face her again, Celestia saw that the wounds she’d dealt him so far were swiftly closing up. His reiatsu was rising, climbing higher with each heart-like pulse from the false siren gem.

“A shame,” he said, “I hoped to catch you off guard and deal a more telling blow, but you really are among the strongest Soul Reapers, aren’t you, dear Celestia? Even releasing the gem’s stored power in a critical moment wasn’t enough to catch you with your drawers down.”

“I would appreciate it if you refrain from mentioning my drawers. Coming from you, it leaves a distinctly oily and disgusting feeling.”

“My apologies,” Grogar replied with a dry tone, “I have no actual interest in such things, and find it most regrettable that Hollow-kind hasn’t evolved beyond such banal things as biological reproduction. Now then, since my initial surprise has failed, there’s no reason for me to hold back on any of the additional power your Soul Reaper friends have been so generously help generate for me.”

“What do you mean by that?” Celestia asked, prepared to launch into an attack, but unable to help some level of curiosity as to what Grogar was talking about. She imagined the gem had some power to it, but how could her fellow Soul Reapers be helping him?

Grogar’s smile had a very self satisfied twist to it as the siren gem pulsated again, unleashing streams of spiritual energy throughout his body. “Siren gems are incredible batteries of energy, and designed to siphon off power from various sources. Magic generated by different emotions, originally, but Adagio’s mutated when she became a Hollow. This gem is a manufactured copy of that mutation, but with several key alterations and refinements of my own. One of these alterations is the ability to absorb power from other Hollows who have been branded with the gem’s spiritual signature, an idea I got from a certain Privaron Espada who possessed a similar ability. As a result, whenever certain Hollows I’ve branded are killed, the majority of their power flows into me. I’m sure you can guess the rest, yourself.”

His words put previous unknown factors into context. Celestia had assumed the Hollows she’d sensed attacking Canterlot City had been simply summoned by Grogar to be a distraction for Sweet Cider and the other Soul Reapers guarding the city. Now she realized that those Hollows must have been Grogar’s test subjects, altered to serve as additional power sources for him. That was why the fake siren gem had kept pulsating. Every Hollow Sweet Cider and her forces slew only added to Grogar’s strength. Now that he was releasing that power, Celestia could sense that while it was a substantial increase, it wasn’t nearly enough for Grogar to be so confident while facing her.

He clearly had other tricks up his sleeve. Beyond that, with Sweet Cider’s reiatsu approaching, it was clear the Hollows attacking the city had already been defeated.

“While a despicable, if useful, bauble you’ve stolen from your experiments on Adagio, it doesn’t seem to have given you that much extra power, and with your army already depleted you won’t be getting more. As long as I finish you off now, you can’t garner any more robbed power.”

She was still hesitant to use her Shikai, given he seemed so eager for her to do so. However that in itself could be a ploy, trying to make her nervous about unleashing her full power. The only thing Celestia could be certain of was that the more this battle was prolonged, the more it served Grogar’s ends.

That being the case, she decided it was worth the risk.

Her body grew heated as steam-like curls of white reiatsu flowed off her. Celestia raised her Zanpaktou, the katana edges catching sunlight reflecting off the snow, and called out, ”Reduce the firmaments of creation to dust and consume the weeping ashes; Shinryu Taiyo!”

Grogar jumped up the slope as blinding river of white plasma erupted from Celestia’s blades, the pure white flames coiling upwards and unleashing a hellish heat upon the mountain slope. Snow boiled instantly to water, then vapor, for hundreds of meters in all directions. Snow covered trees swiftly burst into flames at the sweltering waves of heat washing over the mountain. The rock of the slope where Celestia stood bubbles to magma and began to run down the mountain in hissing rivers.

All the while Celestia’s Zanpaktou continued to billow upwards in a spiral of blinding sunfire that then split in twin nimbus of heavenly light and heat. They expanded until the gold and white scaled bodies of Shinryu Taiyo’s twin dragons took shape, casting their flaring blue eyes towards their Soul Reaper with eager divine fury. Their twin, feminine voices spoke as one, ”You call us again, and in the realm of mortals no less. What wretched soul deserves to feel the wrath of our judgment this day?”

“That would be the elderly Arrancar fleeing up the mountain,” Celestia responded, unable to keep some sweat from forming on her brow. While she gained a healthy dose of fire resistance with her Zanpaktou released, the unimaginable heat Shinryu Taiyo gave off still caused a bit of sweat, regardless.

Her dragons gave her an incredulous look as they cast glances back and forth between her and Grogar, who’d nearly reached the mountain peak.

”Him? Such an insignificant gnat?”

“His power might not be impressive to you, but rest assured his is a soul most deserving of your purifying flames, Shinryu Taiyo. I humbly request your aid in dispatching this foe.”

”Hmph, we suppose it cannot be helped. Rest assured, even gnats do not escape our gaze. Come, wielder, and let us judge the unworthy, dark soul that dares crawl under our light!”

Celestia nodded, and leaped up to stand atop the right dragon’s head as the pair turned and started flying up the mountain towards Grogar, leaving trails of melting rock and waves of steam in their wake.

At the mountain’s peak, Grogar watched the pair of celestial dragons flying towards him... and smirked.

So far almost everything had gone as he’d planned. Almost. There were still a number of variables he hadn’t been able to predict, but by and large this was all going quite well. Of course that did all hinge on this next phase of his plan actually working. Grogar preferred to have all factors of a situation under his complete control, but he couldn’t deny there was a certain thrill to experimentation in the field, where one couldn’t be certain of the results.

With the Shikai of what might be one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful flame-type Zanpaktou in existence bearing down on him, Grogar was risking more than just disappointment if this experiment failed.

Having already raised a hand, he fired off a modified Bala, a ‘flare’ much like the one he’d used before to signal his army of mutations to attack Canterlot City.

Celestia had only been half right in her assumption that all of Grogar’s forces had been depleted. They had been... from the half designated to attack the city. The rest? Well, they’d been waiting for this signal.

The air distorted as one, giant Garganta was torn open in the air above Grogar, spanning several hundred feet wide. From this Garganta poured out a contingent of Hollows, around fifty or sixty in number. What was unusual about them was that every single Hollow was nearly identical in shape, with only minor differences in size. They looked like floating pillbugs, their faces, including their original Hollow masks, covered by a steel control helmet shaped like a half-sphere covered in metal studs. Their bodies were armored with white chitin, and sprouted multiple grasping, insectile legs, but one could see traces of their previous Hollow bodies grafted inside these shells like imprints. On the back of each ‘pillbug’ Hollow was a semi-organic canister that released vapor into the air from the extreme cold generated by them.

In fact the cold emanating from the entire army of pillbug Hollows was such that the mountain peak, which was starting to melt with the approach of Shinryu Taiyo, started to freeze over again.

“I hope you enjoy my ‘Extinguisher Squadron’, Celestia!” Grogar said, “I crafted them just for you and your lovely dragons!”

With a gesture, Grogar pointed at the oncoming Shinryu Taiyo, and the ‘Extinguisher Squadron’ responded instantly to the command. With baleful howls belying no will outside that Grogar’s programming gave them, including stripping all fear from the poor Hollow experiments, they all flew towards Celestia and her released Zanpaktou in a seething mass.

“Be careful,” Celestia told her Zanpaktou, “Burn them from a distance rather than let them strike you!”

”We are not fearful of bugs!” her Zanpaktou roared, filling Celestia with frustration. Why was her Zanpaktou always so difficult!? Of course she knew the reason. It was the same reason Luna struggled with her own. The heritage of the Beast Realm affected both sisters’ Zanpaktou, making the weapon spirits far more unruly than they should be. Luna’s wolf spirit could become utterly bloodthirsty, and Celestia’s dragon spirit was naturally arrogant beyond measure.

Both had long trained to control their Zanpaktou, and Celestia’s control was better than Luna’s, but if she was being honest, it wasn’t by much.

She steeled her will and focused on her Zanpaktou, sensing the raw heat of the twin spirits that burned with indignation at facing what appeared to be paltry foes unworthy of their time. Celestia combated that arrogance with her own unyielding conviction, pushing back and taking the spiritual reigns, so to speak.

Shinryu Taiyo’s headlong charge at the army of pillbug Hollows became a sudden, sharp upward climb. Both dragons roared and unleashed jets of blindingly bright plasma from their maws, striking the lead pillbugs within less than a dozen meters. The modified Hollows exploded, but not in flames, but rather sudden unbelievably cold bursts of temperatures so low that even the magma rivers Shinryu Taiyo left behind cooled instantly.

Elements of frost even touched the edges of the dragon’s bodies as they flew up, and both hissed in pain from the steam that rushed off them from the clash of cold and heat.

“Do you now see?” Celestia said chidingly, “Do not underestimate our opponent. Grogar has crafted this monstrosities specifically to counter us. Charging in blindly is a certain path to defeat.”

”Hmph, very well, wielder, we take your point. We shall dispatch these nuisances from a distance, then exact punishment on the vile creature that created them!”

Both dragons climbed higher into the sky, the Extinguishers giving chase. The dragons were faster, it seemed, but Celestia wasn’t relaxing her guard just yet. Not only had she lost track of Grogar’s position, but she was getting a sinking premonition that she was playing into his hands. Shinryu Taiyo were both moving in tandem with each other, outpacing any earthly fighter jet in terms of speed and maneuverability manyfold. The Extinguishers followed like a swarm of hornets, but the distance was widening, and both divine dragons began to unleash their firepower upon the horde of modified Hollows.

Rather than focused jets of sun-like plasma from their mouths, Shinryu Taiyo turned around both at the same time, snapping their wings out. Sunfire dripped from those wings in molten streams, and then with concentrated sweeps of their wings, the dragons unleashed a storm of sun darts into the advancing swarm. Each dart was like a white lance so hot that rock and steel would evaporate at it’s touch, and the beat of the dragon’s wings created a storm of several hundred of these per wing.

The Extinguishers were hammered by these lances. They were amazingly maneuverable themselves, and the modified Hollows shifted rapidly through the storm, but even so dozens were struck by the sunfire lances. Each time one was hit, it’s body would expand, deform, and explode in a massive burst of absolute zero cold and frost. Other Extinguishers were immune to this cold and kept on, and to Celestia’s practiced eye it looked like the survivors absorbed the cold from their fallen fellows, with the strange tanks on their backs getting larger.

“Shinryu Taiyo,” she called out, “Maneuver them back to the mountain peak. I’m going to bind them with Kido.”

”Nonsense! We can destroy these bugs handily!”

“They’re getting stronger with each one we slay!” Celestia snapped, “Destroy them all, and the final one may well explode with enough intensity to freeze the entire mountain, and us along with it! Now do as I say!”

As she got more fed up with her Zanpaktou’s rebellious attitude, the more her own beast heritage manifested, her eyes growing gold for a moment, with draconic slits for pupils. They returned to normal an instant later as she reasserted her own long-practiced self control, and Shinryu Taiyo obeyed her will. The twin dragons angled themselves into a sharp descent, shattering the sound barrier as they zoomed back towards the mountain peak. Behind them the Extinguishers followed in a howling mass, exuding enough cold to cause ice crystals to form in a falling mass behind them.

Celestia searched for Grogar’s reiatsu, concerned she couldn’t pin-point where he was, but at the same time she couldn’t ignore the Hollows dogging her and her Zanpaktou. If she could deal with this poor, mutated Hollows quickly enough, she might be able to catch Grogar before he enacted any further plans. And if worst truly came to worst, there was always Bankai...

As Shinryu Taiyo landed on the mountain peach, their mere presence started to melt the stone around them, making it look as if the mountain was something closer to a volcano ready to erupt. Celestia ignored that and looked above her. The Extinguishers were coming down in a straight line, putting themselves in perfect line for the Kido she intended to use.

Throwing her hands out to either side of her, she closed her eyes and curls of vibrant fire gathered in her palms. For this, she needed the full invocation.

”The heated bowels of the earth crack

Open the fateful, hungry jaws

Teeth gnash, screams echo, skin blisters

Rise and swallow the foolhardy intruders!”

The flames coiled into two orbs in her palms, that Celestia then raised above her head and merged together into one blazing mass.

”Bakudo Number Ninety Five: Kyojin-hi no Kaimen-jo no Kuchi!” (Cavernous Maw of the Fire Titan)

In an explosive flare, the fire orb exploded upward and grew into the shape of the massive, flaming head of a twin horned ogre. The gigantic head blazed upwards, it’s mouth opening to an unnaturally large size. The Extinguishers couldn’t stop in time, tumbling into the rising mouth of fire like moths to the proverbial flame, and the Kido was more than big enough to accommodate all of them as it snapped its mouth shut, imprisoning them inside it’s heated depths. This particular Kido was among the strongest binding spells Celestia knew, and she was betting on it’s heated interior being enough to withstand, or at least severely weaken, the freezing explosion when the Extinguishers detonated.

She saw the flaming ogre’s head shutter as the modified Hollows did exactly that, bursting one after another inside the burning interior of the Kido.

“Shinryu Taiyo, add your flames to it!” she commanded, and the dragons eagerly obeyed, both spraying forth focused beams of raw plasma that smashed into the ogre’s head.

As Celestia had predicted, the fire-based Kido weakened the cold explosions. The ogre’s head still froze over, and a torrent of frost and unbelievable cold still poured out, but it was lessened, and with Shinryu Taiyo firing their dual plasma beams into that weakened cold, it was enough to prevent that wave of frost from overwhelming the Zanpaktou or freezing over the mountain.

In the end the peak was still covered in frost, and Shinryu Taiyo were steaming from the cold assaulting their heated scales, but the damage was minimal and the Extinguishers were now all gone.

Celestia would have felt better about the fact if not for one glaring issue... she couldn't see Grogar anywhere, nor sense his reiatsu. She doubted he had anything close to her sister’s kill in stealth, but he was still likely suppressing his reiatsu well enough to make it difficult to pinpoint him without a detailed search. It was also possible that the bastard had invented a device to cloak himself.

The real question was if he’d fled, or if he was still hiding nearby.

----------

Around Camp Everfree itself the harsh sounds of battle rattled the relatively thin walls of the buildings. The students taking refuge inside the camp center were doing their best to remain calm. None of the students were foolish enough to go rushing outside, but that didn’t mean they were all idle either. Lyra Heartstrings was on standby with one of the camp’s medical kits, and was tending to the wounded from the hike, assisted by Derpy who seemed fairly knowledgeable about basic first aid. Chappy, whom at this point everyone had more or less figured out wasn’t Sunset Shimmer but was someone Sunset needed to control her body while she was out Soul Reapering, was helping Bulk Biceps grab shelves or unused desks to barricade the windows and the back door. Bon Bon was at the one window the group was keeping clear to allow for monitoring the fight outside.

Timber Spruce was laying on one of the tables so his leg could be bandaged up. He’d fidgeted about having to take his pants off so Derpy could see the wound, but she seemed immune to his protests or any embarrassment at seeing him in his boxers. The burns on his leg were painful, but not crippling, but also a bit beyond what a first aid kit could handle beyond wrapping them up.

“Is my sister still out there?” Timber asked, teeth clenched past the pain. Derpy blinked and cast a look towards one of the windows next to the front doors, where Bon Bon was keeping tabs on the fight.

“Oh she’s out there alright,” Bon Bon reported, “Doing her best Poison Ivy impression, too. I’m getting some amazing footage, here.”

The girl had her cell phone out, recording away. To be fair, so were a number of other students, who knew this kind of thing was not uncommon at this point for Canterlot High. Given the danger of the situation, most knew bringing in actual police or medical services was a no go. On top of that, several students had checked the news on their phones to discover Canterlot City was in a state of emergency. Whatever was going on, it was affecting more than just Camp Everfree.

Timbre looked on helplessly, hoping his sister would be okay, and equally hoping for the safety of everyone in the camp. It was maddening to see his home under assault, and innocent campers who’d come here to have a good time now being threatened by the insane dangers that a few weeks ago Timber had never even known existed.

He wished his sister had never found those geodes. He still didn’t know what had possessed her to go wandering in that part of the forest in the first place. Sure, Gloriosa liked to hike even more than he did, and knew the back trails and hidden pathways through Everfree better than anyone alive, but Timber still couldn’t account for why she’d wander into that cave and would just happen to find a set gems with magical powers.

Had it really just been coincidence?

His thoughts turned to Twilight Sparkle. He had no idea where she was in this whole mess, but if her Quincy friends were here, helping protect the camp, then she had to be out there somewhere, right? What was she doing, while the rest of her team was here?

Further thoughts were interrupted by a heavy slam on the back of the camp center, rocking the entire wall and cracking the back door. Even the barricade of desks that had been built up there was knocked aside by the force of the impact. Campers shouted in alarm, and the three young girls who’d been watching the door all jumped back.

“Uh-oh!” said Sweetie Belle, “I think one of those big crocs got around back!”

“Ya think!?” shouted Scootaloo, “If I could get to my scooter I could call for Alerion.”

“Where’d ya leave it?” asked Applebloom, already removing her pink hair ribbon and holding in her hand. Timber recalled seeing the kids using their own odd powers the other night, so he knew they could handle themselves, but it still tore at him to see three young girls prepared to fight while all he could do was lay there.

“It’s still by our tent,” Scootaloo groaned, “I’m not skilled enough to call him at a distance like my aunts can do with their Dolls. He has to be able to hear my voice.”

“There’s no way we’re risking going for the tent grounds,” said Silver Spoon, rising from her seat at one of the tables as another hefty impact shook the wall. Beside her Diamond Tiara was standing with a look of fear and apprehension on her face that battled with a clear desire to stay near her friend.

“W-what should I do, Silver Spoon? I’m, I’m supposed to be like you, right? A Quincy? H-how do I make a bow?”

“You can’t, right now,” said Silver Spoon, “It takes dedicated training, even with your pedigree giving you better potential than most. Just stay back for now, and let me and the Cutie Mark Crusaders handle this.”

“But I-” Diamond Tiara began to protest, but Silver Spoon held the other girl’s shoulder with a comforting grip.

“It’ll all be okay, Diamond. Trust me.”

Diamond tiara gulped, but nodded and moved back to take cover amid the other students, many of whom had grabbed up chairs or other objects for defense. Silver Spoon nodded before turning to the back door and joining the CMC there. She shook loose the Quincy cross around her wrist and called forth a blue bow of spirit energy just as Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both summoned their Fullbrings.

Many of the other students backed away, while Lyra kept working on the wounded.

With a rumbling, guttural hiss the snout of a Cragadile poked its way through the doorway, its wide jaws opening to snap at the nearest target; in this case Scootaloo. The girl might have been young, but she was athletic, nimble, and quite a bit stronger than her frame would suggest, so she had little trouble dodging backwards from the croc’s teeth.

Applebloom’s whip cracked out and struck the creature right between the eyes, dazing it and making it shake its head and shoulders back and forth. The movement only smashed open the hole where the back door had been wider, causing a ceiling beam to fall and smash one of the nearby tables, trapping one girl’s leg.

Derpy rushed to that girl’s side, and as Timber watched, to his astonishment, the slim blonde actually lifted the ceiling beam a few inches with one hand while grabbing the other girl with her free hand and was able to drag her clear. The girl, an unremarkable looking person with green skin and hair, mumbled something incoherent as Derpy carried her back towards Timber’s location.

Timber paid the girl little mind, almost as if she slid from his consciousness, as he stared at Derpy. “How did you lift that?”

“No time for questions. Keep an eye on her, would you?”

“Huh?” Timber had to almost force himself to realize the green skinned girl was still there, collapsed by the table with her knees curled up as she hyperventilated. She had a head wound that was dried up with matted blood, and Timber realized she probably needed more medical attention than he did. “Y-yeah! I’ll take care of her, but what about-”

“Cool, thanks!” Derpy said, and spun around to rush towards the door to the kitchen.

Meanwhile the Cragadile was still trying to shove its bulky body inside the building to get at all the tasty morsels inside, but was held back by Applebloom continuing to smack it upside the head with her while, while Silver Spoon fired off slow but precisely aimed arrows that struck its softer underbelly whenever it raised its head.

“Can’t that wand do anything?” Silver Spoon asked, jumping to the side as the croc smashed its head towards her.

“I’m trying!” said Sweetie Belle, having aimed her want at the creature and struck it with a silvery beam, which wasn’t having any apparent effect, “I don’t think it’ll work on something this big. It’s too huge to take inside.”

“Phrasing, Sweetie Belle, phrasing!” shouted Scootaloo, who’d grabbed a discarded chair to throw at the corc, “Besides your wand absorbed a whole tree! This thing isn’t bigger than a tree!”

“I think it’s different if it’s something alive. Uh, that and it feels like there’s something pushing back against my wand. I don’t know what to-” Sweetie Belle paused mid-sentence, her eyes locking onto the ceiling beam that had fallen down. “Hold on a sec!”

She turned her wand towards the ceiling beam and cast out the stream of glittery light towards it, engulfing the wooden beam and sucking it into the orb on her wand.

“Uh, how’s turning into that gonna help?” asked Applebloom, cracking her whip to keep the croc’s attention as it got one arm pulled into the widening hole in the wall.

“I’m not going to turn into it. My wand can expel stuff it absorbs. Watch!”

Sweetie Belle aimed her wand, and in a flash of light, the ceiling beam came flying out of the orb at remarkably high speed. It struck the Cragadile dead on, shoving the massive beast backwards. Silver Spoon and Applebloom capitalized on this and struck together, whip and bow both aiming for the same spot together as they slammed into the monster’s snout and managed bloody it.

“Perfect,” Scootaloo said, seeing the Cragadile had taken several steps back from the hole it’d ripped open in the wall. From somewhere in the camp center the girl had found a bull horn, one that both Gloriosa and Timber had used for organizing camp events. With it in hand, she rushed to the hole and raised the bull horn up, shouting into it.

”Alerion; Zeige Dich!”

The shout carried into the distance, through whether it reached her scooter or not was unknown. However, the Cragadile recovered it’s senses, and seeing the girl in front of it, hissed and charged forward. Scootaloo scrambled back, but was slower this time, her foot getting caught by the monster’s jaw. She yelped as she was yanked off her feet and dragged backwards.

Her friends moved to help her, but faster still was a grey blur that rushed past them and jumped out into the open.

Derpy, wielding a huge, cast iron frying pan, performed a surprisingly elegant front flip and landed right on top of the Cragadile’s snout. She then raised the frying pan with both hands and smashed it down atop the creature’s skull with enough force to make its eyes go cross and for the beast to flop to the ground in a stunned heap.

“Wow, um... thanks?” Scootaloo said, regaining her feet and gingerly checking her foot. She was lucky that it had been caught between the teeth, rather than impaled by any of them. It was sore and bruised, and she was pretty sure she’d twisted the ankle, but she could still walk.

“No problem, heheh!” Derpy replied with a happy chirp, twirling her frying pan while presiding over the fallen Cragadile with a pose akin to a knight having felled a dragon. “I knew all those self-defense lessons mom gave me would come in handy one day.”

“Self-defense techniques?” inquired Silver Spoon with incredulous eyes, “That doesn’t explain the half of it.”

“Ain’t no use wonderin’ ‘bout it now,” said Applebloom, “Git yerselves back inside ‘fore more o’ ‘em show up. We gotta figure out how ta barricade this hole!”

Just then the ground began to quake and rumble. The girls all looked around in confusion, but Silver Spoon’s perceptive eyes spotted the bulge in the ground beneath the Cargodile. She swiftly shouted, “Derpy, jump!”

Derpy was already moving, springing away like an expert acrobat. She was just in time, too, for the ground beneath the stunned Cragadile exploded upward in a tower of dirt and grass. The croc hissed and bellowed as something gigantic and worm-like grasped it in jaws that opened up in three portions, pink and discolored. Black tentacles shot out of the tooth laden maw and wrapped around the doomed Cragadile as it was dragged into the giant worm’s mouth, swallowed whole in a single gulp. Several black, orb shaped eyes turned to look at the camp center, the pinkish head sitting atop of a thick and gargantuan purple body swaying towards the building as it blocked out the sun.

“Whoa nelly...” Applebloom whispered in frightened awe, “Don’t suppose anybody’s got themselves a’ rocket launcher in their back pocket, do they?”

Her question was punctuated by the Taztlewurm opening its mouth and letting out a shrill, warbling roar.

----------

Glorisa was starting to let herself hope that they were getting the situation under control, despite how very much out of control things seemed to be. With the help of Sunny Flare, Indigo Zap, and Sugarcoat adding the power of their Quincy weaponry and alchemy to the mix, the onslaught of giant crocodile monsters was fast thinning out. It helped that Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie were so very capable, to the point where the pink menace was able to hold off three or four of the Cragadiles at the same time with powerful swings of that ludicrous hammer or Pinkamena herself lashing out with those disturbing mouths of hers.

Gloriosa was holding her own as well, albeit with some difficulty. She was in a mental state of continuous shock, and not just from the severity of combat. Not long ago, she’d witnessed the entire lake of Camp Everfree fly up into the sky as if controlled by some vast telekinetic force. The sky had become black as pitch across the span of the lake, and mere minutes after that a tornado of titanic water had smashed into the forest, ripping up huge swaths of trees. Gloriosa had frozen upon such sights, saved from being snapped up by a Cragadile only through intervention from Pinkamena. But Glorisoa couldn’t help it, she was seeing parts of her home being destroyed, piece by piece. She remembered being taken out on that lake by her parents, learning to fish or sail. Now the entire lake was an empty, muddy lakebed.

Even when she was able to focus on the fight, she was dealing with the strain of continuous magic use. She’d never tried calling upon the geodes magic to this degree before, and she could feel the strain on herself from doing so. It was like her spirit was a well that was being drained through a hose. She was creating thick pillars of vines and roots left and right, tying up Cragadile legs or wrapping their jaws shut, leaving them vulnerable to the Quincy’s attacks for Pinkamena to sweep away with her hammer.

The tactic was working, with Gloriosa at the center controlling and limited the monster’s movements while the others both circled her to protect her, and finish off the crocs she stopped, but Gloriosa was breathing heavily now. Her sunny yellow shirt was soaked through with sweat and her hair was matted around her face. She wasn’t sure how long she could keep this up, but it looked like most of the Cragadiles were down, save for one that had slipped behind the building.

“Huff... somebody... huff... go after that one... “ Gloriosa said, “Before it... it gets into the back door.”

“We’ll finish these ones off first,” Sugarcoat said, blasting an immobilized Cragadile in the eye with one well placed shot from her pearl colored bow, “You’re too tired to leave alone with any of these things still alive.”

“That won’t take long,” purred Pinkamena as she opened a massive, fang filled mouth along her left arm, which stretched out like taffy to engulf the head of another immobilized crock, “Mmmhmm, so satisfyingly crunchy! Pinkie, we’ve got to have crocodile more often.”

“Ewwwww, Mena. Don’t talk with your mouth full!”

“Pfft, I do what I want.”

Sunny Flare rolled her eyes, “It doesn’t matter. I think that was the last of them. Indigo and I can go finish off the one that got behind the building-”

They all felt the tremors in the ground, and looked at each other in bafflement.

“Anybody else feel that?” asked Indigo, just before there was a sound of erupting earth from the other side of the camp center. All of the girls could turn to see the sight of the gigantic pink and purple worm rearing up over the building, easily topping fifty feet.

Sugarcoat adjusted her visor much as she once did with her glasses, “Am I seeing this right? Is that a giant peni-”

The worm roared at something on the ground behind the building and dove its head down. They all heard screams and shouts from that side of the camp center. This forestalled any further questions and galvanized them all into action.

First, the Quincy girls all jumped up as one to reach the roof of the camp center, even as that roof shook under the impact of the Tatzlwurm. The trio split up as they fired their bows, aiming for the creature’s head. Indigo Zap was a tad slower, her artificial legs giving her trouble as she had to focus reishi into controlling them, but her electric laced arrows shocked the worm and caused it to briefly shake its head in confusion. Sunny Flare’s smaller darts didn’t inflict much damage, but she kept the barrage strong from both dart guns while Sugarcoat used Hirenkyaku to leap higher and aim a potent shot at the creature’s head.

The arrow struck and stuck in, but hardly seemed to slow the Tatzlwurm down as it roared and opened its mouth to shoot its black mouth tentacles at Sugarcoat. She zipped away with a swift dodge, but was caught by surprise as the tentacles turned and followed her, one of them catching her arm and yanking her towards the Tatzlwurm’s mouth.

Pinkamena jumped up, smacking the tongue with the Pinkie Hammer. There was a cartoonish stretching sound effect as the hammer’s impact pulled the tentacle down like a big rubber band, Sugarcoat somehow held in place on the other end like a cartoon that physics hadn’t caught up to yet. Then having pulled the tongue all the way down to the ground, Pinkamena snickered along with Pinkie Pie, removing the hammer and letting the tentacle snap back, which then struck the Tatzlwurm in the face with a loud whip crack.

It howled and let go of Sugarcoat, and then roared at Pinkamena and smashed it’s whole body towards her.

Seeing the danger to the camp center if the worm hit, Gloriosa reached out with one hand while grasping the geodes tightly with the other, pouring as much will as she could into what she was trying to do. The magic coursed through her, but something else was there to, like a yawning hole from which her desperation poured forth. She didn’t notice the way her eyes were being taken over by streaks of black, or that the crackling glow of magic from the gems was now tinged with red.

The camp center’s roof also glowed, green primarily, but with small arcs of red as the wood of the building shifted and grew under the magic Gloriosa poured into it. Around Pinkamena a network of interlocking vines grew, forming a protective dome that took the brunt of the Tatzlwurm’s blow. The wood and plant matter still broke and snapped under the monster’s powerful weight, but it bought Pinkamena time to get clear, and the Quincy girls an opening to fire another barrage of arrows to nettle the massive worm.

As Pinkamena landed back on the ground, she gave Gloriosa an odd look. Sensing her Fullbring’s mood, Pinkie asked, “What’s up, Mena? We’ve got a worm to whack! Stop staring at Glori just because her blouse is all soaked with sweat and she’s kinda showing.”

“It’s not that, you dolt. Just now, didn’t you feel it?”

“Feel what?”

“...Never mind.”

Firing off another arrow, Sugarcoat stood on the edge of the roof just above them, “Stop chattering and get everyone out of the building! It can’t take another hit like that!”

“Whoopsie, good point! Mena, let’s get everybody out!” Pinkie said, and Pinkamena didn’t argue, making a beeline for the front doors. She didn’t even need to bother, as those doors opened up and Lyra came out, carrying an injured Bon Bon, who looked as if she’d gotten a piece of wooden debris caught in her leg.

“Everybody out!” Lyra said, being followed by a steady stream of campers.

Inside it was possible to see that at the back of the camp center Applebloom was trying to do some damage to the Tatzlwurm with her whip, although the beast’s thick body was shrugging off the blows with seeming ease. Silver Spoon was doing the same with her bow, while waving everyone else back, including Sweetie Belle, Derpy, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara.

“Go! Me and Applebloom will escape out the back!” Silver Spoon shouted, and the others reluctantly obeyed, if only because there wasn’t much else they could do against this behemoth monster.

Gloriosa could see her brother bringing up the rear of the group, being helped by Derpy as they both carried a dazed girl between them, the same green haired girl with the brown shirt who had the head wound. There was a bit of a jam of people at the front doors, so it was taking a minute for everyone to get clear, and in the meantime the Tatzlwurm was flailing about to try and crush the tiny creatures buzzing around it.

Applebloom and Silver Spoon were forced to run past where the worm had emerged from the earth, leaving them more exposed in the open, but getting themselves clear of the monster’s body as it smashed the walls of the camp center. The Quincy were still trying to drive it back, but the Tatzlwurm was in a frenzy, ignoring the sting of their arrows for the moment. Pinkamena was helping yank people through the door.

Gloriosa feeling nearly drained, tried to bring up some more vines to wrap around the Tatzlwurm to restrain it, but it’s strength was immense and the vines snapped almost as fast as Gloriosa could summon them to wrap around the creature.

Then a piercing cry was heard and a huge, stone shape descending from the sky and slammed into the Tatzlwurm’s head with an impact that could be heard across the entire camp.

Alerion raked stone talons across the Tatzlwurm’s face and stabbed with his beak, drawing blood from the monster. The worm made a warbling cry and smashed its head back at the Doll, Alerion’s body of hardened, spiritually charged stone taking the blow well, but still knocking him to the ground. Alerion recovered fast, rolling up and spreading his wings to take to the air again. The Tatzlwurm disgorged its many black tongues, wrapping them around the Doll, and the two struggled back and forth, spiritually animated stone contesting against the might of a magical titan.

“Alerion, just bite the damn things!” Scootaloo shouted, having gotten a safe distance away with Silver Spoon, both girls standing by the entry arch into Camp Everfree.

“Brilliant idea, hatchling!” Alerion replied in a tone that made it difficult to tell if he was being sarcastic or not, but he did use his beak to savagely bite the tentacle tongues holding him. His stone beak severed one, then two in quick succession, green blood spurting from the wounds. The Tatzlwurm screamed, rearing back and letting go with it’s tongues. The motion was so violent it lost its balance and fell back towards the camp center.

Gloriosa’s heart jumped up her throat as she saw that colossal body falling towards the building. Most of the students were out, but her brother, Derpy, and the wounded girl were still just inside, a mere few steps from the doorway.

With a grunt of effort Gloriosa tried to raise a wall of roots to stop the Tatzlwurm’s fall, but it’s weight and momentum were too great. The roots shattered first, then the camp center’s roof. She saw Timber Spruce and Derpy make a dive for the doorway, carrying the unconscious girl with them. Then the whole building seemed to explode under the Tatzlwurm’s weight, a blast of debris and air pressure knocking everyone nearby over, including Gloriosa.

The air echoed with groans and coughs from dozens of students slowly getting back to their feet. Gloriosa felt dizzy as she did the same, turning shocked eyes towards the destroyed remains of the camp center. She looked around desperately, and spotted Derpy, Timber Spruce, and the unknown girl laying nearby. They must have just barely gotten clear in time, but her relief was short lived as Gloriosa saw blood seeping through Timber’s shirt from where a sharp chunk of wood debris had pierced his side like a javelin.

“Timber!”

She staggered over to him, falling to knees by his side, one hand over her mouth while the other hesitated over the chunk of wood. Pulling it out would be dangerous without having a way to stop the bleeding. Next to her, Derpy rolled over and sat up, coughing, then upon seeing the damage, swiftly leaped to her feet.

“Oh no! Where’s the first aid kit? Lyra!?”

“I-I’m coming!” Lyra shouted, rushing over, medical kit in hand. She looked between Timber Spruce and the girl with the brown shirt, who lay unconscious now. “I, uh... dang it what do I do?”

Gloriosa had already checked to make sure Timber was still breathing, and although she didn’t want to look away from her brother, she did the same with the unconscious girl. Both were still alive, but were in such bad shape she wouldn’t be surprised if that didn’t last very long. Internally she was in a state of absolute panic, but she didn’t have time to process those feelings, because a moment later the ruin of the camp center shifted.

Bursting upwards, the wounded Tatzlwurm roared, shaking its head as it homed in on the creatures below it. Now far more furious than it was hungry, all it wanted to do was smash everything around it. It began to do just that, rearing back to slam it’s body down on the dozens of helpless humans beneath it.

However, in that moment, something snapped inside Gloriosa.

Her home, all but in ruins. Her brother, bleeding out and possibly dying in front of her. Nameless beasts invading the forests she loved so much. Strange factions from a spirit world she’d never known existed fighting their war over the remains of her once peaceful life.

It was too much for her spirit to bear. There was also a font of powerful magic ready to react to the emotions boiling inside her... alongside another power that Gloriosa wasn’t aware was there, but had been waiting for just such an occasion of overwhelming negative emotions to properly bloom.

“No...MORE!”

Exhaustion be damned, she let the floodgates open on the geodes as much as she could, searing her senses with the magic that poured through her as she stood up and threw all of her rage, fear, and hate towards the Tatzlwurm. Her eyes became fully dark, the sclera turning coal black as her iris’ shifted to a burning yellow. Emerald colored magic flickered over her body, then exploded outward in a wave.

The ground burst upward beneath the Tatzlwurm as gigantic, thick roots almost as wide as it was rose around it. Sharp shorts, almost like blades, sprouted from the roots, each encased in emerald magic that was tinged along the ends with crimson red. The Tatzlwurm was caught by the roots, halting it’s slam instantly. The roots not only handled the Tatzlwurm’s weight, but the thorny blades upon the roots cut through its hide with ease, spraying green blood everywhere.

Gloriosa held her hands out like claws, her face a fearsome grimace, and she clenched her hands like she was squeezing something. The roots responded to her, squeezing the Tatzlwurm and wringing it like a wet towel. The Tatzlwurm shrieked and shook, but was held fast by the towering roots and their unnaturally sharp thorns.

Nearby, the Quincy girls all stared at Gloriosa in mute shock, and while they were hardly alone in doing this, those three, along with Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie, were sensing something else that was the root of their surprise.

“Sugarcoat, is that...?” Sunny Flare said, mouth agape.

Sugarcoat touched her visor, carefully examining the information the device was providing her, as it’s entire ability to allow her to see was based upon reading reishi particles. Even without the visor, she’d be able to sense the same thing the other spiritually aware people were.

“There’s no doubt. Hollow energy.”

“But how?” Indigo Zap said, “She’s a normal human!”

“Does that freaking look normal to you, Indigo!?” yelled Sunny Flare, gesturing at Gloriosa.

“Whoa! Glori! H-hey, you need to calm down!” shouted Pinkie Pie, her hammer form gaining a massive sweat drop as it wiggled in Pinkamena’s hands nervously, “There’s some seriously bad mojo coming off of you!”

“Oh relax,” Pinkamena said, “She’s dealing with the jolly pink sausage. Messily, too, which hey, extra points for style.”

The scene was cut rather mercifully short as Gloriosa wasn’t trying to draw things out, just get through the Tatzlwurm’s hide. Once she was able to sense the roots get through, she ended it as quick as she could with a sharp gesture that saw the roots swiftly saw their way through the beast entirely, leaving two severed halves to fall to either side of the camp center’s flattened remains.

The moment it was done, Gloriosa’s anger drained out of her, leaving a cold, sick feeling in its wake. The magic, however, wasn’t gone, and neither was this new, strange sensation of a chasm opening in her chest. This feeling was accompanied by a sensation of cold power in her limbs that somehow sat alongside her exhaustion and left her limbs numb. And inside her mind, she heard a voice.

”...You’re ready. Come to me.”

Gloriosa’s hearing faded, gaining a ringing sensation in her ears as she looked around, trying to find the voice. Her eyes were drawn towards Timber, and she raised a hand towards him. She had to help him. The voice spoke again.

”Bring him. I will save him. Together we will be whole.”

“-orisa? Gloriosa! Hey!”

Someone was shouting at her. Out of the corner of her eye she could see that more people had arrived. Sunset Shimmer, Rarity, and Fluttershy were all here. Strange, they didn’t look like Gloriosa remembered, with Sunset Shimmer in black robes, carrying a flaming sword and bright glowing shield, or Rarity in that crystalline red dress, or Fluttershy shining like a gold spirit surrounded by a halo.

Yet for some reason them shouting at her, or any of the events around her felt so much more distant. All that mattered was saving Timber, and finding the voice. She could feel it, down beneath the earth. She had to go to it. She had to bring Timber to it.

”Yes. Come now, swiftly. No one else can help but me, once we’re whole.”

Gloriosa couldn’t ignore the voice. It was as if it had a grip of thorns on her heart, yet that grip felt like it had always been there, even before she’d found the geodes.

”Because you’ve always been mine, child. Your family has carried the seed I’ve planted for generations. Now, it’s time for the seed to return to me.”

Sunset was suddenly in front of her, grabbing her arm. Gloriosa could see the fear and concern flaring across Sunset’s eyes, and the girl’s grip on Gloriosa’s arm was strong. Sunset’s mouth was moving but it was as if her voice was coming from very, very far away.

“...an you hear me? You’ve got to... Hollow inside...”

To the side, she could see Fluttershy moving towards Timber Spruce, and the voice all but screamed inside her head with the force of a typhoon.

”They’re going to keep you from bringing him to me! If that happens, I can’t heal him! Come to me, NOW!”

Glorisa was confused. Her mind felt like it was wrapped up in thorny vines, much like the kind she’d created with her magic. Fear and anger flared up again as she saw Fluttershy reaching for Timber. Magic, and more of that dark power from her core, flared up and she swept her arms out, throwing Sunset away from her.

“Get away from him! Get away from us! Leave my home alone!”

She had to escape. Escape with Timbre. Find the voice. Roots ripped themselves from the ground, lashing around her and Timber. Fluttershy glided back with shocking grace, her expression hurt and worried. Sunset cut some of the roots away with her flaming sword, but by then Gloriosa had thrown herself over Timber.

Her whole body felt cold, yet it was an empowering cold. In fact she was feeling stronger by the second. She didn’t notice the way a thick, white substance was forming in the air around her face, and slowly plastering it over the left side of her features in the form of a partial, bone-white mask. A mask of a beautiful woman bearing wicked fangs and a crown of thorns.

”I’m close. Beneath the earth. Come...”

The voice beckoned, and Gloriosa followed. Roots formed a cocoon around her and Timber and they both sank into the deep, dark ground.

----------

“DAMMIT!”

Sunset knelt by the hole in the ground where Gloriosa and Timber Spruce had just been, looking down into the depths as her frustrated shout echoed down the shaft. She couldn’t even tell how deep the pair had gone, and couldn’t see them anymore. Sunset’s brain was muddled with equal parts confusion, fear, and regret. How had things gotten so out of hand!?

It was bad enough that there was a mysterious Quincy assassin running around. It was bad enough that she had no idea if Twilight and Adagio’s plan was succeeding or not. Bad enough monsters from her home world were appearing here on Earth and terrorizing people.

Now Gloriosa was out of control, channeling far more energy from those mysterious geodes than she should be able to, and to top it off she had a Hollow inside her!? Or at least, it sure felt that way, from the reiatsu Sunset felt when she’d arrived on the scene. She and Rarity had been rushing to the camp as fast as they could. Fluttershy, surprisingly, caught up with them with little trouble, saying she’d left Gilda and Smooze in a safe place along with the still unconscious Lemon Zest.

Sunset was a tad worried about leaving those two Hollows alone like that, but Fluttershy seemed to believe things were okay, and Sunset was inclined to believe her friend on the matter. Besides, they’d just gained another fish to fry.

“I don’t believe what I saw,” Rarity said, shaking her head, “It’s just like with Ditzy Doo or Starlight Glimmer. Those eyes, the mask... but how?”

“Was asking the same question a minute ago,” said Indigo Zap.

“It doesn’t matter right now,” Sugarcoat replied in her usual, frank manner. “We can’t let her just run off like that. Our job is still to protect human life, and right now she still counts.”

“Oh my, and she took her brother with her, and he looked very hurt,” Fluttershy said, hanging her head, “If she’d just let me near him, I could have healed his wound in just a few seconds.”

Sunset took a deep breath, letting it out slow as she forced herself to think clearly, “You still can, once I go get him back. Right now, there’s injured here that need your help.” She gestured at the girl nearby with the obvious head wound. “Take care of her first, then anyone else who’s hurt, Fluttershy. Rarity, Pinkamena, Pinkie, guard the camp.”

“Wait, what about Rainbow Dash and Applejack? Weren’t we going to go help them?” Rarity asked.

“They’ll have to hold out on their own for now. This just shifted our priorities,” Sunset said, and Pinkamena walked over, hefting Pinkie’s hammer form over her shoulder.

“You’re planning to hop down that hole after the crazy lady, aren’t you?” Pinkamena said, licking her lips.

“I can’t just let her go while she’s like that. I need to bring her back, along with her brother.”

“Oooh, that’ll be super dangerous,” Pinkie Pie said, her hammer head drooping, “Can’t we come with you?”

“I need you guys to protect everybody up here,” Sunset said, turning a reassuring smile towards her friends, “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. I’ll be back soon, with Gloriosa and Timbre. Just keep everyone safe in the meantime.”

“You can count on us, Sunset,” Fluttershy said, already kneeling next to the unconscious girl with the brown shirt, laying her hand upon the girl and suffusing her injured body with a radiant golden glow. Sunset saw the girl’s head wound close up smoothly, and the girl even began to stir, murmuring.

Sunset nodded, knowing she was leaving the camp in good hands. Giving them all a final nod, Sunset jumped down the hole into the earth, wondering just what she would find down there when she caught up with Gloriosa Daisy.

----------

“Hah... hah... that’s thirty nine...” Applejack said, her gauntlets and leg armor steaming from the number of blasts they’d unleashed in fighting what appeared to be a near endless horde of monsters that kept swarming out of the Everfree’s depths. At her feet were the broken remains of wooden wolves, several of the scorpion cats, and a new set of enemies in the form of giant, rock covered crocodiles.

Rainbow Dash was flying above Applejack, her energy wings providing a steady rain of lightning bolts that broke up the horde and kept it from amazing too much to surround Applejack. At the same time, Rainbow Dash was fully engaged with the six armed bug bear, which while badly wounded was still doggedly pressing both girls with its own continuous magical attacks.

“Hey! No fair counting while I’m busy keeping this jerk off of you!” Rainbow Dash complained, dodging a set of green, flaming spheres the bug bear threw at her. She wasn’t having trouble evading the attacks, but the spell was homing in nature, so the flaming spheres kept chasing her. Since the bug bear kept throwing more and more of them it left Dash flying about like she was being chased by a swarm of giant, angry fireflies.

“Don’t ya worry Dash, I’ve been keepin’ track o’ the one’s you’ve fried down here, too,” Applejack said, making a sharp spin as she kicked out with her right leg and sent a heel blast to take out another group of the wolven plant creatures that were trying to circle around her. “You’re up ta forty, by the by!”

“Cool, that means- waitasec, I got way more than that before you even showed up!”

Rainbow Dash turned into a bolt of cobalt speed as she rushed the bug bear. Her lightning spear made a cracking sound like a chorus of thunder as it assaulted the flying beast with powerful thrusts. The bug bear’s speed was utterly insufficient for evading Rainbow’s supremely swift strikes, so it had to rely entirely on the formation of a magical shield to protect itself. It’s one advantage was that it’s six arms let it weave six different spells simultaneously, so it could form it’s shield, maintain the homing fire spheres, and retaliate with a new spell in the form of a cone of black acid that shot out like spray from a hose.

Rainbow Dash’s shear speed let her vanish right out of the cone of acid’s path and while an afterimage of her was still left in place, she hammered the bug bear’s shield from multiple directions at once. To an observer it would appear as if at least twenty or so Dash’s were stabbing her spear into the shell of protective green magic all at once. The barrier cracked like a thin wafer under the blitzing attacks, but the bug bear was already teleporting away with another spell, while the homing spheres of fire it’d cast earlier caught up and swarmed through the spot it’d just occupied. Rainbow spun her spear in an electric blur, forming the equivalent of a solid disc of lightning power in front of her that deflecting the emerald spheres of flame.

Glancing at the ground, Rainbow Dash could see Applejack was holding the line still, but as she watched something strange happened. The horde of monsters had slowed down their advance, and were now slowly coming to a stop, or in other cases backing away. Had they finally had enough? Spotting the bug bear, Dash saw that it had teleported back towards the tree line and was hovering just above the forest a good distance away.

“What n’ tarnation are they doin’ now?” Applejack asked as Rainbow Dash landed next to her.

“Dunno. Maybe they’re just tired of getting their butts kicked by the two most awesome gals in Canterlot City?” Dash suggested with a smirk, holding out a fist. Applejack rolled her eyes but shared the smile and touched a gauntlet to Dash’s fist.

“Be nice if they’d had their fill o’ our boots up their kiesters, but knowin’ our luck I think they’re just catching their breath fer round two.”

As the pair watched, the majority of the monsters melted back into the woods, only leaving the bug bear behind. Rainbow Dash and Applejack shared a shrugging look, not at all sure what was going on. At least until the bug bear held out it’s six hands and started using them to form a particular large magical circle. With the formation of the circle, it flickered brighter, and then behind the bug bear a hole was torn in the air. The swirling blue portal opened tall and wide, even taller than the trees the bug bear was hovering over.

From the portal stomped a creature that dwarfed the trees around it. It’s body was somewhat reptilian, but thick and bulky well beyond what most lizards had. It stood on two stubby but hugely thick legs, and it’s wide body ended in a long, spiked tail at one end, and four necks that sprouted up to end in four independent heads. The heads had short snouts and wide, angled features, red spikes forming crests alongside otherwise swampy beige skin. Four sets of green eyes blinked at their surroundings, and one of the heads of the Hydra turned to the bug bear.

As Rainbow Dash and Applejack watched, the Hydra’s one head opened its mouth and... spoke? The language made no sense, it was purely garbled, guttural, and unintelligible to the two human girls, but the Hydra and bug bear exchanged words. The bug bear gestured at the girls, and looked genuinely fearful as he bowed its head to the Hydra before flying back through the very portal it had created. By the time the portal closed, the rest of the monstrous horde had vanished back into the Everfree forest, so only the massive four headed Hydra remained facing Rainbow Dash and Applejack.

“Uhhh, AJ, any clue what’s going on here?” Dash asked, “Because I’m a bit lost. Like, where did that thing even come from?”

“Yer askin’ me?” Applejack said, shrugging, “How the heck am I suppose ta know? What’s it even matter fer now? Whether it be a bunch o’ little critters, or one big four-headed critter, our job ain’t changed. We still keep ‘em from gettin’ close ta Camp Everfree.”

Episode 110: Desperate Measures

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Episode 110: Desperate Measures

The dank, darkness of the earth enveloped Sunset as she reached the bottom of the shaft that Gloriosa had dug. It reminded Sunset of a giant gopher burrow, with loose roots and dirt still hanging from the ceiling. She feared the tunnel could easily collapse, and just hoped it’d hold steady while she followed Gloriosa and Timber. She felt responsible for the pair. She’d told Gloriosa she’d help, that she’d make sure her home was protected. The entire point of Sunset and her friends working so hard to master the powers they had was so they could protect people like Gloriosa Daisy and Timber Spruce. Normal people, dragged into this seemingly ever more unnecessary war between the Soul Reapers, Quincy, and Hollows.

Sunset wasn’t naive. She knew it was a miracle no one had died yet here at the camp, and that said nothing for what damage might have been done to Canterlot City itself. It stuck a hot pool of anger to simmer in her gut, but she didn’t let it distract her from the task at hand. Her Zanpaktou was providing plenty of light, with Hokori’s blade flickering with ready flames, and Hikari providing a soft, steady pulse of white illumination. Sunset couldn’t afford to move too fast, in the narrow tunnel, but she was still able to Flash Step ahead at a steady clip until she reached an unusual end to the tunnel. Unusual, in that it opened up into a much larger tunnel that Sunset didn’t think Gloriosa had made.

Easily twice as wide around as the previous tunnel, this one ran crosswise and on Sunset’s right hand side the tunnel swiftly turned in a bend. More roots hung around the walls here, twisted together in thick, gnarled bunches that almost looked like natural support archways, as if intentionally constructed to keep the tunnel stable. The realization sent an eerie shiver down Sunset’s back. Had someone... built this place? Surely not Gloriosa herself. She’d only recently gotten her hands on those geodes and the magical powers that came with them. This tunnel felt much older, with a dry, dusty scent that spoke of centuries of age.

Sunset could sense Gloriosa’s spirit energy, however faintly, and could tell she’d gone down the bending path. She still wondered at the Hollow flavor to Gloriosa’s reiatsu. How had Gloriosa become infected with Hollow spirit energy? Was it truly identical to what Ditzy Doo and Starlight Glimmer had? But wouldn’t that have required the Hogyoku? Or at least something like it?

Not necessarily, she realized. For all the power she and her friends had gained, their actual knowledge of Hollows and their abilities was still limited to a handful of examples like Grand Fisher, who had possessed his own unique ability to mimic the souls of those he’d slain. It was entirely possible another Hollow might exist who had the power to embed their own energy inside a host. As similar as what had happened to Gloriosa appeared to the Hollowification process Ditzy and Starlight underwent, it wasn’t identical. Ditzy and Starlight manifested a full mask, under their own will. Gloriosa looked more like she was being taken over, like an infected wound.

Worse, Sunset suspected the magic Gloriosa had been using from the geodes had vastly accelerated the process. It was already clear to her and the girls that Equestrian magic fed into and amplified spiritual energies, be they Hollow based or otherwise. Indeed that synthesis went both ways, likely amplifying the magic as well. It was little wonder Gloriosa had become so powerful, so quickly. The amount of magic in those geodes was already incredibly strong. Amplify that with a synthesis with Hollow spirit energy and it was no surprise Gloriosa pulped a Tatzlwurm like that.

But it was obvious she wasn’t in her right mind, and even more clear something was influencing her. Sunset didn’t know what it was, other than it had to be some kind of Hollow. And that she was going to introduce that Hollow to the business end of her Zanpaktou if that’s what it took to save Gloriosa and Timber.

If only the situation up top wasn’t so damn complicated!

Reaching into her pocket she pulled out the bronze badge Soul Society had given her and her friends, and Discord had modified to be secure communicators between them. They could be set to broadcast to the whole group, or specific individuals. Not wanting to trip up Twilight or Adagio, whatever their present situation was, Sunset keyed it just to Rarity, who she knew was up top in the camp.

“Rarity, can you hear me?”

A moment later the silent tunnel filled with Rarity’s voice, “Most certainly, Sunset. Have you found Gloriosa and her brother?”

“Not yet, but they’re not far ahead of me. There’s old tunnels down here. Definitely not something built by humans. I’m moving ahead and don’t know what I’ll find down here, but wanted to make sure you guys were updated. Try to help Dash and Applejack if you can and secure Camp Everfree.”

There was a slight pause, and Rarity’s voice was tight with tension as she replied, “I largely agree, darling, but with one small addendum. I’m worried about Twilight, and that Quincy assassin. I feel I ought to... go deal with that.”

“Wait, what?” Sunset said, alarmed, “I’m worried about Twilight too, but it’s dangerous to go off on your own like that!”

She could all but feel Rarity giving her a flat, ‘oh really?’ look as her friend said, “Did you really just say that after jumping down a hole, alone, to face who knows what danger, by yourself?”

“O-okay, point in your favor. Still, we don’t even know if the person impersonating Sour Sweet is after Twilight.”

“True, we don’t, but the more I think about it, the more my gut instinct is telling me Twilight is the most likely target, and am I not allowing any of our friends to come to harm.” Rarity’s voice carried a note of resolved finality to it, and Sunset realized it wasn’t likely she’d talk her friend out of this. Gulping, Sunset kept her eyes focused ahead as she went down the dark tunnel, the badge held up like a cell phone.

“I get it, Rarity. But can you track them? Can you beat them? Can you do it without blowing our cover? And what about the other girls?”

All pertinent questions, even if it was clear Rarity was going to do this one way or another. Rarity’s reply was swift, clean, and precise as her needlework.

“I can track them better than anyone else, given that when I sent my crystals at that haughty coward earlier, I made sure one tiny shard got left stuck in their clothing. A shard I can still sense, while I suspect they aren’t looking for it. I don’t know if I can beat them, but I can certainly foil any attempt on Twilight’s life. I can do it while making it look like I’m helping a dear friend, not specifically helping her fight any Soul Reapers. All Captain Starswirl or anyone else might see is me dealing with a Quincy, and they can hardly complain about that, can they?”

“Okay, fine, but... damn it, I wanted to keep us all from splitting up too much.”

“Chaos of the battlefield, darling. There’s no controlling it. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie will still be here to protect everyone in camp, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack are more that capable of protecting themselves.”

“Yeah, so... if something goes wrong, who’s going to protect you, Rarity?” Sunset asked, a sense of real fear alighting inside her.

“I’m no damsel, dear. I’ll manage.”

“No argument here,,” Sunset said, swallowing her doubt, “Just watch your back.”

“You too, darling, you too.”

----------

It was easy for Celestia to feel the indignant rage spilling from her Zanpaktou as Shinryu Taiyo roared their frustration to the heavens. Already the top of the mountain they stood upon was little more than a blazing pool of magma, making the whole peak look like a fiery, melting ice cream cone.

”Come out and face our righteous wrath you insignificant speck of a Hollow!” bellowed the twin dragons of white plasma, ”We shall reduce this entire mountain to a sea of molten flame if that is what it takes to draw you forth from whatever hole you’ve crawled your worthless carcass into!”

“Control yourselves,” Celestia said, kneeling down atop of one of the dragon’s heads and patting the super-heated scales, her hand immune to the heat that would otherwise reduce normal flesh to vapor in an instant, “Grogar can’t have gone far, and if I am to sense him, we must reign in our own reiatsu.”

That much was true. Her and her Zanpaktou’s spiritual pressure was spilling out so much that it was hard to focus on discerning details elsewhere. Grogar may have been using any number of means to cloak himself, but no such method was truly perfect and a sufficiently detailed and careful search could reveal, if nothing else, a trail indicating where he had gone. Assuming he had gone anywhere. Celestia wasn’t ruling out the possibility that he was laying in wait for an ambush.

With great reluctance her Zanpaktou obeyed her will, their heat lessening as they pulled back their spiritual pressure. As Celestia’s senses cleared, she directed the dragons to slowly fly down the length of the mountain slope. As they did so, gliding silently upon heated wings that left trails of steam in their wake, Celestia focused her senses and closed her eyes. She probed the area around her for any small trace of Hollow reiatsu.

She sensed the residual pieces of the slain Extinguishers at the mountain peak... the fading marks of her fight with Grogar up the slope... and there, just the faintest taste of a recent trial of Grogar’s reiatsu. It was minuscule and distorted, no doubt hidden by some manner of device or power to cloak his energy, but it was there, going back down the mountain and into the thick forest of the foothills.

Her Zanpaktou sensed it as well and the dragons eagerly surged forward, like bloodhounds scenting their prey.

Celestia, however, suspected danger, and began to tell them to wait. She was a moment too late in doing so, and the air around her and Shinryu Taiyo darkened as a Garganta portal opened up above them. She felt Grogar’s reiatsu nearby, no doubt flaring up as the Espada used his power to open the Garganta, and she mentally directed her dragons to unleash their flames upon the location she sensed him at. Twin tides of rock vaporizing plasma billowed forth down the slope, and Celestia saw a shimmer in the air as Grogar sprang up to avoid the brunt of them. Even then, his body was scorched as he discarded a flaming cloak, no doubt the object he’d been using to help obscure his reiatsu.

Although the plasma burned and blackened some of his skin, Grogar remained focused on the Garganta above as something emerged, or more accurately fell like the fall of a close portcullis from the Garganta’s depths.

White spurs of bone slammed down around Celestia and Shinryu Taiyo like the bars of a prison, but in actuality they were the gigantic rib cage of another bizarre Hollow, no doubt courtesy of Grogar’s laboratories. This one was horrific in that Celestia could see the Hollow’s small, withered, emaciated main body at the top of a large, dome shaped formation of bones, as if the creatures rib cage had been gigantified and bloated beyond all reasonable measure to take the shape of a prison while it’s own central body remained a husk at the top.

For a split second Celestia wondered what Grogar thought he could accomplish like this. Even if he’d modified this Hollow’s rib cage to be heat resistant, it was impossible for such a low powered Hollow to contain her and her Zanpaktou for more than a few seconds. Already Shinryu Taiyo was letting out roars of defiance as their heat surged back, the huge bones of the rib cage prison starting to melt. They didn’t quite instantly vaporize, no doubt because Grogar had built in some heat resistance, but it wouldn’t matter, Celestia would be free in a moment and-

Her expression froze. Grogar hadn’t jumped up just to evade the fire. He’d gone to the top of the Hollow with Sonido, and now crouched above the emaciated body’s Hollow hole. There, his gnarled fingers unfurled around a small, orange cube of energy.

Caja Negacion.

At that moment Celestia instantly understood what was happening and did the only thing she was capable of doing.

Grogar’s plan had been sufficient and simple. Force her to release her Zanpaktou, and then neutralize it. Shinryu Taiyo had to be in it’s Shikai state for Grogar’s plan to work, because Celestia was too fast to be easily trapped, but the twin dragons, as incredibly powerful as they were, were a bit slower and more bulky. They wouldn’t immediately be able to get clear of this Hollow’s rib cage prison.

Which normally wouldn’t matter, if not for Caja Negacion.

The Espada’s ability to trap other Hollow’s in a dimensional subspace by inserting that cube into the intended victim’s Hollow hole. It wouldn’t work on non-Hollows, unless the non-Hollow was standing close to a Hollow it was used on. This poor Hollow soul had been modified by Grogar to act as a catalyst for creating a Caja Negacion with a wider area. Anything inside the rib cage would be trapped in the subspace dimension.

The cube entered the Hollow’s hole, and instantly the space around it began to twist and fold. Grogar had already moved away with Sonido, clearing the now enfolding space. Celestia moved as well, pushing as fast as she could with Flash Step, and just barely clearing the space in time before reality folded around the space where the modified Hollow, and Shinryu Taiyo, were now trapped.

All she got was a mental message from her Zanpaktou.

”This won’t hold us long, wielder! Do not let this foul one’s tricks defeat you until we shatter this prison and come to your aid!”

Then the dimensional prison closed fully, and Celestia found herself on the mountain slope, divested of her strongest partner and weapon, and facing a very smug looking Grogar. The Espada tapped the flat of his own blade in the palm of his other hand with a smile like the cat that just found a wounded bird on the ground.

“I’m not always prone to self-congratulatory words, but I do love it when things go according to plan. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t entirely certain that would work.”

Fists clenched at her sides, Celestia didn’t disguise the anger burning across her features, although most of it was directed at herself, “I’ll confess that I underestimated you. I knew your reputation for disgusting levels of mutilation of your own kind, but never imagined just how many of your fellow Hollows you’ve twisted into even more unnatural forms. Your perverted mind truly knows no limits.”

“Nor does your capacity for self righteousness,” Grogar spat back, scoffing, “Those Hollows had no existence worth anything other than to be preyed upon by other Hollows. At least in my labs their sacrifice furthers my understanding of Hollow evolution, a far more valuable contribution to the world than if left to their own devices. Now then, I seem to have a Soul Reaper Captain in front of me who is lacking her oh so powerful Zanpaktou. Whatever shall I do with her?”

It was Celestia’s turn to smile, her eyes flashing dangerously, “If you believe the fight to be over simply because I am separated from Shinryu Taiyo, then I’m not the only one who’s underestimated their opponent.”

With those words, her reiatsu exploded. Normally Celestia prided herself on her self control. Her ability to maintain composure and a calm demeanor, no matter how she might feel on the inside. Her kind, motherly nature was no act, of course, but often times she had to take a firm hand with herself to ensure she never lost her temper or failed to show consideration and level headedness in any given situation. Many depended on her, and her nurturing mindset. Many who knew her, only knew her as a caregiver and loving leader.

On her face now was an expression completely at odds with that nature, showing only the furious yet tempered resolved to crush the evil in front of her.

As her reiatsu blasted around her like a pure white whirlwind, Celestia reached up and grasped her Captains coat, throwing it off in one smooth motion. She then pulled her arms into the wide sleeves of her Soul Reaper robes and withdrew them from the front, disrobing the top half to fall to her sides. Underneath she was clad only in bare skin, save for white cloth straps across her chest. The muscle tone of her body was now far easier to notice. Despite her womanly curves, her abs were hardened muscle, and her arms remarkably toned now that no robes hid them. Perhaps more prominent was that the reiatsu flowing through her actually made some of her veins glow like rivers reflecting sunlight.

Wind howled around her from the outburst of reiatsu, and Grogar faced it with his usual unruffled mien. He was no fool. He was well aware that Celestia’s power extended beyond the potency of her Zanpaktou. Her proficiency in Kido was reputed to be among the top five of the Gotei 13’s Captains, and while her unarmed combat prowess was supposedly less than that of her sister’s, it was clear Celestia was... exceedingly fit and had plenty of reiatsu to spare to power her unarmed fighting, even if she lacked the refined skill Luna possessed. The simple fact was that even separated from Shinryu Taiyo, there was a large power gap between Celestia and Grogar.

But he had accounted for that. Not only was he still sitting on a store of built up power from the modified specimens he’d sent as sacrificial lambs to be slaughtered by the Soul Reapers in Canterlot City, the artificial siren gem’s proverbial tanks had been topped up by the destruction of the Extinguisher, which had been altered in the same manner to have their energy transferred to him upon being slain.

He released that additional energy now, feeling the invigorating rush as the siren gem flashed and suffused his being with the power of his sacrificed experiments. Individually they didn’t amount to much, but taken as a gathered whole, the pool of additional power was not insubstantial. But that was the real strength of Hollow-kind. They consumed their fellow Hollows relentlessly, becoming an every more potent amalgamation of consumed souls. That was how Tirek had risen to the top. Among all Hollows still in existence, Tirek had an appetite for consuming his own kind that was unrivaled, and an innate ability to get the most out of each soul he devoured. Grogar’s envy of Tirek was a caustic, burning furnace he kept hidden deep in his withered chest. Grogar was on par with Tirek in terms of age, but Tirek had lucked out to have the innate talent and ability to grow in power exponentially, while Grogar had hit his natural limits long ago.

It was why Grogar was relentless in his drive to study his own kind and develop the means to force Hollow evolution forward. It was infuriating to let someone like Tirek, whose mind was dull and narrowly focused, to have such power. Grogar would correct that unfair injustice by any means necessary, and he was convinced that with the replication of Adagio Dazzle’s siren gem he’d not only found the means to replace Tirek, but to reforge all Hollows.

Well, the ones that proved worthy at any rate. Grogar didn’t care how many millions of Hollows would fall short of his exacting standards, but the rare few that impressed Grogar or earned his favor would find themselves elevated. Or at least granted specific evolutions as Grogar saw fit. He’d be the architect of Hollow destiny, guiding it upon a path of endless evolution as he saw fit.

Today’s battle was just another step upon that path. He’d known Celestia would be the most dangerous enemy on the field, and if allowed to act uncontested she’d interfere with his experiments. Adagio still had a role to fulfill, as did others who didn’t even know it yet.

Celestia came at him with a speed and fury that would be difficult for even a high ranked Espada to dismiss. Hardly a surprise. Celestia could fight on even ground with Chrysalis, after all. Grogar was still just barely able to brace his Zanpaktou in front of him to receive her first punch, and felt his old bones rattle to their core as he was driven back with such force that even with his legs digging into the ground he was sent reeling down the slope and left a long divot in the ground as he went. Celestia didn’t give him a moment to recover, leaping forward like a shining comet and smashing downward with a fist wrapped in pure white reiatsu.

He couldn’t dodge, so instead opted for the faster counter of firing a Cero from the tip of his Zanpaktou, the pale verdant beam breaking upon Celestia’s fist like water around a boulder. Her fist drove through the destructive energy and smashed into Grogar’s chest, blasting the air from his lungs and catapulting him in a haphazard roll down the mountain.

Coughing and working to catch his breath, Grogar gave Celestia a withering look and slashed his Zanpaktou across the ground in front of him. The force of the strike shattered the rock and sent up a wave of dust and dirt. He then whipped his arm back and then swung it forward, throwing his Zanpaktou through the dirt cloud in a deadly spin. Celestia still sensed the attack coming and made a fast spin on her heels, turning around the spinning blade to evade it’s edge with only a lock of hair being lost in the process. However Grogar had already used Sonido to appear in the path of his Zanpaktou and caught it, immediately twisting around into a backhanded slash at Celestia’s side.

She caught his wrist instead, halting his attack, which caused a back-blast of force from the halted blow that billowed out behind both combatants. Celestia twisted Grogar’s arm upwards and then stepped in to deliver a powerful elbow to his chest, indenting it and causing a burst of spittle and blood to burst from his mouth as he was sent flying backwards.

He fell to one knee, coughing, and Celestia turned towards him, raising a hand to prepare a Kido. She then noticed that Grogar was also grinning, and had a second to notice that as the smoke was clearing from the dust cloud he’d thrown up earlier, there was an object laying on the ground that looked like a similar device to the cylinders built into the Extinguishers. Grogar had dropped it there when he’d used Sonido to go through the dust cloud, banking on Celestia focusing on him and his Zanpaktou rather than notice anything else.

The cylinder was indeed a compact version of the cold generating devices he implanted in the Extinguishers, and with a spark of reiatsu from Grogar, it detonated with a dome-shaped blast of freezing air. Celestia jumped back, Flash Stepping away from the blast. She caught some frost on her limbs, and winced at the extreme cold that numbed her limbs. Landing a good distance away, she took a second to focus her spiritual pressure to push back the cold and shake the ice from her limbs, but it was then that she also felt the massive uptick in Grogar’s reiatsu, and instantly knew what it meant.

Grogar knew he couldn’t contest Celestia, Zanpaktou or not, in his base form. However she was too fast and skilled for him to be able to release his Zanpaktou as long as she was right in his face, ready and able to strike. But the frost cylinder had created enough of an opening, with Celestia driven back far enough, that he could raise his Zanpaktou and invert it to point at his stomach as he grinned with mad menace.

”Peel away; Locura.” (Madness)

----------

Rapid situation assessment was a skill Twilight was growing more accustomed to, and it didn’t take a huge stretch of her intellect to realize that every second Starswirl kept Ember trapped here was a second longer for the entire mission to fail. It was obvious enough that Ember wasn’t able to get clear of Starswirl’s ward on her own, and even with Clover secretly trying to aid them, the fight wasn’t going their way.

Di Roy and Roka were using their full strength, and when Starswirl had still been restraining himself their assistance was somewhat useful. Now, however, Twilight could tell the pair of Arrancar were too far out of their depth to be much more help. They’d likely get themselves killed if they kept facing Starswirl alongside her. Not that Twilight really thought much of her chances on her own, either, but she was still better suited to taking Starswirl on than anyone else present, especially given her Schrift.

“You two!” she shouted to Di Roy and Roka, “Leave Starswirl to me and go help Ember!”

Di Roy shot her an incredulous look, shark teeth showing in a wide frown, “You seriously think you can handle this guy alone?”

Roka gripped his shoulder, then, “Twilight knows what the risks are, and she’s right...” frustrated acceptance filled her voice and darkened her eyes, “We’re not strong enough to do more, here. But saving Ember is why we’re here, not defeating this man.”

A low grunt escaped Di Roy as he spat to the side, “Getting so damn tired of being outclassed in every damn fight... but you’re right. Shit. Try not to die, Quincy gal, you’re all right for one of your kind. We’ll get Ember out of here, so don’t worry and kick this nerd’s ass!”

Twilight just nodded, not mentioning that she was a nerd, too, so she wasn’t sure how to take that. If she was going to beat Starswirl, it would be by out thinking him. As Roka and Di Roy turned around and rushed to assist Ember, Twilight focused on Starswirl, who had watched the exchange with seeming placidity, but she suspected he wasn’t idle.

She sensed the reiatsu inside his Shikai, and knew he was up to something. Given it could create any kind of chemical Starswirl wanted to, her mind reeled at the possible ways he could attack her. In fact, one simple way to check the easiest way he could attack her simply required she use her Schrift in a very simple manner.

She extended her spiritual energy, taking hold of the surrounding reishi with her Schrift. She contextualized the change she was making in her mind and willed it to happen through her Schrift. She felt the power respond, leaping out of her eagerly. The change was subtle but immediate as she saw a thick, opaque gray gas appearing in the air, moving towards her like a small bank of mist.

Twilight immediately jumped upward to get above the now visible gas, taking aim with her bow and counter attacking with a succession of teal witchfire arrows. Starswirl protected himself with a swiftly cast Kido, pointing a finger and chanting, “Bakudo Number Seventy One; Okina Ana” (Gaping Hole)

What appeared to be skeletal hands coated in paper talisman manifested in front of him and then gripped the air, tearing open a hole that created a sudden, powerful suction force. This suction was not merely air, but was laced with spiritual energy that gripped Twilight’s arrows and pulled them into the hole.

“I continue to be impressed by you,” Starswirl said, “You immediately realized it was sending an invisible nerve gas towards you. You used that Schrift of yours to make the gas ‘visible’. Another altered variable. A terrifying power, but it seems to have limitations, otherwise you would use it to attack me directly, altering any number of internal variables in my body. Making my heart fail, for example. Hmm, interesting.”

I hope so, Twilight thought, Because my only way to win is to get you to think you understand my Schrift.

“Maybe I just don’t want to kill you,” she suggested, standing in the air with the help of Hirenkyaku, keeping her boy trained on him, “I’m just here to rescue Ember, after all. Your death isn’t an objective.”

To keep the pressure on, she fired more arrows, but these ones were aimed in a gentle arc around Starswirl’s location rather than at the Captain himself. She drew upon her magic, having Midnight help her lace the arrows with some fairly basic spells, while casting another spell on herself.

The arrows exploded with bright flashes, saturating the area with blinding flashes, while Twilight herself felt her body become lighter and time’s flow alter as the spell she cast on herself vastly boosted her speed. That, combined with another Hirenkyaku, propelled her into the area around her field lab, which was just inside Starswirl’s ward. She moved in a purple streak, snatching up half a dozen M-Cells from the nearest work table. She was tempted to grab the shield harness her team had been working on, but given it’s unstable nature, the M-Cells would have to do.

She spun about, still accelerated by the spell, and raised the first M-Cell to her Hexenfaust. She’d built in a port accessory into the bottom of the Hexenfaust, which opened up like a single-shot breech loader on a grenade launcher, only fitted for an M-Cell.

Inserting the M-Cell, she felt Midnight gasp inside her as the magic from the M-Cell filled the Hexenfaust and charged both it and Twilight’s body.

Oooh, that feels good! Midnight purred, making an audible lip smacking sound in Twilight's mind, Give me another.

Twilight shook her head, One at a time! If we overcharge this, the Hexenfaust could explode. We expend the energy from each M-Cell individually.

She turned her attention back to where Starwirl had been... wait, had been? Where was he!? She’d hoped the acceleration spell would let her do this fast enough to catch him off guard, but she had to spin around to spot the elderly Captain casually walking along the top of one of her lab trailers, casually spinning his Zanpaktou’s fan form.

“How fascinating. You’ve been conducting the same kind of research on magic that I have. Once I have you in custody, I’d love to pick your brain about your progress. Have you discovered how to stabilize magical fields alongside sources of spirit energy?”

For all his seeming relaxed stance, Twilight felt his spirit energy spiking upward. A basketball sized globe of pale liquid grew from the surface of Starswirl’s Zanpaktou and flew at Twilight, streaming thick white fog. She knew what it was instantly and jumped to the side, barely fast enough to avoid the sphere as it burst nearby. Liquid nitrogen splashed everywhere, empowered by Starswirl’s reiatsu and freezing over portions of Twilight’s field lab.

Some of it got on her Hexenfaust, coating parts of it in instant frost. Taking a moment, she made a point of staring hard at the frost as she extended her reishi into the Hexenfaust, her Schrift altering the temperature back to normal.

“Shall I guess your Schrift’s name, or will you just be polite and tell me?” Starswirl asked, disappearing from view with a Flash Step that took him behind Twilight. She couldn’t come close to identifying the barrage of toxic chemicals that spewed out of his weapon in multiple, cone-shape blasts. Could only move as fast as she could with Hirenkyaku to try and get out of the way, and when it was clear she couldn’t, she teleported to avoid the noxious liquids.

She landed nearby in time to see the streams of toxic liquids rain down on one of her trailers and start to melt the metal like plastic under an open flame. The smell was gag worthy.

“You’ve already figured it out,” she told him, letting the magic from the M-Cell gather in her bow, which started to flare with an aura of blazing teal flame-like energy, “I’m Sternritter V; the Variable. That’s all you need to know.”

While this was occurring, Roka and Di Roy and both moved to engage Clover and Meadowbrook. The two Soul Reapers sensed them coming, with Meadowbrook turning to hold both hands out and hastily chant a Kido, while Clover jumped up on one of the top edges of the inverted pyramid shape of the Tozansho Kido. She did this to take herself out of Meadowbrook’s line of sight so she could make a hand gesture towards Roka, who’d been moving to engage her.

Clover didn’t know Roka, but seriously hoped Twilight had explained Clover was on their side. Her hand gesture was a ‘wrap up’ motion with her finger, then holding her arms to her side. Roka gave a small nod, understanding. Clover made a show of firing off a Kido, pointing a finger and unleashing a Byakurai in a white streak of lightning, but it’s aim was just off enough for Roka to easily dodge it while unleashing a stream of threads from her spider legs.

While those threads wrapped up Clover, Meadowbrook finished his Kido, aimed at Di Roy.

Dim motes of green light bloomed into being around him as he made a slashing motion with both hands, “Hado Number Fifty Nine; Seiki no Mure.” (Century Swarm)

The green lights began to emit a fierce buzzing, then born from their verdant depths came a swarm of incandescent locusts. While each one was no larger than a real locust, the swarm consisted of hundreds of the spirit-born bugs as they rushed Di Roy. The Arrancar slammed the wide arm guard on his left arm forward to break through the swarm, some of the bites fruitlessly biting into the hardened bone armor, while others flew around it to start trying to bite and burrow into Di Roy’s Hierro hard flesh.

Di Roy ignored the pain and rushed forward like a charging bull, catching Meadowbrook off guard and shoulder ramming the Lieutenant into the ward wall with a meaty smack.

“Don’t know why you don’t have a Zanpaktou, Soul Reaper, but sucks to be you,” Di Roy said, pulling back his own Zanpaktou in preparation to slam it forward at the stunned Meadowbrook, but a stream of Roka’s threads flew past him and wrapped up Meadowbrook, pinning him to the ground.

Di Roy looked over to see Roka was also holding Clover aloft with more threads, dangling the other Soul Reaper from one of her spider legs like a fly wrapped up in a cocoon.

“Hey, I had that guy,” Di Roy complained, and at Roka’s look he added, “I know, I know. Adagio said to keep casualties to a minimum. I wasn’t gonna kill him. Just, you know, maybe take an arm off or something.”

“Let’s just try to get Ember free,” Roka said, and both Arrancar hopped upward to examine the Kido spell still containing Ember.

Inside the Tozansho, Ember looked back at them with the air of a caged lioness. She’d watched them come to help, but the Tozansho blocked sound, so all Ember could do was wordlessly shout something neither could hear as she gestured wildly at the barrier. Di Roy scratched his head.

“I remember getting trapped in one of these dang things... Heeeey,” he glanced closer at Clover, eyes peering, “Ain’t you the same Soul Reaper who did that to me?”

Clover, wrapped up in thread thoroughly save for her exposed head, blinked at Di Roy. In his present form he didn’t much look like the half-Arrancar she’d faced back then alongside Sunset Shimmer, but now that she was looking at him closely there were similarities. And that voice...

“You’re still alive?” she said, “Fluttershy sent you running away last time. How did you become a full Arrancar?”

“Looooong story, and mostly throwing my lot in with the right boss. Say, how about you be a peach and dispel this barrier thingy?”

Clover scrunched her features up and whispered, “Not a good idea. It’s...” Clover cast a small glance towards Meadowbrook. He was bound up in a manner so he was stuck with his head pointed just out of line of sight. If she kept her voice down, he couldn’t hear her. “It’s making an opening through Captain Starswirl’s ward. If I dispel it, Ember has no way out. You three need to break through it manually.”

Then louder, she said, “I won’t dispel anything. Sorry to disappoint.”

Di Roy scratched his head, then recalled that Adagio had said something about Sunset having a Soul Reaper pal who’d be likely to help them out, or at least not interfere. No wonder it was the same girl who’d been paling around with Sunset back then. Happy to play along, Di Roy laughed, “Hah, as if we’d be stopped by weak sauce Soul Reaper barriers. Roka, let’s punch a hole in this thing.”

“It seems there’s a good opening over there,” Roka agreed, pointing towards where the Tozansho’s edge pierced through Starswirl’s own barrier. She made several pointing gestures, giving Ember a meaningful look. Ember looked confused for a second until she turned around to look at the same spot, then smacked her head.

Not knowing how much time Twilight could buy them, the trio went to work immediately. Di Roy went to one side of the Tonzansho’s edge, while Roka went to the other, after having deposited Clover on the ground next to Meadowbrook. Ember went to the interior of the edge poking through the outer barrier, then all three Arrancar together charged up Cero beams at the end of their hands.

Di Roy made a three-count with his fingers, counting down so all of them could time their blasts at once. Three ruby beams struck at roughly the same point on the Tozansho, the admittedly powerful Kido swiftly overwhelmed by that combined Hollow energy. Normally Ember would have been in danger, firing a Cero inside the Tonzansho, but with Di Roy and Roka firing as well from the outside, the barrier broke fast and the destructive energies punched through. And specifically, the Ceros punched through the part of the Tozansho that was sticking out of Starswirl’s barrier, punching a hole through it.

As the Tozansho vanished it left a person-sized hole in Starswirl’s barrier, and the three Arrancar wasted no time in rushing through it with Sonido, Ember going first, followed by Roka, then Di Roy.

As the trio appeared outside the barrier, Di Roy didn’t hesitate to gesture with a hand and opened up a Garganta portal, “Okay folks, one way trip to Hueco Mundo coming right up!”

“Wait,” said Ember, “My Zanpaktou is still at the Soul Reaper lab. I’m not leaving without it.”

Di Roy looked like he’d just bitten down on a pile of sour grapes as he grimaced and groaned, “Aw hell, I forgot about that! Craaaaap! Okay, fine!” He closed the Garganta, and gestured with his own Zanpaktou in the rough direction of the former lake, “Let’s make this fast, then! Every second we’re here is a second fate can bend us over the rails and go to town.”

“Colorful way of putting it,” Roka said, “But not inaccurate. Ember, you should be able to sense your Zanpaktou’s precise location, so lead the way. But please recall, Adagio asked us to try to avoid killing any Soul Reapers.”

Ember had a less than enthusiastic expression as she flexed her hands like claws, “Roka, I’m getting my Zanpaktou. If there’s a Soul Reaper in my way, I’m going through them. How intact they are after I do that is not what I’m worried about.”

With that, Ember turned and dashed away with Sonido, leaving Di Roy and Roka to exchange worried looks before they rushed to follow.

----------

Seconds dripped by with the slow tension of a drop of water on the precipice of a faucet as Applejack and Rainbow Dash stood facing the behemoth bulk of the Hydra. Both girls were wound up tightly in stances ready to burst into motion at any moment. Yet as those heavy seconds passed with the slow drip of high adrenaline readiness, nothing happened.

The Hydra just stood there, observing them with its four sets of sharp, intelligent eyes.

“Uhhh... you gonna do something, or what!?” Rainbow Dash shouted, the lightning from her spear crackling with her rise in irritation. “We don’t exactly have all week, buddy! If you’re not here to fight, then scram, and we can get to more important stuff!”

“Ain’t sure ya oughta be tauntn’ the thing, Dash,” Applejack said, then clammed up as the Hydra made a coughing, chortling noise from three of it’s four heads. From the way it’s deadly looking maws were curled upwards, Applejack suspected it was laughing at them. However one head, the second in from the right, looked at its fellows with disdain and barked a sharp word in it’s odd, guttural tongue that got the others to cease its wet chuckles and looked back at the girls with a more serious air.

The head that didn’t laugh, which seemed to be in charge, lowered itself slightly and spoke again, however this time the words were in English. Well, English of a sort. The accent was so thick and rough, the words so alien coming from a throat not meant to speak them, that both Dash and Applejack had to struggle to understand the garbled speech.

“We fight soon, small ones. Taking measure of ones who halted our kin with such slaughter. Worthy of respect, so dumb brothers should not laugh so. We would know names, before the shedding of blood begins again.”

Applejack hadn’t expected this beast to speak, let alone ask their names, so she was taken aback enough to stare dumbly for a few moments. Rainbow Dash took things more in stride, shrugging her wings as she said, “Name’s Rainbow Dash. She’s, Applejack. What about you, each of your heads got a name, or are you all, like, one dude?”

The Hydra’s speaking head tilted slightly, then responded, “We are separate in mind, one in soul. We are called Ormir, of the Land Tribe. We serve our High Chieftain as Jarl of our clan. The one you shamed with defeat was Bjornir, one of our Thanes.”

Rainbow Dash’s face blanched slightly as she turned to nudge Applejack, “Hey, uh, AJ? Did I miss a talk with Discord or one of the Soul Reapers back in Soul Society? Because none of that made sense to me.”

“Ya didn’t miss nuthin’, Dash. This guy’s lingo is new to me, too,” Applejack said, suppressing an urge to sigh. She got the feeling this situation was suddenly a lot more complicated. Taking a deep breath, she shouted to the Hydra, Ormir, “Yer gonna have ta clarify a bit there, partner! We ain’t got a clue what no Jarl or Thanes are!”

Ormir shook with a low, rumbling sound that might have been another laugh, or just a growl of consternation. “My clan is of the Beast Realm, which holds three Tribes of Land, Sky, and Sea. No surprise small ones from this realm know nothing of us. It is no shame to you, but remember us well. With our names known to one another, we can now battle.”

“Whoa there! Hold on a sec!” Applejack said, “Why don’t ya at least tell us why all ya’ll from this Beast Realm place are doin’ here attacking a dang summer camp in the first place!? An’ don’t take this the wrong way, but I thought some o’ yer kin were supposed ta be from another world, called Equestria!”

“Equestria...?” Ormir stretched the word out, all of his heads looking at each other quizzically. Suddenly one of the heads said something in their native tongue, and the main head’s expression lit up with understanding. “Ah, you mean our sister realm. We call it by a different name; Asgard. Yours is Midgard. Theirs is Asgard. Both realms are tied to ours. Both where kin go upon ‘death’ to be reborn.”

“So yer sayin’ yer Beast Realm is tied ta both worlds?”

“Yes. Beasts die in both realms, and come to us, then die again, and return. Simple enough. Foolish, how the guardians of death in Midgard try to control it all. Hmph, not why we’re here, to talk.”

Applejack was no scholar, but she was smarter than some people might have given her credit for due to her mannerisms. What Ormir was saying had a lot of implications, but it also plugged in some holes that while Applejack herself might not have wondered about them, she was willing to bet Sunset or Twilight would find fascinating. Really her first biggest thought was that this explained a bit about why so many critters from mythology resembled creatures that Princess Twilight had confirmed existed in Equestria. This Beast Realm was connected to both worlds, so chances were at some point things like hydras, kraken, or dragons did exist on Earth. She was curious why that wasn’t the case anymore, but maybe the Soul Reapers kicked them out and sent them all back to the Beast Realm, and it just became easier for those creatures to migrate to Equestria instead?

Well, whatever the case, Applejack wasn’t finished yet, despite the Hydra clearly getting ready to charge. She took up a ready stance, palms out and charged with energy to fire, but she still said, “Ya still ain’t said why yer here doin’ this! What’s some Beast Realm Jarl or whatever ya call yerself got ta gain from attacking us!?”

“A bargain struck, and what is owed being paid,” Ormir replied, “Nothing more.”

“A bargain with who? Over what?” pressed Applejack, but Ormir’s heads all shook back and forth as one.

“Spoken enough, small one,” the Hydra said, and with that, he surged forward. The ground trembled like jelly at his steps, which came faster and with more impact than anything Ormir’s size should have been able to achieve.

Applejack could sense reiatsu coming off of the Hydra, strong enough to be a concern, but not enough to frighten her off. Seemed about on par with some of the Captain’s she’d sensed in the past, but her mother’s reiatsu was a lot stronger, comparatively speaking. Then again, Applejack might’ve been biased.

Either way, she wasn’t about to take Ormir lightly, and neither was Rainbow Dash. Applejack blasted upwards and to the left on golden jets of energy, while Dash essentially vanished in a blinding flash of indigo lightning. The Hydra continued to smash through the space they’d just been in, all but crushing what was left of the tent grounds, and all four heads began to swivel about.

At the tip of each head’s maw a magical circle took shape, runes blazing across the circumference of the circles with flickers of green energy. Then at the same time, Ormir’s spiritual pressure felt like it coiled inside him and the ground broke apart beneath the Hydra as he jumped upwards with unnatural force.

The four magical circles discharged slim, green rays that curved towards Applejack, forcing her to swiftly alter her course to twist away from them. One grazed her right leg, and she realized the beams were actually highly concentrated streams of corrosive goo. Even a small grazing hit from the stuff sizzled her armor, scoring it deeply. Applejack didn’t want to think about what a direct hit to her bare skin might do.

At the same time, those magical attacks weren’t all Ormir was throwing out. His spiritual pressure seemed to shift through his body and enter his tail, which he then swept at Rainbow Dash, who had zipped up behind him. Unlike the magic he was using, the Hydra’s spiritual energy came out in a pale blue wave fired from his tail, which turned into the biting head of a massive ethereal snake who’s forehead was covered in strange, symmetrical runes.

Dash, not one to back down from a challenge, took the attack head on with one of her own, sweeping her spear around to unleash a dazzling discharge of lightning that smashed into the oncoming snake with a resounding collision. Rainbow Dash looked a tad surprised that the ethereal snake wasn’t destroyed by her lightning, but rather was just knocked aside. And unlike an energy attack like a Cero, the snake remained, tied to Ormir by a ghostly strand of spirit energy.

“Hah,” Ormir laughed, “The Anima of a Jarl is not easily banished, little thunder bird!”

“Whatever you say. Seems like everybody's got a gimmick these days, but in my experience, whoever hits harder still comes out on top!” Rainbow Dash said, vanishing in a thunder-crack of the sound barrier being casually torn apart as she charged the Hydra, who was falling back to the earth from his earlier jump.

Rainbow Dash blitzed him very much like she had the bug bear, appearing as several dozen blue streaks of electricity as she slashed and stabbed with her spear. Wounds opened across Ormir’s hide, spewing thick, green blood, yet he seemed untroubled by the injuries as he crashed to the ground in a titanic quake and snapped powerful jaws at Dash. His heads moved with surprising speed for his size, but Rainbow Dash wasn’t caught, although she was forced to back off for a moment. She saw the damage she’d caused wasn’t slowing him down much, and the wounds were slowly closing.

“You regenerate, too? Guess I’ll have to take you down all at once!”

“Ya mean we’re gonna hafta take him down all at once,” Applejack reminded Dash, blasting past her and smashing a fist forward, assisted by a boost of rocket energy from her elbow. She was aiming for Ormir’s main head, the one doing most the talking, but that glowing snake of blue light came around with the speed of the wind, intercepting her fist and blocking it with the snake’s head. Despite its phantom-like appearance, the snake was solid as a wall, and Applejack felt it resit her punch as solidly as anything with a healthy dose of reiatsu behind it could.

There was no doubting this Hydra was something like the equivalent of a Soul Reaper Captain, although Applejack felt her fist pushing the snake back. She didn’t know if it was because she and Dash had gotten strong enough through their training recently, but she felt a burst of confidence. Easy or not, she thought she and Dash had a good shot at winning, as long as they kept cool heads and coordinated their attacks. However it also occurred to her that there was a possibility Ormir was still holding back. The fight had just started, and for all Applejack knew this ‘Anima’ snake was just the equivalent of a Shikai. It hadn’t really demonstrated any weird powers yet, either.

Pushing off with her fist, Applejack flew backwards and called out to Rainbow Dash, “Hey Dash, we’re doin’ the Canterlot Comet Crusher!”

“Wait, which one’s that again?” Rainbow shouted back, referring to several combo moves they’d worked out together, but in their mutual enthusiasm it was possible the pair had disagreed on a few of the code-phrases as to not give away their plans to the enemy, “Is that the one with the fog, the cyclone, or the flare?”

Applejack nearly smacked herself, but that would have been ill-advised while using the energy jets from her palms to help herself fly. Instead she bellowed, “Cyclone! Now!”

Dash saluted and instantly burst into motion, her energy wings leaving prismatic afterimages as she began to rapidly circle Ormir. Meanwhile Applejack flew upwards, dodging more homing streams of caustic goo that the Hydra cast her way. The snake, or Anima as Ormir had called it, tried to go after Dash. It followed her and lunged at the girl’s streaking form, but every time it’s ethereal fangs smashed down on empty air. Powerful or not, this Beast Realm Jarl wasn’t beating Rainbow Dash in a contest of speed, and Rainbow’s motions, combined with her Fullbring’s power to control weather, was already creating a tornado around Ormir that Captain Hurricane himself would’ve been jealous of.

The sharp winds tore at the Hydra and kept him stuck in place, but wasn’t doing much actual damage. The heads looked around in irritation at the tornado they were at the center of, but then looked up to see Applejack had flown up to the cyclone’s apex.

There, Applejack threw her arms up above her head and stretched her legs into a descending kick. Ports opened up along both her gauntlets and leg armor as she fired off powerful jets of gold energy that sent her careening downward. She added a spin to the move, pooling some energy from her outstretched, kicking foot to form a swirling tip of power almost like a drill.

Then Dash added her part to the attack, filling the cyclone with a river of lightning, both spearing down from the sky and blasting out from Rainbow Dash’s own body, turning the whole tornado into a flash of cobalt blue.

“Canterlot-” Applejack said as she neared her target, Ormir sending his snake spirit up to intercept her.

“-Comet-” Rainbow Dash’s voice boomed through the cyclone as she flew out of it to join Applejack’s descent, her body covered in an aura of crackling lightning as she joined her spear tip next to Applejack’s kick.

The cyclone spat out a discharge of unbelievable voltage, smashing into the ground around it and channeling straight into the Hydra. At the same instance both spear, boot, and snake collided.

“-Crusher!” both girls shouted as one, colliding with the Anima.

The snake of spirit energy wasn’t able to contest Rainbow Dash and Applejack’s combined force, smashed downward along with them until they all impacted into Ormir’s chest, driving the Hydra into the ground. The cyclone exploded in a hurricane force of wind and discharged lightning, alongside the impact of Dash and Applejack’s dual strike that shattered the already fairly broken ground.

From the mess, both girls flew out and managed individual flips, landing in ready poses as they turned to look at the dust and smoke from the destruction they’d wrought. Rainbow Dash held out her palm, and Applejack didn’t even look as she high-fived it.

“That worked even better than I thought it would,” Dash said, grinning.

“I’m just glad ya didn’t fry me with all that lightnin’. You’ve gotten better at makin’ it go where ya want. When were were trainin’ these combo movies ya kept zappin’ me by accident.”

“And I said I was sorry each time,” Rainbow Dash said, smirking as she gestured at the settling dust cloud, “But hey, we nailed it this time! Your timing was perfect, AJ.”

“Yeah, well, ain’t ‘bout ta let it go ta my head,” Applejack said, glancing away awkwardly. Wasn’t actually all that often that Rainbow Dash was that free with praise. Applejack wasn’t really sure how to respond to it, instead of the usual ribbing. “Anywhos, we’d best make sure the big fella’s down fer the count.”

“Good point,” Rainbow Dash agreed, just in time for the ground to shake as the dust cloud billowed away from the gargantuan form of Ormir raising all four of his serpentine heads from the settling dirt.

He was certainly injured, there was no doubting that. His stance was wobbly and his movements slowed with pain. The Hydra’s body was badly burned from the massive influx of electricity he’d taken, and his chest was partially caved in from the twin impact of both Fullbringers striking with near full force and with a direct hit. Yet stand he did upon his two ponderous, clawed legs, and smashed his tail into the ground with a echoing impact.

“Well struck,” he said respectfully, “Worthy of a fellow Jarl, I’d wager. I cannot keep calling you small ones, it seems, for that size does not match your strength.” One of the heads coughed, spewing blood, “I think you crushed some internal organs with that blow. Going to be days regenerating from that. You’ve earned a place upon my trophy wall, as foes deserving of remembrance.”

Rainbow Dash tossed him a deadpan, slump-shouldered stare, “Gee... thanks. Think I’ll pass on the taxidermy lifestyle. How about you just crawl on back to that Beast Realm of yours, along with all your slobbering buddies, before me and AJ here get back to clobbering your scaley butt?”

“My shattered rib cage would agree with you, but I am not quite prepared to make a coward of myself by fleeing while my clan’s debt remains unpaid,” Ormir said, and his spiritual pressure coiled within him once more. The translucent form of his Anima serpent appeared once again, only now the ethereal snake split into many, with now a writhing plethora of rune covered snake heads flying towards the two girls.

“Aw horseapples!” Applejack groused, throwing herself backwards to avoid the first few snakes that ripped apart the ground where she’d been standing. She quickly started firing off blasts of energy from her palms or the heels of her boots, dodging and kicking around to keep the snake heads away from her.

Rainbow Dash’s body flared with a corona of lightning as she spun her spear in a blinding pattern, flying straight into the biting storm of snake heads. Her spear slashed and stabbed at the biting wraiths, and with a singular spin Dash produced a charged circle of electricity that she hurled at Ormir through the writing mass of Anima serpents.

Ormir defended himself with magic, all four heads casting simultaneous barrier spells to absorb the lightning circle that smashed into it. Meanwhile Applejack, much slower than Dash comparatively speaking, was having trouble keeping her distance from the dozen or so snake heads that were coming after her. She blasted away one, then two, then a third, only to get her right arm caught by the fangs of a fourth.

“Gorramit!” she cursed, wincing in pain as the ephemeral snake, twice as large as her own body, started trying to crush her arm and thrash her about. Applejack remained steadfast through the shaking, and smashed her left fist into the snake’s translucent eye, firing a beam of gold energy from the wrist nozzle of her gauntlet straight into the Anima. That broke it apart, and Applejack was able to make a safe landing on the ground.

Rainbow Dash had broken away from the mass of snakes coming after her, and began to charge up a hefty blast of lightning by raising her spear up and summoning lances of electricity from the sky to gather at the tip of the spear.

However, before she could discharge it at the wave of twenty or so serpents coming at her, something flashed in front of her.

Golden hands extended in dozens of multitudes, passing by Dash in a shining wave. The hands, palms out, impacted the oncoming ethereal snakes and forced them into a coiling, halted mass. Rainbow Dash looked behind her and felt surprise flick her expression into one of open shock.

“Fluttershy!?”

Rainbow Dash couldn’t quite immediately resolve the difference between the relatively meek and humble girl she’d seen earlier that day with the glowing, gold goddess surrounded by a blinding halo producing dozens of potent spectral limbs. Fluttershy was walking calmly forward, more and more of the nearly solid gold limbs flying out from the blinding interior of her halo to smack away Ormir’s spirit serpents.

“Are you okay, Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy asked, her spiritual pressure washing over Dash in a warm, soothing wave that made Rainbow feel like she’d just spent a week resting in a summer glade. She felt the small injuries she’d accumulated being swept aside like so much dirt, and her own energy being replenished as if she’d taken a drink from a cool, clean mountain spring.

“Whoa... y-yeah, better than fine. When did you get all glowy and limbed up?” Dash asked, gesturing at the physical additional arms attached to Fluttershy’s body.

“Just recently. I’ll tell you about it later. Do you and Applejack need help? Me and Pinkie Pie came to check on you, since it felt like you were having some trouble.”

Rainbow Dash looked over to where Applejack was just in time to see Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena catapult in like a spinning top, Pinkamena grinning like a madwoman as she swung the Pinkie Hammer to whack half a dozen phantom snakes. There was a distinct crack like the first shot of a game of billiards, and the snakes went bouncing around like the balls from that very game, smacking into other snakes while Pinkamena landed between Rainbow Dash and Applejack.

“Things got boring back at camp,” Pinkamena said, licking her lips, “So we left those Quincy girls to watch things while we came to see if there was anything good to eat over here? Is the multi-headed gecko what’s on the menu today?”

She gave an appreciative look at the surrounding carnage of already defeated creatures, “Looks like you’ve already had lots of fun.”

“We’ve been busy, yeah,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Hey, where’s Rarity and Sunset?” asked Applejack, and Fluttershy gained a concerned look.

“Rarity said she was worried someone was after Twilight and went to track them down,” Fluttershy said, “Since we’d dealt with the attack at the camp, we thought we’d come help you. As for Sunset, she’s underground, chasing Gloriosa Daisy and her brother.”

“The camp owners? What happened with them?” asked Rainbow Dash, but before anyone could answer there were four distinctly disgruntled throat clearings from the hydra.

All the girls looked to see the Hydra’s four faces bearing a wounded look of chagrin.

“If you could all stop talking, we’re supposed to be fighting.”

“Hey buddy, you hold your horses. Or snakes. Or whatever,” said Rainbow Dash, “Me and my friends here are just catching up with current events. In case you didn’t notice there’s a lot going on around here and it doesn’t all involve you. We’ve got Hollows and Quincy running around here, too, and honestly that was enough before you Beast Realm weirdos decided to stick your nose into things!”

“Beast Realm?” Fluttershy inquired with obvious interest, now taking a rather fascinated look at Ormir. The Hydra seemed rather uncomfortable with Fluttershy’s scrutiny and self-consciously all four heads found somewhere else to look other than the girl’s piercingly intense eyes.

“Oh man, is this gonna be on the test?” said Pinkie Pie, her hammer form drooping, “This is gonna be four grade geography all over again if I have to remember all these realms and worlds and stuff.”

“It is not our fault that the discharging of our clan’s debt has come at an inconvenient time for you humans,” Ormir said, drawing himself up and rearing his heads high, “We know not of the Hollows’ or Quincy’s dealings here. Our sole goal is to honor our debt by attacking the place called ‘Camp Everfree’.”

“Oh my,” said Fluttershy, “Whyever would someone want you to do such an unpleasant thing?”

“We are not obligated to answer...” Ormir began, but Fluttershy just kept staring at him. The manifested spirit snakes of his Anima all hissed, drawing up around the Hydra’s body in defense, and Orimir growled from his four maws, “Do not try to bewitch us. We shall not betray our honor by divulging anything to you. We would be slain, first.”

“That can be arranged.”

All eyes turned upward to see two women standing upon the air some hundred feet up, their Soul Reaper robes stirred by a fain breeze. Captain Sweet Cider and Lieutenant Posey both had their Zanpaktou drawn and held in ready battle stances. Applejack’s eyes lit up.

“Ma, yer here!”

Sweet Cider couldn’t quite keep a parentally satisfied smirk off her cherry red features as she looked at the battlefield, noting the number of defeated creatures strewn about, and the heavily injured Hydra. “Looks like ya were havin’ a grand ol’ time over here, hayseed. Good work holdin’ the line ‘till we could clean things up back in town. Ya’ll gals alright?”

“We’re cool, Mrs. Apple,” Rainbow Dash said, grinning, “We totally have this. Snake boy was just about to spill the beans on what he and his legion of Equestrian critter rip-offs were doing here. Riiiight Orwhatever?”

“Ormir...” he replied, simultaneously proving that gigantic Hydra Jarls from a spiritual dimension of mythic creatures were quite capable of pouting.

“Dude, seriously, check your ego. You might be someone epic back where you come from, but you majorly picked a fight with the wrong people,” Rainbow Dash said, “I don’t care who you owe beyond knowing who my smacking hand is going towards next. And considering who just showed up, you might want to rethink your chances, which were already low when it was just me and AJ inserting our boots up your bad-touch zone.”

“Ya really wanna be tellin’ someone else ‘bout checkin’ their egos?” Applejack said, giving Dash a flat stare, “Pretty sure there’s a sayin’ concerin’ pots an’ kettles that applies here.”

Sweet Cider cleared her throat in a singular and loud fashion that caused all attention to divert back to her.

“I don’t know what yer doin’ here, Beast Realmer, but yer presence, attackin’ livin’ humans no less, is violatin’ yer kinds’ treaty with Soul Society five ways from Sunday. I got half a mind ta lop three o’ yer heads off an’ drag the remainin’ one back ta Seireitei so ya can explain ta Captain Commander Scorpan just what ya think yer tryin’ ta pull.”

Ormir narrowed his four sets of eyes, but even past his reptilian features it was easy enough to tell that he was exceedingly uncertain of his chances against Sweet Cider. “My heads would grow back, but your point is taken, Soul Reaper. My clan’s debt did not extend to doing battle with your kind, and now that you are here, there is no cowardice in taking the remains of my thralls and returning to the Beast Realm. Our duty is fulfilled as best it can be....”

“No wait just a sec’ there,” Sweet Cider began to say, “Who said I was gonna let ya walk?”

However, even as she spoke, Orimir’s heads were casting magic, forming circles of emerald light in front of them. Everyone tensed, some to defend or evade, or in Sweet Cider’s case, to attack. Yet a mere half second later the spells were cast and in an impressive flash of light, he vanished in a singular pop of emerald light that looked familiar to any who’d witnessed a teleport spell.

Sweet Cider hadn’t seen such before and blinked in annoyance, “What n’ tarnation was that?”

“Look like magic ta me,” said Applejack, kicking the dirt in front of her, “Heard Princess Twilight mention teleportin’ before, an’ willin’ ta bet that was it.”

“So the dude just up and ran? Lame,” Rainbow Dash said, “How are we supposed to find out who he was working for?”

“I think it's better that there won’t be any more fighting,” Fluttershy said, “At least not here. I can still feel conflict nearby. Oh, I think Twilight’s in trouble, and Luna, and maybe Celestia?”

“Don’t forget Sunny!” Pinkie Pie said, “She’s totally going to try to solo this level’s boss, I just know it! We should go help her now that the mini-boss has skedaddled!”

“Who says ‘skeaddled’ anymore?” pondered Pinkamena.

“Uh, I did, like, two seconds ago, duh, “ said Pinkie Pie.

Sweet Cider blinked at them for a second, then sighed and turned to look at Posey, “Lieutenant, would ya mind stayin’ here with them an’ ensurin’ if there’s any more trouble ta help protect the civilians?”

“Of course, Captain,” Posey said, briefly glancing towards Fluttershy past the length of her bangs, “It’d be my privilege. But, um, what will you be doing?”

“Luna’s reiatsu is still faint, an’ I’m sensin’ powerful Hollows either near her or headin’ towards her. Celestia’s still fighthin’ an Espada, but her reiatsu is goin’ strong. I sense Starswirl nearby tackling some Quincy an’ Hollows, but he don’t much feel like he’s in any danger. I’m headin’ ta help Luna outta whatever jam she’s gotten herself into.”

At those words worried looks were exchanged between the girls from Canterlot High. They all knew Adagio had fought Luna, and it sounded like Adagio had come out on top in that fight. But if Sweet Cider showed up...? The problem was that they couldn’t say anything without making it blindingly obvious that they were on Adagio’s side, more or less.

Still, Applejack did try, “Hold up, ma! I know Luna’s in a’ tough spot, but there’s somethin’ brewin’ down below this camp, too. Sunset’s run off after a lady named Gloriosa who’s, uh, got some kind o’ Hollow trouble goin’ on. Ya might wanna stick around.”

Sweet Cider looked at her daughter, and shook her head, “It’ll have ta wait. Luna’s reiatsu is way to faint fer her ta still be in’ fightin’ trim. I ain’t got time ta second guess things. Just stay her, look after yer little sister, an’ I’ll be back before ya know it.”

Applejack opened her mouth to respond, but Sweet Cider had already vanished with a Flash Step, and the farm girl was left gawking at empty air. She grit her teeth, muttering under her breath, “Dagnabbit, hope Adagio’s got the sense ta run away like that Ormir fella did.”

----------

Adagio had Luna imprisoned in a condensed sphere of water, leaving the Soul Reaper woman’s head exposed but otherwise encasing her body with a tightly pressurized body of water that kept Luna’s limbs pinned. Luna’s Zanpaktou was out of reach, contained in another, smaller sphere that Adagio kept floating next to her. She didn’t want to take any chances.

“What do you intend to do with me?” Luna asked, eyes staring at Adagio hard, despite the blood in them.

“I’m still considering that,” Adagio said, pursing her lips as she tapped her chin, “As a hostage you could be quite useful. However I don’t want to reenact the last few days in reverse, so I won’t be taking you as a prisoner to Las Noches. The last thing I need is your sister banging down my door to rescue you. Been enough rescuing going on these days, I think it’s time to flip the script a bit.”

Luna’s eyes twitched with razor suspicion, and Adagio couldn’t deny she was enjoying toying with the Captain just a bit.

“Just what does that mean?” Luna asked, biting out the words.

“Only that if I’m going to use you as a bargaining chip, I’ll be doing it here, today, instead of taking you home to cash in at a later date. I’ve only one objective here, and it hasn’t been achieved yet, so you’ll be helping me with that. Specifically, convincing your fellow Captain to allow me to depart with my forces, and Ember.”

Luna’s response was laced with something approaching sympathy, or perhaps pity might have been more accurate. “You believe Captain Starswirl will give up Ember in exchange for me?”

“Are the bonds of comradery between Soul Reapers that weak?” Adagio replied, and Luna stared back at her.

“It has nothing to do with that. Captain Starswirl would have no desire to see me harmed, but he also wouldn’t compromise his research for my sake. You may have beaten me, Adagio Dazzle, but you’re weakened from the fight. Starswirl is as likely to consider you a viable acquisition, were you to present yourself before him with me in tow.”

Adagio’s lips twisted into an annoyed sneer. True, she was exhausted from the fight with Luna, and certainly injured from the ordeal. Her body was recovering, albeit slowly. She didn’t enjoy the kind of regenerative powers Chrysalis possessed, but she recovered fast like many Arrancar did. But Luna was right, Adagio was in no shape to fight another Captain.

That being said, Adagio could sense Starswirl and Twilight Sparkle’s battle. She wasn’t sure why Ember hadn’t escaped with Di Roy and Roka yet. She assumed Starswirl must be preventing them from fleeing through a Garganta, somehow. Still, that didn’t change that Starswirl was already dealing with a difficult opponent in Twilight, so if Adagio showed up now with Luna, that might complicate things enough for Starswirl to make him back off and listen to reason.

“Perhaps you’re right, or perhaps you’re not,” Adagio said, “You must sense that Starswirl is fighting right now, and regardless of who he’s fighting, I think I’m still sufficient threat that my arrival would make him consider negotiating for your release. It’s a better bet than any other I have available right now, so I’ll play the cards in my hand as best I can.”

“Of course there’s no harm in someone slipping you an ace up the sleeve, is there?”

The new voice came from behind, and Adagio whirled around to see, to her surprise, Greta approaching from the treeline. It didn’t take Adagio more than a second to realize that, despite appearances, this wasn’t Greta. The ‘woman’ was walking with a hip-swaying swagger that identified them more thoroughly than a fingerprint to Adagio.

“Well, I’m never opposed to stacking a deck in my favor, Thorax, but what are you doing here? And impersonating one of Guto’s warriors, no less?” Adagio said, and ‘Greta’ pouted at her and flashed her eyelids in an innocent blush.

“Aww, what gave me away?”

“Oh please, you know you were signalling who you were with that little sauntering walk of yours. Aside from myself and my sisters you’re the only person I know capable of moving their hips like that,” Adagio replied, and cast a sidelong look at Luna upon hearing the Soul Reaper make a quiet noise.

Luna was now looking at ‘Greta’ as emerald fire enwrapped the image of Guto’s warrior and burned away the false appearance to reveal Thorax’s effeminate yet sinfully well sculpted male form. Thorax brushed locks of soft green hair from his face and placed one slim, dark hand on the hilt of his Zanpaktou while bowing to Adagio.

“I suppose it’s true, I do know how to work what my mother so generously gave me. A pleasure to see you, Adagio. And you too, Lulu. It’s been ages.”

“Thorax..” Luna said with a quiet tone brimming with a hidden tempest of emotions that got Adagio looking at the Soul Reaper Captain’s carefully guarded expression with a spike of curiosity. Luna’s stare at Thorax was utterly intense, and flavored with a rich blend of apprehension, mistrust, and... regret? .

“I take it you two have a history?” Adagio said, turning a questioning glance towards Thorax. He, oddly enough, looked... guilty? Embarrassed? It was difficult to tell. He looked at Luna with a similar mix of emotions, chief among them a sort of resigned regret as he shrugged his shoulders and held out his hands in a ‘what can I say’ gesture.

“You could say that. Mother once tried to get, *ahem* Luna here on our side of the fence. The first Soul Reaper to willingly defect to the Hollows. It, uh... didn’t work out.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Luna replied with a hardening tone, “I would describe it along the lines of Chrysalis lying to me, trying to take possession of my soul to turn me against my sister, and you helping her do it by trying to convince me you cared about me.”

Thorax was quiet for a second, eyes regarding Luna with the same bitter mix of emotions in the Captain’s gaze, “I don’t suppose trying to explain my side of the story would matter to you at this point, would it? For what little it may be worth to you, Luna, I am sorry. Mother has a singular way of getting what she wants. At the time I had little choice in the matter, not that I expect you to be sympathetic. It’s also water under the bridge, for me, and has nothing to do with why I’m here.”

“If you were listening in to our conversation, which no doubt you were, you know that I’m a busy woman,” Adagio said, “So tell me why you’re here, and be quick about it.”

“As you wish,” Thorax said, gesturing towards Luna, “I want to take Luna off your hands and keep her as a guest in Las Noches.”

“No,” Luna and Adagio both said simultaneously, and the pair glanced at each other while Thorax crossed his arms and grimaced.

“At least hear me out, first, won’t you, Adagio? You haven’t even heard what I’m offering in exchange for her.”

“I’m not sure it matters,” Adagio said flatly, “She’s too much trouble to keep as a prisoner, and I don’t need her sister or any other Captains barging into my territory trying to get her back.”

“She won’t be in your territory, she’ll be in mine,” Thorax said, “Thoroughly guarded within the depths of my mother’s fortress.”

“Still no dice,” Adagio said, and held up a hand to forestall Thorax from opening his mouth, “I’m certain you have plenty of things to offer me in payment for my prisoner, but the bottom line is, she’s more useful to me right here and now as a bargaining chip than just about anything you could put on the table. Nothing personal, Thorax, but unless you have a way for me to conveniently ascend to the rank of First Espada, have a way to instantly end this asinine spirit war, or can instantly teleport me to Equestria-”

“I can teleport you to Equestria,” Thorax said bluntly, and Adagio lost her breath for a moment, shocked into silence.

Thorax stared right at her, expression giving away nothing but blunt seriousness, “You heard me correctly, Adagio, and I’m not lying. Give me Luna, and I’ll get you to Equestria. Today, if you so wish.”

“...How?” Adagio hissed past clenched teeth.

“I won’t tell you that. Take my offer, and then you learn the method, but only when Luna is safely in my custody back in Las Noches.”

It wasn’t often that Adagio was left without an immediate way to respond. Her mind was in full processing mode, analyzing every inch of Thorax’s facial expression and body language, seeking any hint of a lie or deception. At the same time her brain was calculating a dozen different scenarios and possibilities where this deal could prove useful to her. She could use it as leverage with Sunset or Twilight to get any number of favors in exchange for a route to Equestria, assuming Thorax would be willing to transport more than just Adagio. Tirek would certainly find such information useful, but Adagio wasn’t willing to hand the keys to invasion of her home world over to him. Might be useful for arranging some manner of... accident or ambush, however.

While her mind reeled at the possibilities, her thoughts were broken by the sudden arrival of another.

Gaw literally appeared before her in a flash of Sonido, and it was obvious at a glance that she’d been through a rough fight from the arrow wounds puncturing her shoulder, arms, and legs.

“Gaw,” Adagio said, “Did you end up tangling with a Quincy?”

Thorax and his deal would have to be shelved until she knew what had happened. The last Adagio had known, Gaw had been with ‘Greta’ and Gilda just before Gilda had blown the ‘covert’ part of their operation, and for reasons Adagio still didn’t know yet. Honestly she’d have asked Thorax by now if he hadn’t distracted her with all this business with Luna.

Gaw, giving Thorax an odd look and sniffing at him, frowned and said, “Yes but not Quincy we know. Wore a fake face. Pretending to be another. Like this one with the stupid face.”

“Excuse me, my face is gorgeous,” Thorax said, planting one hand on his hip, “But that aside, yes, I did mean to mention to you Adagio that it looks like one of Twilight Sparkle’s Quincy friends isn’t who she appears to be.”

“What happened?” Adagio asked Gaw, “Be brief.”

Gaw was good at being brief, that was certain, “Gilda saw Smooze. Tried to kill him. Yellow girl with pink hair stopped her. I stuck fighting Quincy, then girls you said were friends came and helped. Red hair and purple hair.”

“Sunset and Rarity... and the other one was Flutterhy. And Smooze you say? I don’t suppose you know how that fight panned out for Gilda?”

Gaw shook her head and Adagio waved it away, “No matter, it doesn’t affect us here and now.”

With a licking of her lips and sharp teeth, Gaw looked at the captive Luna, “You win fight. Good. Strong tribe leader. We eat this one?”

“No, Gaw, we don’t eat her. Thorax and I were discussing what to do with her, in fact. And on that note, I-”

The ground exploded about ten meters behind the group, leaving Adagio to growl out an exasperated sigh, wondering what the interruption was this time. At least until she turned around and felt a wall of overwhelming reiatsu spill towards her that had been kept suppressed just a few seconds ago, but now rushed out in a flood.

Adagio didn’t actually recognize the absurdly tall, muscular woman with red skin and wild blonde hair, but she certainly recognized the black Soul Reaper Robes, white Captain’s Coat, and the rather large Zanpaktou being carried over the woman’s shoulder.

“Howdy ya’ll,” said Sweet Cider, “I’mma ask ya ta hand over that there Soul Reaper ya got sitting over there. Otherwise things’ll get a mite ugly ‘round here.”

This was absolutely not what Adagio needed right now! At a glance, she tried to assess the threat level this woman represented, and didn’t like what she saw. This Soul Reaper was almost the utter opposite of Luna. Where Luna was slim, with a stance that had emphasized speed and grace, this crimson giant of a woman was excluding brute physical might. Her reiatsu had a blunt, powerful vibe to it, and Adagio could tell the woman was holding it back, likely to have gotten this close to them without being immediately detected.

Adagio was injured and her own energy reserves were low. She was still in her Resurreccion form, however, while this Captain hadn’t appeared to even released their Shikai yet. If Adagio blitzed her now...

But Adagio couldn’t guarantee a fast victory, and she also was still uncertain as to the situation with the rescue team. The conflicting reiatsu from over there wasn’t telling her much outside of the fact that Twilight and Starswirl were still fighting.

“Well?” the Captain said again, bouncing her Zanpaktou on her shoulder expectantly, “I’m bein’ real polite her, given ya’ll a chance ta give over Luna.”

“Captain Sweet Cider,” Luna said, “I’m pleased to see you here, although embarrassed you have to see me in such a state. Is your daughter Applejack well?”

Adagio kept her own facial expression neutral, but did flick a glance at Luna. Had Luna dropped that information intentionally to clue Adagio in to who this was? Sweet Cider? Now that she gazed at the features, the resemblance to Sunset’s farmer friend was rather unmistakable. An interesting coincidence, but not information that really helped Adagio much. She and Applejack weren’t friends, and the familiar connection between the girl and this Soul Reaper Captain wasn’t something Adagio could use. At least, not immediately.

“Captain Sweet Cider, is it?” she said, deciding her best bet was to try and play for time. “I’m Adagio Dazzle, the Sixth Espada. A pleasure.”

“Uh-huh,” Sweet Cider said, sounding distinctly unimpressed, which did rankle Adagio somewhat. This Sweet Cider had almost disturbingly similar mannerisms to her daughter, it was like talking to a tall, red Applejack. “Look, I know who ya are, girl. My daughter told me what happened to ya while tryin’ ta rescue yer kin. Ya got my respect fer goin’ so far fer family, but don’t make no mistake, while yer wearin’ the title o’ Espada an’ servin’ that bunch in Las Noches, you n’ me are gonna be foes. It’s cause o’ yer sad tale that I’m lettin’ ya off with droppin’ Luna and pissin’ off back ta Las Noches. You do anythin’ else, like try ta sweet talk me or attack, an’ we’re doin’ this the hard n’ fast way, ya hear me?”

Gaw peeled back her lips and let out a low, feral growl, one hand on her Zanpaktou and the other digging into the ground with her claws as she crouched into a ready stance, but Adagio held her trident out to forestall any premature actions that would likely get the young Arrancar killed.

“Down, Gaw. It’s not a fight yet.”

“Indeed,” Thorax said, clearing his throat and stepping forward, “A fight would be... regrettable. I know who you are as well, Captain Sweet Cider. Your reputation is known to us in Las Noches, given you’ve taken the title of Kenpachi.”

Adagio raised an eyebrow, and upon seeing it, Thorax elaborated, “A title given to the strongest swordsman among the Soul Reapers.”

That only furthered Adagio’s confusion, but it was a title she’d heard of before, albeit in a very tertiary manner, “I’ve heard it mentioned. Does it actually mean anything? I thought the Captain Commander, that Scorpan fellow, was the strongest Soul Reaper.”

“Ain’t that simple,” Sweet Cider said, her voice lacking much patience, “Couple o’ Soul Reapers more powerful than me, especially the Captain Commander. Excludin’ him, though, ain’t none that match me in raw strength, blade ta blade. Don’t mean Celestia wouldn’t whomp me with her ridiculous Bankai, or Cheese with his tactics. Guess Hurricane can keep pace, but he’d never beat me without doin’ somethin’ underhanded. All that aside, I see ya ain’t let go o’ Luna yet. Do I gotta start countin’ down from ten like yer my gorram children lookin’ ta get a paddlin’ fer not goin’ ta bed on time?”

Adagio looked to Thorax, saying in a low voice, “What do you make of our chances?”

Thorax licked his lips and cast her a haphazard smile, “Not nearly as high as I’d like. Even with three of us, your pet there would be killed in moments, leaving it to us two. I’m...” he hesitated, lowering his voice to whisper, “I’m stronger than most in Las Noches are aware. If we work together, we may stand a chance. You also have a trump card, do you not?”

Lament. Adagio hadn’t been eager to call him in, but Thorax was correct. How Thorax knew about that, Adagio wasn’t certain, but given the man’s clear capability in infiltration he might have learned the information almost anytime prior to the start of this mess. More importantly, should she use that trump card now? Was handing Luna over to Thorax in exchange to access to a path to Equestria worth fighting Sweet Cider?

With Lament, it’ll be four on one, although I might have Gaw fall back. I’m not losing vassals in a fight above their paygrade. This will complicate matters, but if I leave now, before I know Ember is safe, this whole endeavour will have been for nothing.

“Ten...” Sweet Cider began her count, while Adagio raised her trident.

While she’d told Roka to decide whether or not to call Lament in if things got bad, she’d realized the possibility that she might need to make the call herself, so had arranged a simple signal she could send for Roka to see. To ensure it couldn’t be mistaken, the signal was a trio of scaled back Cero beams, fired in short succession, straight into the sky. It was distinct enough that it wouldn’t likely be accidentally replicated, and since Roka’s spiritual senses were fairly keen she shouldn’t have trouble telling it was Adagio’s reiatsu firing the Ceros.

Adagio saw Sweet Cider tense as she fired the Ceros skyward. The Captain had no way of knowing why Adagio fired what felt like intentionally weakened beams into the sky, but she was no fool, either. It wasn’t hard to surmise it was some kind of signal, and that whatever Adagio was signalling, it probably wasn’t a sign the Arrancar was about to surrender Luna.

“Made yer choice then,” she said, taking her Zanpaktou off her shoulder and letting her spiritual pressure exude from her in an oppressive wave. Adagio, Gaw, and Thorax all felt that reiatsu like suddenly having a mountain pressing down on them.

“It’s unfortunate, but Luna’s too useful right now to hand over,” Adagio said, preparing herself by letting her own reiatsu push back against Sweet Cider’s, her body becoming lined in a blue glow. Gaw was breathing hard under Sweet Cider’s spiritual pressure, but was glowing red as she let her own reiatsu spill out and gripped her Zanpaktou, likely to use her Resurreccion as soon as possible.

Thorax was being more conservative, hiding his own spiritual pressure as he stood there and slowly drew his cutlass-shaped Zanpaktou, “Well Adagio, you did manage to beat one Captain today. Pull that off twice and your prestige back in Las Noches will certainly make a leap.”

“Wouldn’t be gettin’ yer hopes up,” Sweet Cider said, and with that she came head on at Adagio.

The motion was both fast and powerful, and while the speed wasn’t on par with Luna’s, the raw might of it caused the land behind her to break apart in an explosion of rock. Adagio barely got her trident up in time to take the blow, and Resurreccion or not, the strike sent a shockwave out that blasted back Gaw and Thorax both, and drove Adagio back like a pinball. She managed to halt herself by using her bladed tail to jab into the ground and dragging it along for several dozen meters, but her trident shook from her numbed arms.

Well, she's certainly just as strong as she looks, Adagio thought ruefully, realizing she may well have pushed her luck a tad too far with this one. She sincerely hoped Roka didn't waste any time in summoning her father.

----------

Roka, Di Roy, and Ember had reached the edge of the depleted lake when the trio of thin Cero beams could be seen cutting into the blue sky. They might have missed them if not for Roka casting out a wide net of spiritual senses with her Pesquisa to try and make sure they didn't run into any trouble on the way to the lab, upon which she halted.

Di Roy and Ember stopped as well, although Ember looked incredibly aggitated at doing so, but both saw the Ceros dissapating into the sky. Ember had no idea what the Ceros were, and said, "What, did some idiot not know how to aim?"

"Going to guess it's boss lady signalling us," Di Roy said, and closed his eyes for a second to use his own Pesquisa, upon which his eyes shot open and he shuddered, "Holy crapbaskets on a zip-line to hell, who's Adagio fighting!? This reiatsu feel like a steamroller made out of angry swords!"

Ember focused a moment to sense what he was, and visibly grew a shade paler, "No way... this feels as strong as my father... no... stronger? How many Soul Reaper Captains are that strong? We have to go help her!"

"We ain't doing jack against someone on that level," Di Roy said, "What we do is snag your Zanpaktou and get out of here, so Adagio and Gaw and leave too. It's the only reason we're here."

"Remain calm," Roka said, her expression placid but her eyes grave, "Adagio and I worked out a backup plan for such an instance, although I was hesitant to do this..."

She raised a hand and opened a person sized Garganta portal. A small thread glinted from her robe's sleeves, and Roka sent the thread of reishi through the portal. There, it would stretched across the Precipice World to Hueco Mundo, to the very tower of her father in Las Noches. Through the thread she could exude her reiatsu and signal Lament that his aid was needed.

For a small moment Roka still hesitated, even as she felt her thread enter Las Noches. She had a cold feeling inside her that she didn't like, but couldn't put a name to. If she didn't summon her father, Adagio and Gaw were likely to die, and yet...

Roka shook off the hesitation and sent the signal.

Episode 111: The Storm Before the Bigger Storm

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Episode 111: The Storm Before the Bigger Storm

It was with a brush of professionalism and an air of intellectual satisfaction that Starswirl gestured with his left hand, and Twilight felt the ward he’d created to halt Garganta portals abruptly shatter and dissolve. Her focus had been so intent upon the Twelfth Division Captain that she’d actually lost track of her allies, but with the barrier crumbling like melting flecks of snow around the area, Twilight focused for a second to sense that Di Roy, Roka, and most importantly Ember were outside the barrier’s original area.

They’d done it! But wait, why weren’t they retreating through a Garganta? Instead Twilight sensed them heading back towards the lake, and the lab? But why... oh, it had to be Ember’s Zanpaktou!

“I see from the enlightened expression on your face you’ve surmised why my test subject hasn’t made good on an escape back to her realm,” Starswirl said, and Twilight cast her attention back to him and instantly raised her bow again. Magical power burst to teal life along the length of the Hexenfaust gauntlet, charged up by the loaded M-Cell within.

“You don’t seem very concerned,” Twilight noted, and Starswirl gave a short, confirming nod. He remained in the air above her from his previous attack, but seemed wholly not in a rush to make another move, instead looking at her in a way that reminded Twilight of the way her father sometimes looked at her patiently when she’d been a young child and he’d been teaching her chess.

“The specimen, I suppose I’ll use her name ‘Ember’, can’t evade my ability to track her location, and I knew there was a statistically low chance of her returning to Hueco Mundo without her weapon. While I’d have preferred to have recaptured her here, I’m still confident in my contingencies. Besides, I’m finding our conflict here intellectually stimulating, aren’t you?”

“Not as much as I’d enjoy knowing my friends and allies were safe,” Twilight replied, not dropping her guard as she sought out where his next attack might come from. With his Zanpaktou’s ability to produce any number of unknown chemicals she was at a serious disadvantage, given his superior knowledge of chemicals and compounds exclusive to the spiritual realms. If only she could just diffuse the fight altogether. “You’re only studying Ember for the sake of finding a way around the blocked portal to Equestria, aren’t you? That’s a goal that would benefit me as well, so instead of trying to recapture Ember what if I offered my own assistance to your research?”

He didn’t immediately dismiss the notion, stroking the soft tuft of white beard hanging from his chin, “I’ll admit, I’ve never combined research efforts with a Quincy before, but without an Arrancar to study for their affinity with Garganta portals, what good would that accomplish? Quincy cannot create their own portals.”

“No, but magic can... I can,” Twilight ventured, not mentioning the fact that the only time she ever created such “portals” was when she’d either been completely overtaken by Midnight, or been possessed by the Left Eye of the Soul Queen. But Starswirl didn’t need to know that.

“Not to sound like someone lacking some level of personal ethics, but if that’s the case why shouldn’t I simply capture you instead of Ember?” Starswirl asked.

“Because cooperation is superior to conflict? You haven’t actually beaten me yet, Captain Starswirl,” Twilight pointed out.

“True, but as I said, I’m rather enjoying testing your abilities. Hmm, tell you what, young Miss Sparkle. I’ll consider your offer... if you manage to, well, let’s be realistic and say rather than ‘defeat me’ you force me to ‘get serious’, hm?”

Twilight thought perhaps he was being a tad arrogant there, but she supposed he had good reason. She was a teenage girl whom he had centuries (perhaps even millennia) of experience over, and he had a whole second stage of power as of yet untapped within his Zanpaktou. She wasn’t exactly pressing him at the moment. Granted, Starswirl would’ve likely been briefed on the Vollstandig transformation by this point. Twilight couldn’t imagine Luna would’ve left that detail out of any report she made after capturing Ember. Still, Starswirl might and the rest of the Soul Reapers probably didn’t know much about Vollstandig, either. It’s properties, the requirements for activating it, what additional powers it granted, ect.

One would think that lack of knowledge might make him more cautious of her, but he seemed confident that she either didn’t possess Vollstandig, or that even if she did it wouldn’t make enough difference.

Sadly, she was stuck playing on his ignorance in that regard. While Schrifts were powers Sombra could grant that were fairly easy to learn the basics of using, even for relatively inexperienced Quincy... Vollstandig was a different matter. She did possess a Sanrei Glove that contained the components necessary to push her into such a transformation, but she’d yet to properly acclimate herself to it or obtain sufficient control of her reishi to enact the transformation without similar risk of losing her powers like the older Letzt Stil form.

Sombra had walked her through the exercises as best he could in the limited time they had before she came to Canterlot City, but even with his help, he estimated that if she tried to use Vollstandig there was a fifty-fifty chance she’d do serious damage to her spiritual powers. Twilight wasn’t as much of a risk taker that she felt okay betting on such odds.

Then again, she had a Schrift that could possibly enhance those odds, if used right...

Putting that thought aside, she fixed her gaze on the space around Starswirl and said, “If that’s what you want, then I’ve no compunctions with obliging you.”

Midnight, we’ll see how he handles both magic and Quincy alchemy at the same time! With the M-Cell, don’t hold anything back!

Her alter ego eagerly responded with a chilling laugh that made Twilight want to gulp nervously, but at least she and Midnight were working together. She aimed her bow at a spot to Starswirl’s left, and let Midnight’s presence inside her mind expand a little further, merging their thought patterns even further. Teal light intensified around her eyes and back, becoming more solidly akin to a mask of magic witchfire and wisp-like wings as the arrow she formed within her bow pulsed with such light that it all but recolored the forest below with eldritch light.

The M-Cell sent surges of magic through both her and her bow as she fired, Midnight and her working as one within her mind to shape magic around the dense reishi arrow. At the same moment she fired, she also sent herself shooting upward into the air with a powerful jump, bouncing off the air once with Hirenkyaku to rocket towards Starswirl’s other side just as her arrow arrived.

The magic inside the arrow burst into a spell, rippling out into a solid sphere of teal energy. This was akin to one of her brother’s barriers, but with a fundamentally different set of principles, which became more apparent as magical circles formed along the exterior of the sphere. The spellwork here was complex, and without Midnight’s help, Twilight wouldn’t have been able to handle it. The sphere was one part barrier, one part amplifier. As her mind enacted the magic at the speed of thought, she wondered what the application of such amplifier spells might have been. She knew the magic instinctively from Midnight, but not the context in which the magic had existed back in Equestria.

Regardless, she knew the magical circles would interact with her Quincy alchemy to transmute them into enhanced versions, and with an additional layer of duplication magic circles, she could fill the entire sphere from just one ginto tube.

Starswirl was moving, spinning his fan above his head, and Twilight wasn’t sure what he was doing but acted fast to try to beat him to the punch as she threw a ginto tube towards the nearest magic circle and sent out a strand of reishi to it as the tube burst and spilled alchemic water onto the magic circle.

“Weise Wespe!” (White Wasp)

What was normally meant as a fairly basic Quincy alchemic spell to generate a taser-like blast of electricity was now transmuted into something far more potent as it hit the magic circle and the sphere attached to it. Twilight couldn’t even stab a guess at the voltage from the blinding storm of white colored electricity that flashed through the sphere with a crack of thunder. The energy was both spiritual and magical in nature, the two energies amplifying one another while the singular spell was also duplicated all across the sphere over a dozen times.

The sphere should have eliminated Starswirl’s ability to evade, and she had to think that an attack boosted to that degree had to at least hurt him, regardless of how potent his reiatsu was.

Midnight, how’s the M-Cell?, she asked.

Still has about half its juice left. Mmm, that felt pretty good. I do hope he’s not worn out from just that much. I want to keep going.

Twilight could only suppress an inner face-palm at the tone in Midnight’s voice, which left Twilight wishing she could somehow mentally spray bottle her alter ego.

This isn’t a game or... or anything else you might be thinking! Just focus. This isn’t over.

She was making no assumptions that her attack would have ended the fight, and was already preparing her next move when she sensed a drastic shift in the spiritual energies contained within the barrier. The light of intense electrical surges faded, and then to Twilight’s intrigued if also a little horrified surprise, she saw the very reishi making up her barrier being eaten away as if it was corroding.

She saw Starswirl in the center of the sphere, still spinning his Zanpaktou. She saw it’s fan shape releasing a steady stream of a darkly pink gas, which was eating away at the barrier. From the few remaining flickers of alchemic electricity, this gas had also diffused a portion of the electrical energy that had filled the sphere. Starswirl was still injured, with his body bearing several notable scorch marks and his clothing left frayed, but whatever this gas was that he’d unleashed had severely weakened the attack’s impact.

Twilight guessed that the gas was somehow designed to break down reishi particles. Through Midnight’s help, she could sense the magic of the barrier was still present, but since it’d been combined with reishi to reinforce its power, with those spirit particles being corroded then the barrier itself couldn’t hold form as the magic was left with no structure to maintain itself.

Why the gas wasn’t affecting Starswirl himself was a different matter, but Twilight theorized that if Starswirl had invented this spirit particle corroding gas, then he’d likely have a means to immunize himself to it or otherwise counteract it... which meant...

She flickered closer with Hirenkayku, making sure to stay just outside the immediate vicinity of the gas. Starswirl cocked his eyebrow at her, and she made a point of focusing her eyes directly on him with an intense stare as she activated her Schrift.

Altering variables required she had a grasp on those variables. She could make educated guesses as well, which did reduce the power of the Variable, but didn’t counteract it. Spiritual pressure was also a concern, but Twilight had little to lose by trying.

Switch the variables of the gas so the corrosive properties are magnified, and operate on a different chemical level..., Twilight concentrated, recalling the structure of the reishi particles in Quincy alchemy and making an educated guess that whatever Starswirl was using to protect himself was calibrated to ignore Soul Reaper based spirit particles and attack Quincy ones. She simply switched that variable into reverse.

The effect was immediate as Starswirl’s eyes began to water and his body started to smoke as if something acidic was eating away at his clothes. He didn’t waste a second on confusion, his eyes narrowing at her as he Flash Stepped out of the gas and appeared above her.

“A smart counter. Your Variable is quite the perturbing ability, Miss Sparkle.”

With a sweep of his Zanpaktou a translucent liquid burst down around her. Twilight was taken aback by how fast Starswirl moved this time, as if his previous motions had been simple tests, and now he was going at this battle in earnest. Even with Hirenkyaku she couldn’t quite get out of the field of liquid in time, some of it splashing across her right arm. It adhered to her skin faster and stronger than any super-glue she was aware of, and she felt pain shoot through her arm, as whatever this substance was it was clearly also poisonous.

Midnight stepped in, taking a moment of control of the magic coursing through their body to teleport Twilight, and only Twilight, a good fifty meters upward. The benefit was that the teleport could exclude anything that wasn’t Twilight’s body or her gear, so the poisonous, hardening chemical had been left behind. However some of it’s toxins were still in her body, and without knowing exactly what it was infecting her, the Variable couldn’t as easily counter it.

Magic, on the other hand, was a different matter. With Midnight’s help in taking up a portion of the mental focus needed, Twilight began enacting a purification spell. A magical circle surrounded her right arm and began slowly sweeping over it, cleansing her bloodstream of the toxins. However this was a rather tricky spell that required both a decent amount of energy and focus, which meant for at least a minute or two Twilight couldn’t do much of anything else magical oriented. Midnight could maintain the spell, still allowing Twilight to fight, but without the ability to draw on further magic from inside herself.

Which meant the M-Cell was still viable, but Twilight couldn’t do anything fancy with it without Midnight’s help. Then again, she didn’t necessarily need to do anything fancy for it to be effective.

Making it clear that he was taking the fight a bit more seriously, Starswirl hadn’t waited for her to mount a counteroffensive. He pursued her higher into the air, and she decided to keep herself mobile, trying to maintain the open range between them as she too leaped higher. She fired a string of arrows at him, using her own innate abilities to alter their trajectories while enhancing the speed of the arrows with the Variable. The result was that the air became filled with a buzzing storm of arrows that moved around like a hive of very irate, explosive bees.

Starswirl didn’t try to evade the barrage, perhaps because while he was fast, as all Captain-class Soul Reapers were, he wasn’t specialized in physical fights. Twilight was firing enough arrows, scores of them per second, that only dedicated Flash Steps experts would have an easy time dodging. Despite this, Starswirl chased Twilight boldly, for all he had to do was sweep his Zanpaktou out and generate more of that reishi corroding gas. Since Twilight couldn’t easily focus on the gas while moving at high speed, she couldn’t use the Variable on it in this instance, and likely Starswirl surmised that.

He was learning the ins and outs of Twilight’s Schrift. There was no avoiding that, but it was something she was counting on. Starswirl’s keen observational skills couldn’t be denied... but perhaps they could be fooled.

Twilight’s arrows were coming in at Starswirl from too many angles to count, but the constant field of gas that followed him kept dissipating the arrows before they could strike home. On top of that, Starswirl wasn’t simply chasing her, he was on the offensive. She saw several distortions in the air that billowed forth from Starswirl’s location, and noted that they appeared to be tendrils of a more colorless gas she didn’t recognize but could only see due to distortions caused by the gas’ high density and the spiritual energy contained inside it.

She hadn’t known Starswirl could produce so many different chemicals at once, because the gas streams were also carrying droplets of a faint, blue liquid within them, also filled with latent spirit energy.

“You’re familiar with the human realm’s concept of ‘nitroglycerin’ I imagine,” Starswirl said, “Let me introduce you to the reishi version of that which I concocted to combine with a special gas to boost explosive yield.”

As if coaxed by the gas, the droplets splashed together, and Twilight had all of a split second to react before the sky was ripped apart by a string of vast explosions.

She hardened her body with Blut Vene and dodged downward with a boost of Hirenkyaku, but she was still thrown around by a rag doll, and she let out a cry as the world spun around her. Dazed, and feeling blood trickle down her face, Twilight opened her eyes to find her vision was blurred. Her glasses had come off during the chain of explosions. Shaking her head, she used the Variable to adjust her eyesight so the lack of glasses was no longer a factor and flipped herself over so she could land on the air.

Her arm was still numb from the toxins, but since it was her right arm, her artificial hand was still mobile, so she made use of further reishi strings to get her arm moving and raised it to the Hexenfaust. She extended the hilt of the Hexen Schneider and pulled out the potent, teal reishi blade.

Midnight had nearly purged all the toxins out of Twilight’s arm by then, but she didn’t want to risk any of that unknown substance being left in her body so she didn’t tell Midnight to stop, either. She felt she’d established the way her Variable functioned enough to Starswirl that she could make her gamble, now. Besides, if this kept up much longer, she was pretty sure she couldn’t take a repeated beating like that. Whatever that explosive liquid was, nitroglycerin was of significantly lesser yield. If she hadn’t used Blut Vene in time, or been able to make it as strong as she could now, then Twilight’s otherwise very human body would’ve been liquefied.

She sensed Starswirl coming towards her, and she looked at the area around her and activated the Variable once more, this time focusing on the weather conditions around her.

A clear sky suddenly became permeated by a thick cloud as moisture that hadn’t been there before suddenly coalesced into being, the very variables of weather conditions changing under the power of Twilight’s Schrift.

Starswirl halted above the cloud, wisely choosing not to rush into it, even if it was just a normal, mundane, physical cloud as far as he could tell.

“Interesting tactic, but I’m not likely to just walk into an obvious trap. Although I’m not sure what you might do to said cloud if I rushed in. Make it corrosive, like you did to my gas? Poisonous? Oh, perhaps your Variable can alter gas into solid matter? That’d be a nifty trick, trapping me in a solid cloud. At any rate, I suppose I ought to flush you out of there...”

Twilight knew she had only moments to act before Starswirl likely rained a cascade of deadly chemical attacks down upon her. That cloud wouldn’t provide much protection, even if she did as Starswirl had suspected and solidified part of it with the Variable. The cloud wasn’t there to protect her, or even really obscure her, however. It was just to give Starswirl the illusion that she’d prepared a trap that also obstructed her line of sight to him. Why had she done that? Because she’d been making a point of only using her Variable on things within her line of sight...

Even though she didn’t need line of sight to activate the Variable. She just had to sense what she was targeting with her spiritual senses.

She drew back on her bow, forming a powerful stream of arrows, but kept her Hexen Schnider in that same grip as she started charging it with the magic from her M-Cell.

“Licht Regen!”

Over a thousand reishi arrows exploded upward from inside the cloud, rushing around Starswirl in a locust-like swarm. Yet most of them didn’t come close to the Captain, the attack clearly a wide-range styled attack meant to compensate for Twilight’s lack of direct vision on his location. This was meant to not only reinforce the idea that Twilight had lost line of sight to him, but that she’d gotten desperate now that her “trap” had failed.

Starswirl had a sneaking suspicion something was off, but decided that it didn’t matter as long as he eliminated the entire cloud. He had no particular intention of killing Twilight Sparkle, as he considered her an interesting young woman whose intellect should be preserved. Ideally he’d have preferred to capture her along with recapturing Ember. A brilliant mind was a brilliant mind, after all, even if attached to a Quincy.

Seeing as she’d survived his earlier explosive attack, he decided to go with the use of Compound GS-7, the highly explosive blue liquid he’d synthesized in his early years in the Twelfth Division as a means of clearing out hordes of Gillians. The compound had been banned from conventional use due to its lack of ability to purify Hollows it killed, but Starswirl recalled the chemical structure intimately, so creating it with his Zanpaktou was easy.

He’d scatter a cluster of the substance around the cloud, with the intent that the explosions would force Twilight out of hiding, or knock her out of the fight. It probably wouldn’t kill her, he calculated-

Starswirl didn’t really sense the magic, per se. His experimentation with the unique Equestrian energy source had been an endlessly fascinating affair, and he had discovered that magic could be detected in several ways, ranging from magic’s effect on normal physical phenomena, or the way it caused spiritual energies to react in odd manners. So it was less that he sensed the magic directly and more that he felt the odd fluctuation in his spiritual senses that indicated a powerful casting of magical energies.

He halted his attack and prepared himself to defend, holding his Zanpaktou in front of him like a shield.

Down inside the cloud, a vibrant pulse of violet streaked teal flame had engulfed the hilt of Twilight’s Hexen Schneider as the reishi blade, now turned into an arrow, absorbed the full remaining magic out of the M-Cell. Magical and spiritual particles alike danced around her bow in a storm of wisp light and witchfire. Then, she released.

The air cracked from the Hexen Schneider flying forth at supersonic speed, blasting a cylindrical hole through the cloud. It’s path took it past Starswirl, as if Twilight had miscalculated her aim due to not being able to see him, much like with the Licht Regen barrage.

That’s what Stasrwirl assumed as well, thinking it too bad that Twilight hadn’t had a more intelligently thought out trick up her sleeve, and that the limitations of her Variable were what were about to lead to her defeat as he prepared to saturate the cloud with his explosive chemicals.

Only Twilight had already activated the Variable and cast its power into her Hexen Schneider, and even without direct line of sight to the powerful, magically charged arrow, she used her Variable to change its course.

Starswirl felt the change a moment too late, turning a fraction too slow as the burning beacon of the Hexen Schneider veered at a sudden, ninety-degree angle and proceeded to detonate right atop him with enough magical energy to flatten several square kilometers.

The blast still wiped away the cloud Twilight was in, and she had to activate Blut Vene and shield herself with her bow to maintain her balance in the air as the shockwaves from her magical blast washed over her. Unfortunately she was pretty sure being overcharged like that, and in the center of the blast, her Hexen Schneider was going to be in need of replacing... but that was okay, she already had designs in mind for a Mrk. II model with several upgrades.

The real question was; what had happened to Captain Starswirl?

Midnight’s voice slid across her mind in a velvet laugh, You’re worried you might have killed him, Twilight? I assure you he’d have had any number of unpleasant fates in store for us. Oh, I’ve finished with healing our arm, by the way; you’re welcome.

Twilight didn’t respond, all of her focus on the fading light and dissipating teal flames of the explosion above.

She was both relieved, and somewhat perturbed to see Starswirl still standing once everything had cleared, but the Captain had clearly taken a beating. His body was smoking and his robes were shredded, revealing burned and bleeding flesh in more than a few places. His sweat stained face was showing a harsh twitch of pain, but as he gasped and laid eyes on her, Twilight was unsettled by the intense light within that was one part admiration and respect, and one part cold calculation.

“That was... remarkable, Miss Sparkle...” he said between gasps, holding out his Zanpaktou, which was also smoking and somewhat scorched. “I do believe you’ve exceeded my expectations.”

Twilight gulped past a dry mouth, “Enough to get you to consider my proposal?”

The weight of the Sanrei Glove hidden beneath the normal glove she kept on her artificial right hand seemed to double in her mind. If it came down to it, she was ready to use Vollstandig, risk or no risk. Starswirl grunted in further pain as he examined his wounds and took on a contemplative expression.

“Perhaps. You’ve certainly proven you have an aptitude for magic that surpasses what I can achieve through pure research alone, but my curiosity is not yet satiated. I think you have more to show me, and if I don’t get the opportunity to test you again, I’d be remiss as a researcher if i didn’t take full advantage of the chance while it remains. You’ve proven a match for my current abilities. So logically, the next step is...”

Oh boy... here we go, Twilight thought with a sense of deep disgruntlement at how unreasonable this whole situation was, but resolved to see it through as Starswirl gripped his Zanpaktou at it’s front with his free hand. She felt the condensing of his spiritual pressure within himself and the gunbai fan as the Captain emitted a thick aura of white spiritual energy.

“Bankai.”

Twilight had expected some manner of eruption of reiatsu or similarly flashy expulsion of energies from the Soul Reaper. Instead his spirit energy just continued to condense in upon itself as he began to push in on his Zanpaktou, cracking it along its length. Then with a sound of tearing metal mixed with breaking glass, the large war fan broke apart into strange globs of liquid metal. These globs then fanned outward around Starswirl, bulging out and growing larger. Within seconds the globs smoothed out into hard angles, becoming perfect, dark metal cubes, dozens of them. Each was of a different size, some no larger than the palm of one’s hand, while others were as large as a cabin, and everything in between.

The cubes were lined with veins of circuit-like white energy, giving them a strangely digitized appearance when combined with the fact that each also glowed along the edges with a similar, faint white light.

Standing in the center of this odd cluster of various metal cubes, Starswirl held out a hand and one of the smallest cubes flew down to his waiting palm.

”Sonzai no Jukuko.” (Contemplation of Existence)

----------

Despite the near literal storm of various spiritual pressures vying to compete for Rarity’s attention, she refused to let any of it sink in past a surface level, despite the growing clench in her gut that left her fearfully aware of how much danger still persisted for her and her friends. She focused solely upon the small but distinct blip upon her spiritual senses that represented the shard of crystal she’d left attached to her unwitting quarry.

Or at least she sincerely hoped they were unwitting. It’d be quite the embarrassing gaff to suddenly become the hunted in this little chase after she’d made such a blase statement to Sunset that she could handle this mysterious Quincy assassin.

Why had she insisted on doing this alone?

The question hung in her mind like it’s own little sliver of crystal, poking at her uncomfortably. Because she knew the truth, she just didn’t want to admit it to herself. The truth left her feeling ashamed. Guilty. She didn’t like this ugly little bit of truth poking at her heart, so she was pretending it wasn’t there and hoping she could resolve the situation without having to acknowledge it. Which she knew was childish. Too childish for a battlefield.

Stop thinking about it. You’re getting close now. Just focus on what you need to do, Rarity. Keep worrying like this and you’ll go gray before your time.

The thought was supposed to help lighten her mood, but all it did was emphasize the disquiet inside her as she drew close to where she sensed her crystal shard. It was on the move, and at a surprising pace for something she suspected was still underground. Whatever power this Quincy had, it was allowing them to treat solid matter as a polite suggestion rather than much of an obstacle.

Well, we’ll just see about that...

She’d been using Fullbring to step lightly across the air, all but flying at a swift pace to catch up to where the Quincy was. This had taken her from Camp Everfree itself on a fast path north, then sharply west, reaching the western lake edge and moving out into the deeper forest. There were battles to both the north and south of this area, although Rarity couldn’t fully tell who was fighting who with all the conflicting reiatsu signatures out there. But given the Quincy assassin was curving southward, generally in the direction of where Twilight’s little field lab was, Rarity could easily stab a guess that the reiatsu she sensed in that direction was Twilight’s.

With swift steps she flew just above the tree line. The forest was thick below her in an uneven carpet of greenery, but at the distance she was closing in at it was much easier to pinpoint the Quincy’s location. Or rather her shard’s, but there could be little doubt now that the shard marked her target. She caught glimpses of the forest floor below her, and saw nothing on the surface. Clearly they were still underground. She didn’t think they’d sensed her yet. She was intentionally trying to keep her own spiritual pressure from spilling out too far, and the Quincy hadn’t deviated course to try and evade her.

Either this was a trap, or they hadn’t spotted her yet.

Only one way to find out. Rarity increased her speed in a short burst, zipping ahead of the Quincy’s route, and then spun around. With an elegant raise of her hand, the flower on her wrist conjured her swirling pool of blood. From that whirlpool, she formed a massive crystalline claymore, about three feet wide and five times that in length. As was the case with the vast majority of her creations, it was also a work of art, with detailed vines and leaves worked into the pattern of the blade, and an ornate cross-guard bearing a carving of a rampant unicorn.

Most of these designs came about almost without conscious thought on Rarity’s part, the creation of each of her weapons individual yet somehow intuitively fast. They were ephemeral works of art, forged as weapons, but also a reflection of Rarity’s desire to maintain a sense of beauty even in something as ugly as a battle.

It was as if each weapon she created was a statement that the brutality of fighting wasn’t going to erase the artist inside her.

This thought, along with a stormy disquiet in her soul that she was still hiding from an unpleasant truth, hung in her head as she cast the giant claymore downward like a crimson cruise missile.

With meteoric speed the blade descended and drove itself into the forest floor. The impact threw up a pillar of dirt, and uprooted several nearby trees. Rarity remained above, face impassive as she snapped her finger and allowed a set of smaller, more elegant longswords to take shape from her whirlpool, while slowly forming a crystalline rapier into her right hand.

Her jewel-like eyes scanned the ground carefully. She sensed her shard still, and it had stopped moving right at the point of impact.

Had she actually gotten them on the first go? She hadn’t expected to, but she hadn’t held back with the sword she’d cast down, either. If she’d caught the Quincy off guard, that attack had been thrown with killing intent...

The instant she felt the reiatsu from her crystal shard vanish, Rarity snarled. “Oh no you don’t!”

With a flick of her wrist she sent her array of longswords flying downward like pure red streaks. Streams of blood from her whirlpool flowed down alongside the blades, coating them and enlarging them into much longer crystals. The swords hammered the ground in a semi-circle around where the reiatsu signature from the crystal shard had been, and Rarity watched carefully as the impacts tore up the ground beneath her.

Then she saw it, just a barest flicker of motion in the treeline to her left. Instantly she kicked off the air and catapulted herself towards the motion, flinging her arm out and sending a whirlwind of sickle-shaped crimson crystals flying into the forest floor. Trees were cut to ribbons and the ground pureed by the barrage, and amid the destruction Rarity saw the air shimmer like a ripple of transparent cloth.

She surged towards the distortion, thrusting her rapier with expert precision and speed. She felt her blade brush something solid and heard a gasp, then Rarity was forced to dodge sideways with a graceful spin as a hailstorm of reishi arrows flew out of the distorted air and almost pin-cushioned her.

“Well, it seems you really are determined to make my day difficult,” said Sour Sweet’s voice as the distortion in the air rippled again and the false image of the young female Quincy appeared, holding her very strangely shaped bow out and aimed at Rarity.

Rarity in turn raised her rapier in a classic fencing pose and said, “I dislike leaving matters unfinished, and you skipped out of our dance early. Why? Didn’t like the odds?”

“I like them better now that the Arrancar and Soul Reaper aren’t present,” said the impostor Sour Sweet, “You do realize it was reckless to pursue me alone, don’t you Miss Rarity? Skilled as you are, you must realize I’m not an ordinary Quincy.”

“Darling, I could give less of a fig who you are. You’re up to no good, and I aim to put a stop to you. Whether that means forcing you to surrender, or... “ she took a deep breath and hardened her expression, “Or simply ending you, that’s a ball entirely in your court.”

“My my my, how frightening. I suppose I’d better just surrender immediately and abandon my entire mission, then. Or, conversely...”

The motion was subtle, but Rarity still caught the slight twist in the impostor's left wrist. She sensed the extension of reishi particles through the air, but it happened so fast that Rarity was caught even as she jumped back to get out of range. What she was caught by was a bizarre sensation of suddenly being trapped in thick cement or quicksand as the air around her was filled with a gripping force.

No, not quite. As she looked around herself she saw an amorphous glob of air extended from her to the Quincy assassin had taken on a faintly opaque and solid consistency. It was unlike anything Rarity had ever seen, as if the air was no longer ‘air’ but had become some kind of solid matter. Her arms were pinned in place, as were her legs, and while she could move slightly under the pressure of the now solid air, she couldn’t do much else. Breathing was also proving a problem, as even if she could slightly turn her head, the air was so solid that she couldn’t breathe it in without her mouth getting clogged by what felt like gelatin.

“Don’t be afraid,” ‘Sour Sweet’ said, “I don’t intend to kill you. You’re not my target, and His Majesty would not look favorably upon the slaughter of innocent human life. Heh, I suppose that is a contradiction, given my goal, but I can only pray His Majesty will understand, once all is explained. Now please, do lose consciousness would you? I’ve been put off schedule enough alre-”

The speech was cut off by the vicious stabbing motion of several crystalline blades that came flying out of the woods to slash across the Quincy’s back. They’d sensed the attack coming just in time to put up Blut Vene, but even so their uniform and skin bore bloody slashes from the whirling crystal longswords that remained under Rarity’s control, regardless of whether Rarity could move herself.

‘Sour Sweet’ spun around and was forced to vanish with the speed of a Hirenkyaku as the longswords continued to slash and stab at her, driving her away. Rarity noticed that the solidified air around her had weakened slightly as the Quincy’s attention was diverted, and she willed the claymore she’d created earlier to come flying out of the ground and spin towards her. She directed the claymore while still putting concentration towards controlling her other longswords, sending the weapons after the impostor, who was now firing powerful reishi arrows at the blades while still dodging them.

“My, aren’t we the cutthroat one?” the Quincy said as their arrows smashed several longswords to pieces, while other blades stabbed towards where she’d just landed upon the branches of a nearby tree. The assassin managed to evade once more, the swords impaling the tree, but at the same time the claymore had reached Rarity and sliced down, cutting into the solid chunk of air like a block of butter.

This weakened the Quincy reishi that was keeping the air solid, and Rarity felt the air grow even more loose, more akin to a thin mush than cement. With a moment of focus, she used Fullbring to push away at the air, and was able to pop herself out and land on the ground nearby. She gasped in a welcome breath of air, and turned heated eyes towards her opponent as cold anger spread through her limbs.

“I’ll thank you not to make the mistake my last foe did when they underestimated me. Now tell me, are you after Twilight?”

She sent the claymore flying towards where Sour Sweet had landed between several trees not too far away, but the impostor turned and fired a reishi arrow straight into the claymore. On contact the crystal of the bladed weapon wobbled and then burst into dust, as if it's very molecular structure had been destabilized.

“What would be the point of answering you?” the Quincy replied, “If I said ‘yes’, you’d be no less determined to stop me, and if I said ‘no’ then you wouldn’t believe me and continue getting in the way regardless.”

“That may be true, but it would assuage my conscience a tad to know I was stopping someone trying to kill one of my friends, as opposed to just some random assassination I know nothing about. Besides, I’m curious why anyone would want to hurt Twilight, especially one of her fellow Quincy.”

Neither had dropped their guard, and Rarity felt the next attack coming before the assassin actually moved. Her whirlpool disgorged a set of shimmering crimson shields, perfectly rounded and with a rose sigil in the center that locked in front of her like a phalanx, and just in time to intercept the blinding fusillade of reishi arrows that the Quincy blasted towards her.

Of course she remembered what had happened to her claymore, so she was already dodging to the side before the arrows impacted, knowing the shields would only buy her a second. She was right, as the crystal shields turned into a consistency akin to putty after the first few arrows struck. Rarity sensed the Quincy’s spiritual energy infecting her crystal constructs, and the way it subverted the very structure of her creations. Likely this was how they were altering other forms of matter as well, and had taken on Sour Sweet’s form.

Having zipped to the right, Rarity rushed towards the Quincy. Even as the assassin turned their barrage of arrows towards Rarity, she was able to move with a serpent’s grace and even greater speed, ducking, juking, and weaving through the hail of reishi arrows to get close to her foe. Her rapier stabbed out, and the Quincy blocked it with their bow, the weirdly rectangular structure acting as a fairly sturdy melee weapon. However, Rarity had her old standby trick at the ready, instantly morphing her rapier into a longer weapon, this time in the shape of a scythe which ended up extending behind the Quincy’s head where the curved blade formed. Rarity yanked back on the scythe’s shaft and brought the blade plunging towards the Quincy’s neck.

Just as the blade was about to strike flesh, Sour Sweet was able to get a hand up to catch the blade. Her hand was shot through with the red veins of Blut Vene, but even then Rarity’s scythe was sharp enough to draw blood. Still, a second later the Quincy sent their reishi into the scythe, and it burst into dust just like the claymore had. Rarity was prepared for that result, however, and transformed the shaft of the scythe into a set of short swords that she used to lash at the Quincy’s mid-section.

To Rarity’s shock and a small among of disgust, the assassin’s body itself molded and shifted like some kind of alien creature, their bare midriff convulsing and thinning out like taffy in a manner not unlike how Pinkamena could stretch her limbs. This let the Quincy evade Rarity’s sword strikes while bending her upper torso over Rarity at an angle that let her fire an arrow from the side. Rarity twisted with the attack, but the arrow still stabbed into her hip.

She bit back a scream of pain and with Fullbring she sent herself jumping back, avoiding another set of arrows that might have pierced her torso if she’d been half a second slower. She felt the Quincy’s reishi trying to push into her body from the arrow in her hip, but Rarity, grinding her teeth against the pain, yanked the arrow out and tossed it aside.

Limping slightly, she faced off with the Quincy once more, staring at the rather grotesque way their body bent and twisted back into a regular shape.

‘Sour Sweet’ smiled at her, “Don’t look so repulsed. I’m rather proud of my Schrift, you know, and it hurts an artist to see their work so misunderstood.”

Those words struck Rarity. She’d heard them before, and her memory sparked to something that had happened about a year ago. She’d been struggling to get noticed in the fashion scene for some time, but had lucked out that a local show was being sponsored by the boutique Rarity had started working at, owned by a woman named Prim Hemline who’d given Rarity a chance to show one of her own dress designs off at the event! She’d been absolutely beside herself with equal parts excitement and anxiety. She’d worked herself sleeplessly all that week to get her design finished in time for the event, going through enough coffee to kill a small herd of elephants.

She’d felt her dress design was bold and different, but it initially had been met with laughter from the audience. Almost all of the audience. One man had praised the design as ahead of the curve, and at first Rarity had been shocked to see how fast the crowd had started to agree with him, until Prim Hemline had explained who he was. The man had even come up to her afterward with words of encouragement, and that as an artist she shouldn’t be discouraged when her work was misunderstood.

“...Wait, I never asked how you knew my name,” she said, “We’ve met, haven’t we?”

‘Sour Sweet’ continued to smile, but her whole body began to bubble and shift, like wax sloughing off a mannequin under a hot sun. “We have, and I’ll confess I’ve had Prim keep me updated on your progress, Miss Rarity. Granted I never expected you to get involved in such messy affairs as this war. I was only curious to see how you’d develop as a fashionista. A shame that potential is being squandered in battles that really shouldn’t concern you.”

In place of where Sour Sweet stood was now a man whose presence seemed to define a certain charming flair, his gray skin complimented a well coiffed head of white hair. Even his uniform, despite it’s starkly white appearance and military cut showed elements of daring flare, from the tassels on his shoulder to the wide, twin tailed cape on his back.

“While we may have already met, I think a more formal introduction is in order, since this is your first time seeing me at my, ahem, ‘day job’. Sternritter X, the Xenomorph, Hoity Toity, at your service. Well, not actually at your service, but you get the picture, don’t you?”

Rarity blinked a few times, then shook her head, “I... don’t really know what to say to this. I suppose it shouldn’t matter, should it? Not when you’re trying to take the life of one of my friends. I still don’t understand why that is. If you’re one of Twilight’s colleagues, what possible reason could you have for seeking her death, especially against your King’s wishes?”

For his part, Hoity Toity did look a shade... unsettled? He was wearing a pair of purple shaded glasses that made it hard to see his eyes, but Rarity saw a hint of something ruffled in his expression as he replied, “I do what I do because I am a loyal servant of His Majesty. Even when he doesn’t know it. He is, after all, still only human, a fact which many of my fellow Quincy tend to forget. He doesn’t always know what’s best for himself, and your friend, Miss Twilight Sparkle... represents an absolute threat to His Majesty, and possibly all Quincy. It’s unfortunate, but that is why she must die, before she ends up destroying both His Majesty and the rest of us.”

“But... but that’s ludicrous! Twilight couldn’t be such a threat. How did you possibly come to such a far fetched conclusion!?”

“I didn’t...” Hoity Toity said, sighing deeply, as if in regret.

Rarity felt a stabbing pain strike her from behind. She hadn’t sensed a hint of the attack coming, and looked down to see a brilliant blue blade of reishi sticking out of her chest from where it had impaled her from behind. She looked at the thin, shimmering blade of spirit particles uncomprehendingly, somewhat surprised she didn't feel any immediate pain.

“She did,” Hoity finished, as Rarity looked behind her to see a woman standing there, holding a silver tube-shaped sword hilt the reishi blade had extended from to impale Rarity. Somehow the woman had managed to sneak up on Rarity without so much as a hint of spiritual pressure leaking out to give away her presence. Rarity hadn't been careless. She'd been ensuring to keep her spiritual senses up the entire fight with Hoity Toity. It was simply that this woman hadn't put out the smallest hint of spiritual pressure up until the second she'd struck, and even now with the blade piercing her body, Rarity couldn't sense the blade's spirit particles... which struck her as something that should be impossible. But then again, she really didn't know everything Quincy could do, did she?

“Our apologies, child, but we can’t have you interfering with our work,” said Sapphire Shores, her eyes gleaming with a mad, zealous light, “His Majesty must be protected at all costs.”

Rarity recognized the woman, although seeing her in the uniform of a Quincy, however ostentatious it was with it's wide flaring dress and ruffle marked sleeves, was unexpected. She might have questioned more why famous fashion designers like Hoity Toity or renowned pop idols such as Sapphire Shores were members of the Quincy, but she was preoccupied by the now swift returning sensation of pain in her chest as her shock wore off and her nervous system started screaming at her about the issue concerning the sword running her through.

Sapphire Shores yanked the blade free in a smooth motion of someone who'd done this many times before, and whether Rarity liked it or not it was like a string had been cut inside her that controlled all her muscles. She collapsed to the ground, feeling the warm sensation of her lifeblood spilling out of her and coating the ground.

Hoity Toity looked at her briefly, then cast a frown towards Sapphire Shores.

"I wasn't intending for her to be killed, Sapphire."

Sapphire Shore's response was bizarrely upbeat, and equally dismissive of the girl bleeding out on the ground in front of her, "Then you shouldn't have revealed your identity. Better yet, you shouldn't have let her catch you in the first place. Or gotten sloppy and drawn too much attention to yourself. This was supposed to be our best chance of eliminating that purple harpy, and you've created quite a mess of it."

A sharp breath exhaled from Hoity Toity. Rarity, meanwhile, twitched her hands, trying to command her Fullbring. She tried to be subtle about it, not expend too much energy, but Sapphire Shores noticed her and Rarity felt a booted heel slam onto her back, right atop her wound. The pain alone shattered her concentration utterly, preventing her from controlling her Fullbring.

"Still alive? Surprising. I thought I pierced your heart. Must be related to your Fullbring, I suppose. Hoity, would you come over here and finish this? I need to go deal with the problem we've set out to correct, since it seems I'm the only one capable around here."

"Watch your tone, Sapphire. I agreed to help you because I know your predictions are accurate, but I never wanted to leave a trail of bodies behind us. And I'm not the only one who's been sloppy, or have your forgotten how this whole mess began? Our co-conspirators that you insisted we needed to use as scapegoats? Yes, they've been oh so helpful, haven't they? Probably fornicating on poor Filthy Rich's bed right now..."

"Hoity..." Sapphire Shore's voice was utter ice, "The girl. Now."

Rarity couldn't see if Hoity responded with any expression, but she did hear a sound similar to a pained grunt as she saw his feet start to move towards her. Her vision was started to grew dim around the edges, her body getting colder as more of her blood stained the earth in a widening circle around her. She could still feel her heart beating, despite Sapphire Shore's claim of having pierced it. Yet the sharp pain there suggested maybe the Quincy hadn't exaggerated. Rarity wasn't sure how she was still alive, but her Fullbring had always revolved around her own blood, and she'd learned she was more resistant to injury and blood loss as a result. She hadn't imagined surviving a pierced heart was possible, although it seemed she was still quite capable of bleeding out and dying, because that was what she certainly felt like was happening as she noticed her heart struggling to beat, and gradually slowing...

No... they're going to murder Twilight. Also me, and I am not ready to shuffle off the mortal coil just yet. I've seen how dreadful the common fashion is in Soul Society. No. Thank. You. I look terrible in black. Oh... Sweetie Belle... it's no good growing up without a big sister... who'll look... after...

----------

The moment Grogar spoke the words to release his Zanpaktou’s power, a thick and organic sound like twisting cartilage and bone filled the air. The sword bent and twisted upon itself, like a corkscrew, and the flesh on Grogar’s withered, parchment-like body began to bulge and bubble like a nest of living things were burrowing beneath the skin.

Celestia felt her stomach recoil at the sight, but she remained resolute in the face of the churning increase of Grogar’s reiatsu as parts of his flesh suddenly began to tear and burst open with showers of blood. Yet for as painful as the transformation looked, Grogar’s expression was one of simple, rapturous satisfaction as his sword turned around like a living snake, and it’s corkscrew blade drove itself into his heart and drilled inward in a shower of gore.

Celestia didn’t remain idle as this was occurring, raising her hands in front of her and moving each in a different direction, tracing a circle of crackling yellow light in the air.

“Hado Number Eighty One: Kaminari-o Sakebi!” (Thunder King Warcry)

The circle of bristling yellow energy magnified in size until it was as wide around as a house, forming dozens of internal lances of power inside of it that formed at a single central point. Then with a ear bleeding roar of noise louder than a hundred thunderclaps, a bolt of golden lightning lashed forth from that central point while around it a sonic wave of pure sound force ripped apart air and ground alike for a width of nearly thirty meters.

This bolt and wave of power rushed towards Grogar’s form, but in a shower of blood and viscera his left arm rose up and grew at an alarming rate, bones splintering out of flesh which was reforming through twisted tendrils of white Hollow bone liquid and what appeared to be dark, gossamer wires. A skeletal hand of bladed claws, with new flesh forming around them, intercepted and grasped the bolt of oncoming lightning. The sound wave crashed into a growing spherical aura of pulsing Hollow spiritual energy that surrounded Grogar as his body continued to distort and grow. The potent attack Kido was halted almost entirely, not even slowing down the former Eighth Espada’s transformation.

Muscles bulged and tore, only to reform as wires crawled across the skin and bleeding flesh. White liquid poured forth from cavernous places inside Grogar’s chest and stomach, expanding over his body as it took the shape of almost metallic gears, corded tubes, and segments of riveted plates. Exposed organs shifted inside, shot through with sharp wires or pumping tubes. For a second Celestia could see Grogar’s heart, an emaciated organ that was pierced by his Zanpaktou blade that buzzed with unnatural energies of red, orange, and black. Then his chest became covered by the mass of armored carapace that was overtaking his body as his flesh kept remodeling itself and his body grew larger, blood still pouring from the awful display in sheets.

His Zanpaktou had fused fully with his chest now, it’s hilt breaking off and growing on its own, transforming in a wash of bubbling white wax until it had become a giant staff tipped with a forward curving metal hook, with a single black bell hanging from a chain attached to the back.

Grogar’s skin, what was left of it to be seen, had darkened to a vibrant blue, and it’s withered textured had turned smooth where it was left exposed, and was lean with fresh, youthful muscle. His face had similarly grown younger, with a stronger jaw and no visible wrinkles. It did little for his looks as half of his face had become covered by a ram’s skull, bone white safe for a metallic covering over the eye where a gleaming red lens adjusted itself with a mechanical buzzing noise. Twin, curved ram horns remained upon his brow, but larger and glinting with a metal sheen. His whole body was nearly twice the height of before, with his chest bulging and hunched. His arms were longer, and covered in white plating that gave the arms a more robotic look, with pieces of muscle and flesh still pulsating between the gears, pistons, and wires. Both hands ended in gleaming claws that still dripped flesh blood, the right hand gently grasping the hook-blade that had become his main weapon.

Four metal canisters sprouted from his shoulders and spine, interconnected with white and black tubes, and leaking blood and strange, glowing purple liquid. Metallic white plates armored his chest, but around his stomach the armor and flesh tore away into little more than a wide, gleaming spinal cord that extended down to where his legs had grown in size and become thickly armored, reverse-jointed goat legs, giving him the appearance of some mechanical undead man-goat.

With the transformation finished, Grogar flexed his hands and twisted his neck, creating a machine-like creaking and whirring, more than the popping of normal bone and flesh. “Hmm, it’s been too long since I’ve used this. I really should have made some adjustments back at the lab.”

“...What in the Soul Queen’s name have you done to your own soul?” Celestia said in a mixture of repulsed horror and something almost approaching pity. Grogar waved the words off with a snort.

“Oh please, your disgust and pity are utterly without merit to me. I’ve only improved upon myself with each new discovery. Did you think all my experimentation was solely to modify other Hollows? My work exists to improve myself. I’ll admit the aesthetics may leave something to be desired, but the functionality more than makes up for it. Observe...”

One of the cylinders on his shoulders hissed as it creaked open, and a blast of four smelling, purple goop traced a line across the ground towards Celestia like a pressurized hose. She Flash Stepped aside, glancing at the bubbling stuff as it ate through the rocky ground she’d been standing on. It looked vaguely familiar, and she realized it was very similar to the stuff secreted by the Tenth Espada, Smooze. She’d never fought him personally, but read reports of Soul Reapers who unfortunately had.

Grogar was far from done, not only firing out more of that diseased, corrosive liquid from one of his cylinders, but another cylinder opened up and this time disgorged a stream of crimson flames, burning so hot that even Celestia had to respect the intensity. She was able to evade the poisonous stream, but the flames managed to scald her side, Grogar’s speed and accuracy much greater in his new form. She kept back a grunt of pain, forcing her mind to remain calm as she noted the red fire was also familiar; near identical to those used by the Fifth Espada, Torch.

Celestia was even less surprised when Grogar vanished with Sonido and appeared in her path, raised his left hand. A hatch opened up on his arm, and gears inside burned with gold energy and Hollow power as a chain was produced, similar to reports she’d read concerning the former Sixth Espada, now Seventh, Guto’s power. The gold chain flashed towards her and she bent backwards into a somersault kick that knocked it aside. Grogar came in with his Zanpaktou’s hook-blade and slashed it down at her exposed belly, but Celestia turned her somersault kick into a twirling tornado of kicks as she planted her hands on the ground and spun.

Grogar blocked, and instead of being driven back, his renewed physical strength kept him in place as he smashed the haft of his weapon forward and clipped Celestia’s side. She pushed off with her hands and flipped herself upright once more, kicking off the air and bringing a fist glowing with reiatsu down like a golden hammer.

Another cylinder on Grogar’s back opened, and a black energy whipped out, forming a tiny Garganta-like portal in front of Celestia’s fist. The portal nearly closed fast enough to take her hand off, but she was just fast enough to Flash Step back and avoid the closing portal. A portal that had formed too fast and precisely for any normal Arrancar. She wasn’t sure who’s power Grogar had stolen for that one, but it sounded akin to the one named Squirk that her sister had tried to capture in Las Noches prior to having to capture Ember.

“One stolen power after another,” she muttered, “Do you have nothing of your own, Grogar!?”

His expression, what of it could be seen past the half ram-skull, flickered with annoyance, “Everything I take is my own, but if it’s one of my custom creations you’re curious about, I’ll gladly show you.”

He raised his weapon above his head and waved it back and forth. The bell at the end of it’s chain created a dry, rusty tolling that scraped at Celestia’s ears with its painful, discordant tone. Grogar opened his mouth, and from inside his gullet came a droning hum. He then vomited out a swarm of darkness that resolved into the shape of a cloud consisting of hundreds upon hundreds of flies. No ordinary flies, either. These creatures were bulbous and larger than most people’s thumbs. Their carapaces were metallic and covered in tiny spikes and wires, sparking. Their legs ended in small needles or drills, while their bodies bulged and pulsed with a luminescent, putrid green fluid.

Celestia gave Grogar a flat look, “Sorry I asked.”

He just shrugged at her, and with another tolling of his dreadful bell, the swarm of disgusting flies surged forward. Each one had individual speed approaching Grogar’s own, resulting in less an insect swarm and more a rain of super-sonic miniature missiles with intelligence behind their homing attacks. Celestia knew immediately that she couldn’t possibly dodge all of them. Perhaps Luna could, but Celestia would have to defend herself with alternative methods. There wasn’t time to cast a defensive Kido, either. Brute force was her only ally in this situation, so with as much speed as she herself could muster she raised her right leg in a flexible move straight above her head, and then brought it down in front of her with a heel strike on the ground with such massive force that an entire shelf of the mountainside cracked apart and flipped upward in front of her.

The flies impacted with the rock, and to Celestia’s surprise the little things burrowed right through the rock, rather than get smashed to pieces. Small needles stabbed with blinding speed and tiny drills twirled with high pitched screeching noises, and the stone chunks soon became swiss cheese in front of Celestia. However this did slow the insects down a fraction of a moment, long enough for Celestia to Flash Step upwards and gain some distance. The swarm followed her, as did Grogar, his body appearing next to her with a speedy Sonido. He was already slashing his hook-blade in a cross pattern at her side, and she couldn’t fully twist away from it as she blocked the strike with one elbow.

The rest of her concentration was focused on trying to fling her other palm out towards the swarm coming up form below and chanting as fast a Kido as she could manage, but would still have some power behind it. She drew her index and middle finger together and swept the forward, a current of twin blue trails of energy forming from either end of her hand. Normally this Kido required two hands, but Celestia was skilled enough to do this with just one.

“Hado Number Seventy Three: Soren Sokatsui!” (Twin Lotus Blue Fire)

Pushing outward with her palm she unleashed a pair of wide bolts of burning blue energy that rushed down like an avalanche towards the swarm. Some were caught by the blast and incinerated, but far too many smartly dodged, using their speed and maneuverability to split up around the twin Kido blast.

Grogar pressed his attack on her, smiling with a twisted smugness as he feinted with his hook-blade and lashed out suddenly with one of his ram legs, crude bone-like pistons visible inside the leg churning out steam and sparks of orange energy that seemed to magnify the power of the kick. Celestia hadn’t fallen for the feint at all and powered her own leg with a burst of golden reiatsu as she met his kick with one of her own. The two limbs slashed in wave of force, blasting both of them backwards from each other; Grogar further than Celestia. As he halted himself in mid-air he gave his leg an irritated look, noting the dent in the armor plating as opposed to the slight bruise on Celestia’s.

“Hmph, even without a Zanpaktou, I suppose you remain powerful in your own simple manner,” he commented with his smirk forcibly returning, “Fortunately brute strength has never been something I’ve relied upon.”

The swarm was upon Celestia now, having spread out to surround her in it’s buzzing embrace. Coming from all directions, she was limited in how to defend herself, and while she swatted the first few that came at her with ease, soon she felt the harsh sting as more and more did quick fly-by attacks that she couldn’t see. She felt the sting of those tiny drills stabbing into her back or side, or the prick of those stabbing needles catching her arms or neck. Each wound was minuscule, but with the number of insects and their incredible speed the damage would mount in no time. Considering there was also a painful burn spreading through her veins, it was also obvious that glowing green liquid inside the bugs was also something that was getting injected into her with each attack, not enough at first to do more than hurt, but in time...?

If Shinryu Taiyo was with her, this wouldn’t have even merited a threat to her, but if she didn’t do something fast to eliminate this swarm, she’d be in trouble.

----------

Things were quiet in Las Noches. This wasn’t that unusual, but more often than not Lament could hear one distant clash or another as some of his “neighbors” became bored and got rowdy with one another. None of that today, for which he was grateful. The quiet made it easier to keep his mind... in check. That had been proving difficult of late. Ever since his family had been threatened by that woman, and Adagio’s plans had coerced him into a more active role with the Espada, Lament’s mood had become even more temperamental.

He was self-aware of his own unstable nature. It hadn’t bothered him when the only ones he’d hurt had been those Hollows stupid enough to test his patience or invade his family’s home. It was bothering him now.

His mind’s eye kept replaying the attack on the tower, and the fight with the Quincy. The lethal impalement of that young fellow, Jet Set. The despair and anguish on Jet Set’s wife’s face. The confusion and regret that followed, and the bitter anger at finding his own family threatened. That uncontrollable anger surging out against the woman, Twilight Velvet. He didn’t know just what had happened, as his memory grew dark when he lost control of himself, but he knew he’d killed her, too... only to face the full weight of the daughter’s vengeful pain and the odd power’s she’d unleashed.

And all of it disrupted his already difficult to control thoughts, making his moods harder to control. What had that woman been talking about? Hard Nail? Who was that? And why did his mind keep conjuring images of green fields, apple trees, and a warm, cozy farm?

He looked at the dead orchard that topped his tower. He was sitting outside his cabin, as he usually did, his dog Winston by his side as he sat in the chair beside the cabin door. He’d felt compelled to plant this orchard, even if the trees couldn’t survive here, even after he’d brought in real soil from the human world.

The hatchway deeper into the tower swung open, and the red and orange streaked head of hair belonging to Fenice popped up. She looked at him with eyes that creased with worry, but her voice was forced to a stale chipperness, “Father, lunch is ready.”

“That was fast,” he commented, and Fenice gained a more natural, if sardonic grin.

“Well, those helper boys of Adagio’s pitched in. Brought in stuff from the living world.”

Lament felt one of his usual stabs of irrational anger as he said, “Those boys best not have led any trouble back here. And I’m not much on stealing.”

Fenice didn’t flinch from the thunder in his voice. His human adopted daughter was a brave soul, to be sure, and he calmed himself as he reminded himself how much he cared for her and all his children.

“They mean well. Thick as bricks, sometimes, but they mean well. Dumbbell isn’t half bad in the kitchen, either, when he actually follows instructions.”

Ostensibly Lament was keeping an eye on Adagio’s territory while she was gone, although what that actually translated into was that her three weakest vassals, Hoops, Score, and the still wounded Dumbbell, were staying as guests at Lament’s tower. It was just a safer place for them while Guto and his goons might be prowling around. Of course that was also part of why Lament was in a dour mood. Adagio had convinced him, with Roka’s practically minded advice, that he was the one best suited to help rescue Torch’s daughter if things went south with Adagio’s plans.

Lament didn’t like it because it’d mean leaving his home less guarded, but Roka, ever more rationally minded than her father, had pointed out that even Guto wasn’t stupid enough to attack people inside Lament’s tower, even if he wasn’t there. Which was true. The moment Lament returned, if he found harm done to his home or family, the perpetrators would not last long after that. He’d done well to establish himself as an Espada to be feared, and that fear acted as a shield to those within his home.

Adagio was working on building her own reputation so that others would fear to strike at her and her own holdings, but until then the knowledge that she was allied with Lament should have it’s own deterring effect. On top of that it was no secret she was also favored by Torch, although the old warrior minded Espada might have a more ‘sink or swim’ mentality about allies.

It actually bothered Lament to be leaving Torch out of this whole rescue operation, but he understood why. Torch would cause nothing but collateral damage. As unstable as Lament knew his own mind to be at times, he still had better control than Torch would. Yet Lament did find that among the Espada he knew, he could at least respect Torch. The man appreciated the value of family, in his own way. Lament could imagine Torch’s anguish over his missing daughter. If it’d been any of his own children taken, Lament would be ripping Soul Society to pieces in order to find them.

“Father?” Fenice asked, looking at him with barely disguised concern. Lament blinked, realizing his mind had wandered and his expression had likely turned dark.

“I’m fine. I’ll be down soon,” he said, rising from his seat.

Just then both he and Fenice turned, for they sensed the formation of a Garganta portal. The black hole in reality opened up right in front of the cabin. Fenice instinctively reached for the pendant that was the source of her Fullbring, but Lament simply stepped forward, already sensing Roka’s distant reiatsu trickling through the Garganta. He approached it, seeing the small gossamer thread appearing through the portal, and reached out his hand to touch it.

“That’s Roka’s,” Fenice said, her eyes growing wider as understanding dawned, “Oh no...”

Lament didn’t respond, taking a moment to focus on the thread. Roka couldn’t transmit anything like actual words or thoughts through the threads, but since they were made of Roka’s own reishi, her state of being and general mood could be felt, if only faintly. Lament felt his daughter’s distress and clear call for help. So it had really come to this, then.

“It seems Adagio’s plan has run into a snag,” Lament said, voice giving away neither his regret or the fact that he’d imagined it would turn out this way, “They need my help.”

He retrieved his Zanpaktou from where he’d left it leaning against the cabin wall, and as he turned back around he found Fenice standing in front of the Garganta portal, holding her pendant in her hand as she summoned forth the blazing, massive blade of her Fullbring. He stared at her.

“What do you think you’re doing, young lady?”

“Going with you, of course.”

“No, you’re not,” he said, even as he saw the unbelievably stubborn spark that appeared in her eyes.

“Father, your power has been crippled,” Fenice said, pointing at the nails that still pierced his palms. He glanced at them. Twilight Velvet’s final gift to him. A parting piece of vengeance, sealing away a portion of his power. He’d been able to hide this weakness from his fellow Espada so far, and had gradually been working to break the Quincy’s seal, but progress had been slow. He had managed to weaken the seals somewhat, but not enough to enter his Resurreccion yet. Even so, he knew his own power. Even with the seals, his might well suppressed Adagio’s, so if she’d run into an opponent she couldn’t defeat, then Lament stood a good chance of turning the tide, seal or no seal.

Adagio may have been a manipulative woman, and power hungry to boot, but... she had proven to be an honest and trustworthy ally. Her servants, Gaw and Di Roy, had stood alongside his own children in defense of the homestead. Adagio had started to help Roka and Fenice both come a bit more out of their own shells and he knew that both considered the Espada a friend.

Abandoning her was not an option on the table. That said...

“My power is weakened, not crippled. Fenice, you need to remain here and protect your siblings.”

Her jaw set tightly, her heels digging into the dirt as she gripped her blade tighter, traces of magma already oozing down its surface. “Nobody is going to be stupid enough to attack this tower while we’re gone. Father, we don’t know what Adagio is up against. You’re going to need my help!”

He walked towards her, and she didn’t flinch from his starring eyes. Slowly he reached up, and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. Then, slowly, he applied pressure, and pushed her aside. Despite her best efforts, even after she dug her sword into the ground, she couldn't resist his physical strength, and was pushed to the side. Not enough to cause her any harm, but enough to get the point across.

“I’m sorry, daughter. This isn’t a fight you can help me with,” he said, and despite his soft tone he still felt a cold pain in his chest as he saw the tears of frustration spilling from Fenice’s eyes.

Sighing, he added, “We also both know that if you go back to that place, you might run into her. The other who bears your features.”

“I don’t care about that. I care about you, and Roka, and... and I guess maybe also Adagio and her crew. Please... Father... don’t leave me behind...”

He stood there for only a second longer, then closed his eyes and said, “I’m sorry,” before striding through the Garganta, and letting it close behind him.

Episode 112: The Severed Bond

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Episode 112: The Severed Bond

The moment the Garganta closed, leaving Fenice alone atop the tower, she found herself heaving her Fullbring’s blade up and swinging it around with a loud shout of frustration. Some magma spilled out of the burning blade, landing by the hatch, and elicited a yelp from someone who’d just poked his head up and had to duck to avoid a face full of lava.

“Huh?” Fenice turned at the yelp, seeing Dumbbell’s surprised expression as he watched the magma melt some of the dirt next to his head.

“So, uh, gonna guess you’re not in a good mood after that conversation I just totally didn’t eavesdrop on?” he said, giving her an awkwardly concerned look, while also holding back a pained wince. He was still nowhere near recovered from the severe beating he’d received at the hands of Grogar’s guard mutations during he and his friend’s raid on the Espada’s lab, and Roka’s stitch-work was still clearly visible on his body.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, narrowing her eyes, “You know the rules. No one but family is allowed on top of the tower.”

“Technically I’m still in the hatchway, not on top,” he pointed out, “Me and the guys had just finished setting the table, but didn’t know what you and the Fourth wanted us to set out to drink, and then I kinda overheard you and him talking about some kind of emergency, him totally blowing off your concern for him and leaving you behind in an emotionally crippled state... uh, should I not be saying that? Adagio says I sometimes talk too much.”

More magma bled from Fenice’s blade, but her ire at Dumbbell couldn’t last under the cold reminder of her father leaving her behind. With a dour look she planted her sword next to her and sat down, the magma cooling off in a chill hiss as if it’d been dunked underwater.

“Of course he left me behind,” she said quietly, looking at the medallion around her neck, “I’m not strong enough to help. Roka’s stronger than me, and way more responsible. That’s why dad agreed to let her be part of Adagio’s crazy plan in the first place.”

“Lady Adagio’s plan isn’t that crazy,” Dumbbell said defensively, then thought about it for a second, “Okay, maybe a little crazy. I’m not really big on this whole ‘cooperate with the Quincy’ thing. Could be them that just screwed up the plan enough to warrant your old man going out there. Or Gilda. Hmm, you know, it was probably Gilda.”

“Doesn’t matter who screwed up what,” Fenice said, grabbing up a clump of dirt and giving it a frustrated heave over the side of the tower, “Whatever went wrong, dad’s gone to fix it, but...”

“But?”

“...What if he can’t? He’s strong, but that Quincy woman put some kind of seal on his power, and if things got bad enough for Adagio to call him in that means there has to be someone or something really powerful that’s in the way now.”

Dumbbell grunted a bit as he climbed more out of the hatchway, enough that he could brace an arm on the rim and hold up a finger, “Sooooo you’re thinking this could be more than even the super-scare Lament, Fourth Espada, The Decapitator Extreme, could handle?”

She gave him a weird look, and Dumbbell coughed, “That last title might just be what me and the guys call him. So you’re worried about him, right? But, uh, you’re also kind of right that in a fight between him and something as strong as him, what would you do other than, err... how to put this delicately?... Be totally useless?”

Her expression became as flat as a board and he coughed, “Too blunt?”

“Just a tad.”

He sighed, then looked at her with a shockingly head on stare, “You’re not the only one who feels useless, you know? Lady Adagio entrusted us with breaking into Grogar’s lab, and we pulled it off... but I’m going to be out of commission for weeks, and the things we fought down there weren’t even Grogar’s strongest mutants.”

“How do you know that they weren’t?” she asked, vaguely curious and trying to distract herself from the tightening knot of worry in her heart as she thought about her father and Roka.

“Eh, we’ve been reading through the extra files we stole from that lab. Gotta pass the time somehow, you know? I don’t understand any of it, but it looks like the ancient bastard has been experimenting on Hollows for a long time,” Dumbbell shook his head, “Anyway, the point I was making is that I get how frustrating feeling weak is. That’s been pretty much me, Score, and Hoop’s day to day reality since forever. Even with Lady Adagio being nice enough to give us a place and a purpose, we’re still pretty next to useless to her. Why do you think we’re stuck here instead out there fighting alongside her with Di Roy and Gaw?”

“Is this supposed to be a pep talk? Because you’re not good at it,” Fenice said with a dejected glower.

“Not a pep talk, more like a lead in to an offer,” he said, making a gesture with his hand. Fenice blinked as she heard the familiar ripping noise of a Garganta portal opening up, and looked over to see the familiar sight of a yawning chasm to darkness now in the air next to her.

She looked back silently at Dumbbell, who gave her a hapless shrug, “You’re on your own to get back, but if you really want to go help, then this is your chance.”

“Why? I mean, not complaining, but you do realize my dad is going to kill you when he finds out you did this?”

“Eh, maybe Lady Adagio’s crazy is rubbing off on me, or maybe I like the idea of you owing me a favor,” Dumbbell said, “Promise to try and cool your dad’s jets when you all get back, alright?”

Fenice stared at him a moment longer, then looked back at the Garganta he was holding open for her. Slowly her dour expression turned into a fierce smile, and the blade next to her started to glow hot orange again as magma bubbled along its surface. She grabbed it up and shouldered the massive weapon, stepping towards the portal.

“Tell everyone to go ahead and eat lunch without me,” she said, “But to keep seats open for me, Roka, and dad, because I’m bringing all of them home.”

After she was through the portal, Dumbbell closed it, but then blinked, “Huh... I wonder if I should have told her I actually have no idea where Lament actually went so I had to send her to the place me and the guys are most familiar with?”

----------

“The mall?” Fenice said, left eye twitching as she stood in the center of the still disaster strewn Canterlot downtown shopping mall, “What the hell am I doing in the mall!?”

----------

Lament had a very odd premonition as he crossed the infinite void of the Precipice World, as if he really wanted to decapitate someone but he wasn’t certain who. His right hand was filled with a killing itch, but he ignored it, focused on what lay ahead of him. The length of space between one end of a Garganta portal to the other across the Precipice World always varied, but the distance was less consequential for someone of Lament’s speed. He was through in mere moments, and emerged out into the colorfully warm light of day.

How long had it been since he’d seen the natural sun of the living world, or felt wind on his skin that wasn’t the dusty, dead breezes that rarely stirred within Las Noches? For an instant it was an overwhelmingly familiar feeling as he looked up at the first blue sky he’d with Hollow eyes, breathing in a lungful of clean, fresh air that wasn’t stale with death. The sun hung up there in all its shining warmth, and its touch stirred uncomfortable ripples of memories beneath the ocean of his subconscious.

“Father?”

Roka’s voice snapped him back to the moment, and he looked over to where she was standing nearby. They were at the edge of what appeared to be a large, dry lake bed, Roka standing alongside who Lament recognized as Torch’s daughter, Ember, and Adagio’s vassal, Di Roy. All three looked somewhat roughed up from what Lament assumed were recent struggles, and although that sparked an instant sense of protectiveness towards Roka, he could tell her injuries were all extremely minor, so he controlled his urge to start hunting down whomever had hurt her. He glanced around, opening up his sharp Pesquisa senses to take in the battlefield all at once.

A number of bubble shaped, white tents at the bottom portion of the dried up lake contained a number of relatively weak Soul Reaper reiatsu. No threat, there. There were three powerful Soul Reapers in the area, however. One far to the east, near the mountains, and Lament sensed Grogar’s reiatsu there as well. Another was much closer, somewhere to the northwest, and Lament sensed a familiar Quincy reiatsu there; the girl who was the daughter of Twilight Velvet.

He suppressed a twitch, and focused on the other potent reiatsu he sensed, for the moment ignoring the cluster of human souls he felt across the west side of the lake bed. This third Soul Reaper signature was incredibly potent, perhaps an even match for the one fighting Grogar. Near this spiritual pressure he felt Adagio’s reiatsu, alongside Gaw’s, and one other he didn’t readily recognize.

There were some other errant spiritual pressures out there as well, but he didn’t consider any of them important. Nothing mattered other than doing the task he’d come here to do. The faster he dealt with this, the sooner his daughter could safely return to Hueco Mundo, along with Adagio and Ember.

Actually, why were Roka and Ember still here? He looked to his daughter and said, “You could have come straight to the tower with Ember, daughter. Why call me here while staying put?”

“It’s my fault,” Ember said, and Lament could tell the daughter of Torch was nervous admitting that to him, her whole body tense as she watched Lament as if ready to bolt, “The Soul Reapers took my Zanpaktou, and I didn’t want to leave without it.”

Irritation rose like a black tide in his soul. Fool girl was putting his kin in danger because she wanted her damn pig-sticker!? He ought to cut her damn head off for keeping his Roka in this dangerous...Lament took a deep breath, forcing the irrational, destructive desires back down. His hand had been clutching his Zanpaktou’s hilt, but he forced his hand to unclench. Roka stepped forward, and put herself just an inch or so between him and Ember.

“Father, we don’t have much time. Adagio is facing a very dangerous enemy. While you help her, Di Roy and I will assist Ember in retrieving her Zanpaktou. You know how important they are to an Arrancar. She can’t leave without it. It’d be like leaving behind a piece of her soul. I promise you as soon as we’ve got our hands on it, we’ll retreat to Las Noches.”

“You can count on us,” Di Roy said, providing an unconvincing thumbs up, “Nothing but wimpy researchers in that lab anyway. We’ll grab and dash before they even know what hit them.”

Lament turned cool eyes towards him, to which Di Roy’s brow broke out in a swift sweat, but then Lament turned his gaze back to Roka, eliciting a sigh of relief from Di Roy.

“Be careful, daughter, and also... be quick? I left Fenice behind in a bit of a rush. She was pretty steamed at me. Wouldn’t be surprised if she looked for a way to come after me.”

“Oh,” Roka said, understanding filling her eyes, “We’d best hurry then, before she threatens one of Adagio’s vassals to open a portal for her. You really should have just brought her along.”

“Don’t need her getting herself all hurt on account of me. Shouldn’t even have let you come here, but that Adagio’s got a way with words, the blasted woman.”

From the north, where Adagio’s reiatus could be sensed, there was a tremor and an explosion of noise as some massive impact sent a tower of rock and dirt into the air, visible even at a distance. Roka put a gentle hand on Lament’s arm, squeezing tightly.

“And you need to go save her, now, before we lose her, father. She’s our best chance at carving a better life for ourselves and our family in Hueco Mundo, and more than that... she’s a friend of the family now. Her, Gaw, Di Roy, all of them.”

“Hmph, I get it, don’t need to guilt me none. You’re near as bad as she is,” Lament said, but he didn’t have any rancor in his voice as he said it. He titled his head towards the lab in the center of the lake, “Get going, get Ember’s sword, and then get gone. I’ll be right behind you, with that orange headed fool in tow.”

Roka nodded, and after affirming looks to both Ember and Di Roy, the trio headed off in buzzing flickers of Sonido. Lament watched them go, then turned his attention northward, drawing his Zanpaktou’s long, smooth blade in one motion before vanishing as well in a burst of inhuman speed.

----------

A few minutes earlier...

Once more Sweet Cider came rocketing towards Adagio like a high speed bullet train made out of nuclear warheads, and once more Adagio barely managed to get her trident braced to block the earth shattering blow of the Tenth Division Captain’s Zanpaktou. The large, machete-like sword hit hard enough to rattle all of Adagio’s teeth as she bent her full strength into absorbing the hit, and was still forced to use two hands to Sweet Cider’s one.

The woman was just... freakishly strong. It struck Adagio as fundamentally unfair that this woman could be this physically powerful despite being a Soul Reaper for such a short amount of time.

Hello pot, this is kettle, have we met? said a sarcastic portion of her mind, realizing that she herself was a rather freakish example of swiftly obtained power among Hollow-kind. If Applejack’s sad backstory was to be believed, Sweet Cider had been dead for years. Comparatively speaking it was rather impressive Adagio was holding her own against her physically after only being dead for the span of a month or two.

And Adagio was holding her own, if barely. Sweet Cider had focused almost all of her attention on the Espada in front of her, and with good tactical reason. Adagio was the most obvious threat, still in her full Resurreccion form. Taking Adagio out of action quickly would likely mean an easy victory over Gaw and Thorax (presumably) and the swift rescue of Luna. So far Adagio had managed to vex Sweet Cider’s powerful, swift strikes, but each of Sweet Cider’s attacks got closer to breaking Adagio’s defenses than the last, and Adagio didn’t get the impression Sweet Cider was even trying that hard.

It didn’t help that Adagio was already exhausted from her fight with Luna. Had she been at full power, she’d be able to mount a counter offensive. As it stood, while she could still summon and control some water, and could pull off a few more Cero blasts, she was having to conserve that spirit energy to focus on powering her Sonido, at least until she got an opening.

Gaw and Thorax had both leaped in different directions away from the fight, but not to keep out of it, but more to seek their own openings in their own ways. Thorax was the freshest among them, having barely used any power fighting Rarity while disguised as Greta. Now he carefully observed Sweet Cider’s motions while biding his time for the right moment to jump in. Or at least that’s what Adagio was hoping the effeminate, lazy bastard was doing! Wait, was he edging towards Luna!?

“Don’t even think about it!” she snarled, “Get your skinny ass in here, or you can forget about any deals!”

Thorax paused, edged away from Luna, and placed a hand on his chest, “But of course, I was just making sure dear Luna wasn’t affecting an escape while you were distracted.”

“Of course you were,” Adagio grunted, her form blurring with the speed of Sonido as she ducked one of Sweet Cider’s swing by centimeters, a blow which sent out a pressure wave that sliced down a few dozen unfortunate trees in the distance. Adagio tried to stab with her trident as she spun inside Sweet Cider’s guard but the woman batted the strike away with her bare hand and nearly caught Adagio with a knee thrust that Adagio was only able to roll away from by a scant inch.

“Gaw, you too! Resurreccion form, now, but fight at a distance! Don’t even think of getting close to this woman!”

Her orders were barked in a hard, commanding voice, but it was undercut by a current of very real worry. She knew it might be a mistake to even keep Gaw in the fight, but she couldn’t afford not to use every resource on the battlefield right now. Gaw wasn’t nearly strong enough to risk getting into melee with Sweet Cider, but the Soul Reaper hadn’t shown much ranged ability, so Adagio hoped that if Gaw kept at range and just used Ceros and Balas that it’d help provide distraction and maybe an actual opening for Adagio to get a hit in, while also keeping Gaw safe.

Gaw, loyal to her alpha’s command, took an additional leap back until she was near the edge of the clearing the battle had made in the middle of the forest. There, she gripped her large, claw-shaped Zanpaktou in front of her and ran a palm across it’s edge, drawing blood. A deep sanguine glow suffused the short Arrancar girl’s body as her reiatsu coalesced around her. In a battle without high ranked Espada or Soul Reaper Captain’s present, her spiritual pressure might have been impressive in it’s own way. It wasn’t even all that far off from Gilda’s.

”Go for the throat; Cazadora!” (Huntress)

Ruby energy of a liquid texture bubbled up from her Zanpaktou like a fountain of blood, and swiftly surrounded her in a geyser. The spinning, crimson torrent crackled with arcs of energy as it rose upward, then burst apart in a shower of red droplets of reishi. Where Gaw’s small, washboard form had once stood, now emerged what could best be described as a thirty foot tall, humanoid dinosaur. There was a distinct similarity to the theropod form she’d had as an Adjuchas, yet now fused with a feminine, humanoid shape. Muscular, clawed arms were married to a burly but still human-like torso. Powerful reverse jointed legs more akin to her dinosaur shape ended in wide, thick claws. Her head was also saurian once more, although seemingly now encased in a thick skull-like helmet of bone. In fact most of her body was now back to being covered in plates of scale-like bone armor, spiked along her spin, head, arms, and all the way down to the end of a powerfully muscled tail. The only other notable difference from her old Adjuchas form besides the smaller size and more humanoid shape were the blades producing from her forearms, long and jagged, with several notches in their uneven length.

Fixing golden eyes on Sweet Cider with a predatory growl, Gaw followed Adagio’s instructions and with a strong leap sent herself soaring up into the air. There, she halted herself and then raised her left hand towards Sweet Cider. The Soul Reaper and Adagio were still locked in close quarters, so Gaw had to be careful with her aim, or at least as close to careful as Gaw could get. Sparks of red energy skipped along her hand’s long, curved claws, and Gaw formed four Bala, one along each fingertip, and then fired them off in rapid succession.

These Bala were a bit different than normal ones as well, more conical in shape, like sharp little cones rather than the more rounded bullet shapes of regular Bala. This gave them more speed and penetration in exchange for taking up more energy, but since Gaw had to stay at range anyway she figured there was no point conserving her power.

The pointed Balas slammed downward at breakneck speed, coming straight for Sweet Cider with skillful precision. The Captain turned half a glance towards them, and without pulling her sword from launching a deadly upward swipe at Adagio, Sweet Cider adjusted her stance and made a backhanded gesture with her free hand balled up into a fist. Three of the four Bala were smashed by Sweet Cider’s backhand as if they’d been made of glass. The fourth had been aimed a little lower and impacted with Sweet Cider’s hip, but the sharp point of the energy bullet only tore a little cloth and scratched the flesh beneath, unable to penetrate against Sweet Cider’s overpowering reiatsu.

However, that moment did split Sweet Cider’s attention enough that Adagio was able to slink around the Captain’s upward slash and gather a moment of focus and conjure a jet stream of water from her trident, which she then swung with both hands at Sweet Cider’s side. Sweet Cider stepped back and bent away from the trident, but the water still exploded outward from Adagio’s Zanpaktou in a triple jet, one from each tip, that combined into a powerful torrent that engulfed Sweet Cider in a torrent of enough water pressure that even several stacked together tanks would’ve been sent reeling.

Adagio let out a gasp as not only did she see Sweet Cider’s shadow inside the blast of water, holding fast, but saw the Captain take a strike forward and thrust her sword through the water with a strike aimed for Adagio’s head.

The water still slowed the strike enough that Adagio didn’t have much trouble dodging away from it, deflecting the blade with her trident and dancing backwards, but she still stared at Sweet Cider as the water dissipated and the Captain strode out, soaked but otherwise unharmed.

“...You are ridiculous,” Adagio stated, “It’s infuriating how strong you are. Huh, this must be how Gilda feels about me. That’s a moment of self reflection I could’ve done without.”

“Ain’t in the mood fer banter,” Sweet Cider said, hefting her sword and bringing it down in a two handed chop. Adagio could feel the wind pressure build up alongside the spiritual pressure, and considering Sweet Cider was now gripping her blade with both hands, Adagio wisely decided that dodging was an ideal move at that juncture.

Even with her swiftest Sonido she almost didn’t make it. The forest behind her sure didn’t. The raw force of Sweet Cider’s blow sent out a wave of spirit energy and raw air pressure that flattened an untold amount of forestry behind where Adagio had been standing, and carved a nice, deep fissure several meters wide.

Flipping and hand springing away from the path of destruction, Adagio started to grow more desperate as she conjured additional spheres of water and coalesced her dwindling spirit energy into them. From the spheres, about eight in total, she cut loose a rapid fire barrage of Aqua Bala. She had no expectation the charged water bullets would do much damage, but she was hoping they’d pin Sweet Cider down for a moment. She spotted Thorax circling behind Sweet Cider, and wanted to keep the Captain distracted.

Likely sensing Adagio’s intent, Gaw circled above in the air, hopping across the air with a couple of short Sonidos to get around to Sweet Cider’s left side.

Sweet Cider swung her blade, but not at Adagio’s incoming Balas, but at the ground in front of her. A huge slab of dirt and stone was flung up by the impact, acting as a barrier that Adagio’s Aqua Bala started chewing through, but didn’t immediately penetrate. At that same time, Sweet Cider turned, just as Gaw had opened her fanged, saurian mouth to charge a blood red Cero within.

Gaw discharged the Cero, a vibrantly bright beam of crimson, and Sweet Cider took it head on. A sizable explosion of vibrant red flame and force caused nearby trees to bend and break branches from the wind force. Even Adagio had to admit it wasn’t a bad Cero, and considered that if Gilda ever was killed, or moved up in rank, it might not be a bad idea to pitch Gaw as a replacement Tenth.

Unfortunately Sweet Cider rose up through the flames of the explosion, little more than bearing singed clothing, and then vanished with an insanely swift Flash Step that Adagio had to focus to follow.

“Gaw, move!” Adagio shouted, preparing to rush towards her vassal with Sonido, even though it’d be far too late as Sweet Cider flickered into view in front of Gaw, blade barred to strike.

Then at the same moment, something struck out like a strange, fleshy whip, and actually caught Sweet Cider on the wrist of her right hand, and yanked her sword arm so that her strike just barely missed Gaw, who then followed Adagio’s command and jumped back.

Adagio blinked at the sight of what looked like a long, extended tentacle wrapped around Sweet Cider’s arm, but then it let go as Sweet Cider yanked on it and Adagio saw it retract back to its owner’s mouth. Thorax licked his tongue over his lips, “Huh, she actually tastes a little like apples. How interesting.”

Adagio raised an eyebrow at him, and he smiled at her, “What?”

“I’m not going to ask, but thank you for saving my vassal.”

“None of us are saved quite yet,” Thorax said, noting that Sweet Cider had given her slobbered upon wrist a disgusted look and flicked the spittle away, and now was glowering down at him, “I think I just got on the angry woman’s bad side.”

“You might want to consider Resurreccion now,” Adagio said vehemently, and Thorax gained a coy look that matched the twinkle in his eyes.

“Had to get a taste first, Adagio. You’ll understand in a moment.”

As he spoke, Sweet Cider came down at him like a falling satellite, smashing her sword down at him with clear intent to split Chrysalis’ eldest child in two bloody pieces. Thorax didn’t stand still, throwing himself to the side with Sonido, and even then Adagio saw Sweet Cider’s blade leave a bloody trail down his right side that could have easily been an instantly fatal wound on a lesser Arrancar.

The impact of her sword on the ground caused the entire ground to quake, and sent up a towering geyser of shattered rocks and dirt. Thorax appeared out of that cloud of debris, bleeding profusely from his wound, but his body also glowing brightly with a intense, lime green light. Adagio saw him invert his grip on his cutlass-shaped Zanpaktou and then extend his tongue to lick along the length of the sword.

”Drink deeply; Deseo.” (Desire)

Energy poured out of him in a thick, neon green mist. It buffeted the air and churned outward in several wide currents that then turned back and impacted into where Thorax was at the center of the tumult. Adagio felt the outpouring of his reiatsu, and had to admit, she was impressed. Thorax had been holding back. She didn’t estimate he was at her level, but he certainly wouldn’t be a pushover either, if they ever came to blows. If any of Chrysalis' other children were like this, then the Second Espada had been holding some potent cards in her deck, and hadn’t been letting that information become widely known among the other Espada.

Sweet Cider had climbed out of the impact crater her sword strike had created, and now watched with a faintly annoyed look on her face as Thorax’s transformation completed itself.

The storm of green mist slowly halted, but didn’t immediately dissipate as it slowly started to swirl away, but form within the depths of the cloud an object shot out at blinding speed, blowing a hole through the mist through simple shock-wave force.

Sweet Cider’s blade moved in a sunlit flash, sparks showering from it as it deflected the object, but not without clear effort as Sweet Cider’s eyes narrowed and she was driven back a step or two by the impact. The object spun around like a boomerang and returned to Thorax’s location inside the swiftly vanishing cloud of mist.

“You know, I haven’t used this form very often. Mother prefers my siblings and I keep our strength hidden,” said Thorax as the mist cleared and revealed his Resurreccion state, “But I don’t think it’s likely you’ll go blabbing to any Espada, will you?”

Thorax’s body had changed into that of an insectoid centaur. His upper body remained largely unchanged, with the same black skin and incredible good looks, but his back had gained white shoulder guards that extended into a silken green cape down his bare back. His stage beetle helmet had grown into something closer to a crown, with the mandibles grown larger and pointed in an upward back sweep like that of a noble deer. His lower body merged into the shape of a large, white beetle like body, with six powerful legs and a thickly armored carapace bearing two plates that briefly opened to allow green, membranous wings to flutter briefly before closing.

In his hands were a pair of highly unusual weapons, the design of which Adagio was not familiar with. Had she known more about handheld weaponry she might have recognized them as “deer horn” knives, but to her eyes they just looked like a strange melding of two crescent shaped blades, the combined curves creating weapons that looked like someone had taken two crescent moons, turned them towards each other, and blended them together so that the outward curves of the blade pointed outward while leaving the inward bend on one side to act as a handle and the other to act as the central body of the weapon. Both of Thorax’s were around four feet long and formed from black iron, but with the handle portions covered in grips of white bone.

Overall the form still retained a substantial sense of grace, with even the beetle-like lower half of his body having a slimmer, streamlined look that emphasized poise and speed over brute strength. Thorax confirmed this point as he gave Sweet Cider a thin smile, and extended his wings. There was a louder buzzing noise than was normal with Sonido, and multiple afterimages of Thorax appeared as he came at Sweet Cider from several differing angles. His body showed great dexterity as he spun his oddly shaped blades in a complex dance of strikes, his arms moving in hypnotic patterns that seemed to blur the two weapons together to make it difficult to measure just what trajectory they were attacking from.

Sweet Cider was like an immovable mountain by comparison, her sword swinging in deft, short defensive motions in conjunction with her free hand. It was a little like watching a typhoon try to batter down a cliff. To Thorax’s credit, he was scoring hits, delivering the first actual wounds to Sweet Cider thus far with several shallow slashes marking her arms from awkward parries. Sweet Cider remained on the defensive for only a few seconds, however, before her eyes flashed dangerously and she let out a powerful side swipe that caught Thorax, even at his high speed.

He blocked it with both crescent blades, but was knocked back towards Adagio. She caught him with a gentle wave of water that arrested his movement, and she moved up next to him, trident at the ready.

“Not bad, but you’re still weaker than me,” she stated, “We’ll need to take her together, at least long enough for reinforcement to arrive.”

“Oh, I knew that from the start,” Thorax said, “I do hope your backup doesn’t take forever, but in the meantime... bon appetit.”

Wondering what he meant, Adagio looked as he raised one of his blades to his mouth and licked the edge again. Only this time the gesture seemed to have a purpose, as a golden aura of energy rose from the blade like sap and Thorax consumed it with a pleased look on his face. Sensing the energy, Adagio realized with a blink of surprise that it was Sweet Cider’s spirit energy that Thorax just ate.

“How did you do that?”

”Sifon del Alma.” (Soul Siphon), Thorax replied, “As long as I get a taste of my opponent’s reiatsu prior to activating my Resurreccion, I can use my blades to siphon off parts of their reiatsu to consume for my own.”

“I’m surprised you told me that,” Adagio said, tensing as she saw Sweet Cider approaching them, the Captain’s own spiritual pressure rocketing upwards as the woman wore a dark glower.

“We’re soon approaching the point where secrets don’t garner me much benefit, Adagio. I thought revealing my cards concerning Luna would prove I’m serious about our own alliance, but we can discuss that after we survive this present situation,” Thorax barely had time to say before Sweet Cider came at them both with a earth rending charge.

Whatever Sweet Cider might have been holding back before was no longer the case as she went on the pure offensive, both hands gripping her sword as she showed both incredible speed and power of her own, starting with a dual slash that nearly appeared to be one attack. Adagio flew up and around the slash aimed at her, but still felt a painful bite as the blade still caught her tail and cut a chunk from it. Thorax side stepped with his six, fast insectile legs, but still had to cross his blades to block the slash that came his way, and the force still drove Sweet Cider’s blade down hard enough to open a gash in his shoulder.

With no more words, the two powerful Arrancar flanked Sweet Cider and counter attacked with ferocious blows of their own. Adagio found that Thorax coordinated naturally with her as she used her trident to stab for Sweet Cider’s vitals while Thorax spun his blades in their complex patterns to try to force the Captain to open up her guard. In the span of a handful of heartbeats a storm of exchanged strikes filled the air with blood and sparks, both the Arrancar and the Soul Reaper taking wounds. One of Adagio’s thrusts managed to stab a trio of bleeding holes in Sweet Cider’s right thigh, while Thorax scored a shallow slash on her own shoulder to match the one she had given him. Even so, those were minor wounds compared to the laceration one of Sweet Cider’s counter-blows landed on Adagio’s left arm, cutting nearly to the bone about halfway up past her elbow and forcing Adagio to adopt a one handed means of wielding her trident. Meanwhile Thorax took a cut to his head where his helmet kept the strike from being severe, but the bone cracked and left a trick of blood running down his face.

Adagio wondered where Gaw had gone, but that question was answered a moment later as she felt her vassal’s reiatsu focusing in the air directly above them. Glancing up, Adagio immediately dodged backwards from Sweet Cider and swept her trident forward with one hand, blasting out another jet stream of water. This wasn’t to injure Sweet Cider, but hopefully just distract her for a moment. Thorax sensed what was going on, and backed off as well, licking more of Sweet Cider’s golden reiatsu off his blades that he’d siphoned off in their brief exchange. The absorbing of that reiatsu seemed to replenish his own, and even help seal his wounds. Adagio found herself being a little jealous of the ability.

Up above, Gaw had flown up to a distance of several hundred feet, and was gathering more pulsating red energy in her mouth. Only instead of blasting it out as a Cero, she was applying the same ability to sharpen her spirit energy as she did with her Bala. This was Gaw’s own unique talent, transforming the shape of her reiatsu into something sharper, meant to tear and gouge; an expression of her predator nature.

So what formed this time was not a Cero, but rather a giant pointed fang of concentrated Cero energy, over five meters long. Like a huge energy missile, Gaw whipped her head forward and fired the projectile, the fang-like Cero flying down at Sweet Cider at well past the speed of sound.

Whether it was because the attack had just enough bite behind it to be worth of Sweet Cider’s attention, or simply because the Captain of the Tenth Division was getting fed up with the fight, she turned fully towards Gaw’s projectile and held her Zanpaktou above her head in a two handed stance as her reiatsu shot up once again. This time Adagio had little doubt what was about to happen, and wasting no time, flew up towards Gaw while Sweet Cider spoke in a hard, level tone.

”Sever; Kizuna.” (Bonds)

Blinding gold light bathed the forest for a vast distance, exploding from Sweet Cider in a thunderous wave of spiritual pressure that made Adagio break out into a frozen sweat. It was hard to tell if Sweet Cider’s reiatsu was stronger than Luna’s had been when she’d assumed that lycanthrope-like form, but it certainly felt like it could eclipse it. A frightening prospect, considering this was just Sweet Cider unleashing her Shikai. Had Adagio been fresh, rather than already wounded and battle ragged, she’d at least feel like she could put up a fight against what she was sensing, but as of that moment she was essentially at the end of her rope. Even with Thorax’s help, this wasn’t looking good.

As the gold light faded, Sweet Cider was seen swinging a truly colossal blade. To Adagio it looked less like a sword and more like a long chunk of bronze, bigger than even a person as substantially sized as Sweet Cider, that a bored and lazy blacksmith had given the hint of a sword’s shape. Sweet Cider swung it with both hands upon its metallic hilt, aiming upwards.

Adagio didn’t look back, and just powered herself forward to shoulder tackle Gaw’s thirty foot frame out of the way and carried both of them away at high speed. It was just in time to avoid a wave of golden power that blasted out of Sweet Cider’s blade and rocketed up into the sky, blowing away a few stray clouds as it continued up into space. Adagio didn’t even want to think about taking a blast like that head on. Gaw would be vaporized instantly by an attack of that level, and Adagio would need to be at full strength to have a decent chance of countering it.

“Grr,” Gaw growled, “This is frustrating. I can’t do anything to dumb strong female. Best attack do nothing.”

That much was true. Gaw’s fang shaped, sharpened Cero had been completely consumed by the wave of energy Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou had expelled. Adagio gave Gaw an understanding look, gesturing with her trident, “You can’t do anymore good here, Gaw. Go find Roka and Di Roy, and help them with Ember.”

Gaw didn’t have much range of expression in her Resurreccion form, but her gold eyes burned with reluctant frustration, but she did nod her head in acknowledgment. “As you command, alpha. Don’t die, or I get very mad at you.”

As Gaw flashed away with Sonido, Adagio turned her attention back to Sweet Cider. Thorax had attracted the Captain’s attention by slinging both his blades at her. The weapons flew, seemingly of their own accord, in haphazard patterns as hypnotic and hard to follow as when Thorax wielded them with his hands, spinning through the air with a deadly whistling sound.

Sweet Cider just strode forward and then hefted her giant blade, spinning it around in a single, circular motion that generated such a powerful pressure blast of air that both Thorax’s weapons were deflected. Thorax raised his hands and called them back to him, but only just in time to get them crossed together in defense as Sweet Cider Flash Stepped right up to him and chopped her sword down with both hands.

“Ya wanna drink up my energy, then here’s all ya can take!” she shouted, her Zanpaktou exploding with gold radiance as she slammed it down and unleashed a point blank blast on top of Thorax.

It was a testament to Thorax’s speed and resilience that he managed to twist aside and blur away with Sonido, but not fast enough to entirely evade the explosive blast that detonated out from Sweet Cider’s strike. Adagio watched in bitter awe as a towering wave of golden power cleaved through another few kilometers of forest, adding to the ever growing number of new ravines, craters, and minor canyons that Everfree Forest was turning into as a result of the day’s battles.

She couldn’t even guess how tall the energy wave had been. Thirty, forty meters?

The only positive thing she noted in all of this was that Sweet Cider was a bit slower, now. Insanely more powerful, but that humongous sword did seem to take a bit more wind up than usual, giving just a fraction of a moment longer to respond to the attack. It was why she’d been able to knock Gaw aside, or why Thorax was able to partially dodge. Not that it might do much good in the long run. Thorax had landed a few dozen meters away, off to the side, and even the partial hit of that powerful energy wave had scorched his entire right side and cracked the carapace on his lower, beetle half. He was breathing hard, and his face was showing a grimace of barely controlled pain.

Adagio appeared next to him with a burst of Sonido, “This could be going better.”

“I confess I may have underestimated our chances. Perhaps we can affect a retreat while still taking Luna with us?”

“Doubtful. I haven’t even agreed to your terms regarding her yet, anyway.”

“Ya’ll done yappin’ over there!?” Sweet Cider growled, stomping towards them, “Mayhaps if ya hand over Luna right this damn instant, I’ll consider lettin’ ya walk away. Ya ain’t winnin’ this fight.”

Adagio turned her eyes towards Thorax, who in turn was giving Luna a longing look. The other Soul Reaper Captain remained in Adagio’s imprisoning sphere of water near the edge of the battle, silent and having simply been watching the fight with narrowed eyes.

Adagio opened her mouth to speak... then closed it as she sensed the approaching signature of a familiar reiatsu.

About time. What did he do, stop for lunch on the way?

“Well!?” Sweet Cider said, raising her sword for another strike, “Ain’t gonna give ya another chance past this one.”

“And it’s appreciated,” Adagio said, offering up a wry smile, “Especially considering it’s allowed for our backup to arrive.”

“Backup won’t do ya no good, ya connivin’ little-” Sweet Cider started to say, then the words just turned to instant dust in her mouth as a figure appeared before her from a swift, near silent Sonido.

For a moment, time utterly halted for Sweet Cider, then rushed back a span of years as she felt her heart nearly stop in her chest. Cold shock flowed through her, opening her mouth agape and turning her eyes to wide, green lakes. She nearly let go of her Zanpaktou, and only the years of discipline and training as a Soul Reaper let her keep her grip, even as she felt her knees suddenly soften with the need to buckle.

It was him. His skin might have been more pale and his hair allowed to grow out to a wild length (that she realized looked rather good on him), and his expression had such a drained, sorrowful flatness to it that it was at utter contrast to the energetic and brightly smiling face she was used to seeing, but there was still no doubt at all that this was her husband; Hard Nail. Yet the unbelievably thick aura of Hollow reiatsu flowed off of him like an oil slick, and the black Hollow hole at the base of his throat was unmistakable.

Arrancar. Her husband hadn’t just become a Hollow, he was an Arrancar. The power coming off of him would have marked his place among the Arrancar, even if she didn’t spot the edge of the number “4” tattoo on the side of his neck.

The reality of the situation hammered at her mind, screaming a hundred different responses that tore at her to go to him and wrap her arms around him, to shout any number of a dozen different questions, or to just say anything past the impassible lump in her throat, to even raising her Zanpaktou to strike so she could free his soul from its present form and give it proper rest. Instead she stood there, frozen, unable to do more than grapple with her own shocked mind and heart.

For Lament, he was struggling with his own abrupt confusion. He’d arrived just in time, it seemed, for Adagio looked to be in terrible condition. He barely recognized Thorax, and questioned why one of the Second Espada’s children was here. He didn’t know Luna, but could tell she was a Soul Reaper Captain, just like the... strangely familiar red skinned blonde in front of him.

The woman was staring at him with what appeared to be utter astonishment, and Lament felt a heady and unnerving mix of emotions as he looked back at her. He couldn’t separate it all out, the rising waters of regret, longing, fear, familiarity, warmth, denial, all of it frothing together in a maelstrom he wanted desperately to keep a lid on. He knew this woman, somehow. Her honey blonde locks of hair, her stern yet beautifully carved crimson features, and those utterly fierce emerald eyes, all struck chords within him that felt at once cozy and inviting, yet somehow completely and overwhelmingly threatening. This Soul Reaper represented a dire threat to his memory, his mind, and the family he’d built for himself these hard, lonely years since he’d awoken in Hueco Mundo.

An entire flood of memories and all the strings attached to them were banging at the back door of his mind, and Lament feared if he let that dam break, he’d end up losing everything he was and all he had, including the adopted family that was most dear to him.

He had to attack. He had to do it before the woman spoke, and started saying things that might strip away the moorings on his sanity. That’s what he’d come here to do, right? Assist Adagio Dazzle, who clearly needed help dealing with this Soul Reaper. Yes, a Soul Reaper. He had to focus on that. He wasn’t fighting a woman he knew. Just a Soul Reaper.

Like Twilight Velvet was just a Quincy?, the stray thought rushed across his mind, and he remembered with a chill the sight of the woman’s corpse at his feet, her daughter covered in her mother’s blood.
He didn’t think he could afford to remember his past, but what was the price of continuing to forget it?

Forcing the thought back, he let battle instinct take over. His reiatsu poured from him as his vision focused to a knife’s edge upon his opponent. She was still staring at him, her guard down. There would be no better moment to strike.

Sweet Cider felt the intense focus of Hard Nail’s reiatsu and knew to expect the attack, yet her shock wasn’t anywhere near worn off. Only her own battle hardened combat instincts and honed skills saved her as she saw Hard Nail varnish and she swung Kizuna upward in a reflexive parry. Even then, Hard Nail’s speed took her by surprise and she felt a sharp bite of pain on her left shoulder from a bloody cut he left as he darted past her. Her Zanpaktou had managed to deflect his blade from what would have been a decapitating blow.

There was no mistaking his killing intent. For a moment she’d thought she’d seen a spark of recognition in his eyes, but now they’d gone flat and dead, like a murderous doll, focused solely upon the kill. She spun to face him as he darted at her again, his Sonido so swift she swore even light might not catch his blade. Yet she wasn’t slow, despite her heavy sword, and Kiznua was wide enough to be both blade and shield in one. She adjusted her stance, hefting the blade around like a tower shield, and Hard Nail’s Zanpaktou skipped off of it’s bronze edge.

His own Zanpaktou was not quite as long as Kizuna, but it was still an impressive long katana, and he flipped over her, swinging it around with the very momentum from her parry. She moved to the side with Flash Step, feeling his sword cut her Captain's coat, but just barely missed her flesh. With a wordless shout, anger now boiling up in her in denial of knowing what her husband was, what he’d become, what he’d been made into, she poured her spiritual energy into Kizuna.

Fused with her Fullbring, the unstable Zanpaktou eager drank up both her energy and her rage, rebounding that anger to fuel it to even greater heights in Sweet Cider. She should be angry! The Hollows had perverted the man she loved into some kind of emotionless husk of the loving man he’d been! Turned him into one of their Espada and forced him to fight their wars! How DARE THEY!? When she was done here she’d storm Las Noches itself and rip Tirek down from his throne and cram her sword down his throat for this!

Her shout turned into a furious roar as golden energy erupted from Kiznua along with a spinning, uppercutting swing aimed right at Hard Nail. The hulking burst of destructive spirit energy that exploded from her blade forced Hard Nail back, but to Sweet Cider’s surprise he was able to take it with his sword crossed in front of him, braced by his free hand, as black reiatsu flowed from his body in a protective shell. It still burned his skin and caused him to grind backwards across the ground along with the wave of energy, but he withstood it. Aside from Scorpan and Celestia, no one had ever taken one of Kizuna’s blasts directly like that and come out of it with so little damage.

As the wave of gold energy faded, Lament took a moment to assess himself. His arms felt numb and he was honestly shocked he was still standing. That blast had been beyond potent. He wasn’t even certain his own Cero’s were a match, at least not without Resurreccion. He glanced at the nails in his palms, and tested them with his reiatsu. The last power of Twilight Velvet’s Vengeance still held fast, sealing a portion of Lament’s reiatsu, but he did feel a slight budge within them. Had Sweet Cider’s blast somehow loosened them?

He had no time to ponder that as the woman, her face contorted with a rage that shocked even Lament’s usually calm demeanor, came at him with a surprisingly fast series of powerful sword strikes, given the size of her blade. He relied on his speed to evade, keeping just ahead of the blunt yet no less lethal edge of bronze from the massive slab of metal. Entire sections of the land around them were carved up with each near miss, until the end where even Lament found himself underestimating the woman’s ferocity and after dodging back with Sonido he still found his stomach bearing a deep cut from the pressure wave of the strike alone.

Luckily his body didn’t bleed like normal, so the wound meant little to him, but he wasn’t certain how well even his deathless state would hold up if she managed to start landing solid blows. Bleeding or not, needing his internal organs or not, he couldn’t do much mashed up into paste, and this woman could probably pull that off if he let her.

Having gained a bit of distance, he decided to test her own resistance to his spiritual energy, and raised a finger towards her. Black and green energy swirled into a small orb at the tip of his index finger, and then Lament unleashed a wide Cero blast that covered a dozen meter diameter. The green and black lined beam smashed towards the Soul Reaper, who made another enraged war-cry as she cleaved downward with her sword. The Zanpaktou smashed into the Cero like an anvil, and then the woman started walking through it with her sword held out like a dam against the Cero’s river.

Finally, past the rage, past the shock, past all of her conflicting emotions alongside a wetness in her eyes that she refused to acknowledge as tears, Sweet Cider found her voice.

She shouted hoarsely over the sound of the Cero she was walking through towards her husband with ever hastening steps, turning it into a headlong charge.

“Stop actin’ like ya don’t know me ya dang fool!”

Bracing Kizuna with one hand, she cocked back her right fist and emerged from the Cero right in front of a surprised looking Hard Nail, and proceeded to crack him across the jaw with her fist.

The blow actually did very little damage, despite quite possibly cracking the jawbone. The real effect was on Lament’s mind as that angry shouting voice, with its familiar accent, alongside the sensation of his jaw taking a solid smack from that fist, sent him reeling backwards. Not physically, but within his mind.

----------

The fist caught him right on the jaw, and he found himself on his back staring up at a blue sky beyond the swaying branches of apple trees, filled with ripe red fruit. The pain in his jaw wasn’t that bad, but the gorgeous woman glaring down at him angrily with her green eyes blazing reminded Hard Nail he’d best not say so as he sat up, rubbing his jaw and looking up with a boyish grin.

“So, that's a ‘no’ then?”

Sweet Cider snorted like a bull, hands on her hips, sweat pouring down her brow from beneath her stetson as she kept her eyes locked on him, “Yer a real piece o’ work, Hard Nail! What’re ya thinkin’, askin’ me to marry you outta the blue like that!? We ain’t even been datin’ more n’ a month!”

“I know,” he said, cracking his neck and hopping to his feet, still smiling at her, and enjoying the way that only Sweet Cider could make her eyes shine like that, even in anger. Besides, he knew she was blushing under that complexion of apple red, noting the pinker hue to her cheeks. “Turns out a month is all I need ta know where my heart’s at, with you.”

“Well mine ain’t so sure ‘bout you yet,” she said, turning back to her basket of apples and using her height and long arms to pluck a few more out of the nearby tree to set in the basket, “I’m a’ respectable girl, ya dang city slicker, an’ while ya might be handy with a’ hammer n’ nail, an’ are plenty soft on the eyes I’ll admit, it takes more n’ a pretty smile an’ a’ decent pair o’ work hands ta win over Sweet Cider Apple!”

“So, we talkin’ another month, or...?”

“Yer talkin’ yerself inta an’ early grave if ya don’t stop flappin’ them gums an’ help me finish up here,” she said, prodding another nearby apple basket with a foot. Hard Nail didn’t lose his grin as he did just that, helping her finish plucking apples from the last tree on that end of the orchard.

“How about with us nearly being done here, I take you over to my place?” he asked, and at Sweet Cider’s glare he added, “I’ll cook us up some lasagna.”

She paused, and he saw her lick her lips even as she tried to hide it with the brim of her stetson, then he heard her say, “Yer lucky yer a good cook, ya dang rascal. Ma still needs me ta finish patching up the barn door, but once that’s done I’m free.”

“I’ll help ya out n’ we’ll be done in no time flat,” he said, coming around the tree to her side and slipping his arm around her waist. She didn’t fight the touch and in fact leaned into it a bit, reluctantly starting to smile a bit herself.

“Yer cute, but don’t get cocky, Hard Nail, ya ain’t wormed yer way inta my heart just yet, even with the clever tactic o’ helping out on the farm here, an’ feedin’ me that sinfully good cookin’ o’ yers.”

“Don’t forget my rugged good looks, charming smile, and the fact that I’m an honest, hard working man who thinks the world of you and isn’t freaked out by the fact that you’re also an incredible ghost fighting superhero.”

“Eh, yer smile’s at a solid six at best, Romeo, but... it is nice that ya don’t fret none over what me n’ the gals do,” she said quietly, and he snaked his hand into hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Ya saved my life, Sweet Cider. I ain’t ever gonna forget that,” he said, leaning towards her slowly. She didn’t turn away from him, instead moving closer until their lips were nearly brushing, “I ain’t ever gonna forget you.”

----------

The memory finished crashing over him like a tidal wave, and Lament staggered backwards, head shaking. What had he just remembered? Was that... his life? Was that who he’d been, before Hueco Mundo, before becoming the Lament? And this woman, Sweet Cider... she’d been his...?

She was looking at him with her face flushed, her own breathing hard, not from exertion but her own internal war of emotions. Her eyes were a pyre of fury and need intermixed, and he could feel her spirit energy from both her and her Zanpaktou like a blanketing heat on his skin, as if he were standing next to an active volcano.

“That jog anythin’ in that thick skull o’ yers, Hard Nail Apple?” she asked in a hot, achingly familiar tone of indignation. “Ya near drove me ta the nuthouse with yer antics tryin’ ta marry me, ya oughta at least remember that ya actually pulled it off and got me ta walk down the aisle with ya!”

“No...” he said in a voice a scant fraction above a whisper, “I don’t remember. I can’t remember. Not now. That man isn’t me.”

Even as he said the words, bits and pieces of memory were escaping the bindings of his mind, slipping through the deep, deep darkness he’d kept them in and bubbled up to the surface. The scent of freshly baked apple pie spicing up the air alongside the laughter of a family sitting around the table. The sensation of sweat sweetly trickling down his back after a long day of satisfying work, made better by the laughter of children playing in the orchard. The warmth of his hands entwined with another’s in the darkness of night, drinking in her scent and feeling the thrill of her blissful gasps.

Each memory was a heated brand, poking his mind, and an entire ocean of ingrained denial and painful regret rose, armed with stark fear to fuel his reiatsu as it flooded out of him. Shadowy spirit energy rolled off his body as he held his Zanpaktou up and he narrowed his eyes, “I am Lament. Fourth Espada. Father to my precious children. Their protector. I won’t let anything make me forget them!”

“What n’ blazes are ya goin’ on about!?” Sweet Cider started to shout, but Lament came at her again, faster and harder than before. Their swords met in a blinding crash of motion, black reiatsu scorching against an aura of gold as their power’s clashed. The ground beneath them broke apart as if smashed by a great fist from the sky, shaking the earth, and causing a thunderclap of sound to resound for miles.

Adagio and Thorax, having been watching the spectacle in awed silence, finally were able to react and looked at each other. Thorax’s face was a picture of wry curiosity as he said, “I don’t suppose you have any idea what this is all about?”

For Adagio’s part, she hadn’t been fully blindsided by the apparent fact that Sweet Cider and Lament knew each other. Or rather, had known each other. Adagio was an intelligent woman, and it hadn’t taken her very long to slap the puzzle pieces together. Applejack had gone on enough about her dead parents for it to be rather obvious, even if Grand Fisher hadn’t boasted about his role in killing them or the fact that Applejack’s father had been turned into a Hollow.

Him being the Lament himself wasn’t even that much of a shock, as she’d had a few suspicions from a few previous clues. The failed apple orchard on his tower, his apparent obsession with family, his vague country aesthetic. Then there’d been the fact that Twilight Sparkle’s mother had recognized him. Adagio wasn’t sure Twilight had actually put two and two together herself, but then Twilight probably tried very hard not to think about Lament very much at all.

Granted, Adagio hadn’t been sure, and if she had been she might have reconsidered calling Lament in, but now that it was confirmed it didn’t change anything for her. She still needed Sweet Cider kept busy or otherwise neutralized. The problem now was whether Lament could even do that, with his mental state getting more unstable by the second while facing his previous life’s spouse.

“I may,” she confessed to Thorax, “But that’s not important right now. While Lament has that Captain occupied, we should regroup with my vassals and Ember.”

“And what of Luna?” Thorax asked, an insistent light entering his eyes. Adagio wondered just how far his interest in Luna actually went? Would he turn on her if she tried to leave Luna behind, or didn’t accept his offer? A part of her wanted to think Thorax could be a worthy ally, but for all he’d done to earn trust from her, it was still difficult to forget that such trust came with a hefty risk among Hollow-kind. It was often a matter of give and take, and Thorax had made it clear what he wanted Adagio to give. She just wasn’t certain. There were a lot of considerations and risks involved with utilizing Luna as a bargaining chip.

Adagio gave him a frank look, “Let me put it to you like this, Thorax. We can’t do anything with Luna until we’re all safe, and that,” she gestured to where Lament and Sweet Cider were a nearly invisible pair of flashing blurs, their blades creating small earthquakes with each tumultuously powerful blow, “Is not safe. We finish what I came here for first, then we discuss Luna.”

He pursed his lips, giving the titanic battle taking place a few stone’s throws away it’s due glance of concern. He then nodded, “Yes, I suppose you’re right. After you, then.”

With that Adagio gestured to Luna, causing her water sphere to float over to her. Captain Luna continued to glare at Adagio and Thorax, but Adagio noted Luna was also sparring a worried look towards Sweet Cider.

“You’re just going to leave them like this?” Luna said.

“Lament doesn’t die easily,” Adagio said, “And no, I won’t leave him like this. But I came here to rescue Ember. The person you took, remember? None of this would be happening if not for you, dear Captain, so cease your complaining or trying to guilt trip me. Once I know Ember is safe, I’ll come back to assist Lament however I can. Now do be silent.”

Adagio made another gesture and a coil of water rose from the sphere and proceeded to gag Luna, who resumed giving Adagio her full attention of glared daggers. Adagio didn’t particularly care if the woman wanted to glare. The day had gone bad enough already, an angry Captain Luna wasn’t going to likely make it much worse. In fact, Adagio was struggling to think how the day could get much worse.

----------

At Camp Everfree the students of Canterlot High had gathered in front of the ruins of the camp center while Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie conferred with Lieutenant Posey and the Quincy from Crystal Prep. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were hanging close by with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, but had been gently encouraged by Posey to remain silent while the adults and near-adults talked. For most of the Canterlot High students they recognized the Quincy as girls from Crystal Prep, but had zero background on why they were wearing strange, white military uniforms or wielding odd powers alongside the Rainbooms.

“We are so out of the loop I’m not even sure we count as being in the same solar system,” commented Bon Bon to Lyra, who just shrugged at the words as she gave her friend a pointed look.

“So, no different than usual? Relax, Bon Bon, I’ll admit this might look more intense than the usual magical accident about to destroy our fragile reality, but so far, so good, right?”

“Even those crazy C.M.C girls are involved,” Bon Bon noted, and something in her friend’s tone got Lyra looking at Bon Bon with a concerned, sidelong look. “And let’s face it, the destruction is harder to contain this time. A whole camp is wreaked, and we’ve got a missing lake. Then there was that attack on the beach. It was easier to keep a lid on all this when it was just the school, but now...?”

“What are you saying?” Lyra asked, but Bon Bon just shook her head.

“Nothing. Just thinking out loud.”

“I find thinking is waaaay too much work! You shouldn’t do it unless you have to!” said a cheerful voice as Chappy popped up between the pair. Both Lyra and Bon Bon gave the unusually peppy Sunset Shimmer their own, odd looks. They vaguely understood that this wasn’t actually Sunset, but it was still weird seeing Sunset walking around with someone else behind the proverbial wheels.

“No worries there, Chappy was it?” Lyra said, pointing at her skull and then giving it a few raps with her knuckles, “I hardly think at all! Just ask Bon Bon.”

“It’s true.”

“YEAH!”

“...You don’t have to agree that loudly, Bulk.”

Meanwhile the impromptu conference had reached an impasse, Lieutenant Posey gulping as she tried not to hide behind her bangs and project a calm, confident face befitting a Soul Reaper seated officer.

“I know you all want to go help your various friends,” she was saying, “But Captain Sweet Cider told me to look after all of you and I don’t think it’d be a very good idea to split up our forces even more. Um, but that’s just, uh, how I see it...”

Sugarcoat’s gaze on Posey made the Soul Reaper feel a tingling discomfort, as she didn’t know whether it was rude to look at the Quincy girl’s visor or not.

“You do whatever you want, but we’re not under your command. Twilight Sparkle is our immediate superior, and the only reason we came to the camp was to make sure the immediate threat to living humans was neutralized,” Sugarcoat said, “Now that it is, we have to go find out what happened to Sour Sweet.”

Fluttershy had brought the three present Quincy up to speed on what had occurred concerning Sour Sweet’s apparent replacement with an impostor, and Lemon Zest being knocked out. Sugarcoat wasn’t thrilled with Lemon Zest being left unconscious near a couple of Hollows, either, but priority-wise the situation with Sour Sweet was the bigger threat. Rarity had already run off to chase that potential assassin, but Sugarcoat wasn’t about to let one girl non-affiliated with the Quincy take care of what should be our own business.

“I’m worried ‘bout Rarity, too,” Applejack said, “Just don’t seem safe fer her ta run off on her own like that.” Her expression darkened, “O’ course Sunset had ta run off too, makin’ things even harder!”

“I can’t control what any of you do,” Posey said, her voice filling with an earnest strain, “But I ask you all carefully consider things before doing anything rash.”

“Like sit on our butts doing nothing!?” said Indigo Zap with a angry twist of her lips, “Typical Soul Reaper. Twilight’s in trouble too right now! Sour Sweet being replaced sucks, but I’d rather go help Twilight!”

“Help her by doing what? Dying?” Sunny Flare asked, “She’s fighting a Captain. We wouldn’t be any help there. I’m sort of wondering why we’re still standing here when we should be calling for help! We barely just graduated from being cadets! This is Sternritter level threats we’re dealing with. Let’s do what we should have done from the start and get reinforcements.”

“There’s no time for that,” Sugarcoat said, “We don’t have fancy portals like Soul Reapers and Hollows do. All the Sternritter that could help are either already here, or still in Canterlot City. It’d take hours, at least, for more to show up, even if we did call. No, we have to deal with this ourselves. We wouldn’t do Twilight any good, but we might be able to back up Rarity-”

“Against one of our own,” said Sunny Flare, “You do realize that whatever this impostor is doing, they have to be a Sternritter to have replaced Sour Sweet, right? What if they’re acting under orders from His Majesty? Should we be interfering with their mission at all?”

“You lamewads do whatever you want,” said Rainbow Dash, smashing a fist into her palm and producing a bust of lightning from it, “I’m not sitting around arguing this. AJ, Flutters, Pinkie, we go help Rarity first, then we go help Sunset. Sound like a plan?”

Fluttershy nodded, having kept calmly silent the entire time until that moment, “I’m worried about Rarity, too.”

“Sunset’s super strong, so she oughta be okay for a bit!” said Pinkie Pie, “She’s got a solo quest to do right now, but Rarity is trying to take on a secret boss by herself! It’s time to party-up!”

“It’s decided then,” said Applejack, “We’re goin’ after Rarity.”

However, no sooner had the words left her mouth that the entire group sensed the sudden and monumental uptick in spiritual pressure stemming from the north side of the Everfree Forest. One of the intermingling reiatsu out there was an intimidating, fearfully dark aura that made all those present shudder, while Applejack was extremely familiar with the source of the other reiatsu. She’d felt that spiritual pressure up close and personal, after all.

“Ma...” she said, sensing the unmistakable signature of her mother’s reiatsu being fully unleashed. Whoever or whatever the owner of that massive, dark aura of reiatsu was, her mother was facing it head on, and was having to go all out to do so. And the frightening thing was, Applejack couldn’t tell if her mother’s reiatsu was stronger than this new, dangerous one.

“Ma?” asked Apple Bloom, breaking off from her friends, “AJ, did ya say ma?”

“Oh my,” Posey said, hand shaking as she gripped her Zanpaktou, “T-that aura... that has to be one of the upper echelon Espada.”

“Upper echelon? Like, how strong are we talking here?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Um, I don’t know, but strong enough that I'm worried for Captain Sweet Cider...” replied Posey, voice becoming an uncertain squeak even as she tried to continue projecting an aura of calm she clearly didn't feel.

Sugarcoat flinched as something in her visor gave off a reading she didn’t like, “I have no idea either, but my visor is going haywire. This is bad. Good thing there’s a Soul Reaper Captain out there to deal with that.”

“That Soul Reaper is my ma,” Applejack said, teeth clenched, eyes wide with equal parts anger and sudden fear. She turned to the north, “Ya’ll... ya’ll go help Rarity, but I gotta go to help my ma.”

“Applejack! Whadd’ya mean ma!?” Apple Bloom shouted, repeating herself, and causing Applejack to suddenly look at her little sister with blinking, uncertain eyes.

“Apple Bloom, I...”

“Applejack,” Fluttershy said, “Whether you tell Apple Bloom or not, she’s going to find out eventually. Right now, maybe you should stay here. I don’t know that going to help your mother is a good idea.”

“What in bloody barnyards are sayin’!? She’s my ma! ‘Course I’m goin’!”

“But what will you do? You might end up getting hurt, and that won’t help your mother at all,” Fluttershy said, her voice calm, reasoned, with an undercurrent of deep worry that was being expertly controlled. Apple Bloom on the other hand was the completely opposite, her face reddening as she stamped a foot and shouted.

“Will somebody just tell me what is goin’ on!? AJ, why’re ya’ll talkin’ ‘bout our ma like she’s here? Like she’s a’...” she glanced at Posey, at the Soul Reaper’s uniform and Zanpaktou.

The girl’s face paled then with understanding, mouth opening as she let out a quiet, “Oh...”

Applejack had a miserable look on her face as she went up to Apple Bloom and knelt in front of her, putting hands on her little sister’s shoulders, “Apple Bloom, I’ll tell ya everythin’, I swear it to ya as an’ Apple, but I gotta go. Ma needs me.”

“You sure that’s a good idea?” asked Sugarcoat, “If you go, you’re very likely to die.”

Before Applejack could respond, Rainbow Dash stepped in, her own face an understanding, grave mask.

“No, AJ’s right,” she said, turning to give Applejack a hard look, “You can’t ignore this. Just don’t be stupid about it. Go to your mom, and help her out, but don’t get dead in the process, you got that?”

There was something in Rainbow Dash’s voice that got Applejack to pause. She looked at her sister, Apple Bloom’s eyes shining wet with confused tears and a clear need to know the truth. She squeezed her sister’s shoulders, meeting Apple Bloom’s questioning eyes.

“I’m comin’ back, Apple Bloom. When I do, no more hidin’ the truth, I promise.”

Apple Bloom swallowed hard and wiped at her face, forcing her eyes to a determined gleam, “Okay, sis, I trust ya.”

Applejack bit back a loving sob, and hugged her little sister, then without another word she boosted off with jets of gold energy from her arm and leg armor, and took off towards her mother.

Episode 113: Army of the Queen

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Episode 113: Army of the Queen

Six years ago...

A sharp crash and the sound of her little sister crying drew Rarity rapidly up from the kitchen where she’d been preparing breakfast to rush up the stairs to her room. Within she found a mess as her makeup cabinet had fallen from its place on the mirror stand, spilling its contents all over the floor. Sweetie Belle was laying there, holding her foot, which the cabinet had struck, and was bawling her eyes out. That crying rapidly turned to a look of shock and embarrassed fear the little girl realized her big sister had caught her rummaging about in Rarity’s room, likely to pilfer some makeup.

“Sweetie Belle! My word, are you alright?” Rarity said, her first priority was her sister’s well being before she concerned herself with Sweetie Belle sneaking into her room, again. She immediately went to the child’s side and knelt down, “Let me see it.”

“I-I’m sorry Rarity,” Sweetie Belle said between the sobs only a child can make when they hurt themselves, think they’re in big trouble, or a combination of both.

“Hmm, well nothing appears to be broken,” Rarity said, giving her sister’s foot a careful examination once she got the sock off, “A little bruise, which should serve as a reminder to come ask if there’s something you’d like from my room next time. What were you rummaging around in here for, anyway?”

Getting herself under control and apparently realizing her sister wasn’t about to chew her out, Sweetie Belle pointed at a black tube of lipstick on the floor amid the other things that had spilled out, “I liked the black stuff you used for Halloween. I wanted some. You looked really cool as a vampire.”

Rarity couldn’t help but laugh. She’d forgotten she’d even kept the makeup leftover from last Halloween. And of course her sister had the kind of fixation kids got on the little things. Being careful to give Sweetie Belle’s foot one last check before picking the girl up, Rarity said, “Well if you behave yourself until mother and father return from their trip, I’ll let you have it, does that sound good? Now come on downstairs, I nearly had breakfast ready.”

Her sobs tapering out to a relaxed sigh, Sweetie Belle hugged Rarity around the neck as the two headed downstairs, “You’re the best sister. You always look after me, even when mom and dad are gone.”

Not quite stopping a pleased smile, Rarity patted her sister’s head, “Of course. I’ll always be here to keep an eye on you.”

“Promise?” the child asked with the simple, pure trust held by the very young.

“Promise,” Rarity replied, never even hesitating to consider whether or not that word would ever be put to the test. It was just her nature to hold nothing back when giving to those she cared about. Whether it was looking after her little sister while her parents were away, or keeping the house in order even when her parents were around, or putting everything she had into one of her art projects, it was all part of the same desire; to give.

Maybe that was why, that day, things had happened the way they had.

Maybe that was why, when the doorbell had rang, just after Sweetie Belle had sat down to eat a stack of pancakes at the table, that Rarity had gone to answer it without thinking to check the peephole. She couldn’t have imagined the man outside with the knife. A robber, there to ransack a home he’d been casing for weeks and knew the parents were out.

Rarity remembered very little of what followed with any clarity, only instants of sensory information. The gruff feeling of the man’s hand covering her mouth. Sweetie Belle’s shrill scream. The cold shine of the knife reflecting the ceiling light. And the fear. Paralyzing, numbing fear. Then a flash of overwhelming anger when the man made to grab at Sweetie Belle.

There wasn’t any decision or thought to what came next. Rarity just found herself acting. Biting the man’s hand through a dirty glove. Clawing at his face, drawing scratches of blood that coated his wild eyes. The flash of the knife as it came at her. A desperate grasp with both her hands on his wrist, struggling to keep the blade away from her or Sweetie Belle. Then the fall, tripping over something that had been knocked over in the kitchen. After that... an all encompassing silence that somehow deafened out Sweetie Belle screaming and Rarity’s own labored breathing as she saw the knife in the man’s stomach, blood flowing onto their parent’s white and black checkered kitchen floor. Red over linoleum.

A neighbor, thankfully, had heard the screams and called the police. An ambulance had arrived not long after. Miraculously the robber hadn’t died, which certainly made the following legalities easier. Justified self defense. Her parents had been so... shaken, by it all, even more than Rarity had. It was strange, in the following months she herself just ended up putting the whole incident behind her. Not forgotten, but simply filed away, clinically. While everyone around her had talked about how traumatizing the whole thing must have been, and she’d spent some mandatory time with a therapist, Rarity had never felt... disturbed by the event. Her parents hadn’t taken another vacation away from home again.

Rarity wasn’t even sure if Sweetie Belle remembered the “incident”. They never talked about it. Not that Rarity had wanted to. She still couldn’t understand her own feelings on the matter. And for the longest time she simply didn’t think about it. Until...

----------

Her body was so cold she felt as if she’d been submerged in a river during the depths of winter. Rarity could barely move her arm, and even when she did it didn’t fully obey her will, raising only slightly from the pool of blood surrounding her rapidly dying body.

She should have already been dead, with the wound that Sapphire Shores had dealt her through the back, but the blood in Rarity’s body was part of her Fullbring, and continued to stubbornly flow through her damaged heart, keeping her conscious well beyond the point a normal human would have perished.

But even so, she was weakening by the second. In front of her she saw Hoity Toity’s feet, the crisp dark leather of his military style boots touching the edge of the blood seeping from her.

“Hurry up and get it done with,” said Sapphire’s voice, somehow sounding distant.

“I shall, but you’d best continue on towards our target,” Hoity Toity replied, “I can handle matters here.”

“...Very well, but do not tarry. This isn’t a game we play, and there is no room for any further mistakes.”

Rarity heard a noise like a burst of wind, and Sapphire’s Shore’s presence was gone, for what little of it there’d been in the first place. Whatever method the woman was using, it masked her spiritual pressure exceedingly well. Rarity tried to raise her head, but barely managed to turn it slightly to the left, so her eye could look up at Hoity Toity’s blurred form above her. Her vision was fading quickly, making it hard to discern her surroundings, but she could still see him raise his unusually shaped bow towards her and heard him speak.

“I truly am regretful it has come to this,” he said, “You are a rare beauty. Truly aptly named. Talent like yours is far from common, and you would have gone far, had you simply known... different friends. Alas, no point in shedding tears over ‘what might have beens’. I do hope you take some comfort in knowing your death will not be meaningless. I shall ensure your family is well taken care of, and I do not mean that with any innuendo. I’ll see to their financial benefit. It wont’ replace you, but take it as the only consolation I can offer you.”

She saw the brilliant glow of a reishi arrow being drawn by his bow. He was about to finish her off, not that simply waiting another minute or two wouldn’t have the same result, she mused coldly to herself. She tried to summon a weapon from the blood around her, or control any aspect of her Fullbring, but her body was so weak that her spirit energy had also weakened. For a living body like a human’s, spirit energy was tied to physical health, so being at the brink of death dimmed it the same way a candle flame might gutter out without oxygen to keep it bright.

Yet the thought of dying didn’t simply frighten Rarity. Oh, it still did, but there was a rising tide of other emotions that rose within her as she stared down the arrow that was about to end her life.

There was regret for the knowledge of what her being gone would do to her parents and little sister. It wasn’t hard to imagine their anguish. Her parents wouldn’t even know why she was dead, unless Sunset or someone else told them the truth, and how would they even process such a thing? And what of Sweetie Belle? The poor dear had just discovered power of her own, and was going to get involved in this whole mess as well.

How long before Sweetie Belle met the same fate?

That was why the regret came packaged with a combination of self-disgust and bitter anger. Because some part of her had been holding back this entire time. Or rather, ever since her battle with Captain Blueblood. She hated to admit it, but after that fight, when she realized how capable she would have been of killing Blueblood if it had come to that, Rarity had been hampering herself in battle. Because she was frightened of herself. Scared of what she might start doing, to protect her friends and family, and even more scared of how they might look at her if she went that far in keeping them safe.

Would they judge her, if she killed for them? Would she judge herself, every time she looked in a mirror? For the longest time she’d put aside the incident with the robber that had invaded her home. She hadn’t wanted to hurt anyone back then, either, but she’d acted on instinct. An instinct she’d been holding back for the majority of her life.

But what good had holding back done her? If she’d been utterly focused on the goal of killing Hoity Toity, she could have won before Sapphire Shores had shown up. There was nothing wrong with avoiding taking lives. She believed that, and knew her friends believed it too. Yet she was different from them in regards to where the line was drawn, and if push came to shove, as it was right now, then Rarity was willing to stain herself with blood if that’s what was required.

Instead of running away from that ugly truth, she wanted to embrace it, face forward, without regret. If she could do that, then she could make the choice actively, within the moment. She wouldn’t be chained to instinct or fear.

From now on, if she took a life, it’d only be because she chose to, and accept all of the consequences that choice entailed.

Upon that realization, she felt something inside her stir. At first a warmth that beat back the numbing cold, but it soon grew into a dangerous, sweltering heat that filled her body and felt as if it was fit to peel away her skin and explode right out of her. Which was rather uncomfortably close to the truth as she realized what was happening, her spiritual energy spilling from her as the final emotional component of her Fullbring fell into place.

Hoity Toity glanced over the edge of his sunglasses as Rarity’s body, graying to an ashen color from loss of blood, suddenly glowed with a scintillating crimson light. The Sternritter felt the abrupt, volcanic surge of reiatsu from the girl, and on instinct he jumped back, sensing the danger. This reiatsu was not under control, whatever it was, and his jumping back was the only thing that kept him clear as Rarity’s spirit energy literally exploded out of her body.

Painfully bright and ruby colored energy decimated everything around Rarity in a dome-like storm that soon shot upwards into the sky. Hoity Toity composed himself from his shock and went up as well, leaping skyward with Hirenkyaku.

The swirling vortex of red energy began to pulse like a heartbeat, then flowed outward to either side and started to take a solid shape. Hoity Toity looked on in cautious wonderment as what formed in the air was a massive and opulent gate. It was reminiscent of the gateway into a fabulous palace, with the doors intricately carved with twin giant roses, and a wealth of ivy and thorn vines wrapped around the sides. The gate was suspended in the air as if on solid ground, wide enough that an army could march through it and tall enough a giant could pass under its top.

“Perhaps I should have had Sapphire Shores stick around,” Hoity said to himself, half jokingly. He wasn’t quite worried yet, but he wasn’t certain what to expect from this either. The information the Quincy had available on Fullbring was enough to tell him that Rarity had, at the very brink of death, just completed hers. How she’d survived the explosion of Hollow reiatsu that stemmed from such a completion without someone else present to control it he did not know, but that was hardly his main concern right now.

He was confused by the reiatsu he was feeling from the towering red gate, even as he was taken by it’s phantasmal splendor, as if he was gazing at an artifact that did not belong in this world. The spiritual pressure had a fragmented quality to it, as if there was more than one source present. Before Hoity Toity could try to piece together what that might mean, a line of shining rose light spilled forth down the center of the gate as it’s twin doors began to swing open. Rays of otherworldly light shone out in all hues of red, some so pale as to appear almost like white rays. Fluttering from within the sheet of crimson color within the gate came what at first looked like flecks of blood, but Hoity soon realized were rose petals.

Then the plane of pure red within the gate rippled like water, and Rarity emerged from within.

Hoity Toity found himself momentarily at a loss for words, for the person he was gazing upon was undoubtedly the girl known as Rarity, the term ‘girl’ failed to encapsulate what was before him. All of the ‘components’ of Rarity could be seen, if every portion had been remodeled to remove youthful awkwardness and replaced it with the maturity of not merely a woman in her prime, but with the very essence of noble purpose and mature authority.

Of course that aside, what most starkly stood out was the color white. Her hair had turned a silvery white hue that caught the sun like a shard of diamond. She was clad in a similar battle dress as before, yet with its cloth a snow white color that glittered as if made from fine threads of crystal rather than silk. Armored portions fit perfectly to her shoulders, arms, legs, and chest, shining as if forged from a precise melding of diamond and silver. Her eyes remained the same deep hue of blue, but now gazed out with the assurance of someone with full confidence in their path and purpose. Only a single splash of red remained on Rarity’s ensemble, and that was the red rose bracelet upon her left forearm.

That aside, Hoity Toity took particular notice of the fact that the wound that had been in her chest was gone, which caused him to frown in puzzlement. Even if this was Rarity’s completed Fullbring, it shouldn’t have erased her wound. In fact, without another to contain the explosion of uncontrolled reiatsu, the girl should have been even more damaged, not left with her porcelain skin without so much as a blemish upon it.

He opened his mouth to speak, but Rarity held up her hand, holding up one finger in a silencing gesture, and strangely enough, Hoity found himself going silent. Not out of any mysterious new power Rarity had, but rather simply because she exuded such presence that he found himself obeying without thinking. Which was grating for the Sternritter, for only His Majesty had ever commanded that level of charisma.

“Before you speak,” Rarity said, in a voice that was still her own, yet somehow filled with a crystal clarity of a newfound maturity, “Know that I’m only going to grant you one chance to save your own life and remove yourself from my presence. I will not tolerate threats to that which I hold precious, so I will be going now to stop Sapphire Shores. Remain in my path, and you will be cut down, good sir.”

Hoity Toity locked his gaze with hers. Whatever new powers Rarity had managed to obtain, however she was standing before him unharmed when moment’s earlier she was at death’s door, regardless of her apparently overfull well of confidence, he was not about to cower before her. He was still a Sternritter of His Majesty, even if at the moment he was forced to work in a clandestine manner to protect His Majesty's best interests even without him knowing it.

He took aim with his bow, adjusting his sunglasses upon his nose, “My apologies, Miss Rarity, but I must decline your mercy. Just as you have what you must protect, so too do I. While I congratulate you on obtaining the full maturity of your powers, and am in awe of the beauty I see before me, do not think you can defeat a Sternritter of the Quincy by your lonesome. As queenly as you appear, you cannot possess such hubris.”

In response Rarity swept her right arm out to her side, and from her palm a stream of blood ran, contrasting sharply with the white of her skin, dress, and armor. A blade formed there, a long and wide rapier with a blood red core, but a shining white edge, it’s length covered in intricate ivy inlays that then entwined to form a rose pattern at the hilt. Rarity then grasped this finely crafted construct in her hand, and pointed it towards Hoity Toity.

“What you say may be true, if my intention was to fight alone,” she said, and Hoity tilted his head slightly upon hearing a rhythmic, pounding sound. At first he wasn’t sure what it was, but as it grew louder he realized it was the sound of many heavy feet on the march. Rarity’s visage grew a grim smile, “But what is a queen without her army?”

The field of red from within the gate rippled once more, and from it’s ruby depths marched forth a procession of knights. Rank upon rank of knightly armor, redder than fresh blood, stepped in unison out from the gates. Their armor was each fashioned like a work of art, showing prominent carvings of mythic animals upon chest and shoulders, or the ever present rose motif. Each suit of armor was fully helmeted, and Hoity Toity suspected nothing of flesh existed within these suits, but rather every single knight was an intricately forged construct of Rarity’s own making. The knight’s bore a vast array of weapons, ranging from a front rank of glittering ruby lances, to lines of swords and shields, axes, halberds, flails, and even a back line of bowmen with tall, radiant crystal bows. And it wasn’t over. As the first line of what Hoity suspected was at least a hundred knights had emerged, a second squadron marched forth. These knights rolled out an array of ornate and massive cannons, twenty in total, crewed by four knights apiece. Yet still it wasn’t done. Finally came a squadron of mounted knights, riding atop winged horses, pegasi, whose armor, wings, and very bodies were forged from crimson crystal. These mounted knights carried unique weapons, more specialized swords such as claymores, sabers, or rapiers. One had a strange double bladed axe, while another carried a scythe, while another bore a two handed war hammer. Hoity Toity sensed that while the regular knights were more disposable combat constructs, this squadron of twenty had more power invested in them.

The mounted knights flew to the front of the small but impressive army, and one of them, a knight carrying twin longswords over his shoulders, brought forth a riderless pegasus construct whose armor was more ornate than the rest and who was as starkly white as it’s intended rider was. Rarity swung up and mounted the horse as if she’d done it her whole lifetime, now truly at the head of her army.

Hoity Toity could only gaze upon it with a brief sense of envy. The army was as much an expression of Rarity’s soul as it was a weapon, elegant yet lethal. He admired what he saw before him, even as he resolved himself to destroy it, and the girl who stood to disrupt him and his co-conspirators plans to protect His Majesty from the poisonous Twilight Sparkle.

“It seems I misspoke,” he admitted, “It is not hubris that drives you. Accept my apologies, my lady. I acknowledge I may well lose my life to you, but be that as it may, stand here in your path I must, for the sake of His Majesty.”

He pulled off the glove of his left hand, exposing the black Sanrei Glove beneath and its gleaming Quincy cross, “And so, I will do all in my power to end your life first.”

And in a flash of white light that rivaled Rarity’s new raiment, Hoity Toity brought forth his Vollstandig. The shining pillar reached into the sky and blossomed with the five pointed Quincy cross. Rarity watched it astride her pegasus construct, flanked by her knights on either side. She did not need to gesture to give them commands. They obeyed her will and thoughts with instant precision.

While Hoity Toity was transforming, Rarity’s army spread out into a wide, fan shaped formation, with the cannoneers and bow knights rising upward to form a tight semi-circle. Much like the weapons Rarity could create before, and still could of course, her knights had a full three dimensional range of movement and could fly in any direction with ease. Each one was a conduit for her spirit energy, amplified to a much greater degree than what she’d been capable of before with the whirlpool.

Before the pillar Hoity Toity had created with activating Volstandig had even faded, Rarity swept her sword forward and although verbal commands weren’t a necessity, she felt a distinct sense of satisfaction in saying, “Court of the Generous Rose; attack!”

The beginning of the battle was heralded by a thunderous expulsion of cannonfire. Each crystal cannon could form ammunition internally, powered by the four knights that carried the weapons aloft. At Rarity’s mental direction the cannons were firing large spikes of piercing crystal that were charged with spirit energy to explode upon contact. Hoity Toity’s position was covered in a series of such detonations, shrapnel of crimson crystal flying from fiery blasts of blood red energy. This was followed by a barrage of arrows from the bow knights, who could form their arrows from their own bodies with such ease that they could fire without pause.

Rarity could feel a certain eagerness from her knights. Though constructs just like the weapons she had made in the past, the completion of her Fullbring brought a certain force of her own personality into the constructs. These knights would fight as she directed without question, but if cut off from her somehow, or forced to act without her active knowledge, they were fully capable of independent action as long as they didn’t stray more than a kilometer from her position. As the cannons and archers went to work she could tell the rest of the knights, especially her squadron of twenty mounted knights, wanted to charge in, but they held back at her mental command.

This was just the beginning, and she was testing Hoity Toity. She was not going to do this foolishly. As powerful as she felt right now, underestimating her opponent would be a mistake.

Her caution proved warranted as the arrows raining down around Hoity Toity’s position all abruptly halted along the same vertical plane of air, as if the air had become harder than steel.

“It’s rare I get arrows fired at me,” Hoity Toity said as he stepped forth from the vanishing pillar of light, “Your knights have immaculate aim, Queen of Roses. I take it ‘Court of the Generous Rose’ is the true name of your Fullbring? I apologize that I have no name to give you for my Vollstandig. Only His Majesty’s elites have Vollstandig that are named.”

His body was still the same shape, but was contorted in such a manner that it didn’t appear that any of his bones or joints were locked together properly, with his arms and legs twisted and bent at odd poses that should have been impossible. His chest was now bare save for a set of glowing bands of light that encircled his shoulders and chest down to his midriff. Long gloves of the same white light went up to his elbows, with miniature halos hovering over the backs of his hands. His legs were wrapped in similar bands of light as his chest, albeity with an actual long, cloth covering for his waist that hung nearly down to his feet. Long, pointed boots covered his feet, with similar small halos at the soles of the boots as the ones hovering over his hands. Hoity Toity’s face was graced with a set of sunglasses that had wide, chrome lenses, and a frame of glowing white light. The halo above his head consisted of three layered rings, each at a slightly different tilt from the other. Finally, four “wings” appeared from his back, shaped like thin, almost glass-like transparent planes that were triangular in shape.

“That said, I do hope to provide a worthy challenge to you.”

He raised both hands, and the halos hovering there began to visibly spin until they grew to several feet in circumference, tilting over to surround his wrists. In a swirling pattern a flurry of reishi arrows fired out of both rings, darting out in numerous different directions. The bolts passed through holes that opened up in the solid barrier of air he’d created, coming down upon Rarity’s knights in a glittering rain.

In response Rarity wasted not even a split second, the knights in the front ranks instantly raising their left arms. Just as her whirlpool could create weapons, so too could her knights, and the front line of knights formed tower shields of ornate crimson crystal to absorb the first barrage from Hoity Toity, reishi arrows deflecting off of spiritually hardened crystal.

Pointing her sword forward, Rarity signaled her constructs to charge, the pegasus beneath her spreading its wings as she and her squadron of mounted knights flew forward. The speed at which she and the other mounted knights could move took even Rarity a little off guard as they soared up at an angle to get over the barrier of hardened air Hoity Toity had created. At the same time she mentally ordered the other knights to spread out and start fanning around the barrier, keeping their shields up as Hoity Toity continued to blast arrows towards them.

The cannons and bow knights continued to fire, hammering the plane of hardened air. Rarity wanted to test just how strong Hoity Toity’s Xenomorph Schrift could make a substance.

The wind tearing past her, Rarity got above the lip of the barrier, but just as she and her knights soared over it, Hoity Toity turned his arms up towards them and his wings began to vibrate. The air filled with a strange distortion, and Rarity and her knights instantly split into two groups, flying so fast out of the path that they all but visibly vanished. Hoity Toity seemed to have no trouble following their movements, however, and the distortion in the air chased the group Rarity was in.

The distortion was coming at them too quickly for even their enhanced speed to escape from, so rarity sent five of the mounted knights back to block it. A substance akin to blood, the same as her old whirlpool, flowed from between the joints of the knights’ armor and shot in front of them, forming into a set of giant, round shields. The distortion struck the shields first, and Rarity paid careful attention as the shields were cracked, then shattered. Immediately she directed the five knights she’d sent back to split up, each flying in a different direction, and they did so just in time to avoid the distortion as it kept on coming.

Rarity wasn’t completely certain what Hoity Toity’s ability was, but everything she’d seen so far suggested he was altering the physical properties of matter around him or within himself. The hardened barrier of ari was one example, and this distortion was another, wherein the air had become sharpened like a field of blades turning the air itself into essentially a mobile blender.

She hadn’t lost her concentration on the wider battle, even as this blender of air started to catch up with her. She directed more and more of her mounted knights to peel off from her, seemingly sending them away at random, but instead she was just preparing them to attack Hoity Toity directly while he seemed focused on chasing her with the distortion. Meanwhile the rest of her regular knights had started to flank the barrier that the cannons and bow knights were still hammering. Hoity wasn't ignoring them, however, and seemed more than capable of firing more streams of arrows from the halos around his wrists at Rarity’s advancing forces. Rarity noted two things about that. One, he wasn’t expanding the barrier of hardened air at all, keeping it between him and the cannons even as Rarity had the cannons shift positions. Second, while some of her regular knights were being struck by his reishi arrows, the front rank of shields were holding firm.

The damage he was inflicting seemed minimal, but just as the knights were preparing to charge in from the sides, she understood Hoity Toity had let them get that close. The barrages of arrows he’d fired had in many cases remained stuck in the shields or armor of the knights struck, and now Rarity sensed his reiatsu expand through those arrows. In a flash dozens of knights were transmuted from crystal into statues of stone, Rarity’s reiatsu inside them abruptly cut off.

She narrowed her eyes, but didn’t lose an instant of focus. She still had the distortion of cutting air chasing her, after all. Swinging her pegasus around, she stood on the back of the construct as it charged back at the distortion, an action that seemed to take Hoity Toity off guard as she sensed a moment of hesitation in his spiritual pressure. She smiled thinly as she flipped off the back of her pegasus construct, and with her power caused the construct to change shape into a multi-layered set of diamond shaped shields. As the distortion struck them, she recalled how she’d seen Sunset Shimmer use her own reiatsu to push back against Hoity Toity’s when he’d hit her own shield with an arrow in the previous encounter. Rarity did the same now, focusing her reiatsu through her construct to distort the flows of Hoity Toity’s own spirit energy.

The distortion of air still cracked her first shield, but it couldn’t alter course or break through, and unraveled like tattered threads a moment later.

Now, Rarity dove down at Hoity Toity, and the other mounted knight’s she’d sent to scatter before, she now called back to charge the Sternritter from multiple directions.

He didn’t shift the barrier of hardened air to defend himself or try to block any part of their charge, but instead she saw him smile as he moved his body in what could only be described as a contortionist’s dance. His arms and legs bent and moved at strange angles as he suddenly leaped to meet the charge of Rarity and her mounted knights. The halos at the bottom of his feet also grew in size to match the ones around his wrists, and within the next moment he was sending a dizzying array of “arrows” at them. These arrows weren’t regularly shaped, but rather they looked more like spinning crosses, and as they came at her and her knights she saw the small air distortions stemming from them.

With reflexes far in excess of what she was used to using, but somehow now felt natural, Rarity wove between the arrows, and her knights did likewise. Mostly. One or two of them were caught by the distorted arrows, and she saw each arrow burst and change into piercing fields of sharpened air. While several of her knights were thus impaled, it didn’t stop her or the rest of them from reaching Hoity Toity. At that point a flashing brawl ensued as Rarity struck first, her crystalline rapier thrusting forward in a ruby blur. Other knights made flew-by attacks, the wings of their pegasi constructs forming into blades that complimented the assorted weapons they struck with.

Hoity Toity bent his body in ways that defied biology, arms and legs not only twisting at impossible angles, but his torso contorting and shifting like a snake made out of putty. The halos around his wrists and feet proved adept physical weapons as he parried and blocked the storm of slashes surrounding him, the edge of the halos vibrating at high speed and acting as cutting tools. Rarity felt her arm jostle at several parries, but she was stronger now and pressed in harder with her own attack, her now white hair falling like a sheet of snow around her face as she created a second crystal rapier and drove in hard to break Hoity Toity’s unusual defenses.

Despite his extremely effective guard, the simple fact that he was this outnumbered, with not only Rarity but a cluster of knights zipping back and forth at high speed to attack him with dozens of different weapons with varied reach and weights put even his impressive parrying ability to the test. Even contorting every which way possible, his halos couldn’t stop every attack, and he took several sharp cuts across his body that started to spatter Rarity’s white armor and dress red.

However she also saw that as fast as she and her knights could wound him, the wounds would start to close back up. Apparently his power allowed him to alter his own body not just to change appearance, but to heal wounds rapidly. In Rarity’s mind this changed little. It just confirmed to her that if she wanted to end this, she’d need a killing blow that couldn’t be so swiftly healed.

And Hoity Toity wasn’t giving her enough of an opening to do that, especially when he started to combine his parries with lashing distortions of air that alternated between more cutting blenders, and sudden hardening like the one that had caught her before. Several of her knights were either stuck fast in fields of hardened air, or had chunks of them torn away by the merciless distortions, yet Rarity wasn’t concerned. Hoity Toity wasn’t the only one who could easily recover. As her constructs were damaged, Rarity only needed a fraction of focus to repair them, oozing fresh blood-like substance to fill in broken gaps. More so, the knight’s she’d lost to the stone transmutation were being replaced as more marched forth from her still open gateway. While she could only field a certain maximum number of knights at any given time, as long as her reiatsu held out she could keep replacing them.

Hoity Toity must have realized that, because he gave her gate a sharp look, and with a gesture the huge, hardened barrier of air began to move towards her gate. He must have been intending to block the gate with the hardened air. Clever, but Rarity knew it was futile. The moment the air barrier got close to her gate, she shut the gateway, and the entire thing turned into a gigantic whirlpool of blood, much larger than her previous one, and it swirled around the barrier with liquid grace and reshaped back into a gate.

An annoyed grunt came from Hoity Toity then, “I really should have guessed.”

“Yes, but a good try,” she replied, and struck fast with a blinding crimson streak of stabs at his throat. He caught them with one of his wrist halos, but Rarity had more surprises for him. Blood, combined with a gleam of liquid white energy, flowed from the rose on Rarity’s left wrist, and an encircling field of sparkling crystal daggers surrounded Hoity Toity and stabbed inward.

He just barely managed to form a shell of hard air around himself to block the daggers, and Rarity noted that his previous barrier had vanished. He must have needed to drop that one to create this second one.

“Ah, so you can still make weapons. I thought your new power focused on these knights of yours?”

“I don’t recall saying the knights replaced my weapons,” Rarity said, taking her two rapiers and sweeping them in front of her as she formed a fan of identical rapiers that floated in front of her, “A queen needs both her army, and her armory. One does not replace the other. They compliment each other.”

The rapiers flew in, all stabbing at a single point, but Hoity Totiy expanded the shell of hardened air around him, and forced Rarity back to avoid being caught in the hardening field. She had to pull her mounted knights back as well, losing another to the shell of hard air that caught it like a fly in a web.

“It’s an incredible power,” Hoity Toity said, “One worthy of any Sternritter. Truly, you are making me struggle just to defend myself against your fabulous army, Queen of Roses. I will need to make full use of my Xenomorph to turn the tide.”

Rarity wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but she sensed a shift in his reiatsu upon those words, along with a series of popping and squelching noises that seemed to emanate from within his body. Rarity pulled her mounted knights back and prepared her ranks of regular knights to surround and charge in. Not wanting to take the pressure off, despite the shell of hardened air around him, she had her cannoneers, newly positioned both above and below Hoity Toity, and open fire.

Explosions of crystal shrapnel smashed into the shell of hard air, and perhaps because it was focused on a smaller area, allowing the cannons to also focus their shots onto a single point, Rarity thought she saw the exploding crystals penetrate. However, rather than pulp Hoity Toity, the crystals seemed to splash through him. Rarity blinked, not sure what to make of what she was seeing.

Hoity Toity’s body suddenly moved, but now it spread out in a bizarre lashing of liquid tendrils, the four halos now carving into her ranks of knights like lashes from a hose. She could still see Hoity Toity’s wings, and head, floating around a central area of flesh colored liquid, but it was as if all of Hoity Toity’s body had been transmuted into a liquid state. Even as more cannons fired and blasted holes past the shell of hard air, the shards only splashed through Hoity Toity’s water-like body. His head, dripping like a candle of melting wax, showed her a curious look behind it’s chrome sunglasses.

“The Xenomorph changes the very nature of physical matter,” Hoity Toity said in a gurgling voice, “Weapons can only harm a person because their organs rely on staying intact, but liquid has no such need. So tell me, how do you intend to kill me if you can’t ‘cut’ me?”

Rarity could only respond with a dangerous light in her eyes and a smile sharper than any sword, “I don’t know, but an artist loves a challenge.”

----------

A car sped along the highway leading north and then east out of Canterlot City. The simple blue sedan could only go so fast, but the girl behind the driver’s seat was still ignoring all speed and traffic laws as she jammed the gas down as hard as she could and kept the car roaring towards her destination.

Fenice barely knew how to drive. Snippets of memory from a life before Hueco Mundo filtered into her head, of a kind and patient mother who’d just started teaching a girl not named Fenice how to drive a car for the first time. What little memory there was of that time was enough, it seemed, for her to at least avoid crashing the vehicle she’d “borrowed” from a motorist on the outskirts of town.

Even going well past the speed limit, it wasn’t fast enough for her tastes. Her spiritual senses weren’t on Roka’s level at all, but she could still feel the distant flashes and bursts of reiatsu from the still too far away Camp Everfree.

“C’mon...” she pleaded with the car, “Just get me there in time to do something.”

Or make it so it turned out she didn’t have to help at all. A part of her realized it was crazy to be rushing headlong into a fight even her father was a tad worried about. If nothing else, whatever happened, she felt she had to be there for it. Her Fullbring was back in it’s medallion shape, but it was hot as lava around her neck, glowing orange.

Her borrowed car screamed by a road sign that read; Camp Everfree 11 Miles.

----------

Amid the numerous battles that were rocking the once quiet forest vistas and mountains surrounding the Everfree Forest, none of them compared to the unleashed physical catastrophe that was Captain Sweet Cider and the Fourth Espada Lament clashing blades.

Every collision of Lament’s long, wickedly sharp nodachi, Lamentar, against the brutally blunt and gigantic blade of Kizuna produced shockwaves and winds more powerful than all but the strongest Earth born storms. The speed at which both opponents were now moving, slashing and stabbing in a eye defying tempest, made it so that a localized hurricane was forming above them simply from the frequency and intensity of their strikes. Dark clouds, thick and gray, loomed above and discharged forks of yellow and purple lightning from the collective clash of spiritual energies. Lesser individuals wouldn’t have even been able to approach this battlefield as it strayed to the north.

Lament and Sweet Cider both had their focus solely upon one another, barely noticing the terrain around them, or the fact that their constant movements were gradually making the epicenter of the fight drift away from Camp Everfree. A fortunate thing, in some respects, given that the shockwaves of their battle had started to generate localized earthquakes.

Sweet Cider had begun naturally holding back, as in truth she was largely unused to utilizing her full power in a fight. Usually most opponents couldn’t handle her long enough to even make releasing Shikai worth the expenditure of spiritual energy. Her husband, or rather what he’d become, was pushing her more than any other real opponent had. Sure, she’d sparred with her fellow Captains, and knew several of them were stronger than her, top among that number being the Captain Commander himself. She also wasn’t so full of herself she thought that she’d match the strongest Espadas such as Chrysalis or Tirek.

Yet somehow she was still surprised at just how much trouble “Lament” was giving her. With every swing of his blade matching hers, she was learning about him, however. He wasn’t physically stronger than her, but he was faster. Their reiatsu was about on par, even considering he hadn’t released his own Zanpaktou yet. He’d resisted her first devastating blast from Kizuna, but that was just the base blast. She had stronger ones she could unleash, but hadn’t because she knew her daughters, their friends, fellow students, and fellow Soul Reapers were close by. She wasn’t about to start dropping the equivalent of spiritual nukes while they were close by. Captain Celestia had taught Sweet Cider ages ago about the importance of restraint.

But restraint was getting harder by the second. It wasn’t simply that her injuries were mounting. Every flashing storm of attacks that passed between her and Lament left at least one or two fresh marks on her body. No, it was her anger that was mounting more than her wounds. Even if a part of her knew this rage wasn’t entirely natural, and resulting from her bizarrely fused Fullbring and Zanpaktou, she couldn’t stop the rising pulse of red heat in her blood and the pained, berserk rage thumping in her heart.

The very notion that the man she loved had been twisted into this unnatural husk of his former self made Sweet Cider want to give into madness herself. It made her want to rip apart the very gates of Heaven and demand to know why this had happened to her family! It was as if all the collective anguish of being separated from those she loved all this time, all the bitter anger over having to leave her children behind, and be forced apart from her husband and partner had now become a firestorm inside her.

She was going to end this, today, one way or another.

Her blade swiped forward with air shredding force, a long side swing that rippled with the smashing of the sound barrier.

Lament moved with the flickering speed of a shadow in the corner of one’s eye, turning into her strike and ducking as he swept his pale blade up in a parry that forced Kizuna up as well. Sweet Cider took the momentum of the parry and used it to flip backwards, kicking off the air with her feet and slamming Kiznuna around and down in an overhand chop. Her husband slammed his own feet onto the air and launched himself backwards, Kizuna’s edge tearing a slight chunk from his arm, leaving a black, open wound that didn’t bleed. Sweet Cider’s eyes seared with further outrage.

She’d injured Lament a number of times by now as well, yet the wounds did nothing. They didn’t bleed, didn’t even seem to cause him discomfort. Even regular Hollows still bled and felt pain, but his expression had become as still and lifeless as a statue as he fought her. There may have been a spark of the confused battle he was having with his own subconscious, but in the midst of their fight he seemed to have suppressed it.

She wasn’t sure what was worse, the idea that he might remember her, but was trying to make himself forget, or that he didn’t know her at all. Some back corner of her mind wanted to know what was making him want to deny knowing her so damned much, but her own anger was making it hard to think clearly. She wanted to purify her husband’s soul, so he’d at least have peace.

Her sword thrust out like the battering ram of a great warship. She nearly caught him, but he sprung up and managed to land gracefully on the flat of her blade. His own nodachi scraped along Kizuna as he rushed forward, slicing his Zanpaktou towards her neck. With a feral growl she let go of Kizuna with her right hand and actually grabbed Lamentar, halting it dead in place.

Before Lament could react, she yanked down, ignoring the pain in her palm as his insanely sharp blade cut into her reiatsu hardened skin. At the same time she surged up and smashed her forehead into Lament’s chin, further cracking bone and sending him reeling. As he spun backwards she held Kizuna up like a baseball bat, and a surge of raw, gold energy flowed up and down it’s rugged length.

At a casual glance, it looked like they’d drifted far enough away. Time to find out just how durable her husband really was. Bringing her sword down, Sweet Cider unleashed a cacophonous blast of golden force, twice as strong as the one she’d released before. A backblast of wind dispersed nearby clouds as the giant wave of power instantly crossed the sky and slammed into Lament with a detonation that caused nearby mountains to have avalanches from the residual echoes of sound.

Sweet Cider saw Lament go flying back from the explosion of force, his body trailing smoke, but still intact. His upper clothing had been torn away, and a abrasive burn mark now ran up and down his chest, while his right shoulder looked dislocated. More damage than before, but damned if her man couldn’t take a hit. A spark of love and admiration briefly piqued within her swirling thoughts of anger, and Sweet Cider growled at herself.

“Stop gawkin’ at his six-pack and chest ya damn fool girl,” she growled at herself, even as she ruefully admitted that her husband, even as pale skinned Arrancar, was still a fine looking man.

She prepared to unleash another blast, but Lament recovered from his fall and with one hand gripped his dislocated shoulder and forced it back into place. In the same moment he raised the arm attached to the freshly relocated shoulder and pointed a finger, firing a wide black and green Cero. Sweet Cider rushed to the side with a Flash Step, initially evading the beam, but Lament kept the blast going and swept his palm to trail the beam after her. She crossed the path of one of the smaller mountains and the Cero beam ripped a great chunk from it before dissipating, causing the top half of the stone edifice to slump and collapse.

“Watch where yer shootin’ ya damn idgit! This here’s a national park we took our kids too! I ain’t havin’ ya ruin it ‘cause ya can’t aim worth crap!”

Swiftly she skipped across the air in a series of rapid Flash Steps, coming right at him with another powerful overhand swing. Lament braced his arms across his blade and took the blow, and was shoved back by the ramming force of the blow. His feet scraped along the air as Sweet Cider kept pushing him back, their swords letting loose a rain of sparks.

His teeth flashed in a pained scowl, his eyes losing focus for a moment, “Don’t speak of my children. You don’t know them!”

“Fool, I damn well birthed ‘em! Bic Mac’s our eldest! Takes a lot after me in color, but he’s got yer features. A quiet, hard workin’ boy!”

“No,” Lament said in denial, lashing out suddenly with his leg, sending a kick into Sweet Cider’s side that knocked the air out of her. He pushed her sword aside and lashed out with a sudden upper slash that she barely avoided getting gutted by, and instead just took a light cut across the ribs.

“My eldest is Roka,” Lament said, “A finer daughter than I deserve, who’s helped me keep our family together for years.”

Sweet Cider glared at him, but confusion also reigned amid her fiercely angered eyes, “What family!? Hard Nail, you lost yer family when ya were killed, same as I did! But they’re still alive! You tryin’ ta tell me ya up and made another one with all o’ them Hollows?”

“What I am telling you, Soul Reaper, is that whomever you think I am, that man no longer exists!” Lament said, mentally doing all he could to stem the flow of memories trying to leak into his conscious thoughts from the depths of his subconscious. It was akin to batting at a rising tide in the dark. The name ‘Big Mac’ had brought to mind a squalling bundle of red, with big green eyes, that had looked up at him from a swaddle of blankets. No. He tried to shove the image aside. He couldn’t be that person. Not if he was also going to be who he was now.

Sweet Cider looked at him and spat, “Horseapples! I can see it in yer eyes! You remember! Lie all ya want, but that’s just you bein’ a straight coward!”

She came at him again, this time with a whirlwind of attacks that seemed to build in strength and momentum with each swing. While Lament was fast enough to intercept the cascade of strikes, each one was carrying a mountains’ worth of weight behind it and every blow his Zanpaktou took reverberated through his body like a scale-breaking tremor. Deathless or not, he felt his bones start to crack under the strain. However, he also knew the nails in his palms were weakening. Sweet Cider’s previous spiritual blast had caused the seals to loosen even further, and as Lament pressed his reiatsu against them, he felt he could break free of them soon.

Assuming he kept intact long enough to do so. Sweet Cider’s punishing assault ended with her leaping into a sideways spin, her sword turning into a giant propeller, and she hammered it down upon Lament with such force that he was launched straight down like a railroad spike. His impact uprooted trees and sent a ripple through the ground before it broke apart. He lay on his back in the center of a crater as he saw a red streak that Sweet Cider rushing down at him.

He managed to nimbly push himself into a handstand and push off with Sonido, vanishing just in time to avoid getting Sweet Cider’s meteor-dropped knee that ended up making the crater even later upon impact.

Lament appeared behind her, bringing Lamentar down upon her back. She twisted away, turning the deadly blow into a painful cut that still drew a spray of blood. Ignoring the pain she swung the flat of her sword around like a hammer and caught Lament squarely, rocketing him through the ground to smash into the rim of the freshly made crater.

Breathing heavily, Sweet Cider wiped her chin of sweat and took a second to catch her breath, while Lament slowly peeled himself out of the impact indent he’d made in the side of the crater.

“Yer... the most stubborn man I ever met, dead or alive,” Sweet Cider growled, preparing herself to unleash another wave of energy. While she was a bit winded, she was far from tapped out, yet. “I’m tryin’ ta save yer damn soul!”

“No,” he said, voice like cracking ice, “You’re trying to take me away from my family.”

“Right now ya don’t even know who yer family is, ya hard headed dolt! If ya let me purify ya, you’d be n’ Soul Society an’ we could be together. We could watch over our kids ‘till their time comes too, then we’d all be a’ family again. Only thing standin’ in the way o’ that is you makin’ this so damn hard on us both!”

She slammed Kizuna down, emitting a titanic wave of golden energy. Lament raised his left palm up, but then dragged the edge of his sword across that palm. While his body didn’t bleed, that didnt’ mean there wasn’t something akin to blood in there, like fine particles of dark red dust. Enough for his purposes.

“Gran Rey Cero.”

This Cero was more akin to a vortex of shadow, with only erratic bands and arcs of green light swirling around it’s outer edge as it blasted out of his palm in a wide beam to match the giant wave of gold energy flowing towards him. Upon the clash of the two fronts of spirit energy the very air wavered with the distortions in space caused by the colliding of such vast amounts of power. It didn’t take long before the intermingling energies triggered an explosion that forced both opponents to move back as fast as they could to avoid getting slammed by the insane release of energies that shot upwards into the sky and out of the atmosphere. Even citizens in distant Canterlot City felt the vibrations from the blast, and could only wonder at what the cause was, if not for the disastrous condition of their city still distracting them from what was happening many miles away in Camp Everfree.

Sweet Cider, now a few hundred meters up in the air, watched the fading energies of the combined explosion and swore under her breath as she saw that she and her husband had just leveled what was probably entirely too many square miles of pristine forest.

“Gorramit! Can’t let this keep goin’’. We’re doin’ too much collateral damage.”

“That is not my fault, woman,” Lament said, appearing before her at a respectable distance.

“Like hell it ain’t!” she shouted back, “Yer the one who’s too dang strong fer fightin’ in the world o’ the livin’, throwing yer Ceros about all willy nilly!”

“Willy nilly? I’m not the one flinging waves of destruction from her sword while shouting at me about family when I don’t remember who you even are!” he shouted back, raising his voice for the first time since she’d seen him, and almost sounding like his old self, “For land sakes woman, use some common sense before you go throwing accusations at others.”

“Don’t ya go talkin’ ta me ‘bout ‘common sense’, Hard Nail Apple! I ain’t the one tryin’ so hard ta ferget his family that he’d rather go blowin’ up mountains than listen ta his wife fer five minutes when she’s tryin’ ta tell ‘em who he is!”

Lament grunted, holding his forehead as his mind filled with so many echoes of fond, heated arguments with the very woman before him. His jaw ached with the familiar touch, both from her harsh fist and gentle kiss. The memories were there, yet all still fragmented, like he was stuck in an endless hallway of paintings showing another life, but none of them were in order or felt like they were truly showing him.

“Even if...” he gasped, “Even if what you say is true, I am not Hard Nail anymore. I am not the man you shared a human life with. Lament is what I am called, mostly by those who fear me. I am called ‘Father’ to my children. Abandoned Arrancar children I’ve taken into my home and looked after when no others would. I love them more than my own life, this one or any other I’ve led. If I let myself be slain by your blade, I’ll never see them again, and that is a fate worse than any other I can think of. So no matter what, I will not fall to you, Soul Reaper, no matter who you are.”

Upon hearing those words, Sweet Cider was left without words. She’d known, in the pit of her gut, that no matter what she said or did, her husband wouldn’t really ever be as he was. Hollows could be purified by a Zanpaktou, but even then the process tended to leave the purified soul without much memory of who they were. Even Hollows rarely recalled their human lives, so in Hard Nails' case it’d be doubly damaging to his memory. It was clear he did remember pieces of being Hard Nail, but it was all jumbled up inside his head.

On top of that, there was no mistaking the love in his voice when he spoke of his adopted family of Hollow children. Sweet Cider didn’t know what to think of that, but it did sound like something her husband would do. In a way she was glad to know that even as an Arrancar, her man still had a good heart. He’d always been so good with the kids, no wonder a bunch of Arrancar orphans took to him.

But it was clear then and there that she wasn’t going to get through to him. And a part of her wanted to call it quits at that realization. It wasn’t that simple, though. She still had to rescue Captain Luna, and Lament was standing in her way. Applejack and Apple Bloom were still in Camp Everfree, and if Lament was left to his own devices, either of them might get hurt. Also whether she liked it or not, she was still a Soul Reaper. She’d chosen to maintain that duty, and if what stood before her was an Espada, and not her husband, then she still couldn’t put aside her blade.

There was also the slight matter of the fact that she was extremely pissed off that all of this was happening, and the realization that she couldn’t get through to Hard Nail was the last straw on the pressure cooker that was her Zanpaktou.

Before Sweet Cider could fully grasp what was happening and try and stop it, Kizuna erupted with a golden aura shot through with veins of red. She could feel a tide of berserk rage flowing into her from her Zanpaktou as she could all but hear her Zanpaktou spirit in her mind, growling with feral desire to rend and break. She could almost see Kizuna’s spirit in her mind’s eye; a twelve foot tall, crimson skinned female oni with a single, prominent gold horn, clad in bear skins and carrying a huge, spiked club.

”Break him,” Kizuna said, ”If you want him, break him, and drag him home. I will help.

“No,” Sweet Cider said between clenched teeth, much to Lament’s confusion as she held onto her Zanpaktou with both hands and appeared to start trying to stem the flow of reiatsu out of her own blade, “That ain’t how I want this ta go down, Kizuna!”

Within her mind she could see her Zanpaktou spirit stomp a frustrated foot and fill her eyes with blazing golden flames, ”It is! You want him home! With family, where he belongs!”

“I do, more n’ anything’,” Sweet Cider said, striving against a storm of wrathful, near mad anger stemming from her Zanpaktou. Her eyes grew wet with tears she struggled not to show. “But not if I got ta cut the bonds he’s made with another family. Ain’t right.”

Despite her words, she was losing the struggle with her Zanpaktou, although she felt Kizuna’s own confusion. The energy spilling out of the blade wasn’t just her Soul Reaper reiryoku. The power of her Fullbring was there, bubbling up and clashing with her Zanpaktou’s spirit. Within her mind she could see the way Kizuna was being wrapped in barbed chains of stone, although the oni didn’t seem to notice them and rather grew less coherent as the madness of the Fullbring and Zanapktou fused together rapidly grew.

”I will help. I will help. He’s ours. He belongs at home with the children. Take him back. Ours. Ours! OURS!”

This wasn’t natural. Kizuna was always aggressive, but this was a completely different level. Sweet Cider knew that Starswirl had warned her about keeping a close eye on her Zanpaktou until he found a better way to either seal her Fullbring or seperate it from Kizuna, but Sweet Cider had thought she’d have more time. But of course things had gone this way, she realized. Under any normal circumstance she could have controlled this. She hadn’t had any trouble fighting regular Hollows, or facing Adagio and Thorax.

No, it was Hard Nail. All of the emotions surging up from inside her at having to face her husband had pushed her mental state and her Zanpaktou to the limit and now her Fullbring was causing Kizuna to go berserk, and sweep Sweet Cider right up along with it!

“What... is happening?” Lament said, not dropping his guard, but bewildered by what he was seeing and sensing. He could sense an immense surge of spiritual pressure from the Soul Reaper, but he also now sensed Hollow energy from her Zanpaktou. With a startled jolt of connection, he understood it felt very much like Fenice’s power. Even as he watched, a change came over Sweet Cider’s blade. Rock formed along its length, as if growing from the metal, coating it with a new edge.

Gold energy continued to pour out of the Zanpaktou, but now it flowed into Sweet Cider as well, and her skin grew to a darker shade of red as portions of rock started to grow across her skin as well, almost like armor.

“Lament...” she said, “H-Hard Nail, whichever ya wanna be called... ya need ta git outta here. I can’t... stop... Grrrrggggaaaaaah!”

The green of her eyes was overtaken by jets of gold light, flaring out like trails of fire. Abruptly a smooth, curved gold horn sprouted from the center of her forehead, and her already impressive muscles grew wider and more defined. By now Kizuna was entirely coated in a layer of rock, but rock that had sharpened along the edges, ironically turning the weapon into something more resembling an actual sword than it had been before.

When those eyes of flaming gold looked upon him, Lament felt the rare sensation of fear, and had to wonder to himself why, precisely, he kept ending up having to fight women who had berserk transformations? Had he angered some deity of fate in his previous life? Actually from the sound of things he’d been a halfway decent husband and father in his previous life, so that couldn’t be it.

Maybe it was just bad luc-

Before he could completely the thought, Sweet Cider let out a roar that was impressive in its vibrant rage, and shot forward so fast that even Lament’s reflexes barely let him get his sword up in time... and even then her haymaker punch slammed into his sword and pushed it back into his face hard enough to launch him at a downward angle into the ground, tearing through the earth in a long ravine.

----------

It was impossible for Applejack to not see where her mother was fighting, even if the battle itself had moved miles away from Camp Everfree. The air had continued to fill with residual shockwaves of air from the clash taking place, and her mother’s reiatsu was burning so brightly it was like feeling a second sun on Applejack’s skin. She had no idea who her mother was fighting, but they had to be terrifyingly strong to be able to stand up to what Sweet Cider was dishing out so far.

Applejack flew along on jets of energy from her hands and legs, and had watched in startled amazement as she saw waves and beams of energy explode in the air with the kind of force that’d have destroyed whole city blocks. It did occur to the farm girl that flying towards such a fight might not have been the wisest course of action, but it was her mother out there, and Applejack would be damned if she was going to let an Apple, let along her mom, fight a battle like this alone!

So she set her face in a resolved expression against the gale force winds stemming from the battle ahead and poured on the energy into her armored gauntlets and legs, streaking across the sky like a missile.

And so intent on what lay ahead she didn’t spare much of a look for what was below...

----------

Fenice had abandoned the care just short of the turn off that would lead towards Camp Everfree itself. She sensed her father’s reiatsu readily enough, and he’d drifted away from the camp and further north. She couldn’t tell who he was fighting, but they were insanely powerful, given the spiritual pressure Fenice could feel.

Needing a fast means of travel through the dense forest, she resorted to her only option. Summoning her Fullbring, she conjured from the blade a large pool of magma. She was immune to the substance’s scorching heat, and had full control of its motion. So what she did was simple; she leaped atop the surging wave of magma fuled by her huge claymore-like blade, and rode the magma as she directed it forward.

The living lava burned a path straight through the forest, boiling over trees and surging over rocks and hills with equal ease, all with Fenice riding atop it like a surfer catching a wave.

At the rate she was going, she’d catch up with her father in no time. What she’d do when she got there, she wasn’t precisely sure, but that wasn’t a thought that mattered to her right then. Her only concern was helping her family, consequences be damned!

Author's Notes:

For those curious, today's chapter title is a direct reference is a certain ost from Fate/Zero, Army of the King, used when Iskander summons his Noble Phantasm. Rarity's completed Fullbring is pretty heavily influenced by it, although it's got it's own distinct flavor and style as its a massive extension of her construct forming ability.

Meanwhile, those wondering what's up with Sweet Cider might recall it was a concern raised after Applejack broke the seal on her Zanpaktou that the mixture of a Fullbring and Zanpaktou could have certain... side effects. We're seeing that now. This is also somewhat inspired by an element from Bleach, the move Sealed Sword Frenzy, and it's main antagonist Baishin, who found a way to merge with his own Zanpaktou to get stronger. Problem was that doing this also made him go crazy. The idea's been in my head for awhile to touch on this idea with Sweet Cider, that her Fullbring acts as a catalyst for a similar transformation, albeit an unintentional one.

Oh, and just one last minor piece of news, just in case anyone wasn't aware:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz8xcV8WSew
Bleach is coming back! After eight years, the final arc of the manga is finally going to be animated! On top of that, Tite Kubo's spin off manga, Burn the Witch, is also getting an anime adaption and expanded manga serialization. What does this mean? Well, certainly this author's Bleach hype is back in full swing, but it also means that there's all sorts of potential for new inspiration to come down the pipeline for Friendship Souls.

At any rate, I hope you folks are all in good spirits, and staying safe and healthy out there. As always I'm thankful for any comments, questions or critiques you might have for me. 'Till next time.

Episode 114: Apples Together

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Episode 114: Apples Together

While he knew far better than to take his eyes off of Celestia, even as she was fully occupied by defending herself against his swarm of lethally poisonous flies, Grogar still had his attention arrested away for a moment by the powerful emanations of spiritual pressure that he could sense in the distance. One didn’t even need vastly superior eyesight or spiritual senses to see the storm-like distortions in the sky, some distance to the north west of the mountainside he and Celestia were fighting upon. One particularly large detonation of colliding spirit energies caught his attention, for he sensed not only the distinct distortion of another Espada-level Arrancar releasing a Gran Rey Cero, but he could tell the distinct flavor of that reiatsu. A twitch of a smirk touched his now more youthful face, his still organic left eye shining with satisfaction while the unique mechanics of his cybernetic eye fed fresh data into his mind.

It was either going to be Lament, or Torch that would come to that pup’s aid. Either way, it would have benefited me, but Lament is the more fortuitous result. Torch I can deal with on my own time. This experiment, on the other hand, has always needed conditions that have proven difficult to engineer.

It was just a fact of scientific pursuit that Grogar had learned to accept over the millennia that one couldn’t always control the progress of experimentation. One could try to create ideal conditions to create desired results, but oftentimes there were simply too many unpredictable and uncontrolled factors to be accurately accounted for. That was why he’d long ago adopted a fairly loose style in his experimentation, often tossing his test subjects to the proverbial winds of fate and observed results from a distance, patiently awaiting opportunities to further the experiment.

Adagio was just his latest project, and as much as she likely considered herself free of him, even she was just another experiment he’d allowed out into the world to act according to her own whims, for that was exactly the kind of conditions he’d learned yielded the most promising results. The artificial siren gem pulsing in his chest was proof enough of that. But that didn’t mean she was his only ongoing project. Far from it.

And it looked like another project from a number of years ago was in a position to bear fruit.

Much as he was trying to avoid being distracted, the momentary burst of anticipation he felt at the thought of progressing an old project meant he didn’t fully notice what Celestia was doing.

Her exemplary speed and skill in the Soul Reaper hand-to-hand arts was allowing her to keep the relentless dark cloud of disgustingly modified insects at bay, but their sharp drill-like legs had managed to score a number of hits upon her even as she ended up smashing hundreds from the swarm. Celestia had felt the painful burn of poison in her blood, and was countering it with an active detoxing Kido that required the use of one of her hands placed over her heart to continuously infuse the Kido’s healing reiryoku through her bloodstream.

Fortunately that didn’t stop her from building an ever growing amount of spiritual energy in her legs, even as she used them to kick away dozens of the swarming, bloated flies at once with movements generating greater and greater levels of wind force. By now her legs held an intense aura of flowing gold reiatsu, and coils of air were swirling around her calves and feet now in an ever present sheath of wind.

Grogar was vaguely familiar with the technique, having compiled his own files on this move from previous Soul Reapers who’d utilized it, although rarely to the same degree of built up spirit energy that he now sensed, and never before with the legs as the focal point rather than the hands.

Quickly he gestured with the hook-blade staff he carried, commanding the flies of his swarm to induce a certain chemical reaction in their bodies that would take their inner toxins and hyper-stimulate them to explode. As one, the entire swarm halted and surrounded Celestia in a condensed dome, and then began popping like balloons. Wet squelching noises filled the air as a literal rain of horrific toxin flooded down at Celestia, which would surely coat in her a lethal bath of poison.

However at the same instant Celestia crouched down, and the reiatsu from her legs exploded outward.

“Shunko Saikuron!” (Flash Cry Cyclone)

Unbelievably powerful wind surged out from Celestia’s legs alongside a cyclone of swirling gold energy as she did a handstand and proceeded to perform a spinning kick with both legs, so fast that her legs were blurred like the blades of a helicopter. The rain of toxins were utterly engulfed and blown away by the sudden dome-shaped burst of cutting wind and destructive spirit energy, and Grogar was forced to zip backwards with Sonido to try to avoid the fast expanding dome as it ate up a chunk of the mountainside. Even in his released form, Grogar couldn't avoid the cutting edge of the dome's winds, his body slammed by air forces far beyond any conventional typhoon. The impact sent the Espada spinning, wrenching his limb and smashing him into the mountain slope. Groaning, he got up, momentarily amazed that Celestia was capable of producing an attack of that magnitude without her Zanpaktou. Had he been caught in the epicenter rather than at the edge, the damage would have been much more severe. Even now, great chunks of rock were being torn from the ground by the cyclone of wind and thrown across the slope, smashing around the mountain at random. One chunk the size of a pickup truck came flying at Grogar, who contemptuously smashed it aside with a one handed swipe from his Zanpaktou.

As the winds died down and the dome dissipated, he saw Celestia standing on the air at the apex of the semi-circular chunk of ground her technique had ripped out of the mountain. She still had one hand over her heart, glowing faintly blueish green as she continued to negate the poison still in her veins, but for the moment his swarm was gone.

It’d take a minute or so for his body to manufacture more for him to spit out, but Grogar was in no real rush. His stamina was far from flagging, and while Celestia didn’t look particularly tired yet either, his plan had never been to beat her in a physical contest. He was just biding his time. This “battle” had been decided the moment he’d successfully separated her from her Zanpaktou. It was just a matter of time until Celestia realized it.

Perhaps sensing his thoughts, or perhaps just finding his calm demeanor annoying, Celestia wasted no time in using her free hand to point at him, her eyes glittering dangerously. White sparks of lightning gathered around the point of her finger, then spread out in a line to either side of her.

“Hado Number Eighty Nine: Raijin no Shokei Ono!" (Thunder God's Executing Axe)

Grogar suppressed yet another sparking sensation in his withered heart that came dangerously close to admiration. He did consider it an unfortunate failing of Hollow evolutionary traits that their reiatsu wasn’t suited to the finely tuned reiryoku manipulation that could produce such a wide variety of Kido spells the Soul Reapers enjoyed. He’d experimented with trying to give Arrancar more versatile power sets, but the results had always been disappointing, so he’d moved on to different research. Admittedly the resurgence of the power known as Fullbring among the humans intrigued him, since it was still born somewhat of Hollow energy. It would be nice to have one of those girls to study, but that was not an immediate objective any longer.

He readied himself as the line of white electricity Celestia had summoned, which had grown to about ten meters wide on either side of her, then flew up like a sheet and from that crackling expanse of white a giant arm emerged. Formed purely from the raw essence of spiritual infused lightning, this arm moved with sudden speed and purpose as it came crashing down at Grogar. In that same movement, the arm’s hand grasped the air, and a giant axe of thunderous lightning formed, soaring down much like the executioner’s axe of the Kido’s namesake.

Such speed surpassed Grogar’s own, so while he did throw himself up and back in a burst of high-speed Sonido, the axe’s impact created a flare of lightning forks that electrified the air for dozens of meters and jolted the Espada with uncountable volts of energy. His body managed to weather the storm, but for a moment he was wracked with spasms of pain and his senses were blanked out. Only long centuries of experience allowed him to continue evading backwards until his senses recovered a second later, his body still smoking from the brush with the lightning axe. The portions of his body that had a mechanical appearance fared better than his flesh, continuing to pump and turn inside him. These modifications might have looked like technological mad science, but their construction was purely of Hollow reishi, much like the machines he used in his laboratories. All of it were modifications he’d added to his Resurreccion as a means to empower himself further. Prior to such augmentation a Kido like what Celestia had just used might have done much worse to him.

The artificial siren gem retained a few sparks of the Kido’s lightning as well, and Grogar briefly examined the data scrolling across his cybernetic eye. It seemed even partial contact with other energy sources allowed for a small siphoning effect. Interesting, but he had yet to put the gem to it’s real test. Celestia was a tempting target, but not ideal, given her capacity for resistance. No, he had a different target in mind.

Speaking of which, if his estimations on the strength of the Caja Negacion his modified Hollow had created were accurate, his ticket out of this fight should be appearing soon. Celestia, having finally purged the poison from her blood completely at this point, took her hand away from her heart and assumed an aggressive stance. She kicked off the ground, cracking it beneath her as she soared towards him, fists poised to strike and charged with auras of gold reiatsu.

Grogar readied himself to receive her attacks, but just as he’d calculated, the time had come.

A cracking noise that reverberrated like the breaking of an enormous mirror filled the air. A hole in reality was torn out a little further up the mountain, the air showing cracks as a jet of incredibly hot, pure white flames raged out. The heat was so intense that practically all moisture on the mountain burned away in an instant from just that one jet of bright, intense plasma. The spiritual pressure that came with it was unmistakable as well. Shinryu Taiyo was breaking free of the Caja Negación sub-dimension, using raw reiatsu and the power of its flames to incinerate the barrier between the prison dimension and the real world.

Only the power on display from the Zanpaktou was much stronger than even it’s impressive Shikai. Indeed, with its Shikai, Shinryu Taiyo shouldn’t have been able to break free for at least half an hour to an hour.

Celestia halted in her tracks, eyes shuddering as she looked at the jet of plasma that had torn a hole in reality. Grogar smiled fully at her.

“Oh, looks like your loyal Zanpaktou is struggling quite hard to return to you, Captain Celestia,” he said, “I imagine you must be overjoyed. Why, with that kind of power, you could destroy me rather quickly, couldn’t you?”

Celestia was silent for a moment, until her voice came out in a pained gasp, “...Shinryu, you idiot.”

Grogar adopted a tone of mock confusion, “It seems rather obvious, doesn’t it? So eager to return to fight by your side, likely frightened and enraged by being separated from you, it seems like your Zanpaktou has gone and activated their Bankai on their own.”

Another sound like the shattering of a cosmic mirror resounded across the mountain as a second hole in space erupted with a volcanic pillar of plasma that was so hot that even without touching the stone directly the portion of the mountain nearest to the flames were already running like lava. Grogar tapped his chin in an expression of mock pondering.

“Oh, but that is a problem for you, isn’t it? You can’t control your Bankai very well at all, can you? And even if you could, your Zanpaktou is rather unruly at the best of times. Right now they seem rather furious. I wonder what will happen when the Caja Negacion fully shatters? All of that heat energy your Bankai produces will be unleashed all at once, won’t it?”

Celestia looked back at him, her eyes partially hidden by the fall of her hair, but what could be seen from the shadows there were sharpened with indescribably rage. “If that power is released here, now, there won’t be a cinder of you left, Grogar.”

“Yes, that is true. However I imagine the same can be said for that camp full of innocent humans you’re so eager to protect. And all of the Soul Reapers fighting nearby. And possibly the city about, what, a mere dozen miles away? I doubt much of anything will survive within a twenty mile radius, actually, if my senses aren’t deceiving me. So tell me, Celestia, are you willing to sacrifice all of those lives, just to ensure I am destroyed?”

He was somewhat surprised at the speed of her response, having expected some level of hesitance on her part, but instead her tone was strong and heated. “I won’t sacrifice innocent lives to see you destroyed. That’s not even a question. Cease your gloating and get on with whatever your plan is. If you intended to just Garganta away and leave this trap of yours to explode, you’d already have done it.”

“True,” he admitted, “As it happens you are in luck that it’d be detrimental to me to just leave and allow your Bankai to incinerate everything around this mountain, for reasons I’m sure you’ll understand I don’t divulge. So what I propose is that I shall open a Garganta, but not for me. I will open one around the Caja Negacion and send it into the Precipice Realm. You, of course, will join it. You can survive your own Bankai’s flames, I presume?”

Celestia’s gaze could have matched the flames of her Zanpaktou. What Grogar was suggesting was very likely the only way in which Shinryu Taiyo’s Bankai could be released from the Caja Negacion safely. There was nothing to destroy in the Precipice Realm, and Celestia would be immune to the all consuming heat that would be released from her Zanpaktou. For the next few, tense seconds she considered her options. There were precious few. There was a small chance that she could contain the blast in a barrier Kido, but knowing the strength of her Bankai, Celestia didn’t make much of that option. The risk of failure was far too high.

She could try a game of proverbial chicken with Grogar. She knew the ancient Espada wasn’t seeking death amid her Bankai’s flames, so while he could technically open a Garganta to move to safety, if he did have a reason not to want the blast to go off here she could see just how serious he was and do nothing. He might send the Caja Negacion away to preserve whatever experiment he was running that he likely wanted to protect. If the explosion did go off, and he escaped, he’d only have a very wrathful Celestia to face down the road and nothing to show for his efforts save a smoking crater and a bunch of dead, none of which he had a reason to care about besides a few key individuals he wanted to continue his experiments with. But again, Celestia wasn’t willing to take that gamble with so many lives on the line.

It was impossible for her to open a Senkaimon Gate without her Zanpaktou, so she had no means of transporting the Caja Negacion away herself. Attacking Grogar would serve no purpose either, since it wouldn’t stop the explosion from occurring.

She also couldn’t force Shinryu Taiyo to deactivate Bankai until they were released from the Caja Negacion that was separating them. The holes being created now weren’t large enough for her to actually reach through to touch the dragon’s themselves to calm them down. By the time they got out, and she’d be able to talk them down, it’d be too late... the mountain, Everfree Forest, the camp, even the distant city would...

Not for the first time Celestia felt the heavy weight on her soul that was the dire reality of possessing such destructive power, but not always being able to control it or prevent it from being a threat to those she didn’t intend. At the same time, she didn’t lose heart or let that feeling drag her into a sense of despair. Grogar might have concocted an admittedly clever plan for taking her off the board, but there were still those who could oppose him. Celestia could sense their reiatsu, like beacons across the landscape. She might not have known the details of all their individual battles, but the fact remained that her sister Luna, Captain Sweet Cider, Captain Starswirl, and all of those extraordinary girls from Canterlot High were still out there and fighting.

Whatever Grogar intended to do, he wouldn’t be able to do it unopposed, and Celestia suspected the aged and arrogant Arrancar was underestimating what some of those who’d remain after Celestia was gone were capable of.

And Celestia would be returning, as fast as she could. Once she calmed her Zanpaktou down, she’d have to open a Senkaimon Gate to Soul Society first, then use the gate there to return to the human world. It’d take time, but hopefully not so much she couldn’t still make it back in time to help... and bring reinforcements.

----------

Applejack pushed her Fullbring’s energy jets as hard as she could, soaring only a few dozen feet above the treetops. Now that she was close to the battle she had to focus her reiatsu like a shell around herself to keep from passing out from the combined weight of the spiritual pressures she felt from both her mother and the monstrously powerful Hollow she was fighting. Despite her mother’s reiatsu more than matching her opponent, Applejack still had a cold, leaden weight in her gut. Something felt wrong about her mother’s spirit energy. It had happened only a minute ago, a sudden and erratic shift in Sweet Cider’s reiatsu that left the impression on Applejack’s senses like a kettle boiling over. It was as if her mother’s anger was a bitter heat blistering the very air.

She heard a bellowing roar nearby, and realized the disturbing cry was in her mother’s voice!

Applejack saw a large crater up ahead, and from it she also saw a burst of rock and dirt fly skyward from a tremendous impact, followed rapidly by several more as two forms moved back and forth across the tortured ground, one chasing the other. Despite an instinctual fear of the threatening power on display, Applejack swallowed that fear and banked down to make a rough landing near the crater’s edge. She wanted to help her mother, but she needed to assess the situation first, rather than charge in blindly.

Both her mother and her enemy were moving so fast that despite Applejack’s now extensive experience dealing with high-speed foes and countless hours of training with Rainbow Dash and her friend’s ludicrous speed, it was still hard for Applejack to get a clear look at the battle. Still, her eyes adjusted, her senses sharpened, and after a few moments she saw her mother clearly. Her worry only intensified by what she saw as her brow drew down and her breath quickened. What had happened to Sweet Cider?

Her mother’s Zanpaktou was in it’s Shikai state, but the rocky coating over it’s edge was nothing like what Applejack remembered from when she faced the same weapon back in Soul Society. Sweet Cider’s body also had layers of rock covering parts of her body like partial armor, and where there wasn’t rock, Applejack saw her mother’s bright red skin had turned to a darker maroon shade. The most prominent change, however, was the blazing gold horn that curved up from her mother’s brow.

What was this? A special technique of Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou? But Applejack recalled her mother telling her during their fight that Kizuna didn’t really have any unusual techniques, it just absorbed and fired out her mother’s reiatsu in a destructive wave. Could this be... Bankai? Applejack didn’t think so. While her mother’s reiatsu felt stronger, and wildly erratic, this wasn’t like the massive increase that came with Bankai. She’d been around Sunset Shimmer enough times by now when Sunset had been training with Discord to know what a Bankai release felt like, and this wasn’t it. This was something different, and it didn’t look good. The expression on her mother’s face was more like a bestial animal in the midst of a frenzy rather than the cognizant look of a woman in control of herself.

At least she seemed to have her opponent on the ropes. Sweet Cider was relentlessly pursuing the Arrancar, who was like a pale shadow that was shifting constantly from place to place to keep ahead of Sweet Cider’s earth shaking sword blows. As far as Applejack could tell, this Arrancar was so busy evading that he couldn’t counter attack, and his constant dodging was making it hard to get a clear look at him. All Applejack could see from the edge of the crater was a long, wild head of red hair attached to a body of pale skin clad in ragged white clothes.

If I’m gonna do anythin’ ta help, I gotta get closer. What should I be doin’? Ma looks like she’s winnin’... but I don’t like the look o’ them changes. What’s happened ta ya, ma? Even at yer rowdiest back n’ Soul Society, ya still had yer head on straight. But this just looks like a’ mindless rage.

What could have caused her mother to lose it like this? As things were, Applejack wasn’t sure she could get closer without serious risk. Her mother might be able to still recognize her in that berserk state, but that was a large risk. Applejack had only come because she’d been worried about whether or not her mother could win. Whatever this change was, it looked as if it’d given Sweet Cider an edge. If Applejack tried jumping in now, she might not end up doing much to help.

Abruptly Applejack felt her mother’s reiatsu surge and heard Sweet Cider unleash a piercing howl as Kizuna produced a set of eerily familiar jets of energy from one of its edges. These jets boosted the speed and power of a brutal sideways swing that even when the Espada dodged backwards from it, a concentrated burst of raw air pressure still struck him and set him flying. He ended up smashing into the ground fairly close to Applejack’s position, although her eyes were initially focused on her mother’s sword, her mouth hanging open.

That spirit pressure, that weren’t just Kizuna’s... that felt like a’ Fullbring! Did ma’s Fullbring somehow activate?

She was distracted by a light, sighing grunt from the Espada as he started to stand, and she turned her attention to him. His back was turned to her slightly, so she couldn’t see his face fully, but there was something weirdly familiar about him. Applejack’s felt her heartbeat quicken, as if something inside her was prodding at long shelved memories. Without realizing it she was even moving, she hopped down into the crater to try and get a better look at the pale skinned Arrancar, and her motion caught his attention. He turned his head towards her, his face now fully visible.

Applejack’s breath froze in her throat. It had been so long that her mental picture of him was a fuzzy thing, washed out by time and the fact that she’d been so young when he’d still been alive. There were differences from those distant memories as well, his hair more unruly and hanging all the way down his back instead of cut just below the shoulders. His skin was marble white, instead of a healthy wheat yellow. His eyes, however, were the same, and it was those she remembered the most, since they’d always held such warmth back then. Every time he’d picked her up to carry her, or laughed as he played with her, or patched her up when she’d hurt herself, her father had always had the kindest, warmest eyes of anyone Applejack had ever known.

And while those eyes didn’t look at her with that same warmth now, but the confusion of a stranger, there was no question in Applejack’s mind; she was looking at Hard Nail, her father.

“...Pa?”

The word hung between them, fragile as a moth’s wing. Applejack didn’t now what she expected. Her mind was honestly blank, yet on an instinctual, gut level she yearned for some spark, any sign of recognition in her father’s eyes. And for just a moment she did see something. Not clear recognition, but rather the hazy, startled waver to his eyes that was the look of someone seeing something half remembered from a dream.

Then the moment was shattered by Sweet Cider’s roar as she hurtled towards Hard Nail with her devastating blade emitting rockets of energy that powered it in a downward chop that the Arrancar had no time to dodge, instead raising his long katana and bracing it with both hands to absorb the attack. The impact alone was like a bomb going off, throwing Applejack backwards. She controlled her fall and landed skidding across the ground, and watched as her mother’s sword emitted even more intense jets of energy from it’s rocky edge and pushed her father to one knee as he stoically held his ground against her.

“Ma!” she shouted, trying to get her head wrapped around the situation.

She’d known her father had been turned into a Hollow, but had never imagined he’d be one of the Arrancar, let alone one of their Espada. Yes, she and her mother had promised to purify his soul together, but that had been a promise made when Applejack had thought her father was one of the mindless Hollows that attacked human souls indiscriminately.

For all she knew that might still be partially true. It wasn’t as if Arrancar were friendly towards human souls, and by all accounts the ones in charge of things had no good intentions towards the world of the living. But Adagio, strange as it seemed, had demonstrated that not all Arrancar or Hollows were beyond reason. Her father might be more alike to the former siren than to monstrous souls like Grogar.

Unfortunately her mother’s berserk state meant that Applejack couldn’t just take a moment to figure the situation out or ask questions. Her parents were trying to kill each other, one of them not seeming to recognize his family, while the other had for some reason entered a seemingly mindless state of rage. It left Applejack in a stunned, confused state where all she could do was stand there for a moment, frozen with indecision. Her mother hadn’t even responded to her call, growling like an animal as she tried to crush Hard Nail.

Hard Nail, pushing back against the rocket empowered blade trying to drive him to the ground, set his face in a hardened mask and with an intense green and black aura of reiatsu permeating his body he drove Sweet Cider’s blade to the side where it crashed into the ground. He then lashed out with a kick, driving his heel into Sweet Cider’s ribs with an impact loud enough to be heard like a gunshot and creating a small shockwave as the large woman was driven back. Rather than fall over, Sweet Cider kept standing, her heels digging through the ground for a few dozen yards. She didn’t even flinch from the kick, her eyes not losing their fixation upon Hard Nail as she growled again and raised her blade to charge at him again.

Only before she could, a sudden and intense heat filled the air and a rumble could be heard from the treeline behind Applejack. She turned in time to see thick, black smoke rising from the forest treetops, and then fire burst from the nearest trees as a wave of lava smashed through them. Applejack’s eyes were stunned and unblinking as she saw, of all people, Sunset Shimmer riding a wave of magma into the crater, standing upon a giant claymore-styled sword like it was a surfboard!

“Father!” Sunset Shimmer shouted, leaping off the sword and grasping it in one flipping motion that saw her landing smoothly next to Hard Nail while the wave of lava surged onward towards Sweet Cider.

Applejack almost shouted a warning to her mother, but it was unneeded. Sweet Cider looked at the magma wave crashing towards her and with one hand swept Kizuna in front of her, unleashing a blast of air pressure so strong that it splattered the wave of lava and sent it careening off to the side harmlessly.

“What in the world?” Applejack breathed, more confused than ever. What was Sunset Shimmer doing here!? And what had happened to her Zanpaktou? It was even larger now? And controlled magma?

Waitasec, this ain’t right. This reiatsu ain’t like Sunset’s at all! It feels way different, an’ feels just like... like a’ Fullbring!

And only adding to Applejack’s confusion was the fact that her father looked at Sunset Shimmer with clear recognition and said, “Fenice, what are you doing here!? I left you back at the tower so you could protect your siblings!”

Sunset Shimmer (Fenice?) looked at Hard Nail while holding her claymore in a ready, two handed grip while still facing Sweet Cider. Lava coursed over the blade as if the claymore was bleeding the molten rock from its steel surface. “I know, father, and I’m sorry to be such a disobedient daughter, but the family will be fine without me for a little while. We won’t be fine if we lose you! I couldn’t just stay behind. Not when you and Roka were both facing danger out here.”

Applejack’s father’s face broke it’s stoic mask into a grimace of mixed pain and frustrated anger, “You should have done as I said, but we’ll worry about discipline when we get home. Fenice, as your father I’m telling you to stay back. This Soul Reaper is far too powerful for you to help me with, and I may have to...”

He held up a hand, and it was only then that Applejack noticed that her father had large, polished silver nails driven through his palms. What were those, she wondered? Further pondering would have to wait, as her mother wasn’t giving any further time for talk. She saw Sweet Cider leap into the sky and pull her Zanpaktou back, an aura of gold spirit energy coalescing around the blade in a familiar manner. Applejack recognized the energy unleashing technique that Kizuna was about to perform, and before either her father or the strange Sunset Shimmer could respond, Applejack activated the jets of energy from her boots and palms and flew up into the sky.

“Ma! Stop it!” she shouted, flying directly into the path between her mother and father, “Ma, ya gotta listen ta me! Somethin’ ain’t right with ya, an’ ya gotta calm down!”

For a moment, Sweet Cider hesitated, her angered snarl briefly twitching with a look of partial recognition and horror at seeing Applejack. The moment didn’t last, however, and Applejack saw fluctuations of sparking gold energy run over both Kizuna and Sweet Cider as her mother let out an howl of both rage mitigated by emotional anguish and fear, the howl transmuting into a guttural words, “Apple...jack...rrruunnn!”

“MA!” Applejack shouted, but it was too late as her mother’s words turned back into an angered roar and Sweet Cider slammed her Zanpaktou down, the air flashing golden as the incredible wave of spirit energy blasted forth from the blade’s edge. Applejack knew she had no chance of countering or withstanding the energy wave, but it was also coming far too fast for her to fully dodge, even as she tried rocketing to the side to get out of the way.

Just as the wave was about to hit her, a form flickered into view next to her and she felt a strong, yet somehow gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Wha-!?” she didn’t even have time to finish her exclamation as her father grabbed her and threw her out of the way far faster than even Applejack could have dodged. Applejack found herself flying out of the blast’s path and caught sight of Hard Nail for just a brief instant, his eyes focused on her. The moment their eyes met, she knew her father recognized her. He might not know her, but somewhere in his mind, he recognized that she was someone tied to him.

Sweet Cider’s blast hit Lament in a flashing gold detonation that rocked the crater, and Applejack had to use her rocket jets to stabilize herself and land without smashing into the ground. Not far away was Sunset Shimmer, looking up at the explosion of energies with wide eyes.

“Father! Dammit!”

A form fell out of the smoke of the explosion. Hard Nail’s body was marked with raw burns, and his upper body was now bare save for a few scraps of the white longcoat he’d worn, and the left half of his face was singed dark. He showed no obvious pain at these injuries, but his stance was shaky as he landed between Applejack and Sunset Shimmer, the latter rushing up to him.

“Father, don’t put yourself at risk like that for some stranger-”

“Fenice,” Hard Nail cut her off, “I need you to take that girl as far from here as you can.”

“What? Why!?”

“Now hold up a’ sec!” Applejack said, raising her hand toward him, “I ain’t goin’ nowhere, pa! Not while you n’ ma are fighthin’!”

Sunset shot her a baffled look, blinking several times. “Wait, what did you call him?”

Hard Nail’s voice cut both of them off like a cold lash, “There’s no time, both of you have to get away from here! I can’t release my full strength with the two of you this close! Fenice, do as I say, and take this girl away from here, now!”

“An’ I already told ya,” Applejack said, rushing over to him and grabbing his shoulder, meeting him dead on in the eyes, her own eyes sparkling fiercely, “I ain’t goin’ nowhere!”

Her heart was a terrified jackrabbit in her chest, beating so fast she thought it’d spring right out of her throat. Nothing had given her more fear than this moment, seeing her mother so out of control, her father not even fully recognizing who she was, and knowing in the very pit of her gut that if she fled from this fight that she’d never see either of her parents again. She felt that was the truth as firmly as she’d ever felt anything before in her life. If she ran away from this, or let herself be taken away from the battlefield, then both her parents would die a second time, and probably in such a way that there’d be no reunion... in this life or otherwise. At that moment, Applejack was willing to die if that’s what it took to put an end to all this.

Her father gazed back at her resolve filled eyes, and although Applejack didn’t know it, for the Arrancar named Lament, he was dragged back across the corridors of memory. Images and sounds, like droplets forming together into a greater pool, filled him at the sight of this young woman, and he could remember her as little more than an infant, stubbornly taking her first steps after countless times falling over. The same look of resolved determination had been in that infant’s eyes as he saw now in the girl staring him down. He could feel the heat of summer days he’d experienced in Hueco Mundo, playing games of chase or hide and seek with this little girl, who’s smile matched the brightness of the sun.

So much like her mother, both in looks and attitude. He didn’t want to accept these memories, still fearful that they’d push aside the memories he had of his second family, but it was getting harder to deny them as they filled more of his mind.

“...Applejack,” he said, the name rising like a dawn in his mind, “I can’t let you get hurt.”

“Father?” said Fenice, “You... know her?”

Lament felt torn in half, two daughters, both equally important to him, refusing to leave his side while he was the target of a berserk Soul Reaper who was only out of control because he’d refused to face his past. He knew something was terribly wrong with Sweet Cider, her Zanpaktou somehow taking control of her. He had no idea how to stop her, especially now that she was in this state. She was slowly overpowering his base form. While his undying body felt no pain, and could keep fighting for some time to come, he wasn’t going to be able to defeat her as he was. He needed to release his Resurreccion. By now the blasts she’d hit him with had weakened Twilight Velvet's seal so much that he felt certain he could break free of them now, but he couldn't’ do that while Applejack and Fenice were nearby. He’d lose his own sense of self once he released the power of his Zanpaktou.

Which did carry the drawback that if he did that, he’d probably end up killing Sweet Cider. Or she him. Neither result was a good one, but what choice did he have? And if Fenice wouldn’t take Applejack away, and Applejack wouldn’t let herself be taken away, then he had only one option left to him.

With eyes burdened by what he needed to do, he looked between Fenice and Applejack.

“I know her, Fenice, as my daughter, as she knows me as her father, from another life. If neither of you will listen to me, then so be it, but follow this last request; look after each other.”

He then pushed all he had into a Sonido that left him vanishing from either human’s view. He moved like a dark bolt of shadow right past Sweet Cider, swinging his Zanpaktou in a wide arc. He managed to catch her shoulder, his blade still sharp enough to leave a cut even through the fresh, rocky armor there. The wound was enough to ensure Sweet Cider’s attention was solely on him as he briefly paused long enough to saw, “Come, wife, we’ll settle this away from the children.”

With speed he knew only Sweet Cider could match, he then flew away, each step of Sonido covering vast distances. With a feral roar, Sweet Cider gave chase, her Flash Steps keeping pace as both of them fled towards the deeper mountain chain to the north.

----------

Left behind, Applejack was stuck gaping for a moment, then her face turned into a deep frown, “H-Hey! Git back here ya two! I ain’t even close ta done!”

She was about to blast off and give chase when she felt a firm hand on her arm.

“Wait,” the girl who looked like Sunset said, “Who are you? How do you know my father?”

Applejack rounded on the girl, still confused, “What n’ the land sakes are ya blabberin’ ‘bout Sunset!? What’re ya doin’ swingin’ around a’ Fullbring anyhows? An’ why ya actin’ like ya know my pa!?”

There was a tremor that passed through Sunset, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment as her expression darkened, but then she snapped her eyes open and she said in a constrained voice, “Stop calling me Sunset. That hasn’t been my name in a long time. I’m Fenice. It’s the name my father gave me when he saved me in Hueco Mundo. We’re not related by blood, but that doesn’t matter. Me, him, and my siblings are all family, and right now my family is in danger. Now please, who are you? How do you know father?”

Applejack tried very hard to process what she was hearing, her straightforward mindset having difficulty churning through the information quickly, even as her heart’s intuition surged towards the truth. If she stopped letting her fear for her parents get in the way and thought it through, it wasn’t that hard to guess at a few things. This girl looked like Sunset Shimmer, and spoke with her voice, but her attitude and mannerisms were slightly off, and perhaps most telling was that Fullbring. It radiated a spiritual pressure that while feeling akin to Sunset’s, had its own unique flavor to it, like the difference between two different breeds of apple.

Taking a deep breath, Applejack said, “i know ‘im ‘cause he’s my pa, too. From when he was livin’.”

It was odd seeing Fenice struggle to quickly process that the same way Applejack was trying to do the same with the notion of who Fenice really was. The girl licked her lips, glancing at Applejack’s face, really looking at Applejack’s features and making the connections to the similarities both to Sweet Cider and Lament’s appearance. When the realization struck, it was like a bolt of lightning going off in Fenice’s eyes.

“...Holy crap, you are, aren’t you? And that Soul Reaper, she’s your... mother... and father’s... oh God...”

Fenice leaned on her claymore, her breathing growing heavy, “No wonder he’s like that. If she’s his... and you’re his... w-what was your name again?”

“Applejack. Fenice, what’s goin’ on? Why’d pa want ta go rushin’ off like that an’ draw ma away with him? He was goin’ on ‘bout releasin’ his ‘full strength’ or somehin’.”

Gulping, Fenice drew herself up and clenched her hands around her sword for support, “He’s drawing her away so he can release his Resurreccion. You know what that is?”

Applejack nodded, “Ain’t ever seen one, but heard ‘bout ‘em. Some kind o’ fancy transformation, like what Soul Reapers do with their Zanpaktou.”

“Close enough. Father’s is problematic, though. It’s powerful, but he loses his sense of self when he uses it. He can’t distinguish between enemies and anyone else,” Fenice said, and her tone dropped a cold octave, “Including family.”

If Applejack had been feeling fear before, then this new sensation of chilling cold that gripped her was a different level altogether. Her breathing quickened as she turned to look with wide eyes towards where her father and mother had vanished at such god-like speeds, “If yer tellin’ it true, if he does that, while ma also ain’t in her right head, then they’re gonna end up killin’ each other! I gotta stop ‘em!”

Fenice gripped Applejack’s hand, halting her, “How? How do you plan to do that?”

“Let go o’ me! If ya think o’ my pa as yer own, don’t ya want to stop him too?”

“Of course I do!” Fenice shouted, a shimmer of wetness in her eyes that matched her desperate tone, “I don’t even know if he can beat that Soul Reaper, but that’s part of my point. We go in without a plan, and we’ll fail, because in case it didn’t penetrate your thick skull, our parents are much stronger than we are. We have to have a plan if we’re going to stop them from destroying each other.”

It took all the willpower Applejack could muster to calm herself down even by the smallest fraction, taking a few haggard, deep breaths before she said, “Right... yer right. But I ain’t very good at plannin’. All I got are my fists n’ feet ta try n’ pummel some sense inta them. Worked on ma before, even with her bein’ so much stronger n’ me. Might do fer pa, too.”

“That won’t work,” Fenice said, “You’ve never seen father when he goes all out. It's... terrifying. He’d kill you in an instant if you tried to attack him.”

“What other choice do I got!?” Applejack blurted, racking her brain for any other ideas, but her mind was blank. She looked at her armored clad hands with a sense of bitterness. What good was her Fullbring if she couldn’t use it to save her own family? She’d felt such pride when she’d managed to snap her mother back to reality, back in Soul Society. She’d truly gone all out to achieve that, shattering these very gauntlets in the process. Yet she knew she’d gotten lucky that time. That chain on Kizuna that had sealed her mother’s memory had been a weak point she’d been able to exploit, and she also had to admit that there was a strong chance her mother had been holding back during that fight, not wanting to kill Applejack.

But things were different now. Her mother wasn’t in her right mind, filled with a berserk rage from some issue with her Zanpaktou and Fullbring being fused together. That meant there’d be no holding back, and there was no memory seal to target. Worse, if her father released his Resurreccion it sounded like he’d be even worse to deal with. Applejack was so out of her league in terms of power she might as well be trying to stop two raging bulls with a feather duster.

Despite that, she was going to try anyway. They were her parents. She couldn’t let them destroy each other like this. Her family had endured enough tragedy. She wasn’t going to have it any more.

Fenice was looking at her, and slowly lowered her eyes and gripped Applejack’s hand tighter, “None. There’s no choice at all. We have to protect our family... even if we’ve come to that family in a weird way. There’s a chance, Applejack, if we work together. This armor you’re wearing, it’s Fullbring, right?”

“Darn straight. Yer sword is, too, ain’t it?”

“That’s right. I can tell your Fullbring isn’t complete. Mine is, and I’ve had mine for a lot longer than yours, I’ll bet,” Fenice said, almost sounding a bit like the somewhat prideful and cocky Sunset Shimmer that Applejack knew, “I thought I was the last Fullbringer left, but I’ll worry about where you got your powers from later. Right now all that matters is that with my knowledge of Fullbring, I think I can do something to help your mother.”

“Huh? Like what?”

“Whatever’s wrong with her, I can tell it’s got something to do with Fullbring. I can sense it in her Zanpaktou, and it’s unstable. The whole core of Fullbring, though, is that we can control the souls inside things. Like, if you wanted you could ‘Fullbring’ a glass of water into your mouth at a touch, or harden air to step on, or whatever else. That means if you know what you’re doing you can also use other people’s Fullbrings.”

Applejack blinked at her, “Wait, what?”

Fenice managed a weak smirk, “It isn’t easy. Usually requires a strong familiarity between the two Fullbringers, but with the right know-how it’s possible to do it even without that familiarity. Point is, if you can distract your mom long enough, I think I could tear her Fullbring free of her Zanpaktou. That ought to bring her back to her senses.”

Briefly stunned, Applejack took a moment to say, “That might work! But what about pa!?”

“If we catch up to them before he uses Resurreccion, I can convince him to stand down, I think. If not... we run, with your mother. We run as fast as we can. If father doesn’t have a target, he’ll eventually calm down and his transformation will wear off on it’s own,” Fenice said, even her own expression showing she understood this wasn’t much of a plan. But it was all they had.

Applejack didn’t even need to consider it a second longer. She reached out and gripped Fenice’s hand with both of her own, “Sounds like a’ plan ta me. Let’s go save our parents!”

----------

It was in a secluded mountain valley that Lament chose as the place to finish things between himself and Sweet Cider. The valley was richly green, carpeted in a field of tall grass that was brushed with vibrant patches of yellow from wild flowers growing along its length. A small stream winded it’s way through the valley, flowing down from the white capped mountains. Any other time, any other day, it was the perfect kind of place to take one’s family to go camping.

Lament knew this, because as Hard Nail, in another life, he’d taken his family camping to this very valley.

A part of him wanted to resist remembering that. To throw that memory back into the depths of his subconscious. But seeing Applejack, his little girl, had been enough to rip those shakily held floodgates open. For a second that lasted unto eternity Lament looked up at the sky and let his past life wash over him. He was still frightened he might lose himself to it, but he couldn’t afford to run from it anymore either. Not if he was going to do what he felt had to be done, now. If he was going to be responsible for killing Sweet Cider, or end up falling to her blade, he owed it to both of them to remember.

Because he saw no other end to this. He had to release his Zanpaktou, and accept the result that came with it. He didn’t know which of them would walk away from that. If she was still in her right mind, maybe he could have found another way, but with her out of control there was no telling what damage she’d do. The same could be said of himself. He knew he’d have no control either, but he did know that as long as he was far from any obvious targets, his transformed state would become passive once a battle was done.

He just hoped that Fenice and Applejack would have the sense to stay far away, once his Resurrection was released. A part of him that knew both of his girls doubted that, but he still didn’t see any other options. Another part of him almost wanted to blame Adagio for this mess, but that would be unfair. There was no way she could have known this was how things would play out, let alone predict his connection with one of the Soul Reaper Captains.

How surreal. In the filling void of his memories, he could see Sweet Cider so clearly. That simple yet quiet and boundless warmth and strength that he’d fallen in love with. How had they both come to this? How had their lives gotten twisted so far off course?

It made perfect sense to him, now, why he’d awoken in Hueco Mundo filled with an endless, dark pit of regret in his soul. His first memory of infinite white sands, crawling across that empty dead expanse consumed by choking sadness and regret so deep that it manifested as a physical miasma of dark mist around his body. He remembered those early days now in a different light, consuming every Hollow that came close to him, never filling that yawning chasm in his soul where his loving wife, precious children, and simple but fulfilling life had been.

Even as his memory faded, the regret of that loss remained as deep as ever, and led him through ascension into an Arrancar, almost as if something inside him had guided him towards that state.

The regret had been so deep that when he felt certain nothing could alleviate it, he’d created a new family without even understanding that he was doing it to create an echo of the life he’d lost. Memories from both lives intermingled inside him. Holding newborn Applejack for the first time, holding Roka’s hand after saving her from the Warrens, playing in the orchard with Big Mac, carrying an exhausted Fenice home to the tower after finding her in the desert, laughing around the table with Sweet Cider and Granny Smith, hiding a small smile around the table with his adopted Arrancar children, sitting at the farmstead and petting Winona, sitting atop his tower petting Winston...

Protecting his family from an invisible Hollow in the night, protecting his family from the Quincy...

Living or dead, he really was the same man, wasn’t he? Family, above everything.

He felt the impact of Sweet Cider’s arrival like a thunderbolt. Felt her searing reiatsu wash over him. Heard her enraged roar.

Lament, and Hard Nail, smiled sadly as he turned to face her. He looked into her raging eyes, and held that gaze with his own that now could look at her knowing full well who she was and what she meant to him.

His next words were spoken in his old, faint accent, “I’m sorry, Sweet Cider. Looks like you n’ me, we got some rotten luck. Finding each other again, only to have to do this. ‘Cause you see, I don’t want either of us hurting our girls. And to stop what you’ve become, I got to become something just as dangerous.”

He didn’t know if she could even hear him in her current state, and while she didn’t immediately charge him, he did see that she was tensing for it, like a lioness coiling her muscles before springing upon her prey. That was fine. He’d said what he needed to, and now there was just one last thing to say. The first time he’d speak these words, and truly wish he didn’t have to.

”Fade to black; Lamentar.”

The darkness poured from his heart and soul, the black fountain of spirit energy soaring upwards and taking his conscious with it... along with a few stray tears that soon evaporated into nothingness.

----------

If nothing else, finding where her parents went wasn’t hard, especially when an oppressive reiatsu crushed it’s way into Applejack’s senses as a geyser of liquid shadow reached into the sky and began to blanket it. The origin point was a large mountain valley that, even at a distance, Applejack found sparked a familiar memory. She’d been just a girl of maybe six years of age, but she still remembered those peaks, and the brush of yellow flowers over fields of tall, green grass. An old camping spot, where her family had gone once or twice in the height of summer.

She felt Fenice tense her grip around Applejack’s shoulders. The other girl was riding somewhat awkwardly holding onto Applejack’s back, her sword strapped to her own back. The weight was negligible for Applejack, but made flying a bit rough until she learned to compensate for the uneven balance. As soon as she and Fenice had agreed to their plan of action, they’d immediately taken off in pursuit of Hard Nail and Sweet Cider. Faster though the elder Apples might have been, but Applejack was pushing her Fullbring’s flight to its limit, putting the finest man-made jets to shame. If Fenice wasn’t using Fullbring herself to break some of the wind shear and remain more or less stuck to Applejack’s clothing, it’d have been easy for her to get torn off by the speed Applejack was moving at. Nothing Rainbow Dash couldn’t easily blast past, but a respectable effort from the farm girl desperate to catch up to her parents to end this battle before it was too late.

But still not fast enough, judging by that incredibly dense and dark reiatsu she sensed, so potent that it felt like it was choking her.

“Fenice, that what I think it was?” she asked.

Fenice’s dire toned voice shouted over the whipping wind into Applejack’s ear, “It is. Father’s released his Resurreccion. This just got a thousand times harder... but we’re not stopping, right?”

“Ain’t nothin’ stoppin’ us,” Applejack confirmed, eyes narrowing as they neared the valley. They’d be there in less than a minute. Already she could see the pillar of darkness from her father’s transformation slowly fading, although his reiatsu remained as frightfully mind numbing as ever. Yet it didn’t actually overshadow her mother’s at this point, the out of control Sweet Cider’s spiritual pressure seeming like an erupting volcano next to a vast ocean of darkness. Both were equally intimidating, but Applejack pressed on, and soon was angling down towards the valley.

She scanned it, seeking her parents, and in a moment, spotted them both, her mouth going dry.

Her father looked... horrifying. His Resurreccion sent freezing chills right into the marrow of her bones. He hadn’t grown in size or changed even all that drastically, but the wolf-skull mask covering his face, with voids of black where his eyes should be, and the viscous looking horns, combined with onyx clawed hands and feet wielding and equally dark blade, all served to give off an aura of cold remorselessness. Against that cold void her father gave off was Sweet Cider’s vibrantly blazing rage, the oni-like woman going on the attack first as she cratered the ground beneath her in a burst of forceful speed.

The giant blade of Kizuna smashed down, propelled to greater heights of force by rockets of gold energy. The transformed Hard Nail seemed to move like a projector image instantly flicking between one frame and the next, his black blade intercepting Kizuna with one hand.

The clash created a flash of blinding light as both blades and the spirit energies of the two titanic combatants collided. Applejack couldn’t shield her eyes, but did look away as she swiftly banked down harder and came in for a rough landing amidst the pressure wave of air that exploded over the area from her parent’s clash. Fenice hopped off her back and unshouldered her Fullbring, shouting to Applejack.

“Whatever you do, don’t engage father directly! I’m going to try to distract him, while you get your mother’s attention. As soon as we get an opening, I’ll try to latch onto her sword, but I need you to make sure she doesn’t see me coming, or I’m toast!”

“On it!” Applejack said, “Just make sure ya don’t git yerself killed neither, Fenice!”

By now her parents had split off from their clash, only to immediately rush back in at each other. Sweet Cider dragged her blade through the ground, creating a massive fissure and blasting dirt around as if she were dragging the sword through water, swinging it up in a devastating uppercut. Hard Nail moved with the kind of speed and grace that made him seem less like a being of solid matter and more like a living shadow, his sword striking the flat side of Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou as he spun into her blow and used it’s own insane momentum to push it up and over him as he slipped past her reach and instantly slashed his sword across her stomach. Applejack bit back a cry at the sight of her mother’s blood spilling across the green grass of their family’s old campground, but Sweet Cider’s equally insane reiatsu hardened her flesh to the point that even Hard Nail’s strength failed to cause a deep wound.

Not that such a fact stopped him from following his sword strike up with a grab on Sweet Cider’s right arm, which he used to leverage her around into a throw that smashed her into the ground like a wrecking ball, then followed that up with a sweep of his palm that fired an inky black Cero at point blank range.

Golden energy exploded upwards in a sparkling surge from Sweet Cider and her blade as she immediately flipped to her feet and swung Kizuna like a baseball bat, colliding the Zanpaktou against the black Cero. In the resulting clash of energies, winds howled and buffeted both Applejack and Fenice. Shockingly, the Cero was diverted upwards like a jet from a hose being deflected by a hand. The beam still soared into one of the surrounding mountain bases, and drilled into the vast edifice of eons-old stone. The entire valley shook as, a moment later, the void-like Cero exploded out the other side of the mountain and soared up into the sky, leaving a neatly circular hole straight through the entire mountain's length.

It occurred to Applejack just then how insane it really was for her and Fenice to be trying to interfere in this fight, but their course was set and if this was allowed to continue on for very long, one or both of their parents would certainly die their second deaths. Both girls made their move, both trusting the other to do what needed doing even though they’d only just met. For Applejack there was literally no other choice but to trust Fenice, but she felt she could for more than just that. She might not be the Sunset Shimmer that Applejack knew, but some of the fire, pride, and integrity of the Sunset that was Applejack’s friend was there in Fenice. More than that, even as a Hollow, her father had made a family for himself,and if Fenice was a part of that family, then she was Applejack’s family. That alone was enough for Applejack to give her the benefit of the doubt.

Fenice knew that to draw her father’s attention for even a few seconds without being killed would require her to put her Fullbring to the test while being very careful in how she moved, all while not having any actual time to be too cautious. Right now her and Applejack’s only advantage was that their reiatsu was so comparatively low to Hard Nail and Sweet Cider that their presence hadn’t even registered to the two combatants yet.

This allowed Fenice to get into position in a flicker of speed, green motes of Bringer Light appearing around her feet as she zipped from one point to another to get behind her father. Molten light spread across her sword as she swung it around, jets of lava flowing out from the blade to pool in several spots. Focusing, Fenice took control of the lava and directed its shape. Bubbling upwards, the lava took the shape of several rough hands, each about the size of a person. At the same time she swept her sword up and down and from it more magma spurted out to form a growing, semi-circular wall. Immediately Fenice started to circle around to the right side of that wall, while directing the half dozen hands of lava to rush towards her father.

She knew full well that her magma was not powerful enough to pose any real threat to him, but all she wanted was to make him look at something other than Sweet Cider. The wall she’d created was just to mask her own presence as she circled around, hoping to get around towards Sweet Cider while her father paid attention to the lava.

It partially worked. Her father did turn a moment of attention to the hands of lava coming at him. With a blood freezing growl, he made one harsh swipe of his sword and the force of it splattered the lava hands, and a large section of the wall behind them, nearly knocking Fenice off her feet. She rolled with the fall and was back on her feet in an instant, but froze as she realized her father had appeared behind her, having completely bypassed the wall she’d been using for cover with Sonido.

Much as she loved her father, it was impossible not to feel gripped by terror looking into the pits of his eyes as he stared at her.

He started to raise his sword, but Fenice heard a shout from behind her.

“Roarin’ Apple Cannon!”

A thick beam of gold energy cut across Fenice’s vision, impacting dead on with Hard Nail’s chest. The beam of energy splashed upon him like water hosing down a boulder, and with about as much effect. Applejack stood with both hands clasped together, the nozzles on the back of her hands smoking from her combined blast. She could see it did next to nothing to her father, but it did make him look from Fenice, to her.

“You idiot, I told you not to-” Fenice began, but Hard Nail was already moving, having identified a new threat. Applejack couldn’t react at all to the shadow of dark motion that came towards her, only seeing a black blade coming for her throat.

A meteor streak of raging red slammed into Hard Nail from the side. Sweet Cider had gripped him by the side of his wolf mask with a hand and bellowed out an air shaking roar as she slammed him into the ground and proceeded to dig a trench with his head as she charged across the valley, leaving a stunned Applejack blinking.

Applejack shook herself and turned in time to see her father brace himself on her mother’s arm, and kick up with one of his clawed feet, striking her under the chin and launching her into the sky. He vanished instantaneously and appeared above her, thrusting his blade down to try and impale Sweet Cider. She blocked the blow with the flat of Kizuna, preventing herself from being run through, but the impact still drilled her right back down to the ground with a massive impact.

Fenice, having recovered her wits, saw an opportunity while Hard Nail was still in the air and gripped her Fullbring with both hands, holding it up in front of her as she pointed the sword right at her father. Coils of liquid magma blossomed from the sword in a swirling mass, and formed together into a sphere that she then launched at her father. The moment she did so she turned to Applejack and shouted, “Your mother! Now!”

Sweet Cider was standing up from the fresh crater her body had made in the ground, and her eyes were focused exclusively on Hard Nail. Applejack saw the opening, especially as Hard Nail turned towards the sphere of lava flying at him and responded with another casual sword swipe that broke the sphere apart like a bubble. But it did cost him a second where he wasn’t looking at anything else.

Fenice and Applejack both moved as one. Applejack appeared in front of her mother, her jaw clenched tight as she braced her leg back and the armor across that limb crackled with golden power. “Eyes on me, ma! Time ta clear yer head!”

Rocket jets of energy flared along both the front and back of her legs, and Applejack launched into a blazing series of machine gun swift kicks to her mother’s chest and face. It felt like kicking a condensed block of solid metal, harder than any steel. Sweet Cider absorbed the blows with almost insulting ease, and Applejack looked into her mother’s crazed eyes with an imploring look of her own. She felt her mother’s fist strike her gut well before she even registered her mother’s movement. Spittle and blood flew from Applejack’s mouth as she felt like she been speared through, almost afraid that maybe her mother had impaled her with a fist. It certainly felt like it, but as she collapsed to the ground, she realized her stomach was still intact, the blow had simply knocked her up into the air. Well, that and probably broken every one of Applejack’s ribs and possibly caused other internal damage.

Applejack hit the ground in a heap, with her mother standing over her. Her mother raised her sword to strike, even as Applejack spat up more blood and said, “Ma... that’s right, eyes on me...”

Which meant that Fenice was able to spring in from behind and grip Kizuna with both hands, having stabbed her own Fullbring into the ground so she could grab the Zanpaktou solidly. Sweet Cider glanced over her shoulder, about to turn around and smash this other irritant that had appeared, but with contact already made, Fenice didn’t even need an extra second. Green Bringer Light flowed around her, her hands, and into Kizuna as Fenice poured her power into the Zanpaktou, and took hold of the other, errant Fullbring that was fused into the Soul Reaper’s blade.

In that instant, everything slowed to a still moment of time, and within Kizuna...

----------

The inner world of Kizuna was once an idyllic appearing village set upon a pristine mountain peak. Although always empty, the village had the sensations of a lived in place, with fresh laundry hanging from clotheslines strung between windows, and freshly baked meals sitting upon tables as if just waiting for families to appear.

Yet now the village looked like a bombed out ruin, flames still licking at the last skeletal remains of homes and thick smoke darkening the sky. Rubble was strewn everywhere, alongside craters from recent impacts. The source of these craters became readily apparent as Sweet Cider was thrown through the remains of one of the crushed homes to hit the ground hard and create yet another small crater amid what was left of the village roads.

She was bloody and battered, one eye swollen shut, but despite it being obvious that she’d been taking a beating, she still forced herself to stand and locked determined eyes upon her target. She didn’t know how long she’d been at this. Inside her Zanpaktou’s inner world, it felt like days, but on the outside she knew it might only have been minutes. Even one was a minute she didn’t think she had time to spare. When she’d felt her control of Kizuna slipping due to her Fullbring’s intermingling with her Zanpaktou spirit she knew she had to take action, so she’d dived into Kizuna’s inner world to confront her sword’s spirit directly.

She’d been getting her butt kicked ever since.

“Knew you were a’ stubborn blade, but ya sure ain’t pullin’ yer punches on me, are ya?” she muttered as she wiped some of the blood from her face and readied herself, fists up.

Shaking the ground with every stomp of her feet, Kizuna stalked through the ruins towards Sweet Cider, her towering, muscular body like an exaggerated mirror to Sweet Cider’s own amazonian frame. The oni-like spirit was covered in spiked, stone chains that seemed to sprout from the ground and wrap around Kizuna’s arms, legs, and buxom torso, but they didn’t appear to restrain the Zanpaktou spirit so much as agitate her to further heights of fury. Kizuna held a spiked club in an iron grip, growling incoherently at Sweet Cider as she swung it back in preparation to attack.

As the club smashed down, Sweet Cider vanished with Flash Step, getting behind Kizuna as the oni added another crater to the landscape. Sweet Cider got her arms wrapped around Kizuna’s waist and attempted to rear back to suplex the oni, but the Zanpaktou spirit planted her feet like a professional wrestler and twisted around so she was able to ram an elbow into the side of Sweet Cider’s head, knocking her aside.

Sweet Cider kept her feet under her and spat out blood from the side of her mouth as she grimaced and came back at Kizuna, fist swinging out with a haymaker blow to the oni’s face, “Dang it ya boneheaded kitchen knife! Stop fightin’ me already! Can’t ya see yer not thinkin’ straight?”

She’d already tried attacking the stone chains earlier, but even if she was able to rip one or two off of Kizuna, more just sprung from the ground to replace the broken ones. The problem was that Sweet Cider had no precedence for this kind of situation. She knew how to use her Fullbring from when she’d been alive, but she’d never had to do anything complex with it during her Xcution days. She could feel the Fullbring’s energy entwined with Kizuna’s spirit, and could even touch that energy like she used to, but she couldn’t figure out how to pull it free of Kizuna. It was like trying to figure out how to separate oil from water once the two were poured into the same bowl. Sure, they were technically different, and not mixing well, but how did you get the oil out of the water?

Her hammering punch struck with a shockwave of force, and even drove Kizuna back several steps, but the oni’s berserk stamina was boundless and she came back at Sweet Cider with a tempest of swings from her massive club. Sweet Cider dodged several of the swings, but then stepped into one overhanded swing and caught the club with her hands. Sweet Cider’s muscles strained against that of the oni’s as both tested their might against each other.

Then, to Sweet Cider’s surprise, Kizuna let out a surprised grunt and stumbled back. For a moment Sweet Cider didn’t know what had happened, until she saw that Kizuna had dropped her club and was gripping her head between her hands, shaking her head around. Wisps of green light were appearing around the stone chains, and Sweet Cider felt a foreign spiritual energy entering the inner world.

“What n’ the world...?” Sweet Cider breathed, watching as the green motes of light, Bringer Light she now recognized it as, began to flit and coil around the stone chains.

Then the entire inner world began to shake. The ground split as fissures formed in a spreading web of cracks around Kizuna. Sweet Cider stepped back, then leaped aside as one of the fissures ran by her. Brighter, more intense green light flowed up out of the earthen cracks, and the stone chains around Kizuna began to transmute into similar light, joining the greater streams flowing up into the sky.

To Sweet Cider’s senses, it felt like something or someone had reached into her inner world and was taking hold of her Fullbring, and if she hadn’t missed her guess it was another Fullbringer doing it! But this wasn’t Applejack’s spiritual pressure, and it didn’t feel like any of her daughter’s friends, either. Then who was doing this?

Whoever it was, they’d just done her a huge favor, because the moment the chains of stone had been pulled away from Kizuna, the oni’s bulky frame sank to the ground, her hands still clutching her head. Sweet Cider watched as the green light in the sky amassed into a sphere, then she felt the energy of her Fullbring being drawn forcibly out of her Zanpaktou. Yet this wasn’t nearly as destructive as she might have feared, and if anything Sweet Cider was both amazed and deeply concerned by what was happening.

It wasn’t as if she hadn’t asked Starswirl about ways to extract her Fullbring from Kizuna, but the Twelfth Division Captain had said he’d need to take things slowly on figuring out how to do that. If one of the Soul Reaper’s greatest scientific minds wanted to take time on doing something, Sweet Cider assumed it wasn’t the kind of thing that could be done easily. Granted that didn’t mean that whoever was doing this was having an easy time of it. If anything the way the ground kept shaking and the sensation of tension in the air suggested this extraction was taking a toll both on Kizuna and on the person performing this feat.

It was more that this was possible at all that concerned Sweet Cider, because if she thought about it logically there was no way her daughter or any of her friends could pull this off. Their Fullbrings were subtly different than the ones Sweet Cider and her own friends had used in Xcution, intertwined as it was with the magic from Equestria. There didn’t seem to be any magic involved with this, just... a great deal more experience with Fullbring than either Sweet Cider or her daughter’s friends had.

So who could possibly know so much about Fullbring a to be able to do this, and were they an ally, or an enemy?

“Grrruuu...”

A groan drew Sweet Cider’s attention away from her thoughts and to her Zanpaktou spirit. Kizuna was now just rubbing her head with one hand as she lumbered to her feet, eyes blinking blearily as she looked around at the ruined village, then at Sweet Cider.

“What the hell happened?” grumbled the oni, “Feel like I’m going to hurl after a week long bender...”

Sweet Cider blew out a sigh that was half relief, half consternation as she approached Kizuna and slapped a hand on the oni’s shoulder, “Nevermind that! We’re n’ a serious pickle, an’ I’m gonna need yer strength! Ya still up fer a brawl?”

Ever a simple soul, Kizuna didn’t need very long to crack a toothy grin and roll her shoulders with audible, popping noises, “Like you have to ask. Don’t know why, but I’m still feeling kind of pissed off about something, but I can’t remember what. But weird thing is, I’m also feeling real clear headed, like I just woke up after a long ass nap. So who’s head are we crushing?”

The last thing Sweet Cider clearly remembered she was still facing off with her husband, but no telling if that was still the case. “Don’t know, but let’s find out.”

She offered Kizuna a hand, and the oni gripped it with fierce strength, and Sweet Cider let her consciousness rise upward out of the Zanpaktou’s inner world and return to the physical.

----------

Applejack was trying to get her arms under her enough to lift herself back up, despite the churning pain in her chest. The fact that she could move at all was a good enough sign in her book, but a feeling of ice on her spine caused her to look up. What little distraction had been caused by Fenice’s lava sphere was now gone as her father had now appeared on the ground no more than a few steps away from her, Sweet Cider, and Fenice.

Applejack looked up at Hard Nail’s face, who’s black eyes stared back without expression.

“...Pa...” she managed to croak out, forcing herself to get her legs under her, managing to get up to one knee, “Pa... can’t ya... tell who I am?”

There was no reason to think he would. Fenice had said he was completely without the ability to tell friend from foe in this state, and he’d been having a hard enough time acknowledging his memories of his human family even before transforming. But there wasn’t much else Applejack could do except make a verbal plea. Even if she wasn’t injured, her full strength wasn’t anywhere near close enough to stop her father.

He took a step forward, almost as if he wasn’t in any kind of rush, and Applejack said, “An’ what ‘bout Fenice!? Ain’t she family ta ya now, too? Whatever power yer drownin’ in, can ya really accept it if ya hurt yer own kin?”

He stopped, and for a second Applejack thought she might have actually reached him, but then her father raised his left hand and pointed a claw towards her. A singular speck of darkness started to form into a larger sphere of destructive spirit energy, overshadowing Applejack’s features.

Then green light flowed over Sweet Cider’s Zanpaktou, and the rock that had spread across both it and Sweet Cider’s body flashed green and was pulled away like taffy being stretched out. The light pooled in Fenice’s hands and she let out a shout as she stumbled back away from Sweet Cider, and the light solidified into the shape of a large, double-edged sword formed from craggy rock. It was a little wider, but a bit shorter in length when compared to Fenice’s blade, but both looked like they were of similar heft. Applejack could feel the energy of the sword, and knew this had to be her mother’s Fullbring, now separated from Kizuna.

Speaking of Kizuna, the moment Sweet Cider’s Fullbring was pulled out of it, the massive blade of bronze began to form cracks along its surface. Gold light poured from those cracks, while her mother’s body lost the horn that had appeared on her head. While this was happening, Hard Nail adjusted the aim of his pointed finger upward, seeming to recognize Sweet Cider as the real threat. Without hesitation her mother took up her cracking sword and stepped right in the path of the beam that Hard Nail was about to discharge, standing between him and Applejack.

Kizuna swung just as the black beam fired, and for a moment all Applejack could see was darkness intermixing with a blinding flash of gold light.

When the light faded and Applejack could see again, she saw that her father’s Cero had demolished a wide swath of the valley to either side of herself, her mother, and Fenice who was just a little ways behind them. Sweet Cider stood before her, and Hard Nail had jumped back a fair distance, possibly on reflex to assess the new threat before him.

In Sweet Cider’s hands were her Zanpaktou, but it wasn’t quite the same Kizuna as before.

It was still an unbelievable massive blade of shining bronze, but rather than its rough, barely shaped form of uneven metal the Zanpaktou now bore a smooth and tempered surface. It still possessed two edges, but it was slightly curved upward towards the tip, with the inward edge slightly thicker than the outward. The sword was positively brimming with spirit energy, raw golden light moving like rivers across its surface. Applejack could feel her mother’s reiatsu like a warm light on her skin. It was as powerful as ever, but now it was stable and steady.

“M-ma? Ya... alright?” Applejack said, and her mother glanced back at her in surprise.

“Hayseed? Ah hell, shoulda known ya’d come runnin’ even if I told ya ta stay put with yer friends. Just sit tight, n’ let me handle this.”

“Wait!” Applejack said, trying to stand, and finding she could barely keep herself up on one knee. Her mother, finally seeing the state of Applejack’s injuries, grit her teeth.

“Was it me or yer pa that did that ta ya? Dangnabbit, I’m sorry Applejack, I know I promised ya we’d take care o’ this together, but I had no notion yer pa had become so damn strong,” Sweet Cider said, keeping one eye on Hard Nail, who hadn’t immediately resumed his attacks and was instead carefully observing them, like a predator trying to size up another predator.

“That ain’t what matters,” Applejack said, “Ma, listen ta me, we gotta git goin’! Fenice says if we split, then pa won’t keep attackin’ an’ he’ll eventually calm back down.”

“Fenice? That the one over there that looks like yer pal Sunset?” Sweet Cider said, flicking a brief look towards Fenice, “You, girl, you who I got ta thank fer yanking my Fullbring free o’ Kizuna?”

“Y-yeah,” Fenice said, retrieving her own Fullbring as fast as she could and rushing up to the pair, “And your daughter’s telling the truth. If we can get away from my father, he’ll eventually go back to normal.”

Sweet Cider’s expression grew grim as Hard Nail started to move towards them with stalking steps, “Hate ta say it, but don’t think he’s gonna let us go that easy. Just hand me Hearthstone.”

“Is that your Fullbring’s name?” Fenice said, but didn’t wait for an answer before handing the rock blade to Sweet Cider, who gripped it in her left hand while wielding Kizuna in her right hand. The two humongous swords looked completely unbalanced and impossible to dual wield, yet somehow Sweet Cider hefted both with seeming ease.

“Ma, we got ta stop pa without killin’ him. He’s... got a different family now.”

“I know, hayseed, I know. Look, just leave this ta me. Fenice, yer one o’ Hard Nails adopted kids? Can ya keep Applejack safe while I knock some sense inta my husband?”

“I’ll try.”

Sweet Cider nodded at the girl’s words, then turned her full attention to Hard Nail. There was hardly a moment’s pause before the pair disappeared from sight, only to blink back into view while their blades flashed like a field of sparkling stars between them. Hard Nail had already possessed a speed advantage, which was only higher now in his Resurrection form, but now wielding two swords Sweet Cider had a wider range to both defend and attack, and if anything Kizuna was lighter in her hands than the Zanpaktou had ever been. That was because before now, the intermingling of her Fullbring with Kizuna had been preventing the Zanpaktou from forming a true Shikai, only able to manifest a rougher form. Now the bond between Soul Reaper and Zanpaktou was complete and the spirit energy could flow more freely between them.

While this also meant the extra well of spirit energy from Sweet Cider’s Fullbring was no longer part of Kizuna, the Fullbring itself remained a part of Sweet Cider, and she could wield Hearthstone alongside Kizuna without fear.

Even facing her husband’s full power, Sweet Cider didn’t back down an inch, and her swords spun in a whirling storm of blows as she tried to hammer past Hard Nail’s incredibly swift and deadly defenses. The pair criss-crossed the valley, blowing clouds of flowers in the wake of their motions as they exchanged blows at such dizzying speed that for a moment it looked like the valley was being subjected to a hurricane.

Applejack watched, Fenice kneeling by her side as both girls were buffeted by the winds of their parent’s battle. Applejack’s hands were clenched tight to the point of pain. Though her body hurt, her heart was suffering worse. Even with her mother back to normal, not much was different from a few minutes ago. She was still stuck watching her mother and father fight.

“I gotta do somethin’...” she said, and Fenice gripped her shoulder tightly.

“Don’t be stupid. We were lucky to pull off freeing your mother without getting killed. If father won’t let us flee, our only shot is hoping your mother can win without killing him.”

“That’s just it,” Applejack said, clenching her jaw tightly against the pain as she poured all her strength into getting herself standing again. Fenice looked at her with sweat soaked, worried features. Applejack looked back at her as another shockwave from their parent’s clashing blades washed over them, billowing her hair into her face and nearly knocking her stetson off her head.

“I don’t know that she can, an’ I didn’t come this far ta just let her shoulder all the burden by herself. I promised her, an’ she promised me, that we’d set my pa’s soul ta rest together, the way it’s supposed ta be ‘tween Apples. I thought that’d mean havin’ ta say goodbye ta my pa fer good...”

She took a hand and laid it over Fenice’s, “Now I know that while my pa might’ve changed, he’s still a’ good man. Hollow or not, he’s my pa, an’ I got a whole other family I need ta meet now. Far as I’m concerned, yer all Apples, an’ it’s time I brought pa home ta all o’ us.”

She’d been holding in the fear of facing her father and what she’d have to do ever since she’d learned the truth about what had happened to his soul after death. But she couldn’t let herself fall to that fear when she saw that her father was still in so much confusion and pain himself. That Resurreccion form told it all, really. He buried himself in regrets, and let it blind his mind, because he was terrified of losing his family a second time. Fear was anathema to the truth, making people hide from what they really felt, or really wanted to do, or knew they had to do but were scared to. Applejack had been afraid of facing her father since the very moment she realized she and her mother would eventually have to do so. And he was so afraid of losing family that he’d willingly lose himself in darkness just to have the kind of strength that supposedly couldn’t be beaten.

Applejack didn’t know if she’d live through the next few minutes, but she did know that she’d never live with herself if she didn’t live those minutes as honestly with herself as possible. As an Apple, together with her family, both human and Hollow.

With those feelings filling her, she forced her wounded body to move, one step at a time, towards the battle ahead. As she did so, the armored gauntlets and leg guards of her Fullbring began to shimmer with heat, pure white steam rising from the armor’s metal surface. Her heart beat stronger with every step, the pain fading to give way to a sensation of growing heat and pressure in her chest that seemed to pulse in time with her heart.

Fenice’s eyes shot wide, because she was familiar with what was happening, and knew she had to act.

As Applejack’s Fullbring started to shine with an intense inner light, as if the metal was being heated within a forge, and the metal started to run to liquid, Fenice ran up and placed a hand on Applejack’s back. She winced as her palm was seared by the heat that was now coming off the farm girl’s very skin, but she had to maintain contact as she helped control and suppress the explosive spiritual energy that was building up inside Applejack.

For Applejack herself, there was no controlling what happened next. Her back arched suddenly as a fountain of energy like molten gold burst out of her chest. Her gauntlets and leg guards melted further, turning to liquid gold that joined the stream coming from Applejack’s heart. Steam blasted forth from every pore, the heat surrounding Applejack drying out the grass around her and causing it to catch fire. The golden energy flowing from her formed into a churning cauldron of shining liquid gold above her, which then undulated with power and started to surge in portions back towards Applejack.

Fenice, knowing she’d suppressed the violent part of the power explosion, managed to leap back in time to avoid further harm besides a few extra burns, and watched as the liquid gold turned into multiple streams that flowed onto Applejack from multiple angles.

The gauntlets and leg armor were reformed, but this time they were significantly more intricate and form fitting in their formation, almost like a second skin across the girl’s limbs. In fact the gold was now covering Applejack’s whole body save for her head, flowing over her chest, stomach, and rear to take the shape of bright, near perfectly form fitting golden armor. The Fullbring’s slight skull motif from its earlier forms remained, but were smoothed out to intricate etchings along the back of the hands and shoulder guards, alongside the faintest circular ports that indicated the parts of the armor that would still open up for jets of energy. In fact there seemed to be more of these ports, located all across the arms, legs, back, and even the chest area, only faintly visible on the otherwise smooth, gold metal.

A golden band formed around Applejack’s stetson, with an upward formed circle in the center that was vaguely apple shaped. On her back the gold transmuted into the form of a long, white cape that was attached smoothly across the back and shoulder guards.

But it wasn’t over, even with the armor fully formed over Applejack’s body. She stepped forward and seemingly on instinct, raised her hand. The cauldron of gold energy above her then began to condense and reshape itself, steam flowing from it as it went from gold colored light to a more deep orange, then a bronze color that was rather akin to the color of Kizuna.

Like a hunk of ore being hammered into shape, the energy solidified and as more steam billowed off of it, it cooled into a metallic sheen. What descended into Applejack’s waiting hand might have been called a ‘lance’, but that word didn’t really do the weapon any level of justice.

First of all, it was larger than any proper lance had the right to be, as if not meant to be held by a human sized person. It just seemed the Apple family favored giant weapons. Next, the main portion of the lance was formed from two pieces that bore deep, helical grooves along their length that extended from the pointed tip to the ever widening base, giving the lance an appearance closer to a giant twist drill than a knightly weapon. Moreover, the two portions were already slowly spinning, the tip portion turning in the opposite way as the wider back portion, and steam kept pouring from the joints between the two drill parts. These in turn connected to a conical back housing that looked almost shield-like, and was attached to a mechanism of cylindrical shape that was reminiscent of some massive revolver chamber, an image only added to by the fact that the handle of the lance clearly had a side handle of it’s own with an obvious trigger.

Altogether the weapon looked huge, unwieldy, and terribly blunt.

In other words; perfect for Applejack. She held it as if she was made for it, and it for her.

With that weapon in hand, and her Fullbring truly and fully completed, Applejack barely noticed the pain that was still present in her body. The broken ribs were still there, of course. Her injuries hadn’t vanished. But the golden armor of her Fullbring extended into her body, forming around her very bones, keeping them together despite the breaks. Spirit energy and adrenaline would keep her going despite the rest of her wounds, at least she hoped.

And even if they didn’t, she’d last long enough to finish things.

It was time for the Apple family to become whole again.

Author's Notes:

And with this, four of the five of Sunset's friends have completed their Fullbrings. Jus leaves Pinkie Pie to go. Ironic, given she was the first to evolve her Fullbring to the mid-level. With Applejack's armor, it's a bit inspired by the Gold Cloths from Saint Seiya, but the weapon is it's own thing, and we'll be seeing just what it can do soon enough. Really I have no idea why this chapter got as long as it did, just had a lot of things to get to for a chapter that is almost 100% focused on the Apples here. This has been a long time coming. Weird to think that one of the major reasons I even came up with "Fenice" aka human Sunset Shimmer as a character is because I both wanted one of Lament's adopted children here for this fight, but also needed a Fullbringer present to handle Applejack's power reaching it's final stage. She's been basically hanging out doing her own thing with the Adagio storyline up until now, but she was put into the story largely for this purpose.

Whew, at any rate, thank you all for reading and hope you're all still enjoying the story. As always you folks feel free to leave me any comments, questions, or critiques you like. I highly appreciate all feedback I get. 'Till next time.

Episode 115: The Bigger Picture

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Episode 115: The Bigger Picture

Discord wet his parched throat with tea that Screwloose had just finished serving. No one else except for Soft Spoken had taken the tea, and Fluttershy’s mother’s hands shook as she held the cup to her lips and sipped without taking her eyes off of Discord. Everyone was silent. Screwball, sitting cross legged at one side of the overcrowded lounge, coughed.

“So...” Discord said to the gathered families of the girl’s whose lives he’d assisted in irrevocably changing, and the mothers whom he’d done the same with, “Any questions?”

He’d just finished a rather laborious explanation of the events of the past two months, sparing only a few details here and there for expediency’s sake. By the expressions he was getting, the reception to the truth was... mixed.

“I wouldn’t have believed any of this if I hadn’t watched Cloudy’s daughter literally punch a monster with a set of stone knuckles she conjured out of a rock,” Rarity’s father, Magnum, said while rubbing his head with one hand. The burly, beige fellow with shoulder length brown hair an exceedingly well groomed mustache, sporting one of the most tacky Hawaiian shirts Discord had ever seen, had spent the entire time listening to Discord’s explanation of events with eyes that bespoke of a mind trying very hard to digest what it was hearing. “But you have to know how hard it is to swallow all of this, right?”

“I would have had difficulty as well had my family not already been attacked,” Igneous Pie said, a dark, wide brimmed hand wringing in his hands as he looked at his three present daughters. Limestone rubbed her arms and looked at the floor, face the definition of sour, while next to her Marble touched her sister’s shoulder comfortingly. Maud had transformed her pet rock, Boulder, from it’s spiked knuckle form back into that of a rock, and was stroking it affectionately.

“Who cares who believes what?” said Cookie Crumbles, Rarity’s mother having nervously drawn a cigarette from a breast pocket of her bright red blouse, her fourth since Discord had begun explaining what her daughter had been up to with her friends, “What I want to know is what gave you the right to keep the truth from us? The moment our children got involved, you should have told us!”

“I didn’t want to endanger you,” Discord replied, although he knew it was a weak response, even as he said it, “Your memories had been sealed, along with your powers. Telling you would have only increased the dangers.”

“Well what’s changed, then?” Cookie Crumbles demanded, “Why tell us now instead of then? Looks to me from what we saw happening in the city that things are even more dangerous than before. If I’d known something like this could happen I could have taken my family somewhere safer! Moved upstate to my parents for a while until this insanity blew over!”

“Get your head screwed on straight, piglet,” Screwloose said sharply, “That’s why he’s telling you all now! Before all this the danger was low enough we figured you could keep living your lives normally. We didn’t know just how bad things were going to get. Now that things have gotten real, yeah, we’re spilling the beans, because there’s zero chance of any of you living normally from now on. Get it? There’s no going back to your quiet suburban lives. Even if you’d moved somewhere else, this would’ve come crashing down on your heads sooner or later.”

“Screwloose...” Discord said, and the woman quieted down, but her face was still tinged red with anger.

“What does she mean by that?” asked Cloudy Quartz in a quiet yet firm tone. She’d maintained a steady, calm attitude so far, and this remained the case now. She sat next to her husband like a rooted tree of stability amid the uncertain atmosphere of the rest of the room.

“Well, the problem is that now with your other children developing Fullbring powers, it’s impossible to keep this matter contained,” Disord replied, “As long as it was just your daughters and Sunset Shimmer, there was a chance of keeping things from spilling over into their regular lives. That’s no longer possible. Too many eyes watching this city, and I don’t have the power to keep a lid on this enchilada of chaos any longer, especially with the factions engaging in more open battles around here. Keeping you all from being targeted would be next to impossible, even for a man of my talents. So, the only solution was to not even try. To tell you the full truth, offer to restore your memories and powers, and circle the wagons.”

Suddenly Scootaloo’s aunt Lofty blew out a laugh. She’d forgone the tea and instead had asked Ditzy if the shop had any beer, which Ditzy happily provided to any of the adults wanting some, which turned out to be herself, Lofty, and strangely Fluttershy’s father, Gentle Breeze.

“That’s why we’re here too, isn’t it?” Lofty said, “Scootaloo wouldn’t stand to be separated from her friends, so you want us Bount in on this... circling of the wagons, was it?”

Discord held up his hands in mock surrender, “Got it in one. I didn’t see any point in trying to keep Scootaloo away from the friends she’d made, so it was inevitable our two groups would need to join hands. I know you all prefer to stay out of things, and I understand why, but much like with everyone else here, that isn’t really possible anymore.”

“That’s fine by me,” said Holiday, leaning against Lofty, seemingly among the more relaxed individuals in the room at that moment, “I was getting a tad tired hiding out anyway, and I get the feeling my brother and his wife will feel the same way.”

“How soon can they be here?” Discord asked, and Holiday tapped a finger to her lips in thought.

“A week, tops, but if they know their little girl is in danger, I can lay a safe bet they’ll show up a lot sooner.”

“Sorry ta butt in here, but just who’re ya’ll suppose ta be again anyhows?” asked Granny Smith, licking her lips like she was about to spit, “I already got a solid reckonin’ on our stakes n’ this hootenanny, but what’s my grand daughter’s friend got ta do with any o’ this?”

Discord had avoided discussing the Bounts, as it wasn’t his business to divulge, but now Lofty leaned forward and fixed Granny with a frank stare.

“We’re not strictly human, and that's about all you need to know for now. Soul Society hunts us, so we’ve stayed hidden,” she eyed Discord then, “I assume you’ve got a plan for dealing with that if we join forces with you? What’s going to stop any Soul Reaper from coming here to take us out?”

“Let’s just say we’ve got info that’ll shake up the Gotei 13 enough that the Bounts won’t even be a blip on their radar by comparison,” said Ditzy Doo, who’d taken to standing by the lounge’s doorway, pacing around like a stalking jungle cat with nervous energy, “And even if someone did try to come after you, if you’re under our protection then you’d have me, Discord, and those girls on your side to protect you.”

Holiday gave Ditzy a questioning look, “I have a fair idea of how strong you and Discord are, but are those girls really strong enough to be a deterrent against Soul Society trying to hurt my family?”

A cracked smile, sporting his characteristic snaggle-tooth, hit Discord’s face as he leaned forward, “They’re that strong and more. Their potential still has yet to truly reveal itself, and when it does I don’t think anyone with two active brain cells will take them lightly.”

“Our kids?” Soft Spoken said, Fluttershy’s mother holding her husband’s hand tightly, “Just because they inherited some strange power from us after you... um... made us into those Fullbring things? I’m, um, sorry Mr. Discord, but I don’t know if I like where all of this seems to be going. It’s like you’re saying we don’t have any choice but to accept our children fighting in a war we have no say in. K-kinda like before when we were that Xcution group. Didn’t we all get out of it because we didn’t want to fight anymore...?”

“Y-yeah!” piped in Zephyr Breeze, who’s eyes had a haggard, trapped animal look about them as he ran a hand through his straw colored hair, “Like, dude, why’s my sis got to fight anyone? I know Flutters, and my little sis wouldn’t hurt a mosquito if it was literally biting her while infected with malaria. This is all so totally messed up!”

“Oh, you won’t hear an argument from me that this situation is ‘messed up’, my boy,” Discord said, and he then turned to gaze at each set of parents in turn, “I want all of you to understand I didn’t want things to get to this point, but now that they are, your options are limited. I won’t tell you what you can or can’t do, but you need to understand the situation in full before deciding. The attack on the city today might only be one of many. Those that have an interest in your daughters, and by extension you and the rest of your families, have the power to find you wherever you might seek to hide in this world. Even so, I’d do all in my power to find safe places for you to hide and start over, if that’s what you choose, but you’d never be able to stop hiding.”

He closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat, taking off his green and white striped hat and setting it aside before opening his eyes again. It wasn’t often he felt old, but looking at the uneasy and frightened faces of the people in the room definitely tugged that sensation in his bones that said he’d been at this for far too long. It was especially draining to look upon Soft Spoken, Cookie Crumbles, and Cloudy Quartz. While he’d failed to protect Sweet Cider, and Firefly had slipped away from him, he’d at least hoped to spare these three any more heartache or burdens. He’d owed them a normal life, after the things he’d put them through. And knowing now that he had to take that normal life away, that their only real chance at survival, at their family’s survival, was to jump back into the fire... Discord felt a twisted sensation of self-loathing at knowing that was the only real course ahead of them.

Some master planner he was. What good was having plans for every contingency when things always seemed to end up in the same place? But that was the cynical side of him talking. If watching Sunset Shimmer and her friend’s growth over the past couple of months proved anything to him it was that cynical predictions still didn’t hold a candle to the chaotic element that was the human spirit. Just as those girls kept managing to surprise him, he didn’t doubt the family’s they came from had that same spark.

“On the other hand,” he said, “You could choose to protect your families and the lives you’ve made for yourselves here with your own power. Soft Spoken, Cloudy Quartz, Cookie Crumbles, I’m not telling you to fight. I’m asking if you want to fight. I can restore the powers that were sealed, and the memories of how to use them. I can also make sure your children who manifest Fullbring have the training they need to protect themselves. Together, all of us can form a united front against future dangers. No hiding. No running.”

A heavy silence filled the room after his words, and he could see the looks of uncertainty and questioning doubt passing over many of the faces before him.

It was a rather unexpected voice that broke that silence.

“Mmm.. I... want to help Pinkie...”

All eyes turned to Marble Pie, who looked like a rabbit ready to flee from an army of hungry foxes at those stares, but the girl gulped and managed to force more words out, “She’s... been fighting for us all this time. B-both her and Pinkamena. I... want to help them. Please, mom, dad... if we have the strength we should help.”

She was trembling with the effort of speaking so many words, but suddenly a big red hand patted her shoulder and she nearly jumped to look up at Big Mac, who’d come to stand next to her.

“Yer right,” he told her, and Marble Pie’s face turned beet red as the farm boy looked at Granny Smith, “We’d ain’t been able ta do nothin’ while Applejack an’ her friends keep riskin’ their lives fer us an’ everyone else in the city. So I say enough's enough! I ain’t runnin’. I want ta help fight fer my home. So if I got some hidden power n’ me like Applejack, I want ta use it!”

“...Bic Mac,” Granny Smith said, hanging her head, “Shoulda figured yer parents fightin’ spirit weren’t just in yer sis. Welp... ain’t like i ever balked at a’ fight, especially fer the sake o’ family an’ our land.”

Quietly, Igneous Pie and Cloudy Quartz exchanged looks, and a fire lit up in Cloudy Quartz eyes as her husband gave her a solemn nod.

“I think we’re in agreement with the Apple family,” Cloudy said, “I don’t want to flee with my family alone. I think we are all in this together.”

“Much like a formation of rock strata the pressures of our environment are capable of pressing us together into a uniform pattern,” Maud Pie said, “To which the capacity to resist outside forces increases proportionally to the density of the formation. Ergo, Boulder and I wish to contribute to the fight.”

“Ugh! I guess I do too!” Limestone said, smacking a fist into her palm, “But I better get a really useful power out of this! I am not letting myself get kidnapped again!”

“Are you sure about this Cloudy?” asked Cookie Crumbles, “Can we really do this? What if someone gets hurt?”

“I think that might happen anyway,” Soft Spoken answered before Cloudy Quartz could, wringing her hands together, but taking deep breaths as her husband hugged her, “I’m terrified what might be happening to my daughter, or any of yours, right now. But I don’t think we can afford to do nothing, and I don’t think running away will work. I wish it would, but...”

Soft Spoken looked at Discord, and he could see her dredging up her courage to ask, “How... how fast can you give us our powers back?”

His answer was short and simple, “Fast.”

----------

Keeping her distance from Starswirl, Twilight Sparkle carefully watched both him and the floating cubes that comprised his Bankai. He had yet to make a move, but it had only been a minute since he’d activated his Bankai, so it was possible that it had an ability that required time to charge up. That, or he simply was unconcerned with what she would do and hence was allowing her to make the first move. Given the relaxed stance of the Soul Reaper Captain and the way he was also carefully observing her suggested to Twilight that he simply wasn’t in a rush.

I’m starting to hate this guy, said Midnight in her head, her voice seething, Look at him, like he doesn’t have a care in the world! Let’s hit him with something nasty this time, Twilight. No more pussyfooting around!

She could all but read Midnight’s thoughts. The more magic she used, the closer their minds grew together, so it was easy to see the list of potentially agonizing spells that Midnight wanted to throw at Starswirl, including spells literally designed to do nothing but cause writhing agony in the target. Twilight forced those thoughts away and mentally shook her head at Midnight.

We can’t afford to act carelessly. We don’t know what his Bankai’s power is, and if we throw magic around recklessly or attack without a plan, we’ll lose the moment we act.

Not acting isn’t a plan, Midnight spat back, If we just sit here looking at him, he’ll get bored and attack first, and then we’ll lose the initiative. So if you don’t do something soon, I will!

Twilight couldn’t deny that Midnight had a point. She couldn’t just watch him forever. But how should she approach this? She’d hoped to pick up some clue about his Bankai by observing it, but so far the cubes hadn’t done anything other than float there... ominously. From what Twilight had been taught in the Academy, a Soul Reaper’s Bankai was like a powerful extension of their Shikai. The basic power shouldn’t change that much, in theory, just be highly amplified and have additional abilities related to the original. So if his Shikai could produce any chemical known to Starswirl, then did that mean these cubes could produce more than just chemicals? She couldn’t afford to waste too much time speculating on the matter, so Twilight decided to do what any good scientist would; experiment.

She chose one of the larger cubes and snapped off a shot, sending a reishi arrow streaking towards it. She hadn’t infused any magic into the arrow, so it was a plain, blue bolt of reishi that struck the cube dead on. Starswirl hadn’t tried to maneuver the cube out of the way, although Twilight didn’t know if that was because he couldn’t, or because he didn’t care about her attacking the cubes. Either way, the moment her arrow hit, Twilight activated the Variable, channeling her reishi into the cube to drastically alter the variance of gravity upon it. Specifically, amplifying the effect of the cube’s mass by several factors.

Predictably, the cube began to fall from the sky, and she noticed Starswirl give her a nod, almost like one of her professors acknowledging her answer on a test question. Why did that not at all comfort her?

“A good first attempt,” Starswirl said, “Indeed if this works, you could theoretically immobilize all of the cubes, thus nullifying my Bankai without having to expend much effort. Unfortunately for you, this is not the case.”

He’d been holding a small cube in the palm of his hand since his Bankai’s activation, and Twilight saw him move his thumb dexterously over one side of the cube, which lit up with a faint white light. The larger cube she’d shot also lit up, and it’s fall immediately halted. Twilight saw a circular aura of light emanating in a ring shaped pattern from the bottom of the cube. She suspected this was creating a counter force to the increased effect of gravity.

So the cubes could emit force? Starswirl looked at her with an expectant gaze.

“I should probably provide a more active demonstration. Watch carefully, Miss Sparkle. You saw my Zanpaktou’s ability to create chemicals already, and that basic principle hasn’t changed. The difference is that the range of production has expanded to include reishi particles, with a vast increase in the volume and speed of production. You should be familiar with the concept, since it is not dissimilar from what Quincy do. Observe.”

As one, ten of the mid-sized cubes moved with frightful speed, rapidly surrounding her. White light emitted from their sides as Starswirl made complex motions on the cube he held. In a flash, each cube suddenly grew multi-barreled gun arms, each sporting belts of ammunition that were fed directly from the cubes themselves.

“Producing weapons like this is barely an effort,” Starswirl commented as twenty different rotary cannons opened fire on Twilight simultaneously, each from different angles.

Rather than dodge, Twilight drew upon her magic and Midnight’s knowledge, sweeping her hand out as she cast a barrier of translucent purple energy around herself. The magical sphere absorbed the punishing barrage, Twilight felt the impacts on her mental focus. These weren’t like mere, mundane machine guns. The ‘bullets’ being fired were like Quincy forged reishi rounds, packing a powerful dose of spiritual energy inside them that would shred her shield in a few seconds.

And Starswirl wasn’t done, sending one of his larger cubes forward, the front of it glowing with a luminous aura. “Of course basic weapons like that are limited in many ways. A more complex, but still deceptively simple use of my Bankai’s ability is to use rapidly produced chemicals and reishi constructs to generate simulations of Kido spells. While never quite perfect copies of the real thing, I think you’ll appreciate the value of volume over accuracy in this instance.”

The glowing surface of the larger cube crackled, and Twilight felt a panicked rush of adrenaline go through her as she saw a score of streaking white bolts of lightning come at her; near perfect copies of Hado Number Four, Byakurai. Teleportation was her only valid evasive maneuver, and she wrapped the magic around herself to pop in and out of existence. She appeared a few dozen yards up as reishi gunfire and simulated Kido annihilated the magical bubble she’d just occupied.

She had to go on the offensive, and limit his chances to pin her down. If he could generate attacks like this from any of the cubes, she couldn’t afford to stand still for an instant. The only option she saw was to get in close to him, and either take him out directly, or destroy that small cube he was manipulating. It might have been a decoy, true, but it was the only possible vulnerability she’d seen so far.

With a burst of Hirenkyaku she accelerated down, blurring from view as she sought to get behind Starswirl.

However she pulled back as she noticed a glitter of something dust-like in the air, and she barely avoided it when an entire wall of freezing gas solidified into a cloud of ice in front of her, blocking her path to Starswirl.

“Don’t forget, I can still produce any number of chemicals from my Bankai’s cubes as well,” Starswirl explained, “There’s no telling what traps I’ve laid around myself, since I know you’d realize my only vulnerable point is the small cube I’m holding. I’ll give you a freebie and tell you now that it’s no decoy. This cube is the control nucleus for my Bankai. Damage it, or separate me from it, and you could win, Miss Sparkle. But what will you do with that information, I wonder? How will you close the distance to me? Another teleportation spell, perhaps?”

She didn’t doubt he had a trap prepared to counter such a maneuver, which was why she had tried getting close physically first, to test the area and range of his defense. The freezing gas had appeared at a range of about ten meters from him. Consequently, glancing around, she noticed none of the cubes besides the small one he held had approached closer than ten meters as well. At a guess, she theorized that was because he needed to create a safe area around himself, since once one of the cubes produced an effect, he no longer had direct control of that effect. He could easily injure himself with a Bankai that could produce so many different kinds of attacks, so quickly. It was an amazing testament to Starswirl’s mental focus that he could control this power as well as he did, and only maintain a mere ten meter safe radius around himself. Twilight had to admit if she had a similar power, she’d prefer twice as much distance to feel comfortable to avoid injuring herself.

It’s a system, she realized, A powerful system, but one that relies on several rules to be safe for its wielder. So what I need to do is disrupt that system.

Of course actually being able to do that was a wholly different manner than simply conceiving of the idea. Starswirl was giving her no room to breath, and barely any time to think. The cubes with their gun arms morphed, altering their own reishi to change the rotary cannons into tubes of chemically charged rockets. Twilight found herself having to rush at full speed in a series of swift patterns that criss-crossed the air to avoid the storm of explosive warheads. A few that got close to striking her she was able to shoot down with a few swiftly fired arrows, but she realized too late that Starswirl was just using those simple weapons to distract her.

Two of the larger cubes had gotten to either side of her, and between them a field of hardened reishi sprang up, connecting both cubes on all four edges, and trapping Twilight within. She was immediately reminded of her brother’s Schrift, the Bastion. Even the general makeup of the reishi particles seemed similar, although she felt a slight difference in the resonance of the spirit particles, and she noted a strange, almost oily chemical pattern to the barrier.

Chances were trace chemicals were part of all the reishi constructs that Starswirl was creating, but this was clearly something more potent, and she soon realized why as the chemicals inside the reishi barrier began to fill the rectangular prison with gas. She held her breath immediately, and prepared a teleport spell. One of the cubes imprisoning her produced a small device that looked like a flip lighter, and Twilight managed to teleport just in time to avoid the entire interior of the prison barrier exploding from the ignited gas.

The moment she appeared once more, this time below Starswirl and his cubes, Twilight went on the offensive. She flew up, but also spun around, firing arrows in quick succession. She charged the arrows with magic to multiply them, the arrows duplicating in mid-air as they soared into various cubes. She adjusted her upward flight to skirt the edge of the ten meter radius around Starswirl, and kept firing arrows at as many cubes as she could. Starswirl wasn’t idle as she did so, directing his cubes to angle towards her, half a dozen of them gleaming with white light as they produced simulations of different Hado-class Kido.

A veritable maelstrom of ice, fire, lightning, and raw destructive reishi chased Twilight upwards, but at the same time she carefully observed the cubes firing at her. They weren’t quite close enough to where she needed them to be, and only about half the cubes in total had her arrows embedded in them. She needed more.

With deft bursts of Hirenkyaku she sent herself dodging left and right, narrowly avoiding the simulated Kido spells lashing out at her. However above her six somewhat smaller cubes, about five feet wide apiece, had linked together at their edges to form a circular formation. Light flowed from the walls facing one another and pooled together in a growing sphere of spirit energy that took on a faint red tint that looked rather familiar to Twilight.

Wait, isn’t that-!?

The beam even had the distinctly low pitched hum of a Cero as it fired at her, and Twilight was a tad too slow in dodging it as the beam caught her right hand side. She managed to harden her skin with Blut Vene in time to mitigate the damage, but her skin was wracked with agony, the purple skin burnt raw red in some places as her clothes were shredded along her right side. She almost lost control of the reishi threads controlling her artificial hand, but managed to maintain focus as she kept dodging left and retaliated by firing a set of arrows into the cubes that had unleashed the Cero.

“Did I mention that a while back I concocted a chemical that can roughly approximate the spiritual energy patterns of Hollows?” Starswirl said, “It’s useful for creating certain items the Stealth Corps favors, and is handy for some of my fields of research. Granted simulating something as basic as a Cero is easy enough, but the more complex powers still elude me. I was actually hoping studying that Arrancar girl would help me utilize my Bankai to create artificial Garganta.”

Even as he talked, he never ceased moving his hands over the control cube, sending the other cubes after Twilight in a dogged pursuit. While many of the smaller ones pressed her with more rocket attacks, or barrages of gunfire, a swarm of tiny ones not much bigger than the control cube gathered up and rushed her from her opposite side. These cubes, no bigger than a regular Rubik's cube, grew buzzing blades that rotated around at high speed.

With little choice, Twilight had to go through the swarm, letting out a rough cry of equal parts determination and fear as she aimed her bow forward and unleashed a Licht Regen into the swarm just before she swept through it. Her hundreds of reishi arrows tagged many of the tiny buzzsaw cubes out of her path, but one or two still got through and cut painful lacerations across her arms and sides, staining her white uniform red.

Still, by now Twilight estimated she’d tagged two thirds of Starswirl’s cubes with her arrows. That should be enough. Now all she had to do was get them in range...

Throwing caution to the proverbial winds, she doubled back and charged Starswirl. As she came at him she fired magically empowered arrows, sending streaking bolts of teal colored witchfire arrows towards the Captain. As expected, he had defenses already prepared, with a few cubes sitting just outside the ten meter radius producing barriers similar to the ones that had trapped Twilight earlier. These barriers withstood her arrows, but Twilight pressed in hard, zipping up, down, and around Starswirl, all the while pouring more and more magic into her arrows, even boosting their variable damage yield with her Schrift.

She needed to sell this as a real attack. A desperate last attempt to break through and injure the Soul Reaper Captain. She hoped Starswirl would be so focused on defending from it, and preparing his counterattack, that he wouldn’t realize what her real plan was.

More barriers snapped up around Starswirl as Twilight’s magically empowered arrows exploded around him in an intense cluster that blanketed the area. Even Twilight was a little impressed with herself, both by the number of arrows and the explosive force behind the combined spiritual and magical energy. She’d improved a lot since her early days of training, or the attack on the Academy. Back then she could barely do a thing against the average Arrancar. Now she was fighting toe-to-toe with a Soul Reaper Captain and their Bankai.

Granted, she was clearly the one struggling here, and she doubted Starswirl was coming at her with all the tricks his Bankai could perform, but she’d take what little victories she could in regards to her self-esteem.

We so need to get you laid..., muttered Midnight somewhere in the back of Twilight’s head, which she promptly ignored.

As the teal flames of the explosive barrage faded, she saw Starswirl’s barriers had held up, but they were sporting rather large cracks across their shining surfaces. She’d almost broken through! Still, that wasn’t the important part. The important part was that Starswirl had sent his large and medium cubes out in a wide cluster pattern around her, both above, below, and behind, nearly surrounding her.

Each cube, whether it sported reishi constructs of simulated modern weaponry, or was glowing with the charging up of a simulated Kido, was ready to unleash devastation upon her. She could still teleport to evade, and very likely Starswirl knew that, which was why he’d left a net of the tinier cubes further out that would probably come at her no matter where she teleported to. That was fine by her. She’d estimated the distances of the cubes about to fire. They were outside the ten meter radius of safety from Starswirl, but over half of them were only just out of that range.

...A variable she was more than able to change.

As all the cubes unleashed their fury, Twilight teleported to avoid the hellstorm of bullets, rockets, Kido spells, and several simulated Ceros. She also sent the power of her Schrift rushing through to the reishi arrows she’d tagged most of the cubes with earlier. The moment the Variable entered the cubes, it changed the angles of their attacks and their relative position by a small margin of several meters. This happened to land half of them much closer to Starswirl than he was anticipating, with many of them also suddenly aiming at him instead of at where Twilight had just been.

Although Twilight couldn’t see it, still in the midst of her teleport, Starswirl’s expression of surprise briefly turned to a satisfied smile just before the cascade of attacks meant for her instead rained down upon him.

Popping back into existence a fair distance away, Twilight turned around to observe the results of her plan. It was impossible to see Starswirl amid the mass of explosions stemming from the mixture of different attacks that had converged on Starswirl’s position. Not all of them, of course, as many of the cube’s attacks also streaked out in random directions, but she’d managed to alter the variables enough that a good section of them had filled that ten meter space around Starswirl. Now a haze of smoke hung over the area while the attacks petered out.

Twilight kept her bow aimed at the area, stretching out her senses for Starswirl’s reiatsu. It was still there, but she wasn’t sure whether she’d managed to inflict some telling injuries with her gambit. Her own body was shaking slightly from blood loss, and she felt an unpleasant combination of pain and numbing cold from the wounds she’d taken. If she was being honest with herself, she was fairly sure she couldn’t keep this up much longer.

Soon enough the smoke faded, and Twilight’s lips tightened into a thin frown.

“My word, Miss Sparkle, that was quite clever of you,” Starswirl said. He hadn’t escaped from Twilight’s plan unscathed. His body was marked by burns in some places, or caked over with ice in others, and his aged body was bleeding from several wounds seemingly caused by either bullets or abrasions from the explosions. Still, the reason the damage was overall superficial was made apparent by the sight of a handful of small cubes that floated around him. Their surface was reflective, like mirrors, camouflaging them, save for the fact that they were now burned and damaged from the attacks that they’d absorbed. Twilight could see the traces of reishi barriers around them that had been cracked and broken through, but still absorbed much of the damage that had come Starswirl’s way.

He’d had a final defense in place around himself that didn’t rely on his own reflexes, she thought, not entirely bitterly, but with a grudging respect, Even when I out think him, he has backup plans. I don’t have a choice... I can’t win unless I risk it...

The Cero attack she’d endured before had stripped off much of the uniform on her right side, although enough remained for decency’s sake. However this did leave the Sanrei Glove on her artificial right hand exposed. She raised it now, prepared to take the risk of utilizing Vollstandig, even if she couldn’t do so without risking doing irrevocable harm to herself.

“Oh?” Starswirl raised an eyebrow, wiping some blood from his brow, “You’re going to use that glove? I commend your resolve, but it’s not necessary for you to push yourself any further, Miss Sparkle. This fight is over.”

“We won’t know that until I try,” Twilight said, but Starswirl shook his head, and to her surprise the numerous cubes of his Bankai started to all move towards him while shrinking in size. In wisps of smokey white energy, the cubes dissipated and then reformed around the tiny control cube in Starswirl’s hand. Within moments that cube had absorbed the others and then transformed in a gleam of white light back into the form of Starswirl’s sealed Zanpaktou.

“Wait,” Twilight said, “Why did you deactivate your Zanpaktou?”

Starswirl started walking towards her, seemingly in no rush as he sheathed his sword and started rolling his shoulders, making pained grunts as he did so, “Augh... you made this old man pull a few muscles, I think. At any rate, Miss Sparkle, like I said, the fight is over. Do you not recall the offer you made me? You suggested we should combine our research efforts. I do believe my response was that I wished to test you further before deciding upon that offer. Well, I’ve tested you, and have decided.”

She couldn’t quite make herself fully lower her bow as he approached. Her ability to trust in good fortune had taken quite the beating in recent weeks, so it was hard for her to think that the battle was really over. “You’re serious? You’ll actually consider working with me?”

He glanced at her bow, then at her with an expression that was softened with a hint of sympathy, “Is it that surprising to you? You’ve given me quite the stimulating contest. It’s not often I find someone as young as you who can think as fast on their feet as you. I was already impressed by your research into magic and your ability to combine it with spiritual abilities, but you also show great talent in applying that knowledge in active situations. Put simply, Miss Sparkle, you’ve passed my benchmarks for being a worthy research partner.”

“And me being a Quincy isn’t a concern for you?”

“Of course it is, but I know you’re a smart enough girl that you wouldn’t have made the offer without being able to deal with the potential fallout of such a partnership. Surely you understand your King and fellow Quincy would have issues with working with a Soul Reaper, yes? I surmise you have a means of mitigating that issue?”

Twilight glanced away, finally letting her bow fade so she could check her injuries and cover herself slightly. She was suddenly a bit uncomfortable with the tatters of her uniform. “I have some... influence with Sombra,” she admitted, “I believe I can get him to see the value in a collaborative effort, in this instance.”

Starswirl noticed her discomfort, and while his own Captain’s coat was damaged from the battle, he took it off and handed it to her so she could wrap it around her shoulders. She did so with a mild look of surprise that soon transmuted into a look of gratitude as she nodded her thanks. Starswirl didn’t really have what she’d call a grandfatherly demeanor, but there was a relaxed, mature mood about him that reminded her of her father.

“I have similar influence with Captain Commander Scorpan,” Starswirl said, glancing away from her, “He can’t exactly replace me easily, you see. So if I say I have a Quincy who’s willing to set aside our long standing animosity to, however briefly, work upon similar research goals, he’d have to accept it. More or less. I’ll probably still get an earful. Hmm, perhaps it’d be better to keep this whole arrangement on the ‘down low’.”

“That may be for the best,” Twilight said, “Just so we’re clear, does this mean you’ll not attempt to recapture Ember?”

“Hmm, while I would still love to study an Arrancar specimen further, I think our collaboration will bear more intriguing fruit, so I shall give you my assurance I’ll leave the one called Ember be for now. Assuming she’s managed to retrieve her Zanpaktou without getting herself blown up by the defensive measures I left in place.”

Twilight gave him a blank stare, “What kind of defenses?”

“Oh, nothing too fancy. I even attached a puzzle to it for fun in case someone wanted to try and disable it!” Starswirl said, holding up a finger, “I do enjoy giving people tests, and even suggested to my lab assistants to give it a try, but you know, no one seemed interested. It’s not like the explosive device is that high a yield.”

“You attached a bomb to Ember’s Zanpaktou!?”

“Not a big one. Just big enough to kill an Arrancar at point blank range. Which I suppose could kill a lot of things, but really what’s the point of a timed puzzle if there’s no risk?”

Twilight considered pulling some hair out, either hers or his she didn’t know which. Estimating the distance to the lake, she imagined it wouldn’t be hard to teleport there, but she was feeling seriously drained by her fight with Starswirl. She mentally checked with Midnight to see they had enough energy reserves before saying, “I need to get to them. Wait, I need to disguise myself again too, in case any of your people see me! Dang it, the only way this could get worse is if-”

She felt the warning from Midnight at around the same moment she felt Starswirl grab her shoulder and pull her to the side. For a second she thought he was attacking her, but no, he was just pulling her out of the way as a Seele Schneider, fired from the forest below, streaked up like a bolt of lightning. The reishi blade turned arrow would have impaled her through the chest if Starswirl hadn’t spotted the attack coming and pulled Twilight to the side. The Seele Schider hit him instead, although he’d moved as well so the Quincy weapon struck his upper right shoulder instead of his chest. Still, the Captain grunted in pain and the reishi blade shut off, falling down and leaving a gaping wound in his shoulder that left his right arm hanging uselessly at his side.

“Starswirl, are you okay!?” Twilight shouted, but before he could answer, she felt a burst of reiatsu from below. She barely had time to react as someone moving faster than even Twilight’s reflexes could track came flying towards her from the forest. Only the fact that Midnight had already been preparing a teleport spell to get to the lake helped Twilight evade a burst of reishi arrows that would have pin-cushioned her if she didn’t teleport away, although she adjusted her target location to appear nearby. She couldn’t abandon Starswirl now that he was wounded, and ostensibly on her side.

I expected them to make a move, but this is the worst possible timing! Twilight thought, realizing that the assassins after her life had finally come for her again, much as she expected them to do and had been preparing for. Yet this wasn’t quite like she thought it would be. She’d expected them to be wearing a heavy cloak and mask, like before, disguising their identity.

But she wasn’t hiding herself. And this assassin was definitely a she. Twilight recognized her, if only because she’d made a point of familiarizing herself with the files on her fellow Sternritter. She’d never met Sapphire Shores in person, but knew her appearance, and knew by her files that she was one of Sombra’s most trusted and powerful servants.

Rather than her usual ostentatious and stylized uniform, Sapphire Shores was wearing a much more plain Quincy uniform suited for a soldat, but she wasn’t bothering with the mask. Her admittedly beautiful face was filled with a sharp, frozen look of deathly determination as she aimed her bow at Twilight once more. Twilight summoned her own bow and aimed right back, but for a moment, both women paused, while Starswirl drew his Zanpaktou with his left hand. Sapphire Shore’s eyes flicked to him, narrowing. Twilight took this moment to speak.

“Sapphire Shores... tell me why. You’re not acting alone, but you’ve been trying to kill me for a while now. I want to know why.”

Every second she could stall Sapphire was a second her own contingency plans could fall into place. She suspected it would come to this, sooner or later, but she’d never imagined someone so high up in the Quincy ranks would be behind the plot to kill her.

“It’s simple,” Sapphire Shores said as a powerful spiritual pressure that gripped Twilight’s heart in an icy fist as she felt the extent of Sternritter Q’s power wash over her, “You have to die, so that His Majesty will live.”

----------

The surrounding darkness became more oppressive with every step Sunset Shimmer took deeper into the tunnels beneath Camp Everfree. The firelight from her Zanpaktou did much to illuminate it, but Sunset got the distinct impression that her presence hadn’t gone unnoticed. She had that particular sensation running across the back of her neck that told her she was being watched, and a moment later, she heard Hokori’s voice in her head.

Watch your back. We’re not alone down here.

Sunset nodded and proceeded with more alert caution, glancing behind her even as she kept moving forward. “You two sensing anything? I can still feel Gloriosa, a little, but her signature is muffled.”

This whole area is covered in a faint taint of Hollow reiatsu, this time it was Hikari who spoke, her softer tone carrying a cautionary note, It gets stronger, further down.

“We have to be near the center of the lake by this point,” Sunset muttered, and paused as she came around a bend and saw that ahead of her the tunnel abruptly ended, but instead of a wall, it ended in what appeared to be a massive root that spanned the tunnel’s length. However, the root had an unnatural opening within it, like a doorway. Surrounding the doorway, and most of the root itself, were lesser root offshoots, and a number of sprouting flowers of white and purple hues. The Hollow reiatsu that Hikari had mentioned was now far more readily apparent to Sunset. It was still relatively faint, but it permeated the entire root.

She hadn’t sensed it, even when she’d first entered the tunnels. Chances were none of the Soul Reapers at the lab would have picked up on this unless they were specifically trying to scan beneath them, which why would they? So Sunset wasn’t surprised no one had noticed this, but she did have to wonder just what this all meant. Was there actually a Hollow down here, hidden beneath Camp Everfree? For how long?

This Hollow stink is baked right into the ground, Hokori said with a huff, If there’s one down here, it’s been here a looooooong ass time, Sunset. Heh, might make for a good fight.

Her sword’s flames burned a bit hotter, and Sunset tried not to smirk. Of course Hokori was spoiling for a good fight. So far her friends had gotten more action than her, and that skirmish with Gilda at the apartment hadn’t been much of a warm up. Sunset wasn’t as eager for a fight as the sword half of her Zanpaktou was, she was far more concerned with protecting Gloriosa, Timber Spruce, and getting back to her friends... but a small part of her did want to cut loose a little and see if all that sparring with Discord really had made her any stronger since her duel with Platinum. She did have at least one technique she hadn’t perfected yet that Hokori no Hikari had been trying to teach her, and they hadn’t gotten it nailed down quite yet.

She shook her head and approached the doorway into the root system, “Let’s just find Gloriosa. We’re here to save her and her brother, not get into a fight if we can avoid it.”

Pfft, spoilsport, said Hokori, but Hikari quickly cut in.

She’s right. We must prioritize helping others before satisfying our egos.

After a brief pause, Hikari added, We can kick the Hollow’s butt after we save the humans.

Well, good to know the two halves of her Zanpaktou could agree on something. She kept herself tense and ready to evade any dangers as she stepped through the entryway. She nearly slashed with Hokori when the roots hanging down near the doorway actually moved. The roots didn’t attack, however, merely pulled back away from her, the flowers closing into buds as if finding her firelight painful.

Beyond the entry, she found herself inside what appeared to be a tube formed from the large, hollowed out root. The interior walls were covered with more flowers, and an assortment of vines and strange planets, many bearing thorns. Having seen what Gloriosa could do with her plant-based magic, Sunset wondered if Gloriosa had somehow unconsciously made all of this, but the Hollow reiatsu was even stronger inside the root now, and she suspected this wasn’t Gloriosa’s doing. At least, not alone.

Taking a moment to sense where Gloriosa’s faint spirit energy was, Sunset turned to the left and followed the root tunnel at a downward curve. The root began to bend, and Sunset realized it was spiraling down, taking her towards a central point. It didn’t take her long to reach the bottom, which opened up into an oval chamber that reminded her of the interior of a large cocoon, or perhaps an unopened seed.

Her firelight illuminated the chamber, which wasn’t all that large, perhaps the size of the interior of a regular two-story house. The floor was sloped down, and water gathered at the bottom in a pool that glowed with faint, green light. Roots gathered together to form a rough bridge from the tunnel entrance and spanned over the pool, leading towards a large cluster of roots that coiled together around some kind of sappy, dark purple, semi-organic sac.

Gloriosa was halfway across the bridge when Sunset arrived, and Sunset called out, “Gloriosa, wait!”

Gloriosa was carrying her brother in her arms, his form limp as she turned to face Sunset, who gasped slightly at the sight of the other woman. Gloriosa’s eyes were both pitch black now, with only a small ring of her iris’ having a bright yellow tint. Most of her face was covered by the waxen, bleached white substance of a partially formed Hollow mask, it’s edges rimmed with twisted, root-like spikes, while purple, striped patterns crossed beneath her eyes. Timber Spruce’s wound had now seeped blood into Gloriosa’s yellow dress and blue denim jeans, staining both dark. Sunset wasn’t even sure if Timber was breathing, but she did sense a faint spark of life still inside him.

When Gloriosa spoke, her voice had a distorted quality to it, like a broken radio, “I have to take him to her. She says she’ll heal him. Keep him safe.”

Sunset’s eyes flicked towards the bud-shaped concentration of roots at the center of the room, surrounding the faintly glowing, purple cocoon-like sac. The Hollow reiatsu coming from it was... strange. Overpowering, in a sense, but also weakly pulsating, and somehow giving off a sensation of sickliness. It was like sensing a once powerful, but now wounded and dying animal. The Hollow’s reiatsu was also now stemming from Gloriosa, and Sunset knew this had to be what had infected Camp Everfree’s caretaker. How that had happened, Sunset wasn’t certain, but now that Gloriosa was standing next to the thing... she had a suspicion.

It was far from a certainty, but the similarities were lining up. Gloriosa’s Hollow reiatsu matched that of the thing in the cocoon, but as far as Sunset could tell the reiatsu was still Gloriosa’s. Or at least, she did have her own that was separated from the Hollows. And the power to control planets, Sunset kept wondering why the geodes, which were a source of magic not tied to nature, would let Gloriosa do that. Somehow that power seemed more tied to Gloriosa herself, and this land she cared about so much. She knew Twilight had been studying the magic of the geodes, and had a theory that the magic had been using Gloriosa’s spirit energy like a lens to generate the nature based powers, but what if there’d been a kernel of Hollow spirit energy inside Gloriosa as well that had been overshadowed by the magic? Given Twilight’s focus on studying magic, she might not have even noticed the small element of Hollow power. It was even possible the Hollow energy wouldn’t have grown without the use of Equestrian magic to amplify it’s growth, the same way it had amplified growth in Sunset Shimmer and her friends.

It had only really struck Sunset now just how similar Gloriosa’s power was to Fullbring. Especially the rapid growth of the power due to having a magical power source to boost it. Could it be this entire time that Gloriosa’s ability to control plants wasn’t actually magic from the geodes, but a Fullbring that had been massively enhanced by using the magic from those gems? A magic so powerful that it’d essentially drowned out any ability Sunset, or Twilight who’d been studying them, had to sense the Hollow-like reiatsu of a Fullbring.

Granted she didn’t have any proof of this theory, but given the presence of a powerful Hollow and it having some sort of connection to Gloriosa, it seemed a sound theory that this Hollow might have “attacked” Gloriosa’s mother at some point, perhaps with the intention of creating this very link to control Gloriosa.

It might be a power specific to this Hollow, though. I’m just stuck guessing without more information, and Gloriosa’s in no mental state for twenty questions. I have to get her and Timber away from that thing...

Taking a deep, calming breath, Sunset made sure to keep her sword down and in a non-threatening position, while also making sure her shield was at the ready, just in case. She spoke in a slow, soothing voice, and maintained eye contact with Gloriosa.

“Gloriosa, please listen to me. Whatever voice you’re hearing in your head, you can’t trust it. I want to help you and Timber. My friend Fluttershy can heal your brother, I promise. I just need you to step away from that... thing, and come back to the surface with me.”

A crooked twitch that was half sardonic smile, half angered grimace played its way across the bits of Gloriosa’s lower face still not covered by the Hollow mask, and her tone was acidically bitter.

“Can’t trust it? Can’t trust you or anyone else either, can I? Oh, Twilight Sparkle promised to keep my home safe, and look at what happened! Hah...hahah... destroyed and ruined, all of it.”

“I... I know, and I’m sorry it happened,” Sunset said, truly meaning it. She’d never wanted Gloriosa’s home to become a battleground, even though she’d known the risks of aiding Adagio and Twilight’s plans. Sunset had wanted to protect Camp Everfree and everyone in it, but Timber Spruce’s blood slowly dripping to the chamber floor was proof enough she, nor her friends, had managed to succeed in protecting everyone.

She kept her eyes locked on Gloriosa’s accusing, dark stare, not willing to look away from it. “We shouldn’t have put your home or family in danger. I can’t change how all of this has reached this point, but I’m telling you the truth when I say all I want to do is help you and Timber right now. There’s a Hollow messing with your head, Gloriosa, and while I can’t be sure how it got in there, I know that if you can just trust me for a little bit longer, I can help your brother, and help you. I just need you to fight that voice. Whatever it’s trying to tell you, it has to be a lie.”

It did, didn’t it? Sunset didn’t actually know who or what this Hollow was. Adagio was proof enough that not all Hollows were monsters, but could Sunset even consider the possibility that this Hollow was trying to help Gloriosa in some fashion?

Even as she considered that notion, Gloriosa herself flinched, closing her eyes and shaking her head as if an internal pain there had intensified. She stumbled backwards, but soon caught herself and held her brother even more tightly to her chest, black and yellow eyes glaring at Sunset. “You think I don’t know, but I do. I planted my beautiful flowers all over my forest. And she could see through them, too. She heard, and knows. Your friends with the monsters that brought this to my forest! And... and Twilight Sparkle knew, too. She helped plan it. Even as she was pretending to help me...”

“No, Gloriosa, Twilight was trying to help you! So am I! I won’t lie to you. Yes, my friends and I were helping her and a... an Arrancar friend rescue someone from the Soul Reapers, but we never intended for that to end up causing so much destruction-”

“Well it DID!” Gloriosa shouted, and her voice was amplified dozens of time’s over. Her body became coiled in intense green light, and the geodes around her neck floated up, not clear of her, but suspended as if under a harsh breeze as the ground started to shake beneath Gloriosa’s feet. Her hair rose like flickering flames, framing her enraged features. “You! All of you! Quincy! Soul Reapers! Hollows! You destroyed my home! You’re destroying my forest! My family’s legacy! My parent’s gift to me and Timber! This place is all we have left of them...”

She was stepping backwards now, towards the cocoon of vines. Sunset saw the roots and vines shudder around the luminescent sac within, and she paled with horror as she saw the vines sprout thorns and then uncoil to start wrapping around Gloriosa and Timber Spruce.

“Wait, Gloriosa! Don’t!” Sunset moved with an instantaneous Flash Step. She wanted to reason with Gloriosa, but if this required force, then force is what she’d use. She was careful to control the output of her flames, but she still slashed down hard, with a bright flaring of orange fire spilling from Hokori as she appeared next to Gloriosa and the vines trying to wrap around the other woman. Her Zanpaktou sliced cleanly through the vines, and almost instantly Sunset felt a burst of raw Hollow reiatsu push out from the cocoon in a violet wave that hammered her backwards. This was followed by a sound that was part sinuous, but raw and ragged female voice, and part monstrous howl.

”Begone, Soul Reaper. She has not chosen you. It is I who will fulfill her desires, as she shall mine. I will not tolerate your interference!”

Sunset didn’t quite hit the wall of the chamber, instead managing to flip over and control her momentum so she landed just short of the wall instead. She saw the vines she’d cut were rapidly regrowing, with oozing, white sap boiling up to harden into fresh vine. The purple sac within the cocoon was pulsating further, it’s glow of light intensifying, and Sunset frowned as she noticed that the light spilled from the cocoon and flowed out from the center of the chamber along the floor in eerily familiar patterns.

Are those... magical runes?

It took her a second, but it quickly struck her realization that this chamber was carved with patterns forming a magical circle! She even recognized some of the spellwork from her studies back at Celestia’s school. A fairly fundamental technique used by unicorn spellcasters was the idea of transference circles. These magic circles were used most commonly when a spell required more magical energy than any one unicorn could handle alone, so multiple transference circles were created so a group of unicorns could shift their magic to a single spellcaster, essentially pooling the magical energy needed for a larger ritual.

The problem here was that Sunset only saw part of the runes needed for a magical transference circle. There were a number of other runes she didn’t recognize at all, and they had a much harsher, jagged pattern to them that hurt her eyes to look upon them.

She didn’t know what this Hollow was up to, or how it’d learned to carve these runes, but Sunset didn’t think for a moment this wasn’t related to the Kraken she and her friends had fought at the beach and the magic circle it had created in the ocean. Something big was about to go down, and somehow Gloriosa was at the center of it... or perhaps it was more the geodes that this Hollow was after? The mount of magic contained in those gems was truly incredible. If this Hollow got ahold of that power, it would be disastrous. But even more concerning, looking at the transference runes, Sunset got the impression this circle was set up to transfer magic both in and out of the circle.

So if the magic wasn’t meant to be transferred in, but out... where was the magic going to go?

Sunset had no intention of finding out. She was going to stop this right here and now! While this Hollow’s reiatsu seemed powerful while standing right next to it, it still wasn’t that strong by Sunset’s reckoning. Like something that was once mighty, but had lost much of its potency.

Even as the vines regrew and started towards Gloriosa once again, Sunset held Hokori aloft and focused her spirit energy into it. The burst of force from earlier had been absorbed partially into Hikari’s shield, so she had plenty of extra energy to put into her blade. While she had a few new techniques she hadn’t had a chance to make much use of yet, none of them were suited to this particular instance, so Sunset went with her old standby, the flames around her Zanpaktou turning a brilliant azure blue.

”Aoihi Senko!”

Fortunately the Aoihi Senko gave her a lot of fine control over the intense blue flames that shot out of her slashing blade, allowing Sunset to concentrate them into a narrow jet no wider than a few feet, but all the more intense for the concentration. This meant she could avoid hitting Gloriosa while striking the cocoon dead on. She felt her flames hit their mark, and while the cocoon did resist them to a degree, Sunset could see the vines and roots charring and withering against her fire. The Hollow’s reiatsu was resilient, and Sunset wasn’t using her Bankai, but as long as Sunset kept this up she knew she’d eventually burn through. The Hollow’s voice let out an enraged and pained howl, but it seemed unable to actually do much other than make more roots grow down from the ceiling and start encasing it further.

However it didn’t need to do anything, as Gloriosa acted on her own, crying out a fierce, “No!”

The geodes sparkled with power as Gloriosa gripped them and raised her other hand. Her body was now rimed with luminous green light, and her skin was darkening to a vibrant purple shade. Plant life burst into being on the ground, thick roots covered in thorns and crackling with green energy that was both magically and spiritually charged. The roots formed a shield in front of Sunset’s jet of fire, the magic and spirit energy managing to match Sunset’s power as the roots not only withstood the flames, but managed to sprout half a dozen offshoots that flew towards Sunset like thorny spears.

Sunset was more than fast enough to Flash Step out of the way of the spearing vines, which impacted where she’d just been standing with enough force to shake the whole chamber, but it meant Sunset had to cease her attack to move to another position. Meanwhile, Gloriosa raved.

“Why can’t you just leave us alone!?” she cried, her brother now held next to her in a set of gentle vines under her control as she aimed her hands like claws towards Sunset, “We were happy before all of you showed up. I... I had it all under control. We weren’t going to lose the camp. I was going to fix it. Just like mom and dad would have. I have to fix it. I can still make it right, I just need you all to go away!”

She lashed out with more thorn coated vines, making a ripping motions with her hands as dozens of them, all several feet thick, sprang from the ground and whipped towards Sunset in a dizzying pattern. Quarters were tight enough that even with Sunset’s speed advantage it wasn’t easy to avoid all of the tearing vines, and she relied on Hikari to block several that otherwise might have still struck her. That was fine by Sunset, as every blow on the shield only built up more energy for her to use.

Needing an opening to distract Gloriosa, Sunset focused on her sword for a second while rapidly Flash Stepping across the room. White flames wafted from Hokori, and swirled out from the blade. In between Flash Steps, another Sunset Shimmer took shape, a flame clone formed by her Shiroihi Yume technique. Sunset wasn’t practiced enough at this yet to form more than a handful of clones without them becoming unstable, but she only needed one here. To Gloriosa’s eyes it suddenly looked like two Sunsets were darting around the room, and the woman’s eyes flicked left and right in agitation as she tried to decide which to attack. Opting for both, Gloriosa split her vines between the pair, which was what Sunset had figured she’d do.

With fewer vines coming at her, she was able to dart between them and get in close to the cocoon. Her flame clone was struck by the vines coming at it, and it dispersed into flickers of white fire, but it’d served the purpose of splitting Gloriosa’s attention, now that Sunset had gotten in front of the cocoon. She thrust her sword forward, seeking to impale the sac within the cocoon of vines and roots. However, standing on the opposite side of the cocoon, Gloriosa threw her hand back and touched the cocoon, and suddenly a growth of fresh vines burst from the cocoon and wrapped around Sunset’s Zanpaktou.

“Dammit!” Sunset swore, igniting the flames around Hokori and channeling a burst of flames from them that incinerated the roots grasping her sword, but more were already snaking around either side of the cocoon and stabbing at her, forcing her back.

“Gloriosa!” she shouted, “Don’t you get that you're being controlled by this thing!?”

The Hollow’s voice spoke now, loud as a thunderclap, yet somehow low and rasping as a whisper.

”That’s where you’re wrong, Soul Reaper. I’m not controlling her. I’m opening her eyes. The choice remains hers whether to take what I offer, or reject it. Do not fault her if she finds my offer better than yours.”

“And what the hell are you offering her other than to take away her sense of self?” Sunset snarled, charging up another Aoihi Senko as her Zanpaktou erupted with bright blue fire.

”What are you offering other than the continued destruction of the forest both she and I consider home? Come, Gloriosa, join with me. Hurry, before this Soul Reaper takes away your last chance to protect our home.”

“Don’t listen, Gloriosa! Aoihi Senko!” Sunset unleashed her attack, widening the jet of flame and bending it to try and come at the cocoon from an angle that Gloriosa couldn’t defend from. The flame bent and twisted like a living river, striking at the cocoon from an upward angle. Gloriosa tried to thicken the roots around the cocoon but Sunset’s attack broke through before the roots could fully form and started to burn into the sac itself. The Hollow howled, and Gloriosa growled, pouring more magic and spiritual energy into her hands as she slammed them into the ground like claws.

Suddenly Sunset found the ground beneath her shift as a thick root as wide as a truck rose up beneath her with the force of an industrial car crusher, trying to smash her flat into the ceiling. She had to cease her attack on the cocoon in order to brace with Hikari, using the shield to block the root from crushing her all the way into the ceiling. She then shoved Hokori into the root and channeled an intense beam of fire through it, cutting the root in half. As it split apart and freed Sunset, she landed on the ground once more and turned towards the cocoon, and her eyes shot wide. Gloriosa had used the second or two Sunset had needed to get free of the root to step right up to the cocoon, which now wrapped it’s vines around her and Timber.

“Gloriosa, wait!” Sunset cried, rushing forward. She managed to grasp Gloriosa’s arm, but a wall of thorns grew from the vines around Gloriosa, stabbing at Sunset and drawing several shallow wounds. Sunset doggedly held on, despite the pain, meeting Gloriosa’s eyes, “Please Gloriosa, let me help you!”

The depths of Gloriosa’s eyes reflected the woman’s boiling over fears, desperation, and confusion, but as she was drawn towards the center of the cocoon, it was as if those emotions were being drained right out of her as her voice said in an almost dream-like state, “Don’t worry, Sunset. I got this.”

Another raw burst of Hollow reiatsu hammered out from the cocoon, pushing Sunset away. Before she could recover, Gloriosa was pulled completely into the cocoon, merging with the sac within. Timber Spruce wasn’t absorbed into it, but he was gently wrapped with vines on the side of the cocoon like a child sleeping in a cradle.

Then, as Sunset watched, an unbelievable bright light flared from inside the cocoon, and every single rune within the carved magical circle flared to blindingly incandescent life.

Episode 116: Family Reforged

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Episode 116: Family Reforged

Di Roy, Ember, and Roka strode through the Soul Reaper’s field lab, a handful of the Twelfth Division’s researchers lying unconscious in their wake. Well, mostly unconscious. Ember had one unfortunate researcher held up by the throat, their legs kicking a foot off the ground as the enraged Arrancar girl glared into the Soul Reaper’s terrified eyes.

“Where did he hide it!?” Ember demanded, “Where’d you’re stupid, bush-faced Captain hide my Zanpaktou!?”

Di Roy coughed loudly, putting a hand on Ember’s shoulder, “Easy there. Dude can’t breathe, let alone talk, the way you’re choking him out. Also, I’m pretty sure Adagio wanted us to keep corpses to a bare minimum.”

Ember literally growled at him, eyes flaring as she shot a sharp look at Di Roy, who released her shoulder and held up his hand defensively. Ember blew out a heated snort and lessened her grip on the researcher, who gasped in lungfuls of air.

“Hurry up, Soul Reaper,” she said, “If you want to live, that is.”

Coughing, the Soul Reaper made a weak gesture towards the largest of the white, canvas bubble-shaped tents, after which point Ember leg go of him, and before he even finished falling she rammed her fist into the researcher’s gut, causing him to collapse in a sputtering pile. She started marching towards the tent in question, while Di Roy followed while running a hand through his hair in an exasperated manner, giving the Soul Reaper an awkward smile, “Sorry buddy, but consider yourself lucky. Girl’s mad enough for murder.”

Roka briefly checked to make sure the researcher wasn’t critically injured, before lightly conking the Soul Reaper over the back of the head with a chopping motion, then followed Di Roy and Ember into the tent. The interior was filled with various lab equipment, arranged along the circular sides of the tent. In the center was a large computer terminal and several examination tables, one of which contained a smaller version of the ring-like apparatus that had held Ember outside. Suspended in that ring was Ember’s Zanpaktou, the blade slowly spinning in the air.

Ember moved towards it, but Roka appeared in front of her and held out an arm, “Wait. Let me examine it first, to ensure there’s no last second surprises waiting for us.”

Ember was all but vibrating with the need to go grab her Zanpakuto, but Roka’s calm voice and practical desire to check for any defenses Starswirl may have put in place around the blade kept her from ignoring Roka. She nodded and stepped back, “Fine, but make it quick.”

“I’ll be as fast as I can,” Roka promised, and stepped towards the table with the Zanpaktou on it. One of the spider legs sprouting from the back of her Resurreccion form moved forward, and extended several nearly invisible threads from the leg that floated towards the table. The threads entered the table and the apparatus around Ember’s Zanpaktou, their small near molecule-thin size allowing them to probe the structure of the objects in question.

A moment passed and Roka’s eyes twitched wide, “Oh my.”

“What?” Di Roy asked, “That was a really unsettling kind of ‘oh my’, Roka. If it’s trapped, at least tell me it’s not toxic gas, or giant killer hornets.”

Ember gave him a look with a raised eyebrow, while Roka calmly stated, “I can safely say it isn’t either of those things.”

“Oh, good,” Di Roy said.

“It’s a bomb,” Roka stated, just as a red light snapped out from above and shrouded the apparatus and Ember’s Zanpaktou. A section of the table popped open like a trap door and a metal and glass canister rose up, with a small view-screen attached to it that popped on. Displayed on the screen was a small, cartoonish version of Captain Starswirl with a large head and tiny body, who grinned.

“Hello any lucky individuals who have decided to steal valuable research materials from my field lab! Your gall has impressed me, and I reward you with my patented Anti-Theft Reishi Explosive Device. But fear not, for I am a fair man, and if you can solve my riddle then you’ll disarm the bomb. See? I’m such a nice person, aren’t I? Now, you only have three minutes, so let’s get to it, shall we? Here is your riddle; If a Quincy fires an arrow into my center, it shall not touch me, but if a Soul Reaper slashes me across my center, they shall hit twice. What am I?”

“Are you goddamn kidding me?” Di Roy said as a three minute countdown timer began ticking off seconds while the canister started beeping with a distressingly chipper beeping tone. “Who the hell plants a bomb in their own freakin’ laboratory!? Even Grogar’s not that theatrical!”

“Screw it!” Ember said, stomping forward, “I can take whatever blast that piss-ant little bomb can throw at me. I’m taking my Zanpaktou now!”

“Wait,” Roka said, looking at both of them sharply, “This is the Captain of the Twelfth Division we’re dealing with, even if indirectly. He would not have put an explosive here if he wasn’t confident of it’s lethal potential.”

“How the hell can you be so calm, Roka!?” Di Roy said, “We’re not figuring out some dumb riddle in two minutes. We’re either stuck guessing, or getting the heck out of here before that thing blows.”

Roka’s face remained stoic, but there was a spark in her eyes as she said, “I just happen to like riddles, and think I know the answer. I suggest both you and Ember fall back, however, just in case I’m wrong.”

“Yeah, because I want to go back home and tell your father ‘sorry, I ran away while your daughter got herself blown up by a crazy Soul Reaper trap’. Sorry, but I prefer exploding as opposed to what your old man would do to me,” Di Roy said, and then planted the shield shaped arm guard on his left arm in the ground as he stood between Roka and the bomb, “Besides, if this thing goes off, I’m taking the brunt of the blast for you.”

Ember ran a hand through her hair in frustration, planting herself next to Di Roy and giving Roka a pointed look, “If you’re going to answer the stupid riddle, better do it now. If it doesn’t work, I’m going to help this idiot shield you.”

Roka looked at the pair with worried but grateful eyes, and took a deep breath, “Here’s hoping I’m right then.”

She cleared her throat and spoke up, “The answer is; A Hollow hole.”

The countdown continued for a moment, then halted as the terminal issued a clamor of bells and the Starswirl chibi clapped his hands together, “Ah, very cleverly done! An arrow would pass through the center of the hole and out the other side, but a Soul Reaper’s sword slash across the hole hits the flesh on both ends. Well, my clever thief, I am a man of my word, so the bomb is disarmed. That said, I do put tracking devices on all my specimens, so I’ll be coming to retrieve my stolen property someday, but enjoy your victory for now.”

Ember spat as the terminal shut down, “Stolen property my ass! That’s my sword. If I ever see that geezer again I’m kicking his teeth in. Putting a tracking device on my sword. Or in me. Ugh, why are eggheads always so damn creepy?”

She went to her Zanpaktou, and after a moment of hesitation, fearing the possibility of a second trap, she gripped the blade and removed it from the apparatus on the table. When nothing exploded or any other alarms sounded, Ember let out a breath she’d been holding and cradled her sword for a moment, eyes closed. Di Roy and Roka watched her, Di Roy eventually saying, “You alright there, Embs?”

Ember burst out with a snort, “Don’t call me ‘Embs’. And I’m fine, just...”

Her eyes looked around the lab, and for a moment their luster flattened with a mixture of haunted memory, and seething anger. She shook her head and turned to the tent’s exit, “Let’s just get out of here.”

The trio exited the tent, and Di Roy cracked his neck, shouldering his large sharktooth sword, “Figure boss lady and Gaw will head back to Las Noches once they sense us getting out of here. Roka, you want to do the honors of making the Garganta?”

Roka was looking off to the north, her eyes tinted with worry, and Di Roy had the presence of mind to say, “I’m sure your dad’s fine. Nothing can take down the Lament, right?”

“Yes...” Roka said, “He won’t fall. I just have a feeling that things may be changing soon, for all of us.”

“The heck that’s supposed to mean?” Ember asked, but Roka just shook her head and turned to open a Garganta portal, raising a hand and letting slip enough of her reiatsu to start opening the dark tear in reality that would lead back to Hueco Mundo and Las Noches.

A flicker of motion behind her caught all three Arrancar by surprise as, in a blink of motion, a Soul Reaper appeared behind Roka. It was a Lieutenant Posey, having sensed the attack at the lab and having just arrived to see all of the fallen researchers. Not knowing the situation, and only assuming these were enemies who’d attacked the lab, Posey let the chain-blade of Kyoki spin to a deadly howl as she launched her ambush. Against three Arrancar, two of which were clearly still in Resurreccion form, she believed her only chance was to strike with the element of surprise.

Roka saw the blade coming for her neck, but didn’t have time to react against the Lieutenant’s speed.

However just before the blade could strike home, a massive form smashed down to the ground next to the group, and a curved blade of bone white color slashed down and intercepted Kyoki. The incredibly sharp, spinning teeth of Kyoki cut deep into the blade of bone, but it still forced Posey to leap back as a second such blade slashed down and almost struck her dead on. She narrowly avoided the deadly blow, and now looked up at a fourth Arrancar, this one a towering, saurian form.

Gaw let out a fierce bellow at the Soul Reaper, while Di Roy sputtered, “Holy crap! Nice save!”

Roka, visibly shaken, said, “Yes, thank you Gaw. That would have been... unpleasant.”

“And hey, bonus for us,” said Ember, grinning with fresh bloodlust at a new target, “Looks like the Soul Reapers sent us a going away present. A Lieutenant too stupid to let an enemy who was busy going home to just leave in peace.”

Lieutenant Posey didn’t flinch at the four Arrancar now facing her, Gaw growling deeply while Ember and Di Roy raised their swords. Only Roka remained in a non-combat stance, maintaining the Garganta.

“You attacked us, Hollows,” Lieutenant Posey said, “And as a member of the Eleventh Division, and Lieutenant to Captain Hurricane, I couldn’t just let you leave after hurting my fellow Soul Reapers.”

“Also, she’s not alone.”

The new voice, serene as a still lake, belonged to Fluttershy, who was striding with confident and smooth steps through the field lab with a soft and soothing aura emanating from her. Her Fullbring was active and shining bright, a number of translucent golden hands spreading from the halo at her back to touch the numerous fallen Soul Reapers, whereupon Fluttershy’s reiatsu helped heal their wounds.

While Gaw didn’t take her eyes off of Posey, and Ember shot a confused but still glaring look towards Fluttershy, Di Roy looked at Fluttershy with wide eyed recognition.

“Hey, it’s you, the crazy third-eye girl!” Di Roy blurted, “When did you get all the extra arms?”

Fluttershy paused, blinking at him momentarily before recognition also flashed into her eyes, and she actually smiled, “Oh, Mr. Shark. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? You’re looking healthy. How have you been?”

“Geeze, don’t talk like we’re old pals. When you used your weird mind powers on me, it really didn’t make life easy on me, you know!” Di Roy said, then ended up shrugging, “Then again, guess I was trying to kill you at the time, so fair’s fair. So, you here for round two?”

“Not at all,” Flutteshy said, turning her gaze to Posey, “I came to stop an unnecessary fight.”

Lieutenant Posey stiffened, a portion of her hair falling across her face as she pointedly looked away from Fluttershy, “But mother, it’s my duty as a Soul Reaper to slay and purify Hollows wherever I can.”

“I understand that, but these Hollows were leaving. What sense is there in attacking them, if they had no further intent to fight?” Fluttershy asked.

“Hold up, ‘mother’!?” Di Roy said, looking between the pair as if finally noticing just how similar Fluttershy and Posey appeared. “Uhhhh... do I even want to ask?”

“Who cares?” Ember said, her face red and sporting a freshly popped vein, “Either get out of our way, or fight, I don’t care which! I’m going home. Whether that happens with or without a few extra corpses on the ground, I really don’t care right now!”

Gaw muttered under her breath to Di Roy, “Di Roy, remind me, which ones Adagio say we not supposed to kill?”

“Technically all of them,” Di Roy muttered back, “But if chain-saw chick takes another swing at us, I think boss lady will forgive us if we murdalize in self-defense.”

Gaw grunted, “Murdalize not word. You make that up.”

“Says the chick who still can’t form complete sentences. How do you know it’s not a word? Could be a totally legitimate word in the dictionary and everything,” Di Roy defended.

“Dictionary?” Gaw said, licking her lips, “More made up words.”

Fluttershy chuckled lightly, and looked at Posey with kind eyes, “Do you really feel that fighting right now serves a valuable purpose, Posey? Right now there’s still battles taking place elsewhere. Should you start another, when there are people here who still need your protection?”

Tension filled Posey for a few moments, before she finally lowered her Zanpaktou and looked at the ground, “I don’t know. Letting Hollows live goes against everything a Soul Reaper is trained for, and one of these ones is the Arrancar Captain Starswirl was using in his work. I shouldn’t just let them go, should I? I don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m failing father if I don’t do something.”

“I know, Posey, but right now further fighting isn’t the something you should be doing,” Fluttershy said, “Instead, help me tend the wounded, and let these folks go with their friend they’ve just rescued. You can’t be faulted for seeing to the well being of your comrades rather than pursuing further bloodshed.”

“But... Captain Starswirl needs that prisoner for the research on the portal,” Posey said, but Fluttershy’s continued calming stare seemed to quiet her uncertainty, “Is it really okay to just let them go?”

“There’s always other ways to achieve a goal, but trust me, a little kindness can go a long way, no matter whom it’s extended to. We’ll find another way to get through the portal,” Fluttershy said, and Posey finally relented, lowering Kyoki and causing the Zanpaktou’s spinning saw-teeth to cease moving.

“Okay then...um...” she said, coughing shyly before she managed to go on with a bit more confidence and somewhat awkward command in her tone, “Arrancar, I’m allowing you to return to the depths of Hueco Mundo. Don’t take this kindness lightly, or I might still let Kyoki loose to carve you to pieces!”

Ember just rolled her eyes, “Whatever. I could take you any day, strawberry head.”

“Hey, ease up,” Di Roy said, “Let’s not look a gift escape in the mouth. Many thanks, uh... whatever your name was.”

“Fluttershy.”

“Right, Fluttershy. Hard to keep track of all you human types,” Di Roy said, “Now, c’mon ladies and Gaw. Sooner we’re back in Las Noches, the bett...er...?”

His trailing off was due to a rather noticeable and sudden shaking in the earth. It was faint at first, but the rumbling and shaking grew in intensity by magnitudes in a matter of seconds, even shaking the towering Gaw off her feet. All present could feel something below them. Not just a growing, powerful spiritual pressure, but the buzz of another energy... magic.

“What’s happening?” Lieutenant Posey said, and several of the other Soul Reaper researchers who were gradually regaining consciousness started to ask the same.

Fluttershy, her face now a mask of concentration, focused her senses downward. She could barely feel it amid the still swiftly rising sensation of magic and now distinctly Hollow reiatsu from down below, but she could also feel Sunset Shimmer’s spiritual pressure.

“Something must have gone wrong,” Fluttershy said, “Everyone! Get away from the lakebed!”

However, her warning came a little too late, as the ground started to crack apart beneath their feet, and then blasted upward in an explosive shower of dirt and rock as something massive began to rise up from the depths below Camp Everfree.

----------

Twilight’s immediate response to the words Sapphire Shores had declared with such conviction was to blurt out, “That’s ridiculous. In what way would my death ensure Sombra’s continued survival?”

“His Majesty-” Sapphire Shore said with a pointed tone, her face of cultured beauty hardened by a look of promised death, “-will be slain as a result of your presence. I don’t know if it’s because you do the deed yourself or if there’s another reason, only that your existence in his life is the requiem that heralds our King’s death. It is a song I shall do all I can to cut short.”

Twilight’s mind tried to crunch that particular calculation, and it didn’t compute. She shook her head in bafflement, although she didn’t lower her bow or her guard for an instant. Sapphire Shores was exuding a ludicrously potent reiatsu, sharpened with such killing intent it rather surprised Twilight that the woman was even talking to her, rather than immediately resuming her attack. Perhaps it was because Starswirl was here? Wounded he may have been, but that didn’t at all dilute Starswilr’s presence, his own reiatsu remaining as condensed and powerful as ever as he looked between Twilight and Sapphire with shrewd eyes.

“Since you plan to kill me, do you mind at least explaining how you even got to this conclusion?” Twilight asked, “Do you have some kind of prophetic ability? Is that your Schrift?”

There was no doubt or hesitation in Sapphire’s expression, body language, or voice, but she did take a moment’s pause to consider Twilight’s question before saying, “It won’t make a difference if you understand the notes of this dance, but since I have taken upon myself to take you off the stage permanently, I can see how you might feel as if you’re owed an explanation as to why. So be it, consider it a courteous gift to you, child, that I’ll give you this much comfort. My Schrift is not prophetic, it’s the Quintessence. I can see into the true nature of reishi and see the weave of their beautiful dance. This has the side effect that I can see how this dance of reishi between objects or individuals can affect future events. Say, which man and woman would produce the most potent offspring in terms of spiritual potential, or which steps in the dance of battle is most likely to result in a victorious serenade. These predictions are not absolutes, but they are quite accurate. However, on rare occasions, I will see a flow of reishi interaction so unbelievably powerful that it becomes a song whose notes are effectively inevitable. This has only happened a handful of times, but each time it has happened, the song I witnessed was following its course to its final crescendo. I was only able to alter such a song once before, and that was only by killing one of the individuals involved in the event prior to the predicted result.”

Sapphire’s words hit Twilight’s brain like a giant sledgehammer made out of causality equations. She had so many questions! Sapphire likely misinterpreted the look of dumbfounded shock on Twilight’s face, as she nodded sadly, “It’s unfortunate, but true, your death is unavoidable, if I wish to preserve His Majesty’s life.”

“No, um, I’m just... really trying to grasp how you think your power works versus what it more likely is in terms of it’s logical breakdown,” Twilight said, adjusting her glasses, “So you’re telling me you’ve been putting me through so much stress, injured my dog, and endangered the lives of my friends all because you don’t understand how causality works!?”

“...Excuse me?” Sapphire Shores blurted, while off to the side, Starswirl let out a dry chortle.

“I do believe young Miss Sparkle is exasperated that you’ve apparently constructed an assassination plot based solely upon a misunderstanding of your own ability, which you assume constitutes an absolute relation between predictive results and temporal reality, but I’ll allow her to explain your error. I’d hate to step on her toes.”

“Thank you, Captain Starswirl, but honestly there’s not much to explain,” Twilight said, turning a flustered and frustrated gaze towards the indignant looking Sapphire Shores, “These predictions of yours are based on the interactions of spirit particles, you said. But you’ve admitted to most of them not having one hundred percent accuracy, save for rare instances, and even one of those you altered. Even the most advanced predictive models are just that; predictions. You already know that they’re alterable.”

“Yes, by killing one of the people involved-” Sapphire began, but Twilight waved her hand to cut the woman off.

“So you assume that’s the only way to alter the event? It never occurred to you that by proving even your ‘absolute’ predictions as alterable, you essentially proved that potentially any event could alter them? So let me ask you this, the moment you got this vision or whatever you want to call it of Sombra’s death as a result of his association with me why didn’t you immediately tell him about it?”

“Because that wouldn’t have changed what I saw,” Sapphire Shores said, “Not enough. Even if you and His Majesty had been aware of the danger, the dance of your reishi would have remained in place. As long as you are a part of His Majesty’s life, you will also be his undoing. I take no pleasure in the fact, but the only way to ensure that doesn’t happen is if you’re no longer alive to have any influence upon His Majesty.”

“Unless my death is what causes his own,” Twilight countered, “What if your assassinating me is part of your own prediction?”

“No, I can tell when the dance of reishi is affected by the disappearance of a person’s reishi in their life,” Sapphire replied, perhaps a bit too swiftly, “In the interactions I witnessed between you and His Majesty, your reishi’s were entwined up until the moment his vanishes, which means you would be very much alive. Hence, the only way to prevent His Majesty’s death is to ensure you die first.”

“Wait, you just said that Sombra’s reishi vanishes in your prediction, correct?” asked Twilight, “Yet does that actually equate to death in every instance?”

That seemed to give Sapphire pause, if only briefly before she shook her head and snorted, “It must. There’s no other reason a person’s reishi would disappear completely. You’re just trying to confuse me, child, but you won’t blind me with your inane questions. Even if there was some small chance I’ve misread the notes of the song I hear, it’s still much safer to just kill you than take the risk with His Majesty’s life.”

“And you’re no longer trying to hide what you’re doing,” Twilight noted, “Why go through so many attempts to hide your identity before, if you were willing to go this far now?”

“I know His Majesty favors you,” Sapphire said, with a hint of acid in her voice, “I wanted to spare him the pain of knowing it was due to my Schrift that I saw how you’d be responsible for his death. He’d blame himself for your loss. I couldn’t stand to see that. Better that he think you killed in some lesser power grab among the Quincy, something out of his control. It wasn’t hard to find power hungry idiots who thought they’d benefit from your death weakening your family and allow others to rise in turn.”

“So the first attempt on my life was one of these accomplices,” Twilight surmised, “The attack had always seemed sloppy to me, in retrospect. Even the attack on me during the battle at Las Noches didn’t feel like I was facing someone on your level...”

“No,” Sapphire Shores admitted,”This is the first, and last, time you and I shall face each other. It was that idiot wife of Filthy Rich who jumped the gun and tried to kill you first. The second attempt was a fellow Sternritter, but that bitch, Cinch, intervened and saved you. No more. I’m finishing this matter myself, and face whatever punishment His Majesty sees fit for me after it’s done!”

There was a hard light of fanatic conviction in Sapphire Shore’s eyes that told Twilight that there was no convincing the Sternritter to reconsider her present course. As far as Twilight was concerned Sapphire likely had seen something between her and Sombra that might indicate a future in which she somehow was responsible for his death, but the assumption that Twilight’s own death was the only way to prevent that future was an erroneous one. While she couldn’t claim to fully grasp how the Quintessence Schrift worked, from the way Sapphire Shores described it, it wasn’t that far off from some theories in science that stated if one knew the precise disposition of all molecules in a given interaction it was entirely possible to accurately predict the actions of those molecules. In Sapphire’s case, by being able to see and understand the interactions of spirit particles between people and objects, she could see all likely outcomes of those interactions.

But if the Quintessence also let her alter the nature of reishi, shouldn’t she be able to alter those interactions as well? But the woman seemed beyond being reasoned with. Twilight could feel the murderous intentions flowing off of Sapphire Shores like a cold, clammy pressure on her skin. Worse, Sapphire’s reiatsu was keenly potent to a degree that instantly told Twilight that she was out of her league, even more so than in facing Captain Starswirl. The information Twilight had read on the Sternritter that Sombra had made available to her suggested Sapphire Shores stood on a level of ability comparable to her father, who as far as she knew was among Sombra’s most trusted and powerful servants.

There were only two factors preventing Twilight from considering fleeing for her life.

One was Starswirl’s presence, and clear willingness to fight alongside her. While wounded, the Captain of the Twelfth Division remained a powerful foe, or in this case, ally. If Twilight could buy him time to activate his Bankai again, then it’s ability may well turn the tide against the Quintessence.

The other reason Twilight was confident enough to not run away was that she’d anticipated from before coming back to Canterlot City that the assassins seeking her life would make a move now, while she was away from Sombra’s watchful gaze. She’d already set her own plan in motion, it was just a question of whether or not the pieces she put into play would be fast enough to make a difference.

“Alright,” she said to Sapphire Shores, “Since you won’t listen to reason, you really aren’t giving me any choice. I’m not letting you kill me just because you fear a future that hasn’t happened yet. You may be the Quintessence, who can see the flow of reishi and what futures it might bring, but I’m the Variable. I’ll change any number of futures where either I or Sombra die! So come at me, if you’re that blinded by fear. Either way, this ends today.”

A brief touch of an impressed smirk touched Sapphire’s lips, “At least you’re no coward, girl. I can almost see what His Majesty finds engaging about you. Unfortunate that you have to die, so that he may live.”

Sapphire Shores raised her bow, the crescent shaped bow of glittering silver liquid reishi filling with even brighter points of light as Twilight felt the other Sternritter’s reiatsu burst forth. Twilight responded in kind, although her own reiatsu couldn’t match the storm of silver light engulfing Sapphire Shores. They were both Sternritter, but there was still vast difference in their overall power.

Yet Twilight didn’t falter, and when Sapphire Shores opened fire with streaking arrows of liquid silver, Twilight met them with a blazing fusillade of her own magically charged, teal arrows of witchfire.

----------

With power surging through her veins, lighting up every inch of her body, Applejack should have felt like she was on top of the world. Her blood was singing in her veins with a vibration of righteous power that she could hear pulsing through her with every heartbeat. The large, drill-like lance in her hand gleamed with power, and her spiritual awareness of her own reiatsu had never been sharper.

And yet she knew the task ahead of her was a monumental one. Even now, with her power at a new height, she had to focus to keep up with her parent’s movements. Hard Nail in his released Resurreccion form, and Sweet Cider with her Zanpaktou’s true Shikai freed were both moving at speeds that Applejack couldn’t even quantify, clashing across the valley at such a rate that it appeared less like a duel between two opponents and more like a battle between two armies. Still, Applejack found she could follow her parent’s motions, tracking the individual movements and maneuvers of their blades. Her father was fighting like a beast unchained, dark reiatsu flowing from his body in black streaks as his blade carved the air. Her mother was showing more deft, defensive moves, wielding both her Zanpaktou and Fullbring blades with precision that would have been unimaginable for swords that size, even with two hands let alone one.

Behind Applejack, Fenice stood watching the fight with a horrified fascination, far less able to tell what was happening, and all too keenly aware of her own lack of power to control the outcome of this battle. Applejack offered her a reassuring nod.

“Ya done yer part. I’ll take it from here.”

“You say that, and I believe you, but... seriously, what’s your plan, because father isn’t going to just stop as long as there’s an opponent in front of him.”

“Don’t suppose ya know if he’s got any weaknesses?” Applejack asked, and Fenice’s expression fell.

“Not that I’ve ever seen.”

“Oh well, guess it’s down ta a’ old fashioned smackdown ‘till he runs outta juice,” Applejack said, hefting her lance and bracing her legs. All across her back and legs, the nearly invisible ports now opened, glowing bright gold with the built up of spirit energy that would soon release in bursting jets of power. There was almost no part of her armor now that couldn’t produce these jets, giving Applejack a massive boost in her speed and maneuverability compared to before.

“Do you really think you can beat him with raw strength?” Fenice asked, incredulousness filling her voice, “Even with your Fullbring completed, that...”

“I ain’t that thick headed,” Applejack said with fresh resolve painting her face as she aimed her lance in the direction of her parent’s fight, “I know I can’t match pa, blow fer blow. Ain’t plannin’ to. But if I can throw him off balance, draw his attention, might give ma the openin’ she needs.”

The golden jets of power in her armor reached a peak, light shining from within, and Applejack activated them all at once. A massive blast of power emitted from the ports, propelling Applejack forward at a speed that would have made Rainbow Dash proud. It wasn’t quite as fast as the godly speeds Applejack knew her friend boasted of nowadays, but the direct thrusting power of her new armor could still propel her much quicker than before. The two portions of her lance started to spin, the tip portion to the right and the larger back portion to the left, creating an conflicting field of energies around the lance that Applejack knew would only boost it’s striking power. And, much like her armor, the drill lance had ports along its length that opened up and started to fire jets of golden energy, causing the drill bits to spin even faster with spirals of gold light.

She’d aimed her charge straight at her father, but angled her lance to aim at one of his legs. As she expected, he felt her attack coming, turning his wolf skull mask towards her as she closed in. He flipped upwards at the last moment, allowing Applejack’s drill to impact the ground where he’d been standing. The built up energy inside the drill released, shattering the earth and unleashing a spiraling torrent of gold energy and air pressure that ripped asunder a wide swath of the valley in front of Applejack.

Having anticipated that her father would dodge, however, Applejack used the momentum of the blast to fling herself backwards and flip through the air herself, kicking out with both legs. More ports opened up across her legs and feet, buzzing with power as twin beams of searing energy blasted out at Hard Nail.

He caught them on his blade, the dark Zanpaktou splitting the beams around it in a wild storm of energy that rained craters down around him. Applejack saw him raise a clawed hand towards her, preparing to charge a Cero, but at that moment Sweet Cider appeared at his side with a Flash Step, slicing towards him with both of her own gigantic swords. Hard Nail had to halt his Cero to spin around to block the attack, and due to his awkward angle, while he did get his blade up in time to block, he was actually sent flying backwards to smash into the ground and skid for some distance before coming to a stop.

Applejack landed on the ground next to Sweet Cider, who looked at her daughter with an appreciative and impressed look lighting up her cherry red features.

“Yer Fullbring is quite the sight now, hayseed. Packs a’ wallop, too.”

Applejack returned her mother’s smile with her own bright flash of teeth, “What can I say, I take after my ma.”

A soft breath escaped Sweet Cider, along with a brief wetness in her eyes that she swiftly rubbed away. She looked towards Hard Nail, who had stood back up by now, little to no damage apparent on his body. “Guess there’ ain’t time fer waterworks yet. Not ‘till we sort yer pa out. Ya ready to do this, Applejack?”

She could only nod, turning to face her father alongside her mother. As if in response to the sight of the two women arrayed before him, wife and daughter both, the Fourth Espada briefly paused, his hand tightening around the hilt of his Zanpaktou. A ragged breathing issued from behind the featureless wolf skull mask he wore, and amid the black pits of the mask’s eyes she could almost, for just an instant, see her father’s true eyes shine through. But then darkness clouded those eyes once more and the Fourth Espada, Lament, emitted an earth shaking howl as a fresh wave of dark, miasma-like reiatsu poured from his body and rose in a dense pillar into the sky. Applejack felt her father’s bone crushing spiritual pressure press down on her soul, and could taste the oily despair of it, the long, festering pain her father had been in for all those years.

Rather than choke on that feeling, rather than let that overwhelming reiatsu of regret crush her to her knees, Applejack stood resolute. Her own body burst with a radiant aura of gold, pushing back against her father’s reiatsu. Even so, she could only just barely hold against it, at least until a second wave of reiatsu pushed out as well. Her mother’s body was, like Applejack’s, wreathed in gold light as she let her spiritual pressure pour forth. Mother and daughter looked to each other, then at the man they both wished to save.

They charged, two gold lights against a sea of dark.

With a howl, Lament lowered his head, aiming the sharp twin horns pointing from his wolf mask at the oncoming Soul Reaper and human girl. In the drowning depths of his mind, Hard Nail struggled against his own body and mind, but to the instincts of the Hollow that drenched his thoughts it could only recognize threats to destroy.

Pitch black energy pooled between the tips of the horns like the singularity of a collapsed star.

Sweet Cider pulled her right hand with Kizuna in it back, while keeping her left hand with Hearthstone low and to the left. Brilliant energy flowed out of Kizuna in preparation to strike.

Applejack gripped her lance with both hands, her left one holding the side handle on the revolver-like back housing, while her right gripped the trigger. Small tubes of gold snaked out and connected to ports on the back of both Applejack’s hands, pulses of gold light charging into the lance as the drill shaped tip opened up in three equal sections to reveal a thick gun barrel underneath, while the back portion of the drill started to spin up to powerful speeds.

Lament vanished behind a gigantic blast of oily dark energy, a black Cero without a name, yet easily rivaling and even surpassing the space-warping potency of a Gran Rey Cero. In the distance, Fenice had wisely used the time Applejack joining the fight had bought to move away from the valley, although she couldn’t bring herself to leave entirely, and she was left watching in grim awe at the power of her father and the bravery of the two charging headlong into that power.

At the same moment Lament fired, Sweet Cider swung Kizuna forward, it’s gold light expanding in a blazing arc. Inside her mind, she felt her Zanpaktou’s spirit, and recalled what Kizuna had told her just moment’s earlier before Applejack had joined the battle.

”With your Fullbring no longer messing with my head, I finally tell you the name of this attack.”

“The name? Didn’t think your power had any names. We’re not much for fancy techniques.”

“Oh, it’s got a name, and there’s nothing fancy about it, Sweet Cider. You're a Captain, you ought to remember the basics... that a Zanpaktou’s attacks are far more powerful when the name is known. So don’t hesitate. Shout it out, loud as you can, the battle cry of your Zanpaktou.”

As her blade crashed forward with all the weight of a falling moon, Sweet Cider stared through the darkness ahead and bellowed out for the first time the name of the technique she’d been using for so long.

”Chi Tanzo-Ha!” (Blood Forged Wave)

A radiant crescent of gold power burst forth, tall as a tidal wave. And it wasn’t alone. Beside Sweet Cider, Applejack’s Fullbring had spun itself to a golden blur, while the revealed barrel within the drill tip flared with scintillating light.

Applejack also shouted a name. Unlike the names she and Rainbow Dash had been coming up with for fun for their attacks up until now, the completion of her Fullbring brought with it an innate knowledge of its new abilities, as well as the Fullbring’s name. It was that name she cried, joining her voice with her mother’s.

“Honest Heart Raiment!”

A blinding sphere of wild gold energy half a dozen meters wide fired from the barrel with a concussive blast of force. The sphere’s power joined with the gold wave of her mother’s technique, forming a pulsing core to the wave of energy as it collided headlong with the black Cero fired by Lament. The ground heaved and the sky shook with the titanic clash of dark and gold energies, and even though Fenice had made a point of getting a solid distance away of several kilometres, she could feel her bones rattle with the shockwaves of the clash.

Even distant battles around Camp Everfree paused as few could ignore the towering wall of darkness and gold light splashing miles into the sky, and then exploding with incredible force.

At ground zero both Applejack and Sweet Cider were thrown back by the backblast of explosive force. Sweet Cider’s potent reiatsu kept her insulated, but even she felt her muscles tear and bones bend from the raw explosive force of her and her daughter’s energies colliding with her husband’s Cero. Applejack had it rougher, smashed backwards through the ground, with her gold armor scuffing and cracking in a few places, although her Fullbring held up remarkably well considering the force of the blast.

Digging her lance into the ground, she halted herself and kept herself upright, while her mother landed next to her and used Hearthstone to shield her further from the wind force of the dissipating blast.

“Ugh... pa’s got a’ lot o’ power ta toss around,” Applejack said, “Ain’t sure how we’re gonna get close ta him.”

“He ain’t fightin’ on nothin’ but instinct,” Sweet Cider said, “We can use that, hayseed. Just listen’ up.”

Her mother leaned down, and briefly explained the idea to Applejack, who listened intently without taking her eyes off of where she sensed her father to be. The explosion had finalized the ruination of the valley, leaving Applejack’s heart aching at the sight of the barren, burned rock and dirt where once a verdant valley had been. Sweet Cider just barely had time to explain the bare bones of her plan before the murderous intent of Lament’s reiatsu flared, and she quickly raised her blades.

“Here he comes. Ya know what ta do, Applejack.”

“Yup! Ya can count on me, ma!”

Their words were barely past their lips before a streaking shadow slipped past them, Lament appearing behind the two with his sword already cleaving a black arc towards Applejack’s back. She wasn’t fast enough to do more than twist with the blow, her gold armor shedding a shower of sparks as Lament’s Zanpaktou cut through it along Applejack’s right shoulder blade. The armor reduced what might have been a fatal blow to a painful laceration, but it still left Applejack wincing in pain as she spun around and kicked back, leaping into the air.

Sweet Cider came down with both Hearthstone and Kizuna, jets of energy firing out of Hearthstone as both swords slammed down towards Lament. His form blurred away from the blows, then he instantly came back at Sweet Cider with his sword carving a path towards her throat. She bent backwards from the air rending strike, her cheek lashed open by the cut meant for her throat, and she reversed her grip on Hearthstone. The blade spun like a drill in a fashion not unlike what Applejack’s lance did, and she slammed it into Lament’s gut. His Hierro absorbed some of the blow, but his stomach was distended inward, with a blast of air pressure exploding from his back as Lament was thrust backwards. His clawed feet ground through the dirt, keeping him stable as he howled and raised his left hand. Beads of darkness formed around the tips of his claws, compacted black Balas that fired out rapidly at Sweet Cider. She crossed her massive blades in front of her like a pair of tower shields. The black bullets slammed into the blades with raging force, exploding in spheres of dark energy. Some were deflected away to rip apart the ground elsewhere, pockmarking the already devastated valley with more craters, but Sweet Cider withstood the assault, keeping Lament’s attention on her while Applejack remained in the air and prepared her next move.

Dozens upon dozens of ports opened up all over her armor, and throwing her limbs out, she let out a rough shout as she fired beams of gold energy from those ports. They weren’t aimed directly at her father, but rather exploded around Lament in a chaotic storm. This kicked up a large cloud of dust and dirt, and Applejack wasn’t finished. Flying around in a swift circle to build up momentum, she held her lance in front of her and then dove towards the ground, digging the lance into the valley floor. The jets from her back and legs intensified as she flew circles around her parents, ploughing through the dirt with her lance and throwing up even thicker clouds of dust.

Lament let out a feral growl and swung his sword out several times, creating pressure waves of air that started to clear the obscuring dust that Applejack’s actions were creating, but he couldn’t do that for more than a moment before Sweet Cider pressed him with a swift series of spinning sword slashes that forced him to go on the defensive.

Applejack, now flying to one side of the dust cloud where she could feel her mother driving Lament, drew in a deep breath and replayed in her head what her mother had told her.

”Our spiritual pressures are pretty similar in how they feel, hayseed. Don’t think yer pa would be able ta tell the difference like he is now. If we can blind him fer a second, like that trick ya pulled during our fight back in Soul Society, then we can get him ta mistake which one o’ us is which. Figure if we do that at the right moment...”

The right moment. Applejack gripped her lance with both hands and started to spin up the drill portions of it with all the power she could muster. She dug deep into her reserves of strength and pushed her spiritual pressure as high as she could. She had to make it feel at least somewhat close to what her mother was capable of, if only for an instant. This battle couldn’t drag on for too much longer, and both she and Sweet Cider knew it. Her mother had used up a lot of power already, and even if her Fullbring was freshly completed, Applejack knew it wouldn’t stand against her father in his current state for very long.

In short, this fight had to be ended as fast as possible, and the best way to do that was to create an opening for Sweet Cider to hit Lament at full power, without him being able to mitigate the damage by dodging, blocking, or countering.

That, and hope that her father would survive.

Applejack was surrounded by a golden wind of reiatsu as her lance’s drill bits revved up to a feverish pitch, jets of energy spinning so fast from them that they looked like solid discs within the core of the lance. The ground was cracking beneath her feet even without her moving, and Applejack felt like her body was trying to tear itself apart with the amount of energy she was building up.

Funny, that it was only meant to be the distraction in this case.

She sensed her mother and father within the dust cloud nearing her location, Sweet Cider keeping the pressure on her attacks to force Lament closer to Applejack. Then, with a swift Flash Step, Sweet Cider moved to stand next to Applejack. For a moment, the pair let their spiritual pressure’s overlap, so that they’d appear to nearly be one and the same. At that instant, Applejack thrust her lance forward, and with a raw blast of power from the ports on her back, she rocketed forward at her father. The wind force alone broke apart the dust cloud, but that was fine, since at this point Lament was forced to turn and face Applejack, likely thinking that it was Sweet Cider coming at him for another attack.

Black energy wreathed his Zanpaktou as he swung it down upon Applejack’s spinning lance. She felt her body tremble at the power of her father’s blow, and grit her teeth and poured forth even more energy from the rocket jets from her armor and lance, pressing as hard as she could to try and break her father’s guard. For a moment the lance held steady, and she even saw her father’s shrouded eyes gaze at her with a look almost like recognition. Then Lament howled and reached out with his other hand, griping Applejack’s lance. His shear strength halted the spinning drill portion dead, scouring away some of his Hierro hardened skin, but otherwise inflicting little damage.

Applejack wasn’t done, though, activating the barrel beneath the drill, which opened up just enough to let her fire a point blank blast that for a second engulfed Lament in a golden burst of light.

The explosive light faded a moment later to reveal an only slightly scorched Lament, who lowered his horns towards Applejack and started to gather dark energy between them. But by then, his focus was so much on what was in front of him, he’d lost track of Sweet Cider.

She appeared right next to him from a blazingly quick Flash Step, already swinging Kizuna in an overhand slash aimed to shatter his wolf mask. It was only Lament’s own supreme speed that let him swing his left arm up to block while simultaneously throwing Applejack by her own lance and smashing the girl into the ground. His arm caught Kizuna, but the blade bit deeply into his pale flesh, cutting into muscle, then bone. Finishing her swing, Sweet Cider managed to sever the arm entirely, and even cut a ragged gash along her husband’s chest with the blow. Both the stump of his left arm, sheared above the elbow, and the gash on his chest didn’t bleed, only seeped dark, wet ash.

Lament didn’t even hesitate for a split second, thrusting his Zanpaktou in a flash towards Sweet Cider. While she was overextended with Kizuna, fortunately she’d kept Hearthstone back, just in case, and was able to get the thick Fullbring blade between her and the incoming strike. However, Lament’s sword pierced through Hearthstone with a sickening cracking noise, and the tip of his blade punctured Sweet Cider’s gut.

Coughing, Applejack shouted for her mother, pushing herself to her feet and thrusting her lance towards her father’s back.

Lament withdrew his sword from Sweet Cider and swung it back, black reiatsu coating the blade as he knocked the lance out of Applejack’s hands. Applejack gasped as her father’s foot lashed out and slammed into her chest, cracking her gold armor and blasting a burst of spit and blood from her mouth. Not relenting, despite the painful blow, Applejack gripped her father’s leg and with jets of energy assisting her motions, she spun around with him and body slammed him into the ground. He didn’t weight all that much, so the maneuver itself was easy, but it didn’t so much as faze lament as he wrenched his foot free and in a blur of Sonido gripped Applejack’s face and proceeded to slam her right back into the ground as well.

Her head burst with pain and noise, Applejack becoming dazed as she coughed and rolled onto her back. Suddenly she saw her father looming over her, a dark shadow with the edge of his black blade catching the sunlight in a deadly gleam. His sword was aimed right at her heart, and it would only take him an eye-blink to ram it home. Yet time seemed to have halted as Applejack looked up at her father, right into the dark pits of his eyes, and she said in a forgiving voice, tears in her eyes, “I’m sorry pa...”

Snapping her arms up, she gripped his Zanpaktou with all of her might, letting it’s edge cut through the armored palms of her hands as she ignited every port along her arms to fire powerful jets of energy to hold her father’s blade in place. Her eyes, shining with tears, held her father’s gaze as she shouted with all her might, “But I ain’t lettin’ ya stay in darkness, even if it kills me!”

Even with all of her might placed into holding Lament’s Zanpaktou still, it still inched closer to her heart. The jets of energy firing from her arms were melting the ground around her, but Applejack doggedly pressed on, never once letting her gaze waver from that of her father’s. Just as the tip of his blade started to pierce the armor plating just above her heart, she didn’t look away or flinch. Instead she just spoke what was in her heart, even as she felt her father’s sword sink ever closer to piercing it.

“Pa, I know yer lost in all that pain ya carried fer so long. But yer a’ man who loves his family, more n’ anythin’ else. Whether it was the family ya lost, or the new family ya made, that part o’ ya never went away. An’ we’re both here, yer old family, an’ yer new one, waitin’ fer ya... I love ya, pa, so come back to yer family, both o’ them!”

And if only for a second, he halted. The darkness in his eyes cleared, just briefly, showing his true eyes beneath, swimming with tears himself. His voice came forth in a distorted, choking manner.

“Hay...seed...”

His eyes started to fade back into darkness once more, Lament giving forth a shrill howl as he appeared to fight with himself, the blade that was mere inches from Applejack's heart shaking in his grip.

Then from the side came Sweet Cider like a shining meteor, Kizuna swinging from blow in an two-handed, uppercut slash that exploded with searing light as Sweet Cider’s voice rang like a golden bell.

”Chi Tanzo-Ha!” Sweet Cider shouted, blood pouring from her mouth and her gut wound.

Applejack’s vision filled with light like the sun itself had been dropped upon the battlefield. Her ears were overwhelmed and deafened by the thunderous noise of what sounded like a thousand howling winds combined. Before her, illuminated as little more than a shadow against a field of gold, she saw her father take the full brunt of a golden wave of crescent shaped energy that erupted from her mother’s Zanpaktou and soared into the sky.

The rising crescent wave of light split the overcast sky in half, tearing the clouds asunder and leaving nothing by blue sky above, pierced by that single gold wave of energy.

Moments passed between Applejack’s heartbeats that pounded in her ears as she stared up into the blue sky. Lament had been carried straight up by the blast of the Chi Tenzo-Ha, like a leaf caught in a tumultuous hurricane wind. Sweet Cider stood there, blade still raised high from her strike, blood coating her lips and chin as her once powerful body trembled with the effort of the energy she’d released, her spiritual energy now all but exhausted.

“M...ma!” Applejack sputtered, struggling to her feet. She stumbled to her mother’s side just as Sweet Cider sagged, and Applejack caught her mother, supporting Sweet Cider on her shoulder.

“I’m alright,” Sweet Cider said, grimacing, but also managing a small smile, “Looks worse than it is.”

“Ya got stabbed through the gut, ma! Don’t try an’ act all tough!” Applejack said, glancing to where she could see Hearthstone laying on the ground, a hole still punctured through it.

“Yeah, yer pa got in a’ good hit... but this ain’t gonna kill me. Might lay me out fer awhile, but I’ll be right as rain... ugh... after seein’ Zecora an’ her Division fer a bit o’ patch work,” Sweet Cider said, and looked up into the sky, “More importantly, here’s hopin’ that did love tap was ‘nough ta rattle yer pa back ta whatever counts as normal fer him now.”

Applejack looked up as well, and felt a spark of shock as she saw the form of her father falling back down to the Earth. He landed hard on the ground not more than ten meters away, and a mere second later there was the loud clatter as two different halves of his wolf mask, now severed in half, fell to either side of him.

“Pa!” Applejack cried, taking a step forward, but Sweet Cider gripped her daughter’s shoulder, halting her.

Applejack looked between her mother and father, and gulping, waited. She didn’t have to wait long, as her father stirred. His hands grasped at the ground, and Applejack saw now that they were no longer clawed. There was a whistling noise, and in confusion she looked up again, and saw her father’s Zanpaktou spin down and stick into the ground a few paces from her father’s side. It was no longer black, but was back in its initial form, long and curved, but also gleaming a brighter, steel color.

The tension inside Applejack remained wound tightly, but cried for release as she watched her father slowly sit up, swaying like a man waking up from a groggy sleep. He had just the one hand, now, to prop himself up. With the wolf mask gone, his face was back to normal, his eyes soft, if confused, and even apprehensive as he looked at the stump of his left arm, and the now two large gashes covering his torso. His eyes slowly moved to his Zanpaktou, then to the two women standing across from him. Recognition, shame, regret, and lastly... hope, all intermixed in those eyes of the man who had once lost everyone, only now to see all he had lost staring at him from across a barren, broken battlefield.

“I...” he said, then quieted, glancing away for a moment before looking specifically at Applejack, “I heard you. In the dark, I heard...”

Applejack choked for a moment before managing to get her own voice out past the lump forming in her throat, and not bothering to hold back the tears touching her cheeks, “Welcome back, pa.”

He tried to stand, but found his legs wobbling beneath him and he sagged back to the ground. He let out a ragged, weak laugh, keeping himself propped up with his one arm as he looked around the utterly ruined valley, which was no little more than a crater strewn, barren wasteland.

“Guess you girls had ta knock me around pretty hard ta get me thinking straight again,” he said, wincing as he looked down at himself, then up at Sweet Cider, “Dang, hun, this reminds me of that time just after our honeymoon when Granny was out of the house-”

Sweet Cider’s already red face managed a bright pink blush as she growled, “Hard Nail, not in front o’ Applejack! God almighty, yer such a hardheaded idjit o’ a man!”

Despite the heat in her words, her voice grew choked as well, her own eyes shedding their own wet streams of relief, “Ya... idjit man...”

Hard Nail closed his eyes and nodded slowly, “Yer not wrong. I am an idiot.”

“Father!”

Eyes turned towards the voice as Fenice appeared in a blink of green Fullbring light, her sword held lightly to the side as she rushed up to kneel in front of Hard Nail, her free hand shaking as she raised it towards him. Hard Nail clasped that hand with his own, turning his voice to a reassuring lilt, “It’s okay, daughter. I’m alright.”

“You don’t look alright!” Fenice said, holding his hand tightly, “I thought we were going to lose you! What would I even say to everyone if that happened!?”

It was clear she too was trying to hold back tears, and Hard Nail pulled her close, surprising Fenice as he used his one arm to wrap her in a hug, something that he, as Lament, had never actually done. Hard Nail whispered to her as he patted her back, “You did good, daughter. Disobeyed me, but I’ll let it slide, because without you, I might have hurt my family even more.”

“Father... so, are you, um, still you?” Fenice asked. He looked at her, then at Sweet Cider and Applejack. He motioned for Fenice to help him stand, which she did by looping his arm around her shoulders and rising with him.

“I’m still your father,” he told Fenice, “Still father to all my children back home in Las Noches. But... I’m also no longer Lament. I’ve got nothing left to lament. I got both my families, now. What man could have more to be grateful for than me?”

Sweet Cider smiled, although it was a weak one, with blood still marking her lips as she had Applejack help her stand as well.

“Hard Nail,” she said, “Am I right n’ thinkin’ that yer gonna head back ta Hueco Mundo?”

Applejack glanced at her mother, then back at her father as he nodded, his expression somber, but also somehow clear as the now blue sky above.

“That’s right, Sweet Cider. Got things that need taking care of there, still. But don’t fret none, hun. We’ll figure somethin’ out. Ya got a lot of new kids to meet.”

“Tch, ‘cause ya went on an adoption spree without even consultin’ me,” Sweet Cider said, but her smile was widening, “I’ll look forward ta meetin’ ‘em all.”

Tired laughs were shared between the two battered adults, while Fenice and Applejack looked at each other. Slowly, both girls smiled at each other, not needing words between them, since both were sharing the same sentiments. They were family now, come what may.

Then, like a bolt of dark lightning, a voice dropped upon the otherwise peaceful scene.

“A touching sight indeed.”

Applejack froze as a chilling reiatsu akin to a bog-like miasma washed over her, familiar as the voice was. She turned with shaking eyes of fear and anger, as did the eyes of her family as they looked towards the speaker, who now stood a dozen paces away. His hands were calmly folded behind his back, as if he’d been standing there for awhile, although in truth he’d only just arrived, freshly free to roam about and pursue his plans with Celestia out of the way.

“Unfortunately,” Grogar said, smiling like a fleshless skull, “I’ll have to cut this family reunion short.”

Author's Notes:

As I anticipated I wasn't able to get to Rarity's fight this time around, but hopefully the conclusion of the Apple family battle was satisfying enough to make up for that. Meanwhile, Twilight switches out one powerful opponent for another as, drained from her fight with Starswirl, she's going up against one of the Quincy's most powerful Sternritter. Does she have a plan? She's Twilight Sparkle, of course she has a plan. And while all that's happening, Camp Everfree is about to have a whole new problem to deal with. The girls never can catch a break, but that's life as the protagonists for you.

And because I'm uttersly shameless and don't mind admitting to it, Sweet Cider's last Chi Tanzo-Ha was pretty much meant to be a direct reference to one of Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshou's, specifically when he used it against Ginjo, and casually split the clouds apart with it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mz69EsceBKQ

Anyway, next time I promise to get to the conclusion of Rarity's fight, so look forward to that, folks. In the meantime feel free to leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you may have for me, I'm thankful for all of them. 'Till next time!

Episode 117: Casualties

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Episode 117: Casualties

Over the course of her relatively brief life, Rarity had demonstrated uncommon drive for a teenager. She had chosen her intended profession at a young age, and had never hesitated in pursuing any avenue available to her that she thought would give her an advantage in achieving those goals. This meant that, beyond simply studying fashion, she’d also taken to studying business practices and economics. She did want to run her own boutique, perhaps even more than one, so expanding her knowledge of the business world was an essential step, even at her young age.

Coincidentally such studies had also branched out into a cursory study of warfare. As it happens, business and war had a lot in common. Identifying weaknesses in one’s opponent. Recognizing the flow of conflict to predict what a competitor might do next. Knowing when to remain reserved and when to go all out on the attack. Business is, in a sense, warfare by other means.

And perhaps more than any of her friends, Rarity recognized that they were engaged in a war. It might not have been a war of their choosing, and it was a war waged by significantly different kinds of forces than what she’d read in history books or any of her economic courses, but it was a war nonetheless.

In war, victory was often decided by a shockingly basic set of factors; whomever could bring more force to the field and could secure the greatest number of advantages to apply that force was usually the winner.

Presently, Hoity Toity and her were evenly poised against one another in terms of the force at their disposal. She had already discerned that much early on. His reiatsu and hers were evenly matched, and her Court of the Generous Rose was capable of outputting attacks in similar volume to Hoity Toity’s reishi arrows. That meant that victory depended on which one of them would secure the greatest number of advantages outside of force. At the moment, Hoity Toity had a lead in that regard. His amorphous, liquid form took away the advantage Rarity had in regards to being able to outnumber and overwhelm him with her knights. Not only did the liquid body negate physical attacks, but it allowed Hoity to attack and defend from multiple angles simultaneously, while also counter attacking from just as many angles.

Rarity saw this as she commanded her squadrons of knights to surround Hoity Toity’s position and sent them in at him in a relentless assault. Carefully coordinated waves of spear bearing knights leaped into the attack in streaks of red motion, stabbing at Hoity’s bubbling, churning body of liquid, while the archers and cannoneers would wait until one wave of spear knights were beaten back before launching barrages of their own to keep Hoity Toity occupied while the next set of knights was prepared. The arrows and cannon shots, while exploding with potent bursts of spiritual energy, only slightly slowed Hoity Toity down. No matter how many droplets his body was blasted into, the slick mass of flesh-like liquid kept sticking back together like so much putty.

Hoity fired an endless stream of reishi arrows from the bright circles of light surrounding the ‘ends’ of his hands and feet, although to call them such was not wholly accurate any more as the limbs were now like flailing tendrils of liquid flesh. The arrows hammered her knights, and the circles of reishi themselves were potent melee weapons, cutting through her knight’s crystalline armor if stuck head on. Yet any damage done, Rarity could repair, sending out tendrils of blood from herself to reconstitute any damaged knights in-between waves of attack.

Yet Rarity had no intention of allowing this to drag out into a fight of pure attrition. Mostly because she could sense she was expending more energy than Hoity Toity was at this juncture, so such a tactic would end poorly for her. No, she fully intended to end this with a decisive strike. It was simply a matter of gaining the necessary advantages.

Her assault waves served a dual purpose. For every rank of knights that flew in at Hoity, stabbing and cutting at his constantly shifting form, and in turn getting blasted by arrows or hammered by his light rings, small pieces of crystal were broken off and remained floating in small clouds of red dust in the air. Rarity had been pressing her knights hard, having them attack Hoity from every direction. The result was that the more of her knights were damaged, the more small fragments of crystal dust were left floating in the air around Hoity Toity. Since he was currently made from liquid, that dust was also slowly getting caught by his liquid body, saturating it, bit by bit.

“You’re not out of ideas already, are you?” Hoity’s voice seeped from within the frothing mass of his body. His face, like liquid wax running into only half the shape of his features rose from the mass as he sliced one of his reishi rings through a pair of knights that charged him from above. “You keep repeatedly sending these valiant knights at me, no matter how often I break them. Is that not a cruel tactic for a Queen? Do your knights not suffer?”

“Thankfully they do not,” Rarity replied curtly, “It would be all the harder to make them do what must be done. And really, should you be talking so much in the midst of a fight? You might end up making a mistake.”

With a sharp gesture she brought her squadron of pegasus knights to her side, and formed them around her in a V formation while raising her snow white blade high. Her rank and file knights broke off their next attack and instead swiftly moved to surround Hoity Toity in a loose sphere. Hoity’s partially melted features looked towards Rarity with open curiosity.

“Another direct charge? I applaud your grit, my lady, but even if you and your mounted knights pack more power than the others, it won’t matter as long as I keep my body in this liquid state.”

“Believe as you wish,” Rarity said, aiming her blade at Hoity Toity’s head, “But as I warned you, I shall cut you down if you remain in my path.”

The smile on Hoity Toity’s face was distorted by his liquid state into something a fair bit more grotesque than it was likely intended to be as he replied, “Such beautiful resolve can only stir my heart to greater heights! Show me what further ways in which your soul can shine, my lady! I eagerly await the sting of your thorns, if you can find a way to cut me!”

Rarity’s face became a marble mask of concentration as she charged forward alongside her knights. Her mind was not focused on any one, narrow aspect of the fight, but rather was working overtime to observe and measure every moment and motion. There was absolutely no room for mistakes or miscalculations, especially since she was closing into Hoity Toity’s range herself.

He began to counter her charge with a chaotic swirl of his liquid limbs, the whole of his body taking on a shape not unlike her whirlpool of blood, but with many more breaks and confusing contortions within it. She couldn’t even clearly see where his reishi rings were, as they continuously became obscured by his own liquid mass. But that was fine. She wasn’t relying solely upon her own sight. There was a reason she’d had her lesser knights surround Hoity Toity in a spherical formation. She could share the senses of her knights, gaining sensory information from every single one of them. Her Fullbring had evolved so that this didn’t overload her own human senses, but rather filtered into her mind in a manner that was more akin to animal instinct.

That way, when Hoity Toity unleashed the power of a Quincy’s Licht Regen from not just one point, but all four of his reishi rings, Rarity could sense it happening even if part of his liquid body was concealing the attack from view. She knew the angle in which the incredible barrages of thousands of arrows would be coming from, and her squadron of mounted knights were already moving accordingly. Their weapons of crimson crystal shifted shape under her will, becoming a phalanx of tower shields emblazoned with roses. Her knights formed a vanguard around her, their thick armor and shields now interlocked.

The reishi arrows slammed into the phalanx, and Rarity empowered the shields with a flow of her own reiatus to withstand the barrage as she and her knights flew through it, like sailing ships withstanding the rains of a typhoon. At less than ten meters from Hoity Toity, however, the Quincy made his next move.

Tendrils of liquid from his body speared forward and splashed upon the shields of Rarity’s knights. The liquid seeped through small cracks in the interlocked shields and armor, and Rarity felt an intense burst of reiatsu flow through Hoity Toity. If she hadn’t been attuned to the senses of her knights she might not have reacted in time when small, needle-thin tendrils from the bits of liquid that seeped past the shields suddenly hardened into steel-like density and struck at her.

She flipped off of the crystal steed she rode and the construct was pierced through by the needles in an instant. Rarity felt Hoity Toity’s power run through those needles, and turn her steed into dust. The needles then immediately turned to liquid again and redirected themselves at her, shooting upward. One of her knights that had kept back from the vanguard in reserve rushed forward, displaying a dazzling set of flashing red slashes from twin, curved blades. Her knights might act upon her direction, but unlike her earlier constructs, the fully evolved Court of the Generous Rose created knights that could also fight autonomously. The knight’s blades sliced the needles into multiple pieces, which fell away and turned back into liquid.

By now her phalanx of knights had reached Hoity Toity’s main body, and slammed their shields into it. The force of the blows splattered the liquid of his body around, but like slapping at the ocean it did little other than just splash the liquid around rather than do any harm. Immediately Hoity counter attacked with his reishi rings, the weapons slicing through the knight’s shields like they were soft butter. Yet while Hoity Toity was busy with that, Rarity herself maneuvered up and over him with a few swift bursts of Bringer Light. At her direction her knights abandoned their shields and reformed their individual weapons, slicing and stabbing at Hoity Toity’s flailing liquid limbs. Not to inflict damage, but to harry and distract him while Rarity took a precious second to focus her power and bring up a potent aura of reitsu from within herself.

To do what came next she’d needed to get close, and pour her reiatsu directly into the next move. Without her weaker knights acting as additional senses, she’d likely not have been able to defend against Hoity Toity’s attempts to keep her at a distance, and without her phalanx, he’d be too focused on her for Rarity to even have the free second she needed to focus.

The force Hoity Toity had at his disposal was equal, or even a bit stronger, than her own. But he wasn’t securing his advantages. He was fighting sloppy. Rarity was about to teach him that whether in business or war, giving up any advantage was tantamount to admitting defeat.

Pouring her spirit energy out through her sword, the white blade lit up with a crimson light that then fanned out and swirled into the crystalline dust that was hanging around in a glittering red mist, ignored by Hoity Toity up until that moment. As her power fused with the crystal dust, a fair portion of which had also been absorbed into Hoity’s liquid body, the dust spread into hardening sheets of pure ruby.

“Oh, is this your plan?” Hoity Toity said, sounding more bemused than alarmed, “Even if you trap my body within these crystals, it will remain liquid and impervious to attack. You haven’t forgotten I can change matter besides myself, yes?”

Rarity ignored him and continued to harden her crystal dust. Hoity didn’t simply talk, however, and did send two of his reishi rings slashing at her with portions of his liquid body that hadn’t been fully hardened into crystal yet. The speed of the strikes were faster than even the glass daggers of Blue Blood’s Shikai, but Rarity had gotten faster since then, and there were just two weapons to contend with here rather than Blue Blood’s dozens. She deftly swung her sword upwards to deflect the first ring, then with a sweep of her hand morphed the blade into an elegant spear who’s shaft she used to parry the second reishi ring. She spun around in an instant, the spear in her hands whirling with an air tearing whistle as she deflected the reishi rings several more times as they snapped towards her like striking snakes. He was likely trying to break her focus on hardening the crystal dust, but now that she’d already poured some of her spirit energy into it, the process was much easier to keep going.

It was exhausting because she was making sure the crystal sheets hardening around Hoity Toity’s liquid body were far stronger than normal. She didn’t want him breaking out quickly, although she knew he could. His Xenomoprh power would let him reduce the sheets back to dust, but the more of her spirit energy she put into the crystals, the longer it’d take him to do that.

The raw sheets of crystals continued to harden around Hoity’s body, moving in rough clusters matching Hoity’s shifting, amorphous body, until he started to look like a mass of strangely twisted, red coral reef. Finally even the limbs that were striking at Rarity and her knights were hardened and the crystal sheets of deep red ruby even hardened around the reishi rings. For a moment, everything was silent and still as Rarity stepped back and admired her handiwork.

Hoity Toity was effectively trapped, but she knew it wouldn’t be for long. Not long enough for her to go to Twilight’s aid and try to help her friend deal with Sapphire Shores. She could already feel Hoity Toity’s reiatsu trying to press against her own, the strength of his Schrift attempting to break down her own reiatsu that permeated the crystals. He’d be out in a few minutes, if left alone.

But that was alright, a few minutes was more time than Rarity needed. She had fully intended to remove Hoity Toity as a threat, one way or another, and had no intention of running. Especially considering the cost of this battle had already been too high.

With a gesture she commanded her knights to shift formation. Her squadron of mounted knights flew to surround her protectively, and she winced slightly at seeing that some of them were in poor shape due to withstanding Hoity Toity’s attacks. Many bore cracked and torn armor, and she made a mental promise to fix them as soon as she could.

Meanwhile the larger portion of her forces maintained their spherical formation around the now trapped Hoity Toity, but they shifted to make room for the cannoneers to move the cannons forward so that they surrounded Hoity Toity at a distance of no more than a few meters away.

Rarity walked between each cannon, placing her hand on each intricately crafted weapon in turn. At each touch she infused a greater portion of her spiritual energy into the cannon, charging up the crystalline ammunition within. She couldn’t do much to alter the physical nature of her constructs like Hoity Toity could alter his body. If Sunset Shimmer were here, fire would be a fantastic counter to his liquid form. Unfortunately Rarity couldn’t cause her constructs to shoot fire or lightning. All she could do was infuse them with more of her spirit energy so that when they attacked, they hit with more than just physical force, but a high degree of spirit energy as well. The cannons weren’t just there for show. Each part of her army served a purpose for expanding her Fullbring’s versatility in combat. The cannons were powerful ranged weapons, focal points in which she could fire her spirit energy even in a raw form, as long as she attached it to a physical medium.

The normal shots were potent enough, but clearly hadn’t done much to harm Hoity Toity. But if she took time to infuse each cannon with more of her personal power, and then had them all fire at once upon an immobile target?

A feat she couldn't’ have pulled off if Hoity had fought smart and not allowed her to gain her present advantages. Underestimating an opponent is one of the worst mistakes anyone could make in battle. Blue Blood had learned that lesson, but at least Rarity had had the luxury of allowing that man to survive to grow from that mistake. She had no such luxury here. It wasn’t that she desired Hoity Toity’s death, it was simply that in order to defeat him she couldn’t afford to hold back even a tiny amount, otherwise she’d be the one facing defeat.

The rose carved cannons let loose in a symphonic orchestra of percussive thunder. Each barrel burned bright scarlet before blasting reiatsu charged crystal shells that pulsed like red stars as they converged from all sides upon the immobile mass of crystals holding Hoity Toity in place. Rarity didn’t even flinch from the combined detonations, which formed a massive spherical blast of raw crimson energy that shattered and consumed Hoity’s crystal prison in blinding red light. Wind force billowed Rarity’s presently pale white hair around her stoic features. Around her, her knights tensed, as if sensing her apprehension. Each one clutched their weapons tightly, ready to strike the moment even a hint of motion stemmed from the center of the fading explosion.

It was this readiness that allowed one of the knights, one bearing a large bladed halberd, to step in front of Rarity just in time to intercept a streak of motion and blue light that tore the knight’s chest out, but deflected the blow away from Rarity. She had sensed the motion coming, but it had been insanely hard to follow, and she saw the streak of blue move past her and her cluster of mounted knights and break through the surrounding sphere of other knights.

Immediately she rounded, along with her knights, and sent instant mental commands for those with bows to open fire while she herself swept her hand out and created a few dozen flying blades of her own to chase after the streak of light. It moved in haphazard arcs, evading swarms of arrows fired by Rarity’s knights while staying ahead of Rarity’s flying weapons for a few moments before halting in place suddenly. The light turned into a sphere from which four rings of reishi sprang and spun with blinding speed, deflecting or slicing most of Rarity’s weapons apart.

The strange sphere of blue light then reshaped itself into a humanoid form, and Rarity saw it was Hoity Toity. His body held the same general shape it had for his Vollstandig, only instead of flesh and blood, it was as if his entire body was now made of neon pulsing, blue light and reishi energy. His eyes lacked pupils, and his mouth was only partially viewable amid the light his body emitted, but his voice sounded the same as he bowed to her.

“Congratulations my lady. I actually didn’t think you had enough power to damage my liquid form and force me to resort to this much less elegant technique. But be proud, Miss Rarity. I’ve only had to resort to transforming my body into a pure energy state once before, so you hold a very special honor of pushing a Sternritter of the Vandenreich to his absolute limit. This state is my most powerful one, but it burns through my reishi reserves at an unimaginable rate. If I don’t defeat you soon, I’ll burn myself out.”

“Foolish to tell me that,” Rarity said, “I get the impression you’re still not taking me seriously.”

Her army redeployed around her in a defensive formation, shields front, weapons poised. She was wracking her brain for a new plan. She’d expected his Xenomorph Schrift to be problematic, but she hadn’t realized just how far he could push it’s abilities. Perhaps he could only do this with his Vollstandig released? And if he was in a pure energy state, did she even have a means to injure him now? His speed seemed even more ridiculous than before, although Rarity had still been able to follow his movements. If she could just manage to immobilize him again...

“Don’t misunderstand. I’m taking you quite seriously. I’ve just never enjoyed fighting very much, I’m afraid. I’m too much of a talker. I also simply can’t help but want to see if you can follow through with your threat to kill me. It’s my biggest weakness, you see. I’m a patron at heart. There’s nothing I love more than seeing a flower bloom into its full potential. It’s one of many reasons I’ve been a staunch ally of Sapphire Shores since her debut among our ranks. A talent unlike any other I’ve encountered.”

“So much so that you’re willing to let her commit murder without your King’s knowledge. Color me unimpressed by your notions of loyalty, Mister Toity,” Rarity replied coolly, not daring to drop her guard. She sensed a build up of reiatsu within Hoity Toity. He was preparing to make his move. She had to be ready.

“Alas, Sapphire saw something dire in Miss Sparkle. I feel for the child, but I’ve never known Sapphire to be wrong in her judgment calls. I trust her to know what she is doing, it’s as simple as that. Surely you have those you trust with similar resolve?”

If Rarity was being honest with herself, there were. She trusted her friends, to the point of going along with their judgment calls in some cases despite her own misgivings. After all, hadn’t they sallied forth into Soul Society, shaking up the entire afterlife, all on the simple decision to try and rescue their school principle and vice principal, with very little to go on other than trust that they were doing the right thing? She supposed she couldn’t entirely fault Hoity Toity’s trust in his ally, when Rarity had placed her own faith in her friends with equal resolve.

She nearly responded, but sensed the rise in tension from Hoity Toity’s reiatsu, and realized his question was as much meant as a distraction as anything else. His body formed into a streak of light, coming straight at her. Four of her knights welding lighter weapons rushed into his path. One, wielding a scimitar and buckler, sliced down upon the beam of light, but it twisted around the knight’s blade and like a serpent it coiled around and clenched around the knight’s waist, snappit it in half.

The three other knights swooped by, one smashing with a hammer, another hewing with an axe, while the third lashed out with twin katars, but Hoity Toity’s body flashed in and out of humanoid form. He bent around the blows of Rarity’s knights while his four reishi rings struck at such speeds that they left multiple trails of light in their wake, so bright they burned afterimages into Rarity’s eyes.

Her knights were still swift in their own right, and more poured in, replacing damaged ones with fresh bodies to stand in Hoity Toity’s way. One knight threw its body fully upon Hoity Toity, trying to catch him in a bear hug, but arrows of reishi, longer and brighter like thin beams of light, pierced the knight and nearly scattered both it and the pegasus construct it rode to pieces. This did give another knight an opening with a lance that pierced Hoity’s chest, but his body simply flowed around the lance like light itself, Hoity’s body twisting its upper portion around while he sliced with two of his reishi rings to remove the knight’s helmeted head.

It was clear her knights couldn’t harm Hoity Toity, and she doubted that his energy form would take much damage from a similar barrage that had forced him to abandon his liquid form. There was only one way to beat him that she could think of, and that was outlasting this energy state of his. With his speed, however, she could only barely keep up with him. She needed a way to catch him off guard, while also finding a way to harm his energy-based body.

She did have one idea that sparked within her mind. It was a desperate trick, but it might work. He wouldn’t fall for the same thing twice, so she couldn’t rely on another cloud of crystal dust. He’d notice it immediately and back off. She had to do this another way. While her knights rushed Hoity from all sides, buying Rarity a few precious seconds to think, she formed her plan.

Of her twenty pegasus knights, half were damaged to the point of being unable to fight, and she didn’t have time or energy to invest in repairing them, so the ones still capable of moving she commanded to retreat back to her Fullbring’s manifested gate. She did the same to any damaged knights among the lesser ranks. This would free up a bit of reiatsu for her to use for what came next.

The majority of her army fell back, forming ranks behind Rarity while she herself threw herself forward towards Hoity Toity, who was still engaged with the remaining half of her pegasus knights. He seemed to be taking pleasure in dismantling them, now that his energy form had such speed and striking power that even when surrounded he could easily avoid her knight’s blades, and even when they struck the weapons did little more than pass through him without harm. Yet he did still try to avoid attacks, telling Rarity that even if he wasn’t being harmed directly, his energy body likely expended power to repair itself.

Hoity Toity was capable of contorting his form even faster and in more bizarre ways now than even his liquid form. He was able to reshape it in any way he pleased, attacking and defending simultaneously. Rarity didn’t think he was actually as fast as light, otherwise she shouldn’t have been able to respond to his movements at all, but he was still the fastest opponent she’d faced, even putting Blue Blood’s Flash Steps to shame.

As her knights assaulted him, Hoity opened his mouth and a hand shot out of it, grasping the greatsword of one of the knights that had been coming in with a sideways chop, and one of Hoity’s legs bent around like a python and aimed it’s reishi ring at the knight’s chest, firing spearing arrows at point blank range that tore through the knight with ease. Another knight came up from below, both the knight and the pegasus spinning to slice with both sabers and wings, and in response Hoity Toity bent his light body into a donut shape to grasp the knight out of the air. As Hoity Toity squeezed his energy body around the knight and pegasus construct, burning through them.

Rarity sped past the chaotic melee, flickering in and out of view with bursts of speed that saw her striking at Hoity Toity from several angles within the same second. Her white blade sliced through Hoity’s pulsing energy body, and as she expected, she didn’t feel any actual resistance. At least, not the fist time. Between her strikes, Hoity lashed out at her in turn. His light speed attacks were too much for her to be able to avoid fully. One reishi ring sliced across her abdomen, blood spewing from the wound even as she regrew her armor to staunch the flow of blood. Another ring of reishi appeared below her as he extended a limb, firing lancing arrows at her from below. She swung her blade to deflect them while pirouetting in the air through the beams, her reactions enough to avoid being utterly pin-cushioned by the arrows, but still taking at least one beam of light through her left arm, drawing forth a burst of pain and blood that left her grimacing even as she sped back in at him to counter attack.

“Are you really this desperate now to just resort to swinging your blade at me blindly, my lady?” Hoity said, meeting her next several sword strikes with flashing motions of his body. He’d avoid one blow, only to step into the next, forming more rings of reishi from his back supported by pincer-like limbs that slashed at Rarity from above. She just barely blocked one with her sword but the other slashed her across the chest, breaking the crystalline plate of her armor and burning the flesh beneath. Fortunately she’d leaned back enough for the wound to be a shallow one, and her knights now came in at Hoity Toity from behind. He spun to face them while still slashing at her with the new reishi rings from his back, but with his attention divided she was able to parry those while biding her time for a second.

Hoity slashed through another pair of her knights, while firing a barrage of light beams from another pair of reishi rings, but Rarity took that moment to duck under a pair of slices from the rings coming out of his back and attacked him again with a blurring series of blows. And this time she made a subtle alteration to the crystal structure of her sword. While the first few strikes still did nothing to his energy body, once the change in her blade was complete, the final blow met with resistance and Hoity Toity let out a shocked yelp of pain.

“What in the-!?” Hoity Toity began, but Rarity didn’t give him time to recover. His speed was such that the moment he realized what she was doing, he’d be able to escape her. Her only chance lay in surprise. Striking him, causing him even a moment of pain, was surprise enough, although she hadn’t known for sure that what she’d tried was even going to work.

But now that she knew, she immediately struck again, while Hoity was still shocked.

She hadn’t just been sacrificing her knights without a plan. Their desperate melee with Hoity Toity had served to keep them close, practically right on top of him. Several were still grasped by his contorted body of light, and the rest were all within mere meters.

Rarity zipped back and sent her power out into her knights, and their bodies shimmered with her spiritual energy. Both knights and the pegasus constructs flowed into red, shining blood, forming a surrounding cascade not unlike a larger version of her old whirlpool. She then immediately reshaped them all into a new construct surrounding Hoity Hoity.

An iron maiden. Or more accurately, a crystal maiden, like a large, red sarcophagus. It slammed shut around Hoity Toity’s body while he’d still been distracted by the pain of Rarity’s strike, and only once he was inside would he see not only how Rarity had injured him, but how he had lost the battle entirely.

For Rarity had layered her sword’s edge to carry a mirror sheen. In fact, she’d ensured the interior of the iron maiden she’d just trapped him inside all had a polished, reflective, mirror-like interior.

It’d been a long shot, but she’d surmised that since his energy body was akin to light, that any material that was made to be reflective would sever the bonds of that light, or at least disrupt them through refraction. She’d had to risk getting into direct melee with him to test her theory, and her body was marked with the bleeding wounds of the fact. Yet she’d confirmed what she’d needed to know, and the very moment she had, she took the opening to trap him within a prison of mirrors that would reflect his energy body. He’d either have to abandon it in order to escape, or let his energy form burn out his reishi.

Either way, she brought up the remaining forces of her knights whom she’d held in reserve, and positioned them around the iron maiden, weapons at the ready.

She found herself breathing heavily, and with the adrenaline starting to wear thin, her body was starting to remind her of the pain of her wounds. Yet she didn’t drop her guard or take her intense blue gaze from the iron maiden. She could feel Hoity inside it. Would he break free? Burn out? Everything rode on the next few moments, for Rarity knew she was nearing her own limit.

There was a cracking noise like the breaking of a massive piece of glass, and Rarity’s eyes narrowed as she saw a fracture form along the center of her iron maiden. Suddenly Hoity Toity’s reiatsu flooded out of the sarcophagus of deep red crystal, causing more and more spiderweb cracks along its surface. Rarity’s heart sank as the iron maiden broke apart in a burst of white and blue light...

Only for Hoity Toity to be seen standing there, flesh and blood once more, save for a few sections of his body that still clung to their energy state. His skin was burned and raw in many places, and he was heaving his breaths in and out, like a man exhausted from a marathon run. Rarity felt his reiatsu, but it was fading quickly, like a candle guttering out in the wind.

“Huff...huff... I must... congratulate you once more...” Hoity Toity said, face pale and gaunt, even as his eyes shone with equal parts admiration and grim resolve, “You may well be... the most dangerous one among your little group of friends...”

“A fact I take no pleasure in,” Rarity said, raising her shining white blade and pointing it at Hoity Toity, “It seems you’ve used yourself up.”

“Not... entirely,” he said, struggling to raise an arm, “Although my gamble with my energy form did backfire. The burnout of it is just... killer...heh...”

One of his reishi rings snapped into existence around his raised arm, and a somber twist of a smile touched his lips, “Yet I can still fight.”

“Will you not just surrender? This fight is over,” Rarity said, her voice holding a pained plea to it, but no less firm for the fact.

“I’m still breathing, my lady, and you have a promise to fulfill. Now... show me the beauty of your conviction, for if you don’t, I still have enough strength left to strike you down in turn.”

As if to prove his point, she felt his reiatsu rise in one last burst of power. She saw the shimmer in the air around him as he sought to solidify the air in a conical shape in the direction of herself and her army. From the faltering nature of his reiatsu, she could tell he was using all he had left in this move, holding nothing back. This was his final attempt to defeat her, and it wasn’t an unimpressive move. His cone of solidifying air spanned a width of nearly a hundred meters and rushed towards her and breakneck speed. If it struck, it’d freeze her whole army and herself along with it.

And Rarity had been prepared for it. She’d never intended to give Hoity Toity a fair chance, even if he had escaped the iron maiden and persisted in trying to fight.

Hoity Toity shuddered as something struck him from behind. He looked down to see a white blade identical to the one in Rarity’s hand now sticking from his chest.

She’d left an exact copy of her sword hidden and hanging in the air a short distance behind where the iron maiden had been. She’d altered it to have a glass-like quality, making it hard to spot. Rarity hoped Blue Blood wouldn’t feel plagiarized by her stealing of the idea behind his Shikai, but it was too handy a trick to not use, although she hadn’t been able to make the blade completely transparent like Blue Blood’s glass daggers could be. Still, it’d been enough that Hoity Toity hadn’t seen the blade slowly maneuvering behind him, and had been unable to defend against it’s killing blow.

Rarity’s face showed no hint of satisfaction as she withdrew the blade from his back in a shower of blood. HIs reiatsu altered, and the solidifying cone of air dissipated just a few bare meters from Rarity and her knights. Hoity was still standing there, looking at the wound on his chest as she slowly approached him with tired steps, her eyes betraying the exhausting both physical and mental within.

“Huh...” he said, as if genuinely surprised, “Well done.”

This was followed by a burst of blood from his mouth, and his body tipping forward to fall, only to be caught by Rarity as she kept him from falling to the ground many hundreds of feet below.

“No,” she said, “Not ‘well done’, merely... done. I’d have preferred things not come to this. I never once wanted to kill you.”

“I know,” he said past bloodied lips, his body becoming more slack in her grasp even as he raised a hand to weakly brush away a tear that Rarity didn’t even realize she’d been shedding, “You are a true rose, with a large and tender heart. I understood the risk of running afoul of your thorns. Death isn’t something a true Quincy has cause to fear. Our souls go to our King, to be reborn anew. One day, you and I shall cross paths again, and I pray you shine with even greater beauty upon that day... my lady...”

He went still, a serene expression upon his face, and Rarity felt his breathing stop. She closed her eyes and took a moment to steady her own breath, which she’d held for those last few seconds.

Two of her knights arrived at her side, as if sensing her distress. One actually placed a gauntlet clad hand upon her shoulder in a gesture of remarkably human comfort, coming from a faceless construct. It was the same knight with the twin scimitars that had instinctively leapt to her defense earlier in the battle. Rarity looked at the knight, which bore no features beneath it’s helmet of ornate red crystal, but she almost thought it was asking her if she was alright.

“I’ll be fine in a few minutes,” she told the knight, wondering if she was crazy for speaking to a construct of her own Fullbring. She held Hoity Toity’s body tight for a moment before nodding to the knight, “Could you take him down to the ground, please? I don’t wish to drop him, but I’m quite... tired. I need a moment to catch my breath.”

Without a word the two knights took Hoity Toity, and carried him in a respectful manner as they floated down to the forest floor, where they would lay him down by one of the larger trees. Meanwhile Rarity summoned her Fullbring’s gateway closer to herself, and mentally ordered the rest of her army to start marching back through it. She’d need to summon them again soon enough, but even letting them rest inside the gate for a few minutes would help repair the damage they’d taken.

As she watched the ranks of her Fullbring’s knights march back into the shining red gate, she tried to get her thoughts in order. The pain from her wounds was hitting her full force as well, which didn’t help. She didn’t mourn, nor let regrets flood her. There’d be time enough for that later. Instead she focused on what needed to happen next. Twilight was still in danger. It’d taken practically everything Rarity had to defeat Hoity Toity. If Sapphire Shores was even stronger...

“Rarity!”

At the sound of the familiar voice, Rarity turned around to see Rainbow Dash appear before her in a crackle of lighting. Rainbow Dash’s prismatic wings were abuzz with power, and the girl was looking around wildly, her lightning spear ready for battle in her hands.

“You alright!?” Rainbow Dash said while turning around, eyes scanning the area, “It felt like you were in trouble, so I came as fast as I could but... uh where’s the bad guys at? And holy crap, is all that blood yours?”

Rarity realized that between her wounds and Hoity Toity bleeding out on her, the white armor and battle dress she wore was soaked red. She met Rainbow Dash’s questioning gaze, doing her best to look at her friend’s earnest eyes filled with concern and try to dispel that concern by taking hold of her emotions and speak calmly.

“You’re a scoach late, Rainbow. I already won.”

“Whoa, really? I mean, not that I didn’t think you could win on your own, eheh,” Rainbow Dash said, rubbing the back of her head, “But are you sure you’re okay, you look pretty hurt...”

Rainbow Dash peered at Rarity more closely, and Rarity saw Rainbow Dash’s eyes blink several times in what at first appeared to be confusion, then a pale cast of growing horror. Seeing her friend’s distress, Rarity made a waving gesture, “Oh, don’t worry. I’m hurt, yes. Ugh, rather painfully, truth be told, but I should be alright. As you can see, I completed my Fullbring. These knights are-”

“Yeah, Rarity I see the knights, they’re awesome, but... uh... have you looked at your chest?”

“My chest?” Rarity said, confused, and glanced down, where her breastplate had been broken earlier, and what it had been concealing during the course of her battle with Hoity Toity.

Several seconds of silence stretched between the pair as Rarity froze in place, her breathing halting in her throat. Rainbow Dash was the first to speak, gulping first.

“Rarity, you said you completed your Fullbring. But... you didn’t have any of us nearby...”

Rarity remembered. She remembered bleeding out on the forest floor after Sapphire Shores had stabbed her from behind. She remembered the moment when she’d lost her doubts and felt the surge of power of her Fullbring reaching its full power, and the subsequent explosion of spirit energy that had resulted. Uncontrolled by having any of her friends nearby to help contain it. Her next memory had been stepping out of the gate of her completed Fullbring to face Hoity Toity.

She had felt good. On top of the world. Spirit energy had flowed through every pore of her body and she’d never felt stronger or faster. She hadn’t even questioned how she’d survived the explosion of uncontrolled spirit energy from her Fullbring being completed. She’d just assumed it might have been a unique result of her Fullbring having such a strong tie to her own blood, that it had healed her when she’d transformed.

The severed Soul Chain dangling from her chest, however, told a very different story.

----------

“Grogar!” Applejack spat in a low growl, standing on weakened feet and moving with a burst of speed. She snatched up her lance from where it had fallen and then with another blink of high-speed motion she was standing between Grogar and where her parents and Fenice were, brandishing her lance.

He gazed upon her with eyes filled with wry amusement, a sly quirk of a smile on his face as he stepped towards her. Applejack didn’t flinch or step backwards, holding firm even as a miasma of thick, unpleasantly powerful reiatsu flowed out of Grogar.

“My dear deluded human, whatever do you think you’re doing?”

“Beatin’ yer face in if ya take one more step towards my kin!” Applejack said past barred teeth.

“Adorable. And here I thought the blue one was the least intelligent of your company. You’re already injured and drained, and even if you weren’t, the full extent of your power would still fall short of my own.”

“We won’t know that ‘till I try,” Applejack said, and began revving up the drill portions of her lance, making them spin with jets of gold light.

“Applejack, wait.”

She turned as she saw her father stand with the help of Fenice, who was looking between him and Grogar with wide eyes.

“Father, what are you-?” Fenice began, but Hard Nail held up his one remaining hand to silence her, and then fixed Grogar with a flat, measuring stare. As horribly injured as he was, he managed to stand with a steadiness that still spoke of some power remaining within him. His wounds didn’t bleed, and Applejack wasn’t even sure her father felt pain anymore, in the conventional sense. While both he and her mother were weakened from their fight, their spiritual pressures remained potent to a degree.

“What are your intentions, Ninth Espada?” Hard Nail asked with an unblinking gaze.

Applejack felt an uneasy chill in her gut as Grogar gazed at her father, for in those eyes she saw the look of a man who didn’t see people, but merely things. They weren’t dead eyes, but rather the kind of eyes that shone with the excitement of one who couldn’t wait to pull something apart to see how it ticked. It left her guts squirming to see that gaze directed at her father, and she took a defensive step towards him.

“My intentions? Could it not be that I sensed a fellow Espada in danger and thought to come to his aide?” Grogar asked with a mocking innocence, the hand not holding his bladed staff going to his bizarrely cybernetic chest in a gesture of equally false sincerity.

Hard Nail stared back at him dubiously, and Grogar shrugged, “Not buying that, hmm? Not that I actually intended to try deceiving you, Fourth Espada. Or should I just start calling you Hard Nail, now? I do wonder what our fellow Espada will think of this, one of our own having such close familial ties with a Captain of the Gotei 13.”

“That is irrelevant,” Hard Nail said, “Do you honestly believe Tirek would care? That man cares solely about power, and loyalty, and honestly I doubt loyalty plays that much of a role, given he seems to encourage those like Adagio Dazzle to seek to unseat him. Why would he care at all if, in life, I was married to Sweet Cider?”

“He wouldn’t,” Grogar agreed, with a derisive tone that suggested he thought Tirek rather foolish for the fact, “Unless he believed you intended to betray Las Noches in favor of your human and Soul Reaper ties. He may encourage competitiveness among us, but he’s not so blase in regards to those who might bring the enemy into our very walls. Adagio walks a fine line, treating as she does with the Quincy.”

At Hard Nail’s look, Grogar let out a dry, sandpaper grating laugh, “Of course I know about that. Adagio is hardly free of my hooks, whatever she may think. But that’s not why I’m here. She’s free to conduct her own schemes. They’re quite entertaining, and I eagerly await to see just how she intends to seek revenge on me. I also don’t care about your little family get together. By all means, rekindle that relationship. I’d be curious to see what an Arrancar/Soul Reaper hybrid would look like, if such is possible. No, I’m here merely to... conclude an experiment. Although, admittedly, I have not calculated your odds of surviving it, so perhaps that will put a damper on the family reunion.”

His hand raised with an ominous grasping gesture towards Hard Nail, but before he could finish, Applejack moved, as did Fenice and Sweet Cider. All three women converged on Grogar, although Sweet Cider was much slowed by her wounds and depleted reiatsu. Applejack came straight on with a leap and downward thrust from her spinning drill-lance. Fenice attacked from the right, her Fullbring blade coated with a layer of magma that burst out in a searing wave. Sweet Cider struck from the left, Kizuna carving a path towards Grogar’s neck.

He reacted with potent speed, reminiscent of when Applejack and her friends first faced him back in Hueco Mundo after Grand Fisher’s defeat. It told Applejack immediately that while she had gotten much stronger since then, Grogar had either grown in power as well, or was holding back a lot less. Probably both, considering his changed appearance. Before he’d look like a withered old man. Now his body was a strange, cybernetically enhanced goat-man monstrosity with youthful blue skin and a lot more muscle tone.

He lashed out with his left hand and expelled a powerful, green Bala bullet that blasted through Fenice’s magma and dispersed it, while striking the girl’s blade with enough force to send her flying backwards. His right hand swung his hook bladed staff to intercept Kizuna, and it was a testament to how weakened Sweet Cider was that he managed to stall the blade one handed, although the force of the blow still saw him sinking into the ground as Sweet Cider pushed on the blade. This allowed Applejack’s thrust to strike home, the drill lance smashing straight into Grogar’s chest.

Satisfyingly, this did push Grogar back, sending his cloven feet skidding across the ground for a few dozen feet. But Applejack’s satisfaction soon dulled upon seeing how little damage her blow had actually done, barely leaving a mark on his armored chest. Grogar cracked his neck and sighed, “Physical combat is so undignified. I got quite enough of this from Celestia. Why don’t I have you girls play with someone else instead? Since reunions are the order of the day, I think the good Captain and Lament will appreciate this...”

He snapped his fingers, and Applejack felt a stabbing sensation of danger on the back of her neck, like a sudden needle of ice between her vertebrae. Something that had been remaining hidden, keeping its spiritual pressure low to an unnoticeable pin-prick suddenly ceased hiding and rushed the group from the edge of the destroyed valley with incredible speed. Applejack was able to see a streak of black and swung her lance just in time to stop a long, curved blade-like limb from taking her head off. The thing that struck at her immediately spun in the air, somersaulting over Applejack and lashing out with equally bladed legs. Applejack managed to duck away from the blows and countered with a thrust of her lance, but she struck nothing but air as the speedy, dark assailant went after Sweet Cider next, unleashing a blinding series of spinning slashes that set the wounded Captain on the defense.

“What!?” Sweet Cider exclaimed as she got a good look at her assailant, “Ain’t no way! I dang well destroyed ya already!”

She got her opponent to back off with a powerful side swing, but the effort clearly hurt Sweet Cider as she coughed up more blood and clutched at her stomach wound, almost going to one knee as the strange, dark foe landed a distance away and stood next to Grogar. The Espada, in turn, gave a thin smile of pleasure as he placed an affectionate hand on the thing he’d apparently summoned.

“Destroyed? Well, technically yes, you did ‘destroy’ a part of him. Experiment 528 is a creation of mine that is split into multiple duplicates, all sharing a single progenitor soul. The Hollow I created him from possessed an interesting ability I wished to cultivate, the power to plant a ‘seed’ within a victim that would fuse with the target’s soul and grow in power so it could be harvested later. Of course this would weaken the victim, but I theorized that if the power could be altered to allow the victim to continue to grow in strength along with the seed, then it’d produce an altogether more potent result for the eventual harvest.”

Applejack didn’t quite know what to make of any of that. To her eyes, the creature standing next to Grogar didn’t look much different from other Hollows she’d seen, save for it’s generally smaller and largely humanoid form. It had an ebony black body like that of a gaunt human, but who’s arms and legs ended in pointed, curved blades rather than hands and feet. It’s Hollow mask was a smooth human skull, but it had... strangely familiar, pointed horns. Horns that Applejack realized looked a lot like the ones that her father had when he’d used his Resurreccion form.

“What are you saying, Grogar?” asked Hard Nail, who’d retrieved his own sword, and while he looked like a walking corpse trying to hold the blade in one hand, he looked ready to fight, “My memory from my life as a man might still be a tad fuzzy, but I remember Sweet Cider and her friends saving me from something like that thing standing next to you. That was your doing?”

Grogar regarded him with hungry eyes, “I confess I’d sent several of 528’s duplicates to the human world to plant seeds in a few human targets. I’d targeted humans, Soul Reapers, Quincy, and fellow Arrancar for such experimentation, to see which produced the best results. Most were vastly disappointing, and I’d largely considered the experiment a failure... until you showed up in Las Noches. In all the other targets the seeds’ growth was minimal compared to 528’s previous power, but in your case the seed generated a remarkably potent result. The seed appeared to act as a catalyst for your incredibly rapid growth in power as a Hollow, beyond any of my projections. Sadly I didn’t have a means to harvest that power effectively, until Adagio Dazzle landed in my hands and I was able to divine the secrets of her species's gems.”

He pointed at the gleaming red jewel that was fused into his chest, “With this, I have the means to reap the seed that was planted all those years ago. Your contribution to the study of Hollow evolution is appreciated.”

“We ain’t lettin’ ya have yer way, ya goat-faced bastard! Whatever yer plannin’, it’s stoppin’ right here n’ now!” Applejack shouted, pulling up as much power as she could from within herself. She’d been battered around plenty during her fight with her father, but in a way the fact that he’d been overwhelmingly stronger than her played to her advantage now, since the fight hadn’t lasted long enough for her to really drain that much of her stamina or spiritual pressure. At least, not as badly as Sweet Cider had, by comparison. That meant Applejack had plenty of reserves left in the proverbial tank left to throw at Grogar.

He might still be stronger than her, but she could sense that power gap wasn’t so wide that things were hopeless. She hadn’t damaged him with her first strike, but she could hit harder than that if need be. And whatever craziness he was talking about, whatever mad experiment he had going, she wasn’t about to let him just have his way. And she knew she wasn’t alone in that. She felt the burst of power and heat from Fenice as the other girl leapt to her feet from where she’d been knocked earlier, and Applejack saw a pillar of magma emerge from Fenice’s sword as she glared fiery death towards Grogar.

“You’re not touching my father!”

Fenice jumped into the air, her pillar of lava following her like a living river. Applejack, needing no prompting, moved to join her on the attack.

Sweet Cider did as well, but in a blur of dark motion, Experiment 528 was in front of her, it’s bladed limbs silently dancing a pattern of deadly strokes that forced the wounded Soul Reaper Captain to focus all of her attention on the modified Hollow. She was still fast enough to parry it’s blows, but this creature was much stronger than the duplicate she’d fought so long ago, and with her injuries and drained reiatsu, it was all Sweet Cider could do to keep it’s blade arms at bay.

Grogar watched Applejack and Fenice coming at him with quirked eyebrows, as if he was genuinely curious what the two Fullbringer girls had in terms of a plan of attack. Applejack didn’t know if his calm curiosity was the result of overconfidence or not, but she was determined to wipe that look off his face. Matching her timing with Fenice, Applejack rushed Grogar from the opposite side of Fenice and with golden jets of energy from her armor boosting her speed and power she unleashed a fast triple-thrust of her drill lance at him, so quick that it was akin to three strikes happening simultaneously.

She felt a moment of satisfaction as a look of strain passed over his face as he took his hook-blade staff in both hands and had to turn to face her fully to block the attacks. The impacts rang like gongs across the valley, and Applejack saw Grogar get driven back several yards by her blows. She followed the thrusts up with a brief leap back, kicking out with her left foot and firing a thick beam of gold energy which forced Grogar to block with his Zanpaktou. This kept him rooted in place long enough for Fenice to come in from above, slashing her sword down hard and bringing the river of magma with it.

The magma struck Grogar dead on, splashing over him in a bubbling pillar that rose up into the air as Fenice slashed more of the molten rock upon the Espada. Fenice then spun her blade around and held out her free hand towards the lava, eyes closed in concentration. Suddenly the magma flash cooled, turning into a prison of black rock near twenty meters high.

Both girls stood there a moment, but Applejack didn’t think for a second that Grogar had been killed. She looked to her father and Fenice and said, “Ya two need ta git out o’ here! Pa, open up one o’ them Hollow portal things n’ take Fenice. This ain’t gonna hold Grogar long!”

“Incorrect,” Grogar’s voice resonated as green light spilled forth from cracks splintering across the pillar of hardened rock lava. The pillar burst apart in a flash of light and Grogar strode out, brushing himself off, “It’s not going to hold me at all. Really, your efforts are commendable, and it’s clear your exposure to magic has enhanced your Fullbring to a level that, had I not already surpassed my previous level of strength, I might have been in trouble here. Yet this struggle is pointless. I will take what is mine.”

“Like hell!” Fenice literally had heat waves pouring off of her, steam rising from her sword as tendrils of magma encased it, turning the blade into a solid sword of burning lava. She landed on the ground, then gripped her sword with both hands as she burst forward, seeking to impale Grogar with a straight thrust.

Grogar turned the thrust aside with the bladed portion of his Zanpaktou, then with Fenice off balance, he turned the staff around and jabbed the blunt end into the girl's stomach so hard that Applejack could see an impression of the blow from Fenice’s back. Eyes wide, Fenice gasped and was knocked flat to the ground about twenty feet away. Grogar raised a hand towards her, and sickly green light gathered into a sphere.

Just as Grogar discharged the Cero towards Fenice, Applejack got in the way, slamming her lance forward at full power. The drill portion spun to a blurring speed and managed to split the Cero like a boulder upon a waterfall, although Applejack felt the impact and strain of doing so down to her very bones and sinew. As the Cero dissipated, Applejack was left with her lance intact, but smoking, and Fenice laying behind her coughing and sputtering as she tried to regain her breath.

And Grogar wasn’t standing where he’d been before. Applejack’s eyes shot wide as she looked around for him, and felt her skin grow cold as she realized that Grogar had moved with the speed of a Sonido to get behind her father.

“Pa!”

Hard Nail turned with shocking speed for one with his injuries, blade swinging, but Grogar had the advantage of positioning, surprise, and the fact that Hard Nail was vastly weakened, whereas Grogar was still going strong. Hard Nail’s Zanpaktou was blocked by the shaft of Grogar’s own, the bell upon the bladed staff ringing with an ominous and chilling tone.

Then Grogar raised his other hand and made a grasping gesture towards Hard Nail, specifically at the spot upon Hard Nail’s collar where the number ‘4’ had been tattooed, and where Experiment 528 had bitten him during that long ago incident. The siren gem in Grogar’s chest pulsed, and red light poured from both it, and Grogar’s hand. Hard Nail let out a sudden choking sound as that spot on his neck suddenly lit up red as well, and the flesh there started to pulsate and writhe like something beneath it was moving.

“I am given to understand your body is a ‘deathless’ one, Lament,” said Grogar as Hard Nail fell to his knees, gasping and shuddering, his sword falling from his hands, “Which is fortunate, since the Arrancar I have extracted seeds from before didn’t survive this process. The seed interconnects with almost every part of your spiritual body, you understand? It intentionally cultivates power so it can later be absorbed like this. The ones I experimented on previously were nameless trash no one would miss, and didn’t offer up much in terms of power. You on the other hand, I am giddy with anticipation for how strong this seed shall be. And with your deathless body, why, you might even survive this. Tell me, are you feeling any discomfort? This is for science, so please, honest answers only.”

“Stop it!” Applejack flew towards Grogar, lance poised to strike right at the Espada’s head. Grogar turned his head towards her and opened his mouth wide. Before Applejack knew what was happening, a swarm of disgusting, bulbous and wasp-like insects with pointed needle legs flew from Grogar’s mouth and came straight for her.

Revulsion filled her, and she swept her lance through the swarm, smashing a number of the insects, but many more flew around her, stabbing with their syringe-like legs. Luckily her armor protected her quite thoroughly, with her face the only place not guarded by the thick plates of shining gold. She flew straight up, incinerating more insects with the rocket jets that blasted from her armor to propel her upwards. The remaining insects gave chase, far faster than what Applejack was used to dealing with. In order to keep them at bay, she expelled jets of energy from near every port along her armor, and spun around, effectively creating a spherical burst of golden power that hammered the swarm to pieces.

However, in the few seconds it took for her to do that, her father screamed. Red lines, like veins, or the roots of a plant, spread across the surface of his skin, and a pustule shaped growth now shook like a heartbeat on his neck. Hard Nail was on his hands and knees, but he still tried to grasp at his Zanpaktou. Grogar stepped on his hand, just inches from the blade’s hilt.

“Now now, this will be over in just a moment. By now the other Arrancar had already expired. I’d say that’s a good sign of your chances of survival. Or maybe it just means there’s far more power to harvest out of you than those dregs.”

Applejack rocketed down towards them as fast as she could, but in that same instant Grogar grasped the rounded growth on her father’s neck and in a burst of red light, was able to tear it free. Applejack thrust with her lance in a gold streak of speed, Grogar looking up and attempting to vanish out of the way with a swift Sonido. Applejack felt her lance connect with a glancing blow before she hit the ground, blasting apart a large chunk of the earth beneath her. When the dust cleared she saw Grogar standing a fair distance back. His chest was marred by a bleeding line of gored flesh, Applejack’s hit having managed to actually draw blood this time. It was a shallow wound, however, and Grogar, while looking rather annoyed with her, gave the object in his hand a pleased look.

A gleaming, wet orb of crimson material that was like the smooth skin of an apple, but perfectly round, and luminous from within as if it contained a red star at its center. Applejack could feel a wealth of spiritual pressure from the object, the ‘seed’ that had been ripped from her father.

She immediately turned to her father to check on him. Hard Nail was still conscious, but his face was wracked with pain and there was a gaping wound in his neck. It didn’t bleed, much like her father’s other wounds, but his reiatsu felt terribly weak now, like a faltering pulse. She knelt next to him, taking his altogether too light and frail seeming body in her arms, “Pa? Pa!?”

“Ugh... I’m alright... just take your sister n’ ma away from here...” he said, clearly trying to stand.

Applejack was about to respond, but Grogar’s laughter stopped her and caused her to give the Espada a hate-filled glare.

“Haha! Beautiful, is it not?” Grogar said, examining the seed with an appreciative gaze, “With this, I’m one step closer to pushing Hollows to the next stage of our evolution. One step closer to freedom from the ignorant, the weak minded, and the self-aggrandizing. I thank you, Lament, for playing your part in this momentous occasion. As a reward, I’ll let you decide which of your kin I spare. The Soul Reaper Captain, the daughter of your human life, or the adopted daughter of your Hollow life? I can’t let them all go, you understand. Far too valuable as research subjects, but I’ll let you keep one of them, as a sign of my gratitude. Isn’t that nice of me? I can be so generous when I’m in a good mood.”

“I don’t know about that. I think that’s still being pretty mean, even if you are in a good mood.”

“Well by my standards it’s being quite generous I... think...?” Grogar had responded to the sudden voice next to him without really thinking about it, but then he paused, blinked, and looked next to him.

Pinkie Pie, in hammer form, somehow managed a bright cartoon smile, while Pinkamena, looking far more dour, just waved.

“Hiya!” Pinkie Pie said, “Whatcha’ got there?”

Grogar glanced at the seed, then narrowed his eyes at Pinkie Pie, “How did you get so close without my sensing you?”

“It looks really shiny. I bet it’s super important.”

“Looks delicious, actually,” Mena added, licking her lips.

At that, Grogar’s eye twitched, and he leveled his Zanpaktou at Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena, “Answer the question. How did the weakest of you children manage to slip past my senses.”

“Uhhh, duh, because it was funny,” Pinkie Pie said, giggling, “Where’s your sense of humor, Groggy?”

It was clear from the growing number of veins on Grogar’s forehead that his level of amusement was at an all time low, “And apparently this is now happening. Good mood; gone. Killing all of you; now.”

Episode 118: Gaia Everfree

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Episode 118: Gaia Everfree

Many centuries ago...

“My lady, Lord Tirek calls for you.”

Her eyes remained fixed upon the green vines entwining the windowsill of her chambers, pale white fingers ending in reflective, sharp black nails gently coaxing the buds upon the vine to open. White petals softer than silk touched her fingers, and for a moment the Arrancar known to most as the Queen of Thorns allowed herself a small smile at the freshly bloomed flowers before turning to her Fraccion. Lily was shorter than her mistress by a full head, but appeared to stand up straighter to try and compensate for the fact, with her straight blonde hair covering the flower-shaped fringe of bone over her right eye that was the remains of her Hollow mask, and the black hole where that eye would normally be. She wore a simple white vest and skirt over her slim frame, which still irritated the Queen of Thorns because she had, for decades, tried to get Lily to wear something that’d complement her figure more, but Lily, much like her sisters, continued to parrot each other by saying they only wished to serve their mistress.

Gaia herself had no such issues, wearing a multi-layered yet form hugging dress that accentuated her curves. While still the same white as most Arrancar outfits were, hers was designed to appear as if formed from natural folds of leaves, vines, and flowers combined into a ethereal ensemble that always moved as if stirred by a breeze. Her thick hair of multi-toned greens hung well down her back, framing an elfin gaunt face that still retained a fey sort of beauty to it, with jewel-like black eyes that bore distinct yellow iris’. A circlet of bone white coloring encompassed her brow with sharp protrusions, akin to a crown of thorns, although if one looked closely one could see this crown was melded with her forehead and was in fact the fragments of her Hollow mask. Her Hollow hole was hidden beneath her dress, situated over her lower abdomen. Sheathed at her left hip was a thin blade like a rapier, but with two additional blades springing from the hilt, which in turn was shaped like intertwined vines.

“Did he say what he wanted?” Gaia asked, although she suspected Tirek hadn’t. The Primera Espada was not a very considerate individual, even to his most immediate successor and the second most powerful Hollow in Las Noches. Gaia, at times, almost regretted joining the Espada ranks and gaining the number “2” etched upon her chest, just below her throat. Yet being a member of Tirek’s little army did have it’s benefits, when compared to roughing it out in Hueco Mundo’s deserts, like that poor fool the Storm King, or the likes of Strife.

She did miss the days when they still could walk the world of the living freely, without Scorpan’s death squads trying to hunt them down. What were those people calling themselves these days? Soul Reapers? It caused a flash of irrational anger inside Gaia to think about them. Her little flowers, Lilly, Daisy, and Rose made friends so rarely, and one of the few they had made was recently lost to Soul Reaper blades. Bastards. That had been one of the main reasons she’d finally given into Tirek’s courting and accepted a position among the Espada. Safety in numbers. It’d gotten to the point that a Hollow needed allies if she was to look after her own.

“I believe he mentioned wanting your opinion on something important,” Lily said, bowing her head low, “I’m sorry, my lady, he said no more than that. I’m... not inclined to ask the Primera questions. Forgive me.”

“No, you did well not bothering that irritable man with questions and simply coming to me. Go find Daisy and have her prepare the others, just in case this is another raid into the Soul Reaper’s lands.”

“Yes, my lady. We’ll make ready. Oh, do you think this might have to do with those strange humans with the bows that ambushed Lord Torch’s people?”

A strange development, that. Humans sometimes developed odd powers in the world of the living, but usually only in small, isolated cases. There’d been a recent, growing number of reports of an organized group of humans attacking Hollows in force, with coordination and all displaying similar powers to manipulate reishi and form weapons such as bows. So far these incidents had been concentrated around Europe, but they kept happening, and so far no one had been able to pin down where these strange humans were coming from.

But Gaia didn’t care much about that. She only wanted things to remain stable here in Las Noches, and the biggest threat to that was Scorpan and his so-called “Thirteen Court Guard Divisions'', Gotei 13. Only a few millennia ago that young pup was happy enough to just be the damned gate guard at the Soul Queen’s Palace, now he felt he had to right to start a war of genocide on the Hollows!? Of course, he probably thought he had the Soul Queen’s support, or even orders, but Gaia was willing to bet Scorpan was just being spoon fed instructions from the Royal Guard.

If Tirek’s tale of that terrible day in the Soul Palace was to be believed, Scorpan was being played for a fool, but Gaia knew there’d be no solving that issue. Scorpan and Tirek had burned bridges with each other well before then. In truth, Gaia wasn’t even sure how much of Tirek’s story she believed, but it didn’t matter. It was clear the Soul Queen had gone silent, and the world had changed. The age of gods was over. Hollow were being hunted freely by Soul Reapers, and even the humans were now getting bold and powerful.

What was a Hollow to do but follow their instincts, and band with the strongest of their kind to preserve their ways?

As Lily went to follow Gaia’s instructions, the Queen of Thorns took her time in leaving her domain within Las Noche’s southern wall. She took time to nod and greet her followers she passed along the way, many young Arrancar who were models of beauty and grace, be that male or female. Gaia liked to collect those among her kind that appreciated the bounty her powers offered, a bounty that was on display in every corridor of her halls. Greenery filled the otherwise stone chambers, supported by Gaia’s rare power over life, uncommon among Hollows. At least, to those who didn’t understand her. Hollows were entities that emphasized the negative spectrum of soul energies, death most of all. Gaia’s particular aspect in this regard was ‘cycles’, particularly the cycle of nature that led to the growth, death, and rebirth of nature.

Currently, within the summer season, her domain was vibrant and verdant, with walls covered in hanging gardens of plant life. Come fall, it would turn into a golden red and orange field of Fall’s slow decline, until finally come winter her power would turn to its truest aspect of death, when all this greenery would turn barren.

It was a cycle that Gaia adored, and felt Hollows were uniquely suited to represent as a whole, although few among her kin agreed with that point of view. At least Tirek appreciated her power, even if they often butted heads over other elements of Las Noche’s governance. His insistence on encouraging violence and competition among their own annoyed Gaia. Arrancar fought enough naturally as is. Encouraging more did not breed strength, but was foolish waste, in Gaia’s opinion.

Leaving her domain, she traveled swiftly across the dead expanse of sands that filled the vast interior of Las Noches, the green walls of her territory falling behind her as she rushed with the godspeed of Sonido towards the central tower of the enormous fortress.

She didn’t bother with the doors, simply flying up the tower’s height to the very top portion where the Espada’s throne room was located. She proceeded to use one of the upper balconies to make her entrance, lightly hopping past several startled Arrancar guards that she ignored and strode past until she reached the throne chamber. She had already sensed Tirek within. His reiatsu was utterly unmistakable, and as overpowering and oppressive as ever. Even by his mere presence the man couldn’t help but want to remind everything around him of his dominance. Annoying as it was, Gaia could hardly argue the point with him. Tirek had surpassed them all, through untold thousands of years of conflict and feeding. None could challenge him, not even her. In her heart, she was afraid of him, knowing that if Tirek wished it, he could just as easily lay waste to what he had built.

It was just as fortunate he seemed to think he needed the other Espada. His sole virtue, in Gaia’s eyes, was that Tirek desired to rule, not to destroy, and a ruler needed subjects. As long as that was the case, and her own people could live without fear under that rule, then Gaia would bend the knee now and forevermore.

A flash of surprise struck Gaia as she strode into the throne chamber. None of her fellow Espada were present besides Tirek, which wasn’t in and of itself unusual. The ten Espada rarely convened all at once unless something major was occurring. It wasn’t unusual for Tirek to summon individual Espada here to discuss matters involving them specifically, either. So what surprised Gaia was not the sight of Tirek in the center of the room, although it was unusual for him not to be seated upon his throne, but the fact that there was another individual there with him. Someone who’s reiatsu Gaia had not sensed at all, nore sensed even now that she was in the room gazing directly at them.

She could not see much from her present angle. The person was standing in front of Tirek, with their back turned to the doors, and they were wearing a white cloak with the hood drawn up. From what Gaia could see, the individual was tall, somewhat slim, but that was about it.

At her entrance, Tirek turned his dark gaze towards her. His arms were crossed over his massive, bare red chest, and he had a look on his face that was a toss up between wry bemusement and weighty consideration. Gaia had seen such looks before on the Primera, often before he was about to do something rash.

“Ah, Gaia, prompt as always,” Tirek said in his rich, rumbling tone. “I have a matter I am deliberating upon and could use your counsel.”

“I am at your service, Lord Tirek,” Gaia said, striding forward, somewhat annoyed that she did so with an innate sense of caution that didn’t quite befit her status as the Second Espada. Something was amiss here. She just... felt it. Her eyes didn’t leave the cloaked figure, “Just who is our guest?”

A rough chuckle escaped Tirek as he gestured towards the cloaked one with a meaty hand, “They just strode into my chambers, past all of my guards, and asked to be made an Espada. I was so taken aback by the sheer audacity of it all that I decided to consider their proposal, but thought I’d ask your opinion on the matter first. Come now, introduce yourself to Gaia Everfree, the Second Espada, and let us see if you impress her at all. If you do, you may live through the day yet, young upstart.”

A feminine voice, smoother than silk, richer than the darkest chocolate, yet somehow carrying an edge sharper than any knife replied as the cloaked figure bowed her head, “But of course. I’d like to meet all of my new... colleagues.”

The figure turned, withdrawing her hood with the elegant motions of one, black skinned hand as she faced the approaching Gaia.

Gaia halted, taken aback by what she saw. Beauty didn’t describe it, utterly failed as a word to capture the perfectly formed angles and curves of the woman in front of her. Skin dark as coal yet shining like pure ebony. Emerald eyes brighter than freshly lit fire. Thick strands of hair of a rich, dark green, akin to Gaia’s own. Womanly curves befitting the words of Greek poets concerning their gods. Gaia ought to know, she had inspired some of those poets, when they thought those gods were real. Yet despite all of this woman’s, an Arrancar, by the bone-like horn growing from her forehead, physical charms her beauty extended to something far more primal and impossible to grasp with logic. Like lust made flesh. The raw personification of subconscious desire.

Gaia took a hold of herself mentally. She wasn’t about to drool over this woman here in the throne chamber! She was simply taken a bit off guard. Who was this? On instinct, Gaia probed out with her Pesquisa. There was no way the woman could consciously hide her reiatsu at this range. As if sensing what Gaia was doing, the woman smiled, showing a row of white teeth that somehow unsettled Gaia, for it was a look of purest hunger somehow cloaked as a pleasant grin.

“My apologies. I’ve been trying to avoid causing a stir, so I’ve kept my spiritual pressure contained.”

It was like her Pesquisa had just touched a solid wall. This woman wasn’t lying. She’d somehow suppressed her reiatsu to a dense mass around herself, undetectable at range until one was practically standing next to her! Gaia paused, blinking at the density of the reiatsu. Even compacted as it was, she could tell this woman bore immense spiritual pressure.

“Just who are you?” she asked, and the woman’s smile only widened as she performed a smooth bow.

“Call me Chrysalis. I hope we’ll become... good friends.”

----------

Present day...

“Chrysssaallisssssss!”

The voice echoed louder than the collapsing chamber around Sunset Shimmer. The voice was filled with undiluted rage, and Sunset could only wonder at who this Hollow was and how they knew Chrysalis. Clearly it wasn’t a good relationship between the two, if that vibrating voice of fury was any indication, but Sunset didn’t have time to ponder it with thousands of tons of rock and dirt coming down at her head!

There was also an incredible amount of magical and spiritual energy surging into the chamber from the root system outside, building to such a feverish pitch that Sunset couldn’t sense much of anything beyond the overwhelming buzz of power that was concentrating upon the cocoon that had absorbed Gloriosa and Timber.

She wanted to help, but there was little she could do at the moment other than survive the next few moments. Fortunately, being in a spirit body had its advantages, and Clover had shown her a very basic and handy trick Soul Reapers could pull off in the living world. As the chamber collapsed upon her, Sunset Shimmer simply... phased through it. She was a spirit, after all. Her physical body was being taken care of by Chappy. While all Soul Reapers and Hollows could physically touch the world and its particles through hardening their own spiritual energies, it was just as simple to ease off on that ‘hardening’ of their spirit bodies and allowing physical matter to pass right through them, like proper ghosts.

So Sunset was unharmed as she became surrounded by crushing rock and dirt, although she did lose her sense of sight and hearing as there was nothing to see and next to nothing to hear. She had to rely solely on her spiritual senses to get a feeling for what was going on, while suppressing the instinctive urge to breathe. There was an innate reflex to panic at being buried, but she calmed herself, knowing she wasn’t in any danger like this. Instead she focused on what her spirit senses could tell her.

It wasn’t easy. This Hollow’s power was incredible, and the energies pouring in from outside only added to it. It felt almost like an old balloon filling up with water, fit to burst. The rumbling in the ground continued as something large pushed its way upward, and Sunset sensed what she thought was the root systems beneath Everfree shuddering and moving as well. A massive amount of spirit energy was now moving upward, towards the surface, and Sunset followed it, willing herself to float upward, pushing off of particles of matter here and there to propel her spirit body up through the ground as fast as she could.

Before long she was back out in daylight, flying up into the air. What she saw around her baffled and astonished her.

It looked as if they’d risen up right beneath the Soul Reaper field lab, which was now effectively destroyed. In its place was an utterly colossal tree. Sunset was still flying upwards and estimated she was already a few hundred feet in the air, and was only halfway up the tree's fifty meter thick trunk. The bark was an unnatural ivory white, with branches sprouting off in numerous directions, many thicker than city buses, and covered in vibrant green and blue foliage.

She could see, towards the top, that the apex of the tree ended in a wide, circular area formed from various branches coiling together, like a roof. She senses Gloriosa there, and the Hollow... or were they both one in the same, now? The power Sunset senses was a strange reiatsu, both Hollow, human, and with the faint buzz of magic.

...It was a sensation very similar to what she felt from her friends, most of the time.

What had Gloriosa become?

And speaking of her friends, Sunset cast a glance down towards the earth as she kept flying up. She saw Camp Everfree near the former shore of the lake. The place was still intact, thankfully. The ground roots of the mountainous tree had grown towards the forest, but had, as if by intention, moved around the camp. Almost as if the roots were protecting the camp, rather than aimlessly seeking to destroy it. Sunset felt the various sparks of human life there that were all of her fellow Canterlot High students. She also senses the stronger sparks of reiatsu from Twilight’s Quincy friends, and the C.M.C.

It looked like they were all safe, for the moment.

But wait, where were her friends? Hadn’t she left most of them there as well?

Fearfully, Sunset searched out further with her scenes, trying to get a read on where her friends were. She frowned as a series of conflicting spiritual pressures made it hard to tell just what was going on out there. She sensed battles taking place, and though she felt Twilight out there, she couldn’t make out the others fighting. Either they were too distant or the conflicting reiatsus were too close together to tell who was fighting who, but it didn’t look like any of her friends were near Camp Everfree anymore... wait...

She did sense Fluttershy. Down below. Looking towards the ground, Sunset saw piles of rock that looked as if they’d been thrown around by the bursting of the giant tree from the ground, along with its roots growing from the lakebed. From one of those rock piles, a faint golden glow could be seen, and as Sunset watched the rocks were pushed aside. A dome formed out of hundreds of glowing, golden hands emerged from beneath the rubble. The palms of the glowing hands continued to push aside the rock piles until it was completely clear, then the ethereal gold hands withdrew, the dome shrinking until it revealed Fluttershy at its center, amid a group of people that the girl had apparently protected from the eruption of the tree.

Sunset was torn between wanting to go check on her friend, and needing to go confront whatever she would find at the top of the tree for a moment, but just for a moment. With a swift Flash Step she headed back to the ground, and appeared in front of Fluttershy. Glancing around, she also recognized Lieutenant Posey, who was standing by Fluttershy almost protectively. A number of Soul Reaper researchers from the lab were laying on the ground in a neat row, with some of Fluttershy’s golden hands from her halo still holding onto the researchers’ unconscious bodies. Then there were the four Arrancar present, all but one of which were in what Sunset assumed to be their Resurreccion forms.

“Fluttershy, is everyone alright?” Sunset asked.

Her friend beamed a calm smile towards her, “For the moment. I, um, take it that things didn’t go well with Gloriosa?”

“You could say that,” Sunset said, grimacing, “I’m sorry. I think I screwed up, rushing ahead like I did.”

“It’s okay. We’ll work something out,” Fluttershy said, and gave a pointed glance towards the four Arrancar, “Oh, um, I think the four of you should probably go now, shouldn’t you?”

Lieutenant Posey flinched, but didn’t raise an objection, which struck Sunset as odd, but the Soul Reaper was giving Fluttershy a look of deference, so Sunset assumed something had been settled between them. As for the Arrancar, Sunset recognized Ember, and although Gaw was much larger now, her reiatsu felt the same from the brief tangle with that Quincy assassin. It looked like the rescue operation was a success, at least. One small good thing in what was a growing clusterbuck.

“Yeah, if you lot intend to scram, you’d better do it now,” she said, trying not to sound friendly, but rather like she was letting a group of enemies go out of the goodness of her heart. Lieutenant Posey didn’t know the truth, so some acting was necessary. “Count yourselves lucky my friend is so kind hearted, and that we’ve got bigger fish to fry right now.”

Gaw growled at that, which might have been acting to help keep the illusion up, or for all Sunset knew it was genuine. Kind of hard to get a read on that one. Ember narrowed her eyes, and turned to a white haired Arrancar male with a strange shark-like arm shield and shark-toothed sword that... seemed vaguely familiar to Sunset.

Haven’t I seen a sword like that before? Wait, he’s not THAT Sharkface, is he!? When did he become an Arrancar!?

Sunset contained her surprise, while Ember said, “Di Roy, I don’t know what this damn tree is about, but I don’t like the spiritual pressure I’m feeling from up there. Are we really cool leaving without Adagio?”

Di Roy, for his part, just blew out a heavy sigh and swept his hand out, opening a Garganta portal, “Ember, the boss lady is a big girl who can take care of herself. We lose you, and this whole shebang was for nothing. So no more questions, no more delays, no more bullshit. Let these Soul Reapers and humans deal with the friggin’ tree, and get in the damn portal! We’re going home, and have some faith that Adagio will be joining us there once she’s good and ready.”

Ember looked ready to spit nails, but with a final glare, she turned and strode through the Garganta. Di Roy looked at the next Arrancar, a female that Sunset didn’t recognize, but had four spider-like limbs sprouting from her back.

“I know you’re worried about him, Roka, but there’s nothing more we can do here.”

“I understand, Di Roy,” replied Roka, staring off towards the north, “Whatever is happening is beyond my reach to affect. Just as you have faith in Adagio Dazzle, I too must have faith in my father, and that he will return safely.”

With that, she too entered the Garganta. Di Roy jabbed a thumb at Gaw and then at the portal, “You too, dino-gal.”

Gaw snorted, scuffing her large, clawed feet on the ground. Di Roy’s face blazed red as he pointed harder at the Garganta, “Don’t give me that! We’re still small fry on this field, whether we like it or not. Leave the big league fights to the big leaguers. Our job’s done.”

“I not go without alpha,” Gaw grunted.

“And what are you going to get done by staying here, huh!?” Di Roy shouted, “Adagio doesn’t need dead vassals, she needs smart ones that know when it’s time to bug out. That time is now, Gaw.”

Gaw turned her rather impressive bulk towards him and lowered her saurian masked face towards his, growling deeply. “Alpha Adagio stronger than me, but has no one to watch back. Even strong ones die if only fight alone... Di Roy, Adagio, and others show me this so many times, and I understand now. Strong or weak, tribe must fight together to live.”

“Which is exactly why we have to go,” Di Roy countered, “Adagio can’t do what she needs to do while still worrying about protecting us. Boss lady likes to act tough, but she’d throw herself in front of too much crap for our sake, so the best thing we can do now is go home so she can know we’re safe. Well, safe-ish. Gaw... we’re still too weak.”

The growl from Gaw’s throat turned... pained, like the whine of a kicked puppy.

“I not like this, Di Roy. Want to be stronger, so we can help alpha.”

He put a hand on her snout and looked her in the eyes with a fierce fire, “I hear ya. Truth is, I hate it just as much as you do. Just remember, we won’t stay this weak forever. One day we’ll pay back boss lady for everything she’s done for us, plus interest. But to do that, we have to survive, you get it?”

Gaw responded with a brief, but simple nudge of her nose on his chest, and then her form shimmered with a deep red gleam. Like bloody steam, red smoke and wafting strands of energy flowed off Gaw’s body as she deactivated her Resurreccion and shrunk back into the shape of a small, wild haired girl. The red, smokey energy reformed into her curved, claw-like Zanpaktou, which she shouldered as she silently prowled into the Garganta. Di Roy turned to follow her, but paused and looked back at Fluttershy and Sunset Shimmer.

“Hey, don’t take this the wrong way but... good luck.”

He then went through the portal as well, the Garganta closing behind him.

Sunset just blinked, “How the heck are we supposed to take that the wrong way?”

“Oh, I think he’s just embarrassed about wishing us luck, because we’re on different sides,” Fluttershy said, laughing lightly. Next to her Posey had a contemplative look on her face as she scratched her head.

“I’ve never seen Arrancar act like that.”

“Like what?” Sunset asked.

“Like they, um, cared about each other,” Posey replied, hiding her face behind her hair, “It was strange.”

“The world is much stranger, broader, and filled with more wonders than any of us can really know,” Fluttershy said, but she quickly shook her head, “But I suppose now isn’t the time for philosophy. Sunset, is that presence I feel at the top of this tree Gloriosa?”

“Yes. Her, and a Hollow that was cocooned beneath the lake,” Sunset said, “I don’t know what it is, but it’s powerful, and is getting additional spirit energy, and magic, from these roots.”

Posey’s eyes widened, “Magic? As in the power from the other world!? Why is that coming through the roots!?”

“I don’t know, but I think it has to do with that ritual the Kraken had set up,” Sunset said, turning swiftly to look up at the top of the tree, her eyes narrowing a moment before she glanced sharply back at Fluttershy.

“We need to get up there and find out what’s happening. Fluttershy, where are the others?”

“Rainbow Dash went to help Rarity, and Pinkie Pie went to help Applejack. Both of them seemed to be in trouble,” Fluttershy said, “I don’t know more than that.”

“Dammit! Okay, look, it might take all of us to deal with whatever Gloriosa has turned into. I need you to go help the other girls, and once you’re all together, get anyone else who can still fight, and meet me up there.”

“Meet you there? Are you going up alone?” Fluttershy asked, and Sunset felt a fresh stab of guilt. Going alone had been a mistake earlier, but this time she really didn’t have any better options. Did she?

“She doesn’t have to go alone.”

Sunset turned at the voice, seeing a familiar gray skinned girl and head of green hair.

“Clover!”

Clover, having Flash Stepped into the air nearby, softly landed next to Sunset, looking tired and a bit battered, but otherwise unharmed. Clover gave a small smile as she turned to Fluttershy and Posey, “I’ll stick with Sunset while you gather everyone else.”

“Third Seat Clover, where’s Lieutenant Meadowbrook? Wasn’t he with you?” Posey asked.

“He’s okay. We’d gotten a bit tied up by one of the Arrancar, but managed to get ourselves free. He’s gone to check on Captain Starswirl, while I came here to find out what was happening,” Clover said, glancing back at the tree, “Looks like things have escalated.”

“Just a bit,” Sunset said, then to Fluttershy, “Okay, me and Clover will keep Gloriosa busy while you go get the girls.”

“I’ll be as fast as I can,” Fluttershy said, turning a soft look towards Posey, “Lieutenant, do you think you could return to the camp and keep watch on the students there for me?”

“But there’s Quincy three,” Posey said, and Fluttershy held up one of her six hands.

“Just as you saw with Arrancar, not all Quincy are alike either. Please, do this for me, and have an open mind.”

“...As you wish. But if they start anything, I’m responding in kind.”

“They won’t,” Sunset said, “Alright everyone, get moving!”

Fluttershy and Posey both all but vanished, moving in different directions, Posey returning to Camp Everfree while Fluttershy went towards the battles to the north. Meanwhile Clover and Sunset Shimmer jumped upwards, kicking off the air to ascend the height of the massive tree looming above them.

Halfway up, Sunset said, “Clover, you good to fight if things turn for the worse?”

“I’ve got a few Kido I haven’t tried yet,” Clover said, turning a uncertain half smile towards Sunset, “I won’t slow you down.”

“Wasn’t worried you would, just wanted to make sure you weren’t pushing yourself. I have no idea what we’re about to face up there.”

“Isn’t she that human woman in charge of the camp?” asked Clover, and Sunset’s eyes filled with a deep rooted worry as she stared at the rapidly approaching top branches of the tree.

“...She was. Now? I don’t know.”

----------

Warmth! Power! Souls! She’d been withering upon the branch for so long that she’d nearly forgotten what it felt like to properly feel herself filled with such sensations! The husk of her former spirit body was no longer a dedicated prison of torment! She was free. Her new flesh... it was so alive, pulsing and pounding with heat and life. This wasn’t quite like how she remembered her old body, but then again, this body had just been human. She had just been human.

It was a little disorienting, the melding of memory and spirit. She was at once Gloirosa, but not Gloriosa. She was Gaia Everfree, yet not Gaia Everfree. There was no separation between the thoughts and emotions of these two entities, but rather a fused whole. She felt everything Gloriosa Daisy would and should be feeling at this moment. Confusion, fear, anger, doubt. She was also feeling just as Gaia Everfree, former Second Espada, would be feeling at the moment of her triumphant rebirth! Ecstasy and excitement! Deep satisfaction as she fed upon the energies pouring into her.

The ritual was complete, but it wasn’t quite finished. She had to maintain the magical transfer through the circle, even as she’d grown the tree and roots that would be the nucleus of her new home. Those roots grew much further than anyone knew, far beyond the borders of her forest. All the way to the ocean, deep underground. In that distant ocean, her ally’s servant had enacted the other half of the ritual of transference. Just as Gloriosa had brought the geodes to her, Gaia Everfree could transfer magical power from them, just as her ally was transferring soul energy into her.

The geodes truly were incredible. They weren’t even being drained. The magical power within them seemed inexhaustible! Such a strange discovery, but her ally had made sense of things to Gaia, in due time. It didn’t matter much to her anyway, she had other business to attend to, and Charybdis could do as she pleased with this world’s oceans.

...Couldn’t she? A hesitance struck Gaia. Her host, Gloriosa, was not pleased at the notion of an unknown, magical aquatic horror being unleashed on her world’s oceans. Gaia Everfree wouldn’t have cared, but she wasn’t truly Gaia Everfree alone anymore. Gloriosa was tied to the world of humans, and that brought new considerations to the table. Gaia had never known just how... complete this melding would be with her host, but no point crying over it. She had a new life to experience and revenge to plan. But first she had to get out of her cocoon and kick some noisy guests out of her home!

She willed the wall of vines surrounding her to withdraw, and pressed one dark purple hand against the soft shell of her cocoon. It yielded to her like a thin layer of hardened amber, and as it cracked open, and Gaia Everfree took her first step out into the living world, she marveled at the feeling of cold wind on her skin and warm sun on her face. She was standing atop a wide canopy of thick vines forming a sort of roof to the giant tree that she’d grown. The energy transfer for the magic ritual was essentially complete now, but the magical runes carved along the vines still glowed with power. She ignored that for a moment and took stock of herself.

Hmm, not bad. My body as Gloriosa was fit and soft on the eyes. Looks like I have a darker version of her purple skin. Sharp, white markings on the arms and legs it seems. Fetching. How’s the face and hair?

She had no mirror, but it wasn’t hard to grow a few vines to form into a bowl shape and let moisture pour into to make a small reflective pool for her to examine herself with. Stroking her chin she admired her new features, much like Gloriosa’s, but with slightly sharper angles. Her eyes were black, as they’d been when she’d been Gaia Everfree, but the yellow of her iris’ were replaced with Gloriosa’s green. She could live with that. Her hair had gone green, but now contained streaks of Gloriosa’s magenta. She also retained Gloriosa’s freckles, which she didn’t mind at all.

Altogether she was pleased with the result of her melding with Gloriosa. Perhaps most noteworthy of the changes was that she, while still technically an Arrancar, no longer had a Hollow hole. Instead the seven geodes were set within her stomach in a perfect circle, where her Hollow hole would have been. Each gem gleamed brightly, and she felt the magic inside them mixing with her own spiritual pressure.

Stretching her limbs for the first time in centuries, Gaia Everfree briefly reveled in the chill air on her skin, but the part of her that was Gloriosa was a tad irked at their bare naked state. Truthfully Gaia was no nudist either, so with a gesture of her hands green, fiery light played across her fingers and the foliage around her stirred. From the roots and vines beneath her feet a veritable mass of greenery flowed over her body, transforming and melding to her body as it went. Normally she preferred dresses of a practical but elegant flair, but knowing she was going to be getting involved in some violence soon enough she crafted her new outfit for the occasion.

Thigh high boots of armored white ash bark encased her legs, while bladed leaves intertwined into a skirt of armored mail harder than steel around her waist. The midriff around the geodes was left bare, but a flexible armoring of bark covered her rounded chest, shoulders, and upper stomach, filled with swirling natural patterns. This armoring went on to coat her arms, turning more leaf-like once more until it stopped at her wrists, leaving her hands bare. The outfit would add a layer of protection while letting her stay mobile. Since her body was still technically human now, Heirro would be harder to use, so she’d need to channel more reiatsu through the armor to act as protection. There’d probably be all manner of new things to get used to with this host body. The melded human and Arrancar soul within would alter the body in many ways, but Gloriosa’s body remained fundamentally human, so some limitations would need to be dealt with.

Speaking of limitations, Gaia keenly felt the absence of her Zanpaktou. Chrysalis had destroyed it during their final battle, and although Gaia’s power was mostly restored, it’d be a while before she could reshape her Zanpaktou. In the meantime she’d need a suitable replacement weapon.

As if sensing her desires, she felt magical warmth flow from the geodes. Melding with her reiatsu, the magic flowed out of her in a spiral of green flame and entered the bark of a nearby branch. The branch then burst into emerald fire, transmuting its shape. Gaia reached out and grasped the central hilt of a double bladed sword, the slightly curved blades on either end made out of wood that had been hardened into a metallic sheen. Both magic and spiritual energy pulsed inside the weapon, and Gaia Everfree smiled as she admired it in her hands.

Yes, this would do.

Now that she was properly equipped, it was time to check on her brother. She went back towards the cocoon she’d emerged from, where a smaller bulb of large leaves and vines formed next to the cocoon. She willed that bulb open. Inside was Timber Spruce, his body connected to several vines that were pumping energy into him like IV drips.

She reached out a hand and touched his cheek tenderly. She was Gaia Everfree now, but she was still Gloriosa. Her brother would be protected. It was an odd mix of thoughts and emotions that hit her as she looked upon this young human man. There was no separation of memory and personality. She loved Timber as her brother, yet also recognized him as a weak human. The stray thought of turning him into a Hollow crossed her mind, so she could keep him by her side and strengthen him, but she just as swiftly dismissed the idea. There was no need to do that to her brother just yet. He’d die of natural causes eventually, then she could see about Hollowfying him.

There was no way she’d let him become a Soul Reaper! Damned sanctimonious, murderous cretins!

Gaia shook her head, the part of her that was Gloriosa somewhat disturbed the deep rooted rage and hate for the Soul Reapers that stemmed from Gaia Everfree. Then again, even more than Soul Reapers, there was another Gaia hated. A smiling, onyx face.

“Chrysalis...!” Gaia hissed, hands clenching.

She couldn’t wait to make that woman pay for all these long centuries of torment. For taking everything away that Gaia had loved. That would have to wait for now, however. She needed to deal with more immediate issues.

With Pesquisa she searched outward with her spiritual senses. She used her root system to help bounce and amplify their senses, getting a much clearer picture of the situation in her domain. Gloriosa’s memories helped put it all into context, and Gloriosa had already been mad about the damage done to Everfree forest and her beloved camp home.

Now she was livid, sensing the extent of the destruction the battling Soul Reapers, Quincy, and Arrancar had caused. So many countless acres of forest ruined! Her beloved lake gone! Mountains melted or torn asunder.

Gaia almost laughed at the angry thought that it’d take forever to rebuild the camp. The human summer camp! Hah, how odd for her, who once ruled at Tirek’s right hand in Hueco Mundo, was now concerned over rebuilding a mere summer camp... yet that was the nature of her melding with Gloriosa. Their wants and desires, their dreams and fears, they were all one and the same now.

And their memories. The part of her that was Gloriosa was both intrigued and a tad horrified to know the truth about her parents, now. How generations ago the indigenous tribes of the region had worshiped Gaia Everfree as a guardian spirit and made sacrifices to her. The very cave Gloriosa and Timber had played in as children had been an altar to Gaia. Over time, as civilization had encroached on the land, the tribes dwindled, but some remained, and ‘modernized’ themselves. Yet the cult of Gaia Everfree never fully died. It, too, dwindled over time, but it was kept alive by the last family of native descent who remained as caretakers of the Everfree Forest.

Gloriosa’s parents had been the last of Gaia’s cult. Although human sacrifice was a thing of the distant past, offerings were still made in the form of animals. These offerings fed Gaia, even if only in a tiny fashion and her power became so weak, she couldn’t save her last devoted human cultists when a freak storm struck the area. But Gaia had already given Gloriosa’s mother her blessing in the form of a daughter whom Gaia had ensured would develop powers, just as she’d done with many of the cult’s line over the centuries.

Gaia had done this not only to help guard her cult, but to gradually grow a suitable host. Gloriosa was the strongest of her line thus far, and the addition of magic entering the equation with the discovery of the geodes was the final spark of the plan, alongside Gaia’s otherworldly ally from the magical world of Equestria.

Now with all of these rowdy, unwelcome guests making a mess of her home, it was time to start cleaning house. Starting with the pair that were coming directly towards her. She felt two strong reiatsu’s approaching. Soul Reapers, although one felt different... wait, wasn’t that Sunset Shimmer?

Gaia smirked, turning and crossing her arms under her chest to await their arrival.

----------

Sunset and Clover reached the top of the tree, which looked like a wide dome of converged vines and branches, making a nearly solid roof that was awash with waves of leaves and branches blooming with flowers of numerous deep colors. At the center of this floral heaven was the bulbous cocoon that Sunset had seen underground, with a smaller bulb attached to it within which she could make out Timber Spruce’s barely breathing body. She saw the small roots and vines sinking into his skin, and was at once fearful for what might be happening to him, yet hopeful that he was still alive and that perhaps the plants were helping to heal him.

Concern over that would have to wait. She saw another person standing by the cocoon, and Sunset’s heart lurched. There was no doubting that was Gloriosa, yet her body was changed, and the overpowering Hollow reiatsu she’d been feeling was stemming directly from this new person who might not be Gloriosa at all anymore.

She and Clover landed a fair distance away, giving the woman in front of them a berth of a good dozen or so yards. Sunset looked her over carefully. She had Gloriosa’s features and body type, but her skin was a bit of a darker purple, with several stripe-like white markings on her face and stomach. Most of her was clad in white armor of what looked like organic bark and leaves shaped into high boots, a skirt, a chest-piece, and arm guards. Held loosely in the woman’s right hand like a staff was a two bladed sword, although it looked as if it’d been carved from more white ash wood, similar to the armor. Sunset didn’t doubt the weapon’s potency, however, for she felt both spiritual pressure and the buzz of magic stemming from within it.

The woman was looking at both her and Clover with a disturbingly pleasant smile that did nothing to set Sunset at ease, and before either she or Clover could speak the woman spoke up herself. Her voice sounded just like Gloriosa’s, but there was something different in her manner and tone that made Sunset even more tense and fearful for the fate of the camp owner.

“I see you don’t give up easily, Sunset Shimmer. I’m aware you think you were helping, but I’ve got everything in hand now, so you and your friends can... what’s the modern term? Buzz off?”

“Gloriosa,” Sunset said, “Is that still you in there? I need to know what that Hollow has done to you.”

“Gaia Everfree.”

“Huh?”

“My name. Not ‘that Hollow’. I am Gaia Everfree. Former Segunda of the Espada. I suppose I am also Gloriosa Daisy, but since I don’t need two names, I’ll stick with Gaia.”

Clover made a gulping noise and Sunset glanced at her. Her friend looked a bit paler as she said, “I know that name. From the war records. Gaia Everfree was the Second Espada prior to Chrysalis. It’s said she destroyed a large contingent of Third Division alongside one of it’s previous Captains during a massive Hollow incursion into the Soul Society over a thousand years ago.”

Gaia Everfree rolled her eyes, “Tirek does love his little invasions. I suppose that hasn’t changed over the past ten or so centuries, has it? Yes I’ve slaughtered your kind before, Soul Reaper, and without tears to shed over the matter. You hunt us in turn, so fair’s fair, is it not? The ‘balance’ that your masters like you to maintain, right?”

“Don’t act as if you Hollows don’t earn it by hunting human souls,” Clover replied, taking up a ready battle stance, although she flinched when her hand instinctively went for Chishiki only to grasp empty air. Wincing, Clover instead took up a ready Kido casting stance, “What, do you expect us to do nothing while Hollows gorge themselves?”

“Wouldn’t that be a nice change of pace? But no, I don’t,” Gaia replied, “Eating souls is in our nature, yes, but is the existence of predators and prey not part of the natural balance? I’d say we Hollows are following that balance far more closely than you Soul Reapers are.”

“None of that matters right now,” Sunset said, taking a step forward and readying her sword and shield, “I need to know what your intentions are, Gaia Everfree. What’s happened to Gloriosa, and will you release her and Timber Spruce?”

One of Gaia’s eyebrows rose slightly as her eyes gave Sunset a flat look, her voice turning into a faintly condescending drawl, “You’re not quick on the uptake, are you sweetie? I am Gloriosa Daisy. I am also Gaia Everfree. We’re one being now. There’s no going back. As for Timber, I’m healing his injuries at the moment, and after that... we’ll see. He’s my brother, and I will protect him and our home. Those are my ‘intentions’.”

“Okay...” Sunset said, frowning. On paper this sounded almost like Gloriosa, Gaia, whoever she was wasn’t hostile. Yet then why did Sunset sense such bloodlust coming from her? Gaia’s reiatsu was sharper than thorns and gave the impression of a furious predator ready to pounce. Sunset’s sense of danger was at an all time high, so it was hard to drop her guard.

“Let me rephrase that,” Sunset said, “What are you going to do now that you’re... one being?”

“Oh, I don’t know, I thought I’d go into town, do a little shopping, maybe get my hair done, and murder every last person that’s made a mess of my home!” Gaia shouted with an accompanying explosion of violent reiatsu that burst out of her in a dark green and violet aura of power that stirred up a near hurricane-force wind around the domed roof of the tree.

Sunset grit her teeth as the woman’s spiritual pressure crashed into her. Gaia certainly hadn’t been merely boasting about being the Second Espada. Her reiatsu quite thoroughly corroborated that statement. Compared to other spiritual pressures that Sunset had encountered shot past Platinum’s or Adagio’s and felt more on par with what she’d briefly felt from Chrysalis or Starlight back in Soul Society. Granted it was always hard to tell precisely which reiatsu was more potent, but Gaia Everfree definitely felt like she was in that general tier.

Yet for all of its strength, the reiatsu felt... unfocused. Wild and free flowing, without any concentration. Was it because of the magic? Sunset felt magic inside Gaia Everfree as well, and although she hadn’t noticed them before, her eyes were drawn to Gaia’s exposed midriff now and saw the seven glowing geodes there. The geodes!? They’d fused with Gaia’s body, not unlike the Hogyoku had fused with Starlight Glimmer. Sunset sensed the intense vibrations of magic inside those geodes and quickly realized what was happening.

“Gaia, Gloriosa, argh, whichever, just listen to me!” Sunset said, “Those geodes, you have to get them out of you. You can’t control the magic inside them and it’s affecting your emotions!”

“What are you talking about?” Gaia said, chuckling as she raised her left hand and let a dancing strand of green, fiery magic flow around her fingers, “The magic does what I want it to. It feels incredible. No wonder my ally was capable of doing so many wondrous things, even reach across dimensions.”

“...Your ally?” Sunset asked, feeling an uncomfortable and cold certainty that this situation was directly tied to the Kraken from the beach and the magical circle it’d been constructing. In fact, sensing that a portion of the magic flowing from the tree had been exiting the area through the roots, a suspicious thought struck Sunset. “Gaia Everfree, you needed more than just Gloriosa’s body to revive, didn’t you? And you made a deal with someone from Equestria to get what you needed.”

Gaia raised her left arm in a graceful shrugging motion, “Is it that much of a revelation to you? Chrysalis left me as a desiccated husk of my former self. Even centuries of sacrifices made by the local natives could do little to restore me. I was left in darkness and despair, just as that smug bitch intended. But I doubt Chrysalis could have predicted the leaking of magic into this world, or that through that magic a powerful ally from another realm could seek me out.”

“Why?” asked Sunset, pointing the blade of her Zanpaktou at Gaia, “Tell me who this person is and what they want. They fed your soul energy through this ritual, but you’re feeding magic right back to them. Why?”

“She was a bit coy with her desires, but from what I could pry out of her before we struck our deal, Charybdis desires a permanent portal into Earth’s oceans. I gleaned that she feels she’s too restricted in her home realm. Too many powerful entities that could keep her in check. She probably thinks this world offers better prospects for her own goals,” Gaia Everfree said, sounding rather disinterested in the whole affair, “Personally I haven't’ decided if I want a powerful sea witch running amok here, but I wanted to be restored more, so I don’t particularly regret the deal. Charybdis seems to have a personal interest in soul-based magic, but I don’t plan to continue my alliance with her past this point. Do whatever you like about her for all I care... assuming you live that long.”

“What do you mean by that?” Sunset said, tensing her muscles.

“Sunset, I’m famished after all these years of inactivity. Also, beyond livid,” Gaia Everfree said, the seven geodes in her stomach glowing even brighter as her body was surrounded by an even more intense glow of green and violet tinged magical flame, “The only reason I’ve been talking to you this long is because the part of me that was once Gloriosa didn’t hate you, or Twilight. You tried to help in your own, dumb ways. I don’t plan to harm the campers, either. They’re innocent of any wrongdoing against me. But everyone else? Everyone who’s participating in ruining my home? I owe some bloody retribution, Sunset Shimmer, and if you don’t want to be caught up in the bloodbath, I suggest you be somewhere else. I might spare Twilight, but the other Quincy running around? The Arrancar that helped plot this battle? The Soul Reapers infecting my land? All. Dead.”

There was little doubt in Sunset Shimmer’s mind, now, as she saw the glow of magic, green flame infect Gaia Everfree’s eyes. This was just like when she’d been consumed by the magic from Princess Twilight’s crown, or when the human Twilight had been overwhelmed by the magic her device had collected. Magic reacted to emotions. In Equestria this wasn’t too often an issue since those born with magic learned to control it as they grew older, although young ponies often did suffer from random magical surges. But time and again, even experienced spellcasters could succumb to dark, negative emotions and unleash magic they couldn’t control.

It was even worse with humans, who had no natural experience with magic, or for that matter beings like Soul Reapers and Hollows.

Right now Gaia Everfree was a powerful Hollow, driven by dark emotions of rage and revenge, combined with a human body and soul that was also filled with negative feelings of anger, fear, and pain. Throw in a set of incredibly powerful magical stones that were channeling an insane amount of magic into a person with this unstable of an emotional state...? It was a recipe for utter disaster and it was playing out right in front of Sunset’s eyes.

And Charybdis? Had this ‘sea witch’ from Equestria anticipated that Gaia Everfree couldn’t control the magic being channeled into her? Had it been part of Charybdis’ plan that Gaia would go out of control, and likely either end up destroying herself or get put down by the local spiritual factions? A problem for later, but Sunset wasn’t about to forget that end of the problem. Right now, though, it was clear there was no avoiding a fight.

And given how strong this reiatsu I’m feeling is, mixed in with the power of those geodes, me and Clover are outgunned here. But she doesn't have control of the magic fully, and I don’t think she realizes how little control she has of her reiatsu either. We’ve got a chance, as long as we keep her off balance. We don’t have to beat her, just keep her occupied long enough for Fluttershy to get everyone else and get here.

Sunset didn’t know precisely what they’d do once they subdued Gaia, but it was possible that Fluttershy’s evolved Fullbring might have the power to either undo the fusion between Gaia and Gloriosa’s souls, or at least give the Gloriosa side of their personality more control. Failing that, maybe Discord could do something.

“Clover,” she said, “The magic she’s using is clouding her ability to think straight. It’s the same as the incidents with me and Twilight at the school.”

“I’ve read the reports,” Clover said, gulping, “Is she going to be powerful enough to tear open portals like Twilight was?”

“I don’t know, but let’s assume the worst. Either way, we have to stop her, but we can’t kill her, Clover. She’s still Gloriosa.”

Clover gave her a sidelong look, but her hesitance gave way to a small smile, “I hear you. A Soul Reaper’s duty is to protect human life. Good thing the Kido that Chief Puddinghead taught me is Bakudo-class. If you can buy me time to chant it, we might be able to stop her right off the bat.”

“Ahem,” Gaia Everfree cleared her throat pointedly, “I can still hear you two, you know?”

“Then you know we’re not backing down,” Sunset Shimmer said, and let her own spiritual pressure pour out of her, slamming into the energies stemming from Gaia, “You’re not thinking straight, and I’m not about to let you go on a rampage.”

“Hmm,” Gaia licked the air, almost like a snake scenting with its tongue, “Nice reiatsu. Captain-level. Even the girl next to you is stronger than a Lieutenant, but isn’t wearing a Captain’s coat. I don’t know precisely what your story is from Gloriosa’s memories, but it doesn’t matter. Neither of you can stop me, so standing there, prepared to fight, is the same as tossing your lives away. For Gloriosa’s sake, I’ll give you a chance to run.”

“Not happening, Gaia Everfree. I can’t let you do as you please. Stand down, and we’ll end the fighting ourselves, then we can calmly work things out-”

“No,” Gaia snarled, “I’ve waited long enough. Retribution is at hand, and you’ve had your chance to run.”

No sooner were the words out of her mouth than the reiatsu and magic inside her exploded outward, making the entire domed roof of the tree shake like an earthquake. Dozens upon dozens of roots and vines shot upwards like living serpents. Giant, thorn-like blades sprung from the roots, not unlike when Gloriosa had eviscerated the Tatzulwrum, and with flaming green magic coating them the bladed vines all shot towards Sunset and Clover at sound-breaking speed.

----------

At the depths of the ocean, at the bottom of the shear oceanic canyon, the massive shadow of the Kraken lay over the glowing ruins on the ocean floor. The magic circle flared so bright that it turned the pitch black depths into a deep purple light-show, shimmering and dancing with the Kraken's many tentacled shadows.

The Kraken didn’t have to do much more than act as a conduit for his mistress’ power, but now that the ritual was enacted, the flow was a two-way channel. Soul energy poured through him, into the circle, and towards their distant ally, and in exchange a flood of magic came pouring back, entering the Kraken and transferring across the veils of reality to fill his mistress.

He felt Charybdis’ voice croon in his mind.

Oh, yes. Yes! This is more than enough power to finish opening the portal. I just need a little more time, and everything will be complete on this end, despite that damned Princess’ meddling.

The Kraken sent a brief mental query to his mistress, but she made a dismissive, scoffing noise.

It’s no matter. Just a little interference from the surface. They won’t make it in time to stop my coming, although it’s irritating they found my sister’s old armory. You just maintain the ritual circle. We will need it again, soon enough.

As his mistress broke contact, the Kraken briefly wondered just what was happening back home that seemed to be irritating his mistress so, but decided it didn’t really matter. Charybdis was mighty beyond reckoning, and no surfacers, even a so-called ‘Princess’ could possibly halt her plans. All he had to do was remain here and keep watch over the magical circle until she was prepared to open the portal.

And at the bottom of the ocean what could possibly happen...?

Noticing an oddly bright light stemming from somewhere above, the Kraken shifted it’s titanic weight so one of it’s massive eyes could peer upwards. It’s internal sonar sensed a great disturbance moving towards the canyon, and he saw a bright white light from above. But that was impossible, wasn’t it? He had to be imagining things. Nothing could come down to this depth so easily or speedily, could it?

To the Kraken’s shock he felt the disturbance widen, and had to back up slightly as a massive, perfectly cube shaped pocket of open air descended into the canyon and settled over the ancient ruins. Within this pocket of air, a cube around thirty meters to a side, stood a bright point of light being held by a man carrying a golden staff with a metal ring at one end that had numerous smaller rings looped into it..

After a moment the light dimmed and the Kraken saw that the man standing on air in the center of the cube was a strange, lime green fellow with swirling pink hair and a rotund body clad in a wide-necked black and white robe. The man was glancing around with open curiosity and an air of faint irritation. While the Kraken was still sitting there in shock, the man spoke.

“Alright, on Captain Celestia’s suggestion I decided to take a stroll down here and take a peek at what was going on, but honestly all I’m seeing are a bunch of old pillars, a giant side of calamari, and... oh, that must be the magic circle she mentioned. Ugh, I’m the Chief of the Kido Corps, not a magic specialist! What does Clestia expect me to do with this!? You! You there, squid! I am Puddinghead, and my time is very valuable, so how about you tell me what all this magic dickering is all about so I can go home and do something better with my time. Come now, speak up, I don’t have all day!”

Episode 119: Schutzstaffel

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Episode 119: Schutzstaffel

The only sound that penetrated Rarity’s consciousness for several seconds was the pounding thump of her own heartbeat. Which seemed ludicrous, considering the circumstances. Sure, she understood on an intellectual level that spirit bodies had hearts. Spirit bodies, in fact, felt no different and functioned all but identically to physical bodies. Which would explain why she hadn’t noticed that she no longer had a physical body when...

...when she died.

“-arity! Snap out of it!”

Was someone trying to talk to her? Oh, right, Rainbow Dash was here. The athlete was in fact shaking Rarity rather vigorously by the shoulders, eyes like red dinner plates, “Damn it Rarity, say something! I can’t have you going catatonic on me! We need to find your body!”

“...What?” Rarity said, her own voice a sort of phantom whisper to her own hearing, like someone else was talking.

“Y-your body! If we find it, and take it to Discord, maybe he can fix you!” Rainbow Dash shouted, sounding far more panicked than Rarity felt. Then again, Rarity wasn’t sure what she was feeling at that moment. Everything had gone a bit numb, like her brain wasn’t allowing anything to fully process. What was the term? Shock?

Rainbow Dash had ceased shaking Rarity and instead was scanning the ground, zipping about this way and that in little blue sparks of motion, like an electrical firefly on a caffeine high. “Where is it!? Do you remember? M-maybe I can give it an electrical zap, like those shock-pad thingies EMTs got!? Or CPR? Crap I never paid attention when we had that class! If I have to do mouth to mouth on you I’ll do it, but I don’t want to hear any jokes about it later-”

“Rainbow Dash, stop,” Rarity said, stepping over and grabbing her friend’s arm, “Just stop.”

Rainbow Dash snapped her head around to stare at Rarity, sweat on her face, eyes wild, “What? Why? If we don’t hurry you might not be able to come back! Now where’s your body!?”

“I don’t think I have one anymore,” Rarity said, again her voice sounding distant to her own ears, and strangely steady, almost clinical. “I chased the assassin, it turned out to be Hoity Toity-”

“Huh, that fashion designer dude you were always going on about?” Dash asked, but Rarity ignored the question and just kept talking.

“-but he wasn’t alone. Sapphire Shores is also a Quincy, trying to kill Twilight. During my fight with Hoity, she stabbed me through the back. I was bleeding out. Dying. I felt my Fullbring’s power well up and... I embraced it. I felt the power surge through me. Explode through me. Just like Ditzy warned us, it... I think it consumed me. Destroyed my body. I just didn’t realize, because the power felt so good. My spirit body felt... feels, fantastic. I fought Hoity Toity again, and killed him, but I didn’t realize I was... was dead too...”

Saying it out loud somehow brought reality crashing back in with full force. Her voice choked, and the next thing she knew she was gripping Rainbow Dash with both hands, practically pinning the other girl in place as she started to hyperventilate. Which seemed unfair to her. She didn’t have a body anymore. Hyperventilating should be off the table.

“Oh God, I’m actually dead, aren’t I? What am I supposed to tell my parents? How am I supposed to explain this to Sweetie Belle? And forget starting up my own boutique, because I’m fairly certain there are laws against ghosts applying for business loans! What am I supposed to do, start up a haunting business? The Halloween season will be booming, but the rest of the year I’ll be out of luck! Nobody wants ghosts for Christmas, Rainbow Dash, nobody!!!”

A blue hand smacked her across the cheek, and Rarity blinked, touching the stinging spot as she looked at Rainbow Dash, “What was that for?”

Looking embarrassed, and hiding her offending hand behind her back, Rainbow Dash mumbled, “It’s what they always do to hysterical people in the movies, isn’t it?”

“I suppose it is,” Rarity said, rubbing her cheek still, but finding that the shock of the blow had knocked her out of her immediate hysteria. Her mind was still a tempest of conflicting emotions, but the moment of clarity and levity that Dash’s slap had given Rarity an opening to not so much order her chaotic thoughts, but pluck a few pieces of focus from the storm. “Right, at any rate, my body is probably gone, Rainbow. If there is any of it left, it’d be in no condition for you to perform any kind of medical aid. Even before I, well... exploded, I’d been fatally stabbed through the heart.”

“By Sapphire Shores the international pop sensation?” Rainbow Dash said, as if baffled by her own words. At Rarity’s solemn nod, Dash gripped her lightning spear tighter and a truly frightening glower appeared on her face, “Well then, the pop world’s about to need a new damned idol, because by the time I’m done with her she’s going to be singing from hell, which I know is a real place so I can look forward to booting her in there myself!”

There was anger enough in her words that Rarity didn’t doubt that, to a degree, Rainbow Dash meant what she was saying. But Rarity also saw the shaking in her friend’s hands and the wetness in her eyes. Rarity took a moment to gently grasp one of Rainbow Dash’s hands.

“Our first priority is protecting our friends. Sapphire Shores is after Twilight. If we have to kill Sapphire to do that, leave that to me. I’ve already done it once. If need be, I can do so again.”

Rainbow Dash gulped, “Hoity Toity, right? You sure you actually... killed him?”

“Yes,” Rarity said, wondering, fearing, expecting some kind of judgement in Rainbow Dash’s eyes. There wasn’t any. Not judgment, at least. Instead there was pain, sadness, and a small lessening of the bright, innocent spark in Dash’s eyes as they hardened, and her voice hardened with it.

“We gotta do what we gotta do, right? You shouldn’t be the only one carrying that burden, Rarity. If the time comes, I’ll do it. You don’t have to carry that alone.”

A burst of both relief and love for her friend filled Rarity, while at the same time a deep mourning for what this fight was costing both her and the friends she held dear. She didn’t want to see her friends getting their own hands stained, and she sincerely hoped they could save Twilight without more death on either side, but she was resolved to do whatever needed doing, and there was a certain comfort in knowing she wasn’t alone on that front.

“Well,” she said, “First we have to find Twilight. Can you sense her?”

Both of the girls closed their eyes briefly to focus their spiritual senses, casting out in all directions. Immense spiritual pressures could be felt all over the place, with an especially concerning one back in the direction of the lake, but before Rarity could wonder what that growing reiatsu was, she felt Twilight’s not very far away!

“I feel her!” Rainbow Dash said, eyes snapping open, “She’s not alone!”

Rarity had felt it too. There were other reiatsu signatures near Twilight’s location. Three? Four? It was hard to discern with the intensity of the battle mixing the reiatsus like different paints on a canvas. One felt like a Soul Reaper, and judging by the strength of it, and the lack of how familiar it felt, Rarity was going to guess it was Captain Starswirl. Another reiatsu was horrifyingly strong, eclipsing both Starswirl’s and Twilight’s. Rarity was getting skilled at telling the differences between types of reiatsu as well, so she was able to identify it as a Quincy’s. No doubt that was Sapphire Shores. The fight had already begun. Rarity wasn’t sure who the other spiritual pressures belonged to, but she thought they might be Quincy as well. Allies or enemies? There was no way to tell at this distance.

“We have to hurry!” she said to Rainbow Dash, who gave a reluctant nod.

“Alright, then just try to keep up,” the speedster said, her body becoming luminous with cobalt light as she flew off towards Twilight’s location in a burst of electrical discharge.

Rarity focused her own reiatsu and kicked off the air, leaving a glittering trail of green Bringer Light as she flew after Rainbow Dash. She found that she was able to keep up, although she imagined that was because Dash was still holding back a bit on her speed. Even so, they’d catch up to Twilight’s location in no time.

“Rarity,” Rainbow Dash said as they flew through the air, “The others, when we see them... what do we tell them? About...” she nodded towards Rarity’s chest. By now Rarity’s armor had repaired itself, so the broken soul chain was hidden from view.

Rarity thought about it for a moment. Finally she said, “For now, nothing. This crisis is far from over, Rainbow. When it’s done, then I’ll take care of it.”

“Discord might be able-”

“Yes, he might,” Rarity said, “But I can’t afford to think about that right now. We deal with what’s in front of us. Everything else can wait.”

The last thing she needed right now was to let her mind wander down the rabbit hole of overthinking the situation. Whatever Discord could or couldn’t do, whatever options he might be able to provide, and whatever consequences might result in regards to Soul Society was all stuff to think about later. Right now she couldn’t afford to get mentally tangled up like that. She was dead. That was the fact of the matter. She’d had her brief freak out over it, and was likely going to have quite a few more when the time was appropriate, but in the right here and now, Rarity just wanted to focus.

Otherwise someone else could die, and Rarity wasn’t keen on any of her friends joining her as one of the living impaired.

“Hey, I think I can see them!” Rainbow Dash shouted, and Rarity squinted against the wind.

The fight was still a fair distance off, but Rarity could make out the glimmering trails of reishi arrows firing, and the flash of other explosions in the air. The battle was taking place fairly high above the forest canopy. There were the distant dots of the combatants moving about at high speed, but Rarity couldn’t make out the individuals yet. She and Rainbow Dash were still about half a minute away, even at the speed they were moving at.

Then, abruptly, there was a surge of spiritual pressure from the fight and a searing flash of silvery light from one of the combatants, most likely Sapphire Shores. Rarity had to shield her eyes from the intense brightness that coated the sky, but she managed to see what looked like eight bolts of light shoot from the central flash, then form a circle around a kilometre wide. Then a shining silver substance started to form a giant, spherical shell around the battle area.

“What the heck is that!?” Rainbow Dash asked, but Rarity had no answer, but the sphere was forming with alarming speed, encasing the area where Twilight was fighting! She and Rainbow both picked up the pace, pushing to reach the area in time to get within the sphere. As they got close, Rarity thought she saw something or someone moving in a pink flash of motion from the opposite direction that she and Rainbow were coming from, just barely entering the sphere’s area before it fully formed.

The girls pressed on, and a mere twenty seconds later reached the sphere, but too late to get inside, as the last small holes had sealed up, leaving a gigantic silver sphere hanging in the air.. It’s surface was polished to a near mirror finish, and laced with geometric patterns of white light. Rarity felt nothing beyond it, while the sphere itself appeared solid and felt distinctly of Sapphire Shores’ reiatsu.

“I think it's another Quincy barrier,” Rarity said, thinking of the unusual screen-like barrier Hoity Toity had used to obscure his initial appearance, “They do seem to have quite a few different kinds, just like the Soul Reapers.”

“Well I’m gonna smash it!” Dash said, twirling her spear, the lightning from it thundering to a larger size as she charged it up with power.

“Wait, Rainbow, that might not be wise,” Rarity cautioned, but Rainbow Dash was already thrusting forward, unleashing a furious shout alongside her strike of explosive lightning. Rarity was, admittedly, impressed by the volume of power put behind the blow, which shook the air and filled it with an electrical buzz as the storm of lightning crackled over the silver sphere.

Unfortunately the barrier didn’t seem affected, and Rainbow Dash backed off with a frustrated growl.

“Arrrgh, c’mon! Seriously!? It’s not even dented!?”

“Rainbow, I don’t think brute force can open this,” Rarity said, lips pressed to a thin line of furious thought as she carefully placed the tip of her sword against the surface of the sphere. She tried to push her reiatsu into it, to grow crystals into the sphere’s surface, but very potent reiatsu pushed back, halting her efforts.

“Sapphire Shores made this, I’m positive of it,” Rarity said, “And if my senses weren’t deceiving me, she’s of a caliber much higher than Hoity Toity was. We can’t break this on our own.”

“Man! This is such BS!” Rainbow Dash shouted “I thought when we completed our Fullbrings we’d have leveled the damn playing field!”

“We have, Rainbow. Considerably, from where we started. But never forget that our opponents have been at this much longer than we have, and have individuals among them that are exceptional even among their elites.”

“Well what do we do then? We can’t leave Twilight in there!”

It was a good question, and one Rarity didn’t have an immediate answer to. She didn’t see any way they could force their way into Sapphire Shores’ barrier. Pinkie Pie might have been able to slip through with her oddly reality-warping Fullbring, or perhaps Fluttershy’s ability to influence reiatsu as a whole? But neither of them were here, and Rarity doubted Twilight would last long enough for her and Rainbow to go find them and come back.

Before she could ponder any further on the matter, Rarity felt a massive eruption of reiatsu back towards Camp Everfree. She and Rainbow Dash both whirled around in time to see the incredible sight of what looked like an unnaturally enormous tree growing up from the center of the dried out lake.

“What in the world?” Rarity murmured.

“Am I going crazy or did a Godzilla-sized tree just show up out of nowhere?” said Rainbow Dash.

“I see it too, so I don’t believe you’re crazy,” Rarity replied, “But I have a bad feeling that this means things just got even more desperate for us than they already were.”

----------

A brief time earlier...

Within the first few seconds of the battle with Sapphire Shores being joined, Twilight fully realized that she’d severely underestimated the difference between herself and her opponent.

Her first barrage of magic-infused reishi arrows were annihilated by the silver streaks of the bolts Sapphire Shores fired, and Twilight would have been peppered with arrows right then and there if not for a hexagon shaped, blue barrier of energy that appeared in front of her.

“Bakudo Number Seventy One: Kongoseiki Ryu no Uroko.” (Diamond Dragon's Scales)

Starswirl had chanted the spell and invoked it in front of Twilight within the span of a mere second, shielding Twilight from the hard hitting rain of arrows that embedded themselves into the hexagon of blue light. Before Twilight could so much as thank him, however, she noticed something wrong with the arrows.

The arrows Sapphire Shores fired were a bright silvery color, and she sensed Sapphire Shores’ reiatsu inject itself into the Kido barrier and the very nature of the barrier’s reishi changed in that instant. Seeing the barrier turn silver itself, she didn’t need to think about it to understand the danger, and used Hirenkyaku to kick backwards and fling herself away from the barrier.

A mere moment later the barrier exploded, the very nature of it’s defensive reishi altered into something volatile and explosive.

She can change the nature of reishi, and at such high speeds. How am I supposed to beat that? She’s physically superior to me as well. Speed, strength, durability, all of it is affected by reiatsu. Her Blut Vene and Blut Arterie will be far stronger than mine. I can’t beat her head on. My only trump card is magic, since she can’t alter it like she can reishi. But she destroyed my arrows so easily, simply by overpowering them with pure reishi density. I need a plan, fast!

“Miss Twilight!” Starswirl called in warning, and Twilight turned to find Sapphire Shores already behind her!

In the fraction of a moment that it’d even taken Twilight to think, Sapphire had already used an incredibly fast Hirenkyaku to get behind Twilight. Her silver bow was already aimed, it’s strange mercury-like form seeming to pulsate with its owner's murderous intent.

I can’t dodge!, Twilight thought, trying to alter course and move to the side to avoid the arrow she knew was coming, but it was like watching a video in tiny steps, already knowing the outcome. She was too slow. She’d never make it in time to evade!

Tch, Midnight’s voice filled Twilight’s mind, So it really is up to me.

Twilight felt a stab of pain in her mind as she felt Midnight channeled magic on her own, all but momentarily drowning Twilight in the burning heat of magic’s warmth as it flooded her body. This wasn’t the cooperative magic they’d been using. This was Midnight forcing magic from deep inside Twilight, bringing it up from the massive well of power that had never really left Twilight, but Midnight had kept the faucet closed in order to keep Twilight from burning out. But this was a matter of survival, and a little burning was in order as far as Midnight was concerned. So she opened the valve wide and let magic course through Twilight’s veins and mind like a flood from a broken dam.

Blazing witchfire erupted from Twilight’s body, firing out in a teal storm towards Sapphire Shores, who in turn fired a streaking silver bolt of reishi.

The magic couldn’t be altered, so the bolt was swallowed by the firestorm and Sapphire Shores was the one forced to dodge, streaking above the inferno of ghostly witchfire.

Her senses picked up another threat almost immediately, and she spun to fire an arrow at Starswirl, who had waved the warfan of his Shikai at her. Starswirl was wise enough to not let the arrow hit his Zanpaktou and instead dodged aside, while chemicals he’d unleashed surrounded Sapphire. The gases wavered with a rainbow sheen, forming a deep haze around Sapphire Shores. These particular gases were among the most potent chemical narcotics that Starswirl had ever invented, designed to induce a blinding euphoria that would render almost any target instantiate with overloaded stimulation, effectively paralyzing a target in a dream-like state.

However Sapphire Shore’s body was coated in a silver light as her Quintessence Schrift tore into the very reishi particles making up the spirit-realm based chemical gases and changed their nature into an inert and harmless field of mist.

She then came straight at Starswirl, drawing back an arrow that vibrated with a sound like the echoing of a choir of female voices. The arrow of liquid silver streaked towards Starswirl like a laser, and he blinked away from its path with a Flash Step, but then the arrow burst just beneath him in a splatter of goblets like mercury. Some of the silver liquid stained his tattered robes or got on his Zanpaktou, and he winced as the volatile reishi of the silver liquid started to sizzle where they struck.

It wasn’t burning, however, but rather the Quinteccens working through the reishi of the splattered arrow, which started to dismantle the bonds of the spirit particles they came into contact with.

“Quite the troublesome foe you’ve got, Miss Sparkle,” Starswirl said, “I’ll need Bankai to-”

“As if I’d allow that, wizened old Reaper,” Sapphire said as she chased after him, flying above the man and aiming her bow down, which flared with a font of silver light. Now a full storm of arrows shot down, arcing out and curving in upon Starswirl like the closing jaws of a predator.

Teal magic flared around Starswirl as Twilight teleported in front of him, sweeping her artificial hand out to cast a dome of burning magic that blocked the oncoming arrows. Her eyes were surrounded by a more intense aura of teal flame now, and the aura of wings from her back was starting to slowly solidify into something more tangible, pieces of dark feathers taking shape. Licks of teal fire were reaching up and down her arms and legs, not fully transforming the clothing of her shredded uniform just yet, but starting to form the patterns of Midnight’s dress.

Inside Twilight, there was a brief struggle, taking place in the span of a mere moment.

Midnight, I didn’t say it was alright for you to just yank control from me like that! Twilight shouted, still in control of her body, but feeling like her mind was splitting apart from the magic coursing through her.

If I don’t take control, our mind and body can’t handle the magic we need to defeat this stuck up twit! I’ve played things your way this long, Twilight. I’ve trusted you to be in control, to sit here and let you put both our lives at risk. Now it’s time for you to trust me. You need me right now.

It wasn’t strictly untrue, Twilight understood. Midnight was sitting upon a vast well of power that was still buried inside Twilight, power that Twilight herself wasn’t skilled enough to manipulate in large quantities yet. The Hexenfaust and her studies and training had been helping greatly, but she’d taxed those to their limits. The Hexenfaust itself was so hot it nearly burned her skin, the magic-tech gauntlet’s gems shining far too brightly and starting to show cracks from trying to channel too much power.

If Midnight took full control. If she became “Midnight Sparkle” again, then that was the kind of power that’d be an even match for the likes of Sapphire Shores. But...

How do I know you’ll give control back? Twilight asked, I don’t have a way to guarantee you won’t run amok like you did at Canterlot High.

The alternative is what, exactly? Dying? You can’t win like this.

That’s not true. If Starswirl can use his Bankai, that’ll even things up. And I still have Vollstandig.

Argh! So does she! And your shadowy boy-toy already told you that if you use yours like you are now, you’ll probably fry your precious Quincy powers. Just let me behind the driver’s seat! Magic is better anyway!

Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t, but that’s not important. I haven’t exhausted all my options yet. If we can just hold out a few more minutes then everything should come together...

The mental conversation took all of a millisecond, but even that was enough time for Sapphire Shores to get around the half dome of witchfire that Twilight had created to halt the arrow barrage, appearing behind Twilight and Starswirl. The woman’s speed was terrifying enough, but her precision was even more deadly, as she wasted no motion in her movements and gave no pauses or openings. Twilight could barely react as Sapphire drew a Seele Scheider from the folds of her ornate dress and cast the blade-arrow at her like a throwing knife. The brilliant blade of reishi flew right at Twilight’s head and if it wasn’t for Starswirl heaving his Zanpaktou into the weapon’s path, Twilight would have been dead then and there.

The reishi blade still pierced Starswirl’s Zanpaktou, the large iron fan gaining a crack through its surface. Instantly strange lines of silver light permeated the Zanpaktou, and Starswirl frowned as he yanked the offending reishi blade out while causing a caustic blast of acidic liquid to shoot out of the fan towards Sapphire Shores.

The liquid contained denser reishi than the gases used earlier, so Starswirl surmised it’d be harder for Sapphire to alter the reishi using her Quintessence. This theory was confirmed as she dodged out of the stream’s path rather than let it hit her. Starswirl would have found more satisfaction in finding some limits to the woman’s ability if not for the fact that he was having to concentrate a great deal of his reiatsu into his Zanpaktou now to try and keep Sapphire Shore’s own power from infecting his sword further.

Unfortunately he already knew what her aim had been and what she was doing and he grimaced as he said, “Miss Twilight, that woman just closed off my Zanpaktou from it’s Bankai.”

“What!?”

“I can still utilize the Shikai, but until I purge it of this infecting reishi, it's essentially blocking off my ability to use Bankai. Unless you have another trump card, you might wish to consider retreating while I keep her distracted.”

“I’m not running. Just focus on defending me, Captain Starswirl... I’ll handle offense. We just need another minute or two,” Twilight said, and immediately rushed out from under the dome of witchfire, which petered out behind her.

Sapphire was too fast for her to react to easily, but that was a factor, a ‘variable’ that Twilight could change! Using her own Schrift, she cranked up the variables on her own physical abilities. This was a dangerous prospect, because while she could indeed boost herself in such a manner, changing the variables of her body like that didn’t necessarily mean she could withstand that extra power output for very long. Fortunately, this was a matter where magic could make up the difference. Midnight, still growling in frustration, reluctantly helped Twilight with the spells, while Twilight was watchful for any forceful attempt of her alter ego to grab control.

In short order Twilight layered several spells across her body to boost her speed, strength, durability, and senses. Each spell looked like a magical circle she flew through, creating a whole line of them that she passed through, each one layering a fresh set of magical symbols over her body.

Without me being in full control this isn’t going to last long, Midnight warned, You can’t breath fast enough to oxygenate your blood like this. Do it for more than a minute, and this meat sack of a body will pass out.

It’ll be enough. It has to be, Twilight replied as she instantly changed course to the sensation of danger from above. She just barely avoided the arrows that flashed past her. Looking up she saw Sapphire Shores repositioning for another barrage, and Twilight altered course to streak straight towards her, raising her own bow.

The sky filled with a brilliant dance of intersecting arrows as both Twilight and Sapphire Shores unleashed upon one another. Like a dense shower of stars or meteorites colliding, the silver bolts from Sapphire’s bow collided with the flaming teal lances of Twilight’s, leaving incandescent trails of explosions trailing through the air.

Twilight’s arrows were still over-matched, so she was forced to bank and twist through Sapphire Shores’ oncoming arrows, while Sapphire herself was largely safe from needing to dodge anything. Fortunately the boosts Twilight had given herself allowed her to narrowly wind her way through the storm, and beside her she sensed Starswirl, who helped guard her further with swings of his Zanpaktou that shot out globs of a thick gray chemical that solidified instantly into thick sheets of resin that intercepted even more arrows.

Twilight was almost feeling confident she could get close to Sapphire Shores and get a hit in, but the moment she broke through the storm of arrows, no more than a few meters from her opponent, a shock of fear went through her system. In front of her was an array of ten ginto tubes that Sapphire Shores had placed upon what looked like a wide plane of glowing blue reishi.

It was similar to the reishi platforms Quincy made to stand on the air with, or move quickly with Hirenkyaku, only much larger. Twilight could sense the complex patterns of reishi in the platform as the ten ginto tubes bubbled up with alchemical water and spilled out.

Sapphire Shores smiled, her gold eyes twinkling as she tapped a finger to her head, “Don’t forget, I can predict your moves, little star.”

A light akin to the sun striking a field of diamonds flared up and Twilight thrust her artificial hand forward, calling upon what magic she could to shape a teal shield of force in front of her.

”Lichtwelle Loschen!” (Erasure Light Wave), Sapphire Shores invoked the alchemic spell, and Twilight felt her magical shield get hammered by waves of scything light. It was as if the light produced by the ginto tubes were living, harsh things of tangible death, smashing and cutting with a charring, bright heat. Her shield couldn’t hold against the assault and she cried out in pain as multiple beams of bending, searing light tore at her. With the magic and the Variable boosting her base abilities, her Blut Vene kept her from being torn apart, but she was left with multiple burning wounds on her body as she was thrown backwards.

She felt herself be caught by someone, and blinked as Starswirl shielded her from the remaining beams of light, his Zanpaktou deflecting most of what was left.

“If you don’t mind my saying, you seem quite at the end of your rope,” he said, “I feel I should apologize for pushing you so far, earlier, otherwise you’d be in much better shape to handle this.”

Despite the dire circumstances, Twilight cracked a small smile, stepping back from him but still staying near, “Even at full strength I’d be in a tight spot right now. But this was never about me beating her, just surviving long enough for the cavalry to arrive.”

At that moment, she felt a fresh breeze blow across the sky. She’d already sensed their approach, which was why she’d known that holding out was key, but more importantly she’d needed to keep Sapphire Shores’ attention completely focused on her. The Quintessence could predict an opponent’s actions through reading their reishi, and Twilight knew Sapphire would be doing that to her the entire time. But doing so meant Sapphire wouldn’t be looking anywhere else. Not until it was too late to do anything about it.

“I’m sorry it took me so long, Twilight. Things got hairier than we expected.”

“Quite. I’m in a terrible mood, all things considered, but I’m glad to see you’re still alive, Twilight Sparkle. Shall I take it the Soul Reaper with you is... an ally?”

Twilight nodded to the new arrivals who had appeared a dozen or so meters away, relieved to see them both but no less wary of Sapphire Shores. Even with reinforcements, this wasn’t over, but she could feel her chest lightening just a little to see her plan had worked out.

“Yes,” she said, “Captain Starswirl is not a hostile at the moment. However, I regret to report that Sternritter Q, Sapphire Shores, is the ringleader of the assassination plot on my life.”

“We know,” said Soarin, scowling as he held his bow at the ready and glared towards Sapphire Shores, who was in turn looking most displeased with the turn of events, “We found... well... you can see it for yourself.”

“Indeed,” Filthy Rich said, his voice sounding tired. Both he and Soarin bore the marks of battle, with bruises and a few bleeding wounds on their uniforms. Between the two Sternritter were two more Quincy, both of them managing to stand on the air like Soarin and Filthy Rich, but were bound tightly with their arms behind their backs clapped in thick silver chains.

One was a terrified looking Spoiled Rich, her eyes darting between her husband and everyone else like a caged animal.

The man next to her had a more calm and dignified look about him, but it was a look tainted by an air of defeat, desperation, and indignation. When he looked at Twilight and Sapphire Shores, the man actually shrugged at Sapphire and cracked a grin upon his dark blue features.

“Well Sapphire, looks like the plan has really gone belly up hasn’t it?” said Gladmane, almost conversationally, yet there was a manic edge to his voice, ”Heh, the great ‘Schutzstaffel’ can’t even kill one measly kid on her own, eh?”

Twilight felt a twinge of curiosity. Schutzstaffel? She wasn’t familiar with that term itself, although the German translation was roughly something akin to 'Protective Echelon', or perhaps be interpreted as something akin to 'Royal Guard'? She didn’t dare take her eyes off of Sapphire Shores, but she found herself asking Filthy Rich, "What is a Schutzstaffel?"

His response was given with weight as he, too, didn't take his eyes off Sapphire Shores, "They are His Majesty's handpicked elite guard, and without question the strongest of the Sternritter, with power second only to our King."

Twilight found herself swallowing a frightful lump in her throat, "Oh. I see. Well, it seems my plan worked, at least."

Filthy Rich’s face was a desert of emotion, his voice matching it as he said, “It worked perfectly. Once you departed, I found the map could track all Quincy reiatsu in the area. I found my... my wife’s reiatsu at our home, with him.”

Filthy Rich threw a murderous glare at Gladmane, who looked back with a devilish smirk, “Oh don’t glare at me, Filthy ol’ boy. Jealousy doesn’t become you. Just because mines bigger, and I could get Spoiled howling louder than you ever could-”

There was a meaty smack as Filthy Rich’s fist met Gladmane’s jaw, but the bound man barely flinched while Filthy Rich looked like he was debating whether to keep punching him. Twilight cut him off with a question.

“Why did you bring them here?”

“There was nowhere safe to stash them,” Soarin replied when Filthy Rich didn’t, “I had been chasing after you, by the way, when I felt Filthy and Gladmane’s reiatsu flare up at his mansion. I got there just in time to stop Spoiled Rich from fleeing the scene, and helped Filthy capture Gladmane. I didn’t think it’d be a good idea to leave them alone, even to come help you, so dragging them along was the only option. Glad we made it in time.”

“Yes...” Filthy said, running a hand through his thick, brown hair and turning from the smirking Glademane to look straight towards Sapphire Shores.

“Sapphire Shores,” he said, “I don’t know why you concocted this plot, but it will cost you dearly. I’ve already sent the call to our central network. The word would have reached the Silburn by now. His Majesty knows of my wife and Gladmane’s treachery, and soon enough he’ll know of yours. Surrender yourself, throw yourself on His Majesty’s mercy. Perhaps he’ll spare some of you traitors...” his eyes slid towards his wife, filled with such a trembling storm of emotions it was hard to tell what he was thinking, “...or perhaps he won’t.”

“P-please, husband, you have to understand I... I only did it for the family!” Spoiled pleaded, voice hoarse, makeup running as tears left ugly dark streaks down her face, “I was thinking only of us!”

“Don’t, Spoiled,” Filthy Rich said quietly, “Just... don’t. I can’t even look at you right now.”

Gladmane let out a dry, humorless laugh, “Aw, don’t blame her, Filthy. She really didn’t have a lot of options, you know? Sleeping with me was her only chance at giving you what you wanted.”

“What... do you mean by that?” Filthy Rich said, blinking.

“Man oh man, this is what always bugged me about you Rich my boy. Never fast up on the uptake. This is why I was always ahead of you in business. Look, didn’t you ever wonder why it took so long for you and Spoiled to have a child? Didn’t you ever think that maybe, just maybe, you were shooting blanks, old buddy?”

Gladmane’s words left Filthy flinching and his eyes turning towards Spoiled Rich, “What is he talking about, Spoiled?”

“Go ahead, Spoiled, tell him the truth. What do we got to lose at this point?” Gladmane said, jostling the woman next to him, who gave a terrified look between him and her husband.

“Gladmane, don’t do this,” Spoiled said, “H-he doesn’t need to know!”

“Know what?” Filthy Rich demanded.

Gladmane grinned broadly, “Don’t you think that Diamond Tiara’s got my chin? More of her mother’s eyes, but the chin’s definitely mine. Aw, she’s such a cute kid. You’ve done good raising her, Filthy. Real dad of the year. Too bad she’s not yours.”

“I’m sorry...” Spoiled Rich said, “I’m sorry, Filthy... you wanted a child so badly. You wanted to be a father, but... we tried so much, and nothing. So I... I asked him. I only meant it to be the one time! So we could be a family!”

“Yeah, ‘one time’,” Gladmane said, “That one time sure turned into a regular affair, didn’t it? Just couldn’t get enough of me, could you? And here I thought I was doing my old friend Filthy a solid by knocking you up, so he could be a dad, but I’m thinking you just liked the thrill.”

“Enough of this,” Twilight said, unable to listen to more. She’d been left in morbid shock herself, hearing these sordid details, but now she shook that malaise off and called upon Midnight’s help to cast a spell of silence upon the pair. For good measure she also added additional bonds of magic to them, with bindings of glowing purple chains wrapping around their legs and arms to further keep them from moving. “Filthy, Soarin, focus on Sapphire Shores right now. She’s the main threat.”

Filthy, still looking stunned by what he’d just heard, shook his head and steeled himself, walking to stand beside Twilight, while Soarin did the same on her other side.

“Yes... yes you’re right, Miss Sparkle. Sapphire Shores! Will you surrender, or not?”

“Oh? Are we back to focusing on me now? I thought you might enjoy playing out that pointless drama a little longer,” Sapphire Shores said, sneering at Gladmane and Spoiled Rich, “Worthless cretins couldn’t even serve as useful distractions.”

“Why did you bring them into your crazy plot?” asked Soarin, “I don’t get it at all.”

“Ideally they were to be the ones I’d pin the blame on once Twilight Sparkle was dead,” Sapphire Shores said, “Glademane thought that with the family’s brightest star snuffed out that he would be in a better position to improve his own family’s standings, especially if he married one of his legitimate children into the Rich bloodline.”

Twilight grimaced at the implications of that, “But if Diamond Tiara is also his daughter... ugh, first the Hooffields and McColts, now this? I’m going to have a serious talk with Sombra about expunging this particular aspect of Quincy culture.”

“Trust me, Twilight, most of us don’t like it either, and it really isn’t done anymore” Soarin said, then cast a disgusted look towards Gladmane, “At least I didn’t think it was.”

“That aside,” Filthy Rich said, “You haven’t given us an answer, Sapphire Shores. You now stand against three fellow Sternritter-”

“And myself,” said Starswirl, “Let’s not ignore the Soul Reaper in the room, shall we?”

Filthy Rich sighed, rolling his eyes, “Yes, and a Soul Reaper Captain-”

“Ah ah, Captain of the Twelfth Division, Starswirl. At least give me my proper title,” Starswirl said, smiling slightly.

“Stop enjoying this,” Twilight said, lightly elbowing the elderly Captain.

“My point,” Filthy said, “Is that you’re outnumbered, Sapphire. Give up, and His Majesty may be merciful.”

Sapphire Shores looked at them all arrayed against her, then lowered her head slightly, her brilliant electric blue hair covering her eyes for a moment. Her shoulders started to shake with sporadic tremors, and a sound like cracked chimes filled the air. A moment later Twilight realized it was Sapphire Shores laughing, the chiming noise rising to a feverish pitch as the woman threw her head back and laughed.

“Outnumbered? By a girl on her last legs, a defanged Captain, and two Sternritter who’s Schrifts pale in comparison to my own? I think you’ve miscalculated who should be considering surrender, Filthy Rich. Indeed, you and Soarin should stand aside and allow me to finish my work. I am His Majesty's prophetess, and I have seen that Twilight Sparkle shall be our King’s downfall if she is allowed to live. If you are true Quincy you will not stand in the way of what must be done!”

Filthy Rich and Soarin exchanged glances, Soarin looking more confused than anything else, while Filthy Rich’s middle aged features were difficult to read as his brown brow creased. “I’m aware of your predictive abilities, Sapphire, but to seek the life of one of our own, especially one of Night Light and Velvet’s children...? His Majesty clearly has not approved this action, otherwise you wouldn’t have done things this way. No, I won’t stand aside.”

“You’d take the side of this neonate child over me, one of His Majesty’s chosen? Are you mad?” Sapphire said, voice rising to a cracking pitch.

“Not mad,” Filthy Rich said, raising his hands in front of him, where blue strands of reishi formed into the shape of his ornate musket, “But Miss Sparkle helped save my daughter’s life. My daughter, no matter whose blood runs through her veins. I shall stand with Twilight against you or any other fool that seeks to take her life.”

“And I’d be a piss poor bodyguard if I let Twilight die on my watch,” said Soarin, cracking his knuckles and then forming his own bow, “His Majesty ordered me to guard her with my life if need be, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do!”

Twilight felt a twinge of a smile on her lips. She hadn’t been entirely certain if Filthy Rich and Soarin would give Sapphire Shores more credit as the senior Quincy, or indeed if either of them might have been in league with her, but Twilight had gone with her gut feeling that she could trust them when she’d formulated her plan to modify Filthy’s model of the city with her Schrift. She had to trust that once the assassins struck that Filthy and Soarin would both act on her behalf, and side with her when the time came.

It was good to see the plan pay off, although one last component remained. Twilight wasn’t surprised it was taking awhile, though. Filthy had only just sent word to the Quincy’s communications network. Even if they’d been on standby and waiting for the signal it’d take time to arrive, even with the arrangements Twilight had made with Adagio. It might not even be necessary. For all of Sapphire Shore’s confidence, well earned as it was, numbers did matter in a fight. Perhaps they could defeat her before-

Twilight let out an involuntary gasp as a fresh tidal wave of reiatsu rushed out of Sapphire Shores, encasing the woman’s entire body in an intense silver sheen of light that outlined her features in stark contrast. Her usually pulled back hair now billowed out almost like a living thing, strands fanning around her like the raised hackles of a wild animal. Just how much more spiritual power did this woman have? Twilight started to find it difficult just to breath, although she managed to keep her legs from shaking.

Anytime you want to stop screwing around and let me have control, just say the word, Midnight told her, both desperation and sarcasm filling her tone in equal portions. It’s not like it’s our lives on the line or anything!

Twilight wasn’t given the time to even decide upon a response to that before Sapphire Shores went on the attack, and everything became too chaotic to think much past the next second.

She targeted Filthy Rich first, likely because he was the most experienced out of those on Twilight’s side. Sapphire moved like a shooting star, leaving silver after images in her wake as she let loose a hellstorm of piercing bolts towards Filthy Rich. He whipped a trio of ginto tubes from the breast pocket of his uniform and flashed them towards the arrows, chanting an alchemic invocation.

“Geschichtete Stahlwand!” (Layered Steel Wall)

A trio of hexagons of dull gray metal took shape from the bursting ginto tubes, absorbing some of the arrows, but only for a moment as they became shredded by the intense barrage. However, that gained Filthy Rich a moment to dive down from the center of the barrage’s path and rapidly fire his musket. Twilight almost cringed at seeing an archaic musket essentially fire like a semi-automatic rifle, but she knew Filthy was forming the bullets from reishi inside the weapon as fast as he could pull the trigger.

Each bullet streaked out in a gold colored, sparking path, and moved at harsh, twisting angles to try and chase after Sapphire Shores.

Soarin matched Filthy Rich’s movements, going above instead of below, and his bow hummed with a vibration of building sound before he fired a large, blunt arrow of blue reishi that created a sonic vibration in the air so dense that it looked like a massive fist of sound surrounded his arrow.

With the smooth elegance of a practiced dancer, Sapphire spun, firing one arrow toward Soarin's while in the same motion drawing a sheet of bright liquid silver into the air and letting it fan out below her. Her arrow struck Soarin’s and seemed to instantly cancel out the sonic vibrations in it, deflecting the rest of the reishi arrow. Meanwhile Filthy Rich’s bullets were caught up in the fan of liquid silver, dissolving into the liquid as their base reishi was consumed.

“As if I’d be beaten by a lesser version of my colleague's Octave,” Sapphire chided Soarin, “Your Echo might have prevented a direct assassination earlier with it’s marvelous detection abilities, but it’s quite weak in direct combat, isn’t it?”

Twilight, still ignoring Midnight’s pleas in her head, pulled up more magic to infuse into an arrow that she fired towards Sapphire, utilizing the Variable to alter it’s trajectory so that the shield of liquid silver Sapphire had used to stop Filthy Rich’s bullets was in the wrong position to keep the arrow from getting close. Once it was, the spell Twilight had placed on the arrow caused it to burst into multiple chains not unlike the ones she’d cast around Gladmane and Spoiled Rich, which swiftly surrounded the woman.

“Her Schrift can’t affect my magic! Hit her now!” Twilight shouted.

Captain Starswirl, Soarin, and Filthy Rich all complied, working in a surprisingly effective tandem for those who were technically sworn enemies. Starswirl came at Sapphire’s left side, sweeping his iron warfan out and ejecting a combination of explosive gasses. Filthy Rich complemented this move by boxing Sapphire in on the right side, firing off several bullets that were overcharged with reishi so that when he used his Schrift, the Mason, to expand the bullets into cannonballs, they exploded with waves of deadly shrapnel.

Finally Soarin stayed above Sapphire, thrusting out his hand in lieu of his bow and utilizing his own Schrift. The Octave and Echo were very similar in most respects, by the primary difference was that while both affected sound, the Octave generated sound to then control as needed, while the Echo sensed and affected all existing sound around it’s user who could also then increase the reverberation of that sound to any degree they wanted. As a result, Soarin usually had to make his own noise to affect, but then amp up, so when he let out a fierce warcry, the Echo amplified it into a echoing blast that hammered at Sapphire from above.

Yet despite all of the attacks coming at her and the chains seeking to enclose her, Sapphire Shores’ expression was one of a deadly fanatic, iced with a razor smile. Her hand moved in a blur beyond sight, another Seele Schneider blazing to life in her hand. The blue reishi blade surrounded her in a gale of slicing arcs that severed Twilight’s chains in a single instant. In another instant that same Seele Schneider was loading in her bow, where the blue blade turned into blinding silver and was fired towards Filthy Rich. The arrow moved with such speed and power that the simple air waves of it’s passage reversed the direction of Filthy Rich’s own shrapnel cannon balls. She then flew up, straight through Soarin’s sonic blast, while evading the explosion of the gases Starswirl had sent towards her. She weathered the sonic attack, tanking it with pure Blut Vene durability, and before Soarin could blink she was in his face, driving a fist into his sternum and sending him catapulting backwards.

Meanwhile Filthy Rich threw everything he had into dodging the Seele Schneider fired his way, but even though he just barely dodged it, he still took some wounds from his own blown back shrapnel.

Twilight was overwhelmed by how easily Sapphire Shores seemed to be able to counter their attacks, but she refused to let her mind freeze up and thought furiously to work out a way to turn the tables while she fired a Licht Regen barrage at Sapphire, if only to distract her for a moment.

Filthy Rich’s Mason is at a disadvantage up here in the air. He needs physical material or lots of ambient reishi to work with to build things. Soarin’s Echo is too weak on the attack to be effective. Starswirl can’t catch her with his chemicals easily, but we know liquid is more effective than gases.

Ideally it’d be better to take the fight back to ground level, where Filthy Rich could make better use of his Schrift. Soarin needed to pull back, assuming he was still conscious after the hit he’d just taken. Maybe if Twilight could coordinate with Filthy and Starswirl, they could use a combination of the Mason and Starwirl’s chemicals to trap Sapphire?

But even as the plan was trying to take shape, Sapphire Shores disrupted Twilight’s thinking, descending to Twilight’s height in a sliver of an instant. Only Twilight having maintained the spells boosting her base abilities allowed her to dodge what would have been a neck breaking kick that still broke the air with a sonic boom that Sapphire Shores aimed at Twilight’s head. Twilight bent to the side, feeling the air pressure for Sapphire’s kick on her face, and she countered with a point blank arrow boosted with magic and her Schrift, lacing another spell upon herself to grant her a degree of heat resistance as the arrow exploded almost instantly between her and Sapphire.

The blast of the arrows explosion pushed her back, but thankfully didn’t do much damage with the spells coating her, but Sapphire wasn’t affected nearly as much as Twilight had hoped as the woman sent snaking tendrils of silver reishi towards Twilight like the grasping tentacles of some horror-movie alien.

Fortunately a blast of cryogenic chemical liquids descended from above as Starswirl swung his Zanpaktou and unleashed a shower of chemicals that’d put liquid nitrogen to shame in their ability to flash freeze. As he’d already learned that liquids took Sapphire more time to affect with her Quintessence, it worked to freeze her own reishi tendrils in mid-air and bought Twilight time to fly back and gain distance.

Soarin appeared next to her, blood trickling from his mouth as he clutched his stomach with one hand.

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked.

“Banged up, but still good to fight,” he replied.

“We need to take this to the ground,” Twilight said, “Filthy Rich can use his Schrift better there. Does yours have any extra tricks you’re holding out on?”

“Not without Vollstandig. The Echo doesn’t hit hard like the Octave does. It's more for scouting and infiltration, but I do have one thing I can do that might mess with her and give you guys an opening. I just can’t do it without transforming.”

Filthy Rich, still sporting a few shards of shrapnel, had joined Starswirl in pressing the attack on Sapphire Shores, his musket firing up a storm of shells at her while Starswirl kept sending out waves of his freezing chemicals at her. This was forcing Sapphire to focus on defense for a moment while firing back with streaking arrows of her own. This gave Twilight the time to have her exchange with Soarin and consider a plan.

Just as she was starting to form an idea, however, Sapphire Shores broke past Filthy Rich and Starswirl with a burst of speed. Twilight and Soarin both saw it coming and fired off twin LIcht Regens towards the oncoming Sapphire, but she immediately dodged the thick swarms of reishi arrows by turning at a right angle and going straight up, then she swept both her arms out while her bow of silver light and semi-solid liquid hovered in front of her.

“None of you are escaping. It’s time I sealed your fate, Twilight Sparkle.”

Her dress billowed out, the skirt of it flaring upwards, and Twilight now saw where Sapphire Shores had been keeping all of those Seele Schneiders. The under-folds of her dress were covered in belts of the reishi blades, and with speed that defied comprehension Sapphire Shores grasped eight of them and threw them out at different points in a circle around the battlefield. Each Seele Schneider bubbled with silvery liquid, not unlike Sapphire’s bow, as she controlled and altered the nature of the reishi inside them. Raising both hands in a gesture like prayer, Sapphire’s body gleamed white as she intoned, “Unvollkommener Heiliger Kafig!” (Imperfect Holy Cage)

“Oh crap...” Soarin breathed as Twilight saw a blinding light flare from the eight Seele Schneider blades.

Within mere seconds a distortion filled the air and an enclosing wall of mirror-like silver grew around them. Before Twilight knew it, they were all trapped with Sapphire within a prison of shining silver. The interior was lit by strange reflections of eerie white light, and the walls of the prison were distorted in such a manner as to leave it impossible to tell distances. In fact, Twilight sensed a distinct change in the space around them, as if the area within the sphere was somehow larger than what it had been before.

“This... this is like what Sombra did outside Las Noches,” Twilight said, and Sapphire Shores chuckled darkly.

“It is. Oh, I can’t replicate His Majesty's divine techniques, not in full, and certainly not without his Absolute. But I have managed to craft a worthy imitation with the Quintessence's assistance. Welcome to your tomb, Twilight Sparkle...”

Sapphire Shores raised her right hand and with her left, removed the white glove she wore there, exposing the black glove beneath and the gleaming Quincy cross upon it.

Seeing this, Filthy Rich gasped, “You’d use Vollstandig? Sapphire Shores, it’s different for you than it is for the rest of us. For a Schutzstaffel, the cost of Vollstandig...”

“Is our humanity, yes. A price I am willing to pay, for the sake of His Majesty. No...” Sapphire Shores eyes bored into Twilight Sparkles with a fresh fury, nearly mad as her pupils dilated, “If you can call him Sombra, so shall I. For my King, Sombra, I will end you, Twilight Sparkle.”

“No, you won’t.”

The words, spoken in a richly feminine voice that Twilight recognized instantly, was followed by a shower of soft blue reishi arrows with pointed tips shaped like hearts. Sapphire Shores was interrupted from activating her Vollstandig by having to erect a barrier of her silvery liquid reishi from her bow to intercept the barrage.

“What!? How are you here!?” Sapphire shouted, “You’re supposed to still be in Hueco Mundo!”

“C...Cadence!” Twilight cried, relieved beyond measure as she saw her friend and soon to be sister-in-law descend from above where she had just moments ago barely managed to fly through the last closing hole in the imprisoning barrier. Cadence was wearing her usual uniform, and her arm mounted crossbow was formed and still blazing with fresh arrows to fire at Sapphire, although she sparked a brief warm smile and wink to Twilight.

“I’m glad I made it in time. I’ll have to thank your ‘friend’ for the competent timing of her vassals. Their ‘portal’ brought me quite close to where I needed to be, as soon as we got the message.”

“Ah, Cadence, interesting to see you here,” Filthy Rich said, not really hiding his confusion, “Just how did you arrive so quickly? I only sent the message a short time ago.”

“An explanation for later, Filthy Rich,” Cadence said, eyes fixing upon Sapphire Shores, who’s reiatsu was flaring up behind the shield of her silvery reishi, “Let’s deal with this first, shall we?”

“Deal with this?” Sapphires Shores’ voice echoed like a church bell in the otherworldly interior of the barrier, “Yes, let us see you try.”

“Stop her! She’s going to-” Soarin started to shout, but there was little that could be done.

The entire space was engulfed in a flare of purest white as one of the strongest of the Quincy, just short of Sombra himself, activated her Vollstandig.

Episode 120: Too Much Pink Energy

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Episode 120: Too Much Pink Energy

Thirty seconds ago Grogar had been in such a wonderful mood. His plans had been going along so swimmingly! He’d arrived to “help” Adagio and Gilda on their little mission, which he knew full well Adagio was using as a means of rescuing Torch’s errant offspring rather than properly scouting Canterlot City as Tirek intended. It’d be enjoyable to see Adagio fume over his presence, and keep feeding the fire of her desire for vengeance upon him. Not because he felt any specific pleasure in tormenting the former siren, but because he knew a large portion of her power was derived from her ambitions, one of which was to get back at him for his part in her becoming a Hollow in the first place. Foolish, really. He’d elevated her to an existence more worthy than her previous drudgery, and continued to be interested in her evolution.

Not as much as his own evolution, mind you, but he could appreciate the growth of one of his experiments even after she’d ceased being useful.

Then when all these silly battles had enused, all he’d needed to do was play his part and wait things out. Celestia, of course, had thrown a slight wrench into affairs, but he’d planned for that and that plan had gone smoothly, allowing him to remove her temporarily from play so he would be free to act. And, as he’d hoped, Adagio had played Lament as her trump card, offering up the perfect opportunity that Grogar had desired. If Torch had been the trump card rather than Lament, well, Grogar might have used the opportunity in a different manner, but Lament was by far the greater prize due to the Seed that Experiment 528 had planted all those years ago.

Things really couldn’t have gone better. Lament even ended up exhausting himself and his former wife in battle, making harvesting the Seed all the easier. With the Seed in his grasp, all Grogar had to do was return to his lab with it and consume it’s power at his leisure...

Except.

“Aww, why you want to kill us?” the annoying pink hammer said, with it’s impossibly adorable cartoon eyes making puppy face at him. Grogar refused to acknowledge that this was anything other than bald faced idiocy in front of him, and whatever part of his brain found this adorable he took into a back corner of mind and repeatedly stabbed to death.

“Probably because he’s a crotchety old bastard who doesn’t have any friends,” said the one holding the hammer, the one Grogar recalled was a manifestation of the pink girl’s Fullbring. A sort of spiritual clone. Last time they fought the clone could stretch it’s limbs and make remarkably sharp and large mouths on her body to fight with. The hammer was a relatively new thing to him, but not outside his projected data on these Fullbringers. He hadn’t ceased keeping some tabs on them, after their encounter in Hueco Mundo. However he didn’t know what the actual abilities of the hammer form were.

Not that it mattered. Her reiatsu was insignificant compared to his own. Well, not entirely insignificant, as he did estimate her as being stronger than Lieutenant-class Soul Reapers, but not quite on par with Captain-class. He had a comfortable lead on her, however, and destroying her should be a simple affair. The fact that she’d appeared next to him undetected was merely a... fluke.

“My social status is of no concern to you,” he said with his ire coming out in an lashing tone as he brought forth his own spiritual pressure to press down upon her, “And as much as I’d still like to take one of you children as samples to study the effects magic has had upon your growth, I can satisfy that desire later. Right now you’ve earned a painful death. I might still learn something from your dissected corpse, at least.”

“Yikes, Mena, looks like we’ve got a category-five grump on our hands! He’s needs an immediate fun injection, stat!”

“Violence is fun, so I’m thinking we start there," Pinkamena replied with a tone slick with bloodlust.

“Pinkie, be careful!” shouted Applejack, “Don’t fergit this is the fella that whooped us back n’ Hueco Mundo! Ya can’t take him alone!”

“Relaaaaaax, Applejack, I totally have a plan!” Pinkie Pie chirped, and Pinkamena licked her lips.

“She’s lying. There’s no plan. Only violence.”

“I do too totally have a plan, and it’s a good one, too!”

“Is your friend insane?” Fenice asked Applejack, having recovered enough from the blow Grogar had given her that she could limp over and help Applejack get their father to his feet. Hard Nail was still dazed from the removal of the Seed, barely able to raise his head, let alone walk. Even with her own injury, Fenice had little trouble slipping Hard Nail’s arm around her shoulder to hold him up.

“...Kinda?” Applejack responded as honestly as she could. Pinkie Pie, spotting Fenice, twisted her hammer form around and waved back and forth.

“Oh, is that Sunset Shimmer!? Hi Sunset Shimmer! What are you doing over here? I thought you jumped down a hole?”

Fenice briefly glanced in annoyance at Pinkie Pie, but didn’t answer and instead looked back at Applejack, “I’m taking father somewhere safe.”

“Good idea,” the farmgirl replied, while Hard Nail gave his daughters a wane look.

“I should be able to help-” Hard Nail began weakly, but Fenice cut him off.

“Hush, father, you’ve done enough. I need to get you away from here now.”

Rolling her eyes at the scene, Pinkamena hefted Pinkie Pie’s hammer form around and faced Grogar.

“Bored now, time to kill,” she said, her arms stretching out as she spun like a top, hurling the Pinkie Hammer at Grogar like a flying pink boomerang.

“WEEEEEEEE!” Pinkie cried with a giggle, and as Grogar deflected her hammer form with his bladed staff, she went careening behind him, the air whistling from her rapid spinning.

Pinkamena had rushed in right behind Pinkie Pie, mouths springing up in salivating multitudes upon her arms and legs. Her hands split into giant mouths, their sharp teeth dripping drool as Pinkamena slashed them at Grogar. He had little trouble evading, shooting upwards with Sonido as he smirked. One of the cylinders on his back opened, exposing a stream of purple gas.

“I will never understand idiots who don’t have basic survival instinct,” he spat as he fired a wide stream of poisonous, corrosive filth at Pinkamena. She stretched out her right hand, stabbing it into the ground to yank herself out of the way like it was a grappling hook. Even then some of the disease ridden sludge stolen from Smooze got on Pinkamena’s leg, instantly burning into her skin and making her feel as if her body was lit up with fever.

She nearly threw up even from that minor contact, losing her grip on the ground and instead tucking into a roll that she used to land on her feet. Grogar continued to smirk at her, at least until the Pink Hammer, which had vanished from his spiritual senses, smacked him in the back of the head on it’s boomerang rebound.

“Guh! What!? Why didn’t I hear that coming!? Even if you can vanish from my spiritual senses, I should have heard the air currents!”

Pinkamena caught the hammer, while Pinkie Pie chuckled, “Maybe you’re too uptight? If you loosen up and learn to laugh a little you’d probably see all sorts of things you normally wouldn’t.”

“I asked why I didn’t hear you, not why I didn’t see you- ARGH! Nevermind, just die already.”

Another metal cylinder sprouting from his back moved, this time sinking into his body with a pressurized hiss while sparking with tiny arcs of energy. Grogar had been holding the Seed with his left hand, but now put it in the crook of his right arm as his left arm went through a throbbing shift in shape. Flesh tore and reformed, metal tubes flying out and coiling together around a growing metal frame, until Grogar’s left arm transformed into a large eight barreled rotary cannon.

“You know, I’d joke about overcompensation,” said Pinkie Pie, “But even I have more class than that.”

The cannon spun into a blur and with a sound like sheet metal being ripped through by a circular saw, it started spitting a high density storm of shard-like spines. This power had been stolen from an Arrancar he’d captured for experimentation not long after becoming an Espada himself, and he felt a certain satisfaction thinking he’d tear this insolent child apart with an ability he’d deemed unworthy to use on Celestia.

Pinkamena jumped back from the barrage of spines, her skin starting to gain a sheen of sweat from the fever burning through her. Her mouth, all of her mouths felt dry, and her blood felt scalding.

“You okay Mena?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Just feeling like crap, but my body doesn’t give out easy like yours does- the crap!?”

Her exclamation came as the spines she thought she’d just dodged ended up turning in midair and chased after her like homing missiles. Pinkamena threw all she could into dodging left and right, but the spines after her doggedly, drawing closer by the second while Grogar laughed.

“You won’t escape them so easily. While a weak ability I rarely use, these spines are relentless and handy for pinning down weaker specimens like you.”

His satisfaction was short-lived, however, as a second later Pinkamena swung the Pinkie Hammer and in its wake a perfectly normal, ordinary looking household door appeared in thin air. Grogar stood stupefied as Pinkamena swung open the door and hopped inside, the swarm of homing spines following her through it. Yet the door opened into nothing, far as Grogar could tell. Where in the world had the girl gone? Was that some kind of portal?

A moment later another door appeared, and Pinkamena came flying out of it, slamming the door shut behind her. A few spines were caught in her hair, and a number more sudden poked out of the door, outlining the girl in such a cartoonish fashion that Grogar couldn’t imagine it happened by accident. He even mentally tried to tally the odds the spines would impact the door in such a pattern and decided that some kind of chance warping mechanic was at work.

“Well, that was annoying,” Pinkamena said, plucking spines out of her hair and using mouths along her arm to eat them, “And I feel barfy.”

“You need a yuck bag?” Pinkie Pie asked, and Pinkamena just patted the hammer.

“Nah, I’m good. Not even being sick will make me lose my appetite,” Pinkamena replied, walking away from the door as it faded into nothingness.

Grogar landed back on the ground, his brain working overtime to assess the situation. Not far away a battle still played out between Sweet Cider and Experiment 528. He could follow their movements easily enough. His creation was a whirling windstorm of slashing pain, it’s arms and legs lashing at Sweet Cider relentlessly. Grogar frowned at how little damage was actually being done to her, however. It seemed that, even weakened and wounded, the woman with the title “Kenpachi” was not to be underestimated. Experiment 528 was pressing her hard, keeping her from coming against Grogar, but he could tell her parries were getting stronger and surer with every passing second. He calculated that his pet would only keep her busy for another five or so minutes before being destroyed.

As for the rest of the fodder, he could see Lament being taken away by Fenice, the pair having already gotten nearly to the far side of the valley. Applejack was casting furtive looks between the two different fights occurring, as if unsure whether to go help Pinkie or her mother.

Grogar didn’t care at the moment if Applejack decided to attack him, but with her Fullbring completed she might prove more distracting than he’d prefer, especially while dealing with Pinkie Pie’s unusual and quite irritating power.

What is it that allows her to do things she shouldn’t be able to do? My earlier data only confirms her clone’s stretching and mouth forming abilities. This... this flagrant disregard for the rules of reality is nothing at all like what she could do before.

He was more annoyed and intrigued than actually worried. Regardless of the nature of her power, Pinkie Pie’s ability was still restricted by her reiatsu. That was an ironclad rule of this world that even rulebreakers like her had to adhere to. Grogar might have desired to push the boundaries of the rules and restrictions placed upon Hollows through the process of evolution, but he still respected those rules, and it was a particular peeve of his to run into someone who disregarded reality quite so flagrantly as this girl did. He owed to science to crush her utterly.

Grogar raised the rotary cannon of his left arm and the weapon pulsated, meaty crunching noises following metallic grinding sounds as the arm began to reshape itself. The same cylinder on his back that had sunk into his flesh hissed upwards with a rush of steam as the stolen power within switched gears. Each of the four cylinders on Grogar’s back contained multiple powers stolen from any Adjuchas-class or higher grade Hollow that Grogar had analyzed and replicated, but there was limited ‘storage’ space depending on the strength of the replicated powers. The cylinder that held the replica of Torch’s flames, for example, was almost entirely used up on that power. However the cylinder that had produced the homing spines had space for many others. It was something of his ‘disposal’ cylinder where he stored weaker powers that he still deemed useful. With nothing more than a thought he switched which power the cylinder spread through his body, choosing one he felt would be more appropriate for dealing with this unpredictable child.

Metallic nodes, like metal discs, grew upon his left palm and the back of his hand. They hummed with energy as he aimed his hand at Pinkamena and made a grasping gesture. Her body was suddenly enclosed in an invisible pressure; a telekinetic hand mimicking Grogar’s gesture that gripped her tightly and bound her arms, including the Pinkie Hammer, at her sides.

“Oh, getting handsy aren’t we?” Pinkamena said, licking her lips and starring with fresh hunger at Grogar, “Too scared to get close? I don’t blame you.”

“Hardly scared,” Grogar said, “Honestly this power is useless against anyone with a decent level of strength. Even Applejack would probably have the muscle to break this grip, but I can tell that physical power is not one of your traits. Instead you seem to be able to use a low form of cunning to twist reality to your advantage. But I doubt you’ll be able to do that while unable to move, and I erase you from this world with overwhelming force.”

He aimed his bladed staff at her then, and a green sphere of power took shape as he charged up a Cero. He didn’t even need something as extravagant as a Gran Rey Cero for this. A direct hit from a normal Cero he estimated to be more than enough to annihilate this troublesome pink menace.

So why did he feel uneasy as he saw Pinkamena was just grinning at him with an inhumanly wide smile filled with far too many sharp teeth?

“Come on and give me what you got, you disgusting piece of rotten meat. I’ll still devour it, and then you,” Pinkamena said past a salivating tongue that ran itself over her many teeth. Her body was immobile, but she could still morph her body, and so teeth started to form along a slit down the very front of her chest, as if her whole body was turning into a gigantic mouth.

Grimacing in pure agitation, Grogar’s Cero fired in a blast of pale green destruction. As rushed towards Pinkamena, the immobile girl did something Grogar couldn’t have anticipated. Her right arm opened into a gaping mouth, unable to move, but able to let the Pinkie Hammer fall into the mouth, widening enough to swallow even the hammer’s massive head. Grogar’s telekinetic grip actually helped the hammer move into the mouth due to it’s pressing force. Then the mouth on Pinkamena’s chest opened. It was difficult due to the crushing force on her, but Pinkamena concentrated all of her focus on forcing her chest mouth open, and spitting out the Pinkie Hammer directly in front of her. Outside of the telekinetic grip, the hammer fell and smacked into the ground. Pinkie Pie’s power triggered, literally transforming the ground into a springboard that launched both Pinkamena and the Pinkie Hammer up and out of the telekinetic field, and the path of the Cero.

Grogar was left boggling at the impossible cartoon physics as Pinkamena grabbed the Pinkie Hammer in mid-flight and came slamming it down towards him. He nearly forgot to dodge, what he was seeing was that logically improbable. At the last moment he did slip aside of the attack, more on reflex than conscious thought, but the Pinkie Hammer hit the ground next to him and resulted in even more bizarre violations of physics as the impact instantly transformed the ground into a field of banana peels that one of Grogar’s cloven feet coincidentally happened to land right atop of. And powerful Espada or not, the comedic power of a banana peel was a classic.

He ended up slipping backwards almost uncontrollably, with only his swift Arrancar reflexes allowing him to turn the fall into a controlled hand-stand that he used to push himself into a flip that landed him on his feet. Pinkamena was already attacking him directly now, her left arm morphing into a series of drool dripping mouth tentacles that wrapped around the arm he was using to hold his Zanpaktou. The teeth tried to bite into his flesh, but the metal and Hierro hardened skin couldn’t be bitten through even by Pinkamena’s unnaturally sharp teeth.

“Useless,” he said, “All your little tricks are meaningless if you lack the power to even harm me. Whereas I-”

He rushed forward, slashing down hard with the very arm Pinkamena’s tentacles were wrapped around. His blade staff carved a bloody swath down her torso, causing blood to spurt in a red arc across the banana peel strewn ground.

“-can hurt you easily.”

“Heh, maybe so,” Pinkamena said past blood bursting from her mouth, but her eyes remained twinkling as she grinned, “But it isn’t me you ought to be worried about.”

The grip of her tentacles tightened around Grogar’s arm, and her chest expanded into an even larger mouth to snap around his torso. This still didn’t inflict any damage on his body, but it did root him in place for a moment while Pinkamena used her right arm, also transformed into a series of fleshy pink tendrils, to lift the Pinkie Hammer high and bring it down hard straight at Grogar’s head.

“How about we ring your bell a bit, Groggy?”

He thrust out his left hand, still modified to use the telekinetic power, and projected that telekinesis to halt the hammer before impact. Yet Pinkie Pie’s power didn’t need a direct impact to trigger, just the right circumstances. So when a giant bronze bell appeared out of thin air for the Pinkie Hammer to strike, it once more caught Grogar off guard as the bell rung with a massive reverberation that rattled even his senses for a moment.

Pinkamena used that instant to try and snatch the Seed from where Grogar was holding it in the crook of his right arm. Sensing her movements, and nowhere near as disoriented by the bell as Pinkie Pie probably had hoped, Grogar opened the cylinder on his back containing the flames stolen from Torch and unleashed a blast of that searing heat from the cylinder down at Pinkamena. Her tentacle arms burned to ash almost instantly, and she was forced to let go of Grogar with her chest mouths and back away rapidly from the fires that would have consumed her otherwise.

“Ugh! I don’t like my meals that spicy,” she grumbled while pulling the Pinkie Hammer back to her.

“Mena, your arms!”

Pinkamena looked at the burned stumps of her left arm tendrils and shrugged, “They’ll grow back. Almost had that tasty looking piece of candy, though.”

Grogar had moved the Seed to hold it in the telekinetic grip of his left hand, his face twitching with a dire lack of amusement. “You’ll have nothing, insufferable brat. I don’t care how illogical your power is. I will erase it along with you!”

The cylinder that blazed with Torch’s flames flared hot, the metal starting to become a searing bright orange as it heated up. Crimson flames fanned out from the cylinder in a sweeping inferno. While not on par with the likes of Celestia’s Zanpaktou, or even Torch’s original fire breath, the flames still burned hotter than any natural fire and would turn Pinkamena to ash if they were allowed to hit. The widespread of the flames combined with their power would rationally have made an ideal attack for destroying an opponent as relatively weak as Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie were.

Rationally, Grogar had made a completely logical choice in his method of attack.

It was just that Pinkie Pie was a fundamentally illogical opponent.

The flames swept towards Pinkamena, and right before they hit her Pinkie Pie giggled happily, “Oooh, Groggy wants to play ‘The Floor is Lava! I love this game! Get hopping, Mena and don’t touch the ground!”

Pinkamena smirked and inverted her grip on the Pinkie Hammer, and stood on the bottom of the hammer’s head with her hand controlling the handle as she started to hop with it like the hammer was a giant pogo-stick. Grogar was left with a baffled look on his face as Pinkamena hopped over his flames, the Pinkie Hammer somehow gaining a rubber-like quality as it bounced on the air and took Pinkamena safely over the tide of fire. Pinkie Pie’s voice shouted down to Grogar, “Hey, the Floor is Lava, remember!? You’d better get off it!”

“Get off the floor? You fool, there’s no lava, it’s just fire...” Grogar’s nose twitched as he smelled something like cooking meat, then realized his hooved feet felt suddenly rather hot. Looking down with wide, surprised eyes, he saw the ground had suddenly become a sheet of lava! With a shocked shout he leapt upward, patting at his feet which had caught fire momentarily due to the extreme heat that even his Heirro wasn’t completely preferred for. The brief contact with the lava hadn’t done much damage, but it’d certainly surprised him, and further scrambled his thinking as he tried to figure out how this damnable girl had conjured the lava in the first place!

“I’m getting extremely tired of the way you keep breaking the laws of physics,” he grumbled as Pinkamena bounced towards him. Her arm snapped out like a stretching rubber band, smacking the Pinkie Hammer at him repeatedly.

Not desiring any more bizarre manifestations, Grogar elected to use Sonido to swiftly dodge these strikes rather than risk blocking any of them. Even if this girl lacked the power to properly damage him, her ability was annoying enough that it was best to limit her opportunities to create her ridiculous ‘gags’. It was clear to him by now that somehow her power was humor based, but he couldn’t fathom the rules or limits to how or why this power functioned.

Perhaps I should use a Gran Rey Cero? It seems so undignified to use that much power to destroy someone this weak, but it’s clear she already understand she’s can’t defeat me. Her real objective is the Seed.

He still held the Seed in his telekinetic grip with his left hand. The Seed was clearly what Pinkie Pie and her clone were actually targeting. Grogar wasn’t overly concerned, however. As long as he kept his wits about him, there was no real way for Pinkamena to grab the Seed away.

That said...

A burst of reiatsu drew his attention to Applejack. The girl had apparently finally reached a decision on what to do, several jets of energy shooting from her armor to lift her into the air.

“Pinkie Pie!” Applejack shouted, “Ya got this fer a sec!?”

“Totally!” Pinkie Pie called back, the cartoonish eyes on her hammer form winking at Applejack, “Might even have it for two secs!”

“Then I’m countin’ on ya, sugarcube! Ya just hold on!” Applejack said, and to Grogar’s surprise, the young farmgirl turned around and blasted away at high speed with her rocket-like jets. He’d expected her to attack him, but instead she was blasting off towards her mother. Grogar found himself scowling. Applejack was planning to help Sweet Cider defeat Experiment 528! He’d counted on 528 keeping Sweet Cider busy for longer, but if Applejack joined forces with her mother, then 528 would be overwhelmed that much faster. Then all three of them could focus their attention on him.

While he was still confident that he could deal with the two children and an exhausted Tenth Division Captain, it would make matters drag out longer than he’d prefer.

Well, no matter, he just had to destroy Pinkie Pie before that happened.

“I think I’ll end this now, then,” he said to himself and leveled his bladed staff at Pinkamena. If he slashed her remaining limbs off, she couldn’t dodge, and he’d just destroy her utterly with a point blank Cero. That seemed the simplest way to handle this. He swiftly closed the distance on her, lashing out with his Zanpaktou. He took a chunk out of Pinkamena’s leg, the girl contorting her body like putty to avoid losing the leg entirely but still shedding a spray of blood from the deep wound.

“I understand now that your power works off of humor, or at least what counts for humor among humans,” he drooled, vanishing with Sonido to appear on Pinkamena’s other side and slashing once more to try and remove her other leg. She was able to twist away from the blow but not without a deep laceration on her tight. Piece by piece, Grogar intended to dismember this foolish girl. “Personally I find nothing to laugh at in your childish gags. But I imagine I’ll get some amusement from examining your remains once you’re properly pinned to a table in my lab.”

“Ugh, you’re such a grumpy pants that it’s practically a crime!” Pinkie Pie said while Pinkamena drew the hammer above her head and slammed it down towards Grogar, “In fact I say it is a crime! A crime against comedy!”

Becoming more contemptuous of this ridiculous human by the second, Grogar didn’t even wish to provide the satisfaction of dodging the hammer, as that suggested he was somehow afraid of her power. He was somewhat embarrassed he’d bothered dodging at all earlier. It wasn’t as if she had the power to do any damage to him. At best her gag-powers had only served to be obnoxious while buying her a few extra moments of life.

He blocked her hammer with a one handed parry of his blade staff, the bell upon the staff giving an ominous ring as the hook-blade connected with the overly colorful Pinkie Hammer. However, while the physical blow was halted with ease, Grogar sensed a spike in Pinkie Pie’s reiatsu, almost like the unleashing of tension from a rubber band that had been stretched out and now was snapping. He felt a sense of vertigo for a moment, and his vision blurred for just a second before it cleared.

Abruptly he found himself rather confusedly standing in front of some manner of wooden podium.

“Huh?” he blinked. He appeared to still be in the same location, only for some reason there were now wooden stands to his left and right, with two smaller podiums in front of them not unlike the one he was standing in front of. Straight across from him was a much taller stand with a symbol on it that looked strangely like the “scales of justice”, albeit if drawn on with pink crayon.

“Grogar Grumpington, the evidence against you is indisputable! You were clearly at the scene of the crime!” Pinkie Pie declared, no longer in hammer-form but in all her pink glory, poofy hair bouncing as she thrust an accusatory finger at Grogar from the podium on the left. She was wearing, oddly enough, a sharp blue lawyer suit for some reason. There was also a very odd bit of music that seemed to be coming from nowhere. Music that grated upon his ears almost instantly.

“This is idiotic. I’m not going to engage you in your idiocy,” he said, and then canted his head as he listened to the strange music, “And is this acapella!? I hate acapella! As if I didn’t have enough reasons to kill you!”

However, he found that as he tried to move, an invisible force not unlike the telekinetic power he’d recently used was rooting him in place.

What? Ridiculous. She doesn't have the strength to bind me. It’d take a Captain-class Soul Reaper utilizing high level Kido to accomplish this, he thought in ire-filled consternation, wondering if he’d somehow misread Pinkie Pie’s reiatsu levels. But no, she didn’t feel any stronger than before. This seemed more a unique attribute of her Fullbring, one that generated specific rules and limitations based on whatever joke it was in the process of making. Apparently whether the target of the power found any of this funny or not wasn’t relevant.

As Grogar stewed on this, a shout came from his right, stemming from Pinkamena who was wearing a ludicrous looking maroon suit with a white cravat, “HOLD IT! We might as well let the obviously guilty geezer make his testimony. What do you say, Judge?”

Judge? Grogar saw no judge! Wait, what was that sitting on the tallest podium across from his? Was that a... Parrot? A parrot with a fake beard on!?

“Squawk! Guilty! Guilty! Squawk!” said the parrot.

“Yeash Judge, at least wait until I get to say ‘Objection’ a few times, will ya!?” said Pinkie Pie, slamming her hands on her podium, “I’ve got this whole box full of evidence to throw at Groggy, all of which I incidentally collected during my super legal investigation, and I’m sure this metal detector, scrap of newspaper, and a piece of partially chewed gum will all play crucial roles in proving the witness committed the crime.”

“What crime am I even being accused of!?’ Grogar groused, trying to lift his arms so he could just start eradicating everything around him with Ceros, while his rational mind was getting caught up in Pinkie Pie’s pace, too overwhelmed for him to keep quiet, “There’s no legal system in the human world that allows lawyers to do police investigations! Or parrots to be judges for that matter!”

“Squawk, union job, squawk!” said the parrot, and Grogar glared at it.

“Shut up!”

“Keep that up and you’ll be held in contempt of court,” said Pinkamena, adopting a strangely smug smile as she raised a finger and waggled it at him, “Not that I don’t already hold you in contempt, but keep talking out of turn and you’ll receive a penalty. A penalty means i get to take a bite out of you!”

“Pfft, your teeth are useless anyway, but who’s even the defense attorney in this farce!? The defense and prosecution shouldn’t be working together to attack the client!”

“Man, Groggy, you’ve never played an Ace Attorney game, have you?” Pinkie Pie said, “That’s kinda sad. Don’t they have video games in Hueco Mundo.”

“I’m honestly shocked beyond belief you remember how to pronounce Hueco Mundo,” he muttered, then his face popped a fresh vein as he shouted, “NO! I will not be participating in this nonsense! Cease this childish prattle at once!”

“OBJECTION!” Pinkie Pie shouted, thrusting a finger dramatically at Grogar before yanking out a metal detector from her pants, “I demand you submit to a metal detector test!”

“For what!?”

“To see if you have the bullet lodged in your shoulder from the murder!”

“WHAT MURDER!?”

“The murder of Comedy!”

That tore it. Grogar had had enough. Technically he’d already gone well past having enough, but what capacity he had left for his logical mind to deal with Pinkie Pie’s utter madness had shot past any previous limit he’d had. He’d never, in all his thousands of years of existence, encountered a more singularly confounding, irrational, psychosis inducing entity. He wasn’t even sure he could label her as a “human being” any longer, because no human could possibly be this aggravating.

Forget the Quincy. Pinkie Pie was the true threat to the balance of the world!

“Enough,” he said in a dark tone, building his reiatsu within himself until a thick aura of lime green light boiled around him, “This farce ends now!”

“HOLD IT!” Pinkie Pie said, “We haven’t even gotten to the cross-examination yet, or showing all the evidence we’ve got. Like your Seed thingy! That’s a critical piece of evidence about how much of a meany pants you are!”

A small graphic box appeared next to her, showing the Seed, but Grogar wasn’t paying attention. He was beyond any conventional description of the word ‘angry’. He no longer cared to figure out how Pinkie Pie’s power worked. He only wanted to shred it, and her, to pieces. He continued to build up his reiatsu within himself, focusing it first within his chest, and then letting it flow up into his Zanpaktou, and towards the bell upon it. He might not have been able to move, but that didn’t preclude him from utilizing his powers.

“I think it’s safe to say we have a hostile witness here, Pinkie,” Pinkamena said, “Better let me hold onto the evidence while you transform back into a hammer.”

“Awww, but I wanted to finish the bit,” Pinkie Pie said, flashing with pink light as she transformed back into a hammer and flipped over to Pinkamena’s grasp, just as Grogar finished building up his power. Pinkamena braced the hammer defensively in front of her as the bell on Grogar’s staff flared up with writhing arcs of puke-green energy. He then opened his mouth wide and expelled a swarm of his insect-like constructs, which buzzed around him like a thick, dark cloud.

“Cero Langosta.” (Cero Locust)

The lines of green energy arced off his bell as it swung and let out ear splitting eldritch tones, and the power flowed through the swarm of insects, making each one spark up with bright green light.

“Oh fudgesicles...” Pinkie Pie said as the swarm of charged insects flew out in random directions, like shrapnel from a claymore mine, and started to exploding in a fury of lime green explosions, with Grogar standing safely in the eye of the proverbial storm.

Pinkamena leapt back, swinging the Pinkie Hammer down to create a giant zipper in the ground that she swiftly opened to hop into, but wasn’t quite fast enough as several of the detonating inspections exploded around her. The girl was thrown about by the force of the explosions, one of her already injured legs getting torn off by the blasts. She also lost her grip on the Pinkie Hammer, which in turn got hit by several nearby detonations. The blasts hit so hard that they caused Pinkie Pie, even in her hammer form, to cry out in pain and lose her focus, transforming back into a human shape as she hit the ground hard.

A fair distance off, Applejack was working alongside her mother, attacking in tandem against Experiment 528 and gradually turning the tables against the blade-limbed Hollow, but she felt a shock of cold in here gut as she saw her friend caught up in the series of explosions.

“Pinkie!”

Her distraction nearly cost her as Experiment 528 struck at her, aiming one of it’s sharp arms with a thrust towards her neck. Sweet Cider managed to heft her Zanpaktou in a downward chop that sent the Hollow’s arm sinking into the ground, while she used her other arm, which had recovered her damaged Fullbring blade, to deliver a slice that didn’t put the Hollow down but did drive Experiment 528 back with a wound across it’s chest.

“Pay attention, hayseed! Ya just ‘bout lost yer neck there!”

“Dagnabbit, we gotta finish this thing off right quick an’ go help Pinkie! She can’t take on that monster by herself no more!”

Sweet Cider knew it well enough herself and wore an anguished expression on her face, but her eyes were no less focused on Experiment 528 for it. If they didn’t kill this thing, it’d stab them in the backs easily if they tried to go deal with Grogar. Sweet Cider wasn’t even sure, in her condition, she could do much against Grogar. Distract him, perhaps, to let the girls get away with Hard Nail.

As the smoke cleared from the numerous explosions he’d unleashed, Grogar felt his body was able to move again and he stretched, smiling as he started to walk towards the sight of Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie. The two girls were laying a few meters apart, with Pinkamena down an arm and a leg at this point, while Pinkie was bruised and dazed, with blood trickling down her face from a head wound due to hitting the ground at a rough angle.

“Uggggh, mom, dad, tell Limestone I don’t wanna play rock-tag anymore...” Pinkie Pie murmured as she rolled over onto her back. Pinkamena’s voice reached her as if through a sea of red fog.

“Pinkie! Move it!”

“Mmmrff?” Pinkie opened her bleary eyes, her vision swimming as she saw a shadow loom over her. Her sight focused to see Grogar towering over her with a thin scarecrow’s smile on his face.

“Ah, there we go, my good mood is restored,” he said as he lifted his bladed scythe and brought down the blunt end hard on Pinkie Pie’s knee, which made a loud, unpleasant popping sound.

Pinkie Pie’s scream could be heard from one corner of the valley to the other, and tore at Applejack and Sweet Cider both as they heard it. For Applejack especially, who’d known Pinkie Pie for year and had never heard her friend shrieked in agony like that, it igniting a fresh fury that saw her recklessly assaulting Experiment 528 with no more regard for defense. Rocket jets burst from her armor in such swift intensity that Applejack ceased to be visible save for the craters being left by every burst and impact of her lance on Experiment 528. Even Sweet Cider was taken aback and left behind by her daughter’s renewed, furious attacks, left gaping as Applejack started to demolish the Hollow, bit by bit.

However in the meantime Grogar just gave the spectacle half a glance and shrugged, returning his full focus to Pinkie Pie.

“So, no more jokes? No more gags? No more silly pop culture references? Are we quite done here? I want to ensure, before I kill you, that you’ve got nothing left to say. Call it a final courtesy.”

“Aaah...ow... okay... the thing with the knee? Totally uncalled for... hah...” Pinkie Pie’s expression twisted with pain, but the spark in her blue eyes didn’t dim as she propped herself up by her hands and looked up at Grogar with a rictus half grin, “But yeah, kinda joked out. You’re not exactly what I’d call a receptive audience... argh... but... I do got one for you. Knock knock.”

“Ugh, unbelievable. Fine. Who’s there?”

“Aren’t you?”

“...Aren’t you who?”

“Aren’t you the guy who doesn’t have a Seed anymore?” Pinkie Pie finished the joke with a sly wink and pointing towards a space next to Grogar where one might have expected the Seed to still be floating, but now just a comical Seed-shaped red dotted outline was.

Grogar stared in disbelief, then whipped around to see that Pinkamena was holding the Seed, and had turned her arm into an elastic tentacle to grab Pinkie Pie and yanked the wounded girl over to her own location. Pinkie Pie let out a lower pitch, half-choked sound of pain from the rough motion, but otherwise gave Pinkamena a grateful look for the quick save.

“How and when!?” Grogar roared, leveling his blade staff at them to charge up another Cero, but suddenly Pinkamena held the Seed in front of her like a shield, and he halted.

“You want to destroy your tasty treat, old pus bucket?” Pinkamena warned, “Be my guest.”

Grogar hesitated. He actually didn’t know for sure if the Seed would survive a Cero blast. He also still had no idea how the Seed had ended up in Pinkamena’s tentacled grasp! Had it been during that idiotic trial scene? Or had she snatched it while he’d been busy breaking Pinkie Pie’s kneecap? Either event was plausible, given the nature of this ludicrous Fullbring, but regardless of the means, the Seed was now out of his hands.

“No matter,” he said, “I’ll just come over there and take it back after decapitating both of you so I need not suffer any more of this idiocy!”

“Oh yeah, what if I eat your stolen goods first?” Pinkamena said, her chest opening up into a salivating mouth that she dangled the Seed over. Strangely not just Grogar, but Pinkie Pie looked alarmed at this.

“Don’t be a fool,” Grogar said, showing a hint of real unease that he quickly covered up with a forced mask of hardened calm as he kept his blade staff pointed at the pair, “Your body isn’t calibrated properly to handle the influx of such power. You’d destroy yourself if you tried.”

“Mena...” Pinkie Pie said, but Pinkamena cut her off, dangling the Seed a few inches closer to her chest mouth, her own face splitting into an imp-like grin.

“Maybe I don’t care about being destroyed. Maybe I just want to deny the ancient dried out turd his piece of candy, hmm?”

“You’re bluffing,” Grogar stated flatly, and Pinkamena only grinned wider.

“Am I? Come a step closer and you’ll find out. Or maybe I’ll eat it anyway. Best case scenario, me and Pinkie Pie are forced into powering up. Worst case scenario, we both die. But either way, you don’t get what you want, and for me, that’s kind of the tantalizing prize here.”

With hands half trembling from the pain shooting through her knee, Pinkie Pie touched Pinkamena’s shoulder, whispering, “M-Mena, if you eat that, even if we both make it...”

“What?” Pinkamena said sharply, “it’s better than letting this withered geezer kill us, and since you won’t finish what you started when you made me, as usual it’s up to me to do the things you don’t want to.”

“It isn’t like that!” Pinkie Pie shouted, now ignoring the pain in her leg to grip Pinkamena tighter, “I just don’t want you to go away! You’re my sister.”

“...We both know that isn’t actually true, no matter how much you and the family tried to make it feel otherwise,” Pinkamena replied in a less harsh voice, quietly remembering.

----------

One week prior...

Warmth flowed from the Pie household along with the smell of recently baked muffins. Gathered around the large dining table adjacent to the living room, all the Pies were eagerly consuming the hearty meal cooked up by Cloudy Quartz and Marble, the buzz of conversation mostly stemming from Pinkie Pie chattering about her and her friends’ most recent training session.

“And then Rainbow Dash went all ‘bzzzzt’ with the lightning and ‘fwooshed’ past Applejack, and she was coming right at me because I still had the ball! Well, Mena had the ball, I was all hammery at the time because, ya know, that’s how I do now. So Rainbow’s all super fast and we can’t even see her coming, but then Mena does this thing with her mouth where it goes mega huge, like a big black hole full of teeth, and Rainbow as all like ‘nopenopenope’! Heheh, it was so funny. What was you said after that, Mena? Something about tasting the rainbow?”

“Huh? I guess I said something like that,” Pinkamena said, poking at the meatballs on her plate idly with a fork. She was seated somewhat awkwardly between Pinkie Pie and Maud on the left side of the table. usually the Pie family dinners had Cloudy Quartz on one end of the table, Igneous seated at the other, then with the four daughters split with two to each side. Things got a tad cramped with Pinkamena having to fit in now, but neither Pinkie Pie or Maud seemed to mind bumping elbows with the doppleganger on occasion.

“You’ve hardly touched your food, dear,” Cloudy Quarts said, “Are you feeling well?”

It seemed to take Pinkamena a second to figure out she was the one being addressed. Almost as if to prove she could eat just fine she speared a meatball on her fork, then opened up a tiny mouth on her hand and fed the meatball into it.

“I’m alright,” she said, “Just not that hungry.”

“You not hungry?” said Limestone, “That’s hard to swallow-”

“Snrk! ‘Swallow’.” Pinkie Pie chuckled.

Limestone’s eyebrow gave an erratic twitch toward’s Pinkie Pie, but her attention remained on Pinkamena, “Just saying I’ve seen you literally eat those Hollow things whole. Also pretty sure you’ve made a go at some of the local cats.”

“It was just one time with the cats, and that tabby had it coming,” Pinkamena muttered, then louder, “So what? Doesn’t mean I’m always in the mood. Just not feeling the bite tonight.”

“Oooh, feeling the ‘bite’, that’s a good one Mena, you ought to write it down! You could say it as a one-liner next time we go on patrol,” Pinkie Pie said, and Pinkamena abruptly got up from her chair.

“Huh? What’s wrong Mena?”

“Not everything is a joke, Pinkie,” Pinkamena said, turning from the table. As she left, Maud grabbed her arm. Pinkamena gave Maud a fierce look, but Maud just stared at her blankly, then pointed at her plate.

“Can Boulder have your leftovers?” Maud asked, and Pinkamena rolled her eyes and waved a hand.

“Yeah, he can dig on in. I’m going to go get some air.”

“Wait, Mena, hold up!” Pinkie Pie said, half rising from her seat, torn between concern for her doppelganger sister and delicious food that still smell good, especially the fresh muffins waiting for desert. Pinkamena just strode out of the living room without another word, heading for the hallway that had the stairs leading to the second floor. There was still fresh woodwork in the living room from the recent reconstruction due to the damages the house sustained in the Hollow attack some time prior.

“Pinkie, maybe you ought to give her some space,” Limestone said as Pinkie Pie hesitated in watching Pinkamena go.

“B-but she’s upset about something and I don’t leave friends and family upset! It’s not in the Pinkie Pie Mission Statement!”

“Daughter.”

Igneous was capable of conveying much with a single word and particular tone, firm as his namesake yet still carrying a bedrock of steadfast compassion that had helped build the Pie household. Pinkie Pie gulped and looked at her father, who had his hands folded upon the table in front of him.

“Do as you feel you must, do so from a place of consideration. Think hard about how she feels before you speak to her.”

“Your father is right,” Cloudy said, “She’s trying hard to fit in, but this will take time. I probably shouldn’t have bothered her.”

Pinkie Pie bit her lower lip, looking between the table with her family all giving her various levels of concerned looks, with Marble practically vanishing behind her bangs, and looking towards where Pinkamena went. After a moment, Pinkie Pie excused herself from the table and all but ran off down the hallway to the stairs. She knew where Pinkamena was going, but still felt anxious following her. Up the stairs on the second floor there was a hatchway in the ceiling that led to the attic, a dusty place filled with more Pie family memorabilia and antiques than one could shake a bushel of sticks at.

The attic itself wasn’t Pinkamena’s destination, merely the small sliding hatch that was there that led up onto the roof.

Pinkie Pie hopped up through that hatch into the pleasant, cooling yet still warm air of the summer evening. Pinkamena was laying spread eagle, as was her usual style, on the roof near the hatchway, and Pinkie Pie saw her doppelganger sight at her approach.

“So... how many muffins did you swipe before coming up here?”

“Eheh, I was only fast enough to snag one. You want it?” Pinkie Pie produced a still freshly warm raspberry muffin from behind her back and presented it to Pinkamena like it was a peace offering. Pinkamena gazed at the muffin for a second, a trickle of drool leaking from the corner of her mouth. She then frowned and wiped the drool off with an irritated grunt.

“Nah. Not hungry, remember?”

“Hmm, okie dokie lokie, but I think just to be safe I’ll hold onto it for a bit,” Pinkie Pie said, and after a few seconds of uncomfortable silence asked, “Is it okay if I sit with you for a bit?”

“It’s your house. Sit wherever you like.”

Pinkie Pie did so, and for a few quiet minutes she watched the darkening evening sky alongside Pinkamena, occasionally stealing a glance towards her doppelganger who remained silent. Eventually Pinkie Pie started to sweat, then chewed her lip, trembling more and more. She never did well with silences.

“Argg! I can’t take it anymore! What’s wrong, Mena!? Please tell me! You’ve been doing this more and more since we got back from ghost-town, and I don’t know what’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong, Pinkie. I just can’t really be me in a... domestic setting,” Pinkamena said, sitting up and shooting a flat look at Pinkie Pie, although Pinkie thought she saw a slight quiver to Pinkamena’s lips as she spoke. “This whole ‘being a part of the family’ thing is sweet and all, but I keep feeling like a wolf dressed up like a Christmas reindeer. The costume doesn’t fit.”

“You just need to get used to it, Mena. It’s only been a few weeks-”

“A few weeks where I’ve alternated between being bored out of my mind, fantasizing about eating the neighborhood pets like walking McNuggets, and trying not to creep out my ‘family’. None of it feels right...” Pinkamena trailed off, then sighed heavily and added, “And I think part of that’s because I’m not really supposed to be here.”

Pinkie Pie made a confused whine in the back of her throat as she slid a bit closer to Pinkamena, “That’s not true at all. You belong here with us, Mena. You and me are a pair. Didn’t we already figure that out?”

“You don’t get what I’m saying. Clear out the ear holes for a sec, Pinkie, and listen,” Pinkamena gripped Pinkie’s arm tightly, arresting Pinkie’s eyes with her own staring gaze, “You and me are a pair, and we’re one and the same. You get that. I get that. But we’re not complete. You and me aren’t like your friends. Your friends have their whole selves together, like snowglobes with everything self-contained. But with us, we’re a snowglobe that got cut in half, and everything inside kind of spilled out between us. We’ve been pulling everything back together through all these battles, but the last bit, the bit where the snowglobe becomes whole? We can’t do it.”

“i...” Pinkie Pie scratched her head, her face screwing up like a puppy chewing on peanut butter as she tried to grind her mind over Pinkamena’s words. Pinkamena could have sworn she saw the blue-screen of death in her counterpart’s eyes as Pinkie sighed and slumped down, “I don’t get it.”

Pinkamena let out a groan and flopped back down on her back, “Kinda figured. I think when we split, I got the better gooey bits of the brain. Or maybe I’m just as slow as you are, because I can’t figure out what to do either. I’m trying, Pinkie. To be a Pie and all. But sometimes I think it’d be better if you just kept me in your head instead of out here all the time now.”

“Don’t say that. I think Limestone really likes the way you help out around the house, and Maud is always smiling when you’re around.”

“I’ve literally never seen Maud smile once.”

“She smiles on the inside. It's all in the eyes. Look for it and you’ll see it, like this teeny weeny little twinkle. She does it all the time!”

“Marble is terrified of me.”

“Marble is scared of everything. It’s how she shows affection. By going ‘eep’ and hiding from it. Watch her around Big Mac sometime. It’s super adorable.”

Pinkamena made a rough, low chuckling noise, “You really are determined to make this work and keep me around, aren’t you?”

“Well of course I am, silly! Why wouldn’t I want you around?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“...What if you couldn’t, though? What if, to become complete, like you and your friends have been training for, one of us would have to go?”

“Huh? Why would either of us have to...?” As Pinkie Pie started to ask the question, a noise from the roof hatch drew both her and Pikamena’s attention. Clustered together like ducks, Maud, Limestone, and Marble were all peeking out at them. Upon being spotted, Marble made an ‘eep!’ noise and partially hid behind Maud, while Limestone rose up from the hatch, crossing her arms almost in challenge.

“We came to check on you two,” Limestone said, “You know, make sure you hadn’t fallen off the roof or whatever.”

“We brought muffins,” Maud stated bluntly, holding up a plate of the tantalizing treats.

Pinkamena couldn’t help but rub a palm over her face, “I swear, Pinkie, this whole family has a food problem. Is this where I get it from?”

“I dunno,” Pinkie mumbled around a mouthful of muffin that she’d somehow acquired from the plate despite Maud still being a good ten feet away.

“Well you three might as well come on out here,” Pinkamena said, gesturing at the other Pie sisters, “Should I get a campfire going or something?”

“On the roof!?” Limestone said with a twitching expression.

“It’s not physically impossible,” Maud pointed out.

“Yeah, how about we don’t burn the house down today?” Limestone shot back, but joined Maud in clambering onto the roof, Marble ghosting behind them quietly. Soon enough Pinkamena found herself surrounded by the Pie sisters, all of them sitting in a cluster as they watched the last slivers of sunlight fade into a dusk of blinking stars. Muffins were distributed between them without a word spoken for a time.

“So... everything cool here?” Limestone broke the silence, wearing an awkward grimace as she did so, clearly not used to being the first one to talk.

“It will be, eventually, one way or another,” Pinkamena said, a tad cryptically. “Wasn’t trying to cause a scene.”

“Whether you cause a scene or not isn’t important,” Maud said, “Only that you’re okay.”

“Mmmhmm,” Marble added, scooting a bit closer after a moment of hesitation.

“Okay is a relative term,” Pinkamena replied with a shrug, “Me and Pinkie have some things that need working out, and I don’t think we will until... something happens that forces us to work it out.”

“But I totally want to figure it out!” said Pinkie, scratching her head, “I just don’t really get what ‘it’ is yet. I know I kinda put a lot of emotional stuff onto you before, and I’m trying to not do that anymore. You know, take on my fair share of the bad feelings that got poured into you.”

“It’s not that, Pinkie,” Pinkamena said, pointing at herself, “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not quite as ‘mad dog crazy’ as I was when I first popped out of your head. But it’s not enough. Something is still holding you and me back.”

“What?”

Pinkamena didn’t answer. Instead she looked at Pinkie, then around at the other Pie sisters. Her face was filled with a sad contemplation that soon broke into a sharp toothed smirk, “Doesn’t matter right now. I think I’m hungry again. We got more of those muffins?”

Maud didn’t smile, but Pinkamena caught the twinkle in her otherwise placid eyes that Pinkie had been talking about as Maud mysteriously produced a second plate. Apparently a bit of that oddness ran in the Pie family. While Pinkie Pie still couldn’t fully get rid of a faint sense of unease about what Pinkamena had been talking about, the sisters enjoyed the rest of the evening in each other’s company, munching down muffins and sharing small talk as night fell.

----------

“It was good, you know?” Pinkamena said, glancing down at the wounded Pinkie Pie while still holding the Seed close to the mouth on her chest, keeping one eye on Grogar. “Being part of a family. Feeling like I could be my own person. But the truth is, we’re not separate people, Pinkie Pie. We’re the same person split in two like a pie sliced right down the middle with a carving knife.”

“I-I get that...” Pinkie said, “I turn into the whacky hammer, and you have the cool and scary eating powers with all the mouths. A-all the bad stuff I didn’t like every having to deal with, I put on you. I stopped doing that, though.”

“That doesn’t make us whole, Pinkie. If anything, it just ensured we’d stay separate. But you know the truth, right? We’ll always be incomplete as long as we’re separate like this. It’s high time we both sucked it up and stopped playing make believe with each other.”

A tremor ran over Pinkie’s body, her face quivering as her voice lowered and her hand tightened on Pinkamena. “I don’t want to lose you. I want you to stay.”

“Hey... I’ll let you in on a secret. I actually really like our family. That’s why I’m willing to give up being separated. Because I know you’re going to need more than laughter to protect them, and I’m going to need more than crazy to do the same. So let’s be crazy and laugh together, Pinkie,” Pinkamena said, smiling in a manner that was far more natural than any of her previous, manic grins of the past.

Pinkie Pie looked at Pinkamena, her counterpart, the other half of herself that became her Fullbring, and also saw her own reflection in Pinkamena’s eyes. It fully clicked inside Pinkie Pie’s brain then, like a colorful painting that was once blobs and shapes finally taking definitive form. Pinkamena wasn’t just her Fullbring. She was also Pinkamena’s Fullbring. They were one person, split into two. Her psyche, sliced in half the moment she’d first activated Fullbring when her home and family had been in danger.

It was impossible for her to complete her Fullbring as long as it was split into two halves like this. The halves had to come together and become one again, in order for them to truly be complete.

She wasn’t going to lose a sister or a friend. Instead, Pinkie Pie realized that she and Pinkamena were always going to be together, as it was meant to be; whole.

Wet tears on her cheeks, Pinkie Pie completely ignored the pain of her broken knee and three herself on Pinkamena in a hefty hug, “i’m sorry Mena, for being silly. I was really scared of not having you around, so I was holding on as tight as I could. But I never can lose you, can I? That’d be like losing myself.”

Both her and Pinkamena’s body started to glow with a blindingly and painfully intense neon pink light as their reiatsu started to build up and fuse together. Pinkamena awkwardly hugged Pinkie back with her one arm, rolling her eyes, “Yeah, you’re pretty silly, but nobody does it better than you, Pinkie. Time for us both to see what we can be, together.”

Grogar, sensing that if he didn’t act now, then he’d lose the Seed even if Pinkamena didn’t eat it. Besides, if these children were distracted with the evolution of their Fullbrings, that might give him the moment he needed to snatch the precious orb away from them! He charged towards the pair, crossing the space with a fast Sonido. However, just as he appeared in front of them and reached down to grab the Seed while the pair were distracted, an object came hurtling into him from the side with the speed and impact of a hurled dump truck.

Grogar was knocked off his feet and sent skidding a fair distance. Growling in frustrated fury, he shoved the object off of him only to realize that what had been thrown into him was the broken, battered, and overall shredded body of Experiment 528.

The experimental Hollow looked as if it had all of its limbs either blasted to torn off, and it’s chest was caved in by multiple heavy blows, while it’s skull mask was half broken and twisted around it’s mangled face. As Grogar looked at it, Experiment 528 dissipated into dust.

He then felt an intense burst of spiritual pressure as he stood up and saw Applejack land next to Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena. The farmgirl’s golden armor was streaked with Hollow blood that burned off from the heat generated by the gleaming suit of metal, and her face was that of a furious valkyrie as she locked eyes on Grogar for a moment.

However, Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena’s bodies were all but encompassed by pink light and surging spiritual energy now, and Applejack knelt next to them, holding out her hand towards the light.

“Ain’t ‘bout ta let ya both pop without keepin’ this in check,” Applejack said as she focused all of her reiatsu on carefully maintaining control of the explosion of spirit energy that was stemming from her friend completing the evolution of her Fullbring. Ditzy’s lessons on the subject served Applejack well as instead of an uncontrolled explosion, the pink light stemming from Pinkie and Pinkamena turned into twin pillars of pink, one a darker shade than the other, which then intermixed together to form one column of pink light that pierced the sky.

The energy burst up there like a series of flowering fireworks, raining twirling spars of all shades of pink upon the land. Then the light faded. Applejack glanced around in brief confusion, but also spotted the Seed on the ground next to her feet and quickly snatched it up with her free hand.

Grogar was equally confused as to where Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena had gone, but seeing his Seed in Applejack’s hand, his expression darkened to a hellish thunderstorm as he stepped towards her.

“I tire of these games. Give me the Seed and I might consider leaving you be. For this day, at least.”

“Nothin’ doin’ ya ugly varmint!” Applejack spat back, leveling her lance one-handed at him, “Ya want it, yer gonna need ta come n’ get it!”

“A proposal I have no objections to, child,” Grogar replied in a vengeful rasp, but as he prepared to attack, he was stopped by the ghostly sound of echoing, disembodied laughter.

”Hehehehe! Don’t start playing a new game until you’ve finished the last one, Groggy. But I’m fine with Applejack joining in. After all, I’m all about that multiplayer action.

Streams of pink mist rose from the ground, billowing up and around until the came together in a magnificently fast twirling ball that then popped like a balloon. From inside emerged a girl who for all intents and purposes certainly looked like Pinkie Pie, but if one looked at her sideways, she might have also seemed more like Pinkamena.

Her clothing was replaced by colorful pink, blue, and yellow jester’s motley, but constructed of form fitting leather rather than cloth, and bearing a bizarre set of triangular patches and stitches that resembled smiling, frighteningly sharp toothed smiles. Around her neck was a long pink scarf that trailed behind her and waved and moved on it’s own, as if caught in a constant wind. The two ends of the scarf rung with shiny brass jester bells. Pinkie’s face was half covered on it’s left side by a white mask bearing a laughing, yet devilish expression.

Her right hand was on the pommel of a weapon that largely resembled the Pinkie Hammer, although this one bore several notable differences. One end was still somewhat blunt, but now bore a carving on it’s front that looked very much like a large, grinning mouth. It’s other hand had transformed into a large, curved point like a giant pick.

However those physical changes weren’t all. There was a very tangible and visible aura around Pinkie Pie, as if the pink mist she’d formed from was stemming directly from her body and was now a solid thing. It flickered about her in a jagged aura, and even as Applejack looked, she saw ethereal mouths filled with sharp teeth form along the aura.

“Eh, Pinkie? That you, or Pinkamena?”

Pinkie Pie looked over at Applejack and cracked a grin that was somehow both familiar and friendly, and just a tad crazy.

“Yes.”

“It makes no difference,” Grogar declared, his own threatening reiatsu no less ominous as it poured out of him, “This still is not enough to pose a significant threat to me.”

“That right?” came Sweet Cider’s voice as she appeared from a Flash Step beside her daughter and Pinkie Pie. Despite being covered in sweat, blood, wounds, and her spirit energy flagging, Sweet Cider held her two blades solidly before her, “Care ta try yer luck? Got a serious bone ta pick with you after what ya did ta my husband!”

Grogar huffed out a scoffing noise that was dry as sand, "You're already quite tapped out, my dear Soul Reaper. There's nothing you and these children can do to stop me from reclaiming what's mine."

Applejack looked at the Seed in her hand. It'd be awkward to fight with her lance one handed, but she was willing to try, to keep Grogar from getting what he'd taken from her father. However she felt a tap on her shoulder from Pinkie Pie, who'd hefted her hammer over her shoulder and was giving Applejack a reassuring, if somewhat off-kilter grin, "No worries, Applejack. Let me break in my new shoes for a bit, while you and your mom take five."

"Ain't a good idea, young 'un," said Sweet Cider, "This fella might not be the strongest Espada, but he's definitely one o' the most dangerous."

"Pinkie, yer Fullbring might be complete now, but it's still gonna take all o' us ta stand a chance against this scumbag," Applejack said, but Pinkie Pie just waggled her finger as she stepped away and started a light, bouncy walk towards Grogar.

"Don't worry. I'm not planning to try and beat him. Just want to get my calisthenics in."

Grogar barked a harsh laugh, "If you want to throw your life away, far be it from me to dissuade you."

“Oooh Grogar, you’re not very smart are you?” Pinkie Pie said, twirling her new hammer in her hands and striking a pose, the pink aura around her starting to expand with hungry mouths salivating pink mist around her. As Grogar watched, it looked as if the very air around the girl was starting to distort and flicker like a television screen with poor reception. “We’re not susceptible to your version of logic. Now, let's go... Mena."

Pinkie Pie snapped her fingers and she vanished from sight like a popped bubble. Grogar cast about with his Pesquisa to see where she might try to strike from, but was confused by what he felt. It was as if Pinkie Pie's riatsu had spread out like a bubble, imprinting on the space around them in a chaotic wave. It was like she was everywhere and nowhere all at once.

Suddenly a series of overly large playing cards, all marked with strange, pink images of laughing jesters, appeared and floated around Grogar in a fast spinning circle. Pinkie Pie's voice echoed from the cards as the jester images came to life and split grotesque grins.

"Guys like you always act like they're playing with a full deck, but it's like you don't understand that this world isn't built to be understood, categorized, and fit into jars. This world's as crazy as a poker game with nothing but jokers!"

The jesters started throwing pink carving knives out at Grogar, the revolving circle surrounding him in a flurry of hot pink cutlery being thrown at super-sonic speeds. He countered with a powerful wave of his blade-staff, knocking aside many, and then activating the cylinder on his back that spewed forth a blaze of incinerating ruby flames. The cards burned up, but in that same instant Grogar felt the ground beneath his hooved feet shift as it turned into a localized ball bit filled with colorful balls, and with a ripple Pinkie Pie surged out of it like a dolphin breaking the waves, and she managed to land an uppercut with the toothed end of her hammer on Grogar's chin.

The blow rung his bell a bit. Literally, as cartoon bells and birds appeared and circled his head. However he shook off the blow in an instant and with a growl he curled his fingers around a Cero sphere and fired the intense green beam at Pinkie Pie. She vanished again, making the wise choice to dodge the attack rather than take it head on, and Grogar noticed she was manipulating the space around her much faster and with far greater ease than before. She hadn't needed to swing the hammer to open up a door or anything, she simply side-stepped and drew reality aside like someone moving a stage curtain and slipping through it! The Cero exploded on empty ground, buffeting the nearby Applejack and Sweet Cider with the blast of air and dust.

"She ain't gonna take him down," Sweet Cider said, and Applejack nodded at the simple honesty in her mother's words, but she didn't think Pinkie Pie intended to beat Grogar.

"She ain't tryin' to," Applejack said under her breath, "I think she's... just havin' fun."

This was emphasized by the laughter that echoed through the air as a set of train tracks suddenly appeared beneath Grogar, and a short distance away a cartoon tunnel entrance opened up, from which the sound of a tooting horn and a loud chugging noise of massive diesel engines could be heard. A mere second later a massive, mostly pink train engine came hurtling out, with Pinkie Pie standing on top of it like a sea captain on her ship. Her hammer was thrust out at Grogar as she laughingly called out, "Whether you beat us or not, Groggy, you're on a one-way track to the Hot Place."

"Oh your God! Stop it with the puns!" Grogar let out a seething snarl and aimed another Cero at the train, piercing the gaudy vehicle with the green beam and causing it to go flying off the tracks. As the train popped like a bubble of pink soap, Pinkie herself moved with much greater speed than she ever had before and ended up behind Grogar. For a moment her hair went straight as razors and her grin turned hungry. The white mask on Pinkie's face shifted sides, turning black in color.

"Hey," Pinkie Pie (Pinkamena?) said with a toothy smirk, "I trained really hard to get this good at puns. But enough joking around."

The writhing pink aura of energy around her burst forward, and abruptly it was as if Grogar was being attacked by a hundred of Pinkamena's mouth covered tendrils all at once! The aura of misty pink energy became like a solid force, it's edges rimmed with darker red energy rather than pink as the aura split into multiple tendrils and formed dozens of mouths made of pure energy that now swung at Grogar in a made fury.

Grogar was momentarily put on the defensive, zipping about with Sonido to avoid the lashing mouths, which tore out great chunks of the earth with each swing. His staff-blade swung with great force to deflect one or two that came close, and his analytical mind briefly examined this new energy aura that Pinkie Pie was attacking him with. The reiatsu reminded him of something akin to Cero, if someone had taken the energy of a Cero and turned it into something malleable and elastic. The power of the individual tendrils wasn't easily ignored, either, as a glancing blow from one he missed actually scratched his Hierro and drew a line of blood!

Her power is equivalent to the farm child, now. It's little wonder she can inflict some damage at this point. But this still isn't enough power to defeat me, even with her increased ability to warp reality. She must know that, unless she's truly gone insane.

Deciding to ignore possibility of wounds, Grogar switched instantly to the offensive, and with a sneer he started charging through the storm of mouthy tendrils, his staff-blade slicing through them as he went. Several still bite light scratches upon his body, but he ignored that as he got closer to Pinkie Pie. The girl saw him coming and pulled back her tendrils, forming her pink aura into one large combined mass, like a giant malformed first that opened into a salivating set of mouths the size of a school bus. The huge and macabre limb smashed down at Grogar, cratering the ground and eating up a deep divot in the valley floor. Grogar had halted the deadly limb with his staff-blade, propping it into the mouth like a toothpick, and then the cylinder on his back containing Smooze's diseased ooze spurted a geyser of the purple filth into the aura-like limb.

"Ewww!" Pinkie Pie said as she leaped back, detaching that portion of her aura as it bloated up unnaturally and started to dissolve, "Are you this gross on purpose or is it just natural?"

Grogar almost responded to the question, but that was swiftly supplanted by his seething desire to just eliminate this aggravating pink menace.

"I've had quite enough of your jibes, pink one. You've tried my last ounce of patience, so I'll end this now," he said dryly, even as Pinkie Pie drew back her tendril aura back to her body and twirled her towards him.

"But you can't end it now! It's still the final inning!" Pinkie Pie said, spinning around and throwing her hammer at him with high-speed force.

Grogar had had enough bad experiences with that hammer's impacts that he didn't feel any particular shame in using Sonido to dispensary from the twirling hammer's path, flying straight up into the air, as he wanted to get above the battlefield for what he was about to do next. As he did so he spotted Pinkie Pie, or rather two PInkie Pie's now, both wearing baseball uniforms. One of them had caught the hammer that the original Pinkie Pie had thrown, who now had a baseball in her hands and was winding up a pitch. As she threw the ball, the ball itself moved with air shattering force, and became charged with crackling pink energy.

The Pinkie Pie with the hammer pointed towards Grogar like a pro player pointing towards the bleachers just before she spun her baseball hat around, readied the hammer, and then smashed the ball in a soaring arc straight towards Grogar. He flicked his hand towards the incoming ball and fired a Bala at it, just before it got too close to him. The Bala smacked into the charged baseball, which proceeded to explode in a surprisingly large fireball of pink energy that rattled even Grogar's bones for a second. He imagined if that had impacted, he might have actually taken more than a scratch from it. These girls really had become far more powerful than even his projections had anticipated. Fighting one or two of them was easy enough, but if all of them were together?

Best to eliminating that possibility now, then.

Leveling his bladed staff towards the ground, directly at Pinkie Pie, a part of Grogar's arm opened and a fleshy tube curled around the blade. The tube filled with blood, and ejected a spurt of the crimson liquid upon the blade's edge as the staff-blade itself started to gleam with a deep green build up of power.

"As much as you children have grown, I somehow doubt you'll survive a Gran Rey Cero. A shame there probably won't be much left of your bodies for me to examine."

“Wait, ain't ya worried 'bout destroyin' yer precious Seed?" Applejack shouted, holding the Seed up.

Grogar paused, grimacing, the power of his Gran Rey Cero still building.

"Give me back the Seed, and I'll consider leaving without destroy all of you."

"Nothin' doin'! You go, an' I'll think 'bout what ta do with this here Seed."

"Do you take me for a fool, child?"

Grogar tensed, ready to launch his Gran Rey Cero and risk the Seed's destruction if need be. Anything to be rid of Pinkie Pie at this point

However before he could attack, a fresh reiatsu appeared with such speed and swiftness that it turned everyone's heads towards the southern edge of the valley. A wave of water burst forth from the ground, and followed a swift moving form with powerful Hollow reiatsu, coming straight for Applejack. The farmgirl could barely react as the waves of water surged around her, and someone grabbed the Seed right out of her hand.

“What the-!?” Applejack blinked, then her eyes shot wide as she lost her grip on the Seed, and the water around her flowed around like a living thing, forming a pool a dozen or so meters away where a figure stood now, holding the Seed.

“Interesting,” said a curious but highly satisfied feminine voice, “What could this be, I wonder? Quite a lot of reiatsu coming from this unsightly, red marble. Grogar, can I assume this is your doing?"

Grogar hardly looked pleased at who he saw below him, even if ostensibly they were supposed to be on the same side.

Probably because by the smug, cat-like glint in Adagio Dazzle's eyes, she had a suspicion already as to what the Seed was. She was standing now on a calm pool of water beneath where Grogar stood on the air, with Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Sweet Cider all starring at her in surprised shock. She’d ceased using her Resurreccion form, probably to conserve energy, but even if Grogar sensed Adagio had used up a lot of power fighting Captain Luna, she was still a potent force to be reckoned with. And she was holding his Seed in one hand, casually leaning on her trident with the other, and was giving him a look that said she had no intention of relinquishing this newfound prize.

Episode 121: A Fine Line Between Ally and Enemy

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Episode 121: A Fine Line Between Ally and Enemy

A brief time ago...

There was little to contend with on the way back to what was left of the lake, despite the constant necessity of keeping the water pressure high on the spherical ‘prison’ that Adagio was keeping Luna held in. She and Thorax were able to move through the forest uncontested. The overwhelming number of conflicting spiritual pressures still in conflict in the area blanketed most of Everfree Forest in a haze of unsteady reiatsu, making stealth significantly easier than it otherwise would have been. About halfway to the lakeshore, Adagio’s body briefly shimmered with blue light as the elongated siren tail and smooth armoring of her Resurreccion form faded and streams of energy from it poured back into her Zanpaktou trident, which also reverted to it’s sealed state.

“Conserving energy, are we?” asked Thorax, and before Adagio could give him more than a look, his own body gleamed with green light as he too disengaged his Resurreccion and resumed his more humanoid form, “A wise choice, in fact. It may not be often I get to cut loose with that form, but it can get tiring to maintain it over a long period. You’ve certainly picked up on the basics of being an Arrancar quite quickly.”

“If I’m not a fast study, I have no chance to keeping up with the other Espada,” Adagio replied, navigating the densely packed trees with grace and ease, careful not to let the floating sphere of water holding Luna bump into anything either. Luna remained quietly glaring at both of them, the wager gag binding her mouth still in place.

Thorax cast a glance at Luna, eyes lidded and hiding thoughts that Adagio couldn’t discern. Just why was he so keen on getting his hands on her anyway? It clearly wasn’t simply because she was a Soul Reaper Captain. There was a history there, between those two, and if Adagio was any good at judging the behavior of others, Thorax’s interest was personal. His body language didn’t indicate anything creepy or lecherous, however, which was strange given his gregarious behavior in the past. Whatever Thorax’s intent was, it was serious.

Which meant it would be difficult to simply let Luna go. Adagio wasn’t entirely sure what to do with Luna yet, although Thorax’s offer was tempting on multiple levels. Access to Equestria via whatever secret means Chrysalis possessed would be a powerful advantage. Worth the risk, however? The last thing Adagio needed were Soul Reapers making the same kind of smash and grab rescue effort for Luna that she’d been doing here for Ember.

As she pondered this, they reached the edge of the forest and arrived upon the lake shore on the northern side. It was easy to see clear across the muddy crater that now consisted of what had once been a lake, and Adagio’s senses scanned the area quickly. She felt multiple reiatsu signatures in the center area, some of them her own people. Others were obviously Soul Reapers, and... was that one of Sunset Shimmer’s friends? Adagio wasn’t incredibly familiar with their spiritual energies, so she wasn’t certain which one it was, and didn’t have a clear line of sight either.

“Feels like quite the gathering down there,” Thorax noted, “Although none of the Soul Reapers are nearly as strong as we are. I don’t think your vassals are in any serious trouble yet, but should we go assist them? I can resume my guise as Greta easily enough.”

“Wait,” Adagio said, holding up a hand, her eyes narrowing as she felt a sudden, unnaturally large spike of spiritual energy nearby, as well as... magic? Out of all those in the human world, it might not have been a stretch to say Adagio Dazzle was the one most attuned with her magical senses. Certainly Sunset Shimmer could claim similar levels of experience with magic, but Adagio and her sisters had literally used magic as a source of nourishment and power for the better portion of their lives. Adagio knew magic. It was as much a part of her being now as her Hollow reiatsu.

So there was no mistaking it when she sensed the incredible burst of magical might from somewhere in the center of the lake-bed. Or rather, below the center of the lake-bed. It made her skin tingle and her legs shudder, for the raw amount of magic was like the rupturing of a dam, allowing massive rivers of magical energy to flow out in a relentless torrent. The last time Adagio felt this much magic in one place at one time was when Sunset Shimmer and her friends had defeated the Dazzlings. In fact it felt like the same kind of magic. Something primal and unbelievably powerful. It brought Adagio back to that moment of defeat, and the sense of utter helplessness against a power too great and massive to fully wrap one’s head around, let alone contend with.

Without realizing it, Adagio had slumped against a nearby tree, breathing heavily as she stared towards the center of the lake.

“Adagio? What’s wr-” Thorax began, but then the ground began to shake, and a deep, roaring rumble could be heard emanating from the entire lake-bed. The eldest son of Chrysalis gulped visibly and looked around in concern as he too started to sense what was happening. He couldn’t sense the magic, no, but there wasn’t just magic present, but an gargantuan flow of spiritual energy was gathering down below the lake-bed's center as well. Thorax’s senses were keen, his Pesquisa quite refined, so he knew full-well how large the flow of spirit energy was. And it was a flow, he realized.

The reiatsu was gathering in one place, but was coming from somewhere else. He and Adagio both could sense it, as if a huge underground conduit was sending a flood of spirit energy from somewhere far to the west and pooling it at a single point beneath the lake.

Luna was trying to speak now, her words little more than garbled grumbles beneath the water gag, and she was struggling in the prison. Adagio realized her momentary shock at sensing that primal, harmonious magic had caused her to slacken her control on the water, and she quickly resumed control, pushing herself off the tree and turning to raise a hand towards Luna to constrict the water.

“I don’t suppose you have any notion of what’s happening here, Adagio? Because I confess I’m a bit... flummoxed by this,” Thorax said, slowly regaining his composure.

“I don’t know,” Adagio admitted, “But I sense Equestrian magic, and...” she focused for a second, eyes closed, “It’s flowing away from here. It’s following the same path all of that spirit energy is coming from. Almost as if...”

“As if it’s being exchanged,” Thorax noted, his own expression growing curious, “And this reiatsu, it’s odd. It’s spirit energy, but it feels slightly different from what I’m used to. It’s not quite the same flavor, if you follow.”

“You’re right,” Adagio said, able to sense the same thing Thorax was. The spirit energy pouring into the area from the west was clearly reishi, but it felt subtly off from what she’d grown accustomed to. Almost like the difference between two similar brands of soda. They might be going for the same flavor, and they’re both soda, but you’d never mistake one for the other.

The shaking in the ground intensified, and even Adagio and Thorax had to struggle for balance for a second. But only for a second, because in the next moment it was impossible to keep balance and both Arrancar had to hop off the ground and stand a few feet up in the air while a sound like a collapsing skyscraper filled the air.

Adagio saw the lake-bed bulge upward, and for a heart stopping second she saw her vassals. Di Roy and Gaw, along with Ember, along with a group of Soul Reapers. They were nearly at the epicenter of the lake, and then there was a golden flash of light. Adagio couldn’t make it all out, but she thought she saw Sunset Shimmer’s friend Fluttershy extend what appeared to be a swarm of gold arms of energy that encased her and everyone around her in a protective dome. In that same instant the lake-bed erupted upward as if someone had planted the world’s largest bomb beneath the ground.

However an instant later Adagio was left awestruck as a truly enormous tree grew up from the center of the lake and speared up into the sky, like some mythical depiction of Yggdrasil given life. She saw roots thicker than some houses stretched out like fingers across the lake and smash into the forest. She, Thorax, and Luna narrowly avoided being crushed by one as one of the gigantic roots flew by no more than ten feet to their left, extending deep into the Everfree Forest. Within moments the tree grew to a towering height, forcing Adagio to crane her neck upward to see the thick branches and gigantic leaves, all forming a large dome-like structure at the giant tree’s apex.

As the noise and dust began to settle, Adagio turned a look towards Thorax, who looked back at her with a clearly dumbfounded expression. It was almost priceless to see the usually composed Thorax looking utterly at a loss as he held up a hand and pointed at the tree.

“So... I take it this wasn’t in any part of your plan?”

“No,” Adagio replied with a sarcastic drawl, “No I didn’t account for random World Trees appearing out of nowhere! I don’t suppose you have any notion what this is about?”

“None, although...” Thorax looked thoughtful for a moment, stroking his chin. Adagio could see his eyes twitch narrower as he appeared to think over something. “This is ringing an uncomfortable bell or two. Mother did once or twice mention how she’d utterly destroyed a rival, and encased her remains in the living world. While this rivalry happened when I was very young, I still recall it. You would know of it too, in fact. You recall the sad tale of the Queen of Thorns?”

Adagio did, although it wasn’t as if she knew much beyond the fact that Chrysalis had brought the Queen of Thorns to ruin and that it’d never been confirmed one way or the other what the former Second Espada’s final fate had been. “I do, but what makes you think this has anything to do with that?”

“Focus on the top of that tree with your Pesquisa,” Thorax said, “You’ll feel it. I may never have met the Queen of Thorns personally, but this reiatsu...”

It didn’t take Adagio more than a second to sense what Thorax was and realize he may well have a point. Somewhere around the giant tree’s uppermost reaches she could feel the pulsating of a powerful Hollow reiatsu. It was absorbing the spirit energy still pouring into the tree from the distant west, growing stronger by the second.

It’s already strong enough to make me worried about taking it on myself. It might even be closer to Lament's strength... or... no, stronger? Could this really be the Queen of Thorns?

As if reading her like a billboard, Thorax said, “Admittedly I’m just basing this presumption upon the raw power I’m sensing up there, which measures up to former Second Espada, even if it’s still less than mother’s. That, plus the skyscraper sized tree. The Queen of Thorns did have a thing for nature. Regardless, I don’t plan on going up there to find out. By the way, are your vassals alright?”

A damn good question. Adagio refocused her attention on what was left of the lake-bed. The Soul Reaper research area had been utterly destroyed, with only a few tattered remains of the laboratory tents strewn about. Something about that triggered a nagging sensation of worry in Adagio’s brain, but she couldn’t pinpoint why, as she was too busy trying to sense her people. She felt Fluttershy’s reiatsu keenly, and could see the protective dome of joined arms and hands of raw golden light that had formed around the girl and everyone that had been nearly at ground zero.

Even as Adagio watched, those hands retracted, the dome fading away to reveal that Fluttershy had managed to protect the entire group of people, Soul Reaper and Arrancar alike. Furthermore, a mere moment later Adagio sensed the familiar reiatsu of Sunset Shimmer, and saw the girl arriving at Fluttershy’s location. She was soon joined by another Soul Reaper, one Adagio recognized as Clover.

Adagio tensed slightly as there was a brief standoff between her people and the Soul Reapers, but thankfully it looked as if Sunset Shimmer was keeping things from turning into a fight. Even better, her vassals exercised excellent common sense and soon a Garganta portal opened. After a few more exchanged words, including some kind of personal exchange between Di Roy and Gaw, Adagio breathed a sigh of pure relief as she saw her trusted vassals, along with Ember, go through the Garganta portal and safely back to Hueco Mundo and Las Noches.

“I am going to have to find a suitable way to reward them, once this is all over,” Adagio said, amazed at herself for just how relieved she felt to know her people were safe and Ember’s rescue was successful. No matter how else this situation turned out, she’d accomplished the mission she’d set herself and her people on, and Ember could return to her father.

“All’s well that ends not quite yet, eh?” Thorax said, his shrewd gaze looking towards where Sunset Shimmer was talking to her friends and the gathered Soul Reapers, “An interesting group of young women, that bunch. I can see why they caused such a stir in Soul Society. Especially that admirable redhead.”

“I wouldn’t recommend trying your usual moves on her,” Adagio warned, half jokingly, “Sunset Shimmer has a low threshold of tolerance for BS.”

“Oh, you wound me. I’d never dream of trying to corrupt such an innocent flame. Unless, of course, she wanted me to,” Thorax replied, then gave a wicked smile that was all but basted in carnal charm. Charm that Adagio was mostly immune to. ...Mostly.

Luna was still making noise, nodding towards where Sunset Shimmer was. Adagio looked to where Luna was jutting her chin, and saw Sunset was now flying up at high speed, followed closely by Clover. Both Soul Reapers were heading towards the top of the towering tree. Meanwhile it looked as if the other Soul Reapers were regrouping towards Camp Everfree, while Fluttershy had taken to the air as well, leaping across the sky to head north back towards where Adagio and Thorax had come.

“She can’t be serious?” Adagio found herself saying as she watched Sunset and Clover reach the upper boughs of the tree and vanish from view, “Sunset, you thick skulled, stubborn hero,” she spat ‘hero’ like it was a foul curse, “Do you honestly think you can take on whoever is up there!?”

“Given the enthusiasm with which she and that green haired Soul Reaper went flying up there, I imagine they must think they have a chance,” Thorax said, shrugging, “Which means I might need to reevaluate their intelligence, even as I admire their moxie.”

“Fools are going to get themselves killed!” Adagio growled out, to which Thorax gave her an appraising glance.

“Perhaps, but is that really our business?”

Despite the question, the tone of his voice suggested he didn’t actually like the notion of Sunset Shimmer meeting an untimely end either, but rather he was testing to see how Adagio would respond. Not particularly in the mood for games, Adagio straightened up to her full height, matching Thorax’s gaze.

“We may not be allies, Sunset Shimmer and I, but we’re not strictly enemies either. She may even prove useful, down the road.”

Her eyes flicked towards Luna. Presumably the Captain wasn’t aware of the precise nature of Adagio and Sunset’s alliance, alongside Twilight Sparkle. Luna wouldn’t know that Sunset and her friends had directly aided in the plan to rescue Ember. Which was the real reason Adagio was now concerned for Sunset Shimmer’s life, despite the fact that they couldn’t really be considered friends. Sunset hadn’t needed to help Adagio at all. She could have let Adagio figure out how to save Ember, offering now assistance. Heck, helping probably put her and her group of gal-pals into far greater danger than if they’d stayed out of this mess.

Sunset Shimmer might not have been a friend, but Adagio owed her now.

The problem was that Adagio couldn’t be seen openly giving Sunset Shimmer or her friend’s help. Even if Thorax might keep his mouth shut, there were still possibly a handful of Guto’s warriors hanging around, and more importantly Grogar was still out there. Where was the despicable goat anyway?

Adagio focused her Pesquisa and searched. The last she’d sensed him he was somewhere to the east, fighting Celestia. However now she couldn’t sense either Celestia or Grogar. Had they somehow killed one another? That seemed unlikely. Grimacing, Adagio started searching elsewhere, starting with the north, where she’d last left Lament and Sweet Cider.

“What...?” Adagio breathed, and Thorax frowned.

“Something amiss?”

“Lament and that Sweet Cider woman are miles north of where we left them, and... both are considerably weakened,” Adagio said, her expression turning even more dour as she felt out more spiritual pressures. There was a huge number of conflicting pressures from Twilight Sparkle’s direction, but Adagio put that out of her mind for the moment to focus on the area Lament and Sweet Cider were in. “Applejack is there? Oh hell, Fenice is too!? When did she even-!? Wait... and this is... the annoying pink one? She’s not quite there but she’s heading that way, and... DAMMIT!”

Thorax, who’d started to sense in that direction with his own Pesquisa felt the same thing Adagio had, his voice souring, “Old man Grogar. It looks as if he’s given Celestia the slip and is heading towards the family get-together. I don’t imagine he’s planing anything cordial.”

“Really!? You think!?” Adagio hissed as she gripped her trident and pierced a nearby tree with it in pure frustrated rage, “That shriveled bastard is always planning something underhanded! I’m not about to let him get away with it. Not this time!”

“You’re going to openly fight a fellow Espada without Lord Tirek’s sanction?” Thorax questioned, and Adagio waved him off, yanking her trident out of the unfortunate tree, which split in half and fell.

“Of course not. I’m not stupid like some bacon headed nitwits around here! But I can ensure he doesn’t get whatever he’s after over there, and drag his sorry ass back to Hueco Mundo if I have to.”

Luna was making considerably more noise now, all but thrashing in her water prison and eyeing daggers towards both Adagio and Thorax, who looked to her. Thorax cleared his throat politely, “It seems Captain Luna wishes to speak.”

Adagio rolled her eyes, “Fine. We don’t have time for this.” She removed Luna’s water gag with a gesture, “Spit it out, whatever it is.”

“You have to let me go!” Luna gasped, “Right now! You’re correct that there’s no time to waste! Free me, and I’ll help Sunset Shimmer and Third Seat Clover face whatever Hollow has awoken!”

As if to emphasize what Luna was saying, there was a burst of differing spiritual pressures and magic from atop the tree, and Adagio sensed that a battle had begun up there, even if she couldn’t see it past all of the many gigantic and thick branches.

“You may be right...” Adagio said, but Thorax stepped into her view, expression suddenly like hard marble.

“What about my deal, Adagio Dazzle? I need Luna taken to Las Noches.”

“Do you?” Adagio asked sharply, “Why?”

“Because...” he hesitated, a slight flicker of doubt in his eyes as he glanced back towards Luna, “Because I need her where she can’t just walk away from me. Where I can make her listen to what I have to say.”

“I don’t care to hear anything that comes out of your lying mouth!” Luna said with a heated tone, but Adagio didn’t miss the strained hint of something else there. Hurt. An old wound giving off fresh pain.

Strangely... or perhaps fittingly, Thorax’s voice carried the same hint of pain as he said, “You see my point, Adagio? She won’t listen unless I have her as a literal captive audience. Adagio... I don’t do this often, but I’m begging you to give me this chance. This might be the only opportunity I’ll ever have to force Luna to hear me out! Once it’s done, I will free her immediately to return to Soul Society, you have my word.”

“She’d be a fool to trust you,” Luna said, “You’re just like your mother. Deceit flows from your every breath.”

“Do you actually believe that, Luna?” Thorax asked, stepping closer to her and putting his face so close to hers they could have likely felt each other’s breathing. “That I’m no different from Chrysalis?”

Luna didn’t immediately say anything, her open mouth ready to spit spite suddenly arrested by Thorax’s eyes, which she couldn’t look at directly for long before looking away silently.

Adagio, observing the body language of both, was getting a clearer and clearer picture of things. Only former lovers or family could cause quite this much injured feelings, and these two certainly weren’t related so that only left one other possibility. Adagio nearly exploded into a sigh at the absurdity of it all. Well, she had a solution, albeit an imperfect one. But it was either going to be her way, or no way at all, because there was zero time to screw around with this lover’s quarrel. She approached the sphere of water and floated it away from Thorax, circling it and Luna so that she was between the pair as she spoke.

“Before either of you say another word to each other, listen to me instead. I have a deal of my own, for both of you.”

That got both Thorax and Luna staring at her, Luna with her mouth open as if to say something but was clearly too perplexed to think of what to say, while Thorax crossed his arms over his delightfully toned chest and eyed Adagio with wariness flickering across his gaze.

Having both of their attention, Adagio continued swiftly, knowing at this point each passing minute was key.

“Luna, I will release you so you can go aid Sunset Shimmer, on two conditions. Condition one; you do not engage myself, Thorax, Lament, or any Hollow still present in the area who isn’t Grogar or whoever it is doing battle with Sunset. Condition two; you agree to meet with Thorax and hear out whatever he has to say to you on a mutually agreed upon neutral territory, at a time of his choosing.”

“But-” Thorax began, but Adagio turned to him with a whip crack in her eyes.

“I’m not finished. I have a condition for you as well. You swear to me right here and now that when you meet with Luna, you do nothing except talk. No tricks, no ambushes. You want her to hear you out, then you talk to her openly, on equal footing. That sound reasonable to you?”

“I’ll... give my word, but even if you believe me, Luna has made it clear she doesn’t trust me, so what reason would she have to agree to this deal?” Thorax said, but Luna cut in almost immediately.

“I accept.”

“You do?” Thorax blinked, but then frowned deeply, “Or are you just saying you will so Adagio will release you without any intention of actually following through?”

“You are the one who treats the truth like a canvas you can paint over at your leisure,” Luna said, “I keep my word, when given, and I swear it now, Adagio Dazzle, that if you release me, I shall fulfill my end of this bargain and meet with Thorax. Neutral ground, at a time he chooses. I will come alone, and hear out whatever he has to say.” Her eyes shot a flash of heated anger towards Thorax, “But nothing more.”

For a second Thorax and Luna stared each other down, then Thorax sighed and nodded, “I believe you. Very well, Adagio. Deal struck. I note you said nothing about the means to get to Equestria i spoke of earlier.”

“It intrigues me, but right now I needed this argument over and done with, so I wasn’t about to squabble with you over that detail,” Adagio said, “If you truly want a favor from me, we can negotiate on that matter once the present mess is cleaned up. For now, you’ll get your chance to patch up your bizarre relationship.”

“We are not in a relationship!” shouted Luna, cheeks flushed.

“It wasn’t quite like that,” Thorax said, at about the same time.

Adagio looked between them and chuckled without much humor in her tired tone, “Whatever you say. Not my business. Now then...”

She gestured, and relieved the water pressure on the sphere containing Luna, and the water splashed to the ground in an instant. The soaked Captain landed on the ground nimbly, and stretched her legs. Her Zanpaktou had hit the ground, and she retrieved it. Adagio and Thorax watched her, both somewhat on guard, but Luna just looked to Thorax with a carefully schooled expression of calm.

“Neutral ground, is it? Should it be... that place?”

Thorax actually looked vaguely nostalgic as he said, “That will be suitable. Only you and I know of it. I don’t know how long the fallout of today’s events will take to simmer down, but give me, say... five days, and I will be there. Say, at midnight?”

“Very well,” Luna said, pausing a moment to look at Adagio, “Keep in mind this doesn’t mean we won’t be foes the next time we see each other.”

“Never imagined otherwise,” Adagio replied coolly, then cracked a wry smirk, “Try not to die before then, Soul Reaper... and make sure Sunset Shimmer doesn’t, either?”

This elicited a small, rough chuckle from Luna as she turned towards the soaring heights of the tree dominating the center of the lake, “I shall do what I can. That appears to be all any of us can do.”

With that, Luna vanished, demonstrating once more the insane speed of her Flash Step. Adagio barely even caught a flicker of her soaring up towards the top of the tree, and towards the distant sound of roaring flames and explosive blasts of wind from clashing reiatsu. Whatever battle was taking place up there, it was certainly an intense one. Adagio just hoped Sunset Shimmer was sensible enough to prioritize survival over foolish heroics... oh who was she kidding? Sunset was going to Sunset.

For now, Adagio had other goats to fry. Figuratively, if unfortunately not literally.

“So what do you intend to do now?” Thorax asked.

“I have to go deal with Grogar. You’re free to assist me, or return to Las Noches in your Greta disguise. Then again, you might want to go look for Gilda. Not entirely sure what’s happened to that one.”

“Ah, I’d near forgotten about her myself,” Thorax said, “Last I saw, she’d been dealt a sound defeat by that rather pretty peach of a girl named Fluttershy. Still alive, from what I saw. I suppose I could go see about finding her, but then assisting you with Grogar sounds so much more... entertaining.”

“Do as you like, but follow my lead,” Adagio said, “For once I’d like to get the drop on Grogar.”

----------

And oh was it a sweet feeling to do exactly that.

Arrival at the mountain valley that was desolated by the battle between Lament and Sweet Cider had been a bit delayed as Adagio and Thorax had passed the area Twilight Sparkle had been battling in, but all that could be sensed there now was a strange mass of reiatsu that was clearly of Quincy origin, but that was all Adagio could sense without getting closer to get a visual. And she didn’t have time for that. Twilight would have to just take care of herself. Adagio could only be in so many places at once, and Grogar was the larger issue at the moment.

So it was that she and Thorax had arrived to witness the commencement of the battle between Grogar and, of all people, Pinkie Pie!

Adagio had needed all of her self control to keep from bursting out laughing at just how readily the pink madwoman’s unique powers were frustrating Grogar. She and Thorax remained hidden amid the treeline just outside the destroyed valley, planning and waiting for the right moment. Sweet Cider and Lament were both there, and while Adagio was worried about how badly Lament appeared to be injured and drained, she was more concerned about igniting another immediate fight if she didn’t plan out her actions just right. Weakened or not, Adagio didn’t want another brawl with Sweet Cider. It still confused Adagio how Fenice was here, but at least the girl was looking after her father, taking Lament away from the center of battle while Pinkie Pie and Grogar traded... well not blows so much as insults and random sparks of insanity.

There was also another Hollow present that Adagio didn’t recognize at all, but even as she surmised it might be one of Grogar’s “experiments”, the creature was all but torn to shreds by Applejack, who was sporting an impressive new set of armor and a ridiculous lance-gun that left Adagio shaking her head in wonderment. Regardless of how silly the weapon looked, there was no doubting Applejack’s newfound power. Sunset Shimmer’s friends were all gaining impressive abilities, and if Adagio wasn’t misjudging the reiatsu coming off Applejack then the Espada and Soul Reaper Captains had some new competition on the block.

Well, good for them. As long as I and Sunset Shimmer maintain an understanding with one another, this group could prove worthy allies when the time is right, she thought.

Then most of her thoughts consisted of numerous variations of “What the hell?” as Pinkie Pie had some kind of emotional pow-wow with her doppelganger self, upon which the pair appeared to merge together and, amid a pillar of light and explosion of reiatsu, evolved into the world’s most insane and overpowered jester. Once more, some satisfaction was had at seeing Grogar’s day worsen, and furthermore it provided the precise opening that Adagio and Thorax were planning for.

The entire time of observing Adagio had not failed to notice the shining red orb that Grogar seemed so keen upon and kept referring to as a ‘Seed’. She didn’t know where it came from, precisely, but the fact that it radiated an incredibly powerful spiritual pressure that held flavors of Lament’s energy, Adagio had some unpleasant guesses. So getting her hands on this ‘Seed’ became the focus of her plan, and opportunity presented itself while Pinkie Pie, with her fully evolved Fullbring, kept Grogar distracted while at the same time the Seed had ended up in Applejack’s hands. Now, granted, with Sweet Cider also present, there was a great deal of risk in what Adagio planned to do, but at this point the reward far outweighed the risk in her mind.

With Thorax given his marching orders, Adagio watched carefully for the precise moment that Applejack and Sweet Cider were both fully invested in watching Pinkie’s fight with Grogar, just as Pinkie was trying to hammer the old goat with some kind of charged up baseball.

Adagio had moved instantly, with the fastest Sonido she could muster, while summoning a wave of water from her trident.

Applejack, who’d been holding the Seed, had been taken completely by surprise, and Adagio had been able to sweep the orb up with ease, using her water to toss the Seed into her waiting hand as she blew past both Applejack and Sweet Cider.

A brief quip later and Adagio was left as the center of attention, orb in hand. The Seed pulsed warmly in her palm, it’s surface having a faint organic sensation on her fingers, almost like touching a piece of fruit rather than a gem or other hardened mineral. The power inside it had a tantalizing sensation, but Adagio wasn’t about to do anything drastic with it just yet. If this power was stolen from Lament, she’d be a poor ally if she ignored any chance of returning it to him, especially after all he’d gone through to help her today.

“Adagio!” Applejack shouted, looking as if she wasn’t entirely sure whether to level her massive lance towards the siren or not, “Give that back! Ya don’t know what it is!”

“Oh hey! It’s Adagio! Hi!” Pinkie Pie said, giving Adagio a rather uncomfortably wide grin as she waved. The odd half mask on her face shifted positions and colors, going from white to black, and Pinkie Pie’s eyes turned strangely serious, while still somehow retaining a mischievous glint, “Hope you’re here to make things easier to wrap up. Just don’t take too long, because I’m still pretty hungry.”

Adagio blinked at Pinkie Pie, trying to figure out what was up with the girl’s body language. She was as tense and rapid as a starving badger while still somehow retaining that airy, bouncy quality of unrestrained energy that was so similar to Sonata. Well, no matter, she was more annoyed that Sunset Shimmer’s two friends were being a tad too familiar, considering their respective roles in the plan. We’re not supposed to be on the same team, you two, so try to play your part a bit less familiar, would you? These girls have no acting chops whatsoever.

Then again given the stress they were under after having to deal with Grogar, Adagio could forgive them for not being able to fully maintain the facade. Making a dramatic gesture, Adagio pulled off an amply skilled laugh that conveyed a decent mix of satisfaction and amusement.

“Oh ho ho ho! You shouldn’t let your guard down so easily, Applejack. And why would I give this back? It looks so important, and Grogar was fighting ever so hard to get it back...” she shot a razor thin smirk towards the Espada in question, who was descending from the sky to land nearby, “Then again since he was losing to a mere human, perhaps he doesn’t deserve his little prize, whatever it is.”

“The human is right in one regard,” Grogar said in a tone so cold it was practically arctic, “You don’t know what it is you’re holding.”

He held out a hand towards Adagio, it’s smooth blue skin intermixed with bizarre machinery giving Adagio a moment of pause. She’d never witnessed Grogar’s Resurreccion form, for she had to assume that’s what this was, and the appearance of it only reinforced her disgust towards him. Even with his flesh revitalized with youth he still came off as something less charming than a freshly dug-up corpse, the wires, gears, metal plates, tubes, and bolts crossing over his flesh making him look like some wretched techno-zombie. And it still rankled Adagio to no end to see the false siren gem pulsing inside him, seemingly even stronger than what she’d sensed from it earlier.

There was no way in Tartarus, Hell, or any other lower plane one cared to name or invent that Adagio was going to let Grogar get his filthy hands on this ‘Seed’.

“No, I don’t, but I just somehow don’t feel quite comfortable with you touching it, Grogar, so I think I’ll be holding onto it for safekeeping,” Adagio replied in a smooth tone, and before he could reply she turned to look at Sweet Cider and Applejack. Sweet Cider was tense, her hands clutching two blades now. Adagio recognized the massive slab of Kizuna, but she didn’t know what the odd, rock formed bladed was. And Kizuna did look different now, which struck Adagio as odd. Just what had happened here, between Sweet Cider and Lament?

No matter, she had to make this quick.

“Captain Sweet Cider, Applejack... my orders from Lord Tirek were clear; test Canterlot City’s defenses. Well, all things considered I believe I’ve fulfilled that order quite thoroughly. Captain Luna is alive, if you must know. Sadly she escaped my clutches, being the clever Reaper that she is. Oh, curse those unpredictable shadow powers of hers. I’m merely here to retrieve my fellow Espada and effect a withdrawal to Hueco Mundo. Given we all seem quite at our limits, can I trust you won’t interfere with this?”

“Now hold on just a’ second there,” Sweet Cider said, “I don’t know what yer playin’ at, but don’t change that I need ya to give that red ball there ta me! My husband... ugh... that thing was yanked outta the guy ya call ‘Lament’ by that piece o’ trash behind ya!”

“Oh?” Adagio cast a look back to Grogar, “You harmed a fellow Espada?”

Grogar’s expression twitched, but his tone was smooth as glass as he said, “Lament lives, and its possible his power will recover. You have no leverage here, Adagio Dazzle. This action, to complete my experiment, was authorized by Lord Tirek, who is most interested in seeing the results.”

She didn’t like the sound of that, but kept her emotions in check as she pinned Grogar with a hard stare, “I wonder how much you told Lord Tirek about this ‘experiment’ of yours, and whether it might cost him the power of an Espada far greater than the mere Ninth’s? If Lament cannot recover, you’ve cost Las Noches much to complete your science project.”

Grogar kept up his poker face, but Adagio could see the tick of nervousness in his eyes, even if he wasn’t quite sweating bullets, “Rest assured, Lord Tirek will see the value of my research, and he will be quite displeased by anyone who interferes with my completing it. So, give me the Seed, and I’ll forego any mention of your ‘alliance’ with the Quincy.”

“The alliance with Quincy!?” Sweet Cider blurted, and Adagio, knowing she needed to take control of this conversation, threw her head back and laughed.

“Oh Grogar, are you actually trying to threaten me with that? As if my manipulation of our enemy is something I should be ashamed of rather than proud? I was planning to inform Tirek of my great success in turning our enemies against one another anyway, but if you want to sing my praises, by all means, I won’t stop you.”

“What?” Grogar said, and Adagio took advantage of his momentary confusion, thrusting her trident to the south to point the direction of both Camp Everfree and Twilight Sparkle’s battle.

“Look, you old fool! The Quincy fight the Soul Reapers and each other! Chaos ensues, costing our foes and buying us time to retreat. All according to my design. Even if you hadn’t been here, I had everything thought through. I used the Quincy, used the Soul Reapers, hah, I even used Sunset Shimmer and her collection of misfits to orchestrate the ideal scenario to test this city’s defenders while maximizing the damage they’d do to themselves. Do you think Tirek is going to care if I pretended to befriend a young, naive Quincy girl to help me rescue Torch’s daughter while snubbing some of the most powerful Soul Reapers in the city, defeating one of them in the process? Fool, Tirek will shower me with praise if he has half a lick of sense in his head.”

The thing about natural schemers and deceivers is that they’re always more willing to believe someone else is just as they are. Of course Adagio hadn’t planned all of what had occurred today, but she didn’t have to in order to make it sound like she had. All she had to do was point out the parts the benefited her and make it seem like those were the only results that she’d wanted, while carefully ignoring any mention of the numerous ways things could have turned out differently or didn’t benefit her, and a mind like Grogar’s, or indeed Tirek’s, would string together their own conclusions. She could all but see the dots being connected in Grogar’s mind as his eyes first narrowed, then grew thoughtful, then slowly widened.

“An... actually decent scheme. Yet it does not change the fact that the Seed is mine, and Tirek will not allow you to keep it. Only I know the secret to unlocking its potential power.”

“Perhaps that is so, but for now, I shall hold onto it. We’ll see what Lord Tirek has to say on the matter upon our return. Speaking of which... Lament! Fenice! Get over here if you would! We are leaving!”

From the far edge of the valley she could see Fenice emerge from the tree-line, Lament still draped over her shoulders. It actually caused an unexpected pang of regret and worry in Adagio's heart to see the Fourth Espada in such condition, especially as Fenice drew closer and the full extent of Lament’s injuries became apparent.

Ignoring what anyone present thought of it, Adagio went up and placed a hand on Lament’s shoulder as the main raised his head weakly towards her.

“Lament, you truly went all out here, didn’t you?”

He offered her a small wisp of a smile, “It was... a more personal matter than I was expecting. Did you rescue your friend?”

Adagio nodded, closing her eyes briefly as she smiled, “Yes. Ember’s safe, largely thanks to you. I won’t forget the fact, you can be certain of that.”

“Heh... good,” he said, then turned his eyes towards Sweet Cider, their depths filled with such a swirl of emotions that Adagio couldn’t make all of them out, but love shone brightest among them.

“It may be awhile before we see each other again, hun,” Lament said, and Sweet Cider gave him a slow, saddened nod.

“I know, Hard Nail. Ya got some things ta work out. When yer ready, ya know how ta get ahold o’ me,” she then shot a fiery gaze at Grogar, “An’ you better not think o’ messin’ with my family, ‘cause even yer high n’ mighty ‘Lord’ Tirek wouldn’t stop me from bustin’ down Las Noches’ doors an’ chopping yer filthy head in two. Only lettin’ ya crawl back now cause...”

“Because you’re drained to the point of barely being a threat,” Grogar provided with a scoffing noise, “And I’m only letting you go because... oh wait, I don’t have a reason, do I? Adagio, remind me again why we shouldn’t be killing a nearly dead Soul Reaper Captain? Care to explain to me how that fits into your plan, once we report it to Lord Tirek?”

“Oh, that’s easy,” Adagio said, already gesturing to open up a wide enough Garganta portal for all of them to step through, “Because Celestia is back and on her way here.”

“...Wait, what?” Grogar said, only a few moments before Captain Celestia appeared in the sky above and then landed in front of Sweet Cider and Applejack with a rather dramatic pose, hand sweeping out before going to the hilts of her Zanpaktou.

“Don’t fear, Captain Sweet Cider, young Applejack and Pinkie Pie, for I am here!”

Adagio suppressed a grimace and turned to Grogar quickly, eyes sharp, “Unless you want to face her and whatever reinforcements she’s brought, flee now. Or stay here and die. I’ll gladly be rid of you.”

As if she didn’t care at all which decision he made, she stepped into the Garganta and for good measure aimed a lazily charged Cero back towards Celestia while shouting, “Lament, Fenice, into the portal, now!”

While Lament gave Sweet Cider and Applejack one last look, as if trying to imprint the images of them on his mind, Fenice helped him into the Garganta while Adagio discharged her Cero. The thick, ruby beam swept towards Celestia, who clashed with the beam with both her Zanpaktou, dispersing the energies without any apparent difficulty.

Grogar hesitated a moment, but then eyed the Seed Adagio still carried, and with a growl of frustration followed her into the Garganta, his face a scowling visage that promised retribution upon those who had interfered with his plans that day; Hollow, Soul Reaper, and Fullbringer alike.

Adagio showed no concern for his rancor. If anything she smirked at him without hiding any the the delight she felt as his frustrations. Indeed, Adagio was drinking in Grogar’s spite like it was the finest aged wine. While matters were far from settled between them, she was enjoying this victory, however precarious it might be. If she played things right, she could erode Grogar’s favor with Tirek, bit by bit. Sooner or later, she’d be able to enact her final vengeance, without worrying about retribution from the ruler of Las Noches. It was just a matter of time, now...

As a sneering Grogar moved further into the Garganta, Adagio turned a final look to those still standing outside it’s precipice in the world of the living.

She didn’t like having to step out of things before it was all truly resolved, but she had... well, not ‘faith’ per se, but a sense of a decent bet that Sunset Shimmer and her band of odd-balls would survive. She held similar feelings towards Twilight Sparkle. Whatever trouble that Quincy girl had run into, she was smart enough to get herself out of it.

But for now, Adagio’s part in these affairs was over, for better or worse. It was time for her to return to Hueco Mundo and start making what she could out of the results. Granted, there were a few loose ends, such as Gilda’s whereabouts, and the true identity of the powerful newcomer and just what they were doing sending all that magical power out west. Adagio would just have to trust in her new accomplice to continue being as competent as he made himself out to be.

So, with a final wink to Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Sweet Cider, Adagio closed the Garganta portal.

----------

With the abrupt departure of the Espada, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Sweet Cider were all left to equal measures of relief and exhaustion. Applejack slammed her lance’s tip into the ground, more to make it easier to lean on it to catch her breath than to express anger, although her voice was still heated, “That dang Adagio better figure a’ way to heal up pa, otherwise...”

“They seem ta be allies in Las Noches,” Sweet Cider said, breathing heavily as she wiped sweat and blood off her face with a torn sleeve, “I just hope Hard Nail knows what he’s doin’, trustin’ her like that. At any rate, thanks fer the save, Captain Celestia. Ya had perfect timin’ there.”

“But of course,” Celestia said, turning with a very... un-Celestia-like strut that flowed into a bow as she sheathed her Zanpaktou, “It went precisely as Adagio hoped it would, and I do so love to play the ‘hero’ on occasion.”

“Uhhh... what?” Applejack said, and Pinkie Pie walked over, shouldering her hammer and smiling at ‘Celestia’.

“Heeey, you’re not a bad jokester, but don’t stretch out the punchline too long. The Apples are really all about the honesty, you know? Of course...” she ran a finger on Celestia’s neck, which seemed to take Celestia by surprise as Pinkie Pie licked said finger with a grin, “You weren’t hiding your flavor very well. You’re lucky Grogar was too panicked to notice.”

“Well well well, it looks like one of Sunset Shimmer’s friends might make for an excellent party guest someday,” said Celestia, and in an instant a wash of emerald fire flowed over ‘her’, only to reveal an onyx skinned man with sinfully well structured proportions, flowing green hair, an Arrancar’s skull fragment in the shape of a beetle-like helmet, and a smile that made Applejack both want to punch him and find out if he was available that Saturday night. Applejack was amazed by the fact that even the Arrancar's reiatsu had shifted with the change. When he'd been disguised, he'd even emitted spiritual pressure that had felt like Celestia's.

“You!?” Sweet Cider sputtered, readying her Zanpaktou and Fullbring, but the man just bowed again, nonplussed.

“Thorax, madame Captain. I do have a name, you recall? I do hope we can avoid any further unnecessary fighting, given I just helped Adagio ensure Grogar didn’t try any further violence. He likely wouldn’t have left unless he felt sufficiently threatened, so I took Celestia’s form for a bit. Don’t tell her, okay? I’m not keen on being roasted alive.”

“Ugh, was what Adagio said ‘bout Captain Luna true?” Sweet Cider asked, not dropping her guard.

“More or less. She’s no longer in our custody, and is currently helping Sunset Shimmer and another Soul Reaper do battle with a rather frightful new enemy. If you weren’t so drained and focused on Grogar, perhaps you’d be sensing it?” Thorax said, and the Soul Reaper and two Fullbringers all exchanged looks before stretching out their senses back south, across the many miles towards Camp Everfree.

Soon enough they all felt the waves of powerful reiatsu that now clashed there, including the potent Hollow pressure from something easily stronger than Grogar had been.

“Whan n’ tarnation is that?” Applejack breathed.

Pinkie Pie’s half-mask fluctuated back and forth across her face several times as she appeared to have a conversation with herself.

“Oooo, that’s not good. I’m getting some serious toe twitches and tickly tongue vibes from there! Sunset and Clover are in real trouble!”

“This reiatsu smells like a Hollow but I’m getting a taste of magic in it. Mmm, a lot of magic. Say, doesn’t this kinda smell like that Gloriosa chick?”

“Yup, and it’s making me real hungry, too. But we’ve got no time for snacks while our friends are in danger.”

“Speaking of which, got something stale and antiseptic smelling in that direction too, thinking it’s Quincy.”

Applejack held up ah and and waved it in front of Pinkie Pie’s face, “Whoa, hold up there, let’s try n’ focus on one crisis at a’ time. Also, what’s goin’ on with you, Pinkie? Is Pinkamena still in there, or what?”

The black mask took over for a second as Pinkie Pie licked her lips, “Think of it like this, Applejack. Pinkamena and Pinkie Pie were living in two different ‘buildings’ and had to split their resources playing utilities and rent for them. But now we’re living under the same roof, which is how it should be. More cost efficient. We’re basically roomies now.”

The white mask took shape and Pinkie Pie giggled, “She’s already moving furniture around any everything. Maybe I should get a pinball machine installed? But it’s okay, me and Mena are together, and that’s all that matters.”

“And,” she said as the black mask flowed back, “When we feel like it, you know for funsies, we can do neat stuff-”

“-like this,” her voice whispered in Applejack’s ear, followed by a wet lick that made the other girl jump and whirl about to face what looked like a while barbershop quartet of Pinkie Pies and Pinkamenas. She could see dark pink shadows stretching from the ‘main’ Pinkie Pie, forming upward into the duplicates.

“We can make more of ourselves,” one of the duplicates said, “Not many, mind you. Just enough for a good prank or two, but could be fun-”

“-or deadly-” said another.

“-or super sexy,” said a third, who got weird looks from the other three, “Whaaat? C’mon, do you have any idea the things we could do with this and a decent supply of Nutella!?”

“Pinkie Pie, Pinkamena,” said Applejack, “Could ya do me a huge favor an’ just pretend I never asked?”

The four duplicates all chuckled and were reabsorbed back into Pinkie Pie, who bounced her reforged hammer over her shoulder and said, “No promises.”

Sweet Cider looked utterly baffled, but also adopted the look of something who’d decided it wasn’t worth questioning and said, “Both of ya girls listen up. If there’s still a’ fight ta be had, and Captain Luna’s already engaged alongside yer friends, then we got ta git movin’ ourselves. You,” she turned to Thorax, “Ya ain’t gonna be no more trouble?’

“I have one or two bits of business to wrap up here before following Adagio back to Hueco Mundo, but you have my word I have no intention of interfering with any further Soul Reaper business this day,” Thorax replied. Sweet Cider gripped her blades tighter and looked ready to argue, but Applejack put a hand on her mother’s arm, drawing her attention.

“Ma, let ‘im be. We ain’t got time nor energy ta be dealin’ with extra trouble. Yer hurt, barely standin’, and quite frankly I ain’t certain I even want ya followin’ me n’ Pinkie inta the fight.”

“Girl, ya ain’t ‘bout ta start coddlin’ yer own ma-” Sweet Cider began, but Applejack cut her off.

“Ain’t coddlin’ and ya know it! Took everythin’ ya had to fight pa to a’ standstill! I ain’t ‘bout to ruin us gettin’ him back by lettin’ you git killed in a fight ya got no energy for. Me n’ Pinkie are still... well we ain’t fresh, but we ain’t used up as much as you have. I know you can sense it, so don’t be mule headed ‘bout this!” Applejack said, giving her mother a hard poke in the shoulder to emphasis her words. Given the poke was hard enough to actually make the massive, muscular woman back up an involuntary step, her weakened body swaying, Sweet Cider was forced to concede her daughter wasn’t wrong.

Didn’t mean she had to like it. Her face was sour as she grumbled, “Just cause yer right don’t mean ya got ta go pokin’ yer ma when she’s injured. Coulda swore I taught ya some manners, hayseed, or is Granny slackin’ off?”

“Pfft, as if Granny would ever slack off on manners,” Applejack said, “Now are ya gonna keep arguin’ with me ma, or are ya gonna wait here n’ rest while me n’ Pinkie go take care o’ business with our friends?”

“If I’m restin’, I’m still doin’ it in eyeshot o’ the action,” Sweet Cider huffed, “I’ll follow ya ta Camp Everfree, then we’ll see what’s what, an’ that’s final missy!”

Applejack bit her lower lip for a second, then with a gruff sigh she nodded, “Fair ‘nough. Pinkie, ya good ta go?”

“Ready, steady, betty!”

“...I’ll assume that’s a’ yes,” Applejack said. She then canted her head as she heard something that sounded like the rapid approach of a fighter jet, but the sound of roaring wind turned out to be no hyper-sonic plane, but Rainbow Dash.

Appearing amid a flash of lightning that cut a blinding, cobalt line of light across the sky, Rainbow Dash hammered a ground-shattering landing into the valley floor, her lighting spear crackling in her hands.

“Okay where’re the Hollows at!? I’m here to...” the girl blinked confused magenta eyes upon only seeing her two friends, Captain Sweet Cider, and one Arrancar present who instead of looking ready to fight just smiled and waved at her.

“Hello,” said Thorax.

Rainbow Dash blinked again, sliding her gaze towards Applejack as she edged towards the farm girl, her spear pointed at Thorax.

“AJ... is he cool? I don’t know which ones we’re supposed to treat like bad guys right now,” Rainbow Dash tried to whisper, but did so loud enough that everyone present could hear her. Sweet Cider’s eyebrow shot up, and Applejack ran an armored hand over her face.

“He ain’t a threat fer now,” Applejack said, eyeing Thorax, “Right?”

He held his hands out to his sides, palms out. His eyes twinkled with amusement, “I prefer not to repeat myself, but for the sake of your newly arrived friend, I’ll reiterate I have no desire to have any further unneeded engagements. I merely wish to take care of a few loose ends I told Adagio I’d look into, and then I’ll be gone. Chances are none of you will even notice I’m here while dealing with your more pressing concerns.”

Rainbow Dash eyed him carefully. This guy was giving her distinct impressions of some of the more snooty guys she’d met from Crystal Prep during the Friendship Games, including a few pretty-faced playboys that had tried hitting on her. She got the impression that this guy was going to rub her the wrong way, but she glanced to Applejack, shooting the farmgirl a silent question. She’d trust Applejack’s lead on this.

“Fine then,” Applejack said, more or less taking charge of the situation, “Then git goin’ and don’t make me regret trustin’ ya, ‘cause believe you me, it ain’t my ma ya got ta worry ‘bout if you go breakin’ yer word to an’ Apple!”

A fresh wave of hot, potent reiatsu rose inside Applejack, covering her in a golden glow. Rainbow Dash let out a low whistle of appreciation, impressed with what she was feeling. She’d been getting tired of being the only one with her Fullbring complete. It felt good to see her friends catch up, and it renewed Rainbow Dash’s confidence that they could get through today.

Thorax appeared equally impressed and offered a last bow, “Consider me warned, Miss Applejack. I hope the next time we meet, it will be under more pleasant circumstances. Well then ladies, I bid you all adieu, and good luck.”

He blinked out of view, the buzz of Sonido filling the air as he departed.

“I like that guy,” said Pinkie Pie, and a moment later as her black mask formed, “He’d be fun to unwrap, but maybe a bit rich for even my tastes. Probably better to let people like Adagio deal with guys like that.”

“Ugh, Pinkie, what are you even talking about?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Dudes like that are the worst! They’re always so full of themselves. Like, ‘oh, look at me, I have abs, fall at my feet’. Not my type.”

“So what is your type, Dashie?” asked Pinkie Pie.

“I dunno, someone awesome, but doesn’t have to show it off all the time!”

“Should I even be tryin’ ta point out the irony o’ that statement, Dash?” said Applejack, but she shook her head and added, “We ain’t got time fer talkin’ ‘bout our preferences anyhows! Sunset’s in trouble!”

Rainbow Dash’s eyes flashed with remembrance, “Oh crap that’s right! Me and Rarity were coming to get you guys, but we ran into this weird sphere thing that’s got Twilight trapped in it fighting another Quincy! Like, a really powerful Quincy!”

“Where’s Rarity then?” asked Applejack, and she saw a paleness come over Rainbow Dash’s face. The athlete immediately became dodgy as she looked at the ground, her entire body tensing up.

“Y-yeah, well, Rarity stayed by the sphere to keep an eye on things. Said I should come get you guys and we’d all meet up there and figure out what to do.”

Something was wrong. Applejack could see right through Rainbow Dash, almost as if her instincts for detecting falsehoods had become sharper. Her friend wasn’t lying, exactly, but she was hiding something. Something very important, about Rarity.

“Dash, what’s wrong?” Applejack asked, and she could all but see Dash’s breathing increase and her brow start to break out in sweat droplets.

“Nngg... nothing... l-look Applejack, please don’t ask about it, okay? I promised Rarity I’d keep my mouth shut, so I’m keeping it shut,” Rainbow Dash said, gulping, but also looking determined. Loyal. A girl who would not betray a promise. “Y-yeah there’s something wrong. But it’s not my place to say it. Okay?”

Applejack didn’t know what to make of this. She’d never seen Rainbow Dash quite this nervous about something, yet equally determined not to talk about it. Then Pinkie Pie’s entire body shuddered like she’d been hit with an electrical charge. From the tip of her toes all the way up to her poofs of pink hair, Pinkie Pie shuddered, her eyes dilating rapidly and her mouth popped open into a shocked ‘O’.

“Pinkie?”

“...No way...” Pinkie Pie said, sagging down like a deflated balloon, “Nononononono, whydidn’tIfeelit? Why didn’t my Pinkie Sense warn me!? I would’ve gone over there instead!”

“Pinkie what n’ tarnation are ya goin’ on ‘bout!?”

“Rarity, she’s-” Pinkie Pie stiffened, the mask shifting back and forth across her face, going white to black and back again several times before it finally settled on black and Pinkie Pie calmed. Her body stopped shaking and she stood, now holding her hammer tight in her hands as she fixed Rainbow Dash with a hard, mad light in her eyes.

“Rarity told you not to say anything?” Pinkie Pie said in a careful tone, and Rainbow Dash, looking a tad shaken, nodded.

Pinkie Pie heaved out a sigh and looked at Applejack, “Trust Rarity, then. She’ll talk about it when she’s ready. We should get going now. We’ve used up enough time on playing catch up with the plot.”

Confusion warred inside Applejack, alongside a cold fear at what she was starting to suspect. But ultimately Pinkie Pie was right, and so was Rainbow Dash. Whatever was going on with Rarity, if she didn’t want anything said about it, she needed to trust her friend’s call on that. Right now, they had bigger problems to deal with.

“Right the, first we link up with Rarity, n’ figure out if we can do anythin’ ta help out Twilight. Failin’ that, we move on ta find Fluttershy, then help Sunset deal with whatever is goin’ on back at Camp Everfree,” she said, hefting her lance and looking between those gathered, “So let’s git ta movin’!”

Moment’s later the devastated mountain valley was empty save for the scars of the fierce battle that had been fought there.

Episode 122: Heir of the Quincy

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Episode 122: Heir of the Quincy

Somewhere in Europe, roughly six centuries ago...

She sang for the congregation, as she always did. The village was built around it’s church, a collection of simple buildings that clustered up against the humble stone church with it’s single bell that tolled each day. She had few talents outside of a voice that could reach Heaven, or so the pastor told her with his kind smile. Much kinder than her parents, neither of whom had much use for a third daughter, let alone one too frail and weak to handle many chores at the farm, one of many that dotted the hilly fields surrounding the village. So the child found her worth by singing for the people who came to the church, and helping the kind pastor with the happy smile with getting around town. He was an old man, who could not walk well, even with his stout wooden cane.

That morning was the same as many others that summer. Clear of clouds, with a hazy heat that baked the ground. Little wonder many sought the church’s comfort. It was a hotter summer than most, and many waited and prayed to the Lord for rain to come.

But no rain came that morning either. Instead, the soldiers came.

She remembered the pounding upon the church doors, so thunderous and loud that it startled her mid-note. Heads turned, fearful, uneasy. Rumors had spread all through the village of the wars. To the girl’s ears the stories sounded so distant. Things for cities and places more important than a nameless village in the middle of nowhere. But in one sharp instant a new, bloody reality entered the girl’s life. It was etched in her mind like char on wood. The pastor’s kind demeanor, never changing even as he asked the men in armor and bearing naked swords what they wanted, his calm never wavering even as villagers were dragged out and lined up in the dusty streets outside.

The girl was taken outside as well, and she remembered the pain in her arm as the soldier gripped too tightly, bruising flesh as she was thrown together with the others. In the way children do, she asked nicely if the soldiers wanted to hear her sing?

They didn’t.

She had no idea what provoked them. Why the slaughter began. Why the burning started. It was like there was no reason for it at all. Just a matter of course, to the soldiers in their shiny armor, and blood stained swords. Did they want food? Did they seek to alleviate boredom? Was the village part of the soldier’s enemy country? Did they not love the same God? These were questions the girl asked herself later, but in the moment, there was only fear, and prayer for deliverance.

And deliverance came. It came in a flash of darkness.

The girl remembered the blood on her face as the soldier who had shoved her to the ground fell away, his chest pierced by an arrow of pure black.

The soldiers were fleeing in terror, cut down one at a time by arrows, mostly of shining blue, but the girl’s eyes followed the black arrows, which seemed to seek the soldiers with a wrathful fury. None of the soldiers in their bright armor survived, and in there place came new soldiers. These were men (and women!?) not in armor, but in white uniforms as pure as snow. In their hands gleamed bows of ethereal blue, captivating the girl.

Then from among them rode a man upon a midnight black horse, his own sooty skin matching that of his steed. Without being told, she knew this was the man who fired the black arrow that saved her life. Without being told, she knew to consider this man her ‘Savior’.

His first words to her were spoken in a soft voice, kind like the pastor, who had been among the first to die.

“I’m sorry, child. We should have been here sooner. Do you know where your parents are?”

At the farm, she assumed, but seeing all the smoke in the sky, she realized much more might be burning than the village. The kind man, her Savior, reached down with his hand to her, his smile unwavering, “Come, we’ll find them, if we can. If not, you will have a place among us.”

He was true to his word. They found her parents, although they were no longer among the living. And he did give her a place among his own people, as he did all of the survivors of that village and others that suffered during the wars that plagued Europe at the time. The girl grew older, and the fervor born in her heart that day to serve and protect her Savior grew with her. She devoted herself, mind, heart, body, and soul to him, and in time, became favored in his eyes.

She learned the arts of the Quincy. She earned her place as a Sternritter. She sang for him, when she could, still her truest talent, in her eyes.

She served faithfully alongside her King, her Savior, on and on through the decades. She understood that to grow the Quincy’s power required generations of inheritance, but in a few cases, certain talents and skills were preserved in an individual like herself, including the uniqueness of her Schrift. Although she harbored a deep held desire to still contribute to the bloodlines of the Quincy, there was only one who she would ever consider bearing a child for.

Yet he fell in love with another. Radiant Hope. A name impossible for her to forget.

No other person alive could have been more hated by Sapphire Shores, yet also loved, for she knew the peace that Radiant Hope brought to her Savior; King Sombra. Sapphire Shores even willingly and happily officiated their wedding, for how could she not? The man she loved with all her soul was happy, so the fact that he chose another... meant nothing.

Nothing, until the visions. Her Schrift’s unique power gave her glimpses of what could, or even likely would, be. Sombra did not rely on her visions but also did not ignore them when she brought them to his attention. She considered herself his ‘prophetess’, but he grasped that the future was ever in flux. It meant that telling him every vision she had was not always the wisest course, or so she believed. She had to serve him in her own way, and protect him from threats he might not wish to acknowledge.

That was when certain Quincy might have... accidents. In battle, usually. It was easier that way. Seeds of rebellion were silenced early. Bloodlines that would lead to erratic deviations in Quincy powers were cut off before the parents could even meet each other. Like a gardener tending to weeds, Sapphire Shores helped her King, her Savior, the man she loved, tend his garden without him even knowing it. Most of the time it was easy to cover up a death as an unfortunate loss in battle, or a freak accident, or sudden Hollow ambush. And most of the time she didn’t have to go that far. Even a few well chosen words could dissuade certain Quincy from matching with each other, altering bloodlines, or quash thoughts that ran counter to Sombra’s designs.

The only time she regretted having her power was when she’d seen the future of Radiant Hope and King Sombra. It was the only time she’d doubted her vision, and failed to act upon it. In some ways, that alone cost Radiant Hope her life. But that, too, prevented the disaster Sapphire Shores’ foresaw. .

An heir who would slay her own father? Unbelievable. Yet the vision had been clear. Radiant Hope had been with child, and if the child had been born, she would have grown into one who would usurp and destroy her father.

To this day Sapphire Shores could not decide whether she’d actively desired Radiant Hope’s death or not. She hadn’t plotted it. Hadn’t planned it, like she had with others. No, she simply... didn’t act, when the time came. When her vision also granted her insight to an ambush upon the field hospital that Radiant Hope was overseeing, while Sombra was away mounting a defense against a Hollow incursion elsewhere, all Sapphire Shore had to do was keep silent and let events play out. Sombra still tried to save his love, of course, and nearly succeeded, if not for Soul Reaper interference. In the aftermath, no one could cast blame at Sapphire Shores.

After all, her visions didn’t always come when she wanted them to.

Sapphire Shores had hated herself for a long time for her indecision, and could do nothing to sooth her Savior’s pain and rage in the days to follow. Yet she’d felt certain over time that what occurred that day removed a threat, one too large to be ignored.

Or so she had thought. She had never anticipated that not only would Radiant Hope’s soul be reborn both among the Soul Reapers and the Quincy, but that the unborn child’s soul would also be reborn in the form of Twilight Sparkle. And unbeknownst to Sombra, Sapphire Shore’s visions showed her what lurked inside Twilight; the Eye.

An unholy amalgamation, in Sapphire Shore’s view. A part of Radiant Hope's soul, the Eye of the Soul Queen, and the nascent soul of the heir that was destined to slay King Sombra. All born together into a young Quincy girl who’s raw talent and power was only further bastardized and given unholy might by the foreign magic from the world of Equestria.

If she’d been indecisive when it came to Radiant’ Hope’s death, that indecision faded rapidly in the face of the resurgent vision that Twilight Sparkle would bring about her King’s downfall.

If Night Light and Twilight Velvet weren’t both so utterly vigilant and protective of their daughter, Sapphire Shores may well have found a way to snuff Twilight Sparkle out early in the girl’s life, but the opportunity never presented itself. In fact, rather infuriatingly, the girl’s existence confounded the power of her Quintessence. She could still sense the terrible conclave of reishi interactions that would lead to King Sombra’s death, still sense the moment to moment interactions around the child, but longer term predictions elsewhere were a muddled mess.

It made planning her assassination far more difficult than it had any right to be. It meant that, after repeated failures by her fellow conspirators, Sapphire Shores had thrown away all sense of consequence of caution and decided to end this matter herself.

Whatever happened to her after this was irrelevant. She would gladly accept execution at the hands of her Savior. After all, Sombra had given her new life, he had every right to take it away. But not until after he was safe from the abomination that was Twilight Sparkle.

----------

Ethereal silver light poured forth from the place Sapphire Shores had been standing, as if the glow of a thousand moons had been distilled into a churning sea of light. Twilight Sparkle could all but choke upon the spiritual pressure flowing from that spot, and felt a slender, icicle stab of unease in her heart. Even with Cadence by her side, and Soarin and Filthy Rich ready to fight as well, with Starswirl also an ally if only for the moment... Twilight still felt as if it wasn’t enough for what was coming.

“Cadence,” she said, knowing time was short, “Tell me, what are we actually facing?”

Her friend, usually so ready with a comforting smile or a casual quip was now wearing a mask of stiff dread, “The Vollstandig of a Schuztstaffle does more than increase a Quincy’s power. It removes any barrier between their human body and their soul, and brings out the full power of the Schrifts granted to us by His Majesty. To use it leaves one permanently changed, no longer able to fully return to being human... Sapphire Shores, she has cast aside her humanity to kill us.”

“Then we’d best do all in our power to kill her right back,” Filthy Rich said, exposing his Sanrei Glove, light already pouring from it’s Quincy cross, “Because I certainly have no plans to die today!”

Soarin looked to Cadence and nodded, raising his own hand with his Sanrei Glove upon it. Cadence, still grim faced, did the same, but looked swiftly to Twilight as the girl started to expose her own Sanrei Glove.

“No Twilight, you can’t do that.”

“But what else can do I?” Twilight said, not able to keep the desperate strain out of her voice, “The only other option is magic...”

As if understanding just what Twilight meant, Cadence forcibly shuddered until she was able to bring out a calming smile, “Then use magic, Twilight. You’re the only one who can, and it’s something you understand better than anyone here. Let the rest of us protect you in the only way we can, so you can find a way to win this.”

She wanted to ask ‘What if I can’t?’, but Twilight had grown past the point where she could allow herself that question. Her friends, her family, her own life, all of it was on the line, now. A memory of her mother’s fallen body, surrounded by blood, played through Twilight’s mind. Never again would she let someone she cared for die in front of her. There was no more time for doubts. Cadence was right. Twilight was the only one who could use magic, and magic was the only weapon here that could hope to grant them an edge against Sapphire Shores.

Tell me you’re ready, because I sure as hell know I am, said Midnight in her mind, and Twilight responded with a quiet nod.

You win. I’ll trust you. But we have to wait until the right moment, when Sapphire Shores’ guard will be down. So please wait, just a bit longer, and give me what magic you can until we get our opening. Then... you can hit her with everything you’ve got.

Midnight laughed in her mind, Music to my ears. Well then, let’s see what this bitch can do.

Around her three pillars of solid white light sprang up as Soarin, Filthy Rich, and Cadence all activated their own Vollstandigs. A few moments of blinding light played out and Twilight was able to see all three Sternritter emerge from their pillars of light in full, gleaming glory. She recalled Cadence’s appearance from the brief time she’d seen her in Las Noches, with the four butterfly shaped wings of scintillating light, the heart shaped halo, and crystalline blue armor ending in an ornate arm bow of the same material.

Soarin’s Vollstandig was far less ostentatious by comparison, consisting of two wings formed from what looked like streaks of cloud, forked through with blue bolts of light. His halo was a similar, circular wisp of cloud, filled in the center by the shape of a Quincy cross. Upon his uniform were wafting trails of cloud that seemed to react to every tiny vibration in the air. In Soarin’s hand his bow, shaped like a pair of feathered wings, also trailed wisps of cloud-like white reishi.

Grid-like patterns of gold light flowed from the three wings appearing upon Filthy Rich’s back, which were shaped like elongated hexagons, one forming from each shoulder and the third rising directly from the center of his back. A golden waistcoat, trimmed in white, formed over his uniform and connected to his wings through long, gold wires that rose from the chest and wrapped over his shoulders. The shape of his halo was a gold Quincy cross, but at it’s front end it extended down a glass-like screen over Filthy Rich’s left eye, which shone with scrawls of glowing text. His ‘bow’, or rather his musket, was held up in a ready-to-fire position, it’s form altered now to incorporate multiple glowing hexagons of reishi attached along the length of it’s barrel.

A voice hammered the air like an echo bounced across a vast cavern, Sapphire Shore’s humming tone reaching out from the center of the dazzling light in front of the group.

“It is tragic, truly. All I ever desired was to serve my King, but to do so I’ve had either the choice to turn a blind eye to all that could harm him, or do what only I could do. I’m am the King’s Prophet, for my eyes see through to the truth. Twilight Sparkle, I know what you really are. It is not your fault that you were born. Yet it is a mistake I must correct, here, and now...”

Twilight hadn’t known what to expect to see once the gleaming light finally dimmed, and she for a moment wasn’t certain what to make of what she was looking at once it had. Vollstandig certainly changed a Quincy’s appearance to a degree, but mostly that was in the form of the wings, a halo, some minor cosmetic alterations to one’s clothes or bow perhaps. But this... what Sapphire Shores had become...?

The first obvious difference was her size. Sapphire Shore’s body was now easily three times it’s original height, and she hadn’t been a short woman to begin with. That by itself might not have been strange, as Rutherford’s Schrift let him grow to prodigious heights, but there was far more than that in terms of changes. Sapphire’s skin, indeed her entire body, had gained a silver, metallic sheen, as if she was a statue cast from pure metal. Upon her body was etched engravings of wings and eyes, a massive Quincy cross forged in the center of her chest, it’s five points each bearing a shining white eye. Her elfin features were similarly cast in silver, a metal beauty, but whose eyes were covered in silver wings that grew from the back of her head and wrapped around to form a feathery blindfold for her once human eyes. More wings sprouted from her back, eight in total, and they too were formed from silver, yet had a more liquid quality, like mercury trying to hold a solid shape. More gleaming eyes of white light dotted these wings, trailing lines of reishi like drops of water. Saphire’s legs were changed as well, as just below her knee the limbs transformed into massive mercury wings, covered in glowing eyes just as the ones from her back. Her arms were longer than humanly normal, oddly bent at the elbows and ending in hands bearing eyes on the backs of them. Each hand had unusually long fingers, and in the left hand was Sapphire’s bow. It was still made of liquid silver, but now consisted of six crescents that merged together around a central, shining white orb that bore multiple white eye images engraved upon it.

Although she still bore the humanoid, feminine figure of a human woman, that was about all that was left of Sapphire Shores that could be called human at this point. The rest was like looking upon some kind of strange, angelic horror forged from pure silver and white metal, who exuded a powerful spiritual pressure that was as chilling and potent as anything Twilight had ever felt outside of being in Sombra’s presence.

And when all of that spiritual pressure focused upon her like a lance, Twilight knew she was in serious trouble. There was hardly a moment for her to react when Sapphire Shores’ unnaturally long fingers drew back upon her six-crescent bow and the air filled with a silver ringing like a hundred church bells going off at once. From the bow fired a dizzying array of countless silver strands, and Twilight felt herself almost freeze in place trying to even count the numbers converging towards her.

Filthy Rich was able to react faster than the rest, his Vollstandig having enhanced his Schrift to the point that he could create objects using the Mason with just the barest bits of reishi, effectively multiplying reishi particles and drawing in physical air particles to combine them to create a solid wall of what appeared to be glass, but was hard enough to resist the titanic impact of Sapphire’s attack. At least for a moment. The strands, filled with the power of her Quintessence, broke apart and sublimated the reishi of the dome within a second and broke through.

Fortunately one second was more than enough delay for Twilight to act, flying back with a swift Hirenkyaku as she charged raw magic into her Hexenfaust, lighting her entire arm up with teal and purple edged energy.

“Reishi attacks won’t work on her!” she shouted to her compatriots, “I’m going to try infusing you all with magic!”

“Huh!?” Soarin said, “Magic? Won’t that be dangerous!”

He was cut off as several dozen of Sapphire’s reishi strands homed in on him, forcing the Sternritter to go into a series of fast evasive maneuvers, aided by his Echo providing him an extra layer of sensory warning for strands that tried to get around his side or behind him.

Twilight had no time to answer questions or even really ask herself how smart an idea this was. She was relying on Midnight’s knowledge of spells, more than anything, and the theoretical notion that magic spells existed to enhanced objects, or even people, in Equestria. So without hesitation she started firing magically charged arrows at her companions, each arrow carrying with it a complex magical circle around it’s tip.

Cadence didn’t try to dodge the arrow coming her way, showing complete trust. Filthy Rich and Soarin both looked more hesitant, but Soarin was too busy trying to dodge other things to worry about Twilight’s arrow, and Filthy Rich seemed hesitant to move too far from the stationary prisoners to consider evading. Starswirl himself just raised and eyebrow as an arrow came his way too, seeming more intrigued than worried.

As all four arrows hit, Twilight’s spell, boosted in power by the Variable, activated. The magical circles from each arrow merged into the Sternritter wherever the arrow hit, the arrow itself inflicting no damage as its energy was fused with the spell and helped charge it. The magic crests now flared with bright purple light, and each Sternritter was surrounded with a flickering glow of magic. Twilight could feel the magical energies trying to mesh with the Quincy’s spirit energy, and it took almost all of her focus to keep the spell from falling apart. Fortunately it stabilized not a moment too soon, for Sapphire Shores stepped forward, and in an instant became a silver flash that crossed into the center of the group and the woman turned, her eight wings flaring out around her.

“There is no victory here, don’t you understand that!? Even if you defeat me, you’ll only be setting our King upon a path to his death! How can any of you want that!? Why are you all so blind!?”

The dozens of eyes upon her wings flashed, and numerous beams of light shot forth like a galaxy of stars flares, the silver beams consisting of such pure reishi that Twilight couldn’t even be sure it was the same as conventional reishi. In fact, given the nature of this transformation, and the way it had empowered Sapphire Shore’s Schrift, Twilight had a hunch that the power she was seeing was akin to what Sombra had wielded... or rather, the Soul Queen’s Consort. Still a fragment of it, true, but a fragment enhanced to the point of being more akin to a dagger, as opposed to a fully fledged sword.

Her fascination was somewhat hindered by the fact that she had to throw all she had into bursts of speed to weave through the deadly storm of silver beams, and she simply wasn’t fast enough as one beam nearly hit her dead on and forced her to throw up a magical barrier, which still shattered under the beam’s contact and Twilight felt hot blood pour out of her side as her hip was scored deeply.

“Twilight!” Cadence shouted, blinking in and out of view as she too dodged the beams and retaliated, her butterfly wings generating potent prismatic rays that were also infused with a glow of magic from Twilight’s spell. Sapphire Shores bent several of her wings like a shield to absorb the rays fired by Cadence, and there was a ripple in the air from the impacts as if the beams were entering a pool of water. Even with the pain of her wound distracting her, Twilight could see much of the reishi in Cadence’s attack was being bled away before impact, but she also noted that not all of it was halted. Some of the beams, still infused with her magic, did score away a few of Sapphire Shores’ feathers.

It wasn’t much, but it was proof that, with magical assistance, Sapphire Shores was not immune to their attacks!

As if seeing this for themselves and feeling emboldened by the fact, Soarin, Filthy Rich, and Starswirl all mounted their own offensives.

To Twilight’s surprise, Filthy Rich used his teeth to bite his own wrist open and then fling blood into the air. Using the solid material of his own blood droplets, he instantly created a large fortress tower that spread out beneath him, it’s surface covered in hatches that soon opened up to expose lines of muskets akin to his own. Using his own musket like a signal, Filthy Rich fired off a fusillade of bullets, all magically charged.

Conveniently the tower stood protectively in front of Spoiled Rich and Gladmane, both still immobile from Twilight’s binding spell.

As the barrage of bullets slammed into Sapphire Shores, she screamed like a banshee, more rage than any actual pain as the bullets seemed to mostly bounce off her metallic body, and she fired a concentrated beam that bent and lashed like a whip up and down the tower Filthy Rich had made, causing it to fall apart an instant later.

Soarin had flown behind Sapphire Shores, his wings beating loudly with huge flaps that generated noises like thunder. Noise, Twilight noted, that seemed to actually stick with the young Sternritter. His Schrift alone could not make sound waves, but his body, and his Vollstandig, could, and with the Echo he controlled that sound to start building up a massive vibrating sphere of force that was faintly lined with purple magic, which he then fired by aiming his bow towards Sapphire Shores and letting loose an arrow that with strands of reishi dragged the ‘Sound Bomb’ along with it.

With a derisive sound, Sapphire flung her right hand towards the sphere of vibrating noise and sent uncountable strands of silver reishi into the sphere, dismantling it like heat melting cotton candy. However Twilight’s magic still carried portions of the sound waves forward like a breaking wave, slamming into Sapphire Shores and causing her to stumble. Not a lot, but enough that Starswirl was able to get right in front of the woman and swing his Zanpaktou in a wide arc.

Magic lined liquid splashed forth, acidic chemicals that doused Sapphire and started to sizzle on her metallic flesh. Yet Sapphire was unfazed, one of her winged legs kicking out in a blinding, steel flash. The wing leg acted like a blade, cutting Starswirl across the chest as he Flash Stepped backwards, leaving a trail of blood falling through the air in his wake.

Twilight joined in the attack, feeling the last embers of the magic she could sustain alone flagging as she started teleporting around Sapphire, blasting away with barrages of magically charged arrows. Sapphire laughed in a bellowing voice as she countered with sickening speed, beams from the eyes of her wings slicing Twilight’s arrows out of the air. Sapphire Shore’s reiatsu continued to rise, making the whole silvery prison dimension shake as she kept laughing, although it was a laugh filled with a strange delirium and pain.

“Hahah! I didn’t want her to die, you know!? She made him so happy and I loved her for that! And hated her, because she wasn’t ME! But I would have loved you too, Twilight, if only you hadn’t been a threat to him! I’d have cared for you like my own, if you brought joy into his life! But you won’t, so I have to kill you, hehehe, it’s all I have left!”

Moving quicker than any could react to, Sapphire Shores rushed Twilight like an out of control shooting star. Twilight barely had a millisecond to raise a protective shield of magic around her body and switch from Blut Arterie to Blut Vene, covering her body in patterns of red before Sapphire Shore’s speared her with both leg wings, essentially delivering a super-sonic drop kick.

Twilight felt her lungs lose all air, her ribs crack, and her body fly uncontrollably past the speed of sound as it was sent rocketing towards the edge of the prison dimension. She nearly blacked out, and was only able to stay conscious due to Midnight all but screaming inside her head.

Twilight! That’s it! We can’t wait for an opening! We can’t wait for her to have her guard down! Stop being SCARED of me and let me take control, or we are doing to DIE!

Even with Midnight’s voice pounding in her skull, Twilight was too dazed for a few moments to do more than vaguely flail her limbs. She became aware of her body hitting something surprisingly soft and stretchy, however, and a second later blinked her bleary eyes into focus to see Filthy Rich and Starswirl standing protectively in front of her. She’d hit some kind of elastic netting, it’s red color suggesting Filthy Rich had made the net with his blood to catch her.

“Still alive, Twilight Sparkle?” he asked, and she coughed out a sputtering reply.

“Hmm, this enhanced transformation you Quincy’s have produced is quite potent,” Starswirl muttered, applying some kind of blue, syrup-like liquid that dripped from his Zanpaktou to his chest wound, “Defeating it will require a means of bypassing that Schrift, and Miss Sparkle’s magic doesn’t seem to be giving enough oomph for the task.”

Presently Soarin and Cadence both were flying swiftly around Sapphire Shores, the former loosing vibrating arrows that were forming a circle around Sapphire at head level, while the latter was firing crystal bolts from her arm crossbow that upon impact were scattering a pink fog that engulfed Sapphire. This did little to slow Sapphire down, but it did distract her as Soarin triggered his circle of arrows to generate several waves of sonic vibration that bounced off each other and slammed into Sapphire Shore’s head.

However Sapphire flapped her eight wings with such incredible force that the shock-waves alone blasted away the pink fog from Cadence’s arrows, which Twilight assumed must have contained elements of the Lust inside it, and even appeared to counteract the sound waves that the Echo had magnified. Even at a distance Twilight felt the impact of the shock waves from Sapphire’s wings, her already injured body near doubling over. She heard faint cracking noises behind her, and realized that the very walls of the prison dimension were slowly breaking under the strain of the battle.

Filthy Rich grimaced, looking at Starswirl, “I’m not thrilled battling one of my own alongside a Soul Reaper, but if you have a plan, I’m all ears.”

“I do believe Miss Sparkle is the key to victory, but only if she can generate enough magic to suspend your comrade’s powers or create an opening for us to inflict actual damage, or otherwise subdue her with one of your own Schrifts. Well, Miss Sparkle, how much ‘gas’ do you have left in the tank?”

Starswirl’s expression was strangely soft, encouraging, and desperate all rolled together. He knew he was pinning everything upon her, and knew there was no other choice, and his eyes told her that he understood that pressure and actually believed in her ability to do what needed to be done. He couldn’t have known all of the details of the relationship between Twilight and Midnight, but if Starswirl had been studying the situation at Canterlot High he might have suspected she had more power inside her. Oddly, his trusting and encouraging gaze made her feel like she was back in school, with a professor showing their confidence in her ability to ace a test or term paper.

“I... I do,” she said, regaining her breath, ignoring the taste of blood on her lips, “Just need a second.”

“We’ll buy you at least thirty,” said Filthy Rich, flourishing his musket and glancing at Starswirl, “Come on, Soul Reaper. We must buy the good lady some time.”

“I’ll do my level best to keep up,” Starswirl chuckled dryly, and with that the pair charged in at Sapphire, joining Cadence and Soarin in their attempts to keep the woman at bay.

And Twilight Sparkle placed the hand of the Hexenfaust over her heart, took a deep breath, and called out to the magic within, and the alter-ego she both feared, and knew she needed to rely upon.

----------

Rarity infinitely preferred having a task to focus upon at the moment, since it helped stave off the looming thoughts concerning her present... condition. All of those unpleasant emotions were being neatly sewn up and compartmentalized in their own little panic room, to be let out at a to-be-determined date. Right now she had entirely too many friends in danger of also having a ‘condition’ for her to have a breakdown.

The task in front of her was trying to figure out a weak point in this massive silver sphere, but thus far her luck on that front had been wanting. She’d brought out a few knights to keep watch for danger while she extended small crystalline filaments like a latticework all across the sphere’s surface, gently probing it’s reiatsu to try and understand it’s structure. In some ways the structure was quite simple, but it was dense, with the reishi consisting it’s form so heavily packed that there was practically no room to probe. The reishi was also volatile. It was as if this space was more than a prison...

Before Rarity could finish that thought one of her knight’s sent a signal her way and she saw through it’s senses, seeing a figure rapidly approaching from the south, where that giant tree was.

Rarity swiftly recognized Fluttershy, feeling her friend’s reiatsu well before the girl came into view. When Fluttershy arrived, Rarity turned to her with a smile she hoped looked natural and not horribly forced, “Fluttershy, I’m glad to see you’re still alright. What happened back at the camp? I couldn’t help but notice there’s a striking new terrain feature.”

She made a faint gesture towards the tree. Fluttershy nodded, but her eyes were unusually focused upon Rarity. She could feel her friend’s gaze piercing straight into her and Rarity near broke out into a sweat. Then Fluttershy closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, her expression going quite frightfully calm.

“The tree was made by a Hollow that’s become one with Miss Daisy.”

“What? That’s... quite unexpected. I’d ask how, but I suspect the answer wouldn’t help in this instance. But what’s happening? Is Sunset still there?”

“Sunset and Clover are facing Miss Daisy right now,” Fluttershy confirmed, “She asked me to get you and the rest of the girls so we could come help as soon as possible. But it looks like you have your own problem right here.”

“Yes, this sphere is going to be trouble,” Rarity said, turning back to it, “Twilight is trapped inside and I think she’s fighting-”

“I didn’t mean the sphere, Rarity,” Fluttershy said, her eyes unblinking, like two clear pools of water.

Rarity stiffened, gulped, and looked back at her, “W-what do you, um, mean?”

Fluttershy’s response was just to approach her in two short, swift steps, and throw her arms, all six of them, into a tight, gentle hug around Rarity. Fluttershy’s voice was filled with both an ocean of comfort and a mountain of sorrow, yet still somehow managed to maintain a calm, even pitch.

“I’m so sorry, Rarity. I wish I had come with you. I could have stopped this.”

“...No, no Fluttershy,” Rarity said, hugging her friend back just as tightly, “There’s no way to know if it would have made a difference. Please, just try not to tell anyone else yet, please? Rainbow already knows, but I don’t want anyone distracted when there’s still a crisis to deal with.”

“I figured you’d say that,” Fluttershy replied, stepping back, offering Rarity a smile that was worth a million tubs of comfort ice cream, “I’ll keep quiet, but I had to do that, first. Now, let’s have a look at this sphere.”

Rarity was grateful beyond words, both for Fluttershy’s understanding, her kind comfort, and the fact that Fluttershy was able to switch tracks so quickly. There really did seem to be a newfound maturity and confidence in her usually timid friend, and Rarity for one was happy to see it. It made her want to work on a new ensemble for Fluttershy, something perhaps in a business suit style? Rarity shoved aside any bleak notions that she might not so easily be able to use her sewing room anymore and instead focused on watching Flutteshy work.

Approaching the sphere, Fluttershy created several golden hands from the halo that shone behind her and let the ethereal gold limbs explore the sphere’s surface. Unlike Rarity’s lattice of red crystal, Fluttershy’s limbs of spirit energy pressed their palms against specific points in swift, hard motions that were still somehow as gentle as the movements of a hummingbird.

“Hmm, the reishi here is so unstable,” Fluttershy said, “I don’t think whoever made this thought it out very well, or maybe they just made it in a rush?”

“Do you think you could open it?” Rarity asked, and Fluttershy frowned.

“I don’t know if I should try. My Fullbring can affect spirit energy, and is much better at it now than it was before, but this sphere is like an angry, wounded bear. Poke it wrong, and it’ll get nasty.”

“I was afraid of that,” Rarity said, crossing her arms in thought, but then she sensed several more reiatsu signatures coming their way, this time from the north, “Oh? Fluttershy, I think that’s Applejack and Pinkie Pie!”

“It is,” Flutteshy confirmed, not looking away from her examination of the sphere, “And Sweet Cider is with them.”

“I hope that means everything turned out okay over there,” Rarity said, tensing up slightly at her own words as her eyes cast about to look across the entire expanse of the forest, mountains, and what was once Camp Everfree’s lake, “There’s been so many battles, it’s been impossible to keep track of it all. Aside from this sphere, and the tree, I’m not sensing any other spikes of reiatsu. Are you?”

“No,” replied Fluttershy, appearing less ruffled by it all, like a leaf calmly floating along with the current of events, “For better or worse, I think it will all be over soon.”

“Well, that’s not an ominous way of saying it at all.”

“Oh, um, sorry,” Fluttershy said, a hint of her more usual shyness peeking forth, “I just meant I don’t think there’s any more trouble spots other than whatever’s happening here with Twilight, and dealing with Miss Daisy.”

A few moments later, in a flash of cobalt lightning, Rainbow Dash appeared. Riding piggyback on her was Pinkie Pie, whom Rarity immediately noticed looked quite a bit different in a rather colorful jester’s get-up and half mask, and carrying a different looking hammer.

“Rarity!” Pinkie Pie cried, jumping off an annoyed looking Rainbow Dash and hopping over to her. Pinkie did a near mirror of Fluttershy’s hug, although one handed since she was carrying her hammer with the other. “It’ll all be okay, okay!?”

Does everybody already know!?, Rarity shot a wide eyed look at Rainbow Dash, who rapidly shook her head and mouthed the words ‘I didn’t say anything!’

Before Rarity could question that, the mask shifted on Pinkie Pie’s face, flowing from white to black as it shifted sides, and an altogether more razor sharp gaze met Rarity’s as Pinkie said, “Never mind Pinkie. She’s freaked out, but we’ll put a zipper on her lips for now.”

“Mena, you don’t need to do that,” said Pinkie again, and Rarity rapidly figured out that for some reason her friend’s split personality was merged back into Pinkie’s body, explaining the rapid mental shifts and the mask moving back and forth, “I’m not gonna blab. Just really, really want to get today over with.”

Sweet Cider and Applejack brought up the rear of the group, the Soul Reaper Captain herself looking like she’d been through a literal meat grinder. Rarity was amazed the woman was still able to move at all with all of the injuries, let alone still carry her swords... wait, when did she get two of them? And Applejack...

“Oh my, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, you both look quite stunning, if I may say so,” Rarity said, giving Applejack’s armor an appraising look, “A bit more gold than I would have picked for you, darling, but you certainly make it work for you.”

Applejack’s face was stiff with awkwardness as she scratched the back of her head, her eyes fixed on Rarity up and down, “Ummm, eheh, y-yeah, I guess so. An’ yer not such a sore sight either, what with the white hair n’ dress. Them fancy lookin’ knight fellas yers too?”

Rarity felt a twinge of relief inside her, noting that Applejack might have been giving her a strange look, but didn't seem to actually know the truth. Applejack's shifting glance seemed to have more to do with just being embarrassed about Rarity's compliment.

“Yes, and I can summon quite a few more of these loyal beauties, too. I’m a bit iffy on the white hair, honestly, but I do suppose it brings out the color in my eyes,” Rarity said, almost glad to have even a brief moment of normal conversation. Of course such things couldn’t last long under the present circumstances, as made evident when Sweet Cider strode forward a few steps and nodded towards the silver sphere.

“Hmph, definitely looks like Quincy work ta me. Ya say yer Quincy ally's in there? ”

“Yes, our friend, Twilight, was trapped inside with what we think is someone who’s been out to kill her. Your fellow Captain, Starswirl, is in there as well, I think,” Fluttershy said, her eyes flickering towards Sweet Cider’s terribly wounded body, her gaze lingering on the stab wound in the woman’s stomach, “Do you want me to heal you?”

Sweet Cider’s face, blood and sweat stained, flinched but she shook her head, “I ain’t keelin’ over just yet. Ya sure ‘bout yer pal bein’ stuck in there along with Captain Starswirl?”

“Me and Rares can pretty much confirm that,” said Rainbow Dash, “Saw Twilight and the old Captain dude, along with a few other Quincy fighting before this stupid marble appeared. I couldn’t scratch it when I tried breaking in.”

“That’s probably for the best,” said Fluttershy, her golden limbs still exploring the sphere’s surface, “I don’t think if we broke this shell, it would have pleasant results.”

“What do ya mean by that?” Sweet Cider asked.

Just as she did so, there was an unnaturally loud cracking sound, like a mirror splitting but put on full volume with reverberation. A few small splits appeared upon the sphere’s surface, spilling silver light. Fluttershy’s eyes widened, then narrowed in concentration as she directed her limbs of golden light to examine the cracks.

“Because the sphere is incredibly unstable, but charged with an equally dangerous amount of volatile reishi. The battle inside is destabilizing it. I don’t know how long it will hold together, but I’ll do what I can to keep it intact.”

“Why bother?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Let the thing crack open. That way we’ll be able to help out Twilight!”

“No, Rainbow,” said Fluttershy, her voice quietly intense, “If this sphere breaks, it will release all of that energy at once. I don’t think this is meant to be just a prison or barrier. I think it’s a bomb.”

----------

Twilight found herself once more within her own mindscape. The infinite plane of shadows, stars, and flashing purple strands of light seemed less foreboding than before, but still not quite a comfort. Perhaps she was never quite comfortable in her own mind? She was standing in front of Midnight, who in turn was standing upon nothing, while eyeing the shape of a black cube sitting in the middle of the expanse.

“The Eye is still secure, right?” Twilight asked.

“You really think we’ve got time to worry about that right now?” Midnight shot back, arms at her side with clenched fists, “Don’t try to dodge the subject. Are you going to give me control, or not? Because if we’re going to die, I at least want to go out with a bang instead of a pathetic whimper!”

Twilight had come here prepared to give Midnight what she wanted, but not without saying her pace. In this place, where hours only meant seconds in reality, she had a minute to get out what she needed to say.

“Midnight, my whole life I’ve spent just being controlled by others. Even without my knowing it, my life was being steered by someone else; my parents, Principle Cinch, even King Sombra. Half the time I don’t even know if the choices I’ve made were mine alone, or just because I was trying to please someone else. The only time I’ve felt like I had any control at all was when I was with Sunset, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash... because for the first time I was just being with people who didn’t expect anything of me. Nothing other than to be their friend.”

“Okay, great, friendship is magically delicious or whatever the tagline is. Super. What the hell does that have to do with the mess we’re in right now!?”

Twilight sucked in a breath and went up to Midnight, reaching out quickly and taking her alter-ego’s hand in her own. Midnight flinched at the contact, but Twilight just held the hand of her other self tightly.

“It matters, because when I make this choice, I want you to understand what it means to me, Midnight. I’m giving you control. I’m trusting you. No conditions. No reservations. No demands. No expectations. I’m giving it to you because I understand now that I’ve been doing to you what had been done to me my whole life. Well, that’s over. You’re free, Midnight. I’m trusting you with freedom. What you do with that is completely up to you, now.”

A silence hung between them as Midnight stared at Twilight with a stunned pair of eyes. Then a salacious smile spread over her face as she gripped Twilight’s hand harder and pulled her close, to the point that they were flush up against each other.

“Offer a girl the world, why don’t you? You’re not going to regret this Twilight. And I promise you, you’re going to enjoy the ride.”

----------

The day really couldn’t get much worse, Filthy Rich reflected as he barely avoided being bisected by another of Sapphire Shore’s potent silver beams, and he retaliated with a powerfully charged shot from his musket. With the Mason Schrift granted to him by His Majesty, Filthy Rich split the musket ball into a storm of shards that he then built into a series of ballista sized bolts. The magic that Twilight Sparkle had empowered him with made the bolts glow with pale, teal energy, but that energy had been weakening by the moment as it was drained through continuous use, and the bolts themselves were deflected by a powerful sweep of Sapphire Shores wings.

Filthy Rich grunted as the shock-wave smashed him backwards. It truly was maddening how much more potent Sapphire Shores was. He’d always known she was one of His Majesty’s most powerful and faithful servants. She’d lived far longer than most Quincy, and stood well above even her fellow Sternritter in most regards. Night Light and Coloratura matched her, true, and Rutherford was older, but there was no denying that Sapphire Shores had been seen in a special light among the King’s chosen.

It made it all the more dire to be facing her in battle, for even Filthy Rich had never imagined the power of a Schutzstaffle’s Vollstandig. Was sacrificing one’s human form really the only pathway to power for the Quincy? Was this their destiny, if they wished to finally topple the Soul Reaper’s regime and that of their Soul Queen? Was this the price of eradicating the Hollows and securing safety for all human souls, including that of his daughters?

Oh yes, this certainly not among Filthy Rich’s top days ever. His daughter was still in danger. He’d just learned one of his closest friends had cuckold him with his wife to have said daughter. And now he was fighting a losing battle against one of the strongest Quincy in generations, who’d turned herself into an angelic eldritch horror for the sole purpose of murdering a girl whom Filthy Rich really didn’t know very well but felt honor-bound to defend.

If he lived through this, Filthy Rich decided he would look into finding a skilled therapist.

He’d say he and Spoiled needed marriage counseling, but they were well and truly beyond that point. He didn’t even know what to think on that front. The sad thing was that, as hurt as he was, as mad as he was, he did still love her. He’d always loved her, abrasiveness and all, from the very start.

Really the only plus side to all of this was that if he did end up dying, he wouldn’t have to find out what punishment His Majesty would mete out to the traitors. Perhaps if he entreated His Majesty, Spoiled would be allowed exile rather than death? If for no other reason than Filthy didn’t want Diamond Tiara to lose a father and mother all in one day. No, not a father, he resolved with a fierce heat in his heart. Blood or not, he’d never cease being a father to his little girl! Damn Gladmane! Bastard that he was, if Filthy Rich really was shooting blanks, he was grateful that Diamond Tiara was born! If Gladmane and Spoiled had just been up front about the matter Filthy might not have even cared about it! It wouldn’t have been the first time in Quincy history that a bloodline had to be continued through such an arrangement due to one partner or another being sterile, and Filthy was man enough to accept reality for what it was. It was the going behind his back that hurt, not the actual act itself.

He couldn’t help but spare a glance, even amid this fierce battle, towards the two captives. Luckily Twilight Sparkle’s magical chains were still holding them in place, but Filthy Rich was worried about them being hit by one of Sapphire Shore’s beams. Well, mostly he worried about Spoiled being hit. If Gladmane lost a limb or two, Filthy wasn’t about to complain. Wait... was Gladmane moving?

It was hard to discern, but it looked like the man was being pulled downward at a slight angle, but without actually moving, like an invisible force was yanking at the chains on him. With a scowl, Filthy Rich realized Gladmane must have been using his Schrift, the Weight, to try and pull the chains apart. When Filthy had captured Gladmane he had no real means of sealing his fellow Sternritter’s Schrift, only binding his limbs so he couldn’t use his weapons. As long as Gladmane was covered by someone, that wasn’t too much of an issue, but with this battle going on it was impossible to keep an eye on the prisoners.

“Damn it all!” he said, turning and diving towards where the prisoners were held, but couldn’t so much as get a few meters before Sapphire Shores turned her bow towards him.

Flashing silver lights, like bursting stars, blazed along the six different arcs of Sapphire’s bow, and six flat arcs of light shot out like particle-thin razor blades forged out of silver light. Filthy Rich inverted his dive and threw himself in the opposite direction, narrowly avoiding being split into pieces, but one of the thin blades of light still cut through his right wing. Mere contact of Sapphire Shore’s reishi with his own was enough for not only the wing to be severe, but for a strain of the Quintessence to start eating away at his control of reishi. His Schrift remained strong, as that was granted by His Majesty, but Filthy Rich could feel the power inside his musket weakening as the reishi flow into it slowed.

To make things worse, Sapphire Shores rounded upon Soarin, who’d flown around her left side and had been building up another set of sound vibrations to condense into an attack, but Sapphire beat him to the punch by snapping out her hand at frightful speed and grabbed the young man around the neck.

“I appreciate that you are following our King’s orders trying to protect the girl,” Sapphire said, “But you are beyond any hope of saving her with your meager powers, Echo.”

Sapphire started to squeeze, choking the air out of Soarin’s lungs.

“Get off him!” Cadence shouted, her butterfly wings flaring with prismatic light as she literally barreled straight into Sapphire Shores, shoulder checking the woman and ramming her arm crossbow into Sapphire Shore’s chest, firing a crystal bolt.

The bolt shattered on Sapphire Shore’s metal chest, and she hadn’t even released Soarin as she proceeded to smile at Cadence. Strands of silver shot out of her wings and wrapped around Cadence, channeling streams of energy into the woman, who let out a piercing shriek of pain.

“Another young one with delusions,” Sapphire Shores said, “I understand you don’t want to see your lover’s kin perish, but it is for the best, Lust. You should be able to understand... oh? What’s this?”

Cadence groaned in pain as Sapphire Shores lessened the coursing energy punishing her, while Soarin continued to choke as he tried firing several useless arrows that broke upon Sapphire Shore’s body. Meanwhile Sapphire examined Cadence more closely, her head tilting curiously.

“I see... you’re already carrying his child.”

“What?” Cadence managed to sputter, and Sapphire Shore’s tightened the silver strands flowing around her.

“Congratulations to you and Shining Armor, I suppose. I hope the gaining of a grandchild will soothe Night Light upon the loss of his daughter. Assuming you live. I suggest you think carefully about the life inside of you, Lust, before you continue to oppose me. Even if I die here, none of you will survive your unlikely victory, I’ve made sure of that.”

“You talk entirely too much, do you know that? Hado Number Ninety Three - Ura Hado Sannodo: Teppusatsu!” (HIdden Way of Destruction - Third Path: Iron Wind Murder)

From above Sapphire Shores, Starswirl had appeared, and sweeping out his Zanpaktou, backed by a hand he used to trace a gleaming green kanji in the air, he unleashed a Kido that created a tempest of swirling winds. The winds formed into the head of a green dragon with a massive mouth, a flowing mane, and wide whiskers. From the dragon’s puffed up mouth came a concentrated blast of wind force strong enough to create multiple circular shock-waves as it smashed into Sapphire Shores.

Soarin was released, as was Cadence, and both Sternritter fled backwards, the former rubbing his neck and coughing to catch his breath while Cadence looked pale and shaken.

The blast of wind drove Sapphire Shores down briefly, but not for long before flashes of light beams from her wings tore through the wind and speared upwards. Although Starswirl was able to get out of the way, the beams struck the side of the prison dimension and created more cracks along its surface, and it felt like the whole dimension groaned.

It’s been half a minute, Filthy Rich realized, Whatever Twilight Sparkle is doing, I hope she’s done doing it.

He looked back towards where he and Starswirl had left her, and when he did so, he blinked.

The girl was surrounded by the embrace of stardust and living witchfire. It took Filthy Rich a second to realize that the groaning of the prison dimension, and some of the cracks forming in its surface, hadn’t been coming from Sapphire’s out of control attacks, but rather from the near gravitational force of power stemming from Twilight Sparkle’s body. This wasn’t reiatsu, however. Filthy Rich could tell that Twilight’s reiatsu wasn’t changing much, although it was growing. No, the power flowing from her was what Filthy Rich could now recognize as magic, and magic to a degree he’d never witnessed from the young girl.

But he ha read about it in Cinch’s report on the incident at Canterlot High.

Sapphire Shore’s attention was arrested and the woman all but wrenched herself around with a deep, twisted scowl on her metal lips as her blinded eyes looked towards the girl.

“You will not be allowed to leave here alive, Twilight Sparkle!” Sapphire declared, the six crescents of her bow moving so that they started to spin around the central orb, which then generated a single, large arrow of liquid silver the length of a limousine. She fired the arrow, which cut the space between her and Twilight.

Witchfire, in a teal inferno, wrapped around Twilight and then burst outward. The silver arrow was halted, gripped by a sparkling teal aura of raw telekinetic magic.

With raven wings spreading from her back, Twilight stepped forward, her feet making circular blazes of teal energy on the air. Her uniform changed, burning away in washes of magical energy to change into a deep purple dress that integrated elements of the Quincy military style, but otherwise accentuated Twilight’s curves and left her shoulders bare. Purple gloves and boots clad her limbs, and teal fire formed flickering auras around her eyes and created a long, pulsing horn upon her brow. Her hair flowed up around her head, as much ethereal energy as solid now.

Twilight wore a satisfied smile, and spoke in an almost mocking tone as she grasped her hand and used the telekinetic magic to break the arrow that had been fired at her in half.

“Let me correct you, so you stop sounding like an idiot for the next few minutes it’s going to take me to break you like I just did your little toy; my name right now isn’t Twilight. It’s Midnight.”

Author's Notes:

For Sapphire Shores' Vollstandig I'm definitely going for the vibe of angels as bizarre eldritch horrors combined with a Final Fantasy boss. Very meant meant to show that the Vollstandigs we see the normal Sternritter's use is kind of still restricted to a degree, and that what you're seeing with Sapphire Shores is more the end product when those limitations are removed; but at cost. This is pretty much in line with just how freaky the Vollstandig of Yhwach's elite Sternritter in Bleach were like, particularly Lille Barro's:

At any rate, expect this battle to wrap up next chapter, leaving just the situation with Gloriosa left to handle. Hope you're all enjoying and as always, thank you all for reading. Any comments, questions, or critiques are much appreciated. 'Till next time!

Episode 123: Resolution

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Episode 123: Resolution

Euphoric glee glazed Midnight’s features as she felt the heat of the blood pumping through her, and Twilight’s, body. There was something inherently faded and dull about the sensations she felt while a phantom in Twilight’s mind. This, however, was flesh and blood, and she gave herself a loving, sensual hug just to feel skin again. She stretched and reveled in the oh so real pain in Twilight’s already battered body. Any sensation was pleasant at this point, but she knew she ought to do something about the damage.

Healing magic was problematic at the best of times, but Midnight’s memory of spell knowledge from when she was connected to magic’s very essence was still largely complete. She couldn’t pull off true miracles like... well, best not to concern herself with what she couldn’t do, but she could still handle some of the damage that had been inflicted on her and Twilight's shared body.

“Now,” she said as she ran a hand over herself, a gleam of intense purple magic aura coating her body and stimulating her body’s natural healing by several magnitudes, “Sapphire Shores, was it? I’m about to demolish you, but before that, satisfy my curiosity and tell me, just what are you seeing now with that Quintessence of yours? Is Twilight still going to kill Sombra? Just wondering what me being in charge does to your little predictions.”

Sapphire Shores was as still as a silver statue, but a rage fueled grimace turned her lips as her wing enclosed eyes gazed at Midnight, “My eyes see through you. Call yourself what you will, but you are still Twilight Sparkle. The worst of her, I think, and still the doom of our King hangs upon you, clearer now than ever.”

“That right?” Midnight’s smile turned flat, “You must be even more of an uptight shut-in than Twilight is. Now that I think about it, you two really do have a lot in common. You jump to conclusions, overthink things, and don’t have the courage to go after what you want and instead hide your real feelings, then pretend like you’re doing what’s best for everyone. I think crushing you is going to be cathartic.”

“Come and try, devilish child. My holy form shall not be bested by a mere girl drunk on a foreign world’s power!” Sapphire Shores declared in a booming voice like a choir of trumpets, her eight wings gleaming with shining rays of light as they unfurled further. Silver bolts of light cascaded from them, each ray of mercury colored power rushing forward at transcendent speed.

Midnight breathed out, her smile returning to it’s genuine mirth, as she swept a hand out and tapped into the deep well of magic ingrained into her and Twilight’s body and soul.

None other than her really understood what had happened that day, at the Friendship Games, and now that Midnight was in control once again, but this time with a somewhat different disposition... well, she wanted to educate her other self.

Inside the mindscape within, Twilight Sparkle was still gaining her bearings. She’d never been in the ‘back seat’ so to speak, and it felt different in many ways. Even compared to when she’d visited her mindscape before, she felt... less real, somehow. Her sense of body definition was weaker, and even when she tried to touch her own arm it was like touching an object through a dense cushion.

“Unnerving, isn’t it?” Twilight heard Midnight say, the voice echoing across their collective mind.

Twilight could still vaguely sense and feel what was actually happening to their body, and saw Sapphire Shore’s attack incoming, and even her sense of urgency and fear was somehow dulled. “Midnight, shouldn’t we be dodging that attack?”

“In a second,” Midnight said, “I just wanted to show you something.”

Midnight wasn’t visible in any sense of the term, but Twilight got a sensation of Midnight turning her head, and Twilight followed the motion to a point in the vast star field of their mind, somewhere vaguely pointing downward. There, she saw something glitter. Purple sparks danced in geometric patterns, at first small, then gradually gaining in size and shape as more and more sparks branched out between the stairs and formed more lines of violet light in the darkness. Shapes became symbols, symbols became words, words became script and sentence, yet somehow then became denser, as if there was something beyond language she was seeing. An entire galaxy of meaning being scrawled across her mind in purple, violet, teal, and brilliant white images upon a circular field at the bottom of her mind.

“W...what am I looking at?” Twilight asked.

“Magic,” Midnight said, “All of it. The script that birthed a world and gave it shape. When you tapped into the magic within those girls, sucked it out and then burned into us... you made this. Think of it like a copy of the instruction manual for reality, or at least the Equestrian reality. When I was born, I knew all of this, or at least a lot of it. I’ve lost some of the meaning, the ‘spells’ contained in this manual, but I know enough to put this Sapphire Shores bitch on her ass.”

“Why are you showing me this?” Twilight said, still trying to absorb what she was seeing. She couldn’t even focus on a single small portion of this ‘manual’ without feeling like she was trying to pull in the knowledge of an entire solar system’s worth of information.

“Because while I’m having fun with our body I thought it was fair you got to have some fun in our mind,” Midnight said playfully, “Don’t say I never gave you anything, right? Just don’t go crazy trying to study it. When I knew all of that stuff at once, well, you saw how I acted. Besides, I couldn’t keep this hidden from you since when I use our magic, this whole damn place lights up.”

And Twilight could see that, as a flare of brilliant light burst up from the center of the massive, intertwining sea of script and a fountain of multi-colored light shot forth into the heavens of her mind. Twilight could feel the unbridled magical power being drawn out of her, vast reserves she’d never felt before because unlike Midnight she hadn’t even known they were there.

Now that she could see and feel that magic, Twilight realized it was an incredibly deep reservoir, but not without limits. For now, all she could do was remain in her mind and watch as Midnight fought.

Back within the relative “real-time” of the battle itself, Midnight drew forth both magic and knowledge to craft spells at a rate so swift and natural it was effectively willing the spells into existence without the same need for slow channeling through a horn or forming any magical circles. Doing things this way was more power intensive, and she knew her magic reserves weren’t truly limitless, but she hadn’t gotten to stretch her magic muscles in awhile so she fully intended to enjoy herself.

Circular distortions in the air that shimmered like mirrors formed in dozens of multitudes in the air in front of her, and the silver bolts from Sapphire Shore’s wings flew right into these distortions like fish diving into the water. Identical distortions opened up behind Sapphire, and spat out her own attack straight at her from behind. More than that, as each silver bolt of reishi emerged, it was laced with a teal flame of magic that was placed there by a secondary spell attached to the distortion spell. This meant that as the bolts emerged and flew towards Sapphire, they started to explode in hails of witchfire, buffeting the angelic woman in a firestorm of magic and her own reishi.

Sapphire Shores growled, and dispersed the reishi of her attack while enduring the scorching bath of magical fire. It inflamed her hatred of Twilight to see her using a power all too similar to her King’s Absolute. Magic was a dangerously versatile thing, as it was seemingly all powers at once, limited only by its user’s knowledge and magical energy.

Not a weak minded combatant by any means, Sapphire Shores changed her tactics immediately. Instead of targeting Midnight, she’d target those still vulnerable. She had her pick among those Sternritter weaker than herself, or the aged, wounded Soul Reaper. As some part of her didn’t actually desire the deaths of more Quincy, she focused upon Captain Starswirl, and with a gesture of her bow, a literal wave of liquid silver reishi exploded from around her. Expanding rapidly, the tide of reishi filled the air beneath Starswirl like a silver lake.

“Can your magic save any of your allies, child?” Sapphire said as her blow flared brightly and fired into the silver lake with a blinding white beam. The silver plane of liquid reishi reacted by bubbling and exploding with fiery geysers of silver power, creating a field of destructive pillars all around Starswirl. The Soul Reaper guarded his body with his wide warfan Zanpaktou, exuding spiritual chemicals from it that surrounded him like a white foam. However even this intensive barrier of spiritually heat resistant chemicals was nearly instantly burned away by the intensity of the reishi geysers that Sapphire Shores had made.

Midnight, a mere moment later, rushed the lake of bubbling silver and took up her own bow, which was changing in shape as she poured magic into it. Twilight’s Quincy bow was now burning with lines of teal witchfire and growing black feathers upon the ends of its arms, while the center portion’s beak-like protrusions grew in size and sharpened at the ends.

Channeling magic through the bow, Midnight unleashed an arrow that shone like a frozen blue star. Upon impact with the silver lake, the arrow exploded in an instant flash of absolute cold, freezing over the reishi with magical born sheets of ice. Midnight could feel the magic and spirit particles within Sapphire’s control interacting in a mad dance of subatomic dominance. Magic and spirit energy were fundamentally different, yet still were the essential building blocks of their respective realities. Yet deeper than that, it was as if they still fit together like pieces to a larger whole. Midnight’s magic could override Sapphire Shores Quintessence, but not necessarily overcome the brute force of her spirit energy.

In that regard, Midnight had to begrudgingly admit that she and Sapphire Shores were very close in terms of pure power. But Midnight held the advantage of versatility, and intended to make full use of the fact to end this in a manner that Sapphire Shores would never expect, but Midnight imagined Twilight was going to appreciate.

Not that Sapphire Shores was going to make it easy. Midnight’s very existence, the magic that poured from her body like a surging ocean wave, threw the predictive abilities of her Quintessence into confusion. That said, Sapphire could still use her own common sense to guess her opponent’s actions and had surmised that striking at Starswirl would draw Midnight in. So it was that Sapphire Shores was already moving at a godly speed to appear behind Midnight, the six crests of her bow filled with a cosmic corona of light. An arrow of silver luminescence was thrust out like a spear, aimed at Midnight’s spine.

A purple burst of light tore Midnight from one point in space to another, a teleport spell cast at the speed of thought. Even so Midnight felt the bite of the arrow, which had managed to get several centimetres into her flesh before she literally displaced her physical atoms out of the arrow’s path. Without Blut Vene she might have lost her spinal cord in that instant. Fortunately Midnight knew how to use Quincy techniques, absorbed from Twilight’s mind.

Sapphire Shores wore frozen death on her face as her wings brimmed with celestial light. Before she could pursue Midnight, however, prismatic beams darted towards her from the side. Sapphire flipped over them like a hawk, turning her death glare towards Cadence, whose butterfly wings discharged another steam of powerful multi-colored beams.

A wall of silver liquid sprang up in front of Sapphire to absorb the beams, but at the same time behind her Filthy Rich and Soarin appeared. Instead of aiming his bow, Soarin had his hand placed on Filthy Rich’s musket, while the elder Sternritter narrowed his eyes at Sapphire. His musket’s barrel was covered in a wave of gold which transformed it into the shape of a portable cannon. Upon firing, the cannon disgorged a golden shell of reishi that create a cone of force as it rushed Sapphire. In the same moment, Soarin poured the power of the Echo into the shell, or rather the noise it generated, to create a massive sonic vibration that was carried along with the shell.

With her defenses focused on Cadence, Sapphire wasn’t able to fully turn against the shell and was struck in her shoulder, the shell exploding with both a golden burst of reishi and a vibrating wave of pure sonic force. Whether this attack did any real damage or not was hard to tell, but it did knock even Sapphire’s large body off balance and sent her briefly reeling through the air.

“Hah! Good one,” Midnight called out, and held up her free hand to snap her fingers, “Now all of you; group huddle.”

With the snap of her fingers everyone in the sphere save for Sapphire Shores found themselves teleported to Midnight’s location. Even Spoiled Rich and Gladmane found that they were instantly shifted, magical bindings and all, into a circular formation around Midnight. With another finger snap, Midnight cast a spell that coated the entire world into a flat, sullen gray shade, except for herself and the people around her. Even Sapphire Shores was cast in gray, and was frozen in place with a murderous look of wrath etched upon her statuesque features.

“What in the world?” Cadence said, looking around, “Twilight, what did you just do?”

“First off, Midnight, not Twilight. Hello Cadence, it’s actually nice to get to talk to you for a second,” Midnight said, wearing a smirk laced with innuendo as she put a hand on her hip and leaned towards the other woman, “So, when did you get my bro’s bun in your oven? I thought Shining Armor, aka Mr. Bastion, would know the value of ‘protection’.”

Pure scarlet washed over Cadence as she flinched back, stammering, “I... I didn’t know I was... look, it doesn’t matter right now! As for you, are you the same personality that took over Twilight before?”

“I prefer to think of it as shared a body with Twilight, but call it what you like,” Midnight said, holding up a finger, “But to set things straight, this time around Twilight’s let me behind the wheel of her own free will, and I will be handing things back over to her as soon as we finish dealing with Sapphire Shores’ temper tantrum.”

“How can I know I can trust you?” Cadence asked, eyeing Midnight with uncertainty. Midnight was about to respond, but Filthy Rich spoke first.

“What choice do we have, Cadence? She is here, and in possession of seemingly enough power to end this battle. We don’t require trust to make use of the advantage she represents as an ally.”

“Well said, Rich, I knew there was something about you I liked. Nice and practical,” Midnight said, and cast a look towards Soarin and Starswirl, “What about you two? Any objections to voice here?”

Soarin was looking at her with pale features and distracted eyes, which seemed entirely intent on not looking towards Midnight’s face, or any other part of her body for that matter. She smirked in knowing satisfaction that the young fellow was trying really hard not to notice how her outfit accentuated curves that Twilight probably didn’t even realize she had. It was cute, that Soarin was going for gentlemanly.

“I’m fine with it. We need to win, whatever it takes,” Soarin said, a simple sincerity entering his voice, “I'm here to protect Twilight, so I'm down for anything that'll help her to survive this.”

“Agreed,” said Staswirl, his own gaze unashamedly looking over Midnight, but with absolutely no hint of carnal interest, but rather a probing academic scrutiny, “I have quite a few questions about your present form and condition, Miss Midnight, but such analysis can wait until a more proper time. I take it you’ve used magic to create some manner of slowed or stopped time?”

“I was about to ask just why everything appears to have stopped besides us,” said Filthy Rich.

Midnight grinned in pure pride, “It’s not a true Time Stop. That’s High Magic. But this is about as close as I can get on the fly while outside of Equestria’s magical field. Right now Sapphire and this space is stuck at about a hundredth of normal time dilation. Before you ask, no we can’t attack her in this state, because the only matter that can move or be affected during this kind of spell is our own. This is just so I can tell you all the plan. Oh, and deal with this jackass.”

Upon that last statement she turned to Gladmane, who was still trying to yank his bonds free, although he froze as Midnight looked at him. Midnight’s smile deepened with a sinister quality as she made a gesture and removed the gag around Gladmane’s mouth. Sweatdrops glistened coldly upon his slick brow as he coughed politely.

“Ahem, before you do anything rash, I can offer my assistance-”

“Nope. No negotiations here. Wouldn’t trust you to not pull a fast one,” Midnight said, “And I prefer my servants loyally compliant, personally. That said, I do have a use for you, but I’m not trusting your consent on the matter. Cadence, if you please?”

“If I please?” Cadence asked, and Midnight gave her a flat look, pointing at Gladmane.

“Your Schrift. Lust. Use it on him. His own Schrift will be handy. I could try charm spells, but I’m not going to gamble with how effective those will be when I know your Schrift will work.”

“I’m not objecting, but won’t Sapphire Shores be able to use the Quintessence to alter the effects of the Lust and break it?” said Cadence, “Even when I hit her with my arrows, I can’t get the Lust to take hold on her.”

“That’s because Twilight didn’t pump you up with enough magic, and Sapphire’s defenses are too strong,” Midnight raised a finger and a mote of intensely bright magic sparked into existence in a teal flicker, “I can infuse you all with much more magic, fortifying your Quincy powers. Sapphire won’t be able to deal with them so easily.”

With a gesture, that spark of magic became a stream of incandescent power that struck Cadence, and flowed over her body with a healthy glow of magical might. She flinched at the unusual sensation for a moment, then looked at her glowing hands with a faint appreciation, if still giving Midnight an apprehensive look.

“Very well then,” she said, and approached Gladmane, who started to stammer.

“N-now wait a moment, I’d be willing to help on my own. It’s clear Sapphire has gone a tad mad, so if you’d give me a chance I’ll cooperate.”

“I’m afraid I’m in agreement with Midnight,” Cadence said, reaching out so she grasped his head on either side with her hands, her butterfly wings enclosing him, “We can’t take any risks.”

The pulsating sheen of rainbow colors rose in frequency within her wings, strobing faster and casting Gladmane in a coating of overlapping lights. His next words faded from his mouth and his eyes turned into placid lakes that reflected the prismatic dance from Cadence’s wings. Within moments his body slackened, losing all tension, and a dreamy look settled upon his features.

Next to him, Spoiled Rich was looking wild eyed with fear, but was thoroughly unable to move or speak.

“Command me,” Gladmane said, with a hefty, eager breath, his eyes filled with mindless devotion. Cadence stood back, glancing towards Midnight.

“He’s ours. So, what is this plan of yours?”

----------

Sapphire Shores had not expected to be pressed so hard. Certainly she’d known that taking on so many of her fellow Sternritter at once might prove a little challenging, but Twilight Sparkle was a barely tested girl, and only Cadence possessed a Schrift that was potentially dangerous. Twilight’s Schrift had potential as well, but was still too underdeveloped to worry that much about, and neither the Mason or Echo were that powerful... at least when compared to the Quintessence.

It was that damnable magic that was the problem! It could do too many unpredictable things, while eluding her Quintessence's power to manipulate reishi at its most base level. It was due to residual magic that Filthy Rich’s and Soarin’s combined attack had hit her as hard as it did and thrown her off balance through the air.

She recovered fast, snapping her wings out and halting herself as she spun, ready to punish her attackers with violent vengeance. But her targets weren’t where they’d been a mere instant ago. In fact, no one within the sphere was, and Sapphire Shores searched with all her senses to try and pinpoint them. It took less than a moment to spot them, all of them, lined up above her.

To her mild surprise Gladmane was now free of his bonds and stood with them, although the glazed cast to his eyes told Sapphire that Cadence had gotten to him through the Lust. Beyond that, each and every single one of her opponents, from the Sternritter, to the Soul Reaper Captain, to her former co-conspirator were infused with a luminous haze of purple and teal light. Magic.

At the center of the group was Midnight Sparkle, holding aloft her bow which was channeling so much magic that the former dark purple construction of the bow was now like a solid beam of raw teal light that flickered with violet flares and formed a string of starlight.

“Ready to end this?” Midnight called down to Sapphire.

“With your death,” Sapphire replied, raising her own bow of shining silver. Though covered by wings, her eyes still beheld Midnight Sparkle with a blind intensity and consumed devotion to her King. She could still see Sombra standing over her when she was still that small, frightened child, her beloved Savoir. “I will never allow him to come to harm. Not from you. Not from me. Never.”

Midnight’s casual manner vanished with a moment of quiet, resolved understanding, “You’re blind, and I don’t have the patience to open your eyes gently. So I’m going to tear them open and burn the truth into them. Hope you’re prepared.”

And so the fight drew towards its final conclusion as Midnight and her companions descended upon Sapphire, and both women fired simultaneous arrows from their bows at one another. An arrow of pure radiant silver rushed headlong into a bolt of raw burning teal. Reishi and magic collided in an interaction of power, particles, and conflicting physics that ripped through reality in a warbling mass before exploding in a brilliant flash that shook the entire prison dimension.

Before the cacophony of energies even began to subside, Sapphire Shores was in motion. Every eye upon her metallic wings filled with baleful silver power as she flew up to met her foes, drawing forth reishi from both within and without to ready a punishing tumult of attacks. Her body was struck by a sudden heaviness, and her momentum was slowed. Looking beyond the fading nimbus of conflicting energies from where her and Midnight’s arrow collided, she saw the mentally dominated Gladmane with his trademark ornate pistol formed. It barked out shots that spread a canopy of magnified gravity around Sapphire Shores, the bullets glinting with the magic Midnight had enchanted into her allies.

The Weight couldn’t possibly hold her, of course. Especially not if Gladmane didn’t have time to properly increase it, as he usually needed to ramp it up over the course of a fight. But it did slow her, infuriatingly enough, as Midnight’s other allies all leaped into the fray.

Filthy Rich remained up above near Midnight, his musket letting off several shots that sent golden balls of reishi spinning in complex patterns towards Sapphire, spiraling this way and that in an attempt to confuse her before coming in. She couldn’t afford to ignore these shots, either, for they were just as pumped up with flares of magic as Gladmane’s had been. With her wings she turned over and reversed direction, flying down while firing a thicket of reishi beams from her wing’s eyes.

Each of Filthy Rich’s bullets were pierced by the beams, but then they proceeded to explode, for Filthy Rich had allowed Starswirl to use his Zanpaktou to lace the bullets before being fired with a core of explosive chemicals. The result were incredibly loud explosions that buffeted Sapphire Shores from no more than a few meters away. Then Soarin, having flown down to match her level, fired his own arrows into the explosions. What was merely loud then became a sonic burst of power as the Echo took the explosions and magnified their vibrations dozens of times over.

Further magnified by magic, this attack drew genuine pain from Sapphire as she was hammered by the vibrations, but she did not relent and flew down further, leveling off and concentrating her power within the tips of her eight wings. Silver arrows flowed into being at each wing-tip, their liquid silver expanse as large as halberds as she fired them, four at Soarin, and four at Cadence, who’d also descended on her other flank.

The speed of her arrows was supreme, and her foes could not dodge all of them, although they tried. Soarin could only evade one, while Cadence evaded two, but both were still struck... or they would have been if magical crests did not flare into existence around them, shells of thick purple magic forming to absorb Sapphire’s blows.

At least, mostly. With the Quintessence Sapphire still controlled her reishi arrows even after they broke upon impact with the magical shields, and was able to sharpen the shards of the shattered arrows to piercing darts. Soarin was struck multiple times in the chest, while Cadence was able to shield herself with an arm, stabbed there several times but protecting her vitals.

Soarin grunted in pain, blood soaking his uniform, but the darts hadn’t penetrated his Blut Vene fully due to Midnight’s magic enhancing his whole body. He was injured, but still in the fight.

By now Midnight had made her next move, a circular swath of teal witchfire spreading from around her. Within a second the magical energies formed a halo of roaring power that flickered with a spectrum of purples, greens, and blues. Then, from this mighty circle, dropped a mountain. Not a literal mountain, but Sapphire’s eyes widened as a chunk of stone roughly the size of a decently large office building was conjured from thin air and dropped towards her like an anvil.

It’s speed of descent was increased by the field of boosted gravity from Gladmane’s Schrift, giving Sapphire Shores even less time to react as she raised her bow and fired another bus-sized silver arrow into the descending mass of solid rock. The arrow impacted with earth shattering force; in this case quite literally as the humongous edifice of stone was broken into several smaller chunks that fell to either side of Sapphire Shores.

Chunks that instantly halted in mid-air and began to change. Sapphire’s eyes sharply cut to the left as she spotted Filthy Rich, who had descended with the hunk of rock. Now he placed his hands upon one of the broken chunks and it immediately began to change, transmuting through the Mason into a golden burst of... chains!? The chains spread out and smashed into the other chunks of rock, transmuting them in turn into even more chains, all anchored by large inverted pyramid shapes that held solid in the air. All was suffused by the teal glow of Midnight’s magic.

The chains rushed Sapphire from all sides, and she let out a snarling noise unfit for civilized lips as she tried to use the beams of reishi from her wings to wipe them out. Now, however, Midnight descended in a popping flash of teleportation, and with a sweep of one hand over fifty magical crests took shape around her. She then drew back an arrow on her bow, and that same arrow was replicated amid the magical circles, and in a deafening roar of witchfire the barrage of magically charged reishi arrows blasted down upon Sapphire Shores. Although the barrage was brutal, Sapphire’s body was durable beyond any convention of Blut Vene and even with the magic she weathered the storm.

That said, the purpose of the barrage had not been merely to inflict damage, but to carry Twilight’s Quincy reishi down to Sapphire and blanket her with it, allowing Midnight to draw upon Twilight’s Schrift. Within their shared mindscape Twilight was helping Midnight draw out the power of the Variable, and make it so that Sapphire’s wing beams all curved around the chains that Filthy Rich had created.

In that manner the mass of golden chains smashed into Sapphire, wrapping her legs, arms, torso, and most importantly wrapped tightly around her wings. Spikes grew from the chains, piercing into the wings and seeking to bind them tighter.

“No! I will not be stopped here! I will protect him!” Sapphire’s voice rose like thunder in a tempest, and she poured the might of the Quintessence into Filthy Rich’s chains, seeking to dismantle them on a particle level.

And Midnight’s magic was there to stop the Quintessence as Midnight threw out streams of power to infuse the chains, coating them in flickering auras of witchfire.

Even so, Sapphire would not be finished. Her body, every silver inch of her angelic body, blazed with light as she called out an incantation.

“Göttliche Bildnissäulen!” (Divine Effigy Pillars)

Silver poured from her, between the bindings of the chains, and in less than a second four pillars of raw silver rose into being around her. Carved like marble supports of a grand Roman temple, the pillars were topped by silver busts of Sapphire Shore’s transformed features, angel wings spreading from their sides. The effigies as one opened eyes of pure white light and screamed trumpet calls as they unleashed bolts of silver fire upon Midnight Sparkle.

Not fast enough to teleport before the bolts, which moved at something approaching light speed, Midnight was wracked by explosions of silver flame. She raised a shield of magic and activated Blut Vene to its maximum, but she was still thrown around like a leaf within a storm, her skin blistering under the painful waves of explosions.

Starswirl rushed to her defense, throwing himself towards her and speaking an incantation of his own.

“Bakudo Number Eighty One: Danku!”

The flat plane of transparent force snapped into being in front of Midnight and briefly halted the bolts of silver fire from the pillars, long enough for Starswirl to Flash Step to Midnight’s side and grip her shoulder as she teleported them both out of the way.

The pillars hardly ceased their firing, re-targeting their wrath upon Soarin, Cadence, and Filthy Rich. Retina burning bolts of silver heaven’s fire blasted out in all directions, melting through chains as they tried to reach the Sternritter. Filthy Rich, not daring to move, lest his Schirft’s potency lessen, used the Mason to slam a wall of chains in front of himself, and augmented it with his own blood, essentially reinforcing the chains with Blut Vene. Even so the wall was devastated by the streaking spears of silver flame, the magically and spiritually reinforced metal burning white hot to the near melting point.

Cadence had to risk everything to fly through the storm of bolts to reach Soarin, who was too badly injured to dodge effectively. He stumbled in mid-air, the darts embedded in his flesh disrupting his concentration as he tried to use Hirenkyaku. Cadence cried out in pain herself as a silver bolt pierced one of her butterfly wings and burned a hole through it like it was nothing more than paper, and even burned her side, melting her crystal armor against her hip. Yet she put on a burst of speed and caught Saorin in time to pull him away from a convergence of silver bolts that impacted into a conflagration of blinding light.

Midnight gripped Starswirl’s arm in thanks but didn’t have time to so much as voice appreciation for his help before she flapped her ethereal wings and burst down towards where Filthy Rich was, channeling her magic into the melting wall of chains. Magical runes spread through the chains, reinforcing them further, while Midnight drew upon the Variable to change the chains’ fundamental melting point to make it even harder for them to break.

“Don’t let up!” she shouted to her companions, “Pin her down with everything you’ve got!”

“Such goes without saying,” Starswirl breathed, holding his left hand in a complex gesture as he rushed through the motions of a Kido incantation, although the strain and sweat on his face suggested even he was running out of stamina, “Bakudo Number Seventy Nine: Kuyo Shibari! (Nine Sun Bind)

Eight black spheres, outlined in purple energy, snapped into existence around Sapphire Shore’s already chain wrapped body, while a ninth sphere appeared in the center of her chest right above the symbol of an eye she had engraved there. The binding energies of the Kido spell sought to further immobilize her and dampen her reiatsu, but Sapphire’s power just seemed to keep going as she roared out, “Even if I must burn my soul to cinders, I will stop the fate I see before me!”

The four pillars all became engulfed in a nimbus of incandescent heaven-fire, silver light spilling out as each effigy opened it’s metallic lips and fired beams of solid light out, two heading for Midnight, one aimed at Starswirl, and another rocketing towards Filthy Rich behind his wall of chains.

Midnight attempted the same she had once before, summon a redirection spell that created two large circular distortions in the air in front of her, like mirrors, that she hoped to use to shift the beams coming her way. Yet upon impact, instead of being absorbed, the solid beams of silver light cracked the foundations of Midnight’s spells! Such was the overwhelming reiatsu contained in Sapphire’s desperate attack that even the fundamental laws of magic were being disrupted by pure force.

Filthy Rich’s wall of chains, even reinforced by magic, fared little better, melting through in seconds and forcing the man to either move, or risk getting vaporized. This weakened his direct connection to the rest of his chains, slackening their grip on Sapphire Shores, who even under the influence of a high level binding Kido started to flex her wings and may well have broken free then and there... if not for two unlikely forms of interference.

The first was that Gladmane, under Cadence’s mental domination and following the instructions he’d been given, flew down closer and fired rapid shots from his pistol, striking Sapphire’s wings and redoubling the effects of the Weight upon them by concentrating the gravity effects directly upon the wings themselves. The second factor was Soarin, before even Cadence could react, dredged up the last of his energy and focus and managed to move in a blink of high speed to reach Sapphire Shore’s at head level where he aimed his bow at point blank range.

“No matter what, I won’t let you hurt Twilight! Erschütterung!” (Disruption)

What happened was not an arrow fired from his bow, but rather a series of small blue reishi spheres swirled out and began to clatter against one another at high speed, creating an incredibly loud set of repeated chimes. Then, with the Echo, this sound grew into a storm of vibrations that reverberated hundreds of times over across both Soarin and Sapphire Shores, intensifying with each echo of noise.

Sapphire Shores screamed, less in pain and more in elemental frustration as the increased weight on her wings and the sudden pummeling of vibrations around her skull caused her to lose focus and also the shot she had at freedom. In pure reflex she struck out at her tormentors. The wings around her eyes flew open, and with her eyes revealed it was clear to see that they were no longer human; but depthless pools of white radiance. Turning that baleful gaze upon Soarin, she fired directly into him with a combined set of silver beams that lanced through his chest and sent him spinning away like a rag-doll.

Soarin!, Twilight screamed in Midnight’s mind, and Midnight echoed the word, although hers was more a pained whisper than a scream. Her own wings flexed and she was rushing Sapphire, her whisper turning into a shout, “Cadence! Now!”

There wasn’t going to be another chance. All of them knew it. Filthy Rich, with his remaining might, rushed back to his chains and poured all his reiatsu through the Mason. Chains repaired themselves and constricted around Sapphire Shores, tearing into her silver wings. Starswirl used Flash Step to appear above Sapphire Shores and swung his Zanpaktou down to send a wave of hardening chemical to splash down upon her and the chains, further limiting her movement.

The effigy pillars blasted out a fresh barrage of radiant bolts, but Midnight flew through the hellstorm, erecting magical barriers to catch some of the bolts while relying on pure speed to weave her way through the rest. She reached the front side of Sapphire, and pulled back her right hand. Blazing lines of purple light spilled across her skin, forming sharp patterns through her arm and hand, which in turn was engulfed in violet energy.

Sapphire Shore’s eyes of pure white turned to Midnight, her expression a resolute visage of divine fury as she unleashed the twin beams once more. Midnight rushed them, using her bow like a shield to catch the beams. The power of those beams was beyond immense, and Midnight felt the bow she and Twilight had forged together with spiritual power and magic both start to crack and break. The Hexenfaust burst from her arm, sending sparkling fragments flying, some of which tore at Midnight’s own flesh. She wasn't concerned about the gauntlet. Another would be built. She pressed on into Sapphire's shining beams, and as her bow shattered in her hand she shoved the remains of it into Sapphire Shore’s face, blinding her eyes. Then, with her other hand, the one engulfed in purple magical power, she slammed that fist right into Sapphire Shore’s chest with a metallic crack of sound that echoed through the entire prison dimension.

A roar tore itself from Midnight’s lips as she poured all of her magic into Sapphire Shores, seeking to strip away her armor, her defenses, to quell even the very might of the Quintessence. Or rather, force the Quintessence to react to the invasion of magic. Sapphire’s metallic skin peeled back, exposing raw flesh beneath, the near impenetrable defenses, for a bare instant, were left open.

And Cadence was there to act within that instant.

Right behind Midnight she’d flown, and raised her crystalline blue armbow. A single pure arrow of pink flew forth as Cadence intoned her own strongest attack, and an ability she’d never had to use until this point, “Giftige Liebe.” (Poisonous Love)

The sliver of pink beyond pink flew straight into Sapphire Shore’s unprotected heart.

There, the poison within went to work. No mere toxin, this was instead the essence of the Lust in its strongest form. A reishi based substance that overrode all thought and will, save service to it’s creator. Cadence had never used this before for two reasons. One was that, despite it’s overwhelming potency once it got into the bloodstream, it was incredibly easy to defend against for the concentrated Lust was physically no stronger than glass. Even an average Blut Vene could deflect it. That meant her opponent had to be rendered largely defenseless or be taken by surprise for it to work.

The second reason were that, unlike her other forms of Lust, the effects were irreversible. It was the strongest Lust for it lasted eternally. An ‘love’ as everlasting as it was poisonous. She actually kind of hated it, and hoped to never have to use it.

But when she, Midnight, and the others had planned their attack upon Sapphire Shores there’d been no other viable trump card to use. And even with all their planning in that timeless space Midnight had created, it’d taken everything they had just to immobilize Sapphire Shores long enough for an opening to be created for Cadence to use the Giftige Liebe.

Such was the power of the Schutzstaffel Sapphire Shores, King Sombra’s strongest, and most trusted servant of six centuries. It had taken five other Sternritter and a Soul Reaper Captain, using all of their power, just to scrape out a victory... and one that still cost one of them their lives.

As the Lust’s most insidious power spread through her, Sapphire Shore’s will still held out long enough for her to gaze upon the ones who had defeated her, uncomprehending.

“How did I lose?”

Midnight’s reply was simple, “You were alone...”

It really was that simple. At its core, the nature of magic was power, but people might not understand what that actually meant. Power wasn’t just something one wielded. It was a collective will, connecting everyone and everything. Sure, there were lots of ways it manifested; spells, spirit powers, physical might, speed, lifeforce. There were countless ways that magic, that power, took shape.

And there was one form of it that was always prevalent and available to everyone; allies.

In Equestria it might have a sappier catchphrase that Midnight was aware of, but she refused to think of it in those terms. Instead of friendship being magic, she thought of it as allies being power. A group could do more than a single person could. Basic math, really.

And for all Sapphire Shores’ power, she’d lost because Midnight had not fought alone.

That answer caused Sapphire a moment of confusion, but it cleared up as she gazed further into Midnight’s eyes.

Strangely in Midnight’s face she saw not satisfaction... well, not just satisfaction. The girl wore a complex look that showed a certain bizarre empathy. Midnight, more than most, hated the notion of losing her own will, so didn’t relish robbing Sapphire of hers. More than that, however, there was still something Midnight wanted to know... so as Sapphire Shore’s body slackened, and her eyes started to lose the sheen of the pure resolve that had been within them, Midnight asked, “Tell me, when you look at me now, what future do you see?”

Sapphire looked, with the last iotas of her own will and mind, she gazed at Midnight, at Twilight, at the countless threads of beautiful starfire particles that spread from them and touched all around them. She looked into that infinite web of possibilities, of what ifs and could have beens that was formed from a weave of spirit so dense that even she’d never truly understood it. And there, she saw the future she’d always feared, of her love, her Savoir, her King, no longer being in this world, of him fading away due to the presence of the girl before her.

Yet now that she looked again, something was different. No, not different. The convergence of futures she saw was the same as it’d ever been. What had changed was that the way in which Sapphire Shores looked upon the threads of reishi was different, shifting her view, her perspective, to shine a new light upon what she had dreaded for all those years.

Silver tears fell from her eyes, which lost their white radiance and returned to their human, golden sheen.

“I see it now. My King... Radiant Hope... it wasn’t death I saw for the two of you. It was the end of the King, but not the end of him. Thank God. Oh, but why didn’t I see it before? Why did I only see death? The future... such a confusing dance... Twilight, you and Sombra... will...”

With that, the last of her will vanished from Sapphire Shore’s eyes, and she went as still and placid as a porcelain doll. Silence reigned, and none spoke for a second, but then Midnight, a grim look on her face, turned from the placid Sapphire Shores and said, “Filthy Rich, Starswirl, you can unbind her. She’s no threat now.”

Without waiting for their reply she teleported instantly to a fallen white form that was barely hanging onto one of Filthy Rich’s dangling chains with one, bloodstained hand.

Soarin was still alive, technically, but the hole in his chest and the blood pouring out of his mouth gave a gristly testament to the time he had left. Midnight clasped his hand and held him with her other arm, cradling him like a dark Valkyrie holding aloft a fallen soldier.

“Can we really unbind her?” Filthy Rich asked cautiously, and Cadence gave him a sharp look.

“She’s controlled by the Lust, now, Rich. We have to check on Soarin.”

Filthy Rich nodded dutifully, glancing towards Starswirl, “I don’t suppose you’re capable of any of those Soul Reaper healing spells?”

Starswirl was looking with a flat look towards where Midnight held Soarin and gave a shake of his head, “I’m proficient, but nowhere near at Captain Zecora’s level. We would need someone like her to deal with that young man’s wound, I’m afraid.”

Cadence appeared next to Midnight, looking at Soarin’s injury with eyes reflecting the tired realization of the situation. Soarin, barely breathing, cracked an eye open and glanced between Midnight and Cadence. He coughed out a blood spattered laugh.

“Heh...well... least I get to go... in the company of some fine ladies.”

“You think this is funny?” Midnight said with heat in her voice that even surprised her, “I don’t recall giving any one of you permission to do something stupid like die.”

"Heh...sorry...just glad you're... okay," was his whispered, bloodstained reply.

Midnight, please... Twilight’s voice said painfully from within their mind. Within their mindscape Twilight was doing all she could to keep her own emotions under control. She might not have known Soarin for very long, but he’d been a dutiful companion and protector for her since Sombra had assigned him to be her bodyguard. He’s calm but boyish charm had been endearing, and she’d gotten used to having him around. He’d never complained about the dangers of protecting her from possible assassination, and had been understanding of her own quirks.

They weren’t close, but dammit they’d been growing into friends, and Twilight was sick of seeing people die in front of her before she could form the bonds that she’d desired most of her life.

And, perhaps not all that surprisingly, Midnight felt the same way. With her newfound freedom, with the promise of a future in which she and Twilight could both start living properly, she didn’t want to lose anyone either.

“Can you do anything?” Cadence asked her, and Midnight’s eyes flared with resolve.

“Close up a giant hole in somebody’s chest? No. Not here. I’d need Equestria’s magical field to even have a chance,” she said, “And Equestria is far away.”

Starswirl approached, contemplative, “The portal should still be in my laboratory.”

Cadence’s eyes widened, “That’s what you Soul Reapers were studying?”

“There’s no point,” Midnight said, seeing that Soarin had already slackened in her hands. The hole in his chest was below his heart, which was why he hadn’t died instantly. Well, that and residual use of Blut Vene to hold parts of his internal body together, but as his power waned along with his consciousness, that too was failing and for all intents and purposes he was already dead. She could tell his heart had stopped, and within minutes, brain death would follow.

And a part of her refused to accept that.

So she did the only thing she could think of to do. She couldn’t heal him, but she could preserve him, couldn’t she? What was the point of all the magic at her disposal if she couldn’t use it to save the life of one measly person she personally preferred to keep around? So she placed her hand over his slack, pale body, and poured out her magic. Motes of luminous blue light brushed over Soarin’s body. Where the light touched, a sheen of stone covered his body. Soon enough, Soarin was frozen in stone, petrified from head to toe.

“Wait, what did you just do?” Cadence said.

“The only thing that made sense to me,” Midnight replied, “The petrification spell will put him in suspended animation. As long as he’s like this, he’s neither alive or dead. He’ll stay this way until either I or something else breaks the spell. Buys us time until I can... figure something else out.”

“Umm, I don’t mean to alarm anyone,” called Filthy Rich form some distance away. He’d unchained Sapphire Shores, who remind a disturbingly still and doll-like form. Her body hadn’t changed shape from it’s transformed state. She hadn’t said anything. She hadn’t so much as twitched a muscle. Because Cadence, the owner of the Lust, hadn’t given her any orders yet.

However that wasn’t what Filthy Rich was drawing attention to. The middle-aged Sternritter had shouldered his musket and was now gesturing nervously towards the walls of the prison dimension.

Unbeknownst to those who had just defeated Sapphire Shores, the woman had planned things out quite thoroughly. She hadn’t erected this prison sphere as merely a way to keep any further reinforcements from arriving or to keep Twilight form escaping. It was a trap meant to ensure that, even if she lost, that her will would still be done.

With it’s creator no longer sustaining it’s stability the already inherently unstable dimension was starting to unravel. Massive quantities of spirit energy were now coming apart violently, and golden cracks of light were appearing all across the dimension’s silver walls. A rumble of unearthly proportions started to reach the ears of all those entrapped, and their spiritual senses would not miss the increasing pressure of raw spirit power that was taking violent shape.

Even the slowest minded among them would know what was coming. This dimension was coming apart, and, like the bomb it was meant to be, it was mere minutes from exploding and destroying everything within it.

Episode 124: Reason To Fight

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Episode 124: Reason To Fight

It took Midnight all of a second to surmise what Sapphire Shores had done. Inside their shared mind, Twilight was drawing identical conclusions, her voice running at the speed of thought with a frightful chime.

”This dimension was intentionally designed to become unstable and not only collapse, but create a cascade reaction of explosive reishi particles! Did she set it up to collapse after a set time period or if Sapphire Shores herself lost?”

“Twilight, I don’t think it matters why this place is about to explode,” Midnight snapped, “What matters is how we stop it!”

“Can’t you just open a magical portal out of here?” Cadence asked, her eyes widely gazing at the walls of the gleaming silver prison dimension as more and more golden cracks of uncontrolled energy started to form around it. “You made those during the Friendship Games.”

“The situation is different now,” Midnight reply curtly, trying to ignore Twilight’s increasingly panicked voice in her own head, “I was right next to the portal to Equestria, which was extending a portion of that world’s magical field into this one. That made opening holes right to Equestria easy. But that portal isn’t here, and this place is sealed away from the physical world in it’s own pocket dimension. Any attempt I’d make to rip open a portal would just accelerate this place collapsing on us.”

“Then what do we do?” said Filthy Rich, turning a questioning gaze towards Cadence as a fearful sweat beaded his face, “If you have control over Sapphire, can’t you order her to stop this?”

Cadence’s eyes flicked over to Sapphire Shore’s placid form, “I can try.”

“Go for it,” Midnight said, “If that doesn’t work, I’ll see what me and Twilight can come up with. I’m not about to die just after getting a taste of freedom, I can promise you that!”

In a flash Cadence was next to Sapphire Shore’s side, with Filthy Rich following close behind her. Midnight, still holding the petrified Soarin’s body in a telekinetic grip, started to examine the prison dimension’s walls.

“Sapphire,” Cadence said, and the motionless woman immediately turned to face her with her blank expression suddenly filling with utter, blind devotion. It was as if she’d been a dead husk a second ago, then upon hearing Cadence’s words she became filled with life, but a twisted, maddened sort of life that existed solely for the Cadence.

“Yes? Do you have need of me?”

Even those simple words were spoken with unsettling reverence and love, as if Cadence had become the sole thing in existence that Sapphire Shores could respond to now with any emotion, and even then the only emotion capable was a savagely consuming love that ruled out all other feelings.

A spark of self-hatred fluttered through Cadence upon seeing what she’d wrought, but she pushed the feeling aside with the knowledge that Sapphire Shores had left little in the way of options to defeat her, and that right now the power of her Lust might be the only thing that could get them out of this jam. She tried to convince herself that Sapphire had brought this fate upon herself, but it still didn’t mean that she liked what she saw, or hoped to never have to use this power again.

“This place you’ve created is collapsing, Sapphire. Can you stop it?” Cadence asked, and the other woman’s devoted features paled.

Sapphire Shores wailed like a child who’d disappointed a beloved parent, “I’m so sorry! I can’t do that, because I designed it to fall apart like this without any fail safes! I’ll kill myself immediately if that makes up for it, Cadence! Please don’t hate me! I just was trying so hard to kill Twilight Sparkle that I wanted to make sure it happened even if you beat me. Forgive me! I’d open a way out if I could for you, but I made sure that if anyone, even I, tried to do so when it got this unstable it’d just explode anyway.”

“Blasted zealot!” Filthy Rich burst out with a heated voice, “Are you insane!?”

“Filthy, there’s no point admonishing her,” Cadence said sharply, “She can’t change what she did. And no, Sapphire, I don’t hate you or want you to punish yourself. There must be some way to at least slow the process down. You’re still the Quintessence. You can control and change the basic structure of reishi! Don’t tell me there’s nothing you can do.”

Sapphire Shores looked around almost bashfully, her demure attitude sharply contrasting with the fact that she was still an eighteen foot tall, silver angel with eight wings. “If the dimension wasn’t already this unstable I’d be able to open a way out easily, but right now even with the Quintessence it would be very dangerous to try. At best, I could probably slow the process of destruction down. I don’t know if I can do more than that.”

“Then do so, please. That would, um... make me very happy,” Cadence said, feeling a bit sick at the way Sapphire Shore’s eyes lit up and the other woman beamed out a smile.

“Then I’ll do it! For you!”

Once free of the chains Filthy Rich had placed around her, Sapphire Shores became a silver streak and went to the nearest point upon the prison dimensions walls, reaching her hands out to touch the cracking silver surface. Filthy Rich watched her go and shivered.

“I always rated your Schrift as among the more dangerous ones among the younger generation of Sternritter,” he told Cadence, “But I’m thinking I underestimated it even then.”

“I’m not proud of it,” Cadence said, “Sometimes it’s caused me more trouble than it’s worth.”

The middle aged business man looked at her with a patient expression, tempering his voice with a chord of experience, “You might resent what it does, but never forget that it’s your power, and that as long as you use it to protect what matters to you, you should be proud of it.”

“Yes... well, we’re not out of this yet, Filthy Rich, so don’t thank me quite yet,” said Cadence, eyeing both Sapphire Shores and Midnight, both of whom were not making any obvious physical progress on the walls of the dimension, but were clearly doing something.

Captain Starswirl was observing things from nearby, having deactivated his Zanpaktou and sheathed it while tending to his wounds with Kido. While he hadn’t said anything, he keen minded Captain was considering options of his own. His Zanpaktou could, technically, make a Senkaimon Gate, but since he had no way of knowing whether or not that attempt at inter-realm travel would react poorly with the unstable dimension he found himself in, he considered that an option of last resort. He’d let Midnight and Twilight try to handle the situation up until the last minute. If whatever they attempted failed, he’d risk the Senkaimon. For now, he was content to observe, showing no grand distress over the prospect of an impending doom. For him, whether he lived or not, he’d at least get to observe some interesting phenomenon.

”Midnight, do you feel that?” Twilight said as Midnight was very carefully trying to probe the wall with a combination of both magical and spiritual senses. Twilight could feel everything Midnight was feeling, so it was little wonder she picked up on the faint pulses of reiatsu that weren’t coming from the vibrating rifts of unstable energy stemming from the volatile reishi Sapphire Shores had constructed her prison dimension from.

“Yes, I feel it,” Midnight replied with a small smirk, “That’s Rarity and Fluttershy’s reiatsu. Looks like your friends are just outside, and are trying to do something to this place as well.”

”Is there any way we can contact them? A magic telepathy spell or something?” Twilight asked, and Midnight made a mental equivalent of an eye roll.

“Magic telepathy? It’s magic, Twilight, not psychic power.”

”Are psychics a thing, do you think?”

“How should I know? I’m just your magical mental counterpart that lives in your brain. Now, what I can do is try to send through a ‘Message’ spell. It’s not telepathy, but it’d let us say something to them. Question is, what do we say to them other than ‘Back away before this thing explodes and kills all of you’?”

”I don’t know... I... wait, Midnight, what about this? If we have them raise their reiatsu as high as it could go, couldn’t you use that as a beacon to focus a teleport spell on?”

Midnight considered the notion. She hadn’t tried teleporting already due to the fact that this prison completely sealed them off from the outside reality, which meant that any attempt at a teleport would be fundamentally scrambled and be highly likely to fail in... spectacular manner. But with something to focus the teleport on, like as Twilight said a ‘beacon’, that might work. Well, it would work if there was a pathway through which the magic of the teleport could go. Teleportation wasn’t quite what people tended to think of it as. Sure, the people or objects teleporting vanished from one spot and appeared somewhere else, but the magical energy of the spell still technically traversed the space between those two points. That's why warding spells could block teleportation, because the energy of the spell itself could be blocked from traversing from point A to point B.

As long as this wall of unstable reishi was in the way, a teleport wouldn’t work, even with a beacon. Sure, there was just enough of a crack in the reality between the prison dimension and the outside for some magical and spiritual wavelengths to pass through, hence why she and Twilight could sense Rarity and Fluttershy on the outside, and why a Message spell might also get through. But there was a huge difference between that, and a teleport. Especially a complex teleport taking along multiple people.

There was a high chance that if they tried it, most of them, if not all of them, would get scrambled beyond recognition by the interference the falling apart dimensional wall would cause the spell. Even if some of them survived, it wouldn’t be in particularly pleasant condition.

All of this crossed Midnight’s mind in an instant, and consequently it also crossed Twilight’s due to their shared mental space. That also meant a potential solution came to both of them at nearly the same instant.

“Cadence! Get everyone over here, now!” Midnight shouted, “Bring your new gal-toy, too! We’re going to need her!”

“I would prefer you not refer to her as a ‘toy’ Midnight,” Cadence said with a cutting edge to her tone that suggested she didn’t think the situation particularly amusing. Soon enough all of them were gathered near, including the still mentally subdued Gladmane and, and Spoiled Rich who had apparently passed out at some point during the final moments of the battle and now hung limply in her magical bindings. Filthy Rich gave his wife a complicated look of anger, pain, sadness, and even traces of love. Midnight chose not to comment. The man clearly had some personal issues with his family that needed working out, and Midnight had zero interest in the results of that.

“Okay people,” she said, “Here’s our one possible chance out of here before getting crushed and atomized by an imploding pocket dimension. I might be able to teleport us to the other side, but only if a clear and stable hole is opened up in the walls of this place. Sapphire Shores, you can open up such a hole, right?”

Sapphire didn’t respond save to look at Cadence questioningly, and only upon Cadence’s nod of approval did Sapphire turn back to Midnight, “I can, but that will just make things more unstable, especially around the area where I make the hole. Destructive reishi will start pouring out here and this part of the dimension will collapse first.”

“That’s fine,” Midnight said, and Filthy Rich cleared his throat.

“My pardons, but I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t describe any of that as fine.”

“It will be, because on the other side is Twilight’s good friend Fluttershy, who has a Fullbring that operates on similar logic to the Quintessence. At least in so much as it directly affects how reishi works. She can’t alter the fundamental function of reishi, but she sure can manipulate its general state in a lot of ways. She’s particularly good at calming things down, which is what we need here most. Sapphire, I’m going to need you to time this with Fluttershy, wait until the exact moment she uses her Fullbring to stabilize this portion of the wall, then open a hole in it as smoothly as you can. Got it?”

Another questioning look was sent towards an exasperated Cadence who firmly nodded, “Do as she says, Sapphire.”

“Yes, I can do it, if it pleases Cadence,” Sapphire confirmed.

“Perfect,” Midnight said, “See? Cooperation is an amazing thing. I’m sending the Message spell now. You just keep your senses sharp until you feel Fluttershy doing her thing. The rest of you, stand close to me, and pray to whoever, preferably me, that this works like I think it should.”

With barely a conscious thought she summoned forth a gust of magic that created a faint spark of purple light that Midnight whispered her words into, detailing the plan, and then sent the light through the thinnest of the cracks in the wall. Hopefully the Message would get through relatively clearly.

----------

“I don’t mean to freak anybody out, but I’ve got about ten different Pinkie Sense alarms going off at once and am pretty sure that we’re either all about to explode, or have something of similar horribleness happen,” Pinkie Pie pointed out as the expansive sphere of silver energy continued to gain an ever widening array of cracks along its surface. Harmful energies poured out of the cracks, and the air was vibrating with an increasing roar of noise that seemed to come from all places at once.

“Dang it Pinkie, that sense o’ yers ever gonna kick in ta tell us we’re gonna get a vacation!?” Applejack said, hands clenched uselessly as she could do little but watch her friends work to try and deal with the situation, as her power-set was not suited to the kind of delicate work that Fluttershy and Rarity were attempting.

“Sorry Applejack, I don’t think we’re going to get a lot of breaks until the series is over, although I think the author still needs to catch everyone up with what’s going on with our pony-selves in Equestria, so I think we’ll get to rest a bit while that’s happening,” Pinkie replied, receiving a blank stare from Applejack.

“Man, this thing is looking like it’s about to pop,” Rainbow Dash said, “Hey Flutters, Rares, you guys got this or what!?”

“Ugh... Rainbow Dash, I’d thank you not to distract us. This is much more focus intensive than it may appear,” Rarity said, her hands held out in front of her as she concentrated on directing her knights. The crimson gates behind her had formed to bring forth her army, which was now surrounding the sphere like a hovering swarm. Each knight was using its weapon to generate interlocking lattices of ruby crystal that was growing to encompass the widest cracks in the sphere. Rarity was essentially ‘patching’ the holes, using her reishi infused crystal to try and reinforce the spiritual structure.

This was hardly a solution, merely a stopgap to buy Fluttershy time as she focused upon doing what Twilight’s unusual message had bade them to. Only a minute ago had a mote of purple light appeared before them and Twilight’s voice had swiftly relayed a plan to extricate herself and the others trapped within the sphere. While the precise nuances of the plan were of a magical nature beyond the girls’ ability to really understand, the short version could be boiled down to Fluttershy trying to re-stabilize, however temporarily, the energies running wild through a particular portion of the sphere.

While she did that, Rarity redoubled her efforts to use her own Fullbring to keep the sphere from falling apart, although even she wasn’t certain how much help she was being.

Meanwhile Fluttershy remained the calmest of all of them, a serene figure amid the tense moment. She stood within inches of the sphere, her six flesh and blood hands clasped before her in a complex, prayer-like gesture. From the shining halo behind her a multitude of ethereal arms of solid gold light sprouted and embraced the sphere within a concentrated area, forming a wide circle about six feet to either side of Fluttershy. This part of the sphere was gleaming with an inner light stemming from Fluttershy, who poured her power into the violent, unstable reishi making up the sphere.

Much as she might seek to control the emotions of an individual’s soul, or soothe a body to bring out it’s inner ability to heal itself, she stemmed the aggravated tide of destructive reishi. Stillness was her inner being, and she exuded that stillness into the reishi designed to self-destruct and come apart violently. Bit by bit, the reishi around the area she focused upon became stable, the cracks no longer widening, and in a few places even closing up. It was only a momentary thing, Fluttershy knew. As powerful as she’d become, the one who’d made this sphere was on a different level, and the amount of power put into the sphere was truly monstrous. It would explode eventually, even with Fluttershy working to reverse the destructive process. Yet, with all of her might concentrated on one point, one area where she could put forth her full effort to still the violence to come... the sphere became almost entirely stable.

And in that moment, Sapphire Shores, on the other side, opened a hole in the prison she’d created. A hole no larger than a baseball, but more than large, and more importantly stable, enough for Midnight Sparkle to cast herself and all those within the prison through the barrier via a teleport spell.

It was in a wide, sparkling flash of purple light that Midnight, Cadence, Captain Starswirl, Filthy Rich, Sapphire Shores, the stone body of Soarin, the unconscious Spoiled Rich, and the still mentally dominated Gladmane all appeared in the sky a few meters behind the girls.

“Yes, it worked! Hah! I’m amazing! Mmm, smell that sweet air of freedom!” Midnight swept her arms out and took a deep breath, grinning with a reckless abandon.

“Whoa nelly! Yer all alright?” Applejack asked, but the farm girl’s eyes quickly took in the sight in front of her with rapid confusion that turned into uneasy suspension, “Twilight, yer... alright?”

“Holy crap, look at the silver chick!” Rainbow Dash blurted, “She’s freakin’ huge! Uh... are we fighting? Should we be getting ready for some boss music or something?”

Pinkie Pie cocked her head to the side, one of her ears twitching, “I don’t hear any playing yet. I think we’re good, Dashie.”

“Captain Starswirl,” Sweet Cider said, nodding to her fellow Captain while eyeing the Quincy with her hands not quite raising her Zanpaktou, but clearly not relaxing her guard, “I’m glad you’re still alive. Just what is the situation?”

“The situation, Captain Sweet Cider, is that I don’t believe we should remain close to this sphere for very long,” Starswirl replied, “As it seems to still be in the process of collapsing.”

“Oh yes!” said Sapphire Shores suddenly, “It will explode most spectacularly. We will most certainly die if we don’t leave.” She blinked, “That would be bad, right Cadence?”

With a frustrated gasp, Cadence ran a hand over her face and said, “Yes, yes it would! We can save questions and standoffs for the moment. Sapphire, how far away do we need to get?”

“Oh, a few miles I would think-”

“A few miles!? Sapphire, Camp Everfree is only a couple of miles from here!”

“It is? Oh, it is. I don’t think I cared about that when I made the sphere. Um, should I care about that Cadence? You’re not mad at me, are you? I’ll start caring about Camp Everfree if that will make you happy.”

“Aaaaah craaaap!” Rainbow Dash zipped about, left and right in little bursts of lightning, “Maybe if we just hit it really hard we can punt it into orbit!?”

“Don’t be an idgit, Dash! Hittin’ this thing is liable ta just make it explode faster!” Applejack said, glaring at Sapphire Shores, “If ya made this stupid thing, can’t ya just turn it off!?”

“Not when the process is this far along. Oh my, I really didn’t expect to lose. But Cadence is so wonderful, of course I’d lose to her.”

“Ignore her,” Cadence said, “Midnight, please tell me you have a plan?”

“Midnight?” Applejack and Rainbow Dash both said as they exchanged looks.

“Step back girls,” Midnight said with a smug look as she rolled up her sleeves and sashayed over towards the sphere, “Now that I’m outside this overgrown marble, I’ve got this well in hand. Fluttershy, Rarity, you two can stand back. Just leave this matter to the undisputed master of magic-”

She winced, then said, seemingly to herself, “What do you mean I sound like Trixie, Twilight? I find that offensive on so many levels that I think I need to invent several just to cover them all! She’s a talentless, no-magic hack, and I wield the fundamental cosmic power of reality itself! She only wishes she could fart an iota of a percentile of the magic I, er, we wield.”

“Uh... anybody else get the feeling we missed a lot of important things that went down in that sphere?” asked Rainbow Dash while watching Midnight talk to herself.

“It’s okay Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said as she withdrew her spiritual hands from the sphere and walked over to stand next to the other girl, “I think everything is going to be alright, now.”

“Well, I certainly hope so, because I’ve had enough of explosions for one day,” said Rarity with a self-conscious look on her face as she joined her friends, directing her knights back to the gate, while leaving her crystal lattice around the sphere, “So Twilight, if you’d be so kind as to do whatever it is you’re going to do?”

“It’s Midnight, girls, and just watch a master at work.”

Cracking her neck, Midnight flapped her raven wings and flew upwards. It had by now dawned upon the girls who they were looking at, and more uneasy looks were sent between them as Midnight reached the zenith of the sphere. Her wings spread wide, Midnight threw out her hands and her palms lit up with bonfires of thick, teal magic.

Slowly the entire silver sphere became encased in a sparkling glow of teal light, pin-pricks of stardust flickering across its circumference. While a construct of pure spiritual energies, the sphere did have weight and mass. Now that she was outside the prison dimension, Midnight could exert force on that mass, and with still quite a bit of magical energies in her reserves, she gripped the entire sphere in a powerful telekinetic grip.

Then, much as Rainbow Dash had suggested, she hurled the sphere upwards. Unlike a direct impact like a physical strike, that might cause the unstable sphere to explode, the even telekinetic grip was able to move the sphere while still keeping it together, and move it at a decently fast speed, too. Within a minute the wide orb of silver sailed upwards into the sky, gaining kilometres of distance in a short span of time. Midnight kept the sphere moving, until it was little more than a dot that glinted with the sun’s rays.

Then, when she was sure it was high enough, she gripped her hands and crushed inward with her telekinetic grip.

There was a flash like an exploding nuke, and a second or two later a concussive boom of noise, then it was over. The sphere had exploded safely, high above, and everyone was free and clear of the danger. Or at least, the immediate danger. Midnight and Twilight both could sense the flaring reiatsu signatures of the only remaining battle taking place in the region.

“Looks like your friends Sunset and Clover are a little in over their heads,” Midnight remarked, taking in hefty breaths. For all of her magical power, she’d used up quite a lot in the fight against Sapphire Shores and in disposing of the sphere. She was a bit out of breath, and her and Twilight’s body was still rather battered despite her attempts to heal it.

”It’s hard to tell what’s happening over there,” Twilight said, voice tight with concern, ”There’s a lot of magic gathering over in that huge tree, and I can’t clearly sense anyone’s spiritual pressure. Where did that tree even come from, and why can I sense magic flowing into it?”

“Good questions. I’d like to go find out, but we’d best get our ducklings in order down below before your friends start quarreling with your coworkers.”

Midnight descended back down to the area where everyone else was gathered, the group having essentially divided into two lines facing off with one another. Captain Starswirl had moved to stand beside Captain Sweet Cider, the pair just slightly off to the side while Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie stood in a row. Across from them, none having released their Vollstandigs, were Cadence, Filthy Rich, Gladmane, and Sapphire Shores. The latter held Soarin’s body in one hand, likely under Cadence’s orders. Spoiled Rich remained an unconscious weight floating just behind the group.

“Glad to see everyone getting along so well,” Midnight said as she finished her descent and halted between the two groups, “Be a true shame to go through all this trouble to save you all from certain death only to see you all try to kill each other.”

“No one was planning to begin hostilities on our end,” Rarity said flatly, “But can we be blamed for being just a tad wary? I, personally, was... injured, by that Sapphire Shores woman.”

“And I’m telling you she is no longer a threat,” Cadence said with strain in her voice, “None of us are. My only concern in coming here was to protect Twilight.”

“Yeah, great job,” Rainbow Dash said, pointing at Midnight, “Then why is she looking like her magic-crazy counterpart that nearly tore up reality? What did you do to Twilight?”

Before Cadence answered, Midnight turned to Rainbow Dash and the other girls, smiling in... not exactly a disarming manner, “That hurts, Rainbow Dash. Magic crazy? Me? Well, I suppose the shoe does fit. However my being here has nothing to do with Cadence or any of the other Quincy. Twilight willingly gave control of our body to me so that I could make proper use of our full power to defeat Sapphire Shores. Without me, Twilight would be dead right now. As would pretty much everyone else standing here. A thank you would not go unappreciated.”

“And we do thank you for that,” Fluttershy said, cutting off Rainbow Dash’s red-faced retort, “I don’t know what transpired between you and Twilight, but if she gave you control willingly, then I trust that her reasons for doing so were sound ones.”

“Seriously?” Rainbow Dash said, “For all we know she took over Twilight’s body and is lying through her teeth to us right now! How can we know for sure that our Twilight’s still in here?”

“If that’s what’s got your panties in a twist, I can just let Twilight take the wheel again,” Midnight said, sighing heavily, “I would’ve liked for this to last a little longer, but since we literally don’t have time for this nonsense I’ll let her back in the driver’s seat.”

”Wait Midnight, if Sunset and Clover are in trouble, our full power might still be needed-” Twilight began, but Midnight shook her head.

“Twilight, I’ve used up a lot of energy already. You can’t sense it as clearly as I can, but our body can’t handle too much more magic, even with me in control. You’re better off relying on your Quincy abilities for now. Besides, I’m not too keen on trying to play diplomat. Just promise me that I’ll get some body time every now and again and I’ll promise not to take any joyrides without your permission. Sound good?”

”That’s... fine. We’ll work out the details later, after everything is settled,” Twilight replied, upon which Midnight gave the girls a wink.

“Don’t have too much fun without me,” she said, and then in a wash of teal magic, Twilight’s body lost it’s darker purple sheen, the raven wings, the flares of magic around her eyes and the glowing horn, and her clothing reverted to the white and red stained tatters of her Quincy uniform.

Twilight Sparkle gasped as the true weight of the battle with Sapphire Shores hit her in a wave of exhaustion and pain from only partially healed wounds. Her left arm was particularly bad, covered in burns and cuts from the destruction of the Hexenfaust, and she could barely concentrate enough to keep the reishi threads controlling her artificial right hand in check. She felt as if she’d been rolled down a mountain and landed in a meat grinder. Without Midnight taking the mental brunt of things, and using magic to wipe away a lot of the physical strain, Twilight could tell she really was on her last legs after all that had happened today.

She almost fell out of the air right then and there, but found in an instant that Rainbow Dash had one of her arms, while Cadence had another. The Fullbringer and Quincy looked at each other, and an understanding flashed between their eyes as they both relaxed and supported Twilight.

“You alright, Twi?” Rainbow Dash asked, and Twilight gave a weak nod.

“I will be. Just need a moment to catch my breath. Oof...everything hurts.”

“We should get you back to the Silburn,” Cadence said, “I know you want to help your friends, Twilight, but in this condition...”

“No,” Twilight said firmly, solidifying a Hirenkyaku reishi disc under her feet so she could stand on the air. She gently, and not without a nod of thanks, had Rainbow Dash and Cadence stop holding her arms as she stood up more solidly.

“No,” she repeated, “I left my friends when they needed me once before. I’m not doing it again. Never again, Cadence. This time...” she looked at the girls, her eyes lighting up with renewed strength despite the pain she was in, “I stand with them.”

“Awwww, this is such a group hug moment, but I don’t want to make those injuries hurt any more, so I’m just going to make this hugging gesture from over here and hope you can feel the vibes,” Pinkie Pie said, hugging the air in front of her.

“Good ta have ya back, Twilight,” said Applejack, tipping her hat, “Even if yer still dead set on bein’ a Quincy, I’ll be dang happy ta fight alongside ya today.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Rarity said, smiling, although Twilight noted there was still a nervousness in Rarity that seemed different from the others, although Twilight couldn’t discern why.

“Here,” Fluttershy spoke softly as she approached Twilight, “I should be able to heal the worst of your wounds if you’ll give me a moment.”

“I ain’t too sure we got a’ moment,” Sweet Cider spoke up, her own eyes having drifted from the Quincy to the distant, gigantic tree, “I can sense Captain Luna over there fightin’ alongside Sunset Shimmer an’ Third Seat Clover, an’ whoever they’re up against is strong ‘nough ta be takin’ all three o’ them an’ then some.”

Fluttershy nodded but didn’t look away from Twilight as she placed one of her many hands upon her friend, and with a gentle motion allowed an aura of golden light to suffuse Twilight’s body. Twilight almost instantly felt her pain start to fade away like permafrost under a noon sun, and an incredible sense of ease and contentment filled her as Fluttershy worked her power over her injured friend. Fatigue was washed away, and many still bleeding wounds closed up only to leave faint scar tissue in their wake. Even with only a minute of concentration from Fluttershy’s Fullbring, Twilight felt incredible. Not quite one hundred percent, but she went from barely standing to feeling ready for a fresh fight in almost no time.

Even the Soul Reaper Captains and Sternritter in attendance looked impressed by Fluttershy’s healing prowess.

“Why, I do think that’s on par with what Captain Zecora herself could achieve,” Starswirl commented, and Sweet Cider stroked her chin.

“Huh, maybe I should've taken her up on her healin’ offer earlier.”

“You’ve certainly made some potent friends, Twilight Sparkle,” Filthy Rich noted, “Now, can I assume from the turn in the conversation that you intend to join them in engaging that Hollow I’m sensing in the direction of that unusually large tree?”

“That was the plan, yes,” Twilight said, frowning, “That’s not an issue, is it?”

“None,” Filthy Rich said, “Strictly speaking we don’t need His Majesty’s authorization to engage Hollows at our discretion. It’s not normal by any means to ignore Soul Reapers as potential threats, but it isn’t the first time a Quincy has needed to prioritize Hollow extermination over dealing with our rivalry with the Soul Reapers.”

“Rivalry? Is that what you call it?” Starswirl asked, then just chuckled dryly, “No matter. I am in agreement with you, for what it may be worth. Our respective groups hostility towards one another can be shelved for the moment. Besides, your young Twilight Sparkle has most impressed me. I’d hate to burn a bridge before it’s even been properly built.”

That caused both Filthy Rich and Cadence to raise eyebrows, both at Starswirl and Twilight both, but neither questioned the enigmatic Captain’s words.

“Does anyone here know who Sunset and Clover are fighting?” Twilight asked, “I can sense a powerful Hollow reiatsu, but there’s a lot of magic over there too, and that tree wasn’t there prior to Sapphire Shores trapping us in that sphere.”

Fluttershy answered, her voice measured, “It’s Gloriosa Daisy.”

“What!?” Twilight gasped, feeling her stomach drop out from under her, “H-How is that possible!?”

“I don’t know the details, but her brother was injured when a monster attacked the camp,” Fluttershy began, continuing to briefly explain the manner in which Gloriosa appeared to become mentally unstable and was drawn to something beneath Camp Everfree, reaching an area underground via the magic she’d obtained from the geodes.

“Not long after Sunset Shimmer chased after her, there was a large earthquake, and the tree appeared,” Fluttershy explained, “I was in the lake-bed at the time, and protecting the Soul Reapers at the lab.”

“Oh good,” Starswirl said, “I was worried about them when I noticed the tree was right on top of my lab. I imagine the lab itself is destroyed?”

“Yes, I’m afraid so.”

“What about the statue containing the portal to Equestria?” Starswirl pressed, and Fluttershy blinked.

“I don’t know. I didn’t see it.”

“That’s bad, innit?” Applejack said, and Twilight held up a hand.

“One crisis at a time. We’ll worry about the portal after we deal with Gloriosa. Are you absolutely certain the Hollow reiatsu we’re feeling is her?”

At Twilight’s question, Fluttershy simply nodded, “Sunset Shimmer confirmed that Gloriosa merged with a Hollow that was hidden beneath Camp Everfree. It’s her.”

“Unfortunate,” Filthy Rich said, his expression darkening, “Innocent humans being caught up in these battles is the most regrettable part of all this, and Gloriosa Daisy and her brother most especially. Hiding a laboratory here was foolish of you Soul Reapers.”

“Is that right?” Sweet Cider said, “An’ what were ya’ll Quincy doin’ out here? Picnicn’ it up?”

“Forgive me, but we were the one’s that helped you deal with the Hollows in the city,” Filthy Rich shot back, “And we didn’t begin this battle at all.”

“Enough!” Twilight snapped, “This won’t solve anything! Soul Reaper, Quincy, none of it matters! What matters is we stop this bloodshed and save as many people as we can, including Gloriosa and Timber!”

Sweet Cider had the presence of mind to look a bit ashamed as she glanced away, “True ‘nough. But not ta rain on yer optimism there, but how ya plannin’ on savin’ a’ gal who, by all accounts, has been taken over by some ancient, powerful Hollow?”

“She has a point, Twilight,” Cadence said, “I don’t know if we can do anything for Gloriosa Daisy if she’s somehow merged with a Hollow. We might have to...”

Twilight felt a clenching vice of responsibility inside her and poured that feeling out in the heat of her voice as she said, “Gloriosa and Timber wouldn’t be in this mess if I hadn’t pulled them into it. They’re lives are my responsibility, Cadence. I will not abandon them, and I am not going to kill Gloriosa unless I’ve exhausted every single other option first.”

“Twilight, I understand what you’re saying,” said Rarity, with a moment of hesitance, “But I believe Cadence is trying to prepare you for the worst.”

“I think she understands that,” Fluttershy said, “But that doesn’t mean we’re not going to do everything we can to bring Gloriosa back to her senses, and put an end to this terrible day.”

“Damned straight,” Rainbow Dash said, “We’re nearly there. Just got to stick the landing! We beat some sense into Gloriosa, clean up the mess, and then get ourselves some victory pizza!”

“The enthusiasm of youth is truly astounding,” Starswirl said, turning a questioning eye towards Twilight, “Can I assume that given your intentions, you don’t necessarily want an overabundance of outside forces complicated factors?”

“Huh?” Sweet Cider cocked her head while Twilight nodded at Starswirl, her expression grateful.

“I’m glad you understand, Captain Starswirl. If Gloriosa has been taken over by a Hollow, then the fewer... um... antagonistic forces surrounding her the better. That means I’d appreciate it if both you Soul Reaper Captains and my fellow Sternritter abstain from engaging her. Allow me and my friends to handle this.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Cadence began to say but Twilight just shook her head, hard.

“No, Cadence. There’s no telling how unstable Gloriosa’s mind is right now, and if we give her an overabundance of targets, then it might be that much harder to reach her. She knows me, and Sunset needs everyone together for the strength of the magic inside them to resonate at its strongest. I think we have a chance to stop her and do so without undue harm, but only if we do it as our own group. If the rest of you pile in, I’m afraid that might make things worse.”

“Hate ta break the news to ya, but Captain Luna’s already there, makin’ things more crowded than ya want,” Sweet Cider pointed out.

“I know,” Twilight said, “I’m hoping once we’re there to back Sunset up that I can convince Captain Luna, and Clover as well, to fall back so we can take things from there.”

“Ain’t sure I’m fond o’ that plan, but...” Sweet Cider glanced at Starswirl, “Yer thinkin’ the Quincy kid’s got the right o’ this?”

“I do,” Starswirl replied firmly, “Her intuition and intellect are reminiscent of my own youth. Keep in mind that in our reports concerning the magical incidents at Canterlot High, these girls have had a high success rate at halting those who were rampaging with powers beyond their ken. I think it makes logical sense to allow this same group the leeway to handle the situation as they see fit. Besides, if they fail, we can step in as needed.”

“Be that as it may,” Filthy Rich said, “I must ensure my daughter’s safety, as well as any other living humans in the area. So while Twilight and her allies confront whatever Gloriosa Daisy has become, do you Soul Reapers object to us Quincy securing Camp Everfree itself? Twilight, your unit is still stationed there, correct?”

“Yes, Sugarcoat should still be there with the others,” Twilight said, “Please look after them.”

“One last thing,” Fluttershy said, her gaze lingering on Soarin’s petrified body, “It looks like one of your own has suffered gravely. Did you do that to him to save his life?”

“Y-yes, Midnight did,” Twilight confirmed, “He was minutes from death. The petrification spell will preserve him until a way can be found to heal him.”

“I might be able to do so, if you’ll let me. Not right now, but once there’s time,” Fluttershy offered, and Twilight’s eyes lit up.

“If you think you can, then I’d be in your debt, Fluttershy.”

“No debt,” Fluttershy said, “Just the right thing being done. But I think we’ve sorted matters out long enough. Sunset, Clover, and Luna need our help now.”

Her words certainly appeared true to anyone who cast their spiritual senses out towards the tree. There’d been distant echoes of thunderous noise from the airspace around the tree, with flares of flame, flashes of light, and concussive shock-waves that could be felt even at such a long distance. The battle over there was intense, and the mixture of spiritual pressures present made it hard to discern just who was winning, but it was clear enough that the Hollow reiatsu from Gloriosa remained strong and near overpowering.

“Then there’s no more time to waste,” Twilight said, facing the distant tree, and casting one more look back at her friends, “Let’s go.”

----------

A short time earlier...

It perhaps spoke greatly to the changes recently wrought in Clover’s life that dodging several dozen magically aflame and thorn-covered vines that were striking at her beyond the speed of sound wasn’t the most frightening thing that had happened to her lately. Certainly it was hectic. Gaia Everfree was controlling those vines with her mere thoughts and the weaponized plant-life was coming at both Clover and Sunset Shimmer in a storm of deadly greenery that left little room to evade. Yet evade they were, at least mostly. Clover still felt the rough sting from a few close calls that saw thorns cut her black robes, but by and large her Flash Steps were keeping pace.

Sunset was faring better, but that was to be expected. Clover was still flabbergasted sometimes by the girl’s growth as a Soul Reaper, and proud she’d helped train Sunset at the start of all this craziness. Still, she was also ashamed that she still had to struggle just to keep up with Sunset and the other girl’s progress. Clover had worked herself hard these past weeks, and had certainly seen herself grow more than she would have thought possible prior to meeting Sunset Shimmer, but she still felt like a weak link who might end up holding her friends back.

While all Clover could do was dodge for the moment, unable to get a second or two of opening to invoke a Kido, Sunset was able to go on the offensive. The fiery headed girl was able to use her Zanpaktou’s shield half to deflect several of the fast moving roots and vines, and each blow empowered the blade half with ever more intensity in the flames coating it’s edge. A harsh horizontal slash unleashed a crescent of bright fire, incinerating a line of vines into motes of black ash.

This bought Sunset a clear path to Gaia, and she wasted no time in Flash Stepping forward. Gaia didn’t even make a gesture, instead just side stepping a shield bash that Sunset smashed towards her after appearing directly in front of the Hollow/human fusion. Gaia retaliated with a blindingly swift double strike from her two sided sword, twirling the weapon like an expert staff fighter. Metallic clangs and sparks burst out multiple times in an eyeblink as Sunset spun about with both her shield and sword, managing precise parries to Gaia’s blade, but the last strike from Gaia held some serious weight of power behind it; a straight thrust that impacted Sunset’s shield and drove her back across the tree canopy.

Fortunately with Gaia’s attention slightly diverted, the vines that were still attacking Clover were a shade slower, allowing her to burst upwards with a Flash Step and get some distance.

This is my chance! Clover thought, throwing both her palms forward and calmly focusing her reiatsu.

She couldn’t use the high-level Bakudo Kido that Chief Puddinghead had taught her. That would take too much time, so she’d need Gaia much more distracted or otherwise held up. But she’d learned more than just one Kido from the Chief of the Kido Corps. She’d learned quite a few new innovations, and more importantly, how to chant them with greater speed and chant more of them with heightened endurance in her spiritual pressure.

I won’t hold you girls back, she thought, I’ll stand beside all of you, and help you whatever it takes.

”Hado Number Fifty One: Sashi Hebi no Uroko!” (Stinging Serpent Scales)

A thick gray mist flew from her palms, forming into twin serpents of semi-solid ash that bore red and blue jewels for eyes. The serpents hissed with ashen fangs and descended around Gaia Everfree, where they spun together into a miniature cyclone. The ashen mist stung Gaia’s flesh, the energy of the spell designed to soften a Hollow’s defenses like Hierro while also inflicting distracting levels of pain. And Clover wasn’t done. Able to incant her spells faster than ever before she followed up with another spell within the next second.

”Hado Number Fifty Eight: Tenran!” (Vigorous Tempest)

Usually this spell used a Zanpaktou as a medium, but that was usually for less capable Kido casters. Clover had become skilled enough that she could generate the Kido without the traditional foci. This spell was simple in that it created a powerful, focused tornado of wind. Usually this would be used to blow an enemy off their feet or smash them into a wall. However Clover’s intent was different. She sent the tornado of wind down around the ash of her previous spell, and used the wind force to stir the cloud of ash into an even faster, tightly packed concentration. The wind of the Tenran surrounded the ash of the other spell like a dome and stirred it up like a blender, putting even more pressure on Gaia.

In theory, at least. Clover felt a rising burst of reiatsu from Gaia as the Hollow woman’s verdant green and intermixed purple aura of power exploded outward and cut through Clover’s Kido like a popping bubble. Clover covered her face against the wind, and grunted in frustration as she saw Gaia brushing herself off.

“Was making me itchy the plan? Annoy me into submission?” Gaia inquired.

Clover prepared to cast another Kido, but Gaia vanished from sight and Clover felt the Hollow’s presence beside her before she could even draw the next breath of her incantation. She was able to turn, seeing Gaia’s double-bladed sword arcing towards her.

Sunset crashed into Gaia with her shield, knocking the woman back.

“Clover, you okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Clover replied, that feeling of shame burning hotter and fueling a fresh incantation in her head, “Just keep her busy. I’ll try to slow her down.”

Sunset flashed her a confident smile and rushed in at Gaia, who’d recovered in mid-air and fixed the two Soul Reapers with a violent gaze. Sunset’s headlong charge was interrupted by a rumble of noise as several much larger branches from the tree rose up, encased in an emerald glow, and sprouted what looked like massive, cavernous maws akin to venus flytraps, if said flytraps had mouths that were essentially gigantic wood chippers.

Howling in truly unnatural shrieks, the living branches tried to bite Sunset right out of the air. She hopped over one, while bending backwards and sliding through the air, just narrowly avoiding having her face chomped off by another. She then had to leap out of that slide and prop her shield up just in time to jam the mouth of the third living branch monstrosity as it came at her. Grinning still, as if she was actually enjoying the challenge, Sunset Shimmer then pulled back her sword and slammed Hokori forward, unleashing a focused jet of fire straight into the branch her shield was jammed into.

Flames erupted along the wooden length of the wood construct, blasting it backwards. The other two moved in on Sunset’s back, but Clover was having none of that. Inflamed by her own ineffectivness from a moment ago, she rapidly chanted a heftier Kido.

”Hado Number Seventy Eight: Zangerin!” (Cutting Flower Ring)

Much like Tenran, this was meant to use a Zanpaktou as a focal point for the spell, but Clover managed the energies with just using her right hand, which she substituted for a Zanpaktou by making a sharp cutting gesture with her fingers held rigid like a blade. The Kido generated a thick ring of bright yellow energy that shot forth in a cutting wave from Clover’s hand, and she felt pain lance up her fingers and elbow from the backlash meant to be soaked by a Zanpaktou. The power of this simple spell wasn’t anything to laugh at, as the wave of energy shot out and slammed into the two magically mutated branches with enough force to shatter them into halves, and the wave continued on to cut through several levels of the tree’s branches below.

“Stop wrecking my home!” Gaia shouted, “And you Soul Reapers wonder why I hate you!?”

She looked ready to come at Clover again, but Sunset, freed up from worrying of attacks coming at her back, was able to Flash Step close. Hokori’s blade danced a fiery path through the air in a torrent of slashes that left glowing orange patterns in the air. Gaia more than met the challenge, her own double-sword cutting an equally blazing trail to clash with Sunset’s blows. For a few seconds one might have thought the pair evenly matched, the way sparks flew about from what appeared to be an equal exchange. Yet Clover saw that this wasn’t the case after a moment or so more. Gaia was getting faster with each motion, stronger and more sure with each swing of her blade. Soon Sunset’s offense was turned back and she was stuck on defense, pushed back by an increasingly faster and stronger Gaia.

Gaia Everfree, the Espada, had thousands of years worth of combat experience to draw upon, and even freshly reborn her power was rapidly strengthening due to the continuous outpouring of soul energy that was being fed to her by her tree from the distant ritual taking place in the ocean. With every passing second she was getting used to the human body she occupied now. Every moment she and Gloriosa had their personalities and memories become more accustomed to one another. There was less hesitance with each attack, more confidence with each parry. And with more power to draw on with each moment, Gaia Everfree would soon have little to worry about from two Soul Reapers that had bitten off more than they could chew.

Realizing this, Clover’s blood heated up. She had to do something! Sunset might still have Bankai to fall back on, but it was distinctly possible even that wouldn’t even the odds against a former Second Espada.

Even if it kills me, I’m going to help you, Sunset.

A part of Clover’s feelings were simply due to gratitude. Clover had never had the largest social circle. Her work as a Soul Reaper was more a matter of personal duty than anything else, and a way to further her studies. She was sincerely glad to have met the girls from Canterlot High. Despite the strange world they’d been pulled into against their will, they’d treated Clover as one of their own. And that was the other part of it. Even if Starlight Glimmer’s machinations had put everything into motion, Clover still felt like Sunset and her friend’s involvement in the spiritual world was her own fault.

Although she less wanted to pay back a debt out of guilt or gratitude, and more just wanted to be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with her friends, no matter what happened next. Clover knew that her human friends were just going to keep getting involved in ever greater battles, and would inevitably one day clash once more with Starlight Glimmer, and possibly even stronger foes beyond that renegade. Clover didn’t want to just stare at their backs as they marched forward. She wanted to stay beside them for as long as she could.

This was all the reason she needed to fight, even when this outclassed. She admired her friends, especially Sunset, for the way they kept pushing themselves further. If she could just manage to keep pace with them, if only for a little while, that would be enough to satisfy her.

Sunset was being pushed around by Gaia’s increasingly swift and potent strikes, a final overhead swing coming in too fast for Sunset to parry, so she was forced to bend sideways to try to avoid the worst of the blow. The curved, unnaturally sharp wooden edge of Gaia’s sword still cut Sunset’s flesh, marking a shallow cut down her shoulder.

Gaia was about to press in with another attack, but Clover appeared a few meters to her left, her hand moving in a fast triangular motion. Yellow energy flowed to mark a large triangle in the air, the ends buzzing with intense energy.

”Bakudo Number Thirty: Shitotsu Sansen!” (Triple Flash Beak Slash)

At the end of each of the triangle’s points a beak-like projectile formed then fired like miniature missiles. Gaia casually spun her blade, the two sided edges smashing the binding Kido as the projectiles came in at her.

“Why don’t you just scurry away already? Sunset Shimmer has some power to contend with, but you’re not-” Gaia said, but Clover didn’t even cease chanting her spells, her eyes narrowing with intense focus.

“Hado Number Thirty Three: Sokatsui!” (Blue Fire Crash)

Gaia’s face drew down in an irritated grimace as the wave of blue energy fired out of Clover’s palms and Gaia smashed it aside with her hand. “Like I said; you’re low level Kido can’t hurt me! You might as well-”

”Sokatsui”

The next swift wave of intense blue energy came in even quicker than the last and Gaia raised her blade to block it as it exploded around her. It didn’t do much than knock her back a step across the air, and Gaia’s brow popped a vein as she growled, preparing to attack, only to realize that Clover hadn’t stopped chanting. In fact, Clover's voice was filled with raw focus and passion as she followed Puddinghead’s teachings and rapidly repeated invocations at high speed.

”Sokatsui! Sokatsui! Sokatsui! Sokatsui! Sokatsui!”

“Gah! Hey! Stop that-! You little-!” Gaia couldn’t even get a proper sentence out as Kido after Kido smashed into her, Clover repeatedly chanting the Sokatsui invocation and advancing with steady steps as she kept her palms held out, blue wave after blue wave firing out like a quick firing cannon. Sunset blinked at the spectacle, noticing that Clover’s body was surrounded by a flickering blue aura as her reiatsu soared upwards, and each successive Kido, despite all being the identical bread-and-butter Hado that was typical for Clover to use actually grew larger and with denser spiritual pressure with each blast.

”Sokatsui! Sokatsui! SOKATSUI!”

The last was shouted with Clover’s voice showing a hint of hoarseness, the last flying tide of destructive blue energy smashing into Gaia hard enough to drive her back towards the boughs of her tree. Gaia’s armored arms were a tad singed, a few cracks appearing in the white bark protecting her limbs. Her black on green eyes were twitching with fury as she lowered her smoking limbs from their defensive position.

“You done? Got that out of your system? Because if you hit me with one more of those, I swear I’m going to start removing limbs!”

To this, Clover just smirked. She was sweating from exertion, her chest heaving, but she felt elated she’d been able to fire off so many Kido so fast, faster than she ever could have imagined doing prior to meeting Sunset Shimmer and the girls. And she wasn’t done. She hadn’t been firing all those Kido for no reason, or just to annoy Gaia. She’d been intentionally pushing Gaia back towards her tree, Even as Gaia had spoken, Clover had already been chanting another Kido.

”Bakudo Number Forty Nine: Hibana Keimusho!” (Ice Flower Prison)

Four spheres of ice formed around her then shot outward. Instead of heading towards Gaia, the balls of ice struck the large branches around her, where they affixed to them and opened up into the shape of start white flower petals. Each flower, it’s petals now aimed at Gaia, fired a thick sheen of further ice tha all collided together to form a frozen chunk of ice between them, with Gaia frozen in the middle.

“Sunset! That won’t hold her long! Let’s hit her together!” Clover said, and Sunset quickly nodded, Flash Stepping next to Clover.

“Not bad at all Clover,” Sunset said with an encouraging grin, “Pretty awesome, actually.”

Clover couldn’t help but smile a bit, but shook her head, “Praise later. Attack now.”

“You got it!” Sunset grinned, raising her Zanpaktou, which flared up with an aura of blue flame. At the same time, Clover drew back both palms of her hand and began to draw in streams of blue aura from around herself. Her heart pounded in her chest, not simply in the fear of the battle, but with the exhilaration of the moment in which she could feel her reiatsu brushing up with Sunset’s, their energies in sync with each other as they both prepared to unleash their simultaneous attack.

”Aoihi-”

”Hado Number Seventy Three-”

-Senko!”

“-Soren Sokatsui!” (Twin Lotus Blue Fire Crash)

Sunset slashed her blade down at the same moment that Clover threw both her palms forward. Incandescent azure fire intermixed with the massive, twin beams of blue reiatsu as Kido and Zanpaktou technique fused together and cascaded forward in a spiraling torrent, which then smashed straight into the frozen sphere containing Gaia Everfree.

The resulting explosion rocked the entire mountainous tree, and broke several of the bus-thick branches and sent them tumbling down to the distant ground. Dust and smoke filled the area, obscuring either girl’s view of Gaia, and they took a moment to catch their breath.

“Okay... that was cool, but remember we’re not trying to kill her, right?” Sunset said, and Clover huffed out a chuckle.

“Oh, I remember. She just made me mad for a sec. Dismissing me like that. Pretty sure that wasn’t going to kill her, anyway.”

“Yeah, same. I’m getting pretty good and figuring out what it takes to actually hurt someone with that much spiritual pressure,” Sunset said, then drew in a breath and shouted louder, “Hey Gaia! You can stop hiding in the dust cloud! We can feel you in there, you know!?”

At that Gaia kept striding out of the vanishing cloud of wood smoke. She was a bit battered and singed, with a trickle of blood at the corner of her brow, but there was still a powerful aura of deep green and purple flowing over her body, her reiatsu having largely protected her from the worst of Sunset and Clover’s combined attack.

“You two seemed to be having a moment. Didn’t want to interrupt,” Gaia said, cracking her neck with a pained grunt, “That did hurt, by the way. Remind me again why I should let either of you walk away from this?”

Sunset sucked in a breath through her nose and let it out in a frustrated puff, “We don’t need to do this, Gaia! If you’re as much Gloriosa as Gaia, I can’t imagine you actually want to hurt anyone. And if the part of you that’s Gaia Everfree is as old and experienced as all that, then you know there’s no way this can end well for you. The Soul Reapers and Quincy both won’t just tolerate you nesting here in the living world. Even if you kill us, and anyone else here today, how long before more of the Gotei 13 show up? Or the Sternritter? Eventually you’ll be killed, so what’s the point of this!?”

“I know,” Gaia replied simply, “But this is my home. It’s only natural to remove unwanted pests from one’s home. And once my power reaches its peak, only Scorpan, or the Quincy’s boy-king will be a threat to me. I’m banking on them seeing it as too much of a pain in the butt to get rid of me when they’ve still got each other and Tirek to deal with. But right now? I really want to kill some of the Soul Reapers and Quincy I sense around here. They’ve made a mess of my forest. Their stupid battle nearly killed Timber. That’s more than enough reason for me to fight.”

She paused, then raised a finger to point towards Sunset and Clover, “I don’t hate you, Sunset Shimmer. Flee this place, if you value your life. Take your friends away from here. Take my campers away from here. This is the last chance I’ll give you to depart my forest and leave me and my brother in peace.”

“I...” Sunset sighed, “I can’t do that, and you know I can’t.”

“Heh, well, can’t say I didn’t give you the choice,” Gaia replied, and a swirling aura of spirit energy consisting of bright green and purple light came together at the tip of her finger, forming a pulsating sphere, “Been awhile since I’ve thrown a Cero. Let’s see if I’ve still got it.”

“Ah geez!” Sunset said, throwing Hikari forward and setting the shield in front of her, while Clover prepared to cast a defensive Kido. However neither proved necessary as the shadows behind Gaia shifted like pools of ink, extending behind her as a shape rose up.

“What?” Gaia felt the presence behind her, and spun about in time to receive a slash across her chest from a flickering scythe.

“Guh!” Gaia zipped out of sight with Sonido to dodge a second scythe strike, and appeared a few meters away with her Cero still charged. With a shout she discharged a green and purple flashing beam and swept it across the shadows that had appeared amid the boughs of her tree. Explosions flowed in the wake of the Cero, knocking free a few more of the gigantic tree’s branches, but the shadows just shifted once more and a familiar voice spoke from the darkness.

“I know neither of who you are or what motivates you to seek blood, Hollow, but I will not allow you to harm these young ladies. After all...”

One of the shadows rose into a humanoid shape, and from them stepped forth Captain Luna, and although she still bore wounds from her own battles that day, she stood tall with both the scythes of her released Zanpaktou in her hands as she stared down Gaia Everfree..

“I’m their vice principal.”

Author's Notes:

The final battle begins, and for this opening I wanted to focus a little on Clover, as she hasn't really gotten a lot to do this arc. While I've tried my best to give all the girls their time to shine, it's still tough to work out the balance. Still, Clover's trained hard too, and while she might not have access to a true power up like a completed Fullbring or a Bankai, girl's got some serious talent for Kido. Although this chapter made me realize I really need to go back through the whole story and double check all the custom Kido I've made. I got a list, but I keep wondering if I've missed a few over the years.

At any rate, next chapter the final battle continues. Luna has joined the fray, and it won't be long before the whole crew is here. Can they get Gaia/Gloriosa to chill the F out? Maybe give her a Snickers? Sounds like a Pinkie Pie idea. Find out next time! Thank you all for reading, and as always leave any questions, comments, or critiques you like. I appreciate them all. 'Till next time!

Episode 125: All Together

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Episode 125: All Together

Sugarcoat was keeping her outward cool, but on the inside, she was screaming. There had simply just been too much for one day, and after witnessing the kind of carnage that could be wrought during these kinds of battles, the memory of the assault upon Las Noches still a fresh mark on her mind, it was impossible to not feel a powerful sense of dread, now.

Not that she had cracked or anything. As ever, she worked hard to maintain an objective, rational mental state of common sense and calm. Her friends and fellow Quincy were counting on her to be a rock, and a rock she would be, but damned if it wasn’t easy, especially given how little she or the others really knew about what was going on.

Camp Everfree was a mess. The attack of those strange creatures, the giant crocodiles and the massive worm-like monstrosity, had left the main camp center decimated and most of the other buildings damaged. Then the lake bed had all but exploded with that towering tree! Rocks the size of small cars and other debris had fallen onto the camp from that, and Sugarcoat and the other Quincy girls had needed to act fast to protect the students from Canterlot High. She’d blasted chunks of falling rock with her bow as fast as she could, and she would've missed at least one that could have killed a handful of students if not for the fact that Applebloom had been there to smash the boulder with that potent crimson whip of hers.

Sugarcoat still wasn’t sure what to make of the young Fullbringer girls, or their odd friend who controlled the giant stone bird, but at least they were on the same side for now. Then there was Diamond Tiara, who remained mostly in a state of shock. Fortunately Silver Spoon was proving quite competent and well trained for her age, helping guard both her friend and the other students.

Once the rain of debris had been survived with fortunately no casualties, the camp had found itself surrounded by walls of thick roots, some wider than train cars. The roots encircled the camp like the embrace of a protective mother’s arms, yet to Sugarcoat’s eyes they seemed more like prison walls. While she and her fellow Quincy could get over the root wall easily enough, the other students were trapped for the time being. Worse, it seemed like the roots were not in any way normal, for Indigo Zap had already tried to blast through the wall, only to find the thick roots quite resistant to damage.

“What do you think is going on out there?” Sunny Flare asked Sugarcoat, just after all of them had started to sense and hear the distant echoes of a clash taking place among the higher branches of the tree.

“How should I know?” Sugarcoat shot back, perhaps a bit too sharply. She quickly softened her tone, if only by a bit, and added, “I think one of the people up there is Sunset Shimmer, but I can’t be sure. For now, all we can do is stay here and keep everyone here safe.”

“This spot is anything but safe,” Sunny Flare replied, eyeing the root walls suspiciously, “And we have no idea what’s happened to Twilight.”

“What are you suggesting?” Sugarcoat asked, voice low.

“Nothing!” Sunny Flare snapped back, her voice gaining a slight waver, “I-I just don’t like sitting here waiting. Someone should go look for Twilight. Or... Or Sour Sweet. We still don’t know what happened to her.”

That was a worry that’d been gnawing at Sugarcoat, too. By all accounts, Sour Sweet had been replaced, and there was no telling for sure where or when that switch had happened. Was their friend even still alive? And it wasn’t as if Sunny Flare didn’t have a valid concern about Twilight as well. Sugarcoat had lost track of Twilight’s reiatsu amid all the chaos, and couldn’t clearly feel her now. Her visor didn’t have enough range for her to be certain of anything, either. She gave Sunny Flare an even look.

“I know it's hard, Sunny, but we have to wait here and keep guarding these people. That’s our duty, both as Quincy, and as Twilight’s friends. We can’t afford to send anyone looking for her, and there’s no telling what actually happened to Sour Sweet. The only thing we can do is stay here and do our jobs. Understand?”

“You all should stop worrying so much,” said a pugnacious young voice from behind them, and both Quincy turned to see the flaring purple hair and orange, confident expression of Scootaloo staring back at them.

Behind the young girl stood the imposing, stone form of Alerion, who stared at the Quincy with unblinking gem eyes. Sugarcoat was a tad unnerved by the being, her visor’s vision giving her a clear look at Alerion’s spiritual make-up. Whatever he was, he was certainly powerful, and part of his power came from the young lady in front of her, whom Sugarcoat still wasn’t entirely sure what she was.

“We’ll worry as much as we need to,” she said, “We’re not going anywhere, but we’ve still got friends out there who are in danger.”

“What’s got you so confident, anyway?” asked Sunny Flare, “And seriously, what’s with Big Bird?”

“Speak of me in such terms again, squalling one, and I’ll wet my beak with your entrails,” said Alerion with the matter-of-fact tone of someone talking about building a deck or making a sandwich. Sunny Flare closed her mouth and gulped, hands tightening a bit around her dart guns. Sugarcoat held up a hand.

“Don’t mind her. We’re just curious about you and Scootaloo. Not that it matters at the moment, considering we’re all stuck in this mess together.”

“Hey, it’s cool,” Scootaloo said, elbowing Alerion’s leg, “Ease up, big guy. We both know you’re awesome, no need to show off in front of me.”

“Hmph, I am not ‘showing off’ in front of you, hatchling,” Alerion said, turning his head up in an offended manner. Scootaloo grinned.

“That’s his way of showing affection, I think. But, uh, seriously guys, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t ask too much about me or him, ‘kay? Especially not if there are any Soul Reapers around.”

Sunny Flare and Sugarcoat glanced at each other.

“We won’t say anything,” Sugarcoat assured Scootaloo after a second, and just in time as the girl’s two friends came up, both of them looking varying levels of anxiety. Applebloom’s eyes were rooted to the tree that loomed over all of them, while Sweetie Belle kept giving uneasy looks towards the skyline to the north, where Rarity had gone some time ago.

“Ya’ll Quincy gals holdin’ a pow-wow over here?” Applebloom asked, hands twitching around the grip of her whip as if she wasn’t sure what to do with the weapon when not using it. Sugarcoat recognized the gesture as the same kind of jitters a lot of the raw Quincy recruits had, while waiting for the Arrancar to attack their position during the battle of Las Noches.

“Not really,” she said, “There’s not much to discuss. We can’t leave with these roots in place, and we can’t remove them with our level of strength.”

“What ‘bout havin’ Scoots’ Doll carry folk outta here?” Applebloom suggested, causing Scootaloo to wince and Sugarcoat to raise an eyebrow.

Doll? A strange term for him. Doesn’t sound familiar, but I wonder if I checked the archives... Sugarcoat dismissed the thought. Ultimately what did it matter? They were all in the same boat, now. Besides, it wasn’t a bad idea.

“Would your... Doll, be willing to do so?” Sugarcoat asked, looking as much at Scootaloo as Alerion.

Scootaloo gulped and turned a glance up towards the overhanging granite avian, who in turn managed to pour a distinct look of incredulity into his gem eyes and literally stone features.

“I barely tolerated being used as a mere beast of burden for your dearest friends, hatchling. I’m not inclined to lower myself to such actions for complete strangers, even for an entire orchard of oranges!”

“Oh come on, Alerion, it wouldn’t even be hard for you!” Scootaloo said, giving his leg a swift, encouraging punch, “Are you trying to tell me, with your incredible strength, that you couldn’t carry any number of people over these silly roots? I mean, are you about to let a bunch of shrubbery get the better of you?”

“Hmph, your appeals to my ego are transparent, but not incorrect. I could easily ferry these two legged pieces of helpless meat to the other side of this floral barrier. I just don’t know if I’m at all inclined to do so, even for bribes or flattery.”

“Someone has a high opinion of himself,” said a voice from above, at the top of the root wall nearest the group. All eyes turned upward to spot an elderly, brown skinned man in dark, oriental clothing and clogs, bearing a white and green striped hat upon his head. “Not that I’m one to talk.”

Sugarcoat almost raised her bow, sensing a peculiar aura from this stranger she’d never met before. She had recollections of Twilight mentioning a man who fit this one’s description, however, and the memory did not exactly put her at total ease as she recalled his name.

“Discord,” she said, and the old man smiled at her with a snaggle tooth dangling down from his lip. He hopped down from the forty foot tall wall of roots and landed in front of them, light as a feather, placing a hand on his hat and bowing.

“The very same. I take it Twilight Sparkle told you about me?”

“Just the barest details,” Sugarcoat confirmed, “What are you doing here?”

“Protecting my investments,” he replied, gesturing with his gnarled cane towards another portion of the root wall, “We’re limited in what we can do, but I doubt even... those who may be watching will object to us safeguarding a few innocent bystanders caught up in matters beyond them. Ditzy!”

There was a resounding crunch of thunderous noise as a garage door sized chunk of the root wall exploded outward. Stepping through the dusty opening was a tall, pale gray woman of generous curves and with a familiar set of gold yellow eyes and blonde hair. Sugarcoat blinked at the elder Doo, while many of the campers now started to gather in a bewildered group to see what all the commotion was about.

From their ranks a voice cried out, “Mom!” and came running out. Depry threw herself into her mother’s waiting embrace, Ditzy holding her youngster tightly for a moment before ruffling her hair.

“I’m so glad you’re safe, muffin,” Ditzy said, “You weren’t scared, were you?”

Derpy giggled happily, batting at her mother’s hands in her hair, “I’m fine, mom, really. You taught me how to keep my head in a tight spot, remember?”

“I did, I did. I just...” Ditzy’s eyes grew serious, and tinged with worry as she looked at the ruined camp, wounded campers, and the remains of the Tatzlwurm, “I... didn’t want you to see stuff like this. I never wanted-”

Derpy put a finger to her mother’s mouth, her own face growing oddly serious for her bubbly features, “Mom, it’s okay. I know. I’ve known for awhile. You. Dad. Not... everything, but enough to understand why you raised me like you did. We’ll talk later about it all, but right now all my fellow students, my friends, need help. Is it safe out there for us? Are there more monsters that need to be fought?”

Ditzy seemed momentarily taken aback by the simple maturity in her daughter’s voice, blinking away tears as the realization of how grown the young woman in front of her actually was hit like a truck. Soon, Ditzy nodded, “The way to the road back to the city is clear, and the city itself is roughed up, but no more monsters running around.”

“We’ve brought transportation,” Discord declared, smiling somewhat mischievously, “A few commandeered city busses, driven by friends.”

Deciding to check upon that, Sugarcoat jumped upward with Hirenkyaku, standing upon the air just above the root wall. Her visor picked up the faded distortions of reishi conforming to the shapes of a pair of busses sitting just outside Camp Everfree’s gates, and she spotted two individual’s behind the wheels that had the reiatsu of Soul Reapers, albeit a tad odd.

“Employees of mine. Screwloose and Screwball,” Discord explained, “They’ll ensure everyone gets back to the city safely.”

“Hmm,” Sugarcoat floated back down, “And what about the two of you? Can you do anything about... that?”

She gestured in the direction of the top of the tree, and Discord stroked the wisps of white beard dangling from his chin.

“Could and should are two very differing concepts, my young Quincy friend. Let us say that I and my compatriots here still have good reason to maintain a low profile. I’m certain Sunset Shimmer and her collection of close friends and allies can handle this... unexpected situation.”

Sugarcoat wasn’t sure if she bought that, and really didn’t know what to make of this old man, or the woman who apparently was the mother to one of Canterlot High’s students. She felt like she was certainly missing a good chunk of context, but as long as he was still here to help, and wasn’t hostile, she didn’t have a lot of reason to complain.

“Fine,” she said, “Sunny, get Lemon Zest and Indigo Zap together and start escorting the campers to the busses.”

“Uh... ye-yeah,” Sunny said, eyeing Discord nervously but hurrying off to do as she was ordered, since Sugarcoat had been given seniority by Twilight in the group’s chain of command.

“Um, Mister Discord?” spoke up a small voice as Sweetie Belle gulped and approached him, “Do you know what’s going on with my sister and her friends right now? Are they all okay?”

He turned to her, and the other two girls comprising the CMC. While the trio had more or less been made aware of things regarding Sunset Shimmer and the other girl’s involvement in spiritual affairs, they’d also largely been kept out of the messier details. Given circumstances both concerning them and their families, that was all likely to come to an end, soon.

“Their spiritual pressures are all still present,” he replied, “I can sense all of them. Your sister and most of the girls are together in one spot, and I suspect they’ll be trying to join up with Sunset Shimmer soon, who is currently dealing with a troublesome individual at the top of that overgrown shrub.”

He knelt down and offered Sweetie Belle a snaggle-toothed smile, “Don’t worry. Those girls are quite capable, your sister especially so. And since she wouldn’t want to worry about you, either, it really is for the best that you get on the bus and come back to the city. Your parents are waiting for you there, at my shop.”

“Really!?”

“Yes,” he glanced towards Applebloom and Scootaloo, “You all have family waiting there, in fact.”

“My aunts are there too?” Scootaloo said while blinking astonishment.

“They wanted to come out here themselves, but I thought it best they wait at the shop, just in case,” Discord said, and then he turned to the gathered students, many of whom were looking at him apprehensively.

“Hmm,” he muttered, “I must not have the same trustworthy face I used to.”

Louder, he cleared his throat and said, “Ahem! Attention students of Canterlot High. I’m a friend of Sunset Shimmer and her group of friends that I’m sure you’re all familiar with by now! I hope all of you can understand that I can’t really go into any details, but for the moment myself and my friends here are your one-way ticket out of this mess and back to something resembling safety! So, I’d appreciate it if you’d all follow the lead of Miss Ditzy Doo here and load up on the busses outside.”

From the crowd emerged Lyra and Bon Bon, the pair stepping forward together.

“We don’t really know what’s going on,” Lyra admitted, briefly biting her lip before going on, “But none of us want to leave.”

“Eh?” Discord raised a bushy white eyebrow.

“Those gals are our friends,” Bon Bon said, “Right now they’re fighting for us, like they have a bunch of other times. We all decided it was time we stopped making them take all the burden for protecting us.”

“I understand how you youngsters feel, but clearly you must understand that this is not a situation where you can do anything but be potential casualties for those girls to worry about, right?” Discord said, “It’s courageous to want to help, but there’s a huge difference between courage and crazy. Believe me. I know.”

“B-but it ain’t right!” shouted Bulk Biceps from the crowd, “We should at least cheer them on from here, even if that’s all we can do!”

“You’re all a good bunch,” said Ditzy, still holding her daughter, “But the best thing any of you can do right now is make sure them fighting for you means something by getting out of harm’s way. Any of you die, and then what are the risks those girls are taking even for? Get it?”

The students were all silent for a moment, looking at one another. Then Lyra stepped closer to Discord and stuck a finger to his chest, “Alright, we get it. But before we go, I got a condition for you!”

“Is that so? Well, Miss...”

“Lyra Heartstrings.”

“Miss Heartstrings, what is your ‘condition’?” Discord asked.

“You give us the whole picture. All of us. This is our city. Our school. Our friends risking their lives. We deserve to know why. And if there’s anything we can do to help, no matter how small it is, you clue us in! I don’t care what it is, even if it’s something as small as setting up a town watch or something, but we’re going to stop sitting on the sidelines while crap like this keeps happening in our town!”

“YEAH!” called out Bulk Biceps, and his sentiments were echoed among the other students. Even Diamond Tiara seemed a bit more cognitive and alert now, as if Lyra’s words were sinking into her as well.

Discord looked, if anything, only briefly taken aback before a pleased look entered his eyes, “Well, how can I say no to such easy terms? Very well, Miss Heartstrings, since you seem to have ‘taken charge’ of this situation, I’ll accept, and ensure that not only do you fully grasp what is happening, but ensure you and your fellow students can... in your own little ways, assist Sunset Shimmer and her friends in keeping Canterlot City safe.”

The entire time this exchange had been happening, Sugarcoat had been listening in and watching carefully. She didn’t precisely mistrust Discord, per se, but she couldn’t help but think that this turn of conversation had somehow gone exactly as he’d hoped it would. She wondered if Lyra and the other students really understood what they might be in for?

----------

Gilda’s foot obliterated a nearby stump with a booting kick of frustration. As the Tenth Espada stalked back and forth across the small glade, a bubbling, small Smooze watched her from atop a boulder that dripped and bubbled with runoff from his body.

“Why do you remain?” he asked, and Gilda turned flashing eyes of anger towards him.

“None of your business, you little snot-blob! I oughta blast you right here and now while you’re still all small and helpless!”

Smooze nodded his tiny head as if agreeing with the statement, his miniature arms folded over his oozing, plump body, “Then why don’t you?”

His voice was still strained to a degree. The pain of his body was a constant agony, but strangely ever since he’d received a hint of the blessings that the one called Fluttershy could bestow, he found himself better able to acclimate to it. Part of that might have simply been that the longer he was back to a semblance of proper consciousness his usual stoicism and ability to adapt mentally to his own pains was returning, but a part of him also knew that he was being sustained by something deeper. Merely thinking of that divine girl’s kind smile lifted him above the cauldron of pain within.

He certainly no longer felt much fear concerning Gilda, which the other Arrancar seemed to know, and scowled at him.

“B-because I... just don’t feel like it!” she snapped, turning away and resuming her stalking walk, “I mean, it’d be pretty pathetic to just kill some twerp who’s not a threat, right!? Hah! How lame! And I’m not lame! I’m the friggin’ Tenth Espada, and... you’re not taking that spot, you hear me!? You want it, we’ll wait until you’re at full strength, and have a proper fight over it! That’s the way it ought to be.”

“I have no interest in being the Tenth, or any other Espada any longer,” Smooze replied in a calm, sure voice that caused Gilda to halt her steps and shoot him a surprised look.

“Wait, what? Why not!? Am I not good enough to fight, is that it!?”

“I don’t care about fighting you. I didn’t care about fighting anyone,” he replied, “Not now, or even when I served Tirek. My actions were solely to escape my pain. I have a better path to follow for that end, now, and one I wish to serve besides Tirek, who only ever offered me a temporary salvation.”

Gilda stared at him as if he’d sprouted a whole pair of angel winds and started floating around with a gold halo. After a second her face scrunched up in a mixture of understanding and irritation, “It’s her, isn’t it? You plan to serve that crazy hugaholic!”

“If she’ll have me,” Smooze confirmed, “Once her present battle is finished, I intend to swear my fealty to her.”

“Oh that’s rich!” Gilda found another tree to punch, and did so with some gusto, “First Adagio goes and starts getting people joining her stupid revolution club left and right, and now the walking butter-stick is getting ex-Espada to simp for her!? Aaaaaarrggggggh!”

“...Your anger simply brings me back to my initial question; why do you linger here? Why have you not returned to Las Noches?”

Gilda paused, making a slight choking noise in her throat as if her brain was fizzling out on the answer to Smooze's question. Her face was a bizarre mix of embarrassed crimson blushing combined with genuine red anger, while her eyes darted around and her hands stayed balled fists, “I... I... just because, okay!? I’m not...”

She trailed off, and then lacking anything nearby to punch, she rather ineffectually kicked the ground hard enough to make a small crater.

Smooze, not particularly carrying about Gilda’s emotional state, simply shrugged, “Adagio Dazzle’s reiatsu is no longer present, nor is Grogar’s, suggesting both have already returned. Or were slain, but I think that unlikely. I can see no reason for you to remain as well, unless... you were concerned for the well being of another.”

“Pfft! Yeah right! Like there’s anyone here who’d I’d care about what happens to them!” Gilda said, then there was a distant explosion from behind them. Both she and Smooze turned to look at the gigantic tree. It had sprung up some time ago, but neither had any idea what it was or who had made it. Both cold sense a powerful Hollow spiritual pressure, however, and not too long ago they’d also sensed Fluttershy’s reiatsu, among others, in the same vicinity.

Gilda frowned, looking at the top boughs of the tree where the sensation of clashing spiritual pressures could be felt and the explosion had come from.

She was quiet, but Smooze spoke instead.

“Do not fear. I believe Lady Fluttershy shall be fine.”

“Grrr, who the hell cares about her!? I’m not hanging around for that.”

“Then why?”

Gilda’s lips tightened, her eyes going shifty as she looked to the side, “Maybe I’m being smart and still gathering intel so I can impress Lord Tirek. We don’t know who this new Hollow reiatsu belongs to, right? While Adagio and Grogar have bugged out, I’m staying here to see how this all plays out, so I’ve got something to report back. See!? I’m being smart!”

A rustle from the bushes to their left caused Gilda to draw her Zanpaktou and Smooze to look over, but Gilda’s stance relaxed as she saw a familiar female Arrancar emerge into the glade.

“Greta! I wasn’t sure you were still alive!”

Although she did appear to be roughed up, bearing bruises and tears in her clothing, Greta didn’t bear as many wounds as Gilda would have thought, but she didn’t really think about that much as she approached and fist bumped her ally.

“I tried to keep my head down until I found you,” Greta said, “Everything looks like it’s gone crazy around here. Where’s Grogar and Adagio?”

“Hmph, skipped out already.”

“What about him?” Greta pointed at Smooze, who stared back silently. Gilda shrugged.

“Nothing. He’s nothing. Just a wimp I don’t need to worry about anymore. Uh... look, Greta, you should go back to Las Noches. I’m hanging here a bit longer to gather intel on how things turn out here. Could you do me a solid and not mention anything to Guto about my fight with that Fluttershy chick, or Smooze being here? We’re... pals, right?”

Greta’s face went still for a moment, but then she smiled slightly and popped off a quick nod, “I hear you, Gilda. I’ll keep my mouth shut on any details. Not like I saw much anyway, so it’s not like I’ll be outright lying to Lord Guto.”

She turned and opened up a Garganta portal, “That said, don’t hang out here too long. Whatever goes down with that tree and whoever is fighting over there, the Soul Reapers and Quincy must know about what’s happening here by now. Before long this place is going to be swarming with both, so make sure you’re not around when that happens.”

After Greta disappeared into the closing Garganta, Smooze said, “She has a point. It’s risky for you to remain long.”

“Oh shut up. You got no say in what I do,” Gilda shot back, and turned to face the distant tree, looking up towards it’s vast canopy that looked like a deep green set of roiling storm clouds overhanging the tree’s monolithic trunk.

Gilda’s hands clenched tighter at her sides, and although she’d never admit it to the likes of Smooze, her thoughts were drawn towards Fluttershy.

----------

“Vice principal?” Gaia Everfree said with soft bafflement, then shook her head and shot a burning glare at Luna, “Don’t joke around with me, Soul Reaper! I don’t recognize your face, but I know that outfit. You’re a Captain.”

“Correct,” Luna held her scythes aloft, eyes locked on Gaia as she looked the human-Arrancar fusion up and down, “And you’re a Hollow occupying a body that doesn’t belong to you. I’ve met a few Hollows with possession abilities like that. Tell me, is Gloriosa Daisy’s soul still intact? Do I have any reason at all to hold back, or should I just exterminate you?”

“Uhhh, Luna?” Sunset called out, “Could you please maybe tone it down a bit? Not that I’m not happy you’re here to help and all, but far as i can tell Gloriosa and Gaia are kind of merged together, and I’m really trying not to have this end with having to bury anyone.”

“A noble sentiment, but is it one this ‘Gaia’ shares? From what I’ve heard from her own mouth, she doesn't,” Luna pointed out, her shadowy aura wrapping around her as she raised her scythes and took up a combat stance, “I didn’t come here to allow you or Clover to be killed. My sister and I both value your lives, the lives of all our human students. I won’t stand by while someone tries to bring those lives to harm.”

“Okay, yes, that’s cool, but me and Clover sort of had a plan going, here, and scythes cutting Gloriosa in half isn’t a part of said plan,” Sunset explained, “So if you’re going to help, don’t take this the wrong way, but I need you on the same page.”

“I can make no promises,” Luna said simply, “But I shall attempt to honor your desire for preserving this one’s life. Understand, however, that even if we subdue her, the rule of Soul Society may seek to dictate otherwise for her fate.”

To this, Gaia let out a peel off rough laughter, power surging from her body as she said, “You see, Sunset Shimmer!? The Soul Reapers can’t be trusted. Why do you think I’d rather just remove them from my home than contemplate trying to treat with them?”

“How can you say that, Luna, after you and your sister were nearly executed?” Sunset asked, and Luna shook her head.

“Don’t misunderstand. I don’t necessarily support what may be decided by Central 46, I am merely warning you ahead of time that this may not be as simple as just defeating Gloriosa. There are going to be repercussions for what has happened here today. The attack on Canterlot City, this rogue Hollow and her strange fusion with magic, both will provoke Central 46 and the Gotei 13 to action. I only ask that you be prepared for that. But first we must win this fight...”

“Yes, yes, don’t get ahead of yourselves,” Gaia said, spinning her double bladed sword around in a flourish, “I’m not about to just surrender to you and quietly accept whatever the Soul Reapers decide! Now... get off my land!”

Gaia flew at Luna like a hyper-sonic missile, her aura of spirit energy and magic flaring around her erratically. Her double blade sliced left and right in a spinning buzz of attacks, and Luna’s scythes twirled like jagged shadows to meet the blows. Gaia’s lips smirked deeply, her magic commanding the surrounding tree branches to grow a series of clawed, grasping wooden hands that flashed at Luna’s back. Luna dove down to avoid them, melding with the shadows beneath one of the larger branches.

“Clover, let’s do this!” Sunset shouted and rushed in as well.

“Right behind you,” Clover confirmed, following Sunset’s moves while holding out her right hand.

The clawed hands Gaia had summoned from the branches turned towards Sunset and rushed her, but Clover took careful aim and white lightning sparked around her fingers.

“Hado Number Four: Byakurai!” she called out, and much as she had with Sokatsui, was able to rapidly repeat the invocation and generated multiple lancing blasts of thin, pale lightning in an instant. These bolts cut through the wooden claws and cleared the path for Sunset.

Gaia easily turned to meet Sunset’s charge, catching Sunset’s blade with the shaft of her own double weapon. Sunset alternated between her sword and shield, striking with both Hokori and Hikari in a swift buzz of attacks that, while fierce and numerous, couldn’t get past Gaia’s guard.

“Are you slowing down, Sunset Shimmer? Or am I just getting faster the more and more power is restored to me?” Gaia said, letting out a short chuckle as she parried yet another set of Sunset’s strikes, “If this is it, you might as well run away while you still have legs to run with!”

To emphasize her point, Gaia lashed out with a wickedly fast and powerful kick that caught Sunset in the gut and propelled the young girl backwards into, and through one of the branches as thick as a car, shattering the branch and causing Sunset to continue on until she managed to flip in the air and land on her feet on another branch further along.

“And as for you!” Gaia said, pointing one of the tips of her weapon at Clover, “I’ve really had it up to here with you.”

Gaia vanished with Sonido, and Clover knew she wouldn't be able to react properly to the former Second Espada’s superior speed, barely feeling the wind at her back as Gaia appeared behind her to strike. However, just as Gaia did so, her weapon started to glow green from multiple small cuts along its shaft. Those cuts, small nicks really, stemmed from where Sunset had struck the weapon in her earlier assault. In her confidence, and the overwhelming magical power clouding her senses, Gaia hadn’t really noticed the reiatsu that Sunset had injected into the shaft of the wooden double-blade upon those strikes.

“Midorihi Hashira!” (Green Fire Pillar)

Sunset’s shout invoked the Zanpaktou technique in which the reiatsu mines she’d planted activated, green flames erupting from the double-blade’s shaft and detonating in a series of small explosions.

“The heck-!?” Gaia tossed her weapon as it exploded, more out of surprise than any real damage her hands took from the flames, although they did get a bit singed. Then a wash of shadows rose from the shade of the branches to her right and Luna, taking advantage of the distraction, shot forward and lashed out with her scythes, attempting to follow Sunset’s wishes and aiming to hamstring Gaia’s legs rather than go for a killing blow.

Gaia twisted away from the scythe’s deadly edges, turning a hamstring blow into a deep gash on her thigh instead, and the Hollow’s eyes turned vicious as she retaliated with a hammering punch that took even Luna off guard as it struck straight across her cheek and sent her reeling into the top boughs of the tree’s canopy. Luna might have been able to avoid that blow, but as she tried to shake off her daze, she realized she’d used up far too much power in her fight against Adagio, and hadn’t recovered as much as she had hoped. Her speed and strength were both lagging behind what they should have been if she was in peak condition, and to make matters worse, by now Luna could tell that Gaia was only getting stronger by the second.

Too much longer and they’d need her sister or one of the stronger Captains to deal with this, perhaps even the Captain Commander himself.

“Sunset!” she called out as she stood up, and had to dodge backwards as Gaia came crashing down at her from above with a devastating kick that Luna barely avoided, and smashed a craterous chunk out of the tree’s main trunk, “Now might be an exceptionally good time to stop holding back!”

Luna was too drained to use Bankai again so soon after using it against Adagio, but she knew Sunset Shimmer was still relatively fresh, and had access to that power as well. She wasn’t sure why Sunset had been keeping it in reserve, save perhaps out of hope to deescalate the fight before it got that bad. Well, that hope was fairly gone at this point.

“I know!” Sunset replied, appearing with Flash Step and intercepting a punch from Gaia that had been aimed towards Luna, catching Gaia’s fist with her shield.

“Huh? Holding back?” Gaia held out her other hand, and the tree responded by extending a branch that then gleamed with emerald energies and transmuted into a new wooden double-blade that flew into her waiting hand, “Feel free to throw whatever you want at me! Do I look like I need your pity!?”

Green and violet magic and spiritual power flowed through her double-blade as she swung it in an uppercut slice, one handed, while gripping Sunset’s shield with her other hand. Sunset blocked with her Zanpaktou, but the raw blast of combined magic and spirit energy surged into her and blasted her backwards, sending her bouncing and rolling along the treetop canopy.

Luna drove her scythes forward, shadows erupting from them in a series of spearing spikes, but Gaia twirled her newly forged weapon in a storm of magically infused strikes that severed or smashed aside the shadows. Yet Luna had only meant to momentarily tie up Gaia’s defenses, slashing backwards with her left handed scythe while still maintaining the frontal assault with her right handed scythe. The left scythe sunk into Luna’s own shadow, then slashed out of Gaia’s shadow and struck at the woman’s back.

Faster than lightning, Gaia back-flipped over the strike, soaring in a high arc at the apex of which she thrust out a palm and charged a swift Cero blast that shot out in a pulsing green and purple beam straight at Luna. The Captain instantly sunk into her own shadow, just managing to avoid the beam of destruction the coursed over the tree’s top canopy in a exploding arc that sent more branches as large as normal sized trees crashing towards the distant ground.

A flicker of orange movement to her right drew Gaia’s attention as she saw Sunset Shimmer coming at her again, and Gaia took her double-sword in both hands, cutting in a wide side slash at the charging girl. The blade passed right through Sunset Shimmer, and for a second the part of Gaia that was Gloriosa felt a moment of fear, having expected the girl to block or dodge the deadly blow. However that fear gave way to another instant of confusion as Sunset Shimmer’s body turned into hazy white flames.

Another flame clone!? Gaia realized, recalling from Gloriosa’s memories the technique that Sunset had used in the brief clash in the caverns below.

The clone of white flames vanished, and as it turned out the real Sunset had hidden herself right behind it, ducked low and with the shield of Hikari poised forward like a battering ramp which she smashed right into the surprised Gaia with such force that it produced a circular shockwave as Gaia was driven to the ground. Gaia landed roughly, but sprung to her feet using her hand to propel herself back to her feet with a swift flip, and after wiping a bit of blood from her lip, she swept her hand out towards Sunset.

The branches around her shook and trembled as deep green magical auras exploded across the, creating a swath of hundreds of sharp wood shards that levitated at Gaia’s command. With a snap of her finger she sent the barrage of projectiles firing towards Sunset in a deluge, each wooden spike infused with the crackling power of a Bala bullet.

Sunset saw the barrage coming, of course, but her eyes darted left and right, searching. Upon seeing that Clover was nowhere to be seen, she grinned. Good, Clover was following the plan. Gaia’s attention was entirely on dealing with Sunset and Luna, now. She just had to make sure Gaia’s focus remained on her. And Luna was right... it was time to stop holding back.

In a blinding hot flash, her reiatsu flared up around her, turning the air into shimmering heat waves and encasing her body in an aura of raging flames. Her shield gleamed pure white as she held it in front of her, and her sword grew to sun-like intensity with the fire pouring upward from it’s edge. The barrage of Bala infused wood spikes that Gaia had flung at her all but evaporated under the heat, and the handful that did make it through bounced off Sunset’s shield to only be burned to cinders half a second later.

Gaia narrowed her eyes at the display. It was impossible for her not to sense the massive uptick in the spiritual pressure stemming from Sunset Shimmer. Gloriosa knew very little about the girl, so no answer to what was happening was in her memories, but Gaia had many centuries of combat experience against the Soul Reaper and had fought more than one Captain in her time. She knew what was coming, and was surprised that a human girl could have obtained such power.

Was it due to the power of magic? Gaia had marveled at the strength to be found in that foreign world’s energy since she discovered it, and could feel that raw elemental power surging through her via the geodes even then. If magic was giving her such an incredible boost, it wasn’t strange to think it was doing the same with Sunset Shimmer. What bothered Gaia was that as Sunset’s spiritual energy flared up, so too did the sensation of magic inside her, and an unusual resonance from one of the geodes that Gaia was fused with.

These geodes... Twilight had an unusual reaction with them, too. I could never figure out just what they were or where they originated from. Why would they react to this girl? But they reacted to me when I was Gloriosa, too. It was her power, and now mine. I have nothing to fear. So then why do I feel...?

Despite Gaia’s thoughts, she did take up a more tense, defensive stance as Sunset Shimmer’s power struck a blinding peak, a potent and familiar word flying from Sunset’s lips that Gaia knew all too well from her previous encounters with Soul Reapers.

“Bankai!”

A gorgeous pillar of roaring flames spiraled both up into the heavens and down into the earth from where Sunset Shimmer stood. Gaia looked into the bright hot corona with a head mixture of feelings, Sunset’s reiatsu touching her skin like the light of a forest blaze. Her mind was both that of Gloriosa and Gaia, witnessing within their collective memories a host of images that brought forth sensations of protective drive, the sharp pain of loss, a burning hatred, righteous fury, and echoing fears of the future.

Gaia saw herself smiling as Lily and Rose played amid her garden during the rare quiet moments in Las Noches. This overlapped with Gloirosa laughing as a child, running with Timber through the thick forest trails of their youth.

She felt the cry of horror on her lips from finding what was left of Lily’s body after Chrysalis’ drones had finished with her. This was shared by Gloriosa’s small whimpers as she held her brother and tried to explain to him that their parents were gone, and not coming back.

Fury, hot as coals, as her blade clashed with Chrysalis in a battle she was destined to lose. Anger that was shared by the growing, fuming anger of Gloriosa as bill after bill piled up against the costs of the home she strove to maintain.

As Gaia and Gloriosa both she had known the joy of a home, a family, and the pain of losing it, the anger at being unable to protect it.

Her fusion with her now human self had been no mere accident, but a result of the things both had unknowingly shared with one another. Now, staring up at the pillar of flames from Sunset’s activated Bankai, those emotions crystalized in Gaia and reinforced her will to fight. On some level she knew Sunset was right, that this battle was... delaying the inevitable. The Soul Reapers, the Quincy, they would come, and drive her from her home. She’d lose everything, again.

But she couldn’t accept that! She refused to lose anything else! Not this time!

The pillar of flames burst apart in a sudden wave, billowing out across the tree top. Despite the tree’s magical and spiritual nature, the sheer heat of the fire had caused parts of it to light up, leaves and smaller branches withering.

Sunset stood in the air, her form now clad in the magnificent red and gold armor of her Bankai, wings of flame flowing from her shoulders and her hair dancing as if made of fire itself. Hokori, now a flamberge, crackled with flames so thick as to make the blade seem as if it were a solid bar of fire. Hikari’s ornate shield, like the swooping form of a diving phoenix, shone with brilliant white light.

“Mugen Hokori no Eien Hikari,” Sunset said, completing the last part of the ritual of bringing forth one’s Bankai. Strictly speaking, the naming wasn’t absolutely necessary, but much as with the naming of techniques upon use, it solidified the bond between Soul Reaper and Zanpaktou.

“I don’t get you,” Gaia said simply, “Whatever your story is, you clearly aren’t actually with the Soul Reapers. Why are you protecting them when I have every right to defend my home from those doing harm to it!? Do you have any idea what it feels like to lose the home you love and the people you care about!?”

“I know what it’s like to lose a home,” Sunset Shimmer said, “And I know what it’s like to fail to protect people, even when I tried my hardest. I might not know what you’ve gone through, but I know what pain and rage feel like. The way you deal with it is by finding others to help you through it, not by lashing out blindly at anyone you can find to blame.”

“Oh, but I know who to blame!” Gaia shouted, magic rolling up through her in a dark wave, “And once I’m done with the ones here, I’m going after her next! And as long as you’re in my way, you’re no different!”

Sunset breathed out slowly, raising her Zanpaktou, “You’re wrong about that. Me, my friends, we’ve fought the Soul Reapers to protect our own. It doesn’t matter to us who you are; human, Hollow, Quincy, Soul Reaper, anything else. I want to make this city a place for everyone to call a home, no matter who they are or what their past is. If you’d just open your damn eyes, you’d see we don’t have to be enemies.”

For a brief second Gaia’s expression twitched with doubt, but her eyes slid towards where Timber Spruce was still wrapped up in a cocoon of plant life, slowly healing his injury with vines creeping through his veins, pouring magic into him. Yet his unconscious, blood stained form sparked fresh anger inside Gaia, who cast aside her doubt with that anger, for it also reminded her of sweet, honeyed words that had once been spoken to her by Chrysalis.

”We don’t have to be enemies. We both want the same things, Gaia. Stand at my side, and I’ll open up the world for you. Stand in my way... heh, that would be a different kind of fun.”

“No!” the word tore itself from her in a roar, “The only person I can trust to protect what’s mine is me!”

With spiritual and magical energies creating a torrential aura of clashing green and purple colors around her and tearing apart the air in a whirlwind, Gaia rocketed upwards at Sunset. She thrust her double-sword forward with a powerful thrust that shattered the sound barrier. Her strike touched only air.

Her eyes cut right as she saw Sunset Shimmer, who’s wings of flame had sharpened to thruster-like jets that had enhanced her Flash Step to thunderous speed. With skill born of many hours of training her Bankai against Discord and her friends, Sunset immediately altered direction with another boosted Flash Step that brought her cleaving towards Gaia with a spinning blow of her flamberge. Gaia grunted as she bent away from the attack, feeling the ashen white wood armor she wore heating up from the mere proximity of Sunset’s blade as it passed by her.

Gaia’s lips parted in a growl, altering her grip on her weapon to reverse it and slice at Sunset’s neck with the other end. Sunset struck upwards with her shield, bashing the attack aside, and Gaia felt her arm rattle from the blow.

It’d been so long, she’d nearly forgotten just how much more power a Bankai could produce! Sunset’s speed and strength had shot past the edge that Gaia’s own slowly building power had achieved. Now she was on the back foot, forced to throw herself backwards to avoid an arc of flames that poured from Sunset’s sword as the girl easily swung the flamberge one handed in a powerful horizontal slice.

Frustration mounting, Gaia made a sharp upward gesture with one hand and caused the entire upper boughs of the tree to shake and rumble with power. Growing in size and extending at a rapid pace, dozens of branches bent and twisted to rise to Gaia’s command, every leaf transmuting into sharp, razor edges, and deadly thorns, larger than surfboards, erupting across their wooden surface. The branches rushed at Sunset, seeking to surround her like the mouth of some massive forest predator.

Sunset swept her blade out and let fire engulf her, flowing out in a sphere with her at the center. The flames bathed the branches, but Gaia poured more of her spiritual energy and magic into them to reinforce them against the flames, forcing the branches to still strike inward at where she’d last seen Sunset. Though their surfaces were charred, the branches remained intact and speared into the flames, sharp thorn blades piercing the fire.

And from the dome of flames a dozen or so Sunset Shimmer’s came flying out!

Gaia’s eyes shot wide. More flame clones!? She hadn’t known Sunset could make so many. The numerous Sunset Shimmer’s rushed through the branches as the animated, lethal foliage flailed and stabbed about, trying to impale them. One or two were struck, bursting into motes of white flame, but many others struck at the branches, and showed that while mere clones, they fire they were made from still burned. Their power was minimal compared to the real deal, so all they could do was singe the branches, but it still proved a serious irritation, especially because Gaia had no idea where the real Sunset had gone!

The answer came swiftly, as Gaia felt a shadow pass over her vision.

The sun!?

Sunset had flown up, straight into the light of the sun, and had used the sun’s glare to mask her descent as she came flying down with her wings boosting her momentum to insane heights as she brought her Zanpaktou down at Gaia, blue flames flickering across it’s edge.

Gaia had no choice but to block, having not even the split second of time needed to dodge. Her double-sword caught Hokori’s flaming edge in the center of it’s shaft, and Gaia felt the combined branches forming the canopy beneath her buckle under the force of the blow, even as she stood firm against it. But then Sunset unleashed the azure flames from her sword.

”Aoihi Senko!”

Now empowered by Bankai, the technique struck with a cataclysmic explosion of neon blue fire that shattered part of the tree’s canopy and cut a swath down it’s trunk. Gaia, resisting with all her spiritual might and no small dose of magic, held against the torrent of flame that pushed her down the side of the trunk, and with an animalistic shout of fury that shook the entire tree she shoved back and broke the wave of blue flames.

She’d been pushed about halfway down the tree, the Aoihi Senko having left a black trail down the side of the monolithic edifice of wood. Gaia stood sideways on the trunk, hands painfully burned, the bark of her armor charred, and her anger rising to new heights as her dark eyes widened and her green pupils shrunk to shaking pin pricks.

Sunset heard Gaia’s furious cry and knew the woman would be coming right back at her in no time. Inwardly, Sunset was not half as calm as she was outwardly projecting. Even with Bankai, her Aoihi Senko hadn’t done a lot of damage to Gaia. Pushed her back, sure. Burned her flesh and armor a bit, yes. But damned if Gaia’s power wasn’t still surging.

At this rate, even with Bankai, I can’t take her alone. Damn good thing I’m not alone, then.

Despite the dire situation, things were going about as well as they could. Gaia’s fury was now solely focused on Sunset. She’d apparently all but forgotten that there were other opponents on the field.

Gaia returned like a storm, bursting up through the branches with her hair writhing around her akin to some demonic medusa. The branches she’d animated earlier now all turned and flared with power, pointing towards Sunset Shimmer and all but ignoring the clones, which had been reduced in number by more than a few hits.

“Sunset Shimmmerrr!” Gaia shouted, her hair pointing forward in mirror of the branch's movements. Power crackled around both the pointed ends of her hair, and the branches, and Sunset briefly gulped before Gaia Everfree unloaded a barrage of thin, green and purple flashing Cero beams both from the branches and the tips of her writhing hair.

Sunset flew straight up, bursting from one point to another in blazingly quick Flash Steps. The Cero beams tore up the top canopy of the tree, and followed Sunset in curving paths as Gaia kept trying to adjust her aim and fired off more trying to catch Sunset with one of them. By and large Sunset was fast enough to dodge most of them, but a few beams still managed to converge on her, so she whipped Hikari’s shield around and let the shield’s light flare, forming a spherical barrier of softly glowing spiritual light.

This deflected the beams, but it also caused her to stay in one spot for a moment, more than enough time for Gaia to capitalize on by soaring upward to Sunset’s level. Double-sword whirling with breakneck speed, Gaia struck. Sunset’s barrier cracked, but she didn’t back down, wings of flame spreading a spectrum of fire as she brought her Zanpaktou to bear against the assault. The air vibrated with their clash as both of them filled the sky with waves of force, zipping about and coming together in a storming symphony of strikes and parries that left both combatants as little more than blurs of light and flame.

Blood struck the tree canopy in small spatters as both women broke off from one another for a moment. Each bore slashing wounds upon their bodies now, having lost track of exactly when amid the torrent of attacks either one had injured the other. While Sunset still felt she had the momentary advantage, it was clear that wouldn’t last forever. Gaia was already adapting to Sunset’s new speed and strength, although she was forced to be extremely careful whenever she parried Sunset’s Zanpaktou. Sunset had noticed every time their blades had clashed, Gaia had made sure to pull her blade back in time to avoid Sunset’s Zanpaktou actually penetrating the wood. No doubt to avoid another instance of Sunset laying reiatsu mines in the blade to blow it up.

That was fine. It meant Gaia’s parries were a tad slower than they otherwise would be. Not wanting to let up on the pressure, Sunset didn’t take more than a second to catch her breath before making a move. She used Flash Step to come straight at Gaia, but feinted with a thrust that was never meant to hit as she changed directions and flew beneath the surprised Gaia. She made a cutting motion with Hokori and created a wide sheet of flames that rose up towards Gaia in a dome-shaped wave. Gaia, guessing Sunset was trying to confuse her again and block her vision, made a harsh cutting motion with her own double-sword to generate a pressure wave to scatter the flames.

She spotted Sunset on the tree’s top canopy, her remaining flame clones, four in total, standing around her. Immediately Sunset and the clones began to flicker about the tree, creating a dizzying display that left Gaia trying to pin-point which one was the actual Sunset Shimmer. Then with a harsh laugh, Gaia flung her hand down and made a grasping motion. Why bother trying to decide which Sunset was which when she could attack all of them at once?

Vines and branches filled with spinning thrones that became akin to buzz saws all rose up and rolled around the tree top like a mass of living barbed wire. They struck at every spot upon the tree’s canopy at once, filling the air above it with a dicing web of foliage. The flame clones were snuffed out by the huge area attack, bursting into crackles of white fire, while the real Sunset Shimmer had to defend herself by spinning around and slashing about at high speed with flaming strikes that incinerated the vines and branches coming towards her.

With Sunset exposed, Gaia charged her, coming down with a blink of Sonido that brought her sword slicing in a wide arc at Sunset’s back while the girl was focused on the vines. However, Sunset surprised her again, her wings blasting flame behind them and not only propelling Sunset safely away from the attack, but forcing Gaia to raise her blade in defense against the wing’s jets of fire that scorched her arm.

Then Gaia saw the tell-tale green glow of light beneath her feet and glanced down to see that carved out portions of the tree canopy were igniting with green flame. While she’d been focused on the clones, Sunset had been planting more reiatsu mines!

Gaia launched herself away from a series of detonating pillars of green fire, barely able to escape with a collection of a few more burns on her dark purple skin. She felt Sunset’s reiatsu before the girl appeared behind her, slamming her shield forward at Gaia’s face. Gaia bent back, displaying an incredibly flexible spine as the shield passed within centimeters of her chin. She was at an odd angle, but she still managed to plant her double-sword into the tree canopy for leverage and spun on it like a pole dancer, lashing out with a side kick that impacted with Sunset’s sword arm and sent the girl flying back.

Gaia flipped herself over and landed on her feet, while Sunset planted her own feet into a larger branch at the edge of the canopy and grinded herself to a halt. Sunset still had her grip on her sword, but her arm was twitching, and the armor was dented from Gaia’s kick. The girl’s face was wincing from the pain, but her expression remained resolute. Or rather, as Gaia looked at Sunset, the girl looked like she was smiling in satisfaction?

But why would...?

Gaia’s eyes shot wide as she realized what she’d been forgetting, and practically that same instant the shadows of the tree canopy beneath her feet turned to pure liquid blackness as they rose up around her in a oblong shell of shadow. Luna’s reiatsu, hidden until that moment, was not felt clearly as the Soul Reaper Captain struck as a true Stealth Corps member, taking full advantage of the surprise attack and using her Shikai’s manipulation of shadow to send both her scythes cutting out of the blackness to strike at Gaia from both front and back.

Despite being faster, and having a double sided weapon ideal for defending from multiple angles, Gaia had been taken off guard and felt the bite of Luna’s scythes as one strike cut a line across the back of her shoulder and another took a gouge out of her arm. Not letting up, Luna kept striking from the shadows she’d encased Gaia in, her scythes blending with the darkness to make them even harder to predict and defend against. Even so, Gaia’s speed started to make the difference, her form little more than a purple blur as she spun her double-sword to keep Luna’s scythes at bay.

Meanwhile, outside the shell of shadows, Sunset flew overhead and called out, “Clover? You ready yet?”

“Just about...” came the reply from Clover’s strained voice, a portion of the tree canopy back near where the cocoon Gaia first emerged from was, and next to where Timber Spruce was held in his own cocoon. The air shimmered and fell aside like a curtain made of mirrors, a stealth Kido that Clover had used to hide herself as Gaia had become distracted by Sunset.

On the thick canopy beneath Clover a circle of black ink had been drawn, and Clover had rolled up the sleeves of her Soul Reaper robes to paint geometric patterns of ink on her arms as well. She was holding her hands clasped in front of her, fingers interlocked in a complex sign as she chanted under her breath, the ink on her arms and upon the circle around her now glowing with intense blue light.

”Seek not breath, nor idle thought

Blood stills, the corpse of clay lays dormant

Within void, peace, within death, passion

Awaken ye jailors of the tormented

Bring forth your final chains.”

Suddenly nine identical circles of blue light appeared and surrounded the shadow space where Luna was keeping Gaia occupied, the circles each around ten meters wide. Sunset looked on, a bit amazed at the reiatsu she felt stemming from the Kido that Clover was summoning. She’d known Clover had learned a high level Kido from that Puddinghead fellow, but Sunset was still impressed with what she was feeling.

From the nine circles, forms started to merge amid swaths of blue light, and Clover’s face broke out in a sweat of concentration as she finished her invocation.

Sensing this, Luna knew what was coming, and faded into her shadows, the shell vanishing. She’d kept Gaia occupied just long enough for Clover to shout the final words of the spell.

”Bakudo Number Ninety Five: Kinben'na Chian Hanji no Gyōretsu!” (Procession of Diligent Magistrates)

Gaia was abruptly standing alone, surrounded by the nine circles of light, and thoroughly disoriented by Luna’s sudden disappearance. Yet she still sensed the danger she was now in, but too late to properly react in time. The Kido was already active.

From the circles had risen nine figures, each as tall as twenty feet. They were skeletal forms, yet bore a noble air about them, clad in white and black haori shirt hakama pants that were an inverted coloring to the traditional Soul Reaper clothes. They wore plated suits of samurai armor over these clothes, with simplified helmets bearing no decoration. Their faces of skeletal bone only carried a gleam of light within their eyes, which shone with faded blue wisps in their depths. Their dry death’s fingers clasped massive pole-arms that ended in split, barbed hooks, an ancient weapon for catching criminals called sasumata, used by police in Japan’s Edo period. Even as they’d risen from their summoning circles, the nine skeletal magistrates had already thrust these pole-arms forward in equal motions, and spiraling beams of blue light shot from their points and formed a translucent cube of energy around Gaia. The cube crackled with lines of power, and at each corner of the cube a ghost image of a kanji symbol appeared, eight in total, with a ninth stamping itself upon the top of the cube with a clarion ring of noise like the shutting of an iron prison door.

Lips quivering in fury, Gaia threw out a hand, “This won’t hold me!”

She fired a Bala at the Kido’s wall, but the bullet of reishi struck the barrier and rather than break through, the energy shuddered and then dispersed into the walls of the cage. Frowning, Gaia struck with her double-sword, and gasped as upon impact a small stream of spirit energy was drained out of her and flowed into the barrier.

“What is this!?” she shouted, striking again with similar results.

Sunset Shimmer blinked in surprise at the Kido’s effectiveness and glanced at Clover, “Good question. Just what is this Kido? This is the one Puddinghead taught you, right?”

“Yes,” Clover said, breathing heavily from the effort that the invocation had cost her, “It’s among the strongest Bakudo ever devised, but it’s deceptive in its strength, due to the way it saps spiritual energy from any prisoner’s attempt to batter their way free of it.”

“I’m familiar with this one,” said Luna as the Captain slid out of the shadows next to Sunset and Clover, her eyes keeping a wary gaze upon Gaia as the woman kept trying to smash her way free, so far to no avail. “I could never master it. It’s a testament to your talents, Third Seat Clover, that you were able to do so after such a short instruction period. I feel Captain Starswirl may well owe you a promotion after this.”

Clover gave a bashful glance away, “I can’t fill Lieutenant Meadowbrook’s shoes so easily.”

“Perhaps not, but with Platinum gone, the Sixth Division will need a new Captain, and that Captain a new Lieutenant. Perhaps once a Captain is found, you might consider the possibility,” Luna said, “And it does so happen I’d heard rumors that Fancy Pants was being considered for the position of taking over the Captain’s role for Sixth Division.”

“I...uh... I don’t know what to say to that,” Clover replied, and Sunset cleared her throat loudly.

“Kind of a topic for later anyway. Clover, how long will this Kido hold her?”

Gaia’s attempts to free herself were growing more desperate. Her physical blows started to grow faster and stronger, but so too did the Kido barrier as each strike siphoned more spiritual power from Gaia. Soon the cube was growing in size, and it started to float upwards. The nine skeletal magistrates floated upwards with it, blue cords of energy still flowing from their pole-arms to maintain the barrier. Some of Gaia’s strikes were creating cracks in it, but those cracks repaired themselves almost as fast as they were made.

Still, it was far from certain that the cage could contain Gaia indefinitely, and Clover confirmed this as she said, “I don’t know for sure. This tree is still transferring energy to her, but the Kido is designed to keep getting stronger too. It’ll just keep absorbing reiryoku from her. She can probably still overpower it eventually, but I think it’ll take awhile. Half an hour, maybe?”

“Normally that’s not much time at all, but how soon before we can expect the cavalry to arrive, Luna?” Sunset asked, turning to the Captain.

“Much sooner than half an hour,” Luna replied with a confident smile, “I can all but guarantee my sister will return with reinforcements before that time is up. Furthermore, that should be enough time for I and Captain Sweet Cider to recover a bit, and be more than a proper match for restraining our foe.”

“Right on,” Sunset said, reaching out and clapping Clover on the shoulder, her face brightening up with a warm grin, “We did it, Clover. I owe you.”

“I... thank you, Sunset, that means a lot to me,” Clover replied, unable to stop herself from sharing Sunset’s smile.

Not far away, the cocoon containing Timber Spruce stood. Within it, the boy finally started to stir, and his eyes started to crack open. His vision was blurred, and his memory quite fuzzy. His mouth was dry as sand as he tried to speak.

“G...Glori?”

As his vision started to clear, he felt strange sensations all over his body, and as he looked at himself, seeing the vines burrowing into his skin as he was surrounded by a semi-transparent cocoon of plant matter, he started to shout in fear.

Hearing him, Sunset, Clover, and Luna all turned. Sunset grimaced, “Crap, Timber! Don’t panic, you’re okay!”

“O-okay!? What’s happening!? Where’s my sister!?” Timber was yanking at the vines, trying to pull them out of his body, but given they were burrowed under his skin, this only led to sharp pain that caused him to cry out.

A cry that Gaia heard, and she turned to see her brother in pain, and Sunset Shimmer moving towards him. Her heartbeat started to increase tenfold, and a sense of overwhelming protectiveness and desperation flowed through her as she perceived a threat to her kin.

“Timber, calm down,” Sunset said, trying to make her voice soothing as she reached him and put a hand on his chest, setting aside her sword for a moment, and rather forgetting what she looked like in Bankai form. He looked at her in confusion and fear, which made perfect sense considering she rather appeared to be on fire. In his confusion he could only stammer.

“G-get away from me!”

His voice pierced through Gaia and Gloriosa’s combined mine and ignited a deep seeded fury and desire to protect that was rooted in a mutual sense of loss. Gaia’s pure hatred of Chrysalis surged up in a dark tide, her mind seeing the deaths of all her followers she’d loved at the hands of one she’d once tried to trust. Gloriosa could only feel the love she’d had for her only surviving family and the promise she’d made to keep both him and their home safe, no matter the cost, and the natural anger that came with the thought of all of that being under threat.

Spiritual energy rose within them, but couldn’t batter down the Kido that was containing them, as all of that power kept getting absorbed to reinforce the cage’s bonds. But Gaia realized she had another power to draw upon, a source of energy that thus far had appeared to be quite inexhaustible, and more importantly of a kind the Kido holding her wasn’t designed to absorb and make use of.

Magic.

She reached a hand down to her midriff where the seven geodes resided, and with a deep, guttural cry, she drew forth as much magic as she could from them. She cut off any magic she’d been sending through the ritual and instead drank deeply of the magic herself. At first Gaia tried purely to force it, but the part of her that was Gloriosa, that had made more use of the magic within the geodes before merging with Gaia, instead knew instinctively to call upon the magic. In her mind, in her soul, her need was great, and the magic always responded to that kind of need in the past.

Sunset knew something was wrong almost instantly. She turned from the frightened Timber as she felt the entire tree shake, and saw the tree’s branches all light up at once with deep purple and green light. Sunset’s heart lurched and she felt a strange point of pain in her chest, as if something inside her was crying out. She looked at Gaia, and saw that the entire Kido spell’s cube was filling with a blinding combination of flickering green and purple hues, all tinged with darkness as magical power poured out of the geodes and through Gaia’s body.

For Sunset there was little doubt of what was about to happen. She’d experienced it herself when she’d transformed with Twilight’s crown, and she’d witnessed it with the birth of Midnight Sparkle. Dark magic, the form of magic responding to desperate, dark emotions, was rushing from Gaia in a powerful wave. The magic from the geodes was filling her, a replacement for the spiritual energy she’d otherwise have tried to use to free herself. And somehow, Sunset could see one of the geodes flashing red in the darkness, as if it was calling to her, and she realized the cry of pain was not just from herself, but from the geode.

“Gloriosa! Stop!” she shouted, “The magic is going to overtake your mind at this rate!”

Clover stared in horror as the Kido’s walls started to crack, “Not good. The Kido can’t absorb magic. If this keeps up she’ll be out in minutes.”

“Faster than that,” Luna muttered darkly, readying her scythes as the cracks forming across the Kido’s barrier increased three fold and lines of crackling violet magic started to break free in beams that filled the sky.

Sunset grabbed her Zanpaktou and flew up towards the Kido, trying to call out to Gloriosa once more, but there was a stupendously air shattering explosion of magic and spiritual force that finally ripped the Kido apart, scattering both the cube of blue light and the surrounding magistrates. Sunset felt like she was hit by a cinder block to the gut by the resulting reiatsu, but worse the suffocating sensation of out of control magic pressing upon her.

The disorientating pulsations of magical light and swirling chaotic energies blanketed the tree top, fading only gradually and leaving crackling forks of green and purple lightning sparking through the air around Gaia Everfree. Sunset blinked to clear her vision and held her shield and sword ready, gazing at the silhouette in front of her.

Down below Captain Luna grit her teeth and Clover starred in pale amazement.

Timber Spruce, frozen stiff with fear and confusion, looked towards the being hovering in the air and while she may not have held the same appearance as the sister he knew, he still recognized her, perhaps from pure brotherly instinct.

“Gloriosa?”

A hand clad in dark green leaves with a metallic sheen, and ending in a hand bearing bone white claws, grasped the handle of a now longer double-blade of bleached white wood. The weapon’s ends were now wider and bore a deeper curve, lined with vine-like veins of pulsing green light.

“Yes, Timber, I’m here,” said Gaia, her voice unchanged, unlike her body.

Metallic green vines wrapped her form in cords of armoring, including up to her neck, while thicker growths of white bark formed plates across her chest and shoulders, all sprouting large thorns that gleamed like metal under the sunlight. Her lower body was surrounded by a large purple rose, as if her legs were sinking into the plant, which in turn grew down in a large, white bulb that in turn trailed off into a wriggling mass of several dozen root-like tubes that in turn were capped by large thorn-blades that glowed with more veins of green magical light. Two curved, thorn-like branches of metallic white bark grew from her back, and smaller thorns grew down her spinal cord. Her hair now moved like a living thing around her, grown longer and now bearing smaller purple roses like the one her body grew down into. Almost every inch of Gaia now exuded a continuous resonating aura of magical light that flicked between dark hues of green, purple, and outright black. The geodes remained embedded in her stomach, but each one was now surrounded by an aura of black magic that connected them all in a circle, almost like a Hollow’s hole.

Her eyes, at least, hadn’t changed, still with verdant green pupils on fields of black. Those eyes now regarded Sunset Shimmer, and Sunset could see the mad fury within them, stark in contrast to the calm tone of Gaia’s voice.

“Be a friend, and help me test this out, would you?”

“Gloriosa, I-” Sunset almost didn’t see Gaia move, and was only able to do so because she hadn’t actually dropped her guard and had been prepared to Flash Step away the instant she sensed an attack coming. Even then, she felt that enlarged double-sword’s edge scrape one of the thinner portions of her armor, nearly cutting through despite Sunset dodging backwards from the wickedly fast blow.

She wasn’t able to react fast enough to the way two of the thorn-tipped vines beneath the rose of Gaia’s lower body snapped out even faster than the sword strike had been and wrapped around Sunset’s ankles, yanking her down and throwing her to the tree top canopy with enough force to break the sound barrier.

Sunset used her shield to absorb some of the impact, but was still rattled, and had to take a moment to control herself as she broke through several layers of branches and almost smacked into the tree’s central trunk. Grunting, and biting back the pain, she flung herself back up, to find Gaia hadn’t moved and seemed to just be waiting for her.

“Not quite the same as my old Resurreccion from my Zanpaktou, Tierra Esteril, but I rather like it,” Gaia said, cracking her neck, “Hehehe, this magic is so... wonderful feeling. I could kill anyone with this.”

“Magic...” Clover breathed, “She drew on so much magic, it must have filled the part of her spiritual makeup where her Zanpaktou would normally be, and activated some kind of... magic-based Resurreccion.”

“Ooooh, nice theory, Soul Reaper,” Gaia said, laughing with a high pitched, off kilter tone, “Should we give it a snappy name!? Resurreccion Arcana? Mmm, I suppose it doesn’t matter. Not as if any of you are going to live to talk about it. Oh, except you, Timber. I’d never hurt you. In fact... let’s get you fixed up faster, shall we?”

“Glori, what’s going on!? I don't understand!” Timber said, his voice filled with fright as the cocoon he was in closed around him it started to sink, along with him, into the depths of the tree.

“Damn it Gloriosa, listen to me! You have to stop this!” Sunset said, her wings of fire flaring into thick bursts of propelling flame that sent her smashing straight towards Gaia.

Her flamberge crashed with titanic force and an explosion of concentrated fire into Gaia’s sword as the woman met Sunset’s attack. Flames burned around Gaia and broke around her aura, although Sunset’s strength wasn’t immediately overmatched as she pressed hard with her sword arm and then spun around and lashed out with her shield.

Three of Gaia’s thorn-vines rose up and struck like snakes, the thorns clashing point first with the shield and halting it dead. Sunset took the energy of that blow and transferred it to her blade, intensifying the flames shooting out of it and trying to concentrate the heat around the edge of her sword.

She still had one technique left available to her that she hadn’t used yet. She hadn’t come close to mastering it, however. She’d need more energy to work with to do it properly, more heat.

Luna and Clover cease to be idle, however, Clover rushing to chase after Timber Spruce, while Luna flew up into the sky, vanishing with several Flash Steps to rise behind Gaia and raise her scythes to bring them down at Gaia’s back, shadows sharpening around the scythes like hungry mouths.

The two large thorns on Gaia’s back grew and bent like putty, and their tips shone with strobes of green and purple light, as if being encased in destructive energies like a Cero, but not firing out but instead becoming sheaths of deadly magic and spirit energy. Luna was left contending with the two living thorns smirking at her at such speeds they essentially were a legion of blows. The Captain's scythes moved almost as fast, and their shadow wrapped blades held the assault at bay, at least for a few moments. One of her injuries from her fight with Adagio chose that instant to send a terrible lance of pain through Luna, causing her defenses to falter by just a millisecond, but more than enough of an opening for one of Gaia's super-charged back thorns to slip through and slice across Luna's chest with an impact that sent Luna plummeting into the tree canopy, smashing headlong into one of the thicker branches.

“Luna!” Sunset called, but had no time to check to see if the Captain was okay, since Gaia shoved hard with her blade, putting such strength into it that Sunset felt like she’d just been hammered by a meteor. Her armored feet dragged across the air as she halted herself, but found Gaia not giving her a hair’s breadth to recover, sending her lower thorn vines after her in a swarm.

Sword cleaving at the thorn vines, Sunset readied her shield and started to dodge about in bursts of flame born Flash Steps, but intentionally let a few of the thorn vines get past her blade so her shield could intercept them. She needed to build up more energy, and fast.

Gaia may have realized what Sunset was doing, however, because she pulled the vines back and instead came forward herself, taking Sunset off guard with just how fast that awkward looking body could move as she rammed right into Sunset. The blow staggered her and shook her in her armor, and cleared the breath from her lungs. In her daze, she saw Gaia’s blade coming right for her throat.

Then a bolt of lightning fell from the sky and met with Gaia, lighting the woman up in a incandescent blaze of blue.

“Guh!” Gaia stumbled back, briefly stunned, and looked upward, just in time for several blasts of gold energy to impact with her back as a sound like the world’s largest revolver went off, and something in gleaming gold soared past the woman.

Gaia turned to follow the form and looked ready to charge a Cero with a raised hand, but then a swarm of crystalline red weapons came from below and struck at her, scoring marks across her armor and causing Gaia to fire the Cero downward instead, although they hit nothing as the crystal weapons had flown up on their own while their creator was elsewhere.

“Sunset, darling, it looks like you might need the assistance of a professional gardener. The foliage around here has gotten clearly out of hand.”

“Ain’t the time fer quippin’, this gal’s clearly short a’ few nails in her barn door.”

“AJ, what does that even mean?”

Before Gaia could properly target her new assailants, a echo of giggling laughter filled the air and a pink balloon floated up in front of her face, with a cake tied to it’s string that had white and purple frosting with lettering that red ‘Happy Boss Day: Be Beating You Soon.’ The cake then exploded in Gaia’s face in a shower of spirit energy that burst like confetti.

“Just in time for the party. Oh, or maybe fashionably late? Is Luna alright?”

A soft gold light flared from below as a gentle voice called out, “She's injured but I've stopped the bleeding, I believe. It seems we have a bigger problem to handle before I can finish healing her.”

“ARGGGH!” Gaia roared, “Where did all of you come crawling out of!?”

A blue arrow of reishi, surrounded by a faint glow of teal magic, shot past Sunset and impacted with Gaia’s chest, driving her back a step.

“Gloriosa, I’m sorry I didn’t understand the danger of those geodes, but I promise you, I’m here to help make things right.”

Sunset looked around her, her breath catching, her heart suddenly feeling a hundred times lighter as she saw who was now stepping forward to join her on either side.

“Guys... you’re all here...” she said.

“O’ course we are!” said Applejack, hefting her drill cannon over her shoulder and pounding her chest with an armored fist, “Ain’t no way, now or ever, we’re gonna let our friend hang in the wind!”

“I mean, I know you’re awesome enough to probably have taken this crazy chick alone,” said Rainbow Dash, electricity sparking from all around her as she spun her spear and gave Sunset a wink, “But you won’t mind us getting a few hits in too, right?”

“Captain Luna will be okay, at least,” said Fluttershy, surrounded by an aura of golden, spiritual arms and hands that all took up ready defensive stances, “Although I don't know how she kept moving with all of those wounds. She's passed out from blood loss at the moment, but I stabilized her. How about you, Sunset? Are you all right?”

“I’m... heh, doing better now, with you all here,” Sunset replied, and Pinkie bounced up next to her, the white mask hiding half of her face shifting sides and turning black.

“Looks like you were trying to have all the fun without us, but I won't hold that against you, this lady looks like real pain in the ass,” said Pinkamena, the mask turning white again as Pinkie added, “But now that we’re all here we can make it even funner! Oh, did you see my new hammer?”

“I did. Very nifty,” Sunset said, and turned to look at the massive red gate that had appeared behind them, her eyes shifting to Rarity, “Yours?”

Rarity nodded, and Sunset couldn’t help but note she didn’t meet Sunset’s eyes fully, despite adopting a confident smile, “Why yes it is, and just wait until I show you what lies beyond it. Of course we do have the pressing matter of Miss Daisy to deal with.”

“Yes,” said Twilight Sparkle, hanging a bit back from the others, but slowly stepping up towards Sunset while she kept her eyes fixated on the seething Gaia Everfree.

“Whatever happens, we have to finish this, and make sure no more harm comes to anyone,” Twilight finished firmly, and Sunset nodded.

“We will. Together, we will, Twilight, everyone.”

With that, Sunset turned to Gaia, with her friends flanking her on either side. The human fused with an Arrancar faced them with magic still pouring from her transformed body in a powerful torrent, madness and rage equally filling her eyes as she faced down the seven girls from Canterlot City.

Episode 126: The Decisive Collision, Part 1

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Episode 126: The Decisive Collision, Part 1

Perched upon a mountain cliff that overlooked the ruined valley where, not long ago, the battle between Captain Sweet Cider and Lament had taken place, now reclined a woman with periwinkle blue skin and a curly head of minty green hair. She wore what could be considered a trimmed down version of a Soul Reaper’s black uniform, although sleeveless and with shorter leggings. She also had on a sleeveless version of a white Captain’s coat, although it bore no insignia on it’s back. She was sitting in a dark brown, high backed leather chair that looked as if it belonged in a mansion rather than on an exposed mountainside, and next to the chair was a mahogany table stand upon which a bottle of wine sat, uncorked. The woman held a wine glass filled up in one hand, which she drank deep from while leaning forward to give rapt attention to an obelisk of stone that stood about four feet high and was set just a few paces from her chair. At the top of the obelisk was a triangular protrusion with kanji symbols carved upon it’s sides, which glowed soft blue and projected an image above the obelisk.

The image was a crystal clear, real-time view of Sunset Shimmer’s confrontation with Gaia Everfree, alongside her friends, as if a professional film crew was present to record the event.

The woman took another pull of wine and made a gesture at the image, which flickered to show an equally clear image of Camp Everfree as students were led outside the enclosure of roots and vines to waiting busses outside. The woman’s brown eyes twitched a bit at the sight of Discord and Ditzy.

“Bold move, Discord. I think I see your play. I’ll be happy to let you upset Glory. Might be enough for her to get over you. Hmm, how’s our timing?”

Another flick of her wrist, the image shifting to that of the towering Senkaimon gateway network in Soul Society, where Soul Reapers could be seen assembling. Members of the Tenth and Eleventh Divisions, and the woman noted Captain Hurricane was present organizing things, speaking with a very distraught and haggard looking Captain Celestia.

“Poor girl. Gets her Zanpaktou calmed down, rushes home for help, and is still fighting bureaucracy. Good to know the gears of Central 46 still grind as slow as Glory designed them to. Still, looks like they’ll be here sooner rather than later. Hope it’ll be long enough for the show. Speaking of which...”

She changed the image back to Sunset Shimmer and her friends starring down the transformed and out of control Gaia. The woman watching the image grabbed the bottle to refill her wine glass, but after a moment’s consideration shrugged, tossed the glass, and just started drinking from the bottle.

Wiping her mouth, Medley of the Zero Division grinned with anticipation, “Half time’s over, ladies. If you’re going to step up to the big leagues, let’s see what kind of game you’ve really got.”

----------

A rough bubbling of laughter split Gaia Everfree’s face into a crooked, manic grin as she gazed upon the seven girls standing in the sky before her. Her hands gripped so tight upon the shaft of her double-bladed sword that the knuckles grew pale. Beneath the bulb of the giant rose her lower body was melded into, the dozen or so thorn tipped vines shook like angered cobras.

“All of you children interfering with me protecting my home has finally, truly, hacked me off! I don’t even know who all of you are, and quite frankly I don’t care! Anyone who doesn’t want perforated organs needs to find somewhere else to be. Now.”

“Gloriosa, please listen,” Twilight said, “I just want to help you-”

“Oh you’ve helped plenty, Twilight,” Gaia said, voice more piercing than the thorns she bore on her body, “Helped me finally understand that anyone who says they’re trying to help me is probably lying through their teeth to get something they want. I’ll give you the benefit of believing you didn’t intend for it to get this far, but you still used me and my brother for your own ends.”

“That’s not true!” Twilight said, “I wanted to keep you and Timber Spruce safe, and to make sure the magic you had didn’t harm anyone. It’s not too late to stop. Believe me, I know what it feels like for you right now, with all of that magic at your fingertips, like there’s nothing beyond your grasp! But it’s not real, Glorio-”

A magical blast of deadly energy, pulsating both green and purple, seared it’s way past Twilight’s head. It didn’t strike her, but it singed her cheek and hair, and the bolt, fired from the tip of Gaia’s blade, continued on to detonate in the distant forest behind the group of girls.

“Seems pretty real to me,” Gaia said, “And I don’t mind using this power to its fullest on all of you, if you’re insistent upon facing me. I am not the Gloriosa you knew, child. I am Gaia Everfree. This land is my domain. And trespassers upon my domain-”

Her aura exploded outward in a dark wind, it’s energies swirling around her and all seven girls found themselves being pressed upon by the weight of raw magic and a still very sizeable pool of spiritual pressure flowing from Gaia as the woman’s voice rose to a distorted, power fueled shout.

“-shall be punished!”

“I’d say diplomacy just failed!” Rainbow Dash said, glancing at Sunset, “Go time?”

Sunset gave a solemn nod to Dash and the rest of her friends, “Go time.”

They moved as one. Even if Sunset was unfamiliar with what new powers some of her friends might have now with their completed Fullbrings, she knew she could trust them to work together efficiently and didn’t doubt they’d be able to alter tactics on the fly. While all of them were injured to one degree or another, Sunset wasn’t worried. The only thing that gave her even a moment of pause was the fact that Rarity’s reiatsu was feeling odd, for some reason, but Sunset chalked that up to the nature of her new Fullbring.

Rainbow Dash, unsurprisingly, was the first to strike. Sunset was quite familiar with her friend’s superior speed, a trait even Sunset had trouble matching with her Bankai. It was a sight to behold now, as Dash turned into a fierce storm of cobalt blue streaks that left barely a flicker of a mirror image cast in lightning blue on everyone’s retina’s.

Gaia’s body had to have been struck hundreds of times in mere moments, Rainbow Dash’s motions circling the woman in an electrically charged circle from which Dash struck inward over and over again with her blazing lighting lance. When the maneuver finished, Dash flipped upwards, leaving the circle of lightning behind her that surrounded Gaia and then closed in upon her in a explosive burst of storm-born might.

“I call that number the ‘Thor Blitz’!” Rainbow Dash declared, then had to dodge as an arcane charged Cero beam nearly blasted her from the sky, missing by a hair’s length. Gaia, smoking from the electrical assault but not immobilized, glared at Dash and blurred out of view with a Sonido that took her in a line right at the speedster.

Rainbow was fast enough to get her lightning spear in front of her to block Gaia’s blade, but the force of the blow still drove Dash backwards across the sky. Fortunately Gaia couldn’t follow up, as Applejack and Fluttershy were now both in her face. They might not have been as fast as Rainbow Dash, but their speed was still more than enough to make it so Gaia couldn’t easily evade them as they attacked. Applejack’s drill lance thrust forward in a powerful blow that crushed the air around it, and Gaia would have tried to meet the blow with one of her own if not for the fact that Fluttershy was striking as well; with a rain of palm strikes from both her six flesh and blood hands, and a multitude of spectral fists of golden light that bloomed from her halo.

Gaia not only spun her double blade in a flurry of parries around her, but the thorn vines beneath her rose up in their own fast series of blinding counter blows, crashing into Fluttershy’s strikes. Gaia felt Fluttershy’s spiritual energy surge into her from even the simple contact with her fists, however, and could tell her own spirit energy was being pressed upon by the girl’s. It was as if Fluttershy was draining Gaia’s will to fight, sapping her strength, with every touch, and it was infuriating. To make matters worse, some of Fluttershy’s spectral hands had grasped Applejack’s shoulders and transferred power into the other girl, boosting her already incredible physical might.

This resulted in Applejack’s drill blow hitting with even more tremendous force, so that even when Gaia blocked the weapon’s spinning point with the thickest part of one of the ends of her double-blade, the impact still caused an eruption of force that rattled Gaia’s entire body and knocked her down towards the canopy of her tree.

“Ain't done yet!” Applejack shouted, the front of her drill opening to reveal it’s inner barrel, which fired off a barrage of golden beams down at the still descending Gaia, who took the blows in multiple explosive detonations before she hit the tree.

“Don’t give her a chance to recover!” Sunset said, Flash Stepping to the dusty cloud of tree debris where Gaia had landed, her sword filling with blinding blue flames.

“Not to worry Sunny, I’ve got a whole rain of ‘Get well soon’ cards with her name on it!” Pinkie Pie said, appearing on the opposite side of the cloud in front of what looked like a comically gigantic mail bag filled to the brim with what appeared to be already lit sticks of dynamite.

Sunset just rolled her eyes and smile as Pinkie used her hammer to bat the mailbag of cartoonish explosives at Gaia, while she herself swept Hokori out in a wide arc while shouting, ”Aoihi Senko!”

She carefully manipulated the blue flames that burst from her blade so that the incredible force and heat of the technique didn’t explode outward in a mass, but instead flowed up into multiple tendrils of blue fire that rose up and around where Gaia had landed and then descended down in a concentrated storm, right atop Pinkie’s mailbag of explosives.

The resulting detonations tore up large chunks of the top of the tree, causing portions of it to catch fire.

Sunset could feel Gaia’s reiatsu within, erratic but still rising. However, she could tell the surge of spirit energy Gaia was gaining was ebbing out, as if the flow of it from the tree was slackening. Was something going on with the tree itself? Gaia had ceased sending magic through the tree to wherever that power had been going. Perhaps that was having an unseen effect?

Regardless, Gaia wasn’t down. If anything when she emerged from the fire and smoke she looked even more enraged, and only lightly wounded. Sunset and her friends where hitting her, sure, but Gaia was a whole order of magnitude tougher than previous foes they’d fought together. But Sunset refused to let this be another instance like Captain Hurricane. She and her friends would win this, whatever it took.

By now Twilight and Rarity were in position for their own attacks, both having hung back while their friends had rushed in. Twilight knew her energy, both spiritual and magical, was pretty well drained from her fight with Sapphire Shores. She could summon her bow, even without the Hexenfaust, fortunately, but she knew she had to be careful with how she utilized her remaining power. Even the Variable needed spirit energy to fuel it, so timing would be critical.

That was why, as the others had attacked, she moved close to Rarity and said, “I have an idea on how to get through to Gloriosa, but I’ll need to get close to her. Can you make an opening for me?”

To this, Rarity had given Twilight a dazzling show of teeth, winking, “Darling, I can make you all the openings you could possibly want, and give you quite the stunning escort in the process.”

Rarity snapped her fingers, and the towering red gate behind her flung itself wide open, where a shining crimson light poured forth. Twilight turned and looked as a veritable army of knights clad in magnificent ruby armor came charging forth. No slow parade march, instead Rarity’s knights came pouring onto the battlefield at full speed, taking up quick formations with the precision of experts. Twilight found herself surrounded by mounted knights upon winged steeds, with Rarity leaping upon her own white mount while forming a diamond bright rapier to her hand that she brandished ahead of her.

“Just follow us, Twilight, and I’ll ensure that Gloriosa can’t so much as lay a finger on you,” Rarity declared, before swooping down at where Gaia stood, her pegasus knights following her.

Twilight noted the on-foot knights were spreading out in a cordon around the battle area, as if seeking to block off any routes Gaia might use to maneuver or flee, while cannons were being kept near the gate itself. Twilight surmised Rarity, despite her bravado, was actually being quite cautious, holding most of her forces back in reserve until Gaia’s full power was determined. Inside her mind, Twilight felt Midnight agreeing with Rarity’s choice. Gaia was running on more magic now than reiryoku, although both were present in her in worrying amounts. By Twilight’s guess, Gaia would be just as difficult an opponent as Sapphire Shores was, and unfortunately Twilight was even less certain of how to win here than she’d been against her would-be assassin.

Yet despite that she felt a surge of confidence as she watched her friends fight. She felt the charge in the air that stemmed from being beside these girls. Even if she’d gone on her own path for a time, and still had paths to walk that might take her away from them, these friends of hers would always be a source of strength. As a group, they shored up one another’s weaknesses. It was no guarantee of victory, but Twilight didn’t deal in absolutes, but rather... variables. And friendship was a variable that certainly didn’t hurt to have on one’s side.

She followed Rarity down, kicking off the air with Hirenkyaku to keep up with the swift moving pegasus knights. Gaia saw them coming, along with the fact that not only did she still have Sunset Shimmer and Pinkie Pie flanking her, but the other girls were swiftly regrouping and rushing down as well.

Gaia growled under her breath, “Rise up, my beloved forest. Show them that this is our land, forever!”

She thrust a clawed hand upwards, emerald fire thick as sap rolling off her in rivers that rushed into the tree boughs around her. The tree rumbled and shook, and the wood of the branches morphed and erupted in gouts of bubbling green sap and flame. Limbs grew and twisted, heads like jagged chunks of coral forming with blazing green eyes, mouths and claws pointed as needles. First one, then soon dozens of humanoid shaped creatures born of magic, wood, and fury rose up in a chittering mass. Thorns covered their wooden exteriors and their limbs bled magical green flames as they howled and leapt to their master’s bidding.

The girls were soon finding themselves contending with no shortage of foes, with Rarity’s pegasus knights the primary target of the leaping surge of tree-born monstrosities. Soon ruby crystal blades contended with magically fueled claws in a brutal aerial melee, Rarity ducking under a lightning fast swipe from one creature whom she then sliced in half with her blade as she kept astride her mount, whose crystal hooves smashed another wood monster to splinters despite having a chunk of it’s wing torn off in the process.

Sunset Shimmer was similarly beset, and as she hacked her way through several of the creatures with a fiery swing of her Zanpaktu, she noticed just how similar these things were to the Timber Wolves of Equestria, only with human-like shapes. While they individually weren’t particularly tough, their needle claws and fangs were sharp enough to be concerning, especially with how empowered by magic they seemed to be. Worse, more kept boiling up out of the tree, even as Gaia leapt back into the fray, coming straight for Rarity and Twilight.

Sunset blasted upwards, her fire wings rocketing her skyward in pursuit as she barreled through half a dozen of the wood creatures. Pinkie Pie in the meantime shifted her mask to black as Pinkamena took over, and proceeded to chomp the head off of one of the creatures in front of her while hefting her hammer.

“Blech, I know mom and dad said I ought to eat more veggies, but this isn’t what I had in mind,” Pinkamena said, “I prefer meat, you twiggy bastards!”

Aw, Mena, you called them mom and dad! Pinkie Pie said in her mind as Pinkamena spun around with her hammer and started to form a pink tornado of destruction around the thickest grouping of tree monsters.

Gaia flashed past Rarity, double-blade carving an air rending path. Rarity leaped off her mount to avoid the blow, but found herself still having to contend with a barrage of stabbing rose vines that she created a series of floating red shields at her side to help counter. A blow still got through, cutting her side, and Rarity noticed a fierce burn there that instantly clued her in to another issue with fighting Gaia as she felt her body start to break out into a sweat.

“Be careful!” she called out, “Her thorns are poisonous!”

She immediately hardened the blood flow around the wound, crystalizing parts of the area to try and slow the flow of poison. Gaia sped back towards her for another pass, but was struck off curse by a barrage of arrows as Twilight unleashed a Licht Regen. Fortunately the Quincy girl was being covered from interference by Gaia’s summoned monsters by Rarity’s knights, who were engaged in a fierce and fast melee that kept Twilight in the clear.

The hundreds of reishi arrows struck Gaia, many of them bouncing off her rather potent Hierro reinforced skin, which was further empowered by magic coursing from her every being, but Gaia still felt something... off the moment those arrows struck her. While a few did manage to penetrate for a bit of damage, it was more that Gaia felt a pulse of reiatsu from Twilight that instantly left her feeling strange.

Why did she want to hurt all of these girls so badly? Why was she so incredibly angry? Why was Gaia so intent on carving out a territory here and punishing everyone? Gloriosa just wanted her brother and home to be safe. Shouldn’t they stop-

“Argh!” Gaia shook her head. Where had those thoughts come from? For a moment it was like the Gloriosa part of her had gotten more influential in her head. Had Twilight somehow done that!? “You’ll pay for that!”

She rushed Twilight, but found Sunset coming up beneath her, while Rainbow Dash and Applejack were flying in from above in a pincer move. Gaia cursed under her breath as she sought to counter all three attackers at once, her rose vines extending both above and beneath her while magical power and the spiritual energies both gathered at the thorn’s tips. Thin, magically charged Ceros exploded out in thick curtains both up and down, forcing Sunset, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack to throw themselves into fast evasions amid the rain of destructive beams.

More magically charged than her earlier Ceros, Gaia was able to twist the beams so they bent and curved towards their targets, making them all the harder to dodge. Rainbow Dash was still able to do so through pure, undiluted speed that even allowed the girl to throw in some flourishing rolls and stylish poses as she slipped through the barrage. Applejack had a tougher time of things, using the jet thrusters from the vents on her armor to make harsh maneuvers that still left her having to simply tank several hits. Fortunately her lance and armor were tougher than ever before, so even one or two direct hits from the arcane Ceros might have scored her armor and rattled her bones, but Applejack powered through them all the same. Sunset combined well rounded speed and defense, able to elegantly fly past most of the beams coming her way, and relying on Hikari’s shield to block those she couldn’t. Even so, more beams were being sent her way than at her friends, so even with her shield to protect her, Sunset’s shoulder was hammered by a beam that seared away a portion of her armor and left a bleeding mark on the skin beneath.

But all three girls still got through the barrage and reached Gaia, weapons ready. Rainbow Dash struck first, spinning her spear while her prismatic wings surged with twin lines of lightning that gathered down the length of her arms and charged the tip of her spear into a crackling sphere that she flung forward.

Gaia threw a hand out to try and bat the lightning sphere away, but upon contact the sphere exploded into multiple forks of lightning that coursed through Gaia in a painful series of jolts. She then felt an impact behind her as Applejack shoved her lance into the back of Gaia’s shoulder, the drill spinning up with energy jets turning the lance into a golden cone of power.

“Guh!” Gaia was knocked back, but despite Applejack’s hit actually leaving a bleeding mark in its wake, Gaia instantly retaliated against both girls with a blazing spin of her double-blade that expulsed a wave of searing green force in a circular arc around her. The strike was so fast that even Rainbow Dash couldn’t properly dodge, the cutting arc of energy slicing her side and damaging her left wing, while Applejack’s chest armor sparked from the blow and a gouge was left down the center. Not deep enough to bleed, but enough to send the farmgirl flying backwards.

Sunset let out a shout that was half fear for her friends, half rage at them being injured, and slammed her sword forward while throwing herself into a flame propelled spin that turned her into a momentum fueled blender of fire. Her first blow cut a bloody line across the rose bulb of Gaia’s lower body, while the second trimmed a petal of two off the rose itself, which disturbingly enough started to bleed sap-like green blood. Gaia was fast on the defense, however, roaring in pain and fury as she spun to face Sunset’s assault, and her double-blade met Sunset’s in a flash of power and force.

Sunset held firm for a moment, but then had to dodge back as the rose’s thorny vines stabbed from below and whipped Sunset backwards.

“I don’t care what right you think you have to play hero and interfere with my life! You girls should understand! Your lives were turned upside down, too! Doesn’t that make any of you angry!?”

“The only thing making me angry right now is that after all the suffering that’s happened today, you’re only trying to add to it,” Fluttershy said, having appeared above Gaia, with her six flesh and blood hands forming prayer-like clasped gestures in front of her while form her halo a series of golden hands emerged and formed together into nine large palms that arrayed to either side of Fluttershy. “Enlightenment Technique: Flower Flowing Down River.”

The nine golden palms shot down in one group, arrayed in such a manner that they appeared like one large set of flower petals hammering down at Gaia.

Upon Gaia’s back the two large thorns grew in size and shifted forward like twin horns, and from their tips twin Ceros fired in a flashing mass of purple and green death, combining into one oversized beam that was filled with the kind of power to flatten a city.

“Fluttershy! Dodge!” Rainbow Dash shouted, seeing the beam heading right for Fluttershy and her friend’s attack, and to Dash’s senses it didn’t feel like Fluttershy’s technique could stop that twin Cero.

However upon contact with the Cero beams, the nine palms of the Flower Flows Down the River moved like a swaying swan in the sky. One palm led, slowly breaking apart under the Cero beams, but moving the beams ever so slightly to the side, then the next palm did the same, then the next, and the next, until seven palms had disintegrated from the Ceros but by then the beams had been redirected enough so that they flew by Fluttershy with a few feet to spare.

The remaining two golden palms slammed home on Gaia’s body, bursting into gold light that didn’t seem to damage Gaia, but left her crying out anyway as her power was sapped, and Fluttershy was able to establish a more direct connection between Gaia and her Fullbring.

“Gloriosa,” Fluttershy said, “Do you truly want to keep hurting people? Do you not just want to live peacefully with your brother?”

Gaia clutched her head with one hand, “Grr, get out of my mind! I don’t need even more people trying to control me!”

In a burst of green light, Gaia didn’t simply move towards Fluttershy, she teleported. Twilight instantly recognized the magic for what it was, and shouted her own warning to Fluttershy as Gaia popped back into existence behind the girl.

“Look out!”

Fluttershy’s instincts for battle had certainly sharpened, as even as Twilight was shouting, the girl flowed like water into a side step that let her avoid Gaia’s first blow, and even bend away from the second swipe of the deadly double-blade. However Gaia’s third strike contained another bursting arc of potent green magic that expelled out in a wide wave. Fluttershy guarded herself with a series of golden hands that crossed in front of her at the last second, but the magical blade arc still smashed into her and sent her flying down into the thick tree foliage below.

Before Gaia could gain any satisfaction from landing a hit on Fluttershy she found herself beset on all sides by a rain of deadly, crimson arrows, crystalline spears, and exploding bursts of spiritually charged cannon fire. Rarity’s knights, who had deployed and waited for an opening by surrounding the area, now opened fire upon Gaia with all of their might. Red arrows and thrown spears flashed with energy and exploded upon impact with Gaia, or even if they landed near her. Cannons belched forth highly charged shards of crystal that detonated with earth flattening force.

Rarity herself smirked as she cut down several more of Gaia’s tree monsters and rallied her pegasus knights around her and Twilight, “I do believe we’re wearing her down.”

“We have to be careful,” Twilight said, snapping several swift arrows out to blast away a trio of tree creatures that had tried to leap over the phalanx of knights, “Her spiritual pressure isn’t going down, and I can feel the magic inside her still rising. Those gems are fueling her with what feels like nearly infinite energy. All we’re doing is chipping away at her, right now.”

“Then chip we shall!” Rarity declared, “And whatever power you used on her, keep doing so. Between you and Fluttershy, perhaps we can get Gloriosa’s personality back in control.”

“We know a thing or two about multiple personalities,” said Pinkamena as she broke through the wall of tree creatures with a surge of black and red tentacles forged from what appeared to be her own shadowy aura, the tendrils gaining gnashing mouths that chewed up the monsters like chainsaws, “How about me and Pinks take a crack at her while you guys have fun with the veggie buffet?”

“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea- and there she goes,” Twilight said, sighing as Pinkamena literally threw her hammer into the air, then jumped up on it like someone riding a surfboard.

Flying up, Pinkamena licked her lips, “You got this Pinks?”

The mask shifted over to white and Pinkie Pie’s eyes flashed merrily, “Oh yeah! Let’s wrap her up nice and pretty for the rest of the girls to do their thing!”

The salvos of attacks from Rarity’s army had kept Gaia pinned in place for a few moments. Her body was taking some light wounds from it all, but for the most part the storm of exploding crystal weapons and cannon rounds was deafening and obscuring her vision, which was far more concerning than the damage itself.

With an echoing roar, Gaia opened her mouth wide and a thick, swirling gout of emerald power flashed outward as she moved her head around and swept it over the surrounding knights. The beam hammered the army of crystalline constructs, but Rarity had smartly deployed them so that they were spread out and nearly impossible to wipe out in one go. Gaia’s Cero destroyed many, but many more still remained by the time the beam petered out. More importantly, Gaia had been so focused upon her attack, and been so blinded by the cacophony of explosions around her, that she hadn’t even sensed Pinkie Pie’s approach. Thus she was caught quite unawares as the pink menace flew up in front of her, flipping off her hammer, and caught it by the handle before spinning around and smashing it straight at Gaia’s chest.

The impact knocked the air out of Gaia’s lungs, and also generated a loud, pin-ball sound as she found herself rather incomprehensibly rolling along what looked like a skee-ball ramp that appeared in the air behind her, which sent her flying up towards a series of point labeled holes. Landing in the center hole, Gaia found herself inside darkness for a moment, confused. She’d landed in a giant floating pink gift box with black ribbons that wrapped up into a big bow.

Pinkie Pie then started wrapping chains around the box, although where she got the chains was anyone’s guess.

“Mena, nails please!” she said, and a clone of Pinkamena formed from her shadows handed over a box of nails, as Pinkie started hammer boards onto the gift box, moving over it rapidly like someone on fast forward.

That done, Pinkie Pie waved down to Twilight, “Better get up here to give her another dose of whatever you got, Twi! I’ll go check on Fluttershy!”

“On it! Rarity, cover me!” Twilight said, leaping upwards towards Pinkie Pie’s bizarre floating ‘present’. She could sense the entire odd object Pinkie’s power had summoned was effectively made out of pure reishi, but was quite solid for something that looked so ridiculous. The only problem was that Twilight could sense Gaia’s power within already tearing at her confinement, so she doubted Gaia would stay held for very long.

Rarity flew after Twilight, keeping pace easily. When dozens of the wooden monsters still spawning from the tree leaped up into their path, needle teeth dripping poisonous sap as they rushed the pair, Twilight didn’t even have to use her bow as Rarity surged ahead. Her diamond bright blade lengthened to a claymore and Rarity carved through the monsters in a blazing arc, while a tempest of crystalline weaponry flowed from her in a steady stream. Wooden husks fell like broken kindling from Rarity’s path, her motions as elegant as a professional dancer’s as she carved a way for Twilight.

Twilight wasn’t alone in surrounding the chained up present that Pinkie had trapped Gaia in. Sunset Shimmer was there too, and Rainbow Dash reached them a moment later along with Applejack.

“So we blasting this thing all at once or what?” Dash asked.

“Wait,” Twilight said, checking her tattered uniform. She came up with only two remaining ginto tubes, which she clutched in her artificial right hand, “My Variable can give Gloriosa’s personality more influence, but to use it at full strength it’s better if I can directly inject my reishi into her.”

“Yer what now?” Applejack said, and Sunset quickly interjected as the giant floating present started to tremble and smoke.

“I don’t think we’ve got time for Twilight to explain. Gaia is about to break free. When she does, we need to blitz her with everything we have, so Twilight can do what she needs to do. Right?”

“Right,” Twilight confirmed, “But I don’t know if-”

She was going to say she didn’t know for sure if giving the Gloriosa side of Gaia’s fused personality more control would actually end the fight or not, but it became a moot point as green and purple energies burst out of the present, shattering the boards and chains around it and effectively ripping through Pinkie Pie’s reishi like a hot laser through cheese.

There was an explosion of light as Gaia’s power tore her free of her confinement, and with a heaven shaking shout Gaia rushed the girls, grabbing Twilight by the throat before anyone could react.

“Sorry, don’t feel like letting you undo centuries of waiting to regain a proper body!” Gaia spat in Twilight’s face and with tremendous power she threw Twilight down with the force of a comet. Twilight felt the sound barrier break around her body as she careened down, and all she could do for that moment was reinforce herself with Blut Vene as best she could before she felt herself impact with the tree, shattering through several building-thick branches before slowing enough to bounce off of another branch and land on a final one in a heap.

“Twilight!” Sunset shouted, while Rainbow Dash, face electric with rage, quite literally as her eyes filled with lightning, vanished in a crack of thunder.

Dash struck Gaia across the face with a punch filled with incandescent lightning, a blow like the fist of Zeus... and Gaia would have known, since she was old enough to remember when those deities were more than just myths. The punch shocked Gaia, but not as much as Rainbow following that up with a hundred more strikes just like it. The girl spun around Gaia in a constant curving streak of cobalt light, her fist, feet, and spear ramming into Gaia in blinding succession.

Each hit was followed by an echoing peal of thunder, and Sunset and Applejack were left staring at the sudden ferocity of Dash’s attacks.

“EAT! IT!” Rainbow Dash’s voice was about as loud as the thunder of her strikes as she ended her assault by flying straight up and extending her wings out to their fullest. The prismatic energies of the wings grew like blades of light, and above Dash the air trembled with dark storm clouds that localized just above Dash. Then streams of lightning shot down into her wings and concentrated there, filling her wings until they looked like the limbs of some mythical electric dragon.

“Let’s see you shrug this off!” Dash shouted as she thrust her spear forward, and it’s electric tip flared with a surge of godly storm power just like her wings, “Gigavolt Stormboom!”

Three titanic bolts of lightning descended, one from each wing, and one from the tip of Rainbow Dash’s spear. The three bolts spun together into one massive electrical event of incalculable voltage. It crashed into the already dazed Gaia and continued on into the tree beneath her. The flash lit up the forest for miles around and created a crack of thunder so loud that it shook the ground, even in distant Canterlot City, where confused and still fearful citizens looked to the sky for the source of unnaturally loud thunder.

“Ugh,” Applejack had shielded her eyes from the flash, and as her vision cleared she shouted, “Dang it Dash! Ya tryin’ ta fry all o’ us too!?”

Rainbow Dash, panting a little from the effort of using what was effectively one of the strongest techniques she’d come up with so far, rolled her eyes at Applejack, “Aw c’mon, I wasn’t even aiming at you or Sunset.”

“Yeah but ya just electrocuted the whole dang tree!” Applejack shot back, “Did ya ferget most o’ our friends, including Luna an’ that Timber guy are all down there!?”

“...Oh...uh... whoops?” Dash said, gulping, “P-pretty sure I focused it all on that Gaia chick. I don’t think the electricity spread too far from the impact point.”

“Thank you, Rainbow darling, I needed a heart attack today on top of everything else!” Rarity shouted from below, having leaped out of the way in time to avoid the lightning, although a few of her knights had been caught in the blast and subsequently toasted. “A little warning next time would not go unappreciated!”

“Sorry, I was just... mad, okay!? Is everybody okay?” Dash said, looking worried.

“I hope so,” Sunset said, flying down towards the tree canopy, with Applejack and Rainbow Dash both following. It only took her a second to feel her friend’s various reiatsu signatures, including Clover’s, whom Sunset had lost track off. The last she’d seen of Clover, she’d been chasing after wherever Timber had been taken by the vines of the tree. She could sense them, if faintly, but they were somewhere far below and she couldn’t tell what was happening with them. As for the others...

“Gah, yikes Dashie, you really know how to make a party electrifying,” Pinkie Pie said as she hopped up out of some of the tree’s foliage with Fluttershy in two. Fluttershy had some blood trailing down her face from a cut on her scalp and looked bruised up, but otherwise still fit to fight, and neither looked as if they’d been hit by any of Rainbow Dash’s electricity. Pinkie Pie’s eyes blinked rapidly as she glanced about, “Hey, where’s Twilight?”

“She may be hurt. Fluttershy, can you get to her?” Sunset asked, and Fluttershy steadied herself while giving a calm nod and immediately heading in the direction where Twilight had fallen. However before she could get even halfway across the tree canopy the entire upper area of the tree light up with a sickly aura of pulsating green light, and Gaia Everfree burst up from the depths of the canopy where she’d been knocked down by Dash’s attack.

She wasn’t unscathed. Her body was sporting char marks and was bleeding from more than a few cracked portions of armor and sizzled skin. Rainbow Dash’s attack had left its mark and delivered one of the first truly painful blows to Gaia that she couldn’t immediately recover from. Yet this also fueled her magic maddened rage and as she cast her dark eyed gaze around her she spun around and made a slashing motion with her double blade. Spinning so fast, she stirred up a tornado-like whirlwind that stirred all the many branches of the tree, and in a mere second a blizzard flurry of leaves kicked up into the air. Only the leaves were hardened by spiritual energy and magic, sharper than razors, and each one glowed with an fluctuating green aura.

Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were the closest to the top of the canopy and had to defend themselves faster than the others.

For her part, Fluttershy didn’t abandon her goal of reaching Twilight and surrounded herself in a cordon of her own glowing gold hands that punched continuously around her to deflect the thousands of razor leaves that came her way. Each golden hand smashed through the leaves or turned them aside, creating a sphere of protection around Fluttershy as she speedily dashed for Twilight’s location.

Pinkie Pie was quick to protect herself as well, although to do so she let Pinkamena take over as Pinkamena was better at controlling the shadowy red tendrils they could form from their aura. As a result Pinkamena effectively jumped upward, surrounding herself with a wave of bloody red and black tendrils filled with sharp toothed mouths that slapped at, bit, and otherwise consumed the leaves coming at them.

Those girls higher up fared easier, as they had an extra second to react, and Sunset took care of the primary defense by charging up Hokori and unleashing a potent wave of fire below her that burned through the central portion of the razor leaves. As a result Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack only had to contend with a much reduced storm, however Gaia’s intention had only been to occupy the girls attention for a moment, allowing her to focus her own vengeful anger upon the target of her choosing.

By now Gaia had realized the biggest threats to her in this battle were Fluttershy and Twilight, despite the fact that Rainbow Dash had just proved capable of inflicting quite a bit of pain. Gaia didn’t doubt that any one of these girls could inflict serious damage if given enough time, or if they were allowed to fully combine their powers, but it was Fluttershy and Twilight who seemed to have an ability to affect Gaia’s mental state and disrupt the fusion with her human host.

That couldn’t be allowed.

Twilight was already down, if not out, so the logical next target was Fluttershy.

Even as Flutteshy reached the wide branch that Twilight had fallen on, Gaia appeared in front of her path in a flash of Sonido, brandishing her double blade, and all of the rose vines upon her body poising as one to strike.

“You have a beautiful form and power, girl, but I’m afraid I’ll have to mar it before you ruin everything,” Gaia said, and her thorn tipped vines rushed Fluttershy as she herself charged the girl with her double-blade forming a flashing maelstrom in front of her.

Fluttershy planted her feet in a wide stance, her six limbs curled back into fists, and her eyes flared with golden light as a plethora of spectra hands exploded from her halo. She had a friend in front of her that needed her healing aid, and she was not about to back down from any threat between her and Twilight.

For a second a veritable hurricane of blows passed between the pair, with Fluttershy’s scores of golden hands impacting with the hundreds of strikes from Gaia’s stabbing rose thorns. Fluttershy boldly stepped in to meet Gaia’s spinning blade, using careful, minimalist side steps and turning motions with her flesh and blood hands to deflect the viscous blades. It was courageous, but also a losing prospect, as even with Fluttershy’s speed and strength much increased from what it once was, Gaia held the advantage, a fact that became readily apparent when after only a few instances of Fluttershy turning Gaia’s blade aside she found the simple impact of raw force and magic from Gaia’s weapon was tearing into the muscles in Fluttershy’s arm.

Still, all was not in vain, for Fluttershy’s strength was not in simple physical blows, but in the nature of her Fullbring’s power, and with Gaia challenging her directly, it allowed Fluttershy to inject more of her reiatsu into Gaia and strengthen the connection between them, which she used to further sap away at Gaia’s power, slowly, subtly weakening the titanically powerful Arrancar’s strength.

Gaia knew it, too. Which was why her ferocious assault on Fluttershy was a ruse. She’d sent a wave of her power into the branch beneath her, and as Fluttershy was focused upon defending herself from the front she didn’t take notice of the spike of wood forming from the branch behind her.

“Fluttershy!”

The shout came just an instant before the spike stabbed at Fluttershy’s back, faster than even inhuman eyes might follow. There was a flash of cobalt light, and a rocketing roar, and Fluttershy felt herself knocked aside, followed by a crack of wood.

Rainbow Dash had flown down in beyond the speed of lightning and shoved Fluttershy out of the way, although in turn the wooden spike had stabbed into Rainbow Dash’s side, breaking a portion of her armor in the process as a gout of blood flew out of the speedster. Applejack had descended as well, not as fast as Dash but fast enough to only be a split moment later in using her drill lance to smash the branch and the spike before it got too deep into Dash.

And at the same moment Sunset Shimmer and Rarity arrived, the former’s blade blazing blue as she slammed it at Gaia from behind.

”Aoihi Senko!”

Gaia spun about and unleashed a green wave of power from her double-blade that clashed directly with the azure flames of Sunset’s attack. The two blasts fo energy combined together in a roaring explosion that knocked everyone further away, Rarity using her knights to shield herself and Twilight, whom she’d gathered up and leapt away with.

“Rarity, fall back with the wounded to the top of the canopy!” Sunset shouted, “Fluttershy, heal whoever you can! Applejack, with me! We’ll keep her busy while Fluttershy heals!”

“I hear ya, Sunset!” Applejack said, and flew up to Sunset’s side as Gaia, who’d been knocked into the tree’s central trunk, pulled herself out of the dent she’d made in the bark and stared hatefully at the pair.

Rarity nodded, and with her knights helping the wounded Twilight and Rainbow Dash, she started heading towards the top of the tree with Fluttershy. Meanwhile Applejack cracked her neck and revved up her drill lance while Sunset Shimmer’s flaming wings flared up with renewed intensity and Hokori’s blade grew bright as a near solid bar of fire.

Gaia extended the thorns on her back so they grew over her shoulders, and in an instant she and the two girls facing her vanished from sight, only to impact with each other a moment later in a burst of force that shook the branches around them. Applejack’s drill lance struck in a mountainous series of avalanche thrusts, rocket jets of power from the Applejack’s armor boosting the power of each strike. Sunset’s sword flared with bursts of flame from every blow, her shield flashing with with light as it absorbed strikes from Gaia’s flailing blade and thorns. Applejack and Sunset were like two golden and orange shooting stars, flashing in and out around Gaia, while Gaia’s back thorns and double-blade carved green arcs at the girls.

Sunset twisted around one blow that destroyed several branches behind her only to feel a thorn slash her side. The burn of poison was instantly felt, but Sunset powered through it, returning a upward flaming slash that cut through one of Gaia’s rose vines. Applejack ducked a back slash from the double-blade, opening the drill on her lance to shove the barrel of the cannon beneath into the rose bulb where she unleashed an explosive burst, point blank. This blew a chunk of the bulb off, which spurted green blood, but in return Gaia rammed several rose vines into Applejack’s chest. The farmgirl’s armor held out, but cracked in places and she felt the sharp pain of at least a few more cracked ribs to add to the collection she’d already earned fighting her father.

“What’s wrong?” Gaia taunted, “Feels like you’re all slowing down.”

“Shut yer yap! Dash ain’t the only one with an ace or two ta play!” Applejack spat back, and jetted backwards, gaining a dozen or so meters of space. Sensing that her friend was about to go all out, Sunset decided to make sure Gaia couldn’t interfere and renewed her own effort to hold Gaia’s attention but creating a few more flame clones to help with attacking Gaia.

Gaia contemptuously started slashing through the clones, knowing them for the distraction they were, and with her left hand started charging up a Cero sphere at the tip of her finger.

Applejack, now with some distance, leveled her drill lance, which had closed its front tip to conceal the cannon again, but Applejack still pulled the trigger, and held the trigger. The two different drill portions of the lance started to spin to an even faster speed, gold energy crackling around the weapon. The various vent ports all over Applejack’s armor opened up at once, glowing with internal golden light. When it seemed like her whole body was one gold corona, Applejack shouted, “Drill of Truth!”

All of the ports on her armor fired at once, creating a combined jet stream behind Applejack that thrust her forward with insane force and speed, while the drill lance flared up with so much spiritual energy that it essentially became a wide, conical drill of pure golden light.

Sunset waited until the very last millisecond, doing all she could to keep Gaia from dodging before having to move out of the way of Applejack’s rampaging attack. The shear force of the farmgirl’s charge created a conical shock wave that snapped many of the dozen meter thick branches around them. Gaia used both of her back thorns and the front of her double-blade to try and block Applejack’s advance, but even with all of her strength she found that Applejack’s attack was nothing to sneeze at. Gaia was driving right back into the tree’s massive trunk, and then was literally drilled into it. Sunset watched in amazement as Applejack continued to drive Gaia through the trunk of her own tree, digging the Arrancar hybrid through the entire thickness of the colossal tree under a torrent of drilling spiritual force and energies.

The pair burst out the other side, leaving a drilled hole nearly ten meters wide through the tree’s full width.

Bursting out the other side, Gaia was sent flying. The shards of her double-blade flew around her, the weapon smashed fully in half. Her right shoulder also bore a deep hole from the last energies of the Drill of Truth managing to deliver a decent wound before the attack petered out.

Coughing, Gaia flipped in the air and grinded to a halt, breathing heavily. Twice now these girls had caused her a serious injury! She looked at the broken second half of her double-blade and growled, tossing it aside. She didn’t need it anyway.

Applejack was also breathing heavily, having used up a lot of her remaining reiatsu with that attack. Combined with the injuries from fighting her father, and she didn’t have much left to give. Which was why when Gaia retaliate with the charged up Cero she’d yet to discharge, Applejack couldn’t dodge as the massive purple and green beam came swirling in at her.

Fortunately for Applejack she had a friend to whom the laws of physics were, at times, only a loose set of suggestions. A hole in space, rimmed with blue, appeared in the air next to Applejack, opened up, and pink hands grabbed the girl and yanked her in just before the Cero would have consumed her. Applejack was left feeling a distinct sense of unbelievable vertigo, her eyes seeing a swirl of so many chaotic colors as to stab a headache into the logic centers of her mind, then she found herself pulled out another hole in space, this one rimmed in orange energy, in the air to face Pinkamena who was smirking at her as she held some kind of weird looking white plastic gun. They were back on top of the tree, where Fluttershy was using her golden hands to rapidly try and heal Rainbow Dash and Twilight’s wounds, and even help Rarity, who was now pale and sweating from the poison she’d been trying to contain.

“Bwhuh?” Applejack said, and Pinkamena patted her shoulder.

“Just yanked you through a portal. Don’t think about it too hard,” Pinkamena said, tossing the strange looking white gun device aside and booting it off the tree, “Pinkie Pie’s better at this stuff, but it’s fun sometimes, I guess.”

“Felt the whole tree shake,” Rainbow Dash said, wincing in pain as she clutched her wound, which was slowly closing from Fluttershy’s ministrations, “Was that you, AJ? Felt your spirit energy go way up for a second.”

“Yeah,” Applejack said, turning towards where she felt Gaia’s reiatsu, “Got a solid hit in, but that dang Gaia just won’t go down.”

“Mmmph,” Twilight groaned, regaining consciousness and slowly raising her head, “Have we won yet?”

“I DON’T KNOW!” Gaia roared, flying up the side of the tree and rising into the air above the group, “YOU TELL ME! DO I LOOK BEATEN YET!?”

“Uh-oh,” Pinkie Pie said as she resumed control of her body, “She’s using all caps! That means she’s serious!”

“PInkie Pie, please, not now,” Rarity said, making a gesture with her sword and directing the bulk of her knights to start charging towards Gaia, if only to hopefully occupy the woman long enough for Fluttershy’s healing to have a few more moments of affect.

The knights had largely been keeping the tree monsters at bay, but the archers and cannons were still free to open fire while the faster, stronger pegasus knights were able to charge Gaia in flashing red streaks. Even as blood red crystal arrows slammed into her and bursting cannon shells exploded in flares of crimson light around her, Gaia barreled straight into Rarity’s knights with her long claws slashing wildly while trailing streaks of emerald magic. Her rose vines and the thorns upon her back lunged about her, impaling crystalline knights left and right. Several of the knights did still strike her, their spears, axes, hammers, and blades sparking upon her Hierro hardened skin. Under Rarity’s keen minded direction the knights aimed for Gaia’s already open wounds next, but by now Gaia had flown into the center of the mass of knights, and crossing her arms in front of her she gathered both spiritual and magical power which she then expelled around her in a massive spherical wave that sent everything around her flying, leaving countless of the knight constructs in broken pieces.

By then Sunset had flown back up and rejoined her friends, and Twilight had managed to stand back up, while Rainbow Dash’s wound and the poison weakening Rarity had been mostly dealt with by Fluttershy.

Sunset looked at her tired, wounded friends, then looked at the equally wounded and tiring Gaia. It was hard to tell who was winning this fight. It was coming down to the wire.

Looking at Hokori in her right hand, and Hikari in her left, she thought to herself, I’ve only got one trick left, myself, and it’s not even suited for what I need here... but maybe...

The entire time Gaia had been drawing more and more magic out of the geodes embedded in her. Trying to reach Gloriosa’s personality had merit, but unless Twilight and Fluttershy got a chance to use their power simultaneously, Sunset wasn’t sure that would work. They needed to cut Gaia off from the source of her power. They needed to remove those geodes and get through to Gloriosa at the same time. And if they couldn’t remove the geodes, then the only other choice might be to destroy them.

And she suspected that in order to pull that off, they might need an extra bit of personal ‘omph’ to force Gloriosa to confront what was happening. They needed Timber Spruce.

“Guys, one of us needs to go grab her brother,” she said, and Twilight glanced at her.

“I can do that. I think Clover is still down there somewhere trying to help him. But what are you planning, Sunset?”

“Forcing Gloriosa to face the truth, before she ends up destroying everything around her.”

“Thinkin’ it’s gettin’ close ta too late fer that,” Applejack said, pointing with her lance at Gaia, who had floated up higher into the sky. Rarity’s knights had continued to fire arrows and cannon shots at her, but Gaia had surrounded herself with a thick magical aura that was now absorbing much of the damage. Indeed it felt like Gaia was opening the floodgates on the geodes, surging torrents of multi-colored magical light, all tinged with darkness, emanating fro her in a waterfall.

“What’s she up to now?” Dash said, and then all the girls looked below them as the entire tree began to rumble and shake.

The shaking grew in intensity, and the handful of remaining tree monsters that had still not been destroyed ceased moving, and merged back into the tree.

Pinkie Pie’s hair suddenly stood on poofy end and her whole body went through a seizure-like quaking, ending with wide eyes as she said, “Girls! Girls! I think the boss is starting up with the third stage! Giant form incoming!”

“Giant form? Pinkie, could ya start makin’ sense?” Applejack said, but then all of the girls were forced to dodge aside as the tree abruptly grew a gigantic arm as large as a skyscraper that moved around and smashed into the spot where they’d been standing.

The girls continued to either fly or step across the air, getting distance from the tree as its branches morphed together into more limbs and it’s upper boughs cracked apart and then bunched back together, melding into the newly crafted shape of a humongous V-shaped torso upon which knobby swirls of root systems created sharp protrusions like spiked armor. A colossal head formed, with leaves and branches forming a mane and roots sharpened to spear points forming massive teeth. Thorns like jagged dorsal plates formed across the back and horns of wood curled around a broad, demonic head that held two glowing pits of green flame for eyes.

Gaia floated down to land on the head of this new construct, the entire upper fifty meters of tree having transmuted into a gargantuan, four limbed, spike covered monstrosity. The tree colossus let out a howl that hit with the force of a typhoon, echoing Gaia’s mad laughter as she resumed her attack upon the beleaguered defenders of Canterlot City.

----------

Deep beneath the bottom roots of the tree that hung over the dry lakebed, Clover had found Timber Spruce. The tree’s living bark and roots had pulled the bulbous cocoon of leaves and resin containing the frightened Timber and brought him to the very center point beneath the tree.

“What’s going on?” Timber said weakly, trying to pull vines from his skin but feeling his body weakening by the second, “I don’t understand any of this! What’s happened to Glori?”

Clover didn’t even know how to begin answering the young man’s questions. She was concerned over the simple fact that he could so readily see her to even ask those questions. To her knowledge Timber Spruce held not spiritual powers, so his ability to see her was odd, but it might have had something to do with the energy she had sensed the tree pumping into him through those vines.

“Your sister isn’t well, but my friends are trying to help her. Just like I’m trying to help you right now.”

“I’ll... take any help I can get right now...ugh...” Timber’s face twisted in a pained grimace as blood flowed from his arm as he yanked a vine out, “Ah! Feel like I’m burning up inside.”

“Your sister was trying to heal your wounds, but there’s something else happening,” Clover said, hesitant to just start trying to pull him free. She needed to know that wouldn’t do irreparable harm before acting. However, if what she was sensing from above was any indication, they didn’t have a lot of time. Sunset and the girls were putting up quite the fight, but Gaia was proving their match.

Clover would have loved to have Chishiki to analyze the cocoon with, but she now just had to rely on her spiritual senses to get the job done. Focusing her senses, she tried to parse out just how safe it might be to try and pull Timber free. However it didn’t take her long to notice something else strange going on nearby, and her attention was drawn downward.

Looking down, her eyes widened, and she said, “Oh.”

“Oh? That didn’t sound like a good ‘oh’,” Timber said, trying to angle himself in the cocoon to look down as well, “What are we ‘oh’ing at?”

Then he saw it too, and also said, “...Oh.”

Embedded in the rocky rubble of the lakebed that had been formed from the tree erupting up from below the earth was the remains of a stone statue. It was barely recognizable now, with only some of the bronze plate with the words ‘Canterlot High School’ left on the otherwise smashed up and damaged statue that contained the portal to Equestria.

And a swirling miasma of unstable magic now pulsated around the broken statue, and the root system beneath the tree. At the center of the wavering aura of unstable magic was an open portal, one that was widening in slow fits and starts, and one that was crackling with power ready to explode.

Author's Notes:

Decided that 'Part 1' more or less works for this, as this fight really is essentially one episode broken up into two parts. Gaia is one of those bosses who, just when you think you're getting her HP down, she decides that just means you want to have another form to fight. Well, less another form, and more summoning a Treezilla. Magic is fun like that.

And oh, there's the Equestrian portal. Remember that talk the girls had with Starswirl about portals, magic, and all those unstable fluctuations that had been occurring with the portal experiments? I'm sure it'll be fine.

At any rate, thank you all for reading, and as always you fine folks feel free to leave any and all comments, questions, or critiques you like, as I appreciate all of them immensely. 'Till next time.

Episode 127: The Decisive Collision, Part 2

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Episode 127: The Decisive Collision, Part 2

Sunset Shimmer had faced many trials and dangers since a certain Equestrian Princess took her hand and hauled a crying Sunset out of a crater made by a giant laser of rainbows and pure harmonic magic. Plenty of times by now she’d risked life and limb against what seemed to be an ever increasingly powerful and earth shaking set of foes. That said, a colossal tree over a hundred meters tall that had just been transmogrified into the shape of a four-limbed, demonic faced, spine covered creature better suited to the studio of a Japanese monster movie set was enough to give Sunset a moment of pause.

She mostly used that moment of pause to question just how much more ridiculous her life could get. The next moment, when the Tree Colossus that Gaia had created let out a roar that was half jet engine and half physical force pressing on Sunset’s bones, she questioned just how much more power Gaia would still have to throw at them. So consumed by the magic flowing out of the geodes, it reminded Sunset Shimmer of what it had felt like to be struck by the Elements of Harmony. She might have been half-crazed herself in that instance, but she remembered that overwhelming pressure and oceanic tide of magic that had fallen on her in a torrent.

Gaia felt entirely too similar. This was Midnight Sparkle all over again, only floral flavored. Well, not entirely. This was worse because not only was it a vast and uncontrollable magical power on the rampage, but it was backed up by a Hollow that was, far as Sunset could tell, up there with the strongest.

So to say Sunset and her friends had their work cut out for them was an understatement so vast, it might as well have been at the bottom of the ocean.

And this meant that Sunset knew she didn’t necessarily have the luxury of playing nice with Gaia. Too much was at stake. If she and the girls lost here, then there was no telling what Gaia might do next. Sure, she said she was only interested in defending her territory, but Sunset was all too aware of how mentally unstable that much uncontrolled magic made a person. Nothing would stop Gaia from on a spur of the moment deciding all of Canterlot City was her “territory”, and who knew how many might die before the woman was stopped?

This had to end here, and now, and there were precious few options available to Sunset and the girls at her side. A lot hinged upon the powers carried by Twilight and Fluttershy. They seemed to be the only things remotely able to get through to Gaia, or rather, to Gloriosa. So far, however, Gaia had proven apt at being able to resist either Fluttershy’s Fullbring or Twilight’s Quincy ability, at least when they were used individually. If only there was a way to get both powers working together and hit Gaia with them simultaneously...

But there was no time to plan. Barely even a second to call out to her friends over that titanic roar that made the air itself bend in protest from the pressure both physical, magical, and spiritual that radiated from Gaia and her transmuted mountain of angry tree. Gaia just attacked, with full fury, and Sunset had to fend for her life against the storm.

Now, spiritual powers and magic were individually potent things, and Sunset and her friends knew from experience that when combined the two types of energy produced even more potent results. However, physics was, at least to a degree, still physics. More mass meant more energy needed to make the mass move. Right at that moment Gaia was trying to make a rather epic amount of plant matter move; tens and thousands of tons of it. And move it did, far faster than anything that size had a rational right to, but it was still big and that meant that as much juice that Gaia was pouring into it, her Tree Colossus was still slower than she herself had been.

Like two wooden oil tankers that top limbs of the Colossus rushed forward in wide, sweeping arcs that created pressure waves ahead of them. The long, wicked claws of the Colossus’ hands bled with violent lavender and sickly jade light. Sunset and her friends scattered, getting out of the way of these limbs the same way someone might try to flee an avalanche, tsunami, or similar natural disaster. Rainbow Dash, fastest of them all, had little trouble zipping between the limbs, while the others still found themselves partially caught by the pressure wave of the strikes if not by the hands themselves. Sunset and Applejack flew up, while Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy went low, followed by a squadron of Rarity’s mounted knights.

The hands clapped together like something trying to smack a mosquito of the air, only with such force and colliding mass that a spherical shockwave smashed the air and hit the girls like a hammer blow. Sunset felt her whole body vibrate, her spiritually fortified armor and body weathering the shockwave but her senses briefly dazed as she had to plant her feet on the reishi of the air to keep her balance.

She hadn’t seen where Twilight had gone? Had she dodged in time!?

A weak flash of purple next to Sunset confirmed that Twilight had teleported to safety as the girl appeared next to her, breathless and sweating.

“How much you have left in the tank?” Sunset asked, short of breath herself. It had been an exhausting day.

“Not a lot,” Twilight admitted, adjusting her glasses, which had nearly slipped off her bleeding nose. Sunset noticed that the red veins of Blut Vene that stood out against parts of Twilight’s skin were weaker and smaller than before. The girl was running on empty. Yet the light was no less resolved in her eyes. “But I’ve got enough left, I think.”

Before Sunset could comment, she saw Rainbow Dash rushing the Tree Colossus’ head, where Gaia still stood like a giant, glowing ‘hit me’ portion of some video game boss. Dash was nothing more than a streak of light leaving an azure blue burn in the air, but Gaia showed off the fact that her Colossus was not without defenses for its creator, or a way to deal with small, fast moving foes.

The upper chest of the Colossus boiled with motion, and a flood of pointed thorns tore themselves up into a forest of deadly, stabbing spears in Dash’s path. Rainbow Dash, not one to back down from any challenge, brought forth her lightning-forged spear and went to work. Blinding streaks of blue carved through the densely packed wooden thorn spears like shears through suburban shrubbery. Dash’s wings burned with prismatic wrath as she broke through the thorny wall and met eye to eye with Gaia, who wore a maddened grin. Flares of rainbow light shot from Dash’s wings, laced with spirals of electricity. Gaia met the attack with the large thorns upon her back, which shot forward and carved into the beams. The energy split like waterfalls upon sharp rocks, spilling upon different parts of the Colossus’ head, but not touching Gaia, who then retaliated with a mouth-born Cero of swirling purple and green light. Dash caught the beam with her spear but was sent flying back like a moth caught in a whirlwind.

Gold flashed from above and Applejack came rocketing down, drill-first, with the air shattering around her in a sonic boom. Gaia’s Colossus moved its arm up to intercept the farmgirl, and the drill impacted with thousands of tons of magically and spiritually enhanced wood. The drill dug into that wood, sending broken wood chips the size of Buicks flying, but at the same time the tree bled a small fountain of brackish green sap at the girl. Where the sap hit her armor, it sizzled like acid, and Applejack let out a strangled cry as some of the poisoned sap struck her cheek. With a growl she pulled back, golden jets from her armor allowing her to fly backwards in an instant as fast as any Flash Step.

Down below, the lower limbs of the Tree Colossus went to work upon Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity.

Slightly smaller than their upper brethren, these limbs moved faster, although that was like saying a frigate moved faster than a battleship. Both still struck with unimaginable strength, their claws bunched together into singular chopping instruments that slammed through the air in blinding arcs at the three girls.

With grace and calm Fluttershy spread an aura of warm light around herself, dozens of golden hands extending from her halo. Several of these hands went to touch Pinkie Pie and Rarity, and both girls felt their fatigue and injuries melting away, while their spiritual energies surged up from Fluttershy’s boosting presence. The other hands formed two clusters and moved as conjoined, single limbs to defend Fluttershy. Each strike of the Colossus’ clawed hand was such that trying to stop it dead would have been difficult, but slight redirections to allow them to miss by a few feet? Readily doable, and Fluttershy’s golden hands went to work, stalling the lower right hand of the Colossus that focused upon her. The near misses still created pressure waves of air and hostile reishi and magic that cut at Fluttershy’s skin. Even if she wasn’t getting directly hit, her body was getting battered by the energies passing by her, leaving her modest clothing tattered in several places with fresh blood.

But she remained a solid wall, taking up at least one limb’s full attention, which in turn made life much easier for Rarity and Pinkie Pie who were left to content with the other.

Rarity, with no more than a thought, commanded her troops and repositioned her gate. The tall, ethereal and regal gateway of crimson red now stood about a hundred yards back from the Colossus, and just a little off center to its right. From the gate fresh knights came forth as damaged ones fell back to recuperate within the gate’s red glow. Archers and cannoneers had taken up new positions at an angle above the Colossus, and from there they began to rain fire down upon the living mountain of wood. Arrows and spears exploded with blood red energy in a darting swarm, while concentrated cannon fire blew chunks out of the Colossus’ shoulders, pockmarking it. The Colossus’ sheer mass made it so the withering hail of fire could only do so much, but it was a stinging distraction, if nothing else, and provided cover for more of Rarity’s knights to regroup.

Aside from a small squad she kept near herself, she’d pulled all her knight’s back. Not because they would be useless, but because she had a different stratagem in mind that using them in a full frontal assault. Ever thinking tactically, Rarity knew what Sunset knew, which was that victory here was not defeating this gigantic floral construct, but by defeating its mistress. Her knights were better served in reserve until the right moment, rather than getting smashed to pieces against something this size.

Unless... well, Rarity did smile at a devilish thought, but wasn’t sure her knights could actually do what she was thinking, but since Gaia’s attention was elsewhere she could get away with a little experimentation. In the meantime she focused entirely on avoiding the clawed limb bigger than most whales trying to split her in half. Fortunately Rarity was an excellent dance partner, and could sashay out of harm’s way with the best of them. When she wasn’t blowing herself up. That harsh reminder still sat in the back of her mind, but she kept the thought at bay while zipping about in swift motions to get out of harm’s way.

Meanwhile Pinkie Pie didn’t keep still, as if doing so was even an option for her. With Rarity dancing about like a high-speed hummingbird, Pinkie appeared above the Colossus’ arm just above the leafy elbow joint, holding her hammer above her head while the bells on her jester mostly rang in a giggling chorus.

“They say being a lumberjack is one of the most dangerous jobs in the country, but I bet they weren’t even counting trees that try to cut you down,” the girl laughed as the hammer flashed with a neon pink mist, and reshaped itself into a massive, twelve foot long, pink chainsaw, “Groovy!”

With a throaty growl the chainsaw spun to life and Pinkie Pie dug in, the spinning blade biting deep into the arm’s surface. It got such a few feet in as Pinkie Pie experienced the same surge of poisonous blood that Applejack had faced, but Pinkie Pie reacted with swifter assurance. Mostly because Pinkamena took over and guarded their shared body with a covering of thick, blood red tendrils that sprang from their aura and covered them like shell.

Pinkamena kept the chainsaw going, but she felt the arm shift beneath her, and yanked the chainsaw out and transformed it back into a hammer just in time to block as a smaller, secondary arm grew out from the very wound that had just been inflicted and slammed her back with enough force to send them reeling like a pinball.

Thinking quickly, Sunset realized it would be hard to get close to Gaia while those four arms were active, with the exception of Dash with her incredible speed. But given that Rainbow Dash’s last attempt to get close had left her signed and smoking from having to block a point-blank Cero, Sunset knew it was a bad idea to rely on Dash alone being able to get close. The defenses of the Colossus had to be worn down, first.

“Everyone!” she shouted, “Pick an arm and take it out! Don’t let up until it’s busted! Twilight, stay close to me. Conserve your energy.”

“I understand,” Twilight said, readying her bow.

From atop the Tree Colossus’ head, Gaia's voice boomed like a peal of thunder, “Hah! As if I’d just let you do as you please!”

Scorching orbs of power gathered at the tips of the thorns on her back and inside the palms of her clawed hands, and Gaia started to discharge spiraling Cero blasts at Applejack and Rainbow Dash, likely because the pair were the closest and easiest to target. Before either sets of beams could hit, Sunset moved in an incredibly fast and powerful arc, her wings flaring bright.

She smashed Hikari into the first pair of beams, the shining shield bursting with an aura of white light as Sunset rammed her full spiritual pressure into her Zanpaktou’s shield. Angling it, she felt a moment of satisfaction as she deflected one set of beams into the other, the Ceros slamming together and detonating in mid-air before reaching her friends.

“Thanks fer the save!” Applejack said, and Sunset nodded.

“Leave defense to me. You guys take care of these arms!” she said, and then she and her friends went to work.

She heard Gaia’s snarling frustration as the woman set out more blasts targeting Sunset’s friends, but each time Sunset moved with all the speed she could muster to impose Hikari into the path of the Ceros. Each hit caused no small bit of strain on the shield, but Sunset felt her Zanpaktou’s twin spirits and knew both Hokori and Hikari were burning bright with eagerness. They were more than happy to shut down Gaia’s offensive, at least for however long they could. It wasn’t a perfect defense. As fast as Sunset was, she couldn’t intercept every beam Gaia fired, but it made things much easier for her friends to fight. Twilight helped while still conserving her strength, mostly by using her Variable to alter the trajectories of any Cero beams that Sunset couldn’t get to by firing reishi arrows into them. Even altering the trajectory by a few inches was enough to give the other girls time and room to dodge while they attacked the limbs.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack flew together, teaming up to focus upon the upper right arm while doing their best to dodge the left one. Even if they did not have to worry about Gaia’s Cero beams, the Colossus itself was not letting them attack with ease. The upper right arm slashed its claws through the sky with increasing force, ejecting streams of fiery green and purple magic that scorched the air in its wake. Thorns projected from its wrists and arm, firing like miniature missiles that tracked in on the girls. Applejack held her drill lance aloft and as she flew in a high angled arc, she kicked outward and fired a series of golden beams from her armor’s legs and boots. Each beam incinerated dozens of thorn missiles, and pounded the Colossus’ arm in a steady stream of explosions. Rainbow Dash wove about in a complex flight pattern, making countless thorn missiles go careening off in vain attempts to follow her, before slicing out with her spear and sending an arc of dozens of powerful lightning bolts to scorch the arm’s hand.

Applejack nearly misjudged that hand’s clawing distance and as the hand passed by, her armor groaned in protest and sparked from the sheer pressure of the near missing tearing at the armor’s surface.

The farmgirl’s freckled features pinched in consternation as she looked for a weak spot anywhere on the arm, "Cansanrit thing is tougher n’ an old oak.”

“We’ve taken some chunks out,” Dash said, nodding to where Applejack’s drill had hit earlier, then at the crimson bursts of light that still slammed into the Colossus from Rarity’s cannons, “And Rares’ fancy dudes have been pelting it in the shoulders. Hey, you remember when I dislocated mine that one day at practice?”

“Thought ya said never ta talk ‘bout that,” Applejack said, her face briefly reddening as she remembered helping her friend off the field that day and resetting the shoulder themselves, because Dash had insisted she needed to play in the game the next day rather than go to the hospital. That had been the first time she’d realized how tough Rainbow Dash really was. And how stubborn.

“Yeah,” Dash said, “Was thinking maybe all that weight on the shoulder will make this dude weak to hits there.”

“Worth a’ try,” Applejack agreed, and stepped in front of Rainbow Dash as a pulsating green Cero beam that had slipped past Sunset and Twilight got close and she smashed the beam dead on with her drill lance. The spinning lance ignited with golden energy as Applejack set her feet and grit her teeth, and slammed the Cero beam aside like a star baseball hitter. “Anyhows, better do this fast. This lady ain’t got an ounce o’ quit n’ her an’ it’s tickin’ me off somethin’ fierce.”

“I hear that!” Dash said, and the pair both started to fly straight for the Colossus’ right shoulder.

Timing their movements with one another, they both zig-zaged across each other’s paths, blue and gold energy trails intermixing as the pair rushed the giant wall of wood before them. The Tree Colossus tried to pull its right arm back while aiming with its left, where each finger extended like a living battering ram at the girls. The clawed fingers stabbed through the air at super-sonic speeds, but Applejack and Rainbow Dash were faster still, their erratic flight patterns throwing off the aim of their attacker. A crackling cobalt aura surrounded Rainbow Dash as she gathered power into her spear, while Applejack’s armor filled with gold light and her drill lance spun to a blinding speed.

Both girls struck the right shoulder simultaneously, Dash unleashing as much thunderous lightning as she could from the tip of her spear, and at the same time Applejack opened up the tip of her still spinning lance and triggered the cannon within.

The thick bark hide of the Colossus’ shoulder just where it joined with the arm started to bulge unnaturally, like dough that was rising unevenly in the oven. Then strands of lightning and explosions of gold energy burst out of the wooden surface and ruptured the gargantuan monstrosity’s shoulder in a showering rain of wood and poisonous green sap. Both girls had to dodge back to avoid the deadly spray, but by the end of it the upper right arm hung limply from a ruined and mangled shoulder.

One down, three to go.

The smaller, lower arms redoubled their speed against Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy, focusing upon the latter in a double-pronged assault in which both hands stabbed at the girl from above and below like someone trying to pinch a fly between two gigantic butcher knives.

Fluttershy focused all of the many golden hands from her halo upon the descending claw above her, sending forth a wave of them to grasp onto the limb and arrest its movement. Shockingly, despite the thousands of tons of crushing death coming at her, Fluttershy’s many gold hands slammed into it with sufficient force to bleed its momentum and then stop it dead in its tracks. Part of this was the simple potency of Fluttershy’s spectral limbs, but much of the rest was her Fuilbring’s power coursing into the Tree Colossus and weakening the spirit energy empowering it.

Of course this left her defenseless against the other lower limb coming at her from below, but Fluttershy had acted in simple faith, trusting in her friends, who did not let her down.

A cascade of gleaming red slammed down around Fluttershy, a barrier of purest red crystal that was shaped like a concave shield covered in thick, deadly spikes three meters thick and twice as long. The Colossus’ hand impacted this crystalline barrier and its sharp claws grinded against the spikes of the crimson crystal in a starburst of sparks. Rarity laughed musically, her blade outstretched as she directed a torrent of crystal weapons that formed around her and dove upon the halted hand like a swarm of hungry sharks.

While her knights were the strongest form of her completed power, her ability to form crystal constructs had not lessened in the slightest. In fact, Rarity’s Fullbring could create crystal structures faster and more potently than ever before, which she demonstrated not just with the weapons carving chunks from the hand she’d halted, but at the same time creating a large crystalline wedge that she positioned just above the other limb where Pinkie Pie’s morphed hammer had chainsawed out a piece.

“Pinkie Pie, darling, if you could finish the job?” Rarity said.

Streaking up over the crystal wedge, leaving a trail of pink mist in her wake, Pinkie Pie saluted and hefted her hammer, which grew to a comically large size as several Pinkamena clones appeared around her to help heft the oversized hammer’s handle.

“On three girls!...THREE!”

Cracking down with the gigantic hammer, they struck the wedge right on the head, which drove it deep into the gouge in the arm. Wood shattered and split, and the wound opened up even wider when Rarity transformed the wedge, expanding it into a flat, circular disc that ended up severing the arm cleanly from the inside out.

By now the other arm that had been stopped by Rarity’s crystal barrier had pulled back, but just enough to aim its palm openly at the shield of red crystal and gather an aura of vibrating purple and green power. A thick Cero beam discharged right atop of the barrier, shattering it, but Fluttershy had simply moved aside by now, moving with such speed she appeared like a golden apparition that just appeared next to the discharging hand. Her expression was calm, but almost frightfully detached as she pulled back a palm... and curled it into a fist.

Her reiatsu exploded out in an aura of gold so bright it was practically pure white, and scores of spectral arms rose from her halo and then gathered around Fluttershy’s upper right arm. The hands merged until they became one large, golden first that would have been able to pick up a small yacht, with motes of gold like floating around it. Fluttershy set her feet in a wide stance, closed her eyes, and murmured, “Enlightenment Technique; Even Mountains Shall Fall.”

She didn’t so much throw her fist forward as simply touched it upon the surface of the Colossus’ arm, just above the wrist, so fast that it didn’t look like Fluttershy had even moved. There was no impact or gust of great force. Merely stillness, for a single millisecond. Then there was a cracking noise like a thousand trees breaking at once at the base of the trunk. Splintering webs of broken wood exploded outward in an impact crater from the point where Fluttershy’s knuckle had brushed the wood, and the whole titanic limb distorted and bent backwards like someone’s arm if it had been hit at the wrist by a sledgehammer.

Of the two lower limbs of the Tree Colossus, the one on the right had been severed entirely by Rarity and Pinkie Pie’s combined efforts, and Fluttershy had badly damaged the left one, leaving it mangled if still technically intact.

With only the upper left limb still fully functional, the Colossus’ offensive capability should have been reduced, but Sunset got a clear look of Gaia’s face and saw the woman wasn’t wearing a look of concern, but rather her lips were drawn back in a snarling smile.

“Damage my creation all you like, children! Do you think it makes a difference?”

The thorny vines at the bottom of Gaia’s form dove into the Colossus, and streams of magic poured out of her and into the Colossus. All of the girls saw the wounds they’d inflicted upon the massive tree construct start to bubble with more sap, but also fill with glowing green bursts of magical light. The wood started to regrow, filling in gaps and repairing broken areas.

“Arrgh! No fair!” Rainbow Dash shouted, “Bosses don’t get to heal themselves! That’s freakin’ cheating!”

Gaia chortled, “I felt the same about Chrysalis. It’ll feel nice to turn the tables on her, when I get my hands on her scrawny neck. Now then, you’ve all had your fun. I believe it’s my turn now. I’m rather tired of watching you block all of my Ceros with that shield of yours, Sunset Shimmer. Let’s see about giving you something you can’t block!”

With a rumbling noise that built up from the tree’s very roots, the Colossus raised its head and opened its maw of thorn-like fangs wide. Glyphs of magical green light traveled up and down its humongous form, and the spiny thorns upon its back all lit up with arcs of verdant green and dark lavender power that leaped from spine to spine until it gathered around the Colossus’ mouth.

The attack that was coming consisted of a singularly powerful sensation of spiritual pressure and magical might, and Sunset could feel that it was easily the strongest move Gaia had thrown at them yet. In fact this may well have been Gaia’s trump card. As seemingly infinite as Gaia’s power was, Sunset could tell there was some genuine strain now on Gaia’s face as she poured power into the Colossus in readying this attack. The mere fact that it was taking so many seconds to charge up, as opposed to how swift and effortlessly she’d been throwing Ceros earlier, told Sunset this was going to be serious.

But it also was the window of opportunity she’d been waiting for, and she hadn’t been alone in that.

“Sunset!” Rarity said, appearing next to her, “I do believe this is our chance.”

“Huh? Chance o’ what?” Applejack asked, and Twilight, who was standing nearby, gave both Sunset and Rarity a heavy look.

“To get close to her,” Twilight said, “An attack this big will temporarily weaken Gaia and likely leave her vulnerable for a moment."

“Yeah, assuming we survive it,” Rainbow Dash said, and Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie arrived, flying up next to the group.

Pinkie Pie’s mask shifted to black as Pinkamena’s more serious voice said, “Grouping up seems like a bad idea. Just saying. I don’t think any of us can block what’s coming. I couldn’t eat all of it even with Pinks physics destroying cartoon powers.”

“...I’ll block it,” Sunset said, “You girls just make sure you get in close to her and clobber her when I do.”

“Uh, ya sure hun’?” Applejack asked, and Rarity stepped up next to Sunset and placed a firm hand on her shoulder.

“Let me help, Sunset. I have something I want to try with my knights.”

Sunset could sense they were out of time, so she nodded to Rarity, “Alright, you and me then. The rest of you, when Rarity and I block what’s coming, make sure Twilight and Fluttershy get inside striking distance to Gaia, no matter what!”

“Sure thing, sugarcube!”

“Can do!’

“Okie Dokie Lokie!”’

With her friends' affirmations still ringing in her ears, Sunset stood ready with her shield, Rarity next to her, while her other friends spread out below her, prepared to charge when the moment was right. The air was practically humming with power, and Sunset could see distorted waves in the air, like abundant heat, filling large gaps in the sky. It was like the clash of gathering spirit power and magic was tearing at the seams of reality itself.

By now the Colossus’ mouth was filled with an eye searing brightness of pulsating colors, mostly a deep swirl of various greens and violets, merging at a single point to form a nearly black core.

Atop the head, Gaia let out a breathy cackle and threw her hands forward, eyes wide with unleashed fury.

”Desecacion!” (Desiccation)

The Tree Colossus let out a bellow not unlike a pyroclastic eruption, and the energy within its mouth shot out in a flood. However, the beam had been angled at a slightly upward arc, and Sunset saw why a moment later as the beam began to split apart into first two, then four, then eight beams. It split again and again until the sky filled with a rain of hundreds of pulsing multi-colored beams, each bearing a black core at their tips. These beams curved up, then down, all converging towards Sunset and her friends. And Sunset rose to meet them.

Do or die, girls, she told her Zanpaktou spirits, It’s time to try it out!

She felt the pure, prideful eagerness of Hokori, and the quiet, steady resolve of Hikari. There was also an undercurrent of concern. The last time they tried this during training, Sunset had learned the hard way that there were some flames she wasn’t immune to from her own Zanpaktou.

----------

Nine days earlier...

]”This isn’t like the Saishu-Tekina Hidori girl,” Hokori said, staring Sunset in the eye as she looked up at Sunset, who sat on the throne of their shared Inner World, “That attack throws our full power out at range. This technique concentrates that same power up close, and sharpens it to a point that even you aren’t able to keep from getting burned.”

“But it’d let me effectively break through almost any attack or defense, right?” Sunset asked, “I mean, Starlight... I couldn’t touch her, even if my attacks landed, because of how her Zanpaktou works, but this isn’t about her. I’m more worried about Grogar and the other Espada. He blocked us, straight on, without anything other than his own raw power. I can’t rely on the Final Phoenix to end every battle, the way that move drains me. What if I had to fight multiple Espada or similar opponents, or deal with several elites like them in one battle after another? I need more cards in my hand, guys.”

“It’s true that Starlight Glimmer is a problem that no amount of teaching you our techniques will help with,” Hikari said, flanking Hokori, although she stood calmly while Hokori stalked about the throne room, “It’s also true that to face consecutive foes of the same level as the Espada would be hard for you, right now. But Hokori’s concerns are that you’re moving too far, too fast, with a technique that can hurt you if you’re not ready for it.”

“In case neither of you have noticed, I’m going to get hurt, regardless. I’ve managed to handle the other techniques you’ve shown me. Heck, you told me the Final Phoenix is basically the strongest one we have. So isn’t this other one weaker?”

Hokori shot her a hard look, “It’s not about weaker or stronger, Sunset. Not with this... Not with the Black Flame...”

“Simply try to understand this, Sunset,” said Hikari, her voice not unkind, but filled with a low, solemn note, “You and your friends have grown so much, and will grow much more still, but you differ from them in the fact that your power stems from us, a Zanpaktou. You have learned our names and identity, and hence attained Shikai. You have earned our trust and respect, and hence attained Bankai. But those are not your final steps, nor the final lessons for you to learn. To obtain the full measure of our power, of your power, you still have a long path to walk.”

A part of Sunset wanted to argue that she didn’t have time to walk a ‘long’ path, but it wasn’t as if she didn’t get what Hiarki was talking about. Bankai might have been the true form of a Zanpaktou’s power, but it was obvious that there was a lot of room upon that plateau to expand. She was ready, and willing, to do whatever it took to do just that, which was why she’d been training so hard. But why was this particular technique such a big deal?

“You still haven’t told me what this ‘Black Flame’ is, and why it’s different from the others,” she pointed out. Hokori and Hikari exchanged a look, the vermilion demoness throwing up a hand and sighing as she shrugged in frustration.

“You’re better at this crap than I am,” she told the angelic spirit, “You explain it.”

Hikari nodded slowly, and held out hand, and upon her palm danced three, small globes of flame; blue, green, and white. “You know the Aoihi Senko, the Midorihi Hashira, and the Shiroihi Yume. Each draws its strength from a different aspect of who you are. The Blue Flame of your pride, adaptable and powerful, always ready to spring forth. The Green Flame of your intellect, thoughtful and patient when needed, waiting for the right moment to strike. The White Flame of your love for others, allowing you to be in more than one place to protect everyone you must. But the last flame within you...”

Even Hikari looked pained as a pin-prick of darkness appeared above her palm to join the other flames, less a color and more a void dark specter of black fire that appeared to eat all other light around it, “The Black Flame of your wrath, exists solely to destroy, utterly, the targets of your fury. It is not a flame you will find easy to control, and unlike the others, this one will harm you as readily as your foes if you don’t know how to control it.”

Sunset couldn’t deny there was a certain twist of unease in her as Hikari spoke of this ‘Black Flame’. She was intimately familiar with herself when she got royally pissed off. She knew she had a potent core of anger inside her, and that the last time she really let it get the better of her she’d made some serious mistakes. Could she control her wrath in such a way that it served her needs, rather than pushed her into more errors?

“Show me how,” she said, not backing down from the fear.

----------

With the sky consumed by a spread of hundreds of beams falling towards her and her friends, Sunset flew towards the downpour of destruction. The shield of Hikari was thrust forward, the white metal filled with luminous energy. Hokori was drawn back, the flamberge gripped tightly in Sunset’s hand. Her mental focus was sharpened, but rather than focused to a narrow point, Sunset had expanded her sense out to encompass the whole of the attack descending from the sky, feeling every individual beam as if seeing each raindrop in a storm.

She could sense her friends on the move, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie making a straight charge towards Gaia’s position on the Colossus' head. Rarity hung back, and Sunset felt the girls knights gathering around her in a tight, spherical formation, although Sunset wasn’t sure what Rarity was doing just yet. Whatever the case was, Sunset trusted Rarity’s judgment implicitly, and so didn’t think about it any more as she put all of her attention on what she was doing.

The first thing Sunset had to do was allow Hikari to take the brunt of what was coming. The shield expanded a field of translucent white light around itself, like a half dome of protective spirit power that looked like the shimmer of sunlight reflecting on lake water. Sunset had expanded barriers like this with Hikari a few times before, but this was the largest she’d ever tried to make it, the half dome spanning about ten meters to either side of her. She then curved her flight path to follow her friends, providing a screen for them as the power of the Desecacion struck.

The first few beams hit like a giant smith’s hammer upon an anvil, but that soon became more like the crashing of a thousand spears, if each spear was made of earth splitting thunder and the rage of a screaming god. Emerald and lavender explosions of consuming light exploded across Sunset’s shield, and she felt the strain of her Zanpaktou and the gut-punch to her own spirit energy as she struggled to put out enough reiatsu to stave off the rain. Because it didn’t stop. Desecacion continued, as if the beam the Colossus had fired could keep splitting forever, forming an endless waterfall of death that would leave nothing but barren, dead land in its wake.

Yet Sunset and her shield acted as a steadfast umbrella against the torrential downpour, providing an open space of safety for her friends to advance, although with each fraction of a second Sunset felt her spirit being battered by the blows to the shield.

But this was important, because her shield, for every blow, transferred a portion of power from the blow into Hokori’s eager blade.

Power built, more and more, and the red hot flames grew hotter. This was normally the point that Sunset could unleash an Aoihi Senko, but this time she didn’t let the flames out in such an explosive manner. This time, she kept the flames close, let the thicken and gathered around the flamberge’s edge as she looked within and focused upon... calm, still fury.

She did not want to kill Gloriosa or Gaia, truly, but she was furious with them. But beyond that, she was furious with the forces of this world that had caused all this fighting to begin with. The Soul Reapers, the Hollows, the Quincy, even if each thought themselves in the right, they had come to Sunset Shimmer’s city, and brought danger to her people, her friends!

Anger was an emotion that came naturally to Sunset, but controlling it had never been easy for her. Anger burned, and demanded release. By its nature, anger didn’t want to be controlled or contained. It wanted to be set free to destroy whatever the source of it was. In many cases, this tended to make things worse, but if one didn’t fear the anger, if one could face it, let it pass through their heart, and realize it was merely another form of energy, then it was possible to sharpen wrath into a blade.

”Kuroihi Moegara!” (Blackfire Cinders)

Upon Sunset’s invoking words, the flames around her flamberge turned blacker than the depths of space. Flickering about with hungry dark tongues, the black flames curled around the edge of Hokori and merged with the blade to such an extent that one couldn't see the flamberge’s form any longer. Instead it looked as if Sunset held a long, thickly dark shard of void, a flame that was the absence of all light and the personification of a wrathful hunger to destroy.

And it burned. Sunset’s teeth grit so hard she thought she might have chipped a tooth. Pain filled her palm where the grip on her sword burned her flesh. The heat of the black flames scoured her even through the flame resistant armor of her Bankai, and only her supreme focus let her act and think through the agony.

She swung Hokori forward, into the very heart of the raining field of destructive beams that still descended upon her.

The flames of the Kuroihi Moegara ate the beams like a thresher in a wheat field. The black fire extended only a dozen meters at most from the edge of her sword as she swung it, moving in swift, black bands of non-light. It wasn’t really a ranged attack, as Hokori had said, but wherever those dark flames went, the beams of the Desecacion were consumed and broken apart like leaves upon a flaming whirlwind, burning to cinders of destroyed power. The black flames annihilated the very bonds of spiritual particles, breaking down the powerful beams before they could reasonably explode or impact.

In this manner, with the barrier of Hikari still forging a path ahead, and the dark flames of Hokori reaping that path wider, did Sunset Shimmer safeguard her friends as they advanced upon Gaia.

The Desecacion still sent dozens of beams flying elsewhere in their wild abandon, destroying entire swaths of forest, and yet despite this, there was a clear area of safety around Camp Everfree itself. Sunset realized that even as bloodthirsty and going all out as Gaia was, the woman was still taking care not to allow harm to befall the camp. Was that Gloriosa’s doing? At least it was one less thing to worry about, as Sunset was having to put everything she had into either blocking or cutting down the seemingly endless stream of beams falling upon her and trying to eradicate her friends.

It felt as if her skin was boiling from the head of the black flames, but she marveled at how they burned through beams in the same way a plasma torch might melt through steel rebar. However, Sunset noticed for every beam she cut down, something was left behind. A point of gleaming darkness, like a black pearl. Those had nothing to do with her own flames, did they? No, these still held Gaia’s reiatsu inside them, and Sunset realized there were now scores of them left in her wake from all the beams she had destroyed with the Kuroihi Moegara.

She remembered how each beam had possessed a core of darkness at their tip, and before she could question further what these were, she sensed Gaia’s power flow through those small orbs of darkness, each no larger than a baseball.

They were ‘seeds’, Sunset realized, as she saw them all blossom and open in a flare of purple light, each one forming a floating orchid flower composed of a scintillating combination of magic and spirit power. These energy flowers then sprain to life on their own, following Sunset like magnetic mines, each vibrating with violent energy. So focused was Sunset on defending her friends from the still descending beams that she couldn’t spare anything to defend herself with. If she moved Hikari’s shield or tried to attack the incoming flower mines with her black flames, she’d leave either herself or her friends exposed!

Fortunately, Rarity had anticipated something like this. Having heard Gaia’s words of confidence that Sunset couldn’t block the Desecacion, Rarity had surmised there’d be some kind of nasty trap to it, and so had prepared her own knights in a manner she had theorized was possible but was only trying now for the first time. While Sunset had been protecting the other girls’ advance, Rarity had gathered her knights around herself in a close formation, and spread her spirit energy into them.

Fundamentally each knight was an extension of her Fullbring’s power to form constructs of her combined blood and spirit power, and were potent focal points for that ability. In theory they should be able to be as mutable as any weapon Rarity made, her imagination being the only theoretical limit to what she and her knights could construct.

And so, to fight something gigantic, Rarity thought to herself, Why should I not go for size as well?

So it was that with her mind working with the speed and intensity she put into any of her artful projects, Rarity formed the image of what she desired in her mind and set her knights and her power to work on forming it, hoping that she could do this fast enough to help Sunset. Even as Rarity had noticed the seeds and flowers blooming from the beams Sunset had destroyed, Rarity’s knights started to merge together. Armored limbs shifted and moved, while plates of crystal expanded and interlocked. Weapons morphed into joints and rivets, while growths of rose red crystal took the shape of larger ligaments and heavier plates of armor.

The cannons maintained their general form, but clustered together and merged with a monolithic chest, while entire squads of knights shifted shape to form the edges of a growing behemoth of crystal. In the span of a few seconds, what was once two hundred knights had combined and reshaped into a singular form that was a good forty meters in height; a prodigious knight construct whose armored form radiated Rarity’s crimson aura and bore all of her hallmarks of style. Rose and ivy engravings upon its shoulders and chest were quite prominently, and its helmet bore a tiara-like crest. The helmet actually opened up, revealing a small cockpit area with a ruby throne for Rarity to sit upon before the helmet closed, and she directed her knight into battle.

Much like with the Tree Colossus, there was a sacrifice of speed for having made something this size, but Rarity could feel a difference in durability and power. Rather than spreading her spirit energy through multiple forms, this single knight could withstand much more punishment and strike harder than ever before, albeit without the versatility and speed she was accustomed to fighting with. Still, for this instance, toughness and strength was more useful, as she demonstrated by ending her knight straight into the path of the energy flowers chasing Sunset.

“Keep going, Sunset, and leave trimming these troublesome flowers to me!” Rarity said, feeling every faucet of her combined knight in her mind. Sanguine crystal flowed like liquid and became a pair of elegant leaf-shaped longswords in the giant knight’s hands, each blade engraved with ivy patterns. The knight slashed both blades into the oncoming rush of glowing orchids, and upon contact the flowers exploded with geysers of noxious dark violet waves of power.

Rarity felt the reishi inside her construct’s swords being torn into by these waves, as if the spirit energy was being sucked dry. Her keen eye noticed that as she slashed through some of the flowers, the others that hadn’t reached her yet grew larger, as if the power sucked out by the first batch of flowers was being transferred to the others, making them stronger.

Hmph, such a nasty ability. Then I’ll not let then get close!

At Rarity’s thought, the chest of her knight slipped aside several plates, revealing the cannons that had now merged into circular arrangements, like oversized gatling guns. With a staccato roar the gatling cannons opened fire on the rest of the onrushing flowers of deadly energy, blasting dozens from the air. Rarity also formed lines of ballistae upon the shoulders of her giant knight and added to the hail she was sending against the flowers from a series of crystalline bolts.

Yet even as she destroyed more and more of these flying flower bombs, she saw scores more rising from the forest, wherever those beams had landed.

And those beams weren’t done. Some curled down from the sky to strike Rarity’s massive knight from above, the explosions rocking her within the helmet mounted cockpit area as chunks of crystal were blasted apart.

“Rarity!” Sunset shouted, but Rarity was fast to shout back.

“Keep! Going!”

With no other choice, Sunset doggedly continued on, serving as the proactive umbrella for her friends flying just a short distance below her, staving off the storm of horrific beams that kept falling upon them in a seemingly unending river. The searing pain of the black flames were almost impossible for Sunset to ignore, to the point that she felt like if she looked upon her hand at this point she might only see darkened bone, but she kept her grip on Hokori and continued to swing the blade in whipping arcs of consuming ink-black fire.

She felt Hikari begin to chip, the shield and its energy barrier starting to crack from absorbing the constant barrage of beams, but they were almost to Gaia now, no more than fifty feet away. Gaia tried to raise her Tree Colossus' arms, although the right one wasn’t fully healed and the lower ones were still damaged. A fresh barrage of thorny missiles grew upon the bark of the left arm and fired at Sunset’s friends, but this was not the same kind of threat as the Desecacion, and her friends barreled straight towards them.

Pinkie Pie took the lead, twirling her hammer and her aura of deep red and black rimmed tendrils leaping forward. “Hate to tell it to you Gaia, but your attacks suck!”

The front of her hammer flipped open like a hatch, and the noise of the world's largest vacuum cleaner clicked on as a suction force of massive proportions started to pull in the thorn missiles into the hammer itself. Any missiles that tried to veer to the side or move around the suction area got smacked down by the many flailing, tooth filled tendrils from Pinkie’s aura.

Rising up in a thick wall, the Colossus' mangled right arm tried to backhand the girls, but Applejack met it with a double kick empowered by every jet of energy firing from the back of her legs and shoulders. The impact didn’t stop the Colossus' arm, but it did deflect it downward, crunching a sizable crater in it as it fell back down in a broken mess. The hit did cost Applejack, however, as the armor on her legs became cracked and she felt the bones in her right leg, which took the brunt of the impact, break cleanly in several places. Gritting back a cry of pain, Applejack flew on with her friends, and they were past the Colossus' arms and in the clear, with a straight shot at the head.

Sunset saw this and felt the slackening of the beams coming down on her, and could finally see what the source of all those beams had even been. When the Colossus had fired the Desecacion, the beam had seemingly split into hundreds, but some of that power had stayed high in the air to form a truly enormous violet and green colored orchid formed of pure spirit power and magic. This giant, hanging satellite had been firing a constant stream of beams on the land beneath it, but finally it had burned through its energy and the giant flower became shriveled and dark, then turned to motes of dissipating purple light as it fired its final beams.

Even with the barrage over, the legacy of the attack remained in a swarm of smaller flowers, which Rarity was still dealing with using her huge combined knight. Rarity spun about in the massive construct, swinging its long blades and firing constantly with the chest mounted cannons and shoulder mounted ballistae. The swarm of flowers were being detonated in droves, but this meant that the survivors got larger and more potent as they absorbed energy into them. Before long Rarity was surrounded by half a dozen empowered flowers around the size of large houses.

These flowers converged on her knight, but Rarity had anticipated this and had prepared a final defense. The gate that was the true core of her Fullbring, she had moved it beneath her and her combined knight, and with its gate swung wide she dropped herself straight into the gate, just as the flowers converged and detonated in a gigantic, swirling purple and emerald explosion.

Sunset could only assume Rarity was alright, since she still sensed the gate and Rarity’s reiatsu along with it.

And now, there was nothing between them and Gaia.

Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight all landed on different sides of Gaia, atop the wide stage formed by the Colossus' head.

Sunset arrived just above them. In her left hand, Hikari was tarnished by cracks, the shield's bright gleam left the duller with all the power expended from it. Hokori was still a solid wedge of charcoal colored flame, seething in the air. Gaia looked at them all with the first real moment of worry cracking her furious features, but that soon passed as her eyes blazed with near solid purple light and her voice boomed, “Fine! We end it here!”

They could all feel that tense moment of quiet clarity in the air; that the battle was about to be decided in the next few seconds. If there were stops still left to be pulled, now was the time to pull them. It all went down in a series of flashing moments, each sliver of a second like a still frame in time.

Rainbow Dash had been building up the strength of her electricity with every motion she’d been making the entire fight, and released that stored power through her spear, the lightning blade jumping in size to over three meters as she blitzed Gaia in a series of thrusting strikes that all blurred into one electrical storm. Gaia took the hits dead on, her body lanced through by the lightning, which jerked her about like a puppet on strings and caused parts of the rose bulb of her lower body to catch fire. But with pure unrelenting fury Gaia still managed to grab Rainbow Dash’s spear and pulled the girl into a knee to the gut that indented Dash’s armor and sent blood bursting from her mouth.

In a golden rush, Applejack flared out all the jets on the back of her armor and went into a spiral with her lance, smashing it into Gaia’s side so hard that one of Gaia’s back thorns broke off from the impact and sent Gaia skidding across the head of the Colossus.

Pinkie Pie was waiting for, her, or rather Pinkamena, whose expression turned into a dark grin of feral teeth as she smashed the hammer down on the still reeling Gaia, and reality bent around the blow so that Gaia actually turned flat, like a 2-D image, which disoriented Gaia tremendously as Pinkamena followed that attack up with a storm of teeth gnashing tendrils that tore at Gaia’s form.

Yet Gaia’s power surged, pure spiritual pressure and magical energy ripping around her like a blender that tore through Pinkamena’s tendrils and then tore at Pinkamena herself. Bloody cuts appeared across the girl’s body as she was knocked away, and Gaia’s body returned to a three-dimensional state as it shook off Pinkie’s power, although she was disoriented for a nanosecond longer, long enough for Fluttershy and Twilight to rush her. Twilight, with the subtlest of motions, had handed something to Fluttershy, before dashing to the right with a speedy Hirenkayku, upon which she took aim and fired a series of magic infused reishi arrows. The arrows spun a dizzying pattern around Gaia, their paths altering randomly through the Variable as they started to strike at her from multiple sides.

Gaia growled and her thorn vines responded in a flurry, knocking the arrows out of the air before Gaia turned her attention towards Twilight and threw a point blank Cero blast at the Quincy.

Twilight didn’t dodge, because she didn’t have to. Sunset Shimmer landed in front of her, the black flames of her sword cutting forward in a swath that ate into the Cero beam.

At that instant, Fluttershy moved in, striking with a multitude of her golden hands. Gaia turned to the girl and rushed right through the barrage, a straight Sonido of godly speed that saw a hand grip around Fluttershy’s throat even as her gold hands struck Gaia in a series of swift palm strikes. Fluttershy fought to infuse her power into Gaia, to pull upon Gloriosa’s soul and bring the woman’s personality to the fore, even as she felt her throat be pinched shut and the bones of her neck start to grind towards the snapping point.

Gaia’s thorn vines went into a frenzy to keep the other girls at bay, firing a random swarm of Bala reishi bullets. Rainbow Dash, still bleeding from her mouth, flew right into the swarm with a hoarse scream of Fluttershy’s name, her spear smashing Balas left and right. Applejack surged forward as well, ignoring the agony of her broken leg, driving her lance towards Gaia even as the woman sent another Cero blast her way that forced Applejack to plant herself and block the beam.

Sunset finished cleaving the Cero that had been Twilight’s way in half, and saw Fluttershy being choked to death.

“Twi-” she began to say, but Twilight had stepped to the side, and instead of aiming her bow, had a look of pure concentration on her face as she shouted.

“Fluttershy, now!”

Even nearing unconsciousness, Fluttershy was able to act. Of her six real hands, the lower right one uncovered the object Twilight had handed her. A small, silver ginto tube. With ease, Fluttershy popped the top of the tube and spilled the alchemic Quincy water onto Gaia.

Gaia had been careful to not let Twilight hit her with an arrow, knowing that it’d allow Twilight to make use of her power. What Gaia hadn’t expected was that Twilight could use the alchemy of the Quincy to also channel her Variable, using the same reishi strings she used to manipulate her artificial hand.

Both Fluttershy and Twilight activated their powers as one, Fluttershy’s Fullbring all but commanding Gloriosa’s mind to the surface, while Twilight’s variable, acting through the alchemic water, to magnify the effect and try to separate the fused minds of Gaia Everfree and Gloriosa Daisy.

Gaia howled, a keening sound of confusion and overflowing emotions akin to a boiling kettle’s whistle. Inside her, Gaia and Gloriosa, who had been as one entity, started to pull and twist like the two different colored portions of play dough that had been smashed together. Yet the blending was so thorough that even with Fluttershy and Twilight’s power acting in tandem, the spiritual energies of the two souls, Arrancar and human, couldn’t fully pull apart. Gaia’s hand slipped from Fluttershy’s throat as she clutched her own head, shaking it back and forth while still screaming.

Fluttershy fell, coughing and hacking, to her knees, but didn’t let go of her own grip on Gaia, with now several dozen golden hands from her halo holding Gaia in place.

Sunset and Twilight rushed up while the other girls gathered around. The Colossus was thrashing about now, making their footing on the head of the tree monstrosity somewhat tenuous. But then its motions halted as, from the depths of Rarity’s crimson gate, the woman emerged along with her gigantic, combined knight. While the Colossus was distracted, Rarity formed a series of oversized spears and sent them flying into the Colossus's limbs, and upon impact the spears spread a lattice of crystal chains that she used to start binding the creature’s movements.

This at least slowed its thrashing so that the girls weren’t tossed off as they gathered around Gaia, who was still clutching her head and screaming.

“Don’t sound ta me like she’s comin’ ta her senses,” Applejack said.

“Got a set of pipes on her, I’ll give her that,” noted Pinkamena, clutching her bleeding stomach, “Can’t say I dislike the sound.”

“I can... feel them...” Fluttershy said past haggard breaths, “Gaia, and Gloriosa. They’re not coming apart. They’re in so much pain...”

“We’ve paralzed them for the moment with Fluttershy’s Fullbring and my Schrift, but it’s not enough,” Twilight said, “The moment we run out of spirit energy, I think they’ll merge back together again.”

“I could try delving into their souls,” Fluttershy said, “Talk to them both.”

“If talkin’ was gonna work, hun, it’d of done the trick by now,” Applejack pointed out, but Sunset stepped closer to Fluttershy and knelt down.

“Fluttershy, this ability to go into people’s souls. Is that what you used on Gilda?”

“Yes.”

“Can you... ugh... send someone else in, instead of yourself?” Sunset asked, trying to keep her voice level while her hand remained in a state of burning torment. The pain wasn’t precisely getting easier to ignore, and Fluttershy’s eyes turned towards her and the black flames flowing from Sunset’s sword with instant concern blossoming in her eyes.

“Oh my, Sunset, what are you doing to your hand with those flames?”

“N-nevermind that, just tell me, can you send me into Gaia instead of yourself?” Sunset said quickly. Fluttershy still eyed the dark fire hesitantly, but quickly shook her head.

“I don’t think so, no. It’s kind of a personal thing,” Fluttershy admitted.

“What, Sunset, were you thinking you’d be able to do something Fluttershy couldn’t?” said Rainbow Dash, wiping her mouth clean of blood trickle. Her eyes also slide towards the inky fires coating Hokori, but the girl seemed to understand they had other things to focus on.

“I don’t know. Maybe? I...aaagh...” Sunset couldn’t stop a groan as the pain was becoming too much for her to block out. At this point Applejack stepped up with a stark look of worry.

“The heck r’ them dark flames ‘bout anyhows?” the farmgirl asked, “If they’re hurtin’ ya, why don’t ya let the sword go?”

“No time to explain. Got to hold onto them, in case I need them still. Don’t know if I can reactivate the technique again if I stop. Ugh, If I could just get through to them, both Gaia and Gloriosa, then I won’t need the Kuroihi Moegara, but if I can’t, then this might be the only thing left that’ll... destroy the geodes.”

“Wait,” said Twilight, “There’s a way. Fluttershy, use your power, but then let me use my Variable on it. Instead of yourself delving into their soul, I’ll switch you with Sunset.”

Flutteshy blinked in surprise, but then nodded quickly in enthusiastic understanding, “Yes, that might work. Sunset, hold onto my shoulder. You too, Twilight. I’ll amplify your power when you use it.”

Sunset and Twilight both did so, taking up opposite positions and placing their hands on Fluttershy’s shoulders. Sunset was careful to keep the black flames from getting close to any of her friends. While the heat seared her, it remained largely contained around the blade of Hokori itself, so the girls were relatively safe as long as they didn’t come into direct contact. She carefully laid a hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder, who then raised her own hands to place above Gaia’s stomach, just above where the geodes were embedded. Golden light flowed from the palms of her six hands like a soft and gentle river.

“Englightment Technique: Reflections Upon Still Water.”

Just as Fluttershy felt her soul start to delve into the combined souls of Gaia and Gloriosa, Twilight activated her Variable, and that momentum shifted over to Sunset. Sunset felt her soul energy mix with Gaia’s, and then her consciousness slipped away into that vortex of co-mingled souls.

The world around her fell away like grains of sand, and she felt herself pulled into the tulmetious storm that was the combined soul of Gaia Everfree and Gloriosa Daisy.

Episode 128: Dark Depths of Memory

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Episode 128: Dark Depths of Memory

Pulled upon by gentle strands of comforting light, Sunset felt her soul drift down through a flicker of void before she found herself land upon hard packed, dry earth. Her vision blurred with the grasping claws of vertigo for a moment, but with a steady breath she shook it off and took stock of her surroundings. She stood poised upon a trailing forest path, but one that was left suspended in a field of shadow, as if pained upon a dark canvas. Amid this canvas the trail wound its way past sullen trees, before it joined with a field of familiar, pearl white sand. Sunset recognized the sands of Hueco Mundo itself, although what she saw was only a fragment of that realm, joined with the shadowed forest. Beyond that the paths split, with more forest trail winding out into the ether, while carved stone stairs led up from the sands into a crumbling wall of marble stone.

Sunset flinched at a faint ache of pain from her right hand, and upon looking at it, she gasped in sharp reflex.

She was no longer in her gleaming red and gold armor of Bankai, but rather was wearing a casual outfit she might have chosen to wear any other normal day; practical dark boots, dark blue pants, a maroon colored shirt with a logo from a favorite game franchise on it, and her signature black leather jacket. She also wasn’t holding Hokori no Hikari, neither blade or shield present, yet she could still feel them within her. Was it because she was inside Gaia and Gloriosa's soul that she couldn't fully manifest the Zanpaktou tied to her own? She couldn't be sure, but she knew for a fact she was still able to summon some of her Zanpaktou's power, most evidenced by the fact that her right hand was surrounded by a flicker of black fire. However, what ha made her gasp was the state of her right hand. It was burned badly, as if she’d had a bad encounter with a kitchen stove and hadn’t healed yet. The pain was prevalent, but somehow dulled to the point that she could endure it.

It must be because I didn’t let go of the Kuroihi Moegara technique before Fluttershy and Twilight sent me in here. Even as a projection into someone else’s soul, these black flames still burn. I wonder if my hand is even worse off on the outside? Damnit, Sunset, there’s no time to worry about that! I have to find Gaia and Gloriosa.

Not allowing any further distraction or hesitation, Sunset swiftly set down the path, heading for the stone wall with the stairs attached to it. As she moved she heard the sounds of the forest reach her, but they were dulled, as if hearing them through a wall. Halfway down the trail, she saw movement to her right, and paused, searching the dimness between the darkened trees.

“Glori! Slow down! I can’t keep up!”

Was that Timber’s voice? It was faint, but Sunset was certain that was Timber Spruce. Squinting, she spotted two forms running between the trees, and as they go closer she saw them, a pair of young children who were likely not even into their early teens yet. One was clearly Timber Spruce, as gangly limbed as ever, even as a young boy. The girl who was running ahead of him, laughing, did resemble Gloriosa Daisy, but Sunset could see elements that were off, such as the yellow eyes, and strands of green in her otherwise magenta hair.

“Hahah! C’mon Timber, you’ll never guess what I found out here the other day. It’s so cool, you won’t believe it!”

“But, huff, do we have to, ugh, run all the way out here? Mom and dad will get mad,” Timber said as the pair crossed Sunset’s path. Neither child looked as if they could see her, and continued on through the trees, Gloriosa turning to jog lightly backwards to smile at her brother. Even moving backwards she was nimble across the uneven forest ground, like a sure footed deer.

“I know, that’s why I wanted to show you now, before they get back home. They always take hours whenever they go hiking. We’ve got time. Now hurry up! It’s not far now!”

Once the pair had crossed over to the other side of the path, Sunset kept watching them, and the images of both children faded into puffs of dust. Yet, before Sunset could so much as blink, the images of the forest shifted, revealing a large, overgrown outcrop of rock with a wide, dark cave opening. Before it stood the two children, Timber staring up at the cave in awe, while Gloriosa stood in front of him with a pleased grin on her face and her tiny hands planted proudly on her hips.

“See? Told ya it was cool! And it’s so close to the camp, too! I bet we can use it as a fort to play in! Imagine camping in here!”

“Uh, is it safe?” Timber gulped, peering into the cave’s yawning darkness, “What if a bear is using it or something?”

“Nah, I already checked for tracks when I found it earlier,” Gloriosa said with a child’s supreme confidence, “I didn’t look inside too deep, though. I wanted to do this with you, little bro! It’ll be fun!”

“I dunno,” the young Timber said, his voice as tiny as his body as he gazed forward with unease, “Something smells funny.”

“Probably just cave stuff. C’mon Timber, don’t be a big scaredy wimp! You got your big sis Glori here to look after you, and I promise I won’t ever let anything bad happen to you!”

“We were so innocent back then...”

Sunset nearly jumped, having not felt the presence next to her before the voice spoke. Turning swiftly, she saw Gaia Everfree beside her, although her form was distorted, like looking at an image through hazy water. Elements would shift between Gloriosa’s form and Gaia’s, and Sunset realized whatever shift occurred to the image before her, also occurred to the memory image of young Gloriosa as she led her little brother into the cave.

“Gloriosa?” Sunset asked cautiously, and Gaia turned an expression towards her that was at once sharp and furious, calm and understanding, saddened and confused, all in the span of a second as her form blurred.

“Who else!? Having fun looking at my... no, it’s fine, you might as well see. Sunset Shimmer, Soul Reaper, whatever you see yourself as. Look on, if it pleases you.”

The portion of the forest shifted like sand billowing up in a whirlwind, reforming its many fragments into an image of a wide, dark cave, illuminated only by the eerie brush of light from a few cracks in the ceiling and whatever came in through the cave mouth many meters back. Both Gloriosa and Timber Spruce had reached a circular area of the cave where a stone edifice rose a few feet from the ground, surrounded by a small circle of verdant plant life.

Both children looked on with wonder at the place, and the image shifted to one of them playing around a small campfire.

“Our secret hideout,” Gaia said, “Neither of us knew it was also my altar. A shrine, kept as a place of sacrifice and worship to me.”

“You really see your memories as one and the same now,” Sunset said, turning to Gaia, “But that means your memories as Gaia are also in here, too.”

“What of it?” Gaia snapped, “Looking to peer into that life for your own gain, Soul Reaper?”

“No, but doesn’t that mean Gloriosa would know why you wanted her body? That you prepared her as a host from the start? Are you really okay with that, Gloriosa?”

For an instant the image of Gaia flickered to show Gloriosa’s human features, but rather than worried or angry, her eyes held a sorrowful light as she waved a hand towards the scenery of the cave. Sunset looked, and saw the child memory of Gloriosa picking several beautifully bloomed flowers from around the stone altar. Timber was nearby, drawing on the cavern floor with chalk. Abruptly there was the sound of a growl, and the image of a wolf appeared from the cave entrance. The two frighten children were cornered, and Gloriosa put her little brother protectively behind her as the wolf advanced.

However, unseen by both children, some of the unpicked flowers near the altar shivered, and turned towards the wolf, emanating a faint, green glow. The wolf paused, instantly whimpered, and fled the cave.

“It wasn’t the only time,” Gloriosa said, “That she protected me and Timber as we played in the forest. I never knew. Never saw her as she made sure we always found berries to eat, or clear trails to follow, or led predators away from us.”

“If she’s that kind, then why is she trying to kill everyone now?” Sunset asked, not harshly, but plainly, “Gaia, were you protecting Gloriosa and her brother for any reason other than to keep them around to use? I’m not accusing, I honestly want to know the truth. That’s why I came here, to learn who you really are, and what you and Gloriosa both truly want.”

“Oh?” said Gaia, her paler, marble features now becoming prominent as she turned and advanced on Sunset, gripping Sunset by the neck with a swift motion. Sunset, however, didn’t resist. Gaia didn’t squeeze her neck, just held it, anger and pain on her own face as she pointed at the black flame in Sunset’s hand, “Then what do you call that!?”

“A last resort,” Sunset said calmly, reaching up with her left hand to gently touch Gaia’s, “I want to give you a chance to show me everything from your point of view. Both of your points of view. Don’t misunderstand, I’m prepared to do what I have to to keep you from hurting my friends or any more innocent people, but dammit Gaia Everfree, if you’re so set on this path, then at least show me why!”

Those dark eyes narrowed, and Gaia’s voice came out as a pained whisper, “You actually mean that, don’t you? Very well, but I warn you... this will not be pleasant.”

Before Sunset could respond, Gaia all but threw her like a cast stone at the portion of the void that contained the white sands of Hueco Mundo. As soon as Sunset struck the sand in a hard thud, the area around her swirled out, more and more of Hueco Mundo’s vast desert landscape coming into being around her. Yet something about it seemed different. As Sunset stood, brushing sand off her pants, she noticed that the sky wasn’t as dark as she remembered Hueco Mundo’s sky to be, and if she hadn’t known better, she could swear she saw a few stars twinkling in it’s sky.

Even the sand beneath her feet felt different. More vibrant. And, to her shock, as she looked around, she could see patches of grass, a paler shade of green than normal, but grass nonetheless. There were even a few trees, lively and green, and bearing odd looking but plump, purple fruit.

Next to her, the stone wall she’d seen turned out to be part of a tall, marble tower, covered in ivy. Sunset blinked as she heard birds singing, and saw a few odd, white doves, but with Hollow skull masks, flying from the top of the tower. At the tower’s base was a pair of ivy enshrined doors, which swung open as two women strode out.

One was Gaia Everfree, wearing a loose, white gown forged of glittering leaves and flowers. The other woman Sunset didn’t recognize, but she was tall, athletic, with milk white skin and ringlets of hair of purest gold. She wore a white toga, leather sandals, and had a headband of winged gold in her hair. The woman’s features were lean and severe, but not without a motherly quality to them. Her voice matched her features as she said, “I’m warning you Gaia, as a cousin, do not take this matter lightly.”

Gaia laughed, a carefree, silvery sound, “Glory, our kin fighting is as common as the breaking of dawn. Let the boys settle things in their way. Tirek and Ares cannot get enough of swinging their swords at each other, and before you know it, they’ll have the Norse lot in on it, too. Personally I’ll enjoy the show from the sidelines.”

“That is exactly what I’m warning you of!” said the woman named Glory, her voice deepening, “There will be no ‘sidelines’ this time! It will not stop this time! You haven’t been hearing the things I have, because you choose the life of a recluse, dearest cousin, but I have been in the halls of our Mother and the other Divine Courts. This war will not be like the others. All the ill will Mother has ignored for so long is boiling over this time. It is not a mere warrior’s competition between Tirek and Ares, but hate. It is the same for many others. Rivalries are coming to a head. Bitterness is ruling the hearts of the gods, not reason. Neither Mother or Father grasp this. I need more voices of reason in the Soul Palace to make them see the truth of things! I ask one last time, Gaia, please, come with me to help stop this before it’s too late!”

Sunset could see hesitance be born briefly upon Gaia’s features before she shook her head and laughed again, although more nervously this time, “This is Medley talking, isn’t it? Filling your head with nonsense again. The gods war, Glory. It settles our disputes, gives us ways to separate predator from herd. It is natural. Conflicts always resolve themselves, in time. You’re worrying too much.”

She reached out a hand to touch Glory’s shoulder, but the golden haired woman’s eyes flashed to icy gold and she slapped the hand aside, leaving a startled Gaia starring at her.

“Fool. If you do not see it now, perhaps you will after your realm is left in ruins. I have given you fair warning. The rest is on your head. I’ll find someone else to help me stop this madness, then. Goodbye, cousin.”

Glory turned to leave, although as she did so there was a stiff breeze and the sound of a light impact on the sand as someone else arrived, having seemingly just appeared there. He was a young man with light brown skin and a head of rich, darker brown hair that fell around his head like a lion’s mane. His features were strong, but this was in contrast to his awkward demeanor as he gave the two women a shy smile and wave. He wore a set of polished, light armor of silvery metal that conformed to his muscled physique, and a familiar white coat that Sunset recognized as the kind a Soul Reaper Captain might wear, although the design was odd, with a large collar and no visible symbol on it. The man did carry a katana at his side, a Zanpaktou, although something about it seemed off to Sunset, just like with the Captain’s coat.

“Hail, Glory. And, um, hail Gaia. It’s good to see you well.”

The man spoke in a formal voice, but one that was filled with youthful inexperience and a barely disguised admiration as he looked at Gaia, reddened, and quickly looked away. Glory crossed her arms and sighed.

“Scorpan. Did Mother send you to fetch me?”

“That she did,” replied Scorpan, which left Sunset near gaping. This man didn’t look much older than twenty! He barely looked old enough to shave. This was the ancient, frighteningly powerful Captain Commander of the Gotei 13!? Just how long ago was this memory? Then again, given that Glory had name dropped a Greek god, Sunset was starting to feel like this whole trip down memory lane was going to leave her feeling well out of her depth.

Scorpan, clearing his throat, said in a more officious tone, albeit still laced with nervousness, “The Soul Queen requests your presence back at the Palace, um... immediately. There’s to be a council.”

“Of course there is,” Glory said with a hiss of breath, “There will be talk, talk, and more talk, while our realms, both mortal and otherwise, bleed. Very well, Scorpan, I’ll come along.”

“Um, yes... very good,” Scorpan looked, if anything, confused as Glory strode past him, and then with a wave of her hand, opened a portal that looked unlike anything Sunset had seen yet. A shining silver gate, like the entrance to a fortress made of mercury, appeared in the air and Glory stepped through without another word.

Once she was through, Scorpan gave Gaia an awkward smile, “I’m sorry I have to go so quickly. I would’ve liked to have heard you sing again.”

Gaia’s response was to smile back, although Sunset could pick up on the more friendly nature of it that showed not actual hint of interest in Scorpan’s plain-as-day crush. “I’m not likely to ever return to the Palace, after my last argument with Medley. Hueco Mundo suits me just fine.”

He gave the area a flat look, then shrugged, “I’ve never understood the appeal, myself, but brother Tirek truly seems at home here.”

“Glory spoke of war.”

“Oh, yes, Tirek has drawn another line in the sand. I’m not even sure what it’s about this time around, but there’s more than a few in the Palace halls talking of teaching him and his loyalists as lesson after they went a bit too far with the ‘living’ souls,” Scorpan said, his face now solemn as cold stone, “I may have to cross blades with him myself this time around, but I’m sure things will simmer down in due time. They always do.”

“But they didn’t.”

This time the voice wasn’t from the Gaia of the memory, but the present Gaia Everfree, who’s image blurred into being next to Sunset Shimmer as the scenery of the memory around her froze in place. Sunset looked to the former Second Espada with troubled eyes, gesturing at the scene.

“What was this?”

“The beginning of everything going wrong,” Gaia said, eyes filled with sorrow and fury, especially as she gazed at the memory of herself, “I should have listened to Glory. She at least knew what was coming. I, in my naïve ignorance, only learned later...”

The image blurred once more, but so abruptly and harshly that it left Sunset stumbling, vertigo filling her head as she was suddenly blasted by the sensation of heat. Smoke filled her nostrils, along with the scent of scorched flesh, blood, and the decay of death.

She stood on a battlefield, but that word alone didn’t do what she saw justice. Hueco Mundo stretched infinitely around her, but the piling of bodies left mounds akin to hills between the dunes. Blood flowed like rivers through the sands, and pillars of flame burned bright amid the heaps of dead. Many were the beastly shapes of Hollows, but many others were people clad in armor and bearing weapons from a dozen different ancient cultures. Amid the bodies there were also creatures, rather than humans or Hollows, many of which looked to Sunset as if they were taken straight from the pages of human mythology, including the hulking remains of what looked like several dragons!

Whole landscapes were blown to craters as large as stadiums, while other areas were frozen over like glaciers. Still other parts of the hellish landscape had been melted away or turned to glass, while others still were left riven with canyons and ravines carved by unmitigated power.

As far as Sunset’s vision stretched, the death and devastation of an incomprehensibly massive war lay around her.

Amid this, Gaia Everfree stood, wounded, battered, but holding a Zanpaktou covered in blood. She held a corpse, one Sunset couldn’t even tell was Hollow, human, Soul Reaper, or something else entirely, but she ate the corpse in big, hungry mouthfuls, consuming the soul with the voraciousness of a Hollow.

“There you are...”

The voice was deep, masculine, and commanding. It dripped with the power and authority of a born ruler, and from the smoke of battle strode a man whose height dwarfed others and whose bright right skin contained a wealth of muscle. Dark hair and eyes gazed out from a face of such strong familial similarity to Scorpan’s, there could be no doubt that this was the Captain Commander’s brother. Tirek. His own golden blade was slick with blood itself, although his body bore far fewer wounds than Gaia’s.

Gaia, finishing her ‘meal’, turned to him with a scornful glare, her lips still red and slick, “You. You have done this to us! Is it worth it Tirek? Hueco Mundo is painted red with our blood as well as the enemy’s! When will you have had your fill!?”

He looked at her, and Sunset could feel the echo of his reiatsu, even through the memory. It was one of the few things she’d encountered in her life that terrified her. That unimaginable corona of pure, destructive spiritual pressure was like trying to stand in front of a tidal wave.

This is what Adagio’s up against? What we’re up against?

She shoved down her fear and watched as Tirek loomed above Gaia, reached out with his ominous hand... and simply laid it upon her shoulder. His voice did not raise, yet it struck like thunder.

“I did not start this war. But I will be it’s victor. They hate us, Gaia. Glory and her ilk. The Soul Queen will not intervene. This is no longer a game, no longer competition, no longer ‘settling disputes’. This is genocide. For us, or them. I know you suffer, but know this... we will make them suffer more. They call us Hollows? They intended that as an insult. I say we take that name upon ourselves and wear it with pride. Yes! We are Hollows!”

He took his hand off Gaia and touched the empty hole in his chest, then pointed at the one mirrored upon her own body, “These holes, these places where our souls lack the soft feelings that torment our brethren, these will be our badges! We will no longer shackle our natures, Gaia. We shall indulge them fully. Consume souls, become stronger, and in time, we shall be the ones to claim all realms and create a world where this mindless destruction is not repeated.”

“Hmph, you truly believe that, don’t you? Even after all this? What are our numbers after this battle Tirek?”

“We’ve lost much, but so have our foes. They’ll need to lick their wounds. In the meantime, we will cultivate more Hollows, and seek out the strongest of our kind. Vasto Lordes, Arrancar, I shall assemble the remaining warlords of Hueco Mundo. We’ve fought in too many separate war bands. That changes after today. Ten... yes, the ten mightiest of us shall be banded together as one.”

Gaia’s eyes narrowed, “Under you?”

“Under me,” Tirek said, his voice absolute, and he smiled down at Gaia, “Unless you think you can challenge me?”

She stared hard at him, then, after a moment, bowed her head, and kneeled. Tirek’s smile deepened.

“Good. Then let us go, Gaia, and gather our surviving comrades. This battle is done, but this war, I promise you, is far from over.”

The scenery around Sunset blurred away, leaving her with a sensation of falling amid darkness until a second later she felt solid ground beneath her feet. She took a moment to shake the disorientation from her head, blinking to see that she was standing in a unfamiliar place. White stand indicated Hueco Mundo still, but the unusually bright, blue sky above wasn’t at all what she would have expected. She stood in front of what looked like an impossibly vast wall that stretched up in white magnificence to an unseen point, and ran left and right in a wide, curved arc that disappeared from view. It was almost incomprehensible how large the wall was, and when she looked behind her she could see odd, circular towers, or squat, square buildings of stone dotting a desert landscape, all leading up towards an insanely huge central tower.

Gaia was there, her blurred form still switching between Gaia and Gloriosa’s features, and when she spoke, it sounded more like Gloriosa, her voice soft, “We’ve tried so hard to protect what we cared for, but it never worked, Sunset. I, she, Gaia never wanted war. She wanted to be left alone.”

“What are you children doing here?”

The voice wasn’t directed at Sunset, and came from the direction of the wall. She hadn’t really noticed it earlier, but while most of the expansive, marble edifice was bare, there was a section nearby that was overgrown with ivy, flowers, and a number of small trees and plants near its base. There, Gaia, or rather the Gaia of the past, stood with her arms folded as she gave a glare towards three young girls, perhaps in their early teens, who were wearing tattered white rags. One had a hair of rose red locks, with crème white skin, while the second was a pale pink in color with equally pale green hair, and the last was similarly pink but with a shock of sharp blonde hair. All three girls looked frightened, and one of them still held a bundle of flowers, apparently just taken from the garden.

“We didn’t mean anything!” said the one with the flowers, the rose headed one, “We just thought the colorful things were pretty.”

“Don’t eat us, p-please!” stammered the green haired girl.

As Sunset looked at them closer, she realized they all had Hollow holes at various parts of their bodies, along with bone-like fragments around their eyes, all in floral patterns. Arrancar. She started to put together that this place was that Las Noches place that Twilight had mentioned, where the Quincy had attacked. So this was the fortress where Tirek led the Hollows from? This must have still been fairly far in the past, however, if Gaia was still here, presumably as an Espada.

“You don’t even know what flowers are?” Gaia asked, sighing deeply, “You poor things haven’t been to the world of the living yet, have you? But your mask fragments certainly have the look of flowers. Is that part of why you decided to pick a few from my garden?”

“I told you we shouldn’t have, Rose!” said the blonde girl, causing the other sister to puff up her lips in a pout.

“Be quiet, Lily, or you might make the Espada even more mad at us!”

“We are so, sooo dead,” cried the third, green haired sister.

Gaia made a sharp gesture, a small gust of reiatsu flowing out of her that instantly caused the three young Arrancar to go quiet. After a moment, Gaia’s features softened somewhat and her voice became inquiring, although still sharp edged, “There’s too many like you, these days. Orphans from irresponsible parents who indulge in Tirek’s encouragement to... produce more soldiers. I suppose he’s bothered me long enough about finding some Fraccion, and if nothing else you appreciate nature’s beauty. I shall spare your lives-”

Before the girls could cry out in excitement or relief, she held up a finger and narrowed her eyes, “On the condition that you assist me to tending to my garden and run any other errands I might require. I do not accept freeloaders, am I understood?”

“Y-yes ma’am!” cried the one called Lily happily, while the other two sisters looked at each other and shared a smile.

“Does that mean we’ll get to eat?” asked the green haired one, and she was soon elbowed by Lily.

"Daisy, don’t be rude! She’s sparing us! That’s enough, I’d say!”

With a quiet laugh, Gaia shook her head and turned towards where a narrow opening between the ivy led into the wall, and she gestured over her shoulder to the girls, “The three of you won’t do me much good if you don’t grow up strong, so yes, you’ll get to eat. But do not consider it a handout. You will work for your meals, understand?”

“Yes, Mistress Gaia!” all three girls chimed, following her into the wall.

In a wash like wind blowing wet paint across a canvas, the scene changed again, showing a much larger, well tended garden, with three grown women Arrancar happily standing beside their mistress as Gaia helped a new set of rose bushes grow.

“I found a moment of the happiness I’d lost in the war,” the real Gaia said, standing next to Sunset and looking at the scene with a face of raw pain, “Lily, Daisy, and Rose. Three young flowers who I took into my care on a whim, but they brought me... a sense of contentment. I'd always enjoyed helping things grow, even in harsh environments. It's what drew me to Hueco Mundo in the first place, in the time before 'Hollow' became a term for what our kind became. I taught those three how to tend to my garden, and act as my Fraccion, but I never let them enter into battle. I feared losing them. It was a mistake, not letting them learn to fight, but I thought my position as Second Espada was such that no one would ever dare lay a finger on them for fear of my wrath. I was such a fool...”

“Gaia, wait, I- '' Sunset began, wanting to ask questions, but the vertigo returned, thrice as strong as the scene shifted in a hurricane whirlwind of stand and dust to reform into a start white hallway with cool blue floor tiles. Gaia stood in front of a set of large, red stone doors, and knocked upon them with a distinct look of pensiveness pinching her features.

“Tirek!” Gaia said, “Tirek I need to speak with you!”

The tall red doors of stone, each one certainly weighting dozens if not hundreds of tons, moved as someone pushed them open. Who stood on the other side.

Sunset’s face heated up scarlet, even as her spine also tingled with an absolute chill.

She’d seen Chrysalis once before, during the incident in Soul Society, up on the Sokyoku Hill. She hadn’t really gotten a close look at the Arrancar, but she certainly had an eyeful now.

Chrysalis stood as naked as a jaybird, her ebony glory on full display as she moved with a panther’s grace to step out of the doorway and made a show of stretching her hands over her head and yawning as if having just awoken. Every curve of her jet black flesh oozed a sensual allure, the dark skin reflecting the cold light of the hallway and somehow transforming it into a heated flare that only drew the eye to every enticing part.

Even Sunset, who didn’t really see herself as swinging that way, felt a flush that was hard to deny. However, that feeling was accompanied by a chilling sense of danger and fear, the kind of feeling Sunset imagined the fly must feel as the spider descended towards it while caught in the web.

“Oh, Gaia,” Chrysalis said, her voice lustful silk and wolfish playfulness, all wrapped up into one, “Good morning. Looking for Tirek? He’ll be up soon, I imagine. I just can never seem to tire him out for long.”

“...Chrysalis,” Gaia said under her breath, “I didn’t know you and Tirek had become so... well acquainted.”

“Didn’t you? It’s been a year, at least. Then again, you so rarely leave your garden, don’t you? Really, my friend, you need to get out more. I know, why don’t we take a little excursion sometime to the human world? A girls night out, just the two of us,” Chrysalis slide forward so fast that Sunset hadn’t seen it happen as the woman traced onyx fingers over Gaia’s jaw, “I know of all sorts of things we could do that would just be delightful.”

Gaia stiffened, and slowly raised a pale hand to push Chrysalis’ aside, her voice schooled to iron firm neutrality, “Another time, maybe. There’s an urgent matter I need to talk to Tirek about concerning the sightings of Soul Reapers in the deep southern regions. There’s reason to believe it’s the Eleventh-”

Suddenly Chrysalis’ finger touched Gaia’s lips, “Shhh, he already knows.”

With a halting step back away from Chrysalis, Gaia snapped out, “How? I only just heard from our scouts and came straight here!”

“The scouts from Torch’s horde, yes?” Chrysalis yawned again, turning to lean against the doorframe in a casual manner as she crossed her arms beneath her considerable chest, her green eyes flashing with pleasure, “They’re so slow, compared to my children. I’ve had eyes on the Soul Reaper’s operations since they began shuffling through their little portals a few days ago. Lord Tirek is well aware.”

“But... but why would he have not have told the rest of us!?” Gaia said, eyeing Chrysalis sharply, “Why haven’t you told the rest of us, if you had this knowledge, Sixth Espada?”

The way Gaia said the number, it was meant to be a clear reminder of Chrysalis’ lower position. Sunset finally did notice that there was a stark white six tattooed upon Chrysalis’s upper right breast. If being reminded of her relatively weaker standing compared to Gaia meant anything to Chrysalis, she didn’t show it. She merely smiled that thin smile that straddled hints of amusement, seduction, and murder all in one.

“Because why bother? Tirek has entrusted me to deal with the matter, for now. No reason to get the other Espada involved. At least not yet. But if you’re just so eager, Gaia... instead of the human world, perhaps you’d like to come help me pay the Soul Reapers a visit? Bring your little flowers with you, and I’ll bring my newest born. It’ll be a family outing. Oh! Like a picnic!”

“Newest born...?” Gaia’s eyes narrowed, “Just how many so-called ‘children’ can you possibly have? I don’t care how much you’re laying with Lord Tirek, no Arrancar can produce offspring like that. Is this just a pet name for more of those clone-like drones of yours? I’d hardly call those children.”

Something changed in Chrysalis’ eyes at Gaia’s words. Sunset had a hard time recognizing it at first, but soon she recalled that glass-like, frozen hint of fury. Captain Platinum had looked at Sunset with such eyes, once, only Platinum had worn her rage freely on her wrist, whereas with Chrysalis... it wasn’t hidden, per se, so much as it was intermixed with something else. Some other emotion that twisted the hate into a different emotion altogether.

“Envy doesn’t become you, my friend. I’m merely blessed with abilities beyond normal Arrancar. And I’d thank you not to insult my children, no matter how much or little power I’ve invested in them. Also, don’t speak like that again in front of them, especially my precious Thorax.”

Gaia frowned, but said, slowly, “So you’ve named one, now? This is the first time I’ve heard you refer to one by name.”

That frightening look vanished from Chrysalis eyes and was replaced with an almost insane amount of sugary warmth, so much it felt even more terrifying, in it’s way, “Oh yes! My Thorax is such an adorable little one right now, but he’ll grow up big and strong, as long as he’s well fed. That’s why I’ll bring him with me to say hello to the Soul Reapers. Soul Reaper flesh is so much more nourishing than normal souls. And I’d best eat my fill too, so I can ensure he has a few siblings. Can’t have him growing up as a spoiled only child.”

The unease in Gaia was palpable, but so too was the forcefulness of her dismissal of it as she waved a hand and said, “I don’t need to know the details of your... reproductive ambitions, Chrysalis. If you’ve been assigned by Lord Tirek to deal with the Soul Reapers and require the assistance of the Second Espada, I’ll be generous and accompany you. But you’ll have to succeed on your own merits. Don’t expect me to step in if you get in over your head.”

“Aww, that’s so sweet, you’re worried about my prospects of promotion. You’re such a true friend, Gaia. Whatever would I do without you?”

The scene playing out froze in place, then, and Sunset was left to give a questioning look towards the real Gaia Everfree, who’s distorted form hovered nearby, staring at the image of Chrysalis with naked hate in her eyes.

“So, uh... you two were close?” Sunset asked, jabbing a thumb towards Chrysalis.

“No,” Gaia said in a frozen hiss, “I don’t think anyone or anything can get ‘close’ to that creature. I felt from the start that she was dangerous, but had no idea just how dangerous until it was too late to do anything about it. She wriggled her way into Lord Tirek’s bed, and while I doubt she was ever truly in control of him, he still listened to her council more and more as the years passed. She overtook rival after rival, dethroning the likes of Torch and Catrina, until that Six she wore became a Three.”

“What’s with that whole thing about the Soul Reapers?” Sunset asked, and Gaia waved a hand.

“Just another battle in a long line of battles, but it was the first time I realized how far Chrysalis had extended her network of spies and scouts, using her ‘children’ to gain information that she only dolled out at her own pleasure rather than for the good of Las Noches. The Eleventh Divisions attempt at establishing a permanent outpost was routed, although Tirek himself came out to deal with that matter when the Eleventh’s Captain at the time proved... troublesome. It’s no matter, now. There’s more to show you.”

“But hold on, why show me these particular images? I get that you hate Chrysalis, but-”

“You. Know. Nothing,” Gaia said, her voice dropping an octave, “Not the depths of my hate. Not yet. But if you demand to enter my soul, demean what I’ve had to do, to merge with Gloriosa, then you will watch, until the end. Then you can tell me if my, our, hate is something you think you can assuage with mere words!”

The transition this time was swifter and harsher, like getting caught up in a whirlpool. Sunset had to close her eyes against the swirl of dark, heated colors that swam past her vision. The vertigo clawed at her head, but as much as it was intensifying, she was getting used to it, and needed less time to clear her head before she opened her eyes upon the next vision.

She stood in a wide, long chamber, with similar white stone to the hallways she’d already seen, along with the dark tiled floor. Raised stone steps lined either side of her, upon which distinct thrones of marble stood, four on either side, and a final two seated upon the far end. One of the thrones at the end was erected far higher and larger than the rest, set to preside over the others in a place of obvious dominance, with its partner throne set just a little lower and to the left.

Sunset guessed she was still in Las Noches, and that this had to be the meeting hall of the Espada.

So this is where Adagio sits, now. Looks like a cold, uninviting kind of place. Hope she finds a way to spruce it up.

Putting that idle thought aside, she looked around for anyone present, but saw that the room was empty. At least, until the massive doors at the opposite side of the First Espada’s throne swung wide and Gaia stormed in, dragging another woman Arrancar in behind her by the literal hair before throwing the other Arracnar forward with such force that they struck the base of the far step hard enough to crack the stone.

“Where is she!?” Gaia’s voice rose in a lioness’ roar, “Where is my Rose!? I swear upon my throne as an Espada I’ll leave your corpse strung up here for the others to gaze at if you don’t tell me what you know, Catrina!”

The other female Arrancar picked herself back up while rubbing the back of her head. Sunset saw that she was a rather beautiful woman herself, in the same league as Gaia, if not quite up to Chrysalis’ uncanny looks. Dark brown skin and a head of elegant red hair combined with chiseled Roman features, and Sunset noticed that Catrina wore her white clothing in a toga style that was reminiscent of what Glory had been wearing, in the vision of the distant past.’

Catrina’s jade eyes glared with a defiant light at Gaia, her voice an attempt at imitating Chrysalis’ honeyed tone, “If you don’t want to lose your things you ought to keep a closer eye on them, Gaia. But before you throw me around some more, know that I have no idea where your precious Rose is.”

“You lie,” Gaia spat, stepping closer as her body became wreathed in a dangerous aura of dark purple and green reiatsu, one that Sunsest was now all too familiar with, “Lily and Daisy saw you with her yesterday, descending into the Warrens! What was she doing down there with you! Answer me now, and I’ll be gentle...”

Her aura solidified into a series of wickedly thorn imbued vines of purple energy that pointed towards Catrina like cobras, and Gaia’s hands flexed into blackened claws.

Cantrina broke out into a sweat, but kept her defiant look, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why would I even talk to one of your Fraccion? I don’t have any care for lesser Arrancar, let alone have a reason to take one down into the Warrens. Perhaps you’re finally going mad, you old shrub.”

Gaia’s aura writhed like an angry animal’s, and the portions of it that appeared as thorn covered vines shot forward faster than bullets, smashing into where Catrina was. However Catrina vanished at the last second and appeared a few steps away, her gorgeous features twisting into a sneer as her hand went to the hilt of the blade at her hip.

“I already told you I don’t know what happened to your Fraccion! If it’s a fight you’re so keen on, however, I’ll give you one!”

Before Gaia could respond, a new voice spoke from the doorway, low and sweet.

“Now what do I spy here? Is the former Fourth Espada about to fight our current Second? Quite the ambitious challenge, Catrina. I’m almost impressed.”

Catrina and Gaia both looked to see Chrysalis striding into the room with smooth, gliding steps, the smooth and form fitting white dress she wore seeming to breeze across the stone like a mist. Sunset noted that her Espada number was now ‘4’ instead of ‘6’, and from the way Catrina gazed at Chrysalis with naked hatred, it wasn’t hard to imagine it hadn’t been long ago from this memory that Catrina had been unseated.

“What is the meaning of this?” Catrina said, lips still parted in a sneer, “Trying to rub salt in my wounds? This mad woman is going ballistic about her Fraccion missing, and insists I was last with this ‘Rose’. But let me guess, you know more about this than I do, don’t you Chrysalis?”

Gaia’s eyes had fixated on Chrysalis with a challenging stare, but tension was apparent in every rigid inch of her body, with an undercurrent hinting at fear. “What do you know of this?”

Chrysalis paused, placing a hand over her chest, just above her heart, her smile brightening in a manner that only seemed to make her eyes all the darker for it, “Why Gaia, I’m surprised you didn’t come to me immediately. We’re friends, aren’t we? Rose, right? The lovely one with red hair? Yes, I’ve seen her recently. Who said she was with Catrina?”

“Lily and Daisy, who aren’t likely to make a mistake like confusing Catrina for someone else,” Gaia replied, “Just when did you see Rose. Where is she?”

Chrysalis’s smile deepened, “I believe she’s with my Thorax. The dear has been... practicing his skills. There’s nothing to be worried about, he wouldn’t hurt a hair on anyone’s head, least of all a delicate flower like one of your Fraccion.”

Confusion was plain to see on Gaia’s face, but she simply strode towards Chrysalis until she was just a pace away, doing her best to loom over the other Arrancar, although the attempt didn’t have any notable affect on Chrysalis.

“Take me to her. Now.”

“Of course. I came to do that very thing,” Chrysalis said, and waved a dismissive hand towards Catrina, “Hey you, be useful and let Lord Tirek know that Gaia and I will be indisposed for a little while. Girl talk.”

“H...hey you? Hey you!? I’m not your messenger-” Catrina began, but Chrysalis just tilted a look her way, and Catrina’s voice halted. Her jaw clenched like she was chewing rocks, but she silently prowled her way out of the room, leaving Chrysalis and Gaia to follow soona after.

Sunset guessed the next memory wasn’t far removed from this one, since the transition didn’t even change Chrysalis or Gaia themselves, the pair walking from the throne room and the room around them swirling in a blaze of gray dust to reform into an intensely dark area, where only a small filter of light descended from somewhere above. Sunset could make out what looked to be the crevice of some deep canyon that they were at the bottom of, and all around her she sensed shadows moving in flitting motions.

She couldn’t make them out beyond dark, shadow clad humanoid bodies and gleaming gem eyes in the dark, but Chrysalis led Gaia to the depths of a canyon, followed by these shadows which Gaia seemed to pointedly ignore. Up ahead was a inverted pyramidal structure, suspended in the air by strands of what looked like thick, pale green and white web or resin.

At the entrance to this structure, Chrysalis paused and turned to Gaia, “It occurs to me I haven’t had a chance to thank you, yet.”

“For what?” Gaia replied.

“Since I first arrived, you’ve been quite fair to me, despite the fact that I know you don’t like me.”

“Whether I like you has no bearing on your standing. Under Lord Tirek’s rule, strength and ability is all that matters,” Gaia said simply, “I find you... unsettling, Chrysalis. But even I wouldn’t deny you’re capable.”

“See, that wasn’t hard to admit, was it? Poor Catrina, so much pride, so little cause. She’ll hold a grudge against me for eternity just because I have a higher number than her, now. She doesn’t understand. I don’t like playing with boring food. It’s so much more fun to play with friends, Gaia. That’s why I like you.”

“Friends. I’m sorry, Chrysalis, but for all your attempts, I confess I’ve never understood why you see me as a friend. You even just admitted to knowing I’m not that fond of you.”

By now they’d entered the depths of the structure, which led down strangely carved corridors until they reached a chamber with a short, domed ceiling. Light stemmed from a few glowing pieces of green resin, illuminating little save for an indistinct shadow, hanging from some manner of chain or rope from the ceiling in the chamber’s center. There was no sound save for a steady patter of something wet. Sunset, following along with the memory, caught the immediate stench of copper.

Chrysalis’ voice echoed in the chamber like a knife’s scrape across ice.

“I know. I’ve never required others to view me the same way I view them. That takes the fun out of it.”

“Chrysalis, what is...” Gaia’s breath hitched in her throat as she stepped closer to the center of the chamber, and saw what was hanging there.

“Didn’t I tell you I’d take you to Rose? Thorax brought her here, but he simply wanted to play with a new friend. He’s such an innocent boy. I’ll have a lot to work on where his education is concerned. He should know better than to bring new people to our home when I'm... indisposed. Sadly, Rose saw something she really wasn’t supposed to see, and well, what’s a mother like me to do to keep her secrets? I made it quick, if that helps. I preserved this much, since I knew you’d want to see her, but I ate the rest. It was the proper Hollow thing to do, among other reasons.”

Sunset didn’t want to remember what she saw of Rose in that memory, although it would still haunt her dreams for some time to come after that day. The remains were preserved in some kind of resin structure that ran from ceiling to floor, with blood pooling beneath. Body aside, Rose’s face, at least, had been left unblemished, almost as if Chrysalis had wanted to ensure the body could be identified by Gaia.

The memory was torn apart by Gaia’s scream, and Sunset saw both the anguish and naked fury on Gaia’s face.

“I hated her,” the real Gaia said, “But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t kill her.”

Those words echoed amid the void as the scene before Sunset melded into a sea of blood, only to reform into an image of Gaia standing in front of Daisy and Lily, kneeling in front of the two with her hands on their shoulders. They were in what Sunset assumed was the world of the living, deep in some thick, remote jungle area.

“We can’t just stay here,” Lily was saying, “Not while you go back to face that monster!”

“Please let us fight with you, mistress!” Daisy implored, “Let us help avenge Rose!”

“No!” Gaia said, standing up, but keeping her hands tight on the girls shoulders as she looked at both of the in turn with eyes fighting to contain tears, “I don’t even know if I can kill her. She came back from every wound I delt and just... just laughed... no, if I’m going to finish this, I need know you’re both safe. The temple in this basin used to belong to humans that worshiped me. It is remote, hidden. Stay here until I return. That is an order from your Espada.”

“We...” Lily’s voice lowered as she glanced at Daisy, then finally both of them nodded, “We will, mistress.”

Disjointedly, the scene fell apart, like falling tears. Sunset’s senses spiraled for a second, but soon she found herself standing back in Las Noches, in the wide desert area between the walls. An explosion of power filled the area, billowing sand up in tall clouds. Gaia, her wrathful aura on full display, faced off against Chrysalis, while a procession of other Arrancar stood around the area to spectate, including Catrina, Grogar, Tirek, and several others that Sunset didn’t recognize but was certain were Espada by the numbers on their bodies.

“I’m ending this today, Chrysalis!” Gaia bellowed, “Lord Tirek, I trust you have no objections?”

Tirek’s massive red shoulders shrugged, but his eyes watched the pair of Arrancar women with keen interest, “You know well that any Espada may challenge another whenever they see fit. If you find Chrysalis’ actions offensive, then show your power, your dominance, by punishing her in whatever way you can enforce. Of course, if she wins, then you’ll have no room to complain about what happens. This is the law of Las Noches, Gaia.”

“It isn’t too late for us to make amends, my friend,” Chrysalis said, holding out her hands, “But then again, maybe it is. Rose was an unfortunate bystander, but I suppose I can’t claim the same of the other two.”

Gaia’s eyes widened, “Other two... no! You’re lying! They’re safe, I made sure of it!”

Chrysalis smiled like a satisfied shark, “I lie a lot, but never to a friend. See for yourself.”

With a wave of her hand, a small Garganta opened up, and from it stepped one of her drone Arrancar, who in his grasp carried a pair of bloodied sets of clothes wrapped around two broken Zanpaktou, one with a pink wrapped hilt, the other yellow. Gaia clearly recognized who they belonged to, because she instantly screamed and unleashed a powerful Cero blast that flashed across the sands and incinerated Chrysalis’ drone in an instant.

Chrysalis’ smile turned sour, yet her eyes still sparkled, “I don’t appreciate seeing my children being slaughtered, but turnabout is fair play, so I won’t fault you for that, especially given my score is still higher in that regard.”

“I'm going to kill you. I swear it on their names!” Gaia cried, and drew her Zanpaktou. Chrysalis did the same, that smile never faltering from her face as she unleashed a deep, emerald green aura of spirit energy to match Gaia’s. The ground shook between the pair, and all the watching Arrancar either leaned forward with intense interest, or stepped back out of cautious fear, depending on their respective powers. Tirek’s eyes in particular gleamed like gold gems as a small smile cracked his stoic features.

Then everything vanished in a searing flash of light, and Sunset found herself surrounded by a deep, pervading darkness.

Gaia’s voice, the real one, Sunset thought, echoed around her.

“I couldn’t do it. Despite all my power, all my hate, all my sorrow and pain driving me forward, I failed to kill her. I lost, utterly and completely... I lost everything. But even that wasn’t enough to satisfy Chrysalis.”

When Sunset could finally seeing something again, it was of a familiar area. She was surrounded by the damp darkness of the underground area beneath the Everfree Forest. Here, Gaia’s body was being laid down upon a raised mound by Chrysalis. Gaia’s body was hard to recognize as it was either in the present or in her prime. It was an emaciated thing, the skin shriveled and withered, her hair missing in clumps while the pieces that were left were dull and without luster. Wounds covered her, gangerous and rotted, with ugly bruises over her limbs suggesting countless harsh breaks in the bones. Chrysalis was placing a set of bone-like spikes into Gaia’s limbs, pinning her to the ground, although there was a very bizarre gentleness to the way she moved, as if she was a mother trying not to wake a sleeping child.

Gaia stirred, a pained moan on her lips, her bleary eyes fluttering open. Chrysalis finished implanting the last spike and made a cooing noise, “Shh, we’re almost done here, Gaia.”

“Ch...rys...lis...ha..te...you...” Gaia struggled to rasp, “Kill...me...just...kill...”

Chrysalis shook her head, eyes mad in the darkness with a light of emotion that Sunset couldn’t begin to fathom, “Kill you? My best friend? No, never. I truly did mean it when I thanked you that day I showed you Rose. You’ve made life in Las Noches so much more fun than it would’ve been otherwise.”

Finishing her work, she stood and brushed some stray hair from her charcoal features, a contemplative smile on her face as she gazed down at the ruin of Gaia Everfree. “Can I confess something? The reason I killed Rose, that day. You never found out, despite all your snooping. I'll admit it was fun watching you wonder, but since this will likely be the last time we see each other, I'll give you this parting gift.”

Chrysalis reached down and touched her stomach, just above where her womb would be. There was an odd sensation then, that Sunset felt in her bones. Some kind of odd pressure that wasn’t quite reiatsu or magic, but something else that pushed at her senses like an ocean. For a moment she thought the light around Chrysalis dimmed even more, like being lined in ink.

Chrysalis leaned down and whispered to Gaia, “It belonged to the Soul Queen, but now it's mine. Rose saw while I was... exposed. Maybe she didn't know what she was looking at, but I couldn't take that chance. Tirek doesn't know, and if he did he might realize just how much of a threat I and my children are to him, so I... silenced your precious Rose. Heheh, of course, the rest was just fun and games to me, but it didn't start personal, Gaia. You were just in the way, but I had fun. I’ll climb up to heaven itself, and seek out the other parts of Her. I won't let my children be bound by the world Zero is trying to make. Instead I'll make a world of my own, for my children to play in, free of limitations. And you know what, Gaia Everfree, I want you to live to see it, withered and unable to die, pinned in this cold place surrounded by the nature you hold so dear. Watch me, my desert friend, as I ascend to the top of this wretched world and remake it however I like. Cheer me on with your hatred. It will give me joy, to know you’ll be here. Perhaps one day you'll escape, who knows? On that day, come find me, and we'll play once more. I'd like that.”

With that, Chrysalis pressed her lips to Gaia’s in an embrace that was a twisted parody of passion, and Gaia struggled with the last embers of strength she had, screaming into that kiss that drained her of the last scraps of conscious power she had. She was left a husk, alive, but barely aware of her surroundings. Chrysalis rose and with a final smile, turned away and left Gaia there, alone in the depths.

Episode 129: Entrust

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Episode 129: Entrust

Clover hardly considered herself an expert on magic, although she’d learned a fair bit more about it in recent weeks than she ever imagined she would. Even her limited amount of knowledge was enough to tell her that the reactions she was seeing inside the seizure inducing lightshow around the wavering portal to Equestria was enough to tell her things were bad. Very bad.

She quickly ran over options in her head, and found precious few she liked. She had neither the knowledge or power to try and stabilize the portal. She doubted any Bakudo-class Kido she used would do more than mildly mitigate whatever catastrophic energy release was possibly minutes from occurring. While she might be able to grab Timber Spruce and evacuate herself and him to a safe distance using Flash Step if she left right this second, that would still leave her friends battling Gaia above behind, not to mention the innocent human students still in the nearby Camp Everfree, and the injured, unconscious Captain Luna-

“What’s the situation, Third Seat Clover?” Captain Luna said, while Clover remained in deep thought.

“I’m trying to figure out how to get everyone to safety, Captain, including Captain Luna, who’s in...jured...?” Clover blinked and looked over, glancing up and down at Luna’s disheveled, bloodied, but very much conscious and mobile form as she stood there next to Clover.

“Captain! You’re awake!”

“Barely,” Luna said, wincing at Clover’s shouting, “I awoke just a moment ago, and rather than get in the way of the battle above, I decided to see what the disturbance I sensed down here was. I can see that things are dire indeed. That is the portal to Equestria, is it not?”

“Y-yes,” Clover said, eyeing the ever growing and intensifying swirl of chaotic portal energies that crackled on the ground below, “Starswirl’s theories regarding its reactions to both local magic and his own experiments using that Arrancar girl’s Garganta seem to have been accurate. With so much magic nearby, there’s no telling when the portal will collapse, and considering the trap that was lain within...”

“I am aware,” Luna stated, closing her eyes briefly as she focused upon her spiritual senses. Suddenly her eyes snapped back open, mouth opening agape, “Discord and Ditzy? So they came.”

“What?” Clover said, while at the same time Timber Spruce leaned forward from the cocoon he was still stuck in, his head craning to get a look around him.

“I don’t know what either of you are talking about, but if that swirly thingie is about to blow, we got to get everyone away from here, pronto! The campers’ safety is still my responsibility!”

Luna and Clover shared a look.

“Third Seat Clover, take him to the camp. Discord and Ditzy Doo are there, and if my guess is correct they’re already evacuating the students. Go with them.”

“What about you, Captain?”

“I’ll try to find Starswirl. He has to be somewhere nearby. He’s likely the only one who might know a way to stop, or at least slow down, the portal’s self destruction,” Luna said, voice heavy. Clover nodded and gave a brief salute before turning to Timber Spruce. He’d already pulled a number of the vines from his body, and Clover helped him deal with the rest in short order. By the time Clover was able to drag Timber free of the cocoon and hold him so he didn’t fall, Luna had already Flash Stepped away, vanishing from both view and spiritual sense.

“Hold tight,” Clover told Timber, “Can’t have you falling to your death just seconds after freeing you.”

Timber’s grip was weak but he managed to hold onto her shoulders as she started leaping across the air towards the bank of the dry river, where Camp Everfree lay surrounded by a wall of giant vines. Timber’s voice was shaky as he looked back at the massive, transformed tree behind them and said, “What about my sister?”

Clover didn’t look at him, simply replying, “The only thing we can do is trust that Sunset Shimmer and my other friends will be able to get through to her.”

----------

Cold, snow covered ground met Sunset’s body as she fell to her knees, momentarily overwhelmed by what she’d seen. Her head pounded, and she was having trouble discerning if the tightness in her chest was all her own emotion, or if being here in Gaia and Gloriosa’s combined souls were affecting her directly. She even felt a wetness on her cheeks from tears shed, possibly because she had felt Gaia’s anguish from her past, and possibly because Sunset herself could easily empathize with what the Arrancar had gone through.

She couldn’t even imagine how she might feel if she’d seen her own friends killed in such a manner. The hate Gaia had to feel towards Chrysalis was... overwhelming. Justified, but no doubt drowning. No wonder the woman was in such a foul mood. Sunset doubted she’d be in any better shape after enduring what Gaia had.

Sunset certainly felt a fair bit of hot anger herself towards Chrysalis. It wasn’t as if Chrysalis had been more than a secondary issue during the whole incident with Starlight Glimmer and the Soul Society, but now Sunset realized the current Second Espada was just as if not outright more dangerous than Starlight was. It was hard for Sunset to grasp why Starlight would even ally with such a person, save that Starlight’s own desperation for help might have driven her to consider any options on the table.

Putting those thoughts aside, Sunset stood and looked around to get her bearings. She was back in the general void-like landscape of Gaia and Gloriosa’s mind, in a portion of Everfree Forest that was coated in deep frost and snow, with the branches heavily laden with winter’s touch. Sunset could feel the cold bite at her skin, and it wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling, bringing back memories of her confrontations with Platinum.

“Gaia?” she called out, “Gloriosa? I know you can hear me! I... I can’t tell you how sorry I am to know what Chrysalis did to you. No one should ever have to go through what you have. That’s why I’m more determined than ever to get you to listen to me, because if you really want to avenge Rose, Lily, and Daisy, then we’re not enemies!”

As she spoke she turned around, looking through the thick layers of frozen forest. As the last words left her mouth she saw a burst of motion from between two trees and barely had time to get her hands up to defend herself before Gaia’s own hand was around her throat. Sunset was slammed back into a tree, held there as snow fell from its branches in piles around her and a furious looking Gaia who held her tight with one hand.

“Aren’t we!? You work with the Soul Reapers, who aren’t any better than Chrysalis. Maybe they’re worse. At least Chrysalis made it clear to me what she is, in the end, and didn’t act as if her actions were part of some ‘greater good’. At least she knows she’s a monster. But Soul Reapers? They’d have killed my flowers too, and pretended like doing so was justified, all part of protecting their precious ‘cycle’ of reincarnation!”

Sunset gripped Gaia’s hand with her left one, not quite prying herself free but keeping herself from choking entirely. Her right hand still burned with the black flame, and Sunset had an instinctive notion that if she willed it, she could forge that flame into a facsimile of Hokori’s blade and strike at Gaia here and now, maybe even fatally.

But she didn’t. She kept her right hand down, and passively limp. She met Gaia’s burning eyes, filled with such pain, fear, anguish, and Sunset spoke with a voice husky with a lack of hair but filled with a passionate assurance of understanding.

“Believe me, I know why you don’t trust the Soul Reapers. My friends and I, we fought them too, when we had to. We invaded Soul Society, to save people we cared about from unjust Soul Reaper law. We’re not blindly on their side, Gaia. I just don’t want you slaughtering them, either. There’s another way to do this, if you’ll just listen.”

“Why should I trust you?” Gaia asked, not loosening her grip on Sunset’s throat, but not tightening it either, “You expect me to believe that if the Gotei 13 came for me, you’d stand in their way? It’s ridiculous enough to think you invaded their home and walked away free. What reason do I have to believe your story? Besides, it’s not just me you need to convince...”

With a deep breath, Gaia’s expression changed, her eyes turning somehow greener, her face now less filled with rage but more distrust and pain, “We’re both in here, Sunset Shimmer.”

“Gloriosa?”

“Yeah,” Gloriosa said, “Twilight and your friend Fluttershy’s ability has me and Gaia a bit more separate than usual, but we’re going to go right back to being one and the same soon enough. By choice, in case you haven’t figured that out yet.”

“You... want to be merged with Gaia?” Sunset asked, and Gloriosa’s lips quivered with a flurry of emotions that was mirrored by the hoarse nature of her voice.

“Beats being powerless to protect my home and family, doesn’t it? Gaia and I, we share the same kind of pain, and the same desires. I feel more complete with her as a part of my soul than I have in... in my whole life. I owe her. But more than that, with her, I can get my own bit of revenge. Gaia isn’t the only one who lost people she loved.”

A howling whistle of heat sapping wind blew through the forest and, like a layer being peeled away, the snow on the ground was shown to have two bodies underneath its cold embrace. They were lying side by side, clutching each other, as if for warmth. A man and woman, their skin, hued dusky orange and bright lavender respectively, had been paled by the frost that had killed them. Their clothes, while rugged for moving through the forest in perhaps spring or summer, would have done little to save them from the kind of arctic chill that Sunset could feel in the air now. Although the features of the man and woman were still partially obscured by their ice streaked hair and remaining clumps of snow, Sunset saw enough to understand who these two people had been.

“...Your parents,” she breathed, and Gloriosa’s eyes blinked away tears at Sunset’s words as she silently nodded.

“But,” Sunset said, “This was an accident, right? Something that happened because of bad luck. There’s nothing here to take revenge on.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, Sunset Shimmer,” Gloriosa said, “Gaia showed me the truth. When I merged with her, I saw everything from her memory, including what happened the day my parents died.”

Suddenly the area shifted, much as it had through the many scenes of memory before. Only the viewpoint didn’t move far, brushing past perhaps a hundred yards of dense forest, past the cavern where Gloriosa and Timber had once played in. Now, Sunset saw a larger clearing, one covered in a denser layer of frost. The only foliage not covered in snow was an orchid flower, glowing with faint magic, aimed upwards.

“Gaia sensed the danger but she couldn't do anything. She was still too weak,” Gloriosa said, voice growing thick with freshly remembered pain, “I remember that day they went out. I didn’t know they’d been bringing Gaia sacrifices of small animals they’d hunt in the forest. They’d done it hundreds of times, in perfect safety... except for that day. When this happened.”

Sunset looked up into the sky, and saw it. A familiar plane of floating ice, surrounded by curved, talon-like pillars. She was only seeing it from below, but she knew that atop that flying island of pale blue and white would be a magnificent palace fortress of ice.

Platinum’s Bankai. Seeing it momentarily shocked Sunset into dumb silence. It took her a second to process the sight, and realize that there were sounds of battle stemming from above, somewhere on top of the huge, floating iceberg. With her shock wearing off, Sunset started making the mental connections, her mind snapping back to what Discord had told her and the girls about Xcution’s final days.

About how the mothers of her friends had battled with Captain Platinum, only barely scraping out a win. That the battle had taken place in the Everfree forest.

“Oh no...” she said, “Your parents, they were here when it happened. When Platinum unleashed her Bankai.”

Sunset remembered the kind of effects released when Platinum had simply used her Shikai, let alone her Bankai. A localized blizzard, even if it had happened in the middle of summer, wouldn’t have been impossible. And it wasn’t as if Platinum had ever paid much attention to collateral damage during their own fights, so Sunset wasn’t surprised that if Platinum used her Bankai in the Everfree Forest that anyone within a few hundred yards would have easily been caught in it.

“Platinum?” Gloriosa’s eyes narrowed, “I knew it was a Soul Reaper who did this, but I didn’t know their name. How do you know it!?”

Her grip on Sunset’s throat tightened, but Sunset fought back now, using her hand to grip back harder and pry Gloriosa’s hand loose enough to speak, “I know it because I fought Platinum, too! I know what happened the day your parents died. I know why this fight took place. If you listen, I’ll tell you everything.”

“I’ll make you do that anyway!” Gloriosa shouted, “What was it!? What Soul Reaper bullshit caused me and Timber to lose our parents!? Then tell me why I shouldn’t want to kill every last one of them!?”

Where could Sunset even begin to explain things? She could tell Gloriosa about Xcution, but would knowing the truth be enough to compensate for the pain of losing loved ones? Would knowing about Sunset’s own struggles alongside her friends against Soul Society and the truth about why Platinum had done everything she had make a difference in the anger and pain Gloriosa was feeling? But she had to try. Both Gaia and Gloriosa were more intimately tied into everything that had happened in the past than Sunset could ever have guessed, but that just meant that there was even more reason to try to reach out to them.

The black flames burned fierce in her hand, but the wrath she needed to hold onto that power just couldn’t find purchase in Sunset’s heart any longer. Not now that she knew the full extent of Gaia and Gloriosa’s pain, and how it tied into everything.

If I could just share with them all of it, all that’s happened, all that I’ve been through and seen. Words aren’t enough. They have to see. I just want us to understand each other, if I could just get through all the barriers separating us...

Even if words couldn’t be enough, Sunset knew she had to try, even if it killed her. Just like when she’d wanted to reach Twilight when she’d been overcome by magic, or when she’d chosen to help Adagio after the siren had been injured, or even when she’d tried to understand Platinum during their battle. Sunset wanted to reach people, to burn away the barriers that existed between them.

In that moment she felt a sensation like something ringing inside her soul, a deep chime that reached outwards from herself. And something inside Gloriosa and Gaia’s combined soul responded with a resonant chime of its own, and a flood of warmth. A fiery orange shimmer emanated from inside Gloriosa’s body, and before Sunset’s eyes the orange geode emerged, glowing like a small star.

“What...?” Gloriosa said, her expression flickering between her’s and Gaia’s.

“Gloriosa... Gaia... I refuse to be your enemy any longer. I’m choosing to trust you. And to show you the truth from my point of view,” Sunset said, not even fully aware of the words leaving her mouth, as if instinct was directing her more than conscious thought as she let the black flames leave her burned right hand and reached out to touch the geode.

The moment her fingers closed around the geode, she felt a flood of magic snap into place inside her, like an open floodgate. There was an instant flash of her mind becoming entwined seamlessly with Gaia and Gloriosa’s, and then everything came bursting out of Sunset and into them. Sunset’s life since arriving in the human world. Her numerous mistakes culminating in Princess Twilight leading the girls in defeating her. The long road to forgiveness, redemption, and a brighter life with the best friends she ever could have asked for. Their own trials against the sirens, and paying her own redemption forward by helping the human Twilight find her own.

Then the Hollows, Clover, discovering her Zanpaktou, and all that came afterward. Gaia and Gloriosa got front row spiritual seats to every battle, every discovery, every triumph, and every defeat, through harsh training, Grand Fisher’s schemes, Celestia and Luna’s arrest, and the harrowing invasion of Soul Society. They saw it all, straight through to Chrysalis and Starlight’s reveal as the masterminds behind so much pain, the final battle with Platinum, and after all was said and done the newest set of events that led to the very moment they now shared.

It all happened in that one flash, and in the silence that followed the only thing Sunset could hear was Gaia and Gloriosa’s combined heavy breaths as the woman staggered back, hands on her head. She’d let go of Sunset, leaving the girl room to breath. Rather than take advantage of Gaia and Gloriosa’s distracted, vulnerable state, Sunset knelt in front of them, a wane smile of understanding on her face. The geode was still warm in her right hand, but she used the left one to reach out to Gaia and Gloriosa.

“Do you understand, now?”

The woman across from her looked up at Sunset in a swift, halting motion, eyes wide, her features blurring between both Gaia’s and Gloriosa’s, like two oil paintings mixing together. Fluttershy and Twilight’s combined powers might still be keeping elements of the two separate for now, but Sunset could sense that wouldn’t last much longer, regardless of how this turned out.

“We do. You and your friends are neck deep in this war, by chance and choice both, it seems.”

Gaia’s more assertive tones took over for a moment as she straightened herself and began a stalking pace in front of Sunset, like a tense lion still deciding when it should pounce, “I’m not surprised Chrysalis found another dupe to play friends with. Hah, that Starlight Glimmer will learn the same hard lesson I did what that creature considers ‘friendship’ to be.”

“Reason enough for us to not fight,” Sunset said, “You know now that both of them are in my home world, plundering magic for their own ends. My friends and I want to stop them. If you joined us, you’d get your shot at Chrysalis again.”

Expressions flickered rapidly across Gaia’s face, Gloriosa’s softer visage coming through as she spoke, this time to herself, “There’s sense to what she’s saying, Gaia. We can’t get at Chrysalis and Platinum on our own.”

“I know that!” Gaia shouted back at herself, or rather, Gloriosa, “But what of the Soul Reapers? They won’t just ignore us. Not after the damage we’ve already done. They’ll come for us, one way or another. Can these girls stop them?”

“We’d be willing to try,” Sunset said, stepping closer, hands out to her sides in a placating gesture, “You’ve seen us go up against them before. We’d be willing to do it again, to protect you and Gloriosa.”

This time it was Gloriosa’s eyes that sent a mixed glare her way, one half angered, but also now considering, even sympathetic, “I saw. You fought Platinum. You beat her...” the anger grew an octave, “You let her live.”

Sunset took a deep breath and let it out slowly, her voice quiet but firm, “Yes, because I had no reason to kill her. I know what you’ve lost, Gloriosa. I won’t tell you not to be pissed off at Platinum, but you know now that what happened wasn’t intentional. My friend’s parents fought her, and I doubt either side knew there were innocent bystanders nearby. Are you going to blame my friend’s parents, too?”

“No, but I have to blame someone. Accident or not, it doesn’t change that my parents are dead, and that Timber and I had to grow up without them,” Gloriosa said, but before Sunset could speak again, she held up a hand, “But... I’ve seen enough in your memories to know your friend Applejack went through the same thing. She had it even worse, because Soul Society was more directly involved in her parents deaths. And she somehow can stomach working with them. She even considers that Clover a friend. I... I get it, Sunset. I can’t tell you that I won’t hate Platinum. Me and her have a score to settle, same as Gaia has with Chrysalis. I don’t know if I’ll kill her when the time comes, but I still have to face her, one way or another.”

Sunset nodded, but a part of her felt the need to say, “She’s done some messed up things, but all of it was for her son. I’m not saying it absolves her, but...”

“I know,” Gloriosa said, “But that’s going to be between me and her when the time comes, otherwise you and I might as well finish what we started here and now.”

Sunset swore under her breath, but figured that was probably the best she could hope for from Gloriosa, given the circumstances. “Fine. So, Gaia, does this mean you’re both willing to trust me?”

As the woman’s features wavered like a candle light between Gaia and Gloriosa’s, it eventually settled back onto Gaia’s more familiar visage. Her eyes gauged Sunset, looking to the glow of the orange geode in Sunset’s hand. Her own hand lowered to her stomach where the other geodes would normally be, and her eyes closed in thought. Then, slowly, with a tired quiver of her lips, she opened her eyes again and said, “Do you really know what you’re up against, if you harbor me?”

“I’ll... probably have to confront the leadership of the Gotei 13, including Captain Commander Scorpan,” Sunset said, “And chances are the Quincy aren’t going to be happy about it either. Then again, there’s always Adagio...”

“No,” Gaia said, “I’ve seen your memories of her. While I admire that one’s guts and ability to carve a place for herself in my former home, I have no intention of returning to Las Noches. Even if I felt I could remain hidden, I doubt Tirek or Chrysalis would respond well if they discovered my return, and as much as this Adagio Dazzle has grown, she couldn’t protect me from them if I was in easy reach inside Las Noches itself. I’d honestly be safer here, throwing my lot in with you and this Discord fellow.”

“You know Discord?”

“Only what you know. He might have become a Captain in and around my time, but I paid little attention to the Soul Reaper’s Twelfth Division. I honestly couldn’t say. Personally, from what I’ve seen of your memories, he appears to be a shifty individual, but I’ll take my chances.”

Sunset allowed a sense of hope to finally burn bright in her chest, and she offered out a hand, “So then...?”

Gaia looked at her hand, then with a final look of reluctance that gradually turned to acceptance, she grasped Sunset’s offered hand. However she did hold up her other hand with a held up finger, “Truce. For now. But I want it understood that this is a trial period. If I so much as catch a whiff of betrayal from any of you, any hint that you won’t hold up your end of the bargain, we’ll be right back to Plan A, understood?”

“Completely,” Sunset said, letting herself have a smile that was mostly just the release of a significant amount of anus clenching tension that had left her exhausted.

After a few silent seconds both women let go of each other's hands and looked around at the mindscape.

“Um... so does this end naturally, or do we have to find an exit door-” Gaia, more in Gloriosa’s tone, began to ask, when abruptly the entire void-like expanse flashed with brilliant golden light and Sunset felt the sensation of being lifted up as if on a warm, soothing wind.

-----------

Sunset’s eyes opened up to the real world once more, still kneeling in front of the empowered Gaia Everfree with Fluttershy and Twilight with their hands on her shoulders. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were poised nearby with lance and lightning spear still at the ready. Rarity had exited the head of the towering knight of crimson she had created, which itself was still keeping the Tree Colossus bound by a network of blood red chains. Rarity joined them on the Colossus’ head, as tense and cautious as the rest of Sunset’s friends. Well, except perhaps for Pinkie Pie, who was enjoying some popcorn that she had acquired from... somewhere.

Ignoring that, Sunset took a deep breath and looked at Gaia’s face, measuring for any sign that the woman was indeed no longer a threat.

“Sunset, did it work?” asked Rainbow Dash, every muscle in her body tense.

“Yes,” Fluttershy was the one to reply first, taking her hand off Sunset’s shoulder, “I believe it did.”

There was a breath holding moment before Gaia slowly held her hands out to the side, even the rose vines of her lower body slowly lowering as she glanced at Fluttershy, lips half parted in a coy smirk, “Watching the show, were you?”

Fluttershy folded her six arms in front of herself and simply nodded, “I couldn’t see, but I did feel what Sunset and you were feeling. I know both the pain, and reconciliation that took place.”

“Gaia,” Sunset said, standing up slowly, “The magic in your body, you need to let go of it now. There’s still a lot in there, way more than you can control for much longer.”

Gaia’s gaze switched to Sunset’s, with bits of green and violet energy still spilling from her eyes, “Like I don’t know that. Back your friends off, and I’ll do as you ask.”

“Ya sure ‘bout this, Sunset?” asked Applejack, “Can we trust her?”

In answer, Sunset held out her right hand. The black flames around Hokori had dissipated, and as she set the sword down, she revealed that in her hand now also rested the shining orange geode. Her friends all stared, Twilight gasping, “When did that get there?”

Sure enough, the geode was missing from Gaia’s stomach, where the other six were still embedded. Sunset shook her head, saying, “The geode called out to me, when I was in Gaia and Gloriosa’s soul. It let me show her my own memories. Everything we’ve been through together. It’s what made the difference.”

Gaia made a faint huffing noise. “It may have given me a different perspective on you and your allies. Enough to make me decide to take a chance on you. ...Huh?”

“What’s wrong?” Sunset asked, noticing that Gaia was now wearing a concerned look. The Arrancar was looking at her hands, which were exuding a flickering aura of magic that, rather than lessening, was only growing thicker.

“I can’t make the magic stop,” she said, voice growing more worried by the instant, “It’s not obeying me.”

“The geodes!” Twilight exclaimed, pointing at the gems, which were now all growing brighter, “I think with one of them missing, the other six are unbalanced.”

“Uhh, guys?” Pinkie Pie said, her body going through a set of spasms as her right leg shook like a seismograph, leading up her spine to her head, where her eyes practically spun in her head and her hair stood up like a terrifying pink feline, “I just got a dozy of a bad feeling! I think we need to get those geodes outta her, stat!”

“I don’t suppose we can just remove them by force?” Rarity said, just as the aura of growing magic around Gaia’s body started to randomly spark with arcs of purple and emerald energy that burned arcs through the top of the Tree Colossus, which itself was starting to behave erratically, swinging its arms around like a drunkard and emitting a crazed howl.

“My, my head!” Gaia grasped her head with both heads, “Feels like it’s burning up. I can’t...!”

Sunset refused to let herself panic. She looked at the orange geode in her hand. It must have responded to her for a reason. She’d been in this kind of position before, with wild magic running out of control. The geodes were filled with so much raw magic that it was inevitable that Gaia would have lost control, and with one of the seven geodes no longer a part of her body, it made sense that her ability to keep it all under control was now slipping away. But rather than put the geode back in with its sisters, Sunset had a gut feeling that she knew what needed to be done. The same gut feeling that had caused her to pick up the mic during the battle of the bands against the Dazzlings, and led her to trust in the magic of her friends to help her confront Midnight Sparkle.

“Everyone,” she said, “Gather around me, now!”

Her friends all shared brief looks with one another, but they’d been in this position before as well, and trusted Sunset. They all rushed to her side, and as the energy around Gaia started to become a swirling corona of out of control magic, Sunset clasped the orange geode close to her chest, and reached out with her other hand towards the remaining geodes.

“This magic is the same kind that’s seen us through so much together. If we reach out to it, the magic will respond, because we’re the ones meant to be its conduits. Now all of us, together!”

One by one her friends reached out their hands, guided by feelings deeper than even instinct to each touch one of the remaining geodes inside Gaia. Sunset gripped her own geode tightly and focused all of her will upon the thought of safely channeling the magic out of Gaia, and repaying the trust she’d been given by both Gaia, Gloriosa, and her friends.

With a rush of noise like a thousand power plants surging at once, there was a burst of rainbow light that flew outwards in a wavering ring for nearly a kilometer around them. Sunset was knocked on her butt by the wave, but it wasn’t more than a second later that she opened her eyes to a clear blue sky above her and her friends.

Gaia’s body was slowly losing its transformed state, the vines, thorns, and rose bulb of her magical Resurreccion fading away in flakes of green light until she was left standing in her mostly human body once more. Her eyes were heavy with exhaustion, and she sagged to one knee, thoroughly spent. Then Gaia’s gaze looked up at Sunset and the girls, her eyes reflecting seven points of light.

Above each of them hovered one of the geodes, gleaming with a bright but stable glow of magical light. Sunset’s orange geode, Rarity’s white geode, Applejack’s red geode, Rainbow Dash’s blue geode, Flutterhy’s yellow geode, Pinkie Pie’s obviously pink geode, and finally Twilight’s purple geode.

“Whoa,” Rainbow Dash said, “Uh, are these things safe now, or what?”

“Ooo, shiny! Let’s try touching them!” Pinkie said, then almost immediately her expression changed as Pinkamena added, “Yeah, let’s just give it a second before poking things, okay?”

“They are certainly beautiful, now that I’m getting a good close look at them,” said Rarity, carefully examining the one floating in front of her, “I actually agree with Pinkie Pie. I feel compelled to... hold this lustrous stone.”

“Don’t go all Gollum on us, Rares,” said Applejack, glancing at Sunset, “What do ya think?”

“I think they’re safe,” Sunset said, reaching up and grasping her own geode. It felt warm in her hand, a warmth that she noticed was holding back quite a bit of pain that remained from using the black flames. She sighed and looked to where she’d set down Hokori. It’d be hard to carry her Zanpaktou and the geode at the same time, but before she even finished the thought, the geode flashed in her palm and transformed into a small, round pendant, complete with a thin, elegant chain. The pendant had an image upon it that instantly reminded her of her cutie mark in pony form, a stylized sunburst.

“Well, guess that answers that,” Applejack said, and without another second of hesitation she grabbed her own geode, with similar results as it magically altered form into a pendant, this one with a symbol of apples upon it, “Huh, red as a fresh apple. What do ya’ll reckon these magic rocks actually are?”

“Who cares? They’re awesome,” Rainbow Dash said, taking hold of her own and barely waiting for it to finish transforming into a pendant before throwing it around her neck, “I’m usually not much for jewelry, but I don’t mind wearing this. You think they do anything other than put on a lightshow?”

“We should be careful with these,” Twilight said, holding the pendant that her own geode had turned into, her face showing a healthy dose of caution rather than enthusiasm, “We don’t know for certain what these geodes are. I was studying them with Gloriosa and couldn’t learn much. Oh! Gloriosa, uh, or Gaia? Are you alright?”

Gaia was breathing heavily, sweat dripping down her chin, but she looked at Twilight with a half hearted shrug, “Feeling less than peachy keen, frankly. Like I just had an infinite power source torn out of me, you know?”

“It was a power source you couldn’t have controlled,” Sunset said, “Trust me, I know how it feels to go from that magic high to suddenly crashing back to earth.”

“I got a front row seat to that set of dramas as well, from that little mind sharing trip,” Gaia said, her eyebrow arching at Sunset, “So, you’re a pony from the same realm as Charbydis.”

“Charbydis?” Twilight said, and all the other girls shared questioning looks as well. Gaia waved a dismissive hand.

“I’m sure we can go over that at a later point of conveniences. Right now I... I need to get to Timber. Without the magic, I have to make sure he’s alright.”

“You should still have some power leftover,” Sunset said, “The geodes were super-charging abilities you already had, including Gloriosa’s ability to control plants. A Fullbring.”

“Wait, she’s a Fullbringer, too!?” blurted Dash.

“It makes senses,” Twilight said, “Gaia, you made sure Gloriosa’s lineage had the necessary Hollow elements to create natural Fullbringers.”

“I did,” she confirmed, “Although in Gloriosa... in me, the gift is still underdeveloped. I didn’t know what I was doing when I had the necklace of geodes. I thought it was purely magic, but now that Gaia and I are one and the same, I know it was my own power, simply enhanced by the magic. Speaking of which...”

She knelt down and placed her hand on the Tree Colossus’ head. It had ceased moving when the magic had stopped surging out of control, and now sat as still as a statue. Gaia let out a slow breath and her hand glowed with weak, flickering motes of green light. The Colossus started to very slowly sag and shift its form back into something resembling a tree. As it did so, Gaia’s eyes flickered with worry.

“Timber’s freed himself from the cocoon?”

“What?” Sunset asked, noting now that she too was sensing something odd. They all were. Every girl’s spiritual senses was starting to detect a wild fluctuation of reiatsu from down below, but more than that, the pendants they all held were glowing erratically as well, and each of them realized they could feel a strange inner twinge, like an unsteady tingle. A magical sense, warning of a vast amount of magic nearby, growing unstable.

“Something is happening down below,” Fluttershy said, her usually calm voice rising a slight octave.

“Oooh boy, I’m still getting the shakes,” Pinkie Pie gulped, “I don’t think taking the geodes outta Gaia fixed what that dozy was about!”

Gaia’s eyes widened, “Timber!”

Without another word the woman ran to the side of the shifting Colossus, which was only now starting to grow branches once again and start to look vaguely like a tree once more, and dove off the side, all but flying down towards the roots below. Sunset briefly exchanged looks with her friends before they all nodded and followed suit, jumping off the side of the tree and making a controlled fall towards the distant ground below.

As they got close to the thick congregation of roots that formed the underside of the tree, Sunset sensed familiar reiatsu and saw Clover moving rapidly away from the root system. She had Timber Spruce clinging to her back. Gaia clearly saw them, too, for she instantly altered course and with a burst of speed she vanished from sight and appeared right in Clover’s path, causing the Soul Reaper to skid across the air to a short halt.

Sunset and the girls caught up a half second later, appearing in the air around Clover, whose eyes looked between Gaia and them with a mix of confusion and hope.

“Where are you going with my brother?” said Gaia, and Clover, instead of answering her, looked to Sunset.

“She’s not fighting us anymore,” Sunset said, “We, uh, reached an understanding.”

“Are you sure? She still looks pretty mad to me,” Clover said, and Gaia growled under her breath.

“You can always go back to uselessly casting Kido at me if you like, Soul Reaper. My truce with Sunset can be annulled just as fast as it was made, because as weak as I may feel at the moment, I’m still plenty ready to finish this.”

“G-Glori?” said Timber, “Is that you in there, or... or the other one?”

Gaia’s eyes instantly flinched with a spark of pain, and soft sadness as she said, “Timber, it’s me. I... I’m still your sister. I’m just... more than your sister, now. It’s hard to explain-”

“She soul-merged with a powerful Arrancar from super-duper long ago and now they both share the same mind and soul, like mixing together peanut butter and jelly into a very cranky sandwich,” said Pinkie Pie, which earned a glare of ire from Gaia.

“Do not simplify the complicated ritual of my rebirth by merging with Gloriosa Daisy into a... a... common lunch item for children!”

“Children? I eat that all the time!” Pinkie Pie said defensively.

“Same here,” Rainbow Dash said, “PBJ’s are the best!”

“Guys! Focus!” Sunset said, then quickly added in a breathless rush, “Timber, your sister is okay...ish. Now, are you okay, and Clover, what the heck is going on? We’re sensing something weird down here.”

Timber cleared his throat, still looking at Gaia with worry filling his eyes, but said, “I’m okay. I think. The wound I had is mostly closed now, but it still hurts.”

“As for what’s going on,” Clover said, she simply turned and gestured back towards the tree, “See for yourselves.”

The girls, Gaia included, all looked, and now easily spotted the flashing, writhing oval of growing bright light of various prismatic colors that was filling up the space beneath the tree. Gaia took in a sharp breath while Sunset let out a shocked gasp. Twilight stared in open horror as she said, “Oh no, the portal!”

“That what I’m thinkin’ it is?” said Applejack.

“The portal to Equestria,” Sunset groaned, running a frustrated hand through her hair, “I don’t believe this! Dammit, it must have been damaged by the tree forming underneath the lab!”

“Yes,” confirmed Clover, “And now it appears to be going out of control due to all the magic that was being channeled into the area due to the tree and Gaia’s use of the geodes. I, um, noticed she doesn’t have those anymore.”

“Yes,” drawled Gaia, “My... ugh, the geodes have somehow bonded with Sunset and her allies, transforming into particularly tacky necklaces in the process.”

“Leave the fashion critique to those qualified, darling,” said Rarity, quickly clearing her throat, “Although that aside, we have a rather large, portal shaped problem that’s rather more important at the moment. Anyone happen to have any ideas on that front?”

“Captain Luna went to go search for Captain Starswirl, who we hope might have a solution,” offered Clover, and Fluttershy sighed with relief.

“Oh good, she’s okay. I didn’t see her where I left her on the way down, so I was worried she might have slipped off when the tree turned into that giant monster.”

“If she’s looking for Starswirl, he was with some of my fellow Quincy when I last saw him,” Twilight said, and at the questioning look from the others she added, “Not as a prisoner or anything. We had reached a sort of friendly standoff, and possible arrangement. At any rate, hopefully Captain Luna doesn’t cause any issues when she finds him.”

“More importantly, will the good Captain have a way to stop this portal from...” Rarity paused, and glanced at Twilight, “Actually, what is it doing? Clearly it’s unstable, but what’s likely to happen if nothing is done?”

“Uh, theoretically? It could rip open a rift in space that might lead to any number of different realities, perhaps even more than one. It might keep growing until it consumes the entire world. It might also just explode in a burst of raw energy that, at best, might just destroy the Everfree Forest, but more likely it would take out Canterlot City, perhaps even a good chunk of the state. And I suppose there’s a very small chance it might also collapse in on itself and just cease to exist, with minimal damage. That’s the best case scenario, but I wouldn’t count on it.”

“That’s encouragin’,” Applejack drawled, “An’ I don’t much fancy waitin’ fer that Starswirl fella ta show up an’ hope he’s got a solution.”

“Twilight, you’ve studied magic more than anyone else here. Can you think of anything we can do before this ends up blowing up in our faces?” asked Sunset, and her friend removed her glasses to briefly wipe sweat from her face before putting them back on and whispering something to herself. Sunset noticed Twilight was holding the purple pendant tightly to her chest.

“Midnight...” Twilight said hesitantly, “She says that we might be able to stabilize the portal with the power of the geodes, but only enough to ensure whatever happens remains localized. We’d essentially be creating a magical barrier around ourselves and the portal, guiding its energies inward. But...”

“But?” Sunset pressed.

“But the portal will still release an incredible amount of energy,” Twilight said, “A potentially lethal amount.”

“And that’s not including the trap that was put in the portal by Trixie,” Rarity noted.

“So what does that mean?” said Rainbow Dash, “If we do this, what? We’re toast? We save Canterlot City and Camp Everfree, but we’ll be stuck trying to survive a ground zero blast of crazy portal magic?”

“That’s the layman’s version, yes,” said Twilight, hand opening up for her to look uneasily at the pendant in her hand, “We have to use all seven together, I think. The magic these geodes channel was designed to work in harmony. If even one isn’t part of it, the magic will likely only grow more unstable.”

“There... has to be another way, right?” said Clover, looking around at the girls almost frantically, “I’m sure Captain Luna will get Captain Starswirl in time.”

“We can’t wait,” Sunset said, sucking in a deep breath as she felt herself grow oddly calm, “This portal could blow any minute. If we don’t do this now, then everyone we’ve been fighting to protect may well end up dead.”

She let out that breath slowly, wondering if her friends were feeling the same as her. “I know I can’t ask you to-”

“Aw shut it, Sunset,” Applejack said, “Ya know we’re with ya, no matter what.”

“Seriously,” Rainbow Dash grinned, “Don’t even try that lame ‘you don’t have to do this’ speech. As if we’d let you even think of trying this alone.”

“We do tend to accomplish impossible tasks as a group, don’t we?” Rarity said, her hand touching the armored portion of her chest, “Although I know how Sunset feels. I don’t want to risk any of you.”

“Our options seems few, and time even more limited,” Twilight said, “I can’t say our chances of survival are even in the double digit percentiles, though.”

That certainly seemed to be the case, as every passing second the pool of wavering energy grew in size and became even more wild in its fluctuations, coating the area in a flickering sheen of multi-colored light and filing the air with a buzz of vibrating power.

However, before the girls could start to enact their plan, Gaia stepped past them all and stood, gazing at the portal. She glanced back at them and said, “Enough with the heroics. I’ll deal with it.”

“Wait, what?” Sunset said, just as Timber blurted out, “Sis?”

Apprehension filled Gaia’s exhausted stance, but her face was set in a stone hard mask of stubborn determination, “This entire mess is my own creation. Both the part of me that’s Gaia and the part of me that’s Gloriosa aren’t about to balk from that responsibility. I can handle this.”

“Not to claim you can’t, but how?” asked Fluttershy, “You no longer have the geodes.”

“No,” said Gaia, “But... I can still feel them. They’re connected to you now, yes, but I think they’ll still respond to me, if you gave me the pendants.”

“Heh, yeah right, like we’re about to do that-” said Rainbow Dash, but Sunset held up a hand and stepped closer to Gaia, starring her in the eyes.

“I trust you, Gaia, but are you sure about this? You don’t know if you can make full use of them now that they’re not a physical part of you.”

“I used them as Gloriosa when they were just a makeshift necklace. Pretty sure I’ve got this, as long as I’m physically holding them,” said Gaia, and there was an earnest, raw look in her eyes as she said, “Sunset Shimmer, please, trust me. Let me do this.”

“But what if you don’t survive? What about Timber?”

“Yeah, hello, me standing right here?” said Timber, voice desperate, “Glori, what are you thinking!? You can’t survive something like that exploding in your face, no matter what kind of wacko powers you’ve got now!”

“I know that,” Gaia said, turning to face her brother. She moved up to him and placed a hand delicately upon his cheek, her hard features softening to a kind, loving smile, “I’m sorry, Timber. If I don’t come back from this... well, it’d be unfair of me to dump the responsibility of looking after Everfree on you. So just live however you want, brother. Long as you find a happy path in life, that’ll be enough for me.”

“I don’t want to hear this!” Timber said, grabbing her hand and squeezing it tightly, “Glori, don’t do this!”

“There’s no time, Timber. I’m not going into this planning to die, but if this body doesn’t survive what comes, understand that I’ll still love you, and that it won’t be the end. Death isn’t an ending.”

She pulled away from her brother and gave a hard look at the rest of the girls, “No more arguing. Either give me the pendants, so I can fix my mistakes, or go sacrifice yourselves, but either way, we have to do this now!”

There was a moment of uneasy looks between Sunset’s friends, but Sunset herself was already holding out her pendant to Gaia, “I’ll entrust this to you, until you can give it back to me. Hopefully in a few minutes.”

Fluttershy was next to give her pendant to Gaia, setting it in the woman’s palm next to Sunset’s pendant, “I’ll trust you as well. I’ll also lend you what power I can through my Fullbring, if you’ll let me.”

“I’ll take whatever help you’re willing to give,” Gaia said, and looked to the others, who each in turn slowly gave her their pendants.

“I’ll use my knights and as many crystal constructs as I can muster to form a shield around you,” Rarity promised, “I’ll try to time it the instant it looks like the explosion will take place.”

“I’ll also use what little magic I have left to reinforce that with a magic barrier,” Twilight promised, “I don’t know how much good it will do, but every bit might make a difference.”

“You’re all quite concerned over me, given I was trying to kill all of you a short while ago,” said Gaia, and she found Pinkie Pie smiling next to her with an elbow on her shoulder.

“It’s kinda our thing, GG. You’ll get used to it!”

“GG?”

“Gaia/Glori, duh!”

“Ugh... perhaps death will be preferable...” Gaia muttered, then with a rueful shake of her head she clasped the seven pendants in her hand and faced the portal, “Oh well, no more stalling. I’ve got this.”

“Wait, Glori!” Timber called out as she flew away, rushing towards the pulsating nimbus of light that was the portal. “Dammit, let go of me!”

Clover wasn’t letting the weakened human go, her own expression pale, “I can’t do that. Your sister is doing this for your sake.”

“If we’re gonna help her, we’d better get to it!” Applejack said, “Can’t do much with my Fullbring, but dang it I can’t just sit ‘round neither!”

“Clover, keep Timber safe. We’ll be back, hopefully with Gloriosa,” said Sunset, and with that she and her friends followed Gaia, albeit at a distance. They couldn’t afford to get too close to the portal, because that would defeat the point of Gaia taking on the task of stabilizing the portal herself, but they had to be close enough that Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight could offer their own support to try and protect Gaia and Gloriosa’s combined body.

They settled for a distance of about a hundred meters away, where Sunset used Hikari’s shield to erect a luminous barrier around her friends, just in case the portal’s collapse would extend further than they thought it would. Meanwhile Rarity called down the giant knight she’d created, and as she did so it disassembled itself back into its component knights, a swarm of two hundred crimson constructs that landed on the ground in a neat set of rows.

Rarity didn’t waste time, sending the knights with shields forward to form a protective formation around Gaia as she approached the edge of the portal. Rarity then summoned forth more of her power, a whirlpool of blood springing up from the knights to then form a series of interlocking crystal barriers, creating a layered shell around Gaia that still left a front opening so that Gaia could focus the power of the geodes at the portal.

Fluttershy in the meantime closed her eyes and clasped her hands in front of her. Then a single golden hand of energy grew from her halo and flew forward, connecting to Gaia by lightly touching her back. Fluttershy poured forth her spirit energy, using it to restore and reinforce Gaia’s own reiatsu as much as she could.

At the same time, Twilight raised her bow and formed a reishi arrow, channeling magic, every last dredge of it she could muster. The arrow grew in size and gained several magical circles around its tip. Twilight then fired the arrow to a point just above the crystal shell that Rarity had made, causing the arrow to burst with a thin, translucent aura of violet light that fell around the shell and reinforced it with a magical barrier.

“That’s it,” Sunset said, “It’s all on her now.”

“Gloriosa,” Twilight said, her voice filling with regret, “It’s my fault she got mixed up in all this. If she dies...”

“Twilight, we’re all responsible in different ways. What matters now is that we do what we can to make things right,” said Fluttershy, “And we do that by doing all we can to help her, now.”

“Looks like it’s show time,” Rainbow Dash said, as the portal started to bulge and warp, its energies growing ever more bright and unstable.

In response to this, Gaia raised her hand that was holding the seven pendants, and stared into that flickering corona of otherworldly energies.

Within her mind the seams between her memories and personalities as both Gaia Everfree and Gloriosa Daisy were smoothing out. Fluttershy and Twilight may have briefly pulled them slightly apart, but the amalgamation of the two souls was fundamentally irreversible at this point. And she was at peace with that. Gloriosa had wanted to protect her home, and recognized a kindred spirit in Gaia, whom she didn’t see as a monster at all, but rather a guardian who’d looked after the Everfree Forest and Gloriosa’s family for so long. In turn, Gaia found herself admiring the human soul that had worked so hard to keep Camp Everfree afloat, and never wavered from her devotion to the land or her family. In many ways, Gloriosa reminded Gaia of the qualities she’d wanted to cultivate in Rose, Lily, and Daisy.

There was no hesitation on either of their parts in accepting one another as equals when becoming one.

Now, Gaia felt a pang of irritation at herself for going off the rails so readily. Her hatred of the Soul Reapers hadn’t really gone anywhere, but it was certainly eclipsed by her hate of Chrysalis. Gloriosa’s own desire to confront Platinum mirrored that, albeit not quite to the same red hot fury Gaia held. Ultimately seeing all of Sunset’s memories and knowing both Chrysalis and Platinum waited out there somewhere to be dealt with had been plenty motivation to call off her own attack. Perhaps more than that, however, was the trusting nature Sunset had presented. Even armed with black flames and ready to fight, Sunset had still been willing to put herself at risk to reach an understanding with Gaia.

It wasn’t every person who had the willingness to go that far. Little wonder the girl had ended up surrounded by so many loyal friends.

Even if we’re gone, she’ll protect Timber, Gaia thought, and then focused her attention fully upon the portal. She had no intention of simply dropping dead for this magical anomaly, but whatever the consequences to her own body was, she had to prevent it from consuming the home she’d fought so hard for.

She could feel the magic inside the pendants. It felt subtly different from before, as if the magic was less constrained, but also more focused. As if the magic had found the shape it was meant to take. Gaia remembered how unusual it was when she found the geodes. It was her first encounter with magic, but it had somehow reminded her of her early days among the ‘gods’ of old, when spirit energy had more freely been used to perform feats most might call magic. Indeed, it kind of reminded her of how the Soul Queen’s absolute power of reishi had been able to reshape the world around her, and how that transcendent spirit energy had felt different from others.

Kind of like this magic, to a degree. Not identical, but like a sister energy, existing on the same spectrum.

It had felt natural to Gloriosa when she’d used the geodes, and Gaia wondered if perhaps the magic itself had made part of that choice, rather than just Gaia leading Gloriosa to the geodes. She also wondered if Charbydis had any knowledge of what the geodes really were? Well, far too late to ask, now. She had no idea if Charbydis’ end of the ritual had gone as planned. If so, she might need to explain to Sunset Shimmer that she had another problem on her hands, even if the portal was fully stabilized. Gaia wasn’t so much afraid of Charybdis, as simply recognizing an entity of power on a similar scale to herself, and with a personality entirely too much like other schemers in Las Noches. Not as crazy as Chryalis. More akin to that Adagio Dazzle, now that Gaia thought about it. Very much like Adagio Dazzle, up to and including the nature of siren magic...

Shaking that thought off, she steadied her breathing and mentally called to the magic in the pendants. Even if they were now attuned to Sunset and her friends, they still seemed to recognize Gaia as someone they would respond to. It was less like commanding a power, and more like sending out a call for help, and hearing an affirmative response. She didn’t even have to do much directing. The magical energies all but seemed to read her thoughts and know what it should do. If anything, Gaia felt a sudden instinct on what she should do, as if the pendants were feeding her mind instructions.

In that flash of knowledge she tapped into her Hollow powers, and brought forth a Garganta in the center of the destabilizing portal. In a way, Starswirl had been very close to his breakthrough. A Garganta could replicate the Equestrian portal, but it needed more than just raw magic, it needed harmonic magic. Magic wasn’t just one element, but a combination of numerous elements born of thought and emotion. If one used too much of just one element, magic became unbalanced. That was why when they formed their greatest harmonics, it required multiple elements, often six, but sometimes more, to form a stable whole.

No wonder she’d been going berserk, earlier. Channeling that much raw magic, focused solely upon anger as its motivating element, all but instantly unbalanced what she’d been doing.

Now she focused on the elements the seven pendants were tied to. Many countless ‘Elements’ could exist, but these seven were attuned to specific ones from the original magic they were born from, hailing from Equestria. Gaia brought forth Loyalty she felt to her brother Timber Spruce and her home in the Everfree Forest. She evoked Kindness by focusing upon her desire to ensure the campers in the nearby Camp Everfree didn’t come to harm. Generosity came easy, for she was willing to give her life to make this happen. Honesty came a bit harder, but it always did, as she admitted to herself that she’d made some serious mistakes that led to this mess in the first place. Laughter was perhaps hardest of all, for there was little humor to be found in this situation, but Gaia laughed anyway, because it was rather funny that she’d gone through so much trouble to get a new body, only to likely lose it within the hour; must be some kind of record.

The last two elements started with Magic, easy enough, for it was born of the previous five, and Gaia held it in abundance. It was the unifying factor for the other elements that bound them together.

But the seventh element? The one attuned to Sunset Shimmer?

Gaia had already shown it by forming the truce, because Sunset had given it to her first. Now she gave that feeling back in full, because if nothing else, she had full Trust that even if she didn’t survive, Sunset Shimmer would take care of the rest.

With the elements all evoked, the pendants rose into the air, and Gaia floated slightly upward with them so they all hovered a few feet off the ground. Seven streams of magical energy in the colors of each pendant flowed forward like eager, rushing rivers. The magic formed seven points around the opening Garganta portal that Gaia had made, and started to swirl around it until it rimmed the Garganta in a solid band of rainbow hued light.

The Equestrian portal started to surge out, then like something caught in a whirlpool it started to twist about and flow into the Garganta. Gaia wasn’t quite certain what to expect from two extra dimensional spaces colliding like that, but she knew that it was likely going to be stark and rapid, whatever it was. She felt the magic struggling to control the overwhelming energies of the portals, as if even the pendants had their work cut out for them. There was also a rush of power from inside the Equestrian portal, a massive explosion of raw power that stemmed from Bount Trixie’s trap, which now coursed forward to try and rush out of the collapsing Equestrian portal.

At the last second Gaia focused all of her thoughts on what she wanted to have happen, and tapped into the magic once more, including Gloriosa’s Fullbring. The colossal tree shuddered, and started to shift its form, the trunk and roots now growing downward to enclose around Gaia and the portals.

There was a single, bright flicker.

Then everything turned pure white as a column of light ripped up and outward, right through the tree, and the spot where Gaia stood.

Sunset and her friends all had to shield their eyes from the incredible brightness of the column of light that tore its way skyward. The ground shook, but only for a brief minute, and soon settled down at around the same time the huge bar of light started to fade away from the air.

“Did... did it work?” asked Clover.

“Glori...” Timber whispered, staring ahead.

Sunset lowered Hikari, letting the luminous light barrier fade away around her and her friends. As far as she could tell, the explosion of the portal hadn’t touched her barrier, as it had all been localized right on top of the spot Gaia had been standing.

She, and all of her friends, looked at what was there now, all equally stunned.

The tree remained, but it was much smaller now. It stood perhaps thirty meters tall, and half that wide; still large for a tree, but not a giant any longer. Its thick green leaves seemed to contain faint motes of light that floated between its branches. Its roots still spread out in a canopy, leaving an open space beneath it, but it was here that everyone’s eye was drawn.

A portion of the tree lowered to the ground here, and formed a sort of framework of roots and vines around a shining oval portal, which stood about fifteen feet tall itself, and about ten feet wide at its widest point. The ground beneath the tree was crater, however, as if the column of light had bored a hole scores of feet down into the earth.

There was no immediate sign of Gaia Everfree anywhere to be seen.

“Glori!” Timber stumbled forward, making an awkward, stumbling run for the tree.

Applejack moved first to catch him, grabbing his shoulder tight, “Whoa there, ya ain’t gonna do no good hurtin’ yerself. C’mon now, I’ll take ya over an’ we’ll see what happen ta yer sis.”

He looked like he wanted to argue, but he was also barely standing, so he accented to letting Applejack be someone to lean on while the group rushed over to the tree. Twilight was instantly focused on the portal itself, but she tore her eyes away from it to look for any sign of Gaia, and was the first to spot her.

“There!”

The edge of the crater beneath the tree was steep, leading down much further than at first glance. Sunset realized the crater went all the way down to the very spot Gaia Everfree had been trapped inside, before merging with Gloriosa.

Down there, in the very bottom of the crater, lay Gaia. Around her body the seven pendants sat, gleaming in the dark.

They all rushed down towards her, some of the girls leaping down, while Applejack carried Timber on a controlled slide down the crater’s slope.

“Glori!” Timber called out, just as Sunset and the other girls reached her.

Gaia was completely still, and Sunset immediately went to her side and knelt down to check on her. It only took a glance to notice two things. The first thing was that Gaia was still breathing, and didn’t appear harmed. However, the second thing Sunset noticed told her that while the portal’s catastrophic collapse may have been averted, it hadn’t been entirely without cost.

Gaia’s eyes opened and she made a slight groaning sound as she sat up. As she did so, she looked up at Timber, first and foremost, and let out a relieved smile. “Oh thank goodness, you’re still alright, brother.”

“Glori, I...” Timber went to her and didn’t even bother to hide his tears as he wrapped her up in a hug, “I thought you were...”

“It’s alright. Nothing to cry over. Told you, even if I died, it wouldn’t be the end,” Gaia said, and Timber looked at her strangely.

“What do you mean? You’re right here, and you’re okay.”

The other girls, by now, had noticed what Sunset had, and Clover came forward and laid a hand on Sunset’s shoulder, “Do we... tell him?”

“Tell me what?” Timber asked, then blinked as he took another look at Gaia and spotted it.

A dark hole in the center of her mid-riff, the same as any other Arrancar might have. A hole that hadn’t been there when she’d been occupying Gloriosa’s human body.

Gaia looked at her brother with a sad, but accepting smile, and said, “I’m sorry, brother.”

----------

“Did you enjoy the show?”

With a sigh filled with a wealth of familiar annoyance, Medley finished her cup of wine and leaned back in her chair to glance up at a cleft in the mountain slope above her. The image that showed the situation at the bottom of the crater flickered out as she made a waving gesture at it, not taking her eyes off the man who stood staring down at her.

He was tall, broad shouldered, and was covered in lean muscle. His skin was a rich blue, like the color of a morning sky, and his hair a faded pink color, which was tied in a traditional samurai’s topknot. He wore a full, royal kimono in black and white, with a red hilted katana with a guard shaped like a leaping carp set in a black scabbard.

His dark blue eyes regarded Medley with the same light an older brother might when catching his sister rifling through his room.

“Hello Bowtie,” said Medley, “Did Glory send you to check up on me?”

“No,” Bowtied replied curtly, “I’m doing this of my own volition. And I would prefer you refer to me by my proper name, Medore.”

She rolled her eyes so hard it might have tilted the axis of the planet, “You do realize that Chonekutai is literally just ‘bowtie’ in Japanese, right? And that ‘Medore’ is just the phonetic way to say Medley?”

“Yes.”

“...Ugh, you know, is it not enough you made the entire Gotei 13 base everything on that language? Just because we were originally born in that land doesn’t mean we’ve got to style everything after it!”

“It is a beautiful language.”

“Don’t care, still calling you Bowtie. Deal with it. Now why are you here? Just to be a buzzkill?”

“I wanted to ensure you were actually doing your job, instead of playing your usual games.”

“Heh, well what’s the point of work if you’re not going to find the little moments of entertainment in it?” Medley replied, rising from the plush leather chair she’d been sitting in. The chair, along with the pedestal that had formed the viewing circle, both vanished in an eye-blink, as if they had never existed in the first place. Medley stretched her arms above her head, interlacing her fingers to crack them in a long, yawning motion.

“You can do as you please, as long as you still fulfill the task Eiko assigned you,” Bowtie replied, not so much hopping down from the cleft so much as just appearing next to Medley, “I’m wondering just why it is, then, that you allowed Doo-hime to escape Soul Society with the information she has.”

“Aww, you were watching?” Medley smirked like a cat, “I could ask you why you didn’t step in, then.”

“That is not my role.”

“Riiiight, I keep forgetting that’s your favorite playbook. So, can I assume it’s not your ‘role’ to tell Glory I went and decided to let the little feline have her prize and bring it to Discord?”

He was silent for a moment, his eyes betraying no emotion whatsoever. Medley knew it was a mask, but Bowtie was damn good at hiding his real thoughts, not because he was some master of deceit, but because he didn’t ever do anything other than be frank with his words. “You’re under no obligations. Your task was evaluation. You are free to decide what that entails. I’m merely curious why you would choose to allow information sensitive to our plans to be leaked. I am also curious what your evaluation is, after watching the events of today unfold.”

“Ask away, but you might not learn much from the answers,” Medley teased, laughing under her breath, “I don’t care what Discord or the humans learn. I’d be fine with even Scorpan learning the truth.”

“Why? It may cause rebellion.”

“Good,” Medley said with a venom in her voice that was so real, it manifested in the melting of a pile of rocks nearby, “It’s high time Glory learned that her perfect plan was eventually going to have some bumps in the road. I told her before that we should have killed Discord, and she ignored me. I think an object lesson is in order.”

“Eiko will not like that.”

“Glory can kiss the widest part of my ass, then,” Medley said firmly, “None of us swore loyalty to her. Zero is not her plaything, but our collective project.”

“Ah, so this is your message to her to remind her of that,” Bowtie said, neither his face or voice betraying whether he approved or not, “Understood. Then, what of the human girls? What is your evaluation of them?”

To this, Medley turned towards the direction of the lake, many miles off, but still visible from the high slope of the mountain. “Oh, they’re a threat alright. Potential like that only exists in a handful around here, like Celestia and Luna.”

“Then should they not be eliminated?”

“Bowtie, grow an imagination, will you?” Medley chided, “There’s so much more we can do with them than simply kill them, and even if we did, that wouldn’t remove them as a threat, would it? Heck, one of them is already dead, and that only made her stronger. Now, that being said, those girls have just gotten ahold of some problematically powerful items, and I think it’s high time we had ourselves a little... introduction.”

Episode 130: The Immediate Aftermath

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Episode 130: The Immediate Aftermath

Few could muster words to say in the heavy moments following the revelation of Gaia’s condition. It was obvious enough from the bewildered eye blinks and twitching mouth movements on Timber Spruce that he didn’t fully understand, himself. His eyes slowly, haltingly looked towards the empty hole in his sister’s stomach, a hole that shouldn’t exist on a human’s body without being fatal, yet existed cleanly upon Gaia’s body like it was a natural thing. Sunset could see the gears turn in his mind, the refusal hardening there as he shook his head and began to mumble, then louder, with more heated feeling.

“No. No, there's got to be a way to fix this.”

Gaia’s hand reached his cheek and stroked it, her voice strung with sisterly love and shared pain, but the heavier maturity of a much older entity than Gloriosa Daisy’s years, “Timber, there’s nothing to fix. The body I had as Gloriosa is gone. I don’t know if it was destroyed by the portal’s energies, or if my spirit was torn out of it while it got thrown into the vortex, but either way, what you’re seeing now is my soul.”

“What does that even mean!?” he shouted, “Glori, I don’t understand anything that’s happened! You... you what? Fused with one of those Hollow things!? You went crazy there for a second, then somehow Twilight, Sunset, and these other girls got you thinking straight again. But what, then you just up and blew yourself up fixing some stupid magic portal!? What am I supposed to think about any of this!? How am I supposed to just be like ‘Oh okay, sure, I’ll roll with this?’”

“Heh, well when you put it like that it sounds like I’m being unreasonable or something,” Gaia said, smiling in a manner that was very much like Gloriosa’s bright, if somewhat forced cheer. She gripped his arm tight with her other hand, just enough to be both comforting and focusing his attention, “I’m not expecting you to understand everything, brother. Just know that, whatevers happened to me, I love you. You’re my only family. No matter how I change, or whatever comes after this, I am your sister, and I’ll protect you.”

“Glori...I...” he slumped into her, utterly beyond finding words at this point, and simply let out his feelings into her shoulder in a series of wracking sobs. She held him gently as he did so, saying nothing more. Inside, she was both Gaia and Gloriosa now, fully and completely, and there was no difference of emotion between the two. Gaia cried for the human boy who’s life she’d thrown into chaos as much as she cried as a sister who desperately wished for her brother to be happy, and felt his pain like her own.

Meanwhile Sunset and the girls had backed up a bit to give the two siblings their space, Twilight sliding close to Sunset to whisper, “I know the need a minute, but we don’t have a lot of time. The Soul Reapers will have reinforcements coming soon, and I and my fellow Quincy will need to fall back before they get here, to avoid further confrontation.”

“Not to point out further flies in the ointment,” said Clover, who was close enough to listen in and whisper as well, “But while Gaia may be pacified for now, I have no way of knowing how reinforcements from Seireitei will react to finding an Arrancar here, especially one as powerful as she is.”

“I know that,” Sunset said, her spiritual senses spreading out so she could get a picture of who was nearby, “I can’t sense Captain Luna, but she might be in stealth mode. I think I feel Captain Starswirl approaching, along with a few others I don’t recognize...”

“Most likely Cadence, Filthy Rich, and the Quincy we fought and captured,” Twilight said, and at Sunset’s look she coughed and said, “It’s a long story.”

“I get the feeling everyone has a long story, today,” Sunset replied dryly, crossing her arms and thinking, “I still sense Discord and Ditzy close by at the camp. Let’s get everyone together there, first off, and make sure everyone’s alright. Worse comes to worse, maybe we can have Gaia hole up at Discord’s place until we figure things out.”

“Ain’t the worst idea I’d heard today,” said Applejack, hefting her lance over her shoulder, “We’re all banged up an’ runnin’ on empty. I got ta git ahold o’ my ma, too, n’ let her know me n’ Applebloom are okay.”

“Sugarcoat and the rest of my team are there at the camp, too,” said Twilight, “I’ll need to rally them, get to my field lab, and hopefully break it down before the Soul Reapers find it.”

“You’re gonna run off already?” asked Pinkie Pie, “We only got to start hanging out again!”

Twilight managed a small smile, if a wane one, “I don’t plan to be gone long. My family estate is still my long term lab. But the last thing I need is to have a confrontation with Soul Reapers who are coming here expecting trouble already. Better for me and the other Quincy to be out of the area, to avoid any reigniting of conflict.”

“If you’re in a rush, you oughta take your pendant with you,” said Rainbow Dash, turning to look for it on the ground, “I mean, we all got... one...? Huh?”

“What is it?” Sunset asked, then glanced around and realized the problem as well. A minute ago the seven pendants had been laying on the ground in a neat circle around where Gaia had fallen. Now, they were nowhere to be seen.

“Uh, what happened to our new bling?” said Dash, just as Pinkie Pie’s entire body just dropped to the ground. All eyes turned to Pinkie as the girl went into a series of convulsions that shook her whole body like a xylophone in an earthquake.

“Pinkie!” Fluttershy gasped, reaching the girl’s side in an instant. She grabbed Pinkie Pie by the shoulders as Pinkie’s eyes stared up with a wide and wild glaze.

“B-b-b-b-aaaaad juju incoming!” Pinkie Pie managed to stammer, pointing a shaking finger up at the far lip of the crater.

A clear feminine voice spoke, mildly amused.

“Bad juju? Not how I’d have described myself, but hey, who am I to argue with the precog? But that power of yours isn’t the most reliable, is it? Seems to only go off after it’s too late to do anything about it.”

All heads turned to see the speaker. Sunset immediately felt a cold string of tension coil itself around her heart. Not because of the appearance of the woman standing at the lip of the crater. If anything, this individual had an innocuous look to her, like one of those forgettable faces that was designed to just blend into the crowd. Minty green skin, with a darker shade of green hair, cut short in a wavy curl around her plain features that still managed to light up with a youthful yet somehow dangerously intelligent smile and gleam in her eyes. The woman wore clothing similar to a Soul Reaper’s, but Sunset felt the cut of the dark robes and short sleeved white coat had an intentionally casual and frayed look that made her think of a punk rocker or other free spirited type. Sunset didn’t see a Zanpaktou anywhere on the woman’s outfit, but that didn’t detract from the sensation of anxiety and danger she sensed from this woman.

Appearances aside, the most immediate thing of note about the woman was the fact that she was holding up the finger of her right hand, and upon that finger she casually spun about all seven of the pendants that had formed from the geodes.

“What the-!? Who the heck are you?” shouted Rainbow Dash, hands tightening around her lightning spear.

“An’ what’re ya doin’ with them pendants?” Applejack added, leveling her lance.

Sunset couldn’t help but notice that Clover was staring at the woman with far wider eyes than the rest of them, frozen still in what could only be described as shock. Gaia, still holding a confused Timber, also had eyes that sparked with recognition, and it was her that said in a quiet, suspicious voice, “Medley...”

The woman, Medley, smiled even deeper, “Aw, don’t ruin the introductions, Gaia. I wanted to keep them in suspense a little longer.”

“Medley?” Sunset said, glancing at Gaia, “You know her?”

“In a sense,” Gaia replied, standing slowly, on feet that still swayed a bit from exhaustion. She wasn’t in much better condition than Sunset or any of the girls, after their battle, and taking a portal collapse to the face. She still pointedly stood in front of Timber, one arm protectively pushing him behind her.

“Gee, ‘in a sense’ is it? You’re acting like we never hung out any of those times Glory would invite you to the Palace. It’s been, what, a few thousand years since we last saw each other?” Medley said, still keeping the pendants spinning around her finger as she just vanished entirely, appearing a nanosecond later to stand right next to Gaia, one arm leaning casually on the Arrancar’s shoulder, “Although I did think you were dead, so you’ll understand why I never wrote or called.”

Gaia jerked back, taking Timber with her, eyes wary as Medley chuckled. Everyone else stared at her. Sunset turned, hand now holding up Hokori, almost on pure reflex. It wasn’t simply a matter of speed. She hadn’t even sensed Medley move. In fact, she had yet to sense any spiritual pressure at all from the woman. That struck Sunset as a major red flag, and as much as she was uneasy on the inside, she kept her voice steady as she said, “Hey, whoever you are, what do you want, exactly?”

“Indeed,” said Rarity, snapping her fingers, upon which the massive red gate of her Fullbring sprung up at the crater lip opposite where Medley had appeared, and a group of her knights emerged to take up positions with crystal bows all aimed down at Medley’s position, “You wish to introduce yourself? Then do so properly, and cease these games. Also, you’re holding property that doesn’t belong to you.”

“Girls, don’t...” Pinkie Pie said, forcing her body to stop shaking and sitting up. Fluttershy still stayed next to her, holding Pinkie.

“Don’t what?” Applejack said, “We ain’t done nothin’ yet.”

“Don’t fight her. Whatever you do. Don’t fight her,” Pinkie said past heavy gasps, almost as if she was hyperventilating.

“Yikes,” said Medley, “Didn’ think my reiatsu would be doing such a number on your precog ability, Pinkie Pie. I’ve tried to dial it down to a point where you shouldn’t be freaking out this much, but I guess I’m a bit out of practice. Let me try a little more...”

Suddenly reiatsu did come crashing out of Medley, like an explosive wave that hammered into Sunset and the girls. Sunset grit her teeth, feeling her bones rattle with the spiritual pressure that weighed upon them like being buried at the bottom of some oppressive mountain. Gradually this sensation slacked off as Sunset’s own reiatsu adjusted to it, but for a second she could only shake her head to get her focus back.

Medley sighed, “There, that ought to be low enough that you can actually sense me, but not freak out. Sorry about that. I keep forgetting anyone down here beside Little Scorpan has a hard time getting used to our reiatsu.”

“Excuse me, but did you say Little Scorpan?” blurted Dash, blinking, “As in that old, super powerful Soul Reaper Commander dude?”

“Sure did,” said Medley, holding her free hand out to the side of her waist, “I knew him back when he was just this tall, following his Big Bro Tirek around like a duck waddles after it’s mother. Heh, then again, I was pretty young back then too, and not much taller. Actually, just between us girls, I kind of crushed a bit on the older brother. Tirek rocked a serious stache back in the day, and it really did it for me. Ah, bygone times. But I’m not here to reminisce.”

“Then how about you tell us why you are?” Sunset said, “Like Rarity said, those pendants don’t belong to you.”

“Oh? Possession is nine tenths the law, isn’t it?” Medley said, ceasing her spinning of the pendants, letting them dangle from her fist as she held them up to examine them. The light of the pendants reflected off her glassy eyes as her smile faded and her voice turned deathly serious, like a winter wind. “Weapons this powerful don’t belong in the hands of children. So I’m taking them for safekeeping.”

“The hell you are!” Rainbow Dash said, her prismatic energy wings flaring bright as she tore through the sound barrier, shattering the stone beneath her in her flying charge at Medley. Dash’s speed went past anything even Sunset could easily follow, lightning kissing the ground in Dash’s wake. But when Rainbow’s hand grasped at the pendants, they grasped only air as Medley simply appeared back at the top lip of the crater.

“Huh?” Dash looked around, spotting Medley and grimacing, “Alright, I’m calling foul on that! How are you faster than me!?”

Medley simply gave Rainbow Dash a look of pure incredulousness, “Okay, first of all, do you have any idea who I am? You’re fast, kid. Damn fast. Might even be close to the mark. But still not there, yet. Then again, if you had this pendant, who knows? One of the main reasons why I’m making sure you kids don’t get a hold of these. You aren’t ready for that kind of power.”

“Why? Because you’re afraid we’d use them against you and the rest of Zero Division?” Sunset said, going with what her gut was telling her. She might not have known for sure who Medley was, but it wasn’t as if it was that hard to guess. Soul Reaper trappings? Insanely powerful and arrogant? Knew both Gaia and Scorpan from the distant past? It wasn’t exactly quantum physics to guess who Medley was.

Medley simply confirmed it with a grin and a bow, “Good call, Sunset Shimmer. I am, in fact, Medley, member of the vaunted ‘Zero’ Division of Soul Society. As to your question, I’ll decline to answer. Let’s just say I don’t think you girls having these will work out for either of our best interests. And since none of you can stop me from taking them-”

All of Rarity’s knights opened fire with their bows at once, while at the same time a series of curving spears and crystal blades of purest red erupted from the ground beneath Medley’s feet. Rock exploded everywhere as the arrows drove home like super sonic javelins, and for a moment nothing could be seen.

As eyes turned to Rarity, she gave a dainty shrug, “She looked distracted?”

A soft, impressed whistle came from above, and Medley was seen floating just below the stable portal, scratching the back of her head, “Not bad at all, Rarity. I knew I had you pegged right as the most ruthless of the team. Real shame, what happened to you today.”

Rarity’s marble white skin grew a gray, waxen shade as she went very still at those words. Sunset noticed instant tension in some of her other friends as well, Rainbow Dash in particular making a choking noise and looking rapidly back and forth between Rarity and everyone else. Only Applejack looked as confused as Sunset felt as she lowered her lance a bit and turned to Rarity, “Rares, what is she talkin’ about?”

“I... um, really would prefer we not talk about it at this very moment,” said Rarity, swiftly composing herself and then fixing Medley with a piercing gaze so frigid and pointed that it nearly unnerved Sunset to see such a look on her friend’s face, “If you say another word to them, I don’t care how powerful you think yourself to be, I will stitch your mouth shut with crystal needles.”

Medley gave a little shiver, although how genuine it was could be anyone’s guess. “Ooow, gave me the chills right there. You’re definitely one to watch. No fears, Rarity, I won’t spill your beans. I’ll just leave all of that surprise for you girls to figure out yourselves.”

“Ma’am, uh... Captain Medley?”

Medley tilted her head to glance down at Clover, who had spoken. Clover looked ready to collapse, her skin turning even more ashen than normal. Medley placed a hand on her hip and said, “Third Seat...Clover, right? One of Starswirl’s bunch. I have to thank you.”

“Thank me...?”

“For doing such a good job guiding these girls from the start. Without you around, they might have flailed around a lot more. Granted Discord and Ditzy did all the heavy lifting on that front down the road, but I acknowledge you did alright yourself. Now, you look like you had a question?”

“W-well, it’s just that... are you going to hurt my friends? Is the Zero Division going to harm them or their families?” Clover stammered out, mustering up a burst of courage to get her voice louder.

Medley’s smile didn’t falter, nor did she blink, “That’s why I was sent here. To evaluate the situation and determine if matters warranted a drastic response.”

“You were watching everything,” Sunset said, her gut telling her it was true, so she didn’t even bother phrasing it as a question. Medley confirmed with a swift nod.

“Sure was. And you girls put on quite the show. I was on the edge of my seat for most of it. We had thrills, chills, daring rescues, reversals of fortunes, tragic fates, heroic sacrifice and redemption. You could pack a whole cartoon season with everything that happened just today. Of course you’re not looking for my opinion on what happened, but rather whether or not I’m going to decide if you need to be dealt with or not.”

Sunset’s hand gripped tighter around the handle of her blade and her shield, while her friends all tensed as well. “Yeah, I’d like to plan my day, you know?”

“Hah! Got to love mortal humor. Relax, girls, if killing any of you was what I’d decided to do, there wouldn’t have been any conversation beforehand. You’d just be dead, and I’d already be heading home to listen to Glory chew me out,” Medley said, holding up the pendants, “No, there’s no need to kill you, same as there was no reason to kill your mothers when they had their spat with Soul Society. I think taking these is enough. You’re all powerful enough without them, I’d say. With them? Well, then we might have problems. And trust me, you don’t want me or any of my fellow Zero Division members thinking of you as problems.”

“Why? What is the Zero Division up to?” Sunset pressed, knowing it was risky, “Why did Starlight’s friend, Sunburst, end up in Hell?”

Medley blinked. It was hard for Sunset to be sure if she’d actually surprised the woman or not, but Medley did pause a moment before saying, “Dangerous question, kid. As it happens, I don’t need to answer you on that one, since Discord will give you all the exposition you’ll want on that front. Right... Discord?”

Sunset felt him before she even finished turning her head to look behind her. There, up on the lip of the crater opposite from Medley, stood not only Discord, but Ditzy Doo. Both of them had their eyes locked on Medley, Discord’s normally ever wry face now hard as steel. Ditzy was no more friendly in her look, her gold eyes narrowed and lit up with razor edged alertness.

“Medley,” Discord said, “It’s been some time.”

“Today’s all about reunions, looks like,” Medley said, her voice striking a balance between joking and stabbing, “I figured you’d come over soon as you felt my reiatsu. Don’t worry about your... what, do you think of them as ‘students’, maybe? ‘Specimens’ would have been more your style, once.”

“Once,” Discord said, “Not anymore, or ever again. It looks like your fingers are as sticky as ever. The Zero Division has lowered itself to petty theft, now?”

“Pfft, come off it, Discord. You know as well as I do that these girls are playing with fire, and if they soar too much closer, their little wings are going to burn right off. Assuming Glory doesn’t just order them pinned and mounted, first. You should be thanking me for just taking away their new toys, instead of offing them outright.”

“As if we’d let you,” Ditzy said, not even hesitating to raise her hand and bring it down across her face, forming her feline Hollow mask as her eyes turned dark, “You so much as move an inch towards them, and we’ll see if your Zanpaktou’s mental bullshit can shield you from getting my hands around your throat.”

“Mrrreoow, fierce as ever, Ditzy. No wonder you got Time Turner to completely forget about his own race to shack up with you. Enjoying the domestic life? How’s the kid?”

Entire city populations could have been melted to glass by the rancor in Ditzy’s reply, “She is none of your concern.”

Medley shrugged in a manner that showed little to no care for Ditzy’s venom, although Sunset picked up on the subtle shift in the way Medley stood that hinted at a readiness to engage in violence without actually putting off any aggressive vibes. “Won’t argue that, Ditzy. You might want to tuck her away somewhere less conspicuous, just FYI. This city is getting a little hot for being where your loved ones live.”

Ditzy looked ready to explode, but Discord held up a hand in front of her and started calmly walking forward, his steps taking him across the air above Sunset and the other girls as he approached the halfway point towards Medley, just beneath the hanging roots forming the portal. Medley, in response, joined him with equal slow, calm steps across the air, until the two stood facing each other just a few feet apart; the two biggest sharks in the pond, circling.

“Getting real annoyed by this chick’s attitude,” Rainbow growled under her breath, and Flutterhy, who’d helped Pinkie Pie steady herself, reached out with one of her golden hands to pat Dash on the shoulder.

“It’ll be okay Dash. I don’t think she’s actually here to fight.”

“Nah, just rob us like a damn thief!” Applejack said, her left hand balling into a tight fist.

“Guys, stay put, but keep an eye on her,” Sunset said and she jumped upwards. Not in any way to suggest she was on the attack, she just leaped up to Discord and Medley’s level, standing not quite between the two, but just off to the side. She didn’t release her Bankai, nor either her blade or shield, but nor did she lower her guard.

“Sunset Shimmer,” Discord said, raising a hand to tip his white and green striped hat to her, “You and your friends have been busy today.” He briefly glanced at the portal, then at Gaia, who remained tensely watching things from below. He smiled a small, satisfied smile at Sunset, “Good work.”

“Yeah, it was an impressive show,” Medley said, cutting in, “Which means I hope you get why I’m taking these magical weapons for safekeeping. Glory is going to be hard enough to convince these girls aren’t a threat as is.”

“As if you care what happens to these girls,” Discord said, and Medley rolled her eyes at him.

“Oh cry me an ocean of tears. You’re the one who turned down Glory’s offer, so you already know the score and skipped out on any chance in having a say about how things go down.”

“Then why go out of your way to shield them from Glory? What are you after, Medley?” asked Discord.

“I’m not shielding anyone,” said Medley, “No point. Right Sunset?”

“What do you mean?” asked Sunset, to which Medley puffed out a knowing laugh.

“Discord loves chaos, and you and your girl pals are chaos incarnate to the system that’s been established for this world. I don’t have to shield you, because one way or another, you’re going to be smashing things up and making a mess. All I’m doing is ensuring you can’t make too much of a mess by taking these magical nukes in the shape of overly colorful necklaces, and putting them somewhere safe,” she took the seven pendants and placed them inside her robes, “And far as I’m concerned, without them, you’re not enough of a threat to worry Glory about, no matter how much trouble you cause. Go after Starlight Glimmer if you like. Smash up Las Noches and Tirek if you can. Hell, smack around the Quincy and Gotei 13, too, if it suits you, since I get the feeling you’re tired of watching them all fight each other anyway.”

Medley’s smooth, casual tone froze over as she stared Sunset dead in the eyes, “But if you come to the Soul Palace for any reason, you’ll die.”

The woman didn’t leave, or swiftly vanish with a Flash Step. She simply... wasn’t there anymore. Her reiatsu, which had remained at that potent, drowning level, just ceased to exist before Sunset had finished another eyeblink. Sunset looked around, focused her senses as sharply as she could, but there was just nothing. Discord grunted, taking off his hat and fanning himself with it.

“That was entirely too close for comfort,” he said, and Sunset looked at him.

“What just happened?”

Discord looked at her with a heavy weight in his eyes, suddenly looking his age as he put his hat back on, “You and your friends were spared, that’s what happened.”

“Spared nothin’! We plump got robbed!” Applejack shouted.

Ditzy Doo appeared beside her, arms folded beneath her substantial chest, and she kept her Hollow mask on. “No denying that, but frankly we’re lucky that those trinkets were all Medley decided to go after. If this had come to a fight...”

“C’mon, we could have taken her!” said Dash, “I mean, all of us together, with you and the D man here, too?”

Ditzy looked flatly at Rainbow Dash, who after a second paled a bit more and said, “Right?

Discord floated down to the ground, with Sunset following him. He planted his cane and leaned his hands on it, “If we had engaged Medley earnestly, and she’d responded in kind? Hard to say.”

“She’s that strong?” Sunset inquired, feeling a spark of frustration.

“She’s a member of the Zero Division,” Discord replied flatly, “With Ditzy and I here we may have won out, but it would have been costly for us. You’d have lost friends...” he cast a glance at Rarity, his eyes briefly narrowing, but he said nothing more and turned towards Gaia, “At any rate, Gaia Everfree... I’m not certain what to make of you. We haven’t had the pleasure to meet face to face before, have we?”

“Waitwaitwait!” shouted Dash, “Hold up before we get to pow wowing! Are we seriously just letting that stuck up, arrogant jerk take our new magical necklace dealies? Just like that!?”

“What do you suggest we do, Rainbow?” said Fluttershy, “Do any of us even sense her, anymore?”

Pinkie Pie shook a bit, and her face changed, taking on Pinkamena’s more serious, if somewhat manic vibe as she spat, “She’s gone. Pinks’ wasn’t joking around with you guys. Fighting her would’ve been a spectacularly gory, messy, limb losing idea of the highest order. Trust me, crazy sniffs out crazy, and that minty maniac reeked of it worse than I ever did.”

“She didn’t seem that crazy to me,” pointed out Rarity, “Insufferably full of herself, but not mad.”

Pinkamena shook her head fiercely, like a high strung bobblehead, “No. Don’t get me wrong, she’s not looney toons. Not crazy like you see in a mental ward. It’s a different brand. That’s all I can say about it, really. Just a smart move for once, not to bite that particular elephant in the ass. We would’ve been trampled, especially considering how tired and beat to crap we already are after today.”

Rainbow Dash’s foot kicked the ground, leaving a burst of sparks and a fried rock skipping around the crater, “Screw her, then! Just shows up outta nowhere, shoots her mouth off, nabs our stuff, then peaces out easy as a breeze!? How’d she even pull off that disappearing act? I didn’t see her Zanpaktou or anything!”

“Medley had her Zanpaktou active before she revealed herself to you,” Discord said, “I know some of its workings from second-hand accounts, although I’ve never had the experience of facing it myself. Suffice to say you can’t fully trust your sense of the reality you perceive when Medley is around. From what I understand, her blade affects the mind, adding or removing elements of one’s perception and memoires, although I can’t say precisely what limitations it has in that regard. Chances are she had her blade drawn the entire time, and simply edited out our memories of its presence.”

“Even you?” said Sunset, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice. “I thought your reiatsu, at least, would’ve given you some kind of resistance.”

“It does, and I could feel it’s reiatsu pressing on my own,” Discord replied simply, shrugging, “If I’d pushed back with my own reiatsu I likely could have seen her Zanpaktou. Considering I didn’t want to spark a fight if it wasn’t needed, I choose not to provoke her in that manner. Had things come to a fight, rest assured I’d have made full use of my powers to try and buy you girls a chance to get away. I do believe my Konran Arashi’s own power could disrupt Medley’s at least to a degree.”

“Wish ya had,” Applejack said, “I’d have liked ta rearrange that gal’s smarmy face.”

“Did you not hear the part about us getting squashed?” Pinkamena said, tossing her hands up, then making a gesture with her hands in which a floating pink elephant appeared briefly, falling butt first atop a group of chattering pink mice, with squishy, splattering results, “We’re the mice, in case you didn’t get the freakin’ metaphor!”

She blinked and Pinkie Pie’s still somewhat shaking voice said in an attempt at a joking tone, “Aw, I’d say we’re at least honey badger status at this point, Mena.”

Another blink and Mena said, “Honey badgers still lose to elephants, Pinks.”

“She... left,” Gaia said, shaking her head in wonderment. Her eyes briefly focused on Timber, who stood mutely confused, before she turned to Discord, “Medley would not have left if she thought she could destroy us with no effort.”

Discord returned a thoughtful look, “I suppose she wasn’t any more keen to toss the dice on winning any more than I was. Still, given both you and these girls are hardly in peak condition after your battle, now was hardly the time to test our luck against a member of Zero Division. I trust you don’t disagree?”

“No,” Gaia said, “It’s fortunate enough she decided to leave with the geodes and nothing else, but... I feel strange. As if I can still feel the geodes presence inside me.”

“Same,” Sunset said, finally deactivating her Bankai, which flowed in a wash of flames back into the shape of her sealed Zanpaktou’s katana form, which she then sheathed. “It’s weird. I feel like the pendants themselves didn’t mind being taken.”

“The heck does that mean?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“Can’t you guys feel it too?” said Sunset, and her friends all looked about at each other before each one slowly gained thoughtful looks.

“You know, now that you do mention it,” said Twilight, rubbing her chin, “I do feel a strange sensation of... patience? And calm? I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like when I imagine the pendants, there’s this feeling of ease, rather than anxiety.”

“Huh, well that’s just plumb weird if ya ask me,” said Applejack, touching the breastplate of her armor, just above her heart, “Feels like them gems are saying ‘Don’t fret’ or somethin’. Sunset, ya got any notion o’ what’s goin’ on here?”

“Well, the magic from the geodes was all but identical to the massive bursts of magic we’ve used in the past, which as near as I can tell stem directly from harmonious elements from Equestria. I know when I came here through the portal, Equestrian magic came with me, and especially when I, uh, stole Princess Twilight’s crown that seemed to resonate with you guys and awaken that magic. Now Gaia, do you know where precisely these geodes came from?”

“No,” Gaia said, “Not in any great detail. I know they weren’t always in my forest or in the cave that was once used as an altar by the local tribes to worship me. These geodes grew later, much later. In fact I would not be shocked if their appearance coincided with your own in our world. I may never have fully understood how to use them or direct my human self towards them if not for the instruction of my Equestrian accomplice.”

“Ah, yes, that,” Discord said, his tone growing far less cordial, although not dangerous or threatening, “I’d very much like to know about whom you conspired with from the Equestrian side of things, and just what their part of the plan was. This battle may be over, but there are concerning matters tied to all of this, including the presence of individuals from the Beast Realm who seemed to be in league with you and your ‘accomplice’. I’d say quite a bit of light remains to be shed on this affair.”

“And I am willing to cooperate, as I’d hope my not trying to kill any of you any longer should prove,” Gaia said, stepping closer to Timber, “But before that, I need some sense of assurance that I and my brother are no longer in danger. Given I expect the Gotei 13 to be swarming this place soon enough, I’m not exactly eager to continue standing here, talking.”

“Gaia, I already showed you how far I’m willing to go to protect you and Timber,” Sunset said, “I’d say all of my friends have shown you that. I promise you, whatever happens, we won’t allow any harm to you or Timber.”

“Yes,” said Twilight, approaching Gaia and Timber and all but bowing her head to them, “You have my word as well. I won’t allow any of my fellow Quincy to do you harm. And... and I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything, Gloriossa, Timber. I never meant for all of this to happen...”

Gaia looked like she was about to say something, perhaps a bit sharp, to the girl, but Timber grasped her shoulder, gave her a solemn look, then moved past Gaia to stand on shaky legs in front of Twilight.

“Look, Twilight, I don’t really understand everything that’s happening right now. Feels like my head’s getting fuzzier by the second. But I know this wasn’t all your fault. I mean, maybe a little your fault, I guess, but I mean as confusing as all this insanity has been today, it’s pretty clear you didn’t plan for all this to happen. You didn’t try to harm me or Gloriosa. In fact, far as I can see you tried your hardest to keep us and the camp safe. So, uh... thank you for that. Now, guys, girls, weird scary mask lady and creepy old dude-”

“Creepy old dude?” Discord muttered.

“-I know there’s some kind of Go-something coming and you guys got things to do, but can we seriously go back to the camp? Please? I am super tired, super hungry, and really, really need to have a sit and process some things.”

At Timber’s plea, the girls all shared looks, and Discord himself gave a light laugh, “A fairly made point, Mr. Spruce. I think we should all retire to Camp Everfree for now, and lick our wounds. Regroup, as it were. We may have a few minutes still before Celestia arrives with Gotei reinforcements. It may behoove us to all be in one spot, with Captains Luna, Starswirl, and Sweet Cider to greet them. And Miss Twilight, you may wish to confer with your Quincy comrades as to not open fire the moment they arrive, so as to facilitate a little diplomacy.”

“Of course,” Twilight said, “I sincerely hope that the fighting is over for today.”

“Me too, Twilight,” said Sunset, “Me too.”

“So, what, are we just gonna leave that thing hanging up there?” put in Rainbow Dash, pointing up with her spear at the portal.

“What do you suggest we do with it?” asked Rarity, “We’re hardly in any condition to just waltz on through, especially considering we don’t actually know where it goes yet.”

“Huh?” Rainbow scratched her head, “Doesn’t it, like, go to Equestria?” She looked at Gaia, “It goes to Planet of the Ponies, right? You’re the one who used our stolen bling to fix it or whatever, didn’t you?”

“I stabilized the portal,” Gaia said, “I had no control over anything past that part. I can’t say for certain where the portal leads at this point. Why don’t you go take a peek, if you’re so curious?”

“Know what, think I will!” Rainbow replied with a snort and in a lightning zap of speed, she was up there in front of the portal, peering into it. Sunset sighed and flew up as well, soon followed by her friends. Ditzy remained behind, but Discord silently followed the group up to stare into the liquid light of the doorway to the beyond.

Once looking directly into the portal, Sunset was struck by how different it was from what she’d seen before of such portals. This one’s surface was like a small maelstrom of bright, luminous liquid that filled the dimensions of the hanging roots in an oval shape. The surface was stable, but if Sunset put her hand towards it, she could almost feel a form of suction, and there was a faint breeze as air flowed into the portal. In the portal’s depths she saw a circular point, and as she squinted, she realized she could actively see through the portal’s “tunnel” to the other side!

“Wowie zowie,” said Pinkie, “I feel like I’m looking down the tube of the world’s craziest water slide.”

“It’s beautiful,” said Fluttershy.

“Yeah, great, but where’s this fancy glowin’ water tube go?” asked Applejack, “Hate to have gone through all this dang trouble an’ not even be able ta git ta where we need ta be goin’!”

“Fret not,” Discord said, “I think I know exactly where this portal goes, now that I’m looking closely at it. Observe carefully, girls. Do you see that on the other side? A landscape. Specifically, a mountain.”

Indeed, as Sunset watched closely, finally getting a good glimpse at the exit point on the other side of the swirling tunnel of liquid light, she saw a breathtaking view of what looked like pristine green hills and the base of what had to be a truly enormous mountain. For a second she thought of the mountainside Canterlot was built upon, but as she looked closer, no, the shape of the foothills was wrong, and the mountain itself... even Equestria didn’t have mountains that big.

“What are we looking at, Mr. Discord?” asked Rarity.

“That, my girls, is the Beast Realm. The hills in front of Mt. Joutinheim, I believe, home of the Land Tribe.”

“Wait a moment,” Clover spoke up, “How is that possible? The portal being studied was tied to Equestria. How did it shift to the Beast Realm?”

“I believe the portal still connects to Equestria,” Discord replied, pointing with his Zanpaktou cane into the portal’s depths, “Sense carefully, you can tell this portal’s energies don’t stop here. They continue on, like threads, towards the mountain.”

It only took an instant for Sunset to confirm that, feeling out with her spiritual senses to get a feel for the energies swimming around and through the portal. There was a definite sensation of energy flowing onward, almost like a river, towards the base of the mountain. “So you’re saying another portal was opened to Equestria, via this portal, through the Beast Realm?”

“That appears to be the case,” Discord confirmed.

“I still don’t know how that could have happened,” Clover said, arms crossing in thought until her eyes suddenly lit up, “Unless... there were Beast Realmers here, weren’t there? They must have been coming and going with their own portals, leaving behind signatures, traces of energy. Due to the experiments with the Gargantas, Captain Starswirl discovered how magic can cause unpredictable results through... Sunset, was it magic refraction?”

Sunset nodded, “That’s right. We figured the geodes might be the cause of the instability that Starswirl’s experiments were causing. Thing is, I guess the Beast Realm portals those creatures who were helping Gaia used to come here might have had a similar effect.”

“And when she used a Garganta in conjunction with the geodes to stabilized the portal, this ‘magic refraction’ occurred with the trace Beast Realm portal energies to redirect the portal to the Beast Realm itself,” Discord concluded, “Albeit only as a detour, as it still formed a portal to Equestria within the Beast Realm itself.”

“Aaaand my brain is official fried trying to follow what you guys just said,” Rainbow Dash said, still scratching her head, “But the short version is if we want to go to Equestria, we have to first go through the Beast Realm and get to that mountain, right?”

“That sums it up nicely, yes, Miss Dash,” said Discord.

“Hmph, weren’t too fond o’ the Beast Realm folk we already met, but maybe other folk from there are more reasonable sorts, ya think?” said Applejack, causing Discord to chuckle.

“That didn’t sound like a good laugh at all,” Pinkie Pie said, “That was more a laugh of ‘we’re doomed’.”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to say doomed,” Discord said, “But let’s say that the Beast Realm and it’s people are not known for friendliness towards outsiders, or having a great track record on diplomacy. However, that is a hurdle for another day. I think for now we can safely leave this portal as is. No one is likely to disturb it, and if someone did decide to go through, they are unlikely to get very far on their own. Come, let’s return to Camp Everfree for now.”

----------

Medley had returned to the spot upon the mountain where she had observed the battle against Gaia Everfree from, and where Bowtie still stood waiting. As she did so, she waved her right hand through the air beside her, and the air appeared to twist like putty, blending colors together until they took the shape of a hilt of carved redwood. The hilt was long and straight, carved with holes like that of a flute or ocarina, the pommel carved into the shape of a smiling mouth. Where normally a metal blade would be, instead a wavering force took the vague shape of a blade, like air hardened into an edge roughly three feet long and slightly curved.

She grasped her Zanpaktou and gave it a light flourish before sheathing it through the sash of her robes. She then reached into the folds of the robes to remove the pendants and examined them once more. Bowtie, otherwise placid as stone, gave a curious flick of his eyes towards the colorful necklaces.

“I sense immense power from those objects,” he said, “But not reiryoku. Is that... maho?”

“Magic, yup,” Medley confirmed, “Not just any magic, either. These relics are emitting power that is to magic what our Mother’s transcendent reiatsu is to spirit energy.”

Medley could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times she’d seen Bowtie look unnerved. She felt a splash of satisfaction at the sight. It wasn’t much to show, just a slight quiver in his throat as he swallowed before saying, “Bakana.”

“Impossible? Pfft, Bowtie, think about it. We know the other world is essentially a mirror of our own. Or perhaps we’re a mirror of it. Either way, there’s no denying the intimate ties between our existence, and that of ‘Equestria’. There are mirrored versions of numerous people, perhaps every individual soul in our population, over there. Doesn’t it then stand to reason there’d be an equivalent mirror of Mother in that world as well?”

“Madness. You speak complete madness. Our Mother is unique. None could replace her. Even...” he trailed off, visibly composing himself. Medley smirked.

“Even us? That what you were going to say?”

Bowtie grunted. He sat down on a nearby large rock. His eyes looked at her with renewed steel. “We made the necessary choice. We are not a replacement for Mother, but as Glory once argued, perhaps that is for the best. We can do what she could not. But are you making the assertion that there is another that is her equal from this Equestria? A being whose power rivals that of the First Soul?”

“I think I’m holding in my hand here some pretty damn compelling evidence of that, yes,” said Medley, holding the pendants up to examine them closer in the light of the sun, “Of course, looking at these, I get the feeling whoever she, he, or it was, it’s power is just as fragmented as Mother’s is right now.”

“We should destroy those,” Bowtie said, his left hand twitching and the air next to it wavering like a hefty summer heat, “Anything of that nature is a threat, especially if these ‘fragments’ are somehow tied to those children.”

“Again with the lack of imagination, brother.” Medley tittered with an airy breath and tucked the pendants back away, “You see something even remotely dangerous and your first thought is to smash it? Nope. Not happening.”

“But you will then take them to Glory? She may well decide their destruction is preferable to whatever schemes you may have.”

“She won’t,” Medley said with certainty, “Not if she thinks she can possibly get something out of them.”

“And what of you?” asked Bowtie, “What are you planning, sister? You revealed yourself to the human children, and even bantered with Discord, when all you had to do was take the pendants and leave, using your Zanpaktou to ensure your presence was never discovered. What was the point of all that?”

“Relieving boredom isn’t enough of a reason for you? It is for me,” she said, knowing there was no point trying to reveal the truth of things to him. Bowtie was an exceptionally loyal, straight laced, and forthright sibling, who would utterly fail to comprehend why Medley went out of her way to make sure Sunset Shimmer and her friends knew who she was and would be provoked by having the pendants taken. He wouldn’t grasp why she’d allow Ditzy Doo to bring to Discord, and by extension to the human girls, the information that Ditzy had discovered buried deep within Seireitei’s classified archives.

She could see him trying to puzzle out her motivations, his eyes like a placid sea in their unblinking thought. Eventually he sighed like a sagging mountain and rose from the rock he sat on, “No matter. Glory will have her say, and you can trade words with her on the matter. If those human children ever do become a threat, with or without those pendants, they will be dealt with. Come. We are done here, and it is time to return to the Palace.”

He reached into the wide arms of his kimono and removed in his right hand a shining golden object. It was no larger than a billard’s ball, square in shape. It’s surface was covered in engraved lines, and at the top was a raised portion that was shaped like a small cube. Depressing the cube into the larger object caused it to glow brighter. Then, while still holding the object out, Bowtie reached out with his left hand. Grasping the air, a blade suddenly appeared there. It was a shard of darkly gray metal, like a large scimitar that had a hooked tip. It’s hilt had a cross shaped guard that in turn became sharpened metal points. Both the hilt and blade had partially transparent portions, showing a strange internal structure of revolving, metallic gears, each spinning at a slow, steady pace.

He inserted his unusual Zanpaktou into the air, and gold strands of light flowed from the square object in his hand and merged with the blade, spreading out to create a gateway. Unlike a normal Senkaimon gate, which was a fairly plain, traditional Japanese style sliding paper doorway, this gate was larger and far more ostentatious. Gold enameling in the frames formed the shapes of long bodied, serpent-like dragons, and the paper itself was painted with a mural of a misty land with a rising red sun over a gorgeous palace standing atop the clouds.

Medley followed him through the gate, glancing back but once towards the distant Camp Everfree.

A wry spark of anticipation filled her eyes.

What kind of lovely chaos will you girls and Discord bring to our system, I wonder? Will you burn it all down, or get burned up yourselves before even setting foot in the Palace? And Mother, are you watching all of this, even with your Eyes ripped from you? Hope you are. Watch it all either burn or get rebuilt, by your eldest childrens’ hands, or these tiny soulspecks you named ‘humans’. No matter how it all goes down, I doubt I’ll find it boring.

----------

Upon their return to Camp Everfree, Sunset rapidly noticed that the camp itself had largely been evacuated of the Canterlot High students. She could see a pair of city buses near the camp’s exit arch that was filled with the students, and spotted Screwloose and Screwball hanging out next to the buses. When Sunset and the others with her all appeared, either through flight or high speed air stepping, in front of the buses, Screwloose gave a wave and said, “All the school piglets are nice and corralled into our cozy getaway vehicles, boss. Shall me and Screwball go deliver them safely back to town?”

“That would be wise,” Discord said, “Try to avoid the main road in the city and circle the back roads to the school to let them off. Then keep an eye on them to ensure they get home safely.”

“Cover story for their families?” asked Screwball, “Earthquake at the camp, had to close down early?”

“All things considered that would be the most believable, so we’ll go with that, at least for now,” said Discord, “Things may change, soon, but we’ll hopscotch over those bridges when we get to them. Who remains in the camp?”

“The Quincy piggies, Ditzy’s squirt, those three rambunctious ‘Crusaders’ along with two mini-Quincy... oh, and Captain Sweet Cider.”

“My ma’s here?” Applejack perked up, looking towards the camp, still partially hidden by root walls the size of dump trucks, “I can’t sense her spiritual pressure none.”

“She’s conserving it,” Screwball said, “Trying not to spook her littlest daughter and her pals I’m thinking. Anywhos, we’d best get these sardine cans filled with hormonally charged, anxious teenagers outta here before something else goes wrong.”

A minute or so later the busses were pulling away, and the group was left to venture into Camp Everfree itself. Gaia looked at the root walls with a hint of embarrassment, taking a moment to summon up Gloriosa’s Fullbring. Her hands trembled slightly as it took her a few seconds to concentrate enough to get the massive roots to start moving, pulling back and sinking into the earth like wooden serpents sliding into a murky lake.

“You can still do that, even without the geodes, sis?” Timber said, and Gaia nodded.

“The magic just brought out what was already there. Between my power as Gloriosa, and Gaia’s inherent tie to nature she possessed when purely a Hollow, I can still command plant life readily enough. It’s just... a bit harder now, without the geodes super charging me. And I’m exhausted. I used up so much in that fight, I doubt I could even discharge a proper Cero at the moment.”

“Let us hope that the need for Ceros has ended for the day,” Discord said as he led the group into the camp area.

Within seconds the group was bombarded by two flying missiles of overly excited young teenagers as Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both proceeded to projectile tackle their respective sisters.

“Applejack!”

“Rarity!”

“Guwh! W-watch it Applebloom. I’m a might sore.”

“Sweetie Belle, I... I’m glad to see you’re alright.”

Both Applejack and Rarity had weathered their sibling’s tight hugs and returned them in kind, although as Sunset stood back and watched it was impossible to miss just how much Rarity appeared to freeze up upon contact with Sweetie Belle. She still hugged her sister back, but Sunset noticed a distinct look of pain on Rarity’s face that didn’t remotely resemble the wince Applejack had due to simple physical wounds. A creeping sensation started to squeeze Sunset’s chest as she started to suspect something was very wrong, but she couldn’t bring herself to just outright call Rarity out right then and there. It would have to wait, at least until things had settled down.

At what was left of the camp center, Sweet Cider was sitting against one of the partially destroyed walls, her head leaned against the wood with her eyes closed, almost like she was napping. Both her Zanpaktou, now back in it’s sealed state of an oversized machete, and her Fullbring sword were leaning against the wall next to her. She cracked open an eye at the commotion and with a groan managed to stand up, leaving her blades against the wall as she approached, “Ya’ll finally sorted out that Gloriosa lady?”

Gaia eyed Sweet Cider and cleared her throat, “Ahem, we have come to an understanding and mutual truce, if that’s what you mean.”

Sweet Cider glanced at Gaia, quirked an eyebrow, then crossed her arms and cracked a sly grin, “Ya mean my daughter n’ her pals kicked yer keister hard ‘nouth ta git ya seein’ sense.”

Gaia pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, “Soul Reapers.”

Apparently that alone was enough to convey her sentiments on the matter. Sunset cleared her throat and said, “Captain Sweet Cider, don’t antagonize her, please. We’re guests in her home, and she is being very understanding, all things considered.”

“If ya call all o’ what just happened being understandin’, Sunset Shimmer, I’d hate ta see what ya consider ‘unreasonable’, but I git what yer sayin’. I’ll lay off the lady,” Sweet Cider said, glancing at her two daughters, “AJ, what was that reiatsu I sensed a’ bit ago? Was pretty dang fierce.”

Applejack scowled, setting Applebloom aside with a pat on the head as she addressed her mother, “Some big headed gal from Zero Davison. Called herself Medley. She tossed out some veiled threats n’ then stole somethin’ from me n’ the girls ‘fore runnin’ off like a’ liver bellied snake n’ the grass.”

Sweet Cider’s eyes lit up like emerald torches as she filled her voice with heat, “Knew Zero was downright shady. Discord, ya got anythin’ ta say on this?”

“Nothing I can go into right here and now, Captain,” Discord said, “For the moment we need to ensure that when your comrades from Gotei 13 arrive that no further violence ensues. We, after all, have Arrancar and Quincy alike here who are non-hostile, and I’d like to ensure none jump the gun, so to speak.”

By now the very Quincy in question had approached Twilight, led by Sugarcoat who marched straight up to Twilight and looked the other girl over with her visor. Twilight almost blushed at the intense scrutiny and awkward silence. “Uh...S-Sugarcoat?”

“You’re a mess,” Sugarcoat said bluntly, then without hesitation grabbed Twilight and pulled her into a tight, if brief hug before letting her go, “I’m glad you’re still alive. I was worried.”

“All of us were,” said Indigo Zap, standing awkwardly as she favored her left leg. Twilight looked at her with concern.

“Indigo, are your legs holding up?”

“The left one started giving me some lag a bit ago. Think something inside broke that’s making it hard to control. Still, they both held up pretty well during all the fighting, so far as I’m concerned, this was one hell of a successful field test,” Indigo Zap said, giving Twilight a thumbs up.

“I’m glad,” Twilight said, looking at the rest of her squad, “You all did very well, protecting the students. I’m grateful.”

“That’s great and all,” said Lemon Zest, “But don’t we need to scram? Heard those big wigs over there yapping about Soul Reapers on their way. Not exactly eager to still be here when they show.”

“About that...'' Twilight said, taking a deep breath, “We can’t leave immediately. There’s a few matters that need cleaning up, not to mention there’s other Quincy who will be here momentarily. I’ve been assured by Discord that he will handle the immediate diplomatic issues when the Gotei 13 reinforcements arrive. I also trust Captain Sweet Cider and Captain Starswirl to help temper their comrades’ attitude and give us time to sort our own matters out, including dismantling our field lab. For now, you four are on standby. Stay here in camp, don’t make any aggressive moves, and just keep an eye on things while I tie up some loose ends with my friends and the other Quincy.”

“This has something to do with the assassination plot against you, right?” said Sugarcoat, and Twilight nodded.

“The plot against my life has been dealt with, although there’s... a lot to deal with concerning the aftermath of all of this. Sombra is not going to be happy when he learns the truth,” Twilight said, suppressing a heartfelt sight. She wasn’t looking forward to dealing with all of the fallout the revelations of Sapphire Shores’ plot might bring to the Quincy. She certainly wasn’t looking forward to telling Sombra about it all. As far as she knew, Sombra had trusted Sapphire implicitly and considered her a close confidant. Knowing that she’d been the one to seek Twilight’s life would be devastating. More than that, what of Sapphire’s reasons for seeking to assassinate Twilight at all? She still didn’t feel entirely clear on that point, but feared learning the whole truth. With Sapphire utterly under the influence of Cadence’s Lust, there was no doubt Sapphire would willingly reveal everything, but did Twilight want to know all the details?

Well, it was a matter for when she returned to the Silburn, but it left her uncomfortable, all the same.

Spotting two forms sitting near one of the other camp buildings, a storehouse, if Twilight remembered right, she nodded towards them and asked Sugarcoat, “How are they holding up?”

The ‘they’ in question were Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara. The former was holding the later as they sat side by side on the short wooden steps up to the storeroom doorway. They both looked exhausted and disheveled, but Silver Spoon still had an alert expression, eyes watching the unfolding scenes carefully, whereas Diamond Tiara was staring at the ground with shell shocked eyes.

Sugarcoat shook her head, “Better than I expected, but Filthy Rich’s daughter is pretty shook up. Her friend held up well during the fighting. Real potential in that one.”

“Filthy Rich should be here soon, along with Cadence. Gladmane and Sapphire Shores... they were among the traitors. Both are subdued for now,” Twilight said, earning a few gasps, Sunny Flare’s eyes shooting entirely too wide.

“Sapphire Shores!? But... but how!? She’s... she’s nearly as respected as His Majesty himself! Even other Sternritter idolize her! She couldn’t have...”

“Sunny, calm down,” Sugarcoat said, although her own tone held a hint of being shaken by the news as well, “I’m sure Twilight isn’t lying, and that there’s an explanation for all this.”

“I’m more impressed Twilight won,” Indigo Zap said, not even hiding her surprised awe, “I mean, how did you win? Sapphire Shores is supposed to be among the very elite of the elite. Even your father wouldn’t be able to take her easily.”

Twilight felt Midnight stir in her mind. Midnight had been keeping fairly quiet as she focused on recovery, but the pride and smug satisfaction inside Midnight oozed into Twilight a little, and she quickly looked away, cheeks blazing as she rubbed the back of her head, “It wasn’t all me, really. I mean, I had a lot of help, and with the right tactics, timing, and a little luck, we managed to defeat her.”

Her voice quieted as her mind flashed back to Soarin, remembering the moment he was injured, “And we didn’t win without cost. Soarin is... is in critical condition right now.”

Critical condition. That was one way of putting it. He was essentially dead, his body frozen in stone, and he would have to remain that way until a means to save his life was found. Perhaps Quincy medicine alone might be enough, but Twilight wasn’t certain, and that uncertainty gnawed at her. Soarin had gone well out of his way to help her since he’d been assigned as her bodyguard. He’d been a supportive, calm pillar amid a time of pure uncertainty and danger in her life. He hadn’t hesitated to put his life on the line for her, more than once. She owed it to him to take any chance necessary to restore him to good health.

Yet again another matter to leave for later, but it was one she promised herself she wouldn’t forget.

Twilight sensed a familiar presence approach her, and didn’t even have to turn around to know it was Sunset. Her friend’s spiritual pressure had a warm, gentle quality to it, not unlike Sunset’s namesake. Sugarcoat and the other Quincy girls all gave the pair their space, Sugarcoat simply mentioning that if Twilight needed them for anything that they would be nearby. Then for a second it was just Twilight and Sunset, standing side by side looking at the smaller, but still sizable, tree that stood in what was left of Camp Everfree’s lakebed.

“...Quite the day,” Sunset said.

Twilight made a sound that wasn’t quite a laugh. More like a tired, humor dipped sigh. “Yeah.”

“Was the fight at Las Noches like this?” Sunset asked.

After a weighty second, Twilight said, “No. It was worse. I had less control. Lost... more.”

“I...” Sunset hesitated, then Twilight felt her friend's eyes on her, that warmth turning into something more intense, “I want to make sure things like this stop happening, Twilight. You understand? Innocent people are getting hurt by this war, and I think we’re the only ones in a position to do anything about it.”

“I don’t disagree,” Twilight said, slowly turning to face Sunset. It briefly startled her, the shining mix of pain and resolve in her friend’s soft eyes. “Believe me, I want nothing more than to end the fighting between everyone.”

“Then make a stand with me,” Sunset said, holding out her hand to Twilight, “You, me, Adagio, the friends we’ve all been building along the way... we’re a force to be reckoned with. We proved that, today. I know that I have to deal with Starlight first, make sure Equestria is safe, but... that isn’t going to be the end of it. Medley just made that pretty damn clear. If we’re going to put a stop to whatever the Zero Division is planning, it’s going to take all of us. We might have to knock a lot of heads together to make it happen, too. That might mean the Quincy, too, you know?”

Twilight understood what Sunset was getting at. She’d already come to similar conclusions. Even if she convinced Sombra fully to seek an end to the war, that didn’t mean every Quincy was going to fall in line. Sapphire Shores might not be the only one who would need to be subdued. And Sunset was facing a similar issue with the Gotei 13. There might be opposition to peace, or indeed another fracturing between those who wanted to be loyal to their “superiors” in the Zero Division, and those who might be willing to fight against whatever plot remained hidden behind the scenes.

In such a conflict, Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity were the foundation upon which opposition to the war and Zero Division could be built. With help from Twilight, bringing any willing Quincy aboard, and Adagio, readying her own rebellion among the Hollows against Tirek.

And perhaps, even, if Starlight Glimmer could be defeated, but also convinced to cooperate against Zero Division...?

Twilight took Sunset’s hand, “You didn’t even have to ask. I am a Quincy, but I’m always going to be, first and foremost, your friend. We’ll save Equestria and this world, whatever it takes.”

Sunset’s hand gripped hers tightly before yanking her into a hug, “All I needed to hear.”

----------

It was only an hour later that Sunset and her immediate friends found themselves inside Camp Everfree’s storage building. It was the only spot with any real privacy, and given how crowded things had gotten outside, they’d wanted a place to sit and talk for a bit while Discord was playing diplomat.

The Soul Reapers had arrived in force, and a sizable contingent of several hundred of the black robed warriors, led by Celestia and Hurricane, were now either standing sentry over the camp or sweeping the forest. The Quincy that had been with Twilight had also arrived, along with Captain Luna, who had apparently shadowed the group until she’d confirmed Starswirl had not been a prisoner.

Gaia and Timber were being watched by Sweet Cider, and Gaia’s presence was causing as much if not more tension than the Quincy. It seemed that having their ‘Kenpachi’ watching Gaia was at least keeping immediate fears from erupting into conflict, but there was serious disquiet concerning the Arrancar’s presence.

Sunset wasn’t sure just how things hadn’t devolved to violence yet, but it did seem to help that Celestia, Starswirl, Sweet Cider, and even a reluctant Luna were not only keeping Hurricane on a leash, but seeming to keep the lower ranked Soul Reapers calm. It also helped that the Quincy weren’t going out of their way to antagonize matters, mostly thanks to Cadence taking charge of things and maintaining a diplomatic air with Celestia and Luna.

On top of that, Discord seemed to keep both sides enough off kilter to ensure nobody was willing to strike first, lest no one know which side he’d support. Still, it was tense at the moment, and the Quincy had already agreed to depart as soon as Twilight was ready to do so. Sugarcoat and the rest of the girls from Crystal Prep had gone to disassemble the field lab, so all that was really left was for Twilight to be ready to go, but had requested some time to still talk with her friends before doing so, which Cadence had agreed to.

“So, that Cadence chick still hooked up with your bro, Twi?” asked Dash, who was digging around in some of the boxes on the west wall of the storage room, fishing out some packages of beef jerky. She tore into said food with a hungry vengeance and tossed some of the other packages to the other girls, those who wanted them at least.

“What?” Twilight said, “I mean, yes? They’re going to be married soon.”

“Is it a Quincy wedding with, like, fancy uniforms and involves bows somehow?” Rainbow said, cracking a smirk.

“Not everything Quincy do involves bows,” Twilight said defensively, “Sometimes it’s guns. Or any projectile based device, really. Honestly, is that what you want to talk about, my brother’s love life?”

“Nah, but figured it was an ice breaker for asking what was up with that weird looking, multi-armed silver chick,” Rainbow said, her expression darkening as she bit off a big hunk of jerky, “The one who was trying to kill you. Do you know why she was trying to do that?”

“More or less,” Twilight said, shuffling over to a step stool that she sat down upon, shoulders slumping, “She thought I was a threat to Sombra, due to her Schrift giving her a flawed but not entirely inaccurate ability to predict future events.”

“So like Pinkie’s sense?” Sunset asked, and at Pinkie’s look she quickly held up a hand, saying, “Just asking. I mean, you have to admit, your sense can really be all over the place.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie admitted, “It’s been real on and off lately. I really...” her eyes flicked towards Rarity, “Wish it was more reliable today.”

“Alright, that tears it,” Applejack huffed out. She’d been staying near the door, but now she pushed off the wall she’d been leaning against and strode towards the center of the group, facing Rarity. Aside from Rarity the girls had all deactivated their Fullbrings, and they were just standing around in a haggard, but otherwise normal state. Even in Rarity’s case, her gate and army of knights had been sent away, although she still wore her armored battle dress. Sunset wasn’t really sure why that was, but didn’t feel the need to question it. Sunset was still in her spirit body, as Chappy was sticking close to Discord and Ditzy. More than a couple of Soul Reapers had given her odd looks, recognizing her as an artificial soul like many of them might use in the field to get out of a gigai body, and seemed to assume Chappy was ‘normal’ but such standards despite her erratic behavior.

Sunset just hoped Chappy wouldn’t do anything to draw too much attention until everything settled down.

However, at the moment her attention was arrested by Applejack, who was staring hard at Rarity. For her part, Rarity had broken out into a slight sweat, having flinched back from Applejack’s piercing look.

“Is something the matter, Applejack?” Rarity asked, and the other girl’s brows twitched into a tight furrow.

“Yer darn right somethin’s the matter. I wanna know what’s goin’ on with ya, Rarity. Ain’t nothin’ seemed right since ya ran off ta go after that Quincy fella, Hoity Somethin’. Now I know I ain’t the sharpest tool n’ the shed, but dang it I can tell when people ain’t bein’ honest with me.”

Sunset frowned, and that uneasy feeling in her chest that had been sitting around since Rarity had returned now uncoiled a bit more. She’d been feeling the same thing Applejack had, that something wasn’t right, but there’d been too much to deal with to focus on it. Now that they had a few moments to breath, Sunset could focus her attention on Rarity. Really focus upon her, both physically and with her spiritual senses. Sunset had felt it before that something was off with Rarity’s reiatsu, but hadn’t been able to place her finger on it. It felt lighter, less constrained. This wasn’t just a factor of her Fullbring being complete, but rather the basic difference between a spiritual pressure that’s contained inside a living body and a spiritual pressure that’s...

“Rarity...” Sunset said in a quiet, frozen tone as she felt her stomach drop out and her legs lock up, “Why do you still have your armor on?”

“I, ah... want to stay ready, just in case another attack happens?” Rarity suggested, but a combination of Applejack’s eyes boring into her alongside Sunset’s more fearful look of growing understanding caused Rarity to let out a regretful sigh and lower her head, “I guess there’s no point hiding it. Everyone here already knows, save for you and Applejack.”

“Know what?” Applejack said.

Rainbow Dash’s face had become a crestfallen mask, while Pinkie Pie’s entire expression drooped like that of a sad, abandoned puppy. Fluttershy had a look of mournful acceptance on her face, at peace with what she knew but not feeling any less pain for it.

Sunset already knew what to expect now, even before Rarity deactivated the last of her Fullbring and let the armor melt away to her normal clothing, revealing the broken Soul Chain beneath that dangled from her chest.

Applejack stared at it with uncomprehending eyes for several long seconds, her mouth slowly opening and then closing, as if unable to form words. As Applejack remained in that shocked, static state, Sunset moved forward and reached out to Rarity, touching her arm.

“The fight with Hoity Toity?”

“Before,” Rarity said, “Sapphire Shores. She got me from behind. Stupid mistake on my part. I should have been more careful. I’m... sorry Sunset...”

“No,” Sunset said, a roughness entering her voice past a growing lump in her throat, “Please don’t be sorry. Rarity, this is my fault. I should have been there.”

“Don’t even start with that. I won’t hear a word of it,” Rarity said, cutting through Sunset’s rising sorrow like a knife, “I alone am responsible for getting myself in this mess. If any one of you so much as whispers a hint of trying to blame this on yourselves I shall twist your ears like you wouldn't believe!”

“Sapphire Shores...” Applejack finally spoke, and it was like the sound of an awakening volcano moments before eruption. Sunset looked at her friend and felt her mouth dry out at the sight of murderous rage that shone inside Applejack’s eyes. “That... thing that’s outside right now with the other Quincy?”

“Applejack-” Twilight began, but Applejack just stomped her foot on the ground, shattering the floorboards as her reiatsu spilled out of her in a golden wreath.

“Rarity, Sapphire Shores... she did this to you? Stabbed you in the back?” Applejack said, steam rising from her, the wood beneath her feet starting to burn. “She k...killed you?”

Rarity’s own expression was like flat snow, her fists clenched at her sides. Sunset had seen more expression out of mannequins in the boutique Rarity had worked at. “She is, and before you do anything Applejack, understand that if anyone has a right to be furious with her, it’s me. And I’m asking you to politely control yourself.”

“Control myself?” Applejack breathed, “Are ya bein’ serious? Yer murderer is standin’ right outside! I ain’t controlin’ a damn thing other n’ my lance goin’ right through that killers chest!”

Fluttershy moved before anyone else, even before Applejack was able to even halfway turn around. It even surprised Sunset just how swift and smooth Fluttershy’s motion was. She didn’t so much hold Applejack as become a breeze that spun Applejack around and placed her gently into a grip that was as much a hug as it was a sleeper hold.

“No.”

Fluttershy’s voice was much like her actions. Kind, gentle, but allowing for little argument.

Applejack let out a noise like a tire being deflated mixed with a hound’s feral growl. “Gosh...darnit...Fluttershy...I can’t... can’t let her get away with doin’... oh God... Rarity...”

“I know,” Fluttershy said, slowly releasing Applejack, who sank to her knees, “I know it hurts. It’s okay. We’re all here. Even Rarity is still here.”

“In spirit,” Rarity said, then cringed at her own jest, “Apologies, that was bad.”

Pinkie Pie sniffed, wiping a stream of tears that had bloomed on her own face, “I thought it was funny.”

Whether it was her friend’s attempt at humor at her own situation or Fluttershy’s encouragement to let go, Applejack broke into harsh, choking sobs right there. Rarity, unable to do anything else, knelt in front of her friend and accepted Applejack’s tears into her chest. Rainbow Dash, face flush with embarrassment, shed her own tears quietly, looking away at the wall as if she could bore a hole through it and stab Sapphire Shores with lightning. Pinkie Pie didn’t hesitate to dogpile into the group herself, holding both Applejack and Rarity tight.

Twilight looked utterly miserably on her stool, but Sunset went over to her and sat down as well, taking her friend’s hand.

“Did you know?” Sunset asked in a whisper, and Twilight shook her head.

“No,” she whispered back, glad her voice was masked by the tears of the other girls,”I had a suspicion, but I was hoping so hard that my intuition was wrong this time... Sunset, I know what Rarity just said, but this wouldn’t have happened if Sapphire Shores hadn’t been targeting me.”

“Twilight-” Sunset began, but the other girl cut her off.

“All I’m saying is that, if there is anything I can do to try and set this right, I’ll help you do it.”

“Alright,” Sunset said, looking on at the sight of her friend’s mourning, “I don’t know what that’ll be, though.”

“Hey, Twilight,” said Rainbow Dash suddenly, “If we’re not doing in Sapphire Shores ourselves, and you’re the one who kicked her ass, then tell me what your Quincy pals are going to do with her. She betrayed your King or whatever, right?”

“Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said, “That isn’t important right now.”

“Sounds pretty damn important,” Dash said, using an elbow to wipe her eyes, “Ain’t saying we’ve got to do anything. But I want to know some kind of justice is on the horizon for the person who killed my friend.”

“I don’t know, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said honestly, “I have no idea how Sombra will react to what’s happened. I don’t know what punishment he’ll decide upon for her and her co-conspirators. It may be out of my hands, and even if it was in my hands I... I don’t know what I’d want to have happen. Sapphire Shores has already been stripped of her will, maybe most of her mind, by Cadence’s Schrift.”

“Hmph.... guess that’s something,” Rainbow Dash said, and went back to smoldering up against the wall.

Rarity, still holding Applejack, simply shook her head, “I couldn’t care less what becomes of her. I have far more important matters on my mind.”

“We’ll figure something out, Rarity,” Sunset said, hoping to sound assuring, “I promise you that.”

“Perhaps we will, perhaps we won’t,” Rarity said, “But that doesn’t change that as painful as this is right now, this won’t compare to what comes next.”

“Which is?” asked Rainbow Dash.

Rarity closed her eyes, “Telling Sweetie Belle and my parents...”

Episode 131: Negotiations

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Episode 131: Negotiations

Surveying the fresh wreckage of what was left of much of Camp Everfree, Celestia felt the weight of the Soul Reaper’s uniform she wore all the more. She’d replaced the damaged Captain’s coat that had been largely torn up during her fight with Grogar, having been given one while she’d frustratingly waited for Captain Hurricane to mobilize his Division and for Central 46 to grant approval for the large deployment of forces to the living world. Her jaw still ached slightly from the way she’d clenched it the entire time, waiting for the Senkaimon Gate to be opened, knowing full well that every second could cost precious lives.

And by the time she and Hurricane had gotten here with their reinforcements, it was already over...

On one hand, a part of her was relieved that Sunset Shimmer and her friends had managed to win the day. Not without help from Celestia’s fellow Captains, but Celestia was still trying to get the whole picture of what had happened. Luna was being rather sourly tight lipped about what exactly had transpired between her and Adagio Dazzle, although Celestia knew her sister well enough to tell that Luna was more than merely sore over losing a fight. Something else was bothering her, but Luna wasn’t saying anything, deflecting Celestia’s questions with mumbled ‘Tell you later’ or ‘Not now’.

Sweet Cider was similarly being light on words. She’d said very little other than to report that she’d driven off an Espada, with Applejack’s assistance. Celestia didn’t know Sweet Cider as well as her sister, of course, but Sweet Cider wore her emotions clearly enough to make it apparent that whatever had occurred, it had been far more than a mere battle against any old foe.

Then there was the “prisoner” that Sweet Cider was standing guard over. Though she stood as nonchalantly as possible in the center of the remains of Camp Everfree, the woman whom Celestia had previously known as the human Gloriosa Daisy the focal point of much nervous gazes from the Soul Reapers who kept watch over the camp. If Sweet Cider wasn’t there, Celestia had to wonder if anyone would have made the mistake of attacking “Gloriosa” out of fear. Celestia was not caught up on the full details, but if what Discord said was true, then for all intents and purposes the human Gloriosa was gone, and in her place was a strange amalgam of her and the ancient Arrancar, Gaia Everfree.

Celestia knew the name, as Gaia had been fairly well known in her time, even if that time was before Celestia’s. She didn’t know what to think, looking at Gaia now. A threat? A victim? A possible ally? All she knew was that things had gotten more complicated with Gaia here, and it probably didn’t bode well for Sunset Shimmer and the girls keeping out of trouble with Central 46.

Gaia aside, there was the perhaps even more immediate issue of the Quincy. Celestia’s eyes were drawn to where the group of white uniformed individuals gathered on Camp Everfree’s eastern side, near what was once the lakeshore, now just a wet field of mud and rock. She saw Filthy Rich, kneeling down on one knee in front of his daughter, Silver Spoon standing beside them with one hand lightly on her friend’s shoulder. Celestia couldn’t hear what was being said, but she couldn’t miss the pained pinch of Rich’s features, the strained exhaustion of Diamond Tiara’s. The child’s eyes kept darting between that of her father, and that of her mother. Spoiled Rich was unconscious, held bound by magical chains and kept under watch alongside Gladmane by a towering silver figure. That figure alone, the transformed Sternritter Sapphire Shores, made Celestia’s stomach churn both with apprehension and a bit of sympathy.

To think Sombra was going this far to push his people for victory. Somehow the way Sapphire Shore’s body was changed permanently reminded Celestia of how Grogar had mutilated his soul with spirit-based machinery.

We’re killing our own souls in this war. Sacrificing ourselves, piece by piece. We Soul Reapers did it with Hitsuyo-Aku, and the things we made there, and the Quincy and Hollows do the same. Will there even be anything of us left by the end of it, even if there is a winner?

Her heart went out to Diamond Tiara. From the confusion and denial on the girl’s face she wasn’t going to quickly come to terms with the truth of her family. Celestia didn’t know what had transpired that left Spoiled Rich and Gladmane both in chains, and Sapphire Shores... somehow under thrall. She recognized Cadence’s Lust, although she’d never witnessed the Schrift’s power used to such a complete extent. She was suddenly glad of the fact that neither she or Luna ever fought Cadence in earnest, or vice versa. She’d always thought of the young Quincy woman as a rare voice of reason among her faction, and was glad that Cadence had taken charge of affairs here.

It was Cadence who was negotiating with Celestia and Hurricane, with Discord acting as a mediator between them. Celestia, although distracted with her taking stock of things, hadn’t missed what Cadence had just said.

“I’m sorry, Cadence, I didn’t mean to stare.”

Cadence, sighing but offering a coy smile, said, “Sapphire Shores is beyond taking offense at this point, but I hope you understand I’m not at liberty to explain her present appearance.”

“Of course-” Celestia started, only to be cut off by Hurricane’s rough voice.

“Of course nothing!” he belted out, thick arms crossing his muscular chest, “We may already know of you Quincy developing a new transformation, but that woman’s appearance does not match our reports! I, for one, demand to know exactly what that transformation is and if there are any more of your kind capable of it.”

Her lips curled back in a smile that could only be described as deliberately sweet while Cadence’s voice was colder than steel, “I am not going to respond to rudely bellowed demands, especially under a flag of truce, however temporary it may be.”

“Flag of truce? Pfft, don’t make me laugh, Quincy!” Hurricane said, inclining his head to stare down his nose at Cadence, “You and your meager forces are drained. Celestia and I are fresh, backed by two full companies, not to mention our three fellow Captains who are, while not in peak condition, undoubtedly still lethal. We outnumber you considerably. In what position do you think yourself able to negotiate anything other than your surrender?”

“I will not be intimidated,” was Cadence’s smooth, unruffled reply, “Filthy Rich and I are quite capable of continuing to fight if need be, and Sapphire Shores is under my control, with her full complement of powers I do not think you wish to test.”

“I do not fear you or your silver monstrosity. If you pathetic lot were able to beat her, while only losing one of your worthless number-”

Cadence’s eyes narrowed to razor slits, her voice a cold slap, “Sternritter Soarin sacrificed himself in the line of duty to help ensure our survival. Another word spoken against him and you’ll get your wish for a termination to these talks.”

“Ladies! Ladies!” Discord said, holding out his hands to path Soul Reapers and Quincy alike, “I suggest we unruffle our jimmies for a second, especially you Captain Hurricane. I mean, seriously, can’t you read the mood of a room? This is hardly the time for saber rattling and picking fights. A rather huge one just ended. Let’s not start that up again so soon, shall we? Especially when there’s more to gain by chatting it out.”

Hurricane’s dark blue features burned red as he glared at Discord, “Why should we listen to a traitorous buffoon like you, precisely?”

“Well, for one,” Discord’s eyes flashed, “Consider that if you begin a fight in my city without being attacked first, I’ll make a point of ending the matter myself. For two, you don’t have Central 46’s authorization to commence a large scale combat operation in the living world unless human lives are under threat. Which they aren’t. Not anymore. Am I wrong?”

Hurricane had the look of a man chewing upon a dish he had no desire to eat as he growled under his breath at Discord, then looked at Celestia, “Are we truly considering letting such a large contingent of the enemy’s elite forces leave when they are in front of us, weakened? This is a golden opportunity to deal a severe blow to the Quincy!”

“Captain Hurricane, we did not come here to ‘deal a severe blow’ to anyone. Our sole purpose was to secure Canterlot City and Camp Everfree from any hostile forces and save human lives,” Celestia reminded him curtly, “Since no one besides you is being hostile at the moment, I see no reason to engage in combat, especially if the Quincy are willing to withdraw willingly from the area.”

She eyed Cadence, “You are willing to withdraw, yes?”

“Soon,” Cadence said, “There’s certain matters that we need to attend to, including ensuring my colleague Twilight Sparkle is fully prepared to depart.”

Yes, there was that. Celestia knew Twilight Sparkle was currently talking with her friends inside one of the few remaining intact buildings in the camp, although Celestia didn’t know what about. She suspected it was concerning what had occurred at Captain Starswirl’s lab. Celestia trusted her instincts. She more or less knew that Sunset and the girls had helped in freeing that Arrancar girl. Captain Starswirl had already confirmed that the Arrancar was gone, freed by her comrades. He’d also made some off hand mention of wishing to speak more with Twilight before she left, and suggested he had things he needed to discuss with Central 46.

Something had clearly happened on his end as well. Celestia was certainly feeling out of the loop. Starswirl at the moment was hanging around nearby, but his attention was less on the talks and more on the sight of the sizable tree in the center of the drained lakebed. A tree that apparently had a now functional and stable portal leading into, of all places, the Beast Realm. And presumably, beyond that, Equestria.

Celestia felt a tingle at the back of her head, feeling her sister’s stare. Luna was sitting against the remains of one of the camp center’s destroyed walls. Celestia couldn’t be certain what her sister was thinking, but had a gut feeling it was drawn to the portal, the same as Celestia’s thoughts were. The Beast Realm. It wasn’t home. Home had always been Soul Society, but Celestia knew, just as she imagined her sister knew, that one day down the road they’d both have to come to terms with their ties to that place.

Sooner, perhaps, rather than later. Focusing on the present moment, Celestia offered Cadence an understanding nod, “Considering Miss Sparkle’s assistance rendered to Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer and her allies in subduing the dangerous situation here, I have no objection to providing you a reasonable time frame in which to organize your withdrawal.”

“Oh, just like that?” Hurricane said, “What of reports from the survivors of Captain Starswirl’s lab that he engaged the Quincy, and that they may have been part of the force that freed our Arrancar prisoner?”

“Come now, Captain Hurricane, why would the Quincy help a Hollow?” Celestia said, having no trouble keeping her voice both smooth and naturally incredulous. Nevermind she suspected Twilight had had plenty to do with the Arrancar’s freedom, but unless Starswirl himself intended to elaborate, Celestia would run interference readily enough. “I’m sure I don’t have to remind you that Quincy hate Hollows even more so than they dislike us.”

Hurricane, for all his bluster, was neither foolish nor purely muscle headed. He’d led Soul Society’s primary military offensives for quite some time. No doubt he’d looked at the situation and seen plenty of holes in events that suggested things weren’t as they seemed, and his twitching eye suggested he didn’t entirely buy that Celestia was innocent of involvement either. Still, he kept his arms crossed, not moving to touch his Zanpaktou at all as he said, “Be that as it may, there’s other reasons to not allow these Quincy to just leave. We don’t even know what such a force was doing here in the first place. At least four Sternritter were present during these events, five if you count that newly minted child. Why were they here, Celestia? Prior to any Arrancar activity, I might add.”

“Before you get your Soul Reaper robes too sullied with sweat worrying about it, I’ll inform you of the simple truth,” Cadence said, drawing both Captains’ attention, “Filthy Rich and Twilight Sparkle were in negotiation with the owners of this camp for the purpose of establishing new training facilities in the area for our cadets. Given this area is no longer suitable for that purpose, it's no loss to provide you that information. Considering Gloriosa Daisy is effectively persona non grata to us now, you can rest assured we no longer have any interest in this area.”

That was probably partially the truth, Celestia surmised, but she sincerely doubted it was the whole truth. Considering Twilight was here with those other young ladies from Crystal Prep, Celestia had a feeling she’d had other purposes here besides taking part in some new territory acquisition. Field research was more likely, but Celestia was happy enough to let Cadence and Twilight clean up whatever was left behind of such experiments.

Hurricane stuck out his chin and grinned without mirth, “Five Sternritter for some paltry negotiations? You don’t lie very convincingly, woman. I am many things, but gullible is not one of them. Admit it, you were intending to steal the portal to Equestria! Why, I imagine you Quincy are far from done with this place. You still want that portal, and will be back in greater force to claim it! Best we eliminate you now, so there’s fewer Sternritter to worry about and send a clear message to your King that the Gotei 13 are the custodians of the living world!”

“Hurricane, that’s enough.”

The words came from the yawning voice of Captain Starswirl, having ceased gazing contemplatively at the distant tree and turned to walk up to the tense standoff. His body still showed the wounds and battering of intense fighting, his Captains coat missing save for a few torn scraps, but otherwise the elderly Soul Reaper held himself with the intense poise of a man too busy to be bothered by minor inconveniences like injuries or fatigue. Starswirl eyed Hurricane as he halted in front of the group, stroking his beard, “It is clear to me that you are, as always, spoiling for an excuse to crack skulls rather than make use of your own. We have nothing to gain by provoking the Quincy at this time, and they have proven, at least for the moment, to be amenable to reasonable discourse. Do you mind, perhaps, shutting your trap for the time being while more enlightened minds discuss matters?”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” said Discord, nodding to Starswirl, “It’s been awhile. Haven’t blown up the old lab, have you?”

An explosive snort fell from Starswirl as he gave the other man a wary look, “Do not mistake me for yourself. The Twelfth Division is significantly more efficient and explosion free without your... uniquely freewheeling brand of ‘science’ being utilized. I can also attest that we’ve had 100% fewer members betray and steal vital research from us since your time in command.”

“Jabbing the knife in a little deep, aren’t we?” Discord said, “Well, fair enough, I should have kept a better eye on things. But we’re not here to talk about me.”

“No, apparently we’re here to talk with our sworn enemies as if we were having a damn tea party!” Hurricane growled.

“I do happen to have access to some lovely blends I could have Ditzy brew up,” Discord offered, to which Hurricane visibly snarled, turned around, and stalked away like an agitated lion. After he had stomped off a good distance, Discord added, “Was it something I said?”

“Your facility for aggravating anyone in your presence is well intact, I see,” Starswirl said, then shrugged, “But no matter, at least he’s going to go fume elsewhere. Now then, perhaps we can accomplish some worthwhile diplomacy? Miss Cadence, am I to understand you and Miss Sparkle share a fairly close bond?”

Cadence’s eyes briefly sparked with wary suspicion, but she softened it with a thin smile, “We will soon be sisters-in-law. I can safely say we’re close. Why?”

“I’ll get right to the point,” Starswirl said, “You know that after all I’ve witnessed I have no shortage of information I can provide to the Gotei 13, including details of Sternritter abilities that were before today unknown factors. I am also aware that, for all his bluster, Hurricane is correct on one thing; the Quincy will not ignore the existence of that portal. What I propose is we both recommend to our leadership that a meeting be arranged, to discuss the prospect of a temporary cease-fire between Quincy and Soul Reaper.”

Celestia’s eyebrows shot up instantly. That was a bold move, especially from Starswirl. Not that she hadn’t been considering the same notion, but she’d been intending to suggest the idea only after things had cooled down.

Cadence looked equally taken aback, stunned to momentary silence, so Celestia cut in, “I happen to agree that there’s multiple reasons even a temporary cessation of hostilities would benefit both sides. Not the least of which is that with a permanent portal like this, it could be targeted by the Hollows. There’s no doubt they’re aware of it, or will be soon, and I cannot imagine Tirek will ignore a chance to send forces directly to Equestria. So many souls to plunder, all of that world’s magic, the target would be too tempting to resist.”

“I will note that it still passes through the Beast Realm,” Discord said, “Tirek is bold and a greedy ass, true, but even he’d hesitate to send an army through Fenrir and Nidhogg's territories.”

“I think you give him too much credit,” Celestia rapidly replied, “The only reason Tirek has not more actively pursued war upon the Beast Realm is because it would have been one front too many while still dealing with us and the Quincy. But if he can move a strike force rapidly enough to the Equestrian portal, it's possible the Beast Realm Tribes would not even realize their territory has been breached. I don’t think he can resist the allure of a fresh world to conquer.”

“The previous portal was too small, and only active at certain times,” Cadence said musingly, “Not suitable for the kind of raid you’re talking about, but this new one...? Yes, I think you have a point, Celestia. It’s an inviting target. One that Soul Society may not have the forces to guard alone. But do you believe this could work? I may have no personal grudge against Soul Reapers, but I and Twilight are a minority among our people in that regard. I don’t know how many of them would stomach the idea of an alliance, or even a momentary truce.”

“Even if it was to present a united front against Hollow invasion of a peaceful and innocent realm?” Celestia said, “The denizens of Equestria are blameless in our war, and already suffer to a degree due to our negligence. Do we not owe it to them to protect their world from the fallout of our conflict, which they had no part in making?”

“Celestia, I agree with you, wholeheartedly. But to convince His Majesty, and the rest of the Vandenreich? I don’t know. I just don’t know,” Cadence said, shaking her head, her eyes heavy with doubt.

Celestia empathized completely. She had her own doubts that Scorpan would readily agree to any kind of peaceful meeting with the Quincy, but she was sincerely hoping that the extraordinary circumstances they found themselves in would warrant giving the prospect some serious thought. The simple fact of the matter was that the three-way war between Soul Reaper, Quincy, and Hollow, had reached a dangerous crossroad. Rarely before had so many higher ranked members of all factions been either killed or incapacitated in some manner. With Platinum gone, Zecora bereft a Zanpaktou, and Amore’s soul sleep still in critical condition, along with several Lieutenants in similar condition, the Gotei 13’s war capacity was reduced. The Quincy had lost Sternritter of their own in the recent battles, and Luna’s reports indicated the Espada had lost some of their number as well.

At this critical juncture, all would be desperate to find advantage. Equestria had been kept safe largely due to the nature of the portal leading there and the unknown capacity of magic at the time.

Now, a far larger, more stable and continuously active portal existed. Furthermore, after Twilight’s demonstrations of power, after Sunset Shimmer and her friend’s rapid rise in strength, all thanks in large part to magic, there could be little doubt as to the value of it as a weapon.

Tirek would strike Equestria. Likely, Sombra and the Quincy had designs of their own. While Celestia wished to believe her own people were still the just party in the war, she knew not all was as it seemed in Soul Society’s halls of power. A member of Zero Division had been present there, until recently, and Central 46 had been eerily quiet since the incident of Celestia and Luna’s imprisonment. Could she trust that orders might not come down to invade Equestria, rather than protect it?

She had to trust that Scorpan was of good and sound mind, that enough of her fellow Captains would follow the spirit of the law rather than it’s letter. Most of all, she wanted to believe peace was a viable option that could be pursued.

“Cadence, I understand your fears, but if we don’t try, now of all times, then there’s no hope of peace for either of our peoples. I promise you I will do all in my power to convince Captain Commander Scorpan to meet with your King under a flag of peace, if you are willing to do the same.”

“I can’t make any promises, but I will try,” Cadence said, “Much will depend on what happens after Twilight and I return to the Silburn with our prisoners and news of what has occurred here. I won’t lie, His Majesty is unlikely to be in a good mood after finding out what Sapphire Shores has done. I may have to wait for an opportunity to bring up the idea of peace talks. A part of me is very afraid that his rage might push His Majesty to enact another reprisal attack, like what happened recently in Las Noches. I don’t think the Quincy can handle another all out offensive like that.”

“Well if it’s motivation for peace you all want, then let’s just say I have information that everyone is going to want to hear,” Discord said, causing both Celestia and Cadence to turn their attention to him. His normally joking expression had stilled like dried mud, “Not here, however. I can only toss this bomb once, so I’ll wait until there’s plenty of ears around for the occasion. Before that there’s still the matter of getting everyone to agree to chat it out. Let’s say I offer up my humble shop as a ‘neutral ground’ for these peace talks? I’m well known enough that I think even the Quincy King can’t complain about my acting as mediator, yes?”

Cadence’s brows drew down in thought, “I’d rather hear what this information you have is now, but I’m going to guess you’re not in a sharing mood?”

“Believe me, this isn’t something to be told lightly, and I’d rather do it where it can have maximum effect. If I told you now, it’d only muddy the waters.”

“Hmph... I doubt His Majesty will care where the meeting takes place anyway, so I have no reason to object,” Cadence replied, then cast a weary glance towards the building where Twilight, Sunset, and the other girls had gone, “As far as I’m concerned, we’re done here. As soon as Twilight is finished catching up with her friends, we’ll begin our cleanup operation and withdraw. I’ll bring your message to His Majesty, and pray he might consider attending such a meeting.”

“Very well,” Celestia said, bowing in a short, formal manner, “Then let us not part as enemies, if only for this day, Cadence. Take care of yourself and young Miss Sparkle. When next we meet, I sincerely hope it will be during a formal meeting between our leaders to negotiate a peace, temporary or otherwise.”

Cadence offered a wane smile, performing a stiff Quincy salute, and then turned to region her fellow Sternritter. Celestia could see that Filthy Rich had finished speaking with his daughter, and now watched Cadence with a questioning look. The two started quietly talking, and by Filthy Rich’s incredulous look, he was probably surprised things weren’t turning towards violence.

Starswirl chuckled dryly, “I can’t claim I have great faith in diplomacy winning the day, but even a momentary armistice would do wonders for us. After witnessing that brilliant Miss Sparkle, I’m determined to get Scorpan to agree to at least a little cross-cultural research with the Quincy.”

“You’re serious?” Celestia said, staring at him, “We look upon the possibility of peace, and your mind is mired in the notion of research?”

“Ah, do not look at me that way, Celestia. Peace is a product of civilization developing past the necessities of warfare. Consider the possibilities of genuine cooperation between the Twelfth Division and the Quincy, or specifically in this instance, young Miss Sparkle? Her combined knowledge and talent for both Quincy reishi manipulation and magic would be an infinite boon to our own research efforts. Why, we may finally solve the conundrum the Quincy created with their weaponry destroying Hollows, the source of our conflict with them in the first place.”

That did give Celestia some pause. Long had she wondered why it was the Quincy’s weaponry erased Hollow souls, or indeed if that even was what happened. Because no trace of a Hollow killed by a Quincy weapon could ever be found in any of the known realms, the assumption had always been that a Hollow was destroyed entirely, thus upsetting the balance of the reincarnation cycle.

Yet, despite centuries of war between Quincy and Hollow, the cycle remained intact. Furthermore, Soul Reapers killed by Quincy weapons could still be confirmed to remain in the cycle. These odd inconsistencies had always spurred some talk and rumor among the Gotei 13’s ranks, but never enough to raise voices of objection to the war.

If Starswirl did combine his talents with that of Twilight Sparkles, could they solve this mystery and provide a reason for the war to end?

It seemed almost too much to hope for.

“If we can manage to convince Captain Commander Scorpan to consider peace, then perhaps a research alliance would also be possible,” she admitted, then reality poked at that hopeful bubble, “But that’s assuming Central 46 approves of this meeting. Even the Captain Commander cannot act alone, and would need their go ahead.”

Starswirl nodded gravely, “And knowing Central 46, that is not something I’d hold my breath over. That said, I certainly don’t have an issue with trying to talk sense into their heads. And if that doesn’t work, I can find ways to get my research with or without official approval. I won’t let thick skulled idiocy stand in the way of discovery and progress.”

“Well, someone’s gotten his inner rebel on,” Discord said, earning a sharp look from Starswirl, to which Discord only grinned and said, “What? It’s a compliment, coming from me.”

“I’ll ask you to keep them to yourself. So, does you walking out and about, so readily willing to offer your house as a meeting ground, suggest what I think it does?” Starswirl asked, and Celestia found herself looking wonderingly at Discord. It was true that aside from training Sunset and the other girls, Discord had made it a point to keep a low profile and stay out of the affairs of the war. Even sending the rescue party for her and Luna had been less about the war and more about dealing with a specific incident that Discord likely knew the girls wouldn’t keep themselves out of. Openly leaving the city to give aid here at Everfree, and then suggesting peace talks at his shop, was a much bolder move and far more direct than what was normal for Discord. On top of that, this hinting at having some kind of important information that would interest both Scorpan and Sombra...?

“Captain Starswirl makes a good point. Just what are you up to, Discord?” she asked.

His snaggle-toothed mouth lost some of it’s grin, but his red on yellow eyes still shone with a mischievous light that was somehow punctuated by his serious tone, “Everything is coming to a head. I can’t afford to be a side participant any longer. Much is going to change after today, Celestia. Even if peace talks don’t happen, there’s no stopping the chaos that will ensue from today’s events. In fact, I would go so far as to say... we’re in sight of the end.”

“Of what?”

“Everything.”

----------

“Sunset, is your hand alright?”

Sunset looked up at the question. Fluttershy stood over her, soft eyes looking down with concern. Sunset cast a look around, having lost track of how long she’d been sitting there next to Twilight, while her friends had taken the time to rest. Applejack and Rarity were sitting against the opposite wall now, Applejack still looking miserable, and Rarity leaned against the other girl with patience and poise raised like a mask over her marble features. Rainbow Dash had taken to pacing, chewing down beef jerky sticks like they were candy. Pinkie Pie was peeking out one of the windows, watching whatever was happening outside.

“Huh?” Sunset said, somewhat dazed. Her mind had wandered off as her spirit body kicked into her consciousness just how tired she was.

“Your hand,” Fluttershy repeated, “The right one, which you hold your sword with. You’ve been hiding it.”

Sunset felt her shoulders squeeze with a moment of tension. She had been keeping her right hand hidden within the confines of the voluminous black sleeves of her Soul Reaper garments. Even when she’d taken Twilight’s hand to comfort her friend, she’d made sure to use her left hand to do so. A moment of unease was soon followed by a sense of embarrassment as Sunset sighed and held out her right arm, “Sorry. I noticed it when I deactivated my Bankai. Didn’t want you girls to worry, what with everything going on.”

“Noticed what, Sunset- oh, oh dear...” Rarity’s question had swiftly turned into a hushed exclamation of dismay as Sunset let her right hand slip free of the robe, exposing it for her friends to see.

She’d of course known there’d be damage. She’d felt the pain keenly enough when wielding the black flames of her Zanpaktou. She just hadn’t expected things to be quite this bad. Gulping, she offered her friends a nervous smile and said lightheartedly, “It’s not as bad as it looks. Doesn’t even hurt anymore, and I can still wiggle my fingers, see?”

She waged her digits to prove her point, but there were gasps from a few of her friends, all the same. Sunset supposed she didn’t blame them. The flesh of her right hand was marred by deep scars and blisters, as if she’d shoved her hand in a campfire a few seconds too long. The flesh hadn’t charred off or become waxen or anything, and there was no redness or open wounds. It looked as it might if she’d badly burned her hand, but had also had a month for the burned flesh to scar over. She imagined that it was just a property of her Zanpaktou and her own spirit body’s resilience. Still, the scars had an ugly look about them, and there was some residual pain when she moved her fingers, despite what she’d said about there being no discomfort.

“Don’t be silly,” Fluttershy said, reaching down to grab Sunset’s hand, “This must have been incredibly painful, and I can tell it still hurts. Let me see what I can do.”

“Fluttershy, c’mon, it’s not that bad...” Sunset said, but soon trailed off with a soft gasp as she felt Fluttershy’s spirit energy seep into her like a soothing river. The pain abated almost instantly, although the scars didn’t show any signs of vanishing.

“What did this?” Fluttershy asked, “Those black flames?”

“Yeah, I was wondering about those,” Rainbow Dash said, looking at Sunset’s hand with sympathy but also eyeing her friend with a hint of appreciative candor in her eyes, “They looked totally awesome.”

“They’re part of my Zanpaktou’s power, which I’m still learning more and more about. In terms of raw damage, it looks like the black flames are my strongest, but not as versatile as the others I can use, and... well, kinda have a serious drawback in that I’m not as resistant to them as I am the others. But hey, least they didn’t burn my hand clean off,” Sunset said, waiting patiently for Fluttershy to finish trying to heal the wounds. The blisters did fade, as did the pain, but most of the scarring still remained, even after Flutteshy frowned slightly and let go of Sunset’s hand.

“I’m sorry, it doesn’t seem like I can fix all of it,” she said, but Sunset just shook her head.

“Don’t worry about it. It’ll probably get better on its own over time, and this is my spirit body anyway. My physical one is just fine. Assuming Chappy doesn’t do anything to it before I hop back in.”

“Speaking of hopping back in,” said Pinkie Pie, having kept half an eye on the window while watching the proceedings, “Looks like the pow wow outside is nearly done. I see that Dean Cadence lady walking away to chat with her other Quincy buddies, and Principal Celestia, Mr. Discord, and that scruffy scientist Soul Reaper guy are now all yakking at each other all excited-like. Might be time for us to hop on out there and see what’s up?”

“If Cadence is done talking she must have arranged for our peaceful withdrawal,” Twilight said, standing up, “Which means I need to get to work on cleaning up as much of this mess as I can.”

“What...” Applejack started to talk, then coughed as her voice was still hoarse from crying, “What ‘bout that Hurricane fella? He ain’t causin’ no ruckus?”

“Well he yelled a bunch, then stomped off,” Pinkie Pie said, her eyes blinking a moment as her expression turned to a somewhat sinister smile, “Looks like he got outvoted on starting some ultra-violence. I’m a little disappointed, if only because I wouldn’t mind a little payback nibble for last time.”

“Just as soon avoid further violence today,” Rarity said, also standing, and helping Applejack do the same, “For obvious reasons, I’ve had more than my fill.”

“So we’re goin’ out?” Applejack said, eyes wavering between barely reigned in fury, tumultuous sorrow, and bone deep weariness.

Sunset looked amongst her friends. They were worn down, wounded, and still all reeling from the day’s events. She still couldn’t quite absorb the fact that Rarity was... well, dead. Yet not gone. It was a painful if utterly surreal realization. Rarity, at least, seemed to be handling it well. Sunset knew the girl enough to understand her friend was likely far from emotionally okay, but was a champion of keeping her head level even under the most stressful circumstances. Sunset wasn’t sure she wanted to see it, when that dam of control finally broke, but she’d do whatever she could to support Rarity, no matter what came next. She just hoped that Discord might have a solution ready for just this kind of thing. He had to have known something like this might happen, right?

Putting that thought on the backburner, she said, “Yeah, let’s get out there. I got a feeling there’s still a lot left to be done before all this craziness is wrapped up properly.”

They exited the storage building, and nearly all eyes were drawn to them as they did so. The last time Sunset was surrounded by this many Soul Reapers, it’d been in the middle of the first battle she and the girls had emerged into after infiltrating the Seireitei. She wasn’t concerned with all the stares she was getting from the numerous Soul Reapers occupying the camp, however. Instead she focused on the Captains just ahead, and the Quincy near the lakeshore.

Twilight looked towards the Quincy and then quickly turned to the girls, her face showing a shadow of melancholy but also a glint of firm resolve, “It may be a little while before we can see each other again. I have a lot to take care of, but I promise all of you that I’ll be back. Whatever we do going forward, I want us to do it together, as friends.”

“We’ll be waiting for you, Twi,” Rainbow Dash said, “Group isn’t the same without you. Go take care of your Quincy stuff, we’ll keep the city intact until you get back.”

Similar sentiments were echoed from all present, and with a bit of mist in her eyes, Twilight smiled and then quickly marched away to join the other Quincy who were waiting for her. At the same time, Sunset led the rest of the girls to meet with the gathered Captains and Discord. Much to a slight stab of her own irritation and a faint sense of old resentment, Sunset saw Hurricane walk with broad steps to rejoin the discussion as well.

He looked at them with less rancor than she’d expected, and more a measuring look, which ended in a slight nod of acknowledgment, “Looks as if you’re not children anymore.”

“Who asked you?” Rainbow Dash said, and he looked at her steadily.

“Take the compliment for what it is. I saw you as untested striplings when we met before. Whatever else I may think of you, I’ll not question your mettle. You faced many foes this day, and stand in victory over them. If anything, I’m jealous.”

“Have you seen Lieutenant Posey yet?” Fluttershy asked, and Hurricane reacted as if he’d been splashed with cold water, blinking at her.

“I, uh... not yet. She is with the city detachment still.”

“You should go see her when you can, and let her know she’s done a good job protecting the city, and she also did well guarding us while we were there this past week,” Fluttershy said, to which Hurricane made a strange grunting noise and looked away.

“I...will do so, soon enough. But we have other matters to deal with! Captains Celestia and Starswirl, even if you indulge this notion of ‘peace talks’ with the Quincy, surely you cannot extend the same lunacy to the Arrancar in our midst! We must decide what to do with the prisoner!”

Peace talks? Sunset’s interest rose like a ray of sunlight breaking through the clouds. Anything that might lead to peace would be a miracle as far as she was concerned. Unfortunately now he was talking about the so-called ‘prisoner’, no doubt referring to Gaia. Before any of the other Captains could answer him, Sunset stepped in close and made sure her voice held no uncertainty in it.

“Listen to me right now, Captain. There is no prisoner. Gaia Everfree is protected by me and my friends. She has ceased to be a threat, and the Everfree Forest is her home. I’ll consider any attack on her as an attack on my city.”

“Your city?” Hurricane said, eyes thunderous, “There is a marked difference between confidence and arrogance, Sunset Shimmer. Your abilities are great, and I acknowledge them for what they are, but you presume much if you think you can protect an Arrancar living openly in the human realm from just extermination by the Gotei 13. We have never allowed an Arrancar to establish permanent territory in the world of the living. What makes you think we’ll start now?”

“Captain Hurricane, now is not the time for threats,” Celestia said, although she also gave Sunset a look that wasn’t quite a warning, but it was one that reminded Sunset of the way Celestia looked at students roughhousing in the school halls. “As for Gaia Everfree, I don’t believe anyone here is in a position to decide what should or should not be done regarding her. Considering the unique circumstances surrounding her, I believe no hasty actions should be taken. As long as she is presenting no immediate threat, and Discord and Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer agree to keep watch on things, I am willing to make the call to leave her be until a decision can be made by the Captain Commander as to what ultimately shall be done.”

“I believe this to be foolhardy, but I’ll drop it,” Hurricane said, hands clenched, “No doubt the Captain Commander might see more clearly on the matter, both this and this foolish Quincy business. And since it seems no one wants to go about pursuing the actual war we’re supposed to be fighting, I suppose I’ll go make myself useful and proceed with my contingent to the city and see if they need assistance there.”

“And make sure to see Posey,” Fluttershy said, to which he pointedly didn’t look at her.

“Don’t badger me, woman,” he grumbled, sounding more embarrassed than angry. He then muttered something else, less intelligibly under his breath as he stalked off, and Sunset could have sworn his dark, stormy features held a blushing hue as he did so.

“Whoa, Fluttershy, next time that dude get’s uppity looks like we can just leave it to you,” said Rainbow Dash, but then her face grew pensive as she leaned in and whispered to Fluttershy, “Uh, you’re not, like, reverting to your previous life or something are you?”

“Don’t be silly, I’m just making sure he and Posey get some time together,” Fluttershy said, “It has nothing to do with me outside of friendly concern for Posey. She’s gone through a lot, and could use a parent’s support.”

“Uh-huh,” Rainbow Dash said, not looking entirely convinced, but willing to let it go. Sunset admitted it was interesting to see how readily Fluttershy was able to get to Captain Hurricane. She doubted Fluttershy was really channeling her previous life or anything, this was just how Fluttershy was, only more mature after everything they’d gone through. A blowhard like Hurricane just wasn’t going to be a match for her, personality-wise. Heck, at this point, Sunset wasn’t sure he’d be a match physically either. All of her friends had grown in power, and she meant what she said when she said they’d protect Gaia from unprovoked attacks.

If the Gotei 13, any of them, came to her town to make trouble, Sunset wasn’t going to back down.

“Well with all of that out of the way, girls, I can imagine you all could use a serious siesta, and standing around here isn’t the best setting for everything we need to talk about,” said Discord, “Why don’t we retire back to my shop for the time being?”

“Mister Discord, while my friends are welcome to do so, I’m afraid I have to see to getting my little sister back home and... speaking with my family,” Rarity said, but to this Discord waggled a finger at her.

“Where do you think your family is right now? I took the liberty, when things became rather dangerous in the city, to gather up the family members of you young ladies and bring them to the shop for their safety,” Discord informed them, causing a ruffled look to pass over Rarity’s face.

“Is that so? Well... that was prudent of you, I suppose.”

“Wait, ya brought Big Man n’ Granny there too?” said Applejack, to which Discord nodded, and then he pointed towards where the Cutie Mark Crusaders were busy pretending they weren’t trying to eavesdrop on the conversation by looking anywhere other than at the group. “I even went and contacted Miss Scootaloo’s two aunts and invited them over as well.”

Scootaloo spun around, all pretense of not listening in gone as she shouted, “Wait, really!? So you know about them...er, I mean, uh, there’s nothing special or weird about my aunts...”

“Scoots, pretty sure at this point ain’t no one managing ta keep secrets,” Applebloom said, scratching her head, “I mean, everyone’s seen yer big rock bird already.”

“Y-yeah, just habit, y’know?”

Clearing his throat, Discord said, “At any rate, everyone who has direct relation to you girls is gathered in one spot, and I did this quite intentionally because there are things I need to discuss with all of you that cannot afford anyone to be left in the dark.”

“Somehow I imagine that does not include the Gotei 13,” said Celestia, “So does that mean Captain Starswirl and I should take our leave for the time being?”

“Actually I would appreciate it if you were present for this, Celestia. I’m afraid I told a small fib to Miss Cadence in that I actually do intend to give you a sneak peek at the information I intend to share at any prospective peace talks. I need your take on things, as it were.”

“I feel like I should be insulted by not being considered for this dubious honor as well,” said Starswirl, “But given this is you, Discord, I’ll assume you’ll make a show of things soon enough anyway, so I’ll not try and muscle my way into this affair. Captain Celestia, you may as well indulge him. I’ll be returning to Soul Society to make my report.”

Celestia nodded, “Very well. Now, is Captain Sweet Cider is coming with us to Discord’s shop.”

“Yer damn right I am!” shouted Sweet Cider, having not had much trouble hearing the conversation, even at a distance, “Got business of my own with my family, an’ ya better believe anythin’ important enough ta warrant gettin’ the Apple clan together for is somethin’ I’m gonna be there for.”

“As was my intention, I assure you,” said Discord, “Which just leaves the matter of Gaia Everfree.”

At mention of her name, Gaia didn’t so much perk up as adjust the intensity of her stare so the pressure of her eyes landed solely on Discord. As if Sweet Cider wasn’t even standing there guarding her, the Arrancar strode forward. Sunset saw Timber Spruce gingerly follow, looking most unsure out of all of them there. She felt a pang of sympathy for him. His was a tough position to be in, generally helpless and having to go with the flow of things.

Her thoughts were drawn back to the situation at hand as Gaia brushed past the girls and faced Discord directly, “So are all of you done trying to decide whether or not I’m worth killing or not?”

“Come now, Gaia Everfree, you can’t blame the Soul Reapers for viewing you with some suspicion,” Discord said, “Just be glad that cooler heads are prevailing for the time being. That having been said, while I understand if you’d like to stay here in your home territory, it may be safer for you to join us at my shop. I promise you that some of the matters to be discussed there will interest you and your brother as well.”

Gaia’s eyes cast about around her, narrowing at the sight of Captain Hurricane leaving with a large group of the Soul Reaper’s he’d brought, heading towards Canterlot City to the west, and even more so at the sight of the Quincy who themselves started to leave to the north. Her gaze then set upon the tree in the center of the lakebed.

“Timber and I will come, but what of the portal? It shouldn’t be left without a pair of eyes on it.”

“I’ll take care of that.”

It was Luna who spoke, appearing nearby from seemingly thin air. Celestia gave her sister a long up and down look, lips pressing tight, “Luna, you’re in rather rough condition.”

“I doubt I’ll have anything to add to the discussion at the shop, sister, and while wounded I may be, I’m not an invalid. Quite frankly I could use the time to think. I doubt much will happen in the near future, and there’s still scores of Soul Reapers here to help me guard the area. I’ll be fine.”

At Luna’s firm statements, Celestia closed her eyes and nodded, then went up and embraced her sister briefly before taking a step back, “Then I’ll not argue. Just be careful and signal immediately if something happens.”

“I will.”

With that, it was settled. It still took a bit of time for everyone to get ready to leave. Sunset sought out Chappy, who happened to be with Clover at what was left of the tent grounds. Chappy had been making sure no personal effects were left behind by any of the campers, and Clover had been helping her search.

“Figured I might as well do something handy while I still got your body to do it with!” Chappy said, giving Sunset an exaggerated salute, “I know I’d be pissed if I left a journal behind or a handheld game system.”

“I’m sure the students will be grateful, thanks Chappy,” Sunset said, then glanced at Clover, “And in case I haven’t said it enough yet, thank you too. For sticking by me when we went up against Gaia.”

“Hah, keep pouring the thanks on and I’ll start to worry about my head swelling up,” Clover said, although there was a bit of strain in her voice, like she was forcing the good cheer. Sunset picked up on it instantly, and touched Clover’s arm.

“I mean it. You were amazing today.”

Clover’s eyes gained back a bit of luster as she slowly nodded, “I tried. I mean, that’s all I can do, right? Just as long as I didn’t slow you down or get anyone killed, then I’ll call it a win. Still got a long way to go before I can reclaim Chishiki, though.”

“Hey, least you can still do something!” Chappy said, “All I do is run around and try to keep Sunset’s body out of trouble, which isn’t easy, lemme tell you. Wish I had some super powers of my own. I mean, even the kids are getting powers these days. It’s cray cray, I tell you, cray cray!”

“Nobody says cray cray anymore, Chappy,” said Sunset, “Now come on, let’s get me back in my body and you back in your rabbit doll.”

“Whhhaaaaa!!? Can’t I have a little more time!? I didn’t get to do anything fun this time, and since the danger’s over there’s no reason for you to jump back in so quick!”

Sunset crossed her arms and said, “Nuh-uh, you’ve been in there long enough, and I need a shower, I can smell me from here. I’ll give you some bonus time later, but I’m getting my body back now.”

Chappy was not entirely cooperative, but a brief chase scene and wrestling match later, Sunset was back in her own flesh and blood, and Chappy was sourly sulking in her adorable rabbit plushie, tucked safely away in Sunset’s backpack, which miraculously had survived the destruction of her tent.

Then, at long last, she and her friends bid farewell to Camp Everfree. Discord had ensured that along with the busses that had been appropriated to transport the students back to the city, that a decent sized minivan had been brought as well, apparently a vehicle he kept handy for when he needed a cover for moving around. Not that the van was necessary, but Sunset and the girls appreciated getting to rest on the way back to the city, although Celestia and Gaia had little trouble keeping pace on their own.

Sunset watched with contemplative eyes as the trees breezed by and the van hit the highway. After all the intensity of the battles that had taken place, the quiet felt strange. Like the eerie eye of the storm. She knew she ought to feel relieved. They’d won. There’d been a cost, but they’d won, for now. There was even a path, now, to Equestria. Ember had been rescued, and Twilight was back with the group, even if she still wore a Quincy uniform. She even had some hope that there might still be something done for Rarity.

So why can’t I wind down? Sunset wondered, I feel like I should at least be able to breath a bit, but my chest feels so tight, like I still feel danger. Is it because of Medley?

After a moment she realized it was because of her instincts. Sharpened now over her many trials and battles, her intuition was leagues above what it had been just a few months ago. The battle was over for today, but that had merely been the prelude gust of wind and rain, heralding the larger storm to come.

She and her friends would rest. They’d lick their wounds, tend to their fallen, organize their allies, but after that...?

After that, the true battle was now in sight. Equestria. Starlight Glimmer. Then...

Zero Division. Whatever you’re planning, you won’t get away with it without going through us.

Episode 132: Winding Down

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Episode 132: Winding Down

Upon entering what she affectionately thought of as her “throne room”, Adagio was not surprised to find Thorax waiting for her. The chamber had gone through some recent renovations, courtesy of her increasing resources and availability of labor. What was once a fairly bare, semi-circular room now resembled a well furnished forum that Adagio had styled after a Roman senate chamber. Marble seating filled half the room, large slabs like steps leading down from around the chamber’s edge towards a series of marble columns in front of a series of wide windows looking out into Las Noches’ interior. The seats were made comfortable by plush cushions of a dark, satin red color, and similar colored carpets padded the pathways down to the ‘speaking floor’ where her future subjects could address their concerns to her. Adagio’s “throne” was actually a very comfortable mahogany chair with tall armrests and a higher back, furnished with red leather padding. It sat facing the seating area, on an equally raised dais of stone, putting her at eye level with those she might invite to sit before her. Tapestry clothes fell across the windows, a wine red trimmed with a burning hue of orange that matched her hair.

She wanted to get some plant life to spruce the place up more, add some ivy to the columns maybe, or something to hang across the windows? She was still debating ideas, but she liked the set up so far.

What she didn’t like was Thorax playfully draping himself on her throne, knowing full well he was doing it just to tease her. Finding him there, she let out an unamused snort and said, “Been there long?”

“Just long enough to give your secretary a heart attack,” he said with smooth charm, sitting up from his panther-like lounging and hopping off the chair. “When did you get the bunny girl?”

Adagio rolled her eyes, stepping quickly down the forum steps towards her throne. “Usagi is a recent acquisition. In case you haven’t noticed, many are flocking to an Espada who doesn’t treat them like disposable pawns.”

Which, in truth, brought its own challenges. The “secretary” that Thorax had referred to was one of many Arrancar who had sought out Adagio in the weeks following the Quincy attack on Las Noches. Word of her rise to the ranks of the Espada had spread quickly, along with rumors of her generosity as a leader. Her once empty halls were now filled with dozens of young recruits, many of them undesirables from other Espada hordes who had eked out a meager existence due to their lack of power in comparison to their betters. But word had spread that Adagio didn’t judge based purely on power, but on loyalty and results. She had Score, Dumbbell, and Hoops to thank for that. They’d done much to spread that gossip, as Adagio had wished. She wanted the recruits. She’d need the manpower, but more importantly, it’d further cement her position among the Espada and help act as a deterrent to any notion that taking her out would be a simple matter.

As for Usagi, she was a bit of an oddball, but Adagio had also noticed the slender female Arrancar had a way with people. Sure, there was something of an airhead beneath all that purple hair, and weirdly rabbit-shaped mask fragment on her head, but otherwise Usagi had proven skilled at keeping notes, organizing work teams, and handling a lot of the nitty-gritty aspects of the logistical end of Adagio’s growing horde. At this point Adagio was glad for the help. She had the boys heading up hunting teams to gather lesser Hollows for food, and Di Roy and Gaw working on building new chambers for storage beneath the wall. Then there were the outdoor renovations, including diverting water from the lake to create several reservoirs along the inner wall, and a large outdoor swimming area.

And that was just the start of what Adagio wanted to accomplish, but then Tirek had given her the task alongside Gilda to scout Canterlot City, and that had coincided with her plans to rescue Ember, and the rest became history...

On that note she didn’t take a seat at her throne but instead moved past it and Thorax to gaze out one of the windows, “I trust you recovered Gilda?”

“More like ‘cajoled into finally leaving’,” Thorax said with a throaty chuckle, coming up beside Adagio to lean playfully on the windowsill, “Your friend Fluttershy did quite the number on our muscle-bound bird-brain. I swear when it looked like the final battle was starting to tip the wrong way, I had to almost physically restrain Gilda from rushing into it alongside Smooze.”

Adagio’s eyes twitched narrower, “Ah, yes, nearly forgot about him. What happened to Smooze?”

“He chose to remain behind. Dangerous, I’d say, given how many Soul Reapers there were entering the area before we left, but Smooze has always been good at hiding. I don’t doubt he’s following his new obsession as we speak,” Thorax said, shaking his head, “It’s almost frightening, how powerful those girls have become.”

“Yes,” Adagio said, not without a hint of pleasure in her tone that mixed with a rueful bit of old jealousy, “They are something else. But then again, so am I. That’s what makes them good allies. They’re competent, and trustworthy. Not always an easy combination to find.”

“Why do I feel like that’s a dig at me?” Thorax said, laughing under his breath. Adagio looked at him squarely.

“What happened between you and Luna?”

His mirth faded, his eyes turning flat as a pair of closed doors, “Leave that to me, Adagio. I have something that requires closure between me and her, and considering the shape of events on the horizon, I don’t know if there will be time to do it later. Either I might be dead, or she will, by the time I get another shot at talking to her.”

“That’s a bleak assessment coming from you,” Adagio said, “Do you really think things are coming to a head that fast?”

“Most assuredly,” Thorax replied, turning to affix his gaze upon the sight of Las Noche’s monolithic central tower, like a stone column splitting the world in the distance, “Our little excursion turned into something way bigger than I think either of us expected, and it will trigger both my mother and Tirek to take action. Mark my words, before long we’re going to be mobilizing. All of us. Things will get very hot around here, and surviving the storm will be no easy matter.”

“What else is new?” Adagio said, her own mind turning inward as she considered the possibilities; both her immediate plans, and how to shape them in the near future. She’d survived so far by carefully weighing her options and thinking through her plans, while adapting on the fly when needed. She couldn’t afford missteps, especially in the next few days.

Ember was safe. She was currently resting in Adagio’s own quarters, under guard by Gaw, while Di Roy went to meet with Torch to arrange a time and place to bring Ember to him. Adagio wanted to do that quickly, before going to report to Tirek, but she knew she’d need to do that soon as well. She figured she had a short grace period of at least a day, to recover from the battles that had taken place, so unless Tirek gave a direct order for an immediate meeting Adagio intended to wait until Ember was back with Torch, which should happen by the end of the day.

Then there was the matter of the “Seed” recovered from Grogar’s experiment, and Lament’s condition. He had returned with Fenice and Roka to his tower, and Adagio had a few of her people keeping watch in case Guto or any other Espada made a move towards it. She didn’t think anyone had noticed Lament’s return, or rather, his present weakened condition. What she would do with the Seed would depend largely on how the meeting with Tirek went.

She expected Grogar to make an issue of her taking it from him. He’d try to use his position as Tirek’s scientist as leverage to demand the Seed be given to him to reap the fruits of his study. She’d need to counter that with something convincing, something that would play more to Tirek’s sense of “survival of the fittest”. She had no intention of giving the Seed up without a fight.

Assuming she did manage to keep it, what to do with it? She could give it to Lament in hopes it would rapidly restore his powers. It’d certainly further cement him as an ally, although he’d already proven fairly loyal in that regard. She could use the Seed on herself. Assuming it worked as advertised, the power boost would be considerable. With Lament diminished, and her own power ascendant, could she claim the Fourth Espada position? Did she want to? There wasn’t an immediate advantage to having a higher number, especially when she was still establishing her power base as the Sixth.

But numbers aside, the power boost from the Seed would give her more options when the fighting over the portal caused the inevitable escalation of the battles to come. Yet the fight at Everfree had shown her something, an issue she wanted to correct but wasn’t entirely sure how...

Setting that thought aside, she turned away from the window and paced back to the center of the chamber. Thorax watched her from the window, his expression lightening, if still inscrutable, “So when are you going to ask me about the way to Equestria?”

She flicked a glance over her shoulder at him, “The one you insinuated you have access too? I was thinking of ambushing you with that one later, after handling the debrief with Tirek, but if you want to offer up that information now, I’m all ears.”

“Without your help I wouldn’t be getting my chance to talk with Luna, so I’m feeling generous. More importantly, this will be likely become critically useful if things go down the way I suspect they will,” Thorax said, relaxing his stance as he sat up on the windowsill, one hand holding up a few of his dainty fingers, “First of all, I need you to understand a few points. One, whatever happens in the near future I will not allow anything to occur that brings harm to my siblings. Two, while I don’t fully trust my mother, it is not my objective to turn on her unless I have no other option. And three, as long as you don’t force my hand on the earlier two points, I’ll back your plays against anyone else in Las Noches.”

“There’s quite the endorsement,” Adagio said, not entirely sure she believed him. “What do you have to gain here, Thorax? You’ve taken an interest in me since we first met, and I’m not quite vain enough to believe it's because of my stunning good looks. Chrysalis has an interest in me as well, but I felt from the beginning that was simply because I was a handy tool for dealing with Squirk and shaking things up among the lower ranks of the Espada. What are you getting out of helping me, especially if you’re not keen to turn upon your mother?”

One thing that had always bothered Adagio about Thorax was that she could never quite get a read on what he was thinking. Every expression on his face came across as at least a little manufactured. Practiced. It meant that even when he was being genuine, it was hard to see it for what it was. She knew this because she was very much the same, skilled at projecting what she wanted others to see, which made it hard to make it clear when she was being sincere.

There was a sardonic, almost self deprecating twist of a smile on Thorax’s lips that may well have been sincere as he said, “Change, Adagio. For far too long this place, Las Noches, Hueco Mundo, has been the same desolate wasteland where we Hollows must strive against everyone, including each other, just to eke out another day of existence. I don’t know if it's a curse or not, but I was born with a feeling that this wasn’t the way things should be. Not for me, not for my brothers and sisters."

He paused briefly, and Adagio could sense the seething frustration that built up in his voice, "For a very long time I’ve lacked the power to change things on my own. I needed someone... to trust as a partner. I knew my mother would never be that, and my siblings, for all my love for them, lack the vision or resolve to go against her or the status quo. Once, I thought I found that prospective partner in a young, brash Soul Reaper who my mother took an interest in. That ended poorly, for both of us. Now, with you, I see one last chance. One last person who seems to hate the way things are here as much as I do, and has the ambition, conviction, and intelligence to see her plans through. If you really are the person I think you are, Adagio Dazzle, then I’ll support you. All to bring forth change... any change to this stagnant garbage heap of a world.”

For all she knew this was a well rehearsed speech. Thorax could have gone over his words hundreds of times in his head, selecting each one for maximum effect, maximum believability. In many ways these words were exactly what Adagio wanted to hear; the promise of a potent ally that recognized her value and pledged to support her goals. Which was exactly why she was suspicious of it, despite how genuine Thorax sounded. Yet despite that suspicion, she couldn’t think of a single logical reason for Thorax to deceive her.

If Chrysalis wanted Adagio dead, there was little Adagio could do about it. Having Thorax near to hand to do the deed seemed a roundabout way to eliminate Adagio. Easier to just do it herself. After all, Chrysalis could take anyone’s shape. Killing Adagio would be almost too easy, and Chrysalis could pin it on anyone if she was worried of earning any ire from Tirek due to disposing of a valuable Espada.

As for personal motivations, Adagio couldn’t think of any detrimental ones that Thorax might have. There was a great deal of risk in helping her schemes, yes, but almost nothing to gain by sabotaging her as well. In fact the only motivation that did make any level of sense was exactly what he just said; he wanted change. It jived with everything she’d seen of the man’s actions since meeting him.

Could I just be being overly cautious because I’m afraid to trust him that closely?

When it came to her vassals like Di Roy and Gaw, Adagio’s trust in them was rooted in the manner in which she’d established their loyalty to her and the numerous times they’d proven themselves. Adagio did not extend trust lightly, and rarely to anyone she’d consider an equal. And that was the rub of it. Thorax was nearly as powerful as she was, had objectives of his own, and while a proven competent ally, he had not shown loyalty to her as a vassal. In fact he couldn’t, because he was her equal, a peer. That meant he could more readily stab her in the back, if she offered him trust, even if she had no other rational reason to mistrust him other than that fear.

Adagio did not want to leave herself vulnerable to someone who reminded her so much of herself. But if she was willing to take the risk of extending that trust...?

She closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. She’d known for a long time now that she’d get nowhere if she was the type to let fear of risks halt her from taking action. As long as she was aware of the dangers, it wasn’t foolish. It was a calculated risk.

Just like Thorax needed someone he could trust to bring about change, Adagio knew that her ambitions couldn’t be realized entirely on her own power. Thorax wouldn’t be a vassal. Nor a friend like Ember. Instead he’d be something else. A... partner.

“Alright,” she said, affecting a smirk of confidence, “Your speech was a bit on the wordy side, but it’s convinced me. I’ll accept you’re on the level, for now.”

He returned her smirk with one three times as sardonic as hers was confident, slipping off the window with the smoothness of a swan, taking a few steps towards her with a low bow, “I’m honored. Is there a secret handshake I must learn to be part of the Adagio Dazzle fanclub?”

“Once you pay your membership dues I’ll send you your starter package, complete with decoder ring,” Adagio quipped back, then shook her head with a sigh, “Jokes aside, about that portal?”

“What makes you so sure it’s a portal?” he replied, and she made a flicking gesture at him.

“Don’t be obtuse. I told you I’ll trust you as an ally and partner, so let’s dispense with the games, hard as I know that is for you.”

“Oh fine. I’ll show you soon enough, since we’ll be short on time anyway,” Thorax said, adopting a more serious expression, “My mother is currently in Equestria, and I have reason to believe she’ll remain there for the immediate future, which means I’ll be impersonating her at Tirek’s meetings.”

“I figured as much. That transformation power is quite handy... and dangerous,” Adagio noted.

“Quite so. While she’s gone, I shall bring you to our ‘palace’ and show you where the portal is. It’s only partially operative from this end, but not to worry, I understand it’s function after spending some time with it. My hope is we can use it to outmaneuver what’s coming.”

“Which you suspect to be...?”

Thorax’s eyes turned hard and smooth as glass, “As my mother’s stand-in I’m privy to some of what she and Tirek have been discussing in terms of long term plans. Equestria had always been a point of interest since its existence was discovered, and the power of magic made evident. Tirek was content to allow those like Grogar conduct their research and take their time with things, but my mother has been whispering thoughts of conquest in his ear. She wants him to launch a direct invasion of Equestria.”

“Using your portal?” Adagio inquired, but Thorax shook his head.

“No, mother considered that her little trump card. She’s been urging him to seize the portal in Canterlot City. Given what we saw happen at the Everfree Forest, I think Tirek may see this as a golden opportunity to strike, before the Soul Reapers have time to fortify their position or the Quincy make another move.”

“How soon do you think he will act?” Adagio asked, tapping her foot in thought. She still needed to consolidate her own power, deal with the Seed, solidify her position with her allies and possibly deal with Guto before he became a problem. If Tirek launched a large scale attack too soon that would make things problematic.

“Difficult to say, but soon, I’m thinking,” Thorax said, shrugging, “Tirek is a very unusual man. He is much like a volcano. He can be calm and patient for what seems like ages, only to suddenly erupt with brutal, singular destruction all at once. If he chooses to take the chance to invade Equestria, expect it to happen in such a manner.”

“If it does, I may need to accelerate my own plans. I don’t suppose you could find a way to stall him, if you’re acting in the role of Chrysalis? Whisper a bit of patience to stall the ‘eruption’?”

Thorax let out a rough chuckle, “While he’s never said anything, I suspect Tirek is well aware that I impersonate my mother. He’s never taken me to bed, for example, while I was wearing her form. I don’t know if my trying to stall him would do any good, or indeed provoke him to act even sooner.”

“Damn... then I’d best get to work,” Adagio said, “Whatever time we do have, I intend to use it wisely, because if Triek does invade Equestria, I have every intention of ensuring he does not return.”

----------

There was a severe quality to the quiet that fell over the party of Quincy as Twilight delegated the swift order of actions that needed to take place, only the bare minimum of words passing between her and her Quincy comrades as they got down to business. Sugarcoat was placed in charge of the other members of Twilight’s team and given the task of recovering all research materials from the field lab, then either packing up or destroying whatever remained, based on what could be carried out.

Filthy Rich was given guard watch over Gladmane, Spoiled Rich, and Sapphire Shores, as well as custodianship of Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara while Twilight and Cadence went to retrieve the remains of Hoity Toity. Normally Twilight would not have wanted to be part of such a grisly task, but she not only felt compelled to do this as part of her duty, but because she wanted a moment alone with Cadence to talk.

“So, everything went according to what Adagio arranged?” Twilight asked, once they were safely away from the others.

Cadence’s expression was stiff, her answer holding a hint of trepidation, “It did. I was surprised. When His Majesty told me what you and he had planned, I think a part of me disliked it on simple reflex. The prejudice against Hollows runs deep, Twilight. Shining Armor didn’t like it either. Me having to sneak out of the Silburn on secret orders. I wasn’t thrilled about meeting one of Adagio’s servants out in the Hueco Mundo desert, but at least he didn’t try to talk with me, just activated the Garganta to bring me to the city. Pretty sure Shining is losing hair worrying about me as we speak.”

“I think that’s more because it was you who drew the straw for coming to back me up here,” Twilight said, “Shiny is always going to be protective of you. Doubly so now that you’re, uh, you know. Um... when are you going to tell him?”

“About...? Oh,” Cadence flinched, her eyes unsure, “I should tell him as soon as I can, shouldn’t I? It wouldn’t be fair to him to keep our child a secret. That’s... that’s so strange to say out loud. We’re going to have a child.”

There was a whole world’s worth of fear, doubt, wonderment, love, and most of all anxiety in Cadence’s words. Twilight was right there with her. The idea of becoming an aunt had been about the furthest thing from her mind over the past month, and Sapphire Shore’s revelation had certainly come out at an awkward time to say the least. Twilight shook her head, offering Cadence a comforting smile, “I’m sure you’ll both be fine.”

“We will. But Shining is going to be impossible to deal with when he finds out, I’m sure. I’ll be lucky if I get to set foot out of the manor, let alone perform my duties as a Sternritter.”

They reached the area that Rarity had described where her battle with Hoity Toity had taken place. Rarity had provided a rough idea where she’d had one of her knight constructs set down Sternritter X’s body, and Twilight and Cadence both descended down into the forest. Amid the trees they found a small clearing, and there he indeed was, laid out against one of the tree trunks in such a manner that if someone had simply jogged by and glanced at him they’d have thought he was merely taking a nap. Of course upon closer inspection Twilight was able to confirm that Hoity Toity had indeed passed on, his body cold and motionless, with no trace of reiatsu to be felt.

She didn’t really know what to think to feel. It disturbed her slightly that she was getting used enough to this kind of thing that there was no immediate sense of revulsion or even heavy regret. She hadn’t wanted anyone to die, of course, but Sapphire Shores, Hoity Toity, Gladmane, and Spoiled Rich had all conspired to try and kill her. It wasn’t a matter of feeling any satisfaction at their failure, or feeling as if they ‘got what they deserved’. It was just this cold, pragmatic realization that this was the result of the uncontrollable nature of violent conflict. Hoity Toity and Rarity both lost their lives fighting for the reasons they felt were justified. That was all war boiled down to; people killing each other for any variety of reasons they felt was worth risking their lives and taking others lives.

She hated it, deep down, but on the surface she was growing numb to it, if only so she could focus on survival and doing the things she needed to do.

Good. Long as you stay focused, we’ll both be able to grow stronger and survive.

Twilight blinked, Midnight?

The response was a swift, sarcastic, No, it’s your other split-personality, Doomlight Twinkle. Of course it’s me!

Twilight then heard Midnight’s voice make a long, drawn out yawning sound, I was just starting to feel better after nearly draining us dry saving the day after Sapphire Shore’s hissy fit. You’re welcome, by the way.

Twilight felt a twinge of amusement at the poutiness in Midnight's voice, Thank you. I really am grateful for all your help, Midnight. You should keep resting. The fighting is over for now, but who knows how long that will last?

Midnight’s musical laughter echoed in Twilight’s head, Knowing you and your friends, I give it a few days, a week at most, before we’re neck deep in explosions again. Not that I’m complaining at a chance to show off more of our magical might. Before that, however, I want to talk to you about a timeshare.

Twilight frowned, Timeshare?

Yeah, like what that gikon Chappy has with Sunset Shimmer. Now that we’re on a more trusting level with one another, I could use some proper ‘body time’, if you get my meaning?

“We’ll... talk about that. Later,” Twilight said out loud, standing up from where she’d been kneeling in front of Hoity Toity’s body. Cadence gave her an odd look, and Twilight responded with a sheepish smile, “Midnight.”

“Right. She’s certainly an... interesting individual,” Cadence said, “We probably wouldn’t have won without her. Just don’t let her push you around, Twilight. That’s still your body. Set some boundaries, if she starts making you uncomfortable.”

Midnight's voice let out a huff, Geez, she’s still acting like our babysitter, Midnight drawled in annoyance, If she’s going to lecture you, why not ask her how she got knocked up by our brother? Hasn’t she ever heard of ‘protection’?

“I am not asking her that!” Twilight sputtered, then, red faced, turned away from Cadence, “Anyway let’s get Hoity Toity’s body and get going! Sugarcoat and the girls ought to be done at the lab by now!”

“O...kay?” Cadence said, clearly curious but hiding it behind a professional mask as she got on one side of Hoity Toity’s body and helped Twilight pick him up.

As they took to the sky once more, careful to time their Hirenkyaku steps with one another so as to not drop the body they held between them, Twilight’s curiosity started to act up, despite her words. “Um, Cadence, not to pry, but... how did you and Shining...?”

Cadence didn’t blush, or even sound all that embarrassed, as she replied, “I can’t be certain, but given the timing, and how I’m not showing yet, my guess it was just before the attack on Las Noches. We were both nervous. It was spur of the moment. I was far from the time of month it’d be most dangerous, so I thought it’d be okay. Just goes to show you can never be certain, right? Remember that, I guess, if you ever find a guy-”

“And now I’m remembering why I shouldn’t ask you about stuff like this! You never get embarrassed by it! But, yes, note taken, no such thing as a ‘safe day’. Moving on now!”

Inside her head she heard Midnight’s dark giggling echo for some time.

----------

The drive back to the city somehow felt shorter than the drive in, not so many days ago. Ditzy Doo had driven ahead in a separate van, bringing along with her Derpy, Timber Spruce, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Scootaloo’s giant stone bird, Alerion, had returned to the crest engraved in the girl’s scooter, tucked in the back of the van. Gaia had not had any interest in riding in a vehicle, until Sweet Cider pointed out that it’d be easier to stay concealed and not rile up every Soul Reaper in the city, to which Gaia had reluctantly taken a seat next to her brother and did her best to suppress her reiatsu.

Sweet Cider and Celestia would follow the two vans on foot, and clear up any issues if any Soul Reapers decided to challenge the group’s passage. That left Discord driving the second van with Sunset and her friends in it, Clover included, and Chappy tucked away in Sunset’s backpack.

Canterlot City was still in a state of shocked chaos by the time the van Discord was driving the girls in rolled on through its streets. Sunset watched in the same subdued silence as her friends as they passed by shattered storefronts, rubble strewn streets, all awash with the flashing lights of emergency vehicles. The sound of sirens was a constant background noise, along with distant shouts and the occasional child’s cries. There were no Hollows to be seen, all of the ones having been unleashed on the city having been eliminated by the Soul Reapers. Sunset could see the black robed figures patrolling the rooftops and street corners, invisible to the humans they guarded, but ever alert even hours after the attack was over.

“How many people got hurt here?” Fluttershy said, her voice filled with a thick weight that they all felt.

“There’s no official numbers yet,” Discord said in a dry, humorless voice, “I’d recommend not dwelling on it.”

“As if we could do that!” Rainbow Dash said in a whip-crack tone, “It was our job to keep everyone here safe, dammit, and look at this place! It’s a freakin’ warzone!”

“H-hey guys, no point in shouting,” Pinkie Pie said, laughing nervously, “So the city got a tad busted up? Nobody died, right? Uh... right?”

“Pinkie, ya lookin’ out yer window? Got yer eyes workin’ right?” Applejack said, nodding towards where one building was still smoldering smoke from a fire that had nearly consumed the whole thing, a set of fire trucks still pour water into the darkened interior, “From what I’m seein’, I’d be more surprised if nobody died.”

“Discord’s right,” Sunset said, letting the tightness in her chest fill in the firmness of her voice, “Dwelling on this won’t help. This wasn’t our fault. This one’s on Grogar. It was his minions that attacked our city, and we’ll make damn sure he won’t be able to do it again.”

They had heard most of the full story between talking to Celestia and Sweet Cider, so they knew that the bulk of the attack on Canterlot City had been the former Eight Espada’s doing. While Sunset did fervently hope that nobody had lost their lives in the attack, she could see the damage outside the van’s window and much like Applejack she’d have been more surprised if there hadn’t been any deaths. She’d seen a few kaiju movies, courtesy of Rainbow Dash’s movie collection, and while the damage wasn’t that level of severe it still reminded her of the aftermath seen in such films. It wasn’t like any skyscrapers had fallen or whole city blocks blown to bits, but practically every street in downtown had some damage. She didn’t know how well the suburbs had fared, although she didn’t see any smoke plumes from that area, so she had reason to hope the main residential zones had escaped the worst of it.

But it rankled her, like a sharp thorn in her heart. This was her city! This was her home, and these people were folk she’d taken up the charge of protecting. It was hard not to feel like she’d failed them, stuck fighting miles away at Camp Everfree while this was happening to Canterlot City.

Grogar had a lot to answer for. Sunset sincerely hoped she’d get a shot at him, assuming Adagio didn’t beat her to the punch. Knowing the siren, Adagio just might. Well, that result would be fine with Sunset, too. If anyone had prior claim to payback where Grogar was concerned, it was Adagio, but Sunset could still hope to lend a helping hand if the opportunity presented itself.

She caught Clover’s reflection in the rear view mirror, spotting the Soul Reaper giving her a look that swam with understanding and sympathy. Sunset returned it with a nod. Clover might not have called Canterlot City home, but she’d trained her whole life to protect places like this from the very disaster that had occurred. Now that she thought about it, she had seen similar looks of frustration and anger on the faces of almost all of the Soul Reapers that had arrived in Canterlot City. Their duty was to protect living humans from Hollow attack, and even with the attack repelled the Soul Reapers must have felt just like Sunset Shimmer did; that they had failed somehow.

Was it any wonder the animosity between Soul Reapers, Hollows, and Quincy ran so deep? Sunset and her friends had only been dealing with this for a couple of months. For some of these spiritual beings, they’d been dealing with it for much, much longer. How easily could Sunset have set aside her anger if she’d had to keep it in check for centuries, instead of a single school quarter?

It’s easy for me and the girls to say they’re all being unreasonable, or judge them for not giving peace a chance, but I can see how, from their point of view, we’re just being arrogant and naïve. Even so...

She felt the van rock to a halt as Discord parked it in a nondescript parking area just half a block from the alleyway containing his shop. Everyone piled out and walked the short distance into the winding alleys that took them to the edge of the ward surrounding the shop. As they entered one by one, Sunset noticed Rarity hesitating at the edge of the ward. Her other friend’s paused as well, Fluttershy extending a hand to Rarity.

“We’ll be right here with you,” Fluttershy said.

Rarity still hesitated, glancing behind her down the alley where Sweetie Belle and the other two Cutie Mark Crusaders were excitedly chattering away with Derpy about the battle at the camp. Rarity lowered her voice, “I don’t know how I’m going to do this.”

“If you need time, we can cover a bit for you,” said Rainbow Dash, “Tell your parents you need some time to rest up, or do your hair or something.”

“I ain’t... sure watin’ is gonna help much,” said Applejack, “Can’t tell ya what ya should do, neither. Whatever ya do, Rares, like Fluttershy said, we’re right behind ya.”

Rarity appeared to come to a decision and nodded, pushing ahead through the ward past the other girls. It took a minute, but gradually the rather large procession made it through the ward and onto the shop’s grassy front lawn. For Gaia and Timber Spruce, who had never been here before, both looked about curiously. Well, Gaia was curious, Timber just looked confused.

“So what... is this shop place supposed to be? Is it your guys’ secret base or something?”

“It’s my humble establishment!” Discord declared, sweeping his hat off in a mock bow, “I sell everything from sweet candies to Hollow Repellent Spray, to Zanpaktou Enlargement Pills, to Do It Yourself Bankai Training Kits!”

“You do not sell those!” Sunset said, giving him a scathing, half-serious glare, “And if you did, why didn’t I get one way earlier!?”

“Pacing, my dear, pacing,” Discord said, holding up and wagging a finger at her.

Gaia placed a hand on her hip, gesturing around with her other hand, “Impressive ward. I doubt even I would have been able to detect this place unless I was right on top of it. For a man who acts like such a jester, you hide a competent mind under that tacky hat.”

“Tacky hat? My dear, I’ll have you know this hat has made me a hit with the ladies, and some gentlemen, for many a cocktail party. You just have no appreciation for style because you’ve been trapped under a lake for centuries. I suggest you listen to your human half and look into some new fashion, Gaia, as wearing leaves and bark went out of style in the late B.Cs.”

Gaia frowned, then tapped a finger to her chin in introspection, “Well... I wasn’t one for fashion when I was Gloriosa, either, but I take your point. I could use something to wear besides my armor. That will be for later. Are we just going to stand here or are you going to invite us into your abode?”

“Don’t be so impatient. There’s quite a few people occupying my shop already, and we’re about to shove in even more,” Discord said with a brief laugh as he scratched at his beard, “And quite frankly many of you are still a mess after a day of such rigorous fighting. Now, those of you with family here may like to know that I’ve had them come down to the training area, as it is the largest and most open space available. You can meet them there soon, but before that I suggest everyone who needs it take a bit of time to refresh yourselves; showers, food, fresh clothes. No point settling in for a long talk while half of you are dead on your feet, and smell it as well.”

Pinkie Pie sniffed her armpit briefly, making a scrunched up face, “Ew, yeah, good point. We’re all pretty ripe, and I feel like I could eat half a restaurant right now! Shower time and munchies sounds great!”

“Did ya say ‘training area’?” asked Applebloom, coming forward with her friends, who were peering curiously at the shop front, “In a’ place this tiny lookin’?”

“It’s underground, sugarcube,” said Applejack, who then tilted her head in thought, “An’ maybe also kinda in another space? Ain’t never quite figured that one.”

“My aunts are down there too?” said Scootaloo, “I don’t need to rest or anything. I really just want to go see them, if that’s okay?”

“Anyone who wants to come down to the training area may do so, I’m merely suggesting some of you,” he gave a pointed look towards Sunset and the girls, “Take a bit more time before doing so. There’s no need to rush this, now that the immediate crisis is over.”

“I’m all for that,” confirmed Sunset, “I think it’ll do all of us some good to catch a long breather before we move on to anything else.”

Her eyes flicked towards Rarity, who remained stiff, even as she nodded agreement. Rarity’s own eyes kept glancing towards Sweetie Belle, who remained oblivious to Rarity’s condition. Sunset chalked it up to Sweetie Belle having awakened her own Fullbring, which meant she had no trouble seeing spirits. To Sweetie Belle, she’d just see her sister, like normal. There’d be no way for her to realize the truth.

Sunset’s heart felt a bit more leaden as she entered the shop with the group. The hallways felt a bit crowded with so many, but Discord’s shop was so expensive in the number of rooms it had that once people started being directed to different rest rooms and sitting areas, things smoothed out a bit. Ditzy Doo went to the kitchen with her daughter, apparently intent on catching up on some family time while making food for everyone. Screwloose showed up to escort the Cutie Mark Crusaders down to the training area, along with Gaia Everfree and Timber Spruce. Captain Celestia went to a side room with Discord, mostly to wait for everyone else to finish resting, although Sunset got the impression Celestia had things she wanted to talk to Discord about.

That left Sweet Cider to join them in getting clean and rested up. While Discord did have several rest rooms, there was hardly enough for all of them to have private showers, which turned out only to be a minor problem as he did have a larger communal bathing area that was clearly inspired by Japanese design. Sunset hadn’t used one before, but she had no issues with bathing with others, and apparently neither did Applejack, her mother, Clover, or Pinkie Pie for that matter, so it was they who shared the communal bath area while the other girls took up the other rest rooms.

“Been forever since me n’ you had a soak together, ma,” said Applejack, submerging up to her neck in the wide, pool-like bath that was situated at the back half of a large room of tatami mats, “Remember when we used ta do this at the river back home, campin’ out durin’ the summer.”

“Ha, ya loved swimming across that river,” Sweet Cider said fondly, stretching before entering the water herself. Sunset was already in, and couldn't help but briefly gaze with impressed eyes at the shear musculature of the elder Apple. While nobody would ever mistake Sweet Cider for anything other than a woman, her body was toned to a degree that would’ve been the envy of many a professional athlete. And honestly, her daughter wasn’t far behind at this point. Applejack had always sported more muscle than the other girls, given her farm-life, but after all the intensive training and battles she’d gone through, she was rapidly catching up with her mother.

Is the ‘A’ in the Apple family name for ‘abs’? Sunset jokingly wondered to herself, realizing she should probably stop staring. Humans got weird about that kind of thing.

“Gehehe, is Sunset feeling intimidated by the Apple family gun show?” Pinkie Pie giggled, her pink hair floating in the water as she swam up beside Sunset, hands wigging up to poke at Sunset’s bicep, “No worries, Sunny, your muscles are hard as rocks, too! And I should know, I bathed with Maudie!”

“Huh, yer family do this a lot too?” asked Applejack.

“Oh, me and my sis’ would always do this! It was super fun. Limestone made the biggest cannonballs ever! I remember Maud teaching Marble how to swim. Hehehe, it was so funny, because Maud just kinda walked along the bottom!”

“Sounds like Cloudy got herself a fine family,” Sweet Cider said, a faint cloud of long remembered fondness in her eyes as she settled into the bath, “I used ta thing that crazy rebel would never find a’ fella ta settle down with.”

“Oooh, that’s right, you knew my mom from waaaay back!” Pinkie Pie said, “What was she like!? Dad never tells us anything from about when they met, but this one time I peeked under the tarp in our garage, and found this wicked cool looking motorcycle, and I know it’s not dad’s.”

“That bike’s Cloudy’s alright. Dang thing was practically her baby, the way she took care o’ it,' ' Sweet Cider grinned, eyes flashing, “Was a’ time yer ma was the craziest biker this side o’ the state! First time I met her she was screeching down the highway past the farm at thirty over the speed limit! Gave me a heart attack, first day o’ school, tryin’ ta catch the bus and nearly getting run over by that nut case. Who ever knew she’d end up one o’ my best friends?”

“That was before Xcution, right?” said Clover, who gulped a bit and added, “Sorry, I was just thinking aloud. Didn’ tmean to bring up anything you don’t want to talk about, Captain.”

“Ah, don’t fret none ‘bout it,” Sweet Cider said, “Any sourness left n’ me over Xcution ain’t directed at decent, hard workin’ Soul Reapers like yerself, Clover. An’ yeah, weren't long after I met some o’ them girls at school that year that we got pulled inta Xcution. Discord trained us, sent us all over the place ta fight Hollows, an’ then, not long after graduatin’ high school, I met Hard Nail an’... and well didn’t want to be a part o’ that life no more. Wanted a family. Pretty sure you girls know the story well ‘nough by now.”

“...I wonder if Discord is going to restore their memories and powers,” said Pinkie Pie, or rather Pinkamena, as her hair and expression had changed in an instant, “Doesn’t make any sense to gather all of them together in the same spot, otherwise.”

Sweet Cider’s brow furrowed with a shadowed look, “He could do that, I reckon. Don’t see what good it’d do. Even at our best, we weren’t good n’ough ta even take down Platinum, despite outnumberin’ the frigid bitch. Ain’t no denyin’ you girls have shot way past what the old Xcution was. If Discord gave my ol’ friends back their powers, they’d just end up gettin’ hurt.”

“Maybe it’s because it can’t be avoided,” Sunset said, drawing looks from the others. Sunset drew herself up a bit, meeting their gazes, “Look, think about it like this. We already know your little sister developed a Fullbring, Applejack. Same with Rarity’s little sister. It’s only a matter of time, then, before the other members of your families do, too, like Big Mac, and Maud. It’s also going to be next to impossible to keep the truth about what we’re doing, and the spiritual realms, secret from your families at this point. So I think if Discord unseals the old Xcution’s powers, it’s more about creating a solid front, together, rather than expecting them to fight on the same level we are.”

“Hmph... ya got a’ point,'' Sweet Cider admitted, crossing her burly arms, “Ain’t fond o’ it, but ain’t gonna turn from the truth neither. Just don’t like my friends gettin’ pulled back n’ ta this life after they all got out ta live happily ever after... dammit.”

“Ma,” Applejack lowered her eyes, then raised them with fresh light sparkling within, “Whatever comes next, I’m thinkin’ if we do it together, we can make sure the families we’ve all built won’t get torn apart no more! Instead o’ thinkin’ we’re a bunch o’ separate families, what if we thought everyone as a single family?”

“What, like Maud marries Big Mac or something? I think Marble is way more into him,” said Pinkie Pie, who then blinked as the others stared at her, “What? She’s always watching him when he comes by to drop off a crate of apples.”

“That... ain’t neither here nor there,” Sweet Cider said, shaking her head with a faint smile, “But I’m gettin’ what yer sayin’, Applejack. Might come down ta how everyone feels ‘bout it once everything is laid out fer ‘em, an’ Discord gives the choice, but I’m thikin’ that yer right. Whatever we do, we’re better off doin’ it as a whole.”

“I just hope we can avoid conflict with our own people,” Clover said, “I can’t imagine how Captain Commander Scorpan or Central 46 are going to react to the idea of peace talks with the Quincy. And what was it Discord keeps alluding to when he was talking about having information that might convince them? It has to do with Zero Division, I’d assume...”

Clover shuddered a bit, and from the uneasy stare she had on her ashen features, she was likely remembering precisely how overwhelming Medley’s presence had been. “I’m not sure what any of us can do if it turns out Zero Division is truly plotting something horrible behind the scenes.”

“We fight,” Sunset said plainly, “Even if we have to do it without the Soul Reapers or Quincy helping us.”

“Hmph, ain’t liked the Zero Division, even ‘fore I got my memories back,'' Sweet Cider said, “An’ from what you gals say, this Medley lady needs a right clockin’ upside her head, near as bad if not worse n’ Starlight Glimmer. Granted I ain’t exactly trustin’ everythin’ Discord says, but I’ll hear ‘im out on whatever he’s got ta say. As fer the Gotei 13, I think you girls don’t need ta worry so much. After yer escapade, I think a’ lot o’ the Captains r’ comin’ ‘round.”

“It did look like Captain Beardy was getting along swell with Twilight, and she’s a Quincy! So that makes me think we’re on the right track!” said Pinkie Pie.

“Here’s hoping,” replied Sunset, considering the prospects ahead of them. She had no real idea what to expect from the Quincy during any peace talks, if they did happen. Cadence and Twilight she felt like she could trust, and those Crystal Prep girls were alright, but the others? Would Twilight’s family, her surviving family, support her? What about the other Sternritter? Or King Sombra for that matter? Where did he stand on the idea of a truce? Sunset had never even met the man, but she got the impression Twilight truly did have faith that he’d listen to reason. So it came down to how much Sunset was willing to trust Twilight.

Pretty damn far, was the answer.

“Well, ‘fore all o’ that,” said Sweet Cider, “You girls gotta work out what ta do ‘bout yer friend with the purple hair.”

“Rarity? Uh... what’ya mean, ma?” said Applejack, a paleness touching her cheeks as she looked away from her mother. Sweet Cider looked at them all, eyes not lacking sympathy, but her face also bearing a hard note to it.

“Word o’ caution, gals, any Soul Reaper at officer level can tell the difference ‘tween a live soul n’ a dead one. Discord’ll already know, too, same as Celestia, Luna, Starswirl, n’ Hurricane. None o’ them would’ve said nothin’, even that lout Hurricane, outta respect, but we’d all be able ta tell Rarity ain’t among the livin’ no more. Question is, what r’ ya’ll plannin’ ta do ‘bout it?”

Applejack’s hands clenched as she rose from the water, her face twitching into a mask of self-control, “What options do we even got, ma? We was hopin’ Discord might be able ta do somethin’ fer her, but that’s all we got.”

“You mean a gigai,” Sweet Cider said, going silent for a moment as she drew in a deep breath and let it out slow, “Could work. Gigai’s ain’t the same as a real flesh n’ blood body, not totally. Don’t age none, fer one. Ya can eat n’ drink with ‘em, but they don’t process the food quite right. Can’t have no kids with ‘em, either. Might be Discord’s got ways ta make better ones than the standard models Soul Society uses, but still won’t be the same as her havin’ her real body.”

“That’s far better than doing nothing, right?” said Sunset, “The only alternative I could think of would be... for her to go to Soul Society.”

Applejack rounded on her, pale face turning red, “How’s that a’ option, Sunset!? Yer talkin’ ‘bout her literally passin’ on!”

“I know that, Applejack. I only said it because we don’t know how Rarity feels about all this, and for all we know, that’s an option she’s thinking of.”

“Why would she be thinkin’ that!?” Applejack demanded, but Sweet Cider had reached over to her, a large red hand clasping Applejack’s shoulder in motherly fashion.

“Hayseed, ya remember how I raised ya, right? Ta be acceptin’ o’ the facts o’ life, includin’ death? That the Lord takes all o’ us at whenever our time comes.”

“Ma... how can ya tell me ‘bout any o’ that after knowin’ the truth?” Applejack said.

“What truth’s that, hayseed? That what I grew up believin’ ain’t the truth? What, just ‘cause some things ain’t like what we thought, that means none o’ it’s true? That our faith don’t mean nothin’?”

“That ain’t... what I mean...” Applejack trailed off, shaking in place. Sweet Cider’s eyes softened and she put her arms around Applejack to draw her into a solid hug, patting her head.

“I understand what yer sayin’. Ya don’t want yer friend goin’ nowhere, n’ yer hurtin’ that this happened ta her while you were busy helpin’ me. What I’m tryin’ ta tell ya is that, no matter how the afterlife works, no matter what the ‘truth’ is, it don’t make the things we believe n’ any less real ta us. Yer friend Rarity, she’s gotta wrestle with her own beliefs, now, an’ ya got to be prepared fer it if she finds that she don’t want to cling ta this world with a fake body that ain’t really hers. Might be she wants to go on ta Soul Society, follow the natural cycle. Whatever choice she makes, ya got ta be there fer her as her friend, ya git what I’m sayin’?”

“I... I do, ma. I’m sorry fer what I said. I just... God I wish I’d been there ta stop it. Ta save her when she needed it.”

Sunset watched the two as Applejack slowly calmed back down, and she felt as if she could’ve used a big parental figure to give her a hug as well. Her own sentiments were similar to Applejack’s. She didn’t want Rarity to go anywhere either. Sure, even if Rarity did go to Soul Society it wasn’t as if they’d never see each other again, but somehow the idea of watching the Konso ritual being performed on Rarity, or having to do it herself sent a hard chill to Sunset’s heart. It would make Rarity’s death feel final. As long as she could hold onto a thin thread of hope that Discord could whip up a solution, Sunset felt like she could hold off the wave of pain that she was keeping in check.

If Rarity did go to Soul Society...

She shook the heavy thought off. This was a choice for Rarity to make. Sunset just hoped she had the strength to support her friend with a smile, regardless of what that choice turned out to be.

----------

Rarity was infinitely glad that Discord’s shop was a place largely infused with spiritual energy, meaning just about everything inside it was at least partially made up of reishi particles. It meant she could actually use the shower, soap, hair products, towels, and fresh clothes all being provided because those items were designed with spirit bodies in mind.

For a good long time she just let the hot shower soak away her thoughts. But, alas, such zen moments of calm couldn’t last forever. She wasn’t Fluttershy, after all.

When the business of cleaning herself was done, she stood under the hot jet of water and leaned her head against the wall beneath the showerhead, staring at the water dripping down the drain.

She’d had her freak out already, but Rarity always had room in her for another one of those. Granted there was only so much good hitting the wall and crying did, but physical expression was a necessary part of the creative process. Anyone who’d seen her stress out over a tough project knew Rarity had no shame in throwing a good long fit, and well... death was probably worth a few fits.

Most of all Rarity was just mad with herself! Out of all of her friends she figured she had the most practical mindset. Not the smartest, per se, but with that good street smart common sense that left her feeling like she had her life together. She’d gotten a job, knew exactly what career she was going for, and was already turning a few heads in the fashion industry, and she hadn’t even graduated from high school yet!

So why did she lose it all so easily? What made her so cocky as to chase after Hoity Toity alone? Looking back on it that had been such a stupid decision! She could have easily asked one of her friends to come with her, but she hadn’t done that. She’d gone alone, and paid the price for it.

The more she thought about it, the more it was clear to her what she’d been doing. She’d been trying to protect her self-image. She’d known that when she’d gone to chase down Twilight’s potential assassin that she would probably end up having to kill them, and she hadn’t wanted any of her friends to see that. She’d didn’t want them seeing her covered in someone else’s blood. She’d been so afraid of that she’d been willing to take on all the risk alone, and the result was...

She touched the soul chain dangling from the center of her chest, it’s broken final link rolling between her fingers as she gazed at it. It was so strange. She felt no different from before, really. Her body still felt like a body, even if she knew it was the collection of reishi particles making up her soul, with no physical flesh to it. But she could still feel a heartbeat, her breath in and out of her lungs, the heat of the shower on her skin. This spirit body was identical to her living one, so who was to say she still couldn’t live a full ‘life’?

What was she supposed to do now?

Before answering that question, there was the more immediate issue of facing her family. Could she do it? A part of her hoped to avoid the whole confrontation altogether. She could hide away until Discord made one of those ‘gigai’ bodies for her, couldn’t she? She didn’t have to tell her parents or Sweetie Belle what happened, did she?

She suspected she knew what Applejack might say about hiding the truth. She knew her friends might help her maintain the lie, but chances were that just wouldn’t work, long-term. Even if she did get a gigai, eventually her family would figure out something wasn’t right. No point in hiding it. It was just... frightening to imagine her family’s reaction, to the extent that just thinking about it made her legs feel weak and she had to lean harder on the shower wall to keep from sinking to the ground.

There was a knock at the shower door, and Rarity was startled to the point she nearly hit her head on the wall in her haste to peek out the shower door.

“What is it?” she asked.

She heard Screwloose’s voice, “Brought you some spare clothes! Probably nothing you’d like to wear, but I’m not into dresses. Food’s almost ready to hit the table, so hurry up if you don’t want to miss out!”

“Um... thank you,” Rarity replied, and frowned as she looked at her pruning fingers. She’d clearly been zoning out in the shower too long. Taking a deep breath, Rarity forced herself to calm and got out of the shower.

----------

“Ugggh... too... much... food...” Pinkie Pie said, laying on her back with crumbs of pastry still dabbed about her lips.

“I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say that,” said Sunset, “Either merging back up with Pinkamena has had an affect on your brain, or that really was too much food.”

The girls were resting in the dining room, plates of mostly eaten food piled on the table between them. Ditzy and Derpy had not been kidding about serving up a hearty meal for everyone, the mother/daughter combo proving to be overpowered in the kitchen. New food had appeared as fast as the girls could tuck it away, and in short order many of them had given up even trying to keep pace. Pinkie Pie had lasted the longest, but even her incredible appetite had finally been defeated, leaving the pink menace groaning on her back.

“Cryin’ shame we can’t wage war via cooking battles,” said Sweet Cider, letting out a loud belch, “With them Doo gals in our corner, we’d be unbeatable.”

“Where’d they go off to, anyway?” Applejack said, glancing around, “Coulda swore they were just here.”

“I imagine they’re taking some family time together,” Discord said from his spot at the head of the table, “Ditzy is going to need to adjust to the notion that her daughter is now fully aware of the nature of the spiritual world. In fact, all of your classmates are going to go through some adjusting.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about that,” said Sunset, thinking about what she’d seen at Camp Everfree and what she’d seen of her fellow Canterlot High students. She already knew they were capable of handling plenty of strange things, given how readily they’d rolled with the magical mishaps of the past year. It looked like they dealt with the realities of the spirit realms clashing in the real world with the same mental fortitude.

Discord gave her a knowing look, “Worried wouldn’t be the word I’d use. More anticipating. Expect your fellow students to not remain idle, or go about their daily lives as if nothing happened this time around.”

“Yeah, got a feeling like that myself,” said Rainbow Dash, “Lyra and Bon Bon especially. Everybody was putting on their game face back there.”

“As appreciative as I am of their desire to help, it might not be the best idea either,” mentioned Fluttershy, “Far too many of them could get hurt.”

“Ain’t sure we could stop ‘em if they got a mind ta set up some kind o’ town watch,” said Applejack, taking a swig of cider, “Not like we can watch ‘em twenty-four seven.”

“Which is why I suggest you girls approach your fellow students yourselves and direct them towards me,” said Discord, “If nothing else I can provide those insistent upon taking action some aid in the form of coordination and equipment.”

“Hollow Repellant Spray?” said Sunset with an eyebrow shooting up.

“Among other things. Be assured I won’t let such fine, noble youth face danger without any preparation.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” came a strong, caring voice from the doorway into the dining room, and all heads turned to see Captain Celestia standing there. Sunset noticed the tightness hanging around Celestia’s eyes and the rigid way she held her shoulders. Despite the battles now being over, Celestia had the kind of tension in her of someone preparing for a fight and it started to set Sunset’s own nerves off.

“Discord, I’ll speak with Captain Sweet Cider now,” said Celestia, and Discord closed his eyes, nodding slowly.

“So be it. I hadn’t told the girls yet, but now’s as good a time as any.”

“Told us what?” asked Rainbow Dash, a sentiment quickly echoed by the others, even the lethargic Pinkie Pie sitting up and taking note of the sudden serious tone shift.

Discord stood, brushing his pants off of a few crumbs and snatching up his cane, “Before we get into the family reunion portion of the day’s activities, Celestia and I have both agreed that it’s best for all of you to understand everything that we presently know about the Zero Division and it’s intentions. Celestia will be bringing her fellow Captain up to speed, since Sweet Cider is the one most likely to... grasp the full gravity of things and be inclined to keep mum on it until the proper time.”

“That right?” said Sweet Cider, glancing at Celestia with a measured look, “It really that bad, Celestia?”

The look in Celestia’s eyes frightened Sunset a little. She’d seen Celestia mad. She’d seen her upset. She’d seen her worried. She’d even seen her scared before.

But all of those emotions at once? Sunset had expected things to be bad where Zero Division was concerned, but just what was going on here?

At Celestia’s silent look, Sweet Cider just sighed a small curse under her breath and rose, “Right then, best lay it on me.”

“Not here,” Celestia said, “Discord will explain it to the girls, I’ll explain it to you in the other room.”

“Why not just tell us both at the same time?” Sweet Cider asked, and Discord answered swiftly, already heading for the door while beckoning Sunset and her friends to follow.

“Different perspectives require different context. It’s easier for a fellow Soul Reaper Captain like Celestia to give you the information you need in context to how this all relates to the Gotei 13 and their role in things. I’ll need to provide the young ladies here a slightly different view, based on their own experiences, and handle their own questions on my own.”

“Hmph, fine,” said Sweet Cider, joining Celestia out in the hallway, “Let’s git this over with then.”

Sunset shared worried looks with her friends, and soon their eyes turned towards Clover, who was looking more than a little awkward as she raised a hand, “Excuse me, Mr. Discord, but am I included in this briefing?”

“Did I suggest you weren’t?” said Discord, “You may be a member of the Gotei 13, but I think you’ll benefit more from joining your friends in hearing what I have to say than hearing what is said between the two Captains. So yes, Third Seat Clover, do join us.”

As they all left the dining room they followed Discord down the opposite hallway that Sweet Cider followed Celestia down. It didn’t take Sunset long to recognize the path Discord was leading them on, heading down numerous back hallways towards a set of double doors with a set of written kanji painted in black upon them. The wards upon the doors to the laboratory staircase were as strong as ever, and parted only when Discord made a quick gesture before them.

“A hidden room?” Rarity said, peering at the stairwell that led up towards what otherwise would have seemed like a non-existent second floor.

“A lab,” Sunset provided, remembering when Discord had brought her here before. “Discord’s private laboratory is up there.”

“Oh don’t steal my thunder,” Discord said, “I like keeping people in suspense.”

“We know. It’s annoying,” said Rainbow Dash as Discord led them up the stairs.

The laboratory was much as Sunset recalled. The wide room, taking up the same space as nearly a dozen of the rooms on the first floor, was filled with tables lined with esoteric laboratory equipment, many of them also piled with notes and charts in chaotic scribbles. Sunset’s eyes were almost instantly drawn to the metal cylinder mounted floor to ceiling towards the back of the room, the place she knew that Discord’s second Hogyoku had been suspended. The cylinder was still there, it’s metal casing already slid open to show the glass within filled with it’s dark blue liquid.

Sunset blinked.

Where’s the Hogyoku?

She gave Discord a questioning look after realizing the cylinder was empty, but he just winked at her and led her and the other girls towards the center of the lab. Here he’d moved aside some of the tables to make room for a computer attached to a metal desk with a disk shaped device built into the right side. Discord sat at the desk and gestured for the girls to gather around.

“I apologize if it’s a bit cramped in here, but just bear with it,” Discord said as he turned on the computer. It’s screen blurred into soft blue life, light pouring from it’s archaic seeming screen. Sunset recognized something akin to a conventional OS, although clearly designed by Soul Reaper hands, possibly even Discord himself if the weird looking icons were any indication. Even his mouse pointer looked like a weird little ghost with Discord’s hat on instead of a regular old pointer.

“I think we can suffer some discomfort at this point,” said Rarity, “We just want to know what this is all about. I think I can safely speak for all of us that we’d like a clear explanation, with no more cryptic nonsense.”

“Seriously,” said Rainbow Dash, “Just lay it on us, D-man. What’s the Zero Division trying to pull? What’s the big secret?”

“Just a moment,” Discord replied, clicking on several file icons, and a tube on the side of the computer sparked to life with literal tiny arcs of energy. A set of wires on the other side that ran to the disk shaped object built into the desk similarly sparked alive, and the disc flickered with ghostly blue light and began to project an image.

The girls all stared at the image, all of them wearing confusion plain on their faces.

“The heck are we lookin’ at?” Applejack asked.

“That,” Discord said, “Is the exact, detailed blueprints for the construction of the realm known as ‘Jigoku’, or as it is known in western cultures, ‘Hell’.”

What Sunset was looking at could best be described as an excruciatingly detailed set of three dimensional schematics of a construct that looked like one massive spiral cone, twisting ever downward to a deep, dark point. Discord manipulated the cursor to adjust the image, showing different layers and sections with photographic detail. Sunset saw countless floating script that were attached to the various layers, words and letters in Japanese that she couldn’t read, but there seemed to be entire data banks worth of information attached to the schematics. She couldn’t begin to make any sense of it.

“So, why are we looking at blueprints for the hot place?” asked Rainbow Dash, her half-joking voice sounding more uncomfortable than anything else.

“Because this is the easiest way I can show you girls the truth behind the realm of Hell’s existence,” said Discord, “How it was made, who made it, and most importantly; what it was actually made for.”

“Uhh... ain’t it supposed to be where all the really, really naughty souls go when they eventually croak?” asked Pinkie Pie.

Discord sank into his seat, his voice dry as ash, “Oh, it does that too. That’s just not all it does.”

Episode 133: What the Hell?

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Episode 133: What the Hell?

It wasn’t until she landed in the front drive of her family’s manor that the full weight of bone deep exhaustion from the day’s events truly hit Twilight like a steam roller. Looking at the familiar front doors of the ivory white manor, doors she’d walked in and out of for countless days of normal drudgery only now emphasized how much had happened since she’d been a relatively carefree teenager.

She beat back the soul sapping tiredness with a deep breath and marched up the steps towards the manor doors. Behind her she was followed by a procession of her allies, from Sugarcoat and the rest of Twilight’s field team, to Filthy Rich and Cadence still dragging along their prisoners. With Sapphire Shores unable to fully return to a human form, Twilight had led the group on a wide, circular route to get to the manor, hopefully avoiding being seen by anyone. From what she’d seen, most in the rich residential manor district had remained in their homes during the attack on Canterlot City, and few had ventured out even after things had settled down. That suited Twilight just fine.

She halted, surprised as the front door opened before she got to it, and an elderly man she knew well stepped out. His narrow features and well trimmed white moustache matched his slim eyes and straight, professional haircut. His black and white butler suit was immaculate as ever. The man bowed to her as Twilight halted in front of him.

“Milady.”

“Robert, is something the matter? I mean, besides the obvious?” Twilight asked, making a vague gesture at herself and those that followed her. Given that almost none of them were unscathed from the battles at Everfree, Twilight wouldn’t be surprised if Robert was alarmed to some degree, but he came out to greet them before he’d seen their state, so something else had to be amiss.

This much was confirmed by the way he gave the group a distressed, if well hidden, look of worry but then glanced back to the manor’s interior, his voice a forced kind of calm, “You have a guest, milady. He told me to inform you to meet him in your father’s parlor as soon as you arrived.”

“A guest? How long has he been here, and who is he?” Twilight asked, already probing with her spiritual senses to see if she could pick up the guest’s reiatsu. She found it, a thick dark ocean of patient, if boiling spirit energy that she knew quite well by this point, so Robert’s response did not catch her off guard.

“It is His Majesty,” Robert said, keeping his tone level, but one could see he was a tad out of sorts to have the King here, “He only arrived minutes before you did.”

He must already have some idea of what’s happened, Twilight knew. After all, to a degree, they had planned things out together. Not to the detail of knowing how everything would occur, or even if everything would occur, but Sombra had known that while Twilight and her research team were deployed to Canterlot City that there was a chance the assassins would strike again. That was why he’d authorized Cadence’s posting at the Hueco Mundo side of the Silburn alongside Shining Armor, and approved Twilight’s use of Adagio’s minions to facilitate travel without using the Quincy’s artificial Garganta portal.

He would have known something had triggered the moment Cadence departed the Silburn, and furthermore Sombra likely would have guessed what was happening the moment he felt Hoity Toity’s soul being absorbed after the Sternritter had been killed by Rarity. So it wasn’t surprising he knew, only that he’d made a point of coming here himself. Wasn’t this risky? If the Soul Reapers realized Sombra was in town, wouldn’t that simply raise tensions?

Then again, Sombra was concealing his reiatsu to a degree, Twilight could tell. It was there for someone in close proximity to find if they were looking for it, but chances were a Soul Reaper would need to be all but on top of the manor to realize the Quincy King was here.

And in some ways, this was more convenient than having to return all the way to the Silburn. Until Quincy developed more convenient portal technology of their own, moving around the living world still required relatively slow moving vehicles, unless it was in a local area where Hirenkyau served better. Now that Sombra was here, she could get this ugly business with Sapphire Shores and her fellow conspirators over and done with. Depending on how that went, she’d then sort out the best way to bring the notion of peace talks with Soul Society up with him.

But first...

“Thank you, Robert,” she said with a nod, “Why don’t you brew us up several pots of tea, or better yet, some coffee? I have more than a few things I need to discuss with Sombra.”

“I gathered as much, milady,” Robert said, giving those behind Twilight an insightful stare before bowing once more and turning to stand aside and hold the door open for her, “At any rate, welcome home.”

“Yes, it’s... good to be back.”

For however long it lasted.

----------

Sunset stared at Discord expectantly, and when he didn’t immediately follow up his ominous words with further explanation she gave him an impatient glower and held out a hand, “Well?”

“Well what?” he said, and she groaned.

“Do I actually have to ask!? Are you going to explain what you mean by ‘That’s not all Hell does’?”

“Yeah,” said Applejack, her voice containing an uneasy waver, “That ain’t the kind o’ line ya just leave people hangin’ on.”

Discord’s mouth twitched in what might have been a darkly humored grin, but he suppressed it and made a gesture towards the holographic display of Hell, “I just wanted to see you girls’ immediate reactions and assumptions, first. I understand that for most of you there’s elements to spiritual mechanics and the way the spirit realms are set up that are still vague and esoteric, at best. Each of you probably has a preconceived notion of what ‘Hell’ is and what it exists for. Since we’re diving elbow deep into this sphincter of cosmology, I really do want to know what you all think of Hell before I delve further.”

It was a broad question, to say the least.

For Sunset, well... Hell was a relatively new concept. In Equestria there really was no such thing. Tartaros sort of filled a similar role as a place where the various worst evils of the world were kept locked up, but that was a real, physical prison. Given how little Equestrian culture even dealt with the notion of the afterlife, the idea of an eternal prison where souls were tormented for all time due to their misdeeds in life was a tad much for Sunset to get her head wrapped around. In Equestria the idea of torture as a punishment was antithetical to a culture that largely cherished peace, life, and the ideal that any creature deserved a chance to better itself. Not that this meant that those who consistently demonstrated an unwillingness to even try to change, or simply went too far down the path of evil wouldn’t be punished; again usually by incarceration in Tartaros. But Tartaros wasn’t a place of torture. Boredom, mostly, but it’s prisoners were not tormented by lakes of fire or red hot pokers or any number of other things Sunset recalled reading concerning the human concept of Hell. Really, Tartaros wasn’t even meant as a punishment so much as just the only safe place to keep those who consistently showed themselves to be a threat to society at large, and equal lack of desire to change.

She wondered, sometimes, if she hadn’t been stopped by Princess Twilight and managed to get anywhere with her asinine plan to invade Equestria with demonic teenagers if she would have been banished to Tartaros after getting defeated by Celestia and Luna. Sunset assumed the alicorn Princesses would have beaten her, at any rate, and some part of Sunset still felt her mentor wouldn’t have been very forgiving of her. She still might not...

Sunset shook the thought off, and glanced at her friends. These girls had grown up in a world where ‘Hell’ was a fairly normal part of their culture, to one degree or another. Most religions had some variation of it, and in Sunset’s experience even the least religious among humans still had a wider range of ideas of what might be considered acceptable punishment for evildoers. Equestria didn’t even have a death penalty, by comparison.

Out of all of them, it was Fluttershy who spoke first, her light soprano voice casting a soothing balm on the grim topic, “I can’t say I’ve ever really liked the idea of, um... that place. Every soul is on it’s own journey of growth and discovery, and while yes there are those who end up on dark and harmful paths, I’ve always thought that even the worst among them do as much harm to themselves as they do others. I feel pity for them, and feel it’s best to help guide them back to a better path. That doesn’t mean letting them do as they please, of course, but to just abandon a soul to a place of eternal misery, forever? It’s just so... wasteful, and cruel, even if it’s being done to cruel souls.”

Applejack made a grunting noise, her hand tugging her stetson hat over her eyes a bit as she looked at the display of Hell with seeking eyes, as if she was trying to spot some hidden truth amid the dark spiral, “I git what yer tryin’ ta say, hun, but ain’t so sure if I feel the same. Some folk deserve a second crack at betterin’ themselves, sure. Heck we got Sunset standin’ here as livin’ proof o’ that. But... there’s gotta be a line ya just can’t cross, where there ain’t no more chances. Grandfisher? Ain’t losin’ no sleep at the thought o’ him takin’ a burnin’ dip in this Hell or any other fer that matter.”

Fluttershy’s serene features didn’t crack, but she did close her eyes and nod, “I understand why you feel that way, I just don’t think I hold the same feelings.”

“Would ya if it’d been yer parents that’d been murdered?” Applejack said heatedly, but Rainbow Dash stepped up and put a hand between then.

“Hey now, Fluttershy isn’t saying anything other than she’s got a bit of pity for just about anyone, and we all know that’s how she is. It’s cool, right?”

Applejack blew out a sigh, nodding, “I git it. Just... hot button topic.”

“Which is precisely my point,” Discord interjected, “We’re talking about something fundamental to all cultures, everywhere. The fate of souls, both good and evil, or anywhere in between. Indeed, the very notion of what constitutes a soul that can still be saved, versus one that is beyond salvaging and hence ‘deserves’ eternal damnation. This is not a light topic to discuss over Sunday brunch, ladies. Everyone, regardless of background, religion, creed, or experience has a very different notion of where they stand on this topic. I wanted you all to understand each other’s feelings on this before I blew the lid off of what Hell really is.”

“Don’t have much of an opinion,” Rainbow Dash said, shrugging, “I mean, I’ve never had time to even think about it. Universe kind of handles itself, you know, and all I do is be my awesome self and kick butt where I need to. Punch ‘em all and let the people getting paid to sort out the afterlife mess. But, uh, I guess Hell kinda sounds like a crumby place, but that’s kind of the point of it?”

“I’ve certainly heard my fair share with the few times I’ve been to church,” said Rarity, her expression pensive as she too gazed at the projection, “But like you, Rainbow, I’ve never given the matter any serious thought. Theology is not part of my day to day routine. At any rate, Discord, you’ve implied that Hell doesn’t solely serve as a prison for damned souls. I don’t think you’re likely to get much more insight into our thoughts without telling us more.”

“You definitely won’t get insight out of me!” said Pinkie Pie, tapping her head with a knuckle, “This whole thing goes waaaaaay over my head.”

A shadow rose from her and formed into a Pinkamena clone, who leaned on Pinkie Pie with a shark-like smile, but an affectionate one, “I think if you ended up in Hell for even five minutes, Pinks, you have the place converted into a rave in no time.”

“There’s a lot of grumpy souls there that’d need cheering up, that’s for sure.”

Finally, Clover stepped around to the other side of the table, eyes glued to the display with a more analytical eye than the other girls, “It’s strange. Looking at this... you said these are blueprints?”

“Indeed,” confirmed Discord, his fingers smoothly flying over a few keys at his computer, “This is the smallest, most ‘zoomed out’ the display can show, but I can show significantly more detail at specific areas, if you like. Something caught your eye?”

“Not in any specific area, but more the broader style of what I’m seeing,” said Clover, flickers of deep thought sparking in her eyes as she leaned over the table, peering at the spiral of Hell, “It’s as if this system was designed as a... filter? No, not a filter... more like a refinery.”

Sunset tried to see whatever Clover was talking about, but to her eyes the image of Hell that was currently being displayed only resembled a ominously dark and uneven spiral. Sure, if she looked closely she could pick out strange layers within the spiral, along with images of unusual and jagged formations the purpose of which she couldn’t begin to decipher, but that was it. Then again, Clover had trained extensively with the spiritual mechanics upon which the spirit realms operated, and was a member of the Twelfth Division which dealt specifically with this kind of “spirit science”. Clover was clearly able to see meaning amid this that Sunset couldn’t, no more than someone who’d never studied computer science wouldn’t be able to make sense of code just by looking at the symbols.

“Could you guys try to put this in basic layman terms for those of us here who don’t have backgrounds in this kind of stuff?” she asked, and Clover’s cheeks heated up as she glanced at Discord, who in turn took on a formal tone that would’ve only been complete if he’d been standing in front of a blackboard with a piece of chalk to begin a class lecture.

“Clover is correct in her basic assertion that what you’re looking at here is a refinery of sorts. A processing plant, if you will, whose main function is the gradual breakdown and refining of the basic energy of the soul; reishi particles.”

“Okay...” Sunset said, her mind churning, “How? Why? I thought Hell was a prison, not a factory. What would they be making there?”

“Ah, you’re not quite understanding,” Discord said, and he pressed a few buttons. The image of Hell changed, zooming in to the upper-most layer of the spiral. Suddenly the display shifted, revealing a vast, seeming infinite landscape of what looked like a forest of enormous, square shaped pillars. The pillars were interested by stone pathways and bridges, some as wide as several highways, others as narrow as a back city alley or catwalk. There seemed no obvious bottom to the space the pillars occupied, and the “sky” was a voluminous black with no features.

“This is the first layer of Hell. The first place any damned soul arrives at after deemed unfit for the reincarnation cycle,” Discord said, “It is here that they are hunted.”

A shift in the image showed figures appearing in the landscape. Humanoid figures that Sunset guessed represented “damned souls'', which ran about the place, seeming at random. Only soon she realized it wasn’t random at all. They were fleeing. Fleeing from the images of massive giants that stalked among the pillars and walkways with robotic efficiency. These things had brawny, human-like builds, but only their arms and legs were filled out with thick ropes of gray muscle. Their torso’s were instead bleached bones, leading up to elongated, inhuman skulls were cold yellow lights burned in their otherwise black eye sockets. The only other notable aspect of them were the banded layers of armor on their right shoulders, akin to the pauldron of a samurai’s armor. The giants wielded vast, curved blades, very akin to tree-sized cleavers, and wore chains around their thick arms. These giants stalked and smashed the souls they chased, relentlessly.

“Charmin’ lookin’ bunch,” Applejack noted, and Discord let out a laugh without humor.

“Those are the Kushinada. Hell’s jailors. As you can see, they seek out and kill the ‘Sinners’ of Hell without rest or mercy. Over and over again.”

“Uh, waitasec,” Pinkie Pie piped up, “If they ‘kill’ the baddies, what happens to them? Do they go to Double Hell?”

“No. You see, Hell is an interesting place. It regenerates the soul of a Sinner killed by the Kushinada, or even by other Sinners. No matter how badly mangled, burned, or outright pulverized your spirit body is, as a Sinner you’ll always regenerate back to ‘health’. All so the Kushinada can kill you again. And again. And again. You get the idea.”

“Ain’t sure I do, D-man,” Rainbow Dash said, “I mean, sure it sounds pretty sucky, but isn’t it also kinda nice of Hell to just keep giving those dudes new bodies? It’s like a video game with infinite respawns. Painful, I guess, but not the worst thing I can imagine.”

On a surface level Sunset understood what Rainbow Dash meant, but something seemed very wrong here. She thought about what Clover and Discord said about Hell breaking down and refining spirit energy. Where was that energy coming from? There was only one obvious answer, and it left an unsettling feeling in her gut.

“Rainbow,” she said, “I think there’s more to it when a Sinner gets killed by a Kushinada. Discord?”

He gave her a solemn look, “Correct, Sunset Shimmer. You see, every single time a Sinner is killed, a small portion of their spirit body is drained, like a grain of sand. That portion is filtered down to the next layer, weakening the Sinner’s resolve and will. Eventually a Sinner who dies thousands, tens of thousands of times, loses more and more of themselves, until the last iota of their will is gone. They’ll sink further down the spiral, becoming more empty, until finally their spirit loses cohesion completely and the whole of their soul becomes nothing more than base reishi particles, filtered to the very bottom tip of the spiral.”

A weighty silence followed, broken only but Fluttershy’s small gasp as the implications of what Discord said started to work its way through the girls’ minds. Sunset found her lips pressing tight in an attempt to contain a growing sense of sickness inside her.

“What you’re telling me is that Hell is processing it’s prisoners. Breaking down their souls into... just base spirit particles? Isn’t that...” she gulped, swallowing bile, “Isn’t that way worse than just killing them? Or torturing them? Or... anything else?”

“Depending on one’s personal philosophy, it could be seen as the absolute worst thing one could do to a soul,” Discord said, “Especially considering it’s other implications.”

“What other implications would that be?” Rarity asked, very quietly, her eyes having a haunted look about them.

“Well, for one, this is rather similar to the supposed threat the Quincy represent by destroying Hollow souls,” said Discord, “One of the reasons Hell doesn’t supposedly imbalance the reincarnation cycle is because the souls imprisoned there still exist, and hence Hell can be counter-weighted by the souls in Soul Society. But if the souls of Sinners are being gradually destroyed, that rather shoots a giant hole in that presumption, and is something I’d think more than a few would want to question Central 46 about. However, the other, much larger implication is a different question altogether...”

He pointed towards the bottom of Hell’s spiral, “If Hell has been destroying souls to their base component particles for thousands of years, filtering endless reishi towards it’s bottom... just what is the intent behind gathering all of that energy? Because with a few simple calculations I can give a rough estimate on how much spirit energy has been getting stored down there over the millennia, and let me tell you, it’s a lot. Enough to do mind boggling things with, if someone was so inclined. Now, who can we guess might have a use for a, as I said, mind boggling amount of power, squeeze out of the Sinners for thousands of years?”

“Zero Division,” Sunset said with a dry mouth, “But why? They’re already so powerful, and effectively run the show! What do they need to do this for!? It doesn’t make sense.”

“It does if you know Glory like I do,” Discord replied, his eyes gaining a hazy, distant look, “Talk to the woman for ten minutes and you’ll understand; she believes in making the world into what she thinks it should be, and is willing to go to any length to do so. I never realized just how far she’d go, but after seeing this, I can see her fingerprints all over Hell’s design. Remember girls, there was a time before Soul Society. A time when even Hell didn’t exist. The system as it stands was all built by Zero Division. Even the Soul Reapers themselves, and the methods through which they curate the reincarnation cycle. It’s all connected to this.”

He gestured again at the display, sinking into his chair, “Zanpaktou, as well, were designed as a part of this system. Let me show you.”

After a few more seconds the display shifted to show an image that Sunset was familiar with. It was the eerie, massive doors that she’d seen appear when she and the girls had defeated the snake-like Hollow in the early days of their training. The Gates of Hell, bordered by two grim, giant skeletons with horns rising from their grinning skulls. Discord pressed some keys and the Gates of Hell displayed lines of kanji script along their sides.

“There’s a coded system for entering and even exiting Hell,” Discord said, “And Zanpaktou are designed to transmit these codes under certain conditions. Specifically during the Konso ritual, a Zanpaktou will scan the soul that Konso is being performed on to seek out certain groupings of reishi particles. These groupings generally only exist in souls that have committed horrible acts of evil, which have a direct affect on the soul’s basic configuration. You can’t perform an act like murder without it affecting your soul, and Zanpaktou look for those marks. Upon finding them, the code is transmitted, summoning the Gates of Hell to acquire the soul.”

“We’ve seen that go down,” Rainbow Dash said, crossing her arms, “Not a pretty sight, but... well, it’s Hell, so that figures.”

“Indeed, but consider this,” Discord said, “What if those reishi groupings weren’t the only thing a Zanpaktou was designed to look for?”

“What do you mean?” Flutteshy asked, “What else could anyone want to look for...” she trailed off as her eyes widened, “Wait, you don’t mean-!?”

“Sunburst,” Sunset said, “Why was he sent to Hell?”

Discord’s face gained a stony look as he pointed out several lines of kanji script within the Gates, “Deciphering these markings has told me this much; Zanpaktou look for signs within souls other than acts of evil. I’m still working out the meaning of these other groupings, but at least one of them contains the symbol of a former Noble Families amid Seireitei’s social strata.”

“Former Noble Family?” Sunset said, thinking back, “I remember Platinum was part of one. So was Blueblood... that Daring Doo lady, too, right?”

“And Hurricane,” mentioned Rainbow Dash.

“Right. Ditzy Doo is from Daring’s Family of Doo. There were five Noble Families that helped found Seireitei, and from which other lesser noble families branched; Blood, Storm, Platinum, Doo, and Star.”

“Star? I don’t recall meeting anyone from that Noble Family,” said Rarity, “Not that we had a lot of chances to mingle with Seireitei’s nobility, but it seemed at least one Captain from each Family was present in the Gotei 13.”

“Correct. It’s been tradition practically from the start that representatives from each Family be part of the Gotei 13, and their talents alone usually guaranteed eventually Captaincy,” said Discord, “Which makes sense when you also know that each of the original five Noble Families were blood-related to each member of the Zero Division.”

“You’re kidding?” Applejack muttered, “Them jerks have family down in Seireitei, an’ they’re pullin’ crap like this!?”

“The blood relations are distant at this juncture,” said Discord, “Mostly through cousins. I’m not certain any of the Zero Division have surviving children, or even direct descendants.”

“But you said there was a former Noble Family?” Sunset pressed.

“The Star Family. Their record was largely wiped after a failed rebellion in the early days of Soul Society,” Discord replied, “Ditzy and I have only been able to scrape together bits and pieces, but from what we have pulled together, there was a vocal dispute over the formation of Central 46, which the Star Family staunchly opposed. So much so, in fact, that they attempted an armed takeover of Seireitei. It, uh, didn’t end well as I’m sure you can imagine. Far as the records show, none of the Family survived. Most still know they existed, but as a noble family, they’re essentially extinct.”

“But they would’ve reincarnated,” Sunset ventured, “Is this related to Sunburst?”

“That is my current theory,” Discord said, “Because the only reason I can think of for the Star Family’s symbol to be part of the coded registry of souls being sought by Hell would be that the Zero Division wanted to crush the spirit of rebellion entirely. If Sunburst was a reincarnation of one of the Star Family, then that would explain why he was taken to Hell, despite committing no crimes.”

“No different than roundin’ up folk ya don’t like ta toss ‘em into death camps,” Applejack spat, “Now I’m gettin’ on board with havin’ an issue with the way this Hell runs. It ain’t a’ place fer servin’ up justice, it’s a damn self-servin’ affront ta decency!”

“So, what, putting ‘evil’ souls there is just a cover for getting rid of people they don’t like, or think are threats, while also serving double-duty as a place to generate this massive pool of spirit energy?” said Pinkie Pie in a moment of clear thinking, her face making a disgusted grimace as if chewing on something rotten, “That’s just super-duper gross.”

“Yeah, that’s the kind of evil I can’t even make fun of,” said Pinkamena, “And I used to think I was pretty bad, but I’m borderline cuddly compared to this crap.”

Sunset’s thoughts turned towards Starlight Glimmer, and she felt an uncomfortable moment of understanding for the woman who’d played such a large role in turning her and her friends' lives upside down. It cut at her like a barb, because one way or another she still had to face and stop Starlight, but...

“I can see now why Starlight Glimmer did what she did,” Sunset admitted with a small grimace, “If I found this out the way she had, after seeing my best friend dragged to that Hell, I might have gone the same route. If she learned this on her own, she had no reason to trust anyone in Soul Society.”

“She thought ya were in on this giant pile o’ wrong n’ a can, right Discord?” Applejack asked, not disagree with Sunset’s statement at all. Discord had a pained, shamed look shadowing his face.

“Most likely, yes. Not long before Starlight went rogue, I’d been invited to the Soul Palace to meet with Glory. I didn’t divulge any details of that meeting to anyone except Ditzy. Even when Starlight pressed me, I kept her in the dark.”

“Why?” Sunset asked, but Rainbow Dash answered before Discord.

“Same reason my mother flew the coop without a damn word, right? She was protecting me and dad from Zero Division snooping around. I bet you didn’t tell Starlight anything because you didn’t want these Zero Jerkwads suspecting she knew too much and coming after her.”

Discord smiled in a wane, sad manner as he tapped his nose, “On the nose, Miss Dash. While I had no idea the actual extent of what Zero Division was doing, that meeting with Glory did clue me in to the fact that something was dreadfully amiss, and the last thing I wanted was Starlight being targeted. I just failed to predict how far she’d dig into the truth herself, the assumptions she’d make about me as a result, and the spectacularly catastrophic manner in which she’d run amok on her own.”

“An’ good reasons or not, don’t change the fact that we gotta stop her,” said Applejack.

“If only so we can show her we understand, and hopefully convince her to work with us to put an end to what Zero Division is doing,” said Fluttershy with a voice filled with steady conviction.

“Assuming she’ll listen to reason,” Rarity said, “But that’s a bridge to cross when we get to it. Discord, I’m most curious, just what was your meeting with this ‘Glory’ person about, and what can you tell us about her?”

Discord leaned back in his chair, sucking in a breath, “The first bit is easy enough to answer, but the second question poses a more complicated challenge. There was a time when Zero Division was not quite as reclusive as it is today, and Soul Society would get semi-regular visits from one or more of its members. That was how I met Glory, when she personally inspected the progress of Hitsuyo-Aku’s development. Skipping the details of that for now, fast forward to when Starlight was acting as a Substitute Soul Reaper under Twelfth Division and I was summoned to the Soul Palace. A very rare, if not entirely unheard of event, a Captain being invited ‘up top’ for one reason or another. In my case, Glory invited me to join Zero Division. When I pressed her upon why, she told me she wished me to use my talents at her side to, and I quote her precisely; ‘Provide the architecture of a new universe that will be free of all evil’.”

“That sounds... vaguely ominous and crazy,” Sunset said, and Discord’s snaggle toothed smirk was strained.

“I had similar feelings on the matter. My danger bells further went off when Glory decided not to provide me with further details until after I agreed to join. Given I already had misgivings about Hitsuyo-Aku by then, courtesy of my growing care for you girls’ mothers, I decided to decline Glory’s offer. Honestly I’m somewhat surprised she let me leave the Soul Palace alive after that.”

“Zero Division seems to let a lot of things slide,” Rarity noted, “This information you and Ditzy acquired, for example. Or letting Starlight cause all the ruckus she has. I get the impression they could have wiped out anything they perceived as a threat with relative ease.”

“Just so,” Discord confirmed, his eyes gaining a perturbed light, “You asked what Glory was like, and I’m stumped on how to explain her. Imagine Captain Celestia, but without the compunctions our dear kind hearted Captain has concerning using, or indeed abusing her power. Glory had a way of showing the same kind of... innate motherliness Celestia exudes, but with an added sense that she was judging everything around her and found it wanting.”

“Sounds like a real stick in the mud,” said Pinkie Pie.

“Perhaps the largest stick in the largest pile of mud in the whole of reality,” Discord said with a shrug, “I certainly don’t recall ever getting her to laugh, even with my off brand sense of humor.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, D-man, but why did she want you for her club of megalomaniacal jerks anyway?” said Rainbow Dash, “Did anybody else ever get an invite?”

“Not that I know of,” replied Discord, “And as for the ‘why’ of it, I’m honestly not certain. I mean, I am brilliant, obviously, and devilishly handsome to boot, but it caught me off guard when Glory made the request. Brilliant as I am, I didn’t imagine there was anything I could do that Zero Division couldn’t.”

“Surely you must have asked,” inquired Rarity, “I know I certainly would have.”

“True, I did ask why Glory chose me, but on that subject she clammed up even tighter than on the details concerning her plans. She merely insisted she’d tell me once I agreed to join, and assured me I wouldn’t regret doing so.”

At Discord’s words, Sunset gave a helpless shrug, “I don’t think we’ll really know for sure what’s going through the head of someone who thinks a Hell like this is a good idea. Right now it doesn’t actually matter why Zero Division is doing this. I’d say it’s pretty clear they have to be taken down. We all on that same page?”

There were nods all around, each of her friends having varying expressions. Applejack’s brows were scrunched in deep consternation and the farmgirl looked to be wrestling internally with her thoughts. Rainbow Dash’s eyes were sharp and alight with tension and anger, like she was already anticipating the fight to come. Fluttershy’s smooth features bore a concerned shadow in the depths of her eyes, as if even her recently attained state of calm zen couldn’t stay entirely serene with the new information they had. Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena were exchanging meaningful looks, as if the pair were drawing strength from each other, and mutually agreeing that Zero Division had to go down. Rarity looked the most wound up of all of them, but was composing herself remarkably well.

Then Sunset’s eyes rested on Clover, and she blinked to see her Soul Reaper friend standing stock still, staring into the holographic display with her gray hands perched on the table with a white-knuckled grip.

“Clover?” Sunset asked in a quiet voice, realizing Clover had been keeping relatively quiet.

There was a rough shiver in Clover’s shoulders as she closed her eyes, and everyone else looked to her now as well.

“Ya alright, sugarcube?” Applejack said.

“No,” Clover said, “No I’m not. I’m... far from alright...”

Her hands shook on the table, and Clover, in a rather uncharacteristic display, gave a sudden shout and slammed a fist onto the table’s surface, a burst of reiatsu gushing off her as her eyes filled with tears of frustration.

“They were using us! All this time, we were supposed to be protecting the ‘balance’! We’re supposed to be the ones who guard the natural order of the afterlife, for the safety of everyone, and... and it’s all for this!”

She threw her hands at the flickering image of Hell, and Clover shook her head, the pain twisting her voice, “I wanted to believe what we were doing was right, you know? That even if Soul Society isn’t perfect, we were still serving as the good and correct custodians of the world’s souls. But we aren’t. We’re just... stooges. Dupes. Zero Division has tricked us into being their private army of soul wranglers, all so this disgusting machine can churn out raw spirit energy like a damned mill grinding grist!”

“Yeaaaah,” Rainbow said, “I guess finding out your whole life is kinda based on a lie sucks the big one, doesn’t it- OW! Applejack, hey!”

“Ya deserved it,” Applejack said, after having given Rainbow’s shin a swift kick, “Don’t go rubbin’ it in her face, ya dolt.”

Sunset came up to Clover quickly, holding her friend around the shoulders in a comforting grip, “Hey, listen to me, whatever Zero Division is responsible for, that doesn’t change that you and other Soul Reapers haven’t had their hearts in the right place. You’ve protected plenty of souls from being devoured by Hollows, don’t forget that.”

“And sent many others, Hollows included, into this very prison designed to break down souls for their raw energy,” Clover replied, her voice evening out as she tried to get a grip on the emotions that had slipped away from her, “I know where the fault lies, Sunset, and I don’t think it’s likely many among Seireitei could have figured this out on their own if the Zero Division was trying to keep a lid on it, but... it hurts. Like I’ve spent my whole life fighting for the wrong things and didn’t even know it.”

Sunset could only hold her friend tighter, but Rarity spoke up suddenly, “This does raise a question, and not to try and take away from what you’re feeling Clover, but how come this information hasn’t been discovered until now? From the conversation earlier with Medley I got the impression she knew that you were aware of this, Discord.”

“In all likelihood, yes, she did,” Discord said, leaning forward and grasping his beard quizzically with one hand, “I’m rather unsure of what game she’s playing at, either. Ditzy’s sojourn into Seireitei was meant to try and retrace Starlight’s steps and find whatever it was that Starlight had found that precipitated her actions, and I’ve no doubt it was these blueprints of Hell that did that. Ditzy found them behind many layers of protection, and I think she was surprised herself that Medley took no action to try and stop her from removing the records. More strange was the fact the records were there to find at all. Why would Glory allow these to sit in one of Seireitei’s archives, even the most restricted and heavily protected ones? Unless she didn’t put them there at all, and Medley did.”

“But why do that?” pressed Rarity, “Given Clovers reaction, I can only assume most Soul Reapers in the Gotei 13 would have a similar response to learning this information.”

“Which is exactly why you want these peace talks,” said Sunset, “Telling Scorpan this, and showing him this evidence to back it up, would be pretty explosive.”

“That is my intent, and Medley would have had to have known that,” Discord said, still tugging on his beard, eyes narrowing, “Which leads me to believe that’s the very result she’s looking for.”

“How does screwing up her boss’ plan benefit her?'' asked Rainbow Dash, still rubbing her shin, “I mean, maybe she’s actually on our side? But then why was she acting like the biggest, smuggest, colossal jerk in the world to us back at the tree?”

“I wouldn’t assume she’s on our ‘side’, Miss Dash,” replied Discord, “Medley would have had plenty of opportunities to turn on Glory if that was her intent, although if she was operating alone then perhaps she was just being cautious. I don’t know Medley well enough to say for certain but my impression is that this is to... well... have something to do.”

“Come again?” said Sunset, and Discord just held his hands out in a hopeless gesture.

“Again, I didn't really get to know her the few times I have met her, but Medley has always reminded me of the Zero Division’s ‘Pinkie Pie’, at least in so much as she’s unpredictable and easily bored. Perhaps the long millennia of their plans advancing unchallenged has caused her to want to throw a wrench into the gears, just to see what happens.”

“Hey, if i get bored, I’m not going to try to get my friends killed by throwing a lit stick of dynamite into the middle of their birthday parties,” said Pinkie Pie, then crossed her arms and declared proudly, “It’s just be a few surprise fireworks to liven things up!”

“Ahem... well, whatever Medley’s motivations, I’m glad she did it,” said Sunset, “It means we have a much clearer idea of who our real enemy is, and there’s a strong chance we might actually get the Soul Reapers and Quincy on the same side for once. I doubt the Quincy are going to be happy to learn about Zero Division’s plans either.”

“Especially considering the Zero Division has, through this Hell, been doing the very same thing the Soul Reapers have been accusing the Quincy of doing for centuries,” said Clover, shaking her head, still in a state of pale shock, “I don’t even know how the reincarnation cycle is staying in balance right now.”

“What do you mean?” asked Sunset, and Clover composed herself further, running a hand through her dark green hair.

“Think about it, Sunset. If Hell isn’t allowing souls out of it and back into the reincarnation cycle at any point, and is instead breaking them down, then even if it’s trying to act as a counterweight on the cosmic scale, that weight is just going to keep getting heavier and heavier isn’t it?”

“Ain’t followin’ ya, hun,” said Applejack, “Why would it keep gettin’ heavier?”

Sunset’s mind rolled the idea over a few times, and suddenly her eyes flashed, both in understanding, and an instant of further anger at Hell’s design features, “Crap, you’re right Clover.”

“Mind enlightening the rest of us?” Rarity said, and Sunset nodded swiftly.

“Alright, thus far we know Hell takes in two kinds of souls; ones that have committed evil acts such as murder, and those that are specifically marked by Zero Division, like the Star Family. The specific marks don’t make much difference in the long run, but evil acts? Normally a soul is reincarnated, right? First in Soul Society, then back into the living world. First, let me confirm this with Clover and Discord, do souls living in Soul Society end up in Hell if they commit evil acts there, or does it only apply to souls in human bodies in the living world?”

Discord gestured for Clover to answer, and she did in a halting tone, “J-just the living world. Evil actions in Soul Society are either punished by Central 46, usually with a severe prison sentence in Seireitei’s own 'Great Underground Prison'. Those who are killed simply move on to reincarnation, presumably with the hope that they’ll atone for their sins in their human life. But...”

“But that’s where Hell comes in, if they don’t,” Sunset said, and Applejack interjected.

“An’ honestly if Hell weren’t just some giant ol’ factory fer grindin’ up souls, I might not even have a problem with this system. Seems fair ‘nough on the surface, if evil souls’ r’ just bein’ made ta pay their dues.”

“But that’s not what’s happening,” Sunset said, “And if you think ahead, a problem emerges. Reincarnated, over and over again, what are the odds someone is eventually going to cross the line? I mean, I came real close to going full-on evil she demon not so long ago. If I hadn’t been stopped, I might have ended up seriously hurting, or even killing people. If I did that, and died here, then my soul would be right there in Hell along with all it’s other prisoners too, right?”

Clover gulped, but nodded, “Most likely. I mean, I don’t know if things would have been different since your soul isn’t originally from our world, but if you were fully human, then yes, you probably would have been sent to Hell if your actions had resulted in people being killed.”

“And that could apply to anyone,” said Sunset, “If you live enough lives, over and over again, eventually it stands to reason in one of them you’ll end up making some bad choices. Even if you don’t end up doing something horrible enough to land you in Hell one or two times, statistically speaking eventually you probably will...”

“What’re ya tryin' ta say, Sunset, that we’d all turn out evil if given enough goes at life?” Applejack said, frowning deeply, “I don’t buy it. A good soul is a good soul, an’ it ain’t that easy ta turn out as a bad apple.”

“Applejack, I’m not trying to say people are inherently inclined towards doing the wrong thing,” said Sunset, “I believe the opposite is true, in fact, that every soul probably has some inclination towards good, but that things can just get easily twisted up depending on the circumstances and experiences one has in life. And if you live life over and over again, dozens, even hundreds of times, then eventually you’ll probably end up having the wrong circumstances and experiences that will push you over the edge.”

“Oooo, I get it,” said Pinkie Pie, snapping her fingers so a balloon appeared in front of her, “It’s like you can float through a whole bunch of lives, but that doesn’t mean at some point you won’t run into a needle or something else sharp.”

Pinkamena snapped her fingers then, and a small switchblade appeared and poked the balloon, which popped and flew about in a spiral that took it straight down into the display of Hell.

“And then whooooosh, it’s right down to the hot place, where there’s no getting out,” finished Pinkamena.

The girls all slowly digested that, with Applejack finally giving a begrudging nod of understanding, “So... what yer sayin’ is that with the current system, most souls r’ gonna end up in Hell. Might take a long time ta happen, but one by one, all o’ us would make a mistake at some point, then get tossed inta Zero Division’s soul refinery.”

“Yeah,” said Sunset, her voice sober at hearing her own thoughts told back to her. It really was a grisly situation. It was almost beyond fathoming, really. What could Glory and the Zero Division desire so much that they’d be willing to sacrifice almost every other soul in the world to do it? Her head hurt at trying to work over that particular puzzle, and she felt a fresh wave of exhaustion at what she and her friends had learned today.

And if she felt this way, she could only guess how Clover was feeling. She could tell just from a glance that Clover was struggling to look outwardly calm after her earlier outburst, but the troubled tension in her eyes told the truth of things. Seeing Sunset watching her, Clover smiled weakly and said, “I’ll be fine, Sunset. This is just a shock to the system for me.”

“I understand,” said Sunset, “I think all of us are pretty shook up by this.”

“It’s grade-A creepiness, that’s for sure,” said Rainbow Dash, “I’m totally getting why my mom sided with Starlight on this. Just wish they’d freakin’ told us!”

“Yeah, why didn’t they?” asked Pinkie Pie, “They could have totally told everyone, right?”

“No,” said Clover, shaking her head, “As much as I agree it would have been convenient to have known this much sooner, I doubt Starlight Glimmer or Rainbow Dash’s mother could have tried to come out with the truth on their own.”

“Awww, why not?” said Pinkie Pie.

“Proof,” Clover replied, “This blueprint, while damming in it’s own way, isn’t actually sufficient proof. It shows what Hell’s function is, yes, but there’s nothing in the details of its construction that conclusively prove who designed or built it. It’s not as if there’s a signature of any Zero Division member on it.”

“Very true,” confirmed Discord, “For all anybody could tell from looking at this the Soul Queen herself could have commissioned this Hell to be built, or done the deed herself. In fact I suspect that to be one of the very points Scorpan will bring up to me when I reveal this at the peace talks. That said, I think I can plant enough doubt in the Captain Commander’s mind to make him want to question Zero Division. The blueprints do at least prove that Hell was built with features no Soul Reaper has been told about, which is suspicious in and of itself, but combine that with the mysterious silence of the Soul Queen for so many long centuries and it paints an altogether more sinister picture.”

“Do you know what’s happened to the Soul Queen?” asked Sunset, “I mean, has anyone outside of Zero Division ever heard from her?”

“Sadly, no, I’m as in the dark as anyone in that regard. The Soul Queen has not been seen outside the Soul Palace since the inception of Soul Society. Even the few times people have been invited to the Soul Palace like I was, the Queen herself never made an appearance.”

“Then how does anyone even know she’s still around?” asked Rarity, “Surely someone must have wondered!”

“Myself included. The only answer anyone has ever gotten from Zero Division is that the Soul Queen is not to be bothered by public appearances. And to be fair, even in the distant past, most historical information confirms she has never been one for making her presence known. For most in Soul Society, her existence is simply accepted as fact, and rarely thought of beyond that.”

At Discord’s reply, Sunset considered the situation. It seemed obvious enough to her, from the evidence presented, that Zero Division was the group calling the shots. If the Soul Queen was still active, she might be commanding them from behind the scenes, but the description Discord gave of this Glory woman didn’t make her sound like someone inclined to take orders from a puppet master. Ultimately it didn’t change what they had to do. Put a stop to the war, deal with Starlight Glimmer and hopefully get her on their side, then go to the Soul Palace itself to confront the Zero Division. One way or another, the truth would come out. What happened then, she couldn’t guess. The idea of fighting the Zero Division was daunting to put it mildly. The overwhelmingly crushing force of Medley’s reiatsu was a fresh memory still, and a part of Sunset balked at the notion of facing five opponents on that level...

But then not so long ago the idea of facing and defeating someone as powerful as Gaia Everfree would have seemed crazy, too. And another, larger part of Sunset’s soul actually burned brighter at the challenge ahead. It didn’t hurt that she was genuinely angry about what Zero Division had done, and there were few motivations like a bit of righteous fury to put a kibosh on fear.

“Near as I can tell,” she said, “Whether it’s the Soul Queen or Zero Division, our world has been manipulated by people who don’t care about the harm they’re causing to countless souls. Soul Reapers, Quincy, Hollows, and innocent humans have all been caught up in an eons old conspiracy meant to benefit a handful of god-like schemers who seem to think that being ancient and powerful gives them a right to do whatever they want with the souls of everyone else in the world. Well, I say they’re about to find out how wrong they are, and we’re the ones who are going to show them.”

“Succinctly said,'' Discord smiled, slowly standing up from his seat and leaning on his cane, “And now that you girls are briefed on just what’s at stake, I hope that means you’ll be better prepared for what comes next. There’s still quite a few matters we must attend to before we make our next move, not the least of which is speaking to your families and deciding to what degree they will be involved in things moving forward.”

“Involved?” Applejack said, her right eyebrow doing a slow climb up her forehead.

“Yes, well it should be obvious at this point that keeping the secret of what’s occurring from them would be impossible,” Discord said, “That being the case, I think all of you need to have a serious talk with your loved ones concerning what’s to come. Not only are your siblings developing Fullbrings of their own, but your mothers may wish to have the powers and memories of their time in Xcution restored. Then there’s the matter of Rarity’s present state of disembodiment to consider...”

“Now hold up a darn second,” Applejack said, “Ain’t this all comin’ a bit too fast? What’dya mean yer gonna give back the memories n’ powers ta my friend’s ma’s!?”

“Didn’t say I would, only that they’d have the option if they so chose. Given your siblings are developing the same powers, it seems only fair to allow the parents a chance to regain what was lost,” Discord replied firmly, and Fluttershy spoke up with a concerned look.

“By all of our siblings, do you mean Zephyr Breeze too?”

“Oh, not him yet, but it’s very likely,” Discord said, then glanced at Pinkie Pie, “As it happens, your sister Maud has already awakened to her own Fullbring, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Marble and Limestone were soon to follow.”

“Great! I mean, uh... not-so-great?” Pinkie Pie scratched her head, “I actually don’t know how I should feel about this. It’s good, but at the same time, scary? I don’t want my sisters to get hurt fighting, but then maybe that’s why they should have cool powers too? Oooow, my head’s starting to hurt. Mena, what’s your take?”

“My take is that the more of the family that can super-murder any bastards that come after us, the happier I’ll be,” said Pinkamena with a toothy grin, “So if we can have some mutual Pie-Sister-Murder-Spree time, then that sounds like an absolute blast.”

“Huh, well it would give me an excuse to throw some more parties. I wonder what Fullbring Maud’s got? Has to be rock-based.”

Rarity took in a deep breath, “I was already prepared for this when I learned Sweetie Belle had obtained a Fullbring. If my mother regains hers, at least that means she can help train Sweetie Belle. It’s a sensible choice to make. But, Discord, about my current... condition.”

“Yes, I imagine you’ve been anxious ever since you realized you had shuffled off the mortal coil,” Discord said, his expression turning serious as an oncoming freight train, “You want to know if I can give you a new body, correct?”

“I want to know what my options are,” Rarity replied in a soft, tense tone.

“The short answer is yes, I could make a gigai tailored for your use,” Discord replied, but he hadn’t lost the severe look on his face, “I’ve made a similar offer to Adagio, if she ever wanted to moonlight as human at some point. I’ll tell you up front that such a gigai won’t have all the functions your human body did. Most notably, you won’t be able to use your Fullbring at one hundred percent power while using it. You’ll have to exit your gigai the same way Sunset must exit her human body to use her Soul Reaper powers. There would always be some sensation of disconnect between you and your gigai. Ultimately the body you were born with, Rarity, is gone, along with all of the many years of familiarity your soul and that body had with one another. It’s a link that can’t be completely simulated via an artificial body, so your gigai would always feel a bit like a pair of pants that don’t quite fit right. That said, you’d still be able to live like a human again, more or less.”

Everyone else was silent as they listened, while Rarity mulled over what she was being told. After a few moments she asked, “And assuming I choose to not take a gigai, and continue on as a soul, what happens then?”

“Hmm, in that instance you’d have to eventually cross over to Soul Society. Your soul chain will continue to degrade over time if you remain in the living world for too long, and you’d risk becoming a Hollow. That said, crossing on to Soul Society has a risk factor of its own.” Discord eyed the projection of Hell, “We don’t know for certain if Zero Division does or doesn’t have you girls listed among those slated to be taken to Hell upon being subjected to the Konso ritual.”

“Wait, why would they want us?” asked Rainbow Dash, “I mean, sure we’re set to fight them now, but back when we were born there’s no way anybody could’ve guessed how all this would shake out!”

“Don’t put anything past Zero Division, Miss Dash. They could have considered the possibility that you children would constitute an eventual threat based upon your mother’s actions, and made adjustments accordingly,” Discord said, but he then shrugged, “Although I admit it’s only a possibility. The fact that Sweet Cider passed on without incident suggests it’s equally possible Zero Division didn’t consider your mothers or you a threat at the time. That said, things could have changed between now and then. It’s a risk, regardless.”

“Does Rarity have to go through Konso to pass on to Soul Society?” asked Sunset, her mouth dry, and her tone strained. She didn’t like the idea of her friend leaving, even if it didn’t mean she wouldn’t see Rarity again or anything like that. “Couldn’t she just be escorted there via a Senkaimon Gate?”

“It’s not the same thing,” Discord said, “Konso is more than just sending a soul to Soul Society. It’s a cleansing ritual in which a Zanpaktou partial heals the soul chain and prevents its degradation. Now, a similar ritual could be performed in Soul Society, but that still runs a risk of triggering the Gates of Hell.”

“Couldn’t you do somethin’ fer Rarity’s soul chain?” asked Applejack, “I mean, weren’t ya doin’ the same kind o’ thing fer Adagio back when she was in that floatin’ doll?”

“Yes,” said Discord, “But that was because I still had Adagio’s original body to work with. Again, the bond between a soul and the body it was born in is special. Even altered as Adagio’s body was by being sent to this world from Equestria, it was still her body, so her soul was designed to fit inside it. It meant that even with a damaged soul chain, she could have been reintegrated. In Rarity’s case, we don’t have her original body to work with, so while I can slow down the degradation process, actually healing her soul chain is a more difficult matter. Not impossible, but it would take me time, and Rarity might have to be benched for the time it’d take. I’m not saying it isn’t an option, but it’s important to make clear what the drawbacks are to that option as well.”

“So in short, I can either take on a gigai that won’t quite work like my old body, risk Konso to go to Soul Society quickly, or spend my time here in your lab being prodded by you until you figure out a way to heal my soul chain naturally so I can cross to Soul Society without risking Hell,” Rarity said, rubbing her chin, “Not the greatest set of options a girl was ever faced with, but I was the one who got herself killed, so I have no room to complain. I... wonder what my parents might say about all this? Oh dear, I really am out of time to avoid telling them, aren’t I?”

“I was going to suggest that it was time for you girls to go meet with your families, yes,” said Discord, his expression softening with a weary half-smile, “I am sorry I can’t offer better options for you Rarity, but at the same time it’s more options than most who die are ever afforded.”

“That is true, isn’t it?” Rarity said, letting out a self-deprecating chuckle, “Here I am, wallowing about having choices, when most people don’t get the luxury of even having choices when this happens to them. At any rate, you’re right Mr. Discord, we’ve dilly-dallied long enough. Come girls, let’s go see our families, and... say whatever needs to be said.”

----------

Twilight had never thought her father’s “parlor” was really suited to the term. After all, “parlor” had something of a cozy connotation to it, evoking the image of a small room where a handful of people might go for a quiet spot to relax or chat. Given the size of Twilight’s family manor, it shouldn’t have been too surprising that the parlor her father used was in fact much more akin to a massive lounge and study, with a huge fireplace dominating one wall, while the others were lined with tower bookshelves with sliding ladders to accommodate their higher shelves. The room had always felt a bit foreboding to her as a child, partially due to its size, and partially due to the dark colors of deep blues and violets her father had chosen for it, with thick carpets and wood panel walls. Of course that never stopped her from perusing the books.

A set of shining black leather couches hugged a sitting table near the parlor’s entrance, while a larger desk of imposing size filled up the space closer to the fireplace, which Twilight noted already had a fire lit within it. Had Sombra done that, or Robert? Either way it cast the room in flickers of shadow from the bright fire, the room otherwise only lit by a few electric lights encased in older-fashioned lantern fixtures.

Sombra himself stood before the fireplace with his coal black features cast into an iron mask of intense thought. To those who didn’t know him well enough to know what to look for he’d appear like a storm front, brooding and ready to unleash violence. To Twilight, she saw the anxiety behind his red eyes, which flicked quickly towards her as she entered. She saw a moment of relief there as he saw her alive, but he also saw his mood darken as he took in her wounded, tattered state.

His expression only grew more thunderous as the others entered behind Twilight, becoming knowing disgust upon spotting Gladmane and Spoiled Rich in their bindings, and then shifting to an instance of shock as Sapphire Shores entered last, having to duck to get her tall, silvery form through the doorway.

To his credit he didn’t make any outburst, and got his expression swiftly back to it’s mask of judgment as he strode around to the front of Twilight’s father’s desk. His voice was still rich and smooth, if tainted by a hint of the emotions that lay beneath.

“Sternritter Twilight Sparkle, you return from the field of battle alive and well, and my heart is gladdened by the fact. Tell me, has the plot against you been exposed and the ones I see before me the responsible parties?”

By now Spoiled Rich had awoken from having passed out, and her look was that of a wild-eyes, terrified and cornered animal as she saw where she was, and who was standing before her. She whipped her head toward Gladmane and Filthy Rich in turn, already trembling in place. Twilight was glad of the fact she’d had Robert escort Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara to guest quarters before coming to the parlor. She didn’t think either child needed to be present for whatever was to come.

Gladmane, for his part, was trying very hard to look unflappable, but the sweat starting to run down his face told of his own fear at facing his King.

Twilight sucked in a breath and stood forward ahead of the group, and she, along with the other Sternritter, prisoner or otherwise, sank to one knee in formal bow to Sombra. Sapphire Shores, even as complete as the Lust’s control over her was, still knelt, as if drawn to do so by instincts too ingrained to be overridden. Spoiled Rich didn’t so much kneel as prostrate herself, shaking like a leaf in a cold wind. Normally Twilight wasn’t fond of the Quincy formalities, but she’d grown to accept them in their time and place.

“I am well, Sombra, and... yes, those who sought to assassinate me have been apprehended, with the exception of one conspirator who perished during the battles that have taken place this day.”

Sombra didn’t look surprised, but there was a note of questioning speculation in his voice, “Hoity Toity, yes. I felt his soul return to me, hence why I have come here. Was it you who slew him?”

“No, that honor belongs to my friend and ally, Rarity, who came to my defense, and...” Twilight swallowed, “Who lost her own life in the process.”

The Quincy King’s eyes closed for a moment, and he gave the barest of nods, “Then we owe her a debt not easily repaid. I shall not forget the fact. That, however, is a matter that will have to wait. I see traitors before me, but I would know exactly what happened and precisely what motives drove their actions before I render... judgment.”

That last word he let hand in the air like the blade of a guillotine. There was no satisfaction or anticipation in his voice, only cold, hard resolve. His eyes lingered questioningly and even disbelievingly on Sapphire Shores, and Twilight almost thought she could feel the way Sombra was being cut by his most trusted Sternritter’s presence. She wondered what he would think of Sapphire’s motivations? She didn’t want Sombra to be hurt by the truth, but the truth was the only thing she could possibly deliver.

What came after that, she had no idea, but she took a steadying breath and began the long and detailed recounting of events, while Sombra continued to look on silently.

Episode 134: A King's Judgment

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Episode 134: A King’s Judgement

King Sombra said nothing, not a single word while Twilight went over the events that transpired at Camp Everfree. She spared no detail, not even her involvement with Adagio’s vassals in the mission to free Ember from the Soul Reaper’s hidden field lab, or the nature of the brief alliance she’d struck up with Starswirl after the conclusion of their battle. Sombra had given her leave to make her own call on field decisions and had already known about the plan to free Ember as part of the deal for Adagio acting as an informant on Las Noches, and the only one present who wasn’t a prisoner who didn’t know about any of this was Filthy Rich.

Much to Filthy Rich’s credit, while the shock of what he was hearing was clear in his eyes, he had the self control to keep his own peace while Twilight was making her report. Likely he was smart enough to surmise that the lack of surprise on Sombra’s face indicated that the Quincy King already knew the details of what Twilight had planned to do and had authorized it. Whether Filthy Rich agreed with it was another matter, but there was a shrewdness in his eyes that said that the man who’d already accepted fighting along a Soul Reaper could also grasp there were probably valid reasons his King would permit the newest Sternritter to also collaborate with the Arrancar. Gladmane and Spoiled Rich looked far less accepting of the matter, but the sick looks on their faces might have also had a lot more to do with the fear of their upcoming fates rather than anything Twilight was saying.

The last thing Twilight covered was the negotiations that had occurred after the battles were done, including the suggestion Discord had made concerning an invitation for “peace talks” with the Captain Commander of the Soul Reapers.

Once she was done she remained upon one knee, waiting for Sombra’s response.

Seconds slipped by slowly like dollops of cement sliding down a wall. Sombra carefully clasped his hands behind his back, his dark red eyes making a series of calculating flicks around the assembled group as his black brow furrowed. For a time the crackling licks of flames from the fireplace was the only sound in the room to accompany the panicked breathing from Spoiled Rich and the shorter, quiet breaths of the rest.

“Peace talks...” Sombra finally said, his voice filling the room with its rich presence, “After all this time? Ah, but it isn’t Scorpan who has asked for it, but this man, Discord. I know of him, but have not the pleasure of meeting him. I only know the reputation, and some of the experiments he created in the Twelfth Division. Hmm... I’ll shelve that until later, Twilight. If Scorpan even accepts, I might entertain the notion, but we’ve more pressing business.”

The room darkened. No, to say such would suggest a dimming of the light. What happened was that the walls bled darkness, the floor grew to pitch black like a night sky absent of stars. Sombra’s reiatsu choked the room with a sick feeling of oppressive fury, and for a second Twilight felt a moment of stark naked terror as she saw in Sombra the wrathful King that had caused many of the Quincy to fear and revere him as their only true ruler. This wrath was not directed at her, however, but at those prisoners arrayed behind her.

Spoiled Rich made a sound that Twilight didn’t even think a dying animal could make, and Glademane, for all his affected poise, turned pale as death as his eyes went wide with unmasked fear. Only Sapphire Shores remained unaffected, an almost blank look of patient bliss on her face, so utterly filled with Cadence’s Lust that unless Cadence commanded it, nothing could truly sink in.

Sombra’s voice was dark ice cracking like a whip, “Many are the things I will forgive among my subordinates. Failures can be redeemed. Foolishness can be educated. Overreaching ambition can be curbed. Inexperience trained away. But treason!? Betrayal!? And for what!?”

His stabbing gaze hit upon Glademane, “Greed and envy of a family with more status than your own?”

That frozen look turned upon Spoiled Rich, who curled in upon herself, “For mere lust and idiotic laziness?”

But then that look moved to Sapphire, and raw pain joined the fury in his eyes, “But worst of all... oh Sapphire, how could you have been so utterly blind? The gift I gave you was such a precious thing, and I knew how proud of it you were, for it came from me and that made you cherish it so. You, above so many, I have trusted for so long to be among those I could call not merely a servant, but a friend. Was it I who was blind, even more than you, to not see what you might use your gift for behind my back? And to think that Twilight Sparkle, of all people, was a threat to me? Even if I believed it, nothing wounds deeper than knowing you didn’t trust me enough to tell me what you saw. Now, with Cadence’s power flowing through you, I hesitate to trust any answer you’d give me on just how often you’ve done such things without my knowledge.”

Cadence very hesitantly cleared her throat and said, “My King, while the Lust might twist her perceptions to do whatever it takes to please me, I can still order her to explain her motivations in full. She would still provide truthful answers, I believe.”

At Cadence’s voice Sapphire shuddered, as if just hearing Cadence’s words were a balm to her, and her eyes lit up as she quickly spoke, “Oh if it will make you happy, Cadence, I’ll tell Sombra everything! Just tell me if that is what you want.”

Sombra sucked in a deep breath, running a hand over his face, “I know I gave you your Schrift, Cadence, and I know its capabilities, but... to see her like this is painful. Even I didn’t know the true strength of the Lust. Sometimes the powers we Quincy bear is a horrifying thing, if only we could only exclusively use them upon our enemies. Damn it all, I have to hear it. I have to know why. These ones,” he made a disgusted gesture at Gladmane and Spoiled Rich, “Have easy if banal enough motivations to understand, but Sapphire Shores I wish to have clarity upon before rendering judgment.”

“If I may,” Twilight said, drawing Sombra’s attention, “I understand your anger, but I request that before you make any judgments, upon Sapphire or anyone else, that you speak to all three, and listen to counsel on what judgment should be given.”

A momentary look of bemusement tinted his otherwise darkly angered eyes, but Sombra gave the briefest of nods, “As you were the victim of this plot I’ll consider your council, but do not mistake me, Twilight. The actions of these three is treason by any measure, and I am not in my most merciful of moods. I’ll indulge in hearing what little of value the lesser two of this plot have to say, but only after I hear from Sapphire Shore’s own lips why she became the ringleader of this plot to steal your life. Cadence... give the command.”

“As you wish, my King,” Cadence replied, rising and turning to Sapphire Shores. Twilight could see the way Cadence’s face was held in a stiff mask concealing her own unease, along with the way she kept her hands in tight fists at her side.

She’s afraid, Twilight thought, Of Sombra. Even if it isn’t her being judged, just being near him when he’s like this...

It was clear on the faces and body language of all present. Spoiled Rich’s bloodshot eyes, and the way she curled in on herself. Glademane’s sweat coated features and pallid skin. Filthy Rich seeking to look at no one, least of all his wife, as he kept his gaze fixed like steel upon the floor in front of him. They were all afraid of their King’s wrath, and Twilight didn’t blame them. She felt it too, and had a sinking sensation in her chest as Cadence gave Sapphire Shores the command to explain her motivations in full, for Twilight sensed there was a truth here even she hadn’t quite heard. She had her suspicions, based on what Sapphire had said, but it felt as if Sapphire had omitted details as well, and Twilight felt a stab of fear at what those details might be. Not to mention how Sombra would react to them.

When Sapphire Shores began to speak it was with a confused reverence struggling to manifest in her features and voice, as if the feelings she had for Sombra were so ingrained in her that they warred with even the potency of Cadence’s Lust. Love for her King and Savior clawing to be heard under the deep fog of artificial love from the Schrift tinted her voice with a hoarse pain.

“I wanted to kill Twilight Sparkle because I believed that she would be the one who would end your life, Sombra. The gift you gave me showed me such visions within the tides of reishi interactions that I thought I could see the future, plain as sunlight glinting off the river. I killed many because of such visions.”

Sombra’s eyes twitched, “How many?”

“Answer him truthfully, Sapphire, anything he asks,” Cadence encouraged, gulping, and Sapphire nodded haltingly.

“One hundred and twenty two. I kept count, over the years. Each was someone who I foresaw would take actions that would harm you, or the Quincy as a whole. So I eliminated them. Sometimes with assistance, as with my attempt on Twilight Sparkle, other times on my own. Always kept secret from you, to ensure you would not be burdened by knowledge or guilt.”

A soft grunt escaped Sombra, like someone had punched him in the gut, but he shook it off instantly and said, “You hid your actions well, considering I never suspected... Well, let’s focus on Twilight. Precisely how did you know she would supposedly kill me? I know that your visions are not entirely accurate at all times, hence why I’ve only ever considered them an asset in terms of an advisory role, not absolute gospel.”

“I held more faith in them than you, Sombra, for they never failed me in the past,” Sapphire said, her silver face trembling with erratic tics, “Never so much as with Twilight Sparkle and Radiant Hope.”

That second name struck both Twilight and Sombra like a cold slap of ice water. Twilight had guessed Radiant Hope was involved in Sapphire’s actions but had not known precisely how or why other than Twilight’s tie to her as a partial reincarnation. Sombra’s dark visage recovered from it’s shock and a rumble of thunder came from deep in his throat, “What does my wife have to do with this?”

Sapphire Shores couldn’t comprehend his anger, as if the Lust deflected any awareness of it, but the confusion from her own twisted emotions still left her hesitating before answering, “Radiant Hope... I was so wrong about her. I loved her and hated her for all she was to you. Loved? But I love Cadence-”

“Focus, Sapphire,” Cadence said, “For me; answer the King’s question.”

“Yes, mistress, of course. Radiant Hope was the source of the trouble. The vision of Sombra’s death came from her.”

“Impossible!” Sombra blurted, “You’re target was Twilight Sparkle, and she was not born until centuries after my Radiant Hope was stolen from me by the Soul Reapers! Are you trying to tell me that the mere portion of Radiant Hope’s soul that dwells within Twilight Sparkle triggered your visions?”

“No. Not Radiant Hope’s soul. Her child’s.”

If the previous words had been a cold splash of water, this was like a sudden dip in the depths of the arctic. Sombra turned into a frozen pillar of stunned silence, while Twilight felt her mouth open in numb shock. Child? Radiant Hope’s child!? But wouldn’t that also mean-?

“You speak the truth,” Sombra’s voice was hollowed out, but filling in with denial and pain like a trench floods with water under a rainy deluge, “How can you be speaking the truth? Radiant Hope was... with child?”

“Yes,” Sapphire Shores confirmed, “It was that which triggered my vision. An heir to the Quincy throne would be born, I saw, and this heir would lead to the end of the Quincy King. I saw that line of reishi terminate so clearly. I felt so sure. So certain that I did nothing when Radiant Hope’s life was endangered.”

Sombra actually stepped back, one hand floundering to grasp the edge of the parlor’s table to steady himself. For all his great power, there was nothing shielding him from the words he was hearing, and it was obvious they were landing like hammer blows. Even the power in his voice ebbed to that of a man grasping to understand what he was hearing, “Why didn’t she tell me? Wait, endangered? You knew Radiant was in danger that day!?”

“I foresaw it. I knew she would die on that day without assistance. The threads of reishi made it so clear, when I visited her at the hospital. I didn’t have to do anything. I just had to leave and be on my way, and wait for things to take their course. No one would know. My visions come and go, so none could question why I didn’t see, although I did. I didn’t want her or the child to die, because I knew it would hurt you, but I thought they had to die, in order for you to live.”

Everyone else in the room was aghast. It was clear that neither Glademane or Spoiled Rich had been told any of this, because their faces bore absolute shock as plain as anyone else in the room. Cadence looked nearly sick, her hand unconsciously going to rest over her stomach.

Twilight only looked a smidgen less shocked because somewhere in the depths of her logical mind she’d already started to put a picture like this somewhat together, based upon some of the rambling things Sapphire had said during the battle. The truth was right there, now, and one last piece needed to be fit into the whole picture.

Sombra’s pained shock gave way to a murderous scowl, “My wife... my wife! You could have saved her, and left her to die! I held her very soul in my hands, felt it rip from me when the Soul Reapers took her! That was all because of you!?”

His sword of condensed reishi was in his hands and he took one mountainous step towards her, death in his eyes. Twilight was between him and Sapphire Shores in an eyeblink, hands held out. “Wait!”

“For what!? Sapphire Shores has confessed to crimes beyond even the attempt on your life! I will have justice for my wife! My child!”

“But why did she target me?” Twilight said, “Think, Sombra! What does Radiant Hope’s death and Sapphire’s prediction about your child have to do with me!?”

He blinked. The fury remained, but Twilight saw his mind working things through, and in a very quiet voice he slightly lowered his blade and asked, “Sapphire... what happened to my child’s soul?”

Sapphire Shores looked at Twilight, and nodded, “She stands before you. That was why I targeted her. The heir who would end her father, or so I thought.”

Sombra stood transfixed, his eyes slowly turning to Twilight as they drained of fury and were replaced with dumbfounded shock and a mute, struggling spark of recognition. His mouth worked mutely for a second, and his sword lowered further until it fell from his hand and vanished into reishi particles around him. Twilight was only marginally less surprised at Sapphire’s confirmation, having only just worked it all out herself. She saw Sombra piece it together in his head, and for the first time she saw a bleak moisture waver in his eyes as he raised a hand towards her.

“My child? My and Radiant’s...?”

He almost touched her face, came within centimeters of caressing her cheek, before Twilight raised her own hand and touched his wristed gently to halt him. She tried to keep her voice level, almost analytical, but it was hard, “If what she says is true, then along with that piece of Radiant Hope’s soul, I also ended up with the unborn child’s in me.”

“The base,” Sapphire said, “The child’s soul would be the base, with Radiant Hope’s fragment layered atop.”

“Is that possible?” Cadence said, eyes like wide, crystal pools as she looked between Twilight and Sombra, “How could we have not known?”

“A soul so small and fragile,” Sombra whispered, still staring at Twilight as if she was a star and he was just discovering the night sky, “I’d never have felt it, even if it had entered me before reincarnation. And if it was still attached to Radiant’s soul, it’s even less likely I’d have sensed there was another present. Twilight, I...”

“But, what does this make her?” asked Filthy Rich in a flabbergasted voice.

Before anyone else could answer for her, Twilight felt a sudden urge, a need, to make something clear herself, “It makes me nothing different from who I am. I’m Night Light and Twilight Velvet’s daughter. By blood, and by rearing. By coincidence I have a stranger soul than most, but that doesn’t change anything. Does it, Sombra?”

It felt cruel to put that question to him right now of all times, but nothing would get done if they spent too long in shock over these revelations. Twilight felt like she was reeling over a precipice, yes, and the feeling had to be that much worse for Sombra, but whatever the truth was she wanted to affirm that in her eyes she had only one father and mother.

She could see the struggle in Sombra’s own eyes, and the hard waver in his voice as he forced himself to speak calmly, “Yes... yes you are right. Among Quincy, whose souls reincarnate within our own ranks, no man or woman can claim blood relation to a soul that reincarnates outside their own family. That law... must apply to all equally, including the King. My daughter’s soul you may bear, but I cannot claim you as my own.”

It hurt him to say that. She heard the rough edged pain in his voice as he said the words, the slow manner of his speech making each word feel as if it was being dragged out of him. This wasn’t going to be the end of the matter, she knew. The way he was looking at her, with a new depth of intensity, told Twilight that she and Sombra were going to need both time and more than these few words to sort this matter out. Twilight even agreed that they would need a longer talk about this, but at the same time she had to affirm to herself who she thought of as her parents. A twist of spiritual fate didn’t change who she was.

However, she also heard Midnight’s voice mutter inside her head.

”Makes you wonder just how many souls make up ‘us’. Maybe it isn’t ‘you’ who’s Sombra’s lost kid, but...”

Twilight flinched slightly at the words, ”Midnight, what are you thinking?”

She felt her other self huff out a laugh, ”Don’t worry about it. Still got to see what the ‘King’ here decides to do about what he’s heard. I’m still smelling an execution coming.”

There certainly was still an unmistakable aura of barely constrained violence and rage bubbling beneath the surface of Sombra’s features. The darkness in the room had hardly abated, and now that he was faced with one heart wrenching revelation after another that darkness had taken on an unstable quality. Tendrils of shadow were wavering up in the air, as if eager to grasp at the flesh of the three conspirators, and the heat of wrath was rekindling in Sombra’s eyes as he looked to them once more.

“So this makes your crimes even worse, doesn’t it? It isn’t simply the daughter of my most trusted General and his wife that you sought to destroy, but the reborn soul of your King’s own line. Sapphire Shores, no matter how convinced you were of the danger to me, nothing justifies what you have done. This is beyond anything I can forgive.”

Sapphire Shores’ expression of confused conflict briefly gave way to a moment of clarity as she nodded, “Forgiveness was never in my mind. I did what I did knowing the cost, both then and now. I regret your pain, and I regret failing, but not the desire to protect you, although now I can only seek to serve Cadence as my mistress. If she demands my death at your hands, I’ll not resist.”

“Sombra, wait,” Twilight said, and he gave her a sharp look.

“I admit I’ve come to value your advice and thoughts, Twilight Sparkle, but do not presume to stand between me and delivering justice for my wife’s death!”

“She didn’t kill Radiant Hope. She may not have saved her, but that’s not the same thing as killing her with her own hands,” Twilight said, not moving from between Sombra and Sapphire, not that her positioning would make that much difference if Sombra decided to take action. With his Absolute he had control of the space within the room. Twilight’s Variable might have been able to interfere with it to a degree, but not if Sombra got remotely serious.

“A split hair that means little to me,” he replied with growing impatience, “I do not have the one who struck Radiant down in my grasp, but I do have the one responsible for my being unable to reach my wife in time to save her. Give me a single reason worthy of sparing her life.”

“The Quintessence.”

“What of it?”

Twilight sucked in a breath and stepped closer to Sombra, looking up into his eyes with her own even glare. Inside she was terrified, but she’d long since grown used to controlling her fear. She confronted the storm before her unflinchingly.

“You can’t control what shape a Schrift takes upon granting it to another. The Q will become something else entirely in the hands of another. Sapphire Shores has committed crimes, yes, and she will be punished for them, but consider that she already has lost her freedom both physically and mentally due to Cadence’s own Schrift. She has no life to look forward to aside serving Cadence faithfully until death. Keep her in that service, and retain the power the Quintessence represents. We have enemies, Sombra, who will not care about her crimes, but will likely be quite happy to hear the Quincy have lost one of their most powerful Sternritter. Let her atone, even if only a little, for the wrongs she has committed by living out her days still serving our cause. Taking her life will do nothing to ease your pain, the suffering she caused you or me, and only weaken the Quincy as a whole. So please, I’m asking you to spare her.”

He looked utterly soured by her words, perhaps because he was actually thinking them through and not allowing his anger to override his impulses. And the pain in his eyes had not faded. If anything her words only seemed to injure him more as he looked at her and closed his eyes with a heavy sigh, “Now I know why you remind me of Radiant so much... speaking with the same restraint and level head... you inherited so much from her.”

“Sombra...”

“Enough!” he said, “You’ve made your point! Sapphire Shores is already dead, effectively. Her body still breaths, her soul trapped in flesh, while her mind remains locked by chains tighter than any prison I could condemn her to rot in! So be it, she shall live, such as it can be called ‘living’. Cadence, she is in your charge now, from now until she dies in your service. Be certain to make good use of her.”

Cadence paled slightly, but saluted promptly, “As you command, my King.”

“Now,” Sombra said, “What of you two, I wonder?”

He turned his attention to Gladmane and Spoiled Rich, who both shrunk back from his gaze. Sombra chuckled darkly, “My humor is most absent at the moment, and if my wrath is not to be vented upon Sapphire Shores, for she is if nothing else still useful... what then should stay my hand from two who are far less useful to me?”

“Sombra-” Twilight began but he raised a hand towards her and held up a finger.

“Shh. You asked that I hear them out. I shall do so. But that is all. Now then, speak, traitors.”

Spoiled Rich beat Glademane to the proverbial punch, all but plastering herself to the floor and speaking in a bawling tone of barely coherent stammers, “I-I-I beg mercy, my King! I was f-forced to help Gladmane! He... he told me if I didn’t help him that he’d k-kill my daughter!”

Gladmane’s eyes turned towards her in disbelief, “That’s an utter lie! I’d never hurt Diamond Tiara. She’s my blood, after all! I only went after Twilight Sparkle because it was a good chance to weaken Night Light’s family standing and open up opportunities for my own.”

“That’s your defense?” Sombra asked, incredulous, and Gladmane, despite the fear of sweat on his face, held his head up and nodded.

“My King, you’ve never done anything other than encourage competition between the Quincy families. Take the feud between the Hooffields and McColts! You’ve known that fight’s been brewing for generations, but you never once tried to step in. Why? Because fighting and struggling between us is what’s kept the Quincy strong. Each family vies for power, wealth, prestige, and that’s been the case since forever! I grew up as a little boy hearing stories from my father’s knee about how our family rose up from common stock to become among the best, and we did it by knocking down our competition one after another. Only families stronger than mine were Rich’s here, and Night Light’s. Then the little prodigy here shows up, and I thought to myself that was a little too much talent in one family. So when Sapphire came to me about her little plot, I jumped at it, especially considering Sapphire offered to use her Quintessence to help my family grow even stronger. Far too good an opportunity to pass up.”

“Hmph, and what of this... woman?” Sombra asked, gesturing at Spoiled Rich. Gladmane shrugged.

“Didn’t even intend Spoiled to get involved. Me nailing her on the side was unrelated to any of this, but damn if the woman, when she caught wind of what me and Sapphire were up to along with Hoity Toity, she felt like she was helping out.”

“N-no I didn’t, I was forced!” Spoiled shouted.

“The hell you were!” Gladmane snarled, “Ticked me off royal when you nearly screwed the pooch when you went after the kid in the damn Silburn itself! Hoity and me barely covered up your tracks after that! You should’ve stayed out of it, Spoiled.”

His anger gave way to a moment of actual regret as he went on, “If you’d just stayed out of it, you’d have been fine. Filthy wouldn’t have found out a damn thing. Now look at us. I tossed the dice and lost the game. I can accept that. You? You shouldn’t have even been at the table in the first place. Pfft, my own fault, I guess. Should’ve cut you loose after you popped Diamond out, but I just couldn’t say no to you.”

Spoiled Rich’s mouth quivered and she looked tearfully at her husband, “Filthy, please, say something. I... I don’t want to leave Diamond Tiara by herself.”

Her words raked at him, from the way Filthy Rich shuddered, and he didn’t look back at her, but instead looked at Sombra with dull eyes, “My King, my I ask a boon of you, as a loyal Sternritter who has served you faithfully for many years?”

Sombra looked back, gave the smallest of nods, “Ask, Sternritter M.”

Filthy Rich took a halting breath, steadying himself, “I ask that I be allowed to divorce my wife, but in so doing I also ask that you allow her to live. Strip her of rank, title, and privilege. I don’t even want her in the Strafbattalion. I ask this not for myself, but for my daughter. I want my Diamond Tiara to still be able to see her mother, even if I can no longer view Spoiled as my wife. Grant me this, and I shall ever remain your loyal subject, to the end of my days.”

While Spoiled Rich was stunned to silence, Sombra only took a moment to consider the request before nodding again, “Your request is granted. Spoiled Rich, as King, I officially annul your marriage to Filthy Rich, and strip you of the rank of first-class soldat of the Quincy Vandenreich. You are cast out, and forbidden the use of any Quincy power in your new life as a civilian.”

Spoiled simply... sat there, sagging with glassy eyes, like one drained of life as she looked at her shaking hands.

Gladmane said nothing, lips tight. Then Sombra turned to him. The two stared at each other for a long few seconds. To Gladmane’s credit, he did hold Sombra’s gaze, if only through profuse sweat dripping down his face as he awaited judgment. Sombra let out a tired, ragged sigh.

“Oh do stop sweating, damn you! If I was going to take your head off, I’d have done it by now. Ambition is one thing, but your actions are beyond any grace I’ve granted ambitious fools in the past, even the Hooffields and McColts. Unlike Spoiled, you still have use in the Strafbattalion, but no longer as Sternritter W. I’ll find a more worthy recipient for that Schrift. I strip you of your rank and family titles, and be glad that is all I take. Serve in the Strafbattalion with something approaching honor, and you might regain favor... but don’t count on it.”

“I, uh, appreciate the whole keeping my head thing.”

“The less you talk from now on, the more likely that remains the case,” Sombra said with an utter dearth of humor in his voice, “So silence may serve you best now. Also, considering I have no intention of being gentle in the removal of your Schrift, it is a tad early to count your blessings, Gladmane.”

That caused Gladmane to swiftly shut his mouth and turn into a silent statue. Sombra’s form began to glint with an outline of strange, ethereal light that broke out from the shadows that normally clung to him. Twilight felt his spiritual pressure intensify.

“What are you doing?” she asked nervously, but Cadence touched her arm, drawing Twilight’s attention. Cadence’s face was grave.

“The Auswahlen,” Cadence whispered, “You remember receiving your Schrift. You saw it then, in part.”

Twilight did recall that when Sombra had given her the V Schrift that an unusually bright light had flowed from him and into her, shaping the ‘V’ symbol and infusing it to her soul. She had been curious about it but hadn’t pressed Sombra for details. Gladmane’s reaction to the light seemed wholly different than seemed warranted.

Before she could ask further questions, however, the light stabbed forth from Sombra in an arcing pillar, flowing up and then crashing down upon Gladmane. This was nothing like the gentle wafting of light that Twilight had experienced when she’d been granted her Schrift. This was a violent, storm-like blurr of searing light that hurt her eyes. The spiritual pressure of it was sharp and tearing, like a cutting wind. She heard Gladmane scream, and saw him standing transfixed in the light.

It was over nearly as fast as it began, the light snapping back towards Sombra while ripping forth a torrent of light in the vague shape of a ‘W’ from Gladmane’s chest. Gladmane himself was left standing with seared flesh across the left half of his body, the stink of it filling the room. Filthy Rich looked as if he was forcing himself to look anywhere other than at Gladmane, while Spoiled Rich barely stirred from her near catatonic state.

Gladmane was still alive, but he collapsed in a twitching pile of pained moaning. Sombra, eyes flat, said, “How fortunate for you to have survived that. Others have not shared such luck in the past. Cadence, I’m entrusting you with the incarceration of the prisoners until they can be moved. Filthy Rich, given circumstances I’m providing you with a leave of absence so you can make arrangements for yourself and your daughter.”

Filthy Rich let out a ragged sigh as he saluted, “Yes, thank you, my King.”

He strode out as fast as etiquette allowed him, not sparing so much as a glance towards his former wife or friend. Cadence composed herself and said, “With my King’s permission I’ll take them to be held in the east wing’s guest rooms, and tend to Gladmane’s injuries. Sapphire Shores will guard them.”

“Very well,” Sombra said, and paused, raising an eyebrow as Twilight cleared her throat, “Yes, Twilight, is there something else?”

“Actually, several things,” Twilight said, glancing briefly at Gladmane, “Although if he needs treatment first...”

Sombra waved a hand, “He survived the Auswahlen. The burns won’t kill him. For awhile, at least.”

Twilight grimaced, then quickly shook her head, “Then I’ll make this quick. There’s a few loose ends that need dealing with before we wrap this up. First and most importantly, Sapphire Shores, I need to know what you and Hoity Toity did with my friend Sour Sweet.”

At Cadence’s nod, Sapphire looked at Twilight and said, “She is alive and being kept at my estate, in the chapel’s attic. I can disable the wards keeping her there if you like.”

“When exactly did Hoity Toity replace her?” Twilight asked.

“Not long after the battle at Las Noches, while the majority of your circle of friends were recovering in the hospital wing.”

Twilight nodded, “Alright, you said you no longer believe I’ll be responsible for Sombra’s death. What changed? What do you see, precisely, now?”

“My perspective changed,” Sapphire said, eyes now glued to Sombra, “I saw an end to the King. That has not changed. I still see your presence in his life ending his reign as King. However, I no longer believe that means he will die. He will simply no longer be King.”

“How is that possible?” asked Cadence, “He can’t simply cease being our King.”

Deep lines of thought etched Sombra’s face as he leaned back on the table, arms crossed, “That is enough for now. We shall see to freeing young Sour Sweet from captivity as soon as possible. Cadence, see to getting a message to Night Light and Shining Armor. We will meet with them at the Silburn by tomorrow evening. Also, get some rest. A woman in your condition should not push herself too hard.”

Of course the note concerning Cadence’s pregnancy had come up during the recounting of events, although Sombra had made no comment on it until now. Cadence blushed slightly but saluted, “I shall. Come Sapphire, let’s get these two situated.”

Sapphire responded by all but picking up Gladmane and Spoiled Rich herself to haul out of the room, readily obeying Cadence’s commands. Before Cadence left she gave a questioning look back at Twilight and Sombra.

“Twilight and I have other matters to discuss,” Sombra said simply, to which Cadence gave a reluctant half-bow and left the parlor with Sapphire and the prisoners in tow.

That left Twilight and Sombra standing awkwardly in the darkened parlor. Slowly, with a partially embarrassed look on his face, Sombra consciously withdrew the shadows that had seeped from him and siffused the parlor until they merged back with his own form. Silence passed in slow, heavy seconds between the pair, neither seeming able to conjure words to cut through the wall between them.

Finally, Sombra said, “Aren’t you going to ask me about the Auswahlen?”

Twilight flinched slightly, awkwardly adjusting her glasses, “After seeing it twice now, I think I can form a hypothesis on the basics. It appears to be an extension of the way you take in Quincy souls, only applied directly to Schrifts and it’s the mechanism by which those powers are both granted and taken from individual Quincy.”

“A dry way of putting the ability to both elevate or spiritually eviscerate my subjects,” Sombra said with a hint of bitter irony, shaking his head, “I’ve even used it as a means of execution in the past. I went easy on Gladmane when extracting his Schrift. Had I not been, a charred skeleton might be smoking in the center of this parlor right now. I doubt Night Light would appreciate the new decor.”

“Sombra,” Twilight started to admonish, but he quickly went on.

“Which is why I must thank you.”

“For what?” she asked, taken slightly aback.

“If you hadn’t been here, those three traitors would be dead. And... you’re right, killing them would change nothing, and cost the Quincy more than we’ve already lost. So again, thank you for staying my hand.”

“You really would have killed them?” Twilight said quietly. Sombra’s eyes closed, his lips pulling back in a snarl of residual anger as his fists tightened.

“Most assuredly. I still want to, in part. Gladmane is right that I encourage competition among the Quincy families, but he damned well knows that casual assassination is not a part of that, and I’d have lost no sleep over removing his head from his shoulders! Spoiled Rich... I only spared her for the sake of Filthy and his daughter. He still loves her. I can see it. He was right to divorce her here and now before she could whisper enough excuses in his ear to win him back. This way the hard break will help him get clarity, and hopefully the daughter will come to understand why this all happened. But yes, a child shouldn’t lose their mother so early in life, even if that mother is a damned bit...” he glanced at Twilight and coughed away the word he was about to say.

Twilight glanced away, “I should thank you, too, for listening to me. For a second I wasn’t sure if you were going to.”

“Don’t think I wasn’t sorely tempted. Especially with Sapphire...” Sombra swallowed, taking in and letting out an unsteady breath as he looked at his hands, “I still can’t believe she did all of this. To you. To Radiant Hope. And all for me. Out of simple fear for me. God... how did I not see it coming? All those years.”

“You were close to her?” Twilight asked with a hint of caution.

“I saved her life when she was just a child,” Sombra said, “And even then I saw in her eyes the way she worshiped me for it. At the time I thought it an endearing trait, something like hero worship. I never guessed it went deeper. That she’d be envious of Radiant like that. I trusted Sapphire Shores, Twilight. She was such a diligent, hard working girl, who earned her place at my right hand. When she earned her Schrift, and it blossomed into such a power, I was proud of her almost like I would have been for a sister. I had utter confidence in her, never doubting her loyalty. How blind was I?”

“That’s not blindness, Sombra, that’s just trust,” Twilight said, coming over to rest by leaning on the table next to him, looking up into his pained features with understanding eyes, “It’s nothing you should feel ashamed of. It’s not your fault that she took advantage of that trust. I don’t even think she realized she was hurting you instead of protecting you. Believe me, after what me and my family have been through, I know a bit about trust issues.”

“Hmph, but the problem is that my trust issues lead to many people dying, Twilight,” Sombra said bitterly, “People I am honor bound as King to protect. Sapphire killed so many without telling me a thing! All to ‘protect’ me and the Quincy. What good was my trust in her if she didn’t trust me in turn!? And... and because of that I lost Radiant. Radiant and...”

He looked at her and then sharply looked away. She was silent for a moment, then carefully laid her hand atop of his.

“I’m truly sorry, Sombra. I don’t even know what to say. It’s... hard to process.”

“That is certainly one way of putting it. ‘Hard to process’...” he let out a short, bitter bark of a laugh before looking back at her, “Do you know how long I’ve dreamed of the days Radiant Hope and I lost? How I’ve often thought of what our lives together would have been if she’d survived? What... our children would have been like?”

Twilight had nothing she could say to that. She tried to think of something, but her mind simply ground to an emotion choked halt and she found herself mutely shaking her head at him. Sombra smiled in a small, ghostly manner, and let her hand fall away from his. “Just a dream, of course. I meant what I said. Even the King is not above the law. I have no claim over you. That is one reason I am having Cadence summon Night Light and Shining Armor. Your father and brother deserve the truth, and to know that I will not interfere with your family. You are Night Light’s daughter, through and through. Even if you remind me so much of Radiant that it hurts.”

“Am I really that much like her?”

“Not in all ways, but in enough ways that would have made me proud to call you my daughter. She would have felt the same, I’m sure.”

With those words silence descended over them once again. Several thoughts hitched in Twilight’s mind, first among them...

“Sombra, about what Sapphire said, about me somehow causing you to cease being King-”

“Nothing that bears thinking about for now,” he said abruptly, standing up and taking a few strides away from the table.

“But what does that mean?” Twilight tried to ask, but he just shook his head at her and put back on his enigmatic smile, hiding his emotions once more.

“None can truly know the future, Twilight, not even Sapphire Shores. Whatever may come of us, I prefer we not dwell on matters we have no way of accurately predicting. That is what caused all this trouble, Sapphire worrying over the future instead of being willing to simply face it. Let’s not repeat her mistakes, shall we?”

He offered her a hand, “Besides, we have work to do. I need to hear your report on your field research, including the effectiveness of your ‘M-Cells’. Not to mention I wish to examine Soarin’s condition and determine if there’s anything more we can do for him than leave him in petrified stasis. Then I’d like to go about finding two new recipients for the X and W Schrifts. I don’t suppose you have any candidates in mind?”

Twilight looked at his hand, and after a moment managed a small smile of her own as she took it, “As it happens, I might have a few suggestions.”

----------

Cadence let out a long held sigh of built up anxiety and stress, resting her head on the cold hallway wall for a moment. Soarin had been placed carefully in one of Twilight’s labs, which seemed to Cadence to be the safest place for the poor man for now. She sincerely hoped he could be saved, as she was grateful for how he’d gone so far to protect Twilight. Time alone would tell, she supposed. As for the prisoners, she’d seen to giving Gladmane some basic medical treatment before leaving him and Spoiled Rich under Sapphire Shore’s guard in what was now a heavily warded guest room. Thankfully Night Light and Twilight Velvet had spared few expenses in the building of their manor home, including anticipating the need of a ‘guest room’ that would function more like a jail cell. She wasn’t worried about the prisoners escaping. Sapphire Shores’ was effectively under her permanent control, and far as Cadence could discern neither prisoner had the heart to try and escape anyway.

Gladmane was half conscious from nearly being fried by the Auswahlen, and Spoiled Rich... well, just Spoiled now, hadn’t said or word or hardly blinked since her sentencing. Cadence almost felt for the clearly broken woman. Not that Cadence’s sympathy ran very far. Spoiled had tried to kill Twilight, after all. Mostly Cadence’s heart went out to Filthy Rich and Diamond Tiara, especially the young girl. To have to face so much at such a young age. Cadence didn’t envy Filthy’s position of having to not only explain the truth of Diamond Tiara’s heritage, both as a Quincy and as someone else’s biological daughter, but deal with the ramifications of the divorce.

She, in some ways, understood Filthy’s choice to keep Diamond Tiara in the dark, but as much as he may have wanted his daughter to experience a normal life, not telling her the truth created an even larger problem. Cadence knew that now from her own experience with Twilight. And, resting her hand once more on her stomach, Cadence resolved not to make the same mistake with her and Shining’s child.

It still hit her with a hard shock, just thinking about it. She and Shining were going to be parents. It was both a wonderful and terrifying feeling. She loved Shining Armor with every ounce of her soul, and a part of her was overjoyed to be able to bring a new life into the world with him, but... what kind of world were they bringing that child into? It was hammered into every Quincy’s mind that having large families was not just a blessing, but a duty for the survival of humanity. In that sense, she could almost understand Spoiled Rich’s actions, seeking a child by any means necessary. Cadence even wondered if part of the reason she and Shining had risked sleeping with each other that night before the attack on Las Noches had less to do with Cadence’s ‘safe day’ and more because neither of them had any problems with the consequences. She knew Shining would be thrilled to find out he was going to be a father, so there was no fear there.

She was just afraid of what future her child was going to have. She wished Twilight Velvet were still alive, so she could talk to the older woman about this. Ask for advice, or just spill her thoughts to.

“You don’t look well.”

Cadence looked up to see Filthy Rich standing in the hallway. He looked terrible, with a redness under his eyes that said the man had been shedding tears of his own, even if those eyes were dry now.

“I’m fine,” she said, taking another deep breath and straightening herself, “It’s been... a rough day.”

A phantom quirk of a dead smile touched Filthy’s lips, “I didn’t realize you had such a gift for understatement. Congratulations, by the way. I don’t doubt you and Shining Armor will make as fine a pair of parents as you make a lovely couple.”

There was no sarcasm in his voice, just a genuine note of politeness over a deeper, pained note of envy. Cadence saw his eyes flick towards the door where Gladmane and Spoiled were kept, and the flash of deeper pain there. She cleared her throat, “Thank you. And... I’m sorry, for everything that’s happened to you.”

“Hmph, hardly something you need to apologize for,” he said, still staring at the door for a long moment before shaking his head, “I still don’t know what I’m going to tell Diamond. The truth, I know, but I have no notion of how to explain all this. Why I and her mother won’t be together anymore. Or who... her father is.”

“You are,” Cadence said, surprised at her own heated conviction, “You are her father, Filthy Rich, no matter what the biology of it all is! And she’s going to need you, now more than ever.”

“You’re right, of course. I know you are,” he replied quietly, “I love my little girl so much, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her. I just don’t know how to get her through this when I’m barely holding on myself.”

He ran a hand over his face, trying to wipe away fresh tears forming in his eyes, “It’s embarrassing to admit this to a fellow Sternritter, or anyone for that matter, but I have to get this sorted out and it seems you’re the one here, Cadence.”

“It’s alright, believe it or not I don’t mind being a sounding board, Filthy Rich, and after all the help you’ve given me and Twilight today you’ve more than earned whatever you need from me,” Cadence said, moving to lean against the wall next to him, “So say whatever you need to.”

He let out a short noise that wasn’t really a laugh by any definition of the term as he stood in front of her, head down. She’d seen soldiers after a battle, laying in a medical tent who looked less battered and beaten.

“You know, when I first met Spoiled, I knew exactly what she was like, right off the bat. She was self-centered, conceited, utterly full of herself, and wasn’t precisely the brightest bulb, either,” Filthy said, laughing under his breath, “But God did I fall for her anyway. She had this smile, so devilishly enticing and full of life. Like she knew how drop dead gorgeous she was and didn’t care who it pissed off. And out of all the men she could have had, she looked at me with that smile, and those burning, hungry eyes, and never looked at anyone else. She was a loudmouth, hard to please bitch, but... dammit she was mine and I loved her entirely.”

Cadence waited, able to tell he wasn’t done as he sucked in a breath and let it out past clenched teeth as he began to pace, “And it was good for so long, too. Being married to her was a daily challenge, but the rewards were nights I could never forget and a feeling in my heart so light and right I thought I could die any day for our King as a happy, fulfilled man. But she wanted children. We both did, of course. And when one didn’t come, I refused to even acknowledge the possibility it might be my fault. I just assumed we were unlucky. I didn’t see how much it was digging at her, month after month of trying with no results. Then... then finally we had Diamond Tiara. I was so desperate to feel vindicated that I never thought to question why, after so long of trying, it finally just... worked.”

“There was no way to know,” Cadence said, “But more importantly, she should have come to you, both her and Gladmane. It’s not unheard of among the Quincy.”

“I know that!” Filthy said with fresh heat in his voice, “But it’s still a stigma. To openly admit I’m not capable of having a child with my own wife! That I needed another man to do it for me! Even if it’s not ‘unheard of’, it’s a social stigma that would’ve hung over me and Diamond Tiara for the rest of our lives. If it comes out now, it still will, Cadence. Diamond won’t be treated as an equal by other children her age, because her ‘daddy’ was cuckolded and she’s a bastard child.”

Cadence’s eyes narrowed slightly, “In the past, it might have been bad, but today only the idiots and more narrow minded of the families would encourage that kind of stigma. Diamond Tiara will be just fine. Any bullies she runs into will be few and far between, and given what I’ve seen of Silver Spoon, Diamond is not going to lack for friends.”

“I... yes, you’re probably right,” Filthy Rich’s anger deflated, or at least turned more inward, “I just wish I’d had the courage to confront Spoiled before it got this bad. Or I’d been strong enough to admit my fault earlier and find a surrogate donor for us before she felt the need to go behind my back. I know it’s still her fault for making the choice to hide it, and it also doesn’t have any bearing on her crime to help the plot against Twilight Sparkle, but I can’t help but think I could have prevented it coming to this. Divorcing her is the right choice, but it still hurts. I still...”

“You still love her.”

“Yes. God help me, I can’t take her back, but I don’t think I’ll ever stop caring about her, or missing that damn, devilish smile.”

“Filthy, you’ve made the best choices you can under the circumstances. Spoiled isn’t dead, and is in all likelihood going to live out her days in a very boring exile from Quincy society. There’s wounds here between you two that might never heal, but if there’s one thing I think I can say you and her will still have in common it’s that you both love your daughter. Focus on that, for now. Focus on Diamond Tiara. She’ll need you to teach her about the Quincy, and to still be a father to her. And she’ll need Spoiled as well, to still be her mother. So let that be the place you put your energies towards. You’re no longer husband and wife, but you’re both Diamond Tiara’s parents.”

At her words, Filthy looked over at her. It took a few seconds for him to absorb what she said, but she saw a faint half-smirk form before he said, “You’re remarkably wise for someone still so young. Shining Armor is a very, very lucky man.”

“He certainly is,” Cadence agreed with a momentary grin of self confidence, although it didn’t last long. The weight of the day still lay heavy upon her shoulders, and the recent revelations concerning Twilight pressed hard on Cadence’s mind. As if her troubled thoughts were written upon her face for all to read, Filthy Rich gained a more serious, controlled look on his weary face.

“Although His Majesty hasn’t ordered it, I think it best we keep mum on what Sapphire Shores divulged,” he said, and Cadence blinked at him, then quickly nodded.

“Agreed. Night Light and Shining should know, but it shouldn’t pass further without His Majesty's say. I don’t even know what to make of it all.”

“I can’t imagine what our King must be thinking right now,” Filthy said, “As a father, the idea of having lost Diamond before she was born, only to find her soul again later... I’d be having trouble keeping my emotions in check. His Majesty seemed to at least handle it well.”

“I’m not so sure he is,” Cadence said, thinking back to the entire event, “From what I was seeing, he was barely holding himself in check. I’m even more worried about Twilight. After what she’s gone through she didn’t need something like this dropped in her lap.”

“She is a remarkable girl,” Filthy noted, “And I think we’re now starting to see part of why that is. I’ll be honest, Cadence, I was unsure of her at first. She seemed to me like she might not be able to handle herself or the hefty responsibilities being put upon her. I certainly know other Sternritter have been muttering over His Majesty favoring her too much.”

Cadence looked ready to give a sharp retort but Filthy quickly went on, “That said, I have no doubts about her now. She helped save my daughter’s life. She led us to victory against one of the most powerful Sternritter in the Quincy’s history. She... convinced His Majesty to spare Spoiled’s life. As far as I’m concerned, Cadence, if Twilight Sparkle requires any favor of me, she has it. I will certainly stand behind her, if any other Sternritter speak more openly against her. On this you have my word of honor as a Quincy.”

For a Quincy, such oaths were not spoken lightly, and Cadence felt a need to return them, placing her hand over her heart as she said, “I accept your word, Filthy, and give it back in turn. Anything you and Diamond Tiara need moving forward, any help or friendship I can give, I give it back gladly. On my word of honor as a Quincy.”

He silently smiled and placed his hand over his heart as well, the mutual oath sealed between them. Despite the burdens on her shoulders, Cadence felt a bit lighter. The dangers lying ahead, the no doubt fierce battles that awaited in the future, she felt more assured that she and those she cared for may yet make it through them. Twilight, whether she knew it or not, was forging an alliance behind her, and slowly bringing ripples of change that might shake the Quincy, but also perhaps one day lead to a better future. She had influence with Sombra, and the power to confront those who might seek to end her, and was able to inspire loyalty in those she met.

And with the notion of peace talks on the horizon, something that hadn’t been breathed between the Quincy in their foes for generations... Cadence had reason to hope that the world she brought her and Shining’s child into may be a bright one indeed.

Episode 135: Family Matters

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Episode 135: Family Matters

There couldn’t be any denying that there was a harsh truth staring Sunset Shimmer and her friends in the face; the Zero Division was both a threat to everything they held dear, and one too powerful to overcome as they were. The encounter with Medley had proven that much. Regardless of how any of them felt about the particulars of what Hell was or why the Zero Division had made it, none of that would matter if they couldn’t confront Zero Division directly. They needed more power, and more allies. The peace talks Discord wanted to host might give them a route to allies, and Sunset felt confident she could count on Twilight and Adagio. So that still left a final, if sizable power gap to close.

Medley had taken the pendants. Pendants Sunset knew with certainty now were tied directly to the Elements of Harmony. She still had that lingering sensation, somewhere resonating in her soul, that the pendants had wanted to be taken. It was still difficult to pin the feeling down, but Sunset just had this quiet, sure notion that the pendants would play their part when the time came. But that didn’t mean that looking for other ways to close the power gap shouldn’t be pursued in the here and now, and with that thought in mind she turned a searching look towards Discord and pointed at the empty glass cylinder that had once held the Hogyoku.

“So Discord, should I ask about that, or is this something you want to hold off on?”

Picking up on her meaning immediately, Discord flashed a smirk and made a sweeping gesture to all of them, “I was considering keeping it as a surprise for later, but since you ask...”

He reached into the deep folds of his wide sleeve and pulled out a smooth, black case, about the size of a small Christmas present you might put a gift card in. It was carved with the stylized skull image that Discord had used for the ward passes he’d given the girls. Everyone peered at the case curiously as Discord opened it up. A very faint, soft light of glittering blue and white cascaded out of the case, illuminating the faces that peered within.

“Oh my, what manner of jewel is that?” asked Rarity, then her eyes instantly narrowed, “Wait! I’ve seen this before!”

“We all have,” said Sunset, “Back beneath Hitsuyo-Aku. Embedded in Starlight Glimmer’s chest.”

Pinkie Pie’s eyes lit up, “Ooooh, it’s a Holdyourcoup!”

Pinkamena gave her an unamused look, “You mangled that on purpose.”

“Only a little,” Pinkie replied with a giggle.

“The correct term is ‘Hogyoku’,” said Sunset, while Clover looked on with open-mouthed amazement at the gleaming, perfect sphere sitting inside the case’s dark velvet interior.

“Queen above, Captain Starswirl thought all the data on that project was gone! I thought Starlight Glimmer was the only one with a functioning model! You’re telling me you’ve been building another this whole time!?”

Discord rubbed at his ear, looking at her sidelong, “Please, Third Seat Clover, no need to shout. Of course I’ve been working on a replacement for what Starlight stole. I knew it’d likely become a necessary counter, if not to Starlight, then eventually to any graver threat that poked its head out. Zero Division, for example.”

“Wait, if this shiny little ball is so awesome then why didn’t you bring it to Camp Everfree and use it to thrash that Medley chick?” asked Rainbow Dash, pointing at the jewel, “Would save us a heap of trouble we’re in right now!”

“Easy, Miss Dash. This Hogyoku is not quite like the incomplete version Starlight stole, then finished on her own by fusing with it. This one I designed to work with a specific style of soul, ones infused with magic. I can’t get any personal use out of it. Only you girls, whose souls are bathed in Equestria’s magic, could synchronize with this particular Hogyoku. And it’s not something that will likely be done swiftly or easily. Even if I’d brought it to Camp Everfree, it would’ve done no good, and probably been taken by Medley alongside those pendants.”

“Smart thinkin’, then, keepin’ it hidden,” said Applejack, glancing at Sunset, “Ya look like ya already knew ‘bout this.”

“Yeah, Discord told me about it the same time he told me about Starlight Glimmer,” Sunset said, “It wasn’t finished, then. I’m guessing it is now?”

Discord held up a finger, “Not entirely. It’s as finished as I can make it, but completing it is something you girls will need to do on your own.”

“How do we do that?” asked Sunset.

“Simply keep it on your person for now,” Discord said, removing the Hogyoku and holding it out to her, “Like I told you before you went to Soul Society, the Hogyoku breaks down the barriers between souls, and amplifies the ability of those souls to draw energy from other sources. It’s how Starlight gained Hollow powers, or infected others with Hollow powers. It’s likely how she intends to absorb magic while in Equestria. This Hogyoku is a bit different. Rather than absorb power from any source, it will amplify the power draw from souls connected to it, possibly to a greater degree than Starlight’s, if not as versatile.”

“In other words,” said Rarity, “Rather than steal power from anywhere, it boosts power from those who are already willing to bond?”

“In essence. Be they Quincy, Soul Reaper, Hollow, magical pony, natural human or Fullbringer, this Hogyoku should let you form spiritual connections with them and amplify the power draw from it. But even I can’t say the exact nature this power draw will take, or how long it will take to form. I may have created this little shining wish ball, but it’s been impossible to gauge the details of its effects without... er... test subjects.”

“Oh? So we’re the guinea pigs?” Rainbow Dash said, chuckling under her breath, “Hey if it helps make us stronger, I’ll settle for being a test subject. So, what? Does Sunset just carry it in her back pocket and we wait for the fireworks to happen?”

“More or less,” Discord said with a cheeky smile, “I suppose I could work it into a piece of jewelry or something, but aesthetics are not my strong suit.”

“Leave that to me,” Rarity said, eyes gleaming, “Sunset, give me a day or two and I’ll have something quite simply smashing for you to wear that in!”

“I don’t know if that’s a great idea, Rarity, not that I don’t have confidence in your fashion skills,” Sunset said as she took the Hogyoku in a ginger hand and looked it over. The gem’s perfectly smooth surface shone with a swirl of dancing inner lights that were near hypnotic. It was cool to the touch, and when she probed it with her spiritual senses, she felt as if her very reiryoku was somehow falling into a vast ocean. She shook her head, “I probably shouldn’t flash this around. If Zero Division is keeping an eye on us, they might swoop in the second they realize we have this.”

“An excellent point,” Discord said, “Fortunately this Hogyoku doesn’t output any spiritual pressure, so a casual examination shouldn’t reveal it. Just keep it somewhere not obvious. A pocket, or jacket, or-”

Sunset shrugged and nestled it into her cleavage, out of sight. Discord raised an eyebrow.

“...Or there, I suppose.”

“Trust me, it’s not going anywhere,” Sunset said, and Rainbow Dash let out a hefty snicker while Applejack looked away in embarrassment.

“Nice move, Sunset,” said Rainbow Dash, “Not a move I could pull off, sadly.”

“I could!” shouted Pinkie, raising her hand and waving it about.

“Err, what’s it matter who could do it?” said Applejack, “We ain’t comparin’ sizes here!”

“Umm, n-not to question your choice Sunset, but are you sure it won’t fall out?” asked Fluttershy, not quite as red faced as Applejack, but a tad on the rosey side as she asked her question with genuine concern.

“Yes, during a fight things get quite hectic. Be a shame if it, erm... came flying out,” mentioned Rarity.

“It’ll do for now,” said Sunset, “You can still make something to hold it in, Rarity, just need to make sure it’s something I can still keep hidden.”

“No trouble at all, Sunset. Just leave it to me.”

Sunset looked back to Discord. While the Hogyoku came as a pleasant surprise, one she’d suspected was coming when she’d seen it out of it’s cylinder, she still had another thing to ask Discord. “Okay, so we’ve got a possible trump card to play, which is cool. But what else do we have to work with? You’re still the most knowledgeable guy we know about this stuff, Discord. You must have known a fight with Zero Division was on the horizon. What else can we do to prepare?”

“In the time we have?” he said, holding his hands out, “Aside from gathering allies, your best course of action is to push your current powers as far as you can through more rigorous training. I’m sadly out of ‘magic bullets’ to make that easier. The Hogyoku will do what it does best if you girls just act... like yourselves. Follow what your instincts say is best. There’s no telling how long it will be before you’ll have to fight again, so we’re limited in how we can plan.”

Sunset thought about that for a second, “Well, everyone’s completed their Fullbrings, but I’m pretty sure there’s plenty more to learn about how they work.”

“I’ll say,” said Rarity, “My Court of the Generous Rose feels as if it has countless possible ways I could use it. I can scarcely imagine the possibilities, and I bet I could learn all sorts of interesting ways to use it if I have a week or two to experiment.”

“Court of the Generous Rose?” said Rainbow Dash, “Somehow that name totally fits you, Rares. Hey AJ, what’s yours called? Didn’t get a chance to ask while we were all kicking butt back there.”

“Oh, um, Honest Heart Regalia,” said Applejack, hiding her blushing face partially by shading it with her stetson, “Kinda a mouthful fer my taste, but I don’t mind it.”

“Oh! Oh! C’mon Mena, let’s pose!” said Pinkie Pie, grabbing Pinkamena and all but dragging her doppelganger into a position where they were back to back, Pinkie holding her arms crossed with her hands in an awkward position with middle and ring finger held down while the pinkie, thumb, and index finger pointed outward. Anyone who’d ever seen a particular cartoon about a high-school student using moon powers to face the forces of evil would’ve recognized the pose. Pinkamena just sort of stood there, doing a far less enthused version of the pose with flat eyes.

“Aaaaand me and Mena make up the Laughter of Madness!” Pinkie Pie said, “In the name of comedy, we shall punish you!”

“I think I’m going back inside, Pinkie. Call me when you need some violence done,” Pinkamena said, and melted into a thick, pink mist that flowed into Pinkie Pie.

“Aww, she won’t admit it, but she likes it. But I guess I’ll put on my serious face now,” said Pinkie Pie, patting her cheeks like someone trying to shake themselves awake. It was almost as if her demeanor rebalanced itself to something more level once Pinkamena went inside her, and Pinkie Pie looked to Fluttershy, “So don’t keep us in suspense. You know the name of yours too, right?”

Fluttershy perked up and smiled, eyes closing in pleasure, “Oh, it’s Kind Bodhisattva.”

“Ah, like the episode title,” Pinkie Pie said, nodding sagely, to which Fluttershy cocked her head.

“Huh?”

“Nevermind,” said Pinkie, “So Discord, we going to go see our families now? I can’t wait to give my sisters a big ol’ hug and let them know me and Mena are alright.”

“Assuming you girls feel ready for it,” Discord said, giving a meaningful look towards Rarity. She went very still for a moment, and the room went quiet as everyone looked towards her with sympathetic patience as Rarity took a few seconds to get her thoughts in order.

“I... suppose I am ready,” Rarity said, voice not quite shaking, but far from steady, “I may need some help explaining to my parents and Sweetie Belle just what my situation is and what my options are. I do ask everyone to pre-emptively forgive any hysterics that ensue.”

“Good Lord, Rarity, ya oughta know by now we got yer back, no matter what,” said Applejack, which was fast followed by affirming nods from the others.

With that, the group exited Discord’s lab, which he took a moment to re-establish the wards upon after they were back down the stairs. On the store’s bottom floor Discord led the way towards the hall with the hatchway down into the training area that lay underground. Before they got there, Sunset saw that up ahead both Captain Celestia and Captain Sweet Cider were waiting for them. Upon Sweet Cider’s face was an expression like a low burning fire, with an angered scowl that only partially dropped when she saw them approaching. Celestia had a quiet, but wary air about her. The reason for the tension between them became evident as Sweet Cider looked to Discord for a second, then to Applejack.

“He tell ya’ll the truth?”

Applejack came to a stop, and all the girls felt it. A contained but sparking hot aura of reiatsu stemming from Sweet Cider. She was keeping her spirit pressure in check, but it was raging on the inside, spilling out in a haphazard wave that almost felt like walking into a wall.

“Yeah,” Applejack said, “Guessin’ ya just heard ‘bout Zero Division’s horse-hockey, too?”

“I told her,” Celestia said, uncertainty pooling in her eyes as she looked away from them, “And Discord only told me what Ditzy Doo discovered a very short time after you all arrived, so I’m... still processing things.”

“Processin’, huh?” Sweet Cider said, “Ain’t nothin’ to it! All o’ Soul Society’s been taken fer fools! Our whole dang job’s just one big con job!”

“I’m not certain everyone will see it that way,” Celestia said, “I’m not certain how I see it, yet. This is a lot to take in, and without any of Zero Division present to explain themselves, it’s difficult to determine just what the truth is.”

“Don’t hand me that bullcrap, Celestia!” Sweet Cider snapped, “Use yer dang head! Ain’t no reason ta make a’ place like that Hell unless yer tryin’ ta make sure ya can get rid o’ folk who go against ya.”

“I am not disputing it’s questionable, but without knowing Zero Division’s reasons I don’t want to leap to conclusions,” Celestia replied, crossing her arms and frowning in deep thought, “Beyond that, this information has the potential to fracture the Gotei 13. We saw how fragile the relationship between the Divisions was simply from the pressure of my and Luna’s arrest. Imagine how much worse it might be when this becomes known in Seireitei? Depending on how Captain Commander Scorpan handles things, we could end up with a conflict that makes the chaos Starlight Glimmer’s plot caused look like nothing by comparison.”

“And yet the truth has to come out, one way or another, “ Sunset said, drawing the attention of both Captains as she walked forward to stand in front of them. She gave Celestia an understanding look, holding out her hands, “Look I hear what you’re saying. Believe me the last thing I want is Soul Reapers fighting each other. But what Discord and Ditzy uncovered... it's the truth, and every single Soul Reaper who’s taken up a Zanpaktou in this war deserves to know the score. They deserve the chance to choose for themselves what they want to fight for, whether they’re cool or not with what Zero Division is doing. Uncomfortable as the truth is, it’s better than not knowing, right?”

Sunset wasn’t fearful that Captain Celestia would ever actually support the Zero Division, really. At this point she felt like she probably knew this Celestia better than the one back in Equestria whom she hadn’t seen in years. Whether as her school’s principal or as a Captain of the Gotei 13, Sunset had come to know Captain Celestia as a truly caring and courageous individual, one who was always willing to put others before herself. If she was hesitant now, Sunset imagined it was only because Celestia had been a Soul Reaper for so long that it was hard to imagine that the foundational principles of Soul Society were, at least in part, built on manipulation and lies. It was a lot to take in, and although Sunset didn’t doubt Celestia would choose right when it came down to it, it made sense that decision might take some time.

Celestia’s face released a bit of it’s tension, offering Sunset a proud smile as she said, “You’re right. The truth should be made available, so everyone has the chance to know what they’re fighting for. I just want to find the right time and way to do it, and I hope you understand why I’m worried about how the Captain Commander is going to react to learning the truth. He worked in the Soul Palace before the formation of the Gotei 13. I... I don’t even wish to say this, but there’s a small chance he might already know the truth and just has kept it to himself.”

“You think he’s in on it?” Sweet Cider asked, and Celestia shook her head, hard.

“No. No I don’t believe he would willingly deceive us if he knew the whole truth. Perhaps he just has had suspicions. Partial information he couldn’t act on.”

“Celestia, he might’ve trained you n’ yer sister, but that don’t make him a’ infallible saint,” Sweet Cider said, “Ya best prepare yerself, just n’ case this does go sideways.”

A bit of fire appeared in Celestia’s eyes, “I’m well aware the Captain Commander is not perfect. But he is a man of honor, whose wisdom has guided the Gotei 13 through harrowing times centuries before you picked up a Zanpaktou. I ask you do not doubt him. I... shall not.”

“Hmph,” Sweet Cider wore a sour look, but said no more. Discord quickly stepped in, clapping his hands and edging past the pair of fuming Captains like a man trying to sneak past a pair of sleeping dragons.

“Well perhaps we can shelve this delightful conversation for now. Captain Celestia, you’re entirely welcome to enjoying any of my humble abodes accommodations, be it kitchen, bath, or bedroom. I’m taking these girls down for a long overdue chat with their loved ones. Captain Sweet Cider, I do believe this would be an ideal opportunity for the Apple family to fully reconvene. Well, fully minus one, but that’s being worked on, isn’t it?”

“How n’ flamin’ tarnation do ya know ‘bout Hard...” Sweet Cider cut herself off, glancing at Applejack.

“Didn’t say nothin’, ma, got my word on it,” said Applejack.

Sunset and the other girls all exchanged confused looks, wondering just what they were talking about. Suddenly Pinkie Pie’s eyes lit up and she raised a hand, “Oh is this about that guy with the really long, red hair who I think was an Arrancar, and Grogar like totally did something nasty to him involving that shiny red orb thingy that Adagio took after I nabbed it first? Oh, and the other Sunset.”

“Other... Sunset?” Sunset asked, feeling a distinct sense of vertigo as she came to the conclusion that things were about to get yet more complicated. She also noticed Celestia abruptly tense up as well, which only further mounted Sunset’s confusion as Pinkie Pie and Applejack started talking over one another.

“Yup! I saw this girl with Applejack and her dad who looked just like you-”

“-look hun ya shouldn’t be sayin’ nothin’ ‘bout that fer now, an’ hold up on the dad front, too! I ain’t ready ta-”

“-and she had this huge lava sword, which was pretty nifty. Wait, what do you mean we can’t talk about your dad? Pretty sure I heard you call him-”

“Pipe down, both ya’ll!” said Sweet Cider with an anvil of a tone that could only be described as a ‘mom voice’, which got both Pinkie and Applejack to snap their mouths closed on pure daughter instinct. Even Pinkie knew the ‘mom voice’, even if Cloudy used it rarely. Sweet Cider looked at both of them for a moment to make sure they took her meaning and weren’t about to speak up again, then she turned her gaze to Sunset Shimmer, hefting out a deep sigh.

“Now, since I figure yer owed a bit o’ explanation, an’ I don’t want no muddying the waters here, yes... there’s a gal who looks like ya, sounds like ya, but ain’t ya. She was at Everfree, and is part o’ the Fourth Espada’s crew,” Sweet Cider paused, as if coming to a decision, then said more softly, “My husband’s crew. He’s the Fourth Espada.”

“...Holy shit,” Rainbow Dash blurted, her face immediately reddening as the others looked at her and she threw up a hand, “What? That pretty much sums it up, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, but still Rainbow, language,” Rarity said, shaking her head before looking at Applejack, “Did you just find out about this at Everfree?”

“Yeah,” Applejack didn’t look back at any of them, instead fixing her eyes on the floor, “Didn’t know when it’d be best ta tell you gals, and still kinda sortin’ it out in my own head. Me n’ ma... we fought him. He didn’t fully remember us ‘till we knocked some sense inta his head.”

“Seems like an Apple Family tradition at this point,” Sweet Cider said, then glanced at Celestia, “An’ ya better understand that I’m trustin’ ya ta keep this under wraps ‘till I can figure what ta do. Hard Nail ain’t my enemy by a long shot, even if he’s still kickin’ his feet up at a homestead in Las Noches. He’s got a sorta surrogate family o’ his own back there, includin’ this Sunset lookalike who he’s adopted. Far as I can tell, he’s workin’ with that Adagio woman and don’t hold any serious loyalty ta the rest o’ that Espada bunch.”

“I see,” Celestia said, casting a flickering look towards Sunset before looking back at Sweet Cider, “If he truly remembers who he was in life, then that would certainly change matters. I can withhold passing this information along to the Captain Commander for now, Captain Sweet Cider, but I recommend you do so yourself sooner rather than later. There’s no way to prevent your husband from being treated as an enemy combatant as long as he’s with the forces of Las Noches. Adagio faces a similar problem, even if I have plenty of reason to believe she doesn’t pose a direct threat to Soul Society or the living world.”

“I get what yer sayin’, an’ we’ll talk more on it later, but fer now I need ta sort out a’ few things myself ‘fore I try n’ involve the big-wigs in Seireitei,'' Sweet Cider said. Sunset, unable to contain her curiosity further, spoke up.

“Did your husband tell you who this girl who looks like me actually is? I mean, other than someone he adopted?”

“Didn’t get no details, other than she goes by ‘Fenice’, an’ Hard Nail adopted her alongside a buncho o’ other Arrancar orphans.”

“She’s an Arrancar?”

“Nah, she was human, near as I could tell,” said Sweet Cider, “An’ that sword o’ hers she wielded, that thing was a Fullbring. Don’t got no explanation fer where she got that power or where she came from, sorry ta say.”

“Alright, so does anybody have any answers here?” Sunset asked, first looking at Discord, then at Celestia, her eyes searching. “Celestia, do you know who this girl is?”

“I may, but please understand I can’t provide much in the way of answers myself,” Celestia replied with an uncertain frown, “In fact, the thing that baffles me is likely the same information you yourself already know; that being that the human girl named Sunset Shimmer supposedly died some years before you arrived from Equestria.”

“Oh my, now that I think about it, I don’t believe any of us ever actually asked where Sunset’s human counterpart might be,” Fluttershy said in clear surprise, “It never even occurred to me.”

“I kind of thought to ask every now and again,” admitted Rarity, “But it never did seem all that important. Wherever she was, it wasn’t in Canterlot City, or at least not at Canterlot High School.”

“But you do know something, don’t you?” pressed Sunset to Celestia, “I can tell.”

“I do,” Celestia said, “Although I don’t know if it will provide any answers. You see, Sunset Shimmer did live in this city, with her mother at a bookstore many years ago. The bookstore burned down in a rather terrible fire, and as far as anyone knew both mother and daughter were killed in the blaze. That said, the reason I know about the fire is because at the same time there was a Hollow incursion in the city that my Lieutenant and my sister’s Lieutenant put down, and it was suspected Hollow activity might have caused the fire.”

“So... what, a body was never found?” Sunset asked, “I mean, if both the human me and her mom died, wouldn’t you Soul Reapers have found their souls or something? Wouldn’t the police have found bodies?”

“No souls were found,” Celestia said, “The assumption of Flash Sentry and Cheerilee was that the Hollows devoured the victim’s souls before they arrived in time to purify them. I believe in the police report the fire was said to have burned hot enough to render any remains to ash, which was why no bodies were found in the store’s remains.”

Sunset thought about that for a second, then asked, “Out of curiosity, what was the mother’s name? And was there ever any record of the other Sunset’s father?”

“No record of the father, but the mother’s name was Stellar Flare.”

“Does that ring any bells, Sunset?” asked Rainbow Dash, and Sunset tried not to look too bothered, despite feeling an old familiar itch in her chest, an certain loneliness that she’d long put behind her but had never fully gone away.

“Um, well, not really,” she said, “I never felt the need to tell you guys, but I kind of never knew my parents. I was put up for adoption when I was barely a year old, and came up through Equestria’s orphanage system. I never got adopted, but by the time I was old enough to be on my own I got into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, and I never looked back. Never really wanted to go looking for my parents. I mean, if they didn’t want me, they didn’t want me. Didn’t figure it was worth the effort to find them...”

It was a very old, bitter anger, stemming from a wound a young filly had from years of wondering why a mother and father might give up their foal. Chances were some of that bitterness had played a role in how she’d started to see Princess Celestia as a mother figure, but also had gotten angry and rebellious when she’d felt that Celestia was holding her back, or worse, didn’t want her. Running off through a magical mirror had probably been partially fueled by the pain of feeling rejected again. Sunset Shimmer hadn’t thought about these feelings in a long time. She was in a much better place now, mentally and emotionally, with her friends and a new purpose in life.

Now she had to wonder what her human counterpart’s life had been like. No father, apparently, but a mother; Stellar Flare. Had she been happy, growing up with a mother? And what had happened at that bookstore? Had Hollows attacked, perhaps sensing some latent Fullbringer power in the human Sunset Shimmer, and that led to a fire breaking out in the store? And how had the human Sunset ended up in Hueco Mundo to be adopted by Applejack’s Hollowfied father?

Then Discord broke in, speaking in a sudden, intense voice, “Stellar Flare, you said? Interesting. This incident must have flown under my radar.”

“What are you talking about?” Celestia asked, and Discord stroked his beard.

“Just that the name Stellar Flare isn’t unknown to me. You recall Starlight Glimmer’s issues with Soul Society began with her best friend, Sunburst, was killed in a Hollow attack and subsequently was consigned to Jigoku?”

“I do,” Celestia said, “But I don’t see how that connects?”

“Stellar Flare was the name of Sunburst’s mother.”

“Wait... wait wait wait, hold up,” Sunset said, shaking her hands in front of her, “That doesn’t make sense! Stellar Flare can’t be my, I mean human me’s mother and Sunburst’s! Didn’t he die way before that fire at the bookstore?”

“Indeed he did,” Discord said, “But that hardly means anything. You see, at the time I didn’t particularly pay attention to Sunburst’s family. He was just a friend to Starlight Glimmer, not a person of particular interest. He had no powers, no latent abilities, and my focus was on Hitsuyo-Aku and Xcution. So my information on his family was minimal. I knew his mother’s name only as a passing tidbit. I never even looked up why there was no father. I assumed she was a divorcee. I also never looked into his three year old sister.”

“Sister... hell,” Sunset ran a hand across her face, taking a deep breath, “A three year old sister. She probably barely even remembers she had a brother who died.”

“And after losing a son I imagine Stellar Flare wasn’t eager to tell her very young daughter about what happened to him while dealing with her own grief,” Discord added, “Probably simply focused all her attention on running the bookstore she owned, and the human Sunset Shimmer would have grown up not truly knowing anything about what happened to the brother she barely remembered having.”

“Oh my God!” Pinkie Pie shouted, “Doesn’t this mean that Sunset is Starlight Glimmer’s... uhhhhh... wait, what does this make them?”

“Nothing, Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said, “It’s just a weirdo coincidence that human Sunset is the sibling of the dude who’s death freaked out Starlight and sent her on a ‘F the Soul Society’ rampage. Doubt the two would even recognize each other if they saw each other now.”

Sunset was in agreement with Rainbow Dash, although her own feelings on the matter were a bit more complicated by the nagging wonder of whether or not she and her human counterpart shared the same parental history. Was there a Stellar Flare back in Equestria who had given her up for adoption all those years ago? She knew the Equestrian Starlight Glimmer was friends with Princess Twilight, at least. She’d never thought to ask about that Starlight’s background beyond the tidbits Twilight had told her concerning the cutie mark stealing and time travel incidents. Wait, hadn’t there also been a Sunburst who’d been tied to all that?

Did she have a brother back in Equestria she’d never met?

No, that couldn’t be the case. Here in the human world Sunburst was the older one instead of Sunset, but... what if the reverse was true in Equestria? Could Stellar Flare have had Sunset at an early age, put Sunset in that orphanage, then later on had another foal?

“Ya alright there, sugarcube?” asked Applejack, “We didn’t mean ta toss nothin’ heavy on yer shoulders there, hun, but figured ya might’ve wanted ta know ‘bout Fenice at least.”

“Y-yeah,” Sunset said, clearing her head with a quick shake, “Looks like everyone’s got a complicated family situation, doesn’t it? I’m kind of glad just to know the human me is still alive, and hey, sounds like your dad is doing alright by her. Kind of makes you two like sisters, doesn’t it?”

Applejack quirked a small smile, “Here’s hopin’. She was a’ bit standoffish, but didn’t seem like a bad gal ta me, an’ she clearly cares ‘bout pa, so that counts fer a lot. ‘Course got myself plenty o’ sisterly pals right here, too.”

“Awww, you’re going to make us drown in sap if you keep talking like that,” Rainbow Dash said, elbowing Applejack, “And hey, now you and me can swap stories about kicking our parent’s butts in a fight. I want to hear all about how your old man fights. Did he have any cool special moves?”

“Dang it Dash, it ain’t like I was takin’ notes while tryin’ not ta get stabbed by my own pa,” groused Applejack.

Discord cleared his throat loudly to get everyone’s attention, “Perhaps we should move on down to the training area, unless anyone else has any sudden revelations or deep personal secrets to reveal and discuss?”

“I... think we’re good on that for now,” said Sunset, followed by murmured agreements from the rest gathered. Celestia excused herself, claiming the need for some fresh air, which Sunset didn’t doubt. Celestia’s face wore the heavy lines of someone who now had a lot on their mind, and Sunset could well imagine the elder Soul Reaper wanted some time and clear air to start sorting things out. Sunset felt similar. A part of her considered skipping out on the family reunion down below to just go find a soft bed to pass out in. But she wanted to be there for her friends, especially Rarity, who still had the daunting task ahead of explaining her death to her own family.

Sunset couldn’t afford to check out now when her friends would need all the emotional support she could muster for them.

They filed down the stairs into the expansive training area. Sunset took in the sight of the wide open field of rocky terrain and quickly took note of the huge oriental styled pavilion that had been added to the area. Reminiscent of a large, outdoor Shinto shrine, the pavilion was surrounded by low shingled walls with a line of bright red torii gates leading into a smoothly paved central area, half the size of a football field. A few cherry blossom trees lined the sides, with an elegantly carved pond situated on the left side of the pavilion, while towards the back a few steps led up to a surrounding wooden walkway and a small, two-story pagoda roofed building.

“Charming,” said Rarity, “I could imagine a little tea shop fitting in quite nicely.”

“No tea shop, but there is a small kitchen in back of the building where I can brew up a pot,” mentioned Discord, “I mostly set this up just so everyone had a place to gather that doesn’t crowd the shop upstairs. This will also suit my needs for the peace talks, assuming Scorpan and Sombra are forward thinking enough to accept the offer.”

“Guess we’ll find out,” said Sunset as they approached the pavilion, passing through the torii gates. Upon getting closer she could see that a number of long, finally varnished tables covered in white clothes had been set up in the center area, three in total, with softly cushioned wood chairs. Some food and drink had already been laid out on the tables, and given the size of the crowd there, Sunset could see why.

Sunset was familiar with most of her friend’s family members, but even so it took her a few seconds to account for all of them. With everyone together it was over twenty people occupying the pavilion, and with Sunset and her friend’s arrival it shot up closer to thirty. Somehow she had never fully grasped just how many people had now become involved in all this, and it struck her now that Discord may well have had reasons for inviting all of them here besides just letting her friends catch up with their families.

Indeed, when she cast a sidelong glance at him, Discord had a patient, calculating look on his face. Not scheming, per se, but it was as if, with their arrival, he was pleased at seeing the pieces of a puzzle come together.

Their arrival was immediately noticed by those gathered. There was a hushed moment of mutual awkward silence as the girls who had gone through so much in such a short span of time now looked upon family members who in some cases had only just learned the truth of what the young ladies had endured.

It was Rainbow Dash’s father who shattered the silence with a whooping, baritone, “Dashie!” as he barreled forward.

Bow Hothoof was not a small man, but a broad chested teddy bear of a fellow, a little extra emphasis on the “bear” portion. He shared his daughter’s light blue skin, although his had a slight duskier shade, and one glance was enough to see where Rainbow had gotten her namesake hair color from, for he sported the same rainbow locks in a competently trimmed short cut. He wore simple workman’s clothes, with long khaki pants and a beige flannel shirt and vest combo that seemed to scream “hardware shop employee”. Dash had enough time to blink in surprise, throw her hands up in mild defense, before being crushed in a hug that left her eyes bulging and her breath gasping.

“D-dad, c’mon man, not in front of my friends!”

He was literally cheek nuzzling her as she scrambled to free herself, “What do you expect, kiddo!? After hearing everything I’ve heard I’m so glad to see you alive that I’m stuck between grounding you for life and wanting to make your favorite peanut butter and banana sandwiches for you for a week straight! Why didn’t you tell me you were a bonafide super hero!? Do you have any idea how many pictures I could’ve taken to pin up on the Dashie Wall of Fame?”

“No! D-don’t even bring that up! Arrgh, daaaaad, let me goooooo!”

“Just one more squeeze,” Bow said, hugging his daughter so tight it might have either readjusted her spine, or broken ribs, it was hard to tell what that cracking sound was. But he did put her down and had the presence of mind to take a step back and blush slightly as his own parental enthusiasm, “Anyway, sorry about that, Dashie. Just had to get that out of my system, first things first.”

“Appreciate the positive reinforcement, dad, but next time can we not do that in front of... you know, everyone?” Rainbow asked, looking askance at both her friends and the rest of the families that were walking up as well.

“Best you learn ta appreciate yer pa’s love, kid,” said Granny Smith with a weight in both her voice in eyes that could only come from aged experience as she gazed upon Sweet Cider, “ ‘Cause ya never know when yer loved ones won’t be ‘round no more fer ya ta appreciate.”

Sweet Cider visibly swallowed, suddenly looking shaky as the massive woman approached her mother. The Apple Family matron barely came up to Sweet Cider’s chest, once the two women were standing face to face. Sweet Cider’s lips trembled a bit as she looked between Granny Smith, then at Applebloom and Big Mac as they came up behind Granny.

“Ma...” Sweet Cider said, clearly having trouble saying anything else.

Granny Smith closed her eyes with a nod of simple understanding and said, “It’s alright, hayseed. Ya don’t gotta hold back on my account. Ain’t like I’m gonna...”

The last was said with a hitch in her voice, tears already spilling forth as Granny Smith wrapped her arms around her daughter for the first time since losing her eight years ago. Despite her mother’s words, it was clear Sweet Cider was trying to hold herself together in that moment, possibly having replayed this occasion a thousand times in her mind since regaining her memories. While she didn’t fully let her tears flow, she did have a distinct wetness in her eyes as she held Granny Smith tight, then looked at Applebloom and Big Mac.

Applebloom had already had some time to acclimate to seeing her mother in the flesh, or at least the spiritual equivalent thereof, but she was still a young girl who’d spent many years dreaming of parents she couldn’t properly remember. But if Applebloom was tearing up, Big Mac looked ready to have a full breakdown. Sure, he’d been told about his mother by this point, but that was a completely different thing than seeing her standing right in front of him. As the oldest of the Apple siblings, his memories of Sweet Cider were also the clearest. Also, in some ways, his wounds upon losing his parents cut deepest, because not only did he partially blame himself for not being able to do more to save his parents, he never felt like he’d lived up to their ideals after they were gone. It had been Applejack who’d really taken over as the heart of the family. All he’d done was handle the physical end of things, retreating into his own silence for the most part.

Now he was looking at his mother again, and only saw depthless love in her eyes for him and the family. It was enough to make the burly farm boy lose his composure and before he knew it he was bawling and hugging both her and Granny Smith. He felt Sweet Cider’s hand tousled his hair as she smiled at him.

“Now now, Big Mac, no need ta be hollerin’ like that. I’m here. And dang, Granny, what’ve ya been feedin’ my boy? He’s near tall as me!”

“Don’t go lookin’ at me, girl, I've been feedin’ ‘em all the same. He’s just got yer bean sprout genes in ‘im. Won’t surprise me if Applebloom shoots up there, too.”

Applejack had swung around to stand next to Applebloom, kneeling down to put a hand around her sister’s shoulders, “Ya wanna go join in the family hug?”

Applebloom wiped a tear from her face and shook her head, “Naw, I like my breathin’ room, an’ Big Mac looks like he’s needing the hugs more n’ me. But... maybe later?”

As the Apples were hugging it out, Pinkie Pie bounced over to her family with an enthusiastic wave, “Heya fam! What’s cooking?”

“What’s cooking, she asks?” Limestone said, shaking her head and putting on a rueful smile as she started counting things off on her fingers, “City on fire, us attacked by Hollows, you and your friends in crazy levels of danger, Maud turns her rock into boxing gloves, and the house gets smashed up again. So overall, kind of an average day.”

“Oh my gosh, Maud’s got Fullbring too!? Show me!” Pinkie cried, grinning from ear to ear. Maud slowly tilted her head at Pinkie, blinking once with slow deliberation.

“Boulder’s tired,” Maud said, “So he’s taking a nap. Where’s Pinkamena?”

“Right here,” Pinkie said, tapping her head and rattling it like a game of Boggle, upon which her expression shifted to a shark-like smile, but one tempered by less crazy in her eyes and more a comforting fondness, “Me and Pinks are room sharing again. Before you all ask, trust us, it’s for the better. I can still hop out to hang, but we’re going to be spending more head-time together from now on.”

Marble and Limestone shared concerned looks at one another, but Maud simply said, “Okay. That’s good, if you’re both happy with it.”

“Are you sure you’re both alright, dears?” asked Cloudy Quartz, who stepped forward alongside her husband, “We heard from Mister Discord that you and your friends faced some significant dangers today.”

“No worries, me and Mena are just fine! Better than ever, even!” said Pinkie as she resumed control, “We got to prank the same super-grumpy guts who was ordering around that big ol’ jerk Grand Fisher, and we definitely messed up some of his plans. Oh, then we fought a really angry plant lady! Hey, there she is over there! Hi angry plant lady! Remember me!?”

Seated at one of the tables was Gaia Everfree, sitting next to a very uneasy and awkward looking Timber. Gaia, upon hearing Pinkie, slowly looked over with a deadpan expression. While Pinkie kept waving at her Gaia slowly looked away and whispered something to Timber which made him give a nervous laugh and wave back to Pinkie Pie.

“She’s kind of weird,” Pinkie said, “But I think she likes us.”

“She hasn’t spoken much since she and that poor confused looking boy arrived,” Igneous said, “Although I did try to converse with them a bit.”

“I say leave them be,” Limestone said, “We’ve got enough weirdness going on already. Mom, you going to tell Pinkie about Discord’s offer.”

“Let’s leave that for later, daughter,” said Cloudy, “I truly just want us all to sit down together for a bit and enjoy being together. The future can be discussed in due time.”

A similar conversation was taking place between Fluttershy and her family not far away as all of them sat down around a different table. Both of her parents had taken one of Fluttershy’s hands, as if just confirming to themselves that their daughter really was there and alright.

“Everything’s been so scary,” Soft Spoken admitted, “Just sitting here, wondering if you were going to be okay, sweetie. I still can’t believe you didn’t tell us anything.”

“I know, right!?” shouted Zephyr Breeze, “Sis, how the heck did you keep something like this on the down low!? I mean, I could’ve made so many vlogs about this by now! I’d be taking pictures of this place but that crazy lady, Screwsomething, took my freakin’ phone! Can you believe that!?”

“Now Zephyr, it’s not polite to shout,” said Fluttershy’s father, “Let’s remember to use our indoor voices.”

“Dad, did you forget the part where the city got attacked by freaky ghost monsters today!? And the part where Flutters is some kind of ghost hunting mutant!? And so was mom!?”

“Zephyr Breeze, calm down,” Fluttershy said, not raising her voice a single octave, but immediately arresting her little brother’s attention, whereupon she cleared her throat politely and continued, “I understand it’s been a stressful situation for you, mom, and dad. I apologize for not telling you all the truth sooner, but I hope you understand I had good reason not to. My friends and I became involved in dangerous circumstances, much of which was beyond our control. We kept that from you in order to protect you.”

“Yeah... well... it’s still pretty messed up, sis,” Zephyr groused under his breath, but quieted down and sulked in his chair.

“It has been a lot to process,” Soft Spoken admitted, her eyes still filled with loving care for her children, but barely hiding her anxiety and fear, “I still don’t fully understand it, especially my own involvement. This whole ‘Xcution’ business sounds so strange to me. I mean, it does explain a few odd gaps in my memory, but to think I forgot a whole part of my life where I... well, it’s all so hard to believe.”

“It’ll be okay, mom,” Fluttershy said, squeezing her mother’s hand and patting the top of it, “Scary as it all seems now, I’ll make sure nothing bad happens to any of you.”

By now Bow Hothoof and Rainbow Dash had moved to their own corner of the pavilion, where they could talk a bit more privately under one of the cherry blossom trees. Bow wore his nerves clearly on his sleeve as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head and asked, “So, uh... I hear you met your mom.”

“Yeah... yeah I did,” Rainbow Dash said, “Wasn’t much of a conversation between all the lightning and explosions, but I got the jist of why she left us. You seriously didn’t know any of this, did you?”

“Honey, your mom up and left one day without any word to me outside of a very sloppily written letter that boiled down to ‘I got to take care of some things, look after Dashie for me, oh and I love you’.” Bow said, sighing heavily, “I’ve spent years wondering what ‘some things’ were, doing my best to take care of you, and convincing myself Firefly meant the last part of the letter.”

There was the fresh pain of an old wound reopened in his voice, and Rainbow Dash had the presence of mind to lean against her father a bit and put an arm around his shoulders in a half-hug, “Hey, I can at least attest to the fact that you did awesome on the looking after me. You’re smothering sometimes, but still straight up best dad in my book. As for mom, well, she did have her reasons. Still trying to suss out in my own head whether or not they were good ones or not. Discord tell you anything about that?”

“Not much,” Bow replied with a troubled look, “And what little he did tell me only made me more confused. So Firefly’s hooked up with some lady named Starlight, and they’re causing problems? That’s about all I’ve heard so far.”

“Yeeeeah, this might take awhile to explain,” Rainbow Dash said, “And I’m not better at explaining it than mom was, so cut me some slack if this doesn’t totally make sense the first time around.”

“Hey, I got time, kiddo, so lay it on me,” Bow said, taking a seat on the ground at the base of the tree, with Rainbow Dash doing the same. As if as an afterthought, Bow snapped his fingers and added, “Oh, before I forget, your aunt Windy says ‘hi’.”

“Holy cow, is aunt Windy back in town?” Rainbow Dash perked up, but her father shook his head.

“Nope, she just rang me up from the east coast to do some catch up. Happened just before the city went bonkers with all those Hollow things attacking. She was just reminiscing with me about old times with Firefly when we were younger, and then got to asking how you were doing,” Bow said, with a rather deeper and fonder smile on his face than Dash was used to seeing on her father. He even looked a tad heated around the cheeks, which raised some flags in Rainbow’s mind.

Her dad and her mom’s sister? Well, after being gone so many years, she guessed her mom didn’t really have a claim anymore, and if it made her dad happy, well... aunt Windy Whistles was a pretty cool lady, even if Rainbow Dash hadn’t seen her in a good long while.

“Well, that’s awesome, dad. Let aunt Windy know I’m doing great. Just maaaaybe hold off on telling her about the part where me and my pals are cool monster-busting heroes for now.”

He let off a dry chuckle, “Going to be hard not to brag about how amazing my daughter is, but I’ll try to restrain myself, for your sake.”

Sunset had localized herself at the table in the center area of the pavilion, joined by Clover and Discord. Clover appeared to be content pouring herself a drink from a pitcher of what Sunset assumed was lemonade, although with Discord she wondered if it wasn’t some kind of specially concocted spirit-based drink. All this time and she still hadn’t worked up the courage to try and the ‘candies’ he supposedly sold from his shop upstairs. Come to think of it, she couldn’t recall any instance in which the man had a legitimate customer. Even knowing the shop was mostly just a front, she still assumed he kept his weird products around to sell to someone.

Discord, as if reading her mind, smiled sidelong at her and said, “Most of my clientele don’t come to the shop directly. I run more of a delivery service than anything else.”

“Can’t be that big of a clientele if I’ve never seen any of them,” Sunset noted.

“You’d be surprised,” Discord responded, “The world is a big place, Sunset Shimmer, and even with all you have experienced and seen, you still haven’t seen all there truly is out there. The war may involve the largest and most active factions, but there are dozens if not hundreds of people hidden between the cracks who just keep their heads down during all this, or are just dealing with local issues of their own. Try going to London sometime.”

She gave him an odd look but didn’t comment further. Although something about mentioning London sparked in her brain. Wasn’t one of the students at Canterlot High an overseas transfer student from London? Octavia? Sunset shook her head, distracted from her thoughts by the sight of Scootaloo excitedly chatting it up down at the other end of the table with two women Sunset didn’t recognize, both of whom looked to be in their middle years. Sunset restrained herself from actively probing out with her spirit senses, out of politeness, but even so she could sense something off about their spiritual pressure. Whoever they were, they, along with Scootaloo, weren’t quite what they appeared to be.

“They some of your customers, too?” she asked Discord quietly, and he slightly dipped his head so his eyes were shaded by his hat.

“Lofty and Holiday do sometimes seek an item or two from the shop, although it's Holiday’s younger brother and his wife who are my more regular customers. They travel a lot, and are always in need of a few handy tools for their jobs.”

Sunset hesitated to ask just what those ‘jobs’ might be that required regular shopping at Discord’s place combined with constant travel. He gave her a mysterious smile at her look and added, “Don’t fret, you’ll learn more about them soon enough, but let’s just wait and see how the next few days pan out first.”

Sunset couldn’t argue with that logic, and was distracted from further questions as her eye caught sight of Rarity and her family.

`They had gathered away from the rest of the group, Rarity leading them towards the steps leading to the pavilions one interior section. There she stood rigid backed and slightly wide eyed as her parents hugged her and her sister happily grinned at her.

“Rarity! I saw what you did during that fight with the big tree monster. That huge, amazing looking knight suit was yours, wasn’t it?” Sweetie Belle said, beaming.

“Oh my, you saw that? I confess it was something of a rush job,” Rarity said, but her conversational tone was halting and strung with tension, “I wasn’t sure how well it would work when I did it, and didn’t have time to really refine the process or add any real flair to the design. But, be that as it may, we did manage to... prevail.”

“I’ve been worried past sick about you, dear,” said Cookie Crumbles, examining Rarity up and down as if she was looking for so much as a scratch on her daughter’s body, “You better believe I gave that Discord fellow a piece of my mind about keeping all of this secret from us! There’s certainly going to be no more of that, you can bet your patootie on that.”

“Mother, please, Mister Discord had sound reasons for that and honestly even if he hadn’t I still wouldn’t have wanted any of you to know,” Rarity defended brusquely, but couldn't quite meet her parent’s eyes, “After all, it was just too dangerous. Even early on, the Hollows targeted all of you.”

Magnum patted his daughter with a hefty hand on her shoulder, “Yup he told us all about that. Crazy stuff, kid. And here I thought we lived in such a nice neighborhood, and now it’s got ghost problems. Still sounds like you know how to handle yourself, if Sweetie Belle’s raving is anything to go by.”

“And now that I’ve got powers too, I’ll be able to help out,” said Sweetie Belle, “I mean, as long as you help train me, Rarity. You will, right?”

Cookie Crumbles eyed her youngest child with a slight bite to her inner lip, “Now I want both of you girls to hold your horses a little. I understand there’s no sticking the cat back into the bag, but you all need to take this slow. This isn’t a game. Powers or not, you’re still my precious little girls and I don’t want either of you throwing yourselves into dangerous situations all willy nilly.”

“But mom, it’s not like we’ve got a choice,” said Sweetie Belle, “Stuff like this is going to keep happening whether we like it or not.”

“That may be so, but that’s no excuse for tossing caution to the wind. Now, Rarity may be old enough and experienced enough with this nasty business to handle herself, but you, young lady, are not getting into any more shenanigans with your friends!” Cookie Crumbles said firmly, “I’ll be taking Discord up on his offer to restore my memories, and if there’s any danger to be dealt with, I’ll look into it myself.”

Rarity gave her mother a surprised look, “You’ll be getting your memories back? And that means your Fullbring as well...”

“Of course,” Cookie Crumbles said, “I’m not going to sit around like a lump while my family is in the middle of what is effectively a war zone. No way, no how. Honey, I’m terrified of you being caught up in all this, but you’ve done your own thing since you were old enough to get into my makeup kit, and neither I or your father have ever had any luck stopping you once you’ve got a mind to do something. So I won’t tell you not to keep doing what you’ve been doing, because you’ll do it anyway. But I sure as butter on toast won’t just watch if there’s anything I can do to keep you safe.”

A painful wince crossed Rarity’s face with almost each of her mother’s sentences, as if they were lances right to the heart of her. The pure motherly concern in Cookie Crumble’s voice was an unrelenting tidal wave, breaking up the rocky shore of Rarity’s defenses. She knew she had to say something, but damned if the words weren’t coming easily. But she tried to drag them out, regardless, because her family deserved to know, and this wasn’t about to get less painful the longer she waited.

“Mother, I... I truly am thankful for you, you know? You and father, and Sweetie Belle. I couldn’t imagine being blessed with a better family. I know that you’d do anything you could to protect me, even unlock old memories and abilities you’d hardly understand to dive headfirst into the dangers my friends and I have been facing. That’s why it’s so, so hard to tell all of you what I have to.”

Something in her tone must have gotten across more than her words, because her mother gave her a very strange look, the kind that matched the quirky twitch she’d gotten any time she’d sensed something wrong. Her father may have been a bit slower on the uptake, but even he gained a stiffness to his features as his daughter’s tone sank in. Only Sweetie Belle remained unaware, not catching onto the shift in the conversation’s tone as she waved a hand at Rarity.

“Jeez Rarity, don’t get all mushy on us. I think it’ll be cool to see mom get her powers back! We can be like a whole family team of heroes. Oh, you could make matching costumes for us-”

“Sweetie Belle,” Rarity knelt down in front of her sister, resting a hand on her sister’s shoulder, “Nothing would make me happier being able to do something simple like that, but it might not be possible, depending on how things go with me.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Rarity,” Cookie Crumbles whispered, “What’s wrong? What haven’t you told us yet?”

Rarity stood back up, and lacking precise words to fit past the constricting tightness in her throat, she opted to simply show them. She’d still been using her Fullbring to wear a lighter form of her usual crimson battle dress, keeping the soul chain in her chest covered by a thin crystal breastplate. She removed a portion of that plating, the crystal reshaping so a hole opened wide enough to expose the broken chain of metal that was attached to her chest.

Confusion was plain on all her family member’s faces, Sweetie Belle scratching her head, “What the heck is that?”

“A spirit chain,” Rarity said, suddenly feeling numbly removed from herself. “It’s what keeps a person’s soul attached to their body.”

“That’s weird,” her sister said, “Why’s yours broken then?”

“Why can we see it?” her father asked, more pointedly, while her mother had gone deathly silent, staring at the chain.

“Well you see that’s... that’s because I don’t really have a body at the moment,” Rarity managed to say, a sort of hollow roaring in her ears as her blood pressure skyrocketed. Which was stupid, she thought, because if she was dead she really shouldn’t have to deal with having blood pressure, but she wasn’t the one who decided how spirit bodies worked. “And I, um, imagine the reason you can see me has to do with Mister Discord, although don’t ask me how. Sweetie Belle is spiritually sensitive, and I assume mother is too, but as for you father I can’t say for-”

Her mother abruptly moved, grabbing Rarity by the shoulders with both hands, halting Rarity’s words as effectively as if she’d simply clicked a mute button. Her mother was shaking, and there was a frightful intensity glowing in her eyes as she looked straight at Rarity.

“Tell me that this is some kind of mistake,” her mother said, “Or that it’s part of some strange power that only temporarily separated you from your body, honey.”

“I’m sorry,” Rarity said, “I’m sorry, mother. I can’t. There’s no trick or mistake. I just... don’t have a body anymore. Believe me, my friends and I checked before we left Everfree. It’s gone.”

“Then what am I looking at!? What am I touching!?” her mother demanded.

“My soul, mother. Just my soul. Which as it turns out can be pretty physical when it comes right down to it,” Rarity managed to say, but words were getting harder by the second, “It’s not as bad as it seems. Mister Discord says he can possibly arrange a replacement-”

“Replacement!? This isn't a damned pair of clothes we’re talking about here! What happened!?”

As her mother began to reach shrieking levels of volume Magnum stepped in to put his surprisingly strong arms around her and pull Cookie Crumbles away from Rarity, “H-honeybunch, let’s just simmer down here.”

“Simmer down!? Are you listening to what she’s saying, Magnum!? She’s trying to tell us that she’s... that our baby girl is...”

Cookie Crumbles wasn’t able to get the last word out and ended up stuck between either wanting to break free of her husband's grip, or just clutch onto him like a life preserver in the midst of the ocean. Sweetie Belle was finally starting to grasp what was happening and her own youthful eyes turned into wide pools of wavering denial.

“H-hold on. You don’t actually mean that you’re...?” Sweetie Belle wasn’t able to get the last word out any easier than Cookie Crumbles could. Rarity looked into her younger sister’s depthless eyes and couldn’t just leave her or the rest of her family trembling in confusion or denial any longer. It was time to just bite the bullet and say it.

“Dead,” she said, letting the word leave her like her last breath, “I’m sorry. I am, by all technical definitions of the term, dead.”

Cookie Crumbles shook as if struck by a blow, while Sweetie Belle’s eyes simply started to gloss over with tears as her mouth trembled soundlessly. Her father’s face was a grim mask as he slowly croaked out, “How?”

“I... would prefer to spare you the details,” Rarity said, “The short version is that I made a mistake. I was trying to protect my friend, Twilight Sparkle. You remember her, yes? Intelligent girl, purple skin, wears glasses? A-at any rate, some individuals were trying to kill her, and I went off by myself to try to stop them. That was the mistake, going by myself, not the part where I wanted to protect Twilight. It left my back exposed. The wound would’ve probably been fatal, even if I hadn’t completed my Fullbring right then and there, but that certainly didn’t help, what with the exploding. Sweetie Belle, do remember that, when training your own Fullbring. Don’t complete it without someone around to contain the release of power. I didn’t have much choice at the time, but... well that explosion is probably why we couldn't find my body when my friends and I looked for it.”

Her family was silent for a time, and indeed quite a bit of conversation around the pavilion had ceased. One by one Rarity’s friends had come up to stand nearby, starting with Sunset Shimmer, with the others filing in behind her. Discord had walked up as well, maintaining a solemn look as he watched the proceedings.

Cookie Crumbles closed her eyes tightly for a second, raw pain churning about her face, before she patted her husband’s chest and stepped away from him, now looking with a blazing glint in her eyes as she said, “Who did it?”

“That’s not important, mother,” Rarity said, but Cookie Crumbles bristled at that.

“How is it not important!? I want to know what slimy bastard hurt my little girl! If you don’t tell me, I’ll... I’ll...” Cookie Crumbles stumbled at that part, since grounding Rarity kind of didn’t have the same impact it might have previously had as threat, so she finally settled on, “I’ll find out myself.”

Rarity sighed, shaking her head, “Mother, I’m only saying it’s not important because the person responsible has already been... dealt with. Both of them. I killed one myself, and the other I have on good authority from Twilight won’t be a threat to anyone, likely ever again.”

Cookie Crumbles blinked at that, murmuring, “You... got one of them?”

“Yes, mother,” there was no pride or satisfaction in Rarity’s voice, simply stating the facts of the matter. She hadn’t killed Hoity Toity because of what he’d done, but because it had been the only path he’d left her to stop him from doing it again to someone else. As for Sapphire Shores, Rarity had gotten enough of a look at that woman’s mental state after fighting Twilight to understand that Sapphire may have gotten off worse than Hoity Toity did, despite still being ‘alive’. As far as Rarity was concerned, there was no vengeance left to take, nor any point in considering the matter further. She certainly didn’t want any of her family getting such notions in their head. “The people who did this to me are not a factor any more, so please put them from your mind.”

“But, but... but wait, what’s supposed to happen now?” Sweetie Belle asked in a voice hitched with a squeaking hiccup of choked sorrow, “What happens to you?”

Rarity glanced past her family to Discord, “That’s still something I’m working out.”

“A ‘replacement’, you said?” Magnum asked, also glancing back at Discord, “Just how would that work?”

“Perhaps that would be best to discuss in a more private setting,” Discord said, keeping his voice soothingly neutral, “Believe me, I understand that you want a solution, and I am willing to try to deliver one, but there will be complications and considerations aplenty for that. For now it’s best that you all take some time to let your thoughts settle. Especially considering we have another set of hefty matters to discuss that involve everyone present.”

Cookie Crumbles turned towards him, looking close to snapping, but her eyes took in the sight of everyone else in the pavilion, and even past her grief she seemed to realize this wasn’t the best time or place for hysterics. She visibly took a hold of herself and said, “You’d better believe we’re going to be talking about this, Discord. You have a lot of responsibility for what our children have been put through, and if anyone owes my daughter right now, it’s you. So don’t think for a second I won’t be collecting on that debt. But fine, you want to talk about other things, then do it. Just remember, whatever your big plans are, they have risks and prices, and my family's already paid for some of it.”

With that she stalked over to one of the tables and sat down, head in her hands, clearly emotionally tapped out. Her husband soon joined her, sitting next to her and wrapping arms around her shoulders as she cried into her hands silently. Sweetie Belle still looked shell shocked as she looked between Rarity and her parents, with Rarity just nodding and whispering, “Go on, Sweetie, have a seat. We’ll talk more soon, just the two of us.”

As Sweetie Belle went to sit down she found that Applebloom and Scootaloo were there waiting for her, offering their own quiet words of comfort.

Rarity took a deep breath and went to go sit down as well, and passed by her friends, who all gathered close to give her supporting nods and somber smiles.

“Well... that was painfully difficult,” Rarity said in a quiet voice.

“You did what you had to, and did it well, Rarity,” said Sunset, “The hardest part is over now.”

“Perhaps,” Rarity said, managing a rough smile that didn’t really touch her eyes as she watched Discord take up a spot at the head of the three sets of tables, and the families of all her friends began to take up seats. In Rarity’s mind she suddenly started to see the gathering as less an informal grouping of their families, and more of a gathering of... forces.

Her friends saw it too, each of them in turn looking about as they sat down, most of them near their families. It was a collection numbering several dozen, over half of whom had developed potent spirit powers, or were in the process of starting to. One of them was a Soul Reaper Captain, and the other a reborn Arrancar fused with a Fullbringer human soul. If one counted Discord and Ditzy Doo among the gathered company, then the gathering in that pavilion represented a combined force that would potentially be a match for any faction of the spirit war, be it the Gotei 13, the ten Espada, or the mighty Quincy Vandenreich.

“Or perhaps,” Rarity finished, looking with concern at her friends, “The hard part is only just getting started."

Author's Notes:

Much talk, much feels. There's quite a bit of importance covered here, especially set up for the future. Admittedly a part of me wanted to do something a bit more weighty for Discord giving Sunset the Hogyoku, but somehow it just fits his style to not make that big a deal of it, as if he knew there was no point putting on a show in front of these girls anymore. Then there's the bit concerning Sunset's parentage, both pony and human. That goes back to the early part of the story, and only now had the opening to bring it up. Then there's just the handling of all the families conversing with the girls, doing some much needed catch up. And of final note, there's a very tiny reference to Kubo' Bleach spin-off, Burn the Witch. While it's something I'm still working on, I've been toying with an idea of how to incorporate it, at least in a peripheral sense, to Friendship Souls, with a certain musical duo taking on the equivalent roles of Noel and Ninny... but that's for another time and place.

On a totally unrelated note, I came across this video not so long ago, and wanted to share it, as it's one of the better bits of Bleach content I've seen in awhile:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFdWKxTIvCM

And with that out of the way, thank you all once again for reading, and hope you all had a good time with this chapter. As always I appreciate any and all questions, comments, or critiques you have. 'Till next time!

Episode 136: Ascendant

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Episode 136: Ascendant

As a woman who put quite a bit of effort into her plans, be they big or small, Adagio had learned two deeply intertwined lessons. One, no plan, no matter how thoroughly made, is guaranteed to go off without a hitch. This naturally led to lesson two, always have several backup plans for the inevitability of the unexpected.

This resulted in her being prepared when her plan to simply bring Ember to Torch met with the unexpected; Torch and his entire horde coming to her. Adagio wasn’t sure if Torch had simply somehow caught wind of Ember’s spiritual pressure returning to Las Noches, or if perhaps Thorax, as a practical joke, had informed Torch of Ember’s return after he’d departed Adagio’s territory. Regardless of the how, Adagio now found her territory neck deep in a very rambunctious and rowdy gathering of Arrancar, led by the humongous Torch, who were eager to reunite with their beloved second-in-command and celebrate her return in such a manner that Adagio feared the property damage it might leave behind.

Fortunately she had anticipated needing to handle such a gathering, and hence had had Usagi send a few gathering parties out to collect a suitable amount of alcohol from the living world, and hunt up enough lesser Hollows to constitute a decent banquet. Even so, she wasn’t certain how long her provisions would last, given Torch’s hordes’ appetite.

But it was worth it, she reflected. Ember needed some joviality to lift her spirits.

When Adagio had gone to the chambers Ember had been resting in to take her out to see her father, Adagio had instantly picked up on her friend’s unsteady state. She’d been sitting in that room, holding her Zanpaktou across her lap as she stared at the wall, and Adagio hadn’t much liked the frustrated look in Ember’s eyes or the sagged slump in her shoulders. Adagio, making a point to radiate enough confidence for both of them, had sauntered over to stand in front of Ember with one hand resting upon her hip.

“You do hear your father outside, right? If you stay in here, he’s liable to tear down the walls to come in and get you, and I will see to it you help in the reconstruction if that happens,” Adagio said, half probing, half jokingly. She wasn’t about to force Ember into a discussion she didn’t want to have, but she did need to get her outside before Torch literally ‘torched’ the place down.

“I know, I know!” Ember said, heaving out a growling sight as she stood up, looking more angry at herself than anything else, “I just... it’s hard facing him now.”

“Why not?” Adagio asked, upon which both of them could hear the distant but distinct bellow of Torch’s voice outside.

”Emmmmbeerr! My little firebrand! I know you’re in there! Come out so I can give you a proper hugging!”

Ember blanched, face paling, “Because he gets like that! Normally he doesn’t treat me too differently from the rest of the horde, but the second I get into trouble he starts acting like I’m a child again! It’s even worse this time because... because I lost a fight and got myself captured.”

“It was a Captain-class Soul Reaper, Ember,” Adagio reminded her, “And I lost that fight, too.”

Ember shot her a rueful look, half smiling, half showing her fangs, “Yeah, but at least you got a rematch, and then beat her.” Ember paused, shifting her eyes away from Adagio, “I didn’t get a chance yet to thank you for getting me out of there, either. So, thank you Adagio. I mean that. I had no reason to expect anyone would come after me, and if you hadn’t I’d still be getting humiliated, poked and prodded at, by those damned Soul Reapers.”

Ember was trying very hard not to show it but Adagio could see the faint shaking in the other Arrancar’s hands, and faint fear and tremble in her eyes. No matter the specifics of her treatment by the Soul Reapers, whether the research had been gentle or not, the fact remained Ember had been captured and used as a test subject against her will. Adagio knew exactly what being pinned to a table to be examined while rendered helpless felt like; the anger and humiliation it spurred. Whatever alliances Adagio tried to form with Soul Reapers in the future, she knew she’d have to play it carefully where Ember was concerned, because she doubted Ember would ever come close to trusting Soul Reapers down the road.

All she could do was offer Ember the kind of encouragement a girl of her particular temperament would most appreciate.

“You survived. That’s all that matters,” she said, moving so that Ember couldn’t look away from her authoritative gaze, “That’s what your father cares about. Is his affection going to be embarrassing? Certainly. But show him and the others of your horde that you’re not damaged by your time with the Soul Reapers. Show them you’re stronger than ever by hugging your father back harder than he does you, then drink him and the rest of them under the tables. I certainly had Usagi gather enough drinks to drown Las Noches if it comes to it.”

“Hmph,” Ember choked out a partial laugh, “You’d need an ocean to put a dent in my father’s constitution, but I appreciate the effort. Hmm, Usagi... that the purple haired chick who showed me to this room?”

“That would be her,” Adagio confirmed with a nod, “She’s been more than useful in keeping things orderly around here.”

“I noticed the place was more crowded than last I saw it,” Ember said, “Looks like someone is getting popular.”

Adagio smiled and flipped her hair, “I wouldn’t be much of an Espada without gathering a horde of my own. Di Roy and Gaw work well as enforcers, while Dumbbell and his crew make for good errand runners, but I need a larger body of vassals to ensure I have some weight to throw around when needed.”

Ember gave Adagio a long, appraising look, then slowly the tension eased out of her and Ember looked a bit more like her old self, “I’m glad to see it. Amazed, really. To think that mere Adjuchas I stumbled across would so quickly become Las Noches rising star. You’re definitely something special, Adagio. Just...”

Adagio raised an eyebrow, “Just?”

A serious note entered Ember’s voice, “Keep your eyes peeled. You’ve risen too far, too fast, to not be a target. I’d bet you anything that Guto is going to make a move on you, soon. Be prepared for it. And for the fact that he’s probably scared enough of you to not fight fair.”

All Adagio could do was give Ember a thin smile like the grin of a bird of prey, a smile she’d given plenty of times when she felt the thrill of an oncoming challenge. “Oh trust me, Ember, I’m already well ahead of you on that front. Now come, let’s go see your father.”

And so they had, Adagio marching out of the recently upgraded steel doors that she’d had built to act as the main entrance and exit to the interior of her territory along Las Noche’s wall. Usagi had been there already, doing her level best to calm down an exuberant and exceedingly pushy Torch. It generated a small burst of laughter from Adagio that she’d quickly hidden behind her mouth. Usagi wasn’t a short woman, but she still looked like a mere toddler next to Torch’s prodigious size and girth. Yet the plucky Arrancar had seen fit to bar his path, albeit with a look of stark exasperation and near terror, given Torch could have easily punted her across the inner fortress like a purple-haired football.

Usagi reminded Adagio a little bit of Sonata. They had similar builds, although Usagi favored leaving her light violet hair falling long and unbound down to nearly her knees. That ridiculous mask fragment in the shape of a bunny skull sat near perfectly atop her head. Adagio’s most recent vassal favored loose garments that exposed plenty of skin, taking after Adagio’s own preferred manner of dress, although while Adagio’s were more designed for ease of movement in a fight, Usagi’s were more designed to be tantalizing. Usagi wasn’t a fighter and knew it, so focused on using other charms to get by. Even her ‘Zanpaktou’ wasn’t particularly threatening, coming in the shape of a weirdly ornate golden staff with a heart shape at one end.

“Oh thank Tirek! Lady Adagio!” Usagi cried upon seeing her Espada approaching with Ember, “I’m so very glad to see you! I’ve been telling this walking mountain that he can’t fit inside our halls and to just be patient for your arrival, but has he been listening to the single word I say?”

“I’ve been listening to you chirp plenty, rabbit, which is why there’s even still a door here and not a hole cut through with my axe! Now move aside or get stepped on, I’ve got a daughter to hug! Ember, hahah, there you are! C’mere!”

Torch hadn’t been joking. His prodigious bulk stomped forward, forcing Usagi to yelp and dive out of the way, lest she be trampled by the exuberance Fifth Espada. Behind him came a mass of other Arrancar warriors of his horde, chanting Ember’s name and making wild, whooping noises as they crowded forward, forcing Usagi to hop and scramble further to avoid the rowdy charge. Adagio wisely stepped aside, patting Ember on the shoulder and whispering, “Good luck.”

Ember shot her a rueful look before being swept up in several tons of hugging father arms.

While Ember was busy being introduced to crushing pressures from the embrace of a loving parent, surrounded by hollering members of her horde, Adagio went over to Usagi and helped the frazzled woman up. Usagi was dusting sand off of her slinky dress and looked at Adagio with a mixture of deep gratitude and apologetic exasperation, “Thank you, my lady. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep that terrifying man pacified. He really was about to knock down the doors with his axe! And we just had them installed, too!”

“It’s alright, Usagi. You did very well,” Adagio said, “Why don’t you go take a breather while I handle things here for a bit? Oh, and once you’ve composed yourself, see what we have to set out for refreshments for our guests. They may be here for a spell.”

“Oh my, entertaining this many? We’ll go through our stock in no time. At least we did gather up quite a bit beforehand, so we should be good, I think. I’ll get right on it, my lady.”

Usagi wasted no time in heading off to do as Adagio bid her, and Adagio nodded to herself in satisfaction. While not much of a battle asset, Usagi was worth her weight in gold in other areas.

When Ember got enough breath to get a word in edgewise, she managed to push her father back just enough to say, “I’m glad to be back, father, but how about some of this embarrassing gratitude get sent Adagio’s way? She’s the one who set up my rescue, after all?”

“As if I’d forget!” Torch said, ceasing to hug Ember only to place her on his shoulder, which she went cherry faced over but didn’t object as Torch stomped over to Adagio and grinned down at her, setting his axe head-first on the ground to lean on. Adagio looked up at him, offering a welcoming smile.

“Well, Lord Torch, I do believe this is the first time you’ve given my territory an official visit. Stay and you and yours can make yourselves comfortable. I’ll even provide the food and drinks.”

“Hah! You’re something else, you know that?” Torch rumbled with a jovial belly laugh, “A part of me wasn’t sure you could actually pull off getting my girl back from the clutches of those damned Soul Reapers, but here you stand, and so does Ember. You’re a woman of your word, Adagio Dazzle, and don’t you think for a second I’ll be forgetting what you’ve done for me this day. And you’re damned right I’ll take you up on sticking around for a bit. This calls for a proper feast of celebration! Don’t worry, I won’t empty out your own stores. I’ll send some of the boys to grab some goods from our own territory, and your people and mine can throw ourselves a proper revelry!”

It hadn’t taken long for Torch to make good on that, with the entire area along the wall of Adagio’s territory turning into something akin to a wild, unfettered tempest of feasting Arrancar who were all rapidly getting to various levels of intoxication. This meant plenty of play fighting, dancing, and minor destruction of property, but Adagio knew repairs wouldn’t take long. She was glad for having had the pool made nearby, and considered the fact that it could probably do with an expansion, if she was going to host groups this large in the future.

While she partook in some of the drinking, she made a point to not let it get beyond a slight buzz. She had things that still needed doing, and plans that needed sorting out. Amid the partying, she’d encouraged her own people to get involved and have some fun too, but Di Roy and Gaw both had duties she needed them to attend to as well. The Seed needed guarding, for one. It was tucked away safely in a hidden location that Adagio had prepared, not far from what was becoming a makeshift study and lab. Gaw wasn’t all that eager to be amid the crowd, so she volunteered to play watchdog on the Seed until further notice. Di Roy, after getting his share of food and drink, was then sent to Lament’s tower to check in with Roka and Fenice. Adagio didn’t want any trouble starting there until she was certain of Lament’s condition. His power was vastly reduced, but the permanency of this power loss was not yet determined.

She was concerned how the other Espada would react upon learning of Lament’s condition, and wasn’t sure it could even be kept a secret for long. Grogar may well have already reported it to Tirek. In fact, she was intending to go see Tirek soon as well. She’d need to make her own report of events at the Everfree Forest.

She’d been ruminating upon her next course of action, sitting amid a circle consisting of Torch, Ember, and several of what she assumed were Torch’s more trusted warriors. She felt a jostle on her shoulder and looked to see Torch poking at her. He was polishing off an entire metal keg of beer and tossed it aside with a loud belch, then gave her a half serious look. “You got that scheming look in your eyes, Adagio. Starting to get a feel for how you think, but you’d best just relax a spell. Lord Tirek will call for you when he’s good and ready. No point bothering thinking too much about it until then.”

“Hmph, I’m that transparent to you now? Either I’m losing my touch or you’re more observant than I gave you credit for,” she replied with a joking smirk, and he laughed.

“Hahah! I didn’t get to be where I am just by being stronger and tougher than a bunch of other ruthless bastards! I mean, sure, that’s most of it, but I learned to use my noggin’ a bit along the way,” Torch lowered his head, his joviality momentarily passing as he lowered his voice to go along with a faintly concerned look, “I know Lament went and helped you out during all that fighting. Also noticed he went and slinked away to his tower without a word. Not weird by itself, but usually I can sense his reiatsu when this close to his territory. Something happened I oughta know about?”

Adagio paused, thinking. Torch was part of her alliance formed between herself, him, and Lament. Torch did deserve to know. By this point the tale of the battles at Everfree had already been told between her and Ember, but Adagio had left out the bit concerning the Seed that Grogar had extracted from Lament. She didn’t intend to hide it forever, since she had plans for that Seed, but she hadn’t wanted to advertise it either until the right moment. Trust was still very hard for her, but she’d already accepted trusting Thorax, and Torch had been an ally well before that.

“It’s a little complicated,” she whispered back to him, “Grogar did something to Lament that has weakened him considerably.”

“Grrr,” Torch let out a low growl, “That goaty bastard... tell me his number is coming up soon. I owe him for his past treachery, and now it sounds like he’s done something similar to Lament.”

“Oh, he’ll be getting his in due time. An opportunity may be coming soon, but I can’t afford to jump the gun on that until I know for sure I can get him in a position he can’t weasel out of,” Adagio assured Torch, “For now I have to still play this carefully, especially with Lament weakened.”

“Just how weakened are we talking here?”

“It’s hard to say,” Adagio replied cautiously, “But enough to have me worried. Until I can learn more about his condition and recovery prospects, I can’t rely on him for anything concerning combat or intimidation. I’ll need to cover for him until he has a chance to regain his strength.”

Torch nodded, his expression grim and faintly predatory. It was only natural. Hollows had an instinct to prey on weakness, but Torch’s more noble nature was stronger, or perhaps just his hate for Grogar and his gratitude towards Adagio and Lament for their role in bringing Ember back, “That’ll be rough. Ain’t gonna lie, I’m tempted to snatch the Fourth position myself, if Lament can’t hold it. Don’t forget, I wasn’t always the Fifth, and it’s stung losing my old post for so long. Hell, Adagio, you could become the Fifth after I became Fourth.”

Adagio shook her head, “Those numbers only matter so much to me, Torch. Lament is too useful an ally to turn on.”

“Oh, I know, and I wasn’t planning on it, but I’m reminding you that other Espada are going to smell blood in the water, and some of them ain’t so happy about being reduced in rank when you claimed your place. Guto will make a move in a hot second, if he catches wind of Lament being weak.”

Adagio had already considered that fact, and how best to counter it. Di Roy was acting as her early warning in case anything did happen before she could head off that particular problem. Unfortunately her own forces were still nowhere near up to the task of outright confrontation with Guto’s. Most of her people were the weakest of Arrancar society, joining Adagio out of the promise that she would treat them much better than any other Espada would deign too. This secured a certain amount of loyalty, but came with the downside that she knew her newest vassals were not up to fighting the warriors of other Espada. Even now, in a relatively amiable environment like partying with Torch’s people, Adagio could sense a certain uneasiness among her own.

Her own vassals were easy to pick out amid the crowd for two reasons. One was that instead of the conventional all white clothing Arrancar favored, Adagio had opted to allow her people to incorporate more conventional modern dress into their outfits, courtesy of Dumbbell and his friends’ raids upon living world clothing shops. They still wore some white here and there, but otherwise Adagio’s people tended to enjoy a more modern punk fashion, with the exception of some like Usagi who still preferred more traditional Hollow white.

The other thing that made them easy to spot was how they were almost one and all being a tad skittish around Torch’s warriors. Copious amounts of alcohol was loosening some of them up, but otherwise it was like watching a bunch of high school freshman trying to appear composed at a college party.

I need to strengthen all of them. Even if I challenge Guto directly myself, his forces might still do serious damage to my own, regardless of whether or not I win against Guto himself.

Taking a long sip of her own drink, Adagio said slowly to Torch, “I can handle Guto, but his horde as a whole is another matter. Torch, what say you to some joint training exercises between your people and mine?”

“Hah, looking to improve the fortitude of some of these shrimps you’ve collected? I can see why,” he snorted, steam billowing from his nostrils as he downed another half a keg of beer, “You’ve really taken the dregs under your wing. You realize it ain’t just about training, right? Some of these scrubs are just weak by nature, no matter how much you try to pump them up. Still, my people could use a way to let off steam, and yours definitely need the exercise. What did you have in mind?”

“I’ve been clearing out some of the submerged portions of the Forest of Gillians,” Adagio said, “And converting it into a proper training ground. Hidden from view. We’ll have our people work in small teams, there, focusing on boosting raw reiatsu. Our stronger warriors will work on joint hunting expeditions, focusing on taking down Gillian and even Adjuchas. Kills will be distributed to the weakest so they can feed and gain power.”

Torch frowned, “Usually that’s bad form. The one doing the kill should get to consume it. You’re saying give the nice kills to the weakest. Some of my people ain’t gonna like that.”

“This is about efficiency, Torch. I’ve already scouted out good hunting grounds while... pursuing other matters. Matters I’ll also need your assistance on, soon.”

Adagio had been beyond busy, with not just setting up her territory, or planning how to strengthen her vassals. She’d been pursuing new potential allies in the deep deserts of Hueco Mundo. There were Privaron Espada out there whom she sought to contact, but even she wasn’t mad enough to try it in certain cases without backup. Torch was an old Arrancar, and likely well known. If it was learned that even he was on board with potentially turning on Tirek himself, that might be enough to convince some of the Privaron. Adagio had leads on a couple of territories she intended to visit, as long as she could ensure her own people and territory were secure in Las Noches while she did so.

Torch seemed to grasp where she was going with this and gave a hefty nod, “Hmm, you’re really going to go for it, aren’t you? You’ve got quite the pair on you, Adagio.”

“Gee, thank you for noticing,” Adagio said with a languid smile, and Torch waved her off.

“Pfft! You know what I mean. Look, I’ve supported you so far out of respect for that raw, ambitious chutzpah of yours. But that’s over and done with.”

“Oh?” Adagio raised a cautious eyebrow, but Troch just grinned at her and nodded towards where Ember was laughing and chatting with several other Arrancar.

“Now I’m doing it because you’ve given me back something I could never replace. This has gone way beyond respect, Adagio. Maybe you did it knowing it’d earn this kind of loyalty from me, but damned if I don’t care if it was manipulation or not. You being a manipulative bitch is part of why you do so well here, and far as I’m concerned, it makes you even more of a worthy ally. So you really want to go all the way to challenging the throne itself, I’ve got your back.”

He followed this with a dark chuckle, “Although, truth be told, I think we’d both get crushed by Tirek in a heartbeat if we tried it now.”

“Obviously,” said Adagio, “Which is why we’re not doing it now. Not until I find a way for us to close the gap between us and him, and eliminate most if not all of those who’d side with him.”

Torch’s eyes gleamed, “But I see it in your eyes that you’ve got a few ideas, and that the day ain’t that far away, either.”

“No,” Adagio said, licking her lips eagerly, “Hopefully not that far at all.”

----------

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Thorax spun around with a devil-may-care smile of mock innocence on his face as he watched his brother march towards him down the darkened corridor. They were within the depths of their mother’s lair, not far from Pharynx’s living chambers where Thorax had dropped in to see how his brother was faring on his recovery. The damage done from Grogar’s prototype siren gem had largely healed, and Pharynx cut an imposing figure as his head nearly brushed the cavernous ceiling of the circular, dark tunnel.

“Don’t give me that damned grin, Thorax. I asked where you were going? Mother isn’t back from the damn pony world, yet, so you’re still her stand in.”

“Oh I know, but don’t worry about that. Tirek isn’t demanding my presence, yet, and I have business to take care of. Toddles.”

Pharynx wasn’t faster than Thorax, but he could still move with incredibly fluid grace for a man of his bulk, and Thorax felt his brother’s powerful hand clasp down on his shoulder before he was done turning around.

“No. No ‘toddles’. You’ve been gone for more than a day, and none of the drones have reported seeing you, in your natural form or Mother’s, walking around Las Noches. Where have you been?”

“Oh, you know, doing this and that. Enjoying a few lovely strolls in the living world. Mostly my own business, unless you plan on trying to beat answers out of me, brother?”

Pharynx let out a frustrated, deep bellied grunt and after matching stares with Thorax for a few moments, reluctantly let go. “Damn it, brother, why? Why play these games? Ocellus is gone off to that weird other realm, and you’re being dodgier than ever. I don’t like it. Why am I the one one left out of the loop? Even Mother won’t tell me what she’s really planning to do in this ‘Equestria’ place! All I’m told to do is sit here and hold the fort.”

There was a forced amount of grumbling, growly toughness to Pharnyx’s tone that Thorax could instantly see through. His brother was confused, hurt, and apparently a tad lonely without Ocellus and Thorax both around. He sighed a bit, feeling a rising sympathy. “I suppose you have been given the short end of the stick. It actually is a relief to know you’re here to keep watch over our home, brother, so don’t think you’re unappreciated. Mother does whatever she feels like, when she feels like it, and that’s a trait I inherited from her in spades. Ocellus too, in her way. You’re the one stuck with the sense of responsibility.”

“Hmph, much to my everlasting detriment, it seems,” Pharynx said, crossing his thick arms over an equally burly chest, “I know you’ve got some kind of scheme going on. I found Greta.”

That caught Thorax off guard. His brother rarely got one over on him, so he had to take a second to get his thoughts in order before replying with a half hearted shrug, “Ah, so you did. Was she where I left her?”

“You mean drugged out of her mind and stuffed into one of the old pantries down below? Yes,” Pharynx said with his brow creasing in a deep glower, “And I had to spend hours rousing her from whatever you fed her. Took longer to convince her not to report to Guto what had happened, given I doubt she wants the Sixth tangling with our Mother in the first place. But why did you drug her at all, I wonder? Replacing her, I imagine, but what I learned from her was that she was just assigned to do a simple recon mission to Canterlot City with Gilda and Adagio.”

“Yes... that is all true,” Thorax said, offering nothing more, and Pharynx’s eyes narrowed.

“So what were you doing there, replacing Greta?”

“Observing.”

“Observing?”

“Rubberbabybuggybubers.”

“...I’m not repeating that.”

“Drat, that usually works on you.”

“Are you going to give me any answers?” Pharynx said, his exasperation exploding out with a burst of frustrated reiatsu that briefly buffeted the hall with wind pressure. It wasn’t a show of intimidation, merely his brother’s emotions spilling out. Understandably, in Thorax’s view, which made it all the harder to keep the truth from him. Perhaps he should throw Pharynx a bone here?

Adagio had taken a leap of faith, trusting him to be a long term ally. He couldn’t imagine that had been easy for her. Sometimes a little risk was worth it, and Pharynx was family.

“If you want an answer, then fine, I’ll give you one. There’s someone I’m going to see. Someone I owe some long overdue answers to, herself.”

“Herself?” Pharynx’s chiseled, square features scrunched up in thought, “Who? You’ve got an awfully serious look on your face for this to be about any of the dozens of dalliances you’ve had.”

“This is nothing like that,” Thorax said, “This is... Luna.”

Pharynx twitched like an electrical shock had run through him. His hand almost instinctively reached for his Zanpaktou, only halting itself a few inches short as he realized he had no one to draw it on. He shook his head dazedly and stared hard at Thorax, “You’re joking.”

“Afraid not, brother,” Thorax said, adopting his careless smile once more, “Ran into her during the festivities in the living world, and without going into details I managed to strike an arrangement with her. To meet her, alone, at our old hidey hole.”

“You’re insane,” Pharynx said after a silent moment, “She’ll kill you.”

“I have confidence she won’t. Or at least she’ll hear me out first, before trying.”

“Thorax, you led her into Mother’s web. Mother nearly had full control over her before that blasted sister was able to rescue her. Pretty sure you mentally and emotionally scarred that woman for life.”

“First of all, that’s all a slight exaggeration,” Thorax said, regret and embarrassment filling him in equal measures, “And second of all, I didn’t know you cared so much about what happened to her.”

“I don’t,” Pharynx hissed, “She’s a Soul Reaper, you moron! I’d have been fine with Mother’s plan succeeding and us having a Soul Reaper officer under our sway! What I’m trying to say is that it’s insane to expect her to give two rat’s turds about anything you might have to say on the matter. I’m willing to bet the only reason she agreed to any deal was to get you alone somewhere so she could finish you off! Argh, you utter dolt! Why would you even try something like this!? It makes no sense...”

His brother blinked, then peered closely at Thorax, with those piercing eyes that he sometimes got when Thorax was trying to pull a fast one on him and he had an uncommon burst of awareness. “Thorax, tell me you don’t still have feelings for her.”

“Not... as such,” Thorax replied, forcing himself to meet his brother’s searching gaze, “I hold no delusions about how either I or Luna feel. This isn’t about rekindling anything, or hoping even for reconciliation. I just... I owe her the truth. That’s it.”

“And what truth is that?” Pharynx asked.

Thorax dropped any pretenses, his voice calm and quiet, “That I didn’t know what Mother intended. Not fully. That when I brought her here, I honestly thought... ugh, look, these words are for her, brother, not you.”

“Do you honestly believe she’ll want to hear any of them?” Pharynx pressed, “What good could hearing excuses from you do her? Or even an apology, as pointless as that is? Don’t be a sentimental fool. She’ll bear her scythes at you, probably before you’re even done speaking. No, this is madness. I can’t let you go.”

It was Thorax’s turn to let his reiatsu spill out. Not a lot, just enough to firmly remind Pharynx that between the two of him, he was still the stronger, if not by a whole lot. “Give it a go if you think you can, but we both know how that fight turns out. As for Luna, perhaps she will turn her scythes on me, and she has a right to make that choice. Maybe me and her will only be able to end things with the song of our swords instead of our hearts. But however it turns out, I’m going, alone.”

“Damn you, don’t be so stubborn! What will Mother think of this?”

“I couldn’t possibly care less what she thinks of it. Feel free to tell her yourself when she gets back, whenever that will be. But it will surely be long after I’ve already had my rendezvous, and since you can’t track my Garganta, guess what? You can’t follow me, either.”

Thorax turned around then and began to walk away, waving over his shoulder, “I’ll tell Luna you said ‘hi’.”

“Wait, Thorax! At least let me go with you, dammit!”

“No can do, brother,” Thorax said, voice slick with sympathy for his brother’s position, but unwilling to alter course, “You’ll just have to accept your place as our home’s watchdog a little longer. I’ll do my best to return alive and hopefully with all my sexy limbs intact.”

With that, Thorax made a gesture and tore open a Garganta portal, stepping through it without breaking stride. He closed it right behind him, right in his protesting brother’s face. Once that was done, Thorax whispered one last apology to Pharynx before he started to cross the darkness of the Precipice Realm. He had some time, yet, before the agreed upon meeting time with Luna, and he had some preparations to make beforehand.

----------

The throne room of the Espada was not entirely full. The most obvious absentee was Smooze, who’s present whereabouts remained a mystery to most in attendance. Adagio had gotten Gaw’s report on Smooze being discovered in the Everfree Forest, but beyond that only knew that Gilda had been involved in the incident that sparked the battles that had taken place. A lot of what Adagio claimed to know or not would depend on what Gilda said, first, and sadly she hadn’t had much opportunity to speak with the Tenth Espada after returning to Las Noches.

The other two absent members of the Espada were Lament, who remained in his tower, and Chrysalis, who Tirek had simply stated was ‘indisposed’. Adagio wasn’t too surprised by that. Thorax had hinted that he had things to take care of and that he would trust Adagio to handle things without him impersonating his mother during the meeting. She was confident she could steer a beneficial course through the upcoming quagmire, but it would’ve been useful to have Chrysalis' disguised Thorax putting in the occasional word of support.

The mood in the chamber was a tense one. Plenty of word had spread that a major battle had taken place, which strictly speaking was not what Tirek’s orders had intended. The next few minutes would do much to determine if Tirek was pleased or irritated with the results of the “reconnaissance” mission that had somehow turned into a full scale battle between multiple Espada, Soul Reaper Captains, and Quincy Sternritter.

For Adagio it was a matter initially of who was called upon to speak first. Of course she had suspicions that Grogar may have already told his side of events, but she was confident Gilda hadn’t, at least. Mostly because Gilda still looked rather nervous, sitting upon her throne. She was trying to hide it with an air of bravado, but Adagio saw through it to the tight manner in which Gilda gripped her throne’s arms and kept shooting uneasy glances towards Tirek.

Calm down, girl, Adagio thought towards Gilda, I may not like you, but you can be useful enough that I’d rather you not get yourself killed just yet.

Then again she did still have to worry about herself, first and foremost.

“So it seems-'' Tirek began in an echoing baritone, his chin resting upon one idle fist as he loomed high upon his throne, “-that some of my Espada have had what one might politely dub a ‘misadventure’. Somehow what was meant to be a simple task of observing the defensive forces our enemies have placed around Canterlot City escalated to all out battle. I’d be more irritated with this turn of events if it didn’t clearly yield some interesting results.”

Hydia let out a highly amused cackle, her body jiggling as she laughed in her throne, “Hahaha! This has got to be what they call the fire of youth, eh!? Our newbie Espadas just couldn’t help wanting to get their blades wet. Can we really blame them, Lord Tirek? I want to hear from Groggykins how it all went down.”

Grogar shot the toadish woman a withering look, then turned his attention to Tirek and affected a smoothly inviting tone, “While I was not present for every element of what transpired, I can certainly give a very complete overview, given I had more than a few observation devices active to record events.”

Adagio did well at keeping her face purely neutral. She ought to have known the bastard would have set up something like that. He did so seem to love his damned ‘observation devices’. How much more had he seen or heard through them, she wondered?

Tirek, without missing a beat, gave an approving nod to Grogar, “I’m sure such recordings will make this all the more entertaining, but I’ll have Gilda and Adagio give their own reports. I presume you can augment their stories with some impressive visuals?”

“Of course, my lord,” Grogar said, and snapped his fingers. Apparently having been waiting for their cue, the doors to the throne chamber swung open and a group of Grogar’s twisted servant Arrancar waddled in, bearing upon their shoulders a large device. Adagio recognized the projector as being of the same design that Grogar had used to observe the battle at Las Noches, although this one was a little larger. Grogar’s servants deposited the device in the center of the chamber, then swiftly departed while Grogar withdrew a remote to operate it with.

“Now,” Grogar said, “I do believe we should start at the beginning of hostilities. Everything up until that point was rather non-consequential.”

That, and he probably didn’t have any data prior to that point, Adagio imagined. It didn’t matter much. The only event of note had been Gilda’s failed attempt to kill Sunset Shimmer, and Adagio doubted Gilda was eager to tout that particular failure in front of her peers.

With the device projecting a flat image like a television screen, Grogar was able to provide visuals of the beginning of the battle. Or rather, the confrontation between herself, Grogar, Celestia, Luna, and Sunset Shimmer. Which meant he must not have had any video of Gilda inciting the fight in the first place due to discovering Smooze. Naturally that became the very first question of the hour, although it was Catrina who asked it, not Tirek. The Third Espada instantly leaned forward with an intense curiosity, fixing Gilda with deep, unblinking eyes.

“Do you mean to tell us that you found that disgusting blob, and your first instinct was to try and finish the job the Quincy started?”

Gilda grit her teeth, trying to hide how intimidated she may have felt while being stared down by the Third Espada, but she managed to jut out her chin and adopt a strong tone, “So what!? If he lost to the Quincy then what good is he to us? Might as well put him out of his misery, right? Though I could take out or capture one of those magic girls that Lord Tirek wanted nabbed, too, so seemed like a two-birds-one-stone kind of deal to me. I had both Greta and Gaw with me, so we had a numbers advantage, too!”

“A numbers advantage that didn’t seem to do you any good,” Catrina noted, “Did you succeed in either goal? Killing Smooze or capturing one of the magic-possessing humans?”

Gilda was silent for a second, before a harsh glare from Tirek caused her to sweat and hastily answer, “N-not exactly.”

“You mean you lost?” Catrina pressed, to which Guto shot in with a snort.

“You mean like you lost to that fire-wielding Sternritter? We’ve all faced a few setbacks lately, Catrina. Well, most of us have. I happened to defeat the last foe I faced,” Guto said, and to emphasize his point he raised his right hand and gave a tug to the golden chained leash he held.

Adagio had been trying not to look directly at her, but Guto had brought with him what he referred to as his ‘pet’. The leash was bound to a golden collar around the throat of a woman kneeling down before Guto’s throne. Fleur De Lis had a look like that of a caged panther. The light of fierce defiance was still in her eyes, but it was buried under a bone deep weariness, dark circles shadowing those eyes that gave the room around her nothing but venomous contempt. But the collar around her neck burned with Guto’s reiatsu and upon the tug of the leash she made a strangled noise and grimaced deeply. Her Quincy uniform was long gone, replaced with what Adagio might have generously called an ‘outfit’, but was mostly just thin straps of white cloth covering just enough for a ghost of modesty, which did nothing to hide the purpling bruises or red lash marks that marked Fleur’s body.

Adagio’s stomach roiled, but she said nothing. Guto and Fleur were an issue to be dealt with in it’s own time, which was not now.

Catrina, for her part, couldn’t have rolled her eyes harder, “Yes, yes, we’re all very impressed, Guto. The only way you can keep a woman around you is with chains. As for Gilda, I want to know how she is here before us with neither a captured human or a single dead foe to her name.”

“A story worth hearing,” Adagio said, “But only so we might better understand our opposition, Lady Catrina. Instead of insinuating that Gilda is weak, instead understand that our foes are strong. Keep in mind, neither I nor Grogar succeeded in killing any of our opponents either, and while I did defeat my own, I must confess she escaped my captivity before I could return to Las Noches with her.”

“Admitting failure, Adagio Dazzle?” Tirek asked, and she faced him without flinching, meeting his eyes head on.

“Admitting only to the facts. I defeated Captain Luna of the Gotei 13 in a head on duel, and attempted to take her captive. Sadly, she escaped my grasp afterward, but other circumstances demanded my attention so I considered it a matter of prioritizing our mission goals. You desired information more than anything else, yes? Well, given I faced Luna’s Bankai directly, I believe that information alone is rather valuable.”

She was gambling a bit on what Grogar’s devices did or did not see, but since it didn’t look as if he’d acquired video of Gilda’s initial attack on Smooze, it stood to reason he didn’t have much data on anything he hadn’t been close to. She suspected he’d had his devices primarily following him, and when the battles had gotten chaotic enough, he hadn’t had time to redirect them.

Her hypothesis looked to be correct, because Grogar’s face turned a tad sour as he said, “Sadly I must accept Adagio’s word on that, for I was unable to catch more than a few images of her battle with Luna.”

The screen flickered to a few images, first showing the initial stages of Adagio’s fight with the Second Division Captain, leading up until the moment Adagio released her Zanpaktou and Luna responded with Bankai. But Luna’s Bankai had created such a thick shadow from the outside that Grogar’s devices couldn’t penetrate. Adagio made a little smile of victory on the inside, for that meant she alone could describe the full extent of Luna’s Bankai to her fellow Espada. Even with Luna escaping afterward, the prestige of such a battle and coming out on top was undeniable.

The next half hour or so was spent recounting their respective battles; Adagio’s against Luna, Gilda’s against Fluttershy and Rarity, and Grogar’s against Celestia. Grogar supplemented the tellings with what images his data could provide, but that mostly detailed his encounter with Celestia. Adagio had to begrudgingly admit to being impressed with her hated enemy, at least. Grogar’s tactics against a clearly superior opponent had been thorough, even brilliant in places. It pained her to realize it, but if Grogar hadn’t been present for the events at Everfree Forest, then things would have gone south for her very quickly, for Celestia was a foe far too powerful for her to readily deal with. It stole a bit of her own thunder in facing down Luna that Grogar had, against higher odds, removed the stronger threat from the board.

Not that the other Espada weren’t suitably impressed by her own feats. While Hydia was busy lavishing Grogar with praise for facing one of the Gotei 13’s strongest, Catrina was watching Adagio with a greater hint of respect, and Guto a healthier dose of wariness. Before now Adagio’s power was undeniable, but her skill in battle may still have been in question in Guto’s mind. Knowing she could face someone of Luna’s experience and not only survive, but win, was probably giving the current Seventh Espada pause in his own plans concerning how he wanted to deal with her. Good, that would buy her time.

However the focus soon turned upon Gilda, for there were certainly several elements of her battle that was causing a snag for the poor Tenth.

“So she just... let you live?” Guto said incredulously, “She had you broken and beaten, then allowed you to leave of your own accord?”

‘She’ of course being Fluttershy. Adagio couldn’t help feeling a little surprised herself. Not that Flutteshy had spared Gilda. That seemed an obvious given. But rather that Fluttershy had won handily upon reaching the final evolution of her powers. Until then Adagio still hadn’t quite grasped how strong Sunset’s friends had become. She’d known Sunset had gotten strong, but largely thought of those other girls as secondary factors.

She was now re-evaluating that assumption.

Gilda, for her part, tensed in her throne, muscles bunching up as her hands gripped the throne’s arms tighter. Her face was a mixed swarm of frustration, shame, and deeper, more complex feelings as she stared back at Guto, “Guess she didn’t have the stomach for killing. That’s her problem, not mine. I took the loss like a damned adult and focused on the mission.”

“It’s a testament to the potency of magic that these mere human children have evolved their Hollow-born Fullbring powers to such a degree that they can best even Espada-worthy Arrancar warriors,” Grogar stated in a clinical tone, “Gilda may be the weakest of us, but let us not entirely discount her strength. Arrancar are a superior species inherently, and the Espada the greatest ten specimens of the breed. Besting even the Tenth is a feat, and one only achievable through this unique blending of magic and spirit forces that exist in those human girls. Hence why capturing one has always been a worthy secondary goal... although no longer entirely necessary thanks to my own independent research.”

Here it comes, Adagio thought, readying herself. This was going to likely be the most key point of this meeting, and one she couldn’t afford to let Grogar take all the momentum on.

Tirek settled his unblinking dark eyes upon Grogar, “From your tone I take it you have something to reveal to us? You have that ‘research obsessed’ glint in your eyes, so out with it. Did that project you mentioned to me before I sent you out bear fruit?”

“Oh yes, Lord Tirek, most enticingly potent fruit. So much so that someone decided to hold onto it for me in hopes she could steal what rightfully belongs to me,” Grogar said while turning a paper-thin smile towards Adagio. The images upon his device’s screen flickered to a video of another battle. This time, unlike other instances, he had quite a full level of detail on this exchange, and Adagio frowned as she watched the fight play out.

He must have decided this took priority over other conflicts. That’s another reason he doesn't have more video of me or Gilda. He sent his devices to watch this fight instead.

The video and audio for Lament’s struggle against Captain Sweet Cider was as detailed as Grogar’s fight with Celestia had been. Including getting a fair bit of revealing audio detail concerning Lament’s true identity and his relationship with Sweet Cider and Applejack.

“Hah!” Catrina burst out with a shocked laugh, “I can’t believe it. Our very own dour madman, the husband of a Soul Reaper Captain!? And their Kenpachi no less!? Oh that is just... just so deliciously tragic. No wonder he’s such a sourpuss.”

“Does this not compromise his loyalty?” Guto demanded, “We can’t possibly trust Lament’s intentions any longer, if he holds a connection this deep with the enemy.”

Adagio was about to cut in, but Torch spoke before she could, the first time he’d spoken since the meeting began. The sizable Fifth Espada raised his axe and smashed the pommel of it so hard into the floor next to his throne that the entire chamber rumbled with the force of a small earthquake. The boom echoed for a moment, then Torch’s voice matched that echo with his own deep voice.

“So his woman is a Soul Reaper? What of it!? Jealous, Guto, that he need not keep the women in his life on a leash? Lament crossed blades with his wife without hesitation, and he did it to aid Adagio in defeating our enemies and rescuing my daughter from their clutches! I’ll hear no word spoken against him, unless they want to meet the edge of my axe!”

Guto’s mouth curled in a low snarl, “Do not be blinded by your daughter’s return. If Lament turns upon us, he could leak all manner of vital information to our foes.”

“How?” Adagio cut in, “Lament knows little that the Soul Reapers likely don’t already know, or did you forget that Captain Luna infiltrated Las Noches while we were busy with the Quincy? Furthermore, has it not entered your slow mind that this supposed compromised loyalty may swing both ways?”

Suspicion flared in Guto’s eyes, then Tirek spoke in a clipped, interested tone, “What do you mean, Dazzle?”

She smiled in a knowing way, “Considering that Soul Society has done little to retain Captain Sweet Cider’s own loyalty, and I have it on good authority she is a woman far more concerned with family than anything else, it’s entirely possible she could be made into an asset for us. I suggest we encourage Lament to establish connections with his family, both human and Soul Reaper. This could prove an opportunity to sway a Soul Reaper Captain in our favor, or at least make her hesitate to engage us as long as Lament remains in our camp.”

‘Tirek stroked his chin, “Hmm... perhaps, but only if Lament remains a viable Espada.”

The way he said it told Adagio that Tirek likely knew beforehand that Grogar’s experiment with the Seed had not only been ready to bear fruit, but could compromise Lament’s power. How much he knew, specifically, remained to be seen, but the answers would come soon enough as Grogar’s footage continued on to show the culmination of removing the Seed for Lament.

Grogar rather quickly cleared his throat in a loud manner as Pinkie Pie showed up and clicked the ‘off’ button on his remote, “And then the pink girl showed up but that’s not important to show.”

Adagio couldn’t help herself, “I disagree, Grogar. Pinkie Pie showed a distinct evolution of her powers, much like the other human girls allied with Sunset Shimmer. I’m sure everyone here would benefit from witnessing the extent of Pinkie Pie’s abilities.”

“I...disagree,” Grogar said, past grit teeth, to which Torch grinned widely.

“Don’t be stingy, Grogar. Let us see your battle with the pink one. I’m sure it’ll be one worthy of an Espada.”

“Do it, Grogar,” Tirek commanded, “I’d like to see precisely how those children have grown.”

Grogar’s sour look intensified but he silently complied, glowering as his device proceeded to show the recording of his fight with Pinkie Pie. Stunned silence soon grew to varying degrees of laughter or confusion from the other Espada. Catrina was grinning like a cat, unable to stop her guffaws. Hydia initially looked more shocked, and then her broad joweles jiggled with acidic rage at Pinkie Pie making a fool of Grogar. Adagio made a mental note to maybe warn Pinkie that Hydia might have decided to view her as a target, now that Pinkie had humiliated Grogar. Guto looked a tad sickened but also amused by the display, while Tirek showed little of what was going through his mind. When the recording ended with Adagio’s arrival to steal the Seed, however, Tirek looked at her.

“Where is the Seed, now?”

Adagio was careful in her answer, “In my territory, safely under guard.”

Grogar was fast to say, “And I demand it be returned to me! It’s the result of my research! My artificial siren gem worked perfectly, and the Seed will in turn provide me the most benefit from its use! You wouldn’t even know how to properly absorb its power.”

She turned an icy look towards him, her voice filled with iron, “No. I took the Seed, therefore it belongs to me. Is this not a fundamental rule among us Espada? Among Hollowkind itself? You have only what you can hold onto with force, with power. If you want your Seed back, Grogar, I cordially invite you to come and try and take it back from me. You can have it, if you survive my trident.”

“My my my, she has learned fast, hasn’t she?” said Catrina, turning a coy smile at Grogar, “What will you do, Ninth? Challenge the Sixth for your prize? That would be the way of things, wouldn’t it?”

“Perhaps he wouldn’t need to do it alone,” said Guto in a dangerous tone, turning a sharp look towards Grogar, “Share a portion of the Seed’s power with me, and I’ll gladly help you teach this upstart a lesson!”

“Not if I have anything to say about it!” Torch roared, standing up from his throne and hefting his axe, “Try to gang up on Adagio, and you won’t be facing her alone, Guto!”

“Two on two are odds I’d accept,” Adagio said, but she also kept her voice calm and confident as she added, “But I don’t object to facing any challenge that comes my way for the Seed. I claim it as mine, so anyone who wants it will need to pry it from me, whatever alliance or tricks they wish to use for the purpose. I welcome the attempt. I’ll crush it completely.”

“Arrogant woman,” Guto growled, but he was eyeing Torch cautiously, no doubt weighing the risks of fighting both Torch and Adagio at the same time, even with Grogar as a potential ally. He must have concluded the risk as too great, for he looked down with a dark rage in his eyes, but one that was suppressed.

Grogar’s frustration was palpable, and he looked at Tirek, but the First Espada showed no signs of supporting either side. He watched with impassive, but keen interest. He wouldn’t stop his Espada from sorting out their own disputes, violently or otherwise. That was part of the nature of Las Noches, after all. But it was clear he was not going to just order Adagio to hand the Seed back over to Grogar either, and Grogar’s options for getting it back were both limited and risky.

Adagio saw Grogar give up, and his look of impotent rage pleased her to no end. But Grogar gave her a look of pure venom.

“Very well then, keep it. You lack the intellect to use it. And what of Lament? He is so weak now he can hardly keep claim to his position among us, can he? Perhaps it is time for a new Fourth.”

“Oh? You think you could hold that position?” Cantrina said, waving her hand, “Don’t be ridiculous, Grogar. Torch could challenge, yes, perhaps Adagio or Guto if they wanted to, but that would become quite the three way battle.”

“A part of me would like to reclaim my position as the Fourth,” Torch admitted, “But we do not yet know if Lament can recover his strength, and we need our forces as strong as possible. I’ll wait, and if anyone lower on the totem pole wishes to go for him, they still need to surpass me first. What say you, Adagio, Guto? Do either if you wish to challenge me for the Fifth throne?”

“I’ll pass,” Adagio said, then added with a wink, “For now.”

Guto made a drawn out ‘Tch’ sound, then sank in his throne, “Aren’t you two such a tightly knit pair? I tire of this topic. Since it seems you and Grogar left after you stole that Seed, do we even know what happened afterward in that forest?”

As if she’d been waiting for her chance, Gilda spoke up, “We sure as hell do! You see, I still remembered what Lord Tirek sent us there for, so I stuck around to keep watch and gather any information I could, so I saw what happened, even better than Grogar’s dumb devices could.”

“Well done,” Adagio commended Gilda, which seemed to catch Gilda off guard.

“Uh...thanks?”

“Do tell us,” Tirek said, “What did you see, Gilda? Perhaps it wasn’t a total mistake to make you the Tenth.”

Gilda gulped, and then started to speak of what she saw. While Adagio had known about the gigantic tree that had formed and had felt the immense Hollow power that had seemed to originate from the tree, Gilda had indeed seen much, much more. Even Adagio leaned forward in interest as Gilda described, in some detail, the titanic final battle that had taken place in Everfree Forest. She was impressed, not only with Gilda’s resourcefulness in obtaining this information, but with Sunset Shimmer and her friends, who managed to confront what sounded like a truly immense foe and emerge victorious.

But what she didn’t expect was the reaction from some of the other Espada, Catrina breathing out in a surprised gasp, “It can’t be! She’s alive!? After what Chrysalis did to her!?”

“Even I have to admit to being surprised by this,” Grogar said, still looking irritated over losing the Seed to Adagio, but his intellect focusing on the new information before them, “The Queen of Thorns herself, emerging from oblivion after all this time. It seems Chrysalis didn’t kill her, after all.”

Tirek had sat up in his throne, seemingly roused to give this matter serious attention, with his black and yellow eyes blazing bright, “It is surprising. And fortuitous. Gaia Everfree was a potent member of our ranks, once, and if what Gilda says is true she retains much of that power.”

“But she was beaten by those mere humans,” Guto said, “How powerful can she really be?”

“Don’t be a fool,” Adagio spat, “Have you not paid attention to anything!? Sunset Shimmer and her allies are not to be underestimated! At this point each one of them is likely as powerful as a Soul Reaper Captain. How many of us could face six Captains at once? Seven, if you count Twilight Sparkle, who is probably more than strong enough to warrant her rank of Sternritter among the Quincy. Yet Gaia Everfree faced all of them at once, and nearly defeated them.”

“Hmm, did she survive her defeat?” Tirek asked Gilda, “Did you remain to see what occurred after the battle?”

At that point Gilda gained a stiff hesitance, her features veiling with a cold aura of fear. But Adagio sensed it wasn’t fear of Tirek, of displeasing him by not having more information. No, Gilda’s eyes had a distant look of fear like someone who’d witnessed a natural disaster. Tirek’s eyes focused upon her like spears as he said, “Do not make me repeat myself, Tenth.”

“Y-yes, Lord Tirek. I saw. Um... although I’m not sure what I saw.”

Gilda went through it, bit by hesitant bit, and every Espada in the room focused upon her as her words sunk in. Initially there was rapt interest in what occurred with the tree. A portal beneath it, going out of control? Then Gaia Everfree somehow controlled the explosion of energies, resulting in a smaller but stable portal beneath a much reduced tree? That was fascinating, but that didn’t explain Gilda’s haunted fear.

No, that came with the description of the woman who had appeared to Sunset and the girls, and the confrontation with the arrival of Discord. Adagio had no idea who this woman was that Gilda described, but Gilda painted a dire picture.

“I can’t even fathom what kind of power this chick was using,” Gilda said, unable to suppress a shudder, “I felt it only for a second and it...”

“Go on, Gilda,” Tirek said, and she closed her eyes.

“It was on par with yours, Lord Tirek. Her reiatsu. I’ve only ever felt anything like it when you were testing me and Adagio.”

Grogar’s voice was deadpan, “So they’ve started to take action. After all this time.”

Tirek nodded his face suddenly grave as a smoking volcano, “Yes, so it seems.”

Adagio frowned, “Just who is this woman?”

“By the description it sounds like Medley of the Zero Division,” Tirek said, letting out a dry, unamused chuckle, “You would not know of them, Adagio Dazzle. They are the true source of the Soul Society, and the Gotei 13’s existence. They are the pinnacle of the rot at the head of our reality, and the ones who seek to keep us Hollows struggling in the sands of Hueco Mundo. More than the Quincy, even, they are our truest foes. And yes, each one holds power to rival my own, or the Quincy King’s for that matter.”

“I see...” Adagio Dazzle took a slow breath through her nose. Sounded like just one more set of enemies she’d have to contend with, in time. But it did affirm to her the importance of pursuing her alliance with Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer. Multiple foes on Tirek’s level was a horrifying thought, although there was one good piece of news in it.

If she could beat Tirek, that meant she’d reached the power ceiling. He’d said the Zero Division were as powerful as he was, not stronger. So if she could overcome him, then that represented the pinnacle. If she could just find the strength to reach that final plateau, to ascend to that last height, then she could finally be free to create the life she desired for herself and her followers. She might even be able to finally... relax a little, and one day see her sisters again.

“Should we be worried that Medley interfered with those girls but didn’t destroy them?” asked Catrina, “It strikes me as strange that she’d take those pendants but not simply kill them. What even were those pendants?”

“No doubt manifestations of their magic,” Grogar said, his voice hungry, “A shame Medley took them. I’d have liked to have obtained one to study. I suspect they are batteries of power akin to the manifestations those girls used before.’

While Thorax had described the portal to her, Adagio hadn’t known the details of how it had formed or what had occurred immediately after it. She recalled Thorax’s prediction regarding what Tirek would do, so she looked at him to warily measure his reactions. He had the contemplative look of a true king, but she saw the eagerness burning in his slowly widening grin.

“Yes, magic,” he said, “A source of great power, and with Zero Division taking direct action perhaps it's time we do the same. Gilda, you said that portal appeared to go to the Beast Realm, but you sensed an additional portal beyond it?”

“I didn’t risk getting close, but I think so,” she confirmed uneasily, “That portal puts out a lot of weird feeling energy, and I definitely felt more of it on the other side.”

“If that portal formed from the one that lead to Equestria then it stands to reason that even if it partially exists in the Beast Realm, a portion of it would still connect to that realm of magic,” said Grogar, his own eagerness returning to his voice, “I left enough observation devices behind in the forest that I could send a few to examine the portal. We must confirm where it goes, and if a further portal to Equestria exists beyond it.”

“Do it,” Tirek said, “I want to know for certain, but if a bridge has opened to, heh, ‘Equestria’, then this is an opportunity I do not intend to waste.”

“You intend to invade?” Torch said, “Through the Beast Realm?”

“Why not?” Tirek said with a shrug, “I hold no fear of the beasts, and they’d do well to stay out of my way. If there is a portal to Equestria we can use, then use it we shall. Consuming the power of that realm, especially with Grogar’s artificial siren gems to augment our ability to absorb that power, would grant us a decisive edge over our enemies. You’d better believe I won’t ignore such a chance.”

“What of Las Noches defenses?” Guto said, sitting straighter in his throne but a hesitant frown on his brow as he considered his own holdings, “If we all charge through to this other world then who would remain to defend our own territory?”

“We shall work upon a plan,” Tirek said, making a circular waving off gesture with one hand, “I’ll not leave us defenseless here, but mark my words, my Espada, we will not ignore the opportunity in front of us! Equestria is open and ripe for the taking, and we shall do exactly that, and soon. Grogar, send your devices to scout the portal. Adagio, go play with your Seed, and while you’re at it work on seeing what we may do with Lament and his ‘family situation’. Hydia, I dislike that Smooze remains missing. Prepare your Fraccion to search for him. I’ll either have him returned, or destroyed, one or the other. Guto, Torch, muster your hordes for extended patrols outside Las Noches. I want to know of any Quincy or Soul Reaper forces that may be watching us. Catrina, come with me to my chambers. If anyone is to be left here to guard this place, it will be you, and I require to discuss that plan... at length.”

Catrina’s face went briefly stiff, but then she smiled and nodded, “Of course.”

Adagio raised an eyebrow. She supposed while Chrysalis was away, the cat would play? Perhaps Tirek was just bored with Chrysalis around. She wondered how much of Tirek’s eagerness to go to Equestria actually involved the fact that Chrysalis was currently there, and he was concerned over what schemes she was playing at, there?

Either way, the Espada had their orders from their ruler, and so they departed from that meeting to go enact them. She had to speak with Lament, then get to work on figuring out just how to actually use the Seed she’d stolen from Grogar.

Oh, and then figure out how to keep Tirek from turning her home world, in which her sisters currently resided, into a dead wasteland with all it’s magic and souls consumed by Hollow hordes.

----------

Talking with Lament had proven difficult, as the man had been asleep when she’d arrived at his tower, and neither Roka or Fenice would let Adagio wake him. Which was fine. Fine. Whatever. It wasn’t as if she didn’t have a limited amount of time to work out her plans, and ensure Lament could still function as a part of said plans.

At least Di Roy gave her the all clear thus far on the tower. No sign at all of Guto’s people attempting anything yet, although that alone did make Adagio suspicious. He’d shown a willingness to work with Grogar to get at her, so she couldn’t discount that both of them might now be preparing to make a move against her. She really needed to get Lament back on his feet. The easiest way to do that would be to figure out how to return the Seed’s power to him, or at least a portion of it.

She was still very tempted to keep a portion of its power for herself. She just needed to know the how of it. Eating it seemed the most obvious answer, but she wasn’t about to risk that without confirming that would work.

And she wanted Roka’s help with that. Fortunately Roka had no objections to aiding Adagio, especially if it might help her father. With Fenice and Di Roy left to guard the tower, Roka had returned with Adagio to her territory. There, they’d gone to find Gaw steadfastly guarding the doorway to the makeshift lab Adagio had set up. “Lab” was admittedly a generous term. Adagio was not proficient in the scientific method. That said, she was adept in magical research and had learned at least some level of magic theory when she’d trained long ago to use her siren song for darker purposes. Her old mentor had taught her much, and Adagio adapted that knowledge for researching spirit energies.

Ever since Dumbbell an his friends ha retrieved Grogar’s research information and Adagio had set up a terminal to study it she’d moved everything into this small lab so she could work in peace. The lab wasn’t much to look at. It was just a small, circular chamber set off from the main rooms down a secondary corridor in her territory. It had a few tables and chairs, mostly with notebooks and lamps. There was a main desk where she’d set up the computer terminal for studying Grogar’s files, and it was here she sat now, with Roka looming over her shoulder.

On the screen was a file titled ‘Seed Experiment’, which showed various diagrams of the Seed itself and how it grew within a host. Strangely, there was a side attachment to a different file that Adagio hadn’t looked at yet, although it’s name drew her curiosity; Segunda Etapa.

“I have no idea what half of this means, but given you’re far more experienced with reishi and medical matters, I thought you’d understand it better than I,” Adagio told Roka as she gestured at the screen, “Can you make anything out of this?”

“Just a moment,” Roka said, peering at the screen. Adagio waited patiently as Roka’s eyes flicked back an forth over the data, and slowly the woman gave a faint smile.

“Does that smile mean something good?” Adagio asked.

“Well, you’re lucky you came and got me to look at this. This Seed condenses spirit energy in a considerably potent if a little volatile package. You can just, well, eat it, but if you do so all at once, it’d likely cause a painful overload. Think of it like trying to swallow a whole gallon of milk all at once. Better to take it in small gulps, basically. Spread the meal out over time.”

“Hah, it’s that simple is it?” Adagio said, smiling in satisfaction, “That goat faced, shriveled old man made it sound more complicated. Hmph, but then maybe he doesn’t know just how many of his files my boys took. Probably thought I’d get overeager and just chow down on it. Well, more fool, him.”

“What do you plan to do with the Seed?” Roka asked, the real question being far more obvious with the concern in her eyes. Adagio met Roka’s gaze evenly, feeling she owed her the truth, with no BS.

“Ideally I’d like to take some of it’s power for myself, Roka. I need to strengthen myself, and I can’t afford to take my time with that. However, I will not ignore all that your father has done for me. If he’ll have it, I’ll give the majority of the Seed to him.”

“That’s what he thought you’d say,” Roka said, and Adagio gave her a questioning look. Roka smiled softly, nodding her head.

“I spoke with my father before he went to sleep. He knew you’d want to give him some of the Seed, to try and restore his power. He told me to inform you to not bother.”

“Wait, Roka, he must know how vulnerable he is right now, and in turn that makes all of you vulnerable,” Adagio said.

“He does, and the message he told me to give you was that he trusts our family’s safety to you. I think he believes he’ll regain some of his owns strength in due time, but that you need the power of this Seed far more than he does.”

“And you agree?” Adagio asked.

“Perhaps I do,” Roka said, looking at Adagio with a look that uncomfortably trusting, to the point Adagio couldn’t quite meet that gaze. She wasn’t used to having others look at her with quite that level of trust. She had set out to be friends with Fenice and Roka, or at least make them useful allies. Perhaps that relationship truly had progressed further than even she had imagined. Ember, Fenice, Roka, Di Roy, and Gaw... did she really consider the allies or vassals alone anymore?

She was not one to rely purely on sugary concepts like friendship, but perhaps as long as she had the power and cunning to back it up, it wasn’t so bad to just admit that it was nice to have a few people she could view as friends.

“Your vote of confidence is appreciated, I suppose. As is your father’s. Fine, then. I’ll keep the Seed, but that said I think I know exactly what I want to do with it. Roka, you just double check these files and make sure you understand the method in which this thing is meant to be consumed. Then, would it be alright if we use Lament’s tower for something?”

----------

“So what do you think this weird impromptu dinner is all about?” Di Roy asked Gaw.

Gaw scratched at her face with the short claws on her feet, yawned, and looked with hungry eyes at the spread of food on the table in front of the. “Don’t care. Hungry. No need for reason to eat.”

They were in the dining hall in Lament’s tower, a vast room with a vaulted ceiling. Usually it was jam packed with the orphaned Arrancar children under Lament’s protection, but the kids had eaten earlier and were now playing on the tower’s ground floor. The dining room as now given over to Adagio and her closest allies. Di Roy, Gaw, Roka, Fenice, and Ember all sat around one end of the long, dark wooden table.

Ember looked a bit confused as to why she was here, but she hadn’t denied Adago’s invitation, and Torch had been more than wiling to provide a bit of extra security in form of some of his horde keeping an eye on both the tower and Adagio’s territory. She felt a little bad about excluding Usagi from this, but Usagi was still too new, and wasn’t an active combatant.

“Well, looks like everyone is almost here,” Adagio said, then looked up as she sensed the reiatsu signatures of the last guests. They’d been out hunting, so it’d taken them a bit longer to show up. The door to the dining room opened and Dumbbell, Score, and Hoops entered, all looking rather weirded out by the sudden dinner invitation.

“Hey there, Lady Adagio,” Dumbbell down, bowing, with his two pals doing the same, if somewhat awkwardly, “Just wanted to tell you, the joint hunting expedition with Torch’s horde went really well. Got a serious good haul of Hollows in, so our people will be well fed for awhile.”

“Excellent news,” Adagio said, gesturing to her right, “All three of you, please sit. With you here, we can now begin.”

They did so, and once everyone was seated, Adagio gestured at the portions of food on the table, a combination of lesser Hollow flesh and more normal food from the human world, including drinks that Adagio had picked out to each of her vassal’s tastes. “All of you, enjoy the meal, and thank you for coming. Do start eating.”

Gaw didn’t need a second bidding, and tore into her own food with vigorous abandon. Di Roy followed suit, as did the others, but Di Roy gave Adagio an odd sidelong look as he munched away.

“Okay boss lady, you’re kinda freaking me out. What’s the deal?”

Adagio smiled in a deeply conspiratorial yet somehow genuine manner, “Can I not simply show my appreciation for those who have helped me get so far?”

“You got to admit, it’s a bit over the top, coming from you,” Fenice said, focusing on her entirely human based meal of corndogs and curly fries, “Seriously, how did you even learn that corndogs are my favorite food?”

“She merely asked me, sister,” Roka said, having come to serve several silver, covered trays to everyone, save for Fenice for some reason. “Adagio actually helped cook, believe it or not”

“And what’s so unbelievable about that?” Adagio said, “I’ll have you know that neither of my siren sisters were ever good at cooking. Sonata would burn down the kitchen if I let her in there. I made a point of learning, so I could make sure we, or at least I, ate a halfway decent meal. Ahem, but that is neither here nor there.”

“What’s with the trays?” Hoops asked, and Adagio’s smile deepened.

“Desert. For after the meal, of course.”

The meal proceeded from there, with the group making small talk, and Adagio watching with a growing sense of warm satisfaction flowing from her eyes. Gaw and Di Roy fought over the last leg of lesser Hollow, Gaw biting at Di Roy’s hand to secure her prize. Roka asked Dumbbell about the hunting expedition, and the start of the training exercise with Torch’s warriors. Ember and Fenice got to chatting about things they could bring in from the human world to make entertainment easier in Las Noches’ bland halls. The calm vibe of a normal meal permeated the dining room for a comfortable half hour, until all were stuffed full.

Then Adagio poured herself a glass of wine and raised it, “I want to toast to all of you. Not long ago I came to this realm at my lowest point. A prisoner, bereft of the only people in my life I cared about. Then, one by one, I met all of you.”

She looked at Ember, “Some of us started off simply using each other.”

Sh looked at Dumbbell, Hoops, and Score, “Some of us began as enemies.”

She looked at Di Roy and Gaw, “Some of us didn’t know if we could trust each other at first.”

She looked at Fenice and Roka, “And some of us took time to learn to trust each other.”

Adagio Dazzle raised her glass, “A toast, to all of you, who are now as important to me as any friend or family member I’ve ever had... and I have never had many. I would not be here, who I am, without you.”

“Damn straight, boss lady,” Di Roy said, raising his own mug of beer, “To freakin’ Lady Adagio, the best Espada around!”

They drank, and Adagio lowered her empty glass, “And because all of you are important to me, I realize that I will go no further without your continued help. I am a woman of vast ambitions. Each of you know I intend to reach the greatest heights this realm has to offer. I aim even to surpass Tirek himself. And I will not do so alone. So...”

She gestured for them to remove the coverings of the ‘desert’ trays, and did so with her own at the same moment the others did.

Upon the uncovered trays were well cut cubes of shining red, jeweling like substance. The Seed, carved up by Roka’s expert threads, into bite sized chunks that would allow its power to be consumed safely. Adagio had divided the Seed into even piles for all present, including herself.

“I bid you all, my dear, irreplaceable friends and loyal vassals, to eat. Eat and grow powerful with me, together. Let us ascend, together, and take from this world everything our hearts desire.”

Episode 137: Declaration

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Episode 137: Declaration

Several days after the battle of Everfree...

Sunset Shimmer’s hand shook with a tremor of unrest as she laid her hand upon the journal that connected her to its counterpart in Equestria. It had been inert since she last tried using it, and any writing she attempted lacked the warm buzz of magic that normally accompanied such an action. It was as if the magic that tied it to the other book in Equestria had simply ceased to function. The only thing she could think of that might cause that was if the spells forming that connection had been either somehow dispelled or outright removed. Or the counterpart journal itself could have been destroyed.

When she thought about this possibility, it only added fuel to the cold burn in her chest, for this wasn’t the only strange news tied to Equestria.

Not long after things had settled down in Canterlot City, and after a certain monumental discussion that still left Sunset lightheaded, things had been interrupted by the arrival of Kido Corps Chief Puddinghead. He had had quite the story to tell, concerning a certain Kraken and events that had transpired while Sunset and her friends had battled Gaia Everfree.

----------

”I just can’t believe how inconsiderate this foreign world spell flingers are!” Puddinghead declared, waving his hands with dramatic flourish. He’d plopped down right in the middle of the meeting table in Discord’s training area, sitting cross legged on the tables surface while slamming a strange, wooden casket down next to him.

Popping the top of the casket, he revealed that inside was sloshing sea water, and a miniaturized Kraken. The once massive creature was now no larger than a small dog, and it’s skin was covered in big bruises and lumps, as if it had been subjected to a severe beating. It’s eyes practically wept fearful tears as Puddinghead glared at it and the creature shrank down into the casket.

“Don’t give me that look, you sorry excuse for calamari! You cost me an entire afternoon’s worth of napping with your foolish resistance! If you’d surrendered like a good squid I wouldn’t have had to get rough with you!”

“How, um, did you make him so small?” Fluttershy asked, peering at the Kraken with a hint of sympathy as she peered into the casket.

“Hahah! My Kido is so mind numbingly advanced that shrinking the size of an object or creature is truly child’s play!” Puddinghead rubbed his chin with a pleased grin, “Of course the secrets of my power are not up for public display.”

“I don’t think anyone was asking for a detailed description,” Discord said, fanning himself with his hat, “I’m simply glad you disrupted whatever this creature was doing. What precisely happened, if you don’t mind sharing?”

“What do you think I’m here for!? A photo op!? Hmph, be amazed at my tale of heroics and woefully missed naps!” Puddinghead sprung to his feet, landing one foot atop the casket’s edge as he swept his arms out, “In the depths of the oceans I came across this dastardly cephalopod in the midst of enacting a ritual of the foreign realm’s magic! Magic that was pouring into the ritual from a great distance.”

“Camp Everfree,” Sunset said, turning a look towards Gaia Everfree, who was seated across the table, “You were sending magic to this ritual, right?”

“Yes,” Gaia confirmed, crossing her arms in a frank stare, “That was part of the deal I had struck with Charybdis. I provide magic for her ritual, and she’d provide me with spirit energy from Equestria to help empower my rebirth.”

“Gloriosa, what’s... who is Charybdis?” Timber asked. She turned eyes towards him that briefly flickered with shame, likely from Gloriosa’s personality.

“An entity from the world of magic that parallels our own. She’s used her own magical means to examine our realm from across the borders of reality for some time, and discovered me, Gaia, some time ago. She bargained with me. My rebirth in exchange for help with a ritual.”

“What was this ritual supposed to do, exactly?” asked Rarity with a pointed look, “Did you even ask?”

“Not extensively,” Gaia said with a nonchalant shrug, “To be frank, I didn’t care what Charybdis was after. She was offering me a chance to speed up my rebirth considerably through the providing of spirit energy. I wasn’t inclined to stare that gift horse in the mouth.”

“Where was she getting spirit energy from, though?” Sunset said, the possibilities generating a nervous sweat on her brow. There were very few forms of magic that dealt with anything resembling ‘spirit’ based concepts, Necromancy chief among the taboo dark magics of the world of Equestria. “Even if she had magic that could somehow manipulate spirit energy, there isn’t nearly the same amount of that kind of energy in Equestria as there is here.”

“No, there isn’t, but I got the impression that wasn’t an issue for Charbydis,” said Gaia, “We didn’t necessarily speak to each other like friends, and she kept her own cards close to the chest. My impression was that she’d been collecting her power for a very long time. She certainly showed a great deal of pride in her knowledge. Somewhat annoying, really. She reminded me of Grogar.”

“All of that aside,” Discord prompted, “What exactly was this ritual and did you manage to stop it, Puddinghead?”

“Yes, of course! Well, sort of.”

“Sorta?” said Applejack, “What do you mean ‘sorta’?”

Puddinghead gave her a sour look, “Well perhaps if I could be allowed to finish my story without any further interruptions, hm?”

“Yes, please don’t interrupt Master Puddinghead,” said Clover with enthusiasm, leaning forward with rapt attention towards her mentor. He did give her a flat look, and Clover blushed fiercely as she realized she’d just interrupted him too and she quickly held her hands up, “Apologies. Please, do continue.”

“I shall! With gusto! Now then,” he resumed his dramatic pose, “There I was, face to face with the eldritch squid! Magic poured into the space we occupied, and cracks formed in the very ground beneath us! Reality was being forcibly ripped open, joining our plane with that of another! Indeed, cold, arctic water entered our ocean, and beyond the opening I could see an abyss most dark and foreboding. Then, the Kraken attacked, and sent all manner of magic cascading towards your humble protagonist. Of course he did not know he faced the foremost master of Kido the Soul Society has ever known. The Kraken’s magic was no match for the onslaught of my own mightiful Kido spells!”

Pinkie Pie leaned over to Sunset Shimmer and whispered, “Is ‘mightiful’ a word?”

“I think so. If it isn’t I doubt this guy cares.”

“Did you have any cool sounding Kido to use for a finisher?” asked Rainbow Dash, who at Puddinghead’s irked glare she just laughed and said, “Whaaaat? I’m just curious. You’re like, the Kido Dude, right? You must have an awesome, epic finisher spell or two.”

“I, in fact, have many ‘epic’ Kido, any one of which would dazzle and sizzle your simple simian mind! None of them were necessary for an opponent of this Kraken’s mere level. Once I had it on the ropes, I simply bound it with a few well chosen Bakudo to prevent it from interfering with my examination of the ritual,” Puddinghead’s grandstanding temporarily flagged as he took on a more serious expression, “It had grown wider during my brief battle, and I could now see that beyond it law a massive underwater chasm, at the bottom of which was a temple of some sort. I saw within the columns of this temple was a enormous creature that pulsated with power, although the darkness of the depths obscured seeing the details. There were flashes of light, and the sensation of spiritual pressure, and an undulating roar that shook the waters. I could only assume a battle was taking place. I could not make out much, but I did see what I believe were colorful aquatic equines flinging magic at the massive, dark creature in the depths.”

“Wait, aquatic equines? You mean ponies!?” Sunset sat up, hands slamming the table, “What did they look like!? Did you see their colors?”

“Calm yourself. As I said, I could not see much, but colors... hmm... yes, I think one was blue, another yellow... one might have also been yellow or orange, rather hard to tell. One was very, very pink. Oh, and one was definitely purple! She was lit up rather well by a massive surge of magic, so I got a decent look, if only for a moment.”

Sunset’s breath caught in her throat, “Twilight! It had to be her! She and her friends must have been fighting Charbydis! What happened!? Did you see who won?”

“I hardly had time for a close examination,” Puddinghead said, “The portal was widening, and this creature, Charbydis or whatever, was rising towards it. Since I don’t appreciate uninvited guests trying to barge their way into our realm, I decided to place a powerful Kido barrier in front of the portal. I think that probably put a very significant wrench into that Charbydis’ plan, but I heard quite the screeching noise when she found the portal blocked from this end. From there things became rather chaotic. More flashing magical lights, explosions, what may or may not have been some odd singing numbers, then a surge of power that blew straight into my Kido barrier and the portal as a whole. It collapsed like a stack of cards, closing up in no time.”

“Wait, so... that’s a good thing right?” said Rainbow Dash, “That means the pony us’ won? Right?”

“That’s rather unclear,” Rarity said, “It sounds promising that the portal collapsed, but there’s no way to know what caused it. Our counterparts? This mysterious Charbydis?”

“Maybe Mister Kraken knows what happened?” suggested Pinkie Pie, snagging a flood lamp from thin air to click on and point towards the casket containing the miniaturized creature in question, “C’mon and spill the beans, buster!”

“Now Pinkie, there’s no need to try scaring the poor thing,” Fluttershy said, “Besides I don’t think he can tell us much. When Charbydis touched my mind during the beach attack, I got the impression the Kraken is really just a servant who isn’t told much.”

“Be that as it may, I’ve got my share of questions for our new guest,” said Discord, stroking his beard with a critical gleam in his eye that only seemed to make the Kraken shrink back even more, “We won’t spare any effort to find out what’s transpired in Equestria.”

----------

Not that it has done them much good. The Kraken truly didn’t know much, even after Fluttershy and Discord worked in tandem to question the creature. Even Fluttershy’s powers of persuasion, with the backing of her Fullbring, didn’t yield any significant information they couldn't have worked out on their own. Well, not entirely, but Sunset really only cared about knowing if Princess Twilight and her friends were okay.

The Kraken was a native of Equestria, but had spent some time in the Beast Realm, which was new information. Charbydis had access to the Beast Realm, and the Kraken was an agent who had acted as a go between for her and certain Beast Realm Clans that she offered help to through her own, strange magic. The soul manipulating magic she could use wasn’t exactly Necromancy. It affected things both living and dead, and involved direct control of spirit energy. Through it, she could share power, which was how the Kraken had gained much of its strength. It was a conduit for Charbydis’ power, and she apparently had a legion of servants who gained spell-like abilities through magical “contracts” with her. The Beast Realm Clans she aid used similar “contracts” from her to gain power, although their reasons remained unknown. The Kraken was just a mediary. Charbydis simply did all the negotiating through projecting spells.

As for why she’d been seeking to create a portal to the human world, that wasn’t clear, and the Kraken didn’t know for certain. It was possible it was simply to have a new world to plunder. Charbydis was restricted in how much she could do in Equestria with so many powerhouses like the Princesses being aware of her. The human world, however, lacked knowledge of her, despite having powerful entities of it’s own. She could have slipped into the human world’s oceans to start setting up a power base here, and if the portal remained intact, use any power gained here to further goals back in Equestria.

It sounded like Princess Twilight and her friends might have been able to interrupt the ritual meant to create that portal, but there just wasn’t any way to know, and that ate at Sunset. She picked up the inert journal, her one lifeline to the realm of her birth... and with a frustrated growl threw it onto her bed and plopped down next to it.

She was in the room Discord had given her at his shop. It was a comfortable, if not too spacious room. It was built in a Japanese style of woven tatami flooring, but with more solid walls, and a sliding wood door. Her bed was a western style, tucked up against a corner next to a desk and chair that held a plain reading lamp. Pretty bare bones, but at least Discord had given her a laptop to use, and apparently for all his warding of the shop, he still managed to get a good internet connection.

The laptop sat on the desk, open and turned on. A browser was open, showing a news report of the city recovering from the recent incident. Sunset glanced at it, her eyes squinting in a wince at the report. Too many people had gotten hurt. She laid on the bed and folded her hands behind her head, trying to shift and find a comfortable position to sleep. Sleep wasn’t coming, however. The past few days had been filled with just... too much for her mind to shut down easily.

“Yo, you’re still awake?”

The voice was Chappy’s, stemming from beneath the bed as the white rabbit plush doll poked her head out from underneath and looked up at Sunset.

“Mmmph,” Sunset replied.

Chappy clambered up onto the bed, walked over Sunset’s stomach and hopped onto the journal. She poked at it with her plush arm, “Still nothing outta this thing? Man, that bites. And just when we got a portal we might be able to kinda sorta use, too.”

“Chappy, I’m trying to sleep.”

“And from the looks of it, not succeeding. Heeeey, I know what’ll do you some good,” Chappy jumped onto Sunset’s chest and sat down, staring down at her, “You should go get some fresh air, and stab a few Hollows. Go for a Soul Reaper walk.”

Sunset found herself snorting, but almost cracking a tiny smile. Despite Chappy’s doll eyes lacking any human definition, she could still somehow see the glint in them. “You’re just looking to snag my body for an hour or two so you can hit up the kitchen. I’m onto your willy ways, you hedonistic rabbit! I’m not letting you destroy my digestive system like last night!”

“I only ate one block of cheese!”

“One was bad enough! Without Fluttershy’s help I would’ve been in the bathroom all night!”

Chappy crossed her plush arms and leaned over Sunset’s face, “That still doesn’t excuse you from ignoring me every time I bring up getting more body time.”

“It’s my body, not yours,” Sunset said, picking up Chappy by the head and gently setting her aside on the desk beside the bed, “I get that you like having the full flesh and blood deal, but part of the problem is you don’t have your own body to have all your fun with. And trust me, if you did, you’d understand why all that excess isn’t such a great thing all the time. Having to deal with the consequences of your choices might curb that hedonistic streak.”

“Well I guess I’ll never get to find out, because I’m stuck with cotton and cloth most of the time,” Chappy sighed, plopping down on the edge of the desk and kicking her tiny legs, “It’s so frustrating! Sunset, I know I’m a pain in the butt, but being in your body is always so much fun! Even when Discord makes me do chores with it while you’re busy training with your friends-”

“He does what?” Sunset asked, brow curling in consternation.

“Yeah, he’ll have me clean things, or mind the shop front, or organize stuff, move boxes or whatever. Heck I think he just does it because he doesn’t want me sneaking off anywhere,” Chappy said with a shrug, “Doesn’t bother me. Like I said, it’s just fun having a real body to move around in.”

Sunset gazed at Chappy, thinking not for the first time that the artificial soul had grown into far more than the Soul Reapers had designed her for. Sunset’s assumption was that magic had something to do with that, but that was just her guessing. Regardless, Chappy wasn’t really just a tool of convenience anymore, and perhaps it was time to try and do something for her.

“I’ll talk to Discord,” Sunset said, “About getting you a more human gigai.”

“Whoawhoawhoa! Seriously!? You’d do that!?” Chappy exclaimed with a burst of raw excitement.

Sunset tried not to let her heart get too melted by the teary eyed look of hope in Chappy’s doll eyes. “Doesn’t cost me anything to ask. If he can make one for Rarity, I don’t see why you’d be off the table.”

Chappy leaped off the desk to land on Sunset’s head, hugging the girl’s face, “That’d be amazing. Do you think he’d let me pick my hair color? Height? Boob size?”

“Ugh, let me ask him if it’s doable first before you get too excited. If it is, I might need to figure out an alternative for getting into my spirit body to fight.”

“Hey hey, no rush, just happy to be thought about,” Chappy said, giving a merry humming sound as she rocked back and forth in a dreamy daze, clearly imagining a fully human body for herself. It did cause Sunset to smile a bit. She picked up Chappy again and sat up in her bed, giving the plush a brief hug.

“Thanks.”

“Huh? For what?”

“Taking my mind off things.”

“Heheh, I can tell when you’re down in the dumps. No worries, you just come to Big Sis Chappy anytime you need cheering up.”

Sunset stood up from the bed and set Chappy down on the floor, waving her hand over the doll’s head, “Big Sis, is it? Think you fall just a bit ‘short’ in that category.”

“Bah! I’m the more mature one between us! It’s inner height I have! Inner! Hey, where are you heading off to?”

The question was asked as Sunset had started to stride to the door, sliding it open. “Figure if I can’t sleep I might as well take that walk you were talking about. Not in Soul Reaper form, but I could use some fresh air to clear my head.”

Leaving Chappy to her own devices, she began to wander through Discord’s shop, her mind wandering even further afield. Her friends, along with their families, had agreed to stay at the shop for the time being, and in the mysterious manner of the shop’s inner space an abundance of rooms had been found for everyone to stay in. Sunset had gradually learned to navigate the shop’s hallways, discovering that it all worked off a central hub of rooms that didn’t really change; the shop front, storeroom, lounge, and kitchen. Then from there if you wanted to go somewhere, you just needed to passively think about what you wanted, and the hallway would sort of just ensure you ended up there. If you wandered with no destination in mind, the hallways could stretch for a long distance, and you could end up in any number of empty rooms.

But because Sunset’s desire was for fresh air, she found herself somewhere new. A door opened up and she found herself standing on a very short balcony on what looked like the second floor of the back of the shop. A plain wood railing ran along the balcony’s slim length, and there wasn’t much of a view to speak of save for a small back yard area and a stone wall leading to another alleyway.

Still, Sunset could look up to see the night sky and a bright moon, and felt a nice, warm summer breeze in the air. It was peaceful and quiet.

And she wasn’t alone.

“Rarity?”

The other girl was standing leaning against the balcony railing, wearing what looked to be a fashionable set of nightwear consisting of a pale blue sleeping dress and purple slippers. Before noticing Sunset, Rarity had been staring up at the sky with a distant, forlorn look in her eyes, one hand lightly touching the broken end of the soul chain dangling from her chest. Upon Sunset speaking, Rarity’s head turned swiftly, eyes showing a flash of startlement before recognition set in.

“Sunset, darling, whatever are you doing up at this hour?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” Sunset said, slowly walking up and turning to lean her back on the railing. She tried very pointedly to not look at Rarity’s soul chain, even as Rarity slowly and self-consciously tucked it into the neck of her night dress.

“I suppose I couldn’t sleep either,” Rarity said, “There’s quite a lot on my mind, and I was having trouble sorting it out while sleeping in the same room where I can hear my family crying in their sleep.”

Sunset softened her voice, “Do you want me to go? I can give you some privacy.”

“No, don’t,” Rarity said, “I... don’t actually want to be all that alone, right now. I just didn’t want to interrupt anyone’s sleep, either, but if you’re in the same boat I am, being unable to get some proper shut eye... I wouldn’t mind the company.”

To this Sunset nodded, and then leaned back a bit more on the balcony, getting comfortable. Her gaze was drawn back up to the sky, where stars glittered, distant and free. She envied them a bit. Shaking her head, she said, “So, what do you think of what Discord proposed?”

Rarity turned a contemplative look downward, resting her hands on the balcony railing, “I’d say it’s our best move, if a difficult one. It paints us as a bigger target, but may also serve as a deterrent for further incidents like what happened at Everfree. Then again, it may just blow up in our faces.”

“I’ve got concerns, that’s for sure,” Sunset admitted, “But it also feels right. I think that’s why everyone agreed to at least think it over for a few days instead of calling the whole thing crazy.”

“It’s a big decision, and involves more than just us,” Rarity said, then she sighed heavily, “And on a more personal note, it gives me time to think over my own situation.”

Sunset was silent to that, mostly because she’d already said just about everything she felt she could on Rarity’s circumstances. All she could really do at this point was be supportive, and in this case it meant listening to whatever was going through Rarity’s mind, if she felt like sharing.

Rarity understood as much, giving Sunset a ghost of a thankful look before her face stilled, “It is strange. This should be so simple. I should take Discord’s offer of a gigai, shouldn't I? There really isn’t much disadvantage to it, is there? So I couldn’t have children. I was always going to be focused on my career, so who knows if I’d even have time for becoming a mother. And so what if I won’t age normally? Say goodbye to needing to put so much work into looking young, right? And so what if the gigai will never feel quite right? I’ve had to wear clothes sometimes that felt a bit off. I could learn to live with it.”

Sunset didn’t say anything. She just let her friend get her words out, while she stayed close and kept eye contact, listening and absorbing all Rarity needed to let out. Rarity’s eyes had a shimmer of wetness in them as the confusion at her own feelings strained her voice.

“I shouldn’t even think twice about it. But, I am. Because it feels so... wrong, somehow. Why should I get to cheat death, when so many others don’t get that luxury? Plenty of people lost their lives during the attack on the city, and they aren’t getting second chances at life, are they? Thousands die every day, often unfairly, unjustly, torn from their loved ones and denied their futures, and they don’t get some convenient get-out-of-death-free card. So what right do I have to treat death like a minor inconvenience?”

She ended the pain, doubt tirade of words with a questioning look towards Sunset, which was all the prompting Sunset needed. It did take her a few seconds to get her thoughts together, which was time she used to slid a little closer to Rarity and send a comforting grasp to her friend’s hand.

“Rarity, I think I understand why this is bothering you so much. You’ve always given others consideration first, and yourself a distant second. It's not like you don’t do things for yourself, but it’s like you don’t feel right if you think you're taking something from others that you could have given, instead. But... this is your life we’re talking about. You only have one of those. You can’t give it more than once. Or rather, that’s how it normally is. You knew Twilight was in danger, and you didn’t hesitate for a second to give your life protecting her. In any other time or place, that’d be the end of your story. The generous, beautiful soul that fought and died to protect a friend. But you know what?”

Sunset gripped Rarity’s hand a little tighter and turned to look her friend in the eyes, “Screw that story. This is your life, and you deserve a second chance to keep living it. I don’t care if it’s unfair to anyone else. This isn’t about them. This isn’t even about your family. Rarity, for once in your life, put aside what others think of you and just ask yourself; what do you want? Do you want to keep living your life here, or do you want to cross over to whatever waits in Soul Society? As far as I’m concerned that’s the only thing that matters! What do you, and you alone want for yourself?”

“For myself,” Rarity said the words as if they hadn’t even truly occurred to her. For an astonished moment she mutely stared back at Sunset. Then her eyes slowly turned down towards where Sunset held her hand. With a gradual, trembling strength, Rarity squeezed that hand back tighter, and a choking hitch entered her voice.

“I want to stay. I really, truly want to stay with all of you. But-”

“No buts,” Sunset said, “You want to stay, that’s the end of it. There’s no need to think about it beyond that.”

“Is it really... okay? I’m not being a terrible person? I’m not being too selfish?”

“Not even close,” Sunset said with the confidence and assurance of a sunrise, showing her friend her brightest smile, “You’re one of the best people I know, Rarity, and I’ll give you a good hard smack upside the head if you ever doubt that fact.”

Rarity sniffed, wiping at her face, “Oh you, you’re going to utterly embarrass me. I... oh my I feel a bit lightheaded. I usually have a couch to lay on for situations like this. High emotions are just not good for me.”

“Take a breath, and try not to fall over the balcony, okay?”

Rarity gave a short laugh, and spent a few moments fanning herself with a hand, getting herself in order. Once she’d calmed down a bit, she took a long breath and let it out slowly. “I do feel better, Sunset. I’ll take Discord up on his offer. It’s... strange. I was so very close to convincing myself to go to Soul Society. I’m not even sure why, outside of guilt. Perhaps a part of me thought I’d be more useful to everyone over there. Perhaps become a Soul Reaper myself.”

“I always thought you looked good in black,” Sunset said.

“Really? I mean, perhaps with the right accents...” Rarity mused, then shook her head, “Those uniforms are just so drab, I’d go mad having to wear them. And I suppose it’d take months if not years to really get any good with a Zanpaktou.”

“Hey, only took me a few weeks.”

“I rather attribute that to your own talents, Sunset, and the excessive training regimen that Discord subjected all of us too. I suppose magic and extreme circumstances collaborated to aid in our growth. I wouldn’t have all those advantages in Soul Society. Although...”

“Although?” Sunset prompted, curious.

Rarity gave a light, self amused laugh, “The thought had crossed my mind I might enjoy working alongside Blueblood.”

Sunset wasn’t able to stop a wry smirk from forming, “Oh? Didn’t think he was your type, especially after the ‘trying to kill you’ incident.”

Rarity waved a dainty hand, “Oh pish, I’m well over that. And I’m not certain I actually consider him my ‘type’, but I am curious to see if he can make good on improving himself. Really, attitude aside, he is something of a looker.”

“If you say so,” Sunset said, still smirking, and Rarity gave her arm a playful swat.

“Let a girl dream a bit, Sunset. With all these life and death situations we keep finding ourselves in, it’s created quite a bit of tension, and some of us might enjoy a bit of romance for the stress relief.”

“Uh-huh, ‘stress relief’.”

“Stop making air quotes, Sunset, I’m trying to be serious!”

“Okay, okay, I’m putting them away,” Sunset said, hiding her hands behind her back. The two of them shared a brief laugh, and a comfortable silence fell over them for a minute or two. However Rarity soon regained her musing look.

“You know Sunset, it’s strange. Even if I stay here, and live my life out in a gigai, eventually all of us will still succumb to natural causes, will we not? Even if my gigai doesn't age, I might have an accident, or fall in battle again. I can’t avoid Soul Society forever. None of us can. Have you given any thought to what you might do in Soul Society, when that day comes?”

“Truthfully? Not a lot. I can’t afford to think much past our present circumstances. I’ll leave the future to sort itself out when I get to it.”

Rarity nodded, “A fair way to look at things. At any rate, truly Sunset, thank you. This talk... I really needed it.”

“What are friends for?”

“Deeply emotional balcony conversations, apparently,” Rarity said, then suddenly yawned, after which she gave a mortified blush, “My word, and such conversations apparently take their toll. I think I may return to bed and finally be able to get some sleep. I am, if you pardon the Pinkie-level pun, dead tired all of a sudden.”

Sunset nodded towards the door back into the shop, “Go and get some rest, Rarity. We’re all going to need it before long.”

“Don’t forget to get some sleep yourself, Sunset,” Rarity said as she walked to the door, pausing there and looking back with a warm note of friendly concern, “I know not being able to contact the Twilight from Equestria is bothering you. All I can say is trust in her. I’m certain whatever has happened on the other side, our pony counterparts are able to handle themselves.”

Sunset gave a nod, but it was a subdued one, “I know. Good night, Rarity.”

Rarity left after a brief return nod, leaving Sunset there to ponder.

It wasn’t that she didn’t have faith in Princess Twilight. But she’d already seen what could happen to one of her friends, and Equestria didn’t have gigais.

----------

Sunset wasn’t the only one burning the midnight oil, although in Fluttershy’s case it was hardly a matter of being unable to sleep. She just found she didn’t need sleep as much as she had before. As something of a side effect of her Fullbring, she found that only an hour or two of quiet meditation left her feeling fully rested as if she’d had a full night in a soft, luxurious bed. This proved fortunate, as it let her leave the shop to fulfill a promise. She was courteous enough to tell Discord what she was doing and why, and he had no objections. Indeed, given the plan he had proposed, what Fluttershy was now doing only added to it.

The city at night was quiet, save for the regular mechanical thrum of industrial machinery as reconstruction continued through the night hours.

Fluttershy found that no one bothered her as she moved down the streets, even the Soul Reapers on patrol only giving her partial attention. They were more on the lookout for further Hollows, despite there being not so much as a peep from a single lesser Hollow since the attack on the city ended.

Fortunately the Soul Reapers were easy for Fluttershy to sense coming and going, so she knew when it would be safe to meet her new friend. She just hoped he was as good at keeping his head down as he claimed. It would have been a little awkward to bring him on the initial ride over, and he had said he wanted to handle the walk himself. Fluttershy had simply given him directions to her house, where she agreed to meet him in a few days.

She found him not inside the house, but rather in her family’s garage. A few tools from her father’s work bench were scattered about, and Fluttershy smelled the faint odor of metal welding still hanging in the air.

“Smooze?”

His form shifted in the back of the garage. He was taller now than the infantile form he had before. Now his body of thick, purplish ooze had a lanky, but solid shape, about the size of a thin teenager perhaps around the age of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The bony protrusions of his skeletal frame stood out amid the slowly pulsating ooze-flesh. He’d make a makeshift cloak out of a blue tarp, and on his face was a welded mask of metal that covered his face, save for two drilled eye sockets.

Upon seeing her, Smooze visibly sagged with relief, and sank to one knee, “My lady Fluttershy. You came.”

“I promised I would,” Fluttershy said with a relieved smile, “I’m glad you made it unharmed. I was a bit worried with how many Soul Reapers are around.”

Smooze gurgled out a noise that might have been construed as a laugh, “My reiatsu remains low enough to be beneath notice, easy to conceal.”

He suddenly sputtered a cough, bending over as his body shook with a convulsion. Fluttershy reached out to him but he took a step back, warding her off with one, dripping hand. “No, my lady. Pure as you are, I’d hate to infect you with anything by accident. It’s dangerous enough just breathing the air near me. I will have to be careful when I leave your home, to ensure I’ve left no piece of myself behind.”

She looked at him with patient eyes and stepped nearer. With fine tuned control of her Fullbring she summoned a single golden hand from the halo she formed around her back and moved it over to Smooze, “I’m far from fragile, and can protect myself from the diseases that pain you. It must have been hard getting all the way here. Let me help you.”

Smooze shuddered as her power washed over him in a gentle coating of gold light. He all but sank to the ground, his feet turning into a conjoined puddle as he let out a gurgling sound of relief. He raised one hand to clasp at the golden spirit hand Fluttershy held to him, holding it like a lifeline in the middle of a storm. “You seem impossible to me, even as you stand before me. That you bestow such care to a creature like me. Does radiance such as yours belong in this world?”

“I don’t know about that. I’m just trying to ease some of the suffering you’re going through, like I would for anyone. I wish I could do more for you, but for now this is all I can do,” said Fluttershy, keeping the flow of her own spirit energy steadily seeping into Smooze. She couldn’t heal what he was, probably not without breaking down the very bonds that kept him intact, but she could beat back the tide of agony that assaulted his senses. At least for a time.

“What you can do is miraculous, my lady. That you do it expecting nothing, asking for nothing, is even more so.”

“Again, you’re giving me too much credit. I mean, I asked you to come meet me here for a reason, after all. I did want to ask you something, if it wasn’t too much trouble.”

Smooze bowed deeply to her, “My power is meager until I have more time to recover, but I have already decided to swear my service to you, and I shall affirm that now. I am yours, Lady Fluttershy, in whatever capacity this unworthy creature can serve.”

“Please, don’t phrase it like that. Let’s just be friends, okay, Mr. Smooze?”

She had come here to help him, not bind him to her in any way. While she did appreciate his gratitude, she wasn’t comfortable with being placed on some pedestal. She wasn’t after a servant, and certainly not a slave. If he was willing to not harm anyone and be at peace with her and her friends, then she was happy to welcome him as a friend. The reason she wanted to meet him was to make that offer, not take some oath of service from him.

For Smooze, however, it was as if every word from Fluttershy just further tightened the bond of fealty he’d already sworn with his soul. Her power flowing through his pain-wracked body was a panacea of purest joy to his savaged senses. Perhaps some might view his desires as simplistic, and hence his oath thinly bound, but to Smooze it was as elemental as breathing that he should aid the one who could ease his torment. Having spent so long in Las Noches where kindness like Fluttershy’s was all but an unknown dream, being here with her was like living that dream in the flesh. All he desired was to repay her kindness, so that he might continue to bask in this warmth he’d never dared imagine finding.

“If it is your wish I act solely as your ‘friend’, then I shall endeavor to do so, but understand my loyalty will always be yours. Although I may need to keep some distance to avoid causing you trouble.”

“Actually, that is another thing I wanted to ask you,” said Fluttershy, “I know a man named Discord. Are you familiar with him?”

Smooze tilted his masked head curiously, “It is a name that’s been spoken in the shadows of Las Noches on occasion. A former Captain of the Gotei 13. Twelfth Division.”

“He lives in town and has been helping me and my friends, along with our families,” Fluttershy explained, “I want you to come to his shop with me. You’ll be safe, there, and he might be able to help you even more than I can.”

“If that is your wish, I will not hesitate. If he has your trust, I shall do the same,” Smooze said, but read something on Fluttershy’s face. A sort of shamed hesitance, and he couldn’t stand seeing such a look, “There is more to this. Do not be ashamed to ask me, my lady.”

“It can wait,” Fluttershy said, “I mean it. I didn’t come here to make demands of you. I’ll take you to Discord’s, and see if he can help you with your condition. If, and only if, you truly want to, I might have a favor to ask of you afterward, but it might be dangerous, and you have no obligation-”

“It will be done,” Smooze said, “Whatever it may be, I’ll not balk at repaying the gift you’ve given to me. What is it you would have me do?”

“Not here,” Fluttershy said, her eyes looking outward from the garage as her senses stretched out to pick up on the movements of Soul Reaper patrols. “We’ll discuss it after I’ve gotten you back to Discord’s shop and introduced you. Hmm, now let’s see here, I’m pretty sure dad has a few plastic bins around here...”

It took a little doing, but in short order Fluttershy had acquired a decent sized plastic laundry bin that was just large enough for Smooze to curl up inside. With an additional tarp to cover the top of the bin, Fluttershy had little trouble carrying him outside, covered from any casual view. Sure, it was possible some Soul Reapers might find it odd to spot one of the well known human Fullbringers carrying a tarp-covered bin around town, but if any of them questioned her... well it wouldn’t be hard just to use her power to convince them that nothing was out of the ordinary.

----------

Despite the late hour, the energy of young teenagers was not easily curbed, and so it was that the Cutie Mark Crusaders found themselves doing some midnight training in the vast basement area of Discord’s shop.

“You sure it’s cool we use this place?” Scootaloo asked Screwloose, who’d been assigned by Discord to chaperone the girls.

“Oh, you cute little piglets can fight it out to your hearts’ content down here,” said Screwloose, lounging on a rock that overlooked the small quarry-like area the girls had chosen to train in, “If it can handle your big sisters going all out, believe me, it can handle your budding abilities.”

“So, uh, ya wanna be our sparrin’ partner?” Applebloom ventured, removing her ribbon and summoning forth the vambrace and red whip of her Fullbring, “I mean you n’ that Screwball gal can fight n’ stuff, right?”

A lyrical laugh of partially made chimes escaped Screwloose, “Oh we sure can, but not sure me or the bouncy ball of death that is my junior would make good sparring partners for you girls. We don’t have our Zanpaktou. Those got stolen a ways back. We’ve got some handy dandy weapons our boss mocked up for us, but that’s it. Besides, you already got a sparring partner.”

Screwloose pointed a spindly finger across the quarry, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders looked, and to their surprise found that someone else was already there, as if expecting them. She’d been examining the rock strata at one end of the quarry, but glanced over at the girls upon being mentioned. She raised a tiny rock in her hand and spoke in a deadpan tone.

“Boulder couldn’t sleep,” Maud Pie said, “I’m keeping him company. Discord also said I should train with him more.”

“I guess that’s fine,” said Sweetie Belle, following Applebloom’s example and bringing out her makeup compact to summon forth the staff that was her Fullbring, “But isn’t three on one kind of unfair?”

“Yeah,” said Scootaloo,“ Especially because I’ve got Alerion, who’s waaaaay tough.”

Screwloose laughed, although said nothing else as Maud Pie cocked her head slightly to one side and said, “I’ll try to keep up.”

With that, Maud closed her hand around her pet rock, Boulder. A burst of dark gray light shot up from her closed hand, and bands of similar light rolled out and up her arm. The light moved in tight strands around her other hand as well, forming together until they solidified. Abruptly Mau Pie’s hands and arms up to her elbow were covered in thick, dark gray granite. However her hands weren’t merely covered in a layer of stone armor, but rather formed into impressively large, blocky gauntlets bearing large, harsh spikes along their knuckles. It rather reminded the Cutie Mark Crusaders of huge, square-shaped, spiked boxing gloves. While the three girls were only starting to get a feel for sensing spiritual pressures, it wasn’t hard to sense the powerful rise of reiatsu from Maud as she cocked back her right arm, then brought it down like a piston upon the ground in front of her.

An earthquake like shockwave rolled out, upending all three girls as the ground beneath them shattered.

Screwloose laughter turned into an amused howl. The three Cutie Mark Crusaders picked themselves up in varying states of dizziness, Sweetie Belle’s eyes in particular swirling about before she plopped back down on the ground, “Maybe I shouldn’t have crawled out of bed in the first place.”

“Did I overdo it?” asked Maud, blinking once.

“Now what’s going on down here?”

The new voice belonged to Scootaloo’s Aunt Lofty, who showed up at the rim of the quarry area with her arms crossed and a firm look on her face. She leapt down into the quarry and walked over to where Scootaloo was dusting herself off and trying to steady her feet. “Scootaloo, you’re supposed to be in your room.”

“Aww, c’mon Auntie, I can’t sleep right now. And me and my friends need to get stronger so we can help all of you with the big plan, right?”

“Partially right,” said Lofty, shooting a sharp glance at Screwloose, “You’re supposed to be watching these kids.”

“I am,” said Screwloose, pointing at her eyeballs, “I watched them come down here. I’ll watch them train. I’m their escort, not their mom. If the piglets want to join the big girls club, I don’t see an issue with them getting to work on training their weak, anemic spiritual muscles. Besides, the rock-girl has some serious potential, and I like the cut of her jib.”

“Thank you,” Maud said. Lofty ran a hand through her hair.

“Not helping, Miss Pie. Look, training needs to happen in a bit more of a constructive manner than just having these girls beat each other up. Especially in Scootaloo’s case. Bount need to strengthen their bonds with their Dolls, and feed properly. If Scootaloo trains too hard without proper feeding, it can threaten the bond with her Doll and it might turn Alerion against her.”

“Huh, what’s she talking about, Scoots?” asked Applebloo, “Ya already ate a ton at dinner.”

Scootaloo’s face turned stiff, like a frozen lake, and there was a current of nervousness as she said, “Aunt Lofty, they don’t know yet. I haven’t told them.”

“I know,” said Lofty, “And there’s no way to keep it secret if we’re going to be part of this larger group. Your friends will learn sooner or later, so it might as well be sooner. Besides, I know you haven’t fed since Everfree. It’s fine to push it a few days, even a week, but you're still young and developing, dear. It’s time.”

“...Okay,” said Scootaloo, voice quiet with a sense of fear and shame. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom both exchanged worried looks before they both looked back at their friend.

“Scootaloo, is something wrong? You know you can tell us anything, right?” said Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo flinched as if stung.

“I-I know that! It’s just... this is kind of the least cool thing about me, and I really don’t like it, even if I’ve had my whole life to get used to it. Um, so like, you know how I’m not human, but a Bount, right?”

“Yeah,” said Applebloom, “Don’t really git just what that means, just that you n’ yer family got them nifty Dolls n’ don’t age normal.”

“There’s a lot more to it than that,” Scootaloo said, lowering her head so her eyes were hidden by the fall of her bangs, “Part of it is that we got to feed on a certain thing to keep ourselves alive. Soul energy.”

“Huh... that’s kinda weird, but why are you so worked up over that?” asked Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo let out an aggravated sigh.

“Where do you think we have to get ‘soul energy’, Sweetie Belle? It’s not like I can just go down to the convenience store and buy a ‘spirit cola’ or something. Bounts have to take the soul energy from somewhere, you know?”

Sweetie Belle’s face remained a scrunched up mask of confusion, but Applebloom rubbed her chin, thinking about it, and it started to click into place in her mind as her eyes widened. “You got to feed on souls, just like Hollows do!”

“No,” said Lofty, cutting in with a clear cut tone, “Not like Hollows. Hollows eat souls in their entirety. Bounts... we can go that far, but we don’t have to. It’s possible for us to basically ‘take a sip’ from a soul, consuming a little of its energy but not enough to really harm it. It takes practice to not consume too much, but a skilled Bount can feed on a few souls every week or so and maintain ourselves without doing any permanent damage.”

“It still sucks!” Scottaloo blurted out, “I’m not even that good at it. I’m always scared I’m going to take too much! It’s... not like normal food, guys. It feels too good, you know? There’s a rush that comes with it that just bites, because it makes you want to take more, and I’m always freaked out I’m going to end up hurting someone.”

“But you don’t,” Lofty said, “You’ve been doing very well, and you always have me or Aunt Holiday with you to make sure you don’t.”

“I know, but it still scares me. And I didn’t want my friends to have to know about this. It’s so freakin’... uncool.”

She sagged down, shoulders tense. Much as Lofty had said, Scootaloo had known her friends would learn this about her sooner or later, especially if they were going to train together more. She’d be expending more energy than normal to get stronger, which would mean needing to feed her Bount nature more often. It was probably for the best to just get it out now, even if it meant her friends wouldn’t look at her the same way anymore.

Scootaloo didn’t look at her friends, but she did hear both Sweetie Belle and Applebloom moving as the pair walked up to either side of her. She then felt a rough but encouraging pat on the back, Applebloom’s charming twang of a voice saying, “Aw shucks Scoots, will ya stop moppin’? It ain’t natural ta see ya gettin’ down on yourself.”

“Seriously,” said Sweetie Belle, “It’s weird hearing you call yourself uncool when you’ve got ‘cool’ on lockdown way better than me and Applebloom.”

“Hey, I’m cool!” Applebloom said, holding up her whip, “Do not cool people have amazin’ whips?”

“Guys,” Scootaloo looked back and forth between the two, “Are you really trying to act like you’re not bothered about learning Bounts literally feed on souls?”

“Eeeeh, it’s a little on the creepy side,” Sweetie Belle admitted, but then she just shrugged her dainty shoulders and smiled, “But it’s you, Scootaloo. I guess it’s kind of like how our big sisters are kinda still friends with that Adagio lady, or how they made nice with Gaia, or Gloriosa, or whoever she is now. It takes all types. You’re our friend, no matter what.”

“Couldn’t o’ said it better myself,” Appleboom confirmed, “I mean, ain’t like ya got a choice n’ diet if you Bount types really do gotta do that. Just s’ long as ya don’t do no real harm, what reason do we got ta judge ya fer it?”

“You guys...” Scootaloo stood silent for a moment, then let out a shuddering breath as relife flooded her, “I really thought you guys might not want to hang out with me after learning that.”

“Pfft, yeah right, we’re a team. A little soul sipping doesn’t change that,” said Sweetie Belle, who then blinked and added, “Man, my life has gotten weird.”

Maud, looking stoic as ever but maintaining a faintly confused head tilt, approached Screwloose and said, “Are we still training?”

Screwloose shrugged, “Give ‘em a sec to sort themselves out first.”

“I still object to letting you oversee training,” said Lofty, “It’s clear a real adult needs to be present for this. So, that being the case, I’ll volunteer myself. First, however, Scootaloo does need to feed, and nighttime is better for finding souls and avoiding detection by Soul Reapers.”

Screwloose lazily stood form her rock and hopped off it, waving at Lofty, “No need to go yanking the kid along on some soul hunt. If you Bounts are serious about joining up with us, the boss is going to provide for your needs like anyone else. And in case you haven’t noticed, there’s an abundance of soul energy right here in the shop.”

“What do you mean, precisely?” asked Lofty, and Screwloose pointed at herself.

“Me and Screwball are both officer-grade Soul Reapers, and we’ve got reiryoku to spare. Any time you Bounts need a sip, come to us. And if that doesn’t work for you, the boss is whipping up something we can pour spirit energy into. That ‘spirit cola’ might’ve sounded like a joke when Scootaloo said it, but give Discord some time and you might find yourselves with a whole menu of spiritually charged goodies to satisfy even the most picky soul-vampire in the crowd.”

There was a glint of genuine surprise on Lofty’s face, some of her stand-offish stance loosening up as she uncrossed her arms and nodded, “Well then... looks like Holiday and I made the right call aligning ourselves with you.”

“So I won’t have to take energy from unwilling souls anymore?” Scootaloo asked, a spark of hope lighting up her eyes.

“Nah, little one, at least not as long as you’re under our roof,” Screwloose said, “So if you want a bite, you just come to big sis Screwloose, or my pint-sized partner.”

The relief was palpable from Scootaloo, and even Lofty wasn’t able to fully hide some of her own satisfaction. The girls gave Scootaloo some privacy to get herself fed, although both Sweetie Belle and Applebloom remained curious about the details of how Bounts fed. Scootaloo was still far too embarrassed to actually let them watch, however. Lofty remained to oversee the training session, although she insisted that the girls only do so for an hour, since young teenagers still needed to sleep whether they thought so or not.

Sunset, amid her late night wanderings, only briefly poked her head into the training area. Watching her friends’ family training together in the same place she and those same friends trained in not so long ago brought a relaxed smile to Sunset’s face. She spent a little longer watching the training bout, chuckling as she noticed Maud was handling the three Cutie Mark Crusaders rather impressively, even as she demonstrated a distinct reluctance to strike at Scootaloo’s Doll, Alerion. Must be a rock related thing.

Maybe it really will turn out okay, Sunset thought to herself as she left the training area without saying a word or interrupting the next generation’s training.

----------

One of the perks of being among the upper echelon of the world’s spiritual entities was that swift travel across the world was readily available. Super speed alone made exploring the physical world a breeze, and combine that with something like the Garganta portals that allowed instant travel to places one had already been, and no place in the world was off limits. Assuming one could avoid being detected by the enemy, of course. For Thorax, that had always been just about anyone who wasn’t a part of his family. Not just Soul Reapers and Quincy, but even his fellow Hollows were effectively enemies he had to be on the lookout for.

But he’d always been a free spirit. Even when his mother had impressed upon him that enemies always lurked on all sides he had still shunned the danger to go exploring. It was how, when he’d still been relatively young, he’d run into his first Soul Reaper. And he’d run into her while exploring, of all places, a cemetery.

Human cemeteries had fascinated him. Just the odd idea that they buried the bodies the souls of their loved ones occupied in the ground had just seemed so odd to someone like him, who was born in a place where ‘death’ generally meant you were eaten or vanished.

This cemetery in particular was a war memorial, and was rather large. He’d never learned the name of it, but it was located outside of one of the larger human cities. The name had never meant anything to him, but it had become a special place to him because it was where he’d met Luna, the first Soul Reaper he’d ever known. She’d made an awkward attempt to kill him that day, and he’d made a game of it. He always came back to the same cemetery, and every time she’d tried to kill him, at least for the first few months. One day he’d asked her out of the blue why she never brought help, and she’d replied by telling him that she wanted to deal with him herself.

After that, their ‘fights’ became more like sparring matches, where they ended up talking more than fighting. He’d learned she had a sister she felt inferior to and was always trying to catch up to. She’d learned that he had siblings he loved and a mother he cherished, but was also a little scared of.

For a while nothing changed about this routine. They were still ‘enemies’ who fought, but their ‘fights’ were just an excuse to be around each other. They didn’t share secrets to harm each other's factions, but they shared personal stories about their lives, hidden joys and fears they both felt. Before they knew it, they weren’t even fighting anymore, even in jest. They’d just meet in the cemetery, talk, laugh, cry, then part ways again until the next time.

She wasn’t his first kiss, but he suspected he might have been hers. By the time that happened, his mother had found out about where he’d been going off to and who he’d been seeing.

That was when everything had started to go wrong. He should have known better. This was before he’d learned just how... different his mother was from others. Even among Hollowkind. It couldn’t even really be described as ‘madness’, because it was too focused and organized for that. ‘Evil’ didn’t sit with him either, because he knew her love for her children was the genuine article and not some affected or forced emotion.

But she was dangerous, and it was that fact that he’d failed to realize when Luna had become drawn into her web. That mad or not, evil or not, his mother Chrysalis was a danger to those around her by simple virtue of being herself, and because of that someone he cared for deeply had been wounded.

Now... now he had to own up to it all. He didn’t know if he could make any kind of restitution. Perhaps Luna didn’t want that. Regardless, he’d been wanting to see her again, to at least try and set things right. Even if it cost him his head to do so.

He didn’t have to wait long for her. Thorax had perched himself atop one of the small, grassy hills overlooking the largest portion of the graves. Shade from a group of trees with low hanging branches had provided a pool of shadows for Luna to rise from, and there was no telling if she’d been waiting there for him, or had just arrived. Either way, in one eye blink Thorax was alone, and the next, she was there behind him, her reiatsu suppressed to erase any sense of her presence. The only reason he did feel her arrival was because he knew to pay attention to scents in the air, and he was more than familiar enough with hers.

“If you’re going to strike, my back does make for a well shaped and tempting target,” he said after several seconds of silence in which Luna hadn’t said anything.

He heard the heated edge in her voice covering a wealth of other feelings as she stepped up next to him, “You wanted this, so don’t. Just don’t. If you have something to say, I’ll give you a few minutes to say it. That’s about all I feel I owe you, and you’re fortunate I even feel that much.”

“That’s fair,” he said, “You have every right to hate me. I lured you right into my mother’s grasp. I encouraged you to trust her. I helped her plant the seed of doubt and conflict that nearly had you at blows with your sister. If things had gone even a little differently, you’d have at best become a willing puppet to my mother. At worst...? I don’t even know.”

“You are not doing a very good job of convincing me I shouldn’t have stabbed you the second I arrived. In fact, you seem keen on reminding me of every reason I have to hate you, Thorax,” Luna said, voice raw with old wounds. Thorax closed his eyes painfully and nodded.

“Yes, because I’m not hiding from my part in things. Before anything else, I can’t afford to turn away from that. I hurt you. I might not have known everything, I might have been naïve, but none of that changes the results. Anything else I say has to come with that simple acknowledgment of reality.”

He turned to her. She didn’t meet his eyes, at least not initially. One hand was on the hilt of the larger of her two blades, but the tension coursing over her body had as much to do with the echoes of remembered pain as much as the anger that was born from it. And the ghost of affection that conflicted with it all. Thorax understood, given he felt about the same.

“When things started between us, I genuinely believed that what we had was something special,” he said, “A Soul Reaper and a Hollow, together. I thought it might bridge the gap between our peoples. When my mother found out about us, she used that to get at you. She used me to do it. I let her, because I trusted her when she told me she didn’t intend to harm you, but make you a part of our family. I should have known better. No, I already knew better, I just didn’t want to believe...”

He could so easily recall the way his mother had spoken to him, laying out the plan. To draw Luna into their fold, to have a Soul Reaper turn against Soul Society. Luna had confessed her inferiority complex towards Celestia to Thorax, and Chrysalis had preyed on that to try and convince Luna that she could do things her sister couldn’t by forming an alliance. Chrysalis had dangled the notion of even arranging an ambush on Tirek himself, opening the door for Luna to be Soul Society’s greatest hero, who forged a pact to take down the most powerful Hollow in history. And Thorax had encouraged it all, because his mother had asked him to, and because he had fooled himself into believing she’d been genuine.

It wasn’t as if he didn’t have reason to believe her. He knew she had been seeking a way to be rid of Tirek for a long time. Adding a Soul Reaper of Luna’s talent to their list of allies would have been a large boon in that regard. Sure, Luna had only been a Lieutenant at the time, but her talent had rivaled that of her older sister. Thorax had believed his mother had intended to take Luna under her wing once she was part of the family and sharpen those talents to their maximum extent for when the time came to overthrow Tirek.

In a way, perhaps Chrysalis had intended something along those lines. Just not in the way Thorax had expected. And certainly hadn’t approved of.

Maybe in his mother’s twisted mind, she had been truthful, just not in the way either Thorax or Luna had expected.

“When I brought you to our home, I thought mother was going to welcome you as an equal. I thought it was going to be the next big step towards dethroning Tirek. I thought...” he paused, shaking his head, “I thought that was the moment you and I would be able to show the whole world that a Hollow and a Soul Reaper could be together, and bring peace. I deceived myself, and in so doing, I nearly doomed you.”

Luna shook with a silent fury, “Chrysalis did worse than nearly kill me, Thorax. Before I was able to escape, she took a part of me. A part of my soul. She then infected me with a piece of hers.”

“I know,” he told her, solemn misery in his voice, “My mother could have taken control of you entirely, if she’d gotten more than just a small fragment inside you. Do you know the reason she couldn’t?”

“No,” Luna admitted, “The fight was too chaotic. I was so focused on just escaping. I’ve never spent a fight running more than trying to strike my enemy, but Chrysalis was...” she shook, eyes pinched shut at the memory, “She is the only enemy I’ve ever fought who left me feeling that afraid. When she struck me with that power, I could feel her spirit slipping into mine. I don’t know why she stopped short.”

“Because I stopped her,” Thorax said, remembering that moment with crystal clarity. It was the only time in his life he’d directly interfered with his mother. It wasn’t as if he had done much, truthfully. The soul infection power his mother possessed either required an infusion of her blood or a direct, focused link of spirit energy, usually via her Zanpaktou being stabbed directly into her target.

“I don’t remember you even being there,” Luna said, “Chrysalis had dismissed you so we could ‘talk’ in her chambers, before she revealed her true intentions.”

“I didn’t go far. I lingered close, Luna. I also followed both of you as you tried to flee, and mother chased you down like a damn fox hunting down a rabbit. I stayed hidden, Luna. I didn’t know what to do. Opposing my mother was a thought I could barely fathom at the time. It was only when she had her sword buried in you that I snapped, and acted.”

“I remember...” Luna’s voice turned quiet with haunted memory, “She’d pinned me to the wall as I tried to open a Senkaimon Gate. I felt her power seeping into me, right where she’d taken a bite out of my soul. I felt her inside me, Thorax, like poison. Then... then her sword was just yanked out of me suddenly. I didn’t question it, I just finished opening the Senkaimon and fell through.”

“Yes, because I fired a Bala right into mother’s sword and knocked it both out of you, and out of her hand,” Thorax said, “And you went through the gate, without seeing what had happened.”

“Am I supposed to believe that?” she asked, bitterness seeping heavily from her every twitch as she stepped back from him, “Can you prove that you did that? For all I know this is just another lie, Thorax. You told me so many.”

“I can’t prove anything to you, Luna. If you don’t believe me, I can’t do a thing about that. But I still owed you the truth, one way or the other. I don’t excuse the part I played in what happened. That said, I never lied to you about how I felt, and I never once intended for you to get hurt. I’ve been hoping for centuries now that one day I could just tell you how sorry I am. Not to be forgiven, but because you deserved to know. I didn’t betray you. I never stopped caring about you. And I’m sorry.”

A chilling breeze passed over the hill, stirring strands of Luna’s hair in front of her face as she stared at him with a searching look. It was like she was scouring his face for any trace of deceit to match the mistrust that still burned freely in her own eyes. Her hand never once left the hilt of her Zanpaktou. The silence became an uncomfortable weight bearing down on Thorax, but he didn’t buckle under it. He had set aside any hint of his normal, joking personality by now. All he had to offer Luna in recompense for the past was his sincerity in the present.

“Even if I believe you,” Luna said at last, “I’m not sure I can forgive it all so easily. How much you did or didn’t know about Chrysalis’ plan back then doesn’t change that you still went along with it, and only turned on her when she literally had me pinned to a wall.”

She paused, then asked, “What exactly did she do after that, anyway? I can’t imagine she was pleased with you.”

Thorax gulped, “She wasn’t, but in a way I think she was more surprised than anything else. I had expected her to punish me severely for ruining her plan, but she was rather lenient with me. No food for a month.”

“She starved you?” Luna said, lips twisting, “For a month!?”

“As I said, lenient, all things considered. From the way she spoke to me afterward, I almost got the impression she was impressed I stood up to her. I believe her exact words were, ‘Good boy, you’ve learned to desire something other than my approval.’ Since then I’ve been careful about pushing my boundaries with her, but I have never made the mistake of completely trusting what she tells me,” Thorax said, thinking back to the way she’d had Pharynx test Grogar’s prototype siren gem, “I still wonder just why she created me and my siblings. Why we’re different from her other children. What was the point of making myself, Pharynx, and Ocellus with so much more independent personality and power?”

Luna looked at him for a moment, then pursed her lips in consternation, “I sometimes wonder who has it worse. You, with a mother like that, or I, who has never gotten to meet my mother in the first place.”

“Your parentage is one thing you never did speak of much with me, even back then,” Thorax said, and Luna snorted, taking a step back from him.

“Nor am I about to. I didn’t come here to rekindle anything, Thorax. I just wanted to... have closure on this matter. For both of us. You’ve said your piece. For my part, I still can’t fully forgive you, but-”

She took her hand off her Zanpaktou, and with a reluctant sigh she met his eyes, “-I accept your apology. As far as I’m concerned, that ends matters between us.”

“It doesn’t have to,” he said, not daring to try and move any closer to her, but unable to keep some of the hope out of his voice, “Things are happening, Luna, and now more than ever there’s a real possibility of the war between all of us, Hollow, Quincy, and Soul Reaper coming to a head. And an end. With your help-”

“Thorax, don’t push this,” she warned, “You haven’t even come close to earning my trust again.”

“I know that, but please hear me out. I’m not asking you for any favors, or even trust, yet. All I’m asking is that you leave an open line of communication with me. Give me a way to get in contact with you. I don’t expect you to obligate yourself to me in any way. All I ask is that, if and when the time comes that there’s a way we can help one another, that I have that means to contact you. Even if I do, you can always just tell me to piss off, right?”

She eyed him, and the nervous if still charming smile that crossed his face. After a moment she grunted under her breath and reached into her robes. She withdrew a small token, a wooden slip with kanji writing on it. “This is something Stealth Corps members use to send direct signals to one another. This one is tied to my reiatsu signature. Break it, and it sends a signal only I can sense. It only has range from the living world, so it won’t work if you’re in Hueco Mundo. But if you do ever need to speak to me again, come here and use it. I might decide to come. If I’m in a good mood. Or maybe I’ll just kill you. Fifty fifty odds.”

An immense flood of relief left Thorax momentarily speechless as he clasped the token. Soon enough he managed to get his voice under control, “For you, Luna, I’ll gladly take those odds.”

----------

“You’re a genius. You know that, right?”

Twilight couldn’t help but give a startled blush at Sugarcoat’s words. The two girls were sitting in Twilight’s room, with Twilight at her desk which was covered in mechanical equipment and her computer. Next to the desk Sugarcoat was sitting on a chair with several cables running to Twilight’s computer from a new visor she wore. It was physically very similar to her old visor, but somewhat slimmer and painted in colors that matched Sugarcoat’s eyes before she lost them. Several new crystal nodes had been added to the design, part of the magical research that Twilight had been conducting and now bore fruit.

“You don’t have to exaggerate,” Twilight said, “I’m smart, sure, but genius?”

“Not long ago all I could see with the visor you made was reishi particles in a dull black and white. That was miraculous enough. Now this new model? I can discern color, textures. Heck I can read, Twilight.” Sugarcoat held up a magazine she’d been using for the test run of the new visor, “I mean, things are still splotchy in places, and the colors blur a bunch, but if this doesn’t count as you being a literal miracle worker, I’ll punch whoever made that assessment.”

“Okay, I guess it is a little impressive,” Twilight admitted, letting herself feel a bit pleased with Sugarcoat’s results. She really hadn’t been sure the new magical nodes would be able to fully synch with Sugarcoat’s nervous system, but after all the trial and error they’d done at the field lab in Everfree, Twilight had been able to make good on several of her theories.

“And with these refined and smaller M-Cells, the visor’s magic should last for several days before needing a recharge,” she said, holding up a small cylindrical object about the size of a normal electrical battery. The smaller M-Cells didn’t pack the punch of the bigger ones, but they’d be ideal for powering smaller magic devices like the visor or Indigo Zap’s new legs that Twilight was designing. If all went according to plan with those, Indigo would be able to move around just as well as with her natural legs. Possibly even better, once Twilight implemented some extra features.

“Have I made mention of how grateful I am to have a technical and literal wizard like you as a friend?” Sugarcoat said with a light laugh, “Anyway, I’d say the test is a success. We done here, or do you need more data?”

“We’re done for now,” Twilight said, standing up and stretching. On her bed, Spike wagged his tail and turned the page of a magazine he’d been reading as well.

“Sounds like things are looking up,” the canine said, “No more assassins. The magic research stuff is going swell. Oh, and somebody’s getting a big promotion.”

He winked at Sugarcoat, who stared back at him flatly from behind her new visor.

“Don’t remind me,” Sugarcoat said, “I’m still not sure this is a good idea.”

“Why not?” said Spike, “I think you’re perfect for the job. Twilight sure could use the backup, and after all you guys went through at that crazy forest camp, you’ve earned a few perks. Kinda wish I’d been there to help.”

“All things considered, I’m glad you weren’t, Spike,” said Twilight, “It was not a fun adventure.”

He nodded, his tail ceasing to wag, “None of this has been. Just wish I could be there for you more, is all.”

“He’s got a point,” Sugarcoat said, tapping her visor, “You can’t expect a loyal dog like Spike to be happy sitting at home while you’re in danger. You made this visor for me, and you made that Hexenfaust. Couldn’t you whip up something for him?”

Spike’s ears perked up and he grinned, “Twilight, you could totally build me a mech-suit! Or a tank! A dog sized tank that shoots magic missiles!”

“Spike, it’s not that simple. Sugarcoat, don’t give him ideas,” Twilight said admonishingly, but then she took a second to think about it as her mind started to conjure up designs, “Although I suppose it wouldn’t be impossible to engineer a suit fo canine proportions with ablative armor, enhanced muscle servos, and multi-targeting capability... ugh! No, Spike! No mech suits or power armor!”

He waggled his eyebrows at her, “Are you suuuure? It’d be so fun to design and build, wouldn’t it? The technical challenge, the expression of pure scientific prowess. The sleek combination of technology and magic.”

Twilight stood up and went over to the bed to pick him up, giving him a rueful smile as she scratched his head, “Stop tempting me, you little devil. Maybe if you’re a good boy I’ll think about making something you could use to help me out in the field, but just don’t push it, buster. You’re my best friend, and I know you worry about me, but I really don’t ever want you getting hurt. Especially not like last time.”

“All the more reason to give him a means to protect himself,” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight shot her a look.

“Not helping.”

“Not trying to,” Sugarcoat said back with a smile, “I’d say the little guy has earned himself a reward for always being there for you.”

“Thank you,” Spike said, raising a paw, which Sugarcoat gave a fist tap to. Twilight let out a burst of exasperated air; colloquially known as a ‘sigh’.

“You two are impossible. Fine, I’ll see what I can do, but it might take some time, Spike.”

“I know, I know, you guys are busy. Yeesh, even when you take care of the people trying to kill you, you don’t get any rest,” Spike nuzzled her neck as she pet him, “You really could use a break.”

“No rest for the weary,” Twilight said, setting him back down on her bed, “On that note, it’s about time for Sugarcoat and I to go see Sombra. Our other guest just flew in and should be here any minute.”

“I still can’t believe you recommended her. Or me, for that matter,” Sugarcoat said, shaking her head, “Are you really sure about this, Twilight? Me I get, but her? After what she did to you?”

Twilight took a deep breath. It wasn’t as if she didn’t understand Sugarcoat’s concern. A part of her was still sore over the past, but given everything she’d experienced over the past few months her idea of what constituted a worthy grudge had changed considerably. It still bored into her in a way she hadn’t let out to anyone that the man who killed her mother had been at Everfree. She had kept her anger under control for the sake of the task of saving Ember, and it was in a way almost fortunate that Sapphire Shores and Hoity Toity had shown up, as they’d certainly been a worthy distraction from Lament’s presence.

And given what she’d learned from her latest communication with Sunset, things were even more complicated than Twilight could have guessed. And Applejack didn’t know, yet. Not about what her father had done to Twilight’s mother, at least. Twilight had asked Sunset not to say anything, and trusted her friend to keep that part secret. Chances were that secret wouldn’t last, but Twilight didn’t want Applejack worry about it for at long as possible.

It wasn’t as if Twilight could do anything to strike at Lament, anyway. Even if she could...

She didn’t want to jump down that rabbit hole. She doubted she’d be able to climb back out if she did.

And if nothing else it gave her perspective on other matters, such as the one Sugarcoat had just brought up.

“It’s fine,” she told Sugarcoat, “I’m over what happened. She has experience, which makes her a suitable candidate on it’s own. Furthermore, she saved my life during the attack on Las Noches. I’d say that’s worth some trust. As for you, you’re the strongest member of our group besides myself.”

“That’s not saying a lot, Twilight,” Sugarcoat said, “Sure we’re all talented, but at this point you’re leagues ahead of the rest of us. I’m not exactly special.”

“Sugarcoat, you kept everyone together and focused during the chaos at Everfree, and between all of you I trained with you are the strongest. This isn’t about favoritism. Sombra himself was having trouble finding decent candidates from the ranks of the older soldats. Each generation of new Quincy are stronger than the last, so it stands to reason you and the girls surpass older soldats who might have more field experience, but not the raw power. So stop doubting. Keep in mind, Sombra approved my recommendations; including yours.”

“Still feels weird. Feels like yesterday I was just a cadet. Now you want me to be a Sternritter?” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight laughed.

“How do you think I feel? I didn’t even know what a Quincy was all that long ago, now look at me.”

“Yeah, I’m looking,” Sugarcoat said, staring at Twilight until the other girl felt the need to cough politely, heat on her face.

“S-so, anyway, we’d best get going.”

“Good luck,” Spike said, waving a paw as the pair exited Twilight’s room and headed out into the hallways of her vast manor home.

Along the way towards the main entry hall, Sugarcoat said, “Out of curiosity, have you had a chance to talk with that Gloriosa lady and her brother since things settled down?”

“Huh? Oh, a little,” Twilight said, “Sunset and Discord set me up with a direct video call to the shop, so I could talk to everyone. I still feel horrible about what Gloriosa and Timber have gone through. I’m partially at fault, because I encouraged Gloriosa to keep experimenting with the geodes.”

“Uh-huh, but it was still her choice. I wouldn’t beat yourself up too much about it. Does she seem, you know, more like Gloriosa or more like that Arrancar she fused with?”

Twilight slowed her walk, her voice gaining a hint of scientific curiosity in it’s excited tenor, “It’s actually extraordinary. I’ve never seen two personalities so completely blended together. It’s not like with me and Midnight where we’re so distinct from each other. Gaia is Gloriosa, Gloriosa is Gaia. You can talk to her, and see both the camp owner and ancient Hollow, all in one. One second she’ll talk with the age of ancient memory, the next she’ll talk about wanting to fix up her camp and one day have campers return.”

“Hell, would that even be possible right now?” Sugarcoat said, “The Soul Reapers have a small army pitching tents out there. I don’t see them letting an Arrancar just run a forest camp like it’s nothing.”

“You never know,” Twilight said, “Things can change. I have to believe we can find a path to peace. Maybe it isn’t crazy that one day Gloriosa can have her home and life back. The Gaia part of her also seems to truly love Everfree.”

“Hmm, and how’s the brother holding up?”

“Timber? I... I don’t know. I spoke to him a little on the call, but he seemed really nervous and out of his depth.”

“Noooo, really? Normal dude surrounded by super-powered humans, spiritual entities, and his sister becoming a weird Hollow demi-god? I’m impressed he hasn’t freaked out more.”

By now they’d reached the wide main stairs on the second floor that led down to the first floor’s entry hall, and Twilight paused there, frowning at Sugarcoat’s words. “When you put it like that, it just makes me more worried about him. Maybe I should try to get over to the shop, just to check in on them.”

“Couldn’t hurt,” Sugarcoat said, “And speaking of people to check in on, have you heard about Sour Sweet.”

Twilight flinched, although it was with a slightly humored smile, “I did. When the girls went to meet her at the airport I hear she gave them an earful.”

“We’ll probably hear the same when they get here. I can only imagine how pissed off she must have been, trussed up in some room for days on end while all the action was going down.”

At Sugarcoat’s words the doorbell rang out in an echoing clamor through the hall, and Twilight and Sugarcoat both headed down the stairs to the front door. It opened just as they arrived, the tall frame of the family butler Robert entering through to hold they doors open.

“My lady Twilight, your guests have arrived,” Robert said, standing aside to let a group of people enter.

“Oh Twilight, I’m so glad to see you!” Sour Sweet said, rushing in with a smile that didn’t match the veins and eye twitching on her face. Twilight gulped as Sour Sweet stopped short in front of her, “Did it have to take you that frirggin’ long to notice I was missing!?”

“H-hey, there was no way we could have known,” Twilight said, holding up her hands, “Hoity Toity’s Schrift made it impossible to tell you apart.”

“Oh sure, let some grotty old man impersonate me for weeks! Ugh! To think that gross bastard was wearing my clothes, and using my bed, and who knows what else! Gag! City! When I get home I’m burning all my stuff and replacing it ASAP!”

“And as you can see, Sour Sweet is fine,” said Sunny Flare as she, Lemon Zest, and Indigo Zap all walked in behind the irate final member of their party. “She got to hang out and take it easy while we were busy nearly getting killed. Not sure why she isn’t more grateful.”

“Screw you, Sunny,” Sour Sweet said, flipping the other girl a half-hearted middle finger. “Do you have any idea how bored I was locked up in a literal dungeon? A dungeon!? Who the hell keeps actual dungeons in this day and age!?”

“Uh, we do?” Lemon Zest said, “Pretty sure there’s dungeons at the Silburn, you know? ‘Sup Twi, Sugar. You won’t believe who we met at the airport.”

“I imagine I will, given I’m the one who invited her here,” Twilight said, moving past her friends to meet with the last person coming through the door. “Welcome to my home. I trust your flight over was smooth?”

“Yes, and thank you, Miss Twilight. Or should I say, my lady Sternritter?” said former Principal Cinch, now member of the Strafbattalion, as she entered into Twilight’s family manor. She removed the short billed, white military cap of her Quincy uniform and performed a smart salute to Twilight, her posture stiff, but a discerning and pleased look in her eyes. “I’m honored you have requested my presence. Although I confess I don’t yet know what a mere soldat of the Strafbattalion could have done to earn the honor of visiting such an esteemed up and comer among our ranks.”

“Good question,” said Indigo Zap, jabbing a thumb behind her at the girls’ former school principal, “Just what is she doing here, Twilight?”

“Well, the long and short of it is that I’ve recommended her for reinstatement into the Sternritter,” said Twilight, which seemed to catch all but Sugarcoat off guard.

“Seriously?” said Indigo, “After the crap she pulled?”

“That’s long past. The Sternritter need replacements for our losses, it’s as simple as that,” Twilight said, and looked at the stunned Cinch, who herself clearly hadn’t known just why she’d been brought to Canterlot City, “I hope you don’t object?”

“Object?” Cinch licked her lips, “No. Not in the least.”

“Good, then if you’ll come with me, Sombra is awaiting us,” Twilight said, but as she turned, Robert cleared his throat.

“Pardon my lady, but before you go, I was also given something to pass along to you,” he said, reaching into the breast pocket of his butler jacket to withdraw a small envelope. “I’ve already examined it to ensure it contains no dangers. It is addressed to you, and comes from... a source I believe you trust.”

Twilight took the note, which was indeed addressed to her. She recognized Sunset’s handwriting immediately, and without hesitation opened the envelope. Inside was a simple letter, and the contents of it she more or less had expected. Discord and Sunset both had gone over the idea with her, and the letter laid it all out more formally. It would now be Twilight’s job to pass this along to Sombra and see if he’d go along with it.

“I see. Thank you Robert.”

As Twilight tucked the note away, Sugarcoat asked, “Just what is that?”

“A declaration,” Twilight said, leaving it at that.

----------

Scorpan had left the chambers of Central 46 in a less than ideal mood. A low, stoked fire of long patience finally wearing thin was stirring inside the old Captain Commander, like the last strands of pressure before a volcanic event.

Central 46 was been meeting to decide what to do concerning the most recent developments in the living world, specifically in Canterlot City. The emergence of a stable portal into the Beast Realm, which in turn likely lead to another portal to Equestria, was of great interest to Central 46, who determined that the likelihood of a full scale assault by the Hollows or Quincy to be a high one. As a result, there was a growing desire to deploy more forces to Canterlot City, even establish a permanent base for either the Eleventh Divisions combat forces or the Sixth Divisions expeditionary forces. There was even talk of deploying elements of the Seventh and Fourth Divisions to further solidify Soul Society’s grasp on the city.

Scorpan had stonewalled this notion as thoroughly as he could, reminding the members of Central 46 that it was not Soul Society’s policy to maintain more than the base level of required presence in any given population area that was needed to control the Hollows that naturally emerged. Even in the case of extraordinary circumstances like with the events in Canterlot City and the neighboring Everfree Forest, it was not Soul Society’s place to try and turn any part of the living world into a fortress.

Having the Divisions on emergency standby to respond to an attack on the new portal was sensible, but Scorpan was not about to allow Central 46 to try and fundamentally alter the Gotei 13’s purpose simply because they smelled opportunity in the air.

“You’re glowering, sir,” Smart Cookie told him, and Scorpan stirred, blinking as he sat behind his desk. His Lieutenant was offering him kind, understanding eyes of sympathy, despite her chiding tone.

“Was I?” he said, raising a hand to rub at his aged face, “Talking with the stubborn will do that to me.”

“It’s been an interesting few days, to say the least,” Smart Cookie said, riffling through the sheets of paper at her own desk situated not far from Scorpan’s own, “Those young ladies can’t see to go long without shaking the pillars, so to speak.”

“Hmph, I don’t recall making you my Lieutenant due to your amazing gift for understatement, Smart Cookie, but it is appreciated, regardless,” Scorpan said with a laugh that came out more like a tired gust of air as he leaned back in his chair, gazing to his right where the window looked out onto the vastness of the Seireitei. His charge, his home, his duty for so long since that fateful day at the Soul Palace.

“A storm approaches,” he said.

Smart Cookie said nothing for a moment, but there was a hint of fear behind her eyes. Not of him, but of the knowledge that what her Captain Commander said was the absolute truth.

“Yes,” she said, “I guess it just comes down to when it will break, and if we can weather it.”

He didn’t so much nod as just give the smallest impression of inclining his head. Turning to her, he said, “Has Starswirl given you the report on restoring soul sleeps?”

His Lieutenant gave a swift nod, her mood brightening somewhat, “He did. I’ve already read it. You have as well?”

“I have. And I’m glad beyond words,” Scorpan said, “If his new treatment works, some of our fallen will be able to regain what they lost.”

“It will be good to get Captain Amore and Lieutenant Moon Dancer back to full strength,” she said, but Scorpan gave her a very poignant look.

“And you,” he said, “I know it’s been hard, losing your soul sleep.”

“I...yes, sir,” she said quietly, keeping her face calm, despite the twitches of emotion at the corner of her eyes, “Captain Starswirl’s research is very promising. I hope it works. It’s of note that he mentioned it might not have been possible without the shared data he was given by Miss Twilight Sparkle.”

Scorpan flinched, slightly. Starswirl certainly didn’t hesitate to pursue any avenue to better his work in the Twelfth Division. Even Scorpan had never imagined he might seek to work together with a Quincy, even one as unorthodox as Twilight Sparkle. If Starswirl’s research notes were to be believed, Miss Sparkle’s own studies on magic had numerous applications to the spiritual fields, including that of healing.

“Hm?” Smart Cookie made a surprised noise as she got to the bottom of the pile of papers she’d been going through, mostly message and missives for the day. Underneath it all was a gray envelope with a print of a cat’s paw on it. “What in the world is this?”

Scorpan, noticing the cat’s paw, instantly knew who this was from. He stood, holding out a hand, “It seems we’ve had a feline guest pass through.”

“Ah,” said Smart Cookie in understanding, handing the envelope over, “I suppose I won’t blame our security detail, then, since I doubt any other than Captain Luna could match Miss Ditzy Doo in stealth.”

“Indeed. Now, let’s see what message she’s passed along. No doubt from Discord,” Scorpan sighed as he sat down to open up the envelope and peruse the letter within. His eyes scanned it, and Smart Cookie felt the shift in Scorpan’s reiatsu almost immediately.

“Sir?” she asked, and he was silent for several long seconds before handing the letter over to her as he stood and took in a sharp breath.

“This... changes things.”

Smart Cookie looked over the letter’s words, taking a few moments to understand them and their full implications herself, and she shared her Captain Commander’s sentiments.

Dear Captain Commander Scorpan of the Gotei 13 of Seireitei,

By now you are no doubt aware of all that’s happened in Canterlot City, and the role a certain group of young ladies has played in once again quelling what could have escalated into a disastrous situation for the living world and spirit realms alike. Given that it is likely things will continue to escalate, with both the existence of the portal to Equestria, and the fact that the Zero Division has taken a personal interest in these affairs, I found myself in need of making a decision. Either remain a bystander, or make my, our, stance official.

I’m not one to mince words, unless I find it amusing, but this is as serious as it gets for me, so I’ll use plain language.

As of this day, I, Discord, and my allies consisting of Lady Ditzy Doo of the House of Doo, Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer, the Fullbringers Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy, along with the reborn Arrancar Gaia Everfree, several free Bount, and a growing number of other forces, declare ourselves the Canterlot Spirit Coalition.

Canterlot City and an area encompassing a roughly one hundred and fifty mile radius around the city, including the Everfree Forest, shall now be considered our territory. Furthermore this territory will be a neutral ground. No Quincy, Hollow, or Soul Reaper forces will be allowed to engage in combat with one another within the Coalition’s territory unless it is expressly for the purpose of self defense. We will defend our territory and enforce the peace here by whatever means required of us, and while any and all are welcome here, leave your conflicts at the door, so to speak.

Now, with that out of the way, Captain Commander Scorpan, allow me to formally invite you, as Chief/Chairman/President/WhateverIDecidetoCallMyself of the Coalition, to come visit us for the purpose of a formal peace summit between the Soul Society and the Quincy Vandenreich. Let us act as a neutral ground and buffer, as well as hosts to hold what I hope will be the first real steps towards peace and reconciliation between yourselves and the Quincy.

Awaiting your response, ChairPresidentChiefHeadDude Discord

P.S - There will be snacks.

Episode 138: Turn Back the Pendulum

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Episode 138: Turn Back the Pendulum

Weeks ago, Equestria, 20 miles off the coast of the Dragonlands...

A faint tinge of sulfur could be tasted in the air. It made Flash Sentry want to sneeze, but he maintained a modicum of pride and held off as he eyed the landscape that filled the hazy horizon to the east. A long, dark stretch of volcanic rock jutted out into a churning ocean, forming a tooth-like peninsula from a larger, crag strewn landmass. Sharp mountains, cracked plateaus, and smoking volcanic calderas populated this bleak terrain, looking entirely inhospitable to most forms of life. However, life did indeed thrive here, Flash knew, for he could see their winged forms dotting the cloud banks of ash and smoke that hung over the aptly named “Dragonlands”.

They were still a good distance off the coast, Captain Celano’s airship making good time from Mt. Aris to the south to reach their present location only after a couple of days of travel. The attack on the hippogryphs city was still fresh in Flash Sentry’s mind, as was his growing anxiety over the state of their mission. He looked behind him from where he’d taken up watch on the ship’s bow. Celano’s crew worked in a sort of sullen, gruff silence. They were being paid well for their ship and skills, but it was clear the avian humanoids that made up the motley airship crew were not thrilled at the dangerous turn of events they’d been caught up in, nor of having the company of a small but steely eyed contingent of hippogryph warriors, led by Admiral Seaspray.

Yet if the airships crew were leery of the hippogryphs, the hippogryphs were doubly leery of the prickly unicorn in their midst. Admiral Seaspray and Tempest Shadow were like two feral cats locked together in the same, small cage. Any time Tempest so much as raised her head from below decks, the Admiral and his warriors looked at her as if just begging for her to give them an excuse to pitch her overboard, and in turn Tempest glared at them back as if daring them to so much as try.

It hadn’t made for the most pleasant of voyages, but things could have turned out worse, Flash imagined. The fact that Queen Novo’s own daughter and niece had vouched for Tempest Shadow after the mare had saved their lives from the sahuagin attack had helped smoothing things over, at least somewhat. It had been enough for the hippogryph Queen to accept Twilight’s proposal that Tempest be considered an indentured prisoner, one who would pay off her crime of helping lead the Storm King’s attack on Mt. Aris but giving Twilight’s party aid in their quest.

Flash just wished that perhaps the Queen hadn’t been so insistent on sending Admiral Seaspray and his warriors with them. Sure a little extra muscle might be useful, but the last thing they needed was the tension.

“Welp, if them dragons don’t decide ta light up our flyin’ boat, them there pair are liable ta burn holes in it for ‘em,” commented Applejack, coming up next to Flash and tilting her head back towards the ship’s main deck. There, Tempest had come up to lend a hoof to the airship crew, and was currently having her twentieth or so glaring context with Admiral Seaspray, who had similarly volunteered his help to the crew. Now the pair seemed to be competing to see who could do more work, faster.

If Celano’s increasingly frustrated look was any indication, neither was actually helping very much. Flash drew in a breath and let it out slow, “Well, that’s either going to end up with them killing each other, or becoming best friends. I’ve seen that kind of thing play out a lot in the barracks back home.”

“I’ll bet,” Applejack said, letting out a dry laugh before looking over the rail at the ocean below, “Just glad them dragons don’t seem ta care much ‘bout us bein’ so near their shores.”

“From what I understand you girls are pals with the Dragonlord, right? Ember?” Flash asked, and Applejack gave an affirming nod.

“Sure are, although that’s mostly on Spike. Ember would probably git rightful mad if any o’ her folk did give us trouble, but me n’ the gals have had run ins with rogue dragons 'fore. Dragons do tend ta march ta their own tunes, Dragonlord or no. Still, sky looks clear, so guess we’re good. Now I’m just wonderin’ where we’re supposed ta find this seapony tribe Twilight was yammerin’ about.”

Flash had been a little unclear on that point himself, and it only added to his trepidation. Time was of the essence. Aria and Sonata had gone missing after the battle, and it hadn’t taken a long search of the beach to realize the pair must have been abducted by the sahuagin. Rescuing them was paramount in everyone’s mind, but they needed both a way to track the sirens and get underwater to affect a rescue, and ultimately also confront Charbydis.

To do this they’d originally hoped to use the hippogryphs' Pearl of Changing, but since the human Starlight Glimmer had stolen that, their only backup option was to seek out a seapony sea witch who could teach the unicorns of the party the spells needed to survive underwater. Queen Novo had directed them to this area, where a tribe of seaponies led by a Chieftess named Wavecrest resided. Apparently this Wavecrest owed Novo a favor, and Twilight now carried a letter of introduction from the Queen that would call in said favor. They had a general location of where the tribe’s home would be, but one obviously couldn’t see it from the air. Fortunately the hippogryphs did know how to go about contacting seaponies, as long as one could get relatively close to a settlement.

Flash was more worried about what might be happening to Aria and Sonata while they were busy here. Celano and Seaspray had conferred to calculate that Celano’s airship was likely much faster than how swift a party of sahuagin could travel underwater, but that might only give them a day or two at most to learn the magic they needed from the seaponies and then try to figure out a way to track where those fish creatures had taken their siren friends.

Twilight and Starlight, with a bit of help from Trixie, were working on a spell to do that, making use of scales taken from the sahuagin that had been captured at the end of the battle. That particular creature had been utterly uncooperative, refusing to answer any questions. Even when Starlight had taken off the foal’s gloves and with Twilight’s permission used potent magic to mind control the sahuagin, it had only given fragmentary answers, almost as if Starlight’s magic couldn’t quite get a proper grip on the creature’s slippery, almost alien mind.

The best they’d gotten out of him had been mention of ‘Old Home’ and ‘The Deep Wounds’, which hadn’t made sense to anyone at the time.

There was a slight lurch in the deck as the ship started to fall lower, and Flash heard Celano shout, “Blast it you two scattered headed bilge rats, if you two don’t ease up on the ropes I’m tying both of you together until you either bite each other’s throats out, or start with the damn kissing!”

She was shouting at Seaspray and Tempest, who’d been aiding the crew with the rigging to adjust the ship’s flight path, but had both started yanking too hard as each one tried to outdo the other. Now the pair both looked like they were chewing rocks as the Admiral thrust a wing at Tempest, “I am doing my job with capital attention to detail, my dear Captain! It’s this treacherous mare who’s pulling too hard!”

“Get that filthy, flea ridden feather duster out of my face,” Tempest said, shoving his wing away, “You’ve done nothing but get on my case since your pompous flank came aboard.”

“Of course. I intend to keep an eye on you to make sure you don’t get up to any trickery, wench. I’m not about to forget who led the charge against my home, and you’d best not think for an instant that you’re forgiven,” the hippogryph admiral said, and Tempest’s eyes narrowed.

“Not looking for forgiveness, and ‘keep an eye’ on me all you want. I don’t care.”

Celano stepped between the pair, imposing the fact that she was in fact quite a bit taller than both Seaspray or Tempest as she leaned over them and cast a cold, cutting stare at both of them. “If you two can’t do your jobs in peace, then I’m dropping you both off in the Dragonlands myself, and you can try walking back home.”

Seaspray blinked, then smartly nodded, “As you say, Captain.”

Tempest took a bit longer to grouse out between clenched teeth, “Fine.”

Nearby, at the open hatchway to below decks, Twilight Sparkle emerged with a confused look at the tense group. She trotted over to Flash and Applejack, whispering, “Did I miss anything?”

“Just our newest friends getting along,” Flash said in a deadpan manner, then coughed and nodded at the books Twilight was carrying, “What’s with the reading?”

“Oh! Just studying up more on High Magic, while also ponying up on everything I could find in Captain Celano’s cabin on seapony lore and culture! Did you know seaponies have eighteen documented tribal dialects, half of which are exclusively based around sonar signals they produce with their snouts?”

“Sugarcube, I ain’t never met a seapony, an’ Flash ain’t ever been ta this world ‘fore a few weeks ago, so pretty sure neither o’ us knew that,” Applejack said, “But guessin’ with all yer studyin’ ya got a fair notion o’ how ta talk ta these folk?”

“A little, I hope,” Twilight said with a nervous giggle, “There’s only a bit of information on genuine language and what few words are shared between Equestrian and Seaquestrian, which while having a long ago parent tongue have split off quite a bit. Turns out being underwater really does change vocal lexicon. Luckily Admiral Seaspray does know how to speak seapony.”

“Indeed I do,” Seaspray confirmed as he joined them, wiping some sweat off his brow, and trying very hard to ignore Tempest leaning against the railing nearby, “Never you fear, Princess. I shall be more than happy and able to act as your interpreter. And as soon as we reach sea level, I can also send the signal out to reach Wavecrest’s tribe.”

“How is that going to work, exactly?” Flash asked, curious.

“You’ll see for yourself momentarily, young buck,” Seaspray replied, turning to snap an order towards one of the hippogryph warriors under his command, “Go and fetch the seahorn.”

As the warrior threw a salute back and marched belowdecks, more and more of the party from Ponyville made their way up to watch the airship descend towards the ocean. Rarity had on a white, wide brimmed beach hat with a light blue ribbon, which she held fast to her head as the wind picked up. Rainbow Dash looked at the other mare sidelong, “Rarity, you can’t wear a hat underwater.”

“I beg to differ, Rainbow. This hat is sporting a special enchantment of my own design to make it entirely waterproof! I’m not about to ignore a chance to expand my fashion business to the underwater realms. Why, just imagine it, an entire line of waterproof dresses and fashion accessories, all tailored to seapony taste. This is a whole new potential market that I doubt any other pony has even thought to try breaking into.”

“We’re on a quest, not a business trip,” Rainbow Dash countered.

“No reason it can’t be both,” Rarity insisted. Beside her, Trixie gave her own hat and cape a loving stroke with a hoof.

“Trixie, for one, is glad you’ve thought ahead. It’d have been tragic to leave behind my trusty magician outfit once we get stuck underwater. Even I must give you praise, Rarity, for this ingenious spell. I might not have been able to do better myself. Might.”

Rarity smirked at the somewhat backhoofed compliment, which was probably the best Trixie could manage. Starlight Glimmer brought up the rear of the group behind Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, and next to her waddled the stubby legged Grubber. The two appeared to be whispering to each other, causing Tempest Shadow to give her subordinate a raised eyebrow.

“The hay are you two muttering about over there?”

Starlight and Grubber both gave a startled look and stepped away from each other, Starlight quickly saying, “Nothing important. Just talking shop.”

“What possible shop could you two have to talk about?” Tempest wondered aloud, and Grubber spoke up after an embarrassed cough.

“We were talking about which kites would be best for flying in the Dragonlands, what with the hotter air and ash.”

“Kites?” Tempest said, blinking, and Starlight straightened her head and looked back at her.

“Yes, kites. Is that a problem?”

“...No,” Tempest said, wearing a flummoxed look as she turned towards Grubber, “You’re into kites?”

He shrugged at her, “What? Everybody’s got a hobby. I’m an armature compared to ol’ Star here.”

“Ol’...Star?” Tempest shook her head, “Since when did you get this chummy with everypony here?”

“Not everypony, just my fellow kite enthusiast,” Grubber insisted, “Whatddya expect, boss lady? I’m not as antisocial as you. If you stopped giving everycreature the stink-eye, maybe you’d find some common ground too. You got hobbies, right?”

“Not really. Ugh, whatever. I don't need friends.”

"Oh boss, you just doomed yourself to making friends with everycreature on this ship by saying a line like that."

As Tempest grumbled under her breath about nosy, annoying hedgehogs, and pointedly turned away from the group to glare out at the ocean, Starlight chuckled a bit under her breath and leaned down to Grubber to lightly whisper, “You’re not kidding about her. She’s really uptight.”

“You get used to her,” Grubber whispered back, “She’s got her good points.”

“Like what?”

“Ummm... a really sweet mohawk?”

Celeano’s voice suddenly bellowed out from the back of the airship’s deck where she’d taken the wheel, “Quiet down folks! We’re about to make seafall, so brace yourselves. Water’s a bit choppy, so the landing isn’t going to be like kissing flowers!”

“Um, we do seem to be descending kind of fast,” Fluttershy mentioned, giving the rapidly approaching ocean a worried glance as she wrapped a hoof around the ship’s side rail to brace herself.

“No worries, if we crash, I’m a real good swimmer!” Pinkie Pie said, “And I’m pretty sure we all float.”

Flash noticed Twilight’s body tense up slightly as her wings extended. He felt the same, noticing that his pegasus body reacted to anxiety with a fair bit of ruffling of his own wings. Without really thinking about it he leaned a bit closer to her and brushed a forehoof against hers. She looked at him and he gave her a reassuring nod. There were no words, either from him or her, but she returned a small, dorky smile at him and she settled down, leaning towards him a bit. The ship’s descent continued, approaching the choppy waves of the ocean below at a steady, shallow angle.

When the airship struck water there was a rough shudder through every plank. Flash felt it reverberate through his hooves. A rough spray of salty water bathed the deck, soaking many. The ship skidded along, breaking through several waves. For a moment the ship felt like it lurched down, but soon enough it evened out and despite the waters still being rough, it was clear the airship was now smoothly sailing upon the ocean with no trouble. Flash let out a breath and felt Twilight next to him do the same.

“Safe landing,” he said, and she sighed with relief.

“Looks like it,” she said, shaking some water off her wings, which she’d been using to shield the books she was carrying from the waves that had broken over the ship, “Now we just have to see if Admiral Seaspray can contact the seaponies.”

“He said something about a seahorn?”

“Yes, I’ve read a bit about them. They’re specialized tools for sending various notes underwater,” Twilight said, nodding towards the deck hatch, “Look.”

Flash did, and saw the hippogryph warrior that Seaspray had sent off now returning. He held a peculiar looking instrument. It appeared to be made from carved coral, and was shaped like an elongated sea conch, but with a widened, trumpet-like portion at one end. Multiple conical blow holes were arranged around the other end of the instrument. The warrior brought the presumed seahorn to the admiral, who took it with an exchanged salute.

Captain Celano had come down to the main deck and with the rest of her crew watched on with crossed arms, “Okay big-shot Admiral, you’re on. We can keep the ship steady just as long as these waters don’t get stormy. Luckily the forecast looks decent enough today, choppy waters aside.”

“No worries, Captain. This won’t take long,” Seaspray insisted, heading up to the side of the ship and spreading his wings to take flight. He didn’t go far, just a few dozen feet off the port side. There, he hovered just above the churning waters and dipped the horn into them. He then pressed his beak to the numerous blow holes and started to breath into them, playing the horn through a series of notes. Flash couldn’t hear anything, but saw slight reverberations in the water, as if the horn was somehow amplifying the notes underwater to an unnatural degree. Magic was probably at work, he surmised. He was still getting used to sensing it, but he did get a feel of a faint buzz from each note Seaspray played.

This went on for several minutes, but soon enough the admiral ceased playing and flew up a bit, and seemed content to hover in the air, waiting.

They didn’t have to wait long, as it turned out. Perhaps ten, fifteen minutes after Seaspray had used the horn, Applejack pointed with a hoof off the port bow, “Lookit there!”

As everypony gathered up and looked to where the farm mare had pointed, Flash could see a series of colorful heads bobbing in the water about a dozen meters away from the ship. They looked like ponies, only with fin crests in place of manes, and somewhat smoother bodies that bore fine scales instead of fur. They were just as colorful as their land bound cousins, sporting every shade under the sun between their scales and fins. Flash noted, however, that these aquatic equines didn’t bear the open, friendly expressions he’d come to associate with the ponies of Equestria. Instead these colorful faces wore looks of tense suspicion and wariness. This was matched by the weapons carried glinting just beneath the waves. Flash recognized harpoons, a few tridents, and what looked like some sort of bone-forged crossbows. None of the weapons were aimed, but each was held tightly in their fin marked hooves, and each seapony looked ready and willing to use them.

One seapony in particular, a stallion with dark blue scales and a orange fin crest swam a bit forward from the pod of ten or so seaponies, looking towards Admiral Seaspray, who flew forward to meet him. The seapony spoke, and Flash didn’t recognize the words. It was a flowing, swift dialect, spoken in a brass baritone. Seaspray responded swiftly in a halting imitation of the same tongue, making several gestures towards the ship and those standing upon it.

“Can you tell what they’re saying?” Flash asked Twilight. She had her snout scrunched up and her eyes narrowed in concentration. He saw her mouth a few words as if trying to parse them out.

“Almost,” she said, “I didn’t have nearly enough time to study up, but I think I understand about one in every four or so words. Uh, I think the leader there is a hunt leader. They were... hunting fish? No, land fish? Crabs! I think crabs, when they heard our seahorn. Ummm... Seaspray is telling them who I am. I think that’s the seapony word for Princess, although it more translates like ‘She Who is Daughter of Royal Blood’, which doesn’t at all actually describe what I am, but hey, that’s language for you. Oh, here they come.”

Whatever Seaspray had said, it seemed to at least ease some of the seapony’s fears, for the leader made a loud trilling whistle to his pod, and they all grew less tense and started to swim up to the ship. The pod leader and Seaspray both approached and the admiral landed, looking quite pleased with himself, and giving Tempest a knowing smirk, to which she just rolled her eyes.

“Been awhile since I spoke seapony, but I still seem to have to knack,” he said, puffing up his chest, “The blue fellow here is Tidesurge. Turns out we’re in luck, for he’s the son of Chieftess Wavecrest, of the Hua’hana Tribe. I think that translates to ‘Current of Prosperity’, but don’t quote me on that. I’ve explained that you have a letter from Queen Novo to give to Chieftess Wavecrest, Princess Twilight, and that you yourself are a representative of Equestria. I’ve also explained we’re on a dire quest, with time being of the essence. I think Tidesurge here may well know something, as he mentioned ‘dangers in the waters’ of late. He’s agreed to take your letter to his mother personally, while his hunting pod remains here to keep an eye on things.”

“Keep an eye on what?” Tempest Shadow said, frowning deeply, “We’re not prisoners, are we?”

“What? Of course not,” Seaspray said, huffing, “At least he didn’t say as much. I think he wants them here for our protection. He’s nervous about something, my guess being these blasted sahuagin.”

“Hmph, not a fan of being put under armed guard,” Tempest said, but Twilight quickly held up a hoof.

“It’s okay, Tempest. I doubt they want to hurt us, and even if they did, we still technically outnumber them.”

Tempest looked back at Twilight, then nodded, “Fair point. But I’ll be keeping an eye on them, too.”

With their new seapony escorts the group settled down to wait. Twilight busied herself with testing out some of her own skill at the seapony language with those who’d been left to watch them, while Flash stayed close to her, trying his best to follow along with the conversation. He found himself smiling at the earnest way Twilight continued to push ahead in learning more seapony words, double checking her books, and even making fresh notes. She noticed him smiling at her and fidgeted a bit in place.

“What’s with the grin?”

“Huh? Nothing, just nice to see you in your element. Our new pals got anything interesting to say?”

Twilight glanced over the side of the ship, where a few seaponies had been floating and trying to help Twilight converse. They seemed to be fairly patient with the Equestrian Princess, helping her out with words she didn’t know, taking their time to speak slowly and concisely. Flash noted that while they were loosening up a bit, the seaponies did maintain a sense of alertness, and several of them had gone back below the water, as if to keep watch on whatever might be underneath them.

“They’re worried,” Twilight said, “I’m not sure, but I think they’ve had run-ins with the sahuagin. They said that the oceans have been getting more dangerous. I can’t quite figure out the particulars, but they’re scared for their homes.”

“I would be too, if an army of fish people who use freaky blood magic were swimming around in the same ocean as me,” Flash said, recalling with cold vividness the brief fight with the sahuagin spellcasters. The strange magic they’d used, sacrificing blood to summon their spells, had certainly rubbed him the wrong way. From the sour look on Twilight’s face, she felt the same.

“I wish I knew what kind of magic that was. I’ve never run into anything like it. Not even Sombra’s shadow magic, or Tirek’s destructive power felt as unnatural as what I felt from what those sahuagin were casting.”

Flash twitched a bit at the mention of those names, Sombra and Tirek, although he already had some notion of the context surrounding their versions in this world. “Still amazes me that your world and mine seems to have the same heavy hitters in it. Damn good thing neither are major threats in your world right now.”

Twilight gave a wane smile, “Well, Tirek remains locked in Tartarus, with increased security to ensure he doesn’t escape like before. Radiant Hope and Sombra, I haven’t heard from either of them in some time, but last I knew they’d left Equestrian lands on a quest of their own, and haven’t returned since.”

“Radiant Hope... huh, the Lieutenant of the Fifth Division. Weird how she’s tied to Sombra in your world,” Flash mused, rubbing his chin with a wing, “Far as I know there’s no connection between ours.”

Twilight also gained a curious and thoughtful look, “There’s precedent for things not being quite the same between the two worlds. The circumstances, personal connections, and even time frame of individuals’ lives have ranged from somewhat similar, to entirely different. I never even met your pony counterpart, except for a very brief encounter.”

“Ah, so there is a pony me out there? He at least got my good looks?” Flash asked, mostly joking, but going silent as he noticed Twilight’s face light up cherry red.

“W-well, I didn’t exactly get a good look at him, but I suppose he appeared pleasing enough to the eye in his armor,” she said, then shook her head vigorously, “Not that was paying attention to that! And you’re easily just as handsome anyway, so-”

Her eyes shot wide, “I mean, not that I’m looking at you, either.”

“Of course not,” he stammered, “I mean, not that I don’t mind you calling me handsome, but that’s totally besides the point.”

“Totally besides the point,” Twilight agreed, “Sure you’ve got an excellent color combination, and a perfectly fit, masculine body, and very deep eyes that I think twinkle just right when you laugh, and a tail end that’s mathematically perfectly shaped forrraaaaaand changing the subject now! Weather! Look, it’s sunny out! Isn’t that interesting and worth commenting on instead of literally anything else!?”

Nearby, Tempest Shadow made a sound like a choking pitbull, “If this keeps up, I swear I’m throwing myself overboard.”

“Don’t make promises you have no intention of fulfilling,” Admiral Seaspray muttered next to her.

Fortunately the awkwardness of the situation was interrupted by the return of Tidesurge. He didn’t arrive alone, for next to him the water began to bubble fiercely and was suffused with a bright, pale green light. Twilight and Flash were thankfully distracted from each other by the sudden upward surge of water, which magically rose to form a bubbling pillar. Within the pillar was a seapony mare, whose scaled body was the color of a storm laden gray sky. Her fines, including a large and rounded crest on her head with several trailing tails, was the same orange as her son’s, and a pair of darker gray eyes looked out at the airship from within an angular but still femininely graceful face.

The seapony mare wore a necklace of coral and bones, and carried with her a long staff of polished bone, bearing at the end an inset pearl the size of a fist. Suspended in the water pillar she’d clearly summoned, the seapony was deposited upon the deck by the water moving forward like an arm. There was a flash of green light, and as the water fell away, the seapony’s body was revealed to have now changed into the shape of that of an earth pony, hind legs replacing her tail fin and orange hair replacing her crest.

Shaking the water off her, the seapony now in the guise of an earth pony looked at all of the faces staring at her and inclined her head. She spoke in clear Equestrian, but with a husky, deep accent that reminded Flash a bit of something that might belong in the South Pacific islands.

“I am Wavecrest, Cheiftess of the Hua’hana. I bid you welcome, travelers to my waters. My son has given me your message from the honored Queen Novo, Princess Twilight Sparkle. I have read it, and understand your needs are both great and dire. Come, let us sit and speak of what I can do for you, and perhaps what you in turn may be able to do for me.”

----------

It’d been more than a day since Chrysalis had infiltrated the strange base of these unusual imposters from another world. She had kept to every shadowed nook and cranny of the vast fortress tower, crawling along in the shape of a spider, or scorpion, or any other small creature that might elude sight as she followed those who dwelled here and listened in to what they spoke of.

In so doing she’d learned of who they were and ostensibly where they came from, and the possibilities and implications were dizzying. She’d known about Celestia’s mirror portal to other worlds, but only as rumor. She’d never laid eyes upon it, let alone ever been able to confirm it was real. Chrysalis had had every intention of finding out upon her ultimate triumph over Equestria, for what could be better than finding a way to access even more worlds for her hive to expand to? But that triumph had never come, she thought with a bitter, acidic hiss.

Only defeat and endless, frustrated hatred.

Well, that, and now bemused uncertainty. Now that she understood who these interlopers were, she was at a loss as to how to capitalize upon it. They were no friends to Equestria, that much was evident, so if nothing else she suspected she might find some way to take advantage of the chaos they might cause, but she was undecided on whether she should reveal herself to them.

For one, she hated Starlight Glimmer, no matter what world she came from. It was irrational, some part of Chrysalis’ mind knew. It was even detrimental, a part of her chided herself. This Starlight Glimmer was likely the most reasonable of the bunch here, and probably the one best to try and make alliance with, but it was hard to get past that same annoying face and even more irritating voice! And this one wore the body of an alicorn now, due to that Pearl of Changing! How infuriating.

But even worse was the alternate version of herself from this other world. Chrysalis was utterly baffled by this... this bizarre, hedonistic imposter! She had none of Chrysalis’ poise and intellectual guile! She didn’t take anything seriously! And for some reason she followed Starlight Glimmer’s lead, which was truly annoying. Chrysalis just couldn’t get a read on this other version of herself, and thus had been spending the past few hours following her counterpart. She crawled along the ceiling in the shape of a black widow spider with a green hourglass mark on her abdomen, keeping pace as her counterpart went and explored one of the larger chambers in this fortress.

As far as Chrysalis could tell, it was some manner of massive laboratory, containing various strange things, including the vast skeleton of some enormous wolf creature, and a massive, dead looking tree that bore unsavory looking fruit in the shape of skulls.

Utterly strange, this “Hitsuyo-Aku”. Even Chrysalis found it a tad unnerving. Her counterpart, however, appeared to find it delightful, and was playing catch with one one of the skull shaped fruits plucked from the tree. Playing catch with another of her kind, one who looked like one of Chrysalis’ changelings, but had distinctly pink coloring to the crest on her head and a white horn instead of a proper black one.

“Go long, dear Ocellus, I’m going to pitch this one fast,” Chrysalis’ counterpart said, and Ocellus, the much younger female, let out a tittering laugh and vanished with the high speed motion that left Chrysalis breathless. These strangers had impressive powers indeed. She was envious in the worst way.

Her counterpart bounced the skull fruit on one hoof, then with a keen eyed look, hurled it with insane force, such that it caused a small shockwave to echo in the huge chamber.

Over a hundred meters distant down the vast chamber, Ocellus appeared and caught the fruit, “I got it! Try and catch it, mom! I’m adding some pep to this one!”

“Do try, my dear. Get it past me, and I’ll treat you to something nice,” Chrysalis’ counterpart cooed in a warmly encouraging tone.

Chrysalis remained utterly confused. Why was her counterpart playing with one of her drones like this? What benefit did this serve? What was stranger was that her counterpart had other drones as well, several dozen that lounged around the chamber or other parts of the fortress. Her counterpart never played with them, just this ‘daughter’ Ocellus.

The name did sound a tad familiar. Chrysalis didn’t think too much about the names she handed out to her children. She had far too many to really worry about that, but Ocellus did sound a bit familiar. Whatever, she still didn’t understand this frivolity her counterpart was showing. Didn’t they have plans to conquer Equestria to pursue!? What was she accomplishing down here with this silly game of catch? It disturbed her, especially the genuine, beaming smile of happiness that Ocellus wore as she wound up her own pitch and threw a blistering curveball back at Chrysalis’ counterpart.

None of Chrysalis’ own drones had ever looked at her like that before, and it sparked an irrational flame of envy.

Her counterpart laughed with an unnaturally bubbly mirth as she too used that unusual high-speed movement to zip into the path of the pitched fruit and caught it as easily as a spider catches a fly in its web. She made a ‘tsk tsk’ sound as Ocellus groaned.

“You’re getting better, Ocellus dear but you’re a thousand years too early to out maneuver me. But i give you high marks for your efforts. So tell me, how are you faring with your Soul Reaper boy?”

Ocellus giggled, back flipping to catch her mother’s return throw, “Pipsqueak is so much fun! He’s adorably shy, but he’s got this really cute noble streak. He’s actually scared of hurting me when we spar! Can you believe that!? So! Cute!”

“Just ensure you keep him wrapped around your little finger, my daughter. Boy’s his age are prone to flights of impulsiveness and it wouldn’t do for him to act up, especially given he’s still so angry at his mother,” said Chrysalis' counterpart, flying up to a long walkway that spanned the vastness of the chamber, joined by Ocellus a moment later as she laid a hoof on the younger female’s head in an affectionate pat, “And try not to get too attached, just in case.”

“Aw mom, don’t be a stick in the mud. Pip’s going to be just fine, I’ll make sure of it.”

A hint of a razor’s edge entered the voice of Chrysalis’ counterpart, one that seemed utterly at odds with the warmth displayed a second ago, “I say this only for your own good, Ocellus. If we have to do away with him, it’ll hurt you if you’re too close.”

“I can take pain, mom. You taught me, remember? But I wanna keep Pipsqueak, and another thing I learned from you was to always go for what I want, no matter what anybody else tries to do to stop me!” Ocellus gave her mother an eager smirk, and the coldness melted out of the visage and voice of Chrysalis’ counterpart and she smiled.

“Good girl. Never let anyone tell you what your desires are or what they cannot be, not even me. Keep your Soul Reaper boy, if you can, with all your might. You’d not be my daughter otherwise.”

Chrysalis just couldn’t follow this conversation at all. Ocellus was openly being insolent and showing disobedience, but this bizarre counterpart seemed... pleased with this!? Why? And why did the fact make Chrysalis feel even more envious and irritated by this blasted imposter?

Suddenly the familiar voice of Starlight Glimmer cut across the chamber, sardonic and a tad chiding, “Chrysalis, what have I told you about playing with the Plague Tree? Seriously that fruit is engineered to kill Hollows and you think it’s a fun idea to play catch with it like it’s a baseball? That thing breaks, it’d kill both you and Ocellus, and in ways I’m not comfortable describing!”

Chrysalis’ counterpart turned around with a wide, amused grin, bouncing said plague fruit on her hoof like it was a hacky sack, “That’s part of the fun, Starlight. Fun should have bite to it. I keep trying to impart this basic lesson to you and you just keep brushing it off.”

“Because I’m not your particular shade of crazy,” Starlight said, the alicorn flying over to join the par on the bridge. She eyed the height of the sickly, dead tree off to the side of the bridge and it’s bounty of deathly looking fruit and grimaced, “I don’t want something like that busting free into Equestria. Even if it’s designed to just kill Hollows, there’s no telling if it can mutate to kill other species. So stop playing with it.”

“Spoilsport,” Chrysalis’ counterpart chided, tossing the fruit to Starlight, who yelped and snatched the fruit quickly, then gave the counterpart a brief death glare before very carefully flying over to set the fruit down at the base of the tree.

“Anyway, Ocellus, I came to get you for Pipsqueak’s training session,” Starlight said, “Now that he’s turned that Asauchi into a proper Zanpaktou, he needs help regulating his spirit energy, and he focuses better around you.”

“Okay, I’m on it!” Ocellus said, giving her mother a quick hug before flying off, “You two have fun planning, plotting, possibly even scheming.”

Starlight sighed, watching Ocellus go, then turned a look towards Chrysalis' counterpart, “It scares me that you always seem like a loving parent, but I know you, so I keep wondering if it's just an act.”

“Jealous? You should consider having offspring of your own. It’s a life altering experience."

Starlight snorted and shook her head, “My life’s been altered enough, thanks. If my track record with pets is any indication, me being a parent would be a mistake, unless I found a guy who’s exceedingly domestic and could handle all that himself.”

“There are such males out there, if you seek them out.”

“The day I take any dating advice from you is the day I truly believe the world would be coming to an end.”

Still hidden upon the tall chamber’s ceiling, Chrysalis tried to not roll her eye spider eyes at the inane banter these two shared. She could never imagine herself having such a casual conversation with Starlight Glimmer, let alone taking any interest in the blasted mare’s love life! What was with her otherworldly counterpart? It was almost as if she enjoyed teasing the straight laced Starlight in the same manner one might a little sibling. Perhaps if she was attempting to play some sort of angle, Chrysalis would understand. There did seem to be some manner of low cunning at operation in her counterpart’s mind, but it felt elusive. It was impossible to tell how much of anything this other self said was serious, or jest.

She heard her counterpart’s rich laughter echo up the chamber, “Let me guess, you’re saving yourself for that dear old friend you’re so desperately wishing to save? Oh, don’t give me that glare, Starlight. You’ll ruin your lovely face. Now then, was there any other reason you came to interrupt my quality time with my daughter other than to send her off to play with the Soul Reaper boy?”

“I wanted Ocellus out of the room,” Starlight said, face turning hard, “She gets ideas in her head and this is serious business. Celestia’s finally made a move.”

“Hmm? And what move would that be, pray tell? If she had found our location I imagine she’d already be mounting an attack, so I assume it’s not that.”

“No, but she didn’t need to find us to call us out,” Starlight replied, jaw tightening, “She knows we’re looking for magical artifacts, and she has Trixie. This has been distributed in every city, town, and backwater village in Equestria...”

Starlight’s horn lit up and removed a newspaper from a single small saddlebag she wore. Unfurling it, she showed it to Chrysalis’ counterpart. Chrysalis herself couldn’t read the paper from the distant height of the ceiling, but her counterpart started reading aloud, conveniently.

“Princess Celestia Declares Visit to Ponehenge Memorial Site. In an unusual and unexpected announcement, the Princess of the Sun informed officials of her intention to make a personal visit to one of Equestria’s oldest and most noteworthy historical sites, the ancient stone edifice of Ponehenge. When questioned why she was making this visit, our beloved ruler stated that she wished to show a guest of the palace some of Equestria’s natural beauty, while paying personal respects to the rumored resting place of some of our nation’s oldest historical figures, including the famous Starswirl the Bearded. Pictured is the mysterious ‘guest’, who some claim bear a remarkable resemblance to a traveling showmare known to frequent the Canterlot region. When asked further as to what promoted this visit, Princess Celestia only said that she ‘Hoped to meet other travelers along the way, and share a nice chat’.”

After a moment’s silence, Chrysalis’ counterpart said, “That’s a terrible picture of Trixie. Your pet Bount looks like she swallowed a bug.”

“It’s a trap,” Starlight said.

“Your mastery of the obvious is breathtaking. Yet I surmise you intend to walk into it?”

“She’s taking Trixie out of Canterlot. A bargaining chip. But it’s that last bit there, about having a ‘chat’ that got me thinking.”

Chrysalis considered herself highly adept at reading others, and while her counterpart confounded her, she could easily read the tense yet hopeful thoughts radiating off of this Starlight Glimmer as she began to pace back and forth, “Trap or not, this is my best shot at getting Firefly help. Whatever Luna infected her with, we can’t fix it here. But I’m willing to bet Celestia knows how to reverse the damage, or remove whatever curse or poison Luna’s attack used. Celestia has to know this, too, so I’m betting this is her way of calling us out to a meeting. Discuss terms.”

“Hmph, terms of surrender, perhaps. Don’t be a fool, Glimmer. Celestia is baiting you into a trap, using your ally’s injury and your pet Bount as bait. It’d be moronic to walk into it, especially since nothing would prevent them from bringing in this world’s Discord as a ringer to trap you.”

“Don’t you think I know that!?” Starlight shouted in an emotional burst, “But Firefly isn’t getting better. I’m not letting her die, and if Celestia and Discord want a fight, I’m willing to give them one. That said, I’m not planning to walk into this blind or unprepared. The article says Celestia’s little trip to this Ponehenge isn’t for a few more days. That gives us time to prepare countermeasures. Hitsuyo-Aku has some nasty surprises of its own, and not all of them are too dangerous to deploy like the plague fruits are. On top of that, the Storm King is finally being useful, and I’ve gotten a handle on the Staff. We’ve got options, and we’ve got time to find a few more to stack things in our favor.”

“I see you’re not going to listen to reason. Oh well, this might be fun. I would like to find out if this world’s Celestia is as enjoyable to play with as the one back home.”

----------

Pipsqueak’s blade cut a swift arc towards Ocellus, but she skipped away from the attack with a dancer’s smooth ease. The training area they were using was actually a testing ground for any weapons Hitsuyo-Aku’s researchers might have made. It was shaped like a honeycomb dome, with fluorescent lights filling hexagonal patterns along the curved walls. Plenty of test dummies were capable of being deployed into the room, and when Ocellus had first started training with Pipsqueak, Starlight Glimmer had helped as well and made use of the training dummies to get Pipsqueak gradually used to his new body.

The kid wasn’t much of a natural fighter, but Starlight was patient, and Ocellus encouraging, so he’d been making progress. Of course there were still issues. He hadn’t quite gotten used to dealing with the Hollow reiryoku inside him, and his emotions sometimes go away from him. On top of that, both of them were in equine forms that weren’t they’re natural bipedal bodies. Ocellus, used to changing shape due to the gifts inherited from her mother, adapted faster, but Pipsqueak was still struggling with holding his sword using hooves instead of hands.

“Urrrgh, you always manage to dodge me so well! How do you do it?” Pipsqueak said, pursing his lips as he tried to feint to her left and catch her off guard. Since he hadn’t even quite gotten used to using either Flash Step or Sonido, his speed just wasn’t up to the task of putting Ocellus off balance, so her own Zanpaktou easily caught his own blade as he struck.

His blade, no longer a bare Asauchi, now had a more elegant curve to it, and a hilt wrapped in rich brown leather. It’s pommel had a fetching gold color, circular with a small ring on the end matching the back curve of the sword. Ocellus liked it, and couldn’t wait to find out what the Zanpaktou’s name was.

Furthermore, the increase of Pipsqueak spirit energy and physical training was having an affect on the speed of his body’s development. Spirit bodies didn’t age necessarily just be the passage of time. Reiatsu affected that directly, and Pipsqueak looked both a bit taller and older now, although perhaps only by about a year. Still, thin, almost anemic limbs were filling out now with a bit of muscle, and his brown hair had grown longer and shaggier, almost to the point of totally covering one of his eyes.

Speaking of his eyes, Pipsqueak’s had gained a faint black coloring as his frustrating rose, and Ocellus felt a spike of Hollow power form him. She pushed off his blade with her own and backed up a step, wiping a bit of sweat off her charcoal brow.

“Hey, let’s ease up a bit, Pip. You’re way more distracted than normal. What’s up?”

“It’s nothing,” he said, turning to glare at the ground as he sheathed his sword. She went over to him and leaned her head down so she could look up at his face with an easy going smile.

“That’s totally not ‘nothing’. C’mon, you can tell me what’s bothering you. We’re friends.”

He looked at her for a moment, and then he reluctantly said, “It’s my mother. She keeps trying to talk to me, and I just don’t have anything I can think of to say to her.”

“You’re still really steamed at her, huh?”

“She betrayed everything she ever taught me! Why shouldn’t I be mad!?” the young boy said, hooves shaking slightly in his frustration, “She changed me in ways I didn’t ask for, and has taken me to a place I never wanted to be. She never asked me what I wanted, never gave a thought to how I’d feel!”

“Mmmhmm, but Pip, even if she had asked you, what would you have told her? Nah, mom, don’t save my life, I’d rather die?”

“Maybe!” he shouted, his eyes turning even more black as his Hollow energy rose. “Maybe none of this should have happened!”

Ocellus stepped a bit closer to him, and then gently laid a hoof on his back, “Really? So you’re saying you’d rather have not met me, then?”

“I...I didn’t say that,” Pipsqueak said, not moving away from her touch, “But she didn’t have a right to turn my life upside down like this and turn on our home.”

“Did you ever think that, to her, you’re her home? If she lost you, maybe she didn’t think she’d have anything at all worth protecting? Mothers are weird like that. Sure, they do things we didn’t ask for, but if they truly love us, they do it because they want what’s best for us. A mother will tear apart the world for her children, won’t she?”

“Perhaps,” he said, then gave her a weak smile, “Yours, more so than mine.”

“Yeah, my mom’s kinda nuts, but I love her all the same. Do you really not love yours?”

His shoulders slumped, a hitch in his throat, “I... I do. I love my mother dearly, which is why what she did hurts so much. It’s so hard to forgive her. I don’t know if I can.”

“You don’t have to right now, or ever, really, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still love her. Or talk to her for that matter.”

He didn’t reply to that, instead he plopped down into a sitting position on his haunches, looking exhausted. Licking her lips, Ocellus leaned down while crossing her blade over her withers, bouncing it playfully, “Hey I know what’ll get your mood turned around. Let’s blow off training for today and go play.”

“No,” he said, taking a deep breath and forcing himself to stand back up, “No, I need to master what’s inside me. I can’t even think of a way forward until then. Please, Ocellus, I’m relying on you to help me.”

He readied his sword again, and with a small, happy smile, Ocellus nodded and readied her own once more, “If that’s what you want, Pip, I’ll be here for you the whole way.”

As they resumed their sparring match, her mother’s words replayed inside Ocellus’ mind. She knew that her mother wanted her to keep Pipsqueak close as leverage, but Ocellus didn’t care about that. She was like her mother in one very important factor; Ocellus always held onto what she wanted, the rest of the world be damned. She wasn’t planning on letting go of Pipsqueak anytime soon.

----------

Captain Celano’s cabin wasn’t large enough to hold the entire party, so it was just the avian Captain herself, Twilight Sparkle, Starlight Glimmer, Flash Sentry, Admiral Seaspray, and Wavecrest herself that occupied the cozy room that was situated within the back end of the ship’s stern castle. Celano had folded out a wooden table and thrown out a few stools for everypony to sit upon, although she herself remained standing, eyes flicking back and forth between the room’s occupants as Wavecrest began to speak.

“For many passing's of the tide, my tribe and others that call this region of the ocean home have been noticing our waters are no longer safe,” the seapony said, taping the point of her staff on a map of the oceans that Celano had spread out on the table, “From the north, all the way to the south along what we call the Warm Line, hunting parties and travelers have reported sightings of the Deep Ones, what you call ‘sahuagin’. Sometimes just a few, sometimes more. Travelers have vanished, villages losing members in the outskirts, never more than a few.”

“The sahuagin have been abducting others, then?” Twilight said, her voice filled with sympathy, “That’s terrible. But it’s odd, sea trade has stayed stable. I haven’t heard any reports of ships being attacked.”

“The Deep Ones have been avoiding the surface. Perhaps not to draw the attention of the powers that dwell on the land. We seaponies lack the power we once wielded in days of old. Only the largest tribes have the power to deter the Deep Ones’ abductions, but smaller tribes have been preyed upon...” Wavecrest’s eyes turned hard as flint, “Including my own. I have lost near twenty of my own over the past year alone.”

“Why are they taking people, though?” asked Starlight, frowning deeply, “What do they need them for?”

Wavecrest gave the unicorn a flat stare, “If the tales are to be believed, they take their victims either for food, or for sacrifice.”

“Sacrifice,” Flash said, bristling slightly, “Does that have anything to do with the magic they use?”

Wavecrest’s face broke out in a deep grimace, her eyes heating up with anger, “What they use is not ‘magic’. It is a befoulment upon the waters. Anathema to the very spirits that dwell in our ocean. It is the power of the Abyss itself.”

“Um, w-well,” Twilight cut in, her expression pensive as she raised a hoof, “I do agree with you that there is something very wrong with the power the sahuagin used, but it was technically magic. I felt it, when I faced them. Magic was being drawn upon, but it was as if it was somehow being fueled by something more than just magic alone. I couldn’t understand it, but it felt... bad.”

A tired, dry laugh escaped Wavecrest’s lips, “We do not speak of it as magic. It is an abomination of the shamanist tradition that we Witches of the Sea have used since ancient times. Our magic, when pure, mixes our essence with the soul of the ocean and draws its power to us as an ally. The sahuagin’s blood sorcery makes sacrifice of pain and death to chain the ocean to their will.”

“Huh, ‘soul’, you said?” Flash mused, “Is that hyperbole or do you mean that literally?”

“I don’t understand your question,” Wavecrest said.

“What Flash is asking is if there’s a difference between the magic I use as a unicorn and the magic you use as a ‘Witch of the Sea’,” Twilight said, “As in, I draw upon the innate magic inside myself and the magical fields that exist in the world. Is that what you mean? You mix your inner magic with the magic field inside the ocean to generate your spells?”

“Ah... semantics,” Wavecrest frowned in thought, raising her staff to touch her chest, “Magic from my heart mixes with the sea. You might call it a ‘magic field’. I call them the spirits of the ocean, aiding the call of a friend.”

“But this ‘blood sorcery’ doesn’t do that?” Flash pressed, and Wavecrest glowered.

“It is a perversion, sacrificing essence to take more than the spirits would grant.”

“Boosting the effect of the magic fields through burning additional inner energy via a literal sacrifice from blood,” Twilight said, her tail flicking behind her in a fidgeting excitement, but also uneasiness, “When I was studying at Celestia’s school, I’d heard there were books in the restricted section of Canterlot’s library pertaining to ways one might... um... make sacrifices to enhance spells. Exchange lifeforce for a boost to one’s power, or to twist the normal rules of magic.”

“Wait, isn’t High Magic like that, too?” Flash pointed out, “High Magic bends the rules of magic too, right?”

“It’s not the same,” Twilight said, perhaps a little swiftly, “High Magic doesn’t require sacrifice, but instead requires significantly greater complexity and power drain from the caster. This blood sorcery is more of a shortcut to achieve a similar effect, but to a lesser degree, and I’m willing to bet with unpleasant side effects.”

“This is all fascinating,” Starlight said, “But we’re getting off track. Wavecrest, I assume there’s a reason you’re telling us about the issues your people have been having with the sahuagin?”

“Of course I have. You seek them, yes? A large warband attacked our friends, the hippogryphs, and stole companions of yours.”

“Indeed,” Seaspray said, “Two sirens, purple and blue. I doubt you’d mistake them if you saw them.”

“Sirens. Such a rare breed. Our hunters took note of them immediately,” Wavecrest said, and at the looks she got at those words she nodded, “Yes, we saw the warband that attacked Mt. Aris. Our hunters range far for our food, and one that went many miles to the southwest spotted many sahuagin, led by a massive brute of their kind. This warband had captives with them, including the sirens you speak of.”

“When was this!?” Twilight asked, unable to keep her voice entirely calm.

“No longer than a day ago, and that hunting party could track where the sahuagin were going,” Wavecrest said.

“Please, tell us where!” Twilight said, but Wavecrest pointed her staff at Twilight.

“I shall, but I wish you to agree to aid us, first, Princess of Equestria.”

Starlight’s gaze darkened, “You’re going to ask favors when lives are at stake?”

“Yes, lives are at stake,” Wavecrest replied simply, “My tribe as well as yours. I will aid you, but I wish the Princess’ word to lend us her aid, first.”

“It’s okay Starlight, I was going to agree anyway,” Twilight said, “We can’t afford to waste time. I’ll help you and your tribe, Wavecrest, I give you my word.”

“Very well then,” Wavecrest turned back to the map and once more pointed with her staff, this time marking a spot slightly to the south and a good distance to the west, “It is here that we know the Deep Ones go with their prisoners. Aqualania.”

“The heck is that?” asked Flash, but Celano and Seaspray both gained knowing looks, and the hippogryph admiral spoke in a heavy tone.

“I know the tales. Aqualania was once the capital of the seapony nation, Seaquestria. It was ruined during the civil war between Scyalla and Charbydis.”

“More than ruined,” Celano said, “If you listen to the old sailors tales, the place is cursed... and haunted.”

“Is there any truth to that?” Twilight asked Wavecrest, who looked back at Twilight with a face of utter seriousness.

“Aqualania is a dark place. A dead city, where the shadows of the deep fall long upon the broken buildings and cracked columns of what was once our people’s pride and joy. No sane, living creature should go there, but the Deep Ones find safe passage, and we suspect they use it as a waystation between their raids to our waters from the Abyss to the north. I have never been there, but my mentor has, and she told me stories. Creatures dwell in Aqualania, remnants of the monsters made by Charbydis’ dark magics. The ocean is foul and angry there, with unstable currents.”

“And the sahuagin that took Aria and Sonata are going there,” Starlight said, “Great.”

“But if we know where they’re going, that means we can intercept them. Catch up and take them on,” said Flash, and Twilight nodded.

“Assuming we can learn to travel underwater. Wavecrest, Queen Novo said you knew magic that could change me and my companions?”

“I do, and I shall teach you the magic,” Wavecrest said, “We will travel with your flying ship, and as we do I will impart the needed spells to you.”

“You’re coming with us?” Starlight said.

“Yes. I will join you, for there is something I want within the shattered halls of Aqualania’s royal palace,” Wavecrest said, her already firm grip on her staff tightening further, “It was told that Princess Scylla collected many items of power during her adventures. Artifacts, weapons, armor, all of great magical might. While some of these she learned to use to fight her sister, many others remained locked in her secret treasury, hidden deep inside the palace. Even Charbydis supposedly never found this treasury, but my mentor, when she explored the city as a daring youth, found enough clues to piece together where it might be. However she lost her friends to the dangers of the city and was forced to flee. Now I seek to find the treasury myself, and take the power within so I might distribute it to the seapony tribes. This will allow us to defend ourselves from the Deep Ones, perhaps even reclaim some of our kind’s lost glory. This is the price I ask for my aid to you, that you in turn aid me in finding Scylla’s Treasury.”

Episode 139: What Lurks Below

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Episode 139: What Lurks Below

Hunger was becoming a problem. A changeling’s diet was emotions, primarily love due to its unsurpassed nutritional content. Other, lesser emotions could suffice for subsistence, but without a source of love to consume, a changeling was going to weaken and experience severe hunger pangs until they properly fed. It was not unlike how those who consumed physical food might survive off of whatever they might scrounge, but if their diet lacked the right nutrients, they’d still suffer the consequences.

This basic concept, the need to feed, had been the cornerstone of Chrysalis’ control of her hive and the driving force for her plans of conquest for Equestria. The nation of ponies had a seemingly limitless capacity for love and similarly positive emotions. The place was like prime farmland, and Chrysalis had spent many a late night hour drawing up plans in her mind of how to cultivate that “farmland” to feed her species for all time. With her in control, of course, ever the Queen to her people.

Now she was borderline starving while crawling around the shadows. Her endurance among her kind was extraordinary, but even she had her limits. She needed to feed. She needed a source of love, or at least something somewhat positive.

What a shame her kind couldn't consume hatred, or other negative emotions, she reflected. That emotion was always in more abundance around the world, and was much easier to produce than love. But, in a supreme bit of irony, such emotions tasted not only bitter, but could be actively harmful for a changeling to eat. It had always struck Chrysalis as a bit... odd. Anger, sorrow, hatred, these emotions always came so easily, but had no nutritional value whatsoever. Why then were they always so ever present?

She set that irritating thought aside as she hunted. A changeling could sniff out emotions like a bloodhound, and she was following a trail through the corridors of Hitsuyo Aku. Her small, spider body she’d taken on skittered swiftly across walls and ceilings, following a scent of positive emotion. It led her to a room, some manner of infirmary. She hadn’t been in here before, but she realized quickly that this was where the other world’s Starlight Glimmer was keeping the one who had been injured; Firefly.

The pegasus mare was lying in bed, covered in sweat soaked sheets. She hadn’t awoken from the wound dealt to her by Princess Luna, and Chrysalis didn’t make much of this one’s chances. While Chrysalis was not an expert on alicorn spellwork, she recognized a curse when she saw one, and Luna had laid a vicious one upon this Firefly mare. Chrysalis was actually a bit impressed by the vindictiveness of the curse. She didn’t think the Princesses had it in them. Maybe it was just Luna?

Strangely, however, despite the mare’s poor condition, Firefly appeared to be dreaming, and not a bad dream at that. There was a light, almost playful smile on the unconscious mare’s face, and her voice softly murmured the name, “Dashie.”

Whatever that meant, the dream must have been pleasant, for a warm aura of love did waft up from the mare, causing Chrysalis’ mouth to water and her stomach to quiver with anticipation. Even a small smattering of love, taken secondhand from a dream, was nourishment. Taking a moment to make sure the room was empty, Chrysalis crawled across the ceiling until she was above the sleeping Firefly. She then spun a strand of web and lowered her tiny body down until she hung just above the mare’s head.

Slowly, Chrysalis sucked in strands of faint green light, drawing in residual traces of the love flowing off of Firefly. It wouldn’t be much, without using her natural form or cocooning Firefly to let the emotions marinate, but even this sip would be enough to sustain her for awhile-

“Enjoying yourself, I see.”

Chrysalis froze. That voice, so much like her own, shocked her to momentarily dumbed silence. She slowly spun on her web, looking to see her counterpart standing in the doorway as if she had always been there. But Chrysalis had just checked it! How had this imposter from another world just appeared like that!? How did she even know Chrysalis was here!?

Her counterpart smiled, showing teeth and fangs as she licked her lips with a forked tongue, “You know, this new body of mine has some interesting qualities. I could never smell emotions before, but I can now. I get the feeling you’re not used to thinking about that, though.”

Dammit all! She hadn’t thought of that! And she should have! Chrysalis wanted to smack herself, but it really had been just a simple blind spot for her. She wasn’t used to having to deal with other changelings, and she was so dead set on thinking of this creature as an imposter it never really occurred to her that she was technically a changeling.

The other Chrysalis sauntered into the room, moving like a skittering spider herself, “Don’t feel bad. I didn’t know where that stink was coming from at first, either. It’s hatred, isn’t it? Smells like burning tar mixed with a rancid wound, and it took me a day or two to realize it was coming from this adorable little spider that was following me everywhere. I’m flattered, really, that you hate me so much, without even getting to know me first.”

Chrysalis acted without thinking. In a flash of emerald flame she transformed into a jet black hummingbird and tried to zip past her counterpart and out the door. A flash of motion too fast for Chrysalis to see smacked her out of the air with such force that she impacted the wall out in the hallway and she lost her focus on her transformation. She reverted to her true shape and landed in a heap, dazed as the other Chrysalis strode out into the hallway and loomed over her.

“Oh don’t leave just yet. Now that you’re here,” the counterpart leaned down, eyes gleaming like green torches in the dark, “I’d like to have a chat.”

Chrysalis wasn’t buying it. Especially because she knew the tone of voice her counterpart was using. She’d used it herself when lording it over some plaything she’d chosen for the evening meal. A spider with her fly. Well, she was nobody’s fly! She was the Queen of the damned Changelings! With a hiss, Chrysalis surged to her hooves.

“A chat? I think not. Keep your distance, or feel my wrath.”

Her counterpart laughed in a musical titter, “Wrath? Come now ‘me’, I can threaten me better than that. Here, let me try.”

Again the movement came faster than Chrysalis could follow. Her counterpart’s body just seemed to flicker in a blur of motion, and in a flash she had smashed a hoof into the wall right next to Chrysalis’ head. The stone wall buckled beneath the titanic impact, sending cracks splintering in all directions and indenting the stone as if a battering ram had smashed into it.

Chrysalis gulped as her counterpart inched closer, much more gently placing her other hoof on the other side of Chrysalis’s head, and then spoke in a low, sultry growl that was somehow filled with equal measures of violence and pleasure.

“If you don’t sit and have a chat with me, I’ll slowly gouge out your teeth and wear them as a necklace while I gnaw out your guts and string you up by them.”

Chrysalis stared mutely at this other ‘her’. Was she insane? She had to be insane. Unfortunately she was also very clearly powerful. Unfairly so. If Chrysalis had freshly fed on a potent source of love, like that delicious Shining Armor, then she was confident she could readily confront this madwoman, but starved as she was recently her reserves of magic were low. She could fight, perhaps pull off a few decently strong transformations, a dragon perhaps, but she wouldn’t be able to maintain such a form for long.

Perhaps ‘chatting’ was the wiser course? At the very least it might buy her time to formulate a new plan. Trying to regain a look of confidence, she raised her own hoof and slowly pushed aside the hoof of her counterpart, a feat she imagined was only possible because the other Chrysalis let her.

“And barbaric threats aside, why would I want to chat with you?”

“What? You’re not curious about me?” her counterpart purred, licking her lips again, “I’m certainly curious about you. You’ve been skulking about Starlight’s clubhouse, I figure you must have learned plenty about us. Time to even that out, I think.”

The counterpart stepped back, giving Chrysalis a little space as she turned and strode a bit down the hall, “Come, follow me. And no trying to run away, or I’ll just have to break two or three of your legs to keep you nice and compliant.”

“Hmph, is brute violence your only tool to get what you want?”

“Only tool? No. A personal preference? Oh yes.”

Chrysalis could only sneer at the joking arrogance dripping in her counterpart’s tone. Of course if she was being honest with herself, there was nothing wrong with arrogance, and this other Chrysalis certainly had power to back it up with. But that’s what rankled so damned much about her! If Chrysalis had the kind of power this other self had, she would never have been defeated by that damned little pony and her band of misfits! The pain of that defeat, the humiliation of it all, rose fresh inside her anger-filled heart. She had won, blast it! She’d taken all the Princesses captive! Her plan had been brilliantly executed, and Equestria had all but been ready for her people to assume their rightful place as it’s keepers!

And that damned Starlight Glimmer had ruined a lifetime of work in the span of a single day!

It wasn’t enough that she’d somehow infiltrated Chrysalis hive and foiled her plans, it was the utter completeness of that defeat. Starlight Glimmer had somehow found a dirty pony trick to turn her own devoted hive against their Queen, convinced that damned grub Thorax to... to share love! Share it!? How!? What kind of infantile madness was such a notion!? And the worst part...?

It. Had. Worked. Just like that!

One minute, she was the Queen of her devoted people, secure in the knowledge that her way was the only way for the changeling race.

The next minute, a rainbow lightshow infected her entire hive, changing her beautiful people into colorful abominations of their former selves. In an instant, they’d turned on her, and everything she’d tried to build. In an instant, her whole life’s ambition had just become corrupted and bled away, like an oil painting doused with solvent, leaving an ugly rainbow smear in its wake.

And for weeks, months, all Chrysalis had was her rage and boiling hatred for those responsible for ruining her life. Destroying Starlight Glimmer had seemed to be all that mattered.

How easily that anger could transfer, Chrysalis found. She saw this other version of herself; supreme, confident, utterly secure in her power. And worse, this other Chrysalis seemed to hold the undying love of her children, her hive, or whatever they were. Chrysalis... was jealous, so utterly envious of that devotion, and of that power. This counterpart had everything that Chrysalis had lost, and even more besides, not just obedience but love from her followers, and not just power, but power greater than Chrysalis had imagined possible.

It was very, very easy to hate this other Chrysalis for it.

And yet, could she turn this to her advantage? While some part of Chrysalis' mind was turned towards escape, still, she had been considering as well had to make use of these individuals from another world. If she could find the right thing to bargain with, could she not only regain what she’d lost, but gain even more than she’d had before?

“Now what might be churning in that pretty head of yours, oh double of mine?” the other Chrysalis said, leading them both to a steel door that she opened up with a hoof. Inside was a relatively small chamber, perhaps no more than twenty paces across. It was bare on the inside, save for strange cubicle hatches built into the walls, containing perhaps ten per wall in two stacked rows.

Chrysalis didn’t bother to answer her counterpart’s silly question and instead asked one of her own, “What is this room?”

“This? A morgue. The Soul Reapers who did research here needed a place to keep bodies in storage for their experiments. Hollows like myself, mostly, but I wouldn’t be shocked to find a few Quincy in here. Kind of hard to do weapons research to kill Hollows and Quincy without bodies to test on.”

Chrysalis’ face became a suspicious mask, “And why ‘chat’ with me here? Why not take me to your Starlight Glimmer, first?”

Her counterpart’s smile deepened, “You’re afraid? I want us to have a ‘just us’ talk before I involve Glimmy. She can be such a buzzkill. No fun at all, with her. This room is out of the way, nice and private.”

Chrysalis glanced down the nearby hallways, gauging her chances of just fleeing, “And if I refuse?”

“Didn’t we just go over this?” her counterpart said, raising a hoof and making a breaking motion, “Snap, snap, snap goes the spider’s legs. Come now, if I wanted to hurt you, I’d already be doing it. I just want a quiet little girl talk between the two of us before Glimmer comes in and makes things boring with her big speeches about responsibility and keeping a low profile and blah, blah, blah.”

“Hmph, fine,” Chrysalis said, not liking the odds of an attempt to just run away. This one was just too fast for any of the forms Chrysalis knew how to take on to give her a speed advantage. However, in a confined space like that morgue Chrysalis had a few shapes she knew that were ideal close combat monsters, much stronger than her natural shape. She even had a few tricks involving inanimate objects and materials that might catch an unsuspecting opponent off guard.

Once both of them were in the chamber, her counterpart closed the door and turned to face Chrysalis, looking her up and down like she was a slab of meat at the market. It left Chrysalis feeling distinctly uncomfortable. Only she was used to looking at others like that, not being the one getting sized up.

“Mmm, now that we’re alone, I must admit, it’s nice to get a good look at you. Me. Heh, another me, in this wide, colorful, bright-eyed magical land of sunshine and lollipops...”

The other Chrysalis started to circle her, “I wonder what you taste like? My bet is sour grapes.”

“Ugh, enough of your childish games and asinine banter!” Chrysalis spat, “I cannot fathom how you are in any way like me. I was never this immature!”

“Aw, sounds like you didn’t have much of a childhood, then. Mine was fantastic,” her counterpart said, still circling, head lowering like a predator stalking around a herd, “My earliest memories were of feeding. Not human memories, but Hollow ones. A pit filled with my own kind, all tearing and gnawing upon one another. It was so much fun! I ate, and ate, and ate. I got so good at it I started making games of how I’d hunt the others, pulling and prying at them, pouncing and playing with them.”

Something about that struck a nerve in Chrysalis. She moved to counter the circling of her other self, until they both were moving in a slow circle around the mourge’s cold floor, “Ate your fill, did you? Starvation was my earliest memory. Hunger unlike anything you can imagine. And being surrounded by others like myself, but unlike you I did not turn my hunger on them. I knew, instinctively, the others were mine. I had to lead them, to food, to shelter.”

“Ah, yes, your ‘hive’. I know a bit about that. Been asking around while in disguised form, learning about ‘changelings’, or at least as much as the public knows. How the biiiiig baaad Changeling Queen was heroically defeated and her people ‘reformed’. How sad for you, to be discarded as useless after leading your people for so long. I guess they never needed you to begin with, hm?”

“No!” Chrysalis shouted, “They need me still, they’re just too foolishly confused by that idiot Thorax to understand! They can’t survive as they are now! It will backfire... it has to backfire. The ponies will take advantage of them, or if not that some other race will destroy them in a moment of weakness! Only I can lead them, only I can bring them to a glorious future. ME!”

“Tut tut tut,” her counterpart waggled a hoof at her, “So selfish. So narrow minded. A mother shouldn’t stifle her children’s growth. Children always grow beyond their parent’s. That’s part of the joy of motherhood. I learned this when I was given my gift. Before, all I could birth were those without minds or souls of their own. But that all changed, you see. I gained something precious, and was able to have true children, who could truly be their own people.”

Chrysalis looked at her counterpart with utter confusion and a little bit of trepidation, “What are you babbling about?”

“Real children,” the other Chrysalis said, moving with an intensity that shocked Chrysalis as suddenly her counterpart was in her face once more, “Not drones, not mindlessly loyal servants, but trueborn children who were so much more than me! Do you understand!? I kill, and eat, and play to my heart’s content, but all that fun doesn’t equal the value of one true child born of my own will and flesh! When my Thorax was born, and I saw the spark of genuine thought in his eyes, I knew! Knew what I had to do! So why is it that you seem so confused!? Why is it that you seem to see your own children as little more than servants!?

Chrysalis had backed away at this point, her counterpart following, until they were nearly up against the wall. Chrysalis hissed and readied a hoof, preparing to transform if need be as she growled, “I don’t care about your inane questions! My hive, my children, betrayed me and threw me aside! What care do I have for them anymore? They don’t love me, but they need me. They’ll learn the hard way just how badly they need me, in time. As for Thorax, if I ever see that fool again I’ll ensure he pays for corrupting the rest of the hive with his false hopes of ‘sharing’ love.”

Her counterpart had stopped short a step away, and regarded Chrysalis with a strange stare, one that grew from heated hunger to a chilling fury in the span of an eyeblink, “You... truly don’t love your children? You’re only angry they cast you aside? Heh...hehehe...HAHAHAHA!”

“What are you laughing at?” Chrysalis demanded, but her counterpart’s cold laughter continued to roar out.

“Hahahaha! And to think, I started to believe you and I might find some common ground. But it sounds as if we couldn’t be more different. You, do you even understand how pathetic you are?”

Hot anger steamed up from Chrysalis' heart and she curled her lips in a snarl, “I’m pathetic? As opposed to you, who appears to be utterly insane?”

“Hah, mad I may be, and a monster too. But I am a mother. My life is my family. Nothing would ever make me abandon them or cast them aside. I certainly wouldn’t wallow in self pity while my children still needed me. What have you done to return to them, to help them, to be a mother to them, of late?”

“Why would I do that if they are the ones who betrayed me!?” Chrysalis shouted, “All I want is to get my revenge on Starlight-”

She’d been preparing for an attack, even as she’d hissed her rebuttal towards her mad counterpart. Chrysalis knew this other self was far faster than her, so she’d been holding a charge of transformation magic inside herself, ready to release the instant she saw the other Chrysalis move. Even then, she barely made it in time, her body vanishing in a flash of emerald fire as she transformed her shape and her counterpart’s blow passed right through where she’d been.

The shape Chrysalis took was that of a ‘Redcap’, a rarely seen, small and harry green-skinned bipedal beast. They had bristling fur and a crest of blood red hair upon their wide, fang filled features, but most importantly Redcaps had blisteringly fast and sharp claws. Many a foolish adventurer made the mistake of underestimating the small Redcaps, not knowing how fast or deadly they were with claws that treated stone like butter.

Chrysalis struck with instinctual fury. When a changeling took a new form, even aspects of their mind changed with the new form, so she had the Redcap’s raw animal fury and killing instinct to draw upon. Black claws flashed out, but she was frustrated to hit little more than air as her counterpart vanished. The long, pointed ears of the Redcap caught a buzz of sound, and Chrysalis spun, slashing behind her in expectation of catching her other self appearing there. However even a Redcap’s natural speed just wasn’t enough to match what her counterpart was.

Chrysalis' furry wrist was caught by a smashing hoof, her counterpart bringing down her own hoof so hard that it slammed Chrysalis into the ground, and she heard the tell-tale snap of bone an instant before the pain registered in her mind.

“Ggaaaaaah!” she choked out a scream, but she didn’t lose concentration on her Redcap form. Instead she turned her scream into a snarl and stabbed with her free hand, the claws scraping across her counterpart’s leg.

Sparks flew as claws meant to be able to sever stone did little more than scratch a leg who’s hardened surface surpassed even the strongest steel.

Chrysalis just gaped for a second, not quite believing her eyes. Then she felt another leg from her counterpart impact her chest, and suddenly she was hurled with bone shattering force into the other side of the mourge’s wall. She hit one of the doors, denting the metal structure inward, and hit the floor in a heap.

She lost her concentration then, reverting to her natural form in a wash of green flame. She tried to conjure up the image of a new form, trying to think of something faster, or stronger, but it was like her mind was now in a haze from pain and shock. Before she knew it, she felt a crushing weight on her chest and throat. Her counterpart loomed above her, one hoof pushing down on Chrysalis' chest, while the other pressed down on her throat.

“Not a bad attempt. I imagine if you’d eaten properly, you could actually put up a fight.”

Chrysalis looked at her counterpart, meeting the other one’s eyes that were sparkling with equal parts pleasure and dark, maddened anger. She said nothing, concentrating her magic, waiting... letting the other talk, letting her gloat.

“You know, I didn’t plan on killing you. I thought perhaps we’d find enough common ground that it might be fun to let Starlight bring you onto the team. But honestly looking at you just makes me so sick to my stomach that I’d rather just break your every bone, and toss you into the desert to rot. I don’t even want to eat your soul, and believe you me, coming from me, that’s a high insult.”

“Then perhaps... you should eat...this!” Chrysalis said in a venomous voice as she released the transformation magic she’d gathered. Most changelings had to take on a full, complete form in order to transform. Chrysalis had mastered the art of partial transformations to her body a long time ago. This included the ability to transform into inanimate objects she’d studied.

If her counterpart’s body was harder than steel, then she had to take on a form that was sharper still. And once, long ago, she’d come across a rare metal that when properly forged could cut down even a steel blade. The minotaurs who’d forged it called it ‘adamantium’. And now, Chrysalis formed her free hoof into a solid blade of adamantium and shoved it up into her counterpart’s chest, her other self being so close there was no space to dodge.

She felt a brief moment of satisfaction as the blade actually managed to sink into her counterpart’s flesh, albeit after a second of resistance.

However that satisfaction was very short-lived as her counterpart looked at the wound, smiled, and took her hoof off of Chrysalis’ throat long enough to grip her bladed arm. Then with unimaginable strength, she pulled the blade free, then twisted Chrysalis’ leg until it, like her other leg, now snapped like a dry twig.

Chrysalis didn’t scream so much as choke out a pained groan, her eyes starring in morbid horror as the hole she’d stabbed into her counterpart rapidly pulsated and healed over in the span of seconds.

“What kind of monster...?”

“Am I?” her counterpart finished the question, sounding pleased, “Why, my name is the same as yours. Chrysalis. Segunda Espada. Mother to a hive of lovely children whom I care for very deeply, and unlike you would never abandon for cheap, self absorbed revenge. Think of me as the best ‘you’ you could have been, if you weren’t a worthless, washed up, pathetic little bug who never loved anyone and was never loved by anyone, not even your own children. Now, I think it’s time for you to be disposed of, like any other piece of garbage.”

Her counterpart pulled back a hoof, and green energy crackled around its edges, the beginnings of some kind of attack that was aimed right at Chrysalis’ head. And Chrysalis didn’t move. Not because she was low on magic, although that much was true, she’d used up what little energy she’d eaten from Firefly’s dream and had no more tricks to pull. And not because her two forelegs were broken and her chest likely bearing a few broken ribs, although that too was true.

She didn’t move, because her counterpart’s words had frozen her solid with the depths at which they’d cut at her. Because as much as she wanted to deny them, to furiously shout how wrong this creature was... her words rung entirely too true. In that moment, below all her pride, bluster, rage, hate, and despair, Chrysalis considered the possibility that death might be preferable to continuing on as she was.

Then the door to the morgue shot open and a hurricane of ice smashed into the room, billowing into Chrysalis’ counterpart like an icy hammer. The other Chrysalis was slammed into the wall opposite the door, and a sheet of ice rolled across the room and froze her up to her neck to the wall in the blink of an eye. The temperature dropped to below freezing as a voice cut into the room.

“I’m glad I made it in time. Firefly and Starlight are right to be so cautious of you.”

A unicorn strode into the room. Chrysalis recognized her faint, lightly violet coat, and slightly darker mane, but both so pale as to evoke images of arctic ice. Despite the artificial hoof on one of her front legs, the unicorn mare still moved with strength and confidence, although there was a tiredness in her burned features and blue eyes. She wore dark robes over her body, and floating in a wreath of ice blue magic beside her horn was a sword like a carved blue blade of ice.

Chrysalis’ counterpart, still frozen to the wall, turned a lopsided grin at the unicorn, “Platinum. You have terrible timing. Couldn’t you have waited just a few more seconds?”

“And let you kill a helpless individual, intruder or otherwise? No, I think not,” the unicorn named Platinum said, turning to move towards Chrysalis.

Chrysalis didn’t know much about Platinum, other than she was something called a ‘Soul Reaper’ and the young buck who wandered the halls was her son. Why she was with the other world’s Starlight Glimmer, Chrysalis did not know, although the name Platinum did ring a few bells, historically speaking.

Platinum, while still keeping one eye on Chrysalis’ counterpart, knelt over her and looked Chrysalis over with a critical look, “Hmm, it’s disturbing how much you look like her, but I’m going to operate under the presumption you can’t possible be worse than my world’s version of you.”

“On the contrary,” said the counterpart, “I think she’s much worse. She has none of my charm, and is an abject failure on top of that.”

“If she’s a failure by your definition, then I consider that a point in her favor,” Platinum said, and once she’d finished examining Chrysalis, she raised a hoof over her chest, “I’d best at least fix these ribs before moving you. Do try to keep still. I’m not that good at healing Kido.”

A nimbus of gentle blue light flowed around Platinum’s hoof, and Chrysalis took in a sharp breath as warmth spread through her chest and the pain lessened. A moment later, another entered the room; Starlight Glimmer.

Starlight took one look at the room, eyes widening slightly at the sight of Chrysalis, then a harsh glare was shot towards the counterpart, “I seem to recall you telling me you were just going to ‘talk’ to her.”

“I did,” said Chrysalis' counterpart, smiling innocently, “Then she pissed me off. What can I say, I have violent urges sometimes. Do I have you to thank for Platinum tailing me?”

“I had my concerns you weren’t going to play nice with your version from this world, so I thought it best to have someone keep an eye on things,” Starlight said, approaching Chrysalis’ counterpart, mane and tail bristling as her alicorn form spread its wings in a wide display, “It looks like you were about to kill her!”

“Alas, so close,” the counterpart said wistfully, “She really is an eyesore. But I can tell you’re about to get on one of your moral high horses, so if you’d please spare me the gag inducing lecture, I’ll leave you two to play nurse to that wretch and go find something more entertaining to do with myself.”

Chrysalis’ counterpart broke free of the sheet of ice coating her to the wall as if she was tearing herself free of mere paper. Shaking the ice off her body, the counterpart took one last look at Chrysalis and turned her nose up like Chrysalis was a piece of offal on the side of the street and proceeded to trot past Starlight out of the room. Platinum glanced at Starlight, frowning.

“You’re just going to let her go?”

Starlight, still looking spitting mad, just sighed and shook her head, “She wouldn’t listen to anything I have to say, anyway, and the fight isn’t worth it. I’m just glad you made it in time. How is she?”

“She,” Chrysalis said, grunting in pain as her still broken legs sent shivers of agony through her, “Is capable of speaking for herself. Aggh... and I am also... capable of taking care of... myself.”

She tried to move away from Platinum, but the unicorn just gave her a firm stare and moved as well to keep her healing ‘spell’ or whatever it was going, “Don’t be a stubborn fool. You just barely survived an encounter with one of my world’s most powerful monsters and without healing you’re not going anywhere.”

“Platinum is right,” said Starlight, approaching and looking down at Chrysalis with an irritatingly calm, open, even friendly look, “There’s no harm in letting us treat your injuries. I know you’ve been spying on us for a few days now, so you should have a good idea of who we are. As you’re this world’s Chrysalis, I don’t really know what to expect from you, but given how much you got under the other one’s skin, I’m going to take that as a good sign.”

Chrysalis let out a humorless grunt of a laugh, “If you have such a... low opinion of her... why keep her around?”

“Because she’s extremely powerful and we share mutual goals,” Starlight replied with a shrug of her wings, “I’m sure you can appreciate such a simple form of partnership. I don’t have to like her to work with her.”

“You mean use her,” Chrysalis said, feeling better by the second as Platinum’s spell knit back her cracked ribs and the unicorn moved on to one of her legs.

“If you prefer that term,” Starlight said, and she then stepped closer, kneeling down a bit in front of Chrysalis, “How much have you learned by watching us?”

“Not as much as I’d have liked,” Chrysalis admitted, lips turning up in a self-annoyed sneer, “I was trying to be careful and not get detected, so I often kept my distance and couldn’t hear all of your conversations. I know you’re here to gain power by stealing magic, and that you have conflict with the Princesses of Equestria. I, too, have issues with Equestria.”

“Hence why you were willing to talk with your other self. You wanted to see if you could ‘use’ us too,” Starlight said, and after a second of giving Chrysalis a considering look, she looked to Platinum, “How’s her leg?”

“It’ll need a few more hours before she can walk on it, but she should be able to move it now,” Platinum said, giving Chrysalis an appraising look, “Try wiggling it. Let me know if it hurts.”

Chrysalis did so. It was the arm she’d turned into a blade, which had been broken right above the knee. It was sore, but she could move it now, and she reverted it back to her normal hoof. Starlight looked at her with an approving nod.

“I see you and our Chrysalis share at least that one trait.”

Chrysalis growled, “She can shape shift, too? Damn her, is there nothing I have that she does not?”

Something in her voice must have contained a note of the pain she’d felt at her counterpart’s cutting words, for Starlight’s expression softened and she said, “You don’t want to have anything she has, believe me. I don’t expect you’re any saint in this world, especially if you’ve got beef with the Equestrians, but quite frankly I don’t care. Far as I’m concerned, you can think of this as an opportunity to start fresh.”

“Start fresh?”

“The fact that you’re out here, spying on us, tells me you’re in a tough spot yourself. As it happens, so am I. Help me. In return, I’ll help you.”

“How will you ‘help’ me?” Chrysalis asked with a bitter scoff, “Can you get me my hive back? Can you get me revenge? I hate you in this world, you know?”

“Look, whatever issues you’ve got going on here are none of my business,” Starlight said, “I’m not the me you know in this world. I have no interest in this world besides gaining enough power to deal with my own goals back home. Power I’d be willing to share with those who help me gain it. What you decide to do with that power once you obtain it will be no concern of mine. So, what do you say?”

Starlight Glimmer held out a hoof to Chrysalis, “Partners?”

It was a potent sense of deja vu that hit Chrysalis then. For a second, she was back on the ruined top of her former hive, moments after her throne had been destroyed. Starlight Glimmer... Equestria’s Starlight Glimmer, had offered a hoof then as well, in almost an identical mirror to what was happening now.

Back then, Chrysalis had hesitated, if only for one of the only instances of self doubt in her life, before rage at the loss of everything important in her life had overtaken her and she’d smacked Starlight’s hoof away. Now, that hoof was reached out again.

Only this Starlight Glimmer was promising power, and Chrysalis was now far more desperate. And, perhaps, the words of her counterpart had opened up a fresh wound of self doubt that was not nearly so easy to ignore as it had been the first time a Starlight Glimmer had offered out a hoof.

So, before she could question or second guess herself further, Chrysalis, former Queen of the Changelings, found herself reaching out and grasping the offered hoof.

----------

Twilight shivered in the water, doing her best to keep her head above the surface with smooth treading of her hind hooves. Ponies weren’t really built for swimming. Not far away Celano’s airship rested on the waters, the late morning sun rising above it through a clear sky. It was a warm day, but that didn’t necessarily translate into warm waters, although things were thankfully not freezing cold.

They were now where Wavecrest estimated would be the surface about ten or so miles from where Aqualania should have been located, some five to six thousand feet below the sea. For the entire trip to this spot, Wavecrest had been tutoring Twilight, Starlight, and surprisingly enough, Trixie, who’d insisted on being allowed to try her hoof at the seapony witch’s magic. The training had, by necessity, been swift and hard, with no time to spare. Wavecrest had taken all three mares into the water, where she could better show them how to merge their magic with the “spirits” of the water. Twilight was still of the theory that these spirits were really just the ocean’s natural magic field, like any other emitted by different elements of the world. Earth Ponies grew such great crops and gained such hearty physical strength because their natural magic fields were harmonized with those of the land. Seaponies likely had a similar connection to the ocean.

Of course, any form of magic could be duplicated with the right spell craft, and that was what Wavecrest had taught them. It hadn’t been easy, and if not for a certain sleep remedy spell Starlight knew that let one get a full night’s sleep off of a two hour nap, Twilight doubted they’d have had the time to master the magic in question. Especially Trixie. Twilight could never fully get over a certain... dislike for the stagemare, and had had her doubts Trixie even could learn the spells in question. Trixie certainly had complained incessantly about how hard it all was, prompting Twilight to more than once suggest she give up and let Wavecrest focus on training her and Starlight. But Twilight’s words seemed to have only spurred Trixie on harder, and to Twilight’s minor chagrin, even Trixie managed to get the hang of it by the time they reached the “dive point”.

Now they were all in the water. Twilight and her fellow Element Bearers, Starlight and Trixie, Flash Sentry, Tempest Shadow, and Admiral Seaspray were all floating together in a tight knit circle. Wavecrest was floating apart at the center of the circle, while further out her son and his hunting party watched. They wouldn’t be coming with Wavecrest down to Aqualania, but Tidesurge had insisted on escorting them out this far.

“Do not fear, my son,” Wavecrest called to him, “I will return to our tribe, with the bounty of Scylla’s Treasury. I promise you this. Now go, return home and keep our tribe safe until my arrival.”

Tidesurge gave a silent nod, and then gave a swift call in the seapony tongue. He and his hunters vanished beneath the waves, their colorful forms flickering back easteward through the waters.

“Thanks a bunch for hanging with us, salty sea friends!” Pinkie Pie waved at their departing forms.

“We’ll make sure ta see to it ya get back ta yer kin, Wavecrest,” Applejack said, although there was a slight shake in her tone that said the farmpony was as much trying to embolden herself as comfort Wavecrest as Applejack looked down at the dark depths below them with wide eyes. Next to her, Rainbow Dash grinned.

“Not scared of a little water, are you AJ?”

“W-what are ya talkin’ ‘bout, Dash? I ain’t scared at all. U-used ta swim at the lake back home all the time... it’s just,” Applejack gulped, “That lake weren’t so deep, is all.”

“There’s nothing to worry about,” said Fluttershy, “Most aquatic predators don’t even think of ponies as food, and attacks are extremely rare and often cases of mistaken identity.”

“Attacks!? I didn’t say nothin’ ‘bout attacks, I just don’t like the idea o’ not bein’ able ta see any land nowhere.”

“Does the bottom of the ocean count as land?” asked Pinkie Pie in a wondering tone, “It’s technically dirt, right? Just wet dirt.”

“I somehow doubt sharks will be our primary problem,” said Tempest Shadow, her own hoof gripping a harpoon. Celano’s ship had several weapons to distribute out, mostly harpoons and a few knives. Tempest had taken a harpoon, as had Seaspray. Flash had his Zanpaktou, although he’d taken off his Soul Reaper robes save for just the white sash for his blade’s scabbard. Twilight, Starlight, Rarity, and Trixie all had their magic to work with for self defense, and only Rarity had taken a knife she now wore around her chest with a surprisingly well made belt of purple cloth she’d made herself during the trip. Applejack had eschewed any weapons, preferring to just rely on her hooves. As for Dash, she’d somehow convinced one of Celano’s crew to lend her a full on cutlass from their stash of weapons from their air pirate days, despite Twilight’s warnings the slashing weapon wouldn’t be as much use underwater.

Tempest Shadow looked at Admiral Seaspray, who also carried a harpoon, and despite the clear distaste in her eyes she said, “It’s the sahuagin and whatever monstrosities they got down there that will be the problem. My magic isn’t reliable if I have to worry about hitting others in the group, so I suggest once we get down there, you, me, and Wavecrest take the lead and let the Princess’ group follow behind.”

Seaspray didn’t look happy to be hearing advice from her, but to his credit he didn’t dismiss her out of hand, either, “Sensible. Wavecrest knows the territory, I’ve fought underwater once or twice before, and your magic, chaotic as it is, works best as a first strike option while our non-coms remain behind us.”

“Now hold on a sec,” Starlight said, “We’re all in this together, and between me and Twilight we’ve got enough magic firepower to seriously ruin some fish-face’s day... uh, no offense, Wavecrest.”

“None taken. I know you refer to the Deep Ones,” Wavecrest replied, “But Tempest Shadow speaks wisely. It is best that the most experienced ones take the lead. In the depths, you must get used to a different environment. You will not know the signs of danger. Once we reach the city and discover what condition it is in, we can further decide how to proceed, but for now I agree with Tempest.”

“Fine, then I suppose we’d best get this show on the road, as Trixie would say,” Starlight said, and beside her Trixie tried and failed to flourish her cape, which she refused to take off even for this underwater venture.

“Indeed! Now that I, the Great and Studious Trixie, have learned the secrets of aquatic adaptation magic, I may even one day take my show on the waves!”

“I’m certain my tribe could use the entertainment,” Wavecrest said with a flat stare at Trixie, then to Twilight, “I will begin the spell, the rest of you, my apprentices, take hold of the magic and guide it to your fellows. Just as we practiced.”

With her staff of bone she turned in the water, moss green light pouring from the pearl in it’s tip to bleed into the ocean around her. The water grew warm, and frothed as a fresh current in the water carried Wavecrest’s magic from herself and towards the three unicorns. To the side, Tempest Shadow watched the magic being cast with a barely disguised look of old pain and a little bit of envy, unconsciously letting some of her mane drape over her broken horn.

When the currents of magic reached Twilight, Starlight, and Trixie, all three mares lit up their horns like beacons. Twilight slowed her breathing and, following the tutelage Wavecrest had given, imagined her body as water. She felt her heartbeat and imagined it pumping her blood like a great ocean current, and that said current was mingling with that of the water around her. Her magic became less rigid in it’s pattern, and in her mind the trickles of purple light that was her magical field began to run like water and felt out for the echo of power that surrounded her; the ocean’s own natural magic field.

Her magic touched Wavecrests and she stood it into herself, where she began to shape it through her body and then extend it out to her friends. Starlight and Trixie did the same, each taking the magic and spreading it to the ponies next to them. In essence they were just extending Wavecrest’s magic, but in so doing they were essentially casting the spell themselves. Each of them could do this on their own, although it was much harder and more draining to do so without Wavecrest’s help.

A warm tingle spread through Twilight, through each of those touched by the spell. Their bodies shifted, adapted as the magic layered over them and provided a transmutive change that would last for at least a day. It wasn’t a full transformation into a seapony, like what the Pearl of Changing might have accomplished, but rather an adaption.

Twilight felt the gills grow in her neck, felt the small fins extend from her hooves. She felt a tickle in her eyes, throat, and ears, even in her bones and blood as her body readied itself to be underwater, to handle the temperatures and pressures of being deep beneath the waves, all without fundamentally altering her shape as a unicorn. Fur became fine scales, and her mane and tail, while still remaining hair, gained a water resistant quality that’d keep it flowing properly even when submerged.

When it was done, Twilight felt an urge to submerge herself, and she did so, for Wavecrest had said the more one accepted the change in nature, the more the spell would settle in and last. So the cold of the deep enveloped Twilight and she opened her eyes, putting fears aside and drinking in a deep breath of ocean water through her gills. It was a strange sensation at first, but somehow... quaint and refreshing. Her lungs felt no discomfort, and while pushing the water in and out through the gills was a bit harder than with air, it felt just as natural as if she’d been breathing the crisp air of a Fall day.

Her eyes, equally adapted to the water, and with a new infrared ability to handle the darkness of the depths, saw all her friends and allies were now submerged as well, their bodies equally changed.

“Whoa,” said Flash, waving his new finned hoof in front of him, taking a deep breath, “I’m shocked how natural this feels.”

“Hehehe! Wowie zowie this feels great!” Pinkie Pie chimed, doing a flip in the water as she wiggled her legs.

Applejack looked significantly less enthused, but she gave an experimental inhale, and slowly exhaled. Finding herself not drowning, she sighed and then glanced at Twilight, “Wait, shouldn’t our voices sound funny while we’re underwater?”

“The magic adapts your ears and your throats to compensate for that,” Wavecrest said, “The spirits of the ocean will let you hear and see almost as if you were still on land. It is not quite the same as the natural speech we seaponies developed from our long history under the waves. The spell I have used and taught your comrades was designed specifically for land dwellers such as yourselves, to make your time in our realm more comfortable.”

“How long is this going to last, again?” Tempest asked.

“About a day,” Starlight said, “Although me, Trixie, and Twilight can renew the spell ourselves, and obviously Wavecrest can too, so just stick close to us while we’re still underwater.”

“Wait, what if one of us gets separated from the group, or lost, and a day passes?” asked Rainbow Dash, and Wavecrest looked at the pegasus with a flat, level stare.

“Then I suggest you swim to the surface and pray for the best.”

Rainbow Dash gulped, and nodded mutely.

“At any rate, we all seem to be ready for this aquatic excursion,” said Rarity, gracefully doing a turn in the water to get used to the motion, “Shall we begin our dive?”

“Quite so,” said Seaspray, bending down and taking a broad stroke down towards the wall of ink blackness that extended below them. To Twilight’s eyes, it almost seemed like the shining rays of light from the surface didn’t make it nearly as far down as it should. For a moment she was overcome with an irrational sense of dread, as if something vast and predatory was staring up at her from those shadowed depths. But she shook that feeling off. The Abyss in which Charbydis resided was still much further to the north. What lay below here was an ancient seapony city, and possibly, hopefully, the sahuagin warband that had abducted Aria and Sonata.

The mission ahead was going to be dangerous, and the first real test she and her friends would face in this undersea quest to confront the powerful sea witch and her minions. But Twilight reminded herself to have faith. She and her friends had overcome challenges like this before. Perhaps not quite like this, but none of them were rookies when it came to facing danger.

And, she reminded herself with a glance at Flash Sentry, she did have quite the formidable Soul Reaper bodyguard on her side.

With a deep breath of cool ocean water, Twilight dove down, followed by her friends. Down the group went, sinking down further and further, until the very last strand of light from the warm sun above vanished from sight and they were all enveloped by the darkness below.

----------

“Aria..Aria!”

She felt a snout bumping her tail fin, and Aria slowly opened her eyes, instinctively straining against the hard chains binding her fore hooves. Beside her she saw the outline of her sister, Sonata laying right next to where both she and Aria slept in a blocked off stone chamber. The chambers submerged walls were old and worn, with part of the south wall crumbled away. It was there where four of the imposing sahuagin warriors still floated, silent guards who kept close eye on the two prisoners within.

Aria wasn’t certain how much time had passed since there was no light down here to mark the passage of days, but she guessed it was only a couple of days since she and Sonata had been taken captive. They’d been forced on a brutally fast swim to the north, pushed, pulled, and prodded by their violent captors to keep pace. Aria had seen only part of their surroundings, but recalled being led into a deep set of underwater canyons, which had ultimately led to a place where an unbelievably vast set of carved stone archways had led to a...

Aria sat up fast, and startled Sonata in the process, “Aqualania!”

“Whoa, Aria, chill!” Sonata said, “You passed out. Ugh, I nearly did too. Hey, jerks!” Sonata shouted at the sahuagin, “Why won’t you feed us!? C’mon, you want us alive, why not give us something to eat!?”

The guards were silent, but one lowered a trident towards the pair and opened his mouth of razor teeth to grin. Sonata gulped and went quiet.

Aria groaned, trying her best to rub her snout and ignore the biting hunger in her gut. They hadn’t been fed, it was true. It was embarrassing, but she had passed out.

“You alright, Sonata?” she asked, and her sister shrugged.

“Other than being starving and still being captives to these massively uncool and smelly jerks? Yeah, I’m super. Kind of passed out a bit myself, but woke up before you did. Uh, where did you say we were?”

“I didn’t get a good look at our surroundings but... I remember the archways, and broken streets... a palace... I think we’re in Aqualania,” Aria said, shaking her head with a bitter laugh, “Adagio would pitch a fit if she knew. You have any idea how long she talked my ear off about this place?”

“Dagi did?”

Aria’s gaze darkened as she settled back down, swishing her tail in memory, “Yeah, she had a real lore kick for this place, and seapony history. Tried to find it herself, once, don’t you remember?”

“Aria, we were super young back then, and I mostly just remember the food we ate, or maybe that’s just me being hungry right now. I remember Dagi dragging us all over, you always being grumpy, and me just going with the flow. If she mentioned an Aquawhatever place, I don’t remember it.”

“Well... we’re here,” Aria grumbled, looking at their surroundings with a disdainful frown, “Doesn’t look like much from in here, but I’m guessing this is... a residence somewhere? I don’t know, Aqualania was supposed to have been the biggest city under the sea, once upon a time. The heck are these bastards after, bringing us here?”

“You asking me?” Sonata said, blinking, and Aria groaned, waving her chained up hooves at her sister.

“Rhetorical, Sonata...” she said, then lowered her voice after giving their guards a wary glance, “We got to figure out a way to escape.”

“Uh, no duh Aira,” Sonata said, “I’ve been thinking real hard about that ever since I woke up.”

“And?”

“...And I’m still thinking. It’s hard.”

Aria had nothing to say to that. It wasn’t as if she had a brilliant idea off the top of her head on how to get them out of their current predicament. The chains binding her and Sonata were thick and made from a metal that Aria didn’t even recognize. It wasn’t steel, she didn’t think, or iron. It was dark, but had a strange, faintly red tint to it. The chains were wrapped around the forehooves, preventing easy, fast swimming. She and Sonata could swim, sure, but never with the accuracy and ease that they’d need to outrun their captors.

Still, they were in a city now, and that had possibilities that the open ocean lacked. Places to hide, if only she and Sonata could get away from their immediate guards. No doubt Twilight and those other friendly, soft-hearted pony types would be looking to come after them, but Aria wasn’t about to sit around and wait. Her eyes scanned the room, looking for anything that might be even remotely useful.

Whatever furniture that might have once existed here was long since gone, but a few alcoves in the walls suggested seating, or perhaps a place where light crystals might have once been, if the tiny shards of crystal on the ground were any indication. Wait... one of those shards wasn’t that small. In fact it was just big enough that if held properly, one of it’s sharpened ends might make for a good stabbing instrument.

Now that she thought about it, the way their hooves were chained could still be used to bludgeon someone, if need be. But there were four guards, and only herself and Sonata. Granted, the sirens were not small, and one on one actually outmassed the sahuagin warriors. Still, she wanted to make sure she and her sister had an advantage going into a fight, at least the element of surprise. Right now the guards were too alert, too focused on their prisoners. A distraction would be required.

Looking at the wall, then at the ceiling, she noticed the stone was worn and cracked near where the wall had been broken. Structurally weak.

But was it weak enough?

As Aria contemplated this, she felt something stir in the water. A strange pulse that left an even colder chill than the already low temperature of the area they were in. Outside in the darkness beyond the open doorway there was a faint, distant pulse of red light, and soon after this was followed by a sound... an unnatural, undulating noise that left her feeling an instinctive need to crawl back to the furthest corner of the room to hide. The sahuagin guards reacted to the noise not with any visible fear, but a bowing of their heads and the guttural mutterings of what might have been some kind of chant in their own language.

“A-Aria... what’s out there?” Sonata said, shaking.

“I don’t know, but whatever it is, it just got added to our list of things to avoid.”

And hopefully if those ponies were mounting a rescue, they’d have the sense to avoid whatever made that noise, too.

Episode 140: Things Long Buried

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Episode 140: Things Long Buried

Celestia was old, but rarely did she let herself feel the fact. She’d always tried to tackle life with a certain, relentless enthusiasm and poise. In her youth, that had just been the norm, later on, it had been a matter of trying to set an example and maintain the image she believed would best serve the well being and happiness of her people.

But she was old. Not in the way her little ponies would feel old as their flesh gradually failed over the years. No, as an alicorn, her flesh remained vital, and would remain so for... who knew how long? But in her gut, her soul, she felt the weight of years like a heavy blanket of snow might weigh upon the mountains. Protecting her realm, her country, the ten or so million ponies and other assorted creatures that called the land of Equestria home, was a mantle she’d worn for a long time. And she wasn’t fully proud of every moment of it. At times, protecting the realm had required risks. Sacrifices. Luna understood, to a degree...

But Twilight was still young, and was an alicorn only in body, not truly in mind and heart yet. Twilight didn’t know in full the gravity of the responsibilities her position meant. Certainly Twilight had saved the world from numerous threats alongside her friends. In truth, facing down blatantly evil and villainous foes with the power of friendship at one’s side was the... easy part. When one knew who one’s enemy was and what needed to be done to win the day, life was simple. Twilight hadn’t reached the point where things weren’t simple, and “winning” sometimes meant having to put the safety of the whole nation over the lives of the few, or the “calculated” risk of sparing one potentially redeemable villain while “calculating” that another was too risky to try and reform, or even leave alive.

Celestia had spent her whole life of over a millennia “calculating” risks, making hard decisions on what was or wasn’t an “acceptable” risk in regards to ensuring the continued safety and prosperity of an entire nation.

Now, Starlight Glimmer, the human invader of Celestia’s world, had done much to throw all of Celestia’s calculations into proverbial chaos.

She and Luna had faced two of Starlight Glimmer’s minions, and the result had been a disappointing draw in which Luna had suffered grievous injury, and still their two foes had escaped. Luna had been injured before, but never lost a limb, and in her heart Celestia knew she was shaken by the event. Both of them were. They had faced grave threats in the past, but in some ways the one represented by the human Starlight Glimmer was the worst one yet. Not because Starlight was more powerful than those previous threats. If Celestia was giving an honest assessment of strength the danger Starlight and her allies represented wasn’t any worse than Discord or Tirek had been during their rampages... but Celestia and Luna had never defeated either of those foes through their own power, they had relied on the Elements of Harmony.

In an honest fight, unrestrained, Celestia was confident in her abilities, but there was still “risk” involved, and Celestia detested “risk”. She despised “risk”, because within that irritating word was an endless string of dire probabilities, and Celestia often refused to gamble the well being of her people on any damned numbers game. She wanted assurances. Certainties. Guarantees.

That was the whole point of the Elements of Harmony in the first place. A guaranteed, surefire, one-hit-win weapon that would theoretically never fail. It was why Starswirl and the Pillars had planted the seed of that power, and Celestia and Luna had ensured its growth over the course of centuries. It was meant to ensure that the protectors of Equestria’s peace never have to contemplate making use of other options.

But the Elements of Harmony were out of play, contained by the Tree that certainly hadn’t been a part of any of Starswirl’s calculations. Even if Celestia felt comfortable removing them, Twilight and the Element Bearers were far away now, and with Starlight Glimmer becoming an ever greater problem Celestia was left with looking at other options.

She stood in an unused hallway in the depths of Canterlot Palace. It was tucked far back in the north quarter, two levels down from the surface level where the throne room and audience chambers were located. To anypony, such as the Royal Guard who patrolled the halls, this area would look like little more than a dusty, empty hall leading to a dead end.

A dead end that Celestia approached and placed a hoof clad in her golden regalia to a stone on the wall. A gleaming imitation of her hoof print flared with yellow light as the defensive spells on the wall recognized Celestia’s magical field, and the wall shimmered with light until the solid illusion transformed into an open, spiral staircase leading down.

She descended, the illusionary wall reappearing behind her as she went down the long stairwell. Magical lights flickered to life at the lone alicorn’s passage, lighting her way and casting it in a looming growth of shadows as she continued down for at least a hundred feet. Finally the stairs ended in a tall, arched opening into a wide chamber, a rectangle about the size of a modest mansion and lined with numerous, sealed doorways of thick metal.

Celestia ignored most of the doors, each one covered in magical markings. Each contained a wealth of treasures, artifacts, and gathered magical items from both her and Luna’s long lifetimes of adventure and hard work defending Equestria. Any one of those sealed rooms contained riches that would set anypony up for several lifetimes, or contained magical books and artifacts that would make even the most astute of unicorns near faint from the power contained therein. But none of those doors mattered today. Celestia passed them all, until she reached the very end of the room, and stood before a set of stone steps leading up to what looked like a large chest of iron. The chest was covered in chains and runic sigils, all protections against any would-be thief.

She stared at the chest, considering that she could still decide against this. The risks...

“My my my, I always wondered what might bring you down here, but never thought it’d be something as simple as Luna getting hurt.”

Celestia scowled at the voice and shot a heated glare at the ceiling, “Of course you’d follow me. I thought I told you to go scour Ponehenge for any signs that Starlight Glimmer might arrive early before the arranged date to set up traps.”

Discord peeled himself off the ceiling and did a swan dive through the air, hitting the ground in a literal liquid splash before pulling himself together in a flash and whipping out a telescope to poke through a window he literally summoned from thin air. The window showed the sight of Ponehenge, hundreds of miles away.

“Oh do keep your tail straight, I’m watching it like a hawk,” Discord said, “Our precious human visitors haven’t shown, yet, so don’t worry your pretty little head, Celestia.”

“You can hardly blame me for being cautious,” she said, brushing past him and slowly ascending the steps towards the large, metal chest. “I learned from you never to underestimate an enemy.”

“Oh? Is that what we are?” Discord said, casually tossing aside his telescope, although he kept the floating window to the vista of Ponehenge open as he turned and leaned against it while giving Celestia a remarkably shrewd stare, “I thought we were long past that. I’m reformed, haven’t you heard? A model Equestrian citizen, past slip ups with Tirek aside.”

Celestia paused in front of the chest, then glanced back at him flatly over her lowered wings, “You have changed Discord. I don’t deny that. In fact, it does my heart good to know someone like you can change. There are times...”

She sighed, looking away, eyes now locked on the box of chains and iron in front of her, “Times I do wonder if the world really has the ability to grow beyond its conflicts. If it’s not you, Discord, it was Tirek. If not Tirek, Chrysalis. If not Chrysalis, Sombra. If not Sombra, Charbydis. It just... never ends. Even if we save some, others fall, or become even worse. It’s as if...”

“History repeats itself?” Discord offered, and Celestia looked back at him again, a glint of old anguish in her eyes. Discord’s joking tone softened and he shrugged his arms helplessly at her, “Is this why you’re considering opening that box? Because if history is doomed to repeat itself, may as well embrace it?”

“I don’t know,” Celestia admitted, her voice drained, but somehow coated in an iron resolve, “I just know what matters to me most is protecting the peace of as many lives as I can. That’s all I desire, Discord. Peace. Whatever that peace may cost.”

“You’ve always been a very determined mare,” Discord admitted, “And practical. I know you released me from my stone prison not out of any altruism, but because you believed I’d be ‘useful’ to you. I know you let Sombra and Radiant Hope go their merry way after that whole fiasco in the Crystal Empire because you think they might be useful, especially if they succeed at restoring Amore. It’s why you never bothered tracking down and finishing off Chrysalis, or stuck Tirek in Tartaros, too, isn’t it?”

Celestia shuddered slightly, thinking back over her long history of careful choices. “You’re partially right. I had faith in Fluttershy’s ability to bring you around.”

“Well chosen,” Discord said, smirking, “She really has carved out a special place in my heart. Pray that you never let anything happen to her, otherwise you might find me...” a darkness momentarily flashed around him, as if all the room warped with a malignant madness for just a second, “Very cross.”

“Trust me, Discord, the last thing I want is for anything to happen to any of my ponies.”

“Oh, I know, but you’re pushing your luck, letting her gallivant off with Twilight.”

“You know I had no right to stop her, and neither did you, hence why you didn’t try. Besides you should know by now that those mares, including Fluttershy, should never be underestimated,” Celestia said, and Discord paused, then shrugged, conceding the point.

“As for the others,” Celestia went on, almost feeling a hint of calm at being open with Discord, after so long a time spent on word games, “Sombra’s lost too much of his power for me to consider him a significant issue, even if things turn sour with Radiant Hope. If they can restore Amore, it’s worth whatever minimal risk is involved in leaving them be. Tirek is contained, and remains stubbornly unreasonable to any of my attempts to turn him over the centuries. But I’ve always considered his magic absorbing abilities a potential trump card if I could ever discover leverage to use against him to secure cooperation. As for Chrysalis... I didn’t ‘let her go’, I was simply too drained at the time to prevent her escape. I’ve kept a search for her from commencing because I’m not about to waste my Royal Guard trying to find a creature that can decide to look like whoever or whatever she wants. She’ll rear her head again, no doubt. When that happens, we’ll see how things go. Unlike Tirek, I can’t think of a use for her that isn’t presently filled by already reformed changelings.”

“How sad for her,” Discord said with a hefty dose of sarcasm, “No second chances for the unuseful, hm?”

Celestia shot him a sharp look, but he just pointed at the metal chest in front of her, “But then I wonder, what will happen if you use what’s inside that? Chrysalis is an Inheritor, just like us. Do you think she knows that?”

“Doubtful,” Celestia said, “If she’d known, she’d have spent more of her resources looking for Relics attuned to her. As far as I can tell, only you, I, and Luna know the truth.”

A questioning light flickered in her eyes and she tilted her head towards him, “Since we’re on the topic, I never did get a chance to ask you... why didn’t you seek out your own Relics, either the first time you tried to take over this world, or the second?”

A light, snickering laugh came from the Lord of Chaos, “What would I need with those dusty old things? They’re more trouble than they’re worth. Which brings me to the question of the hour; do you really want to use what’s in that box?”

“There may be no choice,” Celestia replied, “Even if we defeat Starlight Glimmer, she represents a larger problem. Our world and the human world are growing ever more connected, and the powers of that realm will inevitably set their sights on us. We alicorns and old spirits like you may have the strength to match some of our potential foes, but by Sunset’s accounts there’s more of them than there are of us. I can’t afford to ignore any potential edge, despite the possible drawbacks it entails.”

She reached out with a hoof and touched the first set of chains upon the chest, and with a mote of golden magic from her horn, shaping itself into the form of a key, she inserted that key into an ethereal lock that appeared in the air before her.

“For thousands of years we’ve ensured some things have stayed buried. Now may be the time for that to change.”

The draconequus rolled his eyes, “Don’t be so dramatic about it. These are weapons, nothing more, and you’re only willing to use them now because seeing your little sister get hurt has spooked you, Celestia.”

Celestia paused to shiver slightly before resuming removing ethereal, magic locks upon the chains, causing them to fall away one by one, “I suppose you may speak the truth. I can’t lose her again, Discord. I can’t let the peace I’ve struggled to create in this world fall apart. Too many are counting on me.”

With the last chains gone, Celestia opened the chest’s lid. Within was a dark blue velvet padding upon which rested two objects wrapped in pristine white cloth. The cloth itself was covered in protective symbols, while the objects themselves appeared to be the broken remnants of ancient weapons, one a fragmented tip of a sword, the other the broken handle of a bow. Celestia lifted both of the eons old artifacts in her magic, feeling a leaden weight in her heart as she did so.

“You do intend to clue Luna in on this, or are you intending to go behind her back?”

“Of course I’m not going behind her back!” Celestia snapped, losing a portion of her characteristic poise and calm as flickers of fire appeared in her mane, if only for a moment before she cooled her temper. “I wouldn’t do this without Luna’s agreement. If need be I can put these back, but...”

“Easier to convince her if you’ve already taken them out, eh?” Discord rubbed his scraggly beard and floated over Celestia, peering at the two wrapped objects, “Rather unimpressive looking things, for what they actually are. Do you honestly think you’ll need this against Starlight Glimmer?”

“I believe I can face her with my own power, but just in case I’m wrong, I’m hedging my bets. As I said, I’m more worried about what comes after we deal with her, because I sincerely doubt our problems will end there.”

Discord gave her a straight-on look, the seriousness of his features juxtaposed with the fact that he was floating upside down in front of her, “And Twilight? You didn’t tell her anything, did you?”

“I was hoping it wouldn’t be necessary. I still am.”

Discord ‘tsked’ at her, shaking his head, “I will never understand why you insist on taking the worst of the burdens on yourself. It’s quite self-destructive, Celestia. If I didn’t think I knew you better I’d say this is some kind of masochistic streak you have, a personal obsession with martyrdom.”

Celestia gave him a withering look, but one that lost much of it’s punch as the bone deep tiredness overtook her once again, and she also noted the sympathetic streak in Discord’s voice. She carefully tucked the wrapped artifacts, the Relics, inside the crook of one wing. She’d place them in a magically created pocket space before leaving the vault, but for now she’d carry them. With a steadying breath she said, “I’m no martyr. Martyrs get to eventually rest.”

----------

“Feeling better?”

The question caused a reflexive scowl to touch Chrysalis’ face, but the changeling soon settled for a proud if somewhat childish look as she glanced away from Starlight Glimmer’s concerned features. “Your healing magic is impressive, but I could have healed myself if I’d only had some love to consume. In fact I could have beaten that monstrous imposter myself if-”

“If you’d ‘fed’ properly,” Starlight finished for her with a wave of her hoof, “Look, if our partnership is going to work you really need to get over the other Chrysalis. Trust me, I know she’s a pain in the butt, you don’t need to convince me of anything on that front.”

Chrysalis folded her forehooves, still impressed she barely felt any lingering ache from the beating and broken bones she’d received. She’d been flippant about it, but she was rather impressed by this healing ‘Kido’ that the one named Platinum had used upon her. Chrysalis hadn’t been lying when she said she could have healed herself if she had enough love to feed upon. Nothing nearly as impressive, or outright frightening, as her counterparts' regeneration, but just as Chrysalis could transform her body into different shapes, she could restore injured parts of her body to their prior, uninjured state. It was just incredibly costly in terms of magic and rarely worth the trouble save for grievous harm... like what her counterpart had done to her. The memory was still painfully fresh in her mind.

They were in the same medical room that the unconscious Firefly was set up in. Platinum had healed Chrysalis’ wounds and then retreated from the room, saying she was going to check on her son. This left Chrysalis and Starlight there, with Chrysalis sitting in one of the beds adjacent to Firefly while Starlight stood between them.

“Why do you keep that creature around if you can barely control her?” Chrysalis asked, “I never keep anyone near me who isn’t someone I can control. It’s asking for trouble.”

“I don’t have the luxury of being too choosy with my allies,” Starlight replied with a self deprecating smile that Chrysalis found most irritating, “The Chrysalis from my world is dangerous, but she wants the same thing I do, at least to a degree. Enough so that we can use each other without having to like it.”

“Hmph, I suppose I can understand that position, although it’s still foolish,” Chrysalis said, then with a spark of curiosity added, “How did you even come to meet her in the first place?”

“Ugh, I prefer not to think about that too much. When I went on the lamb from Soul Society I spent some time with a group called the Quincy. Helped them with some jobs in Hueco Mundo, the realm Hollows like your counterpart come from. Let’s just say I ran across her there after some... messy Quincy shenanigans. Honestly wasn’t too different of a meeting than what you just had with her, only me and Firefly... I suppose we impressed her, or at least got her attention. She let us go, then not long after I parted ways with the Quincy she contacted me again. We got to talking, and when she found out about my goals, she was the one to suggest an alliance.”

Chrysalis snorted, “Convenient. And this ‘goal’ of yours? What is it? I know you seek to plunder magic in this world, but what is it all for?”

“Why do you care?” Starlight shot back, and Chrysalis found she didn’t have an immediate answer to that. Considering, she found herself almost sick to find that she was simply asking out of a desire to keep the conversation going. This was the first time she’d talked with anyone in some time who wasn’t trying to kill her. She was a manipulative, arrogant, and tyrannical person, but Chrysalis was a social creature and had lacked that component in her life since losing her hive.

“I don’t care,” she said defensively, not meeting Starlight’s inquisitive gaze, “I am merely vaguely curious what would cause a fool like you to run to another world with such untrustworthy allies at her side. So what is it? Are you seeking to conquer your own world with the magic you steal here? Or is it a revenge quest? Someone you seek to destroy who’s wronged you?”

“Yeah, no,” Starlight said, shaking her head as she plopped down on her haunches, “Conquest? Please, I don’t want to rule anything. You have any idea what a nightmare it is to actually try to rule the world? I’ll leave that to some other idiot who wants the job. As for revenge... perhaps a little, but that’s secondary to what I’m really after. I’m trying to undo the wrong that was done to me, not avenge it. At the same time I want to break the system that created that wrong in the first place, and stop those doing it, because what they’re up to is going to flush my whole damn world down the drain... and possibly yours, too.”

That got Chrysalis’ attention, “What do you mean by that?”

“You really want to know? Might take a while to explain everything,” Starlight said, and Chrysalis looked at the bed she was in. Platinum had insisted she stay there and rest for at least a half day to ensure the Kido healing took full effect.

“I don’t appear to be going anywhere,” the Queen of the Changelings said, “And since I’ve tentatively agreed to this partnership, I may as well know the full scope of the idiocy I seem to have landed myself into.”

A quiet chuckle escaped Starlight and she raised her hooves in a defeated shrug, “Suit yourself. Settle in and listen up. I’ll start at the beginning, I suppose... the day I learned what Hollows and Soul Reapers were, and my whole life turned upside down.”

----------

Once the last shred of light vanished from above, Twilight found navigating to be a bit of a problem. She still had a vague sense of up and down, but it was muted by the chilly, surrounding black of the ocean. Her eyes, transformed by the spell that had adapted her body to the water, no longer relied on light but heat and a very limited sense of ‘sonar’ that stemmed from a transmuted organ in her snout. The combination of this resulted in her being able to see her companions in a wash of black, whites, and grays that wavered like fog or mist. She had to get close or focus to make out fine details, but otherwise her friends looked grayscale and blurry. The ocean itself was light gray for about twenty or thirty meters around her before petering off into darkness, or rather a lack of heat that she could sense. The ‘sonar’ was wider, leaving vague motion lines that were barely sensed currents. Behind the wake of herself or her friends she could see the currents their own motions made in the water more clearly, but further away objects or currents looked more like gray streaks than solid objects.

If they didn’t have Wavecrest, who’s senses as a natural seapony were much better and who knew the ocean as a true native, Twilight would have been more frightened the party would be lost in these depths. She’d never truly conceived of how dangerous journeying to the bottom of the ocean might be for those unprepared for it, even with spells. This truly was like entering a foreign, alien realm, and it unsettled the Princess in a way few things had before.

She felt a warm touch on her back and she nearly screamed, but soon realized it was just Flash. He’d swum down to be next to her and had laid a hoof on her in a comforting gesture. Even in dull, grayscale, his features were warm and handsome, and Twilight caught herself before she stared too long.

“You okay?” he asked, and she nodded.

“Just fine. A little disoriented. I’m not sure how far down we are. Feels like we’ve been swimming for a while.”

“We’re currently what you surface dwellers would call two ‘miles’ down,” said Wavecrest, having clearly heard them from the front of the group, “I’ve been evening out our course at a gentle angle to ensure you have time to get used to the depths. We’ll be reaching the outer edge of the Sua’Moghgen... ‘Mountains of Teeth’ in your tongue.”

“Uhhh, when you say ‘Mountains of Teeth’, that’s just sort of a fancy name meant to inspire awe, and not indicative of anything having actual teeth living there, right?” asked Rarity, who cast nervous glances to her left and right as if expecting something to come swimming at them out of the dark that would be all mouth and teeth. Wavecrest looked back at the mare with a small, wry twist of her lips that reminded Twilight of the smiles Zecora would wear when the zebra got into the swing of telling a spooky story during Nightmare Night.

“Oh, there are many tales of the dangers that lurk in these deep waters. The Sua’Moghgen used to be filled with the outskirt settlements that surrounded Aqualania, where seaponies tended herds of fish or fields of cultivated seaweed to feed the nation’s capital. Of course when Charbydis and her sister Scylla had their civil war, the mountain settlements were among the first to be ravaged. It is said Charbydis’ abominable creations devoured many helpless villagers, and even to this day the descendants of such monsters dwell in the dark crevices of the mountain range. Dire sharks with mouths as wide as three ponies standing end to end, or squid who’s tentacled limbs bear serrated spikes to rip prey apart.”

“Yer kiddin’, right?” Applejack said, “We can’t just swim ‘round these mountains o’ death?”

Wavecrest laughed, “I exaggerate. Some. The mountains were the site of fierce fighting, and deadly creatures do dwell there, but not in such numbers as to cause much concern. No, my land dwelling friends, the mountains are not our problem. We cross over them to reach the vast canyon valley that Aqualania occupies on the other side, and use the craggy slopes to mask our approach. I shall use my magic to further obscure us, and warn us of anything that may approach.”

“Is that going to be one hundred percent effective?” asked Starlight, face grim, “We’re betting a lot on it if it’s your magic alone that’s supposed to give us cover. Trixie is a specialist in illusion magic, and that should still work down here, shouldn’t it?”

“Ah, I certainly have a few tricks to pull out of my hat if you want a little extra magical insurance,” said Trixie. Wavecrest looked at her with a considering gaze.

“Your illusions may help in some areas, but most underwater dwellers do not rely on normal sight or sound, so mere ‘invisibility’ will not guard you or your fellows as well as you may think.”

Trixie blanched, visibly deflating, “Good point... I guess.”

“However,” Wavecrest added, “Few who call these deep waters home would respond well to sudden, bright light or abrupt, loud noises. An effective means to distract or disrupt something that wants to eat you, perhaps?”

Trixie reinflated, smiling, “Bright and loud I can do!”

“Just how much further are these Toothy Mountains anyway?” Rainbow Dash said, gliding ahead with a few swift kicks of her legs and swishes of her wings. She’d learned rather quickly how to best use her wings underwater to move faster, and seemed most eager to get to their destination, dangerous or not.

“We should see them soon,” Wavecrest said, peering forward, and then with a heavy nod she said, “Look.”

To Twilight’s eyes it was as if they emerged from fog, a wall of sharp, jagged peaks that looked for all the world like a row of uneven, deadly teeth. They loomed ever larger, until they gave Twilight the feeling of approaching the maw of some monolithic sea beast. The mountains were larger than any she recalled seeing upon land, and as the group drew nearer and nearer to them she was left shaking inside at the dwarfing majesty of them. And more than a tad intimidated by the ink black crevices that flowed like melted wax across the mountains irregular surfaces. Truly any number of things could hide inside those innumerable cavern openings or deep ravines, with hungry eyes to peer up at Twilight and her friends.

Wavecrest led them between the two largest pieces, which loomed on either side as twin stretches of rough, rocky terrain sloped down in front of them. The seapony witch moved her staff in a slow, figure eight pattern, and bade everyone swim closer together. Twilight wasn’t sure precisely what spells Wavecrest was working, but she did sense a change in the water around her. It felt to her as if, no matter how much the party moved, the water somehow felt... more still, as if they were now encased in a bubble that muted their motions somehow. Might this spell interfere with natural sonar? What about their body heat? Twilight, at least, could still see just fine.

Now that she thought about it, the range of her vision felt wider than before. Why was that? It took her a second to realize it, but the water itself, rather cold before, was getting warmer. Looking at the mountains surrounding them now, cast in dark shades of deep gray, she saw lighter washes of gray near carved out holes and vents, and realized something.

“There’s active heat vents down here. Are these mountains active volcanoes? Is that why we can see better, because of the extra heat?”

“Smart pony,” Wavecrest said, “The volcanic vents are precisely why my people settled this region and built Aqualania here in the first place. Rich mineral deposits both for mining and ideal for cultivating underwater crops. It’s a tragedy we lost it...” A hungry, fierce gleam appeared in her eyes, “Perhaps one day we’ll reclaim it.”

“Don’t see what’s stoppin ya,” said Applejack, “Even if there’s a few critters swimmin’ about, can’t yer hunters-”

The farm mare’s words were cut off fast as Wavecrest halted in place, suddenly alert as her eyes scanned the area beneath them. They’d been passing over a particularly wide left in the still upward slope of the mountains’ eastern side, and as Twilight followed Wavecrest’s gaze, she saw it too. Something was stirring in the shadowed depths of the cleft, something large.

“Follow me, and make no noise,” Wavecrest said quietly, and then sped off at a remarkably fast rate. Twilight exchanged fearful looks with her friends, and then they rushed to follow her.

Almost as if by instinct, Tempest Shadow and Flash Sentry took up opposite guarding positions on either flank of the group, while Seaspray took up a rear guard behind them. They didn’t need to exchange words to do this, and Twilight could only surmise it was because each of them were soldiers. Even if trained in different armies, and in Flash’s case a different world, military training took over and had some universal similarities so that the trio could act immediately without needing to say anything to each other.

Twilight and her friends formed a tight formation at the center, doing their best to follow Wavecrest. None of them dared to speak, even the usual chatterbox that was Pinkie Pie seemed to know to keep quiet as she had one hoof shoved over her mouth to keep it closed as she swam along with the others.

Wavecrest led them to the lip of an overhand above the cleft, making her way towards a packed formation of rocks. Or rather, Twilight had first thought they were rocks, but upon closer look she realized they were carved dwellings. The ‘houses’ were of various, almost organic shapes, often with interlocking passages of stone forming what looked like a large grouping of rocks and coral. Various openings in the dwellings seemed to serve the dual purposes of windows and entryways, and Twilight reflected that an underwater house could pretty much have a door anywhere it needed to, even the ‘roof’.

Their seapony guide aimed for the largest of the dwellings in the center of the formation, zipping into one of the higher openings. Twilight and the others followed swiftly, Seaspray and Tempest both waiting at the entrance until the rest were inside. Then the pair had a brief staring contest as if challenging the other to be the last one through, until Tempest eventually rolled her eyes at the stubborn look on Seaspray’s face and swam in first, to which he gave a briefly surprised but pleased look before following her.

The interior was mostly bare, consisting of a conically shaped room with the widest part at the top, then narrowing down to a smaller floor space below. Various openings within the conical side walls led to different passages or chambers, but near as Twilight could tell this central one acted as some sort of communal space, perhaps a meeting hall? She saw carved seating areas in the walls where various seaponies might have sat, and a podium-like protrusion that jutted out from the wall at the highest point of the chamber. The whole place gave her a ‘town hall’ vibe not unlike the one back in Ponyville... only dark, underwater, and clearly deserted for many countless years.

“Alright, what was that?” Rainbow Dash asked, “And did we have to run away from it like a bunch of underwater chickens?”

“Oh, can we talk now? Because I was kind of wanting to scream a bit back there,” Pinkie Pie said.

“Shh,” Wavecrest hushed them, and then slowly swam back to the opening they came through, peering out with a cautious gaze as she held her staff at the ready. She gestured for Twilight to come up, which she did, followed by the others, who all looked for other openings to look out from.

“If you must speak, do so in a whisper,” Wavecrest said, “My spell dampens sound, but it will still travel.”

“O-okay,” said Twilight, following the advice to whisper, “But what is it? I didn’t get a good look, just a big shadow.”

“Wait...” Wavecrest said, then her eyes narrowed and she pointed with her staff, “There, it rises. It must have sensed a change in the currents from our passage.”

Twilight didn’t see what Wavecrest was pointing at initially, but then something rose into her field of view from beyond the lip of the cleft in the mountain slope, and she had to force herself not to gasp or scream.

It had a body like that of an eel, but with a grotesquely bloated head, like that of some enormous and misshapen tadpole. She couldn’t tell what color it was in the ocean depths, but her infrared vision made it appear like a ghostly gray wraith, with a fluctuating, luminous quality that made the monster appear ethereal and unreal. It’s length was impressive, by her guess at least forty meters, probably more. Tendrils like whiskers expanded from its broad snout, and its mouth hung open in a cavern filled with hundreds of spear-like teeth. It’s body undulated about, the long fins across it’s slippery form bristling as it propelled itself up from the dark cleft it had hidden in, waiting for prey.

It turned its massive head towards the abandoned seapony village, swimming slowly towards it, like an ominous gray cloud bearing fangs. Twilight saw it’s two dead, white eyes, like twin ghost orbs, fixate upon the town, and she felt a need to duck back, but held herself still.

“Oh my,” said Fluttershy, “It’s so incredible.”

“Incredible?” whispered Applejack, “Dang thing’s big ‘nough ta swallow a dragon! Don’t think yer gonna stare down that thing, Fluttershy.”

“Maybe we won’t have to?” Fluttershy said, “I...I admit I don’t know underwater animals nearly as well as the ones on land, but this is still a creature of nature. Um, right?”

Wavecrest glanced at Fluttershy, a brief look of understanding but also sadness creasing her face, “Make no assumptions, young pony. Many of the sea beasts here are twisted by old, dark magic. I would not try to befriend them as you would those of your surface home.”

“Oh...” Fluttershy said, and then Trixie cut in with a point of her hoof.

“I might be seeing things, but does it have a rider?”

That got everypony doing a double-take, and with a closer look, Twilight realized Trixie was right. She’d been so shocked at the creature’s appearance that she hadn’t even spotted the miniscule rider perched atop it’s broad head. Now that she could see it, her eyes picked out enough details amid the hazy, gray heat-scale of her vision that she could recognize a sahuagin. The fish person was perched on top of the giant eel’s head, holding a set of reigns in one webbed hand while the other carried a large spear of bone.

Wavecrest muttered something in her own language, then said, “Hide, but prepare yourselves. If we are found, we must strike fast against the rider.”

There were acknowledging nods all around, and everypony swam back from the openings and took cover where they could. Twilight found herself pressed up against one of the wall seats next to Flash and Rarity, both of whom had drawn their weapons. Flash held his Zanpaktou loosely with his fore hooves, using his wings for balance in the water, while Rarity used her magic to lightly grip the dagger she’d taken with her. Twilight noticed that while Rarity looked nervous as any of them, she had a hard look in her eyes as well. Somehow Twilight didn’t doubt Rarity would have little trouble using that dagger, if it came to it.

Abruptly Twilight felt a change in the water currents, and realized the massive eel was now swimming just above the building they were in. She could feel the passage of those huge fins stirring the ocean, and she now also heard a long, deep, gurgling noise that she suspected was the eel’s rider. There was a noise of scraping rock as something burst across the building’s roof, causing debris to stir and fall from the roof.

It occurred to Twilight that if the eel wanted to, it could probably flatten half the town in one sweep of its tail.

She waited with her companions, silent as death. Outside she could still hear the eel moving, and the sharp scrape of rock as it bumped into the village’s houses. Was it trying to startle any possible prey into making a break for it? The rider likely didn’t want to search the houses one by one, not only because that would take time, but it’d be risky if there really were intruders.

Because of Wavecrest’s spell, the rider likely hadn’t actually seen them. It might have just noticed it’s eel mount be disturbed by something, and came out to take a look. Hopefully this sahuagin would just assume it was a false alarm and go away. Or it might destroy the town, just to be on the safe side. All Twilight and the others could do was wait, and see which of those options occurred.

For what felt like an unbearably long time all Twilight could hear were the sounds of the eel, and her own thundering heartbeats.

If worse came to worse, she’d try that High Magic spell she thought she’d parsed out by reading the book Celestia had given her...

There was a sudden undulating cry, and then a rush of water currents. Twilight held her breath, tensing herself to release magic from her horn. But then the sharp currents gradually faded, as did all other noise. After another minute Wavecrest gave them a gesture to stay put, then she went and checked the opening. The seapony witch waited cautiously for another full minute, eyes gazing out into the deep, before she swam back to them.

“It returned to the cleft. If we leave now and stay quiet, we can get clear.”

“Are you sure?” Trixie asked with a visible attempt to gulp, which then made her make a gagging expression as she swallowed seawater. Tempest Shadow threw a flat look at her.

“Would you rather just wait here until it decides to come back?”

Trixie made a vaguely rude gesture towards Tempest, while Twilight turned to Wavecrest, “How much further is it to Aqualania from here? If the sahuagin have scouts like that patrolling these mountains, we might have to rethink our approach.”

“The capital should be just on the other side of the mountains, perhaps another ten miles. We can make the distance before the day is done. But you are right we may need to think of a better way to avoid detection than relying solely on my magic,” said Wavecrest.

A quiet hung over the group as all took a moment to consider the situation. Twilight ran over her mental list of spells she knew. The problem was that most unicorn magic that’d be useful for stealth relied on thwarting surface senses, often bending light or outright suppressing all sound. While suppressing sound entirely might sound good in theory, to a creature using natural sonar a spot of absolute lack of sound would stand out just as much as something making noise. They needed a way to blend into the environment, and she didn’t have any spells she could think of that’d help them do that.

After a few unproductive minutes of several suggestions being floated and subsequently shot down, including Pinkie Pie bringing up the notion of disguising themselves as door to door underwater salesponies, Starlight suggesting trying mind control on the eel, and Rainbow Dash bringing up the idea of causing a distraction via triggering an underwater avalanche, the group still hadn’t worked out much of a plan.

“I still say mind control,” Starlight said, “I know you guys kinda don’t like it when I do that, but if we ambush the eel, take out the rider, and I can get the big beastie under control then we’ve got something we can ride right into the city and we’d just look like another patrol to those fish people.”

“We have no way of guaranteeing a mind control spell designed to work on ponies will work on something like that monster,” Twilight said, “It’s too risky, Starlight.”

“Well we sure aren’t disguising ourselves as sales ponies,” Starlight said, giving Pinkie Pie some side eye. Pinkie just smiled and shrugged helplessly.

“Hey, even fish people need to buy vacuum cleaners, don’t they?”

“No, Pinkie, they don’t. They’re fish.”

“Now that’s just speciesist.”

“We don’t even have any vacuum cleaners! You can’t even vacuum things underwater!”

“Well with that kind of attitude I don’t even think you’ll be a good sales pony, Starlight.”

Tempest rubbed her broken horn, eyes squeezed shut against an oncoming headache, “How is it you lot have become Equestria’s greatest heroes?”

“Because we’re usually on land,” Rainbow Dash said, “But seriously, if we can’t think of any fancy plans, we can still just bolt for the city and deal with whatever comes our way. I mean, sure that critter was big, but we could probably take it.”

“One, perhaps,” said Wavecrest, “Even two, if your prowess is as impressive as you boast, but what if the sahuagin have more patrolling the mountains? I wasn’t expecting a sentry this far out. It suggests there are more of the Deep Ones in the city than even I anticipated.”

“We can’t turn back,” Twilight said.

“I was not suggesting we do, but we must be even more cautious now.”

Something sparked in Twilight’s mind at Wavecrest’s words, “Wait... maybe we don’t be cautious?”

“Aw yeah, my kind of talk!” said Rainbow Dash, but Applejack waved a hoof at her.

“I don’t think Twilight was talkin’ ‘bout chargin’ in headlong,” she said, looking at Twilight, “Ya got a’ plan cookin’ in there, sugarcube?”

“Only that I think we’re looking at this the wrong way. Instead of trying not to be seen, how about we make a point of being seen. Trixie, illusions are your specialty, right?”

“Of course, none craft finer figments than the Illustrious Illusionist Trixie!”

“And you got a good look at that eel,” Twilight said, managing an encouraging grin, “Think you can replicate that appearance, precisely?”

Trixie blinked, then shared Twilight’s smile with a vigorous nod.

----------

Some hours later, the group swam along the downslope of the Mountains of Teeth’s western edge. They swam in a loose line, carefully mimicking the undulating motions of the crafted illusion around them. Trixie’s horn was lit up by her magic as she kept up a detailed image of the same kind of gigantic eel placed around the group as they swam. To support this image Twilight and Starlight were provided additional spellcraft, Twilight using telekinesis to add a physical shell to the image that actually stirred the water appropriately, while Starlight added a low grade heat spell to make it appear properly on any viewer's heat vision. Even Wavecrest supplied a bit of her own magic to help disguise the group’s own swimming within the illusion, as to not break the image.

Doing this was somewhat tiring, and slowed their progress a bit, but as a result they’d crossed over the edge of the mountains and were not disturbed by any further sahuagin encounters. Whether that was due to luck, or any sentries that did see them only seeing a natural denizen of the mountains was anypony’s guess, but Twilight was going to take any win they could get right now.

Now that they were on the western side of the mountains, they were passing even more long abandoned villages. Here, Twilight could begin to see the traces of the long ago seapony war. Many of the rocky dwellings were crushed. Some even had their stone walls frozen in waxen rivers, as if melted away by great heat or acid. Scars dotted the mountain slopes from what must have been huge claws, or potent blasts of magic energy. In some areas Twilight could make out the faint glitter of dozens if not hundreds of broken weapons and armor from what must have been fallen soldiers, the bones sometimes showing up as bleached glints of gray in the darkness.

She wondered just how many lost their lives in that ancient battle, and pushed down a rising sense of sadness and unease at disturbing these long lost battlefield graves.

Flash in particular had become increasingly alert at the center of the group, and Twilight noticed the way his eyes would focus on the areas with the biggest concentration of broken armor, weaponry, and bones.

“Is something wrong?” she whispered to him, and he chewed a lip for a moment before answering.

“It’s nothing major. Just, seeing this got me thinking. Back home, old battlefields were ripe spots for Hollows to be born. The souls of soldiers dying painful deaths, it tended to leave a stain of negative spirit energy behind. If Hollows grew in numbers, they’d leave their own mark on places like this. Only...”

“Only?” Twilight pressed, noticing his hesitance.

“Only I’m not getting that sense here. I mean, granted my spiritual senses haven’t exactly been one hundred percent reliable since I got here due to all the magic, and the spells you guys are using might be screwing with me a bit more. But still, I figured for a place that clearly had as nasty a battle as we’re seeing here I’d sense more... I don’t know, more negative spirit vibes.”

“Isn’t that a good thing, Flashie?” asked Pinkie Pie, “Not picking up bad vibes, I mean?”

“I guess,” he said, “It’s just... odd, is all I’m saying.”

Wavecrest looked back at him with an ominous shadow of scrutiny. She already knew something of his nature, as during her training of Twilight the subject of just what had occurred to bring a bunch of Equestrians out into the ocean had been inevitably broached. Twilight had tried to keep things simple and not delve too deep into just what Flash was as a Soul Reaper, but Wavecrest at least knew he was no normal pegasus and had some ability to sense ‘spirits’.

“I would be wary of your senses in this place, especially as we get closer to Aqualania itself,” the seapony said to Flash, “If you truly can feel the essence of the spiritual, it may be you’ll feel before any of us just how grave the wounds are that were left behind by Charbydis’ madness. The very spirit of the ocean here is twisted. Even the unicorns should be able to feel it soon. I... already feel it.”

Twilight wasn’t quite sure what Wavecrest meant, but a minute or so later she did start to get a strange chill in her, despite the water itself being surprisingly warm. Heat vents from underground lava tubes were responsible for the temperature, but the uneasy feeling in her was something else entirely. Soon even Starlight, Trixie, and Rarity were acting more agitated. Rarity rubbed her horn, “Is it me or does anypony else feel a scoach cold?”

“I don’t know about cold, but I do feel like something’s off,” Starlight said, keeping her focus on her magic, “It’s like there’s a really low-grade pressure on my magic. Nothing interfering with my spells, but like I’m pushing up against something.”

“Same here,” Trixie said, “It’s not too bothersome, but it’s unpleasant.”

“Just what happened in Aqualania, Wavecrest?” Twilight asked, “What did Charbydis do, exactly?”

“Exactly? None know for sure, for so few survived the final battle that tales differ widely with the telling,” Wavecrest replied, “All I can say with certainty is that she worked foul magic upon the ocean spirits, slew many, cursed her own body into the deformed shape it now holds, and left this land and the city a cursed place. Behold for yourselves... we approach Aqualania.”

Up ahead the mountain slopes turned into a series of vast underwater canyons, occupying a large circular valley. The ground was covered in huge, wild forests of monstrously huge kelp and seaweed, punctuated by sharp bastions of gleaming coral. The mouth of the largest canyon rose in front of them, and rising from either side of the canyon’s dark entrance stood carved images. Easily matching if not outright dwarfing the size of the spires of Canterlot’s palace, what flanked the canyon were statues of seaponies. They stood in pairs, their titanic forms dotting the canyon expanse like giant sentinels that perhaps in the distant past greeted arrivals to the city... but now stood as grim, cold warnings against trespassers.

The statues were broken in places, their features scarred, but Twilight could make out the shape of feminine seaponies, wearing regal armor and often bearing tridents or large spears.

“The Queens of Aqualania, spanning back through the ages,” Wavecrest whispered, “An unbroken line, until Princess Scylla and Charbyds’ rift shattered the royal bloodline.”

“What, the Queen didn’t have any brothers or sisters to at least provide a royal heir through a cousins’ line?” asked Rarity.

“There were, but most died in the war. Of course there are tales of a surviving heir, somewhere. Stories told to children, mostly, of the lost royal line one day returning. I personally have never put stock in the notion,” Wavecrest said, her hooves gripping her staff tighter, “No, if seaponies are to rise again, it will have to be with a new leader, not relying upon the return of long dead ghosts.”

“Hold on,” said Tempest, “Are we really just going to swim through the front entrance? This canyon is the perfect place for an ambush, and if I were in charge of defending this place, dead city or not, I’d have plenty of sentries here watching this passage.”

“She’s quite right,” Seaspray said, earning a raised eyebrow from Tempest, but he just shrugged at her, “What? You are. You’re still a horrible mare whom I find detestable, but that doesn’t mean I won’t admit when you have a point. Even disguised as we are, wouldn’t any suahagin on watch find it strange one of their eels is swimming through this canyon, riderless?”

“Do not fret,” Wavecrest said, “I wasn’t planning on taking us through the canyon. I’ve been taking us this way because I want us to be seen, but as a wild eel, aiming to hunt in the kelp forest. Follow my lead.”

Wavecrest directed them to steer the illusion that was covering them in a slow bank to the left, taking them to the side of the canyon and aiming for the vast, thick clumps of kelp that lay there.

“Uh, won’t we get tangled in all of that?” asked Trixie, “Our illusion is good, but it’s not an actual eel. We’ll get snagged up pretty bad in there, won’t we?”

Wavecrest only smiled and brandished her staff, “Trust me, we shall be fine.”

“Let’s do as she says,” Twilight said. Not that there was really a lot of other options, since Tempest was right. Even now as she looked down at the canyon walls, she saw small dots of heat moving about. It was hard to tell at a distance, but she had a feeling there were sahuagin patrolling the canyon’s entrance, and that they were looking at the “eel” swimming across their domain. She also caught sight of several larger heat sources, essentially darting lengths of misty gray, but large enough to make her concerned about more creatures under the sahuagin’s control.

“Aww dang it all,” Applejack said, “Them’s sharks I’m seein’ ain’t it?”

“Uhh,” Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes to peer towards the canyon, her sight perhaps somewhat better as a pegasus, used to picking out details at a distance while flying, “Yuuuup, those are sharks. Big ones. No riders, though. Maybe they’re like the fish dude’s version of guard dogs?”

“I hate guard dogs,” said Trixie, and at Starlight’s look she added, “I used to have to sleep on the road all the time, and some farm ponies have guard dogs. Kept me up at night. Or chased me when I tried camping on land I didn’t know belonged to some farmer.”

“It’s true,” Applejack said, “Winoa has run off a few vagabonds tryin’ ta use our land as a campground before. Every farmpony needs a good guard dog.”

“Huh, my family doesn’t,” said Pinkie Pie, “But then again, maybe Boulder counts? Maud always says he’s a good ‘watch rock’.”

“I’m... not even gonna ask,” said Starlight.

By then they’d reached the edge of the canyon wall, where the tall, waving stalks of kelp formed a seemingly impenetrable barrier in front of them. However Wavecrest made small, subtle gestures with her staff, and Twilight felt a faint change in the water currents in front of them. The kelp didn’t so much part as it just appeared to naturally dance aside. They entered the concealing, thick forest of kelp without stirring it in any visibly noticeable way, as if they’d all but phased through it. After another minute or two of leading them deep into the encompassing walls of kelp, Wavecrest stopped, and so did the others behind her.

“We can drop the illusion now,” she said, “The kelp will cover our approach, but we must take time to survey and plan.”

“Is it safe?” asked Trixie.

“Safe enough,” said Wavecrest, “The sahuagin shouldn’t be able to spot us in here.”

While a risk, Twilight understood it’d be hard to keep this illusion going forever, and it did seem like the kelp forest was providing them plenty of cover. With a nod from her, Trixie and Starlight ceased maintaining the spell, and Twilight followed suit, causing the illusionary eel to dissipate around them. Wavecrest’s magic was keeping the thick stalks of kelp at bay so they could still move around easily enough, and she led them deeper into the forest, seemingly familiar with where she was going.

“You haven’t been here before,” Tempest said, “How are you navigating?”

“I studied my mentor’s journals of her own journey here extensively. She left fairly detailed maps, and this is the same approach she used, although there were far fewer sahuagin back then,” Wavecrest replied, “Just up ahead should be a small ridge that will provide us a good view of the city.”

True to her word, it wasn’t more than another ten minutes of swimming before the forest of kelp briefly gave way to a harsh ridge of rocky coral that rose up to brush the very top of the kelp forest. Peeking over the ridge showed them the sight of a deeply curving cliff edge leading down into a vast, bowl-like valley. Twilight could see the canyon to her right, it’s other end opening up into the same valley. And it was here that they first saw Aqualania, or at least what it had become after so many hundreds of years of abandonment in the abyssal depths.

It made Twilight think of a bloated corpse, yet the corpse of something that was once beautiful.

The city was built throughout the extent of the bowl shaped valley, buildings built atop each other like barnacles crawling up the body of a whale. Rows of bulbous shaped homes clustered in curving arcs that reminded Twilight of waves. Deeper in taller spires, like the spines of sea urchins, rose to great heights in the watery depths, some merging together into even taller monuments to the once glory of the seaponies. Amid the center of this sprawling metropolis was a gargantuan edifice of worked stone and coral, oblong and uneven, yet somehow organically natural, like a monumental seashell that still managed to glisten in the darkness.

Yet for all that she could imagine this city in it’s old splendor, even at this distance Twilight could see it’s destruction, it’s old decay, and the scars of the war that claimed it. Many buildings were broken open like open, burst sores. Spires lay broken like shattered teeth, and pointed tops lay speared into other buildings where they fell. The flowing, curving streets lay in decayed patches amid build ups of sediment, and in some places entire buildings were half buried in the wet sands of the ocean bottom. Kelp and seaweed grew unfettered from many places, filling the city with clumps of forest, or climbing up the sides of spires to cover their surface like hair.

And she could tell there were things moving down there. She only caught glimpses here and there, but there were flickers of motion in the darkened streets, and between the broken ruins of the buildings. Beyond that, she also noticed something strange.

“Huh, what are those flickering lights?” said Rainbow Dash, her keen eyesight once more spotting things even more clearly than Twilight could.

Indeed, somewhere in the deeper parts of the city were periodic flashes of light, or at least what Twilight assumed had to be light, since instead of the grayscale of heat, the ‘light’ showed up as red to her eyes, the first light she’d seen since descending into the ocean.

“It must be Deep Ones sorcery,” said Wavecrest, “The color alone gives it away.”

Twilight remembered the bubbling cauldron the sahuagin used during the battle at Mt. Aris, and the way they’d burned their own blood to summon their unnatural magic. She gulped, “What could they possibly be using their magic for in there?”

“Ain’t sure we wanna find out, Twilight,” said Applejack, “We just gotta git in there, find Aria and Sonata, then that treasury, n’ swim outta this nuthouse faster than a’ rattlesnake in a’ mongoose convention.”

“And our eel trick probably won’t cut it in the city itself,” said Seaspray, “We’ll need to handle this delicately.”

“I hate to be the one to suggest this,” said Tempest Shadow as she eyed the city, “But a group our size is going to have a hard time not getting spotted, and since we already have two objectives we should consider splitting into two teams.”

Seaspray grimaced, “Split up? That is a horrendous idea. Splitting our forces means each group having its combat strength cut in half in case we run into a fight.”

“We don’t know how many enemies are in the city, so we don’t want to engage in a fight at all,” countered Tempest, “If we stay in a big group and get spotted, we’re largely hosed anyway. At least if we split into a ‘rescue sirens’ team and a ‘break into treasury’ team, the smaller groups can move around easier, and even if one group gets spotted the other might still be able to pull its mission off.”

“What she’s saying makes sense,” said Twilight, holding up a hoof as Seaspray opened his beak to speak, “And I don’t want us to waste too much time debating, Admiral. I understand your concern, but getting in and out of this city without a fight should be our priority. With two groups we can pursue both goals and reduce our chances of getting caught, just as long as each team has a member who can use magic to help with stealth.”

“Um,” Fluttershy raised a hoof, “But do we know where Aria and Sonata are being held? That’s a very big city. How will we find them?”

“Leave that to me,” said Starlight, and at Twilight’s questioning look she smiled in minor embarrassment, “I know you don’t like me using mind affecting magic, but if we can get one of those fish people alone and ambush them, I can charm them into telling me anything we want to know, including where the sirens are being held. I can also erase the suahagins memory afterward so they won’t even know they spilled the beans.”

Twilight frowned, but nodded. As much as the kind of magic Starlight knew was a moral gray zone by Equestrian standards, this circumstance more than justified it in her opinion. Furthermore, unlike the eel, which likely had a different enough mind for Starlight's normal spells to have trouble working, the sahuagin were intelligent enough to probably have sufficiently similar minds to ponies for mental spells to work. “Very well, you’ll head up the siren rescue team then, Starlight.”

“I must be the one to go to the treasury,” said Wavecrest, “Only I have my mentor’s knowledge of where it should be hidden in the palace, and how it can be opened.”

“Right, and I want to go take a look at that treasury myself,” said Twilight, thinking as she tapped her chin with a hoof, “Hmm, the rest of us should be split evenly to make sure each team has a good mix. Trixie, Rainbow Dash, Tempest, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, you five will go with Starlight’s ‘Siren Rescue Team’. Admiral Seaspray, Flash Sentry, Rarity, Applejack, you’ll come with me and Wavecrest as the ‘Treasury Acquisition Team’. Any objections?”

Tempest had a shrewd look on her face as she looked around at the group, “Hmm, not bad, Princess. Each team has a decent combination of magic casters, physical fighters, and... whatever it is the others supposedly bring to the table.”

“Hey! Why were you side-eyeing me when you said that?” asked Pinkie Pie, and Tempest just stared back at her flatly.

“No reason.”

Twilight just shook her head, hoping that Pinkie Pie would be able to handle the ‘stealth’ aspect of the mission. “If we’re all agreed then there’s no more to say. Aqualania awaits, along with whatever we’re about to find there.”

Episode 141: What Once Was

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Episode 141: What Once Was

The infiltration of Aqualania had begun. Each group had spent a brief time preparing and consulting on ideas, including contingency plans in the event things went wrong.

“Because things always go wrong,” Tempest had said plainly, as if stating the most obvious fact of life, “No matter how skilled some of us are or how lucky we get, at some point things are going to go sideways in there, so we’d best have a plan of action for what each team does when the hay hits the fan.”

Twilight would have liked to have been more optimistic about their chances of succeeding at both of their objectives without raising the alarm, but realistically she knew they’d be fortunate just to reach their respective targets before the advent of violence. That being the case she’d agreed to a few simple contingencies. Simple, because in Twilight’s growing experience the more complex a plan was the more components it had to trip over.

In short, Aria’s and Sonata’s safety was placed as the highest priority, and a series of magical flare signals were agreed upon for the unicorns to use in the right circumstance. If a team was discovered, and hadn’t yet accomplished it’s objective, a purple flare would be sent up. That would mean the Treasury Team would abort it’s go at the treasury and try to link up with the Rescue Team to extract the sirens and escape. Wavecrest didn’t like this idea, but agreed that it’d be better to fall back and try to figure out another way to get to the treasury. However if either team had accomplished it’s objective before being discovered, a green flare would go up instead. In that case things depended on which team had managed their goal. If it was the Treasury Team, they’d grab whatever they could and try to lure as many sahuagin away from the city as possible to make it easier for the Rescue Team to still get to the sirens. And if it was the Rescue team that had succeeded first, they were to book it out of the city ASAP and try to get back to the surface, and hopefully the sahuagin would be too busy with that to notice the Treasury Team, which could finish it’s own objective.

Of course if escape proved unlikely, then either team’s job then was to link up with the other. Starlight and Twilight would use white flares to mark their locations to each other in that case. Yes, that’d run the risk of the sahuagin knowing where the teams were, but they’d stand a better chance collectively escaping at that point, with Twilight and Starlight both figuring that as an emergency measure they could try a group teleport spell once both teams linked up.

Fortunately the aquatic adaptation spell that Wavecrest had used on them accounted for things like rapid decompression, and would keep their bodies from... well, exploding if they ended up having to use the teleport option.

From there it was a matter of deciding infiltration routes, and it was agreed upon that each team would try to enter the city from opposite sides. The palace was at the center point of the city, so for the Treasury Team the angle of approach didn’t matter, they had the same amount of ground to cover either way. As for the Rescue Team, Starlight ventured the idea that it’d be better to enter through the most densely packed area with the most buildings, both for extra cover, and because if she was going to hold prisoners anywhere it’d be the place with the most options to do so. Assuming they weren’t in the palace, of course, but once they caught a sahuagin that would get clarified, hopefully.

In the unlikely event that everything went off without a hitch and both teams secured their objectives with no issues, it was agreed up to meet at the same ridge they’d observed the city over and escape back out through the kelp forest, using the eel illusion as necessary.

So, with the basic plan in place, both groups had wished one another luck and moved off, the Treasury Team along the northwest ridge of the valley, and the Rescue Team directly east, where the thickest portion of residential buildings was located.

Twilight did her best to keep her nerves in check and focus on her surroundings while her group slinked along the valley’s outer ridge. Wavecrest was taking care of keeping up her spell to disrupt heat vision and sonar, but as they’d already learned, that wouldn’t work so well up close, or if the sahuagin kept any more of those eels on patrol in the city.

“Don’t ferget ‘bout the sharks,” Applejack reminded them, “Bet the city is lousy wit them buggers.”

“A likely thing, yes,” said Wavecrest, “We must spot them before they spot us, so we can avoid getting close.”

“I say, what’s that spot over there with those unusual domes?” asked Seaspray, making a vague gesture towards an area partway into the city’s northern sector. Twilight could just make out what he meant, a cluster of about twenty or so bulbous domes that were arranged in two circles around one another. What was odd about them was that instead of being made of solid stone or coral, like much of the rest of the city, these domes looked more translucent, like large portions of them were made of glass or crystal, with a framework of coral worked through it like wire on a chain-link fence.

“Ah, that would be the zoo,” Wavecrest said, to which Rarity balked slightly and gave the seapony a look.

“A zoo?”

Wavecrest stared back at her, “Do you not have zoos on land?”

“We do, I just... never imagined seaponies would have them, for some reason,” Rarity admitted, then with a curious look asked, “What did they keep in an underwater zoo?”

“The same as you surface races would, I suspect. Rare animals and unusual species, things a common citizen of Aqualania might not be able to see in their normal lives.”

At Wavecrest’s words, Applejack gave the distant buildings an ominous frown, “Yer sayin’, like, same as we might put a tiger in a zoo, them Aqualanians had their own version of a tiger... but an underwater tiger?”

“Seabeasts of all varieties and sizes,” Wavecrest said, “The legends even speak of the zoo’s greatest attraction, a magnificent Kraken, caught and tamed by Princess Scylla herself. It was supposedly kept in the largest dome, there, in the middle.”

“You, uh, mean the one with a great big ol’ hole in the roof?” said Applejack, and Wavecrest nodded. At this, Applejack gave a hefty sigh, “Aw horseapples.”

“Oh don’t worry so much, Applejack,” said Rarity, “I’m sure if something as large as this ‘Kraken’ were still around we’d see it coming miles off. A beast that large couldn’t hide in the city...” she glanced at Wavecrest, “Correct?”

“Probably,” Wavecrest said, which didn’t appear to assuage concerns, but by then she’d halted the group in front of a broken portion of the valley slope. Here, the terrain turned into a more broken, rocky set of outcrops and uneven fissures, which caught Twilight’s eye as she examined the odd terrain. She spotted several openings in the valley wall.

“Are these caves?”

“Not quite. From the maps my mentor left behind, these are old mine entrances. Unfortunately none of the mine tunnels lead into the city, otherwise I’d recommend we use them, but the weaker valley walls on this side have collapsed over time and give us some cover we can use to approach the city from,” Wavecrest explained.

“Smart move,” said Flash, his eyes fixed on the edge of the city, a few hundred yards away, “But the north side of the city looks pretty sparse compared to the south. Once we’re there, there’s not a lot of cover, but a lot of big buildings separated by open space. What’s up with that?”

“This is the noble quarter,” Wavecrest said, “Those are villas and mansions, or were long ago. The open space won’t be a problem as long as we keep distance from any patrols, and with fewer streets to navigate, we can make our way to the palace all the faster.”

“And gotta go by that zoo, too, I’m noticin’,” said Applejack, “Them nobles must’ve liked vistin’ there ta set up their homes right around it.”

“Chances are anything that was kept in the zoo is long since gone,” Rarity said, but Twilight held up a hoof.

“Actually, there’s a strong chance any species kept there wouldn’t be able to return to their natural habitats if they already adapted to living conditions here, and in the subsequent years may well have established their own stable populations.”

“Well, crush a mare’s dreams of avoiding any exotic predatory species, why don’t you?” Rarity said, and Flash gave her a reassuring look.

“Don’t worry, my spiritual senses might not be perfect, but I should be able to sense anything that gets too close.”

“No offense, Flash, but ya didn’t sense the eel, or the sahuagin before,” Applejack pointed out, to which Flash’s expression grew self-conscious.

“I know. I’m still sorting out some of the ways magic interferes with my senses, but I think I’m learning to adjust. I’m still a bit weirded out by some of the things I’m not sensing, but the more I get used to the place, the sharper I get. I think I should be able to provide us with a bit of warning, now.”

“We’ll be counting on you, then,” Twilight said, giving him an encouraging smile, to which he returned a grateful nod. She hadn’t forgotten what he’d said earlier, either, and added, “Do you still sense anything off like you did at the battlefield?”

Flash’s face stilled, his eyes flickering briefly towards the city before he closed them in a look of concentration. His voice was steady, but she had gotten good enough at reading him to hear the current of unease he was hiding beneath it, “I don’t know what to tell you, Twilight. I can tell at a glance this whole city is bad news. A lot of death happened here. Back home, this place would be lousy with Hollows, and a serious negative spiritual aura. I’m still not getting any of that.”

He didn’t really want to speak further on it, not because the topic disturbed him, but because he just didn’t have any answers. Ever since he’d come to Equestria he’d realized he’d not seen a single indication of a departed soul, neither Hollow nor Whole. He knew the living beings of this world had souls. He could sense the spirit energy inside those beside him, and certainly knew Sunset Shimmer had a soul as well, so there was no doubting the existence of Equestrian souls. But where they went upon death was a total blank slate as far as Flash could tell. It was unnerving, for a Soul Reaper, but there was little he could do about it except wonder.

Twilight gauged he was eager to shift topics, and given circumstances she didn’t mind that at all, although her own curiosity was burning. She wished she had Celestia around to ask about this. Chances were her ancient alicorn mentor knew far more on the subject. Oh well, she’d just have to survive this adventure and bring it up when she and her friends got home.

“Alright, let’s go,” she said, and following Wavecrest, the group started their descent.

----------

Starlight was breathing heavily by the time her team finished their sprinting swim across the open space between the bottom of the valley ridge edge and the first of the densely packed buildings of Aqualania’s residential district. Sporadic clumps of seaweed and the worn husks of outlying houses provided some cover, which is what they’d used to dash from spot to spot while Starlight and Trixie kept up a pair of invisibility spells. She knew they wouldn’t be nearly as useful as what Wavecrest could do, but it was better than nothing, she figured.

So far nopony had spotted any sahuagin in the city outskirts, but Starlight didn’t doubt the fish people were in there, probably clustered further in near the palace. But just like the canyon entrance to the city valley, she imagined scouts and patrols had to be present. She just had to hope her team could spot them before they themselves got spotted.

At least things were going smoothly so far. Fluttershy was remarkably good at stealth, Starlight was noticing, the pegasus gliding through the water low to the seafloor like a slinking, yellow shadow. Pinkie Pie was thankfully taking the situation seriously, despite standing out like a bright torch with her hot pink fur. Pinkie compensated for this by gathering up some seaweed and wrapping it around herself until she looked like a floating clump of the stuff, to which Starlight felt briefly embarrassed she hadn’t thought of that, and in short order the rest of the team was wearing gathered up seaweed. Not only would it provide extra camouflage, but the cold seaweed would help mask their body heat a little.

The first cluster of residential houses were a mess. Most of them were eroded by centuries of disuse, half buried in sediment. Many of the houses were built up into reef-like clusters, and the streets between them were rubble strewn and curved together in loops, making the place a three dimensional labyrinth that was by no means easy to navigate. Tempest took the lead, pausing at each cross section of broken buildings and using the rubble as cover. She’d carefully look about with her sharp eyes while the rest of the group huddled a few yards back. Once Tempest was certain there was no sign of danger, she’d motion the group forward and they’d swim fast to the next point of cover.

Progress was agonizingly slow this way, but caution was the order of the day. That said, Starlight felt an increasing internal chill that had little to do with her own nerves. The uneven, broken walls of the buildings around them carried unusual noises and twisted the water currents in strange ways. The heat vision of their aquatic adaptation spell seemed to bend just a bit around the edges, as if the dead homes around them repelled even residual heat. Worse, it was impossible at times not to notice the remnants of the vast seapony metropolis’ former occupants. A pair of barely intact skeletons hung halfway out of one dwelling's door as if the couple hadn’t managed to flee outside before something had gotten them. What Starlight assumed to be a storefront was half collapsed with shattered bone fragments laying before it... along with what looked like an age-worn doll made out of carved coral. An entire street end, blocked by a fallen spire’s corpse, was littered by piles of bones so tightly packed Starlight could only wonder how many seaponies died there.

And every now and then she thought she could hear a faint, echoing noise like distant screams, as if the city itself somehow still carried the noises of terror from the day Aqualania fell.

“I-is anypony else starting to really not like being here?” asked Trixie in a faint whisper. The magician mare’s eyes had stayed wide as dinner plates since they’d entered the city, and she kept turning her head about as if expecting something to come rushing out of the shadows at them at any second.

“Nopony forced you to come,” Tempest muttered, “Now keep quiet.”

“I am keeping quiet,” Trixie whispered again, “Hear how quiet I am? This is top notch whispering- AH-!”

They’d rounded a corner, and before them was a flash of monstrously huge teeth, shining pearl white in the darkness. Trixie got out the first note of a high pitched scream before a pink hoof clamped over her mouth. Pinkie Pie had moved faster than a flash, gripping Trixie from behind and muffling the other mare’s startled cry. Trixie flailed about a bit, but Pinkie held firm and said in a hushed tone, “Shhhshhy, we’re in ‘sneak mode’. No alerting the bad guys otherwise we’d have to hide and wait for their search mode to cool down. I didn’t bring any cardboard boxes with me.”

Trixie pointed in front of them, but by then everypony else had seen what had spooked her and had breathed a sigh of relief... partially.

It was the skeletal remains of a shark’s mouth, one about the size of a city bus. It lay propped up by the two halves of the fallen buildings on either side of it, pinning the mouth and its rows of sword-sized teeth up so that in the darkness it looked like the open maw of a living shark. Tempest gave Trixie a hard look, “This is why civilians shouldn’t be part of military operations. Come on, we need to move, in case someone heard her.”

“Uh, guys? I think someone most definitely heard us,” said Rainbow Dash, floating a bit higher than the others as she looked up and to the right, pointing with a finned wing. In that direction Starlight could see distant movement, little dots of heat, perhaps four or five of them. The dots approached fast, and soon enough Starlight could make out the forms of about four sahuagin, one of which rod on the back of a sleek shark, one perhaps twenty feet long.

“Move,” Tempest said in a sharp, commanding whisper, and then shot off at a sprinting swim. The others followed her, with Starlight and Trixie ensuring their invisibility spells were up.

They swam through the remains of one house whose entire top was torn open, and then Tempest turned a sharp left and took them across a spiraling archway between two larger buildings. Starlight could tell Tempest was trying to put the archway between them and the sahuagin patrol, while angling towards the front of one of the nearby spires. This spire was a bit different from the others, with more sharply angled walls, and with windows that struck Starlight as odd but she couldn’t put her hoof on why. They were just swimming too fast for her to get a good look as Tempest led them past a jutting platform that led towards two towering stone doors. The doors were partially open, which was good because they looked so large and heavy Starlight doubted she and her team could open them on their own. The stone had carvings in it as well, but she couldn’t get a good look as the team rushed inside.

As soon as they were inside, Tempest posted up next to the door and focused her eyes outside, watching for if they’d been spotted. This left Starlight and the others to take a quick breather and take stock of their new surroundings.

“Whoaaaa, get a load of this place,” Rainbow Dash whispered. Starlight could only mutely share the sentiment.

The interior of the spire was six sided, with each wall given over to precise angles. Overall Starlight estimated the area was easily a few hundred feet wide and gave the space a cavernous feel. In the three-dimensional thinking of seaponies, the floor was well below the entry door, and the ceiling many hundreds of feet up, leaving the mares floating in a mostly empty space in the center. Countless rows of stone seats lined the walls, enough to fit hundreds of seaponies. The rows were ordered around a single pillar of coral that hung down from above like a spear. Offshoots of coral that grew from this pillar encased what Starlight could only think of as altars, all grown around what appeared to be stone murals and statues. The windows she’d seen from the outside separated the rows of seats by tiers, and she realized what had seemed odd about them was that they were made from what looked like colored crystal, not unlike the stained glass she’d seen in Canterlot’s Palace.

“It’s... pretty,” Fluttershy whispered, floating closer to one of the altars. A number of trinkets lay arranged at the foot of a stone mural, carved with lettering in a language Starlight couldn’t read, but was accompanied by pictures of a surprising level of detail.

She saw what looked like seaponies tending to a field of seaweed, overlooked by a magnificent looking creature who had equine and aquatic features, but was certainly no seapony. This being was much larger, had a longer tail, bigger fins, and...

Was that a gem in the center of it’s chest?

Wait... what am I looking at? Starlight wondered. It couldn’t be a siren, could it?

Fluttershy seemed to be thinking the same thing as she looked back at the others, “Doesn’t this look like Aria or Sonata?”

“No way,” Rainbow Dash said, “Why would a siren be carved on a stone table thing in some seapony... uh, whatever this building is?”

“I don’t think it’s a siren, exactly,” Starlight said, “This one is far too large, compared to the seaponies in the mural. Also the fins are larger, and shaped differently, with longer points. The face is a bit different, too. Even the gem isn’t quite the same. This one is perfectly round, not six sided.”

Really the more she looked at the stone mural’s ancient, worn depiction, the more this “siren” seemed like a more primal ancestor of the race rather than an actual siren. There were enough similarities one could make the comparison, but only in the same way one might draw the same comparison between a house cat and a manticore. Pinkie Pie had swam up higher, looking at more of the murals erected around the altars, her voice still kept low but somehow managing to exclaim with interest, “Oh wowie, all of these are really well made! I always appreciate a good rock carving. Marble practices all the time back home, I bet she’d make a good artist-”

“Will you all keep it down?” Tempest hissed back at them, “Or did you forget about the part where we’re trying to hide?”

Starlight looked to the others, holding up a hoof, “Hold off on the exploring, let’s wait until we know the patrol has passed.”

Having said that, she swam back down to where Tempest was as the others gathered a bit further back. Tempest nodded to her and looked back out the open crack of the door, Starlight joining her as she whispered, “Did they follow us?”

“I don’t see them,” Tempest replied, equally quiet as her eyes searched through the veiled depths. “But they might be taking their time to search building by building. It’s what I’d do in their position.”

“Got a lot of experience with this sort of thing, do you?” Starlight asked, and Tempest cracked a small smirk.

“The Storm King’s army held Abyssinia for a while before we moved on to Mt. Aris. I ran counter insurgence for months against local rebels. I know a thing or two about it, yeah. If these sahuagin are smart, they’ll search this area thoroughly.”

“Then shouldn’t we keep moving?”

Tempest shot her a glance, “We want to capture one of them, don’t we?”

“Ah, good point,” Starlight admitted, chewing her lip in thought. Four sahuagin, plus a decent sized shark seemed like a tough fight for the six of them, at least if they did it out in the open. But with the element of surprise? “As long as we catch them off guard, I think we can take them without causing too much of a stir.”

Tempest smiled her approval, “Got some guts in there, and smarts. Good. Was thinking the same thing; set up an ambush to a spot we lure them too. Hmm... and there they are.”

Starlight concentrated, staring out through the ramshackle collection of crumbling ruins. She saw what Tempest saw, a quartet of heat sources, like blobs of poorly defined white mist. They were swimming in a slow, deliberate pattern through the buildings along the pathway Starlight and the others had fled down, taking their time to look through each empty husk of a house. The closer they got, the more Starlight could make out the details of them, the indistinct fog of their heat resolving into sharper focus to reveal the sahuagin’s scaled limbs, bulbous heads, and wide open mouths of needle teeth. The shark one rode became clearer as well, its triangular head turning left and right almost like a dog sniffing for a trail.

“Do you think they’ll check here?” Starlight asked.

“I can’t think of why they wouldn’t,” Tempest said, turning her gaze back towards the rest of the group, “Alright, there’s plenty of areas to hide in here. We’ll take cover and wait for them to come in. Starlight, Trixie, can you two immobilize them with telekinesis once they’re in?”

Trixie gulped, “I might be able to hold one, but telekinesis is not my forte.”

“I can get the rest,” Starlight said with confidence, “Even the shark.”

“Can you do that and pull off your mind control spell?” asked Tempest, to which Starlight had to take a longer moment to think on that one. Doing multiple spells at the same time was, of course, possible, but generally more difficult the more spells you tried to maintain at once. Telekinesis by itself was easy, but holding multiple targets, one of them a twenty foot shark, then trying a thorough mind control spell on at least one of them?

“...I think so. Might give me a bit of a headache, but I believe I can pull it off.”

Tempest searched Starlight’s eyes, as if seeking some confirmation of Starlight’s level of confidence. Apparently finding whatever it was she was looking for, Tempest nodded to herself, “Then that’s what you’ll do. Once you hold them, I’ll swim in and knock out three of them, keeping one conscious for you to mind zap.”

“Uh, what about the rest of us?” Rainbow Dash asked, and Tempest looked at her with a flat glare.

“Stay out of the way. If you see one of the fish heads get free, I suppose you can try to use that flashy sword you decided to take down here, but do you have what it takes to kill one of those creatures?”

Rainbow Dash visibly gulped, glancing at the cutlass she carried in one hoof, mostly ignored until then. “I...”

Tempest shook her head, “Never mind, then. Just stay hidden. We don’t want any of these sahuagin dead here, anyway, because this patrol going missing would raise alarm. Starlight said she can fix up their memories, which is what we’re counting on here. But we can’t afford any of them to escape, either, so if one does break free... just leave the messy, bloody part to me. No point in you peace loving Equestrians getting your precious hooves dirty.”

“H-hey,” said Fluttershy, “I know you don’t really like us, but we can help, and we’ve all fought dangerous monsters before.”

“Yeah, seriously, we’ve taken down everything from dragons to changelings, so we can handle this,” said Rainbow Dash, “We’re just not big on body counts. One of those tuna breaths try to bolt, I’m more than fast enough to catch them, faster than you at any rate. I can conk them unconscious and we can stuff them in a closet or something.”

Tempest sighed, turning to look back out the door, her eyes becoming narrowed slivers, “We don’t have time to argue, anyway. They’re coming this way. Everypony, hide, and... let’s just hope this works.”

Starlight and the others swiftly swam to find hiding spots. Fortunately the central pillar with its numerous, odd altars and murals provided plenty of cover. Starlight ended up behind an altar bearing a sternly carved statue of a barrel chested, male seapony. Or at least Starlight assumed he was a seapony. His features, both face and body, were excessive in their exaggerated details. Overly toned layers of muscles were expertly carved into the stone, and his literally chiseled features seemed almost comically exaggerated with an overly broad chin and shoulders, and next to no neck. He also had a magnificently long, curly beard, with swirls that almost made it look as if it were made of water. Did seapony’s even get facial hair?

Starlight set aside the questions that ran across the curious corridors of her mind and focused upon the doors into the building. Tempest had taken cover too, in the inset lip of the windows just above the doors. They waited in silence, Starlight readying her horn with magic, while others tensed, Rainbow Dash clutching her cutlass between her hooves so tightly she shook.

A few minutes passed, and nothing happened.

Tempest frowned, and Starlight poked her head out enough to give the other unicorn a questioning look. Tempest shrugged, motioned for the other ponies to stay put, then she very carefully swam down a bit so she could peek out from the upper portion of the doors.

Tense seconds stretched by as Starlight felt her blood pounding in her ears, then Tempest’s frown only deepened as she turned and swam up to the group.

“I don’t get it,” she whispered, “They’re out there, they’re even looking at this spire, but they’re not coming closer than the buildings across the way.”

“M-maybe they know we’re in here and they’re waiting for us to come out?” said Fluttershy, but Tempest shook her head.

“If they know we’re in here, they’d have sent one of the others to go fetch another patrol to deal with us. No it’s like they’re... scared.”

“Scared?” Starlight tilted her head, and despite an objecting look from Tempest she swam up to the door and managed a quick peek outside. She could see the sahuagin patrol, floating just above the remains of the residential spire directly across from where the ponies were hiding. The fish people weren’t even looking at the doors, but instead up at the spire itself, at the whole building. And Tempest was right, the way the sahuagin were shrinking back slightly and not looking right at the building made it seem like they were scared of something.

Even as Starlight watched, she saw the creatures exchange a few gurgling words, the one on the shark making a few sharp gestures and pointing northward, and with what to her looked like a collective look of relief the patrol relaxed and started to swim off north, apparently ending their search.

Starlight floated back, shaking her head, “They just... left.”

“Huh? Why’d they do that?” Rainbow Dash said, “And I was just working myself up for some action, too.”

“Who cares?” said Trixie, “Isn’t it better they just leave so we can keep going without risking our necks?”

“We still need to capture one, remember?” Tempest said, “Although it’ll be easier to do that if we can find one alone, or at least find a smaller group to ambush. But I don’t get it, why didn’t they come in here?”

“Do you think there’s some kind of spooky monster hiding in here?” suggested Pinkie Pie, and Starlight shook her head.

“If something was living in here it’d have already attacked us. I don’t know why they were scared of this place, but...” she glanced back at all the murals and statues, extending up the tall length of the central pillar. Her mind started churning, trying to sort it all out, “I think we shouldn’t stay here long, either.”

In short order the group gathered itself and quietly slipped out of the spire’s main doors, careful and cautious now that they knew what to expect from the sahuagin patrols. As they did so, none of them saw the way the water currents inside the building they just left started to stir, as if by the passage of unseen forces.

----------

Flash Sentry shivered. Nearby, hiding behind a cracked ceramic pot twice as tall as she was, Twilight looked back at him with that cute, worried scrunch of her muzzle. “What is it, Flash?”

He paused before answering, taking a second to focus with his spiritual senses, stretching them out as far as he could. Captain Celestia had always taught him that his senses were as much a factor of intuition as it was exact technique. A Soul Reaper could sometimes feel things at the edge of their senses without needing a direct flare of spiritual pressure. And he had sensed something, if only for a brief moment, at the very limit of his sensory range. He wasn’t sure what it was, and he couldn’t feel it now... but it had been there.

“I don’t know,” he admitted with a boyish shrug, “It might be nothing. This place is making me jumpy.”

“Ya ain’t just whistlin’ Dixie,” Applejack said, looking askance at what had once probably been a dining table made out of carved stone. The remains of ancient plates and cutlery still remained on the table, as if a dinner had been laid out before the residents of the mansion the group was currently swimming through had needed to leave in a hurry. “Ain’t nothin’ ‘bout this city feels right.”

“It does have something of a haunted air about it, but that’s hardly surprising, considering the history of what happened,” Rarity said, careful to avoid the sharper edges of a coral growth that blocked half of the opening that had been torn out of one of the mansion’s walls.

They group had been moving from mansion to mansion to use as cover, but this was the last one between them and the large cluster of domes that was the Aqualania Royal Zoo. Wavecrest had said that according to her mentor’s notes and maps, once they were past the zoo, they’d be in a small administration district that’d lead right to the north side of the palace. It was the fastest way to their overall destination. They just had to keep an eye out for any patrols, sentries... and any wild underwater fauna that had once called the zoo home.

“I can only imagine the horror of the fighting that took place in the city itself,” said Admiral Seaspray, who’d taken up a watch position near a hole in the roof, the ragged edges of which gave Twilight the spine tingling impression that the hole had been made by teeth. Seaspray’s avian features maintained a sharply vigilant gaze outward even as he spoke gravely, “Especially in underwater combat, where one can’t even have proper wall defenses, what with enemies being able to swim right over them. A city under the sea can’t withstand a conventional siege, and is open to a foe charging straight in.”

“It is why you see so many spires here,” said Wavecrest, who floated near Twilight, “The top floors of many served as barracks, allowing the city’s defenders to deploy a protective screen in all directions.”

“If I may ask, why haven’t seaponies ever built another city like this?” inquired Rarity, “It must have been wondrous in it’s day, and misfortunes of war aside, I’m not sure why you don’t build anew elsewhere.”

Rarity flinched slightly as Wavecrest looked at her with a moment of darkened eyes and thunderous visage, but the seapony took control of herself with a deep breath and answered, “You don’t understand. We were broken by Aqualania’s loss. Much of the seapony population resided here, and was decimated by the final battle of the war. What remains... we’ve become scattered tribes, focused on survival.”

Her voice grew hard, “We no longer dream of better things, of building wonders or living in great cities. For many, the tribe and our hunting grounds are all that matter, and the deep mistrust created by Charybdis and Scylla’s war has kept few tribes from working together for more than single instances of necessity. We lack the unifying power that keeps you land ponies together.”

“You mean harmony?” asked Twilight.

“If that is how you see it,” Wavecrest said, “Be it by ‘harmony’ or some other means, Equestrians see themselves as a single whole. A power keeps that unity intact. What you name that power, how you perceive it, is a personal matter. Not unlike my relationship with the spirits of the ocean, what one might simply call ‘magic’, I view as spiritual a connection to something greater than myself. A remembrance and reverence for what once was.”

“Come again?” said Applejack, scratching at her head. Wavecrest nodded to something behind the farmer, and Applejack turned around. On the wall behind Applejack was something Twilight had noticed when they’d first entered the ruined mansion, but hadn’t really looked at. It was a short fresco carved into the wall, with a pair of coral carvings designed to hold small crystals that may at one time glowed with light, but were long since dead and dark. Between the crystal holders the back of the carved space held a worn but still life-like chiseling of an unusual looking being. It looked a bit like a seapony, but had physical characteristics that reminded Twilight more of a whale than a fish, with horizontal oriented fins on a large tail. The carving depicted a female, or at least Twilight thought the individual’s features were feminine, with a head of actual hair rather than a head fine, with the hair falling in a fan around her head that gave an impression of radiance. Strangely, in this being's forehooves, she held a spherical object, perhaps some kind of crystal orb?

“Huh, she’s kinda pretty, whoever she is,” said Applejack, “Ain’t shabby at all on the carvin’ detail, neither.”

“She is Domare, Lady Sea. Once worshiped as the mother of all seaponies,” Wavecrest said with equal traces of respect, longing, and sadness staining her voice, “What you’re looking at is a shrine to her, which tells me this mansion was probably owned by a noble who still held some genuine belief. Not all of them did, in the last days of Aqualania.”

This only seemed to confuse the ponies in the gathering more as Twilight floated forward to examine the shrine, while Rarity and Applejack looked at Wavecrest oddly.

“Worshiped? As in the seaponies treated this Domare individual like some kind of royalty?” Rarity asked, but Wavecrest just let out a bitter chuckle at this.

“Royalty... no, you don’t grasp what I mean. To the seaponies, Domare was a goddess. A higher being. One whom they prayed to, among several other deities that they believed in.”

“Wait, hold up a sec, ya tryin’ ta say that treated this big ol’ whalemare like somethin’ that weren’t even... mortal?” Applejack looked utterly baffled, and by now Flash had taken note of how strange the ponies were taking this and he raised a hoof.

“Am I missing something here? Is it that surprising that a culture would have a pantheon of gods to pray to? I mean, that happened a lot back home.”

“Yes, Flash, but it’s entirely uncommon in Equestria,” said Twilight, carefully examining the wall carving of Domare, and noting some of the similarities between the distinct radiance of the seapony ‘goddess’ and some of the characteristics she’d seen in, well, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Similar exaggerated features of beauty, giant flowing mane, emphasis on being tall and regal. She wondered if there was a connection or if such features were considered deific in general. She looked back at Flash, who still wore a questioning look on his face.

“You see, when the Princesses were first asked to rule us by the council formed by the royal families of the three pony tribes, there was a propensity at first for ponies to worship Celestia and Luna as... well, goddesses. But they put a stop to that very quickly, and have done nothing but discourage any kind of such worship ever since. In the modern day, Equestria lacks any central religious belief system, although I’ve studied other cultures and know that deity worship is still practiced in other cultures, at least a little.”

“Huh,” Flash thoughtfully crossed his arms, “Did your Celestia and Luna just not like the attention or something?”

“Personally I don’t see how it matters,” said Rarity, “Our Princesses have always been there for us, and we do tend to treat them with a fair bit of reverence.”

“But you don’t literally pray to them, or build shrines to them,” Flash pointed out, and Rarity laughed lightly.

“Not openly, but I don’t doubt a few very robust admirers of the Princesses have their own version of ‘shrines’. You’d be surprised how much a good photo of Celestia or Luna goes for in the right circles.”

Wavecrest let out an explosive sigh, “Typical of ponies. You have goddesses walking among you and you treat them like celebrities instead of divine beings.”

“Hey now, I’m all for given’ the Princesses proper respect, but they ain’t ever had heads big enough ta act like they’re above us,'' Applejack said, then nodding towards Twilight, “An’ what ‘bout Twilight here? She’s an’ alicorn, but she’s still got a humble heart, an’ best friend aside I wouldn’t exactly call her a ‘divine being’.”

“Thanks Applejack... I think,” said Twilight before focusing on Wavecrest, “Are you trying to suggest that deities are real, and that the Princesses of Equestria are connected to them?”

“I am not suggesting anything,” Wavecrest said, “The truth is often a matter of perspective. To one such as I, Domare may well be real, and I can feel traces of her will in the ocean around me, and the very act of using my magic is, in part, a prayer to her. But from your perspective, perhaps I’m just another magic user, who paints her magic in the colors of belief. Perhaps belief itself is a form of power. Regardless, we’ve spent enough time on this. We must move on.”

“Ain’t no argument from me on that,” said Applejack, “Seaspray, the coast look clear ta you?”

“It is,” said Seaspray, “And yes, if you ladies are done with your theological discussion, we still have a lot of ground to cover.”

Despite the lack of cover between the mansions, overgrowths of seaweed and offshoots of the kelp forest still made for something to help obscure their movements. Twilight had been trying to study the particulars of what Wavecrest was doing to create her spell that dampened sound and heat, and thought she might be able to try replicating it if she was in a more calm and controlled environment. Probably not best to try spells for the first time in a life or death situation, although it had occurred to her she might not have a choice in regards to some spells.

One factor of the underwater city was that gates and fences were essentially non-existent, so even something like the zoo was devoid of any obvious warding barrier around it. The domes themselves were the barrier for what had once lay within, and the arrangement of them was such that no matter what approach one made to the area one would pass by a small, squat tower that Twilight guessed must have been some sort of admittance building.

The domes themselves were more intact than much of the rest of the city, with the obvious exception of the truly monumental central dome, the roof of which was smashed open like a petrified egg. To Twilight it looked as if it had been broken open from the outside, rather than inside. Wavecrest had said the zoo had kept a Kraken in there, of all things, which just tantalized her curiosity. Kraken were creatures spoken of in the legends of Equestrian sailors as far back as ponies had fared across the seas, and to her knowledge there’d never been a confirmed sighting, just stories. She didn’t doubt huge underwater animals existed, after all she’d seen countless diverse creatures of fantastical nature and stature, but Kraken were a thing of myth even by Equestrian standards.

Her eyes were so locked on the enormous central dome she barely noticed it when Flash abruptly swam in front of her, drawing his Zanpaktou with a tad awkwardly with a forehoof. He’d gotten used to using the surprisingly dexterous hooves of a pony to wield his sword, but the added friction of water was adding a whole new element to make things more difficult. Twilight blinked in surprise, not sure what had caused him to act, but then she noticed that there was movement coming from either side of the group.

The team had swam between two of the smaller domes of the zoo’s outer ring, domes which had suffered their own damage during Aqualania’s fall. While mostly intact, several portions of wall had been broken open or gouged apart, with bits of debris laying in shards along the swimming path between the domes. The interior of the domes could not clearly be seen, but something moved within, and the ponies circled up in a defensive posture as something started to emerge.

Chitinous, broad bodies were carried on thick, pointed legs. Black eyes atop waving stalks swayed towards the ponies, while strong arms ending in sharp, curved pincers raised with hostile intent. Each beast outsized a pony by three or four times over, and crawling out of the does that rose to either side of the party, Twilight counted at least ten of them that were scuttling out to surround her and her allies.

“Crabs,” Rarity muttered, “I am not a fan of crabs.”

----------

His eyes were bulging white orbs, able to take even the tiniest scrap of light and use it to see even what was mostly a realm of undiluted darkness. It was eyes like this that made his race, the sahuagin, naturally flinch from brighter sources of light, but Morgawr had long torn such weakness out of his heart. One could not serve the Deep Mistress for long if one was afraid of a little pain. So it was that the bright flares of magical light, the sacred ruby light of the Mistress’ holy magic, performed by her ordained shamans, didn’t bother Morgawr as he observed the ritual.

The palace square was bathed in the bright crimson of sacrifice, the shamans cavorting about the ritual orb with arms cut open to let their blood weep into the waters. They had wanted a sacrifice or two for the ritual fueling, but Morgawr had squashed the notion flat. The shaman’s blood would suffice, and he’d not waste time sending a hunting party to seek any of the soft kin to fuel the shaman’s spells. Wasteful fools, in Morgawr’s opinion. The soft kin made better workers, and meat in times of salvation, than as simple fuel. Only the Mistress had the right to feed her divine might in such a manner, although he supposed the shamans would tell him their spells were no less divine, echoes of the Mistress’ miracles.

No matter, as long as they did the job. The orb, a thing of dull gray that was suspended from a stone arch across the palace square by a length of treated chain, pulsed with another flash of red. It absorbed the shamans’ blood sacrifice and spun in place, harshly carved sigils on it’s length slowly filling with ever brighter emanations.

But still too slowly.

“You take too long,” Morgawr gurgled deeply, the hands of his thickly muscled arm gripping his massive trident tightly.

One shaman turned a heavily tattooed face, his bulbous nose pierced by a ring of bone, and waving his curved sacrificial knife, groused back, “Great Morgawr, the Eye of the Abyss is not so easily opened by blood not from the heart of the recently sacrificed. If you’d but let us take from the soft kin-”

“There is less time for that than there is for you fools to do this,” he replied curtly, “Perhaps one of you should offer themselves to the cause of our Deep Mistress? A fresh heart can come from anywhere, even a shaman...”

The shaman shuddered, but did not break Morgawr’s gaze, “Unnecessary. Allow this humble priest to inquire, what haste quickens your temper? We have our prize, we are in the heart of our Mistress’ conquest. Aside from embracing the dark depths of our home all the sooner, why do we rush the ritual so?”

“Hmph, our Mistress’ conquest? You shaman do not understand,” Morgawr spat, “We should not spend longer in this place than is needed. Even if that were not the case, I have no intention of waiting here, in case those surfacers have chosen the path of pursuit.”

“You fear them?” the shaman asked incredulously, and was left gurgling in fear as Morgawr shot forward with the languid speed of a lifelong ocean predator. A clawed, webbed hand gripped the shaman’s throat and pinned him to the orb, which was itself twice the shaman’s size. Blood seeped out of the sides of the shaman’s neck as Morgawr’s claws pierced into it, and the orb glowed brighter for the taste of blood.

“I fear nothing, save our Deep Mistress’ displeasure,” he stated firmly, “But only a fool treats a foe of any ilk as if they are no threat. The surfacers may be weak, but even the weak can grasp power, and they may have sought aid from the soft kin. Soft kin who, despite our best efforts, remain in control of the brighter oceans. And do not treat this grave of the soft kin’s old city lightly. It was once our Deep Mistress’ home as well, and for all your shamantic cavorting, you have not mastered the spirits of this place.”

He released the shaman, and with a growl commanded both him and his cohorts to resume their ritual. They did so without complaint, even the one Morgawr had just nearly choked to death. As he swam back he saw one of his warband leaders swimming swiftly across the square from the line of tunnels that led to the palace’s front gates. This sahuagin, a younger male of some promising talent named Tragmiv, stopped short in front of Morgawr.

“What is it?” Morgawr asked, immediately picking up on Tragmiv’s tension, which could be seen all the way in the stiffness of spine fins.

“It is the sentries at the old canyon road,” Tragmiv said, “They reported the strangest thing. A great eel, lacking a rider, passed their way not long ago.”

“Is that so? Perhaps one of our scouts met his end to a hungry predator, and his eel avenged him?” Morgawr said, “Why is this concerning?”

“Because the sentries said the eel lacked any of our markings as well.”

“A wild one...?” Morgawr said, then scratched the bridge of his flat nose, “We hunted them until they migrated out of the mountains, save the ones we kept as mounts. It’d be strange for a wild one to appear now, although not impossible.”

“Not impossible, Great Morgawr, but I thought it strange enough to report,” Tragmiv said, “And there is more. My patrols on the south of the city keep reporting disturbances.”

This caused Morgawr to go still. This was not his first time leading warbands through Aqualania. He knew what ‘disturbances’ meant. “Then I pray to the Deep Mistress that our shamans hurry their work. I’d rather not spend more than another day here if the city’s shadows are already stirring. Pulls our patrols back to the palace, and recall our sentries and scouts to the spires just encircling the palace. I want us ready to leave the moment the ritual is complete.”

“It shall be done. What of our prisoners?”

“They are safe where they are for now, but double their guard. I don’t want them causing any trouble when it comes time to move them.”

----------

The patrol had returned to the top of one of the spires that lay deeper inside the city. Starlight and Tempest surveyed it from the remains of another spire, broken in half with it’s upper portion laying halfway speared through a cluster of residential buildings. By their count the top of the spire the patrol had moved into contained somewhere around twenty sahuagin, along with half a dozen more of their pet sharks. When one patrol returned, another would be sent out, and it appeared as if at least two patrols ran at a time, one moving clockwise around the south end of the city, and another counter-clockwise to the north.

Rainbow Dash came swimming up from the gutted innards of the destroyed spire, joining Starlight and Tempest to whisper, “Just finished checking the bottom floor. We’re clear on our end, but that spire has guards floating around out front, but only two of them.”

“They must be short hooved, or handed in their case,” Tempest said, “Trying to patrol a place this big, plus the scouts further out, with the numbers I saw back at Mt. Aris, these guys have stretched themselves thin.”

“Still enough here to cause a problem for us,” Starlight commented, “We can’t swim fast enough to get ahead of a patrol. We need to know their route ahead of time to have a good shot at ambushing them.”

“On the other hoof, if they’re only watching the ground floor of that spire with a few guards...” Tempest said, and Starlight nodded.

“That’s our best shot. What do you think, Dash? You’ve gotten used to the water to pull off that speed you’re known for?”

Dash puffed out her chest a bit, “Might not be Sonic Rainbooming anything down here, but I can still pull off some moves. What are you thinking, Starlight?”

“Okay,” Starlight said, gesturing for Tempest and Rainbow Dash to lean in, “Here’s the plan-”

----------

Ulgriv was bored and uneasy at the same time. Among the youngest of his warband, this was his first time to the bones of Aqualania, the Deep Mistress’ birthplace. In some ways, it was considered sacred ground, since it was where the sahuagin’s savior originated from. Yet it was also rumored to be a cursed and haunted place, where the souls of the deranged soft kin who sided with the Betrayer had made their final stand, and died screaming against the Deep Mistress’ mighty magic. He’d heard numerous tales of warriors who got separated from their patrols and were never seen again, or were enticed away from their posts by strange visions that drew them to their deaths amid the darkened ruins of this once great city.

He was certainly intimidated by it. Even in its ancient shambles and decayed remains, the city of Aqualania dwarfed any settlement of the Abyss, even Rift Mouth itself. It seemed to confirm all the stories passed down about the hubris and selfishly greedy nature of the soft kin, the “seaponies”. How could they have had so much, yet let it crumble into such a vast and dead thing, like the bloated corpse of a whale? While Ulgriv’s people had no choice but to struggle to survive the Abyss, the soft kin had reaped the bounty of the upper oceans, yet they still lost it.

That was why it was only right that the sahuagin would soon take their place in these gentler, more bountiful waters. Just as soon as the Deep Mistress’ great designs were complete... whatever they were. Truly as nothing more than a young warrior just old enough to go on his first mission, Ulgriv didn’t exactly know what the Deep Mistress’ plans were, only that she was wise and powerful, a worker of miracles who had chosen the sahuagin over her own kin after they had rejected her grace. Even thinking that he felt a compulsion to touch the small token around his neck, a small piece of octopus tentacle wrapped around a stone carving of an eye as he whispered a prayer to the Deep Mistress.

“Alert, youngling,” said Ulgriv’s fellow warrior, Rigash, “Something’s out there!”

Ulgriv nearly jumped out of his scales at the other young warrior’s shout and gripped his trident, looking about at the multitude of empty ruins that surrounded the base of the guard spire he and Rigash were guarding. He saw nothing and heard Rigash’s laughing gurgle. Ulgriv’s gills puffed in embarrassment as he turned to glare at his companions, who was only a year older than Ulgriv was.

“Your joke is as humorous as the excrement of a dead squid, Rigash. And do not call me youngling. You’re not that much older than I.”

“Bah, you’re practically fresh from the egg, the way you gawk at everything and touch your prayer amulet every time your mind wanders. As if the Deep Mistress is going to listen to prayers from the likes of us. She has shamans for that.”

Ulgriv felt heat in his chest, “The Deep Mistress cares for all of us and hears every prayer. She shall save the souls of the faithful, and punish those who lack belief.”

“You see, that is why I call you youngling. You still listen to the chants the hatchery crones filled your head with. Oh, the Mistress is powerful, yes, I don’t doubt that. I have faith in what she does for our race. But I’ve never seen her power save any other than her shamans and chosen champions. No name warriors like us do not factor into her thinking, prayer or not.”

Rigash’s words irritated Ulgriv, but he didn’t waste time arguing the point further. True, the Deep Mistress only granted her power to the shamans and a few select warriors who became her ‘champions’. The leader of this very collection of warbands, Morgawr, was such a ‘champion’. Ulgriv had seen the mighty, muscular warrior rip one of the most deadly sea predators, the killer whales, apart with his bare claws when fueled by the Deep Mistress’ potent gifts. Even a doubter such as Rigash couldn’t deny the real power the Deep Mistress granted. But Ulgriv found Rigash’s lack of faith disturbing.

“Huh, what’s that?” Rigash said, and Ulgriv growled this time.

“I will not fall for your trickery again.”

“No, I’m serious this time you fool, I just saw something move out there. Something glowing.”

Glowing? Light sources weren’t precisely common underwater, so Ulgriv found himself glancing where Rigash was pointing with his trident. There was a stretch of sand covered roadway and rubble in front of the entrance to the spire they were guarding, and beyond that a height of piled stone rubble from the ruins of a housing block that had been destroyed by the falling of a neighboring spire. Inside that mass of tangled building, Ulgriv could see a faint, flickering light. His large, pale eyes hurt at even that tiny bit of light, having so rarely seen it. His blood chilled at the sight. The rumors of the city’s long dead spirits spoke of such lights dancing in the darkness to lure warriors to their doom.

“W-we should go report this,” Ulgriv said, but Rigash gave him a scornful look.

“Report what, fool? That we saw ghost lights? We’d be laughed at as cowards jumping at nothing. No, we must see what that is first. Come on.”

“What? But, we shouldn’t abandon our post!” Ulgriv said as Rigash began to swim towards the light. Was he mad!? What if it was an angry spirit!?

“Hmph, we’re not abandoning our post, we’re investigating something right next to it. Now are you coming, or are you going to float there like a lump of fish droppings and stroke your prayer amulet, hmm?”

Ulgriv’s throat quivered with rage, but he kept his calm and swam after Rigash. He thought it irresponsible to leave their post by the spire’s gate, but it’d be even more irresponsible to let Rigash go swimming off by himself. What would Ulgriv tell their warband leader if Rigash went missing? Ulgriv would never be able to bear the shame, and he might never be allowed to leave the Abyss on another expedition again!

The light had vanished by the time he and Rigash reached the ruins of the residential block, but as they pair of sahuagin glanced about, Ulgriv spotted it again, flickering deeper inside the skeletal ruins in front of them. Gathering his courage, he swam after it, holding his spear in tight, webbed fists.

He heard Rigash behind him, “It might be a jellyfish. They glow, sometimes, and wander into the city every now and again. Or it might be-”

“...Might be what?” Ulgriv asked, and when Rigash didn’t answer he paused and turned around. Behind him Rigash was nowhere to be seen. There was just the empty interior of the ruin they’d entered.

“Rigash? R-Rigash!?”

Ulgriv instinctively swam up against a nearby wall, trident lowered before him as he looked around. Suddenly the ruin interior felt even more claustrophobic, with every broken pillar or archway looking ominous as he slowly started to make his way back towards the front. He really needed to get back to the spire to report this, shame be damned!

He barely saw it coming. A streak of blinding blue.

He was hit in the side, the trident he carried knocked clean from his hands as he was carried by something moving with tremendous speed and force. He tried to gather his wits but he could only flail with his claws at whatever was holding him. He thought maybe he hit something soft and warm before he was slammed into a wall so hard his head went blank for a second.

By the time Ulgriv gathered his wits, he found he couldn’t move. Something was holding him in place. He tried to call for help, but even his mouth was clamped shut by this mysterious force. Once his vision cleared he saw he’d been carried into some sort of central chamber, perhaps the communal center of the residential block. Rigash was next to him, unconscious, but held in place by a field of strange blue light. Magic?

Teal light was holding Ulgriv in place, pinning him to the wall of a pillar in the center of the communal area. He looked at his captors and was flabbergasted to see a collection of bright, colorful soft kin! Seaponies!? Only... they looked a tad odd even for soft kin, as if their fins and scales weren’t quite right.

A pink one, so painfully pink that her brightness near hurt Ulgriv’s eyes, was swimming in a circle around him, chattering excitedly in a language he didn’t understand. It certainly wasn’t the seapony tongue. He knew that. Whatever this pink menace was spouting sounded like utter gibberish.

Another, soft yellow seapony floated in concern near a pale blue one with fins of dizzying prismatic colors. The blue one had a small wound on her arm, and Ulgriv realized that must have come from him as he’d struggled. So it was the blue one that had caught him and Rigash so quickly!? Such speed! He doubted even the swiftest shark could match it. The yellow one was checking the blue one’s injury. Meanwhile three others clustered nearby, watching Ulgriv and Rigash.

Now he knew these couldn’t be seaponies. The soft kin didn’t have horns, let alone horns that glowed! One was light blue, like the fast one, but wore a very silly looking hat. Another, a very light pink or purple, it was hard to tell, was the source of the magic holding Ulgriv in place. The third one, a much darker purple with a broken horn and a frightening expression, left Ulgriv feeling nervous as she loomed over him.

That one spoke to the one holding him in a commanding tone, like that of a warband leader. She kept a harpoon pointed at his chest and looked quite willing to use it. He didn’t understand her words, but they sounded like orders, and the lighter colored unicorn gave a nod before her horn lit up with even more magical aura. Suddenly Ulgriv found a strange sensation come over his head, like a tickling behind his skull. The moment this occurred, he heard the seapony who’d cast the spell speak, but he found himself abruptly able to understand her words!

“Alright Tempest, he should be able to understand us now. The translation spell will work for a couple of hours.”

“Good, can you control his mind at the same time?”

“Should be able to. Multicasting is something I’ve practiced a lot back at Twilight’s castle.”

Overcoming his stupefied state, Ulgriv struggled against the magic holding him in place and sputtered, “Who are you intruders!? What are you going to do with me?”

The dark purple seapony floated a little closer to him, the point of her harpoon raising until it caressed his throat with a dangerous lightness. Her eyes held no trace of warmth, and Ulgriv found himself suddenly wishing that perhaps it had just been a mere ghost or spirit he and Rigash had chased.

“It’s not you who’s going to be asking questions, friend. You’re going to be answering them.”

“I will not,” Ulgriv said, past his fear. If he was to die, he at least would not do so as a coward or betrayer of his people.

“Didn’t say we were giving you a choice,” said the purple one, “Starlight, you’re up.”

The one called Starlight looked at him and gave a strangely apologetic shrug as her horn grew even brighter, “Sorry about this, but if it’s any consolation, you’re not going to remember a thing.”

Before he could respond, a bright teal light shot from her horn and into his eyes, wiping out his vision and his thoughts.

Episode 142: Stealth With a Side of Action

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Episode 142: Stealth With a Side of Action

The very first thing Twilight Sparkle learned about underwater combat was that she didn’t move nearly as fast having to push her body through water as she could when moving through air. This meant the fundamental timing of every motion was slightly off from what she was used to. While many would have called the studious alicorn a bookworm and general nerd, far from the athletic type, years of adventuring with her friends had left her far more hardy than the average geek. Also, being an alicorn helped. She might not have had the time yet to properly grow into all of the outstanding alicorn physical traits Celestia and Luna had had centuries to mature into, but Twilight’s body was precisely normal, either.

So as it stood, she misjudged her first dodge when a crab scuttled towards her and swung it’s pincer her way, not moving as fast as she anticipated she should. That said, she took the blow with grace, feeling a jarring pain but finding herself more than able to roll with it both figuratively and literally as she rolled over in the water and aimed her horn at the offending crustacean.

A pure beam of violet magic lanced into the crab, not only hitting it with tremendous physical force, but flooding the crab’s synapses with a jolt of stunning energy that Twilight interlaced into the beam. It was blasted back into the side of the dome wall it had crawled out of, legs twitching in an erratic dance.

Rarity had adjusted a bit better to underwater movement, and hence managed to glide smoothly through another crab’s grabbing pincers whilst unsheathing the dagger she’d brought with her. Rather than any conventional attack, Rarity used her magic to take hole of a clump of seaweed and tied it to her dagger, using the weapon like a sewing needle in a flourish of rapid motions that tied together her attacker’s legs.

“Shouldn’t we just swim up out of reach of these guys?” Flash Sentry said, his body bursting through the water in a use of Flash Step that left a swirling tunnel current in his wake. It was much harder to use the technique underwater, and it left a more obvious trail of his motions, but these giant crabs weren’t exactly the most swift or canny opponents, either. He got behind one and cut down with his Zanpaktou, cutting clean through the arm of one of the crabs.

To his question, Wavecrest shook her head as she floated back from a crab’s grasp, “No, were we to swim too high, we would be visible to any watchers from afar. It is the ground and buildings that mask us from sentries.”

She spun her staff, chanting under her breath, and the water turned saturated with a soft green glow. The water began to bubble around two of the crabs, who halted and waved their arms about, trembling and flailing as the water temperature began to boil in a sphere encasing them.

“She’s right, we’d best just finish this quickly so the noise doesn’t attract attention either,” said Seaspray. The hippogryph was back to back with Applejack as four of the other crabs surrounded the pair. He used his harpoon to deflect a pincer coming for him and smoothly spun around, whipping the weapon forward in a jab that punched a hole in the pincer of another that was trying to bash him. Applejack carefully eyed the two coming for her, slipping to the side as one tried to grab her with both pincers. When the other snapped down with a pincer of it’s own she threw up her hooves to halt it, and had to use her tail to brace against the bottom part of the pincer that came up from below. She grunted for a moment, then grit her teeth and pitted her muscles against the crab’s. As it turned out, even if her trusty rear hooves were replaced by a fin, a lifetime of bucking apples out of trees still translated into fantastic levels of earth pony strength.

The lower part of the pincer gave out first, nearly breaking off entirely and freeing Applejack to spin around and give the other crab a solid whack with her tail, which made it reel back.

“Heh, these fella’s ain’t too tough,” Applejack said with a surge of optimism.

“Even if they’re not, they seem to have a growing advantage in the numbers department,” Rarity pointed out, gesturing at the domes. While only ten crabs had scuttled out at first, more were crawling out to join their fellows. Twilight counted over twenty at this point, and realized that trying to brawl this out was a bad idea. Even if they won, taking on this many crabs would cause too much commotion and draw the sahuagin’s attention.

“If we can’t go up, we go forward!” she said, “Follow me!”

With a burst of magic she erected a double wall of purple force that split the crab’s formation in two and left a clear corridor that led deeper into the zoo. She swam for it, and the others followed her. The crabs beat upon the walls of magic force with their pincers, but to little avail.

Twilight led the group ahead, where the central dome of the zoo spanned above them. At a whim, she chose to head left, down a wide open street that ran around the central dome, with smaller paths branching off to run between a series of smaller domes. Some were about the size of the one the crabs had come from, while others were smaller, but all had the same broken, dilapidated look. Twilight saw motion from several, or the glint of strange eyes looking out at them from within, and got the feeling that stopping for too long was a bad idea.

Unfortunately they didn’t have much choice but to halt as they came across something blocking their way. It was a colossal shell, splotched with spiked protrusions and coated with mounds of algae. It was empty, save for ancient scraps of dead flesh that hung like banners from it’s cavernous entrance. Some titanic hermit crab must have once called the shell home, but it was long dead now, in what Twilight imagined had been an incredible struggle. She saw several smaller, smashed domes nearby, and it looked as if the shell itself had been hurled into the central dome with impressive force, tearing open a hole with the impact.

“We’ll just have to swim around it,” she said, turning to the left, upon which she saw a strange flickering of lights approaching through the gloom, “Huh, what are those?”

Wavecrest was the first to recognize the approaching danger, her pupils shrinking and her tail fin curling, “Perhaps the ocean spirits are a tad upset today. Don’t let them touch you. They’re Agony Fish!”

“They’re what fish!?” Applejack shouted, then made a yelping sound as she had to swim back from the grasping strands of deathly purple tentacles, each no more than an centimeter wide, but there were dozens upon dozens of then whipping out from the unusually bulbous and mobile blobs that swam towards them.

“J-Jellyfish?” Twilight cocked her head curiously at them. It was a school of perhaps a dozen of the balloon-like creatures, but they were moving with surprisingly swiftness, and appeared to be able to control the motion of the many tentacles that grew from their bodies. Their color was a sickly dark purple, with waving white stripes that formed a pattern vaguely like that of a screaming face.

She’d never heard of this species before, but judging from the name, she was going to guess the sting of these creatures would be far worse than the average jellyfish.

“Why would anypony keep something like this in a zoo!?” Rarity shouted, also darting back as she used her dagger to slice away some tentacles that reached for her, “This is totally inappropriate for a public attraction!”

“Well, we have kept dangerous creatures in Equestrian zoos as well,” Twilight commented while shaping a protective bubble of force around the group. To her surprise, the Agony Fish weren’t dissuaded by the magical force field and started to wrap their tendrils around it. Twilight noticed the tentacles were having a corrosive effect on her magic, and while it held up just fine, she noticed more of the horrid jellyfish incoming and she wasn’t about to see just how many of them might try to pile on.

“Hey Twilight, expand your force field,” Flash said, pointing back at the hole the giant shell had made in the center dome’s wall, “If you can make it large enough to get us in there, I can collapse the wall to block the passage.”

“What, and go into the Kraken’s dome?” Applejack asked, “Are ya nuts?”

“I’m sure the Kraken is long gone, and once we’re in we can cut through it to get to the zoo’s other side,” said Flash.

“We don’t have much time to consider this,” said Rarity, nodding towards where not only were more Agony Fish swimming towards them, but the crabs were catching up as well, “We’ve become very popular, and personally I’ve no desire to become a permanent attraction. Into the dome, I say!”

Twilight gave an affirming nod, “Okay then, everypony get ready.”

She thrust her horn up and flared it’s magic brighter, causing the purple bubble around them to expand rapidly, even as it was sizzling from dozens of Agony Fish tentacles corroding it’s surface. The bubble increased in size until it enveloped the portion of the center dome with the hole punched through it. Twilight had adjusted the spell on the fly to let water through, so they could still swim for the hole, and took off as fast as she could while the others swam beside her.

Once they were inside, Flash Sentry turned around and pointed a hoof at the top of the hole, where numerous cracks spread up the wall.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

A compacted ball of explosive red power flew from his hoof and detonated along the unstable portion of the cracked wall. This caused a short tremor as rubble broke off and collapsed downward, blocking the hole the group had just swam through.

“Guess that oughta slow ‘em down,” Applejack said, “Good thinkin’.”

Flash turned around, wearing a humble look, “Twilight could’ve done the same, right?”

“True,” admitted Twilight, “But I was holding the shield up anyway, so this worked out fine.”

“Capital work, but we’re not out of danger yet,” said Seaspray, pointing upwards with his harpoon at the vast opening that had been torn open out of the Kraken dome’s ceiling, “If those beasts are determined to get to us, they can still get in through the top.”

“True, dear Admiral, but they’ll have to swim up there, or in the crabs’ case, crawl,” pointed out Rarity, “We should have some time to find our way through this place. On that note, is now a good time to ask if this is quite what we expected to find in here?”

Her query got the others looking around at their surroundings. The enclosure of the dome was a wide open area, spanning an incredible length to the point that Twilight’s vision couldn’t even properly make out the far walls. A series of rocky formations rose up from the ground like the grasping limbs of the very beast the dome once held, providing a wealth of eerie shadows to waver across the walls. Over a hundred paces up was a series of glass and coral tubes, ancient walkways where supposedly visitors to the zoo could swim through to view the Kraken in its habitat. Most of these tubes were now broken, jagged pieces of glass littering the rocky fields beneath like glittering snow.

Perhaps most notable was the shape of something huge, yet broken in half, akin to the corpse of a huge creature if not for the gleam of metal. Twilight’s eyes flickered in a squint as she made out details of a sharp, pointed bow, with serrated metal blades leading to a point like that of a swordfish. The twisted remains of metal fins on the sides ended right in a torn hole where the back half of the object hung in a crushed, limp array of wreckage only vaguely resembling a whale’s tail, yet bearing twin props like the propellers on an airship.

“Oh...” said Wavecrest, swimming forward almost unconsciously, “So this is where it fell.”

“Where what fell? The tarnation is that thing?” asked Applejack.

Wavecrest ran a hoof over her head crest, “Legends of Princess Scylla’s personal ship, the Odyssey, still live on in my people’s memory. If the stories can be believed, it was made by Aqualania’s finest artisans and enchanted by its greatest witches. Scylla used it to travel every sea in search of treasures and artifacts from all the world’s cultures. I knew it had been used in the final battle for the city and had been lost, but I never imagined it had made its final resting place in the Kraken’s den.”

She began to swim towards the ancient wreck, almost as if in a daze, but Twilight swam in front of her with a worried look, “I don’t think we have time to look through it, Wavecrest. We need to find the exit, before those crabs and jellyfish find us, or something worse does.”

“I... understand, but surely we have a few minutes to look?” said Wavecrest, “The Odyssey was a powerful ship, and Princess Scylla must have kept some personal items on board. Who knows what we might find of value to my people in there? We may even find weapons we can salvage to aid us in our mission here.”

Twilight was hesitant, but Flash Sentry swam up to her and gave her a reassuring nod, “Why don’t you girls go check the cool looking seapony warship, while the Admiral and I keep watch? If those creatures start coming in through the roof, we ought to be able to keep them busy for a while.”

“Quite right,” said Seaspray, “I must say I’m curious what you might find in there, so far be it from me to curb the explorative urge. Just don’t take too long.”

“Okay, okay, but just for a few minutes,” Twilight agreed.

She didn’t like spending any more time than was necessary right now. Normally she’d be more than excited to explore something of cultural or historical significance like the Odyssey, but not while she had friends out there in danger. So far her team had already run into trouble, and they hadn’t even gotten close to the palace yet. Twilight sincerely hoped things were going smoother for the other team.

----------

“This is going too smoothly,” Tempest said, eyes keenly watching for any signs of more sahuagin that might be trying to find them in the ruins. “He’s almost too cooperative.”

“Oh hush,” Starlight Glimmer said, tossing her a flat look, “The spell is supposed to make him cooperative. That’s the point.”

“Let’s just hope the intel he gives us is good. Now, ask him again about the sirens.”

“Ugh, I already asked him!”

“Do it again. Try to get more detail.”

Starlight rubbed a hoof over her face but sighed heavily and turned to their captive sahuagin. Ulgriv as they’d learned his name to be, was looking at her with that expectant and empty gaze Starlight was all too familiar with. Her friends were familiar with it, too, with Rainbow Dash giving a slight shudder.

“Whoa that is creepy. Did we look that empty headed when you brain zapped us, Starlight?”

“Eeeh, maybe little?” Starlight said, then glanced at Pinkie Pie, who had acquired a stick from somewhere and was poking Ulgriv in the face with it. Where Pinkie Pie even got a stick underwater was anypony’s guess. Starlight shrugged, “At any rate, let’s try this again. Ulgriv, do you remember capturing two sirens, a purple angry one and a blue ditzy one?”

“Hey, I wouldn’t call Aria ‘angry’, just very, very grumpy,” said Pinkie Pie, then rubbed her chin, “But yeah, Sonata’s kinda silly.”

At everypony’s look, she blinked in oblivious query, “What?” She then went back to poking the sahuagin with a stick, while Ulgriv began to speak in an emotionally devoid monotone. Or as close to a monotone as his odd, gurgling voice could get.

“Warleader Morgawr was pleased we captured the two of the first kin who traveled with the land dwellers. They were bound and taken with us to this city.”

“Right, you said that, but are you sure you don’t know where they are right now? Where they’re being held?” Starlight pressed, and Ulgriv’s orb-like eyes twitched slightly.

“I do not know. Morgawr had them taken into the palace, but I saw not where. One as lowly as I would not be allowed into the palace until it was time to return home.”

“Oh? What’s your home like?” Fluttershy asked, and at Starlight’s glance the pegasus turned aquatic equine blushed with a hint of rose as she said, “I was just curious.”

“Home is deep, and dark, and ever cold,” said Ulgriv, “It is where we, the strong kin, have dwelled since the higher waters were denied to us by the soft kin and first kin. There, in the Abyss, we remain the strong kin, surviving and fighting against all the many teeth in the darkness.”

“Oh my, that doesn’t sound very pleasant,” said Fluttershy, “Why can’t you leave if this Abyss is so dangerous?”

“We leave to raid, but cannot settle. Too many soft kin, too many other dangers, so says our wise Deep Mistress.”

“You mean that Charybdis chick?” said Rainbow Dash.

“Only the most honored warriors and shaman may speak the holy name of the Deep Mistress,” said Ulgriv, shuddering slightly, and Starlight waved her hoof at Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.

“Don’t confuse him with random questions, girls. I need him focused. Now Ulgriv, try to remember, do you recall anything about the palace’s interior? Any place at all inside where this Morgawr might keep prisoners?”

Another brief quake of twitches ran over Ulgriv’s broad face. His mouth hung open and then closed a few times before he answered in a halting voice, “I know only the grand entry hall, courtyards, and outer walls. We came through the shaman’s great translocation sphere. I’ve seen no other parts of the palace. But I have heard other warriors higher than myself speak of it. It has many chambers, many halls, and many places forbidden to us by the Deep Mistress. If Morgawr were to keep prisoners someplace, perhaps it would be near the translocation sphere?”

“Translawhat?” Rainbow Dash blurted, and Starlight’s face shadowed with a contemplative frown.

“That sounds like a magical item, and judging by the name, it must be for travel. Ulgriv, where is this translocation sphere located?”

“In a courtyard within the palace’s southern block. It is right next to the fallen temple to the soft kin’s false gods.”

“A temple?” Starlight’s confusion mounted, “And what do you mean ‘false gods’?”

The sahuagin’s limbs wriggled in a spastic show if distaste and his lips pulled back to show his rows of needle teeth. Even his monotone faltered for a second, “The soft kin believed themselves chosen by the false gods to rule the seas forever. We strong kin were abandoned by the gods, according to the soft kin’s legends, and so we were driven into the Abyss. All lies. Only the Deep Mistress is worthy of being called holy, of our prayers. You can see the soft kin’s temples littering this corpse city, filled with images of the false gods.”

“Whoa, this guy is sounding kind of nuts,” Rainbow Dash said, “Who the heck even believes in that stuff?”

“I dunno, mom and pop believe in all sorts of stuff, like the Choosing Stone,” said Pinkie Pie with a hefty shrug as she twirled her stick and stuffed it back into her mane, from where she presumably got it, “There’s some pretty wacky stuff out there, Dashie.”

“Do you think that building we hid in was one of these temples?” suggested Fluttershy, “That would explain all the statues and murals we saw.”

“It might also explain why the sahuagin were afraid of it,” said Tempest, although there was a strong note of doubt in her voice, which Starlight agreed with. Ulgriv’s words made it sound more like the sahuagin detested the seapony’s old beliefs, which wouldn’t fully explain why they’d avoid the temple. Well, no time like the present to ask.

“Ulgriv, why would a sahuagin patrol avoid going into one of those temples?”

To this, Ulgriv paused, then said with a pinch of nerves, “Our wise and powerful shaman keep the palace safe, but not the rest of the city. Our patrols move swiftly and stick together, to avoid the attention of the angry spirits that still dwell here. The temples especially are a dangerous place to enter. Violating one would certainly enrage Aqualania’s spirits.”

“Spirits? As in, ghosts?” Starlight asked, filled with a certain incredulity that didn’t quite stick as she began to feel a sense of chilling unease. Sure, she’d never technically seen a ghost before, but then again, she hadn’t met a Soul Reaper until recently either. As far as she knew Equestria didn’t have anything like spirits or ghosts or anything of the sort wandering around, but she wasn’t inclined to completely dismiss her instincts, which were raising some alarm bells.

“That is what is said,” Ulgriv spoke in a hushed tone, “Rigash laughs at me for believing. Many others do, too. But I do not scoff at it. Warriors vanish when separated from their patrols. One time a patrol dared to break a statue in one of the temples, and one by one they all vanished from the barracks, with no trace save for scraps of flesh and a small cloud of blood. Aqualania is a dead city, but those that lived here may still dwell in the shadows, waiting for a chance at vengeance.”

“Okay, that’s enough of that,” Tempest said, “I think we’ve learned all we can from our prisoner and I’m not interested in ghost stories. Got enough on our plate without making us jump at shadows.”

“We might be able to still learn more about the approach to the palace,” Starlight suggested, and Tempest swam over to pat Trixie on the shoulder.

“If you can keep him dosed up on your charm magic, Trixie can keep him held tight. We’ll bring him along to get intel as needed, but I don’t want us sticking around here any longer than we need to.”

At Tempest's words, Trixie looked briefly miffed at Tempest’s proximity, but with an ego-pleased smile said, “Oh, holding him won’t be a problem. I could do both, honestly, and probably keep up an invisibility spell at the same time. I’m just that good.”

Tempest eyed the showmare with a brief stare, then turned to the unconscious Rigash, “No need, we’re not taking the other one.” She began to swim towards him with her harpoon poised. Fluttershy made a soft gasp and swam forward, getting in Tempest’s way.

“W-wait, you can’t mean to-?”

“The alternative would be to leave him here alive for his comrades to find, and alert every sahuagin in the city that we’re here,” Tempest replied in a cold but practical voice, “If that happens it’ll be a miracle if we can even get into the palace to find your siren friends. Do you want our mission to fail?”

“No, but I don’t want to hurt anyone unnecessarily either,” Fluttershy said, and Pinkie Pie floated up above her, upside down, hooves crossed as she gave a firm nod as well.

“Yup, there’s no need for the pointy’s and the big scary murder-face, Tempy! That’s not how Team Equestria rolls.”

Tempest scrunched her face in a look of equal parts confusion, frustration, and annoyance, “Tempy...? Ugh, look, if this guy reports back to his literal army of violent fish monsters, ‘Team Equestria’ is going to roll right into its own graves, dragging me along with it! What else would you have me do?”

“Uhhh, why not just tie the dude up somewhere hidden where he won’t be quickly or easily found, which’ll buy us plenty of time to go get our rescue gig done and jet out of here with Twilight and the other team. Duh.” Rainbow Dash managed to sound both smug and reasonable at the same time, and Tempest sent her a sharp look, but Starlight swam next to her and held out her hoof.

“Look, they’re right. We’re not here to kill unless we have no choice. Believe me, if it comes to a serious fight, we might have to, but before then we’ve got our own way of doing things. I can find a spot to stuff our second prisoner, and I’ll make sure he can’t get away any time soon. That work for you?”

Jaw clenched tight as a vice, Tempest took a few seconds to take hold of her frustrations and let them out in a deep, grumping sigh, “I still think it’s too risky, but I literally can’t force you idiots to do things the smart way, so just get it done with so we can move out.”

Trixie huffed, “Idiots, she calls us. Does it not occur to you ‘genius’ that if you killed the prisoner, that’d still leave a body for the other sahuagin to find? We’d be just as compromised. Did your brain get damaged along with your horn?”

At Trixie’s words, Tempest’s horn sparked, an erratic set of magical arcs rising from it’s jagged tip. A look that could freeze a volcano came over Tempest’s face as she looked at Trixie, who gulped and backed up a bit. However before anypony else could act or remark, Tempest’s horn calmed down and the unicorn’s expression went back to neutral.

“Fair point, magician. Dead or alive, the prisoner would get found eventually, which puts us on a timer to finish our mission. That said, make another crack about my horn, and you’ll be eating that hat of yours from the other end.”

Tempest swam past Trixie and headed off to take up a watch position while the others dealt with finding a place to stash Rigash. Trixie was a tad pale but also looked a bit baffled as she murmured, “Eat it from the other end...? Oh. Ew.”

“Yeah, working with her is about as uncool as I thought it’d be,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“Well, she is kind of rough around the edges, but I think she’s just very upset and lonely,” said Fluttershy, who then glanced at Rainbow Dash, “She actually reminds me a bit of Gilda.”

“Hmph, maybe,” Dash said, grabbing up Rigash’s unconscious body, “C’mon Starlight, let’s go find a place to stick sleeping beauty here.”

----------

The interior of the Odyssey was not unlike the rest of the city, a contrast of ancient elegance coated by a miasma of death and loss. The corridors were wide and oval, almost like swimming through the veins of a living creature forged from metal, but every inch of it was filled with the sediment of passing ages. The rotted skeletons of long dead crew floated in twisted heaps, causing Twilight to clench her mouth shut to keep bile from rising up. The damage done to the ship from the battle so long ago was apparent everywhere, from rent bulkheads to torn sections of corridor that forced Twilight, Wavecrest, Rarity, and Applejack to maneuver around the wreckage to make their way further inside.

“The hay are ya even lookin’ fer in this sunken coffin?” asked Applejack to Wavecrest, to which the seapony paused at an opening to their right.

“Anything we can use,” Wavecrest replied, swimming inside. Within was an oval shaped room with a concave wall upon which was mounted a large mechanism of metal shaped very much like a four armed ballista. Twilight could tell from a seam in the wall that the wall likely opened up and let the weapon roll out on a rail, upon which it could fire the large, wicked looking harpoons that were mounted in racks upon the side walls.

Guessing from the number of similar openings she’d seen in the hallway, the Odyssey had been equipped with at least ten of these per side. Wavecrest examined the ballistae carefully, running a hoof over it while tapping one end with her staff, “The making of such weapons has been lost to my people. The metal alone is treated in such a way to prevent rusting, something we’ve long forgotten how to do. Recovering even a piece of this would be invaluable to my kin.”

“That’s lovely and all, but it doesn’t help us much in the immediate sense,” Rarity said, “I’d rather not make the gentlemen wait on us too long, so perhaps we should speed this along?”

Wavecrest glanced back at her, then nodded slightly and chanted a brief spell, causing a small glow to infuse the ballistae. A piece of the weapons firing mechanism came loose and floated to Wavecrest, which she grabbed and put into a pouch laced around her chest, “I couldn’t move the whole weapon anyway. Come, we should check the bridge. I know Scylla was not on board during the final battle, but she still had a cabin here from when she took this vessel across the world. Something of importance may still be there. Checking won’t take long.”

She led Twilight and the others deeper into the wreck, making their way towards the bow. There they came through an opening into a wide, circular room. A glass dome on the front acted as a viewing window, while the rest of the room was given over to a number of chairs with harnesses, most of which sat in front of short pillars bearing various levers and wheels. Metal tubes ran from the ceiling to several of these stations, with open ends like the horns of an instrument. A large chair in the center had more of these than most, and Twilight looked at the tubes curiously.

“Hm, were these for speaking into? They look like something you’d speak into and the tube would carry the sound.”

“Yer guess is as good as anyone’s, hun,” said Applejack, “All this fancy fangled contraption stuff just gives me a headache.”

“I’m just impressed at how advanced the seaponies were,” said Rarity, “Huge underwater metropolis. Underwater ships of metal. It’s all quite impressive.”

“It is,” said Wavecrest, “Perhaps now you can understand why my mentor and I both felt it so important to find Aqualania and explore it. To just reclaim even a tiny piece of its former glory would do wonders to help my people.”

“We’re happy to help,” Twilight said, looking towards an ornate door barring an opening to the left of the bridge, “Now, I’m guessing this must be the door to Scylla’s cabin? It’s the only other passage here.”

“Yes, it must be. Help me with the door,” Wavecrest said, and the four of them swam up to the heavy metal hatchway. Hooves gripped around the edges while Twilight used her magic to probe the door itself. She found the gears holding it shut and with a bit of magical force helped the others turn the lever that operated the gears. Countless years of disuse made it difficult, but Twilight had plenty of magical muscle to throw around and in short order the door opened with a loud, metallic groan.

Within was a room that might have once been opulent, but was now a literal mess, although from the look of it Twilight got the impression the chamber had always lacked organization. To her surprise books and scrolls floated in the water with no visible damage, as if kept intact underwater by magic. Shelves filled with odds and ends lined the walls, with much of the strange junk piling them at random still present. An oval bed, more like a tub than any traditional bed on land, was stuffed into one corner, next to a large table pinned with charts and more books.

Floating inside, Twilight and the others began sifting through what was there, Wavecrest immediately going for the shelves of strange baubles, while Twilight aimed for the table of books and charts.

Rarity laid down on the bed, stretching herself in it like she was lounging in a tub. The bottom had a padded surface, and she sighed, “Oh my, this is surprisingly comfortable. At least this Princess Scylla traveled in style.”

“Rarity, show a bit o’ respect, will ya?” said Applejack, “Yer restin’ in a dead gal’s bed.”

Rarity paused, then winced and swam off the bed, “Point taken.”

Meanwhile Wavecrest grunted as she went through the shelves, grabbing and examining the random items piled there, “Hmph, none of these look like real artifacts, just souvenirs taken from the Princess’ journeys.”

“What do you mean?” asked Rarity.

“The Princess must have only kept the truly potent items in the Treasury,” Wavecres sighed, “I was hoping she may have left one or two here on the ship. Something we could use against the sahuagin. Sadly these just appear to be trinkets. I sense no power from any of them.”

“Power isn’t everything,” Twilight said, cracking open one of the books, her eyes alight with focus, “Knowledge alone can often be more valuable. Besides, aren’t you at least a little curious about one of your historical figure’s journals?”

“Journal?” Wavecrest turned about and swam right over to Twilight, her own curiosity now piqued, “That is one of Princess Scylla's journals?”

Twilight flashed a knowing smile, “Not sure why anypony else would keep a journal in Scylla's quarters. I’m checking the entries now to see if they mention anything about the Treasury. Maybe we’ll learn more about it to make our quest easier. Oh, but I’m also pretty curious just what kind of pony Scylla was. There’s a lot of entries here. She wrote almost every day, it looks like.”

“Please, let me see it,” Wavecrest said, and Twilight offered no objections, offering the thick tome over to the seapony, who eagerly started skimming it’s pages.

After a moment or two, Wavecrest’s eyes narrowed and her scaled brow furrowed. Twilight floated over her shoulder, “What is it?”

“I’m just reading bits and pieces here, but it’s strange. So many of these entries are about Scylla's sister. It’s almost obsessive.”

This got the Equestrians in the group to look at each other, Rarity offering a somewhat embarrassed look, “Well, take it from us, royal sisters are known to have odd relationships.”

“What do the entries say, exactly?” said Twilight, and Wavecrest closed the journal with a thump, stuffing it into her pouch and floating away from the three ponies.

“It doesn’t matter. I saw nothing in there about the Treasury, and Scylla's relationship with her sister is irrelevant to our task,” Wavecrest said, “I apologize for wasting our time coming in here. It seems it was rather useless.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” said Twilight, “That journal has historical significance, if nothing else, and I find these charts fascinating. It looks like Princess Scylla really did travel every ocean there was, including a few I haven’t even heard about. Huh... that’s odd.”

“What?” Wavecrest eyed Twilight while the alicorn swam closer to the charts, examining them more closely. Twilight’s head tilted as she looked over the lines and notations upon the charts and realized that they didn’t merely travel over sea, but land as well. Through every land, in fact. And in each land were notations, lists, often accompanied by pictures and number references. Although she didn’t speak the language, Twilight understood the references were likely in regards to other books on the table, as the symbols on them corresponded to the symbols on the charts.

Without saying anything to answer Wavecrest, her mind now taken over by curiosity, Twilight used her magic to lift a number of the other books and leaf through them. Inside were images and descriptions of not only items, but cultures of the land nations, including various histories. Much of it pertained to items of power, and as Twilight looked at the way numerous items on the charts were crossed off, like a list, she had a thought.

“Wavecrest, you said Princess Scylla traveled the world in search of artifacts, right?”

“Yes, she was an adventurer, always seeking items of power or great treasures to enrich Aqualania,” Wavecrest said proudly.

Twilight’s expression grew still, “I see. It’s just that, looking at these charts, it looks as if she traveled on land fairly often as well, and studied the histories of various nations. I recognize some of the artifacts in these books from my own studies. Not all of them were lost to time. Some of them were stolen, according to the history I’ve read. Were they... stolen by Scylla?”

A stiffness overcame Wavecrest’s features, “Stolen? Even if that is so, it happened centuries ago. What does it matter now?”

“Hold up Twilight, are ya sayin’ this Princess Scylla was runnin’ around stealing artifacts like... like that Caballeron fella from Daring Do’s adventures?” said Applejack, and Twilight gave a pensive look towards her, then at Wavecrest.

“Look, I’m not trying to make an issue of this, I was just saying that I noticed a lot of what appears to be on Scylla’s charts correspond to artifacts recorded as stolen in the histories I’ve read. It just stood out to me.”

“Whatever Princess Scylla did, no doubt it was for the good of all seaponies,” Wavecrest said, one of her hooves reflexively, almost protectively holding the journal she’d put in her pouch, “One does not need to be a saint to be a good leader to one’s people. Now come, we’ve spent long enough on this.”

Without waiting for a reply, Wavecrest turned with a swish of her tail and swiftly swam out of the room, leaving Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack to share mutually wondering stares.

“Am I the only one who thought that was a tad odd?” said Rarity, and Applejack just crossed her hooves and bobbed up and down with stiff motions of her own tail.

“Gal’s got a bug in her mane, ain’t no denyin’. Guess I can’t go blamin’ her. If I learned Princess Celestia or Luna went on a stealin’ spree in other lands, I’d be a mite miffed myself.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything,” Twilight said, lowering her head, “Wavecrest has done nothing but help us, and doesn’t need us digging up any past issues of ponies she clearly admired.”

“We’d best follow her, before something goes wrong outside,” Rarity said. Her words were followed by the sound of a muffled thwump, and Twilight could feel the vibration through the hull of the ship from something exploding outside.

Rarity sighed, “I didn’t mean to jinx us for Celestia’s sake!”

“Let’s go!” Twilight said, and the three rapidly followed in the direction Wavecrest had gone, retracing their path through the ship’s wreckage until they got to the large, torn opening that had bisected the vessel.

As they exited, Twilight saw a flash of red, and the brilliant ruby sphere of another of Flash Sentry's Kido spells flew up and exploded towards the massive opening in the top of the dome. There, a large school of Agony Fish, over twice the size of the first one they’d encountered, had started entering the dome.

Nearby, Flash looked over to them, along with Wavecrest who’d exited only a few seconds earlier, and shouted, “Good timing, ladies! Our unwanted admirers have caught up with us. Trying to send them the message to buzz off!”

His Kido, another Shakkaho, had scattered a number of the Agony Fish, but the determined and monstrous jellyfish still gathered like a violet cloud and began to swarm inside. Admiral Seaspray pointed across the dome towards the north side with his harpoon, calling out to the group.

“I see a structure over there. Perhaps a way out? If nothing else it’d give us cover!”

“Right! Everypony move, head for the structure the Admiral spotted!” Twilight gave the order, and as one they took off, swimming as fast as their fins could carry them. The Agony Fish descended towards them, and Twilight, Rarity, and Wavecrest joined Flash Sentry in trying to slow the growing swarm down.

Rarity used her skillful telekinesis to collect loose debris from the ship, metal plates and pieces of twisted pipe, and hurled them with surprising pin-point accuracy at the jellyfish. She managed to smack down more than a few, and didn’t break stride in her swimming while keeping the debris field swirling about, attacking the creatures left and right.

With her staff glowing bright, Wavecrest chanted in swift, harsh words of her language, and swept the staff forward. The water churned in front of her, and seemed to condense into crescent currents that cut forward like blades. Several Agony Fish were severed in half by the suddenly compressed waters that blasted through them.

Twilight herself was of a gentler nature, but was also willing to tap into a greater portion of her magic. Since they had the cover of the dome, she wasn’t as worried about any sahuagin sentries or patrols seeing her cut loose, so she delved into the deep well of arcane power inside her and focused it upon the dozens of poisonous jellyfish that were rapidly closing the gap between them and her friends. Strands of solid purple magic exploded out of her horn and shot up, multiplying dozens of times over. The strands criss-crossed with each other until they formed a dense net, nearly fifty meters across. She then wrapped that magical net around a large portion of the jellyfish swarm and tied the magic off, letting it float off to bounce the bundled bunch of Agony Fish against the far wall.

Flash whistled appreciation for Twilight’s efforts and swam forward to meet the creatures that had still managed to escape the net, his Zanpaktou cutting through the water. Admiral Seaspray was right behind him, and Applejack followed only after taking a moment to take a metal pipe offered by Rarity from her collection of debris. The trio slashed, stabbed, and smacked their way through the dozen or so remaining Agony Fish, and Twilight saw ahead that the structure Seaspray spoke off was close.

It was a small half-dome that extended out into the central dome, and she saw several hatchways on it’s side, one of which was open. In front of it was a large, bowl-shaped object, reminding Twilight of some kind of gigantic dog dish. Was this where the zoo caretakers placed the Kraken’s food? Well, if it was open, then through that area there had to be a way out of the dome.

She and Rarity reached the open hatchway first, with Wavecrest not far behind. Flash, Seaspray, and Applejack lagged a bit due to having to clear away the last stragglers of Agony Fish, but things looked clear as Twilight waved, “Come on, this way!”

All three of them turned to put on a burst of speed, but Twilight saw motion from the very last Agony Fish that Flash Sentry had cut down. Despite the deep gash in it’s translucent body, the jellyfish twitched and it’s tendrils flailed about in an explosion of motion. Flash saw Twilight’s look and took it for the warning it was and moved before she even had time to shout a warning. His Flash Step was still slowed by the water, however, and she heard him let out a startled cry of pain as one of the tendrils lashed his right wing.

“Flash!” she shouted, grabbing him with her magic and hauling him towards her even faster than he could have swam. Once she had him through the hatch and she was sure Seaspray and Applejack were through as well, she hauled the huge metal door shut.

Inside was a plain room that was probably used to load the bowl outside, with a closed doorway leading further inside, but for the moment Twilight didn’t care about that and quickly set Flash down to check on him.

“Are you okay, Flash?” she asked, looking with concern at his pained face. He was taking deep breaths and trying to talk, but any word he tried to get out was choked by grunts of pain. Twilight looked at his wing and was shocked at the ugly, purple welting that was already spreading across the area the tendril had lashed.

“Move aside!” Wavecrest said, all but pushing Twilight out of the way, “This poison is lethal if not treated immediately.”

Twilight didn’t resist Wavecrest’s attempt to push her away, but she did swim around to Flash’s other side and grabbed his hoof with her own, “You can do that, right? Treat it?”

The way her heart was bucking against her chest was felt with every second it took for Wavecrest to run her staff’s magical glow over Flash Sentry. She felt his hoof clasping her’s tighten and every inch of her was awash in fear at seeing him in so much pain. His eyes were bloodshot and his teeth now clenched, his wing a twitching mess that was growing more purple by the second.

“Wavecrest!” Twilight said, “Tell me you can help him!”

“I can, but I must concentrate. Do not keep distracting me,” the seapony replied while she closed her eyes and spoke a rapid, soft chant under her breath.

The others gathered around, but kept a decent distance to give Wavecrest her space. Seaspray had a solemn but controlled look of a warrior who’d seen plenty of soldiers injured in battle. Rarity and Applejack both had equal levels of worry, although Rarity showed it through wringing her tail with her hooves while Applejack looked ready to chew rocks.

The next five or so minutes were a slow agony for Twilight as she watched Flash breath heavily and make more pained sounds as Wavecrest worked. Green magic surrounded Flash in a bubble, concentrated around the poisoned wing. Slowly Twilight watched the purple bruising slow its spread, then stop completely. After another few minutes the poison started to recede, but every inch seemed to take a painful toll on Flash as he shuddered and Twilight held his hoof tighter.

Eventually the purple bruising receded, and Wavecrest let out an exhausted sigh as she lowered her staff, “Lady Sea be praised. You have no notion of how lucky you are, young buck, that I am as skilled at my art as I am and that the ocean can be as merciful as it is deadly. Had you been lashed by that Agony Fish without one such as I right next to you, you would have died a most painful demise.”

“G...gee... comforting thought,” Flash said weakly, breathing in and out like he’d just run several marathons, “But, uh... thanks. Would’ve sucked to bite it... before we even got to the end.”

“Are you sure he’s going to be okay?” Twilight asked, and Wavecrest held up a hoof.

“Rest easy, Princess, your bodyguard will live another day. Or at least until something else happens. I suggest letting him rest for a bit. The poison, and the healing, is draining upon both of us.”

“Feel like I’ve... been put through a week of the Captain’s extreme training,” Flash said, not even trying to rise from where he lay.

“Hm, if young Mister Sentry requires rest, I suggest the rest of us take a moment to scout out the rest of this structure and confirm a path out,” said Seaspray.

“That’s probably a good idea,” said Twilight, “Why don’t the rest of you follow the Admiral’s suggestion. I’ll stay here and keep an eye on Flash.”

“Are ya sure, Twi?” asked Applejack, but Rarity touched the farm mare’s arm and Twilight gave both of her friends a meaningful look, and Applejack raised an eyebrow and nodded, “Right, we’ll leave ya two alone fer a bit.”

As the rest of the group left, Twilight adjusted herself so she was laying with her lower body on the floor of the room, letting Flash rest his head on her lap. He protested a bit, but she just put a hoof on his chest and pushed him down, “No, you rest. Princess’ orders.”

“Okay, Your Highness,” Flash said, managing a weak half smile, and easing his head on her lap. A few moments passed, and she saw his eyes slowly glance up towards her, then flicker away with heat blossoming on his face. With her vision now keyed to the infrared spectrum the blush looked more like a bloom of white upon his cheeks. Feeling a similar response in her own face, she imagined she looked the same.

Screw it, she was starting to realize just how foalish she was being about all this. The terror a short while ago of realizing how close Flash had come to death painted it clearly in her own heart how she felt. This quest might not give either of them another chance to be open with each other.

“Heh, nearly killed by a jellyfish,” she heard Flash say with a light chuckle, “And here I’m supposed to be the big bad Soul Reaper guarding your life, and you’re the one who saves me from a poisonous underwater trash-bag. You sure you need me as a bodyguard-”

She stopped his self-deprecating spiel with her lips. That got him to quiet down. She didn’t really know what she was doing, but figured for once in her life it didn’t matter that she didn’t have a manual or guidebook for this. She just let the kiss linger a second or two, then pulled away and ran a hoof over his head.

“Hush,” she said, “None of that kind of talk. I don’t want any bodyguard other than you.”

“Wu-whu?” Flash looked dazed, blinking up at her. Twilight started to realize how forward she’d just been and her own eyes widened a bit, her face now blazing hot.

“W-was that too much? Did I do that too soon? It felt right at the time, because you were coming down on yourself and I really think you shouldn’t because you’re actually amazing and I was so scared of you dying just now that I realized how important you are to me and did I just screw this up-”

This time it was Flash’s turn to silence her babbling, reaching up behind her head with a hoof and pulling her down into another kiss. This time the kiss lingered longer as the two shared the moment. When they finally parted and Twilight looked down in Flash’s eyes, he smiled up at her.

“You’re important to me too. Don’t plan on dying on you, Princess. I want to protect you, for as long as you’ll have me by your side.”

She gulped, her heart creating a thunderous pounding in her chest, ”W-w-well I am an alicorn, so it’s entirely within the realm of theoretical possibility that I might be around for a very long time.”

“Heh, well, Soul Reapers don’t age fast, so I don’t think that will be a problem,” Flash said.

A wide, goofy smile lit up Twilight’s face at his words. “That’s true, isn’t it? Lucky me.”

Despite the warmth spreading through her, Twilight’s mind quickly pulled up some problematic elements that put a slight damper on the mood, “Although I’m probably getting ahead of myself, here. Flash, I really want to talk this out more with you, but we’re in the middle of something too dangerous and important to get distracted, so...”

“Say no more,” he said, taking a deep breath and experimentally flexing his wing, grimacing slightly, “I don’t want to move too fast with you, Twilight. I’d like to do this properly, you know? And yeah, there’s a lot we’d need to figure out if we’re going to do this. Not sure what the actual protocols are for a Soul Reaper dating a magical princess from another dimension.”

She nodded slowly, then turned her attention to his wing, “Does it still hurt?”

“Y-yeah, some. I think I can move it alright,” he said, “I just need to remind myself I can’t move half as fast as I should while underwater. Not making that mistake again. Hey, awesome job with that magic net, by the way. Without that we’d have gotten swarmed.”

She couldn’t help but feel a moment of pride, “Magic is my specialty. I’ve still got plenty in reserve, too, that trick was just me warming up.”

“Almost a shame this is a stealth mission. I like seeing you go all out. It’s, uh...” he lowered his voice to a shy whisper, “It’s kinda hot.”

“Oh,” she said, faze blazing.

“Am I interrupting?”

Twilight and Flash nearly tumbled apart at Wavecrest’s voice, the seapony floating at the doorway as she looked at the pair. Wavecrest’s lips quirked slightly at scene of Flash and Twilight both flashing enough body heat to light up like torches, and she let out a low chuckle, “I could of course come back in ten or so minutes if you need some time, although I did say Flash Sentry should rest, not... engage in anything strenuous. Healing takes its toll on both the caster and the healed, after all.”

“S-strenuous? There’s nothing strenuous happening here!” Twilight said, “I mean, biologically I’m not even certain how that works for seaponies so clearly I couldn’t- I mean, not that I was thinking- Nevermind, did you find the exit?”

“We have, and the others are keeping watch for further trouble while I came back to check on you two,” Wavecrest said, glancing at Flash, “While it might be safer for you to rest a bit longer, as long as you are careful I think we can move on. Just remember that while I may have removed the poison, your body has not recovered yet.”

“No need to tell me, I can feel it,” Flash said, “And Soul Reapers are made of tough stuff.”

“Hmm, as you say. Then let us go, the Treasury still awaits us.”

----------

Having a cooperative captive who had first hand knowledge of patrol routes made the process of getting close to the palace remarkably simple in comparison to the slower trek the team had initially. With Starlight maintaining the mental domination on Ulgriv to keep the sahuagin compliant and answering questions, they learned not only what areas to avoid, but several key pathways through the ruins that acted as shortcuts through the labyrinthine ruins of Aqualania.

So it was that not very long after they’d left the spire they’d captured Ulgriv at that the collection of transmogrified ponies found themselves looking at the front entrance to Aqualania’s Royal Palace from a hiding spot amid the broken columns of what was once an open market. The market itself consisted of a pavilion that was partially collapsed, half of the columns that had held up it’s conical roof having crushed the store kiosks below it. This made the whole affair look like a sagging lean-to, with half of the broken columns still holding up one end, which faced a huge broadway that led to the palace gates.

The gates themselves were thick affairs with cross bands of metal across heavy stone, wide enough for a pair of whales to swim through. Smaller portcullis were mounted into the lower portion of them, four across, in front of which loitered a whole school of sahuagin warriors who had formed a makeshift camp. The walls of the palace stretched both up and to the sides in a curved manner, the palace’s shape like that of a monolithic conch shell giving it the impression of something more organic than artificial, with spiked spires protruding out from it at various angles. Openings inside were few and far between, with only narrow slits and small windows mounted near balconies and terraces that fanned out from the wall like large clam shells or barnacles. Unlike the rest of the city that was overgrown with algae and seaweed, the palace itself had a more pristine look about it, with its stone walls shining white in the darkness.

“Oooo, it looks even fancier up close,” said Pinkie Pie, her head poking out from behind one of the columns. Above her head, Rainbow Dash’s head appeared, eyeing the palace critically.

“Yeah, it’s pretty weird. Everything else is a spooky, smashed ruin, but this place looks barely touched. What gives?”

Below the pair, Fluttershy poked her head out, musing, “Maybe the sahuagin are just really good housekeepers?”

On the other side of the pillar, Trixie’s head poked out, the magician’s eyes giving the building a careful once over, “Fancy or not, we have to find a way inside. Starlight, has our ‘friend’ got any insights to share?”

Behind the pillar, Starlight, Tempest, and Ulgriv floated, and Starlight looked to the captive sahuagin, “Ulgriv, is there any other way in besides those front gates?”

“You could swim to the upper bastion and enter the doors there,” he replied in his warning monotone, “Or to the gates on the west or north side. There are also the upper defensive spires.”

“Are all of those guarded?” Tempest asked, “I’m going to bet they’re all guarded.”

“Yes, every way into the palace has at least a half warband on watch,” Ulgriv said. When he’d been interrogated about the patrols, the group had learned the sahuagin organized themselves into ‘warbands’ of around ten to twenty individuals. Multiple warbands were brought together into a ‘tribe’ ranging from fifty to several hundred warriors, then if one stuck several of those together, one ended up with what Morgawr led, a legion. Compared to some armies it might have seemed a small number, but to the Equestrian’s, who never had a large military to begin with, it felt intimidating enough.

“Hmph,” Tempest grunted, rubbing her chin, “Means at least five to ten guards, probably more at the bigger gates.”

“Yeah I can confirm that up here,” Rainbow Dash said, “I’m counting, like, fifty fish dudes hanging out by the gates alone, and I’m thinking more chilling out on these shell shaped terrace thingies spread up and down the walls.”

“That’s too many to fight, isn’t it?” said Trixie, but Starlight and Tempest shared a look with one another.

“Probably,” said Starlight, “Although if we took them by surprise...”

“I’d rather keep the element of stealth going until we get to the sirens,” said Tempest, “If we cause a scene right now they might move the prisoners somewhere else before we can get to them.”

“Oh! Oh! I’ve got an idea!” said Pinkie, “Why don’t we pretend to be prisoners? Ulgy can take us in, just like in that play, Star Mares!”

“Won’t work, Pinkie,” said Dash, “As cool as it’d be, who’s gonna believe that Ulgriv captured all six of us? And could he even fool anyone while under Starlight’s control.”

“And it’s not like I can hide my magic,” Starlight said, pointing at her glowing horn, “Going to look pretty suspicious.”

“Dang, then how are we going to sneaky-sneak into the final dungeon area?” Pinkie said, scratching her head, “This is a serious brain teaser.”

“And it’s not like we can pull off another eel illusion,” Trixie said, then flashed a thoughtful look as she eyed the gates, “Although...”

“Got something, Trixie?” Starlight asked, and her friend pursed her lips and then grew a devious smile.

“Ulgriv thinks the city is haunted, doesn't he?” said Trixie, rubbing her hooves together, “And sounds like there’s plenty of these other tuna brains that buy into those ghost stories too. Heheheh, muwhahaha!”

“Uhhh, is it a good or bad thing that Trixie is laughing evilly?” asked Pinkie Pie.

“Trixieeee, what are you planning?” Starlight asked, and Trixie’s mouth grew in a mischievous crescent of white teeth.

“Just thinking that if they’re afraid of ghosts, let’s give them some ghosts.”

----------

Even the most staunch and dutiful soldiers tended to get a bit bored during guard work. That was just the nature of sentry duty. So it wasn’t that the sahuagin on guard were being lazy, simply that as the largest group assigned to guarding the main entrance to the palace, where essentially nothing ever happened, had left the collection of warbands on watch relaxed and unsuspecting of trouble. Sure they knew that in the outer regions of the city some warriors succumbed to the rumors of the city’s deadly and angry spirits, and certainly gossip about those who had gone missing was told back and forth over meals of fish and crustaceans.

But those rumors only ever applied to the outer ruins. Things were always quiet at the palace itself, as if the supposed spirits that may or may not have been haunting the ruins still held reverence for the home of the royal family and did not wish to tread upon it.

Whatever the reasons, things were quiet at the palace gates, and the sahuagin warriors didn’t have any expectation of trouble. Which is why when an otherworldly and unnaturally pulsating blue and green glow of light started to appear less than a hundred or so feet into the ruins just outside the gates, it got all of the fish men looking that way instantly. They grabbed up weapons and murmured uneasily to one another as warband leaders called orders for their warriors to take formation.

However no enemies appeared before them to attack or defend against. Instead that sickly glow of light started to grow, spreading out wider and brighter amid the ruins, while tendrils of it rose up like splashes of pulsating color. Then the sahuagin heard a noise, a terrible, ungodly noise. It was a high, screeching wail that tore at the sahuagin’s ears. The noise was reminiscent of some of the sounds they had heard while the shamans had performed their rituals inside the palace, and might have made them think that one of the terror beasts the shamans controlled had gotten loose... but no, this wail was even higher pitched than a terror beast’s. It waved unnaturally, and held a bone freezing note of something not of this world.

The first hints of fear started to enter the sahuagin warriors as the tendrils of pulsating light grew wider and stretched out to appear almost like faces, faces with screaming mouths and black eyes, howling for retribution.

The ghosts of Aqualania!?

As feared whispers and cries started to spread among the warriors, one warband leader gave off a harsh shout to silence them, “Cease blubbering you weak limbed hatchlings! Are you soft kin or warriors of the Deep Mistress!? Whatever that is, be it spirit or not, we will chase it down and kill it with Abyssal steel!”

There were a few resounding cries in response, although the unease of the warriors was still apparent. However, being reminded of their duty to their Deep Mistress was enough to fortify their courage and when the warband leaders charged first, the rest followed. Well, almost the rest. One warband still remained behind to guard the gate, just in case.

The pulsating lights began to move as the bulk of the sahuagin rushed forward, pulling back into the depths of the ruins and moving slightly to the west. This seemed to embolden the fish men as they surged forward faster, chasing after the ghostly light show. The flickering specters of faces howled louder, and still chilled the sahuagin’s hearts, slowing their pursuit to a degree as they followed the lights further from the gates. The exact origin of the lights was hard to pinpoint, and the warband leaders started to split their groups up, trying to find the center of the mass of writhing wraith-light.

Then the lights started to move faster, much faster, as if the spirits were being sucked away through a vacuum. Shocked, the sahuagin paused at the sight, unsure of whether they should continue the pursuit. The warband leaders were equally confused, but also their blood was up, heated to a hunting frenzy. Whatever this thing was, it was fleeing from them! Did ghosts flee!? Their desire to kill, or at least vent days of boredom and frustration, rose high and with a battle cry the warband leaders led their warriors to chase after the rapidly withdrawing lights and their eerie wailing.

Unbeknownst to them, while they were drawn far from the gate, the remaining warband of only about ten warriors was left watching the distant spectacle. This also meant they didn’t really see the attack coming until Starlight and Tempest were upon them.

Starlight conjured a sweeping wave of magical force that bowled over four of the fish men before they even realized they were under attack, and she was still able to maintain a spell that had created a one-way screen of invisibility above the area of the fight. This might not dampen the sound of it much, but if any sahuagin were further up on the walls they wouldn’t see the flashes of magic from her and Tempest. Hopefully the distraction being carried out by Trixie, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash was making enough noise to make it hard to tell what was happening down by the gate.

Tempest used both her magic and her body to equally deadly effect. She swam right between the other half of the warband and lashed bolts of scintillating magic from her broken horn that struck like an exploding whip and sent three sahuagin careening away in bone broken wrecks. The harpoon she carried twirled expertly as she cracked one sahuagin warrior across the skull, and jabbed the butt-end into the sternum of another. She followed that up with a roundhouse slap of her fish tail that gathered up both foes and smashed them into the ground in an unconscious heap.

Only one sahuagin was even left conscious within that mere few seconds of surprise, and there was a dull bonk of noise just a second before his eyes rolled up and he went limp, floating away to reveal Fluttershy demurely behind him, carrying in her hooves a metal pot with a long handle that she’d taken from one of the smashed stores back in the pavilion.

With the guards dealt with, Tempest took one quick glance up the wall to make sure Starlight’s spell had helped conceal their surprise attack, then turned her attention to the distant lightshow.

“Looks like Trixie’s plan actually worked,” she said with a note of surprise, “Let’s get inside. We’re not going to have long before the rest turn and find out the palace is breached.”

“How fast do you think it’ll take Rainbow Dash to-” Starlight began, but halted as there was a flash of rainbow motion from the ruins to the northwest, and suddenly Rainbow Dash was there.

The mare carried in her hooves a manically satisfied looking Trixie, and a grinning Pinkie Pie.

“Whooee, that worked really well,” Pinkie said, holding out a hoof to Trixie, “You make some really convincing spookies, Trix!”

“Please, don’t call me ‘Trix’, but yes, the illusion craft of the Illustrious Illusionist Trixie cannot be compared to the spellwork of mere mortals,” Trixie said, reaching out to hoof bump Pinkie Pie, “And it did help that you added some adequately convincing ghostly wailing to make the performance complete.”

“And don’t forget having me here to ensure we could make a fast getaway, ditch the loser patrol, and get back to the gates in ten seconds flat,” said Rainbow Dash, wagging her finned tail, “Think I’m finally getting used to this whole swimming thing.”

“Talk later, into the palace now,” Tempest said. In the distance it was possible to just barely make out the warbands that had been drawn off by Trixie’s illusion. They were now spreading out and searching for where the ghost lights had gone, but who knew how long they would do so before giving up and returning to the gates, whereupon they’d find their comrades had been attacked.

Once that happened, the alarm would be raised everywhere, so time was short to get into the palace and find Sonata and Aria. Fortunately the sahuagin had kept one of the portcullis open for traffic heading in and out of the palace, so as one the group swam through the gates and entered Aqualania’s Royal Palace.

Episode 143: Plans Go Awry

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Episode 143: Plans Go Awry

Having one’s wing bound in a full cast was never pleasant, and even more so in Princess Luna’s case due to the agonizingly slow and itchy process of the regenerative magics her sister had been using to gradually try to restore the connecting nerves between Luna and the wing Firefly had severed off. She’d had to be largely immobile while the healing process was taking place, moving as little as possible as to allow the tissue damage to heal properly while Celestia had periodically administered the regenerative spells at morning and dusk.

Really the internal stress was far worse on Luna than the physical strain that healing magic tended to take out of those receiving it. She hated being out of action, especially as she was all too aware of how dangerous Starlight Glimmer and her minions were, now. In truth, Luna had believed she and her sister would be able to win their battle against Firefly and Platinum handily. A draw was not an ideal outcome where the safety of Equestria was concerned.

Not that Luna was idly stewing over the matter. She had a number of notebooks laid out on her bed whose pages were filling up with tactical notes concerning the battle against Firefly and Platinum, while beside the notebooks were scroll correspondents with allies whom Luna was advising on expanding the search for Starlight Glimmer’s hideout. Princess Cadence was working with King Thorax to place Changeling scouts in every major city, and Dragonlord Ember was preparing a flight of dragon volunteers to begin long range flight patrols over the wider areas of wilderness separating parts of the civilized world.

On top of that, Celestia’s plan concerning Ponehenge had also required calling in other elements to prepare to counter whatever Starlight Glimmer might do.

The thought alone caused Luna’s writing in her notebook to halt, the quill held in her magic shaking slightly as she recalled her sister’s visit earlier that day.

----------

”I thought you might argue with me more about this,” Celestia said, looking at Luna with that annoyingly sisterly expression that always made Luna feel like she was still being treated like a foal, despite knowing full well that Celestia tended to do this with everypony, not just Luna.

Luna’s personal chambers were darkly lit, with soft, magical lights like the gleam of stars providing a blue coating that was inherently relaxing. This light caused a bright reflection off of the shape of a large, broken sword tip, and the cracked handle of a pale ashwood bow that lay on Luna’s desk. Celestia had placed them there and explained her plan to Luna with the reserved tone of one expecting to deal with a huge argument.

Luna hadn’t given one, and at Celestia’s words she merely rested her hooves on the desk and looked at the two objects in question with a deep sigh, “Sister, you forget that between the two of us, I’ve more experience with the Relics than you. I know full well what they are capable of, and the risks involved with them. I’m the brash one here. As for you, I know you wouldn’t have brought these out unless you were prepared to deal with the consequences. So no, I’m not going to argue with you about this. I’m only going to ask that you be careful. You don’t know what it’s like...”

A brush of cold black as the void touched Luna’s spine and she took a shaking breath. “It’s easy to lose who you are, even just using one. I used two at once and willingly nearly plunged our world into Eternal Night.”

A knowing warmth entered Celestia’s eyes as she reached out to touch Luna’s face, “No one blames you for that anymore.”

“Even so,” Luna reached up, held her sister’s hoof for a second, then pulled it away and sighed, “By using the two I did, I already weakened the seals on the rest of them. If we use more, we need to be prepared for other Inheritors to awaken. I’m not pitying myself any longer, but I bring this up to make sure you’ve got a plan for how to deal with what will likely happen. We don’t even know for sure who all the other Inheritors are.”

“No, but I have my educated guesses,” Celestia said, “And I’ve sent letters to those I suspect and know are on our side. If nothing else, they should be ready for any side effects if I’m forced to use my Relic.”

“And those who won’t be on our side?” Luna asked in an even tone.

“There isn’t much we can do except keep our eyes peeled, and be ready for... whatever may come,” Celestia replied, her horn suffusing with a golden sparkle of magic, lifting the broken blade and placing it inside a small wooden box that she floated beside her. “It’s my sincerest hope I won’t even need this.”

“Do you think you’ll be able to talk Starlight Glimmer down?” inquired Luna.

“If she’s anything near as stubborn as ours, then I’m not hopeful, but one never knows,” Celestia said, and then shrugged and affixed a smile that was half forced calm, half experienced confidence, “And if not, I’ll just have to provide her with a thorough lesson on how I kept peace in Equestria for a thousand years by myself.”

----------

Luna rubbed at her face, wiping away the growing pangs of tiredness. Glancing at one of the broad windows leading out to the balcony of her chambers, she saw the night sky growing lighter with the coming day. Time to go lower the moon, then, and go get some rest. Celestia would be departing for Ponehenge today, although the appointed time to meet with Starlight Glimmer would not be until the next day.

That also meant Celestia would be taking the Trixie from the human world with her. Luna had been talking almost nightly with the Bount. There was little more she could glean that was useful from Trixie, but Luna had enjoyed simply having a fellow night owl to converse with. It was clear Trixie’s loyalty to Starlight Glimmer wouldn’t turn, but even so she might be the lever Celestia needed to get Starlight negotiating. That did leave a somewhat bad taste in Luna’s mouth, but if the situation had gotten to the point that Celestia was willing to start using Relics, then they’d passed the point of worrying too much over niceties.

But despite Luna’s lack of saying too much to argue with her sister, she did have to wonder if Celestia truly was prepared for all the consequences that would come with using those ancient items of power. Luna had been impulsive enough when she’d succumbed to her weaker drives and had plenty of regrets over using the two Relics she had back then. Nightmare Moon had been an amalgamation of many influences both internal and external on Luna’s psyche, and the helmet and armor she’d worn had played their role as well.

She grunted in frustration as her quill trailed off the page of her notebook and she shut the thing forcibly. She rolled off her bed and trotted over to the balcony, looking up to the brightening sky. Her moon still hung there, waiting for her to lower it as her sister raised the sun. Luna glanced at her flank where her ink blot of a cutie mark sat with hit’s bright moon, symbolizing her connection to the celestial globe. That, and her status as an Inheritor. Not directly, but few understood that her and Celestia’s cutie marks were different from those born by the vast majority of the rest of Equestria.

It wasn’t exactly normal for somepony to be born with a “talent” for controlling the sun or moon, anymore than it was normal for a pony to be born with such a powerful innate connection to magic the way Twilight Sparkle was, or Cadence’s direct link to the power of love. That was because they held a connection to something outside the normal laws of magic that governed the rest of the world. Inheritors to long forgotten powers, whose Relics remained scattered across a realm once ruled by...

Luna shook her head and focused on lowering the moon, whispering to herself, “Please be careful Tia. Even if we’re trying to protect the world, I’m not sure if it will survive if you, of all ponies, lose yourself like I did.”

And despite alicorns having senses that were generally much better than that of regular ponies, lack of sleep and intense focus on her task of lowering the moon meant Luna didn’t quite notice the small object hovering just beneath her balcony. This object then silently lowered, and floated down the length of the tower...

----------

...And continued onward to the lower wings of Canterlot Palace. The object moved with purpose and intelligence, pausing when needed to hide in bushes or around terraces from patrols of Royal Guard. Eventually the object arrived at the window to a room located in the palace’s east wing. The room was not too spacious but it was well furnished, if one didn’t consider the bars on the window or the heavy locks on the door, designed to keep the occupant inside.

Trixie Lulamoon, as far as she knew the last of the Bount, rolled onto her side on the couch she was lounging upon, setting aside the book she’d been floating in front of her face to read. She’d gotten decently skilled at basic levitation spells, although more magic beyond that was proving difficult. Still, she couldn't complain. For a prisoner she was being exceedingly well treated, if still watched and restricted from leaving her quarters without a thorough escort. Fortunately her room did have an attached lavatory, lucky her.

Looking at what floated skillfully through the bars of her window, albeit with a bit of struggle and a grating popping noise, she sat up and said, “Eisenwand, report.”

Her Doll, Eisenwand, or rather Eisdenwand’s head, floated to a table next to the couch Trixie sat on and landed smoothly. Trixie was still proud of her own genius trickery. She’d displayed Eisenwand’s power brazenly in her fight against Princess Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and that two bit Soul Reaper Lieutenant. But she hadn’t shown off all of her Doll’s abilities, especially the fact that he could detach his head to function autonomously, much like the mythological dullahan his form was inspired by. The ponies may have locked her hat up in another room, but a Bount with a strong enough bond with their Doll didn’t need to be in direct line of sight to the crest their Doll was bound to in order to summon them.

The plan Starlight Glimmer had worked out with Trixie, after Trixie blocked the Equestrian side of the portal, was to essentially get captured, then spend that time gathering intel through Eisenwand. Especially intel on Canterlot itself, and the palace. Starlight wanted to know where any magical items or repositories of knowledge were being kept, and if possible what kind of plans the Equestrians might cook up. Of course Trixie would still need to be rescued in order to bring all her intel to Starlight, but Trixie had faith in Starlight to figure out how to do that. In the meantime her job had been to use her Doll to learn all she could, and that part had gone swimmingly so far.

Eisenwand wasn’t magic, after all, so he didn’t trip any magical wards just by being activated or floating around. As long as he stayed out of sight, he could spy quite effectively. Already Trixie had figured out that Canterlot had a special library with a restricted section that Starlight would no doubt be interested in.

“Mistress, on a hunch, I decided to pay close attention to the Princess of the Night,” Eisdenwand said in his deep baritone, his head tilting a bit forward in a rather awkward attempt at a bow, despite only being a head and neck of polished black armor. Trixie had to reach out with a hoof to keep him from tipping over, “Ahem, I noticed her injuries are recovering, and it’s possible she will be able to take the field again within weeks, or even sooner. However, that is not the most important thing I have learned. In eavesdropping upon her conversations with the Princess of the Sun, I have heard some interesting terms being thrown around. Inheritors, and Relics.”

Trixie’s ears perked up and her eyes became alight as she leaned forward, “Oh? Do go on. Whatever those are, they sound both great and powerful.”

And exactly the kind of thing Starlight Glimmer would want to know about.

----------

There was little of note or value to be found in the interior of the zoo’s Kraken dome. Twilight could feel the oppressive sensation of a place of activity and recreation now long since given over to decay and death. The hall where elegantly curved pathways led up to the glass observation tubes all but echoed with such silence that Twilight almost thought she could hear the phantasmal whispers of laughing seapony foals accompanying their parents on a day trip to the zoo. There was even a gift shop, long overgrown with barnacles, that still had toys of a comically cartoonish Kraken with big button eyes. The massive sea beast had clearly been the zoo’s star attraction when the city was still alive.

She stayed close to Flash. While it seemed he could swim on his own after getting a good ten minutes to catch his breath, he still looked sluggish in the water to her, and she was more worried than ever now that she was being more honest with her feelings. He gave her a reassuring smile, but she worried regardless.

And her expression wasn’t going unnoticed by her companions, Rarity and Applejack whispering to each other.

“Do you suppose something happened?” Rarity speculated, “It was only ten minutes.”

Applejack adjusted her stetson, wearing a knowing smirk, “Lots can happen in ten minutes, but ain’t nothin’ too far with them two. Gonna guess Rainbow Dash owes me some bits, now.”

“Oh?” Rarity asked, but Applejack waved her off before Twilight noticed them gossiping. Up ahead Wavecrest and Admiral Seaspray shot back inquiring looks at the ponies. They’d swam up to a set of wide openings in the hall ahead of them, what once might have been sliding glass doorways but now were broken openings with the glass long scattered across the floor. Outside was a covered area where part of the dome overhung a walkway leading out to a courtyard. The courtyard was filled with waving stalks of kelp, but the stone portions were clear, and ran underneath a stone archway with a magnificently carved sign. It sported a plethora of exotic sea creatures, all with happy faces, arranged in a parade around the letters of the sign. While Twilight couldn’t make out all the words, her brief studies of the seapony tongue did clue her in that this was the entrance to the zoo itself.

Beyond it the ruins of the city closed in around a straight and wide pathway that led directly towards the palace, which wasn’t far off now.

“That is the palace’s northwest side,” said Wavecrest, “The main gates are on the south, but my mentors notes show that there are several much smaller entrances meant for servants on this side. It is my hope they will not be as well watched as the south gate.”

“Well wishes never won battles,” Seaspray said, “Let us be prepared for the worst, in case the servant entrance is heavily guarded. Your seapony magic has been quite adept at keeping us hidden, but it won’t get us through a gate that’s being carefully watched.”

“No,” admitted Wavecrest, her lips curling back in a teeth baring smile, “But there is more than one way to clean a fish, Admiral. My spell to dampen sound won’t work at close range, but it will get us near enough that we can get a clear view of what we’ll be dealing with. Whether through might or magic, we’ll figure out a way into the palace. From there, I know the route we will need to take to get to the Treasury.”

The group continued down the pathway towards the palace, and ahead a congregation of collapsed spires formed a wide tunnel they swam beneath. Looking up, Twilight got the impression of passing through the ribcage of some vast, monstrous beast, although what she was looking at was the hollowed out husks of buildings that had not held living occupants for centuries. More and more debris cluttered the path ahead, forcing them to swim in a winding path through the tunnel of fallen ruins, but always the palace loomed ahead, bright and distinct like a polished gem.

Several times they had to pause and hide behind some rubble as the sight of a sahuagin patrol passed through the ruins above. One time while doing so, a pulsation of blood red light flickered from the palace’s upper rooms, and Twilight thought she heard some distant, undulating sound like a howl. Beside her, Flash twitched, and she glanced at him.

“You felt something, didn’t you?” she asked, recalling his odd behavior from earlier.

The others looked at Flash Sentry as well, and he licked his lips while nodding his head towards the palace, “I don’t know what I’m sensing. This time it came from the palace. The other time it was further off, somewhere else.”

“Felt what, exactly?” inquired Rarity, “Something to do with your unique senses as a Soul Reaper?”

“That’s the thing. I can’t tell,” Flash said, rubbing at his forehead with a hoof, “To be honest, my senses have been out of whack ever since I came to Equestria. I’ve gotten used to how magic feels, but it’s still hard to sense things as sharply as I would back home. That’s why I’m not sure if what I’m picking up on is real or not. I think what I’m feeling are brief bursts of reiatsu.”

“Reiatsu?” Wavcrest gave him a strange look, “I don’t know this word. It doesn’t sound like Equestrian.”

“It isn’t. Long story,” Flash said, “It’s a word my people use for the pressure beings with lots of concentrated spirit energy emit. Problem is, I haven’t felt anything like that in Equestria since I got here. Sure I can sense just enough of it to feel out living beings with souls, but nothing like the kind of reiatsu I’d feel from one of my own kind, or a Hollow for that matter.”

“Wait, yer sayin’ yer feeling other Soul Reapers or Hollows out there?” said Applejack, a note of alarm in her voice, but Flash shook his head.

“No. I’d be able to tell if it was something I was familiar with like that. Whatever I’m feeling... it’s nothing like what I’m used to. I’m not even sure it is reiatsu. It-”

There was another pulsation of scarlet light that painted the darkness outside the palace, lasting a little longer this time as it strobed for several seconds. This time Twilight and Rarity both flinched as their horns twinged with cold from sensing the twisted, unnatural magic of sahuagin blood spells. Twilight didn’t doubt those red pulses were from some kind of sahuagin ritual. But it was strange, Flash couldn’t be sensing reiatsu from that, could he? The sahuagin had used magic like that on Mt. Aris and he hadn’t detected reiatsu then.

Flash’s face grew tense with focus, and as the flashes of red light subsided, he let out a long breath, “Whatever it is, it’s inside the palace. Weird, could have sworn I felt something out in the city, too, but... well whatever, I can’t hold us up here speculating. We’ve got a mission to finish.”

“Quite right,” Wavecrest said, “But do keep us informed if you feel whatever it is you’re feeling again. The sahuagin shamans use many foul forms of their sacrificial magic, and if any of it is akin to powers you’ve dealt with before, we’d best be ready for them.”

At the end of the tunnel of decayed city ruin, the smashed and dilapidated buildings reached nearly up to the palace wall. There was a separation of about twenty meters, give or take, where the ground gave way to a deep rift that ran down into darkness. The curved palace wall ran up for hundreds of feet, and Twilight could make out a few windows or openings that weren’t closed or barred in some fashion. It was almost as if this side of the palace was more fortress than entrance, with a blunt, unwelcoming exterior that didn’t match the more open curves of the south end.

“My but something about this seems dreary,” Rarity said, then she let out a short gasp, “Oh my, what are those?”

“What...?” Twilight asked, following her friend’s gaze until she saw down into the rift that ran along the palace’s wall. Down in the rock wall were a number of metal cages. Dozens of them. From what Twilight could discern, the cages had been bolted to the wall of the rift and stretched down into the unseen darkness. The cages had no living occupants, but she could see the traces of bone fragments and long decayed skulls of what had to have once been seaponies. The sight made her a tad queasy, but she controlled it and gave Wavecrest a questioning look, “Do you have any idea what this is?”

Wavecrest held her staff close, her eyes flickering between the rift, and the palace walls. She motioned for Twilight and the others to hold back, and remain hidden behind the edge of the ruins as she nodded towards the wall. Twilight had nearly forgotten that they needed to be careful about sahuagin guards, and lowered her head behind a slab of broken stone while peeking just enough to realize Wavecrest was pointing out a pair of sahuagin. Fortunately the pair of fish creatures were high up on the palace wall, floating near a conical shaped opening that had a bolted gate on it. A shark with a hammer shaped head swam in a lazy circle nearby, about twenty feet long. The sahuagin guards were tossing scraps of fish that the shark snapped up happily, and appeared to be so engaged with feeding their pet that they hadn’t noticed what was going on below them.

Once she seemed sure they were out of danger of being spotted, Wavecrest addressed Twilight, “I do not know for certain. This rift is not natural. It was not part of the city’s original design. It must have been carved during the time Charybdis had taken control, before Princess Scylla’s forces came to drive her mad sister from Aqualania. Those poor unfortunate whose remains are in those cages I would guess were citizens Charybdis decided to make examples of.”

“That would fit with the stories we hippogryphs have heard as well,” said Seaspray, his beak turned down in a grim frown, “A jewel of the seas, reduced to a tyrant’s plaything. Truly a ignoble way for such a grand city to fall.”

“So somethin’ I don’t much get,” said Applejack, “If this Charybdis was so big on takin’ over Aqualania an’ such, why ain’t she ever come back all these years? Why stay down in this Abyss place playin’ house with a bunch o’ critters like the sahuagin?”

“I was under the impression she didn’t want to make herself a target by any surface powers, like Equestria,” said Rarity, but then the seamstress looked up thoughtfully at the darkness of the deep ocean above, and rubbed her chin, “Although given how deep beneath the waves this city is, I actually can’t imagine anypony on land would even notice what happens down here. So I suppose it is a tad odd this tyrant of the seas hasn’t returned to this place.”

“Does the motivations of an insane monster matter?” said Wavecrest, “Perhaps she fears a place where she faced defeat. Do not forget, Princess Scylla beat Charybdis right here, above this very palace. Drove her away into the Abyss after Charybdis’ foul magic turned her into an abomination. It could just be that she never wished to lay eyes on the reminder of her failure. Regardless, it doesn’t matter for our task here. I see only the two guards, and one shark. We should be able to get in through that servant entrance easily enough.”

Twilight couldn't disagree with Wavecrest’s logic. They really didn’t have much time to get into a speculative debate over why Charybdis did or didn’t return to Aqualania. Granted Twilight was curious to know more, if only because further knowledge of this dangerous individual would be helpful in ultimately defeating her. Twilight hadn’t forgotten that the final goal of her and her friends’ quest was to face Charybdis herself and free the piece of Adagio’s soul that the deep sea witch supposedly had. She was even a bit hopeful to find more clues as to what happened between the two seapony royal heirs somewhere in the palace, but they still needed to focus on the task at hoof.

“You’re right,” she said, “Let’s just get inside first. I can hold those three with my magic, and then Seaspray and Applejack can knock out the two guards. Flash, do you have any Kido that will incapacitate the shark?”

He nodded, “I think I know one that will do the trick.”

“Alright then, on three. One... two... th-”

Her count was interrupted by a loud wailing noise that echoed through the waters, reverberated many times over by the convoluted maze of ruined buildings that amplified the sound and made it seem to bounce from every direction. It was a horrific, screeching wail that made Twilight’s whole body twitch. Then, off to the south, she saw the glow of actual light in the underwater depths, a potent and ethereal gleam of blue and green light.

“My goodness, what is that awful sound?” Rarity said, clasping hooves to her ears, “It sounds like someone is trying to strangle my dear Opalescence while simultaneously drowning themselves!”

“It’s as if the tortured screams of the condemned have been mixed with the cries of a demonic banshee,” said Admiral Seaspray, holding his harpoon at the ready.

“Even the worst beasts in the deepest parts of the ocean I’ve hunted in did not make a cry so hideous,” Wavecrest breathed, her staff preparing to unleash magic.

Applejack just let out a dry chuckle, “Oh, that’s just Pinkie Pie.”

“Come again? The pink one?” Wavecrest said, blinking astonishment. Even Twilight looked at Applejack somewhat askance, as she certainly had never heard Pinkie Pie make a noise like that.

“Are you sure, Applejack?” Twilight asked, wincing as the wailing continued its horrible echo, “That does not sound like the Pinkie Pie I know.”

“Ya ain’t never been ‘round her during my family’s last hootenanny during Nightmare Night,” Applejack said, “We set ourselves up a’ haunted barn, but ya’ll were in the Crystal Empire that year vistin’ yer brother.”

“Oh,” said Rarity, “And I was at a social gathering in Manehattan this year for Nightmare Night, so I missed whatever happened back in Ponyville. Wait, so you’re sure this is Pinkie Pie?”

“Sure as rainfall n’ autumn. Ain’t never gonna ferget the way our Pinkie Pie can use them pipes o’ hers ta let out a wail that’d scare the scales off a’ hydra.”

Twilight gave a slight nod, shocked, but impressed. “If that sound is Pinkie Pie, the lightshow must be Starlight or Trixie’s work. They must be creating some kind of diversion to sneak into the palace. But wait... why are they going into the palace?”

“They must have reason to think Aria and Sonata are being kept inside,” said Flash, “A diversion is probably their best way to get past the guards. Only problem is that it's going to put every sahuagin in the city on alert.”

“Yet this may benefit us in the short term,” said Seaspray, pointing with his harpoon, “Look.”

The guards at the servant entrance had turned their heads towards the distant flickering of lights and were giving nervous looks around at the continued wailing. They exchanged hushed, swift words with each other, and after a few seconds one of them unlocked the servant gate and swam inside the palace, leaving his companion alone with the shark. The shark had become agitated at the light and noise, but the remaining guard mounted the creature and gave it a soothing path on the neck.

“Well that makes things a bit easier,” Twilight said, her horn lighting up, “Let’s go, quickly. The palace might be crawling with guards soon, so let’s do this.”

There were affirming nods all around from those around her and they followed her lead when Twilight charged upward, swimming with powerful strokes to rush the remaining sahuagin and the hammerhead shark it rode.

The sahuagin saw them coming, but was barely able to make a sound or even bring his trident to bear before Twilight’s magic struck both him and the shark, slamming them into the wall and holding them there with a powerful telekinetic field of magic. Before the sahuagin knew what was going on, Applejack was right next to him and gave a swift swing of her hoof, delivering a right hook that cracked the fishman’s jaw and put him out like a swiftly extinguished candle.

The shark tried to thrash about a bit longer, but Flash was there almost as fast as Applejack, slowed a bit by how tired he was from the poison he’d endured, but still swift. He placed a hoof in front of the thrashing shark’s head and quickly chanted a Kido spell.

“Bakudo Number Seventeen: Inemuri.” (Forced Slumber)

There was a brief distortion in the water in front of his hoof, encapsulating the shark’s head. The creature’s thrashing instantly slowed, then stopped completely as the shark fell asleep. Twilight released the unconscious sahuagin and sleeping shark, although she took a second to set the shark drifting down towards the rift, so even while asleep it’s gills would breathe for it.

Wavecrest and Seaspray reached the servant entrance and pried the still unlocked metal doors open.

“Well, my friends, welcome to the royal palace of Aqualania,” Wavecrest said, and motioned for them all to go inside, “Next stop, the Treasury of Scylla.”

----------

The royal palace of Aqualania was far larger than Starlight Glimmer had given it credit for. Sure, it’d appeared big enough from the outside, but the unique infrared vision the aquatic adaptation spell caused had also left much of its vastness cloaked in shadow even when right up next to it. Now that they were inside, it was humbling to realize just how enormous the halls were. In truth, the building dwarfed Canterlot Palace, no small place itself.

The immediate hall after passing the gates had been a vertical length tall enough that several adult dragons could have walked through it unimpeded. The ceiling and walls were ribbed like the inner bones of some gigantic whale, with the stone protrusions of the ribs also containing circular doorways that led off to countless side halls. Up ahead the main hall shot forward then curved up into a soft incline that terminated in a wall with three more wide, circular openings arranged in a triangular pattern. Statues of noble looking seapony warriors flanked the incline, and a strange pink emanation of light suffused the chamber. As far as Starlight could tell the light was filtered into the hallway from crystal arrangements mounted in the ceiling and walls, carved like smooth square gemstones.

“Which way are we going, guys?” asked Rainbow Dash, gesturing at the various doors along the hallway, “Because I’m seeing a lot of options.”

“Perhaps we should have kept that prisoner longer,” muttered Tempest, but Starlight shook her head.

“I couldn’t keep up that domination spell forever, and I’d rather have my horn free to fight,” Starlight said, and Tempest’s mouth creased in an obstinate frown.

“But if he wakes up too soon, he’ll alert his fellow fishheads to our presence.”

Starlight gave Tempest a sidelong look, “After the show we just put on, everycreature is going to know we’re here soon enough. Speed is what we need, and Ulgriv didn’t know any more about the palace interior other than there being a courtyard beyond this main hall. Probably through one of those three doors at the end. Bringing him along any further wouldn’t have helped.”

“Didn’t he say there’s some sort of temple in that direction, too?” said Fluttershy, “That might be where Sonata and Aira are being held.”

“So do we just rush in and hope for the best, or do we have an actual plan?” asked Trixie, “Because I feel as if I’ve done my part, but if more of Trixie’s special magic is called for, I can conjure away.”

Tempest raised and eyebrow at her, “Somepony’s pumped up.”

“Trixie is tired of playing second fiddle,” the magician mare declared, “And this is a perfect chance to show up that Twilight Sparkle and show her just how brilliant and talented I am!”

“I think dropping the third-person schtick might help with ponies taking you seriously,” Tempest replied, to which Trixie scoffed.

“I don’t always use it, but it’s perfect for putting on a show. Makes folk remember Trixie’s name, which is good for branding. Trixie is even considering having merchandise made.”

“Not the time for this discussion, gang, we’ve got incoming!'' Rainbow Dash said, readying her cutlass and zooming ahead. Starlight didn’t even see at first what Rainbow Dash was talking about, but then saw the swift shades of motion from the top doorway at the end of the hall. They were sleek and long, a quartet of sharks. Not the burly great whites that the patrols had been riding, but rather more slender creatures, perhaps makos? Starlight wasn’t up on her shark genealogy.

She didn’t see any sahuagin with the sharks, so Starlight guessed these had to be the equivalent of guard dogs left behind to patrol the halls. It was possible the palace was filled with sharks or other undersea creatures the sahuagin had tamed for their purposes. Either way, they had to deal with this fast and keep moving. Who knew how long they had before the warbands at the front gate got tired of trying to chase ghosts that weren’t there and came back to the palace?

Rainbow Dash’s speed meant that she streaked right through the pack of sharks before the rest of the group could even get a chance to react. Now having become fully used to her aquatic form, the champion Equestrian athlete was all but a solid blue ribbon of motion. Her tail smacked one shark across it’s sensitive nose while her cutlass’s basket hilt cracked another across the side of the head. As these two sharks reeled, the other pair flashed teeth at Rainbow Dash’s flanks, but she twisted away just a hair fast enough to keep from getting a bite taken out of her.

Starlight gripped one of the sharks with her magic and introduced it to the floor with significant force, while Trixie’s own horn let out a stream of intertwining blue and white sparkles that combined together in front of another shark and detonated in a popping flash of magic light that left the shark shaking its head in place, utterly disoriented.

Now Tempest caught up to the fray and tackled one of the shark’s Dash had struck, wrapping her hooves around it’s body just behind the head. She then propelled herself and the shark forward until they both rammed into the wall, Tempest using the shark’s body to cushion her own while further battering her target. It was still conscious, despite the blow, and twisted against her hooves, teeth gnashing at her. Tempest held firm, continuing to wrestle with the predatory fish.

Meanwhile the other shark Dash had hit regained its senses just in time to come face to face with the calm if somewhat sheepish stare of Fluttershy, who floated in front of it with a hoof to her chin as she said, “Um, I’m sorry to bother you Mister Shark, but I’d really appreciate it if you’d maybe take your friends somewhere else?”

The shark just stared back at her, looking about as confused as a shark’s limited facial muscles allowed it to look. Then it looked up as Pinkie Pie landed on it’s head and and playfully waved at it.

“Yeah, you don’t want to eat us. I mean, do we look like we’d be healthy to eat? Think about your blood sugar levels!’

If it was at all possible for a shark to appear annoyed, this one managed to pull it off, and started trying to shake Pinkie Pie off it while snapping its teeth at her. Flutteshy sighed and with surprising strength for such a demure pony, grabbed the shark by the sides of the head and turned it to look directly at her eyes, which had grown wider yet magnitude more intense.

“Be nice Mister Shark. Otherwise I’m going to be very cross with you. Do you understand?”

The shark paused mid-bite... slowly nodded it’s head, and proceeded to sheepishly swim away like a chastised puppy.

By then Rainbow Dash had doubled back on the shark, Trixie had disoriented and effectively dive-bombed it with her whole body acting like a makeshift torpedo, leaving it dazed and out of action. Tempest had taken a slight bite to her tail, but with a growl and smashed her own shark’s head once more into the wall, leaving a few noticeable cracks in the stone, and left it floating either unconscious or possibly dead. It was hard to tell which.

That left the shark Starlight Glimmer held with her magic, but a simple bolt of stunning magic from her horn took care of that problem. This left the group free once more to proceed forward, although they paused briefly in front of the three circular doors at the end of the main hall.

“Soooo... are we stuck guessing which one to go through?” asked Dash.

“Of course not,” said Fluttershy, whistling, “Mister Shark! Heel please!”

The shark she’d pacified just moments before now reluctantly swam back to her, and Fluttershy stroked it’s nose.

“Good boy! Who’s a good fish? You are! Now, we’re here looking for some friends of ours, one’s purple, the other is blue, and looks kind of like us but with more fins and sharper teeth. Do you know where they are?”

The shark tilted it’s head, then wagged its tail and nodded. Fluttershy patted the shark’s nose, rubbing it the way one might scratch behind a dog’s ear, “Great! You’ll lead us to them, won’t you?”

Quite thoroughly under Fluttershy’s bewitching influence, the shark was now all too eager to swim ahead, going up to the door on the top right corner. Tempest finished examining her wound, which wasn’t deep but was bleeding a bit, and said, “Well that’s one way to get intel. How’d you even do that?”

“I just have a way with animals,” Fluttershy said, smiling.

Starlight swam towards the door, motioning for the others to follow, “Hurry up guys! I got a feeling we’re running low on time here.”

----------

Ulgriv’s mind swam up to the realm of consciousness as if through a thick gel. The young sahuagin felt piercing pain behind his eyes for a few seconds as he groaned and clutched at his skull. It took a few difficult seconds of enduring disorientation and a heavy blanket of throbbing pain before he could grasp his surroundings. He was floating within the ruins of a market promenade just outside the palace’s main gates. He wasn’t at all certain how he’d gotten there, his memory fragmented.

Piece by piece he put together that he and Rigash had been captured by... what? Soft kin? He got flashes of images of a group of colorful aquatic equines, but something about them didn’t seem right, and didn't line up with the seapony soft kin. One of them had had a... horn? A glowing horn? What had she done to him? He could only remember a flash of bright teal light, filling his eyes, then nothing.

However he didn’t need to remember the details to make an educated guess. One look at the gates and Ulgriv’s heart leapt into his throat. All of the guards were down!? Dead or unconscious, he couldn’t tell, but the multiple warbands that had been guarding the palace’s gates were either gone or lay floating like useless lumps. And the gates themselves were open!

What had happened here!?

With a cold, sinking feeling, he realized that these strange seaponies must have somehow used him to do all this. At the very least they must have wrung some kind of information from him, then left him behind now that they were done with him. Shame burned deep inside him, and fear. Fear that he’d horrifically failed the Deep Mistress. He reflexively clutched at his pendant, whispering a fervent prayer for forgiveness.

No, he shouldn’t simply ask for forgiveness right now. The Deep Mistress always taught the importance of action over words. The strong kin had to be self-reliant and fix their own problems, even while accepting the Deep Mistress’ grace. He had to earn his forgiveness for failure by taking action!

He swam swiftly towards the gates. Passing by a fallen warrior, Ulgriv grabbed a trident that had stuck itself to the seafloor. In the distance he saw warbands of his fellow warriors somewhere off to the southeast. He had no idea what they were doing all the way over there, but there was no time to go to them. If the foul soft kin had infiltrated the palace, he had to give chase! At the very least if he found Morgawr, he could warn the warlord of what had happened, even if doing so might cost Ulgriv his life.

Without further hesitation, the sahuagin youth rushed into the palace.

----------

Divistis was good at hiding his fury. Morgawr’s arrogance was normal for ‘chosen’ warriors like him. Merely because he held a contract with the Deep Mistress, Morgawr acted as if he was superior to all. Foolish. A contract was potent, but shamans knew the true mysteries of the Deep Mistress’ teachings. It may have been a patient art, but it yielded greater results and more fantastic power than the brutish strength one like Morgawr wielded.

Which simply made it beyond aggravating that the Mistress had left Morgawr in charge of this expedition instead of the senior shaman, which had been Divistis’ superior, Agamael, at least until Agamael’s untimely defeat by the surfacers at Mt. Aris. Which meant Divistis now led the few remaining shamans, all neophytes but capable ones. Divistis had left all but one of those neophytes in charge of preparing the translocation sphere. Annoyingly, Morgawr had forbidden sacrifices from the captured soft kin to speed that process along. Even more galling was that he'd also denied Divistis any sacrifices to finish preparing the latest terror beast!

Did that thick boned, rot-brained fool have any idea what it took to control a terror beast, let alone complete the ritual of creating one!?

The only chamber large enough in all the palace to house the ritual circle for creating a terror beast was the throne room. The once bright and shining seat of dominance for the kingdom of soft kin was now a darkened tomb, the teardrop shape of the enormous chamber given over mostly to the carved ritual circle that contained the howling hulk of the terror beast itself. Once a noble creature of the sea, a ‘sperm whale’ by surfacer reckoning, Dvistis’ work, once Agameal’s work, had turned the air breathing mammal into a mutated parody of its former self. Bone armor grew in thick blisters across it’s cracked skin. Unnatural gills, ribbed in poison spewing sacs, lined it’s jaws. Jaws that, in turn, carried gnarled growths of fresh, serrated teeth. It’s head, a mighty battering ram even before the mutations, now held a conical, horn-like protrusion that hooked downward like a cleaver. The terror beast’s once gentle eyes blazed hot red, filled with fury and bloodlust.

But it was still an incomplete thing. Divistus channeled his magic into the ritual circle. With his neophytes busy, he was stuck doing all the heavy lifting himself, but he’d always suspected he’d been stronger than Agamael anyway, and this was his chance to prove it! Returning successfully to the Abyss with a freshly made terror beast would no doubt impress the Deep Mistress. Even if Morgawr got the greater share of the credit for capturing the two first kin, Divistis would still surely get his own reward for his service. Raised to lead a cabal, perhaps? Or even become one of the Mistress’ favored priests, allowed to apprentice under her personal tutelage? Even Agamael hadn’t been granted that honor. As far as Divistis knew, only a very rare handful of individuals, over the centuries, had ever been given that privilege.

Including one of the first kin, a sticking point for many sahuagin shamans. That had been a long time ago, however. It’d seemed unlikely any first kin were even left alive after so many centuries.

...Where had those two they’d captured come from? How had the Deep Mistress known they’d be at Mt. Aris? One usually didn’t question the Deep Mistress, but Divistis couldn’t deny a certain curiosity as to what made these two so important.

Well, no matter, he had work to do. With no soft kin sacrifices to give their lifeblood and soul energy to the cause of finishing the terror beast’s mutations, Divistis was left using less conventional means. There were always plenty of sharks brought along by the warbands to act as mounts, guards, and goods carriers. They wouldn’t miss a dozen or so.

He had an assortment of the fish of various breeds and sizes lined up next to the ritual circle, all drugged into docility. Which made bringing them forward and dragging the ritual knife across the bottoms of their chins quite easy. The lifeblood flowed, along with the supple soul magic that poured out along with it. With the magic taught to him as was taught to generations of sahuagin shamans, Divistis coaxed out the latent soul energy and hooked his magic into it. It always made a lovely, singing sound when controlled thusly, and left Divistis with a familiar rush of power through his own blood.

Blood was both the key and conduit for the soul, it needed to be mixed with the spell, poured into the ritual. Shark after shark was cut and bleed, fueling the giant magical circle, which pulsed with the deepest of sanguine red lights. And as Divistis poured that power into the terror beast, it let out a wonderful howl that made Divistis smile.

Soon it’d be complete.

----------

“W-what is makin’ that awful racket, do ya reckon’?” asked Applejack, looking about with a pensive bite to her lower lip as the unearthly howl echoed through the palace corridor. The whole group halted, floating in the dark waters of the corridor as the skin crawling sound washed over them. When the howl eventually faded, Admiral Seaspray swam a little further ahead to check left and right down a split in the hallway.

“I’ve heard sounds like that before,” the hipporphyon warrior said, “Once or twice while commanding ships at sea.”

“Whatever was it, Admiral?” inquired Rarity, “And is it something we should be worried about?”

He looked at her with an intense stare, then seemed to take in the corridor around them. The hallways of the palace varied in size greatly, so far. Some were narrow enough that only two of them could swim abreast, while others opened up in much vaster tubes, some over a hundred feet wide. Wavecrest had been leading the way through the twisting corridors, but Seaspray had kept point to watch for any sahuagin they might encounter wandering the halls.

“Perhaps,” he said in an ominous tone, “In the larger corridors, at least. That sound, it reminds me of the sound a whale makes as it dies.”

“Whales?” Twilight said, mentally going over her catalogue of information she knew about the ocean mammals, “This doesn’t sound like any kind of whale song I’ve read about.”

“I don’t speak of any simple whale song, but the cries of one in agony,” Seaspray said, his face showing a pallid, grim look, “And anything that can do that to a whale is large enough to be a threat if it’s wandering these larger halls.”

“You are partially right,” Wavecrest said, “The sahuagin use their ugly magics to twist sea life into abominations. It may well be they’ve trapped some unfortunate creature for such a putrid ritual. Perhaps even a whale.”

“Rotten critters, these sahuagin,” Applejack spat, or tried to. Spitting was a tad difficult underwater.

“Oh my, isn’t there anything we can do for the poor animal?” asked Rarity.

“Even if we had time, there is nothing that could be done, other than to put the beast out of its misery,” said Wavecrest with a saddened, but equally hardened look in her eyes, “But we must proceed cautiously. As the Admiral says, some of these corridors are large enough for even a whale to pass through, and even my magic would be no match against such an abomination once unleashed.”

“How much further do we have to go?” asked Twilight as Admiral Seapsray cleared the corridor and Wavecrest led them through one that bent upward and then curved to the left. Twilight was trying to map the palace in her mind, but was having difficulty with it. She could tell that there was some rhyme and reason to the hallways. The larger corridors were like highways, running in several bending pathways around the base of the palace. From these main corridors spanned a tangle of smaller corridors. Because the palace was filled with water, gravity meant little. Hallways could go up, down, curl back upon each other, circle around in a spiral, with any number of dozens of chambers connected to them that didn’t have to conform to the normal structure rooms in a surface building might.

Twilight had noticed that the hallways and rooms had been smaller near the servant’s entrance, and had gradually grown larger and grander the higher up and further south they went. The seaponies of Aqualania had an eye for decorative architecture, for many of the halls sported detailed carvings or colorful mountings of shells, colored stones, or formations of coral that made Twilight feel like she was swimming through a gigantic piece of modern art.

To her question, Wavecrest didn’t pause but did say without looking at Twilight, “We’re following the path my mentor took when she was here. There were fewer sahuagin occupying the palace then, but the path should still be safe. They rarely travel far from the main courtyard in the south, or the barracks below the throne chambers. Our first objective is to find Princess Scylla’s bedchambers, which should have an attached armory.”

“And that’s where the Treasury is?” asked Flash, who’d been bringing up the rear of the group to keep an eye out in case anything tried to sneak up on them.

“No, but it is where my mentor discovered that Princess Scylla had hidden a secret passage that acted as a shortcut to the sublevels of the palace. Using it will allow us to bypass the most guarded areas of the palace and reach where my mentor believed the Treasury was hidden.”

“Believed. As in she didn’t know for sure?” Rarity pressed, “I must say this is sounding a bit less ideal the more I hear.”

“Doubt as you like,” Wavecrest said with a shrug, “But my mentor was near certain she’d found the entrance to the Treasury in the grave chambers of Aqualania’s old queens. She sketched out in detail the hidden doorway and the mechanisms she found keeping it sealed. She also wrote numerous notes on how the door may be opened. All I have to do is get there and finish the work my mentor started before she was discovered by the sahuagin and had to flee.”

“And failing that, there’s always the brute force option,” said Flash, “I mean, never met a door that could stand up to repeated Kido blasts, and that’s assuming Twilight doesn’t want to flex her magic muscles and just bust it open herself.”

Twilight tried not to smile a bit, “Well we’ll see what needs doing when we get there. So you know the way to Scylla’s room?”

“I’m following my mentor’s notes to the letter,” Wavecrest said, her voice started to recite almost like a chant, “Through the servant quarters south two hundred feet, follow the hall of bright blue seashells until the split and take the upper path. Pass the chamber of mirrors then immediately turn right to find the sundered balcony...”

Almost prophetically Wavecrest’s directions proved accurate, as they swam past an opening into a wide, spherical chamber whose walls were lined with polished mirrors. It reminded Twilight almost like a dancing room where ponies might waltz with mirrors to watch themselves, only this one’s sphere shape would let dancing seaponies see themselves mirrored from all directions. They took an immediate right down a widening corridor that then sloped up high and opened up to a balcony that overlooked the palace to the south. The stone platform was sundered in half, as if a massive blade or claw had passed through it, although the rest of the area was perfectly intact.

There was a strobe of crimson light from just below, filtering through multiple huge, circular windows no more than a floor or two beneath them, and that terrible howl filled the air. Not more than a few moments later smaller flashes of red could be seen in a huge, bowl-shaped courtyard that split nearly a full third of the southern portion of the palace.

“The throne room...” Wavecrest whispered, nodding towards the windows where the brighter red flash had been, “That must be where they are creating that abomination.”

“Hmm, then what of those smaller flashes from the courtyard? What do you suppose those are about?” wondered Seaspray, peering with narrowed eyes in that direction, “I’m seeing some activity down there. Must be at least a few score sahuagin.”

“Just a moment,” Twilight said, making use of a fairly simple spell to conjure the equivalent of a mystical set of binoculars. One never knew when one needed a closer look to categorize a new discovery! With a small flash of purple she conjured the magical pair of binoculars and adjusted them to get a closer look at the courtyard.

The bowl-shaped depression had gently sloped walls, and several overhanging archways. She spotted what looked like huge doors leading to the front of the palace, some kind of set of inner gates. To the east, there were large, carved stone steps leading to two towers flanking what looked to Twilight like the front of a temple with multiple columns supporting a domed roof that glittered with the embedding of thousands of gemstones that created the shapes of ocean waves.

However, all those details fell to the wayside as Twilight spotted something dangling down from the center archway over the courtyard. A metal chain led down to a large sphere which was glowing with strange, red light. She could see sahuagin, covered in the bone talisman of shamans, cavorting about the sphere, draining their blood from wounds on their wrists that was absorbed into the sphere.

Nearby, a humongous sahuagin specimen floated, gesturing in violent agitation to several gathered warbands of sahuagin warriors.

“Well, none of that looks good,” she said, and briefly relayed what she saw to her companions.

“The hornet’s nest has definitely been kicked,” said Flash, “The big guy must be the one in charge and is about to send out more troops to scour this place. They probably know we’re here, after that light show the others put on out front.”

“Here’s hopin’ they’ll be alright,” said Applejack, “If they snuck in through the front gate, they’re real close ta the center of all them buggers.”

“Which means Aria and Sonata have to be down there, too,” said Twilight, “Or at least Starlight thinks they’re being held close by. But what is that sphere? It doesn’t look like it’s part of the palace architecture.”

“It isn’t,” said Wavecrest, “My mentor wrote of it as well. Her theory is that it is an artifact created by Charybdis that opens a pathway between Aqualania and the Abyss. It is how the sahuagin bypass the hunting grounds of my kin further north who’d otherwise spot large warbands trying to leave the arctic waters where the Abyss is located.”

“Huh,” Applejack grunted, then got a fiery look in her eyes and cracked a suggestive grin, “Think it’d ruin them stinkin’ buggers’ day if we up n’ smashed that magical doohickey?”

Admiral Seaspray let out a surprised bark of a laugh, “If we could pull it off, I’d say that’d be a capital idea. Cut these blighted creatures off from reinforcements and make all the oceans around this region safer.”

“If we can find an opportunity, I say we do it,” Twilight said, “But the Treasury and rescuing the sirens comes first.”

“Just so,” said Wavecrest, urging them onward, “Come, we’re close. The royal suites should be just up the next passage from this balcony.”

----------

“That’s... a lot of murderous fish people,” Trixie noted in a quiet whisper. Her horn was suffused with a very soft and minimal glow of blue light, just as Starlight’s was coated in a similarly dimmed glow of teal. Both mares were keeping up spells, one of invisibility, and the other to slowly chill the water around them. Starlight’s hope was that the colder water would dissipate enough of their heat to make them even harder to spot, alongside Trixie’s invisibility.

Fluttershy’s new shark pet was floating next to her, tail wagging, while Fluttershy herself kept a comforting hoof on the shark’s nose, patting it.

“Look,” Fluttershy said, pointing at a large set of stairs to their right. The group was hidden at the top of the gateway leading out into the courtyard, using an overhang of stone as cover while they tried to observe without getting spotted. The area Fluttershy indicated had a similar look to the temple they’d found in the city, only with a grander front entrance. The thing that had drawn Fluttershy’s attention was a pair of sahuagin guards who were carefully escorting a bound Aria. The siren was alone, and looked surly as ever as she was led back through the space between the columns along the temple’s front entrance.

“At least we know one of them is okay,” Starlight said, “And that they’re being held in there. Now how do we get inside without having to deal with the small army we’ve got here?”

By her count there were at least a hundred sahuagin warriors gathered in the courtyard. Some of them had swam into the courtyard from above, coming from outside the city. By now the south gates were probably guarded once more. Starlight couldn’t make out anything being said, but the huge sahuagin warrior whom she guessed was in overall command of the fish people was shouting orders and the sahuagin were organizing into smaller groups, no doubt to form search parties to sweep the palace.

“There’s no path from here to the temple that doesn’t take us past them,” said Tempest, “And your spells won’t keep us hidden for long. I also doubt a showing of ghost illusions will do the trick again, either. We may just have to force our way through.”

“Against that many? Are you crazy?” said Trixie. Starlight’s brow furrowed deeply.

“Yeah, I’m good, but I could probably only get twenty or thirty of them, tops, and that’s not accounting for the big guy or those shamans,” she said, noting the group of sahuagin using their blood to fuel that odd sphere in the center of the courtyard. “Unless we can find a way to better the odds, even the element of surprise won’t be enough here.”

“Only if our objective was to beat all of them,” Tempest said, eyeing the rest of the courtyard. Her expression hardened as she nodded, almost to herself, “But all we really need is somepony who is willing to keep them busy long enough for the rest of you to get into the temple and rescue those sirens.”

“Tempest, what are you thinking of doing?” asked Starlight, reaching out to touch the other mare’s leg, but Tempest drew her limb back and regarded Starlight with an amused smirk.

“Don’t look so concerned. I’m not suicidal. But I’ve had to scale my own magic back when near all of you because when I truly cut loose with it, I don’t have the control to not fry everything around me. If I go alone, I can unleash my magic fully, which will get all of their attention. Then I lead them on a chase through the palace while you get the sirens out. Simple.”

“Except for the part where how do you escape with an army of sahuagin on your butt?” asked Pinkie Pie, “I’m often accused of being a bit loopy and even I think that’s a tad nuts, Tempy.”

“Your concern is touching, but I’m a big mare and I know my limits,” Tempest said, tensing her body in clear preparation to make her move, “And honestly, what other options do we have? They’re about to start tearing the palace apart to find us, so if we don’t act now, this whole mission will be a failure. And I’m not used to failure.”

She also apparently wasn’t inclined to let the argument drag out longer, because with that she shot off like a purple bolt of lighting. She swam swiftly up along the top of one of the curving stone archways that went over the courtyard. Without halting, she spun upside down and started emitting a growing charge of crackling magic around her horn. Even so, it did take a few seconds for any sahuagin to even take note of it, so occupied as they were with their own preparations to split into teams and begin searching the palace for interlopers. None of them were expecting one of those interlopers to suddenly appear above them so open and brazenly.

By the time one warrior managed to shout a warning, pointing up with his trident, Tempest Shadow had fully accumulated a potent charge of her barely restrained magic. Her horn burned with the power and it hurt her head like a spiking headache, but she relished the focus the pain gave her and she even enjoyed the thrill of having such a target-rich environment.

Like Starlight Glimmer, Tempest knew she couldn’t take the whole sahuagin army gathered here. But that didn’t matter. She wasn’t planning to take down all of them, just give them plenty of reason to view her as a threat, cause a whole bucket-load of chaos, and expel some of the pent up frustration that had been boiling inside her ever since this whole fiasco began.

A storm lance of pure, writhing magic power exploded from Tempest’s horn and rained down in a curling, lashing beam across the gathered sahuagin in the courtyard. It cracked and blasted apart stone as it went, flinging fish people left and right in a billowing cloud. Some fried instantly, while others had their bones flashed through with magic light as they were left twitching as if from electrical shock. Tempest swam fast, starving left and right with her horn, not bothering to control any of the power and just let the beams of unrestrained magic blast out of her and rock the courtyard like an artillery barrage.

To the sahuagin’s credit, they responded fast, despite the shocking nature of Tempest’s surprise attack. Harpoons were hurled towards her with amazing force and accuracy, making the mare dodge and weave to avoid being impaled, and even then her tail was nicked once or twice as she made a swift bee-line for one of the doorways at the end of the arch she’d been following. She didn’t once stop ejecting magic out of her horn, sweeping sahuagin out of the way as dozens of them started to chase her.

And one in particular ended up barring her path, landing in front of the doorway with such force he nearly cracked the stone arch.

Morgawr spun a gloriously huge trident in his hands and faced Tempest charging towards him. Her horn blasted magic at the chief sahuagin, who smashed his trident right into the path of Tempest’s magical beam. The magic crackled around the trident and entered the weapon, and to Tempest’s surprise the energy didn’t injure Morgawr at all as he swung the trident around and blasted her own magic energy right back at her!

She twisted out of the way, but her escape path now blocked she had no choice but to start circling around the palace wall to seek another path, and the sahuagin warriors, much faster swimmers than her, were quickly closing off any way out.

“Dammit all!” Starlight growled, turning to Trixie and grabbing her friend tightly, “Go, get Aria and Sonata! I’ll help Tempest!”

“Waitwhat!? But what about-!?” Trixie began but Starlight fixed her with an impaling look.

“Don’t argue Trixie! I’m trusting you to get the sirens to safety! Now go, all of you go!”

She didn’t wait for a response, she just swam. Starlight rushed out towards where Tempest was gradually getting surrounded. The mare was flinging her magic about in scintillating arcs of power that was forcing many of the sahuagin to keep back, but Morgawr was already swimming to the front of the group, and was absorbing Tempest’s bolts into his trident.

Starlight grit her teeth and muttered, “Magic eating trident, huh? Well, let’s see you eat this.”

With a deathly glare in her eyes, Starlight used her magic upon the stone archway. A groaning noise echoed loudly in the courtyard as she tore the large middle portion of the archway free with her magic, utilizing no shortage of telekinetic might to lift and then hulr the several hundred ton formation of stone up at the sahuagin, and specifically at Morgawr.

As it happened, a very distraught group of sahuagin shamans clung to the metal sphere that was attached to this chunk of archway and were dragged along for the ride.

Sahuagin warriors were bludgeoned out of the way of the stone archway as it sailed at Morgawr, who turned around and saw it coming just in time to raise his trident and unleash the magic that had been absorbed into it. While the blast of power took a chunk off the edifice of stone, it still slammed into him with incredible force, then proceeded to crash into the wall of the palace.

Tempest blinked in surprise as Starlight swam right past her, shouting, “You’re welcome, now swim you idiot!”

Tempest, for a change, didn’t argue and followed after Starlight, who made a rush for a side window further along the palace wall, wrenching it open with her magic. They just barely got through in time to avoid a hail of harpoons and tridents thrown after them by the sahuagin, who gave rapid chase while others went to check on their leader.

As it happened, the stone archway which had lodged itself into the wall stirred, and then was smashed in half in a powerful blow that sent several lesser sahuagin warriors reeling.

Morgawr stood with his feet planted into the stone wall of the palace, his fists still clenched from where he’d smashed the archway. His body was now glowing with flowing, curving lines of red magic as he called upon the ‘contract’ he held with the Deep Mistress and brought forth his power as a ‘champion’. He bellowed his rage into the dark depths of the ocean, but while he began to bark orders to chase the intruders, fully intent on butchering them himself, neither he nor any of his warriors had taken note of the fact that Trixie and the remaining group of ponies had used all the chaos as a cover to slip into the temple.

Episode 144: The Truth of the Treasury

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Episode 144: The Truth of the Treasury

“Did everyone hear that?” Flash sought to confirm, his own ears twitching. He hadn’t fully gotten used to the hearing range ponies had with their larger ears, but that was compounded by being underwater, where sound traveled in odd ways even with the aquatic adaptation spell.

The others of the group paused. They’d just gone up from the balcony area they’d been occupying and followed Wavecrest’s lead through a spiraling upward tunnel that had brought them to a circular chamber with numerous side openings around its circumference. The chamber had a floor inlaid with pearl carvings in the shape of a crest that resembled an open sea shell containing a vibrant, dual colored circle of gold and blue. Wavecrest had said it was the royal family’s sigil, indicating they were in the main juncture for the royal quarters.

Before they could pick a corridor that would lead to Princess Scylla’s chambers, however, the distinct if subdued sound of reverberating tremors reached Flash’s ears, and he’d halted in place.

“Ain’t just you. I hear ‘em too,” confirmed Applejack, looking back the way they’d come, “Sounds like somethin’ like fireworks goin’ off.”

“It must be the other team,” Twilight said, worry straining her voice, “They might have run into trouble.”

“Should we go back?” asked Rarity, “Was our plan not to fall back from the city and regroup if one of the teams was discovered before accomplishing its mission?”

“Yes, but, we don’t know for sure what it is,” Twilight admitted, “I didn’t think we’d be out of view of any flares they’d send up. I’m not sure...”

“Let’s keep going,” Flash said, and at Twilight’s look he put on an encouraging smile, “The others aren’t pushovers, and we’re already pretty close to finding what we’re here for. I trust them to handle their end of things. Would kind of suck to throw in the towel when we’ve come this far, right?”

“I guess you’re right,” Twilight said, and Wavecrest flicked her tail in agreement.

“Quite correct. If all goes well we’ll be in the Treasury soon enough. Come, the Princess’ chambers await.”

Although the muffled noises of detonations continued a little longer, it faded soon after the group swam up through a corridor on their right which passed through a short curve before opening up into a wide entryway barred by thick, circular metal doors. Or at least, it had been barred. The doors had been torn free of their housing, the metal bent in half and cast aside like a useless frisbee. It stopped the group short, as the damaged doors were in stark contrast to how well kept the rest of the palace was.

“Let me go first,” Admiral Seaspray said, bearing forward with his harpoon, “There is something amiss, here.”

Flash swam forward too, but Twilight held out a hoof to hold him back, giving him a small shake of her head as she said, “You’re still recovering. Just... hang back, okay?”

It irked him more than he wanted to show that she was right. Even if Wavecrest had removed the poison, he could feel his body was weak compared to what it had been. He could probably compensate for it by burning through more spirit energy, but he was trying to conserve that for when another fight broke out. For now he just sighed heavily and let Seaspray go in first, followed closely by Wavecrest. Twilight then went forward with Flash at her side, and Applejack and Rarity brought up the rear.

Beyond the doors were what Flash assumed was supposed to be Princess Scylla’s living area, but that hardly did it justice. This was no mere ‘room’ but rather a massive, two story suite. The initial chamber was a giant square with twin ramps going up to the second floor flanking the walls. In the middle of the room was a raised stone stage about a meter off the ground, with weapon racks lining the walls. From the stage were various stone obstacles, reminding Flash of some kind of child’s jungle gym, only if sized upward and designed with sharper edges. Given the weapon racks and the seating around the stage, he recognized the training arena for what it was. Even in it’s damaged state.

“Somepony weren’t too happy an’ went on a wreakin’ spree,” Applejack said, “Ain’t nothin’ in here ain’t busted up.”

It was true, the training arena was mostly smashed, with only just enough of it intact to make it clear what it had been. Seating surrounding the space was similarly broken, and Flash noticed some of the damage didn’t look like it was simply from blunt force. Some of the stone had been melted or seared by something.

“It is said the Princess trained in this room with her most loyal warriors,” Wavecrest said, swimming towards the center of the room, “Beloved by her men, she never sent them into danger; she wasn’t fully prepared to face herself. Why is this place so desecrated?”

“It certainly isn’t a pleasant sight, but this isn’t why we’re here, is it?” said Rarity, nodding towards the various doors that lined all the walls on both floors, “I presume one of these must lead to the bedchambers?”

Wavecrest shot a brief frown at Rarity, but nodded, “It should be the one on the second floor, directly across from the entrance.”

“Anything important in the other rooms?” Twilight asked, “A personal study, maybe?”

“Nothing we need to concern ourselves with, and I’d rather not disturb this place longer than we have to,” said Wavecrest, swimming up to the second floor and towards the opening she’d indicated. It, too, had it’s doors torn aside, pieces of them laying on the second floor’s walkway. The rest of the group followed her, entering into what was presumed to be Scylla’s bedchambers.

The interior was even worse off than the other room had been. Nothing was left intact. The bowl shaped bed was reduced to broken chunks. The writing desk was now rotted kindling against the wall. What may have once been paintings or tapestries were shredded, and a melted hole was burned through a set of weapon holders mounted on another wall. But most striking was the floor, where something of great heat or acidic quality had melted a pattern, a pattern that Flash knew must form letters.

“Whoa nelly,” said Applejack, “Gettin’ bad vibes aplenty. Hey Twi, can ya read that scribble on the floor there?”

“I... can’t make it out,” Twilight said, “Wavecrest?”

The seapony was floating in the room, staring at the letters silently. Seaspray put a talon on her shoulder, startling Wavecrest for a second before she looked at them all. Flash could see her eyes moved with uncertainty over the letters as she read out, “It simply says...’Murderer’.”

“Murderer?” Rarity said, almost as if her interest was piqued, “As in an accusation? Who would carve that into Princess Scylla’s chambers, and why?”

“C’mon Rarity, does it really matter?” asked Applejack, “We ain’t here ta solve a mystery. Especially one centuries old.”

“There’s nothing to solve,” Wavecrest said with pulled back lips, exposing teeth, “This must have been Charybdis’ doing. An ugly, wicked accusation, born of her own madness and hate for her noble sister. Charybdis was always jealous of Princess Scylla, and knew full well that had she allowed the succession to proceed naturally, that Scylla would have become Queen, not her. That was why she used her dark magics to take over the capital and forced her sister into civil war.”

As if realizing she was ranting a bit, Wavecrest blinked and took a deep breath, holding her staff close, “At any rate, Applejack is correct. We are not here to discuss the past. This room may have been damaged by Charybdis’ rampage, but with luck the mechanism for the secret passage was not damaged. I just need to find it...”

As she began searching, Flash swam a bit closer to Twilight, lowering his voice to whisper to her, “Look, the past might not matter to what we’re doing right now, but if we’re eventually going to face Charybdis herself, I’m thinking it might be useful to at least know more about how she thinks.”

“I don’t disagree,” Twilight whispered back, “But it’s clear this is really upsetting Wavecrest. Maybe we should just leave this be.”

Flash hesitated. Wavecrest had saved his life, and it wasn’t as if he had any reason to dislike her. He even trusted her for the most part. Yet his instincts were telling him something was wrong here. That it was important to learn more about just what happened between Scylla and Charybdis. He didn’t have much to base that on other than what his gut was telling him, but Captain Celestia had trained him to trust his instincts on such matters. Even when the path to victory appeared closed, instinct alone could guide one’s blade. That was what the Captain had told him, at any rate.

“I trust Wavecrest,” he said, “But I still think we should learn what we can about these seapony Princesses. It might be important, later. You trust me, right?”

Twilight didn’t hesitate on that one, offering him a quick, nervous smile, “I do. Let’s look around here while Wavecrest is searching for the passage. Maybe we’ll find a clue?”

Despite the room’s damaged condition, there was still plenty to sift through. The same general messiness and lack of organization was still apparent here as what Twilight had seen back on the Odyssey. However there were far more personal effects here than there had been on the ship. Twilight found a number of half melted medals in a broken case and the remains of what she thought was a training weight. Rarity and Applejack joined in the search as well, the former holding up a broken metal plate of an armor, “Not one for fashion, was she? I don’t see anything in here other than pieces of armor. Not even a single dress for a more formal occasion.”

“Not everymare cares ‘bout lookin’ fancy fer a shindig, Rares,” said Applejack, “Even if I don’t mind tossin’ on a dress on occasion, I don’t think its weird that a’ Princess who clearly was all ‘bout the business end o’ war stickin’ ta what she knew.”

“I suppose so, but didn’t she do anything for fun? Even I get tired of sewing and like to unwind with a bit of fun,” Rarity pointed out, and Twilight rubbed her chin. To a degree, Rarity had a point. The more she looked at the contents of Scylla’s room, the more she felt she was getting a mental image of the seapony Princess. Everything was either a trophy or a implement for battle. There were a few scattered remains of books, like the ones on the Odyssey, that pertained to artifacts and foreign lands, but Twilight had an odd feeling that those weren’t so much for fun as they were for knowledge of where to find certain items.

There wasn’t much here that showed Scyllas had any other interests, including being a Princess. Still, what did that have to do with what had happened here in the ancient past?

“Hey Twilight, look at this,” Flash said, motioning her over.

He had moved part of the broken bed, revealing that underneath it had been a small chest, surprisingly intact. As Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack gathered around it, Wavecrest had moved one of the struts of the weapon mounts on the wall. With a resounding click, a section of the wall next to a broken stone cabinet slid aside.

“The passage,” Wavecrest said, “Come, we’re almost... what are you all looking at?”

Seaspray had kept a watch near the door, but now he too gave the ponies a curious look as he swam over to them and looked over their shoulders, “A chest?”

“Um, yes?” Twilight said, giving Wavecrest an apologetic look, “I’m sorry, but aren’t you a little curious, too? You clearly admire Princess Scylla, so what harm is there in learning more about her?”

“Mmph, more like disturbing her spirit,” Wavecrest muttered, but there was equal parts curiosity as hesitance. She actually glanced back at her satchel with the journal tucked into it, frowning thoughtfully before turning back to Twilight, “I’ll say a prayer of forgiveness later, I suppose. Let’s see what you’ve found, but let’s not take long.”

Twilight agreed, there. She knew that time was short and the rest of her friends might be in danger at that very moment. But she had a feeling Flash was on to something. Knowing more about Scylla and Charybdis may well prove to be important. The chest was made of stone, and had a small brass lock on it, which Twilight tried jiggling around with her magic.

“I could break it open, I think,” she said, but Rarity put a hoof on her shoulder.

“Let me, darling. I have a way with these things, and it wouldn’t do to damage anything inside.”

“O...kay?” Twilight said, briefly confused as she watched Rarity lick her lips and point her horn at the lock. A soft blue glow exited Rarity’s horn and entered the lock, which began to rattle.

“Aaaaaaand just twist a bit here, jimmy a tad there, presto!” Rarity declared with a smile as the lock popped open. Both Twilight and Applejack looked at her with surprise.

“Alright, how’d ya know ta do that? Ya ain’t moonlightin’ as some cat burglar, are ya?” Applejack asked, and Rarity laughed, waving her hoof.

“Oh perish the thought. I’m a law abiding mare. That said, I, um, well this is embarrassing to admit, but ever since I opened my boutique in Manehattan I’ve occasionally forgotten the key and needed to get inside after closing. So I taught myself a bit about locks. It’s really not a big deal. Most locks operate under similar principles, and with a fine enough control of magic...”

Rarity trailed off, gesturing at the freshly opened chest. Twilight raised an eyebrow, wondering if perhaps there was more to Rarity’s story than she was letting on, but now wasn’t the time. “Well let’s see what’s inside.”

That said, she lifted the lid and they all peered inside.

“Huh... ain’t what I was expectin’,” Applejack said.

Within the chest was a series of odds and ends, the first of which Twilight noted was a stone plate with a detailed carving on it. Much like a painting or picture, the stone plate was a portrait of two seapony fillies next to a statuesque seapony matron. One of the fillies had a large head crust shaped like waves and had an energetic smile on her face as she used a fin to wrap around the other in a tight hug. The other filly was small compared to the first, with a smoother, straight headcrest and she wore an awkward smile like she wasn’t sure of herself. Above the pair, the older seapony mare had fins lightly held on each daughter’s shoulder, a look of motherly love somewhat clouded by severe, stern features. The crown the elder wore, a four pronged affair culminating in a crest that held a carved jewel with the royal signet on it made it clear who this was.

“The Queen and the Princesses,” Wavecrest said, reverently.

“They look happy together,” Rarity said, “Hm, no King in the picture?”

“Aqualania was a matriarchy,” Wavecrest said, “Although the father would have been in the picture had he been alive. From the histories we know he died defending a settlement from a seabeast, but little else, and not long after the Princesses were born.”

“What’s all this other stuff, do ya reckon?” Applejack asked, picking up one of the objects inside the chest. It looked like an instrument of some sort, like a curved flute carved from coral.

“That’s an echoer, a simple but popular instrument from the time,” Wavecrest said, frowning at some of the other objects inside, “And I see a deck of Currents and Reef tokens. A child’s game. And that there is a bond bracelet made from different seashells. Young seaponies exchange those when swearing oaths to one another.”

“But it’s broken,” Rarity noted.

“I feel like these must be things Princess Scylla wanted to forget about,” Flash said, “I mean, why hide them in a locked box under her bed otherwise?”

“But she didn’t get rid of them either,” Twilight said, “They must have still been important to her. Hmm... another journal?”

Beneath the rest of the objects in the box was a small book of bound coral and treated pages. A coral pen was even tucked into the book’s spine. Twilight could sense the faint magic enchantments on the pen and books, probably to allow it to function underwater. She looked at Wavecrest, and then at the other journal, “Wavecrest, is it alright if we look? I know you didn’t want us examining the other one.”

The seapony witch curled her lips, “It... it just isn’t important, I think. Princess Scylla’s thoughts are her own. We shouldn’t disturb them, for it might make her spirit restless.”

“Do you mean that metaphorically or literally?” asked Flash, “Because at this point I’m starting to seriously wonder what’s up with the things I’ve been sensing or lack thereof lately.”

“I cannot speak to your senses,” Wavecrest said, then glanced at Twilight with a measuring gaze that lasted several moments. Eventually she gave a disgruntled, reluctant nod, “If you must, take the journal, but I insist we go now. We’re out of time. You can read the journals later.”

“That’s fair,” Twilight said, and took the small journal out, giving it over to Wavecrest, “Hold onto it until then.”

It was a sign of trust, and Wavecrest took the second journal with a grateful nod. At that moment all of them heard and felt a tremor run through the palace.

“Sounds like the fun down below is getting serious,” said Rarity, “I think Wavecrest is right, haste is in order.”

There was certainly no argument from the others present, and in short order Wavecrest was leading them through the secret passage. This opened into a narrow shaft that led straight down, and so down they went, straight towards the deep bowels of the palace.

----------

A short time earlier...

Aria shot a venomous look at the sahuagin guard who jabbed at her side with a trident as she was ushered back into her and Sonata’s “cell”. She gave the weapon an irate slap with her tail, and the sahuagin growled at her, but Aria just growled right back, barring her prominent siren fangs.

“Oh go eat a dead fish, you blowhard! I know you can’t kill us, because your ugly as sin boss bitch wants us for some forsaken reason.”

The sahuagin burbled something in its language while it’s three companions looked out from outside the room, and the creature gave one last half hearted jab at Aria with it’s trident before returning to it’s post to fume. Aria snorted and turned around, swimming back to Sonata, who watched her with a bemused grin.

“Yeash Aria, I think you hurt his feelings.”

“I damn well hope so,” Aria said, flopping down next to her sister, then much quieter she added, “Got what I needed, too.”

“Awesomesauce! I’m ready, too. Heheheh, I can’t believe that trick worked, too,” Sonata’s grin widened as she whispered back to Aria.

It had taken a bit of time once the sirens had worked out a plan of escape, but they’d convinced the guards to take them out one at a time to relieve themselves. Granted the language barrier had required some creative pantomime, and the guards had been resistant to the idea until the siren sisters made it clear that if the guards didn’t take them somewhere proper for answering the call of nature, then they’d get the results flung at them from inside the cell. Sonata had been taken first, and then Aria next, and each time the siren in question had used the opportunity to not only get a better idea of where they were being held, but to acquire any object of use they could snatch up to hide underneath their fins, even bound as they were.

The objectives had been to get ahold of a weapon each. The chains they were bound with couldn’t be easily loosened, but ultimately they still had a decent amount of mobility in the water, and between their teeth, their powerful tails, and the objects they’d obtained without the guard’s knowledge, the two sirens were about as deadly as they were able to make themselves. In Aria’s case, what she’d hidden beneath the fins on her arms was a sharp piece of hardened shell from a broken sculpture they’d passed as the guards had taken her to the palace’s privy. Sonata had snatched up a chunk of fallen masonry just small enough to hide, but big enough to crack a skull.

Having also now seen what lay outside their cell, they had a simple plan. They were held in some kind of temple, in one of the side rooms branching off from the main chamber of worship. While the front entrance of the temple led out into a courtyard that was packed with sahuagin, the courtyard itself was open to the rest of the ocean. If Aria and Sonata could just get past the guards in the immediate temple then they could make a break for freedom by swimming straight out into open water. Of course this did carry the problem that if they were spotted then there was nothing to stop the sahuagin from pursuing, and while both sirens were fast with their tails free, there was no way to guarantee a successful escape.

Conversely, they could try exploring other areas of the temple in hopes of finding a back exit, but that was risky by itself. The guards rotated every couple of hours. If they waited for a shift change to escape, it’d give them some time, but the risk of any random sahuagin discovering their escape and trapping them in the temple was still pretty high.

Ultimately the pair agreed that if they were going to get out of here, fleeing out of the courtyard was the best play. Even if they were recaptured, it wasn’t as if their situation would get much worse. The only other problem was that any fight to take out their guards would make noise, so they needed either a distraction, or a way to take the guards out fast enough that even if it did make noise they could escape before anycreature came to check.

The weakened part of the ceiling Aria had spotted when they’d first been put in the cell seemed to be their best bet. If she could collapse it on the guards, they could finish off any survivors fast and be out of the temple before any other sahuagin realized what had happened.

Silently the sisters nodded to each other, preparing themselves. The guards, used to the two sirens looking sullen and tense, didn’t seem to realize the subtle shift in the pair’s attitude. Aria slowed her breathing, wishing not for the first time that she still had her siren gem. A song of sonic force would have been a lot easier to do this with than her own body. There was a moment of fear as well, over whether this was about to get her and Sonata killed, but she shoved that feeling aside with a push of anger. Without another moment’s hesitation, she launched herself up towards the portion of ceiling beneath the archway entrance into their cell.

The guards saw her move, of course, but were slow to react, having not truly expected such a sudden motion. Aria slammed her whole body into the ceiling, using her shoulder as a battering ram. Siren’s were not small creatures, and their body’s were built for powerful bursts of speed underwater. She’d aimed her strike well, the cracked and weakened section of ceiling buckling under her impact.

Stone crumbled down on the surprised sahuagin, not as fast as it would if on the surface, but fast enough through the water that the fishmen had trouble swimming out of the way. Two were pinned by the falling debris, while the other two hesitated a second between deciding what to do; flee, help their pinned comrades, or attack. That hesitance cost them, as Sonata, who’d been tensing to strike alongside her sister, burst out of the cell like a living torpedo. She body checked one sahuagin while her mouth, now gripping the stone she’d taken, whipped about and smacked the rock across the other guard’s face.

The struck guard didn’t go down, but was momentarily stunned as he swung his trident in a blind fury. Sonata yelped as one of the trident’s prongs scraped her side, but then she growled and rushed forward, “That hurt, you jerk!”

Granted, with a rock in her mouth it came out more like “Tugh hugh ugh jugh!” but it wasn’t as if the sahuagin could understand Equestrian in the first place.

She rammed into the sahuagin’s stomach, then spun around and smacked him across the face with her tail, which for all intents and purposes was one giant limb of solid muscle. Even accounting for water resistance, the blow left the sahuagin floating in a senseless daze.

Sonata got a proud look on her face, but then sensed the other guard coming up behind her. He’d recovered from her earlier hit and was rushing her back, trident poised to strike. Then Aria descended on him from above, the sharpened shell piece held in her own mouth as she stabbed down with it. She hit the sahuagin dead center in the back of his neck, ending the threat rather instantly. Sonata gulped a bit at the sight of blood, but cleared her head fast and spit out the rock from her mouth, “Thanks, Aria.”

Aria dropped the shell, ignoring the taste of blood in her mouth, “Don’t mention it. You okay?”

Sonata glanced at the cut on her side, just above the base of her tail, and waggled the tail around a bit, “Think so. Yup, just a scratch.”

Aria nodded, “Good. Now let’s get out of here before the rest come to-”

A blazing series of magical flashes followed by loud detonations bombarded the two sirens’ senses, coming from outside the temple. The pair were presently floating in a very wide, rectangular entry hall that opened up on their right into the temple’s main worshipping chamber. There, several pillars of stone rose up to a beautifully carved ceiling of detailed depictions of seaponies frolicking with numerous forms of sealife. The pillars held altars carved with statues of several entities one would assume were the deities the temple honored, although neither Aria or Sonata had time to examine them in detail. To their left was the entrance of the temple itself, separated by periodic columns of white marble, with the stone stairs beyond it leading down to the courtyard.

It was from there that the sounds of explosions and bright flashes of light could be seen, and both bewildered siren sisters looked at each other.

“The ponies,” both of them said together, as if the answer was obvious.

“They must have come after us,” Aria said, shaking her head, “Because of course they did.”

“Wonder how they got all the way down here without drowning?” Sonata said, trying to scratch her head with her tail and not quite being able to reach, “Wouldn’t they, like, totally drown?”

“Magic,” Aria said with a shrug, “And here we were, about to escape just fine on our own. At least they’re providing a distraction. C’mon Sonata, let’s see what’s going on and if we can make a break for it.”

They made their way behind one of the columns supporting the entrance and peeked out into the courtyard. They were in time to witness Tempest Shadow’s madcap attack on the sahuagin forces, and the subsequent way in which Starlight Glimmer joined in to save Tempest from getting overwhelmed. Both sirens were transfixed by the spectacle, so much so they sort of forgot to consider whether they should use the distraction being provided to just swim away. Instead they watched until Tempest and Starlight fled together down a side opening in the courtyard, pursued by the vast majority of the sahuagin that had been occupying the courtyard.

There were still about a dozen beleaguered looking fishmen milling about, helping the shamans free the trapped metal sphere that had been partially buried beneath the rubble of a huge archway Starlight had thrown, but that group was so busy they weren’t even looking towards the temple.

“Ooooh, this would be a good time to run away now, right?” said Sonata.

“It would be,” replied Aria, “Only if we split now, these crazy ponies are going to keep looking for us and probably get themselves killed or something. Ugh, I hate feeling like I owe them anything.”

“Mmm, yeah, guess it would be kinda a jerk move to leave them behind after they came to save us,” Sonata said, “And it’d suck if Pinkie got hurt. She’s funny and has, like, the best taste in food ever.”

“Awwww that’s so sweet, ‘Nata! I like you too!”

“I like me too, Pinkie. ...Pinkie!? Aaaaaaah!”

Blue siren and pink pony yelled at each other in mutual girlish squee and hugged each other, while Aria starred at them. A second later a lighter blue streak appeared before her and Rainbow Dash gave a wave.

“Yo, we’ve come to rescue you, and if you make a crack about whether I’m a little short for it, I’m smacking you with my awesome new fish tail.”

“Yeah, don’t care, but thanks for wrecking those walking sardines,” said Aria, noticing Fluttershy and Trixie swimming up as well, the group appearing from the globe of an invisibility spell Trixie had been casting. Aria also blinked at the sight of a shark swimming next to Fluttershy, nuzzling her like an obedient puppy. “I, uh, take it it was you guys that put that Tempest chick and Starlight up to going gung-ho on the sahuagin’s butts?”

Trixie huffed, giving the opening where the two unicorns had fled a worried look, “More that pigheaded Tempest’s idea than anypony else's. And poor Starlight had to go save her arrogant tail, too! She’d better not get Starlight hurt or I’ll...!” Trixie paused, glancing at the flat look Aria was giving her, and abruptly looked away, “A-at any rate, be glad that I, the Clever and Covert Trixie, was able to get us over here unseen to free you from captivity!”

“We kinda already did that on our own,” Sonata pointed out, “But I guess I can give you points for coming in for the assist!”

“More importantly, where’s the rest of the pony brigade?” Aria asked, “They waiting somewhere outside this freaky looking place?”

“Yeeeeah, about that, you siren gals missed out on some plot developments,” Pinkie Pie said, “Everypony else is helping a nice seapony witch find some shiny hidden treasure while the rest of us did the rescuing thing. We were supposed to signal them when we found you, but I think somebody screwed up in the planning department because I don’t know how we’re supposed to do that right now.”

“I think Starlight was supposed to send up a magical flare,” said Rainbow Dash, “But, uhhhh, yeah, Twilight and her team won’t be able to see it if they’re inside the palace. So much for that part of the plan.”

“And to make things worse, your two unicorn pals just rushed into the palace with half the fish-bastard army on their rears,” Aria said, shaking her head and turning around to show the chains around her fore hooves, “Look, whatever. Can you get these chains off of me and Sonata, pronto? If we’re going to be useful, I’d like to not be hogtied.”

It took a minute, but between Trixie’s magic and the other ponies pulling, they were able to loosen and remove the chains on the two sirens. Luckily Trixie’s magic was also still maintaining an invisibility spell that kept them from being immediately spotted by the remaining sahuagin in the courtyard. Fluttershy was watching that group, and as the sirens were freed, she got the others’ attention with a quick hoof wave.

“Um, it looks like they’re done with whatever it is they’re doing.”

The group's attention turned to the sahuagin, who had finished excavating the sphere from the fallen rubble of the archway. The four shamans were arguing with each other over something, and soon one of them swam off to a huge doorway in the opposite end of the courtyard, heading deep into the palace. Meanwhile the remaining three began ordering the warriors to haul the metal sphere back to the center of the courtyard. None of them were paying attention to the temple, but who knew how long that would last?

“What should we do?” asked Fluttershy, “Shouldn’t we go after Starlight and Tempest?”

“Duh, of course that’s what we should do,” said Rainbow Dash, brandishing around her cutlass, “We can’t just leave them to get captured. Then this whole mess would be for nothing.”

“Much as I don’t like agreeing with her, she’s right,” said Aria, “There’s not much point in us escaping if we leave behind the magical heavy hitters. Going to need all the firepower we can get to deal with Charybdis, so better go make sure those two walking artillery pieces don’t snuff it prematurely.”

“You know you could at least pretend to be grateful we came to rescue you,” said Rainbow Dash, and Aria looked at her, exuding an aura of conflicted consternation.

“I am, dammit, but I’m not thrilled having to charge headlong deeper into this place. I’m getting the worst kind of bad vibe off of it.”

“You know, Aria, I didn’t wanna bring it up unless you did, but man does this whole place seriously creep me out,” agreed Sonata, who then glanced at the ponies, “Can’t any of you, like, feel it or what?”

The ponies exchanged looks, then shook their heads, Rainbow Dash saying, “No more than any other super-dead underwater grave city I’ve visited.”

“Never mind any of that,” Trixie said, her impatience making her voice become even more nasal, “We’re wasting time. We need to go after Starlight!”

Suddenly Pinkie Pie’s mane gave a shudder and the pony perked up like a merecat, her nose twitching as she looked back towards the courtyard, “Uh-oh guys, I think we forgot something and it’s about to bite us on the tails.”

“Huh?” Trixie said, looking in the direction Pinkie was. She spotted a sahuagin swimming from the direction the rescue team had come from and heading straight for the shamans and warriors near the metal sphere. “Is that...?”

“It’s that Ulgriv dude!” Rainbow Dash said, “I thought he’d still be out like a light!”

“Apparently not,” Fluttershy said, just as Ulgriv reached the other sahuagin and started talking. For a moment it looked like he might be warning them to go check the temple, as he was waving a trident he’d picked up towards the temple, yet the other sahuagin around him were just staring at him rather than responding.

It didn’t take long to understand why, as Ulgriv’s voice reached them from a distance.

“-telling you, the enemies of the Deep Mistress have come to free the ancient kin! You must check the temple immediately! Why won’t you understand!? Oh no, I’m still cursed by the evil witch’s magic! I’m speaking the surfacer tongue!”

As it happened, the translation spell Starlight had laid upon Ulgriv was only for Equestrian, and had yet to wear off. As far as his fellow sahuagin could tell, the young warrior was babbling in an incomprehensible surface tongue. Which only made them suspicious of the fact that intruders had ambushed them. One of the shamans asked a sharp question towards Ulgriv about how the intruders had gotten past the gates, and hearing the suspicion in the shaman’s tone, Ulgriv backed up.

“No, you don’t understand! They used magic to bind my mind and voice! By the Deep Mistress’ grace you must go to the temple!”

The shaman gave a quick gesture to the warriors around him, and two of them moved forward to try and grab Ulgriv. Driven by a certain level of potent faith, the young warrior evaded their grasp and then shot off like a swift barracuda towards the temple, “I’ll go myself, then! No matter what, I must undo this treachery!”

“Oops, he’s coming this way! Trixie, I don’t think your spell will work once they’re right on top of us,” said Pinkie Pie, just as the rest of the warriors started to chase Ulgriv, the whole lot consequently heading right for the temple.

“You’re right,” said Trixie, narrowing her eyes and striking a pose, “So we must enact Trixie’s Foolproof Backup Plan!”

“What’s that?” Sonata asked, to which Trixie immediately took off at a swimming sprint as fast as possible for the opening in the wall that Starlight and Tempest had gone through earlier. Sonata blinked, then said, “Oh. Good plan.”

In short order the whole group was swimming after Trixie as fast as they could. Consequently, Trixie couldn’t maintain the invisibility spell while focused entirely on running, as the spell did rely a bit on the user not moving too fast to maintain itself. As a result everypony and siren appeared clearly to the sahuagin. The warriors were taken aback by the sudden appearance, while Ulgriv put on more speed to catch up while shouting, “Yes! See! I told you the enemy had come to free the ancient kin! Now you must- Ack! Wait! Stop attacking me! I’m not with them!”

The warriors, having seen Ulgriv rushing at the suddenly appearing intruders as if he’d known they were there all along, came to the entirely wrong conclusion. That being that Ulgriv had not only let the intruders in, but was now the traitor was rejoining his foul surfacers comrades. Clearly he was rushing to their aid after having provided a distraction! They cursed Ulgriv’s name as an apostate as they hurled tridents at him.

Ulgriv was given no choice but to desperately evade while swimming fast after the ponies and sirens, all the while clutching his small prayer amulet and shouting, “This is all your fault you crazy surfacers!”

“Hey, don’t blame us because your pals are stupid!” shouted back Rainbow Dash.

So it was that the chase was on. The rescue team chased after the path their wayward allies had taken, hoping to catch up with Starlight and Tempest, who in turn were being chased by Morgawr, somewhere deep in the palace. And right behind them Ulgriv had to chase them, if not so much to catch the surfacers as to avoid being skewered by his own people!

Left behind, the three remaining shamans all gave somewhat baffled looks at the departing spectacle and then turned back to the sphere they’d been working on. It was generally agreed amongst them that they’d leave... whatever in the Deep Mistress’ name all that craziness was about to the warriors. They still had work to do.

However, as they got back to it, the eldest of the three shamans found themselves looking towards the side of the courtyard where the south gate was. That young warrior who spoke the surfacer language had come from there, and according to the reports Morgawr had received just prior, the warbands posted at the south gate had gone to hunt down some ghostly illusion in the city.

But enough time had passed that those warbands ought to have returned. So where were they?

----------

The city was quiet as death. Aqulania’s corpse was as dark and frozen still in the horrible last moment’s of its tormented destruction as it had been for centuries. Yet there was an unseen stirring amid it’s stones. Currents in the shadow, moving faster. Already outposts of sahuagin had simply gone dark, the towers no longer showing any signs of life. Patrols returning to these husks did not get long to realize what was wrong before they, too, were taken by the awakening darkness, one by one.

There was no longer any sign of the warbands that had charged off after Trixie’s illusions. No sign that was left for the living to see, at any rate.

The sahuagin had been through Aqualania many times before. They’d used it as a base, an outpost, for a long time. The only clue they’d had to something being amiss about the city had been the occasional missing guard. Rumors abounded, ghost stories and the like, but it had never been taken seriously.

Perhaps it should have. For the thing about a disaster is that it rarely gives obvious signs of building. A volcano might give a shake or two before it’s eruption, a storm a faint taste of electricity in the air before it struck.

For Aqualania, it had been warning it’s intruders for a long time. Taking them, one by one, to feed itself. Now, it was done with warnings. Now, the disaster was bubbling up to the surface, built upon centuries of anguish, and rising to devour all in it’s path.

----------

Being out of breath while underwater was even harder than on the surface, mainly due to the fact that you couldn’t just draw in more air to try and compensate. Gills only processed oxygen so fast. So even Tempest, a very in-shape mare, was having a little trouble by the time she and Starlight found themselves bursting into a sizable antechamber with three different tall openings situated to their left, right, and dead ahead.

Starlight could hear the war cries of the sahuagin not far behind them and cast a glare at Tempest, “I don’t suppose you had a plan that extended beyond ‘barrel headlong into danger, hope I survive’?”

Tempest shot back an equally inflamed stare, “I don’t recall asking you to join me. The idea had been to lose these stinking fish in the palace and find my own way out after. Didn’t expect their leader to be so damned fast.”

Speaking of the stubborn fish man in question, both ponies looked down the wide hallway they’d come from to see Morgawr arrive gliding around the bend. His body was covered in scrawling, vermillion glowing symbols, and he was swimming through the water as if it was helping him along rather than impeding him. His warriors were further behind, not enhanced by the magic flowing through their leader, but they could follow his call, and with Morgawr’s speed there just wasn’t any way for Tempest and Starlight to shake his pursuit.

Starlight figured this out almost instantly, and with a huff she rubbed her hooves together and lit up her horn, “Fine. We can’t run. So we just make a fight of it. They can’t follow us if they’re unconscious.”

“Or dead,” Tempest pointed out, readying her harpoon.

“Are you always this bloodthirsty?”

“Only when my life is on the line. Or I’m sufficiently enraged.”

Morgwar was almost upon them, and Tempest lit up her own horn with it’s erratic streams of sparking power. Starlight licked her lips, her eyes focused on the poised spear of the hulking sahuagin warlord.

“We’ve got to deal with that trident,” she said.

“Leave that to me,” Tempest replied, eyes becoming locked to the trident in Morgawr’s grip.

Seeing his quarry was no longer fleeing, Morgawr came to an abrupt stop just inside the antechamber. The sahuagin regarded the two mares before him with unreadable fish eyes, but Starlight noticed a twinge at the corners of his massive mouth that might have been a smile. Then, to her surprise, Morgawr spoke in a barely understandable Equestrian, distorted and warbling through the water.

“Impressed you are no longer fleeing, surface ones. Our Deep Mistress demands payment in blood for your trespass, but I respect you chose to stand and fight. Your flesh will be eaten in honor of your courage.”

“How about no?” said Starlight, “Nopony is on the menu today.”

She swam swiftly to the right, while Tempest went left, the pair flanking around to either side of Morgawr. Starlight focused her horn up above him, however, and shot off a stream of magic. Morgawr had been prepared to intercept a spell, but only one was directed at him, and looked momentarily confused as Starlight’s beam of magic went well above his head. The reason for this became rather instantly evident as Starlight raked the beam of bright teal magic down from the top of the entrance, all the way down to the bottom, and the water grew instantly colder as ice began to form. While Starlight was more specialized in using spells of raw force, she wasn’t half bad with elementalism, and with enough power put into it her spell was able to create a three foot thick wall of ice in the passage they’d taken into the antechamber. This meant the bulk of the sahuagin warriors that were just now catching up were trapped on the other side. Granted they could probably break through, given time, but that meant that for now the fight was just between the ponies and Morgawr.

He let off a snort, as if being cut off from his reinforcements didn’t mean much of anything to him, and turned sharply to his right as Tempest launched herself towards him. Her horn blazed and shot out a twisting whip of uncontrolled energy, which Morgawr caught with his trident. Which is exactly what Tempest had wanted him to do, ducking down to swim beneath Morgawr’s extended weapon and within his guard. She then shot up with her harpoon, aiming to impale him from under the jaw. Without hesitation Morgawr simply opened his mouth and bit the end of her harpoon between his jaws with enough strength to halt her strike dead in its tracks.

“What the-!?” Tempest looked briefly baffled by the lack of effect her hit had, but Morgawr just grinned wider and snapped out with a free hand taken off his trident, grabbing her by the head with his webbed fingers. He then yanked her close while ramming his left knee into her gut, causing bubbles and a bit of blood to burst out of Tempest’s mouth as the force of the blow sent her reeling through the water at high speed at an upward angle while also causing her to drop her harpoon.

She barely controlled her ascent in time to keep from smashing into the wall, coughing again while Morgawr chuckled.

“You seem strong, for a surface pony, but I am a blessed champion of our holy Mistress,” he declared, running a claw over his chest, drawing blood from it. The blood seemed to excite the glowing symbols on his body, which moved and writhed like living snakes, coiling even faster around his flesh. “My body itself is a temple of worship to her greatness! The contract carved upon my soul, a testament to my devotion.”

“Your long windedness an opening to exploit,” Starlight said as she used her telekinesis to grab Morgawr’s legs while he was distracted. He didn’t have time to use his trident before she yanked him down to slam into the floor, not holding back on her own magical might to make the impact hard enough to indent him into the stone.

Yet while the blow should have been enough to knock out even a seriously tough creature, Morgawr took the impact with aplomb and swung his trident down. The points cut through Starlight’s magic like the telekinetic cloud of energy was just so much gelatin, absorbing her power into the weapon instantly.

“Gah!” Starlight yelped as Morgawr pointed his trident at her and unleashed the stored magic inside it in a raw bolt that grazed her side as she dove away. The bolt seared some fur, and went on to blast a large chunk out of the wall behind her.

By now Tempest had recovered, somewhat, and shot out more magic of her own. Instead of aiming at Morgawr, she let the uncontrollable spikes of raw magic rain down as they would around him, tearing up the ground and kicking up a cloud of sediment. She then swam down and leveled out at the sediment cloud’s height and swam straight into it. Starlight wasn’t clear what Tempest was planning, but took that moment to look for something she could use herself.

Deciding that subtly had flown out the window, she took a grip of one of the tall metal doors in the wall of the antechamber directly across from where they had entered. It was big enough she guessed it must have weighed ten or so tons, which as far as she was concerned was more than sufficient to be a bludgeon. With raw telekinetic strength she ripped the door from its hinges and brought it around.

Inside the sediment cloud she heard the grunts of a scuffle, and the cloud burst apart as Morgawr’s magical sigils appeared to create an aura around his body, sending shockwaves through the water. It revealed that Tempest had gotten close again and this time used her whole body to wrap around Morgawr’s right arm and bend it at the joint, trying to both break it and tear away the trident he carried. However Morgawr was fleshing that limb with stupendous strength, and the magical aura around him concentrated on his arm, causing it’s muscles to bulge out and grow at an alarming and unnatural rate.

The muscle growth alone caused Tempest to lose part of her grip, and the mare growled as she shoved her broken horn’s jagged end right into his arm and fired off her magic at point blank range. Unable to use his trident to absorb the magic, Morgawr’s body lit up like it was being electrocuted. Yet despite what must have been a great deal of pain, the sahuagin warrior just roared and slammed his bulging arm, Tempest still attached to it, straight into the ground. The ground broke apart some more, with Tempest shaken loose by the impact and left in a daze, spinning away through the water.

Morgawr readied his trident to skewer Tempest, but glanced to his right just in time to get a face full of door being swung at high speed by all the telekinetic force Starlight could muster... which turned out to be quite a lot.

The water was filled with a resounding noise like a gong being struck and Morgwar, along with the door, were hurled back into and then through the ice wall. The ice wall shattered and a number of unfortunate sahuagin warriors on the other side who’d been trying to chip their way through now got a face full of giant iron door, along with their leader.

Starlight used the general disarray this caused to quickly seal the ice wall back up before any of the sahuagin could realize what had happened. With that done, she swam down to Tempest, who was floating limp.

“Tempest? Hey, Tempest, you alive or what!?”

“Glargflrmp...” was the dizzy reply as Tempest, eyes swirling, rolled around and reached out with her hoof. She grabbed Morgawr’s trident, which the sahuagin had dropped when Starlight had hit him with the door.

“I got trident...” Tempest declared while her eyes remained unfocused, “That makes me the winner...”

Starlight sighed, letting out a half hearted laugh, “Hey, winner, how many hooves am I holding up?”

“Uh, seven?” was the uncertain reply.

“Eh, close enough. Come on, we’d better hurry before that monster recovers and-”

The ice wall she’d just reconstructed exploded, a humongous hole blasted out of the center of it in a spray of shards. From the other side of the hole, a bleeding and thoroughly ticked off looking Morgawr held out a balled fist from where he’d punched the ice wall and slid through the hole, several of his warriors following behind him.

“Give back my trident you disgraceful little ponies!” Morgawr roared, “It was a blessed gift from the Deep Mistress! You taint it with your filthy surfacer flesh!”

“Yikes, guess the date is over. Tempest, time to shift to Plan C!”

What was Plan C? Well Plan A, running, hadn’t worked, and Plan B, fighting, was clearly not cutting the mustard either. So Plan C was an emergency teleport. Now, teleportation was tricky business in the magical community. There were plenty of good reasons that Equestria didn’t utilize large scale teleportation for any number of economic benefits. The vast majority of unicorns simply couldn’t do it, at least not safely. Not only was it an energy intensive spell, but accuracy was an issue even for those who were used to the spell. Extreme familiarity with the location being teleported to was highly recommended if you didn’t want to end up somewhere unfamiliar or unpleasant.

Teleporting in a rush, like when having an army of murderous fish people and their magically super-charged warlord bearing down on you, was not recommended. Doing it in a rush, while not having an extremely familiar and prepared spot to teleport too? Definitely not a good idea.

But Starlight Glimmer and Twilight Sparkle had discussed the idea of setting up a potential workaround system, once. The idea of using an item or individual as the teleport focus rather than a location. In theory it should work as long as the item or individual weren’t too far away from the caster, which admittedly sort of defeats the purpose of teleportation so Starlight had kind of tabled the theory as irrelevant. But now? Now she didn’t have any choice but to rely on a half-baked theory, and hoped Twilight’s enthusiasm over the idea hadn’t been misplaced.

Just as they’d theorized, Starlight focused her mental energy on forming a perfect image of Twilight in her mind, imagining every strand of mane and fur on the alicorn’s body. She grabbed Tempest, and poured magic into her horn just as Morgawr charged at them with claws slashing forward.

Then she and Tempest flashed out of existence-

----------

-and right in front of a very surprised Twilight Sparkle.

They collided in a confused mess of limbs for a moment before disentangling themselves from each other, leaving the breathless alicorn looking in stark bafflement at Starlight and Tempest.

“W-what in the world!? Starlight!? Where did you and Tempest come from!?”

Starlight, a tad dizzied from her sudden and jarring teleportation, not to mention a near head on collision with Twilight, took a second to shake the haze out of her mind and look around. They were in a wide shaft that went straight up and down, lined with small glowing crystals every twenty feet or so that cast the shaft in a dim blue light. Just behind Twilight were Flash Sentry, Rarity, and Applejack, while just ahead, or rather down the shaft, were Admiral Seaspray and Wavecrest. All of them looked equally startled at Starlight and Tempest’s sudden appearance.

“Oh, I tried that teleport trick we talked about months ago. The one where you use a person as the focal point instead of a location you know or can see,” Starlight said, rubbing at her horn, which fizzled with a few errant sparks of magical power, “Ow. It worked, looks like. But wow was that uncomfortable.”

“No kidding?” Twilight blinked in astonishment, “That was extremely dangerous, Starlight. People or objects move around, and teleportation without a fixed and known point or at least direct line of sight for short-range teleportations could have all sorts of nasty side effects. Your lucky you didn’t end up in the wall or something. Tempest looks like she got it even worse than you.”

Tempest, for her part, still looked dazed and was glancing around, unfocused. Starlight waved a hoof, “Oh, her. She’s fine. Just a concussion I think, from getting a little too up close and personal with the sahaugin’s leader.”

“Starlight, a ‘concussion’ is not fine!” Twilight said, swimming close to check on Tempest, “Tempest, can you hear me?”

“Huh...?” Tempest looked at her, blinked a few times, her eyes going from distant to focused after a second, “Y-yes, I can. Ugh, that bastard hit harder than I expected. But look, I got his damnable magic stealing trident! Hah!”

Tempest held up Morgawr’s trident triumphantly, and Wavecrest gave it a wary eye. “You’d best get rid of that thing, if indeed you took it from the grip of a sahuagin champion.”

“What? Why?” Tempest said, “If it can soak up magic and shoot it back out at will, I’d say it’s a pretty useful weapon. Especially for me. Why, I could shoot my impossible to control magic into it and use the trident to focus that power for a change, instead of blasting it all over the place.”

“Be that as it may, if it was forged by the foul powers wielded by sahuagin shamans, or worse, their unholy mistress, then that weapon may be more dangerous to you than to your enemies, unicorn,” Wavecrest said, pointing her staff at the trident, “I would bid you toss it aside, but I am not your mentor, so keep it at your peril.”

“Speaking of peril, Wavecrest, could you give a bit of healing magic to Tempest? Just in case?” asked Twilight, and after the seapony nodded, she turned back to Starlight, “Okay, tell me exactly what happened? Where are the others? Did you rescue Sonata and Aria?”

“I suggest we move while we talk, ladies,” said Seaspray, “Assuming none object?”

None did, and so the group started a slow descent down the shaft while Starlight and Twilight swapped information, bringing each other up to date on the respective events thus far. Meanwhile, Wavecrest placed a light wave of healing magic upon Tempest, just enough to ensure the cobwebs were fully cleared from the militant unicorn’s mind. Tempest still refused to give up Morgawr’s trident, and Wavecrest had said her peace on the matter and so left Tempest to her own devices.

Still, by the time Twilight and Starlight were done swapping tales, Twilight gave Tempest a level look, “You might want to listen to Wavecrest. Or at least let me examine that weapon, just in case there’s some kind of harmful magic on it.”

“Ugh, you’re both being paranoid, but fine, examine away,” Tempest said, hoofing over the weapon. Upon closer inspection, Twilight noticed the trident wasn’t made of any conventional metal she was familiar with. It looked like some kind of wrought iron, but the shaft bore not a hint of rust, but instead a ever slight tint of green. Something about it did spark a notion, however, and Twilight motioned Starlight over.

“Say Starlight, you got a pretty close look at the throne Queen Chrysalis used to dispel magic around her hive, right?”

“I was a little busy trying to stay alive at the time, but yeah,” Starlight said, then tilted her head and peered closer at the trident, “Huh, you know, this does kind of remind me of it a bit. That throne was mostly made of stone, but it had elements of metal ore in it. I don’t know, Twilight. Everything in that hive was pretty green. Might have been a trick of the light.”

“Yes, but a throne that dispels magic, a trident that absorbs it... seems similar to me,” Twilight said, looking over the trident once more. A series of symbols were carved into the length of the shaft, curving and sharp. Starlight noted that the symbols looked a lot like the ones that had glowed on Morgawr’s body as well.

Twilight tried using magic on the trident, to probe it. But her magic, on immediate contact with the metal, was just sucked up like she was pouring water into the hungry sands of a desert.

“You two done?” asked Tempest, and Twilight sighed, giving the trident back over.

“I can’t say for sure that it’s safe, Tempest, so at least promise me you’ll be careful using it?” Twilight asked, and for a moment Tempest looked uncomfortable with the sincerity in Twilight’s voice.

“F-fine, whatever. I promise to be careful. That make you happy?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“I see light ahead,” Flash Sentry said, and all eyes focused downward towards the end of the shaft. Indeed there was a brighter light stemming from below, outshining the small crystals that had been lighting their way thus far.

Wavecrest visibly trembled with excitement, clutching her staff tightly, “We’re almost there. The Treasury is just ahead! Oh great ocean spirits bless us so that we may make this final step and reclaim what was once lost.”

“Not to ruin the moment but you did mention something about a mechanism we’d need to overcome?” Rarity pointed out, and Wavecrest nodded vigorously.

“Oh yes. The great door to the Treasury is trapped. In fact most of the chamber is filled with deadly traps. Not to fear, ponies, for my mentor wrote about them in detail and I have studied her journals thoroughly. Just stay close.”

“That’s encouraging,” Starlight said, and Twilight gave her a worried look.

“Are you sure the others will be alright?”

“Twilight, relax, I’m sure they’re just fine. Tempest and I drew off most of the bad guys, and left a clear path for them to get to where we think Aria and Sonata were being kept,” Starlight said, “By now they’ve probably rescued those two and are waiting somewhere safe for us to exit the palace.”

-----------

Entering deeper into the palace, Trixie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and a pair of recently rescued sirens swam full tilt. Right behind them, Ulgriv gave chase, and in turn was being chased, to such a point it was hard to tell if the young sahuagin warrior was running with the group or still technically chasing them.

In fact, Pinkie Pie, noticing the sahaugin’s distress, fell back a bit to give him a happy wave, “Say Ulgi, if you want I could try talking to your buddies for you! I’ll tell them all about how it’s not your fault we broke into the palace, that Starlight hit you with the crazy mind-bending magic! It’s okay, she did it to us once too.”

Ulgriv let out a strangled noise, “Stop talking to me! You’re making it look even more like I betrayed my people and am on your side! And what’s with the creepy smiling!?”

“Oh that’s just how Pinkie smiles,” said Rainbow Dash, falling back a bit as well to swim backwards while giving Ulgriv a casual grin, “You get used to it. So, fish dude, since you’re still speaking our lingo I wanna ask you, what’s with this whole ‘Deep Mistress’ thing you keep going on about?”

“Grrr! What is with you surfacers!? I am trying to catch you, and will seriously stab you! Do you always have casual conversations with your foes mid-chase?”

“Eh, if I feel like it,” Rainbow Dash said with a shrug, “Not like you’re fast enough to catch me in a million years, dude. Check it.”

In a prismatic burst she zipped to the front of the group, then spun several circling arcs around the bunch, before appearing right where she’d left off, casually swimming backwards just outside of the reach of Ulgriv’s weapon.

“See? Fastest flyer in Equestria. Er, swimmer, now, I guess.”

Ulgriv gaped at her for a moment before shaking himself and brandishing the trident he’d picked up while trying in vain to decide which pony to try stabbing first, not that he was close enough yet to do so, as he was still lagging a few feet behind them. “I can only pray to the Deep Mistress that servants more deserving than I will punish you in my stead, but I remain a son of the Abyss and will do all I can to impede your quest to bring ruin to my people!”

“Man, you don’t stop going on about that chick. What’d she do to earn the endless idol worship, huh? I mean, I’ve got my fanclub, but c’mon, I don’t expect them to literally pray to me,” Rainbow Dash said, then rubbed her chin, “Although a temple would be kinda cool...”

“Rainbow Dash, don’t make fun of him,” Flutteshy said, “He’s clearly trying very hard to be a good sahuagin, by their cultural standards, and we kind of are responsible for his friends wanting to hurt him. At the very least we could show a little consideration for his feelings.”

“I’d care more about their feelings and ‘cultural standards’, Flutters, if both of those didn’t seem to involve impaling us with sharp objects,” Rainbow Dash shot back, then called out louder, “Hey Trix! Where we going!? Do you see Starlight and Tempest up ahead yet?”

“Ugh, don’t call me ‘Trix’! And I don’t know where I’m going! Trixie is a magician, not a map!” Trixie shouted back. To this, Aria, who had been sticking to the middle of the pack alongside Sonata, groaned and pulled ahead a little.

“I swear this is the worst rescue ever! Your human versions were way better at this when they busted up that Grand Fisher freak. At least they had an exit strategy.”

“Never mind how bad that actually went,” Sonata muttered, and Aria growled.

“Okay, so maybe that rescue went sour, too, but at least we knew we had a way out and weren’t running blindly around like a school of suicidal guppies! Go left at the next juncture, Trixie.”

“Huh? Why?” Trixie asked, and Aria glared.

“Because I’m a siren and sirens have sonar, and I can tell there's a whole bunch of sahuagin about fifty or so meters ahead and we don’t want to just run into the back of them!”

“But wouldn’t that be where Starlight and Tempest are, if it’s the same group that chased them?” pointed out Rainbow Dash.

“Even if it is, I didn’t get a read on either of them being there anymore, so they must have ditched the pursuit. So unless we all want to fight on two fronts, I suggest we change directions,” Aria said, indicating the sahuagin still chasing them a good distance back from Ulgriv.

Trixie didn’t look happy about it, most likely because not knowing where Starlight Glimmer had gone was upsetting to the showmare, but she followed Aria’s advice and turned a sharp left down a different hallway, taking them away from where Aria had sensed the lion’s share of sahuagin warriors.

Ulgriv paused at the juncture, as if unsure if he should go ahead to try and rejoin the warriors further down the main hall, but ultimately growled and started to follow the ponies. The new corridor dipped downwards rather suddenly, leading in a curving path below the palace’s first floor. The sahuagin that had pursued the group from the courtyard would have lost sight of them, and would need to decide which direction to go to chase their quarry. If Ulgriv gave a yell, he could have alerted them which corridor they went down, but strangely he didn’t, instead silently chasing them by himself.

This fact wasn’t lost on the ponies, Pinkie Pie scratching her head quizzically, “Huh, figured for sure you’d let loose on the pipes to keep your buddies on our tails, Ulgi. What’s up?”

“Grr, they think I’m a traitor, and won’t believe anything I say until my voice is no longer corrupted by your surfacer magic. So instead I’ll keep an eye on you myself and wait for an opportunity to stop you all. If I do that, I can prove my faithfulness to my fellows,” he said, lifting his chin as if challenging them to attack him.

Pinkie Pie just nodded, “Okie Dokie Lokie!”

Rainbow Dash also nodded, “Cool beans. Welcome to the team.”

Ulgriv boggled at them, “What team!? I’m not on a team! You’re all insane!”

“Okay fine, you’re not on the team, you’re just our unofficial fishy mascot who wants to kill us,” Rainbow Dash said with a shrug, “Dude, you’re about as threatening as a goldfish. I bet even Fluttershy could take you. She has a pet shark, now.”

“I’ve named him Mr. Snugglefins,” Fluttershy declared, petting her shark on the snout, which it leaned into with relish.

Ulgriv continued to follow the ponies, but hung a bit further back and went sullenly silent while he questioned his life choices.

Meanwhile Trixie and Aria conferred on just where they were going, as the downward spiraling corridor soon started splitting off into new branches, and while they may not have much immediate pursuit, they couldn’t expect the sahuagin to stay off their trail for long.

“We can’t just wander aimlessly,” said Trixie, “Can’t your siren sonar figure out where Starlight is? I’ll even settle for Twilight Sparkle at this point!”

“Look, we can just feel out with sound the shape of stuff ahead of us,” said Aria, aiming her snout down one path and making a faint noise deep in her throat that came out like the lightest ping of glass, “Like, I know down that way there’s a set of rooms that I think are sleeping chambers. While down another path there’s some kind of bubble-shaped area with a bunch of floating debris in it. But I can’t pick up specifics. I only knew the sahuagin were down that one hallway because me and Sonata have taken the time to get familiar with the signals they emit. What, can’t you find your fellow unicorns with magic or something?”

“I would if I knew a tracking spell and had given them something with an arcane mark on it, but I didn’t think of that before realizing we’d all get lost in a Celestia-forsaken underwater death trap maze filled with murderous fish people!” Trixie snapped.

“There’s no need to shout,” said Fluttershy, “I’m sure we can find them if we just take our time and go room by room.”

“We do that and we’ll probably get caught by the sahuagin again way before we locate any of your pals,” said Aria.

“Well why don’t we just find that Treasury place, since that’s where Twilight’s team was going anyway?” suggested Rainbow Dash, “I mean, this place has to have a map or something somewhere, right?”

“This isn’t a mall,” Aria said, rolling her eyes, “I doubt there’s a ‘you are here’ map conveniently posted on a wall somewhere.”

Suddenly the sullen Ulgriv perked up, “Treasury? You surfacers seek the Treasury?”

All eyes turned to him, and the young sahuagin actually shrank back a bit from the staring eyes of the surfacers, which to him looked quite alien and unnerving. Pinkie Pie smiled at him, which was only more unnerving.

“Do you know where the Treasury is, Ulgi?”

He gulped, thinking quickly. Normally helping the surfacers would be the last thing he’d want to do, but if there were more of these intruders in the palace and they were all seeking the Treasury, then perhaps if he followed them there he’d find a way to stop them from whatever unholy mission they were set upon? Besides, according to all the gossip and rumors he’d heard the Treasury was a dangerous place, filled with deadly traps. By leading these surfacers there, he was just increasing the odds they’d fail.

“Not... precisely,” he admitted, “But my fellow warriors talk, and I have heard their tales. The sub-basement levels of the palace are vast, but are said to contain a room where supposedly a door that has never been opened is located. Any warrior who had tried has died upon the barbs and blades of vicious traps. Rigash once told me he wandered down once, just to see the door, and described to me the path he took. I think I can recall it.”

“Well, sounds to me like you just got promoted from mascot to guide,” said Rainbow Dash, but then she eyed him curiously, “Although kinda wondering why you’re telling us this all of a sudden. Weren’t you all ‘kill the surfacers’ just a second ago?”

He raised his trident proudly, “Do not misunderstand. I still seek to end your threat to my people, but you did hear me speak of the traps, yes? I will lead you there, and stand back and watch as you foolishly try to break into the Treasury.”

“Hey, works for me,” said Rainbow Dash, “Then get up front, fish dude, and show us the way.”

----------

Morgwar tempered the furnace of anger beating in his chest with the firm faith that these interlopers would soon be cornered and he’d be able to undo the disgrace of allowing them to sully the birthplace of the Deep Mistress with their presence. It was galling, for a part of him actually did admire the courage shown by the usually soft and weak surfacers, at least in regards to the pair of unicorns that had faced off with him. Yes, in the end, they had fled with their potent surfacer magic, all the while stealing his sacred trident, but up until that point it had been an enjoyable match. Of course with the power of the Deep Mistress flowing through his body, he had weathered their assaults and given back in kind. His head was a tad rattled from that last hit with the door. Looking at the open gap in the doorway to the throne room, he admitted to himself the one with the intact horn had sported impressive power.

Eating her heart would be an honor, once he tore it from her chest.

“Great Morgawr, someone approaches!” warned one of his warriors, and he turned to see a small group of other warriors swimming forth into the antechamber from the direction of the courtyard. He glowered, swimming to meet them.

“What are you doing here?” he demanded, “Have you left the courtyard completely undefended?”

“N-no, great warleader,” said one of the warband, the sahaugin’s gills widening with a nervous gulp, “The shaman remain to tend to the translocation sphere. But we had to pursue! A new group of intruders were seen, and they had freed the ancient kin!”

Morgawr found his teeth grinding, “I see.”

A part of him wanted to gut the feckless warrior in front of him for delivering such news, but that would be a foolish waste. It was clear these intruders were more cunning than he’d given them credit for, using the attack on the courtyard as a distraction to give their fellows an opening to free the prisoners. Ultimately the fault was his for falling for such a ploy. Now it equally fell to him to clean up the mess.

“I take it you pursued them in this direction?” he asked, and the warrior seemed to relax a little as it became apparent he wasn’t going to be executed on the spot.

“We did, but lost sight of them and the traitor with them.”

“Traitor?” Morgawr folded his burly arms across his broad chest, the crest of his head fin raising in question.

“Yes. I scarcely believed it myself, but one of our young warriors appeared just as the intruding surfacers did, speaking in their tongue. I can only assume he was trying to distract us while buying the surfacers time to escape. We of course tried to slay him for his blasphemy, but he escaped along with the intruders. We lost track of them a short time ago.”

It seemed nearly impossible to believe that one of their own could turn traitor. Morgawr couldn’t quite fathom it. What true bloodied sahuagin would dare turn from their faith in the Deep Mistress? Yet perhaps the young fool was somehow tempted by surfacer trickery? But if he was speaking the surface race’s language, he must have been taught it at some point by one who was not sahuagin. Morgawr had learned from prisoners taken over the course of years, a chance afforded by his position. No young warrior would be able to do the same. Something else was amiss here, but he had not the time to parse it out.

With a growl he threw an arm out in a sweeping and commanding gesture, bellowing to his warriors, “The intruders cannot hide forever in the palace, and cannot be allowed to escape with the ancient kin! Break into warbands and sweep the palace from top to bottom! Every corridor, every room, every hideaway! When you find them, show them no quarter!”

He did a quick count of the warriors he had present, and set them into three groups to search each sector of the palace simultaneously. He then picked out the warrior who’d done most of the reporting to him and bade the warrior return to the courtyard and seek out the warriors who’d been stationed at the south gate. He needed messages to go out to all the patrols and outposts in the city to pull back and surround the palace with a cordon.

The warrior swam off quickly to follow Morgawr’s orders, neither the sahuagin leader or the warrior aware that there were no more outposts or patrols to pull back, that a darkness unlike the shadow of the lightless ocean was rising up through the streets of Aqualania and already surrounding the palace like a black tide.

----------

Divistis’ concentration upon his work had only been somewhat jostled by the sudden and violent removal of the door to the throne room. With a faint grumbling, the shaman had left the terror beast to go peek out at what the commotion was about, like a disturbed elderly individual about to shout at some foals about lawns.

He’d noted Morgawr’s fight with a pair of surfacer unicorns, groused something about the idiocy of the chosen warrior of the Deep Mistress, and gone back to his work.

Fortunately, with the blood of one last shark whose lifeforce was transmuted into the power needed, the last of the mutation was finished and the final binding spells complete. Divistus felt the raw, hot pain of ripping through a portion of his own soul to form the contract seal that he layered upon the terror beast. Unlike the Mistress’ contracts, a seal forced upon another living thing was weaker and lacked the strength to fully empower their recipient; it was still enough to enforce the shaman’s will upon a weaker mind. His clawed hands, like gnarled pieces of fishbone, glowed with pulses of red and black power. He carved a circular brand of red fire in the water, filling the sigil with a sharply curved triangle made from three fang-like shapes, then cast the symbol onto the head of the terror beast.

The creature heaved with one final howl of pain as the sigil was carved into both it’s flesh and spirit, then it went surprisingly still as it’s eyes focused upon Divistus. The empty darkness in those eyes showed him the creature was fully under his control, simply awaiting his commands, now.

“Hmm, not my best work, but this shall suffice for showing that bone headed Morgawr who the real favored of the Deep Mistress are. Come, beast, let us go see if our ‘warleader’ needs help with the intruders.”

----------

Twilight felt a small thrill of discovery as they descended into the chamber. The secret passage had led to an innocuous hole in the ceiling, hidden behind an open sided dome, like an inverted gazebo, that contained bright glowing crystals that helped illuminate the entire room. Several other such ceiling fixtures were spread across the ceiling, although only the one seemed to have a passage carved into it.

Beneath the lighting dome, the larger room spread out to encompass a space quite close to the size of a full stadium. It’s circular walls were filled with scones within which pedestals were erected. Each one contained a stone sarcophagus situated at the feet of statues carved in the likenesses of various noble-looking seaponies. There were several doorways that were locked closed with small iron doors at the bottom end of the chamber walls, but more notably there was a portion of the wall that itself appeared odd. It was like a section of stone was pushed out in the shape of a circle, bearing the crest of the royal family; the blue and gold entwined teardrops imposed over a seashell. Around this portion of carved out stone was a collection of statues of seapony warriors. Each one had some part of their bodies, weapons, or armor bearing a crystal embedded in them, glowing softly blue.

“I’ll give the seaponies credit,” said Rarity, “When they built something, they certainly went big.”

“I daresay it’s a tad humbling to be looking upon the resting place of Aqualania’s nobility,” Seaspray said, “You rather never imagine touching history like this when you’re just reading about it as a boy growing up. Yet here I am, looking at a place no living hippogryph has likely ever laid eyes on.”

“It is well that you all understand and respect the weight of the past upon which we tread,” Wavecrest said, slowly swimming down into the chamber as the others followed her, “While I cannot claim to be on a mission purely of discovery, I wish to show due respect to the place we are about to seek to take from.”

“Guess that’s some comfort ta the one’s laid ta rest here,” Applejack said, “I mean, yer one o’ their own n’ all, so ain’t exactly graverobbin’ or nothin’.”

“I do try to see it in such a light, although I confess I wish there was another way to aid my people than to take from this place of rest,” Wavecrest said, “I can only hope the ghosts of Aqualania understand our need is great and that the seapony people could sorely use the treasures that lay hidden just beyond that royal seal.”

“So that big carved sigil is the doorway into the Treasury?” Twilight asked, “What are the statues in front of it? I count ten of them.”

Wavecrest held her staff out as they reached the middle point of the chamber, forestalling anypony swimming further, “That is indeed the door, and we must be careful, here. The traps my mentor wrote of are tied to those statues, likenesses of the ten elite guards who were ever by Princess Scylla’s side during her adventures. Unless the light within the crystals is reflected in the right pattern, breaking the light will trigger devices capable of slaying any would-be thief.”

“But, uh, you know how to disable them, right?” said Starlight.

“In theory...” Wavecrest said, “It was at this point that my mentor was forced to flee the palace, but she had experimented with the statues. I have her notes. I just need to finish what she began and hope I don’t end up getting diced into small fillets of fish.”

As Wavecrest descended alone towards the statues, Applejack leaned towards Rarity and whispered, “Was that her tryin’ ta be funny?”

“At this point, darling, I think even a little bad humor is better than none,” Rarity whispered back, then louder she said, “Miss Wavecrest, isn’t there anything we can do to help?”

“I’d rather not risk your lives when my own will suffice,” Wavecrest replied, “More hooves will not make this task easier or any less dangerous. You all have done your part in bringing me here in the first place, for I doubt I’d have survived the journey alone, nor make any escape without your further aid. For now, stay back, and allow me to focus. If I fail, you may then try to use your pony magic to see if you can succeed where me and my mentor’s efforts did not.”

So it was that the group could do little more than settle in, a fair distance away from the supposed door to the Treasury and it’s statues, and watch as Wavecrest went to work. The mood was silent and tense, each having their eyes glued to the seapony witch's movements as she carefully swam around each statue. Twilight could see how the light from the statue’s crystals would shine in wide but still very visible beams, and how Wavecrest took special care not to break any of the beams as she looked over eah statue and consulted with a book from her pack, presumably her mentor’s notes.

While Wavecrest had denied any help, that didn’t stop Twilight from considering several defensive spells she could cast quickly if something went wrong. In the event a trap was sprung, she believed she could shoot out a protective bubble to encase Wavecrest, or at least yank her out of harm’s way with telekinesis. From the look of concentration on Starlight’s face, the other unicorn was thinking along the same lines, and when their eyes met, Twilight gave an approving nod to her student.

And as their focus was upon Wavecrest, none at first took notice of Flash Sentry’s sudden unease.

It started much as the previous incidents of the young Soul Reaper Lieutenant sensing something off. A brief, faint flash of what he thought to be spiritual pressure, or at least something his spirit senses could detect. However, unlike the other times where the sensation appeared and vanished with equal speed, it came back in an ever slowly rising wave, and with each passing moment Flash started to feel his skin grow cold at what he was sensing.

Yet not wishing to frighten his companions, he wished to be certain, even as he let one hoof fall upon the hilt of his Zanpaktou. He closed his eyes and truly let his spirit senses pulse outward, probing up through the layers of stone they were currently under, trying to sense further beyond the palace itself. With slightly quickening breaths he pushed his senses further, seeking...

Until he got a proper taste of it. His eyes snapped open and he drew his Zanpaktou, the faint rasp of the blade leaving it’s sheath finally causing his companions to look his way.

“Flash?” Twilight said, noticing the pale cast to his features and the tense way he gripped his sword.

“Something’s coming,” he said, “Outside the palace. I can feel it.”

“Like what ya were feelin’ before?” asked Applejack.

“Yes, but it’s so much stronger now I can hardly believe it.” Flash took a deep breath, trying to sort out what he was sensing at the edge of his spiritual perception, “I don’t know how I missed it before. Was it hiding itself, somehow? But this has to be reiatsu, not just magic. So dense, and angry. Hateful.”

“Slow down Flash, you’re saying you’re sensing some kind of spiritual entity outside the palace?” Twilight sought to clarify, “I thought you hadn’t sensed any such beings since coming to Equestria.”

“That’s just it, I haven’t. This is the first time I’ve felt anything like this! It’s almost like I’m feeling a horde of Hollows, but the energy isn’t quite right. Hollows are negative, yes, and hungry, but this... this is like I’m tasting pure hatred. And it’s all amorphous. I can’t tell if it’s just one entity or hundreds. But whatever it is, it’s outside the palace, and creeping closer by the second. I, uh, don’t think we have a lot of time to stick around here.”

“Well this is a less than stellar turn,” Rarity said, worry rising in her voice, “What about the other team and the sirens? If there’s something bad enough to fluster poor Flash here stalking closer to the palace, they’re in even more danger than we are! And that’s to say nothing of the sahuagin.”

“Maybe one o’ us oughta go look fer the others ta warn ‘em?” said Applejack, but Seaspray looked at her with a quick shake of his head.

“Splitting our numbers further won’t do us much good, Miss Applejack. Whoever goes to look for them is liable to just end up in worse danger themselves. We must trust that they can take care of themselves and finish what we came here to do. Whatever threat is rising in the depths outside is something we’ll just have to do our best to evade or deal with when it comes. But speaking of haste... Miss Wavecrest, how are things going down there?”

“Faster, if I am not being distracted,” came the grumpy reply as Wavecrest very carefully, and also slowly, aligned one of the crystals to bounce it’s light off of another, creating a safe loop of light that shone softly blue. “That said, this is not a task conducive to speed, I’m afraid.”

“But do you have any ideas what Flash is sensing out there?” Starlight asked, “You know the most about this place.”

“True, but that doesn’t mean I know all of the dangers Aqualania has hidden in its shadows. If I take what your spiritual friend is saying at face value, I would say this sounds like the vengeful spirits of Aqualania, finally returning to have their day of reckoning with all who have entered their resting place,” Wavecrest said, “In which case, I hope they take their time with the sahuagin, and that we in turn have time to escape their wrath.”

“Well no matter what’s coming our way, sounds like the solution is getting into this blasted Treasury,” said Starlight, glancing at Twilight, “And if doing it the old fashioned way is taking too long, how about the two most powerful spellcasters in Equestria make a faster solution?”

Twilight coughed politely, “Okay, first of all, let’s not get ahead of ourselves Starlight. I’d still say Celestia and Luna have us beat in the spellcasting department. However, that being said, I do agree that between the two of us we can probably, um... make an entrance. Er, Wavecrest, I know you’re doing your best to disable the traps and all, but do you object to a more expedient, if perhaps more forceful approach?”

Wavecrest looked up at the pair, frowned, then looked at the statues she was working on. One could almost see the reluctance to take a shortcut and the respect for the sanctity of the place she was in warring with the practicality of Twilight’s words. She gave an almost mournful look at the book containing her mentor's notes, and tucked it away with a heavy breath.

“I shall be content with entering the Treasury. I suppose the means of our ingress is not what’s relevant. But I do implore you to try not to bring the entire chamber down on our heads, please?”

With a morose flip of her tail, the seapony swam back up to the group while Starlight and Twilight took up positions a safe distance away, but firmly aimed at the sigil carved seal. They both blinked at Tempest, who took up a position next to them.

“What?” Tempest said, “You’re about to blow something up. I’m all about that.”

“Fine,” Starlight said with a roll of her eyes, and Twilight just shrugged.

“Well then, ladies,” Twilight said, “Horns at the ready. Let’s make ourselves an opening.”

“Open sesaboom,” quipped Starlight, her horn flaring to life alongside Twilight’s and Tempest’s.

Even with Tempest’s broken horn making aiming a secondary feature, her uncontrolled stream of magic still seemed to naturally follow the path of the twin beams of purple and teal power that shot out of Twilight and Starlight’s horns. The cascade of magical energy knocked over or broke several of the statues, and the room flashed with multiple discharges of deep green magic fire that shot out of nozzles in the ground. Blades like large saws rose from the ground and sliced through the water, while harpoons shot out with high air pressure from holes that opened in the walls. None of it hit the ponies or their allies, floating well back from the door, but if anycreature had been within about twenty or so meters of the door or statues they probably would have been killed several times over.

But seapony traps had never been built to account for unicorn magic and it’s range. The triple blast of raw magic power from two well above average unicorns and one exceedingly potent alicorn collided with the circular stone door in an explosion of power. To Twilight’s surprise, the door held up for a few moments, it’s stone flashing with a sheen of sea green magic that had been infused in the door to make it far stronger than any natural stone. The enchantment, as old and potent as it had been, was still overmatched by the raw torrent of energy that was being poured onto it. The circular door began to crack, and in a final shattering boom of noise, the stone collapsed and exploded in a thick cloud of rock silt.

The sound faded, leaving those gathered to look on at the opening torn out of the wall. Where the circular stone obstruction in the shape of the royal sigil once stood was now a darkly lit hole, with just a faint hint of warm yellow light stemming from within.

“Gotta give it ta ya magic oriented gals,” said Applejack, “When ya want somethin’ opened, it gets dang well opened.”

“Normally I would have preferred for Wavecrest to be able to follow the proper procedure and disarm the traps, just like in a good Daring Do novel, but... well... timing,” Twilight said with a helpless shrug.

“Trust me, timing is important now,” Flash said, his own attention still somewhat focused on an unseen point above them.

“Is... is that thing you’re sensing getting closer still?” asked Rarity, and Flash focused for a moment.

“It’s hard to tell. Right now it just feels like it’s surrounding the palace, but that could change any second,” he said.

“Then let’s not tarry,” Seaspray said, “Onward, into the Treasury!”

“Please, allow me to go first,” Wavecrest said, a reverent note in her voice and an excited, almost child-like look in her eyes, “To cross this threshold my mentor could not, I wish to be the first. Also, we must still be careful. Since my mentor did not get this far, I don’t know what to expect within. There could be further traps.”

With no further discussion, the group followed Wavecrest down to the dark opening. The seapony brought forth magical light to her staff, while Twilight and Starlight both lit up their horns to pour light into the opening. What was directly beyond the portal was... a downward sloping tunnel? That soft yellow light stemmed from somewhere down below. With caution, but also a decent amount of haste, did the group quickly descend. Although wary of traps or other hidden dangers, there was a growing sense of energy in the group, even despite Flash’s warnings of whatever dire threat loomed in the city above.

After all, how often did one get to enter the treasury of an ancient civilization? For Twilight it gave her a goosebumps sensation akin to when she and Rainbow Dash talked about Daring Do’s latest adventures. What kind of magical artifacts might be waiting for them?

About a hundred feet down the tunnel Wavecrest paused, looking at the ground, “Huh?”

“What is it?” Twilight asked, and Wavecrest picked up and showed them an object that had been laying on the tunnel floor. It was a bent piece of armor, a shoulder pauldron, Twilight guessed. It was a shining bronze color, with a upswept inner edge and the sigil of the royal family emblazoned upon it.

“This armor,” Wavecrest said, “I recognize it from ancient carvings of Princess Scylla. It’s a part of the armor she once wore.”

“What does that mean?” Starlight asked, and Tempest grunted.

“Seems pretty obvious that this Princess came this way, and probably after a battle, if pieces of her armor were falling off.”

Wavecrest shook her head, looking at the bent pauldron with a disturbed flicker in her eyes, “I thought... I mean, according to the tales Princess Scylla fell in battle driving off her wicked sister. Granted her body was never recovered, but the final battle itself was well documented. How would a piece of her armor be here, in the entrance to the Treasury...? Unless she...”

Suddenly Wavecrest dropped the armor piece and swam forward at a swift speed, forcing the rest of the group to rush to try and keep up with her. The tunnel’s downward slope continued onward for at least another hundred feet, until Twilight had to imagine they were deep beneath the palace. Abruptly the tunnel opened up into a large, half-dome chamber, like a bubble of glass built into the side of a vast wall. Within the half-dome was a set of metal scaffolds encircling a platform upon which numerous clockwork and brass tube contraptions were built in what appeared to Twilight to be a control panel not unlike what she saw upon the Odyssey. She could see a few glass hatchways on either side of the dome that led out to larger scaffolding that extended out into the darkness of... some unbelievably huge expanse that lay beyond the wall they’d exited out to.

But for the moment all of that was secondary to the strangled cry from Wavecrest. The seapony witch had stopped short at the central platform within the dome, a look of shocked, wide eyed disbelief coating her face. She even dropped her staff, which clattered gently to the platform next to her.

“It can’t be...” Wavecrest whispered, floating forward towards something slumped against the control panel of odd clockwork gears and brass tubes.

It was a seapony body, long decayed to barely more than a skeleton with a few scraps of scaled flesh sticking to its husk and the armor it wore. The armor was a surprisingly still gleaming suit of bronze plate mail, with a skirt of scaled flanks covering what would have been the seapony’s tail, which in turn was capped with metal blades. A finned helmet left an opening at the top to allow a seapony’s fin crest through, although all that was there now were a few bone spines from the skeleton’s skull. Laying next to the skeleton was a brilliant pristine weapon, a glaive with a blade forged to resemble a striking wave, all forged in a bronze colored metal that seemed to deny the existence of rust through what Twilight could only assume were magical enchantments.

Clutched in the skeleton’s limp left hoof was a pale yellow crystal orb, the light of which still shone brightly despite the passing of ages, almost like a guiding torch.

“That’s...uh...her, ain’t it?” Applejack said, taking off her stetson hat in a gesture of respect, “Princess Scylla.”

“Must be,” Starlight said, one eye on the corpse, but the rest of her attention diverted to the odd glass dome they found themselves in, “But, uh, hate to spoil the shocked mood, but this doesn’t look like any kind of treasury I’ve ever seen. What is this place?”

“It's awfully big, whatever it is,” Rarity said, peering out into the darkness beyond the glass, “Why, whatever room is out there has to be at least as big as the tomb up top. Even bigger, actually. But I can’t see anything.”

“Girls, please...” Twilight said, gesturing for them to be quiet as she swam up to Wavecrest, who was staring at the presumed body of Princess Scylla with a stricken look. “Wavecrest, are you going to be alright?”

“I...yes,” Wavecrest shook herself, reaching to pick her staff back up, “I just never expected this. To see her remains. To know they’ve been laying here, all this time. I... I should lay her to proper rest, should I not?”

“If we have time, of course,” Twilight said, then with a pensive look and delicately choosing her worse she added, “But do you know for sure that we’re in the Treasury? And... What is that crystal?”

Wavecrest looked a bit dumbfounded for a moment, as if she hadn’t really looked at the dome they were in before Twilight actually brought it up. The crystal, too, had eluded her attention, which had been ratcheted to Scylla’s body. Now that she had a second to gather her wits, Wavecrest’s confusion suddenly mounted on her creased brows.

“I don’t know. I thought the Treasury would be a fairly simple repository for the treasures and artifacts the Princess gathered over her career as an adventurer. I don’t recognize any of these contraptions, although they do look like advanced Aqualanian designs. As for the crystal, I believe... It's a recorder. A simple magic device for storing messages.”

Her eyes suddenly widened, “The Princesses’ final words?”

“Do you know how to operate it?” Twilight asked, and Wavecrest nodded slowly.

“I believe so. We don’t use them much any more among the tribes, but a few of us still retain the knowledge of their use,” she said, and carefully, and with great reverence, picked up the crystal from the skeleton’s grasp.

As the others gathered around her, Wavecrest softly chanted, and directed a gleam of sea green light from her staff into the yellow crystal. A sound like a single ringing of a bell sounded out, and the crystal’s light flared, then a voice began to speak. The voice was distinctly feminine, but it had a gruff, tomboyish quality that reminded Twilight a bit of Rainbow Dash. There was also a wealth of pain and heavy regret weighting the voice down.

”Sea’s bleeding teats... where do I start? Ugh... losing too much blood. Heh... Chary... years of trying to toughen you up and teach you not to rely on magic... and only now do you learn how to throw a decent punch? Heheh... stupid... so stupid. Both of us. Mother too. Should never have made it a choice between us. You never wanted to rule, and I was never going to be any good at it. Doesn’t matter now, does it? My plans, your obsessions, both led our people to this godsforsaken slurry of bad choices. Did you really believe I killed mother? It was just...an illness...I never... ugh, dammit, losing focus. Okay! Whoever is listening to this godsdamned message, ignore the rambling! My name is Scylla V’Allegro, soon to be former Princess of the nation of Seaquestria. I’m dying. Looks like my sister proved herself right about magic being stronger than any blade I could wield. Er, anyway, whoever you are, be you citizens of Seaquestria, graverobbers, or even if it’s you, Chary, I don’t really care. I’m going to be dead, and consider this message my last will and testament or whatever. I’ve locked up the door to this chamber with the last artifact I stole from the surface. I stole a lot of those. From everywhere. Seriously, E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E. It was my big... plan. Steal power from all the other lands... built up a huge army after becoming Queen... heh, take over the world by force, both ocean and surface. Stupid, right?

...ugh, I think I passed out for a second there. Wow, everything is getting kinda dark. Right, just a bit more I gotta say to you, whoever you are. I’m leaving it all to you. Not just all the magic crap I stole. It’s all loaded... onto it. My dream. My pride. My soldiers worked endlessly to build her for me. Bigger than the Odyssey ever was. She can traverse it all, land...sea... air... the ultimate ship. I give her to you, and all the treasures within. My Treasury.

That’s it. Weird... thought it’d hurt more, but it’s just... numb. Chary... why did we fight so...much? Over...nothing? Was so much better... when we were kids. I...miss those...”

When the crystal’s voice finally faded to silence, not a soul spoke, as they were all taking in what they had just heard.

Finally, Wavecrest just gently laid the crystal back into the hoof of Princess Scylla’s body.

“Rest within the ocean's embrace, Scylla V’Allegro.”

After another minute of respectful silence, Starlight brought up a point that had also been on Twilight’s mind, “So what do you think she was talking about? About the Treasury?”

Twilight’s eyes roved over the control panel against which Scylla had fallen, and her eyes lit upon a central lever that to her eyes looked very much like an “on/off” switch.

“I think there’s one simple way to find out. Wavecrest, with your permission?”

Wavecrest gave the barest of nods, floating up next to Twilight beside the control panel. As the others floated up around them, Twilight reached out and flipped the lever.

There was an instant clatter of clockwork and a hum of magical energy as yellow and blue lights started to flow across the panel, multiple magical crystals inside turning on like light bulbs. The noises grew in intensity for a moment, then expanded outward beyond the glass dome. Suddenly flashes of intense light burst into view as giant white crystals mounted along the walls and ceiling of a truly enormous cylindrical chamber came on, row after row, in front of the glass dome.

And within this cylindrical chamber, nestled between a large scaffolding network, was a ship.

It was easily three times the size the Odyssey had been, and of a vastly more robust and complex design. It’s hull reminded Twilight of a giant swordfish in its general shape, with numerous metal fins curving off from it’s smooth hull. However, along its sides she took note of what looked to be a pair of particularly large ‘fins’ that were folded into the hull itself, and if Twilight guessed correctly these could fold outward to form a pair of wings. Had Scylla mentioned something about this vessel being able to take to the skies? The ship’s structure was built from a light gray iron, with bronze carvings along both the bow and aft to give the impression of curled waves at the fore and rolling clouds towards the back. The aft had the horizontal fins of a fish, mounted with crystal orbs surrounded by massive triple propellers. Towards the pointed front end of the ship, which ended in a long, elegant spear as large as a whale, was also a glass bubble for a bridge, reinforced by bands of iron. And stamped across the sides of a metal crest that rose from the top of that bridge was a name in bright bronze.

Treasury

Episode 145: Chase

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Episode 145: Chase

Starlight Glimmer looked upon the two standing with unconcealed glares of hatred aimed at one another and briefly pondered aloud, “You know, what’s the plural for Chrysalis?”

The two Chrysalises... Chrysali...? turned their glares towards her, the Arrancar version cracking a sardonically tinted half smile, “Let me do as I will with this other one and you won’t have to wonder about that question at all, Starlight.”

Platinum, who was seated directly across from Starlight at the sizable meeting table they were all making use of, slapped a hoof on the table’s varnished wood surface and let a frosty burst of reiatsu flow off of her.

“We are here to discuss serious matters, not bicker! And besides, I believe Chrysalides is the proper plural form.”

“Really?” said Equestria’s Chrysalis, looking mildly surprised, “I... actually didn’t know that.” She shook herself, resuming her glare towards her counterpart, “Regardless, I don’t see how we can be expected to make any meaningful progress while my overly crude and violent mirror can’t grow out of making pointless threats.”

“Aww, feeling intimidated by your better self, are we dear?” Arrancar Chrysalis said, leaning forward and propping her chin on her hooves as she fluttered her eyes innocently, “I promise to play nice and behave. There, does that make your hurt little fee-fees all better now?”

Equestria’s Chrysalis looked sickened by her counterpart, but ignored her and turned to look at Starlight. The room they were in was previously a planning office used by Hitsuyo-Aku’s researchers, furnished with comfortable chairs and a large rectangular table, but more importantly there was also a well sized computer screen and system for displaying data on various research projects and their progress situated behind the head of the table that stood opposite the doors. On top of that the room was well secured against entry or observation, something Starlight was glad of as she’d taken note of the unruly and unpredictable nature of Arrancar Chrysalis’ daughter, Ocellus. For the moment she preferred to not involve the younger Arrancar in affairs outside of providing companionship and training to Pipsqueak, although Starlight had concerns on that front, as well.

“Ignoring her inability to take anything seriously, let’s get back to the topic in front of us. That being your utterly naïve desire to confront Princess Celestia directly! I know I’ve agreed to be a part of this group of yours, but to make it clear, I am not suicidal.”

“I was given to understand you yourself have confronted Celestia in the past, and won that confrontation,” Platinum said, settling back in her seat somewhat awkwardly. They weren’t built for equine forms, after all. “You’ve claimed as much.”

“Yes,” said Equestria’s Chrysalis with a hint of warm pride in her voice, which soon soured like spoiling milk as she went on, “In retrospect that may well have been because of two factors. One being I was freshly empowered by an exceedingly pure and potent source of love from that dotting captain of Equestria’s Royal Guard. The other being that in all likelihood Celestia was withholding the greater portion of her power in the foolish desire to spare those in the chambers around us. It allowed me to... get in a sucker punch. Galling as it is to admit, under normal circumstances I’d never consider an outright slug fest with the mare. It’d be madness to try.”

“I bet I could do it,” said Arrancar Chrysalis, “I’ve always enjoyed an outright duel with my lovely Captain sisters, and I’ll point out I can fight both of them at once.”

Starlight rolled her eyes, “Yes, Chrysalis, we get it, you’re powerful. Now stop wantonly stroking your ego in public.”

“Never!”

“Ugh, anyway... Platinum, you crossed blades with Equestria’s Princesses. I need your accurate assessment. Is this world’s Chrysalis here correct or is she highballing these alicorn Princesses?”

There was a silent moment of deep concentration on Platinum’s face, her pale features smooth as ice as she spoke in a measured tone, “It is honestly difficult for me to say. They both fought with power and skill equal to the level of a Captain, which is fitting as I’m given to understand they have lived for at least a thousand years apiece, or longer. Their magic matched anything I or Firefly could throw at them, and had I not used my Bankai when I did, that final spell they unleashed would have possibly finished us both.”

“Yes, their vaunted ‘High Magic’,” said Equestria’s Chrysalis with a quiet and seething undercurrent heating her voice.

“What do you know of it?” asked Starlight, “How much does it differ from regular magic?”

“Measure the difference between lightning that strikes the ground versus the storm that actually makes the lightning,” the changeling said in all seriousness, meeting Starlight’s gaze directly. “That is the difference. It is why I took pains to avoid direct battle with the alicorns, and made my home around a throne that negates all magic. Otherwise my plans to conquer Equestria would have died ages ago.”

“Because it’s going so well now, right?” jabbed the other Chrysalis, but Starlight held up a hoof before a fresh bit of snark could begin.

“Look, I’m going to be face to face with Celestia come tomorrow, and probably not just her. I’ll eat my own coat if she doesn’t have this world’s Discord on standby, and near as I can tell he’s a whole different bag of issues.”

“If by that you mean he can warp reality with a snap of his fingers, then yes, he is certainly an ‘issue’,” Equestria’s Chrysalis said with no small dose of sarcasm, “One I still can’t fathom actually joined the side of the ponies. He surpasses any one of them in power, and is only shackled by the full strength of that cheating power that stems from the Elements of Harmony.”

“A whole different topic, those Elements,” Starlight said, “You’re absolutely sure you don’t know where they are?”

“If I did I would have made a point of taking them, if only to ensure they couldn’t be used against me,” said Chrysalis, and for a moment a disturbed tremor crossed her eyes. “I don’t know where they are, but you can lay strong odds that they won’t be far from Celestia’s grasp. Understand this, Starlight Glimmer, it is not simply Celestia’s power that has kept me from facing her head on. She is dangerous. More so than any other being in Equestria. Discord may have more outright magical power, but he is a child in mind. An unruly, chaos fueled child, but still childish nonetheless. Even Celestia’s sister, Luna, has a certain forthright naiveté about her. So understand, and understand well... Celestia is cut from a different cloth than all of them.”

“She isn’t wrong,” Platinum said, “I sensed it during our brief clash, and I think I owe Firefly much for pulling me out of that fight at the end. Had things continued...”

“Which is why I intend to plan this carefully,” Starlight said, “I’ve already given it plenty of thought, which is why I called this meeting. I intend to walk away from Ponehenge tomorrow as the victor, but to do that I will need the support of everyone at this table, and more besides. Timing will be crucial, because lest we forget our objective, it is not to crush Equestria’s defenders, but to acquire the power needed to face much greater challenges elsewhere. To that end, I have tasks for each of you, starting with you, Chrysalis of Equestria. That throne of yours that was destroyed, you claimed it was made from a piece of a meteorite?”

“That’s correct. I witnessed it fall a long time ago, but felt the strangeness of it,” Chrysalis said, “I tracked one of the pieces to the Badlands and there discovered it’s unique property of canceling out magic, no matter how powerful.”

“A piece. Which means you never found where the full meteorite landed, right?” said Starlight, and Chrysalis' face showed a blooming light of realization.

“No, I didn’t. There was no need. The piece I found was more than large enough to shape my throne from.”

Starlight smiled, turning to Platinum. “I want that meteorite found. You and her will go to the location where she found the fallen piece, then track the main meteorite from there. Spiritual senses are disrupted by magic to a degree, which means any area lacking magic...”

Platinum smiled at that, nodding in understanding, “If I stretch my spiritual senses wide enough, any area in which they suddenly sharpen means a location in which the power of magic has been nullified. Given my speed and the range of my spirit senses, I can cover a very wide area of ground in very little time. If this meteorite did land somewhere, or if even another piece broke off, I’ll find it.”

“So while they’re rock hunting, what am I going to do? Something marginally fun, I hope?” the Arrancar Chrysalis said, yawning, “I’m practically bursting at the seams with the need to do something, Starlight. Since you won’t let me gloriously bathe in the blood and viscera of my inferior counterpart, do you at least have something entertaining in mind for little old me?”

“Oh I’ve got work for you to do, but you’ll probably find it boring. That said, you’re better suited to doing it than anyone else here,” Starlight said, and at the Espada’s distressed and unenthused look, she added, “Buuut, if you do it for me without killing or maiming I can let you have some of your kind of fun on a limited scale. I’m going to need a certain amount of... destruction at the right moment. Swear to me you can do it without a body count, and you’ll at least get to set some stuff on fire.”

“I do like arson,” the Arrancar admitted, “But let me get one thing straight with you, I’ve agreed not to eat any souls while in this world and I will keep to that, but if it’s chaos and destruction you want, lives will be lost. Even if I try to avoid it, I can’t control if a fire gets out of hand, or if debris doesn’t rain down on the unsuspecting. Even if I’m playing nice goody-good for the sake of your feeble conscience, even if I put effort into sparring lives, unleashing me to any degree means that death will follow in my wake. So do not ask anything of me that you are unprepared to accept the consequences of, Starlight.”

That did give Starlight Glimmer a moment of pause. She had not come to this world to visit tragedy upon its inhabitants. She was just... desperate for power. She was all too aware of how powerful the foes waiting for her in the Soul Palace were. The Zero Division were monsters without compare. For so long Starlight had lived in the shadow of that almighty power, knowing that to save the soul of not only her friend, but the souls of everyone who might be unjustly trapped in Hell, would require her to gain power by any means necessary.

By any means necessary.

She dearly wished Firefly were here. Firefly would at the very least have been able to give her some advice on what to do. Or better yet, Firefly would have been much better suited to the task than the Second Espada would be, as Starlight trusted Firefly to know how to cause just enough chaos while avoiding taking any lives unnecessarily. It would have just been nice to have Firefly there by her side, to tell her if she was making a mistake or not.

But Firefly is slowly dying, and if I don’t do this, I won’t be able to heal her, either.

Starlight took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, “I understand, Chrysalis. Still, I believe once you know the details of what I intend, you’ll see it can be done with a minimum risk of casualties. Your target is going to be very specific, even if the method of distraction won’t be.”

“Oh? Now I’m intrigued a little. Just what is cooking in that devious mind of yours?” the Arrancar Chrysalis asked, licking her lips, “I couldn’t help but notice you have been pouring over the research records of our humble hideaway.”

“Yes. Hitsuyo-Aku itself is a resource I intend to tap for this operation,” Starlight said, turning to the computer screen at the back of the room. With a flicker of magic from her horn, she turned the system on, “It has surprises aplenty waiting in its vaults, and it's high time we made use of them.”

Upon the screen appeared an image of an unusual weapon, something that had the shape of a broad bladed sword attached to an elongated hilt from which sprung a chain that ended in a bizarrely organic looking starfish shape that itself bore a single gleaming yellow eye. Starlight’s lips pursed somewhat sourly at the image.

“This is what’s called a ‘Bakkoto’. Hitsuyo-Aku developed them as part of a project to potentially form and arm a penal legion akin to the Quincy’s Strafbatallion.”

The Arrancar Chrysalis made a soft whistling sound, tapping the tip of a hoof to her lips, “A beautifully ugly looking weapon. I find it oh so amusing that the Soul Reapers and Quincy both find it appropriate to force their disgraced prisoners to fight for them. The disgraced in Hollow society are usually just eaten. Far more fair and equitable, I say.”

Starlight shrugged, “I hold no love for Soul Society, but they had not gotten to the point of mass-producing these Bakkoto for use. What you’re seeing here is one of a number of prototypes that were made for testing, along with the specifications to make more. The weapons function similarly to a Zanpaktou, but with several key differences. One, a Bakkoto can be used by anyone who picks it up. It requires no special bond or training to make use of its powers. However, the other difference is also the drawback, these things are parasitic in nature. They feed on the spirit energy of the user to fuel their powers, inevitably draining the user until death in exchange for a temporary power boost.”

Platinum's lips twisted back as she hissed, “A part of me is almost glad to be done with Soul Society. Are we seriously considering using these cheap, parasitic knock offs?”

“Partially,” Starlight said, “I’ve spent several days testing out whether magic can be substituted for reiatsu to feed a Bakkoto, and low and behold, looks like they can and will sup on magic as readily as anything else. Our local prisoner, the Storm King, has been eager to help, so I got him to volunteer himself as a test subject. As it turns out Bakkoto’s get an even greater power boost from magic, and there’s enough ambient magic inside the natives of this world to feed them without killing the host. It drains them, still, but once the magic is dry, it recovers on its own after a day or two. So my intent was to provide a Bakkoto to any native Equestrians who join our cause.”

This was said with a meaningful look towards Equestria’s Chrysalis, who gained a mistrustful look at the weapon on the computer screen.

“You’re certain this parasitic thing will not kill it’s user as long as it feeds on magic?” she asked, and Starlight nodded.

“Tested it on both the Storm King and myself, now that I’ve got an alicorn body that produces magic naturally. It’ll tire you out, but doesn’t kill. Still, when you’re out of magic, stop using the Bakkoto. If you don’t, it’ll start feeding on your spirit energy, and natives of your world don’t have nearly enough to spare. That said, as long as you have a source of love magic to feed on, you should have plenty to spare to power one of these, and it’ll definitely give you a power boost.”

Despite her reluctance, Chrysalis slowly warmed to the notion at the mention of gaining more power, “Very well. But I will need to feed soon. Your unconscious companion all but overflows with love for her daughter. If I could-”

“No,” Starlight said firmly, “That won’t be necessary. You can feed upon myself.”

That got both Chrysalis’ raising their eyebrows in strangely identical fashion, while Platinum looked vaguely disturbed.

“Truly?” the Equestrian Chrysalis said, “You will let me feed upon your own love? For who...? Oh, yes, of course. You spoke of the one for whom you do all of this for.”

There was a moment of panicked embarrassment that Starlight took command of within herself quickly, forcing her face to a straight laced mask. An image of Sunburst filled her mind with shining clarity for a moment, and she held it close to her heart before dismissing it and eyeing Chrysalis with a look she hoped conveyed the gravity of the matter.

“It should be more than enough to sate you, and in turn provide all the fuel you need to wield a Bakkoto. We’ll take care of this before you leave with Platinum. Now then, the next item on the list could prove to be even more useful, if we can use them right.”

The screen next showed an image of a darkened room in which dozens of metal slabs stood from the floor at a slight angle. Upon each slab was what appeared to be at first unconscious humans. However upon closer inspection it was clear to see the uniform nature of each body, be they male or female, and the lack of distinguishing features such as hair, on top of lacking any actual reproductive organs. Like dolls of flesh. For the Chrysalis who was an Arrancar and for Captain Platinum, the similarity between these bodies and the gigai fake bodies used by Soul Reapers was immediately apparent.

“Are those gigais?” Platinum said, frowning, “What would Hitsuyo-Aku be doing with those?”

“Close,” said Starlight, a somewhat grim look darkening her features, “While based on gigais, these are something else. Something possibly far more dangerous than anything else in this facility. Which is why we need to be very careful about how we employ these things, to make sure nothing gets out of hand.”

“Oh, but what are they, do tell?” the Arrancar Chrysalis said, looking almost hungry, and exceedingly amused by the glint in her eyes. “What manner of depraved fun did the Soul Reaper lab coats get up to this time?”

` Starlight Glimmer sighed, and answered, “Reigai.”

----------

Despite the defenses against spying the meeting room in the depths of Hitsuyo-Aku had, they had not been prepared with someone with a changeling’s abilities in mind. While Ocellus was not as adept as her mother at changing forms, she was still skilled enough to take the shape of a tiny blue moth with pink gossamer wings. With this shape she slipped through small ventilation shafts and readily avoided the reshi beams that small security sensors put out to try and warn of intruders.

Thusly she’d been able to alight near a vent in the ceiling of the meeting room and hear most of what was being said. The young Arrancar turned changeling practically buzzed with delight!

So the adults were all going to be out of the house tomorrow!? Perfect! She and Pipsqueak could play all they wanted, and more importantly, with no pesky adults around to watch over her shoulder, she could break the rules and take the young Soul Reaper lordling on a real adventure wherever she wanted! Oh, and she had the ideal spot in mind, too!

Tomorrow was going to be so much fun.

----------

The first order of business in Twilight’s mind was to determine whether or not the Treasury could actually be utilized or not. As impressive as the leviathan sized battleship was, there was little good it could do her and her friends if it wasn’t functional. The control panel in the room was all made with the ancient technology of the seapony race, and while some parts of it were understandable enough, other parts of it’s function were far more esoteric. Twilight had to spend time fiddling with the levers and buttons to start getting a feel for things. In the meantime her friends discussed their next move.

“Well it seems obvious to me we take the departed Princess Scylla at her word and take the ship for ourselves,” said Admiral Seapsray, “With a mighty vessel like that we could blast our way clear of this whole affair and have quite the weapon to bring to bear against Charybdis.”

“That’s great and all, but I don’t know how much use this thing will be against whatever it is I’m sensing up top,” said Flash, “And on top of that, can we even make this ship move?”

“It looks finished ta me,” Applejack said, peering out the window. “Ain’t seein’ no holes or missin’ pieces.”

“But even if it’s finished, could we even operate it?” pointed out Rarity, “A ship that size must need a fairly large crew, and none of us are exactly trained in the arts of seaponyship.”

Seaspray looked at her and pointed at himself, “The ‘Admiral’ is a well earned title of mine, I assure you, Miss Rarity. There is not a nautical vessel in the world I cannot come to grips with, even one forged by the advanced techniques of Seaquestria. I promise you, I’ll learn to steer this fine ship in short order, or my name isn’t Admiral Seaspray!”

“Hmm fair point, good Admiral,” Rarity admitted, and the cast a glance towards Wavecrest. The seapony was still gazing upon the remains of Scylla, her face a mask of deep concentration.

“Miss Wavecrest, what do you think? You still know more about your people’s ancient traditions, magic, and technology than any of us.”

At Rarity’s question Wavecrest looked up, seemingly startled, then gave the Treasury a contemplative gaze. “It should be doable, yet I cannot say for certain. Were this a vessel like the Odyssey, which I am more familiar with from tales and text, I would say our full party would suffice to fully man her. But a ship this large? Move her we may be able to do, but there’s no telling if we can use all of her functions. Not without entering her and looking for ourselves. And... there’s the matter of why we actually came here.”

“You mean the artifacts,” Rarity said, “The ‘treasury’ that isn’t a ship. I do believe your Princess made mention in her final words of having those loaded aboard, did she not?”

“Yes,” Wavecrest said, taking up her staff and a fresh light of determination flaring to life in her eyes, “Even if the challenge before us is changed, the fact remains we must ensure those treasures, and this great inheritance, does not fall into sahuagin hands! This ship represents a new hope for my people! No matter how difficult, we must save it and the treasures within.”

“Well, first we have to get inside it,” Twilight said, and next to her Starlight Glimmer was also poking at various buttons on the control console.

“What about the big red one, Twilight?”

“No, never push the big red one!”

“Geez, fine, then maybe this knobby looking one?”

“I tried that one already, it just turned the lights from white to green. I don’t even know what that means.”

Behind the pair, a laconic looking Tempest Shadow just rubbed at her forehead and said, “Have you tried just... hitting it?”

The other two looked at her, and Tempest offered a perturbed grunt, “Hey, it works any time I need something to stop annoying me. The Storm King has lots of dumb contraptions that only work half the time, and usually giving them a good thump did the trick.”

“Yes, well, violence can’t solve every problem now, can it?” Seaspray said, floating over and raising a hoof to bring down hard on the console, “Why with such sturdy construction I doubt even a strike with all my might would hardly rattle it, let alone make it-”

At the pounding of his hoof, the console let off a series of clicks and beeps, and suddenly a panel opened up at the top of it. All looked on in astonishment as a glass orb similar in style to the one that Scylla had held now rose upon a metal stalk from within the console. Instead of sound, this orb produced a soft white light that formed a magical image in the air that showed a schematic of the Treasury alongside words in a smoothly flowing script.

“Huh...” Seaspray said, then blanched at Tempest, who was giving him a smug look.

Meanwhile, Wavecrest swam up and quickly began looking over the image. She was joined by Twilight and Starlight, and in a short time the trio began to put together what the information being displayed all meant. It was in essence an active display of the Treasury’s systems and its overall status. Twilight was briefly overwhelmed by the amount of information that was accessible. The image was even interactive! If she touched a part of the ship’s image, it would zoom in and provide even more detail!

“This is... incredible,” she breathed, “Magi-Tech is a fairly new field in Equestria. The University of Neighbridge has a very basic working system for three dimensional image displays like this, but nothing you can interact with! Wavecrest, where did the seaponies learn to do this?”

“Aqualania was ever the capital of Seaquestria’s innovation, Twilight Sparkle, and our people delved deep into harnessing the potential of magic,” Wavecrest said, pride returning to her voice like a burning ember, “We lost much from the war. Too much. You see now why I wish so badly to bring back these glories to my people? Were it not for Scylla and Charybdis’ war, then seapony kind would have brought forth a true Golden Age for not just the oceans, but all the world.”

Applejack’s eyes narrowed sharply, “Easy there, hun. This magic n’ tech may be nice n’ shiny, but yer soundin’ a tad bit like yer Princess’ dream o’ conquest. Don’t ferget she dun goofed on that front alongside her crazy witch o’ a sister.”

Wavecrest met Applejack’s look with equal intensity, “I heard Scylla’s words of regret, the same as you. I hold no delusions of conquest, only of delivering my people back to a time of plenty and security. Nothing more.”

“Please, Applejack, Miss Wavecrest has been nothing to a boon to us on this journey,” said Rarity, “Let us not fault her a certain zeal for the well being of her people and the desire to bring back the clearly impressive knowledge they once possessed. And speaking of which, as awe inspiring as this is Twilight, does this imagery tell us anything of practical use?”

“Just a moment,” Twilight said, her eyes all but soaking in the details, her brain going into overtime to absorb the information before her and to parse out what it all might mean. As fortune might have it, the engineers of the Treasury and it’s hangar had a certain love for user friendliness. On top of that, Twilight already had plenty of experience with Magi-Tech from her own experiments in the field, so much of what she was seeing held a certain familiarity already. Soon, she started to get the overall picture in regards to the ship floating in silent anticipation of its first voyage, centuries in the waiting.

“Alright, from what I can tell the Treasury is fully assembled and equipped for launch,” she said, and she zoomed the image to a cylindrical chamber towards the back end of the vessel’s stern where the “tailfin” connected to the main body, “This is the main engine room, and you see this here? This polyhedron shaped object is a magical power crystal, similar to what we used to power up my portal set up back at the castle. Only this crystal is much larger and connected to an entire network of similar crystals that provide the ship with energy. As far as I can tell, if somepony powers up that main crystal, we’re in business. It just needs raw magic shunted into it, and the whole ship will turn on automatically.”

“Splendid,” Seaspray said, “Then while one of you magically inclined types do that, I can inspect the bridge and work out the controls.”

“Lucky for us the doors are designed for manual opening, even without power,” Twilight pointed out, “So nothing is stopping us from going in. The only issue I see is that this room here-”

She scrolled the image to show a oval shaped room in the belly of the ship, just aft of the bridge’s bubble, “-is labeled as ‘artifact storage’ and has a fully powered vault door. That one we can’t open until I get the power core charged up.”

“Wait,” said Tempest, “What about an exit? We can’t exactly fit this thing through the tunnel we came through.”

“There’s a set of hangar doors on the far end of the bay,” Twilight said, pulling back the map of the ship to reveal it also showed a full schematic of the hangar itself, including a set of giant sliding doors behind the Treasury that led to a vertical exit shaft, “If my guess is right, that shaft leads up to a spot just north of the palace.”

Flash gave a sharp intake of breath, “That’s right in the middle of that huge pile of spiritual hate I’m sensing outside, Twilight.”

“One problem at a time,” Starlight told him, “We can’t worry about dealing with that until we deal with what’s here. Which is getting this ship powered up, getting the rest of our friends together, and quitting this whole city like the worst habit ever.”

“That’s quite right, we can’t leave without the others,” Rarity said, and turned to Applejack, “Why don’t you and I go back to the tunnel entrance. If they come this way, we can at least lead them here.”

“Makes sense ta me. Twilight, ya got any objections?”

Twilight paused for a moment, considering. There was no easy way to signal the other group, but they did know that Twilight’s team was going for the “treasury”, so at least they’d know to search the lower chambers of the palace. She had no intention of going anywhere without them, so if worse came to worst, once the Treasury was fully powered up, she’d leave some of her group to guard it while she went to find the others herself. If she ran into any sahuagin... well, she had magic to spare.

“Go for it,” she said, “Let’s just hope they find their way here.”

----------

“You sure you know where you’re going, dude?” Rainbow Dash asked Ulgriv after what seemed to her like the dozenth random turn amid the various twisting passages of the palace’s lower reaches. The young sahuagin who’d taken the lead of the group turned his oversized head towards her with an exasperated wave of his arms.

“No I am not sure, blue one! I have not been down here before, and only know of the Treasury from rumor! But I am confident it is near. The path I heard of is more or less this way.”

“More or less, he says,” Rainbow Dash sighed, “So far the only good thing about this maze of a palace is that it’s totally thrown off those other fish dudes from chasing us.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Aria said, looking behind them where they had just left a downward spiraling passage. From that direction, Rainbow Dash heard the gurgling whooping war cries of sahuagin warriors.

“Aww man, seriously? I thought we ditched these losers!?”

“Guess we gotta ditch faster Dashie,” said Pinkie Pie, popping up behind Ulgriv with a hoof around his shoulders as she boldly threw her other arm forward, “Quick, follow your nose to the Treasury goodness! I believe in you!”

Ulgriv looked vaguely disturbed by the close contact and pulled Pinkie Pie’s arm off of him as he swam forward down a passage to their left, “This way, I feel the Deep Mistress’ will guiding me down this path.”

“You being for serious or is that just you being weird with that whole fanatical worship stuff again?” asked Dash as the group followed Ulgriv down the left passage. He grimaced at her, wide lips revealing lines of needle teeth as he held the pendant around his neck.

“I cannot commune with the Deep Mistress directly as shaman and blessed chosen champions can, but my... my faith has always been strong. In times of fear, of doubt, I believe I can almost hear Her voice, singing a song of strength and comfort. You should not doubt the Deep Mistress’ power, surfacer.”

“We don’t doubt she’s real, Ulgriv,” said Fluttershy in an uncharacteristically serious tone for her, “We know she is. I understand she must mean a lot to you and your people. But if she’s telling you and your friends to go around hurting people, it makes it hard for us to understand your point of view.”

While still swimming the sahuagin warrior just stared at her in a way one might look at some strange new animal one had never seen before. He opened his mouth to speak, then just closed it and shook his head in confusion, redoubling his effort to swim faster. Rainbow Dash hung back a bit to give Fluttershy a sidelong look.

“I think you just gave the dude a headache. Flutters, I get you’re into the whole making friends scene, and I like poking some fun at this guy. I mean, he’s clearly just a kid. I don’t even think he’s much older than Scootaloo. But he’s one of the bad guys right now, too. Just be careful, ‘kay?”

“I’ll be alright,” Fluttershy replied, “I know that we’re in a lot of danger because of the sahuagin. I won’t let my guard down. Rainbow, I promise. I just...”

“I know, you care. It’s just who you are,” Rainbow Dash smiled and gave her friend a light punch on the shoulder, “Wouldn’t have you otherwise.”

“Hey, is it just me, or are the walls shaking a bit?” asked Sonata suddenly, causing all the others to start looking about while not breaking stride in their headlong swim.

It was possible to feel faint reverberations in the water, and Rainbow Dash did notice tiny bits of debris falling down in streams from the ceiling with regularity.

“What in the world is causing that?” asked Trixie with a nervous gulp, “Is the whole palace shaking?”

“No,” said Aria, focusing for a moment behind them, and Dash figured the siren must be using sonar again, “It’s localized, and right behind us. Growing stronger by the second...”

Aria’s eyes opened wide as she shouted, “Run! Fast!”

She gave no further explanation as she turned, grabbed Sonata by the arm, and all but dragged her sister along in a swift rush down the corridor ahead of them. The reason for this became rapidly evident as the shaking increased in intensity and the warbles of the sahuagin in distant pursuit were drowned out by an incredible loud and horrifically blood chilling howl that tore through the water.

They’d heard that howl a few times before, both on approaching Aqualania and after entering the palace, but the source of it had been a mystery to the group. Not so any longer.

The corridors of the palace had thus far ranged from either large, to auspicious grand, even the smaller passages having breadth of room to allow a sizable group to pass comfortably. Partially this was simply due to the grandiose sense of scale the original architects of the palace had, wishing to make the home of the royal family feel truly larger than life. However in practical terms, the size of the palace and its vast corridors was to accommodate Aqualania’s huge population if a time of crisis ever required they shelter within its walls, hence huge corridors to allow the funneling of thousands of seaponies to safety at once.

Ironic then that the feature meant to allow many to take shelter in safety is what allowed the bulk of an undersea terror to smash and squeeze itself down the corridor with furious abandon. Even the usually cocky Rainbow Dash felt a moment of startled fear at the sight of the oncoming monstrosity, and she had faced dragons before with brazenness.

The creature was at one time in it’s life an adult, male sperm whale. However the mutating magic infused into its body had turned the once noble mammal into a dire parody of itself. Thick and jagged pieces of bone grew from exposed and cracked flesh, forming plates of armor across the whale’s powerful length. It’s battering ram of a head was further enhanced by a sharp spike of bone, like the protruding edge of a mountain cliff. A red glowing seal of magic was branded upon its snout, just beneath the head spike, and the whale’s eyes glowed with a similar baleful light as its mouth opened to exude another howl from between rows of sword-like teeth.

Although the terror beast’s bulk took up much of the corridor, there was enough room for it to move it’s potent tail and propel itself forward, even as it’s sides struck the walls or it’s head clipped the ceiling in it’s jerking movements, which was the cause of the shaking the ponies had earlier felt.

Barely visible behind the whale’s path were the sahuagin, well more than a hundred of them. Leading the warriors was Morgawr, his body still alight with his own magically empowered sigils. Next to him was a shorter sahuagin who wore a shroud of woven bones and carried a wave shaped sacrificial dagger. It was this sahuagin that Rainbow Dash noted appeared to be holding a magical link, like that of a glowing thread of chains, that bound him to the mutated whale.

However, that was about all she could note before fleeing was the only thing she or any of her companions could immediately do.

“Oh the hay with this!” Trixie screamed, “This is officially the last time I ever go on some foal-brained adventure with Twilight bloody Sparkle! At least not without negotiating hazard pay!”

Fluttershy looked positively aghast at the sight of the whale, such a gentle sea creature, clearly abused and tormented by it’s captors. While she fled with the rest of them, Rainbow Dash could see the horror in her friend’s eyes also swiftly growing into hot coals of utter outrage.

“How... how could anyone treat another living creature like that!? This poor whale! I’ll... I’ll...”

“Fluttershy, calm down,” Rainbow Dash urged, knowing that her friend was probably working up to quite the outburst, but until they got into a better position to deal with this threat she couldn’t let Fluttershy fly off the handle. “We’ll deal with this as soon as we find Twilight and the others.”

Fluttershy gnashed her teeth, but gave Dash a pained nod. Rainbow Dash was grateful for small miracles. She knew her friend was a lot stronger than she generally appeared to be, but that whale was probably too mentally chained by magic to guarantee Fluttershy’s Stare would work, and this tight corridor was not the place for a brawl where Dash couldn’t maneuver and make effective use of her speed.

“Ulgy, your buddies are the worst meanies ever, and we’ve met a lot!” Pinkie Pie said, while Ulgriv just gaped at her and at the monstrosity chasing them.

“I’ve never seen a terror beast made from a large kin of that size before,” Ulgriv admitted, “It must have cost shaman Divistis many sacrifices, but Morgawr forbid he make use of any soft kin, so I know not how this terror beast was made.”

“Dude, what are you talking about? Soft kin are seaponies, right?” Dash asked, then something in his words clicked, “Wait, you saying there are seaponies being held down here too!?”

“No,” Ulgriv said as he led the group in a sharp turn down a passage that bent downward and to the right, “I mean, our warbands did capture some soft kin, yes, but they were already moved back home with the translocation sphere. Morgawr insisted any captives be sent ahead first, lest their presence distract us.”

“How many?” asked Fluttershy in such a tone as to make Ulgriv gulp and answer quite swiftly.

“S-some ten or twenty. I was not part of their capture, so had no place in claiming prestige or the honor of guarding them.”

“Why send them on to the Abyss for?” Rainbow Dash asked, giving a glance behind her as she did so. The terror beast was slowly closing the gap with them. Despite it’s bulk, it was able to slide forward in the water at a frightful pace. While the group was swimming as fast as it could, it could only do so at the speed of it’s slowest members, which in this case was Trixie. While in excellent shape for a unicorn, having pulled her caravan all over Equestria and in some cases beyond, she was still lagging behind a bit compared to the others in the group.

If this keeps up, that thing is gonna catch up to us in a matter of minutes, Rainbow Dash realized, considering options even as Ulgriv responded to her question.

“It is the Deep Mistress’ will that any of the soft kin we capture are brought to our home so they might be made to see the truth of her glory and serve the cause,” Ulgriv said, hesitantly. “Often they are put to work in the mines, or mollusk patches. Those that refuse, vanish.”

“Vanish?” Dash pressed, and Ulgriv just nodded.

“It is not known what becomes of them. They go into the Deep Mistress’ rift, and either return to serve willingly, or do not return at all. None know what our holy Mistress does with those who are not seen again.”

“Ominous,” said Sonata, and Aria let out a rough grunt.

“Not as ominous as the damn monster whale biting at our tails! That thing is getting closer!”

“I noticed,” Rainbow Dash said, gritting her teeth and looking ahead. The passage they were in had spun downwards for a bit, then leveled off. And to her frustration, she saw the corridor terminated in a sudden set of doors little more than fifty feet ahead.

“We’re trapped!” Trixie said, closing her eyes, “Dang it Starlight, if it was going to end this way then the Cute and Cuddleable Trixie wanted one last night to show you how she really felt!”

Ignoring that particular statement, Rainbow Dash looked to Fluttershy and shouted, “Flutters, you and me! Hit it dead on with everything we’ve got! The rest of you, don’t slow down! Just follow us!”

Fluttershy gained a flash of resolve in her tightened jaw as she lined up next to Rainbow Dash and the pair plowed forward. Rainbow Dash cranked up her speed to the best she could manage over a short distance, Fluttershy managing to keep pace just behind her. The pink, yellow, and rainbow bolts of speed cut a line through the water that almost sucked their companions along even despite their best efforts to keep up.

Rainbow Dash let out a yell as she smashed into the doors with her whole body, Fluttershy plowing into them right beside her.

----------

If anything the interior of the Treasury was even more impressive than it’s exterior. Every hall within the grand vessel was a marvelously graceful feat of smooth metal panels, lined with lighting crystals carved into diamond shapes at regular intervals along the walls. Twilight had seen into an impressively sized galley that could likely seat scores of crew comfortably, while the quarters she passed by were each large enough and well furnished to equal even the best hotels in Canterlot. She could scarcely imagine how much time it had taken to build the ship, and in so thinking a question popped into her mind.

“Wavecrest, if Charybdis took over Aqualania, how was this ship finished, or even this hangar concealed?”

Beside her, Wavecrest gave the journal she’d taken from Scylla’s room on the Odyssey a touch with a hoof, “Scylla wrote about how much her sister obsessed with her magical studies, and distained Scylla’s reliance on martial prowess and trinkets. Scylla’s personal guard were also loyal beyond compare. I believe your answers lie in those two facts. When the city fell to Charybdis, Scylla’s loyalists may well have holed themselves up in the hangar, behind the sealed doors, and completed the work on their own. I suspect there may have been passages to allow their escape when the job was done. As for Charybdis herself, she likely never thought to look into her sisters ‘treasury’, considering it beneath her.”

“But wouldn’t the sahuagin have an interest in it?” Twilight asked, and Wavecrest made a light scoffing sound.

“Even if they did, they clearly failed to pierce the seal as you and your unicorn companions were able to. Take heart in our good fortune, Twilight Sparkle. You have become an integral part of seapony history today, and while some of your companions may doubt my motives, I give you my word I’ll not soon forget the boon you have uncovered for my people. It is a debt I will repay in due time.”

Twilight smiled briefly, “No need to think of it like that, Wavecrest. We’re in this together. You’ve helped us a lot, too.”

Behind her, Flash Sentry had fallen behind somewhat, and Twilight glanced back at him. Starlight and Tempest Shadow had gone with Admiral Seaspray to find the bridge, while Applejack and Rarity had proceeded back up to the entryway at the tomb chamber, so for now it was just her, Wavecrest, and the Soul Reaper turned pegasus. He still looked a bit pale and wane from the lingering aftereffects of the poison he’d endured, but more than that Flash was wearing a fresh look of distant concern.

“Is it that spiritual presence from the city you’re feeling, still?” she asked, and he shook his head.

“No. I mean, yes, I still sense that... whatever it is. But I’m also sensing another presence, closer. Something inside the palace.”

Twilight couldn’t help but gulp slightly, “How close?”

“Hard to tell, but close enough to make me worry about how split up we all are. With your permission, Twilight, once you get this ship running, I’ll go join Rarity and Applejack. If something nasty shows up, I think they’ll appreciate some backup.”

“You hardly need my permission, Flash,” she said, smiling, “I’m certain I’m safe in here.”

“I know, but a bodyguard has to bodyguard,” Flash said, giving her a smile back, albeit a strained one given the circumstances, “I’ll feel better knowing there’s no surprises waiting for us in here before heading off.”

She could tell he was worried about her, and appreciated the sentiment, even if she was equally worried about him, possibly even more so. It didn’t take much longer for them to reach the engine room, which was at the end of where two curving hallways that ran along either side of the ship ran. The ship was composed of five different decks, and the engine room took up a vertical space filling the back end of three of those decks, accessible by several hatchways, including a primary one that Wavecrest and Twilight pried open with their respective magics. Wavecrest used her staff to control the water currents to pull upon the door while Twilight relied purely on telekinesis, the combination of which had little trouble pulling open the sliding hatch that split down it’s center.

Within, the engine room was essentially a big cylinder with several catwalks surrounding a huge and smoothly polished blue crystal that was housed in a series of bronze and silver rings. Those rings were in turn attached by various pipes and cables to smaller crystal contraptions that were built into the floor and walls, which Twilight understood to essentially be power regulators that would keep the tremendous power of the main engine crystal from overloading the ship’s systems.

A semi-circular observation deck was right beyond the doors and had several monitoring consoles arranged around the end, but the most important feature was a circular protrusion with a podium rising from it. This podium ended in a square cut crystal fixture that was to serve as a fueling point for the engine. Whether it was from already powered up, smaller crystals, or seapony magic, this podium could accept raw power and transfer it to the engine crystal.

“Marvelous,” Wavecrest whispered, looking around the room, then to Twilight Sparkle, “Please, awaken Princess Scylla’s final gift to her people. Bring life to this Treasury, Princess Twilight Sparkle, and let us banish the darkness from Aqualania in the process.”

With a weighty nod, Twilight Sparkle swam forward and carefully laid a hoof upon the crystal podium. She wasn’t entirely certain how much magical power would be needed to charge the engine fully, nor at what speed would be safest to do so, but she was all too keenly aware that every passing second might place ponies she cared about in further danger. For a rare change of pace, Twilight decided not to err on the side of caution.

Her horn, perhaps having grown ever so slightly longer and sharper over the time since she’d become an alicorn, bloomed to brilliant life with a multi-layered aura of violet magical power. She directed a potent, near blinding stream of that power from her horn and into the crystal podium. She felt the heat blossoming in her horn and inside her body as she tapped deep into her wellspring of magic, yanking it forth with the pure will of her emotions. For extra flavor she thought hard of nearly losing Flash, and the danger her friends still remained in, emotion which lent further fuel to the flame of her magic. The magic within responded eagerly, gushing forth in a near endless stream, and she let the crystal in front of her soak it up without reservation or slowing down.

Purple energy burst to life along the podium and the veins of piping that connected it to the rings around the engine’s main crystal. Like sparkling rivers, the energy flowed in ever greater volume, flashing with strobes of near blinding light that forced Wavecrest and Flash Sentry to shield their eyes as the raw magic pouring from the alicorn Princess was greedily soaked up by the Treasury’s engine.

In short order the engine’s crystal itself started to come to life. Coiling arcs of magic ran along the rings surrounding it and then leaped into the crystal itself, which started to spin as it’s many faceted interior began to become painted with a plethora of lights. In less than a minute’s time the crystal spun with a steady hum, and it’s surface went from dull blue to a lustrous and deep azure that twinkled with a seemingly endless star field of violet and purple lights. The hum of the crystal intensified and spread, power seeping into dozens of pipes and conduits as the crystal power regulars also began to buzz to life.

Light filled the engine room, then spread through the whole ship as power flowed through it like blood through the veins of an awakening beast.

Twilight could all but feel the power brimming through the ship, almost as if she had a hoof directly on it’s pulse. The deck gently vibrated with that life and for a moment she almost got the impression the ship itself was truly alive, as if there was a conscious force gazing back at her from the crystal’s depths. The moment passed, but she still felt her power seeping through every pore of the ship’s decks, and instinctively knew that the magic she had just supplied was more than enough for the mighty Treasury to operate at full capacity for quite some time to come.

There was a moment of exhaustion that came when she slowly ceased the flow of magic, and a faint sense of suction as if the crystal still wanted to drink deep of her power, but once she ceased the flow there was no ill effect other than she had to sit on her tail for a moment and catch her breath.

“Whew... that was... intense,” she said, and gave Flash a reassuring hoof wave as he came up to her, “I’m okay, though. Crystal was just really thirsty.”

“Heh, I’ll bet,” he said, “Last time I saw you put out that much magic was that gravity number you did on Trixie.”

“The loud one?” Wavecrest asked, curiously. and Twilight laughed half-heartedly.

“Uh, different Trixie. Long story. But yeah, that was a lot of magic, but I’ll be fine. And looks like the ship is now up and running,” she said, gesturing around at the now fully lit engine room. The entire place glowed softly blue from crystal light fixtures, and was similarly filled with a pleasant hum of power.

“It most certainly is,” Wavecrest said with a pleased look, causing her face to glow bright under the sharp lights of the crystals, “Now we must make haste and find the artifact room.”

“Shouldn’t we check to see how they’re doing on the bridge first?” asked Flash, but Wavecrest waved him off.

“I trust your companions to figure that part out, and if not we’ll join them in due time, but what we may find among the artifacts Princess Scylla gathered here could prove the difference between surviving this day, or calling Aqualania home in a far more permanent fashion than any of us I think would like.”

“Well, if you’re sure-” Twilight began to say, but Flash swam forward, meeting Wavecrest’s gaze directly.

“Wait. Just what do you know, Wavecrest? You’ve been obsessed with these artifacts that Scylla took ever since you started talking about the Treasury, before you even knew it was a ship. What’s there that you’re so damned keen to get your hooves on?”

“Flash, we don’t have to grill her. She’s on our side,” Twilight said.

“Even if she is, I want to know what’s so important about these artifacts. This can’t be just because they’re random magic doo-dads, Twilight. Not if Wavecrest is this insistent about them,” he said, not breaking his gaze with Wavecrest.

The seapony witch met his gaze evenly, without flinching, and he saw a calmness come over her as she seemed to reach a decision, “Very well, Flash Sentry, I shall answer your question. It is not a complex answer. There is indeed something specific I seek. Or rather, my mentor sought it, and passed the legacy of this task to me after her death. There is a legend among seaponies, about the disappearance of the gods we once worshipped. You’ve seen the shrines, the temples. Know then that to us, these gods were real, and when they left this world they left behind... Relics. Relics that contain fragments of their great power. It is believed Princess Scylla found a number of such Relics, including one that contains the power of Domare, Lady Sea herself. It is this Relic I seek, the Mata Le Sami, or ‘Eye of the Sea’ in your tongue.”

Flash scratched his head, his expression easing somewhat but fresh confusion now painting his voice, “Okaaaay, but what makes this ‘relic’ or whatever any more important than another magical item? Do you actually believe it contains that much power?”

“Did you not just hear me say these Relics contain the power of gods, boy?” Wavecrest said, and Flash let out a short breath, shaking his head.

“I heard you, but what I mean is what makes you think that isn’t anything more than just another legend? What do you expect to be able to do with this Eye of the Sea that makes getting to it so important?”

It was Wavecrest’s turn to shake her head, looking away from him with a frustrated mutter, “I could do little with it, for I lack the means to access its power. But with it I can then search for the one true heir to Seaquestria’s throne. With it I can find the one who inherited Scylla’s bloodline.”

“There’s an heir?” Twilight asked, suddenly interested, and Wavecrest turned away from both her and Flash and began to swim out of the engine room.

“It was just a rumor, but one I and my mentor believed. That before the war, Princess Scylla had a tryst with one of her guards, and the offspring of that tryst were kept hidden from the Queen. It is also believed that the very same guard who sired the heir was tasked with protecting the child and taking them from Aqualania before it fell. In theory, that means the royal bloodline may have continued to the modern day. But there is no way to prove that, save perhaps the legend that the Eye of the Sea will respond to one of royal blood as an ‘Inheritor’.”

“So you need the Eye to find a new ruler for the seaponies,” Twilight said, finally understanding things. “Somepony who can unite all the seapony tribes and reforge Seaquestria into one nation?”

“Yes,” Wavecrest said, “That is what I’ve worked towards, and now that it is so close to my grasp I hope you can understand how I’m eager to see it done. Now, are there more questions, or can we go to the artifact chamber?”

“Alright,” Flash said, “I’m satisfied. Sorry to give you the third degree there.”

“It is as nothing. Let us be quick. If nothing else, I agree with you for the need of haste.”

----------

The doors into the tomb broke open with a resounding clamor of sound, causing Rarity and Applejack both to wheel about, startled. To their shock, and monetary relief, they saw Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were the ones who had broken through the doors, and that right behind the pair came the rest of their errant companions. Including Sonata and Aria!

“Well smack my hide n’ call me a bowl o’ punch if they didn’t just come right to us,” said Applejack with a grin. “An’ here we was wondeirn’ if ya’ll were gonna be alright!”

“RUN! GIANT EVIL WHALE!” screeched Trixie, causing Rarity and Applejack to glance at each other all of two seconds before the already burst open doors proceeded to explode from their hinges, along with a sizeable chunk of the wall all around them. From a billowing cloud of smoky debris emerged the gargantuan terror beast, it’s distended jaws shaking the waters with a fresh howl.

As it lumbered it’s bulky body into the expansive tomb area, the whale was followed by the sahuagin in their multitudes, including Morgawr who gave out a bellowing shout, “Come forth, surface dwellers! You cannot flee forever! I can sense where my trident is and will follow you until the end of the seas themselves!”

Rarity blinked, then deadpanned, “Applejack, do you suppose he means the trident Tempest is carrying around?”

“What’dya think, Rares!?” Applejack said, adjusting her stetson and shouting to the others, “This way everypony n’ siren! Git yer keisters down this tunnel here, pronto!”

She then looked to Rarity, “Make sure they all go, sugarcube, n’ don’t wait up fer me!”

“Huh!?” at Rarity’s questioning look, Applejack just licked her lips and rubbed her hooves together before giving her tail a powerful thrust and shot off like a bottlenose dolphin, moving in a direct charge right at the oncoming terror beast.

Rainbow Dash saw Applejack swimming past her like an orange bolt, and let out a frustrated growl as she said to Fluttershy, “Keep going!”

Her hooves were pretty sore from smashing through those doors, but she’d taken worse impacts from plenty of crashes during training. She certainly had no hesitation in spinning about to join Applejack in charging at the whale, despite how completely and utterly the beast out massed them.

Still, earth pony strength and pegasus speed was not to be wholly underestimated, and Applejack had dealt with plenty of beasts much larger than herself. Being underwater meant she didn’t quite have the physical leverage she was used to, and her extremely potent hind-hooves were replaced by a big fish tail. However that one big fish tail hanging behind her held the combined strength of her hind legs she’d used to crack stone or shake mighty trees with equal measure, and she knew usually where to hit for best effect.

Rainbow Dash wasn't much different. Although not as strong as Applejack, she knew how to land an impact, whether for demolition purposes or controlling powerful weather patterns. Things were different underwater. She wasn’t sure she could create a tornado like she normally would, and lightning seemed like a fundamentally bad idea while surrounded by water, but with her aquatic form maybe she could make a water funnel?

She coordinated with Applejack so they hit the terror beast at roughly the same time, Applejack turning hard to the left to avoid the beast’s head, which rammed towards her but just barely missed to instead create a giant crater in the ground. She then spun with her tail and hit the creature in the eye with all her might. Her blow didn’t cause as much of an impact as she’d like, but she still felt the beast rock back a bit as it’s eye closed and it bellowed a high pitched roar of rage.

At the same time Rainbow Dash swam in a horizontal cone pattern, spreading her wings and trying to control the water around her the same way she might the clouds in the sky. It wasn’t quite as intuitive as the weather control she could manage as a pegasus, but she felt the water responding to her just enough to start forming a whirlpool of sharp currents that she then sent like a battering ram towards the sahuagin that had come in behind the terror beast.

Morgawr crossed his arms and took the brunt of the whirlpool current head on, grunting as his body shook from the blow. Sahuagin around him were scattered by the dispersing current, a few sent careening into the walls of the tomb, while most others were just left floating dizzily around.

From behind Morgawr, a sauhaguin rose with his shroud of bones rattling. The shaman Divistus cut his arm with his sacrificial knife and gurgled out an unholy chant. Darkness swirled up his arm like living tentacles, then formed in swirls of red and black energy to become a pulsating ball of magic covered in spikes like a twisted sea urchin. He hurled the sphere at Rainbow Dash, who saw the incoming attack of unnatural magic and zipped away. However the sphere burst and sent a shower of deadly black spikes flying everywhere, and while Dash was fast enough to still evade the storm, one of the spikes struck Applejack’s left arm.

The farm mare let out a sharp yell of pain, yanking the spike out with her other hoof and throwing it away, which in turn dissipated. A bleeding hole was left in her arm, but Applejack grit her teeth through the pain and made a dodging dive as the terror beast freed it’s head from the crater it made in the floor and tried to snap the mare out of the water in its jaws. She sent a reprisal smack of her tail at the beast’s jaw, but that barely phased it. However, Applejack just used the momentum of the blow to send her swimming even faster back towards the tunnel towards the Treasury.

By now most of the others had reached the tunnel and swam down. Rarity had given Ulgriv a very confused look for a moment, but Pinkie Pie had just waved her friend off. Ulgriv himself had given the terror beast and Morgawr a confused look, as if still not sure what to do himself. His plan to lead the surfacers to the traps of the tomb was now useless, for the tomb was compromised the fabled ‘Treasury’ now accessible. Yet he couldn’t go back to join his people, for he’d surely be killed, as he’d now effectively led the surfacers right to the Treasury, making it look even more like he was in league with them.

The young sahuagin warrior could only clutch at his pendant to the Deep Mistress and pray for some other chance to redeem himself in his people’s eyes in the future. At least as long as he stayed close to the surfacers, perhaps he’d find some way to sabotage their plans? Regardless, he could only follow them into the tunnel, leaving Rarity and oddly Trixie as the only pair behind.

“Miss Trixie, you should be running, no?” said Rarity, but the showmare, breathing heavily, had a very odd look on her face.

She looked terrified, yet her dilated eyes also had a fierce hint of rage in them now, too, as her ragged breaths came in and out in a growing mad cackle.

“Hahahah! Oh no! The Infuriated and Vengeful Trixie has had it up to here with these stupid, annoying, insufferable FISH! Trixie is tired! Trixie is scared! And Trixie is pissed off!”

Trixie spun around and tore off her hat, allowing her horn to blaze bright in full view as she dredged up the full measure of her own magic, which while not on par with the likes of Twilight Sparkle or Starlight Glimmer, was still rather impressive given she was a pony whose innate talents did lie firmly within the arcane realm.

In an instant, a brilliant and booming barrage of score upon score of explosive firework spells launched themselves out of Trixie’s horn. An extravaganza of blinding, dazzling flashes of sound and light exploded all across the tomb in bursts of purple, green, blue, and white, taking the shapes of stars, wands, flowers, birds, and even giant winking Trixie heads.

None of it was actually damaging to the sahuagin or the terror beast, as it was essentially just harmless firework magic. Yet the blinding light and massive concussions of sound, amplified by the water, was beyond confusing and deafening to the dwellers of the Abyss. For a moment the entire army of sahuagin were held up, rubbing at their eyes or clutching at their ears as Trixie’s firework display hammered their senses.

The terror beast roared and flailed about at random, crushing some dozen unfortunate sahuagin too close and too stunned to get out of the way.

This bought Rainbow Dash time to grab the wounded Applejack and make a bee-line for the tunnel. As they flew by, Rarity gripped Trixie, who was now all but spent.

“Truly magnificent, darling, now let’s go before they recover!”

“Heh...heh... like to see Twilight Sparkle... pull that off... ‘third rate’ my beautiful blue butt!” the exhausted Trixie said as she let herself get dragged down into the tunnel.

----------

Twilight just barely managed to keep the sneeze down as she got the particular feeling that somepony was talking about her behind her back. However she swiftly set that aside to turn her full attention to the impressively thick door that barred the way into the Treasury’s artifact storage chamber. Located in the center belly of the ship on its fifth and lowest deck, it was clear Scylla certainly considered security a high factor, given one had to pass two different sets of gates before even reaching the robust metal hatch that was presently before her and Wavecrest. Flash had departed to go check on the others in the tomb, and Twilight was already missing his presence, despite having told him he was fine to go. Well, she hoped nothing serious was happening up top yet and even hoped the other group of her friends had arrived safely with Aria and Sonata.

At any rate, despite the security measures, the gates hadn’t actually been locked by the last workers who had finished the ship. Presumably the artifact room might have been more thoroughly secured before the Treasury’s maiden voyage, but that had not come to pass. That said, the actual main hatch itself was closed, and to open it required some control of the ship’s systems.

“We’ve more or less gotten matters figured out up here,” said Admiral Seaspray’s voice from a brass box fitted with a circular crystal mounted in the wall next to the door. It hadn’t taken them long to realize that these devices were for communication ship-wide, a far more advanced version of the brass tubes that had been used on the Odyssey. With them Twilight had contacted those on the bridge and learned that Seaspray, Starlight, and Tempest had swiftly been able to work out the ship controls once the power had come on.

“So you can open the door before us?” Wavecrest said, and Seaspray paused a moment. Twilight heard a few clicking noises, as if Seaspray was fiddling with something in front of him.

“Yes...” he said, “Yes I think so. Good thing I saw the good Princess Sparkle operate that device in the hangar control room. This works quite similarly. Let’s see, if we’re here, then you must be the blip down there... aha! Here we are, ladies. I touch this button here and that should do it!”

Twilight and Wavecrest waited. After a few seconds Wavecrest cleared her throat loudly and said, “Nothing is happening.”

Seaspray, a bit more flustered said, “Apologies, perhaps this button instead? Or maybe this one here? I do think I need to hit these in some particular order. Oh bugger all, what if I hit them all at once?”

“That might not be the best idea, Admiral,” Twilight said, but despite expecting any number of traps or other unpleasant surprises to spring out at her and Wavecrest due to Seaspray’s fiddling, to her infinite relief there was a magical hum from the circular hatch in front of them and it began to slide open. “Oh, never mind Admiral, it looks like you did it.”

“Hah, of course I did! I am a most experienced man of the sea, after all-ooff!”

The sound of Seaspray being bumped aside was then followed by Starlight’s voice, “You’ve got the artifact room open? Great! I’ll be down there in a sec. No way I’m missing this. Hey Tempest, you got things here?”

“Why are you asking her?” Seaspray asked just as Tempest answered, “Yeah, I’ll make sure nothing explodes that we don’t want exploded.”

“Alright then, see you in a bit, Twilight. Don’t hog all the incredible magical artifacts to yourself.”

Twilight’s eyebrow could only crawl upwards at the exchange, but she soon focused forward and glanced at Wavecrest, “Shall we?”

Wavecrest gave a subdued nod, eyes wide as the pair swam into the room ahead.

It was brightly lit, lines of crystals along the ceiling bathing all in a stark white light. Twilight was immediately taken in by a sense of being surrounded by multiple magical auras, as if each item in sight contained some manner of hidden arcane might behind a veil of mundane form. Although ‘mundane’ might not truly be applicable to all that she saw.

For a change, things were orderly, in contrast to the way Scylla had seemed to keep other elements of her life. The chamber was a smooth oval about fifty feet long and half that across, it’s two curved walls lined with shelf after metal shelf upon which numerous objects of all shape, size, and apparent function were set in either contained display cases or secured upon racks. A long central display row filled the center of the room, akin to such that Twilight had seen in some museums, with spaces separated out for further items laying upon smooth wood depressions.

She saw weapons of every variety, some quite ornate, while others seemed almost normal and humble. Pieces of armor or entire sets, some clearly fitted for species besides ponies or seaponies, shone in metal glory or in beautifully detailed leather splendor. Twilight spied several shields as well, of all shapes and sizes. Armament aside, there were all manner of more esoteric or common looking objects. In short order Twilight saw everything from an ornate lantern hanging from an iron pole carved with the head of a dragon to a seemingly plain leather backpack, but stained green and bearing a strange leaf motif. One shelf had a porcelain doll sitting upon it, a doll of a minotaur of all things, bearing a brass drum. Another shelf had a statuette of a feline creature with two tails, carved from what Twilight thought might be jade. Every shelf and display case was filled with such, and as Twilight and Wavecrest went deeper into the room it became obvious that it’d take some time to even begin figuring out what any of the items might be.

Of course Wavecrest was here for something specific, and searched about with a haste akin to a breathless mother looking for a lost child. Twilight had no idea what the Eye of the Sea might look like, so could not immediately help Wavecrest, and before she could think to ask the seapony what the Relic’s appearance might be she was suddenly struck by a most unusual sensation.

Twilight found herself drawn to the right side of the room, towards the back of it, without even thinking about it. Before she realized what she was doing, she was reaching out towards a vertical wooden case set up with a glass front to display its contents. She blinked, not even sure why she’d suddenly come straight to this particular case, and inside her was this most strange desire. It wasn’t anything so palpable or obtrusive as a charm spell, but rather just an instinctive sense that what lay within this particular case was... important?

She reached out a hoof to touch the glass, gazing upon what was within. Again, as if her body was operating separately from herself, she found herself pulling the case open, which was not locked and was only held shut but a simple latch. Carefully she reached in and drew forth the item within, her hoof touching it’s cool metal with a sensation that was so familiar, yet somehow so very foreign.

She’d never once held a weapon in her life, so it was doubly peculiar to her that this one almost rested naturally in her hooves.

It was a mace. She knew this only because studying some degree of weapon knowledge had been a natural part of her curiosity when her brother had joined the Royal Guard. It was not remarkably ornate, but she wasn’t certain what kind of metal it was made out of. It had a white hue, not silver but actual white like polished bone. It clearly wasn't bone, however, due to the heft, and the metallic glint of the grooved mace head. A purple colored jewel capped the top of the made, and it’s handle was wrapped in a thick gray cloth until it ended in a pommel shaped like a small pyramid.

It had a worn look, as if it wore the weight of many ages. The mace was heavy, yet Twilight felt like she could lift it with little trouble.

And as much as she thought to simply put the weapon down, she found something deep inside her that was dismissive of the very notion. Because whether she could understand it or not, she simply somehow knew that this object was hers.

----------

Over a thousand miles away from Twilight Sparkle’s location, Princess Celestia, who was in the middle of leaving a meeting from the throne room of Canterlot Palace, halted in place.

She felt the momentary burst of resonance from the Relic she had near her person, hidden in a magical pocket space. She didn’t think she’d feel it if it was from an Inheritor who was less closely tied to herself, and even then the faint taste of the magic from the resonance was clear enough to the mare who’d spent so much time teaching young Twilight Sparkle.

With neither fear, regret, nor elation, Princess Celestia lowered her head and let out a tired breath.

Episode 146: Relics

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Episode 146: Relics

It’s fury far from spent, the enormous terror beast hurled itself against the wall of the old tomb, the crash of thunder echoing in a dull roar through the chamber. Morgawr looked upon the fifty ton beast with a displeased twist of his wide lips, then he shot an impassioned glance of anger towards the creature’s creator.

“You try my patience, Divistus. Did I not forbid you from further sacrifices until we returned to the Abyss? Where were you hiding the prisoners to create this beast?”

The shaman turned a look of perfectly mixed placation and mocking towards Morgawr as he made an exaggerated bow, “Pray forgive me, warleader, but I touched not a single throat of a soft skin for this working of the Mistress’ will. Only a few spare sharks that none would miss.”

Morgawr made a threatening gurgle deep in his throat, “Without seeking my approval first, I see. I should gut you for such overreaching. Just because your master is gone you seem to think you have leeway to do as you please.”

“Is this the time for such bickering, warleader?” Divistus asked, gesturing to where the terror beast floated in front of the open hole in the wall where the surfacers had fled, “Do we not have a greater concern at the moment?”

“Hmph, yes, but do not think this over between us. Now call your howling beast off, it is wasting it’s time trying to break through that wall,” Morgawr commanded, and Divisted made another exaggerated bow that made Morgawr desire to rip the shaman’s throat out with his teeth. Divistus gestured towards the terror beast, a line of black and red magic forming like a chain between him and the symbol carved onto the whale’s head. The creature stilled, and slowly swam around to clear the way to the hole.

Morgawr ordered his remaining warriors to form up around him, and he gave the gathering a dismal look. He’d come through the translocation sphere to Aqualania with a legion of a thousand. While casualties were to be expected, and the losses at Mt. Aris had troubled him not, he realized he was now down to half the total strength of the forces he’d arrived with.

Had he underestimated the surfacers? In truth, he knew some of the surfacer races were strong, yet he’d not expected them to prove so problematic. Their magic wielders were fierce and versatile, while even the physically inclined ones were not so easily dispatched. The terror beast alone should have guaranteed their demise, yet it had been halted in its tracks by just one surfacer, while the other had scattered his warriors readily.

He banished the troubling thoughts. It was simply a matter of bad fortune and the surfacers taking his forces by surprise, he surmised. Once he had them cornered and there was no more running, no more tricks to play, it would be a different matter, he assured himself. He could feel the power of the Deep Mistress still surging through his body. Surely it would not fail him once he could properly bring it to bear against his foes.

“Divistus,” he said, “Your beast will do us no good now, so you and it return to the courtyard and secure it against any further incursion. Send whatever remaining warriors you find down here when you do. And finish prepping the translocation sphere. I do not intend to remain here once we deal with the surfacers and recapture the ancient kin.”

“As you command... warleader,” the shaman said, and swam up to ride upon the head of his terror beast as it swam out of the tomb chamber.

With that, Morgawr led his remaining warriors down through the hole in pursuit of his quarry.

----------

Flash Sentry reached the hangar bay’s control room just in time to nearly get bowled over by a streak of pink he almost didn’t see coming.

“Whoa, Pinkie!? Watch it, you could take a guy’s head off, moving like that,” he said, then turned as he saw not only Pinkie Pie emerge from the tunnel entrance, but Aria and Sonata, Fluttershy alongside a shark of all things, and a sahuagin!?

He already had his Zanpaktou drawn, but even as he readied it Fluttershy swam in front of him and laid a hoof on his own.

“Don’t,” she said, “His name is Ulgriv, and he’s, um... well not exactly on our ‘side’ at the moment, but he’s kind of not with the others right now either.”

“Okay, that’s supremely unhelpful, Fluttershy,” Flash said, not taking his eyes off of this ‘Ulgriv’, who was nervously floating back from him while the sahuagin’s eyes turned even more wide and bulbous as he took in the now brightly lit hangar and equally lit up underwater battleship.

Indeed the ship had drawn attention from the others as well, Aria sucking in a breath and saying, “Well hot damn, now there’s a ride out if I’ve ever seen one.”

“It’s so shiny!” Sonata said, “Oh tell me we get to keep it!”

Pinkie Pie, her own eyes sparkling at the sight of the Treasury, clapped Sonata on the back, “You know it, sister! We’re at the part of the game where the party gets it’s airship, only ours is a seaship, and probably also an airship too! I can’t wait to hear it’s launch theme!”

“I don’t know what you mean, but same,” replied Sonata.

Meanwhile Flash was still giving Ulgriv a harsh glare, but he did manage a questioning glance at Fluttershy, “Where’s everypony el-”

“Comin’ through ya’ll!”

Applejack swam into the control room with Rainbow Dash at her side, Rarity right behind them, and a heavily breathing Trixie bringing up the rear. Flash immediately noticed that Applejack’s arm was injured and went to check on her.

“You alright? What happened up there?” he asked, and Applejack waved him off.

“My arm’s fine, just a’ teensy bug bite from some o’ that ugly as sin fish magic. A whole army o’ the buggers are up there, probably comin’ after us right this second.”

“With a big, crazy mutant whale!” Rainbow Dash said, “It was kind of awesome, but freaky as all get out! But Applejack punched it, so it didn’t eat any of us. Also, I'm pretty sure it can’t fit down the hole to get here.”

“While true, that still means we have a small army of angry fish people coming after us,” Rarity said, “I do hope Twilight and the others have worked out how to operate the Treasury.”

“Trixie is confused,” said the showmare, “That is not a pile of gold, jewels, or artifacts. Also is that a dead body laying there!?”

“Relax Trixie, it’s not gonna hurt you,” Rainbow Dash said, then her ears flicked as the distant sound of sahuagin war cries echoed out of the tunnel, “And that’s also our cue to keep moving, folks! All aboard the spiffy submarine airship thingie!”

“Hold on,” Flash said, approaching the tunnel entrance, “This will only take a few seconds.”

He inverted his Zanpaktou in his grip and held up his other hoof in as close an approximation of the hand gesture he was supposed to use as he could manage. With a deep breath he calmed himself and focused his reiatsu as he started to chant.

”Burn solid to hardened perfection

Still the flow of the earthen stream

Breath halts, skies dim, snow falls

Sleep now in a cradle of bedrock.”

“Bakudo Number Forty Seven: Dorogame Koro!” (Mud Turtle Shell)

Upon invoking his incantation, five translucent yellow talismans appeared in the air before him, like paper slips etched in light, each engraved with one kanji symbol representing the elements of fire, earth, water, air, and wood. The talisman of light then shot out and arranged themselves in a wide circular pattern around the mouth of the tunnel, sealing themselves to the wall. From there, the talisman glowed brighter and erected circular bands of light that acted as the foundation for a barrier that had a vague resemblance to that of a turtle's shell, blocking the way.

“Nice,” said Rainbow Dash, “Think that’ll hold ‘em off?”

“Probably not for long,” Flash said, his expression growing more pensive as he focused his spiritual senses outward, “You said something about a mutant whale?”

“Uh-huh, big feller,” said Applejack, stretching her legs, “Gave the bugger a solid tail whack, which he didn’t seem ta like none, but he was more solid than a boulder or stubborn oak. Good thing he was pretty dang slow, too.”

“There was also this big fish dude with glowing tattoos,” said Dash, shrugging, “He didn’t seem too tough to me, but definitely the guy in charge. Also was another who looked like a total creepazoid with all these bones on him, and he flung around some more of that freaky magic we saw on Mt. Aris.”

“Hmm...” Flash listened while picking out what he could with his senses of what was coming towards them, and further beyond. While he still sensed the unpleasant mass of reiatsu outside the palace, he could now get a clearer read on other spiritual signatures. There were two moving away, one that pulsed unsteadily but strongly, like an irregular heartbeat, and another that felt fuzzier, somehow darker. Then there was a third rapidly approaching, pulsating with a stronger fervor than the other two. However it was difficult to gauge just how strong the reiatsu was, as it was blanketed by the buzz of magic as well.

Still, this is stronger than what most Lieutenant’s give off. Why didn’t I sense any of this earlier? It must have something to do with the magic the sahuagin are using.

“I don’t know how long this Kido will last,” he said, “Might only be minutes.”

“Then let’s stop gabbing and move,” said Aria, “Even if there isn’t a way out of here, that ship has to have weapons on it, and I am not letting me or my sister get captured again without a fight!”

“No objections from us,” said Rarity, “I’m quite tired of running away myself. If we’re to make a stand here, let us reunite our forces and present a proper front to our ungracious hosts.”

----------

Twilight shook her head, unable to quite banish the strange thoughts of familiarity with the mace in her hooves, but equally unsure of what to do about it other than to temporarily set the weapon back on the shelf containing the case she’d taken it from. She wasn’t even sure what possessed her to pick it up in the first place.

“Hey Wavecrest, have you found the Eye yet?” she asked, turning to regard the seapony, who herself was carefully going over each shelf and display case one at a time with a look of growing frustration etched on her features.

“No,” Wavecrest said, that one word carrying a mountain’s worth of anxiety in it, “But it must be here.”

Swimming forward to join Wavecrest, Twilight asked, “Are you certain you know what it looks like?”

“Yes! Well, I mean... mostly,” Wavecrest admitted, doubt creeping into her worried look as she pulled out her mentor’s journal once more, and flipped to a page to show to Twilight. On the page was a depiction of a large, beautiful seapony mare who’s mane flowed like waves, and who cradled a shining orb between her hooves, “The depictions of Domare all show the same thing. A great orb of light. Some accounts suggest a ball of crystal, while others something of metal or even coral, but all agree upon the shape of an orb. I.. I imagined I’d know it when I saw it. How could such an artifact not stand out?”

Twilight adopted an understanding expression, reaching out a hoof to instinctively comfort the other mare, “Some objects can have an exaggerated form in historical accounts, but if we keep-...huh?”

She’d reached out to pat Wavecrest on the shoulder, but drew up short as in her hoof was the mace. She blinked at it, while Wavecrest gave her an odd look.

“How did that-? But I put it...?” Twilight looked back at the shelf, the mace already gone from there and clearly the same one that was in her hoof. But she hadn’t picked it up again, had she?

“Are you well, Princess Twilight?” Wavecrest asked, “And just what is that you’ve found?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight replied, “I just found it in that case over there. I set it down, but I guess I must have picked it up again without thinking. Um, a-at any rate, about the Eye, if we keep looking I imagine we’ll find it. It just might not look like you imagine, you know? Maybe something smaller, easier to overlook?”

While tension still made the seapony mare’s motions stiff, she gave Twilight a shallow nod of acceptance and said, “You are likely right. I merely need to take my time. Would that we have time to spare.”

“As long as we escape from here with everypony alive, we’ll have all the time we need to search more thoroughly,” Twilight said, “In the meantime, we can give this room one more solid look, but then I think we should go to the bridge and...”

It was like someone opened up a drain plug inside her. Her eyes drooped and her body abruptly felt leaden. As her vision dimmed, she thought she saw something appear alongside the head of the mace in her hoof, a symbol that briefly glistened with the image of a binding chain wrapped in a helix pattern, the color of amethyst.

Then everything flashed in and out and she found herself-

----------

-standing on the precipice of the Rainbow Bridge, it’s countless colors merged into an endless roadway that bound every portion of the world’s many enclaves upon the ocean of magic that separated the Two Realms.

Astra shook her head, trying to get her thoughts back together. For a moment she thought she was someone else? Twilight...something...?

“Astra, you losing your head in the clouds again?” said a familiar jovial and joking voice behind her, and Astra turned to look at her approaching companion.

“No more than usual, Tachys,” she said, warmly embracing her hooves around her friend as he flew in for one of his iconic tackle-hugs. His silver armor grated against the fine white robes she wore around her equine frame, but she was sturdy by the standards of one aligned with the Dominion of Knowledge, rather than War.

Tachys on the other hoof certainly showed his orientation in every bit of lean muscle, sleek and cutting as a storm born gust of wind, his coat a brilliant blue hue that contrasted with her dark purple. Indeed she often figured she was his opposite in every way. Yet they got along, for a wonder.

“The others not here yet?” Tachys asked, pulling off his helmet to let a rainbow colored mane fly loose, “I came right from the front. Figured I’d be last to arrive”

“With your speed?” she asked, quirking an eyebrow up, her mane of void black, sprinkled with violet stardust, rising in query with it, “I scarce imagine you ever being anything other than first. At least I live here, and even then I sometimes think you’d beat me to a meeting in my own home.”

He gave a great belly laugh, clutching his side, “Hahaha! This is why I like you, Astra! You’re nowhere near as stuffy as others of your Dominion.”

“I believe I very much have my friends to thank for that,” Astra said with a smile, but soon her expression turned serious as she looked Tachys over, noting a few more errant scars on his otherwise pristine form that had not been there the last she’d seen him, “How are things out there?”

His own jovial looks faded somewhat, golden eyes downcast, “Worsening. Oh, the Preservers gain no ground, but neither can our Reformists dislodge them from the Mortal Realm. Every day new bastions rise, and more mortals spend their souls in worship at Preserver churches. We have our own faithful, true, but the reserves of our own magic drain a bit more with every passing cycle. Unless something drastic happens soon, I’m concerned with how this will end.”

“A fear those of my Dominion share,” Astra replied, the curled spindle of a horn upon her brow gleaming with radiant mana to produce a large tome bound in plates of silver, which she opened to the latest page of complex chiseled graphs within, “My research, er, our research shows what we Reformists have long suspected. The Mortal Realm is not a limitless source of souls, but rather a natural resting ground for our own spiritual makeup upon a gods’ passing. By absorbing magic from mortal worship, we’re draining that ground, preventing a natural cycle of rebirth for souls on either side of the divide. It has to stop.”

“The Preservers won’t hear any of it,” Tachys snapped, sparks of elemental wind and lightning coursing over his armor and spilling from his eyes for a moment as he looked up at the sky above as if to ask it for answers, “No matter how much evidence they’re shown they have made it clear they will fight any change, any breath of doing things differently.”

“But they must! If things do not change, both the Mortal and Divine Realms are at risk. If things continue as they are, we won’t have any good options to fix the damage we’re doing!” It was hard for Astra to not show her own frustration visibly from the churning magic inside her body, both horns and wings spilling an aura of umbra radiance as she needed a moment to take hold of her own emotions. A few passers-by, either minor alicorns like themselves or mortal servitor spirits, gave the pair wary looks and a wide berth as they finished crossing the Rainbow Bridge into the streets of the bastion city. Tachys seemed to realize they were making a scene and coughed, shaking his wings and using his own horn to gesture down a side street that ran along the Bastion’s vast circumference, where the wall dropped off into the sea of clouds and churning magic below.

“Let’s talk of better things, Astra, before either of us blow our tops and scare the locals.”

Astra turned redder than a polished ruby, partially hiding her face with a wing as she got her magic back under control. “Good idea. Although let’s not stray too far from the bridge until the others arrive.”

“Of course not. Doubt we could miss spotting any of them anyway. Althea couldn’t hide if she wanted to.”

“Don’t make fun of her size. She’s sensitive about it.”

“What? I didn’t say I didn’t like it. Just, uh, don’t tell her that...”

Twilight didn’t comprehend, and the voices, the images, all of it was blurring together like the reflection upon a lake being disturbed by a ripple. The sense of being in a another body, the sight of a vast city of glittering silver and gold spires perched atop a mountain floating in a sky, connected to other such places by an ever splitting road of rainbows... the deep fear and tension underlying the feeling of a war unseen, a catastrophe looming, and the knowledge that there may be no avoiding what was to come.

All of it faded, even as Twilight was still left clinging to a sense of personal identity that felt as fluid as water. Who was Astra? What were Dominions? Preservers? Reformists? What had-

----------

-happened?

Twilight groaned, feeling dizzy and sick. She felt gentle hooves touching her back as Wavecrest looked at her, floating nearby with wary concern, “Are you well, Princess? You clutched your head for a moment, and it looked as if you were about to faint.”

“I... I don’t know,” she said, trying to scrape together whatever bits of memory remained intact of what she’d experienced. She knew that couldn’t have just been a dream. There was certainly a small chance that exhaustion was catching up to her and she’d simply fainted, but she wasn’t so foolish as to just discount it as that. She looked at the mace, still weakly clutched in her right hoof. Already the memories of the vision were becoming like motes of mist in her mind, but she still clung to a few things. The name ‘Astra’, and something concerning a ‘Mortal Realm’, alongside a war.

It rather reminded her of the circumstances facing Sunset and her human friends in the other world. Had... had similar events taken place in Equestria as well? But if they had, was there no record of them? Considering this, she carefully tucked the mace into the saddlebag she wore. Whatever it was, it seemed obvious she couldn’t just set it aside, but neither was she comfortable just using it, either. She would need to carefully study the artifact and discern its properties when time allowed.

“I’m alright,” she told a still worried looking Wavecrest, “The mace has some kind of magic on it, but I think it’s fine for now.”

“I am not convinced,” Wavecrest said, “But you’re an adult, so I’ll not admonish you like one of my children. Besides, it is not as if I have much room to talk, given my interest in the Eye.”

Mention of the Eye again made Twilight think of something Wavecrest had said before, “Hey, I’m curious, you said earlier that the Eye is a Relic left behind when the ‘gods’ left this world. Does seapony mythology mention exactly why the gods left? What exactly happened?”

A pause came over Wavecrest, followed by a curious and measuring look at Twilight, then at the saddlebag with the mace’s handle poking out of it. “Stories vary. That said, most of them do speak of a terrible conflict that arose between the gods. The myths do not all agree on the cause of the war, but that there were two sides split between preserving the world, or remaking it anew.”

Preservers. Reformists. Twilight fought down a shudder and gulped, “Do the myths say which side won?”

“Ah, on that, most myths agree,” Wavecrest said, an ominous twist to her lips forming as she answered, “...Neither. The destruction was so great, so terrible, that the gods wept for the world and chose to leave it. That is why, at least according to our myths, that the world is filled with so many different species of mortals, left scattered and without unity by the gods that abandoned them.”

“Well ain’t that a right depressin’ story?”

Twilight whirled about to see that the doorway to the artifact chamber was now filled with the familiar faces of her friends, Flash Sentry floating right behind them alongside the larger forms of the sirens Aria and Sonata looming over the heads of the rest. Applejack, who’d spoken, was cradling a freshly bandaged leg as she swam in, “What’s got you two historians talkin’ ‘bout gods now?”

“Oh, um, well,” Twilight wasn’t quite sure how to explain what had just happened to her that triggered her interest in questioning Wavecrest, but at the same time she wasn’t sure she wanted to try and explain it right then and there, “C-curiosity.”

“Twilight being curious must mean it’s a day that ends in ‘day’, hehehe!” Pinkie Pie giggled as she bounce on into the room alongside the others, almost immediately stretching her leg out in a random direction to grab an object off a shelf, which turned out to be an intricately carved wooden lute lined with what appeared to be metal studs of iron, “On that note, this place has got some neat thingamajigs in it! I used to play lute for the Rock Valley Rock Farmers Rock n’ Roll Festival, but never did actually win anything. Now Limestone? She really knows how to handle a banjo if you know what I mean!”

“Nopony knows what you mean Pinkie, but we’ve learned to roll with it,” Rainbow Dash said, “Why would you even play lute or banjo at a rock n’ roll festival anyway?”

“They were electric!”

“And thank you for proving my point,” Dash said, casually backstroking over the display cases, eyes gradually lighting up, “But all that aside, this stuff all looks pretty spiffy. So Twi, which one of these things is the magical doo-dad that’s got the most juice in it? At least tell me there’s like a super arcane bomb or something in here we can use to just blast our way out of this mess?”

“Considerin’ we’re underground, Dash, I ain’t thinkin’ explosions is what we want,” Applejack replied dryly, “But with a’ whole mess o’ stinkin’ death guppies knockin’ on the door, if there’s anythin’ in here we can use ta fight, that’d be fine by me.”

“The sahuagin are here?” Wavecrest said, scowling, and Flash raised a hoof.

“I put a barrier around the entrance, but anyone’s guess how much time that buys us. We’ve also got a sahuagin... prisoner with us?”

“More like a less than willing guide, but for the moment he seems docile enough,” Rarity said, to which Wavecrest immediately sent the mare a questioning look.

“What!? You brought one into the ship? Where!?”

Rainbow Dash swam by Wavecrest and made a calming gesture with her hooves and wings, “Chillax. We went to the bridge before coming here, and Tempest was all over putting the dude in the brig, so he’s locked up tight for now. Don’t go blowing a gill.”

“For the record, I think her reaction is perfectly understandable,” said Aria, giving a brusque wave at Wavecrest, “Hey. Heard you’re the one who helped these gals out in coming down here to rescue me and my sister. So, you know, thanks for that.”

“The pleasure is mine, ancient kin,” Wavecrst said, crossing her staff over her chest and bowing, to which Aria looked confused and Sonata raised a hoof.

“The sahwhatevers called us that too,” Sonata pointed out, “Like, what’s with that? We’re not that old, right Aria?”

“Been wondering that, myself,” Aria said, “I’ve never once heard anyone refer to me or my sisters as ‘ancient kin’ before. So what’s the deal?”

It was Wavecrest’s turn to look briefly confused, looking at Aria and Sonata as if truly seeing them for the first time. Her eyes twitched narrower as she looked upon the sirens’ chests, “You... don’t have the gems? But in all other ways you resemble the progenitor species from which all other mer-folk spring from.”

“Huh?” Aria and Sonata glanced at each other, Sonata self consciously rubbing at the spot where her gem had once been. Aria pressed her lips tight, arms crossing over her chest.

“Look lady, we used to have gems, but... things happened. And I don’t know anything about ‘progenitors’. My sisters and I, we come from an ocean a good ways off from here, and there weren’t a lot of other sirens there to begin with. Far as we know, there aren’t many sirens in the world. But so what? Why does that make us special to those fish faced bastards?”

“That I cannot say. All I know is that whether you are aware of it or not, there are many tales that hold your kind in a place of some reverence... and fear,” Wavecrest said, shaking her head, “I wish I could tell you more, but even I can’t fathom all of what may be in the minds of the sahuagin.”

“Not exactly the answer I was hoping for, but screw it, if it comes down to it I’ll just beat the answer out of Charybdis’ face myself,” Aria said, and cast a heated glare around the chamber, “Now I just need something to do the smacking with. There anything useful in here?”

“Waaaay ahead of you, Aria,” Rainbow Dash said, zipping left and right around the room faster than most could follow as the rest of the group entered. Dash halted in front of a particular weapon rack, eyes glossing over happily as she reached out to pick one of the objects up. “Whoa-oho! Check this out!”

“Rainbow, that’s a...uh... what is that?” Applejack asked, scratching her head as Rainbow Dash set aside the cutlass she’d been carrying and unsheathed her new acquisition from a sheath made from a polished, red lacquered wood. It was a sword, roughly a foot longer than the cutlass she’d been carrying, but with a straight blade that was single edged. What was odd about it were the grooves along it’s blunt side, wide notches with capped tips. The weapon’s metal itself was also unusual, filled with wave-like patterns that gave the sword a more liquid look. Flash gave the sword an odd look, floating a bit closer to look at it as Dash hefted it around in an experimental test of it’s balance.

“It’s a sword breaker,” he said, voice puzzled, “Damascus metal. Never seen one that big before. Usually sword breakers are one handed weapons..”

“All I know is that it’s light as a feather, but wicked cool,” Rainbow said, testing the blade with a few swings, which seemed to cut through the water rather effortlessly. The sword breaker’s cross guard was curved back like an inverted set of horns, the handle itself wrapped in black cloth.

“I believe the weapon design stems from pre-Princess era unicorn culture,” Twilight said, “Unicorn duelists used them in conjunction with rapiers, back before dueling was considered too, um, violent and was banned. I don’t remember reading any books talking about one this big, though. I wonder who it was made for?”

“It’s certainly an elegant sword, Dash darling, but do be careful where you swing it,” Rarity said, ducking around the pegasus as she ran a critical eye over a neighboring shelf that had various bits of jewelry and similar odds and ends on it, “However if we are arming ourselves, I suppose we could all do with a little something extra. Twilight, I see you procured something of your own?”

“Oh! Umm, heheh, this thing?” Twilight pulled out the mace with an embarrassed flush, “I just sort of picked it up without thinking about it. It has magic in it, just about everything in here does, but I have no idea what it’s properties are. Look girls, if you want to grab something, I won’t stop you, but be careful. We don’t know what most of these artifacts are meant to do. I suggest only grabbing one object, and if you feel anything... weird, just let me know immediately, okay?”

“Can do Twi’,” Applejack said, following Rainbow Dash’s lead and looking around at some of the weapon racks, rubbing her chin all the while, “Kinda just used ta usin’ my hooves, but can’t quite git used ta this dang fishtail I got. Could use somethin’ with some heft ta it. Ah! Just like this!”

Twilight hadn’t even noticed the object in question, as it was tucked away in the corner and nearly blended into the wall, but when Applejack picked it up she almost wondered how she hadn’t seen it earlier. It was... well, not a staff, but rather a huge length of dark mahogany wood that grew into a sizable knot on one end, like the world’s biggest walking cane. Applejack hefted it like it weighed next to nothing and gave it an experimental whack with her hoof to test it’s solidness.

“A big stick?” Dash asked, “Really?”

“Ain’t no ‘stick’,” Applejack defended, “It’s a shillelagh.”

“She lays what?”

“Dang it Dash, it’s a’ right proper whackin’ club! Granny’s got one like it, just a whole lot smaller. This one here’ll seriously bust a knee or two, just you wait n’ see.”

While that exchange was occurring, Pinkie Pie was strumming her lute, seemingly content with that as her chosen item. None of her friends questioned it. It was Pinkie Pie, after all. Besites, the lute was covered in metal studs and looked sturdy enough. Fluttershy and Rarity took a bit more time perusing the vault’s offerings, Rarity being exacting and choosy, and Fluttershy simply being hesitant to pick up a weapon at all.

Twilight went to Flash, quickly conferring with him to learn that Trixie had stayed on the bridge with Starlight, and that it sounded like Admiral Seaspray and Tempest, when not bickering with one another, had mostly gotten the Treasury’s controls figured out.

“Seaspray said that he can get us moving, but weapon systems are still going to take awhile before they can be used,” Flash said, “The ship hadn’t gone through any calibration tests or shakedowns, so trying to charge up anything like the cannons might well do more harm than good until we’ve had time to check everything out.”

“That’s alright,” Twilight said, “I was hoping to avoid more violence if we could, although it doesn’t sound like we have a lot of time. Hmm, I just realized, can we even open the hangar doors from the ship?”

Flash opened his mouth, but said nothing as her question hung before them and he slowly ran a hoof over his face, “I’m going to guess, given our luck, that no, we can’t. That’s probably handled in the control room!”

“Which the sahuagin will be in the moment they break your Kido,” Twilight said with a groan, “We’ve got to get back there before it’s too late.”

There was a crackle of noise as the ship’s intercom magically buzzed to life and Trixie’s voice spoke over it, “Ahem, is this thing on? If any of you can hear me, the Clear and Communicative Trixie has been informed to relay to all of you that there was just now a bright flash from the control room and it seems like the sahuagin have gotten through the barrier and are pouring into the hangar. In other news, I’m having a panic attack.”

“Sounds like we just ran outta time!” Applejack said, “Rarity, Fluttershy, you two done yet?”

“As it so happens, I am,” said Rarity, who had moved to one of the central display cases. After opening it with a flourish of magic, Rarity had lifted a pair of objects from within that now spun around her in an aura of her soft blue levitation magic. “I do believe these will suit me just fine, although I confess it was the color that drew me in.”

By color, she likely meant the combination of carved jade set with stunningly bright sapphire stones that made up the handles of the two circles of polished silver metal. Twilight recognized them as chakrams, a favored weapon of the kirin colonies in the far east. The handles that made up one fourth of each deadly circle of sharpened metal was actually meant to be held in the mouth, so chakram were rarely used in pairs, but these two had clearly been forged to be a set given the complementary nature of the classic ‘yin-yang’ teardrops carved into either handle.

“Yeah, those are definitely you,” Rainbow Dash said as Rarity spun the two chakrams about her a few times with her magic, then used a small cloth strap to tie the pair to the bandolier that held her dagger.

“Fluttershy, you ready too?”

“Oh, um, yes?”

All eyes turned to the demure mare who floated up to the group with something strapped firmly to her right arm. It was a shield made from a strangely white metal, shaped like an oval with small, semi-circular portions missing from two sides. To Twilight’s knowledge, the design was congruent with the hoplites of ancient Pegasopolis, and despite the somewhat worn tarnish to the metal she could just barely make out the center emblazing of the historic pegasus city-state’s symbol there; that of a laurel wreath surrounding a cloud shooting lightning.

“A shield, eh? Yup, that checks out for Fluttershy,” said Pinkie, “Now we just have to teach you to throw it like a boomerang!”

“It’s, um, kind of strapped to me, Pinkie,” Fluttershy pointed out, “And I really don’t want to hurt anyone. I picked it so I could block attacks, not make them.”

“Well, never underestimate a good shield bash,” Flash said, then chuckled without humor, “Although I think Sunset is the only Soul Reaper I’ve ever known who has a shield.”

“Do we have time for idle chatter now?” spoke Wavecrest in a quickened tone, already halfway out the door, “The sahuagin come.”

“You’re right, we need to get out there,” Twilight said, and swiftly swam out to the hallway with the intercom. Pressing the button she assumed was the activation switch, she said, “To everypony on the bridge, my friends and I, Flash, and Wavecrest are going out there to stop the sahuagin and get the hangar doors open. Be ready to start moving the ship when we do.”

“Wait, Princess Sparkle,” said Admiral Seaspray’s voice, “There’s near two hundred of the ugly blighters out there, and it looks like more are coming as I speak! You may need our help.”

“We need somepony to control the ship, Admiral, and that’s you. And you might need more crew to handle the bridge, so it’s best whoever is on the bridge stays there.”

“Are you sure, Twilight?” asked Starlight’s voice, “You might need all the spell power you can get out there, and me and Tempest are still pretty fresh. Plus, we fought that big war leader of theirs already, so we know some of his tricks.”

“Starlight, I’d rather you and Tempest stay there in case any sahuagin get past us and board the ship,” said Twilight, then glanced back at her friends, freshly armed, and took a deep breath that was followed by a relaxed smile, “Don’t worry. We’ve got this. You just make sure the ship stays fish free until we get back.”

“If you’re sure,” Starlight said, and Twilight could hear the hesitance in Starlight’s voice. Understandable, to a degree, as they’d spent so much time either trying to do this stealthy or simply withdrawing from direct confrontations with the sahuagin. However the entire point of stealth had not been to simply avoid danger, but to ensure they could reach Aria and Sonata without the sahuagin doing anything to the sirens. Even the group’s primarily seeking to flee a fight rather than stand ground was a matter of ensuring the split party could properly reunite.

Now that everypony was reunited and the two sirens were safe, priorities could be shifted. The sahuagin wanted a fight? They were about to get one.

“Hey, what about us?” asked Aria. She and Sonata had been sifting about the artifact vault as well, although neither had grabbed anything yet.

“Stay on the ship, please,” Twilight said, and upon seeing a flare of challenge in Aria’s eyes, she held up a hoof, keeping her voice firm but understanding, “We just got you two back. I’d feel a lot better knowing you were on the bridge with the others.”

“She’s got a point, Aria,” said Sonata, “Reaaally not feeling like getting captured again. Not a flattering look for us, you know?”

“Ugh, fine, we’ll stay,” Aria grumbled, and shot a hoof towards Twilight, “But you’d better kick their asses extra hard for us, you got that!?”

“Thinking we can manage that fer ya gals,” Applejack said, tapping her new shillelagh over her shoulder. Fluttershy smiled at the two sirens and beckoned over her pet shark, who’d been hovering just outside the door. Fluttershy stroked the creature’s snout.

“Mister Snuggles, this is Aria and Sonata. Will you do me a favor and look after them while I’m out giving those mean sahuagin a stern talking to?”

The shark, for an otherwise expressionless creature, managed a rather animated nod and happily swam over to protectively circle the two sirens, neither of which looked entirely comfortable with the situation, but offered no argument.

That taken care of, Twilight and her chosen allies departed the artifact vault and made their way towards the cargo hold.

The Treasury had multiple airlock doors and other ways in and out of it, many laid out on all sides of the hull. Aside from the largest, main airlocks on either the port or starboard side, there was also the cargo hatch to the main hold located in the ship’s aft belly, not far from the artifact vault. Twilight decided that would be their best exit, as the cargo hatch was faster to open or close than the airlock’s themselves, and it was large enough for her and all her friends to charge out as one.

As they made their way to the cargo hold, she took a moment to briefly and somewhat subtly probe the artifacts her friends had chosen to take. She’d observed them carefully during the time they’d been in the vault, and she didn’t notice anything that had seemed unusual to her. Unlike the mace, which she’d seemed unconsciously drawn to for no reason she could identify, the objects her friends chose were all based on personal preferences. Rainbow Dash had chosen an ‘awesome’ looking sword. Applejack had taken a weapon that reminded her of her family. Pinkie Pie had snatched a lute of all things, seemingly at random but also due to a bit of family history. Rarity had chosen as much for aesthetics as practicality, seeking grace as well as functionality. And Fluttershy had taken something to protect others with, rather than harm.

All of that aligned with a choice consciously made based on what her friends would want. No hint of a choice coerced magically, or made inexplicably due to unknown forces. Not like with her and the mace.

On top of that, while she’d experienced that strange vision within just a minute or two of picking the mace up, she saw no hint of her friends reacting strangely to the objects they’d taken from the vault. So in all likelihood the oddity of her mace was something specifically affecting her and not them. And yet...

Each of the items chosen definitely contained magic. She could tell that much with even a hidden, cursory scan with her own magic. She wouldn’t be able to learn more without a more thorough examination, but time was stacked against them for now. It would have to wait. However, even that brief look at the magic surrounding her mace and the items her friends held suggested something unusual was taking place. There was a faint pulsation, barely discernible, within the mace that almost felt like a signal of some sort.

A part of her thought she ought to say something, but the last thing her friends needed right now was a distraction, or for them to worry about her. Soon as they were clear of Aqualania she’d tell them about the vision she saw, and hopefully they could then piece together what it might all mean.

But first, the sahuagin and their leader needed to be dealt with.

----------

A short time earlier...

Morgawr observed the barrier separating himself and his loyal warriors from the path the surfacers had taken down into the palace’s depths. In a way he was almost grateful to the invaders. They had managed to open up a place so long sealed that previous generations of sahuagin had given up on ever breaking through. It was a tad galling, actually, that surfacers would be granted the honor of being the first ones to enter such a sacred place and discover it’s secrets before he and his kin.

The barrier itself was not a thing of magic. He was nowhere near as gifted in the arts of the Deep Mistress as a shaman might be, but his senses were sharp enough to realize the difference between this barrier, and one formed of magic. He ran his hand along the translucent yellow surface, his gills opening wide as he took a deep breath.

“Soul magic,” he said, “So they have a spirit warrior with them.”

The Deep Mistress divulged her secrets only to the chosen few, and even then only in an appropriate drip feed. He understood, of course. Mortal minds could only contain so much truth. Before the attack on Mt. Aris he had communed with his Deep Mistress, and she’d revealed to him that there was a strong chance the surfacers had a most strange ally with them. A warrior from the other realm, a warrior of spirit. Such beings, she had told Morgawr, were deadly and diabolic foes, who enslaved the souls of the dead in their own bizarre and twisted world. That such a being was here now was proof positive that the surfacers were being undermined by the corruption of the other realm.

All the more reason to crush them now, and further ensure the Deep Mistress’ plan for her chosen people came to fruition!

“Stay back,” he told the warriors that had floated closest to him, entranced and curious about the odd barrier in their way. They warriors followed his order without question, floating back quietly as Morgawr cocked back his right fist.

As he’d been taught, he reached within himself, to the places carved out in his flesh and soul by the Deep Mistress’ magic. He touched both that magic, and his own soul, pouring it out like blood into his fist.

The tattoos gleamed red around his body, growing especially bright around his arm and his fist.

Unbeknownst to Morgawr, had by some trick of fate a Quincy been present to witness the event... why, that Quincy might have noted how the gleam of red in his tattoos and the flow of magic and spirit energy seemed so very similar to the techniques of Blut Vene or Blut Arterie. Not identical, but similar enough to have made said hypothetical Quincy observer raise an offended eyebrow at the fish man.

He rammed his fist forward, ruby magical power surging from the limb in a spiraling torrent. It impacted the barrier like a battering ram into a stout castle gate. The barrier fluctuated with a ripple of unstable light. It held, but was rocked by the blow. Morgwar did not stop, pulling back his fist while ramming the other one forward just as hard, eliciting a similar ripple of resistance from the barrier.

Again and again he struck, faster and faster, until his fists seemed like a crimson blur of hammer blows.

Soon, the barrier started to form cracks with each ripple that undulated over it’s punished surface. The sound of Morgawrs strikes became akin to an endless ringing of a gong. Then with a final strike, his fist ripped through the Kido barrier and caused it to scatter like so much golden dust.

His warriors gave a gurgling cheer behind him, emboldened by their war leader’s displayed might. He wondered if any of them understood how blessed they were to see him using the Deep Mistress’ knowledge and techniques? How rare it was for one of her chosen warriors to make use of the power she had etched upon their souls?

Well, hopefully the surfacers would provide even more opportunity for him to do so, as with the heady rush of power fueling the heat in his blood, he was rather enjoying himself. The shamans could keep their dark rituals, sacrifices, and spells. A warrior only required the pulse of blood in his veins and an enemy’s flesh in ready reach of claw, tooth, and weapon.

Sweeping forward into the room beyond the dissipated barrier, followed closely by his warriors, Morgawr took the surprising scene in at a glance. He had not expected to see the odd control room, shaped like a bubble upon a wall. He certainly had not expected to see the unbelievably large and potent looking vessel of metal that lay in the vast chamber beyond the control room. Legends had spoken highly of the soft kin’s fondness for forging objects of power, but this ship was beyond what even those stories told. Capturing it would surely catapult him to an even higher place of esteem in the Deep Mistress’ eyes.

Then his attention fell upon the corpse in the room, the ragged skeleton that wore unmistakable armor and still carried in one bony hoof a magnificent spear of bronze.

The body of the Deep Mistress’ very own blood sister!?

The second his eyes laid upon it, he felt Her.

Had She been watching the entire time? Perhaps. Her eyes spanned many places, he knew, and Morgawr did not so much as offer an iota of resistance to Her holy presence as she filled his mind, body, and soul with a light as dark as the Abyss’ very heart, yet as bright as the surfacer’s vaunted sun.

My Mistress.

----------

While there was little time to take in details, Twilight’s analytical mind did still manage to take note of the state of the Treasury’s cargo hold in the brief few seconds that she and her allies were rushing through it. The expansive hold was two decks high, and was already packed with an assortment of clay or coral carved containers, with pots being largely in place of what would have otherwise been wooden crates on a ship that didn’t operate while entirely submerged and filled with water. It made Twilight briefly wonder if the ship had a system for pumping out all the water when it went to the surface?

The idle thought was banished quickly as a mechanical groan filled the cargo hold and on one side of it the floor started to slip downward like an opening jaw. Admiral Seaspray’s voice spoke over the ship’s intercom.

“Opening the doors for you now, Princess. Do be careful. Something is happening out there. The sahuagin are not advancing, but there was a strange light just a second ago.”

Without being at a com terminal there was no way to respond, so instead Twilight looked to her friends as they made their way towards the opening hatch, “Let me take the lead everypony. Our only goal is to get the hangar doors open, not take down every sahuagin in sight.”

“Hah, says you,” Rainbow Dash quipped, but at a look from Twilight the pegasus relented with a wave of her wing, “I hear you, though. All we gotta do is hit some button while keeping the scalies at bay.”

“I’d say ‘leave that to me’, but honestly Dash, you’re probably faster than me,” said Flash with a humble nod to her.

“Then we let Rainbow do her zip-zoom while we play with the fishies,” said Pinkie Pie, “Easy as pie. Or easy for a Pie.”

“Here’s hopin’. Showtime girls,” Applejack said as they rushed out of the lowering hatch and swam alongside the ship’s belly towards the open area in front of the bow. Once there they had a clear look at the far wall where the glittering bubble of the control room’s dome was, and all of them halted in surprise. While they had expected to see the sahuagin swarming forward, possibly already trying to overrun the ship, instead what they saw was that the fish men had halted in a cluster in the water around the wall.

And they were all prostrate.

Every single sahuagin warrior, nearly two hundred of them, were arranged in a loose set of semi-circular formations around the control room’s bubble, but each one had their heads bowed low, any arm that wasn’t holding a weapon outstretched as if in supplication. A deep, resonating moan rose and fell in a steady rhythm through the hangar, and it took Twilight a moment to realize it was the sahuagin making the noise.

“What in the world are they doing?” Flash asked, but before Twilight could answer, another voice did. A voice that rang unnaturally like it was distorted through a hundred echoes, but was distinctly female and laced heavily with an intense wealth of supreme confidence.

“They are worshipping, Soul Reaper.”

Morgawr emerged from within the control room, but his motions were not wholly smooth or natural, but rather it almost seemed as if he was being pulled along by a force outside himself. His body was still marked by numerous swirling, sharp angled tattoos that glowed a fierce sanguine hue, but he was now also surrounded by an ever shifting nimbus of darkness, as if he was outlined by a fragment of the very Abyss he called home. This ink-like cloud sported several strands of pale yellow and red lights that spilt from it like strands of sun from behind a cloud, and his eyes filled with a similar cloud of uneven light that blotted out the war leader’s expression with another that was clearly not his own.

The sahaugin’s worshiping undulations escalated upon Morgawr’s arrival, and they parted for him with utter reverence as he swam forward a short span before stopping and with a gentle gesture made a motion behind him towards the control room. From there a similar nimbus of darkness emerged, a field of magic pulling along the body of Princess Scylla and her spear. Morgawr called the spear to one hand, and the skeletal corpse to the other.

Twilight and her friends all looked at one another, and then Twilight moved a short distance forward. She suspected she knew who this was, but it was best to let this new... entity confirm its own identity. If this was who she thought then if she was in a talkative mood they might learn something useful. In Twilight’s experience the bad guys did like to listen to themselves talk.

“How do you know what Flash is? You’re not... that’s not your body, is it?”

The ‘occupant’ of Morgawr’s body looked at her and cracked a wide smirk, “Observant, Princess Twilight Sparkle. I’m temporarily borrowing my sweet Morgawr’s body so I might speak with you. I decided I owed a dignitary from another country visiting my realm that much, for the sake of international diplomacy.”

“Horseapples,” Applejack breathed, and ‘Morgawr’ let out a deep laugh that reverberated off the walls.

“Why yes, I suppose it is! We are enemies, and I won’t hold my beloved people back from seeking your to end your lives for as long as you continue to interfere with my plans. I could ask you to hand over the sirens and I’d let you all live, but we both already know you’re not the sort of individuals who would do such a thing.”

“Of course we’re not,” Twilight said, “Charybdis.”

Charybdis, possessing Morgawr’s body, let out a happy sigh and with a rather gentle hand stroked the skull of her sister’s body. “I must thank you for opening the way to my sister’s remains. While they do me no good, it is a final loose end I never did get to tie up. And now I see how she’d wasted so much of the kingdom’s resources on. Can you not see how ill suited she would have been to be Queen? She was a child, building toys to play at conquest and adventure. She’d have ruined our people.”

“From what we’ve seen you both did quite the number on seapony society together,” Rarity pointed out, “As the old saying goes, it does take two to tango.”

The cordial mien fell almost instantly from Charybdis, Morgawr’s body twitching as the play of light and shadows intensified around his body and Charybdis’ voice range out like a undersea quake, “It’s her fault for killing mother! I had to take matters into my own hooves, before she took the throne. There was too much at stake, more than she could ever understand, mostly because she never listened to me.”

“What makes ya so sure she killed yer ma?” Applejack challenged, “Saw how ya wrecked her room, so no doubtin’ you believe it, but did ya ever dig up any proof or did ya just leap ta conclusions?”

Charybdis’ voice turned to acidic scorn, “There’s no other explanation for how our mother died of ‘illness’ so swiftly. Our mother was the healthiest damned judgmental woman in the world, then suddenly becomes deathly ill out of nowhere? I may not have discovered what poison was used, but that doesn’t change what it had to have been, or that my dear sister was the only one whom mother trusted enough to let close, even when ill. Given how badly Scylla wanted the throne, both means and motive are accounted for. I certainly never wanted the throne like she did.”

As if swatting away an errant fly, she flung her hand out and the remains of Princess Scylla floated away, then were wrapped in a field of dark tendrils until they vanished; destroyed or transported, who could say? Charybdis kept a firm grip on the spear however, and after a moment of taking a calming breath, she regarded those in front of her with a refreshed gaze of self-control.

“But enough of my family drama. I’ve long since moved past that to more meaningful work. You asked how I knew your handsome friend is a Soul Reaper? Well you should know the answer to that already, considering you started this journey to take from me something fairly given; the shard of Adagio’s soul that she offered to me in exchange for my teachings.”

Twilight nodded, “You’ve had eyes on the human world for awhile now, it seems. You have a means of traveling there besides the mirror portal.”

“Only partially. It’d be more accurate to say I have made connections to those who can allow some small level of travel between our realm and the human one. However I’ll soon have a more stable, permanent means of entry, and oh Princess Twilight... once that happens the sky’s the limit. I’ll be able to do so much with that world and this one, soon as I get that door opened. Even the Soul Reapers don’t have the kind of knowledge I do when it comes to manipulating the soul, particularly because they don’t have magic like I do. Heheh, it’s been heartwarming to know my little Adagio has done so well for herself, partially because of the skills I taught her.”

“But why did you ask for a piece of her soul as payment for those skills?” asked Twilight. She had never quite understood what it was that Charybdis would gain from such an exchange. Was Adagio’s soul special in some manner, or was this something Charybdis often sought from her victims?

Charybdis waggled a finger at her, “Ah ah ah, I know you’re fishing for answers, Princess, but it’s honestly more fun watching you struggle in ignorance... although...”

Her attention became focused upon Twilight’s saddlebag, and the silver handle of the mace extending from it. Charybdis’ eyes narrowed slightly and her mouth opened in a small ‘ah’ of understanding. “I see. Seems like my sister’s hoarding obsession has left a few problematic things laying about. I should have known she’d have snatched up more than one Relic during her idiotic piracy spree. Poor Princess, you’ll find out on your own soon enough the nature of the object you’ve picked up, assuming the visions haven’t already begun.”

“Wait, visions? What do you know!?” Twilight said, her voice rising, wings spreading out as she moved forward unconsciously, “Have you seen them too!?”

A hint of something that almost approached pity entered Charybdis’ voice as she laughed bitterly, “I almost forgot how confusing the first few times are for an Inheritor. Unfortunate child, will you even keep your own mind intact, I wonder? Your Princess Luna fell quickly to her own Relics, and she had centuries to prepare herself. What chance do you have? Killing you right now would practically be an act of kindness, before you learn the sad truth of our world and the lies it’s built upon.”

Abruptly the shifting cloud of shadow withdrew from Morgawr’s body like it was being bodily ripped out of him. Morgawr groaned as it did so, his eyes returning to normal as the cloud of darkness filled with shards of light now hovered above his head. He looked up at it, smiling in reverence, “Holy Deep Mistress, what would you have of your servant?”

Charybdis’ voice rang from the nimbus of shadow, “Beloved Morgawr, chosen champion, I ask of you to dispose of those who would threaten our people. Capture the sirens, but the rest can be killed. In your hand you weild my sister’s spear, and I shall grant you the boon of further might. Use it to end these invaders.”

Morgawrl threw his arms wide, “Thy will be done, Deep Mistress!”

With a resonant rumble of power the cloud of jet black shadow let loose a dozen beams of darkness encrusted light to stab into the chest of Morgawr. Twilight instantly felt the intensity of the magic at play, and could tell from the look on Flash Sentry’s face that there was also some level of spiritual energy at work as well. Morgawr’s body began to ripple and swell with fresh musculature, his scales cracking as a layer of extra armored bio-organic growth formed over his chest and limbs.

In the span of seconds he grew several feet in size, the tattoos of deepest crimson now coursing over near every inch of his body which had grown a layer of organic armor like the thick hide of an oceanic sea serpent, lined with spiked fins. To complement the spear of Princess Scylla he held in his left hand, he extended his right hand and rivulets of arcane light gathered in a dark, wine red orb in his palm which he then gripped, forcing it to extend out into the shape of a trident formed out of pure magical force. His head became covered in a sharp angled helmet with curved fins on the side that covered his eyes, but left a giant, glowing red eye in the center of the helmet that opened up and looked around with pulsating veins. An continuous ruby aura of power poured out of his body now, and Twilight noticed that despite the extra mass he’d gained and the twisted, organic armoring, it was as if the skin and bones of his body were also being contorted beyond their physical limits. It looked painful, to say the least, yet Morgawr wore a wide smile, his needle teeth open in seeming ecstasy.

Next to her Flash Sentry solemnly invoked his Zanpaktou, “Serve faithfully; Kochi Yojinbo.”

In a brilliant wash of blue light the katana transformed into the shape of the lrage, five foot long bladed tonfa on his right arm. He glanced at Twilight, whispering, “Be careful with this guy. I can’t get a full read on his power, but there’s a lot more reiatsu than there should be, and if we account for the magic he’s got pumping him up, he might be on the level of a Captain at this point.”

“Are you sure about that?” she asked, and he gulped, giving her a boyish smile of uncertainty as he shrugged.

“Like I said, it’s hard to tell with all the magic involved. We’re about to find out, I guess. Just saying, now’s not the time to hold anything back, Twilight.”

“There,” Charybdis said in satisfaction, the tendrils of light leaving Morgawr once his body was sufficiently transformed. “I’ve expended what power I can at this distance to empower you, my champion. Besides, any more and even your beautiful vessel would not withstand it. Do not waste my gift, and make me proud to have chosen you as one of my favored.”

“I shall not, Deep Mistress.”

With that, the nimbus of darkness faded, as if folding in upon itself. Whatever means Charybdis had been using to extend her consciousness here was now gone. Twilight wondered just how far this abyssal witch could perform such feats, as nothing like this had happened at Mt. Aris. There had to be a range limit, and perhaps a limit based upon the nature of her followers. She hadn’t empowered any of the other warriors, just Morgawr. Was it because of the tattoos he had? Perhaps only specific sahuagin could act as channels for Charybdis’ magic.

She’d hoped to get far more answers out of Charybdis, especially considering she seemed to know a lot about the mace Twilight had found and what that vision might have meant. Apparently Princess Luna knew something, and presumably Princess Celestia as well? What had they not been telling Twilight? She’d always known that Celestia, at least, tended to keep certain things to herself but Twilight had never been bothered by that. After all, Celestia was thousands of years old and ran a whole country, it made sense she’d have a few secrets to keep close to her chest. Twilight even knew that there was probably quite a bit about being an alicorn that Celestia had not yet told her about, as the nature of alicorns and their origins had always been a somewhat murky topic.

But now Twilight was starting to realize just how much she didn’t know.

For now it didn’t matter. She and her friends had a fight on their hooves.

“Here he comes! Get ready, everypony!” she said, flaring up her magic into her horn. Now would be the best time she could think to break out some of that High Magic she’d been studying.

Morgwar pointed at them with Scylla’s spear, and roared, “Sahuagin of the Abyss, our Deep Mistress requires the heads of these surfacer fiends! Destroy them all!”

As one the sahuagin warriors gave out a collective roar and began their charge, their empowered leader at the head of them.

And Twilight Sparkle and her friends all charged to meet them.

Morgawr chose her as his target, and behind him the very water began to boil and turn burning red as magic energy shot from his armor and propelled him towards her at a speed reminiscent of Soul Reaper’s Flash Step. Yet Twilight had anticipated he’d become faster with Charybdis’ empowerment and had already begun to teleport herself, while enacting several other spells simultaneously that poured from her horn in rapid succession.

His energy trident passed right through the space she’d just occupied as she teleported out of the way, but she left behind a small shell of magic energy that the moment his weapon made contact with it, exploded in a sphere of incandescent light. Morgawr was forced back a step by the blow, his reinforced body absorbing the impact of the magical mine, but even as the crimson eye on his helmet searched for Twilight she was already acting. The other spell she’d cast upon herself was a hastening spell, boosting her reflexes and perception of time, allowing her to better react. This also let her aim a charged up piercing bolt of magic at Morgawr’s back.

The eye of his helmet appeared to sense the attack even before he did, twitching in her direction and allowing him to move without actually looking. Even so, her bolt scored a piece of his shoulder armor off as he turned around and threw his energy trident at her. The trident, in mid-air, split apart into a cluster of twenty. Twilight would have teleported away, but there was no need. Fluttershy and Flash both moved defensively around her, both pegasi turned seaponies moving with remarkable swiftness.

Flash swung his Zanpaktou, the tonfa’s power reflecting his presence in half a dozen places to swat down the magic trident clones. Fluttershy braced her shield and with her fishtail and wings both moving in a buzz, she slammed the shield into two of the tridents of magic energy that were close together, knocking them into a third whereupon the magic energies exploded. Flutterhy kept her shield braced in front of her, weathering the explosive force as the shield’s white metal glinted for a moment with an almost mirror-like quality.

Between both Fluttershy and Flash’s efforts they had created enough of a gap that Twilight didn’t have to teleport and could focus another magical blast at Morgawr. He created a fresh magic trident in his hand and crossed it with Scylla’s spear, using both weapons’ shafts to block Twilight’s beam, yet even so the concentrated lance of violet magic shoved him down at an angle until his armored feet smashed into the ground. His feet dug trenches in the stone floor of the hangar as he was pushed back towards one of the walls, Twilight keeping her beam output up to try and keep Morgawr pinned while she began weaving magic for a separate spell.

Slowly a magical circle began to form around her back, where her wings outstretched, the circle’s edges touching each tip of her wing. What she was doing wasn’t going to be easy, as this was her first attempt at trying to channel a High Magic spell. The principles of it required significantly greater focus than what she was used to, a problem compounded by casting other spells simultaneously. But she was confident she could pull it off, it’d just take a little bit.

“Keep them occupied, guys,” she told Fluttershy and Flash, referring to the sahuagin coming their way out of the cluster of combat that had erupted around them.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash had gone right into the dead center of the oncoming sahuagin rush. The farm mare bulldozed right into the lead element of the creatures, cracking her neck before hefting the shillelagh between both of her hooves and swinging it like the world’s largest baseball bat. The wound on her arm burned fiercely, but Applejack ignored it as she swung. One could actually see the pressure wave of water being moved by the force of the swing, and a hole was blasted right through the front of the sahuagin line with over a dozen being knocked senseless by the swing.

“Go fer it, Dash!” Applejack said, now wheeling her weapon about left and right as fishmen tridents and harpoons stabbed at her from all directions.

“On it!” Rainbow Dash said, turning on her speed and transmuting into a multi-colored bolt, even as she drew the swordbreaker she’d sheathed across her back. Moving in a corkscrew motion too fast for the eye to catch, Rainbow zipped by several dozen sahuagin that tried in vain to try and stab the ribbon of colors swimming past them faster than anything they’d seen. Most of them found their weapons torn right from their grasp, the swordbreaker’s notches catching trident and harpoon shafts with ease and sending the weapons spinning away.

Meanwhile Wavecrest, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie found themselves at the center of the sahaugin’s left flank, fighting back to back to deal with enemies coming in from all angles, even above and below. The sahuagin were, if anything, experienced underwater combatants, so they knew to surround a foe from all conceivable sides. However they were contending with more than simple seapony hunters or unaware crews of surfacer merchant ships.

Wavecrest’s staff was suffused with solid green light as she chanted to the waves, and spoke to the spirits of the ocean to bend water to her whim. Claws of cutting water slashed out in fans from wherever she motioned her staff, cutting down several sahuagin apiece. Yet for all the seapony witch’s magical fury, the sahuagin were familiar with her kind of magic and could anticipate it enough to dodge in many instances, while aiming harpoons at the mare when she was focused on chanting.

It was the ponies that confounded them. Each harpoon was delicately and deliberately cut down before it reached Wavecrest. One after another sahuagin warriors found their hands cut deeply, or their legs similarly sliced by arching glints of metal that moved in such fast, intricate patterns that it left many of them dizzy.

“I do so prefer to pursue artistic endeavors, but I suppose there’s little choice you brutes have left us,” Rarity said. The mare hardly moved much, staying close to Wavecrest, but her eyes flicked about with a detailed gaze that never blinked. Her magical might may never match that of her alicorn friend, but even Twilight would have admitted that when it came to delicate precision, Rarity’s skill in telekinesis was among the best of any unicorn in Equestria. When applied to sewing dresses, it created works of art. When applied to the pair of chakrams she now wielded in her firm blue grip of levitation magic, it wove a complex and painful dance of slicing metal that the sahuagin could barely follow.

The circular blades cut through the water with fierce but utterly accurate and dexterous motions, never ceasing the curve in an endless waltz around Rarity. The assault took the fish men by surprise, but soon they sought to overwhelm with sheer numbers, clustering together to try and rush the mares.

Only when they did they found a pink mare had somehow gotten behind them when none of the sahuagin were looking, tapping one on the shoulder to get his attention, whereupon he got a face full of lute.

“C’mon guys!” Pinkie Pie said, floating back and running a hoof over the chords of the lute, “Don’t any of you just want to quit this whole creepy undersea cult gig and try something different?”

Tridents aimed at her face, but Pinkie kept smiling, “No? Well okay then, but I don’t think you guys get medical insurance.”

The sahuagin warriors thrust at the mare, but she seemed to treat physics as a polite suggestion and contorted her body through the melee, moving right through the throng, which led to more than a few sahuagin stabbing one another rather than her.

“Ow, that looks painful! Yikes, watch it buddy, you nearly put your friend's eye out! I swear it’s like you guys are trying to hurt each other instead of me, which, you know, whatever kink works for ya, but leave me out of it!”

“Pinkie, darling, I don’t think they appreciate your brand of humor,” Rarity said, sending her charkrams over to help clear some of the sahuagin trying to surround Pinkie Pie, who continued to bounce around the center cluster of sahuagin while occasionally giving one a smack with her lute.

“You ponies certainly talk quite a bit during a battle,” Wavecrest noted, sweeping her staff out to form a blast of scalding water that sent several more sahuagin reeling back with pained screeches.

“Just how we alleviate the unpleasantness of battle,” Rarity replied, ducking a harpoon that managed to get past her guard, and frowning as she sent a chakram flying out to slice the arm of the offending sahuagin, “None of us enjoying this kind of thing. Well, mostly. I’m sure Dash is having the time of her life.”

Speaking of Rainbow Dash, while Twilight was trying to keep Morgawr pinned down with a relentless torrent of magic, and Fluttershy and Flash kept any sahuagin at bay who might have interfered with that, Rainbow herself was making straight for the control room. A troop of sahuagin had taken up a defensive position around it, all but trying to bar the way with their bodies. Dash hit that line like a high speed meteor. The swordbreaker in her hooves remained a light weight, despite it’s unusual size, and she found she could use it as easily in the water as if she was in open air.

Given her speed, the sahuagin were having trouble so much as grazing her, but there were a lot of them, and they all but formed a complete wall with their weapons. She had to catch those weapons one at a time with the swordbreaker, avoiding the porcupine wall of other tridents that stabbed at her. The sahuagin could barely see her, rainbow blur that she was, but Dash had to be careful about her own exuberance, lest she impale herself by accident. This led to a somewhat slowed process of disarming and clobbering the sahuagin one at a time, using the notches on her weapon to rip away their weapon before using the blunt end to smack the offending individual and yank them out of formation.

It’d probably take a minute or two to actually clear the door to the control room this way, but there weren’t a lot of other options.

Morgawr and Twilight remained locked in a battle of contested might. He had been driven right up against the wall, where he braced himself as his two spears were kept thrust out in front of him, cutting into the torrent of Twilight’s magical beam. The wall itself started to crack under the strain, and Morgawr let out a feral shout from deep in his chest. The magic spear in his right hand flashed, and exploded, creating a momentary burst of arcane energy that obscured him from view. Twilight kept her magic beam going, but wasn’t sure if she was still hitting him, and let out a sharp gasp as she saw him leap up from the dust of the explosion and come right at her again, this time leading with Scylla’s spear.

She felt magic inside that spear, and also felt it intensify as Morgawr thrust it forward, despite still being a fair distance away. White light erupted around the bronze spear, and it suddenly extended in the blink of an eye! Twilight was able to see it coming due to the hastening spell she’d cast on herself, allowing her to swim to the side just in time to turn what would have been a skewering blow into a mere shallow cut. Scylla’s spear retracted in an instant, and Morgawr, not halting his motions, thrust again. He moved around her in a weaving pattern, thrusting multiple times, each thrust extending the spear at Twilight in like a sudden missile impact.

“Twilight!” Flash called out. He and Fluttershy were both surrounded by sahuagin at this point, although they were holding their own quite well against the horde.

“She’ll be alright,” Fluttershy told him, while at the same time blocking a sahaugin’s harpoon with a deft flick of her shield, “Oh, I’m sorry mister sahuagin.”

She apologized profusely to every sahuagin she engaged, using her shield to deflect blows while slipping in and around them and yanking their limbs into painful angles. She never went so far as to break bones, but she left a trail of groaning sahuagin with arms and legs bent at awkward angles, and for all their attacks they couldn’t seem to penetrate that white shield of shining metal.

Flash kept them on their toes simply through continued use of Flash Step combined with duplicating himself around them. His tonfa had already cut down a fair number of warriors that weren’t expecting him to suddenly appear in multiple places at once.

However, with Twilight being attacked, Flash’s attention was split. Yet Fluttershy’s words proved true, as he needn’t have worried so much.

Despite the storm of spears coming at Twilight, she had a simple and effective defense. A magical barrier shaped like a diamond with multiple inner layers sprang up around her, and it absorbed the blows of Scylla’s spear with a resounding bell toll. Morgawr growled as he added his magical trident to the attack, summoning several as he cast them into the barrier and with a gesture caused the crimson tridents to erupt in spherical detonations across Twilight’s shield.

The explosions rocked the hangar, but Twilight’s barrier held, albeit with several cracks in it. By now the magic circle she was forming between her wings had grown in size and complexity, nearly complete. Twilight was also noticing a resonant sensation of magic coming from her saddlebag and glanced at the mace.

It had regained that small, purple brand of light on it, the one in the form of a set of chains. Was she about to have another vision? This would be the worst time for it!

Yet no vision came this time. Instead she just sensed a faint sensation of magic reaching out from the mace. It left no visible trail, but it was like the magic in the mace was looking for something nearby.

She had no time to contemplate that now. Her attention went back to Morgawr, who twirled both his weapons in his hands and then bloody red energy poured out of him in a tide as he gathered it up behind him for a second before launching himself at her with even greater speed than before. He impacted her barrier with both spear and energy trident thrust forward at once, and the protective shell around Twilight did start to buckle, but she was not surprised by this. Charybdis’ magic had pushed him to a particularly potent level, but she could see it was wreaking a terrible toll on his body.

Twilight teleported out of her barrier just as it shattered, a concussive wave stemming from the impact that it sent a shockwave strong enough to rattle the entire hangar. Morgawr’s charge took him past the broken remains of the shield to smash into the hangar floor so hard that the energy from his blow cut a shockwave ripple through the ground all the way to the far side of the hangar.

Yet for all that force, he hadn’t hit Twilight, who appeared behind him now with her horn glowing so bright it turned most of the hangar a bright shade of violet. The magic circle between her wings was now complete, filled with a complex set of sigils as the Princess raised her head and gave Morgawr a flat stare. An aura of magic built up around her, so thick as to appear almost like a solid object rather than a mere light, it’s color a darker purple than the depths of dusk, and speckled with motes of incandescent starlight. The water around her was actually pushed backwards by the force of the magic at work, creating a small bubble around her. With a breath, she invoked the High Magic spell, the first she’d learned and hoped to master.

”Sphaera Astralis.” (Astral Sphere)

Episode 147: A Sparkle in the Depths

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Episode 147: A Sparkle in the Depths

“You’re certain, sister?”

Celestia could well hear the gravity drawing Luna’s voice into an incredulous whisper. The two shared the open courtyard with none save a the pair of ever silent Royal Guard who watched the doors to the palace’s main entrance, neither of whom were in earshot, and a handful of birds perched upon the greenery flanking the pathway out past the castle walls. She was leaving for Ponehenge at that very hour. The Bount, Trixie, was being retrieved fro her secure quarters and prepared for the journey by a contingent of Celestia's best hoof picked guards, but Celestia also had Discord remaining nearby to ensure their guest didn't try any funny business. While she was confident Luna had likely sensed the same thing concerning Twilight that Celestia had, she'd wanted to at least briefly confer with her sister before departing. After all, even Celestia wasn't entirely sure how the confrontation at Ponehenge was going to turn out, despite all of her planning and preparations.

“As certain as I can be," she told Luna, hoping she didn't sound as tired as she felt, "I haven't precisely felt this kind of thing often. Not since it happened to you."

Luna cast an exasperated and quite agitated look towards the ground, her ears all but flattening, “I had hoped it was a mistake of my nerves. A frayed imagining. So, Twilight has one of the Relics. Fate must have it in for us, for her to stumble upon one in the middle of the ocean.”

“Not so unexpected, when one considers the trouble we had with that pirate princess,” Celestia said with a long sigh escaping her, “Scylla was ever a raider of things precious and valuable. It’s my mistake to assume any problematic items she stole would remain safe, buried in Aqualania’s depths. I knew our dear Twilight’s journey would take her afield to those waters, but this outcome was one I’d considered a low possibility.”

“And what will we do about it?” Luna asked pointedly, “If she breaks the seal on it, then all of them-”

“We do nothing,” Celestia said flatly, “For there is nothing we can do, dear sister. This is Twilight’s battle to fight, now. Perhaps this was always meant to be. We were entrusted with safeguarding the truth, but even so, it seems fitting that all may come to light now. As if the fate of the human world and ours are so entwined that as their war comes to a head, so too do the shadow of our own world’s ancient conflicts rise once again.”

A shade of moxy colored the resignation on Luna’s face as she gave a single, stiff nod, “A somewhat melodramatic way of putting it, but I suppose I should be used to this with you. I also imagine this means you’re dead set on going all out against Starlight Glimmer?”

“If she forces me to.”

“Oh, she will. Do kick her presumptuous rear for me, will you? I’d like to do it myself, but...” she looked to where her once severed wing was resting at her side, attached but thoroughly wrapped in ensorcelled cloth bearing spell runes to aid in the slow recovering process, “I’m not about to fly much of anywhere.”

Heat entered Celestia’s heart as she looked upon her sister’s wound, then gave Luna a quick embrace, “Fear not on that count. I have choice words and choicer spells for when the time comes. In the meantime I just need you to focus on recovering, and ensuring nothing goes wrong while I’m gone.”

“Knowing our luck, and the nature of our opponent, something most likely will go wrong, but we’ve prepared for that as best we can,” Luna said, hugging Celestia back, but quickly disengaging and looking up towards the sky, “It’s not us I’m truly worried about. You say this is Twilight’s battle to fight, but she’s not alone. What of her friends? We don’t know how the Elements will react. Even if the physical representations of the Elements are left with the Tree, that doesn’t change the nature of the connection those mares share.”

“True,” Celestia replied, and in truth she’d been thinking about the very same thing. “Unfortunately there’s no telling what the effects of an Inheritor using a Relic might be when they already have such a strong connection to a similar type of magic. The Elements are... unique, and ever unpredictable, despite their intended use as a reliable defense mechanism in lieu of the divine.”

“In short, we have no idea. And you wonder why I worry?”

“I never said your worries were without merit, only that we have little influence on the outcome,” Celestia reiterated, “Whatever happens, it is in Twilight’s hooves. I have faith in my student. Even if she activates the Relic, I believe in her ability to retain her own identity. Besides, it may not come to that. We did arm her with the necessary knowledge to pursue High Magic, and given her aptitude and talents, I feel sorry for the first opponent who gives her cause to apply that newfound knowledge.”

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“Sphaera... Astralis?” Morgawr mouthed the unfamiliar words in a confused echo of Twilight’s invocation. While he had studied several surface languages in order to better understand the foes from beyond his watery home, he was not acquainted with the words that this pony had just utilized. The phonetics were strange indeed, and even made more so by the fact that thus far no other use of magic had required any verbal utterances at all.

Yet something was different about this magic, he sensed. The gifts of the Deep Mistress that filled his very soul and permeated his body granted some level of attunement to senses both magical and spiritual. He could feel the dynamic shift in Twilight Sparkle’s magical aura. A density that was not like the previous castings that had stemmed from the alicorn’s horn, which had been impressive certainly, but not like this. He, however, remained confident. His Mistress had filled him to the brim with her blessings! Every vein in his body was alight with a euphoric, blissful fire that made him feel decidedly invulnerable.

His heart sang with worshipful praise to the Deep Mistress, to Holy Charybdis! It was this power, this fire of purity, that saved his people from a miserable existence at the bottom of the Abyss, and reminded him of why she was so deserving of his undying faith. How could he feel anything but a conviction born of hate for any who would deny her? These unworthy surfacers who would dare tread their filthy carcasses into the path of her divine plan?

To an outsider looking in, this light of faith would look akin to madness. Twilight certainly had no way of understanding why Morgawr was grinning like a madman... madfish? Madfishman. But he certainly was, and that told her that as much as she deplored violence, there was most assuredly no resolving matters today without it. On some days, the magic of friendship manifested as a solid heart to heart talk and a lesson well learned. On other days, it manifested as a severe flank-kicking to those who weren’t keen on listening.

And Twilight had a whole new method of administering the latter.

Upon the final invoking of the High Magic spell, she felt it all snap into place like a jig-saw puzzle consisting of a thousand different components. Despite the complexity of the magic, once it was activated there was a beautiful simplicity to the way the flows of magic all come together in her mind, and she somehow knew that she’d have an easier time invoking this spell the more she used it.

The first visual effect was that the magical circle she’d created between her wings exploded outward into a churning field of sparkling purple and blue stardust, which then rapidly rushed together like a vacuum sucking up a river of stars. This became a flickering point of light that then grew outwards with pulsations almost like that of a heartbeat. After only a few seconds, the point of light had grown to a diameter of approximately fifteen feet, and the light it gave off suddenly intensified for a brief moment before finally fading.

Now, floating there in front of and a little above Twilight’s position was an illustrious shape, defined by a perfectly smooth surface within which spun a colorful void of radiant space. A sphere, whose dimensions carried not a single solitary iota of imperfection in its precise measurements. The surface of the orb was seemingly transparent as pristine glass, yet ingrained with a cutting gleam of astral light as if the sphere itself was a window to another galaxy. Gazing into the sphere one could see all the darkness of space, yet all the shimmering splendor of unknown stars, nebula, and other cosmic forms flowing by like reflections upon a grand galactic mirror.

Twilight Sparkle let out a deep breath, sensing her connection to the Sphaera Astralis, the Astral Sphere, not unlike a leash in her mind. There was a steady weight she felt in her core, her magic slowly being depleted to maintain the spell. This was well enough. Well within estimates. She gauged she’d be able to keep the spell going, even under combat conditions, for at least an hour.

“Alright, let’s see what you can do,” she told the sphere, and her eyes focused like two lasers upon Morgawr.

Ever the experienced warrior, Morgawr had no intention of waiting for this surface Princess to strike first with her strange new conjuring. He took the initiative, crimson tattoos flaring over his body as he propelled himself forward and to Twilight’s left, all but vanishing from sight in his speed. A powerful thrust of Scylla’s spear extended the magical weapon in a fraction of a heartbeat, seeking to skewer through Twilight’s side like one might lance a fish from a river. At the same instance he cut a downward stroke with the energy spear in his other hand, exploding his magic and spiritual power out through the weapon in a vertical wave of force to try and limit the space Twilight had to dodge.

Behind the organic helmet covering his upper face, Morgawr’s eyes widened as the tip of Scylla’s sphere vanished into the depths of the Astral Sphere, which in less than a second had moved to interpose itself between him and Twilight. At the same instance, the wave of energy his other spear had created was broken upon a magical wall of force that bubbled out from the sphere in a deep violet display of power, halting the attack dead.

He tried to pull Scylla’s spear free of the sphere, but found even with his muscles bulging to yank the weapon out, it didn’t budge so much as an inch.

At least not until Twilight herself allowed the weapon to be freed from the sphere’s depths, and even as it withdrew, Morgawr sensed a change in the ancient weapon, as if the magic in Scylla’s spear had been somehow diminished by its brief contact with the Astral Sphere.

“I see,” Twilight said, eyes closed in pondering, as if she was not in the midst of a life or death battle, “Impressive transmutation combined with spells to remove friction and even briefly alter time to increase the speed of the extension. Not to mention so much tempering. That spear would go through a mountain if you let it. Neat.”

“Grrr! Do not mock me, surfacer!” Morgawr increased his speed further, feeling his muscles screaming in protest as he started to circle Twilight in fast, curving patterns. He lashed out with his purely magic spear, manifesting several in quick succession and infusing them with explosive power as he threw them at numerous angles to try and strike a telling blow at the still stationary alicorn.

“Huh? I’m not mocking you, just commenting,” Twilight said as the Astral Sphere disgorged half a dozen smaller versions of itself, each one forming a focused barrier of magic around itself as they moved to intercept the spears lancing towards her. The magic spears detonated with incredible force, like a barrage of high-explosive torpedoes, but Twilight was shielded from the shockwaves not only by the smaller sphere’s barriers, but the main sphere itself had interposed itself in front of her to absorb the blows. It had grown smaller in size when it had created it’s smaller duplicates, but still remained sizable at about ten feet across.

Twilight was surprised. So far the Astral Sphere was responding even faster than she’d imagined it would. She’d known it’s function would be tied to her mind intimately enough that it would react to her needs and desires on an instinctual level, but this was beyond her expectations. It had immediately analyzed Morgawr’s attack and responded accordingly before the thought had even fully formed in her own head!

It was still Twilight’s thoughts controlling the Astral Sphere. It wasn’t truly autonomous. But the astral construct was so thoroughly tapped into her mind that it could predict her thoughts before she completed them. That was supremely useful for fast reaction times, but she could imagine it might be problematic under the wrong circumstances. She’d have to look for ways to adjust to spell in the future to account for that.

In all other respects, the High Magic spell was performing exactly as her studies had indicated thus far.

The Sphaera Astralis was nowhere near the most directly potent of High Magic spells. Indeed among the many spells in the book Celestia and Luna had given her, Twilight had considered trying many before she’d chosen the Astral Sphere. Other spells that created much more powerful feats of destructive force, or bent the laws of reality quite a bit further than she was totally comfortable with. However most of those spells were not only exceedingly draining, but were also essentially unwieldy one-shot deals. Twilight Sparkle didn’t need a spell to destroy mountains or lay entire armies low. She needed a tool with versatility. Something that worked with her analytical, knowledge driven mind.

What the spell did, in essence, was create a construct that was a highly versatile multi-tool that drew a portion of it’s abilities from being a direct conduit to the astral plane. The astral plane was the layer of reality that overlapped the material world and was essentially the endless ocean of natural magic that permeated the rest of the world. The Astral Sphere was a tightly controlled faucet into that plane, one with a set of specific functions meant to make it equal parts combat drone and research tool.

To be honest, Twilight had no idea who could have first came up with this spell, but they must have been somepony who had a thirst for study and practicality in equal measure.

The things it could do were actually fairly straightforward. Morgawr had experienced almost all of the Astral Sphere’s functions in just a few short moments of combat.

The first was the ability to trap and analyze objects inside of itself. The sphere’s shell was insanely dense astral magic made solid, but it could be made so objects could pass through at will. Once an object was inside the sphere, it’s structure and magic could be analyzed and the information transmitted to Twilight’s mind instantaneously. This process did drain some magic out of said object for the analysis, although this was more a side-effect than a direct function.

The next function, which was protecting Twilight so effectively, was spell amplification. The Astral Sphere was like one big focusing lens for spells, drawing directly from the astral plane to boost any spell cast through it. Hence Twilight’s already powerful barriers becoming next to impenetrable as she cast them through her link to the sphere.

Or spheres, as it were. Another handy function was the Astral Sphere’s ability to split itself into multiple parts, although it could only do so to a limited degree. A few dozen at the most, at which point each sphere might be less than a foot in diameter. Still more than sufficient to act as mobile spell foci.

It felt almost like cheating, really. Twilight might have felt a bit bad about this, if Morgawr and his warriors weren’t trying to kill her and her friends. High Magic really did break some of the normal limitations on magic, the Astral Sphere letting her amplify potentially dozens of spells at once, at a criminally efficient cost to her magic reserves.

Morgwar didn’t know any of this. He barely had time to be incredulously offended by the lack of results from his barrage of explosive spheres before Twilight counterattacked. Once more moving at a speed of near prescience with her own thoughts, the Astral Spheres went after Morgawr in a dizzying display of motion, each of the smaller spheres zipping around him almost as if teleporting. Twilight cast beams of punishing magic through the spheres, her magic transferring into the spheres and exploding out of them in amplified lances of purple magic that came at Morgawr from all sides.

No slouch in terms of speed, he wove through the beams, but the spheres were relentless, disgorging more cutting beams of purple that grew around him like a closing net. Seeing no room to evade, Morgawr growled deep in his chest and instead propelled himself backwards in a burst of speed, summoning numerous spears of crimson magic that he threw out around him in a twirling sheet. These spears acted as brief, explosive shields that caught a few of Twilight’s beams, making a small gap for Morgawr to gain distance with.

However the larger Astral Sphere, along with Twilight, both teleported behind his path, and she threw a hoof out to touch the sphere and send an amplified spell through it. Two conflicting fronts of crushing gravity appeared on either side of Mogawr, manifesting as two perceptible distortions in the water that sandwiched Morgawr between them and caused him to halt in place instantly as he was caught between the two waves of force like a fly being slapped between two massive hooves. This was a more potent and focused version of the gravity spell she’d unleashed upon the Bount known as Trixie, made even more damaging by catching her intended target between two opposing gravity fronts.

She could see Morgawr struggling to budge his frame even an inch under the forces crushing his body from either side, and felt a twinge of sympathy. She honestly wasn’t trying to cause undue harm here, but she couldn’t afford to hold much back, either. Even as the plates of organic armor covering his body began to crack, he only growled louder and his muscles strained harder. The flares of sanguine red magic flowing through the tattoos on his body became so bright she actually had a hard time looking at them. Still, he wasn’t able to move more than a few, halting inches of movement with his arms and Twilight found herself unable to keep silent.

“Why don’t you simply give up? What could Charybdis have possibly done for your people to warrant this level of blind loyalty!?”

Despite what pain he must have been under as his muscles and bones strained under the powerful gravities all but pulverizing his body, Morgawr still spoke with clarity and conviction. “Not loyalty, surfacer. Faith. We were a race with nothing, not even the ability to hope for better than our miserable lot. Only She, only She brought purpose and light into our dark world. For that, our bodies, our souls, belong to Her. This pain is nothing in measurement against that!”

He’d managed just barely to point Scylla’s spear downward with the minimal amount of movement he’d forced his body to pull off, despite the incredible forces crushing him. Even against that gravity, the spear was able to extend down at alarming speed and force, impacting the ground and creating a counteractive force that propelled Morgawr upward. The gravity planes still tore at his armor, ripping pieces off as he went, but he was still freed from the press and surprised Twilight when Scylla’s spear bent like a snake and actually sent him flying up and over her.

He came at her from above, stabbing down with a spear of pulsing red magic. Luckily the smaller Astral Spheres were swift enough to react, even as Twilight herself sought to dodge. The tip of the energy spear still scraped her back, drawing a shallow cut, but one of the Astral Spheres had already encapsulated the spear’s shaft, halting it in place as she swam back and arrayed the other spheres around Morgawr and cut loose another volley of empowered beams.

He was slower to respond this time, his injuries from the gravity spells hampering his movements. Scylla’s spear had returned to its original size, but he extended it again to spin in front of him, deflecting a few of Twilight’s beams, but he wasn’t fast enough to prevent others slamming into him from numerous angles.

Morgwar was bounced around by the amplified beams, sent tumbling into the bottom of the Treasury’s hull, where he recovered enough of his wits to better dodge as Twilight sent the smaller sphere’s chasing after him. This time the spheres extended crackling aruas of shocking energy that looked very much like purple electricity. It wasn’t actually electricity, otherwise the energy might have spread through the water, but it was magical energy modified to induce a taser-like effect. Twilight wanted to avoid using beams while Morgwar was near the ship’s hull, so making the spheres into melee weapons made the most sense to her until she could drive him into a more open space. She kept the larger Astral Sphere closer to her as a defensive measure.

A smart choice, as it turned out, for Morgwar had been holding back a trick or two of his own. As he started racing along the bottom of the ship’s hull, juking about through the buzzing assault of the empowered stun spheres, he began launching further barrages of magic spears. Only instead of targeting Twilight directly, he began flinging spears in clusters of three to five spears in various directions. Twilight was confused for a second, until she realized the spears of ruby power were now moving independently, curving about to start surrounding her and attacking her at random intervals.

This would either force her to create more small Astral Spheres from the large one, further diminishing it, or make her recall the ones she’d already made, hence taking the pressure off Morgawr and letting him increase his own offensive. It was a smart tactic, if not for the fact that Morgawr was underestimating the Astral Sphere’s versatility once more.

Instead of making more spheres, Twilight stepped into the large sphere which still had plenty of space to accommodate her.

There was no water inside the sphere, so she had the rather unusual feeling of having air on her body again after spending so long in the water, but since there was no gravity inside the sphere, she just floated there with droplets of water rising off of her body. The interior of the Astral Sphere was deceptively large, almost like being suspended in a star scape, but she could still make out the definition of the sphere’s exterior and could see what was outside of it as if the nebulous starstuff automatically cleared a window for her wherever she looked.

The moment she entered the sphere she cast her magic through it to harden the exterior shell. This occurred just as the first of Morgawr’s magical spears hit, exploding in concussive blasts of crimson force. More came in, striking in rapid succession, surrounding Twilight’s sphere in a growing bloom of destructive force that sent shockwaves through the hangar and cracked the ground beneath the impact points. Even the Treasury itself shook from the blows, and on the inside of the bridge those present could feel the tremors.

“What in blazes is going on out there?” Trixie said, face pressed against one of the bulbous windows lining the main deck of the bridge, “I can hardly see anything!”

“Looks like your alicorn Princess is getting hammered by that pumped up blowfish,” Tempest said, looking through a monitor device next to the helm that she’d parsed out how to operate, showing a screen of the battle taking place beneath the ship’s belly. Next to her, Starlight frowned, but not in worry, but rather curiosity.

“I don’t think so,” she told Tempest, “I’ve fought Twilight before, and while I might have pushed her around back then, she was never trying to hurt me. Trust me when I say she’s got a lot more juice under the hood than either you or I’ve got. And that spell she’s using... I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“That so?” Tempest said, eyeing the spot where Twilight and her Astral Sphere had been covered in explosions of red magical might, “Neither have I, but that Morgawr is showing way more power now than when we took him on just a little bit ago. Whatever his boss did to pump him up, it’s serious business. You really think the Princess and her Friendship Squad have this?”

Starlight could only nod with a small smirk, “Just watch, Tempest. I think you’re about to see for yourself.”

The disturbance of the successive explosions had churned up a cloud of bubbles as the light of the blasts faded. Morgawr knew Twilight must have survived his assault, however, for the smaller Astral Spheres remained charged with stunning energy and continued to pursue him like a swarm of mad piranha. He was forced to keep moving to stay ahead of the pack, but even as he did so he moved in a curving motion that would take him towards the area of dissipating bubbles where Twilight had been.

For all of his faith and conviction, Morgawr was not entirely blind to the fact that this alicorn Princess was proving more formidable than he’d given her initial credit for. This new spell of hers was beyond troublesome, giving her an incredible defense while similarly augmenting her attack options. He’d barely scratched her so far, and she’d already dealt him several telling blows that left him in a state that, even if he won, he’d be in need of weeks of healing.

In his mind, he could not afford to let this battle drag out further. In a battle of pure attrition, it was clear this Twilight Sparkle would best him. It was only a matter of time before he could no longer dodge these damned spheres, or she’d catch him with some other spell like that hellish gravity press!

He had to end this in a single, decisive blow, and now! If he didn’t... was a part of him truly fearful this surfacer posed a threat to his Mistress? It seemed impossible that Her magical might could be so challenged, yet something about this blasted purple interloper left a hint of genuine unease in the sahuagin warlord’s heart. An unease he’d erase with her death upon his spear

Having borne witness to what this Sphaera Astralis was capable of, Morgawr knew he could not rely on overpowering Twilight’s defenses. His only chance would lay in creating an opening. With that in mind, he delved deep into the gifted power his Mistress had granted him. Unafraid of the damage he’d be doing to his own body, he pushed the power of the tattoos to their limit, ignoring the tearing of his muscles and the strain on his very spirit to move even faster.

He became as a ribbon of ruby light, spinning swifter and swifter in ever changing, curving patterns around Twilight’s location, moving with such speed that the motions began to create a maelstrom in the water.

Twilight Sparkle observed this as the bubbles finally dissipated fully around her main sphere. Seeing the speed at which Morgawr was moving, she realized the smaller spheres just wouldn’t be able to keep up, so she instead bid them to join together so that now she had two spheres of roughly equal size; one she stood within, the other now stationary and remaining charged to the brim with stun magic.

She realized it was pointless to try and follow Morgawr’s motions with her eyes at this point. She could have tried amplifying the haste spell on herself to try and keep up with his speed, and it would probably have worked, but she had a simpler solution in mind. With a flare of magic from her horn she drew upon the astral mana stemming from within the sphere and charged it with elemental properties. Magic spells that commanded physical elements were usually fairly energy efficient as long as one had a ready source of said element to use as an initial spark. Not necessary, of course, for an alicorn with vastly ample energy reserves and a spell that actively drew additional mana right to her.

Temperatures dropped with shocking instantaneous speed around the Astral Sphere Twilight stood inside. So fast and complete was the temperature shift that the water froze outward in a mere second, turning swaths of the water beneath the Treasury into an ice sheet.

Fast as Morgawr was moving, the rapid expansion of ice in all directions was still not something so readily dodged. He was caught within the ice, but rather than freeze in place along with it he ended up barreling through it like a plough through snow. That said, it was hardly an elegant thing, the impact into the ice, hardened as it was by the magic suffusing it, was more like running headfirst into a reinforced stone wall.

The ice broke, yes, but Morgawr was sent spinning away, his speed working against him now as he bounced off the floor and tumbled away like a skipped rock. Twilight, wasting not a second, mentally commanded the second Astral Sphere that was still very much charged with stun energy to move, sending it right towards Morgawr like a magical cannonball.

He saw it coming, but was at a bad angle to move out of the way. He instead threw out his hands and within them created a pair of pure magic spears, which he crossed in front of him to block the oncoming sphere. Spears forged of equal parts magic and spirit energy met in crimson embrace with the crackling form of the charged Astral Sphere, and for a second or two the pair remained locked in equal balance.

Seeing that Morgawr was presently occupied with defending himself, Twilight felt confident enough to step back out of the Astral Sphere she’d been occupying, shaking a bit inside. She actually couldn’t afford to spend too much time inside the Sphaera Astralis, as potent a defensive move as it was. The amount of raw mana that flowed in from the astral plane was not meant for any being to bath in. A pony’s magic, even an alicorn’s, was still fundamentally attuned to their own body. Drawing in or being exposed to high quantities of magic in its purest form was disruptive to one’s inner balance, to say the least. Still, a few minutes of exposure had probably been safe.

Shaking herself off, Twilight directed the sphere she’d just exited to start moving towards its brother. It looked like Morgawr was still holding that one at bay, but as soon as the other sphere joined it, she ought to be able to overwhelm those two spears of conjured magic he was holding...

Wait? Morgawr was using two spears of pure magic? Then where was Scylla’s-

Her only warning was the sound of ice breaking apart as errant chunks of it that had floated above her were smashed to pieces by the oncoming attack. Instinct was all that saved Twilight, instinct that had come from more light or death experiences than she’d ever wanted to have. There wasn’t time for a protective barrier, but the Astral Sphere’s tie to her instincts allowed one small sphere to break off from its brethren to come flying towards her, essentially knocking her partially out of the path of Scylla’s spear as the point was driven down.

Morgawr, amid all of the high speed movements he’d performed earlier, had thrown the spear up towards the Treasury’s hull, causing it to lay floating against the bulkhead of the ship. Then it had simply been a matter of waiting for Twilight to drop her guard, to step out of the Astral Sphere and become focused solely on finishing him off.

In that moment Morgawr had commanded the magic in Scylla’s spear to strike, the weapon magically extending and curving down to try and impale the Princess from above in a sneak attack.

It had nearly worked, but the small Astral Sphere had knocked Twilight aside just in time to prevent her from being lanced like a fish. Instead the spear’s tip managed a deep, but non-fatal gouge down her left side. It hurt incredibly, like a small river of molten metal searing her, but Twilight had enough presence of mind to know she wasn’t about to die. At least, not as long as she took action.

Swallowing her sudden spike of fear, she had the small Astral Sphere that had saved her entrap Scylla’s spear, keeping the shaft from retracting back. She wasn’t sure, but she believed from her earlier analysis of the spear’s magic that it could only extend and retract once per attack. It couldn’t keep bending around like some kind of snake.

With that done, her eyes narrowed dangerously and she focused all of her remaining attention on Morgawr.

“Enough is enough.”

With but a thought and gesture of her wing she bid the two larger Astral Sphere’s joined. With the Sphaera Astralis now back to largely being one sphere, minus the small one that still held Scylla’s spear, Twilight charged up her horn and cast a beam of magic directly into the large sphere. Already empowered to near bursting with pulsating stun magic, the sphere now gleamed brighter still, and Morgawr found his two magic-forges spears being driven back and him along with them.

With a loud growl of denial, Mogawr tried to push forward, but Twilight redoubled the magic flowing from her horn and into the Astral Sphere. The sphere then discharged all of its magically amplified energy, point blank, right atop Morgawr. The result “stun” beam was more like a deluge of might that smashed the burly sahuagin right into the ground, then drove him further into the wall in a continuous river of magic that then traversed up the wall of the hangar. Stone was shattered in a furrow up the wall until Twilight had to cut the beam to avoid hitting the Treasury. Even so, a cut several meters deep ran from floor to wall, and tons of stone broke apart and collapsed in a pile that caused the whole chamber to rumble.

Twilight, breathing heavily and bleeding, but still very much alive, floated there for a few seconds to catch her breath. She couldn’t perform any immediate healing magic, but she did cast a quick spell to help numb the pain burning in her side. At a glance she gauged her wound wasn’t going to be an immediate problem, but she’d need to get it treated and stitched closed before it got infected.

As for Morgawr... Twilight saw him lying pinned halfway underneath the rubble fallen from the wall. He wasn’t moving, and within the next second the pieces of organic armor that were still left on his body began to crack and release small flecks of fading red magic. Seconds later the armor vanished entirely as more energy just seemed to leak out of Morgawr’s body, his torn muscles, bulged to the point of twisted parody, shrank back down. More than that, they contracted until he looked thinner and more withered than he’d been before Charybdis had charged him up. Twilight couldn’t even tell if he was still breathing. A part of her hoped he was, as she hadn’t been intending to kill him, but she didn’t have time to go check on his condition either. He was clearly down for the count, and her friends might still need her help.

With him down and out, she allowed the smaller Astral Sphere holding Scylla’s spear to let go of the weapon and bid the different spheres rejoin back into a single Sphaera Astralis. Scylla’s spear retracted to its base form and slowly floated down to the broken floor, amid melting chunks of ice. Twilight, deciding it was best not to leave the weapon just laying around again, collected it in her magical grip and placed it inside the Astral Sphere for safekeeping.

She then turned and rapidly swam back towards the bow of the Treasury, rising up from underneath the vessel and into the front area of the hangar chamber to see how her friends were faring with the rest of the sahuagin.

A single glance was enough to tell her she needn’t have worried.

By this point the sahuagin warriors had been forced onto the defensive, nearly half of their initial numbers now floating in pained or unconscious heaps around amid the chamber’s waters. Twilight’s friends had largely regrouped into a single unit, with the exception of Rainbow Dash, who had broken through into the hangar’s control room while the rest of the group kept the sahuagin busy.

“Twilight!” she heard Flash Sentry cry out as the Soul Reaper bobbed aside a sahaugin’s clumsy thrust and in the same motion reflected himself in several different locations while performing a spinning strike that knocked out not only his attacker, but half a dozen others. “Are you alright!?”

Not far from him, Wavecrest was busy weaving the tip of her glowing staff in a smoothly curving arc around her. The water churned in front of the seapony witch, bubbling with heated lances of scalding temperatures that Wavecrest then sent stabbing out at clusters of sahuagin, preventing too many from grouping up to surround the group. At Flash’s shout, she paused her spell casting to look Twilight’s way, forming a small, satisfied smile.

“Ah, it seems the duel has reached its conclusion.”

“An’ it looks like our Twilight took care o’ the big fella,” Applejack called out, raising her shillelagh to block the oncoming rush of three sahuagin, catching all three of their harpoons at once before shoving the warriors back and then winding her club back for a potent swing that sent the fishmen tumbling back like pins struck by a bowling ball.

“Than goodness for that,” Rarity commented, her eyes never ceasing to move as she expertly directed her chakram within her magical fields in a glittering metal shroud around her, keeping a dozen wary sahuagin at bay who seemed genuinely terrified to get closer to the mare. “We were starting to worry a tad that you might need some assistance.”

“Naaaah, I knew Twilight had that. Didn’t you see my hooves wigging out earlier? Definite sign of imminent victory for team Equestria,” said Pinkie Pie, casually swimming in tight circles around a group of dazed sahuagin that were covered head to fin in bruises. Bruises the origin of which began evident as they kept trying to strike Pinkie Pie, yet never seemed to manage to get close and instead kept striking their nearby brethren as the giggling mare swam by.

A short gasp from nearby stemmed from Fluttershy, who saw Twilight’s injuries and covered her mouth with her free hoof, “Oh my! Twilight you’re hurt!”

Despite having ten or so sahuagin in front of her, the shield bearing pegasus went off like a shot and barreled right through them with her shield held in front to batter through opposition like so much debris. Smart sahuagin moved aside, while the more bold among them tried to stab at Fluttershy, only to find the demure looking mare packing more than enough momentum to overpower their attempts to bar her path to her injured friend.

Twilight, for her part, just blinked at the scene, and had the presence of mind to rubbed the back of her head as Fluttershy reached her and hastily say, “I-I’m okay, Fluttershy, really! I mean, it’s more than a scratch, sure, but it's still just a flesh wound, as they say.”

“Who says that?” Fluttershy asked, giving Twilight a look of immense caring as she immediately began to examine the wound, all but ignoring the wake of groaning sahuagin she’d left behind her, “This needs immediate looking to! Oh, I am so... so... steamed right now! Hurting my friends like this.”

At that moment the chamber was filled with a droning groan that rang out with the bone shaking rumble of what at first may have seemed like an earthquake. However the flash of light from a dual set of blinking crystal fixtures on the chamber’s back wall drew the attention of all to the source of the sound, which was a pair of truly gigantic doors starting to grind open.

Rainbow Dash poked her head out of the hangar’s control room, “Hey, it worked! I was pushing every button I could find in there until- Whoa!”

She ducked as a sahuagin tried to stab her from above and she smacked his trident aside with a sweep of her swordbreaker, then rammed the pommel of the weapon right into the poor fish man’s sternum, “Don’t interrupt me, dude. Super rude.”

More sahuagin came at her, and she licked her lips, “Alright, fine by me then. Check this out! Rainbow Whorl!”

Wings and fined tail swishing together, Rainbow spun herself like a drill, with the swordbreaker held out between her hooves so it formed a whirling line of steel around her as she rushed forward into the oncoming sahuagin. The maneuver served to scatter them, snapping weapons in half and just as often breaking limbs as well. In a prismatic rush of speed, Rainbow rejoined her friends, who had now fallen back towards Twilight amid a barrage of Kido spells from Flash to help disperse the sahuagin some more.

“Good work, Dash. Knew you’d get those hangar doors open in no time, although not quite your standard ten-seconds flat,” Flash said, grinning.

“Cut me a break, Flash, there was like a million fish dudes between me and that control room!” Rainbow protested, “And once I got through there were, like, a thousand levers and buttons. Not my fault I only got two front hooves to hit stuff with.”

“Hey, not complaining, you pulled it off,” he said, then his mirth vanished rather quickly as he floated over to Flutteshy and Twilight, his eyes softening at the sight of her wound. Twilight felt a familiar warmth as he laid a hoof over the injury, gentle green light appearing over both hoof and wound, “This won’t do much for now, but better than nothing.”

“I appreciate it,” she said, then glanced between the ship and the sahuagin. The remaining sahuagin had reformed ranks, but now that it was clear their leader had been defeated, they appeared hesitant to advance. Many of them looked at one another and shared fearful whispers, as if trying to decide who was in charge right now, and if any among them would make the call to retreat or resume the attack against these surprisingly potent ponies.

“So what’s the deal with this thing?” Rainbow Dash asked, pointing with a wing at the Sphaera Astralis, which remained hovering near Twilight like a protective canine.

“Oh, just a High Magic spell,” Twilight said, “I’ll explain later, but for now think of it kind of like an extension of me.”

“Shouldn’t you dispel it, now that the fight’s over?” asked Flash, “It’s draining you, isn’t it?”

She appreciated the concern in his voice, but she shook her head, “Not as much as you might think, and I don’t know if I’ll need it again soon, so I’ll be keeping it out for a bit longer until I’m sure we’re all safe and away from the city.”

“In which case I would say this is our cue to leave,” Rarity said, “I doubt we’ll get another window, and I’d rather not wait for these brutes to recover the broken remains of their courage, or for reinforcements to show up for that matter.”

“That would be wise,” Wavecrest said, eyeing the other mares with a look of newfound respect, “While I’ve no doubts as to your prowess in battle, if the sahuagin continue to come at us in numbers it is only a matter of time before exhaustion takes its toll. We have what we came for, so there’s no further reason to linger.”

“I don’t know, I could go a few more rounds-” Rainbow Dash began to say, but Fluttershy turned a firm gaze towards her, which caused Dash to cut herself short.

“Twilight’s hurt, and unless we have to, there’s no more reason to fight,” Flutteshy stated simply.

“Okay, okay! Guess we can go,” Rainbow Dash relented, sheathing the swordbreaker in the scabbard she’d strapped across her back.

The sahuagin made no move to interfere with the mares as they swam back towards the cargo bay doors. Only a small group made any motion at all, and that was only to swim to Morgawr to check upon the fallen warlord’s condition. Then, just as the ponies reached the cargo bay doors, Twilight heard the gurgling, rising moans of the sahuagin chanting. She wasn’t sure, but something about the growingly resonant, dirge-like tone sounded almost familiar.

Her head began to pound with the throb of a hammer on smelted iron. She clutched her hooves to her head, and felt a heartbeat pulse of magic in her core. Her eyes were drawn to the silver mace, the top of which was still poking out of her saddlebag. That glowing sigil of magic blazed bright on its surface, the symbol of chains standing out clearly.

“Argh! What n’ tarnation’!?”

“Owie zowie! My head’s about to explode!”

“Ohmygosh what the hay!? Why does it feel like the morning after a cider binge all of a sudden!?”

“I think I’m about to faint. Is everypony-aaaagh!”

“G-girls, is everypony feeling the same thing?”

One by one each of Twilight’s friends were suddenly either pinching their eyes shut in pain or rubbing hooves to their foreheads as if in great pain. Twilight had to assume that they were feeling the exact kind of jolting headache and ringing sensation that she was. But why? Why had the mace abruptly acted up again and why were her friends from Ponyville being affected? As the pain and noise in her head rose together like a surging tide, she also wondered why this was different from the first time the mace had affected her. It hadn’t caused pain like this.

Focusing on the magic emanating from the mace, she realized it was not only much stronger than what she’d sensed before, but it was fluctuating in an unstable fashion. As if whatever enchantments were on it had been exposed to...

Oh horseapples, I didn’t think of that! Twilight realized, glancing at the Astral Sphere. She’d stood right inside it for at least a minute or two, exposing not only herself, but the mace to a continuous stream of raw astral mana. She’d been so wrapped up in fighting Morgawr she hadn’t even considered what side effects that might have on the artifact! And now-!

“Twilight!? Twilight!” Flash was holding her, and Twilight realized she couldn’t feel her body anymore, floating in the water like a literal dead fish. Her friends were all similarly incapacitated, Wavecrest looking among them with shocked eyes. As Flash’s face filled her vision, she managed to nod towards the mace, but couldn’t say anything as her eyesight was blanked out by an all encompassing wash of light.

------------

Twilight was more aware of herself, this time. It was as if her consciousness now rode as a proper passenger inside the body of another, rather than her mind blending with the other occupant. She knew this had to be Astra, or at least it felt like the same alicorn that Twilight had been a part of before.

She, or Astra, was walking with a slow, deliberate pace across a narrow bridge of rock that spanned from one edge of a towering cliff face behind her, and stretched over a chasm of churning, endless water that appeared to extend to her left and right forever. However just ahead this water only went on for what she guessed might be a few miles before falling off another edge, although this edge ended only in an expanse of eye bending colors, like a horizon painted in countless bleeding oils and glossed over with glittering dust.

The bridge itself led to an edifice rising from a tooth of stone that jutted out over the terminus of the edge. It looked like a globe of interconnecting rings, each ring hundreds of paces wide, and from with extended walkways and smaller globe shaped buildings that gradually formed together into a larger sphere in the edifice's center. Countless lights of astral magic flowed like glowing power lines between the rings, and to odd devices of every shape and function that hung off the odd building like barnacles. At the end of the narrow bridge of rock was a bronze platform, wider than an airship, and accommodating a set of three different walkways that led either into the main sphere itself, or the nearest adjoining rings.

Waiting for Astra on the platform were five other alicorns, who all turned to greet her upon her approach. Twilight recognized Tachys from the previous vision, with his well toned physique and rainbow colored mane giving her a swift sense of correlation to her familiar pegasus friend. And the same could be said for the others, although in different ways.

“Hahah! You took your time, little star! I was getting hungry, waiting for you!” said a warm voice who’s friendly candor was not ill affected by her sheer volume. This stemmed from an alicorn mare with a coat like polished gold and a mane of wild yellow curls that hung low around her head. She was several heads taller than any other present, with a body of thick muscle that looked more solid than steel. Smiling green eyes matched her warmth as the giant mare hugged Astra tight, all but picking her up off the ground.

“You’re in good spirits, Althea,” Astra said, once she’d been put down.

“Insufferably so, I must say,” said a male alicorn just behind Althea’s left. He had a whipcord frame, with a marble colored coat and a well groomed, short mane that was nearly black, but carried a hint of purple to it. While neither tall, nor short, he carried himself with a graceful confidence that made him seem larger than he was. He regarded Althea with clear blue eyes that held equal sparks of fondness and sarcasm, “I mean really, it’s the end of the world, and all you can do is laugh and think about food?”

“Bah, Zosimos, I’ll not have our reunion tainted by gloom,” Althea said, smashing a hoof to her chest, “If this is the last time we friends stand together, I’ll have it be a glad time!”

“Besides, Z, it’s not as if we know for sure the world is doomed. Could be we’ll get lucky and Astra’s crazy plan for fixing the mess we’ve made of things will work,” spoke a mare who’s straight pink mane contrasted rather severely with the plain gray of her coat, but her own lighter blue eyes did hold a familiar glint of laughter in them as this alicorn bumped Zosimos with her flank and grinned at Astra, “And we all know your plans have never blown up in our faces before, right Ast?”

Astra sighed and hung her head, “You never fail to remind me of that time with the Sun Court Gala, will you? Malva, it was one time! One! I thought I had the correct formula down!”

“Hehehe, and with your horn writing, all sevens really do look like fours. But seriously, you learned your lesson to never leave baking to me, especially when you decide to stick experimental alchemy into the mix,” said Malva with a chuckle, “Good times though. I swear, I thought Eos might fry me then and there, if she could see me through the mountains of fizz.”

“Those were such simpler times, when Eos and Iah weren’t at each other's throats... before we drew lines between Preserver and Reformer,” said the last of the gathered alicorns, one who was second tallest of the bunch, if still dwarfed by Althea’s golden frame. This mare had a verdant green coat of fur, like that of an unspoiled field, combined with a mane of flowing locks that were colored a gold much softer than Althea’s gleaming coat, and instead was more like fresh wheat. Flowers were interwoven with her mane, which seemed to stir with a slight breeze.

“Everything might have been simpler back then, Penthia, but those sister’s always had bad tempers,” said Malva, “Of course the war made it all way worse. The battle at Prism Valley was as bad as I’d ever seen them get. Hmm, how’d my verses for that one go...?”

With a gesture and a glint of bright blue magic from her horn, Malva summoned forth an ornate lute into her waiting hoof. The instrument was forged of a deep dark wood gilded in silver studs, with strings that shone bright with rainbow colors, for they were made of the same hardened astral mana that had built the famed Rainbow Bridges. Without missing a beat, Malva began to strum a melancholy tune that resonated with a mixture of tired sadness, yet was lifted up by rising notes of resolution. Astra let a content smile touch her face as Malva sung in her silver voice that never had ceased to touch her soul.

” Through mortal lands did fray

The bonds of divine sway

Against the Moon Court’s eternal tide

The host of Eos’ light did ride

Preservers of the mortals’ chains

Shed blood unto a deluge of crimson rains

Yet ‘twas not until the break of the thirteenth day

That either side began to give way

Haggard, desperate, all near lost

Then did Iah call forth her black frost

All who touched it did turn to ice hard as stone

Even the warriors who were Iah’s own

So in turn did Eos’ wrath rise in vengeful might

A blaze of sun so bright it drowned out night

We five friends stood among the battle weary mass

And had to pick up our tails and run before the sun melted our as-”

Malva’s verse was interrupted by Zosimos conjuring forth a stylishly polished cane of ashen wood, fashioned with a serpent’s head wroght jade, and he bonked the songtress on the head lightly. “Now I know those last two verses you just made up. Let us not be crass, my dear.”

“Ye gads, Z, you never lighten up, do you?” Malva said, rubbing her head and floating her lute beside her as she shrugged with her wings, “The song could do with some spicing up. Heh, not that there’s many left to hear it these days.”

“Not a battle I’m fond of remembering, anyways,” Tachys said, still standing with a tall and proud stance, but Twilight could see a weariness in the male alicorn that hadn’t been there before. While the others wore little in terms of articles, he wore armor in the form of a chest plate of faded and scratched steel, along with smaller plates across his sides and flanks woven into thick white cloth. The armor was well cared for, but clearly worn from long use, and Tachys’ fur where it was visible had gained a few more scars.

All of them had some signs of old battles, Twilight noted, although far fewer than in comparison to Tacyhs.

Astra cleared her throat as she saw the mood shift among her friends, “Yes, well, we’d best get inside the bastion. Wouldn’t do to keep the High Sage waiting, and while this experiment may have been my idea, I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish all that was needed without the help of my fellow scholars.”

“Yes, let’s get this started,” Penthia said, “The sooner to stop the disasters befalling our mortal friends.”

Twilight’s mind was cataloging everything she was seeing and hearing, running wild with theories as she rode within Astra, the group of alicorns now making their way towards the front entrance of bronze steps leading into the central sphere. She knew this couldn’t be just some random dream. These were clear visions of actual events. Had all of this happened in the distant past? Why did Astra and her companions bear faint if difficult to mistake similarities to herself and her own friends? What had happened with this seeming war between deific forces, and what was Astra trying to do now, here, at this strange “bastion”.

Even as she tried to process this, the vision continued, with the alicorns reaching the sphere’s exterior, where bright runes of searing light formed along the metal surface in a circle. Within the circle of runes, the metal parted almost like liquid metal, with no seams opening, but rather the metal flowing aside silently. Within the sphere, whose size was as big as a Manhattan office building, was a brightly light and hollow interior within which Twilight saw an amazing contraption of spinning, layered rings surrounding a painfully bright blue crystal. This device took up much of the center area, like a statue or monument, but surrounding the inner wall of the sphere were walkways and passages seemingly leading elsewhere within the sphere itself.

Other alicorns were present, all wearing white robes trimmed in gold script. Many floated vast tomes or lengthy scrolls beside them that they read as they trotted from one walkway or door to another, while others talked in low whispers to one another as they passed. Some few gave the newcomers curious looks, although upon seeing Astra there were familiar nods, as if upon seeing her they all understood why she and her companions were there.

“All the centuries I’ve known you, I never did get around to visiting your home,” Zoismos said, tapping his serpent cane lightly on the metallic floor, “Whatever is that spinning apparatus for?”

“Oh! Um, well it’s rather complicated-” Astra began to say, but was cut off by a voice from above calling out to them, in a distinctly smug and bored tone of voice that for Twilight was instantly recognizable and left her mind reeling further.

“It’s about time you lot showed up. I was going out of my mind waiting here amid these unbelievably dull, knowledge-addled, walking libraries you call kin, Astra.”

Astra actually made a small growling noise in her throat and Twilight felt her host’s heart rate increase as she looked up at a figure floating down from the ceiling, “If you don’t like my home, Paralogos, you didn’t have to volunteer yourself for this experiment.”

“But didn’t I? Our grand and noble Lady of the Night bid I render unto you, her favorite star-child, all manner of aide, now that the nasty business of all that war has petered out unto a delightfully barren ruin. Whatever is a draconequus to do when the highest god remaining in the heavens snaps her fingers at him to go hippity hopping about? Well, not that she has fingers, but if she did, you can bet Iah would snap them most ferociously.”

He looked nearly identical to the Discord that Twilight knew in her time, although there was a certain... youthful vitality to him that didn’t quite match her memory. The frayed white mane and short beard Discord usually sported was now a dark gray, and his mismatched body of various creature’s body parts had a certain vigor about it as he floated in front of the alicorns in a lazed position, hands resting behind his head.

“That sounds dangerously close to an insult,” Tachys said in a dangerous tone, and Discord... Paralogos, cracked smarmy smirk.

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Especially given Iah’s portfolio. Really, she’s a delight compared to Eos. I’m still nursing that sunburn from Prism Valley, which I heard Malva belting about outside. Really Mal, centuries of practice, and those are the best lines you can come up with to mark such an apocalyptic event?”

“Yeash, everyone’s a critic,” Malva muttered, rolling her eyes at him, “It’s not like I had time to bust out a scroll and write things down while the world was getting exploded in front of my face.”

“Just, um, why are you here?” Penthia asked, “Astra didn’t mention you coming.”

“S-sorry about that,” Astra said, “I wasn't even sure anyone was going to come, but I had asked Iah about finding a volunteer among the greater spirits to participate. This whole plan might work without them, I mean, I’ve calculated all the variables and I’m fairly certain it will work with alicorns alone, but our chances increase vastly if we extend this to every possible source of divine magic.”

“And here I am,” Paralogos said with a mocking half-bow, “Your guinea-pig in shining armor. You're lucky I find this truce so boring that I’m willing to let you poke me with every little device you have in your labs, just to alleviate the malaise.”

“You ought to take this seriously, chaos spirit,” said Althea, snorting as her golden body grew bright and a bit of smoke exited her nostrils, “If Astra’s plan fails, the world is doomed to a slow death.”

“So she claims, but I find the world is a resilient place,” he countered with a wave of his hand, “Save away, of course, but even if this fails, something is always rising up from the chaos. That’s the beauty of it, you know?”

“Then if everyone is prepared, follow me,” Astra said, taking a deep breath. Twilight could feel Astra’s body shaking a bit, her legs weakening from either excitement, fear, or a fair dose of both, “Today, we see if we can fix the imbalance of magic our war has caused. Today, if all goes as planned... we face tomorrow no longer as gods, but as mortals.”

A heavy silence fell over the group, each alicorn showing the quiet reflection of what they were about to embark upon. Althea, despite her massive golden frame, like that of an potent colossus, looked almost foal-like in her subdued unease, but she was also the first to break the spell of quiet and take a deep, emboldening breath.

"It can't be that bad. Why, if mortals can put up with it, so can we!"

"Yes but..." Zosimos shook his head, "I don't deny the need of us to do this, but it's still disquieting. To live only a hundred more years at most. To die so soon. Blast it all, we're gods, we're only supposed to die through violence, accident, or the passage of ten thousand years or more. To just willingly give up what makes us what we are..."

"We have to, Z," Malva said, shrugging her shoulders with a mirthless smile, "Think of it as our last, big adventure together!"

"Hmph, you'll think of anything as an adventure, you loopy bard," Zosimos said, but did smile at his companion.

"I've made peace with death plenty of times during the war," Tachys said, although his face was now devoid of bravado, "And I always figured I'd fall in some gloriously awesome fight. Never imagined I'd just grow old and keel over someday."

"You might still find a death in battle, Tachys," Althea said warmly, "I know that means a lot to you, and even as a mortal, we should still be plenty strong enough to have a few more fights left in us. I'll certainly stay by your side. I don't need divine magic to do that!"

The two shared a look of mutual warmth, leaning a bit closer to one another. Penthia smiled brightly at the pair, then looked at Astra, "I want to think we'll all stay together until the end, but what do you think will happen to us afterward? We'll be changing the way it all works, the Cycle, everything. What becomes of us once we're... gone?"

Twilight had not yet gained much of an insight into what Astra was feeling or thinking up to that point besides physical cues like heart rate or breathing, but at that moment she could swear she felt a wave of uncertainty and hope in equal measure gripping the very soul of the body she was occupying, as if the emotions and thoughts were her own.

"I can't say for certain," Astra said, looking into the faces of each of her friends in turn, friends she loved with every beat of her heart, and feared losing with just as much intensity, "All I can say is I sincerely pray that whatever happens, we'll still be together in some fashion, even in death."

"Hah, a goddess praying, now there's an ironic note to go out on," Paralogos said with a dry chuckle, and Astra flattened her ears at him.

"You've as much to lose as we do. We know even less how this experiment will affect a divine spirit like you."

He gave her a manic, snaggle-toothed smile that Twilight had seen so often on Discord's face.

"My dear, not knowing what's going to happen next is precisely the way I like it."

----------

When she awoke, it was with Flash’s worried visage hovering over her. He’s hooves were held over the wound in her side, an aura of healing Kido emanating from him. The injury still hurt fiercely, but the bleeding had stopped, at least. Her headache was gone as well, and as she raised herself up she realized she and her friends had been moved to the Treasury’s bridge.

The bridge was more than twice the size of the one that she’d seen on the Odyssey, and Twilight could see the extra care that had gone into its engineering, with much smoother metal walls running in a bubble shape which seamlessly transferred to thick, transparent glass on either side that allowed a very dynamic view of the surroundings outside the ship. A central platform extended out into the center of the bridge’s “bubble” shape, it’s circular edge lined with control stations that glowed with magi-tech displays, centered around a wide helm platform with a curved metal seat situated in front of a dual handled control stick and flanked by lines of levers.

Her friends were beside her, all waking up, and the rest of Twilight’s group of allies floated nearby, all wearing looks of concern.

“Twilight, what happened?” Starlight was the first to speak, floating close, opposite of Flash’s position, “Flash and Wavecrest just brought you all in, out like lanterns.”

“I’m... not sure yet,” Twilight said, looking at her friends, who all wore expressions of varied confusion and degrees of shock. Rarity gathered her wits a bit faster than the others, looking straight at Twilight with a rather intensely questioning look.

“I don’t suppose you just had a peculiar dream concerning a group of alicorns entering the most bizarre building I’ve ever seen?”

Before Twilight could answer, Rainbow Dash blurted out, “You too!? That was so weird! I was, like, a stallion, which...ugh, way uncomfortable. And this smart looking mare that kinda looked like Twilight but taller and darker was leading us into a big metal jawbreaker with rings around it. And I think Discord was there? Am I remembering that right?”

“I remember it too,” said Fluttershy, hugging herself, “It felt so real. I was this Penthia. I could almost hear what she was thinking.”

“Huh...?” Pinkie Pie, scratching her head, picked up the lute she’d taken from the artifact room. She experimentally strummed it, but being underwater, the sound wasn’t the same, so she shrugged, “Guess I didn’t become a musical genius in dreamland. So, who wants to guess how important that cutscene just was to the overall plot?”

“Not now Pinkie, we got a downright odd mystery on our hooves,” said Applejack, “What do ya think this means, Twilight? What just happened ta us an’ why?”

“I don’t know!” Twilight said, realizing she was raising her voice and specifically took a moment to take a deep breath, hoof to chest, and let the breath out with an outward hoof motion, “I can’t fully explain it yet, but I think this is because of the mace I picked up.”

“This thing?” Starlight asked, gesturing at the item in question, still in Twilight’s saddlebag. Starlight’s eyes narrowed and her horn lit up for a second, Twilight recognizing the form of a probing spell. Starlight’s expression paled a second later, “Twilight, were you aware how much magic is coming off this thing?”

“It wasn’t like that when I first picked it up, but I had a vision like the one we just had not long after I did. Furthermore, I don’t know why I felt compelled to pick it up. It was like I was just drawn to it, and even when I tried to put it down I found myself picking it up again without thinking about it,” Twilight said, and Applejack gulped.

“I don’t know a’ whole lot ‘bout magic, Twilight, but that sounds pretty ominous ta me.”

A flush of guilt struck Twilight as she looked away from her friend’s searching gazes, “I’m sorry, I should have said something, but the sahuagin were coming and everything was happening so fast. I thought I’d have time to figure things out before another vision happened.”

“Oh, relax darling,” said Rarity, “We’re all fine, headaches notwithstanding. We’ll piece together this puzzle in due time, but before we start the speculation train, perhaps somepony would be so kind as to tell us our current situation. Admiral Seaspray?”

He’d remained a bit back from the group, near the helm, but upon Rarity’s question the hippogryph was quick to raise his head and speak in a swift, clear tone, “Marm! The sahuagin have withdrawn from the hangar, dragging their defeated leader with them. The hangar doors remain open, and our newly acquired vessel is ship shape, near as I can tell. I could pilot us out of here at your ladies’ convenience.”

“Then I suggest we make our exit,” Rarity said, “Unless anypony has any objections? I don’t know about the rest of you but I’ve had quite enough of Aqualania, or the ocean in general at this point.”

Wavecrest gave her a sidelong look, “Some of us rather like the ocean, but I take your meaning, Miss Rarity. We should indeed depart, but I feel compelled to remind all present of the danger that may well await us above. There remains at least one sahuagin shaman out there, with a monstrous beast at his command. Furthermore, there’s the unknown force young Flash Sentry has sensed...”

“Yeah,” Flash said, closing his eyes and etching a deep frown on his features, “And I still feel it, whatever it is, waiting for us outside the palace. Aqualania isn’t quite done with us yet.”

Rainbow Dash smashed her hooves together, nostrils flaring, “Then we go full speed ahead! And break through anything that gets in our way!”

“Trixie seconds, thirds, fourths, and passes this motion unilaterally!” Trixie declared, “Can we please leave now?”

“I know I’ve seen enough of this depressing tomb of a city,” Aria said, and Sonata nodded in enthused agreement.

Taking a steadying breath, Twilight rose up and gave her allies an affirming nod, “Then that’ settles it. Admiral, the Treasury’s helm is yours. Please, take us out. Everypony else, prepare yourselves. We’re leaving Aqualania, and may well have to fight our way out to do it.”

Episode 148: Tide of Darkness

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Episode 148: Tide of Darkness

Queen Chrysalis had always considered physical exertion to be beneath her. Challenges were to be surmounted by intellect and proper application of deception, while the act of face to face confrontation was the province of underlings. That wasn’t to say she didn’t mind the occasional bit of violence as long as she felt she could comfortably dominate her foe with minimal resistance. The source of her power was largely gained through the consumption of the magic inherent in positive emotions, so the idea of gaining power through physical training was an... unpleasantly new concept. She’d rather just take on a new form that was already potent in muscle rather than do this sweat soaked rigmarole, but her new ally was insistent that this was necessary.

She was breathing harder than she was used to, but in part that was due to the effects of one of Starlight Glimmers unusual “Kido” spells, ensuring the testing arena that Chrysalis was training in was bathed in spirit energy designed to enhance training via specialized spiritual inhibiting.

Even so, her opponents had fallen before her, one after another. The macabre dolls of smooth, alien features had come at her in waves, wielding their slender blades with deadly speed and proficiency. Chrysalis felled the last of these with one last swing of her right forehoof, her body wreathed in an intense hue of emerald magic and, she now knew, spirit energy as this power from her soul intermixed with her magic, thanks in part to the weapon now strapped to her arm.

The weapon began as a thick gauntlet of ashen gray hue, it’s lower end rounded in a circular indentation that housed a ring of emerald that surrounded a similarly colored crystal eye. Upon awakening the Bakkoto, the eye flashed with light, moving as if alive, and the gauntlet extended seemingly organic spurs of bone that clamped upon Chrysalis’ flesh all the way up her arm. Then the front of the gauntlet would extend a length of nine bladed whips of the same dark gray metal as the gauntlet, segmented and held together by an almost muscle-like organic growth in between each blade. The whips could extend to great length, move as Chrysalis' desired, and carried through it her magic and spirit energy. While possessing great striking strength, the true power of the Bakkoto lay in the manner it had fused with her transformation magic... but she hadn’t needed any of those tricks to fell these dolls. The last one fell apart in pieces from Chrysalis’s one strike, which had cut it dozens of times in a blink from the sweeping blade whips, just as all the other dolls had been dispatched.

“That should do it,” said Starlight Glimmer, who stood above the arena pit, where a observation deck encircled the bleak metal chamber. The Soul Reaper turned alicorn was observing data on a glowing screen that rose from a terminal built into the rim of the observation deck. “Your readings remain stable, even under the effects of the Kido. The Bakkoto is showing now signs of overwhelming your spirit energy, and is feeding on the magic at a steady pace. How are you feeling?”

Chrysalis wiped sweat from her face and let out a frustration laden grunt, “How do you think!? Sweat soaked, and vastly irritated. Was there no other way to do this?”

Starlight offered up a semi-apologetic smile that Chrysalis couldn’t decide was sincere or not as the alicorn flew down to join the changeling in the arena. With a gesture, Starlight deactivated the Kido that had covered the area, a faint glow of blue vanishing in a ring around the walls. “Sadly no. This was the fastest way to force your soul to properly bond with the Bakkoto, and ensure your changeling magic was compatible. Believe me, if there’d been an better method that wouldn’t have been as hard on you, I’d have used it.”

“Hmph, I don’t need your pity. Still, I’m surprised your playthings fell so easily,” Chrysalis said, nodding at the broken pieces of the dolls littering the arena, “You spoke of these Reigai as some manner of grand secret weapon. This did not impress me.”

Chrysalis expected Starlight to look insulted, but instead she just smiled with an accepting nod and approached Chrysalis a bit more closely than was comfortable. Starlight’s eyes fixated on the Bakkoto, her gaze measured and calm. “Reigai are only as powerful as the spirit energy used in making them. These ones aren’t even given enough to take on a distinct form, and are about as weak as a fresh Soul Reaper Academy trainee who hasn’t even graduated. Technically I could create one that, in theory, should be as powerful as a Captain if I wanted to. Problems with that aside, the point of this wasn’t to give you a hard fight, just force you to use the Bakkoto in a controlled environment so calibrations could be finished. Now, try to reseal the weapon to its base form.”

Chrysalis pursed her lips and raised her arm to look at the transformed gauntlet. She could feel it eating away at her magic, although that pool of power was considerable now that she’d fed. She gave Starlight a brief, wondering glance. Usually when she fed upon a creature’s emotions, especially love, the effect drained the individual into a fugue state. Certainly some individuals could withstand that to a degree. Shining Armor had held such love for his paramour that Chrysalis hadn’t been able to fully drain him for days.

Starlight Glimmer barely looked the worse for wear, despite the chunk of love Chrysalis had eaten. And it was little wonder why. When Chrysalis had tasted that love, especially after being deprived of a meal for so long, she’d nearly been knocked off her hooves. It wasn’t the same kind of pure romantic love that Shining Armor had held in his heart for Princess Cadence. No, the love within Starlight Glimmer had been so much... spicier. Love tended to come flavored with other emotions. Lust for intimacy, hope for the future, fear of rejection, jealousy of rivals, numerous emotions besides the love itself came to flavor the overall meal. That was one of the reasons love was such a preferred food source; it was really made up of a whole smorgasbord of other emotions.

In the case of Starlight Glimmer her love for this “Sunburst” character had not only been singularly overwhelming in it’s intensity, it came with a heated array of other emotions that had left it a tough meal to swallow, but oh so empowering. Anger had made the love a hot spice, so much anger, likely at the unjust and unfair fate of Sunburst. There was nearly as much fear to join the anger, most likely fear of failing to save her lost friend from his eternal torment. But beyond all that was an ironclad resolve that Chrysalis had never tasted on another living being. It was a frightful thing, really. The determination inside Starlight Glimmer to do whatever was necessary to achieve her goals all but drenched her emotions, and Chrysalis was both confused and slightly unnerved by it.

Any fool would do stupid things for love.

Starlight Glimmer had the resolve to fight two entire worlds for hers.

Putting that thought aside, she did as Starlight bade and focused upon the Bakkoto. Unlike a Zanpaktou, while each Bakkoto had a name, it was not required to call it out to activate. The weapons didn’t really have spirits or minds of their own. They were weapons, tools, nothing more. Still, they did have an instinct to feed, an instinct that required the will of the user to suppress. Fortunately Chrysalis was possessed of no small amount of will of her own, and much as she had dominated her hive or dominated her foes in equal measure, she set her will into similarly asserting her dominance over the Bakkoto.

It took a bit longer than she would have liked. The stubborn thing resisted her, no doubt finding her magic to be delightfully tasty. But it was her magic, not it’s! And it would obey!

Finally the bladed whips glowed a bright green and became as liquid energy, retracting into the gauntlet. Similarly the spurs of bone did the same, retracting from Chrysalis' flesh until just the gauntlet itself remained. Finally the emerald eye closed, it’s glow fading as the Bakkoto was forced back into slumber.

Starlight’s smile deepened and she held out her hoof to Chrysalis, “Good work. If I didn’t know better I’d say you’d done this before.”

Chrysalis stared at the hoof, then tilted her head at Starlight, who continued to stand there, awkwardly holding the hoof out. After a few more uncomfortable seconds Starlight cleared her throat and lowered her hoof, “Not a fan of hoof bumps I see.”

“No,” said Chrysalis with a tone flat as the test chamber’s cold steel floor, “I am not a fan of any physical contact.”

“Pretty ironic, considering you literally consume love to survive,” Starlight pointed out, and Chrysalis could only barely keep her sneer from fully splitting her face.

“It is not a food source by choice. If I had my way, my species would subsist on all emotions equally. Or none at all. Our hunger is as much a detriment as it’s been a source of focus,” Chrysalis groused, but quickly put a muzzle on her own frustrations, not at all desiring to spill them in front of any version of Starlight Glimmer, “Now if there’s nothing more you need of me, I’ll retire to my chambers.”

She’d turned to leave, her insectile wings buzzing to life as she began to fly out of the arena pit, but Starlight simply spread he own wings and kept pace with the changeling monarch, eyeing Chrysalis with that irritatingly curious look she’d worn all too often since their partnership was formed.

“I’ll not keep you from a bit of rest, but just be ready to head out soon. Platinum should be prepared to depart in a couple of hours, once she’s done trying to talk with her kid again. Kind of hoping they sort things out between them soon.”

“The mare’s parental issues are not my concern,” Chrysalis stated bluntly as she landed upon the walkway out of the test chamber, Starlight right behind her.

“Oh? And here I thought the two of you might bond a bit over your shared motherhood troubles. I mean, sure you’ve got a few more kids than her, but still.”

Chrysalis felt a small stab of pain as she bit her lip in barely contained, acidic anger, “Do not presume to think my ills are anything like that of a mere spat between mother and brat.”

“Perhaps not identical woes, but consider the distinct possibility that as long as you’re working with us you have nothing to lose by venting some of them to another who might actually have a reason to lend a sympathetic ear,” Starlight countered, “Not saying I’m expecting you two to return here as bosom buddies, but since you’re going to be working with Platinum, may as well get to know each other better. But do as you will. I’m merely offering a suggestion, not twisting your arm. If not kid-talk, maybe you’ll both enjoy sharing complaints about your counterpart with one another. Platinum doesn’t like her, either.”

At the mention of her double, Chrysalis winced, feeling the cold distaste and residual fear tip-tap it’s chilling way across her spine. “The less said about the creature, the happier I shall be.”

“She really has that effect on people.”

“Why partner with her, then?”

“A violent psychopath she may be, but she’s a violent psychopath who wants to kill the same group of bastards I do. Sometimes allies don’t have to like each other, just hate their mutual enemies more.”

“For once, you speak wisdom,” Chrysalis admitted, the pair reaching one of the numerous technological lifts that could bring an individual to different levels of Hitsuyo-Aku. While Chrysalis could complain about a great many things concerning her circumstances, at the very least she’d been given rather comfortable and well appointed quarters that were to her liking. In fact, now that she wasn’t skulking about the place and was able to walk it’s halls more freely this mostly underground and vast stronghold was rather appealing. It’s dark, cold halls had a familiar feeling of home about them, and suddenly Chrysalis felt an intense pang of illness within her.

Damn it all, she was actually homesick for her old hive.

“You alright?” Starlight asked, noticing the look on Chrysalis’ face, but she shook her head and gave Starlight an annoyed glare.

“Fine. Do not concern yourself... with me...?”

Chrysalis trailed off, her eyes widening slightly as a most strange sensation struck her. It was like a sudden, distant pull, centering somewhere inside her very mind. The feeling was akin to suddenly seeing a light in the distance if one was stuck wandering about in the dark; vaguely painful yet somehow tugging one forward. The sensation lasted for nearly a full minute before fading, but it left an impression behind, as if something had pressed a warm poker against her forehead. It was only after a few more seconds that Chrysalis snapped back to reality, realizing Starlight was now all but shouting in her ear.

“Hello!? You hear me?”

Chrysalis frowned and backed away from the alicorn, Starlight having gotten a tad close in her concern. “Yes, you fool, I can hear you! No reason to shout.”

“What just happened? You looked like you completely blanked out, or saw something in the distance, but you know... instead you were staring at the wall,” Starlight said, her own eyes closing for a moment in what Chrysalis now recognized as her utilizing spiritual senses. “Whatever it was, I didn’t sense any oddities in your reiatsu, but I did feel something happen. Some kind of magical disturbance.”

“Tch, it’s probably nothing. Perhaps this Bakkoto of yours merely drained me more than either of us thought,” Chrysalis said, but she didn’t at all feel certain of that. Whatever had just happened it had felt more like something far off, separate from herself, somehow... tugging at her. The thought was rather disturbing, but she didn’t want to show weakness, so hide her worries with a regal flip of her patchy sea-green mane. “I don’t need you pretending to care for my well being, Starlight Glimmer. Now leave me to my rest. Be assured I’ll play my role as an ally for as long as it benefits me, and I’ll ‘play nice’ with Platinum. Just so long as she doesn’t annoy me.”

Mustering what regality she could manage while dealing with a mounting headache that she convinced herself had nothing to do with that odd sensation just now, Chrysalis swept into the elevator. She rather pointedly remained in the way of the doors long enough to make it clear she didn’t want Starlight doing anything foolish like following her in to try and continue their “chat”. What was most aggravating was that Starlight continued to watch her with that vaguely concerned and curious look right up until the lift doors closed. Once they were and Chrysalis felt the elevator moving after she’d pressed the button for the level her quarters were on, only then did Chrysalis let the pain from the headache show on her face as she rubbed her head again.

For all of her bravado, she was a little unsettled by the feeling. Especially because past the headache, she could swear she still felt that faint tug in her mind, as if something very far away was calling to her.

----------

A short time earlier, miles beneath churning waves...

Even Divistus could sense something amiss before he’d even reached the palace’s ground floor. By the time he and his terror beast made their languid way out of the doors into the palace’s central courtyard, the shaman knew without a doubt that the waters of Aqualania were all but humming with a darkly violent presence. He did not slow, however. Experienced in the ways of magic and the mysterious energies of the soul, he was confident in his ability to defend himself, and already suspected what awaited him even before his terror beast carried him out into the courtyard’s open water.

He heard the sharp, fearful cry of brethren sahuagin nearby, the group of younger shamans he’d left in charge of finishing the ritual to charge the translocation sphere now abasing themselves before him, giving out undulating calls for salvation. The root of their fear was easily evident, for all Divistus had to do was look up.

A sahaugin’s eyes could see much, even in the deepest darkness of the Abyss’ trench, so Aqualania was normally a clear to see cityscape, in all it’s ruined splendour. Yet Divistus could not see it now, even as he directed his terror beast to rise to give him a better view. No, all around the palace was a void of pitch dark as to contest the very bosom of the Abyss itself. A solid wall that, even as Divistus gazed upon it, bubbled and seethed with the pulsating motions of something “alive”. But Divistus knew it wasn’t alive. No, not with what he was sensing with his mind so attuned to soul magic.

This... this black mass of hate filled death, was a wall of souls. More than that, he could probe it sufficiently with his senses to realize this wall covered near a third of the city surrounding the palace. He could not tell just how many angry souls made up the mass, but he could tell it was thousands. Beyond that, he could also sense that these weren’t merely souls, but souls that had been infused with some manner of incredible complex spellwork.

A soul spell of unimaginable scale. Unimaginable, perhaps, for one who did not know the Deep Mistress, Charybdis.

He clasped the talisman that bore her symbol among the many that dangled from his tabard of bones and chanted, “Oh Deep Mistress, your holy work surpasses my most vivid imaginings. Bless am I to witness this sacred monument to your endless might.”

Divistus’ eyes cast a harsh and scathing glare towards the shaman’s prostrating themselves in front of him and his terror beast. He also noted that some few scores of warriors were huddling in fear near the temple off to the left, eyeing both him and the cloud of violent spirits hovering over the palace.

“Fools! Why do you cower so!? This mass of souls is a great and holy thing, a blessing from our Deep Mistress!”

“But, Lord Divistus,” said one of the shamans in a stammer, “Our warriors from outside... they were devoured by this mass of vengeful spirits! Only a few score survived to flee into the palace, but all the rest that had been left outside the walls have perished!”

“And they should feel so fortunate as to become part of such a great and holy working of our blessed Mistress’ magic,” Divistus replied, gesturing upwards with his sacrificial dagger, “Do you not see? This mass of souls remains outside the palace, does it not? If it could descend upon it, it would have already. No doubt this spell is our Mistress’ final defense and vengeance upon interlopers to our territory, activated once she became aware of the despoilers that at this very moment do battle with Morgawr.”

In truth, he was guessing on that point. He wasn’t certain exactly what this huge storm of violent spirits was, but he knew his Mistress’ spellwork when he saw it. Given that the maelstrom of wraiths had not entered the palace he assumed the Deep Mistress had either fortified the palace against entry by such spirits, or the spell that sustained their presence forbade them in some manner. Considering it had only appeared now, after the surface invaders had entered the palace, Divistus also felt confident in the assumption this spell was some manner of triggered defense mechanism.

If the surfacers tried to leave, they’d face the same gristly fate as the unfortunate warriors who’d been caught outside when the spell activated and sent the wraiths on their rampage.

“W-what should we do, Lord Divistus?” asked the eldest of the young neophyte shamans, “You said Lord Morgawr fights the invaders even as we speak?”

“Yes,” Divistus said impatiently, swimming down from the top of his terror beast’s head, “Should we prevail, all is well, but these surfacers have proven resilient foes. Is the translocation sphere prepared?”

“It...it is,” the shaman stammered, and Divistus resisted the urge to stab the gutless coward in the neck. But sahuagin with the talent for soul magic were few and far between. Even the weak ones couldn’t be so readily cast aside.

“Very well, we shall activate it and open the way back to the Abyss,” Divistus said.

“But Lord Morgawr-” the other shaman began, but received a painful cuff across the jaw for his words, Divistus growling at him.

“I did not ask your counsel, neophyte. On the slim chance the surface invaders both defeat Morgawr and also survive our Deep Mistress’ trap then it would not do to allow them access to the translocation sphere. We shall use it to return to the Abyss, and then I shall cut off the sphere’s access from the other end. Once we gather a larger warparty and additional shamans we can return.”

In truth a part of him rather secretly hoped Morgawr would be slain by the invaders. Divistus had no fondness for the chosen warrior and his disrespect for the shamantic arts. It would serve him right to fall to the surfacers, then lose all his potential glory to Divstus when the shaman returned to defeat the invaders himself. With help, of course. He already was considering which of his fellow higher ranked shaman would be most suited to appeal for aid-

You forget yourself, my precious one.

Divistus froze, his eyes bulging into an even more bulbous state as he felt a voice slide across his mind in a gentle, yet sharp caress. He was at once terrified and enthralled by that dark tone of promise, like a barbed leash on his soul. Without hesitation he prostrated himself, surprising the confused neophytes and warriors before him, if only for an instant before he spoke, “Oh my beloved Mistress! Your voice fills me, and even if you deem my soul unworthy, I offer it if it so pleases you!”

The younger shamans and warriors alike all instantly understood that Divistus was now in communion with their goddess, and all went silent and lowered themselves in worshipful gesture. Even if the Deep Mistress was displeased with them, would they still rejoice in her presence, feeling blessed to merely have her attention upon them?

Divistus heard Charybdis’ voice once more, a crushing weight, yet also a soothing bliss all in one.

I do not wish these despoilers to leave Aqualanaia alive, and despite my blessing it seems Morgawr was not up to this task. However I will not waste my followers without need. Morgawr yet lives, as do many warriors who retrieve him as we speak. You will wait for them, young Divistus, and only then will you return to the bosom of the Abyss. Is this understood?

“Most assuredly, my Mistress, most assuredly!” Divistus cried out, but a part of his heart did quaver with a question, “Yet I beg forgiveness for my brazenness to ask... what of the invaders? Your spell shall slay them?”

For an instant he felt his Mistress’ attention shift, then a musical noise as rich as the darkest depths struck his mind, Charybdis’ laughter ringing within with soul shaking force.

Ah, yes, you speak of my people’s souls. Preserved from dissolution, yet still filled with such anger. I anchored them for no other reason than to prevent the very fate that befalls all upon death, but it seems in their ill conceived rage they do not appreciate my gift. No matter, the wraiths can indeed serve a useful purpose. Divistus, offer up to me your terror beast, so finely crafted. It will be the tool to sunder the invaders, with the further blessing of my power, and the vengeful souls of Aqualania itself.

Divistus did not fully understand his Deep Mistress’ words, but nor did he dare further question them. “If it is my terror beast you desire, then it’s bond belongs to you, my Mistress!”

He didn’t even need to enact any spells of transference. Charybdis was within his mind, within his very soul. He felt her pluck the magical bond that he’d forged between himself and the terror beast with the ease someone might simply take a leash from another’s hand.

You serve me well, Divistus. Now, let us see what Twilight Sparkle and her compatriots are truly capable of.

----------

Ulgriv wallowed in despair. He was confined to a small metal room with a thick door that was bolted shut from the outside. One of several brigs upon the ancient Aqualania vessel, which he was now trapped within. The young sahuagin curled up floating near the room’s far wall, hand clasped about the tentacled eye-sigil of the Deep Mistress. He prayed as hard as he could for forgiveness, for he had utterly failed Her and his people this day.

As, deep down, he knew he always would. The runt of his clutch of hatchlings, always struggling to survive and prove himself. He’d needed to work twice as hard to achieve half of what naturally stronger, bolder warriors did. Yet for every failure, he had found some comfort in his minor successes, even earning a place in the expeditionary force that Morgawr, one of Charybdis’ chosen himself, had assembled to go forth to Aqualania.

And somehow, in the span of hours, Ulgriv had managed to get captured, give up critical information to the enemy, get mistaken for a traitor, and even unwittingly lead the surface foe to a powerful weapon and trove of artifacts that they’d now no doubt use to harm more of his kin.

No punishment could be harsh enough to fit his failure, and so he prayed for the Deep Mistress to smite him with all her wrath. Perhaps then he might still earn forgiveness.

He was briefly pulled from his mired thoughts by the vibration in the ship’s deck. It took a moment, but he realized the vessel had to now be moving, for he could hear the distant hum of the engines and sense the motion outside, even despite the lack of windows in his cell.

There seemed to be little he could do about it, confined as he was. Wincing, he looked at his hand. He’d been clutching his pendant so hard that the sharper edges of it had cut into the palm slightly. With a self disgusted growl he shook himself. He was still alive, if nothing else, so he had no excuse to keep wallowing. Yet, why was he still alive? The surfacers had no more use for him, so why throw him in here instead of killing him? Their behavior was beyond odd, and Ulgriv couldn’t puzzle out their intentions for him. Perhaps they just enjoyed the idea of watching him suffer? Did they plan torture, or further interrogations!?

That must be it! They were intending to invade the Abyss itself, and thought to extract information from him via horrible torture. Probably the pink one would be in charge of that, since she struck Ulgriv as the most unstable of these deranged surfacers.

Well, he’d be ready to resist! The pink one would get nothing from him!

----------

Pinkie Pie sneezed, followed by her snout shivering in a tremor that ran down her right foreleg, the brief spasm ending in a head tick which left her blinking. “Ohhoho! Not quite a doozy, but still pretty spine-quivering. I’m going to have fun with that!”

“Fun with what?” asked Flash Sentry, who was seated next to Pinkie Pie. The pair, along with most of the others in the group, had found stations to strap into as Admiral Seaspray took command and got the Treasury moving. Given the need for more than one pony to actually operate the ship, they’d divided themselves into the groups most able to handle what individual functions could be crewed with the small number of bodies they had, with Pinkie and Flash both being regulated to observation chairs on the upper walkway surrounding the front half of the bridge’s bubble. Their job, ostensibly, was spotting for obstacles the actual ship’s auger array might miss.

“Never you mind,” Pinkie Pie told him with a wink, “Just a bit of o’ Pinkie Sense letting me know I’ve got a serious friendship problem to tackle, but no worries, it’ll work itself out.”

“Riiight,” he said, familiar enough with his world’s Pinkie to know better than to ask the pony version to elaborate. He looked back around the bridge, as there wasn’t much for him to see at that very second. The Treasury was moving backwards, backing itself up out of the massive hangar chamber and into an open, circular space beyond the doors that had been opened.

Amid the bridge crew, Rarity was stationed at the auger array. This was situated to the immediate right of the helm station, and consisted of a chair strapped to a swivel around a crystalline orb that projected a series of vague magical shapes that if one focused on them would take a more distinct form. This was tied to the numerous magical crystal protrusions mounted at various points on the ship’s hull that used sensory magic to generate images of the ship’s surroundings to be projected from the array orb itself. Rarity had her eyes firmly locked on the orb, speaking to Seaspray, who manned the helm.

“We’ve entered a cylindrical chamber just large enough to fit the ship,” she said, “And I’m seeing the shaft goes all the way up to what appears to be the seabed. I don’t see an opening, however.”

Admiral Seaspray nodded, “We’ll just have to head up and see what happens.” He leaned over to speak into a communication device mounted on the helm station, “Engineering, how does our power output look?”

Twilight Sparkle’s voice came over the com loud and clear, “Everything is stable here, and the readings show a near perfectly consistent energy stream to all systems. Weapons and shields should both be operational, Admiral, even without testing.”

“Still prefer a proper shakedown cruise to be sure, but we may not have the luxury soon,” Seaspray muttered, “Very well then, I leave the engine room in your capable hooves, Princess and Miss Starlight.”

It was Starlight’s voice that then replied, “Just don’t do anything too crazy. Twilight may say the engines are stable, but we’ve got no idea what this ship is actually capable of, so ‘normal’ is kinda subjective at this point.”

“Hey!” said Twilight, “I’ve worked with plenty of magi-tech already. I’m... um, ninety five percent sure everything is working fine. No problem. I hope.”

“Oh yeah, this bodes well,” said Tempest from her position strapped into a seat that was on the far left side of the bridge. It was mounted next to a display shaped like a half shell, where half a dozen crystal orbs akin to the auger array, but a quarter of the size, were arrayed near a panel containing a spread of levers and buttons.

“Relax!” shouted Rainbow Dash, strapped into an identical chair and display set up on the opposite side of the bridge, “If Twilight says it’s cool to use these weapons, then it’s cool!”

“I thought you Equestrians were against lethal violence?” Tempest snarked, but Rainbow Dash just waved a wing at her.

“From what Flash was saying it’s, like, creepy ghosts waiting for us, so they’re kinda already dead right? So no harm no foul, I think.”

“We don’t even know if this ship’s weapons will be effective,” Tempest admitted, “But better than nothing. Assuming these don’t just blow up in our faces, and we can figure out how to use these station’s appropriately.”

“How hard can it-” Dash began, and Tempest shot a harsh glare at her.

“Don’t finish that sentence.”

Rainbow looked back at Tempest and after a moment her right ear twitched and she said, “-...be?”

“Ugh! Seaspray, if we die, I’m officially blaming her.”

“Noted, Tempest,” the hippogryph replied with a clipped and oddly chipper tone, as if being in command of a vessel, even one as unfamiliar as the Treasury was putting Seaspray in ever rising spirits. He pressed a different button on his station’s com, “Are all other crew prepared?”

“I’m ‘bout as prepared as I can be, given I don’t got no clue what ta do other n’ make sure our resident fish man don’t get up to no trouble,” said Applejack, who was posted outside Ulgriv’s brig cell, just in case. Besides, there wasn’t much else the mare could do when it came to helping operate the bridge, but she assured everypony she could at least make sure if the sahuagin got up to no good she could give him a good thwacking.

“Umm, this is Fluttershy in the infirmary. Everything looks fine here and if there are any injuries there’s plenty of supplies to treat them. Which reminds me, Twilight, that bandage will need to be replaced at least once a day.” Once Fluttershy had heard the ship had a medical bay, she’d all but insisted on dragging Twilight there to patch up the alicorn’s wounds as best she could, while also taking stock of the infirmary’s inventory.

At Fluttershy’s voice, Twilight’s was swift to respond, “I know, and thanks for looking at my wound, Fluttershy.”

“Ahem,” spoke Trixie’s voice, crackling over the com system, “As for myself and our siren friends, we’re as safe and comfortable as can be in the aft observation room. I do believe my keen intellect has worked out how this array thingie works.”

Sonata’s voice gave a musical laugh on the heels of Trixie’s words, “She was banging buttons at random until the glowy orb turned on.”

“Excuse me it was not ‘at random’. The Insightful and Methodical Trixie does all with well thought through purpose! Now, sit down and stop poking those levers.”

“Whatever you say, Trix,” said Aria’s voice, “Can we just get out of here now?”

With the confirmation of all hooves being at the ready, Admiral Seaspray cleared his throat and gave his best commanding wave of his talon as he said in echoing baritone, “Then we set sail! Treasury, engage engines to full and take us to the light of the surface!”

Granted, given he was both quasi-official captain and controller of the ship’s helm it fell to him to follow his own order, but there was no helping it. He was the only one who had been able to figure out the actual controls for the helm to any degree. Both talons on the twin control stick and using his wings to dexterously adjust several knobs and levers, he began to cause the vessel to rise in a straight vertical climb. Observing him, Flash was just glad that taking on seapony form hadn’t removed the wings from the fliers in the group, as the extra limbs were exceedingly handy for operating the ship. Flash suspected the Treasury had been meant to have a larger crew, but they were making do with what they had.

The only one of their group who wasn’t at a station floated in the center of the bridge’s spherical area, her staff held close at hoof as she watched out of the bubble-shaped windows. Wavecrest had been rather silent since they’d started preparations to leave. Flash wondered if the melancholy crossing the seapony witch’s face was because of the fact that the Eye of the Sea that she’d sought had not yet been found.

Personally he figured she ought to be happy to be bringing back something as amazing as this ship back to her people, nevermind all the artifacts still locked inside it’s belly. Yet now that he’d seen what had happened to Twilight and her friends as a result of the relic Twilight had picked up, Flash was now curious about both this Eye of the Sea and the mace itself. He hadn’t fully understood everything the mares from Ponyville had explained about the vision they’d seen, but it reminded Flash Sentry of some of Soul Society’s oldest tales about the time before the establishment of Seireitei, the Rukongai, and the Gotei 13. Information was always sparse from that time period before the current order, but what little was spoken of held a trace resemblance to the period of war and chaos that Twilight had described.

Just how similar is the history between our two worlds? Are these deities the girls had visions of anything like what gave rise to Soul Reapers back home? And what is that Relic doing to Twilight? Is she and the girls going to be alright?

It was one thing for Twilight to go charging off into battle. At the very least he could be by her side in such a situation to help protect her, and he knew she was able to hold her own even better than he could. But the Relic was a different kind of problem, and something he couldn’t affect or protect her from. Right now it was just visions, but what would come next if she kept it on her? Twilight still had the mace on her, which concerned Flash deeply.

“It’ll be fine,” said Pinkie Pie next to him, and Flash looked up at her grinning face.

“More Pinkie Sense?” he asked, and she shook her head.

“Nah, I just know Twilight. Magical stuff is her jam. Even when things get freaky or weird with spells, she always figures things out in the end. Besides, while what we saw in that wacko vision was kinda nuts and scary, it also felt right.” Pinkie Pie reached over and patted the lute she’d taken from the artifact chamber, which rested next to her seat, “It’s like when you’re baking a cake. It starts off as a confusing mess, and you’re just tossing ingredients together into a bowl. But once it’s baked, and all comes together, you realize all that stuff that didn’t seem like it went together makes something super tasty and good when it’s all done. You get it? I think us getting those visions is just another ingredient in the cake of our adventure!”

“Adventure... cake?” Flash repeated, slightly lost, and Pinkie Pie responded with a giggle.

“Do not doubt the cake!”

He couldn’t say he understood, but he did feel a bit better, if nothing else. It was hard to stay anxious and worried when a pink pony was shouting at you about cake. He let out a small laugh and let the tight worry in his chest relax a little, and turned his attention to the observation window. The ship continued to rise up the vast shaft towards the surface, and as it went crystal lights burned bright in cerulean brightness.

“Looks like these are lighting up on their own,” he said, “Must be some kind of automated system.”

Admiral Seaspray nodded, “Let us hope then, Mister Sentry, that there are doors at the end of this shaft that are equally automated. But if not, let’s start getting weapons ready. Miss Dash, Tempest, begin bringing the forward canons to bear.”

“Wait, why is she ‘Miss Dash’ and I’m just Tempest?” asked the mare in question.

“Because Miss Dash is not a wanted criminal,” Seaspray replied curtly, “Now, weapons if you please?”

Tempest’s lips curled in a mixture of rueful smile and snarl as she flipped several levers on her station up, “Warming up magical charge circuits now, Admiral. Forward mana canons deploying.”

One of the crystal orbs in front of her lit up, providing a magical projection of the front of the ship and what was directly ahead of it, along with several circular reticles that hovered in a faint green glow, gradually turning red as energy poured into the ship’s weapons from the engine room. Tempest could use her hooves to move the reticles in order to direct the canons that were presently deploying, a quartet of metal barrels on ball swivels that rose from opening hatches in a square pattern on the bow of the ship, just behind the spear-like tip.

Rainbow Dash’s station handled aft weapons, while Tempest’s controlled the front, while both stations split control of port and starboard combat systems. This included things beyond the mana canons, but the mares were only just getting to understand the Treasurey’s systems. This meant there was likely to be some trial and error needed, even if they would have to undergo it in the middle of combat.

Such an instance of ‘error’ occurred when Tempest brushed one of the reticles a bit too hard with her hoof while trying to aim the cannons upward, causing it to discharge. A bright lance of white and intermixed blue magic blasted out of one of the cannons and punched a hole in the walls. All eyes turned to Tempest, who reddened and grumbled, “Thing’s a tad sensitive.”

“Never mind that,” Seaspray said, “Miss Rarity, how are things looking above us? We’re nearing the top of this shaft and I’d like to avoid using the cannons as a last resort to make an exit for ourselves.”

“At the moment I’m not seeing any change,” Rarity said, her eyes fixated on the augury array, “It just looks like a solid wall... wait, no, it looks like it’s moving. Oh, the ceiling is opening up now!”

“I see it too,” confirmed Flash, peering up through the observation window, “The lights go all the way up, and looks like an exit is being made for us.”

“Thank goodness for automation,” said Seaspray, “These Aqualanian’s certainly built things to last.”

“My people were indeed a thorough and industrious folk,” Wavecrest said, “Mayhaps they shall be so again, one day.”

Flash took a deep breath. Within himself he felt the growing, crushing weight of an intense spiritual pressure that waited above like a blanketing, dark cloud. While this pressure had been ever present, he could tell something was happening. There was some kind of sharp rise and erratic fluctuation to the reiatsu he was sensing, and in turn he suspected a great deal of magic was being used up above. It was similar to what he felt when Charybdis had empowered Morgawr.

“Don’t mean to alarm anypony, but I think our host isn’t planning to let us just leave,” he said, “She’s doing something up there that’s magnifying the spiritual power I was sensing before.”

“Well we knew it was gonna be a’ fight,” said Applejack over the com, “Just wish there was more I could do than just stand guard down here.”

“It’s a vital task, Miss Applejack. I feel much better knowing our prisoner is unlikely to cause us mischief with you on watch,” replied Seaspray, then his talons gripped the ship's controls, increasing the throttle and causing the vessel to rise even faster.

“We’ll be breaching the exit in seconds,” Rarity reported, and everypony tensed, none of them entirely sure what to expect once they reached the seabed. “Crossing the threshold in... three... two... one. We’re out!”

“Activate all searchlights, and raise shields!” Seaspray commanded.

The hangar’s exit shaft had opened up in the north side of Aqualania’s long abandoned cityscape, amid the ruins of the noble estates just bordering the royal palace. An entire park area had played home to the hidden shaft, the seabed ground aside as the ancient doors had opened under the strength of ancient mechanisms still preserved and functional through spells wrought long ago. Up into the gloom of the once great underwater city the majestic submersible ship rose like a glittering leviathan of metal.

Lights snapped on all along its sides, crystal apparatus shaped like small mobile discs lighting up with magic and projecting blue pools of light into the darkness surrounding the Treasury. At the same time Tempest activated the shield system. A dozen small spokes of bright blue crystal, like the spines on a sea urchin, rose from key points along the ship’s hull. With soft sparks of light they projected energy around the ship, snapping into place a defensive barrier that briefly shimmered in blue radiance before becoming largely transparent.

“Remember,” Seaspray bade both Tempest and Rainbow Dash, “The shields draw a lot of power to project around the entire hull. You will need to adjust its strength to whatever side we are being attacked from.”

“I got it, I got it,” said Dash, “It’s just like using an actual shield, only blue and shiny.”

“Yikes, even with the lightshow I can’t see anything in front of us. Huh, not even the palace,” Pinkie Pie noted, and all on the bridge could see what she meant quite clearly. When they’d infiltrated the city it had still been possible to make out the truly massive royal palace that rose above the ruined metropolice’s cityscape. Given the relative position of the hangar and the shaft they’d just exited, they should have been able to see the palace in front of them easily enough.

But instead all that could be seen was an all-encompassing darkness, as if the world itself terminated in a void just a hundred meters ahead of the Treasury's bow.

Rarity gulped, her voice rising a bit in stress, “I don’t know if this is a bad sign or not, but the array is not detecting the palace. Instead it’s picking up what appears to be a solid cloud of... something engulfing the area the palace should be in. It’s like a solid dome of darkness.”

“That’s it,” Flash said, feeling an unconscious need to grip the hilt of his Zanpaktou, “That’s the source of the spiritual pressure. It’s... it’s souls.”

Now that they were close enough to it, and he could see it as well, Flash could probe the mass more effectively with his senses. This told him plenty about what he was looking at, but he was also struck by a horrifying similarity between this and a similar phenomenon from his world.

“Wait,” Twilight’s voice spoke over the com, “Are you sure, Flash? You didn’t sense any spirits when we were entering the city, right?”

“Twilight, I think that’s because all of them were concentrated somewhere else,” he said, stammering slightly as his mind raced, “This mass... it’s concentrated souls, all tangled and bound up together! Soul Queen above I can feel them. There’s thousands of souls in that mass, tied together somehow. This spiritual pressure is dark, Twilight. Angry. And the way the souls are all smashed together like this, it’s almost like... like a Gillian-class Hollow, only so much larger and more powerful I can’t even be sure the comparison fits.”

“A Hollow!? You’re telling me that’s a Hollow out there?” Twilight said, the alarm in her voice quite plain.

“I don’t know,” Flash said, “I don’t think it’s identical, but it’s dang close in nature to one. Those souls out there are corrupted, Twilight, and massed together, that’s all I can say for sure.”

“Charybdis’ doing,” Wavecrest said in a raggedly hate filled voice, “I know not the details of what you speak, but I know that what lay in front of us is the result of the worst kind of magic, used in the worst possible of manners. Souls unnaturally bound, prevented from finding rest. Overcome by the fear, rage, and hate at their unjust demise, and hungry to spread their pain to the living. Wraiths.”

“And you know this how?” Dash asked, a bit of unnerved strain in her voice. Monsters, dragons, and thugs didn’t bother the daring pegasus, but ghosts creeped her out, resident Soul Reapers notwithstanding.

“The ocean plays graveyard to countless souls lost at sea,” Wavecrest said, “While most pass naturally from this realm, a rare few may linger due to dark magics or unusual circumstances. Yet in this case I know the sahaugin’s brand of magic and that it can do such twisted things as this, although at this terrible scale no mere sahuagin shaman could be responsible. Hence why I insist this is the work of Charybdis herself.”

“I do hate to interrupt, but I’m detecting movement ahead,” Rarity spoke quickly, “All over this side of the dome! It’s as if the surface is... quivering. And there’s a larger motion within... wait, something’s emerging! Um, a little to the left... oh, what’s the term? Ten o’clock, dead ahead!”

“Focus the lights,” Seaspray commanded, and at Tempest and Rainbow Dash’s direction the ship’s searchlights shifted their beams until a concentrated blue glow filled a wide cone in front of the Treasury, lighting up the dark mass.

Now all could see what was happening. The dome-shaped cloud of stewing darkness was boiling across its surface, blisters of thick, inky substance rising outward. Something larger shifted within where Rarity had indicated, bulging the darkness out like a macabre balloon. The hundreds of smaller blisters then started to stretch out from the mass, multitudes of undulating mounds that became like grasping arms. A sound penetrated the hull then, faint at first, but quickly rising with a chorusing echo that only grew louder by the second. Moans and wails, overlapping one another in their thousands, sounding like the crash of endless waves. The lengths of dark tendrils now quivered themselves, revealing shapes within, breaking free like droplets of blood. Each droplet formed into a being shaped somewhat like a seapony, although their bodies were thin, emaciated, and covered in a substance like pitch black tar. It was as if this substance was coating partially melted corpses, even peeling back the faces until they looked like onyx black skulls rather than living features, with the only point of color being pale white orbs of light within their depthless eye sockets.

“Harmony preserve...” somepony breathed, and it wasn’t even clear in the still silence of the bridge who’d even spoken.

Flash found himself drawing his Zanpaktou, simply on reflex. These weren’t Hollows, but they were close enough. An Equestrian cousin to the spirits of his own world that Soul Reapers were dedicated to fight. These ‘Wraiths’ gave off the same kind of spiritual energy, albeit somewhat different due to the inherently magical nature of them. He didn’t know for sure if his Zanpaktou would be effective against them, but he had a feeling it’d do better than just trying to strike these spirits with physical objects. But there were so many...

“They’re not moving,” Tempest noted, “Why aren’t they attacking?”

Wavecrest answered with a dire note in her whispered voice, “They’re awaiting the command of the one who bound them to this unnatural fate. Even in their hatred of her, they cannot resist the magic that binds them.”

At that moment the larger blister of darkness burst like so much cloudy ink, and a titanic form swam forth from the mass of Wraiths.

It was the mutated whale that had chased parts of the group in the depths of the palace, but it was changed. It’s size had more than doubled, and although that still only made it about half the length of the Treasury, the terror beast had been twisted further by what those looking on could only assume was more of Charybdis’ morbid power. Much as Morgawr had grown more heavily muscled and gained a growth of organic armor, so too had the already bulging whale been inflated with masses of corded, cancerous muscle. Even more plates of thick bone and slick organic shell grew over it’s bloated husk, tipped all over with jagged edges and spearing spikes, leaving it’s fines more like hulking blades than limbs. It’s head had grown into a battering ram of massed, unevenly spiked protrusions, and it’s jaw was distended open permanently by an array of horrific teeth larger than lances. There was nothing left of it’s eyes save a pin prick of shadow from which no light shone.

As the monstrosity and its host of Wraiths faced off with the Treasury, Charybdis’ voice rang out over the waters of Aqualania, stemming from the malformed terror beast itself.

Twilight Sparkle, if you can hear me, then I hope you appreciate the effort you’re forcing me to expend in dealing with you. It’s about as complementary as I’m going to get. Now, I’d like you to meet my beloved people. The citizens of Aqualania, who avoid the fate of true death only through the grace of my power. Power you shall never match! But fear not, I am merciful. Even after you and your friends die, I won’t let you fall into true death either. I’m just that kind hearted.

Then with a howl as encompassing as the void and more warmth sapping than the edge of winter, the terror beast shook the ocean itself and charged forward upon bulging swings of its mashappen tail. And alongside it howled and charged the horde of Wraiths, all bound by unending rage at any spark of life within their reach. Held back once by Charybdis’ spell, contained in the emptiness beneath Aqualania, the frayed Wraiths had risen only in small numbers to consume a stray sahuagin or two, as even Charybids’ magic could not hold them back in their multitudes over all of the centuries. Yet now, they were unleashed to freely vent their fury, and would do so with glee regardless of the target, just as long as it wasn’t those directly under Charybdis’ protection.

Which at the moment made the lives on board the Treasury their only viable target, which they rushed towards with swift abandon.

“Ladies, fire at will! Reinforce forward shields!” Seaspray commanded, throwing his weight into the controls and cranking the throttle to full forward. The engines of the Treasury hummed to life, the propellers becoming ethereal blurs as magical energy poured off the ship’s engine core and lit both the conical engine protrusions and the propellers with a rim of sapphire light. The vessel banked to the right, turning south as the horde of Wraiths advanced, and Rainbow Dash and Tempest both began to let their hooves fly over their own controls to bring the ship's weapons to bear.

More mana cannons deployed across the Treasurey’s hull, ten on each side and an additional four on the aft, alongside a trio clustered on a turret spoke on both the belly and top deck just behind the bridge itself.

The cannon’s muzzles gleamed brightly, white and blue light pooling within before discharging their coherent beams of magic into the murky depths at the oncoming horde. Unlike normal forms of energy, the magic was not heavily deterred by firing through water, and the beams struck hard and true into the mass of rushing, vengeful spirits. For each beam that cut across them, tens of Wraiths were torn asunder like scraps of paper, their spectral forms coming apart. Yet each one that was felled in such a manner still left dozens of its comrades to continue their howling, headlong charge.

As for the terror beast under Charybdis’ control, Tempest had concentrated the forward battery on the creature, the beams thrusting in like lances of pure light. While striking true, the beams scorching paths along the beast’s hide, it did not stop. It was injured, to be sure, organic armor blackening under the assault, yet it’s increased mass was augmented by unnatural toughness as Charybdis’ fell power coursed through it and the transformed whale bellowed once more as it lowered it’s head and bore in on the Treasury's flank even as the submersible soared past the palace and towards the southern cityscape.

Seaspray adjusted the ship’s heading to angle the port forward shields towards the oncoming whale, and shouted, “Brace for impact!” just seconds before the creatures crashed into the ship’s shields.

The magical barrier flared with such intense brightness that for the first time in centuries almost all of Aqualania was lit up by an indigo flare that bathed every street corner and fallen spire. The shields held against the terror beast’s impact, sending the beast off course to smash it’s immense bulk through the very promenade that Starlight’s group had snuck through before entering the palace, smashing the stone columns to dust. Inside the ship everycreature was rocked by the collision, those firmly strapped to their seats holding fast as the hull shook. Fortunately the shields held strong and prevented any serious damage, but Twilight’s voice spoke quickly over the coms.

“That hit drained the barrier by near twenty percent, Admiral! We can’t let that thing keep hitting us like that. I’m detecting minor damage to some of our internal magic relays, but nothing we can’t compensate for.”

“Understood Princess, if you can boost engine power, I’d be grateful,” Seaspray said past a clenched beak, “This noble ship of ours is a sizeable lady, and if we’re to make her dance, I’ll need as much as you can coax out of her.”

“We’ll do our best!” Twilight replied, then Rarity chimed in.

“The Wraiths are nearly upon us, and that monster of a whale is already recovered from it’s tumble and coming around, at two o’clock low!”

“Miss Dash, concentrate cannon fire to port! Get as many of those ghostly bastards as possible. Tempest, load forward mana harpoons! Target the whale with all of them, and fire on my mark!” came Seaspray’s orders, and both mares quickly obeyed, all thought of comment of quips rapidly pushed to the side under the intense pressure of the undersea battle.

Dash’s eyes narrowed to slits, her concentration pushing her mind to a state of celerity akin to the moments in which she was in the middle of a race or performing aerial stunts. As unfamiliar as the weapons controls of the Treasury were to her, they were also incredibly intuitive. She could grasp entire clusters of targeting reticles on the magical display in front of her and cast them towards the swarms of dots and blips that represented the targets the ship’s augury array recognized. The mana cannons did the rest, automatically tracking on their ball swivels and disgorging beam after beam into the darkness. Yet there were so many Wraiths in surrounding clusters that Rainbow Dash could hardly keep up, rushing to move reticles left and right to sweep the port-side cannon beams across the wave. And more were coming, as the central dome of Wraiths was still disgorging more of the spirits, like wasps from a hive.

Even with all of the cannons firing, Wraiths still reached the ship, or rather the shields. Upon contact with the energy barrier the Wraiths screamed their rage as hooves sharpened to black points, turning their limbs into stabbing spears or cutting scythes that crashed into the incandescent wall of blue magic. While the shields held, the Wraiths boiled over it like a dark tide, stabbing and cutting with wild, violent abandon, hungry to slaughter the living that were protected just beyond the shield’s reach.

“Admiral, those things are surrounding us!” Rarity reported, and Seaspray’s talons clasped the ship controls all the harder, for he knew he couldn’t afford to adjust the shields to reinforce all sides at once. With the terror beast out there they needed to keep the bulk of the shield energy directed towards surviving it’s battering ram attacks. If they redistributed the shield power to try to keep the Wraiths out, the terror beast would likely shatter it with another couple of hits.

To try and shake the Wraiths he took the Treasury into a curving dive while still aiming the nose of the ship in the general direction of the terror beast, which was now coming around for another head on charge.

“Keep the cannons firing, but keep the shields angled forward! Tempest, the mana harpoons?”

“Loaded and ready to fire,” Tempest responded, her own focus on the new target reticles, triangular shaped rather than circular, that had appeared on her own display. These represented the mana harpoons which were deployed along the front bottom of the ship. Below the jutting forward spearhead on the front of the vessel a quartet of hatches opened and from them lowered four long mounts that looked like triple-headed ballistae as large as siege catapults. Each bore three massive harpoon heads that were forged from a combination of magically treated bronze and empowered blue crystal, all ending in barbed tips that at that very moment began to glow with charging magical power.

By now the Wraiths had partially been shaken, but many still clung to the ship’s shields, hammering away with their bladed limbs, seeking the weaker portions in the shielding near the aft of the vessel. While they had not broken through yet, with their numbers and undying tenacity it was only a matter of time, even with Rainbow Dash still dispatching dozens at a time with swift cannon barrages.

The terror beast loomed ahead, coming straight for the ship, and Seaspray aligned the bow with its trajectory, breath held for an instant until he was sure of their course.

“Now Tempest, fire all harpoons!”

Tempest’s hoof stabbed onto the targeting reticles, all aligned onto the terror beast. In the same instant the harpoon launchers spun as magical energy surged through them and launched forth their harpoons, one after another, a full twelve in total from all four launchers. The arcane charged harpoons flew through the water as smooth as diving hawks upon their prey.

The terror beast did not slow, and in response a baleful violet light gathered upon the spiky protrusions on its head. Suddenly, lancing blasts of dark magic exploded from these spikes and rushed out to intercept the harpoons. Multiple detonations rocked the waters of Aqualania, shaking nearby buildings as nine of the harpoons were struck and exploded from the blasts of dark magic that had broken them. Even so, three broke through and slammed directly into the front of the terror beast, penetrating even it’s thick organic armor and exploding in fireballs of cerulean magic that boiled the water around them.

A pained howl vibrated through the ocean, black blood boiling forth from deep wounds in the terror beast’s face, several spikes from it’s front mass broken free. But still it kept on, more violet energy pooling in front of it as it fired a focused blast at the Treasury. Sespray saw it coming and yanked on the controls. Twilight had made good on throwing more magical might into the engines, the the Treasury spun to the left, all but barrel rolling so that instead of taking the brunt of the blast, the dark purple beam scraped the side of it’s shields.

...However, this was enough to send cracks through the starboard side of the shields, already somewhat weak from both the Wraiths’ assault and the simple fact that most of the shield energy was concentrated forward.

“Oh no,” Rarity breathed, “Admiral, I’m detecting energy signatures inside the ship!”

Although the breaches in the shields hadn’t lasted long before automatic recharge systems repaired the cracks, that had still been enough for dozens to slip through. The Treasury had been boarded, and the invading Wraiths were howling for blood, the warmth of the living long denied them. Those howls could be heard by all in the ship, no matter what deck they were on.

“Crap, what do we do?” Dash said, “Not like we can just hop off the controls!”

Without hesitation, Flash Sentry unstrapped himself from his seat, Zanpaktou already in hoof, and with one simple sentence on his lips.

“Leave this to me.”

Episode 149: Inheritors

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Episode 149: Inheritors

Even with the water surrounding him acting to slow his motions, Flash Sentry became a sliver of fast flickering images as he made full use of Flash Step to traverse his way out of the Treasury’s bridge and down the corridors leading into the ship’s aft section. He could sense the pockets of Wraiths that had slipped into the vessel, like painful blots on his spiritual senses. They stood out in a way even Hollows didn’t quite match, as if their reiatsu was somehow innately caustic. No matter how often he’d fought Hollows, he’d never quite felt that their spiritual energy was unnatural or out of place in the world. Negatively charged and violent, yes, but not outside of the bounds of the world’s nature.

These Wraiths felt like wounds in the spiritual fabric of Equestria, left festering.

His Zanpaktou felt heavy in his grip. He sincerely hoped that his blade could provide some kind of release, some manner of salvation, for these tortured spirits. There was no way of knowing for certain just what would happen to the soul of an Equestrian native when “slain” by a Zanpaktou. This was a question of spiritual mechanics that was way outside Flash Sentry’s level of knowledge. Perhaps if Captain Starswirl were here, he might have offered some insight, or at least a working theory. Regardless, Flash had no real choice. While the effectiveness of the Treasury’s mana cannons proved that magic would work to at least momentarily dissipate a Wraith’s semi-corporeal form, Flash had sensed no overall lessening of the number of Wraiths out there, so his present assumption was that magic might keep a Wraith at bay or temporarily knock them out of commission, but actually stopping them would require spiritual power.

Keeping a close sense of the Wraiths’ presence, Flash sensed they had split into two groups, one heading for the far aft of the ship, while another was going up through the lower decks towards where the brig was. Most likely the Wraiths sensed the living souls of Trixie, Aria, and Sonata in the aft observation room, and Applejack and Ulgriv near the brig. He didn’t think they were heading for Twilight and Starlight in the engine room, given the Wraiths’ course, and even if they were, he knew those two were more than capable of protecting themselves. As for Fluttershy, the infirmary was in the top deck, closer to the bow, and he didn’t sense any Wraiths heading her way, at least for the moment.

He was closer to the brig, and while he hated having to make priority decisions like this, the only rational course was to go for the place of closest conflict. He’d just have to hope Trixie and the two sirens could hold out for a minute or two.

Fortunately those com devices were spaced pretty evenly throughout the hallways of the ship, so Flash passed by one almost instantly and halted for just a second to click the button for an all ship broadcast. He really didn’t have time to work out which of the other buttons might go to the spots he needed.

“Trixie, Aria, Sonata, you’ve got incoming Wraiths! I’ll be there soon, but they’re going for Applejack too and she’s closer. If you can get to the engine room, Twilight and Starlight can shield it until I get there.”

He didn’t wait for a response, hoping that they’d be able to think fast enough and move even faster. He began to move again, starting a Flash Step, but halted halfway as he saw, of all ponies, Pinkie Pie swimming past him.

“No worries, Flashie, I’ll go help our siren buddies and Trixie!” she said, throwing him a salute with the lute she carried. Flash tried to contain the minor brain seizure he had over trying to figure out how Pinkie had kept pace with him while he’d been Flash Stepping, but for his sanity he decided the fewer questions he asked, the better.

“Fine, just don’t do anything crazy and get them over here fast!”

“Can do!” she replied and zipped off like a cartoonish streak of pink.

Rather than puzzle further on the strange pink pony’s casual abuse of physics, Flash resumed his own high-speed motion towards the brig. He could feel the Wraiths closing in on Applejack’s spiritual signature, and he transformed his Zanapktou to it’s Shikai state in between Flash Steps that took him through several corridor turns and down a stairwell before leading to the short hallway to the brig’s circular chamber. There, four different bulkhead doors of heavy steel led to individual cells, with a door of metal bars cutting off half of the circular room they all connected to.

Applejack was floating on one side of the bars, her shillelagh clasped in her hooves as the farm pony cast about with sharp emerald eyes. Her tension and fear were apparent, but so was her alertness, as her ears perked towards him before he’d even finished his Flash Step, which impressed the hell out of him.

“Flash,” she said, “Glad ta see ya. Where’re them Wraiths at?”

No sooner were the words out of her mouth that the water surrounding them both dimmed like someone had turned down the lights, and grew chill with an unpleasantly cloying cold that seeped right past the skin and into the bones. When the Wraiths struck, there was no preamble. They burst through the floor and walls like howling shadows, contorted faces of darkness screaming rage and violence in an ear bleeding wave of sound. There were only three of them, but all three went right for Applejack, as if her beating heart were some manner of offensive thing to them. Hooves of shadow sharpened to deadly points stabbed with oil-slick speed at Applejack’s flesh.

To her infinite credit, she’d not only been alert for the attack, but didn’t hesitate for an instance in her response, despite a look of outright fear paling her features. She swam back while bringing the shillelagh down hard in an overhead arc. The wooden club struck home upon the head of the lead Wraith, passing through it like a darkened cloud. The Wraith’s form billowed about like mist, unstable for a second, but only for a second. It reformed swiftly, while it’s companions pressed in on Applejack, hooves still stabbing.

She slipped aside one, but the second would have gotten a clean hit on her side if Flash hadn’t been swift on his own reaction. He didn’t need to close the distance, Kochi Yojinbo reflected his body right into place beside the striking Wraith, allowing Flash’s swiping blade to cut right through the Wraith’s middle in a clean arc.

This was the moment of truth, and Flash could feel the resistance to his Zanapaktou’s edge as it cut through the Wraith. It certainly felt like a physical body to his bladed tonfa, much like when he struck a Hollow. But would this “kill” the Wraith?

The resulting scream that vibrated the chamber certainly showed that the strike had an effect. The Wraith flailed and writhed about, it’s form tearing and flickering almost like an unstable television image. Then it imploded upon itself, becoming a pin-hole sized speck of darkness that then puffed out like a mote of dust in the wind. Flash felt a few trace specks of it’s reiatsu, but for all other intents and purposes, the Wraith was gone. Gone where, he had no idea. Destroyed? Purified? He had neither the time nor expertise to figure it out, and there were still plenty of Wraiths left to deal with.

“Nice goin’ Flash!” said Applejack, hefting her club and swinging it sidelong at the Wraith she’d dodged a second earlier, “I’ll disrupt ‘em, and you take ‘em out!”

“Good plan!” he called back, thrusting forward to match her strike, letting his Zanpaktou create a reflection of himself on the Wraith’s opposite side. The shadowy spirit contorted it’s body, slipping around his thrust, but Applejack was on point, her shillelagh striking true. As it made contact with the Wraiths’ body, Flash couldn’t help but notice that the weapon was emitting the faintest of glows, and that there was almost a faint heat haze surrounding Applejack herself as she struck. The Wraith’s body burst like a cloud of smoke, disrupted by the club passing through it, even more so than before, it seemed to Flash. He immediately shifted from a thrust to an upward cut, his double mimicking his move and allowing his Zanpaktou to split the Wraith in half. As with the first one, the spirit howled before imploding into a small point of darkness that rapidly winked out.

Finally sensing the threat that Flash was, the remaining Wraith, having reformed itself, turned it’s full attention to him and began to move in an erratic, twitching manner. Suddenly spikes of solid darkness erupted from its body and speared at him in a jagged mass. Flash threw himself forward, blitzing through the attacks with a combination of Flash Step and using his Zanpaktou to slice through the spikes, but the Wraith wasn’t done. It went right through the metal bars of the chamber’s partition and expanded its mouth to a horrific size, snapping a yawning maw of ink black fangs at his face.

He shoved Kochi Yojinbo into that mouth, propping it open. He then thrust a hoof forward and rapidly chanted.

“Hado Number Fourteen: Hisui no Hari!” (Jade Needles)

From his palm exploded a swarm of glowing, jade green needles in a conical burst. The needles of swiftly condensed spirit energy punched dozens of holes through the Wraith’s body, causing it to reel back in a writhing mass of wailing shadow. Flash wasted not even a split second in using that opening to stab Kochi Yojinbo hard into the Wraith’s center. This time he focused as hard as he could on the Wraith’s spirit energy, trying to get a clearer idea of what was happening to it when it dissipated.

As the Wraith imploded, he sensed it’s spirit energy shearing off, like a fruit being peeled. It was like the corrupt layers of the soul were being torn off, leaving the impression of a faint spark, a last shred of intact core that then vanished from his senses, leaving behind only the faintest trace of itself.

Flash was breathing hard, eyes staring before he was given a rough shake by Applejack’s firm hoof.

“Hey, Flash, ya alright there?”

“I... think so,” he replied in a breathless tone, “These Wraiths aren’t quite like Hollows, is all.”

'Downright unsettlin’ buggers is what they are,” said Applejack, looking around at the walls, floor, and ceiling with a wary glare, her club at the ready, but Flash noticed that she gave the weapon a shifty sideways glance as well.

“Something wrong?” he asked, recalling the momentary glow he’d seen in the club just moments ago.

“Nah, don’t rightly think so,” the farm mare said, “Thought I heard this ol’ whackin’ stick like it was tryin’ ta say some such, but I ain’t hearin’ it clear. Felt warm, too, like holdin’ my hoof in front o’ a camp fire.”

“Must have something to do with those visions coming from that mace Twilight grabbed,” Flash said, “I don’t like that these artifacts are doing stuff even Twilight doesn’t understand.”

Applejack just gave him a knowing smile, “Worried ‘bout her, ain’t ya? Don’t go frettin’ too much, ya hear? If anypony in all o’ Equestria can work out some magical oddness, it’s our Twilight. Sideswich, I ain’t gonna worry much ‘bout what’s goin’ on with them visions, long as this stick is helpin’ me thump some troublesome pests. Now, ya sensin’ any more Wraiths comin’ our way?”

He checked, just as the whole ship gave a hard shudder from an exterior impact that caused a boom to rock the chamber, akin to being inside a church bell as it was rung. No doubt the battle with the host of Wraiths and the transformed whale monster proceeded even as Flash dealt with the intruders. He just hoped Seaspray had things handled. Refocusing on his senses, he said, “There’s a few between us and the ship’s aft, while the rest are moving in on the engine room. Trixie and the sirens must have taken my advice. Dammit, but Pinkie Pie went on ahead of me!”

“Pinkie did? Well what’re we waitin’ for!? We gotta git after her!”

Flash agreed, but he glanced at the brig doors, “Can we just leave that sahuagin here?”

“I sure as hay ain’t lettin’ him out,” Applejack said, but he could see from the sour look on her face that she also wasn’t keen on just leaving a helpless prisoner to be killed by any stray Wraith that came by, “But I won’t leave him, either. Ya go on, Flash. Buck these wailin’ varmints off our ship, I’ll be fine here.”

There was hardly time to argue, so he didn’t bother. He just gave her a firm nod and rushed back the way he’d come. As long as he dealt with all the Wraiths between him and the engine room, Applejack would probably be safe. As he streaked down the Treasury’s corridors, swiftly making his way towards the aft, the ship rocked once more as the violent battle continued outside.

----------

There was a burst of eye-searing blue light as one of the crystalline power conduits running along the bridge’s ceiling exploded. The water inside the bridge rippled with the force, but it didn’t distract the crew from their tasks, each member on the bridge utterly focused on their tasks. The terror beast had come in from the starboard side this time, dipping low to avoid a barrage of mana cannon beams before rising swiftly to ram it’s spiked head into the ship’s shields. While the potent magical barrier held, Rainbow Dash being faster than the wind itself in realigning the shield properly, the blow still forced the Treasury to careen to the left where one of Aqualania’s many spires loomed ahead.

“The shield is down to fifty percent power, Admiral!” reported Rarity, “Oh, and there’s a building in front of us!”

“I see it!” Seaspray said, cranking the helm controls to the right and diving the Treasury down towards the broad street between the spire and the sprawling corpse of hollowed out apartment buildings, “Hang out, this will be a tight squeeze. Tempest, Miss Dash, fire all aft cannons on my mark! Target the base of the spire!”

“Roger that!” Rainbow Dash replied, Tempest echoing the sentiment with a grunt.

Twilight’s voice spoke over the com, strained by focus, “Admiral, I’m reading a lot of fluctuations in the power grid now. You might want to give the weapons a minute to cool off.”

“Would that we could, Princess. Can you do anything to stabilize it from your end?” Seaspray asked as the Treasury cut through the dark waters, it’s sides just barely avoiding scraping the buildings to either side of it as it passed by the spire at full speed. The terror beast, letting out a hungry bellow, was chasing them not more than a hundred meters behind.

“We’ll try,” Twilight said, then Seaspray heard a door opening and shouting from the com.

“Close the door, fast!” said Trixie’s voice.

“Don’t be an idiot, those things go through walls!” growled Aria, “Hey, crazy strong magic alicorn, we’ve got ticked off ghosts right on our tails!”

“Like, a lot of them!” said Sonata.

“Twilight, take care of the engine,” said Starlight’s voice, “I’ll take care of this!”

“O-okay! Sorry Admiral, we just got busy down here. I’ll try to stabilize the power.”

“Do what you can,” Seaspray said, his own attention now riveted to the ship’s course. They’d just cleared the spire and apartment structures, and he pulled the ship into a swift climb, relying solely on his instincts and spatial awareness to gauge just the right moment when the terror beast would be passing under the spire.

“All aft cannons, fire now!” he commanded. Rainbow Dash and Tempest were already poised on their own controls, activating the cannons at the same precise moment. The four aft cannons on the Treasury swiveled towards the base of the spire and let out a quartet of burning bright beams. The condensed mana sliced through ancient, worn stone like it was sizzling flesh, and with a groaning crack the spire that had stood watch over the dead city for centuries came crashing down.

Chunks of stone hammered down upon the terror beast, each an avalanche unto itself. The jet dark waters became ever more murky from a goliath cloud of silt and mud kicked up by the fallen spire, and the gigantic whale was obscured by the collapse. Rarity, eyes piercing as daggers, gazed intently at the imagery of the auger array.

“Did we get it?” Rainbow Dash said, while Seaspray began to turn the ship to the left to circle above the cloud of rubble. Around the Treasury the host of Wraiths followed like angry wasps, sparking off the magical shield that still kept the majority of them at bay.

“Doubtful,” Tempest said, “And don’t slack off! Keep firing at those bloody ghosts!”

“I’ll give the orders if it’s all the same to you,” said Seaspray, “But yes, keep those cannons firing, but alternate salvos. We must give Princess Twilight time to adjust the ship’s power and not overheat the weapons. Miss Rarity, what of that sizeable dome the Wraiths came from?”

“It remains as dense as ever, and it keeps disgorging more of the Wraiths,” Rarity reported, then her eyes flicked swiftly towards the auger array, taking note of a sudden change in the display, “Wait, it appears to be... growing some kind of protrusion.”

“Fix the lights on it,” Seaspray commanded. The ship continued to fire its cannons to try to disperse the Wraiths, albeit now at a slower rate. At the same time it’s search lights cut through the darkness and focused upon the dome of solid shadow that had encompassed the palace.

From the top portion of the dome an immense limb was forming, and all those on the bridge could see how thousands of Wraiths were combining together in the mass to form the humongous tendril. Then the limb grew a long, clawed hand large enough to even encompass the Treasury and with sickening slow motion reached forth towards the ship.

“Oh that’s just not fair!” Rainbow said, and Seaspray yanked the controls hard to the left and pulled up, sending the ship into a nearly vertical climb while also rotating the hull so that both port and starboard cannons could aim up at the descending hand.

“Concentrate fire on that hand, ladies! Give it everything, even if it means melting the barrels!”

He knew it was risky, given what Twilight had said about the power situation. He’d known going into this fight that the Treasury, for all its splendor, was a ship completed centuries ago and left to languish in drydock without so much as the benefit of a single shake down run. All things considered it was an absolute miracle the ship was running as well as it was under such sudden, harsh combat conditions. The hippogryph had a long career as a man of the sea, and had taken plenty of ships into battle. He had an intuitive sense of what each vessel he’d commanded could or couldn’t handle, and even with having just gotten to know the lady, he could feel the Treasury and sensed the potential of the ship. She could do a lot, but she was only just awoken, and not used to the demands being placed on her.

Just a bit more, my darling ship. I know this has been a rude awakening for you, what with all this foes trying to damage your beautiful hull and strangers at your proverbial sails, but bear with us a bit longer and I swear we’ll treat you as a ship of your caliber deserves.

One might call it silly sailor superstition, but Seaspray did believe each ship had a spirit of its own, and he almost thought he felt a warmth in the helm’s control sticks in response to his thoughts.

Rainbow Dash and Tempest had followed his command and targeted the gigantic shadow claw coming towards them. All twenty mana cannons split between the port and starboard side, along with the three clustered triple cannons behind the bridge, swiveled in their ball turrets and fired as one. It was a shockingly bright display of light as so many beams of iridescent magic lit up all of Aqualania as one. The near two dozen blinding lances of pearl white light smashed into the claw of condensed Wraiths, boiling through them like drills. The enormous hand grew ragged, like a torn doll of stuffed cloth and cotton being shorn by scissors. Yet it still descended, if only being partially intact now, and raked the Treasury across the belly of the ship. The shield sparked like a lit up mirror, and barely held. The whole ship trembled from the blow, but the shadow limb that had struck them was coming apart now, it’s already damaged state made worse by the impact on the shield.

Yet any sense of victory was short lived as Tempest let out a deep growl, her weapon console showing an entire wreath of red icons, “Dammit! I’ve lost power to half my cannons!”

“Same here, only made that more than half,” Rainbow Dash reported, her own screens bleeding red light, “That last salvo must have seriously overdone it.”

Seaspray took a deep breath, “That’s fine, as long as we dealt those Wraiths a blow. Miss Rarity, what of the terror beast?”

All of them heard it as a vast howl of primal fury shook the very bolts of the ship, and Rarity looked back at Seaspray from her station with her ivory complexion looking even paler, “About that, it seems to have broken free of the rubble we dropped on it and is coming at us from directly below.”

“Admiral,” Twilight’s voice said, somewhat hampered by pops of static, “Whatever you just did, the ship can’t take another of it. I recommend shutting all the cannons down, otherwise we might start causing ruptures in the power grid that I doubt we’ll be able to repair.”

“C’mon Twilight, can’t you do something?” said Dash, “What are we supposed to fight with if we shut down the boom guns?”

“I’m sorry Rainbow, but there’s only so much I can do down here, and we’ve got a bit of a situation on our hooves. Wraiths are trying to break into the engine room, and Starlight is barely holding them off. I might need to help her, or we’ll get... huh?”

“What is it, Princess? What’s happening?” Seaspray asked, adjusting the Treasury’s course to take the ship towards the rim of the vast underground canyon that housed Aqualania. The terror beast was in hot pursuit, sensing the ship was damaged, and the Wraiths themselves formed a dark cloud around the mutated whale as it charged it’s violent course after the ship.

“Something is drawing off the Wraiths,” Twilight said over the com, “At any rate, we still need to take the canons offline. I’ll reroute the power to the shields. You still have the harpoons. Oh, and the ‘Lance of Scylla’, which doesn’t use up a lot of power.

“The what?” said Tempest, and Seaspray’s eyes were drawn to the front of the ship, past the bridge’s front view windows. There, the massive spear-like protrusion that gave the Treasury it’s swordfish appearance loomed, gleaming in the darkness.

----------

Starlight panted heavily, her magic having been exceedingly taxed that day. Between everything that had happened she was surprised she had much juice left, and keeping a magical barrier up around the entire engine room to ensure the Wraiths couldn’t get in had been draining what she had left.

Trixie nervously paced around, while Aria and Sonata floated nearby, each clutching weapons. Aria had a finely crafted, curved dagger that ended in a handle of dark coral carved into a guard shaped like a pointed fin, while Sonata cradled some manner of clockwork crossbow fashioned from bronze.

“Ugh, why didn’t I think of snatching a weapon from that flashy armory room?” Trixie groused, and Starlight gave her friend a flick of her tail.

“Relax, Trixie. It’s not like weapons would matter against these Wraiths,” she said, frowning at the door out of the engine room, “But it’s weird how they all just... left. What happened?”

“Don’t know, don’t care,” said Aria, “Just glad they decided to go somewhere else.”

“They’re probably going after everyone else,” said Sonata, “Should we, like, do something?”

“I desperately want to,” said Twilight, her own attention focused almost entirely on the engine room’s main console, “But I can’t afford to leave here.”

“How can you be so calm, Twilight!?” Trixie said, looking towards the engine room’s door and chewing her lower lip, “I... blast it all, I feel like I’ve had enough panic attacks to kill half a dozen ponies. We should go help your friends, even if I don’t know how.”

“No Trixie,” Twilight said, although her voice was gentle and she gave the showmare a soft smile, “I know you’re braver than I usually give you credit for-”

“Aw, that’s nice. Wait, what do you mean ‘usually’!?”

“-but right now charging out there won’t help. We have to trust Flash when he says he’ll take care of it.”

Trixie still looked worried, but nodded and went back to silently pacing. Starlight looked at Twilight and could see the way the alicorn’s wings were stiffly held down at her sides, and the uneasy twitch in Twilight’s eyes. The Princess was stressed, more than she was letting herself show, but Starlight didn’t think it was just the danger they were in. She noticed Twilight’s eyes would occasionally shift towards the mace in her saddlebag.

Slowly, Starlight floated over to Twilight, her voice lowered to a faint whisper, “Twilight, what’s wrong?”

Twilight glanced at her, gulped, and said, “I can feel it, Starlight. The mace, it’s like a tug on my brain. There’s so much magic in there, and it’s like it’s calling to me. That glowing symbol on it, the chains, I think it’s some kind of seal.”

Starlight turned her attention to the mace, her own sense of magic giving her some impression of it. She could tell there was a suppressed well of mana inside the mace, held back by something akin to a cork. She could see the symbol Twilight mentioned, like a brand of light shaped in a circular chain.

“Okay, but what does that mean?”

Twilight closed her eyes as the ship shuddered again from the ongoing battle, “I don’t know, but a part of me... wants to break that seal. I don’t know why, but I feel like if I did, I could end this fight. I just don’t know what will happen if I do. But I have to do something, Starlight. I want to free those tortured souls, stop Charybdis, get all of us out of here alive.”

Starlight considered that, along with their situation. Among many hard lessons she’d had to learn over the time she’d spent with Twilight and her friends, one of them was to have a certain amount of faith in the sometimes eccentric alicorn.

“You will, Twilight. Whatever happens, I know you can do pretty much anything. You certainly saved me when I had my head shoved up my rear, so I’m sure you can deal with whatever this mace and it’s wonky visions will have in store.”

“We’ll see if it comes to that,” Twilight said, wincing as another rough tremor ran through the ship’s hull and the engine room’s main console started showing her a projection of the Treasury lined with blocks of red, “If the ship can’t hold up much longer, I may have to.”

-----------

Flash didn’t know what was happening outside, but he sensed even more Wraiths had managed to slip past the weakening shields and enter the Treasury. Worse, this new batch had entered the upper decks, and were making their way towards Fluttershy in the infirmary.

But he was already mostly towards the aft, rushing through a corridor that led to the ship’s main galley, which wasn’t far from the engine room. And directly ahead he sensed a large mass of Wraiths that were coming right towards him. They’d apparently abandoned the engine room for some reason and were now flowing in a tight pack towards his location.

The reason why became clear when he burst into the wide galley, a rectangular room lined with tables bolted to the floor, with an open walled kitchen lining the left side and a set of doors on the wall opposite the one Flash had just entered.

“Hiya Flash! I was thinking some music might cheer these grumps up, but man this audience is killing me!”

Pinkie Pie somehow managed to bounce like a rubber ball despite being still immersed in water, hopping through the galley while awkwardly strumming her lute in tone deaf fashion. Wraiths boiled through the walls, floor, and ceiling, all howling for the smiling mare’s blood. They swiped at her with scything or spearing limbs, but Pinkie had a truly uncanny capacity for being anywhere other than where her foe’s attacks landed. Flash was momentarily fascinated by the way she could somehow contort herself while somehow making her motions seem like simple pratfalls or bizarre dance moves.

Still there had to be a limit on how long she could pull that off with near a score of bloodthirsty undead spirits converging on her like a pack of piranha, so Flash leaped right into the fray, calling upon his Zanpaktou’s power to duplicate himself a dozen times over.

He threw himself into a spinning slash with his tonfa blade, his duplicates mimicking the move as they hurled themselves through the crowd of Wraiths like a series of blending propellers. He managed to slice apart eight or so with that maneuver, but cried out in a sudden rush of pain as at least one of the Wraiths managed to rake one of his duplicates with a shadowy blade-limb. Being that the duplicates were not separate clones, but his true body reflected in multiple places at once, the blow cut a searing red line down his side just below the joint of his right wing. He focused through the pain, removing his duplicates and swimming fast to the side while performing a curving cut in front of him. This time he only created three duplicates, surrounding the pair of Wraiths closest to Pinkie Pie, cutting them in half to give the pony a clear path towards the door out of the galley.

“Pinkie, get moving! There’s another pack after Fluttershy!”

“Yikes! Those poor Wraiths!”

“Pinkie, I’m being serious!”

“That’s really half your problem, Flashie,” Pinkie Pie said, zipping not towards him or the door, but instead swimming in a swirling pink streak into the kitchen. “If you’re gonna date Twilight, you got to learn to lighten up and trust her and us a bit more!”

“D-date!? Who said, I mean, dangit don’t distract me!” he said, Flash Stepping across the room to avoid a pack of Wraiths that tried to rush him with dozens of slashing protrusions of shadow that whipped from their bodies. He got behind one and shoved his Zanpaktou through the back of it’s head, ignoring the way the wound beneath his wing screamed raw hot pain into his brain as he moved. Captain Celestia’s lessons on letting pain pass through him stayed clear in his mind as he focused his reiatsu into a Kido, spinning away from the swings of several other Wraiths and aiming his left hoof at the densest portion of the pack. He traced a rapid series of motions, forming a sigil of red light in front of him.

“Bakudo Number Eleven: Haba Geki!” (Wide Strike)

He was trying to avoid using too many destructive Hado-class spells while inside the ship, so the binding Kido suited the situation better. Haba Geki was a more potent version of the Number Nine Bakudo, Geki, which directly infused reishi into a target to temporarily halt its movement. In this Kido’s case, it spread that effect to a small area, causing four Wraiths to briefly become outlined in red light as the Kido forced them to halt in place. It was still a fairly low level Kido, so it wouldn’t hold them for long, so Flash rapidly dispatched the Wraiths with a duplicate that sliced through the immobile spirits with ease. However he sensed danger behind him and turned in time to see a pair of Wraiths had slipped under the deck, only to rise up through it directly behind him with stabbing limbs bared to strike.

Then a set of kitchen pots when sailing through them at far faster speed than the water really should’ve allowed for, and Flash heard Pinkie Pie shout, “Galley’s closed, you undead bums! You want to eat, you come back during regular business hours!”

She’d grabbed up a whole miniature mountain of kitchenware and floated it in front of her, then was using her lute to bash the pots, pans, knives, ladles, and anything else for that matter, right into the Wraiths. What was strange was that, much like with Applejack’s club, there was a faint glow of light around the lute now, although instead of creating a sound like a hammer at a forge, this was more a musical chime as the lute hit each piece of kitchenware and launched it like a baseball into the Wraiths.

This didn’t serve to damage them much, but like with Applejack and the shillelagh , their incorporeal forms were made to billow about like unstable mist.

This bought Flash time to strike, creating even more reflected duplicates of himself to slash and stab about the room and take down the majority of the remaining Wraiths in the galley. What few remained actually backed off, then swiftly retreated through the floor or ceiling, and Flash could sense them fleeing to the ship’s exterior. They might still be a problem, but for the moment the galley was clear.

Pinkie Pie was hopping towards him, patting the lute, which had lost it’s glow, “Easy peasy, crowd pleasy. I’m totally going to learn how to play this bad girl when I get back to Ponyville.”

“Girl?” Flash asked, and Pinkie Pie grinned at him.

“Oh yeah, this lute’s totally a gal. Or was owned by one. I can almost hear her voice.”

“Applejack said something similar...” Flash pondered, then shook his head, “No time to think about it. We’ve got to get to Fluttershy.”

“Okie dokie, but I’m telling you, she’ll probably have it taken care of by the time we get there.”

----------

“It’s okay Mister Snuggles,” Fluttershy said, petting the shark on the nose, “I know all the noise outside is scary, but everything is going to be just fine. You’ll see.”

The shark rubbed it’s snout against her, and proceeded to keep swimming around the infirmary. It was a well sized room, big enough to hold eight seapony “beds” along with a number of metal cabinets filled with medical supplies that were in pristine condition, likely due to spells worked into the containers to preserve the contents. There was a circular window on one side of the room, directly across from the entry hatch, and Fluttershy had been doing her best to try to keep track of the fight. She hadn’t been able to see much outside of the mana cannons firing, or the occasional flash from the shields taking a hit.

It certainly seemed intense, and Fluttershy sincerely hoped her friends would all be alright. But if not, she had plenty of supplies to treat injuries with.

Suddenly she noticed Mister Snuggles turn sharply, and for a second she thought he was charging right at her! However he instead went right past her head and slammed, teeth first, into a ink black form that had dropped down through the ceiling like a puddle of oil poised to strike Fluttershy from behind.

“Mister Snuggles!” she cried out as her shark friend wrestled with the Wraith. While not truly solid entities, the Wraiths still had some physical presence, but it was like trying to touch a very heavy fog. The shark’s teeth could discorporate parts of the Wraith, but not truly harm it, and the Wraith in turn howled at the shark and formed a spike with one arm, stabbing down. The spike spear the shark’s tail, causing it to writhe in agony.

Seeing the shark injured and in pain caused a rush of white hot fury to bury Fluttershy’s brain, and before she knew it she was throwing herself at the Wraith, her right foreleg swinging. The leg that had the shield strapped to it, a shield that proceeded to faintly gleam with a soft white light, and created a distant sound like a brass horn as it struck.

Fluttershy almost thought she heard a voice in her head, although what it was saying was indistinct. All she knew was that her shield, upon impacting the Wraith’s head, made it burst like oil. The Wraith’s dark body writhed, and started to reform, but Fluttershy was having none of it, especially now that she saw several more Wraiths slipping through the walls and floor.

“Mister Snuggles, get behind me, now!” she said, although she mostly ended up moving in front of the shark, which couldn’t move very well with it’s injured tail. The Wraiths opened their dark, oily jaws wider than any biology would allow and howled in Fluttershy’s face with immortal fury.

She glared back with a Stare that quieted the Wraiths immediately, her eyes reflecting a quiet, resolved anger. “I feel for all of you, but you will not take your pain out on us!”

The Wraiths charged, and Fluttershy held her shield before her, meeting them head on. And as she did so, the shield from a bygone era seemed to shed a sliver of its age worn state and gleam just a bit brighter, as if slowly awakening from a long sleep.

----------

Rarity had only known a state of absolute mental focus such as this when in the caffeine strewn depths of a three o’clock in the morning sewing session or design brainstorm. She’d long felt a healthy dab of pride at her ability to multitask without losing the ability to see all the finer details of the project she was focused upon, and it seemed now this translated thoroughly to her task at the augury array.

The magical device provided plenty of images, some indistinct, others clearer, but all swirling from the enchanted orb in such a dizzying display that other ponies might have grown utterly confused and not been able to provide the bridge crew much information. Yet Rarity was not overwhelmed, but rather every passing second seemed to hone the edge of her instincts and she was picking up information from the haze of images that felt more like intuitive premonitions than anything else.

“The beast is turning course to five o’clock low, coming at our starboard aft quarter. The Wraiths have gathered up on the port side, eighty meters off, looks as if they are joining together to form some kind of battering ram.”

“Thank you Miss Rarity. Looks like those blighted spirits are getting more canny in their attempts to break the shields,” Seaspray said, smoothly turning the helm to dip the Treasury in a corkscrew motion that let it skim the side-rim of the canyon wall and then hug the seabed. The maneuver got them just out of the way of the charging whale’s attempt to sideswipe them, and the beast crashed into the canyon wall instead, causing an echoing rumble to be audible even in the bridge.

Rarity spotted distinct heat blooms stemming from the beast, “Energy build up detected, Admiral! It's about to fire directly at our stern!”

“All shield power to the rear, now!” Seaspray said, and both Tempest and Rainbow Dash adjusted their individual shield sections to concentrate the power of the magical barrier directly behind the vessel.

Throwing its head back and forth to tear itself free of the canyon wall, which had a devastating crack down it’s length from the impact, the terror beast reared about. Within it, Charybdis’ magic coursed through it’s twisted body, streams of pulsating purple light oozing through the poor creature’s veins until raw power built up at the tip of it’s spiked head. A erratically writhing beam of magic scoured the water between the beast and the Treasury, it’s consuming path halted by a shimmering corona of magi-tech protection. The reinforced shield struggled to withstand the blow, hexagon patterns in it’s domed form cracking under the strain, yet it held. If barely.

“Hate to say it, but we don’t have enough juice to take another hit like that,” said Tempest as she readjusted the shields, “Not even sure we’ve got enough left to form a proper full screen on all sides.”

“The Wraiths are coming in again,” Rarity reported, “Starboard side, just below the bottom deck. Five seconds to impact.”

Joining together like clay figurines, the Wraiths took on a shape like the jaws of a tremendous squid’s beak, like the very maw of a Kraken given form from solid darkness. It tore apart the seabed as it came, smashing through the long dead manor house or two of Aqualania’s nobility.

“Princess, dump all power into the engines if you would be so kind!” Seaspray said, and cranked the ship throttle forward all the way. The Treasury bucked forward, its weapons and even shield momentarily shutting down as all it’s magical reserves were poured directly into the engines themselves.

Seaspray then reached over and opened a closed hatch on the side of the helm, pulling up a small handle with a trigger on it. At the same time he started to edge the ship upward, taking it soaring over the Aqualania cityscape as both the Wraiths and the terror beast pursued a few hundred meters behind.

“Good, now, Princess, on my mark I’ll need you to transfer power to the Lance, just enough to activate without losing too much engine power. Miss Rarity, I’ll rely on you for course correction. This needs to be aimed perfectly, and you’re my eyes.”

“If perfection is what you require, you’ve come to the right mare,” Rarity said, licking her lips and narrowing her eyes at the augury array. Unseen by her, the chakrams at her sides began to become suffused with a faint light, although she did hear an amused, masculine chuckle in her head that she swiftly dismissed as just her nerves.

“We’re ready for the energy transfer when you are, Admiral,” said Twilight’s voice from the crackling com.

Admiral Seaspray nodded, and Rainbow Dash said, “So do we know what this Lance thing actually does?”

“Grant us victory, hopefully,” Seaspray replied, “But if not, at least we shall die in a most dramatically spectacular fashion.”

“Just what I always wanted,” Tempest droned.

While he jested, Seaspray did have some small notion of the Treasury’s final weapon, having learned what he could of the ship prior to launch. Granted he was partially operating off of educated guesswork, but really, it was a massive spear blade mounted on the bow of the ship, it’s function couldn’t be that complicated.

Just as they were reaching a point above the central portion of the city, just south of the palace, Seaspray yanked on the controls and threw the rudder to allow the ship a sudden and drastically swift turn. Everypony felt the momentum of the move press them into their seats, and in seconds the Treasury had pulled a full one hundred and eight degree turn and was now barreling directly at the terror beast and Wraiths.

“Now, Princess! Activate the Lance of Scylla!”

He saw the power indicator just below the trigger flip to green as magic energy surged from the engine room towards the bow of the ship. His left talon gripped that trigger and squeezed down on it, activating the weapon as he guided the Treasury on a direct charge at their foe. The Lance did not require a great deal of power, but that was partially because it made use of the ship’s energy shield. What power was left to dedicate to the shields was sent forward, but rather than form a protective dome, the planes of the magic barrier wrapped around the prominent sear blade mounted there. Then, the blade began to turn, potent gears within the ship spinning the blade, and the wrapped energy barrier, until it became like a titanic drill.

Light from the overcharged shield planes now illuminated the area in front of them, showing a rather surprised looking terror beast, and the maw of Wraiths barreling forward heedlessly. The Wraiths hit the Lance first, and the shaped beak of shadow was torn to ribbons by the piercing swirl of the humenous blade sheathed in potent magic energy, along with the pure momentum of thousands of tons of metal moving at high speed.

The terror beast, under Charybdis’ control, tried to maneuver out of the way, but was not wholly successful and in fact largely made things worse for itself as the Lance struck it in it’s softer armored side rather than clash head on with the whale’s spikes.

A part of the Admiral felt sorry for the unfortunate creature, so transformed by dark magics without its consent, but he consoled himself with the notion that any pain it must have felt upon being impaled by the Lance was probably no worse than what it was already enduring. The impact certainly shook the Treasury no less than the terror beast, but the Lance’s drilling spear head still cut a clean path through near half of the whale’s body before the creature let out a terrible howl and went spinning downward until it crashed, head first, into the ruins of Aqualania.

There it lay still, blood seeping from it in a dark cloud, unmoving.

“I... do believe we got it, Admiral,” Rarity said, her eyes still locked on the augury array, “I’m not seeing a hint of movement, and the heat is dissipated from it too.”

“Does that mean we won?” Dash asked, but Seaspray held up a talon to quiet her.

“Let us not declare ourselves victors until we know for a certainty. Miss Rarity, what of the Wraiths?”

She shifted her attention to the collection of splotches and dots that represented most of the Wraiths, at least the ones outside the main mass at the palace, and her lips pressed into a worried frown. “They appear to be regrouping, but I doubt we have long before they come for us again. More are sallying out of the main mass, and what’s worse, they seem to have hit upon the notion of joining into larger forms. I’m seeing more than a few bigger shapes taking form out there.”

“Then it seems we’ve still got a fight on our hooves,” said Seaspray, at which point Twilight’s voice spoke over the com once more.

“Admiral, about that... I wish I could give you better news, but using the Lance has burnt up the last reserves we had for the shields. I might be able to squeeze a bit more power to use a few of the mana cannons, but besides that we’re effectively defenseless.”

“No shields means those things can get in here and just overwhelm us with numbers,” Tempest said, “Which means our only choice is to make a run for it. Try to get to the surface and hope the bastards don’t follow us.”

Just then, a laugh raked all of their ears, ringing through the ship with magical potency. Charybdis’ voice spoke with pronounced enmity and a crack like a bullwhip.

Feel free to flee. How far do you believe you’ll get? You’ve no other option left, battered as my sister’s toy ship is now. So run, and we’ll see if my beloved citizens of Aqualania will let you escape their grasp. I’ll just enjoy the show.

Whatever part of Charybdis’ magic and spirit that had been occupying the terror beast now fled the slain creature, although there was no visible sign of her presence amid the darkness of the waters surrounding the city. Yet each individual on board the Treasury could feel the powerful sea witch’s eyes upon them, as if a cold, slick touch on the back of their skull.

Seaspray tightened his beak, not liking their chances, but seeing little choice but to put what power was left into the engines and try to make a break for the surface.

However before he could do so, another voice answered Charybids’, that of Twilight Sparkle’s. The Princess’ voice rang out clearly like a silver bell, amplified loud as Seaspray realized she was transmitting not just through the ship wide coms, but to exterior speakers as well.

“No, Charybdis. We’re not running.”

That right? Intending to make a brave final stand? Typical. You and my sister would get along-

“Be quiet.”

Charybdis’ voice halted mid-sentence at Twilight’s cutting verbal command, somehow amplified even louder than natural. Those native to Equestria recognized an alicorn making use of the “Canterlot Voice” occasionally used by Princess Celestia or Luna when making proclamations. Whether Twilight was using it intentionally or just had her emotions running high enough to be turning her volume up unconsciously was unclear, but the Princess’ voice boiled with anger.

“Listen to me, Charybdis. Listen closely. I am a very patient, understanding pony. I believe in the harmony Equestria stands for, and spreading that to every single creature I possibly can. And I believe magic is the most powerful tool of all to spread that harmony, most especially in its purest expression of friendship. But you... you twist magic into something it’s not meant to be. You’ve abused thousands of innocent souls, and treated living creatures like playthings. I won’t stand for it. Charybdis, my friends and I will not run from you.”

A fine speech. You are, of course, wrong, but far be it from me to separate a fool from her chosen course of self destruction. I do not ‘twist’ magic. I have not ‘abused’ my people’s souls. I preserve them, just as I preserve a tradition of magic that predates your childish modern spellcasting. But come then, show me how a Princess of ‘Friendship’ does magic.

Upon Charybdis’ challenge, her voice faded, but Rarity saw that amid the Wraiths there was a distinct increase in the number of them bubbling up from the domed mass over the palace. “I do believe our monstrous host intends to make good on her threats, Twilight. It won’t be long before a veritable wave of Wraiths overtake the ship.”

“I know, Rarity,” Twilight replied, her voice returned to normal, but no less resolute, “Girls, I need you all to meet me on the top deck of the ship. Flash, you too. Admiral, we’re going to face the Wraiths ourselves. I want you to take the Treasury and everypony else as far from here as you can.”

“Wait, are you crazy?” Tempest near shouted, “If you mares go out there alone you’ll get slaughtered! I know you’re an alicorn, Twilight Sparkle, but there’s limits to what even you can do!”

“I’m afraid I must agree with Tempest,” Seaspray said, “This sounds utterly foolhardy, Princess. Potent and capable as you and your friends are, what can you hope to do against an army of Wraiths even a warship as advanced as this one struggled to keep at bay?”

“I know how this sounds, Admiral, but please just trust me. If it makes you feel better, consider it a royal order.”

Seaspray looked ready to keep arguing, but suddenly he felt a hoof on his shoulder. All through the battle, Wavecrest had remained quiet, observing with a near fatalistic stoicness that only now faded to an expression of serene clarity, “Trust them, Admiral. I have had my doubts since the moment I decided to join my quest with theirs, but I have become convinced that this is as the spirits of the sea will. It is by no mere fluke that these mares have unlocked secrets that have slept for ages, and thrust us upon a collision course with the very forces that plague our ocean. Trust them, and watch what unfolds.”

Seaspray frowned, but took a deep breath and said, “Very well, Princess Twilight. You and your friends take the field. But I’m keeping the Treasury close, just in case. I am not leaving any of you behind.”

“Fair enough, Admiral,” Twilight said, “Okay, girls, meet me up top. Uh, assuming everypony is hearing me?”

“Read ya loud n’ clear, Twilight!” Applejack said, “Hey Admiral, just send someone down here ta keep an eye on the prisoner, eh?”

“Hmm, sounds like a task for you, Tempest,” Admiral Seaspray said, and Tempest gave a brief nod of acknowledgement.

Meanwhile Rainbow Dash was already out of her seat, “I’ll be up top before you can blink, Twilight!”

“While not as fast as Rainbow, I’ll be right behind her,” Rarity confirmed, joining her friend’s eager egress from the bridge.

There was a pause, and Twilight said, “Uhhh, Fluttershy? Pinkie Pie? Flash?”

----------

“We, uh, hear you Twilight,” said Flash, blinking in astonishment, “We’ll, um, be up there soon.”

He and Pinkie Pie floated in the doorway into the infirmary. They’d rushed there as fast as they could to get to Fluttershy, assuming the mare would be in dire need of assistance against a Wraith attack.

At the moment there were no Wraiths to be seen, and the infirmary was something of a disaster area consisting of broken beds, a wall dented inward like a ten ton bull had charged into it, and a torn down cabinet that looked as if it’d been used as a bludgeon.

Fluttershy was tending to her shark friend in one of the few remaining intact beds, having finished binding up the injured creature’s tail. She looked up at Flash Sentry and Pinkie Pie and smiled sweetly, “Oh, sorry, I didn’t hear you come in. Does Twilight need help?”

“Uh...y-yeah,” Flash Sentry said, “Are you... okay?”

“Hm? Just fine. There was a slight disagreement with some Wraiths that I had to explain manners too,” Fluttershy said, and after giving the shark a comforting pat on the shout she took up her shield and swam up to Flash and Pinkie Pie, “And it sounds like there’s even more in need of my polite explaining of how to properly behave.”

“That would be a yes, I think,” Flash Sentry replied, still a tad dazed but he quickly shook it off, ignoring the way Pinkie Pie was giving him a half grin as Fluttershy swam past them and they started to make their way towards the top deck.

“Told ya,” Pinkie said with a wink.

----------

It only took a minute or two for the mares from Ponyville to gather on the top deck of the Treasury. A grand stairwell on the upper deck opened to a wide double hatch that opened onto a railed open-top deck space that ran over a large middle portion of the ship, ending just behind the rising bubble and arched housing of the bridge itself.

The darkness of Aqualania surrounded them, but the palace and the darker mass of Wraiths there could still be made out amid the backdrop of the ruined city, and Twilight could see at least ten sizable forms that were likely joined together Wraiths that had taken larger shapes that loomed in the distance like the shades of nightmare leviathans.

She took a calming breath, turning without apprehension to her friends as she used her magic to withdraw the mace from her saddlebag and levitate it before her. “I know my plan will sound just a smidge nuts, but considering circumstances, I don’t think we have many other options.”

“We’re kinda used ta nuts, Twilight,” said Applejack, “Why don’t ya tells us what ya got n’ mind? Ya figure somethin’ out ‘bout that there clobberin’ stick o’ yers?”

“I’ll keep this brief. From the visions we saw, and based upon the magic I’m sensing within the mace, I believe a fair portion of magical power is locked up inside it. Moreover, I suspect this power is somehow tied to all six of us who became attuned to the Elements of Harmony. There’s a resonance or sorts between the mace and the five of you, including the items you picked up from the armory.”

“You think it’s like how you felt like nabbing the mace without thinking about it?” Rainbow Dash asked, to which Twilight could only offer an apologetic shrug.

“I don’t know, but regardless, I sense the connection. So, to the point, there’s a seal placed on the mace. A seal I believe I can break.”

Flash Sentry gave her a serious look, “Are you sure that’s a good idea? You don’t know what will happen if you do, and seals tend to be put on things for a reason.”

“That may be so,” she replied, “But if we’re going to save the souls of Aqualania’s residents, we need all the power we can get. Flash, you’re the key to this plan. You and your Zanpaktou.”

“Me? I mean, my Kochi Yojinbo has been able to cut down the Wraiths, but I’m not completely sure what even happens to them after that. I don’t know if it’s purification like with a Hollow or not.”

She nodded, eyes grave, a weight on her shoulders as she understood the burden being placed on him, “It’s risky, but it’s our only chance. Their only chance. Charybdis has them bound here by a spell. A spell that connects to all of them. My theory is that if you perform that Soul Reaper technique that purifies souls, Konso I think you called it, at the location of the spell binding, it will free all of the Wraiths’ souls.”

“Quite the tall order,” Rarity said, “Do we know where this binding even is?”

“I can use my Sphaera Astralis to help me scan for it, but it has to be in the city itself. Once I find it, we have to fight our way to it and cover Flash while he uses his Zanpaktou to undo the binding,” Twilight said, and raised the mace, “And that is where this comes in. It’s a gamble, I admit, but I’m betting on this mace containing enough power to help us fight the Wraiths.”

“Sounds like a plan to me!” said Pinkie Pie, “I got a good feeling about this.”

“Glad one o’ us does, but what the hay, Twilight ain’t steered us wrong before. Not when it counted,” Applejack said, hefting her shileigah. “Let’s do it.”

“And perhaps do it fast,” Fluttershy said, nodding towards the army of Wraiths, “Because they seem like they’re done waiting.”

Indeed, the Wraiths in their multitudes were coming forward in a wave of howling shadow. Hundreds of small ones surrounded grotesque clusters that had joined together in misshapen hulks of dark matter that took the appearance of every deep sea monster imaginable. Amalgamations of tentacles, shark maws, giant pincers, and spiked stalks create horrific shapes in the darkness that was coming at the Treasury and the mares standing on it’s deck.

Looking once more at her friends with a final nod, Twilight turned and bore the mace aloft in front of her. She concentrated upon it as her five friends arrayed to either side of her, along with Flash Sentry who remained closest to her side, Zanpaktou at the ready.

The magical seal on the mace glowed in front of Twilight’s eyes, chains of ethereal blue coated the mace’s head. Her horn lit up and she directed a firm stream of purple light into the seal. She knew how to open the seal partially due to the fortunate fact that while inside the Astral Sphere, she’d been able to properly analyze the mace and it’s magic. She knew it’s structure, and the vast well of magic pooled within, like some vast lake just beneath a seeming desert. The seal itself was a complex lock, one that could be brute forced open, but that was unnecessary. As if the seal itself recognized Twilight’s magic, it all but welcomed the influx of her power, taking it in and converting it into a pattern that fit the seal perfectly.

Well... here goes nothing, she thought, truly unsure of what to expect once the seal was open. She gave her magic a little tug, and the seal opened with almost anti-climatic ease, the image of the glowing blue chains falling away into sparkling dust with not so much as a hint of resistance.

Silence held breathlessly for a second or two. Rainbow Dash cocked her head and began to say, “So, is it, like, gonna do something or-?”

Light. Light crossing all the spectrums filled the pitch black ocean with it’s all consuming radiance.

Starborn luminescence engulfed the deck of the Treasury and tore through the countless fathoms in a pillar of prismatic magnificence that touched every corner of Aqualania, banishing all but the darkest of the city’s shadows for a moment of near daylight. The advancing Wraiths actually halted in their fury, brought up short by the sight, sensing a release of magic so potent and ancient that even they, in their centuries of mind-numbing rage and hate, felt a moment of near clarity.

Inside the mass of those Wraiths, Charybdis watched from the projection of her mind’s eye. Her true self lay innumerable leagues to the north, within the confining depths of her bastion at the bottom of the Abyss, but she still saw all clearly through her projection magic. Her skill at such magic was what allowed her to even touch the distant human realm across dimensional barriers, so it was no trick to feel and see all that was occurring before her, even through a mere projection.

And she was just a tad unsettled. She knew what to expect of course. She’d partially goaded Twilight into doing this, but to actually witness the awakening of an Inheritor, let alone six was... impressive, even to the ancient and powerful sea witch.

The light continued higher, reaching upwards until it was lost to view to the waters above.

So high it reached, that even upon the distant surface, the waters began to bubble and light up.

Captain Celano and her crew, waiting anxiously upon their airship that still rested upon the very waters they’d watched Twilight and her party descend down, saw the light on the waves’ surface and looked at each other in confusion.

“What’cha reckon that there is, Capt’n?” asked one of Celano’s crew, and she could do little more than rub her chin thoughtfully and shrug.

“Ain’t got the foggiest, but...” she paused as the waves grew brighter still, and she then had to shield her eyes as the pillar of many colored rays shot up from the water and reached up into the sky itself. She gulped, taking her hat off, “But I’m gonna venture a guess that those ponies are having one heck of a time down there.”

----------

Flying high above Equestria’s eastern hills, Celestia carried along the Bount Trixie within a globe of magic as she flew her way towards Ponehenge.

Although she hardly halted her flight, she did look off to the eastern horizon as the faintest hint of light touched the sky that was not of the sun’s making. More than that, she felt the instant, heated response inside herself as the magic being released sent a jolt through any and all Inheritors. Hidden as it was, she could feel the broken blade she carried veritably buzzing with excitement, sensing the release of it’s cousin’s power, and it’s own seal weakening ever that much more in response.

“What is that?” Trixie asked, hooves propped up on the shell of the barrier she was carried in, “I thought I saw something.”

“Nothing you need to concern yourself with,” Celestia replied, but inwardly she was overcome with worry.

Even if Twilight contained this, with another seal broken, the other Relics would be all the more active. Even those who weren’t aware of their nature as Inheritors would be able to feel the change as more divine magic was released back into the world. They would even likely be drawn to their Relics now, like moths to a flame.

For better or worse, the eons buried history of the world was waking up, and it was unlikely that it would be possible to put things back to the way they were once all would be said and done.

----------

As intense and encompassing as it was, the light did eventually begin to fade, although it did so by bits and pieces. Slowly did the pillar of rainbow lights lessen, and even when near gone they still left shimmers and motes of light like sprinkled stars upon the night sky.

Flash had closed his eyes when the light hit, but even so he’d felt nearly blinded, his eyelids not stopping the shear brightness around him. Now that it was faded, he blinked and looked beside him to see what had become of Twilight and her friends. At first he didn’t see them, but his senses told him to look up. Doing so, he spotted them. They must have risen up partially in the pillar.

He could only stare, not even managing to keep his mouth closed.

Each mare was changed, although one could still tell who they were. They’d lost their seapony shapes, reverting to their natural forms, yet this didn’t seem to affect them at all despite still being underwater.

Rainbow Dash’s mane and tail remained as prismatic as ever, but now both flowed and flickered like they were made of mist rather than hair. Her head bore a polished helmet of silvery white, a crest slit down it’s center allowing her mane to flow out freely while the front shielded her eyes with a visor. Further armor, slim and form fitting, wrapped her chest and legs, but left her back free, as well as her wings, which were encased in a stream of seemingly ever present air current that flowed around her body. The swordbreaker she carried had changed as well, becoming the same gleaming white metal, while lengthening and curving without losing the swordbreaker notches on it’s blade. Along its edge was a pattern and clouds, and similar flowing currents of air, stirring the water around it.

To Rainbow Dash’s right was Applejack, her fur turned to a burnished gold color that reflected light like metal. Even her mane and tail had a metallic quality, and all her body seemed to produce a haze of heat that boiled the water around her. She had grown in size, gaining easily an extra foot of height, and a broader set of shoulders to match. Black iron armor, thicker and more heavily plated than Rainbow Dash’s, rested in angular segments over Applejack’s chest and back, but left her legs bare save for iron bands around the hooves. Even her stetson hat was different, it’s brim clad with an iron band and a circular iron crest mounted to the front of it. Still shouldering her shillelagh, the club had transformed into a hunk of forged iron, still shaped the same but now bearing a more hammer-like head.

To the left of them, Rarity examined herself with casual grace. Her coat was now speckled by scale-like growths of sapphire gems, like the hide of a dragon or serpent. These crystal growths mostly coated her front and back legs, and parts of her neck and cheeks, while her chest and back were instead covered by a gorgeously tailored dress and cape made from a dark blue cloth trimmed in sinuous patterns of gold that looked like coiled snakes. Her mane continued the serpent motif, coiling and moving as if alive, and even her gem blue eyes had become slit like a cobra’s. The charkams she bore had tripled in number, six of them now floated beside her, and their blades had grown deadly curved side-blades, which dripped faintly with different colored substances, one for each chakram; red, green, blue, orange, purple, and black.

Over on the other side of Flash, a harsh rift of powerful music cut the water, and he looked to Pinkie Pie. She was literally bursting with energy, her pink hide now streaked with stripes of hot neon light. Her poofy mane and tail had a jagged look to them now, as if spiked through with electrical current, while even her eyes sparkled near solid blue with energy. She wore a chest piece of gold armor that had an array of pipes coming off the back of it like the horns of a dragon but shaped into the pipes of an organ. Over the armor she wore a neon pink trench coat laden with scaled straps of armoring, all of thick cloth rather than leather. The lute in her hooves, which had produced the rift of music, was now cast out of silver white metal and it’s studded sides now sported full on spikes.

Beyond Pinkie Pie was Fluttershy, cutting an imposing figure. While Applejack had been the only one to gain any noticeable size, Fluttershy was the more intimidating sight, for she was clad nearly head to rear in crimson armor. The armor was made from sharp edged plates, designed to give the appearance of form fitting deadliness as each limb sported a razor curved protrusion. This continued in the form of two blades covering wings now clad in blood red metal, and even a helmet that produced two forward curving horns ending in edged tips. Fluttershy’s mane and tail had become, oddly enough, braided through with dark vines sporting white flowers. Still strapped to her right leg, her shield had grown a little in size, and unlike her armor clearly remained a tool of defense, despite also turning a crimson color.

Then, finally, there was Twilight herself.

Flash wasn’t sure where to focus his attention first. Was it her wings that were most striking? Four of them now, and within their feathers was a deep, star speckled void as seemingly endless as space itself. Was it her mane, like a sheet of wavering nebula containing colors of deep purple, blue, and black akin to a dusk sky? Perhaps her attire was most striking, crystalline robes of violet and blue that wrapped her body with a high neck and low, sharp edged sleeves that looked as if she solidified the essence of magic and hardened it around herself. Or was it her weapon? No longer a mace, the shaft had grown to triple the length, the head opened up like a blooming flower to reveal a perfect orb of night black within. A staff, held aloft and brimming with power that crackled along it’s white metal surface like miniature storms. Or maybe most striking was her eyes, still Twilight’s, still enthralling to Flash, but now swirling with starlight as if her eyes reflected the bodies of galaxies.

“Uh... Twilight?” Flash said with breathless hesitance.

She looked at him, and he felt a distinct sense of unease as he didn’t see recognition in her eyes. Her voice was Twilight’s, but the words that came out only increased his concern.

"Twilight? My apologies, but that is not my name. I am called Astra."

Episode 150: Equestrian Gods

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Episode 150: Equestrian Gods

Twilight was drowning. Not in the grip of ice cold seawater, as she knew her body should still be immersed in, but rather an unending flood of random sensation and memory that washed her along a river of experience that was so jumbled and vomitous that her brain could barely hold on to her own sense of self, let alone parse out the rapids she was mentally being carried along.

One instant she was feeling the warmth and glow of an idealistic field of tall grass and savory smelling flowers, surrounded by piles of books she floated across her vision to read with a voracious appetite while sipping tea that tasted of lavender. The very next instant she was screaming in pain as a blade tore at her back, feeling the mud caking her mane as she rolled away from her assailant of rotten smelling flesh and black blades, the stench of blood and death jamming itself into her nostrils as the shrill madness of battle roared in her ears. A second or an eternity later she would be clinging to somepony, their fur warm against her fur as they snuggled together in a bed of clouds. Another instant or eon after that she’d be staring up at an imposing alicorn stallion clad in robes of starlight as he lectured dozens of other alicorns like her in a hall of glass and bronze, towering into the sky.

She had no context for anything, and each stretched out instant of memory hit her with such a cloying sensation of reality that there was hardly time to do more than gasp in breathless fear of losing herself to the deluge. Astra. The entirety of Astra was flowing into her, but not in any ordered manner, but rather like having Astra poured over her in a rainstorm of the mare’s thoughts, feelings, and memories without any shade or cover to be had.

Twilight was being soaked in Astra down to the marrow of her metaphysical bones and for a few moments of blaring infinity she could do nothing but flail and be carried along.

But there was something inside her that remained her. Like a rope cast to a drowning pony, a safety line, something tugged at her mind and soul and kept her head above water. It was as if something within her core was insulated, keeping just a hint of the chaos at bay. She grasped at this feeling, hugging herself, wrapping her mind in this insulation, and said in repeating tones to herself that reverberated inside her soul, “I am Twilight... I am Twilight...”

The memories surged, like a breaking wave, and crashed over her. For a sliver of time the flood grew crystalline as ice, becoming a clear shape.

“Harmony is the key.”

The old alicorn stallion stroked a beard of mist as he stared at her through eyes as solid and silver as dying stars, “Harmony you say? That’s something of an idealistic concept, dear Astra. Do not forget that the Ordo Scientia are dedicated to observable and provable fact, not pursuing philosophical debate. Or are you considering a change of venue to the Ordo Somnium?”

Respect war with frustrated anger as she set down an entire shelf’s worth of notebooks and scrolls, mostly written in a haphazard scrawl of swift, messy scientific notation, “Keeper Tomearchis, this is not a flight of fancy! I have done the research, and I am not alone in my findings. The Cycle has an ingrained harmonic balance to it, and by absorbing the magic of mortal worship we damaged that harmony. Restoring it requires we redistribute that magic into the Cycle.”

“Even if what you say is true, which remains to be confirmed I must add, the kind of damage you’re theorizing wouldn’t be repaired simply by giving up our divine magic,” Tomearchis said, “We’d be giving up the majority of our power for no reason other than to delay the realms’ decay rather than reverse it.”

“Which is why I say Harmony is the key,” Astra said, scrambling through her notes and reveal a wide open scroll that showed a complex diagram of symbols surrounding a central image formed of seven interlocking glyphs, “Once the damaging effects of divine magic are halted, we can create a healing mechanism in which the realm itself will be granted a ‘spirit’ that seeks out and empowers harmonic elements in the world.”

Depthless eyes looked over their diagram curiously, raising a swirling bushel of misty brows at her, “What manner of elements?”

“Technically the ‘elements’ could be anything, which is part of the point,” Astra said, “Mortal society grows and changes under varying circumstances and the land itself might require different elements to be emphasized at different time periods, so this Harmonic Spirit would seek out whatever elements are needed at the time. Sometimes that might be things like Strength or Wisdom. Other times it might be Courage or Insight. Another age might need Kindness or Compassion. Regardless, the spirit would use these elements to gradually align the realms to a harmonic state that will help the Cycle heal the damage that’s been done to it. Then, in theory, it would be safe for divine magic to be restored to the realms.”

“Only we won’t be around by then, because we’d have become mortal and become one with the Cycle,” her mentor said flatly, and Astra felt a weight in her heart as she nodded in quiet reply.

“I’m sorry, there’s no other way. All we can do is relinquish that which has made us ‘gods’ in the eyes of mortals, and accept that the race of alicorns may need to fade from the world. At least for a time. I do not intend to let our people become completely extinct, sir. The Inheritor Project will revive our species, and our magic and bloodlines will become expressed in future generations, especially once the Relics serve their purpose. It is my hope that our future generations will not repeat our mistakes, but for that a record of all of this must be left behind to be found. And for that, I need your help, and the help of all Bastion Gnosis.”

He rose, his form towering over hers as metallic, silver fur rustled beneath voluminous robes of deep blue that matched her own. A feeling of uncertainty that can only come when a child fears rejection by a parent loomed within Astra as her father walked around his desk within his study of countless tomes of limitless knowledge, the greater alicorn worshiped by mortals as the God of Stars, Magic, and Knowledge, Tomearchis. He approached her, and wore a tired smile behind his bear of shifting mists that hung to the ground, and he raised a hoof to pat her on the head.

“Very well, daughter. I still have my doubts about this dream of yours, but considering my tired old mind has yet to find an answer to our dilemma in all my infinite tomes of acquired knowledge, I suppose I’ll just have to lay my own faith in a little idealism. Hmph, Harmony, is it? Could you not have found a more scientific name?”

----------

“Astra...” Flash Sentry said, wondering just how it was his mouth could feel so dry while he was at the bottom of the ocean. He knew the name was of that alicorn from Equestria’s distant past that Twilight had visions of, and a part of him wasn’t even that surprised that unleashing that artifact’s power might do something like this, but that didn’t make him any happier about it. They were in the middle of a critical moment and the last thing they needed was Twilight and the gals having an identity crisis! Not to mention, what if Twilight couldn’t come back to her senses!? What if he’d just lost her?

No, he couldn’t let himself start panicking. He had to keep focused and not only help Twilight, but still deal with the Wraiths according to the plan.

“Look,” he said, “Whoever you think you are, right now we’re about to be attacked-”

“This appears to be somewhere under the ocean surface,” Twilight, or ‘Astra’ said, quickly glancing around herself, “Many miles down, given the lack of sunlight. What was I doing here? I don’t quite remember... oh, my friends! You’re all here!”

Astra spun about, looking at the other mares at first ecstatically, then with mounting confusion. For their part, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie looked about as equally confused, and Flash feared for their memories as well. At least until Applejack spoke.

“Well ain’t that just the darndest thing? I feel like a’ million apples, an’ am lookin’ all spiffy ta boot, but my head feels like it’s a’ water barrel fit ta burst. Got this gal Althea doin’ trots n’ my memory.”

Rarity was next to speak, still looking herself over with an appreciative eye, “I do admit my head feels a bit like I’ve had too much wine in the afternoon, but otherwise I feel unbelievably fantastic. Like you I seem to have the memories of... a stallion? They’re quite odd, like a vivid dream, so real, but clearly I’m not this Zosimos character.”

“Um, I feel really strange,” Fluttershy said, her armor rattling slightly as she shifted uncomfortably, “I’ve never felt so... well, peeved, while still also being so calm.”

“Hey Twilight, you okay over there? You look even more freaked out, and tricked out, than we are,” said Rainbow Dash, flexing her wings, which produced currents of air that pushed back the water around her, forming a bubble, “Whoa! Check this out! It’s like my whole body is made out of the freakin’ wind! This Tachys dude must’ve been something else!”

“Wait...” Astra said, shaking her head, “This isn’t right. Is it? You’re my companions, are you not? But you’re different? And my body is different! What’s happened to me? Why can’t I remember? Where’s Bastion Gnosis? What happened to... the war? Did the war end?”

She looked at the staff that remained levitating in front of her, her eyes narrowing in question, “I feel like I should know what this is, even though I’ve never seen it before.”

Cutting through the water in a distinct conversation stopper, the howling of Wraiths grew louder, and Astra suddenly turned to actually see the approaching horde, her eyes shooting wide as blazing stars, “What!? Corrupted souls!? But we were supposed to halt the cycle’s decay! What are so many doing here!?”

Fed up, Flash moved at full speed to get in front of her, fixing Astra’s eyes with his own, “Listen to me! I can’t explain it right now, but you’re not who you think you are. You’re a mare called Twilight Sparkle, and we need you. You said I could purify those Wraiths, corrupted souls, whatever you want to call them, if I use my Zanpaktou on a spell that’s anchoring them here! You said you could find that spell’s location. Please, I’m asking you to ignore everything else right now, and just focus on that.”

Astra’s mouth opened, then closed slowly as she looked into Flash’s eyes, and he saw her measuring him, taking in his appearance, and he even felt a pulse of her magic wash over him. In those spiral eyes he saw her mind working fast as a shooting star.

“You... your name is Flash Sentry. I don’t know why I know that, but I do. Very well, I shall refrain from further questions and help you deal with these unfortunate, corrupt souls. As for the rest of you, you’re not my companions, but you certainly feel like them. I apologize, like Flash, I know your names, your faces, but not why. I hope that won’t be a problem.”

“That’s a big ‘no problemo’ on my end, Not Twilight!” chirped Pinkie Pie as she spun her freshly besparkled lute and gave her head a huge tap with a hoof, “If there’s one thing me and Mal got in common, it’s that we don’t sweat details and can carry a tune!”

Her hoof then strummed with hot pink speed and neon giddiness upon the strings of the lute, her whole body lighting up with a corona of shining white sparks that pulsed with the beat of a heart pounding chord that sang through the dark waves to instantly drown out the Wraith’s howls. In an adrenaline soaking blur her hooves belted out rifts of empowering sound, a rising build of electrifying music that instantly lit flames within the hearts of everypony present.

Flash himself didn’t just suddenly feel like kicking butt and saying screw it to names, but he could feel his body becoming lighter and more energetic, his reiatsu rising like his soul was giving a sudden fist pump. From the looks of surprise on the faces of the mares, all of them felt it too, Rainbow Dash buzzing her wings and making a giddy chuckle under her breath.

“Whoahoho! I don’t know what you’re doing, Pinks, but keep doing it! Time to ride the wind into the heart of this battlefield!”

The air around Rainbow Dash expanded further until a tempestuous bubble of swirling storm wind surrounded her, and Rainbow Dash’s wings began to transmute into what looked like fields of solid air, like the wind itself given living shape. She then burst forward in a spear of water slicing wind force so fast and potent that she all but carved an instant tunnel in the depths that lanced forward directly into the leading pile of Wraiths. The air then exploded around her with such shredding force that it cut swaths through the ocean in all directions.

“Ride the wind... just like Tachys would say,” Astra said, blinking, then guiding her staff forward, “No matter. Our eager vanguard has joined the battle. Follow in her wake and carve a path through the enemy line.”

“Ain’t gotta tell us twice, sugarcube!” Applejack said, and as she shot forward, her body began to gleam with greater intensity, the metallic aura of gold within her fur growing a deeper, hot orange as the water boiled around her body.

“Let’s try not to get separated, shall we?” said Rarity, following suit, gliding along swiftly through the water beside Applejack. It seemed that even with their bodies no longer having the forms of seaponies, the water was giving them no trouble.

Pinkie Pie, still belting out music from her empowered lute, swam along in a jaunty corkscrew manner, followed closely by Fluttershy who moved with a silent focus that bordered on unsettling.

“Just remember we need to find the spell anchoring the Wraiths here,” Flash said to Astra, “You, er, Twilight said she was going to use one of her new spells for that. This, uh, Astral Sphere thing.”

“I don’t know of such a spell, but that’s quite alright. I know many other spells, and I assure you I will find what you’re looking for,” Astra said, and Flash suddenly felt his body being gripped by her magic, like a cold breeze gripping his skin with powerful, if carefully gentle, force. “Now, to the fray.”

Twilight wasn’t exactly slow, but Flash was used to the mare making use of the teleportation spell to move around a battlefield quickly, or at least some manner of hastening spell. He didn’t even get a glimpse of what Astra cast, but it left him dizzy as they were essentially above the mass of attacking Wraiths swifter than he could have Flash Stepped, but without the bright light or moment of disorientation that came from a teleport.

The Wraith’s front line had already scattered somewhat from Rainbow Dash’s attack. The mare was now confronting a pair of the larger Wraith forms that had taken the shapes of a barb coated angler fish and an octopus with serrated blades for its eight arms. With a turn of her sword, wrapped in wind, Rainbow Dash became a flash of dozens upon dozens of intersecting, cutting motions, filling the air with the searing buzz of severing air. She then strutted, wings of wind fluttering proudly, past the two Wraiths, which seemed to pause in momentary confusion before their enormous bodies did their best impression of branches being shredded by a woodchipper.

Not to be outdone, Applejack came in like a super-heated meteor. A cluster of around fifty or so Wraiths screamed obscene fury at her, but that didn’t stop the mare from her relentless course. Veins of heated light crept up into her hardened, metal shillelagh, and across her own armored body. She then proceeded to spin her body like a top, water pressure all but ignored by what appeared to be overwhelming physical force. Wraiths pounced at her in a cloud of darkness. A cloud that proceeded to get shredded like moist paper by unstoppable momentum and a hammering club of metal that seemed to treat everything in front of it, physical or spiritual, with equal contempt. Limbs shaped into cutting blades or stabbing points tried to pierce or rend Applejack’s flesh, only to be deflected by a hide as if she was herself a statue of hardest stone or steel. By the time she burst out of the other side of swarm of Wraiths, she landed on top of one of Aqualania’s higher buildings, and planted her shillelagh on it.

“Keep it comin’ ya’ll! I can take all ya got n’ more!”

For Rarity’s part, her motions were not that of the bombastic Rainbow Dash or battering ram that was Applejack. No, she was a glint of grace and speed, moving like a snake among mice. The six chakram did not dance so much as live out a performance of death, inviting its audience to a stage where Rarity was the main attraction and her foes mere backup performers to her every motion. Each blade left a trail of different colored liquid in its wake. Red seared and bubbled away as one Wraith boiled and burst like a balloon. Green left any Wraith that touched its sickly glow in a state of unnatural retching, as if the ghostly beings were suddenly able to feel disease once again. The coils of blue venom froze Wraiths in place, as if left paralyzed. Trails of orange cut through Wraiths and left them flailing helplessly as if deprived of their senses. The chakram that oozed purple venom stabbed into the heart of a Wraith cluster shaped into the form of a nightmare crustacean, and it tore itself apart as its many component Wraiths started to tear into each other with mindless abandon.

Of all the chakram, only the sixth one, the one dripping black, did not strike. Rarity kept it close to herself, unmoving save to keep pace with her flowing motions that deftly evaded what few Wraiths managed to get close to her, which were not many at all. And even then, when one did manage to just barely scrape an attack at her, Rarity poised a scaled covered limb to block it herself, and turned cold, serpent eyes to the Wraith before saying, “Apologies, darling. Even if you’re the best dancer among your fellows, my card isn’t open today.”

With a twist of her hips she launched a kick that sent the Wraith flying back, as if it had been a thing of physicality rather than a being of spirit.

By then, taking all this in, Flash understood the transformation his Twilight and the mares from Ponyville had undergone wasn’t merely a physical one. They were radiating both magic and spirit energy. The former far more than the later, but he could sense the distinct mixture of the two powers, so similar to the way it felt with Sunset Shimmer and the human counterparts to these mares. The balance of the powers was different, but the mixture was there.

This notion was only reinforced as he watched Fluttershy enter the fight, somehow subtly moving around to the side of the main melee in such an understated fashion that it had to have been intentional. Three of the larger fused Wraith masses had been looming there, readying themselves to pounce upon the building Applejack had stood on. One was in the form of a horrid undersea reptile with limbs as large as train cars. It had raised these hands high to try and smash down upon Applejack from behind, but Fluttershy simply came up from behind it as well and politely tapped the back of the giant shadow monster’s head with her hoof.

“Excuse me. I need you to stop being a threat now. I’m sorry, but this will only hurt for a moment and it’s only until Mister Sentry fixes what’s wrong with you.”

The monstrous Wraith didn’t even turn so much as undulate it’s incorporeal form to create a mass of stabbing spikes that shot out of it’s back, neck, and head to try and pincushion the innocuous mare in exceedingly not innocuous armor. Flash did his best to follow Fluttershy’s movements, as they were akin to looking at a splash of red and yellow painting a canvas in fast forward. The edged elements of her arterial crimson armor cut through shadow with the slightest motions of her wings or legs. Each minutely neat severing resulted in a gaping cut far larger than should have been possible from the relatively small blades protruding from the armor, and each wound in the otherwise supposedly untouchable Wraiths suddenly began to bleed as if they were wounds on flesh and blood creatures. The reptilian, kaiju sized Wraith howled as oily black and red “blood” flew from its wounds and then into Fluttershy’s shield, as if the disc of metal was a mouth greedily drinking.

The Wraith shrunk in size, then became disjoined as its hundreds of smaller Wraith components fell apart, each one still draining red tinged black substance into Fluttershy’s hungry shield. Meanwhile she herself glowed with sanguine light, her eyes turning freshly red, even as her expression remained apologetic yet quietly assured of herself.

The fallen Wraiths did not dissipate, but nor did they seem to have the strength to move, vampirically robbed of might and will.

And furthermore, that power now swelled within Fluttershy herself, further empowered by Pinkie Pie’s relentless playing. As such, when the two other colossal nearby Wraiths turned their attention to her, striking out with prodigious limbs of deadly design, she responded in a scarlet streak of violence. Holes were torn into the Wraith’s massive bodies, their size now detrimental rather than strength, as Fluttershy easily created wounds that proceeded to drain them of vitality, her shield dripping with its hungry desire to consume in a bloody glow of potency.

Flash tore his eyes from that spectacle to alight upon Pinkie Pie, whose hooves never stopped moving upon the strings of that lute that was certainly generating a sound more akin to a modern rock bank. He saw the odd pipe organ protrusions on the back of her armor pumping out a steady rhythm of vibrating sound, adding the effect of an entire band layered over the playing of a single instrument.

The music was a physical thing in his soul, and he didn’t doubt everyone in hearing distance had to be feeling it. But beyond the fiery manner in which he felt it alight a blaze of fresh power inside his tired, near exhausted body, wiping away even the lingering pain of the terrible poison he’d endured, he could see Pinkie Pie’s abilities extended beyond the musical support boost she was giving her friends.

The Wraiths that tried to charge in at her had their motions disrupted as if they could no longer move right. Like puppets on strings they were redirected, as if following the beat of the music, to tumble about and crash into one another. While they could still try to control their bodies, still try to rip and tear at this pink pony’s seemingly vulnerable flesh, their ever action was twisted and pulled about as if they were being remixed in a music video, sent jauntily into attacking one another or simply shaking in place as Pinkie Pie’s music seeped into their every spiritual pore.

And that wasn’t all. With every crescendoing riff of power from the lute Pinkie Pie would spin about and swing the instrument like some medieval battle axe. Each swing sent out disrupting waves of sonic energy that vibrated right into the cores of dozens of Wraiths, ripping through like strings of micro-cord.

“Amazing,” he found himself saying, and he heard Astra make a ‘hmm’ sound of curiosity next to him.

“They have the strength and powers of my comrades, but each one is a bit different from what I remember. I think I know what this is meant to be. I... made these Relics? To let the world heal, to pass down what we were to the future? My head is so fuzzy. And I keep thinking of a mare like me, but who isn’t me.”

A cluster of Wraiths screamed through the darkness at them from below, and Astra gained a distinct flare of irritation on her features that made her eyes flare up like burning stars.

“Excuse me, I’m trying to think!”

Her mane flickered like a void on fire, and her horn turned to a solid purple bar of eye searing light. She waved her staff forward, and the black orb on its tip was surrounded by a thick nimbus of swirling space, like a shard of star crusted stellar topography became manifest in the small area around the orb itself.

A perfectly triangular plane of such void-like space manifested in front of the Wraiths, then extended countless streaking comets of bright light that exploded among the Wraiths like an apocalyptic star shower. The Wraiths were gone in near an instant, and Astra dismissed the window of space she’d created, only to manifest a magic circle beneath her and Flash that was wide as a parking lot in the same breath. From that circle shot hundreds of individual beams about the width of a quarter, which sliced down into the Wraith horde below with relentless and viscous cutting swaths. Both Wraith and numerous Aqualanian pieces of architecture below were equally bisected by the beams, leaving devastation in their wake.

“If only I had a minute to think things through,” Astra muttered, “But I can’t ignore what’s in front of me. Who is responsible for the state of these souls?”

Charybdis’ voice cut across the din of battle below.

That would be me.

From the mass of Wraiths the voice rose without origin point, but Astra’s eyes narrowed and began searching the army of shadows that continued to do battle with the other mares below.

“Who are you? By what right have you forced the souls of the dead to linger beyond any reasonable point of good health!?”

I’ll assume I’m speaking with the ‘god’ who once lived that the unfortunate fool, Twilight Sparkle, is the Inheritor of. Astra, was it? I’m sorry, I didn’t study up on every deity that existed back then, but I am somewhat familiar with you, at least. Daughter of Tomearchis and Iah herself, although never acknowledged by her rather prideful mother. Oh can I relate to that, let me tell you. As for these souls. I’m preserving them.

Astra’s nostrils flared, and her four wings grew larger in seeming size as the starstuff flowing from them burned like gasoline had drenched a bonfire, “Preserve? Oh do not tell me the Preserver’s cursed ideology survived!? We won that war once already! I do not intend to let it repeat!”

So quick to leap to conclusions. I can see your Inheritor is a lot like you. I’m no ‘Preserver’, but I am an opportunist. The power of the divine is a wonderful tool, and I’m using it to protect my people and be a better ‘goddess’ than any of you defective deities ever were in your supposed glory days. I will not let the souls of Aqualania be dissolved into your damned ‘Cycle’! So feel free to die now, ‘goddess’, since you should have stayed dead and gone in the first place!

From the main dome of the largest Wraith mass surrounding the palace a series of baleful dark violet shards of light emerged, forming into translucent orbs that resembled the eyes of some monolithic sea beast. These eyes focused in on Astra and Flash sentry, and inside their magically charged depths, a quartet of piercing blasts of magic shot out. Astra gave out a thick whinny of challenge and brandished her staff, generating a shell of midnight black space void in front of her.

The blasts, moving like living creatures, and now resembling the shapes of unnaturally mutated orcas, swam around the void and tried to get at Astra from several angles at once. She simply, while still gripping Flash in her magic, used that same movement technique from before to shoot herself upward at unbelievable speed, causing the orcas of explosive magic to crash into each other and detonate in a vast, spherical explosion.

Flash, still trying to get himself together, at least did take notice that the spell Astra was using to move actually was a lot like Flash Step. She was wrapping herself and him both in a frictionless, inertia canceling bubble of magic that then moved like a pinball being slapped about with a burst of raw arcane power. It was like an advanced form of telekinesis that was swifter, and moved oneself or other objects around at high speed.

“Does that spell have a name?” he asked out of pure, dorkish curiosity, and to his surprise rather than chastise him for asking that in the middle of a fight, Astra gave him a smile that was stunningly similar to one of Twilight’s sheepish grins.

“Huh? Oh! Ictu. Means ‘Blink’.”

He nodded, and took a step away from her before gesturing towards the enshrouded palace with his Zanpaktou, “Mine’s called Shunpo. Flash Step. Let’s go find that spell anchor, and ruin that loudmouth witch’s day, eh?”

With that he turned and burst away with his swiftest Flash Step, and he heard Astra actually let out a surprised laugh behind him and didn’t doubt she’d be keeping up with ease. In fact, he was realizing he didn’t have to worry about any of these ponies. And he didn’t doubt that Twilight, his Twilight, would make her way back to him soon.

----------

It hadn’t taken Twilight long to realize one very important fact. The tether of familiar, warm magic with which she was using to pull herself up through the broken dam of Astra’s memories was coming both from inside herself and from a distant if steady exterior source that was equally familiar to her.

Harmony. This was her Element of Harmony, Magic, coursing through her metaphysical veins. She’d given up the physical object, the tiara with its sparkling star crystal, that had embodied this Element to the Tree of Harmony deep within the Everfree Forest. Yet here it was, as potent as ever, wrapping her soul, helping insulate her from the wash of divine magic and memory that had been threatening to overtake her.

Surely, if her Element was helping shield her from losing herself entirely, her friends must be similarly being protected? Indeed, if she focused and looked hard she could almost see past the flood around her to notice that similar, smaller streams of memory had wafted out across the metaspace towards what she could only assume might be her friends. And her Element of Magic reacted with a pulse of recognition for similar lights, the other Elements at work. Harmony was doing its thing, even if the crystals themselves were a world away.

And now Twilight knew Astra, at least in part, was responsible for the genesis of what would become those Elements.

She could see it, as memories became more distinct, like windows she could view as she traversed the prismatic river, pulling herself ever at a hard, upward slope towards consciousness.

She saw Astra surrounded by fellow alicorn researchers, members of Bastion Gnosis. Absorbing memory, she knew that was the great fortress of spherical, ring enshrouded brass and bronze she’d seen. It was Astra’s home, a vast library, school, and city of the alicorn race’s greatest minds. Tomearchis was their leader, a stallion of equal standing to the sisters of Day and Night, and one time lover to one of them.

It was here the best minds of that eons ago age toiled to try and fix the problem of the damaged Cycle. The war of Reformer and Preserver, the unnatural way in which alicorns had absorbed the magic of mortal worship to make themselves akin to gods, had broken something inside the metaphysical makeup of this world’s natural cycle of life and death.

The Relics, Inheritors, and the spirit of Harmony itself were the last ditch effort to heal the wounds and atone for their wrongdoings. To give of themselves, sacrifice their divine, immortal lives, so that the mortal races could live on and the world one day know full restoration.

Twilight looked through a window of memory and saw Astra and her dearest friends arrayed around a pedestal of steel, circular, with small platforms upon which objects floated in fields of magical everlight. She saw the mace, the shield, the swordbreaker, chakram, lute, and club, all floating as magic as raw and intense as life itself poured into them.

When it was done, Astra and the other alicorns were left exhausted, their bodies still that of alicorns, but the potent magic that made manes and fur so lustrous or ethereal now gone.

“Do you... think that when the time comes our Inheritors will know what to do?” asked Zosimos, his breath ragged.

“They’ll have our memories, but it will be fragmented,” Astra said, “I can’t do much about that. Every Inheritor is going to have trouble with that, but it’s impossible to separate memory from magic.”

“That’s going to be rough,” said Tachys, taking off his helmet and giving the swordbreaker a solemn look, “Especially considering who knows if they’ll even be all together when it happens?”

“Well, on that subject I can, at least layer a spell upon these Relics that should increase the chances of them being drawn together,” Astra said, and Malva giggled.

“This is why I stopped playing cards with you, Asty. No fair if you can manipulate fate with that star magic stuff.”

“Ugh, it’s not ‘manipulating fate’,” Astra defended, “The stars really do govern aspects of chance, nothing more. I can boost the chances our Relics will end up near one another, that’s it. Harmony itself may have to do the rest.”

“You truly do believe in this Harmony of yours, don’t you?” said Althea, “You and your father have the base design finished?”

“Almost. It will be set in motion once we ensure all the Relics are in place. Most will need to be contained, but there’s no safe way to ensure they stay that way. That said, father has suggested leaving behind... custodians, of sorts.”

“What does that mean?” asked Penthia, tilting her head curiously.

“It means that in order to prevent these disasters from happening again somepony has to remember, and pass the knowledge down,” Astra replied, “Bastion Gnosis will do its part, but there must be at least one bloodline that continues on as natural alicorns. Father is working on the specific method, and is basing it upon Iah and Eos.”

“Yikes, that sounds dangerous, considering how those two can get,” said Tachys, “We sure that’s a good idea?”

“Well... he believes it will balance out if we also leave at least several of the greater spirits relatively intact. Paralogos, for example.”

“Why does this plan make me worry for the future?” said Zosimos, to which Malva laughed and elbowed him.

“Hey, look at it this way, Z, it really can’t get any worse than ‘world drying up like a shriveled fruit’, so I say things can only go up from here!”

“You’re entirely too energetic for having just expended your divine immortality and shoved it into an instrument.”

The memory faded into opaque gray as the window passed and Twilight kept pulling herself along the tether Harmony had provided. She could parse it out now. Celestia and Luna had known of this because they were the bloodline given stewardship of the truth. No wonder they discouraged things like worship or treating them like deities for the length of Equestria’s history. They were protecting the world from the old alicorn’s mistakes. Discord, he knew too, but apparently that had hardly stopped him from playing his games. Although Twilight now realized even in his momentary victory back then, he’d never set himself up as some kind of god. Even in turning the world into a land of pure chaos, he’d known better than to repeat the errors of Equestria’s one-time gods.

How many other Inheritors were out there? How many Relics? One for each of an entire race? It sounded like most had been hidden or contained somewhere, and only a few like hers had ended up scattered across the world.

Still plenty of questions, but now she could only focus on the tether, pulling ever higher towards a point of distant light where her mind, subsumed by the culmination of Astra’s memory, now was doing who knew what with her body?

----------

Applejack had seen Fluttershy deal with the giant Wraiths behind her, and feeling as if she shouldn’t be too idle herself, decided to try something out. The half formed memories of a powerful, large mare named Althea were riding her mind like a buzz of potent apple cider. She didn’t really know who Althea was, only that the mare had been a good, honest sort who loved building and forging things to be stronger. And she had magic to do that with, like a hot forge in her heart.

That magic now burned inside her with furnace strength, and Applejack had something of a notion of how it worked.

Seeing a wave of Wraiths rising up from the shadows of Aqualania’s streets to try and form a new massive form, Applejack looked at the building she was standing on. Intuitively, she understood its structure. She knew every seam and bolt, and what needed strengthening to make it better as a building, or what needed weakening to make it collapse.

So she did a little of both, Apple-style.

She swam off the room, rapidly, far faster than she ever felt herself move before, reaching a midpoint of the skyscraper sized building. She seized upon a weak point she just knew instinctively was there, and without even using her shillelagh, she turned and kicked out with her two bucking legs.

The hit with explosive, bombing force. The building cracked down the middle with ease. She then turned around and hefted her club of raw, magically forged iron. With a wound up swing, she smashed the wall of the crumbling building, but rather than break it, she infused strengthening magic into the entire edifice of stone and metal. This made the building surge forward like a baseball hit by a world-class batter. Thousands of tons of reinforced metal proceeded to smash apart the forming together cluster of Wraiths like flies being smacked by the world’s biggest tennis racket.

“Hooowheee! Can’t wait fer buckball season this year,” Applejack remarked.

“Oh, um, well I don’t think we’ll be allowed to play like this,” Fluttershy said, floating down to Applejack, her eyes still red as raw blood, “But at any rate we should probably go help Flash and Twilight get into the palace, since I think that’s where they’re going.”

Applejack looked, taking a second to track down the streaks of light that she assumed were ‘Astra’ and Flash Sentry, making a straight line towards the massive main dome of Wraiths still around the palace. She adjusted her hat, which she was infinitely glad she still had even with the fancy new transformation, and said, “Good thinkin’. Ya alright, Flutters? Ya look kinda... intense.”

Fluttershy gulped and nodded, “It’s very strange. Penthia, she... has a lot of violent memories, but I think she’s like me. She doesn’t like hurting others. It just sometimes has to happen. I’ll be okay.”

For now that was enough for Applejack, and the pair turned to start swimming back towards the main fight.

On that front, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie had grouped up and were carving a solid path forward, albeit a bit more slowly now that the Wraiths seemed to have realized how dangerous these ponies were and weren’t coming at them quite as mindlessly as a moment ago.

The Wraiths organized themselves somewhat, sending in flankers and skirmishers to try and keep the mares busy while other clusters formed new huge sized forms that were adapting to each mare’s individual style of combat. In Rainbow Dash’s case, one Wraith mass took the shape of a heavily spiked lobster beast that was firing lances of solid darkness at her from a distance, always staying back and using smaller Wraiths to distract her from using her speed to always dodge.

It was... not really working, per se, as Rainbow Dash swiftly cut down just about any Wraith that got close to her as she formed more and more air around herself, generating a small swarm of bubbles that fired back at the lobster Wraith with cutting blades of air.

Meanwhile another Wraith cluster was trying to negate Rarity’s advantage with her many chakrams by forming into a squid-like mass of dozens of tentacles, trying to keep the charkams held in place or otherwise catch them so she’d become vulnerable. This was made difficult by the fact that even slight contact with the poisonous blades either left tentacles melting like being injected with acid, or all but frozen and uselessly still. All the while Rarity seemed untouchable, not out of the kind of raw speed Dash was using, but more by simply knowing exactly when to move to avoid a grasping dark limbs’ reaching swing.

As for Pinkie Pie, she continued to be Pinkie Pie, but in full surround sound stereo complete with backup band. Even the Wraiths didn’t know how to adapt to her and her lute that simultaneously confused them, empowered her, and cut apart just about anything in her path with sonic lashes of cutting sound.

Applejack and Fluttershy’s arrival upon this scene was simply overkill in the same manner a steamroller was overkill on a set of traffic cones.

Once joined together, the five mares became less like individual combatants and more swiftly formed into a cohesive machine of Wraith crushing gears, spinning unstoppably through the ranks of shadow like a thresher through the fields. It wasn’t simply that they all knew each other well enough to fight with full knowledge of what those besides the would do moment to moment, it was that the memories from five other warriors from the distant past were fueling their teamwork by layering a whole plethora of additional combat experience on top of the mares’ already experienced battle instincts.

In short, the only advantage the Wraiths had were near inexhaustive numbers, and that wasn’t going to slow the mares from Ponyville for long. Although that issue of numbers was not altering. Much as the mares were inflicting devastating damage on the Wraiths, they were not actually destroying the twisted souls. Which was fine by the mares, none of whom wanted to actually do harm to the souls of Aqualania beyond what was needed. The entire point of this was to buy Flash Sentry and Twilight time to find the spell keeping these souls here and free them. But that did mean that as many Wraiths as the five chewed through with blender-like efficiency, the spirits slowly recovered, rebuilt their shapes, and came back for more.

Yet the five did carve a swath, following the wake of Flash and ‘Astra’, who had continued on towards the dome surrounding the palace.

For those two, Charybdis had thrown up a gauntlet of deadly, dark magic.

The four eyes of glowing baleful violet occupying the dome shifted about at high speed, following the motions of Astra and Flash as they both made full use of their individual techniques to devour the distance to their target. Charybdis’ magic pumped out a snow storm barrage of spine-like constructs of pulsating power that shot from the baleful eyes. Each spine exploded with swarms of further needle thin energy projections of piercing power, all but covering the entire area in front of the dome in a thick wave of such attacks that it left no room for maneuvering, no matter how fast one might evade.

Astra tapped into her staff to summon forth a cloak of void-like space to form a cone in front of her, absorbing the swarm of penetrating needles like a vacuum. Yet this void was not perfect, and the overwhelming volume of these magic needles started to tear into the very fabric of Astra’s spell in a way the mind of the ancient alicorn seemed to recognize.

“This magic, it’s tinted with divine elements? How is that possible? Is this monster another Inheritor? But it doesn’t feel right.”

Hmph, right or not, it’s enough to still challenge your own half awake power, ‘Astra’. Now fall!

More spines fired out, converging towards Astra and the defensive cone she had in front of her, but the alicorn responded with a burst of power from her horn that shot up and conjured forth lines of several dozen magical circles that then proceeded to fire blasts of incandescent starlight that swatted down many of the spines coming towards her.

However several spines got around behind her and spun around, rushing in and then detonating in bursts of needle swarms. Astra turned, but then Flash was there, throwing up his hoof so that his Zanpaktou was held vertically in front of him in a blocking motion.

Bakudo Number Thirty Nine: Enkosen!” (Circle Lock Fan)

A wide, circular disc of concentrated yellow reishi took shape around the edge of his blade, becoming a many meter wide shield that managed to block the initial rush of needles, although a few still managed to penetrate the barrier and come dangerously close to his face.

Astra quickly capitalized on the brief reprieve and flared her power higher, raising her staff and turning the line of many magic circles she’d summoned to sweep line upon lines of magic beams in a circular motion around her and Flash, blasting through hundreds of remaining spines of dark magic.

“Come on!” she shouted to Flash, “We’ll blast right through the center!”

“Right!” he said, and joined her at her side.

This time Astra reshaped her cone of generated void, and made it larger around them both.

“I don’t have access to my original power,” Astra breathed, “But this will still do. I don’t know who this creature we’re fighting is, but she’s somehow tapping into a Relic. But it’s not functioning right. This power of hers, a lot of it’s just magical talent. I can tell she’s straining herself, however. She can’t keep this up, not at the distance she’s casting at. Most of this is being drawn from the corrupted souls. The second we free them, she’ll lose a lot of power here.”

“Do you know where the spell anchor is?” Flash asked.

“No, but as soon as we get within the dome, i can find it. With the Sphaera Astralis.”

Astra blinked, “Strange. I know that name now. Twilight, I know her, too. She’s...” the alicorn gave a rough shake of her head and just like that she was off like a shot, using her cone of voice to tear a path through the swarms of further spines Charybdis was firing from her dome of massed Wraiths. Flash rushed to keep pace, creating duplicates of himself to cut down any spines that tried to maneuver around their flanks.

Then, suddenly, they made contact with the dome itself. The cone bored into the mass of Wraiths and Flash abruptly found himself surrounded by the thick darkness like a miniature ocean of oil. Astra’s power shined out around them both, magic beams cutting left and right to push back the walls of howling Wraiths that started to form faces and grasping, clawed limbs to try and tear at the pair. Flash cut about with his Zanpaktou, severing limbs left and right, guarding Astra’s back as her magic cut a path forward.

Just as swiftly as they’d entered the dome they now burst through it and into the open space around the palace itself.

Glancing down, Flash saw the courtyard. There, he saw sahuagin, a huge group of them. Most were wounded and gathered around a metal sphere laying amid the rubble in the middle of the courtyard. He saw that shaman that had created the terror beast, and nearby a group of warriors carrying the unconscious form of who he recognized as Morgawr.

Astra looked upon the sahuagin with a twitch of mild shock, “Are those Domare’s people? I thought they’d all been killed by the Preservers. What are they doing- wait! That sphere!?”

The shaman, Divistus, upon seeing Flash Sentry and Astra, raised his arms and let out a bitter laugh as he dragged his sacrificial dagger across the flesh of his arm, spilling dark blood into the shining translocation sphere, “Too late, surface filth! My Mistress calls us back to the Abyss’ embrace!”

The sphere of metal, already vibrating with an aura of red light, gave off an even greater shine of crimson as it drank Divistus’ blood. Quite swiftly a field of scintillating ruby light reached out and covered a circular area that encompassed the gathered sahaugin, one and all. They chanted deeply in their undulating voices, giving praise to Charybdis, as the water and very space around them swirled like a whirlpool. In an instant all of the remaining sahuagin vanished, drawn into the sphere like lines of ink, leaving behind the ball of metal, now dark and dormant of any magic energy.

“The heck was that?” Flash said, blinking.

“I don’t believe it, but it’s a transportation device invented in my very home, Bastion Gnosis. But what was it doing here, in the possession of a people I thought were made extinct by the war?” Astra said, shaking her head and then narrowing her eyes to focused slits, “No matter! I’ll find the source of this horrid spell keeping these unfortunate souls here, and put an end to this nightmare. Now let us see... Sphaera Astralis, was it? Cover me, Flash Sentry.”

Her words came upon the heels of the Wraiths within the dome surrounding them reaching out as dozens of them fused together into reaching, clawing hands of midnight black. Astra began to summon up the power of the Astral Sphere, although where Twilight had formed the magic circle to summon it between her wings, Astra used the tip of her staff as the focal point. The lines of power formed even faster than when Twilight had done it, although Flash wasn’t sure if that was because of Astra herself, or the changes in Twilight’s body due to the Relic.

Either way, she still needed a few seconds, which Flash bought by taking up a defensive position above her and going full force against the oncoming phantom claws of the fused Wraiths.

Although his reiatsu was flagging to his limits within him, he fired off several Shakkaho Kido blasts to burn apart one giant claw, while spinning about to create a half dozen duplicate reflections of himself to dice down another. This still left more that sliced towards him with sharp fingers of cutting shadow, and he did his namesake proud to flash amid them, his Flash Step giving him narrow room to avoid being torn asunder as he worked vigorously to keep Astra clear of danger.

One shadow claw tore at his left hind leg, while another cut a burning red line across his right cheek, but he kept moving, flicking out a Byakurai Kido in a blinding white lance to puncture a claw that nearly got too close to Astra. He ducked another blow, reflecting himself over and over again to create Flash Sentries that tore through the claw he ducked and two others that tried to snake their way behind Astra. His Zanpaktou started to feel heavy on his arm, but he kept cutting, kept duplicating himself, even when doing so meant one of his reflections took a clawing blow to the stomach, too shallow to be fatal but drawing more blood into the dark water.

Then the world filled with dense violet light, and suddenly hundreds of magical beams, each more bright and intense than the last, cut through the darkness on all sides of Flash.

Astra had summoned the Astral Sphere, then immediately separated it into ten smaller spheres she then cast magical beams into that then shot out in spreading, splitting displays of piercing arcane destruction. The Wraiths, even as they formed scores of new clawed or bladed limbs of titanic proportions around them, were cut down in seconds by the relentless barrage.

At the same time, a sphere appeared next to Flash, the miniature Astral Sphere hovering in front of him with buzzing anticipation.

“Flash, I’ve cast a homing spell into that portion of the sphere! It will home in on the source of the spell anchoring the Wraiths! Follow it to the center, quickly!”

At Astra’s words, the tiny sphere next to Flash dipped down, like an eager puppy waiting to be walked. Flash could only nod and follow it as it led him down into the courtyard, then cut sharply left towards the... towards the temple! The same one Aria and Sonata had been held captive in!

And as he quickly followed the sphere towards the temple entrance, the Wraiths howled and the dome began to close in, hundreds of smaller Wraiths pouring from the mass while larger formations broke off in shapes of every terror of the deep imaginable. Astra faced them all, magic blazing around her and her staff as the alicorn’s eyes burned with starlight and her wings poured out veils of void, ready to unleash devastation upon her foes.

----------

Twilight was nearly there. She could feel the edge of her body’s physical consciousness at the tip of her own senses. Like crawling out of the flow of a rapid river, she reached out across the tether of Harmony towards the seemingly endless gap between mind and body, where a jewel of light, like that of a burning white star, waited for her touch.

-----------

Flash heard a storm of magic exploding in the courtyard behind him, Astra unleashing such arcane power as to put the best Kido masters he’d ever seen to shame. By this point he didn’t doubt whatever these alicorns had once been, if “gods” was the right term or not, they were every inch the match or more of what the Soul Reapers of his world were. Their powers differed in nature, but not in potency, and he didn’t doubt those Wraiths would not be getting past her.

Within the temple’s depths he followed the tiny portion of the Astral Sphere that was hunting down the foul magic responsible for the souls of Aqualania becoming as they were now.

It was shockingly easy and near anticlimactic, he discovered, for the sphere led him towards the very heart of the temple, past the chambers where the sirens had been held captive.

Here the temple’s main area consisted of a tall, grand space, filled with slabs of stone carved into pews for worshipers. Columns lined the walls, artfully shaped into images of seaponies with heads bowed in prayer. Past the many stone pews was a massive space where the wall was carved inward like a sideways bowl. Within that area was the temple’s main focus, a colossal statue of marvelously detailed stonework.

Flash recognized the image of the statue as Domare, Lady Sea, the patron goddess of the seaponies, whose painfully beautiful features were given lifelike relief in the cold stone they were carved into. Surrounding the sea goddess were smaller statues of no less lifelike but still impressive creatures, primordial sirens, whose chests bore stones of glittering ruby.

The temple was pristine, save for one thing. Domare’s hoof was held out as if to hold an object, but this object had clearly been torn off some time ago. A pile of broken stone lay at the statue's front. Driven into the ground, as if it had pierced whatever object the rubble had once been, was a tooth as large as Flash was tall. It pulsed with a faint trace of shadow, as if brushing away the light around it.

The miniature Astral Sphere went up to this tooth, casting its pale cosmic light upon the scene. As if its light was pulling back a veil, Flash saw line after line of dark red and black magic appear around the tooth and spread out from the ground where it was stuck. It was like looking at a crawling web of ever shifting symbols that made his eyes hurt, but he could tell the magical web consisted of a spell that spread out through the very walls of the temple, and presumably the palace and city beyond. The focal point for the magic that held the souls of Aqualania as eternal prisoners of their own destroyed city.

He approached with some caution, wondering if there might be some final defensive measure. Nothing lashed out at him, no spell trap or hidden guardian. But there was one who was watching.

He felt Charybdis’ presence like a splash of ice on his mind, and above the tooth a dark orb suffused with strands of bright light suddenly hovered, her voice painfully pointed as barbs.

Do not touch that tooth, boy! You have no idea what you’re doing!

“Pretty sure I do,” he said, grunting as he shrugged off her words that scraped at his brain and swam towards the tooth, his Zanpaktou poised.

Oh but you don’t, Soul Reaper. I know all about your kind. I know that you use those swords to ferry the souls of your dead to your precious Soul Society. Do you think that’s what will happen here!? That you’re saving my people? Idiot! You’re dooming them! If you use that sword to undo my spell, they’ll be gone for good! Every soul will dissolve back into the Cycle, lose themselves entirely!

He didn’t pause, but he did look at the orb that represented Charybdis from wherever she watched and projected her power from, “First off, you don’t seem like the type to care. Second off, screw you.”

Argh! You’re worse than Scylla! Why do you think I anchored them here!? If I didn’t, they’d vanish into the Cycle and be lost forever!

“Or reincarnated. That’s how it works back home. Souls move back and forth. This world doesn’t seem that different.”

Reincarnated or destroyed, what difference does it make if they lose their memories and personalities in the process? I’ve been striving for centuries to learn how to circumvent the Cycle. Make souls immortal. Like the gods once were, but better! I will succeed, even with those mares interfering.

He glared at the orb as he felt her try to exert pressure on his mind, but he was guessing she was using up a lot of power outside. He was wary of an attack from her, but didn’t see one coming, and he nodded to himself.

“At a distance you need proxies to cast your spells through, don’t you? Those poor sahuagin you’ve duped into worshiping you, or the Wraiths whose souls you’ve shackled to this place. Right now, with nothing here to act as a proxy, you can’t stop me with anything but words. And guess what, I don’t care about your reasons right now. Even if you weren't trying to kill my friends, and the woman, er, mare I love, I’m also a Soul Reaper. Guiding souls to their natural rest is my duty, and I will fulfill it.”

With that, he struck fast and true with Kochi Yojinbo. Charybdis let out a seething howl.

No! Damn you! NO!

Even if she couldn’t cast spells to stop him, Charybdis brought a hammer of raw mental force onto Flash’s mind with her booming voice. It nearly stunned him to paralysis, but he’d trained under Captain Celestia extensively, and she’d similarly crushed him time and again with the force of her spiritual pressure. Until he’d learned to cope with it, to act even when being pressed down upon by forces beyond himself.

Perhaps if Charybdis’ power and focus wasn’t split between multiple areas of battle she could have stopped him then and there, but Flash’s Zanpaktou did not halt. Its keen edge pierced the large tooth, and Flash poured his spirit energy into it. He enacted the Konso ritual, a purifying force to guide souls to their proper rest. He wasn’t quite sure how it might interact with the spell or the Wraiths, but he could feel the spell spiderweb out to all the thousands of Wraiths filling the city. For a moment that feeling alone nearly crushed him, sensing an entire city’s worth of despair, suffering, and hate all balled into one ocean of madness.

He weathered the storm, his Konso ritual filling the pierced tooth, then spreading through the lattice of the spell in a cleansing wave. It was as if the Konso co-opted the spell itself, making use of its pathways to swiftly reach every single Wraith in the city within seconds.

He heard Charybdis’ voice once more, an inferno of anger directly now solely at him.

You... will... pay. I swear it on every soul you just doomed to dissolution, Flash Sentry. You, that mare you claim to ‘love’, all her friends. Oh, and don’t think your friends in the human world will be safe either. I’m opening a door to there too, and when I do, oh am I going to enjoy myself. But not before paying you back for the crime you’ve just committed.

He kept his Zanpaktou inside the tooth, making sure the Konso continued to take effect, but he glanced up at the orb that represented Charybdis, and curled his lips in a grimace of a smile, “Lady, after what I’ve seen today, you ought to be way more worried about Twilight and the gals than me. They’re the heroes who are going to kick your ass. I’m just the escort.”

----------

When Twilight finally, with a final stretch of her hoof, touched the mind that was in possession of her body, she felt herself fall for one heart throbbing movement.

Then she was in a realm of endless white, a precipice at the edge of consciousness, swiftly falling towards waking reality.

And there was Astra, both passing her at the speed of light, and frozen momentarily in the eternal moments between seconds.

“Ah, so you’re Twilight Sparkle,” Astra said, giving Twilight a rather odd, nervous smile, “I’m, um, pleased to meet you? Although we’re not really ‘meeting’ are we? I’m not really ‘me’. I’m a memory of myself, given to you by the Relic. In a bit, I’ll be absorbed into you, and you’ll only be you.”

“Astra,” Twilight said, her mind cartwheeling about, grasping the situation and seizing up in the moment as she grasped for things to say, reaching out to touch the other alicorn’s shoulder, “I have so many things I need to ask you! About the war, the Relics, the Cycle, Harmony, all of it!”

“I know,” Astra replied with a small, sad twinge in her eyes, her smile fading, “You might find answers in my memories here and there. The Relics aren’t... a perfect creation. Kind of a rush job, really. You’ll need to help any others you find, other Inheritors. Help them cope. Some of them will be of the Preservers, but don’t let them become enemies. The world can’t survive another war like that. You have to build it better than we did.”

“But I don’t know enough to even begin to guess at what I’d need to do! Who are the other Inheritors, besides my friends? And what about-”

Astra put a hoof up and shushed Twilight with a touch.

“There’s a lot that I wish I had time to sit down with you and talk about, preferably over some coffee,” Astra said, then shook her head, “But I’m just a memory. And I’ll be your memory, soon. Just know that I created the system of Relics and Inheritors with the hope that what we alicorns were, whether you want to call us gods or just a bunch of fools with too much power and arrogance to know what to do with it, will live on through those that would come after us. Those like you and your friends. I’m trusting our power, and the future of our world, to you, so that you can hopefully make something more of it than we did. Avoid the same mistakes. Hmph, from what I’ve seen of Charybdis, there are some already making those mistakes all over again. Stop her, please.”

Twilight got a hold of herself, taking a deep breath, hoof to chest and slowly breathing out, “I don’t know if we’ll live up to the hopes you and your friends had, but you can be certain we’ll try.”

To that, Astra let out a shuddering sigh, as if finally letting a massive weight fall from her shoulders, “Good. I’ll put my faith in you, then. You and that handsome stallion you’re with.”

“Of course- wait what? Were you checking out Flash!?”

With a relieved laugh on her lips, Astra was gone, flowing into the depths of Twilight’s memory, as she herself was catapulted forward into consciousness with her metaphysical cheeks still burning red.

----------

The sensations of her body filled her once more, and Twilight took a deep breath just a few seconds before having a small panic attack as she realized her body was not that of a seapony. After a moment of thrashing about, thinking she was drowning, she paused and looked at herself, realizing that she was still breathing the water around her as readily as air, despite her lack of gills.

“Huh, that’s strange. Am I under the effect of some other water adaptation spell that doesn’t require transmuting my body?” she wondered aloud, then took note of the other physical changes to her form. She was still very much an alicorn, but she felt taller, grander, with four wings brimming with the magic of some space born void. Four wings!? That certainly felt a tad odd to her and she flexed them experimentally, wondering at the aerodynamics of having four. The robes cladding her body felt finer than any silk she’d chanced to wear (mostly modeling one thing or another for Rarity as a favor), and her whole body felt energized with a distinct thrill of power that made her feel lighter than air itself.

Then there was the staff she was holding in front of her in a grip of levitation magic, almost unconsciously so. She instantly recognized the superficial elements of the mace she’d picked up, now changed into a staff whose top blossomed like a metal flower to reveal the black orb within. Inside that orb she felt the core of the magic that suffused her body, the “divine magic” of the alicorn race, of Astra herself.

Twilight shivered a bit, taking a second to try and clear her head. Astra’s memories were an uncomfortable weight in her head, like an overstuffed luggage bag that had to be sat on to make it close properly. If one could have mental indigestion, Twilight thought this must be what it felt like. She imagined it would take time for the memories to settle in, although she had no fear they’d overtake her, now.

Setting that thought aside, she looked around her, recognizing the palace courtyard, now empty save for herself.

The vast, black dome of condensed Wraiths was replaced by a dense field of ghostly blue lights, a field of thousands of miniature wisps that twinkled like azure fireflies. Even as Twilight watched, these lights began to float up, rising through the ocean depths to parts unknown.

“Twilight!”

She was nearly tackled off her hooves by Rainbow Dash, who grabbed Twilight up in what looked to be a soft cushion of air that pushed back the water around it. Twilight was briefly astounded by Rainbow Dash’s changed appearance, which was soon followed up by having to stare at her other friends as they each in turn arrived in the courtyard.

“Looks like ya made it through alright,” Applejack said, sinking to the ground heavily in her thick, dark iron armor and shouldering her oversized shillelagh, “Are ya... still thinkin’ yer that Astra mare, or are ya our Twilight?”

“I’m me,” Twilight said, then realized how that didn’t actually answer the question and hastily added, “Twilight, I mean. Astra is gone, or rather her memories are no longer in control of my body. I still remember, sort of. Everything is jumbled and I can’t ‘see’ much of it, but I’m fully me.”

“That’s how it feels for the rest of us,” Rarity said, still floating a bit higher as she kept watch on the slowly vanishing field of wisp-like lights, “At any rate, we can work out the details later. I take it you and Flash Sentry were able to put things to right, given all of the Wraiths quite suddenly stopped fighting us and began to turn into these rather pretty lights?”

“I believe so,” Twilight replied, looking around, “But I don’t know where Flash is. I didn’t see what was happening when Astra was in control.”

“I see him over there. Look,” Fluttershy said, nodding towards the shadowy entrance to the temple. None of the others could see through the gloom, but perhaps Fluttershy’s senses were somehow sharper in her changed state? Her words proved true, for no more than a second later they all saw Flash Sentry slowly swim forth from the temple, looking haggard but very much alive.

“Flash!” Twilight called out, rushing to meet him, while her friends followed swiftly behind.

She didn’t even feel any embarrassment as she wrapped Flash Sentry up in a tight hug with her hooves and wings. He gave out a pained grunt, but hugged her back just as tightly, “Heh, worried about me, were you?”

“Always. Are you okay? What happened in there?” Twilight asked, checking him over.

“I’m as okay as I can be, considering Charybdis tried to give me the mother of all headaches. But that didn’t stop me from breaking the spell,” he said, patting his Zanpaktou, which had reverted back to its sealed, katana form, “Turns out Konso worked, just like you thought it would.”

He looked up at the rapidly vanishing field of wisps, and Rainbow Dash made a wary face.

“We sure everything worked? I mean, they ain’t going to turn all shadow monster on us again?”

“I doubt it,” Flash said, frowning in thought, “I felt some of what happened through my Zanpaktou. I think the Konso worked to purify at least some of the corruption that had set in, while breaking the chains holding them here. I got the feeling their souls were being drawn away somewhere, but something like a tide, or magnet?”

“They ain’t goin’ ta yer Soul Society or nothin’? I ain’t sure how that there blade o’ yers really works,” Applejack said.

“Oh don’t be silly, Applejack,” said Pinkie, “We don’t even have a Soul Society here. Or do we? Dun dun duuuuuuun!”

“Yeah, pretty sure you don’t,” Flash said, half smiling, “No, I don’t think they can go to Soul Society. I mean, it took Starlight Glimmer stealing a massive teleportation device engineered by the Thirteenth Division’s finest minds to just transport herself and her followers here. I doubt crossing the barrier between worlds is that easy. Well, mostly. Besides, if the Konso sent them to Soul Society, then the ritual would have summoned a Hell Butterfly to help guide them. I didn’t see or sense any of those. So my best guess... they’re going wherever souls go when folk die here. Wherever that is, beats me.”

“The Cycle,” Twilight said, “It's what Astra and the other alicorns were trying to protect. Their war damaged it somehow, and I think temporarily removing divine magic from the realms and creating Harmony was their plan to fix it.”

“Well that just hurts the ol’ noggin’ tryin’ ta sort out,” Applejack said, scratching at her head.

“Eh, don’t sweat the details, I say,” Rainbow Dash declared, spreading her wings and striking a pose with her swordbreaker, “But seriously, check us out! I dig this even more than those forms we took when we zapped Tirek!”

“I do admit the overall design and color coordination is a bit better than the somewhat over the top appearance we had at that time,” Rarity said, “But I confess I do hope these changes aren’t permanent? Much as I fancy these fetching crystal scales, I’d rather not have them twenty-four-seven.”

“Astra did say the changes were temporary and that the Relics were something to tap into when we needed them, but I’m not certain how to change back,” Twilight confessed. Since there was no harm in trying, she took a moment to focus her attention on the staff. In her mind she pictured both it and herself as she’d been. It, a humble mace, her a somewhat less humble alicorn.

With remarkable ease she felt the power slip out of her like taking off a suit of armor. The changes to her body, the form fitting robes, all shimmered into liquid light that then flowed into the staff. The staff in turn reverted its shape, flashing with light and shrinking into the form of a mace once more.

Twilight looked surprised, then realized she couldn’t breathe the water any longer. In very swift order she re-cast the old water adaptation spell before things got... messy.

“Pwha! Okay, note to self,” Twilight, now a seapony again, said breathlessly, “Don’t do that while still underwater.”

“Yeeeah, gonna wait until we’re back up top before I try changing back myself,” Rainbow Dash said, giving Twilight a bemused grin.

Suddenly light flooded the courtyard. They all looked up to witness the source of the light being from the searchlights mounted on the hull of the Treasury. The ship moved above the palace, sending beams of light to check the courtyard and fixing upon the ponies there. Admiral Seaspray’s voice could be heard, amplified from an external speaker.

“I do say, are all of you quite alright down there? Are all hooves accounted for?”

Twilight swam up a few meters and waved, shouting, “We’re here Admiral! All of us are safe! We won!”

And it was a good feeling. This had been among the longest days of Twilight’s life, facing down an assortment of dangers one after another. But she and her friends had won through. They’d rescued Aria and Sonata, defeated the sahuagin, braved Aqualania, discovered the Treasury, liberated the trapped souls of an entire city, and given Charybdis a proverbial bloody nose in the process.

Amid all that, they’d also discovered the Relics of a bygone age, tapping into the power of the ancient alicorn race, once Equestria’s gods. Now they were Inheritors of that power, with a heavy burden to use it to make the world a better place without allowing the mistakes that once brought that same world to the brink of doom from repeating.

Mistakes Charybdis seemed intent on either repeating, or finding a whole new spin on.

And Twilight Sparkle wasn’t about to let her have her way.

Author's Notes:

In terms of inspiration for the Mane Six's Relic forms I took inspiration from both elements of the way Metal Vessels and Djinn Equipping works in the Magi series, and a bit from the Cloths in Saint Seiya. At any rate, with things finally resolved in Aqualania Twilight and her friends are poised to go head to head with Charybdis on her home turf. Of course while they're recovering from this and delving more into their new abilities a different battle looms back in Equestria's heartland. Celestia herself is scheduled to come face to face with the human world's Starlight Glimmer, and who can so how that confrontation will resolve?

At any rate, I do hope you folks enjoyed the chapter, and as always thank you all for reading. Any and all comments, questions, or critiques are highly appreciated. 'Till next time.

Episode 151: A Confrontation of Beliefs

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Episode 151: A Confrontation of Beliefs

Dawn, the next day...

The rays of morning always felt a shade brighter to Celestia, even if she knew the sun was ever the same whether she was raising it or lowering it. Perhaps it was simply that there was a faint hint of optimistic promise inherent in the start of a new day, the perception of hopeful things to come that made those pale white beams of sunlight cresting a morning horizon feel just a bit more bright than their evening counterparts.

Regardless, she could use the optimism. While some liked to paint her as the consummate immortal schemer, who always had a plan for every occasion and was ten or twenty paces ahead of anypony else, the truth was Celestia never did know for sure how any given day was going to go. And today of all days it would have been nice to have been certain. Oh, she’d planned. She’d considered as many possibilities as her mind could conjure, and prepared as best she could. Yet would it be enough to win through what was likely to be a confrontation as dangerous and unpredictable as any she may have faced from the likes of Discord, Tirek, or Chrysalis?

Well, considering one of those three was now an ally, one locked away safely in Tartarus, and the last defeated if still at large, Celestia at least had to take comfort in her track record. Not that she hadn’t always had a healthy dose of help in accomplishing many of her feats, while today she, at least in appearance, stood alone.

Raising the sun took a lot less energy than most ponies would think. The celestial body was largely eager to move on its own, Celestia just provided the needed guidance at the proper time. That was largely thanks to her innate connection to it, of course. Regular unicorns would drain themselves by the dozen trying to do the same, but in essence all Celestia was doing was the magic equivalent of flicking a light switch, just one that was quite heavy and she herself best suited to flick. This meant that once the sun was rising into the sky it would largely continue it’s daily journey on its own, until time came to guide it back down, although “down” was just a matter of hemisphere and perception.

This left her a moment to take in her surroundings once more time.

Ponehenge was not a remarkable looking location at first glance, nestled in a heavily wooded glen, the clearing was filled with a set of old stone monuments, six of them, built in a circle around a wide circular area of similarly ancient stone. The monuments were bare bones affairs, like broken pillars, and they surrounded the center of the stone circle, which held a carved pool-like edifice. While the area did not appear special, Celestia could feel the faintest hum of magic in the air, like the tinge of warmth beyond the sun’s rays. She knew the monuments contained a power of their own, and that great magic had once been worked here.

Magic that trapped a most potent and old entity of malice, and six heroes bound to contain it. Looking upon the old stones made Celestia hold back a long sigh of regret. She and Luna had not been as strong then as they were now, and it had fallen to others to contain the threat, including a mentor she’d admired. And it wasn’t until later that she even understood the true nature of the threat, of that “Pony of Shadows” and what he truly was.

But she could not afford to ruminate on the past. The present was what concerned her, and Ponehenge was the site she’d chosen for this confrontation. All that was left to do was await the one she’d invited here.

Not far away from where Celestia stood within the stone circle, the Bount named Trixie shuffled about in an uneasy manner, her eyes watching Celestia with unblinking calculation. The Bount was still separated from her hat which bore the crest that summoned her Doll. Celestia suppressed a laugh, if not wholly her wry, small smile.

“I’m surprised you haven’t tried to run away yet,” she commented, causing Trixie to jump slightly, although the mare swiftly composed herself and held her chin up defiantly.

“Trixie has no need to run. Starlight is coming here, after all. Why should I not stay and watch? I don’t even know why you brought me.”

“Truthfully I no longer had much use for keeping you in the castle,” Celestia admitted, “And I suspected your Starlight Glimmer wouldn’t come here without a little extra bait to seal the deal. A part of me even hopes our good treatment of you might encourage her to hear me out, before things fall to... unpleasantness.”

Trixie’s mouth pursed in a contemplative and incredulous pout, “What, you plan to try to negotiate?”

“I intend to utilize every single method at my disposal to resolve this conflict,” Celestia said in such a manner that the meaning of her words held within them an ocean’s worth of potential meanings. Her eyes, usually so warm and inviting, had a cast to them that made them look like uncompromising, unbreakable gems that glittered almost like flame, “It will be up to Starlight Glimmer just what methods work.”

“She won’t lose to you,” Trixie said, breathing a tad quicker as Celestia could see her prance in place with strung tight nerves, “She’s the strongest, smartest person I know. She ran circles around Soul Society, and that includes you.”

Celestia’s brow rose just a tick, her smile deepening even as it thinned, “I’ve no doubts about the prowess of my Soul Reaper counterpart, or of Starlight Glimmer’s for that matter. Even having never met her, I can tell she is extraordinary to have done the things she has, including earning your loyalty. I cannot even say I consider her an evil individual, for to have inspired such loyalty requires some ability to care, not merely invoke fear.”

“It’s Soul Society that’s evil,” Trixie spat, “Hunting my people relentlessly, imposing their laws on everyone. Starlight is the only one with the courage to stand up to the whole, rotten system!”

“And by any means she deems necessary,” Celestia said, almost more to herself than Trixie, “Means that put my world and those under my protection in danger. This I cannot abide.”

She raised her gaze to the slight rise in the woods across the way, “Are you done listening, or are you going to come out into the light?”

Her words resulted in the bushes rustling ever so slightly as a pony walked out into the morning sunlight and made her way towards Ponehenge. It was Starlight Glimmer, her own alicorn body not matching Celestia’s height, but having gained a few inches of regal height all the same. Celestia knew this wasn’t a natural alicorn evolution, but something artificial, just by the sensation of magic around Starlight. Some manner of transmutation? Not changeling magic, Celestia thought, although that was always rather difficult to detect even for her. No, she imagined Starlight must have used some spell or item she’d discovered in her plundering to take on the wings of an alicorn upon her unicorn body.

Other than the slight edge in height and the wings, Celestia was indeed struck by how identical this Starlight looked to the one she knew. There were even similarities in attitude, in the confident strut in which Starlight carried herself, although in this case it was smoother and far more intense. Celestia had not known the pony Starlight during her spat as a desperate cult leader and time traveling revenge plotter, but she imagined if her world’s Starlight hadn’t been turned around by Twilight, than she might have gained this extra level of intensity she was feeling from the human world’s Starlight. Yet she also sensed it was more than that. This Starlight had gone through... so much more. Experienced more terrors, more pains, more responsibilities, and the burden of far more power. Indeed, Celestia could tell Starlight Glimmer was not bothering to contain her spiritual pressure, her “reiatsu”, which filled the air with a heavy weight.

Celestia bore that weight readily and took a few confident steps forward to meet Starlight Glimmer in the middle of Ponehenge. She was alert for traps or sneak attacks, and could tell Starlight was equally alert for the same. Just as Celestia had planned for this meeting, no doubt Starlight had her own plans. Who would blink first? Starlight was openly armed, her Zanpaktou sheathed at her flank, which was covered in a dark purple leather coat worn over a gray jumpsuit consisting of just a few too many belt straps for practicality’s sake. Celestia recalled what she knew of the weapon from Sunset Shimmer’s journal entries, which truthfully wasn’t much. She had no reason to worry about the weapon stealing any powers, since that aspect only worked on other Zanpaktou, but it was unclear how many Zanpaktou powers Starlight had stolen over the years. The only ones Celestia knew about for certain were those of the Soul Reaper Zecora, a Zanpaktou that reportedly saw the true nature of things, and that of Clover’s Chishiki, with its analysis powers and ability to amplify Kido.

What other powers might Starlight’s other stolen Zanpaktou possess? And furthermore, although she could not see it beneath the leathers Starlight wore, she knew that strange object, the Hogyoku, was fused with this mare. She was even less clear on what powers it had than Starlight’s Zanpaktou. Celestia put the thought aside for the moment. After all, she hadn’t been lying to Trixie, she had come here to talk first, even if that may inevitably fail.

“Starlight Glimmer,” she said, “I am Celestia.”

“I’m aware of who you are. First things first. Trixie, are you alright?” Starlight Glimmer asked, looking past Celestia at the Bount in question.

Trixie practically beamed with happiness upon seeing Starlight, flashing white teeth, “Yes, I’m fine! The ponies... didn’t mistreat me. Look, I have a lot to tell you, but you’ve got to be careful! This Celestia is smart, and has Discord on her side, so you should watch out for-”

A dome of pale gold light surrounded Trixie, trapping her and cutting off sound. The Bount looked most irritated and gave the dome a pound with her hoof, shouting silently at Celestia, who in turn shrugged as she glanced back at Starlight.

“I brought her unharmed as a sign of good faith, but really I’d rather not have her interrupting our talk. You understand?”

Starlight’s eyes grew colder but she gave a sliver of a nod, “I’m just glad to see her unhurt. I knew sending her on the mission I did was going to be dangerous, but I was betting on you ponyfolk being gentle with your prisoners.”

“You did some homework on us, which I’d find flattering if you weren’t being a menace to my people,” Celestia replied in clipped fashion, “Now let me address the reason you’re here, since I was the one to invite you to this talk. Starlight Glimmer, I want you to cease your plans to steal magic from this realm and return to your world. Agree to do this, and I will ensure your friend Firefly’s cursed wound is treated, and that no further retaliation will be leveled against you.”

There was a dripping gravy boat of bitter incredulity from Starlight as she spread her wings and barked out a laugh, “Hah! That can’t be the real reason you went through the trouble of asking me out here, Celestia! What, I go through all the trouble of coming to this world and you expect me to pack my bags and go back, just like that? Come on! You can do better than that! At least try to make it sound like a good deal, sweetening it up with some offer of magical trinkets. Not like you ponies don’t have magic doo-dads aplenty to share, and I thought Equestria was all about the magic of sharing, caring, friendship, etcetera.”

“Oh, we do have countless magical artifacts of innumerable levels of power, some just sitting collecting dust in vaults even I’ve forgotten about,” Celestia said, almost teasingly, before her eyes hardened to dagger slits, “But I have no intention of allowing you to take a single one with you back to your world. Starlight Glimmer, you do not understand the dangers involved in your actions.”

"Oh spare me the lecture! I was tired of it from you as a Soul Reaper, I don’t expect it to be any better coming from a puffed up magical horse Princess. I don’t know the danger? Really!? I’ve been up to my neck in the dangers of my actions ever since I watched my best friend dragged into Hell by the very organization I had placed my faith in. Do you have any idea at all why I’m even here? Why I need the magic of this world?”

A deep bellows breath entered and exited Celestia’s lungs as she took control of her own ire and continued to stare down her snout at Starlight’s passionate stare, “I have some idea. I’ll refrain from judging until I hear all the details, so feel free to enlighten me. Then, perhaps, if you have the sense to listen, I can enlighten you in turn.”

Starlight returned a measuring look to Celestia’s patient gaze, and began tapping a back hoof in an unconscious habit of consideration. She then huffed, lowering her wings, “The details? I don’t have time to sit here and recount the whole story, so I’ll simplify it for you. I was made into a Substitute Soul Reaper after getting caught up in my world’s Discord’s Xcution project, you know the one that tried to turn innocent people into living weapons? Yeah, I still trusted him and Soul Society, thinking I could use my powers to help poor souls find rest and make the world a better place. But even then, I felt something was wrong with Soul Society. With the whole damn war. So even before I lost Sunburst I was investigating, picking up bits and pieces of the truth. But it wasn’t until that horrible gate opened and dragged Sunburst away in front of my eyes that I was able to put it all together. My world’s afterlife is built on a foundation of lies. Lies told by the Zero Division, who stand like almighty gods in that damn Soul Palace of theirs, thinking the world belongs to them!”

Passion poured out of Starlight Glimmer along with her reiatsu, her face growing into an ever more contorted stormfront of indignation and rage, “I will tear them down, no matter what it takes. No matter what I have to sacrifice. My humanity, my morals, whatever it takes so that no soul ever has to endure that twisted excuse of an afterlife. So... tell me, Celestia, what can you possibly say to me to dissuade me from my ‘dangerous’ course, hmm? What words of pony wisdom do you have for me?”

The ground had shaken slightly from the outpouring of spiritual energy from Starlight, but Celestia did not show any signs of concern. Rather she’d simply listened attentively to Starlight’s words, betraying nothing of her thoughts save for a hint of sympathy that did not remain by the time she spoke, “I cannot speak as to the nature of your world’s afterlife or the decisions being made by this Zero Division. I learned long ago that to judge as an outsider looking in can easily lead to poor decisions. I don’t doubt your conviction. You clearly believe you’re fighting against an unfair system. You may even be correct.”

“No ‘may’ about it,” Starlight said past grit teeth, “I know that Zero Division is wrong, and my world won’t know a true, proper afterlife until they’re gone. But to make that happen I need power. All that I can possibly gather. You have no idea how horrifically strong the Zero Division is. I’ve gathered enough strength that I can maybe match one on one with most of the high ranked Captains, but I’d still lose to Scorpan if it came down to it, and I know each Zero Division member is at least on par with him. And there’s five of those bastards I need to take down. So you see-”

“So you see,” Celestia said, cutting Starlight off, “That is one of several reasons I cannot allow you to continue.”

Starlight eyes lit up with the embers of indignation, but also a light of understanding, “Oh... ooooh, so that’s how it is with you? I think I’m starting to understand the difference between you and the Celestia I know. You’re a coward.”

“Oh?”

“You’re afraid. Afraid of what the Zero Division might do if I steal a bunch of magic from here, go charging into the Soul Palace, then lose,” Starlight said, almost laughing, although it was more like a bitter spit, “You’re scared that if that happens, they’ll retaliate against this world. Maybe they’ll think ‘magic’ is too dangerous and come here seeking to wipe it out. Better to just stop me from doing that, than risk pissing off enemies that powerful, right?”

“Ah, I see the point of your confusion,” Celestia said, leaning forward, her own wings starting to spread out, “I am not a coward. I am a leader. And a leader must take her responsibilities with utmost seriousness. Countless lives in Equestria depend upon me and my sister for guidance and protection. That means I must assess every potential threat through the lens of what will or won’t bring harm to all of Equestria’s citizens. So, yes, it has occurred to me that allowing you to do as you please could easily lead to bringing an enemy down upon Equestria that, even if Luna and I could stand up to them, would still likely inflict untold damage in whatever apocalyptic battle might ensue. Why then should I not try to stop you, to protect Equestria as a whole?”

“In short, you’re looking at the ‘big picture’,” Starlight said with an unimpressed chuckle, “Just as long as your little ponies are safe, who cares what happens to the souls of the human world, eh?”

That dug at something sharply sensitive in Celestia’s gut and while she did not lose her full composure, there was a noted heat that seeped into the air from her body, a spilling of potent magic from within that acted as a counter-tide to Starlight’s reiatsu and only added to the faint rumble in the earth.

“I have immense care for anyone forced to suffer unjustly. If your world is truly under the tyrannical heel of those abusing their power, it is my greatest hope that such injustice will be rectified. There are even those I care deeply for who live in your world who are entwined with the very conflict you speak of, individuals whose lives you have had no small part in turning upside down for the sake of your crusade. I sympathize with your cause, Starlight Glimmer, but I cannot condone your methods in pursuing it. I am giving you the chance to return to your world not merely to protect the safety of this realm, but in the hope you might consider abandoning your present methods to make common cause with those whom you seemed so intent on making enemies of. Sunset Shimmer would likely consider aiding you if only you were honest and forthright with her instead of recklessly threatening those around you.”

“Ah, Sunset Shimmer...” Starlight appeared to lose a hint of tension, but only a hint of it, her voice containing no ire, “She and those girls are extraordinary, but they were still just young, inexperienced children when I last left them. I’m hoping by now my... motivational conflict with them has sharpened them into something more, but even so, they are a backup plan, nothing more. Taking them with me to the Soul Palace would still feel like bringing lambs into the lion’s den. If I fail, maybe they’ll pull something off, but if I’m being honest I don’t actually have high hopes of that. On top of that I don’t trust my world’s Discord, and he’s still got his grubby hands all over those girls. No Celestia, going back and teaming up isn’t an option as far as I’m concerned. I have to be the one to take down Zero Division. I can’t trust anyone else to do it, at least not while I’m still alive. If I die, Sunset and her team can have their crack at it, but until then, I’m proceeding as planned.”

Starlight’s expression lightened with a shrewd and exacting gaze up and down at Celestia, “And while we’re on the subject, just so one can’t say I never offered... perhaps you would be willing to team up with me? I mean, if you willingly cooperated with me that’d make things so much easier, wouldn’t it? I wouldn’t have to guess at what artifacts are worth taking, or arcane knowledge worth learning. You probably already know what the best spells and magic items are. Help my forces grow powerful and you wouldn’t have to fear me losing to Zero Division, and I could much more easily guarantee no harm would come to your people in the process.”

A grim shadow washed across Celestia’s marble features, “I’m afraid that is something I cannot do. Simply giving you everything you want, without considering the consequences?”

Starlight scoffed, “What consequences? Saving my world?”

“Let us assume you did ‘save’ your world, Starlight Glimmer, what then? What could I expect from an entity so horrifically powerful that she unseated the gods of her realm and imposed her own vision of an ideal afterlife upon her world? Do you have the right to do that? If you surmise you do have the right to remake your world’s afterlife according to your beliefs, how long before you think that other worlds would benefit from your ‘wisdom’? Would I then find you returning here, far more powerful than you are now, and beyond my ability to stop? Should I consign my little ponies to such a future, simply because right here in this moment you simply ask me to hand over my world’s magic for you to use as you see fit?”

A twist of a snarl appeared at the corner of Starlight’s lips, “And what of Zero Division? Let them do as they please and how long before they decide your world might benefit from their vision of how the realms ought to be? You think Equestria will remain safe from them once they’re done with Earth?”

“I do not know, but I do know that if one sends a dragon to deal with another dragon, whichever one emerges victorious does not change the fact that you will still have a dragon problem on your hooves.”

Starlight cocked an eyebrow, “Isn’t that a little speciesist against dragons?”

Celestia groaned slightly, “Give me a break, it’s an old metaphor, and the point still stands. I can either deal with the eventual possibility of Zero Division causing my world problems, or I can deal with the possibility of you causing problems. Right now, you’re a problem in front of me I can still deal with. So either take my generous offer to remove yourself from my realm willingly, or...”

She didn’t need to finish the sentence, the magic gradually starting to surround her with an intense, golden aura speaking for itself.

Starlight regarded her with a calm, even stare for a few seconds, then blew out a small sigh, “It seems it was inevitable it would come to this. It really appears that people like you and people like me will never see eye to eye. Neither of us can turn our backs on our worlds, but you would do anything to preserve things the way they are, while I would do anything to change the world into what it should be. And the only way either of us can pursue our beliefs...”

Her Zanpaktou came out in a steel flash, gripped in Starlight’s magic as she brandished it at Celestia, “Is by crushing the other’s underfoot!”

It was impossible to tell which moved first, which struck first. Both were bleeding lines of stark motion on a still canvas. Blades of purest fire appeared around Celestia and cut the air in sizzling lines of incineration, while Starlight’s Zanpaktou severed the air around her in a godly display of speed. Sekai Chisujo had instantly transformed to it’s Shikai state, not even requiring a command phrase as it transmuted into a long metal staff with twin pronged blades at the end. Celestia’s swords of flame where difficult to count for the speed at which they cut through the air making them seem like legion, yet Starlight was a streak of pure speed, Sekai Chitsujo carving arcs through the air that sent each blade of flame flying off like comets.

In the span of an eyeblink the stone circle of Ponehenge had become bathed in intense, radiant heat. Each clash of flame and Zanpaktou sparked a burst of fire that heated the stones and burned nearby foliage.

Trixie yelped and ducked down, but fortunately for her the shield Celestia had erected around her protected the Bount from the flames and the raw clashing shockwaves of power that filled the area. She could, however, feel the overwhelming pressure of both Starlight’s reiatsu and Celestia’s magic as the two combatant’s auras clashed like a pair of immense tidal waves surging into one another. As potent as Trixie was in her own right, it was enough to almost make her double over, sweat beading her face as she tried, and mostly failed, to follow the course of the battle unfolding before her.

Breaking free of the encircling tempest of flame blades with a powerful spin of her Zanpaktou, Starlight shot upwards, clearing miles of distance in a single Flash Step that took her high above Ponehenge. In one smooth motion she aimed her Zanpaktou downward and delved within Sekai Chitsujo’s power, pulling up her list of... inmates.

The way her Zanpaktou functioned was a mystery to many, and Starlight kept it that way intentionally as to minimize the ways in which her opponents might take advantage of its limitations. Much like she knew she was a difficult woman, Sekai Chitsujo was also a difficult Zanpaktou to get along with. Time all but froze in her vision as she called upon Sekai’s power, and in her mind’s eye she saw her; the Zanpaktou’s spirit.

A feminine being of glass, shaped like that of a long haired woman in a drab, frayed warden’s uniform. Sekai’s Chitsujo’s features were that of a middle aged woman with blunt demeanor, with enough detail in her glass eyes to show her immensely judgmental mindset as her voice, ringing like a knife on a glass plate, filled Starlight’s ears.

In another spot of trouble, are you? Which inmate will it be this time?

In that moment of frozen time, Starlight still felt impatience at her Zanpaktou’s unhurried, even flippant manner, and mentally growled back, “I’m going to need most of them this time, Sekai, so better get them on deck. Right now give me Number 018! Standard thirty days off their incarceration as per signed agreement.”

Inmate Number 018, Tonde Kiba (Flying Fang). Understood. Try not to die, Starlight. Your opponent is stronger than others we’ve faced.

“As if I don’t know that!” Starlight groused, feeling Sekai Chitsujo’s power fill with the essence of one of the many Zanpaktou she’d captured and incarcerated within her blade’s power.

Sekai Chitsujo changed form from its bladed staff into the shape of a rather straightforward gladius of dark iron, with a circular hilt. The blade had odd, V-shaped segments along its length, nine in total. The segment at the very tip began to glow with a fierce blue light as Starlight slashed downward.

The first segment fired off from Tonde Kiba with a sonic crack of force and a wide shockwave, the metal shard propelled with electromagnetic force like that of a rail gun, only hardened and propelled at an even greater speed with the boost of raw spiritual energy flowing out of Starlight Glimmer.

Each Zanpaktou she captured was an “inmate”, with a sentence to serve within Sekai Chitsujo’s prison for a thousand days. Only those days did not lower with the passage of time, only with the agreed upon lending of their power to Starlight in whatever capacity she chose. The caveats were that a Zanpaktou spirit could negotiate the terms of their use. How many days were taken off the “sentence” with each use and what ways in which their use would be limited. Unusually this meant Bankai was prohibited, as would be the killing of their owner.

One might think the imprisoned spirits had the advantage, but the nature of Zanpaktou instead tended to work in Starlight’s favor. A Zanpaktou would almost always desire to be reunited with their owner, and knowing full well their sentence of imprisonment would only go down through use, it was rare a Zanpaktou would absolutely refuse terms.

Hence most of her “Inmates” had signed contracts concerning their use. Details differed slightly, but often the broad strokes were the same.

And of course, Starlight’s own Bankai was a unique case that changed the rules, but had its own unfortunate drawbacks.

A difficult Zanpaktou, for a difficult woman. Even Starlight had to admit she and Sekai Chitsujo were made for each other.

The super-sonic metal shard from Tonde Kiba had been aimed at where she’d seen Celestia flying up to chase her into the sky, but Starlight wasn’t surprised to see the alicorn Princess’ reflexes were such that even an attack moving several times the speed of sound was readily dodged. The shard impacted the ground a few dozen yards from Ponehange, and erupted the ground like a geyser of shattered earth, sending fissures sprawling about. Oddly, the actual stone circle of Ponehenge itself took no damage, as if somehow shielded from the force of the impact.

So Starlight’s suspicions were right. She’d already sensed the odd magic in the air, but now was fully convinced Celestia hadn’t chosen this location purely for the scenery.

She fired off several more of Tonde Kiba’s shard segments at Celestia, using Flash Step to change her position after each swing so that the high speed metal shards came at the alicorn from varying angles. Each time Celestia anticipated the attack and moved more smoothly than any swan to deftly evade the blows, reaching Starlight’s height in mere moments in a dazzling display of aerial grace. Her horn was a white hot beacon of magic power, and Starlight felt the ambient temperature magnify by multiple factors as a solid wall of fire encased her in a sphere almost before she could blink.

The sphere was about half a dozen meters wide, made of such solid, intense fire that it almost looked like physical matter rather than pure flame. The heat was unreal, and Starlight barely had an instant to think before magic circles appeared all over the interior of the sphere. As if channeling the imprisoning sphere’s heat, beams of cutting fire, focused and intensified to steel melting levels, came in at Starlight from all sides.

Survival now being a factor of as much battle hardened instinct as it was cold calculation, Starlight pushed her Flash Step as hard as her Soul Reaper powers could take it, her perceptions allowing her to view each beam of heat in detail as she wove herself between them. Even so, there were so many that before long she’d run out of room to dodge them, no matter how fast she was, so Starlight tapped into another factor of Tonde Kiba’s ability.

The segments multiplied, each one creating newer, smaller segments within them. When she swung the Zanpaktou this time, those multiplied segments blasted outward in a cone, like a highly amplified super-sonic shotgun blast.

The shear overwhelming physical force of the passage of dozens upon dozens of metal shards at such speeds created enough wind to rip through the enclosing sphere of flames, not only giving Starlight room to escape, but forcing Celestia to teleport out of the way, as the shotgun-like blast of shards had been aimed in her direction. Starlight had not needed to physical see Celestia, just sense her presence, which she’d gotten good enough at picking out magical auras amid the confusing haze such magic caused spiritual senses to accomplish this even if she didn’t also now have magical senses to make use of herself.

It was these same senses that allowed her to pick up on Celestia’s teleported location, taking the “high ground” near a small cloud bank nearby. Celestia was not trying to conceal herself at any rate, as Starlight felt immense magical energy building and could look up to see a bright point of eye searing light gathering at the tip of the clouds, obscuring Celestia herself with the aura of golden white light being gathered.

Starlight had only milliseconds in which to react before Celestia lowered her horn, and from it sliced a line of all consuming sunfire that cut a blinding path across the sky and to the ground below. Starlight felt the intensity of the beam’s heat evaporating any trace of moisture from the air, but also felt it scorching her shoulder as she just scantily avoided direct contact with the beam. Her Flash Step had almost been too slow, and even the near miss had melted a portion of her outfit and burned her skin, despite the potency of her reiatsu protecting her.

The beam itself tore a melting path through miles of forest as it cut along the hilly and heavily forested terrain, leaving a blackened trail in its wake that bubbled with molten rock and burning trees.

Oh Hell, Starlight thought, I suspected she’d been holding back on Firefly and Platinum, but not by this much. I knew this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park, but didn’t think I’d need to bust this out so soon.

It’d probably just been ego that told her to try her luck with just her Soul Reaper powers alone, just to see if she could measure up. Even during her days working for Soul Society she’d considered Captain Celestia as something of a benchmark to measure herself against, just as much as Discord or Ditzy. This had seemed as good a time as any to see if she was close to the level she needed to be at to face the Zero Division.

But that wasn’t going to happen if she didn’t start making use of all the tools at her disposal, of which she had many. This fight had only begun, and Starlight didn’t doubt both she and Celestia had plenty of cards left to play.

In a swift motion she drew her right hoof up and swept it down across her face. Dark energy gathered and solidified in a black and purple wave to take the shape of a Hollow mask that settled neatly upon her equine features, a smooth and near featureless mask with two pointed horns that curved up in a wave shape from her brow and strips of red running down from a single narrow slit for he eyes, within which Starlight’s eyes bled to black and yellow. Around her body a thick spiritual aura of intermixed shadow and purple crackling energy flowed as her reiatsu shot up by leaps and bounds, her Hollow powers rushing to the fore to augment her body.

With her power, and subsequently her senses, so enhanced she could see clearly Celestia lining up another shot of sunfire from her perch upon the cloud.

Narrowing her Hollowfied eyes, Starlight moved with the combined might of Shunpo and Sonido, crossing the distance to Celestia with such speed that the alicorn had only started to fire her beam before Starlight’s sword was slicing at Celestia’s back.

Celestia’s reflexes were truly beyond mortal limits, however, and she rolled with the attack, instantly summoning a sword of solid flame to deflect Starlight’s blow while sweeping her horn around and firing her beam of sunfire in a quickly aimed arc. Starlight ducked the arc, spinning herself with Celestia’s parry. The sunbeam split the sky above, visible for leagues around. Celestia kicked off the cloud, wing’s spread, while Starlight rushed her, throwing out a kick with her right hind leg that cracked the air and had a tornado swirl of black Hollow energy surrounding it.

Celestia used her left fore leg to intercept the kick, and an explosion of energies erupted from the two from the combined impact as Starlight’s kick was halted, albeit with clear effort on Celestia’s part.

A row of flame blades appeared in a semi-circle above Celestia and drove down at Starlight, who countered by backing up with a Sonido that took her several football fields of length back. The flame blades homed in on her, joined by a score of their fellows that Celestia summoned in an eyeblink.

Grinning beneath her Hollow mask, Starlight leveled her head at both the swarm of flame blades and Celestia. Both magic and spiritual energy gathered at the tip of her horn, Hollow power turning a brilliantly bright sphere of pulsating purple light dark with a rim of shadowy energy.

The resulting Cero blast that fired from Starlight’s horn was a wide beam of dark purple encircled by crawling lines of ink dark power, annihilating the swarm of flame blades and closing in on Celestia like a tidal wave.

Showing collected calm, if also supreme focus, Celestia’s horn shone with droplets of sunlight that drew an instant circle of incredibly complex magical runes in the air before her. In a snap a flat barrier of magic erected itself like a castle wall in front of Celestia, and this barrier took the brunt of Starlight’s Cero in an immense detonation that even miles above the ground caused the earth to quake.

Starlight made no assumption about her Cero doing Celestia much harm, even if it had broken through the barrier, which she couldn’t tell anyway. Instead the moment had simply been to buy her a second to switch Zanpaktou. Tonde Kiba was a straightforward attack-type Zanpaktou, suitable for the Eleventh Division officer she’d taken from way back when. She needed something with a more unusual power to throw Celestia off and create an opening.

Once more her perception of time slowed, Sekai Chitsujo’s condescending features of glass appearing before her as her Zanpaktou spirit made a show of straightening out her warden’s uniform.

Another inmate?

“Yes, give me inmate 010.”

Of course. Inmate 010, Sakuran (Confusion). Perhaps you’ll do better with this one? You seem to be struggling.

“Don’t need the commentary!” Starlight hissed out as the gladius form of Tonde Kiba turned into a wash of light and reshaped itself. Now within her grip of levitation magic the shape of a long chain of spiked metal appeared, with three lengths of chain connected to a central ring. At the end of each chain dangled a thick spike of metal, their tips gleaming bright.

With this Zanpaktou, Sakuran, a brief flash of memory did flit through Starlight’s mind. A memory of Screwloose’s face, partially covered by a white, wax-like substance as Hollow energy infected her. Starlight shook the memory off Sakuran’s owner, focusing on wielding the set of spiked chains as she moved swiftly at a downward diagonal that would take her towards the ground, but also beneath where she’d last seen Celestia.

As she had figured, Celestia dove down out of the fading energies of the Cero’s explosion, slightly singed but largely unharmed due to her barrier.

Celestia could see Starlight had switched Zanpaktou, and was immediately wary. This was always going to be the tough part of facing Starlight, not knowing just how many Zanpaktou with how many different powers she might possess. Celestia didn’t mind that, for even if Starlight managed to escape, every bit of information Celestia gleaned from this battle could be used to make defeating her later easier.

Celestia briefly considered playing an additional card, but she didn’t feel pushed enough for that yet. Especially considering she doubted Starlight had even come close to revealing her full hand. That disturbing mask, which Celestia knew from Sunset’s reports as a Hollow mask, radiated an unpleasant, violent power. Celestia still felt she had the power advantage, but that Cero had nearly overwhelmed her barrier. She couldn’t afford mistakes.

Focusing magic through her horn, she reached out with raw telekinesis, seeking to halt Starlight in place. She knew from her experience sparring with Flash Sentry that the aura of spiritual pressure from Starlight would act as a natural defense to this, but it didn’t need to actually stop Starlight, just cause her to be distracted.

Celestia’s golden aura of magic surrounded Starlight, and immediately the other alicorn growled as the dark power inside her well up and started to shred away the telekinetic grip. This did make Starlight slow her descent for a second, which Celestia used to do two things. One, she boosted her speed with a magical circle she flew through that would vastly amplify her body’s kinetic energy. And two, she extended her hooves and cast a spell upon the golden hoof ornaments she wore, causing two brightly glowing runes of orange light to appear on them.

Starlight turned to see Celestia coming down like a shooting star, and spun the spiked chains in her own magical grip, one spike shooting up at Celestia while the other two went flying down towards the ground. This happened a mere moment before Celestia would impact with Starlight. In that moment she saw the small spike rise to meet her descending hooves, and the second the metal made physical contact the explosive runes she’d cast into her hoof ornaments would unleash their powerful eruptions of power.

Given how close Celestia was to Starlight she thought those twin explosions would be pretty damaging even if triggered a moment too early, but what surprised Celestia was that in that same instant she found herself no longer in the air but instead slamming into the ground! The two explosions obliterated the ground around her in a massive, smoking crater, but Celestia was left standing there, confused how she even got to the ground so suddenly.

Then she saw the spiked chain laying on the ground next to her, which instantly pulled back, flying back up to Starlight! Celestia quickly realized what this new Zanpaktou’s power was. It could teleport objects between the spikes at the end of the chain!

If Celestia’s own sudden presence back on the ground wasn’t proof enough of that, further proof was seen in the fact that now standing next to Starlight as they both landed on the ground just outside Ponehenge’s circle was Trixie. The third spike had flown down to penetrate the shield Celestia had put around Trixie and teleported her out to Starlight’s side.

“Trixie, get clear of the area,” Starlight said, using her magic to summon forth what appeared to be a small rolled up scroll that she floated to Trixie, who took it with surprise etched on her face.

“Wait, I can help-” Trixie began, but Starlight shook her head.

“No, not against her. You’ve done your job. Now do as I say and get clear.”

With instant speed the chains of Sakuran snapped out, one extended hundreds of yards through the forest to the south while one of the other spikes lightly touched Trixie’s shoulder, immediately teleporting the still protesting Bount all that distance away and leaving her in the middle of the forest well away from Ponehenge.

“Aah...arrrgh!” Trixie shouted, gripping the scroll Starlight had given her in her own magic. Her yell was solely of frustration, because she knew full well that Starlight was right. She didn’t even have the ability to summon Eisenwand at the moment, and even if she did, it was obvious how useless she’d be against an opponent of Celestia’s caliber. So with frustrated tears in her eyes, Trixie turned tail and started to gallop even further south, following Starlight’s instructions to get clear, for she understood that in a battle of this magnitude that she probably wouldn’t be safe until she got many miles away.

Celestia walked out of the crater she made, and the ground melted under each of her hoof falls. She moved unhurriedly, despite the tension of battle still hanging thick in the air. She said nothing as she emerged into the clearing around Ponehenge and moved towards Starlight, who in turn started to walk with deliberate steps towards the other alicorn. The air wavered and distorted under a combination of immense heat haze and conflicting magic and spirit energies that poured off the two mares. Sparks of errant energy crackled and buzzed around the pair, and filled the area with erratic arcs of uncontained power.

Starlight held Sakuran poised with its three spiked chains floating around her like the bobbing heads of snakes, while Celestia slowly summoned dripping swords of solid white fire, shining with even more intensity than the ones she’d created earlier, until six spun around her in a deadly circle. The two halted, eyes unblinking, measuring one another.

Everything went still for a sliver of time, until a branch broken loose by Celestia’s earlier impact fell free of its tree and crashed to the ground behind the two combatants.

Sakuran’s chains blinked in silver streaks of speed, while the six flame blades became hot hazes of curving strikes. Starlight went in with her left hoof making a straight cross for Celestia’s face. Flame blades trying to reach her were touched by Sakuran’s sniping chains, each touch teleporting a flame blade away as the third chain directed itself upward to transfer the blades away from Starlight. Even so Starlight felt one flame blade score her flesh as it slipped past her guard even as her hoof cracked the sound barrier and nearly reached Celestia.

Celestia’s own hoof snapped up to block, and she countered with a slice of her wing, which burst into searing hot flame, becoming a blade unto itself as she sliced her wing at Starlight. With Flash Step and Sonido born speed Starlight flipped over the strike, and a line of melting fire exploded out of the wing strike and obliterated a swath of forest behind where Starlight had stood.

Starlight hammered down with a hind leg, aiming for Celestia’s spine. Celestia teleported, blinking out of sight in a flash of gold light as Starlight’s leg impacted the ground and sent a shockwave through the earth that ripped a wide fissure through the ground until it smashed a hill half a mile away.

More flame blades appeared, joining the previous six, and they all swarmed around Starlight, flaring brightly as they stabbed down in a unrelenting barrage. One might burst of flame after another rocked Ponehenge, explosion after explosion burning the leaves off of nearby trees until a wide circle around the ancient monument was becoming a sea of fire. Thick, oily smoke was now filling the sky from the burning forest, but Celestia paid it no mind as she searched for Starlight, her eyes sharply looking left and right.

Motion to her left made Celestia turn, instantly igniting her horn and sending out a wide blast of raw sunfire. Not a concentrated beam like before, this was like a humongous flamethrower of golden white flame, burning the air in a wide arc. A glint of metal showed Celestia a chain from Sakuran, and she saw the chain extending backwards towards the ground, but also the third chain extending above Celestia in her blind spot.

A shadow fell over Celestia as she saw a massive chunk of earth falling towards her, dozens of tons of ground teleported into the air by Sakuran. She narrowed her eyes and back hoofed the earthen mound, shattering it completely. However the mound wasn’t the attack, but the veil hiding Starlight who had just finished chanting a Kido incantation.

”Bakudo Number 99 Part 1: Kin!” (Forbid)

Swarms of black cloth formed of concentrated spirit energy shot out of a negative space that appeared in front of Starlight, and moved with such speed that even Celestia could not entirely avoid them as they started to wrap her hooves and wings. Starlight impacted with Celestia a second later, sending the alicorn rocketed back own to the ground, where the black spirit cloth extended out in an X pattern across the ground. The binding Kido wasn’t done, summoning dozens of metal slats that then impacted with the black cloth, binding both it and Celestia to the ground.

Celestia tried to teleport out of the binding, but found the spirit energy from the Kido was not normal, and was interfering with the swift summoning of magic energy. She could still get the teleport off, but it was going to take a couple seconds longer, and Starlight wasn’t done, chanting further Kido as she landed a half dozen yards from Celestia.

”Bakudo Number 99 Part 2: Bankin! Prologue: Halting Wraps!” (Constriction)

Starlight slammed her hooves together, pushing out spirit energy rapidly as now white spirit cloth exploded forward from a space behind her and swarmed Celestia, wrapping around her and the previous black clothes.

“Refrain: Serial Hundred Bolts!”

Then metal rods by the dozens appeared in the air and hammered into the now near burrito-ishly wrapped Celestia. Starlight let out a labored breath, as performing a high level binding Kido without the full incantation was tough even for her.

“Finale: Fully Prohibited Great Seal!”

A gigantic rectangular pillar of metal with four etched geometric lines on each side of it appeared in the air above Celestia and began to slam downwards at high speed. It halted directly above Celestia, and created a perfectly square indentation in the ground beneath her as if she was being subjected to an immense gravitational force, although what was actually happening was a supreme concentration of restricting Kido energy designed to hold fast even Vasto Lorde-class Hollows.

Yet even so, Starlight’s eyes widened as she saw Celestia not only moving, but struggling with such immense might that the binding cloths of layered spirit energy around her were starting to bulge and stretched, the metal rods shaking and bending as Celestia’s magic, even while being disrupted was boiling forth in a golden tide.

Need to do this fast! Even a Kido of this level is just slowing her down and pissing her off more.

Starlight called out Sekai Chitsujo’s spirit once more, bringing out a new inmate. Her latest one in fact...

Inmate 020, Chishiki (Knowledge).”

Sakuran transformed from the teleporting chains and became a long metal staff with a pointed spike at one end and a large metal circle at the top end. Starlight could feel the resentment rolling off of Clover’s Zanpaktou as it appeared in her hand. Out of all the Zanpaktou she’d taken, this particular spirit had been quite obstinate in his negotiations. Each use knocked a full one hundred days off his thousand day sentence. He hadn’t settled for anything less, and as it happened Starlight was eager enough to access his power she’d agreed.

She was a bit jealous of Clover. Chishiki’s potential was immense. A shame its owner would probably never access the Zanpaktou’s Bankai.

With Chishiki now in her magical grip, Starlight flipped it so the spiked end was pointed at Celestia, and she chanted as fast as she could, racing to get her Kido off before Celestia broke free.

“Seeping crest of turbidity! Arrogant vessel of lunacy!

Boil forth and deny! Grow numb and flicker!

Disrupt sleep! Crawling queen of iron!

Eternally self-destructing doll of mud!

Unite! Repulse!

Fill with soil and know your own powerlessness!”

Utter darkness began to crawl upwards around where Celestia was bound in a solid, perfectly cube-like coffin of purest raven black. Segment by segment the entrapment void space grew upward until it soared twenty meters high, fully sealing Celestia in its crushing embrace.

”Hado Number Ninety: Kurohitsugi!” (Black Coffin)

The Black Coffin closed, it’s top pierced by crossed spikes dark as night. A Kurohitsugi not only empowered by the speaking of the full incantation, boosted by Starlight’s Hollow enhanced spirit energy, and finally massively amplified through use of Chishiki’s unique Shikai power to boost Kido spells.

Within that void the space itself should be warped beyond recognition, crushing to the point that no physical matter could escape.

Starlight let out a slow breath, not particularly happy with herself. It wasn’t as if she wanted to kill Celestia. But Celestia herself had been fighting for keeps. There was no other way to respond other than with full force. It was regrettable, but Celestia had left her no choice-

Light.

A crack of light appeared in the Black Coffin, slowly spreading at first, but then with greater speed as a loud screech of noise filled the air like the sound of a thousand panes of glass breaking. Starlight looked on with cold surprise as more and more light spilled out, turning into bursts of corona-like sunfire until the very roof of the Black Coffin was burst open like a volcano. Fire erupted upward, and through the flames an object emerged, a flaming comet that flew up and then down while the Black Coffin started to collapse.

Landing in front of Starlight with a meteor impact was Celestia, the last vestiges of the binding Kidos burning off her body of flames while the Black Coffin fell to pieces behind her. Every inch of her was covered in white fire now, even her mane burning a bright gold so intense it nearly shone white as well.

Yet despite this display of power, Starlight could see the alicorn was injured. Just beneath the flames there was blood, and Celestia was clearly breathing hard as a trickle of blood entered one of her eyes. It was hard to tell the extend of Celestia’s injuries, but Starlight could note the faint off kilter nature of Celestia’s stance, and almost forced nature to it. The regal alicorn was trying to hide just how much damage she’d sustained. Which, oddly, did little to reassure Starlight. Damaged or not, Celestia had muscled her way through a combination of two of the most powerful binding Kido invented by Soul Reapers while simultaneously withstanding and breaking one of the highest level destruction Kido, one that Starlight had made a point of boosting using Chishiki alongside the full incantation.

Starlight was sweating bullets, even if she wasn’t the one bleeding at the moment.

“Hell, if you can survive that, I’m going to be hard pressed to find something to put you down with,” Starlight said dryly, but did not back down, “That said, that looks like it hurt. What did you do? Just tear through a black hole’s worth of crushing space with pure force?”

Celestia wore a grim smile, but her eyes showed no warmth, despite the heat radiating off her so hotly that the ground was turning molten in a wide area. Starlight wasn’t as bothered by the growing field of lava as she was the continued fact that Ponehenge remained seemingly unaffected by any of the damage being delt to the area, the stone edifice looking untouched. Just what was this place, she wondered? Celestia had to have chosen it for a reason. Not all of the magic in the air was Celestia’s, after all. There was still a latent, ambient hum of power that Starlight knew had to be coming from Ponehenge itself.

Celestia interrupted her thoughts, speaking in a simple, clipped tone. “I could not teleport, or even form a proper spell, so my only option was to let as much of my magic as possible surround me and then erupt at what I sensed to be your own spell’s weakest point, the ‘lid’. And yes, that was painful, but rest assured I’ve plenty of fight left in me.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Starlight said, mouth tightening into a flat line, “Which means you win the warm up round. Time to start playing our aces. Let’s see who prepared better for this!”

And so the battle continued, now in far more earnest, and none could say which combatant might emerge the victor.

Episode 152: The Middle Game

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Episode 152: The Middle Game

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for us, Captain Celano,” Twilight said, offering the avian airship captain a warm smile and equally pleasant hoof to shake. Celano offered up a sardonically charged half grin as she gripped Twilight’s hoof with her talon and shook it.

“Don’t know why you’re bothering to thank me. I gave you a lift, that’s it. You and yours are the ones that conquered an ancient underwater city and surfaced with that in your back pocket!”

Celano dipped her head in an awed nod towards the Treasury. The massive Seaquestrian vessel was floating in the water beside Celano’s airship, making it look like a bathtub toy by comparison. Celano’s crew had been gawking at the other ship for some time, gossiping over it’s capabilities while Twilight had brought Celano up to speed on what had occurred down in the ocean depths.

Once it was resting on the ocean surface, the Treasury used complex pump systems to remove the water from its interior and pressurize itself for surface travel. Admiral Seaspray was going over the systems with Starlight Glimmer to ensure it would be prepared to take to the skies as well, while in the meantime the rest of the group rested from their adventure. There was still the question of what their next move was going to be, but Twilight was largely convinced they had to proceed to the Abyss itself and confront Charybdis in her own lair. With the Treasury at their command, getting there would be the easy part, and there was no reason for Celano and her crew to risk their own safety any further.

“What will you do now?” Twilight asked, genuinely curious. Celano provided a minor shrug, leaning against the nearby ship railing.

“Queen Novo paid us well to ferry you out here, but my crew eats like a bunch of hungry hippos, so I’m not one to stay idle when there’s coin to be made. I’ll probably take us back to Mt. Aris and see what cargo we can drum up to ferry. With the Storm King out of action, Abyssinia is opening up it’s trade routes again. The cats were always decent company, and generous patrons. What about you, Princess? You really planning to dive back into this harsh sea and take on those mad fishmen again?”

Twilight sighed, but nodded her head firmly, “I have to. Charybdis and her sahuagin must be stopped, before they cause any more harm.”

“Heroic responsibility, eh? Can’t say it’s my cup of tea, but I’d admire the moxy you and your pals got. Good luck with it, and try not to get dead, huh? Be a real downer if I read about Equestria losing a Princess in the papers.”

A quiet chuckle escaped Twilight as she took wing, having long returned to her natural form once they were back on the surface. “I’ll certainly try. Farewell, Captain Celano.”

With that she left Celano and her waving crew to return to the top deck of the Treasury, where her friends were waiting for her alongside a rather disgruntled looking Tempest Shadow and Grubber, who was twirling around the trident that had been taken from Morgawr.

“Will you stop playing with that thing?” Tempest snorted at Grubber, “I didn’t hoof it to you so you could treat it like a foal’s toy.”

“Nah, boss lady, you gave it to me so I could see if I recognized the metal it’s made from,” Grubber said, grinning one of his wide, toothy grins as he handled the weapon with surprising dexterity for one of his rotund nature. He finished a spin and gazed along the trident’s length with a critical eye, “Think maybe I’ve seen this stuff before.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, alighting upon the deck, nodding to her friends before gazing at Grubber and Tempest, “Where?”

Grubber pointed at Tempest, reversing his grip on the trident so she could take it with the crook of her foreleg, “Remember when the old boss was having us run around looking for ways to counter the power of Equestria’s big bad alicorns?”

Tempest frowned, casting a wary glance at Twilight, “Yeah. Storm King knew they’d be too strong to take head on without some kind of trump card. What’s your point? We didn’t find anything.”

Was it just Twilight’s imagination, or did something about the way Tempest said that seem strange? Before she could put her hoof on it, Grubber tapped the trident with a claw, making it give off a peculiar ringing noise, “Well when we were hunting around, I ran across an Abyssinian merchant who wanted to sell me this hunk of rock. Had a similar blackish green color, just like this trident. Cat swore up and down the rock made magic fizz out around it.”

“Is that so?” Tempest said, eyeing the trident, “Why didn’t you grab it?”

Grubber threw up his hands, “Eh, the cat didn’t have any proof of his claim, other than to make a few magic lights puff out around the rock. Didn’t strike me as alicorn busting material. Didn’t even remember it ‘till you handed me the trident here and told me it could counter magic.”

“Yes,” said Twilight, “But the trident absorbs and reflects magic. It doesn’t make it ‘fizz out’, as you put it.”

“Sure, but that was when it was a rock,” said Grubber, “If the trident is made from the same stuff, who knows how forging it into metal might change what it can do, ya know?”

“Hmph, that’s a shockingly astute observation, coming from you,” Tempest said, and Grubber’s grin only deepened.

“I’ve got depths, boss. I keep tellin’ ya. Soooooo, you ladies got a game plan yet?”

“Actually I was just planning to call a meeting about that,” said Twilight, “If everypony, and, er, everyhedgehogperson wants to join me in the galley, we can discuss our next plan of action.”

“Not sure what needs discussing. I mean, we just go bust down the ocean witch’s door, and use our swanky new powers to clean her clock and any of her minions that get in the way,” said Rainbow Dash, pulling out her swordbreaker Relic and giving it a few swings in the air.

Rarity coughed politely, “I rather think Twilight would prefer we have something of an actual plan, going into this next confrontation, Rainbow. As would I. Quite frankly, while these Relics we’ve obtained certainly are useful, I wouldn’t mind learning more about what they can and can’t do before we come to rely on them overly much.”

Twilight, much like each of her friends, had found themselves able to revert back to their normal, pony forms once they willed the magic the Relics had bestowed on them to return to the objects in question. They had yet to test out how to reactivate the transformations, let alone truly probe the extent of what the Relics would allow them to do. Twilight had heard the descriptions of their newfound powers from each of her friends, and some accounts of her own actions while Astra’s personality had been in control. She certainly desired to experiment with the mace more and what, precisely, her capabilities while in an Inheritor State were. Inheritor State... it wasn’t a flashy name, but it was the most accurate one Twilight could come up with.

Her friends had been able to retain their own minds when in the Inheritor State, with only Twilight having briefly succumbed to the memories of the alicorn deity whose power had been imbued into the Relics. While Twilight still wasn’t one hundred percent sure, her best theory was that the Elements of Harmony shielded her and her friends, but it didn’t work was effectively on her because Astra’s power was higher than that of her friends. Twilight already being an alicorn herself might also have been a factor, perhaps making Astra’s power and personality more potent in her.

Given Twilight was aware of another case of an alicorn seemingly being taken over by another “personality”, the whole Nightmare Moon incident suddenly had a whole extra layer placed upon it that sorely made Twilight wish she had either Luna or Celestia here to ask questions of.

“I understand if you’re eager to go give Charybdis a piece of your mind, Rainbow Dash,” said Twilight, “Believe me, after what I saw in Aqualania, I want nothing more than to end her plans, strip her of her power, and lock her in Tatarus’ depths. If that prison doesn’t have an underwater component, trust me, I’ll build one myself, just for her to be put away in. But Rarity is right. We can’t rush into this. We need time to plan, figure out the extent of our Relics’ abilities, and honestly I wouldn’t mind taking a detour back home while we have time. I’m worried about what might be happening in the human world, and I left my journal in Ponyville with Spike.”

“Uhhhh, gals?” said Applejack, pointing upwards, “Any of ya’ll thinkin’ the sun is lookin’ awful odd right now?”

“Huh? What the...?” Rainbow Dash looked up as well.

“Oh my, is it getting closer?” said Fluttershy, her eyes tracing the path of the sun, which appeared to be gradually shifting it’s usual slow course across the sky, growing slightly larger in the process.

Pinkie Pie’s eyes rolled up into her head as she did a sudden face plant, only to immediately stand back up with her legs twitching about, “Oh! Owie! There’s stuff twitching in me I didn’t even know could twitch! This is a new one, but I think it’s bad. Like, really bad.”

“Bad how?” Twilight asked breathlessly, “What’s happening?”

“Beats me,” Pinkie Pie said, her usual bubbly enthusiasm popped like a balloon, “But whatever it is, it’s got Celestia’s name written all over it, and it’s not good at all.”

-----------

Starlight felt the sweltering heat on her fur and to say it felt like standing inside an oven was hardly adequate. The forest was already being washed away by fire, and there was enough smoke in the air that if she were a normal human, breathing would be getting rather uncomfortable. She glanced up, taking note of the way the sun now grew ominous overhead, as if hovering directly above her confrontation with Celestia. The shining orb of fire appeared to grow larger as well, although Starlight guessed it was actually moving closer.

“That wise?” she asked Celestia, “If our sun on Earth did the same, it’d cause global chaos.”

“Your concern is noted, but unneeded,” Celestia replied. Around her hooves was now a pool of bubbling lava, the heat around her having turned the surrounding rock and dirt molten, while the rest of the nearby area was now charred, barren ash. “This is not your world’s sun. The magic that flows through this realm is unlike the physical laws that bind your own reality. It would have to bring the sun much closer to inflict any lasting harm, here. Aligning it above is merely to make certain spells easier to target without causing collateral damage.”

“I can see why you’d be worried about that,” Starlight commented, gesturing at the inferno around them, “Good thing there’s no settlements nearby. Bet the smoke can be seen halfway across Equestria by now.”

“A... regrettable but unavoidable side effect of utilizing my power to it’s fullest,” Celestia agreed, then what little casualness might have been in her voice evaporated as her eyes grew bright with magical light, and her horn, already wreathed in magical flame, became a pointed blade of sunfire.

Starlight had been preparing herself for Celestia’s strike, watching the fire enshrouded alicorn’s body for the smallest muscle twitch. Raw power aside, the most frightening aspect of challenging a magic user with so many centuries of experience was that they had a near endless supply of potential tricks up their sleeves. Say what one would about Starlight’s Zanpaktou and her collection of imprisoned blades, giving her a wide range of possible powers, it still felt like nothing compared to what Celestia might pull out of her hat.

The method of Celestia’s attack was simple but potent, as Starlight found a magic circle appearing behind her and sensed a sudden shift in the air as a kinetic burst of magic shaped like a giant, translucent white hoof smashed out of the circle of symbols and propelled Starlight with thunderous force. It sent her flying right towards Celestia, who extended the magical bar of sunfire from her horn to triple its size and threw herself forward, trying to impale Starlight.

Starlight didn’t have enough time to use a Kido chant, so instead took advantage of Chishiki’s unique shape, using the ring on one end to catch Celestia’s horn and divert it. Easier said than done, as it turned out, as Celestia’s physical strength seemed even higher than before, and it took all Starlight had to turn the horn of sunfire just enough so that instead of an impaling blow, the beam burned along Starlight’s side in an agonizing line.

The sizzling of flesh was punctuated by the familiar odor that accompanied burned skin, a smell Starlight remembered entirely too well from the day Sunburst died. Before that memory could creep too far into her head, she shoved it aside and drew upon her magic. While her skill in magic was limited still, she certainly had potent reserves of it both due to turning herself into an alicorn and the fact that the Hogyoku had been slowly helping her acclimate to the magical environment of Equestria, absorbing ambient magic bit by bit. A short range teleport was well within her ability, and she puffed in and out of existence in a flash of teal light. She appeared directly above Celestia, already aiming her own horn down.

She discharged a Cero, point blank, the dark purple beam enveloping both Celestia and the immediate area in a vast blast of spiritual force. Starlight used the momentum generated by the blast to propel herself upwards, making use of Flash Step and Sonido to get up into the air a fair distance. Expecting Celestia to be coming after her any second, she held her left forehoof out and quickly chanted a Kido under her breath.

“Bakudo Number Thirty Five: Toi Sakebigoe.” (Distant Shouting Voice)

Purple spiritual energy coursed up her leg and formed a cone of light that formed into a circle in front of her. A single dash appeared in it, the Kanji symbol for “1”, then it cycled forward to display the Kanji of “2” and “3” in rapid order, each symbol shrinking to fit within the circle’s diameter. Starlight spoke quickly into the circle, “It’s time. Begin phase one!”

She didn’t wait for a response. The Kido would transmit her words to those bearing the designated marks, regardless of distance, and she had planned this meticulously with her allies. Assuming they all did their part, things should go just according to plan. A somewhat large assumption, given not one but two versions of Chrysalis were involved, but Starlight was the queen of beggars when it came to allies, so she really had no choice but to hope for the best.

At least Equestria’s Chrysalis had done her job with Platinum and the pair hadn’t killed each other while out securing Starlight’s surprise. Compared to her Espada counterpart, the deposed changeling queen was fairly easy to work with. A tad overly sensitive in the ego department, and grouchy as well, but so far there hadn’t even been any death threats or talk about devouring souls, so definitely a step up from the alternative.

But regardless of how Starlight felt about either of them, she needed both Chrysalises at this point, especially with Firefly still out of commission.

The moment she finished her Kido, she cast about with her senses to try and pin point Celestia, only to hear the gathering sound of thunder and to notice a distinct darkening as light was blotted out from the sky. In what seemed like mere seconds a bank of thick storm clouds formed above Starlight and the surrounding area, and before Starlight knew it there was a torrential downpour of rain followed by pealing cracks of lightning. Hurricane winds buffeted the air, and it was as if someone had just instantly generated a tropical storm right above Ponehenge.

Steam coursed up into the sky as the fires were brought to heel by the thick sheets of rain, and Starlight found that between the smoke, steam, clouds, and buckets of rain she could barely see or hear anything around her.

No wonder she wasn’t worried about the fire, if she could conjure this up out of nowhere. And it’s still so damned hot, too.

Starlight didn’t have more time to ponder Celestia’s next move, as it became evident from a roaring echo and deep buzz of gathering electricity that sizzled the air just a moment before the rain wasn’t the only thing coming down in a torrent. Forks of lightning tore through the sky like a barrage of arrows, first hundreds, then thousands. Starlight was left breathlessly flickering around to wind her way through the onslaught of unpredictable lightning that did not seem to cease. The storm’s discharges of lightning bolts followed her like a wave, weaving towards Starlight with preternatural accuracy. Only Starlight’s own supreme speed and reflexes let her keep ahead of it all, but she realized quickly the lightning storm was herding her in a particular direction.

The reason for this became obvious as the storm briefly parted and angry orange light filled Starlight’s vision as she came upon a gargantuan wall of solid flame, no doubt summoned up while Starlight was busy dodging lightning. Celestia was at the head of the wall of flame, like some blazing demon of judgment, making a pointing gesture with her fire bathed hoof.

The wall of fire exploded outward, taking the shape of a charging herd of alicorns with glinting eyes of white. They closed in from above and below as well, the living flames so charged with magical sunfire that even the storm’s downpour did nothing to slow them and only added to their terrifying fury by providing a blanket of steam to make their charge even more like something out of a nightmare.

To make things worse, the storm of lightning was still coming at Starlight from the opposite direction. A wall of flaming nightmares on one end, a wave of electrical destruction on the other. What was a girl to do?

Starlight let a frustrated growl emanate deep in her throat, Well, I wanted to see just how powerful Celestia really was. Better start reciprocating before I actually get my butt handed to me.

She reversed Chishiki to point the Zanpaktou’s spiked end towards the oncoming wall of lightning, while charging magic into her horn in a teal beam of brightness. New as she was to magic, she’d been learning fast, and making a point of practicing some rather simple tricks that didn’t require a lot of power. In a puff of teal light, multiple copies of her own mouth appeared, floating in the air beside her. Suddenly both she and the mouths started chanting at high speed, their words strangely garbled and as her horn’s magic cast a spell that accelerated her speech.

With this, a full Kido incantation went from taking several seconds to being nearly instant, and multiple ones could be invoked simultaneously.

From the point of Chishiki’s spike a colossal wall of transparent force appeared, larger than a skyscraper. The Danku Kido was empowered by Chishiki and Starlight’s immense reiatsu to such an extent that when the wave of thousands of lightning bolts struck it, the wall held firm against the electrical storm without so much as showing a single crack.

At the same time circles of highly condensed water formed in the air around the other conjured copies of Starlight’s mouth as each invoked a water-type Hado-class Kido, Number Sixty One; Koi no Oroku Mai (Dance of the Carp’s Scales)

From the circles of water shot highly pressurized and spiritually charged darts of water shaped like flying Koi fish, each one moving like the high-speed bullet of a gatling gun. As these some half a dozen circles of water fired their barrages of fish-shaped water rounds, Starlight charged at the oncoming rush of flame. The circles of water followed with her, moving automatically to target the incoming threats like turrets.

These spiritually charged bullets of water cut into the fire-born constructs shaped like alicorns, yet these constructs themselves were no fragile things of mere flame but empowered by Celestia’s exceedingly potent magic. The resulting clash of Kido and spell flame generated a cacophony of explosive power that resulted in only some of the flame constructs being cut down while the rest struck upon Starlight in a charging fury.

She turned and twisted with godly speed, using Chishiki’s ring blade in glinting arcs to cut through the flames. Even so, there were so many that stampeding hooves and slashing wings of fire still grazed and burned at Starlight. Furthermore, some of the alicorn constructs that got close ballooned out like they were being inflated, and exploded in scathing, arcane gales of force and fire. The air was filled with a trail of such explosions as Starlight flitted through the herd, the water circles of her Kido never ceasing to fire streams of hammering water bullets into the mass surrounding her as she slashed with Chishiki in a continuous arc around her.

She was homing in on Celestia’s magical signature, which was coming right at her. She could barely see Celestia through the haze of smoke, rain, and flame, but Starlight was still able to target her Kido where she wanted it, and caused some of the conjured mouths to rapidly chant a pair of Kido spells directed right in front of her.

“Hado Number Sixty Three: Raikoho!” (Fiery Lightning Howl)

“Hado Number Fifty Nine: Hyoga Seiran!” (Glacial Vapor Storm)

The distortion of the chant from her own hastened lips added the full incantations in a blur of noise, and she felt an almost groaning shift in Chishiki’s spirit energy as it was forced to enhance two Kido at nearly the same time. Chances were its power wasn’t designed to do such Kido boosting so rapidly, with Starlight’s magic trick acting as a loophole beyond the Zanpaktou’s abilities, but she needed all the power she could get right now. She could feel the Hogyoku pulsating in her chest, the mysterious gem’s power soaking in the magic that was bathing her. Her Hollow reiatsu spiked alongside her Soul Reaper born power, intermixing further as the Hogyoku did... whatever it was doing.

Even Starlight wasn’t entirely sure of the Hogyoku’s true potential.

From her Kido chanting twin elemental blasts exploded out from in front of her, a spearing growth of jagged glacial ice combining with a huge bolt of golden flowing electricity. This combined blast came right towards Celestia, who’d been charging directly at Starlight from amid the herd of flame constructs. The Princess was encased in a drilling sheath of empowered sunfire, like a shard of the sun forged into the shape of a lance.

Celestia hammered the combined bolt of potent lightning and spearing ice, and shattered the ice like a styrofoam cup. Her lance of sunfire even tore through the lightning, despite the Kido being amped up well beyond the norm. Some of the electricity still coursed into Celestia herself, but if that slowed the alicorn at all, Starlight didn’t see it and she was left having to dodge the sunfire lance by rocketing herself upwards as Celestia hurled it forward.

The lance of radiant sun energy drilled through the storm and arced down to the unseen ground, where it detonated in a blinding pillar of gold fire that shook the air with waves of force. By Starlight’s estimate, that had been on par with an Espada’s Gran Rey Cero, and Celestia didn’t even slow down after hurling that bolt of power, coming at Starlight with her horn burning bright.

“Do you not understand?”

Celestia’s voice boomed like thunder as she thrust punches at Starlight’s face with such speed that her hooves blurred, and with each punch a telekinetic burst of force shaped like a larger hoof rushed out with even greater power. Starlight, for a few seconds, could only rush to dodge what she could, and block what she couldn’t. Each time she caught a telekinetic hoof with Chishiki’s shaft, she felt like she’d just tried to halt a meteor impact, raw force alone blasting the air around her to create clear spaces amid the stormy haze.

Her previous water Kido had petered out at that point, but her conjured mouths remained, and Starlight, while focusing physically on defense, began to counter attack with a barrage of varied Kido. She kept them simple, preferring volume over raw power, and needing to give Chishiki a rest for a moment. As she zipped about trying to stay ahead of Celestia’s relentless hooves, a swarm of numerous lower level Hado-class Kido blasting at the Princess in a multi-colored tempest of energy. Starlight wasn’t even keeping trap of what Kido she was invoking, focusing purely on throwing them out fast to try and break Celestia’s momentum. As a result everything from the blazing crimson orbs of Shakakho to the lancing white bolts of Byakurais joined in alongside elemental lances of wind, chunks of jagged ice, searing pink javelins of energy, spitting clumps of acidic venom, and a dozen other types of sub-level 40 Kido spells that cost little reiatsu but were easy to throw out at high speed.

Celestia powered through all of it with her magic, generating numerous different arcane shields at once. These concave fields of white, shimmering force spun around Celestia at high speed to catch Kido after Kido as she kept pursuing Starlight through her conjured storm. Celestia’s face was coated in blood and fire, her voice still booming.

“I’ve met so many like you. People who think power exists to serve what they want, rather than provide others what they need.”

She smashed her hooves together, and two telekinetic copies smashed down from above and below Starlight, almost trapping her as the two forces collided in a blast of force that still knocked her backwards. Starlight, chanting a Kido with her own mouth this time, spat the words out then shouted at Celestia even as the spell manifested.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Three: Sajo Sabaku! Was your plan to lecture me to death!? Who gives who the right to decide what power is for!? You use it to do what you think is right! That’s all you can do with it!”

A chain of golden spirit energy flew down and tried to wrap around Celestia, but she used her own magical barriers to intercept it. With a flex of eldritch power, her shields flared with heat and although it took a few seconds, they snapped through the chains of the binding Kido. Celestia then lowered her horn and made a rising gesture with it, Starlight hearing a distinct crack of crock from somewhere distantly below.

“That is precisely why anyone with power should not use it recklessly. The more power you have, the bigger the fallout when you make a mistake. It's like the old adage about omelets and eggs. Yes you must break a few eggs to make one, but the bigger an omelet you try to make, the egg you break may end up being the world itself.”

In a flash of white light from Celestia’s horn a tremendous amount of rock was teleported around Starlight, huge clumps of it akin to a floating mountain enclosing around her in a rush. The rocks, some larger than houses, collided on her in a giant mass, pressing in on her. At that point Celestia gestured with a hoof and sent in the last of her alicorn flame constructs, which rammed into the compressed rock cluster and exploded in a staccato of explosions.

Starlight fell out of the cluster of powerful detonations, her body smoking, and her mask cracked.

Yet she recovered a second later, and her hoof went to her brow behind the mask, and drew out a trickle of blood.

“And what if the egg is rotten? Is it worth breaking then, Celestia!?”

Starlight poured magic through her horn and spirit energy through her body, Hollow and Soul Reaper reiatsu both causing a distortion of dark, crackling energy to form around her. She teleported in the same moment she utilized Sonido and Flash Step, becoming such a frenzy of motion that even Celestia couldn’t predict or track where she was moving. Each flash of teleportation was followed by a buzz of unimaginable speed, making Starlight looks as if she was in hundreds of places at once.

All of this was to confuse Celestia long enough for Starlight to paint her blood in a circle upon the underside of one of her hooves, and gather the necessary power there.

Celestia had struck at her with a lance on par with Gran Rey Cero? Well, two could play at that game.

When fully charged, Starlight finished her rush of high speed motions and teleportations directly beneath Celestia, shoving her hoof into the alicorn’s stomach. There, a sphere of darkness pulsating at it’s core with an orb of bright purple light formed for just an instant.

“Gran Rey Cero.”

The resulting beam of power exploded outward in a dense wave more than sixty meters wide, and roared up through the conjured hurricane with such force that the localized weather event was dispersed through overwhelming wind and shockwave alone. Space itself was briefly twisted and disrupted by the thick beam of spiritual energy, leaving wavering tracks in the clearing sky, which remained blue and shining with the sun hanging painfully close above.

With the storm gone and the ground now visible, Starlight could see the fires had been stopped by the rain, but the landscape around Ponehenge was a mess. Stray Kido, lightning strikes, and the shockwaves of clashing magic and reishi had left the land barren and torn. Barely a tree stood for miles around, and the rest were blackened husks. The ground was muddy and blasted brown or charred. What was a lush valley not long ago now looked like a scoured wasteland, pockmarked with craters.

She didn’t let the view distract her for more than an instant, however, all too aware that even a Gran Rey Cero, fully charged by her spiritual might, was not going to be enough to take down the likes of Celestia. She rose into the sky after the wake of the beam, which still had traces of energy slowly dissipating from the air. She sensed the potent Cero’s course had not ended at the lower atmosphere, and had carried Celestia up into what she guessed had to be actual orbit just outside the atmosphere. She sincerely doubted lack of oxygen was any kind of problem for the Princess, and so readied herself for the inevitable counter attack.

A glance at Chishiki floating at her side left Starlight briefly debating with herself. Clover’s Zanpaktou was perhaps one of the favorites she’d ever grabbed, but the requirement of the full chant to get that Kido boost was a pain. The analysis ability, while also potent, was designed to work on spirit beings, not magical ones. It might work on magic, but Starlight wasn’t about to take a bet on that. Given Celestia had taken a fully empowered Kurohitsugi, and weathered a full on cascade of lesser Kido that were similarly boosted, Starlight was running out of options. She knew there were higher level Hado spells than the Black Coffin, but of those nine level 91-99 spells, she had only ever gleaned how to perform one of them, and even she couldn’t pull it off without the full chant. Worse, she sensed Chishiki was at his limit. Clover had probably never been strong enough in terms of reiatsu to even discover that Chishiki had a limit in terms of his enhancement power, but Starlight could tell... if she tried boosting another level 90 Kido, let alone one higher than that, it’d might seriously damage the Zanpaktou spirit.

Not worth the risk, she decided.

“Okay, you’ve done enough,” she told Chishiki, “Sekai, we’re switching out. Give me inmate Number 017. Hurry up, before Princess Sunbutt stops taking a breather in low orbit.”

Her words came alongside a building pressure on her spiritual senses as she detected something growing in potency up in the sky. Celestia was definitely still in the fight, and prepping for something big. Starlight couldn’t see the alicorn, but could certainly feel her, and whatever magic was being built up like a second sun hanging above the land.

Sekai Chitsujo briefly appeared before her, the glass maiden in the smartly cut warden’s uniform regarding Starlight with almost motherly reproach, “Have you considered that your equine foe isn’t entirely wrong? You do trend towards recklessness.”

“Tch, you and her would probably get along. Your both relentless moms. Inmate 017. Nowish, please.”

Sekai made a soft “hmph” noise and in a flash Chishiki’s ring-staff shape flowed away and then reformed into a new weapon; a massive morning star of dark iron and jutting spikes. It was near five feet long, with the spiked ball of the morning star being as large as some beach balls. The hefty weapon felt light in Starlight’s hooves as she hefted it, and she whispered under her breath, “Well Screwball, let’s see if your Kowareta To (Broken Tower) can throw Celestia for a loop.”

She didn’t have long to wait, as whatever Celestia had been doing up there came to an abrupt end in a blinding burst of white light and a sound like the air itself being burned by a shuddering hiss. Starlight saw a hint of white motion cutting down towards her, and was only able to dodge due to her own heightened senses being already revved up to let her see what was coming.

Celestia had banished the flames from her body, and was now wrapped up in bands of light that coated her hide like a second skin. The tips of her wings shot out white photons of light, and her head was surrounded by a faint, pointed halo. Instead of blades of fire, she now had two solid bars of light only vaguely shaped like swords flying at her side, while her hooves were covered in pointed bands of light that were like small wrist blades. The light patterns on her body formed magic symbols in roving curves across her, and her very flesh emanated small specks of light.

Starlight saw all of this in the instant it had taken her to dodge Celestia’s first attack, which had cut a white line right past where Starlight’s neck would have been had she not moved. This was immediately followed up by a corkscrew slash with the other light blade that similarly traced a path through the air that seemed to burn the sky itself, leaving a hazy trail of light.

As simple as these attacks were, the terrifying element of them was that each motion, from Celestia’s initial charge to her attacks now, were at a speed Starlight Glimmer knew was only achievable by the highest ranked Captains or speed focused Espada. This was literal light speed, and Starlight was only able to keep up because she’d known she’d need to achieve this speed herself to survive against the Zero Division, so she’d specifically worked to combine Sonido and Flash Step to allow her to get to that point.

And even then she wasn’t sure she’d gotten as fast as someone like Ditzy Doo, who was her only real other point of comparison. Well, Ditzy, and now Equestria’s Celestia.

She definitely wanted to ask how Celestia was doing this, but the next few seconds left no time for even a breath.

With each motion Celestia was a searing bolt of light, her hooves and blades tracing sizzling lines at Starlight. It took every ounce of reaction time and skill Starlight had to respond, hefting Kowareta To with her own hooves rather than relying on magic, which would actually be slower. And slower was something Starlight could not afford to be right now.

If she had any consolation at all, it was that she could see her Gran Rey Cero had at least left its mark on Celestia. Even the magic symbols of light couldn’t hide the burned portions of her side or the torn lacerations on her limbs, or the blood coating her white fur.

Not that Starlight was evading injury for very long. First she deflected a downward curving blow with Kowareta To’s spiked head, and then hurled herself away from a stabbing hoof blade. Then the second hoof blade cut in from Starlight’s lower right, scoring a burning line across Starlight’s left hip. The beams of light were as hot if not hotter than sunfire, raw elemental light and heat focused into beams that Starlight suspected would cut through almost anything, even high level barrier Kido.

Only Starlight’s own massive spiritual energy coursing through Screwball’s Zanpaktou kept Kowareta To from taking more than slight burn marks from each sparking contact with the blades of light.

Catching one of the magically flying blades of light on the morning star’s shaft, Starlight spun into Celestia’s guard, sliding the spiked head towards the alicorn’s chest. Celestia deftly turned herself in mid air, her wings no longer requiring any motion to make her move, but rather relying on firing photons from them to glide along at her insane light speed motion. It was as if she was teleporting without actually using the spell, her form nothing more than a white, incandescent afterimage of thought that slice out with one light beam after another.

Starlight kept up through equally achieved speed, nothing more than a shadow of motion. This led to time itself seeming to halt for the two mares, the world nothing more than a negative still image as they both fought at speeds beyond mortal reckoning.

The only thing working in Starlight’s favor was that Celestia didn’t know what Kowareta To could do. That, and Celestia’s complete focus on pure offense had meant she may well have not noticed that the copies of Starlight Glimmer’s mouth that had been conjured earlier were mysteriously absent, for Starlight had left them lower in the sky when she’d ascended.

What in normal, mortal timeframes would take five or six seconds instead took much longer from Starlight and Celestia’s perspective.

The two mare’s fought, and Starlight focused largely on wielding the morning star defensively, taking advantage of its size to spin it around and shield herself from Celestia’s blitzing attacks. She tried to sneak in a few hefty strikes where she could, but Celestia’s guard was as completely on point, all but unbreakable. Every trick Starlight tried to slip a hit in with Kowareta To was met by either one of the twin swords of light, or one of Celestia’s light-clad hooves. Meanwhile Starlight kept taking one glancing blow after another, until her hide looked like it’d taken a lashing from a blowtorch.

Starlight even felt the cracks on her Hollow mask deepen and the first chips of it starting to come off.

Buried in her chest, the Hogyoku beat out a quickening pulse, as if in excitement.

Finally she felt the spike in spiritual energy she’d been waiting for, a distance below her and Celestia. The copy mouths, like floating marionettes, had been speaking a combined chant during the seconds the pair of combatants having their light speed duel.

“Blood drains from the sodden Earth and turns to dust-”

“-bone curdles to stone, all air becomes still-”

“-awaken to the dream that does not end-”

“-That which moves, perishes, that which seeks, finds-”

“-Behold all that is equal under the stars, fall, and be reborn-”

“Hado Number Ninety Five: Jinsei Shukaku!” (Life Harvest)

As the Kido spell was chanted by Starlight’s conjured copy-mouths, she threw herself with all her speed away from Celestia, just narrowly avoiding a cross slash of the twin light blades that carved a giant X of light in the sky. Starlight thrust out the spiked head of Kowareta To and released the Zanpaktou’s power. Unbeknownst to Celestia, every single time her light blades or hooves had made contact with the Zanpaktou, a small portion of reishi had remained behind. Each subsequent strike, every block made by Starlight or parry made by Celestia, had invested another portion of reishi into the spots struck.

Now that enough had built up, Starlight triggered Kowareta To’s ability; Kuzureru (Crumble)

Upon the length of the blades of light, and upon a few points on Celestia’s hooves where she’d blocked the Zanpaktou’s attacks, cracks appeared. These cracks were made of swiftly spreading, intensely red light, and in no time at all the energy within these cracks erupted outwards in a series of spherical bursts that made sounds like a jackhammer on asphalt. Given these bursts were happening right on top of her, even light speed wasn’t sufficient for Celestia to evade them. However the bursts were not striking with physical force, nor even inflicting bodily harm upon the alicorn Princess. No, what Kuzureru did was not explode with damaging force.

What the bursts did was let out insidiously potent waves of energy disruption, designed to break down, or “crumble” other forms of energy. Normally this would be spirit energy, but Starlight had experimented enough to know that magical energy could be disrupted as well, otherwise she wouldn’t have risked using Screwball’s Zanpaktou in this manner.

Normally one as powerful as Celestia could have easily shaken off the ability of a Shikai from an officer of Screwball’s relatively low reiatsu, but right now Kowareta To was using Starlight’s reiatsu to power its ability. As a result, the power of Kuzureru was far more effective than it’d otherwise normally be. That wasn’t to say that Celestia didn’t resist it to a degree. She was the strongest alicorn in Equestria, with magic energy rivaling the strongest Captain’s spiritual power. Even so, the bursts of energy disruption, like a set of EMPs shorting out electrical equipment, caused the spells layering Celestia’s body to momentarily flicker and weaken, losing their cohesion. Even the fundamental magic fortifying her body against harm was lessened, for just a second or two.

The initial result of this was that the spell she’d used to give herself such god-like light speed briefly faltered and slowed her down, alongside her light blades breaking apart into base motes of light that hovered around her erratically trying to put themselves back together.

In the instant Celestia’s speed faltered, Starlight invoked a Kido, “Bakudo Number Sixty One: Rikujokoro!”

Normally such a Kido wouldn’t have been strong enough to hold Celestia for more than a brief moment, but the disruption to her magic meant that when the bright yellow planes of light slammed into Celestia’s mid-section, six of them interlocking around her, she was completely halted in place. Breaking the Kido would still only take a few seconds, but it was a few seconds Celestia didn’t have. Even teleporting wasn’t possible with her magic briefly fritzing out. The only thing she could do was hastily throw a spherical barrier around herself, as such magic was so simplistic in nature it could be done even without magic functioning properly.

And the barrier would be needed, for the Hado Starlight had invoked, the Jinsei Shukaku, fell upon her.

It began as a thick smog of gray smoke, dark as ash. It boiled up instantly like a geyser, and spread out and bubbled into shape. Ashen fog solidified into a tattered, fluttering mantle and hood. Bleached ribs peeked from the robes’ dark folds, and the mantle fell back as six skeletal arms revealed themselves. Within the hood a human skull bearing a gold circlet exposed eyes with no light in them. Rather than human legs, a skeletal, serpentine tail draped below the vision of death. The entire conjured entity was immense, some seven or eight stories tall, and it loomed over Celestia’s immobile form for only a fraction of a instant before it struck.

In it’s six hands sprang iron rods, from the tips of which crackled deathly violet energy that extended into the curved blades of scythes. The six scythes struck together, forming a cross-stitch patterns over Celestia and her barrier as they covered in her arcs of cutting power that ripped the air with such potent currents of force that even miles down the ground was torn apart in wide swaths, as if the scythes themselves reached that distance and gouged the earth. The specter was not down, finishing it’s combo of scythe slashes it raised its arms up and crossed it’s scythes together. The blades of energy and their iron rods melted together, blending into one combined, gigantic scythe that dwarfed even the reaper wielding them. It then brought that singularly massive energy blade down upon Celestia and her already cracking barrier in a torrent of power that exploded downward.

The arc of energy blasted the air and ground with another ripple of devastating force, Celestia and the barrier she was in being carried straight down until both she and the tip of the gigantic energy scythe impacted the ground. The resulting explosion spread outward in six different arcs from the central point, not only sending a pillar of purple, churning energy sky high, but rendering entire new fissures in the earth as the six crescent waves flowed out.

Starlight couldn’t be sure, but she didn’t even see where the bottom of the hole dug into the earth was. When the explosion's energies played out finally, the summoned, scythe wielding specter of death simply turned back to ashen smog and dissipated as if it had never been.

Dripping sweat from exertion, Starlight let out a held breath and started to slowly descend. She wasn’t about to assume that had actually killed Celestia, or even knocked her out of the fight.

However, before she descended even a couple of feet she noticed something odd, and her senses sparked with a sudden jolt of warning. Around her she saw the air teaming with additional motes of light, slowly falling like flecks of white snow. It took Starlight a second to realize that these motes of light formed a wide, circular pillar around her, perhaps fifty meters wide. On instinct she looked up, shaking her eyes with a hoof to try and get a clear look at the sun.

“Oh...” she said, seeing the expansive magic circle of raw, white light that had formed above her. Not merely above her by a few miles, but so high up it had to have been in orbit, around the same spot the Gran Rey Cero had knocked Celestia before.

Celestia must have set it up before she’d descended in that light empowered form. Or rather, set up the initial spell, so that the circle itself didn’t appear until she fueled it. Coming down to attack Starlight with a relentless assault of light speed melee... Starlight should have known better. Celestia had been keeping Starlight focused on her, all the while sending magic upward to fuel the circle. Those photons of light that had been shooting out of Celestia’s wings hadn’t just been for movement, they’d been transferring the magical energy needed to power up a spell.

Even with Starlight’s speed, there was no dodging, as the attack was already in motion, the circle generating a cylindrical barrier around it’s target that Starlight was already inside. She could try teleporting, but that still took a moment of time, one that wasn’t swift enough to evade light itself.

Like a huge focusing lens, the magic circle took Celestia’s power and the light of the sun hanging directly above to form a coherent beam, a pillar of light encompassing the full circumference of the fifty meter cylindrical barrier that connected the magic circle to the ground.

While not quite the same as the combined magical beam of the sun and moon that Celestia and Luna had used against Platinum and Firefly, this singular version of the attack was not without its own potency, especially with Celestia holding nothing back from casting it and concentrating the beam into a cylindrical barrier rather than dispersing it over a wide area.

The result was a solid pillar of light that smashed into Starlight and bored her straight down into the earth. The beam melted a fifty meter wide hole in the ground, digging down and down for nearly a mile before petering out.

The hole remained smoking around the edges as the magic faded, bits of molten rock dripping around the sides.

About half a football field away, the equally deep crater the Jinsei Shukaku had made with Celestia sat.

Nearby Ponehenge stood silently, the monument miraculously untouched by the devastation that had been raining around it. The only motion was the still occasionally wavering air as space itself remained strained and distorted by the unleashed energies of the battle.

All else was scorched earth, dead trees, and silence.

Ten seconds passed, then twenty. After half a minute it may have seemed like things were at an end, but then there was a stirring of loose rock at the edge of one of the deep craters.

A white hoof, with a melted remains of a gold arm guard, and covered in blood, reached up and across the side of the crater. Coughing, sputtering, and groaning in pain, Celestial hauled herself out of the hole and flopped onto the ground beside the crater.

She bore a deep, charred gash across her chest, the golden neck ornament that was normally a part of her royal regalia now missing as it had been shorn in half by the blow she’d taken. Her barrier had been broken by the final strike of Starlight’s Kido, and the blow had not left her unscathed. She sucked in deep breaths as she rolled over and rose on unsteady hooves. The rest of her body was bruised and battered, her left wing bent at an awkward angle. Had she still not been under the effects of Kowareta To’s power, she would have weathered that Kido better, but she’d also used up plenty of magic during the fight already, so her defenses had been fairly well compromised.

Still, she was alive. In quite a bit more pain than she’d been in for a very long time, but breathing.

Taking stock of herself, she began to channel a healing spell into herself. Without time and care it wouldn’t do much good outside of preventing some internal bleeding, but it was better than nothing. She glanced at Ponehenge, frowning at the distortions in the air around it. Not good. The prison was holding, but this battle was causing more disruption than she’d intended. Still, Ponehenge was an ancient site of incredible power for users of magic, and if needed she could draw power from it. Or use it’s unique prison, if she dared.

Would it be necessary? Had her spell finished off Starlight?

It was draining, using two forms of High Magic at once. Lucem Equitare (Ride the Light) and Intuitum Solis (Gaze of the Sun). She’d never actually had to use both spells at once before. The former empowered her body with the rawest form of elemental light, giving her incredible speed and the ability to summon blades of the same element that surpassed her normal flame blades. The latter was one of the solo components of the Instar Solis Lunaeque she could form with Luna at her side, the sister spell to Gaze of the Moon. While not as powerful on a large scale as Instar Solis Lunaeque, it could still be quite potent when focused on a single enemy, as Starlight Glimmer had just discovered.

But had it been enough to put the zealous human turned alicorn’s plans to an end?

There was a groan from the other crater, and Celestia hung her head and sighed, “No such luck...”

Starlight Glimmer was in similar condition as Celestia, dragging herself out of the perfectly circular hole the Intuitum Solis had created. Her outfit had been burned off completely, leaving her naked hide covered in burned, bleeding patches, and the feathers of her wings signed dark. Blood trickled down her face and limbs, and Starlight’s Hollow mask was no longer merely cracked, but more than half of it had crumbled off her face, leaving only the upper left portion around her eye and brow intact.

Standing on staggered hooves, Starlight looked at Celestia standing across from her, and she let out a bitter laugh.

“Hah. You look like hell.”

Celestia blinked at her, then snorted out a laugh of her own, “Shall I bring you a mirror?”

“Nah, I know I’m spent. I’ve literally hit you with all my best moves, and you’re still standing there, cracking jokes.”

Starlight’s words struck Celestia as odd and the Princess eyed her carefully, “Strange for you to say that. As I understand it, you’ve only utilized your Zanpaktou’s Shikai up until now. Should this not be the point in our duel where you unveil your Bankai, then?”

Starlight’s candid posture only got more flippant with a shrug of her wings, “That would be the go to move right about now, for any other Soul Reaper. Sadly my Sekai Chitsujo isn’t as convenient to use. Just as the Shikai has rules I have to abide by, so too does the Bankai have restrictions on busting it out. So, much as it would certainly be a great time to turn the tables with it, I can’t afford to. Not right here, in the middle game.”

“Middle game?”

“Celestia, I really hate to burst your bubble, but you’re not my ultimate opponent. The Zero Division is. If I’m going to use my Bankai at all, it’ll be on them. You’re the middle game, not my final boss. It’d be easier just to take the loss here than risk everything using my Bankai entails.”

A small bit of hope entered Celestia’s voice, “Does that mean you might consider giving up?”

“Didn’t say that,” Starlight breathed out, and with her magic levitated her Zanpaktou out of the hole behind her. It had changed shape once again, now taking the form of a long, slender blade, an estoc. The sword had a basket shaped hilt from which two forked blades extended, flanking the longer blade in a small V pattern, “A fight doesn’t always end with the best moves. Just the last one.”

Disappointment was plain on Celestia’s face, but so was her resolve as she steadied her stance and squared off with Starlight once more, “Your stubbornness truly knows no limits.”

“Must be an alicorn thing,” Starlight replied, and then looked at the back of her hoof as if checking a wristwatch that wasn’t there, “By the way, you got the time?”

“...Time?”

“Yeah, like, what hour is it? Feels like we’ve been at this forever, but can’t have been more than, what, twenty minutes? Twenty five?”

Celestia’s jaw tightened, her eyes closing dangerously as she most certainly did not like this turn in the conversation, “Why?”

“Nothing much, just checking that I’ve kept you busy here long enough. Well, that and whether or not it’s about time for my reinforcements to show up.”

The transfer happened with an abruptness unlike normal teleportation. There was just a concussive snap in the air, and quite suddenly Celestia had a shadow over her. A shadow that turned into a descending wolf’s claw, sheathed in layers of metal, as large as a pickup truck. The claw didn’t hit her, as even injured as severely as she was Celestia’s reflexes and speed weren’t so hampered she’d lost the ability to dodge. Still, the claw crushed enough rock to cause a small landslide down the crater Celestia had crawled out of, and she managed to leap back far enough to avoid that as she sized up what had attacked her.

She didn’t quite know what to expect out of Starlight Glimmer’s bag of tricks, but a gigantic wolf’s skeleton was not among them. The skeleton bore a brutish quality to it, as if the colossal wolf it had once belonged to was thicker, more burly and far more broad than a normal canine of its ilk. Furthermore the undead beast’s body was clad in ridged armor plating that, between the thick slabs of metal were bundles of ropey wire and cords that coursed with spirit energy, like artificial muscles. The claws themselves had added metal edges, and upon the beast’s shoulders were boxy protrusions that Celestia didn’t think was merely additional armor. The creature turned it’s head towards her, its face half obscured by the metal armoring bolted to it’s bone, even covering its eyes.

“Say hello to Skoll,” Starlight commented dryly, “Formerly a High Chief from the Beast Realm Tribes. Soul Society managed to get their hands on his bones long after his death, and designed some augmentations to turn the corpse into an autonomous weapon. Just one of many unpleasant projects Hitsuyo-Aku put together over the years.”

“A grotesque sight, and ignoble project,” Celestia agreed, although she gave Starlight a displeased glare, “And no excuse to make use of such a thing for your own ends.”

“You did hear the part earlier when I said I’d do anything to take Zero Division down, right? Let’s not rehash that. Skoll! Sic her!”

The programming within the devices implanted in the ancient corpse of the Beast Realm creature had been set up to recognize Starlight as it’s master. The very presence of Skoll on the battlefield could be further attributed to Hitsuyo-Aku, or specifically, the Crossgate. The power source of the Sokyoku had even the device more than enough energy to bring Starlight and her allies to Equestria, but it had plenty more to spare. Given the Crossgate’s designed purpose of rapidly moving forces around a given area, or evacuating civilians from dangerous zones, it’s systems could easily handle the task of instantly teleporting Skoll to Ponehenge. Starlight had gone over the specs of Skoll’s grafted armor and completed the work herself, with a little extra elbow grease courtesy of some basic Reigai models to act as helping hands.

A Beast Realm High Chief was a being on par with the strongest Soul Reaper Captains, and while Skoll wouldn’t exhibit the same power in death that he’d had in life, he would still be a considerable threat, especially with the armor’s augmentations.

Growling with an ethereal howl, Skoll spun around, brining his massive tail to bear. Clad in plates of armor as well, the skeletal tail emitted a wave of churning blue energy that cut out from his tail in a wave as he swung it. Celestia flew over the cutting wave, ignoring the shockwave of torn earth it left behind as she emitted a focused beam of sunfire from her horn to test the beast’s defenses. All the while she kept one eye on Starlight, expecting the other alicorn to use this as an opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

Oddly, Starlight didn’t move, simply watching things unfold. Celestia’s anxious suspicions deepened. Starlight had said she’d been keeping her here. That meant her other forces had to be targeting other places while Celestia was occupied. Thankfully, Celestia had planned for that, but she didn’t want to waste too much time playing with an oversized, undead puppy dog.

Her sunbeam was caught by Skoll’s left claw, the armored wolf skeleton raising the claw to shove the combined bladed claws into the beam to split it into a swath of smaller beams that melted through the rock where it touched. The metal armor, made of sterner stuff and reinforced by the undead creature’s spirit energy, only grew bright hot under the beam, but didn’t melt.

Skoll then focused on Celestia and the huge shoulder guards let out steam as their top halves opened, revealing sets of pointed gray spikes within, like missiles. In fact that was precisely what they were, emitting streams of sudden blue spirit energy as the spikes fired, becoming coated in a ghostly aura of power shaped like running wolves as the missiles flew at Celestia.

Celestia shook her head, “I don’t have time for this. Discord! Tag in!”

“I thought you’d never ask, my dear.”

The sound of fingers snapping resounded across the battlefield and the swarm of reishi missiles Skoll’s armor had fired all transformed into a flock of flying pigs that oinked in confusion as they flew about in a chaotic mess.

Even the undead, cybernetic monstrosity that was Skoll managed to tilt its head in confusion at the sight. At least until another finger snap rang out as loud as any bell, and the beast simply vanished in a puff of smoke.

Celestia, looking up at the finger snapper, said, “Now what did you do with the poor skeleton dog? Banish it to that awful sock puppet realm?”

“Oh don’t be ridiculous. Even I have slightly better taste than that.”

Discord slowly floated down from the sky. The draconequus and self proclaimed Lord of Chaos was reclining in a comfortable looking, plush sofa that flew on a set of bizarre wings from several different species. He was sipping on a cup of fresh tea, snaggle tooth mouth grinning merrily as he waved to Celestia, “I just thought my home could use the charm a pet brings. Fluttershy keeps trying to pawn one of her animals off on me, so maybe she’ll appreciate it that I finally decided to get a dog. Oh... thank you, Miss Glimmer, I promise I’ll give him a good home. Is he already house trained, might I ask?”

He twisted his head around without moving his neck to look at Starlight, smarm and cocky ego dripping from his tone. Starlight looked up at him, utterly deadpan.

“Was wondering if you’d show up. Figure it’d be fifty-fifty if Celestia would hold you in reserve, or bring you here as extra insurance.”

“The best insurance in the world, with very reasonable rates,” Discord said, snapping his fingers and creating a few copies of his own eyes that flew about on miniature, brown bat wings, “Of course I’ve been keeping an eye on everything. Not just here, but in Canterlot, the Crystal Empire, even Ponyville, just in case you were plotting something untoward there. I have to say, quite the rousing show you put on with Celestia. Very exciting. I was almost on the edge of my seat with that little grim reaper number you did. Why I might even say you might have had Celestia on the ropes with your little robot dog surprise. Too bad for you Celestia’s surprise was just better. Me!”

He snapped his fingers again, and just like that Starlight Glimmer found herself bound up in a wad of chains, so thick it left nothing of her exposed save for her head, with dozens of large padlocks covering the chains to a comical degree. Discord floated down towards her, rising up from his sofa and tossing his tea aside, which promptly exploded off screen. Celestia approached, albeit more cautiously than Discord’s brazen manner.

“Oh wow, looks like you’ve got me,” Starlight said dryly, laying on the ground and not even bothering to struggle against the chains, “Sure seems like I’m your helpless prisoner to do with whatever you please.”

“Careful, Discord,” Celestia said, “She’s clever, and likely anticipated your intervention.”

“Yes, yes, Celestia, I don’t require the lecture. She probably has some hidden weapon or the like. Don’t you, Miss Glimmer? So come on out with it. I’m a busy draconequus and don’t have all day, so spring whatever trap you have in store so I can be on about thwarting it and getting to more important matters, like catching the next episode of Moonlight over Manehattan. It’s the one where we finally find out who the real father of Sordid Affair’s foal is.”

Starlight shrugged. Or rather, vaguely wiggled. Chains, and all that.

“Hey, you’re the all powerful chaos spirit. What trap am I going to spring on you that’d do anything. I mean, you can literally just snap your fingers and poof, problem solved, just like you did with Skoll. Real shame you did that, he had chain-saw whips, chest mounted cannons, even a laser eye! You could have at least let him fight Celestia for a bit longer!”

“Eh, the fight was taking long enough already. I have no compunctions cutting this short,” Discord said, crossing his mismatched arms over his long, noddle shaped chest, “And I don’t believe for a second that you don’t have a last ditch plan to get out of this, so get on with it. As you said, I can just snap it away.”

“Yes you could,” Starlight agreed, “In fact, you’re by far my biggest roadblock in this world. I mean, Celestia and Luna are powerful, and Twilight Sparkle and her group of friends aren’t anything to sniff at, but you? Mister Reality Warper? Ooooh did I not have any idea what I was going to do about you. The only thing keeping me and mine in the game was the fact that you didn’t know where our base of operations was. I imagine if I’d shown up at that trap on the train, Celestia would have called you in then, too.”

“True, but as it turned out my glorious presence wasn’t required then. Quite a shame, really. It’s boring just to watch,” Discord said with an exaggerated yawn, “But now that we have you, I can wrest the knowledge of your clubhouse’s location and have this whole mess wrapped up by dinnertime. Oh, Celestia, you owe me for this, by the by.”

“Discord, we should go. I have a bad-” Celestia began but Discord waved her off.

“-a bad feeling, yes. When ever do you not? I think half of the time it must just be gas. You eat too many carbs. It shows in your, ahem, flanks.”

“Discord,” Celestia said again, but this time Starlight cut her off.

“Tell me something, D. Can I call you D?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Fair enough. Have you ever actually been in a fight? I mean, a real one?”

Discord’s eyebrow rose, until it actually came off his head and floated in the air above him, “Of course I have. I fought Celestia and Luna in the good old days. Then there was Twilight and the girls. Not my grandest moment. Oh, then there was the time I caught Tirek, but I suppose that didn’t go so grand for me either... hmm... now that you mention it...”

“Yeah, that’s what I figured. You don’t ‘fight’, Discord. Why should you? You snap your fingers, and anything you want just happens. You either win by default, or the other side gets the drop on you with some special magic, like Harmony or whatever. You’ve never actually fought anything before. Makes you very different from my world’s Discord. That guy, he scares me. He might not have your reality warping powers, but he knows how to fight, and has the power and ruthlessness to use it when he needs to. I’d never try fighting him directly without one hell of a good plan, and even then I’d be terrified to try.”

The irritation was clear on Discord’s vein popping face. His wounded ego filled his tone as he loomed above her, “I could not possibly care less about some other me who isn’t nearly as handsome, smart, or chaotic. And really, what does any of this have to do with anything. Why shouldn’t I just snap my fingers and turn you into a harmless bug, easily stepped on?”

“Sure, you could do that. But even little bugs can be dangerous,” Starlight replied in a cold voice, “Especially against someone who, having never been in a real battle, doesn’t know how to dodge.”

By the time Celestia caught sight of it, it was already too late to react. Something made of dark metal, tinted ever so slightly green, hurled across the area with incredible force, and from a position relatively close. Inside Ponehenge’s protective circle.

The object, a length of metal about three feet long, sharpened and shaped into a deadly javelin, impacted Discord’s chest and lodged itself through him like he was a mini-hotdog on a toothpick. He blinked at the offending object stuck inside him with some confusion, shakily raising his hand to snap his fingers. Only when he did so... nothing happened.

In fact, the chains around Starlight Glimmer vanished like they’d never been there, as did Discord’s summoned flying sofa. And his flying eyes. Not just from the battlefield, but all over Equestria.

Eyes, both Discord and Celestia’s, in combined shock, looked towards Ponehenge. The air there wavered as a creature appeared, a large chameleon-like lizard of black scales and green stripes, but with an overly long set of arms with corded muscles built for throwing. Those arms were coated in green magic, enhancement magic, designed to boost physical strength. The lizard’s scales blended in with the surrounding area, having rendered it invisible until it had moved. Celestia recognized the species as being completely non-native to Equestria, but even then she already knew that this wasn’t what it appeared to be before the beast was enveloped by a burst of emerald flames.

From the flames stood Queen Chrysalis, her right arm clad in the organic armor of her Bakkoto, and in her other arm holding another dark javelin forged of anti-magic metal. The statuesque changeling wore an expression of supreme satisfaction as she locked eyes with the impaled Discord, “Sorry to cut your impending victory short, Lord of Chaos, but I did owe you for the role you played in ruining my life. I trust you remember my throne’s effect on your magic?”

Starlight Glimmer was impressed. Not just with Chrysalis's accurate sneak attack, as the changeling could turn into any animal she wanted, including ones with exceptional throwing ability and natural stealth, but with the fact that the anti-magic javelin worked so well. This was by far the biggest gamble of her plan. Sure, Chrysalis had said her throne could negate magic over an area, including magic as powerful as Discords, but that throne had been one huge hunk of anti-magic rock. Platinum and Chrysalis had returned from their trip with fragments of the same meteor the throne had been made from, after extensive searching across the southern hemisphere. But there had been no time for tests, experimentation, or fashioning any kind of elaborate weapon. Starlight had just used Hitsuyo-Aku's labs to rapidly fashion the meteorite fragments into a few sharp, pointy sticks. She'd then entrusted the two she'd had time to make to Chrysalis, with the plan for the changeling to hide a short distance from Ponehenge until the battle with Celestia started, then to sneak as close as possible until the right moment to strike came. That moment being either when Celestia called upon Discord's aid, or if it looked like Celestia was about to overcome Starlight. All in all, things had worked out almost exactly according to plan.

Discord still appeared dazed, trying to grab the javelin, only for his hands to come away coated in blood that he blinked at like a curious child, “Bleeding? That’s a new one. Ooh, I feel a tad woozy in the head. Celestia is this normal?”

It was clear his mind was in shock and not precisely firing on all cylinders, and Celestia was much faster to overcome her own shock and started to move towards him while simultaneously reaching with her magic into the hidden pocket of arcane subspace she’d created to hide her next ace in the hole.

Starlight, however, had already been taking action, taking full advantage of the brief moment of shock that had left both Discord and Celestia briefly inactive. Starlight rushed forward while swimming the estoc in a flashing arc. She barreled into Discord, while the blade itself went past him and there was a screeching noise as the Zanpaktou’s edge appeared to rip a hole in the air, a hole that Starlight tackled Discord through just a second before Celestia could reach him.

Celestia cursed under her breath and looked towards Chrysalis, and saw that the same hole that Starlight’s Zanpaktou had cut in space had a duplicate that had appeared next to the changeling, depositing both Starlight and Discord there.

“Good aim, Chrysalis,” Starlight said, gripping the now powerless Discord with her magic and examining his wound as he let out a grunt of pain from the handling, “You did remember I told you the plan wasn’t to kill him, right?”

Chrysalis fluttered her bug wings and gave an unconcerned shrug, “As if I know where the vital organs in a chaos spirit are. I didn’t aim for the neck or head, that’s close enough. It was a challenge just to sneak close enough for a decent shot while you and Celestia were tearing apart the landscape! I nearly died three or four times from stray shots alone!”

Starlight nodded in acquiescence, “Fair point. I’m just glad we were able to draw Discord out of the woodwork, otherwise half of this operation would’ve been a bust. Speaking of which...”

She reached out her hoof, “Bakudo Number Thirty Five: Toi Sakebigoe. Discord’s down, folks! Begin phase two!”

The same circle of light appeared, with it’s flashing numbers of kanji, projecting Starlight’s voice to certain designated individuals. Celestia, observing this as she her own mind worked upon her next move, called out, “Discord, talk to me. Are you okay?”

Discord couldn’t move at this juncture, held fast by Starlight’s magic, but he turned a weak smile towards Celestia, his voice strained, “I... have a stupid magic canceling metal stick poking through me. So no, not alright, Celestia. In quite an excruciating amount of pain, actually. Help please?”

“I will, Discord. Just hang on until I teach these two a lesson,” Celestia said, turning a scathing glance towards Chrysalis, “I knew you’d emerge from under your rock eventually. I see you did not use your time in exile to reflect upon your wrongdoings.”

Chrysalis sucked in a deep breath and let it out in a seething hiss, “Oh I reflected extensively, Celestia. Mostly upon how to best get revenge.”

“Like the petty tyrant you are.”

“Ahem!” Starlight cleared her throat loudly before Chrysalis could spit anything back, “Ladies? We can discuss who hates who more another time? We’re kind of in the middle of something. Celestia, now that your finger snapping, overpowered boyfriend is out of action, what’s your move?”

“He’s not...” Celestia shook her head and hid her blush with an angry glare, “What did you mean by ‘phase two’? What have you done, Starlight Glimmer?”

Starlight suspected Celestia was already able to make an educated guess herself, but the Princess was probably playing for time to heal herself a bit more and recover her strength. Starlight didn’t mind giving Celestia that time, as Starlight still could use a minute to catch her own breath, not to mention give her other forces time to get things underway. The battle with Celestia wasn’t over yet. Sure, she and Chrysalis had managed to neutralize Discord, but Celestia herself was far too powerful to just leave behind, even if Starlight could probably escape with Chrysalis and their new prisoner. Celestia alone would likely still have all the power she needed to throw major wrenches into things elsewhere, so either she needed to be defeated outright here and now, or still kept occupied long enough for the rest of the operation to succeed.

“What have I done? I’m sure you can already guess. I mean, two of Equestria’s most powerful defenders are right here, one of them neatly disabled, and the other with a hoof already in the grave. Perfect time for some of my people to go for a stroll. See the sights. Take a few choice souvenirs.”

“Ah,” Celestia nodded, speaking softly, “Then I was right. Fortunately I believe your subordinates will find wherever they target, things won’t be as easy for them as they think. As for you two... I did not desire this outcome. I’d hoped to subdue you without resorting to this extreme, but I see now I’ve been naïve to believe otherwise.”

The air next to her rippled like water, and from it an object floated out. A worn, ancient blade, broken halfway up it’s length. The hilt had a symbol engraved upon it, a circle that was half moon and half sun, split down the middle. The moment Celestia withdrew the broken blade she held it inverted in front of her and placed her horn upon it. A flare of light from her horn revealed a set of golden chains of magic encircling the sword, a symbol that started to crack.

As this happened, Chrysalis let out a groan and put a hoof to her head, causing Starlight to glance at her in worry, “Chrysalis? What’s wrong? What is that?”

“I...I don’t know! Argh, my head! Stop her!”

Starlight had no idea what was going on, but she could sense an immense amount of pressure filling the air as Celestia started to break whatever seal existed upon that seemingly simple relic. She started to chant a Kido, hoping to pummel Celestia before she finished, but was a moment too late. Before she’d even gotten a couple of words out, there was a sound like a glacial ice shelf cracking, and the symbol of chains around the broken sword broke and dispersed into dust.

Then everything was enveloped in pure gold light more intense than the sun itself.

Author's Notes:

Apologies for the delay, but we now return you to our show. I almost feel bad that Skoll, the wolf skeleton I had there sitting in Hitsuyo-Aku's basement level all the way back in the Soul Society arc, didn't really get to do much, but the purpose was to demonstrate just how crazyily overpowered Discord can be. And also why Starlight absolutely knew she had to find a way to take Discord down in one shot, otherwise he was going to snap his fingers to victory. Hopefully my reasoning for it all makes sense.

And the fight isn't over. Starlight and Chrysalis' sneak attack may have knocked Discord out of play, but Celestia has her own surprise trump card. What effects will the Relic have on our Princess of the Sun?

Hope you folks enjoyed, and thanks for reading. As always I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 153: Assault on All Fronts

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Episode 153: Assault on All Fronts

It was as fine a morning as could be had in the unique and prosperous Crystal Empire. Existing amidst an arctic landscape well north of Equestria’s borders, yet kept perpetually warm and with fertile land to till. The city of colorful houses carved of numerous types of light catching gemstones formed around a monumental tower of shining blue and white hues. At the tower’s base, between grand arches of glittering diamond that formed the main struts of the tower itself, a heart shaped gem of purest blue resided. The gem’s light strobed with the heat of a heartbeat, and spread a singular warmth to all who gazed upon it.

The Crystal Heart was both the figurative and literal heart of the empire of the crystal ponies, without which their civilization could not exist in the harsh Frozen North in which they resided. Yet for all its importance, the Crystal Heart was left on public display, for any and all passers by to see at their leisure. Which wasn’t to say the magical gemstone was without its defenses. Ponies of the Empire’s Crystal Guard did remain on station nearby, although they were the least of the gem’s defenders. Every crystal pony knew that their Princess was ever at the ready to protect her people, and that Princess Cadence was not only a loving caregiver, but a powerful one. And her husband was no slouch either, as a stallion who was once Captain of Equestria’s own Royal Guard, and by all accounts a master of barrier magic.

Even assuming some ne'er do well intended ill towards the Crystal Heart, the gem could protect itself through its own means. It was little wonder that despite their city lacking defensive walls, and the artifact critical to the ongoing prosperity of their way of life effectively just sitting out in the open, the crystal ponies went about their day to day activities with barely a care in the world.

Indeed on this particularly clear morning, with not a wisp of cloud to be seen in the sky, and a gentle breeze punctuating the pleasantly cool air, quite a few crystal ponies were enjoying breakfast outdoors at the numerous restaurants and cafe’s lining the four central streets that ran from the edges of the city all the way to the tower at its center. The air filled with the buzz of ponies chatting, the city itself waking up to another enjoyable day.

Cadence could hear her city coming alive, sitting upon a balcony on one of the highest floors of the crystal tower. She too was enjoying some breakfast, made by her loving husband. The breakfast was a tad unusual for her, a bowl of oatmeal garnished with cinnamon, with a side of brussel sprouts. She’d requested it, and Shining Armor had not complained about changing things up, although he’d given her an odd look at her request. Since he tended to eat whatever she did, he was “enjoying” said meal across the table from her, although she could tell he was forcing himself a bit.

She smiled at him, still admiring the way that well groomed blue mane complimented his stark white coat. “You know, I don’t mind it if you make something else for yourself, Shining.”

“Nah nah nah,” he said, wagging a hoof, crunching another brussels port into his mouth, “Won’t kill me to change it up now and again. Can’t keep up my guard physique all the time if I’m wolfing down pancakes each morning, anyway.”

“Hah, honestly Shining, I’ve never seen you put on a single pound, no matter how much you eat. Your metabolism puts Celestia’s herself to shame.”

Shining Armor smiled back, although she noticed his eyes scanned the horizon and sky carefully, ever watchful, ever the dutiful guard. “Don’t know about that. I guarded the palace for years, and watched the Princess put away more food than even my sister’s friend Pinkie Pie could handle, and never saw Celestia gain an inch of weight anywhere.”

“Oh? Looking that closely, were you?” Cadence teased, levitating some coffee to her lips for a deep sip to hide her growing grin as Shining Armor sputtered.

“I-I never looked at her like that! Goodness, Cadence, she’s the Princess. I don’t think of royalty like thaaa...” he blinked at her, “I don’t think of, er, Equestrian royalty like that? Wow I keep digging myself deeper, don’t I?”

“You do, but keep going, love. I find it amusing,” Cadence replied, enjoying her husband’s boyish blush. He hadn’t asked about the strange meal, and while he’d been properly concerned, he hadn’t picked up on the meaning of her slight illness a few mornings ago either. Granted, Cadence wasn’t one hundred percent sure yet either, but her instincts told her what was happening. She’d clue Shining in when she knew for sure, but either way she was already eyeing a spot in the tower’s royal suite for expansion for another foal’s room. Flurry heart was still just a foal herself, but Cadence enjoyed the notion of her daughter having a sibling who'd be close in age to her. Granted one alicorn foal was trouble enough, but there was no guarantee the second foal would be born an alicorn. Honestly it was still something of a mystery how Flurry Heart was born that way, as every conversation Cadence had had with Luna and Celestia on the subject had suggested that alicornhood should be exceedingly rare, even via blood inheritance.

She was delighted, but also worried. This was... not the ideal time for this to happen. Not with the threat hanging over both Equestria and its neighboring nations. Even now, Flurry Heart had been moved from her regular room to a more secure location, as today of all days Cadence did not want to risk having her child in the city.

It took her a few seconds to notice that Shining Armor hadn’t replied to her, and she looked at him to see that her husband had grown still, his eyes gaining that narrow edge to them as he looked out over the city. “Shining? What is it?”

But she already knew. Celestia had warned them. Cadence knew what her fellow alicorn had intended to do today and what it might entail. But for Harmony’s sake couldn’t she have at least been allowed to finish breakfast first? She turned to scan where her husband had already been looking, at a point in the sky just outside the city outskirts and approximately two hundred feet in the air. Her alicorn sight was exceptionally sharp, so what might have looked like a series of simple, dark dots in the sky to Shining’s eyes were much more focused to her vision.

She rose, her wings flaring out, “Shining, alert the Guard. Mobilize all prepared defenses and begin civilian evacuations to the underground shelters.”

“No need to tell me twice, but how many are there? I can’t get a count at this distance,” Shining Armor said, already moving, leaving the balcony and heading into their main bedroom. Pink and reds dominated the décor, with a huge, heart shaped bed in the center, usually quite ruffled from... rigorous use. Shining Armor moved with practiced efficiently as his magic telekinesis threw open a thick cabinet against one wall and floated out a set of light blue and gold trimmed crystal armor and a helmet. Shining Armor eschewed normal weapons, but Cadence had seen enough of what he could do with his barrier magic to know he didn’t need them.

As he strapped on his armor, she gave the force that had appeared from nowhere a quick count, “More than two hundred.”

“That’s more than they should have, right? I thought this Soul Reaper Starlight only had a few cronies with her?”

“I don’t know,” Cadence admitted, unsure herself of what she was seeing. She had a vague notion of what “humans” looked like due to Twilight’s descriptions, and what she saw confused her. Even for her eyesight details were hard to pick out, but the majority of the figures she saw standing on thin air looked almost featureless, like something was wrong with their “faces”. Otherwise they wore black robes akin to what she’d heard Soul Reapers wore, which didn’t add up with what she’d heard about Starlight Glimmer’s forces.

Worse, besides the odd figures in robes, she thought she spotted a smaller group of what appeared to be changelings. But not the freshly altered and more colorful, friendly changelings, but the ominously and uniformly black carapaced changelings of old. There weren’t many, maybe twenty at most, but Cadence would have been blind not to recognize the tall, dark figure at their head, a mirror image to somepony, somecreature who Cadence was all too familiar with.

And if rumor was to be believed, this Chrysalis was potentially worse than Equestria’s native one. She took hold of the fear that rose in her gut before it could cause hesitation. She and Shining Armor had been forewarned of the attack and had prepared for it. She’d spent days preparing spells upon the buildings of the city to protect her citizens, and preparing additional wards to fortify the crystal tower. The Crystal Guard had been briefed and put on full standby alert. Shining Armor would take command and bring the full force of the Crystal Empire’s army to bear within minutes.

But given the nature of their foe, would minutes be soon enough?

----------

Chrysalis strutted upon the air, gazing down on the pristine and glittering buildings of the Crystal Empire’s city, and threw her forelegs wide in flamboyant jubilation and drew in a deep breath, letting it out in an exultant sigh of unrestrained pleasure.

“Aaaah! Do you smell that, my children!? That is the scent of an entire, ripe, juicy bushel of fresh mortal souls. Have any of you ever dreamed of such an unspoiled hunting ground? And just look at all the colors! It’s like a field of Jolly Ranchers with hooves! I just want to get down there and start slurping.”

There was a rough cough next to her, and Chrysalis hung her shoulders and rolled her eyes towards the one standing next to her, “What?”

There were two distinct groups that had been transported to the airspace above the city amid a wavering field of translocated space. One was the small contingent of Chrysalis’ Arrancar children, their forms in this equine-themed world that of, for lack of better phrasing; insectile horse-bugs. They still retained their Hollow holes, fragments of Hollow masks, and stark white clothing that conformed to their new forms, along with their Zanpaktou, but otherwise they looked like someone had taken a black beetle and crossbred it with a pony. They all more or less looked identical to one another, her “drones” born from her eggs, but lacking the distinctiveness of her truest children. She loved them all the same, even if they weren’t quite as special to her as Ocellus, Pharynx, and Thorax.

The other group was the “Reigai” that Starlight Glimmer had manufactured. Far more than Chrysalis would have expected, but then again Starlight may well have been preparing Reigai well before this planned attack. Most of them were low-powered foot soldiers, so it wasn’t as if making the artificial souls would be difficult. Chrysalis didn’t quite grasp, or care, about their inner workings. They seemed like a pitiful bunch to her. The mannequin-like dolls gained somewhat distinctive features once the proper artificial soul was implanted in them, but for the majority of the multitude she had used fairly weak reishi from Hitsuyo-Aku’s database to create easily controlled frontline soldiers. The result was that the basic Reigai looked like identical clones of each other, with dark brown hair, either male or female having the same bland look in their dull gray eyes and neutral features, with pale white skin. In terms of power they were nothing special, containing enough reiatsu to function as perhaps 7th or 6th seated officers. Even their Zanpaktou were all built from the same reishi samples, resulting in identical powers drawn from records of the Eleventh Division, two members whose Shikais turned into a large sickle blade that produced crescent-shaped energy blasts for the males, and a bamboo spear that shot out sprays of burning oil for the females.

Chrysalis supposed, weak as they were, the wretches would serve as shock troops, if little else, with just enough personality to follow orders. However, that was hardly enough to grant any real edge to the task at hand, so Starlight had created specific, stronger Reigai with Hitsuyo-Aku’s other records. Seemed like the Twelfth Division’s special research group had ensured it had complete data on almost all Soul Society’s members, regardless of rank, including reishi samples from which Reigai artificial souls could be produced.

There were two distinctive women standing next to Chrysalis on her left. Unlike Chrysalis and her children, who had transformed into equine forms upon entering Equestria via the Crossgate, these Reigai retained human forms due to their being manufactured in Equestria with that shape. So it was that Captain Zecora, or rather Captain Zecora’s Reigai, retained her tall, poised form with gray skin marked by striped tattoos, with equally striped black and white hair, along with piercing blue eyes that looked out of a very stern and human face at Chrysalis. Beside Zecora was a marble white young woman with pink hair, Lieutenant Redheart’s Reigai sharing her Captain’s disapproving glare at Chrysalis' grandstanding. Both Reigai were clad in simple, black Soul Reaper robes, neither wearing their symbols of office such as Zecora’s Captain’s coat or Redheart’s Lieutenant badge. Chrysalis surmised that was a deliberate choice to remind them that they weren’t actually the real deal, but just artificial souls made from those Soul Reapers’ reishi.

“Do not forget our instructions,” Zecora warned, her blue eyes briefly turning purple with a wash of spirit energy unique to Reigai, “We are to cause disturbance, but refrain from unneeded casualties.”

Another oddity was that this Reigai did not rhyme her words like her real counterpart. Chrysalis didn’t much care the reason why, but found it, if nothing else, refreshing to not have to be annoyed by that particular quirk. It’d been beyond irritating to have to rhyme all the time when she’d impersonated the Captain.

“And you’re my delightful chaperone, here by Starlight Glimmer’s command to make sure my children and I play nice with the candy,” Chrysalis said with a dismissive wave of her hoof, “Even as a cheap knock-off, you’re somehow more annoying than the real thing. Use your medical arts to heal whatever you like, but my family is in need of playtime, as am I. Try to keep up, my ugly little dolls. Come children, time to play!”

Her drone children let out raucous cries and hungry hisses, some salivating at the sensation of so many souls. They knew they weren’t supposed to eat any of the ponies down there, but they also knew their mother wasn’t exactly a stickler for the rules. So it was with reckless abandon that the Arrancar drones began their attack with only minimal restraint, heading for the nearest dense cluster of crystal ponies with Chrysalis flying at the head of their group.

The crystal ponies themselves were utterly unprepared for it. One moment an open city square in which multiple open cafes and stores was filled with ponies busily shopping or chatting suddenly found all activity grind to a halt when the center of the square exploded from the impact of Chrysalis diving down alongside her drones and smashing the center of the street.

“Hello ladies and gentlequines!” Chrysalis called merrily at the starring, horrified ponies, “It would be to my utmost pleasure and appreciation if you would offer up yourselves to be my family’s entertainment for today. Warning, loss of bodily fluids and/or limbs is entirely possible, so please do play safely and responsibly.”

She punctuated this by pointing a hoof at the nearest storefront, a hat store by the appearance of the signage out front, and a pulsating sphere of deep green light gathered at the tip of her appendage. To the credit of the crystal ponies in the path, most of them knew danger when they saw it and proceeded to dive out of the way, although those inside the store had far less time to react before a focused emerald Cero beam shot out and carved a path through the building like an ice cream scoop. Strangely, Chrysalis noted there was an odd surge in her senses that she’d come to recognize as the presence of magic, and there was a flash of waning blue light just before her Cero hit, but she didn’t do more than give it a passing thought.

Chrysalis didn’t pause to check casualties, waving the beam like a pen-light to bi-sect the top of the store and carve the roof off of the neighboring building, humming to herself as she pranced down the street like a filly skipping her way to school. She ignored the screams that were now filling the air as her children went on the attack, swords drawn or simply baring fangs as they went after still stunned civilians. A few shot Cero beams of their own, but most were focused on smashing buildings or chasing fleeing ponies.

“Damn her!” Redheart’s Reigai swore, “They’re not even trying to mitigate the damage! Captain, we have to get down there!”

Zecora sighed, “Don’t call me Captain, but yes, we must do our duty. Regai Second Company, deploy to the city! Squads one through three focus on aiding the wounded and follow Redheart’s commands. The rest of you are with me!”

The Reigai all nodded, some giving affirmative shouts, but with a lack of enthusiasm or heart behind it. Zecora felt a stab of overall guilt. Poor things were even worse off than she and Redheart were, lacking the true will to do more than follow commands. Or perhaps that meant they were better off? At least they didn’t have the full knowledge of their situation like she and Redheart did. The burden of knowing one was nothing more than an artificial soul, copying a real soul, and created solely to be used as a disposable tool. A part of Zecora despised her situation, but if nothing else Starlight Glimmer had been through in both the specific members of the Gotei 13 she’d chosen to create Reigai of, and her arguments for why following her was a better choice than not.

For all intents and purposes, the Reigai shouldn't exist, and Soul Society would never tolerate their existence. Inevitably if Zero Division wasn’t defeated and in turn Soul Society reformed, the Reigai’s ultimate fates would end up as being hunted down and exterminated. Their survival was thus contingent on Starlight Glimmer’s plans succeeding, and Zecora, valuing life as she did, could only logically conclude that to keep the Reigai alive she would need to support Starlight with some semblance of loyalty.

That, and it put her in a position to minimize the Espada Chrysalis’ carnage.

She vanished with the speed of a Flash Step, arriving at the crumbled site of the first building Chrysalis had destroyed with a Cero. Zecora searched with her spiritual senses for any signs of life, or indeed any sensation of souls present, but to her surprise she found neither. Chrysalis’ beam had not blasted through the entire building, so Zecora had thought there’d be a few survivors trapped inside, but she sensed nothing at all. Indeed, when she lifted some rubble out of the way to look within the ruined building, she saw no bodies at all.

But Zecora had been certain it’d been filled with ponies just before the Cero beam struck.

Looking towards Chrysalis, she saw the Espada casually raking another Cero beam through a restaurant, and Zecora’s eyes narrowed as she watched carefully. She sensed a burst of energy besides the Cero, a buzz unlike spiritual pressure. Magic. Just as the beam hit the building, it filled with a different colored light from the sickly green emerald of the Cero. Zecora saw the ponies hiding inside vanish before the Cero beam actually ripped through it.

Teleportation?

Curious, Zecora drew her Zanpaktou and slashed at a different building beside her, where she could still sense ponies hiding. She used enough strength to smash the wall, but did no further damage than that. Even so, as her blade cut through the crystal building, magic energy flashed within, and this time Zecora even saw the magic circles carved into the building before the residents inside were teleported away somewhere.

Clever ponies. You knew an attack was coming, and prepared your whole city for it, Zecora realized, impressed with the Princess of the Crystal Empire’s foresight. Starlight had given her a quick briefing on what was known about the Crystal Empire, and its alicorn Princess, Cadence. This magic had to have been the alicorn’s doing, and Zecora was glad enough for it. The civilians stuck on the streets were still in danger, but at least those hiding inside houses and stores were safer if their building was attacked.

As for those ponies unfortunate enough to be targeted while out in the open on the street, Redheart and her contingent of Reigai arrived swiftly, and following Starlight’s instructions to prevent civilian harm, and following what conscience resided in the copy of the Fourth Division member’s artificial soul, she held her Zanpaktou up high above her pink haired head and called out loudly.

“Shelter and restrain; Asa no Yuki!” (Morning Snow)

A fountain of pure white snow enveloped her katana and transformed the blade into a set of white bladed kunai woven into a length of similarly white cloth that wrapped around Redheart’s arm. She then spun the cloth around, and the kunai rattled like chimes. Snow shot out in weaving currents, slapping over Chrysalis' Arrancar drones and the ponies that they’d already injured.

One Arrancar had already driven its sword into one pony, near pinning the poor stallion to the ground through his two back legs. The snow washed over both of them, but acted very differently upon its two targets. The Arrancar was halted in place by a layer of frost that left it grunting in the effort to move, but found itself unable. Meanwhile the wounded pony found the snow pulling the sword free of his legs and coating his wound, but rather than freeze his hide, a soft healing light emanated from the snow.

This played out with other injured ponies, healed by Asa no Yuki’s snow, while Arrancar found their limbs coated with restraining frost.

Other Reigai under Redheart’s command began searching for more wounded ponies, providing healing Kido to the confused equines.

Arrancar drones growled at this, several barring swords towards Redheart, but the Reigai’s eyes flared with purple energy, a sign of her Reigai based reiatsu, as she said, “Your mother’s word is not law here. Follow Starlight Glimmer’s command and focus upon property damage, or I’ll freeze your lungs.”

“We could always just eat you before your silly snow got to all of us,” one drone said, but licked his lips and took to the air, “But I didn’t come here to play with Soul Reapers. Come brothers, sisters, we can destroy plenty, and when the city defenders arrive, we’re free to kill them.”

Admittedly Redheart didn’t have anything to counter that, as their orders were to avoid civilian casualties. The moment actual guards showed up, they would not have the same protections.

The Arrancar started to spread out from the central square, and the larger bulk of the Reigai forces landed in the city streets as well, following Zecora’s orders. Most used their identical Zanpaktou to start inflicting damage on homes and larger buildings, keeping to instructions to avoid killing civilians but still seeking to cause fear and chaos in the streets.

The plan was to force the city’s protectors to spread out and deal with multiple fronts of attack, while affording Chrysalis and Zecora freedom to focus on getting to the Crystal Heart.

It worked only in part, for the Crystal Empire, despite its seemingly defenseless nature, was prepared for what had come to threaten their homes. The Crystal Guard had already been on standby, and Shining Armor had wasted no time in taking command of his forces once he’d departed his and his wife’s chambers. Like all pony races, the crystal ponies were possessed of magic, although theirs manifested in ways unique to their bodies that were partially infused with the essence of the magic crystals found in their lands. They still retained magic akin to their form as pegasi, unicorns, or earth ponies, but the crystalline magic infused into their bodies allowed for direct manipulation of crystals and working magic upon crystals that were far more efficient than regular magic.

The attack had only been going for a few confused minutes before the ground at dozens of points on various streets suddenly grew tall crystal pillars. These pillars flared with light, and doors opened upon them. Reigai and Arrancar alike were suddenly faced by cohorts of crystal ponies in thick armor of worked crystal marching out of the towers. The towers themselves were magical gateways, linked to bunkers beneath the huge central tower in the middle of the city. In seconds the Crystal Guard had hundreds of guard ponies deployed to the streets, and bearing rounded shields and sharp spears of magically charged crystal, they formed ranks and rushed the foes attacking their home with singular discipline.

Reigai launched crescents of spirit energy and burning lines of fiery oil from their copied Zanpaktou, and the crystal guard ponies linked their shields together in a defensive formation. The magic contained in the shining blue crystal of the shields made them stronger than regular steel, and the ponies behind them held strong under barrages of crescent blasts, but fared worse against the burning oil, which clung unnaturally fierce to the shields and burned hotter than any natural fire. The ponies bore the burns and advanced and stabbed with crystal spears, clashing with the Reigai’s Zanpaktous in a clamor of crystal on metal. Some Reigai used Flash Step to get on top of buildings and switched to casting Kido down on the ponies, but in turn the guard ponies responded with crossbows of magically empowered crystals that fired bolts that exploded on impact in both burning blue balls of flame, but also scattered shards of crystal.

The Reigai held their own, but for the moment were stonewalled.

Chrysalis’ Arrancar fared better, being faster, stronger, and possessing of more potent ranged blasts with their devastating Ceros against which regular crystal shields were not enough. Even so, the Crystal Guard had even more potent defenses ready, some bearing crystal shards that, when implanted in the ground, generated powerful dome-shaped barriers. These barriers held against the first barrage of Ceros, but the potent blasts of destructive spirit energy were relentless, and for a moment it looked as if at least one cohort of crystal ponies would be overwhelmed.

That was until a thick dome of sparkling pink force emerged and halted a full quartet of Cero blasts without taking a scratch. The Arrancar drones looked with confusion as a single pony walked out of the dome like it was made of liquid, rather than solid enough to withstand multiple Ceros. Crystal guard ponies cheered as their commander strode forth down the street they’d been holding, Shining Armor directing his barrier to move along with his soldiers, continuing to shield them as they pressed down the street.

“The heck is this guy’s deal? He wants to die so badly?” said one drone, while another licked its lips and brandished its Zanpaktou.

“Who cares, he’s clearly a head honcho! His soul has to taste great! Heheh, I call dibs!”

“No fair! I saw him first!”

Soon Shining Armor found five of Chrysalis drone Arrancar appearing around him with the buzzing speed of Sonido. He’d heard from his sister what to expect from these kinds of foes and didn’t bother trying to match them in terms of speed. Instead he leaned into his strength, conjuring a field of force around himself like a small bubble. The Arrancar laughed, and struck in a blur. Yet their swords bounced off the extremely solid barrier of magic like rubber bouncing off solid concrete.

“The hell!?”

“What’s with this bubble thing! Our swords oughta crack it easy!”

“Just hit it with Ceros! Blast and blast and blast until he’s nothing but dust, hehe!”

Shining Armor looked at them all with disdain and spoke in dead calm, “You monsters don’t seem to understand how much you’ve underestimated us. Let me fix that.”

His magic surged outward in several thick strands, barriers contained into the shape of flexible chains. These chains shot out of his barrier bubble and snapped around the necks or legs of at least three of the Arrancar. The other two managed to escape with Sonido, appearing atop buildings nearby, where they would have fired upon Shining Armor with Ceros if not forced to redirect their attention as the Crystal Guard cohort started pelting their positions with exploding, magic crossbow bolts.

Meanwhile the three that Shining Armor had caught struggled against the magic chains of translucent pink energy, but found the chairs as hard to break as the shield had been, even their Zanpaktou not managing to sever the links. In short order Shining Armor started spinning the chains around and proceeded to slam the Arrancar multiple times into the street with enough force to crack stone. He continued to do this until he was fairly certain they weren’t getting back up again, at least not anytime soon.

A crimson Cero beam impacted with his shield from above, and while it held it did redirect his attention as more of Chrysalis’ Arrancar drones arrived, the group obviously picking up on where the center of resistance was.

Shining Armor sighed, and readied himself. As far as he could tell his Crystal Guard were holding back the enemy, while other cohorts were successfully evacuating civilians down the streets and to the entrances to underground shelters, but he could also see pyres of smoke rising into the sky form several buildings whose interiors had caught fire, and he heard the distinctive blast of more Cero beams in the distance.

If chaos was the objective, it was still achieved as the city had become a battlefield.

And while the Crystal Guard might hold against the minions Starlight Glimmer had sent, the real battle was to unfold between its larger players.

“It’s sweet that you’re following me, but I can take care of this myself,” Chrysalis told Zecora, the pair having taken to the sky to leap across the air towards the Crystal Empire’s central tower of glittering crystal, “Why don’t you go play doctor with your copy-cat ‘Lieutenant’, or are you Reigai so devoid of personal will that you just have to follow me around like Glimmy told you to?”

Zecora did not look Chrysalis’ way, her eyes locked ahead, “Perhaps I simply think you might not beat this Princess Cadence by yourself.”

Chrysalis let out a loud, laughing cackle-snort to show what she thought of that, “Please. If this takes me more than five minutes, I’ll die of embarrassment.”

“Promise?” said a new, feminine voice from above.

Chrysalis flickered out of view, weaving aside a thin but potent beam of blue magic that cut a melting line through the street below. A blurred line of hot pink motion came at Chrysalis from above, and the Espada saw clearly that it was Princess Cadence. The alicorn was wearing a magnificent set of scaled mail across her body forged of blue crystal, her head clad in a frilled helmet bearing wings upon its brow. At her side she magically levitates a surprisingly large spear, its form also forged of pale blue crystal. Its head had a distinctly broad, heart shape to it, while a set of curved horns spread from the spot the spearhead met the shaft.

Chrysalis didn’t draw her Zanpaktou, instead using her own limb as she stepped into Cadence’s dive and caught the shaft on her foreleg. To her mild surprise, the spear still hit with enough force to actually drive her down and back, skidding across the air for a score of yards.

Zecora pulled up short as Cadence hovered before the pair, magic burning in a thick, sky blue geyser from her horn. Unlike Chrysalis, Zecora did have her Zanpaktou drawn, and wasted no time in calling forth its Shikai.

”Open the beholder’s eye; Kodokuna Shinjitsu.” (Solitary Truth)

In a gleaming wash of white motes of energy, her katana transformed into a broad, square shaped blade bearing four finely polished, round mirrors upon its surface. The Reigai’s eyes were now almost solid purple light from the artificial soul’s reiatsu. Chrysalis chuckled, although it held little mirth in it.

“I suppose you would need to use your Shikai immediately.”

“Unlike you, I shall not take these people lightly,” Zecora said, “In defense of their homes, they will spare no effort.”

Cadence’s eyes narrowed, looking between Zecora and Chrysalis, “I already know to expect nothing but monstrousness from any version of Chrysalis. But who are you?”

Zecora looked back flatly, then sighed, “No one. A memory, given flesh. Yet for those like me to have a life, we must fight. We are here for the Crystal Heart. Allow us to take it, and we shall withdraw with no further harm done.”

“Impossible,” Cadence replied in a tone of iron, “Without the Heart, this entire city will be buried by storm and ice. And even if that wasn’t the case, I’d never allow a source of magic so powerful to fall into her hands.”

She pointed her spear at Chrysalis, and the Espada responded with a feral smile and an almost preening stance, “Oh such rancor in your voice! What did my pathetic counterpart do to you, I wonder? If it earns a look like that, why, I might actually hold a tiny, itty bitty little more respect for that noisome waste of flesh!”

Cadence spat to the side, “That’s no business of yours, creature. I can see your cut from the same filthy cloth she is. You bring terror to my city and people and seek to steal that which is most precious to us. As Princess of the Crystal Empire, I shall not allow it. Not while I draw breath.”

Chrysalis laughed, now drawing her Zanpaktou in a long, slow ring of steel filled with violent promise, “Not the wisest choice of words, Princess. Not the wisest at all.”

----------

Guard duty in the grand city of Canterlot, capital of Equestria, was usually a fairly dull affair. Occasional freak invasion by changelings during a royal wedding aside, the idyllic city of colorful towers perched upon the cliffs of Equestria’s largest mountain was a quiet and peaceful place. The only thing most ponies of the Royal Guard had to be worried about was keeping their armor clean and polished.

But all of them knew today was not a normal day. The warnings had come down the chain of command all the way from the Princesses themselves. Something was likely to happen today. What, nopony knew. An attack of some sort? The walls of the palace held a double posting of guards, and the streets saw more patrols walking up and down their curved lengths. Canterlot’s populace could sense the tension and knew something was up, although they went about their day like normal, regardless.

Unlike the Crystal Empire, the strike was not a matter of numbers. Starlight had only been able to make so many Reigai, and most had been sent to the Crystal Empire, save a few key exceptions.

Instead when the attack came upon Canterlot, it came from a single utterance, spoken with frozen intent.

“Bankai.”

Countless ponies on Canterlot’s streets felt the abrupt and unnatural chill as the ambient temperature in the air took a nosedive. Above the royal square near the palace, both guards and passing civilians alike looked up into the sky as a shadow overcame them, blocking the sun. This shadow was being made by a rapidly growing field of ice that sprang forth in the sky, widening and thickening until within moments a floating island of solid blue ice was hanging above Canterlot city. Great arcs of ice, like clawed fingers, encircled the island and produced between them a largely translucent field of force, while upon the island's center rose a grand fortress palace in the shape of an Eastern pagoda.

Shocked gasps and uneasy murmurs filled the streets as ponies looked up at the ominous, frozen edifice, while guardponies quickly took up defensive positions on Canterlot palace’s walls. Unicorn combat magic specialists prepared spells within their horns, while pegasi took to the air with spears ready, earth ponies forming a bulwark in the palace courtyard or at key positions in the streets of the city.

Yet no attack came upon the city itself. Instead, a voice rang out. Platinum stood beside the throne at the foot of her Bankai fortress’ entrance, using Kido to amplify her voice for all to hear her.

“Princess Luna! I have come to settle our unfinished duel. Come forth and face me. If you fail to do so, I cannot guarantee the safety of your citizens.”

Platinum kept her declaration brief, and proceeded to wait near her throne of Fuyokogo Sodaina Kyuden. Would Luna come, or call the bluff? Was it a bluff? Well, yes, in part. Platinum had no interest in senseless slaughter. In fact she’d sternly disagreed with Starlight’s proposed deployment of their forces. She’d wanted to proceed to the Crystal Empire, to better keep the Arrancar Chrysalis on a leash. But Starlight had argued that only Platinum’s Bankai had the right shock value to threaten an entire city to draw out Luna and hold the Canterlot Royal Guard’s focus, and that they’d need to trust the Regai Zecora to mitigate Chrysalis. Ultimately, while Platinum feared what Chrysalis might do while lacking hefty supervision, she did have another reason to come to Canterlot besides Starlight's stratagem. A reason that made her even accept the Reigai as allies.

It still rankled Platinum, the existence of the Reigai, but she understood the practicality of their use. She’d agreed with Starlight that they had little choice in terms of reinforcing their numbers, but the Reigai seemed unreliable and even dangerous. She only hoped it would prove worth it in the long run to create the artificial souls. As for now, all she could do was wait and see if Luna took the bait. If need be she could freeze a few streets or buildings...

There was a meteoric impact as the light barrier of spirit energy around her Bankai was broken and somepony landed dead center amid the ice field in front of Fuyukogo’s fortress. Platinum noted with no small amount of remembered irritation that Princess Luna, but pure coincidence, landed in the exact same spot that Sunset Shimmer had stood upon on that fateful day that felt ages ago.

“My, my, that didn’t take long,” Platinum noted, “I thought you’d keep me waiting. I see you’ve reattached your wing. How does it feel?”

Luna was wearing her customary royal regalia, but had added to it a set of sharply curved and spiked armor forged of nearly black ice that transformed her hooves into wicked claws. Already a pair of broad bladed axes forged of the same conjured ice floated at Luna’s side as she shot a gaze of cutting blue towards Platinum. She flexed her wings, and even managed not to wince at the tenderness in the one that had been severed not so long ago.

“My wing is fine. Sufficient for short flights, as long as I do not push my speed,” Luna said in a tone of forced casualness.

“Ah, perhaps I should wait until you are fully healed, so you are not suffering a handicap?” Platinum ventured with a bite to her voice. Luna bared her teeth in a not-smile.

“A handicap is only fair to you, I would think. Otherwise I might not get much exercise from this. Cease your bluster, Platinum. I do not fear you, which is why I come willingly to deal with you and any traps you and your snake of a partner have set up. You and Starlight Glimmer have brought nothing but chaos and uncertainty to our world, and it is a pleasure to fulfill my duty as Equestria’s protector. Face you? Face me, if you dare, coward.”

It was with a weary sigh that Platinum slowly walked down the steps from her pagoda fortress of ice, using her own magic to level Fuyukogo’s glittering blue blade of curved lethality at the Princess of the Night. She halted a respectable twenty or so yards away from Luna, her stance slightly off center so that her unburned side faced her alicorn opponent.

“Duty, yes. I know that burden well. Once it was to Soul Society. Now it is to the few people remaining to me whom I care about. My son, and... my friends. Starlight Glimmer’s plans aside I owe her for preserving my son’s life. And Firefly...” Platinum’s own eyes narrowed, a furious resolution in them, “I shall have the cure for her curse from your lips, Princess Luna. If I must freeze and shatter every bone and your body and drag you back to her, you will undo the cursed wound you gave her.”

Only brief surprise registered on Luna’s features before she shook her head and readied herself, widening her stance an poising her axes of ice before her, magic lighting up her horn like a midnight blue beacon, “If you truly value her life so much, you should have brought her here and surrendered both her and yourself to our custody. Seeking further battle only proves how misguided you are. But fear not, once I’m done with you, and my sister deals with Starlight Glimmer, we shall find the rest of your allies. You might spend the rest of your life imprisoned in Tartarus, perhaps, but your friend will be cured and your son treated fairly as an innocent dragged into your delusional plans.”

Platinum had heard enough, and struck before Luna was even done speaking. With a wave of her Zanpaktou she commanded her Bankai to create an eruption of deadly ice spikes to spring up directly under Luna’s hooves. The alicorn, swift of wing even with her injury, leaped up and did an aerial roll, avoiding the impaling spears of ice before she dove straight at platinum, axe’s barred.

Both axes of black ice carved cross arcs towards Platinum, who shot forward to meet Luna’s attack, her own blade swinging forth to create a cutting wave of razor thin ice. This wave and Luna’s axes met in a sparking clash of spirit energy and magic, both forms of ice empowered by their respective user’s unique energies. The resulting clash of force exploded outward in a spherical wave of force, accompanied by a ringing boom so loud that not only did it shatter windows in both Canterlot palace and many buildings in the streets below, but even in distant Ponyville, just in eyesight of Canterlot on the mountain, ponies could hear the distant echo.

----------

Close to the walls of Canterlot palace there was a sizable building, situated in a beautiful park area, surrounded by carefully planted trees and bushes. The building was a long, rectangular affair, only two stories tall, but possessing of a humble grandeur all its own, separate from the palace it sat in the shadow of.

Canterlot’s Royal Library was a prestigious center of knowledge and learning for not just the city, but Equestria as a whole. The library not only served the citizens, but especially acted as a resources for several neighboring schools and universities, and was almost always busy. Students and casual knowledge seekers alike had been coming in and out the library when the incident had occurred, the vast fortress of ice forming in the sky, and the first echoing boom of Luna and Platinum’s duel made many civilians cry out in fear.

There were ponies of the Royal Guard stationed here as well, including a young pegasus stallion on loan from the Crystal Empire as part of an exchange program to enhance relations between the two nations. While not a crystal pony himself, his family having moved up to the Empire not long after its return from its magical exile, young Flash Sentry still felt some measure of pride in his role as a member of the Crystal Guard. He was determined to do just as well as the Canterlot Royal Guard he was temporarily assigned to, and so was the first to quickly call out to the civilians huddling for cover near the library entrance.

“Everypony please remain calm. Take shelter inside the library.”

Beside him a Royal Guard earth pony was already helping an elderly mare up, “Follow me inside, everypony. Flash, keep an eye out while I get these civies under some cover.”

“You got it,” Flash said, turning to scan the sky around that strange floating island of ice, trying not to shiver at the cold filling the air, or be intimidated by the hefty clashes of sound he heard up there. It was like a constant peal of thunder, and he could only hope Princess Luna would be alright.

He and only a few other Royal Guard had been put on the library square, and while most of those guards were directing frightened civilians to shelter, as a pegasus he had a height advantage to keep a watch for approaching danger. This was why he was the first to spot an unusual figure wearing a thick gray cloak approaching the stone steps up into the library. The figure was suspicious not just because of the figure’s distinctly tall and obviously bipedal nature. Minotaurs aside, Flash didn’t know many bipedal species frequenting Equestria, and he’d heard the briefings on the new invaders and that originally they were from another world where the main species were bipeds.

Without even thinking about it, Flash Sentry flew down in front of the approaching figure, readying the standard issue guard spear he carried in his hooves. He stayed airborne, hovering just a few feet above the ground, where he was faster. Everything in the briefings concerning the potential threat to the city suggested the enemy was possessed of incredible abilities, so Flash wasn’t about to give up any potential edge. He swallowed his unease and said in a commanding tone, “Halt, stranger, and identify yourself.”

His fellow guards saw what was going on, and some of them hurried on ushering civilians into the library while others started to spread out to help Flash confront the strange, robed individual.

Their nervousness only amplified when the figure let out a rather high and grating chuckle, like someone who was both sleep deprived and on a caffeine rush. Spindly gray hands reached out from the figure’s robes and wiggled about like someone trying to rake in leaves.

“Ohehehe, look at all of this in front of me! New species! New minerals! New preternatural phenomenon! Look at you my boy! Your wings are so small, yet you hover so perfectly in the air with but a few flaps! Your aerodynamics are beyond fascinating! I must study you, my boy. Ah but I’m forgetting my manners. I apologize. I get so excited when new research material is placed before me.”

The figure removed his hood, revealing human features that were alien to Equestria’s native Flash Sentry. The man’s gray skin was complemented only by a passionate fervor in his stark yellow eyes. White hair was left in a tangled, wild mess like an electrified octopus on his head. The stubble of a beard peppered his chin, save where a longer length was tied in a short braid down the tip of his chin. His robes more open now, one could see the length of a curved blade sheathed at his hip, and Flash felt a strange pressure on his body, like some unseen hand pressing down on his heart, as the man drew the slender katana and spun it in his wiggling fingers.

“You may refer to me as Starswirl, although the name is technically borrowed from my donor who provided the reishi for my creation. I do so wonder what my genuine self might think of a Reigai like me taking his name? Ah, the experiments we could conduct together. Of course, given my memories have been rolled back to an earlier stage, I don’t actually know what my modern self may be like. We’re separated by about two centuries wroth of memory, you see, boy? Heheheh, not that I mind. I don’t really care, as long as I can acquire more knowledge for myself, which Starlight Glimmer has so generously provided me the opportunity to do so, as long as I share. Speaking of knowledge, this is the library, is it not? I take it anyone is permitted entry? It’s a crime to withhold knowledge, you know.”

Flash Sentry shared a confused look with his fellow guards, and they gave him equally confounded expressions. None of them knew what to make of this man, claiming Starswirl’s name. Was that not the name of a famous unicorn mage? But the name Starlight Glimmer struck a chord, for the briefings did disclose that some otherworldly doppelganger of Princess Twilight’s protégé, Starlight, was responsible for the threat facing Equestria. If this man, Starswirl or not, was affiliated with her, then he was to be apprehended.

“Sorry sir,” Flash said, “Library is closed. There’s a crisis, and I’m pretty sure you’re a part of it. Now drop the weapon, otherwise we’ll have to subdue you by force.”

‘Starswirl’ let out another unhinged chuckle, and his eyes changed color, going from yellow to a luminous purple that leaked sparks of energy, “That’s fine. I’m all for collecting specimens in the field, and it sounds like I just got a round of volunteers.”

Flash could not catch the man’s motion as Starswirl vanished with a light breeze of sound, but his pegasus senses, attuned to air around him, did pick up on the disturbance Starswirl’s movements left in the air. This didn’t give Flash a lot of time to do more than turn to see Starswirl appearing on the other side of one of the earth pony guards, already swiping blood off of his katana and into a vial for collection while the guard fell over with a scream of pain from the severed tendons in his legs.

“Ah, I see the anatomy is not so different from Earth equines that the tendons are in significantly different areas. I thank you for the donation, as does science,” Starswirl said, and pocketed the vial of blood. While the other guards starred in stunned shock, Flash moved on instinct, diving at Starswirl’s back, spear thrusting out with lethal intent.

Starswirl sidestepped the thrust, whirling about not so much gracefully but with scientifically calculated precision. His blade cut up and through Flash’s spear, leaving the pegasus holding a small wood shaft as the front half clattered to the ground.

“Tsk. Bakudo Number Four: Hainawa.”

Starswirl’s words were punctuated by him raising a finger and from it springing a rope of crackling yellow light that wrapped around Flash and bound his limbs and wings, causing him to fall from the air and hit the pavement hard.

The rest of the guards got their senses back and all tried to rush the intruder at the same time, coming at him from multiple directions. Starswirl merely vanished again with that speedy burst of motion, this time appearing up in the air a good thirty feet. As the guards tried to regroup, some putting away spears to draw crossbows from their back holsters, Starswirl lowered a palm and chanted.

“Bakudo Number Twenty Nine: Kiri no Yuri Kago.” (Cradle of Mist)

A swirl of white fog gathered in his hand, then shot down and exploded outward in a thick bank of fog, a fog that filled with the movement of birds formed from the mist that sang a blissful and calming song of restful chirps. Flash Sentry, and his fellow guards, quickly found themselves losing feeling in their bodies as they grew lethargic, an overpowering sleep taking over their senses. In seconds every guard in the courtyard were slumbering like foals.

Starswirl briefly observed his handiwork, then flinched in annoyance at the sound of a loud explosion stemming from the floating palace of ice, where he could sense Platinum’s reiatsu clashing with Luna’s magic.

“Honestly, such barbaric obsession with violence just doesn’t suit a man of learning like myself. Spend as long as you want upon your duel, ladies. More time to pursue for me.”

That was, as he understood it, his role in this affair. He was largely unconcerned with Starlight Glimmer’s crusade against the Zero Division. He was not even wholly concerned with his own status as a recently created Reigai. No doubt Soul Society would not tolerate his existence, nor would the ‘real’ Starswirl likely consider him anything more than a passing subject of mild interest. The Reigai of Starswirl cared for none of it, only his own desire to acquire knowledge. Sharing specific tidbits with Starlight seemed a small price to pay for easy access to Hitsuyo-Aku’s research labs, and opportunities like this to plunder what knowledge he could from Equestria’s troves. He suspected Starlight had specifically created him with limited memories to ensure such a result. No doubt his older, ‘wiser’ self might have some reservations about Starlight actions that the Reigai lacked.

Not that any of this mattered. Knowledge was to be had!

With an upbeat motion to his walk, he landed in front of the library doors and proceeded to saunter inside.

Within he found himself in a grandiose chamber, its domed ceiling leading up to a second story. Both floors were filled with bookshelves and reading tables. Underneath most of those tables were huddled ponies, terrified civilians seeking shelter. Near a front desk a mare in glasses, wearing a plain, dark purple sweater over a cream colored coat and two toned mane of red and purple hair turned from where she’d apparently been arguing with the two remaining guards.

“You don’t understand, I have to get home, I- huh?” The mare with thick glasses blinked at Starswirl, while the two guards turned towards him, lowering their spears.

“How did you get in? Where are the other guards?” one demanded, and Starswirl shrugged.

“Taking a nap, my boy. Really I’m getting tired of the stupid questions you guard types keep asking. Who am I? What am I doing here? Why am I stabbing you? For science, I say!”

“Wait, but you haven’t stabbed me ye-urk!”

The guard let out a gurgle as Starswirl was instantly in front of him, sword already planted firmly in the guard’s chest. “Be careful, my boy. I don’t think I’ve pierced your lungs or heart, but a little slip to the left or right, and this will sorely test the limits of bleeding you ponies can endure before expiring.”

The mare in glasses let out a gasp and fell back against the library’s front counter, while the second guard tried to stab at Starswirl with her spear. The guardmare quickly found her spear caught on Starswirl’s Zanpaktou as he withdrew it from the mare’s companion and used it to block her strike, after which he kicked her in the chest hard enough to send her sprawling through the desk, shattering it in a shower of splinters. The unfortunate guard kept going until she flew into a bookshelf, breaking it and hitting the ground under a pile of fallen books. Starswirl waited a second or two to confirm no other guards were present to be dealt with before sheathing his Zanpaktou.

“Really I’m tired of all this stabbing nonsense. You, girl.”

The mare in glasses stared at him in horror as the guard Starswirl had stabbed collapsed on the ground, unconscious and bleeding out. She managed a quick stammer, “P-please don’t...”

“Oh do calm down. I’ve no intention of harming you. I just need directions. You work here, yes?”

“I-I-I-”

“Spit it out, girl. I haven’t got all day.”

The mare gulped, visibly trying to get a grip, “I intern here. I’m a student. Please, he’s bleeding... let me help him.”

“Hm?” Starswirl looked at the guard, then at the mare, noting the horn on her head, “Aaaah, you’re a unicorn? Pegasi, unicorns, earth ponies. Each with such fascinatingly individual characteristics. For science, I shall allow you to help him. I’d like to witness what magical technique you might apply.”

With another gulp and pale faced nod, the mare quickly lowered her head to the bleeding guard and touched her horn to his wound. A wash of soft lavender light emanated from her horn and formed threads that touched his flesh. Starswirl watched in interest, taking mental notes from the way the wound began to gradually scab over, “Hmm, it seems more limited than our healing Kido. Can you not even close the wound entirely?”

“I... I can’t,” the mare admitted, “I only started medical school. The best I can do is a little first aid.”

There were tears at the corners of her eyes, “He needs a hospital. Let me take him, please.”

“Bah, he’ll probably live long enough for help to arrive,” Starswirl said with a wave of his hand, “If he didn’t want to get stabbed, he shouldn’t have asked me moronic questions. Now, you seem relatively intelligent compared to what I’ve encountered of your species thus far, girl. Since you intern here, you must know where the valuable knowledge is kept. You shall take me to it.”

“What?” the mare gasped, and Starswirl turned a flat look at her, his eyes glowing with purple energy once more.

“Don’t make me repeat myself. Where is the restricted knowledge kept? Every library has a restricted section where the most interesting books are located. As my newly appointed research assistant I shall have you take me there post haste. Quickly girl, before I lose my patience.”

The way he tapped his blade against his hip suggested him losing his patience was not conducive to anypony's continued health. The mare closed her eyes and took a deep breath, clearly forcing herself to calm down, “Okay. Okay, but just promise me you won’t harm anypony else if I do.”

“Very well. Even if they get in my way, I’ll refrain from overtly lethal impalings, lacerations, explosions, meltings, burnings, or poisonings. Gah, I must be a sucker for a pretty face. Now get a move on, we’re wasting daylight and science waits for no man, or pony for that matter. Oh, girl, since I’ll need to enter your name into my records I shall have it before we proceed.”

Although she was still obviously terrified, the mare did manage at least a semblance of calm as she said, “Moondancer.”

“Good, good. And I am Starswirl. You see, we’re getting along already! Now onward, assistant, for knowledge!” Starswirl proclaimed, stepping over the unconscious form of the guard he’d stabbed while following a sweating Moondancer past rows of tables under which horrified ponies still huddled in trembling groups.

As Moondancer led him out of the main hall and into the library’s back corridors, she gave him a nervous glance over her shoulder, “You said your name is... Starswirl?”

Noticing the recognition in her eyes he made a throwing away gesture with one hand, “Ah, never mind that. A mere cosmic confluence of coincidence in which I share a name with individuals who are of some minor historic significance to both your world and mine. Hmm, but considering I was ‘born’ in this world, I suppose that would make this one my homeworld, would it not? But who cares about petty details like that? Hurry up, assistant Moondancer, I eagerly wish to see what treasures of forbidden knowledge are hidden in this library’s depths!”

“I...I don’t have a key to the restricted sections,” Moondancer pointed out, lowering her head, “I’m just an intern, remember?”

“And where is the library’s proper librarian?”

“Vacation.”

“Then if you’re the remaining employee would that not mean you’d have been told where the ‘key’ to this restricted section is, in case you needed it?”

Moondancer grimaced. In fact she had been told, because she’d been informed she’d need to let a certain pair of individuals into the restricted section that day. In fact, she’d let those two in just a few hours earlier, and they had yet to emerge from the restricted section. Even Moondancer herself didn’t go down there, nor did she know what made these two visitors so special that they’d been allowed access. But she knew they were now in anger if this madman was allowed in. But she could do nothing to stop it, without risking ending up like that guard.

“The...the key is in the librarian’s office. I can go get it.”

“Please do. I might break through whatever defenses are preventing entry to this restricted section, but I’d rather not risk damaging any of the valuable books within, so hop to it.”

So with a heavy heart did Moondancer lead Starswirl deeper into the library, silently praying for rescue, while simultaneously picking her brain for anything she might do to thwart this bizarre man’s intentions, or at least warn the two unicorns she’d let into the restricted section earlier, the strange dark stallion and the pretty mare with the crystal blue mane.

Episode 154: Nothing New Under the Sun

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Episode 154: Nothing New Under the Sun

Careful calculation of risk versus reward had been the guiding principle of much of Starlight Glimmer’s plans for the better part of her life since going rogue from Soul Society. She’d known, as soon as she’d truly learned the length and breadth of the Zero Division’s aims, that any action she took in opposing them from henceforth would be a high odds game of chance where every single toss of the dice could easily result in her death, the deaths of her friends who’d been in Xcution, and the eventual damnation of nearly every soul in her world.

As such she got very good at reading a situation. Emotionally driven as she was, and even Starlight could admit she let her emotions get the better of her many a time, she still tried to base her plans on well thought through understandings of the odds and the likely outcomes she could comfortably predict. It’s one of the reasons she’d felt confident that planting the seed of conflict with Sunset Shimmer and her friends would bear the fruit it did. Soul Society was usually very predictable in their responses, as tended to be the Hollows and the Quincy, hence it hadn’t been that hard to engineer the situations she desired back in her world.

She had come to believe Equestria would be the same. At first it had appeared as such.

The harsh golden glow that saturated the land, forming into an impenetrable pillar of immense radiance that impaled the heavens on a shaft of purest sunlight and magic left Starlight with the distinct feel that her calculations no longer applied. Or at the very least required some serious adjustment. The pressure bearing down on her soul was at once both quite alien, and yet hauntingly familiar. She’d felt pressure like this before. Spiritual pressure, of such density as to almost be beyond perception, like trying to gauge the weight of the sea when one rests at the bottom.

Her best point of comparison to what she felt now was the day that Discord had unleashed his Bankai on her, the closest she’d ever come to dying outright to someone in a fight. She’d understood then why Discord had been given an invitation to the Zero Division.

Now similar weight came down upon her from the immaculate tower of golden magic swelling into the sky from where Celestia had just been standing, and Starlight was hardly in ideal shape after fighting the alicorn Princess to a standstill. With a weary smile of lead on her lips, Starlight pulled upon the Hollow power within her, yanking forth as much as she could to sweep a hoof over her face and restore her broken mask. Even then, the mask remained somewhat cracked, and she could tell it wouldn’t last as long as before. She’d already used up a lot in the battle already. The only thing in her that didn’t seem drained was the pulsating star of the Hogyoku itself, the incandescent gem thumping in its place lodged in her chest with even greater excitement than before. If it was going to do anything useful, now would be the ideal time for it, but Starlight knew better than to count on that.

“I don’t suppose you have any clue what that busted sword was that Celestia pulled out?” Starlight asked Chrysalis.

For her part, the changeling Queen was still clutching at her head as if in pain, not quite doubled over but standing on shaky legs. A bitter snarl burst forth from her that was somewhat ruined by a trickle of obvious fear in her voice, “How should I know!? I’ve never seen it before! I knew Celestia was powerful, which is why I never dared challenge her directly without a plan to first weaken her or empower myself! But this... this is beyond anything I thought her capable of. If you have a means of escape, we should be using it. Now!”

The sardonic glaze to Starlight’s expression deepened as she gestured at her now clothing bereft body, “I did. A few scrolls meant to help the Crossgate target specific individuals for transport. Those got burned up from the damn orbital sun laser. The last one I had, I gave to Trixie, with specific instructions. She ought to be long gone by now.”

Chrysalis blinked once, then twice, and she then reached up into her hole strewn mane of dark green hair and yanked out a scroll, “You mean one of these?”

“Where did you get that?” Starlight asked, quite confounded, as she’d never given one of those scrolls to Chrysalis. She’d intended to use the ones she’d had on her to evacuate herself, Chrysalis, and Discord if they managed to catch him, but had wanted to hold on to them, just in case Chrysalis had gotten any ideas to bug out of the fight early.

“Platinum,” Chrysalis replied, an odd note in her voice, as if she was as surprised as anyone else by the answer, “She said to use it if I felt my life in danger. Which I am sorely tempted to do.”

“Why aren’t you?”

Chrysalis squinted her eyes, still rubbing at her head, not merely in pain, but now seemingly in confusion, “I don’t know. I should leave you to deal with this mess yourself, but...”

A deep frustrated growl rose up in her hesitating voice, and Chrysalis shoved the scroll over to Starlight before hefting her remaining anti-magic javelin and facing the blinding light from Celestia’s position, “I’ve fled, and fled, and fled from this and I am tired of it! So utterly sick and tired of running and scurrying and hiding! Platinum has nothing and still somehow had the courage to go fight Luna alone. That disgusting other version of me is dealing with the pink Princess and probably laughing behind my back about how much more powerful she is! And you’re not running away from this even though I can smell your fear, Starlight Glimmer. I will NOT be outdone! I will not be made small by others fighting while I run away!”

“Ego, got it, say no more. Glad to have you still on board,” Starlight replied, “Maybe together we’ve still got a shot at this.”

“I can assure you both that you do not,” came a somewhat raspy, blood tainted voice and both Starlight and Chrysalis regarded Discord, whom Starlight had set down next to one of the pillars of Ponehenge. He was bound with Kido now, a wrap of yellow chains from a high end binding Kido to keep him from moving around too much and to prevent him from removing the javelin in his chest. Starlight didn’t think he was mortally wounded, but was a tad worried, given how pale he was looking.

“You ought to save your strength,” she told him, “And try not to wiggle around too much. I want you disabled, not dead.”

He let out a rough laugh, his eyes of deepest yellow with blood red iris’ gazing at her like a pair of shiny deviled eggs, “I’d be more concerned for yourselves, ladies. In case it hasn’t quite sunk in yet, Celestia didn’t want to use that dilapidated old Relic, and not without reason. But you know what, I won’t spoil things. I’ll just sit here, relax as much as I can with a shaft of magic robbing metal lodged in my sternum, and enjoy the show.”

A mere few seconds after his words, the gigantic shaft of unnecessarily luminous light vanished in a snap. In its place was left a clear sky that at first appeared empty, devoid of all save the sun itself which remained at its noontide zenith.

Then Starlight saw the first feather softly float down, a huge and pure pinion of snow white light. Then another floated down, its passage creating a faint chime of sound like a heavenly string being plucked. Before long a shower of these feathers were raining down from above, a flurry of holy plumage made of raw light that upon contact with the ground burst into motes of residual magic. Then the ground where Celestia had been standing became bathed in a pool of focused light, as if the sun itself was creating a pathway for something to descend.

And descend she did, floating down gently from the blinding sun itself to glide downward like a celestial figure of myth gracing the mortal world but belonging wholly to the realm of the divine.

Starlight and Chrysalis both squinted against the light, but still saw Celestia fully as the alicorn alighted softly upon the ground.

She resembled little of the Princess that had stood in that approximate spot a few minutes earlier. It was difficult to tell if she was even a being of flesh and blood any longer. She was golden from end to end, even where it appeared to be fur and flesh, it remained a gleaming shade of metallic gold as to make it near indistinguishable from the parts of her covered in armor. And there was certainly quite a bit of her clad in armor! Armor that sheathed her limbs, rear, and chest in such intricately carved plates it looked as if she was wearing a piece of artwork rather than something meant for the battlefield. Every inch bore a carving either related to the sun, or the heavens themselves, with clouds, stars, and angelic wings swirling across every portion of the golden platemail. Most prominent, however, was the sun sigil on the chest, carved with nine points shaped like swords. While Celestia had worn a tiara, what now graced her brow was nothing short of a crown, with four grand sun sigils rising around a mane of pure, blazing white. Indeed, both mane and tail looked like the white fire of a sun’s corona, flickering with shimmering heat. Similar light filled Celestia’s eyes, only the hint of golden iris’ within. Her wings were similarly metallic gold, the larger feathers sharpened like sword blades, and upon the back of each wing spun wheels of white fire, a series of three such halos for each wing.

For a second Starlight wondered what happened to the sword, but it appeared within that same thought, descending from on high just as Celestia had, planting itself in the ground next to the transformed alicorn. It had changed completely as well, now a broad and long blade whose shape could barely be described outside of being a curved and elegant form as if someone had taken a flicker of sunfire and crystalized it into a physical form. Its edge was at once both graceful, yet jagged, like tongues of fire, gold metal shot through with bands of white flame. The blade swirled towards a hilt that looked as if the points of a star had been slightly curved by an inward gravitational force and forged around a spherical central gem of white fire, which in turn birthed a handle and pommel of spotless pearl white crystal.

Furthermore, the damn thing was a good pace taller than Celestia was, giving Sweet Cider competition for the ‘Stupidly Biggest Sword Award’. Starlight might have laughed at it if she couldn’t sense the overwhelming power of the weapon. Sometimes bigger really was better.

“On second thought,” squeaked Chrysalis, “Perhaps bravery is overrated. Can I have that scroll back, Starlight?”

Before Starlight could respond to that, Celestia’s voice echoed out. It was pitched differently, somehow richer and more maturely resonant compared to earlier, and Celestia had already had a rather motherly voice to begin with. But if that had been the voice of a warm mother seeking to educate her children, this was more like the stern press of one who was not pleased to find their kid’s hand in the cookie jar.

“Even if you did use that scroll, I would not let either of you escape,” Celestia said, and her horn did not so much light up as it simply filled with a liquid flash of sunlight. Starlight caught sight of a streak of several threads of energy that rose into the air and immediately wove a dense pattern into the sky. Starlight hardly finished blinking before she saw the area, probably for a few kilometers, was now encased in some manner of shining gold dome, laced with dozens of interlocking magical circles.

“Something to block teleportation?” Starlight said, trying to hide her nervousness behind a tone of casual curiosity. Celestia’s eyes were so bright with ambient power it was hard to tell where she was looking, but Starlight thought the alicorn’s gaze flicked towards Ponehenge itself, or rather its center area.

“More than that. A spell to counteract the influence of planar shifting itself. I don’t know the technologies that went into the device you used to come to my realm, but we’ll see if it can pierce a barrier that extends to multiple planes simultaneously.”

“Guess we’re about to find out,” Starlight said, and moved with all the speed she could muster, not knowing if it’d be fast enough, with Celestia’s new form.

She took the scroll that Chrysalis had given her and unrolled it in the same motion she had moved in, aiming for Discord. She felt an immense weight crush around her, gripping her body, and saw a flickering aura of pure gold surrounding her. Celestia’s telekinetic grip of magic, far more potent now, all but halted Starlight in mid-step. Starlight’s reiatsu burst outward, the Hogyoku pulsating like a hot furnace in her chest. It was frightening that Celestia's might risen so far, but Starlight was not so utterly outgunned that her own reiatsu couldn’t resist the magical grip enough to still move, albeit slower than before.

Of course “slower” was a deadly thing when facing someone with Celestia’s abilities, and Starlight sensed a painfully sharp rise in magical and spiritual energy from the alicorn as a point of light as bright as the sun in the sky formed in front of Celestia like a miniature orb of the same nature.

Starlight grunted in exertion as she swung her transformed Zanpaktou, the estoc blade ripping into the air like it was slicing cloth. A hole between two spaces was torn and Starlight stuck again in the same motion, ripping an even wider hole around her. She then hurled the scroll through one of the holes while using a burst of her own telekinetic magic to activate the kanji symbol upon it that was the activation key.

The scroll passed through the hole in the air Starlight’s Zanpaktou had cut. Apparently Celestia’s spell prevented special distortions from the outside getting in, but didn’t affect such abilities within the dome itself, or perhaps this particular Zanpaktou’s ability fell beyond the purview of whatever planes the dome extended into. Starlight silently thanked Ditzy Doo for having such a useful and potent Zanpaktou as she watched the scroll pop out the other end of the hole and land on Discord’s head, stuck on one of his antlers.

In the same moment, Celestia’s summoned orb had shot out a pencil thin beam of incandescent white light. Fortunately for Starlight the second hole she’d torn open in space was set just right to catch the beam, transferring it to another hole that she’d opened right above Celestia.

Celestia, in a motion swift as light, grabbed the sword at her side and swept it up, using it to deflect her own beam away from her. Starlight saw the beam lance through the landscape to the west, cutting a distant hill cleanly in half like a slice of cake.

The scroll that was now stuck to Discord emitted a brief glow of ambient blue light, and Starlight held her breath.

The Crossgate had been designed to pierce almost any layer of reality in order to transport its targets from one location to another, no matter how distant or layered in protections. Whether for the purpose of invasion or evacuation, the Twelfth Division had conceived of the device as the ultimate means of moving something from anywhere to anywhere else, regardless of circumstances. There was good reason she was banking on it being able to get her to the Soul Palace itself, for even with the Queen’s Key she’d stolen form Soul Society she didn’t doubt the Zero Division would have defenses in place in case someone ever did make an attempt at breaking in.

Starlight’s held breath maintained itself for a heart stopping second before she heard the sound of something being torn open, like a hole being punched through steel. A static wavering appeared amid the dome, and Starlight could almost see the air waver in protest. Then Discord was surrounded by a waver of light, and was gone. Transported, ideally to Hitsuyo-Aku, as per the plan. Or, at least mostly the plan. Starlight had intended to have the scrolls needed to transport herself and Chrysalis to safety as well, but that was no longer possible.

Chrysalis herself looked momentarily horrified at Starlight, stammering, “W-what did you just do!? That was our only way to escape!”

Starlight kept her eyes on Celestia, who was in turn looking at her pierced dome with a look of utmost consternation.

“If she retrieved Discord then all of this was for nothing, Chrysalis. Another second and she might have yanked that javelin out of him, and the whole plan would be up in smoke.”

“As if it isn’t already,” shouted Chrysalis, waving a hoof at Celestia, “What do you plan to do about her!?”

“A question I was wondering myself,” Celestia said as she redirected her attention to the both of them, and both Starlight and Chrysalis were forced to take a step back as a burst of raw, sun gold energy poured off of Celestia’s body like a bountiful ocean. The air grew thick with the alicorn’s magical might, and Starlight had to wonder again at the sensation of spiritual pressure along with it.

“I’ll admit, I don’t actually have a plan to beat you,” Starlight said with a modest shrug, sweat dripping down the side of her face behind her Hollow mask, “I figured you had some aces to play, but I thought Discord was your biggest card, so I’d come prepared to remove him from the board. You honestly got me fully stumped here with this supermode of yours. Before you start thoroughly kicking our butts, mind at least telling me what it is? What was the deal with that broken old sword you had before going all Golden Empress on us?”

“I am no ‘Empress’, child,” Celestia said, leveling her remarkably humongous blade at Starlight, “I am Eos, of the Highest Dominion, Queen of the Day and... and...”

Starlight looked on in bewildered, but interested amazement as Celestia’s stance abruptly grew unsteady, her expression going from supreme confidence to a moment of confusion, “No, that’s not right. I am Celestia. Ugh, blast it all, is it supposed to be this difficult to think straight? I only used one, so why... aaah, why is her presence so strong in my mind?”

Chrysalis and Starlight exchanged looks.

“Running time, while she’s distracted?” Starlight suggested, and Chrysalis mutely gave a vigorous few nods, and the pair started to turn to make a break for it. Starlight was fully willing to try and use Ditzy Doo’s Zanpaktou to try and break through the dome, although she had no way of knowing if that would work.

They only got a few steps before an enormous wall of sunfire sprang up to block their path, bisecting the dome in a hellish heat. Celestia’s voice was still wavering, but there was a fresh intensity to it that left Starlight feeling pin pricks on the back of her neck.

“Neither of you are going anywhere, mortals! None ignore the edicts of Eos. None... ugh, enough, my mind may be divided, but be it either as Celestia or not, I cannot afford to let you two escape.”

The ground began to shake was more power erupted out of Celestia’s body, a golden aura so wide that it looked like she walked amid a corona of the sun. Her sword was raised high with her magic, and Starlight and Chrysalis were forced to turn to face it as the powerful alicorn Princess advanced on them amid a melting wave of molten rock that spread from where she stepped.

Starlight, sweat soaked, readied her Zanpaktou. She didn’t know if it would be easier or much, much worse to fight Celestia while she was mentally unhinged, but either way the day was about to get a lot more complicated than she’d ever anticipated.

----------

Strangely, more than having his chaotic magic barred from him by the ignobly stuck javelin in his chest, Discord really detested having such a hard time breathing that he couldn’t get off one more snarky comment before that mentally regressed idiot Starlight had managed to poof him somewhere else. It wasn’t teleportation, otherwise Celetia’s barrier would have blocked it. Heck, a spell of that caliber would have probably blocked him from casually snapping himself to wherever he liked. Briefly, at any rate. Very few things were actually beyond the Lord of Chaos.

Well, except physically removing a mere thrice-damned three foot metal stick! It was beyond insulting to his sense of personal majesty that he’d let himself get caught by that. Well, not “let himself”, but Discord was mentally kicking himself for getting taken in by Starlight’s taunting. Much as he was wroth with her at the moment he was at least man enough to give a tiny shred of credit that she’d played to his ego quite effectively and gotten him to focus so much attention on her that he hadn’t spotted where the real attack was going to come from.

But setting that aside, where was he?

He saw he was in a rather vast and high ceilinged room, the walls composed of no shortage of complex looking weavings of gold metal pipes and odd contraptions made of crystals in complex metal housings. There was an edge to the room that suggested a drop off behind him, and a bridge of sorts, like a plain stone platform, that extended off beyond that. Of more immediate interest was the huge device taking up a sizeable portion of the chamber in front of him, consisting of multiple, curved pillars around a central pool of silver liquid that pulsated with streams of energy. Above the pool crackled motes of power that turned into disc shaped windows that shone like a mirror with images of multiple places, some of which Discord recognized as locations within Equestria.

Before he could make out any details, however, a young lady appeared before him, quite literally snapping into view as if materializing from thin air. Discord recognized it as just high-speed motion, and the girl he quickly noted was one of Chrysalis’ changelings, from her dark chitinous hide to her gleaming, jewel-like eyes of light blue. However this wasn’t one of the native Chrysalis’ brood, as evidenced by the hole in this one’s chest and the fragments of bone around her brow and the pink frill on her head. She was wearing a white vest with black trim, and a similarly colored skirt, with a gleaming kukri blade sheathed through a sash around her waist. In a sing-song voice, the Arrancar changeling buzzed into the air and to Discord’s extreme discomfort, landed lightly to balance on the javelin in his chest.

“Heya mister Discord! Welcome to Hotel Hitsuyo-Aku! I’m your hostess for the evening. Call me Ocellus. Now I have you booked for an extended stay, and I’m just pleased as punch to show you to your accommodations, but first things first every guest gets a free souvenir to commemorate their stay.”

Again, minus the length of sharp metal interfering with just about every one of his bodily functions, Discord would have either instantly snapped his fingers to make this overly cheerful bug a lot more agreeable to his tastes, or at least batted her away. As it was he wasn’t even highly capable of moving very well. His body was made of magic, after all, so having his magic disrupted was seriously weakening every aspect about him, including just simply having the physical strength to move. Granted, he could probably still yank the javelin out, albeit with some strain, which is exactly what he tried to do... but the binding Kido Starlight had lain on him was still active as well, so even his physical struggles couldn’t produce enough movement to get that much done.

And he certainly couldn’t stop Ocellus from snapping a metal collar around his neck, one he momentarily feared might be more anti-magic, but he sensed no additional disruption to his arcane might. Instead the collar beeped, and from it spread a coating of light, an energy sheath that hardened around him and arrested his limited motion even further.

“Now I hear you’ve got some crazy powerful magic, so that pokey stick has to stay in you, but don’t fret, we won’t let you bleed out. Hotel Hitsuyo-Aku boasts a 67% survival rate for all its guests! We just need you to stay extra still so you don’t hurt yourself any further while we treat your wound, or at least keep you hooked up to a machine that’ll maintain a constant healing Kido on you so you don’t bleed out.”

“I... am going to... rate this place... zero stars,” Discord assured her in his most serious tone, somewhat ruined by the rasp in his voice from labored breathing.

From nearby another individual approached, a colt with white fur and a brown patch over one of his eyes, bearing a similarly brown mane and tail both neatly combed. He was wearing a black robe and a sheathed katana at his side. In a faintly accented voice he looked at Ocellus and said, “I don’t understand. Weren’t Miss Starlight and Miss Chrysalis supposed to come with him? Why did we only get a signal from one of the scrolls?”

Ocellus tilted her head and sat back on her haunches, her changeling wings buzzing in a contemplative manner, “Huh, good point, Pipsqueak. Thought the plan was for all three of them to pop over as soon as they snagged the big fish here. Better go check the readings quick-like!”

Discord was roughly grabbed around the head by an overly exuberant Ocellus, who flew along with her wings and dragged him like an oversized teddy bear, alongside a very worried looking Pipsqueak to the front of the massive device that Discord assumed was the “Crossgate” Starlight Glimmer had used to reach Equestria. In front of the gate device a number of pipes that burned with geometric patterns of light fed into a huge obelisk. Attached to this metallic tombstone was a hexagon shaped monitor and control panel. Pipsqueak went to it and started manipulating the controls, while Ocellus stared at the monitor, holding Discord almost absent mindedly. Not that he could move now, or do more than grunt in protest. He was using the free time to invent various forms of revenge he was going to get on everyone involved in this poor treatment of a national treasure such as himself.

“Looks like Starlight and Not-Mom are both still at the Ponehenge place,” Ocellus said, apparently getting far more out of the random looking graphs, glyphs, bars, and other weird symbols on the screen than Discord was, “But what in Tirek’s burning left nipple is that energy reading!? Is this thing busted or something?”

“N-no, I don’t think so,” Pipsqueak said, gulping, “Everything looks like it’s working normally. I think that energy signature is Celestia’s.”

“No way, it’s like, a whole order of magnitude bigger now. Way too big. We couldn’t even lock onto anyone without those scrolls when Starlight and Celestia were holding back, but with all of that crazy energy there, we’ll never be able to get a fix on them. Hey, you!” Ocellus shook Discord, “What’s the deal? Aren’t you supposed to be the most powerful dude in this world? That’s why we targeted you, you know?”

Discord let out a bitter laugh, “Me... the most powerful? Hah. True, more or less. If you don’t count what Luna and Celestia can become if they tap into their legacy. That’s a whole different ball game that’d ensure anyone facing them would be in for a bad day. Much like Starlight Glimmer is in for right now.”

“Ooooh hell in a handbasket,” Ocellus said, dropping him without a second thought, “Looks like Miss Glimmer miscalculated. Pip, we need to figure out a way to get her and Not-Mom out of there, fast!”

“I don’t know how,” Pipsqueak said, “The Crossgate’s targeting system doesn’t do well with magical interference. It’s why we made those scrolls in the first place. A strong spiritual signature that can be locked onto. Right now there’s so much magic present I can’t find their specific reiatsu.”

Ocellus made a high pitched grumble as she kicked the console lightly, “Well we sure can’t afford to lose Miss Glimmer, and I think Not-Mom is funny how she makes Actual Mom all grumpy, so rather not ditch her either. What if we just widen the Crossgate’s transport pattern to include the entire area?”

The way Pipsqueak flicked his whole head towards her with wide eyes suggested his shock at the idea, even if his voice didn’t raise an octave, “But if we did that wouldn’t we end up transporting Celestia too!?”

“Aaaaaah!” Ocellus rubbed her head between her hooves, “You’re right! This sucks! Think Ocellus, think. There’s got to be a way to cut through that interference, even without a scroll.”

“Wait, didn’t Miss Glimmer give a scroll to Trixie?” said Pipsqueak, his eyes now refocused on the monitor as he fiddled with the controls, “We still haven’t gotten a signal from her. Shouldn’t she have used the scroll by now?”

“Huh, good point. She’s that Bount that snuck over here before all of us did, right? If she’s got a scroll she ought to have used it already, but if you don’t have a signal from her... then that means she’s still...”

----------

Trixie knew she ought to have run away as instructed, but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. She had unfurled the scroll Starlight had given her, and seen the instructions it contained. It had explained the scroll was a reiatsu infused signal booster meant to allow the Crossgate to target whoever bore the scroll so that they could be transported, but there were two reasons Trixie didn’t touch the activation kanji, the symbol for “Go”.

One, she had a terrible feeling that something bad was going to happen to Starlight, a feeling the Bount just could not shake. Her loyalty warred with itself, for Trixie knew she should trust Starlight’s judgment and do as she was told. Yet she recalled all Starlight Glimmer had done for her. Trixie had spent much of her life alone, losing even the dim memories of her parents at a young age when they’d been hunted down by Soul Reapers. Trixie had desperately fled from place to place, never staying long in any one part of the world, with little hope or purpose beyond a vague notion of looking for more of her own kind. Starlight had changed that wandering, lonely life into one of meaning, helping Trixie increase her power, develop the strength of Eisenwand, and provide a route forward in which Trixie could dream of a world without Soul Society.

For all her bravado, Trixie knew she wasn’t anywhere near powerful enough to really stand beside Starlight in the battles to come, but she wanted to do everything she could to help, regardless, and fleeing just did not seem right, even when the order came from Starlight herself.

The second reason Trixie had hesitated to use the scroll is because she sensed him coming. Her Doll, Eisenwand.

She’d found a hiding place a few hills away from the battle-site, amid the few remaining trees within miles of Ponehenge. There she waited, feeling her Doll’s distinct reiatsu ever more rapidly approaching. Finally she saw him, or rather his floating head, flying through the air. In his iron mouth was her beloved hat, and Trixie turned to him with a grateful smile and all but leaped to grab the metallic stallion’s floating head as he reached her.

“Took you long enough!” she cried, taking her hat as he offered it to her. The iron stallion’s ruby eyes flashed as he replied in a clipped baritone.

“It was not easy, Mistress, to steal your headgear from under Equestrian guard, then follow you all the way out here. You are fortunate we are so attuned, otherwise I may not have sensed your reiatsu at such distance. I apologize for the delay, but I moved with all possible speed.”

“It’s well enough,” Trixie said, affixing her hat to her head and making a swift gesture, “Eisenwand, the rest of your body; Zeige Ditch!”

From the crest upon her hate swirled forth the red and black mist that took shape into the rest of her Doll’s body. As Eisenwand reattached his head to his mane body, spreading his gleaming wings of metal, Trixie reached out and the gem on his chest detached, flying to her hoof. There, it extended into the iron shafted, ruby capped scepter that Trixie held firmly.

A beam of light in the distance flew out and cut a nearby hill cleanly in two, and went on to slice apart several more kilometers of terrain. Trixie and Eisenwand watched this, and her Doll coughed politely.

“Are you certain you wish to go back, Mistress? Against that?”

Trixie gulped, but then firmly adjusted her hat and held her scepter tightly, the unused scroll tucked neatly in her mane, “The Gallant and Gregarious Trixie does not make idle boasts. Come, Eisenwand, be it even in the smallest manner, we shall find a way to tip the balance for Starlight Glimmer!”

----------

Chrysalis may have drawn her Zanpaktou, but she felt little rush to actually use it, instead just idly bouncing the blade around between her hooves as she offered the pink Princess of the Crystal Empire a long tongue lick of her lips, her eyes shifting towards the battle in the streets below. There, Chrysalis’ excellent eyesight and spiritual senses had little trouble discerning the shape of events. Her darling children were having a spot of trouble with the handsome white stallion who bore a striking resemblance to one of the Quincy Sternritter. Looked like that relationship mirrored the one in the human realm, then, although from the smell on Cadence things had advanced even further than back home. While her children were having trouble cracking Shining Armor’s defenses, and that of the contingent of crystal ponies advancing down the street, she could tell her children were mostly playing. Not even using Resurreccion yet. Good, she’d taught them well. Play with the food, have fun, never be too eager to end things fast. Life was meant to be enjoyed, not rushed through.

“Looks like your husband is playing nicely with my darling offspring,” Chrysalis commented, as if she was a housewife playing morning gossip with a neighbor, “He seems to be good with children. You must care for him deeply.”

Cadence’s jaw visibly tightened and her nostrils flared at Chrysalis’ seemingly innocent commentary, and she flew at the Espada with a remarkably swift burst of speed. Her crystal spear shot out in a glinting rain of thrusts, surprisingly more than Chrysalis would have expected. She still didn’t have much trouble slightly turning her body this way and that to avoid the piercing polearm, occasionally using a hoof or the scabbard of her Zanpaktou to deflect amid her dodging.

“You keep your damned eyes off of him!” Cadence snarled, “Your only concern right now is me.”

Chrysalis, not even looking at Cadence now as she glanced over at Zecora, kept blocking and dodging as she said, “Were you planning to help, or what?”

Zecora wasn’t even looking at the two combatants, instead holding out her transformed Zanpaktou like some kind of dowsing rod as her eyes narrowed in focus upon the crystal tower, “You seem to have things well in hand. Or hoof, as it happens. You can be the Princess’ opponent. I shall turn my attention to securing our objective.”

With that, Zecora vanished with a Flash Step, and Chrysalis sensed the Reigai appearing down at the bottom of the crystalline tower, near where the Crystal Heart itself was on display. The Espada laughed, “Oh very well, I guess she can have fun dealing with whatever defenses you ponies have set up around your sparkly gem, while you and I can play, Princess.”

With a blurring spin of her spear, Cadence unleashed a series of arcing slashes that left trails of sparkling lights in the air. Chrysalis looked on without a great deal of concern on her bemused features as the trails of light formed into sharpened ribbons of pale blue light that wrapped around her, their edges trying to dig into Chrysalis' hardened skin. Chrysalis imagined she could rip herself free of the bindings, but was curious to see where Cadence was going with this, so waited patiently for the Princess to finish.

Cadence’s horn flashed and a set of five magical circles drew themselves into shape in front of her, one after another in a straight line aimed right at the bound Chrysalis. Cadence then leveled her spear and charged into the magic circles, and with each one she passed through her speed doubled and a magical aura around her and her spread intensified. This led to her impacting with Chrysalis in an explosion of force and a burst of blue energy which left the crystal spear embedded in Chrysalis’ chest. Any satisfaction Cadence may have worn, however, was swiftly erased as Chrysalis let out an unperturbed and appreciative whistle.

“Whewwww, not entirely shabby, my delightfully naïve morsel,” Chrysalis said, and flexed her limbs. The ribbons of magical light that had encased her began to tear, and were torn apart a few seconds later. Chrysalis then wrapped the hoof not holding her Zanpaktou around the shaft of the spear in her and gave it an affectionate pat, “I admit my Heirro was never my strong point, but piercing it at all is still impressive, even if I wasn’t backing it up with any reiatsu just then.”

“Hmph, just toying with me, are you? That’s why you didn’t try to dodge?” Cadence said, pulling back, along with her spear. Chrysalis didn’t try to halt her, letting the spear yank from her chest. The wound there didn’t even bleed for more than an instant before the hole pulsated and closed.

“Well of course I’m toying with you. I’m here to enjoy myself, and it wouldn’t be any fun at all to just snap your dainty neck and dangle your lifeless body in front of your husband and your subjects for all to gawk at. Hilarious, but also gauche and just generally nowhere near as satisfying as taking my time with things. Besides, I thought I’d at least see how strong you were first, let you get a few hits in. I’m a good sport, despite what rumors may float about to the contrary. So, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that wasn’t your best shot just now, yes?”

A stillness came over Cadence’s features, almost like the flawless reflection of a diamond, as she leveled her spear once more and magic started to flow off of her in streaming flickers of blue from both her horn and her body.

“Far from it. I know I can’t hold a candle to the likes of Celestia or Luna, but I haven’t been sitting idle, enjoying the married life. I’ve been preparing to defend my people, home, and family from monsters just like you.”

Chrysalis let out a howl of laughter, “Oh, poor girl, there are no monsters like me, not in my world or yours. But I like the spirit you’re showing. Reminds me of an old friend. I wonder what she’s up to now...? Well, no matter, it’s you I’m playing with today. Now, I think I’ll change into something a bit more comfortable.”

A crackling gout of sickly emerald fire engulfed Chrysalis’ body. In an instant she went from the form of an Equestrian changeling’s equine body shape to the form of her original, tall and painfully well curved human-like Arrancar body. Even Cadence was briefly struck but the arresting level of unnatural beauty contained even in a body that was alien to her visual senses, as if whatever qualities made up Chrysalis’ form somehow transcended the boundaries of taste, preference, or even knowledge of lust. The transformation did, at least, provide Chrysalis with a replica of her Arrancar clothing, although that left little enough to the imagination in the way the white and black trimmed dress hugged her body and left all the right parts exposed to bare, onyx skin.

Now with nicely dexterous fingers to work with, Chrysalis twirled her Zanpaktou and proceeded to vanish with Sonido, her voice making a dancing chime on the wind, “Try to keep up, Princess.”

It was all Cadence could do now just to defend herself as Chrysalis descended upon her like a dark stormfront, all black blurring motions and deadly timed cuts from all angles. Cadence worked overtime with her spear, magic pouring from her horn to lace speed enhancements on her senses and body while simultaneously conjuring kite shaped shields of blue crystal to quickly swim about her like a protective school of fish. Even then Chrysalis’ blade was finding it’s mark numerous times, the Espada making shallow cuts on Cadence’s body. Her armor soaked the initial damage, but there were a few places where her unprotected flesh was sliced. It was obvious to Cadence that Chrysalis was still playing, only making shallow wounds. She focused her magic briefly upon her body... for a purpose that she made a point to keep secret, letting the wounds bleed, or at least appear to do so.

And ever so slowly she retreated, drawing Chrysalis closer to the tower.

Meanwhile Zecora stood in front of the area where the Crystal Heart sat upon a podium of similarly blue crystal, on clear display directly beneath the giant edifice of the tower itself. Suspiciously there were no guards present, but Zecora had known that before she’d even come down. Her Zanpaktou revealed everything around her, piercing all with its unmitigated gaze. Neither physical or metaphysical barriers were able to stop the power of the blade, and it allowed Zecora to see into the truth of all within the power’s range.

It had always been a useful tool for healing, as it let her see the exact nature of the wounds she was treating both before and during the healing process.

Or rather, it let the real Zecora do that. The Reigai had to regretfully remind herself she’d never healed anyone before, she simply had the memories of a great, kind, and noble healer. She was nothing more than a replica of the Fourth Division’s Captain, and had not been “alive” for more than a week. Yes, Starlight Glimmer had begun making the Reigai well before today, but each was still all but a newborn by anyone’s measure of time.

It did no good to dwell on, Zecora knew. She had a task to perform, and if she wished to keep herself and her fellow Reigai alive, she needed to be about it, before Chrysalis did any more damage to this nation of innocent ponies.

To that end, she had to determine the safest way to retrieve the Crystal Heart. She was not so reckless as to just walk up and try and grab the object. Even a casual glance was enough to show Zecora that doing so would be, if not deadly, at the very least problematic.

The sight granted to her by her Zanpaktou showed her that the Crystal Heart was layered in numerous protections. The outer layer consisted of an invisible barrier, not unlike the wards that Soul Reapers used. The ward was attached to the crystal tower itself, and Zecora could look at the pattern of woven magic within it as clearly as someone might look at the threads of a quilt to discern the images they made. Granted she knew little of magic, but while the two used different types of energy she did notice a few similar patterns to what she’d seen in Kido spells. At a guess, she imagined this outer layer would trigger a physical blast of force to push back anyone who tried to cross it.

She might be able to just power her way through, but disabling the ward would be less risky. However she could also tell that there was a second layer of defense directly beyond the first ward, meant to trigger when someone attempted to interfere with or breach the first. This defense was tied to multiple magical circles engraved on the ground and on the ceiling of the bottom of the tower. The symbols were unfamiliar to Zecora, but the energy charged within each circle looked elemental to her, perhaps fire or electricity? They would probably direct blasts or beams at intruders.

Past those elemental wards, Zecora saw a complex weaving of magic energy around the Crystal Heart itself, like a moth’s cocoon wrapped in a conical shape to protect the pulsating heart-shaped gem. Zecora had no idea what this cocoon ward might do, as its weaving was so dense and esoteric that even with her Zanpaktou all the insight she could glean was that it was some kind of amplifier.

Pondering her course, she looked up at the crystal tower itself, expanding her spiritual senses. She could still see and feel the fight between Cadence and Chrysalis, and felt a pang of sympathy for the alicorn. It was clear she was heavily overmatched by the Second Espada, and that Chrysalis was just taking her time to savor her opponent’s growing realization of the fact. And yet...

“Hmm?” Zecora blinked, her attention now focusing upon Cadence herself. She hadn’t noticed earlier, but now that she was paying attention, she realized something about the Princess. Interesting. Had Chrysalis noticed, or was the Espada so flush with her own superiority that she hadn’t actually realized the truth?

Well, no business of Zecora’s. She’d let Chrysalis figure it out on her own.

Now... how to get the Crystal Heart?

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Every corner of Canterlot Library’s restricted section bore cobwebs and many decades of gathered dust. Very few creatures were allowed access to the cloistered rooms built down into the very rock of the mountain that Canterlot was constructed on. A bare few lamps were left to be lit in case the rare visitor was slowed down to these chambers, and one such lamp was now lit as a comely unicorn mare sat at a plain wooden table with several books open before her, their ancient texts illuminated by the lamp’s flickering glow and a bit of added light from her horn. Her light violet coat was complimented by a long, sky blue mane, and she wore a well used traveling cloak that bore plenty of patches from a long journey.

Her eyes roved the pages of the book in front of her, an arcane text penned many centuries ago by one of the realm’s more fabled heroes of old; a unicorn known as Mistmane.

Behind the mare a shadow moved, and a stallion with a coat black as soot emerged into the light, his even darker mane blending with the darkness behind him. Yet his eyes glittered bright and green, and he carried a stack of several more tomes that he gently laid at an empty spot next to the mare, speaking quietly, “Found Mage Meadowbrook’s medical journals, but still haven’t tracked down anything from Starswirl. Any luck in Mistmane’s records?”

The mare looked up at the stallion, a slightly amused smile brightening her features, “You know you don’t have to whisper, Sombra? I mean, I know we’re in a library but nopony is down here but us.”

The unicorn named Sombra, one who once called himself ‘King’ and ruled over shadow, coughed in faint embarrassment, a tint of rose on his dark cheeks as he sat down at the table and said, “Well, yes, but it’s so quiet here, just seemed appropriate to keep it down. You don’t have to tease me about it, Radiant.”

“Heheh, but you’re cute when you’re embarrassed,” Radiant Hope said with a disarming grin, but her expression soon turned serious as he looked back at the books she’d been reading, “But to answer your question, no, no luck yet. There is mention of restorative magics that can reassemble broken objects, but nothing specifically pertaining to petrified or crystalized individuals who were once whole.”

Sombra lowered his head, eyes shifting down as well as he slowly slipped open one of the books he’d brought, “Would that I’d never shattered her...”

“Sombra, if you’re going to spend the rest of our lives together kicking yourself-”

“I know,” he said, waving a hoof, “I’m not wallowing. Together we shall fix our mistakes. I just hope there actually is a way forward.”

His gaze drifted to one side of the chamber, where a pair of sizable traveling bags were settled, both full to bursting, “It took a long time, but we finally found all of Amore’s pieces. Now we just need a way to put her back together, and restore her fully. There’s no margin for error, Radiant. It can be deadly for the one being restored if even one element of the spell is out of place.”

Radiant Hope’s hoof went over to touch his in a comforting brush, “Which is why we’re making sure to find the right spell, and why the Princesses acquiesced to us being allowed inside this section of the library. If there’s anyplace in all Equestria where we can find the right spell, it’s here. And no better place to start looking than the journals of the greatest magical minds of the previous age.”

“Yes, although given how many books are down here, we’re likely to spend half a lifetime digging,” Sombra said, then paused, tilting his head. Radiant Hope saw his curious expression and the sudden way he had gone still and found herself whispering to him.

“What’s wrong?”

His eyes shifted upward, “I thought I felt... a tremor, just now.”

Curious, Radiant Hope went silent and closed her eyes to help her focus on her hearing. She also set her hooves on the ground, looking for any sign of what her friend and dear traveling companion had spoken of. For a minute nothing happened, but then she did feel something, like the faintest shake that rumbled through the ground. Her eyes popped open and she turned to Sombra, “I just felt it too. What do you think it is? Wait... you don’t suppose?”

Sombra nodded with a grim frown shadowing his already darkened features. Not long after their arrival in Canterlot to report their success in finding all of the pieces of the shattered previous Princess of the Crystal Empire, Celestia and Luna had informed Radiant Hope and Sombra of the dire events transpiring concerning a Starlight Glimmer who was not of their world. As unbelievable as the tale was, the pair had accepted what the Princesses had told them, and that it was possible that soon these otherworldly forces might attack a major city such as Canterlot or the Crystal Empire.

“If it's them,” Sombra said, “We must get back to the surface and lend what help we can.”

Radiant Hope nodded agreement, quickly going over to grab her saddlebags, “Right! If it turns out to be a false alarm, we can always come back down, but if it isn’t, then surely we can find a way to be of help.”

Just then, however, both unicorns heard the distinct wailing groan of the metal doors to the restricted section being pulled open. It echoed loud in the chambers, well out of view. The restricted section consisted of seven chambers arranged in a circle around a central staircase, to which the heavily warded and locked doors opened up into the chamber on the southern side. The chamber Radiant Hope and Sombra were in was two chambers clockwise from that entry chamber, so whoever had just come down was still not in view, blocked by a maze of bookshelves and separating walls, but the noise still carried far.

Sombra and Radiant looked at one another, and by unspoken agreement, both decided to be silent and quietly moved to hide. Sombra gestured at the lamp on the table, and a curl of shadow rose, reaching out like a pair of fingers to snuff the flame.

While he was no longer a living shadow, no longer “Umbrum”, he still held command over the powers of that element. Somewhat. He had to begrudgingly admit that since he’d been turned into a full blooded unicorn his elemental command over shadow had lessened, if not faded entirely. He’d been learning more conventional unicorn magic to supplement his abilities, and his adventures across the world with Radiant Hope had hardened those skills, but he wasn’t the same powerhouse of shadow he’d once been.

Radiant Hope was a highly capable mage in her own right, although not on par with the likes of Twilight Sparkle. Still, Sombra had confidence in her, and trusted her at his side implicitly. They’d overcome plenty of foes together since they’d set out on their journey, and could fight without needing to communicate plans, knowing one another as well as they did. He didn’t even have to tell Radiant to set up a flanking position with him, her slipping behind a bookshelf at one side of the room while he went to an alcove on the other. He bent the shadows around both of them to further help hide themselves as they waited to see who was coming.

Soon, they both heard voices.

“Ahah! Such a blissful sight, so many books of tightly bound knowledge, all arrayed in neat rows! I scarcely know where to begin, assistant, but since I’m on a time table, I’ll have you direct me. In no particular order I’m looking for books on the following subjects; The Elements of Harmony, temporal magic, mind altering spells, the history and construction of Tartarus, and records of unusually powerful artifacts.”

To this boisterous male voice a female voice answered, not quite stammering but rather strained, “I don’t spend a lot of time here, so I don’t know where everything is. I can point you in the general direction, but you’ll have to find whatever your specifically looking for on your own.”

“Correction, dear assistant, on our own! Come now, I wasn’t expecting you to have the place memorized, and I’m keeping our deal on the whole ‘not killing anyone’ thing you so desperately demanded, so the least you can do is continue to be cooperative. You say you can point us in the right direction, then by all means, point away!”

“Y-yes, of course. Um, I think there’s a shelf on temporal spells this way,” the female voice said, raising a few octaves, “To our right, I think!”

“Geeze, girl, you don’t have to shout,” grumbled the other voice, but Sombra felt a moment of gratitude to the owner of the female voice as he recognized it as the library’s intelligent intern, Moondancer. She knew he and Radiant Hope were down here, and she’d probably shouted for their benefit, in case they hadn’t heard of her and her strange companion’s arrival. Still, that begged the question, who was this individual and were they tied to the forces of the foreign world’s Starlight Glimmer?

The mere fact that he’d mentioned making a deal with Moondancer not to ‘kill’ anyone was more than enough to suggest this person was not a friend. In an instant, he cast a simple spell of telepathy, linking his mind to Radiant’s. It was a spell they both knew, and had used to help coordinate their efforts in the past.

”Radiant, it seems our friendly library intern is in a spot of trouble, and no doubt the city itself is, too.”

Her voice spoke back in his mind, growing fierce and determined as an open flame, ”I heard. Poor Moondancer sounds so scared, but bless her she’s holding it together and even tried to warn us. I don’t know who she’s with, but I’m not about to let them get their hooves on something as dangerous as time-based magic.”

”Or learn of the Elements of Harmony, or Tartarus for that matter. Such knowledge could only be used for ill purpose, I imagine. Hmm, let us wait until we get a look at our foe. If we can launch a surprise attack, we might be able to immobilize him before he has a chance to react.”

He felt Radiant Hope’s agreement as a warm breeze in his mind, and they both waited silently for the sound of two sets of hooves to make their approach. Before long the chamber they were in was illuminated by a wash of magenta and golden light, an interplay of colors that turned all into shifting display of color and shadow. Fortunately Sombra’s own shadow weaving still kept him and Radiant out of view, allowing them a good view of the chamber’s new occupants.

He of course recognized Moondancer by her somewhat unkempt mane, tied back in a knot, and the sweater she wore over her chest, not to mention the rather thick glasses. The creature at her side was unknown to Sombra. He had never seen an entity quite like this one, although minotaurs shared a similar bipedal shape to this creature, although it was much slimmer than a minotaur and lacked the bovine features. Rather, this... man looked like somepony’s sleep-deprived, somewhat manic college professor, with wild white hair that shot out in all directions. He wore odd black robes of a somewhat eastern style that reminded Sombra of nations well beyond Equestria’s borders, as did the curved blade he wore at his side.

This strange creature looked around, golden eyes sharp as drawn steel, and filled with a crazed hunger that matched his voice, “This room, then? Which shelf might the temporal spells be on?”

Moondancer gulped, gesturing vaguely with a hoof to the far side of the room, “Over there, I think?”

“Oho? Well let us take a look, then!”

As the intruder bounded, almost like a colt in a candy store, towards the indicated shelves, Sombra felt a query in his mind from Radiant. Now?

He nodded to himself, drawing shadows around his body.

”Now!”

Although Sombra had at this point long since committed himself to a new path of atonement and righteousness, he still retained a few elements of his less than honorable lifestyle. Especially in battle he believed in striking first, with every advantage, and not giving his opponent a chance to retaliate. Honor was for games of sport. Battles were for those who wanted to survive and win.

He sprang forth, a lancing maelstrom of shadows bursting from around him to instantly cross the ground and rise up around the unknown creature. The shadows held physical mass, wrapping him in a crushing embrace that bound the target in place as solidly as the claw of a dragon, squeezing tight, almost enough to break bone or pulp flesh. Sombra held back just enough to not be fatal, perhaps more for Moondancer’s sake than anypony’s. He doubted the intern would appreciate being next to a living creature getting popped like a grape, and he’d rather not scar the mare’s mind with such a nightmare vision.

The moment Sombra’s shadows bound the creature, the room flared brightly with the light of Radiant Hope’s magic. In contrast to his darkness, her light shone with purest crystal blue as she leaped from hiding and formed her magic into the shape of a blindingly bright, spectral warhammer. She’d been practicing with such conjuring magic for some time, and was quite skillful with the weapon of pure, channeled magic. In a swift display of martial and arcane skill she spun the spectral hammer around and brought it slamming down towards the creature’s head; hopefully enough to knock him out rather than outright kill him. Sombra wouldn’t mind asking their new prisoner a few questions-

“Bakudo Number Eighty One: Danku.”

A translucent plane of force, like a wall of glass, appeared in the hammer’s path, catching the spectral weapon and halting it in mid-swing. Radiant Hope let out a gasp of surprise and pulled her hammer back, while Sombra prepared to send a fresh lance of shadows into their target, but the creature was still chanting rapidly.

”Hado Number Fifty Four: Haien.”

Sombra felt something burning through his shadows, and just barely managed to slide to the side along a stream of shadows as a curved wave of burning purple energy shot out from the creature’s position. This wave of force not only burned through the shadows, but burned clean holes through several bookshelves and then the wall behind them, like the physical matter gave zero resistance to the heat of the... spell? Sombra assumed this was some kind of magic, but wasn’t clear on the mechanics behind them.

Regardless, the creature freed himself of the burnt away shadows and then moved with such speed that Sombra could tell he was all but vanishing from normal view. Tracking such movement would be difficult, although fortunately there was still so much shadow in the room that Sombra could feel the creature’s motions through those shadows, and faced him as the stallion appeared at the opposite side of the room. The creature’s face was twisted in an upset rictus as he drew his sword and pointed, not at Radiant and Sombra, but at the destroyed bookshelves.

“Ooooooh! Did you see what you dolts just made me do!? Who knows what precious knowledge was inside those books! Fiends! Swine! Lower lifeforms! You must have more respect for such precious treasures.”

As the creature ranted, Radiant Hope moved close to Moondancer, protectively standing between the intern and their foe, sparing the mare a quick glance, “Are you alright? He didn’t hurt you?”

“No, no I’m fine,” Moondancer said, “He says his name is Starswirl, and he’s trying to steal any knowledge he can find down here.”

“I think we surmised as much,” Sombra said as he remained where he was, eyes focused on... Starswirl, was it? He’d seen a few pictures and paintings of the vaunted historical mage, and he supposed there was a faint resemblance between those images and this unusual creature, but only in passing. He put aside the numerous questions he had about this so-called Starswirl’s origins and glanced at Moondancer, “Regardless, what’s happening in the city? Radiant and I felt tremors earlier.”

Moondancer shuffled on her hooves, “I don’t... I don’t really know for sure. A big island of ice appeared in the sky, and some mare’s voice called out Princess Luna. Everypony was taking refuge in the library, but then he showed up, defeated the Royal Guards, then had me take him down here.”

“Research assistant, I would greatly appreciate it if you would refrain from speaking as if I am not standing right here. Indeed, you rude pair who attack without warning can ask questions directly of me, if you like. I have naught to hide, but little patience for ill-mannered behavior.”

Moondancer screwed up her face, “I’m not your research assistant! You practically forced me at sword point to ‘help’ you!”

“Would you prefer it if I paid you?”

“No! Just leave me alone!”

“Hmm, a pity, that. I could use an assistant and you appear competent, but if you insist, I suppose I must terminate our professional relationship. Now then, as for the two of you...” Starswirl now pointed the tip of his blade towards Radiant Hope and Sombra, “I’m afraid I’m on a timetable here, so I don’t have long for a Q&A session. Rude as you are, I’ll be the bigger ‘pony’ in this case and answer a few questions if you have them, but understand I am not leaving here without the knowledge I seek. If you intend to bar my path, I’ll not hold back in dealing with you.”

Radiant Hope and Sombra shared a glance, communicating with their telepathic spell. Then Radiant Hope spoke, taking a single step forward.

“Why do you want temporal magic, specifically?”

“Ah, I would think the benefits of such magic would be obvious. Seeing the future to thwart the plans of one’s foes? Traveling the past, perhaps to alter the course of events to one’s favor? Oh, certainly such paradoxical quandaries exist to bar such exercises, but if the magic exists, surely ways to avoid the dangers of paradox and time loops also exist? If not, well, there may be other ways to use such magic to gain advantage, which is what Starlight Glimmer seeks. Personally I just like satiating my curiosity.”

“I see...” Radiant licked her lips, “Then who are you, exactly? What are you? Why do you serve this Starlight Glimmer, whom I assume is the one Sombra and I were told about who comes from the human world?”

“Pfft, one question at a time, madam. Who I am is a replica of my world’s Captain Starswirl, of the Twelfth Division of the Gotei 13, sans about two centuries worth of memories. What I am is a Reigai, an artificial soul born from the real mccoy's spiritual energies, with an exact copy of the original’s knowledge, skills, and powers. Mostly. Starlight has specifically put limits on our power, in case we get... willful and decide not to obey her orders. So I’m not quite as strong as the real Starswirl, but strong enough that I’m certain few things short of your Princesses could make easy work of me. As to why I serve her, well, what reason do I have not to? I desire knowledge, first and foremost, and that aligns with her goals as well. Since if I don’t obey her she’s likely to trigger a kill switch in me, or dispose of me in any number of other ways, it only makes sense to go along with her plans, since they don’t interfere with my own wish to attain as much knowledge of this strange world as possible. There, does this satiate your curiosity? Feel up to speed on current events and my general motivations?”

Sombra spoke then, a hardness in his visage, “So you injured innocent ponies, put the lives of this whole city at risk, solely for the sake of knowledge? Or because you fear death if you do not follow Starlight Glimmer’s orders?”

Starswirl shrugged, “Collateral damage in the pursuit of knowledge is acceptable to me, yes, although I’d harm none if none stood to be in my way. And obviously I fear death. What living being doesn’t? My life may be manufactured, but it remains mine, and I’d like to avoid losing it. That said, I don’t mind risking it in pursuit of my goals. A goal which, right now, you and your female companion are standing in the way of. Sombra, you are called? How very... coincidental. I don’t suppose you are a King in this world, too?”

This world, too? Sombra grit his jaw and shook his head, “King no longer. Never again, if I have my say. Now, I’m just a simple traveler, seeking to fix his mistakes.”

He felt Radiant move a step closer to him, and took comfort in her closeness. Starwirl for his part merely looked at him with a nonplussed expression.

“Well then, it seems we have reached an impasse. All I seek is the knowledge of this library. Depart quietly, and I’ll have no cause to harm you. Remain in my way...”

Sombra felt a rising pressure from Starswirl as the man’s body became aglow with an incense aura of white energy. This sharp rise in power was accompanied by Starswirl speaking in an intoning voice, “Pull apart: Jukuko”

Upon that invocation, the curved blade he had drawn transformed, a gray ooze spilling forth from the blade until, like rapidly hardening concrete, it solidified into the shape of a large iron fan.

“Moondancer,” Sombra said, not taking his eyes off of Starswirl, “Go back to the surface, fast as you can, and don’t look back.”

“A-Are you sure?” she asked, but Radiant Hope placed a comforting hoof on the younger mare’s shoulder, smiling reassuringly.

“Sombra and I will be just fine, you’ll see. Now go, go and take care of everypony upstairs.”

With a final tearful nod Moondancer turned and galloped away, praying as hard as she could that the two strangers now bravely facing the power of this terrifying Starswirl would be able to emerge victorious.

Episode 155: Back Against the Wall

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Episode 155: Back Against the Wall

Despite things not going according to plan, Celestia still felt in control. Discord being taken was an issue, but not a wholly unforeseen one. She was worried about his health, but was equally aware the draconequus was not so easily killed, even with his magic being suppressed. He’d live, and Celestia had gauged Starlight Glimmer was not one out to needlessly take lives, so chances were provisions had been made to keep Discord breathing for the immediate future. More importantly, in the event that either of them would end up captured, Celestia had ensured both she and Discord had a means to be tracked. Granted that means did rely on magic, but Celestia trusted that Discord, wily as he was, would find a way to overcome that particular issue with the magic inside him being rendered inert.

And if all went well here then perhaps that wouldn’t even be necessary, for Celestia could just beat the location of their hideout from Starlight Glimmer herself, arrogant mortal mare that she was-

Celestia shut that thought down the second it creeped into her skull. She’d expected to have to deal with elements of Eos’ personality and memories, just as Luna had fought and fell against the overwhelming mental torrent of Iah’s that had resulted in the formation of Nightmare Moon. But Luna had failed only because she’d used two Relics at once, releasing too much of the former “goddess” alicorn’s powers and memory. Conversely, Celestia had believed using just one Relic of Eos’ would make things easier to control.

She’d been mistaken, but she couldn’t be quite sure what had gone wrong. This was too much. Too much power, too much memory, all in greater portions than the single Relic should have contained. Eos and Iah had been among the original alicorn race’s greatest and most potent members of the Highest Dominion that had ruled over the rest of their kind alongside a very small council of others of like power. When Eos and her Preservers had been defeated and the ruined world left on the brink, the Inheritor Project had been conceived to start repairing the damage and force the alicorn race to give up its godly “divine” magic in favor of living mortal lives. Eos, along with several of her most devout followers, had needed to be coerced into performing the ritual to invest their power into Relics, and Eos herself, like her sister, had needed to use multiple Relics to divide their power evenly.

A single of Eos’ three Relics should have been strong enough to give Celestia a decisive edge over Starlight Glimmer, but not such an overwhelming one. As it stood, Celestia felt like the very molecules of her flesh were transcending mortal form, searing with the raw power of light, of the sun, of the essence of Day itself that Eos had presided over. That molten, cosmic power ripped through her very being, threatening to dismantle her from the inside out if she didn’t keep a grip of unbreakable, golden will upon it. It was like mentally trying to surf on a tidal wave on the surface of the sun. With that sensation came the ever rising voice of a mare that sounded like Celestia, but was deridingly not Celestia.

“Do not resist, child. You are a chalice made of mere flesh, your soul a drop of blood of the being that is Eos. Render unto me your existence, and I shall right this realm you sought to rule, not as a Princess, but as a Goddess. Remove these stained gnats that challenge us. Purge all threats, and restore what should never have been broken; the rule of the Gods.”

From the moment she’d released the power of the Relic that voice had burned through every corner of her mind and soul, spreading tendrils of scorching memory into Celestia’s thoughts. She could remember with such clarity the blindingly beautiful sights of the Divine Sanctuary, Bastion Altum Solium, with its towers of achingly pure white that tore into the heavens themselves. She could remember the earliest days of life in Equestria, where the alicorns, first among races, came into being from the depths of the Astral Sea, born of the essence of magic itself. To grow in such times, to preside over the rise of countless other races and spirits, to see “Equestria'' not as a nation of mere ponies, but as a hauntingly familiar yet expansive world of endless wonders upon which the alicorns stood at the top as custodians, beloved guardians, and yes... eventually worshiped as gods.

She could all but nearly cry at Eos’ memories of walking among the mortals, of soaring churches whose golden statues and silver bells pierced all with their beauty. Of choir songs of the devoted, filling her with love and grace as she looked down upon blissful mortal faces she would bestow her blessings upon, allowing the glory of Day to bathe all in its tender light. She even remembered fondly enjoying her sister’s domain of Night, tiredly but happily walking beside Iah as she swam through the dreams of her nightly congregation, the realm of slumber forming a unique church all its own.

And she remembered the sundering that would come. The weakening of magic, the discovery of fewer and fewer born alicorns with each passing century, and the Ordo Knowledge’s discovery of the damage being done to the Cycle. Such rage at the notion that they were at fault!? That the proper order of mortals and gods was somehow to blame for the slow, creeping doom that threatened their world? And to think that Iah and her damned rebels would think to strip them of everything that made the alicorn race what it was!? Why not find a better solution, one that would preserve the rightful order? Surely there was a way? But no, the rebels had wasted their efforts in war, forcing Eos and her loyal Preservers to fight back, to protect what was right and just in the world!

A world that burned in divine flame from that war, and a defeated, broken Eos had but one recourse. Patience. Deceit.

In that flood of memory Celestia knew what Eos had done, although not wholly how she had done it. Of the three Relics she had been forced to make, Eos had faked two of them, using elaborate illusions to make the Relics appear as if they held equal portions of her power. But in truth, she had not made the split even between the three, investing a larger portion of power and most of her memory into just one Relic, the sword that was broken, her beloved Caelum Carnifex (Heaven’s Executioner). She hadn’t been able to invested much more power than in the other two, simply because the illusion would not have worked if not enough power had been present to made it hold up under inspection, but enough extra divine magic had gone into the sword that, in combination with all of her memories, Eos had hoped would be enough to overwhelm whoever dared to “inherit” her power.

Yet Eos had not counted on contending with a mind and will like Celestia’s. Dismissive of mortals, she’d assumed whomever tried to unleash her trapped Relic would be no match and easily overcome by her mind. Celestia, as it happened, was made of far sterner stuff than Eos had predicted, leading to an internal stalemate in which Celestia’ remained in control, even as bits and pieces of Eos’ personality leaked out.

Pieces that were all for eradicating Starlight Glimmer and Chrysalis in short order, although upon looking at Chrysalis, Eos’ mind and memories rose up in particular recognition, causing Celestia to briefly pause in her advance upon the pair as they stood in the center of Ponehenge.

“I sense your soul, Laverna. How pitiful you look now, cowering so. At least when you served my sister you had the backbone to face me without flinching, even if you and your whole brood of thieving wretches were no match.”

Chrysalis did indeed flinch, fanged lips twisting in a confused glower, “I have no idea what you’re on about, but don’t think I’ll just roll over for you, Celestia.”

Celestia shook herself, remembering who she was and asserting control again, pushing Eos’ scornful mind back.

“Of course you don’t know,” she told Chrysalis, “And it is for the better that you don’t. Surrender now, and I can guarantee your life. A life locked away in Tartarus, perhaps, but better than you should expect if you fail to stand down.”

For a moment Chrysalis almost looked tempted, as if she fully understood how outclassed she was right now, and the coward within wanted nothing to do with such an uneven fight. Yet somewhere, somehow, it seemed the changeling Queen was finding some spine, for she planted herself firmly and set her wings to buzzing in anger, “You’d like that wouldn’t you? To have me grovel at your hooves, begging for my life?”

Destroy this worthless knave. The voice of Eos scraped at Celestia’s mind A self-absorbed coward and thief both now as she was then, ever crawling in the shadows. No wonder she got along with Iah so well.

Wrangling the spiteful feelings was not easy, as they did somewhat line up with Celestia’s own low opinion of Chrysalis, and after so many years of dealing with the changeling Queen as a threat to her nation and people Celestia was sorely tempted to make use of this opportunity to put an end to this long-standing foe once and for all. The only thing remotely holding back that wrath was that Celestia wanted a clear mind for such a decision and didn’t want Eos poisoning the well of her reasoning. If Chrysalis was to die by Celestia’s hoof, it would be a choice made in complete control and knowledge of the necessity, not because the memories of a long gone, megalomaniacal alicorn with delusions of godhood had tainted Celestia’s thoughts.

“I could not care less for you to grovel, Chrysalis. Take what little mercy I have a mind to spare for you, or suffer the full consequences your poor choices have led you to, but decide quickly. I’m out of patience.”

With that, she decided it was time to close the curtain on this battle. She took hold of Caelum Carnifex in an almighty grip of sunborn magic, raising the humongous blade of neigh indestructible white metal upwards amidst a surge of unmitigated golden fire that flowed freely from her in an aura of land shaking magic and spiritual power. She gazed at Starlight Glimmer, who’d remained silent and in a prepared stance for combat, and Chrysalis, who looked increasingly unsure of her supposed bravery, and Celestia spoke one last time before blades would be joined, “If you would not die this day, lower your weapons. If you wish to fight the Sun, then she stands before you, unbowed and unbroken. Now... chose!”

She went at them both, in a massive sideways sweep of her blade that emitted a titanic fan of raw force and blinding sunfire, Celestia herself nothing but a searing streak of light as she charged between the middle of her two foes.

Chrysalis had no means to dodge, but one could never claim the changeling lacked for survival instincts. Emerald fire poured across her and even as Celestia’s stroke seared a wave of sunflame across her, Chrysalis was sent flying back into one of Ponehenge’s pillars. Space crackled around the pillar. If it had been a normal monument of stone it would have shattered into dust from the impact, but the magic around it that bound the pillars to their purpose kept it intact as Chrysalis hit it. As for Chrysalis herself, she was alive, if only because she’d converted her body into solid adamantine to absorb the blow, a metal both close to indestructible, and exceedingly heat resistant. Of course ‘indestructible’ was a relative term in this case, as the incredible power and heat from even the glancing blow was enough to sear a red mark across Chrysalis' flank, despite the metallic body she’d adopted. She was injured but still mobile, and tried to reach for the one remaining anti-magic javelin that had been forged, which she had dropped upon impact with the pillar. However, Celestia’s attack had not only targeted Chrysalis and Starlight, but had directed some of its burning energies towards the ground around the javelin itself. Although made of a metal that disrupted all magic around it, the metal itself was not immune to being melted, and its anti-magic field did not extend far beyond the metal itself. As such when the ground beneath it was turned molten by the heat of Celestia’s attack, it in turn melted the javelin as easily as if it were common iron.

Meanwhile Starlight fared better than Chrysalis against their empowered foe, but not by much. Her saving grace was the Zanpaktou she held, Yaban’na Megumi (Feral Grace). Once in the hands of Ditzy Doo, it was a Zanpaktou of deadly potency, capable of tearing through space itself with every motion of the estoc’s long, pointed blade. In fact, in Ditzy Doo’s heyday, her Zanpaktou was known as the sharpest in Soul Society. Not the most powerful, per se, not the “strongest” in the general sense of the term, but no sword was considered more keen, more capable of cutting the way Yaban’na Megumi could. It was as if every inch of its metal length was wrapped in a spiritual power so finely tuned to rip through all it touched that be it steel, flesh, air, or even the fabric holding together reality, all was equally parted by its gleaming edge.

As such, Starlight had the fortune to not have to entirely dodge Celestia’s strike, but rather cleave the air around her and shred into space itself, forming a ribbon of torn reality that even the almighty conflagration of flame could not entirely bypass. That wasn’t to say residual power from the blow didn’t still force Starlight to Flash Step away, only that the rips in reality she could make bought her precious fractions of a second to do so. It also allowed her to try and counter Celestia’s attack with one of her own, for every strike of Yaban’na Megumi could also instantly transfer the blade’s presence to any other space either in the user’s line of sight or even locations they were familiar with. Well, within limited reason. It couldn’t move between different planes, so one couldn’t shift from Soul Society to the living world with it, just locations on the same plane, and even then there was a range limit of perhaps twenty miles.

Useful for getting around a city you knew well, not so much for escaping a flaming sun alicorn in an unfamiliar wilderness.

Starlight stabbed the air with the Zanpaktou, creating hundreds of thrusts that punctured holes in reality and transferred those stabs to several dozen locations around Celestia, trying to trap the alicorn. Yet Celestia moved through the storm of spatial stabbings like a ballet dancer going through a casual routine, golden light trailing her wake as she didn’t so much teleport as just move with light’s gentle ease through the rain of blows.

Starlight redoubled her efforts, switching to a series of dimension ripping slashes that created a storm of spatial cuts that cleaved in at Celestia from all conceivable angles. Yet when she didn’t dodge, Celestia used her shining blade to deflect that keenest of edges. Starlight felt the significant impact of Yaban’na Megumi with Celestia’s blade of white steel, and each clash caused the air itself to groan with the conflict of entwining energies. To Ditzy’s Zanpaktou’s credit the spatial tears it forged were of such potency that even Celestia’s impressive sword could not break them, and it did force Celestia to evade more often that parry. Indeed, the one or two times Starlight’s strikes made glancing blows she could see the dimensional edge of Yaban’na Megumi could leave marks on Celestia’s armor... but only marks. Celestia was just too fast, skilled, and strong at this point to allow a more telling blow, and Starlight couldn’t be sure that even if she did get a solid hit in how much damage it’d actually do.

Furthermore, each time the Zanpaktou and magical sun forged blade collided, Starlight felt the Hogyoku pulsate slightly. The orb in her chest had been absorbing ambient magic from Celestia the entire fight, but it was as if the Hogyoku now almost... recognized something familiar in the air. Was the spiritual energy that Celestia was outputting now? The Hogyoku might be able to absorb magical energy, but it was originally designed to work more naturally with spirit energy. Given that Celestia was now providing an outpour of reiatsu, was the Hogyoku attuning itself even faster to this new transformation’s energies?

Possibly, but Starlight had a strange feeling that there was something else at play. Not that she had time to contemplate this.

Celestia responded to Starlight’s assault with a simple flick of her horn, a flash of light casting out a swarm of flickering golden drops of light. Starlight sensed the incredible power within those seeming tiny fireflies of light and cut behind her, creating a hole in space to throw herself through just as the glittering swarm exploded in a destructive swath of miniature suns. She gasped as even as she appeared a hundred meters away, more swarming sun blasts came after her like angry hornets, bursting in melting swaths of perfectly spherical balls of all consuming heat. Each one was like watching a tiny sun appear for an instant to melt away all around it, leaving perfectly circular divots in the ground of utterly glassed dirt.

And Celestia was throwing these from her horn like some other unicorn might have lifted a household appliance.

Chrysalis, letting out a grunt of pain from her wound, turned eyes dripping rancor at the shining alicorn while Celestia’s focus was upon Starlight and drew back her right foreleg, where her Bakkoto hummed to life with a combination of flickering changeling magic and fresh spiritual energy. Like a organic creature, the gauntlet's metal and blades writhed and pulsed like flesh as intense green light spilled through it in patterns of blood veins, channeling Chrysalis' magic and recently awakened spiritual pressure. While Starlight was nearly running on empty, Chrysalis at least was still near full strength, and spared none of her topped off power as she swung her weapon forward.

The segmented chain blades shot, emerald changeling magic flowing along them as the blades transformed. Chrysalis’ Bakkoto had adapted itself to work with her changeling powers, able to act as a living extension of that same power. Of the nine chain blades that shout towards Celestia, each changed into a different form of venomous extension. One gained hundreds of gigantic replicas of spider’s fangs, while another writhed with the heads of lethal serpents, while yet another turned into the writhing mass of scorpion tails, and another the endless colorful tendrils of some deep sea jellyfish. A drop of venom from any one of those transformed blades would be enough to kill a hundred ponies at once, and the combined toxic mass was the kind of thing that would slaughter even a full grown dragon.

Celesita didn’t even look back at the oncoming rush of poisonous death. Her blinding sword of sun forged might cut back in another burning display of power, sending a burning shockwave out that not only deflected the Bakkoto’s blades, but forced Chrysalis to take cover behind one of Ponehenge's pillars, lest her skin burn off her body.

Chrysalis then noticed even more heat building up above her, and looked up with wide eyes as several rings of light took shape in the air above her. These were the rings from Celestia’s right wing, which had flown up above where Chrysalis had taken cover. The changeling queen had to transform herself into the fastest creature she knew of, a Lightning Bird. Normally beautiful avians of azure blue plumage that was forged of raw lightning, Chrysalis’ version was more a darker indigo, but the resultant form still moved just as fast if not faster than the real deal, tracing a zipping path of lighting sparks away from Ponehenge as the light rings fired raw beams of solid sunfire that burned through the spot Chrysalis had occupied a second earlier.

Starlight Glimmer, heavily focused upon just trying to stay alive herself, still took note of something odd about the situation. She couldn’t be certain, so to experiment, she adjusted her evasive course and used Yaban’na Megumi to cut a hole back to the center of Ponehenge, rushing through it. Appearing through the torn portal right in Ponehenge’s center, she shoved a bleeding palm towards Celestia and at the same time stabbed with her Zanpaktou into the growing sphere of Hollow power she was forming in her hand.

“Gran Rey Cero!”

With a portal being torn open within the Cero beam’s gathering sphere, she ripped open multiple portals around Celestia and sent the same beam, spatially bent through each portal, to converge on the alicorn from multiple sides.

She didn’t expect this to do much damage to Celestia, but Starlight was checking Celestia’s response.

It was swift and forceful, for Celestia did not try to dodge the multiple Gran Rey Cero beams that slammed towards her, but instead used the other three rings of light she had from her other wing to send them spinning out in a dizzying pattern of ethereal power. The beams of Hollow energy were sliced through, a feat that surprised even Starlight. She knew her single Gran Rey Cero was technically diluted in power through the portal, but still, Celestia cutting the beams down with such ease was shocking. Those light rings weren’t normal, she could sense. They weren’t simple manifestations of magic. There was spiritual power there as well, and at a far greater density than in other parts of Celestia’s new regalia.

They’re like her sword... a focused extension of her power. It’s almost like a Zanpaktou itself, the rings and blade connected.

That thought was interrupted by Starlight sensing another grip of telekinetic force upon her body as Celestia gave her a hard look.

“You no longer have the power to fight back, so why do you not simply give up, Starlight Glimmer? Your cause has become beyond hopeless.”

Starlight sought to move, shoving back with her spiritual pressure to resist the telekinesis wreathing her body. It helped some, but it also slowed her subsequent Flash Step and she barely kept sight of Celestia as the alicorn vanished from view and reappeared next to her. The next thing Starlight knew she was feeling a metal shod hoof impact with her stomach with earth shattering force and felt herself spin through the air, breaking the sound barrier as she sailed upwards. She only just managed to right herself before Celestia was right in her face again, this time bringing down her shining sword in an overhead chop. Starlight was able to impose her Zanpaktou by scant milliseconds, but the impact, added to by an explosion of raw heat and light energy, seared at Starlight’s body and sent her flying back down so fast and hard she was already cratering dozens of meters into the ground before she’d taken half a blink.

Gasping and coughing, she struggled to her hooves, tasting blood as she spat up a blob of red to the broken ground. In her chest, the Hogyoku pulsed once again, this time sparking and flaring with a small flame of white sunfire before it died back down. It had absorbed yet more of Celestia’s magic and spiritual power, but nowhere near enough to do much. Even so, Starlight had sensed another spark of the familiar when Celestia’s blade had clashed with her Zanpaktou.

Or rather, it was as if the Hogyoku recognized something more than Starlight did.

She felt Celestia’s presence as the alicorn slammed to the ground nearby. The alicorn wasn’t even paying Chrysalis any mind, her other three light rings chasing the changeling’s Lightning Bird firm with a series of sun beams that Chrysalis was only barely keeping ahead of. Starlight suspected that was by Celestia’s intent, for Chrysalis wasn’t moving fast enough to actually outmaneuver what she suspected those light rings could actually move at. Instead it looked more like what Starlight had already guessed earlier.

She’s keeping us away from Ponehenge itself. Every attack she’s made has been designed to drive us away from the monument. But why?

It had bugged Starlight from the start that Celestia had chosen this location. Her assumption was that Ponehenge was some kind of place of power for magic, perhaps useful for amplifying magical energies. Yet that didn’t track, not totally. Celestia had proven she had different trump cards for the purpose of power, so then why was Ponehenge important?

She probed it with her senses, both magic and spiritual. There was a lot of energy hanging in the air, and Ponehenge itself was no exception. Starlight hadn’t quite looked at the shape of that power, but now she was starting to see it. The tears in reality made by Yaban’na Megumi didn’t just fade away after a few seconds. They lingered. But they shouldn’t have. By the way Starlight understood the Zanpaktou’s power, the rips usually closed up swiftly after being made, unless the blade’s wielder willed them to stay open longer. But Starlight hadn’t been doing that. Yet now that she looked, and felt with her senses, those tears were all still present.

Or at least, they were present in the immediate vicinity of Ponehenge itself. And through them, Starlight sensed something else... that within Ponehenge was a vast space, a distortion in reality that was like a massive gateway. Or prison.

“Why do you keep standing back up?” Celestia said, and moved in a burst of light. Starlight tried to parry this time, but she was slower than ever, and felt a searing cut through her flesh as Celestia appeared on the other side of her. Blood poured from a wide slice that crossed over Starlight’s shoulder and all but rendered her front right leg useless.

Still, Starlight forced herself to keep standing and turned around, slicing with her Zanpaktou in a wide arc at Celestia, although the alicorn blocked it with relative ease. Yaban’na Megumi cut space, sending a distortion of torn reality at the alicorn at nearly instantaneous speed, but Celestia was able to just as instantly teleport away from the attack and retaliate with a casual spinning axe kick that carried with it a flaming ball of sunfire that exploded upon Starlight with punishing force and left her twitching on the melted ground.

Groaning, Starlight cracked her eyes open and shoved herself upwards, which only seemed to incite Celestia’s fervor, the alicorn’s wings spreading wide and raw sunlight pouring from her eyes as her voice boomed.

“What must be done to force you to stay down? When you are naught but cinders? You know my power exceeds yours, Starlight Glimmer, so why persist in fighting?”

“Y-you... think I’d give up just... because you’re stronger than me?” Starlight coughed up more blood, but still cracked a red stained smile, “If stronger opponents were enough to scare me, I’d never have... started this path in the first damned place!”

She punctuated her defiant shout with another Gran Rey Cero that formed around her bloodied lips, and was discharged at a slightly lowered angle so it tore apart the ground in a wide, destructive path as it cut towards Celestia. In the same instance she sliced through the Cero beam with her Zanpaktou, causing Yaban’na Megumi to send out a rippling tear through space that was hidden within the Gran Rey Cero.

As she figured would be the case, Celestia easily parted the Gran Rey Cero with an upward swing of her sword, generating a sunfire shockwave that tore through the atmosphere in a blazing arc. However this meant that the sword was out of place to block when the hidden spatial rip appeared from the deflected Cero and stabbed towards Celestia’s chest.

With a flash of concentration in her eyes, Celestia side stepped in a burst of light speed, the rip in space tracing a slight cut across her armored wing, but doing little more than scrapping of a single pinion.

“Foolish! So utterly foolish,” Celestia sighed, and a storm of feathers made of explosive light shout of her wings and landed around Starlight in a halo of blinding flashes. Starlight was battered around like a pinball by the blasts of light, her own alicorn wings searing and losing their feathers, her fur scorched, and her barely reformed Hollow mask cracking off once more as she landed in a smoking heap on the ground once more.

Letting out a long, low groan, she flopped over onto her belly and planted one hoof, then another, rising slowly in front of an ever more frustrated looking Celestia.

“Y-yeah... foolish... been described that way plenty of times before. Since you’re... so chatty, what’s with the spiritual power? You’re the first one I’ve felt sport any serious, weapons grade reiatsu. Why?”

Starlight, one eye now caked and burned shut by injury, fixed her remaining good one upon Celestia with a heated question, “Why does the Hogyoku find your reiatsu so familiar, Eos?”

Before she could receive an answer a roar from above briefly drew both Celestia and Starlight’s attention. Chrysalis’ Lightning Bird form had been replaced, the changeling having taken advantage of Celestia’s focus to speed up and then transform when she was just a few dozen meters away. The dark indigo bird of lightning energy was replaced in a flash by a humongous form; that of a black scaled, four horned dragon with wings wide enough to cast all of Ponehenge in shadow. Chrysalis' Bakkoto changed form with its owner, merging into a organic, scaled form upon her right arm, and its nine bladed chains reared up and transformed into multi-colored dragon heads that took up formation around Chrysalis' central head.

From the maws of the now many dragons’ mouths, a tsunami flooded forth. Each head belched forth a different energy, be it fire or ice, lighting or acid, caustic darkness or searing light, the storm of different energies from the dragon heads combined into a singular wave that crashed into Celestia with all the force of a natural disaster.

As far as attacks went, it was about as effective as Chrysalis could muster in combining the ability she had as a changeling whilst also taking advantage of her Bakkoto’s power to do the same. Certainly few actual dragons would have withstood a combined breath attack from ten different sources of draconic power, perfectly mimed by a changeling still hopped up on a hefty dose of pure love.

But Celestia was not a dragon. Indeed what she was currently well exceeded any modern dragon’s power. The blast of draconic breaths certainly tore apart a great chunk of the area, and pushed up against the barrier dome that Celestia had placed around the battlefield. However by the time the storm of energies faded, Celestia remained standing, her metallic body of gold and light barely showing a scuff for Chrysalis’ efforts.

“Had you done that earlier, it might have hurt somewhat,” Celestia said, “But you really should have surrendered, Chrysalis.”

The three light rings that she’d sent after the changeling now appeared around Chrysalis’ draconic form, and in swift motions encircled her and tightened like vices. They bound the dragon up tightly, searing into Chrysalis’ scales and eliciting a roar of pain. Chrysalis fell to the ground in a crash, and emerald fire burst from her as she shifted form to escape the rings.

Celestia blinked, as she didn’t immediately see where Chrysalis went. Whatever form the changeling had now taken must have been a rather small one.

“Trying to hide? Still a coward, for all your posturing, Laverna.”

Celestia flinched at her own words and shook her head. Starlight, seeing an opportunity, forced herself to speak, despite even that simple act causing pain now.

“What’s wrong Celestia? Or is it Eos now? You seem like you’re having trouble keeping it straight.”

“I know full well who I am,” Celestia replied, now summoning back all six of the light rings around her wings, which then turned horizontal to aim like lenses at Starlight, “Preserver of the realm, both sword and shield of mortalkind.”

“Mortalkind? Are you even listening to yourself?” Starlight coughed out a blood-stained laugh, “Sounds more like you’re losing yourself, Celestia. Tapped into a power with a few more strings attached than you were ready for. Heh, I can relate. So you going to answer my other question or what? Where’d all this spiritual power come from?”

It was clear her words were getting to Celestia, from the slightly quickened breath on the other alicorn and the increased flickering in the incandescent light of her flaming tail and mane. Celestia’s voice remained solid as ever, however, as she said, “Our worlds mirror each other in many ways, yet remain divergent in just as many more. In your realm, magic is unknown, yet not nonexistent. So too here, is spiritual power unknown, yet exists. The providence of those who took the mantle of deities upon themselves. The original race of alicorns, who mastered magic, and tapped into the power of the soul as well.”

Starlight, focusing as much on breathing and regaining some small shred of endurance as she was on the conversational lull in the fight, said, “I’m starting to get it. Our worlds aren’t as separate as I thought, especially way back in ancient history. Got a hunch the reason the Hogyoku is responding to you is because your power right now is the same kind of magic and spirit fusion Sunset Shimmer and her gang are hooked up with, which the Hogyoku is designed to create and empower...”

As she spoke, Starlight lowered her Zanpaktou, making it look like she was simply losing her grip of magic upon the blade. Her words did cause Celestia to briefly hesitate. Inside Celestia’s mind she was keeping back an entire flood of rising memories from Eos, who was seizing upon the cracks of hesitance Starlight’s words were causing to seek to gain control. The internal battle for her own sense of self was as a result forcing Celestia to split her focus between too many different areas. As a result she didn’t respond fast enough to Starlight using Yaban’na Megumi to slice open a portal beneath herself and dropped through it, plopping herself back into the center of Ponehenge.

There, Starlight saw a small, glittering jade dragonfly buzz into view, which then burst into green flames and took the shape of a burned, injured Chrysalis who was breathing heavily.

“I do hope you have a better plan than talking her to death!” Chrysalis said between heaving breaths, “Since none of this seems to be going well.”

Starlight shrugged, winced as the simple gesture sent sharp lances of pain through her entire battered body, and nodded to the pillars of Ponehenge around them, “Just realized this whole place is some kind of magical prison, or at least the doorway to one. I think Celestia lured us here to trap us inside, in case she couldn’t beat us.”

“Waitwhat!?” Chrysalis exclaimed, “I thought this was just some old ritual site. What do you mean by ‘prison’!?”

“No time to explain,” Starlight said as the heat in the air increased as the only warning before Celestia appeared before them, still dripping with radiance and brimming with power.

She spent a moment glancing at them with eyes spilling light, then tilted her horn upward for just a second. The dome barrier abruptly vanished, like a popped bubble. At Starlight’s raised eyebrow, Celestia said, “It’s rather useless, given you already spirited away Discord. Besides, it allows me to do what I wished I’d done during Cadence’s wedding.”

Chrysalis stiffened at that, lips curling in a grimace as she said, backing up slightly, “Now Celestia, let’s not be childish and go holding grudges over the one time I actually beat you at-”

Celestia moved, and Chrysalis tried to lash out with her Bakkoto, but the alicorn just dodged through the snapping mass of chain blades and arrived behind Chrysalis in a literal flash of light. Deliberately turning her sword sideways to strike with the flat of it like a giant cricket bat, Celestia tagged Chrysalis straight in the side and launched the changeling queen like a flying rag doll through the air at a soaring angle. Chrysalis would have literally kept going, probably entering lower orbit, if not for Starlight quickly cutting the air with her Zanpaktou and creating a portal in Chrysalis’ path that shifted her trajectory to instead impact with the ground a mere dozen feet away.

“Hah, just in time!” Starlight said, giving Chrysalis a hoof-pound gesture, “Aren’t you glad you have me around?”

Twitching, bleeding, with bug wings bent, Chrysalis raised a shaking hoof and gurgled out, “Th-thrilled...”

Celestia made a frustrated sound deep in her throat, “That’s it. Perhaps Eos has a point, and it’s time I ended this.”

She shot upwards into the sky, burning a trail of light upwards like a reverse shooting star. Now a few miles up she halted, and spread her wings wide. The six rings of light detached from her wings and spread out around her, spinning in a pattern that was not unlike the structure of an atom. Starlight felt a seemingly bottomless ocean of magical and spiritual power building up around Celestia as the point in the sky the alicorn hovered at grew ever and ever brighter.

“Uh, well... I think she’s serious this time.”

“This time?” Chrysalis blurted, still trying to figure out which of her limbs wasn’t broken and shift them back into proper place with focused bursts of changeling magic, “You mean she hasn’t been up until now!?”

“Not completely, no,” Starlight said, licking her dry, blood caked lips as she stared upwards, “I’d say she was trying to batter us down enough to force us to surrender. Power she’s currently rocking puts her in the same league as Captain Commander Scorpan, which means even if I did use my Bankai, I couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to turn this around. She’s got us dead to rights and she knows it. But I think I managed to unbalance her mentally. This ‘Eos’, whoever or whatever it is, is screwing with her mind. I don’t think she can control this power fully without risking Eos taking over, and I’m guessing the longer she uses it, the bigger that risk gets as well. I think the Eos side is starting to win that fight, hence why she’s charging up what feels like one heck of a nuke to just wipe us out and be done with it.”

“I trust you have a plan to do something about that!?” Chrysalis shouted, voice quivering slightly as she now too felt the immense build up of power and it came with a vast increase to the headache she’d been feeling ever since Celestia had unleashed the power of that ancient sword.

Starlight let out a humorless gust of a chuckle, “If she’s not thinking straight, she’ll make mistakes. Right now that’s our only chance. Now look, I’ve got almost no power left, but I do have a plan. This gate, prison, whatever it is, is like a big sinkhole in reality with this Ponehenge place being a lid thrown over it. Celestia is so focused on this spell she’s charging up she might have forgotten that prison is even there. If I can use my Zanpaktou to cut that prison open, I ought to create a space that can absorb this attack.”

Chrysalis blinked, “That’s not... totally insane. But if it’s a prison have you given thought to the possibility that something is already inside it that should not be let out?”

“Well, yes, but we’re low on options, and if there is something in this prison, it’ll get a face full of whatever nuke-level spell Celestia is building up, so I’m not that worried about it.”

“Hmph, point taken. How do you plan to do this then, especially if you’re nearly drained of power?”

“With the power of love,” Starlight said while somehow managing a straight face, a shimmer of light enveloping her. Chrysalis was left with a confused stare as she watched Starlight Glimmer change shape, her alicorn form growing from short pony fur to shiny, smooth chitin and her alicorn wings of bright lavender feathers turning into gossamer violet bug wings. Her horn as an alicorn shifted into the curved, split crown of a stag beetle, while her largely lavender chitin also gained stripes of darker purple around her abdomen and chest, several of which converged on the Hogyoku which remained fused into her chest, even in this new form.

“The Pearl of Changing,” Chrysalis grunted, sounding both offended and somewhat impressed, “So it lets you even imitate my kind... but how does this help, oh fellow ‘changeling’?”

Now a changeling queen herself, at least for the moment due to the useful properties of the Pearl of Changing she’d absorbed, Starlight Glimmer held up Ditzy Doo’s Zanpaktou, “I’m nearly out of reiatsu, but changelings gain power from consuming love, right? So long as I have a source of love I can restore myself in this form, even, in theory, help my reiatsu regenerate.”

“And where, pray tell, do you intend to get this love from?”

“Well you, obviously!” Starlight said to a shocked looking Chrysalis, “I just need you to dredge up some love that I can nom on! Hurry it up, Celestia isn’t going to be sitting up there charging up all day!”

“But... but I...” Chrysalis just stood there, mouth half hanging open at the utter audacity of what Starlight Glimmer was suggesting. “Changelings do not share love, you fool!”

“Uh, I have it on good authority from Ocellus that your kind very much can and do share love,” Starlight said, stepping closer to Chrysalis to be nearly horn to horn with her, “Your whole damn colony converted in no time, Chrysalis. I know you didn’t like it, but it happened. Like it or not, that means you got some capacity to do the same. And if you don’t, we’re either about to be incinerated alive, or trapped in a prison dimension! So you’d better find some kind of love in that heart of yours to share, even if it’s just love for yourself, Chrysalis! But whatever you find, you’ve got to learn to give it to someone else, and now.”

While Starlight’s words rung with a logical chime of truth, she was sorely underestimating the utter leap she was asking of Chrysalis. The prideful changeling queen had built her entire life around viewing love as nothing more than a resource to be taken from others and used to nourish herself and her children. Love was not something one produced oneself, let alone shared. The notion was completely ludicrous and counter intuitive. It was like telling someone to feed another person by cutting off their own arm because the arm was technically made of meat. What sane person would ever accept such a mad idea as normal!?

From Chrysalis’ perspective, the pony Starlight Glimmer and the traitor Thorax had all but turned her people into cannibals, throwing away their love to each other willy nilly with no thought to the repercussions or respect for the fact that she’d kept them strong and safe for centuries by harvesting love the proper way; taking it from the other species. In her heart she was still convinced that, as supposedly “happy” as her people seemed in their current state, that the other shoe would inevitably drop and that it couldn’t last. The sharing of love had to have some horrific side effect or consequence. Eventually her children would end up using up love, an ever finite emotion, and start starving again... and then... then finally on that day they’d come crawling back to her, begging her to be their Queen once again.

This is what Chrysalis believed, and why Starlight Glimmer’s suggestion sounded like total madness.

Despite that, she could sense the eradicating power of immense magnitude building around Celestia. Even after a full minute or two the spell was still charging, the rings of light blurring to pure bands of eye searing luminousness that surrounded Celestia’s body. Steam was wafting from the ground for miles around, as if every drop of moisture was being expunged by the growing heat that scorched the air and was even making it a little hard to breathe. There was no doubt in Chrysalis’ mind that Celestia was not of her right mind currently. There was no way the all loving, motherly Princess would have considered building up a spell of this level, for to unleash it would risk horrific damage to the country she loved so much. Chrysalis knew Celestia well enough to tell that her choosing to use such a destructive level of force, with no seeming care for the potential consequences to Equestria’s environment, was a sign her hated rival was no longer entirely in her right mind.

Which was perhaps the most terrifying thing Chrysalis could imagine, and it proved remarkable motivation to try and find some love in herself to feed Starlight, if for no reason other than the practical desire for survival.

----------

Curved blades of ice the size of city buses tore up from the ground in waves, slicing at the darting dark form of Princess Luna. Each time a blade of ice grew close the alicorn spun her twin axes of much darker ice and hammered the oncoming attacks, in many cases shearing through the ice blade’s cleanly.

Platinum, hiding behind one of the blades of ice, appeared when it was shattered and tore the air with a supreme Flash Step with her Fuyukogo tracing a neon blue arc through the air at Luna’s neck. In turn, Luna’s horn bloomed with magic and a spear of black ice that extended for it as she fearlessly used her own horn to deflect Platinum’s sneak attack, magical energy bursting out to clash with spiritual power flowing from Platinum. The clash only lasted a second before Platinum was driven back, and Luna flared her wings, shooting forward and sending her axes into a dizzying display of cross cuts that shot forth cones of shredding ice from every blow.

Platinum used every inch of speed at her disposal to try to deflect the punishing axe blows, Fuyukogo’s blue edge sparking each time the curved tulwar met with the blades of black ice. She twisted and shifted, her half burned unicorn body prancing amid multiple flickering Flash Steps to weave between Luna’s shards of ice. Even so, Platinum was on the backhoof, ice shards tracing cuts across her blue and white battle dress, cutting a bloody trail across one cheek.

In a harsh defensive maneuver she slammed her hooves down and drew upon her Bankai to conjure a sudden wall of ice in front of Luna, a heaving burst of spikes rushing out of the wall to try and spear the alicorn. However Luna simply formed a shield of shining blue magic around herself and shattered the spikes, then flew upward with her axes dragging through the wall to cut the entire edifice in twain before she swept back down and focused her horn upon Platinum, unleashing a blue and black beam of umbral magic at the Soul Reaper.

Platinum managed to Flash Step back, but the beam of magic still cut a long line through her flying island of ice, nearly shearing off a chunk of it. To this, Platinum raised an eyebrow at Luna, “Are you trying to damage your city, Princess? I challenged you here alone as to not involve your citizens, but if you insist on tearing pieces of this island off then it will be difficult to guarantee their safety.”

“I am well aware of the danger to them,” Luna replied in a tone as cold and flat as the ice of her axes, “And trust me, there is none. I could keep this entire island in the sky with my own magic if need be, let alone allow any of it to fall upon my people. Focus your concern upon yourself, for thus far I’ve not broken a sweat against this so-called ‘Bankai’, which is, I am to understand, the ultimate power you Soul Reapers possess, yes?”

Platinum’s cheeks darkened red and her nose huffed a deep snort, “Do not be so swift to judge, Princess. Arrogance creates the pitfalls that lead to defeat, even for the mighty. This much I’ve learned from personal experience.”

She vanished with another Flash Step, a brief sound of rushing air being the only warning before she appeared above Luna and swept Fuyokogo down in a wide arc. White ice in a freezing sheet sliced down, and Luna fired another beam of dark blue magic to spear through the center of the mass at where she’d seen Platinum. However it turned out Platinum wasn’t there, having moved the second she’d unleashed her attack. Luna felt a brief burst of energy nearby and turned to find Platinum standing on the roof of the lowest tier of the Bankai’s fortress castle. With a gesture of her sword, Platinum caused all of the various windows of the castle to open and within stood statues forged of ice that looked like ancient samurai archers with massive bows. With spirit energy glowing around their arrows, the archers unleashed a volley of hundreds of arrows at Luna at speeds akin to Flash Step themselves.

Luna uses a little extra magic to accelerate her own speed, becoming a dark blue after image as she carved a path through the swarming ice arrows. The archers drew and fired like they were characters in a tv show set to fast forward, tracing machine-gun patterns in the air to try and chase down and tag Luna, who continued to readily evade the shots with aplomb.

That said, each arrow that missed, which began to mount to thousands instead of just hundreds, didn’t keep going, but under Platinum’s control would turn in the air and hover, tracking Luna’s motions, then fly out once more. This continued until Luna found that, no matter how fast she was moving, the cloud of ice arrows started to cut off all avenues of escape.

At that point, Platinum gestured once more with her sword, and caused the tornado-like cloud of arrows to converge on Luna in a wave... which should have logically impacted upon the alicorn, but all Platinum heard was an endless ringing of icy steel and snapping chunks of ice.

To Platinum’s eye-twitching annoyance, Luna’s axes were joined by an additional pair, and together the axes moved with such blurring dark speed that every single arrow that converged on her were deflected away or powdered to harmless chunks in a continuous sound of breaking ice.

“If it’s your pride as a Soul Reaper you seek to defend, I’ll be a little gracious and say that your abilities are impressive,” Luna said with a smile that was somehow both cordial, polite, and incredibly smug all at once, the younger royal sister’s eyes shining with a look that Platinum had seen in the likes of Captain Hurricane when he was getting into a fight. Luna was enjoying herself. “As I told your friend Firefly upon our last engagement, I appreciate having cause to actually use the skills and magic I’ve honed over long years, against a foe unafraid to face an alicorn in open battle. I swear, cowards like Chrysalis were ever so frustrating!”

To Luna’s surprise, Platinum’s eyes flared with an anger that had nothing to do with personal pride, “I have met this Chrysalis of yours. She is a... difficult woman to get along with, but quite frankly I found her company infinitely preferable to the Chrysalis of my world.”

Luna let out a genuine laugh, “Would you like to trade? From what I’ve heard of your Chrysalis, at least I’d get a challenging fight.”

The seriousness in Platinum’s gaze actually made Luna’s smile falter slightly, “Princess Luna, regardless of the outcome of our battle here, if you listen to nothing else I ever say, listen to me now when I say not to take the Second Espada lightly. Ever. I’ve come to realize she may be more dangerous than Tirek himself.”

“Is she not your ally?”

“I do not believe that creature understands the meaning of the phrase. My only regret in joining Starlight Glimmer’s cause is having to stomach her presence, and that I’ve failed to impress upon Starlight just how dangerous her alliance with our world’s Chrysalis is. Even now Starlight treats her like just another pawn to be sent out on missions. It is... a mistake.”

Luna’s expression darkened to a frown, “It did not escape me or my sister’s prediction that your world’s Chrysalis would be dispatched to attack another location. Where did you send her?”

Platinum raised her sword, eyes narrowing, “Do not misunderstand. I am not making common cause with you. Give me the cure to Firefly’s cursed wounds and I shall depart. Then you shall be free to go as you will, even to go defend another location if you suspect there is danger elsewhere.”

Luna grimaced, but did not relent, “Hmm, the Crystal Empire is the only place i can think of that would be a suitable target. Perhaps Ponyville, but we’ve ensured its defenses as well. And if your Chrysalis went to the Empire, then she will not find it an easy target. Too many underestimate Princess Cadence, but she is an able guardian for her nation alongside her husband.”

“Tell yourself what you will, I have given the only warning that I felt honor bound to give. If you will not help me cure Firefly...” Platinum’s body glowed with an intense aura of spiritual pressure, her Fuyokogo burning with frozen blue light, “Then I will spare nothing in forcing you to give it up!”

“I’d be disappointed if you did otherwise,” Luna replied, “But I am no longer splitting my magic, and you face me at my full power. Even with your Bankai, I wonder if you can keep up for much longer?”

“With just my Bankai alone, perhaps not...” Platinum admitted, then with a look that wasn’t particularly pleased, she added, “But what about two?”

Luna cocked her head, finding that a particularly odd thing for Platinum to say, until she heard a voice that sounded identical to Platinum’s ring across the air.

“Bankai!”

A shadow appeared above Luna, growing to encapsulate the entirety of the island and fortress formed by Platinum’s Bankai. A shadow being created by a second island that grew into place to float in the air directly above. The island was, in all respects, an identical copy of Platinum’s Bankai, Fuyokogo Sodaina Kyuden. Only this island and castle were inverted, so that the roofs of the two fortresses were nearly touching, and the icy clawed pillars surrounding the island circumference were also inches from touching one another. As a result it almost looked like there was a huge sphere of uneven ice, with a cage of curved pillars forming an open center in which two castles mirrored one another.

Luna’s shock almost caused her not to dodge in time as a frigid streak of blue passed by her, a blue tulwar nearly cutting her neck if she didn’t duck at the last second. She felt the familiar rush of a Flash Step pass by her, and starred as a woman appeared next to Platinum.

A woman who looked very much like Platinum, save for the fact that the real Platinum was currently in the shape of a partially burned scarred unicorn, while this Platinum was an unscarred human woman in the dark blue battle dress shaped from her Bankai, and carried an identical copy of Fuyokogo in her pale hand. The other difference, besides the somewhat more cocky and youthful look of this Platinum, was that her eyes glowed with an unnatural purple light that bled tendrils of crackling energy.

“What...?” was all Luna could think to say, and the new Platinum let out a haughty laugh.

“Hohoh! Surprised!? Boasting about being twice as powerful, are you!? Well now you face twice the woman, twice the Captain, and twice the unflagging beauty and grace of two Captain Platinums!”

The real Platinum looked rather... mortified to be standing next to her Reigai, letting out an embarrassed sigh as her her face burned even hotter, “Yes... well... as you can see, Luna, I...um... have backup.”

“Oh come now my dear original,” said the copy, “No need to hide your relief upon seeing me arrive. Together we’ll handily dispatch this insolent adversary and force out of her a cure for our friend Fleetfly-”

“Firefly,” Platinum said pointedly.

“Yes, yes, her.”

Luna fixed the real Platinum with a hard gaze, arching an eyebrow, “Again I reiterate... what?”

“She’s a Reigai,” Platinum explained with an exasperated dip of her head, “One I was not eager to see made, but Starlight Glimmer made a very rational point that by myself my chances of victory against you were somewhat low. Hence, a spiritual clone, to help even the odds.”

“Hmph, more than even them I’d say,” Reigai Platinum said with one hand still firmly on her Zanptkou while the other went to her hip, “Seriously, original, let’s try to maintain some personal positivity, shall we? It’s depressing to see myself acting like such a sourpuss.”

“Let us just... focus on defeating the Princess,” Platinum replied to her clone, her eyes now locking back onto Luna, “Thinking about anything else right now is unnecessary.”

“Hmph, so be it, but just don’t go slowing me down,” the Reigai said, also turning her eyes to focus in on Luna, who in turn took up a ready stance to resume the fight.

“Interesting,” Luna said, “At the very least I expect the two of you to be able to actually get my heart pumping.”

With that, the two Platinums vanished from view, Flash Steps taking them to opposite sides of Luna as they rushed her with streams of shredding ice. As Luna met them with a storm of axes seething with frozen magical might, she did find she was starting to enjoy the prospect of having a decent fight. Yet even as her clash with Platinum and her new clone resumed, a part of Luna felt a stab of worry.

Not for herself, for she still held every confidence that she could win this. Her injured wing barely hurt, and her magic reserves were still an immense well, and the Relic her sister had given her rested in its sub-dimensional pocket for easy access. Even two Platinums weren’t going to find Luna an easy foe.

No, Luna’s worry was for Cadence, for despite her earlier boast she was fully aware that Cadence was not in the same sphere of power that she and Celestia was. She had not faced this Second Espada personally, this Chrysalis from another world who seemed to inspire terror in those who met her. It was difficult for Luna to imagine, but if Platinum’s words were to be trusted... was the Crystal Empire truly going to be okay?

For all her worries, she tried to assuage her concerned heart. Cadence had trump cards of her own to play, and allies waiting in the wings. Luna had to trust it would be enough to keep the Empire and its people safe.

But a kernel of doubt still remained, regardless.

----------

Defense was Shining Armor’s specialty, but what not everypony familiar with his reputation might have known was that Equestria’s Captain of the Royal Guard was fully versed in the ideology that a strong defense often consists of an equally powerful offense.

As such his magical “shields” were as much weapons as protective spells, which Chrysalis’ Arrancar drones were learning to their detriment. He shaped shields of magical force into sharp discs that cut with the force and precision of monofilament wires, and currently had a score of such conjurations flying around him in patterns so fast one could hear the discs screaming through the air. Every time an Arrancar drone hissed into view, trying to sneak close to him with Sonido, they found these razor sharp discs of magical force cutting their way. Several had already lost limbs or taken deep bleeding cuts from glancing blows, their Hierro hardened skin not quite up to the challenge of protecting against a sharp plane of raw magic force no thicker than a molecule.

And Shining Armor strode forward boldly with a bubble of protective force around him. This bubble was not invincible, for the enemy’s blades and potent Cero blasts could batter it down, but whenever Shining Armor saw his protective shell crack he’d summon a fresh one right behind it.

Granted this method of heavy offense and defense was incredibly draining, but he was holding up, and with his troops marching behind him in a tightly packed formation with shields raised of their own, they’d driven the increasingly aggressive and angry Arrancar back towards the square they originally struck. The objective of Shining Armor and his forces were to clear a path to any injured civilians and clear the way for any final evacuees. He’d been getting continuous reports from other cohorts in the Crystal Guard and was aware that the city’s evacuation was nearing completion, although there were still strangers in the outskirts and an unknown number of wounded in the initial area that got attacked.

He grimaced as several Arrancar appeared to his right, and unleashed slick red beams towards not just him, but bombarding the area around him. While his magical barrier held under the explosive blows, he still felt regret over seeing houses being swept away into rubble but the stray energies of the blasts. Those homes were either already evacuated, or under the teleportation charms Cadence had placed upon the city’s buildings, but even if Shining Armor was fairly sure civilian lives were not being lost, the shear damages being done to the Empire’s city was growing to worrying levels. He saw pillars of smoke and felt the heat of flames from other parts of the city that were burning, and knew the other enemy force, these strange copy Soul Reapers, were responsible for a good portion of damage on the north end of the city.

“Copy” Soul Reapers was the phrase being used by his sergeants in the field, since the bulk of the enemy troops of that type appeared to be nearly identical copies of one another, the males and females of the group looking essentially like twins and using the exact same weapons. How these copies had been made was a mystery, but at least they seemed more focused on just causing property damage rather than seriously trying to kill Shining Armor’s guardpoines. No casualties had been reported from his cohorts fighting the Soul Reapers... which couldn’t be said for his own forces here fighting the Arrancar.

For all that he and the Crystal Guard were doing well, his own soldiers defensive barriers weren’t as strong as his, and some of the Arrancar had focused their attentions on them. He’d heard more than a few screams from injured or dying soldiers who either got pulled out of formation by a fast moving Arrancar, or from when a Cero hit a weakened shield and broke through. His cohort was still holding formation, but they’d lost a few, and more might be lost if he couldn’t deal with these bastards faster.

Thus far he’d cut down about three of them, but they were damned fast, and there were enough of them that while he focused on taking down one, others would hammer his troops.

It was a growing, gnawing anger in his gut, for Shining Armor had led ponies for years, but he was still young by most standards, and while this was not his first battle it was the first one where he’d lost soldiers under his command. Equestria was, by and large, peaceful, and so too the Crystal Empire. Aside from the very rare monster attack there were few occasions for those he led to face danger, and in those instances the worst of it had often been injuries rather than deaths.

Shining Armor didn’t balk or buckle under the weight of the anger, however, merely used it to help focus his mind on his magic. The discus flew faster as he added more magic, generating chains as he had before, but now striking from the discs themselves. This caught some of the Arrancar off guard, the magical chains wrapping up one’s legs and actually drawing the thrashing creature into the buzzing disc of magic like a fly being drawn into a frog’s mouth. The resultant shower of innards from the magic disc cutting the Arrancar in half was unpleasant, but Shining Armor ignored it as he expanded the size of several other discs and used them to slam another pair of Arrancar together as he called out, “Focus fire here, troops! Hit them with all you’ve got!”

His guardsponies leaped to obey, the back rows of crossbow wielder firing crystal bolts into the dazed Arrancar in a shower of explosions, while further back more trained spellcasters added beams of arcane force. The Arrancar were wounded and battered, but Shining Armor was annoyed to see they could withstand his troops hits far better than his own attacks, but those ones did retreat, buzzing away once they pushed past his shields.

“Hey, cocky asshole, look up!” shouted one Arrancar, and Shining Armor glanced upward with a glower to see a pair of Chrysalis’ drones had used their unnatural strength to haul a gigantic hunk of rubble, probably form one of the bigger buildings, and proceeded to drop it at him.

He shifted his magic so his discs flew into the rubble, dicing it to pieces that rained down around him.

He then felt an impact on his shield and realized the rubble was meant to draw his discs away while more Arrancar converged on his shield, slamming the tips of their swords into the shielding bubble protecting him. The Hollows let out snickering hoots as they all charged point-blank Cero beams from the tips of their swords, and even Shining Armor’s shield had trouble holding up as half a dozen Ceros exploded upon him at once.

Shining Armor felt his horn strain against the repeated hits, magic pouring out to keep his shield going, but even so cracks formed and searing Cero energy poured through like small jets of fire. His shield held, but his hide was burned where his armor failed to protect, causing Shining Armor to grunt in pain before he shoved his magic outward in a burst that sent the Arrancar flying away from him.

“Keep advancing!” he shouted to his troops, “The central square is just ahead!”

A fresh volley of explosive crystal bolts and spell beams from his forces filled the air, and the laughing Arrancar responded in kind, sending crimson beams of death down towards the bravely marching cohort of Crystal Guard. It was that laughter and snickering that got to Shining Armor the most. Even as he killed and wounded these beasts it was as if they were enjoying it, having fun with the fight regardless of which side was bleeding.

Were they insane? Probably. As crazy as their mad mother.

Which was the other source of Shining Armor’s urgency and fear. He knew his wife was fighting these creature’s leader, and he could feel the power of Chrysalis filling the air like a choking, cloying gas. Magical senses didn’t quite do the spiritual power of Chrysalis justice, but he sensed the sickening weight of that power regardless, and knowing Cadence was the one who had to face that filled him with dread even as he felt both love and pride in his wife, believing she’d be able to win.

Didn’t hurt that he knew the surprises she had in store, and if the growing, faint hum of magical power he felt inside the very stones of the Crystal Empire’s streets, it wouldn’t be long before his wife could start turning the tide.

Meanwhile he still had civilians to save, and even as the Arrancar kept up their relentless assault, Shining Armor and his cohort burst upon the scene of the central square. He paused, somewhat surprised by what he saw. Given the central square had been first to be attacked, he’d expected the worst. He’d expected to find dead civilians that they couldn't have been in time to save.

Instead he found what looked like a rather neatly organized triage area in which several dozen civilians were being treated of wounds by, of all things, several of the Soul Reapers, including a woman of snowy skin with a head of pink hair, who held a strange weapon of white cloth affixed with pointed knives. A Zanpaktou?

The woman turned to see Shining Armor and his troops arrive, Arrancar still buzzing around them, and quickly shouted at the Arrancar, “Hey! This is no place to bring the fight! We’re treating civilians here!”

One of the Arrancar turned towards her and let out a spittle laden hiss, “Shut up your ugly Soul Reaper face! We’re having fun and I'm getting tired of you trying to ruin it!”

The Soul Reaper woman gained a look that Shining Armor had seen certain ornery nurses get when they were dealing with an unruly patient, and she vanished with a Flash Step and appeared in the sky near the center of the Arrancar, who paused in their attacks to look at her.

“Ahem! Perhaps I wasn't making myself clear. I said,” The Soul Reaper raised her right hand and spun her white cloth laden with interlaced knives around, and it writhed like a living thing, spinning outward with tempestuous force. A whirlwind of snow flew out and froze the limbs of several Arrancar, “Take it somewhere else!”

The Arrancar with frozen limbs growled and backed off, shaking off the snow frost, while several others appeared around the woman with their blades poised to strike. One of them licked his lips as he leered at the Soul Reaper, “You know what, screw you! Mother asked us to play nice with you jackholes, but only to a freakin' point! I say we just rip you worthless dolls to shreds alongside these candy colored soul snacks!”

“I’m with you on that bro,” said another Arrancar, “I want to know what the fake Soul Reapers taste like, too!”

“Let’s just eat everyone!” shouted another, “Eat! Eat! Eat!”

Soon the chant was picked up and before Shining Armor knew it the Arrancar were turning their attention to the Soul Reapers as well as his own troops.

“Protect the civilians!” shouted the woman with the odd Zanpaktou, and Shining Armor saw her whip the scarf-like weapon out once more at the nearest Arrancar in a flurry of snow.

He lost track of her then, as another Arrancar had dived at him, its blade slamming into his shield. He sent a disc sawing through the air after it, forcing the Arrancar to dodge aside before it could unleash a Cero. As his troops poured into the city square, the other copy Soul Reapers ignored the guardsponies and instead did as their leader bade and took up defensive positions around the civilians they’d been treating.

Shining Armor had no idea what in Tartarus was going on, but he wasn’t about to question sudden unexpected allies too much. “Treat these Soul Reapers as friendlies! Focus all fire on the Arrancar!” He ordered, and sent his discs back to work in chasing down Arrancar as fast as he could, starting with a pair he saw firing Cero blasts at the Soul Reaper woman who he spotted again as she zipped into view back down in the square.

Just as his magical discs flew through one Arrancar, cutting halfway through its side, he saw the Soul Reaper woman fling her knife-scarf past him, unleashing a concentrated tendril of snow that froze over the top half of an Arrancar that had appeared behind him.

“Thanks,” he muttered. She nodded to him.

“Same to you. Lieutenant Redheart.”

“Shining Armor.”

“Truce, until these monsters are dealt with?”

“Agreed, until they’re dealt with,” he replied curtly, “Then if it’s all the same to you I want you people out of my city.”

“Guess we’ll cross the bridge when we get there, but for now,” Redhead said, sending out another blast of snow towards their now mutual enemies, “I’ll just be glad to not have you as an enemy.”

Author's Notes:

Starlight versus Celestia is reaching it's climax point, while the other fights are heating up. Starlight may have underestimated how much 'love' Chrysalis can dredge up at a moment's notice, but just maybe there's someone else around with a bounttiful amount of admiration for Starlight who can dramatically leap upon the scene? Meanwhile, Luna is wondering if a duel still counts as a one on one fight if she's still technically fighting the same person, even if there's two of them? Shining Armor has made a temporary not-enemy, and next chapter we'll hopefully see what Cadence has in her back pocket to even the odds against Espada Chrysalis.

As always, hope you folks enjoyed the chapter and thank you all for reading. I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time.

Episode 156: The Crystal Princess Drenched Crimson

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Episode 156: The Crystal Princess Drenched Crimson

The skies above the Crystal Empire were being gradually stained gray by a growing haze of smoke that stemmed from fires that burned across the city below. Amid that haze, two figures clashed in a display of sparks, punctuated by thin lines of piercing magical blasts.

No matter how Princess Cadence’s spear thrust, nor how often her horn emitted beams of cutting blue light, the Second Espada always was a laughing step or two ahead. The rose adorned spear of light blue crystal that Cadence wove in a deadly pattern of swift thrusts or slashing combos ever met with the blocking blade of Chrysalis’ Zanpaktou. Each thin beam of penetrating magical power that flew from Cadence’s horn met with empty air, Chrysalis’ Sonido so fast that she left a mocking after image that laughed at the alicorn’s efforts.

“I suspected you were the weakest of the lot, but this is still pretty disappointing, Princess,” Chrysalis said, halting another of Cadence’s thrusts with the tip of her own blade, the Zanpaktou holding the crystal spear in place tip-to-tip with seeming no strain on the Espada’s part. Chrysalis’ head cocked heavily to one side, her face growing a look of genuine curiosity that still somehow came off as chiding, “You’re not holding out on me, are you? I can admire the steel clad ovaries on you to actually try playing with me, but it’s no fun if we’re both tip-toeing around the foreplay. So should I turn up the heat? Get you more in the mood?”

Just like that, Chrysalis switched from playful defense to a savage offense. Already moving supremely fast, she cranked up her speed further, the air filling with a continuous buzzing noise from scores of multiple consecutive Sonidos that left Chrysalis appearing around Cadence in a storm of visual copies and after images. Cadence was fast to erect a defensive barrier around herself, but cried out as she had still been too slow in the act to avoid several painful cuts that drew splashes of blood from wounds on her legs and chest. Once her shield was up it held a little, but Chrysalis seemed to increase the force of her blows with each strike, and in seconds the barrier shattered.

In a quick defensive maneuver, Cadence teleported a hundred feet up out of the hurricane of slashes and swept her spear out in a wide arc. Crystal shards shot out of the spear and laced with magical power that made them glow brightly, they fell amid the space Chrysalis had been attacking and exploded like aerial mines, sending crystalline shrapnel in all directions.

Cadence grimaced as she heard another Sonido next to her and jumped back as Chrysalis casually tried to lean on her shoulder. Looking conversational, Chrysalis tugged at her clothes, which was filled with holes and bits of crystal, “Come on now, Cadence. Ruining my outfit like this is just so... petty, don’t you think?”

“Do you enjoy treating this like a game?” Cadence accused with acid in her voice, and Chrysalis just smiled.

“Naturally. Life is meant to be enjoyed, isn’t it? Not much point to doing anything if you’re not going to take pleasure in it. Oh, I get that my appetites aren’t exactly to everyone’s tastes, but I see that as a ‘them’ problem, not a ‘me’ problem.”

“Have you ever considered a hobby that doesn’t involve making other people miserable?” Cadence shot back, raising her spear above her head. There, she created a magical copy of the weapon, at about twenty times the scale, which crackled and hummed with arcs of magical power before Cadence gestured with her spear and sent the giant projectile flying at Chrysalis with enough speed and force to rip a wave through the sound barrier.

Chrysalis yawned, raising a finger, at the tip of which a pure emerald sphere of light gathered before discharging into a massive Cero beam that slammed into the magical spear projectile and consumed it entirely before blasting it’s way upwards out of the atmosphere.

“People are always going to be miserable. If it isn’t me making them that way, someone or something else will. That’s just how souls are. Never happy for long, unless it comes at the cost of someone else. I just embrace it and have fun with it. Quite frankly the rest of you seem crazy to me, going through life pretending to be ‘moral’ when most of it just looks like self satisfaction gussied up as being a ‘good person’.”

She appeared in an instant in front of Cadence, moving with the slick grace of an oiled shadow. Her dark legs spun in a punishing heel kick that tore the air as it went, and Cadence barely got her spear in the way to block with the shaft. Even then the massive blow sent Cadence flying backwards, barely able to recover after a few tumbles, and when she did so she saw the crystal spear had been broken in half by the kick, the shaft snapped neatly in half.

“Huh,” said Chrysalis, “Thought maybe that spear was something special, but just looks like a piece of crystal you shoved some magic into.”

The Espada’s eyes began to narrow to dangerous slits, “Are you sure you’re not holding out on me? This is starting to feel a bit like someone is playing a joke on me, and while I have a wicked sense of humor, I’m not a fan of pranks. Ah, but then again...”

She held up her empty palm towards “Cadence” and a much greater amount of reiatsu began to build up within her, darkness and thick, jade light emanating from her body in a thick wave. Power flowed into her palm in a growing sphere of burning emerald light, a Cero of far greater destructive power than what she’d unleashed thus far, “...I can always just stop playing with you and see if you’re the real deal, or just a soon-to-be corpse.”

“Cadence” visibly gulped and tossed aside the bits of broken spear, and planted herself firmly, her voice not quavering but taking on a distinctly different tone, “Geeze, you’re even worse than she is, and that’s such a low bar I didn’t think it could be crossed.”

Another voice shouted from above, a small insect that had been observing the battle now somehow having the deep masculine voice of a full grown adult, “I told you that trying to fight her one on one was a dumb idea! Are you going to let me in on this or what!?”

“Y-yeah, could use the help!” said “Cadence”, just as Chrysalis discharged her Cero.

Magic pooled in “Cadence’s” horn and fired out in a thick, teal beam. It was joined as the small insect, a stag beetle, now flew down beside her and a ball of green flame appeared to reveal a darkly colored, chitinous form that unleashed a wide beam of emerald magic of his own. The two beams combined into a multi-colored torrent that impacted with Chrysalis’ Cero, the explosive energies mixing together to create a significant detonation in the sky that shook every house in the Crystal Empire and a good chunk of land for miles around.

It took a minute for the smoke to clear from the explosion, and when it did Chrysalis’ narrowed eyes opened up once more, her lips now twitching into a somewhat difficult to control grin, “So, I see my counterpart did at least one thing right with her miserable life. She still gave birth to two fine looking sons. It’s good to see you, Pharynx, Thorax.”

With the smoke cleared, it was plain to see that one of the two individuals standing to face Chrysalis was indeed the changeling known as Pharynx. A dark mixture of blue and green carapace covered most of his body, save for some lighter mauve portions around his belly and wings, the wings themselves a rich magenta. Small burnished orange horns like a stags’ sprung from his head, and three small, pale jewel-like protrusions were embedded in his chest. He was, like his human counterpart, a sturdily built individual with a stern gaze in his solid purple eyes.

“Keep the compliments, you crazy hag,” Pharynx said in a gruff voice, raising his right arm and shifting it in a wash of green changeling fire to become a large, curved scythe-like blade, “You cut my brother. I’ve got a lot of payback coming your way.”

“Uh, the concern is appreciated, brother, but seriously, I’m fine,” said Thorax as he shucked off the disguise as Princess Cadence, fully shifting into his natural form. Once upon a time, like Pharynx, Thorax would have appeared like any other of the Equestrian Chrysalis’ uniform drones. Now, after having evolved from the willing sharing of love, the transformed changeling magic within him had given Thorax a regal shape. Taller and more filled out than his fellow changelings, Thorax had chitin that was mostly a shade of lime green that bled to orange around the lower portion of his neck, where a darker green chitin took over around his belly. His back was covered by an armored shell of dark purple and pink that protected his gossamer violet wings, and a pair of large, orange stag horns flanked his head. A trio of white protrusions were embedded in his chest, like gemstones. Deep purple eyes tried to project an air of confidence, but a certain shy awkwardness seemed ever present even as the changeling King cleared his throat and with his wings buzzing shifted forward a bit towards Chrysalis.

“As for you, my brother and I are here at the behest of our friends in the Crystal Empire to ensure their safety. This city is under changeling protection. Leave now, or-”

“Wait, wait, let me stop you there,” Chrysalis interrupted, waving a hand, “I mean I’m sure you were leading up to a heroic threat or whatever, but I really just need to get a look at you two for a moment. Do you mind?”

“Uh, what?” said Pharynx as he and Thorax glanced at each other, and then both of them gave a startled look as Chrysalis appeared behind them, leaning over with her fingers rubbing her chin as she tapped her Zanpaktou blade on her thigh.

“Hmm, you know some people might call it a gaudy color scheme, but I think I could learn to like it. My boys share my dark complexion, you see, but I was curious just what you’d all look like under this candy colored spectrum. Very nice Pharynx. Good balance. Thorax, you’re a bit loud with the orange clashing too much, but the horns are a nice touch and give you that kingly look. I wonder how you’d fare with my boys. Oh, if only I’d brought Ocellus along! She’d be squealing over you two!”

“W-w-what!?” Thorax jumped back, wings blurring in agitation, “What are you talking about!?”

“Hm? Just making some observations, boys, no need to get all flustered,” Chrysalis said, eyeing the two up like someone might fresh fish at the market, “After all it’s almost like we’re family. I mean, I know your current mother in this world is a worthless trash bag shaped like a changeling, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a positive relationship.”

“Lady, you’re a whole basket full of nuts, and the only relationship I’m interested from you is how intimate I can get you with my claws,” Pharynx said, shaking his head and spitting out a growl as he move with shocking speed for someone not using any obvious speed enhancement magic. Of course he was, his changeling magic altering his internal nervous system to boost his reflexes to unnatural speeds. This let Pharynx become a hacking spec of motion, both his forelegs now altered into deadly scything blades.

Chrysalis used her Zanpaktou in a few deft swipes to meet his arm blades, smiling brightly with glittering eyes, “Just as brash as my own Pharynx. How delightful.”

After one party she turned her sword in her grip and made a powerful horizontal slash. Pharynx caught it with both his arm blades, the two curved mantis-like claws barely halting Chrysalis’ blade. Pharynx hissed again and spat out a glob of puke green saliva at Chrysalis’ face, which she sidestepped after breaking contact with Pharynx’s blades. Just then a burst of emerald fire to her right caught her attention as Thorax changed shape and joined the fray.

His body turned into that of a vast avian being, a gigantic bird with lime green wings and an orange head of feathers. As a Roc, Thorax’s physical strength was immense, but he used changeling magic to boost it further with metallic ligaments through his body’s muscles and a simulated massive surge of magic-enhanced adrenaline that let the bird form strike with colossal might. He used the Roc form’s gigantic beak like an oversized glaive, stabbing down at Chrysalis with a mighty beat of his wings.

She braced her free hand on the back of her blade and used it to absorb the blow, a thunderous crack of noise filling the air as Thorax’s humongous body beat the air with over an hundred foot wingspan to try and press his beak past her block and skewer her.

Chrysalis held the blow back, planting her feet upon the reishi of the air and barely skidding an inch before halting Thorax entirely and pushing him away with one powerful sweep of her sword. Thorax was thrown back, and Chrysalis ran a finger over her Zanpaktou’s edge.

“I’m flattered Princess Cadence arranged additional dance partners for me, but honestly boys, where is she? Much as I enjoy the notion of toying with my pathetic counterpart’s offspring, I didn’t come here for you. I came to see what this Princess of Love is made of, and thus far I’m rather disappointed she’s a no show.”

“Maybe she just has better things to do than worry about a psychotic narcissist like you?” Thorax offered, spreading his wings and then flapping them forward in a hurricane burst of air pressure. This burst of air by itself would be harmless to one like Chrysalis, but Thorax had been growing ever more skilled in the changeling’s magical arts. He wasn’t sure if he was as skilled as Queen Chrysalis yet, but he had access to far greater stores of natural love than she ever did, and so he suspected he’d been learning tricks even she never had the power to figure it out.

In some ways it was sad to him. It was only after he started sharing and receiving love freely among his people that he realized that Queen Chrysalis’ ways were not only wrong morally, but they’d been holding back the changeling race’s true potential for so long. Love was the source of a changeling’s power, yes, but in stealing it like Chrysalis had, they’d only ever been able to access a fraction of what that magic could truly do. Their new, colorful bodies weren’t a mutation or aberration, but the beautiful true form the changeling race was always meant to have. A part of him wished Queen Chrysalis could have seen that, instead of being stubbornly stuck in the old ways that only left her weak and alone.

Now, empowered by genuine, freely given love, Thorax and his people had been finding all sorts of new ways to use their powers.

Feathers shot out of his wings and into the wave of air. As they went he changed the nature of those feathers into a storm of shining shards of silvery metal. This metal, mithril, was particularly responsive to magic and enhanced any magic that it came into contact with. Since a Roc’s incredible flight speed and strength was a magically based thing, in which the winds its wings generated were themselves magical tempests, these metal shards now magnified the windstorm to a sudden, epic proportion.

A normal changeling never could have altered parts of themselves that were no longer attached to their body, but for Thorax it was entirely doable. The result was a sudden tornado-force storm of cutting wings and mythril shards that hammered right into Chrysalis.

Pharynx, not one to remain idle, joined in by changing his form as well. Green flames burned bright and tall as he changed his form into that of a large insectile creature with six long, drooping limbs, wide mandibles, and a black and purple striped body with a massive and bulbous back end. The flying Bomber Blast Beetle was a particularly aggressive and large species inhabiting some rare jungles, and it’s ability to project fire capable of melting even a dragon’s scales made them feared by adventurers and travelers across the world.

With a deep intake of breath that resulted in an inward gust of wind flowing into his body, Pharynx expanded his chest and abdomen in size, the flaming energy inside causing his body to glow internally a burning red. He then expelled in an explosive flourish a sweeping jet of liquid ruby flame directly into the tornado that Thorax had created. The air of the tornado swept up and fed the fire, and the mythril shards within reacted with the magically charged flame to intensify it even further. The result was an incredibly bright and shining sanguine tornado of fire that tore through the air and sky, filling the air with it’s metal melting heat.

Not done, however, the two brothers looked to each other and nodded, both of their bodies flashing with green changeling flame to transform once again. This time the creatures they turned into were identical. Sharing qualities with deep sea mantas, but with even wider wings covered in pearl white feathers, these creatures were a unique combination of two animals. Scythe Rays, a type of aquatic stingray that used incredibly sharp bones edging its “wings” to slice prey, and a type of large hunting bird akin to the Roc called a Gust Hawk that used magic to generate bursts of air from it’s feathers for rapid movements. It was one of the newer abilities Thorax and his brother had discovered, not just the ability to transform into one creature, but mix and match elements of multiple beings into a “blended” hybrid.

Before the tornado fire storm even finished dissipating, both Pharynx and Thorax built up charges of air amid the white feathers covering their wide stingray wings, and in perfect tandem shot forward at hypersonic speed amid blasts of air. The insanely sharp bone edges of their wide wings cut a neat X pattern right through the tornado, where they sensed Chrysalis’ presence, and they felt their blade wings make contact with something solid as the combined momentum and weight of their blows sent Chrysalis flying out at a slight downward angle.

She was effectively thrown beyond the city limits, to the pastures of green plains that extended for a few miles outside the edge of the Crystal Empire suburbs. There she hit the ground feet first with sufficient force to break the earth into giant slabs as she skidded back, digging through the ground.

Once she stopped, Chrysalis took a second to slowly stand and brush bits of red flame off of her form fitting, curve revealing dress, and looked herself over with a whistle of appreciation. With magic enhancing their every attack, the Equestrian versions of her two boys had inflicted a bit of damage, from a few burn marks to a few residual cuts from that last attack. She’d caught their wing blades with her own Zanpaktou, of course, but she was at least minimally impressed they hurt her at all.

“Guess my children can’t help but be incredible, even with the disability of that pathetic counterpart of mine raising them,” she said with a smile as she looked up.

The two hybrid Scythe Ray/Gust Hawks flew down and transformed once more, Pharynx and Thorax returning to their natural forms, albeit both now sporting different arm weapons. Pharynx still favored the scythe shaped arms, while Thorax had opted for a configuration of his left arm transforming into a thick, rounded shield that had the texture of a tortoise shell, colored a vibrant green, while his right arm extended a barbed blade that extended thorn-like protrusions from it’s edges.

The brothers wasted no words on banter. They were wholly dedicated in focus and on the task of at the very least delaying Chrysalis’ attack on the city. Their gossamer bug wings blurred to nothingness and the pair entered an eye defying series of zipping maneuvers that surrounded Chrysalis with their darting forms in an attempt to disorient her before they rushed her from the sides.

Pharynx’s scythe arms cut at her neck and eyes, and she swept up a sinuous black leg to perfectly plant her heel kick on one of his arms to knock him off balance. Thorax’s blade of thorns stabbed hard for her chest, seeking her heart, but she spun and swept her Zanpaktou up in a harsh arc that deflected the attack in a shower of sparks. Her first shot out and Thorax got his shell shield in place in the nick of time, taking a punishing blow that cratered the around him as he was knocked back like a pinball.

With a guttural shout Pharynx came right back in, sweeping both scythe arms down and then up in an upper-cut motion that Chrysalis bent away from like a pole dancer. One of his scythe blades kissed her flesh, and acidic poison shot from his scythe, trying to scald her skin with it’s burning touch. Chrysalis just laughed in joy at the pain and snapped forward like a rubber band, catching Pharynx off balance as she drove the heel of a palm into his chest and smashed him into the ground hard enough to leave a Pharynx-shaped imprint.

By now Thorax had recovered, wings buzzing, and flung his left arm forward. The shield there shot out like a yo-yo, attached to his arm by thread-like muscles that extended to allow the spinning shield to move as he willed. The spinning shield nearly struck Chrysalis in the back of the head, but at the very last millisecond she tilted her head and danced to the left, turning her free hand backwards. Green light hummed around her hand and a series of jade Bala reishi bullets shot out, forcing Thorax to quickly dodge and retract his shield to block the ones he couldn’t evade.

Spitting blood, Pharynx suddenly surged up, his scythe arms now flaming green as the blades extended and retracted on their own in a blazing storm of stabs and slashes while Chrysalis’ attention was on Thorax. She ceased shooting Balas at Thorax in order to quickly become a blur of Sonidos, flowing through Pharyanx’s assault to then appear behind him with a blinding upward swing of her sword. He threw himself into a roll to evade, but still felt the blade’s bite as it ripped a gash through his carapace.

“Pharynx!” Thorax shouted, emerald fire bursting from his own arm as he transformed his thorn blade into a rocket propelled missile, extending it at sound ripping speed and force at Chrysalis while Pharynx flew back, gripping his wounded side.

Chrysalis turned and took the attack right in the stomach, or at least it appeared so. She was driven back a few meters before she halted herself, and Thorax gasped as he saw her free hand had grabbed his extended blade, ignoring the thorns of it cutting her palm, and with a squeeze and twist she snapped the weapon’s tip clean off.

As Thorax retracted his weapon and used a burst of changeling magic to reform it, and Pharynx began using similar magic to start regenerating his wound, Chrysalis ran her bloodied hand through her hair, seeming to enjoy the way her blood dripped onto her face, and let out a pleasured sigh.

“Ah, this reminds me of when you two were little. Well, not you two, but my children. Such good boys. Fast learners. We’d spar and spar for hours, every wound a lesson from mommy to her little boys. And I was always so proud when they’d land a blow on me. My clever Thorax, my resilient Pharynx, and when I added little unpredictable Ocellus to our family it was even more complete.”

“Gross...” Pharynx said, “Seriously, I don’t care about your weird family time. I think I prefer our world’s Chrysalis better. At least she had the sense to skip out and not even waste time writing letters, and we’re all better off for it.”

Thorax on the other hand was frowning thoughtfully, “I don’t understand. If you care about your family, shouldn’t you understand how horrible the things you’re doing here are? The families you’re destroying by attacking innocent people?”

“Thorax, my precious little idealist. You share that with your counterpart, you know? He dreams so much of a better world, where Hollows are not hunted or hated,” Chrysalis said with a fond amusement, “He never understands me either. But that’s okay, a mother doesn’t have to be understood by her children for her to love them. What does that love have to do with the fun I enjoy having? I could slaughter thousands and not love my children one whit less for it, because the ones I’m killing aren’t the ones I love. Is that not natural? Don’t bother answering that, it’s a meaningless question. I do what feels good, what gives me a sense of pleasure, ever and always. If I’m hungry, I eat. If I’m lusty, I mate. If I’m bored, I play. It just so happens that what I hunger for is souls, whatever I play with tends to break, and whomever I mate with... well they’d better have the ability to satisfy me or I’ll take my pleasure in other ways. And on top of all that, I just happen to love my children and want them to grow up to be whomever they choose to be, even if that choice is to hate me and one day kill me. Does that answer satisfy you, Thorax of this delightfully bright realm?”

The sour curl of his lips and the unbelieving shake of his head could only be described as confused repulsion on Thorax’s part, “That just sounds like mindless hedonism to me, even with the weird way you think of your kids’ well being. But if you can’t empathize with anyone else, you’re no better than our mother.”

“Oh please,” Chrysalis said with a hefty chuckle, “Don’t make jokes in poor taste, Thorax. Quite frankly I’m tired of hearing about that empty husk of a woman. Let’s discuss something more interesting, like where Princess Cadence is hiding herself.”

“She’s not hiding,” Pharynx declared simply, cracking his neck a few times and double checking that his wound was now mostly closed, thanks to transformative changeling magic, “Just getting ready to kick your prissy flank. I don’t even like ponies all that much, but I won’t mind helping her knock your crazy block off.”

“Prepping, is she?” Chrysalis said, and cast a glance towards the now distant crystal tower, “I take it your task was to delay me until she’s finished doing whatever it is she’s doing? Well then...”

Spiritual pressure welled up from Chrysalis in a sickeningly thick tide, choking green light of an intermix of numerous green shades rising from her in a vast and growing aura. Thorax and Pharynx could feel the weight of this reiatsu on them, like some incredible vortex that was sucking them down into its infinite depths. Each of them was individually powerful by changeling standards, yet outside of that transcendent moment in which Thorax had helped the entire hive unleash their stored love magic all at once to shatter their Chrysalis’ throne, he’d never felt anything close to what this Arrancar wearing his mother’s form was showing off right now.

“I suppose I’ll get a little less playful and a bit more serious.”

The wounds she’d allowed to remain on her body, simply to enjoy the sensation, regenerated instantly. The flickering aura of many shades of green that surrounded her body suddenly concentrated into the edge of her blade, and Chrysalis made a motion with the Zanpaktou so swift that it was like nothing more than a flash of light. It was a single, circular sweep of her sword, but the force of it unleashed such a torrent of raw physical force and cutting spiritual pressure that the result was a full three hundred and sixty degree shockwave that tore apart the landscape in the immediate mile around her. The circular wave of power, tinted in numerous shades of green, reached the outskirts of the Empire’s city and entire buildings were cut neatly in half by it.

Fortunately the wave didn’t quite reach the areas of fighting, and most civilians had already been evacuated, by the combat in the city streets did pause at the incredible sonic boom of sound from the shockwave and Shining Armor saw the destruction of the outskirts houses and shops with a cold lump in his gut, knowing full well his wife was about to fight the one who could do something like that.

As for Thorax and Pharynx, each had immediately made defensive moves the second Chrysalis had started to charge up her blade. Thorax had slammed his shield into the ground in front of him, transforming it into three times the size and thickness while altering the shield’s physical composition to take on a reflective, golden sheen. This metal, orichalcum, was particularly energy and impact resistant, but was also ludicrously heavy. Not very useful for active defense where maneuverability was key, for for a potent static defense against an energy attack, magic based or otherwise, the metal was ideal.

Pharynx meanwhile had opted to transform his whole body into adamantine, unconsciously copying the same protective move Equestria’s Chrysalis was fond of, while crossing his scythe arms in front of him to reduce as much of the blow as possible. Adamantine wasn’t as heavy or energy resistant as orichalcum, but Pharynx recognized the cutting power in the oncoming attack and opted for adamantine’s incredible resistance to such attacks.

Both underestimated the strength of the Second Espada when she wasn’t pulling her punches, although their quick actions did still save their lives.

Thorax’s shield was cut through, but in so doing the wave of cutting force lost much of its power and when it struck Thorax in the chest it sent him flying back and left a deep cut on his chest, but thankfully not a fatal one. Pharynx’s left scythe arm was cut through cleanly, but his right one remained intact and he otherwise got off without injury, although that did leave his left foreleg a bleeding stump. He could regenerate it in time, but nowhere near as fast as he could more superficial wounds, and he was left breathing hard and biting back a shout of agony at the lost limb.

Chrysalis looked at the pair with a nod of approval, then coiled her legs beneath her and vanished in a blast of force from a Sonido that was so fast that she covered the distance to the crystal tower before either changeling brother could so much as blink.

Now standing in the air a few dozen meters above the crystal tower’s apex, Chrysalis idly twirled a finger through her hair as she aimed her Zanpaktou’s tip down the magnificent crystal structure’s length. Her voice rang out loud like a peal of musical thunder.

“Anyone home?”

A sparking circle of emerald spirit energy appeared around her Zanpaktou as she shot a focused and potent Bala into the tower’s top, blasting a hole through it.

“I’ll just keep ringing the doorbell until someone answers, shall I?”

A spark, a boom, and another chunk of crystal tower was blown off.

“I mean, not that I’m against doing some creative interior decorating. Add a few more sunroofs to this place. I’ll probably hit something important eventually.”

As Chrysalis charged up her next shot a familiar female voice called out, “That won’t be necessary, even if I could use a few more windows in here, just to let a little more light in.”

Chrysalis looked towards the source of the voice, which had come from an archway that opened up onto an oval-shaped platform that surrounded the lower portion of the tower’s top, which was itself shaped like a massive sharpened spear tip. The platform was relatively new construction, added by Cadence as an observation area especially for whenever Twilight visited and wanted to do some stargazing. Now Cadence strode out onto it with a grim cast to her face as she looked up into the face of the monstrous individual assaulting her nation and her people.

The entire time she’d been watching the battles unfold from within the tower, with crystal orbs designed to shower her views across her city. It hurt having to watch her husband and his noble soldiers fight for their civilians' lives, while also having to wait while Thorax and his brother purchased invaluable time with their lifeblood. She was also aware of Zecora’s presence, down near the Crystal Heart, but trusted in the artifact’s defenses. Besides, the odd Soul Reaper woman seemed strangely... unhurried, as if she just wasn’t in a rush to get to the Crystal Heart.

All the better for Cadence, who’d been fully committed to the ritual to attune herself to the tower and preparing herself for what was about to come.

When she walked out onto the observation platform, she wore no armor, bore no weapons. She wasn’t even wearing her traditional royal regalia. No, the only thing she carried was a ring, floating in her gentle magic grip next to her head. It was an ancient looking thing, it’s metal a faded rose pink color that looked dull with countless years of age. It was carved with an unusual script, a language too old for modern scholars to have read, but Celestia had told Cadence the words’ meaning when she’d bestowed the ring to her long ago when Cadence first became a Princess... or rather, an alicorn.

”It means, ‘To my beloved frozen flower, to whom I give all my warmth - Anteros’. An engagement ring, bearing with it a great inheritance.”

Celestia had not revealed all, back then, but in time Cadence had been taught the true duty of the current alicorns, and of the nature of Inheritors. Not all Inheritors would be alicorns, but the ones who reached that state of apotheosis were entrusted to be the first to bring forth the ancient alicorn race’s magic once more and guide the other Inheritors forward. It was supposed to only be when the time was right and the world was in a strong enough state of Harmony that it could be certain the damage done in the alicorn’s eons old war was repaired, but circumstances with the invasion from the human realm had changed things. That, and the fact that Celestia was largely certain Twilight had already discovered her Relic, making waiting any longer on the matter pointless. Each Relic being released weakened the seals on the other Relics, meaning a cascade effect was already rolling. Other Inheritors would start naturally sensing their Relics and be compelled to seek them out.

Since the proverbial cat was out of the bag, might as well capitalize on it.

Of course Cadence wasn’t so foolish as to assume her Relic held enough power to fight off this insane Hollow Chrysalis. Anteros, as she understood it, was a mid-class alicorn “deity” of love. Potent in his own right, but nowhere near what Celestia and Luna were tied to. Which honestly was fine by Cadence. She didn’t envy what the royal sisters had to deal with, since Luna described Iah’s personality as like trying to control the full fury of a winter storm combined with all the moodiness one might expect of a moon goddess. And as for Eos... well, Cadence just silently hoped Celestia would be okay, tapping into that kind of power.

Compared to that, Anteros and her sounded more compatible, but the proof would be in the proverbial pudding.

“Color me pleased you didn’t make me go looking for you,” Chrysalis said, walking downward on steps of air until she was on the platform facing Cadence, her posture like that of languid lynx stalking towards a rabbit, “I don’t mind a little hide and seek, but the day is dragging on.”

“I’ll make sure not to waste your time then,” Cadence replied with a frosty cool coloring her voice as she slipped the ring onto her horn, “And remove you and yours from my country, Chrysalis.”

“Ooooh, do I detect a note of grudge?” Chrysalis asked, leaning closer and tapping a finger to her lips, “Old friend of my counterpart, are you?”

Cadence felt her muscles tense and blood rushing through her ears. Although it had been quite some time since her wedding to Shining Armor, she still keenly remembered the painful days spent prisoner in the caves beneath Canterlot, abducted and replaced by Equestria’s Chrysalis. She’d long since come to accept changelings as friends and allies, but there was still quite a long held sore spot for the race’s former queen. She forced a grimacing smile onto her face as she felt the crystal tower beneath her begin to vibrate with power.

“Not that it’s any business of yours. I understand you’re not her, but quite frankly you seem just as bad, and I think taking you down will be... therapeutic.”

“Hah, assuming you can, my rancor filled rose,” replied Chrysalis, glancing down the length of the tower as she now noticed the build up of power within the structure itself. “At least it looks like you’ve got something set up with this tower of yours and that ring you just put on. Well far be it from me to be a spoilsport. This won’t be as fun we don’t taste a little of each other’s blood. So come on, flower... show me your thorns.”

----------

Zecora puzzled over the situation. She had bypassed the outer wards around the Crystal Heart with a little time spent tampering with the magic via a few bursts of reiatsu at what looked like the weaker points in the spell’s construction. The energy type may have been different, but it seemed like the actual methodology behind magic-based wards and spirit-based ones were quite similar. Or perhaps it was merely coincidence in this case? Regardless, opening a hole in the outer ward only let her get marginally closer to the Crystal Heart itself.

Other defenses could not be so easily bypassed, with small turrets of pointed crystal pylons activated both in the ground and roof of the tower’s underside the moment Zecora stepped close to the Heart itself. Flash Step did serve to evade the beams of bright blue light fired by the pylons, but she had to waste entire minutes destroying those with a few well aimed Kido spells, and she was still left with a much thicker and potent ward around the Crystal Heart that try as she might she could not see a way to deactivate.

Then again, at this range, she didn’t entirely have to. Her Zanpaktou’s power could not only fully analyze and show her the nature of the ward, but it extended to the Crystal Heart itself, allowing Zecora a proper view of the magical artifact any everything it was tied to. Which turned out to be pretty much everything in the Crystal Empire.

Zecora was shocked to see just how many lines of energy spread out from this Heart, infusing almost every portion of the city, the tower, and most fascinating of all, it’s citizens. With her Zanpaktou’s ability to see the true nature of things, she could now clearly see the thousands upon thousands of microscopic yet somehow dazzlingly bright lines of magic that spread out from the Heart and flowed outward in every direction.

The Crystal Heart beat with an incredible amount of stored magical energy, but it was also receiving a steady stream of such energy from those spread out threads. Focusing on those threads, Zecora could spot numerous concentrations of them at different locations, like big clusters. Her Zanpaktou show her these clusters were located underground, spread out in pockets around the city.

I’m also sensing the reiatsu of living beings in those locations. Those must be the shelters where the Empire’s citizens evacuated to. Energy is flowing from them and into the Crystal Heart, and then the Heart is transferring that power into the tower... no, not just the tower, to a specific point at the top of the tower.

It didn’t take a great genius to understand what was happening, as Zecora could readily sense Chrysalis’ spiritual pressure at the apex of the tower, alongside another lifesign that appeared to be the focal point of the energy transfer from the Crystal Heart.

Whether or not this impressive amount of magic would be enough to counteract the overwhelming might of the second most powerful Hollow to ever exist, even Zecora could not say.

But her mission, given to her by her creator Starlight Glimmer, was specific on several factors. If feasible, physically retrieve the Crystal Heart, but only if doing so would not cause severe issues to the Empire itself. Zecora was chosen for this mission particularly for the analytical power of her Zanpaktou, which could determine the Crystal Hearts’ nature and whether or not it's removal would be critically detrimental to the Crystal Empire.

Secondly, if it was determined the Crystal Heart could not or should not be removed, Zecora was to use her Zanpaktou’s ability to gather as much information on the Crystal Heart as possible so it could be potentially reproduced at Hitsuyo Aku.

Finally, her third mission was to minimize the damage Chrysalis and her children would inflict. Having been receiving updates via Kido spells from Redheart, Zecora was aware that the Crystal Empire’s defenders had driven back Chrysalis’ Arrancar to the city’s main square, and that the city’s guard Captain was temporarily working with Redheart to defend injured civilians.

Considering Chrysalis was now focused on Princess Cadence, the purpose of the distraction attack on the city had fulfilled its purpose, and with the magical build up in the tower itself, Zecora determined the time was right.

Activating a communication Kido, Zecora spoke so that her voice would be heard by Redheart and all of her Reigai, “This is Captain Zecora to all Reigai of the Second Company, your work is appreciated. Distraction is no longer necessary. Withdraw to the designated rendezvous point and await further orders.”

Redheart’s voice was quick to respond, “Understood, Captain. However I request permission to remain on site. These Arrancar remain unruly, and there are still injured civilians my Zanpaktou’s ability is ideal to tending to.”

Zecora found herself nodding, having expected as much from her ‘Lieutenant’, “Permission granted, Redheart. Do as you will, but don’t let your guard down. All other forces, withdraw.”

After receiving acknowledgments from her squads, Zecora turned her attention back to the Crystal Heart, working to glean as much as she could via her Zanpaktou of the artifact’s inner workings, even as the heart began to pulse brighter and brighter as it fed streams of intensely bright blue power up into the crystal tower and to the Princess high above.

----------

By this point the entirety of the shining tower of blue and white crystal was pulsating with a heartbeat of potent magic. Streams of light rushed up the surface of the tower with each pulse, a deep and resonant ba-dump of a heartbeat clapping the air with each passing few seconds. This magical power gathered at the hooves of Princess Cadence, a circle of piercing blue-white light filling the platform around her like a liquid pool of raw energy.

This, followed by Cadence lighting up her horn with magic and focusing it upon the ring she wore there. A symbol of a chain appeared for an instant, intensely red as a rose, before the seal was broken by Cadence’s magic. Upon doing so the latent power within the Relic burst forth all at once. A rose red dome of magical power sprang around Cadence, it’s edges spitting bolts of passionate pink and red energy that concentrated upon Cadence like the jolting streams of an electro globe.

Objects took shape amid the bolts of power, smooth plates of armor that then slapped onto Cadence’s body like magnets. Each piece fused to her body in a burst of power, the dome of deep pink energy growing with each added portion. Chrysalis, more out of a bizarre sense of courtesy than any concern, used Sonido to vanish and reappear a respectful distance back, idly twirling her Zanpaktou in her hands as she licked her lips in rapt anticipation, eager to see what the Princess could do with this new power.

The armor continued to fuse with Cadence’s form in slab after slab, until every inch of her body, from head to tail, was clad in elegant segments of rose red armor that to Chrysalis’ eyes appeared quite a bit more advanced in design than traditional medieval armor. Cadence’s head was completely covered by a sharp angled, visor bearing helmet that had lines of glowing neon power around its edges, the visor itself a single fused line of blue crystal, the helmet’s head growing sharp bladed fringes on it’s sides that reminded Chrysalis almost of bunny ears. Aggressive, sharp bunny ears. Her horn was similarly surrounded by a sheath of armor, tipped with a bright blue crystal tip that emitted pulsating light.

The rest of the armor held a similar style, with numerous smooth segments lined with glowing bands of pink energy, with the joins of Cadence’s legs bearing circular nodes that were more robotic than organic. Her tail was even encased in a segmented fan of armor that ended in a blade of pure rose colored energy. Her wings were... not gone, but rather replaced by a spread of four metallic blades of blue crystal in the shape of wings, shot through with more lines of glowing pink energy.

As the dome of red power continued to crackle around Cadence, she reached out an armored colored hoof, and as if in response an object rose from seeming nothingness, appearing from the pool of light on the ground. It was a large but gracefully constructed polearm, a halberd as opposed to the spear that Thorax had used when posing as Cadence, although Chrysalis could see a few similarities.

This halberd bore a double axe head of blue crystal, shaped like an overly exaggerated and sharpened heart, with the shaft of the halberd running through the heart’s center. The shaft itself was made of bright, rose colored metal, which then grew into a wide spear point at the top end of the halberd blade. A line of pink energy ran down the tip of the spear point and the shaft of the halberd itself, similar to the lines on the armor. Cadence held the weapon in the crook of her hoof, and then spun it in a single, hefty motion.

The energy dome around her flashed and burst outward in a display of force, and the pool of magical energy at her hooves flowed up into her in a similar expulsion of force and sound that washed outward in a wave around the top of the tower. Chrysalis watched, keeping her own reiatsu high as she felt out this newly transformed Cadence.

“Mmm, that’s actually rather spicy, Princess. A little on the ‘Power Rangers’ side of style, but I like the taste of that energy you’ve got pouring off of you. Now the question is, how rough can you play, now that you’re all dressed up for a night on the town?”

“I’ll let you be the judge of that.”

The words actually came from behind Chrysalis, for Cadence had, in a scintillating streak of pink light, flown right behind the Espada and cut a flashing swath through the air with her halberd. Chrysalis was just as fast in her response, her Zanpaktou cutting a dark circle around her to meet the halberd’s blade.

The two weapons met in an explosion of sound and force that sent both combatant’s hurtling backwards from one another.

A rich chocolate laugh was flying from Chrysalis’ lips as her eyes positively gleamed hot with pleasure, “That’s the spirit, Princess! No point in me coming all the way here without something to sink my teeth into.”

As she spoke she felt a tension in her Zanpaktou and she flicked her eyes towards it to see a pale blue glint of light shining off of a series of thin lines wrapped around her blade. Wires, thin wires made from pale blue crystal. The wires wrapped around the middle section of the blade from eight different sources, which ran all the way back to where Cadence spread her wings, the four blade-like protrusions on either side of her spinning the wires from their tips.

With incredible force the wires retracted, dragging Chrysalis along with them, although that was mostly because she wasn’t bothering to resist as Cadence pulled her towards the Princess’ halberd as Cadence sped towards her and cleaved downward with a bisecting chop.

Chrysalis heedlessly threw her free arm in the way of the halberd’s blade, the crystal edge sinking into the hardened flesh of her Hierro. For a second the two were stuck close together, Cadence’s wires still holding Chrysalis' blade fast while Chrysalis he’d the halberd back with her bleeding forearm.

“Is that spiritual pressure I sense from you?” Chrysalis asked with a sweet intake of breath, “That was no simple magic ring you slipped on, then. It released spirit energy into you. Layering that bit of power on top of the injection of magic you’re getting from your precious Crystal Heart and I can see how you can penetrate my Hierro now. How does it feel, Princess? Does it make your blood burn hot? Do your senses scream in pleasure from having so much power at your grasp?”

“You know for someone who seems to hate your counterpart here, you love the sound of your own voice just as much as she does,” Cadence groused and cocked back a hoof, which was free since she was wielding her halberd with just her magic. She slammed the hoof forward right into Chrysalis’ jawline with a sonic impact.

The Espada’s head snapped back for a moment, but Cadence felt an immense push of strength from the woman as she moved her bleeding arm that still had Cadence’s halberd in it and grabbed Cadence’s hoof, utterly ignoring the way that dug the halberd further into her flesh. Cadence felt a painful pressure on her hoof as Chrysalis’ squeezed, slowly intending Cadence’s armor.

To break free, Cadence teleported away, although this also teleported her wires, freeing Chrysalis’ sword. Appearing below Chrysalis, Cadence flexed her metallic wings and shot out another series of crystal wires, this time spinning out several dozen that shot out in flickering gleams of light that traced around Chrysalis.

For her part, the Espada watched the wires with interest, slowly tilting her body or making slight side steps as the wires cut around her. Her arm had already healed, and experimentally Chrysalis cut at one of the wires with her Zanpaktou. Surprisingly the crystal wire resisted the blade, at least from a casual swing, but once Chrysalis put a bit more power behind it she found the second wire she struck out was severed fairly easily. She found it a tad odd it seemed the wires were being set up as if anchored to something, but she could only assume magic was involved, as she saw nothing for them to be anchored to.

That said, the speed at which Cadence could shoot the wires out was commendable, and even severing them, Chrysalis soon found herself needing to make faster movements to dodge the cutting storm. And even as she evaded the ones that went towards her, Chrysalis saw even more wires were forming patterns around her, almost as if spinning a giant series of webs around her.

“Ah, this is rather nostalgic,” Chrysalis said, plucking one of the wires with a finger “Reminds me of home, in a way.”

“Feel free to go back any time,” Cadence said, and moved in another bright streak of pink light. Instead of going straight for Chrysalis, Cadence impacted one of her wires, which bent back and then shot her forward, right into another wire, which repeated the process. In mere seconds Cadence’s speed and momentum continued to build as she bounced off of wire after wire, to the point that she was forming a dizzying pattern of pink streaks around Chrysalis to the point that even the Espada had to admit that tracking the motion was a little difficult.

If she was just relying on her eyes, at any rate. Chrysalis’ senses still kept track of Cadence’s spirit energy, and her reflexes were up to the task of turning in time to meet Cadence’s real attack when it came. Cadence was spinning her halberd in a disc of raw speed, and Chrysalis met her with a streaking black line of her Zanpaktou cutting through the blaze of lightning speed. Both women were left struck, blood spurting from Chrysalis’ chest, while Cadence’s armor took a sudden gouge in it’s own chest area that seeped blood.

Cadence forced her mouth to stay clamped shut, despite the pain, refusing to give Chrysalis any satisfaction. Besides, her focus was already on her next attack, and her overall plan. She’d gotten her blade into Chrysalis’ flesh twice now. One more good hit ought to be enough for her intentions.

Thus far she found she was able to think and fight clearly, despite the way the memories of Anteros were rising up in her mind from the power of the Relic. Indeed it was almost as if those memories weren’t fighting for space in her head, but were rather neatly blooming, like a bed of roses, in the back of her mind. She almost felt as if she could see Anteros himself, reclining on that bed of roses and watching her with a calm interest. There was no fight for control, just a quiet embedding of presence. Whether that was comforting or worrying, Cadence couldn’t be certain. Regardless, much as Celestia had explained would be the case, Cadence had an innate and instinctual knowledge of her new abilities with the Relic’s power activated.

The wires were more than just weapons, but extensions of Anteros’ divine magic. Magic that was now hers, and hence the wires acted as extensions for her own magic.

She channeled that magic through all the wires she’d set up around Chrysalis, which caused them all to burst to life with lines of pale blue energy. With a flex of her wings she caused those wires to then contract towards Chrysalis in a shining storm of slashing wire blades, each burning hot with magical power.

Chrysalis was faster than anything Cadence could have imagined, seeming to slide through the inescapable cage of wires like a laughing phantom. Yet Cadence had set up hundreds of the wires and she’d left no room to escape! With a shout she contracted the last of the wires, forming practically a solid sphere of burning wires that slashed through the space Chrysalis occupied. Cadence couldn’t see Chrysalis at this point, but she felt resistance in a few of her wires and heard a wet squelch nearby.

She turned to feel hot blood spray across her face, and Cadence reflexively gagged, even with her helmet keeping the blood out of her mouth. The blood did momentarily blind her, however, and she cleared it just in time to feel the heel of Chrysalis’ foot impact her chest and sent Cadence flying backwards.

The breath was knocked out of her, and her injured chest screamed in pain, but Cadence kept control of her fall and quickly righted herself, quickly relocating Chrysalis who descended towards her while... bouncing her severed leg in her free hand.

“Well well, you cut my leg off with those wires,” Chrysalis said cheerfully, “I think limb severing is a prerequisite to know you’ve been in a halfway decent fight, no? Here, hold this.”

Chrysalis tossed her severed leg to Cadence, who reflexively caught it, then let out a disgusted sound and threw the limb aside. She felt even sicker as she watched the blood swell from Chrysalis’ stump and a new leg formed in mere moments, muscle and bone growing so fast that Cadence could see the woman’s dark flesh grow fresh and shiny new over the muscles.

“That’s... horrific,” Cadence breathed.

“I find it quite pleasant,” Chrysalis said, stretching her new leg out, “There’s just something refreshing about feeling the new flesh grow in. I’m glad you’re proving to be so much more fun than I expected. You can even cut my Hierro. Granted I don’t put much effort into that defensive power, but still, those wires of yours are quite the nasty little weapons.”

“You’re not taking me seriously if you’re not putting everything into defending yourself,” Cadence commented and Chrysalis shrugged.

“Look, you’re impressive enough with your mysterious ring and that Crystal Heart giving you a boost, but this is still foreplay for me...” Chrysalis said, and a mad razor gleam entered her eyes as her mouth beamed a wider, more fang filled smile, “But if you really want me to, I’ll go hard. Just know I don't do safe words.”

“Feel free,” Cadence said, leveling her halberd at Chrysalis, “But you won’t get the chance.”

Cadence’s horn lit up, the armored length of it filling with pulsating rings of light until the crystal tip flared with light. Chrysalis prepared to dodge the incoming spell, but found there was no beam or similar discharge, but rather a sudden feeling inside her own body that felt like parts of her were going numb. She looked down to see that her left arm, parts of her chest, and her leg just above the point where it had been severed, were suddenly turning into pale blue crystal.

Her eyes narrowed and she aimed her Zanpaktou with her other arm at Cadence, discharging a dark green Cero that tore through the sky. Cadence was just fast enough to teleport away, appearing above Chrysalis this time as her horn continued to glow.

“Confused?” Cadence said, “Powerful as you are, you’re just as arrogant as our world’s Chrysalis. Every time I’ve struck you I was leaving shards of crystal inside your body. Catalysts for a crystal petrification spell. You can’t regenerate if you’re turned into a piece of lawn art.”

The crystal began to spread in spiking shards across Chrysalis’ arm, leg, and chest, and yet despite this the Espada seemed... unconcerned. In fact she looked up at Cadence with a mocking salute of her blade, “Not a half bad notion, Cadence dear. Could even work. That said-”

Cadence watched in bemusement, which then grew to shock as she saw Chrysalis’ body become enshrouded with a thick arua of shifting green energy as the Espada brought forth more spiritual pressure from her body. She then sensed Chrysalis’ spirit energy concentrating within that body, spreading through it, and into the crystal portions. The crystal began to crack, shot through with veins of green light. Then the crystal parts of Chrysalis' body exploded, which in turn exploded Chrysalis’ body in half, sent both her arm and new leg flying, and left a spray of blood flying through the air that painted Cadence’s armor.

“Gah!” Cadence let out a surprised yelp as Chrysalis' intact upper half, along with her right arm that wielded her Zanpaktou, was propelled by Chrysalis' own self-detonation to fly right into Cadence.

“Hello gorgeous,” Chrysalis said, her torso hanging off of Cadence like a macabre decoration before Chrysali headbutted Cadence in the faceplate of her helmet, then spun her torso like a top and cut Cadence’ across the chest once more. Armor sparked and Cadence was smashed backwards by the blow. And Chrysalis wasn’t done, even as her body undulated and bubbled with new blood, bone, viscera, and growing organs.

Her bloodied mouth spat a stream of crimson, but that blood pooled around the front of Chrysalis’ tongue. A thick sphere of green Hollow power roiled around the glob of blood, intermixing and bubbling with power as it grew, and grew, and grew until a crimson and emerald sphere of spirit energy the size of a small cabin existed.

”Cero Arteria.” (Cero Artery)

Rather than fire in one large beam, the Cero sphere instead boiled and burbled like a cauldron and shot out several streams of Hollow energy that curved and flowed like highly pressured streams of liquid. These streams of destructive power, filled with currents of red and green, moved in a swirling mass that then converged on the still dazed Cadence.

Cadence saw the attack coming past her baffled state and she had enough presence of mind to defend herself. Her wings emanate intense blue light as hundreds of wires shoot out, empowered by Cadence’s raw magic and spirit energy. These wires crossed in front of her in thousands of strands, forming a diamond shaped shield twenty meters wide and several feet thick.

The Cero Arteria’s many streams rushed into the shield, slamming into it in a explosive torrent of power that shook the air, warped space, and caused every head down in the city to turn skyward at the massive display of power as clouds burst away from the sky and the ground rumbled with the impact taking place hundreds of feet in the air.

Shining Armor saw this and spoke his wife’s name under her breath, and his own horn lit up bright. He shot a stream of magic skyward and added his own shield of magic to Cadence’s barrier, doing all in his power to strengthen it.

Even so, the torrents of the Cero Arteria drilled into the shield like unrelenting hoses, scouring the wires, breaking down the protective magic with the raw and truly insane might of the dark Hollow power that stemmed from the Second Espada. Yet, in the end, Cadence was fueled by both the Crystal Heart, her Relic, and aided by her husband, one of Equestria’s greatest masters of barrier magic.

The Cero Ateria’s finished with a final, massive explosion of power that filled the sky, and Cadence was flung from the heart of the eruption of power in a smoking streak... yet she was alive, her armor was scorched by intact, and when she impacted the ground in a street shattering landing, she was still on her hooves. Shaking, breathing hard, sweat soaked, and in pain, but on her hooves and alive.

She looked around and found she was on a street that ended right at the edge of the north outskirts of the city, the frozen mountains of the north forming a backdrop behind her.

Shaking her head, she tried to get her thoughts together. The crystal petrification spell was her intended trump card, and it had nearly worked, but she hadn’t counted on just how easily her opponent could just rip her own body part with such casual ease. On top of that, the petrification should have worked faster, but it seemed as if Chrysalis’ own power could resist it to a degree, making the crystal spread slow enough that she could effectively tear off parts of her body to avoid it. Cadence would need to be able to petrify her all at once, but even with the energy of the Crystal Heart filling her she just didn’t have enough power for that.

Granted, she wasn’t an expert on the spell. It had been invented ages ago in the Crystal Empire, and it’s use had been banned not long after. Not long ago Sombra and Radiant Hope had researched the spell in the Empire’s libraries, seeking a cure to the condition of the Empire’s former ruler, who had suffered the fate of crystal petrification. Unfortunately the Empire never developed a reversal spell, but Cadence had suggested checking Canterlot’s own library, as Canterlot had about a thousand extra years of magical development over the Crystal Empire due to the Empire having been magically sealed away during that time frame. It was possible one of Equestrias many famous mages over that thousand years had developed a reversal spell.

All that being said, Cadence had only just taught herself the spell in preparation to defend the Empire against Starlight Glimmer and her cohorts. Unfortunately that particular gambit had not worked, and now she was drained, injured, drenched in blood that was only partially hers, and far less certain she could actually beat this monster that had come to threaten her life, her loved ones, and the people she was sworn to protect.

A slow clap filled the air as Chrysalis, now fully regenerated once more, appeared nearby in a flash of Sonido.

“Congratulations, Cadence dear. You’re still alive, after taking one of my favorite Cero techniques! You should be beaming with pride.”

“Shut up. Shut your mouth. I don’t want to banter with you,” Cadence said in a heated whip crack of breath, “I’m not here to entertain you.”

“Everyone and everything exists to entertain me,” Chrysalis said simply, as if stating the world’s most basic fact, “But this is good. Hate is a beautiful emotion. Let it strengthen you, Cadence dear. You’re going to need it, since I’ve decided something.”

“What?” Cadence asked, against her better judgment.

Chrysalis reply was delivered with such good natured cheer that it chilled Cadence to her core.

“I’ve decided that you and I are going to be best friends.”

Suppressing the shudder than ran through her like a winter fog, Cadence straightened herself and poured magic into her halberd, which vibrated as it floated in her tightened telekinetic grip. "No thank you. I'd sooner make friends with this world's Chrysalis than a utter nut-case like you."

That caused Chrysalis' smile to falter into a sneer, "Oh now that hurt more than any of your attempts to dice me to pieces, Cadence dear. Very well, let's resume our fun. But I wonder what you plan to do next, since you seem to be faltering, and I've still got power to spare."

True enough, Chrysalis still appeared to have the edge in terms of raw power. On top of that her regenerative ability was a real problem. It seemed she could rapidly erase any damage Cadence managed to inflict. It was possible if Cadence was able to destroy something critical like Chrysalis' head, or wiped her body out entirely in one fell swoop, perhaps that might finally put the monster down, but landing such a blow seemed problematic given there was still such a disparity in power even with her Relic and borrowing magic from the Crystal heart.

There was one option she could try, but...

The Crystal Heart was a nearly limitless font of magic, derived from the love of all the citizens of the Crystal Empire. Currently all of those civilians were fervently hoping for not only Cadence's success, but the well being of all their loved ones fighting to defend their home. Those feelings were essentially prayers of a sort, an outpouring of magic that flowed into the Crystal Heart itself. The artifact then transferred a portion of that power to Cadence, hence the additional power boost. However there were limits to that transfer, like a faucet of water pouring water into a balloon. The balloon was essentially a limited vessel and the faucet could only safely pour so much water in so fast before the balloon would... pop.

But if the sacrifice would be worth it, a massive outpour of power could be placed into the vessel for a few brief minutes before the vessel could no longer withstand the force and-

But if I can use those few minutes to end this... won't that be worth it? Cadence thought, and hesitated. It wasn't just her life she needed to consider, but that of those she'd leave behind. Not to mention, with a second foal on the way, her life wasn't something to just burn out casually. But what other options did she have?

"Cadence!"

She looked up at the sound of Thorax's voice, seeing the changeling King and his brother both tearing through the air towards them. The pair landed on either side of her, looking fatigued from their own fight with Chrysalis a short while ago, but also having gained their second wind as the pair shot glittering dagger glares at the Espada.

"Weren't planning on doing anything stupid, were you?" Pharynx asked.

"Pharynx, manners! You're talking to a Princess!" Thorax berated, and his brother scoffed.

"What? She had this 'I'm about to sacrifice myself heroically' look on her face. Which is stupid. As if she has to do anything like that with us still in the fight."

"Y-yeah, well, true, but still you could say it more politely," Thorax said, shaking his head and the focusing his glare back on Chrysalis, "Never mind that though, we've got to deal with her."

Cadence gave Pharynx a somewhat embarrassed side look, "Were my intentions that obvious?"

"Pfft," was all the reply from him she got, and Thorax cleared his throat.

"Forgive him. He's still got issues with showing his feelings."

"I think I can cut him some slack, considering circumstances. Thank you both. I nearly forgot I wasn't alone in this fight."

Thorax smiled at her, wings buzzing, "As long as I'm in charge of the hive, the Crystal Empire will never lack for at least one ally."

An impatient throat clearing drew their attention back to Chrysalis, who was also tapping her foot as she waited for them to finish talking, "This is heart warming and all, but it also rather interrupts the mood, doesn't it? I don't mind the boys joining in our fun, Cadence, but at the same time I feel as if this fight needs something more to keep it engaging for me."

"Don't you think of anything else other than you're own twisted fun?" Thorax asked, and Cadence and Chrysalis both answered, "No" at the exact same time, Cadence with resignation and Chrysalis with elation.

Then Chrysalis got a particularly unusual glint in her eyes as she held her Zanpaktou lovingly in front of her, one of her hands slowly stroking down it's edge, "You know what? It may be inappropriate, but that's what makes it oh so tantalizing an idea. I mean, I know I shouldn't. It's pure overkill. So unnecessary. So overindulgent. So brutally needless. So... me. I so rarely do this. The last time was Gaia, but we're friends now too, Cadence, so while this may be sooner than is traditional, I think I just have to force our relationship to the next level."

Thick strands of liquid spirit energy, like an outpour of lime green blood, enshrouded Chrysalis. Cadence, Thorax, and Pharynx all felt a sick feeling in the back of their throats as the amount of pressure stemming from Chrysalis erupted to a feverish pitch that made them feel like they were drowning at the bottom of a deep, cavernous underground sea. The ground cracked apart around the Espada, causing nearby buildings to also fracture and crumble. The air itself seemed too vibrate with fear.

Chrysalis looked positively euphoric as she dragged her hand down her Zanpaktou's length, covering it in her blood, and spoke in a resonate voice.

"Indulge rapaciously; Devoradora." (Devourer)

Episode 157: Keeper of Shadows

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Episode 157: Keeper of Shadows

The restricted section of Canterlot City’s library was not an ideal place for a battle, which it’s present occupants swiftly realized. Starswirl’s Reigai kept nimble on his feet, flitting from spot to spot amid the tightly packed shelving aisles with the use of Flash Step. Chasing him was a growing tide of creeping shadow, bookshelves, ceiling, and floor alike all being covered in a coating of ink black from which emerged snapping arms of darkness. Starswirl kept ahead of this seeking limbs of shadow, but noted their accuracy and speed was increasing as ever more of the few light sources in the library were being snuffed out.

“Hiyaa!”

The cry came from Starswirl’s left and he made a swift upsweep motion with his Zanpaktou’s iron fan form. It deflected a trio of spinning hammers forged of magical energy, one of which went flying into a bookshelf and smashed through it, while another impacted the ceiling and send chunks of stone crashing into other shelves, scattering ancient tomes in every direction. Starswirl’s face heated and his jaw spasmed at the sight, heart flip-flopping in his chest. And he didn’t even technically have a heart, as a puppet infused with an artificial soul!

“Blast it all you illiterate ingrates, stop destroying perfectly good literature!”

Radiant Hope, leaping from behind cover of another set of bookshelves with her horn acting as a bright beacon, shouted at him while conjuring more hammers, “I’m not trying to hit the books, you insufferable whatever you are-”

“Reigai!”

‘-don’t care! If the books matter so much to you, then stop fighting me and Sombra and surrender yourself. Or leave, doesn’t matter which.”

She combined her conjured hammers into a sort of spinning hammer ‘wheel’ which she sent flying after Starswirl like a very blunt and glowing buzzsaw, but he burst out of view with another Flash Step and ended up behind her, his iron fan held towards the unicorn’s unsuspecting back, “Not until I’ve collected at least a few tomes. Now why don’t you take a deep breath?”

He expelled an invisible gas from his Zanpaktou, the kind that could rapidly turn lungs to bloody mush if inhaled. Radiant Hope would have reflexively done so if Sombra hadn’t acted faster, realizing the danger she was in. Shadows flew beneath her hooves and sucked her into their depths, quickly depositing the mare dozens of paces safely away from the deadly gas. Sombra might not have been able to react in time if the amount of shadow in the dark library aisles didn’t give him amble extended senses through the area. Essentially wherever there was shadow, Sombra felt all, and via this understood the strange weapon Starswirl wielded was producing that gas.

“Be careful,” he told Radiant Hope, partially emerging from the shadow next to her, “I don’t know all of that weapon’s tricks, but it can make deadly poison gasses at least, and possible more.”

“Well that’s terrifying,” Radiant replied, “How are we supposed to stop him?”

“Answer is, you don’t!” Starswirl said loudly, appearing an aisle down from the pair, “I may have to hold back some to avoid annihilating all this tasty knowledge, but neither of you seem to have the speed necessary to- Gah!”

As he’d been talking, Sombra had looked his way with razor focus and sent a gauntlet of cutting shadow blades at the Reigai. The clawing darkness emerged from the ground or ceiling, or darkened shelf corners, all ripping and tearing at Starswirl at once. Yet even caught a tad unaware, Starswirl was able to deflect with his iron fan acting as a giant shield, while simultaneously throwing himself backwards down another shelf aisle.

“How troublesome. The information Starlight Glimmer has on this world seems woefully incomplete. It made no mention of ‘shadow ponies’,” Starswirl commented with a dry huff, and thrust his Zanpaktou forward, “But no matter, let there be light!”

Creating a combination of certain chemicals, Starswirl generated a brilliantly bright burst of light, followed by a continuous glow from the chemicals burning in the air like a miniature set of flares. Fortunately he kept these chemicals away from the books, but the burning flares of light created a stark white center of brightness in the library that forced back a fair amount of shadow, causing Sombra to grunt in annoyance.

With less shadow in the area he lost his sense of where Starswirl was, but he concentrated his magic and cloaked darkness around himself like a bubble and started to force it outwards, counteracting the flare. “Radiant, let me see what I can do to halt his movements. Save your strength until you're sure you can get a solid hit on him.”

She nodded, eyes flickering with worry for him, but conjuring a new magical hammer to her side, “Got it.”

With that, Sombra pushed outward with his shadow magic, pulling upon the elemental darkness both within himself and that which dwelled naturally in all the world’s own shadows. He encased the flare within a shell of shadow, cloaking the rest of the library back into darkness. Feeling through the shadows, he sensed Starswirl and realized the Reigai had circled around behind him and Radiant, and was now standing at the mouth of the aisles opposite where he’d been before.

“Hado Number Sixteen: Akarui Yajiri.” (Bright Arrowhead)

Intense white light was drawn by Starwirl’s finger in a triangle shape, which then formed into a solid wedge like an arrow’s tip forged of light, about three handspans wide. It launched from his hand and flew straight for Sombra’s back, but Radiant Hope had been looking the right way to spot the attack coming and just barely sent her hammer of conjured magic to interpose itself. Even so, the Kido arrow still hit with enough force to shatter the translucent hammer and burst with enough light energy to break more bookshelves and sent both Radiant and Sombra sprawling.

Starswirl grunted at the sight of more broken and disarrayed books, “Oh for love of the likely ineffectual Soul Queen! I can’t even use a low level Kido in here can I? Utterly ridiculous. How am I supposed to fight under these conditions?”

He then snapped his fingers as his eyes lit up, “Ahah! Change of tactics!”

The man vanished with another Flash Step, Sombra helping Radiant get back on her hooves as he closed his eyes for a moment of concentration to sense Starswirl’s movements.

“Great, what’s he doing now?” asked Radiant, glowering as her magic summoned a pair of hammers this time, looking left and right to try and see where Starswirl had gone off to.

“He’s... back at the entrance,” Sombra said, frowning, focusing on the details he could sense through the nearby shadows, and after a moment his eye snapped open, “I think he’s using that giant fan of his to try and fill the entire library with gas!”

Which was, in effect, a very efficient plan. While the restricted section was not a small place, with enough gas pumping out of his Zanpaktou, Starswirl would be able to fill the entire set of chambers in a few minutes. Since there was only one entrance to the area, he’d be able to see Sombra and Radiant Hope coming if they tried to stop him head on.

That said, Starswirl probably didn’t know the full extent of Sombra’s connection to the magic of shadows and darkness. While his connection was nowhere near what it was in the height of his ill-fated time as “King” Sombra, he still commanded a strong unity with the element he was born from. So, in response to the gas that was rapidly filling the restricted section, Sombra was fast to grab Radiant Hope and pull her down into the shadows with himself, while at the same time conjuring a thick mass of darkness to take shape within the entrance chamber to the area.

To Starswirl’s view from the staircase leading down into the section it would look like the doorway and the room beyond had become utterly flooded with darkness so thick that it looked as if the library had simply vanished into a void.

Frowning, Starswirl continued to pump more toxic gas from his Zanpaktou into that void, but while he sensed the gas was still entering into... somewhere, he could not be sure it was actually going into the restricted section anymore. His spiritual senses, still unused to the sensations of magic, just couldn’t tell if that magical void of darkness was merely a thick shadow cloaking the library room, or an actual otherworldly void that led to some other space that could absorb the gasses harmlessly.

Either way, he kept pumping in gas for a few good minutes before stopping and scratching at his beard with one hand, “Hmm, well this is a conundrum.”

Briefly he considered his options. Unbeknownst to his adversaries, Starswirl had not been idly evading around with Flash Step the entire time before. He’d been pocketing books left and right, stuffing his robes with whatever tomes he could. Granted he hadn’t the time to grasp at specific titles like he’d been told, but he figured Starlight would have to be satisfied with whatever random magical books he’d nicked from the restricted sector. They had to be valuable if they were in this section of the library at all. Still, he was loathe to give up without finding at least one book on the specific topics he was here for.

Yet this shadow pony and his silly hammer-obsessed mare had put him in a bit of a deadlock with this dark void before him. He could try exploding the walls around it, but that would just do more damage to the books within. His Bankai was out of the question, given its size and power output would cause even more local destruction.

While he pondered, however, the shadow void in front of him bulged outward, and a series of ropes of pure darkness shot out at high speed. Starswirl dodged back, but found several of the ropes had moved past him and were now criss-crossing the staircase upwards to block his retreat. It was then that magic hammers started flying out of the void at a steady torrent. Starswirl braced his iron fan in front of him and started absorbing the blows, but each impact was strong enough to rattle the Reigai’s artificial bones and even drive him back a step or two, closer to the net of shadow ropes that were now behind him.

“Hmph, never did like fighting in enclosed spaces,” he muttered, and from his Zanpaktou burst several jets of scalding pale liquid. This was a highly caustic acid that started eating apart the staircase and the stonework of the passage in front of him, until the support beams in the walls gave out and the entire stairwell started to shake and rumble.

Starswirl then flung a hand back behind him and cast the same Kido he had earlier, “Hado Number Sixteen: Akarui Yajiri!”

The blinding white arrow of energy sliced through the shadow ropes behind him and gave him an opening. With a quick Flash Step Starswirl found himself retreating up the stairs to the higher levels of the library while he felt the stairwell behind him collapse from the amount of acid he’d used to melt stone and wood alike. Looking down amid the dust he sighed heavily, realizing that while he could excavate the collapsed stairwell and get back into the restricted section, it’d take him time to do so.

Time that shadow pony would likely use to be ready for him, and time that would also mean the arrival of additional guards that would cause him to waste further time dealing with them. By then, who knew if this world’s Luna would be done with the two Platinums or not? He didn’t fancy a duel with these alicorn Princesses, especially when his sole goal was the acquisition of knowledge and not getting disposed of by Starlight Glimmer.

Muttering to himself he went back up the stairs, checking the books he’d randomly grabbed during the brief battle.

Some of it looked promising. A few tomes that looked like journals of prominent unicorn mages. Some kind of alchemical recipe book by someone named... Meadowbrook? Interesting. Curious, he strolled casually back down the library halls while cracking that book open, swiftly forgetting all about the battle or his mission as he hungerly devoured the knowledge written upon the pages. He didn’t even see, much less pay attention to, the frightened ponies he passed by on his way back out of the library, including a rather uneasy looking Moondancer who watched him leave with sweat upon her brow.

As soon as he was gone outside, Moondancer quickly ran back down towards the restricted section, fearing the worst.

She skidded to a halt at the top of the stairs, where the collapse had filled in the lower half of the stairwell.

“M-Mister Sombra? Miss Radiant Hope?” she called down, and nearly jumped out of her sweater when Sombra’s voice spoke behind her.

“We are well.”

Sombra had emerged from shadows conjured through the floor, Radiant Hope clambering up beside him with her breath coming in short gasps.

“Whew... Sombra, warn me next time you yank me into shadow space. Not exactly a lot of air in there, you know?” Radiant said, hoof to her chest. Sombra smiled at her warmly and touched one of her legs with his hoof.

“Sorry about that. Ahem, now, Miss Moondancer, did you see that bearded miscreant leave?”

“I did,” Moondancer confirmed with a gulp, “He had his face buried in a book and didn’t even glance at anyone as he left.”

Sombra sighed heavily, “So he did grab some tomes during the fight. Damn. Even at random, any book from there could be dangerous.”

“Shouldn’t we chase him then?” asked Radiant Hope, and Sombra frowned thoughtfully.

“I don’t think so. He was at a disadvantage in the library due to the limited space to move and all the darkness around. But it’s still broad daylight out, and in a much more open area like the city streets we’d be the ones at a disadvantage, especially without as many natural shadows for me to work with. Instead I’d rather try and follow him.”

“Can you do that?” said Moondancer, “He seemed so fast.”

Sombra showed teeth in a not-quite smile, “Not to worry. There may not be as many shadows in daylight as in night, but day still casts shadows in every corner. I don’t know how far I can follow him, but I’ll go as far as I can. With any luck, I may discover where their base of operations is.”

Radiant Hope grasped his hoof with hers, eyes filled with earnest concern, for she knew she couldn’t go with him if he was to travel in shadow for an extended period of time, “Please, Sombra, be careful.”

His eyes warmed as he placed his horn briefly to hers, whispering, “For you, always.”

With that, he melded back into the darkness of his own shadow, which then became a shifting streak amid the library’s own shadowed corners.

----------

Despite one being a clone of the other, Luna swiftly found that the Reigai of Platinum had a rather different fighting style from the Soul Reaper herself. Whilst the genuine Platinum fought with a cold, practical focus that often sought to unbalance then overwhelm with her ice-born attacks, the Reigai...

“Hah! Let’s have at you, Princess of Night! You’re the perfect opponent to stretch my legs with.”

The woman came at Luna in a swirling dance of cutting ice sheets, punctuated by azure slicing arcs of her actual Zanpaktou. Luna parried readily, but the Reigai’s motions were unpredictable and erratic. The ice she conjured from her sword moved more like currents of water than the ridged forms of ice the real Platinum created.

Torrents of this liquid ice descended from the inverted fortress above, creating artic twisters that cut across Luna’s path. Each twister was filled with chunks of spearing or slicing ice, and while Luna could have summoned a protective barrier to crash through them, she preferred not to risk injury and focused on evasion. Her body was buffeted by frozen winds, but she swiftly weaved through the twisters whilst clashing axe to sword with the laughing Reigai all the while.

Luna felt a tremor in the ground of pure ice beneath her, and was not surprised when the ice parted and a huge statue emerged behind her, that of a stern faced human samurai chiseled from the ice and bearing a large naginata in it’s cold fists. The fifty foot statue thrust it’s spear blade at her, which Luna met with a magical circle of deepest blue she summoned before her. The blade hit the circle and was halted in a wave of sparks, and then the circle’s runes burned bright and set loose a bolt of power that pierced through the ice giant’s spear and burned a hole through its center.

The Reigai pressed in behind Luna, throwing out her left hand to coat it in a slicing sheet of ice that turned her arm into a second sword. She worked both arms in a blurring pattern, hammering at Luna, who sent her own axes of black ice to meet the blows with equal speed in a ear splitting clash of sound like a whole glass factory being smashed at once.

Then the real Platinum, appearing from behind her fallen ice giant, raised her own Zanpaktou and cleaved it downward in a deliberate and precise slicing of the air. Absolute frozen cold exploded out in a vertical sheet of ice that tore towards Luna in a fraction of a heartbeat. Even so, Luna was able to pop out of the way in a single burst of teleportation, leaving the Reigai to Flash Step aside as the arctic pressure wave flew past her.

“Your aim could use work,” the Reigai Platinum told her real counterpart, who sneered back at the clone.

“And you need to learn tactics. Chopping at her mindlessly isn’t going to work!”

“I’m not chopping ‘mindlessly’. It’s called swordsmanship, and I can’t believe I let myself get so lackadaisical about it that I started to rely on sneak attacks. Did I forget to polish my sword skills once Magnus was no longer there to push us forward?”

Platinum’s growl at her Reigai was as fiercely real as a death threat, “Do not speak that name. You have no right.”

Luna cleared her throat loudly, having teleported a fair distance above the bickering pair, “Are you two done yet? I can leave the pair of you to fight one another, if you prefer?”

“Hah, see?” the Reigai said, pointing up at Luna with her sword, “This Princess gets it! She didn’t sneak attack us while we were arguing. She has a sense of honor.”

“Well, it’s more accurate to say I don’t feel pressed enough to want to cut my fun short,” Luna said, admittedly not entirely disagreeing with the Reigai as she took a few heavy breaths. She was getting quite the workout, fighting these two. “I’m enjoying the exercise of skills I rarely get to use. It would be a shame to end this too soon.”

“A woman after my own heart,” the Reigai said with a surprisingly warm smile. She then made a rolling eyed gesture towards the real Platinum, “I still find it hard to believe how much the real me has changed. I hardly feel like we’re the same person at all.”

“Because we are not,” Platinum stated bluntly, an aura of thick blue reiatsu and raw cold forming around her, “I did away with my naiveness a long time ago. You are a poor copy of a younger, more foolish me, who could never have protected her son the way I have mine.”

She formed ice around Fuyokogo in a wide encasement, tripling the tulwar’s length and width, and then set the ice covered blade to a frozen glow of pale blue as she poured spirit energy into it. With a gesture she brought forth more ice carved soldiers to the battlements of her fortress, aligned with ballista and arrows, which then filled the air once more with a blizzard of projectiles.

Luna set about deflecting or dodging this dizzying array of attacks, but between natural and magically enhanced speed and the casting of defensive barriers, she was able to hold her own. But the projectiles were only meant to distract her as the real Platinum engaged with her empowered Zanpaktou. In bursts of Flash Step, Platinum flitted like a swift flake of snow around Luna, looking for an opening. And when she spotted one she carved in with her ice covered Zanpaktou in a white arc, slicing right for Luna's chest. The Princess' eyes shifted in that same heartbeat, feeling the attack, but even she still struggled to react to Platnium's strike, powered by all of the former Captain's skill and speed in Flash Step. Luna was only able to swing around one of her axes, and she and Platinum crossed in a blink. Hot pain swept through both of them as arcs of blood kissed the air, Luna taking a bleeding slice across her chest, penetrating the ice black armor she wore there, while Platinum's left arm bore a freezing over wound of ruby red blood from shoulder to elbow.

Watching from down below, Platinum's Reigai gave out a sigh, shaking her head, “I don’t get it. Pipsqueak won’t even talk to her. How is making him miserable ‘protecting’ him?”

Of course within the Reigai’s limited memory she only knew Pipsqueak as a newborn, without the weight of having raised the child yet. Perhaps that was Starlight Glimmer’s intent, to ensure the Reigai wouldn’t clash with the real Platinum in regards to having the same connection to the child? Which seemed to backfire, since all it did was give the Reigai a very different perspective on things than the real Platinum had. Regardless, as younger and more ‘naive’ as the Reigai might seem, she knew she had to help her real counterpart defeat the Princess.

So she didn’t think about it too much and flew up into the storm of projectiles. The real Platinum had halted her storm of projectiles and with a gesture from her Zanpaktou had caused the arrows and ballistae bolts of ice to break apart into shards and join together into several dozen large, flat sheets of ice. These sheets had smooth, polished surfaces that were reflective, and while the Reigai charged in at Luna, the real Platinum started to send these reflective sheets to spinning down around the alicorn.

Freezing liquid ice poured out of the Reigai's blades and she snapped both of these streams at Luna in a dizzying pattern. Even as Luna sought to block these attacks, she found the freezing water, filled with chunks of ice, splashed around her axes and started to freeze over her own limbs. Grunting, Luna felt her limbs being slowed by the unnaturally freezing ice, and the Reigai rushed in harder then, chopping hard with her swords. Luna, with a wolfish growl on her lips, leaned into the attacks, sending her axes flying outwards with her magic while making use of her iced over clawed hooves to catch the Reigai's swords.

"Think you cold enough to freeze the Princess of the Night?" Luna said with glowing blue eyes, and a dark frozen aura exploded out of her as she reared back and formed a lance of black ice around her horn, "I've felt deeper, darker cold during my thousand years imprisonment on the moon!"

She hammered her ice covered horn forward. Platinum's Reigai twisted her body to the side, even as her arms were held firm, and Luna's horn tore a chunk from the Reigai's right shoulder. Pain washed over the clone's face, but so too did a pleased smile, "Good! There's no glory in beating a weak foe."

Suddenly the ice blade covering her left hand broke apart as fresh gold energy pooled around the Reigai's palm, "Hado Number Thirty Two: Okasen!" (Yellow Fire Flash)

A horizontal arc of scintillating yellow energy fired out of her palm straight into Luna, blasting the alicorn backwards and breaking the wounded Reigai free of her grip. Though smoking a little from the blast, Luna spread her wings and quickly recovered, but then found herself confused as she was abruptly surrounded by reflections of herself. It took her a second to realize she'd been surrounded by the sheets of reflective ice that the real Platinum had created, but not all of them. She felt a painful slice at her flank and spun around to see a flicker of motion coated in red. Some of the sheets of ice were making reflections of her as a distraction, but the other sheets, thin as razor blades, were flying around and slicing at her like planes of deadly glass.

Luna twisted left and right, more feeling than seeing the translucent sheets of ice flying towards her. She did her best to ignore the odd motions of her reflextions, which kept distorting her view and made it hard to discern where the real attacks were coming from. Once or twice more she felt razor ice sheets slice past her, cutting red lines in her flesh, but Luna had already been summoning her axes back to her. She'd intended to use them to attack the Reigai, but instead she called her axes towards her like flying battering rams, telekinetically guiding htem through the sheets of ice to shatter them one after another until the axes reached her side and left a hole in the array of ice sheets for Luna to fly through.

Both Platinum and her Reigai were waiting for her. The intent of the reflective ice sheets was just to keep Luna occupied for a moment while the pair joined together and both began chanting a Kido invocation together. Both Platinum's had their Zanpaktou held outward at an upward angle and gathered streams of gold energy into the swords. As one both crossed their blades in an X-pattern slash while shouting as one, "Hado Number Seventy Eight: Zangerin!" (Slicing Flower Ring)

Two spiked arcs of curved gold light formed together into a cross that flew into Luna with castle leveling force. Luna had no time for a complex counter, instead charging into the attack with a leading beam of thick azure magic that flew from her horn into the combined Kido spell. The resulting explosion was large enough to send cracks running through both of the floating islands of ice and blasted Luna and the two Platinum's alike backwards, Luna smacking into the ground hooves first, breathing heavily, while the two Platinums both went to one knee, equally sucking in tired breaths.

"Getting tired?" the Reigai asked of her progenitor, and the real Platinum snorted, forcing herself to stand once more, ignoring the way her wounded left foreleg twitched weakly.

"Hardly. And you?"

"As if I'd fall behind," said the clone with flash of confidence in her lips.

Eyes flashing with intent, Platinum's Reigai made a downward slicing gesture with her Zanpaktou at Luna. From her inverted fortress a series of terrific cracking noises could be heard. On the inverted island an entire rainstorm of giant, ice forged shurikens descended, spinning about in an air screaming mass. Luna let out a tired huff and flew up into the air to meet them, letting fly a series of thin magical beams to cut through many. The surviving shurikens moved under the Reigai’s direction and hovered around Luna in a small swarm. Rather than move in to attack, however, the shurikens exploded, filling the sky Luna occupied with bursts of freezing mist so thick it was like a pea soup of fog.

Platinum herself, seeing an opening, made a gesture with her free hoof and brought forth from below a titanic pillar of ice, pointed to a razor tip at the end, and sent it hurtling up through the mist. Luna was struck this time, although she did dig both her hooves coated in ice claws into the pillar to absorb the blow. The pillar continued to rise, moving so fast that it all but instantly slammed Luna into the “roof” of the inverted island above with enough force to send a fracture through half the edifice.

“Not bad, old me. I think we're wearing her down,” said the Reigai, and Platinum let out a withering sigh.

“We too are being worn down. We need a more decisive blow to end this, although we cannot afford to kill her. I need her alive to tell me how to cure Firefly.”

As if to confirm Platinum’s words, a blast of blue magic cut through the pillar holding her against the island above, and from the pillar’s shattered remains Luna descended like an angry diving hawk and went right for the Reigai, axes barred.

Platinum’s Reigai was just fast enough to get her own blades up in time to meet Luna’s attack, but the Princess, who was bleeding slightly from a cut scalp, struck with such force that a sonic boom sent the Reigai hurtling into the first floor of the fortress in the center of the island.

Moving just as swiftly as Luna had, the real Platinum flew forward with hyper sonic force and cut a path of icy blue with her Zanpaktou at Luna’s unprotected back. Luna turned just in time to get one, but not both axes in place to block, and found herself driven along the same path she’d sent the Reigai, pushed by Platinum exerting as much reiatsu as she could to boost her strength and smash the alicorn into the first floor of her fortress, breaking through one of the walls.

Now in the large and regal entry chamber of pure white ice that occupied the fortress’ first floor, Luna squared off with both Platinums, the Reigai having regained her footing and the real deal standing just short of the throne that stood at the fortress’ entryway. All three were bleeding from their respective wounds, which stained the white icy floors with red, yet they all remained alert and focused upon one another.

“I’ll confess fighting two of you at once is bracing,” Luna said, holding one of her axes towards the real Platinum while she floated the other around to keep guard against the Reigai, “But aside from a few scratches you’ve not made much progress in forcing me to concede defeat.”

“Have we not? I think you make light of your wounds, Princess,” Platinum said, her eyes turning to sheets of thin ice, “How’s your wing?”

Luna forced a smile, flexing her wings, and doing her best to ignore the growing agonizing ache from the one that had previously been severed. The curative magic had done much to restore it, but the connective tissue was still not fully repaired, and the strain of the battle was taking a toll. While the wound on her chest was the deepest of the injuries she'd taken, it was far from fatal. Even so, she could feel herself getting worn out, although her two opponents didn't look any better off to Luna's well trained eye.

“Well enough to finish this,” Luna replied with conviction, then she paused. Her ears twitched as her eyes focused on something beyond Platinum.

Platinum briefly suspected some kind of trick, but knew the look of someone sensing things far away, and chose to take the risk of redirecting her attention from the foe in front of her to spreading her senses outward. Her Reigai looked at both Luna and Platinum with visible confusion, which somewhat irritated Platinum.

“Open your senses,” she told the Reigai, “Or have you lost your skill in that area due to your vaunted ‘swordsmanship’?”

She was aware her high level of skill in spirit senses had been developed after Flash Magnus’ death, so her Reigai counterpart likely wasn’t nearly as good at it as she was. For Platinum it only took a few seconds of focus to sense what Luna had likely sensed earlier. The Princess was actually attuned to magic and had probably already been keeping at least one proverbial ‘eye’ on what was happening with her sister many miles away.

Now that Platinum was sensing it, she could understand why Luna had lowered her offensive stance.

She felt Starlight’s reiatsu, sharp and potent, but also eclipsed by two other powers in the same area. One had to be Celestia, and it was concerning just how incredibly potent the energy Platinum sensed from the alicorn was. Not just magic, but spiritual pressure, and the kind that would rival the Captain Commander! But then there was another power out there with Celestia and Starlight, somehow hard to pin down but disgustingly strong in it’s own right. For a moment Platinum nearly confused it for a Hollow, fearing the likes of Tirek had somehow found his way to Equestria, but no, this was different. Spiritual pressure was intermixed with the unusual buzz of magic, yet while Platinum was still unfamiliar with the differences between types of magic this sensation felt distinctly unpleasant, like touching something slick with grease.

“Okay, what’s happening?” asked the Reigai, “I can’t... sense whatever the two of you are.”

“Quiet, then,” Platinum commanded, and locked her eyes with Luna’s, “This power I’m feeling. What is it?”

Luna gave Platinum a most grave and shadowed look, “A reason for all of us to adjust our priorities.”

“Perhaps,” Platinum said, raising a hoof towards Luna and turning it over as if to suggest Luna place something in it, “Then again, my only priority is restoring Firefly to good health at this moment.”

Shrewd creases entered Luna’s brow, “Are you seeking to bargain with me?”

“Clearly you wish to go to your sister’s side to lend your assistance in dealing with whatever it is we are sensing right now,” Platinum pointed out, “As long as I and my Reigai stand here to challenge you, you can hardly afford to do that, can you?”

“I’ll point out Starlight Glimmer may be in need of assistance as well,” Luna put forth, but Platinum shook her head.

“Starlight Glimmer would not desire I abandoned my task to cure Firefly’s wounds just to lend her aid where she may not even need it. No, Princess Luna, my objective remains clear. It seems it is yours that has become... complicated. I am only here because you have something I want. I have no interest in harming Canterlot’s citizens. I’m no even all that interested in finishing our duel-”

“I am,” said the Reigai, but Platinum turned a hard look towards her and the Reigai threw up a shrug, “But I can wait.”

“Ahem,” Platinum cleared her throat, looking back to Luna, “Give me the means to heal Firefly’s injury, and I and my Reigai will depart. I give you my word we shall not bar your path to go fly to your sister’s side, even if you decide to combine your strength against Starlight. I also swear to withdraw this day and do no harm to your citizens.”

“You offer little for the price of healing an enemy of Equestria,” Luna pointed out.

“A clear path to go to your sister, which you quite obviously desire to do.”

“Achievable if I simply defeat you and your clone.”

Platinum’s lips pressed into a tight, mirthless line, “Which you have yet to do, and even if you can, how long will it take? How long have we paused to talk? Every second, possibly precious time your sister may lack, if the strength of this mysterious new foe is any indication.”

There was a look as hard as mountain stone in Luna’s eyes, but beneath it was the tremor of uncertainty. Platinum didn’t blame her. She had no idea what to make of the power she sensed, only that she could tell it placed even the likes of Starlight Glimmer and Celestia in danger, especially if those two had weakened one another in their battle. She could see the weight of decision pressing on Luna, and ultimately the alicorn made a frustrated sound. Her horn lit up with a sheath of blue light, and the air shimmered next to her with a faint ripple as she withdrew two objects.

One was a weather worn and faded shaft of a bow, while the other was a crystal vial of faintly glowing blue liquid. Luna floated the vial over to Platinum’s hoof, while she kept the oddly old and dilapidated bow close to her side. Platinum sensed a faint power from the bow, but it was hard to tell just what it was.

“I shall take your offered deal, Platinum,” Luna declared, “That potion counteracts the curse my spell placed upon Firefly’s wounds. Know that I always intended to heal her, rather than allow her to suffer continuously. Also know that as long as you and yours threaten our realm, there can be no peace between us. Be it today, tomorrow, or soon enough... you will ether be made to abandon your course, or taste defeat. And rest assured-”

Powerful magic coursed out of Luna in a surge, her eyes turning a pale blue of solid light, “-if you face me again, you will lose. Now begone from my city, before I change my mind!”

Platinum tucked the vial away in her robes, and then nodded to her Reigai, “Come. We are done here.”

“So be it,” said her Reigai, “No duel is satisfying when the combatant’s hearts aren’t in it anymore.”

The entire fortress shook and then filled with wane light. In a sound of shattering ice, everything burst into a cold mist of ice dust. Luna watched as twin torrents of this mist of ice crystals, the raw spiritual energy of both Platinum and her Reigai’s Bankais, moved in a stream back into their respective blades. In mere moments the two giant floating islands and their fortresses were gone, and the two Platinums stood with Zanpaktou resting in their sealed states once again.

“We’ve no time to waste,” said Platinum to her copy, “And from the feel of it, neither does Princess Luna.”

----------

...A short time earlier.

With the harsh star of uncompromising sunlight growing ever denser and larger in the sky, to the point that Starlight could no longer make out Celestia at all amid the glare, she turned a sweat beaded glanced towards Chrysalis. The changeling queen had her eyes shut tight, lips pulled back in a strained sneer, her jagged horn occasionally sparking with motes of wafting emerald light.

“Uh, not to rush you or anything, but Celestia isn’t going to be charging that spell up all day,” Starlight said, licking dry lips that were a result of the air itself being burned away of any moisture for miles around, “So some of that love magic would be great right about nowish.”

“I’m trying!” snarled Chrysalis, giving a shout of pure frustration as she stamped a hoof and shook her head, “Do you think this is easy for me!? I’ve never shared love, you imbecile! I... don’t... know... how!”

“Yeah, I’m starting to get that,” Starlight said, biting her lower lip in rushed thought, her mind charging down multiple pathways in the flash of an instant.

Gauging by the power build up she was sensing, both the density and focus of the magic and spirit energy that Celestia was still gathering, Starlight imagined they had minutes at best before the alicorn would unleash a spell of such magnitude that even with her best defensive Kido or even an attempt to counter with a Grand Rey Cero would amount to little more than delaying the inevitable by a few seconds. Starlight wasn’t even sure this half of the continent would survive the blast, let alone herself and Chrysalis.

Did she have to do it? Did she have to use her Bankai? Even with that, there was no guarantee she’d be able to counter what was coming, although she did think it was possible, given the way her Bankai actually worked.

But if she did that, then she’d stand no chance against the Zero Division. Her Bankai was the card she’d been saving specifically for that confrontation. Using it now would effectively be the same as abandoning her cause, the entire reason she’d done all she had to get to this point in the first place. Starlight couldn’t accept that outcome. She’d sacrificed too much and come entirely too far to throw it away just to take down one obstinate, overpowered equine!

But what were her alternatives?

“-tarlight!”

Sure she could try fleeing at full speed. She was pretty exceptional with Flash Step, so she might well clear the continent before it was blown to smithereens. But that would leave Chrysalis to die, not to mention who knew how many potential innocents who lived within a few hundred miles? Starlight knew she was no saint, especially given she still worked with the Second Espada, but her goal was still to minimize the sacrifices.

“-ey! Are you listen-”

So fleeing wasn’t an option. What about reasoning? It was obvious Celestia was no longer entirely in her right mind. Perhaps she could get the Princess’ mind back on track and on a less destructive path? That didn’t seem likely, but it beat doing nothing. Then again, perhaps Starlight could get Celestia to target her in the air? Fly above Celestia to ensure the blast went up out of the atmosphere instead of hitting the planet?

“-HEY!”

“Aaaah!” Starlight jumped at the sudden, exceedingly loud shout in her ear. Her changeling wings flipped out and buzzed to keep her in the air, and she blinked down at the person who’d been calling to her. For a moment she was too shocked to respond, then blabbered, “Trixie!? What in the world are you doing here!? I thought I told you to run!”

Trixie, with Eisenwand standing proudly at her side, adjusted her hat and cleared her throat loudly, “The Brave and Beautiful Trixie of the Bount does not run. Er, not for long anyway. Especially when you’re in danger, Starlight. So I have returned to lend you my aid. Um, in whatever capacity that might be.”

Trixie looked up, blinking against the intense light shining from Celestia’s spell, “I... was somewhat hoping you might know how I can do that, because Trixie doesn’t actually know what to do.”

Chrysalis was giving both of them a flat, shoulder slumped look, her eyes conveying a wealth of disappointment, “I’m starting to think I should have just let the ponies put me in Tartarus. I hear it’s quiet there.”

“Shall I crush the insolent bug, Mistress?” asked Eisenwand, and Trixie waved him off.

“Oh don’t mind her, whoever she is. Huh, Starlight who is this weird looking bug lady?”

“Weird looking bug lady!?” Chrysalis said, affronted, “I’ll have you know I am Chrysalis, Queen of the changelings!”

“Uh-huh,” Trixie said, ignoring Chrysalis and focusing back on Starlight, “So, um, Starlight? Plan? Also, why do you look like the bug lady-”

“Chrysalis!” shouted Chrysalis.

“-not to say you look as weird as she does. You have such lovely colors! Very pretty,” finished Trixie.

“Uh, thanks?” Starlight replied, “But seriously Trixie, while I appreciate that you came back, explicitly against my orders mind you, I kind of think the situation we’re in is a bit more than what you could handle. I’m seriously drained of spirit energy, and need some genuine love to feed on, hence the changeling form I’m taken on, and...”

She blinked, looking at Trixie again, who in turn looked back at Starlight earnestly. “I know I’m not anywhere near as powerful as you, Starlight, but there has to be something I can do. I won’t just leave you behind. No way. Not happening. Trixie will stay by your side until the end, so don’t even think of trying to tell me to run away.”

Starlight might have had a few blind spots in her observational skills, but once she focused in on something it didn’t take her long to work things out. In this case, she noticed the rose hue of Trixie’s cheeks and the fervent pitch to the Bount’s tone, and it rapidly clicked that Trixie’s loyalty may well have had more to it than just paying Starlight back for taking her in all those years ago.

“In fact,” Trixie was declaring boldly, throwing a hoof skyward, “I’ll fly up there on Eisenwand and distract Celestia myself! I’ll buy you time to get away, even if it costs me my-”

“Hey Trixie, hold still a sec. I don’t think this will hurt, but just roll with it, okay?” Starlight said to a startled Trixie, and took a deep breath before opening her mouth wide and letting the natural instincts of a changeling take over.

She wasn’t entirely sure she was doing this right, but the Pearl of Changing conferred a fairly complete instinctual understanding of the abilities of whatever new form it’s user took on. So she wasn’t that surprised when a deep green light, tinged heavily with streams of blue, rose from Trixie’s eyes and mouth and flew into Starlight’s waiting mouth.

Not knowing what to expect, she wasn’t prepared for the stark burst of flavor that assaulted her senses. No comparison to any food she’d eaten as a human or pony could possibly have compared. It was like drinking in the most refreshing stream of pure spring water upon a throat dying of thirst, while at the same time ingesting the raw heat and fulfilling spice of life itself, delicious even as it seared the taste buds. It was like tasting every juice laden fruit the world had to offer, all at once, and letting it replenish every tired pore in one’s body. No earthly drug could have matched this ecstasy, this feeling of fullness deep inside her core.

It was overwhelming, amazing, beautiful, and horrifying all at once.

She knew, knew from taste alone that Trixie loved her. Instinctually she could pick out the subtle meanings of the flavors of the love, too. She could taste the way the love was interwoven with a profound sense of devotion, admiration, and even a sense of embarrassment as these feelings. Yes, there was some lust there, a physical attraction, but that was more an undercurrent to the devotion that overrode the rest of the feelings forming this stream of life giving love.

Starlight rapidly felt this power fill her, and her body converted that magic into strength. She felt her spiritual energy replenish, the intermix of magic inside of her changeling body converting the power into something her soul could use. The Hogyoku pulsed brightly in her chest, absorbing some of this power as well, and filling Starlight further with rejuvenated might.

By the end of it only seconds had passed, but Starlight and Trixie were both left gasping.

Trixie nearly fell, but was caught by her Doll, Eisenwand giving his Mistress as concerned a look as a largely expressionless suit of living armor could, “Are you well, Mistress?”

“Y-Yes, I think so,” Trixie said, putting a hoof to her head and giving herself a shake before looking to Starlight, “What was that?”

“I, uh... just ate some of your emotions. Hope that was okay?” Starlight said, dizzy, but recovering. She turned a questioning look towards Chrysalis, who was observing Starlight with an oddly... subdued and knowing look that made the changeling queen’s face appear far more solemn than Starlight had ever seen it.

“Is it always like that?” Starlight asked, and Chrysalis made a ‘tch’ sound and nodded her head.

“It is. Every time. The flavors change in small ways, but the intensity never does. The first feeding does leave an impression, however.”

“I kind of see how you and your people got addicted to this,” Starlight admitted, but she then swiftly turned her attention upward. By now the glare of light had reached a blinding tint and the sense of incredible magic and spiritual build up was at a feverish pitch. A roaring rumble combined with a strong static buzz had filled the air, and Starlight felt the vibrations in the ground beneath her hooves. They were out of time.

“Okay, do or die, girls. Here goes nothing,” Starlight said, and turned up her own refreshed spiritual pressure.

Levitating her Zanpaktou, she pointed Yaban’na Megumi towards the light shining above and focused her attention upon the sense she had of the spatial distortions surrounding Ponehenge. She felt out the best spot to target, where the fabric between dimensions was thinnest. Starlight then began to pour her spirit energy into her blade, as what she was about to do was far more than open the small portals that Yaban’na Megumi had torn open thus far.

At the same moment, high above, Celestia was at the very center of a bleached white nimbus of gloriously terrifying white sunfire. The rings of power that stemmed from her wings had conjured the growing matrix of a High Magic circle, filling it with the near endless stream of power from Celestia. What she was doing was something normally only possible with Luna’s assistance, but the power of Eos rendered it well within Celestia’s reach.

Not that she wanted that. Indeed, inwardly the Princess warred within her mind, trying to wrestle herself back under control.

The memories and personality of Eos was like a consuming conflagration, eating up Celestia’s thoughts even as she battled the blaze.

She could feel the ancient alicorn’s unrelenting conviction, and fought back with equal resolve. Eos desired to not only wipe out the enemies before her, but Celestia could sense the former goddesses fervent and burning want to reassert the world as she once knew it. If Celestia lost this mental fight, Eos would use her body much as Iah had used Luna as “Nightmare Moon”, although that personality was a result of a temporary fusion of Luna’s pain and loneliness alongside Iah’s confused memories of still fighting a war with her sister. In the case of Eos, who's memories were more complete due to her deceit in forging her Relics, the result if Celestia lost would likely be closer to a genuine rebirth for Eos. Possibly worse than any pseudo personality that might have otherwise resulted.

And a result that Celestia refused to allow to come to pass!

The spell that Eos was trying to unleash was too powerful, too destructive. It would result in untold damage to the landscape, and too many nearby communities, despite Ponehenge’s remoteness. The ash cloud alone might cause severe environmental problems. Celestia could not afford to allow this to happen, even as Eos’ mind continued to hold just enough sway to keep the spell charging up. Celestia’s resistance was slowing that process down, which was why it had been taking so many long minutes in the first place, besides the incredible amount of magic, “divine” or otherwise needed to enact the spell.

At this point nearly as much spirit energy was flowing into the spell as raw magic was, making it more powerful than even the original version that Celestia and Luna would have used.

While Celestia was not gaining ground in her mental struggle, she was holding enough of a grip to try and alter the spell. If she couldn’t halt it’s discharge, perhaps she could lessen it’s impact by focusing it into a different shape. Eos was attempting a pure blast of power, without constraint. Such raw energy could be manipulated into fueling a new form, one no less powerful but with a form focused on localized destruction.

In small, subtle shifts, the magic circle around her body shifted as Celestia wrested small bits of control to change the spell into something different, fueling a change in the High Magic.

Eos felt the change and Celestia was washed over by a flood of her searing ire.

Your heart is weak, young one. You balk at the thought of using your power to remove that which threatens your way of life. No measure is beyond use for such a worthy cause! No sacrifice too great. Do you believe sentiment alone can protect what you hold dear!?

Celestia pushed back against the mind melting tide of emotion and memory and planted her mental hooves firmly against it, her own mind and soul shouting back with resolution, No, but I do not rely on sentiment, Eos. I armor myself with reason, consideration, and compassion. I hold close a blade of fair justice, meted out when needed, and only when reconciliation fails. I fight when I must, not for myself, but for the harmony of all. Not for my glory, not for worship, not even for love of my people if they do not wish to grant it. Only for the sake of this realm’s peace. A peace I will not allow you to destroy for a dream of an age that has long passed from this world!

A roar like the stellar eruption of a solar flare crashed over Celestia as Eos vented an eon’s worth of rage upon Celestia’s mind, trying to burn away the Princess’ stubborn resistance and change the spell back to its original form. Amid this, Celestia was assaulted by a lava flow of Eos’ memories, burning themselves into Celestia as she was surrounded by their hot intensity.

While fragmented, the memories themselves were clear as day, and Celestia found herself momentarily arrested to shocked silence by what she saw.

What? But this is-

Eos tried to seize upon Celestia's weakness and attempted to assert full control, but Celestia had not lived as long as she had by allowing even surprises to force her to drop her guard. As taken aback as she was by what she’d seen, she sensed Eos was weakening the longer Celestia had to adjust to the memories.

The two were more or less evenly matched, still wrestling for control, when the spell finally finished charging up. It was designed to go off, regardless, and the best Celestia could do was finish the last glyph within the High Magic circle to alter the spell to the desired result. She had no idea if Starlight Glimmer or Chrysalis had any chance at all of surviving even the altered spell, but there was nothing she could do about that now.

The burning point of unrelenting sunfire in the shape of a spherical magic circle began to expand. The six rings of light detached from the sphere and returned to Celestia’s wings, their work done. Bolts of sizzling star flame rushed along the edges of the sphere, which started to change shape as it gained edges and defined angles. White fire solidified, while still pulsing and flickering with tongues of sky searing heat. The solid shape had the consistency of metal, but only in the barest sense of the term, as it appeared forged of a star’s fire and burned with that endless cosmic radiance.

It was, in essence, a hammer. One as large as a mountain, and containing all the fury of the sun.

Eos’ voice let out a faint, questioning huff.

Stella Malleus?

Celestia responded curtly, Not quite. Stellar Malus requires both I and Luna together. This is a more personal version, operating at a smaller scale. ‘Diem Ruptor’ is it’s name.

She heard Eos’ grunt of faint approval, Day Breaker. At least you have a good sense of names. This will surely annihilate those fools below, so I’ll allow you this small moment of control, Celestia. But this contest between you and I is not over. I will have this body, in time.

Celestia felt Eos retreat inside her, like a tide pulling away from a scorched beach. It was a feeling of immense relief to Celestia, but heavily tainted by the knowledge that Eos’ mind was only lurking within her, and would no doubt look for another chance to seize control in the near future. Celestia had held out long enough to keep Eos’ memories from overrunning her, but the inherent conflict remained. She doubted other Inheritors would have to face such a long-term contention, as Eos’ plan had clearly been to make her Relic more problematic than others, but it was still a nasty reminder that even for the others there might be similar conflicts, depending on the compatibility between the Inheritor and the one who’s memories and powers they’d inherit. And, unfortunately, Eos’ parting gift before retreating into the recesses of Celestia’s mind was to send a burst of magic forth to speed the Diem Ruptor on it’s way, sending the titanic hammer of solidified sunfire flying down towards the ground like a burning comet.

The air howled at the giant hammer’s fall, a cone of air pressure burning away in front of it as it fell.

Celestia couldn’t have stopped it in time, and was stuck watching to see what Starlight might do. She could sense her opponent down there, along with Chrysalis and... Trixie!? And surprisingly, Starlight Glimmer’s spiritual pressure had recovered immensely! But how? Starlight had been all but drained to the point of defeat, but now Celestia was sensing a recovery that brought the human turned alicorn nearly back to full strength.

And Celestia felt that spirit energy of Starlight’s spike as the Diem Ruptor careened towards the ground, rising higher and higher to a sharp point.

What is she...? Oh... oh no...

“Starlight! Wait-” Celestia started to shout, but it was too late.

On the ground, a fearful Chrysalis and Trixie watched as a literal mountain of solid sunfire shaped like a hammer was coming straight towards them. Starlight Glimmer reared up on her hind legs, and with her magic drew Yaban’na Megumi’s screamingly sharp blade across the air while shouting, “Sora no Ichibu!” (Part the Sky)

One of Ditzy Doo’s Shikai techniques, Sora no Ichibu filled the estoc blade with a shimmering field of spirit energy and extended it outward like the world’s sharpest measuring tape. This extended blade of spirit energy carried with it the Zanpaktou’s signature ability to cut through anything, even the bonds of space and dimensions.

And Starlight used it to drag the blade right across the “lid” of the dimensional prison she sensed around Ponehenge.

The translucent blade of spirit energy flew up into the sky a few hundred feet and tore a path from right to left, and in its wake the very air opened up like a wound, split open into a void of utter darkness.

This gigantic opening continued to expand, until it was like an eye of shadow in the sky, large enough to act as a perfect obstacle between the ground and the descending hammer of sunfire. Celestia watched, horrified as the Diem Ruptor flew right into the opening of all consuming darkness. Horrified, not because the attack failed to connect with the ground, for honestly she was rather relieved by that. Rather she was horrified because she knew exactly what Starlight had just done and what it meant.

They didn’t have much time!

Celestia immediately teleported to the ground, appearing in a flash of sunlight right behind Starlight, Chrysalis, and Trixie.

All three gasped and turned, Trixie all but leaping behind Eisenwand, while throwing a hoof out to point at Celestia as she shouted, “Hah! You see that!? Starlight Glimmer easily defeated your supposed doomsday attack! And now that she’s back to full power from, um... whatever she just did, not that Trixie minded, you’re in big trouble!”

Celestia saw now that Starlight Glimmer had taken on the form of a changeling queen, which did much to explain how she’d regained her power. Celestia almost admired the cleverness of that, if not for the stupidity of what had just occurred.

“There is no time!” she said firmly, looking Starlight Glimmer in the eyes, “You have no idea what you have just done.”

“What have I just done? I kept me and mine alive from your overpowered attack, Celestia. Don’t get angry because I’ve still got some fight left in me,” Starlight said, readying her blade, but Celestia just shook her head and planted her own sword in the ground, which seemed to confuse Starlight.

“No, you don’t understand! We’ve no time to fight one another now! The place you have torn a doorway into, it is a prison. A prison that must be closed immediately!”

Starlight’s face grew a hint of concern as she slowly lowered her Zanpaktou and glanced up at the opening of vast darkness, “I knew it was a prison, but to what? I mean, that giant doomhammer of yours just flew in there. Whatever’s on the other side has to be toast, right?”

“How can you be so clever, and yet so ignorant at the same time?” Celestia breathed, “Neither I or my sister are responsible for creating this prison, and never in our many years have we dared considered opening it. The one trapped within, in the Limbo beyond, we have no notion of the limits of its power! My spell may have wounded it or stunned it, but that’s it. Now if you have the power to close that opening you have made, you must do so, now!”

Starlight Glimmer read the absolute seriousness etched on Celestia’s metallic gold features, and was unable to find a lie or exaggeration in either the alicorn’s tone or the note of fear underlying it all. Whatever was inside this prison, it was bad enough to frighten Celestia into temporarily forgetting all about their fight and imploring Starlight for aid. A part of Starlight thought to bargain. To demand something in return for helping close the opening into this otherworldly prison. She dismissed the thought as fast as it arrived. She’d only done this to survive Celestia’s spell. Starlight had no desire to put this realm in any more danger than was necessary to complete her goal. Her guilt was already hefty enough knowing that her world’s Chrysalis was in the Crystal Empire right now, even knowing she’d sent Zecora and Redheart’s Reigai there to prevent casualties.

“Fine, I’ll do it,” she said, casting a brief look towards her companions, “Trixie, Chrysalis, get clear.”

“What!? But Starlight-” Trixie began, but Starlight cut her off sharply.

“Don’t argue with me, Trixie! Get your beautiful blue butt out of here before you use up the last of your luck. There’s nothing more you can do to help now.”

Chrysalis cast a shifty glance towards Celestia, “I have zero objections to running, but are you going to interfere, Celestia?”

Celsestia gave Chrysalis a withering look in return, “This crisis is far more important than dealing with the likes of you, Chrysalis. Flee if you must, and may you have the wisdom to not cross my path again or even dream of harming my little ponies. Otherwise...”

The heat turned up around Celestia's body for an instant, wreathing her body in a quick burst of melting flames. Chrysalis let a visible gulp pass down her throat before nodding and slowly backing away from the alicorn.

However, just then, a voice spoke. One that resonated in the air with a rough, unnatural warble that carried with it the chill of a starless void.

“Oh, folks are leaving already? But I’ve not had guests to speak with in so, so long.”

All eyes turned up towards the large, open portal into the dark prison. From that jet black abyss of nothingness, two narrow eyes of solid white stared back at them, and the shadows creased beneath those eyes in a inky grin.

Starlight, ever sardonic, raised a hoof and waved, “Hello. Sorry about the hole in your door. Wrong address. Just give me a sec and I’ll have it closed up.”

“Aha, humor. How... quaint,” said the voice from the darkness, then before anyone could blink a cascade of numerous tendrils of solid shadow shot down like a rain of black arrows. Starlight and Celestia were fast enough to evade, but Chrysalis and Trixie were both caught and found themselves wrapped in those tendrils, then rapidly hauled into the air.

“Aaaah! Starlight! Eisenwand! Help!” Trixie shouted, while Chrysalis hissed. Eisenwand’s ruby red eyes glowed bright as his misty mane and tail of dark iron flickered and he summoned forth his lance. He tried to fly up and penetrate the shadows binding Trixie, but the Doll quickly found himself slapped away by a thick tendril of darkness that struck with all the force of an ocean liner being used as a croquet mallet. Eisenwand hit the ground in a heap, although he stubbornly stirred to start standing again.

“Let go of me this instant!” Chrysalis shouted, and although her limbs were bound, her Bakkoto was still able to move at her will. The serrated chain blades shot outward and coiled around, filling with magic and spirit energy via an emerald aura as they cut and sliced at the shadows holding her. However the blades couldn’t penetrate more than some of the tendrils, and more descended to wrap up the blades of her Bakkoto, while the voice spoke ponderously.

“Oh? I sense not just magic, but the power of the soul. Has the time come already? Has my counterpart fixed Her precious Cycle by now? Delightful. It seems patience truly is a virtue. A virtue Starswirl always did lack.”

“Hey! Big, dark, and smug!”

The eye slits moved towards Starlight as she spoke, and narrowed further as Starlight vanished with a Flash Step. Yaban’na Megumi sliced out with supreme severing power, and cut the tendrils holding Trixie and Chrysalis, causing both to fall back to the ground, while Starlight remained standing on the air and looking up into the abyss where the voice had come from as she pointed her Zanpaktou at the white eyes that stared back at her.

“There’s only room for one egotistical, cryptic talking jerk in this world, and I’m filling that quota right now! Time for you to go back in the hole!”

She used Flash Step once more, and a hail of abyssal tentacles shot out of the darkness at her. Their speed was impressive, and may well have caught up to even Starlight, but a flare of solar flame cut across the air and severed dozens of them at once. Celestia, wielding Caelum Carnifex like a living shard of the sun, burned a hot white trail in Starlight’s wake. Each swing of her sword let out a crescent of almighty heat, tearing into the darkness with wild abandon.

This bought Starlight time to get to the edge of the dimensional opening she’d created, where she shoved Yaban’na Megumi’s blade into the beginning of the rift. There, she took a deep breath and focused on using the Zanpaktou’s ability in its inverted state, which allowed it to stitch up portals it created. Normally small portals could just be willed shut, but for larger rifts it required time and a steady input of energy to effectively sew shut the opening.

The voice let out a long, deep rumbling sound like a peal of thunder, “Ah, I wondered if I’d recognized you or not, Eos. Her Inheritor, rather? You are quite fortunate the Pillar’s spell still binds me to this cursed Limbo. Yet if I strain enough, I can push my power through this opening. Enough to deal with the two of you.”

Darkness concentrated more firmly around the portion of the void where the eyes of sickeningly wane white resided, and expelled outward in an ugly flood of shadow. Celestia was forced on the defensive, holding her burning blade of sunfire in front of her to try and withstand the sudden deluge of void energy. There was little else that could describe it. The shadows were not mere darkness, but felt to Celestia like the elemental magic of the void, of the absence of harmonic energy. Much like the world had been slowly decaying and dying from the lack of harmonic energy due to the broken Cycle, the power this being was firing towards her was like the elemental opposite of Harmony.

She had to draw upon the full potency of her Relic and the magic within to generate enough power in her sword to split that deluge.

“Okay, Celestia, seriously, what the buck is this guy!?” Starlight shouted, closing the portal meter by slow meter, “My senses can’t make him out. There’s spirit energy and magic in there, but it’s all twisted, even worse than a Hollows!”

“I don’t know!” Celestia shouted back, outpouring so much magical sunfire that she was creating a searing pillar of white fire around herself and her blade, one that bored a hole in the ground beneath her while slamming into the void above, although to little visible effect up there, “Starswirl’s journals only ever spoke of a friend, lost to shadow, and the need to sacrifice himself and his fellow Pillars to keep that shadow bound in Limbo!”

“Tch, Starswirl always had a talent for skewing the truth,” the voice said disdainfully, “Although in some ways I feel I owe him thanks, for I’ve learned more of this world’s past than I ever would have as his humble ‘friend’. They’re all in here, you know? My mentor, his comrades, my ‘friends’, all bound together by their spell. Do you not wish to save them?”

Celestia ignored the voice’s words, mostly because she sensed the ill-intent and the deceptive attack incoming. While this dark entity could not seem to project it’s full power into the world outside it’s prison thanks to the spell that bound it there, it still had more than enough capacity to be a deadly threat. Piercing strands of shadow, no thicker than pencils, had curled around behind Celestia and sought to perforate her unprotected back while she still struggled to maintain a font of sunfire to hold back the entity’s main body.

To Celestia’s surprise, a fan of black bladed chain whips flew up between her and the attack coming at her back. With emerald fire, the chain blades transformed into a set of wider, protective scales that took the brunt of the piercing shadows. At the same time, bright red circles of arcane sigils formed of spirit energy flew up into the mass and burst with flashes of light that, admittedly, did little to inflict any damage on the shadows, but did redirect one or two away from their intended target.

Looking down, Celestia saw Chrysalis and Trixie had not fled, but remained, the changeling looking like she wanted to vomit at her own actions, but still stubbornly and pridefully using her Bakkoto to form the protecting fan of scales. Trixie had withdrawn a wand with a ruby tip from Eisenwand’s chest, casting hexes upwards in a futile but still brave effort to lend aid.

“Do not say anything, Celestia!” Chrysalis demanded, “I am not helping you! I just need to ensure whatever this thing is doesn’t escape to make my own life difficult!”

“Trixie, on the other hoof, refuses to slink away! Besides, Starlight might still need this!” Trixie declared, withdrawing the scroll that Starlight had given her before, “Eisenwand, go take that to Starlight, swift as you can.”

The Doll nodded at the command and snatched the scroll in his iron jaw before spreading metal wings to take to the air. Starlight found herself both grinning yet also grinding her teeth at the sight of her two companions being so idiotic as to stick around under these circumstances. “Idiots. Idiots both of them. Guess that makes me the Captain of the Idiot Division, then.”

Closing the opening into this prison of Limbo was slow going. Yaban’na Megumi was far less inclined to close up holes as it was to tear them open. Each slow meter took far more time than Starlight wanted, and she could feel with bile on her throat the power and attention of the being beyond the void.

“Figures Equestria just had to have some insanely powerful ancient evil whatever sitting around,” she muttered, “As if I didn’t have enough on my plate with the Second Espada running around, Zero Division pulling all the strings, and these Princesses breathing down my neck.”

“Aren’t you the judgmental one?” said the entity’s voice, it’s eyes sliding across the void to hover closer towards her as she struggled to continue closing the opening. It’s attention on her was like a cloying sensation of a thick, cold fog on her skin. She heard a breathing from the void, this thing was scenting her. “Hmm, you’re not a native of this realm. Too much foreign power. That thing in your chest, it is distinct from any magic artifact I’m aware of. What are you, I wonder?”

“Keep wondering, buddy,” said Starlight, “Although since you seem so chatty, you got a name?”

“Starlight, you probably shouldn’t be talking to it!” Celestia pointed out, “It’s trying to distract you!”

“She’s right, you know,” said the entity just as it formed a blade of darkness that it sent curving towards Starlight, who flung a hoof out and chanted a Kido.

“Bakudo Number Eighty One: Danku!”

The shimmering plane of spirit energy snapped into place and took the brunt of the blade of void, but even that high level Kido started to buckle after a second, forcing Starlight to temporarily halt her closing of the portal to bring Yaban’na Megumi to bear against the darkness that stabbed through the barrier. Fortunately the Zanpaktou’s insane sharpness was enough to sever through the elemental blade of void and caused it to dissipate to either side of Starlight, but she got the impression the attack hadn’t had the being’s full force behind it. She quickly got back to closing the opening, while Celestia’s horn expanded it’s magical field in a saturating burst of golden flame.

The six rings of light shot from the Princess’ wings and channeled the magic from her horn into a series of barriers formed of white sunfire that guarded Starlight. This freed her to continue her work, but left Celestia more vulnerable as more shadow blades thrust out to try and clip the alicorn out of the sky. Celestia relied on her radiant blade to defend herself, the hulking weapon cutting through shadow after shadow as she blazed an evasive trail through the air.

Eisenwand reached Starlight, slipping the scroll to her as the rings of light moved to let him past.

“Thanks,” Starlight muttered, “Now get your fool Mistress out of here!”

“I obey her orders,” Eisenwand stated simply, “If she wishes to stay, I remain at her side.”

“Why is everyone being so stubborn today!?” Starlight shouted.

“I do not know,” replied Eisenwand.

“That was a rhetorical question!”

“I see.”

“Do you!?”

“...No,” Eisenwand said, then turned and flew back down towards Trixie, who continued to fling hexes up towards the void with no visible effect.

As if nothing had changed, the entity returned it’s attention to Starlight and said, “It’s Stygian, by the by. My name, that is.”

By now more than half the portal was successfully closed and Starlight turned a deep frown towards the shining white eyes in the void while keeping her guard up and not halting her closure of the rift, “You are awfully talkative for a mysterious being locked in an eternal void that the near almighty half-deity alicorn is frightened of. Especially considering you don’t seem to be able to use your full power here, and I’m getting this hole I ripped open closed real soon.”

“Yes, you do seem to have made quite a bit of progress closing the hole you tore in my oh so comfortable prison,” said the entity who identified itself as Stygian, “Honestly it’s just nice to have someone to talk to. Haven’t worked the old language skills in a long while. Besides, I’m not worried. Even if you close this opening, I now know where my prison’s weak point is. A weak point I never knew existed. Now, in time, I’ll escape on my own, even if it might take a few centuries. So be it now, or later, I’ll have my proverbial day in the sun. Of course I’m eager to have company over, even if I remain trapped for a time longer, and those courageous but quite illogical individuals trying to help you seem quite exposed.”

“Dammit!” Starlight grunted as she saw a flood of shadow bubble out of the void in one big burst. It surrounded Celestia like a temporary shell, shutting out the Princess’ sunfire for a moment.

Then tendrils of darkness rushed both Trixie, Eisenwand, and Chrysalis once more. Trixie flung hexes as she backpedaled and leaped on top of Esidenwand’s back. The Doll flew into the air and lashed out with his lance at the shadows descending on him, but his physical might was no match for the raw void that wrapped around him and his Bount.

Chrysalis hissed and transformed herself in a burst of green fire into the shape of a tiger-like creature with white fur, black stripes, and a tail made out of sharp, segmented bone. Her Bakkoto was still attached to her tiger form’s right arm and she tried to cut and slash her way free of the tentacles of shadow that surrounded her, but she too was soon caught in a tight wrapping of darkness.

Both Chrysalis and Trixie were hauled skyward and into the void, while Starlight screamed her frustration.

She was not about to let those she’d dragged into her mess pay any kind of price for her own actions!

In a flash she ceased her work on closing the portal and used Flash Step to instantly translocate herself into the void, cutting off Chrysalis and Trixie’s path. With all due speed she took the scroll Trixie had given her and took it up in a magical levitation spell while transforming from a changeling back into an alicorn to gain an additional burst of magic. That magic she used to fire out rapid beams of power to push back several seeking tendrils of shadow that came her way while at the same time she extended Yaban’na Megumi and diced through the shadows holding her companions.

“Next time I tell you two to go, you go!” she shouted, and slapped the scroll onto Trixie’s back and activated it, while swiftly using a binding Kido.

“Bakkudo Number Four; Hainawa!”

The bright yellow rope of spirit energy she summoned with the Kido she used to bind Chrysalis, Eisenwand, and Trixie together, and then promptly used both of her hind legs to kick the group down and out of the void.

Chrysalis looked up in mute shock, while Trixie got a hoof free of the binding Kido with enough time to shout half of Starlight’s name while Eisenwand held her tight with his metallic hooves. Then the scroll beacon did it’s work, and Starlight was grateful Ocellus and Pipsqueak back at the base were still on the ball with the Crossgate’s controls. All three of them, bound close together, were targeted by the same teleport and transported away to safety in an eyeblink.

“Clever and self sacrificing,” Stygian’s voice commented, and within the void itself that voice felt like it came from everywhere at once.

Starlight saw his “eyes” hover over her, two giant white slits that she now saw were attached to a massive equine being of shadow, like an outline of deeper darkness upon the void it occupied. It was almost like an alicorn, winged and horned, yet it’s body was no more than a shade upon a moonless night, save for it’s two depthless white eyes.

“I do wonder, however, what you were thinking just leaping into Limbo on your lonesome?”

She cut around in an arc of instant motion, slashing with Yaban’a Megumi into the pervading mass of shadows. She felt the Zanpaktou touch only the barest hint of resistance, as if the barely discernible shape of the dark equine figure was little more than mist. Starlight pierced that darkness with her senses, searching for any semblance of life... and thought she did feel some trace of something in there, but it was cloaked with such a heavy blanket of confused and mixed sensations of magical and spiritual power that pinpointing anything specific was nearly impossible. This entity, Stygian, whatever he was, struck her as being similar in strength to the likes of Tirek or Sombra. Despite that, she also sensed something off about him, although she couldn’t place a hoof on what that was.

“Couldn’t just let you nab my allies like that. Makes a girl jealous,” Starlight quipped, mostly in hopes of keeping him talking. She knew she had a bad habit of liking to talk too much, and got the impression Stygian may have been cut from similar cloth. She needed time to close that rift, and she felt Celestia’s magic building up, even though the alicorn was still covered in a blob of shadows just beneath the dimensional opening.

Furthermore, Starlight sensed more of Celestia’s magic inside the void, and to her surprise she caught sight of a glittering spectacle in the darkness beyond. The hammer of the Diem Ruptor was still there! It floated in the depths like a shard of shining white diamond.

An idea formed as Starlight saw shadows mass around her, Stygian’s voice echoing in the empty expanse. Shadow blades came for her from all sides, and Starlight turned herself into a spinning blender of sword strikes to try and deflect them all whilst Stygian’s voice vibrated in her skull.

“Jealousy is an emotion I’m quite familiar with. It’s frustrating, to know yourself to be better than what others deem you worthy of. Worse still to know one has purpose, but to be unable to fulfill it. To know the world is not as it should be, and be unable to change it. It fills one with rancorous rage.”

“Buddy, you’re preaching to the choir on that front, but kind of hard of me to care when you’re also trying to kill me,” Starlight shot back, sending her body into a sudden somersaulting spin that cut like a saw through several shadow blades in order to break through the mass. Several others managed to cut her in the process, but she managed to tear free for a moment, and she halted herself and turned around, smearing blood from one of her wounds onto her hoof before aiming it out into the void. Magic poured from her horn and into a sphere of pulsating purple and black energy that grew from her hoof.

With a disruptive burst of force she fired a wide Gran Rey Cero that speared into the darkness.

“Impressive,” said Stygian, the beam having missed the indistinct equine shape of shadow that seemed to represent his body, “But you appeared to miss by quite a margin with that beam.”

“Wasn’t aiming at you,” Starlight said, and smiled as she saw her Gran Rey Cero impact with its intended target; the mountain sized hammer of concentrated sunfire that was the Diem Ruptor.

She thought she saw the vague form of darkness turn it’s ghostly white eyes behind it and nearly frown as Stygian grumbled, “Oh bugger all.”

The gigantic hammer cracked under the impact of the Gran Rey Cero, not because the beam was the more potent force, but because the spell was designed to detonate upon sufficient impact with just about anything. Having entered the void, the hammer had not met contact with anything solid, as Stygian’s ‘body’ had not been in the path. Now, however, the beam of Hollow energy was more than enough to trigger the spell’s detonation. The resulting flash of light was bright even in the depthless dark, like the sudden birth of a star. White fire rushed out in a magical tide that shook the void, filling it with an ear-splitting roar of power.

Starlight had erected a barrier of magic around herself and added an additional protective layer with another Danku Kido, but even then the wave of explosive force and destructive sunfire nearly shattered those defenses, sending her hurtling backwards uncontrollably.

She was caught, however, by steady and warm hooves, and Starlight shook the fuzzy cobwebs from her senses to see it was Celestia who’d caught her and held her steady. Shadows melted behind the alicorn Princess as her burning blade of almighty sunforged metal cut a path around her, having freed her from the binding darkness below and struck a path up into Limbo.

“How long will it take to finish closing this portal?” Celestia asked, even as she ejected a terrific stream of blistering white fire from her horn that ripped through a growing wall of shadows that had been flying towards them.

“Not sure. A minute or two,” Starlight guessed, “Can you buy me that time?”

“I will do whatever is necessary,” said Celestia without a hint of hesitation as she spread her wings, which lit up the emptiness of Limbo with rays of unbroken light. Then she was off, a streak of sunlit rage and destruction that faced off with the limitless shadows and their keeper.

“Strong words, pawn of Eos and Harmony, but I will not be denied forever!” called Stygian’s voice from all corners of Limbo as a tide of unrelenting, jet black power rushed to meet Celestia.

Starlight tried not to get distracted by the sight of it. Celestia swinging her blade in constant, golden arcs. The rings of light from her wings firing a continuous set of raw sunlight turned into deadly, void clipping lasers. The bestial roar of sunfire rocketing from Celestia’s horn in a pure white river. All set against a seemingly constant string of stabbing shadows of spears, blades, tendrils, and grasping jagged spikes. The collision of magic and spiritual powers alone was shaking the void with concussive waves of force, and Starlight could see those waves even disrupting the world outside the rift, cracking the ground with their might.

Shame all she could do in that moment was focus on closing that rift, like a determined welder fixing a rupture in a pipe. With dogged determination she set Yaban’na Megumi to work, slowly closing the opening it had torn. She did all she could to step up the pace, pouring all of her spirit energy into the task, but if she rushed the job too much then it’d leave a weakened portion of the “lid” she’d sliced up. She wasn’t about to make it easy for this Stygian entity to break out again.

All the while, Stygian poured more and more power towards Celestia, surrounding her with countless weapons of shadow seeking her flesh. Yet even as she cut them down in their multitudes, she herself was starting to flag. The long, long battle with Starlight, and now this, was burning through her reserves of magic at a horrendous pace. Even with the Relic, her power wasn’t limitless, and she was having to bring it all to bear to keep the darkness of Limbo’s prisoner at bay.

And his voice struck at her mind, chiding, taunting, “You never answered my question. Do you not wish to save them? The heroes of old who sacrificed themselves to put me here?”

As if to punctuate his words, the mass of equine shadow, stained dark as ink, charged Celestia with all the speed of shadow. A deeply curved blade of forged void was held in hooves of writhing black as it cut towards Celestia’s head, and she met it with the burning dawnlight of her own sword. Both blades intermingled in a flickering haze of daylight and voidshadow, while Celestia poured her strength against Stygian’s. Her face betrayed no weakness, even as his words cut at her.

“Of course I would wish to save them, but they bound you here with their own magic. Ending that spell frees them, but also you, and while Starswirl never told me all of what was happening back then, he made it clear that this prison was never to be opened.”

“And yet here you are, at Ponehenge,” said Stygian, “Did you think to dispose of a troublesome problem in this place, as Starswirl did? Oh, like teacher like student, eh? Ever practical minded Starswirl seemed to raise an equally practical Princess. If only he was as loyal to all his friends.”

Their blades parted in a mutual clash, and globes of darkness formed around Stygian’s sword which he then hurled at Celestia. The globes grew in size as they flew at Celestia, who countered by interlocking her rings of light together three at a time to form two arrays that fired focused bursts of incomprehensibly bright sunlight that cut through the darkness. At least in part. One sphere still broke through the beams and struck Celestia dead on, even as she used her sword to shield herself. A severe tearing of dark energies exploded through the void, and Starlight heard Celestia cry out in pain.

“You doing alright back there!?” Starlight shouted, still focused on closing the rift. She was so close now that it was getting to the point that there wouldn’t be room for her and Celestia to escape through if they waited much longer.

“I...I am fine! Keep going! Do not wait for me!” Celestia bellowed, surrounding herself in a vast storm of white flames. Using her wings to guide the fire in a swift motion, she sent titanic sheets of incinerating flame to burn the shadows around her. Cracks in her metallic armor bled sunlight and droplets of blood that burned like white hot phosphorus, but Celestia did not pay her injury any mind as she poured forth raging waves of divine flame to push against Stygian’s encroaching tide of darkness.

“He still dreams of you, did you know that?” Stygian said, “I can peer into their minds, each of the ‘Pillars’, my old friends. They get to enjoy the stillness of sleep, while I am stuck mulling things over in this dreary place. Starswirl still thinks of you and Luna as his students. I could show you where they are. They’d be so easy to pluck from this place.”

“Silence! You’ve no bargain to offer me that I’d dare consider. Even if I must expend my all to hold you at bay, you are not leaving!” Celestia's answer echoed loudly through the emptiness, her resolve reflected in the ever greater volumes of blinding sunfire that exploded from her wings, horn, and even her mouth and eyes as she threw all caution to the wind and poured her power against the void.

Starlight could feel that all encompassing heat searing her back, but didn’t dare lose focus on her task. The hole was finally closed enough that it was just barely sufficient for her and Celestia to pass through. If they were to escape, Starlight would have to close it from the outside once she was out...

...Which, she realized, she could do right now, without waiting for Celestia.

It would solve one incredibly huge problem with her own plans to get Celestia out of the way. It wasn’t like Celestia hadn’t been considering doing the same to her not so long ago.

Calculation flew through Starlight’s mind, weighed against numerous desires. Above all she wanted Zero Division defeated, cast down, Hell dismantled, and Sunburst freed, and with him, the world itself free to become a better place for both the living and the dead. She’d sacrificed so many morals and ethics to get to this point. She’d allied with a crazed Hollow like Chrysalis, knowing full well that people would likely die as a result no matter what precautions she took. She knew she was stained by her choices and even if all of her plans came to fruition, there was no erasing the wrong she’d done to get there. She was even able to mostly convince herself it’d be worth it in the end.

As long as Zero Division was defeated... did anything else really matter?

She thought she had only one path to take, even if it was over the bodies of others like Celestia. Even if it meant ruining lives like those of Sunset and her friends. Even if it meant becoming no better than those she despised.

For some reason at that moment she thought of Firefly, who’d kept loyally to her side this entire time. Then she thought of Platinum, who sacrificed so much for her son, and lost nearly everything, yet still had not abandoned all of her principles. She thought of the odd, budding friendship between Pipsqueak and Ocellus, as unlikely a pair as ever there was. She thought of Trixie, who’s love and admiration was still something Starlight could taste on her lips.

I’ll do anything to bring down Zero Division... but I won’t become them. One day, I still want to look Sunburst in the face.

Celestia was nearing exhaustion, and even her vision was somewhat blinding by the volume of raw magic sunfire she’d shot from her body in an all consuming wave before her. And for a wonder, it had worked to hold Stygian back. As potent as he was, even he couldn’t entirely withstand such a massive outpour of magic stemming not just from Celestia’s might, but the reborn divine magic of Eos. Such an unbridled wall of celestial fury was enough that even a being such as him had to focus on shielding himself, lest risk losing the mortal anchor that was his core.

“Mmph, I am now understanding just how strong Eos was, and admittedly your power compliments hers rather potently. Harmony seems to function as intended, for a wonder. That said, you cannot keep that up forever.”

“She doesn’t have to,” Celestia heard Starlight say, just a moment before she heard the metallic clinking of chains and saw a length of chain tipped with a pointed head at the end fly right by her field of vision.

The spike tipped length of chain touched her side, and Celestia had a second to glance back and understand what was occurring.

Starlight had transformed her Zanpaktou once again, shifting it back to the multi-chained form of Screwloose’s Zanpaktou, Sakuran. One length of chain had touched Celestia, while the other Starlight had sent flying down out of a now much smaller opening than when Celestia had last looked. The rift was now just barely large enough for a full grown pony to slip through, and it’d be a tight squeeze for an alicorn of Celestia’s stature. Fortunately that was irrelevant for the ability Sakuran possessed, which instantaneously transported Celestia from where she was squaring off with Stygian, all the way back to the middle of the standing stones of Ponehenge.

“Starlight Glimmer!” she called upwards, now only able to see Starlight through the small hole in the air that the once wide opening to the void of Limbo had been.

Starlight, not entirely a mad martyr, did try to use Sakuran on herself as well, but found Stygian faster on the draw and discovered the chains and their spiked tips were almost immediately wrapped up in his shadows and held fast from moving. She too was quickly surrounded by solid tendrils of darkness, now that Celestia was no longer able to hold it all back.

Still, Starlight tried to yank herself through the hole, but wasn’t overly surprised to find her path blocked by yet more shadow that filled the passage and held fast even against her physical strength.

“That was a surprise,” said Stygian, his eyes in the darkness hovering towards her, “I thought for sure you’d leave her here to save yourself.”

“Think if there’s anything I’ve learned today, it’s not to bet against Equestria’s Princesses,” Starlight said with a dry chuckle, “Besides, I never do anything without thinking it through.”

In a split second she called back Ditzy Doo’s Zanpaktou, and even as she was held tight by thick strands of shadow, she was able to summon forth a burst of strength from within. The Hogyoku kicked in, not just amping up her Hollow reiatsu, but pouring for a burst of the magical sunfire, Celestia’s own magic, that it had absorbed during the battle with the mighty alicorn.

It wasn’t enough to free Starlight entirely, but it was enough to allow her to shove Yaban’na Megumi into the edge of the remaining rift, and in a final push of strength, she sealed the hole shut, leaving herself trapped with Limbo and it’s still incarcerated occupant.

Celestia looked on, mouth open, at the now empty air above her, and the unbroken blue sky.

The rift was closed, Limbo, the prison of Ponehenge, secured once more. And Starlight Glimmer had sealed herself inside it along with one of the most dangerous beings in Equestria’s long history. Celestia couldn’t fathom if that had been courageous or insane of the human woman who she’d just a short time earlier been fighting against, but now been strangely saved by.

With a tired breath, she sat back on her haunches and with slow deliberation forced the remaining power she’d drawn from the Relic of Eos back into a sealed state. Flames bled off of her and her armor transmuted to liquid gold, all stirring into streams of power that floated into her sword. Her metallic fur of shining gold returned to its usual snow white coloring, and her mane lost the huge of consuming white fire to become it’s multi-toned flow once again. Finally, Caelum Carnifex itself faded in motes of white light to become a humble looking, broken sword once more. The power remained within the Relic, ready to be drawn forth again... along with a waiting Eos’ memories and personality that would no doubt seek to take control when Celestia called upon the Relic, but that was a trial for another day.

“Sister!”

Luna’s voice surprised Celestia as she turned to see a streaking blue meteor making it’s way right towards her. Luna landed with the readiness of a huntress, her own Relic of a bow held firmly in her magic as she looked around.

“I am... late, aren’t I?” asked Luna, noting the surrounding devastation and distinct lack of enemies present.

Celestia sighed, but did offer her sister a wane smile, “I’m afraid so, Luna. Today’s battle has ended, but I suspect more will come. Starlight Glimmer is... out of play, for the moment. But that may lead to further problems. Tell me, what happened in Canterlot?”

“You first, sister. What happened here? I sensed... I don’t know what I sensed, but it was enough to make me want to fly to your side as fast as possible.”

“An awakened shadow from the past,” Celestia said with weight, “One I fear may not be done with us, or Starlight Glimmer for that matter...”

----------

Starlight was held as tightly as if she was buried beneath the stone of a mountain, unable to even see a glint of light any longer. She couldn't so much as move her limbs, although she could still draw upon her spiritual power if she wanted to. Technically, if she wanted to fight, she could start flinging Ceros about, or call more Zanpaktou from Seikai Chitsujo. But that seemed like a waste of energy, especially considering she’d guessed right and her new “host” hadn’t decided to kill her.

Of course all this silence was getting annoying.

“Hey!” she said into the void, “If you were going to kill me, I figure you’d be doing it already, so what’s the hold up?”

A strain of equal irritation filled the voice of Stygian’s reply, echoing from everywhere in the dark, “Perhaps I’m merely thinking of the most appropriate way to dispose of you, now that you’ve ruined my chance at a swift escape.”

“Sounds like an excuse to me,” she said, and she felt the shadows tighten around her.

“Upsetting me further seems like a poor choice of final acts.”

“Urk, maybe... but you said it yourself, Stygian, you haven’t had anypony to talk to in a very long time.”

His scoffing noise was like a stone skipping across ice, “I’m uncertain you and I have much to talk about, after you aided Celestia.”

“I helped her, yes. I wanted her out of my way, but after what I saw her pull today with that sword of hers, and this ‘Eos’ she apparently got all that power from, I decided she’d be more useful to my plans out there causing problems for my enemies than in here causing problems for you.”

That was only a partial truth, eschewing that she just hadn’t wanted to take that final step of abandoning what few morals she had left. Still, she wasn’t entirely lying, either. She’d discounted the Princesses as being a force of sufficient strength to deal with the likes of Triek, let alone the Zero Division. She’d revised that opinion, and knew that Celestia remaining in play meant that if Tirek launched an all out assault on Equestria it was better Equestria had its full complement of defenders present to give the Hollow King a rude welcome.

Of course the Second Espada was still an issue. Without Starlight around to hold what little leach Chrysalis had, who knew what might happen? Even with the Reigai she’d created with instructions to keep Chrysalis from going on a rampage, that woman was too much of a wildcard for Starlight to trust that going smoothly without her own presence to oversee things.

Which was why she hoped Platinum’s plan to gain Firefly’s cure had worked, and that the fight in the Crystal Empire might at least weaken Chrysalis for a time. Starlight had not predicted something like being trapped in this void dimension, but she had anticipated the possibility of losing to Celestia, hence her contingencies.

And even now, she had far from given up. If her Zanpaktou could open this prison from the outside, she imagined it could also do it from the inside. But before that, she had to find a way to deal with this prison’s occupant. Since overpowering him in a contest of raw strength seemed unlikely, it was time for a different tactic.

“Look,” she went on, since Stygian still hadn’t killed her or gagged her, which she took to mean that he was listening, “You seem to have a story behind you, and I’ll admit it’s one I’m curious about. You knew who that ‘Eos’ Celestia tapped into was, and mentioned more than a few interesting tidbits that piqued my curiosity. I also don’t think I’m crazy to say it sounded like you were rather curious about me, since you didn’t seem to recognize who or what I am, let alone why I was here on Ponehenge, fighting Celestia.”

“Hmph, you have a practical way with words combined with a convincing tone that reminds me entirely too much of Mistmane,” Stygian said in a resigned, yet intrigued, voice, “My instincts tell me you are trouble, Starlight Glimmer. Yet you are right, I’ve been alone for a very long time, and boredom is a mighty motivator. I suppose I can kill you at any time I deign to choose, and I am curious about you, although you might be surprised at what I already know...”

She felt the constraints around her loosen, and on instinct she created a platform of reishi beneath herself, standing in the void upon a pale purple platform of spirit energy. Stygian’s white eyes appeared in the darkness before her, his real form still shrouded in the shadows he kept close.

“So then,” he said, “Let us talk.”

Episode 158: Beyond Hollow

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Episode 158: Beyond Hollow

At first there was only a still, sickening silence following Chrysalis’ invocation of her Zanpaktou’s name and release phrase, ”Indulge rapaciously; Devoradora.”

In her gut, Cadence felt a vacuum in that silence, as if the air, the very particles around Chrysalis’ humanoid body were bending towards the woman’s body. No, not just her body, but towards a singular point on her lower stomach. The form fitting, curvaceous white dress she wore began to burn from her body like cobwebs as poisonous green tongues of oozing heat and spirit aura rose from her body in an earthly tremor. Chrysalis’ breaths were coming quicker, and as more of her onyx black skin was exposed a sweat sheen glistened upon her. The bending of the very air around her cracked the ground in spider web patterns, while from her Zanpaktou’s blade a growing bubbling froth of liquid green spirit energy boiled like a toxic mass.

Finally as the last of her clothing burned from her, Chrysalis’ flesh started to become obscured instead by an aura of power so thick that it all but formed a new set of clothing all it’s own, yet in jagged, uneven patterns like the tunnels of an ant colony. Even the white tattooed ‘2’ denoting her Espada rank that was at the base of her throat was now covered by a choker of raw green energy that flickered at the edges.

Cadence’s eyes were drawn down towards Chrysalis’ stomach, where a small, empty hole of darkness existed right above where the woman’s womb would be. Yet there were two distinct differences between this Hollow hole and others. One was that a set of pulsating red markings wove out from the edges of the hole in sweeping patterns, like glowing blood veins. The other difference was the red gem floating in the hole’s center, an exact copy of a siren’s.

Pharynx, having some small difficulty breathing under the thick spiritual pressure building in the air, still managed to quip, “Huh, kinda figured you’d have a more dramatic transformation than just getting naked and wearing some glowing bits.”

Chrysalis’ laugh was unnaturally loud and resonant, yet still somehow intoxicating as drug-laced chocolate, “Wait for it. It takes a lady a minute to get ready for a night of festivities. There’s a reason I don’t do this for just anyone. It gets... messy.”

Cadence’s eyes remained locked on the gem that shone with a dull crimson light, “That’s a siren gem. Why do you have one?”

“Long story, but an associate of mine replicated them from the real deal. They’re still in a testing phase, and he should be making a better version once he’s done playing with Adagio,” Chrysalis laughed between making odd gurgling sounds as her flesh began to pulsate as if having worms digging underneath her skin, “Of course I suspect Adagio will play him instead, but that’s why I find her so much fun. Once I’m done here, I look forward to seeing what progress she’s made back home. At any rate, before we parted ways, my associate gave me this prototype with a few refinements over the old model. Same one he’s testing out himself, so it should work even with my Resurreccion. Guess we’re about to find out, aren’t we? What fun! I love surprises.”

“Uuhhh, shouldn’t we be trying to stop her?” asked Thorax of his companions, and Cadence couldn’t have been in more firm agreement. The horrible process that Chrysalis had triggered filled the Princess with a feverish sense of dread that made her ears ring. She could taste it in the distorted air, this power, this spiritual pressure, was not quite like what Chrysalis had exuded before.

Before, Chrysalis had been violent and murderous yes, but in a strangely playful and amiable manner.

Something about this new energy coming off of her felt like a pleasant mask melting off of the visage of something mad and monstrous, like watching a wax figurine distort until it looked like something utterly grotesque.

Cadence knew in the pit of her stomach that she didn’t want to see what was about to ‘emerge’ from the cocoon that had been the Chrysalis she’d been fighting up until that point.

“Hit her with everything!” she shouted, powering up her horn with teal eldritch light whilst also spinning up crystal wires from her wings.

“E-everything?” Thorax said, and Cadence roared a confirmation.

“Everything!”

With the city directly behind Chrysalis, Cadence had no desire to inflict more damage upon her nation or people, so the first thing she did was spear dozens of her crystal wires forward and tear them through the ground around Chrysalis, gripping the stone with their taut threads. She then hurled the chunk of street, along with Chrysalis, up into the air, after which she shot upwards herself, halberd of heart-shaped crystal blades leading her charge.

In a cleaving line she shattered through the chunk of stone with her halberd and cut into Chrysalis, who seemed to openly invite the attack with open arms. Cadence’s halberd met with shockingly harder flesh than before, still able to cut into the Espada’s Hierro, but to a much lesser degree than before. Still, the force of the blow rocketed Chrysalis skyward, and Cadence pulled back her wires and reshaped them, forming hundreds more to intertwine together until the wires took the shape of eight large replicas of her halberd. She then set the real halberd in between the eight copies, which spun around the halberd in a quickening circle which left traces of gathering arcs of magic.

She was not the master of High Magic that Celestia and Luna were, but Cadence did know one or two spells of that caliber.

”Sapphirus Gravis.” (Sapphire Grave)

A towering flood of sky blue crystal shot out from the circle of halberd copies, rising like a super-heated geyser going off. The geyser covered Chrysalis entirely and then solidified into an enormous chunk of crystal near half the size of the Empire’s own crystal tower. The hulk of uneven crystal trickled unstable arcs of magical energy, as was its intent. The spell was a form of crystal magic that entrapped a target in a coffin of solidified yet highly unstable magic that could then be triggered by an outside source while ensuring it’s target remained immobile. The High Magic even drew in power from other sources of nearby crystal... and since this was the Crystal Empire, spires of magic, like thousands of fireflies swarms, were rising from the city and entering the chunk of crystal.

“Thorax, Pharynx, hit it!” Cadence shouted, and her two changeling friends were quick on the uptake.

They both transformed in gouts of emerald flame into new shapes, Thorax favoring a giant, spike-tailed wyvern beast with alternating green and orange scales, while Pharynx grew into what looked like a brutish, thirty foot tall minotaur, like some primordial cousin to the modern species known today.

As Thorax blasted into the air, Pharynx used unbelievably corded muscles, thicker than boulders, to grip a chunk of street in front of him and rip it from the ground, lifting hundreds of tons of stone and dirt above his head.

Thorax’s wyvern form zipped past the crystal coffin and flicked his spiked tail over and over again. Pulsating orange light filled his wyvern tail with each swing, this particular variant of the creature having a magically explosive capability to fire destructive bards filled with a powerful chemical. Each barb was six feet long and fired with super sonic force, peppering the edifice with dozens of the bony projectiles that penetrated deeply as they burned with ready explosive force. At the same time Pharynx hurled his chunk of stone like a fastball pitcher, breaking the sound barrier with the force of his throw. The chunk of street impacted with the crystal hulk right atop Thorax’s spikes, driving them deep into the crystal while breaking through towards Chrysalis. There the barbs began to explode in a flood of bright orange detonations atop the Espada’s trapped body.

This served as more than enough trigger to also detonate the unstable magic energies gathering in the crystal itself, which shot out beams of light from every crack along its surface.

Just to be on the safe side, Cadence flew down towards the ground and generated a wide net of crystal wires, interlaced with shielding magic, to minimize the impact on the city before the entire crystal edifice lit up the sky in a colossal sphere of destructive sapphire energy.

Cadence waited for the force to subside before removing her barrier, and hovered in the air just as Thorax flew around to land not far from her, with Pharynx nearby. Still in his primordial minotaur shape, Pharynx put a hand up to shield his eyes and said, “Why do I got a bad feeling that didn’t do her in?”

“Oooh, I hate it when you jinx things, brother,” said Thorax, “Can’t we have a little... optimism...?”

His trailing sentence was due to a few drops of blood splattering onto his wyvern snout. Cadence frowned as she noticed more drops of ruby blood descending from the sky, and felt her stomach churn as a few drops quickly became a full on rainstorm of sanguine proportions.

Blood rained from on high, generated by a spreading crimson cloud in the sky that darkened all and cut off the light of the sun. And the force creating this cloud was a bubbling, floating mass of blood and viscera that swirled in the air where the explosion had been. Yet Cadence somehow knew the blood was not the result of her spell damaging Chrysalis, but rather the full release of this ‘Resurreccion’ that the Espada had activated. This was only confirmed as Chrysalis’ voice boomed down from the sky, a sky now crying a full on rain of red that started to paint all the Crystal Empire.

“I have to praise you. All of you. Princess Cadence, proving her title is so well deserved. Her noble husband, Shining Armor, living up to his name as he and his guards so gallantly battle my children. Thorax, Pharynx, you are so much better than what my counterpart deserves as offspring. Even the fervent prayers of this Empire’s citizens, fueling that magnificent tower and the heart that powers it, shine so brightly. HehehehHAHAHAHA! I love this. This feeling of passionate emotions. So much fear, hatred, hope, and love, all laid out before me in souls so beautiful it makes me salivate. What Hollow could resist this bountiful feast?”

The churning maelstrom of dense blood and flesh gathered into a tighter and tighter cluster, reforming into a new solid shape that was surrounded by a forking aura of wild green and crimson bolts of spiritual power. Limbs took form, black flesh still wet and slick with blood, whilst a body grew organ by organ and bone by bone around a framework of interlocking black and white chitin.

Cadence held back a gagging sensation, and resisted the push of cloying spiritual aura as Chrysalis’ transformation finally emerged in it’s proper completion in the sky above her. The Princess looked upon her enemy and did her level best to keep her courage, and found that she could, despite the gnawing realization that she may have underestimated this creature who wore the face of the Chrysalis she knew in Equestria... but was an altogether different kind of monster.

Before the fear could grip her too hard, she felt the calm breath of a warm breeze in her mind, and for a moment almost thought she heard the chuckle of a stallion’s encouraging tone.

”Be steady. You’re not done yet.”

Anteros? She still couldn’t tell if the old alicorn’s memories from the Relic ring had fully hit her yet. It felt less like another was invading her thoughts and more like she was just thinking to herself. She was just glad of the fact that she wasn’t having to fight a battle on two fronts, especially with what she now faced.

Chrysalis’ body was an unnatural amalgamation of various species of the insect and arachnid families, all blended into a singular coherent chimera with the woman’s “human” body acting as the still sickeningly attractive centerpiece. Her upper body was much the same, although she was all but nude save for the way chitinous white bands of bone shaped like insect legs wrapped around her chest and girded her loins, trailing a near transparent skirt of thin spidery silk. Her legs, however, grew and split past the thighs into a set of mantis-like scythe blades, each over six feet long before one counted the curves. From her back sprung a set of massively wide, faded white moth wings, and a second set of wings akin to a wasp’s. The moth wings were intershot with veins of red, pooling into a pair of baleful eye-like patterns that graced each wing, while the wasp wings were instead infused with glinting streaks of green energy that filled them with an almost electric crackle.

A wide and bulbous protrusion ran from her rear, expanding into what looked like the orb-shaped abdomen of a black widow spider, except that it was covered in sharp bands of bone that sported green tipped barbs, and sported not simply spinnerets but a huge and protruding wasp’s stinger that dripped red fluid. Furthermore, the orb pulsated strangely, lit from within with flashes of green light, and Cadence could make out the shapes of ovals within the bulky frame. Eggs?

Chrysalis’ face remained the same onyx carved statue of horrific beauty, but was somehow twistedly enhanced by a set of fang-like protrusions that framed her jawline. Her jagged white horn of bone was now joined by the wide sweep of a pair of green moth-like antennae that blended into her now longer and thicker head of turquoise hair. Her arms seemed longer, sheathed to the elbows in interwoven bands of white chitin. Her slim fingers bore obsidian claws, and they clutched a new weapon. It looked like a long pole of black iron, tipped at either end by a fan-like blade of darkened chitin. Cadence was not familiar with the design, but it reminded her of weapons she’d once seen depicted in hieroglyphics from one of the old history books she’d read as a foal. A... fan-axe? Palm-axe? Something like that, but two bladed instead of one.

And still set in Chrysalis’ Hollow hole above where her womb would be, the artificial siren gem glowed, and around the edges of the hole the unusual lines of bright red light shone with feverish energy.

“Eugh, didn’t think she could get any uglier,” said Pharynx, crossing his thick minotaur arms before eyeing a fallen pillar that he kicked up with a foot and hefted as a weapon, handling the near twenty foot long chunk of stone like a light club.

Thorax, still in the guise of a wyvern, gulped, “I’m glad you’re feeling so chipper, brother, but I am... starting to worry.”

“We’re not done yet,” Cadence told them, not taking her eyes off of Chrysalis as she readied her halberd, poising it in front of her in a glow of levitation magic, “There’s still a chance-”

“Hold that thought, Cadence dear.”

It was Chrysalis’ voice that cut through the air like a knife made of foghorns, followed by a pressure wave of spiritual energy that hit the entirety of the city all at once. It wasn’t even an attack, per se. It was simply Chrysalis pouring out her reiatsu without mitigation, without keeping it in check. It made the air, already filled with a bloody rain that was in essence a physical trace of her spirit energy, already feel more choking and unbreathable.

Then there was a horrendously loud, wet ripping noise. Cadence blinked in disgusted fascination as a hole tore itself open in Chrysalis’ spidery abdomen. Then, from that hole, blood welled like some terrible balloon.

“I want to show you why I value my children so much,” Chrysalis said, “Because for the longest time, I could not have any. All I could make were these... mindless creatures that exist only to feed. My ”Nacimiento Sanguinario.” (Sanguine Birth)

A jet torrent of blood red ruin shot forth from the hole that had opened within Chrysalis. It ripped into the ground with such speed and force that all the city trembled as the liquid stream punctured deep into the earthen foundations of the Crystal Empire. All the while Chrysalis’ spiritual pressure pressed down on all living souls within the city like a suffocating smoke.

Shining Armor, stronger and stouter than most, was able to still stand under the intense reiatsu, but many of his Crystal Guard were halted in the middle of their battle, some collapsing to their bellies while others barely remained standing while gasping for breath. Redheart’s Reigai felt the terrible reiatsu as well and felt her artificial body still break out in an all too realistic cold sweat as both she and Shining Armor looked skyward.

“What is that?” Shining Armor asked between dry mouthed heavy breaths.

“The Second Espada,” Redheart replied plainly, her own pale features now filled with a sickened and regretful shadow, “And she’s clearly going beyond what she was told to do by Starlight Glimmer. I’m so sorry.”

“Save it,” Shining Armor said, ironclad control entering his less than understanding tone, “You brought her here. You’re on her side.”

“Not for mindless slaughter,” Redheart replied, first glancing at the shaking ground, then towards the nearby Arrancar.

Chrysalis’ children had ceased to attack, and all looked up towards the sky where their “mother” was. Each Arrancar, be they male or female, no matter what traces of individuality had existed among them, all now wore identical expressions of rapturous joy as they raised their hands upward.

“Mother!” they chanted as one, “Mother calls!”

“Yes, my children!” Chrysalis’ voice echoed down in thunderous reply, “Your mother loves you all, and bids you give her space to play. It’d be no good to accidentally get caught in her playtime.”

It was as if the Arrancar were mere marionettes now, their actions all synched as one entity. Or rather, one will. Chrysalis’ absolute will coursed through each of her drone children’s veins and souls, her words, her intent, acting as absolute commands. As one the surviving Arrancar drones all vanished, using Sonido to vacate the area of combat with all speed. There was no voicing of disagreement or dissent, not even a fraction of hesitation. They obeyed their mother’s will instantly, and her will was that they not remain in the Crystal Empire to distract her as she went about her fun.

Shining Armor wore a tight lipped look as he said, “Why does them all leaving not make me feel better?”

“Because you’re not a fool,” Redheart replied, “You understand it’s only because she’s much worse. Please, I know you have no reason to trust me, or even like me, and I am not asking for that. Just allow me to help aid the wounded and get them somewhere safe before this city becomes a ruin.”

“I’m not about to let this city be ruined!” Shining Armor barked, but his eyes traced over his guardponies, seeing how many could barely stand under Chrysalis’ aura that covered all the city. With a reluctant grunt he eyed Redheart, “But I’m not a fool, like you said. Help the wounded. We’ll work out what to do about you and yours if we’re all still alive at the end of the day to worry about it.”

By the time he was done speaking the tremors in the ground had only gotten worse. Up in the air, hundreds of feet above the city, Cadence had a significantly better view of things and had a clearer set of magical senses that let her feel out the course of Chrysalis’ spirit energy. To her cold dread she felt rivers of Chrysalis’ power surging all through the underground around the city and beyond, the jets of blood spurting relentlessly from the Espada carving through the earth.

Within moments she saw geysers of blood breaking through the ground, both within the city, and for miles around in the area surrounding it. And as the blood did this, it changed, growing less liquid and more thick, like ruby syrup or sap. In seconds jagged spikes of crimson resin filled the city and surrounded it in a clawed grasp, as if the whole of the Empire had just been infected by the growths of a twisted beehive.

Then the resin spikes cracked in places, opening up like cocoon chambers. In bloody bursts of birthing liquids, new Hollows emerged in the dozens, perhaps hundreds. These things were not like the other Arrancar drones, who’s features were still largely human. These creatures instead were blood soaked things of dark nightmare, their chitinous skin covered in sharp protrusions of bone, their faces covered in masks of jagged edged white, covering all but too-wide mouths of gnashing fangs.

“Do you like them?”

Cadence was shaken from her morbid shock but Chrysalis was standing right next to her. With a rough shout, Cadence swung her halberd in an air splitting slice, it’s crystal edge aimed for Chrysalis’ neck.

Chrysalis caught the halberd’s blade with her left hand, using her index and middle finger to deftly halt the weapon in place amid a shockwave of force from stopping such a swift and brutal blow instantly. Chrysalis didn’t even blink and went on to say, “These were all I could make at first. From my blood. They’re not great conversationalists. They just hunger. Oh, I can command them, and they obey, but without my guidance they just seek the nearest souls and... well, follow nature’s course.”

The air filled with a nightmarish chorus of pitifully high pitched howls that made the hairs of Cadence’s fur prick up on end with a primal herd animal fear of predators seeking flesh.

The sanguine Hollow drones began to charge through the streets of the city in a mad tide, sniffing out the nearest sources of life. Which happened to be Shining Armor and the Crystal Guard. The howls had given the guardponies more than enough warning and motivation to overcome their fear and get their act together, but many were still struggling to even breath properly due to Chrysalis’ reiatsu.

Fortunately Shining Armor was still Twilight’s brother, and a smart pony in his own right. With swift barked commands he started gathering his troops up in a defensive formation in the central square. From there, he erected a focused dome of protective magic, which went up in a sparkling and translucent shell of pink and purple energy around the square where the bulk of his forces and the gathered wounded were situated. When the horde of drones found the barrier, they went at it like feral beasts, clawing and scraping with horrendous violence that made even the protected guard ponies flinch back at the ferocity of the creatures.

For each strike, the barrier shimmered with ripples of force.

Shining Armor’s barrier was potent and could hold for a time, but for groups of guards caught elsewhere in the city, they were not so fortunate. The speed of the slavering Hollow drones was such that when they stampeded through the city streets, a few smaller groups of guards who'd been outside the central square suddenly found themselves surrounded by a flashing mass of claws and teeth. Some managed to fire off explosive crystal bolts from crossbows or erect small protective magic domes, but none of these guards were Shining Armor, and their reactively weaker barriers were shredded in moments.

In seconds the high pitched screams of ponies serenaded the air, and Shining Armor felt his heart both turn cold with pain at knowing he was losing soldiers under his command whilst at the same time a fresh fire of rage built within him.
As the sky remained clouded in a shroud of red, and reishi fell in bloody droplets from Chrysalis’ released power, and the cries of the dying echoed loudly through the streets, the Crystal Empire looked like a city trapped in an apocalyptic nightmare.

And to this sight, Chrysalis sighed with a fond contentment, the siren gem in her body pulsating as it absorbed power from the slain. As this Hollow drones were extensions of herself, anything they killed transferred power, along with a heady dose of magic, right into her. Of course regular ponies from the Crystal Guard weren't exactly a power boost for one already near the apex of Hollow might, but Chrysalis was just glad to see Grogar's replica was working as intended. Turning to Cadence, she said, “Don’t misunderstand. I love my genuine children dearly, but sometimes I do miss the early days before I knew a mother’s sense of responsibility, where I could let my hair down like this. You understand of course, don’t you Princess, being a mother yourself?”

Cadence had not hovered there in idle shock as Chrysalis had talked casually while her monsters sought to enact large-scale slaughter. Anger, bright and hot, filled the Princess’ veins and pushed back the chill of fear in a melting tide. Beneath the visor of her helmet, her eyes shone through bright like twin dots of neon blue.

Wires exploded from her wings in a wild storm of snapping motions. The crystal wires wrapped themselves around Chrysalis’ throat, limbs, and wings in a tight squeeze of molecular thin sharpness that Cadence applied crushing force to. In the same instant she yanked her halberd backwards, pulling it free of Chrysalis’ grasp, and hefted it above her in her magical levitation grip. The heart-shaped blades of the halberd shifted, extending outward and growing serrated edges as the blade heads began to spin, faster and faster until the weapon had effectively turned itself into a circular saw.

Cadence brought the spinning weapon down in a howling arc, all the while Chrysalis looked on, unperturbed.

There was a gust of wind amid a series of tearing sounds as Chrysalis twitched her right hand that held her strange double-bladed polearm. Cadence didn’t catch the weapon’s movement, she simply felt her crystal wires snapping in clean cuts as if they were no more than strings being brushed aside.

Then the spinnerets on Chrysalis’ body shuddered, and in a subtle glint of green the air abruptly filled with strands of jade colored spider-silk. The strands coated Cadence’s halberd and stopped it’s motions dead, while Cadence herself felt the strands of web snaking around her body in tight motions that bound her in place.

“I’m trying to have a conversation here. The least you could do is respond,” Chrysalis said with an strange tick in her lips as she dragged Cadence closer to her face, where the Espada flicked her tongue out, not quite touching Cadence’s face, “I’m going through a lot of trouble to make this moment special for us. Don’t spoil it by disappointing me.”

“Nobody cares about what you want you deranged lunatic!”

This stemmed from Pharynx, who had been airlifted in his minotaur form by Thorax, who bore his brother up with incredibly swift speed in his wyvern body. Hurling Pharynx like a living ballistic missile, Thorax threw his brother at Chrysalis in a fastball pitch. Pharynx hefted the crystal pillar he’d grabbed earlier and brought it down like a sledgehammer as he smashed into Chrysalis. The pillar broke in half, shattering into shards, whilst Pharynx’s air tackle met with a discharge of emerald power that shot from one of Chrysalis’ wasp wings. The lance of forking energy struck Pharynx head on, causing him to convulse, and then lose his minotaur form and revert to his changeling shape. Chrysalis caught his falling body with more strands of green spider silk that held his smoking form in a tight net.

“Boys, I’m having girl time with my friend now,” Chrysalis said in an admonishing tone, “I’d appreciate it if you went to your rooms.”

“They’re not your children,” Cadence stated, wondering if Chrysalis was truly losing her mind? Did this Resurreccion form somehow warp the woman’s perceptions even further than they already were? Either way, she took advantage of Chrysalis’ attention being elsewhere to pour magical power out of her horn and channeled it into the spider webs wrapping her up.

Crystals sprang through the webs, running along them to coat both her and then Chrysalis in a layer of sparkling blue. The crystals even covered some of the web leading to Pharynx, and Cadence then triggered the crystals to shatter, freeing her and Pharynx while adjusting the shattering on Chrysalis to instead turn into a blanket of cutting shards to try and dice the Arrancar’s flesh.

While Cadence was free, and Pharynx was caught by his brother as he fell, the alicorn was disappointed to see her crystal shards didn’t even manage to scratch Chrysalis’ hardened flesh. The power coursing through the Arrancar now was such that Cadence suspected that nothing in her arsenal of spells or weapons could do much to actually hurt Chrysalis. Even slowing the monster down was questionable now.

And with Shining Armor and his ponies surrounded by those monstrosities down below slowly cracking through the barrier of magic protecting the Empire’s brave but outnumbered troops, time was short to come up with any kind of way out of this nightmare. Her husband and his guardponies were fighting back, firing blasts of magic and crossbow bolts through his shield to tear into the drones outside Shining Armor's barrier, assisted by Redheart generating waves of freezing snow with her Zanpaktou, but any of the drones that were destroyed seemed to be quickly replaced by more than sprung from the column spikes of resin that Chrysalis had created.

“Pharynx! Talk to me!” Thorax was shouting to his brother, and Pharynx let out a long groan and cough.

“Ugh, could you keep it down, doofus? Head is still ringing like crazy.”

“Oh thank goodness,” Thorax breathed, and as he and Cadence flew to get some distance from Chrysalis, who watched them with almost casual curiosity as they did so, he said to Cadence, “Umm, new plan? Any plan?”

“I’m thinking.” Cadence replied simply, then pulled herself into a hovering halt alongside Thorax as Chrysalis was suddenly in front of them, tapping her hip with the fingers of her free hand.

“Think faster, Cadence dear,” Chrysalis said, pointing down with her weapon, “Your people are not going to last long.”

“I know that, but Shining Armor won’t go down that quickly and neither will those that fight alongside him,” Cadence shot back, but Chrysalis shook her head.

“I wasn’t speaking of your boytoy and his silly little soldiers. I was talking about your people. The helpless civilians you evacuated into underground shelters. You know, those closed off, inescapable little boxes that just so happen to be so very easy for my children to burrow into?”

“What?” Cadence said breathlessly, and with a burst of magical senses focused upon the ground. She knew where all of the shelters were, built several hundred feet below the city surface. Each shelter was well stocked with food, water, and air recycling magic to keep the civilians evacuated there safe in case of a day like this.

It had not ever truly occurred to Cadence that such measures might not provide the best security in case of an enemy that could readily burrow underground. She felt the tendrils of Chrysalis’ hardened resin spikes that she’d sent tunneling through the earth, and realized that almost each of the underground shelters was compromised by one of them. Right at that moment, she could sense the presence of more of Chrysalis’ horrid clone Hollows as they emerged from those underground spikes to burrow the last few meters towards the shelters.

“You’d better do something fast, otherwise consider the bloodbath,” Chrysalis said, “Thousands of helpless ponies trapped in neat little slaughter pens. Why, I imagine in their panic they’ll trample themselves to death as much as my ‘children’ will tear into them. What will you do, Cadence? I want to see it. How you shine while pushed to utter desperation. Burn your soul brighter for me.”

Cadence’s response was as immediate as it was blinding.

Heedless of the personal danger of drawing upon more of the Crystal Heart’s power, she called forth a bright line of power that pulsated upward from the crystal tower’s base all the way to it’s pointed apex. From there it burned across the air in a faucet stream of solid blue light. Cadence was there to catch it, her four wings of metallic edges extending like opening flower petals to receive the light in a bright array. Cadence could feel the magic, in too great an abundance for even her body to properly handle, scalding her within her armor, but she didn’t care. She just needed a second to focus the power through her wings and then into her horn.

It then all fired at once in one crystal blue lance of power straight into Chrysalis, briefly illuminating the red hellscape the city had become in a painted layer of sky blue light.

It was impossible to see exactly what effect the beam had on Chrysalis, but the Espada was carried in a straight and slightly downward curved line to impact with the ground about halfway through the city. Collateral damage to empty buildings was not on Cadence’s mind as she kept the beam’s power going as it sliced through city, buildings, and then out into the countryside for a few miles before ending in a flash and cylindrical detonation that ripped skyward for hundreds of meters.

Gasping in pain and barely holding herself in the air, Cadence let go of the magic and nearly lost consciousness. She felt Thorax’s warm, scaly wyvern back float up under her as the transformed changeling king gave her a platform to stand on using his own body.

“Yikes Cadence, did you, um, overdo it?” Thorax asked cautiously, “I mean, you don’t look so good. Your armor is, err, cracking and kinda sparking?”

It was true. As she looked at herself, Cadence realized the armor from her Relic was now cracked in multiple places, and unstable sparks of energy ran over her body like a partially broken magi-tech device close to exploding. She hadn’t outright killed herself by drawing too much power from the Crystal Heart, but she’d definitely pushed her limit just then.

But she shook that thought off, gasping for more breath as she said, “No time to worry about me! We have to help the civilians!”

“Hey, relax!” Pharynx said, finally extricating himself from his brother’s protective talons, after which he flew up to join Cadence. She gave him a disbelieving look.

“Relax? You heard what she said! Those things are about to slaughter my people!”

“Did you forget?” Pharynx said, and Thorax looked over at her as well, his wyvern features managing a reassuring smile.

“We told Chrysalis already, the Crystal Empire is under changeling protection.”

----------

Within the well lit space of a vast underground bunker, hundreds of crystal ponies remained huddled close to friends and family as each stallion, mare, and foal fervently hoped for the safety and success of both their beloved Princess and their gallant countryponies fighting in the Crystal Guard. The stone walls were well lit with crystal lanterns that kept the bunkers bathed in bright light, and rows of sleeping cots and stacked crates of foodstuffs ensured each pony would be able to survive in this area for weeks. Each bunker was largely open, with side rooms for water storage, additional sleeping space, and emergency exits both in terms of escape tunnels and teleportation circles. Additional magic crystals running through the walls and ceiling acted as air purifiers and recyclers, so suffocation was not an issue.

What was an issue was that not long after numerous tremors had shaken the ponies within these bunkers, many of them noticed cracks running up and down the walls of their sanctuary. Not long after this, hardened spikes of blood red resin punctured through the stone walls, emerging like the claws of some gigantic beast.

Fearful ponies looked on in confusion, then outright fear as honeycomb-like portions of the spikes melted away in globs of crimson goo, and from within emerged spindly creatures covered in terrible, bladed limbs and bearing hissing faces filled with fangs.

As dozens of these monsters plopped into the bunker, ponies scrambled backwards, some ready to stampede towards emergency exits, even if no “all clear” signal had been given to indicate the surface was safe.

However, before panic could set in, crystal ponies emerged from the fearful crowd to form a line between their fellows and the terrible beasts stalking towards them. Confusion turned to surprise on many faces as some of these ponies were covered in emerald fire and took on the colorful forms of changelings loyal to King Thorax, bearing such bright and cheerful colorations that contrasted sharply with the obsidian creatures approaching them.

“Stay calm everypony!” many a changeling reassured the citizens of the Crystal Empire, “We won’t let any harm come to you, our neighbors and friends.”

In preparation to defend the Empire, Thorax had asked for volunteers to take up positions amid the citizenry, suspecting that any attack on the city might require protectors to stay close to the civilian population. His accurate guess had just ensured that every single bunker, when faced with Chrysalis’ Hollow drones, now had a defensive force of changelings present.

Despite their friendly and bright colored appearance, these changelings were still the same individuals who had survived many years under the rule of Equestria’s Chrysalis. While the vast majority took to their new lifestyle under King Thorax with a great deal of joy and open mindedness, they had not lost the skills of harsh survival and combat learned while under the rule of their former queen.

In a billowing line of emerald balls of fire, scores of changelings transformed themselves. Now facing Chrysalis’ drones was a charging formation of savage beasts ranging all across the spectrum of nature. Burly bears as big as wagons, or swift loping predatory cats, to mandible clacking scorpions and hulking spiders, a veritable bestiary horde met with the Hollow drones in a brutal clash of flaying.

The crystal ponies could only look on in mute awe as their previously unknown changeling allies tore into the Hollows, limbs and blood flying about like toy blocks kicked around by an irate toddler. While the fight was not one-sided, the Hollow drones retaliating with equal ferocious and single minded violence, the momentum was on the changeling’s side.

This was only added to when, emboldened by the sight of the changelings fighting for them, the most physically fit and courageous of the crystal ponies began to grab whatever bludgeoning objects they could, some tearing apart bed frames to make clubs, and joined the fray for survival.

----------

Cadence absorbed Thorax’s explanation with heavy breaths, then bowed her head in thanks, “I owe you and yours, Thorax. I pray it’ll be enough to keep our people safe, but whatever happens today, know I’ll never forget this.”

She cracked a weak smile, “Still, you could’ve told me earlier.”

“Eheh, was kinda a last minute thing,” Thorax said with clear embarrassment coloring his wyvern scales in a purple hue, “Pharynx’s idea, in fact.”

“Really?” Cadence said, casting a questioning look the brother’s way, to which Pharynx shrugged.

“What? Made sense to me, and didn’t think you needed being bothered about it when we weren’t even sure if an attack was coming,” he said, then turned a deep glower towards the city below, where there were still hundreds of drones assaulting the defensive barriers surrounding the Crystal Guard forces, “Enough chatter. We’d best get down there and start clearing out those mooks.”

Cadence fully agreed, wanting nothing more than to go to her husband’s side and protect him, along with all the other ponies still fighting to defend the city. But she knew better. She hadn’t, for an instant, let her focus slip nor her senses falter, and she knew that Chrysalis was nowhere near beaten.

“We can’t. She’s coming,” she said, eyes locked on the distant pillar of smoke where her charged up beam of magic had detonated well outside the city limits. The blast had created a crater several kilometers wide, as strong an attack as Cadence had ever personally put out, but she felt Chrysalis there. The Espada’s spiritual energy didn’t feel lessened. If anything it felt like it was still growing stronger.

Cadence saw a wave of air pressure billow out from the smoking crater, dispersing the smoke instantly as a streaking twin trail of red and green light rocketed towards the city. Chrysalis flew not towards them, but rather at an upward angle above the city, and Cadence heard the woman’s rich laughter scraping the air in an unnaturally loud echo.

“Well done, Cadence dear. I actually felt that last hit! Too bad it seems you needed to draw out so much of that crystal bauble’s energy to do it. If you could pull dance moves like that at will, I’d be ecstatic. Still, color me impressed! Impressed enough that I’m quite tempted to take you home with me. In fact...”

Her flight halted at a point about fifty or so meters above the crystal tower itself, and an intense stream of green energy from her wasp wings and ruby aura from her moth wings shimmered in the air around her. Soon everything, land and air both, were vibrating with her power.

“How about I just take the whole city, tower, Heart, Princess, and all?”

The rumbling intensified, and Thorax let out a blurted, “W-what is she doing?”

Then there was a cracking noise like a thousand avalanches all at once, and Cadence looked in blinking astonishment as she saw the landscape around the city start to split. For about a distance of several hundred meters in an uneven oval pattern the land was being torn open by arcs of red and green power that leapt through the landscape like giant fingers. After a few moments, to Cadence’s outright shock, she saw the land start to rise.

An unbelievable cacophony of tearing rock could be heard as the Crystal Empire and a good chunk of surrounding landscape was lifted into the sky in a grasp of interlocking spirit energy emanating from Chrysalis. Millions upon millions of tons of rock were hefted skyward through the shear force of directed spiritual power, rising slowly but steadily until the whole city dangled several hundred feet up like a flying island of rock. Fortunately the underground bunkers were contained deep enough in the rock that they were not in immediate danger, but Cadence immediately understood that if Chrysalis dropped the city, the resulting impact would likely crush everypony, be they in a bunker or on the surface.

“You’re insane!” Cadence shouted at Chrysalis, gathering magical power around her as she made a bee-line straight for the smiling Arrancar.

“By most definitions, yes,” Chrysalis agreed, unperturbed by Cadence’s headlong charge, “But I’ve never been one to let others opinions get me down. Positive self-image is very important to mental health.”

Ignoring Chrysalis’ ramblings, Cadence started to shift her course to perform a series of sharp angled maneuvers as she increased her speed, leaving numerous curved streaks of light in her path. She wanted to throw Chrysalis off, if only for a moment. The fact that her opponent was all but unscathed told Cadence that this wasn’t going to be won by brute force. At this juncture it didn’t matter how hard Cadence hit Chrysalis. Not if she didn’t find a weak point.

Her only thought was that she could see but one possible spot of weakness on Chrysalis’ body that might count... if only she could land a telling blow.

Her darting evasive pattern took her in a vaulting arc above Chrysalis, where Cadence sent out a new wave of crystal wires from her wings. Rather than attack Chrysalis directly with them, she spread the wires in a series of crossing patterns around the Espada. Cadence then channeled magic through the wires, a very simple spell that she cranked up to the highest possible magnitude while closing her eyes for a second.

Light coursed through the wires, acting like strings of blinding phosphorus. The resulting explosion of light drenched the sky and would have likely made anyone looking directly at it see nothing but white for at least a few seconds if not minutes.

To her satisfaction, Cadence heard Chrysalis let out a brief and perturbed noise, and hoping that meant the Arrancar had also been momentarily blinded, Cadence homed in on Chrysalis’ energy and cast forth her halberd, which she’d kept floating close to her until that point.

“Oh, that is a nice try,” Chrysalis said as she flung out a hand to catch the halberd, blinking her eyes to get her vision back. Only when she did see what she’d caught she saw it was indeed Cadence’s halberd... but just the shaft.

The crystal axe head of the halberd was no longer attached to the shaft, which Cadence had hurled specifically predicting that Chrysalis would catch it effortlessly just as she had before.

Meanwhile, under Cadence’s powerful telekinetic magic, the axe head, which had remained in it’s spinning saw configuration, came flying in from the side, having also been cloaked by a basic invisibility and silence spell that would have rendered it difficult to detect until the last second. Those spells had to fall away because Cadence was charging the axe head now with a powerful burst of raw magic energy that made the spinning blade crackle with a storm of teal light just as it cut across it’s target.

That target being Chrysalis’ Hollow hole and the siren gem hovering inside.

Chrysalis let out her first genuine grunt of discomfort the entire fight as her flash sparked upon the spinning crystal edge of the axe head. Her Hierro, much stronger in this form, prevented what would have been a bisecting blow on any normal creature of flesh and turned it into a shallow wound, but it was a wound upon a rather unique portion of a Hollow’s anatomy.

“Grrrgh!” Chrysalis pulled back from the sawing blade and with a fresh light of fury in her eyes brought her own double bladed polearm up and down. Black and green energy pulsed from her own weapon as she slammed it upon the crystal halberd’s axe head with punishing force, generating a burst of force that clapped the sky in a dome-like wave. There was a crunching sound as the halberd’s head shattered into crackling crystal chunks, it’s energy dispersed.

Breathing in a ragged breath, Chrysalis placed a hand to the shallow wound that left a cut across the edges of the Hollow hole in her stomach, and Cadence noted that the wound didn’t immediately close like all the others had. It still did start to heal, but the healing rate was much slower.

Of course she didn’t have much time to absorb that fact as Chrysalis’ body burned with a fresh aura of smoking green and red light that warped the air around her, and the Espada’s face showed a look of terrifying anger. No longer joking, casual, or friendly, the acidic look in Chrysalis’ eyes matched her voice, “Cadence... dear, that was uncalled for.”

Cadence didn’t see Chrysalis move. She just felt the rush of hot pain exploded through her as savage lines were cut across her body, ripping her armor like aluminum foil. The rain of attacks was delivered by both Chrysalis’ dual fan-axe and the curved mantis blades on her legs, ripping gouges off of Cadence’s armor as the Princess was unceremoniously air juggled like a flying pink pinball across the sky. This viscous combo ended with Chrysalis appearing behind the helplessly tumbling Cadence and turning with a massive backhand blow that cracked the sky with another shockwave and sent Cadence hurtling back the other way until she plummeted straight into the crystal tower.

Breaking through the wall in a burst of crystal shards, Cadence hit the floor and skidded until she slammed through a dining room table and crashed over the side of a small set of stairs to land in a bloody heap against the wall to what was probably a kitchen. This looked like one of the guard dining rooms in the palace tower, not that Cadence had much time to take in the surroundings as she tried to rise on shaking hooves, bleeding from a dozen rather severe injuries, her head ringing and her stomach nauseous.

Even her helmet was cracked, portions of the visor torn away so that Cadence’s left eye was exposed.

Before she could even get one or two breaths, she felt a voice of warning in her head. Anteros?

Shield, girl! Now!

She didn’t question the instinct, and threw up a magical barrier with what strength she had left.

It was just in time to protect her, at least in part, as the destructive force of a dark green Cero beam ripped through the crystal tower around her. The magical shield barely held, and turned to shards of magic light even as Cadence saw most of the floor she was on and the one above her had been torn to melting bits of crystal and broken shards by the blast.

“Now, allow me to explain something...”

Chrysalis floated down into the giant hole she’d punctured in the crystal tower, checking her stomach once again to make sure the wound Cadence had made was now fully closed, “I’m a tolerant woman, especially towards my friends. But let’s just say that trying to injure me there, that’s a ‘no-no’. Even Tirek knows better than that. Normally such an action would be grounds for an immediate eviscerating.”

Cadence tried to produce a new set of crystal wires to attack, hoping against hope she might be able to target that hole in Chrysalis’ stomach again, but before she’d even made a gesture she felt Chrysalis’ fist impacting her chest. Cadence was thrown into the wall, and then she felt thick strands of crimson webbing splattering around her until her whole body, wings and wall, were wrapped up tight against the wall. She then felt Chrysalis’ fingers dig around her neck, the Arrancar having unnaturally extended her arm, as if the joints from the elbow down were more like a growing spider’s leg than a human’s.

“Luckily for you, today has been such a nice day, I’m feeling forgiving. You didn’t know, after all, did you Cadence?” Chrysalis’ hand started to squeeze on Cadence’s throat, cutting off air, as the Espada’s eyes glowed with a crazed light, “Did you? Nobody will take away my children, understand? Not you, not Zero Division, not Tirek, not the Quincy, NO ONE! I’ll kill every last thing in this world and any other before I let that happen. Hah... but like I said, you didn’t know.”

Chrysalis released Cadence’s throat and the alicorn took in a gasp of breath. She was trying to conjure up enough magic to generate some crystals to possibly break the webs holding her in place, but her magic reserves were running low. Being inside the tower itself she could possibly pull in some more power from the Crystal Heart, but she’d put her body under so much strain already, she wasn’t sure she’d survive doing that again. And even if she did, Chrysalis had proven able to withstand such a shot normally.

The only chance seemed to lay in empowering herself for one last attack at the only spot Chrysalis appeared to be vulnerable, but the Espada would be wary now and Cadence wasn’t sure she’d be able to create another opening.

Retracting her arm back to normal size, Chrysalis approached Cadence with slow, deliberate steps, but just then from the hole outside, Thorax and Pharynx came leaping in. Thorax had returned to his normal form like his brother had, but both now once again bore the weaponry shaped from their own body with Pharynx’s arm scythes and Thorax’s barbed blade and shield.

“Get away from her!” Thorax demanded, but Chrysalis just rolled her eyes at the pair.

“I don’t appreciate the constant interruptions, boys. I’ve already satiated my curiosity about the two of you, and I’m more interested in Cadence for now.”

“Why?” Thorax asked, and although Pharynx gave his brother an odd look, Thorax just made a ‘shush’ gesture back. “I don’t understand why you’re so focused on Princess Cadence.”

It wasn’t that Thorax was all that genuinely curious. He was just able to tell that Cadence needed time, so he was buying it by what he hoped was playing to this Chrysalis’ desire to talk about herself. Every second the Arrancar talked was a second for the tables to be turned. It looked like his guess was accurate, for Chrysalis, while not taking her eyes off Cadence, did halt her menacing advance on the trapped Princess and licked her lips.

“It’s not complicated, my little Thorax. She claimed the title Princess of Love. I have a great deal of respect for the nature and power inherent in love. Out of this world’s Princesses, she interests me the most. I wanted to see how well she lived up to her chosen title, and if her soul was worth my time. As it turns out, it very much is. Which is why I decided I’d take her.”

“Take her...? For what?” Thorax prodded, trying not to sound too eager or nervous as he hoped to keep her talking.

“As a friend, obviously,” Chrysalis said, still somehow managing to take such an innocent phrase and twist it into something ominous. She then moved in a flicker of Sonido, suddenly right next to Cadence as she reached up and grasped the alicorn’s horn. Cadence suddenly felt a spike of pain through her skull as Chrysalis channeled spiritual energy into her horn, disrupting the magic that Cadence had been building up there.

Thorax and Pharynx moved to interfere, but then Chrysalis held the edge of her blade out in a sudden sweeping motion. A pure pressure wave of force demolished the floor in front of her and sent a blast out that knocked both Thorax and Pharynx off their hooves. Neither fell out of the hole in the tower’s wall, each using their individual weapons to plant in the floor and hold on, but it did keep them back for a moment as Chrysalis spoke.

“Now Cadence, no more magic, or I’ll break your horn off. As much fun as I’ve had, I think this has gone on long enough. Come along quietly and I won’t drop your city, but set it down nice and gently. I don’t really care about your Empire or your citizens, or even that hunk of a husband. I’m just here for you. Your soul.”

“W-what are you... planning?” Cadence said between pained breaths. She couldn’t channel magic without Chrysalis sensing it and likely following through on her threat to break Cadence’s horn, but she suspected Chrysalis didn’t know a unicorn or alicorn could still channel magic even without a horn. She was prepared to sacrifice herself, if that was what it took.

“People with souls like yours are rare and precious,” Chrysalis said simply, “Gaia Everfree, Luna, Starlight Glimmer, Adagio Dazzle... oh I meet so few who truly interest me, Cadence. So I go out of my way to play with them. My precious friends, whose hatred I cherish so. You, too, Cadence. I’ll take you home with me, gouge your beautiful soul until it has a hole in it just like mine. Then you’ll be Hollow, like me. But so much more, too. Beyond a Hollow, with all that magic and love curdled to hatred and power. Oh, I’m shivering just thinking about it!”

The thought of it made Cadence want to retch, filling her with oily slick fear. She couldn’t even imagine being what this Chrysalis was, or something even remotely resembling it. To be forcibly transformed into such a creature was a horrifying prospect that left her numb as she said in scathing words, “I’d never let that happen. I’d destroy myself, first.”

“Such a dramatic declaration. Such utter loathing in your voice. This is why I like you, Cadence. Broken and beaten bloody, you still burn with such passion. Too many souls lay limp and practically dead already, like little bland worms crawling through what they call ‘life’.”

Chrysalis laid a hand once more over her Hollow hole, where the red markings pulsated with an organic heartbeat around the place where her womb would be, “Once I’m complete, I can awaken both worlds from their dreary slumber. Passionate hatred, love, and desire will alight inside every empty soul to ignite an eternal orgy of life. A fitting new world for my children to thrive in, if they so choose. And my friends... once they learn to appreciate the gift I’m offering.

Her hand then shot out and rammed itself right into Cadence, who let out a choked gasp. However, no blood spilled out. In fact no wound was visible at all on Cadence’s web-wrapped body. Instead it was as if Chrysalis’ hand had sunk into the alicorn’s body like an ethereal specter, passing through flesh without ripping or tearing.

Which was exactly what had happened. Chrysalis was a Hollow, and was only physical out of concentration of her reishi particles and an active will to physically interact with matter. But as a spirit being she could also pass through solid matter at will, and in this case she had no interest in touching Cadence’s body, but her soul. Cadence felt Chrysalis’ hand grasping something deep within her core, felt the Hollow’s cold grasp on her very essence like frost-covered razors.

“Let’s just yank this soul of yours out of a body you’re not going to need anymore,” Chrysalis said as she started to pull back with her hand. Cadence literally felt her lifeforce slipping from her flesh, yet with a spark of unbreaking determination she struggled back. She focused her magic within herself, trying to reverse the pull, and for a second managed to forestall Chrysalis' grasp.

“Oh don’t be stubborn,” Chrysalis said, “You’ll just make it more painful for yourself, and there will be plenty of time for that later once you’re settled into a new Hollow spirit form.”

As this was happening, Thorax and Pharynx had both regained their footing from Chrysalis’ earlier blast and were preparing to charge in, but just then they both felt a presence pass between them with a flash of motion. Suddenly a new voice spoke, swift and with command.

“Bakudo Number Seventy Nine; Kuyo Shibari.” (Nine Sun Bind)

In a quick set of popping bursts of static noise, eight black spheres of spirit energy emerged in a circular formation around Chrysalis, the spheres outlined in steady auras of deep violet. A ninth sphere appeared last, right in the center of Chrysalis’ chest, which in turn outlined her body in a similar aura of binding violet light. She grunted, more in irritation than anything else, and although she largely ceased moving, she still managed to turn her head back towards the one who cast the Kido.

“Now what do you think you’re doing, Reigai? I’m rather in the middle of something, and get rather cross at interruptions.”

Standing between Thorax and Pharynx, having just Flash Stepped there, whilst holding her Zanpaktou out still in it’s released Shikai state of a flat rectangular blade bearing four diamond mirrors, stood Zecora. The Reigai wore a flat look of displeasure on her gray features, meeting Chrysalis’ angered eyes without blinking.

“You have gone well outside the bounds outlined by Starlight Glimmer for this operation, Chrysalis,” Zecora said, to which Chrysalis let out a short laugh.

“Nooooo, really!? Me? Go out of bounds!? Of Glim’s ‘outline’? Perish the thought. Do you have any further piercing observations to share?”

Zecora kept the hand that had cast her binding Kido up and aimed at Chrysalis, “You were expressly forbidden from unnecessary killing-”

“Technically I've barely killed anyone. My children cut down a few guards, but really this has been a mild day for me by comparison. I mean, not that I haven’t been trying to make this a proper ravaging of a major city, but credit where it’s due my new friend Cadence here has been rather good at protecting her citizens.”

“Monster,” Cadence breathed, and Chrysalis’ cheeks reddened.

“Public flattery? You do like me!”

“Enough,” Zecora snapped, advancing a step, “We’re finished with what we came here to do, which was not to indulge your appetite for mayhem. I have all the information on the Crystal Heart that we need.”

“Although not the artifact itself, I note,” Chrysalis said, to which Zecora’s eyes gained a harder glint in them.

“I’ve determined removing the genuine article would violate Starlight Gimmer’s instructions, as it is too vital a component of this nation’s function to be removed. The information my Zanpaktou has gleaned in examining it is sufficient for our needs and hence this operation is complete. Remove your hand from the Princess and withdraw with me at once.”

“Ah, but the problem with that is that I don’t want to, my bossy Reigai,” Chrysalis replied coolly, “I came here for Cadence, not Starlight Glimmer’s flimsy ‘operation’. Why should I deny myself my prize when she’s right here, literally in my grasp? Especially when all that’s left defending her are two weaker versions of my sons, and a cheap copy of one of the less impressive Captains of Soul Society?”

In a sudden gust, reiatsu started to hum within Zeora and clash in the air with Chrysalis’ own exceedingly potent aura. While it was clear that there was still a large gulf between the two, Chrysalis raised a brow upon noticing it wasn’t quite as vast a difference as she would have expected. Zecora’s lips twitched in a small smile.

“Starlight Glimmer gifted us Reigai with life and reiatsu, and not all of us were made equal. Starswirl was made weaker than his original due to his... unpredictable nature. Platinum’s was given equal power to her true self, perhaps to encourage cooperation between the two. I, on the other hand, was given greater reserves of power than my original, enhanced by Starlight’s own reiatsu that she poured into me. Even so, I’m aware my power is not enough to defeat you, Chrysalis, Second Espada, but I assure you that you’ve never faced Captain Zecora’s Bankai, let alone said Bankai empowered beyond its original state. You may well kill me, but I will still delay you long enough for, say, this world’s Celestia or Luna to arrive and make things complicated for you. If you force it, that is exactly what I will do, because Starlight Glimmer tasked me with ensuring you did not do too much damage to this nation. I regret I was unable to do more until this moment. Now release the Princess, set this city back to the ground where it belongs, and we shall withdraw from this place. Otherwise I will activate my Bankai here and now.”

Chrysalis made a stretching motion, and the dark spheres of Kido binding her shuddered. Like balloons popping one by one each sphere snapped apart as the Espada flexed her smothering aura of devilishly violent reiatsu. Zecora tensed, raising her Zanpaktou, but Chrysalis just laughed and pulled her hand free of Cadence’s body. She held the hand up, as if to show she hadn’t yanked the alicorn’s soul out, yet there was a trace of glittering blue light around her fist, which Chrysalis put to her lips and licked like someone taking frosting off a spoon.

“Relax, oh uptight Reigai. I only took a little taste of her soul...” Chrysalis said, and then leaned over to put her lips close to Cadence’s dazed head, whispering in the Princess’ ears with a flick of her tongue, “I could kill the good Captain and finish what we’ve started here, but she has reminded me that it’s better to let these things marinate. I give you the lives of your husband and people and the safety of your homeland, just because you gave me such a good time. But don’t forget, I’ve put my mark on you, and you and I will finish this another time soon. I do hope you look forward to it.”

Chrysalis patted Cadence’s cheek and started to walk away, but Cadence managed to clear her throat and say, “Wait... before you go...”

“Hmm?” Chrysalis looked over her shoulder at the mare, and Cadence had raised her head, fixing Chrysalis with the one eye she had that was exposed past her cracked helmet visor.

“I just want you to know... next time, I won’t let you walk away. Next time, that’s the day you end. I promise.”

The smile on Chrysalis’ face, spread wide from ear to ear, could not have been more genuine as she bowed her head in a tilt of acknowledgment to the Princess. “Good. Nurture that feeling. Let that rancor and hate make you even more beautiful, for that promised day. I do so hope you get to meet my friend Gaia. You two will have so much to talk about. Ah, the bliss of facing both of you at the same time...”

Chrysalis shuddered through her whole body, as if just thinking about the idea of Cadence and Gaia Everfree fighting her together was pleasurable thought all it’s own. She then walked on, sweeping past Zecora, Thorax, and Pharynx as if they weren’t even there any longer.

Pharynx looked like he was about to spit nails, his jaw set in a hard line of disgruntlement as he watched her walk past, after which he looked to his brother, “Are we seriously just going to let her walk away?”

Looking no more pleased with the situation than Pharynx did, but with a much more reserved and practical look of control on his face, Thorax shook his head and said in a quieter voice, “Let’s just count ourselves lucky she is, Pharynx.”

“Oh, by all means, feel free to take a final stab at me if you like,” said Chrysalis as she reached the edge of the hole she’d blown out of the crystal tower. She raised her arms and the flying island that the Crystal Empire had become began to lower slowly through the air, “Of course I might just lose my concentration and drop the city. Don’t suppose you boys have the strength to catch it if I do, hmm?’

Pharynx growled, and Thorax sighed and looked away. Both were aware there was nothing either of them could do to attack her. Cadence was the only one with even a remote chance, and that only if she drew upon the Crystal Heart’s full power, which would likely result in her own death. As long as Chrysalis was actually leaving of her own accord none of them were willing to risk the safety of the whole nation just to take one last swing at the Arrancar menace that had ravaged the city.

Zecora looked miserable past the attempt at a professional mask, her voice level but conveying a wealth of regret as she too turned to move towards the edge of the hole, although she paused to look back at the two changeling brothers and the still webbed up Cadence, “I...”

The Regai hesitated, finally bowing her head in shame, “I am sorry.”

With those inadequate words Zecora went silent once more and joined Chrysalis as the Espada finished lowering the Crystal Empire. For a wonder, Chrysalis was fairly gentle in setting several million tons of earth and city back down into the general location she’d torn it from through shear force of reiatsu. The landing still shook the whole city and created a clamorous crash of rock to assault everyone’s ears. Yet the city was now back in place, albeit still in shambles with many buildings ruined outright or at least partially damaged by the horrific battle.

In the city proper Shining Armor and his guardponies looked on in shocked silence as not only did their city cease flying through the sky and get set back to solid earth, but the frightful Hollow drones that had nearly broken through their magical barriers all ceased their attacks as once and then simply... melted. In disgusting fashion each mindless drone, as if by some unseen command, raised mouths to the sky and let out warbling howls as their bodies grew slick and translucent, then every single one dissolved into puddles of red ichor that itself soon evaporated. Even the giant spikes of crimson resent that had risen thorough the city began to crumble as Chrysalis withdrew her power back into herself.

Chrysalis remained in her transformed state, however, as if to taunt her foes before her departure, although once the drones were gone and the city back in place all she did was look over at Cadence one final time and blow the alicorn a kiss before she vanished with the speed of a Sonido.

Zecora, silent and grim, vanished with her using a Flash Step. She would appear only briefly above the city’s main square where Redheart had remained near Shining Armor, and upon a single knowing look shared between the two Reigai, Redheart herself gave Shining Armor an apologetic final look before joining her ‘Captain’ and disappearing via a Flash Step.

And just like that, the battle was over, the Crystal Empire “safe”. At least for that day. But none who remained had any delusion of victory. They had survived. Persevered under overwhelming circumstances. Yet as Cadence was torn free of the webs by Thorax’s and Pharynx’s helping hooves, the Princess had a look of haunted fierceness in her eyes. Something was changed inside her, and she couldn’t be certain at all if it was simply the anger and hate now boiling within, or if Chrysalis had truly left some kind of spiritual mark upon her when she’d tried to remove Cadence’s soul.

Regardless, she knew one thing for certain; she and this Chrysalis would meet again.

And it would be the end of one of them.

Author's Notes:

With this it seems the immediate danger to Equestria has passed. The Crystal Empire is safe if not unscathed, the attack on Canterlot repelled, Starlight Glimmer seemingly out of action for the time being, with Equestria's defenders mostly still standing. Yet Reigai Starswirl has escaped with some of Canterlot Library's forbidden books, Reigai Zecora has detailed information on the Crystal Heart, and Discord himself has been captured. A pyrrhic victory for our good guys, perhaps.

Of course the issue of Charybdis remains, and with Starlight Glimmer missing in action who knows what Chrysalis might do whilst Twilight and her friends are still busy dealing with the undersea menace? We enter the final act of the Equestrian arc catching up the timeline next episode.

Thank you everyone for reading and as ever I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 159: Destination Abyss

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Episode 159: Destination Abyss

There were times that Celestia found herself detesting the overt manner in which rooms within the royal palace of Canterlot were decorated to be as cheerfully gaudy as possible. Pearl white walls, combined with royal purple and blue carpets, and excessively ornate tapestries, lit bright via golden chandeliers all worked together to under normal circumstances give most chambers in the palace a sense of grandeur. Right now the atmosphere just didn’t match the mood at the meeting table, a circular affair of polished marble surrounded by comfortably high backed chairs of gold painted wood and velvet purple cushions.

Seated around the table was Celestia herself, with Luna sitting close at hoof to her left. Her sister wore a shadowed expression, but it was nothing compared to the look on the mare seated across from her and Celestia. Princess Cadence still bore some bandaging that covered the worst of her wounds suffered during the raid upon the Crystal Empire, but despite it she sat with back straight and head held high, despite a look like stone in her eyes that Celestia wasn’t used to seeing in the usually warm and loving mare.

Hearing the details of what had occurred in the Crystal Empire had left Celestia feeling as if she’d swallowed a cold piece of iron. She’d known the likelihood of an attack upon Equestria or it’s allies was very high while she would be occupied with Starlight Glimmer, and had done all she could to place defenses where she felt it best. Logically she was aware there had been little more she could have done, but a sense of responsibility still weighed down her shoulders as she’d listened to Cadence’s recounting of the battle.

And it wasn’t just Cadence’s tale that had been told that day. There were two other mares at the table.

One was Radiant Hope, who could not have looked more nervous to be seated at the same table as Equestria’s alicorn Princesses. Celestia suspected that the young mare still harbored a great deal of guilt over the events that had led to Sombra’s return and eventual confrontation with his Umbral heritage. While that incident had ended well enough, it could have gone horribly askew had things gone a little differently, and Radiant tried and failed to hide her fidgeting as she’d explained the skirmish with one of these new “Reigai” that had appeared at the city library.

Disturbing enough that Starlight had been able to create these clones of Soul Reapers from Earth, but for one of them to be of Starswirl left a bitter taste in Celestia’s mouth. It seemed her mentor truly couldn’t rest in peace, and she wondered not for the first or even dozenth time that day what the shadowy being that called itself Stygian might be doing inside that prison of his. Celestia had never known all the details of what Starswirl and his friends had faced that day so long ago, and she wished he hadn’t been so tight lipped about it, even if he was likely doing it to protect Celestia and Luna. He would have known full well that the sisters would have tried to help him and the Pillars, had they been told of the Pillars’ intention to sacrifice themselves to seal away whatever dark entity had infected one of their own.

Finally, the last mare at the table wasn’t technically there at all, but rather was utilizing a long distance projection spell combined with a crystal ball enchanted for the purpose to create a flickering image of herself at the table.

Twilight Sparkle, perhaps, looked most worried of all, and had not taken the news of the attack on the Crystal Empire well at all. Even now, amid the silence all the mares briefly shared once the story was tone, was swiftly broken by Twilight’s careful but concern laden voice.

“Cadence, are you sure you’re alright? If that... that monster did something to you when she had her claws on your soul, we can’t leave anything to chance.”

Cadence offered her sister-in-law a phantom of a smile, but one that did at least still carry a flicker of warmth to it, “I can’t say I’m sure of anything right now, other than the need to ensure that what happened yesterday never happens again. I’ve been checked briefly by medical experts in the Empire, but Celestia has already offered to examine me personally alongside Luna, and I can’t think of any two more qualified to do so.”

“Rest assured we will do our utmost to ensure that Cadence is in good health both physically and metaphysically,” Luna told Twilight, “Now more than ever we all must be ready to fight together against the forces arrayed against us.”

“At the very least I did discover that for all of her power, Chrysalis is not truly invincible,” Cadence said, although her eyes grew pained at the memories of her battle, “Her regenerative powers appeared to briefly weaken when I struck at the hole in her body, although I can’t be sure if that was because of the hole itself, the siren gem she bore inside it, or the strange red markings surrounding the hole. Whatever the case, my attacking that spot truly set her off.”

Cadence shuddered then, “If only I’d been able to get in one more good hit. One more dose of power from the Crystal Heart-”

“May well have killed you,” Celestia said with an uncharacteristically harsh bluntness that rapidly gave way to relief and warmth, “I’m just as glad you did not make such a final sacrifice, Cadence, not even to destroy such a monster. Now more than ever your people need their Princess.”

“I... I should have come back,” Twilight said, her voice conveying a strain of guilt so strong it nearly punched Celestia in the face, “Pinkie’s senses went off and told us something was wrong, but I didn’t think the Treasury could make the journey fast enough. But I could have teleported us-”

“No, Twilight,” Celestia said plainly, “You could not have even known specifically where the danger was most dire. You said that Pinkie’s warning concerned me, not Cadence. Believe me when I tell you that had you teleported into the middle of my confrontation with Starlight Glimmer, things would have become only more chaotic, especially given the mental state I was in as a result of Eos’ tampering with her Relic. With you and your friends having unlocked Astra and her companions’ Relics, Eos may have interpreted you as a target and gone after you instead. I would not have wanted that.”

“And if you’d ended up in the Crystal Empire I can’t even say for certain if it would have been enough,” Cadence said quietly, “Perhaps all of you might have been able to fight this Hollow version of Chrysalis off, but it might have also cost any of you your lives. I’m... I’m glad enough you didn’t come, Twilight. I wouldn’t have wanted you to have to face that kind of horror.”

“Rather, it sounds from your own tale that you’ve found horror enough in the form of these sahuagin and their ruler, Charybdis,” Luna spoke with leaden gravity, leaning forward on the table with her hooves propped up to hold her chin, “It sounds as if she’s trying to unlock the power of this Eye of the Sea, which by your description sounds like a Relic all it’s own, of Domare.”

Twilight still looked shaken and worried over Cadence, but her projected image flickered as she gave a quick nod, “Yes. Wavecrest thought the Eye of the Sea would be in the ‘Treasury’ of Aqualania, but as it turns out the Treasury is actually a ship, quite the extraordinary one. It does have a vault with many artifacts in it, some of which my friends and I discovered to be Relics, and there may be more that we’re unaware of. But the Eye doesn’t seem to be among them. Which means its possible Charybdis already has the Relic, but just doesn’t have the means to activate it, not being an Inheritor herself.”

“Um, n-not to interrupt, but is it possible the reason Charybdis is so focused on siren sisters is because they might be Inheritors?” suggested Radiant Hope, and Twilight looked to the more with a brief smile of acknowledgment.

“We’ve floated the same hypothesis over here. Aria and Sonata can’t really confirm anything to us, but given both have started experiencing headaches over the past twenty four hours definitely seems to point towards them being Inheritors. Huh... now that I think about it, Trixie has complained about headaches as well...”

“Those ‘headaches’ would be the magic of the Relics calling out to their Inheritors, now that the seals have been broken on so many of them,” Celestia said, “Each broken seal weakens the others, so at this juncture almost every Inheritor in the world ought to be feeling the pressure of their Relic’s call. When I decided to break the seal on my own Relic, I knew it’d cause such a tipping point so that there would be no return. Other Inheritors, all over the world, will be drawn to seek their Relics out, and from there we will need to deal with a new age in which the power of the alicorns of old will return to our world.”

“Will anycreature with a Relic become an alicorn?” Radiant Hope asked, and shrunk a bit at Celestia’s look, but Celestia merely shook her head.

“Not every creature. Ponies with Relics may in time gain the physical traits of alicorns, but even that isn’t a guarantee.”

“I’m starting to sift through Astra’s memories,” Twilight said, sounding a tad tired as she rubbed at her head, “There’s a lot in here that I haven’t really been able to assimilate yet, but I’ve gotten at least some notion of how the Inheritor system was supposed to work. Becoming an alicorn still requires a certain powerful alignment with the spirit of Harmony, which is meant to regulate the magic of alicorns. So if you have a Relic, you’re a step closer to that state, but it’s not a situation where use of a Relic equates to becoming an alicorn, it just increases the likelihood. We may also start to get more natural born alicorns like Flurry Heart, but not necessarily a lot.”

“Putting that aside we must now decide on our next course of action,” Celestia intoned with no lack of gravitas, “We cannot expect the Hollow Chrysalis to remain inactive for long, nor do I suspect we’ve seen the last of Starlight Glimmer.”

“Do you fear this ‘Stygian’ might gain her cooperation?” asked Luna.

“Even if he does not, he is an entity of incredible power and could force Starlight Glimmer to give up her power and use it for himself,” Celestia said, “And its not impossible she might try to do the same.”

“But what can we do about that?” asked Cadence, frowning deeply as she ran a hoof over a still somewhat ragged mane, “If Stygian is as powerful as you say he is, nothing short of the Elements of Harmony would be enough to stop him, right?”

“Or Discord,” Celestia said, and then she looked to Radiant Hope, “Has there been no word yet from Sombra?”

“N-not yet,” Radiant replied, and Celestia’s heart went out to the mare as she heard the pure worry filling Radiant’s voice, “Wherever he’s tracked that Reigai too, he’s either still tracking him, or...”

“Then we can only trust that Sombra will return to us as soon as he’s discovered something of use. If he can track the enemy to their stronghold, then there’s a chance we can break Discord free of their grasp,” Celestia said, “Short of that, our best chance to dealing with Stygian is for myself and Luna to both become more stable in the use of our Relics. The combined power of Eos and Iah was not a force to be so readily ignored when the two sisters fought as one, rather than against each other.”

“Is Eos still inside your mind, sister?” Luna said gently, filled with a note of understanding that perhaps only Luna could have truly held, given her own experience, “Even after the Elements of Harmony banished the specter of ‘Nightmare Moon’, I still often felt an imprint of Iah’s rage combined with my own wounded ego stirring in my thoughts.”

Celestia reached over with a wing to brush Luna’s own wing in a comforting gesture, “Oh, the powermonger’s voice remains, but I have confidence that between the both of us I can excise her personality while still absorbing her memories and magic. Eos had laid a crafty trap, but I think she underestimated the resolve of we Royal Sisters. We are not her and her sibling, even with our own spats.”

“It’s so strange,” Cadence said, looking at the pair, “Anteros... he wasn’t like that at all. His mind, his memories, they feel almost like a second skin. Even after a day, I don’t feel any hint of those memories trying to take me over. Even Twilight had some trouble with Astra’s memories at first, right?”

“I did,” Twilight said, “But my friends seemed to absorb their respective Relics’ memories pretty easily, like with you and Anteros. I think it really does have to do with the compatibility between the alicorn and the Inheritor, although I can’t claim to understand the specifics. Maybe as I explore Astra’s memory more I’ll get a better understanding of it... including whatever dark force this Stygian is.”

“Wait, what does that have to do with it?” asked Radiant Hope.

“I’m not sure, but Celestia’s description of Stygian’s power just sparks some kind of familiarity in Astra’s memories,” Twilight said, “I think it’s connected to the Spirit of Harmony that the ancient alicorns created. I just don’t know what.”

“Regardless, while we await word from Sombra we must shore up our defenses,” Luna said, “We’ll send as much relief as possible to help rebuild the Crystal Empire, and I also suggest redeploying the dragons from Ponyville to the Empire as well.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” said Cadence, “Ponyville is important in it’s own way, and, well, I did send Sunburst and my daughter there specifically because it had the dragons protecting it. Besides, Spike is an excellent babysitter.”

“An understandable concern, but I was thinking that my sister and I would use our old castle in Everfree as our training ground,” Luna said, eyeing Cadence in particular, “Yours as well.”

“Mine?” Cadence said, blinking.

“You’ve awakened your Relic, and Celestia and I must fully learn to control our own. The three of us will undergo intensive training at our old castle. That’s close enough to Ponyville that any attack there will draw down all three of us upon it, and I fully intend to ensure the town has sufficient protective spells placed upon it that the three of us will have plenty of early warning in case of attack. Meanwhile I believe we can trust King Thorax and Dragon Lord Ember to ensure that the Crystal Empire is not only rebuilt back to pristine condition, but that any second attack there meets with the stiffest of resistance,” Luna said, and Celestia nodded her agreement, as she and Luna had both discussed this idea before the meeting had even started.

“It is for the best, Cadence,” Celestia said, “Our Relics give us great power to draw upon, but we must still work to realize their full potential through continued use. Together, that is what we shall do. I only regret that Twilight cannot join us, but Twilight, do take this into consideration yourself as you continue your quest against Charybdis. Work with your friends, including the ones who have not yet found their Relics, to better unlock the new powers within you. Remember, all of you, that it is not just the Hollow Chrysalis or Starlight Glimmer, or even Stygian who are our only threats. Sunset Shimmer and her noble friends face a deadly war still raging on Earth, one that may well have puppeteers behind it even more powerful and dangerous than what we now face. I fear a day may come soon when all of us, in Equestrian and on Earth, will need all the strength we can muster to stand together against what’s to come.”

----------

All where light touched, so too did shadows reach. It was like an endless series of river tributaries that spread through every corner of the world, and for one like Sombra who could become a part of that unending system, it was no simple feat to shake his pursuit.

It certainly helped that the Reigai of Starswirl had not departed Canterlot in any great hurry, allowing Sombra ample time to track the man’s passage as he shifted from shadow to shadow along Starwirl’s route. There had been little preamble once Starswirl had taken a turn down an alleyway and nonchalantly withdrawn a scroll from his robes. Sombra did not recognize the language of the symbols inked upon the scroll, but he’d been keen minded enough to surmise that Starswirl was about to use it to make an escape from the city.

Sombra had merged with Starswirl’s own shadow in that moment, doing all he could to cloak his presence and remain undetected as Starswirl had pressed the symbol upon the scroll. All perception of the world shifted, and soon Sombra found himself with Starswirl standing within an expansive chamber. Still merged with Starswirl’s shadow, Sombra remained silent and hidden as he watched events unfold around him.

From then on he’d spent the day doing little other than observe and learn what he could of these interdimensional interlopers. He’d watched as one by one those who’d been sent out to battle had been retrieved via the use of those scrolls to singal and pinpoint the targets for teleportation. Sombra was somewhat daunted by the view of this “Crossgate” that surged with powerful energies unlike any he was familiar with, and observed as it transported others to the chamber. He didn’t recognize any of them, save Queen Chrysalis whom he was familiar with from his ill-conceived attempt at “revenge” against the Crystal Empire. She looked quite a bit more down on her luck than she’d even been back then, and Sombra had been struck by how unnerved the changeling queen seemed, especially concerning the fate of this Starlight Glimmer.

“What in the world was that imbecile thinking!?” Chrysalis had ranted, pacing about with her wings buzzing, her disheveled mane flopping about her head as she shook it, “Remaining behind like that was pure madness!”

A blue colored unicorn mare that Sombra gathered was named Trixie stood beside an imposing stallion seemingly made out of solid black iron, with a mane of misty gray and black. Sombra was a tad jealous of the stallion’s armor, honestly.

“Don’t insult her like that!” Trixie said, “She sent us ahead to protect us.”

“I didn’t ask her to protect me,” Chrysalis snapped past clenched teeth, “And that’s not the point! What good is saving us if she ends up captured or killed, hm!? Answer me that, you love-sick puppy! Sure, she saved us, but guess what? There’s nocreature left to save her, is there!?”

“Could both of you keep it down, please?” Starswirl said, yawning as he kept flipping through one of the books he’d taken from the library, “Or if you’re going to insist on screeching pointlessly at one another, at least wait until I’ve left the room.”

“As much as I dislike agreeing with him, I would prefer that you both keep calm,” said one of two near identical unicorn mares of a pale coated nature, neither of whom Sombra recognized but he did note that one of the mares had a distinct set of burn scars over her body, while her identical companion was pristine. The scarred mare eyed both Trixie and Chrysalis with a firm gaze, almost projecting a physical aura of solidarity and self-control.

“We do not know for sure what’s become of Starlight Glimmer, and as soon as we can I shall conduct a search of the battle site at Ponehenge to determine what I can. In the meantime panic or argument serves no purpose. Now, I must go attend to Firefly’s condition, now that I have a means to heal her wounds. I would like both of you to come with me so that your own wounds can be tended to, especially you, Chrysalis. Do you not even notice your own condition?”

As if slapped by cold water, Chrysalis blinked and looked down at herself. She was indeed rather battered from what Sombra could see, and the changeling sagged suddenly as if abruptly realizing her own injury and exhaustion.

“Yes... I suppose I’ll... do that, Platinum.” Chrysalis muttered, still wearing a look of shell shock as she took a few deep breaths and stopped pacing like a caged panther.

Platinum had then looked to the two youngsters who had remained near the Crossgate’s controls, neither of whom Sombra knew but he could tell at least one of them, the young female, was not a normal pony.

“Ocellus, Pipsqueak, continue monitoring the situation. If you can find Starlight’s signature, bring her here at once. Otherwise remain vigilant for Zecora and the Espada’s signals. Assuming all has gone according to plan, they should be nearing finished in the Crystal Empire.”

Sombra didn’t like the sound of that, but there was little he could do about it. He had no idea, precisely, where he was or what these individuals had done in attacking other areas of the world. Just by listening he gathered Celestia’s confrontation with Starlight had gone at least a little in Celestia’s favor, but what any of the others had done, or what was happening in the Crystal Empire, he could only guess at. However, the next thing Platinum, or rather the other Platinum, whom Sombra guessed was a Reigai, said caught his immediate attention.

“All that aside, did we at least manage to nab that Discord fellow? Wasn’t he the big threat in all of this we wanted to take off the board?”

With an entirely too cheerful energy did the young filly that Sombra believed was named Ocellus raised a jet black hoof and waved it about, “Sure did. Not Mom and Miss Starlight’s plan worked like presto, even if Miss Starlight is kinda MIA because of it. I’ve got him sitting tight in a special spot Miss Starlight prepared for him, so he’s not going anywhere.”

“Ugh, your referral to me as ‘Not Mom’ aside, while I’m glad to know something went right today I don’t think we have time to worry about Discord when without Starlight Glimmer we’re lacking a rather key element in entire reason this malcontent collection of misfits has even formed!” pointed out Chrysalis with a hefty stomp of a hoof, but the burned Platinum, whom Sombra imagined was the real one whilst the unscarred version was likely a Reigai, went up to Chrysalis. Platinum raised a hoof as if to place it on the changeling’s withers, but then appeared to think better of the action and instead just spoke in a level voice while holding Chrysalis’ gaze.

“We will attend to Starlight Glimmer’s situation in due course, but not by giving in to panic, and not without our full strength mustered to the task. Why don’t you join me in the medical lab? I shall see to Firefly and your wounds both.”

“I... ugh, very well, I’ll allow it,” Chrysalis said under her breath, all but stomping out of the room. Platinum watched her go, then glanced back at Pipsqueak and Ocellus.

“Please inform me when you receive word from Zecora and our other Chrysalis. And... don’t mention anything about Starlight when they arrive. Allow me to handle that.”

“Actually, is it alright if I come with you to the medical lab?” asked Pipsqueak, the colt’s words seeming to startle Platinum somewhat as he turned to look at her with earnest brown eyes. “I would like to be present when Miss Firefly awakens.”

“That’s fine,” Platinum said, but with a voice that caused Sombra to look at her in curiosity. Why did Pipsqueak’s simple request make this mare respond in such a shocked manner? He could see her eyes seeming to hold back a shimmer of emotions, and her tone had been almost fragile as she’d responded.

Pipsqueak nodded at her, then turned to Ocellus, “You’ll be okay by yourself?”

“Pfft, yeah, duh,” said Ocellus, “I can handle teleporting mom and Cora back, and don’t worry, I get it. I won’t say anything to mom to let slip that Miss Starlight’s in trouble. Heh, bet you’re all worried she’s gonna go all kill crazy if she thinks the leash is off, right?”

“I’d like to see her try,” said the Reigai Platinum, but the real Platinum gave her copy a harsh look.

“Do not let your cockiness get us all killed. Together, as a whole, we might still restrain the Second Espada, but if we let our guard down she could potentially kill us piecemeal. I do not know how she will respond to Starlight being... indisposed. I’d rather ensure all of us are in the same room and on the same page when she finds out.”

Having said that, she eyed Ocellus and Pipsqueak with an unsteady look of mistrust, or rather, Ocellus the mistrust, Pipsqueak an uneasy concern. Sombra felt as if there had to be quite a bit of subtext occurring here from information he wasn’t privy too, but he did make note of how unstable this whole group of mismatched individuals seemed to be. This was hardly a united front, which gave him some measure of hope that they could be more readily beaten. He knew from personal experience how poorly forged alliances melted in the face of unity and harmony.

The Reigai of Starswirl and Platinum remained in this main chamber with Ocellus, while the real Platinum joined Chrysalis and was followed by Pipsqueak in departing. Sombra followed them, at first marveling at the size of the chamber as it swiftly expanded beyond the area containing the Crossgate and became a cavernous space crossed by a suspended bridge of steel. He saw various strange things, perhaps most notably a humongous tree of white wood bearing unhealthy looking fruit shaped like skulls. Other odd objects he could only assume were part of various projects filled other spaces in the chamber, none of which he could discern the function of.

Not far past that main chamber was a series of branching corridors, one of which led to a mechanical lift that Platinum, Chrysalis, and Pipsqueak used to move up several floors in this vast underground complex. Sombra tailed them the entire way, remaining melded with the shadows.

These people had somehow managed to capture Discord of all beings, a feat Sombra could only find equal parts impressive and horrifying. Even he at his peak would not have wanted to challenge the Lord of Chaos openly. How had Starlight Glimmer and Chrysalis pulled it off? Regardless of the how, Sombra knew now his best course of action would be to try and free Discord in some manner. However he didn’t know where the draconequus was being held. Ocellus had not given a location. He’d just have to be patient and bide his time, gather what information he could, and wait for the right moment to make his move.

----------

She felt like she was waking up after a full weekend bender, hitting every bar in a ten mile radius. Her mouth was dry as mud, her limbs felt as solid as jelly, and her head positively throbbed with the percussion of a full on heavy metal band. Firefly coughed several times as she opened her eyes, near closing them again against the glare of the light above her.

“She’s waking up!” said an excited young voice she recognized as belonging to Pipsqueak. That alone helped give Firefly the strength to open her eyes again and blink against the glaring blur until they adjusted to her surroundings.

A gentle glow of blue Kido energy hovered around her in a spherical haze, produced by the hooves of Platinum herself as the unicorn sat on her haunches next to Firefly’s bed. Firefly licked her lips, tasting a strange minty aftertaste in her mouth, and noticed an empty vial sitting on a medical table next to the bed she was laying in. Platinum’s focused look that was fixated on the bandaged wound on Firefly’s side now flicked over to the bedridden mare’s face, and the once ice-queen’s expression cracked with a look of genuine relief that seemed to nearly bring the mare to tears.

“How are you feeling?” Platinum asked with a cautiously quiet voice.

“Like I’ve been sitting in bed near death for a week,” Firefly replied in a raspy voice that she tried to make sound lighthearted, “Uh, gonna guess that’s not too far off from the truth?”

“It’s been longer than a week, but close enough,” said Platinum, and then Pipsqueak raised himself up and propped his hooves on the bed, his own happiness all but beaming off the lad as he smiled at her.

“Mother actually went to Canterlot itself and dueled a Princess to get the potion that helped heal you!” he said, and Firefly could see the way his words all but froze Platinum with a combination of embarrassment and shocked relief. Was that the first time he’d even called her ‘mother’ again since they’d arrived in Equestria? Firefly didn’t know the details, but she was flooded with a sense of warmth and a knowing happiness for Platinum, having had her own issues with her Rainbow Dash.

“Dueled a Princess, huh? How’d that go, exactly?” she asked while experimentally trying to sit up. Her body still felt weak, an ached in every conceivable place, but she found she could sit up without too much difficulty. Platinum was either getting better at healing Kido, or whatever ‘potion’ she had acquired was really something else.

“Not as well as I would have liked,” Platinum replied, a bit of her usual haughtiness returning, if only as a shadow of its former pride, “Princess Luna is a truly skilled and powerful foe. Doubtful I could have fought her to a draw without assistance, and I suspect she may have been holding back a trump card or two. Regardless, circumstances allowed me to convince her to provide the elixir required to finally heal your cursed wound.”

“Well that was nice of her,” Firefly said, experimentally stretching her limbs and wings, then she caught sight of someone hanging around the medical lab’s entrance, shuffling on her hooves as if unsure of even being there. At first Firefly thought it was the Second Espada, but upon a closer look she noticed that this Chrysalis didn’t wear the Espada’s customary white dress, didn’t carry a Zanpaktou, nor was her horn the bone white of a Hollow’s but rather a natural onyx black that matched the rest of her carapace.

“Holy crap, is that the Equestrian Chrysalis?” she asked, and the changeling in question frowned and gave a simple snort as she took a step into the room.

“I would hope to not be mistaken for my psychotic counterpart, at least. Do not mind me. I’m merely here to have a few scrapes treated once Platinum is done with you.”

“Heh, nice to meet you too,” Firefly said with a smirk, looking back at Platinum, “Looks like Starlight’s grown the family since I was out. Where’s she at? Something big must’ve gone down if she’s not here for my big awakening.”

The way Platinum’s entire expression turned as shaded as an approaching fog bank gave Firefly a strong enough impression that she was almost afraid to ask further, but if things had gone sideways then she needed to know. “I’m going to guess by that look that I’m not going to like what I’m about to hear.”

“I was not present to witness everything myself, but I'll tell you what I know, and Chrysalis can fill in the rest,” Platinum said, and Chrysalis in turn gained an annoyed curl to her snout as she approached and buzzed her wings in a huffy manner.

“I shall deign to explain what I may, but if you’re going to heal me you may as well do so as we talk so as to not waste any of our precious time.”

Firefly sat back and kept herself as patient as she could manage as she got the whole story from Platinum and Chrysalis, only pausing long enough for Pipsqueak to go grab her some water, which she drank as eagerly as she might have done so with cider from Sweet Cider’s own farm. It took a bit of time, but eventually Firefly was left to digest everything that had occurred while she’d been unconscious as the others watched her. Platinum had been using her healing Kido upon Chrysalis, and was nearly done with the changeling queen’s own mostly superficial wounds.

“Mph, I suppose I should thank you,” Chrysalis said in such a low and mumbling tone that it was hard to even be sure she said it, but Platinum didn’t seem to mind as she bowed her head in acknowledgment.

“Allies needn’t thank each other for such basic things, but you are welcome regardless.”

“Just... don’t go expecting it as a matter of course,” Chrysalis fumbled over the words before giving a haughty huff and sitting up from where she’d been sitting, “Now what precisely is our next course of action, hmm?”

At the question, Firefly quite suddenly and with great agility threw the covers off her bed. She reached out with a hoof to snap up her pair of flight goggles that had been sitting on the bed stand next to her and firmly set them upon her brow. She then leaped out of bed with a forward flip that landed her near the medical laboratory's exit. The pegasus mare groaned as she stretched her wings and legs, then like a cat limbering its whole body she arched herself with an audible series of cracks and pops across her spine.

“Aaaah, that’s better! I’ll tell you what our next action is, Chryssy-”

“Chryssy? Really?”

“-First, we’re going to go make sure Hollow You knows the score and doesn’t go murder happy. Once that’s squared away we’re going to keep our eyes on the prize. Gain powerful magic, weaponize the everloving hell outta it, then prep the Queen’s Key and Crossgate to crash Zero Division's party in the Soul Palace.”

“But without Starlight Glimmer and her Hogyoku is that course of action not missing its key player?” asked Platinum, and Firefly shot back a cocksure, heated grin at her and the others in the room.

“Only for now. I know my girl Starlight. She never does anything without a plan in mind, and she wouldn’t have leaped headfirst into that shadow prison without having a damn good idea of what she was doing,” Firefly said with confidence, although deep within she did have a reserved kernel of doubt.

But even if that doubt proved true, that Starlight truly was lost to them, Firefly still knew what she had to do. Zero Division still had to go down, and if it wasn’t going to be with Starlight, then so be it. Starlight Glimmer had already ensured there’d be another to take her place, and Firefly could only hope Sunset Shimmer, her daughter, and the rest of that gang would be up to the task.

----------

Over ten thousand feet in the air, the wind was swift and cool across the mighty and shining hull of the Treasury. The adaptable underwater vessel now cut through cloud and wind currents alike with the same agility and speed it would slice through water and wave. Great unfurled wings that looked like majestic fins had extended from the sides of the vessel, thick spokes of enchanted bronze filling out aerial sails of deep blue cloth. The engines upon the back of the ship had retracted their underwater propellers and extended in their place similar fin sails arranged in a vertical formation. Magical energy crackling blue and pure surged amid the sails and generated the force to propel the ship skyward, while numerous small crystal notes along the underbelly of the hull helped generate a current of magic to help keep the massively heavy ship aloft as it flew.

According to Twilight’s calculations the Treasury was fully capable of maintaining flight operations for a period of at least four days before needing to reconfigure back to water operations for recharging. The more she delved into the marvelous vessel’s design and systems the more she felt impressed with the Sequestrian civilization’s engineering and magical progress. Or at least the progress it had made before Aqualania fell, and Seaquestria as a whole became a shell of what it was. Granted in many ways Equestria had advanced just as far or further, especially in the advancement of raw magical study. In terms of Magi-Tech, Twilight could see some ways in which Seaquestria had surpassed her homeland, while in other ways they had not. It seemed to her that Equestrian focus on agriculture and industry had yield efficiency, as opposed to Seaqeustria’s focus on warfare yielding power.

The Treasury was most certainly meant to be a weapon of war, and Twilight was simply glad she and her friends could put it to good use as opposed to it having served it’s originally intended purpose as Princess Scylla’s personal warship in a campaign of conquest.

Although for a warship, it was remarkably comfortable and luxurious to travel in. While the internal structure still had qualities that were constant reminders that it was a seapony ship, the builders had considered amenities for when the Treasury wasn’t underwater, and hence also filled with water. Most quarters had beds that were quite comfortable, and were rather roomy as well. Heating and lighting extended to every chamber, and the kitchen was extremely well appointed, although even with preservative magic the food contained within was questionable in how safe it was to eat.

Not that such minor details was something that slowed Pinkie Pie down when it came to cooking, and fortunately Captain Celano had shared some of her own airship’s provisions before they had parted ways with Twilight’s group.

Leave it to Pinkie Pie to even make airship rations and centuries old preserved algae into an appetizing meal. Twilight ate with everypony seated around the galley’s central most table. Pinkie Pie had served steaming bowls of soup and bread to all seated, then vanished to go deliver trays to Seaspray and Tempest Shadow, who remained on the bridge to guide the ship and keep a lookout for danger.

“Gotta give it ta Pinkie, weren’t too sure she’d make any o’ that canned algae stuff edible, but...” Applejack took a big slurp from her bowl, licking her lips, “Seems like she pulled off a miracle. What’d ya’ll reckon she put in here ta give it this spicy kick?”

“Beats me, but I ain’t complaining,” Rainbow Dash said after a light burp, “Just glad she’s got a magic hoof when it comes to food.”

“If any of us get sick off of this stuff, I’m going to remember first of all you crazy ponies thought it was a good idea to eat that canned crap,” Aria mumbled, although she ate as readily as the rest of them, while Sonata utterly devoured her own bowl with happy swishes of her siren tail.

“Mmmm, what’re you so worried about, Aria? This stuff is delicious!”

“Would’ve been better if we’d set down to do some fishing,” Aria said with a small snort, but Twilight shook her head at the siren.

“As I told you, I think it’s too much of a risk to approach the north seas by water. Even setting down briefly might give Charybdis and the sahuagin an opening to attack us.”

“So what?” Aria replied in her usual, curt tone, “We’re going to need to fight them anyway once we get all the way north. Might as well be doing it with some actual meat in our stomachs. I am sooo tired of eating plant matter! These canines aren’t for show, you know?” She pointed a hoof at her teeth, and the prominent fangs within. “Can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m actually missing being on monkey planet. At least there was chicken nuggets.”

“Aawwwww, nuggies...” Sonata drooled, then shook herself and went back to inhaling her soup.

“I’m going to guess you two are still feeling those headaches?” asked Fluttershy in a pointed yet still soft manner, “Did the medicine I gave you not help?”

Aria’s agitated manner subsided slightly as she rubbed at her head with a hoof, “A little bit. Weirdest freakin’ headache I’ve ever had. Never fully goes away, and feels like it moves around in my head. Kinda pisses me off. This whole Inheritor biz looks cool when you get the damn super powers, but it’s a pain in the butt when it’s just drilling a nail into my skull. Yo, Twilight, you sure me and Sonata’s Relic whatevers aren’t on the ship?”

“If they were, I can’t imagine you and Sonata couldn’t have found them by now. The weapons you two grabbed before clearly are not the objects you’d need, otherwise you’d be getting a stronger direct reaction from them,” Twilight said, referring to Aria’s dagger and Sonata’s crossbow, “And you’ve both gone through the vault again and felt no compulsion to take anything else. So wherever your Relics are, I think we can rule out the Treasury.”

“Maybe they don’t work ‘cause Daggie ain’t here?” said Sonata, which gained her several wondering looks, and Rarity, who was seated closest to the sirens on that side of the table, spoke up.

“That’s an interesting thought Miss Sonata. Are you suggesting that the Relics of you three sisters are connected in a way that would require all three to be together?”

“I dunno,” Sonata said with a shrug, “But me, Aria, and Daggie have always done everything together since forever. Don’t see why this Inheritor stuff would be any different. I mean, you guys did your big zap bang boom together too, right?”

“Huh, whad’ya know, the gal’s got a point,” said Applejack, “Don’t rightly reckon our own Relics would’ve popped off like they did without the whole crew together.”

“That’s silly,” cut in Trixie, who had barely touched her own soup and kept her hat shading her eyes as if the bright crystal lights burning across the top of the galley ceiling were agitating her own headache further, “Why would they do that?”

“Truthfully there’s still a lot we don’t know about Inheritors and Relics, Trixie,” Twilight pointed out, “I know Astra designed the ones she and her friends made to be different than the others to a degree, so I don’t see it as impossible that other groups of Relics might also have had slight changes made to their function, including ensuring they only activated as part of a group. It could be that some of the individuals investing their power into their Relics wanted their Inheritors to also be related as friends or family? I could theorize all day on it.”

“Can’t you just ask Astra yourself?” asked Trixie, “And while you’re at it ask her if she ever met a devilishly brilliant, beautiful, and talented sorcerous goddess who would be her ultimate rival (and superior) and where this no doubt prodigy of paragons might have hidden her Relic?”

Rainbow Dash tried to hide a snorting laugh amid her soup, which didn’t really end well for the pegasus staying dry, while Twilight just looked at Trixie with a patient if somewhat eyebrow twitching smile, “W-well asking Astra directly isn’t exactly simple. Her consciousness gets more integrating with my own each day, and I can’t just peruse her memories like picking a book off a library shelf. I’ve been experimenting, but it’s taking me time to work out exactly how to sift through all the information that got stuffed in my brain. My friends are all in the same boat.”

“Yes, it’s rather like having a series of dreams you only half remember,” Fluttershy said, rubbing her hooves uneasily, “I sometimes find myself just staring at nothing while some memory of Penthia flashes through my head.”

“It’s doubly weird when the memories are of being a dude,” Rainbow Dash said, wiping soup off her chest with a napkin, “Last time I tried to use the privy got real awkward, lemme tell you.”

“Please don’t,” said Rarity, “Some of us were also paired with male memories, but I need not be reminded of the fact. At any rate, Trixie, I take it Twilight will tell you the same as she’s told our siren friends. If you do indeed have a Relic somewhere, it is unlikely to be on this ship, otherwise you would have been compelled to pick it up by now.”

“Which is why I was asking if she could pick Astra’s memories for where it might be!” Trixie said, waving a hoof about, then grunted as she rubbed her forehead, “If Trixie must endure these irritating headaches, she wants to rightfully claim the power that will make the pain worth it. Oh, I can just imagine what magnificent magics I might command! I mean, I’m pretty amazing already, but you can never have too much of a good thing.”

“If I learn anything, either about your Relic or the sirens, rest assured I won’t keep it to myself,” Twilight said, then glanced over at the galley entrance as the doors opened.

In walked Flash Sentry, soon followed by Pinkie Pie, who in turn led in someone nopony present expected to see and drew all eyes in curiosity.

He looked rather gangly and unsteady walking rather than swimming through the water, and his bulbous white eyes flicked with secondary membranes as he shrunk back a bit both from the bright lights of the galley and all the stares coming his way. Ulgriv was not bound in any way, but Flash Sentry remained close and vigilant as the sahuagin was led into the galley with a smiling Pinkie Pie bouncing beside him. Twilight knew that Pinkie had visited their prisoner once or twice since they’d gotten underway, but hadn’t pressed the mare on just what she’d talked with Ulgriv about. Honestly she’d nearly forgotten they even had the fish man on board, as her own mind had been awash with thinking about what she’d learned from the meeting with the other Princesses, along with just focusing on planning her group’s next steps.

“What is he doing here?” said Wavecrest, the first the seapony had spoken up as Twilight and her friends had chatted. With the ship no longer filled with water, Wavecrest had adopted the shape of an apparent earth pony, but still always kept her magical staff close at hoof. Now she gazed with mistrust upon Ulgriv.

“Well after slinging soup up to the Admiral and Tempest McGrump I bounced down to engineering to give Starlight some too and realized I was out of bowls, but we still had a hungry fish to feed,” said Pinkie Pie, grabbing a clearly uncomfortable Ulgriv as she all but hauled him like a barrel towards the table, “So I went and got Ul to come on down for a friendly lunch chat! With Flash’s blessing, of course.”

“By that she means she pleaded with me until I couldn’t take it anymore and said yes,” Flash Sentry said with an apologetic shrug, “I figure as long as we’re alert, he can’t do too much harm. Still, sorry for not clearing it with you first, Twilight.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight said, then looked to Wavecrest, “He’s unarmed and there’s a lot of us. I don’t see any harm in him eating with us. Might give us a chance to learn more about his people and the place we’re going.”

“Hmph,” Wavecrest pushed her soup away and made to stand, then seemed to think better of it and remained seated as she folded her forelegs over her chest, “I don’t know that you could trust anything from a sahuagin’s lips, but I’d best remain to ensure he doesn’t try to do any harm.”

Ulgriv gave a gruff, gurgling noise from the back of his throat and spat on the table, “I did not ask to be brought here. The mad pink one is... physically stronger than she looks and gave me no choice but to halt my prayers to be dragged here to your soft kin table.”

“Trust us, buddy, I don’t know anycreature that can say ‘no’ to Pinkie once she’s decided you’re coming to a party,” Rainbow Dash said with a half chuckle, “Might as well pull up a seat and get something hot in you. Assuming you fish dudes dig soup?”

Ulgriv eyed the bowls hesitantly, but a rumble from his stomach indicated that as resistant as he was to being there, hunger did plenty to persuade all on its own. With a reluctant grunt he sat down awkwardly, while Pinkie Pie gleefully patted him on the back and went bouncing off into the kitchen to get him a fresh bowl. Meanwhile Flash Sentry took up a watchful post by the door, to which Twilight gave him a questioning look.

“Not hungry?” she asked.

“I’ll grab something later,” he said, “Still technically on duty.”

It was a little cute and endearing the way he took his job so seriously, so she didn’t fault him for it. Pinkie Pie returned with a bowl for Ulgriv and plopped down in the seat next to the sahuagin warrior as if the pair of them were old friends. Twilight was a tad worried for her friend, but while she sensed a great deal of tension inside Ulgriv, his hostility didn’t seem violent. If anything, picking up on what little she could of his body language, she got the sense that he was more afraid than hostile.

A few seconds of uneasy silence followed, but Pinkie Pie was swift to take a hammer to the ice as she said, “So, Ulggy, got any friends or family back home? What do sahuagin do for fun? Do you guys throw parties? I mean, other than the ‘invade cities’ kind?”

The sahuagin near choked on his soup, with a concerned Fluttershy reaching over to pat him on the back. His large fish eyes swiveled around the table before resting on Pinkie, “What kind of question is that?”

“Uhhh, a pretty normal kind,” Pinkie said, “I mean, Starlight has kept up the neato magic that lets you talk to us, so I figure we oughta make the best of it and get to know each other. Like me, I’ve got all my friends here, plus everypony back in Ponyville, and of course there’s my family back on the farm with Ma and Pa and my three sisters, Marble, Limestone, and Maud. Oh you’d like Maud! She’s a riot! Do you have brothers or sisters?”

“I...” Ulgriv looked about at the others as if asking for somepony to make Pinkie Pie stop, but Applejack was first to speak by leaning in towards him.

“Gotta admit, I’m kinda curious myself. Ain’t only met you sahuagin fer a bout o’ hoofticuffs, so ain’t like I’ve had a chance ta know what ya’ll are actually like when ya ain’t tryin’ ta stab me n’ mine.”

“It’s not like we want to force you to answer if you don’t want to,” said Fluttershy in a voice soft as wind chimes.

“Why not?” Ulgriv said sharply, “You did so before, with your surfacer magic.”

Fluttershy winced, but answered, “That was different, but I am sorry we had to do that. We needed to know things about the city back then, for our own safety. Now, we just want to talk.”

“This is foolish,” Ulgriv said, “We are enemies. I am a prisoner. You should kill me and have done with it. I’ll give you no information you can use against my kin unless you pry it from my mind by force, as you have already shown you can.”

“If we wanted to do that to you again, Ulgriv, we would have done so already,” Twilight pointed out, “I know I can’t expect you to trust us, but Pinkie Pie really is just trying to be friendly. I’ll be as truthful as I can with you, we are on our way to the Abyss. We’re very likely going to confront and do battle with Charybdis, and more of your people. But please understand that none of us want to hurt anycreature. Charybdis is doing things that will bring harm to not only my people, but many people outside Equestria. We don’t have any choice but to stop her. Yet despite that, I and my friends here don’t bear the sahuagin any real ill-will, so please, anything you can tell us to better understand your kin and their relationship with Charybdis might help us avert harm on all sides of this conflict.”

He at least took a few moments to consider her words, although Twilight wasn’t sure what he was thinking behind those eyes that never blinked. She did see him slowly raised a webbed hand to clasp an amulet around is neck that bore a sigil of an eye surrounded by eight tentacles in a spiral pattern. Ulgriv mouthed a few words under his breath before releasing the talisman.

“I don’t trust you, but I have seen the power you surfacers command. You bested warlord Morgawr, and even a great Terror Beast created by an anointed shaman of our Deep Mistress. I still believe with all my soul that you will break upon the fury of her waves, and I know my brethren one and all would give their blood gladly in her defense. Yet if a few words of mine might blunt your spears with compassion for my kin, I’ll give them.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said, “So, um, Pinkie Pie did ask a question I too was curious about. What kind of family structure do sahuagin have?”

Ulgriv glanced at Pinkie Pie and scratched at his head, “You said brothers and sisters? These are kin of the same spawning, yes?”

“Yuppers!” Pinkie chirped, then blinked, “At least I think so. What’s a ‘spawning’?”

Ulgriv tilted his head, “Do surface ponies not have a broodmother who spawns them?”

“Hoo boy,” Applejack said, “Guessin’ it ain’t quite like what we got, fella. How ‘bout ya just tell us ‘bout yer childhood, an’ we’ll parse it out from there.”

“Hmph, very well. I was spawned as part of the seventh clutch from Broodmother Tishlura of the Warrior Blood. There were forty eggs in that clutch, of which nineteen of us survived to meet our sires and be claimed for our pods.”

There were more than a few gasps, with Fluttershy covering her mouth with her hooves while Rarity openly blurted, “Nineteen... out of forty? W-why would so many children die?”

Ulgriv just looked at Rarity in confusion, “It is natural. Food is limited. The depths of the Abyss are harsh and cold. I was proud of my spawning. Nineteen is a good number. Others of weaker blood sometimes have less than ten reach the age of claiming.”

“That’s so horrible,” Fluttershy whispered, “I can’t imagine how it must have been to live through that.”

“I don’t get it either,” said Rainbow Dash, “Wouldn’t it make sense to just leave the Abyss if it sucks so hard?”

Ulgriv made a gurgling growl and nodded towards Wavecrest, “Ask your seapony. The Abyss is not our choice of home, but our prison.”

Wavecrest’s response was a hard stare right back at Ulgriv, “And before you seek sympathy perhaps tell these mares how many seapony’s have been killed by your kind over the generations? Even before we drove you into that place, when your kind had their chance at coexistence with the other races of the sea, the sahuagin were ever warlike and caused untold havoc across every ocean. And even now, when your race does leave your Abyss, it is not with envoys of peace or trade, but warbands that plunder and kill! So do not lay blame upon us for killing you right back and doing all we can to keep you in that dark place. It is no less than what is deserved.”

Ulgriv shook his head, “We fight because it is our right to seek retribution, and were our numbers greater we could break through your sentinels to lay claim to territory outside the Abyss. Your kind force us to do what we must, soft kin!”

“Wait, wait,” Twilight held up a hoof, sitting up slightly, “I need to understand something. The Abyss is inhospitable, clearly. And the sahuagin have not been able to settle elsewhere because of...?”

With a huff, Wavecrest made a gesture with her staff at the table. With a thick glow of green magical energy, a map was lit upon the table’s surface. It showed the northern seas, with the great continent bearing Equestria to the west, and another continent jutting downward from the east, where the Dragon Lands were. The northern section was covered in a crown of ice, and from there probed a series of dark cracks in the seabed, a series of vast trenches.

“The Abyss is a series of deep trenches that exist just below the surface south of the polar icecaps,” Wavecrest said, “Ages ago, the sahuagin were driven there by the seaponies of Seaquestria, with the help of other aquatic races. And while our own civilizations did dwindle in power, in those olden days the sahuagin were kept in check by a series of fortress outposts crewed by highly experienced warriors who ensured no warbands could rampage at will, nor any settlements could form outside of the Abyss’ trenches.”

A series of several dozen dots of magic light bloomed across the map, showing a network not unlike a fence that surrounded the Abyss.

“Alas,” Wavecrest said, “In our modern era, the fortresses have dwindled along with the fortunes of my own race. What once were dozens, now stand just three.”

The lights vanished one at a time, until three points of light remained, all in a small string on the southernmost point of the chain of fortresses.

“These last fortresses are called the Three Watchers, now, and are still garrisoned by the most aggressive and capable of seapony tribes. It is they who still keep the sahuagin from resettling elsewhere, and it is tribes like my own that still send supplies and the occasional volunteer recruit to keep the Three Watchers strong. However, warbands still slip by, and with magic objects such as that teleportation sphere we saw in Aqualania, the sauhaguin have other means to send their killers across the seas.”

“Hmph, you mean we have been blessed to have new ways to strike back at those who would keep us starving in the dark,” Ulgriv spat, “Yes your Three Watchers have ever been our bane, but our Deep Mistress has long assured us that one day they will fall, along with the rest of the seas.”

“Ulgriv,” Fluttershy said suddenly, “You grew up believing so much in Charybdis. Can you tell us about that? What is it like? What is she like, in your eyes?”

Twilight was a bit uncomfortable with that question, as her own feelings towards Charybdis were rather pointedly and severely negative, to say the least. Yet Fluttershy was asking an important question. The fervent faith the sahuagin had in their “Deep Mistress” was clearly a central element to their culture. It was worth knowing just how deep Charybdis had sunk her tentacles into these fish folk.

Ulgriv seemed to almost relax upon hearing the question, and he rested back in his heat, voice quieting.

“Our Deep Mistress, who’s kindness and wrath are both equal in their boundless nature, is one every sahuagin spawnling is told of from the very first moment we can understand words. Broodmother Tishlura sang countless prayer hymns to us as we struggled to survive in the spawn pools. Oh, how I drew strength from those prayers, even as my belly twisted from hunger. To know that She was watching over us, and that even if I were to die, she’d keep my soul safe from the clutch of oblivion. It was a comfort. Is a comfort. Every sahuagin knows that death is not our end. She saves us from it. Keeps our souls protected from the True Abyss that is death.”

“What do you mean by that?” asked Wavecrest, her hostility momentarily halted by a spark of curiosity, “She ‘keeps’ your souls?”

“That is the promise she gave us when she came to my people, long ago,” Ulgriv said, “She would grace us with strength, lead us to prosperity, and keep our souls in death so that we would not fade into the True Abyss. You grew pale hearing how many spawnlings died before reaching adulthood? Well, before our Deep Mistress, far fewer lived. Her magic grows food, makes parts of our home warmer, and she slew the monstrosities of the trenches that preyed upon us. The Abyss remains harsh, but not a death sentence for our race, all due to our Deep Mistress’ compassion.”

“And what, all ya gotta do in return is fight n’ die fer her, without question?” Applejack said, snout scrunching up, “Ain’t none o’ ya thought maybe that ya’ll were bein’ used?”

“I would not expect a surfacer to understand,” Ulgriv grunted.

“Hold on,” said Twilight, “When you said ‘True Abyss’, could you be more specific about what that entails?”

He looked at her as if she was missing something obvious, then said, “It is what awaits in death for those who have not the Deep Mistress’ grace. Emptiness. Oblivion. Only by her power are our souls preserved to be reborn.”

“...Where does she ‘keep’ your souls, exactly?”

“There is a place within the deepest trench of the Abyss,” Ulgriv began, but then clamped his mouth shut and shook his head fiercely, “No, it is not something I will speak of. None but the favored shamans and champions, chosen by Charybdis Herself, may enter that place. One such as I has never laid eyes upon it.”

“It’s okay, Ulgriv, we won’t force you,” said Fluttershy, who upon seeing Ulgriv’s increased discomfort turned a look towards Twilight, “Maybe that’s enough questions for today?”

“Yeah,” said Pinkie, “Lunch is near done and I think Ulgriv needs some fun to unwind. Hey, Ulggy, want to see the top deck while we’re flying? I bet you’d be the first sahuagin ever to check out the clouds from above them! Come on!”

“A-above!?” Ulgriv gave a startled cry as Pinkie Pie grabbed him, and proceeded to drag him off. Flash Sentry reluctantly followed them, giving Twilight a quick nod before going.

“Well that was... something,” said Rarity, “It sounds like Charybdis’ hold upon the sahuagin heavily revolves around this belief that she’s saving their souls.”

“It is not without some potential truth,” Wavecrest muttered unhappily, “Loath as I am to say such, Charybdis possesses great power over such unnatural magic. It may well be she does take the souls of those that die in her service.”

“Perhaps, but at the same time I feel as if it’s possible even Charybdis believes that she’s somehow ‘saving’ the sahuagin,” Twilight said in a disturbed tone, “Every word she’s said has been a twisted version of the truth, but it hasn’t been without truth, I think. If the magic she’s unlocked through her studies gives her some understanding of how the soul works, and how the Cycle of death functions, it wouldn’t be crazy to say she thinks preserving souls, even in the form of Wraiths, is better than allowing them to move through the Cycle. Especially if the Cycle is still not fully healed from the war of the ancient alicorns.”

“Ugh, this is all waaaaay too heavy for me,” Rainbow Dash said, hanging her head with a hefty sigh, “I just want to punch that nutty sea witch in the face, save the day, and go home. I wasn’t built to think about complicated stuff like souls, Cycles, and the ethics of generations’ worth of war.”

“Ahem,” spoke up Trixie, “It may not be the Silent yet Studious Trixie to put her two bits in after the fact, but it seems to me that the sahuagin are essentially dupes, even if Charybdis is sincere in trying to help them. But they’re very fanatical dupes, which means there’s very little chance of avoiding having to fight through them.”

“Hate to admit it, but it looks like you might be right, Trixie,” said Twilight, “Everything Ulgriv has told us leads me to think we can’t talk our way through this, even if my gut still wants to try.”

“A battle is likely inevitable, yes,” said Wavecrest, and she suddenly looked over at Aria and Sonata, “And for this battle I am considering whether or not it may be safer to leave the two of you with one of my tribes, perhaps even at the Three Watchers, before we delve into the Abyss itself.”

“Huhwhat?” said Aria, “Whoa, hold up! Why? That crazy undersea bitch has a piece of our sister’s soul! No way we’re sitting this out!”

“It is exactly because Charybdis has a piece of your kin’s soul that makes me think taking the two of you into the Abyss is a poor decision,” said Wavecrest, “I have been thinking about this since we departed Aqualania. Where is the Eye of the Sea? The more I think about it, the more likely it seems that Charybdis already has the Relic in her possession. Yet she cannot access it’s power. And it is clear she wanted the two of you. Sirens. A race older than almost every other aquatic species. Two Inheritors, and no doubt your sister is one as well.”

“So what?” said Aria.

Twilight was the one to answer that, as she’d been thinking along similar lines to Wavecrest, although not quite to the same conclusion, “It means it’s possible, even likely, that the three of you may be the intended Inheritors for the Eye of the Sea. Now I know we can’t confirm that, but it would explain why Charybdis wants the two of you. If she got a hold of your souls, then that would complete the set, so to speak. It may allow her to use her soul magic to somehow gain access to the Eye’s power. It would be risky to bring the two of you right to Charybdis’ lair, if that were the case.”

“Precisely,” Wavecrest said, but Twilight held up a wing to forestall the seapony.

“That being said, I do think we should take Aria and Sonata with us.”

“Why?” asked Wavecrest, not quite aggressively, but she did turn to face Twilight fully, “What possible advantage would that bring us?”

“First of all, there’s no guarantee they’d be safe in the Three Watchers,” Twilight said, “Charybdis could send a warband to try and abduct them, just like they were back at Mt. Aris, and we wouldn’t be around to stop it that time. Secondly, if we keep them close we can ensure they’re protected, especially considering my friends and I have the power of our own Relics to draw on. And thirdly, the potential to activate the Eye of the Sea might go both ways. Having Aria and Sonata there might allow us to steal back the Eye, and if we can obtain that piece of Adagio’s soul, then it’s possible Aria and Sonata could use the Eye themselves.”

“...And defeat Charybdis,” Wavecrest said, taking a hoof off her staff to rub her chin in thought, “I did not consider that option. A difficult prospect, given we do not know where Charybdis is keeping both the Eye and the part of Adagio’s soul she took, but it could work. Hmm, it shall be as you say then, Twilight Sparkle. It seems once more I will trust in your intuition.”

“Rarely goes wrong to bet on Twilight,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Well, let’s not celebrate yet,” Twilight said, “We’ve a daunting task ahead of us, and not much time to prepare for it. On that note, while Pinkie Pie has Ulgriv up on the top deck, and now that we’re all fed, perhaps we should all go up there?”

“Training?” asked Applejack, referring to the exercises and testing of their new Inheritor forms that Twilight had been speaking of having them all do.

“Training,” Twilight confirmed, “When we face Charybdis, it may well be the final confrontation of this quest we find ourselves upon, but Equestria itself remains in danger from other forces. When the time comes, I want all of us to be ready for it.”

Even as she said it, she still worried, as was her nature. She knew the challenges ahead of them were numerous, and that even after Charybdis was defeated there was the looming threat of Hollow Chrysalis and the rest of Starlight Glimmer’s group. And Twilight wasn’t about to dismiss the possibility that the human Starlight would return. Then, beyond all that, Twilight knew her dear friends from the human world were still dealing with battles of their own, battles that Twilight hoped she and her own friends would soon be able to help with.

Episode 160: A Momentary Respite

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Episode 160: A Momentary Respite

Starlight Glimmer yawned into her coffee, or what Pinkie Pie told her was the seapony equivalent of coffee, which was significantly greener than Starlight would have preferred her caffeine injection to be. It didn’t taste horrible, at least. Had something of a tangy kick to it, and the drink certainly did the job of helping her stay awake during long night hours monitoring the Treasury's engine core.

It was morning on the second day out of Aqualania, with the northern oceans fast approaching and making the air outside ever chillier by the hour. The airship’s windows were gradually gaining tints of frost. Starlight wandered through the corridors that led up to the top deck of the ship, where she exited into the cold morning air with a slight shiver and found Trixie and Tempest Shadow. The other two mares were sitting by the side of the deck hatch, equally tending to cups of Pinkie Pie’s green “coffee”, although Starlight noted Trixie was on a third cup at this point while Tempest was still nursing her first. Both mares glanced Starlight’s way, but a burst of noise and light from the passing clouds to the deck’s port side drew their attention back, along with Starlight’s.

“How long have they been at it?” Starlight asked with a yawn, “Twilight was supposed to come relieve me an hour ago.”

“Since before dawn,” Tempest said, flicking her tail, and Starlight noticed that the mare had Morgawr’s former trident propped up on the hatch wall beside her. Tempest seemed to make a point of carrying it around almost everywhere with her.

“Trixie tried shouting to them, but they seem to be engrossed with this whole training business,” Trixie said, gulping her coffee and licking her lips, “Was about to come get you and let you go grab some sleep. I can watch the engines.”

“Guess it doesn’t take any technical skill, just make sure nothing starts fizzing, zapping, steaming, or otherwise explode,” Starlight said as she took a seat next to the other mares, eyes scanning the sky and clouds. It didn’t take long for her to spot darting forms of color, although it was hard to tell who. Red and yellow? Must be Fluttershy. The streak of color wove through the clouds at speeds difficult to follow, and Starlight saw the streak clash with another in a clash of sound.

Shading her eyes against the rising sun’s light, Starlight lit up her horn to weave a spell over herself, allowing herself to see magical auras. That made tracking Twilight and the other girls much easier, as their magic filled the sky with moving beacons of light. It amazed Starlight to see those auras, seemingly titanic now compared to what she was used to. She could pick out the blazing orange of Applejack’s aura, of course clashing with Rainbow Dash’s lighter blue one. The two mares looked like they were smashing into each other like a pair of oncoming avalanches, although that was just their auras. Starlight still couldn’t quite make out the actual forms of her friends amid the clouds.

She wondered how the non-winged of the group were dealing with this whole business of... well, not flying per se, but using the overwhelming magic at their disposal to move themselves through the air the way somepony might swim in water. Starlight had actually been present the other day when Twilight had explained the concept to her friends, that their Inheritor forms had so much magic inside them that something akin to flight was possible even for those who didn’t naturally have wings. Flash Sentry had more or less confirmed the notion that this wasn’t all that different from how Soul Reapers walked on air by pushing on spirit particles with their reiatsu, only in this case it was venting excess magic to create stable hoof holds to kick off of to zip around the air.

A blast of familiar purple magic split a cloud, then fragmented into several dozen individual beams that curved through the sky, following a bouncing pink form. Twilight and Pinkie Pie, and from what Starlight could see Pinkie was actually keeping ahead of Twilight’s blasts.

“Well, however long they’ve been at it, I’d say it’s time for a break,” Starlight said, aiming her horn skyward, “And if shouting doesn’t get their attention, I’ve got a simpler method.”

Gathering up magic in her horn in a bright teal spiral, she shot a wide beam straight up into the sky, detonating it several hundred feet up in a sparkling burst of light. Trixie clapped her hooves, even as she somehow managed to look slightly chagrined, “Trixie was going to do that next. Just wanted to finish her coffee first. Or whatever this stuff is.”

“I’ve tasted worse,” said Tempest, “Grubber’s coffee is what we used to punish the incompetent in the Storm King’s army. Had some troops who insisted on execution instead of having to drink it.”

Starlight’s magical light show seemed to do the trick, as before long she heard a rush of air and Flash Sentry appeared on the deck. The poor stallion looked a little worse for wear, with a few bruises and a sweaty soaked, haggard look on his face as he took in deep breaths. His Zanpaktou was in it’s Shikai state, but he sealed it back to a plain katana as moments later the mares from Ponyville arrived in streaks of multi-colored lights befitting their own color schemes, each landing on the deck in turn.

“Man what gives!?” Rainbow Dash said, wind still clinging to her transformed body like a cloak. Indeed half of her body was translucent and seemingly made of living wind, although the mare quickly solidified her body back to normal flesh and blood as she wrung cloud dew out of her mane, “I was just about to tie the score with AJ.”

“Pfft, sure ya were, hun,” said Applejack, her iron armor causing the deck to smoke beneath her metal-shod hooves from the raw heat of her body. The farmer quickly noticed this and made a conscious effort to reduce the heat output from her metallic form, reducing the steam wafting up from her.

“Are you alright, Flash Sentry?” asked Fluttershy, cradling her blood red shield almost apologetically as she looked at a cut on his side, “I was trying to hold back a little.”

“It’s cool, no worries,” Flash said, wincing a bit as he patted the injury, “Just a flesh wound. Seriously my fault for underestimating you and Rarity.”

“Well, darling, we were having a bit of a free for all out there, and I for one thought you were a lovely sparring partner,” Rarity said, carefully hovering her chakrams to hitch along the sides of her dress, “And Fluttershy, I really must commend you. I thought my own defenses were quite solid, but you pressed me harder than I imagined possible. I’d say you’re a natural at this.”

Fluttershy’s face bashfully gained a dawn colored hue, while Twilight gave her friends an appraising and appreciative look, conjuring a notebook to float beside her that she began to jot in with a similarly summoned quill pen.

“I’m impressed with all of us, really. I’m already calculating a solid fifteen percent increase in combat reactions, and closer to twenty percent in power output just from yesterday alone. I’ll need to go over a few questions with everypony on individual memory integration, but I think I can safely say our training is certainly moving along at such a fast pace due to Astra and her friend’s having so many battle related memories.”

“That’s one way o’ puttin’ it, Twilight,” said Applejack, having stepped a little closer to Rainbow Dash, almost seemingly unconsciously, “Could just be we’re naturals at this heroin’ business. Either way, can’t say I mind havin’ the extra oomph ta toss around, an’ the metal duds ain’t so shabby neither.”

“I’ll say,” Rainbow Dash chuckled, also seeming to move a bit closer to Applejack without realizing it, running a wing tip over the other mare’s armored side, “Don’t know what it is, but the armored look really works for you, AJ.”

“Heheh, well it don’t look none too bad on ya either, Dash... er, ya know I’m suddenly feelin’ peckish. Yup, time fer breakfast I reckon, then I oughta go make sure Wavecrest is playin’ nice with our guest,” Applejack said whilst suddenly hopping away from Rainbow Dash as if just then realizing their close proximity. Dash, likewise, had a blink of epiphany and stepped back as well, shifting uneasily on her hooves.

“Right! Right! She was watching our fish dude. Yup, think I’ll hit up a shower and then do food. Whew, then maybe a nap, since I’m soooooo tired after all that training.”

The pair exited the deck faster than most the others could blink, leaving Starlight to give Twilight a raised eyebrow, to which the other mare gave a completely confounded shrug.

“Is it just Trixie’s imagination or are those two...?” Trixie held up her hooves and just sort of knocked them together in a vaguely suggestive manner, to which Pinkie Pie gave a little cackle snort.

“Naaaaaah, although maybe yeah? Pretty sure their past-alicorn-memory-buddies were totally into each other. Tachys and Althea.”

“Oh my, that does coincide with Zoismos’ memories too,” Rarity said, tapping a hoof to her chin, “I seem to recall Rainbow Dash and Applejack’s past selves having something of a relationship. Perhaps I should talk to them and make sure they’re both okay?”

“Hmm, that might be a good idea,” said Twilight, pensively scribbling in her notebook, “We’re all still sorting these old memories out, and that might affect our teamwork. I should have thought of that.”

“Twilight, it’s barely been two days,” Starlight said, “There’s bound to be a few hiccups with, you know, absorbing the whole memories of these ancient alicorn folk. I’m kind of shocked you guys are handling it so well.”

“It is rather astounding,” Tempest agreed, “Kind of frustrating, too.”

“Why would you be frustrated, Miss Tempest?” asked Fluttershy, and the unicorn just shook her head and stood up from where she’d been sitting, cradling her coffee cup carefully on one hoof, given her horn was not suited to carrying it with magic. It struck Starlight that even something as simple as carrying day to day objects with magic was something Tempest couldn’t do, even with her own naturally powerful magic.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s my problem to deal with. Just hoping that once all this is done, you all don’t forget that you promised to help me find my ex-boss. I might not be in his service in the strictest sense right now, but I still need him to help me fix this,” Tempest said, indicating her broken horn, before slipping her trident across a strap looped around her back and heading back into the ship.

“I suppose it’s easy to forget she isn’t entirely a part of our merry group,” Rarity said with a sigh, “Somewhat abrasive personality aside, I’ve gotten oddly used to her.”

“Meh, Trixie could take her or leave her,” said Trixie, downing the last of her own coffee before glancing at Starlight, “At any rate, you should probably be going to bed soon, right?”

“Well, yes, but wanted to chat with Twilight a bit first,” said Starlight, to which Twilight gave her an apologetic nod.

“I’m sorry I lost track of time, Starlight. It’s shockingly easy once we get going. Um, girls, Flash, why don’t you all head down to get breakfast and I’ll catch up once me and Starlight talk?”

“Works for me,” said Flash, rolling his shoulders with a wince, “Going to need a long break after this morning anyway. Want me to grab some food for you, Twilight, leave it at your quarters?”

“Oh, um, that would be lovely, thank you Flash,” Twilight replied with a very notable warmth to her smile. Starlight also noted the way Twilight somewhat stared at the stallion as he left with the rest of the group. Once they were both alone on the deck, Starlight resisted the urge to elbow Twilight and instead just propped herself up on the deck railing and casually crossed her hooves.

“So, you and Flash seem to be getting along well,” she noted, to which Twilight quickly tucked away her notebook under a wing and looked away.

“We are, not that that’s anypony’s business but ours.”

“Hey, wasn’t trying to tease. I think it’s good for you. Even if he is technically a ghost from another dimension.”

“Oh quit it, Starlight. I don’t bug you about Trixie,” Twilight replied, eyeing Starlight sidelong, “Even when you use the guest room in my own castle.”

Starlight promptly found the deck floor interesting as her face burned. “I use silence spells,” she mumbled defensively.

“That I taught you,” Twilight shot back, managing an uncharacteristically smug smile, although it quickly faded back to a more curious look as Twilight abruptly shifted gears, “So what did you want to talk about anyway?”

“Mostly I just wanted to...” Starlight fumbled for words. Granted she was tired, so that was part of why her mind felt sluggish, but it was also hard for her to articulate what she was going for. Starlight was never the most social pony to begin with, and was still in many ways struggling to learn how to open up herself to friendship’s many interactions. “I guess check in? We’ve been moving at such a breakneck pace from one crisis to the next, there hasn’t been much time to just breathe and adjust, you know? Guess I wanted to talk to you just to make sure you’re doing alright after, well, everything. I mean, for goodness sake Twilight, in the past couple of days alone we’ve nearly died how many times!? And suddenly having all this stuff about the alicorns of old and Inheritors just dropped on us out of nowhere? It’s... a lot, right? Then what happened in the Crystal Empire...”

Twilight closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath, leaving Starlight afraid maybe she’d gone too far. However, Twilight raised a hoof to her chest and let out a slow breath, moving her hoof away as if physically tossing out negative feelings with that breath. She opened her eyes and didn’t look at Starlight, but rather at the open expanse of the blue morning sky above.

“I won’t try to hide it, Starlight. I’m afraid. Really, really afraid. I don’t think I understood just how bad things could get until I saw the lengths Charybdis could go to fulfill her plans, or how vulnerable those I care about are until I heard about what the Hollow version of Chrysalis did to Cadence and the Empire. It terrifies me so much that last night I could barely sleep.”

She was still holding the transformed staff that her mace Relic became when she transformed. Starlight watched as Twilight took another deep breath and in a shining wash of pale violet light the staff and Twilight both returned to their normal state. Twilight sheathed the mace in a loop of cloth wrapped around her withers, and brushed some of her mane from her face as the wind from the airship’s passage shifted it about.

“But despite all that, a part of me is excited, too. There’s a whole history to our world I never knew about, Starlight! A whole wealth of knowledge out there just waiting for me to discover it. The Astral Sea, the ancient Bastions of the alicorns that may still exist, and the Relics themselves and what they might mean for the world. I was already over the moon learning about High Magic, but now there’s the ancient alicorn’s unique blend of it to add to my list of research projects. I’m scared, yes, but at the same time overjoyed to know I have so much more to learn.”

“Huh, I guess I can see that, although going to point out we all got to survive what’s coming before you can get too research giddy,” Starlight said with a wry half smile, to which Twilight provided a small, somber nod.

“I know. Believe me, Starlight, my stomach is tied in knots over just about everything. I’m worried about Celestia having to deal with this crazy Eos personality. I’m worried about what either Chrysalis might do next. I’m worried about how we’re going to beat Charybdis. I’m worried about my friends and if they’ll handle all these new memories and powers without losing themselves. I’m worried about Flash and me and where things will go between us. I’m worried about the human you and what might be happening to her inside Ponehenge’s prison.”

Starlight shook her head, “Even I don’t know what to think about that. It still feels weird to me that this other me just went hoof-to-hoof with Celestia, then willingly jumped into some void-like prison with some insanely powerful shadow creature. I mean, on one hoof, maybe we don’t have to worry about her anymore? On the other hoof, a part of me is kind of disappointed I haven’t gotten to meet her face to face. Like, I know it’s a bit egotistical of me, but I had it in my head that maybe I could talk her down, you know?”

“I understand how you feel,” Twilight said, “A part of me was similarly disappointed I wasn’t there to stop my other self when she transformed into that Midnight version. I think it’s only natural to assume that because it’s another version of us, we’d understand one another, and have an easier time finding common ground. I don’t know what might come of the human you’s decision, but I have a feeling if she does return, we’ll be in for a whole new layer of complications to deal with.”

“Well, me and complicated go hoof in hoof,” Starlight admitted, “No matter what version of me it is. Heh, honestly I’m shocked I didn’t turn out to be an Inheritor.”

“Pining to be all powerful, like Trixie is?” Twilight jibbed, and Starlight waved it off with a hoof.

“No, just wondering how much use I’ll be to you in the fights to come.”

“Oh please, you’re the strongest unicorn I know, Starlight, and that’s including my incredible Captain of the guard brother. Even without a Relic, you’re packing enough firepower in that horn to more than hold your own,” Twilight said with an encouraging wing tap, to which Starlight just shrugged with a hapless yawn.

“You never lack for words when it comes ot pep talks, Twilight. And here i was hoping to cheer you up in case you were feeling overwhelmed by everything.”

“Hey, I appreciate it. More than you might be able to tell,” Twilight replied, “Now given that yawn of yours, I’m thinking it’s time for you to hit the pillows. I’ll take over in engineering. With any luck, we’ll be closing in on the location of the Abyss by tomorrow morning.”

“You mean assuming Charybdis doesn’t try anything to stop us in the meantime,” Starlight said, and Twilight looked across the deck towards the distant, ominous north.

“Yeah, assuming that.”

----------

Within the boundless depths of the shear chasm of underwater rock, an unnatural light that was the sheen of arterial blood reflected off the scales of dozens of aspirant shamans. The sahuagin’s burbling voices rose in unison in a daily chant at the edge of the vast precipice that led further down into the heart of their Deep Mistress’ domain. The outcrop of rock they chanted upon jutted over the chasm like a broken claw, and behind them yawned open a wider underwater canyon in which many cavern openings yawned like open wounds. Two jagged spires rose to flank the entrance to the rocky outcrop, covered in carved symbols and worked fetishes of bone, a magic gateway to this place, the threshold of the Deep Mistress’ lair.

Morgawr had passed this way many times before, but never in a state of humiliation. His battered body was still on the mend, bearing scars and pains from his wretched defeat at the hooves of the surfacers. He’d seen the questioning stares of his brethren as he’d been led through the chasms of Rift Mouth, the largest of the sahuagin settlements. He’d heard their whispers. A vast warband of promising warriors near completely lost. The foothold in Aqualania gone. Morgawr returned in defeat. How would he atone in any other manner than to offer himself in sacrifice?

That he should and would do so was not in question, even in Morgawr’s mind. He just resented that there was any hushed whispering or pitiful staring at all, as if he needed to be pitied in the first place! He had done his duty and failed, and was fully willing to bear the responsibility of that failure. He would not cringe from it, like some weak willed spawnling on their first hunt! The mere fact that he could still swim was testament to some small favor the Deep Mistress must have still felt towards him. The damage he had suffered upon his crushing defeat had been extensive. Indeed his every muscle still ached and his body bore fresh scars from his encounter with the alicorn Princess Twilight Sparkle. The potency of Charybdis' magic that trickled back into his body, alongside the careful tending of Rift Mouth's elder shamans, had gotten him back in fighting condition, if only barely. It still rankled him that his warriors, more concerned with hauling him from the rubble he'd been buried under after his duel with Twilight Sparkle, had failed to search for and retrieve the fine magical spear he had found for that fight. Oh well, a warrior shouldn't define himself by his weapons, but his skill. He'd get a replacement spear soon enough, if he wasn't summarily executed for failure in the next few minutes.

Fate did seem fit to to enjoy rubbing his face in things, as was evident by the ones greeting him and Divistus upon their arrival at the deepest of chasms where their Mistress awaited.

“I imagined many times how I might surpass you, Morgawr, but not once did I think it would be because you lost to a bunch of surfacer ponies,” said a sahuagin female, showing a blunt astonishment and disappointment in her voice that cut harder than any intentionally jibing edge may have. Her scales were a striking shade of purple, striped with black along her hips an legs. Smaller than Morgawr by a fair margin, the female yet remained physically corded with no less muscle which lent her slender frame the look of a sleek hunting shark. Corded armor of interlaced bone was punctuated by large shark teeth at the elbows and knees, and the female carried on her back a circular blade of similarly intertwined teeth from an even larger shark, one that Morgawr knew this female had hunted herself.

“Do not make my mistake, then, and underestimate them, Rezarra. The surfacers that have laid me low will no doubt be coming here, and our Deep Mistress will require all of her champions to defend our home,” he said, to which the quills on Rezarra’s head crest bristled and she growled.

“Their brazen foolishness will see their guts splayed on my blade and their blood offered in sacrifice. That said, I’ll take your warning to heart, Morgawr.”

A sputtering noise issued forth from another sahuagin floating nearby, whose laid back manner belied a twisted grin on his scared lips. This male was, like Rezarra, physically smaller than Morgawr, but he made up for lack of physical size with an acidic aura that seemed to dare anyone near him to make the mistake of taking him lightly. Black scales barely reflected the red light from below, and the hide armor he wore sewn from the oily skin of a giant octopus blended even more perfectly with his surroundings, like a naturally shifting camouflage. A bandolier containing no less than a dozen curved knives of carved bone crossed his chest, and complimented another belt of similar knives over his waist, and Morgawr knew from personal experience that Berokar was capable of disemboweling his foes with equal proficiency with any one of those blades.

“Failure on this level requires no heeding, Rezarra,” Berokar said, gurgling in laughter, “What does one learn from another who failed, other than how to also fail?”

“I would not be so dismissive,” Rezarra said simply, “Morgawr was mighty. He could not lose to a weak foe. If these surfacers come here, we would do well to treat them as the threat they are.”

“She speaks with wisdom, Berokar,” said Divistus, and the black scaled sahuagin jabbed a clawed finger at the shaman.

“And what does the most junior shaman know of wisdom when he returns in defeat as well, with his vaunted master dead or captured?” Berokar asked, making a throwing away gesture down the chasm, “Both of you go to offer your souls to our beloved Mistress, may her mercy be swift. Were we not called here, I’d not have bothered to come watch the show.”

That did beg the question of what the two other of Charybdis’ anointed champions were doing here. That the Deep Mistress had need of them Morgawr did not doubt, for he did believe the surfacers would soon arrive to assault this sacred place. Yet why have them meet him and Divisitus here at the entrance to her lair? Divistus may yet have escaped offering his own life, for shamans of sufficient talent were in short supply and Morgawr was the one who bore the brunt of the responsibility for their defeat at Aqualania. Yet Morgawr had no doubt as to his own fate. What point, then, in having Rezarra and Berokar here to greet him?

Then her voice came, clear and beautiful, filling Morgwar’s heart with adoration. The water, so frigid, grew warm at her approaching presence, even as her voice filled his mind and the gathered chanting shamans cried out in rapture.

Put aside your quarrels, my children, and be ready to heed my words.

Rezarra and Berokar both shuddered, and their disagreement was instantly forgotten as both turned to bow themselves in prayer towards the chasm. Morgawr was doing the same, as was Divistus, who added his voice to the chants of the apprentice shamans around him. All were equal before the Deep Mistress, regardless of status or quarrel under normal circumstances.

She rose from the darkness, a shadow upon the ink darkness of the Abyss. Her size was impossible to grasp, the crimson light from below distorting her outline into a writhing, incomprehensible mass. One rarely, truly saw the Deep Mistress in her totality, although Morgawr often imagined her form in parts; a powerful body like the Leviathan’s of ancient legend, wreathed in countless, potent tentacles to rival even a Kraken. Yet at the head of all this, somewhere in the shadowed mass, was a female form, a sleek body not unlike that of a seapony, although pale as bleached ivory. Morgawr could see an immense mouth of teeth like stalactites, but shining before that maw was the ephemeral, white beauty of the Mistress’ seapony form, almost akin to the luring light of an angler fish.

All the water stirred at her presence, and Morgawr felt warmth, precious in its embrace as it pushed back the arctic cold of the Abyss’ depths.

Ah, always so polite, my children. So devoted. I thank you for your endless hard labor. Yet there is precious little time. Morgawr, Divistus, both of you are aware that I bid you slay the invaders at Aqualania. Yet you return defeated, our foes still very much alive.

His response was immediate as it was sincere as he bowed his head low, “I offer no excuses, o’ Deep Mistress. I failed to do as you commanded, and accept whatever just punishment you bestow.”

“I too offer no excuse,” Divistus said, “If my soul must be offered in payment, then it is offered freely and with all devotion.”

As if either of them could give any other response. The Mistress would do as she willed, for there could be no other way. Morgawr himself had seen many others who had failed be swept away by a mere gesture of shadowed tentacles from the Mistress’ massive form, their bodies and souls vanishing within her vast maw with neither comment or complaint. He expected no less for himself, and simply awaited the moment to arrive, fully believing that even in this he would be of service to the Deep Mistress.

Yet seconds passed and nothing happened. Finally her voice reached them once more.

Your souls would indeed reside safely within my care, and were things different I would consider taking them as payment for your failures. But these are not ordinary circumstances. Your foes have stolen power from a source most ancient and potent, and it would be a foolish waste to have you sacrifice your lives now when that same sacrifice would mean so much more in the near future. Do not doubt you shall pay your debt to me, but you shall do so by defending our home, even at the cost of your all. I trust your faith remains strong enough to do this?

Morgawr was momentarily stunned. Yet this sensation of shock quickly gave way to a fresh flame of gratitude and love for his Mistress as he gripped his chest with a claw so tightly that he drew blood.

“Yes, Deep Mistress, without question! Even if every scrap of flesh is flayed and every drop of blood spent, I offer all I am to you and our people.”

“The teeth of my blade will not chip as long as I draw faithful breath in your service,” Rezarra echoed, “All that we have we owe to you.”

“All who enter our domain will be prey to my knives, their skulls to be offered in tribute, Deep Mistress,” Berokar said with an eager grin of sharp teeth.

“May my humble command of magic serve you unto death,” Divistus said, “As every shaman that has come before me.”

As I have come to expect, my chosen do not lack for fervor. Your faith will be tested in the battle to come, but do not doubt that I, Charybdis, will lead all sahuagin to a better future. Divistus, you are to go to the circle of shamans and bring forth your peers to the depths of my home. There is much work to be done, and I require the presence of my most skilled workers of magic. Rezarra, I give you command of our warriors in defense of Rift Mouth. Morgawr, Berokar, you are to be her right and left arms in battle.

Morgawr had no objection. He had failed, and so command would rightfully fall to the next warlord in line of battle honors and renown. Berokar did his best to hide an acidic resentment, but was wise not to raise any objections. Even he lacked the audacity to question Charybdis openly.

“I accept this honor gratefully,” Rezarra said, “I’ll allow not a single surfacer past the threshold of our home.”

A rich laugh echoed from Charybdis, Be not hasty, Rezarra. My plan is not to waste the lives of our people. You need not stop them from breaking through, only slow their progress. They command a vessel of ancient Aqualania, and you’d lose countless warriors trying to destroy it. No, we will deal with these invaders in a more personal manner. I merely require you delay them long enough for my own preparations to be complete. When the time comes, I will deal with these surfacers myself.

----------

Charybdis could sense the confusion left in her chosen, almost as keenly as their fervent worship. After she’d given her instructions Rezarra, Morgawr, and Berokar had departed to gather the warbands to organize their planned defense of the Abyss’ canyons. The Treasury could approach from many potential areas, but all eventually funneled into the deepest chasms of Rift Mouth, so Rezarra would plan her defensive tactics around the most likely main routes. Divistus in the meantime would gather the other senior shamans, which Charybdis imagined might annoy some of the elders who did not like the young upstart.

She could sense the eagerness in him, as she rarely allowed any down into the deepest reaches of her lair. She hadn’t intended to make use of the sahuagin shamans, but the damnable Twilight Sparkle and her band of interfering idiots had thrown Charybdis’ timetable out the window and now she had to rush things far more than she’d hoped.

As she sunk down the uneven rift into the depths of her lair, crossing down thousands of meters into darkness marred by streaks of red light, Charybdis fumed. Her body’s mass thundered with angry convulsions that she worked to wrestle to proper control. It didn’t do to let others see her get upset, of course, but even when alone it was better to keep a cool head. Even if she was livid.

All the souls of Aqualania, lost! Flash Sentry and Twilight Sparkle would pay for that. She’d preserved the souls of her home, her city, her people for centuries, and in the span of a single day some uppity pony bitch and her Soul Reaper boytoy threw all of it into the wastebin!

Tentacles the width of redwood pines and covered in boney barbs large enough to lance tanks flailed into rocky canyon walls and tore great chunks out in a brief, rageful fit. Then Charybdis calmed herself, the facsimile of her original body, the pale image of a pearl white seapony, ran hooves over a marble mane and sighed.

No, no, she shouldn’t be too mad. Everything was going to be fine. Yes, things had taken a turn for the unexpected on Earth as well, but Gaia ought to be able to deal with a few minor hiccups. Charybdis was already sending reinforcements from the Beast Realm to help Gaia deal with Sunset Shimmer and those humans who coincidentally happened to be the counterparts to the same bunch that were on their way in the Treasury.

As long as her Kraken finished his end of the ritual on the other side, Charybdis could still pull this off. Step one, open a permanent portal to Earth. Step two, empower Gaia with magic, who in turn would empower Charybdis with spirit energy. Step three, use said spirit energy, alongside the key fragments of Adagio and her sister’s souls to unlock Domare’s Relic and turn herself into an artificial Inheritor. Step four, take her freshly empowered self and lead her people through the portal to Earth, along with her real treasure...

The red glow in the depths now became an all encompassing sanguine hue, and Charybdis let out a sigh of satisfaction as she looked upon the fruits of her work. Many, many years ago a much younger and optimistic Charybdis had begun a path of discovery upon the subject of “soul magic”. The taboo subject had not been an easy thing to research, even for an affluent seapony princess with a sister who had a thing for plundering surfacer artifacts. Scylla had always teased her relentlessly for her “nerdy” pursuits, but in her way had also supported Charybdis with any text, tablet, dusty scroll, or other oddity she’d found in her adventures that might help Charybdis’ studies.

Even as their sisterly rivalries turned bloody and maligned, Charybdis still held some small measure of gratitude. Even if she was convinced Scylla had been the one who’d killed their mother. She could never prove it, but that didn’t matter. Scylla had never been suited to the throne, and Charybdis had only taken it because the alternative was to allow her sister to ruin everything before Charybdis could finish learning the truth about souls and the magic that controlled them.

Magic, yes, but also “reishi manipulation”. A bleed over from Earth’s abundance of spirit energy, allowing a rare few with the knowledge to blend magic with the soul’s energy. This bleed over went both ways, and Charybdis imagined there were those on Earth who had, knowingly or not, blended a bit of magic from Equestria into their spiritual powers. By studying soul magic, Charybdis had discovered how the Cycle was meant to function, and also had picked up bits and pieces of information about an ancient civilization of alicorns, the traces of which were all but gone in the modern age. Gone, save for certain ‘relics’ left behind, and certain ruins...

The red light stemmed from countless arcane symbols that Charybdis had etched over many long years into the surface of a sunken edifice of bronze and brass. This immense object, laying at the deepest crevice of her lair, was spherical, but mostly buried in eons of rock and sediment. Inside a melted tear in the side of the sphere one could only see darkness, but Charybdis had spent a lot of time within, studying the secrets of this place, the remains of Bastion Gnosis.

There she’d learned much more than just more ways to further her magic. She’d discovered how souls moved through what the alicorns had called the Cycle, and how that Cycle had become damaged. She also learned that even if the Cycle was repaired, the normal function of it did not specifically allow for the retention of self through reincarnation. It was in learning these truths that Charybdis had formed her plans.

The sahuagin native to the Abyss were made into servants capable of allowing her to further her studies and act as a means of perfecting new magical techniques. Specifically preserving souls from the Cycle by binding them to objects or locations, as she’d done to the population of Aqualania. And here.

The red symbols, curved and sharply focused into intricate circles, each contained a set of souls. Most were sahuagin. Some were seaponies or surfacers. All Charybdis intended to set free, once the portal to Earth was complete.

Earth, with it’s far more acceptable method of reincarnation, and a whole fresh ocean for her and her sahuagin to establish themselves. Once on the other side, Charybdis had confirmed their souls would become a part of Earth’s Cycle, and there she could fulfill her desires without fear. If only she could have preserved her mother and Scylla’s souls for the journey.

At any rate, she had a great deal of work left to do. Gaia would need that energy transfer soon, and Charybdis needed to ensure the ritual circle her Kraken was making on the other side had it’s proper twin here in Equestria.

No matter what, she wouldn’t let Twilight Sparkle halt her plans, but Charybdis did like the idea of settling the score face to face. Besides, she could use Aria and Sonata, and it’d be convenient if they were brought right here to the same place she’d once struck a bargain with an ambitious and arrogant Adagio Dazzle.

For amid the prizes held in the remains of Bastion Gnosis was a single sliver of a siren’s gem, no larger than a needle, resting in an amulet of bronze fused to the surface of a great, pearl white orb. And beside the sliver of Adagio’s siren gem, in which resided a fragment of the siren’s soul, were two more needle thin recesses, just waiting for two more siren souls to be added to the key that would unlock the Eye of the Sea.

----------

The Royal Sisters were used to passing each other on their way to their respective duties, rarely afforded much time to share so much as a meal when one Princess was in charge of the day, the other the night. Both got by on less than the normal amount of sleep most ponies enjoyed, and now that they were about to share a training schedule it fell on Luna to adjust her sleep to be awake during more of the daylight hours.

Celestia helped in her way, providing painfully cheerful pancakes with smiley faces of whip cream and sliced bananas. Luna ate without complaint, although she did so fast as they were supposed to be in Ponyville before noon, which by Luna’s standards was basically morning.

Her eyebrow shifted slightly at each pancake she ate, as each subsequent one down the stack had a different smiley face that started to wink at her.

“Just how bored do you get, sister?” Luna asked, and Celestia, who’d already finished most of her own stack, just waggled a fork at Luna.

“Inescapably so, but at least you’re eating them today.”

“I’m usually asleep by now. No matter,” Luna let out a yawn, “Once we’re at the castle I’ll be plenty awake, and i’m not likely to pass out while training. I’m more concerned about Cadence.”

She was referring to more than just the examination of Cadence, which had yielded no obvious problems with the young Princess. Quite the contrary, it had revealed to Celestia and Luna that their fellow Princess was once more carrying a foal, a fact that had drawn some... ire from Celestia. Not because Cadence was pregnant, but because Cadence had put such strain on her body while in that condition.

Celestia’s face gained a cringe of embarrassment, “I... shouldn’t be hard on her. She had no real choice but to fight. Fleeing was not really an option.”

“Indeed, it wasn’t,” Luna agreed firmly, “And a leader cannot afford to place personal desires and concerns over the good of their people. You of all ponies know that.”

“Mmph,” Celestia hid her consternation behind another mouthful of pancakes, mumbling around the mouthful, “Don’t have to remind me. I just worry about the girl. Although on the bright side, Flurry Heart getting a sibling means we might get added to the foalsitter rotation.”

“Ugh, we’re in charge of the nation, Celestia. Let Twilight fawn over her niece and/or nephews. If nothing else, leave me out of any future plans for alicorn foalsitting,” Luna groused, “I am not a nanny.”

“Aww, but you’d be so cute looking after a foal, Lulu,” Celestia cooed and Luna stabbed her pancakes forcefully and chewed them while giving her sister the stink eye.

“Don’t even start. There’s got to be a more pressing subject we can talk about than this.”

Celestia paused, then her joking demeanor shifted to one more serious as she pushed aside her plate, “True. Cadence physically is well, considering her injuries. Internally I couldn’t detect any problems, but there is a faint imbalance in her magical aura. That could be a factor of the awakening of her Inheritor powers, or it could be a lingering affect of Chrysalis’ attempt to draw out Cadence’s soul. I won’t know for sure without more examination, and we haven’t the time... we barely have any time at all.”

“Something is bothering you,” Luna said, eyes piercing towards her sister like when they were young mares and she spotted her sister sneaking out of the castle for some misadventure.

“Oh, I’ve many a thing bothering me, Lulu. Nevermind that I learned our mentor and foster father and his brave friends are still alive, trapped in some manner of magical stasis in the prison they created for Stygian, or that my protégé who is practically a daughter to me is about to face a horrifying sea witch in the depths of the Abyss, or that our entire world still faces the threat of a murderous monster with the power to wipe entire cities off the map being casually on the loose. No, on top of all that I have the personality of an ancient megalomaniac alicorn who I just happen to be the reincarnation of lying in wait to take over my body whenever I make use of a power I’m going to need to master, and my sister whom I love dearly is going to have to deal with the same.”

Luna grunted, “Well when you put it like that it makes it sound like we’re having a rough week.”

“Pfft,” Celestia managed a tension-draining laugh, “Your talent for understatement remains a cherished virtue, my sister.”

She paused again, then said more seriously, “Will you be alright, Lulu? I’ve faced Eos once now, and while it’s left me shaken, I at least feel I’ve got a handle on her. But what of you and... her?”

Luna froze, then slowly pushed aside her plate of almost finished pancakes, “Do you mean Iah, or Nightmare Moon?”

“I’ve... wondered how much difference there is between the two,” Celestia admitted, “Your manifestation of an Inheritor form took a very personal turn, back then. I’ve been respectful of your privacy on that matter. I know the Elements of Harmony did much to rebalance you internally, and for all intents and purposes re-sealed the helmet and armor.”

“You wouldn’t happen to be asking about this for any other reason than simple concern for my mental state during our upcoming training, would you?” Luna inquired, picking up readily on what would otherwise be near invisible signs that Celestia was skirting something that was bothering her. It was that little nose twitch at the end of her snout that Celestia could never fully hide, at least from Luna who knew how to look for it.

“There was something,” Celestia said in that very slow and careful manner she used when she was buying time to think, “However I’m unsure of speaking of it until I’ve sorted it out more in my own head. I think our training will provide more information, but I was curious just how much of Iah’s memories you retained after your stint as Nightmare Moon.”

“Barely any,” Luna said, giving her sister a sidelong look, “What is this about, Tia?”

“I’m not sure what it means yet, but I saw something in Eos’ memories during my fight with Starlight Glimmer that is troubling me. I don’t want to go into details yet until I know a little more, and I’m curious if Iah’s memories contain any corroborating evidence of what I saw.”

“I can hardly confirm anything if you don’t tell me what it is you saw,” Luna pointed out.

“Well let’s wait until training. Once we’re both integrating our former selves’ memories into our minds we’ll both have a clearer picture of events. Hmm, on that topic, I note you didn’t use Iah’s bow during your fight with Platinum,” Celestia said, and Luna shrugged her wings, only wincing a little at the residual pain from her reattached one.

“It wasn’t necessary,” Luna said, perhaps a tad defensively, “If my intent had been to defeat her outright I would have used the bow from the start. I don’t fear...” she halted herself, biting her lip and shaking her head. Best not to lie, least of all to herself, “No, i do fear her somewhat. Iah. Nightmare Moon was her and I in equal measure, near as I can recall. An imbalanced blending, unlike what happened with Eos trying to fully supplant your own mind, sister. I can only assume that using the bow alone won’t overwhelm me like the helmet and armor did. In time, however, we will have to content with using all of our Relics. It does frighten me, but that is why we will train and get used to the power and personality of our past selves, so that we do not lose to them.”

She snorted to herself, “All of that aside, I’m somewhat miffed Platinum was apparently smart enough to ward the vial I gave her.”

Celestia gave the table a hoof smack, smirking, “Ah-ha! I was wondering about that. You tried to place a tracking spell on your little potion, my clever sister. And here I thought you were just being kind.”

“Hmm, only kind in part. If I’d wished to be cruel I would have made the potion a fake one, but it was the real deal. Firefly is likely on the mend already. I was just also hoping to use the vial as a means to track our foe’s base of operations. Alas, the signal of my spell vanished soon after Platinum and her Reigai departed, so I assume they placed some manner of ward on it to disrupt my magic,” Luna gained a reluctant look of respect on her features, “A sharp woman.”

“You like her,” Celestia noted.

“I respect her as an opponent. Perhaps one day we can finish our duel in a manner satisfactory to us both, without any interference from outside concerns,” Luna mused, then shrugged and stood, “At any rate, should we not get going? I’m rather looking forward to spending a few days at the old castle, sparring with you and Cadence.”

“Indeed, it’s time,” Celestia agreed, rising from her own seat around the long dinning table the pair had been eating at, “Ponyville awaits.”

----------

Spike had an extra bounce in his step as he packed his bags. He tended to travel light, so most of what he was taking was a few choice gems from the pantry alongside some books to keep him company in the Crystal Empire; including Twilight’s journal that had it’s twin on Earth.

“Heya Spike, you almost ready?” asked Sunburst as the bearded stallion poked his orange head into the room.

“Just about,” Spike said, shoving the last book into the cloth backpack he then slung over his shoulder, “Gotta do one last check over the castle to make sure I’m not leaving anything out of place. Twilight put me in charge while she’s gone, and even if I’m taking a detour to the Empire, i want to make sure our home is in spotless condition for when she gets back.”

“Makes sense,” Sunburst said, waiting for Spike to leave his room before following the young dragon down one of the many crystalline corridors of Twilight’s castle in Ponyville, “Thanks for offering to come act as a mediator with the dragons. Dragon Lord Ember really seems to respect you.”

“Heheh, well not to brag but I’m kinda a big deal back in the Dragon Lands,” Spike said, holding his head high as he jabbed a thumb at his chest, “Technically could have been Dragon Lord, but Ember’s better at that kind of thing, so I let her have the job.”

“Oh? Let me have it, huh?” said the dragoness in question, who waited for him and Sunburst at the end of the hall. Ember’s sapphire scales contrasted sharply with the dark staff with the crimson gem embedded in it’s end that she held in her right claw, “Maybe I ought to give the staff back to you and let you take care of the actual work.”

“Whoa, let’s not get ahead of ourselves Ember. I’m so not a politics guy.”

“Dragon politics is mostly smacking idiots over the head until they listen to you, or are too unconscious to argue,” Ember pointed out.

“Exactly. Not my scene,” Spike said, joining Ember as she and Sunburst walked with him out into the main chamber of the castle, a huge circular area with a central crystal table that sat beneath the roots of Twilight’s old tree library home, how hanging above like a chandelier.

Waiting for them in the chamber were Shining Armor, Princess Cadence, and sitting on Shining Armors back, the tiny form of Flurry Heart. The alicorn foal with her crème white coat and curly purple and streaked blue mane let out a giggling noise and waved her arms at the sight of Spike and Sunburst. When Cadence had dropped Flurry Heart at Ponyville well before the attack on the Empire it had been along with Sunburst who had accompanied the child as a watcher. He and Spike had essentially been Flurry Heart’s attendants and protectors while she’d been hidden here in the castle. A good thing, Spike understood now with an unconscious shudder. He didn’t want to think about the idea of Flurry Heart being in the Crystal Empire when that Hollow version of Chrysalis attacked.

Gave him a headache just thinking about it.

“Spike, Sunburst, Ember,” Cadence said with an acknowledging nod, “It’s good to see you. Thank you for looking after Flurry Heart.”

There was a faint tension hanging in the air that Spike sensed as he approached the couple, glancing between Shining Armor and Cadence. Twilight’s brother looked nearly as exhausted as his wife, and was looking at her with undisguised worry. She, in turn, stood close to him with one wing draped over both him and their foal, but there was a definite waver in her eyes. Spike wondered if it was just stress from everything that had happened or if there was something else going on, but it also wasn’t any of his business so instead of commenting on it he just gave Cadence a wave.

“It wasn’t any problem. Flurry Heart and I are total pals, right Flurry?”

The foal spread her tiny alicorn wings and cooed in the affirmative.

“Things were pretty quiet here,” Sunburst said, awkwardly shifting on his hooves as he bowed his head to Shining Armor and Cadence, “I just wish there was something more i could do.”

“You’ve done plenty, Sunburst,” Shining Armor said, “You’re our friend, and looking after Flurry Heart was a greater service to the Empire than any other I could imagine you performing.”

“How are things back there?” Sunburst asked, and Shining Armor sighed.

“Bad. It’s going to take a long time to put the city back to rights. For a miracle, we didn’t lose any civilians, but the Crystal Guard...” he trailed off, shaking his head, “It could have been worse, but that doesn’t make it any less painful the losses we did take.”

“Well if that monster shows her face there again, rest assured me and my dragons will be giving her a warm welcome,” Ember assured, clenching her free claw and snorting smoke from her snout. For a dragon, Ember was rather small, with a humanoid, bipedal form compared to the far larger, more naturally draconic form of older dragons. Yet despite still retaining that petite, teenage dragon shape, she didn’t lack for a dragon’s presence, excluding an aura of hefty confidence and intensity that Spike admired. He rubbed at his head, feeling the pounding of a lingering headache as he looked at her. Maybe he hadn’t gotten enough sleep?

“We appreciate it, Ember,” said Cadence, “I think my people will rest easier for having your dragons there, alongside the changelings.”

“Oh that’s right, Thorax is there!” Spike said, brightening up, “Been wanting to catch up with that guy.”

“Hmm, well last I saw he and his brother were talking about some kind of ‘training’ of their own,” Shining Armor commented, glancing at his wife, “Seems like the thing everypony is doing these days.”

“Now Shining, you know I have to do this.”

“Yes, dear, I know,” Shining Armor replied, perhaps a bit too curtly, “I just... wish there was something I could do, too.”

“You are, you’re going to protect our daughter,” Cadence said firmly, “While I’m dealing with this whole Inheritor business, I can focus without having to worry about what might happen to Flurry Heart as long as I know you’re with her.”

“Of course. I’d never let anything happen to her,” Shining Armor said, ruffling his daughter’s mane, after which he gave Cadence a still worried look, “Just please don’t push yourself too hard. You were... after that battle...”

He didn’t finish the sentence, but Spike could hear the barely buried anguish in Shining Armor’s tone. Whatever condition Cadence must have been in after the fight must have hit Shining Armor battle, as the stallion looked distinctly rattled as he gave his wife a firm hug, which she turned in full. Even if she didn’t understand what was happening, little Flurry Heart also stood up on her father’s back and threw hooves around her parents' neck.

Ember cleared her throat after an uncomfortable moment of family bonding, “So, uh, yeah, if you guys are good to go, my dad and the rest of our combat flight is waiting outside town. Sunburst, you’ll be riding on my dad’s back. Spike, you can join him, or, um, I guess I could carry you, if you want.”

It was a bit of a stinging reminder that he had yet to grow his own wings, although he imagined that couldn’t be that far off for him. He couldn’t stay a baby dragon forever, could he? Ignoring the growing headache in his head, he looked at Ember and at first thought to play off her offer to carry him to try and look cool, but before the words could leave his mouth he felt an odd compulsion to agree. He wasn’t sure why, but suddenly the idea of sticking close to Ember sounded like a good idea to him.

“Yeah, sure, I’d be down for that.”

“Then safe travels to all of you,” Cadence said, giving her husband a quick peck on the cheek, and her daughter one on the forehead, “Stay safe, both of you. I love you, Shining, and mommy loves you too, Flurry.”

“Give Celestia and Luna a run for their money,” Shining said, “Just, again, don’t over-”

“Don’t overdo it,” Cadence finished for him, “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.”

With that they all exited Twilight’s castle to go their separate ways. Shining Armor would travel with Flurry Heart under guard via train, while Ember, Sunburst, and Spike would travel with a flock of waiting dragons who would escort the train by air, all to arrive in the Crystal Empire together. Meanwhile Cadence would depart to join Celestia and Luna at the old castle nestled in the Everfree Forest, to begin what would in theory be at least several straight days of intensive training to get more control over their powers as Inheritors.

Spike couldn’t deny a bit of jealousy, if he was being honest with himself. House sitting for Twilight was all well and good, but much like Shining Armor he found himself often wishing he could do more. How amazing would it be to be able to access something as cool as one of these Relics?

He put the thought aside as Ember let him clamber onto her back, ready to take flight. He didn’t even think more about the steady throb of the headache he had, or the way he kept finding himself looking towards the staff of the Dragon Lord that Ember carried.

----------

Ulgriv was torn between thinking the pink one was utterly insane, or some manner of genius-level interrogator and torturer that the surfacers kept as a secret weapon.

“C’mon Ulgy, you’ve got them crazy dexterous claw finger thingies, so you should be way ahead of me on making friendship bracelets. But I’m on number twenty three while you’re still stuck on four.”

He made a phlegm heavy noise in the back of his throat and smacked his forehead into the deck of his cell, holding up a strung collection of seashells and beads, “I do not understand the point of this and we’ve been doing it for three hours! Please, have I not given you sufficient tribute to leave me to wallow in misery peacefully, Pink One of Disaster?”

“Heheh, that’s a good nickname Ulgy, you’re getting better at friendship already! But seriously, if you’re tired of this, I can ask Twilight about you joining us for game night. I mean, Admiral SS Suspicious Much still thinks you’re a,” Pinkie used her hooves to make quotation marks, “Security risk, whatever that means. And Wavey seems to really hate you. Right Wavey?”

Outside the cell, Wavecrest groaned, “I do not hate him specifically. I have very well grounded and supported qualms with his entire race!”

“Which is not cool, Wavey. You two should totally be friends, because you both have so much in common!” Pinkie Pie declared, to which both Ulgriv and Wavecrest gave the mare equal looks of incredulity. Wavecrest was sitting just outside Ulgriv’s cell, watching him like a particularly mistrustful hawk while Pinkie Pie had been visiting. Fluttershy had been by earlier to check on him physically, just to make sure he was doing alright so long outside of the water. Sahaugin, while fully able to survive on land for a time, weren’t really meant to be away from water for too long. A few days was generally fine, but a week or more would start to have bad side effects on his health, so Fluttershy had been in and out like some fussy spawnling tender. Ulgriv almost had a pang of appreciation for it, until he remembered these surfacers were still intending to invade his home and harm his goddess.

“I have nothing in common with a soft kin witch,” Ulgriv stated, and Wavecrest all but mirrored his tone, swishing her tail harshly.

“Says the zealot devoted to a far worse witch than I.”

“The Deep Mistress is a goddess true, no mere ‘witch’, you... um, witch!” Ulgriv said, unable to come up with any particularly scathing insult off the top of his head. To his surprise, Pinkie Pie let out an infectious laugh at the two of them.

“But that’s what I mean! You’re both so super devoted to your people it’s like, how do you two not see it? I mean, sure, Ulgy is super young, and Wavy, you’re kinda old-”

“Old? I’m barely forty,” Wavecrest said with a crestfallen look and a glance at her mane, as if seeking any gray hairs. Meanwhile Ulgriv stood up and flexed his arms, which admittedly where fairly scrawny by sahuagin standards but still had plenty of muscle.

“And I'm not ‘young’! I’m a fully grown adult.”

“You’re a teenager at best,” Wavecrest said, her voice almost softening, “Younger than my own son. It’s a shame your kind treats your young in such a disposable manner. To us seaponies our children are our most precious treasures. We’d never abide the losses you sahuagin suffer.”

He sat down again, glaring, “We will not have to, before long. The Deep Mistress will lead us to a new land of promise, where the seas will be open, warm, and free for us to thrive in.”

“Not if we stop her,” Wavecrest said flatly, but her jaw twitched as she rose and entered the cell, sitting down a bit closer to Ulgriv to stare at him directly, “I wonder what will happen to your kind once Charybdis’ shadow has been banished from over you. Will you continue on as you have?”

It was an unsettling question, and Ulgriv gripped his talisman tightly as he responded, “I have faith the Deep Mistress will not fall to the likes of you.”

“Perhaps, but if we do defeat her, where does that leave the sahuagin?” Wavecrest pressed, although the way she asked it sounded as if the question was as much for herself as him, “As long as my own people are safe and free to prosper, that is all I care about. Hmph, the way you speak, it sounds as if that is what you solely care about as well. A future without Charybdis leaves a hanging question of what my people should do next. Were we to risk allowing the sahuagin to leave the Abyss, what guarantee would we have you would not continue bloody raids upon our villages? If for no other reason than because it is the only way you’ve ever been taught?”

He had no immediate answer to that, falling into a sullen silence as he chewed upon that question. Then Pinkie Pie suddenly rose and rather than laugh or say something randomly inexplicable, the mare’s demeanor shifted to something focused and sharp, a knowing glint appearing in her eye as even her voice changed to a tone of worldly experience that was unlike the joking manner Pinkie usually had.

“You’re both thinking. That’s good. Keep doing that. It’s the best chance both your people have to move beyond the past.”

“Pinkie Pie?” Wavecrest looked at Pinkie curiously, but the mare just immediately went back to a jovial grin and the usual bouncy nature of hers.

“Oh don’t mind me! Just saying whatever comes into my head! Hey, who feels like stretching the ol’ legs and going for a job around the ship? Heheh, what was I thinking? Sitting for three hours straight making friendship bracelets can’t be good for one’s circulation.”

All Ulgriv and Wavecrest could do was look at one another in equal measures of helplessness and bafflement as their... friend dragged them out of the cells like a big, fluffy pink magnet. Yet different as they were, Pinkie Pie’s words were sinking in, and both were thinking about things they never thought about much before. About their peoples, and their respective futures.

----------

“Long day?”

Twilight glanced up as she saw Flash Sentry standing at the threshold of her quarters. She hadn’t even heard him open the door. She’d been sitting at a desk situated beneath a oval window that showed the outside of the ship, which currently was a dark, star speckled sky with Luna’s moon already hanging high in the heavens. A seapony clock that she’d calibrated for Equestrian standard time told her it was nearing eleven o’clock. Yawning, she rubbed at her eyes with a wing and set down the book she’d been reading, the journal on High Magic she’d been given.

“It certainly has been. Come in, Flash. Sit down, if you like. I was just studying a few more spells.”

He hesitated a moment, then with an affirming nod to himself he entered her room. After a second of him just standing there, Twilight raised an eyebrow and gestured at the door, which he’d left hanging open.

“Oh, yeah,” he said and shut the door, after which he stood there hesitantly a moment longer before shuffling over to have a seat on a coral and metal couch, upholstered in water resistant blue pillows. “Just figured I’d drop by to see how you were holding up. You and your friends spent most of today going all-in on smacking each other around all day.”

“And you,” Twilight said with a wink, “Thank you for your help, by the way. Your skills as a Soul Reaper are key to helping us develop a new set of battle instincts. Or rather, integrate our past lives' battle experience more thoroughly into our own consciousness.”

“How’s that coming?” Flash asked, “I saw Applejack and Dash tip-toeing around each other every second they weren’t beating the snot out of each other. I mean, back home, the human girls always kind of had a bit of chemistry, but it never struck me as that kind of thing.”

“I think it should work itself out,” Twilight said, feeling a bit of heat flush into her cheeks. “It could be that Althea and Tachys' memories are just making them act out a bit more, but even if there is something there, I hardly see it as a problem. I’d be happy for them both if it turned out to be something genuine, as long as it doesn’t adversely affect them in battle.”

“I guess love can complicate things in a fight,” Flash admitted, “And we’re definitely heading into another major one. Probably a lot worse than what we just dealt with in Aqualania.”

“Yes,” Twilight agreed, closing the book and pushing it aside as she rose from the desk and went to lay down on the bed on the opposite side of the room, if only because it was quite comfy to lay out on, and she was starting to feel the effects of long hours awake. “Charybdis won’t go down easily.”

“You sound nervous,” he noted, and she didn’t feel any need to hide anything from him, so she nodded slowly, letting the unease in her chest out in a long breath.

“Of course I am. I don’t want to lose anypony, and I’m even a little scared of my own feelings towards her. I’m usually... not so angry, but Charybdis abuses magic in a way that just gets under my fur. I don’t like feeling that way, and I don’t want it interfering with my ability to think clearly. What if I make a mistake, Flash?”

He was pensive for a moment, wings fidgeting in the way a human might fidget with their hands. He then rose from the couch and came over to sit next to her on the bed and with a gentle motion placed a hoof over hers, “Even if you do, Twilight, you have to know by now that you’ve got some of the best group of friends you could ask for to be at your side. We’re all probably going to make mistakes. You and the girls are dealing with new powers, strange memories, and an enemy who knows we’re coming and is preparing for it. None of this is going to be easy. But you know what, Twilight?”

He looked at her right in the eyes, and she found her heart warming looking into the solidarity, the strength that flowed out of his expression.

“You’re smarter than she is. By a lot.”

She licked her lips and found her breathing coming a bit quicker, “Oh, um... say that again?”

He blinked, “Huh, that you’re smarter?”

“Mmmhmm,” she said, leaning into his chest, “Tell me more about how smart I am.”

She felt him wrap a hoof around her shoulder as he pulled her even closer and he cleared his throat, “You’ve got the quickest, most brilliant mind of anyone I’ve met. You’re worried about Charybdis? C’mon, Twi, you’ll think circles around that cement brain. She’s playing tic-tac-toe while you’re a master of Shogi.”

“Shogi?” she asked, and he coughed.

“Japanese chess. Super popular back in Soul Society. Sorry, weird reference.”

“Not at all, I like it,” she said, burying her face in his neck and breathing a deep sigh of relief, “Thank you Flash. I really needed to hear this.”

“That you’re absolutely brilliant, or that you’ll kick Charybdis’ ass?”

“Both,” she replied, feeling warmth spread through her whole body as she became entirely too keenly aware of how close he was to her now. Her wings had spread out around her unconscious, and wrapped around him, and she felt the brush of his feathers on hers in such a sensitive touch of lit nerves that she gasped a little.

“You okay?” he asked, having heard the gasp and perhaps misinterpreted it. Face burning, Twilight gulped loudly.

“F-fine. Better than fine. Um... Flash...?”

“Yeah?” he looked at her straight on, and she heard the thunder of her own heart in her ears.

“Do you want to...?”

Abruptly the crash of her door bursting open made both Twilight and Flash nearly fall out of the bed. Rarity paused at the threshold and looked at the two, now tangled together on the floor halfway out of the bed and both flushed red, and she let her mouth open in a gaped ‘O’ of surprise.

“Oh my, Twilight, Flash, I’m sorry to interrupt. But good for both of you. Ah! Never mind that! Come to the bridge, quickly!”

Rarity galloped off at that point, leaving Twilight and Flash to look at each other. She was on her back on the floor, with him awkwardly over her, yet for a moment she was very, very tempted to just use her magic to close the door and ignore whatever it was that was happening on the bridge. For a moment, she was very eager to just pull him close on top of her and let the evening go where it would.

But the magic of the moment broke as Flash sighed and carefully got off of her, then offered a hoof to help her up.

“I, uh, guess we ought to go see what’s up,” he said, and she all but hid her face behind her mane as she nodded.

“Yes, that’s probably for the best.”

A few minutes later she and Flash entered the bridge, where she was a little surprised to see everypony else present, even Ulgriv who was being carefully watched by Tempest and Wavecrest near the back of the chamber.

Adimial Seaspray looked at both of them entering the bridge and offered a polite bow, eyes somewhat apologetic, “Sorry for disturbing you, Princess, especially given the late hour. However I thought it best everycreature see what lay ahead of us the moment it got in visual range. We had acquired it on sensors earlier, but I wanted eyes on it, especially ones as skillful in understanding magical phenomena as yours.”

Twilight nodded, and trotted alongside Flash towards the front of the bridge, where the spherical windows showing the area in front of the ship gave a wide view of the skyline ahead.

“Doesn’t look good, does it?” said Dash, “Gonna guess Charybdis is throwing down the gauntlet.”

“That, or she’s begun some massive channeling of magic,” Starlight said, her own face shadowed with thought, “I’ve read about byproducts from large rituals. This might not even be intentional.”

“Intentional or not, it’s a clear sign we’re running out of time,” Twilight said, eyes glued ahead.

The skyline for hundreds of miles across, stretching to the east and west, was a swirling stormfront of dread black clouds. More than any mere storm, the wall of clouds burst and churned with forks of red and purple lightning. Boils of cyclone force washed up and down the stormfront like pulsating oil, and Twilight could make out twisters of force tearing into the writhing ocean below.

Even a casual probing with her magical senses told Twilight that a ritual working of significant proportions was under way, even as rain and snow started to spatter the windows and the faint howling of the distant winds reached her ears.

With a deep breath she looked to Seaspray, “No turning back. Admiral, full speed ahead. Take us in.”

Episode 161: Final Preparations

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Episode 161: Final Preparations

The storm battered at the hull of the Treasury with relentless abandon. Wind and hail caused a continuous racket of noise that was distracting, but the thunder was louder still, echoing through the ship with it’s furious roar. Fortunately the seapony vessel had been built to withstand such hurricane-force winds and could readily deflect the harmful effects of such intense, even unnatural weather. The deck still lurched and shook on occasion when a bad patch of storm struck, but otherwise Twilight and her companions could plan their assault upon the Abyss with minimal issue, save a sudden bout of airsickness on Sonata’s part.

Twilight had chosen to use one of the Treasurey’s meeting rooms for the gathering, a fairly large rectangular chamber mostly taken up by a single oval table that everypony could find an easy seat at. One end of the table was curved inward like a crescent, with one larger seat clearly meant for the ship’s captain. Twilight occupied that seat, since she was more or less in charge of this affair, and Admiral Seaspray needed to remain on the bridge to maintain the helm. They were nearing their destination, but the storm’s size plus it’s unpredictable nature was slowing their progress somewhat. Twilight surmised the storm’s magical nature was more of a byproduct of Charybdis’ magic rather than a directed tool, but a byproduct the sea witch was still using to her advantage.

Regardless, they’d reach the area directly over the Abyss soon, and so they needed to plan their line of attack.

Everycreature was present save the Admiral, Aria and Sonata who were currently in their quarters, and Trixie who had volunteered to monitor the engine room. Most notably, Ulgriv was present, albeit under very watchful guard by Flash Sentry and Wavecrest, who flanked the sahuagin at the opposite end of the table from Twilight. She wanted the captive sahuagin here in case they could get any information from him while working out a plan.

“Alright,” she began, “We don’t have a lot to go on, but if nothing else I should be able to use my own magic to get a general idea of where Charybdis is located. Wavecrest, do you have any knowledge of what we can expect once we star our descent?”

“Only a little, I’m afraid. It is rare, but there have been a few times captured seaponies have escaped sahuagin captivity and brought with them tales of the Abyss,” Wavecrest said, eyes shifting towards Ulgriv, “Of course what of these tales are true and what was exaggeration or misremembered due to the poor mental state of those poor souls is debatable.”

Ulgriv didn’t say anything, but Twilight sensed the young fish man was more uncomfortable than usual. His hostility towards them all was still there, like a low simmering heat, but it wasn’t as outright sharp as it had been the other day.

“Might as well tell us what you can,” said Rainbow Dash, “This place is, what, one big hole in the ocean floor?”

“More like a series of wounds, like several great claws dug deep gouges into the seabed,” Wavecrest explained, “It is a maze of underwater canyons and rifts that go on for uncounted miles. The sahuagin build their settlements amid the natural caverns that interset the walls of these trenches. The stories of those rare few escapees of the sahaugin’s clutches speak of one settlement most of all; Rift Mouth.”

That caused Ulgriv to stirr, lips pulled back in a gurgling snarl. Nearby, Fluttershy looked to him with an open look of understanding hardened only by a plain honesty as she said, “You recognize the name.”

“My home,” Ulgriv grunted, “How much damage will you do to it?”

“We don’t wanna do no more harm than we gotta, but dependin’ on how ornery yer kin git, things’ll probably be more n’ a touch rowdy,” Applejack said, all flat honesty, “Ain’t no gettin’ ‘round that fact, less ya want ta give us somethin’ ta help us avoid a dust up.”

“I... don’t understand your strange surfacer talk, but there is no way to avoid a fight,” Ulgriv stated simply, sounding miserable in the admission, “If Morgawr has returned in defeat, it will be the other champion’s of Charybdis’ turn to gain honor and favor.”

“Other champions,” Rarity said with a tired voice, “I suppose it would’ve been to much to expect that Morgawr fellow to be the only one. Just how many ‘champions’ does Charybdis have?”

“Her chosen, they are not many,” Ulgriv admitted, “And fewer still of enough strength to be considered Morgawr’s equals. Two, perhaps three.”

Twilight briefly considered that, asking pointedly, “Would Charybdis empower these ‘chosen’ like she did Morgawr?”

Ulgriv bit his lip until it bled, shaking his head, “I’ve said more than I should already.”

“Ulgy, the more we know, the more likely we can do this without making a big mess of your home,” Pinkie Pie said, but the sahuagin clamped his mouth shut and shook his head again, and the mare gave a sigh and hapless shrug to Twilight, “Well, on the bright side, least we kinda know what to expect from two or three more Morgawrs.”

“He was formidable, but Twilight did readily deal with him prior to unlocking the power of her Relic,” Rarity pointed out, “I dare say that all of us together should prove more than a match for any of these fishy brutes.”

“Easy for you all to say that who happen to have Relics,” Trixie said, but Starlight, who was sitting next to her, gave the magician a reassuring elbow.

“Relax Trixie. Tempest and I held our own against Morgawr, and you’re no slouch, Relic or no Relic. Personally I’m feeling pretty confident of our chances of at least getting to Charybdis, assuming we can figure out how to navigate the Abyss without getting lost.”

“Like I said, I should be able to track Charybdis’ magic to at least give us some direction,” Twilight said, giving her chin a pensive rub with a wingtip, “Although chances are she’s thought of that and may have set up something to interfere with tracking magic.”

“Look, if Ulgriv doesn’t want to give us directions to Rift Mouth, I can get the info more directly,” Starlight suggested, but Wavecrest interjected.

“Rift Mouth’s location should not be hard to find. I may not have knowledge of a direct route, but the escapee’s old tales have enough pieces for me to work my own magics upon the Abyss’ currents to find the source of the warmest ones. Keep in mind, the Abyss is a place of near freezing waters, so any current of slight warmth is where the sahuagin would build their homes. The largest and warmest currents would lead to Rift Mouth, as it is their largest settlement.”

“Coulda said so from the start,” Applejack muttered, and Wavecrest coughed politely.

“I was not asked.”

“Right, so we have a means of knowing where to go, but what do we do when we get there?” Starlight asked, “I have a bad feeling that charging in blindly isn’t going to work in our favor.”

“I don’t know, seems to have worked pretty good for us so far,” Rainbow Dash pointed out, and Starlight put a hoof to her own forehead.

“If minimizing casualties is part of the plan, we probably want to avoid just blasting away with the Treasury’s armaments, Rainbow. On top of that we don’t really know for certain how powerful Charybdis really is. Just by exerting her magic over a distance she gave us plenty of trouble back in Aqualania. Now I’m all in on kicking her flank into next week, but we’ve got to approach this carefully.”

“Hmph...” Rainbow Dash blew out a breath and flexed her wings, but did relent somewhat in the face of Starlight’s pragmatic words, “I get it, and you’re probably right. Still, how much planning can we really do when we don’t know anything? We’re pretty much stuck just going headlong into things and working out a plan on the fly, aren’t we?”

“Not entirely,” Twilight said, “If nothing else we can agree on some basic ideas before we reach the dive point. For example, we can expect resistance from the sahuagin, and that will slow us down considerably. While I don’t know for certain what Charybdis is working with her magic, my initial analysis of the storm suggests that the amount of magic that Charybdis is conjuring up is consistent with a High Magic ritual. Gauging the amount of magic being produced as a by product I can estimate the timeframe such a ritual will take to complete, and I believe we have somewhere between ten to sixteen hours.”

“Oh my, is that a long or a short time for magic on this scale?” asked Fluttershy, and Twilight found herself chuckling awkwardly.

“Honestly it’s hard to say, since I still don’t know for certain what Charybdis is trying to do, only that it’s pretty large, and involves some manner of spatial magic. I can tell that much just from the combination of magic elements in the storm.”

“Ten hours at the minimum, hmm?” Rarity mused aloud, “Will we even arrive in that timeframe?”

“Admiral Seaspray is putting all he can into our engines to get us there, but it will be cutting things very close,” Twilight admitted, “Which is why letting the sahuagin delay us is a problem. If we’re tied up for even an hour it might make us too late to stop Charybdis from doing whatever it is she’s planning.”

“Ulgriv, do you have any idea what she might be up to?” asked Fluttershy, causing the sahuagin warrior to very reluctantly speak after a long pause.

“The will of the Deep Mistress is not known to the likes of I. She protects us, and the shamans pass down her words to her children. It is said she seeks to lead us to a place of warmth and bounty, but most warriors assume that means one day retaking our place in the rest of the seas.”

“Whatever the truth is, our goal of stopping her doesn’t change, does it?” asked Wavecrest, “Regardless of the dark magics she is working, halting the ritual and defeating her can only be a good thing.”

“Agreed,” said Twilight, although it did still bother her that they were going into this situation largely blind to their enemy’s true goals. She could theorize, and had a few ideas, but Wavecrest was right. They didn’t need to know what Charybdis’ goals were to stop her dead in her tracks. Her ill will towards all other beings on Equestria besides her sahuagin servants was plainly evident. And in the sahaugin’s case, Twilight felt removing Charybdis’ influence might do the species some good as well, although she was not so naïve as to assume things would change quickly or easily even after Charybdis was dealt with. There was a vast history of pain, bloodshed, and hatred involved in the sahaugin’s activities over the years, and the seapony’s themselves shared deeply in that history.

One way or another, peace was a long ways off, but Twilight believed it was her duty as not simply a Princess, but as a creature of good heart, to do all she could to begin that process of teaching peace and friendship to every individual possible. Charybdis herself notwithstanding. At least not without a long, long stint in Tartarus. She sighed, not liking the somewhat vindictive part of her that Charybdis had awakened. Few had ever earned Twilight’s ire quite as potently, and for the first time Twilight actually looked forward to the fight to come. It wasn’t becoming of an emissary of friendship, but the truth was that Twilight wanted very badly to knock Charybdis’ teeth in and put her in Tartarus personally. She wasn’t even certain of why she was so hostile towards the seapony witch, other than the absolute bastardization and abuse of magic as a tool to control and manipulate others, and quite frankly Discord or Chrysalis had been just as bad in that vein.

Is it simply because Charybdis reminds me a little of myself? Bookish, always studying, obsessed with magic. I was a lot like her, before moving to Ponyville. Am I this mad because I know it’s possible I could have ended up the same way?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Ulgriv’s voice, the sahuagin letting out a quiet but somehow incredibly steel hard tone as he stared at her.

“You, leader of the surfacers.”

“Y-yes?”

He reached up to clutch the talisman he wore around his neck, the symbol of Charybdis he bore, and clearly treasured deeply. There was a youthful hesitance and pain in his aquatic features, and fear, quite a lot of it. Yet he still kept his voice firm, “I cannot betray my people. I will not betray my faith in the Deep Mistress. I can see you all believe her to be an evil to be cast out. You think she uses my people. So be it, think that if you will. She is all I have known, and every moment of suffering I’ve endured in life, I’ve been able to endure because of her grace. That cannot change, even if... I am starting to believe you surfacers actually believe you are doing right by opposing her.”

He let out a frustrated gurgle and smacked his other hand onto the table, “And I am powerless, no matter what I do! I cannot stop you. I can do nothing, because you have strength and I do not. So all I can do is provide you a path to avoid harming my people, and to confront my Deep Mistress directly.”

“You will?” Twilight asked, and the captive sahuagin met her stare with a flat one of his own.

“Do know this, suracer Twilight Sparkle. I only do this because I have faith you will lose. My people, my fellow warriors, will be spared fewer deaths, and when you confront the Deep Mistress, I trust in her will and that you will fall. And if... I am wrong, then it will not matter, for my faith and soul will truly be dead, and I’ll care not what happens to me.”

“Ulgy, no need to be so dark,” Pinkie Pie said, her mane wilting slightly, but he just made a low burbling snort at her.

“You are too strange for even your own kind, pink one.”

“We dig Pinkie’s unique vibe, fish dude,” Rainbow Dash said, “So you’re gonna change your tune and let us know a safer way into this Rift Mouth place?”

“Safe?” he shook his finned head, “There is no ‘safe’ in the Abyss, less so if there are chosen champions of the Deep Mistress preparing a defense against you. All I can provide is the best possible methods to approach those defenses and get through without slaughtering my people. The actual doing of this remains your own to do, crazy surfacers.”

“Hah, fair enough!” Rainbow Dash said, cracking a smile.

“Thank you, Ulgriv,” said Twilight, “It may mean little to you, but I do give my word as Princess of Equestria that I will do all in my power to minimize the harm done to the sahuagin people and Rift Mouth when we arrive. Now, please, tell us all that you can...”

----------

In the depths of a jungle filled to the brim with every conceivable form of deadly wildlife, Chrysalis and Ocellus lounged amid a devoured pile of soul remains of that very same wildlife. The empty husks of various beasts lay like discarded candy wrappers around the two Arrancar, the souls of the creatures torn free and consumed with greedy abandon.

Ocellus licked her lips of the last traces of blood from a soul taken from a giant panther, and laid back on the sandy shore of the jungle lake she and her mother were having their “picnic” at.

“Aaaah, so good! I wish my brothers were here to enjoy this. I don’t know what it is about the souls in this world, but they’re just way more flavorful than the ones back home!”

Chrysalis flashed a warm smile at her daughter. She was laying on her side, head propped on a hand, one knee drawn up in a lazy pose as she had finished her own snacks. There was a terrifying ease in which she had drawn in the souls of the beasts around her into her mouth, like a suction vacuum pulling in errant dust.

“It is the magic of this word, Ocellus. Even mere beasts like this offer quite the expansive spectrum of taste.”

Ocellus flipped to her feet and went to splash in the lakeshore, dancing around and regarding her mother with a curious look, “But they don’t feel stronger than the souls back home. Different, but about the same in terms of filling me up. Is Tirek really sure that taking this world is gonna be such a big deal?”

A low, rich laugh came from Chrysalis, her eyes closing slightly as she measured her daughter with a mother’s loving mindset. Thorax may have been her clever eldest, but her youngest was sharp in her own unique way. Chrysalis didn’t rise much, but did sit up and held out a hand as if holding up an object, “Tirek sees power like a physical thing, Ocellus. A weight, if you will. The more power one has, the greater the ‘weight’, like a big rock on a weight scale.”

She lowered her hand slightly, “And while magic may have no more ‘volume’ than spiritual power, the amalgam of magic and spirit energy generates a greater force, an increase in ‘mass’ if you will, even if the ‘volume’ of a soul remains unchanged. Haven’t you noticed that, merely by being in this world and consuming such small souls here, there has been a subtle increase in pressure of your reiryoku?”

“Ummm...” Ocellus tapped her chin, then snapped her fingers as her face lit up, “I haven’t paid a lot of attention to my own reiatsu, but Pipsqueaks has been growing by leaps and bounds! Before Starlight got herself all banished to the shadow realm or whatever, she was talking about Pipsqueak being ready to control his Inner Hollow and mask up!”

“Ahah, I suppose I should have expected you’d be focused on the boy,” Chrysalis said with a fondness in her voice, “But yes, even he, with minimal exposure to this realm’s magic, is feeling the affect of having his reiatsu altered slightly by magic. Now imagine what would happen if one such as Tirek arrived and reaped a harvest of many souls.”

Ocellus scratched her head. Although a changeling in Equestria, she could shapeshift into her more human form, as she and Chrysalis were currently doing, so it was with a hand that she ruffled her own pink mohawk while kicking at the water of the lake. “Guess he’d get even bigger and badder than he already is. And so would you, mom. So why don’t you go eating up every soul you can, now? Starlight isn’t around to stop you, and everyone back at the base is pretty scared of you. You might get strong enough to even take down Tirek, right?”

Chrysalis made a ‘come here’ gesture towards her daughter, and Ocellus bounced on over. Chrysalis reached out and pulled her daughter down into a hug, patting the girl’s head. “Ocellus, tell me something. What do you think of when you hear the word ‘monster’?”

“Hmm, lemme think... I guess I think of something huge and scary. Something that makes me feel helpless in front of it. Like I’m nothing more than a little piece of meat to be eaten.”

“A good definition. Some might categorize a monster by the ‘evil’ they do without remorse. Others might think of something beyond their comprehension, something unknowable. You have a very instinctive notion of a monster as something more powerful than you are, that can choose to eat you at its whim. Just like we did here,” she gestured at the piles of soulless, drained jungle beasts.

“To some ponies, these beasts might be ‘monsters’, especially if they found themselves lost in this jungle, alone, in the dark, being stalked. Their blood would run cold, their breath quicken, sweat would pour from their faces as they ran from the danger, terrified of the ‘monster’ that was hunting them. And even if the beast is just following its nature, the pony would scream and think of how monstrous the beast was as they were devoured.”

Ocellus shivered a bit, although she leaned a bit more into her mother’s embrace, feeling comforted even as a part of her knew that her mother was also a ‘monster’ who had the power to devour her at any time. “I guess by that line of thought, I ought to be scared of anything stronger than me.”

“Fear is good, Ocellus. It tells us when we’re in danger. It’s how we identify ‘monsters’. And I am most certainly a monster to many.”

“Not to me,” Ocellus said, but Chrysalis made a ‘tut-tut’ sound and patted Ocellus’ head.

“Keep a clear view at all times. Know who to fear, if only so you know who to become stronger than. Including me. But the point I’m driving towards is this... why would Tirek of all beings, the most powerful of all Hollows, seek to become even stronger?”

Ocellus thought about that for a second, settling out of her mother’s hug to instead sit on Chrysalis’ lap in careful consideration. She snapped her fingers, “Because there are monsters he’s afraid of!”

“Now you see why he wants this realm. Tirek is a monster among monsters. Yet there remains those he fears.”

“Those you fear too, mom...?” Ocellus asked, and Chrysalis’ face grew filled with a brew of volatile unpleasantness, although not directed at Ocellus, and it vanished quickly at the young Arrancar girl’s questioning gaze.

“Those I hate.”

Chrysalis’ words were as blunt a statement of unconquerable fact as a dropping guillotine’s blade. There was control in her words, but only just. A slender hand reached out to caress her daughter’s cheek with protective intensity. “And yes, also fear. Do not tell anyone else, hm? I’d not like to fracture my unflappable image.”

“Hard to imagine you and Tirek being scared of anything,” Ocellus said, but there was a ponderous light in her eyes that Chrysalis appreciated. Her daughter may have seemed like a playful child to most eyes, but the girl could consider a problem from many angles at once. “Sooooo, that must be why you’re still playing nice with Firefly, Platinum, and all those Reigai. We still need them. Or more specifically, we still need Starlight. Wait, no... you want to play with Starlight, but you don’t really need her, do you? It’s something else. Oh! That’ spiffy gem in her chest!”

A pleased bop of Chrysalis’ finger touched Ocellus’ nose, “Mmmhmm. The enemy I must kill are a group of monsters like me, Ocellus. They don’t enjoy my appetites, but they are monsters all their own, and have made our world into a place I can’t abide. Tirek can’t kill them. I can’t kill them either. And technically Starlight can’t, either. But the Hogyoku, on the other hand... well, that silly little ball that Discord made is capable of doing rather impossible things. Yet it bound itself to Starlight, and no other. Even if I tore it from her chest, it wouldn’t do me any good.”

“But you just said Starlight can’t kill these big bad monsters you’re so worried about,” Ocellus pointed out.

“Not as she is now, she can’t. Hence our entire venture here, and why even if she’s currently indisposed I’ll continue to bide my time,” Chrysalis said, and added with a hungry smile that flashed sharp teeth, “And in the meantime it isn’t as if I haven’t found a playmate to entertain me.”

“The pink Princess, right?” Ocellus snorted a little giggle, “She must have left a real impression on you.”

A content sigh escaped Chrysalis as she laid herself back down and stretched, thinking back to her battle with Cadence. A warmth spread through her as she grinned almost like a child herself as she held a hand up to the sky above, a shade of blue not unlike the Crystal Heart itself. “Oh Ocellus, she was magnificent! You should have seen it. Such poise and grace under pressure! Such fierce heat in her hateful stare! I could taste her righteous anger like the finest of spices! Ahh, I’m missing her already, but I have to be patient and wait until she gets stronger before I play with her again.”

“Heheh, you get such a weird look on your face when you’re fantasizing about being hated,” Ocellus laughed, shaking her head, “I don’t really get it myself.”

“Oh, perhaps you will when you’re older, honey. Right now you’re still learning what kind of ‘play’ you enjoy, and I respect that. I’ve certainly noticed how close you’re getting to that Pipsqueak boy,” Chrysalis said with a teasing note, poking Ocellus' ribs in a ticklish manner, “Don’t you just want to take a little nibble on his soul, hmm?”

“Pfft, you’re such a dork, mom,” Ocellus plopped down on Chrysalis’ stomach, straddling her mother while giving Chrysalis a flick on the forehead. To this, Chrysalis chuckled dryly and sat up, picking up a startled Ocellus and playfully tossed her daughter up into the air, to which Ocellus did a backflip and landed on the air itself in a playful crouch.

“Aww, how disrespectful to your loving mother! Your brothers would never dare call me a ‘dork’,” Chrysalis pouted, and Ocellus just responded with another snorting laugh.

“That’s just because they’re momma’s boys. I know better.”

Ocellus’ Sonido was impressive. Even Chrysalis had to admit her daughter was growing up so fast. Still nowhere near as strong as she needed to be in order to live without Chrysalis’ watchful protection, but one day, if she lived long enough, Ocellus and Chrysalis’ other children would all grow into Arrancar capable of standing amongst the Espada. It pleased her immensely, while at the same time reminded her of her singular weak point. And not the Hollow hole in her stomach, although that indeed was a weakness that all Hollow’s had. And not the Womb of the Soul Queen that was bonded with her Hollow hole. That afforded her the power to have genuine children, although the cost of that was that her body’s incredible regenerative properties could be weakened by damaging that part of her.

No, Chrysalis knew her only true weakness were her three true born children, whom she could not help but want to indulge, protect, force to grow, and leave them their freedom all at once.

She didn’t try to catch her daughter or move as Ocellus used Sonido to quickly appear behind her. There was no attack in this, and even if there had been Chrysalis could have readily halted it. No, she just felt Ocellus hug her from behind, chin resting on Chrysalis’ shoulder to whisper into her ear.

“You’re a monster, mom. I know that. Could be I’m one too. But I know something else... you’re always gonna be my mother, and I love you. I’ll love you even after you’re gone and the rest of the world breathes a big sigh of relief that you’re not in it anymore.”

“Hah,” Chrysalis closed her eyes, sighing once more in contentment, “My clever little girl really is growing up fast. Could be by the time I leave this world, you and your brothers won’t need me.”

Her eyes sharpened to emerald jewels of flame, “Because by then I’ll have killed every other monster, so I’m the only one left. Then...”

----------

There was always something faintly saddening about the Castle of the Two Sisters, at least as Cadence saw it. Looking at the worn down walls and faded stained glass it was easy to imagine the rundown ruin as it may have once been, as a vibrant and elegant edifice within the vast and otherwise untamed wilds of the Everfree Forest. It was a pleasant day, although winding down towards evening by the time she, Celestia, and Luna arrived. There had been quite a few matters of state that had needed attending before three of Equestria’s reigning rulers could temporarily hoof over administrative affairs to lesser delegates for a few days.

A few days. Cadence had to wonder if that was remotely enough time for her to get any stronger. Celestia and Luna both appeared confident that in a short span of time they could gain a better amount of control over their Relics, but Cadence had to wonder if that wasn’t just optimism. Or perhaps she was infected with a severe case of pessimism after her failure to defeat the Hollow Chrysalis...?

She kept trying to assuage her fears, wounded pride, and guilt by convincing herself that she’d done all she could, but her mind remained mired in the endless corridors of doubt. What tactics had she not tried? What spells had she failed to consider? What hidden advantages had she not been swift witted enough to make use of, or what weaknesses in her foe had she lacked the perception to spot? Again and again her mind went over the fight in it’s every gory, painful, horrifying detail, asking herself at every freeze frame of memory what she could have done differently.

A wet splat of rain on her head made Cadence look up sharply, only to see a tiny dark raincloud hanging directly over her head and nowhere else, drenching her in a brief flood of water. Making an undignified noise, Cadence side stepped the cloud, saw it dissipate, then looked over with an eye twitching glare at the two sisters. Celestia was hiding a laughing behind a hoof while Luna whistled innocently while looking away, all the while forgetting to diffuse the glow of magic from her horn.

“Really!?” Cadence said, and Celestia sputtered, whilst Luna coughed politely.

“My apologies, but your gloom was such that I simply felt it appropriate to add a suitable environment to the scene,” Luna said, before giving Celestia a hard glance, “Besides, Tia put me up to it!”

Celesita let out a guffaw and flicked at her sister with a hoof, which Luna danced away from, “Snitch! Ah, but I apologize too, Cadence. That said, you looked as if you needed something to snap you out of your dark reverie.”

With a sputtering sigh, Cadence used a wash of magic to run a sky blue strain of light over her body, drying herself out. “The thought is appreciated, but I’m not exactly in the mood for frivolity. We’re here to train, not play pranks, aren’t we?”

The levity in Celestia’s expression switched in a blink to a hardened seriousness, the eldest of the alicorns approaching the stone steps to her former home and turning to face the two younger Princesses. “Quite right. Although I confess training alone is not my sole intention in coming here.”

“Hm?” Cadence made an inquiring sound, despite not being all that surprised. Celestia usually had a monopoly on ulterior motives, in her experience.

“You see, when Luna and I were growing up here, it was Starswirl who was primarily responsible for raising us and teaching us,” Celestia explained, gesturing with a wing at the cracked walls of the heavily aged castle ruins. “During that time it was he who passed on the knowledge or the Relics and our eventual role as Inheritors, including our responsibilities in managing the Relics and curtailing the formation of any serious religions in Equestria.”

Not all of this was news to Cadence, as when she had gone through the transformative process of becoming an alicorn, she had at least the basics of all this taught to her by Celestia. Still, she hadn’t known for certain who had taught the sisters, who were naturally born as alicorns, unlike herself or Twilight.

“I see. How did he come to know about them?”

“The knowledge was passed down specifically through a particular family line that Starswirl was a part of, going back to the time of the ancient alicorns. Granted this, over a long period, became less a family bloodline and more a particularly small and exclusive order of knowledge keepers. There was never any guarantee of maintaining a singular bloodline, nor ensuring when or where natural alicorns would become reborn. It was only known that alicorns of a certain level of ‘Dominion’ would lead to natural born alicorns once their souls returned from the Cycle.”

As Celestia spoke, Luna had trotted up the stairs and hauled open the huge doors leading into the broken interior of the castle, “Tia, we don’t need to spend all day lecturing her on this. Especially considering it doesn’t help us much with our present problem.”

“Pfft, have patience, Lulu. This is important for Cadence for reasons other than simple history or posterity,” Celestia said, joining her sister by the doors and gesturing with a hoof for Cadence to follow. Entering into the main hall of the castle, which was strewn with fallen columns overgrown with moss, Celestia continued to say, “Of all ponies, Cadence has a very personal reason to understand what it means to be born as a natural alicorn.”

Cadence paused in her step, feeling the chill of a slight wind that whistled through the crackled roof of the main hall. Yes, she knew what Celestia meant, for the thought had been crossing her mind ever since Flurry Heart was born. She was also acutely aware of what it may mean for her second foal, slowly growing inside her.

“What you mean to say is that not only is my daughter in Inheritor, but she’s like you and Luna... and Inheritor to an alicorn on the same level as Eos or Iah.”

Long and weighty was the silence that followed, but eventually Celestia said with a meaningful nod, “Yes. Among the alicorns, society was separated by three Dominions. The Lesser Dominion were what made up the bulk of the civilian population, who enjoyed peaceful lives but held at best only minor positions of office or power. What few workers or clerks were needed came from the Lesser Dominion. Above that was the Middle Dominion, those born with exceptional magical talents even by alicorn standards. These individuals could hold rank over entire settlements, or positions of authority in an ‘Order’, or what you might think of as an organization dedicated to a particular field of study or influence.”

Cadence listened intently, following Celestia and Luna until the three of them reached the far end of the hall, where two sets of curving stairs led to a higher balcony that stood over a doorway leading deeper into the castle, flanked by several similar doors, although one of them looked entirely collapsed in on itself. Celestia took a brief look around and then went up the left set of stairs, continuing her lecture as she did so.

“Then there was the Highest Dominion. Such alicorns were the pinnacle of their species. While mortal races that eventually emerged would worship Middle Dominions as deities, it was the Highest Dominions that inspired that worship to begin in the first place. Their power was such that they held sway over fundamental forces of creation that stemmed from the Astral Sea. Each one was infused with an innate connection to one or more elemental magics, and together they formed the highest body of authority in alicorn society. Such was their influence that when only two of them, two sisters, came to blows over ideology, it was enough to fracture alicorn society in half and led to a war of such devastation that we’re still dealing with the fallout of it all, untold thousands of years later.”

“Just how many alicorns of that rank were there?” Cadence asked, her mind picturing her daughter’s loving, innocent smile and guileless eyes.

“Only six,” Celestia replied simply, having led them down several smaller hallways by now. The second floor of the castle was in no better shape than the first, and the alicorns had to hop over a few holes in the floor here and there, but soon enough they reached a worn door that was halfway off it’s rusted hinges, leading into a modest sized chamber. Cadence saw spartan furnishings, all of which were long rotted and barely intact. Yet shockingly enough, there remained walls of bookshelves that were in far better condition, as were the dust and cobweb slathered books sitting upon them. A brief glance confirmed to Cadence that this was due to preservative magic enchantments placed upon the books themselves, which had bled into the bookshelves to keep them intact as well.

Her attention focused back on Celestia’s words, she asked, “So Eos and Iah make two, then who were the other four? Which one... is Flurry Heart?”

“That, I cannot say for certain,” Celestia said, “Of the remaining four Highest Dominions I know of none whose Relics have even been uncovered. As I assimilate Eos’ memories I will be able to know more, but for now I still lack detailed knowledge of Eos and Iah’s peers. In Flurry Heart’s case it is impossible to know for certain who’s Inheritor she is until she finds at least one of her Relics. And at her age, I would not allow her near one. Hard enough to contend with such an alicorn’s memories when one is a full grown adult. I fear your daughter’s mind would not withstand such an infusion of memory and personality.”

“As if I don’t know that!” Cadence snapped, although she was quick to soften her tone, even if she was unable to keep a swell of pained emotion from entering her voice, “Why do you think I want to know what alicorn’s Relic she’s tied to? So I can keep her as far away from it as possible! I’m not about to let my baby’s mind get taken over. This whole Inheritor system is so flawed, I can’t imagine why they came up with it.”

“Don’t be too harsh on them,” Celestia said as she began perusing the bookshelves, while Luna looked around the small chamber with a look of melancholic nostalgia that Cadence couldn’t fail to notice.

“In truth, they didn’t have any better options,” Luna said, “Even from my own somewhat incomplete memory of Iah’s, I can tell you that they only enacted this plan because they were out of time and did not have the means to devise something else. It may seem unfair to us that have to deal with being Inheritors, and it is, but it is a burden that the alicorns of old did not deal us without heavy hearts.”

“For all the good that does us now,” Cadence said, sucking in a deep breath and sitting down on her haunches, “What are you looking for here, anyway?”

“Starswirl’s journals and notebooks are many, as you can see,” Celestia said, her eyes never ceasing to scan books as she used magic to remove them from the shelves and hold several open at once, “And these represent just a fraction of them. He had several ‘note rooms’ like this that he’d use to jot down his thoughts, experiments, findings, musings, whatever came to his mind.”

“The two of you were close to him?” Cadence asked, seeing the shade of memory on both the sisters.

“He may not have been our father by blood, but he did teach us,” Celestia said, making a small laugh as if at a fond remembrance, “At least when he could. He was ever a busy stallion, especially once he formed his band of adventurous companions.”

“We saw less and less of him during those days,” Luna said, “Although by that point Tia and I were getting old enough to have a few adventurers of our own, before we were asked to take charge as rulers.”

“As to your question, Cadence, what I’m looking for is information on Stygian,” Celestia said, frowning as she floated more notebooks across her scrutinous gaze, “Specifically what happened between him and Starswirl. I never thought that prison would be breached, and now that it has happened once, I wish to be prepared for it happening again. If need be, if I can find the spell Starswirl used to create the portal into Limbo in the first place I can reenact it.”

“Or break it,” Luna pointed out, but Celestia gave her sister a swift sidelong glance, to which Luna simply held up her hooves, “I did not say we should, of course.”

“Hmm. At any rate, this could take me hours, or days, to pour over every one of his journals,” Celestia said, “So in the meantime, Cadence, how about you and Lulu begin with the physical training? Once you two have been at it for a while, I’ll tag out with Luna and she can get book dust all over her.”

“Is that a good idea? I mean, the two of you training with just me alone?” asked Cadence, “What if one of you succumbs to the Relics’ memories?”

“That’s precisely why I want us to spar with you one on one,” Celestia said, “If something does go wrong, it means that whichever one of us is doing research here will be rested and fresh to come in and help restrain the other. If we’re both exhausted sparring for hours, or goodness forbid we both succumbed to Eos and Iah at the same time, then things would become quite dicey, wouldn’t they?”

Cadence couldn’t find a hole in that logic, so she merely nodded and looked to Luna, “So, you and me, then?”

“Indeed,” replied the Princess of the Night, looking ever more jovial as the prospect of contest and challenge loomed before her, “And since my sister will be sticking her snout in dusty tomes for some hours, I look forward to putting you through the paces. Come, our arena awaits.”

“Arena? We’re not just going to fight outside?” Cadence inquired as Luna led her away from the small, moldering chamber where Celestia remained focused upon Starswirl’s notebooks. Luna proceeded swiftly and with lighter steps that approached a canter down an adjoining hall which then led to a sharp turn to a stairwell leading down. However, rather than begin to head down the stairs, Luna paused by the entrance and started to run a hoof over the wall next to the stairs.

“Ummm?” Cadence was well aware Luna hadn’t answered her question, and now appeared to be fondling a moss covered wall.

Cadence’s apprehension was not assuaged when Luna let out a foalish giggle and then pressed a spot on the wall, where a circular indentation then recessed inwards. A rough grinding of stone sounded and Luna said without looking at Cadence, “You might want to brace yourself.”

“For wh-” Cadence began, then abruptly felt the floor drop out from under her. Gravity took its course, Cadence tumbling straight down the trap door that had opened beneath her. The sharp drop near immediately turned into a smooth slide of polished stone, taking a surprised Cadence on a swift trip down a sliding tube that corkscrewed left and right several times while continuing to remain at a steep incline. Dizzy, Cadence still managed to right herself just in time for the trap slide to terminate in an opening that shot her out of a tall wall into a vast, dark chamber.

Spreading her wings, she controlled her fall, which lasted for at least fifty or so feet before she landed on... sand?

Beneath her hooves were the grains of well worn sand, although all around her was darkness. A moment later she heard a joyous whoop as Luna came sliding out of the same hole in the wall, spreading her wings and performing a graceful flip before landing next to Cadence.

“Ahah! I forgot how fun our old slide was! Heh, Tia will be thrilled the trap door still works, too.”

“Yes, I’m sure she will be,” Cadence said with absolute dryness in her voice, then she quickly cleared her throat and gestured around her, “Where are we, exactly?”

“Just a moment,” Luna said, and raised her forehooves to clap them together twice. As if awaiting that command, lights started to spring up from huge lit torches built into the walls of what Cadence could now see was a truly massive, circular shaped, underground arena.

The magical torches flared up ina alternating flames of yellow and blue, coating the arena in an oddly uneven and ethereal light. The floor of the huge circle shaped arena was all solid, packed sand. The walls spanned a diameter of at least the same size of the castle above, with a ceiling nearly sixty feet high. Cadence didn’t see any obvious doors out, but she assumed there had to be more hidden passages like the one that had brought them here. Along some parts of the wall she noticed weapon racks, all bearing old, dusty, but still very functional looking weapons of all styles and make.

“This is Tia and I’s personal little sparring ground,” Luna explained, “When we began teaching ourselves the arts of war and spell combat, we used this arena to test our skills against each other.”

“I see. I hope you don’t mind my saying so, but it seems a little barebones,” Cadence mentioned, and Luna gave her a rueful grin.

“Announcer, are you still here?” Luna called out, and Cadence gave a startled yelp as she felt the sands shift around her. The arena’s sands trembled and then, just a few paces away, the sand rose up in motes of blue and gold light, churning together until the sand formed the shape of a pony... in a top hat? It was still clearly a construct of sand, but the details the sand could form were quite detailed, and the sand pony was clearly a mare from her figure, with a neat short clipped mane and tail. Eyes of solid light, one blue and one yellow, popped to life in the sandmare’s face and she took off her top hat in a flourish, bowing.

“Good day Mistress Luna!” Announcer said in a sing-song, enthusiastic voice, “It’s been three hundred and eighty three thousand, six hundred and fifty six days since your last visit! Will Mistress Celestia be joining you for today’s training session?”

“Ah, Announcer, I’m so glad to see the enchantment is still holding. I wasn’t sure it would,” Luna said as she walked around the sandmare.

“Of course, Mistress Luna! As long as this arena exists, so too shall I. How may I help you? I see we have a new participant? Is Mistress Celestia not with you?”

Cadence could almost hear a note of nostalgic longing in the construct’s voice, although that must have been artificial. Constructs of magic didn’t have actual emotions, at least no research on the subject had ever confirmed such. A construct, no matter how life-like, was still just an artificial creation able to perform a limited number of expressions and functions based on the spells used to make them. It wasn’t unheard of that a construct could last thousands of years, if the spells making them were sufficiently powerful, but it was still impressive that this ‘Announcer’ was still fully responsive and intact after such a long time.

“Oh, Tia’s here, but she’ll be joining us later,” Luna replied to the construct’s earnest inquiry, while trotting ahead a number of paces so that she could turn to face Cadence at a distance that Cadence recognized as traditional ‘dueling distance’ of ten paces. “In the meantime, Announcer, meet Princess Cadence, ruler of the Crystal Empire, fellow alicorn and Inheritor.”

The lights of Announcer’s eyes lit up like flaring torches and she made a sound akin to a ‘squee’ as she flopped her tophat right back onto her sandy head and twirled to face Cadence, “Oh my gosh, it’s such an honor! I was made specifically to help train personages just as distinguished as yourself, Princess Cadence, so allow me the absolute pleasure of formally welcoming you to my humble arena! I am Announcer, and I control the environs of this arena, and provide my distinct and colorful commentary to the bouts that take place here! Heh, not that many bouts have happened in quite awhile.”

At this, Luna’s voice did take on a faint not of apology as she bowed her head, “I am sorry for that, Announcer. Sadly the enchantments that give you life are tied solely to this place, and cannot be transferred.”

“Oh I know, Mistress Luna! It’s no trouble at all, really!” Announcer waved a hoof in flustered flutters at Luna, “Truly I sleep like a foal whenever I’m not activated, so what’s a thousand years or so to me? I’m just happy to know that you and Mistress Celestia are in good health and that another alicorn walks among us now. I exist solely to fulfill my duty in training those who enter my arena and helping them upgrade their CPR.”

“Huh?” Cadence said, “What is that?”

Luna chuckled, “Tia’s idea. She programmed it into Announcer when we made her.”

Cadence blinked as Announcer was suddenly in her face, grinning broadly and her twin light eyes shining like stars, “I’m so glad you asked! CPR stands for Combat Potential Rating! It’s a system for analyzing and quantifying the battle capabilities of those who train in my arena! You could call it my special skill. As you fight, the magic that infuses me and my arena carefully probes and scans every part of your abilities and compiles it into an easy to understand rating system to determine how powerful you are! By doing this, you can also figure out how to improve.”

“I...see,” Cadence said, and Luna smiled at her reassuringly.

“Don’t think about it too much, Cadence. Like I said, this was Tia’s idea, back when she was going through her ‘roleplaying’ phase. Very into numbers, charts, and stat ratings. Did you know she’s a co-producer of Ogres and Oubliettes? At any rate, don’t mind the CPR thing too much. I’ve always considered it a dubious means of figuring out our strength, and real battles tend to be chaotic enough that rating your own abilities or those of your foes don’t give a proper indicator of who will win.”

“Aw, you wound me, Mistress Luna,” Announcer whined, “I work really hard on my analysis skills! And I love explaining how it all works! You see there’s five basic categories, rated 1-100; Strength, Mobility, Magic, Experience, and Ability-”

“Skip it for now, Announcer,” Luna said, using a gleam of magic to withdraw an ancient bow from a shimmer of magical sub-space. Announcer immediately went quiet upon seeing the bow, understanding what it was. A Relic. Announcer bowed her head deeply to the alicorn.

“I understand. What parameters would you like to set for your battle? I trust it is Princess Cadence, versus you, Princess Luna, with no other participants?”

“Correct. Let us set the initial fight for a time limit of one hour, just as a warm up. Variable terrain, if you please, Announcer.”

“Righto!” Announcer said, her exuberance infectiously filling her voice as she leaped into the air with an impressive backflip. The sands of the arena trembled once more, and a pillar rose up from the center of the chamber, made entirely of hard packed sand. Yet as Cadence watched, transmutation magic flowed through the sand and turned the pillar into solid metal, which Announcer landed atop of. There, she struck a pose with one hoof thrust high in the air as the rest of the arena continued to shake.

One after another other obstacles began to appear around the room, forged from sand that then transmuted into other materials such as stone, metal or wood. In seconds the arena began to resemble a giant foal’s jungle gym.

“Mares and gentlestallions, we’ve got ourselves our first match in over a thousand years! Our humble arena is pleased to host two contestants who are as beautiful as they are powerful! In the Blue Corner, our very own hometown heroine, returned to her old stomping grounds. Put your hooves together for the Knight of Dreams, the Guardian of the Night, the Terror of Tea Time, Princesssss Luuuunaaaa!”

Announcer proceeded to mime a few crowd cheering noises, while Cadence just looked at Luna with an every raising eyebrow, “Terror of Tea Time?”

Luna sighed, “I had a habit of ruining Tia’s tea parties. She holds a grudge for a long time.”

“Aaaand in the Red Corner, hailing from the Crystal Empire, we have a fresh new face ready to rumble! Let us hear a hearty welcoming cheer for the Pink Princess of Pain, the Crystalline Crusher, Princesssss Caaaadennceee!”

“Does she just make up nicknames for everypony she meets?” Cadence said whilst Announcer performed a whole chorus of additional mimed cheering. Luna just laughed and readied her bow, although Cadence noted that it didn’t have a string, nor did Luna carry a quiver of any arrows.

“You get used to her. Now, do me a favor, and prepare to draw forth the power of your Relic. I am going to try to make use of Iah’s power here, and truth be told I do not know for certain how this is going to go.”

Cadence took a deep breath and much as Luna had withdrawn her bow Relic from a magical pocket of space, she too did the same with Anteros’ ring. She had not known the full history of the ring when she’d made use of it, other than it was a Relic, but now that she had some of Anteros’ memories she knew what had meant to the former deity of Love and Art. With no small amount of respect she carefully placed the ring on her horn as she faced Luna.

“I’m ready. If things do go wrong and Iah takes over, do we have a plan?”

“Yes,” Luna said simply, and held the bow up, focusing a sudden and powerful aura of her magic around the Relic, “Survive.”

Sensing the tension in the air, Announcer all but vibrated with excitement as she raised a hoof high into the air, and then cut down hard with it as she shouted, “Match...staaaaart!”

----------

The energy of unease mixed with bloodlust was enough to make Morgawr’s claws twitch. These feelings were a palpable vibration in the water around not only him, but the entirety of the gathered host of warriors. At the moment it was only himself, his fellow champions Rezarra and Berokar, and the dozen or so warband leaders who were assembled at the peak of a curved and sharp spire of rock that rose from the side of a sheer cliff that rose for miles of watery depth above their heads. This spire was one of many that jutted upwards from the bottom of a vast cavern mouth in the cliff wall, alongside a set of similar downward curved spires that, when combined, gave the cavern mouth an appearance of having vast stone fangs.

Within the cavern opening itself were rows of similar, if smaller, fortifications, mostly meant to provide cover for warriors to cast harpoons from. Behind that the cavern expanded into a short underwater tunnel that extended half a kilometer, leading to the deeper trench beyond it that was one of several routes to reach the settlement of Rift Mouth. This fortress was one of several built to act as a bulwark to block those potential routes to the sahaugin’s largest home and the liar of their goddess. In front of the fortress was the length of an expansive trench, with jagged rock walls stretching to either side for miles. To navigate to this depth one would need to pass through a confusing mass of seeming endless, pitch black stone trenches. The cold of the water was something that could sap the strength of even the most hearty creature, the sahuagin among the few adapted enough to it that they could live in this lightless, heatless domain.

In some ways it struck Morgawr as contradictory that he took such pride in his and his kind’s ability to withstand and survive in this cold place, yet yearned for the day they could claim the warmer waters from the soft kin such as the seaponies. Or the waters of the new world the Deep Mistress would lead them to, if... when her magic opened the way.

And yet apprehension and worry tore in gnawing teeth at his gut like maddened bonefish. He gripped hard the trident he carried, not his enchanted one stolen by the surfacers but a plain trident of simple bone and coral.

He’d faced the might of the surfacers once, and knew in truth that this fortress and the legion of warriors gathered to mount a defense here had no true hope of stopping the surfacers.

“Your thoughts, Morgawr?”

It was Rezarra who had spoken and her respectful but pointed tone snapped him out of his gloomy reverie. Berokar and Rezarra were floating at the tip of the fortress spire where they’d used knives to carve maps and plans upon a tablet of large slate carried by a pair of burly warriors who kept the tablet steady. On the tablet was a general map of not just this fortress, but it’s cousins placed along the other routes through the Abyss’ many trenches. Morgawr knew every crevice of the Abyss and the simple map gave him a perfect mental image of the entirety of its vast maze.

“Hmm,” he grumbled, giving himself a moment to think. He hadn’t heard Rezarra’s question, but he guessed she was seeking his advice on her chosen deployment of forces. “There are but three true routes to Rift Mouth. Other means exist to reach it, but the ship the surfacers are using is too large to fit all but these three...”

He pointed them out with his trident. If one looked upon the map as a general top-down view of the Abyss, then the three fortresses were situated in a near triangular pattern at the tip of three curved paths, one generally curving out to the north west, another south east, and the third one that the fortress they were currently at curved almost straight east then slightly north. Simple, X-shaped marks indicated warbands, etched next to each fortress.

“The bulk of our force remains here, which is wise,” he said, “We cannot know from which direction the surfacers will come. If we spread out too thin, we’ll lack the force to delay the enemy for any length of time.”

“Hmph, or just destroy them,” Berokar said, toying with one of his daggers, “I still say that the moment we know where the surfacers are coming from, we swarm them.”

“And by doing so, consign most of our warriors to meaningless death,” Morgawr said, “I am telling you Berokar, do not take these ponies lightly. Our task is to slow them down, and so we must plan around that as our objective. Anything else will lead to further failure.”

“Which is why I wanted to ask you where you think they will come at us from,” Rezarra said, giving Berokar a meaningful hiss as she placed a claw upon her own circular blade of shark teeth, “And if Berokar wishes to seek command from me, he is welcome ot challenge for it.”

“Tempting, but I’ll not second guess the Deep Mistress’ choice to place you in command now,” Berokar said, “I merely grow impatient for the bloodletting to commence. I know Morgawr fears these surfacers, but the force he had in Aqualania was but a fraction of the forces we have here in our home turf. Here in the Abyss we hold every advantage.”

“If these were normal foes, you would be correct,” Morgawr said, causing Berokar to give him a surprised glance, but Morgawr was quick to continue in blunt, clear words, “But what we face are not seapony hunters, or an ocean beast. You were not in Aqualania Berokar. You did not see what I saw, or fought what I fought.”

“Then enlighten us, please,” Rezarra said.

“Hmm, about your question, I suspect they will come at us from the most direct route, here,” Morgawr said, “While they split up to infiltrate Aqualania, i believe that was only because they had two objectives back then; to find that ship, and to rescue the ancient kin that our Deep Mistress desired captured. However now that they have but one objective there is no reason for them to split their forces, and the route to this particular fortress is the easiest to navigate, which will draw them in given their lack of knowledge of the Abyss itself.”

“That does make sense,” Rezarra said, “But I will keep a recon force at the other routes to scout those areas, just in case. I have a gut feeling that these surfacers will do the unexpected. Now, how do we slow them down? You seem to think direct attacks will fail.”

“They are not invincible,” Morgawr admitted, “Yet the power at their disposal was enough to dispatch entire warbands individually. Instead of coming at them head on, we should distract their attention and if possible disable the ship itself.”

“Why not bring down parts of the trench wall on it?” said Berokar, “It would not be hard to weaken a few sections that would then come down from a potent enough strike from one of us blessed chosen.”

He was of course referring to the incredible physical might one of the Deep Mistress’ champions could be infused with, just as Morgawr had when he battled Twilight Sparkle. While that might had availed him naught against the potent alicorn, it did not change that such strength would be enough to tear down a section or two of the Abyssal trench wall. Enough tones of stone may well damage the surfacer’s stolen ship and slow it’s progress, at least.

“That may work,” he said, after which Rezarra chimed in.

“We will still need to deal with the surfacers directly, even if we damage their ship. Did you see any weakness in their abilities, Morgawr? Any ideas on how to best bring down our prey?”

“I only fought a few of them personally,” he replied, gnashing his teeth at the shameful memory of defeat, “First two unicorns, both purple but one was much lighter in shade than the other, who had a broken horn. The former was highly skilled with magic, but lacked physical strength, so if you see her, get close, and do not give her time to focus her magic. The other, the broken horned one, has less control over her magic, but is a skilled close range fighter. Temperamental, from what I saw, so make her angry, then strike when she lets her guard down. As for the one who... defeated me, Twilight Sparkle, for her I can offer little advice. She possessed a special spell that created a sphere of magic that was able to halt my trident, analyze its magic, and amplify her own spells to incredible degrees. While she did not strike me as a trained warrior, her reflexes, intuition, and tactical ability allowed her to keep pace with me no matter how I tried to strike at her.”

“Heh, such praise given to a surfacer,” Berokar said, shaking his head, “You sound almost as if you admire this creature.”

“Not admiration, merely acknowledgment of the danger she poses as a foe,” Morgawr said, growling deeply in his chest, “Face her yourself, Berokar, and you shall understand. If what Devistus told me of what happened after my defeat is true, then Twilight Sparkle has become even more powerful, as have a number of her companions. They possess some manner of new magic that allows them to transform in a manner not unlike when the Deep Mistress empowers we champions.”

“Troubling,” Rezarra said, “If we face them, then we should strike at them before they can transform.”

“Leave that to me,” Berokar said, showing teeth in a smile as friendly as the maw of a feeding piranha, “When I get serious on the hunt, my prey never knows I’m there until I’ve already slit their throat and cut out their heart.”

“If you can kill even one of them before they can transform then it will be a boon,” Morgawr said, “The less our Deep Mistress will have to face, herself.”

“You speak as if you do not have faith that we can stop them,” Rezarra said, and he just huffed out a gurgling noise of agreement.

“Because I do not. Neither does our Deep Mistress, otherwise she would have given us orders to slaughter the invaders rather than merely buy her time. She is wiser than all of us combined, and knows our foes abilities and powers better than we do. She is right. We cannot stop them. But we can slow them. Hurt them. Weaken them in any way we can. Anything to tip the scales in our Deep Mistress’ favor in the inevitable fight that is coming,” his hands clenched harder with every word, for he hated that this was the truth of things. He wished to do so much more for his Deep Mistress, to give his all so that she never had to face any danger. For as much as he hated to admit it to himself, Charybdis was in danger.

His faith in the power of his goddess was absolute, but even absolute faith could be shaken, and Morgawr’s had, to his core. Twilight Sparkle had seen to that, even before she’d obtained a frightening new power. And now, in his heart, Morgawr feared for his goddess. He knew that the next twenty four hours would alter the fate of his race. Either their Deep Mistress would emerge victorious and lead them to a glorious new future, or these powerful surfaces would strike her down and hence doom his people to a slow death without her guidance and protection.

And he feared, all the way down to his soul, that the margin between victory and defeat was going to be razor thin.

----------

Approximately half a mile above a frothing ocean dotted with ice flows, the Treasury hovered like a circling hawk. To the north the uneven glacial shore of the northern icecaps began, spreading to the east and west horizons in a white sheet. The lightning strewn clouds of the magical storm formed a cylindrical cyclone around this singular eye of relative calm, situated directly above the waters where, deep in the frozen depths, the Abyss awaited.

Magically reinforced against the cold via Twilight’s spells, the Princess’ party of companions gathered.

All were present save those who would be operating the Treasury itself during the mission; Admiral Seaspray, Grubber, Ulgriv, Trixie, Aria, and Sonata. Rarity had trained Grubber on the sensors, while Aria and Sonata would control the weapons, leaving Seaspray to control the helm. Ulgriv would remain in locked quarters rather than a cell, with the agreement to release him once all was said and done, regardless of the outcome of the coming battle. Trixie had been very vocal about staying on the ship, but Starlight had convinced her that it was necessary for somepony to be in engineering, and that she had full confidence that Trixie could handle the challenge. The showmare had acquiesced, but only after much grumbling and extracting a promise from Starlight that she’d be careful.

This left Twilight and her five closest friends, alongside Starlight Glimmer, Tempest Shadow, Wavecrest, and Flash Sentry assembled on the deck, still shivering a bit in the arctic winds of the storm despite magical protection.

“We’re in position, Princess,” Admiral Seaspray’s voice said over an external ship communication crystal, “Trixie reports engines are at full charge. We can begin at your command.”

Twilight drew in a deep breath through her nose and let it out slowly before turning to face her friends and comrades, who all looked at her earnestly and she saw in each of their eyes an equal resolve to her own.

“This is it,” she told them, using a wing to point down, “The Abyss is right below us, and within its depths somewhere is Charybdis. Everypony here I trust to do whatever you can to keep yourselves safe and come back from this alive, but we cannot retreat from this. Once we descend, there’s no turning back until this is finished.”

“We’re right with you the entire way, Twilight,” said Flash, Zanpaktou already drawn and ready.

“I did not join your quest simply to bow out before it is done,” Wavecrest said, readying her staff for the spell to adapt them for survival in the ocean depths once more, “Even if some manner of peace can one day exist between my people and the sahuagin, it can only come after their mad, false goddess is cast down and the Eye of the Sea reclaimed. For this, I will willingly give my life if need be.”

“Hey, a little less ‘giving my life’ talk and a little more ‘kicking their butts’ talk!” said Rainbow Dash, pumping a hoof, “We’ve got this!”

“We’ve certainly done all we can to prepare at any rate,” said Rarity, “And our track record in dealing with world threatening evils I believe speaks for itself.”

“I’ll admit I at least feel a little more confident you ponies aren’t entirely crazy,” Tempest commented, keeping her new trident propped over her shoulder, “So guess I won’t complain this time.”

“Seeing what we all bring to the table now, right, Tempy?” Pinkie Pie said with an enthusiastic bounce to her hooves, and Tempest made a low grunting noise that might have been agreement or not, it was difficult to tell.

“I think we’re all ready, Twilight,” said Starlight Glimmer, “We all know our roles in the plan. Only thing left to do is make it happen.”

Twilight returned the unicorn’s look with an affirming nod, quieting the butterflies of doubt and fear in her stomach. Turning away from the assembled group she spread her wings and flew up to the point of the deck furthest along the bow, alighting upon the railing. She withdrew her Relic mace and used it like a baton, holding it high above her head.

“Everypony, the mission to defeat Charybdis begins now! Admiral Seaspray... take us down!”

“Aye aye, Princess! Treasury, descending now!”

And with that the ship pitched into a near vertical dive, flying straight down into the gullet of the swirling dark waters of the ocean, and the Abyss awaiting deep below.

Episode 162: Descent

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Episode 162: Descent

Opening conduits between realities was no task to undertake lightly. Even the smallest opening, through which one could only project one’s mind and senses, was beyond the capabilities of the vast majority of mortal mages. Charybdis, for all of her immense knowledge, skill, and might would not be able to accomplish the feat without specific factors playing in her favor. One was that in her long and painstaking research into the “magic” of the soul she’d learned ways to harness incredible amounts of energy by using the soul as a source of power. This was not an overnight development, but rather something she’d gradually achieved over a lifetime far longer than any normal individual could live. Indeed her long lifespan partially stemmed from the ability to siphon lifeforce off of other souls, when need be. The soul was an incredible thing, even the most simple of which housed mind bending quantities of potential.

Centuries of study and even she couldn’t fully describe what a soul was. A spark of infinite possibility whose shape and quality defied quantification, yet was the undeniable source of all that a thing was or could be. Indeed, souls were not restricted to just “living” things, but all matter in reality had something akin to a soul. Charybdis, even before getting halfway through her teenage years, had become obsessed with studying them, despite the taboo nature of the subject among her magically inclined peers.

She pitied those who stunted their magical studies by adhering to such restrictive dogma. Her mother had been especially harsh, though that had never dampened Charybdis’ love for her. Well, not by much at any rate. If Charybdis dwelt upon any one regret it was that she hadn’t learned enough of soul magic to preserve her mother and Scylla’s souls before their deaths. They were lost to her into whatever mire the “Cycle” represented, a fate Charybdis had no intention of joining in, nor allowing any of her people fall to.

Except that bastard Soul Reaper, Flash Sentry, had already robbed her of some of them. He’d pay, soon enough, but her focus needed to be on her work.

While utilizing tiny quantities of siphoned soul energy from the vast stores of souls preserved within the glyphs she’d engraved in Bastion Gnosis, she still had to work hard to maintain control of the ritual’s initial stages. Her incredible mass floated above the spherical remains of the ancient alicorn Bastion, the bottom of the crushingly deep chasm covered in a flickering haze of red from countless hundreds of magic glyphs that glowed upon the huge, bronze sphere’s surface. Around the sphere, spaced out at roughly fifty foot intervals, so that they formed the bulwark of a large circle, were dozens of sahuagin shaman. Beside each shaman were shrine bearers, younger shamans in training whose task it was to carry bloodshrines that the shamans would wield as amplifiers for the ritual. Each shrine was an edifice of fused bone, coral, and carved stone to resemble the shape of a cauldron clutched in an intertwining of tentacles. The shaman warbled ancient chants that Charybdis herself had passed down to them as they cut their arms and palms. Crimson blood floated in the darkness, only to be sucked up greedily by the enchanted shrines, the cauldrons pooling the blood despite the water around it. Magic thick, dark, and potent coiled from the shrines, slowly forming arcane glyphs to empower Charybdis’ ritual.

Even this was not enough to truly rip open a permanent gateway to the world of the humans.

No, Charybdis still had other factors she had to rely upon. Aside from the raw power she intended to draw forth, the location was actually important. If she could have she would have done this ritual almost anywhere else, if only because a ritual of this magnitude, if by chance it went awry in the wrong manner, would destroy just about everything around it. So doing it right on top of her people’s main settlement was not something she would have done unless the location itself was a necessity, which unfortunately it was.

One cannot open portals to other worlds unless the location already had a weakness in the barrier that separated those worlds. Granted only one such location was needed, so the portal could be opened up anywhere on the target world, but Charybdis had to do the ritual here, above Bastion Gnosis, for the old alicorn fortress of magic study itself had been used for interdimensional portal research. As a result everything around it was spatially unstable.

Charybdis had only discovered this a fair amount of time after having found the sahuagin and taken over as their “Deep Mistress”. Opportunities had followed not long after as she experimented and worked out ways to project her mind and magic to other realms.

It wasn’t even the human world she’d first contacted. No, she’d found herself making deals and allies before that, in a realm far more closely connected to Equestria. The Beast Realm. That had been a productive few decades, and from her allies there she’d refined her understanding of soul magic, for the denizens of the Beast Realm had similar arts and a far more innate capacity for intermixing the power of souls and magic. It was during that time she’d learned of the human world and its conflicts, but also came to understand that world had a wealth of possibilities for her and her sahuagin, given how much more rich in raw spirit energy that world was.

In that world there was no need to fear death. Indeed she’d only become stronger through it. And her sahuagin would have a fresh start in an ocean where they’d have no competition. As it happened, her “friends” in the Beast Realm were perfectly happy to oblige her plans, as long as she helped them with theirs. As it turned out, the Beast Realm Tribes had a brewing storm of their own, and Charybdis’ brand of magic was just what her allies there needed to stir up their own brand of trouble.

It was that same mentality that eventually led her to discovering and making a pact with Gaia Everfree, setting in motion a plan that was only now reaching its fruitful climax.

Assuming a certain damned Princess and her entourage of wrecking ball friends didn’t manage to ruin it all. She kept a firm grim on the emotions broiling inside her, refusing to let her attention be drawn from the working of the ritual. Already above her leviathan form strands of power streamed out of her in a myriad of dark colors shot through with elements of raw light. A circle of energy nearly two hundred meters in circumference took shape from her magic, and a single point of light emerged at the dark center of that circle.

Prior to this she’d already established a mental connection to her waiting servant, one of the few she considered a “friend”. A Kraken, perhaps the last of his kind in Equestria, she had saved him from the captivity of Aqualania’s zoo, and ever since then Lusca had been her most loyal ally. It was through Lusca and researching his origins that she’d learned of portals connecting Equestria to the Beast Realm in the first place, as that had been his original home before magical mishap had landed him as a child in what the Beast Realm referred to as “Asgard”.

Now Lusca acted as her conduit in the human world, “Midgard”, helping her channel soul energy to him and then onward to the waiting Gaia Everfree. In exchange, Gaia was pouring magic back towards Lusca, then straight to Charybdis. Magic generated by the unique geodes that had been discovered in that world. Even now, Charybdis started to feel a sudden and intense high from the influx of magic the ritual of exchange was generating.

Oh, yes. Yes! This is more than enough power to finish opening the portal. I just need a little more time, and everything will be complete on this end, despite that damned Princess’ meddling.

She felt Lusca’s concern shot through her mind. He was not a being that talked with words often, instead preferring to communicate with raw feeling, and she could sense his worry for her through their link. He wanted to know what could possibly be meddling in her affairs, as he was incredulous who might challenge her power. Of course he had a somewhat naïve view of the world, given she was really his only friend and he tended to see her much as her sahuagin did, even if he didn’t outright worship her the way they did.

She sent back a confident and calming sensation to him as her thoughts spoke to his mind through the link between worlds.

That much was true. She’d want the ritual circle in the human world maintained beyond the initial opening of the portal, for she’d need to make it permanent once she was through, and establish a new base of operations for her sahuagin followers in the area. Fully transitioning her people to their new environment would take several weeks, at least, and she didn’t intend to fully abandon Equestria once the portal was permanently open. After all, her ultimate goal was to spend however many centuries it would take to probe the secrets of the human world’s spirit energy and souls, and find a way to replicate that realm’s cycle of reincarnation to replace the Cycle that existed in Equestria. Everything else, including trying to obtain the power of the Eye of the Sea to assume Domare’s power, were merely steps towards that final objective.

And she was so close to completing two of those big steps; opening a permanent portal to the human world, and turning herself into an artificial Inheritor. For much to her rancor, neither she nor Scylla had been Inheritors, but through her research she’d developed a theory on how one might artificially take the place of an Inheritor, as long as one had a piece of an Inheritor’s soul to work with.

How fortuitous it had been, what good fortune, perhaps even destiny, that so long ago a certain rare siren had found her way to Charybdis’ territory, desperately seeking power to fulfill ambitions of her own. Adagio Dazzle had been all too willing to pay the “small” price of a fragment of her soul for a little instruction on how to expand her own magical abilities, and given Charybdis’ exhaustive depths of arcane knowledge it’d been easy to teach the young siren how to make better use of her siren songs and her gem.

The fact that Charybdis had already been researching the siren race as the species she most considered likely to have Inheritors to Domare, given the origins of the sirens could be directly traced to the supposed “goddess” had been coincidental, but in time she’d likely had sought out Adagio and her sisters regardless. Domare had not been an alicorn, but the alicorn’s Inheritor project had involved any being of sufficient magical power that had absorbed the power of worship at the time, including spirits, elemental entities, potent monsters, even dragons. Any being that had been worshiped and hence had their magic enhanced by that faith had been forced to give it up, at least for a time.

Charybdis had little care for the notion of the alicorns trying to repair the Cycle, as she intended to eventually do away with it anyway, but that was a matter for later. Now she just needed to make this ritual work. The transfer of power between her and Gaia was going smoothly, but Gaia was running into issues of her own, and with Princess Twilight bearing down on Charybdis’ home it was going to be down to the wire.

But Charybdis was fine with that. Let the Princess come. Let them all come. Down to the very depths of the Abyss, where Charybdis would happily show them all the “hospitality” they deserved.

----------

For an adrenaline junkie like Rainbow Dash, the swift descent straight down into the pitch black ocean while riding atop the deck of the Treasury was right up her alley. Wavecrest’s transformative magic struck at just the right time to adapt her and everypony else on deck back into a seapony form just as the waters closed over them. Fortunately the deck’s rails were more than strong enough anchor points for everypony to latch onto as the ship made its quick dive, and Rainbow felt the ocean’s freezing temperature even through the protective charms Twilight had woven over them just minutes earlier.

“Ya be careful, ya hear me Dash?” said Applejack, who was holding onto the railing right behind Rainbow. Feeling a flush of mixed feelings at her friend’s word, she looked over her shoulder at Applejack and put on her best smile of beaming confidence.

“Stop worrying, AJ. Not like I took the hard job in the plan.”

Applejack’s emerald eyes flinched at those words, and Dash felt a stab of guilt. Maybe she ought not make light of things, given how much Applejack was obviously concerned, but a part of Rainbow Dash felt sure this was partially just due to Applejack still having trouble with those alicorn memories.

A heated rush touched Dash’s cheeks as she quickly looked away from Applejack and focused ahead, remembering clearly that just after the meeting where they’d hammered out their plan of action, something awkward had happened...

----------

Everypony had left to go take care of their own preparations, with Rainbow Dash trotting down one of the ship corridors with light steps towards her quarters to grab a quick nap before it’d be showtime. However she heard heavy hoof steps behind her and saw Applejack coming up fast with a face half stormy with ire and half torn by worry.

“Why’d ya do that, Dash?”

“Do what?” she replied, although she knew full well what Applejack meant, “I just volunteered to be the decoy is all.”

“Right over me doin’ the same!” Applejack said in a huff, near getting snout to snout, so that Rainbow Dash couldn’t readily see past her friend’s arresting glare, “In fact I spoke up first! Then ya go n’ convince Twilight yer the one fer the job.”

“Uh, AJ, I totally am. Look you’re tough and all, but the decoy needs speed more than strength, and there’s nothing and nopony faster than me.”

“Ain’t gonna do as much good underwater slowin’ ya down, but that ain’t my point. I don’t like ya takin’ on the hardest part o’ this without even thinkin’ o’ lettin’ another do it. Yer always like that, an’ you don’t got ta be.”

Something about Applejack’s words were having a strange effect on Rainbow, interposing thoughts and feelings over her mind like a curtain being drawn over a window. Her stance shifted, leaning forward, almost intimate as even her voice changed slightly to a lower tone, “This is who I am. First into battle, last out. You’ve always known that, Althea.”

It was as if the words just sort of appeared out of her throat without thinking about them, and in turn Applejack also stiffened to an altogether different yet vaguely similar expression. She leaned in and put her head against Rainbow Dash’s own forehead, grabbing her with a hoof and pulling her close into a hard embrace. Her voice lost its accent entirely.

“I know that, damn you Tachys, but I’m no swooning maiden waiting for you to return from battle. I’m there beside you, and just want you to stop taking things on by yourself.”

For a moment it was as if Rainbow Dash wasn’t even seeing Applejack, or even herself, but instead was looking upon a golden alicorn mare whose eyes drew him (him!?) in like the very pull of gravity itself. He hated causing her worry, but in battle there were some tasks he was better suited for than she was, and that meant they couldn’t always fight shoulder to shoulder. That didn’t mean he didn’t love her any less or wouldn’t happily fight by her side against any foe, but...

“Althea,” he held her face with a hoof, relishing the warmth there, “As long as we share a battlefield, we’ll both be stronger for knowing who we’re fighting for, even if our fights take us apart temporarily. I won’t throw my life away pointlessly, you have my word.”

“I... trust you,” she said, moving closer, lips near touching his.

Until Rainbow Dash blinked and realized that she and Applejack had just gotten caught up in the memories of their past lives, and she near threw herself up into the ceiling while jerking back from her friend. She bonked her head on the ceiling and dropped like a lead weight on top of Applejack, who just as confused and dazed was unable to dodge and the pair ended up in a heap.

“G-guh! What in tarnation!?” Applejack rubbed at her head and tried to get up, only to get tangled in Rainbow Dash’s wings and after a second of flailing the pair ended up with Applejack on top, and Rainbow Dash blinking and blushing furiously on bottom.

“Uhhh, whoa, um... okay, AJ, that was... not at all what I meant to say.”

“Umm... yeah, me too, err...I’m gonna just step back offa ya, all slow an’ platonic like.”

Very carefully the pair disentangle themselves from their physical predicament and then spent a full minute standing awkwardly a good few paces back from each other. There were a few sputtered attempts at restarting the conversation, until both of them just looked at each other and said near simultaneously.

“Pretend this never happened?”

“Yeah, never happened.”

----------

It wasn’t exactly the kind of thing that one needed clogging up one’s mind when rushing headlong into a life or death battle against an army of violent fish people and their crazy wannabe goddess. Rainbow Dash didn’t even know what to make of her feelings right now, and it was beyond annoying to have that Tachys guy’s memories making her doubt everything going on in her own head.

It wasn’t like she wasn’t fond of Applejack, but the whole romance thing was about as far from Rainbow Dash’s mind as anything could be, most days. Last thing she needed were bizzaro alicorn memories clouding her judgment. She had to figure Applejack felt the same way, and that all that near-kissing stuff was all just Althea’s doing. Probably. Right? Maybe?

Yeesh, I sure hope we get to the sahuagin death fortress soon, just so I have something else to focus on.

----------

Twilight went over the plan again in her head, despite the fact that it was hardly a complicated one. With the Treasury descending at full speed, they’d reach the edge of the Abyss’ trench system in less than ten minutes.

Once there, they’d begin following a path described by Ulgriv as the most general route towards Rift Mouth, the sahaugin’s primary settlement. There were other settlements dotted here and there along the various trench passages, but all of them were just tiny villages compared to Rift Mouth, which was the sahaugin’s only genuine “city”, such as it was. While there were several potential routes the Treasury could take to get close to the city, the only ones large enough for the ship to fit through were all defended by fortresses. Rather than try to select a passage that might take the sahuagin off guard, the idea was to head straight for the widest route, the largest passage, and consequently the biggest of the fortresses.

However, just prior to reaching it, the plan was for Twilight and a select team to teleport to a different passage, one of the much smaller trenches that the Treasury couldn’t fit through, and hence would be much less likely to be guarded.

Normally such a teleport would be impossible without familiarity with the location, but with Ulgriv’s permission Starlight Glimmer used magic to extract the young sahaugin’s memories of the trenches. Having spent his lifetime hunting and gathering resources for his kin in these very trenches, he knew them quite well. Starlight couldn’t transfer these memories to Twilight, but she could enact the teleport herself, selecting those who went and excluding herself from it if need be.

The idea was that Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Flash Sentry would teleport to the smaller passage and sneak into Rift Mouth to confront Charybdis. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash, with Starlight and Tempest’s help alongside Trixie, would make it appear like the full group was still on the Treasury as it make a fake attack upon the fortress guarding Rift Mouth. With Admiral Seaspray at the helm, Aria and Sonata on weapons, Grubber handling the ship’s sensors, and Wavecrest monitoring the engine room, the Treasury should be able to fight at full capacity even with most of the rest of the crew in action elsewhere.

Rainbow Dash volunteered to be the main distraction as at least one Inheritor who could transform would be needed to make everything seem authentic. Starlight and Tempest would add magical support, while Trixie’s job would be to generate illusions of Twilight and her other friends to complete the deception.

Ideally the sahuagin could be led away and distracted by the Treasury for a time, then when Twilight confirmed Charybdis’ location, Starlight could use a gem that she and Twilight had worked together to enchant as a locator beacon to teleport the rest of the team there. Admiral Seaspray would continue to lead the Treasury in keeping the sahuagin distracted, while Twilight and her fully assembled party would then do battle with, and hopefully defeat, Charybdis.

It was a good plan in Twilight’s mind. She’d gone over it again and again, trying to figure out if there was any flaw she was missing. She knew they weren’t going to get a second chance at this. Things had worked the first time. Try as she might, she couldn’t think of any ways to improve upon the plan, and since her friends all agreed to it she had to accept that this was the best shot they had.

She just wished she felt more confident. Oh, she was eager to confront Charybdis face to face, and with the power of the Relics she and her friends were now adjusting to, Twilight knew they were as prepared for this as they could be. Any concern she had stemmed simply from understanding that this was just one step on what was likely to be a much longer, harder road of change for her whole world, not just herself. Twilight, as ever, hoped she was up to the challenge.

After a few more minutes of rapid descent Twilight felt the Treasury start to level out. She felt the water currents slow and she was able to relax her grip on the deck railing slightly. She was at the very head of the deck, staring ahead along the ship’s bow into the darkness. The emptiness of the deep ocean slowly gave way to the shape of an uneven and expansive ocean floor. Sharp, jutting ridges formed the edges of dozens of intersecting trenches, as if the bottom of the sea had been carved and split by massive blades. Twilight could see the darting shadows of underwater beasts sailing amid the abyssal void, and sucked in a breath as a bulbous fish near a third the size of the Treasury swam by, flanked by schools of sharks. The creatures didn’t seem to take much notice of the ship as it continued to glide down, and Twilight wondered if Charybdis might have larger creatures like the poor, mutated Terror Beast waiting in the trenches below.

Ulgriv’s information suggested that Terror Beasts of that size were rare, and that more likely the fortress the sahaugin would make their stand at would have groups of smaller but still quite deadly sea monsters to aid the sahaugin in battle. She’d have to trust in Rainbow Dash and the others who’d stay behind to manage on their own for a time, even against such heavy numerical odds.

Deeper still the Treasury flowed out over the entrance of one of the larger trench branches, where the rough cliffs of submerged stone left a wide area that the ship could have easily fit in length-wise three times over. Now fully parallel to the trench’s surface, the vessel began to descend without dipping its nose, and in seconds they were enveloped on all sides by the stone cliffs. Moving forward now as it continued to go lower, the Treasury kicked on its external lights, stabbing beams into the murk. They weren’t trying for stealth, after all. They wanted the sahuagin to know they were coming this way.

In all likelihood they’d already been spotted by scouts who’d simply remained hidden around the trench surface area. Twilight would be shocked if both the sahuagin, including Morgawr, weren't going to be well aware of their position soon.

With a deep breath, she began channeling her magic into a long range detection spell. Ulgriv may have given them a route to use, but she wanted to make sure she could monitor the build up of magic in the distance that was no doubt Charybdis’ gradually building ritual. As her eyes gleamed with purple light, Twilight could all but see in the vast darkness ahead an unnatural light that would only appear to her eyes. The magic that Charybdis was making use of felt as if it was filling the water with an unhealthy resonance, and to Twilight’s senses it was like feeling a distant but ever increasingly warm flame, but one that made her hide itch and crawl.

Beside her, Flash Sentry wore a sour look, “I feel it too.”

“Soul magic,” Twilight said, “I hope she isn’t actually sacrificing anypony.”

“We know the seaponies lost some people to raids. If they were taken here...” Flash left the rest unsaid, which Twilight was grateful for. She didn’t want to think of what condition any seapony prisoners might be in at the sahaugin’s home city. Much as she might carry some sympathy for the sahaugin’s situation, that did nothing to make her dismiss the horrors they were capable of or what they could do to their prisoners.

“Let’s hope that once we defeat Charybdis, the sahaugin will be too shocked to do much resisting once we free any slaves or other prisoners we find,” Twilight replied simply, although she knew what she proposed was in no way simple. Much as they could plan for getting to Charybdis, and much as she also felt like they had a fair shot at beating her, the question of what came after was a whole different matter.

They’d have to find a way to escape without the sahuagin overwhelming them, free anypony they could find, hopefully with the Treasury having enough room to fit any and all escapees. Then...? Well in some ways it would be a question for much later. Ideally Wavecrest, upon returning to her people, might be able to lead a movement to try and begin some kind of reconciliation with the sahuagin, but given the sheer amount of bad blood between the two species it could be generations of work to even get them on neutral terms with each other. And that was assuming the sahuagin didn’t just entirely implode as a culture with Charybdis’ defeat, or go on some kind of war of revenge.

Much as Twilight wanted this to be a clean, simple victory, she somehow doubted it’d be that straightforward. Today was going to have consequences for a lot of lives, one way or another.

The chasm ahead started to bend and turn, with branches splitting off seemingly at random. Admiral Seaspray had a precise map drawn from Ulgriv’s memory to work with, so the Treasury began a smooth process of graceful turns through the craggy labyrinth. For a time, all seemed eerily quiet, almost peaceful. However the bitter cold and dead, sharp rock walls around them was a reminder of where they were. Twilight saw nothing to indicate that the Abyss was hospitable. It was not without signs of life, but this was no great reef or lush aquatic paradise. To live in a place like this was likely a daily struggle, hunting for food amid creatures who could hunt right back with deadly effectiveness. Sharks, giant squid, great eels, the very kind of beasts the sahuagin rode were in evidence, and were likely the main source of food. No doubt sahuagin communities had to fight hard for their daily meat, while finding what warmth they could amid underwater caves in this freezing environment.

“I can’t imagine living here, surrounded by nothing but cold and darkness,” said Fluttershy.

“Gotta hand it to Ulgy and his folks, they kinda make they best they got out of a raw deal,” Pinkie Pie said, “Even the rock farm felt a bit more cheery than this place.”

“I truly do not know if they’d been allowed to thrive in more bountiful waters if the sahuagin wouldn’t still be a deadly threat,” Wavecrest admitted, her gaze shifting around their environs with narrow unease. She had insisted on remaining on deck until the ship actually engaged the sahuagin, wanting to see the Abyss with her own eyes before going to the engine room. “Allowed to grow into greater numbers and hold more territory, mayhap they’d have swept over all the oceans.”

“Little late to be questioning things now,” Tempest Shadow said with a bitter note, “Right or wrong, you bottled the murderous fish folk down here, and even if we win this you’re still going to have to deal with them.”

“Hmm...” Wavecrest didn’t so much reply as grunt in a contemplative manner. At least she wasn’t dismissing the point out of hoof, but Twilight did wonder what the seapony was thinking. Wavecrest had come with them with the clear goal of aiding her people by uncovering Aqualania’s secrets and finding Domare’s Relic. Once that was in her grasp, what came after?

“Wavecrest,” she said, “Whatever happens, I can at least promise you that you and your people will have aid. Since we’re here as representatives of Equestria, we’re responsible for what happens today, so we’re not about to abandon the seaponies to clean up the mess alone once all is said and done.”

“I appreciate that, Princess,” Wavecrest said with a deep bow of her head, “For now I cannot let my mind get mired in tomorrow. Not until we cast the shadow that this Charybdis out of the Abyss.”

“Right, focus on not dyin’ an’ all,” Applejack said, “Worry ‘bout the rest later.”

“Speaking of not dying, I’m sensing something fishy coming our way!” Pinkie Pie shouted, her back left leg twitching with a tremor that then went on to a strange swirly motion in her tail. “Lots of fishies!”

Before Twilight could inquire as to what precisely Pinkie meant, she saw the gloom ahead ripple with the motion of scores of shadows. These shadows then resolved into the shapes of what appeared to be a school of darting barracuda, if barracuda were the size of wagons and had teeth larger than most daggers. The school of predatory fish rushed the Treasury's deck, but fortunately they bounced off the flashing light of the vessel's protective shielding. The fish swarmed to either side, smashing rows of teeth into the transparent field of magical protection, but to no avail.

Yet any relief Twilight felt was momentarily halted as an even larger shape appeared around a side passage of the trench, this time flailing out eight wide, barbed tentacles. The octopus wasn’t as large as a Kraken, but it certainly had an impressive mass of dark, rubbery skin covered in odd nodules like giant barnacles. While the shield of the Treasury still flared brightly to protect the ship as the giant tentacles of the octopus tried to wrap around the ship, the vessel shuddered from the impact and was nearly pushed into the opposite side wall of the trench.

“Looks like our host has sent a welcoming party for her guests,” Rarity said.

“Ya sure this ain’t just the local wildlife chekin’ us out?” Applejack said back, holding onto her stetson as the ship rumbled from another impact from the octopus.

It was trying doggedly to try and keep its tentacle latched to the magical barrier, but even as it reached its limbs around the spherical shell of magic, the turrets of the Treasury went into action. Stabbing lances of light shot forth and boiled the water around them, penetrating the giant cephalopod's rubbery flesh. A shrill cry rocked the trench as the octopus peeled off of them and fell behind the Treasury as the ship made a sharp turn down another trench passage. Admiral Seaspray’s voice spoke over the external communication system.

“Just hang on, ladies. Our siren sisters seem quite able to handle the cannon controls, and I’ll not be allowing us to be delayed in delivering you to your dance with destiny! On my word as an officer of Queen Novo’s Navy!”

“Heh, he sounds like he’s having the time of his life,” Rainbow Dash chuckled.

“I suppose things must have been quite peaceful before the current troubles,” Fluttershy said with a hint of envy in her voice, “Oh my, here come more.”

Ahead the trench chasm opened up a little wider, and it was as if the very walls crawled with all manner of deadly sea-life. Twilight quickly understood that there was no way this many native inhabitants of the Abyssal trenches could be so suddenly in their way, so surmised this had to have been Charybdis’ doing. A delaying tactic, to try and make them waste more time in reaching her.

Well, if that had been the intention, it was possible Charybdis had underestimated the Treasury. Even as more monstrous underwater beasts glided at the ship from all sides, ranging from horrid crustaceans to twisted eels and everything else in between, the ship’s magical cannons blazed a white hot trail through the horde. Anything that got close found that jaws or pincers were inadequate to the task of penetrating the vessel’s magical shields. At least for now.

While this teeming mass of sea creatures might not stop them, or even slow them down much, it was likely going to drain some of the ship’s energy reserves for the real fight to come. Yet there was no choice but to continue forward, until they were in range to enact the teleportation. By Twilight’s estimate they had to at least endure an hour of navigating these trenches before they’d get to the location of the fortress, at which point the real battle would begin.

----------

Charybdis could feel the bloodlust of the sea monsters she’d summoned to form a perimeter guard around the furthest out trenches of the Abyss. No doubt the damnable ship that her sister had built and that Twilight and her friends had raised from the armory was at that very moment slicing a bloody path through those creatures. Charybdis knew that no ocean beast short of another one like had been forged from the sperm whale would do much to slow the Treasury down. While she could have invested some magic into making another Terror Beast, or assigned some shamans to do so, that would have taken power and shamans away from enacting the portal ritual.

It simply made more sense to keep the ritual going rather than divert resources that would only slow the ritual’s completion. Besides, the Princess and her band of Inheritors still needed to break through the fortress guarding the entrance to Rift Mouth, and although she was aware her champions could not hope to win a battle against full fledged Inheritors, she had some confidence that they could be slowed down.

As long as Charybdis could open the portal, secure it’s permanency, and enter into the human world, then victory would be all but secured. Better still if she could get her limbs on Aria and Sonata in the process. While the ritual to open the portal was important, it was just as important to secure the influx of soul energy from Gaia Everfree so that, once she had a piece of the souls from Adagio’s sisters then she could also take hold of some Inheritor power of her own.

On that note, she hadn’t simply sent that host of sea monsters after her sister’s toy boat for the fun of it. She could project her mind more easily at a distance as long as she had a medium to work with, like the Kraken in the human world. The Abyss’ fauna acted as ideal conduits, and so she could observe the Treasury directly without any real loss of focus on the continually building magical energies of the portal ritual. She could see the ship now, in all its gaudy yet admittedly impressive glory. It cruised with remarkable maneuverability through the trench’s many winding paths, the brilliant light of its magical cannons ripping through the swarms of creatures that surrounded it.

Charybdis ignored the carnage and instead focused on the ship itself, on its occupants. She could sense Twilight and her companions, like potent torches in the darkness. She sensed that Twilight, too, was using magical senses to keep a lock on Charybdis’ location. No doubt the alicorn was keenly focused on reaching her at the fastest possible speed. The fact the ship could navigate the trenches so nimbly and with confidence told Charybdis that they had gained knowledge of just where to go. Not surprising, given Charybdis was well aware they’d taken a sahuagin prisoner.

The poor lad must have either given up information or had it torn from his mind. Charybdis did not know Ulgriv on a personal level, yet she was aware in a peripheral sense of any sahuagin whose faithful prayers burned strongly enough to actually reach her as a form of empowerment. It was part of the reciprocal manner in which her soul magic allowed her to empower shamans and champions alike. The shaman she could teach much more easily the stronger their worship was, and champions could gain greater physical might simply through faith that allowed for more potent engraving of the ritual markings she used to invest magic into her chosen.

This same connection worked to a degree, even with common warriors who lacked ritual markings or a shaman’s training. She couldn’t fully empower such a sahuagin, but touching their mind was not difficult. At least not normally.

She could sense Ulgriv, but when she sought to touch his mind, she encountered resistance. With a hiss she noticed that the room he was locked in was surrounded by warding enchantments. Potent ones, created by both seapony magic and alicorn magic. So, Wavecrest and Twilight both had thought of the possibility that she might try and reach Ulgriv’s mind? She admired their foresight, even as she was irritated by it. But perhaps they had underestimated her, and the power influx she would gain from the magic pouring in from Gaia Everfree?

Ever so cautiously, as to not alert the wards’ defenses, Charybdis started to probe them for weaknesses. If she could get in contact with Ulgriv’s mind, then her opponents were in for a nasty surprise.

----------

It was with the distant warble of underwater thunder that the Treasury broke out of the relatively narrow trench passage it was coursing through like a titanic, bronze whale, and entered into a vaguely shaped long oval canyon area. Slightly inclined, jagged rock walls spread out around the ship and led on into the wider trench canyon for at least five hundred meters, terminating in another rock wall. However upon this wall was the mouth of a truly gigantic cavern mouth, the rough hewn stalactites and stalagmites that rowed the entrance giving the cavern the appearance of a monolithic maw.

At the base of this cavern was a series of tall, carved spires, interested by crossways and walls of stone, creating an almost web-like appearance. This, Twilight knew, was the fortress that guarded the tunnel that led directly to Rift Mouth. Around the fortress itself she could just barely make out the faint specks of shadow that showed hundreds of sahuagin were present, possibly thousands, it was difficult to count as the distant shapes darted amid the cover of the fortress spires.

The thunder originated from the Treasury's cannons as they finished dispatching a ten ton, thirty foot long lobster monstrosity that had been trying to pound its way through the top shield. As it’s shell was broiled by spears of magical light, the beast fell away, nearly the last of the teeming horde that had assaulted their journey to this point. A bare hoof full of sharks, smaller squid, and numerous far stranger aquatic creatures still dogged the ship’s wake, but they were cautious now, wary of the vessel’s mighty array of magic defenses.

“We’re here girls,” she said, then spoke via a spell to communicate directly with specific individuals, “Trixie, be ready with your illusions. Starlight, be prepared to teleport the moment Trixie’s spell begins to take shape.”

“Trixie shall craft the most believable version of you imaginable, Twilight Sparkle. I’ll take extra care to ensure to get the smug look just right,” said the showmare, earning a prickled eye twitch from Twilight who forced a smile and nod.

“I’ve already got the location locked in my mind,” Starlight confirmed, “We’ll be where we need to be in a literal flash.”

“Please be careful, Rainbow Dash,” said Flutterrshy, “There’s a lot of them out there.”

“Don’t worry guys, I can take care of things here,” Dash assured them all, giving Applejack a specifically long and pointed look, “I promise, okay?”

“I... trust ya,” Applejack said with a held back sigh.

Rarity, her eyes looking far more sharply about than the rest of them, suddenly said, “Hold on. Admiral Seaspray, slow the ship and turn to port. I see something amiss on the cliffs to our right.”

“What do you-?” Twilight began to ask, but then suddenly there was a rumbling noise from above and to the ship’s right. She couldn’t quite make it out, but amid the cliff face some hundred or so feet up there was a darting form of shadow that cut its way through several outcroppings of rock. Twilight sensed dark magic at work, not unlike the power of Charybdis that had empowered Morgawr. Whoever was up there had to be another sahuagin champion, although they weren’t attacking the ship but rather appeared to be slicing through sections of the rock wall.

A moment later she realized why as those sections of cliff began to crumble, then triggered more portions of the wall to begin falling right towards the Treasury!

Fortunately Admiral Seaspray had clearly listened to Rarity’s warning and had swift reflexes, having already slowed the ship and put it into a turn. This allowed the vessel to nimbly glide past the worst of the sudden rockslide, although there were still more than a few cacophonous strikes upon the ship’s magic shields that flared bright white light into the dark gloom.

“Yikes, how embarrassing would it be for a rock farm gal like me to die by rocks!?” Pinkie Pie chuckled, “Maudie would never let me hear the end of it.”

“Twilight, I’m ready to throw up the illusion,” spoke Trixie through the same spell Twilight had used to communicate at a distance. The showmare was staying inside the ship’s bridge, keeping an eye on things from behind its reinforced canopy. This wouldn’t affect her ability to target areas with her magic, and she’d been weaving up the spell energy needed for her illusions. Twilight could all but feel the potent spell ready to layer over the ship deck like a tingling blanket.

“Do it,” Twilight said, taking a deep breath, “And good luck to all of us.”

Starlight and Trixie cast their spells at the exact same time as to ensure that there’d be no visual clue to any sahuagin watching as to what just happened. To any eyes watching the ship’s deck it would simply look like Twilight and her party remained exactly where they were.

In truth, Trixie’s expertly crafted illusion covered the fact that Starlight Glimmer had just teleported, Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Flash Sentry away to a passage several miles away and much smaller than any of the other passages leading to the sahuagin settlement of Rift Mouth.

Meanwhile the illusionary members of the group would be controlled by Trixie while the only real ponies on the deck would be Starlight, Tempest Shadow, and Rainbow Dash.

“Alright, time to do this,” Rainbow Dash said, pumping herself up mentally as she unsheathed the swordbreaker that was her Relic. Having practiced with it a few times already, she found it quite familiar and easy to focus upon the object and mentally call out to the power within.

In mere seconds the sword flared up with a scintillating pillar of blue and white light that swelled up around the pegasus for a moment, bathing the whole trench canyon in it’s colors. Then once the moment of raw power and light faded, a transformed Rainbow Dash in her brilliant armor of silver and bearing the larger, curved swordbreaker in her ready hooves, shot out from the deck in a streak of wind born turbulence.

“Hey sahuagin jerkwads!” she shouted, her voice now amplified by pure magic and a burst of wind force that rumbled through the water like a tremor, “You think you can take even just one of us!? My friends can just watch from the deck while I kick all of your ugly flanks! Bring it!”

The plan wasn’t complicated. Starlight and Tempest would keep enemies too far away from the Treasury's deck and hence hopefully prevent them from realizing the other mares were just illusions. With Rainbow Dash playing up her cocky attitude she further hoped that the sahuagin would assume she was being brash and overconfident and had decided tot ake them all on herself... which wasn’t wrong per se, but it did cloak the truth that she was, in fact, by herself.

Well, mostly. The Treasury itself would provide fire support, but the idea was not to slaughter sahuagin, but rather just tick them off enough to engage her and chase the ship. As long as they did that, every minute bought was a minute Twilight and the rest had to go deal with Charybdis.

The question was how the sahuagin would respond to the challenge?

If the wall of guttural war cries and bloodthirsty yowling from the fortress was any indication, the response was pretty clear! Rainbow Dash saw schools of warriors rising up to beat spears and tridents together to egg her to come at them. They weren't foolish enough to leave the fortifications of their fortress yet, and Dash noticed the red gleam of shamanic magic building up around several of the spires.

Yet rather than charge to attack, she noticed just two sahuagin rise up from outside the fortress’ cavern mouth. One she recognized even at a distance as Morgawr. The other was unfamiliar, a dark purple sahuagin who was thinner than Morgawr but held a very wire cord grace to... her?

Were they coming out to challenge her to a duel? That’d certainly work in Dash’s favor!

A flicker of instinct, or perhaps a shouted warning from the many battle hardened memories of Tachys, screamed in Rainbow Dash’s head. She threw herself to the side, although visually it looked more like a flicker of near instant movement as she temporarily became wind itself and slid to the side. Something cut by where she’d just been. A shadow so fast it looked like it had hardly moved as it sliced by.

Dash caught sight of a sahuagin shape, covered in black oil, blending in without color or heat with his surroundings. He moved fast, large and curved knives of bone spinning in his hands like tops as he sliced at her again. Dash bent with the grace of a storm, the knives never touching her as the sahuagin flipped past her in a darting motion and then suddenly backed off of her. She finally saw bulbous eyes, a gray so dark they were nearly black themselves as the sahuagin grinned, showing teeth that also had been rubbed black by some manner of tar or oil.

“You evaded me twice. Twice! Hah, prey worth killing really is so rare. Maybe Morgawr wasn’t exaggerating.”

“You mean the dude whose butt Twilight kicked?” Rainbow Dash said casually, bouncing her swordbreaker over her shoulder in a nonchalant manner, “You one of his buddies?”

“Hmph, a peer, of sorts. I am Berokar, the Unseen.”

“...Dude, I’m looking right at you,” Dash pointed out, to which Berokar’s grin of teeth only slightly faltered.

“Perhaps, but not for very long. The glory of the first kill will go to me. Let us see if you can keep up, obnoxiously colorful surfacer.”

Rainbow Dash had not been present for Morgawr’s skirmish with Starlight and Tempest, and she’d been busy with her own part of the fight in the Treasury's hangar so she’d only caught some of Twilight’s clash with him. However she still recognized the faint sensation of pressure that stemmed from these sahuagin champions drawing upon Charybdis’ power. Where Morgawr had grown lager and gained bulging muscles, then folds of almost organic armor, the change that overcame Berokar was wholly different. It seemed each champion went through different changes when high on Charybdis.

His limbs grew longer and sleeker, while his body grew somehow even more melded with the darkness of the water around him. Spikes like that of a sea urchin started to sprout upon his tar black body, and the crest upon his head grew larger and sharper as the quills of it took on bladed qualities.

She’d have almost been impressed if she didn’t already have the power of her Relic singing in her veins. As it stood, she doubted Berokar realized yet that when she’d dodged him a moment ago she hadn’t exactly been straining herself.

“Feel free to make your move,” she told him, noting out of her peripheral vision that the rest of the sahuagin were not remaining idle.

The purple female was directing formations of warriors to roll out what appeared to be huge harpoon throwers that extended out from the mid-portions of the fortress spires. The army of fish people still weren’t advancing out of their fortifications, instead making it clear they were here to bar the Treasury's way, not chase the ship down. Smart on their part, as they were probably under orders to just delay the surface invaders.

Morgawr and the female champion seemed entirely content to let Berokar have his supposed “glory”, too, which suited Rainbow Dash just fine.

At this point the Treasury was making a close, circling approach towards the fortress. Magical light bloomed along the port side of the ship as several cannons discharged lances at one of the spires, melting down a harpoon thrower. In response not only did the other harpoon throwers let loose, using powerful spring mechanisms to launch their payloads through the water at the ship, but the small circles of shamans clustered amid the catwalks between spires finished using their own blood to empower cauldron shrines erected nearby. Boiling red and purple light bubbled up and formed the shapes of angry shark jaws, dozens of the magic projectiles launching in response to the Treasury's attack.

The ship’s shield sparked and flared in numerous places from hits as the ship raked past the fortress, its belly cannons losing a volley of their own to strike down another pair of harpoon throwers. Aria and Sonata were being as cautious as they could with their targeting, seeking to damage the fortress while inflicting minimal casualties. They’d given their word to Ulgriv to harm as few of his people as possible, and the loyal streak in Rainbow Dash was glad ot see the sirens doing their best to fulfill that goal.

If the sahuagin wanted to play it safe and not chase the ship, that only played to the favor of the ponies.

Berokar, despite seeming rather like a prideful jerk who liked to boast, was deathly silent now that he was juiced up and focused on the kill. He came at Dash in a mass of shadowy strikes so fast and difficult to see that had Rainbow Dash not been, well... Rainbow Dash, evading might have proved difficult. Never mind her now that she was filled to the brim with ancient alicorn magic.

Her body transmuted into air, pushing back the water around her immediately into a twenty meter bubble. This completely threw off Berokar’s motion as he suddenly didn’t have any water at all around him. Rainbow Dash could control the wind her body produced with thought alone and held the bubble in place while she used her partially transmuted body to streak right into the confused Berokar, striking him with a flying kick of such potent wind force that there was a sonic boom inside the bubble that then shook the water for a hundred meters in all directions.

He wa launched right out of the bubble and into the water like a dark torpedo, and Dash didn’t even wait for him to impact with the ground he was barreling towards before letting out a bellow of enhanced volume, “You really thing one of you is going to be a challenge!? Morgawr, purple fish chick, if you don’t get your butts over here to even up the odds for your idiot friend, otherwise this is going to be the most boring day of my life!”

There, gauntlet thrown.

She hoped Twilight and the others were having as much fun as she was.

----------

If anything the tunnel in which Twilight and her strike team had been teleported to was even colder than the main trenches had been. It was an enclosed space for the most part, but the roof of the tunnel did open up in places to a larger trench above, with numerous uneven but natural columns of rock forming a sort of honeycomb around the party as they swam through the dark.

According to Ulgriv, this tunnel was a lesser used pathway to the north east end of Rift Mouth’s outskirts, one that he had used since he was just old enough to leave the spawning pools. It was hunting territory, where young sahuagin sharpened their skills in stalking the dangerous but nourishing eels that made their homes in the various nooks and crannies of the tunnel system. Twilight had spotted a few such eels peering at them from within alcoves and small holes in the floor or walls, but none had ventured to strike at the passing ponies more than once, and Flash had dealt with that one readily enough with a swift strike of his Zanpaktou... after which most of the party had looked on with unpleasant expressions as the unfortunate eel was devoured by it’s companions.

Every now and again the shadow of something large would pass by one of the ceiling holes overhead, but Twilight could never tell just what it was. A larger eel? A shark? Something more dangerous? Whatever it was, it was too big to fit through any of the holes, and paid no mind to the ponies passing below, if it even noticed them at all.

Rarely they encountered a cluster or two of algae or other odd underwater plant life, but it was sparse, and Twilight understood by now that food wasn’t plentiful enough down here without extreme risk in hunts to support a large population. Little wonder the sahuagin struggled. She wondered just how large a settlement Rift Mouth really could be? Ulgriv had told them that he’d grown up there, but in comparison to other settlements it was many times larger due to being nearest to the only real plentiful hunting grounds in the Abyss. If this was plentiful, Twilight shuddered at the notion of what might count as “sparse”.

According to Ulgriv, the tunnel would open up after a time, leading to what was essentially an underwater crevasse. On the other side of that crevasse would be several other tunnel openings that all would lead to a small outpost, a lookout point of sorts. Theoretically it would be lightly guarded, easy for Twilight and the others to sneak past or quickly overwhelm. Then, beyond that, would be a short series of tunnels that would lead to the outermost homes of Rift Mouth, and the spawning pools in which Ulgriv had been born. Twilight was more than a little nervous about having to pass through these spawning pools, but her hope was that any sahuagin “civilians” they countered would be non-combative. With any luck they could sneak through using the same heat dampening spells that had worked fairly well back in Aqualania.

If not, at least she hoped it’d be a relatively straight shot out of the residential tunnels and into the large rift that gave Rift Mouth its name, the deepest trench in which Charybdis supposedly made her lair.

Ulgriv’s information proved accurate, as after only a relatively short time of traveling down the dark, winding cavern did it open up abruptly. One end of the cavern opened upon the wall of a crevasse, with stone towering high above and descending to unseen depths below. Directly across, at a distance of about twenty meters, was the opposite wall, equally massive in size. Quietly Twilight motioned for her companions to group up close to her as they gathered near a rise of uneven rocks near the lip of the cavern exit, and she used her magic to both cloak their heat signatures and put up an invisibility screen. While not on Trixie’s level in terms of illusion skill, Twilight could maintain the two spells readily enough while she and her friends observed what lay across the crevasse and spoke in whispers between themselves.

“Lookn’ like we got ‘round five sentries,” Applejack said. She was speaking of the figures of barely visible sahuagin who floated in a milling but alert group near a trio of cave openings in the other side of the crevasse. The fishmen were keeping a careful eye out, but Twilight’s party had approached quietly enough to avoid notice, and her spells were keeping them from being seen as they observed the exterior of what she assumed was the outpost.

“Count seven, darling,” Rarity corrected Applejack, motioning upward with her horn. They all looked to see that there was a small rock outcropping that extended from the crevasse wall a good thirty paces higher where two more sahagun watched upward, keeping an eye on the trench above.

“There’s also something below us,” Fluttershy said, and the mare’s prediction proved accurate as moments later the darkness below disgorged a humongous shark. It had a flat head like that of a hammerhead shark, but it was covered in sharp barnacles, and the beast’s body had bits of armor forged of bone wrapped around its main body, which was close to forty feet long. The humongous shark rose and it was now possible to see it was being ridden by a small band of six sahuagin who all warbled greeting cries to the sentries at the outpost, who in turn gurgled back shouts of their own.

“News, brothers! The surfacers strike at the main fortress guarding the great cavern into Rift Mouth!”

“What!? They have the gall to face the bulk of our warriors where we are strongest? Bah, if only we weren’t assigned here.”

“Are we to join the hunt, brothers?”

“No, orders from warleader Rezarra are to maintain our posts. We go to inform the other outposts. Be watchful, brothers!”

The shark continued on with its passengers, clearly couriers relaying messages to the various outposts from the main sahuagin force. Twilight was glad to see the behemoth beast go, as while she knew she could readily dispatch it with magic, it wouldn’t have been simple to do so silently. As it stood, the group’s experiences in Aqualania had accustomed them all to a stealthy approach. While going all out on the attack would have worked easily enough, Twilight wasn’t here to do damage to anyone other than Charybdis. After a minute or two of quiet conference with her allies, they went into action.

The sahuagin sentries had no idea what even hit them.

Flash took care of the pair on the outcropping higher up, using Flash Step to appear behind them and use the hilt of his sword to stun one with a precise strike to the back of the head, while using his hind legs to kick the other one right under the chin with a jaw breaking blow.

The five clustered around the main entrance were swiftly surrounded by colorful equines as Twilight dropped her stealth spells. Stunning bolts form her horn knocked out a pair of sahuagin before they even had a chance to move their spears, while Pinkie Pie’s lute smacked the head of another into senselessness. Applejack didn’t even bother with her shillelagh, instead clocking one sahuagin across the face so hard with a hoof that he went spinning head over webbed feet into the wall, falling unconscious instantly. The last sahuagin, barely opening her mouth to shout, was firmly grabbed around the throat by a pair of white hooves. Rarity, displaying surprising skill, kept the sahuagin in a tight sleeper hold, cutting off the warrior’s gills and throat until they fell unconscious.

Letting out a slight and ladylike, “Whew,” Rarity adjusted her mane after setting her unconscious victim down, “So glad Zosimos’ memories seem to include quite a bit of this clandestine activity.”

“It’s a tad unsettlin’ just how easy it comes, but I ain’t gonna complain,” said Applejack, stretching her punching hoof, “Ain’t got no jitters, save where Dash is concerned. Hope she’s doin’ okay.”

“Hmm, I don’t have any weird squiggles concerning Dashie, so i think she’s doing A-okay for now,” said Pinkie Pie, her tail suddenly doing a slight series of twitches, “Eeew, but I’ve got a nasty feeling for whatever’s ahead of us.”

Flash Sentry appeared next to them in a blur of movement, “Top’s clear, and I don’t sense any other sentries. I feel a lot of life signs inside, however. At least twenty to thirty.”

“Do we want to try sneaking by them? I’d like to sneak by them,” Fluttershy said, and Twilight gave a nod of agreement.

“Same. These openings were too narrow for us to sneak past these sentries, but once we’re inside we’ll go back to stealth until we can’t use it anymore. The closer we get to Charybdis without alerting the entire settlement, the better.”

“How long do ya figure ‘fore some fish bugger realizes these fellas are out cold?” asked Applejack, indicating the downed guards.

“Could be minutes, or hours, either way, we have to move fast,” Twilight said, having her friends gather around her once more so she could recast the spells to help them remain hidden. Then, as quietly as they could, the group ventured forth into the outskirts of Rift Mouth.

Author's Notes:

The assault and infiltration of Charybdis' lair has begun, and we're quickly approaching the climax of this arc. The events now directly correspond to the events that were transpiring in Everfree, and soon enough we'll be caught up in terms of the timeline. I know there's still plenty of threads hanging here in Equestria, and we'll likely be touching upon most of them before the arc properly concludes and we rejoin Sunset and the Rainbooms back home in Canterlot City. For now, I hope you folks are enjoying the ride. Also a quick shoutout to reader Daemon Targaryen for volunteering to help a bit with an extra set of eyes for editing, it's much appreciated.

As always I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques you fine folks wish to leave me. 'Till next time!

Episode 163: Witch of the Abyss

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Episode 163: Witch of the Abyss

“Do you know what happens when we die?”

Her sister always had a certain look when Charybdis asked a question like that, an exaggerated crinkle to her brow and amused half grin that was at once faintly endearing and unbelievably annoying. These days it wasn’t often Scylla burrowed through the den of book piles and research materials that Charybdis’ room had turned into, but when she did it was usually to bother her about something their mother wanted.

“Eeeeh, who cares?” Scylla said, pushing aside a teetering stack of books that floated off through the water as she swam beside Charybdis’ similarly tome covered reading desk, “I’m way more concerned with the living than the dead. C’mon Charybdis, this is why you keep creeping out the suitors mom puts in front of you. I’ve half a mind to drag you out for a spell and get you to live a little.”

“Mmph,” Charybdis made an irritated noise in the back of her throat, burying her face in the book she’d been reading. This particular one was of great interest, it’s very shape unusual in that it was circular, with bronze metal coverings that folded out more like a flower than a traditional book. The script within was worn even despite the potent restoration magics used to try to bring out the definition of the words, all written in a long dead language that it had taken Charybdis’ months of study to start parsing the meaning of.

“Mmph, she says! You keep this up and the rumors about you are only going to get worse, you know. Witch of the Castle. Necromancer of Seaquestria. The Cursed Daughter. You’re building a reputation.”

“So what?” Charybdis said, “I’ve no reason to care about that. You’re the prodigal daughter whom the people trust, and it’s almost certain mother’s throne will be yours in due time. You’re welcome to it, sister. I only care about my studies.”

Scylla leaned in over Charybdis’ shoulder, and with deft hooves snatched the tome out of Charybdis’ grasp. “H-hey! Give that back!”

“While your words may be true, sister, has it occurred to you my concern has little to do with mother or the throne, or even the people we rule?” Scylla said, dangling the book out of Charybdis’ reach, who was a good head shorter than her athletic sibling.

“Then why are you bothering me?” Charybdis groused, giving up on trying to overpower her sister as she floated back to sulk with crossed hooves.

“Because I’m worried about you, you silly guppy. Look, you’re the brains, I’m the brawn, I get it. But that doesn’t mean your big sis isn’t worried about your social life, or lack thereof. More than that, this magic you’ve been screwing around with is... weird.” Scylla wasn’t one to admit to fear or distress, but the unease was writ plain on her face as she gave the odd tome a half glance. “I mean, there was that incident with the animated fish skeletons. The terrified maids who swear they saw ghosts in the halls outside your rooms. The guards who found you using a knife to draw blood to charge up weird glyphs. You can’t tell me that ain’t something for me to feel a bit worried about.”

Charybdis rolled her eyes, “Misunderstandings, all. I’m studying the magic of life and death, of the soul itself. It doesn’t look like conventional magic, but it isn’t harmful. In fact it’s probably closer to a pure form of magic than what a lot of those ocean shamans cook up with their half-baked beliefs in sea spirits!”

“Maybe, but could you at least explain to me why you’re so obsessed with it? I mean, I know you’re a nerd and all, but even nerds need to get out once and a while.”

Scylla reluctantly handed the book back to Charybdis, who clutched it close and swam back to her desk. At her sister’s continued look of concern, the young seapony princess let out a long sigh and set the book down, “Look, it’s not... obsession, exactly. I just know what I’m on to something here. Something big. If I can crack the meaning behind the words of these ancient texts, I think I might be able to...”

“To what? What even are these tomes? I know you read a lot of books but some of these seem older than usual.”

“That’s because they are. Unearthed from all sorts of underwater ruins. Dating places them back from a time before recorded history, and if it wasn’t for mother’s generous allowance to the royal coffers I’d never be able to fund the expeditions to uncover them,” Charybdis said, “It’s taken me forever to just start translating the basics, but what I’ve learned so far has shown me a whole new world of magic, and a glimpse of things as they truly are. Like, are you aware of what the Cycle is?”

“The what now?” Scylla merely looked confused, and Charybdis shook her head.

“Exactly. Nopony, under the sea or on land, seems to know the truth... except perhaps the alicorn Princesses of Equestria.”

“What do they have to do with this?”

“Possibly everything, but I won’t know until I uncover more. All I know, Scylla, is that I have no intention of stopping now. Whatever others think of me, I will learn the truth, and once I do...”

-----------

“Once I do, even death will have no power over me or those I love.”

Charybdis wasn’t sure if the memory was just her being uncharacteristically nostalgic or if it was actually a vision brought about by the influx of soul energies coursing through her being. It wasn’t unusual for memories and impressions to get mixed up during the use of extensive soul magic, although she’d long since learned wards to ensure that influx didn’t become too over bearing. The portal ritual was proceeding, but something had her worried.

She’d lost contact with Lusca, and did not know why. While the Kraken had been acting as a useful conduit between her and Gaia’s link, Charybdis could still maintain that flow of magic and spirit energy by transferring the link to Gaia herself. Gaia Everfree, near as Charybdis could tell, had succeeded in using that human woman to obtain a restored form. Of course it also seemed like Gaia had run into trouble in the form of those young girls from Canterlot City, but as long as Charybdis could focus on the link between them then the ritual could proceed. Gaia had her new body, now Charybdis just needed to make her portal large enough to move through and make it permanent.

But what was going on with her Kraken. He wasn’t responding to her mental signals, and the portal wasn’t large enough yet for her to sense anything through it. As it stood the portal was barely large enough to slip a pebble through, although it would soon grow larger as Charybdis and her sahuagin shamans brought more of the rituals energies to bear.

The chanting of her devoted sahuagin was a comfort, in it’s way. Each shaman was a disciple of her teachings, and proof of the potency of the ancient alicorn’s command of soul magic. She was a tad giddy at the thought of what she and her dear followers might be able to achieve in the human world, with it’s much richer field of spirit energy.

Yet nervousness crept into her like a humid and cloying fog. While it appeared that Twilight Sparkle and her damnable companions were still being delayed by her champions at the fortress entrance to Rift Mouth, something didn’t feel right. Only one of the pestering ponies had activated their Inheritor powers and chosen to engage her forces, while the rest remained on the deck of her sister’s toy boat. Why? Why would Twilight Sparkle sit back and watch as only one of her friends went into battle? Was she that overconfident, now that she had the power of an ancient alicorn to draw upon? Was it possible Astra’s personality had taken greater hold and in turn was showing hubris and pride in just thinking one Inheritor was enough to crush all resistance?

Or was there something Charybdis was missing?

While most of her attention and power was focused on the portal ritual, she was still working upon the defensive shields of magic that were guarding the room the young Ulgriv was in, and hence warding his mind and soul from Charybdis’ influence. Bit by bit she sent small tendrils to creep along the shining sphere of protective spells that encircled her little sahuagin warrior.

No matter how thorough a warding job, every protective spell had at least one or two small seams in their magical construction. Normally such seams could not be penetrated, not unless one could bring to bear a great deal of directed power, not unlike how one might use a welding torch to burn off the hinges on an otherwise impregnable iron door. However in this instance Charybdis did not have the luxury of bringing that kind of power to bear, but it was not necessary. Because both Wavecrest and Twilight had both erected protective spells and layered them on top of one another, that gave Charybdis the opening she needed. It was doubtful either the foolish seapony or her alicorn ally knew this, but interconnecting spells, while making them stronger overall, also made the dependent on one another and if one spell’s seams were torn open, the rest would follow suit. And while Charybdis didn’t find a weakness in Twilight’s alicorn magic, she was far more familiar with Wavecrest’s traditional seapony charms, and was able to find a spot where a little directed soul magic was able to start unweaving the ward Wavecrest had put up.

And because Twilight had laced her spell with Wavecrest's, the unraveling of one began the unraveling of the other.

It’d still take a few minutes, but in due time Charybdis would be able to contact her loyal subject, learn all that he knew, and if possible even work out a way to sabotage the Treasury from within.

Hah, Twilight Sparkle wouldn’t know what hit her.

----------

Twilight sincerely hoped that they could get close enough to Charybdis to launch a surprise attack that the witch wouldn’t see coming, but that was all contingent on getting close enough without being detected.

The sahuagin outpost consisted of several roughly appointed stone caverns that lacked much in the way of personal accouterments, but was well fortified for defense. The first challenge was simply getting the group past choke points blocked by iron barred gates and chambers filled with alert guards. Fortunately Twilight had magic to cheat with, and as long as she maintained the spells to mask her group’s heat signs and keep everypony more or less invisible, that at least allowed them to get close to so she had visual range on the sahuagin guards that occupied the outpost’s main chamber.

From there it was a simple enough matter to cast out a wide range sleep spell to knock out the majority of the guards in one go. She didn’t want to use anything too potent, otherwise the magic use might end up alerting Charybdis, or triggering some sort of magical ward. Her spell affected almost every guard in sight, a string of magical notes that hovered through the water and lulled the sahuagin into languid floating snoreballs. The few guards that were out of range were too baffled by their suddenly sleeping companions to be able to react quickly.

Applejack, showing off her strength, was able to bend open the bars of the iron gate into the chamber to allow the other’s through, and between Flash Sentry’s speed, Rarity’s precision, and Pinkie Pie’s inexplicable ability to appear behind people without them noticing, the remaining guards joined their fellows in taking involuntary naps within seconds.

“No fuss, no alarms, no shouts for help,” Rarity said, pushing aside the guard she’d unceremoniously choked out, “Thus far I’d say this is going well.”

“Don’t go jinxin’ nothin’, Rarity,” said Applejack, swimming up through the large, circular chamber, taking care to avoid floating spears and tridents the guards had dropped. She reached another set of iron bars with a gate, of which there were several leading out of the dark cavern. Strange, spherical lanterns of coral and glowing moss gave the room a phantom touch of white light, but otherwise all was shadowed. “Hey Twilight, ya think this way, maybe?”

Twilight didn’t have any notion of the layout of this area, but judging from the positions of the other gates, she figured the one Applejack was next to was the most likely to lead further into Rift Mouth. “That looks about right, but don't pry it open like you did with the other. The bending metal makes too much noise.”

“Leave it to me, darlings,” Rarity said, moving up to the gate and whipping out a few small, metal tools with which she made short work of the lock.

“Still amazes me ya know how ta do that. Ya sure ya don’t moonlight as some kind o’ cat burglar?”

“Perish the thought, Applejack. If anything I’d be a daring sleuth who’s experiences with the criminal element only make her more hard boiled and able to combat crime,” Rarity said, putting away her lockpicking tools with a flourish as she opened the gate, “And viola!”

“Sensing anything living ahead?” Twilight asked Flash, to which the Soul Reaper closed his eyes and focused for a moment.

“Hmm, yes, but I don’t know if it’s more guards. There’s a few closer by, but beyond that I’m feeling... a lot of spirit signatures of varying sizes. A lot. I think we’ll be close to the main city once we’re past here.”

That was encouraging. As Twilight moved towards the now open gate, she paused upon spotting a decent sized alcove to her left that she hadn’t noticed earlier. It was carved out of the cavern wall, an oval in the stone large enough to house a large shrine. The shrine was not unlike the one to Domare that she’d seen back in the Aqualania mansions, only larger, with the stone carving not of the seapony goddess but of the same sigil Ulgriv wore on his talisman. The eight tentacles of a barbed octopus or squid revolving around a single large eye, worked in stone. Around the shrine were placed small, bound fetishes of bone and teeth from various ocean creatures, arranged in circular patterns. Small scraps of what Twilight thought might be fish skin were written words in what she assumed was the sahuagin language. Prayers, perhaps?

“She really is worshiped by them, isn’t she?” said Fluttershy, frowning at the shrine as she swam up next to Twilight, “Even though they still live in this cold, terrible place.”

“It’s not that weird,” Pinkie Pie said, “The rock farm wasn’t cheer-central, but Ma and Pa had a way of believing in things, like the Choosing Stone that got them hooked up in the first place. I think sad places make people want to believe in things even more than usual.”

“Structure helps,” Flash said with a quiet look of reflection, “Soul Society has been at war for as long as I can remember, and having the structure of the nobility and Central 46... well it went a long way to making everyone accept things.”

“Even if it helps the sahuagin, it doesn’t mean what Charybdis has done is right,” Twilight said, her wings twitching, “Posing as a goddess, I mean. She could have just made herself a leader without going megalomaniacal about it. Letting them worship her this way, it’s just for her ego, and to steal power. Maybe in some twisted way she might believe she’s helping them, but she’s deluding herself if she thinks it justifies pushing them into further war with the seaponies that’s cost countless lives on both sides. This... this ends today.”

Perhaps it was petty of her, but it felt good when she let loose a small but strong bolt of magical energy that tore apart the shrine in one shot. Letting the chunks of stone sink to the ground, Twilight turned and proceeded through the open gate, letting her companions follow in her wake.

The water around them grew faintly warmer, although that basically only took it from bone crunching freezing to barely tolerable. Passages twisted back upon themselves in a descending zig-zag, and Twilight passed by several alcoves that looked as if they were meant to house additional guards, but stood empty. Most likely many of these outposts were emptied of the majority of the warriors that would be stationed there in order to mount the defenses at the main fortress. She and her friends had simply encountered the skeleton crew leftover. Did that mean there wouldn’t be any further guards once they were outside of the outpost?

After several minutes the switchback of winding passages led to a larger cavern, with a wide opening at one end from which a harsh, cold wash of light from an unknown source coated the rocky seabed in pale blues and greens. Cautiously Twilight and her companions approached the cave mouth. Beyond it’s black rim was a monstrously larger chamber that was unevenly oval, and to Twilight’s surprise led to a break in the water. There was an air pocket here, with cavern space above that was out of the water. She saw shapes moving above, a handful of sahuagin... but they weren’t armed?

“I think we’ve reached the edge of the residential area,” she whispered, and Rarity nodded towards the far end of the pool, where there were carved steps that led out of the water.

“Whether we exit there or climb up over the side, I dare say our splashing about will be noticeable, stealth spells or no.”

“We could just wait until whoever is up there goes away, couldn’t we?” asked Fluttershy, “I’d rather not have to hurt anyone who isn’t trying to hurt us.”

“Twilight, can you put anyone in the room up there to sleep like you did with the guards?” suggested Flash, and she looked up, frowning. She couldn’t see just how large the chamber above actually was, so she couldn’t guarantee a sleep spell would cover all of it or get every sahuagin that might have been up there.

“I can try. I’ll have to dispel Wavecrest's water adaption spell once we’re out so we get our proper legs back, and re-cast it once we have to go back in. We don’t have time to just wait for the sahuagin up there to wander off, so just be ready. I know you don’t like violence, Fluttershy, but we’ll be gentle with the civilians. We just can’t afford to be spotted, either.”

“I know,” the pegasus said, eyes flickering with sympathy but not looking away, either, “I trust you.”

The longer they waited the more time there was for things to go wrong, so Twilight wasted not a second more. She rushed the surface of the pool and breached it like a dolphin, wings spreading from her otherwise seapony body to hover in the air as she let loose with a wide range sleeping spell. Around her, about four or five sahuagin all let out surprised, gasping warbles before the light of her spell washed over them and caused the lot to collapse in unconscious piles.

It took Twilight a second of scanning to realize the chamber was mostly empty, and it’d only been that small handful of sahuagin present. Looking more closely at them, these ones were not only unarmed, but had frailer, thinner bodies than the warriors she’d seen up until that point. Their scales were dull and even their head crests looked frayed.

Were these... old sahuagin? What were they doing here? Wait, where was here?

As her friends climbed out of the pool and into the chamber proper, Twilight soaked in her surroundings.

This was a carved cavern, a dome around the rough pool in the center. An open pair of stone doors led out one side of the chamber, while the rest of the wall was given over to carvings in mounted tablets, dozens upon dozens of them. The entire wall of the dome was covered in these tablets, with sahuagin script carved deeply into them. Small bowls of worked bone or coral sat at the ground in clusters around the tablets, where a copper scent indicated the blood that coated each bowl.

Looking at one of the fallen sahuagin, Twilight saw he had a small bone knife which had been used to open his palm, where he’d been dripping a fresh set of drops into one of the bowls. Gauging from the kneeling positions of some of the other fish men, Twilight realized they must have been sitting in either meditation, or perhaps prayer.

“Whoa, what n’ tarnation is goin’ on with this place?” asked Applejack. By the time all of Twilight’s friends clambered out of the pool she used a quick dispelling enchantment to return their bodies to normal. She’d be able to easily reassert Wavecrest’s adaption spell in a moment, but as long as they were in an aired and dry portion of this place, having legs instead of flippers was quite a bit more useful.

“I think this is a gravesite,” Flash said, and Applejack gave him a look.

“What makes ya say that?”

“Well, it’s just that this looks a lot like the graves back home,” Flash said, shrugging his wings, “In Soul Society we set up monuments to carve the names of our departed and leave offerings for their souls. This chamber just looks similar to me.”

“Wowie, if these are names, there sure are a lot of them,” Pinkie Pie said, and that statement proved to be an underestimation as they followed the path through the doors. There, they discovered the chamber they’d entered was just one many, with split paths leading for further carved areas filled with tablets and offerings to a seemingly boundless list of the dead.

There were some few sahuagin in the other chambers, mostly the elderly, but some younger, whom Twilight’s group was able to stealthily avoid this time, but Twilight did pause to watch and listen as some offered chants and prayers, while others offered their own blood to the departed dead. The crypt, as Twilight had come to think of it, was expansive, but it still wasn’t too long before they found a chamber in which the waters of the Abyss coated the floor once more. Below she saw a wide set of stairs under the water leading to a carved stone exit into what looked to be a much more open expanse beyond.

Unfortunately there were not only sahuagin here at the exit, but from the vestments made of jangling bones and the more elaborate bone daggers they wore, two of these sahuagin were shamans, although young ones from the look of them.

The translation spell Twilight had cast over herself and her friend was still going strong, so as they hid around the bend in the short hall leading to the exit chamber they were able to stay out of sight and listen in to what the two shamans were saying as they chatted.

“We should be there with the Deep Mistress and elders! It’s embarrassing to be excluded so!” gurgled one shaman. The other, bearing a feminine tone, shook her head at the other and waggled a finger at him.

“Fool, it is not our place to question our betters! We are but neophytes, and only just accepted into the shamans’ blessed ranks. Be grateful they saw fit to let us tend to the Halls of the Saved in the absence of a proper elder.”

“Hrrg,” the male grunted, “I’d rather tend the slave and sacrifice pits. Far less boring, especially with new batches of soft kin to break in.”

“Tch, I see no joy in that work. I’d rather be placed within the temple proper.”

“What, no stomach for blood? It is what fuels our very spells, sister, one would think you’d get used to it,” chided the male, to which the female gave him a sharp cuff across the face. He growled as she glared at him.

“Question not my strength or dedication, brother. I merely do not find pleasure in the soft kin’s pain, even if they earn their fates. It is more fulfilling to lead worship in prayer to our Deep Mistress, that is all. I too wish I could be with Her in Her lair right now, aiding in the great ritual. I also have the brains to accept our meager skills in magic would be of little help.”

“Faith supplements skill, but I’ll argue with you no more if you’re in this foul a mood. Let us merely hope something exciting happens before I perish of bore-”

As the pair had been talking, Twilight had hatched a plan with her companions. In a blink, a blinding bolt of purple energy from Twilight smacked into and stunned the male neophyte shaman and smashed him into the ceiling, laying him out cold. The female, quick on her instincts, cut her palm with her dagger and began to chant a spell, her blood crackling with dark power, but Flash Sentry was much faster and used his Zanpaktou to knock the blade out of her hand while simultaneously placing a hand in front of her face to chant an invocation of his own.

“Bakudo Number Five: Inemuri!” (Forced Slumber)

The binding Kido sent an invisible wave of spiritual force over the shaman’s head, and her eyes twitched a moment before closing in abrupt sleep, her body going slack. Twilight looked at Flash with interest as he set the slumbering sahuagin down.

“So Bakudo can do more than just restrain?”

“Oh, you’d be surprised how many Kido fall under the ‘binding’ category that don’t really have anything to do with actual binding,” Flash replied with that semi-embarrassed smile she found so charming.

“Well, nicely done. Now let’s get outside before anyone stops by to notice our sleeping shamans,” Twilight said, quickly casting the water adaption spell over her companions as they all quickly dove into the ocean once more and swam towards the crypt's exit. Before reaching the threshold, Twilight also made sure to coat her group with a fresh pair of heat dampening and a circle of invisibility to try and keep them from being obvious to any watchful eyes. Twilight resolved herself to get a lot more practice with illusions in, as she knew her invisibility especially just wasn’t up to par with what Trixie could do, but fortunately the pathway leading out of the crypt wasn’t occupied and it gave her and her friends a chance to take in their first look at Rift Mouth properly.

The crypt's exit was a hole in the side of a truly massive, sloping cliff, part of an underwater rock canyon that stretched out to either side in a rough S-curve shape to Twilight’s left and right. The slope was made up of roughly carved pits, some large, some small, but all showing the faint glow of moss lamps and the shadows of swimming sahuagin. The closest pits were much larger than the ones further down the slope, and there was an overhanging set of arches made out of the bones of some insanely huge aquatic serpent that formed a canopy over a elongated pit that was carved down at a steep angle.

In the darkness it was difficult to make out details, but she could also tell that to her left the surviving path of the rock canyon was lined on either side by more cave openings, some much larger than the one she and her friends floated within, and some that went as far up the canyon wall as to be nearly out of sight. Twilight also faintly made out the shape of a towering vertical slit in the end of the canyon to her left, flanked by stone spires that looked like the ones she’d seen at the fortress. Could that be the other end of the cavern tunnel the Treasury was doing battle with the sahuagin army?

Did that mean that to the right would lead deeper into Rift Mouth, and hence Charybdis?

In that direction she saw that the peppering of pits thinned out, but only because the canyon walls grew narrow and closer together, with far more caverns honeycombing the walls themselves. Crossways of stitched together bone and coral formed strange tunnels between the caverns, less practical and more seemingly made to dangle more of that glowing moss from to create a shade of otherworldly light in that direction. Once more the uneven gloom of the Abyss made detail hard to make out, but Twilight thought she saw the canyon floor drop off sharply in that direction and the top tips of some huge archway.

“If I were a betting mare, I’d say that way looks like it would lead a dastardly sea witch’s lair,” Rarity said, nodding off to their right, and Twilight was inclined to agree.

“Everypony stay close, only whisper when you half to, and try and move fast,” Twilight said, and began to set off, keeping watch to make sure her friends were all remaining in proper range of her spells. The swam in a tight cluster and kept lose to the seafloor, not wanting to risk swimming higher up. For being the sahaugin’s only real “city” there still didn’t appear to be that many swimming around. She kept seeing a few dwelling within the carved out pits, but not in the kind of numbers she’d expect from a large settlement. Then again it was possible most preferred to remain in their dwellings.

It was then that Fluttershy whispered, “Oh my, I wonder if they’re tame?”

“Tame? What do you mean?” Twilight said, but Fluttershy pointed up, and Twilight blinked at the sigh to a pod of darting shapes that swam around the higher caverns of the canyon wall. Squid? Large ones, to be sure, although not giant monsters. She then let out a small gasp as, despite the size of the squid, an even larger beast that looked like a cross between an ocean crocodile and a whale descended from the darkness above and swallowed two of the squid whole before vanishing back up into the fathoms above.

“Hoo boy, they don’t even have defenses against wild predators in their own city,” Pinkie Pie gulped, “That’s a pest control issue if I've ever seen one.”

“I... don’t think that’s true,” Twilight said, careful with her magic as she poked upwards with her senses. “There’s a bubble of sorts up there. A warding. I think it keeps the large ones from diving too deep, but...”

“But if any fish face wanders too far up, they’re probably fair game fer snack time,” Applejack noted.

“Most of them probably know to keep below a certain depth,” Flash pointed out, but then his eyes narrowed as he seemed to spot something up above, “Unless of course you’re a dumb kid who doesn’t know any better.”

“Huh?” Fluttershy picked up on his meaning much faster than Twilight did as she was the next one to notice the pair of tiny shadows swimming up the rock wall, entirely too close to where the pod of squid had been. Twilight made out the sight of two small sahuagin, clearly far too young to be wandering around on their own, making their way up in small spurts of swimming. It looked to her like one was egging on the other. Some kind of test of courage? She’d known school fillies back in Ponyville that sometimes challenged themselves to wander into the Everfree Forest, which was dangerous enough. This looked quite a bit moreso, given the size and aggressiveness of the predators present.

Ulgriv had said something about there being a high mortality rate among sahuagin young. She’d figured that was a combination of lack of food, medical care, and the extreme cold. Stood to reason predator attacks weren’t uncommon either.

“Twilight, we have to do something,” Fluttershy said.

Twilight didn’t disagree, but could she risk compromising the whole mission? Stopping the two children would be easy enough, but between the stealth spells she was already maintaining, using more magic would start to give off a more potent signature that Charybdis might sense! They’d lose the element of surprise. At that moment a sense of frigid shame struck her almost as soon as she’d had those thoughts, realizing that something like the mere element of surprise was inconsequential when stacked against the correctness of protecting lives. A part of her knew it was simple pragmatism, but she hadn’t become a Princess of Equestria by relying on dry practicality and only doing what was smart, instead of what was right.

Saving the two sahuagin children from their own naïve actions wasn’t in question, only how to go about doing it.

“Rarity, can you grab them with your magic?” she said, “If you do that and yank them towards us, I’ll try to extend my illusions to cover them, too.”

“On it, Twilight.” Rarity said, her own horn glowing like a torch. Twilight licked her lips and focused on contorting her illusions, extending the ‘bubble’ that was around her and her friends like a distorted balloon. The two sahuagin youngsters had nearly reached the pack of squid when Rarity’s magic gripped both of them. The pair let out startled cries, but they were far enough away from the sahuagin dwellings down below that their voices might reach, but not without some distortion.

The pair were pulled rapidly towards Twilight’s party, and in mere seconds were enveloped in the illusion that helped cloak the group. The second they were close, Fluttershy got in front of the startled, frightened pair of sahuagin young and her eyes seemed to stare deeply into theirs as her voice let out a soothing yet somehow commanding tone. “Please be quiet, little ones. We’re not going to hurt you. You’re safe with us.”

Up close the pair of youngsters looked quite different than the burly warriors Twilight was used to. Their limbs were more stubby, with claws more like needles. Each also had an underdeveloped tail, almost like a tadpole’s. Their eyes were disproportionately large compared to their heads, and gave them wide eyed stares that were almost adorable if they two didn’t look terrified.

One opened their mouth to shriek, but Fluttershy’s stare had a potency that was near a physical force as she raised a hoof to her mouth, “Shhh, please. I said we won’t hurt you. If you make a lot of noise, that makes everything very complicated for me and my friends. You two look like good little sahuagin, so we have no reason to harm you. And we just stopped you from doing something very dangerous.”

“Uh, Fluttershy, we’ve got translation spells on us,” Applejack pointed out, “They don’t.”

Fluttershy’s face colored red, “Oh, um. Heheh...I see.”

Fortunately her stare had been enough to cow the two children, who were gaping in astonishment at the cluster of apparent seaponies around them. Twilight frowned, then decided there was little choice and cast the translation spell upon the children. Perhaps they might learn something useful? “There, you should be able to understand us now.”

“S-soft kin magic!” one whispered, it’s voice so high pitched that telling male from female was difficult.

“Don’t talk to them! They’ll kill the broodmother and steal the rest of the spawning for food!” whimpered the other.

“Oh no, we would do no such thing,” Fluttershy insisted, “We only wanted to stop you from getting yourselves hurt.”

The first one that had spoken sent near transparent eyelids flicking over his huge, button eyes in an astonished blink, “Why? It’s a test of courage! We prove our worth to the Deep Mistress.”

“Yes, yes, we prove ourselves and we’ll be made great warriors or even shamans. Soft kin like you must want to stop us. That’s why you’re here, a raid to attack the spawning pools!” shouted the other, to which Flash Sentry nudged Twilight and nodded towards the larger pits on the slope.

“We can’t stay here long Twilight. The noise is attracting attention, even if we can’t be seen,” he said, and Twilight saw what he meant. Several sahuagin adults were slowly floating out of their pit dwellings, looking around in wary curiosity. From the larger pit rose a particularly large sahuagin specimen, with thick limbs and a gravid belly. This sahaugin’s crest was huge, with a deep red color marked by green stripes, and she carried a staff of carved coral tipped with some manner of severed crab pincer.

“Ritigiv, Dravma! I’d better not find you boys have gotten your idiot selves eaten by squid, or I’ll still tan your corpses for disobeying my rules!”

The two young sahuagin both visibly paled. “Uh-oh, broodmother Farmaiz is gonna kill us!”

“M-maybe we should’ve waited a year to do our test of courage, brother?”

The angry broodmother started searching up the slope, still grumbling and threatening loudly while poking at crevices with her pincer staff. Applejack, gaining a savvy look on her face, slid next to the two young sahuagin and whispered, “Ya know, ya two little rascals seem ta be in a spot o’ trouble with yer ma, goin’ out an’ doin’ something she clearly forbade ya from doin’. Bet she’s got a whole list o’ punishments wit yer names on ‘em if she finds ya, especially if yer hangin’ round a bunch o’ soft kin like us.”

“Ack, the soft kin is right, Ritigiv! We need to hide until the broodmothers wrath dies down a little.”

“Grr, I hate you being right...” said the other, Dravma, who tilted his (or her?) head at the ponies around them, “You’re using some crazy soft kin magic to hide us right now? That’s why the broodmother and none others can see us?”

“That’s right,” Twilight said, thinking quickly, “If you two know a good hiding spot, we’ll take you there, just as long as you keep quiet about us being here.”

“How do we know you’re not here to raid us?” asked Dravma, “What are soft kin like you doing in Rift Mouth?”

“We’ve business with your Deep Mistress,” Twilight said, figuring there was little point in trying to lie about it. “If you know where her lair is, that’d speed things along.”

The little sahuagin chortled, but the laugh died as the broodmother’s search got ever closer. Ritigiv was still shaking, but Twilight saw a shrewdness appearing in Dravma’s face as the young one regarded them with a growing amount of alertness. “You’re not... normal soft kin. You know what, this is way more interesting than just playing at a test of courage! Follow me and I’ll show you a hideout we spawnlings use to watch the warriors and shamans practice. It’s not far from the Deep Mistress’ trench.”

“D-Dravma, you’ll help these soft kin?” Ritigiv squeaked, “Even if they’re here to hurt the Deep Mistress?”

“Don’t be a fool, Rit. Nothing can hurt the Deep Mistress, but she loves receiving sacrifices. If these soft kin want to throw themselves at her so badly, why not help them do so? The Deep Mistress may even reward us!” Dravma said, then glanced with a hint of fear as broodmother Farmaiz’s search grew close enough that her angry bellows shook the water. Twilight realized the broodmother was almost twice the size that even Morgawr had been. Either spawning did quite a bit of morphing to a sahaugin’s body, or broodmothers were a different breed from regular sahuagin females. She made a mental note to, one day if circumstances permitted, to do a proper study on sahuagin biology.

“Besides,” Dravma said, “I’d rather risk the Deep Mistress’ unknown wrath than Farmaiz’s very known wrath. Come soft kin, this way.”

As strange as it was, Twilight and her companions now had a rather unexpected guide, and given time was short and they needed a way to get further into Rift Mouth without getting lost or bumping into endless patrols, they now followed a young pair of sahuagin deep into the canyon. With a little luck, perhaps they’d still be able to get the drop on Charybdis.

----------

Rainbow Dash kept half an eye on the Treasury while waiting to see what the sahuagin champions would do. She’d lost sight of Berokar amid the swirling cloud of silt and rock that had flown up from where he’d hit the seabed, but she sensed a stir of magic from there that told her that while she’d given him a solid hit, he wasn’t out of the fight yet. Rainbow was still getting used to being able to sense magic and other energies at all. It wasn’t too different from the way she, as a pegasus, could feel the weather, but there was still a lot unfamiliar to her about her new powers.

On one hoof, she did have Tachys’ memories swirling inside her mind to help steady the flow of confusing sensing and sort things out. On the other hoof, those same memories were seriously cramping her style when it came to her friends; Applejack especially.

Tachys and her, in some ways, were pretty similar. Both incredible loyal, both daring and all too willing to fly headlong into danger. They both liked a good challenge and reveled in showing off. Yet Tachys was different from her in more than a few key areas, and not just in what equipment was under his tail. Tachys was a romantic to a fault, whereas Rainbow Dash had tried so hard not to think about that kind of thing for most of her life that it’d bordered on the pathological. It wasn’t like she didn’t have some level of interest, but she’d just always associated romantic relationships with getting tied down and... well, responsibility. It just hadn’t been at the forefront of her mind while focusing on getting into the Wonderbolts.

Now she had a diehard romantic in her head that was mistaking her best friend for his paramour, and it was causing some serious mental distraction. Last thing she needed when about to face down three magically empowered, highly trained killers. But then again, nice way to get her mind off of Applejack and how beautiful her friend’s eyes where, even when she was arguing-

Gah! Brain, stop it! We’re in flank kicking mode, not flank kissing mode! Even if Applejack’s flanks are really exceptionally toned- NO! Focus!

Her issued challenge appeared to be getting a response, as she heard a surprisingly loud bellow come from the darkly purple shaded sahuagin champion. The bellow was apparently some manner of command for the fortress became quiet in short order as the spells of shamans of the large bolts from launches mounted on the spires came to a halt. In response the Treasury, which had been moving around in a slow banking circle for another attack run slowed down and finished its turn a good distance back, leaving Rainbow Dash essentially halfway between the ship and the sahuagin fortress.

Rainbow Dash watched as who she assumed was the sahuagin leader began to swim towards her, followed by Morgawr who remained a respectful distance behind this other champion. The silt cloud Berokar’s impact had created had settled down, although he himself was nowhere in evidence. Rainbow didn’t drop her guard as the other two champions got close to the air bubble she was maintaining around herself. As a courtesy, and to perhaps be a tad cocky, she let the bubble go, drawing the wind back into herself. She didn’t care if the sahuagin thought she was dropping her guard. She most certainly wasn’t. But she wouldn’t say no to them underestimating her.

As arrogant as she was intentionally acting, she was taking this seriously. While she felt confident she was more powerful than these “champions” of Charybdis, she knew they might still be able to put the hurt on her if she got too reckless or failed to pay attention.

Now that they were close Rainbow Dash was able to get a decent look at the purple one. She, or at least Rainbow Dash was fairly certain it was female, was a shade of color a good bit darker than Twilight’s lavender, closer to the shade of plumbs. Her body was built like a wire cord, and looked as hard as steel without being bulky. Aside from a light armored vest of bone, the main piece of gear this female sahuagin carried was a huge circle blade of immense shark teeth arranged in a pattern that basically made her weapon into a saw, with a cross handle in the center for an easy grip.

Beside the female, Morgawr floated with just a regular trident of bone. Dash was a little disappointed he hadn’t recovered that nifty spear that Scylla had owned, as it had looked like it had a fun ability to try fighting. Looking him over, she broke the ice by saying, “Surprised to see you swimming, dude. Twilight left you a total wreck just a few days ago.”

There wasn’t quite as much of a reaction as she would have hoped for, but she did see him grip his weapon tighter as he said, “The Deep Mistress’ gifts remain with me, despite my failures. My body may not be as healed as it appears, but I’ll sacrifice this flesh all the same in Her name.”

“We are not here to talk, surfacer,” said the female, her voice possessing a rasping quality that wasn’t too far off from Rainbow Dash’s own, “I am Rezarra, warleader of the sahuagin who face you this day. Rather than waste my warriors lives against you and your ship, if you seek the honor of one-on-one combat then I shall answer that call.”

“Pfft, didn’t you hear me, lady?” Rainbow Dash said, and swept her shining swordbreaker before her, locking eyes with Rezarra, “I said I’ll take all three of you. Including you, Mister Sneaky McCan’tHide!”

She sent out a blast of wind force with a simple gesture of her right wing, lancing the water in that direction with a blast of air that churned the water. A shadowy waver in the water resolved itself into Berokar, who’d wrapped himself in some manner of cloaking magic to try and swim behind her. Now he rocked back, knives poised, and growled at being exposed.

“Grr, how did you-!?”

“Who knows?” Rainbow Dash said, waggling her eyebrows at him. She did kind of want to show off and explain her skills, but she could all but hear a tiny Twilight on her shoulder giving her a lecture on not doing something so foolish. Truth was, Rainbow Dash’s command of wind was quite a bit more potent than even she’d suspected when first becoming familiar with the powers she now wielded. When she’d created that air bubble earlier she’d also left much tinier bubbles, near invisible ones, all over the area. Any water current that stirred those microscopic bubbles was something she’d immediately sense and be able to react to. There’d be no sneaking up on Rainbow Dash, unless her foe possessed some way to neutralize her powers or become fully intangible. Berokar’s stealth was actually impressive, making him near completely invisible in the dark waters, but his motions still generated currents in the water. He wasn’t getting in any backstabs on Dash unless she fell asleep mid-battle.

“Berokar, do not pervert the sanctity of an honor duel with your shameless tactics,” Rezarra said, then turned glaring eyes towards Rainbow, “As for you... hmph, I admit that Morgawr has warned me against taking you surfacers lightly. It seems you have gained powers that rival the blessings we chosen of Charybdis possess. So be it. If you seek to face all three of us, I shall not deny you.”

In one smooth motion Rezarra reached back and unclipped her circular blade from her back and spun it in front of her. Intense red light bloomed across a number of spiral tattoos etched near invisibly across her scales, and in turn wisps of that red light flowed into her weapon. A high pitched whine filled the water as, instead of Rezarra’s body, it was her weapon that transformed. The shark teeth grew a metallic sheen and turned blood red as the blade itself started to spin at high speed, while a sheath of crimson energy coated the entire thing and vibrated with power.

“Huh, that’s new,” Dash said, and Rezrra showed teeth.

“Each champion receives a different blessing from the Deep Mistress. All of us gain physical might, but beyond that the blessings are unique. Morgawr has his armor and unrivaled durability. Berokar gains speed and the capacity to blend into any environment he’s in. As for me, my blade, Leviathan Slayer, gains a life of its own and the power to rend anything it touches, no matter how thick the armor or hide it encounters.”

“Nifty,’ Rainbow Dash drawled, “Soooo, we waiting until the count of three...?’

“Count of... three?” Rezarra tilted her head quizzically, and Dash just waved a hoof at her.

“Never mind. Let’s just go on go, okay? GO!”

She didn’t hold anything back, going straight for Rezarra. Even underwater, there was no slowing her speed, and between that and the wind force she generated around her wings it was as if a tunnel of air had instantly opened up in the depths between her and the sahuagin champion. Her swordbreaker was a silver weave of a hundred flashes, all targeting Rezarra’s limbs in a blinding storm.

In terms of reaction times it wasn’t a real contest, as Rezarra, even pumped up with Charybdis’ magic, could not keep track of Dash’s movements. However there was one factor that kept her from being entirely overwhelmed in that first moment. She hadn’t been lying about her weapon, Leviathan Slayer, taking on a life of it’s own, and it had received the far greater portion of Charybdis’ blessing. The weapon automatically moved to defend it’s wielder from attacks, even ones the wielder couldn’t perceive, for the weapon’s magical field could detect those motions and react to them. More than that, each individual shark tooth on the spinning blade had a separate ability... the ability to detach and fly out like a swarm of individual saw blades.

Rainbow Dash still felt more than a few of her strikes connected with Rezarra’ who tried to dart to the side out of the main path of Dash’s assault. Meanwhile a buzzing cyclone of spinning red shark teeth interposed themselves with Rainbow’s other strikes, with flaring sparks of red and silver as the blade’s edges clashed.

Morgawr was activating his own blessings from Charybdis, his muscles twitching as they bulged out. From the look of pain on his face his body was still quite damaged and the act of empowering himself was causing no shortage of agony, but that didn’t stop him from still lunging in Dash’s direction with a potent thrust that created a shockwave in the water at the tip of his trident.

Still, it was nothing Rainbow Dash couldn’t readily evade, and as she did so she turned her swordbreaker enough to catch one of the trident tips in the swordbreaker’s grooves. She then spun and twisted her body to wrench Morgawr around, after which she flipped her own body up and over him to plant a dropkick onto his back. This sent Morgawr flying downward, but before Dash could follow up that attack, she had dozens of shark teeth spinning towards her in a burning red barrage.

In a prismatic streak she zipped away from the blades, Rezarra trying her best to try and follow Rainbow Dash’s constant motion that left the sahuagin with dizzy eyes.

“How is she this fast?” Rezarra breathed, then she flung her weapon above her head and slapped her hands together, “Deep Mistress, grant me more power! Take your price of my spirit in service to you!”

Rezarra could feel the warm grip of Charybdis’ attention upon her, and heard her Deep Mistress’ words in her mind as clear as clarion bells.

I will spare some more power, but do not squander it, my champion.

Not unlike the manner in which Morgwar had grown even more empowered in his clash with Twilight, a potent font of fresh power erupted within Rezarra, although in the manner of her unique blessing this force channeled through her and into her weapon that now hovered above her head. The spinning blade of shark teeth crackled with fresh might, red and black magical energy now burning around it in a raging blaze.

Each of the shark teeth that had been flying around and chasing Rainbow Dash now doubled in speed, and gained a set ghostly duplicates made of pure red energy. Suddenly Dash was contending with hundreds of shark teeth that were chasing her, and with a laugh of enjoyment she increased her own speed.

Around Rezarra she rushed, so fast that it looked as if a hundred Rainbow Dashs were surrounding her.

“Not bad Rezarra, but can you keep up!?” Dash shouted, and Rezarra growled, swimming up to grab her main weapon and pour more magic into it, causing yet more phantom shark teeth to burst forth and further increase the speed of them. This was causing a visible strain on Rezarra, her muscles twitching and a bit of blood seeping from her eyes as she shoved as much of the magic Charybdis was giving her into her weapon.

“Catch her and slice through, Leviathan Slayer!” Rezarra shouted, and as if her very will was spurring them on, the hundreds of shark teeth moved in coordinated, curving motions to chase Rainbow Dash.

Even so, Dash simply went into a sudden climb, getting all of the shark teeth following her in a tight cluster. Then, satisfied they were all bunched together, Rainbow Dash instantly turned around and then shot straight back down, exuding such air pressure from her wings that a conical wave of wind formed a bubble in the water and smashed down. Each shark tooth was caught in this sudden surge of wind and blasted through, Rainbow Dash punching right through the cluster as she aimed a streaking silver strike right at Rezarra’s gut.

At the last split second she felt a disturbance in the small bubbles she’d been using to monitor the motion of everything around her. It was sudden, and surprisingly close. The water in front of her barley stirred as a series of black spikes snapped at her, and if she hadn’t been as fast as she was or had the early warning, she would have been skewered.

Berokar let out a sahuagin curse as the spikes his body had grown retracted, having missed Dash, but only by an inch. Dash was surprised, nonetheless. Clever jerk had gone completely motionless, ceasing all movement save to float silently and invisibly in front of Rezarra. He’d predicted she’d go for another head on attack and had also guessed she’d had a way to track his movements, so he’d stopped dead and remained in her potential attack path, despite that putting his body at risk of friendly fire. All just to try and get the drop on her! Had he waited a split second longer, or if his spikes had been a bit faster, she might not have managed to dodge in time.

“Yikes, you almost had me there, but still no dice, buddy!” she said, to which Berokar, wearing a look of utter hatred on his face, faded back into the shadows wordlessly. Looked as if he wasn’t about to give up on getting her with a sneak attack, but she wasn’t going to fall for the same trick twice.

Still, she was a little impressed. She figured she’d have taken all three of her opponents down by now, but they were hanging in there. Morgawr was swimming back up from where she’d kicked him down, and Rezarra was rejoining her shark teeth with her main blade, and appeared to be powering up for a new attack, crimson power swirling around her like a maelstrom of blood, while Berokar was out there somewhere in the dark, looking for any weakness in Dash’s guard.

Yet Rainbow Dash was smiling. She was having the time of her life, and in the back of her mind she could all but feel the memories of Tachys’ sharing in her satisfaction. He’d lived for battles just like this, and now Rainbow Dash was getting a taste for it herself. Some part of her thought perhaps she ought to find that concerning, but for now she was simply having fun.

And hey, this certainly seemed to be keeping Charybdis’ attention, and as long as that was the case, then Twilight and others would have one less surprise to worry about.

----------

Every second of sitting within the confined room, even if it was far more comfortable than his previous cell, was still agony for Ulgriv. The young sahuagin warrior was tearing himself apart on the inside, his spirit in pained turmoil. He believed he’d done the right thing by providing the surfacers with a means to stealthily enter Rift Mouth. It would help save the lives of his fellow warriors, and even if the surfacers’ goal was to defeat his Deep Mistress, it was difficult for Ulgriv to conceive of the notion that Charybdis could... lose.

She was a goddess. A savior of his race. His devotion to her was strong and he had faith that everything Charybdis had ever done was for the good of her children. There was no reason for him to doubt this, for as difficult as his life had been, each of those difficulties, from the growl of a starving belly to the fear of being hunting by the very Abyssal creatures he had to hunt to feed his people were things that were the fault of the seapony soft kin. Charybdis, goddess or not, could only mitigate the problems the sahuagin faced, not erase them. But the seaponies, the cursed soft kin, had forced his people to remain outcast for so long, for no good reason.

Right? It seemed foolish to him, and he kept admonishing himself for it, but the past few days spent amid the surfacers had left him with questions that prodded his soul. He couldn’t explain it, other than there was a distinct sincerity to which these surface ponies seemed dedicated to reducing the harm their actions caused and the concern they expressed towards his people that left him confused.

At least the soft kin witch, Wavecrest, had acted like he imagined soft kin would, at least for the most part. But even her words had left hooks of doubt in his mind, suggesting that his kind had earned their place in the Abyss by being the very kind of threat that would earn the hate and scorn of the soft kin. He wanted to deny Wavecrest’s accusations, yet it would explain much of the soft kin’s attitude towards the sahuagin. If he forced himself to think about it, considering the manner in which, for generations, his race had managed to sneak out of the Abyss to conduct raids that captured seapony, even young ones, for use as slaves in the mines beneath Rift Mouth or as sacrifices for shamanistic rituals, then what blame could he give the soft kin for their hate?

Oh my sweet child, that is the nature of hate. Everyone wants to think just their own hate is justified, but the truth is, ALL hate is justified.

Ulgriv froze, mouth opening in awe as he suddenly felt Her presence within him. He choked out a cry as he clutched the amulet around his neck, “Deep Mistress!?”

Yes, faithful Ulgriv. The seapony witch, Wavecrest, and that arrogant Twilight Sparkle tried to bar my path to you, but I was able to tear down the feeble spells that were trying to keep me out. I sense your thoughts, your confusion.

Shame filled him and he lowered his head, both hands now holding his amulet tightly, “Forgive me, Deep Mistress. I harbor such doubt. I only wish to serve you, to serve my people, but I...I...

Her voice was as soothing as the embrace of the rare warm current that the enchanted heat stones could make within Rift Mouths’ still bitterly cold depths.

Shhh, my child. I see your soul, Ulgriv. I know your faith is pure. Your love of your fellow kin. So young, yet so dedicated. You’re ashamed you led the surface folk to me? But I am grateful. Twilight Sparkle thinks she will surprise me, but it will be I who surprises her. In more ways than one, if you are willing to give yourself to me.

“What must I...do?” he asked, eager, yet somehow uneasy. He didn’t know how he could possibly be of help, locked away as he was. Charybdis’ voice echoed in his head with gentle, yet somehow sharp laughter.

You needn’t do anything, faithful Ulgriv. Let me in, and I shall do the rest.

Episode 164: Confronting Charybdis

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Episode 164: Confronting Charybdis

Within the confines of the Treasury’s humming engine room it was difficult for Wavecrest to have any notion of what was taking place outside. She knew when the vessel fired its weapons from the extra vibration through the water, or the shorter fluctuations in the ship’s power grid that indicated the magical shields taking a hit, but beyond that the seapony was left to wait and pray for the success of Twilight Sparkle and her friends.

More than anything she wanted to be with them, to confront the black hearted creature that was responsible for so much of her kin’s suffering. How many seaponies had been deprived of loved ones because of Charybdis’ role in making the sahuagin what they were today?

She bears responsibility, but can you deny that your ancestors did nothing to contribute to the present state of things? a cynical corner of her heart asked. She wanted to deny that voice with all of her might, but to be a shaman of the sea meant one had to learn to set aside some level of personal ego in order to commune with the ocean’s spirits. If she forced her anger, her rancor, and her pride in her people aside for just a moment... perhaps she could admit to herself that the cycle of violence was turned by seapony hooves as much as sahuagin hands. Yet that did not change that Charybdis had made things worse by installing herself as a ‘goddess’ and fueling the sahuagin beliefs. Charybdis could have been the first to offer a hoof in peace! With her power she could have begun the process of healing for both sides! Instead all she had done was pursue power for her own ends, and encouraged centuries of needless bloodshed in the process.

Wavecrest was not about to give the woman one inch of sympathy, and only regretted that she couldn’t be present to give Charybdis a piece of her mind and participate more directly in the witch’s defeat. Once all was said and done, perhaps she might be able to start what would be a long, slow, and painful process of reconciliation between sahuagin and seaponies, but she would still need the boon of the Treasury’s technology to help advance her people, and possibly return home with Domare’s Eye of the Sea...

Her presence in the engine room required a great deal of her attention. Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer had almost made the task of monitoring the Treasury's magical power core look simple, but in truth it took a good deal of perception and focus. As advanced as the Treasury was, many parts of it were experimental, and nowhere was that more apparent than the crystalline core and all the subsystems that distributed power throughout the vessel. While powerful, and fairly durable, the power system was prone to fluctuations, especially in combat where the ship was using both its many potent weapons and its equally impressive shields. While Wavecrest technically didn’t have to do much to actually control those minor fluctuations, she still had to keep a keen eye out for them.

Perhaps then it could be understood that when the doors to the engine room opened, Wavecrest didn’t immediately respond, as she’d been so glued to the main monitoring station that it took a few extra seconds for her to realize someone had entered the room. Secondly, for the convenience of the ship’s mostly surface dwelling crew, the decision had been made to keep the ship air pressurized, rather than flood it with water. The Treasury was adequately designed to handle either having air or water filling its internals, and could handle the depths easily enough regardless, so no problem had been seen in letting the ponies have the familiarity of air until the time came for them to leave the ship.

So Wavecrest was also maintaining her pony form, and was a bit slower to turn around as a result. This meant that by the time she noticed who was in the room, she already felt the tearing pain explode in her side. Shock washed over her in a frozen wave, and she saw the contorted features of Ulgriv fill her vision as the sahuagin, surrounded by a strange miasma of swirling dark energy, bashed her across the face with a hefty fist. His other hand withdrew the kitchen knife he’d used to stab her, and Wavecrest, dazed and hammered by shock, collapsed to the ground.

Ulgriv spoke, but his voice was distorted, and in her stunned state Wavecrest barely realized that the female overlay that spoke over Ulgriv’s own trembling tone was none other than Charybdis’.

“Thought you and Twilight Sparkle would keep one of my own safe behind your wards? I was mastering magic ages before your parents’ parents were spawned, girl.”

Wavecrest coughed and tried to reach for her staff, which she’d left propped up against the engine room’s monitoring station, but Ulgriv, possessed by Charybdis, kicked the staff away. Blood seeped out of Wavecrest, staining the bronze engine room floor. Ulgriv walked around her, his body moving in jerking motions, Charybdis’ voice still speaking derisively with the young sahaugin’s lips.

“Do you know my faithful Ulgriv even hesitated to go for your heart? Would a seapony ever hesitate to kill a sahuagin, I wonder? Consider it my gift to him for his service that I’ll leave you to bleed out instead of finishing you off. Whether you live or die is in your own hooves, although once I deal with Twilight and her allies any of you who survive can expect my shamans to come calling soon. I do hope you enjoy a slave’s chains.”

Trying to prop herself up, despite the pain of the gaping, bleeding wound in her side, Wavecrest hoped to lunge for her staff, but before she could a wave of dark magic coiled off of Ulgriv’s possessed body and lashed her into the wall hard enough to make it ring like a gong. “Of course if you push it, my mercy won’t extend much further. I admire your tenacity, Wavecrest, but my sister had tenacity too, and it didn’t do too well for her in the end. Now, what to do about this stupid toy boat of hers? Sadly between the whale’s share of my power needed elsewhere and Ulgriv being too fragile a host to channel too much of my might through I can’t simply demolish this room, but I ought to be able to break something important.”

With a grasping gesture, Ulgriv’s hand rose and clenched his talon upon his palm, drawing blood. With the blood sizzling as a magical catalyst, a thick lance of spectral darkness shaped into a tentacle flew out and lashed through several bronze pipes connecting the floor to the engine room’s central crystal. Sparks of magic flared up and a barrier flashed into place, formed of concentric hexagons that encased the crystal as the room was flooded with red light and a warning klaxon blared. Ulgriv frowned, Charybdis’ voice scoffing, “Ah, Scylla actually thought of automating a protective barrier. Points to my paranoid sister. Well, let’s just smash this then.”

With those words she directed her arcane tendril of caustic darkness at the monitoring console, the magic searing through metal like highly concentrated acid. An explosion of metal shards and sparks flew from the console as it fell into two pieces. Ulgriv’s body was protected by a barrier of magic that popped up in front of him, but Wavecrest was cut by several flying bits of shrapnel, adding to the blood loss she was already suffering from.

“That ought to slow this ship down,” Charybdis said with Ulgriv’s throat, turning to start striding out of the room, only pausing once to glance at Wavecrest as the badly wounded seapony tried to crawl towards her staff, which remained painfully out of reach. “I’d spend less energy trying to get that useless stick in a vain effort to stop me and instead focus on closing your wounds. Be a shame to give Ulgriv the gift of your life only for you to throw it away, but then again I don’t much care if you live or die. Farewell.”

With that, the possess sahuagin was gone, and Wavecrest was left with the alarm’s shrill noise filling her ears along with the painful thunder of her own slowing heartbeat. Blood pooled under her, and her staff was still a tantalizing several meters away. She didn’t need it to cast spells, but the staff provided a needed focal point to augment them. She might save her own life without it, but she’d be unable to do anything else, least of all warn those on the bridge that Charybdis was coming!

Doggedly, she pulled herself forward one blood streaked, agonizing inch at a time towards her staff...

----------

“What in blue skied blazes is that alarm going off for?” Seaspray said, looking to Grubber, who was sitting in front of him on the sensor’s station of the bridge, “Were we hit?”

The hedgehog-like creature tossed his shoulders up in a shrug as he cast back a confused look at the Admiral. “I can barely tell what’s going on outside the ship, let alone anything going on inside it. I didn’t exactly get a lot of training on this gear before you guys strapped me to this seat. I’ve got all sorts of flashy red bits on the ship readout, and looks like parts of the shields are cutting in and out at random. I think something happened in the engine room?”

Seaspray frowned, and Aria spoke up from the port side weapons controls, “I just lost power to, like, half the cannons. I’d say we’ve got a problem.”

“Same over here!” shouted Sonata, banging random buttons on her controls, “It’s like somebody just glitched the controls.”

So far the Treasury had held back from engaging the sahuagin fortress further with Rainbow Dash dueling with their three champions, but Seaspray wanted the ship’s systems fully ready to go the moment the time came to engage again. Without the weapons and shields the ship was just one big target, and there were still more than enough sahuagin out there to swarm them if the Treasury couldn’t defend itself. He got onto the communications system with a flick of his talon and spoke into it, “Engine room, this is the bridge. Wavecrest, has anything happened? We’re having power issues up here. Engine room...? Wavecrest, respond! Wavecrest, can you hear me?”

“Gonna take a guess and say this doesn’t bode well,” said Grubber, “Want me to run on back there and take a peek on our resident fish horse?”

“Resident fish gal? What are we, then?” Sonata asked, sounding almost insulted, and Grubber cracked a grin.

“You guys are more like angry shark horses. Totally different thing.”

“Regardless we need somecreature to go find out what happened to Wavecrest,” Seaspray said, “I’d send Trixie, but she’s busy keeping those illusions going. And I need you here, Grubber, to maintain our eyes, even if our skill level is dubious.”

“Gee, thanks chief.”

“Me and Sonata will go look. We’re not shooting right now anyway,” said Aria, floating up from her chair, “Any objections?”

“None, but be quick. If the sahuagin do attack, we’ll need every gun, but that also means fixing whatever’s wrong in engineering. Hopefully it’s just a communications glitch...” Seaspray said, but he had an increasingly sinking feeling in his gut that something worse was happening here. His suspicions focused on one particular element that had continued to bother him this entire time. While Twilight Sparkle and Wavecrest had worked together to secure the prisoner Ulgriv, they had not had a spare individual to guard him.

“And on your way to engineering, check on the prisoner. Just in case,” he said, just as Aria and Sonata both were reaching the bridge’s exit. In that same instance, the doors opened. Catching all off guard, it was Ulgriv who stood there, and it was with the unnaturally distorted voice of Charybdis herself that the young sahuagin spoke as he flashed sharp teeth at the shocked faces of Aria and Sonata.

“Excellent. I was just coming to see you girls. You’ve a reunion with your sister’s errant soul shard, and I’ve a schedule to keep.”

Seaspray was out of his seat in seconds, talons flexing in lieu of a weapon to use as he flew forward at the new threat. The two sirens reared back in equal parts surprise and instinctual defense, fangs and hooves barred. But Charybdis had arrived prepared, and retained the element of surprise, having already begun shaping magic for a spell before the doors to the bridge had even opened. It pushed Ulgriv’s body to the maximum amount possible, but Charybdis was willing to risk it in this instance. The distance wasn’t great and she was intimately familiar with the destination, which made the workings of teleportation magic far simpler than they otherwise would be.

Before Seaspray had gotten across even half the distance to the door, a spiral of shadow erupted from around Ulgriv and swallowed both him and the two sirens. By the time Seaspray got to the door, the brief burst of swirling shadows had vanished in an imploding pop. Aria and Sonata were gone, along with Ulgriv.

Seaspray halted at the empty doorway and sagged to the floor, his wings drooping. “No... dammit, no!”

“Uh, soooo, that’s not good, is it?” said Grubber, and Seaspray slammed a fist to the deck, then got back on his hooves and shot a glaring look over his shoulder at the hedgehog.

“Get your friend Tempest and Starlight Glimmer in here! Tell them what happened, and see if one of them knows a spell to contact Twilight to warn her of what just occurred! I’m going to the engine room at once. If Wavecrest is hurt, I’ll need at least one of you to help me in the infirmary.”

“G-got it, chief!” Grubber said, hands shaking a bit as he fumbled for the communications device on his own console to connect to the upper deck’s com, where Trixie, Starlight, and Tempest still were.

Meanwhile, cursing himself for not anticipating all of this and knowing full well he couldn’t have known, Seaspray rushed out of the bridge as fast as his wings could carry him. He prayed that he’d find Wavecrest alive, since he was fairly certain she was anything but safe.

----------

Morgawr knew a losing battle when he saw one, but as ever faith in the Deep Mistress propelled him to keep moving, to burn away the shame of his previous defeat. His body screamed protest. The blow that the surfacer named Rainbow Dash had dealt him had broken his left arm, and his body was already in torment from having barely recovered from the damage dealt to it at the climax of his battle with Twilight Sparkle. He was aware he was outmatched here. They all were.

Rezarra, for all of her skill and the impressive abilities of her weapon, could simply not keep up with Rainbow Dash’s incredible speed. And wherever Berokar had slipped off to, Morgawr doubted the stealthy warrior’s ability to ambush the seemingly supernaturally alert pegasus. No, it was clear as long as they kept fighting as individuals, there was no means of victory against this foe.

“Rezarra, to me!” he called, swimming up as fast as he could while angling to get closer to the canyon’s wall. Normally with Rezarra as the chosen warleader it was presumptuous of him to command her, but he was still the eldest of the champions. He trusted she’d understand that this was no time to bother with ranks.

Rezarra had been forced to go on the defensive, forming a protective barrier of shark teeth around herself. The teeth were angled outward, creating interconnected rings of sawing blades, effectively enclosing her in a bubble of cutting death. This served to deflect a few of Rainbow Dash’s streaking sword strikes, the pegasus cutting so fast through the water that she was leaving invisible shockwaves of air with each motion. Rezarra’s barrier of blades was near broken with each strike, only maintained at all because she could quickly summon more magical shark teeth at a moment’s notice. She tried to chase Dash, using her barrier like a battering ram, but in response Rainbow Dash halted in the water and thrust her swordbreaker forward almost like a spear. From the tip of the blade exploded a raw blast of wind that churned the waters and smashed into Rezarra and her blade barrier, shoving both backward in an uncontrolled tumble.

Morgawr heard the huntress curse loudly as she dispelled her barrier and rejoined the shark teeth to Leviathan Slayer’s main circle blade and she swam in a burst of speed to join him. Rezarra’s eyes were wide with disbelief, her voice hoarse with wounded pride, “I did not believe you, Morgawr! The power of these surfacers! It’s unbelievable. Just one of them, and I cannot cut her, no matter what I try!”

“Faith, Rezarra. She is not invincible. We must work together and use our environment. This is our home. Our ground.”

As he spoke they reached the jagged canyon wall, and he tapped the solid stone with his spear, “Draw her close. I know not where Berokar is, but he is no doubt laying in wait. Whatever it takes, we immobilize her, even if for a mere moment. Use the wall, just as we once hunted sharks as spawnlings.”

He saw understanding bloom in Rezarra’s eyes and she nodded, showing a fierce flash of teeth. With a shrill bellow she hurled Leviathan Slayer in its entirety out into the dark waters, crimson energy bleeding from the circle blade as it spun at dizzying speed. Rezarra’s outstretched claw directed the weapon as she swam up the wall, while Morgawr swam off at a slightly different angle, his own body filling up with a sanguine glow as the tattoos on his flesh burned bright.

Rezarra’s blade made multiple slicing passes at Rainbow Dash, who had watched the pair of champions head towards the canyon wall with cautious curiosity. She was wary of another hidden strike from Berokar, and also wasn’t so full of herself to blindly chase the other two. Rainbow could tell the pair were up to something. With quick bursts of wind speed she zipped in and out of view, evading Rezarra’s attacks several times. Then the circle blade abruptly halted behind her, placing Dash between it and the canyon’s wall. The shark teeth erupted outward, accompanied by a swath of magical duplicates, in what could only be described as a rapid fire shotgun attack.

Eyes closed, Rezarra had resorted to pure mental focus to direct the shark tooth blades at random, her intent to fill the water with such a dense and randomized pack of projectiles that predicting their path would be near impossible. Nearly, for many save one like Rainbow Dash. Although she could indeed deflect or dodge many of the shark teeth, the simple density of the number being fired made her instinctively evade backwards towards the wall.

So that was Rezarra’s game? Dash didn’t know just what they intended by trying to get her close to the wall. Perhaps they thought they’d limit her movement? It was true she wouldn’t have as much room to dodge if she was up near the wall, but in terms of speed she was still fast enough to deflect or dodge aside any attack these champions seemed capable of dishing out. Rainbow figured she’d give them what they wanted, just not in the way they wanted.

She turned and swam towards the wall, but at the same time she drew forth more of her magical might, flexing the power of the wind within herself. A spherical cyclone of aerial force formed around Rainbow and grew in size exponentially by the second. In mere moments she’d created a gust filled windstorm that pushed back the water for over a hundred meter radius around her, which included a good chunk of the wall itself.

Rezarra suddenly found herself with no water to hold her up, having to dig her claws into the stone to keep from falling. Morgawr had found himself in a similar state, and with just one good arm he was worse off, having to jam his spear into a crevice of the wall to stay in position.

Hovering in the massive area of harsh wind she created around herself, Rainbow Dash bounced her sword off of her shoulder and put a hoof on her hip. “Look guys, I appreciate that you’re trying to box me in here. Probably got a whole plan going on in your heads or whatever. But you do get that I’m holding back, right? We promised one of your own not to hurt anyone too bad, like, not kill and stuff. Which I’m down with. Not a big fan of corpsifying creatures. But seriously if you guys keep this up I’m going to have to get rough, you know? This dude in my head, Tachys, is not as warm and fuzzy as I am. His instincts are shouting at me to hit you full force, and I’m real close to listening.”

“You love your own voice too much, surfacer,” Rezarra spat and her circle blade came flying out of the area of water the sphere of wind was holding back. It spun at Rainbow Dash’s back, but the pegasus flipped over it, her feathers brushing against the spinning shark teeth as Leviathan Slayer flew by her.

The circle blade kept moving, straight towards Rezarra, who pushed herself off of the canyon wall and landed on the central handles of her own sword. Now riding it like a flying disc, moving under its own magical power, Rezarra rose into the air to confront Dash with a toothy grin. Rainbow, for her part, actually smiled back. “Okay, I’ll admit it, that’s kinda cool.”

“So glad you approve,” Rezarra replied, and held out her talons. Two shark teeth flew up into her hands, and morphed into slight longer blades with small handles, like a pair of small sabers. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question it as the sahaugin champion flew forward riding her own circle blade, and started slicing at her with the dual swords she now carried.

Dash braced herself and worked her own swordbreaker in quick parries, not having too much trouble keeping pace. She suspected she was missing something about Rezarra’s tactics, as this seemed less effective than trying to hit Dash with those hundreds of shark teeth earlier. Why switch it up to such a slower, less efficient means of attack? However, she soon noticed Rezarra picking up the pace. Her blade spun faster, and Rezarra spun with it, yet worked her held swords ever faster as well. Rainbow Dash could still keep up, but now her attention was focused upon Rezarra herself.

The pair swerved through the air like two clashing tops, sparks flying between them with each clash of blades. Dash was having fun, but wanted to make it clear she wasn’t to be toyed with. Tachys’ memories as a warrior were less calm counsel and more shouting flashes of instinct, and he wanted his enemies dead before him, not played with or merely subdued. In a moment of losing a bit of her grip on those memories, she drew in sharp lances of air around her wings and after one instance of parrying Rezarra’s swords she let that wind explode out of her wings, one after another, first from above then below.

Rezarra was blasted by those lances of air, one tearing the shark tooth sword in her right talon free, and the other striking her hip and nearly blasting her off of Leviathan Slayer. The sahuagin caught herself on the weapon to keep from falling, and despite blood not dripping from her jaws, she leveled herself back atop it as Dash poised to come in with another blast of air.

Yet it was at that instant Rainbow Dash noticed something. The seemingly random motions of her brief clash with Rezarra had brought them closer to the canyon wall, perhaps only about fifteen meters from it. Close enough for what Rezarra and Morgawr had in mind.

Sahaugin were hunters, and among the many beasts of the sea that inhabited the Abyss, sharks and squid remained the most common. A favorite tactic of many a young sahuagin hunting party was to drive their prey close to the sea floor or the wall of the Abyss labyrinthine trenches, where it was possible to ensnare them in well made nets that immobilized the predators enough for the hunters to make the kill.

Rezarra had no net, per se, but her beloved Leviathan Slayer was a deceptively versatile weapon with the blessing of Charybdis’ magic fueling it. Her headlong attacks upon Rainbow Dash were more than a means to draw the pegasus close to the wall, they were also a distraction from Rezarra fueling the creation of a “net”. Or rather, a series of interlocking magical shark teeth duplicates that dangled from the downward side of her circular blade as she rode it, forming dozens of long and sharp tendrils like that of a jellyfish. With Dash in just the right spot, Rezarra flipped her blade over so the dozens of shark tooth whips faced her and shot outward. At the same time even more arcane duplications of the shark teeth formed, creating connecting strands between each tendril so that it truly did become like one large, conical net that formed around Rainbow Dash. The ends of this makeshift net anchored to the wall and started to contract, pulling the “net” closed around Rainbow.

For her part, Rainbow Dash hovered back towards the wall, but didn’t yet gain a look of concern, but rather a hint of respect. However, she closed her wings tight around herself, then burst them outward in a show of tornado wind force. This slammed into the closing net, and Rezarra herself. The sahuagin felt the wind sharpening around her like blades, tearing at her flesh, but she doggedly held onto Leviathan Slayer and poured more of her Deep Mistress’ power through her body to fuel the blade and its conjured net.

Still, Rainbow Dash held the net at bay so that the sharp edges of its shark teeth couldn’t reach her. She was still hovering close to the wall, but she figured with a bit more effort she could break free easily enough.

It was then that Morgawr acted. He’d been building up what power he could, pooling the blessing of Charybdis’ magic into his legs and one unbroken arm. Foot claws digging into the stone, he coiled them, letting the muscles bulge and contract. The pain was unbearable, his body tormented by too much use and too little time to heal, but he cared not. Sacrificing his body was but one form of worship and he prayed fervently and thankfully to the Deep Mistress as he felt the power surge within.

With a leap of both legs he launched himself like a missile, snatching his spear out of the wall and driving it ahead of him as he plunged at Rainbow Dash just as he might have once done to hunt sharks similarly netted near the wall. Rezarra even removed a few strands of the net to let Morgawr pass, watching as her fellow champion flew right at Rainbow Dash.

In an instant of azure blue motion, Rainbow turned to face Morgawr head on, and in an unusual stance she slipped her swordbreaker, almost seemingly in slow motion, into a “sheathed” state at her hip. Tachys, his memories filling her mind, whispered through Rainbow Dash’s lips as the rawest edge of the sky’s turbulent winds coalesced around the sword’s edge.

“Octo Ventus, Ferrum Unum.” (Eight Winds, One Blade)

Neither Rezarra or Morgawr saw precisely what occurred. A shriek of wind, a severing streak of eight silver flashs. The spear Morgawr carried disintegrated into pieces, and a perfect octagon of eight equal cuts exploded across his chest as Rainbow Dash simply appeared on the opposite side of him, her sword held out with only a single drop of blood cleanly dripping off of it’s tip without staining the blade itself. Silently, Morgawr fell without a word or sputter, a second before a shockwave of wind from Rainbow Dash’s strike exploded outward in a storm that tore apart Rezarra’s net of shark teeth and sent her flying backward upon her floating weapon.

Rainbow Dash was breathing hard, not so much in excretion, but in a battle for mental control. Tachys’ memories had risen far harsher than ever before and it’d taken every ounce of willpower Dash had to keep his attack from tearing Morgawr to pieces. As it stood she wasn’t sure if those wounds were fatal or not, but if she’d failed to hold Tachy’s back, the sahuagin champion would’ve been turned into literal chunks by that attack.

Dang it you ancient warrior jerk, I get that you come from a way different time than mine and are way more used to this all out bloodshed stuff, but you need to step off and work with me here.

Dash’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of groaning rock. In sudden succession the already unstable rock face of the trench cliff suddenly cracked in several long, neat lines. Only without water to keep them buoyed, the rock fell fast and in huge, rough slabs that no doubt weighed hundreds of tons.

Rainbow grunted in anger as she noticed the flickering shadow move above where the rock was falling. Berokar. The little sneak must have started using his unnaturally sharp knives to start cutting the weakest portions of the wall to make the whole thing come down again, like he had against the Treasury. Only Rezarra and Morgawr were both in the danger area now as well! Did this guy not care about getting his own comrades killed!?

With far less time to react, Dash still moved with all the speed of the wind itself and the first thing she did was rush down to snatch up Morgawr’s falling form with a gust of wind. Controlling the wind with precision she turned it into something akin to a clasping hand and gripped Morgawr. She then flew right at the shocked Rezarra, who clearly hadn’t been expecting Berokar to drop half the canyon wall on her. At most Rezarra figured Berokar might make another sneak attack with Dash distracted, but nothing like this!

Fortunately for Rezarra, Rainbow Dash’s speed let her streak right by the huntress and snatch her by the back fins, dragging Rezarra along just in time to avoid being smashed by the countless tons of falling rock.

However, just as Rainbow Dash re-entered the water outside of the bubble of wind force she’d been maintaining, she caught another tiny ripple of motion. Burdened by carrying the other two sahuagin champions, and not having expected another attack to come that fast, she was a tad slower in responding this time. Berokar hadn’t just dropped all of that rock avalanche towards her, he’d ridden the last slab of rock down and hidden himself atop it. Then, the moment that slab of rock passed by Dash as she had pulled Morgawr and Rezarra to safety, the near invisible sahuagin ambusher launched himself from the rock and right at Dash’s back.

Black needles shot out from his body in a converging storm, and his own poisoned knives came in at the pegasus’ neck from both sides. She nearly felt their searing edges touch her flesh, and did feel the sharp stab of several of those black spines from Berokar’s body impact with her silver armor. Luckily that armor was of such stern arcane construction that the spines failed to penetrate, and Berokar’s knives, just a shade slower, gave her that fraction of a second needed to tap into the wind’s power and transmute her body.

She turned into air itself, her whole body becoming translucent of a phantom of wind, and she turned that air pressure upon Berokar. Like Rezarra and Morgawr, she now held him suspended in mid-air, forming a new bubble of wind around herself and her three firmly grasped sahuagin.

“Cursed surfacer! I nearly had you there!” Berokar roared, but Dash, still a phantom of wind, shook her mane, which still faintly gleamed with rainbow colors even as a translucent entity of air.

“Yeah, sure dude. Look, I am beyond done with this. This was a good workout, but by now Twilight and the gals are probably getting into it with your boss, and I’m not about to be late for that party. Soooo, yeah, I’m ending this here.”

Hardening the wind force around Rezarra and Berokar, and not really bothering to do that with the down and out Morgawr, Rainbow Dash aimed herself straight down... and shot off at near Sonic Rainbow speed. Rezarra and Berokar both gasped and shouted wordlessly as they were carried down with enough G-force to make their heads spin. Rezarra tried to fire off some shark teeth from her blade, but at the speed Dash was going, even if one of those blades managed to cut the pegasus, it wouldn’t have stopped her.

In less than a second Rainbow Dash delivered her payload to the sea floor with just enough force to cause a small local crater to form. She let the water close in on her and she let go of Berokar and Rezarra, and carefully waited to see the results of the impact. She hoped she had a solid grasp of what these two could or couldn’t take, at least. With the water now surrounding the three champions of Charybdis, Dash could see them floating listlessly and unmoving. Carefully she checked each one, cautious of an attack.

It looked as if Rezarra and Berokar were out cold. Juiced up or not, Rainbow Dash had gotten a good sense of how hard it was to smash them into the ground to take them out of the fight, after seeing what Morgawr could take. As for Morgawr himself, his gills still showed signs of breathing, but Dash was less confident he’d wake up. The cuts on his chest from the Eight Winds, One Blade weren’t shallow, even with Dash having held back as much as she could. Blood oozed into the water in dark streaks, and Rainbow didn’t know the first thing about medicine, and for all the magical power her Inheritor status gave her, none of it was for healing.

With a calming breath, she resolved herself to just deal with whatever happened and hope for the best. She could have ended the fight with these three sooner than this, but the whole point had been to maintain the distraction for long enough that Twilight and the girls could reach Charybdis. Rainbow Dash certainly hoped they had, because Dash was eager to get this whole mess over with. Adventure was one thing, but Rainbow was not a big fan of conflicts getting bloody.

Looking over at the sahuagin fortress, she did see some activity there as a number of warriors started cautiously approaching. No doubt they were trying to get a good look at what had happened to their champions. Rainbow Dash didn’t know how sahuagin codes of honor worked, and wasn’t about to assume the fishmen would just live and let live now that she’d won her “duel”. Moving back towards the Treasury, she figured the next step would be to run the fortress’ blockade and get into Rift Mouth.

As she got closer to the ship, she noticed something odd. The vessel’s shields were flickering on and off in places, and even the ship lights seemed unsteady, cutting in and out.

That couldn’t be a good sign. Dash doubled timed it, hoping that whatever was going wrong, it wasn’t going to slow her down from joining her friends for the final fight.

---------

It was with an increasing sense of urgency that Twilight allowed the two child sahuagin to lead her and her companions deeper into the vast trench realm of Rift Mouth. Swimming roughly west from the spot they’d picked up the squeamish Ritigiv and more bold Dravma, Twilight saw more pits dug into the ground and got a clearer view of what lay within. Dugout side caves led to bubbles of air pockets, and nestled within she could see clusters of shining white eggs, partially translucent with the unborn sahuagin within. It was difficult to count but each dugout probably had about a dozen eggs, and each pit about five or six such clusters. Each pit was tended by a mountain of a sahuagin female like Farmaiz, who was always seen wrangling around ten to twenty tiny sahuagin children who a times seemed all but feral. The younger ones were exceedingly... bitey, if the marks on many a sahuagin broodmother was any indication. The older children seemed more calm and disciplined, helping the broodmother keep the younger ones in check.

It was hard to tell how many of these pits were for spawning, but Twilight saw at least ten just as they swam over the “city”.

“Do all of you children stay in those pits until you’re adults?” she asked of the two children swimming just ahead of her. Ritigiv shrank back from her words as if still expecting the surfacer to attack him, but Dravma looked back at her with pride in their eyes and voice. It was still hard for Twilight to tell if Dravma was male or female, without anything distinguishing enough about their body shape or voice to really make it clear.

“Hah, only the weak ones! Strong sahuagin like me and Rit here will escape to challenge ourselves to tests of bravery and daring! It's a mark of strength to be punished by the broodmother and survive another day.”

“Which is why we should go back, Dravma,” Ritigiv said, but the other young sahuagin waved him off.

“Pfft, this is way more fun. I want to see if these soft kin are really crazy enough to go into the Deep Mistress’ lair. I might sneak a peek myself.”

“Don’t but dumb, the Deep Mistress will curse you for straying where only shamans and chosen are allowed to venture,” Ritigiv said.

“How far is this lair?” asked Rarity, eyes ever alert. There were other sahuagin seen swimming about the various trench cliff caves, or dwelling pits along the seabed, but fortunately actual water traffic was light and gave the ponies plenty of space to swim and talk in hushed whispers without drawing attention. As long as Twilight’s spells held out, at any rate.

“That way, a good distance,” Dravma said, pointing ahead where the narrow trench walls were interspersed with those odd coral bridges. Twilight noted that there were other trench offshoots to the north and south, almost as if the center of Rift Mouth was an open circle that had curving branches curling off of it like the tendrils of an octopus. Dravma continued to speak in a prideful, even hopeful tone, “Those bridges lead to the shamans quarters. They get the best food and warmest caves, second only to spawning pools. At the end of that trench is the Path of Deep Worship, the shrine most holy to our Deep Mistress, and just beyond that, the Great Rift itself where She dwells at it’s darkest depth. We’re not going there.”

“Huh? Ain’t ya supposed ta be leadin’ us somewhere close ta where yer Deep Whatever is hiding at?” said Applejack, and Dravma snorted.

“I said I’d lead you to a hideout not far from there, which is true. It’s just not in that trench arm. The shamans would never let spawns like us play around in their territory. One must be selected by an elder shaman to have the honor of even entering that trench. No, our hideout is in the slave quarries. Best place to hide from the broodmothers. Lots of spawnlings use it. Now be quiet soft kin.”

Applejack grumbled something under her breath about snot-nosed brats, and Twilight suppressed an urge to correct her that sahuagin didn’t seem to have mucus producing nostrils anyway. The party slowly shifted course southward, leading towards a wider trench opening to one of the side canyons that curved away from the main area. Here, Twilight saw a cluster of sahuagin warriors standing watch upon two carved spires of rock that rose from the edges of the trench mouth like upward curving tusks. Her heart raced a little, but she knew that for the moment her group couldn’t be seen, not unless they strayed too close.

Beyond the guard spires, this side trench splintered into several uneven fingers, filled top to bottom with a honeycomb of unnatural tunnel entrances that were all clearly carved open by tools rather than by nature. Along the walls were tiers of space used for growing what appeared to be some kind of algae farm, and as Twilight noticed this she also took note of a continuous ring of noise that echoed in this trench, like the scrapping of many hooves on a chalkboard.

Before long she saw that the algae farms were being tended by a combination of both sahaguin and... seaponies! Scores of them worked in small groups, not chained or restrained, but carefully watched by sahuagin warriors armed with tridents and harpoons. Strangely some sahaugin still worked beside the seapony slaves, perhaps as punishment for some crime or another?

From the tunnel mouths Twilight spotted the source of some of that scrapping sound, a block of stone being hauled out by a group of seaponies and sahuagin who all looked equally exhausted from the effort. They used thick nets to drag the stone, which was cut into a rough square. Once outside of the tunnel, the slaves then started shifting the stone onto a incline that let it slide towards a waiting pit where other slaves waited with picks and carving tools.

“Impressed?” Dravma asked, smiling with an odd amount of prideful innocence, “We have little in the Abyss, but strong stone from deep inside the walls makes for good tools, shrines, cauldrons, statues to the Deep Mistress, fortress walls, all sorts of things. A skilled stone carver can earn lots of honor, almost as much as a hunter or warrior.”

“I kind of want to be a caver if I live to be an adult,” said Ritigiv, to which Dravma laughed.

“Not me, I’ll be a warrior all the way, but if you become a carver Rit, you can carve my house shrine for me.”

Twilight was hesitant to ask, but she wanted to be sure of something, “Dravma, I’ve heard sahaugin... use their slaves sometimes for sacrifices. Is that true?”

“Oh yes,” Dravma replied as if it was the simplest fact in the world, “The shamans sometimes take the ones the cause trouble, or can’t work any more, and bring them into the shaman caves. I don’t know all the magic that goes on in there, but I know sacrifice fuels some of their rituals. I think it’s how they enchant some of the weapons given to champions, or their special cauldrons. Of course broodmother Farmaiz keeps telling us bad spawnlings also get taken for sacrifice, but I’ve never seen that happen so I think she’s lying just to try and make us behave.”

Twilight was silent for a moment, then glanced at Flash Sentry, who took the hint and swam closer to her. Once he was close enough she whispered to him, “How many slaves do you think are here?”

His eyes gave a pensive scan of the farms, quarries, and mine entrances. Flash’s lips were set in a deep frown, his ears laying flat against his head. “Hard to say, but at least several hundred. Probably more in the tunnels.”

“When we start fighting Charybdis, if... when we win, I don’t want the sahaugin to decide their slaves should be dead rather than free,” Twilight said, unhappy even thinking of the possibility that the sahaugin might decide to kill their captives once they learn their Deep Mistress was defeated, but she couldn’t take any chances. “Do you think you could deal with the number of warriors here?”

Her heart warmed slightly at his encouraging smile as he tapped his chest with a hoof. “I’m a Lieutenant of the Gotei 13, Twilight. A few dozen fishmen with pointy sticks aren’t going to be a problem for me. Question is, when and how you want me to make a move?”

They were nearing a mine tunnel entrance that was towards the middle of the trench’s northern wall, one that was unguarded and, near as Twilight could tell, long unused from the lack of any recent signs of activity. Dravma and Ritigiv led them right up to the entrance and paused to look back at the group of ponies. Twilight put a hoof to Flash’s shoulder, whispering, “I’ll tell you in a moment, let’s see where this hideout is, first.”

“What are you two soft kin whispering about?” Dravma said, “Thinking of going coward and fleeing before facing our Deep Mistress like you claim to be here for?”

“Not at all,” Twilight said, “Just sharing our amazement at sahuagin ingenuity. We had no idea how... interesting your city would be.”

“Hah, it’s a dull, cold hole at the bottom of the ocean, but it’s better than it would be if we hadn’t the Deep Mistress looking out for us,” Dravma said, leading them into the mine tunnel.

As Twilight suspected, this tunnel hadn’t been used in some time, with the long, winding path into the rock of the trench wall bearing the old scars of stone being stripped from within, leading to a tunnel that was rather jagged and bizarrely geometric as they swam on. It didn’t take long at all to reach the end of the tunnel, which opened into a cubic room of spaced out, random right angles, as if the miners had taken random quasi-square chunks out of the space until no good stone was left. Here, a number of random objects floated about, like small toys of coral made to look like sea creatures, or stone carving tools, or in a few rare instances shining bits and baubles from the surface like utensils or a dirty snow globe covered in green algae.

“Do you children collect these as toys?” Fluttershy asked, looking at a wooden toy ship that was definitely from the surface. Ritigiv gulped at her but nodded.

“Y-yes, we sometimes are lucky enough to grab things from when the warriors come back from a raid,” he said, swimming up to the floating stone carving tools, “Although I took this from the carving site of a worker one day, because I wanted to be able to practice.”

“We come here to play and plan for the future,” Dravma declared, picking up an old, mostly chipped harpoon and waved it about in a rather ungainly flourish, “Since none use this tunnel anymore, and it’s deep enough to block sound, we can be as loud as we want without any adults finding us. The guards barely pay the unused tunnels any mind, so sneaking in or out is easy.”

“Heheh, it’s a clubhouse where you practice and play at the stuff you want to be good at. Fishing for cutie marks. The Fishy Mark Crusaders,” Pinkie Pie said jovially, “You guys should have capes.”

“Pinkie, don’t think these little fellas know what cutie marks are, an’ we ain’t got time ta be wastin’ besides. Twilight, ya still got a magical lowdown on Charybdis’ location?” asked Applejack, to which Twilight gave a swift nod. The entire time she’d been keeping tabs on the arcane energies she could sense, and just as Dravma had said the trench he indicated the sahuagin shamans made their territory all but bubbled with the sensation of their dark, ritualistic magic. It did nothing to mask the much greater intensity she felt from beyond that trench, a now steady sensation of power boring into her senses. She could feel right where Charybdis was, and the incredible magic gathering there.

Magic that quite frankly didn’t seem normal to Twilight, yet had the faintest sensation of the familiar.

“Something wrong? You’re making a face,” Flash said, and Twilight blinked.

“I don’t know. I can sense Charybdis clearly, and the ritual she’s preforming is gathering to a fever pitch. I can tell she’s gathering magic from beyond just herself, but I don’t know from where. What’s more, something feels... different. I can’t put my hoof on it.”

“Bottom line is, ya can tell how close we are ta her?” asked Applejack.

“Yes. These mine tunnels must not be too far off from the rift Charybdis lairs in,” Twilight said, and Rarity turned her attention to the pair of young sahuagin.

“I don’t suppose either of you happen to know if one of these tunnels opens up into your Deep Mistress’ rift?”

“No way,” Ritigiv said, “No one would be foolish enough to dig a tunnel all the way into Her sacred lair!”

“A few might get close to the rift wall,” Dravma said with a shrug, “But none that would break through. The only way actually into the Deep Mistress’ lair is past the Path of Deep Worship, watched over by the shamans themselves.”

“Might be true fer normal folk,” said Applejack, patting her shillelagh, “But not fer us. Twilight, I’m gonna try somethin’.”

“You’re not going to enter your Inheritor form, are you? If you do, Charybdis would sense it,” Twilight warned, but Applejack just waved her off and went to the center of the room, floating down to the floor where she placed one hoof on the stone while holding the shillelagh close with her other limb.

“Don’t need ta go full power. Ain’t sure ‘bout the rest o’ you gals, but I know I’ve been feelin’ changes in me even when I ain’t transformed. Thinkin’ a part o’ the power stays with us, even when we ain’t all gussied up an’ shiny. Ya’ll been feelin’ it too, haven’t ya?”

“Now that you mention it, I have been feeling different,” Fluttershy said, “My senses are sharper. I can sometimes hear everypony’s heartbeat, even when I’m not trying to.”

“I suppose I’ve noticed a few differences myself,” Rarity admitted, “As if my magic has somehow grown more dense.”

“When I was cooking I accidentally touched the stove when it was on, but didn’t get any ouchies from a burn,” said Pinkie with a shrug. Twilight took a second to consider this, lips pursed in thought.

“While the magic remains mostly contained to our Relics, it makes sense that our bodies retain some of that power. The purpose of the Inheritor Project was to help safely reintroduce alicorn magic to the world once the Cycle was repaired, and eventually that would mean Inheritors would gradually become closer to being like the ones they are Inheritors of.”

“We’re not about to sprout wings like you, I take it?” said Rarity, “Or horns, or both in some cases.”

“Do I think you’ll all become full alicorns? I... don’t know,” Twilight admitted, “But for now I think it’s safe to say we all have to get used to changes. At any rate, Applejack, do you think you’ve retained some of Althea’s power without accessing your Relic?”

“That’s the idea,” Applejack replied, closing her eyes and pressing her hoof hard against the stone. Slowly Twilight saw the faintest glow of burning orange and gold light flow from Applejack’s hoof and enter the ground. She could feel the magic, but fortunately she didn’t think it was strong enough to reveal their presence to Charybdis. Twilight also had a fair idea of what Applejack was up to.

Each of her friends had unique powers as Inheritors, aside from the more generalized benefits that came with the territory. In Applejack’s case she’d inherited a talent her forebear Althea had in regards to the natural metals, ores, and very rocks of the earth. Whether something be of natural make, or forged by hands or hooves, anything that Applejack touched she could gain an innate understanding of its structure. Shape, makeup, strengths and weaknesses, Applejack only had to touch something to know these elements. She could also then either enhanced or weaken those elements, turning a mere sharp sword into something unbreakable, or rendering it dull and useless. Armor could be made resistant beyond measure, or turned weak as thin paper. The same applied to structures both artificial or natural... including the very mine tunnels they were in.

After about half a minute Applejack’s deep green eyes snapped open. “Got it. I can sense all o’ these tunnels, an’ I know where the walls ‘r at their thinnest. More n’ that, I know which one is close ta that big ol’ rift Charybdis is hidin’ out in.”

“Excellent work Applejack!” Twilight said, “Can you lead us to the entrance of the tunnel we need?”

“I can do a dang sight better than that, Twilight. This tunnel’s got a wall adjacent ta where we need ta go, an’ I can weaken it enough ta break right on through. From there it’s a near straight shot ta ‘nother tunnel that’ll take us right to Charybdis’ back door.”

“Then we kick her in the back door!” Pinkie said, doing a flip, “Kapow!”

“What... what in the cursed surface are you creatures?” Ritigiv whispered, backing up until he was nearly hiding behind Dravma, who also was having difficulty keeping on a grave face as they looked at Twilight her companions in open mouthed dismay.

“You aren’t normal soft kin. What kind of magic are you using?” Dravma demanded, brandishing his spear, “I thought you were just crazy soft kin, but if you’re more than that... if you’re actually a threat...”

Twilight felt a strong stab of regret, but she tempered it with knowing it was for the best as she turned towards the two young ones and cast out a simple sleeping spell. Dravma and Ritigiv both went still and fell into a listless sleep. Carefully Twilight gathered the pair up and laid them down near the room’s exit, while her friends gathered around her. Fluttershy especially looked perturbed as her seapony tail lashed left and right.

“They’re not bad kids. It makes me so... peeved that they’ve had to live in a place like this. All of them have.”

“It’s unfortunate, to say the least,” agreed Rarity, “Who knows how much creative spirit has been crushed by having to grow up in this environment.”

“We’re gonna help them all somehow, right?” Pinkie Pie said, “I don’t really know how other than to give ol’ Charybdunce a major attitude adjustment via violent persuasion. But after that...?”

“After that there’s a’ whole lot o’ bad blood ta be dealt with an’ it won’t be gettin’ cleaned up anytime soon,” Applejack said flatly, “Fact is, once their leader is out o’ commission, it’s gonna be up ta these fish folk ta sort out their own mess. Even if we help, and I ain’t sayin’ we can’t, but if we do... gonna be a real long haul ta make things better ‘round these parts.”

“Defeating Charybdis won’t fix the Abyss, the sahaugin, their war with the seaponies, or undo generations of pain, slavery, and bloodshed,” Twilight said, voice pained but with strength renewed and hope alight, “But it’s a start. And all good things must begin somewhere, with the first hoof offered in peace and friendship. For now, we fight, and remove the biggest shadow darkening these waters.”

----------

Maintaining the ritual with fewer shamans was a strain, especially with the flow of magic from the human world having been cut off, but the portal was opening, inch by inch. Charybdis could almost re-establish contact with her Kraken, and she sensed his power spiking as if in use. A battle? She couldn’t tell, and her attention was drawn to other maters.

For one, she’d sent Divistus and a cadre of shamans to set up an ambush at the entrance to the Great Rift. Twilight and her friends had to be using some manner of protective magic to cloak their presence, but such stealthy magic was not easy to concentrate on and her shamans had rituals to counter such things. The foolish alicorn and those with her would not get past Divistus without revealing themselves, and while she had little faith her shamans would actually stop the ponies, at least they might slow them down or wound them enough to make dealing with them easier herself.

In the meantime, she had guests to entertain.

Ulgriv had played his role well, although Charybdis was surprised by the young warrior. His faith was quite a bit more potent than she expected, yet doubt clouded his heart. Such an odd combination. As she’d ridden within his body, used it as her own hoof, she’d felt his devotion to her. It was remarkably pure. Despite that she’d sensed the questions gnawing at his mind and soul. He could no longer bring himself to hate the surfacers, or the seapony ‘soft kin’. Although the days he’d spent with them were few, it had been enough for him to see things to make him question things.

Troubling, but not unprecedented. She had encountered a few such sahuagin in the past who wondered as to the need to hate all seaponies. Charybdis had never culled such anomalies, for there was no need to do so. Her own kin often proved such doubts meaningless, in due time. She did not hate her own race, but she did despise how readily they continued their own downfall into obscurity and never spared a chance to kill her sahuagin. To offer peace was pointless. She’d never considered pursuing it, for any sahuagin that had tried on their own never lived long anyway.

Charybdis had long ago learned the lesson that the only way to change a people was through overwhelming power. No other method worked. And soon she’d have all the power she needed to bring bountiful change to this world, the human world, and who knew, perhaps even beyond that one day.

Yes, one day, even death would cease to have power over anyone, and only Charybdis would have brought that gift to all.

Lost in her thoughts, she had actually missed what one of her new ‘guests’ had just said. Turning a pale head towards the noise, she said, “Could you repeat that? Sorry, I was just imagining my imminent victory.”

Suspended in chains of ephemeral magic forged of darkness suffused with strands of light, Aria and Sonata were bound around their limbs and long siren tails, but Charybdis had left their mouths free so the siren sisters could talk. She was a little eager to speak to these two, partially for the nostalgia they inspired due to relatively fond memories of their eldest sister.

Of course that fondness did not go both ways, as Aria snarled deeply in her throat at Charybdis’ words, “Delusional is what you are. Get these chains off me and I’ll rearrange that smug face of yours.”

“If you can even call it a face,” Sonata said, making a queasy expression as she stuck her tongue out at Charybdis, “You look like a beach of dead things thrown up on a mannequin.”

Charybdis couldn’t help but snort, gesturing at “herself”, or at least the part of herself visible to the sirens within the present environs. “I’m afraid I’ve abandoned most standards of personal beauty in favor of more important factors, like power and ruling my people.”

It was within the bronze corpse of Bastion Gnosis that she had brought the sirens, and given Ulgriv leave to join the ambush forces with Divistus with the promise that the young warrior, should he survive the day, would become one of her new chosen champions. The once marvelous home of one of the alicorn’s many Orders, Bastion Gnosis had been one part gigantic city-building and one part limitless research facility for the arcane arts. The vast majority of it was buried under endless tons of rock and sediment, but the top portion of the fortress city’s dome remained exposed, with holes rent in it by time and whatever incredible forces had once led to the Bastion’s fall from whatever higher plane it had once occupied that bygone era.

The hole in the dome’s roof led directly into the Bastion’s main, spherical chamber, where once countless alicorn researchers had passed on their way to different portals that would take them to the Bastion’s numerous other hallways and chambers. Even with centuries to explore it, Charybdis believed she’d only uncovered at most a third of the Bastion’s rooms and secrets. She had installed a rough patchwork of repairs to the Bastion’s lighting and power systems, providing the main chamber with a flickering glow of green light from sparking crystals and conduits. These served to illuminate herself and the two sirens she kept magically bound near a pedestal upon which she rested a very important object; the Eye of the Sea.

It still amused her to no end that seaponies over the generations had been searching for Domare’s long lost Relic, unknowing of it’s true nature or the fact that Charybdis herself had taken it from her sister during their final battle over Aqualania, so long ago. The memory of that fight was one of both triumph and pain for Charybdis, who had dealt her sister a final, fatal wound, taken the object of power she knew would one day lead her to greater power, but also had marked the beginning of her current troubles.

She’d taken on the form she now occupied that day, drawing upon all of the unstable soul magic at her disposal to defeat Scylla, and as a result her own body had become irrevocably mutated much in the manner the Terror Beasts her shamans could forge did. Within the pale lit chamber all Aria and Sonata would be able to see would be a bone white, sickly tendril leading from the opening in the roof, like a ropey intestine. This tendril of flesh would lead to the torso of a seapony mare, a skirt-like crust of urchin shell spreading around her waist, while her torso was covered in barnacle-like nodules and coral growths. Her face was a ghost of the seapony princess that once was, half covered by tendril growths akin to an anemone. Her mane was slicked back with larger tendrils, a mane of literal cephalopod tentacles. Even her shining, white blue eyes had the hourglass iris’ of an octopus.

And this was just the extension of her main body, which remained floating above the Bastion. The shadow of that leviathan bulk was where the rope of flesh that connected the “avatar” of Charybdis’ still somewhat seapony body to her main body. That body was just too enormous to be very versatile, so Charybdis used this smaller extension for tasks suited to it. Like shooting the breeze with prisoners. She could chat while still directing the main portion of her attention to managing the portal ritual, and she did have an important matter to get to with these two ladies.

“Speaking of power, how has Adagio been?” Charybdis asked, “I confess I know a little about what my apprentice got up to once she left my charge, but I wouldn’t mind hearing from more direct sources.”

“Piss off!” Aria snapped, “If it wasn’t for you, we might never have ended up in that damn world of hairless apes in the first place.”

“What do you care about Dagi anyway? You already took what you wanted from her, and we’re going to get it back!” Sonata declared, struggling in place, although quite unable to break the bindings of raw magic holding her still.

“I imagine you’re referring to the shard of her soul I have in my possession?” Charybdis said, and held up a slime encrusted hoof. A pulsation of red light emanated from the hoof, and then a spark of intense light appeared above it, flickering with colors of deep indigo and wine red light. “As you can see, I’ve been keeping it safe.”

“That’s...Dagi’s soul?” Sonata breathed, blinking at the beautiful pulsation of light.

“The piece of it she gave me in exchange for my teachings,” Charybdis confirmed, “It was not hard to convince her to part with it. When she first came to me she was such a prideful and ambitious young lady. She’d heard all the rumors about the Witch of the Abyss, and willingly sought me out rather than steer clear like most sensible folk. She wanted power. She wanted to be strong. Feelings I could certainly relate to, so I had no qualms in taking her own as a student, even if it certainly made some of my devoted shamans jealous. But they took to the presence of one of the ‘ancient kin’ more so than if Adagio had been a seapony ‘soft kin’.”

“The heck are you babbling about you crusty hag?” Aria demanded, “What’s all this ‘ancient kin’ business about?”

Charybdis floated forward and raised her left hoof to a recoiling Aria, who barred teeth and growled as Charybdis ran that hoof over Aria’s chest, right where her siren gem would have once been.

“Sirens,” Charybdis said, “Even in my time you were a rare breed. Tell me, what do you remember of your parents?”

“We... don’t,” Aria admitted, Sonata nodding with a grimace.

“Yeah, it’s always been Dagi looking after us, far back as I can remember. I think I kind of sort of remember there being others, but I must have been really tiny back then because it’s all just smoke in the brain now.”

“Unsurprising. There are so few sirens left in the world that all of you together would barely make a small village if all gathered in one place. Blame your magical origins, i suppose. An all female species, requiring certain... potent seed from other races to bear children, and once males of suitably powerful species no longer were commonly available it’s little wonder your kind dwindled to near nothing. But still, the sahuagin, among the oldest of races, still remember siren-kind as the eldest of the sea faring species. The ‘ancient kin’. And the most powerful of them, the progenitor of many ocean going species, was none other than Domare herself.”

“Domare!?” Sonata shouted... then paused and blinked several times, “Who is that again?”

“I can see that Adagio inherited the smarts from your particular genetic pool,” Charybdis drawled, then glance at Aria, “Also guessing all the aggression went to you, if all that teeth gnashing is any indication.”

“See my previous statement of pissing off,” Aria groused, “So let me see if I can guess your evil plan. You need me and Sonata, along with Adagio’s soul shard there, to try and crack open this Eye of the Sea?”

“More or less,” Charybdis admitted with a smile, “You already have seen how the Relics and their Inheritors function. Sadly, much to my dismay, I am not an Inheritor. Domare’s soul could have reincarnated among seapony kind, as we are a distantly related species to you sirens, but it didn’t shock me that much to learn that it was a siren that was the former goddess of the sea’s Inheritor instead. Or rather, three sisters.”

“Wait, how does that work?” Aria said, brow creasing in confusion.

Charybdis swam over to the Eye of the Sea, the gleaming pearl waiting in the darkness between the two sirens. She placed the light of Adagio’s soul shard upon the needle-like sliver of red that was mounted in a bronze amulet fused to the gem. The shard of a siren gem bloomed to crimson life, illuminating the fact that next to it were two recesses for similar shards. The sight made both Aria and Sonata’s eyes widen as Charybdis spoke, “I can’t be completely sure, but several of the former ‘deities’ that divided their power went about it by splitting the power between multiple Relics. Domare was powerful enough that one would think she’d have needed to split it between more than one Relic as well, but as far as I can tell she had just the one. Perhaps instead she decided to split her soul, rather than her power, so that she’d have multiple Inheritors rather than multiple Relics. That’s my theory, at any rate. When I learned Adagio was an Inheritor I thought just a fragment of her soul alone would be enough to unlock the Relic, but I didn’t discover until later I was missing two components, and knowing she had two sisters it wasn’t hard to guess what was missing. I’ve been waiting to have meet the two of you for a very long time.”

“Y-you keep away from us!” Sonata shouted, “No way I’m giving you even the teensy tiniest piece of my soul! Hooves off!”

Charybdis’ smile deepened, “No need to be so afraid. It won’t hurt too much, and when all is said and done I don’t intend to kill either of you. Indeed I think I’d rather keep the two of you around as bargaining chips for dealing with your sister. Adagio being what she is now, I do need some insurance for our opening negotiations once I’m established on Earth.”

“Adagio won’t negotiate with you. She’ll tear your head off,” Aria promised, then narrowed her eyes in question, “How do you know about what she is now, anyway?”

“Hah, there’s more than a few weak spots in the wall between Equestria and the human world’s various realms. I’ve had an eye or two to keep tabs on Adagio and her growth among her new Hollow associates. With the two of you in my possession I can work out a new deal with her, I’m sure. Now then, shall we begin the process? It takes surprisingly little effort to shave off a piece of soul, even if it’d be easier if you still had siren gems to act as focuses for the process.”

She floated back from the two captive sirens, and extended her hooves out, one towards each of them. Her flesh opened as if on its own, in a disgusting writing of skin. Blood seeped out but did not drift aimlessly in the water, but instead moved upon Charybdis’ will as she chanted under her breath ancient words of power. Dark arcane symbols took shape from the blood, forming two magic circles of soul magic as Charybdis drew forth her power and directed towards the struggling sirens.

Like hunting snakes, a pair of black tendrils edged with faint white light extended from Charybdis’ hooves, moving through the magic circles in front of them, and then shot like spears into the chests of Aria and Sonata. The two sirens both let out pained gasps and shuddered. Charybdis coughed politely, “I did say it wouldn’t hurt too much. Do bear with it, ladies. I’m just taking a little off the top, soul-wise.”

Despite her words, Charybdis was frowning inwardly. She’d felt the defeat of her three champions. While she hadn’t expected them to be able to outright stop the Treasury, it was still a little disappointing that they hadn’t lasted very long against just one of Twilight’s idiot friends. Perhaps if so much of her own power wasn’t being tied up elsewhere she could have empowered the three more, but... well no point in worrying over it. As far as she could tell those three still lived, so perhaps if she pushed a little extra power in them they might recover fast enough to be of some use once Twilight showed her face.

Where was that damned lavender lickspittle? She should have showed up at the top of the Great Rift by now, but her senses connected to Divistus showed the shaman and his fellows remained waiting up there with no sign of the Princess and her entourage of merry idiots. Were they just moving slower than Charybdis anticipated? Waiting for the Treasury to break through and for their rainbow colored friend to join them?

Or could it be that Charybdis had missed something? No, there was only one way into her lair, and she knew Twilight was coming. But Charybdis’ instincts were telling her something wasn’t right. She just couldn’t put a hoof on what.

Yet it was at the very moment she was puzzling over that feeling that Charybdis’ senses picked up a sudden tremor. At first she wasn’t sure where the tremor had come from, but a moment later her main body moved one of its many gigantic eyes to notice a cloud of rock sediment rising from the south wall of the bottom of the chasm she resided in.

Impossible. What had just happened?

Stirring, the bulk of her main body let out a long, angered groan like the sound of a hundred enraged whales. In her many sided vision from eyes across her body’s great bulk Charybdis could see the rock sediment clearing up gradually, revealing that a sizeable hole had been punched through the very rock wall itself.

And rising out of that hole, a hole that Charybdis suddenly realized corresponded to the general location of the mining tunnels from the trench on the other side, were five colorful figures.

----------

Flash heard the tremor and knew Twilight and the girls had broken through.

His heart was beating much faster than he knew it should. Twilight had asked him to stay behind, but it didn’t change that he felt he should have stayed by her side. His fear for her corresponded directly with the fierce warmth in his heart whenever he now pictured the bright faced, intelligent mare in his mind. But it was because of that very love that he was willing to trust her, to put faith in her.

She’d given him a task, one he knew was important and agreed needed doing.

The Soul Reaper turned pegasus had remained in the small playroom cave the two sahuagin children had shown them to while Twilight and the others had gone to break through multiple tunnel walls to basically excavate a path into Charybdis’ lair.

Twilight had asked him to free the seapony slaves from the mines and quarry while she and her friends confronted Charybdis. Realistically he knew this was the correct course of action. With Rainbow Dash busy elsewhere he was the fastest among them with his Flash Step, and his Zanpaktou would give him more than enough combat versatility to rapidly defeat a large number of sahuagin guards. He could then protect and guide the freed slaves and keep them safe until a means to get them on board the Treasury was possible.

If he didn’t do this there was no telling if the sahuagin would harm the slaves or not once they realized Charybdis was defeated. Or, in the event that Twilight and the girls lost, Flash still would be charged with getting as many of the slaves out of the Abyss to safety as he could. He didn’t even want to think about that possibility, but Twilight knew she was going up against high odds and was thinking ahead to save as many lives as possible no matter what the battle’s outcome was.

And in his heart, he considered Twilight the one whom he’d serve both as a man and as a warrior. Whatever loyalty he had to the Soul Society remained, and he’d always consider Captain Celestia his mentor, but Flash Sentry knew now that when he intoned the release of his Zanpaktou it was forevermore going to be in service to a Princess.

”Serve faithfully; Kochi Yonjinbo.”

He couldn’t be sure, but somehow his spiritual pressure felt sharper than before. The sensation from his Zanpaktou as it took shape into the large bladed tonfa on his right forearm was potent and heated. His body was outlined in a white haze of spiritual pressure that seemed to him denser than he was used to. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Flash Sentry decided not to question it.

He had a job to do, and even if it was just a moral boost, he’d take any help he could get.

----------

This was it. Twilight had been in this position before, coming head-on at a powerful foe on the cusp of victory, prepared to do all she could to tear their evil plans down around their head. Never ceased to put her heart in her throat, but this time there was a sensation of almost analytical calm that was riding along with the adrenaline.

She could take in the depths of Charybdis’ lair in a heartbeat, scanning it all as she and her friends rose out of the cloud of silt sand kicked up the Applejack’s rather forceful shattering of the last wall within the mine tunnels. The walls all dropped at shear, slightly angled slopes to a circular area at the bottom several hundred meters wide. Red light made a harsh coating over the darkness, stemming from an immense series of jagged magical symbols that were carved along the length of a bronze dome that rose like a cracked egg from the center of the rift’s bottom.

She recognized it. Broken, worn by endless centuries, but the shining bronze somehow remained distinct. Astra’s home, Bastion Gnosis, where the ancient alicorn had studied magic alongside her father, Tomearchis. Suddenly it was no longer so strange how Charybdis knew so much about the alicorns, or how she’d been able to develop her magical powers so extensively. With access to whatever knowledge could be salvaged from that alicorn Bastion, Charybdis was probably among the most dangerous spellcasters of the current age.

Of Charybdis herself, Twilight could only look at the dark shadow that hovered over the remains of Bastion Gnosis. Bathed in light from the red sigils glowing upon the Bastion, the shape could gradually be seen more clearly the closer Twilight got. It was difficult to discern its size, but the bulk of it was at least fifty meters wide. At first Twilight thought she was looking at nautilus, a sort of massive misshapen mollusk, but as details became clearer it was obvious this was at best just part of the monstrosity that Charybdis had become.

The conical main body was black as pitch, but was covered in sickly white stripes across a shell that twisted back on itself like an overgrown, partially melted conch shell. Ropes of thickly muscled flesh formed a pulsating mass along the central band of the body, from which eye after gigantic eye flicked about like pale white globes. Masses of tendrils dropped down from the lower portion of the body, growing out hundreds of feet to end in squid-like tips covered in gnarled claws. From the mouth of the nautilus body the shell split into a mass of bulging, pebbly muscle that grew into three long necks, like the heads of humongous eels. Razor sharp fins rose from the crests of these eel necks, and ended in heads less like eels and more like gnawing sea serpents. The central head was larger than the other two, and instead of mere rows of sharp teeth, its mouth opened up upon a single, massive white eye that was surrounded by eight black tentacles. An eye that was now solidly fixated upon Twilight and her approaching companions.

Charybdis’ voice boomed in the depths.

You. I did not give you enough credit, it seems, Twilight Sparkle. Snuck into my home whilst I’m in the middle of something. Still suicidal, but I’ll give you the point for gumption.

Twilight didn’t immediately respond, her eye drawn to something unusual. Amid the many tendrils dropping down from the center of Charybdis’ body was one that didn’t look like the others, sickly white and thick, like some manner of umbilical cord. This cord dropped down into the open, jagged hole leading into Bastion Gnosis.

Now, there was no small amount of magic filling the area. There were magical circles floating in a giant formation around Charybdis and lines of raw energy were flowing up from those circles and into a much larger circle that hovered above. There Twilight saw a hole opening in the very fabric of reality itself, a portal, one she knew must lead to the human world. It was already a meter wide, and growing larger by the moment. Her senses were overloaded by the raw amount of magic all around her, but even so she felt a concentration of it within Bastion Gnosis itself. Was that part of the portal ritual? It was impossible to tell. Charybdis was not alone down here, either. While there were nowhere near as many as Twilight had thought there’d be, she still saw at least a dozen sahuagin shamans surrounding bubbling cauldrons within which they were giving their own lifeblood to help fuel the ritual taking place.

It looked like she and her friends had arrived just in time to stop this, but only if they acted quickly.

Rarity and Applejack were at her right side, while Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were on her left. She only hoped Rainbow Dash had managed to beat Morgawr and the other sahuagin champions and would be able to join them soon. This was going to take all of them together, she suspected.

“Charybdis!” she shouted, spreading her wings and swimming forward while brandishing Astra’s mace, “Stop this madness now!”

The central head of Charybdis’ body rose up and the eye within its mouth flicked with a translucent eyelid giving Twilight an incredulous blink.

What madness? Bringing my sahuagin to a new world to prosper in? Seeking greater power over the very nature of the soul so that I might preserve us all from death’s ravages? Taking the power of Domare for myself, for I doubt the three who are her natural Inheritors could make better use of it than me? No, Twilight Sparkle, the only madness here is your own in bringing those you love to a place where they will only face death alongside you. Now... where is that damnable Soul Reaper of yours? I owe him a debt of pain especially, and I don’t see him with you.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but he’s taking care of something more important,” Twilight stated plainly. By now she and her friends had reached the edge of Bastion Gnosis, although they stayed a short distance back for Charybdis herself took up a large area just above the fallen alicorn stronghold. The sahuagin shamans within their magic circles did nothing to attack them, wholly focused upon their ritual casting, and most likely not daring to presume to interfere with their goddess’ confrontation with those choosing to face her.

Twilight glanced to her left and right at her friends, and each of them responded with returning nods as they drew forth their Relics. There was no presumption here of doing battle with Charybdis with anything short of their full power. Charybdis’ body shook with an echo of laughter as her many eyes, including her central one, focused upon the mares floating before her immense form. Tentacles writhed and started coiling to strike, as all of her heads reared up to look down like an imperious beast upon the morsels before her.

I suppose we could bandy some more words back and forth, but it seems you’ve resolved yourselves to continue interfering with me, and I certainly have no intention of offering surrender when I’m so close to achieving my life’s greatest work to date. So what say you, Twilight Sparkle? Are you prepared to end this farce?

Twilight took a deep breath, her mace held before her. A flaming aura of intense violet magic began to boil forth from the Relic as Twilight called to the power within as she stared up into the monstrous visage of Charybdis’ towering form.

“Beyond prepared, Charybdis.”

Episode 165: Divine Maelstrom

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Episode 165: Divine Maelstrom

When Rainbow Dash reached the Treasury she immediately noticed that the illusions Trixie had been maintaining of her friends had vanished, and that Starlight Glimmer and Tempest Shadow both were no longer on the top deck. That set off alarm bells in her head even more than the fluctuating lights and magic shielding encompassing the ship. She wasted no time in rushing inside, and in typical Dash fashion was zipping to the bridge faster than most could bat an eyelash.

There she found a distraught Grubber getting stared down by a very crimson faced Tempest who was busy shouting while Starlight Glimmer was at the bridge’s command chair, trying to simultaneously talk into the communication system.

“What do you mean that damned prisoner stole the sirens!?” Tempest roared, “How did the fishhead get out!?”

“How am I supposed to know, chief?” Grubber said, backing away slightly, paws up defensively, “Weren’t me that stuffed him in that room with all that magical warding or whatever. Ask the purple one over there.”

“I’m really more of a very light lavender than purple,” Starlight said, not looking up as she used her magic to twist a few dials and knobs on the com console, “Hello!? Seaspray? Can you hear me? Can anypony hear me? Dang it, how do I connect to the engine room?”

“What in the hayfeathers is happening here?” Rainbow Dash demanded, striding in and interposing herself between Grubber and Tempest. For her part, Tempest backed off, but her face remained a veined visage of high stress as she gestured around the bridge as if the problem should have been obvious.

“While we were focused outside the ship, seems like that sahuagin you guys were keeping prisoner busted out and somehow nabbed those two siren sisters. Apparently getting abducted on the regular is practically a hobby for them!”

“Whoa, hold up, Ulgriv did that?” Dash asked, “Like... how? Dude’s not exactly the flank kicking sort, so how’d he force two sirens who are twice his size to go anywhere, especially with Seaspray here? He was here, right?”

“Look, I’m trying to explain that,” Grubber said, eyeing Tempest, “If somepony would stop yelling at me to give me a chance to get a word in.”

Tempest took a very deep breath and let it out in a steam whistled before biting out the words, “Fine. Sorry. Go ahead.”

“So, like, the fish guy wasn’t acting normal. He was glowing with weird light and talking in an echoing female voice, and just straight up teleported the siren chicks away like that!” he snapped his fingers for emphasis, “And this was right on top of our powre system going haywire and us losing contact with Wavecrest in the engine room. That Admiral bird went flying off to check on Wavecrest.”

“He teleported them...” Starlight said, then her eyes flashed with insight, “Charybdis! She projected herself to Aqualania, so she probably projected herself here, too. Twilight and Wavecrest warded Ulgriv’s room specifically to fend off against such a thing, not just to keep him there physically. Must not have been enough.”

“Clearly,” Tempest said, glancing at the flickering consoles of the weapons stations, “How bad is the engine problem?”

“Weapons half down, shields going on and off, and wouldn’t shock my tail off if the engines were also seriously underpowered if not outright offline,” Grubber said.

“Doesn’t matter. Is Wavecrest alright?” Rainbow Dash asked, approaching Starlight, who looked at the pegasus with clear worry furrowing her brow.

“I don’t know. I didn’t get an answer form the engine room-”

“To anyone on the bridge, I need assistance in medical immediately!” shouted Admiral Seasprays voice suddenly from the com system, “Lady Wavecrest is severely wounded! She’s been stabbed, and is losing a lot of blood. I’m taking her to the medical bay right now but I’m not sure I have the skills to save her. Please, anyone respond!”

“We hear you, Admiral,” Starlight said into the com, “I’ll be there as fast as I can.”

“Do you have medical skills?” asked Seaspray, to which Starlight gulped with visible nerves wracking her as she stammered back.

“N-not extensively. I mean, I know a spell or two, but magical healing is kind of...”

“Inefficient, I know. I’ll take whatever I can get. Please hurry, I don’t know how long Lady Wavecrest will last in her current condition.”

“I’m already on my way,” Starlight said, turning and making to gallop out of the bridge.

“Hold up, what do we do if the sahuagin attack while we’re in this state?” asked Tempest, to which Starlight didn’t break stride or look back.

“I don’t know! Figure it out!”

Then she was gone and Tempest was left rubbing her temple while glancing between Grubber and Rainbow Dash. “Well, this just keeps getting better. Grubber, get on the helm and see if you can get this crate moving.”

“Uh, on it chief!” Grubber said, waddling to the helm and strapping himself into the chair, at which point he flipped a few switches and grabbed at the throttle, “You do realize I have no idea how to pilot this thing, right?”

“If you can just get us moving forward that’s better than nothing,” said Dash, turning to Tempest and gesturing at the captain’s chair, “Look, I took out the three champions. I don’t think the regular warriors are going to do much to get in our way, and if they do, I can take care of them. Right now my friends will need backup. I won’t abandon you guys to deal with things here alone, but the Treasury needs to get into Rift Mouth now.”

“No objection here,” said Tempest, “We can’t use weapons, but as long as we can move, we can ram our way through whatever gets in the way. If you keep fighting like what I saw out there, no much the sahuagin can do to stop us unless they’re hiding some serious firepower in that fortress. Grubber, you getting anything out of the engines?”

There was a brief lurch in the vessel as the Treasury started to move forward, albeit far more slowly than usual. Grubber looked back with a quick thumbs up before he started wrestling with the helm controls. “Looks like we’ve upgraded from stationary target to drunken whale speed, chief. We won’t get there fast, but we’ll get there, assuming nothing decides to try and blow us up or board us.”

Looking around the bridge again, Rainbow Dash blinked, “Hey, where’s Trixie?”

As if in answer there was a scratching noise from the com and a clearing of a feminine throat, “Ahem, the Punctual and Practical Trixie decided to make herself supremely useful and has entered the engine room in lieu of Wavecrest’s unfortunate condition. Seeing as I’m the only other unicorn around who spent any time in here, I shall... umm... try to fix things down here. I think. There’s quite a few things sparking and fizzing, but Trixie shall remain undaunted.”

“Oh, great, the stage magician is now our only hope to fix a complex arcane engine built by seaponies centuries ago,” Tempest groaned under her breath, “Trixie, if you blow us up, I am forever going to latch my vengeful spirit onto you and make both our afterlives a pain in the flank.”

“Pfft, oh ye of little faith or tact. Fear not, for I, Trixie, shall rise to this- OUCH! Hey, stupid sparking cable electrified me! Aww, now my mane is all fizzy. Maybe if I just hit it with this pipe...?”

“We’re doomed,” Tempest said flatly.

Rainbow Dash coughed politely, “Well, good luck to you Trixie. And you, Tempest. I’ll just, uh, head outside and make sure no nasty sahuagin board the ship.”

She didn’t like it, but she didn’t see any other choice. Sure with her incredible speed she could easily swim right past the sahuagin fortress and whatever lay beyond to go find her friends. In her Inheritor form she could actually sense them to a degree, her friend’s magical and spiritual presences. If she wanted to, she could be by their sides in ten seconds flat. Probably faster.

But that would mean abandoning the Treasury and every soul upon it. If the sahaugin did decide to attack while the ship was vulnerable, Dash wasn’t sure those aboard would survive against the fishmen’s vast numbers. The only real choice was to protect the ship as it made its own way into Rift Mouth, however slow that process might be.

She knew it was right to stay, but it was torture to do so as she went back to the top deck to stand watch as the ship began it’s slow course towards the sahaugin fortress and the vast cavern beyond that would lead to the city. That feeling of supreme anxiety only worsened in Rainbow Dash’s heart as she felt the magical energies of her friends spike upward suddenly and the pegasus instinctively knew what was happening.

The final battle had begun, and she wasn’t there where her friends needed her.

----------

Within the blood hued darkness of Charybdis’ abyssal lair, a suffusion of many colored lights flashed boldly and shoved aside the gloom. Five luminous columns of magical might soared up through the depths, shocking the sahuagin shamans who were both struggling to keep the portal ritual going, and those led by Divistus who had not yet realized their “ambush” had been bypassed. These flares of arcane power only gradually died down, flowing into the nimbus lights surrounding the five freshly transformed mares who now confronted Charybdis.

Twilight Sparkle, in her many pondered plans for this clash, had considered a few scenarios where she and her friends tried to fight without using the Relics immediately, instead holding those powers in reserve. She had dismissed this notion early in her planning for the simple fact that she saw zero tactical benefit to holding back against an opponent who’d already proven sufficiently dangerous to warrant all the power they had to bring to bear. Her objective was still to capture Charybdis, if possible, but she had no delusion that this was going to take anything less than her and her friend’s full ability, focus, and strength.

The moment the change into their newly empowered Inheritor forms was complete, there was no further grandstanding or banter to be had. They’d already agreed on a general set of tactics, even accounting for Rainbow Dash not being present as their main distraction. As such the five mares immediately all burst into motion the moment they felt the power of their Relics fully take form in their bodies. The intensive, if admittedly limited group training they had done during the journey from Aqualania to the Abyss had familiarized them with their powers sufficiently that they all had a much stronger grasp of what they could do now.

Pinkie Pie and Rarity were on defense.

The first thing Pinkie did was strike up a magnificent tune of inspiring music that belted forth from her lute and was further amplified by the horns on her back as she shot upward to a point where she could easily spot any other motion on the field of battle. This music, empowered by the magic now surging inside Pinkie, filled each of her friends with a soaring rush of enhanced physical and arcane ability. More importantly, the music also filled the water with waves of sound that Pinkie Pie could use to sense any motion Charybdis and her friends made, which would in turn make her job much easier.

Indeed, as the mares went into motion, Charybdis’ sea serpent heads let out hideous shrikes of bloodlust and both her right and left head started to dart towards targets, specifically Twilight and Applejack; perhaps figuring those two represented the most direct physical threats. However the moment those heads went into motion, Pinkie’s hooves slammed harsh chords form her lute which generated sharp strings of solidified sound that then snaked around one of the heads and yanked it off course.

Meanwhile the other head found itself assaulted by a dancing barrage of swirling chakrams as Rarity swam by in a flash of speed. Each chakram’s poison was a thing of magical nature, and Rarity could adjust the dosage from each chakram depending on the intensity of the desired effect or the resistance of her foe. She’d expected Charybdis would be highly resistant to low doses of poison, given the sea witch’s monstrous form, so she’d adjusted power from the other chakrams specifically to empower the one bearing the blue poison; which was designed to paralyze a target’s movements. Even now she kept the black poison chakram close, not using it yet, but the blue one near exploded with a burst of unnaturally glowing blue liquid as it cut across the sea serpent head’s snout.

The head sized up and bellowed, not quite entirely freezing in place, but clearly affected as it shuddered and struggled to move.

Even the impressive toxins or arcane ballads of another age will only slow me down. I’ve spent centuries making this body all but immortal. Relic or no, I’m not going down so easily!

Charybdis’ words were followed by the eyes along her fleshy flanks all squirming in their sockets as heated pale light filled them, and blood squelched from their edges. The blood then sizzled as what appeared to be pulsating wisps of eldritch pale light shot out of the eyes, like tiny darting piranha. These wisps formed swarms that then rushed at Twilight and her friends, most of them focused on Twilight herself.

Twilight had advanced straight at Charybdis, and with her mace now transformed into it’s staff shape, she leveled it ahead of her and drew upon her massive pool of magic. Space warped before her, filling the water with a sheen of void-black starfield. At the same time she began forming a magical circle between her wings, beginning the spell to summon forth her Sphaera Astralis.

The swarm of unnatural wisps hammered into her field of starstuff, and Twilight felt them get lost in the void... however, the wisps were incredibly fast and agile and several managed to dart around her shield and still seek her out. Upon impact she felt the incense sting as the wisps tried to burn holes not only through her, but directly assaulted her metaphysical makeup. She bit back a yelp at the searing sensation that went beyond flesh and bone, but struck at her very core. Fortunately each wisp didn’t pack a great deal of punch and the potent resistance of her own magic, along with the rather sturdy and magically reinforced dress that came with her transformed state, reduced a lot of the wisps’ impact.

Her friends fared varying degrees of better or worse under the swarming wisps’ assault, which Twilight had mentally dubbed ‘Soul Stingers’ for lack of a better term for the attack.

Fluttershy seemed quite able to cleave through many of the Soul Stingers with her shield, the blood red armor she wore tanking the worst of the wisps that got through. Like Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy had swam up, but had also gone forward, angling to strike at Charybdis’ from above. Through the torrent of the wisp swarm that had come for her, Fluttershy darted down in a streak of pink, yellow, and red that saw her using her shield to cut a red line directly down the right flank of Charybdis’ line of flesh and eyes. Blood spewed into the deep, and the red flow went right into Fluttershy’s shield and covered her in a sanguine glow.

Twilight wasn’t sure how much power Fluttershy could drain from Charybdis, but the mare’s job was to be the skirmisher of the group, acting as a constant distraction that’d force Charybdis to start paying attention, otherwise continue to lose vital energy and magic to Fluttershy’s vampiric shield and armor.

Applejack, in Apple Family fashion, bulldozed right through the swarm of Soul Stingers that had come for her. The mare had neither subtly or care for well being in her brazen actions, cocking back her massive, dark iron shillelagh as wisps peppered her from all sides. Applejack just roared through the pain and her armor began to bubble the water around her as it turned up the heat. Twilight could feel the cold waters turn hotter from Applejack’s magic, and the farm mare shot forward, just as planned, in a meteoric spin that targeted Charybdis’ main head directly.

Charybdis’ single, giant eye fixated on Applejack, quite disbelievingly as the mare moved fast as a bolt from the heavens and proceeded to deliver an uppercut swing with her metal club straight to the jaw of Charybdis’ center head.

Applejack’s task was, quite simply, direct assault. Everypony else would make the openings or defend, and Applejack would use that to hammer, and hammer, and hammer Charybdis’ defenses until the monstrosity’s shell cracked. And given the way Charybdis’ entire bulk of most likely several tens of thousands of tons and goliath size reeled back from the blow, Applejack was well suited to her task.

This left Twilight as the central point of the group, able to go on offense, defense, or distract as needed, with her main goal being to coordinate her friend’s efforts. If Rainbow Dash showed up on time, she’d join Applejack on offense, but in the meantime Twilight figured her best bet was to provide that role herself until otherwise needed.

With her magical circle completed, far faster than she’d pulled it off the first time, Twilight enacted the High Magic spell and summoned forth her Sphaera Astralis. In a glittering, gleaming blaze of cosmic light, the brilliant Astral Sphere appeared above Twilight and she wasted not a second in swimming right behind it and leveling her horn at Charybdis’ head that Applejack had just smacked.

“Let us find out if you’re half the ‘divine’ being you pretend to be,” Twilight said under her breath as her horn lit up with a blinding point of swirling purple light, and she fired a beam of unrestrained magic straight into her Astral Sphere. There, the magical energies were amplified as a light shot through a microscope, and came out the other side in a flood of power.

Charybdis saw the thick beam of power coming at her and her massive eye turned towards it, her voice booming.

Do not make light of me!

Pulsations of white and black magic flowed across the back of her nautilus-like main body and coalesced down the length of her serpentine neck until a burning sphere of intermixed darkness and light formed at the center of her eye. The eight tentacles around the eye all fixed forward like spears, and shot amplifying arcs of power into the sphere before it exploded outward in a twisting beam of light and dark.

Charybdis’ beam collided with Twilight’s, and all the Abyss shook with the impact. Before the blinding strobe of light from the exploding beams of energy even started to fade, Twilight was already making use of the moment to move herself and her Astral Sphere to a new position, utilizing Ictu, or “Blink” as the spell technique was called. The spell’s frictionless telekinetic bubble could move her around as fast as a Flash Step, and was faster and more energy efficient than teleportation. Yes, teleporting had its own advantages, but for quick repositioning or evading, Blink was a spell Twilight knew she was going to get a lot of mileage out of.

Now positioned below Charybdis, Twilight split her Astral Sphere, creating a smaller version that she sent down towards the remains of the vast bronze dome she saw below her. She recognized part of Bastion Gnosis, and knew that if Charybdis had a part of herself down there, as was evidenced by the sickly pale umbilical dangling down from her beastly form, then the witch couldn’t be up to any good. At the same moment she sent the smaller sparkling Astral Sphere down towards the opening into Bastion Gnosis, Twilight was already conjuring another set of spells. Waving her staff above her, the black orb of void magic at the end of the staff expelled a quartet of what looked like long rods of magic that gleamed like starfields.

These rods shot up with the same speed Twilight used for Blink. Each one was actually a compressed gravitational field that on impact would start crushing their target with increased gravity. Charybdis was so large that Twilight figured it couldn’t take that much extra gravity to render her immobile.

Unfortunately Charybdis’ defenses extended beyond merely a tough hide and egotistical claims of immortality. Bursts of ruby light appeared as Twilight’s rods struck a bubble-like barrier that was shot through with jagged, dark sigils. An arcane shield that, by Twilight’s guess, was one of several protective anti-magic layers. Her friend’s physical attacks could get through, but Charybdis had planned for countering direct use of magic on her. Still, Twilight was no slouch in terms of magical skill, and a glance was enough to show her the barriers Charybdis was using had limited layers and likely had equally limited triggering mechanisms. She’d crack it, if she had enough time to work out the method.

Charybdis, of course, wasn’t about to remain a stationary target now that battle was joined. Her initial efforts at counter attack having been foiled, the leviathan beast that was once a seapony princess moved with impressive speed for her titanic size. The waters churned with powerful currents as Charybdis moved back, and the countless tentacles beneath her mutated body all writhed to life and extended to unnatural lengths around her.

I know centuries of magical arts long lost to ponykind. I shall be glad to demonstrate the fruits of my endless studies.

Dozens, then scores, then near a hundred magical circles of every conceivable color instantly took shape amid the flailing tentacle tips. Some circles were large enough to require multiple tentacles to form, while others just focused upon one, by either way neither Twilight or any of her friends lacked for having twenty or more spells pointed their way before Charybdis unleashed a maelstrom of arcane fury.

Before Twilight knew it, she was making full use of Blink and relying on her Astral Sphere to weave between a warp in the waters around her that looked as if multiple translucent pony faces that then screamed in such volume that the sonic energy of it likely would have snapped bones. Her Astral Sphere acted as a buffer against the sound waves as Twilight Blinked upwards, then had to immediately flicker in another direction to keep from being hit by a scything beam of ink blackness that smelled of such rot, even underwater, that it nearly made her gag.

She saw Applejack using her shillelagh to smash beams and spheres of magic away from her, but one such sphere undulated like a living piece of flesh and opened up into a drooling mouth of teeth that shot a chain from it’s depths to wrap around Applejack’s waist and start trying to drag her in. With a disgusted look on her face, Applejack shoved her shillelagh into the living spell and channeled magic into the weapon, heating it up to a point that even steel would melt before it. The fleshy sphere of magic bubbled and boiled until it burst, but by then Applejack was already having to dodge another set of the grotesque spheres that were cast her way.

To the credit of Pinkie Pie, her music didn’t skip a beat as she was assaulted by what looked like a summoned host of spectral predatory fish that had bony heads with singularly large, chomping beaks. One tried to bite at her just as Pinkie ducked, getting a bit of her mane in the process. Yet as it did so, a jolt of magic almost like electricity zapped the specter, and Pinkie spun past another pair of snapping teeth as she played a rising crescendo in her music that formed sound into the shape of chopping axe heads around her. These blades of sound cut around in arcs to sever through several specters, giving Pinkie room to bounce free of the swarm.

For Rarity a wave of ghastly red blood-like energy came at her, spreading out to try and encompass the mare. Judging from the way the water around the wave hissed and bubbled, the wave was at the very least violently caustic, possibly just as poisonous as anything Rarity had among her chakrams. Yet Rarity didn’t flinch back from the attack, instead her expression hardened like a marble statue as she sighed and said, “Well, if I must.”

She arrayed five of her chakrams around her in a protective circle, and sent only one out to fly in a graceful arc into the red wave. It was the chakram that trailed black liquid, and Rarity guided in a dizzying pattern of hundreds of cuts amid the oncoming wave of crimson magic. In a matter of seconds there was a strange noise, like the tearing of wet, rotted wood. Then the wave of magic fell apart in shreds, its frayed edges peeling away like flecks of melting snow.

Twilight knew Rarity didn’t like talking about that chakram, and was not keen to use it, for the poison that coated it was Zosimos’ most deadly creation; the Nevermore Toxin. It could break down and rot to the core any material, physical or magical, that it touched. On living flesh it was agonizing in its destructive process, although slow acting, so impractical in combat save as a means to simply deliver torturous death to those you didn’t wish to kill quickly. On spells it destroyed the magic itself, eating it away from the inside out. It was a poison meant solely for destruction and pain, and Rarity found it’s very existence abhorrent, even if it did have some potential uses. Worse than it’s nature was that it left behind a terribly toxic byproduct that lingered well after the poison’s use, a black sludge that could never be cleaned by anything short of the most powerful of cleansing or healing magics. For one who valued the beauty in the world, using something so ugly was an painful act for Rarity, but this was a battle they could not afford to lose.

Among Twilight’s friends, Fluttershy got the second largest concentration of spells thrown her way by Charybdis. Perhaps because Charybdis realized how dangerous Fluttershy’s ability to gradually drain her power was. There was nothing remotely fancy or special about the methodology behind the spells Charybdis sent at the mare, filling the waters around Fluttershy in a dark bloom of intermixed white and black explosions of destructive magic. Yet rather than go on the defensive and hide behind her shield, Fluttershy’s eyes narrowed and she became a line of speed, soaring in through the storm that battered her armor and flesh. Even as the explosions of magic damaged her, Fluttershy flew through the pain and started slashing along Charybdis’ tentacles with every piece of her sharpened armor. Edges that went beyond razor sharp severed tentacle after tentacle, until they were falling down to the seafloor like leaves.

Blood flowed into Fluttershy’s shield, and Charybdis roared as she focused a stronger sphere of swirling darkness and light and threw it at the mare. Fluttershy, her body rimmed in blood red light, held her shield out then and took the blast directly, momentarily vanishing amid the twin colors of the exploding sphere. Yet then there was a chattering noise, and a streaking of dozens of red lights flew outward... bats, formed of pure red. These bats then hovered around Fluttershy herself, who was encompassed in what looked to be a black cape that dropped downward far beyond her height, until it unfurled into the shape of two ink black bat wings that were layered over her pegasus wings like solid shadows. Her eyes glowed ever more crimson red, and she now had pronounced fangs jutting from her lips. Her shield shifted slightly, curved, foot long blades sprouting from along its rim.

“I am feeling very cross right now,” Fluttershy declared simply, before, joined by her flock of magical bats, she used her now pitch black bat wings to resume her flashing assault upon Charybdis seemingly endless tentacles. Both her now bladed shield and her wings joined in with the numerous bladed joints of her armor, turning the mare into a flying blender. She tore through a dozen tentacles before a disturbance to her left caught her attention and Fluttershy raised her shield just in time.

Charybdis’ left serpent head had snapped around and twisted at an unnatural angle and shot forward with thunderous force, smashing into Fluttershy with the kind of force that’d break down castle walls. Not done, the flesh on the serpent’s brow wriggled and split open, revealing a smaller version of Charybdis’ central eye, which then shot out a stream of Soul Stingers directly at Fluttershy as the head whipped around and flung her towards the rift’s nearest wall.

Stung by the barrage, Fluttershy was briefly dazed, but caught herself just before she impacted, spreading her wings to cushion the blow as she slammed into the rock wall and cratered into the stone a good half dozen feet.

“Uh-oh, Flutters you alright down there?” Pinkie Pie chirped, flashing over in a blaze of pink motion. Fluttershy winced a bit, but pulled herself from the hole she’d made in the wall.

“I think so. Those tiny wisps hurt more than the wall did.”

“Speaking of those nasties, there’s more incoming,” Pinkie noted as a fresh wave of Soul Stingers were fired out of Charybdis’ left head like an unending swarm of bees. Pinkie licked her lips and cracked a smile, hoof raising above the strings of her silver lute, “But I know just the tune to adjust their attitude!”

For a moment the swelling, inspirational music that pipped from the horns on her back changed as Pinkie’s hooves shredded upon the lute’s strings. A harsh, discordant, yet somehow still deeply rhythmic beat of electric noise shot forth, and the water in front of Pinkie started to ripple with concussive pulsations of sound that then took the shape of... tiny alligators? It was like Pinkie’s music was shaping into a set of sonic puppets, shaped conspicuously like a certain pet alligator of the certain pink menace. The small army of sound puppets rushed into the swarm of Soul Stingers and each one acted like a missile of explosive sound magic, halting the wisps in their tracks.

“I got this, you get back to whacking tentacles!” Pinkie told Fluttershy with a wink, and Fluttershy responded with a smiling nod, her bat wings enclosing her like a cloak before she shot off in a shadowy bolt of motion. Her red bats surrounded her and they snapped crimson fangs into any wisps that got past Pinkie’s defenses as Fluttershy charged back into the fray.

Meanwhile Applejack was still busy evading spheres of macabre summoned flesh that formed huge chains to try and catch her to drag into their maws, but ever on the offensive Applejack bounced among them like a pinball, her club wailing upon each one in turn with volcanic force. Yet this did keep her occupied from attacking Charybdis’ main body, and Rarity was too busy herself to go help Applejack get clear, for Charybdis’ right head had focused upon the mare with its own forehead eye open and glowing with deep purple light.

That black toxin... that substance is too dangerous even for one like me to think of using, yet you didn’t hesitate. Do you have any idea the damage it could do if you didn’t contain it?

An arcane crest flared from the eye, then half a dozen pulsating, spiked masses of flesh shot out, homing in on Rarity. The mare gave the strange, seemingly living spheres of pale red flesh a nauseated look before she sent forth her red chakram, which spun in a circular pattern so fast it looked as if it’d split into a dozen blades as it cut into the writhing flesh masses.

“Only too aware, which is why I will never use it unless given no choice. I hardly need lecturing on such a matter from the likes of you.”

The crimson poison from the chakram tore through the flesh, causing it to bubble and fester. This was Zosimos’ first creation, before the Nevermore Toxin. The Sanguine Kiss was a lesser prototype to what the Nevermore would become, causing a target to be struck by blistering internal heat, but limited in how fast it spread and designed to be non-lethal in smaller doses. Still an unpleasant thing to use, but with none of the far more questionable drawbacks of its more deadly cousin.

Rarity had figured a few slices would stop those fleshy masses quickly, but even as those strange spheres pulsated and bubbled from the poison, each one burst in a way that was clearly of their own design, for as they did each one spat a storm of bone-like spikes. Indeed, these were like living mines conjured from Charybdis’ flesh with blood magic. Rarity had to surround herself in a shining fence of chakram slashes to keep the bone spikes, hundreds of them, from impaling her. A few got through, but fortunately the diamond hard scales of crystal, both visible on her limbs, but also the ones hidden under her white fur, were able to keep her from being too badly harmed.

Still, Charybdis was keeping her occupied, much as she’d been doing with the rest of the mares.

This left her central head to focus entirely on Twilight.

For her part, Twilight had enacted defenses of her own, surrounding herself in a triple layer of glowing purple shields. She knew Charybdis could break through these, but this was only a stalling tactic to give her a free couple of seconds to check on her second Astral Sphere that she’d sent down into Bastion Gnosis. With a simple viewing and audio clairaudience spell she’d created a link to that second sphere within her main sphere which generated an actual moving picture with real time sound of what the second sphere was encountering.

She saw an image of the once glorious alicorn settlement's interior now given over to darkness and eons of decay. Still the brass shone through the silt and muck. Twilight felt a deep twinge of regret in her mind, Astra’s memories seeing her fallen home and weeping for the ages of lost knowledge, and the remembrance of endless hours spent in blissful magical research. Yet she had no time to consider such things now and focused entirely on where the pale umbilical cord went, watching intently as her Astral Sphere descended in search of the organic cord’s end point.

That was until a glow of sickly black magic surrounded the second Astral Sphere and gripped it, spinning it around until it faced... a seapony? No, the mutated features showed this for being a part of Charybdis. Was this her original body, a piece of it, stuck at the end of that monstrous cord like a fleshy sock puppet? The eyes of Charybdis danced madly as she threw a hoof out towards two struggling figures suspended around a giant pearl of incandescent white. Red magical power flowed from Charybdis’ hoof to the two figures, who’s cries Twilight recognized immediately.

“Sonata! Aria!”

Don’t sound so concerned, Princess. I’m barely hurting them, and am only shaving off a little bit of their souls. You and your friends think you’re fighting me on even terms right now? Perhaps, but in a few moments I’ll have Domare’s power to add atop the wealth of magic Gaia Everfree has gifted me from the human world! My portal grows ever larger, so in short time I’ll have all the power I need to end this farce, enter the human world, and finally open up a whole new era for two worlds. Now stop interfering and either die already, or give up, I don’t care which.

Twilight tried to command her second Astral Sphere to break free of Charybdis’ grip, but whatever magic Charybdis was using was potent enough to at least slow the sphere’s movements considerably. The sphere’s analytical properties at least gave Twilight the chance to grasp some of the nature of Charybdis’ magic, confirming to her that nearly equal parts traditional arcane magic and soul energy were infused in the witch’s spells. However something else also caught Twilight’s attention. Charybdis had mentioned getting a boost of magical power from someone named... Gaia Everfree?

She’d felt something oddly off and familiar before about the magic she was sensing from Charybdis, and now that her Astral Sphere was providing her a detailed look at that magic she was starting to see it. The signature was cloaked by Charybdis’ own darkened magic, unnatural blood spells, and the soul energy she was drawing out of herself, but even then the current of purer magic beneath was unmistakable.

It seemed impossible, but the magic Charybdis had been fueled with from the human world was unmistakably aligned with that of Harmony. Or at least, a rawer, primal form of it. But how? Where had this energy come from? Why was it in the human world, and how had this Gaia Everfree person gotten a hold of it to then transfer to Charybdis?

No wonder Charybdis had the power to put up such a fight while simultaneously enacting the portal ritual and try another ritual to bond with Domare’s Relic. She’d gotten siphoned power directly from one of the single most powerful magical sources Twilight was aware of. If she did succeed in unlocking Domare’s power as well...

Twilight didn’t let herself consider the possibility of defeat. Whatever Charybdis did, whatever power she decided to steal like a petty thief, Twilight and her friends were going to bring her down!

All of this had only taken a few seconds to happen, which was enough time for Charybdis’ central head to charge up another massive blast of combined white and black magical energy at the iris of her humongous eye. Twilight felt the power build up coming, but her own anger was flaring up once more as she turned to face the coalescing sphere of destructive eldritch power aimed at her. It was high time to demonstrate to Charybdis she was not the only master of magic around here.

Charybdis’ blast fired, the sea witch supremely confident her power would eventually overwhelm Twilight’s layers of shields. Only Twilight didn’t rely on those shields. She instead spun her staff in a circle and shot out a stream of purple energy from her horn. A magical circle, near thirty meters wide, wove itself in innumerable complex sigils before her. Charybdis’ devastating sphere of power struck the magic circle Twilight had conjured, which was then revealed to be a gate. The moment the energy blast hit the circle, eight smaller gates formed of similar magic circles appeared above Charybdis’ body, and the explosive sphere of white and dark energy was absorbed into the main gate then transferred to the eight smaller gates to transform into a rain of diffused, raw magic energy that hammered down on Charybdis. As Twilight had suspected, Charybdis’ defensive barriers weren’t calibrated to protect against her own magic, allowing the bolts of power to slam fully into her body with no interference.

Charybdis let out a pained roar, her eye glaring at Twilight, who flared her wings out and leveled her staff at Charybdis.

“All you have is stolen power!” Twilight shouted, “And you don’t even use it that cleverly. Even if you do steal more from a Relic, you’re still going to lose today.”

Despite the rain of her own power blasting marks and holes across her huge body, Charybdis remained undaunted, and even laughed bitterly at Twilight’s words.

You think Domare is like that little Astra you got power from? No, Domare was among the highest ranks. A peer to Eos and Iah. Once I have her power... this playful skirmish will be over. And look, my portal opens, even as you bleat your pointless taunts.

Twilight’s gaze was drawn upward, where around a hundred meters above the potent light of the ritual’s energies had been ever steadily intensifying. Now she saw that the portal, the torn hole in the weave of worlds, was significantly larger. Indeed, it was almost large enough that Charybdis could squeeze through her thick hulk of a body, although not quite yet. The water around the portal was swirling about as water from a different world’s ocean poured in and mixed with that of the Abyss. And through the portal Twilight could see... some kind of brighter lit underwater canyon?

She couldn’t get a very good look, but there were flashes of light coming from that side of the portal, and the sound of some large creature groaning in both anger and apparent pain. Twilight saw streaks of acidic green light shooting across the waters of the human world, and brilliant crimson spheres firing back in response, all stemming from a colossal squid that was trying to swat down or magically blast a swiftly moving human figure who stood amid a summoned cube of air.

What in the world was going on up there? The giant squid had to have been a Kraken, but who was the man bearing a golden staff capped with rings? Was he a Soul Reaper?

Twilight had no time to extensively ponder this as Charybdis began to rise towards the portal, her voice booming in the darkness.

Lusca, keep the portal open!

Lusca? Must have been the name of the Kraken. Charybdis’s many tentacles undulated as she started to force her massive form upward towards the widening portal. Twilight’s mind raced. They couldn’t just let her go through! If she closed the portal from the other side, there’d be nothing Twilight or her friends could do to stop her at that point!

“Girls, don’t let her get any closer to the portal!” she shouted, and immediately set to work in conjuring a swath of new gravity rods, generating an array of around twenty of them in a sweeping semi-circle before her. Now that she’d had the Astral Sphere analyze Charybdis’ magic to a degree, and seen the proof that Charybdis protective barriers didn’t defense against that magic, Twilight was able to modify her gravity rods with a thin coating that simulated Charybdis’ magic signature.

This time when she cast out the barrage of gravity rods in a sequential burst, the projectiles weren’t immediately stopped by the layers of anti-magic spells protecting Charybdis. The rods impacted at various points of Charybdis body, and on impact the rods emitted a wavering field of purple so dark it was nearly black, and Charybdis shuddered as gravity started to multiply upon her body. Shockingly she still rose upward, empowered by insane physical and arcane force, but it was slow going now due to Twilight’s spells, which in turn bought her friends time to act.

Rarity moved like a blue shooting star, the gleam of her crystal scales glinting off of magical light pouring from her horn as she launched her chakrams at Charybdis’ left head. Save for the black, all the other colors cut crisscrossing patterns over the serpent head, leaving deep furrows in mutated aquatic flesh. Sickened, paralyzed, and burdened with overheating, melting flesh, the head writhed, but Charybdis stubbornly continued to rise.

With her red bats swirling around her, Fluttershy landed upon Charybdis’ right head and spun her whole body around like a saw, her shield, bladed armor, and sharp bat wings all cutting as one to drain fountains of blood from carved flesh. Yet even as this blood drained into Fluttershy, Charybdis retaliated with a blaze of dark, lightning-like power that surged over her body and shocked anything near it, including Fluttershy and Rarity, who both were knocked back by the field of black energy.

Pinkie Pie bounced to the beat of her music and the tune she played brought together the sound constructs shaped like her pet alligator to all coalesce together into one big, buzzing form that rammed into Charybdis’ side and burst in a shockwave of sound that must have wracked every inch of the bloated leviathan’s form. Still Charybdis rose, tentacles flinging explosive spells of force at Pinkie, forcing her to zip about to evade them.

Barreling through a similar barrage of spells that Charybdis sent her way, Applejack took the hits and the water around her boiled fiercely from the heat her armor and shillelagh generated. She swam to get ahead of Charybdis and brought her club down hard upon the center of the massive nautilus shell protecting Charybdis’ main body. A boom like the smashing of a church bell rang out in the waters, and Charybdis’ entire form jolted and bucked under the impact. In that same moment, all of the dark lightning-like energy Charybdis was exuding from her body became focused on the exact point Applejack was at, and smashed into the mare with a blotted out burst of darkness. Applejack was thrown back in a stunned tumble, and Charybdis continued to stubbornly rise.

Twilight was torn between trying to stop Charybdis’ main body, or going down into Bastion Gnosis to try to stop her seapony remains from completing the task of using Aria and Sonata to unlock the Eye of the Sea. She wasn’t sure if Charybdis could complete that ritual if she went through the portal, but perhaps that was what the umbilical cord was for?

If she severed that cord, what would happen? Twilight hadn’t done that yet because there was no guarantee that’d halt Charybdis, or wouldn’t have some unforeseen backlash. For all she knew if Charybdis lost control of her ritual it’d end up hurting the siren sisters in some irrevocable way.

I can’t risk it. Have to stop Charybdis at the portal. The portal... can I risk collapsing it?

Astra’s specialty was spatial magic and the arcane element tied to the very nature of space and the stars. Portals were, in effect, a specialty of that brand of magic. It could be a dangerous and volatile magic, as space tended to resist being bent and twisted for things like gates, portals, rifts, and the like. That was why they were so magic intensive. It took an incredible amount of energy to actually control the effects of those spells, and the bigger the spell the more complicated the ritual needed.

Disrupting such rituals wasn’t actually that easy, given the amount of magic needed to enact them tended to also make those rituals resistant to interference, at least once they got going. And Twilight could tell this ritual had so much raw power put into it that to disrupt it she’d need to strike with a fairly incredible amount of arcane force herself. There was also no real telling what the repercussions would be, once she did so. For all she knew the portal would explode like a miniature black hole and take out everything in the immediate vicinity. Rift Mouth might not survive.

No, I can do this. I have Astra’s memories inside me and no alicorn besides her father knew the magic of space like she did. Please Astra, help me...

Taking a deep breath, Twilight delved into the wealth of knowledge Astra’s memories granted her. In the span of the few seconds Charybdis was using to reach the portal, Twilight reviewed Astra’s centuries of magical research and practice and applied that to what she saw of the portal’s ritual circle. There had to be a way to disrupt it while ensuring no significant fallout.

Yet it looked as if she wouldn’t make it in time! Charybdis had gotten to the portal’s threshold, the first of her long, slimy tentacles creeping up through the plane between Equestria and the human world...

Then Twilight heard a man’s loud and boisterous voice coming from the other side of the portal.

“Ah ah ah, we’ve got quite enough tentacle laden issues here already, so I’ll have to ask you to come knocking another day. Bakudo Number Ninety Four: Kami no Tenohira Kyozetsu!” (God’s Palm Rejection)

In a flare of light a pair of gigantic, ghostly palms slapped together like they were forming a prayer in front of the portal. Then the palms, each larger than a dragon, slammed down together to block the portal with concussive force that knocked Charybdis down. Not far, admittedly, and the mutant sea witch’s three serpent heads let out a chilling set of roars as she slammed them against the palms.

Oh piss off you arrogant Soul Reapers! Your so-called ‘Kido’ will not hold me back for more than a minute!

Twilight let out a relieved laugh. Whether Charybdis could break the Kido barrier that the Soul Reaper (whoever it was) on the other side of the portal put up was no longer relevant, for it had granted Twilight the extra few seconds she needed. With Astra’s expertise she called forth her Astral Sphere to float before her and charged up a brilliant and bright lance of lavender magic that she cast through the sphere. The lance of precise power shot out of the sphere enhanced like the world’s largest arcane scalpel, and with focused power this lance cut through specific portions of the portal’s ritual spell that surrounded it like an anchoring.

In a drowning flash a white light bloomed from vast quantities of previously controlled magic now burning out all at once. Yet because Twilight had been exacting in the portion of the ritual she’d targeted, she’d in effect created a directed outlet for all of that energy that suddenly was no longer bound to the creation of the portal. Charybdis’ titanic form wheeled towards the eruption of magic, casting out streams of power from her many eyes in an attempt to bind the ritual once more, but it was a futile effort given that once a ritual was this badly disrupted there was really no way to salvage it.

No, damn you! You ignorant, immature little brats do NOT get to ruin this much invested time, effort, and suffering! I will not ALLOW it!

Yet despite her thundering words, the ritual circle continued to bleed magic energy in a blinding series of flaring white bursts, until finally in one last explosive burst of flooding light the portal itself collapsed in on itself, imploding to a single pinprick of light and cutting off the portal to the human world as it vanished. Charybdis’ abyssal lair became flooded mostly dark once more, save for the sanguine glow of the red runes carved into Bastion Gnosis, and Charybdis floated there for a stunned second, unmoving.

That did not last long, however, before all three of her serpent heads let out frozen howls of anger as her body churned the waters in its speed to round upon Twilight and the other mares. Black and white surging arcs of arcane power coursed over her as the sea witch’s power spiked with her fraying emotional state, her booming words tinged murderous.

You think you just accomplished something, you mentally minute muppets!? I’m still fueled by the power Gaia siphoned from those stupid stones for me, and once I have drained Domare’s Relic dry, I’ll be able to open that portal again. And you all...Ohoho, children, you’d best pray to me that I can dredge up enough mercy to make your ends painless. Relatively speaking.

“Yeash, lady, didn’t anypony ever tell you stress is no good for your health?” Pinkie Pie said, strumming her lute, “Want me to play you a relaxing bit of soft jazz?”

Charybdis responded by instantly firing three consecutive beams of dark destructive magic force straight at Pinkie from the eyes of her three serpent heads. Pinkie made a slight ‘eep!’ noise as she dipped away from the ungainly attack in a pink streak, ending up floating next to Applejack, who signed and elbowed Pinkie lightly.

“Pinks, she’s madder n’ a Timberwolf at a lawn ornament sale already. Don’t think no amount o’ music is soothin’ this savage bi...er, bad lady.”

“I don’t think we’re in a PG show anymore, Applejack, so you can say it here,” Pinkie said, “She’s totally a raging bi-”

“Be on guard girls!” Twilight interrupted, not out of any concern for language but because there really wasn’t any time for banter, “She’s doing something to Aria and Sonata down in that ruin! She has Domare’s Relic, the Eye of the Sea, down there.”

“Then we’d best stop her, shouldn’t we?” Rarity said.

“I’ll take care of that if you girls can keep her busy for a little longer,” Twilight said, to which Fluttershy appeared next to her in a blink of motion, still glowing with an aura of blood red light from the energy she’d been absorbing. It was a tad disturbing to Twilight to see that Fluttershy’s visage was so focused and intently predatory, like looking at the face of a cat about to pounce on a mouse.

“Go, Twilight,” Fluttershy said, “I can smell Rainbow Dash. She’s getting closer. We have this under control. Including them.”

Them? Twilight looked up as Fluttershy gestured with her shield, and she spotted that there were now quite a number of sahuagin swimming down towards them from further up in the rift. She saw that by the various bone carved fetishes, staves, and sacrificial knives that the sahuagin bore that these were the shamans that had been helping Charybdis with the portal ritual. She thought she recognized one of them as the same shaman who’d been in Aqualania as well, Divistus.

From the sahuagin went up a loud, joined warble of outrage and dismay, many of them seeing the wounds on their Deep Mistress and erupting with hateful cries towards the surfacers that dared harm their goddess. Twilight didn’t like the idea of leaving her friends for even a second to deal with both the cohort of angry shamans and an even more enraged Charybdis, but she had to get down into Bastion Gnosis to try something, anything to stop her from finishing the process of unlocking the Eye of the Sea.

Giving her friends one last hopeful nod, Twilight turned and swam down towards the opening into Bastion Gnosis, and heard the echoing noises of battle explode behind her as her friends charged back into the fray. She sincerely hoped that Fluttershy was right and that Rainbow Dash was on her way, for they would sorely need her help if Twilight couldn’t stop Charybdis from claiming Domare’s power.

----------

Flash Sentry was getting used to making use of Flash Step while underwater. It took up more spiritual pressure, but he found that by extending the burst of reiatsu in a circular pattern it made it easier to traverse the dense water at a speed similar to what he could achieve in air.

With Kochi Yojinbo released to Shikai form he had plenty of reiatsu to spare and more importantly his power to mirror his presence in multiple locations was allowing him to make short work of the sahaugin warriors that were guarding the slaves. While the sahuagin were on alert, none of them were really prepared to have a pegasus turned seapony who was actually a Soul Reaper to instantly appear behind them and smack the flat of a tonfa blade into their skulls. He had dropped ten of them before the rest even realized they were under attack.

Even after the sahuagin guards understood that a threat was among them, Flash just kept flickering form spot to spot, appearing in multiple places at once so that with every swing of his tonfa three or four sahuagin found themselves knocked senseless. The seapony slaves, and even some sahaugin who were working alongside them, all looked utterly confused and bewildered as Flash moved among the guards like a whirlwind. By the time the last guard fell in a floating, unconscious heap, Flash was earning the stares of some several hundred slaves who looked less enthused by the situation and more frightened.

Grinning in embarrassment and quickly trying to give off a disarming air, Flash Sentry raised a hoof and said, “O-okay folks, no need for alarm. I’m one of the good guys, and I’m here to free you.”

“Free...?” it was one of the sahaugin workers who spoke, and Flash really wasn’t sure what to make of the fact that some of the apparent slaves were sahaugin themselves. Or were they slaves?

“You’re not one of us.” This was said by one of the seaponies, an old stallion whose fins were frayed and whose eyes, despite the faded nature of his rose hued mane, remained sharp. “No seapony has wings. Who are you?”

“Flash Sentry. Look it’s a long story, but I’m here with others who are trying to stop Charybdis-”

“The Deep Mistress!?” shouted one of the sahuagin workers, “Impossible. Who would dare?”

“Uhhh...” Flash glanced at the elder seapony, whom several of the other seapony slaves had gathered near. “Look, quick question, but what’s the deal here? You lot are slaves in need of freeing, right?”

“We are,” said the old seapony, and he jutted his head towards the sahuagin workers, who were cautiously gathering near as well, “This lot too, in a sense, although their ‘slavery’ is one formed of different bindings than ours.” He held up a hoof with a shark-leather cord attaching him to a stone that gave him a range of work amid the algae farm that surrounded them, “My kind are bound physically, them by faith. Every sahuagin who works alongside us has committed some manner of crime in their society, but rather than execution, it is common practice for them to serve their ‘atonement’ as workers alongside us slaves.”

“T-this one is an enemy of the Deep Mistress...” whispered one of the other sahuagin workers, “If we defeat him, will she look upon us in favor once more?”

“Do not be foolish,” hissed another, “You saw him dispatch so many strong warriors with such ease, yes? Let us not anger this strange soft kin, Deep Mistress’ favor or not.”

Flash gave the sahuagin a flat look, readying his tonfa blade, “Any of you want to try me, feel free. I’m here to free anyone who wants to go free. You plan to interfere with that, you can join the guards in taking head trauma induced naps.”

He counted perhaps two or three dozen sahaugin workers among the slave force, and it didn’t look like any of them had the stomach to try making a move on him, faith or no faith. There were dark murmurs among them, but not a one of the fish men made a move while Flash started going among the numerous seapony slaves and cutting the cords that bound them to their work areas. It still took agonizingly long minutes, for while he could hear distant echoes of booming underwater thunder that indicated the battle taking place between Charybdis and the mares from Ponyville, his spiritual senses gave him a much clearer notion of the shape of events.

Now that Charybdis was fighting he could sense her magic more clearly. Well, not clearly, per se, for magic still felt a lot like a bizarre buzz that filled the world around him, but Flash had become skilled enough at sifting through that buzz that he could gauge the strength of most magical signatures now nearly as well as he could spiritual powers. The sensations he was getting from the girls fighting Charybdis was like feeling a battle between multiple Captains. It was hard to tell who was really stronger just on the sensations, but Charybdis’ power had a distinctly dense and darkly unwieldy nature to it that reminded him a little of the few times he’d sensed Captain Cheese Sandwich unleash his Zanpaktou, and Flash knew Cheese Sandwich was among the upper tier of the Captains. It felt to him like Twilight and her friends were, combined, still stronger, but it was a close enough thing that he had to imagine the battle was tipping back and forth on a razor edge.

And oddly, for a moment, Flash thought he felt another Soul Reaper’s spiritual pressure over there. Powerful, too, easily Captain level. It hadn’t been there long, but who was that? Flash hadn’t recognized it.

“I don’t know what’s brought you here, or who your friends are,” said the old seapony stallion, rubbing his arms now that they were free of the cord. He looked off to the direction of the distant booms of the battle, “But do you honestly think something like these blasted sahuagin’s goddess can be beaten?”

“Whether she can or not doesn’t change that this is likely your only chance to escape from here,” Flash said, raising his voice so all the slaves could hear him, “If you want freedom, this is it! Once I’m done cutting all of your bonds, I’ll lead you out of here! Stick close to me and I promise I’ll do all in my power to see you to safety!”

His plan was to get them to the Treasury, as once on board the ship they’d be about as safe as safe could be short of fleeing the Abyss entirely, but given how many ocean beasts still filled the Abyss’ labyrinthine depths Flash felt better about the slaves being on the ship rather than leaving them to try and run off on their own. It took another minute or two, but he was able to free what he counted to near three hundred slaves, a third of which had been in the mine tunnels, but fortunately could be swiftly brought out with the help of already freed slaves.

“Got a name?” he asked the old timer.

“Forgot it years ago,” the stallion said, his withered eyes of a deep blue color gaining a sad light, “Was taken when I was a child. Known this quarry and farm my whole life. The slaves and guards alike just call me Tatter.” He raised and waved his frayed and tattered seapony tail to indicate the reason behind the name. “Got damaged when I was caught. Had to work twice as hard as any other slave to convince the fish bastards I was too good a worker to send to the shamans for sacrifice.”

“Tatter,” said one of the other slaves, several of which had recovered weapons from the fallen guards, “We killing these chum suckers or what?”

Flash noticed that many of the slaves were giving the sahuagin workers and the unconscious guards... less than friendly looks. Downright violently murderous, in fact.

Oh hell, he thought and quickly Flash Stepped between them and the now frightened looking sahuagin workers. “Hold up! You guys don’t have time for this.”

“I’ve been here five spirits-damned years!” growled one slave, now brandishing a stolen trident with fresh rage boiling in her eyes, “I watched them slaughter my husband when he tried to defend our home. I haven’t seen my children since, and I don’t even know if they’re still alive!”

“We’ve got time to gut a few of these ugly sahuagin monsters before fleeing,” said another seapony with a missing eye, “They deserve it after everything they’ve taken from us! Monsters!”

Similar cries of vengeful bloodlust rose up among the slaves, and Flash Sentry saw one seapony level a harpoon at an unconscious guard and make to throw it. Flash moved in an instant, slicing the harpoon in half, and startling the slaves backwards for a moment. He created copies of himself in several other places to form a line between the freed slaves and sahuagin, and spoke in a louder voice, trying his best to draw upon his memories of Captain Celestia to give off that voice of calm, caring, but strong authority.

“I understand each of you has reasons to hate the sahuagin. I don’t expect you to let go of that, and I’m not asking you to. What I am telling you is that right here, right now, your freedom is more important than vengeance. I was tasked with getting all of you out of here alive, and in the name of Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria I will keep to that duty, even if I have to personally knock out and haul away each and every single one of you.”

The seaponies wavered, and then Tatter swam forward, and turned to join Flash Sentry in staring down his companions, “Listen up! Any of you who have family waiting for you better be thinking of them right now, and any of you that don’t, think about how good freedom is going to taste anyway. This kid is right. We don’t have time for slitting throats and gutting bellies right now. We can get payback on the sahuagin another day, but only if we’re alive and free to do it.”

This seemed to quell the immediate desire for violence, although Flash wasn’t blind to the withering hatred with which many of the seaponies still looked upon their now former captors. He felt an internal gut punch in realizing the overwhelming likelihood that even if his friends won the day over Charybdis, that the rift between seapony and sahuagin just wasn’t going to go away any time soon. And, to a degree, he saw a reflection of the animosity present between Soul Society, the Hollows, and the Quincy.

More powerful than any Espada, Sternritter, of Captain, seemed to be the endless specter of hate that infected the heart of every individual wrapped up in generations of conflict. How did one even begin to figure out how to unravel it all?

Way above his paygrade, but he was determined to remain ever at the side of one who might have the best chance of finding an answer.

“Okay then,” he said, “Now that we’re all on the same page, I need all of you to follow me. A group this big can’t really sneak past anything, but there’s a ship on the other side of the fortress leading out of Rift Mouth. If we can rush past it and get to that ship, you should be safe.”

“Ship? What ship!?” stammered one seapony, while Tatter gave him a sidelong look.

“You think we can just float on by that fortress, kid? That place is a death trap, filled to the brim with an army of these bloodthirsty fishfaces. Now I’ve seen you showing off some impressive power, wherever you got it from, but even you couldn’t-”

Tatter’s objections were drowned out by a sudden and significant tremor that ran through the ground, and a crashing echo that came from much closer and the opposite direction from the spot that Flash knew the battle with Charybdis was taking place. Curious, Flash swam up a few dozen meters to get a better view as he sensed a new magical and spiritual presence approaching from... the direction of the fortress!?

His questions were soon answered by the sight of flickering but bright searchlights, mounted at the bow of the Treasury. The ship moved into view at the end of the quarry’s canyon, and Flash let out a short whoop of joy. Looked like Rainbow Dash and the others had broken through! Not that he really doubted the speedster would take down those sahuagin champions, but it was good to see confirmation. However, now that he was looking at the Treasury he couldn't help but notice that the ship’s lights and shields were flashing on and off rather erratically. Had the ship been damaged? It also wasn’t moving as fast as he remembered, although that might have just been Admiral Seaspray being cautious.

Either way, their ride had come to them, rather than the other way around.

“See, ship.” Flash said, pointing, “Tatter, help me get everypony on board, quick!”

“Heh, no need to ask me twice. Didn’t live this long to go questioning the ocean’s blessings when her spirits decide to grant them,” Tatter said, and shouted to his fellow slaves, “Well what are you all floating there gawking for!? You see where we need to go to get freedom, so get swimming, and keep swimming until you’re safe in the belly of that metal beast!”

The slaves hardly needed further prompting, and like a big school of fish the seaponies all swam up in a multi-colored school and made right for the Treasury. Flash swam above them, keeping a close eye out for any further sahuagin warriors that might be lurking about. He did spot a number of sahuagin civilians swimming around the main canyon of Rift Mouth, many of them pointing at the Treasury in surprised awe.

Once he and the slaves got close to the ship, Flash saw a burst of blue motion come right for him form the deck of the ship, and instantly Rainbow Dash, still in her transformed Inheritor state, was in front of him. She looked frazzled but still fresh, as if her own fight hadn’t left her too winded or wounded. Indeed aside from the anxiety writ plain on her petite face, Dash looked fine, but she started talking mile a minute the second she saw Flash.

“HeyFlashcoolyou’rehere! Gottagotothegirlsfastnow! Shipismessedupbutshouldgetyouallout! Kaybye!”

And before he could so much as open his mouth halfway to ask “Huh?” or “What?” she was gone in another streak of blinding blue. He couldn’t even fully trace her motions, only sensing her energy flying off at unbelievable speed towards where Charybdis was.

“Eeeegh...okay, didn’t understand any of that, but at least she’s going where she needs to be,” he muttered, then noticed that the cargo bay hatch on the bottom of the Treasury was opening up. And, oddly, rather than Admiral Seaspray’s voice it was Tempest Shadows voice that suddenly spoke over the ship’s external com system.

“Everypony who’s tired of being here, get aboard now. That means you too, on the double, Flash Sentry. Wavecrest is bleeding out in the medical bay and we’re hoping your Kido spells will work better than two idiots who don’t know anything about medical crap.”

Wavecrest!? Flash didn’t need further prompting, moving well ahead of Tatter and the slaves as they started to swim into the cargo bay.

----------

Seared awake by a feeling that was at once both scalding and energizing, Rezarra opened her mouth in a wordless shout and jolted up in the water. Her senses were scrambled by pain and she lashed out, catching something firm and scaled with her talon. She smelled blood, both hers and others, and she shook herself while grasping for her weapon. Finding it’s familiar grip on her hand, she readied herself to strike again, only for her blurred vision to finally clear and show that she was surrounded not by enemies, but by warriors of her own kind. Among them were several of the shamans assigned to the fortress, ritual knives in hand as they drew their own blood to call forth invigorating magic at the drain of their own souls. The blood transmuted into streams of burning light that had been flowing into her, and while such magic could not restore all of her injuries save the most surface level ones, it could invigorate her beyond such petty pains.

Nearby Rezarra saw other shamans working upon Berokar and Morgawr’s bodies, although she was the first to awaken, it seemed. Beyond the milling pod of warriors, she saw the fortress at the cavern entrance to Rift Mouth. It was still occupied, but she saw that at least one of the spires had fallen, and more importantly, there was no sign of the surface invader’s ship.

Growling, she reached out to the nearest warrior and grabbed him by the throat, “Rrrr, where is it!? Where did the surfacer’s cursed ship go!?”

The warrior did not struggle against her grip, even as her talons pressed down on his throat, and he said, “It has entered Rift Mouth, honored chosen. When you and the others fell, the blue monster returned to its ship, and soon after it made for the cavern.”

“And you let it go?” Rezarra asked pointedly, to which one of the shamans, the eldest among them, floated forward and answered in the warrior’s stead.

“We fought, great Rezarra, but were no match for a creature that was able to defeat the likes of you, Berokar, and Morgawr all at once. Even if the ship did not fire upon us, that one surface beast was such that even our shaman spells did nothing to slow her down.”

Rezarra hissed, and was sorely tempted to take out her angered frustrations upon those gathered near her, but some measure of self control did remain and she released the warrior. It would be pointless to punish those for failing to do what she herself could not. Numbers would be meaningless against a creature like that Rainbow Dash. Only the might of the Deep Mistress herself stood a chance.

“How long have we been unconscious? What is happening in Rift Mouth?” she demanded.

“Not long, chosen,” said the shaman, “We spared no effort of blood and soul to revive you, and it has been a matter of some minutes, no more than ten or fifteen.”

“Still too long! Rift Mouth? The Deep Mistress?”

“I have sent warriors to scout the path of the surfacer ship, but they have not yet reported back. I know not what is occurring, only that I can feel the great magics being used by my fellow shamans and the Deep Mistress herself,” the shaman replied, hesitantly, Rezarra noticed.

“And what can your shaman senses glean?” she pressed, teeth barred. The shaman shuddered in nervous fear for a moment before mustering his courage.

“I sense great disturbances among our Deep Mistress’ magics. Something... presses her sorely,” he said, his voice having a hollow disbelief in it, as if the very notion that anything could ‘press’ Charybdis was simply beyond imagining. Rezarra felt similarly, but she had also just fought Rainbow Dash and sadly knew full well how potent these surface foes were, now. If a whole group of them fought the Deep Mistress, was it possible for even the divine power of the sahuagin’s savior to be eclipsed?

“Get them up, fast,” she said, nodding towards her fellow champions.

Berokar was about as injured as she was, but she’d always known he had a weaker constitution, comparatively speaking, so she wasn’t surprised she’d awoken before him. Morgawr was stronger than her, but his wounds were deeper, and he’d clearly lost more blood if one were to judge by the pallid color of his skin and scales. It took minutes more before life stirred in either of them.

“Uggnn... how humiliating,” Berokar groused as he rubbed his head and looked at the crater that Rainbow Dash had created when he’d driven them all into the sea bed. “One more inch and I’d have slit that cocky surface wench’s throat.”

“Hmph, sure you would have,” Rezarra said, floating over to Morgawr, who was breathing gradually more steady as the remaining shamans all concentrated their spells of integration upon him. There was no healing fully the extent of his injuries. Not after both his previous beating and this one. It was possible Morgawr might never be able to fight again as he once did, but that was not Rezarra’s concern.

When Morgawr’s bulbous eyes lit up with wakefulness he did not seem confused, and stated without even first moving, “She needs us. Our Deep Mistress needs us.”

“Morgawr?” Rezarra said, but Morgawr, despite his body twitching from unhealed wounds, bolted upright and gripped her shoulder tightly. His eyes shone with fervor, his skin hot to the touch.

“I hear her cries, Rezarra. She is... in need. Do you not feel it? You are chosen as well, both of you! Open your souls to her, and feel our Deep Mistress’ call!”

Rezarra glanced at Berokar, who simply shrugged at her. Both knew that the Deep Mistress shared a connection with her favored champions, the chosen able to receive her gifts through that link and hear her words. Technically the connection did go both ways, but no chosen was so brazen as to open it on their own, without permission. Yet somehow Morgawr seemed to have opened his link, and knew something now that they did not. Although she was hesitant, there was a burning certainty in Morgwar’s steel gaze that caused Rezarra to do what she had never tried before, and looked within herself. She reached within to the point in her soul where Charybdis had, years ago, infused Rezarra with a magical conduit that mirrored the tattoos carved into her very skin.

Opening that link was like opening a window to a sudden floodplain of light and boiling water. Rezarra nearly cried out at the sudden wash of sensations, emotions, and unfamiliar senses. Charybdis could keep such a door shut if she wanted, but it was as if Charybdis was too distracted to pay attention to doing so, and Rezarra quickly discovered why.

Pain, anger, fear, all of it bubbling together amid an ancient, bottomless desperation and resolve. Charybdis, the Deep Mistress, was doing battle with the surfacers... and she was losing. Rezarra felt it as clearly as she could read any battle she herself was fighting. Charybdis was putting up a potent struggle, throwing all she had at her foes, but their might rivaled hers and they outnumbered her. Rezarra could all but sense the rancor from the Deep Mistress’ plan to open the portal being foiled, yet also a heated focus upon finishing another ritual to unlock... some kind of new power? She couldn’t parse all of Charybdis’ thoughts, but knew her goddess was being backed into a corner. Yet somehow more striking than that unnerving revelation was that Charybdis was drowning in such a vast sea of desperate fear and focused determination that it felt like madness.

What was all of this?

“Our goddess is in pain, and she needs our help,” Morgawr answered, his link with the Deep Mistress as much allowing him to feel Rezarra much as she was Charybdis.

Berokar looked utterly flabbergasted, mouth gaping, “Impossible. These feelings make no sense. How can any make a goddess fear?”

“Focus, Berokar. The surfacers use stolen power to challenge her, and our Deep Mistress has split her power between rituals and battling these foes who so sorely outnumber her.” Morgawr looked at both of them with eyes like spears, “Even if our own power is meager next to hers, we must go to her and do what must be done to ensure her victory. For if she falls... all of our race falls with her.”

“What do you propose, half dead as you are?” Berokar demanded, “We failed. We fought and failed! What good are we to the Deep Mistress now, especially against monsters who can challenge her so directly?”

“I hate agreeing with Berokar, but he is right. What can we possibly do now, Morgawr? Your injuries are so great you can hardly move, you may not even survive reaching our Deep Mistress, let alone aid her in any way,” Rezarra said. Morgawr turned from them, ignoring the way his barely closed wounds were already opening up again to bleed as he began to swim towards the cavern to Rift Mouth.

“I shall survive long enough,” he said, “Long enough to return to our Deep Mistress the faith she has given us. Come with me, or remain behind, but either way, I go to her.”

----------

Ulgriv was as uncertain as ever, adrift amid events with no sense of himself any longer save for one thing; he wished to pray.

Down in the depths of the Deep Mistress’ lair he saw flashes of otherworldly light and heard the roars of conflict. Divistus and led the shamans down to fight at Charybdis’ side, and Ulgriv, no shaman, barely a warrior, had been told to remain behind and “keep watch”. No doubt Divistus and the other senior shamans saw him as little more than a nuisance. A part of Ulgriv was tempted to go back down into the Deep Mistress’ rift anyway, if only to see... to see for himself how this all ended.

His hand gripped his pendant of Charybdis’ eye so tightly he almost bled from it. His heart was filled with prayer, for that was at this moment all he thought he had to offer the situation. He prayed for the Deep Mistress’ victory, yet also... for her mercy, so that she might spare the surfacers once the battle was done. He prayed for all of his people, and even, just a little, for foolish soft kin like Wavecrest, whom he was uncertain was still alive. Whom he was uncertain how much he still hated. Or at least, what good any of that hate actually did.

To his core he still believed the sahuagin had a right to a brighter future, and to defend themselves and avenge suffering caused to them. He believed that Charybdis was their salvation, even if some small part of him wondered if all she had done was solely for the sahuagin’s benefit. Despite this, he prayed, for he’d lived his whole life believing that to do so was more than a mere gesture, but a sincere expression for the world one wished to see come to pass. And he still wanted a world where the sahuagin did not live in the dark of the Abyss, but swam in the light of warmer, more prosperous waters, ever guided by the one who had seen fit to protect and guide them all those many centuries.

But he still knew, one way or another, things couldn’t be that simple or easy. There was pain, and blood, to come. The conflict could not end without a victor, and Ulgriv could but watch and pray despite knowing that no matter the outcome, things would never be the same for him or his people again.

----------

Inside Bastion Gnosis, Twilight wasted no time in calling her second Astral Sphere back to join the main one. It was still gripped in a telekinetic field of Charybdis’ magic, but now that Twilight had analyzed it, she was able to calibrate her Astral Sphere to slip through. Doing so would alert Charybdis to Twilight coming, but chances were she already knew, for the pale creature dangling at the end of the ugly umbilical of flesh was one and the same to the hulking sea beast that still battled Twilight’s friends outside.

The small Astral Sphere flew up to her like a gleaming cannonball, and was absorbed right into it’s larger parent as Twilight swam straight down into the cavernous, dome-shaped main chamber of Bastion Gnosis’ lobby area. Flashes of Astra’s memory greeted her, but Twilight cast aside the warm and familiar images to gain laser focus upon the disturbing form she saw waiting for her at the bottom of the room.

Charybdis’ seapony body was only somewhat recognizable as something once equine, and Twilight felt her stomach lurch as pale eyes turned up to meet her and Charybdis smiled in welcome. When she spoke it was not with the booming, all encompassing voice her monstrous body used, but an almost normal female voice, shockingly bookish and almost mousy in tone despite the confidence, madness, and anger that tainted it into something harsh.

“Must be disorienting to be ‘back’ here, isn’t it Twilight Sparkle? Or is it at all Astra still in there, clogging up your mind like mold?”

Charybdis’ words were joined by a gesture. Her right hoof was still shoving beams of coiling red light into both Aria and Sonata, who were bound by magical fields in the center of the room. Meanwhile Charybdis’ left hoof pointed at Twilight, and blood tore itself free of marble flesh and drew symbols in the water. Twilight prepared herself as skeletal eels forged of arcane black bones flew out of Charybdis’ conjuring and came at her with lightning speeds.

The Astral Sphere acted automatically for defense, interposing itself between Twilight and the eels, halting one, while the other two zipped both up and down to try and get at Twilight from above and below. She used the black orb at the end of her staff to smack aside one, the void energy of the orb all but erasing the skeleton’s head, while she shot a beam of violet magic down from her horn at the other one. The beam blasted the skeleton in half, but before Twilight could celebrate both it and the one who's had she’d snapped off with her staff came flying back at her. The skeletal eels reformed almost instantly, like the damage done to them was being played in reverse.

Twilight dodged back as teeth that blazed with white flames snapped at her. Eyes flashing with light of their own, Twilight’s horn burned with a cosmic darkness of deep blue and lavender as she summoned a small storm of spatial shards that she launched like a field of broken glass.

The Astral Sphere had already been analyzing the spell based on the eel skeleton it had captured inside it, and Twilight grasped the spell’s structure quickly. They were essentially living disintegration spells, designed to break down whatever they bit, and could be reformed from any physical damage dealt to them. However, the spell matrix had weak points, and Twilight’s space shards targeted those points to sever the spell’s connection to their caster. The shards cut right through those points, causing the skeletons to evaporate into clouds of dark motes.

“Not bad. That sphere of yours is a real irritant,” Charybdis admitted, “Although once I defeat you, perhaps I’ll leave you alive if you agree to teach it to me? Wouldn’t that be fun? We could have a slumber party and swap spell knowledge. You might make a halfway decent apprentice if you dropped the holier than thou attitude.”

“Did you seriously just tell me to drop the attitude?” Twilight asked, already charging up a fresh set of spells as she teleported down in front of Charybdis, eyes still burning white. She formed a set of spell manacles, interlaced with an exterior layer of anti-magic binding. The purple chains then were sent flying at Charybdis. If Twilight could bind her up with them, the anti-magic element of the spell ought to at least disrupt the witch’s power, perhaps enough to stop the ritual being enacted on the two sirens. Twilight could hear Sonata and Aria’s cries of pain, both writhing in their bonds. It only fueled Twilight further to take Charybdis down.

Charybdis defended herself by drawing forth more blood from her body, this time flying from her eyes. It formed immediately into one of those massive flesh spheres with a devouring mouth, which proceeded to chomp down on the chains Twilight had summoned. Although it couldn’t seem to bite through them entirely, it was able to stall them from reaching Charybdis, who in turn swam up above the flesh sphere before coming straight at Twilight. The move somewhat surprised Twilight, who hadn’t expected Charybdis to move into melee range. The reason was evident enough when Charybdis’ blood sparked with maligned dark energies and formed a swirling rod of intermixed black and white light, like some kind of eldritch energy saber.

Twilight reacted more on Astra’s instincts than her own, raising her void staff and turning it in several deft twists to deflect Charybdis’ magic blade, each clash eliciting a buzz of colliding energies. Twilight immediately called down her Astral Sphere and broke it into four smaller spheres, having them rush at Charybdis from behind as she used Blink to zip back so she was now between Aria and Sonata, and consequently right next to the Eye of the Sea.

Domare’s Relic all but vibrated with the latent power within, and Twilight saw that Charybdis had attached some manner of brass medallion upon the huge white pearl. Within the medallion was a sliver of red crystal, and Twilight knew she must be looking at a piece of Adagio’s siren gem, one that contained a fragment of the eldest siren’s soul. Energy from Aria and Sonata was slowly streaming into recesses next to that sliver of red crystal, and Twilight felt the power within the Eye of the Sea growing more intense.

Charybdis was a pale white dart, dodging Twilight’s Astral Spheres that tried to catch her limbs and bind them. All the while she taunted, “You must be thinking of trying to take the medallion off, or remove Adagio’s soul yourself. I assure you doing either may have unforeseen dire effects on poor Sonata and sharp tongued Aria. Will you risk it, Twilight Sparkle? You came to save them, did you not?”

“F-forget about us!” Aria grunted past teeth clenched in pain, “Destroy that thing, Twilight! Before she...aaarggh!”

Twilight hesitated, rushing through possible actions in her mind. Interfering without knowing full well the details of the magic involved could indeed do unpredictable things and possibly do great harm to the sirens, or Twilight herself for that matter. Yet could she afford not to? No, she just had to beat Charybdis. If she could take this part of the sea witch’s body down, then that would end the ritual in the safest way as it’d just remove the power source for it, rather than cut off any other portion mid-ritual. She could then use the Astral Sphere to analyze the Relic, the medallion, and how Adagio’s soul was fused to it in order to find the safest method of removal.

In the moment Twilight took to consider that, Charybdis hurled her energy blade at Twilight, which spun in a strobing disc. Twilight felt it coming due to her Astral Sphere’s providing warning, but she still caught the edge of the blade as she flickered upwards with Blink. The blade took a burning line of hide from her left shoulder, and Twilight clenched her teeth against the pain as she reared around and fired off a beam of magic. However, rather than target Charybdis directly, she shot it into one of her Astral Spheres, which then amplified and shot the beam out again, also into another Astral Sphere. The beam shot back and forth in a mind bending pattern between the four Astral Spheres, which in turn kept moving to make the beams’ trajectory impossible to tell.

Charybdis wheeled about, summoning another energy blade as she tried and failed to follow the path of Twilight’s dizzying beam, which after zipping between the Astral Sphere’s scores of times in seconds, it came flying out and smacking Charybdis right in the face. The amplified beam of magic drilled Charybdis into the floor with a stunned cry, and Twilight gestured with her staff. A set of gravity rods were formed in the air above Charybdis and smashed down, six in total, in a tight circle around her. The water quivered as massive streams of gravity hit Charybdis, crushing her down, along with the metallic floor of Bastion Gnosis, which slowly began to buckle as well.

Groaning, Charybdis, with impressive, if insane strength began to push herself up, hateful eyes lancing at Twilight.

“Still trying to capture me, Princess? Do you think I’ll give up? Surrender to you?”

“I’d prefer it if you did,” Twilight said simply, her voice dry, tired, still angry, but somehow still... hopeful, “There’s no way I can let you go free after all you’ve done, but I never wanted to kill you or anycreature else. I just want this madness of yours to end.”

A bubbling bark of laughter rushed from Charybdis as raw red energies poured off of her and she still rose, despite the hefty gravity weighing her down. “I keep telling you, its not madness. The alicorns trying to repair the Cycle? That was madness. The Cycle is a joke. A dead end. A monstrosity! It erases everything an individual is before farting their soul back into some random new life, no memory or sense of self left intact! What’s the point, Twilight Sparkle!? Tell me that! What is the point of living if when we die there’s nothing of us left! Why love, when you’ll never see the ones you love again!? Why have friends, when the memory of them dies with you!? What’s even the point of reincarnating if you retain nothing from life to life!?”

Twilight shook her head, Astra’s memories surfacing upon Charybdis’ words, not quite complete, but strong in their imagery. Astra had studied the Cycle long and hard when seeking a means to repair it with the Spirit of Harmony, and she knew some of what Charybdis said was... true, from a very warped point of view.

“You don’t understand it, Charybdis. The Cycle prepares souls to live again, and some memory, most memory, is left behind, yes. But that isn’t all there is to it!”

“Spare me the lecture, I know damned well that alicorns thought souls retained something after death, but I think they proved they were idiots with their wars and worship. Nothing there to trust.”

“And what of you?” Twilight shot back, arraying her Astral Sphere back into a singular form and moving it towards Charybdis, “You let yourself be worshiped like a goddess when we both know your nothing of the sort. You led the sahuagin into more violence and bloodshed, when at any time you could have built a bridge of peace with the seapony tribes!”

“Oh please, the seaponies would’ve looked at me the same as my poor sahuagin children, as monsters. Any overture of peace would’ve been met with blood, and I wasn’t naïve enough to waste lives that way. As for letting them worship me, well, why not? I just said I don’t give a crap about the Cycle. The only reason I see the alicorns as failures is because they never tended to their worshippers as well as they should have. At least I try to fulfill my end of that covenant. I’ve never once betrayed the sahuagin’s faith in me... and I won’t now that I’m this close to fulfilling my dreams and theirs!”

Twilight had heard enough, and slammed the Astral Sphere down, fully intending to keep Charybdis locked up in it until she and her friends could defeat her main body outside Bastion Gnosis. However Charybdis’ back erupted with blood, and a torrent of raw magic energy formed a grasping set of octopus tentacles formed of crackling ruby energy that encapsulated the Astral Sphere and bound it tightly. Still, it looked to be taking up a lot of Charybdis’ remaining strain to do so, and the energy stream she was sending into Aria and Sonata was faltering.

“Almost...I’m almost there...” Charybdis said, “Mother... Scylla, just a little more... my children, my champions, help me...”

Was Charybdis... praying? It almost sounded like it, but Twilight couldn’t let that distract her. Charybdis looked ready to pass out, so one more good blast ought to do the trick. Twilight began to charge up a potent stunning bolt in her horn, purple light flashing at it’s tip, when suddenly she felt a rise in Charybdis’ energy. Black and white light pulsated around her as Charybdis’ eyes widened, power pouring into her from... where!?

----------

“It is time for us to give back what was granted in good faith,” Morgawr intoned.

He stood at the precipice of the rift. Next to him Rezarra and Berokar floated, talons clasped together. Strangely, and unexpectedly to the three champions, the young warrior Ulgriv was nearby, kneeling in prayer of his own. Morgawr had heard the voice of the Deep Mistress, who had begun speaking to them as soon as they got close to the rift. He knew Ulgriv, despite his failings and fears, had remained loyal to the Deep Mistress.

Now, there was just one last act to perform.

You do not have to do this. the Deep Mistress’ voice said in their souls, I do not know if I can preserve you afterward as I have others.

It matters not, Deep Mistress. We have your power within us, and have fought tirelessly for you ever since you chose us. Our flesh is battered, nearly broken. Since your power can no longer let our bodies fight for you, let our souls instead serve, in sacrifice.

Morgawr’s response was echoed by Rezarra and Berokar, who both had agreed to Morgawr’s plan, even if the result would be their deaths. Morgawr felt their emotions through the shared link to Charybdis. Rezarra was resolute, if oddly wistful, thinking of her younger days hunting. Berokar was annoyed with himself more than fearful, simply regretting he didn’t get to kill one surfacer yet. Morgawr was simply... calm within. He too regretted his failures, but in giving up his power and soul to the Deep Mistress, he believed he could atone.

Oddly, he felt Charybdis’ own regret.

It looks like there’s no other way. I need just a little more power. I am sorry, my champions. A goddess shouldn’t be in need of help, it’s supposed to work the other way around.

Morgawr didn’t so much smile as simply twitch his lips in a fond manner, Do not say such things. We serve you, and you in turn guide and protect us. Ever has that been our mutual pledge, Charybdis. You have given your all to us, it is only right we do so in turn. Now, our souls for you, Deep Mistress.

And he felt her draw upon them all. He felt her grip upon all of the power she’d infused him, Rezarra, and Berokar with, and pulled it forth. His soul bent with it, as ingrained in that power as the tattoos upon his flesh were ingrained with scale and skin. Morgawr did not know if his soul would remain after the draining, or if he’d find warmth in the bosom of the Deep Mistress, and he did not care. He was willing to make this sacrifice for her to rise, and his people along with it.

----------

Twilight had no idea where this power was coming from, and she didn’t have much time to react, either. It all happened in the span of seconds. She tried to fire a bolt of energy at Charybdis, but it was swallowed up by the growing aura of magic that was pooling out of her like some distortion in space.

The stream of red magic that was going into the sirens suddenly flared, and Twilight heard a roar of noise, along with a crystalline snapping sound. Two small fragments of light went from Sonata and Aria and into the medallion upon the Eye of the Sea. The second that happened a pillar of blood red light rose up from the pearl, and a complex circle of geometric patterns appeared around it. On the Relic’s surface the symbol of shining silver manacles became visible, only to break like glass an instant later.

“Oh no,” Twilight breathed, just before the pearl of Domare’s Relic flew like a bullet right into Charybdis, embedding itself inside the seapony witch’s chest.

The moment that happened, raw light and darkness both rushed out of Charybdis’ eyes, and the mare’s mouth twisted in an open grin of awe.

“It’s mine,” was all she said before her body and the fleshy umbilical both snapped up, magical energy pouring off of her so strongly that it ripped right through the gravity holding her down before Twilight’s Astral Sphere could break through the power holding it back.

Twilight was left gaping as Aria and Sonata, both groaning in pain, floated out of now absent magical bonds. Before she could start thinking of a new plan, the entirety of Bastion Gnosis, and perhaps all of the Abyss, began to shake.

A new Inheritor was about to appear in the world.

Episode 166: All or Nothing

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Episode 166: All or Nothing

Celestia was on her twelfth journal amid Starswirl’s musty collection. Her old mentor certainly tended towards the long winded, prone to tangents and extensive musings on any subject be it mundane or magical that came to mind. It was endearing in some ways, but when one was trying to sift for specific information it was just a shade frustrating. Still, she couldn’t find it in herself to be that mad at him, indulging in a lingering nostalgia for the days she and Luna had been tutored by the wizened unicorn, who’d been on in years even back then. A part of her wished she’d pressed harder to be a part of his adventures with his allies, the Pillars, but she knew he’d never have let her or Luna do so. He was as protective of them as he was often distant, an odd contradiction of characteristics that had irked Celestia in her younger years, but nowadays she understood all too well. She was the protector of all Equestria, and cared deeply for all of her little ponies, but sometimes protecting something meant keeping a certain... distance, emotionally speaking.

“I just wish you’d told us what you’d intended to do that night,” she sighed, leafing through yet more worn, browned pages, eyes scanning the contents for any mention of Stygian. Her recollections didn’t account for much of the stallion in question. He’d been a quiet sort, barely spoke, and she’d only seen him with Starswirl and the Pillars a few times. Unremarkable, yet always following, like a shadow.

How had that unassuming pony become something like the unharmonious entity of overwhelming shadow that was imprisoned in that space within Ponehenge? Why was he so powerful, to the point that the Pillars had needed to use themselves as catalysts to seal him away? She had been searching for the flashpoint, the inciting incident. The only thing she felt certain of was that whatever power Stygian had come across, it was not that of an Inheritor, but something somehow still intrinsically tied to what the ancient alicorns had done. If she could uncover any clues at all, perhaps it might lead to a way to deal with Stygian if he ever escaped, a prospect that seemed more likely now that he had his shadow hooves upon the human world’s Starlight Glimmer. Celestia shuddered to think what would happen if either one of them absorbed the power of the other, or if they ended up agreeing to cooperate. It would take all of the power of she, Luna, Cadence, and likely Twilight Sparkle as well to mount a proper defense.

Ah, and speaking of Cadence, I ought to go see if Luna has taken it easy on the poor dear. It’s been about the right amount of time to go check on them.

Setting aside the book she’d been reading, she got up with a languid stretch and started to make her way down to her and Luna’s old play arena. She smiled fondly at those old memories, especially of she and her sister’s combined creation; Announcer. The sandmare golem was a labor of love on both her and Luna’s part, a playmate to help alleviate some of the loneliness that stemmed from not growing up around other foals. Even if Announcer wasn’t really “alive” or even the strictest definition of sapient, the construct was still one of Celestia's first “friends”, besides her sister.

Activating the sliding tube down to the arena was a cinch, and in no time Celestia was enjoying a thrilling if all too brief trip down the smooth stone slide that took her to the expansive underground arena. Considering she didn’t feel any further trembling quakes or hear any explosions, she could only assume Cadence and Luna had taken a breather...

Or not? The moment Celestia entered the arena’s sandy interior, she found herself surrounded by an unnatural, frigid cold and a deep, encompassing darkness. The sand beneath her hooves was frozen beyond solid, crunching to dusty ice particles with each step. Frozen to absolute zero. She couldn’t see through the veil of night, which smothered sound as well as sight with a magical suppression that likely explained why she had stopped feeling any tremors or hearing any faint rumbles while she’d been perusing Starswirl’s journals.

Normally this might elicit some concern from Celestia, but she suspected that Luna had simply gotten a little too into the spirit of things. Had Iah taken over, or some half-forged personality of Nightmare Moon been reborn, then Luna wouldn’t have remained in the arena, or bothered trying to set such an obvious trap.

Celestia called forth her magic and her horn gushed sun born illumination in a piercing set of solar rays that dispelled the night and warmed the air. Clearing her throat, Celestia called out.

“Luna, could you help me turn on the lights, please? If you and Cadence are still going at it, I can come back, but I thought it was high time we switched places.”

There was a thick pause for a few moments, but then there was an explosive sigh from somewhere in the darkness and a grumbling, “Fine, but you have terrible timing, sister. I nearly had her right where I wanted her.”

Like ink being suctioned up by a vacuum, the darkness slicked away and left the arena bathed once more in light. Celestia saw that not all of the space had been frozen, with instead numerous patches and area turned to white sculptures of cold, but others remained normal temperature, albeit many scorched and torn up by blast marks, deep cutting furrows, impact craters, and other signs of intense struggle. Parts of the arena had been reshaped into various obstacles, barriers, ramps and dugouts, like some massive jungle gym of sandstone. Within the center was one large pillar, flat on top, upon which a familiar mare made from snout to tail to tophat in sand made a gasp and burst into a cloud of sand particles. That cloud instantly rushed to Celestia and re-formed into Announcer's smiling form, colorless eyes still somehow managing to sparkle as if the grains of sand within them lit up.

“Celllllyyyy! I missed you!”

One might think being hugged by sand might be abrasive, and perhaps it was, but Celestia could never say no to a hug from Announcer and happily embraced the construct as Announcer threw herself onto one of her creators.

“I missed you as well, Announcer. I trust you’ve been enjoying putting the arena to use for my sister and our mutual friend, Cadence?”

As she spoke she glanced around the arena once more to look for the two alicorns in question. As if appearing from a sliver of moonlight, Luna merely blinked into existence a few paces away. Celestia examined her sister, and the changes that had come over her from the activation of one of Iah’s Relics.

Luna’s coat of fur remained the same shade of midnight blue it usually was, but it’s sheen had now become overflowing with a luminous quality of silver moonlight, which concentrated along thicker, curly growths of fur along her forehooves that glowed with that etherlight. Her mane had grown noticeably longer, with the same dancing waves of flowing moonlight moving over its gossamer strands, the tips so brightly silver as to shine as pure moonlight. Luna’s wings, too, were larger, and most notably in contrast to her fur and mane, the feathers of her wings dripped with coalesced shadows, with a literal veil of night trailing from the wings like a cloak. Above each wing was a silver fragment of metal shaped in a moon crescent, floating as if magnetically linked to the wings, and bearing etchings of arcane symbols. Luna bore no adornments, but her face was streaked by a silver pyrelight that rose up her brow like a ghostly circlet. Floating before her in a grip of bright silver magic was a magnificent weapon; a bow of forged moonlight, given solid form in the shape of silver metal and ivory grips. It’s upper and lower portions were curved back almost as sharp as the moon crescents near her wings, and ended with curling flame-like flickers of metal that wrapped around perfectly smooth gems of glittering sapphire. The firing handle of the bow had a distinct protrusion that shot forward two feet, that of a double edged blade point. Even with a bow, Luna preferred things up close. Between the bow’s lengths was a string of moonlight, ready to be pulled.

Notably, Luna looked largely uninjured, with only a scuff or two here and there to indicate the training with Cadence had not been enitrely one sided. Celestia cleared her throat politely, “You look well, Lulu. No trouble from Iah?”

Her sister's look bore a hint of disquiet, which was to be expected all things considered, as she replied, “Nothing too overbearing. It helped immensely to only have to deal with an influx of memory and power from one Relic instead of two. That, and I’d like to think I’ve matured somewhat since my youthful fit as Nightmare Moon. This time I was prepared for what was coming, and have... am, dealing with it.”

Luna’s ears twitched and she looked around the trashed arena, “It perhaps helped to have something to focus the power on. Iah’s memories had no resentment towards my sister to latch onto or confuse with her issues with Eos. There was still some moments of disorientation and unsteady control, but Cadence’s presence helped. Or rather, I think Iah’s memories recognized Anteros and it helped keep Iah calm, given the two of them were friends and allies.”

“Speaking of Cadence, where is she?” Celestia asked, a tad concerned she hadn’t seen the Crystal Empire’s Princess anywhere. She knew Luna wouldn’t be acting so calm if anything untoward had happened to Cadence, but it was a tad alarming to not see or sense her presence. At least, not until the air shimmered and rippled nearby.

Strings of crystal wove up and out, extracting themselves from the formation of a perfect spherical wall of crystal in which Cadence had been hiding herself. Celestia was briefly amazed at the formation, even as it disappeared, as the light had bent so well around the crystals that it readily surpassed the effects of a simple invisibility spell. Indeed, invisibility could still be detected by fine tuned magical senses like Celestia’s. Whatever Cadence had been using had somehow bent even magical senses in such a way as to leave no trace.

Cadence, fully formed into her encapsulating armor, and bearing her reformed crystal halberd, still looked as if she’d been through quite a fight. Nowhere near the condition she’d been in after her fight with the Hollow Chrysalis, but still noticeably more battered than Luna was. As Celestia had imagined would be the case. In truth she was more relieved than anything by this, as it gave her a clearer picture of the differences in power between herself, her allies, and the foes still arrayed against Equestria. Cadence could still get stronger, and if Luna was at the moment too much for Cadence to easily handle, that only meant that the Chrysalis from Earth, while worryingly potent, was still a foe Celestia felt confident she could defeat.

“An interesting technique for hiding your presence,” Celestia noted as Cadence trudged up to them, “Although Luna must have been pressing you hard to make you employ it.”

The metal portions of Cadence’s helmet around her head slid back in slat-like portions, revealing the alicorn’s sweat soaked face and bedraggled mane. “Pressed hard? Was half convinced she was trying to kill me.”

“Oh I was just making it interesting,” Luna said casually, and Cadence shot her a look and waved a armor covered hoof that was partially frozen over and cracked.

“You call nearly taking my leg off like it’s a popsicle ‘interesting’?”

“Heyheyhey now!” shouted Announcer, popping up in a gust of sand in front of Cadence while wearing a disarming smile, “It’s all in good fun of an exciting and pulse pounding match! Luna wasn’t really trying to hurt you, otherwise my safety systems would have engaged. And you did super well, Princess Cadence! The Crystal Crusher indeed! Why if I had a heart it would have leaped out of my throat with a few of those moves you pulled.”

“Mmm, maybe, but it didn’t look to me like I came close to making her break a sweat,” Cadence said, looking at Luna and carefully noting the lack of damage, “Felt like no matter what I tried, you were always one step ahead of me, Luna.”

Luna nodded, but her voice was not unkind as she said, “You did better than you give yourself credit for. My lack of apparent injury is partially due to the nature of my Inheritor powers allowing for more potent healing magic. You did strike a few cutting blows that I took care of mid-battle. I may have had you on the backhoof for most of the scuffle, but you surprised me with a few of those crystal wires of yours. They are a versatile weapon.”

“Not versatile enough, if I want to take down that monster,” Cadence replied with a darkened look in her eyes, “No way I can face her again as I am right now.”

“Hence the purpose of why we are here, Cadence,” Celestia said, moving over to give the younger Princess a reassuring look and comforting hoof upon the other’s back. “You won’t see immediate improvement, but I am confident that you have plenty of potential left untapped. You’ve only just begun to bring out Anteros’ magic. Speaking of which, was there any noticeable difference in his memories or personality within you while sparring with Luna?”

There was a ponderous look on Cadence’s features as she sat down to rest and shook some of Luna’s ice off of her hooves. “He felt... clearer, and warmer? I could feel his fondness for Luna. I mean, er, Iah. Nothing romantic, but more like a sincere happiness to know that a friend is doing well. I think he likes Luna as Iah’s Inheritor. He gave me some advice during the fight, too.”

“Did he now? What?” Inquired Luna, rather intently.

“It was a little hard to understand,” Cadence admitted, running through it all in her mind once more as she thought back to the fight, “He said his power is that of an artist, and that to use it fully I needed to tap into my artistic side. Or I guess the exact terms he used were ‘open your mind to the palette of possibility that is your own heart and let the act of battle be as art upon canvas’. Which really didn’t make sense to me, but I figured maybe he meant I was being too straightforward with my tactics. I mean, you were kicking my flank pretty hard, Luna, as long as I was trying to take you head on...” she winced, a harsh hiss going past her lips, “Pretty much like how I couldn’t do any real damage to Chrysalis until I tried getting creative. So I improvised when you started covering everything in darkness. Used the threads to hide my magic.”

“It worked rather well. I certainly couldn’t detect you. Had you kept hiding much longer I was going to pepper the whole arena in arrows until you showed yourself,” Luna said with smirk that was both laced with approving acknowledgement, and a certain amount of prideful boasting that the fight would still had gone in her favor. Celestia gave her an admonishing, if still fond smile.

“Be careful, Cadence, Luna is fond of competition and if you keep proving a worthy rival you’ll find yourself being dragged back here to spar even well after we’ve dealt with the threats before us.”

“I’d love that!” Announcer chirped in happily, tail wagging and getting sand everywhere, “I’ve been out of practice doing match announcing for way too long. Oh, are you going to join in, Celestia? I’d be a blast to see you in action again.”

“That was my intent, assuming Luna is willing to tag out and Cadence still has the stamina for another round?” Celestia asked, eyeing the other two alicorns. Luna nodded, while Cadence took a long breath stretched her legs, grunting slightly in exertion.

“I’m game, but can I please get a quick breather before I go from getting my limbs frozen off to being roasted?” asked Cadence, “If I don’t eat something I’m going to pass out.”

“I wouldn’t say no to a snack, myself, before we continue-” Celestia began to reply, only to halt as she felt as if a great, frozen pressure began to push upon her mind. It was like a cold press of some distant, heady wind, like felt before the coming of a budding storm. Despite the sensation of distance to the sensation, Celestia was able to feel the intensity of it, and given the general direction she felt it originated from, she already had a bad premonition of what this feeling meant.

The look on Cadence and Luna’s faces confirmed quickly that they had felt it too.

“What is that?” Cadence asked, the one among them least used to sensing such things and hence her apprehension was written plain on her wide features. Luna, dourly knowing exactly what they were feeling and the likely reasons why, grimaced and stamped a hoof.

“That, Cadence, is what it feels like when another powerful Inheritor unlocks the power within their Relic. Considering how faint it feels, yet so coldly sharp, I suspect it can only be one individual.”

“Charybdis,” Celestia said, “As Twilight feared, she must have sought to unlock Domare’s power. It seems she has succeeded.”

“Wait, what does that mean then? Are Twilight and the others alright?” Cadence asked in alarm.

“We can only pray that they will be,” Celestia answered, “For they are about to face a foe who could potentially rival myself or Luna, assuming she can actually control the power she is attempting to make her own. Perhaps, if Twilight and her friends are fortunate, Charybdis will have underestimated Domare’s power and her control of it will not be complete. Failing that, we must have faith in those young mares to win the day.”

“Can’t we go help them?” Cadence asked, “If we can sense where this is happening, a few teleports-”

“And leave Equestria utterly defenseless while the likes of Earth’s Chrysalis still remain capable of striking anywhere, at any time?” Celestia queried, and shook her head, “Besides, even with sensing Charybdis’ power, teleportation requires precise knowledge of the location’s details, even for those of our level of magical skill. We’d have to reorient between each teleport and even then we’d still be guessing each jump. It’d take hours to get there. Whatever battle is about to take place... I’m afraid one way or another will be concluded long before we arrive to make a difference.”

“But...” Cadence began to argue, but Celestia held up a hoof, a calming gaze meeting Cadence’s worried one.

“As I said, faith, Cadence. If you’re to be a Princess of Equestria, one thing you must still learn is when to not go rushing off to try and fix everything yourself. Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie are ponies I’ve learned to place my faith in more times than I can count. What they face is a mighty power, but those mares have dealt with such before. I trust they can win.”

----------

Twilight knew, now more than ever, that there was no time. Yet she had to check and make sure Aria and Sonata were still alive before doing anything else. She doubted either siren was “alright” by any definition of the term, but the long term ramifications of what had just happened to them would have to wait until the present disastrous situation was somehow averted. Twilight was beside the two fallen sirens in half a heartbeat, looking them over carefully. Both still breathed. Both still had heartbeats. They appeared unconscious, but anything further than that Twilight couldn't say.

The rumble that encompassed not only Bastion Gnosis’ silt covered walls but likely much of the Abyss beyond reminded Twilight sharply that she had to get back outside now.

“I’ll be back,” she promised the two unconscious sirens, then added, “I’m sorry I wasn’t fast enough.”

She’d just have to make up for it by ensuring Charybdis’ ill-gotten power wouldn’t be enough for victory. Somehow, some way, Twilight and her friends had to win. With that thought fortifying her mind and soul, Twilight turned and swam with all of her might back up through the opening in the roof of Bastion Gnosis, and into the Abyssal rift beyond...

Only to find herself buffeted by swift rushing waters that swirled around in a titanic whirlpool!

Caught by surprise, Twilight used magic to ground herself in place against the insanely strong current, and tried to get her bearings. There was a painfully bright azure light pouring in from somewhere above, although it was hard to see past the wall of rushing water that was growing ever more frothy by the second. Indeed, the water was not remaining in one place, an in seconds Twilight found herself gasping in actual air as the water continued to churn outward in a growing whirlpool that was becoming truly gargantuan.

Almost all of Charybdis’ rift lair was now exposed to air, the walls coated in the highly pressurized maelstrom of water that rose upward to a height Twilight could not see. Mostly because there was a storming nimbus of raw light so painfully and deeply blue that it nearly coated everything like paint. Twilight spotted her friends nearby, all gathered upon the roof of Bastion Gnosis not more than thirty paces from where Twilight had emerged.

“Girls!” she shouted, galloping over, “What happened? Where’s Charybdis?”

“That would be her, up there.” Rarity said, nodding gravely at the raging storm of azure energies. “We were holding our own well enough, even with the addition of some sahuagin dance partners, but then we heard Charybdis begin cackling and suddenly her whole body went upward and started... bursting with that light.”

“Gonna figure things didn’t go so hot down n’ there?” Applejack asked, “What ‘bout Aria n’ Sonata?”

Twilight swallowed a cold dose of regret and said simply, “They’re alive, but I wasn’t able to stop Charybdis from using them to steal power from Domare’s Relic. I’m sor-”

“Save it,” Applejack cut her off, shaking her head, “Ain’t no time fer that, Twi. Still got ourselves a’ fight ta win, an’ I aim ta do just that.”

“That light...” Fluttershy said, starring upward, eyes still somehow showing a ruby sheen despite all else being bathed in blue, “It feels so powerful. We need Dash here.”

“Don’t worry, she’ll be here in a jiffy!” Pinkie Pie assured them, and her right ear did such a spasming twitch that it nearly looked as if it spun around ina circle, and the mare let out a happy giggle, “In fact, I oughta start counting down! Three...”

Across the roof of Bastion Gnosis, perhaps another hundred paces or so, Twilight saw a number of sahuagin shamans. Apparently they’d been caught up in the whirlpool, only to be dumped out here. As disoriented as the group looked, they quickly were getting their webbed feet under them and were all standing, pale eyes looking up into the blinding blue sun that was pulsating above. Divistus, recognizably at the front of the group, raised a sacrificial dagger to the air and shouted.

“Behold! Our Deep Mistress Ascends! The victory of all our race is nigh, brothers and sisters!”

“Two...” Pinkie Pie continued to count, tapping one hoof playfully.

“Now let us bath in the blood of those who have befouled our goddess’ sanctum with their surface filth!” Divistus roared, pointing at Twilight and her friends, already drawing blood from his own veins to start working blood magic. Several other shamans followed suit, while a few others glanced around at the sound of something loud, like a sonic roar, growing louder.

“One!” Pinkie said, and waved at... Divistus? No, to a spot behind him and the shamans, “Heya Dashie!”

“Huh?” Before he finished his spell, blood bubbling up in preparation to throw dark energies at the mares, Divistus, along with his fellow shamans, turned around at the sound of wind cracking and an impact behind them.

Rainbow Dash stood in all her glory, bathed in wind force, her swordbreaker already held in a ready “sheathed” stance at her side. She smiled at them.

“Hey guys. Tertius Ventus: Gustus!” (Third Wind: Gust)

She “drew” her sword, and while the blade never struck a single sahuagin, the mere act of drawing it appeared to create a pressure wave of wind that took the form of three crossed arcs that blew through the sahuagin in a wide arc. Since the fish men had been so close together, the arcing blast of wind struck all of them at once and bowled them over like pins struck head on by a bowling ball. Most of them were knocked out cleanly by the attack, with only Divistus trying to crawl back up with blood smearing his snout. He snarled at Dash and unleashed the spell he’d intended for Twilight and the other mares at the pegasus alone.

A black and red rimmed conical lance of energy tore in at Rainbow Dash, but the mare simply vanished from it’s path and was next to Divistus before anypony could blink.

“Urp!” was all Divistus was able to say before Rainbow used the blunt, notched side of her swordbreaker to smash him in the gut hard enough to probably break a few things. Either way, he joined his fellow shaman on the floor in an unconscious heap while Dash trotted over to her friends.

“ ‘Sup guys? Having fun without me? What’s with the big swirly thingy of energy, and why’s everything so blue? Not that I mind the color, but seriously looks like you all could use my awesomeness around here.”

“Heheheh, you always make the best entrances, Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie Pie said, “Knew you’d make it in time for the real party.”

“You’re not hurt are you?” Fluttershy asked, and Rainbow Dash waved off the concerned look.

“Pfft, as if! Took down those big shot sahuagin champs easy... although...” Rainbow Dash frowned, “Maybe I should’ve hit them harder. I checked in on Flash then came straight here, but felt something behind me right before this light show started with all the water. Took me a minute to actually break through to get to you girls, but I feel like those champion dudes did something.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout none o’ that.” Applejack said, coming up, and to a bit of the surprise of the other mares, drew Rainbow Dash into a quick and hard hug with one leg while still holding onto her shillelagh with the other. “Just glad yer okay.”

“Uhh, y-yeah, totally fine! Hey now, bit early for victory hugs, you know? Bad guy is powering up to their big final form, so, uh...” Rainbow Dash’s face had become a faint rose beacon amid the overwhelming haze of blue stemming for Charybdis, and Applejack blinked as if in surprise at her own actions and hastily backed up, face also gaining a bit of a pink hue.

Twilight was about to suggest they all start to spread out a bit, realizing that grouped up as they were they made for an easy target, but at just that moment Charybdis’ voice echoed from above. Or at least what Twilight assumed was Charybdis’ voice. It was changed, gaining a warped and echoing quality as if two or three voices of different pitches were overlapping with one another.

Do not cease your displays of affection on my account. Embrace one another. Say your farewells. I am feeling... merciful. Compassionate. After all...

There was a suctioning sound like a collapsing stormfront, then the uneven nimbus of bright azure light burst like a bubble. Light still shone down, but in a focused, singular aura stemming from one point. The area remained lit by a hue of blue light, the whirlpool remaining strong as ever with Twilight and her friends at it’s waterless center. And from above them descended a figure, radiating from that aura of azure with a now familiar feeling of the ancient alicorn’s magic flowing off of her like waves from the ocean.

It is a good day to be a GODDESS!

Charybdis was no longer the leviathan monstrosity in shape that she had been just minutes before. The power of Domare had changed her, as all Inheritor forms changed their recipients, although in this case the result was far more drastic than anything Twilight had seen from herself or her friends.

She was still quite large, but no longer of such colossal proportions. Twilight estimated Charybdis’ height at probably twenty feet, give or take. Her body more or less held the shape of a seapony, although no seapony who ever lived likely had such immense stature, nor such unusual or mismatched features. It was as if two halves existed as one in her new body. The left side of Charybdis was pale as a dead fish, much as the form Twilight had seen in Bastion Gnosis had been. Flat, pale eyes stared out from a face covered in a mask of shell-like spikes, a crustacean growth that went down to her jawline. Yet the other half of her face was azure blue and painfully beautiful, with eyes of purest amethyst that shone with intense light of harsh purpose. Her mane was half a mass of putrid white and black tentacles on the left side, and an incredibly flowing and gorgeous expanse of sparkling blue and indigo streaks that appeared to turn into seafoam at the tips. Her left arm was a gnarled mass that looked like the three serpent heads of her leviathan form had fused together around her flesh, forming a single twisted head at the end like a mutated gauntlet that covered her pale white hoof. That dark mass of flesh became a fragment of nautilus shell like an armored pauldron on her left shoulder, a single massive yellow eye gazing out from its center.

In contrast her right arm was like the immaculate side of her form in its pure blue coloring, a well muscled by still feminine seapony limb that was shot through with twisting arcane symbols that pulsated purple beneath the skin’s surface. At the end of the right hoof pooled a fragment of sapphire light that extended into the shape of a rod-thin blade of energy that was blue at the core, but rimmed in black as if dipped in ink. Charybdis’ chest was similarly split between two sides, the left bearing a growth of seemingly melted together shells and raw muscle growth that formed a layer of organic armor, while the right side was unmarred by mutation and was instead covered in glowing magic script all the way down to the base of her tail. In the center of her chest where mutated flesh met with immaculate armor, the Eye of the Sea pulsated, its white pearl surface now sanguine red with the energies of the siren soul shards collected within the medallion fused to the Relic. Charybdis’ tail was long and thick like that of an orca’s, with overly long flippers that seemed to trail off like the ends of an ornate dress, all in shades of intense blue. However upon the back of the tail a line of crustacean shell growths formed a rough and ugly armor of spike forms, turning the elegant seapony tail into something more brutal in appearance.

Taken altogether, Charybdis’ form was as if someone had stitched two different dolls together and fused them with overwhelming magical aura, an aura which continued to pulsate off of her in saturating waves of light. Her eyes fixated upon Twilight and the assembled mares at her side with supreme confidence, and Twilight felt the witch’s power sharpening in focus.

“Here she comes!” Twilight warned, readying her staff in her hooves, her wings tensing as she prepared to move. “Whatever happens, we have to win this here and now!”

“Right there with you, Twilight! I’m way past done with all this ocean stuff. Going to never get on a boat again for the rest of my life once this is all done.” said Rainbow Dash, wind forming around her and her sword like a miniature tornado.

“Ain’t gonna hear no argument from me,” said Applejack, steam rising off of her iron armor, “Let’s get this done an’ mosey on home.”

“For once, maybe the sahuagin will get to learn a better way to party, but first we’re gonna administer violence-based therapy to the crazy fish lady until the boss music stops playing!” Pinkie Pie declared, hooves poised over her lute, which crackled with barely restrained power.

“I have a lot of stern words for you, Charybdis, but we’re a scoach past lecturing at this point,” Rarity said, all of her chakrams poised in an arc above her, ready to strike, “So if you do think yourself a goddess, then come put that to the proof. Something tells me you’ll be displeased with the results.”

“What makes me both sad and furious with you is that the sahuagin care about you enough to do all of this for you, but even if you care about them back, you went about it in all of the wrong ways.” Fluttershy’s eyes remained solid red, like twin dollops of fresh blood, “So now all we can do is use whatever force we have to in order to stop you.”

Charybdis looked as if she wanted to laugh, but instead she gathered power around herself like a thickening cloud, her voice dark with promise. You children never had any right to judge me or my actions. Now it doesn’t matter. Once you’re broken, I’ll lead my people to the future they and I both deserve after ages of sacrifice. The tide rises, the Abyss sings, and the ocean’s goddess has been reborn! Struggle against it, if it pleases you. I know it certainly will please me.

With that, Charybdis struck, and the battle was on.

The first thing she did was dive with thunderous speed and force. She seemed quite capable of moving through the air with the same ease she had moved through water, so was unimpeded as she struck the roof of Bastion Gnosis and rammed the length of that blinding azure energy sword into it. Twilight felt a pulsation of magic run through the floor, electric and making the fur of her hooves stand on end.

“Up!” she shouted in warning just a split instant before the aura of power around Charybdis turned into a eye searing flare of white and blue electrical energy. Only this was more than merely summoned lightning, but rather Twilight felt the potent spirit power filling the bolts of power coursing through the metal roof of Bastion Gnosis, and could sense it had additional components than mere elemental strength.

She and all of her friends shot upwards as one, most making use of Blink to all but vanish and soar upwards faster than any normal vision could follow. While they were fast enough to escape the current of lightning that coated all of Bastion Gnosis’ roof in a seething pool of charged energy, Twilight found her worries were correct as the lightning began to shoot upwards towards them in a living storm of seeking electrical tendrils that homed in on her and her friends.

“Gonna need to be faster than lightning to catch me!” Rainbow Dash said, readily evading the ten or so bolts that snapped in her direction.

Twilight’s Astral Sphere moved to shield her from the bolts that came her way, absorbing the spell energy and containing it within the sphere’s confines, allowing her to also instantly understand the spell’s composition.

While Dash was more than fast enough to easily escape the bolts, the rest of her friends had to defend themselves in other ways. Fluttershy used the conjured crimson bat entities summoned from her own magic to intercept and take the blows in her place, while Rarity was able to “attract” the electricity using one of her chakrams. Pinkie Pie played a discordant tune that protected her in a bubble of magic vibrations that parted the bolts around her, while Applejack... well Applejack did what came naturally to her and ignored the bolts striking her, tanking the blasts while turning to stomp her hooves upon the air and launch herself straight at Charybdis like a living meteor.

“Gotta hit a’ lot hardn’ n’ this if ya wanna take us down, ya self absorbed nutter!” Applejack’s bellow was amplified magically as her iron armor burned with growing heat that did nothing to adversely affect the mare’s almost metallic fur. Her shillelagh suddenly turned bright orange and trailed a vast amount of steam as it became superheated, and Applejack swung it with such force that the sound barrier broke in a sonic boom as she spun right in for a baseball bat swing at Charybdis’ head.

Charybdis’ left arm moved faster than anyone could blink, the twisted serpent heads bulging like giant muscles as they intercepted Applejack’s strike. A boom like a cracking mountain sounded out, causing a spherical shockwave that rocked the air. Hardened mutated flesh sizzled under the heat of Applejack’s weapon, but Charybdis’ arm did not yield and held back Applejack’s immense strength, a feat that clearly caused Applejack some surprise as her green eyes grew wider.

I can do harder, Charybdis promised, luminous eyes matching a madcap smile as she pushed Applejack back with her mutated serpent arm and swung back the hoof that bore the brilliant azure energy blade. Water flowed in an instant from the surrounding maelstrom and coated the blade in a highly pressurized sheath. When Charybdis struck, the water exploded out in a talon-like cutting wave of micro-thin water that augmented the raw energy of the blade itself. Applejack just barely managed to pull back her shillelagh to block, but the hit still struck across her chest and side, cutting armor and drawing sprays of blood as the mare was thrown back in an orange streak that crashed into the side of the maelstrom.

“Althea!” Rainbow Dash shouted, her mind being sucked into a frozen moment of shock and rage, Tachys’ love for his companion intermixing with her own confused and budding feelings. For a moment Tachys and Rainbow Dash shared one mind in totality as she appeared in a burst behind Charybdis, swordbreaker swirling with wind force.

“Sextus Ventus: Discerpens Ventorum!” (Sixth Wind: Rending Hurricane)

She sliced her blade upward and around in a circular arc, which created a flying, spinning wheel of destructive and cutting air near as large as Charybdis was. The disc of severing air flew out with air shattering force and smashed into Charybdis’ back, spinning and cutting into armor and flesh. Blood, brackish and purple, seeped out, but the wound was shockingly shallow for the force behind Rainbow’s attack and Charybdis’ tail flicked with mind numbing speed and the force of an avalanche. Dash was fast enough to block, but much like Applejack she was sent careening away, although in her case it was at an upward angle that she was able to just barely control before hitting the wall of the water cyclone enclosing the battlefield.

The remaining mares were joining the offensive, Fluttershy and Rarity splitting up to flank Charybdis while Pinkie Pie actually took the lead in attacking from the front, her lute churning out a burning tune that caused all three mares to glow with enhanced power.

“After today you are so off the party list, buster! Not that you were on it to begin with but you get the point!” Pinkie Pie’s music took on a growing intensity, like an amp running higher and higher. When she got within a few paces of Charybdis in a streak of pink motion she slammed on her lute strings and a pair of massive alligator jaws made out of sound appeared and clapped down around Charybdis’ body, seeking to pin her in place. The force of the magic in Pinkie’s sound was such that it actually briefly forced Charybdis’ arms down, although it was clearly a strain on Pinkie to do so.

But she only had to hold the tune for a second as Fluttershy and Rarity came in from the sides. Charkams danced and Fluttershy’s bladed armor, shield, and wings blurred in a series of crimson lines. Both mares in an instant traded places on either side of Charybdis, leaving a dizzying array of hundreds of slashes across the mutated witch’s body. Poison of all types, even the Nevermore, burned into Charybdis’ flesh, while blood seeped out in purple streams to feed Fluttershy’s shield.

Yet despite the injuries, Charybdis’ power only seemed to flare higher as raw blue light flooded her body. Poison was burned from her flesh, only the wounds caused by the black Nevermore Toxin remaining, and even then the dark and rotting cuts were kept from spreading by Charybdis’ power. Meanwhile most of her other wounds closed, if not entirely healed, while Charybdis gathered a nimbus of light within herself and roared.

I am beyond these petty tactics and attacks! Inheritors you may be, but Domare stood above Astra and her ilk! Begone! Furore Fluctus[!” (Furious Wave)

Raw blue light exploded out from her and formed into raging waves of cutting water, blasting into Pinkie, Rarity, and Fluttershy. The water expanded in a sphere of clawing surf as if the waves were trying to rip asunder anything they touched, and grew to nearly fifty paces on all sides before further exploding into a series of pressurized jet streams that cut and tore across the area of combat.

Rarity wove through the stream of attacks while only taking a few cuts, while Fluttershy was able to rely on her shield to weather the worst of it, but Pinkie Pie didn’t have time to erect a sound barrier and was left with a nasty laceration across her right flank and she was nearly knocked to the ground... saved by Twilight grabbing her with telekinesis at the last second so she didn’t touch the still highly electrified surface of Bastion Gnosis.

Twilight had been gathering magical power herself to unleash, using the time her friends had been buying to observe Charybdis for an opening. As Charybdis had been focused on pushing back the other mares, Twilight had split the Astral Sphere into three smaller spheres and arranged them above Charybdis in a triangular pattern. Now that they were in place, Twilight gestured with her staff and threw out three beams of magic into the Astral Spheres, magic that resonated with the dark and sparkling star lights of spatial magic. Three connecting lines were drawn between the Astral Spheres, and then from them descended three arcing barriers that shimmered with the umbral colors of a starfield. This encased Charybdis in a half-diamond shaped barrier. Twilight didn’t think this would hold Charybdis for long, but enough of the three Astral Spheres were present inside the barrier that she could then extend spells into the barrier.

She did this by shunting through a trio of equally powerful beams of raw magic that converged on Charybdis simultaneously in a contained explosion of power that flooded the barrier, but kept the explosive force from reaching outside it. A good thing, as Twilight estimated the blast force might have caused a good chunk of the underwater canyon to break and collapse if she hadn’t erected the barrier first.

It was a rather nasty combo she was considering calling “Starbreaker”. If Rainbow Dash could have cool sounding attack names, why not her, after all? Although as Princess of Friendship she wasn’t eager to get too enamored with naming combat spells.

Twilight heard a tearing noise like a thousand sheets of metal being sawed through at once, and frowned as she saw cracks seeping across the walls of her triangular barrier. She felt a press of power upon her spells and after a moment a sharp detonation of cerulean light poured out to shatter the barriers and wash across the air in a short lived wave. Twilight pulled her three Astral Spheres back to hover above her as she observed Charybdis emerge from the smoke of the magical detonation. The sea witch was not unscathed, that much Twilight took comfort in. Bleeding cracks appeared across Charybdis’ armored, mutated flesh, and scorch marks marred the more pristine blue scales of her immaculate side. They were far from fatal wounds, but at least the would-be “goddess” was not immune to taking damage.

Of course there was something more important bothering Twilight, and since her friends were still regrouping, she took a moment to call out to Charybdis, “How are you still yourself in there, Charybdis? Domare’s memories should be flooding your mind by now.”

As Twilight had hoped, Charybdis’ pride flared up and she put her hoof to her chest as she grinned in delight at Twilight’s question, affecting a pleased smirk as her voice thundered in the air. Come now, Twilight Sparkle, I know you despise me, but do you truly give me so little credit? Why would I go through all this trouble to unlock the Eye of the Sea if I did not have precautions prepared to ensure the memories of Domare wouldn’t overtake my mind? Unlike you, I knew fully what I was getting myself into.

While that didn’t actually explain the mechanism behind Charybdis’ self-control, it was enough to confirm to Twilight that there was some kind of precaution that Charybdis had used. Spells of some sort, most likely. Again, Charybdis’ mastery of numerous types of magic had given her an advantage Twilight and her friends lacked, but now that Twilight knew about it she could possibly do something about it.

However before Twilight could concoct her next plan of attack, somepony else beat her to the punch. There was a massive shattering sound and a rumble that ran through the ground. Suddenly the maelstrom where Applejack had been knocked into the swirling waters parted as if under a giant hoof... only instead of a hoof it was a titanic piece of rock that had been broken off of the rift’s cliff face, easily half the size of Canterlot Castle.

And the mare holding said enormous chunk of rock was Applejack herself, using one hoof to heft the slice of cliff she’d torn free with a smash of her shillelagh. Green eyes burned holes at Charybdis as Applejack spat, “Told ya already, ya ain’t hittin’ hard ‘nough ta take me down. Now how’s ‘bout we see how well ya play catch!?”

The rock, which had to weigh easily in the range of twenty thousand tons or so, was hurled forward at Charybdis. Applejack then flew up on streams of pure magic radiating off of her hooves and got behind the rock, and used her shillelagh like a battering ram to smash into the rock and propel it even harder at the dumbfounded Charybdis.

The power of gods at your disposal, and your tactic is to throw roc-

The cliff side hit Charybdis like the literal mountain of stone it was, and Applejack roared as she continued to shove it, and Charybdis, towards the opposite side of the maelstrom and the wall beyond.

“Not just any ol’ rock, ya ugly soul’d witch! A BIG rock!”

Beyond the size, however, Applejack did have some genuine tactical thought behind her maneuver. With her shillelagh lodged into the cliff chunk she was shoving Charybdis with, she was utilizing Althea’s power to pour magic into the stone itself. This made the rock tougher, harder, more dense, and hence it had more weight to lend to it’s momentum. More importantly, when Charybdis was slammed into the maelstrom and the cliff face beyond, the chunk of stone smashing her forward did not immediately shatter under the impact and instead kept driving her into the cliff itself.

“Oh my, I rather say Applejack appears most fetchingly wrathful at the moment, doesn’t she?” said Rarity, and Pinkie Pie giggled.

“The way she handles that rock, I can definitely say the Apples must have a little Pie family blood in them! Goooooo AJ, Maud it up, girl!”

From above in the maelstrom, the water burst and out flew Rainbow Dash, immediately and with sonic speed zipping down to join the girls, looking around with piercing eyes. “Where’s the witch at!? I’ve so got a few more sword techniques to throw at her!”

“Uh, Applejack has her, I think,” said Twilight, although she felt Charybdis’ power like a humid heat on her neck and knew full well that their foe was nowhere near done. Applejack had her pinned for the moment, but that wasn’t going to last long. She had to start preparing a way to dismantle whatever means Charybdis was using to keep Domare’s memories at bay. “Look girls, she’s going to break free any moment, so I need you all to hold her attention while I get close. I’ll need to use the Astral Sphere to examine her metaphysically and-”

“Yeah yeah, egghead stuff, we get it, Twilight!” Rainbow said, brandishing her swordbreaker towards where Applejack was now slamming the rock with her shillelagh to try and rattle Charybdis. “We’ll back AJ up and buy you all the openings you could want.”

Twilight nodded as her friends rushed forward, and just in time as there was a gathering of the maelstrom’s water that flowed behind Applejack’s chunk of cliff, followed by an increased buzzing of magical power. In seconds there were flashes of light from behind the rock, and then great big cleaving streams of micro-thin, super pressurized water cut through the stone like it was made of cake. Even enhanced as it was by Applejack’s power, Charybdis’ magic poured through every milliliter of water she conjured and controlled to dice through the rock. Charybdis then burst forward with her own magically boosted physical might and sent chunks of rock flying everywhere as she hammered her energy blade down at Applejack, seeking to cut the mare in half.

In blinding lines of blue and yellow, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were both there, sword and shield working together to block Charybdis’ blade of magic in a sparking burst of conflicting power.

Rarity, flying in above the pair, got close to Charybdis and swung her chakrams in a new manner, bringing two of them together so that they all but interlocked; the blue and the green. The two toxins mixed together, forming a teal sludge that coated both chakrams as they spun in a vertical dicing pattern that tore at Charybdis. She used her serpent mutated forearm to block the blow, but the twin chakrams still cut a furrow through one of the serpent heads, and Charybdis balked at the sudden sensation of dizzying nausea that spread from the cut as her arm started to spasm.

Individually Rarity’s toxins might not affect Charybdis much, but when mixed together their potency was similarly multiplied. However, before Rarity could capitalize for another round of mixed toxin, Charybdis’ eyes fixated upon her as magical power spilled from the eye mounted in her left shoulder. Multiple magic circles spread in front of Charybdis like a phalanx, and suddenly the girls were forced to retreat as an inferno of azure flame lances shot out in a devastating barrage. Yet as potent as these lances were, their sole purpose was to break the girls up a bit so Charybdis could lunge forward with near light speed at Rarity, who wasn’t able to use Blink in time to get out of the path of the mutated serpent heads as they coiled around her and bit into Rarity’s flesh as Charybdis flew forward and down with the seamstress in her grip.

Rarity felt her diamond hard flesh still tear under the serpent’s unnaturally sharp fangs, but she felt even more the impact on the roof of Bastion Gnosis as Charybdis slammed her into it full force, not only rocking Rarity’s senses with the impact but also letting the electrical energy that still filled the roof’s metal course through her. Rarity screamed in pain, nearly blinded by it.

“Get your filthy hooves off her!”

Even singed as she was by a few flame lances that had caught her in the barrage, Applejack still came down like a superheated comet and sought to slam her shillelagh into Charybdis’ back. Charybdis responded with her tail, swinging the potent limb upward with equal force to Applejack, and the pair collided like a pair of steam trains.

Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash joined in, while a flicker of purple light indicated Twilight had teleported down as well. In that moment, much happened all at once.

Pinkie Pie, focused on Rarity, appeared right above her friend and slammed her lute down onto the roof while still pouring forth music from the horns on her back. In an instant it was like Pinkie Pie acted as a sponge for all of the electricity, drawing it away from Rarity and into herself. However, because a small component of Pinkie Pie’s magic from Malva was lighting elemental in nature, the electricity didn’t harm her as much, and Pinkie was then able to change her musical tune to pour magic into Rarity that washed away pain and helped wounds heal. Nowhere near enough to keep Rarity from still feeling near unconscious, but it helped clear her head enough to act.

Fluttershy had gone right for Charybdis’ mutated serpent arm, and used her wings like giant metal prybars to stab into the meaty flesh and rip the thicker muscles of the serpent heads apart while she then used her shield’s sharp edges to slam it right into Charybdis’ real arm underneath. Blood pulsed from the wounds in purple rivers, filling Fluttershy’s shield, splattering on her face, even touching her mouth, which only made Fluttershy’s eyes flare brighter red as she hissed. And, as Charybdis growled in pain, her grip on Rarity weakened.

Then Rainbow Dash, flying around in a eye bending pattern of prismatic lines of light, clashed with Charybdis’ energy blade as the witch tried to parry all of Rainbow’s increasingly swift attacks. This culminated in the sudden appearance of a tornado around Dash’s swordbreaker, a dark tornado of cutting wind that surrounded her and her sword as she broke past Charybdis’ guard and streaked past while shouting, “Quintus Ventus: Urente Vortice!” (Fifth Wind: Blasting Vortex)

Rainbow was not choosing techniques from Tachys’ repertoire at random. Well, at least not this time. She careened right into Charybdis from the side at a slightly upward angle, and the pure force of the focused tornado drilled into Charybdis’ ungodly hardened flesh while simultaneously pushing her up and away from Rarity, only lending aid to the fact that Fluttershy was savaging Charybdis’ arm to pry Rarity free. And it worked, with Charybdis grip on Rarity loosened enough that when she was driven upward, the seamstress was left free, if still badly wounded and laying on the ground with blood seeping from multiple bite marks over her body.

Pinkie Pie wasted no time snatching Rarity away and bouncing away in a series of Blinks that got her and the injured mare well clear of the fight. Meanwhile Twilight, in proper position right behind the heavily distracted Charybdis, make her own ire clear in a flashing instant of deep violet fury.

Yes, Twilight’s main goal was to get her Astral Sphere in direct contact with Charybdis to analyze the witch’s magical composition, but she’d hurt Rarity. Twilight was not adverse to the deliverance of some immediate payback amid her tactical goals.

With wings spread, she summoned forth a glinting field of shard-shaped spatial distortions that pulsated around their cosmic edges with bands of intensely purple magic. These little numbers she sent flying out in instant streaks of purple light that stabbed into Charybdis’ back like a fusillade of broken glass, only these shards used spatial magic to wedge themselves through hardened flesh and magically enhanced armor only to then detonate with volatile arcane force. Powerful as she was, Charybdis still felt the spell’s dire bite as bits of her back armor and hide were blasted by the attack.

If she wasn’t also dealing with a ticked off Fluttershy tearing at her arm, an equally irate Applejack trying to tear her tail off, and Rainbow Dash’s sword tornado drilling her upwards, Charybdis might have had a moment to realize that Twilight had also brought down her Astral Sphere in a careening motion right for Charybdis’ head.

As it was, Charybdis didn’t see it until the last second, and to the immense credit of reflexes born of being infused with an insane amount of godly magic she actually managed to pull her head to the side of the Astral Sphere’s glowing embrace. Still, the sphere made contact with Charybdis’ shoulder, momentarily entrapping it in its own separate space.

You’re all like rabid sea lice! Charybdis screamed in growing anger and, to Twilight’s ears, rattled confidence. Much as the mare thought herself a goddess, as powerful as Domare’s Relic made her, she hadn’t expected this much resistance from Twilight and her friends. With a drawn in breath, Charybdis’ eyes flashed from white deeper azure, so pure and blue the light spilled out like rain, and she then opened her mouth and let out a note. A single, singling note that reverberated with the sound of a thousand thunderstorms at sea.

Twilight had felt something like this before, when facing Adagio Dazzle and her sisters back in the human world. This was a siren attack, a magically empowered sonic note. Only while the sirens had directed theirs in focused rings, Charybdis’ note rushed out in an all encompassing cacophony that spread all around. The raw vibration of it was imbued with so much magical energy that it was like getting slammed with a city sized hammer. Twilight and each of her friends were knocked away by the blast, their senses smashed, and their bodies wracked with pain from the drawn out, horrific note that reached a feverish high pitch by the end that felt like it might break the world like a mirror.

Needless to say Twilight couldn’t hear a single thing for a few moments as she tried to reorient herself, hoof clutching at one of her hears, which dripped blood. She didn’t think she’d broken an ear drum, but her head ached with the residual reverberations of that sickening note.

Yet despite the pain, Twilight was heartened. Her Astral Sphere had gone and acted on it’s own, automatically defending her by surrounding her, which had likely lessened the blow. Furthermore, Twilight could sense the information it had gleaned from it’s brief contact with Charybdis. If she could just buy a few seconds to parse it out, she might learn a way to weaken Charybdis’ grip on Domare’s memories.

But what about her friends!? Twilight exited her Astral Sphere and looked for them.

Charybdis herself now hovered over the center of the maelstrom, coating herself in healing magic that was gradually lessening the wounds that had mounted upon her. Twilight then saw that her friends were still conscious, although that magic siren note had left all of them in various states of dazed unsteadiness. Applejack was helping up Rainbow Dash, both mares clinging to each other as they leaned into one another. Fluttershy was on her back, but with a flicker of red eyes she was raised up by a flurry of conjured crimson bats that then set to hovering protectively around their bleeding mistress. Pinkie Pie and Rarity had fared the best in terms of injury, Pinkie having strummed hard upon her lute to create a counter note that lessened the impact of Charybdis’ attack while similarly shielding Rarity with her own body. Rarity herself had gotten her legs under her again, and despite blood streaking her white fur, she had her chakrams dancing around her, eyes showing she was ready to leap right back into the fight.

This is getting tedious. I have too many more important matters to get to for me to be wasting time on you self-righteous, stubborn ponies. I see now I was going too easy on you. I just need to crush you all with overwhelming power. That’s all there is to it. That’s all idiots like you will ever understand.

Charybdis raised both her immaculate hoof and her mutated one high above her head of shimmering, beautiful, yet ugly and tentacled mane. The energy blade of her right hoof began to extend, while the maimed but still functional serpent heads on her left hoof opened their mouths and poured out lines of scintillating black and azure magic that coiled around the energy blade in a growing torrent. Then from the blade sprang out scores upon scores of thin bolts of cerulean colored power. Only rather than target Twilight and her friends directly, these bolts entered the still swirling maelstrom. First there were a hundred, then a thousand, in seconds tens of thousands of gleaming azure energy bolts swan through the maelstrom like the worlds largest and most lethal school of fish.

In another few seconds Twilight realized there would probably be a few hundred thousand of those bolts filling the maelstrom, literally surrounding her and her friends. And when they fired, it’d be next to impossible to evade them all. Charybdis was saturating the entire area with enough magical energy to slaughter a few cities ten times over. She really was planning to end this in one more attack.

“Tch, like we’re gonna just let that happen!” Rainbow Dash said, grunting in pain as she jumped up into the air, wings spread. Applejack joined her, using magic alone to move through the air as the pair rushed up to attack Charybdis while she was still stationary.

“Wait!” Twilight shouted, before her other friends could also go charging in. “Form up, quick! On me!”

There wasn’t time to try and attack Charybdis directly. Even if they halted her preparations, there were already too many of those deadly arcane bolts in play to make a difference. The only shot they had of surviving this was to take advantage of their own abilities, and Twilight thought she knew how.

Not inclined to argue with their leader, Dash and Applejack, however reluctantly, broke off their attack and rushed back down to join Twilight, while Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity did the same.

“I trust you have a plan?” Rarity said past clenched teeth stained red with blood. Twilight wondered briefly how badly Rarity was hurt, but knew there was no time to dwell on it.

“Yes, just follow my lead. Applejack, get your special magic ready. I need you to enhance Bastion Gnosis itself. Rainbow Dash, I’ll need you to back me up. Pinkie, boost us with music. I’m going to- crap! No time!”

Her last words were a result of seeing the last of the energy from Charybdis’ magical blade seep into the maelstrom in a final series of bolts, and the sea witch lowered her arms to either side while glaring down at the mares challenging her with a wide grin of violence.

”Genocidia Absoluta Pluvia” (Absolute Genocide Rain)

Within the maelstrom all became seared with the piercing howl of a near endless tide of lancing sapphire bolts of annihilating power. Over two hundred thousand projectiles with the individual energy to demolish a fortress wall all blasted forth and in curving streaks of azure they homed in upon Twilight and her friends with such speed that had Twilight not already been casting a spell of her own, she may not have made it in time.

She extended the teleport to all of her friends, taking herself and each of them in a violet flash from up in the air, to poofing into existence down in the relative dark of Bastion Gnosis, just below the opening in the roof.

“Applejack, reinforce everything on the roof!”

To the farm mare’s credit she didn’t wait even a split second, immediately slamming her shillelagh into the roof, where both it and her armor burned bright orange as she poured heat and magic into the ancient, dilapidated structure’s bronze roof. At the same time Twilight pointed her staff at the opening in the roof and sent out lines of sparkling spacial magic from it’s orb, and a beam of purple energy from her horn. Together, this formed a barrier spell around the opening, shimmering black with pin points of starlight within.

“Rainbow, wind barrier! Fluttershy, Rarity, guard Aria and Sonata. Pinkie, get that music going!”

Much like Applejack her friends were already acting practically before Twilight was done speaking. Dash’s whole body became one with the wind and she all but transformed herself into a flowing barrier of swirling air that layered itself along the roof just behind Twilight’s own shield. Pinkie Pie struck up her music, hooves blurring over the strings as she poured her magic into her friends, making a faint gleam of pink light gleam around their bodies as their magical might was sent soaring higher by Pinkie’s own power. Fluttershy and Rarity went to where Aria and Sonata were still laying upon the ground, although Twilight noticed both sirens were stirring to wakefulness just as Charybdis’ attack struck.

Twilight could feel it, even if she couldn’t see it. Those hundreds of thousands of magical bolts crashed into the roof of Bastion Gnosis like a storm of falling stars. While the “bronze” that made up the ancient structure was of a metal far sturdier than the sheen of it’s metal indicated, even the old alicorn fortress could not have possibly withstood the devastating barrage that was hammering it if not for Applejack’s magic pouring into the structure to reinforce and harden it. Even then, cracks were already starting to appear as more and more bolts rained down. Twilight felt her own barrier straining under the blows. The spatial magic could transfer all of that energy elsewhere, to a degree, but the very bonds holding her spell together were being frayed by the overwhelming amount of destructive magic passing through it. Charybdis had poured an insane level of magic into this deluge of piercing death, an attack that would have rendered even a metropolis into ruin in seconds.

Twilight felt her horn ache in pain as she poured more magic into her barrier, and still she felt it start to buckle! Yet doggedly she held on, perhaps aided just enough by Pinkie Pie’s boosting musical magic to maintain the barrier over the opening.

However, even with Applejack’s enhancing magic, the roof around the opening was starting to crack apart and collapse! Applejack growled as she poured more magic into it, forcing her shillelagh into the metal as if by will and strength alone she could force the roof to hold.

It didn’t work. Bit by bit holes erupted in the roof, and bolts of pure blue energy from Charybdis’ attack started to stab through.

They had to get past Rainbow Dash’s wind barrier, formed from her very essence and body next, and for a few seconds Dash’s swirling shield of air did hold the torrent back. Yet even that was pierced a few seconds later, although what bolts did get through were thrown off course every which way by the intensity of Rainbow Dash’s wind currents.

Twilight couldn’t afford to move, all of her concentration on maintaining the shield around the opening. So she sent the Astral Sphere into smaller components to defend her friends, the small glowing orbs of light flying like high speed marbles to deflect energy bolts away from each pony in turn. Fluttershy and Rarity protected Aria and Sonata, ones shield and the other chakrams slashing every which way to ensure the waking sirens were not impaled.

Still, detonates filled the chamber as those bolts of power landed in random spots around the floor and walls, shaking everything, and certainly hastening Aria and Sonata waking up. Both sat bolt upright, looking around in panic.

“T-the heck is going on!?” Aria shouted, while Sonata scooted closer to her and held her.

“Everything’s exploding!”

“Stay still,” Rarity told them, her chakrams dancing a defensive weave around her and the pair of sirens. Fluttershy was on the other side of the pair, her shield always in place to knock away a bolt that got too close.

“Dang it, Twi, the whole place is comin’ down! I can’t hold it up no more!” Applejack shouted, just as it seemed as if all the roof was becoming a broken puzzle of swiss cheese holes. The cracks were extending to the walls now, too, and parts of the floor were breaking away as explosion impacts were destroying the lower foundations of the fortress.

“Everypony, get right below me,” Twilight said, face now pouring sweat. “Quickly!”

Fluttershy and Rarity grabbed the two sirens, just as Applejack and Rainbow Dash left their positions to go to Twilight, Dash still keeping a partial barrier of wind up even as her body returned to being flesh and blood. Pinkie Pie hadn’t gone far from Twilight’s side to begin with, and her music had taken on a desperate if still somehow inspiring and hopeful tune as she leaned in on Twilight and winked her own encouragement. Twilight smiled, glad that even in a situation like this, Pinkie still somehow knew how to coax a spark of hope out.

The roof broke into dozens of metal chunks that fell down alongside the last few hundred bolts of power that still had enough energy to demolish a few city blocks. Twilight pulled in her barrier and wrapped it around herself and her allies as tightly as she could while massive amounts of metal fragments crashed down and the upper portion of Bastion Gnosis exploded in a series of rapid blue detonations.

Charybdis was breathing a little hard, but she still had plenty of breath to laugh as she saw the ancient alicorn’s center of magical research was now like a cracked open, ruined metal egg. Dust billowed up from the ruin of tens of thousands of tons worth of debris from the fortress that had collapsed in on itself under the strain of her magical assault. She’d felt those mares trying to resist the inevitable, to defend against the destructive rain she’d brought forth, but it looked as if that just hadn’t been enough.

Well, I’ll be kind and admit it was impressive they gave me that much trouble. With the strength of one of the Highest Dominions at my command I really should have been able to deal with them without ruining my home. I guess the Bastion served its purpose already. Shame about Adagio’s sisters. I would have sent them back to her, eventually, relatively unharmed. Oh well, can’t have everything you want, even as a goddess... hmm?

There was a stirring amid the rubble. At the center of Bastion Gnosis’ ruin, huge slabs of metal were pushed aside and then knocked over. Applejack, bleeding down her face, shoved more metal aside, assisted by Rainbow Dash, who used a swing of her sword to blast away more rubble with a cutting wave of wind. Magical telekinesis lifted more aside as an exhausted by still very much alive Twilight emerged next, dragging along a dusty but still smiling Pinkie Pie. Next to them Rarity and Fluttershy both emerged from beneath more rubble, helping up the still shaken looking siren sisters who were thankfully largely unscathed.

Twilight’s barrier had withstood the last of the explosive bolts of power and kept the group from getting crushed by the collapse of the fortress, but hadn’t been able to hold much longer. Thankfully Applejack was able to then reinforce the rubble pieces to hold as a makeshift roof long enough for everypony to get enough strength back to dig their way free. Now the six mares and two sirens stood amid the center of what remained of Bastion Gnosis, bruised, bloody, battered but all very much alive, while Charybdis stared down at them with a moment of eye twitching disbelief.

I’m honestly shocked the lot of you are still standing after that. I’m trying not to entirely obliterate my home. I do need to keep enough of it intact so the soul preservation spells remain anchored, after all, not to mention I don’t want to shake the Abyss so hard that it causes Rift Home itself to come apart. But you all just keep stubbornly surviving, despite my best efforts.

“We aren’t stopping, and we aren’t dying, Charybdis. Not until we’ve brought your insanity to an end.” Twilight promised, calling to her Astral Spheres, which emerged from the rubble and re-joined into one large sphere that flew to her side. While she and her friends were injured and worn out, she still had some hope remaining, as she’d grasped the information from the Astral Sphere clearly enough to know what Charybdis was doing to safeguard herself against Domare’s memories.

The siren’s soul shards hadn’t just granted access to the Relic, they were also acting as buffers against Domare’s memories. Charybdis had designed that magical medallion the soul shards were set inside to draw the memories from the Relic into the pieces of the three siren’s souls and essentially filter the memories into a small trickle instead of a full on flood. It was such a simple, yet effective method, but it also meant that if Twilight could hit the medallion with a strong enough anti-magic spell it’d disrupt that filter effect and the full force of Domare’s memories would smash into Charybdis’ mind, like a dam breaking and letting in the flood waters.

Hah, you keep singing that same tune, Twilight Sparkle. Calling me mad, when all I desire is to remove the shadow of death from everyone’s lives. Even you six fools, I’ll preserve your souls after killing you. Even enemies like you who have done nothing but ruin my plans, I wouldn’t let your souls suffer the fate of losing themselves to the Cycle. I’ll preserve you, until I create a better Cycle. Maybe then you’ll understand. But clearly before that can happen you just flat out have to DIE ALREADY!

Charybdis readied her energy blade and gathered power around herself once again, preparing to launch into the attack. However just as she did so a voice spoke from above.

”Hado Number Eleven: Tsuzuri Raiden!” (Bound Lightning)

Charybdis looked up just in time to see a dancing leaf of dark motion rush past her amid a crackle of yellow lightning. Flash Sentry, his Zanpaktou wrapped in a sheath of jolting electricity form the Kido spell he’d just used, slashed at her face... but at the same time he used his Zanpaktou’s power to create a dozen duplicates of himself that slashed at her arms, chest, neck, and back in multiple places.

The blows largely struck home, although even with the added electrical jolt of the Kido the strikes from the sharp tonfa blade didn’t inflict more than the shallowest of cuts on Charybdis as Flash Sentry streaked by with as fast as Flash Step as he could muster, just narrowly avoiding a swing form her energy blade before he appeared next to Twilight.

“Hey Twilight,” he said breathlessly, “Looks like I made it in time.”

“Flash! Wait, you’re hurt...” Twilight saw the blood on his fur and black Soul Reaper robes, staining part of the inner white sleeves red. Flash, however, frowned and shook his head.

“I’m okay. It’s... not my blood. We’ll talk about that later. How’s the whole fight with the insane sea monster going?”

“Well as you can see,” spoke up Rarity, “We’re rather on our last legs whilst our dance partner remains fresh as morning dew, for the most part. Quite frustrating, really.”

Flash Sentry... Charybdis’ voice filled with dire venom as she loomed above them. So glad you saved me the trouble of coming to find you. I have a debt to collect from you for the souls lost in Aqualania.

Flash Sentry ignored her taunting and kept his eyes on Twilight. “Plan?”

Originally her intention was just to disrupt Charybdis’ control of Domare’s memories and hope that would also lead to a similar disruption of her power, and give her and her friends a chance to take the witch down with a combination of their strongest possible attacks. Yet with Flash here, her mind swiftly amended that plan with an additional component. Since the start of this conflict she’d known Charybdis’ magic wasn’t normal, and over time it had become more and more obvious that the “soul magic” the seapony had learned was a fusion of spirit energy and magical forces. While magic made use of various forms of arcane energy inherent in the world, living things, or the Astral Sea itself, spirit energy operated under different mechanisms.

If not for Sunset Shimmer learning the arts of a Soul Reaper, including Kido, and communicating with Twilight on some of the details of her training, Twilight might not have drawn all the connections she needed. Yet now she had an idea, and gulped down her fear as she didn’t want to risk him, but she needed Flash for this.

“Girls, I’m going to try to remove her defenses against the Relic’s memories. When that happens I need you to hit her with everything you have. Then Flash, if she’s using spirit energy alongside her magic, then that means her soul’s makeup isn’t all that different from yours, right? It means she has a Soul Sleep, or something similar, right?

Flash’s eyes widened in understanding. “I think you’re right. I’ll need to get close and sense out where it is, but if she has one, I’ll know it. I’m not as good as a Fourth Division member at soul biology, but I know enough that if you give me an opening, I can target that part of her.”

I can hear you whispering down there, you know that right? A goddess's ears aren’t exactly easy to fool, you morons! Go ahead and try your little plan, Sparkle! We’ll see if I don’t kill the lot of you before you manage it. Or hey, sounds like I just have to kill HIM!

“Half time’s over gals!” Rainbow Dash said as Charybdis'’ magical and spiritual power flowed out of her in a wave of pressure very much like a crushing wave of reiatsu. The witch’s energy blade only seemed to grow larger and more intense, and her body’s aura of luminous blue grew to the intensity of a living star.

Charybdis flew down towards them, a wild eyed artificial goddess on a collision course to kill them all, and Twilight faced up to that descending threat with all of the courage she could muster alongside those she loved and took to the air to meet Charybdis head on. Her voice was a clarion call, a final trumpet to what she knew would be the final clash of this long battle, this long adventure, this last clash in the darkest depths of the world’s oceans to end one mare’s mad quest to defeat death itself.

“With me, everypony! It’s all or nothing!”

All of them knew that the fight couldn't afford to drag on any longer. They had all sustained some rough wounds, Rarity worst of all, and it was clear that simply trying to wear Charybdis down wasn't going to work. She had to be beaten in one fell swoop, with everything they had to throw at her. Even Aria and Sonata seemed to grasp this, the two sirens, as pale as they looked after having a piece of their souls shaved off, rose with Twilight and the others as if intending to beat Charybdis with their bare hooves if that's what it took.

In that final clash Charybdis met them in mid-air, halfway between where she'd started her mad charge and the ruins of Bastion Gnosis. She aimed her arm of mutated serpent heads down and their mouths opened to fire a trio of black stained jets of boiling, pressurized water that pulsated with soul severing magic. All three streams were aimed right at Flash Sentry, but Fluttershy rushed ahead of him and met the jetstreams of death water with her shield. A sound of rending metal tore the air as Fluttershy's shield split the water, but the shield itself started to tear in half under the magically empowered steel-cutting water. Yet Fluttershy kept on, even as one of the jet streams sliced through her shield and pierced her shoulder.

Flaring with hateful and roaring power, Charybdis' energy blade swung down in a colossal wave, intent to destroy Fluttershy and Flash together, but then Rarity was there, all of her chakrams blurring together so fast that they seemed to become a single disc. Each color of toxin mixed together into a multi colored smear that then was overtaken by the obsidian dark of the Nevermore Toxin. This blended toxin, coating now all six spinning chakrams, met with Charybdis' energy sword in a howling gale of force and magical power. The nature of the Nevermore Toxin corroded even the magical energies of a goddess, yet Charybdis was putting all of her might into that blow and Rarity's chakrams were scattered even as they dulled the blade's blow and made it so that only she caught the shockwave and was knocked aside.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash flew in together, side by side, memories of Tachys' and Althena's battles together forming a coherent stream in their minds as the two locked hooves. Heat from Applejack's shillelagh turned into an inferno that mixed with the winds surrounding Rainbow Dash and her sword, and spinning together like a pair of entwining comets did they bring their weapons together and form a piercing corona of wind-flame.

Charybdis saw this coming and howled like a siren once more, concentrating a singular conical blast of azure sound rings right into the pair as they came on. Heat and wind clashed with raw sound that shook the entire rift and sent cracks running up the stone walls hundreds of feet nearly to the surface of Rift Mouth itself. Yet Applejack and Rainbow Dash together stalemated the sonic siren song, and Charybdis was briefly stuck in place.

Now Pinkie Pie's song played a dirge that echoed through the ocean for miles, and from her lute burst a singular sound wave that took the shape of her own grinning face that proceeded to open its mouth in a thunderous giggle as it rushed and exploded upon Charybdis' head with all of the sound force of a hundred thunderstrokes at once, rattling even the would-be goddess' senses and disorienting her.

Even so, Charybdis was summoning all of her magic and brining it to bear, magical circles blooming into existence around her in a swarm that retaliated against the mares with a horrorshow of blackened azure flame and spewing bolts of putrid and acidic water. Pinkie's coat was singled and scorched, but she kept playing, while Aria and Sonata had to duck and wave behind a barrier Twilight summoned forth.

Twilight herself threw all of her own power out as well, her horn a geyser of raw purple light as she shoved magic into her Astral Sphere while conjuring the power of the void for her staff. Void shards of starlight exploded from her staff and cut swathing paths through Charybdis' spells, distorting the very air with how badly the fabric of space was being warped by the amount of spatial magic Twilight was brining forth. A wall of spatial portals emerged around Charybdis, and around Twilight's Astral Sphere. Purple chains like the ones she'd tried to bind Charybdis with before shot out of the Astral Sphere, dozens upon dozens of them amplified by the sphere and then transferred through the portals so they emerged around Charybdis in a dense mass. The chains bound her arms, her tail, wrapped around her mid-section, and Twilight then used the chains as a medium to channel in a directed dose of anti-magic.

This had the immediate effect of not only weakening Charybdis' spells, both defensive and offensive, but it had the intended effect of dampening the buffering effect her medallion had on the Eye of the Sea. In an instant Charybdis' eyes shot wide as she threw her head back and started shaking it, howling.

My mind is mine! I'll not be pushed aside by you, Domare! I don't... need your... ugh, what is...

Her voice changed briefly, to something briefly tranquil, yet saddened.

Understanding, child. My power is not yours, and your path is twisted by the curse of just enough knowledge to see, but not enough wisdom to understand. Now, young sirens, when the spirit warrior strikes true, you must wrest what is yours from this deluded one's grasp!

Aria and Sonata glanced at each other, then nodded, just as Flash Sentry, who'd been sticking close to Twilight, took that as his cue to make his move. Still, Charybdis' will was made of a combination of utter devotion to her cause and a good dose of crazy to back it up, so even as Flash flickered into motion to rush her chest, she wrested control of her mind back and snarled.

Lies! I won't lose to lies!

Her flesh seemed to undulate and boil as a mass of ropey blue tendrils shot out of her shoulders and chest area, all aimed at Flash Sentry with spearing, barbed tips. Twilight ripped her staff towards them and sent a storm of void shards shredding through the mass, but only got about half of them. Fluttershy soared in, black wings and her swarm of crimson beats ripping and tearing like blenders, and still didn't quite get all of them. Pinkie Pie slammed her lute forward like a golf club and scattered more with a wave of sound. Still, about a dozen got past that and surrounded Flash Sentry, barbs striking like bladed lightning.

Flash became as swift as Twilight had ever seen him move, bending and twisting in shadowy flickers of motion. Even so his wings were pierced, then his hooves. But just before one of the barbs could pierce his chest, he thrust his tonfa blade right through it, even as his arm bled from being impaled. It was a strike that would have been futile if all it had done was simply stop the barbed tendril from stabbing him through the chest... because he'd created duplicate of himself right on top of Charybdis' chest, just above where the medallion and the Eye of the Sea were embedded. His Zanpaktou from the duplicate had struck flesh, but he wasn't quite strong enough to go fully through Charybdis' hardened body on his own.

Lucky him he had a very magical girlfriend.

Twilight shot magic right towards Flash, a simple empowering spell that lend her magic to him and channeled all of that power right through his body and anything connected to him metaphysically. Which also included his Zanpaktou. His whole body lit up purple, wreathed in violet flames as he gave an energized shout and shoved his tonfa forward in a last, herculean push. The magically empowered blade of Kochi Yojinbo cut right into Charybdis' chest and as a spiritual weapon it struck not merely physically but at her very spirit body. He struck the very point where he'd sensed the pooling of the most intense reiryoku was, the spot that was most likely her Soul Sleep where all souls kept their potential to use spirit energy.

There was a moment where all motion and sound seemed to screech to a halt as Charybdis let out a sound that was neither scream nor gasp, but more a shocked whimper. Abruptly all of her spells faltered and her very body seemed to jolt with a misfire of energy that sent her body wracking and coiling with burst of uncontrolled magic. Flash was blasted back, only saved from falling by Twilight's magical grip. Amid this, Sonata and Aria made their own move, rushing right for the pearly and shining Eye of the Sea.

Their hooves gripped around the medallion containing the shards of their own soul and that of Adagio's, and as one they both began pulling with all of their might.

"Time to give back what you stole, bitch!" Aria shouted, and Sonata grunted.

"What, rrrggg, she saaaaaaiiid!"

And in a slow motion, metallic clang the medallion cam breaking free of the Domare's Relic, taking with it the three siren soul shards. The Eye of the Sea hummed with a clear bell toll of relief, and then it began to flare white so brightly that it drowned out all sight.

Episode 167: Twilight's Faith

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Episode 167: Twilight’s Faith

The smell of sea spray, salt laden and tanged with life, tickled Astra’s nose. Her focus was upon her experiment, but it was hard not to admire the fundamental beauty of the ocean reef, vibrant with a quilt of natural colors that teemed with aquatic life.

The alicorn stood upon the shallows of a large barrier reef in the eastern hemisphere of the physical plane, with the white sands of a long tropical shore stretching out behind her. In front of her a large device made of several layered metal rings surrounded a pillar of solidified light that was immersed into the lapping blue waves below her. The device was an astral detector and projector, designed to analyze and display data on various forms of esoteric energy within a limited area. What made it special was that it did this not only on the physical realm, but the astral plane and other layers beyond. Attuned to both the fundamental astral energy known colloquially as “magic”, and the weave of spiritual particles that interconnected all things, including the “souls” of living beings.

This particular spot was chosen due to the fact that the reef had a very high rate of predatory activity amid the various species inhabiting it, as such providing a continuous source of test data for Astra’s spells. All she had to do was attach magical markers to prey species, wait for nature to take its course, and then ideally the markers would remain upon the “soul” of deceased prey animals which would in turn provide active data to the analysis device.

Not alone, the mare lounging in the water beside her watched curiously as the pillar of light flashed and displayed a spherical projection of several points of energy as they traversed from a flat projected plane and descended through what appeared to be a barrier of sorts until falling like snow drops into the lower portion of the sphere. The mare in question was a large aquatic beauty with azure skin of such fine scales that she seemed to glitter in the sunlight. A marvelous mane of deep purple shades that faded to lighter blue at the times fell in waves around a regal head, and intelligent blue eyes regarded Astra with interest as Domare, lazily flipping her tail through the water, swam around the device.

“You’ve certainly been at this for awhile, Astra. Won’t you consider taking a break and returning with me to Bastion Largitas? I promise a perfect night of enjoying the ocean’s bounty and witnessing my daughters’ grand performance. It is the debut of my youngest’s first time on stage, singing for the whole of the city.”

“I truly appreciate your hospitality while I conduct my research, Lady Domare.” Astra said, her eyes not leaving the device’s projected display as she started fiddling with the adjustments to the astral sensors, trying to get clearer readings on the departed souls of the recently preyed upon sea creatures, “However I feel any time spent on frivolity at this time would be ill advised. Every day the arguments between Eos and Iah seem to only darken. If I could get more accurate data on just what is occurring with the Cycle, then perhaps I could alleviate tensions before they get worse between the sisters.”

“I’ve known those two for quite a long time, young Astra, and let me tell you, sisters fight.” Domare said, smiling a beauteous smile as she propped her chin on her hooves while leaning upon one of the exposed portions of the reef, “My own daughters often get into squabbles. Our Sun and Moon were all but born to butt heads with one another. Still, I do confess Eos has seemed especially ruffled of late. Came to my own court to try and get me back into the chambers of the Highest Dominions, hoping I might break the stalemate she has with Iah. I keep telling her I abandoned those affairs for the sea. Even gave up my horn and wings for a much more fitting form below the waves.”

“As was your right.” Astra agreed, knowing full well that Domare’s physical changes made her no less an alicorn in terms of magical might, but still finding it interesting the mare chose to alter herself to better suit her environment. Those traits were passed along to her progeny, who in turn spawned variants of different sea dwelling equines. “I admit to being interested in seeing if your daughters’ divergent genetic traits will continue to develop over generations. Those gems seem especially interesting. The way they can store and resonate with magic have all sorts of potential applications.”

“Ah, my Siren and her children’s gems are quite beautiful indeed. You should see how it affects their singing voices. Truly do you intend to spend all day here studying the soul’s passage into the Cycle? What could you learn from the deaths of fish?”

“Quite a lot, actually. Look.” Astra gestured to the data on the projection, “Each time one’s physical form perishes, the soul is swiftly drawn into the barrier between the physical realm and the Astral Sea. It passes through this barrier, here. A barrier that I believe acts as the means by which the immense, quite possibly infinite energy of the Astral Sea is kept from leaking into the physical world and causing imbalances. Each time a soul passes through... look, look here!”

Astra pointed at an image of the thin film-like sheet between the lower and upper half of the projected sphere. When the small, glittering dots representing the departed souls of the local fish went through the ‘barrier’, a small imprint of color was left behind. “You see that? The soul’s energy leaves an imprinted set of data on the barrier. Then look at this...” she caused the projected image to zoom in upon the imprints, focusing on one or two.

Domare rose from the water, floating in the air with the same ease she could swim through water, and moved closer to peer with interest at the image. “I confess I’m not as learned as you are on these matters, but that looks very much like the fish themselves.”

“It’s a perfectly preserved format of the soul’s essence.” Astra confirmed, “As if the departing soul’s energy leaves a deliberate and exact record of its existence before being absorbed back into the Astral Sea.”

“But those very souls eventually return to inhabit living bodies again, do they not? Rising from the Astral Sea to be reborn once more, as is the natural case of the Cycle?” Domare lashed her tail in puzzled thought, “What purpose would an imprint like that serve?”

“Well, we know that upon rebirth a mortal doesn’t retain any memory of previous lives lived.” Astra explained, “Even for alicorns, who die so much more rarely than mortals, we have no record of someone remembering a past existence. Yet it’s a commonly reported phenomenon among mortals that individuals will display talents they can’t explain having, developing feelings towards others rapidly for no apparent reason, or having a sense of familiarity with places they’ve never been. I have a theory, just a theory at this point mind you, that when a soul returns from the Astral Sea as part of the Cycle, it passes through the same spot it left its previous imprint at. In essence, a returning soul is imprinted with elements of its past life, even if the new physical form is essentially a blank slate ready to receive new data. And considering that the level of data density among these imprints of fish have such massive variations among them, I think my theory already has evidence to support it.”

Domare nodded to this, but her expression turned darkly contemplative, “Tell me, Astra, does this have anything to do with the suspected damage to the Cycle that’s been spoken of. The reason Iah is so up in arms against allowing mortals to worship us?”

“I can’t say for certain yet. I wanted to conduct these tests first, and make sure I understood what these imprints are and how they function. Yet I’ve similarly conducted tests on mortal worship practices and how it affects our own magic and astral signature. An alicorn worshiped as a deity receives imprints very similar to what we’re seeing here on this barrier, almost as if the worshiper is conferring a... part of themselves to the one they worship. However imagine what the imprint of an alicorn would look like if they were worshiped by so many, and then they passed through the barrier. The result would conceivably be something less like a clear image and more like a... hole. It might even tear the fabric of the barrier itself.”

“I see that Tomearchis’ daughter shares her father’s rather keen mind.” Domare said, who then shook her head and with a flick of her hoof, splashed Astra’s face with water. Astra sputtered and blinked at the smiling mare.

“W-what was that for!? I’m talking serious business here, Lady Domare!”

“And giving me a stomach ache in the process. You’re likely doing your own health no favors, young Astra. No need to glare so, I’m not saying your work here is not important, possibly critical, but I’d be a poor hostess indeed if I let you fret your mane gray. That said, I insist you set the experiments aside for today and return home with me for a relaxing night of frivolity. As a former Highest Dominion, I demand it.”

“Hmph, you know as well as I that there’s not ‘former’ Highest Dominion. Just because you don’t attend meetings doesn’t mean you’re any lesser for it, and your authority supersedes my own by several magnitudes.” Astra sighed and stepped away from the device, “I suppose I can take a night off, but I’ll need to leave this here to keep collecting data. Perhaps with enough to support my claims I can get Eos and Iah to stop arguing with each other and instead look towards compromise. There’s still so much we don’t know.”

“Knowledge can wait until tomorrow. Remember Astra, a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing, before one achieves understanding.” said Domare, giving Astra a moment of wonderment as she considered whether or not this is what it felt like to have a mother. Regardless, she left the device where it was so that she could return to it the next day and continue her study of the Cycle.

She had a sinking fear that one day soon she would need to achieve the very understanding that Domare spoke of if she was to help avert disaster.

----------

The memory was Astra’s, but it had not come unbidden this time. Twilight had recalled it in the very moment the light flooded the dark rift of the Abyss, stemming from Charybdis’ body as Domare’s Relic, the Eye of the Sea, had the controlling medallion containing shards of three siren souls removed. She knew that Charybdis must have had her mind filled with various memories of Domare’s past, although if it had been anything like Twilight’s experience when first dealing with Astra’s memories it would have been a disjointed current of thought, emotion, and recollection that would have been like being buried in a jigsaw puzzle the size of a mountain range.

Within moments the intensely saturated white light faded enough for Twilight to see what was happening. Charybdis remained suspended in the air, writhing back and forth as uneven currents of power pulsated out of her from the central point of the Eye of the Sea. The pearl-like Relic was sending a stream of light into the medallion that Sonata and Aria both held, and in seconds the medallion’s metallic surface began to crack, then shatter. The three red slivers of their siren soul shards floated in the air, and then two of them flew right into Sonata and Aria’s chests, flaring bright red. The third shard, Adagio’s, glowed brighter and then gathered a glittering stream of light around itself that then solidified into the form of a pointed, but smooth ruby crystal about the size of a canine tooth.

”Give it... back...” Charybdis’ voice was haggard and pained as the seapony’s mutated form struggled to reach a hoof towards the two sirens, her eyes frantic and wild as her voice cracked, ”You don’t need... that power! You don’t even know what to do with it! Gugh! Ggaaaagh!”

Her words warbled into a pained howl as there was a loud cracking sound and the Eye of the Sea shook and twisted on its own, ripping itself free of Charybdis’ chest. The pearl sphere flew to hover directly between Aria and Sonata, and proceeded to double the size of the stream of flaring white light, now also rimmed with streams of azure, that cascaded into the two sirens. Twilight realized that the power of Domare was draining out of Charybdis and transferring to the sirens, which occurred to her might be a problem in and of itself given that the pair were in no way prepared to deal with Domare’s memories themselves.

The flow of energy around the pair of sirens turned into cocoons of swirling white and blue energy, which then began to swell and burst with beams of power until both cocoons blasted outward in a shower of droplets of light. Aria and Sonata floated there, changed into what Twilight assumed were the forms of Inheritors. In their siren forms, neither had manes, but instead crest shaped head fins, but now those were joined by flowing, water-like manes of hair of similar shades to what they had in their human bodies. Their bodies became armor clad with smooth metal chest pieces bearing flaring skirts of side armor, Aria’s a deep shade of blue lined with gold, and Sonata’s a bright shade of purple highlighted by silver. Bands of running, liquid energy rose from the shoulders of these armored pieces and curled around both sirens’ like mantles, while a similar stream of liquid power flowed down their spines and down the lengths of their tails until at the tips of their tail fins the energy sharpened into the shape of pointed blades. Each siren bore a different weapon in their hooves, Aria’s the shape of a large glaive of the same coloring as her armor, and Sonata’s a blue metal crossbow with four arms and silver strings, bearing bolts the size and shape of harpoons.

The last thing notable about their appearance was that in their chests, where the armor was open at this single point, were shining red gems. Their siren gems, restored fully.

Twilight had only a moment to wonder if the pair had been overtaken by the memories of Domare, but then Aria and Sonata simply looked at each other, then at Charybdis before Aria gave her trademark scowl and said, “Pretty sure we know exactly what to do with this power.”

“In other words; get bent!” Sonata said, and then both sirens aimed their muzzles forward and opened up with air rending shouts that generated twin gigantic sonic rings of concussive blue force. The rock walls of the rift cracked further and the very air vibrated relentlessly as the twin sonic blasts drove right into Charybdis and slammed her straight down into the ruins of Bastion Gnosis with cratering might. The pair kept that up for a few seconds before cutting their loud, ringing voices out, after which Applejack took her hooves off of her ears and grunted.

“Coulda warned us ‘fore ya blew out our eardrums.”

Aria snorted, “You can deal. Now let’s finish the witch off.”

“Wait.”

Twilight flew in front of the pair, holding her hoof up, to which Aria glared and Sonata blinked curiously.

“What’s the hold up? We’re totally going to wreck her now, right?” Sonata asked innocently.

“Firstly, are the two of you alright? You’re not having trouble with any memory or personality issues?” Twilight asked, wanting to confirm that the two were wholly of their own minds before they proceeded with anything else. She had a theory that perhaps because Domare’s power was being split between the pair, that might mean the memory and personality infusion wasn’t as intense, and that was why the pair seemed largely in charge of their faculties. It wasn’t as if her friends had had a lot of trouble with the initial infusion of memory from Astra’s friends either, although the longer term effects remained to be seen.

Aria shrugged, examining her glaive and giving it a test spin in her hooves, “Got a feeling like my brain is being inflated like a damn balloon, but really don’t give a crap about this Domare chick’s baggage. I’m way too pissed off to deal with any of that.”

“Eh, my head’s usually pretty empty anyway, so all this weird memory stuff fits right in,” Sonata said, as if that was enough explanation on its own.

“Okay, I just had to make sure. The two of you might want to hold back for the moment and take a bit of time to collect yourselves,” Twilight said, to which Aria’s body became shrouded in an agitated aura of clawing purple light as the water from her mantle began to boil.

“Collect nothing! Charybdis is down, and it’s time to start kicking until she can’t get back up, ever.”

“Aria, Sonata, I need you both to trust me and my friends to deal with this, and we really don’t have time to argue it.”

“Good, because I’m not arguing, I’m doing.” Aria shot back, and leveled her glaive downward, readying to throw it at Charybdis’ body, which remained barely moving in the broken mess of debris that was the upper half of Bastion Gnosis.

However before she could make her throw, both Rainbow Dash and Flash Sentry appeared in her way, both having used their respective techniques of Blink and Flash Step to interpose themselves all but instantly. Not more than a heartbeat later the other mares all lined up beside Twilight, all nursing various states of injury, but looking no less prepared to back up their friend for it.

“Might want to listen to Twilight,” Rainbow Dash stated simply, holding her own sword out in a not-quite ready to strike pose, but certainly not relaxed either. “She’s usually got a good head for this kind of thing.”

“Believe me, I more than understand your anger,” Rarity said, “I sincerely doubt Twilight intends to simply allow a creature as dangerous as Charybdis to go free. That having been said, please control yourselves.”

Aria still wore a darkly fierce look, teeth bared, muscles tense, until Sonata’s hoof dropped onto her shoulder and the other siren leaned in to whisper, “We got Dagi’s soul back. Pretty much why we came here, right? We let the ponies do their thing, and if Crazy Chary tries anything, we can still go whacky-whacky with our shiny new weapons.”

“URGH! Fine!” Aria shouldered her weapon again, eyes still aflame, “But if she so much as looks at me or Sonata funny, I’m ramming this thing right through her damned heart.”

“Thank you, both of you,” Twilight said, and then turned to her friends, “I’m going down there. The rest of you keep an eye out and be ready in case she makes a move.”

“What exactly is the plan, Twi?” asked Applejack sincerely, looking about as pleased by the situation as Arai was, “This ain’t exactly like talkin’ down Starlight, or using the Elements ta depower Nightmare Moon or Tirek. Heck, even with Discord all we had ta do was haul a statue back ta Canterlot when all was said n’ done. Right now we’re still n’ the middle o’ enemy territory n’ Charybdis is down, but she ain’t out yet, is she?”

Twilight took in a deep breath and focused all of her attention upon Charybdis, who was only now trying to push herself up into a halfway upright position. The sea witch’s whole body was showing fleeing wisps of energy, as if magic and spirit power alike was just leaking from her akin to blood. Even her bulky size appeared to be slowly deflating and losing color. Twilight wasn’t even sure if the injuries Charybdis had sustained were fatal or not, but regardless she had to make sure this ended, here and now, otherwise all of this was for nothing.

But unlike so many times in the past, where Twilight had no real agency over the fate of the villains she’d defeated due to either the Elements doing their own thing or the Princesses taking charge afterward... she was the authority on site in this moment. Charybdis fate was in her hooves.

She felt a warm presence beside her, and saw Flash had moved close to her side, wingtips touching hers. She saw the wounds on his body and felt a pained tug in her heart, but all he did was nod to her. “I’ll be alright. You do what you have to do. I’ll support you, no matter what, always.”

“I’ll be counting on it,” she told him, then refocused on Charybdis, “Right, here goes nothing.”

It was probably unnecessary to teleport down in front of Charybdis, but Twilight didn’t want to waste any more time. Any second the sahuagin might regroup their forces for an attack. Even now she note that Divistus and the shamans who had been incapacitated were, oddly enough, laying still unharmed amid the few unbroken parts of Bastion Gnosis’ roof, almost as if they’d been moved there deliberately. It occurred to Twilight that Charybdis, when she’d used that spell to rain destruction down on the Bastion, must have moved the sahuagin to safe zones amid the chaos.

I want to do nothing but hate you, but I can’t deny that the one thing you seem genuine about is that the sahuagin really are your people.

Twilight trotted amid the rubble of Astra’s home and faced Charybdis. The seapony looked back with a withering glare, but one that was lacking in strength as her whole body continued to shrink as motes of magical power fled her. In mere seconds she’d grown to half of her original size, the immaculate right half of her body losing it’s azure luster, while the mutated half grew lax and cracked like mud.

“Do you still intend to fight, even with your power broken?” Twilight asked plainly, and Charybdis let out a rasping hiss. Sparks of uneven magic tried to gather around her, and she tried to raise a hoof to direct the sputtering energies, but all that happened was that a spurt of useless, undirected arcane light and spiritual particles harmlessly went a few meters and petered out to nothing.

“Arrrgh... I’ll... I won’t accept this...” Charybdis said, her voice weak, desperate, “I won’t let you win. I can’t! Not after all I’ve sacrificed to get this far.”

Twilight sighed, and with a gesture brought down her Astral Sphere, which had remained up above to await her command. Charybdis flinched at the glowing sphere of light, which did not harm her, but did pass over and through her as Twilight used it to analyze Charybdis on a metaphysical level. Twilight’s voice bespoke of no pride, or joy, no satisfaction in her actions, only simple, calm facts.

“With my magic enhancing Flash Sentry’s Zanpaktou he struck a blow to what Soul Reapers refer to as a ‘Soul Sleep’, although from Astra’s memories I think they had a different term for it. A spiritual organ of sorts, that regulates the flow of spiritual power. Yours is damaged, to the point of nearly being destroyed. Without it you can’t make use of any soul based powers or spells, and since it seems most of your magic integrated spirit energy... that means all of your spells are effectively disabled. Furthermore it looks as if all of Domare’s power has fled your body and returned to her Relic and proper Inheritors, leaving you with only your own magic reserves, which appear to be utterly drained to the point of burnout. I estimate it’d take you days, even weeks, to get enough magic back to so much as cast a light spell. And I doubt without help you’ll ever use a snifter of soul magic ever again.”

Twilight eyed Charybdis directly with an unbreaking gaze. “It’s over, Charybdis. You’ve lost. All that’s left is to decide what to do with you. From what I can tell from my Astral Sphere, your body is barely holding on. I don’t think you’ll die, but you... must be in a great deal of pain right now. I doubt you could even move much at this point. So tell me...”

Twilight’s eyes grew hard, a bit of simmering anger creeping into her voice, “What would you do, if our positions were reversed? What fate would you be dictating to me and those dear to me, if it were us laying broken and helpless in front of you?”

Charybdis’ face screwed up in a mixture of rancor, shame, and yes, a small current of fear that was hidden by a mask of unbroken pride. “A pointless question. You already know the answer. I never once make any allusion to mercy if you lost, Twilight Sparkle. So stop playing games with me. If you’re going to end me, then end me. Drawing this out... even I at least intended to make your deaths quick. Who knew Equestrians enjoyed cruelty so much?”

“That’s just it, Charybdis, we don’t,” Twilight said, allowing her horn to fill with magic, until it became a sparkling purple beacon. She raised her staff as well, the orb of purest void at it’s tip spinning with a kaleidoscope of starlight. Around Charybdis, magical circles of void formed, and from them grew intricate lines of arcane symbols as Twilight’s voice continued in somber echo.

“We don’t seek to punish our foes out of cruelty. That is not the way of Harmony that we cherish. Tirek nearly destroyed us, and all we did to him was place him in a cell, where he can live out his days in peaceful bitterness. Chrysalis, if she ever rears he head again, will likely end up the same. Discord, well, the Elements encased him in stone, I think because his power was too great to be contained otherwise, but even he was eventually given the chance to become something else. I sometimes wonder if the same might not be possible for Tirek and Chrysalis, but I’ve never thought I had the wisdom to determine that in place of Celestia and Luna. Yet I still gave Starlight a chance, when she nearly wiped out all of time. I suppose... it’d be hypocritical of me to treat you any differently, even if a part of me, to my shame, wants to do nothing but see you buried and forgotten.”

Chains of void-light extended from the circles of magic and began to wrap themselves into circles of varying diameter, not touching Charybdis but rather forming a prison shaped like a sphere around her, with the chains acting as rings around wavering spans of void magic that fully encased the seapony witch. Within that space, Charybdis was effectively physically separated from the material world, with spell effects applied solely to the interior being unable to leak out into the exterior. Which is why the anti-magic seals she was placing along the perimeter of the “Void Cage” would direct all of that anti-magic to the interior. Unlike the field of anti-magic produced by Chrysalis’ throne, which was so overwhelmingly powerful it could cancel out any type of magic, even Discord’s, the spells Twilight was weaving had to be designed to interact with an individual’s specific magic or attuned to a broader category of magic. It technically was far less effective, unless one had specific information about a target's magical makeup. Fortunately her Astral Sphere had given her all the data she needed to craft spells to counter what little magic Charybdis might try, even if she recovered some of her power, which Twilight reminded herself wouldn’t likely happen for days.

She’d have Charybdis in Equestria by then, to be interred into Tartarus, or... well, whatever else they decided to do with her. Twilight knew a part of her was foisting a final decision off for later, until she could consult with the other Princesses. Still, she felt that this was the best choice she could make, for a multitude of reasons. But in the end, perhaps it really just came down to faith.

Sure, she could have made any number of logical arguments for taking Charybdis alive, not the least of which was the sahuagin. If Charybdis was killed, there was no telling how badly the sahuagin might react, and the last thing Twilight wanted was to cause them to go on a vengeance spree against the seaponies. With Charybdis held as a hostage, it might work to subdue the sahuagin threat for now, until a more diplomatic solution could be found.

Another rational reason to keep Charybdis alive was for interrogation purposes. Her knowledge clearly extended to a wide range of esoteric magic, and she also seemed to know a lot about what was going on in the human world and it’s own spiritual wars. It’d be foolish to ignore all of that wealth of knowledge if it could be preserved.

But really it just came down to the fact that Twilight, in her heart, believed fully and firmly in Harmony. She wanted to at least try to reach out to every soul she could, in the hopes that one day, one day they might learn a different way of living. What was the point of her being the Princess of Friendship if she didn’t give friendship a chance to grow in every heart she could? Charybdis would still receive punishment for her crimes. It was impossible to ignore her role in centuries of conflict. Twilight did not ignore that some level of consequence was still rightly deserved. Yet she’d be an absolute hypocrite if she denied Charybdis the same chances given to the likes of Discord and Starlight, although such chances might be a long time coming. After all, Tirek remained locked away tightly, and Twilight wasn’t sure when or if the same would end up applying to him.

Something to talk to Celestia about, sometime.

With her temporary prison erected around her, Charybdis pressed a hoof to the edge of the Void Cage, her eyes narrowing as she spoke. To her clear surprise, her voice carried through the barrier.

“What do you think will happen to my sahuagin if I’m gone, Sparkle!? I was a large part of what kept the vengeance of the seapony tribes at bay. Fear of me! If I can’t protect them, then they’ll be slaughtered, especially since... since my champions sacrificed themselves to allow me to fulfill my plans.”

At that fact, more than anything else, there was a note of regret in Charybdis’ voice, and Twilight found herself sucking in a pained breath of her own that she let out slowly as those words sank in. So that was what had happened, when Charybdis had gained that strange boost of power out of nowhere? “You’re speaking of Morgawr and those other two?”

“Yes. A final, foolish act of faith in me,” Charybdis said, teeth clenching, “And even with that, I could not... They gave their souls so I might succeed, and you made even that sacrifice come to nothing! Without protectors, who will see to the safety of my people? You!? You’ll return to Equestria and leave them to die, and even if you didn’t, they’ve spent ages with me as their holy protector, their Deep Mistress. None can just replace me! You’ve doomed them, Sparkle!”

“No,” Twilight stated bluntly, with force, “I have not. I will not. I came here not simply to stop you, Charybdis, but to end what you created here. The sahuagin deserve a fresh chance at life, and a path to ending the bloodshed with the seapony tribes. That would never happen as long as you continued to be a goddess in their eyes, who only ever made them feel like victims who were justified in continuing to war with the seaponies. It had to be ended.”

“And what then was your plan for after defeating me? Give a grand speech on friendship and harmony and hope it’d erase generations of war, sacrifice, and death? Are you that monumentally naïve?”

To that, Twilight shook her head, eyes not leaving Charybdis’, but her harshness slightly softening. Only slightly. “This isn’t Equestria. Even there, friendship... only goes so far, and takes longer to work it’s magic on some than others. I don’t think I can fix the mess you helped create with one speech. I never assumed it’d all be over with your defeat. But it’s the first step. The balance of power had to be broken. Wars don’t end unless there’s a reason for the sides to stop fighting, to be forced to be brought to the negotiation table. As long as you were in power, that would never happen. The sahuagin and seaponies won’t stop hating one another overnight, probably not even within a generation, but without you egging everything on for your own gain then there’s a chance to get things moving in the right direction.”

“You still think I did all this for myself?” Charybdis said, voice almost flabbergasted, then she let out a high, bitter laugh, “If I cared about myself, I’d have abandoned the sahuagin a long time ago. I never needed them to complete my plans. It would have all been far easier to do by myself, with a few select apprentices. I didn’t have to take on the role of their ruler and goddess. But they... they just did it, on their own. Asked me for help, constantly came to me for protection, willingly offered themselves to me time and again, even in the earliest days when I told them no. They needed me, and I couldn’t help but want to protect them, because... just like me, no one else cared about them. They were pariahs, same as I. I became their goddess not simply because it benefited me, but because it’s what they desired of me.”

“Even if that’s true, it doesn’t mean it was right, or that you didn’t continue and encourage the cycle of violence and hate. And for what? To change a Cycle you didn’t even understand? I know you must have seen Domare’s memories now, disjointed or not. You know what she and Astra knew, what they discovered about the nature of the Cycle and how mortal worship damaged it.”

At Twilight’s words, Charybdis’ expression grew rigid with denial as she slammed her hooves into the Void Cage’s barrier, to no avail of course, but there was desperation there all the same. “I understood enough! Those memories... they can’t be the whole truth. In all my centuries studying the soul I never saw proof of these imprints, or that reincarnated souls retained anything of their former lives.”

“Inheritors are living proof of it!” Twilight snapped, “Those imprints are the basis for Inheritor Relics! You just experienced Domare herself, reborn in Aria and Sonata! You must have known the second you took a piece of Adagio’s soul that you were seeing the soul of a reincarnated individual, returned to the world with personality traits and dormant memory from previous lives. You knew, Charybdis, and you refused to believe it, because it inconveniently didn’t line up with what you wanted to believe! That is your biggest misstep. Not ignorance, but refusal to accept the truth once you knew it. Worse, you kept letting the sahuagin worship you, knowing full well the energies they gave you would mean damage to the Cycle’s barrier if you ever died. You also forced souls to remain in the living world, like in Aqualania, knowing that the longer a soul remains without the necessary rest that more pain it is subjected to, until it becomes a Wraith. You even did it here...”

She could still sense the magic dormant within the portions of Bastion Gnosis that remained intact, beneath the rubble of the destroyed roof. Some of the edges of the walls and roof still bore the crimson arcane markings that Charybdis had embedded within them as part of the massive sigil that contained who knew how many souls. Just as the souls of Aqualania had been preserved by a magical seal, the seal on Bastion Gnosis likely bound countless souls, although unlike Aqualania they did not wander as Wraiths it seemed. Twilight wasn’t certain why that was, but Charybdis provided an answer with her own dark tone.

“Yes, you are damned right I did it here! Every sahuagin that has died, even every seapony who has died here in Rift Mouth, I preserved their souls within Bastion Gnosis. I would never let them perish within the Cycle I wanted to save them from. The larger seal prevents them from wandering free like those in Aqualania, as does... did my powerful presence. And with that power gone this seal will fade in time, and they’ll all be lost.”

“Not lost, freed. Free to go to a proper rest, and eventual rebirth, as it was meant to be,” Twilight said, to which Charybdis shot her another death glare, but by now it was as if the seapony had been drained of so much vitality that even her glare looked more like an exhausted stare as she slumped in the Void Cage, letting out a small sob.

“I am beyond tired of arguing with you, Sparkle. You’ve won. I can’t even protect the souls of my people any longer. I... hate you so much, but I have to swallow all of that and ask something of you.”

“Ask something of me? Seriously?”

“It’s not great boon, damn you. I just need to make sure that I’ve done everything I can to protect the sahuagin before whatever is left of my magic drains to nothing. You’ve beaten me, and your allies all remain strong enough to wipe out any resistance I or the remaining sahuagin could muster with ease. So I have no choice but to...”

It looked as if it was taking all of Charybdis’ willpower to do this, her body shaking as she put her hooves on the wall of the Void Cage and bowed her head low, voice cracking. “... to beg you to protect them. Kill me, execute me, give me to the seaponies, throw me in whatever prison you want, I don’t care. Just swear to me that you won’t let the sahuagin be destroyed. Please.”

Twilight had to wonder how it was somepony could stray so far from the path of Harmony, be responsible for so much wrongdoing, yet retain the most basic facet of kindness one could have; the desire to protect another, at any cost. She imagined life would be so much easier if good and evil were simple things, existing in stark colors of bleached white and stained darkness. But that wasn’t really how the world, or the many different people living in it, worked, even in Equestria where on the surface it might look that way.

“You have my word,” she told Charybdis plainly, “I’ll do everything in my power to ensure they aren’t harmed.”

“Then, I know you have no reason to trust me, but I have one thing I must do before you haul me away. I can’t leave my people like this, without a final word, and a final act. Can you bring Devistus, the shaman who was leading the others, and Ulgriv, the warrior whom you captured, to me?”

Twilight frowned, “I’m going to have to ask why, first.”

“They need to hear my last command, as their Deep Mistress, and I have... a gift to give to Ulgriv. Sparkle, you have me contained and can end me at a second’s notice. If I try anything, it has zero chance of working, and we both know it,” Charybdis said flatly, “Please. This is all I can do for them, now.”

Twilight wasn’t entirely satisfied with that answer, as it didn’t really explain what Charybdis intended to do, specifically. Yet Charybdis wasn’t wrong that under the current circumstances there was next to no chance of her turning the tables. Twilight supposed if she was going to continue to place her faith in Harmony, she had to accept that doing so was always going to involve risks when dealing with defeated villains. Unless she wanted to abandon her principles and end her opponent’s lives to ensure there was no risk at all, but then she’d essentially be admitting she never had any faith in friendship or Harmony to begin with, save for when it was safe and convenient to do so. She wasn’t ready to become that pony.

“Alright, but know I’m going to be watching your every move,” she promised.

Fluttershy took care of grabbing Divistus from among the knocked out shamans, while Rainbow Dash proceeded to go find Ulgriv, whom Charybdis promised was also lying unconscious at the top of her lair’s cliff. While this was happening, the magic that had generated the maelstrom finally petered out and the waters came flowing back down, buffeting them until the rift was filled once more with murky, freezing cold water. Flash and her friends now joined her in surrounding Charybdis’ magical cage, and Twilight glanced at Flash Sentry’s Zanpaktou. The weapon remained in its released Shikai state, the bladed tonfa mounted on his arm continuing to glow with a fairly intense hue of bright purple magic.

Blinking in curiosity, Twilight said, “That’s odd. It shouldn’t be doing that, should it?”

He looked at her, showing an uncertain frown as he held the weapon up and examined it. “It shouldn’t? I mean, I don’t actually know what you did back there.”

His face gave a pained grimace as he adjusted his stance, trying to ease the wounds on his limbs and chest, none of which were too deep, but still were far from ignorable. “Felt your magic sink into my sword, and I just struck as hard as I could. Was a little like being smacked by a jolt of electricity, only warm. Kochi Yojinbo has been glowing like that since it happened. I just thought it was whatever spell you used hadn’t worn off yet.”

“I didn’t even use a spell,” Twilight admitted, “I just shoved as much of my magic as I could into you and the sword, hoping it’d be enough to penetrate Charybdis’ defenses. I’ll... have to examine it later, if that glow doesn’t fade away. I hope I didn’t break it.”

Rainbow Dash’s voice snorted from above, “Worried you broke a stallion's sword, Twi? Didn’t think you had it in you.”

“Guh! R-Rainbow, please! We’re still in the middle of serious business, so no dirty jokes!” Twilight stammered as Rainbow Dash swam down, with Ulgriv carried on her back. Dash set the faintly stirring young sahuagin down in front of Charybdis’ prison, next to Divistus, who was also slowly awakening. The ponies gave the two sahuagin a bit of space as they both came to, and upon seeing the sight of their Deep Mistress defeated and caged, the reaction was to be expected.

“You foul surfacers! You dare try to imprison the divine!? I’ll skin you all and drain your blood and souls to restore her!” Divistus howled, although the effect was somewhat lessened by the fact tha the looked like he could barely move and was clutching his gut where Dash had struck him earlier as much as he was menacingly waving his dagger.

Ulgriv, unarmed, rose and looked miserably back at Charybdis before protectively floating in front of her and faced the ponies, “You will not take her while I live.”

“Cease,” Charybdis said, her voice, despite being weakened, still carrying the ease of such a long held aura of command. It cut through to reach both Divistus and Ulgriv, not with magic, but with simple ingrained obedience as both halted and turned to her, all but automatically bowing to her.

“Deep Mistress, the surfacers, I can defeat-”

“Nothing,” Charybdis said simply before Divistus could get another word out, “Not now, not as you are, and not as they are.”

“But... but... what does this mean? You cannot, we cannot be...” Divistus sounded completely, mentally snagged, as if his brain was just not able to complete the thoughts trying to press upon him the reality of the situation. Ulgriv, as if the youth had gained some measure of wisdom beyond the shaman, only looked to Charybdis with... sadness as he nodded.

“We are beaten, aren’t we, Deep Mistress? You, and our people, have lost.”

“NO!” Divistus screamed, “That cannot be! It is impossible!”

“Silence yourself, Divistus, or I swear by what little power I have left I shall still claim your soul,” Charybdis said, a tiny measure of her old power seeming to bleed into her voice, and causing Divistus to go quiet in reflexive, god-worshiping fear. Yet Charybdis’ harsh tone soon softened as she then said, “I need both of you to listen to my words. What I tell you now is more important than any other commandment I have ever given you. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Deep Mistress, we are yours.” both Ulgriv and Divistus spoke as one, and Charybdis placed her hooves upon the edge of the Void Cage, looking down on them with the melancholy eyes of a mother who was about to see her children off without knowing when she might see them again.

“I am no longer able to protect you, my precious sahuagin. My power has been all but shattered, and I don’t know when or even if it will ever recover. You can no longer rely upon me to keep the lethal cold of the Abyss at bay, or to help you control the beasts of the sea. I cannot defend you from the wrath of the seapony tribes, or open the way to the promised realm of warm seas I wished to bring you to. Now comes a time of hardship, perhaps the hardest the sahuagin will ever face. So I give you this, my final commands. Take care of one another, and survive. Do not seek vengeance upon the surfacers or the seapony tribes, for to do so would invite your destruction. Seek solely to survive and thrive as only sahuagin can, until the day comes that you can find warm waters on your own.”

“Deep Mistress, I will not argue your commands, but how can we be expected to survive without you? And to not seek vengeance? It is as if asking us not to breathe! These... monstrous surfacers are depriving us of you, with their foul, unnatural magic! They are taking our goddess! We exist for you, Charybdis! What are we shamans without you!?” Divistus was near wailing at this point, and Charybdis met his eyes with an arresting stare, one that still bespoke of the centuries spent as the ruler of the sahuagin race.

“You must have the strength of spirit to find out. I have trained your elders, Divistus. You are young, strong, ambitious, and cunning. Perhaps too self-serving, but I have never found that an unworthy trait in my faithful. As long as you continue to serve your fellow sahuagin, and guide and protect them, then you will find your way. Listen to the elders who remain, and never forsake your kin. Do that, and you will still serve me, even if I am long gone.”

He went silent, shaking from snout to fin, but the shaman lowered his dagger and made no further argument. Charybdis’ gaze turned to Ulgriv, who looked miserable yet alert.

“Does finding out your goddess was not all powerful break your faith, young Ulgriv?” Charybdis asked and he shook his head with conviction.

“I never prayed to you because of that, Deep Mistress. I thought you were, yes, but it wasn’t why I prayed. I did so, every day, because I believed then, and still do now, that you love us and protect us. Even now, d...defeated, you still try to protect us. You were not an unworthy goddess. We were unworthy servants. I was... unworthy. Is that why, when the champions gave their souls to you, you did not take mine as well?”

“Do no be foolish. I sensed your desire to give your soul to me, but I only took what I needed from Morgawr, Rezarra, and Berokar, for they were my chosen whom I had invested my own power in and it was their dying desire to return it to me. I...” Charybdis closed her eyes, “Truly regret I could not make that sacrifice ensure victory, but I can make it worth something else. If you will cease your cowardice.”

“C-cowardice, Deep Mistress?”

“Ulgriv, are you a sahuagin warrior? Sworn to protect blood and kin from all threats, and to serve me in all ways, unto death?” Charybdis asked, and Ulgriv placed a taloned hand over his heart, as if ready to tear the organ out upon command.

“Yes, Deep Mistress. From hatching, I have only ever wanted to be a warrior worthy of serving my fellow sahuagin. I am no coward.”

“Then never again call yourself ‘unworthy’. I have seen your mind and your soul, Ulgriv. You have faith and courage enough for ten warriors. Against all odds you survived Aqualania, and even while captured you did not lose faith. Instead I believe you gained wisdom. You did not betray me or your people, but you did not close your mind to what you saw among those surfacers. That will serve you well, now that the sahuagin’s only chance of survival lay in paths beyond the ones I chose.”

She looked to Twilight, “I ask you to open a small piece of this barrier, if only for a moment, Twilight Sparkle, so that I may raise one last champion.”

“W-what!?” Ulgriv sputtered, while Twilight looked on with a considering glint in her eyes. She finally nodded and brought forth her Astral Sphere, placing it upon one edge of the void barrier so that the sphere was both within and without the cage.

“Place your hoof in the sphere, and channel only through it,” Twilight told Charybdis, “If I detect any hostile magic...”

“Hmph, I know, I know, I need not be condescended to by you, Sparkle. I don’t even know if this will work, but I have to try, before I lose all connection to my magic. Ulgriv, stop gawking and hold still. I cannot make this slow and through the proper rituals, so this may feel... painful.”

Twilight shared a look with her friends, communicating with a simple glance that she wanted them to be ready, just in case. Aria and Sonata remained floating somewhat above, and Twilight could see the tension in both of them, Aria especially gripping her glaive tightly, which seemed to fill with an emanation of magic as if the siren was fully expecting to have to pounce upon Charybdis.

Within her Astral Sphere, Twilight felt Charybdis’ tattered magic and frayed spiritual energies. Her damaged Soul Sleep was like sensing the broken fringes of a shredded quilt or cored out apple, with just the edges of spiritual essence intact. Really it should have been next to impossible to have any level of control of soul-based energies at that point, and from what Twilight could see what Charybdis was doing wasn’t actually control but rather... a very haphazard form of coaxing.

It was very much like how Tempest Shadow could still channel magic through her broken horn, but only vaguely control the results. With a pained, haggard moan, Charybdis wove magic through herself, in what bits and pieces of it she could still pull forth with great strain. Twilight felt that magic form a funnel of sorts that poured through the damaged Soul Sleep and like someone trying to use jury-rigged logs or rocks to create a makeshift dam to redirect a river, she used her magic to direct the remains of spiritual energy inside her.

This funnel manifested like a wavering, barely intact stream of azure light that exited Charybdis’ hoof and moved out to touch Ulgriv’s chest. The sahuagin grunted in pain, his sharp teeth clenched as the light began to burn a series of scar-like tattoos upon the right side of his chest, then up to his shoulder. Twilight felt magic and bits of spirit energy both leaving Charybdis and funneling into Ulgriv, including what felt like three distinct pulses of soul magic that had been merged with Charybdis’ own soul but were now being snipped free and re-stitched into Ulgriv.

Both the former “goddess” and her servant were holding back cries of pain as they mutually shared what Twilight suspected was an agonizing minute or so of magical transfer. It amazed Twilight that Charybdis, broken as she was, could even manage this small amount of control, or even remain conscious, yet she somehow did so through simple willpower alone. One might have thought Twilight would fear that Charybdis was exhibiting too much control, given her Soul Sleep’s state, but if anything Twilight realized that this one act was even further ensuring Charybdis would never recover anything close to her full power. The transfer of power occurring was damaging her Soul Sleep even worse than Flash Sentry’s strike had, and was draining magic in a manner that would lead to an even more severe long-term burnout. It wasn’t simply that the pain had to be horrific. Charybdis was sacrificing what little power she had left, and what small hope she might have for even partial recovery, just to grant Ulgriv the strength of a sahuagin champion.

With a final, agonized sigh, Charybdis finished her work and sagged like a slack puppet in the Void Cage. Twilight withdrew her Astral Sphere and closed the hole in the cage, triple-checking to make sure it was entirely sealed. She then looked at Ulgriv, who was looking at himself in humble awe, despite the fact that he’d been holding back a scream of pain just seconds earlier. His right chest, shoulder, and arm were now covered in swirling, wave-like tattoos that were carved into his scales in flickering azure colors.

Charybdis, voice weak, said, “I gave you what I could. It may not be as much as what the others had, but it has to be enough. You will have to make it be enough, Ulgriv, to protect your people. You, now, are the last of my chosen. The last of the sahaugin’s champions.”

“I... this honor... no, this duty I shall not forsake, Charybdis. I will protect them all, our people. But, tell me... I felt something besides pain during the process, as if Morgawr, Rezarra, and Berokar’s voices were in my thoughts.”

“They are with you, now, what of them I could separate from myself. It is possible you may see them in thought and dream, but such a soul transfer is difficult even when I was at full power. But better they be with you and our people than languish with me.”

Ulgriv clenched his webbed fist and held it to his heart, “Then I will have to work hard to match the weight of three champions' souls and their sacrifice.”

“I have not even a shred of doubt you will...” Charybdis said, then, with about as much composure as so utterly defeated an individual could manage, she gave Twilight a stare that was at once both still burning with hate, but equally resigned, like a fire just doused to smoldering smoke. “With that, I’ve nothing more. No more ploys, no more requests. Do as you will, Sparkle. I’m just... done.”

“The Treasury is holding position above the rift,” Flash told Twilight, “We might want to get back to it fast. The main sahuagin army hadn’t pursued us yet, but they might be mustering right now, unaware of what’s happened down here.”

“I and Divistus will see to that,” Ulgriv told them, the young warrior seeming to rapidly try and fill the shoes of the champions who came before as he forced his uncertainty back and clenched his hands tighter, “Our Deep Mistress has given us our instructions, and it does not involve seeking further fighting with you and yours. I will halt my fellow warriors, Divistus will see to any remaining shamans.”

Divistus still looked ready to commit murder, but wasn’t about to try anything there and now, after after a glare from Ulgriv the shaman bowed his head, “As she wills, so shall it be.”

“Then ain’t no more reason ta be sittin’ ‘round here, is there?” Applejack asked, and Twilight nodded, but did give Charybdis one more questioning look.

“There is one more thing I want to know before we leave. The souls being ‘preserved’ by your spells in Bastion Gnosis, how long before the seal fades?”

Charybdis’ teeth pulled back in a pained, if silent snarl, but she did answer, “I ensured the enchantment would be lasting, even if I were to die. But without me, it will still fade in the span of a few years. Why?”

“Because we have at least one soul devouring monster running around Equestria right now who’s probably on the lookout for an easy meal, and if she sniffs out these souls here in the Abyss, it could be quite bad,” Twilight said, thinking of the horrors Hollow Chrysalis had visited upon the Crystal Empire. “In case that happens, I need to consider the Abyss among the places in need of protection. I did swear to you I’d look after your people as well, did I not?”

Charybdis’ eyes showed a moment of shock, as if she hadn’t fully considered what might happen if a powerful Hollow got to Equestria and found locations where she’d preserved souls. It really would be like a giant buffet table spread out for a Hollow like Chrysalis to feast upon. The witch hung her head again, grunting, “Then... I guess I have no choice but to rely on you. Damn you, Sparkle.”

To that, Twilight could only give a somewhat sheepish shrug of her wings.

----------

The return to the Treasury was relatively quiet. Ulgriv and Divistus did exactly as they promised they would, and proceeded to go to the forming lines of sahuagin warriors in the main canyon of Rift Mouth, to both deliver the news of their goddess’ defeat, but also to control and mitigate the reaction so that Charybdis’ final commands would be obeyed. The last Twilight saw of Ulgriv was a final look the young sahuagin gave them as they moved towards the cargo bay of the Treasury.

He didn’t say anything. He didn’t really have to. The freshly minted champion simply gave one last nod to the ponies that had turned his life upside down. It was not a nod of friendship, but nor was it a look of hate. It was instead simply a look and final gesture of acknowledged respect, and it gave Twilight hope that one day, eventually, the sahuagin would find a path away from the bloodshed of previous generations.

It was going to be a long time coming, she feared, but a “long time” was better than “never”.

Inside the Treasury, Twilight found herself and her friends quickly greeted by an exhausted looking Starlight Glimmer, who met them in the expansive cargo bay within the ship’s belly. Looking at Charybdis bound in the Void Cage, Starlight whistled.

“Whewww, figured you gals would win, but uh, can’t say I wasn’t a teensy bit worried, too. But looks like you got her.”

Charybdis glared, but remained sullenly silent. Flash Sentry spoke before Twilight could, his expression turning to one of creased worry, “Is Wavecrest still stable?”

“Wavecrest?” Twilight asked, alarm filling her voice, “Is she hurt? What happened?”

Starlight tilted a glowering look towards Charybdis, “She happened. Hijacked Ulgriv like a puppet, and wounded Wavecrest badly. She lost a lot of blood. If not for me and Flash, she’d be dead by now.”

Twilight looked back at Charybdis, who stared at her with no look of apology, but she did murmur, “I did make some effort to avoid a fatal injury, when it would have been easy to have put a knife through her heart. Thank Ulgriv for requesting I spare the seapony’s life. If she nearly bled out after, that is on her.”

“You’re really asking for that lifetime vacation to Tartarus, aren’t you?” Rainbow Dash said, finally deactivating her Inheritor form, now that they were back safely aboard the ship. Twilight realized they’d been maintaining the forms for a good while and expended a lot of power, so it made sense to give it a rest and return to normal. She could maintain the Void Cage without the Inheritor state, but until she could more thoroughly ground the spell so it could maintain itself without her having to keep an eye on it she preferred to keep her Inheritor form going. Meanwhile the other girls started to transform back to a normal state, safe for Pinkie Pie.

“If Wavey is hurt, I’d best keep the ol’ shiny lute out,” Pinkie said, “Give her some extra healing tunes.”

“That’d be great,” Flash said, looking at the blood that had been on the sleeve of his robes, the blood Twilight had noticed when he’d first arrived to help fight Charybdis, “I did all I could for her, but I’m just nowhere near as good as members of the Fourth Division at healing injuries that severe.”

“Is she okay?” Twilight asked again with a pointed look at Starlight, who gave a nod that was far more hesitant than Twilight liked.

“I’m not really a doctor, Twilight, but she was breathing easier and the bleeding had stopped. She’s resting in the medical bay. If Pinkie wants to try her own magic on her, that certainly couldn’t hurt. But in the meantime we’ve got to figure out where to stick Charybdis.”

“Considering we have several hundred freed seaponies on board, I suggest somewhere out of sight,” Flash mentioned, “Not sure how well they’ll react to seeing the leader of their tormentors on board.”

“I’m glad you freed them, regardless. Where are they now?” inquired Twilight.

“Other than the cargo bay the main galley was the only place with enough room for all of them,” Flash explained, “Figured it was the safest spot on the ship for them.”

“Then I’ll take Charybdis to the same cell we were keeping Ulgriv in. Once I ground this spell that’s holding her, I’d like you and Starlight to both keep watch on her while i get everything else sorted out,” Twilight said, moving while she talked, heading over to one of the communication devices along the wall beside the door to the cargo bay.

“Admiral Seaspray, are you on the bridge?” she said into the device, and soon got an enthused if very drained response from the hippogriff officer.

“Indeed I am, Princess. By the sound of your voice I trust that the scourge of these seas has been dealt a crushing blow and our wayward sirens returned to us?”

“Aria and Sonata are with us and Charybdis is neutralized and in our custody, if that’s what you mean,” Twilight said, and she sensed the moment of surprised unease from the Admiral on the other end of the line, and somewhat defensively she added, “For the moment we can expect the sahuagin to give us no further trouble. So if at all possible, Admiral, I’d like you to set a course for the surface at best possible speed.”

He paused ever so briefly before responding, “Aye-aye, Princess. The ship is not operating at full capacity at the moment, but thanks to Miss Trixie’s rather unorthodox engineering methods we can still make all due haste from this wretched place. Laying in a course for the surface now. Mister Grubber, if you please?”

Twilight heard a faint and indistinct response over the com from Grubber, but given she felt the Treasury begin to move, she assumed they were at last making their way from the Abyss’ depths. While she wondered just what Trixie was doing in the engine room and if the stage magician was actually going to be alright in there, she set aside that concern to focus on other matters. While the battle was settled, there was... much left to be done. She wanted to check on Wavecrest, obviously. Not only had the seapony been a loyal and capable companion during this whole affair, Twilight owed it to the seapony tribes to return one of their leaders alive and well. Besides, Wavecrest would be critical for future negotiations of truce with the sahuagin, not to mention getting the freed prisoners situated among their people once more.

Then of course there was the tiny matter of figuring out what to do with the very individual responsible for the majority of these events. Charybdis’ crimes were many and unquestionable. While Twilight had no intention of simply turning her over to the seaponies, she didn’t assume that in and of itself would be a choice without some political consequence. The seapony’s would, understandably so, be demanding of delivering their own brand of justice upon the one who’d led the sahaugin’s long campaign of raiding upon the seapony tribes. However, Charybdis would never have been defeated without the intervention of Twilight and her friends, and by all measures the invasion of the Abyss had been an Equestrian affair. As far as Twilight was concerned that made Charybdis her responsibility to deal with, but she wasn’t fooling herself into thinking she had any easy path forward.

Most of all she just wanted to get back home. She and the girls had been gone too long, and if the news she’d gotten from her brief meeting with the other Princesses was anything to go by, it was imperative that they return to Equestria as fast as possible to help protect it and it’s allies from further attacks by the minions of the human world’s Starlight Glimmer. Twilight hadn’t forgotten about the strange and powerful entity of shadows that had been inside the prison at Ponehenge, either, or that it was entirely too possible that the human Starlight Glimmer might escape that prison with said entity. If that happened, Equestria would need every defender it could, and every advantage it could get.

Aside from her personal beliefs and faith in Harmony, that was part of the practical reason to keep Charybdis alive and take her to be incarcerated in Tartarus. Her knowledge both of ancient magics, and her information on events in the human realm, could prove to be important.

“It’s heavy, is it not? The weight of leading.”

Twilight turned to Charybdis, who had spoken with a hollowed out tone, and a flat stare that had never left Twilight’s face. Twilight hadn’t realized how long she’d been standing there, mind swirling with all of possible dire futures that awaited, all of the difficult choices left to be made, and dangers still to be fought. She saw that weight echoed in Charybdis’ exhausted, defeated gaze.

“It is,” Twilight said, but shored up her feelings and looked at her gathered friends, who hadn’t left her side, “But unlike you, Charybdis, I’m not trying to bear it all alone.”

“Well said, Twilight,” Rarity agreed, leaning in at Charybdis’ cage and giving her a pointed look, “Not even a goddess can take on the world without breaking her back, darling. A word of advice, from my own observations? While it does seem like you care for the sahuagin, you never trusted them nearly enough to share more than a sliver of power with them. You didn’t trust your sister, either, did you? I think you just kept trying to do everything yourself, without ever trusting someone else enough to let them in fully. Without that, even when surrounded by an entire tribe that worshiped the water you swam in, you were still ultimately fighting alone.”

“I don’t need to be lectured by a half-rate seamstress.”

Rarity’s lips twitched in a rather razor thin smile, “And that’s all the generosity I’ve got left to give.”

“Don’t waste yer breath anyhows, Rarity. If she’s ever got a’ head fer learnin’ any lessons it ain’t happenin’ today, an’ far as I’m concerned ain’t no prison deep enough or a key we can throw away hard ‘nough fer the likes o’ her,” Applejack stated bluntly, giving Twilight a somewhat apologetic tilt of her hat, “Sorry fer sayin’ so, Twilight. Heard yer might fine speech ta her n’ all, but gotta say how I feel.”

“No, I understand, and I wouldn’t want any of you to say anything other than your honest thoughts,” Twilight replied with a heavy sigh, “But for now I’d just like to get Charybdis put away and... and just rest a bit. We can have the long talks about consequences, punishments, lessons, ramifications and all of that tomorrow.”

“No complaints here!” Rainbow Dash said, “After that much laying out my awesome smackdowns, I could do with ten or twenty winks.”

“It has been a rather busy day, hasn’t it?” Fluttershy said, her wing touching her mouth in a yawn, and then her eyes went wide with realization, “Oh my, I do hope Mister Snugglefins is okay!”

“Who?” Applejack said, but then Pinkie chimed in with a waving hoof.

“It’s her shark friend, silly! Don’t you remember?”

Applejack’s brow furrowed for a second, then she shook her head with a grunt, “Kinda fergot ‘bout him. Fluttershy’s right, it’s been a heckuva day.”

“Then let’s all of us get some rest,” Twilight said and started to lead the group out of the cargo bay, “With any luck, in another day or two, we’ll be safely back in Equestria.”

“Heheh, with all that’s happened on our end, you got to wonder how Sunset and our other selves across the mirror are doing,” Rainbow Dash said, and Twilight couldn’t help but share that very sentiment.

As soon as she got home, she could use her journal and get in touch with Sunset, at least. She’d left it in Spike’s care, and told him to keep it close to him at all times in case Sunset tried to contact them.

...Now that she thought about it, hadn’t Spike gone with the dragon flight to escort Shining Armor and Flurry Heart back to the Crystal Empire? Well, assuming Spike had taken the journal with him, she’d just make use of it when he got back.

----------

Equestria/Crystal Empire border, that same day...

Spike wished for the thousandth time that he was old enough to have his own wings. He loved the frosty air of the sky as they flight of dragons, being led by the magnificent and burly blue form of Torch himself, reached the edge of the Frozen North. Spike admired Torch, mostly because the former Dragon Lord was every bit as huge, muscled, and intimidating looking with those huge curled horns, strong fang filled jaw, and powerful wings that Spike hoped to one day have himself.

It wasn’t precisely a big secret that Spike had a bit of an inferiority complex, although he’d curbed a lot of it over the years he’d spent with Twilight. His pony friends had time and again shown just how much they cared for him, not to mention often relied on him, and that he was pretty damn capable for a “baby’ dragon. Still, while he’d worked hard on upping his confidence, it was hard not to feel a little bothered when surrounded by a flight of some two dozen full grown dragons, all flying high upon huge wings, while he was stuck being carried by Ember.

“Could you stop squirming?” Ember asked, “Really don’t want you to fall, Spike.”

“Oh, sorry about that. Was just adjusting my backpack,” he lied, although he did do a double check on his backpack, just to make sure it was secure. It carried his gem snacks, a few personal knick-knacks, including a comic book or two, and of course Twilight’s journal that had that mystical connection to the human world. He supposed he could have left that back at the castle, but Twilight had told him to keep it close in case of any emergency messages from Sunset Shimmer.

Thinking of the human world cheered him up a little bit, if only because he always felt a tad, if childishly so, superior to his counterpart there.

I mean, a dog? Seriously? Talk about a low roll on the Ogres and Oubliettes species table, my dude. If I knew how to play the violin for you, I totally would.

At least his counterpart was just as loyal to his Twilight, which was something. Spike couldn’t imagine his life without her, and still sometimes found it hard to really find the right words to tell her just how much she meant to him as his only real family. Of course it’d be totally too embarrassing and uncool to just call her “mom”, but every now and again, when he was honest with himself, it sometimes seemed like the only word that fit.

But no way he’d ever actually say that to her face. How awkward would that be!?

“Hey, we’re getting pretty close to home!” shouted Shining Armor, who was riding upon the back of a large, forest green dragon with a giggling Flurry Heart perched on his own back. The little filly alicorn looked like she was having the absolute time of her life, wings spread out as she held tight to her father and enjoyed the feeling of the wind.

“We’ll probably make it there in about another three or four hours!” Ember shouted back, “Once we land, my dad and I will start organizing patrols to keep an eye out for any more attackers. Don’t worry, we’ll make sure nothing happ...ens...?”

She trailed off as Ember looked to her foreclaws, where she was holding the staff of the Dragon Lord. The rod of rough cut, dark purple stone, set around one tip where a huge ruby crystal was housed, began to fill with a similar crimson light. The light gave off a heartbeat both in terms of a skin tingling hum, and the pulsations of that blood red energy from within the staff. Spike was about to ask what that meant when he felt his head begin to throb in time with the staff, as if a dragon’s very claw was stomping on his brain.

Or more like stomping on a doorway inside his brain, trying to get out.

“Spike, are you okay!? Dad, slow down! Somethings wrong!”

Spike heard Ember shouting, but his vision was getting a bit fuzzy. He could see Torch flapping his wings in great gusts of wind to slow the flight of dragons down, while Ember was looking over her shoulder at him where he sat upon her back, concern welling in her eyes. Spike’s own gaze settled on the staff, which felt almost as if it was pulling him towards it with each pulsation. At the same time something else caught his attention.

Something in the air up ahead of the dragon flight was strange. A large bank of clouds that had been rolling across the sky now was billowing and wavering like ripples of water upon a frothy sea. Then, like a whale breaching the surface of the ocean, something massive that glinted with ivory scales that reflected the sun emerged from those clouds, spreading wings and emitting a roar like that of a dragon... but somehow not like any dragon Spike had ever heard.

The last thing Spike heard before his claw touched the Dragon Lord’s staff was that unfamiliar roar turned into words that resonated across the sky.

“Found at last, brother Fafnir! The time has come, and Ragnarok draws near! And I, Nidhogg, have come to take you home!”

Episode 168: Convergence

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Episode 168: Convergence

Discord could at least admit that whatever medication the Soul Reapers had concocted in this dismal place, it was certainly good stuff. He didn’t even feel the pain of the anti-magic javelin that was kept lodged in his body, as the drip feed of a faint blue glowing liquid hooked to a tube and needle in his wrist was doing wonders for killing off the discomfort. Granted his physiology didn’t exactly conform to anything resembling normal, but whatever strange spirit-based medicine was being used on him was still doing the trick. To a degree, at any rate. His mind wasn’t muddled as he suspected such drugs were wont to do, which was both blessing and curse.

Blessing, because he could still think of numerous ways to get back at Starlight Glimmer and Chrysalis for this ignominy. Curse, because one can only imagine so many forms of payback before even those fantasies got boring. And Discord despised boredom. He’d tear off his left nostril for a television, and Equestria hadn’t even invented TV yet. He’d even settle for a magazine, or maybe a little music. Anything to break the monotony of the same plain steel gray walls in the same twenty by twenty foot circular chamber in which he was the main occupant, suspended in the air. There were multiple wooden pillars carved with Soul Reaper kanji that continued to glow a potent yellow color, each one bound by strange red ropes to large iron nails driven into the floor and ceiling above and below him. It was all some kind of highly complex “Kido” spell that kept him bound in place and prevented him from moving more than his head and lips so he could see and speak whenever someone came to question him.

Aside from the binding spell, the room, which was basically a highly secure specimen cell for the researchers of Hitsuyo-Aku, a number of odd drones buzzed about. These things looked as if they too were made of wood, little flying cylinders with insect-like legs and red gem eyes embedded in their surface. These constructs were his usual guards, ever keeping an eye on him and supposedly relaying a continuous feed to his captors elsewhere.

He was rarely visited, save on occasion by the young Arrancar, Ocellus, who regularly checked the feed of his medical drip and to provide him some inane banter. Sometimes she had this odd young colt with her, who was a Soul Reaper by his garb, but he certainly didn’t fit the mood of the other rogues gathered in this place. Pipsqueak was his name, and Discord more or less surmised he was related to the turncoat Captain who’d joined Starlight. Discord had at first thought this might represent an opportunity to gain freedom if he could get the boy talking, but that hope had been dashed quickly enough. Pipsqueak wasn’t talkative, save with Ocellus, it seemed. Not much hope of convincing him to turn, if their mutual friendliness was any indication.

Bah, bad guys making friends with each other. Should be some standard against that, I say.

He wasn’t counting the days, but he had an impression it’d been at least two since his capture, maybe three. Regardless, it was either very late on the second day or very early on the third when the door to his cell opened, a pair of metal doors that hissed as they slid aside.

Into the room strode one pony that was unfamiliar to him, and another individual who was all too familiar. Discord raised his head and put on his most sarcastic, snaggle-toothed smile, “Why Chrysalis, taking time out of your busy schedule of being an ex-Queen of the Changelings and general failure as a villain to come pay me a courtesy call. I’m flattered. Who’s your half-baked friend?”

The “half-baked” one he was referring to was the ivory coated unicorn mare who had half of her body sporting burn scars that would make most foals cry, and had her front right leg replaced by a wooden composite replacement. The Zanpaktou sheathed at her side next to barely maintained black robes indicated she was a Soul Reaper, and Discord surmised this was ex-Captain Platinum.

Platinum confirmed as much as she met his gaze with an even, cold stare of her own. “I imagine you already know my name, but you may refer to me as Platinum. I would say it’s a pleasure to meet you in this world, Discord, but you strike me as being all too similar to your counterpart from my world.”

“And we’re not...” Chrysalis began, but strangely cut herself short and shook her head with a hefty sigh laced with deep irritation, “It’s no business of yours whom I associate with. I did not come here to listen to your prattling insults.”

“Really? But I’m so good at them! Much better than you ever were. Truthfully Chrysalis, that was always one of the weakest elements of your villainy. No insult game. Terrible banter. Just all business and boring monologues. Is it any wonder Starlight, Thorax, Trixie and I so readily tore your kingdom out from under you? I imagine your people were just dying for a change of pace after dealing with your humorless drudgery for so long.”

Discord may have joined the side of “Harmony” and generally enjoyed his new role as an ally of Equestria, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t take great pleasure in inflicting emotional damage on those who’d earned his ire. If he was free and in full control of his chaos magic, Chrysalis would be receiving far worse than a few petty insults. Still, he did savor the rage that boiled in her eyes, but again to his surprise Platinum reached out and touched Chrysalis’ shoulder. The changeling pulled away from the touch, but rather than turn her rancor on Platinum, she listened as Platinum spoke.

“Don’t let him get under your skin. If insults are all he has, then he has nothing. Remember why we are here.”

“Tch, easy for you to say, Platinum. Were this Sunset Shimmer instead of Discord, could you so easily remain calm?”

Platinum’s lips pressed hard in a tight frown, but she did not look away, “Perhaps not, but the fact would remain if had Sunset Shimmer at my mercy, that fact alone should be sufficient to ignore any barbs she cared to throw. He is no threat, and his words are just air. Don’t give them power to hurt you.”

“I never let anything hurt me...” Chrysalis said, but there was not the same imperious strength in her words that may have once been when she was in command of her legions. Indeed uncertainty and exhaustion were ever more presently clear in the changeling Queen’s body language, despite the fact that Discord could vaguely sense that her magic reserves were strong. She must have found a source of love to regularly consume, but it didn’t seem to be doing her mental state much good. Not that he cared.

“So then what do I owe the non-pleasure of you ladies’ company?” he inquired, “If you’re here to interrogate me, I assure you that little pink-mohawked menace has already done a thorough job of it, her and the colt with the patch of brown fur over his eye. He your spawn, Platinum?”

“Pipsqueak is my son, yes, and you’d do well not to let him linger in your thoughts, creature.” Platinum said, danger as clear in her tone as a drawn blade, not that Discord really felt threatened. If he had the full measure of his power, she’d be a non-threat.

“Just satisfying curiosity. He seems such a good kid to be running with a pack of psychotics such as yourselves, and if you care about his well being I’d suggest taking him far from here. When I get free, or when the Princesses discover this place, it will be a new ground zero for an unspeakable amount of unpleasantness, I assure you,” he said, the pupils in his eyes briefly glowing red.

“Wasted taunts,” Chrysalis said, pulling herself together to a degree as she approached the edge of the Kido binding Discord in place. The spell created a semi-transparent field of yellow that sparked with retributive energies against anything that tried to get too close, and Chrysalis stayed just short of the danger threshold as she glared up at him, “This fortress is well hidden, and if the ponies had a means to track you down, they would have done so by now. The same could be said of your freedom. You would have attained it already if you had the means. You are trapped here, Discord, and quite frankly you should be grateful you are being treated as well as you are.”

“Suspended in a chafing barrier with a spar of anti-magic shoved into my insides? Oh yes, I feel I’m just being treated like a VIP,” Discord drawled, but Chrysalis chuckled without a trace of humor.

“Your wound is being kept from worsening, is it not? And you’ve even been given something to keep the pain at bay. Did you know that was Platinum’s idea? To ease your pain?” Chrysalis nodded towards Platinum, “She’s shown you far more care than I would have, so perhaps keep your taunts focused on me and leave her son out of your petty threats!”

Again, odd. Was Chrysalis showing even the barest hint of concern for another? Discord raised a bushy eyebrow, but chose not to question what he thought he’d heard. Instead he changed tracks, feigning disinterest as he yawned and looked away, “Look if you’re just here to be snippy with me, I’d just as soon take a nap. Did you actually have a point in coming here, Chrysalis? Other than to fail at even something as simple as gloating?”

That grinding sound was likely coming from Chrysalis’ teeth, but as much as she looked quite ready to volcanically explode at him, she took control of herself and strangled her tone to something resembling level headed. “You knew precisely what manner of transformation Celestia underwent when she did battle with Starlight Glimmer. Given you are among Equestria’s... no, the world’s oldest beings, I’ve little doubt you have detailed knowledge of these ‘Relics’ and how they function.”

Discord let out an exaggerated yawn, giving Chrysalis a blandly uninterested look, “Yesterday’s news, my dear former Queen of anything consequential. I’ve felt more than a few Inheritors waking up to their shiny new toys. Hehehe, I’m almost sorry I missed the show. Let me guess, having some severe migraines, are we?”

“So you know about that, too,” Chrysalis said, and Discord heard the uncomfortable slip in her tone that showed she was suppressing a fair bit of discomfort. No doubt the call of her Relic was putting some pressure on. “I am not surprised. When Celestia was changed she was acting... unlike her usually prim and proper self. She even referred to me as Laverna. Who is that?”

“What makes you think I know?”

“Don’t bother playing stupid with me, chaos spirit. Your antics are not nearly as amusing as you believe them to be.”

He couldn’t gesture, but he managed to drench his smile with enough smugness to make up for it, “Your former subjects disagree. Visited them a few times, and they just can’t get enough of me. They’re doing so well without you, Chrysalis. Who knew that in order for changelings to prosper, all they needed was to drop some dead weight?”

Even bound and cut off from his magic, Discord remained a being of chaotic disharmony, and he hardly needed magic or claws to cut. He could see his words did as much if not more harm than swords, spears, or spells could, wounding Chrysalis as effectively as if he simply impaled her with the very same javelin she’d so rudely tossed into him. She stepped back from him as if he’d physically slapped her across the face, mouth working wordlessly for a retort she could not find.

Platinum stepped not quite between them, but enough so to draw Discord’s attention as the Soul Reaper turned unicorn said, “Your evasions make it clear you know quite a bit about the Relics and those who ‘Inherit’ power from them. It is also no great leap of logic to conclude that Chrysalis is one of these Inheritors, with a Relic somewhere in the world that is causing these headaches. She can even feel a pull of sorts, indicating a direction, if not distance or precise location. We intend to retrieve her Relic, but considered it of potential value to see what you knew about them, or this Laverna, before doing so. Chrysalis said you’d be difficult, although I did not know that translated to cruel and petty. Regardless, tell us what you know and we are willing to make your stay with us more... comfortable.”

He puffed out a snort, “As if a few creature comforts would bribe me into helping people actively seeking to harm among the few creatures I actually care about. Oh, and the whole impaling thing. Still not forgetting that. I appreciate the drugs and all, Platinum, but that doesn’t buy you much from me. Certainly not cooperation.”

“Is that right?” Chrysalis finally said, shaking off the pain from Discord’s barbs, “So you’d have no interest in this, then?”

As a signal she gave her hoof a distinct stomp, and the doors opened again. And through them came the white furred, bipedal form of the Storm King, wheeling a rather large mobile table. The second that table entered the room, Discord’s nose began to twitch from the incredibly tantalizing smells stemming from trays of food placed upon it. His mouth salivated against his will, and he also noted with dilated eyes the bottles of well aged wine lined up on one side of the table. He didn’t need food or drink to live, but Discord was a hedonist of the highest order. Food and drink were pleasures to be savored, and he’d been cut off in this dismal place for days already.

“Oh now this is a low blow,” he muttered, and then blinked at the Storm King, “And who are you, the bell boy?”

In response the rather glum looking simian creature glowered and put his hands on his hips, “I know right!? At this rate I might as well be wearing one of those stupid uniforms with the cap!”

“Oh hush,” said Platinum, “You’re lucky we let you walk around free at all. Keep being useful and perhaps you’ll earn freedom. Now, did you also bring the rest?”

The Storm King rolled his eyes, “Just a second, milady. Ugh, should’ve just skipped Klugetown and gone straight up the coast to hit Manehattan, but noooooooo, Tempest wanted to ‘resupply’ because of ‘logistical concerns’. Stupid dumb horse. Swear she’s got broken bits of that horn lodged in her brain. Now I gotta play errand monkey to these nutters.”

His mutters went to the incoherent as he went back out into the hall and wheeled in another table, this one set up with, to Discord’s actual shock, a wide screen television and what looked to be a media player with stacks of various assorted movies. His expression must have been telling, as Chrysalis cleared her throat rather loudly.

“I’m told this device plays shows upon it. Some invention from the other world. I don’t much care, but I imagine you’re bored out of your mind and could do with something to entertain yourself with. And I know you enjoy the physical pleasures of food and drink, despite not requiring them. In that sense, at least, we are alike. In exchange for your knowledge on Relics, you’ll be granted these comforts daily. Not a terrible deal, is it?”

It wasn’t without its temptation, Discord had to admit. The last thing he was looking forward to was waiting however long it might take for the Equestrians to get around to rescuing him. That food did smell amazing, and the idea of having even the most basic form of entertainment to keep the hours of mind crushing boredom at bay was even more tantalizing.

The only question was whether or not telling Chrysalis anything would constitute any long term harm to Fluttershy. And maybe the other ponies. He liked Spike and Big Mac. Twilight and the other Princesses were fun to tease. The rest of Equestria he could take them or leave them, really. Fluttershy was priority number one, and if Chrysalis gained more power, that might lead to some scenario where she could hurt Fluttershy. That was an unacceptable outcome, temptations or no.

“...A nice try, ladies,” he told them, “But my answer is still no. My advice to both of you is to forget all of this idiocy with Starlight Glimmer. Go to Twilight Sparkle. Twilight mind you, not Celestia, and surrender your whole lot to her. She’s unbelievably forgiving and literally barfs friendship speeches. She’ll probably just give you a semi-stern talking to, then immediately try to help you save your Starlight Glimmer because she has the world’s worst hero-complex outside of a Power Ponies comic. It’s literally the best move you could make right now.”

“I would literally rather throw myself off of a cliff than surrender to Twilight damned Sparkle!” seethed Chrysalis, to which Discord just looked at her wings, to which she added, “I know I have wings, you idiot, that’s part of the point!”

“While the advice is appreciated, Discord, I too cannot consider your suggestion viable,” Platinum stated, “Even if this Twilight Sparkle is as reasonable and open to making peace as you suggest, I can’t imagine a scenario in which she’d aid us in helping Starlight and allow us to pursue our goals. We’d still need to give up our present course and either return to my world without the power we need to confront Zero Division, or accept confinement of some sort here in this world. Either outcome would be unacceptable. Besides, there’s the other Chrysalis to consider. I sincerely doubt she’d be open to any diplomatic solutions.”

Chrysalis visibly shuddered, her entire expression growing disgusted and fearful in nearly equal measures, “Uggh, the only thing that would even make me think of accepting any kind of...of temporary peace with ponies would be if it meant getting rid of her.”

Ooooooh? Reallllly? Discord thought, intrigued. Was this something he could exploit?

“I take it that Chrysalis' counterpart is not a popular woman here?” he asked, and Chrysalis actually spat a glob of green mucus on the ground in apparently a changeling display of revulsion.

“That horrid creature is beyond mad. I...” Chrysalis looked at Discord, pride warring with a rather stark desperation on her face as she struggled to get the next words out, “I am scared of what she is capable of. That is why I need power, Discord. If I give you my word I’ll leave your precious ponies alone, will you tell me of the Relics?”

“Your word? As if that means something to me? That’s so lacking in humor even I can’t muster a fake chuckle for it. That being said, I’m not so sure I like the idea of a version of you running around that even you are scared of. No, I don’t think I like the idea of someone like that free to wander the world at all.”

“Does that mean you’ve changed your mind?” asked Platinum, and he gave her a flat look.

“It means I’ve reevaluated certain threats to a certain entirely too kind mare whose life means literally more to me than the rest of this world and your world, combined. She’s the sort who will always be there by her friends as they heroically, and often recklessly, try to save others. Which means also quite possibly fighting this other Chrysalis if it comes to it. So, while I don’t trust you, Chrysalis, to ever keep any word you give, I do trust your self-preservation instincts. Right now I fully believe you when you say you’re scared of your counterpart. So... I’ll give you a few hints. No more.”

“Hints?” said Chrysalis, narrowing her eyes.

“Hints. First of all, Laverna was worshiped as a goddess of thieves. Make of that what you will. She also had a rather long term rivalry with Eos, which may explain a few things about your relationship with Celestia. Next, the closer you get to your Relic the more acute that headache will get, but only within about a mile radius. Inside that area, you’ll still have to do the searching yourself. Finally, once you find your Relic, be prepared to deal with the rush of memories upon unlocking it. Otherwise you may just stop being you. Not that I care. Laverna was at least a little more tolerable than you, by comparison.”

“Who was she?” Chrysalis demanded, “Goddess of thieves!? What does that even mean?”

“Sorry, hint dispenser is empty. That’s all you’re getting.”

“Arrgh, you are utterly insufferable!”

“Appealing to my ego won’t get you anything more, Chrysalis. Now run along with your new Soul Reaper friend and, I don’t know, have some stupid adventure in soul searching or whatever. I don’t really care. Oh, but leave the food and television, would you?”

In response to this, the Bakkoto on Chrysalis’ arm pulsated and she swung the weapon out. In a blurring flash the whip blades upon the gauntlet flew in a dizzying and dicing pattern that utterly ruined the tables of food, shattered the bottles of wine, and turned the television into so much scrap. The Storm King, standing in the middle of all this, went pale and held up his hands, screaming, “Whoa! Watch where you’re swinging those things, lady!”

Ignoring him, Chrysalis retracted the whip blades and glowered at Discord, “So sorry, food and entertainment dispenser is all out.”

With that she turned and stormed out of the chamber, leaving Platinum to slowly sigh and glance at the Storm King, “Don’t bother cleaning up the mess. We’ll have some of the Reigai take care of that. You’re dismissed for the day, and may return to your room.”

“Gee, thanks,” the Storm King grumbled, spinning on his heels and exiting as well.

Before following them, Platinum glanced back at Discord, her eyes measuring. “Chrysalis, the one of this world, could stand to learn to strengthen her resolve against insults, but I was not unlike her in that regard not so long ago. You seem like a man adept at finding ways to hurt others for your own amusement. I find it interesting that your time supposedly ‘reformed’ among the Equestrians has not altered that about you.”

“Oh I’m just a peach compared to how I used to be,” Discord promised, “But just because I play for Team Harmony doesn’t mean I have to change all my stripes. Besides, Chrysalis has earned far worse than the light roasting I just gave her.”

“And yet you did cooperate, if only just a little, when you saw just how frightened of her counterpart she is. A small mercy, perhaps? Or is it simply recognizing opportunity when you see it? Regardless, I do thank you for what small help you’ve given. Despite Chrysalis’ actions, I’ll have someone bring you a bottle of wine later, as a token.”

“Hmph, don’t expect a ‘thank you’ out of me anytime soon,” he said, and Platinum just smiled thinly and nodded.

“Of course not.”

With that, she silently strode from the chamber as well, the doors hissing closed behind her a moment later. In the moment before the door closed, Discord noticed that a shadow flickered across the threshold, moving amid the other shadows cast about the room by the glowing Kido barrier. Discord did his best not to crane his neck to look towards the spot the shadow moved to in one corner of the room, but he did speak. He was nearly certain the drones in the room just had visual equipment, not audio. Otherwise he was pretty sure someone would have halted his multi-hour long singing stints.

“Did you listen in on all of that?”

At first there was no reply, and Discord rolled his eyes, “I doubt these flying hunks of wood can hear anything, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

After that, a strong masculine voice spoke in a subdued whisper, “Best not to take too many chances. I’ve been doing my utmost to avoid detection while searching for you. Apologies for how long it’s taken. This complex is... massive.”

“Oh I imagine it's a regular old labyrinth out there. Didn’t see much of it when I was being hauled in here, but I did get the impression of the Soul Reapers overcompensating for something,” Discord said, “So, Sombra I take it? Apologies, but we never really have met properly, face to face have we?”

“No,” the shadow said, still in a low whisper, “But I know enough of you to understand that you and I both owe Equestria debts to be repaid for our past transgressions, and we owe our better paths in life to mares of extraordinary character who did not give up on us. So, that said, I suppose it is serendipitous I am here to be able to aid in your escape. Once I divine a means to, at any rate.”

“Ah, yes, that is the pickle, isn’t it?” Discord said, casting his eyes about the room, “This barrier is rather sturdy from what I can sense of it. More so than I think you could easily break. These buzzing annoyances aside, I suspect there are other protections built into the chamber’s structure. Honestly you might want to reconsider being in here for long, in case they have a means of detecting you we can’t see.”

“I had considered this, and was probing the chamber during that conversation you were having,” Sombra’s voice replied, “I detect no wards, at least not at the chamber threshold. You are right, however, that I am unsure I can break that barrier that holds you. I’ve... lost a great deal of power since I reigned over the Crystal Empire. I would need to find a means to shut your bonds off, rather than destroy them outright.”

“No easy feat, I imagine,” Discord said, to which his mind’s wit rapidly went down a different track, much as he was loathe to consider it, “Which means if I’m going to be frank about this, you’re best move would be to forget about freeing me and instead get your shadowy rear end back to Equestria. Tell the Princesses where this fortress is. Let them rain their Harmony flavored wrath upon this place. They’re good at that.”

“I confess I had considered that as an alternative, but thought I’d at least consult with you first before deciding a course of action,” Sombra replied in a solemn breath, “I’ve already scouted outside. We’re in a canyon in what appears to be the middle of a desert. Fortunately my travels with Radiant Hope did prepare me with some awareness of geography, so I feel somewhat confident in saying this is the Bone Dry Desert. I can travel fast by night, what with all the shadows, but by day I’ll be heavily restricted in how I can shadow walk. That means it will probably take me at least a couple of days to return to Canterlot. Can you hold out that long?”

“Mind numbing boredom aside, this is hardly the worst imprisonment I’ve had to endure,” Discord said, recalling with unpleasant vividness his long entrapment in stone, every utterly slow second of it, “Believe me, this is nothing. So do get moving, Sombra. The longer you stay here, the more likely you’ll be caught, and then we’ll both be swimming down the creek with too many paddles and not enough arm floaties.”

“...I...see. Very well. Take care, and hopefully when we speak next, it will be under the light of the sun.”

----------

The Treasury’s medical bay was quite full after the events of the day. Not only was Wavecrest there, but the addition of both Flash Sentry and Rarity meant that most of the beds were now occupied. For Flash and Rarity it was a simple matter of them both having received the worst of the injuries during the fight with Charybdis, although none had gone unscathed and hence everypony had spent at least some time being checked over and treated. It was just that those two in particular had been deemed in need of additional bedrest and care, with Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie taking up the role of nurses, Fluttershy due to actual medical experience, and Pinkie because her Inheritor powers lent themselves well to a form of healing magic via soothing songs that accelerated recovery rates.

This was especially important in Wavecrest’s case, as the seapony had lost so much blood she was nearly comatose. Indeed, even with Pinkie Pie and Flash having both used their powers of healing upon the mare, Wavecrest remained dangerously close to the edge of death through the hours since the Treasury departed the Abyss.

The ship had not returned to the air, but instead now cruised upon the sea’s surface, partially submerged. This meant some of it’s chambers could be filled with seawater to make life easier for the freed seapony slaves, and Fluttershy’s pet shark, while other chambers remained air filled for those accustomed to land. The medical bay was one such chamber, as the water wouldn’t really aid in Wavecrest’s recovery, at least not to anypony’s knowledge. What she needed was a fresh transfer of blood, and Fluttershy had checked everypony’s blood type to see if any were compatible with Wavecrest.

The fact that Fluttershy could do this by tasting said blood was... unsettling, but Fluttershy assured them that her memories as Penthia showed that for the ancient alicorn this particular affinity for blood was entirely natural. Twilight had no reason to doubt her friend, but to say it was a little “weird” would have been a serious understatement. Despite that oddity, Twilight had no objection to sharing blood with Wavecrest, as it turned out Twilight had a compatible blood type. So she’d spent quite a bit of time in the medical bay, hooked up via old but magically preserved seapony healing equipment that used tubes and pumps to let blood transfer between her and Wavecrest.

It looked as if Wavecrest would indeed pull through, and Twilight was relieved by the fact. Besides that, she really needed to talk to Wavecrest once she was awake. There was a lot to discuss concerning Charybdis’ ultimate fate, and just how seapony relations with the sahuagin would be handled going forward. Wavecrest was the only pony Twilight knew with any knowledge and authority concerning the seapony tribes, so was Twilight’s best ticket to working something out that wouldn’t result in an immediate resuming of bloodshed between sahuagin and seapony.

When Wavecrest finally began to stir, Twilight was fast to call upon Fluttershy, who’d gone to get a quick meal in the galley. The com system reached the whole ship, so contacting her was easy, and in minutes Fluttershy was breezing into the medical lab to check upon Wavecrest’s condition and monitor her as she awoke, while unhooking Twilight from the pumps that had provided the means to donate blood.

Slowly did Wavecrest’s eyes crack open, her mouth issuing out a long and dry rasp as she asked, “I am alive, then?”

“Thanks to everypony helping, especially Twilight who gave blood to help you recover,” Fluttershy said with a wave of relieved happiness in her voice as she checked the seapony’s pulse and provided a glass of water for Wavecrest to drink. The mare downed it rapidly and coughed, not quite rising in her bed as she turned grateful looks between Fluttershy and Twilight.

“To give your blood to save me... you have my thanks. And I take it since we are all here talking, and not chained to a sacrificial altar or dead, that we won? Charybdis is no more?”

Twilight pursed her lips and figured she may as well get right to the meat of things, “Defeated, yes, but still here. Imprisoned on the ship.”

Wavecrest’s look was rather incredulous, to say the least. She forced herself into a sitting position, her eyes now growing intense as flames, “Tell me everything that has happened.”

It was with no embellishment that Twilight proceeded to do exactly that, relating the full tale of the infiltration of Rift Mouth and the resulting battle with Charybdis. She ended with the simple statement of, “She’s now locked tightly inside the ship’s brig, fully contained inside my spells, which I’ve grounded with enough magic to last until long after my friends and I will return to Equestria. There I fully intend to lay her crimes out to the other Princesses and recommend she be interred inside Tartarus for an indefinite period, perhaps for the rest of her natural life.”

She waited for Wavecrest’s response, carefully observing the seapony’s expression. Her face remained still as dead wood for a long time, Wavecrest not looking at Twilight but rather at an indistinct point in the distance. Her lips twitched a few times, and her seapony tail lashed once or twice as her mind churned things over. Finally she said, “It would have been so much simpler if she’d simply died in battle. She deserves death, for the ruin she has wrought upon my people.”

Twilight swallowed with a dry mouth, but did not turn from Wavecrest, and kept her voice even and calm. “I understand how you feel. Time and again my friends and I have battled villains that threatened disaster upon everypony and everything I cherish. There have been times I’ve thought it would be easier if they all just... disappeared. Yet for many of those I once fought, some now stand beside me as friends and allies. Not all of them, but some. I don’t expect that ever to be the case with Charybdis. I’m not sure she deserves it, either, but Equestrian justice is built around either containing evil, or bringing it to the light of Harmony. I can’t undo the horrors she visited upon your people, Wavecrest. I can only promise she won’t ever be able to do so again, one way or another. Can you... accept this? Will your people accept this?”

To Twilight’s surprise there was light breath of a chuckle from Wavecrest, although it was a somewhat cynical one that was more injected with ironic amusement rather than genuine mirth. “We will have no choice. In seapony culture, one keeps what one claims through conquest. It was not the seapony tribes that raided the Abyss itself and laid the sahaugin’s Deep Mistress low. It was you, Princess, and your fellow warriors who braved the depths, cleared Aqualania, claimed the Treasury, acquired the power of ancient gods, and then in her very own lair tore the plans of Charybdis asunder and humbled the ocean’s most deadly witch. For all intents and purposes, by seapony law this would mean Equestria conquered the Abyss, and as such Charybdis is yours to do with as you please. Some may balk and bray for her death, but law is law. We did not capture her, so she is not ours to claim.”

“Oh my, does this mean that the seaponies will leave the sahuagin alone then?” asked Fluttershy, to which Wavecrest gave a shallow nod.

“In effect the Abyss will be seen as an Equestrian territory, now. You did essentially conquer it, even if strictly speaking that is not the entire truth,” she gave Twilight a level stare, “You claim that Charybdis ordered her minions to no longer seek conflict with us?”

“She did. Her remaining head shaman and a single warrior she made into a champion were given explicit orders to protect their people and not attack seapony settlements. I think she knew that without her, the seapony tribes could wipe the sahuagin out,” Twilight said, only pausing briefly to add, “Monster or not, she cares about them.”

“It earns little clemency from me,” Wavecrest said, eyes heated with hate, but her voice controlled, “Yet I will not deny that I have been thinking hard about the nature of our war with the sahuagin, and cannot claim we lack any responsibility for the ongoing bloodshed. I...”

She sucked in a breath and coughed, briefly wincing in pain before continuing, “I joined your quest, Twilight Sparkle, because I sensed opportunity. To aid my people, to bring them power and prosperity. In my wildest ambitions I even imagined I would claim the Eye of the Sea for myself, perhaps even crush Charybdis and the sahuagin with Aqualania’s reborn might. Yet now.... hah, it seems I was as foolish as Scylla and Charybdis. The Eye never belonged to me, or even my people. It seems those sirens are Domare’s true heirs. And my dream of bloody retribution upon the sahuagin was as misguided as Scylla’s of conquering the surface.”

Her self-deprecating tone soon shifted to one of determination as she reached out to place a weak hoof on Twilight’s shoulder, “But you have indeed done much for me and the seapony tribes. I admired Scylla’s drive, and still do, but I shall bend it to better aims. I can make no guarantees, but I shall do all I can to ensure the seapony tribes leave the Abyss and its inhabitants alone. As a ‘Equestrian’ territory, it would be foolish to encroach upon it anyway. Instead... I think the remaining years of my life will be spent in helping those that wish it to resettle and restore Aqualania. Our forebears hold many great techniques of engineering and magic to uncover, and while I will never seek conquest of the surface, I still wish to see my people grow and prosper. This will, I hope, mark a new beginning for the oceans, for all of us.”

“I’m glad to hear that, Wavecrest, and I think Equestria and the seapony tribes can become great friends in time. If you like, the Treasury is a seapony vessel, so-”

“No, you should keep it,” Wavecrest said simply, “Call it a whisper from the ocean spirits, but I think this vessel belongs in your hooves. Besides, there is still Scylla’s old ship I can study and perhaps one day restore. A lifetime of work to do, in Aqualania, but I feel... content. Charybdis is defeated, my people’s ancestral homeland is open to be explored and resettled, and the future looks far brighter today than it did yesterday. For all of that, you have my deepest thanks, Twilight Sparkle.”

She let out another painful cough, and Fluttershy was quick to lay gentle yet firm hooves upon the seapony to make her lay back down, “Okay, I think you still need rest, Miss Wavecrest. Let’s not push it and undo all that nice, healthy healing.”

“Heheh, yes ma’am,” Wavecrest said, with only a little bit of wryness as she let the pegasus tuck her back into the bed like a mother with her foal. “I do feel as if I could... sleep for...”

She didn’t even finish the sentence before she was out again, snoring lightly. Twilight looked questioningly at Fluttershy, who simply smiled and said, “She’ll be okay, she just needs a lot more rest to really recover. But she won’t need any more blood transfusions, so I think that you should probably go get some rest yourself, Twilight. You did as much and more as any of us today and you must be exhausted.”

This did trigger a bit of yawn from Twilight who realized now just how utterly bone tired she really was, “That, uh, sounds like a fantastic idea. You’ll let me know if you need anything or an emergency pops up?”

“Of course, now go to bed, Twilight. I think the world can survive at least one day with you in bed.”

“Hmmm, sometimes I wonder about that,” Twilight said, only half serious as she departed the medical bay, only pausing briefly to check on Flash Sentry, who was asleep himself. She couldn’t help but smile at him, and feel her cheeks heat up a bit as she patted his mane affectionately.

We finally have everything taken care of, and we’re both too exhausted and wounded to pick up where we left off. I guess we’ll work things out later.

As she departed, she didn’t quite notice the way his Zanpaktou, sheathed and propped up on the wall next to his bed, briefly glowed with a deep lavender magic that matched her own.

----------

To Flash Sentry the ascent up the winding mountain steps took both an eternity and was all but instant. The steps were overgrown with moss and jungle vines that carpeted swaths of the tall spire or rock that shot through a sea of clouds to reach towards the blue sky. As always he was sweat soaked before his climb finished, the journey never getting easier no matter how many times he’d done this. At the end of the path was a wide, carved out area in which stone pillars carved with the images of monkeys flanked a practice area of cobblestones. Here, dozens of wooden poles rose to varying heights, and beyond them, a faded red and gold shrine in front of the mountain’s peak sat like a waiting sentinel.

Standing balanced upon one furry foot upon the tallest pole in the practice area was a creature that looked like a monkey, but with human proportions and a wild mane of white hair and a long beard that was braided. He wore a light set of red lacquered samurai armor, only the chest piece and waist guards, while the rest was covered in a loose set of martial arts gi that was colored bright yellow. The monkey had his eyes closed and hands held in front of him in a meditative pose as Flash approached, but the moment Flash entered the practice area the monkey opened golden eyes and vanished in a blink.

Flash reacted naturally, sweeping out his right arm to block the incoming heel kick from behind, but still failed to defend against the follow up palm strike at his gut that knocked him off his feet and sent him sprawling amid the wooden poles, grunting.

The monkey dusted himself off with the gaze of a wizened master and said in an aged, gravely, yet still strong voice, “One day you will block the second strike. Perhaps soon. You were a mite quicker this time. Found some new focus.”

Flash looked up as the monkey proffered a hand and took it, getting back on his feet. Here, in his Zanpaktou’s Inner World, he had his human form, and while he’d come to appreciate his pegasus shape in Equestria, it did feel nice to have hands and feet again, if only in this dream-like place.

“A lot’s happened, Kochi, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

The monkey, Kochi Yojinbo, dropped his severity and cracked a lecherous smile, “As if I wouldn’t be paying attention, my boy! Seem to have landed yourself quite the exotic beauty. If you need any pointers on your ‘swordsmanship’, just let me know.”

Flash tried and failed to not roll his eyes as he crossed his arms, “Pervy old monkey. I can work things out with Twilight just fine on my own. And I know you didn’t bring me here to just talk about that.”

“Why not? These ponies may be different than humans, but I’m certainly not ignoring those rear curves.”

At Flash’s glare Kochi Yojinbo’s smile softened and he threw up his hands, strolling past Flash and gesturing for him to follow the Zanpaktou spirit to the shrine, “Oh fine, boy, you’re no fun when you get like this. But yes, you’re right, I didn’t drag you in here to talk about your purple paramour, much fun as that subject is. At least, not about what you do or don’t get up to with her in bed. This does actually have to do with her, just not in that way.”

The shrine was not a large building, but within was a open walled space dedicated to an altar upon which was a number of incense candles and a scroll hung from a golden pole. Upon the scroll was written kanji that, when translated, roughly stated; ‘One Life for One Cause’. It was a credo, something that Flash Sentry had discovered about himself as he’d struggled to bond more deeply with his Zanpaktou. When he’d first come here, the shrine had been closed, and he’d needed to train hard with Kochi Yojinbo to gain the skill to block one of his strikes.

When Flash had successfully blocked that first strike, Kochi had opened the shrine, revealed that scroll, and Shikai had become unlocked for Flash. Since then Flash had trained often so one day he might block Kochi’s second strike, but so far to no avail. He didn’t know if blocking the second strike would unveil a new technique, or in Flash’s more wild dreams he imagined some great height like Bankai, but regardless he’d never succeeded.

The shrine itself had remained unchanged every time he’d visited this Inner World, until today. As he looked at the scroll, he noticed the vivid display of purple light that played across it. It was as if the scroll was bathing in a stream of continuous magic. Twilight’s magic.

“Well... that’s weird,” he said, and Kochi let out a guffaw.

“Weird, he says. Our Princess has left us an interesting, if I suspect unintended, gift. I can feel this magic permeating me.”

“It’s going to wear off, right? I mean, Twilight shoved her magic into us, sure, but that was just so we could deliver that critical blow to Charybdis. The scroll will go back to normal once the magic runs out,” Flash surmised, but his Zanpaktou Spirit’s look told him otherwise.

“Don’t think so, boy. This magic energy got imprinted on us, like an inked tattoo.”

Flash thought about that for a moment, “This isn’t a bad thing, is it? I mean, the only point of comparison I’ve got is Sunset and her Zanpaktou. Magic has pretty much only benefited them.”

“Not a bad thing, no. Feels more like parts of me are being oiled up and sharpened. Energized. Also changed. Paths not so much being opened as being created. Might be in store for some renovations around this place, before long. And not just because of this little injection of magic.”

Kochi indicated a set of sitting mats that were placed across from each other in front of the shrine. This was where he and Flash would often sit to mediate after practice. Flash nodded and sat down, legs crossed, and Kochi did the same by plopping himself down on the opposite mat. The two locked eyes as Kochi said, “You’ve changed. Where before there was uncertainty as to your purpose, those clouds have cleared.”

No point denying it, not that Flash had any desire to. He simply bowed his head and stated the truth, “Yes. For the longest time I didn’t really know if I was on the right path, as a Soul Reaper. One doesn’t usually stay in the Thirteenth Division forever. You eventually move on, once you’ve found a greater purpose to serve in Soul Society. But I could never find that. There was always this faint sense of... unease. Doubt, yeah. Even when Captain Celestia made me her Lieutenant, I didn’t fully felt like I belonged. Grateful as I am to her, and happy as I was to serve, something felt off even then.”

“Then you met a girl,” Kochi said, a hint of his lecherous smile back, but only for a moment. Flash nodded, remembering fondly that chance run in with a very odd, nerdy purple girl who didn’t seem to fully understand the human world.

“Yeah. Who’d have thought? Even if spending time with her became an order to observe her, once we knew who and what she was, that didn’t really change the way I started to feel. Even those feelings I doubted for a long time. Were they real? Even if they were, was there a future for me and her? Did she even want me in that way, me a Soul Reaper from a world that wasn’t hers?”

“And despite all that, she’s accepted you. Reciprocated the feelings carved onto your soul. In so doing, your duty and allegiance has changed irrevocably,” Kochi Yojinbo stated, “And as a result you’ve also gained clarity and focus. You know your purpose.”

“Yes,” Flash’s eyes gazed upon the scroll, with its credo now wreathed in Twilight’s flames of magic, “One Life for One Cause. I am hers completely. I am her yojinbo. Even if I have to end up cutting all ties with Soul Society, I’ll do so with a clear heart. Wherever Twilight goes from now on, I intend to be by her side. To protect her from her enemies, to serve her as both a warrior and as man, for as long as she’ll have me.”

“Hmm,” Kochi mischievously rubbed his bearded chin with his fuzzy fingers, “Now what’s that slang term you teenagers use for this. Something that rhymes with ‘chimp’?”

Flash snorted and made a rude gesture at his Zanpaktou Spirit, “Dang it, Kochi, I’m being serious here.”

“I know, boy, and I’m damned glad for it. Been waiting for you to really, truly dedicated yourself to a cause. Especially if that cause is a pretty girl with a nice a-”

“Does some Zanpaktou want to be cleaned again, ever?” Flash asked pointedly, and Kochi raised his hands in mock surrender.

“Personality! I was going to say personality! Ahem, salvaging my dignity, I’ll say this much; you’ve reached the point now that it is possible to reach greater heights.”

“Do you mean...?” Flash began leading, hopeful, but Kochi held up a patient palm.

“Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves. What power you seek to remain ever at our Princess’ side may one day be yours, but Bankai is not something that is so readily granted even when the Zanpaktou Spirit wants to. What I am saying is that you are ready to begin that final accent, and the magic our Princess has imparted to us may aid in the quest. You must still make the climb yourself, Flash Sentry. I am merely telling you the time to make that climb has come. The rest is in your hands, and it is not something that I can help you with beyond opening the door.”

At Flash’s questioning gaze, Kochi stood and went to a spot to the right of the shrine where the open wall had a wooden railing separating the shrine from the rock face of the mountain’s peak. With a gesture the old monkey spirit brushed aside some moss to reveal a doorway in the stone itself that Flash had never seen and was certain had not been there before. The door of stone made little noise as it opened, revealing beyond it a... well not so much a path as a very sharp, near vertical and jagged series of jutting stones and slick, lichen covered partial steps that seemed to ascend even higher up the mountain peak. Gazing upward, Flash could see that mountain’s highest point vanished into the blue of the sky, as if piercing into unseen heavens beyond. The path looked ever more treacherous and difficult the higher it went.

“Can I climb that?”

“If you desire the strength to remain at Twilight Sparkle’s side in the battles to come, you must answer that question. This path will not be ascended in a day, or a week, boy. I cannot help you past this point. Kochi Yojinbo is not merely myself, it is this mountain itself. The mountain your own soul has made to test you. Climb if you can, and if you reach the top, then I think when I see you again you will be able to block my second strike.”

The task looked beyond daunting. There was no walking on ‘air’ in this place, no Flash Step to help him. In his Inner World, Flash was but a man. Not every Inner World was like that, but Kochi Yojinbo’s had always been thus for him. So to climb this new path to the mountains highest peak he would need to do it on pure will alone. He could only imagine how many times he might fall before he made it, if he could make it.

But all he needed to do was to think of her. Human or pony, he could only feel his heart warm at the image of her in his mind. For Twilight Sparkle, ascending one measly mountain felt suddenly quite doable.

“Well, no time like the present. Let’s do this.”

----------

Wing maintenance was a regular part of any pegasus’ daily life, but after any kind of rough flying it became doubly important, and battling a mad megalomaniacal mare who was supercharged on ancient alicorn magic juice at the bottom of the ocean definitely counted among Rainbow Dash’s most rough flights to date. She’d found a comfortable perch near the bow of the Treasury, enjoying the feeling of the sea breeze that washed over the deck. Removing damaged feathers one by one, she was focused enough on her work to barely notice it by the time another pair of firm, strong hooves started removing others on her other wing. Her brain simply clicked over to accepting this as familiar, even as she knew this wasn’t normal.

“Thank you, Althea. You always have such a gentle touch for this.”

“Dash?”

Her brain had a bit of a misfire as the voice and name didn’t quite register, then quickly flashed reality at her as she blinked and saw Applejack had laid down next to her on the deck. Squawking in a guttural yip of alarm, Rainbow Dash rolled over and away from Applejack like the other mare was on fire, leaping to her hooves and poised to run. At least until she realized how silly she must look, and how Applejack was looking at her in confusion, at which point Dash took a calming breath and quickly folded her wings tight at her side, blue face burning cherry.

“W-w-what are you up to, AJ? Didn’t know you knew how to help a pegasus with their wings like that.”

Applejack bit her lip for a second, glancing down at her hooves before saying, “Don’t think I do know. Just kinda did it without the thinkin’ part. Must’ve been comin’ from Althea. Think she helped Tachys with his wings, way back when.”

“Oh. Neat. Suuuper neat,” Rainbow said, shuffingling on her hooves and giving a furtive look across the deck at the doors back into the ship, as if planning a retreat route.

“Dash,” Applejack said in that serious farm mare tone of hers, “We gotta talk ‘bout this. Like, really talk it over.”

“What’s there to talk about? So our previous lives, or super alicorn magic donor dudes, or whatever you want to call them, were hooked up? What’s that matter?” Rainbow said, perhaps faster and louder than she really intended, but she had a weird jitter in her heart that was pure confusion fuel for her and she didn’t like feeling confused and even a little scared. Give her a giant mutant magic monster like Charybdis to battle any day over having to deal with something even half as intimidating as a talk like this. Especially with Applejack.

“I don’t get it, why’re ya being such a stubborn mule ‘bout this?” Applejack asked, standing up herself, “Not like I’m comin’ on ta ya, Dash! I just want ta clear the air. Talk things out nice and simple like so we can come ta terms with the fact that we got these memories in us, an’ can move on from them. Yer my friend, maybe my closest one outta our circle, an’ I don’t want ta keep havin’ this feelin’ in me like I ought ta be avoiding ya just ‘cause I got Althea’s memories in my head.”

“Yeah, well, maybe a bit of distance is what I need right now, AJ. Seriously, did it ever occur to you that some of us don’t do so hot with this whole ‘honest talk’ thing!?”

“Well i don’t rightly now how else we’re gonna deal with it ‘cept by doin’ this. Longer we avoid it, the worse it feels like the tension gets, an’ I don’t much like feeling like I can’t even go near my best friend...” Applejack said, ears drooping, and Rainbow Dash had to grit her teeth against the overwhelming strong urge that burst in her heart to go and wrap her wings and arms around the mare as tightly as she could. Because she didn’t know if this feeling of warmth and need, of wanting nothing more than to hold Applejack, was coming from her or was coming from him.

Tachys loved Althea, as fiercely and strongly as any could love another. And the fact is that Rainbow Dash had, for a long time, had a low key crush on the mare standing across from her. She’d never pursued it because, well, she and Applejack had just worked so damned well as friends that she really hadn’t wanted to risk ruining that dynamic. Just as Applejack considered Dash their closest friend among their circle of six, the feeling was mutual. So tossing a wrench into things by trying to push that to some other level had always frightened Rainbow Dash.

Now she had Tachys’ memories all but blowing the lid off of that, and she didn’t even know if the desire to be with Applejack was even genuinely hers anymore. The only thing worse than ruining their friendship with a botched romance would be doing that because of somepony else’s memories! At least if Dash had worked up the courage to ask Applejack out on her own the potential future screw ups and drama would be her own honest fault. She’d be damned if she’d let some eons old alicorn’s memories do that.

“AJ... I can’t just...” she struggled to push words past the lockdown on her thoughts and constriction in her throat, “I don’t know what’s me when I’m around you. Everything feels like way too much. I don’t want to hurt you. I’d hate myself for the rest of my life if I did that.”

“Ya ain’t gonna hurt me, Dash, no matter what ya do,” Applejack said, taking a step closer to Rainbow, but the pegasus backed up and equal step, and Applejack halted, eyes going downcast, “But if space is what ya say ya need, I’ve got no right ta push it. Just promise that when yer ready to talk, really talk, you’ll come ta me an’ we’ll sort this all out.”

It took Rainbow Dash a moment, but she got her breathing under control, and despite still feeling that distracting clench in her heart and heat on her face, she affected what she hoped was at least a somewhat cool look as she put a wing to her chest, “It’s a promise, AJ.”

“Alright then, guess I’ll, uh... leave ya to it, then,” Applejack said, and started to turn, but Rainbow Dash moved a bit to not quite block her, but rather just hold up a wing in her general direction.

“Hold up. Just because I need space doesn’t mean I don't want to hang out, AJ! Just don’t want to... you know, talk about feelings type stuff. But, hey, maybe if you’re up to some fun? Deck is large enough for a horseshoe tossing game. Oh, or maybe some exercises! Bet I can out do you on any exercise you care to name.”

Applejack's expression was at first a flat, eyebrow raising ‘Really?’ look, but it soon morphed into one of content if fired up competitiveness that reminded Rainbow Dash of why she and the farm mare got along so well in the first place, “Yer sure soundin’ confident, but I’ve been feelin’ even more hardy than ever since this Inheritor business! Bet I could bust out a thousand pushups without breakin’ a sweat!”

“Pfft, that’s nothing! I could do two thousand! And do them faster than you!”

“Care ta prove it?” Applejack asked, smiling, and Rainbow Dash beamed that smile right back.

“You’re on!”

----------

Over the course of the next day the Treasury returned to southern waters. By late afternoon, Wavecrest was well enough to move, and seemed to grow stronger by the hour, although that might have simply been the seapony pushing herself a little, despite Fluttershy’s protestations that she ought to get another day of bed rest.

“I’ve rested enough, and have a lifetime or work ahead of me,” was Wavecrest’s reply.

Now that they were well away from the Abyss, Wavecrest claimed it was as good a time as any for her and the freed seapony slaves to depart. Despite Twilight saying that they could take them the entire way back to her tribe’s territory, Wavecrest said that they were more than close enough for them to swim the remaining distance and that Twilight and her friends had more important places to be.

“Do not fear for me or my people,” Wavecrest had told Twilight as she led the other seaponies into the calm ocean waters, while Twilight and the others watched on from the deck of the ship, “We all know our way in these seas, the the spirits of the ocean guide our course. You, Twilight Sparkle, must stay your own course, for the sake of all of both our nations.”

“I will, Wavecrest, and thank you,” Twilight said, and behind her Pinkie Pie jumped up and down, waving to the seaponies.

“Take it super-easy guys and make parties, not war! If any of you want i can give you a copy of my detailed party planning cookbook, with more than a thousand ways to cook up the perfect celebration for any occasion, including ‘Yay We Just Got Saved From Slavery and Death’, which is weird because I never imagined I’d need that one but one night I had a dream that-”

“I think they get the idea, Pinkie,” said Starlight, who upon Wavecrest and the other seaponies departing joined Twilight as they went back into the ship and said, “Hey, before we drop Admiral Seaspray off at Mt. Aris, Tempest Shadow wants to talk.”

“Hmm?” Twilight had nearly forgotten about the often glowering Tempest Shadow, but then again the past couple of days had put a lot on her plate. Charybdis wasn’t talking much but still required constant surveillance, and Twilight was turning her mind mostly towards what to do once she returned to Ponyville. Tempest Shadow had sort of slipped through her mental cracks.

Starlight led her to the main meeting room they’d used for planning the raid on the Abyss, where she found Tempest Shadow waiting for her, alongside her odd hedgehog-like companion Grubber, and surprisingly Admiral Seaspray as well, all seated at the table.

“Ah, Princess, glad you’re here,” said Seaspray, “We were just discussing Tempest Shadow’s... status, and what it entails, going forward.”

Tempest glared, but there was oddly a sense of respect in her eyes as well as she nodded at the hippogryph, “The Admiral and I have got to talking. Technically I’m still a criminal by the laws of Mt. Aris, but am paying off my debt by helping you.”

“Quite right,” Seaspray nodded, “And technically by providing what aid you’ve been able in defeating a national-level threat like Charybdis I can relay to Queen Novo that you service in repaying your crimes has been discharged. That said, there is the matter of your former master.”

“Former master...?” Twilight took a seat, glancing at Starlight who did the same next to her.

“She’s referring to that Storm King guy who led the army we saw trashed outside Klugetown,” Starlight said, “The one my human self wasted the main body of at Mt. Aris before stealing both the Storm King and the hippogrphyon’s Pearl of Changing.”

“Right, right, ugh, had a lot on my mind, a lot of that kind of got pushed into the back burner,” Twilight said, rubbing her forehead, “So what do you all need to talk to me about, exactly?”

Admiral Seaspray cleared his throat and tapped his claws on the table, “As Miss Wavecrest was generous enough to make no claim on the Treasury, you’ve got yourself a fine ship to facilitate travel all over the world. However I note you could still use a dedicated crew, and... well to put it simply, I am a loyal hippogryph of Mt. Aris, and of Queen Novo’s navy, so I cannot remain as captain. However, I can oversee the orientation of a new commanding officer, and training of new crew, assuming they’re not so stubborn they won’t listen to an experienced soldier’s advice.”

Tempest snorted, but also smiled at the same time, “I’m a solider too, you windbag, but I admit you’ve got nautical experience I lack. And especially Grubber lacks.”

“Hey, I steered this tub just fine when we were surrounded by angry fish dudes!” Grubber pointed out, and Twilight’s eyebrows shot up.

“Wait, so... Tempest, am I getting from this that you and Grubber want to, what? Sign on as crew on the Treasury long term? I thought you wanted me to help you find and free this Storm King guy from the human world’s Starlight Glimmer.”

“Oh, that’s still on the docket,” Tempest Shadow said, but her mouth quirked into a thoughtful press as she smoothed out her mohawk of a mane, “But here’s the thing with that. Storm King, I served him because he promised me a way to fix my horn. Not sure how he planned to do that, but it somehow involved a planned invasion of Equestria.”

“I...see,” Twilight said, eyes narrowing slightly, and Tempest cleared her throat and held up a hoof.

“Just to make it clear, I’m not planning on helping him do that, even after we manage to find him. I’m only doing that out of... I guess you could call it residual loyalty. He did give me place to belong, when I was wandering and lost, Twilight. I owe him at least one jailbreak, but after that I’m thinking me and him won’t have much reason to stick together. Not like he’s got an army left for me to command, and me and Grubber are pretty much soldiers without a cause.”

“Except you could say we’ve taken a liking to this shiny ship,” Grubber pipped up, grinning, “I mean we worked on airships mostly in the Storm King’s fleet, so we’ve got at least partial experience with what the Treasury can do. The water stuff is going to take some more getting used to, but that’s what ol’ Seaspray’s advice and training will help out with.”

“Ahem, essentially so, yes,” Seaspray confirmed, “If it pleases you, I’ll remain on the Treasury for a time to help train crew, and perhaps after a few weeks to a month, when I’m confident they have a handle on things, I’ll return to Mt. Aris. Then Tempest Shadow will take over as command staff. Again, with your approval.”

“Would you be interested in that long term?” Twilight asked Tempest, “I always got the impression you had a fair amount of disdain for Equestria. You’d be serving me, and by extension, Equestria, if you stayed on this ship.”

Tempest Shadow’s expression showed a rather complex cocktail of emotions, ranging from a brief flash of pain to old anger, and finally a sense of doubt and resolved acceptance all at once, “Won’t lie, I’ve got baggage about... home. I want my horn back, but I think I’ve got to accept that’s not happening anytime soon, if ever. Storm King is out, and I’ve got to deal with the reality in front of me. Just promise me you’ll help me find and save the furry idiot, and I’ll serve loyalty, Twilight Sparkle. I don’t have to like Equestria to do a job for it.”

“And we kind of like eating, so a job and pay would be awesome,” Grubber added, and Tempest coughed loudly.

“Yes, that too.”

Twilight glanced at Starlight, who just smiled and shrugged her shoulders, “Hey, you gave me a place to stay and an apprenticeship after I nearly wiped out the timeline. Figure these two are a drop in the bucket compared to that.”

Twilight couldn’t refute that logic, and so looked at Tempest and Grubber with a welcoming smile, “Well then, I suppose I’ll just say ‘welcome aboard’.”

----------

So it was after a brief, half a day pitstop at Mt. Aris for Admiral Seaspray to report back to Queen Novo and for the ship to take on a fresh batch of supplies that wasn’t ancient preserved seapony foodstuffs, the Treasury made the final flight back northward to Equestria.

Although strictly speaking they had not been gone that long, Twilight still felt her heart swell with an incredible wave of relief and happiness as she saw the familiar green forests and fields of the Equestrian heartland fill the forward viewport of the Treasury. Even more so when the massive mountain spire with the white towers of Canterlot began to appear on the horizon. She thought she might have started to tear up a bit, when minutes later, the familiar thatched roofs of Ponyville started to show up ahead as well.

“Home at last...” she breathed, and felt a warm wing on her back and glanced over to lean her head in a bit on Flash Sentry's neck.

"Glad I could get you back here in one piece," he said, "Here's hoping we get some time to relax before the next big crisis."

"I don't know how long it will be, but you can bet I'll be making sure we both get some time to ourselves," Twilight promised, and for once didn't find herself embarrassed at the knowing smirks from some of her friends, all of whom had come to the bridge to observe their arrival in Ponyville.

Twilight turned to Tempest Shadow, who was settled in and getting used to the captain’s chair now that Admiral Seaspray was taking on the role of mentor. The Admiral remained on the bridge, but standing off to the side, only providing advice here and there when needed.

“Tempest, if you’d be so kind as to bring us in on those fields to the south of Ponyville? That should be just large enough for us to make a clean landing," Twilight said.

Tempest gave a quick not, rapidly adjusting to her new role, “Aye, Princess. Ahem, Grubber, slow us down to one fourth speed and start to deploy the landing struts.”

“Got it, boss lady!” Grubber said, to which she glared at him and he quickly cleared his throat and corrected, “I mean, got it captain.”

“Oh man, everypony in town is gonna flip seeing us coming down in this ship!” Rainbow Dash said, bouncing on her hooves, “Scootaloo is going to love checking the ship out.”

“Was thinkin’ the same ‘bout Applebloom,” Applejack said, “Wonder how the farm’s been gettin’ on since we’ve been gone?”

“Well we haven’t been gone for really all that long,” Fluttershy said, “But I understand the worry. I made sure somepony would be able to check in on my animals and Angel, but you never know...”

“Come now, let’s not dampen the happy occasion of our return with sour worries,” Rarity said, “We’re returning triumphant heroes, ladies. Let us enjoy the occasion.”

“Darn tootin’ sister!” Pinkie Pie said, hugging Rarity, “This is going to involve the biggest party. I’m talking about breaking out the good stuff from my hyper-secret stash. Never before seen Pinkie recipes that will blow. Your. MIND.”

“And I’m suddenly scared for my health,” Starlight said, and next to her Trixie whispered in Starlight’s ear.

“Would it be safe to not rsvp a Pinkie Party?”

“Only if you don’t mind being stalked by her when her hair turns straight,” Starlight said, to which Trixie blinked in both equal levels of worry, fear, and confusion.

“Please tell me these secret recipes somehow involve alcohol,” said Aria from her seat at one of the weapons consoles. She and Sonata had no plans to remain on the ship as crew, but the pair had gotten used to the plush chairs during the journey.

“Is it a Monday? We could do margarita Mondays!” said Sonata, to which Pinkie waved her hooves with a devilish grin.

“Ladies, ladies, dooooon’t you worry, when Pinkie plans a special party, things get wild in age-appropriate ways for all participants. That means if everypony, or siren, is of legal age, then, heheh, yeah, I’ve got you covered.”

“Looks like we’ve got a turnout to greet us,” Twilight noted, not surprised to see on the streets of Ponyville a large number of the inhabitants were coming outside or looking out windows at the sight of the massive and shining form of the Treasury flying low overhead while making its way to one of the wide and clear fields on the south side of town.

As they passed over the town, however, Twilight’s gaze was drawn to her castle. She hadn’t noticed it at first because her castle was mostly made of purple crystal, so the gigantic form nestled up against it had blended in. But now it looked almost like a whole portion of her castle detached and rose up, only now she saw clearly brilliantly bright purple scales that gleamed with reflected sunlight. This humongous form spread glinting wings of purple with deep green membranes, capped in emerald spikes and talons. A thickly armored body of dark purple that showed streaks of gold and green rose into the air upon hurricane wingbeats, and thick emerald ridge spikes marched up and down the beast’s colossal back leading up to a vast head crest flanked by swept back horns as large as trees.

Twilight, and all on the bridge, stood there in stunned silence as the dragon, nearly as large as the Treasury itself, took flight and pulled up alongside them, green eyes glinting as they stared into the window of the bridge.

Pinkie, in Pinkie fashion, just smiled and waved.

“Hiya Spike! We’re home! What’s new? You look different. Did you get a claw trim at the spa?”

Author's Notes:

While it might be a bit confusion, considering where we last left off with Spike, rest assured I'll go over that when it comes time. For now this wraps up the arc where the timelines converge, hence the chapter title, and next time we return to the human world. Now, granted, I will say that while the story is shifting it's main focus back to the human world, Equestrian segments will still occur. The timeline is going to stay steady between both, with probably a roughly 75/25 split in focus between human world events and Equestrian focused events, until things converge even more. But basically expect the sequence of events to advance together, without too much divergence from now on until the end of the story.

At any rate, I do hope you all enjoyed the chapter and thank everyone for reading. As always I highly appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time.

Episode 169: Now, Where Were We?

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Episode 169: Now, Where Were We?

A full moon sat ominous amid a dusting of clouds, casting its mystic silver grace upon the snoring suburban rooftops of Canterlot City. Citizens slept the night hours away, or watched late night shows upon glowing tv or phone screens. They all, by and large, sought to distract themselves from the growing awareness of oddity and mishap that pervaded their waking hours. More and more the fine, cosmopolitan folk of Canterlot City knew that something was amiss with their beloved town. The shocking violence of too many “accidental pipe explosions”, the gnawing commonality of “that person went missing”, and the hand wringing tendency to know someone who “saw something weird that one time” were all factors had begun to lead folk to the sense that more that mere misfortune was occurring behind the scenes.

Despite this, some had taken note of a decline in such unpleasantness over the past several days, as if a cloak of protective comfort had somehow been cast over the beleaguered town. The damages done not so long ago in the downtown district were being repaired at a rate one might describe as suspicious, if not for the fortuitousness of it all. Rumors abounded of several rich families, old money of the city’s founding, sparing no expense in paying crack construction crews to hasten a return to normalcy. Streets repaved, windows replaced, walls raised, all in the span of three or four days of mysteriously swift work.

It put some at ease, and raised questions from others, while some simply kept a closer eye out of their windows at night, wondering if they might catch sight of... certain rumors. The kind of rumors most laughed off. Ghosts and phantoms, cloaked figures, and costumed strangers, flitting about at all hours? Invisible beasts, howling in the night? Most chose to ignore and keep their heads down, business as usual in Canterlot City.

While others, others believed, and either watched with anticipating or dread, depending on the mindset. And in some cases, belief wasn’t a factor, because they’d lived through the truth. Such was the case of the young girl with skin the color of mint leaves, with disheveled, darker green hair that hung uncombed down her shoulders. A stripped brown sweater kept the night chill off her alongside faded jeans and a pair of unremarkable tennis shoes. Indeed the most remarkable factor about Wallflowers appearance was her utter lack of remarkable traits, quite suited to social camouflage, a regular old octopus of the people. She didn’t take any pride in her ability to be unnoticed, for she didn’t see it as a gift but rather an iron cross on her back.

She was a living contradiction of desperately wanting to be seen and heard by others while simultaneously being terrified of that very same thing. Her only comfort in life was her gardening, a hobby practiced in secret in a location only she knew of. Up until recently life was a boring malaise of day to day survival of a young person’s most deadly jungle; high school. She was no top predator, there, but at least had been “getting by” via the aforementioned octopus-like ability to blend into the scenery. Until Sunset Shimmer had ruined that streak by taking notice, and by extension, making Wallflower’s life a living hell for the duration of two whole school years. After which, inexplicably, Sunset had turned over a new leaf and become the school’s rising icon.

Wallflower had not grasped at all the logic of that transition, and it had become something of a bitter obsession with her. An obsession that might have led to more than one unforgiving fantasy or two concerning ways to get back at the bizarrely popular Sunset Shimmer and expose her as a fraud for all to see.

A plan that had died on the vine before ripening into anything solid due to the rather insane turn of events at Camp Everfree. Now Wallflower was simply baffled, horrified, and quite uncertain of what to do, given that the girl she’d been obsessively plotting against had been shown in no uncertain terms to be a literal superhero who, alongside those friends of hers, had saved not only Wallflower’s life, but the lives of the entire city.

It made any notion of payback for bullying, however nasty that bullying might have been, come off as just a tad petty, even to Wallflower. However rather than become less focused on Sunset Shimmer, the girl had only grown more fixated upon Sunset and her circle of friends. She wanted to understand what was going on. Maybe they’d know what this mysterious stone she found in her garden was all about? Not long after discovering it, she’d learned of its disturbing properties, allowing the holder to yank out memories from others and store them in the stone. It was useful for getting around undetected, she supposed, but she didn’t have any idea where it had come from. But it had to be connected to Sunset Shimmer and all the weird happenings, right?

Even if getting back at Sunset wasn’t really a goal anymore, Wallflower still wanted to confront her about everything. But finding her was proving to be a challenge. Summer had come and school was out, so there was no way to find her there. Wallflower had tried looking up Sunset’s address, but all that had turned up was a burned out apartment that had apparently had some kind of ‘gas leak’, which given what she’d seen at Camp Everfree, Wallflower didn’t buy that story one bit.

So, quite aimless, Wallflower had taken to wandering the streets during the evening, only starting the long walk home when it got to full dark out. She kept trying to frequent places teenagers might hang out during summer. Shopping malls, theaters, parks, anyplace open past dusk. So far all her efforts had garnered her were very sore feet and a lot of frustration.

I don’t even care about making her friend’s forget her or whatever. I just want to ask her what the heck all of this is about and if this weird stone has anything to do with it.

The ‘Memory Stone’ as she’d come to think of it was pretty plain, a simple hand sized rock of smooth oval shape. It had shallow carvings in it, the middle shaped like an eye, and a set of triangles above it and small swirls below it. It was shockingly easy to use. Wallflower had just thought it was a neat rock until it had responded to her desire to have people forget her embarrassing social blunders, at which point the stone had just seemed to activate at her will. Freaky, but somewhat handy. She’d had gotten rid of it already if she wasn’t afraid someone else might come across it and who knew what the stone might do in the hands of someone with zero scruples? A criminal could have a field day with this thing!

But Sunset Shimmer had to know what it was. All the weird stuff had only started happening when Sunset had shown up in Canterlot City. If Wallflower just handed it over to her she could wash her hands of all of this and just... go back to being unnoticed.

“Assuming I could find her. Ugh, why is it she was always around when I didn’t want to have to deal with her, but now that I’m trying to find her, she’s up and become a ghost!”

There was no one around to hear her little outburst, the suburban alleyway she was walking down quite devoid of people. There was a dark barking in the distance, but that was about it. Looking around, Wallflower shrugged off her frustration and felt a bit of cold biting at her that had nothing to do with the weather. This alley was a shortcut that got her closer to home, but it was suddenly looking a lot darker and less friendly than she remembered.

All those rumors of invisible monsters. I know they’re not all rumors now. not after Everfree. It’s safe, though, isn’t it?

Gulping, she resumed her walk down the alley, passing by a set of garbage cans. Just as she past them, she heard a crash and nearly jumped out of her shoes as she spun around to find one of the cans had fallen over. She saw a cat skitter away down the alley, and for a second thought maybe the cat had knocked the garbage can over. However her eyes were drawn upward slightly by an odd haze in the air, and that cold feeling from before intensified in an instant.

“W-who’s there?” she stammered, backing up. Something was definitely there! She couldn’t really see it, but then she didn’t really need to. That foreboding haze was enough, because it was all to similar in a chilling manner to the sensation she’d felt at Everfree.

Oh God, it’s one of them! N-need to run!

She told herself that, but her knees were locked up and the rest of her body wasn’t obeying her. The haze advanced, and to her shock it grew more solid. A figure of immense muscle and gray flesh took shape in front of her, bulging like a gorilla, but standing upon the clawed legs of something more like a lion. The face of the thing was covered in a horned mask of pale white, shaped into the form of a leering chameleon. It stood more than twice her height, and filled the alleyway with it’s menacing aura, one that nearly choked Wallflower as she sank to her knees, already crying.

To her further horror, the thing spoke, in a frightfully amiable, if grating tone.

“That’s a nice face you’re making. Always is worth it to reveal myself, just for the reactions. A lot of Hollows can’t do this, but my power is oh so flexible. I can make my reiatsu all but invisible, or even show myself off to those without a lick of spiritual ability. Like you, little girl.”

“W-w-w-w-” she was trying to speak, but nothing was coming out, and the thing let out a tittering and jubilant laugh.

“Wow, you’re really in the dark, huh girlie? Figured some of you locals would’ve caught on by now. Oh well, guess you weren’t considered special enough to get the low down. Weird, considering what you’re carrying. That rock of yours has got that magic the Espada are so keen on. I can advance from Adjuchas to Arrancar if I bring it to one of them. Grogar, or perhaps that newbie Adagio who’s got everyone’s tounges flapping. Granted this city has some nasty defenders, but I’ve made sure there’s some distractions running around to draw their attention while I handle you.”

“Th.. the stone?” Wallflower’s brain finally managed to fire off enough neurons that weren’t soaked in fear to actually think for two seconds. Her chest was tight and she felt as if she could barely breathe. Fear clogged her like frozen tar, but her hand still fumbled for where the Memory Stone was kept tucked away in a shoulder carry bag she kept on her.

“Ah, that’s the one,” the monstrous thing said as it loomed over her the moment Wallflower brought the stone out. She could see a sliver of the pale moon through the hole in the creature’s immense chest. “I can feel its irritating buzz of magic, but not from very far away. How lucky for me I came across you while snooping around this city, eh? Not only can I give the Espada intel, but this little gift too. And as an added bonus...”

A thick meatshield of a hand rose, pointed fingertips poised downward like knives aimed for Wallflower’s heart.

“I get a nice snack for the road. Good night, girlie. I’ll make it clean and quick.”

The thought sparked in her mind that maybe the Memory Stone might work against these strange masked monsters, but she was too petrified to act. All she could do was watch that claw descend and hope that the creature wasn’t lying, and that it would be quick.

Then her whole world just shifted. She felt wind, an immense sensation of vertigo, and surprisingly a warm set of arms around her that were holding her tightly. Wallflower blinked into a soft feminine chest covered in dark cloth and abruptly pulled her head back in stark confusion. “Wha-wha-wha-”

“Whew, looks like I made it just in time,” said a voice familiar to Wallflower, although she was used to hearing prideful snobbery in it rather than kind relief and soothing calm, “You okay?”

Wallflower’s brain managed to align with her babbling mouth long enough for her to blurt out, “What are you doing here, Sunset Shimmer!?”

It was indeed Sunset who was now holding Wallflower, one arm around her waist, another around her shoulders, in a protective and entirely too close hug for Wallflower’s sense of personal space! They had somehow instantly moved about fifty feet down the alley from where the masked beast was, it’s own clawed hand piercing the space Wallflower had been frozen in terror a mere eyeblink ago.

Sunset Shimmer was wearing a set of black robes with wide sleeves and baggy pants that covered most of her body, save for a pair of oddly styled sandals and socks that reminded Wallflower of some samurai movies she’d seen. Furthermore, there were odd, white leather shoulder pads on the robe that bore red straps that went around Sunset’s shoulder to connect to a belt around her waist that bore a distinct cherry red scabbard that housed a katana. Seemingly merged with the left breast of the robes was a white chevron shaped patch bearing a stylized skull emblem. Finally, Sunset was wearing a pair of black, fingerless gloves, which Wallflower might not have even noticed had Sunset not been holding her so close!

As if suddenly realizing the proximity, Sunset smiled in a way that was far too relaxed for Wallflower to comprehend, and let Wallflower go. “Oh, sorry, just had to hold you tight to extend my reiatsu around you so the Flash Step didn’t hurt you. Sure you’re okay? The Hollow didn’t touch you?”

“N...no,” Wallflower said, feeling lightheaded, her hand still clutching the Memory Stone. “Why are you...? I mean, what is all of... this!?”

“Yeeeah, kind of a big ask, there. Why don’t we pin that until I take out the day’s trash,” Sunset replied in a tone light as a breeze. She turned towards the monster, striding one step forward so she was planting herself like a shield between it and Wallflower. There was a soft, smooth ring of metal in the air as Sunset’s hand went to the hilt of her sword and drew the katana in a flourish that glinted its steel off of the moonlight.

The creature, the ‘Hollow’ as Sunset had called it, stood rigidly still, as if it was... afraid. Wallflower wasn’t sure what to make of all of this. She knew Sunset and her friends had powers, but she’d been barely conscious during the later half of the events at Everfree due to her injuries. She didn’t really know the extent of what had happened. This monster looked powerful, what with it’s size and thick, corded muscles. Yet somehow as Sunset casually started to approach it, the girl of fire kissed red and yellow hair looked like the predator, rather than the prey.

“Tch, the rumors about this city are pretty wild,” the Hollow said, voice almost shaking but filled with that boisterousness of the forcibly confident, “But I’m thinking they’re exaggerated. Supposedly one of you beat the Tenth Espada, but sounds like luck to me. All those lesser Hollows I kicked into coming here aren’t dead yet, so maybe you girls aren’t all your cracked up to be, eh?”

“Assume whatever you like, Hollow. Whatever makes you feel better. So, you’re the idiot that’s responsible for a bunch of mooks showing up in my city tonight? Guess I’ll thank you for that.”

Sunset’s words clearly caused confusion as the chameleon mask tilted along with the Hollow’s head as it asked, “Huh? The hell you thanking me for?”

“Well, the kids needed some practical training. They’re still getting a handle on their Fullbrings. Oh, and Chappy couldn’t shut up about wanting to test out her new gigai on a real Hollow, so it was kind of convenient then all these lesser Hollows just suddenly popped up out of nowhere. Rarity is playing chaperone, so I’m not too worried, and the other girls got the rest of the city covered. Still...”

A dangerous light entered Sunset’s eyes, making them shine like sapphire flames. “Didn’t take a genius to work out this wasn’t a coincidence. So I made sure to scour every inch of the city I could, looking for any trace of the asshole stirring trouble up in my home. Your reiatsu was hard to spot, I’ll give you that. Didn’t pinpoint you until you decided to reveal yourself to your would-be victim. Now all that’s left is to put you down, but I did want to ask you who sent you. Grogar?”

“Hmph, nobody ‘sent’ me! I just smelled opportunity and made a move. And now that the ‘Substitute Soul Reaper’ is here, maybe Grogar or even Tirek would be impressed if I just brought them you instead of a magic rock!”

He snapped his clawed fingers, and Wallflower gasped as she felt an odd pressure pressing down on her. Her vision of things remained hazy, distorted, but she thought she saw what appeared to be black holes yawning open in the air, immense in size.

For Sunset, who had a clear view of everything, she herself saw a quartet of huge Garganta portals opening in the air above the Adjuchas-class Hollow. From within came towering forms in dark cloaks, covering their humongous and pointed Hollow bodies. Four Gillian-class Hollows touched down amid the backyards of the suburban alley, thankfully not actually stepping on any houses, but probably scaring the crap out of more than a few residents with the now all-too familiar rumble of their shaking steps.

The Adjuchas with the chameleon mask laughed as he sprouted long, imp-like wings and flew up into the air, “Had these big boys in reserve in case one of you girls showed up. Always plan ahead, right?”

At his gesture, the Gillians all creaked their necks downward and opened their gaping mouths, whereupon the condensed forms of pulsing crimson Cero spheres began to form.

Sunset just... looked at them with an unimpressed expression of barely restrained sarcasm. “Oh no, four Ceros. Whatever will I do? Surely you have outwitted me, you big bad Hollow you. Truly how can I ever hope to turn the tables in this unprecedented situation that I’ve definitely never been in before?”

“H-hey! No sarcasm while dying!” screamed the Adjuchas, “Fire, all of you fire! Incinerate her!”

Blindly complying with the mindless obedience of the cowed, each of the four Gillians sent forth their Ceros. Four pale rose beams of light converged down at Sunset, still standing in the middle of the alley with Wallflower behind her looking on in stunned silence.

Sunset just grinned up at the beams and with one hand she swung her Zanpaktou in a sharp backhand gesture that cut a half circle arc in the air above her. The air rippled, and Wallflower felt herself bowled over by a wall of wind pressure. As if a great hand had made a sweeping motion, the four distinct beams of coherent red destruction were parted like water. Their energies were dispersed upwards into the sky harmlessly, leaving all still and silent in the alley save for the Adjuchas-class Hollow’s sputtering, wordless disbelief.

“Starting to rethink your life choices? Or afterlife choices, I guess. Either way-”

Sunset’s voice echoed oddly as she instantly moved from the alley to a point in the sky above the Gillians, her Flash Step so swift that it didn’t register on anyone present until she was done speaking, “-I really don’t like being taken lightly.”

There was a terrible ripping sound as one of the Gillians’s heads simply... disintegrated, falling apart into dozens of pieces from neat cuts that appeared upon it without any trace of the strikes that made them. As if just now becoming aware of the danger in their midst, the relatively mindless Gillians reacted with instinctual violence. One howled as it turned it’s ponderously large body around and tried to snatch Sunset out of the air with its jaws. This simply prompted the girl to casually face the giant Hollow and raise her Zanpaktou up above her head with one hand. She then brought it down, not fast, or even seemingly all that hard. But that one motion created a glinting pressure wave that passed through the Gillian. It kept coming, trying to snap it’s jaws around her and swallow Sunset whole... but it went past her, and in it’s confusion the Gillian began to dissipate, not understanding that the reason it went past Sunset was because it’s body had been cleanly bisected down the middle, with both halves falling to either side of her before vanishing into ash.

Of the two remaining Gillians, one extended from within it’s dark expanse one of it’s massive bone white arms. It swung the tree-sized limb in a wide arc at Sunset, like a human trying to swat a mosquito out of the air. Her eyes flicked towards the oncoming hand, and she turned in a quick spin on one heel, kicking out with her other leg just as Gillian’s hand reached her. There was a shattering noise as the Hollow’s hand up to the wrist was torn off by the impact of Sunset’s kick, and the Gillian howled. The howl only lasted a moment, however, as Sunset aimed a finger at it and a bead of white spiritual energy sparked at it’s tip.

“Hado Number Four: Byakurai.”

The spear of pure white lightning pierced right through the Gillian’s skull, and it fell backwards, it’s body vanishing into dark motes before it fell completely.

At this point the “flight” portion of the fight or flight instinct won out in the last Gillian, which reached out with a hand not for Sunset, but to grasp the air and tear open a Garganta portal that it began to step through while howling in abject fear. Sunset glanced at it, but showed no real urge to go after it. Far as she was concerned if it was running, the “mindless” Gillian was showing the most smarts out of it’s companions.

“Get back here you coward!” shouted the Adjuchas as the Gillian vanished into the Garganta, “Damn worthless Gillians!”

“You ought to do the same, or are you really that blind to the power difference here?” Sunset said, bouncing her Zanpakout on her shoulder, “I’m not cruel. Tuck your tail and scamper out of my city, and I’ll forget your ugly face and we can call it a day.”

The Hollow hesitated, before it’s yellow glowing eyes narrowed in fuming anger and... some manner of desperation. “No way. Hueco Mundo is brewing a shitstorm and only the strongest are going to survive. I bag you, I’m in with the winning team. You kill me, I’m no worse off than if I got picked off by another Hollow, so bring it, you prideful bitch. I’ve got nothing to lose!”

He vanished, and Sunset knew it was no Sonido, but rather an application of that irritating stealth power he’d used to slip around Canterlot City undetected so readily. It wasn’t as if she and the girls hadn’t considerably stepped up patrols lately, so there was no denying this Adjuchas’ ability was, in it’s way, kind of impressive. However now that she knew he was close, sharpening her spiritual senses to the area around her revealed his stealth power was far from perfect.

If she and the girls had dealt with a guy like this early on in their own development, he’d have been trouble. Now? The subtle fluctuations in the air, the tiny reflections of minute Hollow spirit particles, and the faint increase in killing intent all revealed the Adjuchas to Sunset well before he snuck behind her and tried to stab his claws towards her back.

She simply spun around and made another precise if casual strike with her unreleased Zanpaktou. There was a pained howl as the air shimmered and the Adjuchas appeared once more, clutching his missing right arm which had been severed at the elbow. His chameleon mask opened wide as his roar, “Aaaagh, hell! Eat this!”

His mouth aimed at her, and much like the Gillians a burning ruby sphere of Hollow energy coalesced, denser than the Gillians had been by a fair margin. The beam, when fired, was wider and bathed the suburban city block in a crimson hue. Sunset readied her Zanpaktou in a horizontal stance, taking it in both hands, then shot forward, the blade extended. She plowed through the Cero like a ship breaking through a wave. The destructive energies parted around her and her sword as she thrust it through to the Adjuchas, and the Zanpaktou pierced right through his mouth and out the back of his head.

“Guh!” the Adjuchas choked, gagging on the blade’s steel. Sunset just sighed as the Hollow’s body began to fade into ashen motes.

“Nothing personal. Well, kinda personal. Bright side? No Hell gate. Enjoy Soul Society, and try not to be such a creepy bastard in your next life.”

She took a second to take a deep breath and assess whether there were any additional threats. Satisfied that everything was all clear, she gently sheathed her Zanpaktou, patting the hilt of it as she said with a hint of apology, “Oh don’t be that way, girls. I’ll release you when it’s worth it, but guys like that aren’t challenging enough to bother.”

With that matter settled, Sunset turned to look down at Wallflower, who was just then getting back up after having been knocked down by the air pressure from Sunset’s deflection of the Cero barrage. “Oh! Uh, sorry about that!”

Sunset let herself drop from the sky and landed on light feet right in front of Wallflower, who nearly leaped back from the other girl, eyes wide and wild. Sunset could see the raw confusion and fear in Wallflower, and felt a stab of intense sympathy as Wallflower started to babble.

“The, wha...who with... I mean, that thing, and the you, all of you, with the sword and the wind...”

“I know, you’re probably feeling way confused right now. Um... I have seen you at school, right? You look familiar.” Sunset was rather having a hard time placing this girl’s name. Something about the green, slightly unkempt hair, and that distinct striped brown sweater was tickling her brain, so she felt fairly certain she had seen her around Canterlot High, but for the life of her she couldn’t dredge up a name.

Oh well, when in doubt, introductions.

“I’m Sunset Shimmer, in case we haven’t met. If we had, I’m sorry if I don’t recall it.”

She extended a hand, knowing she was probably taking this too casually, but also not knowing any better way to go about this. She fully understood it if this girl was scared out of her mind or having a bit of a breakdown. While most of the students at school now understood exactly what was going on with the Hollows, at least to a degree, there were still a few who’d either not quite gotten the memo, or may have simply not processed it all fully yet. Given this girl’s reactions, she could easily be in either camp.

To Sunset’s bemusement and genuine concern, the girl backed away from her proffered hand, shaking her head while breathing hard.

Oh crap, I’ve gotten so used to all of this stuff with Hollows I’ve forgotten how hard this can hit for people who aren’t. Sunset’s heart went out to the girl and she turned her offered handshake into a simple calming raise of both of her palms, tuning her voice to a mellow and soothing tone. “It’s alright. You’re alright. I’m not going to hurt you, and the monsters are gone. Look, I get this is weird. Like, extremely weird. And also scary. But trust me, I’m one of the good guys, and I just want to make sure you’re okay and get home safely.”

“I d-don’t understand...” Wallflower’s head pounded, the fear and adrenaline still hammering her. She was almost as afraid of Sunset as she’d been that creature, although the fear had nothing to do with a sense of physical danger. She believed Sunset’s words, but Wallflower’s fear was purely rooted in personal anxiety. For all that she’d wanted to find Sunset and get answers, she was equally terrified of what those answers would be. Now that she was here, face to face with Sunset Shimmer, the thought pervading Wallflower’s mind was; run away, run away, run and hide!

She clutched the Memory Stone tightly to her chest, wondering if she should use it. All it’d take is a moment and she could erase Sunset’s memory of this encounter entirely. But then what would she do? She’d never learn anything if she just kept fleeing whenever she felt out of her depth, which was literally constantly.

As Wallflower teetered on that choice between following through on her original desire to get answers from Sunset, or using the Memory Stone to disappear, the situation changed as a new voice spoke.

“Sunset, it’s you! I sensed a dense concentration of Hollow energy, and, oddly, Equestrian magic, so I came as fast as I could.”

Wallflower wheeled about to see another young girl around Sunset’s age walking down the alley towards them. This girl had purple skin and darker violet hair with a pink stripe, and was wearing somewhat nerdish glasses along with a highly distinct and military styled set of pure white clothing that looked to Wallflower like some manner of uniform. Strangely, a purple dog padded along at the girl’s side.

“Hey Twilight, hey Spike,” Sunset said, giving both the new girl and the dog a casual wave, “Yeah I just offed the ringleader behind all the lesser Hollows popping up tonight. Adjuchas-class. Wasn’t any real trouble, but he had this stealth ability that let him slip around unnoticed until he went after the girl here.”

“Well that would certainly explain the other reiatsu spikes I’ve been sensing,” Twilight said, approaching and adjusting her glasses as she looked Wallflower over in such a way that made Wallflower immediately even more self conscious than she already was, “I sent out my team to clean up stragglers, but looks like our friends have most everything covered. Silver Spoon is with the younger team, and just reported to me they’re still engaged, but are holding their own.”

“With Rarity on overwatch I’m sure they’ll be fine, but I’m worried about Chappy going overboard,” Sunset said, then shook her head and looked at Wallflower, “Um, if you’re feeling up to it, I really could use your name. Not wanting to be pushy or anything, but ‘green girl’ just doesn’t seem like the best nickname, you know?”

Her mind now too frazzled to resist, she simply whispered, “W-Wallflower.”

“Wallflower,” Sunset’s smile returned threefold, “I’m happy to make your acquaintance. My friend here is Twilight Sparkle, and that’s her dog, Spike.”

“S’up,” Spike said, and Wallflower waved at him without thinking about it. Then, a second later, she blinked and realized a dog just talked to her.

Wallflower promptly proceeded to faint, collapsing in a boneless heap on the ground, the events of the evening finally just becoming too much for her mind to keep processing. Spike grimaced and said, “Nice to meet you too, lady.”

“Spike, what have I told you about casually talking around people who don’t know you, yet?” Twilight admonished while going over to kneel next to the fallen Wallflower, gently checking her over. “Well, she didn’t crack her head, at least. Sunset, do you know why the Adjuchas was after her? They went through a lot of trouble sending so many lesser Hollows around town to distract us, so it must have had a good reason.”

“Was wondering that myself, and at a guess, I’m going to say it’s that weird stone she’s been holding,” Sunset said, indicating the strange oval rock that she’d noticed Wallflower clutching so tightly. “I didn’t hear everything that Hollow jerk said to her before he tried to kill her and I had to step in, but it sounded like he thought the rock was special. Magic.”

“I can already confirm that much,” Twilight said, peering at the stone and not touching it, but holding her hand above it as she closed her eyes in focus, “I can feel magic radiating off of it. I’m a bit surprised you didn’t sense this earlier.”

“W-well, I’m a bit out of practice with traditional Equestrian magic, Twilight. Haven’t been a unicorn in a long while. I felt something, I just couldn’t really get a read on what. The magic feels off somehow,” Sunset said, a tad defensively as she crossed her arms under her chest. Twilight gave her friend an apologetic look and nodded.

“I understand. With Midnight’s help I’ve got a pretty strong handle on magic now, and this stone practically glows with it. But you’re right, the magic feels strange. Subtle. Midnight doesn’t recognize it either, but it’s definitely Equestrian. It feels almost like it’s designed to be hard to detect, like it has a masking spell on it.”

“Great, another piece of home that got tossed into the human world by somepony who wasn’t thinking through the consequences of their actions,” Sunset said, heaving out a sigh, “I swear if I ever get a time machine I’m going back a thousand years in Equestrian history to personally smack anypony upside the head who thought it was a good idea to banish random magical creatures and/or items to a planet with no defense against or knowledge of magic. Who knows what this stone does, and Wallflower here probably just picked it up without any idea at all.”

Twilight’s face lit up with a light chuckle that didn’t last long as she gingerly picked up the stone, “Don’t be too hard on the people of your world, Sunset. It’s possible they didn’t know the portals they banished things through led to an inhabited world. Sometimes we all wish we could just shove our problems into a hole to be forgotten.”

“Don’t I know it?” Sunset said, then moved over to get a closer look at the stone, “Odd markings.”

“Do you recognize any of them?”

“Nope. Artifacts weren’t really my specialty, even when I was a unicorn. Looks old, though. Not modern Equestrian symbols. Definitely has that ‘thousand years ago’ vibe, if you ask me. Wonder what it does?”

At that question, Twilight gave Sunset a meaningful look, “Unknown magic is dangerous, but if you’re okay with it I can take this back to my lab for study. I promise I won’t do more than a few basic tests with Midnight’s help to see if we can work out what the stone’s function is.”

The way she said it had a fair amount of trepidation, and Sunset put a reassuring hand on Twilight’s shoulder, “Twilight, chill. I trust you. I know you wouldn’t use something like this for bad ends, even if you find out what it does and it turns out to be, I don’t know, some kind of crazy magic nuke.”

“I’m thankful for that, Sunset. I know that as a Quincy you girls might worry about what I might use magic for in regards to the Quincy as a whole.”

“Well we’re working on ending that whole damn war, aren’t we?” Sunset said, “And Sombra’s agreed to the meeting, so it’s a step in the right direction.”

At mention of the upcoming meeting, the official declaration of the Canterlot Spirit Coalition, Twilight perked up, although there was still a great deal of tension in her eyes, “Has there been a reply from the Gotei 13’s Captain Commander?”

“We just heard back from Clover,” Sunset replied, “And sounds like Scorpan is open to it. His return message was a tad... er... terse, but sounds like he’ll be there. Going to be an interesting day.”

“If by interesting you mean ‘terrifying and ulcer inducing’ then yes, I’m in complete agreement,” said Twilight, her shoulders tense as iron boards and her smile forced past a tide of unease. Not that Sunset blamed her. She was nervous as well, her stomach all but acidic over the upcoming meeting that would be taking place. With the leaders of both Soul Society and the Quincy in one place, she, her friends, and Discord would be doing their best to assert their place as an equal faction; the Canterlot Spirit Coalition. In so doing the intent would be to reveal in full Zero Division’s less than scrupulous actions, and in so doing hopefully bring Quincy and Soul Reaper together in something resembling a cease fire, if not outright alliance.

As for the Hollows, well...

“Speaking of hearing things from people, what’s the situation with Adagio?” Sunset asked, voice hopeful and a tad trepidation filled at the same time.

Twilight didn’t immediately respond, instead gesturing at the fallen Wallflower, “I've heard little from Adagio's end, but that strikes me as normal for her. At any rate, perhaps we should talk and move at the same time? Do you want to take her to my place or yours?”

“Good question. Normally I’d say your home would be safer and involve fewer questions for her, but she seemed like she actually had a lot of questions to ask,” Sunset said, leaning down to carefully pick Wallflower up in her arms, having no trouble carrying the petite girl like a tired little sister she was about to tuck into bed. “I’ll take her to Discord’s. When she wakes up I’ll try to ease her into whatever answers she wants. Not like most the school doesn’t already know. Heck we’ve got Bon Bon and Lyra organizing neighborhood patrols now.”

“I’ve noticed,” Twilight said, her eyes glinting with curiosity, “Very well organized patrols, too.”

“Bon Bon seems to really take care of things. It’s a little uncanny,” Sunset said, not fully voicing her suspicions on just how good Bon Bon seemed to be at organizing the rest of the students into groups to report any possible Hollow activity in the city. Or any odd activity at all, really. There was still a strong Quincy and Soul Reaper presence in Canterlot, but only because certain members of either faction had the go ahead from Discord and Sunset to be present as long as they didn’t engage in any fights with one another. This included Twilight and her research team from Crystal Prep, along with a select few of the Eleventh and Tenth Division Soul Reapers who had Sunset’s trust.

Which reminded her that she and the girls had a training day scheduled with Sweet Cider tomorrow morning. She was actually looking forward to it.

“Do you, um, want me to walk with you to Discord’s?” Twilight asked, and she held up the odd stone Wallflower had, “Oh, and just to double check, you really don’t mind me holding onto this?”

“It’s fine. Just let me know what you learn about it. And heck yeah I’d like some company. Feel like we don’t get enough time to chat, Twilight.”

Just as the pair began their way out of the alley, Sunset reached up to touch the skull emblem on her robes. Upon contact the emblem flashed white, and all of Sunset’s outfit began to glimmer with translucent, fiery orange spirit energy. In moments her Soul Reaper garb had turned into raw streams of light that poured into Sunset. When it was done, the skull emblem had become a small, palm sized metal token, and Sunset Shimmer was left wearing a normal civilian outfit of blue slacks and black boots, along with a tight fitting orange shirt underneath her customary dark leather jacket.

She tossed the skull token up and caught it with a smile, “Got to hand it to Discord, he’s good at making useful items. I didn’t even feel a difference in power.”

Twilight’s interest was clear in the intensity of her sparkling eyes as she looked at the token, “So you didn’t leave your physical body behind to use your powers?”

“Well, with Chappy being all independent now, I can’t rely on her to take over my body. Discord made this as an alternative. Basically cloaks my real body in my Soul Reaper powers. That’s why the outfit looks a bit different, kind of influenced by my personal tastes, which I guess involves shoulder pads. Go figure. Would’ve preferred a jacket.”

“You do love your jackets,” Twilight noted.

“They’re stylish. They’ll always be stylish. If I ever go back to Equestria for any amount of time, the one human thing I’m taking back with me is the jacket.”

Twilight gave out a huffing laugh that sounded tired to Sunset’s ears, like the other girl hadn’t slept in forever. Probably not far from the truth. At least Twilight seemed relaxed now, at least a little. Sunset was about to ask how research on a new Hexenfaust was going, but a beeping from her pocket alerted her to the fact that her communicator was going off.

She fished out the communication device that Discord had made for her and the girls and flipped it open, “Sunset here. What’s up?”

“Darling, I do hope that spiritual pressure I felt from you just a minute ago wasn’t from any trouble?” asked Rarity’s voice, “I wanted to check, just in case.”

“Nah, I’m fine,” Sunset said and quickly updated Rarity on what had happened. Then she asked, “How’s Team Chappy and the Chappetes?”

Rarity snorted a laugh, “I’m sure they’d hate that name. They’re...er, how do I put this...?”

Sunset heard a faint crash from the other end of the communicator and what she thought was Sweetie Belle’s voice faintly shouting, “Oh c’mon!”

“Sounds like they’re having a bit of trouble of their own.”

“Just a smidge, darling, but worry not, I shall step in if it gets out of hand. You sound like you and Twilight have your hands full with your damsel in distress. Go along to Discords, and I’ll join you there with our little charges once they finish up with these Hollows. Only a few of them left- oh, Sweetie Belle! Be careful with that car-” another loud crash and Rarity made a somewhat unladylike sound before saying, “I’ll call you back, Sunset. Be safe. Toddles.”

The communicator clicked off and Sunset just shook her head as she pocketed it. Twilight glanced at her sidelong, “That sounded... interesting.”

“Well, they’re kids with newly discovered superpowers, being helped by a wacko artificial soul who is still figuring out how her new body works. I’d say they’re doing about as well as we were when we first started off,” Sunset said, letting a bit of fond nostalgia wash over her as she continued down the streets with Twilight at her side.

“It is kind of like that night, isn’t it?” Twilight said, her own tone taking on that quiet wistful air of one thinking back, “I can still remember crawling into that crater with you. Finding a mysterious katana nobody could see but you.”

Sunset patted Hokori no Hikari’s hilt, sighing contently, “Good times. Well, actually scary as hell times, but I kind of miss it. Not knowing all that we do now. Just going with the flow and trying to figure it all out.”

“Hm, we were carrying an unconscious green haired girl around back then, too,” Twilight noted, “How oddly coincidental.”

“Heh, well at least this one isn’t a Soul Reaper, although she has a mystery of her own about her,” Sunset said, only partially referring to the magical stone. From what Sunset gathered, Wallflower knew her, or at least had acted like it. Sunset wished she could remember from where, but no matter how hard she tired, she couldn’t recall a thing about Wallflower prior to today.

Well, time enough to get answers and give them in return when she wakes up. Let’s just get her to Discord’s, and in the meantime hope Chappy and those girls don’t get into too much trouble.

----------

“We are in so much trouble!” Apple Bloom cried, looking with horror at the toppled SUV that was laying half planted in some poor person’s front yard. To make matters worse, a few of the nearby begonia bushes were on fire, and Apple Bloom wasn’t even sure how that happened, because the lime-colored SUV wasn’t anywhere near the bushes, and none of her friends had any fire-based powers anyway!

Oh, wait, she was the one with the kinda-sorta fire based powers. Well, her whip could heat up to become really hot, at any rate. Did she light those bushes on fire without realizing it?

As Apple Bloom pondered this, looking at the whip that was her Fullbring in a questioning manner, one of the several remaining lesser Hollows that was a part of the general melee of chaos she and her friends had gotten mixed up in tried sneaking up on her. The Hollow had a elongated raven’s mask and four arms ending in scything insect claws, all attached to a worm-like body that undulated through the air. Just as the Hollow let out a shrill howl and aimed its disfigured beak at Apple Bloom’s back, there was a wild cry from above and a form came drilling down from atop a street lamp.

“Waatttaaaaah!”

Bright red boots with black heels dug into the top of the Hollow’s head, crushing it to the concrete of the suburban cul de sac in a resounding crack. Apple Bloom jumped back from some broken, flying bits of street and flailed a bit before regaining her foot. “Yikes! Didn’t even see that fella comin’ up on me. Thanks Chappy!”

The figure in red struck a pose, knee up and standing on one foot while thrusting arms out at odd angles like a drunk monkey. She was a girl of an age with Sunset Shimmer. In fact one could easily have mistaken this individual for a sister of Sunset’s, with the same yellow skin tone and blue eyes. However there were distinct differences. While the girl had long burnished red hair, she had a pink stripe in place of sunset’s yellow, and tied her hair into twin tails done up almost like rabbit ears. Her outfit also accentuated the fact that while she shared Sunset’s height, she was a tad thicker around the chest, so to speak. Her outfit was hardly civilian norm, consisting of a bright red jumpsuit with tall, knee high boots of the same coloring, and sporting similar gloves that went up to the elbow. A white cap billowed out from her shoulders, bearing a big red “C” on it. While her hair flowed naturally, her head was still wearing a rounded white helmet with an odd red V at the top, with a blue visor that fell down over her eyes. Finally, a gold watch on her left wrist completed Chappy’s outfit, or rather her uniform as the “Canterlot Riser”.

“Think nothing of it, citizen!” Chappy said in a faux officious voice as she snapped off a salute, “Just doing my heroly duty!”

“If you’re both done being ‘heroly’, we could really use help over here!” shouted Sweetie Belle from across the cul de sac as she ran away from a Hollow with a spider’s huge, spindly body, but with the upper torso and skull mask of a moose with antlers that grew to spikes as large as spears. Sweetie Belle had already discharged the SUV she’d absorbed into her wand to use as a projectile weapon, which the spider-moose Hollow had dodged. Now she was out of ‘ammo’ and was just trying ot keep ahead of the Hollow’s deadly antlers!

“On it, small Rarity!” Chappy said, and coiled her legs under her. The uniform she wore wasn’t just for show, it was a special creation of Discord’s that helped harden her body with a reinforcement of spiritual energy, which she could concentrate in her limbs not unlike a Quncy’s Blut abilities. Her feet glowed blue as she charged spirit energy there, and unleashed it in a burst of speed and kicking power as she launched herself like a flying battering ram at the Hollow chasing Sweetie Belle.

Unfortunately this Hollow was canny enough to see her coming and halted it’s momentum just enough to wheel its antlers around, using one set of them to block Chappy’s kick. However the power behind Chappy’s feet was astounding, for a mere Mod Soul, and the antler’s broke off like a snapped twig. The Hollow let out a shriek and raised piercing spider legs to try and stab at Chappy, but she dodged back with a few swift jumps, which allowed Apple Bloom to rush in from the right with her crimson whip already spinning.

The whip blossomed with heat, turning bright with glowing potency as Apple Bloom snapped the weapons forward and took off one of the Hollow’s legs.

“Hah! How ya like that, ya ugly varmint!?”

The Hollow turned its remaining antler towards her and the protrusion of bone suddenly grew out like a bolt fired from a crossbow. Apple Bloom let out a yelp as she ducked, then a series of blue arrows swept in from the side, blasting the antler spikes before they could strike her.

“Don’t any of you know how to evade besides the rabbit!?” shouted Silver Spoon, who’d emerged from down the street, her spectacles fogged over with perspiration as if she’d been running a marathon. Which wasn’t too far from the truth. She’d been working non-stop during this patrol to keep the relatively green and inexperienced members of the team alive. Not that she was that much more experienced than the rest of them, but she was the only one with any formal training for this.

“We’re trying, okay!? This is hard!” Sweetie Belle shouted back, turning her ornate wand towards a nearby manhole cover. The misty light of her wand shot out like a stream of will o’ wisps, and sucked in the thick metal sewer cover in an instant. Sweetie Belle then spun her wand around to aim at the Hollow and released the same heavy metal cover like a flying disc shot from a cannon.

Credit where it was due, the impact of the manhole cover bowed the Hollow over. Normally mundane physical attacks with non-spiritual objects would do little harm to a Hollow, but Sweetie Belle had discovered any object her wand absorbed in turn coated that object with her reiatsu, turning anything her wand touched into an effective projectile.

“It’s down, hit it everybody!” Chappy said, leaping up into a somersault that then turned into a descending kick right onto the overturned Hollow’s gut.

Applebloom and Silver Spoon both followed up with attacks of their own, the heated whip snapping into the Hollow’s side while a barrage of a dozen arrows pierced it from the other. With a pained cry, the Hollow spasmed and then went still, its body fading to black as it dissipated.

“Is... is that the last one?” Sweetie Belle asked, looking around fearfully.

There was a crashing noise as a huge Hollow’s body smacked into the street about ten feet to Sweetie Belle’s right, and the girl screamed, but then calmed down as she saw the Hollow was already headless and its body vanishing into black ash. From above there was a swirl of wind as the humongous form of the stone bird, Alerion, descended to make a heavy landing in the middle of the cul de sac. Atop her Bount Doll, Scootaloo waved, “Me and Aile got the last of ‘em, I think!”

Silver Spoon paused, briefly closing her eyes in focus as she spread out her spiritual senses. “Hmm, I think you’re right. I’m not sensing any more Hollows nearby.”

“Oh thank God!” Sweetie Belle said, collapsing to her knees, breathing in deeply and letting it out in a ragged, “Aaaaah!”

“Ya okay there, Sweetie Belle?” asked Apple Bloom, and her friend just waved her hand at her.

“Yeah. Dandy. Fantastic. Totally not about to throw up.”

Chappy, beaming a smile bright enough to make the nighttime cul de sac seem like daylight, came over and gave the girl a big slap on the back, “Blow chunks if you need to, Canterlot Pink, you still did great! The Canterlot Risers are victorious!”

“Oh for the love of- None of us agreed to that as a team name,” Sweetie Belle said, “And why am I ‘Pink’?”

“That’s obvious, you’re the small Rarity,” Chappy said, as if that explained everything, “Apple Bloom is Canterlot Blue because she’s always charging in and that’s what lancers do. Scootaloo is Canterlot Black because it’s the second coolest color besides red. Silver Spoon is Canterlot Yellow because it’s the only color left besides red, and I’m obviously Canterlot Red because I’m the leader and my outfit is red. It’s all very logical and fair.”

Silver Spoon, pointedly ignoring Chappy, went to help Sweetie Belle up with an offered hand and shoulder to lean on. The young Quincy girl’s eyes were as steel serious as her tone, “You don’t have to push yourself so hard if this is getting to be too much. Let me and the rabbit idiot take more of the front line, next time.”

Sweetie Belle shook her head, wiping her mouth, “I’ll be okay. I need to get used to this. Can’t let my sister keep... protecting me.”

There was a wealth of pain in the girl’s voice for a second, Sweetie Belle’s eyes gaining a haunted quality before she reiterated, “I’m fine. Uh, has anyone noticed that nobody is looking outside their windows?”

It was true, despite the damage and noise of the fight, the homes around the cul de sac remained either dark or at least showed no signs of people coming outside or looking out their windows to see what was happening.

“Thank me for that,” said Silver Spoon, patting the thick white cloak she wore, “Aside from these cloaks we Quincy favor to stay invisible to mundane eyes, we have a fairly simple alchemic technique to suppress noise in a select area.” She pointed out the shroud of faint, white light that encased the cul de sac and most of the surrounding yards, not quite touching the houses but otherwise creating a cylindrical barrier around the area.

“Nifty,” Apple Bloom said, but Silver Spoon just shrugged.

“Pretty sure the Soul Reapers have Kido that does the same kind of thing, so it’s nothing special. Still, we should probably get out of here quickly before somebody does notice and we end up having to explain why half the street and someone’s car is ruined.”

“I feel so bad about the SUV. Those things aren’t cheap,” Sweetie Belle said, but Silver Spoon waved her off.

“Relax. Quincy have procedures for handling reparations for damages caused in fights within civilian areas. The street damages will be taken care of with donations to city funds, and any family that suffered monetary damages will find their insurance companies quite compliant and generous in compensating them.”

“Yeesh, ya Quincy got yer fingers in all the pies, don’t ya?” Apple Bloom noted, to which Silver Spoon didn’t fail to preen slightly and flip her braid in a pleased manner.

“We make a point of it, yes.”

“You guys think the rest of the city is clear of Hollows too?” asked Scootaloo, “Maybe we ought to go do a sweep, just to make sure?”

“That won’t be needed,” said Rarity as the older girl flickered into view and appeared before the group. She was fully manifest with her Fullbring, white dress and crystalline sword in hand, but there were none of her knights present nor the giant crimson gate that summoned them. Still, for the younger, less experienced girls it was almost oppressive, even the passive reiatsu that poured off of Rarity was like being pushed down by the weight of a calm ocean. None of them had sensed her approach or seen her movement in front of them. It was a sobering reminder of the level of difference between the newbie team and the older girls who’d taken up the charge of defending Canterlot City.

“H-hey Rarity. You were, um, watching the whole time?” Sweetie Belle asked. She’d known that her sister and her friends would be out there tonight. When the big group of Hollows had shown up, seemingly out of nowhere, the CMC, Chappy, and Silver Spoon had already been out doing a patrol for training purposes with Rarity following them. Rather than sweep the Hollows away, which Rarity could have easily done, she’d suggested taking advantage of the situation to let the girls get some live practice in, with the promise she’d be nearby in case things really went south.

Rarity’s eyes were kind as she nodded to Sweetie Belle, “I was, Sweetie, and while I might have a few pointers to hand out to you all, I think everyone performed well tonight.”

“I don’t know about that,” Sweetie Belle said, but Scootaloo was quick to jump in with her own enthusiasm.

“Don’t get down, Sweetie Belle, you did awesome tonight, just like the rest of us. Sure we’re not big league butt kickers like your big sis and her pals are, but we totally busted some Hollows tonight, and I say that’s pretty swanky of us.”

Alerion rolled his gem eyes and grumbled, “I busted Hollows. You rode on my back and shouted incoherently like a shrill, miniature hyperactive barnacle.”

“Well we all bring our own skills to the team,” Scootaloo defended, and both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle let out laughs alongside their friend, while Chappy grinned at Rarity.

“So we done for the night, Rares?” Chappy asked, “I could stand to go a few more rounds, but if you gals have cleaned house everywhere else already...”

“We’re done here, yes,” Rarity said, “Sunset dispatched the ringleader, and I’ve been in contact with the others to confirm that the other areas of the city have been swept of Hollow presence. We’ll return to Discord’s for rest and recuperation.”

“Sounds good to me!” Chappy said and her finger pressed a button on the side of the gold watch she wore. In a flash of red light the “Canterlot Riser” outfit vanished and Chappy was left wearing a bright red tank top, black jeans, and red sneakers. “I can tell Discord all about how cool this watch works! I didn’t even need to use all of it’s features! Oh man, I’m hungry now. Gonna eat soooo much when we get home.”

“Do be careful, darling. You own that body of yours, now, so you must deal with all of the consequences that come with it,” Rarity reminded the hedonistic Mod Soul, but Chappy just laughed and started walking off down the street, listing off food items she planned to eat upon returning to Discord’s shop. Meanwhile Alerion took to the sky, but Scootaloo stayed on the ground after hopping off of him so she could walk with her friends.

As they made their way as a group back down the suburban streets, Sweetie Belle fell in next to Rarity, almost protectively close. Rarity reached out her hand and grasped Sweetie Belle’s as they walked, her younger sister whispering once Chappy was a good distance ahead of the group.

“I don’t get why she got a gigai first instead of you,” Sweetie Belle said, and Rarity squeezed her hand.

“It wasn’t a question of who got what first, Sweetie. Chappy’s gigai was just easier for Discord to make, since she’s a Mod Soul designed to adapt to any body she gets put into. I’m a bit different, given he has to very specifically calibrate a gigai for me, and ensure it will be as comfortable for my soul to inhabit as possible, and even then it won’t really be as compatible as the body I was born with. Even if Chappy didn’t get a gigai, the amount of time it’d take to make mine wouldn’t have changed.”

Sweetie Belle didn’t say anything to that, and just silently brooded as she walked alongside her sister. Rarity suppressed a sigh and tried not to worry too much. Her sister was doing her best to deal with things, just like they all were. Rarity normally wouldn’t have dreamed of letting the children put themselves in danger fighting Hollows so early in their training, but she consoled herself with the knowledge that at any point had things proceeded too far, Rarity had the speed and power to instantly annihilate any of those Hollows without so much as an half breath of effort. Even the seemingly close calls Apple Bloom had had weren’t actually that dangerous, as Rarity had hidden crystalline daggers floating invisibly nearby to intervene if Chappy and Silver Spoon hadn’t stepped in.

But the girls, sadly, needed this kind of push. There just wasn’t time for them to take the slow route in training, if they were so determined to help. Fighting lesser Hollows was no different than what Rarity herself, alongside her friends, had gone through. It was a difficult but needed step, and while the younger girls might not feel like they were getting stronger, Rarity had to admit she could sense the difference. Her little sister’s spiritual pressure had been barely nascent during the events at Camp Everfree, but now, after only a few scuffles and training sessions, she could tell Sweetie Belle’s reiatsu was growing sharper and denser. Sweetie Belle herself likely had no idea how impressive it was that her reiatsu had turned a manhole cover into a projectile that had knocked over a multi-ton Hollow. Apple Bloom probably didn’t realize that her whip was hitting strong enough to kill most weaker Hollows in just a few hits. And Scootaloo’s Doll was potent by itself, never mind that Scootaloo was getting stronger bit by bit as Discord offered alternative means for the Bount living at his shop to feed on spirit energy.

I should be glad they’re getting stronger, so they can better protect themselves, but I never wanted this for you Sweetie Belle. I never wanted you to have to battle beasts in the dark, Rarity thought, her melancholy reinforced by the sure knowledge that things were only going to escalate, perhaps far too fast for her little sister and her friends to reasonably catch up. Rarity had no desire for Sweetie Belle to stand on the front lines of the battles to come, she just wanted her to be able to take care of herself in the event that Rarity, new gigai or not, didn’t survive whatever was coming.

Her experience with Hoity Toity was enough to teach her not to assume anything about survival any longer, the weight of her soul chain hidden beneath her armored dress a keen reminder that nothing was ever certain.

----------

“Boss, have I ever told you that you take us to the nicest places?”

Di Roy’s forceful cheer echoed in an ineffectual zing off of the thicket of dead trees. So many dry, cracked spears of wooden none-tree sprung up around them that the forest path appeared to Adagio’s eyes like a prison corridor. Sharp, pointed tree limbs, like the overhanging blades of a funeral procession, crept from the corners of the densely packed forest. Sand and dirt, leached of all color save endless white, crunched under her feet. In the few, narrow spaces left between calcified tree branches devoid of leaves, she could see the enormity of dark, shadowed cliffs, cracked through with ravines so deep and dark that she imagined she could lose herself forever within them.

Above, Hueco Mundo’s moon hung endless, eternal, a silver crescent upon stainless black.

Gaw’s nose twitched furiously, her face screwed up in distaste as her clawed hands wrapped tight around the hilt of her blade, slung over broad shoulders. The Arrancar girl had filled out over the past few days, lean, gangly muscle stretching out into a taller, leaner frame of not-quite amazonian proportions. Adagio had convinced Gaw that her new size befitted larger garments, albeit not by much. Gaw still detested the feeling of fabric on her skin, so kept to a simple cloth wrapping around her chest and loose, breezy skirt around her waist that didn't restrict the movement of her bronzed legs. Power was the key to her change, the Seed that Adagio had dispersed among her most loyal vassals, having lent newfound strength to them. Gaw, physically the youngest, had grown with that power, and now stood taller than Adagio herself, her mane of red hair grown even longer and untamed. Adagio had been considering the wrestling match that might ensue to get Gaw to tend to her hair to any degree, but perhaps the wild look added some weight to the intimidation factor of the closest thing she had to a right-hand enforcer.

“Everything stinks here,” Gaw pointed out, “Death, more than just the normal kind.”

Adagio had sensed it too, more than smelt it. This forest, stretching out for hundreds of miles in a valley surrounded by sheer black cliffs, all but quietly hummed with a background tingling of cold and uncompromising death. It was an aura of miasmic reiatsu stemming from a singular source, somewhere at the center of this realm, and Adagio homed in upon it like a chill, pale beacon.

“I sincerely doubt the lord of this place didn’t intend for it to be sufficiently foreboding as to ward off troublesome guests,” she said, not breaking her confident forward momentum, a strutting stride that all but dared someone or something to try and bar her path. “Be that as it may, do look alive you two. I doubt our arrival has gone unnoticed.”

“Yeeeah, been meaning to point out that we’ve had tails since we showed up at the edge of this creepy ass place,” Di Roy said, his eyes shifting left and right to mark out the faint wisps of motion in the distance amid the trees, “I count eight... maybe nine.”

“Nine,” Gaw corroborated, a light growl purring in her throat, “None strong enough to be threatening. We kill them easy if they attack.”

“They’re likely just servants. They know what I am,” Adagio said, her cape having been thrown across one shoulder to keep her back, and the number “6” tattooed there exposed, “And they know to stand in my way would be suicide.”

“Unless they’re just waiting for their own boss to send in reinforcements,” Di Roy pointed out, unable to keep some small nervousness out of his tone, although he managed to cocky grin regardless, “Guess it was ballsy of you to come here with just me and Gaw as escort. Has to make old Erebus a tad nervous himself, wondering what an Esapda is doing walking into Asphodel practically alone.”

Asphodel. As Adagio recalled, in Greek mythology it was one of the layers of Tartarus. A fair enough name for a Privaron Espada’s realm, although it made Adagio wonder if this Erebus character was directly related to the deity of Greek myth, or merely an Arrancar who took the name for the credit. The information she had on Erebus was limited to the location of his realm, with little on his personality or power. Yet his was among the realms closest to Tirek’s sphere of influence, with other Privaron having established territories in even further flung locations across Hueco Mundo. That either bespoke of foolishness or confidence in one’s power, either way Adagio wanted to take the man’s measure while the opportunity was available.

She didn’t have a lot of time to spare. Tirek was gathering forces in Las Noches. Every Espada was under orders to draw in hordes of lesser Hollows, Adjuchas and Gillians, and she’d even heard that Catrina had been assigned to go further afield in search of unaligned Vasto Lordes that might still roam Hueco Mundo’s furthest wastelands. Las Noches was becoming dangerously crowded, and the area around the fortress was teaming with packs of Hollows that were just barely tolerating each other due to Tirek’s influential aura of power.

It was obvious the lord of Las Noches was gearing up for a big move, and Adagio needed to move quickly herself if she was going to be ready in time to capitalize on it. There was a risk in coming here herself, she knew. There was the chance that any Privaron Espada she sought to meet would simply attack her without taking the time to hear her out, of course, but even riskier was that her absence from Las Noches could be discovered and questioned. Fortunately she had Thorax as an ally to run interference in that regard, for while he did need to keep up appearances in the guise of his mother, he could also appear here and there as Adagio and maintain the illusion that she remained in her territory at Las Noches while she made these excursions into Hueco Mundo’s far flung lands.

It was still possible someone like Grogar might see through the ruse, or that the likes of Guto might make a move on her regardless, but those were risks Adagio felt she had to take.

The forest grew, if anything, even darker and more oppressive when it opened up into a wide basin that dropped down into a cleft in the pale earth that was dozens of meters wide and spread out in broken edges for far as Adagio could see in either direction. Darkness seemed to creep up from the abyssal blackness of the cleft like a seeping wound, and try as she might Adagio could see no light penetrate the well of shadows below.

Yet it took not great use of her Pesquisa to sense the presence of a powerful Hollow. The smaller presences that had been trailing her and her companions were like fish following in the shadow of a whale by comparison. She smirked, feeling eyes upon her. Without showing a hint of hesitation in her stride she went to the edge of the gloom filled cleft and placed one hand firmly on her wide hip while keeping a firm grip on her trident with the other. Her voice echoed in honey laden jest as she said, “If all you’re going to do is look, I don’t mind it, but I did come here to speak with you, Erebus of Asphodel. I am Adagio Dazzle, Sixth Espada, and if you fear I am here on business from Lord Tirek, then let me first assure you that he does not know I am here. My business with you is my own.”

The cleft swallowed her words and all was silent for a time. Behind her she could just barely hear the breathing of Di Roy and Gaw, the former shifting on his feet with a nervous grimace while the later bristled with yellow eyes glaring challenge towards any that might seek to attack.

Then she perceived a change in the shadows below. A boil of darkness, rising upward as the rest of the cleft’s deeper darkness crawled upward over the lip like a hungry if slowly advancing tide. A voice rose up as well, masculine but weary, deep but more the weight of a grave than the power of a mountain. It was the voice of a strong but wary old man, readying himself to lecture some annoying children.

“Fear? I do not fear, be you here at Tirek’s behest, or on your own foolhardy venture. I merely watch, bemused that you’d enter my realm with such boldness.”

The boiling shadow that rose like a geyser of obsidian water resolved into a physical shape, stepping forth across the air towards the edge of the cleft where Adagio stood. Black cloaked him like a vast cape, shifting and trailing jagged edges of darkness, but she saw the cloth material underneath. His frame was tall, broad shouldered, but somehow thin, like the emaciated trees of his realm. White hair that was frayed at the edges spilled down his back, longer than her own, and combed neatly. His flesh, where she could see it, was a pallid, gray tint, like an old corpse, with a pointed jawline. His upper face was covered by his Arrancar bone fragment, which was actually much more of a full mask, as if a skull had become an opera mask that covered the upper top section of his head, leaving only just enough room for his long mane of hair to spill out. Red eyes glinted with dangerous amusement from within that half-skull mask, and the man halted just at the edge of his cleft, staring down at her, for he stood about a solid foot taller than Adagio did.

She saw no Zanpaktou on him, but sensed it was there, hidden in the depths of that cloak that covered him.

“Erebus, I presume? You’ll forgive me if I don’t offer a hand to shake. I imagine you’re not interested in pleasantries.”

Amused air escaped his dry lips, less a laugh and more an incredulous sigh, “I am debating how long to tolerate your presence before feasting on you and your servants' souls, so you presume correctly that I am not interested in pleasantries, Adagio Dazzle. You had best speak quickly of whatever madness has drawn you here, for my own patience will not last long, I assure you.”

If she felt threatened by his words she made a point of not showing it, maintaining her ease as she spoke, “I can get to the point if that is what you prefer, although I would like to confirm one or two things, to satiate my curiosity. I’ll risk your lack of patience. First of all, Erebus... Erebus, a name from the pages of mythology. Tell me, are you truly the Greek deity of darkness, or are you an Arrancar who took the name because it sounded good?”

Her words were meant to be barbed. She was ready, sharpening her reiatsu before she was even done speaking. Her senses were micro-filament razors, feeling his ire, his killing intent as the darkness around him solidified into drilling points of solid spiritual energy. He coated himself in his reiatsu, those shadows as much a part of him as flesh and blood. Yet as physical objects, they could be stopped, and so when the flood of pointed, jagged shadow rushed her, she gestured with her hand and an equal flood of super-pressurized water blasted forth from around her, conjured into being from her raw spirit energy.

Shadow and water clashed, and Adagio briefly enjoyed his look of surprise. Another shadow user. If he had a scythe, Adagio would start to fear she had a pattern for her opponents. Her pressurized jets of water halted his shadows, and she flooded the area around her further, conjuring a great swirl of water that crackled with blue arcs of her energy. Gaw and Di Roy did not draw their swords, remaining still amid the still eye of the storm, as she had bade them before they’d even entered the forest.

“Erebus,” Adagio said as she let her reiatsu pour outward to hammer against his own, “You are a Privaron Espada, and have been far from Las Noches for many ages. I know not if you’re the original bearer of your name or merely a pretender, but either way know that I am not to be intimidated by your posturing! I earned my title with blood and deed, and if you wish to simply fight, know I’ll just as gladly devour your soul as you threatened to do to mine. But, if you are wise, and willing, then let us speak as equals. My business with you need not end with your death.”

For a few moments the clash of their spirit energies filled the vast and dark vale, water and shadows poised against one another in a crackling standoff.

Then Erebus’s crimson eyes narrowed and without a motion from his still, dark form, his shadows withdrew. Similarly Adagio withdrew her water, letting the conjured substance fall around her in a dripping flood. Erebus’ mouth twitched in something almost like a smile, but the irritation was still clear in the slit of his eyes.

“You have power, I shall not deny that, boisterous woman. I may yet consider it worth devouring you, even if I must admit you appear able to give me a fight. Perhaps a fight is what I desire, to provide some passing amusement. But you’ve earned a few extra moments of my time. Just what ‘business’ do you presume to have with me?”

To this, Adagio flashed a blinding smile, more a barring of teeth than anything else as her own eyes shone with eagerness, “Why, quite simply the downfall of ‘Lord’ Tirek.”

Episode 170: Diplomacy by Other Means

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Episode 170: Diplomacy by Other Means

From Erebus’ withered lips came forth a sandpaper peal of laughter. Adagio tried not to take it personally, although she was a smidge tempted to blast a Cero past his face, just to remind him that he wasn’t dealing with a simpering weakling. Still, such emotional outbursts would be a waste, so she instead opted for her preferred sass, “That wasn’t a joke, but if you’re that easily amused perhaps I misjudged that you might be an Arrancar of sufficient power to be worth my time talking to.”

His laughter died out with a dry snort, and he floated around to Adagio’s left, touching down upon the edge of the cleft. She was vaguely curious if he even had feet underneath all that shadow and cloak, or if he just sort of floated around like a mist. Di Roy and Gaw both tensed at Erebus’ proximity, but he didn’t even pay the pair any attention, as if they didn’t exist. His eyes were wholly focused upon Adagio.

“Power is relative, child. You possess enough to be a threat to many, but to Tirek? What in that vast head of, let’s face it, ungodly amount of hair makes you think that you could possibly unseat the strongest of us all? It may have been some time since I last was in Las Noches’ halls, but I have not forgotten Tirek himself. To challenge him is to embrace destruction. I welcome you to your course, but if you are here to propose an alliance, then I’ve no interest.”

It was a response Adagio had expected. If any of the Privaron Espada were likely to consider the possibility of rising against Tirek, they would have done so of their own volition long ago. She had to offer them some evidence that Tirek could be made vulnerable, or that the vast gap of power could be closed. She had cards to play on both fronts, and chose carefully which to make use of.

“I don’t deny the power at Tirek’s disposal,” she said, not backing away from Erebus and indeed taking a further step into his space, “I’ve felt it myself, when he tested me for a position in the Espada. I am well aware of the difference between him and I. In a direct confrontation, I’d stand no chance. For now.”

“For now? Oh, this will be rich. Whatever makes you think you could close the distance, hmm? I admit you are... unusual, for an Arrancar. That gem suspended within your Hollow hole is most intriguing. I do sense power within it, but not enough to make a difference against the likes of Tirek.”

Erebus’ words remained laminated with a thick coating of dubiousness, but he couldn’t fully hide his interest in Adagio’s siren gem. While his focus was upon it, she picked out her words pointedly, carefully watching Erebus’ body language. “Let me answer your question with another question; have you ever heard the term ‘Segunda Etapa’?”

It was a toss of the dice, but she had her suspicions concerning the research she’d been studying from the stolen files taken from Grogar’s lab. She knew Grogar was quite old, even by Hollow standards, and a contemporary of Tirek’s from ancient days pre-dating the present war with the Quincy and Soul Reapers. Segunda Etapa, the project Grogar had been pouring so much of his effort into, tied to his work on both the Seed and Adagio’s siren gem, referred to a concept she wasn’t sure any other Arrancar knew about. Save perhaps those who’d been around a long time. Whether this Erebus was tied to the mythological Erebus or not, he was definitely old. Old enough perhaps to have heard the phrase that Grogar used for his ultimate goal.

The mere fact that Erebus tried to hide his reaction by going so still told Adagio more than enough even before he spoke, “Where did you hear that name?”

“Why? Is it important?” she teased, and Erebus’ shadows crawled over him in a bubbling tar.

“Hmph, is it ‘important’ the child asks? You betray your ignorance. I cannot fault you, the young would not know it. It is a concept that died out long ago. A legend, a myth, an ideal, even by our immortal standards. You of course know of Ressurecion.”

“Obviously. I am an Arrancar,” Adagio stated, tapping her trident on her shoulder for emphasis, “So I take it this Segunda Etapa is related?”

“You must already know, otherwise you would not have wasted breath questioning me about it, or suggesting it was relevant to your confidence in planning to revolt against Tirek,” Erebus said, his voice growing quiet even as it maintained a mocking edge, “I wonder as to where you could have heard it from, as there are not many left who would know. Regardless, it is not as if you could have obtained it. None can. Not even Tirek himself, although I’ve no doubt the greedy bastard has tried.”

“Hmm, well for the sake of my own indulgence why don’t you tell me what you know? Perhaps it won’t be news to me, but by doing so perhaps I might tell you of what I know in return,” Adagio spoke in a rich chime, placing a subtle weaving a note of siren song into her words. Not enough to dominate by any degree, but enough to... suggest that what she said was a perfectly equitable notion. Erebus, unfamiliar with magic, didn’t sense the small, careful weaving and he responded still with his casual arrogance but with a hint of relaxation as well.

“Arrancar evolved our power by locking a portion of it into Zanpaktou, so that we might further fill our bodies with reiryoku through the consuming of souls and the refining of spirit energy. This was in the height of the ancient wars, when those spirits mortals called ‘gods’ still walked the realms. In those times, Tirek rose highest among us, but only partially due to the culling of other powerful Arrancar like him through the attrition of war. During this time a certain legend was born, a rumor that one Arrancar had refined their spirit energy to such a degree that they achieved a ‘second release’, a further state beyond Ressureccion; the Segunda Etapa.”

Adagio nodded, her voice prompting, “And whatever became of this ‘legendary’ Arrancar?”

Erebus scoffed, “It is not known for certain. That’s why its merely a legend and not accepted as common fact. According to the myth, the Segunda Etapa drew down the wrath of the strongest gods aligned against the Hollows, including direct children of the Soul Queen herself. Although the tale tells not of this mighty Arrancar’s fate, it can be... surmised that they did not survive the encounter. Hence the lesson in the myth, my little Espada. No matter how much power one has, never allow arrogance to overshadow caution. A lesson I take to heart. Even if you did possess some inkling as to how to achieve the Segunda Etapa, that alone would not guarantee victory against the likes of Tirek.”

“Perhaps it wouldn’t, were I to use it alone,” Adagio said, “But what if I were to share that power, once the secret was unlocked? One Segunda Etapa might not defeat Tirek, but what if there were two? Or three? Four, then? How many before even Tirek would be forced to relent? You just said the lesson of this myth was to not let power breed arrogance, but has Tirek not failed this very lesson by allowing Privaron Espada like you to carve domains in the desert, assuming none of you are a threat? Does it not rankle you that he thinks nothing of you? That you are a non threat, unworthy of the slightest concern?”

She could all but taste the resentment that wafted off of Erebus, the elderly Arrancar’s shadowed form quivering before going very still, “You make a very large promise with no proof, and challenge my pride with no less arrogance than Tirek. Besides, if you did know the secret to this legend you would be a fool to share that power with I or anyone else. No Arrancar shares power.”

A double wave of reiatsu suddenly crashed outward, but not from Adagio. Erebus spun about, surprise evident in his eyes as two auras, one rich as fresh blood and the other cool blue as the ocean encased Gaw and Di Roy respectively. Both Arrancar let their spiritual pressure flow freely, far stronger than any normal servant or Fraccion would be. Gaw was offering a low growl while Di Roy smacked a hand to his chest and said, “I know one Arrancar who shares power, old man, and it’s our boss lady right there! You want proof, Gaw and I both have grown by freakin’ leaps and bounds because of her. If she says she’ll grant you power and play straight with you, she ain’t joking.”

Erebus paused for a pensive moment, eyes shrewd behind his skull mask. “Your servants, at least, are loyal, if somewhat mouthy. And impressive in their own right, although if they make a move I can still skewer them with a thousand shadows.”

Adagio smiled and let out a chiming laugh, giving her two vassals an appreciative look, “Thank you Di Roy, Gaw, I do believe you’ve helped at least prove I appreciate my allies.”

“Always happy to help, boss lady.”

“It still proves nothing, save perhaps that you are... slightly less usual than the other Espada I’ve known in the past,” Erebus said, “You still have told me naught but the name of a legend.”

“A name that was inside a research file taken from Grogar’s own laboratory, and I assume his name is familiar to you?” Adagio put out there, to which Erebus’ lips twitched in a sour grimace.

“Quite. If you speak the truth then I could almost believe you’ve found something of use. Grogar does not waste time on valueless research. But tell me, did he succeed in discovering the path to Segunda Etapa, and if he did, are you capable of replicating his results? Grogar has remained a favorite of Tirek due to his rather singular genius, and no offense intended Adagio Dazzle, but for all your audacious confidence you do not strike me as a scientific mind.”

“I am not, no, but I know others who are at least Grogar’s equals if not possessing of even greater intellect. Before you ask, I cannot tell you who these others are, but through them I believe the secrets of Segunda Etapa can be mine. And, consequently, those who align themselves with me,” Adagio said, knowing she was walking a tightrope. Ever since she delved into Grogar’s files and gleaned that the project for Secunda Etapa was ultimately Grogar’s central goal, she knew she wanted to acquire this power for herself. Not simply to make herself stronger, but because stealing the fruits of Grogar’s research out from under him was part of breaking the bastard. To that end, she was willing to take the risk of sharing those very files with someone like Discord, whom Adagio still didn’t trust fully but knew was at least an equal to Grogar’s scientific mind.

Adagio might not know how to parse out Grogar’s mad research, but if anyone could, it was probably Discord. It was a risk, but then if she wasn’t willing to put a little trust out there, then there was little point in forming her shadow alliance with the Canterlot Spirit Coalition in the first place. She needed an edge against Tirek. She needed a means to secure further allies among the Privaron Espada. There just wasn’t time to play things slow and safe.

Erebus leaned closer to her, eyes boring into hers as if he was trying to excavate any lies held within. She did not break his gaze, nor back away an inch. Eventually he pulled back, and his cloak of shadows unfolded as a very long, stick-thin limb of withered gray tipped with long black claws emerged and stroked his chin.

“You believe what you say, that much I can see. You intend to seek the other Privaron Espada?”

“As many as I can. I’ve allies among the present Espada, but as you yourself have made a point to belabor to me, Tirek is astonishingly powerful, and still has Espada loyal to him. Victory requires a strong array of allies of my own, and a means to even the odds. Believe me or not, I’ve little reason to lie when defeat would mean destruction.”

“Why?” Erebus asked, “Why risk it? Is the throne of Primera Espada so tempting? Tirek is a smug bastard but survivable, as tyrants go.”

“Because while he may be ‘survivable’, as you put it, I’ve grander plans than mere survival. Hueco Mundo can be much improved, but not while one sits the throne who is unwilling or unable to alter the status quo. I am not content to merely serve, and I know neither are you, otherwise you would not be here, rather than Las Noches.”

The thickness of silence dwelled upon the shadowed meeting for too many moments for Adagio’s liking, but Erebus did not seem to be one to be rushed. At least he was considering her words, rather than dismissing them out of hand.

“I admire your ambitions, but I’d be a fool to accept you at your word. Greater Arrancar than you have tried and failed to best Tirek over the many, many centuries of his rule.”

“You among them?” Adagio quipped, and a flare of boiling anger and shame gave a brief showing in his eyes before he marshaled himself.

“Tirek rarely spares those that challenge him directly. It was not I but... it matters little. I’ve heard your words, Adagio Dazzle, and while I find your boldness amusing, I have no real reason to back a revolution with no promise of victory. Segunda Etapa? Perhaps Grogar does pursue that dream, but until you can prove to me that it is anything more than a dream I shall remain in my own domain. I suspect, were you to go to the other Privaron Espada, their response would be the same.”

It was the response she’d considered most likely, but it remained a sting of disappointment to her, regardless. However she had one last card to play, shaking her head in a show of only partially feigned frustration, “A shame that you lack the strength to even dream of deposing Tirek. If all Privaron Espada are so cowed it is little wonder the Storm King considered you all such easy prey. But then, he and his army are no longer a threat, are they?”

This certainly stirred a reaction, Erebus showing a quiet caution towards her as he backed up a pace. Adagio offered her most... sharp and inviting smile at that. Of course she was somewhat taking credit for the work of others. The Storm King had been a Privaron Espada himself, who caused Adagio’s vassals and a certain group of unlikely and unexpected allies quite a bit of trouble until he’d been dealt with. It was from his fortress that Adagio had acquired knowledge of the other Privaron Espada’s realms, since the Storm King had been building his own army by invading other territories. With him gone, she imagined the remaining Privaron Espada were very curious about what had become of the threat he’d represented. And Adagio didn’t see any particular issue with implying she had a greater role in that than had actually been the case. Technically she had sent X and his team out there in search of Privaron Espada, along with Roka, Di Roy, and Gaw. So, strictly speaking, the results of that excursion was her doing. Kind of.

“You claim responsibility for the Storm King’s vanishing?”

“Destruction,” Adagio confirmed, “Him and most of his army.”

“And what of his pet Soul Reaper?”

Adagio shrugged at that, “Who knows? Not dead, to my knowledge, but hardly a factor with the Storm King vanquished.”

Truthfully, she was rather keen to find where the Soul Reaper who’d served the Storm King had gone, but Tempest Shadow had vanished into the deserts of Hueco Mundo along with the only two surviving Arrancar of the Storm King’s army and had made no appearance since. Adagio didn’t exactly have the vassals to spare in searching for her, either, even if a former Soul Reaper Captain would make a handy ally in taking down Tirek.

Her words made Erebus hesitate, and she let him make whatever assumptions he wanted. She hadn’t directly claimed to have killed the Storm King herself, which she hadn’t, but she was in part responsible for his downfall and was happy to let others assume what that meant.

“I’ve heard tell of how little remained of his domain, and the destruction wrought there. If that was your handiwork... hmm, perhaps your little revolution is not so impossible after all. If Tirek can fall...”

“Then you’d be a fool to waste the opportunity to be a part of it, rather than remain here in this shadowed place, existing eternally in obscurity. Be you the original Erebus, or one who simply chose the name, live up to it and show the other Privaron Espada that if Tirek wishes to live by the rule of the strongest, we can put that to the test.”

Her words hung in the air like motes of flame, and Erebus looked upon her offered hand for a long moment before reaching out to clasp it.

----------

The warm smell of grilling meat touched Sunset’s nostrils upon entering Discord’s shop and her stomach clenched in hunger. It still wasn’t her preferred food, but she’d adapted to being in an omnivorous body, and she certainly wasn’t going to complain when Pinkie Pie could cook just about anything into a state of pure deliciousness. She went through the store’s now closed down front room, noting a sleeping Screwball leaned up against the door with her massive, spiked club right next to her.

“She was waiting for the rest of the piglets to get back home before locking the door,” Screwloose said, meeting Sunset at the door to the back hallways. Her eyes twinkled as she looked upon the girl curled up in Sunset’s arms. “You bringing in a new stray?”

“Kind of. The rest of the girls are back already?” Sunset asked, not too surprised they’d all made it back before her, considering she, Twilight, and Spike had taken their time on the walk back. She and Twilight had parted ways just prior to arriving at Discord’s shop, after Twilight had confirmed with her Quincy team that there were no more Hollows in the city. Twilight had also promised to keep Sunset up to date on any developments with the mysterious magic stone.

“They got back not too long before you did, and are resting up in the dining room while Pinkie assaults our kitchen,” Screwloose confirmed, making a show of stepping aside for Sunset and her carried charge, sweeping her arms down down the hall towards where Sunset knew the guest rooms were, “Our tiniest of new piggies acquitted themselves well, if Rarity’s glowing praise is any indication. I think I only smelled a little fear on them this time, although if I were to place a bet on it I’d say Sweetie Belle is the one most likely to snap if the pressure is on.”

Sunset frowned, sharpness rising in her voice, “They’ve got more going for them than a lot of people out there who can’t defend themselves, and they’re trying hard to deal with it all. Cut them some slack, Screwloose.”

“Oh I wasn’t criticizing, but rather throwing you a word of caution. Those kids admire you and your pals, Sunset.” Screwloose matched pace with Sunset down the hallway, leaning forward to look up and arrest Sunset’s gaze with her own serious stare, “They’re going to try and catch up to you, and that’s a dance they’re not ready to step yet.”

“You... don’t approve that we let them out, tonight, do you?” Sunset said, and Screwloose let out a barking laugh.

“Was a different tune with you girls, all hopped up on magic. These newer waiflings don’t have that benefit. I trusted Discord’s plan to help you girls get all big and tough. Don’t think that lightning in a bottle will strike twice, personally, and I’ve... seen too many dead, dumb kids to find it funny anymore. Just saying, keep an eye on them, Sunset, they’re your responsibility much as anyone’s now that we’re making ourselves all nice and official with this Coalition business.”

“Heh, were you always this responsible or is it a recent development?” Sunset asked, smiling with a layer of snark, “Because I still remember you screwing around while we were still trying to deal with Hollows without powers and Adagio became a plushie.”

Screwloose made an embarrassed choking noise as she looked away and scratched at her hair, suddenly finding the ceiling very interesting, “Y-yeah, well, times change. I like our new batch of tinies, and don’t want them to get as roughed up as you girls were. Sue me.”

“I’m just messing with you Screwloose. I appreciate the concern, and I’ll keep it in mind, don’t you worry. I don’t want our ‘tinies’ getting hurt either, but I also want to make sure they can defend themselves. Even this shop might not stay safe forever, you know?” Sunset said, making a few turns down the shop’s impossibly lengthy inner halls until she came to where she knew the guest rooms to be. Slipping through a sliding door she entered into a simple if still quite cozy room with a plush bed to set Wallflower down on. The girl was still out cold, but Sunset had no idea for how long.

“Want me to keep an eye on this one ‘till she cracks eyes open?” asked Screwloose.

“If you could, that’d be cool. I need to let Discord know she’s here, at least, and let everyone else know about what happened.” Sunset was already considering how much or little Wallflower would need to know, upon waking. Sunset’s gut was to just lay it all out, if for no other reason than to impress upon Wallflower that she really shouldn’t get involved in this business any more than needed. If she wanted to help, Sunset would direct her to talk to Bon Bon, who really was more or less in charge of the neighborhood watch that was unofficially formed up of Canterlot High students now fully clued in.

Discord is even arming them, so if Wallflower works with them she won’t be totally defenseless. That ‘Anti-Hollow Spray’ must do something, because Bon Bon hasn’t even reported any injuries from the other students. Still...

The only sticking point was that stone, but that was in Twilight’s hands now. Not much to do except wait to see what the science and magic wiz learned after tinkering with it. Sunset was a bit envious, as she was pretty curious herself and wouldn’t mind joining in the magic tinkering and experimentation, but she had a literal pile of other things on her plate with the upcoming meeting. And before that, tomorrow morning was training with Sweet Cider. It was Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s combined idea. A big get together at the Apple family farm, complete with barbeque, sleepover, and training day. More or less an excuse to enjoy a day with her friends before whatever crap went down at the meeting, but Sweet Cider seemed interested in gauging the girls’ strength, post Everfree.

“I thought I sensed a new soul.”

Sunset and Screwloose both spun, taken a bit by surprise as Gaia Everfree stood in the doorway.

“Hells, Gloriosa, did you forget how knocking works?” Sunset asked, and the woman gave her a flat look.

“No, but the door was open. Who is the child, and why do I smell a hint of magic on her, wafting around like old leaves?”

Sunset constrained the need to roll her eyes at Gaia’s brusque manner, and gave her a fast rundown on what happened, to which Gaia’s form relaxed into something akin to a lounging cat’s ease. “Oh, is that all? I thought there were more Hollows prowling the night than usual today. I was tempted to grab a bite to eat, myself, but I’m trying not to provoke the poor Quincy and Soul Reapers too much. You perhaps were a tad too trusting to just give that stone to Twilight Sparkle.”

“She’s earned my trust plenty of times over,” Sunset pointed out, to which Gaia held up a hand, casually conjuring a length of vine from the wood of the wall to make a small flower that she idly played with.

“It is not just a matter of trust, Sunset. If I learned anything from my own experiences, is that magic is unpredictable. I suggest at least checking in with Twilight regularly from now on. Just in case. At any rate, my curiosity is sated. I must go check on Timber.”

“He doing alright?” Sunset inquired. She knew Timber had more or less recovered physically from the traumas of his injuries, but she did worry about how the guy was holding up mentally and emotionally. He was more or less taking care of what was left of Camp Everfree on his own, with Gaia/Gloriosa providing help in restoring the damage to the wider forest, but still maintaining a low profile as to not rile up the Soul Reapers who still maintained a strong cordon around the portal tree, who were essentially there at Discord’s invite as to keep things smooth until the Canterlot Spirit Coalition could properly announce and establish itself.

“He’s... good,” Gaia said, a bit of Gloriosa’s customary worry entering her face, making the seemingly ageless Arrancar quickly appear very human, “I think. It’s all still very weird for him. I’m trying to make it easier on him by giving him some space.”

Sunset wasn’t sure how good an idea that was. Sometimes a person needed space, other times they really needed to be reached out to. She didn’t know Timber Spruce well enough to say which he needed in this case, but if it were here who had a sister suddenly merge with a Hollow, possibly lose her mortal body, and now walked around as an odd human and Arrancar fused entity, she might need some time to process all that. She offered Gaia a warm smile, hoping her tone was encouraging, “It’s going to be weird for both of you, but just be ready to remind him you're still his sister. He’ll need that, I think.”

“Heh, perhaps, but he also asks me often if I know how a certain Quincy girl is doing. Hmph, as if I’m keeping tabs on Twilight,” Gaia said, shaking her head, “Honestly I don’t know why he seems too interested. They’ve barely met.”

“Eh, take it from me, Twilight, either Twilight, seems to have that effect on young, socially awkward men. Word of advice from me to him, if he is that into her, he’d better be prepared to be very patient and willing to embrace the nerdiness.”

Gaia chuckle-snorted, “The nerd aspect he won’t have trouble with. It’s all the rest I’m worried about. Neither of my selves is very enamored with Quincy affairs, and I don’t foresee anything but trouble with my brother getting involved with one who is neck deep in all of... that.”

“I can see how it might make for an uncomfortable dating situation,” Sunset said, then blinked as she heard a mumble from the bed and turned to see a still quite dazed Wallflower rub at her face and yawn as she swayed up in the bed into a sitting position, blinking in confused bleariness at everyone in the room. Especially Gaia, who’s Hollow hole was plain and evident.

“...Did... did you just kidnap me!?” Wallflower explained at Sunset, then pointed at Screwloose, “Who is that!?” then at Gaia, “And what’s wrong with her!? She has a hole! Why is there a hole!”

Screwloose, at that, waved at Sunset and quickly exited the room, “Welp, I think I’ve got chores to do. You have fun with her, kay bye!”

“W-wait a sec, Screwloose, I could use help explaining-”

“Chores! And I’d better go tell Discord about the kidnapp- I mean, guest acquiring. Toodles!”

Sunset growled as Screwloose made her swift exit, then glanced at Gaia, who simply shrugged. “Don’t look at me. She’s not my abductee.”

“I didn’t abduct anyone!”

“You took her off the street without her consent. I think that counts as abduction by legal definition.”

Sunset briefly considered the value of strangling Gaia, but considering the Arrancar’s level of strength, she doubted that doing so would yield any results. Instead she ran a hand over her face and turned to face a still terrified and baffled looking Wallflower. She sat on the end of the bed and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before saying to Wallflower, “Look, if you promise not to shout, scream, or pass out again, I’ll give you all the answers I can. Deal?”

“I...I...umm... o...kay?” Wallflower stuttered slowly, looking as unsure of herself as a kitten in a dog pen. She went very silent then, eyes focused on Sunset with equal measures of expectation, anxiety, and if Sunset wasn’t mistaking it a bit of old pain and resentment. It hit Sunset then that she had seen Wallflower before. Long ago, when she first got to the human world. One of her many... victims, when she’s been basically shooting for world’s most cliché bully.

Oh no. I... really owe her. Apologies, and more.

While she’d certainly come a long way since then and embraced a whole new life, more than once at this point, it was still a painful old shadow to recall the sheer level of petty cruelty she’d once been capable of. Shame burned her, but Sunset embraced it and reminded herself that if she wanted to continue being a better person, she couldn’t ignore past wrongs, even if it’d been a long time since she’d faced one of those she had done wrong too.

“If you want something to eat or drink, would be a good idea to say so now, Wallflower. This is going to be a long story.”

----------

“And she passed out again somewhere around the point where I got to the final fight with Grand Fisher,” Sunset sighed as she plopped her chin on her hand, sitting around the eastern-style dining table that her friends were gathered around. “I’m starting to wonder if she’s got a medical condition.”

“Sugarcube, all o’ this might be old hat ta us, but gotta figure fer a regular girl it’s a whole lot ta take in,” Applejack said with sympathy evident in her voice as she snacked on a ham sandwich that was sporting at least a eighty to twenty meat to bread ratio.

“I do recall screaming a lot during my first Hollow encounter,” Rarity said, “Although I did avoid fainting.”

“Hey, we’re all awesome like that. Not everyone’s cut out for this lifestyle,” Rainbow Dash smiled around her own meal, a plate piled high with enough waffles to endanger the cardiovascular health of a reasonably sized elephant.

“Was there a theme to this meal, Pinkie, or was this just ‘empty the pantry’ day?” Sunset asked, to which Pinkie puffed out her chest with culinary pride.

“The theme is ‘calories’ Sunset! All of the calories. It was a busy night, so eat up!” From Pinkie’s shadow rose a misty pink tendril that resolved into Pinkamena's head briefly that snatched up a whole leg of fried chicken and downed it before retreating back into Pinkie, who just laughed like she’d been tickled.

“I’m surprised there are any Hollows left that were willing to risk attacking us,” Flutteshy’s quiet voice held a great deal of concerned weight behind it, “Although I’m glad everything turned out okay. Even Mister Smooze helped out a bit.”

“Did he?” Sunset said, trying not to show too much discomfort. Discord’s shop was ever more crowded these days, and while Sunset at least felt like she had a bit of a grasp on Gaia’s situation, the former Espada that Fluttershy had... well, ‘befriended’ didn’t seem like quite the right word. Tamed, maybe? The vibe he gave Sunset wasn’t bad, per se, just very different than a conventional friendship. She hadn’t had a chance to really speak with him much, either, not that she was super eager to hang out with him either.

Fluttershy gave Sunset a look that left Sunset feeling like her mind was essentially just an open window for Fluttershy to peer inside. Yet Fluttershy showed no harsh judgment, just a calm and understanding smile that radiated reassurance. “He did. Mister Smooze is very eager to help.”

“Doesn’t bother me, just as long as he, like, doesn’t get too close,” Rainbow Dash said, “No offense meant, Flutters, but the dude is a walking pile of disease ridden sludge.”

“Not by choice,” Fluttershy stated, and Rainbow held up her hands.

“I get that, doesn’t mean I want to be in the ‘splash zone’. I’m cool with him, but seriously if any of us catch anything from the guy...”

“He’s keeping his distance, from what I observe,” Rarity said, “While I share some of the concern, Rainbow, Smooze seems quite willing to be well behaved and gentlemanly, especially towards Fluttershy.”

The last bit was said with a questioning raise of an eyebrow, although Fluttershy didn’t respond to Rarity’s unspoken query save to continue wearing that calming, zen-like smile. Sunset herself had no comment. She had her worries, but trusted Fluttershy. Speaking of trust.

“At any rate, I hope you girls didn’t mind me making the decision to hand that stone over to Twilight. Seemed like the right move.”

“Why’d we mind it, Sunset? Twi’s the smartest of the smarties, so of course she’d be the best to check out a magic doodad,” said Pinkie, “Even Discord, who’s like even smarter, doesn’t have a bunch of experience with magic stuff like Twilight’s got.”

“Ya worried them Quincy o’ hers will try an’ do somehin’ nefarious with it?” asked Applejack, to which Sunset offered a shrug and chewed on her own sandwich for a bit.

“Not really,” she finally said, “Twilight herself is such a huge font of magic at this point that I’d say she’s more dangerous than any Equestrian artifact. Any Quincy that did try to screw with her these days would be more apt to get wrecked for their trouble before we even knew about it. I still don’t trust that Sombra guy, but we’ve got to learn to extend a little benefit of the doubt, otherwise this whole diplomacy thing we’re about to try is doomed to fail before we even sit at the meeting table.”

“A fairly made point,” Rarity said, “We’ve precious little time to prepare, and can hardly waste it on allowing mistrust to ferment against those we seek to make allies of.”

“But we do have time to waste on Applejack’s mom kicking our butts tomorrow,” Rainbow Dash said, grinning and popping her knuckles, “Of course I plan on trying to do the butt kicking myself, but let’s be real, we’ve felt that spiritual pressure from AJ’s old lady.”

“Well that’s dang near humble o’ ya ta say, Dash,” laughed Applejack, “Sure my ma ain’t gonna take it easy on us.”

“I’ll admit I’m kind of looking forward to it,” said Sunset, her mood brightening, a pleasant and warm buzz stemming from Hokori no Hikari that lay at her side, “Your mom really seems like she earned that title ‘Kenpachi’, and this is going to be a good benchmark for how far we’ve come.”

“But we’ll have to be very careful, won’t we? Applejack’s family farm is far outside the city, but still the highway isn’t that far away, and we don’t want to damage the actual farmland,” Fluttershy said, to which Applejack nodded.

“Already worked that out with ma. Found a good spot fer the spar, an’ worked out some ground rules fer it, too. Ain’t gonna be a problem.”

“And with everybody coming over for food, it’ll be like one big family party!” Pinkie bounced happily in her seat, “My own mom and pop will be there, as well as all my sisters!”

“Even my dad is going to drag himself out of the house to be there, although not sure how that’s gonna work with aunt Windy in town,” Rainbow Dash said, scratching her head. Sunset had heard that Rainbow had some family from outside the city visiting, but hadn’t met this aunt yet.

“I suppose we can keep the supernatural talk on the down low during the barbecue,” she told Rainbow Dash, “Not like we can’t hold conversations about other things. Heck, sparring with Sweet Cider aside, I was kind of looking forward to just chilling and maybe getting in some music practice. Feels like forever since we did any of that.”

“My goodness, our band has been rather overshadowed by the whole ‘world threatening spirit war’ issue of late,” Rarity said, “I wouldn’t mind breaking out the instruments and doing a few sets. Applejack, your farm’s barn would make for a good spot, wouldn’t it?”

“Eeeh, gotta make sure it’s cleaned out proper, but yeah, plenty o’ space in there. I can borrow the truck again from Bic Mac ta help move instruments.”

Conversation moved into discussing songs and set up for some band practice, and Sunset settled into a relaxed half doze as she listened to her friends talk. For a brief time she was able to set aside the worries of what was to come, which admittedly were many. She still hadn’t heard any word from Princess Twilight, the magical journal ominously silent all these days since Everfree. What was happening in Equestria right now? Then there was the meeting, where they were inviting the leaders of the Soul Society and Quincy right into Discord’s shop. The plan was to reveal all of Zero Division’s schemes and do everything in their power to convince Scorpan and Sombra that the threat posed by the Zero Division was simply too great to let the animosity between Soul Reaper and Quincy overshadow it.

Not to mention the ever increasing probability that Tirek would attempt to invade Equestria using the portal at Everfree.

So many worries, and while the list of friends and allies on Sunset’s side were increasing, that didn’t necessarily put her mind at ease. Her friends parents could reclaim their Fullbringer powers from their Xcution days with Discord’s help, and the younger generation like the CMC were developing their own powers, and there were of course the Bounts, and Gaia, and Smooze. By the numbers, the Canterlot Spirit Coalition had almost as much firepower now as any of the three major factions.

Despite this, Sunset couldn’t shake the leaden feeling that for all that they’d already been through together, she and her friends were heading for a far worse storm, possibly more dangerous than all previous endeavors combined. A storm that would utterly eclipse the infiltration of Soul Society or the battles at Camp Everfree. And, looking at Rarity, Sunset was reminded one of her friends had already lost their life, even if she was still with them in literal spirit.

What was going to be the cost, by the end of this? Because Sunset could feel the end in sight, like a distant cliff edge on the horizon. Zero Division wasn’t going to just sit around and do nothing forever, not with Sunset and her friends making an active effort to build and alliance against them. Sooner rather than later, everything was going to come to a head. Her fight to see her home and friends safe, Twilight’s fight to end the war between the Quincy and everyone else, Adagio’s fight to rise to the top of Hueco Mundo.

And Starlight Glimmer’s fight, too? To undo the injustice done to her friend Sunburst, even if she had to enact a host of other injustices to do so? In the end would Starlight Glimmer be another enemy she’d have to face and defeat?

“Somebody looks roughly a million miles away.”

Sunset gave a start as Discord plopped down at the table next to her, the conversation of her friends petering out at the old man’s arrival. He gave them all a pleasant if mischief-filled smirk as he set his cane across his lap and reached out to grab a big handful of chips from the table that he loudly chomped down. Sunset gave him a sidelong look, rubbing the back of her head.

“Guess I won’t deny it, my brain kind of wandered off there for a bit.”

“We noticed, but none of us wanted to bother you,” Fluttershy said, to which Pinkie Pie waggled her eyebrows at Sunset.

“I totally would have, but Fluttershy threatened to make me do dish duty tonight, and have you seen what happens to a kitchen after I’m done with it?”

Letting herself laugh for a second, Sunset turned to Discord, “I take it Screwloose at least told you about the girl passed out in the guest room?”

“Quite so, although shockingly enough I’m not here to talk about her. I trust you to be able to deal with the minutia of handling a lost lamb like that one on your own. No, I just wanted to bring you all the official word we just received from Clover. Captain Commander Scorpan has indeed fully accepted our invitation, and this is the bit that surprised even me, he has sent envoy’s to negotiate terms of the meeting with Sombra and the Quincy.”

“Wait, do the Soul Reapers even have diplomatic channels with the Quincy? Like, a way those envoys aren’t shot on sight?” Sunset asked, sharing Discord’s surprise.

“Barely ever used, but yes the war has gone on long enough that there is some official protocol for the exceedingly rare event of the two sides wanting to talk to each other rather than engage in wholesale slaughter,” Discord replied with an arid tone, “White flags of truce and all that. At any rate, from what I understand each of the leaders shall arrive with their own limited entourage. We can expect Captains Blueblood and Amore to be present with Captain Commander Scorpan-”

“Blueblood?” Rarity said, not quite... perking up, but showing more interesting than Sunset would have expected. At the same time, Rainbow Dash’s eyebrows shot up as she asked, “Why those two?”

“Believe it or not, Blueblood’s Division is nominally in charge of the Gotei 13’s diplomatic affairs, and Amore’s is designed to handle administrative issues. Having both present for a major diplomatic meeting is par for the course,” Discord said, “As for Sombra, I know he’ll have Twilight Sparkle with him, but I also believe her father Night Light will be coming, as well as one other; a woman named Coloratura.”

“That’s a weird name,” Rainbow Dash said, then blinked as she noticed Applejack was wearing a bemused face, scratching her head in thought. “Uh, something up, AJ?”

“Dunno, just that the name sounds mighty familiar ta me. Coulda swore I heard it somewhere ‘fore now.”

“Huh, kind of like me with that Gilda Espada chick,” Rainbow Dash said, “Like you’ve got this itch in your brain about the name, but no matter how you pick at it, just doesn’t shake loose?”

“Yeah, feels ‘bout right,” Applejack said, but she then shrugged, “Eh, it’s probably nothin’ ta fret over.”

“So point is, we’re going to have a full house, day after tomorrow,” Sunset said, taking in a deep breath and then pushing down a yawn, “Which means we’d all best be on our A-game. The whole point of this might be to try and work out a peace treaty, or at least a temporary cease fire, but doesn’t change the fact that we’re going to have some of the most powerful people in the world under this roof and if things get hot, we’ve got to be prepared for it.”

“It almost makes me feel bad we couldn’t include the Hollows in this, somehow,” Fluttershy said, and at the looks she go from her friends she simply smiled and shook her head, “Oh, I know that it’s not very likely that we could make diplomacy work with all of them, but it would just feel nice to... extend a hand, as long as we’re careful about not letting it be bitten. Adagio, Smooze, Applejack’s father, those nice people working for Adagio, there’s plenty of them who seem to want peace too.”

“While ya ain’t wrong, sugarcube, I ain’t ever seeing Grogar sitting down fer a nice chat, an’ while I ain’t ever met most of them other Espada, includin’ this Tirek feller who’s runnin’ the show, if he’s fine with employin’ Grogar’s type then I don’t see talkin’ as doin’ us much good.”

“Yes, Tirek is a ‘diplomacy by other means’ sort,” Discord said plainly, “Might is the only right for him. Power the only thing he respects. That is, by and large, the Hollow way. Even Adagio, for all of her reasonableness, must abide by those rules to survive where she has.”

“But it doesn't always have to be that way,” Sunset said, a heat entering her blood as she spoke, pulsing from her Zanpaktou, “We’re not going to sit by and let her take on all of that burden alone. Adagio is going to take Tirek and Grogar down, and we’ll find a way to help her do it. We’ll see to it that even Hueco Mundo and the Hollows aren’t left to the mercies of the Zero Division.”

“Yer soundin’ awful passionate all o’ a sudden, hun,” Applejack said, showing a smile that said she wasn’t at all against what Sunset was saying. “Gotta say it makes me feel a mite fired up myself.”

“Heck yeah, you have any idea how long I’ve been wanting to get a second crack at Grogar?” Rainbow Dash said, “Still ticks me off a bit that he was there at Everfree and we didn’t get a rematch!”

“I did!” Pinkie Pie chirped, “He was a real cranky, crooked, cantankerous coot! Pretty sure he really hates me after helping Adagio steal that super important seed thing he took out of Applejack’s pops.”

“How has he been doing?” Fluttershy asked Applejack, to which the farmgirl’s face stilled and she went from boisterous to a whisper.

“Recoverin’, sorta. Fenice has been keepin’ in touch, along with one o’ his other adopted kids, Roka.”

“Oh, I met her, she seemed nice,” Fluttershy said, and Applejack nodded, although Sunset could tell that Applejack was awkwardly tense in how her eyes didn’t really meet any of theirs.

“She is. Ain’t quite what I was expectin’, but seems dutiful an’ carin’. Anywhos, she n’ Fenice told us that pa’s still pretty weakened by what Grogar did ta him, but Adagio’s been helpin’ him get back on his feet. Ain’t nothin’ close ta what he was, but gettin’ there.”

“Uh, is that a good or bad thing, AJ?” Rainbow Dash said, and Rarity cut in.

“I expect it’s problematic, Rainbow. Do think about it, will you? Applejack’s father was among the top Espada, but with his power reduced, his position is compromised. Discord just laid out how Espada, or rather Hollow, politics work. It’s not a good thing that he’s weakened right now, because it means he’s vulnerable. It also weakens Adagio’s position, which isn’t ideal when she’s trying to form a viable rebellion.”

“Ya don’t gotta lay it out all hard like that, Rares,” Applejack said, and the anxiety and fear all but leaked from her voice like tepid water form a dam, and she drew her knees up, hugging them, “I just got my pa back. Don’t want ta lose him again ‘cause the other Espada decide ta get rid o’ him fer being ‘weak’.”

“I’m sorry, I... was being insensitive,” Rarity said, but Discord raised a bony finger.

“But not inaccurate. It's a painful reality, but you summarized the situation aptly. Lament, or rather Hard Nail is in a difficult position, as is Adagio. If deposing Tirek was easy, others would have already done it. If we’re to provide any aid at all, we must first establish some manner of truce between the Soul Society and the Quincy.”

“I hear what yer sayin’, and it’s alright Rares, I ain’t mad at ya,” Applejack said, managing a weak smile before worry painted her face once more, “I just wish i could go ta Las Noches right now an’, I don’t know, protect all this new family I got over there now. My pa, Fenice, Roka, all o’ them other orphan Arrancar. Want ta go punch out any an’ all o’ them bastards that’d threaten them.”

“I think we’re all on that page, Applejack,” said Pinkie, “If it were my family, I’d be going stark raving mad having to just sit around and wait. Oh... no, Mena, we’re not stark raving mad right now. Yes we’re talking to ourselves, but for us that’s perfectly normal.”

The girls looked at Pinkie Pie for a second before they all just returned to the conversation, Sunset saying, “At any rate, I’d like to get more proactive about helping our friends. Tonight proved to me that even with our defenses bolstered like they are, the Hollows will still show up to cause trouble. While I know our best bet at tackling Zero Division is getting the factions all to call a truce, since we know Tirek isn’t likely to sit at the table to talk it out perhaps we ought to send a message in a different way.”

Discord gave her a measuring look, his hand stroking his long wisp of white beard, “Did you have something in mind?”

Sunset glanced at Fluttershy, “Smooze, he was an Espada for a long time, right?”

“Yes, I think so. Certainly longer than any of us have been alive,” Fluttershy replied, and Sunset gave a nod.

“Then he knows the layout of Las Noches, at least the important bits. Discord, you can still open artificial Garganta portals for us as well, correct?”

“I can,” he said, looking ever more amused at the turn in the conversation, “I take it that whatever you’re thinking of doing, you’ve accounted for the fact that we literally have two days before what is probably going to be the most important diplomatic meeting in history taking place?”

“Oh, I’m aware. Don’t worry, I’m not thinking of anything too crazy. But if diplomacy by other means is all Tirek is going to understand, then I’m going to show him just how ‘diplomatic’ we can be,” Sunset said, her eyes practically burning as she smiled in anticipation, and she could all but feel Hokori no Hikari buzzing with pleasure at her side.

"Sunset, is this wise?" asked Rarity, "This strikes me as poking the tiger in the eye, whatever you may be planning."

"I'm concerned about this, too," said Fluttershy, "I know that many of the Espada wouldn't think twice about attacking us, but what would raiding Las Noches accomplish? Um, that is what you're thinking of doing, isn't it?"

Sunset understood her friends' worries, and quickly forestalled them, "Relax, I'm not intending we just go in and start blowing things, or Hollows, up at random. I actually am thinking diplomatically here. Just, er, 'Hollow' diplomacy, if you will. I've seen how Adagio has integrated herself with the Hollows, what does and what doesn't to earn respect with them. Since the Canterlot Spirit Coalition is meant to be a bridge between all of the factions, I want to make things clear to all of Hueco Mundo's residents who we are and what we're about. That just means that for the Hollows we'll need to be a bit aggressive about it."

----------

Adagio shuddered, and Di Roy glanced at her.

“Something wrong, boss lady?”

They were traveling back to Las Noches at high speed, leaping in great, earth-eating bounds across the desert, which didn’t impede conversation nearly as much as one might think. Adagio let out a faint grunt of vague consternation, wondering just what the cause of her sudden unease was.

“Nothing. It’s nothing,” she said, shaking the feeling off.

“If you say so. Don’t blame you if you’re feeling a tad out of sorts. That Erebus dude was seriously, obnoxiously full of himself.”

Behind him, Gaw let out a bark that may have been a laugh, “You not one to talk.”

Di Roy blew a raspberry at her, and went on to say, “Seriously, though, I hope not all the Privarons are that theatrical. Least he agreed to working with us.”

Adagio wasn’t quite as optimistic, despite the way the situation had concluded. “It’s purely an alliance of convenience based upon the notion that if I’m not bluffing, he stands to gain a great deal of power. He’ll turn on me the second he thinks it’s no longer beneficial to support me. I doubt I’ll find more favorable terms from any of the other Privarons. But I knew that going into this. I don’t need the Privaron Espada to be loyal, or even trusting of me. I just need to get a few of them in line so that when everything else kicks off, I’ve got enough muscle to keep the other Espadas busy while Tirek is dealt with.”

“You sure this whole Segunda Etapa thing is really going to be enough to pull that off?” asked Di Roy, and at her look he gulped and added, “Not that I’m doubting you, but this is a lot to bet on something we don’t even have solid proof is actually achievable. Even Erebus’ crusty old ass seemed to think it was nothing more than a myth to inspire the power fantasies of young Arrancar.”

“If Grogar pursues it, it’s real,” Adagio said in a flat tone that offered no room for dispute, heated hate entering her voice, “That old goat wouldn’t waste his time on anything as shaky as a myth.”

“Still sounds too good to be true. A transformation beyond Resurreccion? I mean, if it was real, then wouldn’t Tirek have achieved it himself? He’s old as balls and, you know, stupidly powerful already.” Di Roy’s points were valid, Adagio was not without her counterpoints.

“I don’t believe it’s a matter of raw spiritual power,” she said, and her hand strayed up to the smooth, sparkling gleam of the crimson siren gem that floated in her Hollow hole, “I think there’s rather a more magical key to this.”

“Huh... that’d make sense. Here’s hoping that Discord guy can come through, then. Assuming you can trust him.”

“Di Roy, I don’t trust anyone who hasn’t proven themselves to me. You, Gaw, Roka, Fenice, Lament, Torch, Ember, it’s a short list. And...”

Adagio sighed, having difficulty, even now, admitting to this out loud, but she was past the point of being entirely coy about this. “And Sunset Shimmer is on that list as well. I don’t trust Discord, but I trust her. Enough, at least, to know that if Discord tried to double cross me, she’d be the first to plant a boot up his rear end before I could.”

“Excellent point. That firebrand and her friends are really good at the kicking of ass,” Di Roy admitted, quite possibly remembering the time, prior to becoming full Arrancar, that’d he tried and failed to deal with Sunset Shimmer himself. Gaw laughed again, as if knowing exactly what Di Roy was thinking.

Adagio just smiled, pleased, at least, at the thought of Sunset and her band of merry fools making use of their wrecking ball heroism for helping her plans along. It would still take a steel prybar roughly the size of a skyscraper to extract an admission from Adagio that she thought of Sunset as a friend, but... the word wasn’t exactly inaccurate, either. Perhaps one day she’d be willing to thank Sunset for everything. Eventually. Some day. When Hell froze over.

Arrival at Las Noches was swift and silent. There were several hidden tunnel entrances now that led to the exterior dunes outside the fortress that would lead into her personal territory, and staying out of sight of the sentries was less of a problem with the overwhelming number of Hollows that now occupied the desert surrounding Las Noches. The lesser Hollows were cowed by her presence easily, and any Gillians or Adjuchas were smart enough to give her and her vassals a wide berth.

As they traversed the horde of teaming Hollows it was still amazing to her just how many of them there were. She’d thought that Tirek had gathered many prior to the attack made by the Quincy, but this was a broiling sea of Hollows readily thrice the size of that prior gathering. Even now she could feel Tireks’ reiatsu flowing off of Las Noches, a pulsating sun that gave out an ever present and hungry call. None of the weaker Hollows could resist that call, as if drawn to the spirit energy in the way maggots were to rot.

She suppressed another shudder once she was inside Las Noches, and swiftly went down the hallways into her territory within the walls of the mighty fortress.

“Gaw,” she said, “Go to Lament’s tower to check in on them. Take a squadron of warriors, and Dumbbell, with you. I’d like to maintain a proper show of force, just in case Guto’s people are getting stupid.”

Gaw growled in acknowledgement and was gone in an eager rush, and Adagio turned to Di Roy.

“Find Usagi and see if she needs any help with anything. We’re not exactly short on lesser Hollow meat right now, but I imagine she’s feeling swamped with our new recruits.”

“Ten-four, boss lady. Di Roy, out.”

With her two most trusted vassals having been given their marching orders, Adagio made her way to her personal chambers. She wanted to grab a bite to eat, then get in touch with Thorax to let him now how the meeting with Erebus went. She was already anticipating the future, considering which Privaron Espada to approach next. She had to be careful with the timing, since it wasn’t ideal to rely on Thorax masquerading as her entirely. Mainly because he still needed to masquerade as Chrysalis.

Opening the door to her chamber she stepped in but instantly realized she wasn’t alone. On instinct her trident was leveled, but she relaxed when she saw that it was Thorax, albeit disguised by wearing the form of his mother. ‘Chrysalis’ was lounging on Adagio’s bed, legs idly kicking in the air. Adagio let out a breath and raised her trident, “Thorax, if you’re intent was to surprise me, congratulations, I didn’t even sense you.”

In fact, she still didn’t. She knew Thorax was skilled at suppressing his spiritual pressure, but she hadn’t realized just how good he was at it. She took another step into the room, but came up short as she smelled the thick, copper stink of blood.

Chrysalis turned, like a casual lioness examining the approach of one of her cubs. Adagio saw a hand, severed and bloodied, being held to Chrysalis’ lips as she took a large bite and swallowed the flesh whole with loud, smooth chews. Adagio tensed, her own blood cold, and her eyes instantly narrowed as her reiatsu spiked in a defensive reflex.

This wasn’t Thorax.

“Whose hand is that?” Adagio asked, her mind flipping through reactions, prepared fully to summon slicing water, fire Ceros, or simply strike with her trident. Or flee. Whichever seemed more likely to keep her alive.

“Not one of your minions’, if that’s what’s got your hackles rising.”

Chrysalis’ voice had all of the veiled, playful menace that she remembered, and she watched in morbid fascination as Chrysalis finished chomping down the hand as she rolled off of the bed and strutted around to stand off with Adagio with a look up and down the younger Arrancar’s body with appreciation.

“You look like you’ve been doing well for yourself, Adagio Dazzle.”

“What are you doing here?” Adagio said, not entirely sure she trusted what Chrysalis had told her that the hand hadn’t belonged to one of her own vassals, but she had no way to confirm that at the moment.

“Oh, don’t you mean ‘aren’t you supposed to still be in Equestria’? Hah, I’m sure my rambunctious son has already clued you in to the fact that we have access to an easy back and forth between that realm. It’s no great time sink for me to dip out of the land of sunshine and rainbows to check in on how things are going back at the old homestead. Speaking of which, you and my son have gotten awfully close, haven’t you?”

As Chrysalis spoke she idly started to walk to Adagio’s left, circling like a shark, but Adagio didn’t allow it. She stepped into Chrysalis’ path, and let her reiatsu spill out, a somewhat heavy handed display but one that fit Adagio’s mood. “Drop the bullshit. You didn’t come here without a purpose. Either tell me what you’re after, or get the Hell out of my room.”

Chrysalis’ laugh was the stuff of chocolate coated nightmares, but she seemed near playful as she plopped herself into a sitting position on Adagio’s dining table, almost like a school girl eager to share secrets with a friend, “I like this. Less subservient than you were last time. You were so compliant when I told you to kill Squirk. Seems you’ve grown more spine since then.”

“I’ve gained more power since then. Spine I always had. If you think I’m going to be as compliant as before, you’re about to be disappointed,” Adagio stated, iron in her words. It wasn’t a mere front, either. She had no intention of being used by Chrysalis again, although she was fully aware that there was still a decent sized power gap between them. There were certainly ways Chrysalis could execute leverage over Adagio, but she wasn’t about to roll over this time, either. She was done showing fear, and if this came to a fight... well, she’d find out just how good Chrysalis’ regeneration really was.

However, rather than adopt a more imposing stance, Chrysalis simply flashed a smile that could have meant she was pleased, or was about to try to eat Adagio’s face.

“No need to fret, I’ve no need of a cat’s paw again. I’m not here to make use of you, but to see your growth. I’ll be going back to Equestria before the day is done, but I just couldn’t help but want to touch base with my dear boys, and when I smelled you on Thorax, well, what is a mother to do except take a measure of the woman who’s in bed with her son?”

“In bed with-!?” Adagio bristled, face not reddening but she did feel an annoyed flush at the implication in Chrysalis’ words. “I don’t know what you ‘smelled’ on Thorax, but he and I do not have that manner of relationship.”

“Hah! Whatever you say.” Chrysalis’ eyes were lit with pure teasing amusement, “Physical bed, metaphorical bed, either way I still wanted to see what kind of Hollow you’ve become whilst I’ve been making friends in Equestria. What, not even curious how your sisters have been?”

Adagio clenched her teeth tightly, not wanting to give even a hint of her feelings away to Chrysalis. She was both eager to hear of Aria and Sonata, and terrified at the prospect that they’d ran across Chrysalis, of all people. Marshaling all of her self control, she made a dismissive wave with her free hand, “I’m sure they’re alright. Despite their faults, both of them are capable survivors, and were under the protection of the Princesses. Much as I am loath to give Princess Twilight Sparkle credit, she is a mare of her word, and powerful besides.”

“Ah, those alicorn Princesses are indeed something else,” Chrysalis laughed under her breath, as if at a private joke, and licked her lips, “Oh yes, quite something. I almost can’t wait to go back. Things are getting very interesting over there indeed.”

“Enough idle chatter, Chrysalis. Are you really just here to sniff at me because you think your son and I are a potential item? I’ve better things to do with my time, and am a tad disappointed you don’t.”

“A mother’s work is never done, and I can sniff at you and take care of other important matters at the same time,” Chrysalis stated with a twist of her lips that was as much threat as smirk, “Can’t very well have Tirek building up so much fury without a few whispers as to where to best direct it. The real question isn’t what I’m doing, but what you’re doing? I smell another on you besides Thorax, Adagio. Hmm... yes, an old scent, this one. Far older than I. Been traipsing about the dunes, have we?”

She knows about Erebus...dammit.

Adagio’s silence only earned a deeper grin of sharp teeth from Chrysalis. “I’ll take that to mean your excursion was fruitful. Don’t mind me. I won’t interfere, and if you knew Tirek at all you wouldn’t be concerned if I did. He’ll relish it, you know? He’d be excited to know someone had the stomach to have a go at his head. How do you think he fell in love with me?”

This did get Adagio to raise a curious eyebrow, “You tried to kill Tirek?”

“Mmmhmm, how do you think we became lovers? Ahhh,” Chrysalis rubbed her fingers over her lips, “Best fight of my life. He beat me nearly to death to the point that even my body could hardly keep up with the brutality of it. It was... perfect. Gave him his fair share of markings, too, but even I know when I’m beaten. That was not long after I came to Las Noches, started making friends, established myself in the pecking order, you know how it is. Oh, that reminds me, have you met my old friend, Gaia? I heard you were in the realm of the living, and that she’s up and about! I really would love to go meet with her, but alas, the timing just isn’t right for it. But if you see her you’ll tell her that her friend Chrysalis sends her love and is thinking of her?”

“I’ll... consider it,” Adagio said, feeling more than a tad off put by the turn in the conversation. Chrysalis just smiled knowingly and hopped off of Adagio’s dining table, gliding past Adagio while giving her a friendly pat on the shoulder.

“Please do. I don’t know when we’ll next get a chance to just talk like this, Adagio, and it’d be a shame if you made my Thorax cry by doing something foolish like dying.”

Adagio blanched at Chrysalis’ touch, turning around, “Now wait a damned minute you...”

She trailed off as by the time she finished turning, Chrysalis had already vanished, nowhere to be seen.

Episode 171: Poking the Tiger

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Episode 171: Poking the Tiger

“Sure you’ll be okay?” Sunset’s question was a simple one, but it carried a strong undercurrent of complex feelings. Wallflower, when she’d finally woken up again, had declined Sunset’s invitation to ask further questions, although Sunset could easily tell that many still resided inside the mild mannered girl. Furthermore, Sunset hadn’t really found a good opportunity to properly apologize for the way she’d bullied Wallflower back in the day, and remained uneasy about it. Yet there really wasn’t time at the moment to really hash any of that out. It was early morning, just after sunrise the day after the Hollow attack, and Sunset’s schedule was already packed to the gills, especially with her little impromptu plans involving a “diplomatic” visit to Hueco Mundo.

Of course it wasn’t like she’d intended to just keep Wallflower at Discord’s place. She had a home and family to get to, and had already called them about staying overnight at a “friend’s” house. From what little Sunset heard of that conversation, it sounded like Wallflower’s parents were incredibly relieved to hear Wallflower had stayed with a friend. Was that because of the whole not showing up at home last night, or because Wallflower had a friend? Regardless, Wallflower just wore a tense, eyes down look as she simply nodded to Sunset’s question as they stood just outside the wards to Discord’s shop.

“Yes, I’ll be fine.”

“I mean, I don’t even know how far your house is, and Applejack will be here any second with her brother’s truck to-”

“I said I’m fine!” Wallflower blurted with an odd amount of desperation in her voice, and she quickly gulped and looked away, “I mean... th-thanks... for saving my life last night. And I know you took the stone because it’s magic or whatever, so it’s not like you were stealing from me.”

That stone had been one of the first things Wallflower had asked about not long after waking up that morning, and Sunset hadn’t hid the truth about taking it or why she had. Magic was dangerous in the hands of someone who didn’t have any familiarity with it. Sunset had asked if Wallflower had discovered any abilities with the stone, or if it had done anything unusual, but Wallflower had simply told her she’d picked it up because it had looked neat and had no idea it was magic.

Sunset had sensed some serious discomfort in Wallflower when she’d said that and didn’t need a lot of brainpower to figure the girl must have been hiding something, but she wasn’t about to turn things into an interrogation. Whatever secrets the stone held, Twilight would probably figure them out soon enough. If Wallflower had used some magical ability the stone had, it didn’t seem to Sunset that it had left any aftereffects. As long as Wallflower was alright, that was about all Sunset cared about concerning that matter.

“I’m glad you understand, Wallflower. Magic is dangerous, especially the less you know about it. Now just remember that you’ve got my number now, so if anything happens, you can ring me up and I’ll come running. You’re also welcome at the shop here, and if you’re worried about Hollows, get in touch with Bon Bon. She’s organizing a lot of the students for neighborhood watch. Otherwise, just be careful about going out at night.”

“Um, sure, I... well, I gotta go.”

Wallflower gave Sunset the impression of a spooked kitten as she quickly walked away, giving furtive glances over her shoulder at Sunset before disappearing around the alley corner that’d lead back to the main streets of downtown. Sunset watched her leave with a sigh, wondering if perhaps she could have handled things better? Should she have just come out and apologized right then and there, or would it have just brought back bad memories for Wallflower? Had she told Wallflower enough about the truth of things with the spirit world and it’s dangerous, or had she said too much? Should she have pressed Wallflower for more on that magical stone, or was it better just to leave it be?

I’ve got too much on my plate as it is. I just hope she’ll be okay.

Sunset’s thoughts focused back on the new day ahead of her, and she broke into a swift walk down the opposite alley that’d lead to a different street where she and her friends had agreed to meet up. Sunset patted her face to clear her head and started to psyche herself up. If everything went as planned, today was going to be interesting.

----------

Wallflower felt light headed as she walked for the nearest downtown bus stop that would take her towards her home street in the east suburbs. Her brain was buzzing with half finished thoughts and her heart stammered with uncertain emotions that even Wallflower couldn’t really parse out.

Everything Sunset had told her sounded so insane, yet lined up perfectly with everything that had happened and everything Wallflower had experienced. She didn’t know what to feel about any of it, and about Sunset most of all. Wallflower could remember every petty unkindness that had been inflicted on her by that girl, but that stood in bold contrast to the brave soul that had snatched Wallflower, quite literally, from the jaws of danger. Not to mention all of that kindness and patience Sunset had shown in trying to explain it all while giving Wallflower a place to recover. Sure, she’d taken the Memory Stone, but Wallflower wasn’t even sure she wanted the thing anymore. Convenience of being able to vanish from people’s memories aside, if it was going to make her a target of monsters like those Hollows, she was way better off without it.

But that means I’m back to being a complete nobody, aren’t I? The one thing that made me even slightly special is just a freaky rock from another world I shouldn’t have had in the first place. Heh... and I can’t even be mad at Sunset about anything because she’s pulled a total one eighty into becoming a literal super hero. Popular as a bully, even more popular as a heroine.

What surprised Wallflower is that she really wasn’t mad at Sunset anymore, but that hadn’t stopped her from feeling insanely awkward and uncomfortable around her, either. After all, Wallflower had spent a lot of time plotting some unpleasant things for Sunset before all of this occurred, and it just left her feeling ashamed of herself and even more like a loser who didn’t deserve the consideration she’d been shown. As if it would have been better if that Hollow had finished her off in that alleyway. A stupid thought, a part of her knew, but it remained lodged in her, all the same. What would she even do now? She’d gotten answers, but not the kind that showed her what she should do other than stay as far out of Sunset’s way as possible.

Unless... should she join that neighborhood watch Sunset had mentioned? The one apparently Bon Bon was taking charge of? She was a little terrified of the notion. Wallflower had never been the sort to volunteer to do anything. The very idea of approaching someone, especially someone outgoing and loud like Bon Bon, was horrifying in a way not unlike a Hollow.

But Wallflower was so, so tired of just being the one who no one remembered. If Sunset Shimmer could change so much in such a short time, then... why not her?

Such thoughts swirled within Wallflower as she got on the bus that would take her home, and she never did notice that across the street, a figure that had been shadowing her moved with smooth steps into the awning of an open cafe and pulled out a cell phone as the bus pulled away with Wallflower on it.

“This is agent Sweetie Drops, reporting that the target has left the Candy Shop. Repeat, target has left the Candy Shop. No sign of the arcane object in the target's possession. ...Agreed, most likely it was taken by Orange and given to Purple. ...No, no sign yet that target is being hunted, but we can’t discount the possibility. Yes ma’am, I will. Backup? Doubt I’ll need it. H-hey, I am careful! ...Lyra is the exception, ma’am, not the rule. Fine, point taken, I’ll take the backup, just make sure that those two don’t go overboard! Last thing we need is anyone figuring out we’re in town. I will, ma’am, Agent Sweetie Drops out.”

----------

The ride out to Sweet Apple Acres was pleasant. Summer heat was mitigated by a stiff and cool wind coming from the ocean, making for a day that was enjoyably warm rather than outright scorching. Traffic was light, and Applejack handled her brother’s truck with a smooth touch that led to a gentle ride, even for the girls riding in the bed of the vehicle, including Sunset Shimmer.

“I’m glad that Wallflower headed home without incident, but are you feeling alright, Sunset?” asked Fluttershy, who was sitting in the truck bed across from Sunset.

“Huh? Why do you ask?” Sunset blinked. She didn’t think she’d been showing anything to indicate she was feeling off, but then again Fluttershy was a lot more preceptive than most.

“You were staring off a bit. I thought maybe something was worrying you.”

Next to Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash let out a short cackle-snort, “What, like our plan to jump right into the frying pan at Hueco Mundo? Totally nothing to worry about.”

“I can’t tell if you’re being serious or sarcastic, Rainbow,” Sunset said with a quick half-smile, but she wiped it away and adopted a more level look to both of her friends in the back of the truck. Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were in the cab, but if need be Sunset would reiterate this to them later as well, “Believe it or not, I’m not stressing too much about what we’re going to do there. Discord and Ditzy both approved the plan. Gaia’s on board with it too. It’ll be rough, but I think this will work. If you’re worried about me, I’ll be alright, it’s just that Wallflower reminded me of some things from back in the day. Like, pre-debitchifying myself back in the day.”

“Ooooh,” Fluttershy said, and Rainbow nodded with knowing eyes.

“Got it. Yeah, easy to forget how you were back then. I mean, you’re way cool now, and we love you to death, Sunset, but yeah if Wallflower only really knew you from those days...”

“I know. I’m not stewing on it too much, but I did want to apologize to her, and just couldn’t find the spot to do it,” Sunset heaved out a consternated sigh, “It’s weird, right? We’ve got literal multiversal scaled problems starring us in the face, but I’m worried about how I was mean to a girl in school and just want to apologize to her for it.”

“It’s not weird at all, Sunset. It’s very good of you, and honestly it just tells me that you’ve really put your heart in all the right places,” Fluttershy said with a smile that could overdose a dinosaur with it’s sweetness. “Our lives have so much fighting in them nowadays, it’s too easy to forget the things that might seem small, but are really important.”

“You’ll get a shot to apologize to that Wallflower chick properly someday, but first we got to save the world. Er, worlds. Can’t forget Equestria,” Rainbow Dash said, then cocked her head in question, “Ever get any word through that journal yet?”

“No, and that’s seriously starting to bug me, too,” Sunset said, face etched in a deep frown, “There’s no way Princess Twilight would go this long without checking in. Something’s wrong over there. We’ve got to get through that portal.”

“Which is topic numero uno once we get all the big wigs in the same room, right?” Rainbow Dash said, “Once we get the Soul Reapers and Quincy all nice and hand shaky with each other, we don’t have to be as worried about ol’ Tirek shoving a Hollow horde through there, and we’ll be free to go on through, chat up the Beast Tribes or whatever, and then move on to Equestria for a long overdue rematch with Starlight Monologue Glimmer and her posse of idiots, including my mom. We get their clocks cleaned, maybe recruit them to our side if we’re feeling generous enough and they say sorry, like, a bajillion times, then BAM, we move on to Zero Division for the final showdown! Easy as can be.”

Sunset couldn’t help but let out a relieved and relaxed chuckle at Rainbow Dash’s casual assessment of their overall goals, as if the entire affair of negotiating peace between two warring factions that absolutely hated each other, traveling through the largely unknown Beast Realm, then defeating whatever foes awaited them in Equestria, all before tackling the most monstrously powerful entities in the world that had orchestrated all of this madness was just... going to work out. Then again, Rainbow Dash was essentially the living embodiment of confidence, and thankfully it was infectious.

“Thanks, Rainbow, I needed the pep talk. You’re right, crazy as all this is, I think we can do it.”

“Duh, of course we can. We’re awesome.”

By then the truck had pulled off of the freeway and had taken the short, looping exit to the small side road that would lead across short hills and a few grass fields before arriving at the farmland owned by the Apple family. Sunset was generally a city girl, even when she’d been a unicorn back in Equestria, but she couldn’t deny the wholesome feel of well maintained farmland. Maybe she had some earth pony in her somewhere? She never did know her parents, so one of them could have been an earth pony, she supposed.

The gravel driveway leading up to the farmhouse was already somewhat packed. Sunset recognized the Pie family station wagon, but surprisingly next to the weathered old car was an impressive and large motorcycle, painted black. Next to that was the plain white, four door sedan belonging to Rarity’s family. In stark contrast to the sedan was an almost painfully colorful minivan, painted with flowers of all colors. At a guess, Sunset figured that must be Fluttershy’s family. The last car present was a long, heavy looking one painted bright red, an old fashioned Cadillac with convertible roof. Sunset wasn’t sure who that belonged to, and she gave Rainbow Dash a quizzical look.

Dash, however, just shrugged and said, “Don’t recognize it, either. I don’t see my dad’s car. He must not be here yet.”

“Well the cookout isn’t until noon, so we’re all pretty early, but I imagine everyone was looking for an excuse to unwind a bit,” Fluttershy said as the truck pulled up to an empty space beside the Cadillac and everyone hopped out.

“Whooowee!” Applejack let out a whoop, stretching, “Ain’t got words fer how nice it is ta have a’ full house fer a day o’ shootin’ the breeze n’ cookin’ up some grub on the grill!”

“An outing somewhat hampered in it’s relaxed atmosphere by the fact that we’ve planned some mischief for the evening, but I’ll certainly enjoy the day before then,” Rarity said, already grabbing the case from the back of the truck that contained her electric keytar, “If anyone wouldn’t mind helping me carry our equipment to the barn, I’d like to start setting up.”

“On it,” Sunset said, snatching up additional cases with her friends’ instruments, and gingerly grabbing a large portable amp as well. None of it was heavy to her, of course, but even with supernatural strength it could get awkward carrying too many items.

“I am toooo!” shouted a now familiar voice as someone came scampering across the deck of the farmhouse from around the back end and neatly jumped the distance from there to the truck, landing just on the edge of the bed. Chappy’s grinning visage filled Sunset’s vision as the girl who now looked so remarkably like her in the Mod Soul’s new gigai started grabbing equipment as well.

“Chappy, you’re up early,” Sunset noted. Usually Chappy had been indulging on more than one hedonistic front, including sleeping in considerably. Not that Sunset really blamed her, after last night, which was partially why she was surprised to see Chappy up and already at the farm.

“Couldn’t sleep. Too excited! Big party with lots of food! And possibly cute boys.”

“Uh, not sure on the cute boys front, Chaps,” said Rainbow Dash, “Unless big, tall, and not talkative is your type.”

“No offense, Chappy, but don’t ya even think o’ goin’ near Big Mac,” Applejack said with a protective glare, to which the Mod Soul’s innocent grin didn’t even remotely dampen, all but bouncing on her feet as she helped Sunset get the last of the music gear out of the truck.

“Awww don’t be like that, AJ! We’re all one big happy family here. Me and Sunset are like sisters now, which is the cover story for any time we’re out in public together.”

“Big Mac knows about what you are, so the sister story is kind of moot,” Sunset said, “Besides, Big Mac isn’t the only brother around here for you to prowl around. Fluttershy, don’t you have a brother, too?”

“Oh, um... yes, but...” Fluttershy trailed off, and Rainbow Dash suddenly shuddered, but then offered Chappy and Sunset a mischievous smile.

“Zephyr Breeze is his name. By all means, Chappy, go for it. He’s all yours.”

“Rainbow!” Fluttershy said, “Don’t give Chappy any bad ideas.”

“Why would it be a bad idea?” asked Chappy, to which Sunset just snagged her by the arm and motioned to the barn.

“Never you mind that. C’mon let’s get this stuff set up.”

“Meet ya’ll there in a sec, just gonna go find Granny an’ see how everything is goin’ with all o’ our guests,” Applejack said, waving over her shoulder as she strode for the main door to the house, leaving the rest of the girls to head for the barn. Within the barn itself Sunset found that the place had already been largely cleaned up and organized so that a large space towards the back was open for her and her friends to set up the music equipment. With all of them working at it, the process took nearly no time at all, although Chappy didn’t cease being a chatterbox the entire time.

“Oh man I can’t wait to stuff myself full with some fresh cooked barbeque. I haven’t had the chance to really put this body through the paces and see what it can handle!”

Sunset was adjusting the strings on her guitar, but looked up at Chappy with a furrowed brow. “You do realize you can’t go hog wild with that body without dealing with the consequences, right? It’s not like you can pawn the problem off on me if you go overboard.”

“Sure, but that doesn’t mean a girl can’t test her limits, right?” Chappy all but bounced in place, ever shifting about as if the simple act of moving was pleasure, “You don’t get it, sis. That plush body was okay, but there was no feeling to it. No feedback. I’ve spent so long as just a ball, or a stuffed animal, that every time I got to be in your body was total bliss. Now I get to feel that all the time! Can you blame me for wanting to enjoy it?”

“Which is fine, I just want you to actually be able to enjoy it, instead of learning the hard way that there’s some really unpleasant parts to having a flesh and blood body all the time. Call it, er, ‘sisterly’ concern,” Sunset said. She really didn’t mind the way Chappy called her that. It made sense from a cover story standpoint, and it was strangely nice to hear. She had never had a sister, and Chappy certainly fit the role of a bubbly little sister. It sort of triggered a protective instinct in Sunset, hence why she was cautioning Chappy so much.

Granted the gigai probably could handle more than a real human body could. And on the ‘boys’ front, well... at least the gigai wasn’t capable of bearing children, so no worries on that front if Chappy got a tad promiscuous. The bigger worry was Chappy needing to learn social boundaries and some actual emotional restraint. Sunset imagined she was going to have her hands full keeping the overly eager Mod Soul from getting out of control.

It wasn’t long before Applejack showed up again, this time with the trio of Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle in tow. The three girls wanted to watch and listen in on the band practice, which none of the older girls had any objections to. In short order they were fully set up, and Sunset led them in their first set, starting with the familiar and soul soothing tune of “My Past is Not Today”, one Sunset had written herself not long after she’d turned over her new leaf.

An hour flew by like magic, Sunset losing herself in the music with her friends. She’d forgotten how at ease this put her, or how long it had been since they’d played together. Battles past flashed by her mind’s eye like running water. The pain and sorrow of loss, the hot rage of conflict, all blended and ran down her soul with each note that belted forth from her fingers on guitar strings. Within her heart, at the core of her spirit, she felt the warmth of magic fill her with it’s golden heat. Sunset felt the pleasure and harmony not just from her friends, but beating like a heart inside her Zanpaktou, which she’d rested against the barn wall. Hokori no Hikari spoke to her not in words, but in the pleased hum that stemmed from the blade’s twin spirits, both pride and light buzzing in tune to the music that filled their wielder and her friends.

Sunset had no idea how much more time had passed, but suddenly she found herself sweat soaked, breathing in ecstatic relief as the final note rang in the air and she, along with her friends, touched down on the ground.

Wait, when did we end up floating in the air, and ponying up? Sunset wondered, not even realizing that they’d all become glowing and taking on their trademark pony traits during their long playing session. The forms faded quickly enough once they set back down, but Sunset and all of her friends showed similar signs of fading glows.

“Whoa, been awhile since we grooved that hard,” Rainbow said, smiling past a few quick breaths, “Forgot how good this feels.”

“I’ll say! Like my whole body got dipped in cotton candy!” Pinkie Pie said, licking her lips, “Makes me and Mena super hungry.”

“That. Was. Amazing!” Scootlaloo shouted, leaping up from where she’d sat down with her friends on a haybale. “Seriously, why aren’t you guys signing records deals or something?”

“C’mon now, we’re good, but we ain’t pros yet,” Applejack said, using her hat to fan herself a bit, “Although I guess we are a mite impressive, ain’t we?”

“A fair sight better than good, by my estimation,” Rarity replied, then another voice spoke from the barn door, causing all eyes to be drawn that way.

“Ain’t gonna hear me gainsay that assessment. Been a long time since I heard playin’ like that, an’ no mistake, glowin’ aside, you girls got somethin’ special there that ain’t got nothin’ ta do with magic, but talent.”

“Ma!” Applejack cried, setting aside her instrument and all but leaping to the door where Sweet Cider stood. The mountain of a woman was in her Soul Reaper uniform, complete with white Captain’s coat, but was holding herself at a far more relaxed manner than Sunset had ever seen her. A lot of the ready violence that had been the woman’s norm since Sunset had first seen her back within the Seireitei was now replaced by an ease that was pleasant to see. Sweet Cider, uniform aside, looked like any other woman enjoying the atmosphere and feel of home, and the sight of her grinning down at her daughter brought a similar smile to Sunset’s face.

“Howdy, young uns,” Sweet Cider said, “I just got here a bit ago an’ heard ya’ll belting out some fine tunes. Figured I’d come see how ya’ll were before I went n’ met up with the rest.”

Which, in a way, was a rather big deal. As far as Sunset knew this would be the first real chance Sweet Cider would have had to catch up fully with her old friends from her Xcution days. With that thought in mind she started putting her guitar away while saying, “Glad you enjoyed the music. Even if we never go pro, I don’t think I ever want us to stop doing this.”

“Be a real shame if ya did,” Sweet Cider said, then a bit more of a serious look came over her, “Now, ‘fore we mosey on over ta the house, Discord done told me ya’ll wanted ta postpone our little trainin’ session?”

The girls exchanged looks, and Sunset noted that the three younger girls were suddenly looking quite interested in the change in conversation. Thinking about Screwloose’s warning about those three, Sunset nodded at Sweet Cider but kept her response simple, “Kind of. Let’s just say I got an idea, and need to run it by you, at Discord’s recommendation. We can talk about it later, after lunch.”

Sweet Cider was no fool and picked up on Sunset’s furtive glance at the CMC, and gave a bare nod indicating she understood. “Sounds fine ta me. Ain’t much fer straight talk ‘till after grub anyhows.”

As a whole the group departed the barn and made their way around the back of the farmhouse. There, Sunset saw that the wide open back lawn was sporting a big wooden deck, where numerous outdoor circular tables had been set up. Two huge, double deck grills were already fired up, and Big Mac manned them while dual wielding spatulas, with a big blue apron over his work clothes. The elder Apple sibling had a practical hill of burger patties, hot dogs, and chicken breasts good to go, already loading up the grills with expert care, causing the air to fill with the tantalizing smell of cooked meat.

Dang it, I’ve really gone full native, Sunset thought with a wry little smile, noticing the way her mouth watered a bit at the scents now filling the air.

Aside from the grill, there was a longer patio table with checkered red and white covering that was piled up with chips, fruits, vegetable trays, cheese, crackers, and enough condiments to fill a small pool. Beneath and to the side of the table were four or so coolers, stocked full with various sodas, and more than a few beers. Not everyone present was of drinking age, but Granny Smith was loose on the rules regarding that at times, and Sunset was technically of legal age... by Equestrian standards.

The Apple family matron herself was presiding over a gathering of the adults at one of the tables, although the moment the group came into view Granny Smith looked to them with warm eyes and an even deeper look of contentment at the sight of Sweet Cider. Although not spiritually awakened like her granddaughters, and increasingly her grandson, Granny Smith had been granted a talisman by Discord that helped her see things of the spirit realm more clearly. Granted she’d apparently always had a faint sense of such things, just not on par with those with actual spiritual powers. Big Mac, while not yet exhibiting a Fullbring, could see his mother’s spirit body clearly without such a talisman, indicating it wouldn’t be long before he did manifest such powers.

“Ya’ll were making quite the racket out front, but glad ‘nough that it sounded like it was a fun time,” Granny Smith said, gesturing at one of the unoccupied tables, “Grab seats, young uns, an’ lunch’ll be served in no time. Sweet Cider, hun, ya mind given yer boy a’ hand at the grill? He thinks he’s a gourmet ever since he started watchin’ them cookin’ programs with the fella what yells and swears all the time.”

For a brief second Sweet Cider had a look as if the towering and powerhouse of a Soul Reaper Captain could break out into tears right then and there at the homely love in her mother’s voice, which soon became an easy grin as she started for the grill, “No problem, ma.”

“Hey, I got this all just fine,” said Big Mac, but his token resistance of male pride melted like caramel as his mother gave him a knowing look and the boy who was every inch his mother’s son gave a sheepish smile and offered her one of the spatulas, “But I guess the chicken always gives me a bit o’ trouble.”

“Gotta learn the timin’ on chicken, son. Takes a mite longer than other meats, an’ there’s a trick ta it,” Sweet Cider said, taking the spatula and standing by Big Mac.

Sunset could feel the emotion radiating off of Applejack even before the farmgirl let out a long, sighting breath of ease. Sunset gave her a friendly pat on the arm and nodded to the table, “Nothing like a full house, right?”

“Nah,” Applejack smiled, “Nah there ain’t.”

Granted there was still one missing component from the Apple Family equation, but at least they all knew that Lament was well and recovering. Or Hard Nail, as it was. Adagio still referred to him as ‘Lament’ in her sporadic communications, whether that was out of familiarity, preference, or some other reason wasn’t clear. Still, according to what Adagio had said he was slowly regaining his lost strength, although it remained unknown if he’d get back to the same level he’d been at before. Thus far it seemed like his position was only being maintained by having Adagio and Torch run interference for him, and the fact that Hard Nail hadn’t been very active as an Espada anyway, so him going unseen for a time wasn’t unusual.

Sunset hoped that if her plan was successful, it might help open an avenue for the Apple Family to more properly reunite.

“Ah, Rarity dear, Sweetie Belle honey, I was just regaling everyone with the story of our first times out as Xcution!” piped Cookie Crumbles with a wave from the adult table, which had most of the parents, sans Rainbow Dash’s father seated at it. Sunset noted that while Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie’s mothers both had understanding nods at Cookie Crumbles’ enthusiasm, there was a lot of mixed signals coming from the fathers. Igneous Pie seemed the most calm, sagely nodding alongside Cloudy Quartz, but Magnum and Gentle Breeze both looked as if they were still trying to get their heads wrapped around it all. Fluttershy’s brother, Zephyr Breeze, looked as if he was finding more interest in doing damage to the local potato chip population than pay the conversation any mind, although Sunset noted he kept giving glances towards Rainbow Dash that were about as subtle as a sack of bricks.

“It’s, um, r-really quite the story,” said Gentle Gust, Fluttershy’s father gulping with visible sweat on his brow, “Very harrowing.”

“I mean, I get this was before we started dating, but it’s still so hard to believe,” Magnum said, “Isn’t it weird, having all these memories suddenly pop back into your heads?”

“Oh, my head had plenty of room to spare,” Cookie Crumbles said with a laugh, waving a hand at her husband, although her mood shifted to one of brief melancholy as she looked at her daughter, “I just had to have those memories back, I think. After what happened, I just don’t want to not know or be powerless any more.”

“Believe you me, Cookie, I understand,” said Cloudy Quartz, her demeanor exuding a solidary like rock itself, “I, too, and glad Mister Discord was able to unseal both our memories and our powers. While our daughters may have surpassed us, and our younger children are learning to control their own abilities, we remain parents. We’ll protect our own, now as a whole, united family.”

“I’d like that,” said Soft Spoken, “Although the sooner things can go back to being peaceful, the better.”

“Gonna be a long road fer that,” called Sweet Cider over her shoulder, but there was a keen and happy look in her eyes as she glanced back at her old friends, flipping over a piece of chicken without even looking at it, “But ya’ll can bet yer bottom dollar’s that I’m with ya ‘till the end. It’ll be like ol’ times, crackin’ skulls tagether.”

“Hah, you’ve had quite a bit more practice at it than we’ve gotten to have over the years, Sweet Cider, but we’ll do our best to keep up!” said Cookie Crumbles, while a more dour look hit Fluttershy’s mother.

“I just wish Firefly was here,” Soft Spoken said.

“And Velvet...” added Cloudy Quartz. With their memories restored, and the news of the fate of Twilight’s mother having reached them, all of the former Xcution members had their own feelings to sort out over the loss.

Pinkie Pie, perhaps immediately sensing the need for an uplifting of the atmosphere's gloom, “All of you together must’ve really been extra amazing, and I really wanna hear about how you all got trained by Mister Discord! Did you all have to fight Miss Ditzy in a big arena like we did?”

“Oh God, that place,” Cloudy Quartz let out a breathy chuckle, “So she did the same to all of you girls? I swear Miss Ditzy Doo never does anything by halves, does she?”

“That was a grueling experience to say the least,” Cookie Crumbles said, giving off a quick shudder at whatever memory was flying through her mind’s eye, “Did she use that frightening Shunko attack on you as well?”

“Did she!” Pinkie Pie laughed, while Rainbow Dash raised a fist and tapped Pinkie on the shoulder with a grin of her own.

“And guess what, Pinkie Pie totally busted out the next stage of her Fullbring right then and there, when we were all sure we were toast! Turned into a huge hammer and straight up ate the attack. It was awesome!”

“Oh my, I’m afraid we weren’t so lucky our first time she did, that,” said Fluttershy’s mom, gulping, “I remember getting blown through a wall, and was only protected by my darling pack of puppies curling around me like a shield for protection.”

“Your Verdant Pack, right?” said Fluttershy. After Discord had gone through the process of restoring the elder ladies' powers and memories to them, there had been a brief test run of their old Fullbring powers that had been conducted back at the shop’s training area. Each of Sunset’s friends had gotten to see at least a little of their parents' Fullbrings in action, albeit not to any strenuous degree. Sunset did find the eclectic mix of abilities interesting and seemingly fitting for their owners.

“Yes, my seeds from my first garden turn into the most delightful and loyal animals, and even when they were still little and not full grown they instinctively protected me.”

At Soft Spoken’s words, Cloudy Quartz gained a fond look as she glanced down at where her shadow grew in size slightly, if only for a moment to give a flicker of unnatural motion before returning to normal. “It is nostalgic, having these powers again, but it’s clear as day to me that we’ve a ways to go to get used to them properly once more, let alone stand shoulder to shoulder with you and your friends, daughter.”

“I still think yer all really cool!” said Applebloom, “An’ we’d all love ta train with ya.”

“Look, all this talk of training is fine, but you sure you younger tykes ought to be doing this dangerous stuff?” asked Magnum, “I heard you all got into a fight last night.”

“Yeah they did!” spouted Chappy, flexing an arm and patting her bicep, “And they, led by their noble and courageous leader, wiped the floor with those Hollows. And we did it with only moderate collateral damage!”

“Chappy, xnay on the lateral amageay,” Sweetie Belle hissed in a loud whisper, stepping on Chappy’s foot, to which the proud Mod Soul readily ignored and continued to beam an encouraging grin.

“What’s this about Hollows?” asked a voice suddenly from the farmhouse’s back door as it opened and out walked Scootaloo’s aunts, Lofty and Holiday, both carrying trays with fresh baked pies on them. “Oh, pies are done, Mrs. Apple, where do you want them?”

“On the table there ‘tween the chips an’ veggie platter,” said Granny Smith, who also then eyed up Chappy and then the younger girls, “An’ same question; what’s this now ‘bout ya young un’s gettin’ inta scrapes with them Hollow critters already?”

Sunset coughed loudly and stood up from where she’d taken at seat at one of the tables, “Let me, uh, answer that one real quick. I imagine some of you at least sensed a disturbance last night? Spiritually speaking, I mean?”

Some of the adults nodded, and Lofty, after the pies were set down, turned and leaned back against the food table with crossed arms, “Me and Holiday did feel a distinct aura of negative spirit energy last night, yes. We were at our home so it must have been quite a few Hollows for us to feel it out that far from the city limits, too. What happened?”

With little point in hiding things, Sunset quickly explained the events of the previous night, only excluding the magical stone that Wallflower had, as it wasn’t specifically relevant to the meat of the Hollow attack. Rarity soon pipped in, “I was with the girls the entire time, ensuring that matters didn’t get too far out of hand.”

“Um, no offense honey, but from the description of that poor SUV, you might have considered stepping in earlier,” Cookie Crumbles said, to which Rarity did give a small nod of acknowledgement, but held firm with a steady tone.

“Had any of them been about to be seriously harmed, I would have, but it’s important they be allowed to gain genuine experience without being coddled, mother. Theses battles are dangerous and we do the girls no favors if we shield them from that entirely.”

“I know they’re dangerous, Rarity,” Cookie Crumbles said with a haunted look as she eyed her daughter’s Soul Chain, “You know they are. Maybe Sweetie Belle needs shielding, so what happened to you doesn’t...”

She trailed off, and Rarity bit her lip, unable to come up with an immediate response. But then Sweet Cider, not looking up from her grill, spoke in a clear voice, filled with a strong current of authority but still soft enough to show she knew she was speaking to a friend and worried parent. “Yer not wrong ta be concerned, Cookie, but take it from me, I rest easier knowin’ my AJ can handle herself n’ a fight. Felt her fists myself an’ I pity the Hollow that ends up earnin’ her ire. An’ much as I fear fer my youngest, an’ my son when he comes inta his powers, I’m gonna want both o’ them trained up so they can not just protect themselves, but whomever else is dear ta them. Like it or not, we’re all n’ this fight now. Ain’t no goin’ back ta normal. Not fer a good long while, at least. Best shield any o’ our kin can have right now is the power ta fight back when the monsters come o’ callin’.”

There was more than enough weight in her words to give all others present pause, and the tension was only broken by Pinkie Pie glancing around with her blinking blue eyes and she asked, “Hey, by the way, where’re Marble, Limestone, and Maud? I don’t see them anywhere.”

“Ah, your elder sister decided to go for a ‘rock walk’ with Boulder,” Igneous said, “I believe your other sisters joined her.”

Cloudy Quartz gave a small laugh, hiding her smiling mouth with a hand, “I do believe Marble was a bit embarrassed to be around so many people, especially a certain someone.” She gave a knowing glance towards the oblivious Big Mac, who was focusing very hard on his cooking, “And of course Limestone just hates being left out of things. I believe they went towards the orchards.”

“Should we go fetch them? Doesn’t seem like it will be long before the food is ready,” noted Rarity.

“Not a bad idea, I’ll go-” Sunset started to say, but was interrupted by the sound of a distant, booming impact. She and her friends shared confused looks, but only for a split second before they stretched out their spiritual senses towards the direction of the noise.

“That’s Maudie alright!” said Pinkie Pie, but she scratched her head as her hair quivered and her nose twitched, “And a Hollow, but, like, a super familiar one.”

“You’re right, this reiatsu is familiar,” Sunset said, recognizing the Hollow’s reiatsu after a moment of feeling it out. It was much stronger than average, to the point that this was clearly an Arrancar, and one of above average power. Not Adagio, but one she had run into before, although rather briefly. Fluttershy also nodded in recognition.

“I know it, too.”

“Glad someone does!” said Granny with a flat, no nonsense tone, “Now how ‘bout some ya’ll go find out who’s interruptin’ a perfectly quiet family get together.”

“Seriously, isn’t this bad?” said Zephyr Breeze, already looking like he was halfway to hiding under one of the tables, “We’re like, under attack or something?”

Already Cloudy Quartz’ shadow rose like a bubbling fountain of ink, sharp claws extending from writing limbs of obsidian while a voice hissed out, “Hunt?”

Another crashing noise in the distance, like something massive was rocking the earth, was followed by a flare in Maud’s reiatsu. Sunset and her friends stood, and Pinkie Pie’s body formed the thick pool of dark red shadow herself, so similar to her mother’s Fullbring. Her eyes changed color, not fully summoning her jester mask and garb, but gaining Pinkamena’s gold yellow sheen. “No need to get involved, mom. I know this scent. Let me and Pinkie go handle this. I guess her friends can come along.”

“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence,” said Rainbow Dash, already taking to the air as he body was engulfed in lightning, her Fullbring’s armor and wings snapping into existence around her. “Race you there.”

She was gone faster than a blink, and Sunset and the others weren’t far behind. Applejack just paused long enough to nod at her other, who gave the all a questioning look. “We probably got this, ma. If we need help, I’ll give a yell.”

Sweet Cider could sense the reiatsu of both Maud and the mystery Arrancar clearly herself, and could tell that this Arrancar, if truly hostile, was utterly outmatched by her daughter and her friends. Any one of them would have little trouble, by Sweet Cider’s estimation, so as the girls rushed off, she looked to the other adults, and the worried looking CMC, and simply kept flipping over cooking chicken without much worry on her face, “I think they’ve got it handled. Now, who wants first dibs on chicken?”

----------

“Bloody hell lady, I said I was sorry for last time!” Di Roy shouted as he blurred away with Sonido to avoid a crushing blow form Maud Pie’s mighty fists of stone. He hadn’t drawn his Zanpaktou yet, as he was under orders from Adagio to not cause any trouble while he was here, but he hadn’t expected the crazy elder Pie sister to immediately go into extermination mode the moment she saw him!

Granted he wasn’t here for her, it was just coincidence his Garganta had opened up in the Apple Family orchards just as Maud Pie and her two sisters were wandering around. Di Roy did vaguely recognize Marble and Limestone, the former hiding behind one of the orchard trees while the later was shadow boxing in mimic of Maud’s movements and shouting encouragement, “Get him, Maud! Knock his head clean off and stomp on the remains!”

“Geeze, violent much!?” said Di Roy, “What did I ever do to you!?”

“You tried to hurt my family,” Maud stated bluntly, and Di Roy was forced to leap away again as she came in with a devastating uppercut that generate a tremor in the earth that created a massive spike of rock to leap up form the ground and nearly impale him if he didn’t use his own Heirro hardened hand to smash the rock aside. He grunted a bit at doing so. The rock that Maud was manipulating with her swings was infused with her reiatsu, so it wasn’t as easy as just smashing regular stone would be. If he hadn’t gotten a power boost from the Seed, it’d have left a mark on his hand. As it was Maud wasn’t actually in any real danger of harming him with her incomplete Fullbring, but Di Roy was still shocked at how much power this human girl packed while having only recently obtained her powers.

“Okay, point, but I said I was sorry, okay!? That was a very different time in my life.”

“It was four months ago,” Maud said in that murderous monotone of hers, advancing on him like some relentless Terminator.

“But a really freakin’ busy four months! Major character growth all around. C’mon, I’m not here to fight, I swear! I’m just here to deliver a message!’

“You can still do that with a broken spine,” Maud replied, cocking one of her huge gauntlets of spiked stone for a potent punch, but just then a harsh wind blew past as Rainbow Dash zapped in with a flash of electricity. A split second later Di Roy found himself surrounded by a familiar pack of colorful girls, and he felt Sunset Shimmer’s reiatsu most keenly as the girl, now clad in her Soul Reaper garb, appeared between him and Maud. Her sword wasn’t drawn, but her hand was on the Zanpaktou’s hilt as she held up her other hand to forestall Maud.

“Hold on a sec, Maud,” Sunset said, and Maud Pie looked quite ready to ignore Sunset anyway, but then Pinkie Pie, still sporting Pinkamena’s yellow eyes, came up next to her.

“Heheh, I wouldn’t mind watching you scare the piss out of the guy a bit longer, Maud, but he doesn’t smell like he’s here for a fight. Shame, because all that cooking has made me extra hungry and I could use an extra bite. Heya, Sharkface. Looking even tastier than last time.”

Di Roy visibly gulped at the sight of Pinkie Pie, doing his best to contain a near PTSD level flashback to his first encounter with her, and he did his best to look non-threatening as he held up his hands, “I’ll try to take that as a compliment and not a threat to my bodily safety.”

“It can be both,” said Pinkie Pie, and at Sunset’s look she smiled, “But we’re all friends here, so why don’t you tell us why you’re here, hm?”

“For the record, I’m not his friend,” said Maud, and Pinkie Pie shrugged.

“Okay, so we’re not all friends here, but close enough that immediate murder is off the table. Future murder is debatable.”

Di Roy rubbed the back of his head, grumbling, “Man, you attack a girls’ family one time and she never lets you forget it.”

“Listen buddy, be glad we decided not to plant your butt in the dirt and get with the talking,” Rainbow Dash said, “I remember you’re supposed to be part of Adagio’s crew or whatever, but some of us didn’t forget you were part of that nasty bunch Grand Fisher had attack us.”

“Let’s try to give him a chance,” Fluttershy said, “I’m sure a lots changed for him in the time since then, just like it has for us.”

“Seriously,” said Di Roy, brushing himself off of some of the rock dust and dirt that had gotten on him, “So we cool? Adagio sent me to talk to Sunset Shimmer, and this was the closest I could get with a Garganta without tipping any Soul Reapers in the city off to my reiatsu. Didn’t realize I’d be popping in on top of a damn convention of the local badasses.”

“It’s fine,” said Sunset, relaxing her stance, “As it happens you’ve got good timing. I’d been wanting to get a hold of Adagio, but wasn’t sure how to do it quickly. With you here you can take a message to her for me once you’re done telling me what she sent you here for.”

“That’s me, top quality errand boy. So, right, message,” Di Roy did his best to contain his nerves. Even when they were trying to keep it low key, these girls had a lot of reiatsu flowing off of them. It floored him to think of how they’d all started out, and that he’d even tried taking them on back in the day. Buffed up as he’d gotten, he didn’t think he’d last a hot minute against any of them in a serious fight. No wonder Adagio was so keen to keep working with them. These girls were dangerous.

“She wanted to warn you about Chrysalis. She’s back in Hueco Mundo.”

“Wait, she’s not in Equestria right now?” Sunset asked, and Di Roy gave her a quick shrug.

“Adagio didn’t give me the details, just that for the moment the Secunda is here, and Adagio doesn’t know for how long or what she’s doing. But far as she knows, Chrysalis is in cahoots with Grogar on some scheme, and given Grogar’s interest in you gals, Adagio figures it was worth giving you a heads up so you can be on guard.”

This earned a few exchanged glances between the girls. None of them had encountered Chrysalis outside of briefly seeing her back on Sokyoku Hill when, masquerading as Captain Zecora, the devious Espada had grievously wounded and nearly killed Captain Amore. Sunset had to admit she still know precious little about the Second Espada, although what little she had seen was more than enough to understand that she was Bad News, complete with capital letters.

“I appreciate the warning,” Sunset said, “Might be good to know she’s around, considering what I wanted you to tell Adagio about.”

“Huh? And what’s that?” Di Roy asked, his tone filled with a wary air. Sunset couldn’t blame him, really. Adagio probably wasn’t going to think this was a brilliant idea, at least not at first.

“Well, you see...”

----------

“You’re planin’ ta do what now!?”

It was hours later. After Di Roy’s departure back to Hueco Mundo things had calmed down, and a delicious feast of barbecue was had by all. Sunset had explained what Di Roy had come to warn them about, as given Chrysalis’ capacity for shapeshifting it seemed prudent that everyone be aware that the Espada and her brood could be a problem. It was disquieting, but hadn’t spoiled the festive mood that had taken over the group as everyone had settled down to eating and talking of more pleasant things. Rainbow Dash’s father had arrived, bringing with him a pleasant woman with light blue skin that was certainly reminiscent of Dash’s, along with neatly trimmed, short hair of various light orange and red shades. This was Windy Whistles, Rainbow Dash’s aunt, apparently visiting while on vacation from her work with some government accounting agency. The conversation had to turn to the mundane with her around, and Sweet Cider was careful to avoid talking too much or moving objects, as since Windy being a normal individual she wouldn’t be able to see Sweet Cider.

Considering it was probably an ideal time for it, Sunset had taken Sweet Cider aside into the farmhouse’s kitchen, while her friends were keeping the rest of their families occupied outside on the patio. She didn’t really want everyone knowing what they were about to do, but Sweet Cider needed to know, and Sunset wanted her to agree to the plan. Understandably the woman had react with the same incredulity that Di Roy had when Sunset had explained the plan she wanted communicated to Adagio.

“I know it’s audacious-” Sunset began, and Sweet Cider’s blunt tone cut her off.

“Downright suicidal is what I’d call it! Are you a dang idgit, Sunset Shimmer!? Tryin’ ta git my daughter’s foolish self killed?”

“Look, this isn’t as crazy as it sounds. I’ve thought it through,” Sunset said, and felt a bit intimidated when the soaring height of Sweet Cider cast a shadow over her as the burly woman crossed arms of corded muscles and leaned over Sunset.

“Do explain.”

Sunset sucked in a breath and looked up, not backing away from Sweet Cider’s presence. “First of all, we’re not doing this alone. Discord, Ditzy Doo, and Gaia Everfree are all going to be present for this. That’s a lineup that’d make anyone hesitate.”

A twitch in Sweet Cider’s jawline indicated that Sunset had scored a point, “Can’t argue that. Why shouldn’t I be there, then? I’m the damned Kenpachi, an’ the enemy knows it.”

“That’s precisely why I don’t want you there, Sweet Cider. Look, your relationship with Soul Society might be rocky right now, but you’re still Captain of the Tenth Division and, as you just pointed out, the Kenpachi. You being there sends the wrong message. This has to be a Coalition matter, handled by just Coalition members. If this organization is going to mean anything beyond empty words we’ve got to stand on our own feet, with our own power. In Hueco Mundo, though, that means something a lot different than it does to the Soul Reapers or Quincy. So last thing we need is you charging in there on your own, hence why I didn’t want you learning about this after the fact. Also, you’re among the strongest Captains. I don’t know for sure how you stack against Celestia, or Hurricane, but I know you’re up there. So you’re the best one to tell me just how strong we’ve gotten.”

Sweet Cider let out a rumbling little grunt as she leaned back on the kitchen counter, looking as if she was ready to spit rocks. “Still don’t like this. Can go wrong n’ all sorts o’ ways. But yer right, no point n’ startin’ up yer own faction if ya don’t show it’s got some teeth. Ain’t sure this is the way I’d go ‘bout it, but I can tell yer set on this. So, ya’ll want me ta gauge yer strength?”

“Yeah, just can’t be an all out fight, because we’ll need to preserve our strength. So you’ll do it?”

“Ain’t givin’ me a whole lot o’ other options, are ya girl?” Sweet Cider’s consternation soon gave way to a begrudging look of respect, “Gettin’ on ta time I stopped treatn’ AJ like she can’t make her own decisions anyhows. Just don’t even think o’ lettin’ her or none o’ yer friends get hurt over this. If things look like they aint’ workin’ out like ya plan, ya git yerself n’ them out of there. This ain’t no game. Not with them, not with Tirek or that Chrysalis creature there.”

“Believe me I understand that. But it’s time,” Sunset said, a welling of heat within her very blood coursing upward into her eyes as they burned with a phosphorus resolve, “Way past time we stop waiting for the monsters to come to us. One way or another, by the end of today, Tirek and all of his Espada are going to understand that there’s more than Quincy and Soul Reapers to worry about.”

Her words were interrupted by the door to the kitchen opening, and Sunset quickly clamped her mouth shut as she saw Windy Whistles enter. The woman wore a surprisingly sharp cut and well made business suit jacket and skirt in a deep purple color that matched her eyes. Sunset hadn’t really exchange many words with Windy, but she seemed pleasant enough, and this impression continued as Windy smiled wide upon seeing Sunset.

“Oh, didn’t know this is where you disappeared to, Miss Shimmer. I just came in to grab some fresh ice water. Soda isn’t really my thing and I try to avoid alcohol,” she said, breezing on over to the cupboards to grab a glass. Sweet Cider sighed, going quiet to wait for the woman to leave, while Sunset returned Windy’s smile as casually as she could.

“Hope you’re enjoying yourself,” Sunset said, just trying to make a bit of small talk.

“I most certainly am!” Windy Whistles said, filling up her glass with ice and water while looking over her shoulder, “And I want to thank you so much for being a friend to my niece. Ever since her mother left I worry so much for her. A developing young lady really does need the right role models in her life, and while I know Bow is an excellent father, I’m also happy to see Rainbow has made friends her own age.”

“Hey, Rainbow’s great, and I feel lucky to be able to call her a friend,” Sunset replied, feeling a tad out of sorts and not entirely sure why. Perhaps it was the mention of Rainbow’s mother, “I mean, I know Dash has had a few things to work out concerning her mom, but we’re always here for her and she’s been there for us more times than I can count. Pretty much loyalty personified.”

A little on the nose, but not inaccurate. Windy’s smile didn’t falter, but it did change in some way Sunset couldn’t quite place. Windy took a deep sip of her water, holding the glass with both hands as she looked at the ice clink in it, “I know. She’s a strong girl. Just like Firefly in so many ways. Strong of both body and will. You’ll look after her of course, won’t you? Make sure she doesn’t get into too much trouble?”

“Uh, yeah, of course I will. We all will,” Sunset said, wondering what it was that was bothering her. This was a fairly normal conversation. There was nothing weird about an aunt being concerned for her niece. So why did Sunset feel like she was having a different conversation than she thought she was.

“Good... very good,” Windy said, a small little laugh escaping her before she took another sip of water and perked up, “Well I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing standing alone in the kitchen, Miss Shimmer. Thank you again for everything you’ve done up until now. I’ll be in town for a few weeks, so I’m sure we’ll see more of each other at... some point.”

With that she went right back outside, leaving Sunset standing there, blinking in wonderment at the short but somehow very odd conversation. “Huh,” was all she could mutter to herself, but when she looked back at Sweet Cider she saw that the Soul Reaper Captain was starring at the door Windy had just exited.

“What is it?” Sunset asked, and Sweet Cider glanced at her.

“Ya didn’t notice? She looked right at me.”

----------

Las Noches’s roof was a truly massive expanse of stone, and from it rose multiple towers, although its central one remained an edifice that spiked higher than Adagio could readily comprehend. She often wondered why the fortress was built in such a manner, and as if he was reading her mind, Thorax stood beside her and looked up at the central tower that scraped the sky and said, “I heard that when this place was built by the first to call themselves Arrancar and claim the titles of Espada, the tower was meant to be their sign of defiance against all others who sought to exterminate Hollow kind. A statement that our way, our nature, would never die out from the realm of souls.”

“Always thought it looked like a big target,” Adagio commented, to which Thorax let out a bell of a laugh.

“There’s nothing actually in there. You know well the throne room and Tirek’s chambers lay within the fortress proper. But it would be fun to see someone take a pot shot at it. Now, I doubt you called me up here to talk about architectural choices, Adagio, although I don’t mind the secluded meeting spot. Quite intimate, wouldn’t you say?”

His joking, flirt ridden demeanor was at contrast to his body language; legs stiff, eyes slightly downcast, his hands fidgeting ever so slightly. He had to have known she’d been visited by his mother, right? Well, best to get that out of the way. She faced him fully, hand on hip, eyes frankly staring into his, “Did you know your mother had returned?”

To his credit, Thorax didn’t even blink or take a hesitant second to think of a denial, instead offering her an apologetic and strained smile, “She gave me little warning, and not soon enough for me to inform you ahead of time. I do apologize for that, Adagio. I had no idea she intended to return so soon from Equestria, although I gather she won’t be here long.”

“Do you know why?” she asked, “Both why she’s here and why she’s returning so swiftly? She must have told you something.”

“My mother’s capacity for being both duplicitous and unpredictable makes it hard to glean much of anything from even the things she tells me straight,” Thorax replied with his hands thrown up. With a resigned grunt he sat down on the edge of the roof, overlooking the vast sands stretching south of Las Noches, now occupied by so many Hollows it looked like an army of ants blanketing the sans. “She told me all about having made ‘friends’ with one of those pony Princesses. Named Cadence, which I do believe matches the name of a Quincy over here. My mother’s method of friendship leaves most begging for mercy, so I do not envy this Princess Cadence. She also spoke of a new power unleashed by the ponies. Something called Inheritance, or Inheritors? I forget, but it is apparently potent, enough so that even my mother seemed almost concerned about what that world’s Celestia and Luna may be capable of.”

“Something powerful enough to give even that crazy woman pause?” Adagio said with a hand rubbing her chin, partially in surprise, but also in a certain amount of encouraged eagerness. “Did she give you any details?”

“Not as such. From what she gathered it was a power not readily replicated, and tied to specific individuals, including Princess Cadence. Oh, and she met my and Pharynx’s counterparts. She gushed a bit about them,” Thorax said, actually looking a tad put out by that, “Seems as if my other self is friends of the ponyfolks, and rules what they call the ‘Changelings’.”

“Really? And what of your mother’s counterpart, then? Dead?”

“Deposed. Oh how mother seethed about that one. I do think my mother has a bit of a complex concerning her other self,” Thorax said, sounding both bemused and a tad concerned. Adagio reminded herself that despite the complicated relationship Thorax had with Chrysalis, the man still cared for his mother. Yet she had to trust that wouldn’t adversely affect his judgment concerning their own plans.

“Well I don’t much care what Chrysalis' issues are or aren’t with her Equestrian counterpart. I’m far more concerned with what she intends to do here. Do you know where she is, now?”

“In our sanctum, with Grogar. I don’t know what they’re doing, as I was not invited to this particular meeting. However I do know it has something to do with information she obtained from Equestria. Grogar and her have been working on those artificial gems built off of yours, and if I were a betting man, which I am, I’d say they’re refining an even more potent version. My own eyes and ears among the other Espada hordes have been whispering words to me of more artificial siren gems, being distributed to certain Espada.”

That news made Adagio’s blood boil, “Which ones?”

“Guto most certainly, and likely Hydia and Catrina as well.”

“But not Torch, not Lament, and not Gilda?” Adagio frowned, “It is no secret Torch and Lament are aligned with me. Gilda may be considered unimportant enough to be ignored, but...”

“I would imagine Grogar is fortifying his own alliance against you,” Thorax warned, “Why my mother aides him, I can only guess is because she wants more power herself. I doubt she cares what Grogar might intend himself.”

“And to make matters more problematic, Tirek is turning Las Noches into a bubbling cauldron of gathered Hollows, all poised and eager to strike at any target he points them at. Which will likely be Equestria. Thorax, would your mother reveal the means you’re using to get to and from Equestria to Tirek?”

He leaned back, eyes pinched shut, “Not long ago I’d have said no. I thought her chips were placed on Starlight Glimmer. But in her stories of Equestria she also told me that Starlight, for better or worse, has been temporarily removed from the board. That changes things. Now I can’t even give a partial guess as to what my mother’s next move will be. She could tell Tirek of our portal and use it to launch a direct invasion of Equestria at any time, but she could just as easily hold onto that secret as a trump card for her own purposes. We won’t know until it happens.”

“Great. Just bloody great,” Adagio rubbed at her forehead, “How much worse can the situation get?”

“Boss lady! Hey, boss lady! Oh, there you are, Gaw said she smelled you up here.”

Di Roy came waltzing across the roof, leaping right over to them with a friendly wave, “Yo, Thorax, on a date with the boss?”

“Of course. How could I resist the literal siren call of such a beautiful lady asking to see me alone where so few might stumble across us in all sorts of compromising positions?” Thorax replied, waggling his eyebrows, and Adagio flipped them both off.

“Screw you both. Di Roy, did you deliver my message to Sunset Shimmer?”

“Sure did, and she appreciated it. Enough to keep the insane rock girl from trying to smash my block off. I swear, some people just can’t let the past be the past,” Di Roy muttered, and at Adagio’s flat look he straightened up and added, “But, uh, that Shimmer girl also had a message for you. Like, a massive one. Insane, really. Like, I had to get her to tell it to me a few times before I believed what she was saying, and all those crazy girls with her totally backed her up.”

That didn’t bode well. Adagio felt the pit of her stomach clench up, her mind running full tilt at wondering what madness Sunset Shimmer might be up to. She was nearly afraid to ask, but she figured it couldn’t possibly be that bad, “Alright, spill it. What is the bacon head intending?”

----------

Somewhere, near a mile from Las Noches, a few Hollows taking drinks from the large lake that was such a new and unusual thing to find in the world’s endless white sands, a noise reverberated in a long echo. Hollows looked up from dripping water at the echoing voice, shouting at the top of its lungs from the roof of the distant fortress.

“She’s going to WHAT!?”

Episode 172: Rule of Might

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Episode 172: Rule of Might

Hueco Mundo had not become any less a depressing sight since last Sunset Shimmer had lain eyes upon it. Every inch of pallid sand seemed leeched of vitality, and the sky remained ever dark and starless. Only a pale sliver of moon acted as a sentinel to break up the emptiness above, and its light offered no comfort but instead seemed to only add a harsh silver sheen to an already unforgiving place.

It struck Sunset that it reflected the Hollows not as a sign of their own bleakness, but as the hard backdrop that fit their nature of consumption, dominance, and pursuit of power over one another. This was part of the human soul, the part that held no softness within it, or rather kept that softness so cherished and close that it was guarded from all but the ones most trusted.

It’s the polar opposite of Equestria in some ways, but at the same time I feel like both realms are similar in how honestly they try to mirror their own inhabitants. There’s zero duplicity to this place, at least in terms of what it is.

That was her estimation, at any rate, looking upon it for the first time since that fateful battle with Grand Fisher and Adagio’s loss to Grogar’s grasp. She stood atop a tall dune, overlooking the last expanse of desert plain that led towards the mountainous blemish on the horizon that was Las Noches. It was hard for her to fully grasp the unruly size of the Hollow fortress, even after it had been described to her. One could drop a dozen Canterlots in there and have room to spare.

“Yup, this place hasn’t started to suck any less since last time,” Rainbow Dash declared, throwing up her hands with an exasperated exhale, “I don’t know how Adagio puts up with it.”

“She doesn’t have any better choice, Rainbow,” Fluttershy reminded her, “She’s as much a prisoner of this place as she is a resident.”

“I think that may be underselling her accomplishments, darling,” Rarity said, hands rolling through her hair as if concerned about getting any of the gritty white sand under their feet stuck in it. “Adagio has gone from a prisoner of that odious Grogar to a powerful and respected member of the Hollow hierarchy. Whatever one might say about the atmosphere of this dreary world, I daresay if Adagio wanted to leave it, she very much could.”

“Don’t know ‘bout that,” Applejack said, eyes pinched in a hard frown as she glared at the fortress, “Feels like the Espada are like the mob. Once yer in, ya don’t exactly walk out all free n’ clear. Still, much as I hate ta say it, we ain’t here ta free Adagio no more. Seem ta recall we’d plan ta do that, once.”

“Well, things have changed a lot since then,” Sunset Shimmer said, keeping her voice even, “Adagio is no longer in need of rescue, and we’re not here to invade, although violence is very much on the table. Now, does anybody need me to go over the plan again?”

“Nopers!” Pinkie Pie said, already walking with a hop in her step towards Las Noches, “I got it all down in my steel trap of a brain! Which wasn’t hard because I think most of my part doesn’t involve me doing anything!”

“Unless things go completely sideways, which, you know, what are the odds of that?” Rainbow Dash laughed, and Pinkie shared in the mirth with a giggle of her own.

“I’m glad you’re all feeling so blasé about this, but let’s try to remember with whom we are about to knock on the front door of,” Rarity reminded them all, “We should all be prepared for the worst.”

“The hardest part is all on Sunset. Which, Sunset, I wish you’d reconsider,” Fluttershy said, and Sunset did have a hard time not entirely caving to that sincere and soulful look of compassionate worry that her friend hit her with like a mental anvil. She held up under Fluttershy’s gaze and cleared her throat.

“Ahem, I thought about it long and hard, Fluttershy. If needed, I do want you girls to be ready to step in, but I think this’ll work best if it’s just me. We’ve got a lot of cards we’re showing, but I don’t want to tip our entire hand, just enough to make some of these bastards sweat.”

Timing and a little showmanship were key parts of her plan. While she hadn’t met Tirek yet, between what she’d seen of the other Espada and Arrancar in general she felt she had a solid feel for what would and wouldn’t work with them. She knew the risk she was taking her was massive. But it was also needed. They were well past the point where playing it cautious was something they could keep doing with these Hollows.

The artificial Garganta that led from Discord’s shop had closed up behind them, but she knew Discord and others would be already enacting their part of things elsewhere, and waiting for the right moment. For the time being, it was just her and her friends walking across the ocean of pale sand.

“Okay, time to kick this up a notch,” Sunset said, and drew her Zanpaktou.

”Ignite; Hokori no Hikari” (Pride’s Light)

She let her reiatsu flow out as her katana transmuted in a burst of marvelous flames and light to take the shape of a broadsword with a red cloth streaming from it’s hilt, and a similarly red kite shield that bore the same sun image she’d had a cutie mark when she’d been a unicorn. The Shikai felt so effortless in her hands the blade and shield may as well have been simple extensions of her own limbs. Sunset felt the ready, eager pulse of pleasure from her two Zanpaktou spirits, although understandably there was a quiet caution on Hikari’s part, while Hokori was all but bursting at the seams with heated fighting spirit.

She was doing nothing to hide her reiatsu. Indeed she wanted to ensure her spiritual pressure was flaring as high as it could while still in a Shikai state, which at this juncture was not inconsiderable in terms of power. Before enacting this plan she and the girls had tested themselves with Sweet Cider, and by her estimation Sunset was readily on par with what could be expected from not just a Captain of the Gotei 13, but among the stronger ones.

”Ya ain’t quite on my level, nor Celestia or Cheese Sandwitch’s fer that matter. But I’d say by now ya got over half o’ the other Captains beat, least n’ raw spiritual power. Ain’t gonna blow no smoke up yer rear pipe, Ol’ Man Scorpan would still stomp ya somethin’ fierce, which oughta tell ya all ya need ta know ‘bout what yer plannin’ ta do... still, if yer still set on doin’ this, I’ll just say I think ya got ‘nough power under the hood now ta leave an impression. Just don’t go gettin’ cocky. One wrong move n’ yer still in fer a world o’ hurt.”

It was as honest an assessment as could be expected, and considering who it was coming from Sunset believed Sweet Cider’s words fully. She had no intention of letting her guard down.

One by one each of the other girls tapped into their Fullbrings, creating a collage of flashing lights to bloom within Hueco Mundo’s darkness as they assumed their full powers. Lighting cracked and boomed as Rainbow Dash flared into the air, clad in her cobalt blue armor and wings that sprouted prismatic rainbow beams of light.

Applejack’s body exuded heat that melted sand to glass as golden liquid poured around her body and molded into solid plates of pure gold metal upon her body. The armor sprouted a white cape and then in a glitter of golden spherical light, the massive, drill like lance manifested and fell into Applejack’s waited, gauntlet-clad hand.

Bubbling blackness and pink and red tinged shadow rose up and coated Pinkie Pie, revealing her now wearing her colorful jester’s motley while also creating the shape of her hefty, pink half hammer, half pick-axe. The pool of shadow, like liquid candy, stayed following Pinkie’s body like a living symbiote, and for the moment the mask on her face covered the left half, white and smiling.

Light soft and golden as sunrays rose in a shining halo around Fluttershy, wrapping her body and leaving it clad in modest, slightly revealing robes of brilliant green and gold hues. Joining her two normal arms were two additional sets, and her forehead burned with an open third eye of resplendent blue light. Around her back a huge golden halo shone with beams like sunlight, images of golden hands fading in and out of view from it’s radiant depths.

Around Rarity blood flowed, turned to silver crystal, and encapsulated her in elegant battle armor with a wide skirt and engraved with rose and ivy motifs. Her hair shone to similar silver white luminousness, and as she extended a hand a sizable red crystal rapier met with her waiting hand. Behind her the air churned with an ever present distortion, the waiting gate that, when summoned, would call forth her vast army of crystalline knights.

In a line the six friends marched along, and with easy steps of high speed they picked up their pace, eating up vast miles of distance in seconds to reach the edge of Las Noche’s territory. There, Sunset looked upon hordes of lesser Hollows that formed hundreds of packs and herds as they gathered around the monolithic fortress. She saw the lake that Adagio’s actions some time ago had created, its waters dark and glinting silver under the moon. Some Hollows were using the lake to bask in, but the majority of the hordes roamed further afield or stayed clustered near the fortress like ants.

“Time to knock on the door,” she said, and with nods from her friends, they headed right down into the midst of the Hollows.

The ravenous souls sensed the girls well before they arrived, but as hungry as they were, from the smallest of the lesser Hollows, to the spire-like Gillians, to the numerous more intelligent Adjuchas, none had the gumption to do more than hover at a safe distance around the girls. Fear filled the air from the Hollows. Unease and hunger caused howls to echo out from hundreds of staved Hollows. Yet they gave way for the six girls, parting like a tide of tar as Sunset led her friends through the thick of the Hollow horde. None of the Hollows wanted to tangle with spiritual pressure like what the girls were putting out. To the Hollows, no matter how tempting the taste of spirit energy was to their hungry mouths, all of them understood that it was six apex predators whose powers vastly surprised theirs that walked among them.

The Hollow sea parted, and the path to Las Noches’ front gates was laid bare.

----------

Tirek had, for times uncounted at this point, debated whether or not it was worth it to keep Chrysalis around. Her glib, careless attitude towards everything had worn thin on him innumerable times. He hated her utterly cocksure pride, if only because it was not something he’d ever been able to curb or control. Which was also why he respected her, damn it all. No one and nothing could make Chrysalis be anything other than herself, not even him. It made him want her all the more, even as he contemplated blasting her head off with a Cero as she stretched herself over the top of him in a possessive straddle and had the audacity to actually boop him on his nose like he was some child.

“No.”

“No?” he repeated at her, his glower as volcanic as his mood.

“No,” Chrysalis repeated with firm mirth, adding an amused giggle to it that was enough to get Tirek to, with a frustrated grunt, give her a forceful shove that was hard enough to send her nearly flying across his bedchambers and into the wall. Of course the impact, even if it cracked stone, did little next to nothing to Chrysalis, who just laughed more as she stood and flipped her hair to straighten it out. “Oh, does my oh so pent up Primera Espada not like that word? I know the feeling. It’s so consternating, isn’t it?”

He rose from the bed, slipping on his pants without much care for the way Chrysalis stared appreciatively at his crimson backside, “Your childishness is only surpassed by your capacity to get on my nerves. I asked you to reveal what you have been doing while your buffoon of a son has been wearing your face, and I tire of the cryptic nonsense, Chrysalis.”

“But I’m so good at it,” Chrysalis replied, not bothering to get dressed herself as she acquired a pitcher of wine from a drinking counter that took up one side of Tirek’s expansive chambers, not bothering with getting a cup as she upended it to drink her fill. Once finished she tossed the empty pitcher aside and put a hand on her hip as she eyed Tirek up and down, he himself having joined her at the counter. “But by my word, I promise to tell you all when the time is right. Things are nearly arranged. I just need Grogar to get that crusty mind of his to finish the last stretch, and we won’t have much need of him anymore.”

“You may not, but the man’s mind is not something I’ll readily sacrifice,” Tirek said, his mood darkening. His patience with matters besides Chrysalis was wearing out as well, but that was mostly because he was starting to get nervous, a fact he hated to admit to himself. Medley’s appearance in the human world was an issue, and he suspected it might not be long before the Zero Division, or perhaps just Glory more specifically, decided to take drastic action. He needed to gain more power at any cost. Equestria was the only path presently available to acquire that power. Chrysalis had been playing around there, and he knew she had a means back and forth from there. He could take it by force, perhaps, but he couldn’t discount that she might be crazy and spiteful enough to destroy it if he tried any method that endangered her children. Woman was far too attached to them. It was her one weakness. He’d considered exploiting it, but Chrysalis was too unpredictable to attack in such a manner.

No, if he ever decided to be done with her it was best just to kill her himself, and they hadn’t reached that point yet, despite her willfulness right now. Besides, no woman he’d ever met had a body like that, not simply in utter jaw dropping physical perfection, but the fact that she could take anything he dished out and simply demanded more. Nobody else came close, although Catrina sure did preen.

Chrysalis looked at him with that vastly annoying glint of personal amusement at his words, “You say that, but you know Adagio is gunning for him and personally my money is on our young Sixth Espada coming out on top in that confrontation.”

“Truly? Grogar may only be Ninth now, but his mind makes him far more dangerous than that number. Furthermore, I know he’s built a strong alliance with Hydia and Guto.”

“As has Adagio with Torch and that sad sack Lament. A stalemate, until one side slips up. Again, smart money is on Adagio.”

“Hmph, perhaps,” Tirek admitted, “Whichever wins, our forces evolve through such conflict. Yet Grogar’s mind is not easily replaceable. It may be time for me to speak with Adagio Dazzle on the nature her revenge should take, if it comes to pass. However, that is a minor matter. I still grow impatient with you, Chrysalis. If I cannot have your means to Equestria, I will assault the portal in the human world. We’ve gathered enough strength, and have waited long enough.”

“So eager, but I suggest a brief delay,” she said, holding up a hand to his lips and smiling devilishly at him as he began to protest, “Only briefly, love. Let me set the board a bit more there. Let me play, just a little longer, and I promise you you’ll get your bloodbath and glorious gorging of Equestrian souls, with all of their rich and creamy magic filling.”

“Mmmph,” he grunted, thoughtful as she gave him an oddly tender kiss, but he didn’t let that distract him for long and he pushed her away. “Enough, woman. I’ve things to do other than entertain you all day.”

“Oh, no you don’t,” she teased, licking her lips. At his glare she started to laugh, but then both of them paused and looked towards the large window balcony that filled out most of the wall opposite Tirek’s massive bed. Both sensed it, the approach of six vast reiatsu signatures. The spiritual pressures were quite potent, each easily as strong or stronger than a number of the Espada. Yet Tirek did not immediately recognize these spiritual pressures. Their flavor and intensity... one was a Soul Reaper, but subtly different, while the other five had an echo of Hollow power, but were truly distinct in their feel compared to any Hollow he’d felt before.

“Now who could possibly have the spine to approach so openly and boldly like this?” he wondered aloud as he approached his balcony and looked out over the wide interior of Las Noches’ inner realm, eyes locked towards the southern gate on the horizon, “That isn’t anyone from Soul Society... wait... could it be?”

Chrysalis, joining him on the balcony, crossed her arms over her breasts and smiled deeply, eyes hungry, “Oh my! How deliciously unexpected! It’s those girls! Marching right into the dragon’s den! Hahahah! I... I’m actually surprised by something. How delightful. And here I’d dismissed them as too timid for a move like this. I must greet them!”

Before she could leap off the balcony, Tirek grabbed her by the arm, earning a sharp look from her, but Tirek held her fast and used his other hand to point at her clothes, strewn at various parts of the room, “Much as I enjoy the view, let’s not give our guests an eyeful.”

She blew a snort his way as she went to retrieve her clothes, chiming over her slim shoulders, “Says the man who never wears a shirt.”

“They keep shredding whenever I flex slightly,” Tirek quipped, taking a second to demonstrate the impressiveness of his sculpted, crimson biceps before what little levity he had drained from his features, “But enough jokes. If those children wish to speak with the adults, I shall need to remind them whose house they approach.”

He went to the side of his bed where he’d lain his Zanpaktou. The immense blade of golden edged death easily filled his grip as he slung it into its sheath and strapped it over his back. By then Chrysalis had slipped into her form hugging white gown that left so little of her curves to the imagination, and retrieved her own Zanpaktou that had been laid on the other side of the bed. By now Tirek could feel the awakening reiatsu of other Espada, knowing that they must have felt the approach of those girls as keenly as he had.

A smile touched his lips as he and Chrysalis went back to the balcony, and as a pair hurled themselves off it like twin comets.

His ire was up that these children would so boldly come ringing his doorbell. Yet at the same time an elated fire grew in his chest. Crushing the cowardly and the weak was so... unfulfilling. He liked it when his prey had a backbone.

It made snapping their spines so much the sweeter.

----------

Every expletive under the sun was coming from Adagio’s mouth in a steady torrent, her footfalls in the sands in front of Lament’s tower kicking up a small dust storm. To the side, sitting on the steps leading into the tower, Di Roy and Gaw watched her pace like a pair of worried guard dogs who thought their owner may have gone a tad crazy. Standing nearby, arms crossed with a combination of vague amusement mixed with faint caution, Thorax said “I’d say you’re taking this rather well.”

Adagio rounded on him, finger stabbing, “Not. A. Word! Not unless it’s to make a magical miracle happen that will somehow uncluster this fuck!”

“Colorful. But perhaps it’s best you get a hold of yourself for a moment,” Thorax suggested, affecting a serious look while keeping his voice at an irritatingly reasonable low, “Surely these ‘friends’ of yours wouldn’t be doing this without having considered it carefully, and much as you’re clearly dubious of their chances, I actually think I see a glimmer of what this Sunset Shimmer is going for.”

“Dying, maybe!?” Adagio snapped, “Because that’s very likely what’s about to happen unless I can think of a way to prevent it! There’s no way Tirek is going to allow this. No way he’ll pass up an opportunity to wipe them out here and now! Or at least capture one of them to extract their magic! He’s been after their magic since the beginning!”

“Yes, yes, normally I think you’d be right about that,” Thorax agreed, “But do remember I’ve been here much longer than you, and have known Lord Tirek for all of that life. It is true that he may well brutally take what he desires, but he is also not entirely without his own sense of... well not ‘honor’ per se, but something of a personal code. He is a man of his word, and respects power. You know this. He made you an Espada because of the very kind of challenge your friend intends to issue.”

“I am a Hollow, and I calculated that risk carefully,” Adagio pointed out, “I made sure he had no reason to view killing me as useful, and gave him every reason to raise me up. Sunset Shimmer and the rest of them are an enemy force, who possess something he wants, and the only reason he couldn’t simply take it was because in the human world they had the nominal protection of both Soul Society and even the Quincy, both of whom would act if Tirek made a direct move on Canterlot City. But since they’ve come here, there is no such protection!”

“They have grown formidable since the days you were with them,” Thorax pointed out, but Adagio was just as fast to reply.

“Formidable enough to face him?”

“...No, but they may not have to. Tirek is also driven by pride, Adagio. Much like yourself. Much like this Sunset Shimmer, I imagine. I believe she intends to take some advantage of that pride. We should seek to ensure she is supported in that endeavor.”

Adagio paused, her mind firing on all pistons, including pistons she didn’t even know she had. In a way, Thorax was right. She had gauged much of Tirek’s personality and power in the short time she’d been among the Espada. His strength was unquestionable, and beyond defeat at this juncture. But perhaps that was not Sunset’s intent. The message given had laid out the basics of the former unicorn’s seemingly foolish plan, but Adagio had to admit she was letting fear get the better of her.

She was worried for Sunset Shimmer, and even those other girls. She didn’t want to see them obliterated, and knew full well Tirek was capable of doing just that. But he’d also been capable of doing that to Adagio at any time she’d risked plans that might draw his ire. Tirek was unquestionably powerful, but he had his flaws, his weaknesses, pride chief among them. And Sunset probably knew that. Was Adagio not giving the girl enough credit? But even so, this whole situation was dangerous, not just for the Canterlot girls, but for Adagio and her people as well.

I can’t afford for Sunset Shimmer and her friends to die here. They’re too critical to my own goals. But I was not ready for them to confront Tirek yet. It’s far too early for a move like this! How can I turn this to my advantage? Thorax is right, I need to get a grip and think this through, but there’s no time!

Her spiritual senses were inflamed with various reiatsu, and she didn’t even have to open her Pesquisa very wide to tell that already the other Espada were on the move. She had gotten familiar enough with each of them to tell Catrina, fastest of all, was already outside Las Noches. Hydia and Grogar were together, moving more slowly but steadily to the front gates. Guto was on the march with a cadre of his warriors, while more distantly Gilda was rushing ahead. Then there was the unmistakable and choking strength of the combined reiatsu of both Tirek and Chrysalis, leaving Adagio feeling sick to her stomach as the pair barreled across Las Noches’ interior with so thick spirit energy it felt like being pulled along by a dark tide.

The only oddity was Torch, who instead of coming for the gate, was heading for Adagio, along with Ember’s clear reiatsu signature.

The doors to Lament’s tower swung open, and out he came. The pale Espada was looking much better than he had the day Grogar had torn the Seed from him. Hard Nail had been diligent in working with Adagio to train his body and spirit energies, and although she estimated he was at barely half his former strength, that still put him above some of the lesser ranked Espada. It was keeping his weakened state hidden from the others that was the growing issue, but hopefully all eyes would be on the girls from Canterlot City today.

Walking on either side of Lament were Roka and Fenice, which immediately made Adagio worry that someone would quickly notice the near identical appearance Fenice had to Sunset Shimmer. Another problem she didn’t have an immediate solution for.

“My daughters have told me what’s happening,” Hard Nail said, his voice strong and level as ever, his eyes no less intense despite his weakened state. His long, curved Zanpaktou was held steadily in its sheath in his right hand, and he looked ready to fight, “If my Applejack is here, I’m not letting her get hurt.”

There was no question in Adagio’s mind that Lament, Hard Nail, would throw himself between Tirek and his flesh and blood daughter. To the detriment of everyone else, so Adagio faced him fully, still a tad unnerved by him even if his mental state had at least somewhat improved with the return of his human memories. “I’ve no desire to see her hurt, either. I intend to do what I can to make sure this doesn’t escalate to the level of pure madness, but Sunset Shimmer has come to... parley with Tirek.”

“The jolly red asshole isn’t known for that,” Fenice said, then winced as Hard Nail looked at her and she said, “Whoops, sorry dad, I’ll put something in the swear jar later.”

“See that you do, but you’re not wrong. I’ve not known the man to show much interest in talking to his foes,” Hard Nail said, looking to Adagio with expectant eyes, “These friends of yours say anything ‘bout having an actual plan?”

“There is, I just think it’s a foolish one. Sunset intends-”

She was interrupted as in a thick boom of impact, Torch’s immense form planted itself on the ground a dozen paces away. Ember flitted into view a second later, landing next to her father. Both were armed with their Zanpaktou, and Torch rose from a crouch to his full height and hefted his axe over his shoulder with a wry look at Adagio, “Intends what? I just got to hear this.”

Adagio gave him a look, “To goad Tirek into a challenge. One that, if she wins, she wants a slice of Las Noches.”

Torch’s incredulity only lasted as long as it took him to throw back his head and bellow out a laugh, “HAH! I knew your friends were ballsy when they aided in my daughter’s rescue, but to think they have the fortitude to do this! They may well die, but it will be a glorious one, at least.”

“I’d like to avoid that, Torch,” Adagio stated, eyeing him and Ember, her mind now calculating further plans, and knowing full well she had minutes at best to assemble them, “There’s more to it than that, but Sunset is risking a lot for what I consider dubious goals. If she succeeds, it may turn to our favor, but Tirek must accept her challenge, and that may only happen if he believes it is needed for him to keep face. Torch, Ember, Lament-”

“Hard Nail.”

“-Hard Nail here, Lament to the other Espada,” she reminded him, “I need all of you to aid me. You too, Thorax. Sunset sent her message to me not merely as a heads up, but I believe because she trusted me to know what to do to manipulate this situation in ways she cannot. I will not disappoint.”

Torch nodded, “As I said, those girls helped you return my daughter to me. I owe them a favor.”

“Same,” agreed Ember, “What’s the plan, Adagio?”

Pieces locking into place in her mind, Adagio pointed to Gaw and Di Roy, “Both of you, go to our territory and mobilize everyone. And I mean everyone. Torch, can you do the same with your horde?”

“Certainly can. Planning ot make a show of this?”

“That and then some. As soon as our mutual hordes are assembled, we march through the gate. And fast, before Tirek decides to get bored and obliterate those foolhardy ladies and their bacon headed ringleader.”

----------

“Alright, I’ll admit it, this is rather nerve wracking,” Rarity said. The girls were all lined up in front of Las Noches' main gates with about ten feet spacing them apart. The gates themselves were several hundred yards off, but given their spectacular size that scraped up into the sky like literal mountains, that distance was seemingly miniscule.

Sunset waited, trying not to show her own worry by letting the adrenaline that was starting to pump into her system wash those nerves away. Hollows by the droves huddled around the girls, giving them a wide berth of about a full football field, all too frightened to approach closer.

“This sure is taking a long time!” Pinkie Pie piped in, “We’re totally pouring a bunch of spirit energy out! We can’t ring this doorbell any louder. Hellloooo! Misters and Missus Espadaaasssss!? Lookie at us! We’re out here all super cute and vulnerable!”

“Don’t think the ‘vulnerable’ part is something we’re trying to put out there, Pinkie,” said Rainbow Dash, “We’re more going for a ‘Grrr, we’re tough, powerful badasses who are here to kick down your door, so you better come out and do something about it’.”

“Oh, right, heheh, I’ll put on my flex on then!” Pinkie said, striking what she most likely considered to be an intimidating pose and making her face take on the cast of a forcibly serious and severe expression most likely lifted from a hardcore action movie, “Whatdya watin’ for, ya Hollow pukes? Make my day!”

“Eh, closer to what we’re going for, I guess,” Rainbow agreed, bouncing her spear on her shoulder while starring at the giant stone doors, “But yeah, seriously, what’s the hold up?”

“Good question,” Applejack muttered, “I don’t much like this. Should be seein’ at least one or two Arrancar by now.”

“They’re in there,” Fluttershy stated, and the others glanced at her, “Can’t you feel them?”

“I do,” Sunset replied, and soon the other girls all nodded. There was enough reiatsu stemming from the interior of Las Noches that getting a bead on specifics wasn’t easy, but by now they could all feel it. An immense wave of raw pressure colliding with their senses like the oncoming heat of a lava flow, or perhaps more like the intensity of the sun itself. There were other pressures as well, some churning an dark, others potently beating like war drums.

“I think we’ve got their attention,” Sunset added, “And the big boss himself is coming out first.”

A peal of thunder sounded, but it was no thunder of a storm but rather the titanic groan of stone as the vast gates began to grind open. Sunset had to wonder what mechanisms might be moving such a humongous edifice of solid stone, thicker than most castle walls, but then she stopped wondering... because there were no mechanisms.

Tirek was opening the gates himself.

“So, um...Sunset, are you sure about this plan?” asked Rainbow, and Sunset just steeled herself and nodded. It was far too late for second thoughts on this one.

Tirek emerged, one crimson hand apiece applied to either side of the gate he was pushing open as he walked forward with deliberately paced steps of menace. Light from Las Noche’s interior poured forth, outlining him in such a manner that he looked like a god of old, emerging from the depths of some phantasmal plane. With single heaves of bulging arms he threw those towering gates wide and they boomed open fully with the sound of a giant’s fall. Tirek strode forward, unconcerned, undeterred, and locking eyes directly with the six young ladies that had chosen to enter his domain.

Spiritual pressure followed him and billowed ahead of him like a physical wall. Sand billowed in sheets, and the Hollows nearest the gates howled in terror, some of the weakest ones collapsing and disintegrating on the spot, simply through shear proximity to Tirek’s crushing reiatsu.

This front of spiritual power hit the girls, and each of them grunted under it. Yet their own power flared and remained steady, a combined wall of their own uniquely mixed reiatsu that rose like firm stones in Tirek’s river, surrounded but unbending. Sunset felt his power keenly, knew it was a raging star, but her own inner fire did not relent against it. She stood and met his gaze, her breaths quickening but not becoming haggard.

He was a damned brickhouse of a man, she had to admit. She’d never seen that many muscles before. Even Sweet Cider, who had the biggest guns of any woman Sunset had ever met and was amazon tall on top of that, still seemed almost normal in her proportions when compared to the walking mountain of testosterone that was Tirek, the Primera Espada. He wore only a baggy set of white trousers, tucked in boots of black leather, and leaving his shredded chest bare for all to admire. A single leather strap looped around that chest to carry the crimson scabbard of a claymore sized blade that despite its great size almost looked like a normal sword when compared to its owner’s proportions. Sunset saw a glint of gold from the blade’s horn shaped hilt, a color that matched Tirek’s burning gold eyes.

He had a small Hollow hole, one that existed right above his breastbone where his heart would lay underneath, pitch black as a void. His hair was a stark white and fell down his back like that of a lion’s mane, extending to mutton chops and then to an impressive and well trimmed beard that covered an impressively square and rigid jawline. White horns like that of a great bull curved up form his brow, connected to a ridged line of bone akin to a crown. Silver bangles wrapped his wrists, and the number ‘1’ was clearly etched in black ink upon the back of both of his hands.

The man arrested so much damned attention on his approach that Sunset almost didn’t notice that following behind him was another, a woman, and when she did manage to look she recognized Chrysalis instantly. Even having only seen the Second Espada once before, it was hard to forget that face. Chrysalis, unlike Tirek, was not exuding a massive amount of reiatsu. Indeed the woman seemed to be intentionally keeping her reiatsu low, almost as if feigning weakness. From her amused smile it all seemed like some big joke to Chrysalis, but her eyes bored in on Sunset and her friends like a hungry shark, flashing teeth in a smile that was in no way friendly.

Tirek halted about fifty paces from them, Chrysalis sauntering up to his side. There was a second of silence before Tirek raised a hand to his chin, stroking it in contemplation. “You have caught me in a generous mood. I’ll give you thirty seconds to speak, and tell me what has brought you here. Then I may kill you. I’m still deciding.”

“Won’t need that long,” Sunset said, glad that her voice remained steady and strong, “You’ve got a lot of space in that fortress, and I aim to take some of it as my own, to set up an embassy.”

“An...embassy?” Sunset wasn’t sure if it was the audacity of what she was saying or simply the confidence in which she said that had had Tirek blink, but she struck while the iron was hot and went on while he was still apparently trying to figure out if she was insane or not.

“Yeah, you know, those places where ambassadors hang out while dealing with other nations? Must have plenty of unused buildings in there. Just need one for the Coalition embassy. That’s what we’re here for. This display was just our friendly way of saying ‘hello’, since this is the first time we’ve met with you face to face. Was high time we got a look at the man who’s sent his people after us since day one, anyway.”

Tirek himself was silent for a moment, while Chrysalis put her hand to her face, wearing a madcap grin as she barely contained her laughter. “An embassy, Tirek. The girls want a big shiny building! Hahah, are we going to give them one, I wonder?’

“Why should we deign to give these humans anything?”

This wasn’t Tirek speaking, but a new voice that came from behind the girls. Sunset didn’t wheel around, and neither did any of her friends, but they did look over their shoulders to see that standing twenty or so meters behind them was a tall woman with chocolate skin and a head of glimmering fire red hair whose Greek white toga covered a rather attractive hourglass figure. This woman already had a large bladed fan drawn in her right hand and had the tension of a panther ready to pounce. Her voice was both seductive and razor edged with prideful violence. “Your hubris in coming here into the lion’s den is almost impressive, but all you’ve done is served yourself up on a platter to u-”

“Rainbow,” was all Sunset said, and Rainbow Dash was simply gone, barely a trace of electrical sparkle to show she’d moved at all.

Catrina, fastest of the Espada, the single greatest user of Sonido in Las Noches and possibly in all Hueco Mundo, had to struggle to follow the blue hued girls’ motion. No one and nothing Catrina had ever seen before had moved with such singular speed, and only she herself she suspected had the means to even keep up with it. Her fan rose just barely in time to catch a direct strike from Rainbow Dash’s spear, a spear of elegant blue that had two prongs on either side that extended blades of condensed, raw spirit force and electricity that struck with all of the hammering force of a focused typhoon.

The Third Espada was rocked backwards, undamaged as her warfan took the blow, but skidded back on her heels a good dozen paces and she was left starring in stunned silence as Rainbow Dash spun her spear in a flourish and leveled it at her, “My friend wasn’t done talking, so shut your trap, slowpoke.”

“S-slow...HOW DARE YOU!?”

Catrina’s roar, veins popping in her forehead, was interrupted by Tirek raising a hand before she could strike, his voice eclipsing hers without him needing to raise it by an octave. “Catrina, I did not give you leave to attack, nor speak in my place. Stand down.”

Fanged teeth ground inside Catrina’s mouth as she snarled at Rainbow Dash, but steadied herself and gave Tirek a swift bow, running a hand through her hair and composing herself quickly, “Yes, Lord Tirek. Apologies. It’s just the arrogance of these humans simply brings the beast out of me.”

Her eyes never left Rainbow Dash, however, filled with a glittering emerald promise of retribution to the young speedster who’d just humiliated her in front of her peers. Rainbow Dash met the look with all of her youthful cockiness and lifted her chin a bit, as if daring Catrina to take a swing. The pulled back lips that issued forth a silent growl said that Catrina was sorely tempted to, despite Tirek’s warning.

For his part, Tirek no longer paid Catrina any mind, and further talk was put on hold as others arrived upon the scene.

First was the entirely too familiar visage of Grogar. His aged form, like a twisted brown oak tree that refused to die, looked little different from what Sunset remembered. Yet there was a subtle change that Sunset had a hard time identifying, like the brush of fresh paint over a cracked old door frame. He looked with flickering glances upon her and her friends and wetted his lips, the fascination in his eyes so uncomfortable and chilling that Sunset was sorely tempted to just try and kill the old bastard then and there. Whatever she may have thought of the other Espada or the chances of peace, Grogar was one she had next to zero qualms with wanting out of the picture, and while Adagio might have some prior claim on that front, Sunset considered the bastard fair game if the opportunity presented itself.

Next to Grogar’s spindly form was a grotesquely wide woman whose body defied the existence of a neck and whose face was so wide as to be nearly inhuman and more like a toad mask stretched over a tent pole. Stubby legs capered powerfully under rolls of flesh as the woman raised shockingly mobile arms to slap her tummy as she laughed, “Heya Groggykibble, are these the little pustules that you’ve been so intrigued by, hmm? They’re not much to look at. Ugh, just look at those bodies! Like a bunch of techno-color Barbie Dolls. Sprinkle some glitter on them and you could sell them off of toy store shelves for a premium.”

“Woulda ya git a’ load o’ that one? Hey lady, ya do know that Unlimited Breadsticks is a theory, not a fact, right?”

The wide woman laughed at Applejack’s barb and just slapped her belly again, “You’re just jealous of all the junk I got in my trunk, little twiggy missy. Mine’s a beauty that transcends you’re teeny bopper imagination.”

“Ahem, I do believe that the lady is not without a point there, Applejack,” said Rarity, “Size and beauty are not directly correlated and one should not judge on body type, but inner beauty and how it is reflected in one’s style. Consequently, I do love what you’ve done with your hair, miss...?”

“Well ain’t you the pretty and polite one?” the woman said, patting her carrot colored hair, which she’d done up in a set of thick braids, “Hah, Hydia! Current Eight Espada. Used to be Seventh, ‘till my little Grumpy Gorggy Hunny got demoted because of that hussy Adagio!”

Grogar looked like he was ready to dip his head in a vat of acid, “Hydia, what have we talked about concerning the pet names?”

“That they’re endearing and you love them?”

“I believe the exact terminology I’ve used is ‘stop it or I’ll be forced to exterminate you like the hideous cockroach you are’.”

“Awww, you say the nicest threats, my angry wrangy piece of pot pie,” Hydia coo’d, and Applejack glanced at Rarity with a helpless look of exasperation.

“Alright, fine, shouldn’t make fun o’ her weight, but can I at least make fun o’ her terrible taste in men?”

“Oh, well, um, let’s not judge them for it,” Rarity whispered, while others arrived behind Grogar and Hydia, taking up positions on the opposite side of Tirek and Chrysalis, like the a gradually increasing lineup of one sports team versus another. More and more the lesser classes of Hollows were backing further away from this confrontation, the cloying mixture of so many powerful reiatsus making the horde fall back like an obsidian tide until Sunset and her friends had a wide expanse to themselves and the Espada.

Next to arrive was one Sunset knew to be Guto, based on Adagio’s descriptions of him. Alongside him were half a dozen other Arrancar that Sunset presumed to be personal Fraccion, although her eyes were drawn away from them to the sight of a woman who’d been carried along by Guto and deposited on the ground like some trophy. The chain of gold leading from Guto’s hand to the woman’s neck and a subsequent collar was bad enough, but the woman was left with little more than rags to wear, and despite the nature of their last meeting Sunset couldn’t help but feel an intense spike of rage at seeing Fleur De Lis in such a state.

To the Quincy’s credit, she hardly looked as if her spirit was broken, eyes filled with a heated defiance as Guto held her leash and tugged her forward while keeping his eyes focused on the other humans in front of him.

A second later, Gilda appeared, maintaining a noted distance from Guto, and appearing alone and with a distinct sense that she was more confused by what was happening than anything else. Her eyes looked with a clear mix of bafflement and worry between the girls and her fellow Espada, especially lingering on Fluttershy.

“Looks like the gang is almost all here,” Sunset said to Tirek, “Just counting three missing, and I expect they’ll be here in a few moments.”

“Moments you may not have, for I have not decided if you get to leave here alive this day. You’re notion of an embassy is as laughable as it is shockingly naïve. What makes you think I’d allow it?” Tirek demanded, making a wagging gesture with one finger that started to glow with a small bead of dark orange spiritual energy, the beginnings of a Cero, and one the power of which made Sunset shiver a bit, and it wasn’t even all that heavily charged up yet. “Clock is ticking, girl. Get talking.”

It was time to lay it out and press hard. Showing fear or hesitation would only get her and her friends hurt or killed. Sunset stepped towards Tirek, showing no hint of worry over his display of power, “It’s not complicated, Tirek. We know the truth about the Zero Division.”

That did get him to pause, the bead of power remaining hovering at the tip of his blood red finger, but not growing any larger. “Do you now?”

“We know they’re the ones who constructed Hell, and we know they’ve set it up as a literal grinder for souls. We also know that they likely betrayed and took the power of the Soul Queen. Bottom line is that they’re the enemy. More than anything or anyone else, they’ve got to go down. You know this, otherwise you wouldn’t have tried to get the Soul Reapers and Quincy into an alliance with you multiple times in the past.”

That part she knew about only because of information gleaned from Twilight and Adagio, and while it was no trump card, it was an avenue to get Tirek listening, if only for a moment as she pressed forward. “They won’t listen, and who can blame them? You and Hollowkind have this nasty habit of eating souls.”

“It is our nature, and the true nature of all human souls, child,” Tirek said plainly, “Survival of the fittest. Competition to strive and conquer. Nothing could be more natural or correct. The Soul Reapers would drown the world of the living and the dead in stagnant laws. The Quincy are blinded by their hate. And Zero Division... yes, they are an enemy that must one day be destroyed, but only so that I and all Hollows may make of this world what it is meant to be. Why then do I need you children?”

“Because unlike the Soul Reapers and Quincy, we’re willing to look at Hollows as more than enemies. But let’s cut the crap, Tirek, I know words won’t convince you. We’re here to represent the Canterlot Spirit Coalition, and in a show of respect to the way of Hollows, the rule of might, we’ll take what we want by force. You can hardly object to that, can you?”

“They’re mad,” Guto said plainly, “They are clearly mad, Lord Tirek. Please, let me discipline them, and once I’m through, if I might take one of them for my own I will give the others to you as tribute.”

“Not a chance, Guto, if anyone has first right to these arrogant brats it’s me!” shouted Catrina, “At the very least the blue one is mine.”

“Need I remind all of you that it is Lord Tirek who rules here, and he who decides what fate befalls those who challenge him?”

And here she is, right on time, Sunset thought, hiding her smile as the new speaker appeared in a rushing wind of Sonido, her trident planting it’s hilt firmly on the ground as she placed a fist on her hip. Adagio Dazzle looked at Sunset for a moment, eyes showing a brief spark of admonishment along the lines of ‘What the hell have you gotten me into?’ before turning to look towards Tirek.

“Not knowing if this was an attack, I have gathered my forces, Lord Tirek,” she said, and as she did so there was a fresh set of multiple gusts of wind as a large host of Arrancar arrived and started filling up the space behind the lined Espada. Sunset recognized Di Roy, and the female Arrancar with him who sported such long and wild crimson hair, although Gaw had somehow grown much older in appearance than last Sunset had seen her. Dozens of other Arrancar gathered in a formation behind Adagio, led by a supple figured woman with lavender hair and a very unusual bunny skull mask atop her head. A trio of gruff looking fellows also seemed to be keeping the other Arrancar in line, shouting orders here and there. While the Arrancar serving Adagio all seemed on the weaker side in terms of reiatsu than what Sunset was used to, they all looked to Adagio with an obvious devotion that said they’d dive right into the fight at so much as a gesture from their Espada.

This was swiftly followed by a meteoric impact and kick up of dust as a man who was even taller and more hulking than Tirek arrived, blue skin packed over a frame of inhuman musculature that easily wielded a double bladed axe larger than two or three people standing end to end. This man was accompanied by Ember, and several score Arrancar warriors who, while lacking the devoted discipline of Adagio’s force, looked like a mass of violently ready raiders prepared to jump into combat at the drop of a hat. The giant of a man was intimidating, but Sunset had been told by Adagio that this was Torch, a nominal ally, and Sunset was at least a bit comforted by the sight of Applejack’s father, Hard Nail, appearing next to Torch’s crowd. Applejack only stiffened slightly, doing her best not to look directly towards her father, lest others take notice of the familiarity.

Hard Nail had only two with him, the quiet girl with the half skull mask that Sunset knew as Roka, and one other who... wait, was that?

She’d already been told about Fenice, of course, but it was still so very strange to lay eyes on someone who’s features matched her own so directly. Fenice appeared to have been told at least a little about Sunset, probably by Adagio, for the girl didn’t look at Sunset with surprise but rather intense curiosity that she hid by keeping a hood from the dark cloak she wore pulled up. This also likely prevented most others from realizing the similar appearance between them, although most eyes were focused on Sunset and her friends anyway.

Tirek, eyeing the newly arrived forces and the last of his Espada, held a fist up into the air. This quieted the growing murmurs and aggressive shouting from Torch’s horde, and got all eyes on him. “I commend your swift and thorough responses, Dazzle, Torch, Lament. As you can see, it is unnecessary. These children are not a threat to Las Noches, and I was merely contemplating the most enjoyable way to deal with them. Feel free to stay and watch, but I fear there’s little for you to do here.”

“That’s a shame!” Torch said, taking his axe and planting its head in the sands in front of him with a heavy impact, “I was looking forward to a fight, myself. These lasses seem pretty strong, too. Bet they’d actually give some of us Espada a workout, eh? No match for you, of course, Lord Tirek.”

“Indeed,” said Adagio, “And if I may be allowed to inquire, have these fools stated what insanity has driven them to come here, my lord?”

“Oh that’s the most amusing part,” Tirek said, flashing a menacing smirk, “They said they’re here to ‘take’ a piece of Las Noches to set up an ‘embassy’ of all things.”

Chrysalis was playing with the hilt of her Zanpaktou, her own gaze homing in on Adagio with a knowing glint, “Personally I just love the idea.”

This drew stares, but Chrysalis hardly seemed to mind as she went on, “What? My children could use new playmates, and it’s so rare fresh meat volunteers to set up shop nearby. It’d be like a convenience store, filled with grab and go treats.”

“For the record, once we establish the embassy it will be for the purpose of establishing peaceful diplomatic relations, and any attack on it will be dealt with swiftly and harshly,” Sunset stated in blunt words, “That being said, I know how Hollows operate, so anyone who wanders out of the embassy I can understand would be fair game. We came here to play by your rules, which is why I know we’re not doing this without a fight, but how about we make it an interesting one?”

“More interesting than simply annihilating all of you right here and now?” asked Tirek, and Sunset didn’t balk from his hard stare or his imposing ocean of reiatsu, which did more to impress Tirek than he was willing to let show.

“First off, you know we’ve affiliations with the Soul Reapers and Quincy, ties that grow stronger by the day. Even if you did manage to kill a couple of us, you don’t think that wouldn’t generate an immediate retaliatory strike? Second, even if you yourself are stronger than us, the same can’t be said for all of your Espada. We’ve enough power to unbalance the three way stalemate you’ve been stuck in... and we can unbalance it in more than one manner. Just as we could throw in with either the Quincy or Soul Society to overwhelm Las Noches, our presence here as potential peaceful emissaries in Hueco Mundo could act as a buffer against attacks. Again, I know you’ve tried to get the other factions to work with you in the past, and with us as mediators there’s a real possibility that could work this time around. A united front against the Zero Division.”

“Hmph, only if my idiot younger brother could be convinced to turn upon them, and if that pigheaded Quincy King could be made to set aside his personal grudge, neither of which I consider likely,” Tirek responded, but then he leaned forward, taking a step towards Sunset, “But I will admit your courage intrigues me, not to mention your willingness to gamble with your friends’ lives like this. Ambition is worthy of respect. But you’ve yet to demonstrate your might, Sunset Shimmer. Your blue friend is fast, but catching Catrina off guard is hardly proof of superiority.”

“Need proof? I can offer two proofs,” Sunset said plainly, and pointed up at the top of Las Noche’s wall above the gate, “One of which is right there.”

Tirek was not an easily startled individual, and truthfully he wasn’t entirely taken off guard at that moment either for he’d already suspected that these girls were hiding a hand of cards in reserve. He and all of his Espada turned to look up as three powerful reiatsu signatures geyser to life atop Las Noches. The fact that they’d gotten there without being detected until Sunset had signaled them was certainly a point in their favor, one that left Tirek smiling at the fact that perhaps these young ladies would be worthy adversaries after all.

“Greetings, Las Noches! I do hope you’ll forgive our late arrival but traffic was an absolute killer.”

Discord’s snaggle toothed smile was positively filled with sarcastic mirth, one hand leaning on his wooden cane while his other took off his green and white striped hat to offer a polite bow to the gathered Arrancar below. Next to him stood Ditzy Doo, wearing a tightly fit black and yellow jumpsuit that Sunset thought was rather reminiscent of something right out of a martial arts flick, and the busty blond wore it well.

“Sure are a lot of you all out trying to look intimidating towards our gals, while I’m pretty sure they could mop up the desert with at least half of you Espada, but hey that’d just leave plenty more for me and Discy! Oh, Discy and Gaia too. Got anything to say now that you’re back on your old stomping grounds?”

The words directed at Gaia Everfree hardly seemed to register to the now fused human/Arrancar, whose eyes were fixated in loathing hate directly towards one individual above all. Gaia didn’t answer Ditzy, instead leaping off of Las Noches’ roof. Discord and Ditzy shared shrugging looks and followed after her, all three of them landing in no time right behind Tirek and the gathered forces of his Espada.

Gaia rose from a crouch and reached to her side where a blade was sheathed. The sword was curved like a long sickle, mounted in a sheath of oak wood that was further wrapped by vines. The blade, as she drew it, made a loud ringing of steel as Gaia’s body was encased in deep green and purple reiatsu that poured out of her in a terrifying stormfront. She’d recovered a good portion of her strength, and most importantly, had formed a new Zanpaktou. Her eyes didn’t leave Chrysalis for a nanosecond.

“Chrysalis,” Gaia said with such venom that it was hard to imagine why the ground wasn’t melting from under her.

Chrysalis showed no fear, only elation, her own expression brimming with a smile that was entirely too pleased to be shown towards one who was directing that much hate towards her. “Gaia, so good to see you up and about. I was just thinking about you, too. I’ve made some new friends, ones I really want to introduce to you. But where are my manners, how have you been?”

“Thinking of your death sweetly for centuries, and looking forward to the day I can finally see it done. Perhaps that will be today?”

Chrysalis shivered in what could only be described as pleasured anticipation, “As beautifully intense as ever. No, moreso. You’ve grown even grander than you were when we first met. To play with you now would be the height of enjoyment, but don’t tease me with what you don’t plan to deliver. I can tell that you’re here with these girls to just put up a nice big show. Unless, Tirek, me and Gaia could-”

“No,” he said, and chrysalis frowned, losing her amusement.

“No?” she repeated, in mirror of their earlier talk, and not liking being on the other end of it.

“No,” he repeated, turning his head to regard Discord, Ditzy, and Gaia without turning away fully from Sunset and her friends, “I’m surprised. You don’t leave your hermit shop very often, Captain Discord, of the Twelfth Division.”

“Please, that title stopped mattering ages ago,” Discord replied with a dismissive hand wave, placing his hat back on his head, “The title that matters more now, if you’re into that kind of thing, is High Marshal Discord of the Canterlot Spirit Coalition.”

It’d been a hard brainstorming session between Sunset, her friends, and those who’d be making up their new faction to work out a basic structure for it and some terminology to make it feel “official”. To keep it simple, and to fit in with the Coalition’s purpose as a neutral defense force to protect the world as a whole, ‘Marshal’ was the core term they went with. The High Marshal was whoever the leader was, Discord at the moment. Field Marshals like Sunset and her friends was the term reserved for skilled frontline agents who could hold their own against other faction elites. Deputy Marshal would be used to describe those still learning the ropes and not ready to fly solo, like Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. That was about it, but Sunset preferred to keep things straightforward, especially considering the Coalition was meant to be a fairly loosely organized group.

“This is a waste of our time,” Grogar stated, “These children have no interest in allowing Hollows to obtain our rightful supremacy over the realm of the living and spirits alike. Any offered prospects of ‘peace’ would be no more than strangulation of our kind in disguise. We would stagnate without the continued state of warfare producing evolutionary stimuli, and I guarantee you that the only interest they have is buying themselves time to grow stronger so they might defeat us, as in vain as that hope is.”

“I agree with him,” Guto called out, drawing his Zanpaktou, “We’ve no need of these weaklings as allies. Better to grind them under heel now, and those that can be broken and trained properly be made use of.”

“Do not be so narrow minded,” Adagio cut in, but then put on a bladed smile as she pointed to Guto, “Of course if you wish to test their ability yourself, Guto, I won’t object to the show.”

“I could say the same of you, Dazzle,” Guto shot back, “You seem all too eager to ally with them. Perhaps it is you who should be made to test their strength?”

“Are we drawing straws for this?” asked Hydia, “Because I wouldn’t mind getting into it with the pretty one. What was your name, dearie?”

“Rarity.”

“Oho, a pretty name to match the face. What do you say then, you’ve already got your Soul Chain exposed. Let me finish the job and give you a real Hollow makeover.”

“Thank you for the offer but I must decline,” Rarity replied, and to add a bit of extra emphasis, she raised her left hand and snapped her fingers, summoning forth her full gate, which appeared in all its radiant ruby glory. “But if it is a test of strength that is sought, rest assured we can provide an ample demonstration. I’ve defeated a Soul Reaper Captain, I’ve defeated a Sternritter, so all I have left is to defeat an Espada to fill out my resume.”

Her words did get a few appreciative looks and calls from among the gathered Arrancar rank and file, and even some of the Espada, especially Torch, looked at Rarity with a fresh look of respect. However there was a sudden and hammering burst of reiatsu from Tirek that silenced any further conversation. He looked hard at Discord, Ditzy, and Gaia, even stepping a little between Gaia and Chrysalis to make the former look at him instead.

“You’ve made it clear you are serious about this Coalition nonsense,” Tirek said simply, “Perhaps you even believe it will work against the Zero Division. You were the only one Glory ever looked at with any respect outside of her own circle, Discord, and you rejected her outright. That, if nothing else, was something I was able to respect about you. Also that you were smart enough to know your place and stay out of the war. I don’t know what it is about this children that has changed you so much that you’ve decided to step out of the shadows and throw your lot in with them, but you do realize that were we to fight seriously against one another, even you couldn’t defeat me?”

“I think...” Discord said, his smirk never leaving his face as he stared at Tirek dead on, “That is entirely debatable. Too debatable for you to want to turn this into a no-holds barred free for all. So instead why don’t you consider Field Marshal Shimmer’s reasonable proposal for a... challenge?”

Raising a thick white eyebrow, Tirek looked back at Sunset, who answered by raising her sword towards him and making a circular gesture with it to indicate a ring-like space around her and him, “My second proof of might, the simplest kind there is. Instead of an out and out battle, let me prove the strength of the Coalition myself. You and me, one on one.”

“She’s clearly insane,” Guto breathed, “Does she think she can take Tirek of all people alone? If it was with all of her allies together, I could see the logic hidden in the madness, but-”

“HAH! I say let her do it!” Torch roared in mirthful appreciation, “It is not the first time one has sought to challenge our Lord Tirek for the honor of a position in Las Noches. If the girl is so eager, then even if she is not a Hollow in body, she is certainly one in heart! I’d rather she challenged me, but with one like Tirek in front of her what red blooded warrior wouldn’t want a shot at the top?”

“Indeed and well said, Torch,” spoke Adagio in a loud voice to carry across all the gathered Arrancar warriors, “Is it not the way of the Hollow to obtain what one desires through force of might and open challenge!? If these Coalition wants to take a place as even potential allies, then this is the way to do so. Let Sunset Shimmer show her strength to Lord Tirek, then he alone decides if she is found worthy, or wanting.”

There were rousing cheers of agreement from many of those gathered, although most of the Espada remained silent, some seething like Catrina, or watching on ominously such as Grogar. Chrysalis, for her part, stepped a bit closer to Tirek and placed a slim onyx hand upon his arm. Her whisper was so low only he could hear her.

“She carries the magic of Equestria inside of her. Even if she survives this little challenge, you’ll get a clear taste of what awaits when we assault that realm. And I can smell how eager you are for a fight. Just don’t crush her outright.”

“And why not?” he whispered back, to which she smiled up at him.

“Because she’s going to get stronger still, and I know you. You only like destroying someone when they’re at their highest potential. Anything less than that leaves you unsatisfied. So go, get a taste of her power, and leave her fearful of what’s to come.”

“Hmph... conniving woman. You just want me to leave some for you later, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Chrysalis replied with no shame, and Tirek just snorted a laugh and bent out of his whispered conversation with her before returning his full attention to Sunset Shimmer.

“So be it, child. We shall see if this is courage or stupidity. Since defeating me is an impossibility, we will simply have to see if you can survive long enough to impress me. Do so and I’ll consider your interest in an embassy, Field Marshal of the ‘Coalition’.”

“Let’s make it interesting then,” said Sunset, “A nice clear ‘win’ condition that you can agree to. How about we go until either you’ve rendered me unable to fight, or if I manage to make you draw your sword?”

“Oh? Just use my hands, is it?” Tirek asked, and he had to admit he liked Sunset’s own challenging half smile.

“Unless you think you need your sword against me?”

“Heheh... well said indeed. No, I don’t think I will need my sword for this. Very well! Sunset Shimmer, come at me with all of your power! With my bare hands alone will I break you and show you the unrivaled power of I, Tirek, Priemera Espada, and King of all Hollows! If, by some miracle, you can make me draw my Zanpaktou against you, I’ll acknowledge your strength as worthy of my respect!”

With that statement he squared off against her, and wisely the Arrancar, Espada and regular warriors alike, began to rapidly back off to give the pair space. Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie did likewise, leaping up and away to give Sunset room. They had all known that this was part of the plan, although there’d been some argument over whether it was a good idea for Sunset to do this alone. None of them had any delusions that they had the power to defeat someone as obscenely potent as Tirek right now. However, Sunset had convinced them to agree to this because the simple fact was that she had no intention of actually beating Tirek. Yes, she wanted to make a show of strength to him and the other Espada, which was part of the point of this, but to accomplish her secret objective it would be far easier if she was fighting him alone instead of the more chaotic prospect of all of her friends being in the fight.

Alone, she could control the flow of the fight to a degree, get positioned where she needed to be, and make it look... coincidental for when she made her move. If Tirek had other targets to go after, that’d make things far more difficult, if not outright impossible. So she had to do this one solo, much as the prospect was quite intimidating. Having stood there long enough in his presence she knew by now that she wasn’t a one-on-one match for Tirek, at least not if he fought seriously. Fortunately she thought she’d had him gauged right in terms of pride. It’d be too humiliating to have to go all out on an opponent like her, which is why she’d goaded him into accepting a challenge with a handicap. It made it so if he did go full force on her, it’d be acknowledging she was strong enough to warrant that reaction, which would be a blow to his pride.

Of course she intended to wound his pride regardless, but that was one of the reasons Discord, Ditzy, and Gaia were here. She expected things might still go poorly, and having the Coalition’s strongest muscle present was a layer of insurance, with one more layer on standby in the form of additional allies waiting in the wings, just in case. Twilight Sparkle and Sweet Cider, both hidden in the artificial Garganta space that Discord had created with his gate. If things really went poorly here, they’d be signaled and come out, Twilight leading her team from Crystal Prep, and Sweet Cider with a few handpicked men from the Tenth Division, to help extract everyone from the fight.

Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that, but Sunset was glad enough to know the backup was there in case it was needed. She’d done her best to cover every angle with this plan.

All that was left now was to see it through, and go toe to toe with the most powerful Hollow alive.

No problem.

Episode 173: Sunset's Gambit

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Episode 173: Sunset’s Gambit

Excited murmurs rose in tandem with an increased sharpness of hunger to the reiatsu of many of the onlooking Arrancar. Fearful as many inherently were of being anywhere near their ruler when he was about to do battle, it was impossible for any true blooded Hollow to not feel their spirits quicken with heated fascination when such violence was on the table.

Even Adagio, who wasn’t at all fond of this element of her own Hollow nature, couldn’t deny that her pulse quickened a bit, even as she was horribly worried about the outcome of this supposed “challenge”. She had an inkling of Sunset’s intentions, and could also admire the pure ambitious courage of it, but to her thinking this was still an extremely risky plan. Even with the likes of Discord present, Adagio was not at all certain he, that cattish woman Ditzy, and the somewhat unusual Gaia Everfree consisted of a force strong enough to actually defeat Tirek or the other high ranked Espada, if things turned sour.

Indeed if things did go poorly for Sunset and company here, Adagio had to make a choice herself on what would take priority, aiding in Sunset’s crazed gambit, or preserving herself and her own vassals. Before she could get very far in considering that dire question, however, Discord clapped his hands, the sound ringing louder and clearer than it normally should have. It drew attention to the elderly man in the clogs and hat, who smiled with shaded eyes as he spoke in an equally loud and unnaturally clear voice to all present.

“I suggest we give our two combatants more space for this event! Unless of course some of you fancy being roasted alive by flame or pulverized by stray Ceros. Perhaps the top of this fine fortress' wall will make a decent viewing space for our collective peanut gallery?”

Tirek, not taking his eyes off of Sunset, merely waved a hand back at his hordes of followers, his voice booming out, “Do as you will! Whoever lives or dies by merely being a spectator is of no concern of mine. I suggest moving quickly, either way.” He cracked his knuckles and reiatsu began to stem from him in such a thick spectacle that his body appeared to be burning the air around him, and weaker Arrancar in the gathered forces nearby began to choke from simple proximity to it, “Myself and this young lady aren’t going to wait, are we?”

Adagio certainly took the hint and threw a hand back at her gathered vassals, “Up on the roof, now! All of you! Gaw, Di Roy, with me!”

Torch followed suit, slapping his axe over his shoulder and taking to the air, “Alright boys and girls, you all heard the Primera! Either get your butts on the roof to watch, or stick around and risk becoming a smear on the ground!”

In a near hurricane wind, dozens of Arrancar quickly moved, or in some cases “fled” might have been the more accurate term, to head up towards the exceedingly tall top of Las Noches’ walls. The swift exodus was joined by the other Espada, first Guto, who gave the whole proceeding a displeased sneer before tugging on Fluer De Lis’ chain and forced the Quincy to follow him and his small entourage of warriors to leap up the wall. Grogar had narrowed his gaze towards Discord in particular, to which Discord simply waggled an eyebrow at the presently Ninth Espada. A soft growl built in Grogar’s throat, and next to him Hydia jabbed a fat thumb towards the wall.

“Best not to stick around, my Grogumgoat. C’mon, before the best seats are taken.”

“Hm, positioning is meaningless for myself. I shall be observing this battle closely, regardless of where I stand, but I take your meaning. Lord Tirek tends towards excess, even when he ‘plays’.”

One by one the roof area of Las Noches began to fill up with the spectators. Hard Nail went with Roka and Fenice, staying close to Adagio’s group, and once up there, Fenice whispered to them, “So that’s her?”

“Yes,” Hard Nail spoke softly back, a brief glance of fatherly concern crossing his pale face as he looked to her, “Does it bother you?”

Fenice folded her arms over her chest, her heavy robes making the motion a tad clunky. She kept her face hidden as she stared back down at the ground where Sunset and her friends stood, “A little. Mostly just ticked she seems so much stronger than me. Makes me feel like I’ve been slacking off.”

“Nonsense,” Roka said, “You’re you, she’s her. There’s no reason to make comparisons.”

“Heh, only you’d see an identical counterpart and think there’s no reason to compare, sis. Huh, makes me wonder what you’re like on the other side? I can’t... see you as a pony,” Fenice said, then shook her head and went silent as she continued to watch.

Discord had turned to Ditzy and Gaia, tilting his head upwards, “Let’s go ladies. I’m sure Sunset has this well in hand, but keep a keen eye out, just in case.”

“Oh I’m sure nobody here would be dumb enough to interfere, right?” Ditzy said, glancing at Gaia. Gaia’s eyes had never ceased to burn a hole towards Chrysalis, and she only blinked when Ditzy elbowed her.

“I’ve no intention of doing anything, unless they do first,” Gaia stated, then at Chrysalis she gave the most deathly of smiles, “That’s an invitation to interfere, by the way. Give me an excuse, Chrysalis. Just one small excuse.”

Gaia tensed as Chrysalis began to stroll up to her, the curved, sickle-like Zanpaktou in her grip nearly shaking from how hard Gaia gripped it. Chrysalis got within a single pace of Gaia and... then moved past her, pausing just briefly on Gaia’s other side.

“Patience, my dear friend. We’ve only just been reunited, and it’d be boring to rush through things. Let us talk, share stories, and watch the blood flow. Tirek puts on a fine show, and I can tell he’s in a good mood. And I’ve such things to tell you of, a story of a crystal princess whose lovely empire hosted such a fine party for me. You’ll love her so, when you meet her, so come, let me tell you all about it while we enjoy the fireworks.”

Gaia’s lips nearly bled from how hard she ground her jaw, eyes filled with seething murder, but she controlled herself, mostly at Discord’s encouraging nod. Sheathing her Zanpaktou with visible effort, Gaia spat, “Speak all you want, but I’ve no interest in your games.”

To this, Chrysalis just giggled and shouted to Tirek, “Have fun with your playmate, Triek. Me and Gaia are going to have a girl talk now.”

“Fine, woman. Just leave me be.”

With that, most of the space was clear, save for Sunset’s friends, and Catrina, but the Third Espada didn’t stay for more than a second longer. Just long enough to give Rainbow Dash a final, dismissive snort, before vanishing with a blast of such speed that it left a blurring afterimage of Catrina behind that was making several rude gestures at Rainbow before it vanished. Rainbow Dash, for her part, just laughed under her breath, “I think she was trying to show off.”

“Must’ve really nettled her somethin’ fierce with that ‘slowpoke’ comment,” Applejack grinned, “Think ya got yerself a rival, there.”

“Oh c’mon, we both know the only one around here who can pull that off is you, AJ,” Rainbow Dash said, then gave the space Catrina had occupied a considering look, “Although I guess that chick might work as a backup rival or something.”

“Okay gals, everyone else has cleared out,” Sunset said, “Time for you all to do the same.”

“Of course, darling. Just do be... careful,” Rarity said, side-eyeing Tirek.

“If things get intense, just remember our exit plan,” Fluttershy whispered, “I can heal a lot of different injuries now, but even I can’t replace anything important you lose. Like, um, limbs.”

“Relax, girls, we went over this. I mostly know what I’m doing,” Sunset reassured them, adding a silent I hope to the end of that sentence. Her friends didn’t look any less worried, but they did go, joining the others atop Las Noches’ wall. This left Tirek and Sunset alone, with the horde of lesser Hollows now having withdrawn to an even greater distance as they instinctively sensed the battle to come.

On an unspoken agreement the pair approached each other, Tirek and Sunset matching steps until they were facing each other from a mere meter away. Up close it was almost ridiculous how much taller he was than her, forcing Sunset to crane her neck to look up at his mountainous red expanse. She couldn’t stop herself from giving a small whistle of appreciation, “You’re all abs, aren’t you?”

His grin at her wasn’t particularly friendly, but it was at the very least pleasantly amused, “Form may not matter for those with power such as you and I, but I’ve always viewed my body as a temple worthy of upkeep. I want even the most dim witted of foes to understand my strength at a glance, before they feel it firsthand.”

“Intimidation factor, I get it. Hey, can’t say I blame you. I like keeping fit, even if I can probably bench press a city block by now. Exercise gives me focus, and it feels good to get sweaty.”

“Ah, a pity you likely won’t live long enough for me to show you my personal gym. Working out is quite meditative, I agree. But we’re not here for small talk,” Tirek’s grinning expression didn’t physically change, but a distinct tonal shift altered it into something vastly more menacing as his reiatsu fell upon her like a moon’s worth of hammers, “You’ve challenged me. I’ll grant you the small kindness of allowing you the first move. And I suggest making use of your Bankai, young lady. You attack me with that twiggy little Shikai, and I’ll have your heart, bleeding and pumping in my hand, before you can finish your first strike.”

Sunset knew, by the inflection of murderous intent in his tone, and the cloying scent of death in his reiatsu, that Tirek was not joking. If she attacked him with anything less than her full power, he’d kill her outright. This wasn’t going to be a playful sparring session, nor a battle where holding back and using Shikai made any tactical sense. That was more for situations where an opponent was either weaker, and hence it was useful to conserve power, or an opponent who was on a similar level and hence not showing all of ones cards right off the bat had a tactical advantage.

No, she was the weaker one, facing a vastly stronger foe. To do anything other than make use of her Bankai was just insulting, and the last thing Tirek seemed like a man to tolerate was being insulted. Not that she particularly cared about how he felt, but there was a stark difference between pride and stupidity, and Sunset Shimmer might have been prideful but she wasn’t an idiot.

She matched his oppressive stare with an eager smile, “That goes without saying.”

It started with a dull rumble, like a storm sighing on the horizon. It built within her then, trembling from within her soul and reciprocated by the blade and shield in her hands, both of which became rimed in a gleam of solid orange flame. The sands of Hueco Mundo steamed and began to melt from the heat washing off of Sunset’s body, her reiatsu forming a growing ripple of power that scorched the air as more and more pressure built within.

Upon the peak of Las Noches’ walls, the Espada that had yet to feel Sunset Shimmer’s reiatsu first hand before now all showed signs of surprise. Gilda wasn’t, the youngest of the Espada plopped down on the edge of the wall with a shaking expression of half shame and half understanding.

“This is ridiculous,” said Guto from not far away, his eyes twitching, “That girl hasn’t had her makeshift Soul Reaper powers for more than a few months! How is she emitting that much power!?”

Gilda flinched at his words, eyes shifting towards him briefly, and the Quincy glaring and kneeling beside him. Fleur and Gilda’s eyes met for a moment, and Gilda quickly looked away. As if emboldened, Fluer smirked behind falls of her long hair and whispered, “Hah, so the girl really is something unique? It seems everyone who crosses her ends up in an ignoble state. Somehow I feel just a bit less frustrated that I never got to finish my fight with her.”

Her smile was cut off by a grimace as Guto pulled on the chain around her neck, his own sweat beaded brow furrowing in anger, “Silence. You are not to talk unless spoken too. We have been over this lesson. Do not make me repeat it.”

“Hey, she was saying something that might be important,” Gilda said, blinking in brief shock that she’d just talked back to Guto. He, in turn, looked at her with mild surprise, slackening his grip on Fluer.

“What did you just say, Tenth Espada?”

“Urk...just that...seems like your pet Quincy fought that Sunset Shimmer, once. Might, you know, ask her about how that went. For intel, or something...” Gilda muttered, looking way, unable to look Guto in his eye as he held her with that pitiless stare that was always filled with judgment.

“Hmph, I don’t need to do such a thing. That girl is about to die. It doesn’t matter how much power she’s accrued. It can’t possibly match what our Lord Tirek is capable of.”

“You’re a very loud and rude man.”

“What was that!?” Guto spouted in anger, glaring towards the speaker, and tilting his head as he saw it was Fluttershy. The young lady had left her group of friends to come over and stand near Gilda, although for the moment Flutershy’s eyes were locked solely on Guto. The presently Seventh Espada felt his brow twitch as Fluttershy’s still gaze, like some call pool of serene water, bored into him.

“I said that you’re a loud, rude, boorish, and very unpleasant man. You have a lot of work to do on yourself, and if I’m being honest, I don’t even know if all the kindness I could possibly bestow would be enough to turn you from a self destructive path. That being said, be glad you didn’t choose to take up the offer to fight Sunset yourself. She’s not as nice as I am.”

“Why you conceited little-” Guto started to say, but halted as Sunset’s reiatsu reached a sudden, feverish peak, and all eyes, even his, had to be drawn back down below.

Tirek was now grinning from ear to ear, enjoying the feeling of the power Sunset was putting out, and would have instantly killed anyone foolish enough to try and interrupt the girl as she brought her full power to bear. He wanted to feel all of it, and felt a spark of genuine elation as she held her broadsword aloft and spoke a word all too familiar to him, heard many a time across many battlefields over the centuries.

“Bankai.”

In a second it was as if all the air in a vast radius around her was sucked inward instantaneously and then unleashed in an explosive eruption of raw fire that swept out in a solid cyclone of unrelenting flame that flew up into the sky. Las Noches was plastered with heat, bathed in ruby and orange light, and the darkness of Hueco Mundo was pierced skyward by the pillar of hellish flame that rose several hundred meters, eclipsing even the fortress’ colossal walls.

For the common Arrancar warriors, countless jaws hung open. For many of them they had rarely faced the likes of a Soul Reaper Captain directly, and the ones that had been on such battlefields knew instantly that the reiatsu that seared at their souls now was not only that of a Captain’s level, but of a particularly strong one. What overconfidence some of them may have had, melted instantly at the sight of Sunset Shimmer’s Bankai.

Among the Espada, reactions varied.

“Damn, Adagio, you didn’t tell me she was quite this good,” Torch mused quietly, and by his side Ember could only nod and glance at Adagio without holding back her astonishment.

“Is this really what magic does for someone? Now you getting so powerful so fast makes way more sense. This is insane.”

Adagio wished she could smile with any pride over this, but the fact remained that strong as Sunset was, there was no guarantee at all that it’d be enough. She maintained a guarded look on her face, trident planted firmly next to her as she raised her other hand in a half shrug, “She’s impressive, I don’t deny, but she’s still up against Tirek. It’s still a dice toss as to whether or not she’s brilliant, or a complete moron.”

On the opposite side of the crowd, Grogar was nearly drooling, but controlled himself with some measure of composure. Now, more than ever, he was convinced that magic was the key to furthering Hollow evolution beyond all known limits. If he could just get his hands on one of these girls, he could pull their souls apart at the seams to improve his knowledge and apply it to his grand experiments. The baubles he’d built from Adagio’s siren gem would pale in comparison to what he could make with just a little more genuine magic to research. Then again, Chrysalis had brought something most potent and intriguing form Equestria, so perhaps soon he’d get what he desired, regardless. And as for Adagio, he was impressed with her progress, but ultimately she no longer had much value as a subject of study. Her willful obsession with vengeance upon him was also losing its amusement after she’d stolen his Seed.

Yes, soon enough he’d need to deal with her, but for now, Grogar had such a spectacle to watch! He was glad he had so many observation drones hidden about, even if most of them were already shorting out due to the overwhelming reiatsu being put out by both Sunset and Tirek.

So focused was he on watching the confrontation between Substitute Soul Reaper and Primera Espada, he did not notice the sneaky pink form behind him, wiggling like a caterpillar of stealth to reach out towards his shoes. Shoes that, up until a short moment ago, did not have shoe laces, but now coincidentally did as Pinkie Pie tied them together and slinked away without Grogar, or anyone else for that matter, taking notice.

“Yikes, that’s one hot tamale. Your friend might not be half bad, even if she is about to get her pretty face pummeled into something more my style,” Hydia said, guffawing a bit at her own joke as she spoke to Rarity, “But don’t worry, even after Tirek’s done with her, I might take what’s left and shape halfway nice Fraccion out of it. Open offer to any of you girls.”

“Mmm, I don’t think white is really any of our color, Miss Hydia, and as for Sunset... well I do think she looks best in either black, or red.” Rarity’s response was well timed, for it was just as the flames of Sunset’s transformation died down enough that it was possible to see her and Tirek.

Sand was burned black or melted into glass for a large field of burning embers around either of them. Tirek remained unscathed, but he did look appreciatively upon the glowing figure before him. “Now that is not a shabby Bankai at all. It matches that tantalizing reiatsu of yours. But how well can you use it, I wonder?”

Sunset Shimmer was completely encased in her segmented, ornate armor of red and gold trim. From her back the wings of fire spread in intense sheets of raw power. In her right hand Hokori ignited with utter flaming heat around the shining flamberge blade, and in Sunset’s left hand Hikari’s golden form of a phoenix shield radiated gold flaming luminous energy from end to end. The band of gold metal around Sunset’s brow with its ring right in the center sparked with an odd bit of energy, as if something was trying to take shape there but hadn’t quite formed completely yet. Sunset wasn’t actually sure what that was about, but she felt stronger than ever and was glad to feel that with her Bankai active, Tirek’s own reiatsu didn’t feel quite as overwhelmingly oppressive.

Granted it was still damned overbearing, but she felt less like she was drowning in the ocean and more like she was treading water atop it now.

With no more need for further build up, she just winked at Tirek and said, “Let me show you.”

There was zero subtly in her first move. Her wings jetted with roars of sonic force, and her forward motion involved a Flash Step that was in no way meant to evade, but only add speed shattering momentum to her attack. It was her shield, Hikari, that rose like a blinding star, it’s blunt top edge erupting into Tirek’s chin with such velocity and impact that a concussive quake of force sent the sands behind the Primera Espada rippling like uncontrolled waves in the ocean. The shield uppercut knocked Tirek upward, laws of mass applying regardless of damage inflicted or not, and Sunset followed him up within the same microsecond of time before he even rose half a dozen yards. Hokori’s edge sung with heat that blistered the air as Sunset swung the flamberge up and brought it down in the same motion, striking Tirek straight on the chest and upon impact allowing a scalding cascade of fire so solid it almost appeared to be a liquid wave.

This fire turned sand to glass instantly and rose right to the wall of Las Noches, tearing into the stone recklessly and searing up it’s length. Arrancar scattered, scrambling to get out of the path of flames so intense that stone was running like muddy water down a near twenty meter wide expanse of wall from top to bottom.

Chrysalis was rather near the flames, but didn’t move, staring down with a feral smile plastered on her black lips as she watched the fight. The flames passed within inches of her, some of her clothing and skin steaming from the heat proximity, but she didn’t move away from the fire. If anything the burns only seemed to make her smile deepen.

“Oho... Starlight Glimmer, I had thought you’d placed too much trust in these little morsels, but perhaps I’ve misjudged where the main course of the feast to come truly is?”

Chrysalis’ words were lost amid the roar of fire and exclamations from the more easily shaken Arrancar in the crowd.

However Sunset had her attention only on the fight, and reacted immediately to roll back with a high speed Flash Step and shove Hikari into a protective position just in time to defend herself. The flames of her attack parted like so much dust around a headwind, and Tirek’s fist slammed out of the wall of fire with the weighted judgment of an uncompromising force of nature. His red skin looked barely scathed by Sunset’s attack, and she didn’t even have time to register his own flashing eyes that bore a thrill of amusement alongside his tooth filled grin of excitement.

She could only feel the indescribable force of impact on her shield that drove all air from her lungs and nearly bent her bones and muscles to the breaking point. She shot across the sands, her senses reeling to catch up with the sense of distance the blow knocked her across. Her left arm was near numb and it took all she had to slam Hokori into the ground and start dragging herself to a halt. As this happened, she shoved reiatsu through her sword and into the ground, not doubting for an instant that Tirek would be coming right after her.

Sunset managed to stop herself, seeing that she’d been thrown across nearly a mile span, and Tirek strolled towards her, apparently looking to take his time. Fine by her, she activated the power of the Midorihi Hashira, the explosive, mine-like energy of the technique lighting up the sand she had dragged her Zanpaktou through.

Tirek walked along as the ground beneath him exploded in multiple pillars of swirling emerald flame... and just kept right on walking, each explosion seeming to just lick uselessly against his skin as he began to laugh with a shine of violence laced through it. “Your flames have a bit of bite to them, but I trust this isn’t all you have? Come on now! Make this worth my attention!”

His Sonido put anything she’d seen before firmly in the dust. If she hadn’t been expecting it and hadn’t already been in motion herself, his punishing downward swing as he appeared instantly in front of her may well have pulverized her into the ground. As it was the first of the Primera Espada struck and before his fist could even contact the ground, the simple air pressure of the punch was creating a cratering explosion of sand that tore apart the ground around him in a tornado of swirling sand. Sunset felt her ears nearly pop from the twisting air pressures of that punch alone, but didn’t lose her focus, sensing his reiatsu clearly amid the cyclone of sand.

She burst through it, wings blazing hot, her speed creating dozens of after images as she tried to strike at him from both behind and in front simultaneously. In a show of equal speed and force Tirek bent one arm down and caught her blade between a knee and elbow, while his fist caught the sword of her after image, which shimmered out as the impact of his and her own combined motions blew apart the sand tornado in a sphere of force that blasted out with such strength that it sent cracks running up and down the length of Las Noches’ wall and shook the ground for dozens of miles around.

Undeterred by her blade being caught, Sunset roared her own inflamed defiance and twisted her body up and around, wings adding rocketing force to her motions as she kicked Tirek in the side of the head, then flipped around and brought the pointed tip of Hikari’s shield right down on top of the joint of his elbow.

It felt like hitting a steel wall, only she knew damn well she could tear through steel with ease. Tirek’s Hierro possessed a hardness that dwarfed any physical alloy Sunset knew of, and probably most magical alloys she knew from back in Equestria. Tirek smirked at her and his free fist was brought around in a whirlwind swing. She had no choice but to let go of Hokori in order to dodge out of the way, her boosted Flash Step sending her flying back just in time to avoid a blow that would have hit her in the side and likely smashed all of her ribs at once.

Even missing, Tirek’s fist created a rippling shockwave that blew apart a wide rift in the sands of Hueco Mundo, leaving a five foot deep ravine for an uncounted length. Not missing a beat, Sunset planted herself on the ground and used her now free right hand to make a gesture and swiftly chanted, fast as Clover had ever managed to teach her.

”Hado Number Fifty Four; Haien!” (Abolishing Flames)

From her palm a thick and concentrated bullet of purple fire shot out, and Tirek watched it come with a slight raise of his eyebrow, for surely Sunset couldn’t possibly think such a mid-range Kido would have an effect on him? Yet it wasn’t him she’d been aiming at, but her Zanpaktou, still caught between Tirek’s knee and elbow. The purple flame of the Haien spell reached Hokori, and in the same instant the Zanpaktou, sensing Sunset’s intent, burst with its own field of hot orange flame. The Kido spell, a fire-type in nature, and made of Sunset’s spirit energy, harmonized with Hokori’s own flames and in an split second the entire aura of fire around Hokori became intense purple as the blade absorbed the Kido spell and added it’s incinerating force to its own power.

At the same time, Sunset hadn’t stayed still, having followed her Kido spell with a Flash Step that let her grasp Hokori’s hilt the moment the spell had been absorbed into her blade.

”Aoihi Senko!”

She cut as hard as she could with both hands while blue fire merged with purple flame, and a swirling multi-colored firestorm blasted out upon Tirek at point blank range. She felt his grip on her sword weaken just enough for her to slip it free and she flew back as the pillar of her purple and blue fire expanded into a melting sphere of heat so intense that it was melting a crater on the spot.

For just a second she looked at where she was. She did her best to memorize her position, and looked for the cluster of dead trees that Adagio had told her about some time ago.

There they are!

She gauged the trees were about two hundred yards to her left and a little further away from the wall. Which meant her target would be...

Reiatsu battered her senses as Tirek’s might pulsed and the dance of her flames burst like a bubble. The fires died out around him and Tirek strode on empty air as he exited the melting crater of running sand. His body was smoking slightly, and Sunset took some tiny measure of pride in seeing his skin was a tad redder now, although it was starting to truly dawn on her just how tough a foe Tirek really was.

“I think I felt a little pain on that one. You’ve a beautifully destructive Zanpaktou, little missy,” Tirek said, cracking his knuckles and neck, “But I think I’ve let you get in your fair number of shots. I’d say it’s time for me to show you a taste of what you’ve chosen to face. Not just my destructive power, but the power of the peak. The peak she and the rest of Zero Division represent! Let’s find out if your pride is genuine, or simply fueled by ignorance.”

He raised his right hand and extended his index finger. A flicker of orange and black power sparked into existence there at his finger’s tip, and yet despite the tiny dot of energy’s size, Sunset immediately felt the crushing grip of the building reiatsu there, feeling as if she was trying to stare directly into the sun.

“Oh shi-” she said partway and immediately threw all of her power into an evasive Flash Step, her wings burning bright with jets of thrusting force that cracked the sound barrier instantly as she flew up.

Tirek simply crooked his finger forward, and that small dot of churning orange and black reiatsu abruptly flashed into a tidal wave of fury; a Cero so large that it dwarfed even Las Noches’ gates. The color of a black and orange sunspot, the consuming Cero rushed across the landscape and morphed it through its space warping presence. Tirek swept the beam up and to the right, following Sunset’s evasive motions. She was zipping in and out of view, adjusting her Flash Step to try to throw him off, but the Cero beam was so wide it hardly seemed to matter.

In a last ditch effort, she turned and propelled herself straight upward, but facing backwards as she held Hikari in front of her and braced herself behind the shield. The humongous Cero wave crashed below her, the edge of it grazing her shield. The proximity of the beam sent pain coursing through her as arcs of energy that sparked around the beams edge snapped around Sunset’s body. She choked back a scream and kept her shield firmly in front of her, feeling the strain as Hikari struggled to push back the force of even the near miss of the Cero.

The beam roared onwards, cracking parts of Las Noches’ walls from the fact that it passed by along the wall’s length with only a few dozen meters to spare.

“Tirek, do recall we need an actual fortress left after this, will you?” Chrysalis called down, “Remodeling is a boring pain to deal with!”

Tirek grunted, “Whatever. Nagging woman.”

But he did cut the Cero beam off, leaving dust and debris scattering down for miles around. His eyes scanned the black sky, seeking where Sunset had gone. He knew he hadn’t actually hit her. He smiled as he sensed her reiatsu behind him, and in a blur of motion spun around to meet her charge. He was a tad disappointed to see her blade striking at him in a wild fashion, leaving herself wide open. Irritated, he struck hard with his fist right into her chest, feeling her armor crack, flesh rip beneath, and-

White flame exploded as the clone of fire detonated right on top of him.

He had to admit her fire was impressively hot. Enough that he could actually feel a bit of a sting from it. He was also starting to admire that this girl wasn’t an idiot. She was making use of every single advantage and opening she could take against him. When he’d turned to strike this clone of flame, she’d come flying down right out of the sky above him and he looked up just in time to take a face full of shield.

The blow didn’t hurt, but the force was impressive enough to knock him back a step, and his eyes sparkled with entertained fury as he saw her now pull back and thrust her flamberge forward at his throat with enough force to create a cone of force around the thrust.

He was fast enough to swing up his arm and deflect it, but was momentarily surprised that he felt a bit of a tiny sting from the blade’s edge.

Are her strikes getting hotter? He wondered, looking at her more carefully as Sunset Shimmer pressed the attack upon him. Her sword and shield worked in concert with each other, a lower jab with the shield’s phoenix-head point followed by a blazing backswing from the sword. Each time Tirek slapped the attacks aside with her bare hands, but on she came, striking faster, her wings burning hotter as they jetted her left and right as she began to attack so fast that he was essentially parrying blows from around eight to ten Sunset Shimmer’s at once.

All the time Tirek relaxed into the rhythm of it, enjoying himself as he carefully read Sunset’s reiatsu. He didn’t notice the destruction around him as her blows, even deflected by his fists, were wreaking the desert. Jets of flame burned entire sections of wall or melted sand dunes as Sunset’s relentless storm of blows smashed towards him. Of course she probably didn’t realize how little damage she was inflicting, but the fact that she was making any small scratches at all was surprising to Tirek. Surprising, and exciting. This had simply started as a diversion to teach a nuisance a lesson, but was starting to gain his real interest.

And by now he could tell her blows were getting stronger with each hit. Or more specifically, each time his fist impacted with her shield.

Ah, so that’s how her Zanpaktou works. It’s not just able to manipulate and absorb fire and fire based spirit energy. Any force directed at the shield serves to empower the blade. I wonder if it has a limit?

It had to, otherwise she wouldn’t have bothered to dodge his Cero. As he casually considered how to go about testing the limits of her shield, Sunset Shimmer drew back suddenly, pointing her sword forward at him like a lance. The orange flames around it quickly turned to a brilliant cobalt blue, coiling into something more like a solid bar of pure blue heat than mere flame.

Again she spoke the attack name he’d heard before.

”Aoihi Senko!”

Tirek watched her come as she burst at him full speed, her wings empowering a Flash Step beyond sound and approaching something closer to light itself. He was intrigued. The last time she’d used the move it had been a wide, spherical burst, but this time the heat of the attack was focused on a singular point around her sword. So she could manipulate it to that degree? He was starting to like this girl and her versatile, bloodthirsty little Zanpaktou.

His own Zanpaktou was starting to quiver. Not with a mind of its own. Arrancar Zanpaktou did not have separate spirits. Rather the reflected spirit of his own Hollow energy and nature from within his Zanpaktou was shaking with an eager hunger to consume this girl as she came flying at him like an azure valkyrie.

Tirek held up his left palm and Sunset felt her Zanpaktou impact with it. She didn’t step, shoving all of her momentum and strength into shoving her blade forward, burning a good portion of the energy she’d stored up from the repeated hits on Hikari to both empower the heat of her Aoihi Senko’s flames, but also to add strength to the force of her wings pushing her forward.

As absurdly strong as Tirek was, he didn’t have enough grounding on Hueco Mundo’s sands to resist being pushed back, and Sunset went out of her way to angle her thrust so that he wasn’t just pushed backwards but that both of them went tearing across the desert at a curving angle.

Her goal wasn’t to injure Tirek, although that would be a nice bonus. No, she was trying to get him into a specific position. At the same time, she was attempting to output as much reiatsu as possible, while getting him to do the same, hoping that by doing so they’d be blanketing the area with so much of it that none of the Espada would notice what else might be going on around them.

If all was going according to plan, the others should be making their move any second now.

----------

Twilight was still disturbed by the void of the Precipice Realm, but it was at least a tad less frightening when she considered that with the power of magic she could readily teleport back to Earth without much trouble. Her research on establishing Quincy portals that didn’t rely on using half-alive Gillians was progressing, although she’d been so distracted by other ventures she hadn’t had time to get the prototype fully functional yet.

At this point she was relying on Discord’s own portal to maintain the connection between the human world and Hueco Mundo while she worked. She was floating in space, standing upon a slice of blue energy that she generated from reishi to act as a platform for herself and her companion. Although said companions could easily form a platform of her own, Twilight preferred to just maintain one herself. It’d make masking her reiatsu easier if she didn’t have to worry about Sweet Cider also having to mask hers.

The Tenth Division Captain stood with apparent calm, but Twilight felt the way the woman’s foot kept tapping while Twilight worked on the device in front of her; a small portable computer hooked up to an antenna array that was criss-crossed with Quincy alchemic tubes.

“This is takin’ too long,” Sweet Cider said, “I oughta go through.”

“Not yet,” Twilight said, not looking up from her computer screen, “It’s only been a few minutes.”

“Against somethin’ like Tirek, a few minutes is too damned long,” Sweet Cider insisted, one hand slipping towards the Zanpaktou sheathed over her shoulder, but Twilight stood and faced her then, holding up a hand.

“Please just wait. Sunset knows what she’s doing, and the others will send the signal soon, I’m sure. Just... control yourself, okay?”

Words Twilight was trying very hard to follow as well. To say that standing here alone with Sweet Cider was awkward for Twilight was putting things in the mildest terms. Twilight was keenly aware of who Sweet Cider was, and it bubbled up all sorts of unpleasant complicated emotions that Twilight really didn’t want distracting her right now. The woman’s husband had killed Twilight’s mother, and for all Twilight’s desire to put that past behind her, it remained a painful sticking point in her heart.

She did her best to ignore it, while Sweet Cider breathed hard through her nose and let her hand fall away from her blade, settling instead with gripping her hands on her hips and redoubling the tapping of her foot.

“Hate this waitn’ crap, is all.”

“Ideally you won’t even be needed,” Twilight said, “If everything goes according to plan, Sunset will beat Tirek’s challenge, and we’ll succeed at our mission without the Espada being any the wiser for it.”

She went back to her computer, taking in and letting out a deep breath of her own that barely calmed her nerves. Just in front of the floating disc of reishi she and Sweet Cider stood upon was a tiny crack of light, pale silver from Hueco Mundo’s moon. Discord was keeping the smallest portion of the Garganta between his shop and Hueco Mundo open, and Twilight’s device was set up to scan for signals directly into that realm.

Come on Fluttershy, Rarity, I need that signal...

----------

Back she drove him, a sparking blue comet wreathed in amber flame. Sunset felt every fiber of her muscles scream, her bones aching from the power she thrust through her body and shook her whole being. Around her she felt her reiatsu strain and clash against the unbelievable tidal surge of Tirek’s immensity, and she felt like a schooner in a storm trying to crest a vast wave with all her might.

And she was halted. Breathing hard, she saw the azure fires of her Aoihi Senko die out against Tirek’s palm finally, and saw she had driven him some distance from Las Noches’ walls. In fact they were just about right where she’d hoped to place herself, although that small unknown victory still felt small compared to the fact that for all of her effort she stood with sword extended, Tirek’s palm clenched around the tip of her blade.

He grinned down at her with prideful scorn, but then his eyes showed a shimmer of curiosity as he leg go of her sword and looked at his palm. Sunset saw it too, her own breath shaping into a gust of a laugh as her lips twitched into a smile.

A small droplet of blood fell from Tirek’s palm, where her Zanpaktou had given the Primera Espada, King of Hueco Mundo and strongest of all Hollows, an actual cut upon his crimson flesh. The single drop of blood hit the white sands at his feet, and steamed like molten lava.

“Well now, isn’t this a surprise?” Tirek said, his smile deepening as he clenched his fists at his immense sides and Sunset felt as if a great hand was clenching around her from a cloying increase in his spiritual pressure. “If this match was to first blood, you’d be claiming victory, and more I the fool for not taking this seriously enough. As it stands, I’ve yet to draw my sword. And now I think I’ll be taking this very seriously.”

Sunset was halfway to thinking up a quip when he moved, and a good deal faster than he had before. She barely had time to register his fist, her shield only part of the way to raised before that immense hammer of red slammed right into the side of her face. Everything spun into a kaleidoscope of pain as she felt herself bounce over they sands in a tangle. She struggled to get a thought through her skull, which swam in a dazed mire. She tasted blood in her mouth and bursting from her nose, sharp and copper scented.

On instinct she used her wings to blast out power and control her motions, halting herself in mid tumble, although just enough for her to sag to the ground and struggle to shake her head to clear the cobwebs. She felt the pressure wave of Tirek’s presence behind her and she was this time only just able to spin and raise Hikari up to guard. This time Tirek was bringing down both his fists, clenched together in a classic sledgehammer blow. Sunset felt the wave of force flatten against her and start breaking the ground beneath her feet even before the impact hit her shield, and the air flew from her lungs and her knees buckled under the blow. For a few seconds all was sand and sound as she was driven to her back, planted at the bottom of a widening crater.

But not just any crater, one that had the broken walls of several now caved in tunnels. Tunnels she knew belong to part of Grogar’s laboratory, because this very location she was aiming for happened to be where his lab was located.

Back up on Las Noches’ walls, Grogar let out a choking noise as he said, “Gah! Those idiots! If they fight there they’ll- wha!?”

His shout came from the fact that Grogar had moved to step off the wall and go warn Tirek that they were fighting near his lab, but found himself rather quickly thrown off balance due to having tied shoelaces. He kept from falling flat on his face, but glared down at his shoes in astonishment. “Shoelaces!? I don’t wear...”

He heard a giggle form nearby, and murder burned in his eyes as he looked up to see Pinkie Pie a short distance away, wearing a beaming grin as she waved at him. “Heya Groggster, you need to be more careful or you might end up taking a long trip somewhere. Heheh!”

“You!? I was trying to ignore your very absurd existence, you abomination against the laws of physics!” Grogar shouted, snapping the shoe laces with ease, which dissipated or nothing now that the gag was complete. He pointed a gnarled finger at Pinkie Pie, “I swear by all the laws of science that one day I will have you strapped to a specimen tray for complete and thorough dissection, if only so that I may properly understand your abhorrent abilities so that I may ensure they are never replicated again!”

“Wow, you really can’t take a joke at all, can you?” Pinkie Pie said, then her mask shifted and her eyes changed from blue to yellow as her smile grew a great deal more curly snark filled, “Then again you take a joke every time you look in a mirror, don’t you?”

“Perhaps I’ll just eliminate you here and now then?” Grogar said, but paused as he noticed that on the other side of Pinkie Pie, Discord stood and was staring right at him. Discord’s eyes were shaded by his hat, but still gleamed with violent promise as they stared at Grogar, daring the Ninth Espada to try anything. Grogar, veins throbbing on his withered brow, held his tongue and looked back towards the fight, where he now knew his main laboratory was in great danger. Yet there was little he could do, for to go out there and interfere with the fight would likely get him killed if Tirek forgot himself for a moment.

And while the majority of onlookers were thoroughly distracted by the battle, and Pinkie Pie’s antics, Fluttershy and Rarity shared a brief and clandestine glance with one another. They nodded almost imperceptibly to each other, and got to work.

Carefully, slowly, and doing her best to mask her reiatsu, Rarity formed a crystalline tendril into the wall beneath her feet, and started to extend it towards Fluttershy, who in turn very carefully waited to feel the tendril touch her feet from below. Once done, Fluttershy used the smallest, concealed part of her own reiatsu to extend her powers into the crystal tendril, which once Rarity felt this, she continued to burrow the small tendril through the wall, undetected, towards her intended goal.

Fleur De Lis.

Meanwhile Sunset Shimmer pushed herself back up to her feet. Her left arm was roaring in pain from what she felt sure had to have been a fracture or two. She wasn’t sure when she’d cut her brow, but blood was coating her face from both her head and nose, not to mention the cut lip. She was looking rather like a mess, standing at the bottom of a sandy crater amid a few broken underground hallways. The ground shook with footfalls as Tirek, now no longer in a hurry, walked down the crater towards her.

“Hmph, I nearly forgot that Grogar set his lab up around this area. No matter, a little damage shouldn’t be an issue, and you’re looking quite near done,” Tirek said, but found himself trailing off as he saw Sunset’s shield gleam with pale golden light. Sunset breathed easier as this light, like licks of pale flame, curled up her body and some of her wounds closed up. Although she knew her left arm was still in bad shape, at least she could still move it now. Her shield’s healing ability wouldn’t do her much good if Tirek got even a smidge more serious, however, so she knew she had to finish this soon.

Not giving Tirek a moment to consider the sight of her healing herself, and knowing she had to act fast now that she was in position, Sunset enacted the last phase of her gambit.

”Shiroihi Yume.”

From Sunset’s form rose a sheet of snow white fire, expanding around her in a circle. From this circle shot forth a score of clones, identical to her in every way save for the flickers of white flame that still clung to them as the clones converged upon Tirek. He sneered at the clones, “A trick such as this will not impress me, girl!”

His right leg swept up and cut left in a devastating heel kick that sent out a cutting shockwave that annihilated three of the clones in a single instant. Three more clones stabbed in behind him and with resounding speed he spun around and back handed one into the other two, the trio exploding in hot detonations that bathed Tirek in flame, but did little to slow him down as he began to systematically go after the remaining clones. Each clone darted about, cutting at him, coming from above, below, to the side, any angle they could, but Tirek met each one with a fierce kick or punch that carried with it the punishing force to shatter the earth.

“Utterly pointless,” he muttered as he gripped the last clone around the neck after it leaped straight at him. His fingers crushed deeply into the clone’s throat, and he scowled as it exploded, washing him once more in white flame that barely scorched his skin, “If this was the last ditch effort you had, I can only say I’m disappointed. You started off strong, but seem to be getting more desperate...um, ugh, okay, where are you?”

Tirek was genuinely annoyed with himself for having lost sight of the real Sunset Shimmer while he’d been dispatching her small army of flame clones. He was alone in the crater, near as he could tell. Then he sensed her, or rather her reiatsu, which had spread out in a wide pattern in the desert around the crater. Tirek smelled an acrid stench in the air and felt the intense heat radiating from above, and just as he began to rise upward to see just what Sunset Shimmer was up to, he saw it.

Fire coated a wide area of a near fifty meter radius around the crater, concentrated in a sheet that had melded into the sands and turned a massive area into a pool of molten glass. Molten glass that Sunset now controlled as she directed the heat and fire within that giant pool of glass and sent it hurtling like a pile of scathing sludge directly into the crater and right on top of Tirek.

The crater filled in seconds with the steaming orange pool of molten glass, and Sunset Shimmer flew upwards, getting as much height as she could as she withdrew the heat from the glass so it would rapidly cool and harden. It did so with a loud hiss, the crater now a misshapen lump of hard, soot black and partially opaque glass, with Tirek in its center.

This did not last more than a second before Tirek’s own spiritual pressure billowed outward and utterly shattered the mound of glass. He rose upward, brushing bits and pieces of the makeshift glass prison from his body, a bit of a smile returning to his face, “Well, at least that was creative. Still not enough.”

“I know that!” Sunset Shimmer said. By now she’d flown up to a point a few hundred feet directly above Tirek, and she held her Zanpaktou’s blade out to her right while down the center of her shield a seam opened and light spilled forth as Hikari split to reveal a groove into which Hokori’s blade could fit.

“I know no trick or lesser technique would ever do more than scratch you, Tirek! But would you have really been satisfied if I used my trump card right from the get go? Where’s the fun in that?”

“Hah!” Tirek threw his head back and bellowed a laugh, sensing the sudden and intense uprising of Sunset’s reiatsu and realized she was about to lay her full cards on the table, “You’re right! There would be no fun at all in just crushing you instantly. Sure you don’t want me to make you a Hollow after this? You have the spirit of one.”

“Not for me, thanks. Now, you’ve taken everything else I can throw at you, but let’s see if you can handle this! I promise this next attack is the best I’ve got.”

With a single smooth motion she slammed Hokori into the groove of Hikari, merging blade and shield into one form, blade meeting with the tip of the shield’s phoenix head while the blade’s handle extended into a longer shaft that Sunset could grip with both hands. Now more like a giant bladed spear than either sword or shield, Sunset pulled back in preparation for a massive swing. Flames coiled up from her wings and around her body, then around the Zanpaktou itself. However, whereas when she’d used this attack once before the flames had been blue, now they were not merely blue, but intermixed with deep funnels of black flame. Sunset grunted in pain as her hands started to burn, the black flames drawn up from the apex of her Zanpaktou’s powers still not entirely under her control. She had to draw upon her wrath to summon these flames. It wasn’t that hard to do in this instance, for Tirek represented much that Sunset was angry at. His forces had hunted her friends since the beginning. Twilight’s mother died due to a war that Tirek’s own actions only continued to spur on. More of the people Sunset cared about would likely suffer because of Tirek’s plans, and he fully intended to invade her homeworld and consume who knew how many souls?

Sunset wanted nothing more than a peaceful solution to the war, but a part of her knew that the man she was facing was much more an obstacle to that peace than someone who would ever likely be part of the solution.

So wrath wasn’t such a hard emotion to tap into, in that moment.

This was only amplified as she saw him grinning up at her, crossing his arms over his perfectly sculpted chest of imposing muscle. Tirek raised his chin, as if daring her to hit him with her best.

She was only too glad to accommodate.

”Saishu-Tekina Hidori no Kuroi Tsubasa!” (Final Phoenix of Black Wings!)

Her Zanpaktou slashed forward, and from it emerged a magnificent phoenix of solid fire, larger than a jet liner. Its form was still forged of beautiful cerulean flame, yet its wings were marked by curling feathers of pure black fire, and its talons streamed with the ink colored flame that carried with it the power of utter destruction. The phoenix descended, its heat and light extended so far that it began to smoke and melt parts of the walls of Las Noches.

Upon those same walls, many lesser Arrancar, on pure preservation instinct, fled from the wall and went further up the roof. The Espada, Sunset’s friends, Discord, Ditzy, and Gaia all remained, but all could feel the immense wave of spiritual pressure from Sunset Shimmer’s attack.

Catrina stepped back and considered Sonidoing to safety, although pride kept her feet otherwise rooted. Guto started, mouth parting open in shock. Hydia blinked in incomprehension. Torch looked on with grim appreciation, but also stepped protectively in front of his daughter. Hard Nail showed no expression, but like Torch remained close to his kin, Roka shading her eyes while Fenice risked raising her hood just enough to look with awe at her counterpart from another world. Gilda did her best not to look like she wanted to flee, stepping closer to Flutteshy without even realizing she’d done it.

Grogar, for his part, was shouting in sudden realization that his lab was directly in the way of this attack, but his words were swallowed by the roaring noise like a hundred tempests from Sunset’s attack.

Chrysalis smiled, thickly laden with sudden interest and hunger.

For Adagio, she watched with a critical eye, taken aback by Sunset’s strength but also calculating as she raised her trident. Water summoned forth to form a protective shield in front of herself and her many present vassals, blunting the extreme heat that descended from afar. While it wasn’t necessary to do so, Adagio wasn’t about to miss a chance to make it clear to her people that she was their protector and provider. Meanwhile she inwardly wondered if this power of Sunset’s was greater than her own, and if it would be enough to win through this challenge against the most powerful of all Hollows.

It did not take long to find out.

The phoenix fell upon him, and Tirek did not seek to evade it. It happened so fast that it was impossible for any to clearly see exactly what Tirek may have done in defense, but his arms did move right before impact.

When the immense bird of blue and black flame did impact, it drilled itself downward right into the ground, creating a titanic whirlwind cylinder of fire and raw spirit energy that was so destructive that there was no part of Las Noches that did not shake from it. Like a finger of godly fire, the cyclone of blinding blue and utter black swirled skyward and split wide open the desert of Hueco Mundo, generating melting ravines of raw molten glass for kilometers in all directions. The air itself screamed as every bit of moisture evaporated from it for hundreds of yards around, and the resulting roar of sound from the explosive fire itself beat at the eardrum of every entity present.

The hordes of tens of thousands of Hollows that had fled miles back from Las Noches were forced to flee further still, stampeding in terror from the great and horrifying sight of the colossal pillar of blue and black flame that pierced the sky even as the phoenix that gave the pillar form drilled deep into the ground.

And Sunset all the while remained where she was, drained by the use of her final attack. Merging the Final Phoenix with her newly acquired black flames was a logical next step, but doing so was far more draining than she’d expected, and she grimaced in pain at the burning of her hands. She could still hold her Zanpaktou, but by now Hokori no Hikari had reverted to a sealed katana form. She didn’t have the energy to maintain Bankai after that attack.

She watched as the flames of heat and energy finally petered out, the summoned phoenix having expended all of its power upon drilling its target, Tirek, down into the sands. Sunset saw that the crater that had already been there was now a singularly massive hole, easily a few hundred meters across. She couldn’t even guess how deep it might be. Rivers of molten rock and glass poured down the sides of the hole like glowing waterfalls. She saw barely a few remnants of underground chambers, most melted beyond recognition, and she smiled.

That smile depended more when she heard Grogar howl.

“My laboratory! You cretinous little human! Do you have any idea how many experiments I still had running in there!?

Nope, and I don't care. Destroying your lab was one of my main objectives here, you shriveled old bastard, Sunset thought, feeling immense relief. Even if her challenge against Tirek still failed, she had at least achieved one of her actual goals. Hopefully Rarity, Fluttershy, and Twilight had taken care of their objective, too.

Harmony knew Sunset had done her best to provide the best distraction she could for it.

Grogar’s outburst aside, there was quite a bit of silence in the wake of her attack, a fact that Sunset did take a fair bit of pleasurable pride in. She could see many of the Espada were staring right at her, most of them in either shock, or careful reappraisal of her. Good. That also had been one of her intentions in doing this. She wanted the Espada to see what she was capable of. In a sense she understood that was a bit of a tactical disadvantage to show her cards, but at the same time it was necessary to make it clear that the members of the Canterlot Spirit Coalition had teeth and were willing to use them.

Now if only that was enough for Tirek...

She peered down into the hole, slowly descending until she touched the edge of the hole, almost as much from a need to rest as a desire to get a closer look. “Man... just how deep did I manage to make that hole?” she wondered aloud.

“I’d say about four miles, maybe five.”

Sunset froze. She slowly turned her head around to look behind her.

Tirek stood there, not more than a few paces away. Sunset almost spun to strike with her sword, sealed or not, but paused as she started to do so, noticing two very important details that left her feeling a sudden burst of elation in her heart.

One, Tirek for the first time showed an injury that wasn’t just a scratch. His chest was marked by a noticeable burn scar that started from the left collarbone and went down towards his right waist, several inches wide and bleeding along the edges. It wasn’t a deep wound, far more superficial than anything else, but it was a wound. She’d wounded the Primera Espada! Indeed he had other burns on his body as well, along his arms and legs, and even some of his face showed bleeding scorch marks; all surface level, but still! And the main scar on his chest was broken in the center. There was about half a foot of space around the center of his chest that was unmarked by the burn.

And the reason for this was the fact that his Zanpaktou, massive and golden, was drawn and held in his right hand.

Sunset smiled, unable to halt a girly giggle as she pointed at his chest, “You blocked it. With your sword. You blocked my attack.”

“Hm?” Tirek raised his sword, then shrugged, cracking a smile of his own, “It appears so. I didn’t even intend to, but I suppose thousands of years of combat instinct will make your body do things even when you don’t intend it.”

“Heheh, does that mean my attack was so amazing that it triggered your ancient Hollow combat instincts?” Sunset said, unable to stop looking pleased with herself. She knew she was acting a tad like Rainbow Dash right that moment, which wasn’t exactly being a humble winner, but she couldn’t help herself.

Tirek rolled his eyes, but his own pleased smile didn’t fade, “It was a... passable technique. Unfocused, however. You’ve only used that move a handful of times, haven’t you?”

“You can tell that easily?”

“I have not risen to my rank by chance, girl. Your talent is immense, your innate power truly astounding for one so young, but it’s obvious from that little bout that you lack the massive body of skill and focus one such as I possess. Were this a genuine fight to the death, I’d have your head detached from your body and bouncing in the palm of my hand by now.”

“Lucky for me then this wasn’t a fight to the death, but just to get you to draw that big, sharp bling of yours,” Sunset said, pointing at his Zanpaktou, and Tirek gave a simple nod as he tossed the blade upward suddenly. The golden Zanpaktou spun and spun until it descended, with only a small motion of Tirek allowing the blade to seamlessly slip into the sheath on his back.

“Indeed,” he said, and before she knew it, he’d moved and had a hand on her shoulder. He applied immense pressure in a mere instant and Sunset cried out in pain as her weakened body was pushed down onto her knees by Tirek’s unyielding strength and painful squeeze onto her shoulder. He loomed above her, still smiling, but with an aura of menace flowing from his own undiminished reiatsu, “But don’t let that go to your head. Destroying Grogar's lab may have been either accident or intention, but either way if I didn't know full well that man can recoup such a loss I'd be quite a bit less amused with you right now.”

Just as fast he let her go, and Sunset grunted, standing and glaring up at him, “Sore loser, much?”

“Hah!” Tirek laughed, “I like you, girl. I’ll still kill you when you and your idiot friends get in my way, but I like you.”

With that he turned and with one mighty leap, went up into the sky. Halting at the level of the top of Las Noches’ walls, he looked upon his fellow Espada and the gathered forces of Arrancar, and sucked in a breath to bellow, “It is my decree that Sunset Shimmer had passed my challenge and proven herself and her Coalition worthy of our attention as the mighty forces of Las Noches! So earning my respect, they will be granted the boon of an embassy. However let it be known that any member of this ‘Coalition’ is not granted any more amnesty than any other Hollow, and while they may seek to do as they will here, so too shall any and all of you consider them as much fair game as you would any other Hollow who walks within our walls! Remember, the truest rule of all Hueco Mundo is the rule of might! Fight for what you desire, and if you lack strength, the more worthy will take your desires from you!”

Sunset listened to this, and the subsequent uproar of less than pleasant cheers from Arrancar who seemed all too happy now to have new, possibly tasty neighbors, and could only feel a bit of relief that at least this tenuous first step for the Canterlot Spirit Coalition was complete. But there was far, far more to come, and she’d just gotten a very up close and personal feel for precisely how powerful the peak she and her friends sought to surmount truly was.

Author's Notes:

Even if she's outmatched heavily by Tirek, it was still a fun fight to write, as Sunset doesn't often get a lot of one on one battles. Las Noches construction crews must be getting a lot of business lately, with all the fighting that happens on the fortress front doorstep. And of course the fight was a cover for other objectives, which we'll see more of in the next chapter or so.

Hope you folks had fun, and as always thanks for reading and I highly appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next tim-

Oh wait! Before I go, for those to whom it may interest, now is a very good time to be a Bleach fan, for after quite a long time, the anime is back!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzR82oXbjnY

Definitely going to be keeping up with this one. Ahem, now that that bit of excitement is out of the way. 'Till next time!

Episode 174: The Coalition Summit

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Episode 174: The Coalition Summit

Their return to the dry air, yet welcoming light of Discord’s underground training area was greeted by a rambunctious Screwball who threw off an exaggerated salute to the gathered folk walking in through the cavernous blackness of the artificial Garganta.

“Heyoo! Doesn’t look like anyone is dead! Wait, where’s Gaia and Ditzy? They’re not corpsified are they!?”

“No, Screwball,” said Discord with a rolling chuckle, spinning his can on one finger, “They’re quite well, and have stayed behind to get our new embassy in order.”

“I was quite tempted to join them,” commented Rarity, already returned to her normal state from having previously activated her Fullbring, “If this is to be more than a mere front I’d much like to have some say in it’s location and décor. Oh well, I’ll just have to take the time later when schedules permit.”

“Ya just can’t wait ta start showin’ them Arrancar some diplomatic hospitality in yer own set up, can ya?” asked Applejack, smiling at her friend’s enthusiasm, and Rarity shot a smile back with a flash in her eyes.

“But of course! I’ll have them eating out of the palm of my hands in no time. And seriously, it is well past time someone brought some color and fashion to those poor dears. All of that shear white and black! It simply won’t do. That and I do like to think that with a little properly targeted generosity we can make some headway in easing tensions.”

“Tensions aren’t exactly going to go down anytime soon,” Twilight said, last out of the Garganta, which slowly closed behind her once she was fully touched down on the ground. In her hands she carried the compactly folded up computer terminal and sensor device she had deployed while inside the Precipice Realm, and now held the odd hexagon shaped box of metal in her hands like a cradled child. “Especially considering that with this, my team and I can conduct a raid to free Fleur De Lis from Guto’s grasp.”

“As long as you hold off on that until after the summit, so the timing doesn’t look so suspicious, then you’re good to go, Twilight,” Sunset said, having found a nearby boulder to sit on and rest while Fluttershy attended to her injuries, fussing over Sunset with several translucent golden arms that started to heal the wounds taken during the duel with Tirek.

Twilight adjusted her glasses, her face gaining a steel shadow as she nodded, “No need to worry. I intend to make it look entirely like a Quincy operation. I doubt Guto will suspect that the reason we’ll be able to locate Fleur's precise location is because of the help Rarity and Fluttershy provided.”

Rarity held up her hands in a mock gesture of innocence, “My whatever might you mean, Twilight darling? I certainly haven’t the foggiest notion. I certainly never used my crystals to move one of your Quincy tracers unseen, burrowing silently under Las Noches’ stone roof until it reached Fluer’s foot.”

She gave Fluttershy a pointed look, and the other girl adopted a sheepish look of equal, if somewhat less effective, mock innocence, “Oh, um, I haven’t any idea what you mean, Rarity. I didn’t use my power at all to help conceal your reiatsu, or the tracer, or even help affix it to Fleur's spirit body so it’d assimilate into her reishi undetected. Nope, never did that.”

“And all of those things you two didn’t do certainly didn’t provide a signal this device could pick up, that I designed to be able to maintain a long distance lock on the tracer, even through the barrier of Realms,” Twilight said, patting the device, “Which means there’s no way I could possibly lead a team at some undisclosed point in the near future to break Fleur De Lis out of that horrid place and bring her home. Which I thank you for. For all that stuff you didn’t do.”

The girls all shared a brief pause, before they all laughed, after which Rainbow Dash went over and patted Sunset hard on the shoulder, to which Sunset winced a bit, “All that sneaky stuff aside, can I just say that Sunset here was friggin’ awesome out there!? I mean damn, she actually gave that dude, who’s what supposed to be the strongest Hollow of all time, a serious fight! And blew up that gross jerkwad’s lab on top of it! This was one seriously successful mission, even if I didn’t get to do much other than rile up that Catrina chick.”

“Oh yeah, she’s really got it in for you now, doesn’t she, Dashie?” Pinkie Pie said with a bright gleam, “I feel like I oughta be able to sell tickets to that eventual grudge match!”

“Pfft, and what about you, Pinks?” said Rainbow, “You really cheesed off Grogar majorly, between screwing with him here, and stealing that Seed thingamabob from him before. I feel like next time we get into any scuffle with the Espada, he’s going to be gunning for you most of all.”

“Okay gals, let’s not forget that while we did have a lot of side objectives with this little escapade of mine, the overall goal is still to hopefully get all three factions, including the Hollows, on some kind of road to peace,” said Sunset, looking at her hands as the burns on them slowly healed up under Fluttershy’s ministrations. Granted not all of the burns could fade entirely. She’d always have a few scars on her hands to remind her of the times she used the black flames. She shook her head and continued to say, “Even if I don’t think Tirek will back down entirely without a fight, maybe even to the final, grisly death, I want to at least keep casualties to a minimum. Granted not sure I apply that to Grogar, but Adagio is probably going to handle him before any of us get a chance to. The rest, let’s at least try to give them the benefit of the doubt.”

“I don’t know ‘bout that Guto,” Applejack said, her faced hardening, “I might not like Fleur at all after she went ballistic on us back then, but... seein’ her all chained up like a dog at his feet just boiled my blood somethin’ fierce.”

“Ya’d hardly be my daughter if seein’ that didn’t piss ya off,” Sweet Cider said, having watched proceedings silently up to that point. Her eyes turned to Sunset, “An’ while I admire the idealism ya got goin’ there, ya’d best be prepared fer the worst. Not just from them Espada, but from all o’ those ya want ta make peace with. That includes Soul Society. Ain’t sayin’ the Captain Commander ain’t gonna be a reasonable fellow, but ya still got ta understand that this war won’t just halt on yer say so. Can’t speak fer the Quincy, but don’t imagin’ them just droppin’ arms and burryin’ the ol’ hatchet with Soul Reapers or Hollows.”

“I know this isn’t going to be easy, and that even calling it ‘difficult’ is a major understatement,” replied Sunset, giving Fluttershy a nod of thanks for the healing aid, and then she stood up, facing Sweet Cider fully, “But the bottom line is that we can’t beat Zero Division without help, and once we tell everyone the truth, even the most hard lined among the factions has to at least understand that if they still want to kill each other they’re only playing into Zero Division’s hands. I won’t be asking them to make permanent peace just yet, but at least a damned cease fire or temporary truce until we deal with Zero Division.”

“Hey, I’m on yer side, girl,” replied Sweet Cider with a huge shrug of her shoulders, “Even if it means goin’ against the rest o’ Soul Society, you’ll have me at yer side when the time comes. Just sayin’ ya need ta be prepared fer the worst. Hope fer and work fer the best, sure, but plan ‘round the worst outcome. Least then ya won’t be caught unprepared.”

“Sage advice, Captain,” Discord said with a knowing nod, “And hardly advice we’ll ignore. That said, let us maintain some optimism. Thus far Sombra’s willingness to allow Twilight to work with us, and even form a shadow alliance with Adagio, has demonstrated the Quincy King isn’t quite as mindlessly rigid as I’d once feared. And while Scorpan has ever been a staunch supporter of Soul Society’s traditions and a firm believer that the Zero Division has the best interests of the world in mind, I think we’ve sufficient evidence to give the Captain Commander much to think about. All we need, really, is a long enough cease fire between the factions that it slows Zero Division’s collection of soul energies in Hell. Time that we can use to secure passage to Equestria, find and detain Starlight Glimmer and her forces, and then with any luck then form an even stronger Coalition to face down Glory and her compatriots.”

“Well, when ya put it like that, it almost sounds plausible,” Sweet Cider said with a light huff, “Sure hope it turns out that way.”

“C’mon ma, it’ll all turn out alright. It did with pa, didn’t it?” said Applejack, putting on a bright smile, “He was lookin’ a lot better when I saw him today, too. Might not be back ta full, but he seemed ta be doin’ fine.”

Sweet Cider’s dour look softened into a warm smile then, if still a tad pained, likely at the knowledge that she and her husband still had a great deal of hurdles keeping them separate for the time being. Yet any that looked upon the sizeable woman and her exuberant daughter next to her could tell the Apple family had a fresh glow of strength and resolve about them that was like a powerful tail wind. Even while still separated physically, the completeness of the Apples was a power unto itself.

“Hope that hard headed husband o’ mine just manages ta keep himself outta trouble ‘till we git this whole nasty business sorted out. Even with this whole embassy thing you girls got goin’, it’d probably look awful suspicious if the Captain o’ the Tenth Division just shows up outta the blue ta chat with their Fourth Espada,” Sweet Cider said, here tone tight with a certain frustration that even with the connection reforged between herself and Hard Nail, there was still no easy way for them to meet and begin the long process of healing their family.

“Give it time,” Discord said simply, then paused as a ringing came from the inner pockets of his long sleeved robes. “Oh? Must be the front desk.”

He yanked out a somewhat old fashioned flip open cell phone as the others looked on and casually shouted, “Hello!? Yes! This is the shop owner!”

“Ugh, you don’t need to yell, boss!” yelled Screwloose from the other end of the line, “Your volume control on these things sucks! I’m calling to let you know Clover’s back. She’s been basically cutting a rut in our front rug with all of her pacing!”

“Uh, did you tell her about what we were doing?” Rainbow Dash asked Sunset, and Sunset blanched a little, her heart feeling a sharp stab of rather swift guilt as she realized she maybe should have at least left some sort of message for Clover. Heat flushed her cheeks as she let out an awkward little laugh.

“Heh, well, um, I guess I didn’t? I mean, it was really spur of the moment and she was still in Soul Society-”

“Is that Sunset!?” shouted Clover’s voice on the other end of Discord’s phone, followed by the sounds of a brief struggle with Screwloose letting out a few obscenities before a crashing noise sounded out, and Clover spoke again, a bit more breathless, “Spirit Queen above, are you okay!? Screwloose told me some crazy story about you going to fight Tirek!?”

Sunset, sweating, pointed at Discord’s phone, and he silently handed it to her. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash was scratching her head with a puzzled frown.

“Okay seriously, is it Soul Queen or Spirit Queen? I keep hearing both,” Rainbow asked.

“Both apply in equal measure and tend to be used interchangeably. Have I not covered this by now?” he said, rubbing his bearded chin, “I could have sworn I have.”

“If you did, I totally spaced out on it,” Dash replied, while Sunset, coughing and covering part of the phone with one hand to block out the side talk, spoke softly.

“Hey Clover, yeah, s-sorry about not waiting to tell you what we were doing. It was all kind of my idea.”

“What in the world possessed you to even think of doing something so reckless? Wait, don’t tell me you already did it!? Please tell me you still have all of your bits intact and none of the others got hurt!”

“I’m fine. We’re fine. It turned out way better than I honestly thought it would,” she grunted a bit in pain as some of her remaining aches sprang up to remind her just how much of a beating Tirek had given her, “I mean, I got knocked around a bunch, but I think I left on impression.”

“On...Tirek?” Clover’s voice was one of a strong mix of disbelief, horror, and a tad bit of impressed awe, “Look, I’d better come down and hear this in person. I came back to confirm the meet time for the summit, but that can wait until I can see you and make sure you didn’t hit your head or something. I’ll be right there!”

Sunset heard the other end of the line click off before she could get another word in, and she just blinked at the phone for a moment before handing it back to Discord, “I guess I made her worry.”

“More than worry, if what I heard was any indication,” said Fluttershy, to which Sunset just gave her friend a questioning look.

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing,” Fluttershy replied, but wore a very odd smile that Sunset couldn’t place entirely. Her sense told her Fluttershy was pleased about something, or at least found something reassuring. But why? It was normal for Clover to worry about her friends, and Sunset imagined she’d be pretty worried too if she learned one of her comrades did something crazy like try to solo one of the most powerful entities in the world.

Oh well, probably best not to think about it too much. Things had gone well enough, and while Clover might fret over her, it was an acceptable price to pay. Besides they had a lot more on their plate to deal with tonight, given they were about to meet with Tirek’s peers from the Quincy and Soul Society in a summit that may well decide the fate of not just the human world, but Equestria as well.

----------

In some ways the Soul Queen’s Palace was a misnomer. Its residents gave it many titles. The Spirit Queen’s Halls. The Eternal Heaven. The Radiant Bastion. It could be described in many manners, and each set of eyes that were fortunate enough to behold the sacred realm were left with their own inadequate words to try and interpret the grandeur and majesty of the seat of the Soul Queen’s power.

For only five among those that dwelled her knew the truth. That the Soul Queen, the Spirit Queen, the First Soul herself was no longer who ruled here. That throne sat empty. But none could gainsay, for none were allowed to walk to the pinnacle, to witness the empty chamber and bleak crystal that held the body of a desecrated entity that once bore those lofty titles.

And even if they did, few might care. Those that lived within this realm were few in number, barely more than a few hundred rare souls, collected and hand picked by the true masters of the Palace; the Zero Division. Within this realm each of these figures of power carved out a partition of their own, dividing the expanse of Heaven into Five Halls. Each Hall bore the distinctive marks and thoughts of it’s ruler, each their own version of Heaven, where their hand picked “perfect souls” were allowed to live in purest luxury... as long as they remained a pleasing presence to their rulers.

Medley wore no expression that might have shown her true thoughts of what lay around her. A wall of gold was carved with engravings of such life-like beauty that the images of mist laden mountains and vast forests all looked as if alive. Water, clearer than the most transparent crystal, fell in hot waves from the mouths of gold carved dragons, the cascades leading into wide, spacious pools and springs that were surrounded by the green splendor of a perfectly tended garden. Those waters, Medley knew, were more than just warm, they were enriched with such spirit energy that to merely set foot in those sacred pools would cause mindless bliss in the weaker willed, and rejuvenate and enrich any who bathed within them.

Glory sat naked within the largest pool, tended to by a trio of equally naked servants, all men of exceptional physical characteristics, who cleaned the Zero Division member meticulously with silken cloth and washed her, in Medley’s opinion, stupidly long golden hair with soaps that bore scents so divine as to likely break the heart of any mortal designer of scented bath soaps.

She knows I’m here. Do I lose the game if I lose patience and speak first, or is she really just going to sit there and make me watch her get pampered for the next ten hours? Medley thought, mulling over just how to best piss Glory off.

“Hey, you!” she said, pointing at one of the serving men, a rather impressive fellow with dark skin and long dark hair that looked quite petable.

The man blinked, briefly glancing at Glory, and not ceasing his brushing of her hair before answering, “Yes, Lady Medley?”

“Hurry it up. Glory’s got an appointment to keep, and you know how she hates being late,” Medley said, “Right Glory? Or, hey, maybe since we’ve got so much time, I’ll just hop in and have your toys give me a good scrubbing, too?”

There was a pointed moment of silence, almost imperceptibly calculated, before Glory responded without opening her eyes, “That won’t be necessary, Medley. I am aware of the time. That is why I took the time to do this. I would not do to make an appearance as we intend without looking our best. I have told you and the others thus. I would expect you’d have seen to your appearances before coming to check on mine, but...”

One slim hand of milk ivory rose and waved off the servants, who rapidly finished their work and bowed deeply before standing back, allowing Glory to rise up from the waters. There, tall and perfect as a hewn statue of marble, she made the slightest gesture of her hand and the water simply ceased to cling to her body. Her blue eyes opened and stared deep into Medley, showing the storm of irritation beneath that barely hinted at in her edged voice.

“I can see you continue to give little care for the niceties. Have I expressed my distinct displeasure at your antics of late? Leaving critical information to slip into the wrong hands?”

Medley crossed her arms as she watched Glory leave the pool. There was no donning of clothing, so much as a simple eyeblink and Glory was wearing her immaculate robes of black over a pure white haori coat, identical to any Soul Reaper Captain’s coat save for the distinct lack of a Division Mark. Her Zanpakou was simply there, sheathed at her side, as if it had always been there. Medley, as always, felt nothing of any reiatsu from Glory’s actions. For Glory, to make manifest her will was simply a part of what she was. It wasn’t even meant as a display of power, just an unconscious action, taken as a matter of course.

“If you’ve got a bad memory, I’ll repeat what I told you before. It was time for Scorpan to figure things out anyway. He was already suspicious of us, so this was only a matter of time. You needed a damn push.”

The two had left the pools, walking briefly through gardens of immense scope and beauty, populated by the souls of animals taken from every corner of the living realm, prevented from continuing on to the Beast Realm so they might add their sounds and song to this place. Glory was silent for a time, as their walk took them to a bridge of wide, red wood that spanned a seeming eternal blue sky, crossing from the garden island towards the vast white walls of the Palace proper.

When she did speak, it was with a pointed hammer blow of her reiatsu, striking upon Medley like the thunder of a storm that was only matched by Glory’s words spoken in quiet fury, “I needed a push!? You jeopardize everything to try and what, teach me some childish lesson you think I need to learn!? Medley, were we not sisters, were you not among the last of us who are Her children, I...”

There was no way in which Medley could deny the strength of reiatsu that beamed forth with the blinding glare of all the sky’s stars. Not truly so much greater than any other member of the Zero Division, but enough so that one could see why Glory led, at least in terms of power. And yet...

“This is exactly what I’m bothered by, sister,” Medley said, moving through Glory’s field of reiatsu as if shifting reality itself, swimming through a flood of materialized will, and getting nose to nose with the taller woman. “You keep seeing this whole affair like it’s a game with perfectly placed pieces on the board, and I have to keep reminding you that what we’re doing is anything but! You’re upset our pawns are about to know about Jigoku’s real purpose? Good. It’s well past time you got upset. Upset enough to start doing what needs doing instead of playing at being a puppetmaster, which you’ve never had the mind for. Nor do you have the heart to be the monster, which is why the rest of us are going to have to pull that weight for you. Like always.”

“How can you say these things to me? I have labored harder and longer than any of us to see this dream we share fulfilled,” Glory’s voice had not lost it’s ivory point, but there was a softness underneath, and uncomfortableness that Medley was entirely too familiar with. For all of her more powerful sister’s bluster, for all of her righteous anger and planning, she could never conceive of conflict with her last remaining family.

It was as if bleeding out their Mother had drained Glory of the killer edge that had built up over millennia of fury due to Mother’s inaction during the wars. Medley pulled back from Glory then, shifting her attitude with the swiftness of which her moods could so instantly and utterly change. A hand brushed over Glory’s shoulder in a familiar pat, “Which is why I do what I do, Glory. I see what needs doing before anyone else. I didn’t support you in our grand plan, or see Mother and Father cast down, on a blind whim. I knew then, as I know now, this is the course we need to take. But it is treacherous, my sister. These currents cannot be predicted by your supposed ‘perfect’ plans.”

Glory looked at Medley’s hand on her shoulder, then with a gentle but firm grip brushed Medley’s arm away and proceeded to continue walking across the great bridge. “I’ve considered all possibilities. I know what I’m doing. Your antics only serve to make these ‘currents’ of yours precisely as unpredictable as you like them. I swear at times I think you want to see us fail.”

“What I want is for things to go the way they should,” Medley said, to which Glory was swift and hard in her reply.

“And they shall, for we will make them that way. Scorpan will not stop that. The Quincy King who wields our Father’s stolen power cannot stop that! Tirek, in all his great pride and wrath, cannot stop that! And those children tampering with the magic of Equestria cannot stop that!”

And it is that certainty I keep trying to break you of, but you refuse to learn the lesson, my beloved, foolish sister, Medley thought, and kept the thought close, for she knew Glory just didn’t have ears to listen to it.

They crossed the bridge, approaching the shining walls of the Upper Palace, specifically the great arching stairway that pierced through layers of soaring palace walls to reach skyward like a river unto Heaven. Yet the bridge, quite instantly, shifted like a living thing. This was no surprise, but a matter of the nature of these bridges, built to traverse the layered realms of the Soul Palace. Without breaking stride Glory and Medley reached the end of the vast red bridge of polished wood just as it shimmered through a wave of sky that now deposited the pair onto a new segment. By all appearances this was a flying isle, situated on the eastern side of the Palace. This island was covered in a truly strange forest, one both of organic wood, yet also strange glass, colored crystal, and shaped metal or stone.

Practically nothing on this vast island did not bear hypnotic and odd colorations and patterns, as if a wild painter had crushed a prism of rainbows and splattered it in inconceivable shades over every surface, even the grass itself. Not an inch of tree lacked for splashes of vibrancy, not a single stone wasn’t carved into shapes both recognizable or bizarre. Metal statues were bent in every odd angle of eye bending geometry, sparkled with lights and paints that defied the eyes’ attempts to grasp them.

The explosion of unusual art gradually gave way to segments of the island that were somewhat more tamed, if still each their own slice of weirdness. People sat among oddly shaped gardens, or open stone forums, some painting on canvases, others making music with instruments of such unusual design one had to wonder if two hands were sufficient for their use.

Among these people, not one failed to note Glory and Medley’s passing, bowing deeply to the pair as they went deeper into the island.

There, upon a pathway made of glinting gems of emerald and ruby, the pair met with an unusually stout woman of maroon skin, wearing a pinstripe suit of periwinkle blue, with a bobbing head of wild hair filled with dozens of flowers. Eyes the same color as her suit lit up as the woman saw them and she bowed deeply.

“Lady Glory, Lady Medley, a delight to see you both! Lord Blossom awaits, along with Lord Bowtie and Lady Minty.”

Glory paused, briefly giving Medley a sour look, “It seems you may have been right about me taking too long with the bath. It seems everyone arrived before we did.”

“Oh not not at all my Lady!” said the woman, “Lord Bowtie and Lady Minty have been here all yesterday and into the night! Lord Blossom roped them into one of his experimental performances.”

“Ah, well, that is well enough, Blue Belle. Please convey us to your Lord at once,” Glory said, and Blue Belle bowed once more before turning to lead them further down the path. Like all the people here, Blue Belle was a handpicked soul, one of Blossom's personal ‘Attendants’. Even in the Soul Palace, there was a hierarchy to things. The least of the chosen servants were simply known as the ‘Saved’ and they lived lives of luxury, with few responsibilities outside of to continue whatever passions and works caused their individual Lord or Lady to select them for preservation.

However these servants did answer to those who were invested with greater responsibility and power, the Attendants. Each of the Zero Division had at least one or two such Attendants, or more so in the case of Minty who liked having a cadre of ‘playmates’. An Attendant did have some duties to fulfill in keeping things organized among the Saved and fulfilling more specific wishes of their Lord or Lady. They were also blessed with some small portion of said Zero Division member’s power, allowing them strength that was not inconsiderable, if need to defend the Soul Palace ever happened to arise.

Of course to assault the Soul Palace would be a task of some effort, for to even get to the realm in which it dwelled required the ability to surpass wards placed by the Soul Queen herself, eons ago. Only the Queen’s Key, or the Zero Division members themselves, could readily make such access, although Medley was well aware other ways conceivably existed.

Once one was inside the Soul Palace, an attack still faced many challenges. The Five Halls existed in the Lower Palace, along with all of the living space for the Saved. To even reach the Upper Palace one would have to breach individual wards supported by grand seals placed within each Hall of the Zero Division members. It forced any invading force to either split their efforts between the Halls, or risk destruction by focusing on one Hall and making themselves easy pickings for the Zero Division and their Attendants. And the Halls themselves were realms unto themselves, such as Blossom’s Hall of Beauty, this unusual island where every mad artist to ever catch Blossom’s eye now resided to create to their soul’s content.

If a group of invaders did destroy the grand seals in the Five Halls, there would still be the difficult ascent to the Upper Palace, that massive stairway, that had guardians of its own.

In some ways, knowing the seemingly insurmountable challenge of attacking the Soul Palace, Medley could understand why Glory felt invincible here.

Even if Scorpan, Sombra, and Tirek joined their forces together, it was no guarantee of victory if they chose to lay siege to this place, the pinnacle of Heaven.

And yet Medley could vividly recall the faces of those determined young girls, and the power she’d sensed both within them, and the geodes they’d nearly claimed. Medley was not at all as certain of the unassailability of this place, even with the geodes split up and hidden in secret locations among the Five Halls. But then, hadn’t a part of her taken the geodes knowing the likelihood of those girls coming here in the first place?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the noble bellow of a saxophone.

The rich stream of soulful notes drew them onward as if they were an invitation, the music innately energizing in a manner Medley knew surpassed the realm of the natural. The path of carved gems glittered along through prismatic jungle until it emptied into a spacious clearing before a lake of ephemeral water that glowed shades of green and blue. A madman’s beachfront mansion with impossible architecture stood upon the sands of the lake’s beach, tall and asymmetrical in its strange layout. Wings and tall swaths of mansion levels curled up more like an amorphous octopus than a building, its ground floor a eye twisting and brightly painted front of patchwork colors whose doors and windows formed the shape of a smiling face.

The lawn in front of the mansion was strewn with artworks of all manner and description, yet almost universally nonsensical. The man who owned this Hall of Beauty stood between two of these odd sculptures which were shaped like tall fists of stone rising into the air about twenty feet. He was standing atop one of these fists, lips upon his saxophone, a garish horn of flame red metal that pulsed with a heat haze. He was certainly tall, with copper red skin on a lanky, long limbed frame. Intense orange eyes flashed within a masculine face with a pointed chin and pronounced cheekbones. A long wave of light lavender hair fell down his back, but was also thrust out and curled upwards in front, like some strange, wave-like pompadour. A white, wide sleeved vest in the style of a Soul Reaper Captain’s haori wove around his chest along with a bright red sash, and orange and red flames were etched along the sleeves. He wore a similarly colored and pair of wide, silk trousers that ended in a pair of straw sandals.

Upon reaching the two stone fist statues, Glory and Medley paused, while Blue Belle cleared her throat loud enough to be heard over the man’s playing, “My Lord Blossom! Ahem! Lord Blossom! ...Sigh. LORD BLOSSOM, FORGIVE WHAT I MUST DO!”

With a flick of her wrist, Blue Belle seemed to conjure from nowhere a silver trombone, one with an oddly studded and thick horn, and leaped into the air. She proceeded to smack Blossom upside the head with it, with a gong of clarion noise, and the man fell off the statue and landed head first on the ground with a dull thud. Blue Belle landed beside him, bowing deeply as the man blinked.

“Oh, hey Blue. Didn’t hear ya,” he said, still upside down as he waved, then noticed Glory and Medley, “Aaaaaah, time for the big pow wow, huh? Lost track of time.”

He flipped onto his feet and with a smooth toss, sent his saxophone floating up next to him. The instrument wavered in the air, then transformed into a wreath of intense red flame that then swirled around his waist until it took the shape of a blade sheathed at his side; a long and well curved shamshir with a hilt that looked like a burning heart. Blossom, face suddenly turning serious, licked his lips and thrust a thumb back at his mansion.

“Bowtie and Minty are inside. Let’s do this, before Mints wrecks any of my finer works.”

“I’d appreciate getting down to the business at hand, yes,” said Glory, proceeding towards the mansion, and when Blue Belle made to follow she paused and held up a hand, “This is not a matter for even Attendants.”

Blue Belle stopped short, turning to look at Blossom, who gave Glory a bit of an eye roll, but nodded to his Attendant, “Chill out here a spell, Blue. Division business and all that. Not something you need to worry about.”

“Of course, my Lord. If you need anything at all, just give a whistle,” Blue Belle replied and stood back, watching as the three Zero Division members walked the rest of the way into the mansion’s front doors, which consisted of a spiral shaped set of wood segments that opened up like a flower at a gesture from Blossom.

The interior was awash with colors and similarly bent and twisted, as if every wall and corridor was angled in ways the eye wasn’t meant to look at, and painted in colors the mind could not fully grasp. Even the entry hall was an art display of sculptures that flagrantly defied geometry, and staircases that didn’t look as if they went anywhere, or worse, went everywhere.

“Have you ever heard of too much, Blossom?” asked Medley, “I know what your Hall is named, but seriously, I sometimes think you should’ve stolen Minty’s idea for her Hall, as it fits better.”

“What, the Hall of Excess? Nah, Minty’s realm is way more in the ‘too much’ category. This here is just free artistic expression given form and without constraint. I know you like it Med, so don’t go trying to do your nettling schtick with me like you do Bowtie,” Blossom said with a thick grin as he spread his hands out at his many odd artworks and led them down one of the endlessly twisting halls of his domain.

The corridors felt as if alive, moving in ways both subtle and sudden. Glory and Medley paid it no mind, following Blossom’s lead as his realm shifted at his whim and took them where he willed. Specifically, to a tall pair of curved wooden doors of painted neon blue and black which when opened led into a starkly colored room of thick velvet reds and blues, containing curtains and lush furniture of such satin comfort it could only have existed in a dream.

Within this room waited two others. Bowtie, still and stern as ever, stood beside a couch shaped like a curling dragon, and bouncing on that couch was a young lady who by appearances only looked to be around her late teens or early twenties. She was short, but wide, like someone who knew their way around a bakery. Vibrant neon pink skin covered her plump form, and upon her head bounced a set of curly pigtails in a lighter, strawberry pink that bore streaks of whip cream white. A chubby, cheerful face showed sparkling, neon green eyes. She had on a loose black robe top that was normal for a Soul Reaper, with a short cut white haori that was trimmed in pink around the sleeves. On her lower body she wore a black pleated skirt, with pink ruffles underneath, and high black stockings and sandals.

Her bouncing left her partially floating due to a distinct pink parasol she held in her hands, twirling it playfully. The parasol had skull patterns etched in white amid the pink, and the lower handle of the parasol was carved out of what looked like finger bones, with a noticeable split where a blade could be pull forth from the shaft of the parasol. The girl let out a happy squeal at the sight of those entering the room, and flew over, as if her parasol was pulling her along.

“Everyone’s here! Great! I was getting soooo bored just teasing poor Bowtie, you have no idea! I hope this is about something really important because I’ve got way more fun things to do back in my Hall right now, but hey it’s good to get out every now and then.”

“You can get back to your fun soon enough, Minty, but hey maybe you’ll get lucky and get an excuse to head the world of the living soon?” suggested Medley, and the seemingly younger girl's eyes lit up like fireworks.

“Ohoho! That’d be a nice change of pace! Been forever since I’ve strolled on that little mudball.”

“Let us not waste any further time,” said Glory, striding to the center of the room and turning to face all four of her comrades, “Matters are accelerating, and before this day is done I want us all on the same page concerning how we will deal with this latest wrinkle.”

“What wrinkle is that, Glory?” asked Minty, floating upside down, and an odd glint entering her eyes as she slowly drew an inch of blade from her parasol, a black pitch black in color, from which seeped a faint smoke that smelled of death, “And is it wrinkle I get to kill?”

“We shall see. The wrinkle in question,” said Glory, her lips pressed in a tight and displeased frown, “Calls itself the Canterlot Spirit Coalition.”

----------

While she was starting to feel the edge of tiredness’ ache by the time she got back to her family manor, Twilight was far too high strung to even contemplate a quick nap in her lab. Instead of her family butler, Robert, greeting her at the door, Twilight was surprised to find her father waiting for her in the well lit entry hall. His Quincy uniform was a tad rumpled, as if he’d been stuck wearing it for an extended period, and Twilight saw the faint shades of circles under his otherwise keen yellow eyes.

“Dad? I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon,” she said, and quickly went to him and gave him a hug, one that he soon returned, quite tightly. “Is everything well?”

“As much as can be expected,” Night Light said, releasing her and taking a step back, “I was on my way back to the Silburn to officiate the new terms of cooperation between the McColts and Hooffields, largely thanks to the introduction of the K Schrift into their ranks.”

Twilight was a bit surprised by the news. She’d heard her father had managed to diffuse tensions between the feuding Quincy families, but the manner of how it was done had not reached her ears, “I don’t quite follow. How does one Schrift get those two families to stop fighting?”

Her father gave her an odd smile, one that was weary yet somehow adoring, “You’ve learned much of us in your short time, come further than I or your mother could ever have hoped for you, but you still don’t quite know everything, daughter. His... Sombra, can if he so chooses split a Schrift in half. It weakens the Schrift’s overall power, so he rarely ever does this, but by doing so it’s possible to create two Sternritter with an identical, if weakened power set. Such was the case here, where I suggested to him that to bind the Hooffields and McColts together, an arranged marriage with the Schrift as the dowry would suffice to bind the families. Or at least give a different focus to their rivalry.”

A brief shock went through Twilight, as she remembered well the innate animosity those families had for one another, although she did also recall that despite that it was still a McColt who had saved a Hooffield at the cost of her life when her unit had fought Gilda. “I... can only imagine they had some choice words to say before agreeing to that.”

“Oh, believe you me Twilight, it was an agonizing argument, and one I’ve little desire to be thrust into the center of again. Regardless, the eldest McColt daughter is to marry the eldest Hooffield son, while the patriarch and matriarch of the respective families have split the ‘K’ Schrift between them. Irony of the Ironies, the ‘K’ became the ‘Kinship’.”

“The Kinship? What does it do?” Twilight wondered, and Night Light chuckled darkly.

“Even more ironic, the Kinship spreads power to all family members in those two bloodlines so that when Hooffields and McColts fight together, their reiatsu is highly amplified. Sombra’s Schrift, a gift to these feuding idiots, means their true power now lies in fighting as a group. I’d say ‘God help us’, but we’re Quincy, and know better. Speaking of Schrifts, I heard your former principal now bears Gladmane’s ‘W’, and one of your friends bears the ‘X’ that was Hoity Toity’s?”

“Yes, Sugarcoat. Out of respect for her wishes I’ll keep her Schrift’s name a secret, and I don’t actually know what the name of Cinch’s is, as she’s not deigned to tell me,” Twilight said, shrugging, and Night Light nodded in understanding.

“It’s not uncommon, although I find the practice of keeping such things secret somewhat problematic from a command point of view. It’s useful to know what comrades and subordinates alike are capable of so I can plan future tactics and strategies. On that note, word has spread that Sombra is coming here for some manner of meeting with you, but nobody seems to know what it is about.”

Twilight tried her best not to look too nervous at his words, and spoke quickly, “He’s likely to inform you himself. I’m a bit surprised he hasn’t done so already.”

“That is because I have not.”

Twilight would have jumped if she hadn’t managed to sensed the presence of Sombra’s blanketing reiatsu a fraction of a second before the man himself simply melted out of the shadows from the side of the chamber, standing tall as the shifting blackness still clung to his cloaked and armored form. Night Light and Twilight both bowed, although it was apparent there was still a stiffness to Night Light’s motions.

“Forgive me, Sombra. I am but curious what secret dealings may further involve my family,” Night Light said, rising and holding the Quincy King’s gaze with one that almost challenged Sombra to find fault with his lack of formality. Sombra, if he found any insult in it, showed no sign and indeed spread his hands out in a disarming gesture.

“Not a secret, but I have chosen to keep this matter between a select few until necessity deems otherwise. What is happening is of grave importance, Night Light, but were I to spread word of it then it would only serve to cause upset and confusion among our forces, which I would not do without knowing for certain no other course remains.”

“These words are not encouraging,” Night Light replied, glancing at Twilight, “Can I know nothing of what this entails, especially with my daughter involved directly, it seems?”

“Twilight, I leave this call in your hands,” Sombra stated simply, “Tell your father what you will, but with the understanding this goes no further without my command.”

Twilight gulped and nodded, feeling a few butterflies dance around like electric chords in her stomach. Inside her, she felt Midnight stir, and almost cover her like a warm cloak. Want me to handle it? Your jittery.

No, I’ve got this, Twilight replied, but she felt Midnight remain focused inside her mind, like a bracing wind that supported her.

“Dad, I’m sure you’re familiar with my friends from Canterlot High, yes?” she started, and at her father’s confused but acknowledging nod, she went on to explain exactly what was going on. The formation of the Canterlot Spirit Coalition, the proposed and agreed to meeting between it’s members, Scorpan of the Gotei 13, and Sombra himself. She even explained the recent adventure into Hueco Mundo that had acquired critical data on how to zero in on Fleur De Lis for a rescue operation, a fact that even surprised Sombra as the King’s mouth opened briefly in shock at Twilight’s description of events.

“What madness...? This Sunset Shimmer fought Tirek. And did not perish?” Sombra went from shock, to something approaching respect as he let two dark fingers rub at his chin, “This certainly reassures me of the potential of this Coalition of theirs. I did not think any of the younger generation yet were able to stand so tall. If it had been you, perhaps, with your magic and Midnight, but it seems your friends hold great power and potential as well.”

“I’ve said as much,” Twilight reminded him, and a part of her wondered. Had Sunset anticipated this? While the challenge against Tirek had served many purposes, perhaps one of its most notable was the simple proof that Sunset and her friends had reached a point where even the greatest powers could no longer dismiss them. It was a form of leverage in the talks to come, and Twilight found herself both impressed and a little dismayed she hadn’t thought of it herself sooner. Sunset may well have been growing up father than she was, but then they’d both endured different trials thus far.

“I suppose you have,” Sombra replied with that customary slight smirk of his, and he turned to Night Light, “Well there you have it, my Sternritter. Your daughter is to be my aide during these talks, as is one other that you know. Coloratura?”

“I was wondering how long you’d have me sit in here, Your Majesty,” said a strong feminine voice as a form rose up from the shadow that had stretched out behind Sombra. Countess Coloratura, resplendent in her rather extreme uniform with it’s flashy mantle and white veil, gave a flip of her hair and a swift bow to Night Light and Twilight.

“Hello to both of you. I’ve not had much time or pleasure to chat with you, young Twilight, but I know your father well. Night Light, you’ve been so busy lately I haven’t even had time to join you for a visit to Velvet’s grave. Furthermore, I finally heard the news from Cadence, and need to congratulate you on your upcoming grandparenthood. It’s been an eventful few months, to say the least.”

Night Light pressed his lips tight, and Twilight saw him take a deep breath before saying, “To put it mildly. Now that I know what this is about, I can understand keeping the matter under wraps. It would certainly cause a stir among our ranks, once word gets out.”

“Word that may or may not even need to get out, depending on how these talks go,” Coloratura said, striding forward and leaning forward a bit over Twilight, “Negotiations are one thing, but it isn’t as if we haven’t had the occasional diplomatic talk with the Soul Reapers before. It always tends to go the same way. ‘Stop destroying Hollows or we shall make you by force!’ they always say, always demand. And to my knowledge our hostilities against the Hollows aren’t apt to cease anytime soon, or has the situation changed?”

“It may have,” Twilight said, not backing away from the older woman, “Sombra already knows most of the details. Has he told you anything?”

“I haven’t explained it all,” Sombra admitted, to which Coloratura gave another flip of her hair and threw up a hand.

“And I make no demands you do, Your Majesty. I’m here as an extra layer of security in case anything unexpected occurs. I have complete faith in your decisions, and I even am willing to trust Twilight here. Neither I, nor any other Sternritter I imagine, is keen to reenact Sapphire Shore’s folly. If you say there is reason to think these talks won’t result in the same circular arguments they always have, then I can but follow the chorus, as it were.”

“That being said, I am curious what these reasons are,” said Night Light, but Twilight put a hand on his arm and shook her head.

“For now, just trust us, dad.”

“I will,” he said, “Just please promise me you’ll be careful. If the Soul Reaper’s Captain Commander is going to be present, things could turn quite messy.”

“I give you my word, Night Light, I’ll allow no harm to befall your daughter,” Sombra said, arm crossing his chest as he bowed low, which seemed to paint a surprised look on Coloratura’s face at the sight of the King making such a gesture, but she said nothing. Meanwhile Night Light’s expression softened, if only a tad, and he returned Sombra’s bow.

“Very well, I’ll hold you to your word... Your Majesty. Now, I did stop here mostly to see Twilight, before departing for the Silburn.”

“Ah, yes, finishing up with those two problematic families. I wish you luck with it, Night Light. Hopefully that Schrift will give them new perspective,” Sombra said, and Night Light didn’t quite adopt a hopeful look before heading upstairs towards, Twilight presumed, his chambers to get freshed up before leaving.

This left her with Sombra and Coloratura, and Twilight had not expected either to have arrived just yet. She’d known they were coming, but it was still morning, and the meeting wasn’t until evening. She had thought she’d have time to spent further examining that unusual ‘Memory Stone’ that had been in Wallflower’s possession.

Come one, Twilight, you don’t have to entertain guests. You want to play with the stone, then go do it. I’m eager to pick it apart myself, said Midnight within Twilight’s mind, and she could all but feel the heated excitement within Midnight at the thought of a magical artifact to play with. She gave an embarrassed smile and grit her teeth against Midnight’s urgings as she motioned towards the kitchen.

“So, um, do either of you two want something to eat?”

Coloratura blinked, then smiled graciously, “I’d absolutely love a cup of tea.”

“I’m well, thank you,” Sombra said, looking her up and down in that measuring manner of his, “You seem to have something else on your mind. Did something else happen I ought to know about? Besides your friends poking the Arrancar hornet nest and dueling my personal rival among the Hollows?”

“Oh, um, heheh... well, nothing too important really. Probably nothing. Nah, in fact just totally forget about it. I’ll go find Robert to make some tea, and if you don’t mind I’ll just pop out for a few hours.”

Coloratura cast an askance look at Sombra, then at Twilight, as if not quite knowing how to gauge their relationship, for Sombra looked back at Twilight with equal embarrassment as he just shook his head.

“If you’ve work to be about then I’d hate to intrude. I can make Coloratura some tea, while you take care of whatever it is you need to.”

“No, no, I can do it if I can’t find Robert.”

“There’s really no need.”

Coloratura rubbed at her eyes as the pair went on, and she just sort of edged towards the kitchen, pointing that direction, “I’ll just go take care of it myself. You two keep doing... whatever this is.”

Then she quite literally vanished with a swift Hirenkyaku maneuver, leaving Sombra and Twilight staring after her. After a second Sombra cleared his throat and blew out a breath of air, “I apologize. I should be able to comport myself better than this. I still... need to adjust to knowing who you are.”

“It’s fine, really,” Twilight said, rubbing at her head, which was starting to ache a bit, “At this point I don’t even know really how I should act around you, and it was even more awkward with dad here. Also, does Coloratura have an issue with me I should be aware of?”

“No, but do understand she thought of Sapphire Shores as a bit of a rival herself, and I think she doesn’t know what to make of you, a mere girl who defeated her equal. Despite their rivalry, they were a pair, and worked well together,” Sombra trailed off, shadows caressing his features with memories before he gave a shake of his head, “Now I can tell there’s something on your mind you wish to get to, and I’ll not hold you up or pry. Just be ready in time for the meeting.”

“Oh, of course! And thank you. Ah, also if you see any of my friends running around, try not to be too overbearing and Kingly with them? Granted I think most of them are in the lab right now, but they might freak out a bit if they see you just sitting in the dining room drinking tea.”

“I’ll endeavor to not overwhelm anyone with the intensity of my presence,” Sombra said with a dry air, but he smiled at her as he bowed one last time and followed Coloratura towards the doors into the dinning room and the expansive kitchen beyond. Twilight briefly considered how odd it might seem to think of Sombra and Coloratura, the Quincy King and one of his strongest Sternritter, just standing around making tea together. She shook off the oddity of it and quickly made her way towards a hall that’d lead to the stairs down towards the basement, where she’d left the Memory Stone.

Her team should be down there as well, in the larger ‘materials’ lab where they, if following her schedule, would be helping Spike test out his new battle gear.

She hadn’t thought of a name for it yet, but Spike had floated the term Gundog, apparently as a nod to a famed robot from a Japanese cartoon he was fond of. She wasn’t terribly fond of the name, and might workshop it with Spike later. Then again, it was going to be Spike’s weapon, so perhaps she ought to just let the little guy name it whatever he liked. She was still a tad hesitant about encouraging him to join her in combat situations, but knowing Spike he’d end up involved regardless of what she said, and the memory of his injury at the hands of Spoiled Rich remained a keenly painful one.

But for now she wanted to tear into the mystery of that magical stone, and enjoy a few hours of simple research bliss, before delving back into the murky swamp of diplomacy and politics.

----------

Waiting often seemed to get more laborious the closer the appointed time got. Sunset had found herself uncertain on what to do as the hours counted down. Discord, Screwball, and Screwloose had the set up well in hand, putting up an impressive if simple meeting area within the training grounds. Discord had raised a decent sized mesa of stone with a carved staircase that switched back and forth on either side of the edifice. Upon the smooth top of the mesa was a wide white carpet that sat under a long, low table of polished dark wood, surrounded by simple, high backed chairs. On one side of the table, several feet back, were banners on tall poles. The banners consisted of a black background upon which a white sycamore tree was placed, showing deep roots that hung to the lower end of the banner. From the branches of the tree hung oval gems depicted in six colors; red, blue, purple, pink, orange, and yellow.

The symbol of the Canterlot Spirit Coalition had been worked upon by just about everyone putting in their ideas, although the tree was largely Gaia’s suggestion, although none had objected to it. The tree represented not just Canterlot City, but life in general, upon which both the branches and roots symbolized the cycles of life between the human world and the spirit world. The black background represented death itself as the foundation of the cycle that the Coalition existed to represent from all sides and help safeguard as a whole. The colored gems rather plainly could be directly correlated to Sunset and her friends, but she preferred to think of them as being more representative of the notion that the task of protecting the cycle was something that required many small and diverse groups of individuals.

“I like it.”

Sunset didn’t jump, having sensed Clover’s approach before the Soul Reaper had even appeared next to her. Sunset had come to the meeting area on a whim, and had been looking over one of the banners. Clover had already fussed over her earlier, and last Sunset had seen had been talking with Discord back up in the shop, but now the two of them were alone, Sunset realized. Rarity was still working on last touches to some new outfits for everyone for the meeting, including what Rarity called a “quasi-official uniform” for the Coalition’s Marshals. Pinkie Pie had roped Applejack and Rainbow Dash into helping her whip up some food and drinks for the meeting, and Fluttershy had disappeared somewhere, mentioning she wanted to check on Smooze.

“Part of me feels like it’s missing something, but haven’t been able to put my finger on what,” Sunset admitted, letting herself relax a little, or at least she tried to by shaking out her shoulders a bit. “Honestly not sure we even needed something like this, but I guess it makes everything look a bit more official.”

Clover shifted on her feet, and Sunset saw her eyes still looking over Sunset with that eye for injury, as if the girl still couldn’t believe Sunset had survived a direct confrontation with Tirek. “It might be a bit much, but I doubt the Captain Commander is going to care about that. He’s going to be focused on your reasons for forming the Coalition and what that means for Soul Society. I’m with you all the way, but I probably know you and the girls better than any other Soul Reaper right now, except maybe Captain Sweet Cider. Everyone else is going to need convincing.”

“Well, I’d like to think we earned enough points after helping expose the BS surrounding Platinum and Starlight that Scorpan will at least hear us out.”

“Oh, he will, otherwise I don’t think he’d ever agree to come, but still...” Clover smoothed out her sleeves, eyes still flickering around Sunset and not quite meeting her gaze, “I’m just really worried about you. I mean all of you! Not just you, of course.”

Sunset didn’t like seeing Clover so jittery, so she went and without really thinking about it got close to Clover and bumped her hip with her own, “Hey, quit it, worrywart. Won’t help anything to tie your brain into knots, and I need you sharp minded. You’re one of us, even if you're still wearing the Gotei 13’s uniform, and I want you right next to us for whatever goes down. This meeting is just that, a meeting. Won’t be like with Tirek where I’m challenging people to duels.”

“I still cannot believe you did that,” Clover said, surprisingly not leaning back from Sunset, instead sort of sighing and remaining leaned against the other girl, “I’ve always known you were hot headed. Practically from the moment I met you you’ve never ceased to leap right into the fire. I admire it almost as much as I want to tear my hair out every time you do something crazy. I’m still shocked this all started with you picking up an Asauchi I ended up dropping because of Starlight’s scheming. You’ve come... so far, Sunset. I just want to keep up with you, and help see you through to the end of it.”

The last words were spoken in a pained whisper, and Sunset found herself with a tight throat, not liking seeing Clover with such a pale look, “You’re way more bothered by this than I thought. What’s wrong? You know you can talk to me.”

“I just have this... bad feeling. Just nervous, I imagine. I know I’m not as strong as you and the others, but I’ve come a long way, too, and I’ll keep fighting by your side. It’s just that,” Clover turned her head slightly to give Sunset a look that carried confusion swirling within hope, “I really just don’t want you getting hurt. That’s all.”

As if something in her words were a hot brand, Clover jumped back, suddenly shaking her hands in front of her, “I mean of course I don’t want that for anyone, obviously. You’re all my friends and we’re basically heading towards a situation where we might have to do battle with the strongest beings in all the realms, so you know, I think my worries are completely justified right!? And here I am, no Zanpaktou, still planning to be right there beside all of you when it all goes down! Isn’t that insane? I’ve been a Soul Reaper for quite a long time, I mean, probably longer than you’ve been alive, and in the past four months I’ve done so many crazy things! And... and you’ve been there for me for every step of it all, and I never really was one for making friends, and now I have so many, including you, and all of you mean so much to me and oh Spirit Queen I’m babbling.”

“Hey, hey!” Sunset held up her own hands until, rather not by intention, she ended up holding one of Clover’s and both girls halted, Sunset quickly trying to think of something to say, “I get it, you know? My life’s been turned upside down so many times at this point I’m pretty sure I’ve lost all concept of what I ever intended to do with it. Sure wasn't ‘Become a super-powered ghost samurai and fight in a spirit war to determine the fate of all the souls in the world’! Just sort of turned out that way, and I rolled with every punch, and threw a few myself, not the least of which was into Tirek’s face. And I’m not done punching by a long shot, Clover. I’m going to put an end to all of this, or go down swinging.”

Clover pulled her hand away, cradling it, and looking away, “I know you will. And if you do, I’ll be there swinging with you, that much I promise. Just don’t leave me behind, okay?”

“Is that what you’re worried about?” Sunset asked, then put on a wide, relieved smile, “If it is; don’t. You’re part of the crew, one of my friends, and in case you haven’t noticed you’re kind of a badass Soul Reaper. I mean, sans Zanpaktou and you still pack enough power on Kido alone to help us take down a former Espada. We get you Chishiki back, and I bet you could solo an Espada or two, or one of those Sternritter.”

Clover’s face was going strawberry as she shook her head, “You need to be careful about these pep talks, Sunset... it could give a girl ideas.”

“Hmm?” Sunset tilted her head, not quite hearing that last part, and Clover made a short ‘ack’ noise and shook her head, backing up a few steps.

“Nothing, nevermind. Hey look at the time! Looks like we’ve only got an hour before the Captain Commander arrives with Captain Blueblood and Captain Amore! Maybe we should go, um, see if Discord needs us to do any final preparations?”

The sudden subject change seemed a bit odd to Sunset, and she wasn’t completely blind and deaf, either. She just wasn’t sure she was picking up the vibes from Clover that she thought she was. If she wasn’t crazy about what she was sensing from Clover, that brought up a whole fresh set of questions that were worth asking. Especially because Sunset hadn’t thought about that with any seriousness for a long time, and there were complications on that front. Then again, Sunset might have been very much misreading things, and she didn’t want to fluster her friend any more than needed. Sunset wasn’t even sure she swung that way, although she had experimented with it back when she’d been a unicorn.

Given the circumstances, it wasn’t the best time to get entangled in that manner anyway, but Sunset wasn’t a stone statue, either. She liked Clover. She just didn’t know how much further that ‘like’ went, and now of all times wasn’t ideal for finding out.

But she sure as hell made a mental note of it.

----------

The architecture of Las Noches was still just a little mystifying to Adagio. The giant walls, she generally understood. The enormity of its central tower, sure she got it. Lots of wasted space, but if she was going to have a throne, may as well put it in a ludicrously tall spire of stone. Even the labyrinth of the Warrens under the fortress’ foundations made a certain sense, considering it could house thousands of cast of Arrancar, and acted as a natural deterrent between attackers and Las Noches’ fairly well hidden factory center.

That said, she still didn’t get why there were just so many random empty cylindrical or square stone buildings and towers just sitting scattered across Las Noches’ artificially daylit interior. Surely there couldn’t be enough failed Espada out there that each of these structures were the former abode of one? The thought stuck with Adagio as depressingly the most logical explanation, which she didn’t think boded very well for the future of the Coalition “embassy”, but she supposed if there was any group of madfolk who could pull it off, it was Sunset Shimmer’s.

The building in question was at least among the more impressive versions of the abandoned structures littering Las Noches. It was located not far from the western wall, and consisted of a two tiered double dome of stone stacked up within the center of an odd circular wall that was made of tightly packed small pillars. A ‘gate’ of sorts, which was really just a spot in the wall where three or four of the pillars were shorter and had stars carved on either side of them, allowed easy access on the east side. To Adagio’s surprise, over the big oval archway into the larger, lower dome, there was already a hanging banner.

“Just made themselves right at home, didn’t they?” said Di Roy, “What’s with the tree flag?”

“I imagine it’s the symbol of this new Coalition of theirs,” Adagio said, eyes scanning the area around her while her Pesquisa cut across the landscape. She didn’t sense anyone of note, but there were at least a score of reiatsu signatures hanging out around the nearby dunes. A combination of curious watchers and probably more than a few agents of the other Espada, keeping an eye on this development. Adagio didn’t mind. It’d be odder if this place wasn’t being watched.

“What do you even make of this, boss lady?” Di Roy scratched at his nose, feigning boredom while keeping as sharp an eye out as Adagio was. “These human pals of yours serious about trying to make friendly with us?”

“I don’t put anything past Sunset Shimmer at this point. Stay out here and keep watch,” she commanded, and proceeded past the threshold and into the interior. As was often the case with spaces within Las Noches, the dome’s interior was wide and largely bare, with mysterious lighting that stemmed from seemingly nowhere. A set of walls at ninety degree angles partitioned the entry section from the rest of the doom, with white walls bearing more archways that led presumably to other areas of the building.

Adagio heard voices from the archway to her left. She hadn’t been hiding her reiatsu, so she assumed the owners of those voices must know she was there, but from the sound of it they were engaged in casual conversation. Curious, Adagio moved without hurry towards them, starting to make out words as she approached the open archway to her left.

“-just saying, if you hate her that much, I’m pretty sure we can arrange it so you get a shot at her.”

Adagio knew that voice as Ditzy Doo’s. The voice that responded was now familiar as well, if only because she’d heard it a few times now. Gaia Everfree. Or Gloriosa Daisy, depending on the fused Arrancar woman’s mood.

“That isn’t going to do us any good right now. I can barely control myself when she’s around, but as long as Chrysalis isn’t present, I can think straight. I’m not strong enough yet to take her head on, and we can’t afford to start that fight at this time. I can be... patient.”

“Don’t know if this will piss you off or not, but Sunset did let me in on just how bad the history between you two is. I have to say I’m impressed with you, keeping it together while Sunset took on Tirek.”

There was a heavy pause before Adagio heard Gaia reply, “It’s Gloriossa. I, she, helped hold back the part of me that’s Gaia. I can’t risk my own destruction with Timber to consider, and the camp that still needs me. There’s greater things at stake than the vengeance of my Gaia half. Chrysalis... she’ll pay for what she did one day, but I can live with it not being today, or tomorrow. Maybe next week?

This was followed by a bark of a laugh from Ditzy, “Hah! Glad to see you’ve still got some humor in you. I wouldn’t worry about the timing. Even if peace with the Hollows works out beyond expectations, I seriously doubt Chrysalis is going to be among those looking to make friends.”

“You don’t know how she goes about making friends, but I take your meaning. I’ll have my chance. And since I’m hardly one of those honor obsessed types, I’ll gladly take all the help I can get in doing the deed.”

“Oho! An invitation!? I admit, I’d like to take a crack at her myself. I’ve taken on a lot of heavy hitters, and I’d be curious to see just how much regeneration that crazy bitch is capable of when I get... serious.”

By now Adagio had reached the archway to see that in the room beyond the space was essentially a wedge copy of the entry hall. Only here stood Gaia Everfree and Ditzy Doo, having started moving in what looked like a set of furniture and rugs to start setting up a lounge-like area. The pair both looked towards her without surprise, and Adagio immediately felt a curious intensity from Gaia as the other Arrancar measured her.

“Adagio Dazzle. I expected you might be the first to visit our official embassy. Allow me to welcome you, as the Coalition's Field Marshal assigned as ambassador to Las Noches,” Gaia Everfree approached with confident steps, halting to give Adagio an acknowledging if very small nod. Ditzy Doo remained a bit further back, hauling a couch over to the central living space, but she gave a wave.

“Heya, Dazzle! Been forever since I got to get a good look at you. From plushie to Espada in a few months. Talk about a meteoric rise. I bet Discy never saw it coming. By the by, you still interested in your old body that he’s got on ice?”

Adagio shifted her trident, ever carried in her right hand, so that she could easily rest it in the crook of her arm in a more casual, relaxed stance. Even if she didn’t quite drop her guard. She addressed Ditzy first, making an off hand gesture, “I wouldn’t mind it if he kept it intact. As he explained it to me, getting me to be able to occupy it again is a problematic affair and that a gigai would work easier.”

“True on both counts. Your old human body is kind of like a shoe that doesn’t quite fit anymore, so custom making a gigai is actually easier than trying to shove you back into your old one. That said, Discord did want me to shoot the idea by you since with this new embassy we got, he can also set up a field lab here. A place to move your old body and make it easier to acclimate it to Hollow reiatsu, given Las Noches is bathed in the stuff. Given time, might make it so we can more easily retrofit it to accept your soul in it’s current beefed up Arrancar state.”

“I... wouldn’t mind that,” Adagio said, then shrugged, “I’ve gotten so used to myself as I am now that I’m in no real rush to go back to being ‘human’, truth be told. It might be nice if I ever get time for a proper vacation. I’d kill, literally, for a long quiet time at a beach with a small host of beautiful men to serve me drinks and my other needs. As it stands, I’m still stuck dealing with our present circumstances, so such an indulgence will sadly have to wait.”

“Well, aren't you a workaholic?” said Gaia, although her tone of voice being a bit more casual and even joking was more reminiscent of Gloriosa, “I can appreciate a work before play mindset. So you’re the Sixth Espada. I confess, your reiatsu feels more potent than that number. Haven’t challenged Torch for a higher spot, yet?”

Adagio wore a more guarded look now, “It doesn’t serve my purposes to draw even more attention to myself, and a number is just a number. The power is what matters. If my position causes my enemies to underestimate me, all the better.”

“And who are your enemies?” asked Gaia, “I admit I’m curious. Sunset Shimmer has told me a little about you, and she seems to think very fondly of you. I have no reason to distrust her judgment, and you certainly seemed like you were on our side out there today, but you do seem like an... ambitious sort of individual.”

“I do what I need to in order to survive, establish myself, and have the power I need to support those who follow me. If that is ambition, then indeed I am most ambitious. I’ve died once before. I don’t care to repeat the experience. On top of that, to be frank, Las Noches is a bit of a hellhole I’d like to improve upon. I also find this war to be a colossal waste of time and resources better expended elsewhere.”

Gaia stared at her, then her expression slowly softened, “Then we are of like mind. I heard you have taken up residence in my former abode. I wanted to see what kind of woman now occupied the place me and those dear to me once called home. It seems she’s a woman of at least some decent character.”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Adagio said with a bit of cheek, “But I will protect me and mine, of that I can assure you.”

“Then take my advice, and be exceedingly wary of Chrysalis. I can smell her reiatsu on you, and if she’s been sniffing around you then you can be sure she and her untrustworthy brood mean you no good,” Gaia said, voice hot edged and dark, “Hueco Mundo would be better if every last trace of them were burned out.”

“You can be certain I don’t trust Chrysalis a single inch, and only have any dealings with her quite against my choice,” Adagio said, although she decided not to mention her present closeness with Chrysalis’ son, Thorax. She had a bad feeling that Gaia might not differentiate much between Chrysalis, and Chrysalis’ children. Indeed there was a feral hate that briefly burned in Gaia’s eyes that made Adagio think that, as pleasant as this current exchange was, it was Gaia she’d need to be wary of more than Chrysalis. In any future confrontation, Gaia might consider the likes of Thorax fair targets.

Adagio had a somewhat irrational spike of anger at the thought. She wasn’t about to let Thorax get hurt, especially because of some ancient grudge against his mad mother.

As if sensing the brooding turn of the conversation, Ditzy popped up between them, with such speed and stealth it actually startled both Arrancar women.

“Okaaaay, let’s can the serious talk and instead break this place in with some drink!” she said, somehow materializing a bottle of what looked to be rather fine wine which she popped the cork on, “To a long and prosperous friendship and all that jazz!”

“Um, do you have any glasses?” Gaia asked as Ditzy proceeded to drink straight from the bottle, gasping as she wiped her lips and handed the bottle over towards the other woman.

“Glasses?”

Gaia just shared a look at Adagio, who shook her head and reached over to grab the bottle, “I think I can offer my services in more thoroughly stocking your ‘embassy’ with a few more accouterments.”

----------

The Senkaimon Gate appeared, its shape of humble sliding, circular paper and wood braced doors belying the importance of who was arriving. A cloud of black Hell Butterflies wafted forth from the opening doors to herald the new arrivals onto the top of the plain, stone mesa. There was a weight to the steps of Captain Commander Scorpan, head of the Gotei 13, although a certain weariness hung on his shoulders like a second coat. His Captain’s uniform hid much of his frame, but there was still power in his motions despite his seeming age.

Next to him, Lieutenant Smart Cookie paced a single step behind her Captain, carrying a satchel of scrolls over one shoulder. Behind her arrived came four more Soul Reapers, in two pairs, Captains and Lieutenants both. First was Captain Amore, whose long red hair trailed behind her and whose own tired features were lit up with a brush of optimistic curiosity as she looked about at the meeting area, so simply set atop the stone pillar within Discord’s sprawling training grounds.

“An interesting location. I can tell it’s been separated from the physical world somewhat,” Amore commented. At her side, her Lieutenant, Radiant Hope, matched her Captain’s intrigued look, having rarely left the Seireitei herself.

“Considering it is former Captain Discord who built this place, it’s little wonder it’s so well hidden. I’m glad enough to have this meeting in an open area rather than a cloistered space.”

“Quite so,” said a voice behind them, jovial and still a tad boisterous, if not nearly as much as was previously customary for Captain Blueblood. He strode through the Senkaimon with eagerness in his eyes, a somewhat haggard looking Moondancer filing in behind him. While Blueblood drank in the sights around him, his eyes rapidly locked into the meeting table set up in the center of the area, for there were already seated along the right side the key members of the Coalition.

Discord himself took up the center seat of eleven. On his left sat Sunset’s five friends, with Sunset separated only by being on Discord’s right, with Ditzy Doo seated the next chair over. The rest of that side of the table was occupied by a somewhat nervous and equally challenging Gaia Everfree, the two Bounts Holiday and Lofty, and finally at the very end, Cloudy Quartz. Directly across from Cloudy, on the other side of the table, sat Captain Sweet Cider, awaiting the rest of the Soul Society’s delegation.

Blueblood barely paid the grouping any mind, eyes locked on Rarity as he smiled and made to walk towards her, at least until Moondaner cleared her throat loudly and drew his attention with a whispered, “Sir, we’re here for diplomacy, not flirting. Save it for after the negotiations.”

“I was merely going to say hello as a matter of courtesy,” Blueblood groused, but followed his Lieutenant's advice and waited to follow the lead of his Captain Commander, while Captain Amore gave the younger Captain a small smile of pity.

Scorpan for his part proceeded without breaking stride, approaching the left side of the table that was unoccupied save for Sweet Cider. As per agreement, however, the spot Scorpan took was at the actual head of the left side of the table, as he knew who was to sit at the other end, and this would put him equal distance from that man and Discord. The other Soul Reapers filed into the seats down from Sweet Cider, leaving four on the right end of the table unoccupied, not including the main seat on the right side’s head. Blueblood, unable to help himself, gave a somewhat well practiced sitting bow to Rarity after getting seated, a gesture she responded to with a raised eyebrow and after a moment, a wry half smile.

However she wasn’t hiding her Soul Chain, and it didn’t take even the starry eyed Blueblood long to notice it, and the man opened his mouth to say something with a sudden stricken look, but he was cut off by Scorpan’s commanding and stone hard tone.

“Discord, we have agreed to this meeting, but understand that if the situation requires it I can guarantee nothing concerning the safety of this location, or indeed even the city itself.”

“And no such guarantee is needed,” Discord replied simply, “For in the event of hostilities, I can assure you that we will eject the hostile parties promptly, regardless of who initiates them.”

“Count on it,” Sunset added, but her tone was less about menace and had a more inviting quality to it, “But I’ve got a feeling it’s not going to come to that. You’re not here to start a fight, and whether you believe it or not, I don’t think the other side of this is, either.”

“We shall see,” Scorpan replied, eyes taking the measure of Sunset and the others on the Coalition side of the table. He had to admit, even if he kept it locked behind his hard features, that the young women who’d shaken things up so much of late had grown quite a lot in a very short time. He could sense their reiatsu was now made of much sterner stuff than when they’d invaded Seireitei to correct the mistake of Luna and Celestia’s imprisonment.

He’d read all of the reports concerning Everfree, so was not shocked by Gaia’s presence, and much as he had long had a duty to battle Hollows, his memories were long and remained keen. He nodded to her, “It has been a long time, Gaia. Your form has changed, but a part of me is... glad to see you.”

Gaia didn’t hid a look of surprise before meeting his look, “You as well, Sorpan. Seems we’ve come full circle, friends to enemies, perhaps enemies to friends before the day is done?”

“That will depend upon many things, not the least of which is him,” said Scorpan, eyes narrowing towards the place next to where the Senkaimon had appeared. That gate was now gone, but replaced by a growing bloom of shadow darker than ink. It billowed upwards, thick as oil, and unwrapped like a vast dark cloak from four human shapes.

Twilight Sparkle stood beside Sugarcoat, who kept close to Twilight’s side in an almost protective manner of a bodyguard. Coloratura had one hand planted firmly on an outward thrust hip, giving everyone present a defiant look from behind her white veil. Applejack’s face twitched slightly, her brain tickled with recognition, but she couldn’t fathom from where. Coloratura certainly didn’t seem to recognize her, eyes passing over Applejack with the same challenging look the tall and gorgeously glitzy woman was giving everyone present.

Finally Sombra, at the center of the Quincy delegation, standing like a tall and iron clad monolith, spoke in a richly courteous tone, “It seems we’re a tad late. Ah, but our seats remain open. Sit, my Quincy, and let us have a parley with the Soul Reapers and our gracious hosts.”

“Of course, Your Majesty,” said Coloratura, first to step up with long, confident strides to a seat that put her right next to Blueblood, who gave the rather towering woman an askance glance as she sat down and proceeded to prop one leg up on the table while laying her hands clasped behind her head.

Twilight coughed politely and proceeded to the chair on Coloratura’s right, with Sugarcoat planting herself, arms crossed, in the last seat before the head of the table. There, at the head directly opposite of Scorpan, did Sombra take his seat with the gravitas befitting a king, shadows still draped around him in an aura of black mist.

Scorpan and Sombra’s eyes met, and to all it was like the entire vastness of Discord’s training area grew smaller and strained under the unseen weight of their eyes. Reiatsu didn’t explode out of them in terms of pressure, but rather simply pushed and pulled by unconscious proximity, two gravitational forces now placed so close to one another that they couldn’t help but clash. It made just about all present sweat, just a little.

“Well, isn’t this exciting?” Discord said with a clap of his hands, “So, if now that we’re all here, let’s get this underway, shall we?”

Episode 175: Face to Face

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Episode 175: Face to Face

Twilight felt pulled back to that horribly awkward and fearful time of being new to Crystal Prep, filled to the brim with the social tension of not knowing what to say or how to interact with anyone, so the default emotion was to turtle up internally out of a desire to remain hidden. But she couldn’t afford that. She had to force herself to be past that. Within, she felt not only the hardened well of calm she’d been crafting for herself from dealing with crisis after crisis, but she also felt the firm and bracing energy of Midnight within her mind, fueling Twilight with a dose of Midnight’s own supreme confidence. She looked to Sombra, wondering what was going through his mind.

She knew who Radiant Hope was, and was trying hard not to stare too hard on that Soul Reaper Lieutenant, who was coincidentally seated rather close, only two people down. Only Sugarcoat was between Twilight and Radiant Hope, and she couldn’t help but notice the fall of teal hair as Radiant Hope gave a curious look down the table at the Quincy.

She can’t recognize Sombra. This Radiant Hope has no memories of that life, Twilight reminded herself. At least according to Sombra’s story, the spirit that had become this Soul Reaper was the result of the original Radiant Hope’s soul getting split up due to a tug of war between Sombra’s ability to absorb his fallen Quincy, and a Soul Reaper’s Konso technique.

Given the extreme animosity between Sombra and Scorpan, Twilight had a suspicion which Soul Reaper was responsible for that Konso.

Sombra for his part was paying Radiant Hope no mind, but Twilight was familiar enough with him now to tell that the steel stillness on his face was utterly betrayed by the fraying flicker of his shadow and the overt tightness of his jawline. Not all of that was because of Scorpan, Twilight could tell, because she saw the tension in his neck as if he was struggling not to turn his head towards Radiant Hope. She wished she could do something to calm him, but any distraction at all was probably a bad idea right now.

The silence was getting entirely too cold and heavy, and was shockingly shattered by Applejack, of all people, as she stood up and pounded a hand into her palm, “Now I got it! Coloratura from the Canterlot Sparrow Scouts, troop eleven!”

Everyone looked at her, and Applejack’s face rapidly reddened as she slowly sat down, taking her hat off and wringing it a bit as she glanced back at Coloratura, “Uh, ya are, right? Yer a lot more gussied up n’ I remember, but ya still got them pipes. Hard ta ferget a voice like that.”

Sombra blinked, gravity seeming to shift as he turned his head towards Coloratura while still deridingly not looking at Radiant Hope. “Remind me, Countess, in your childhood you spent a summer in Canterlot City while your parents conducted Quincy business, yes?”

Coloratura cleared her throat, raising a hand in a faint wave, “I do seem to recall something along those lines. My mother and father seemed to think sticking me in a local girl scout affair would keep me out of trouble.” She paused, eyes piercing into Applejack, and her lips parted in a small gasp, “Ah, I do think I remember now that there was a blonde local girl who made a respectable backup singer to my performances. I’d all but forgotten. Applejack, was it?”

“Er, yup, that’s me. Uh, s-sorry fer the outburst there, just was naggin’ the heck outta my noggin’ why ya looked so dang familiar. Ummm... how’s it been?”

Coloratura hid her mouth with the back of her hand and tittered rather intensely, “Oh, you know, rising to the highest ranks of the Quincy, slaughtering Hollows, succeeding my fallen parents, serving my King with my beauteous voice. The usual.”

“Oh, I’m... sorry about yer parents.”

“Don’t be, they died as Quincy should, in service to the cause. Still, Applejack, I think we can save the ‘catching up’ time for when there isn’t a... you know...” Coloratura rather pointedly gestured at the table of immensely powerful and important individuals, and Applejack’s face somehow managed to burn even more fully red.

“Right, uh, sorry folks.”

“It’s fine Applejack,” said Sunset, actually smiling as she looked between Sombra and Scorpan, “Broke the ice. Now that we can all stop pretending to be silent and awkward about this let’s just get right to the point. We’re the Canterlot Spirit Coalition. We’ve made our declaration of formation known to both you, Captain Commander Scorpan of the Gotei 13, and King Sombra of the Quincy. What we haven’t yet done is establish what our intentions are in forming the Coalition and our future goals, nor even the specific reasons we felt the need to make this move. For that, I’m going to have our High Marshal, Discord, tell you some important if unpleasant information that you might have trouble believing.”

“Thank you for the quick intro, Field Marshal Shimmer,” Discord said with a wink, clearly having fun with the officious nature of the event, if perhaps not taking it entirely too seriously. However his face did swiftly lose its humor and became as grave as a tomb as he addressed those gathered.

“Let us not beat around the bush. Scorpan, Sombra, you both know who I am. You know what I’ve done, both when I ran Xcution, and perhaps even some of the events before that. You also know I’ve spent most of my time since Soul Society exiled me remaining a fairly neutral party here in Canterlot City, content to fence sit while you and the Hollows continued to try to destroy each other. That changed when these young girls discovered the existence of this spirit war and came to me for help, giving me a rare chance to make some amends for my past involvement with Xcution and Hitsuyo-Aku by helping them discover and grow their powers. As a result, Soul Society was spared some of the destruction and chaos that would have ensured had Starlight Glimmer and her cohort’s plants gone unopposed, or if the events at Everfree Forest had been allowed to proceed unabated.”

He nodded at Gaia, who returned the nod with a somber one of her own, “I confess, without Sunset Shimmer and the fine young ladies at her side, my own actions would have spiraled out of control and done damage I care not to consider now. I serve the Coalition now as a willing member in hopes of doing some good with my own present... unusual circumstances.”

She didn’t go into detail about her existence as a unique fusion of a human Fulllbringer’s soul with a powerful Arrancar and former Espada, but practically everyone present could feel her reitasu was hardly normal by Hollow standards.

Discord continued, forestalling any interruptions or questions, “The decision to form the Coalition was made because it was past time a united force existed to counteract two things. One is the present stalemate the spirit war has found itself in. We have every intention of acting as a mediating force to try and bring about an end to the stalemate, hopefully through peaceful and diplomatic means.”

Scorpan was fast to speak, voice clipped, cool, but jaded, “A noble intention but not one so readily realized. Our quarrel with the Hollows and Quincy is one forged of long standing incompatibilities of ideology. For the Hollows, their very nature as consumers of souls upsets our intended role as balancers of the afterlife’s flow of souls. The Quincy, ever unwilling to halt their own war of aggression against them with their soul destroying techniques remain a threat to that balance as well. I’m afraid any attempt at peace must first overcome the fundamental hurdles of making Hollows cease to act like Hollows, and convincing Quincy to lay down their arms.”

Sombra was just as fast to speak now, his words pointed as spears cast at an enemy, “You’ve never furnished a single shred of proof that the power of Quincy destroys the souls that comprise a Hollow’s being, and even if they did you’ve never once offered sufficient proof that this ‘balance’ you speak of is under threat. We’ve warred for generations, Scorpan, do you not think that if the balance of souls was so delicate that it would have already collapsed during any of the numerous points in our long conflict where the balance of power temporarily shifted in favor of the Quincy?”

Amore cleared her throat somewhat loudly, blue eyes still as a glacier, “I can furnish you with any number of the Twelfth Division’s records on experiments conducted in the Precipice Realm to confirm shifts in the orientation of the realms that stemmed from imbalances in the flow of souls. As I recall it is not a simple matter of a singular tipping point where the realms will inevitably be doomed to collide, so much as if an imbalance occurs, the process might take a decade or two to have such catastrophic effects, but can be corrected within that timeframe. This is what has happened in the past when, as you say, the Quincy have gained an upper hand and destroyed many Hollows. Usually within a year or two the balance shifted back in another side’s favor, and the flow of souls stabilizes, at least for a time.”

This piqued Twilight’s interest, as she’d certainly had some time to conduct her own research on this subject, especially in regards to the status of a Hollow soul ‘destroyed’ by Quincy techniques. She raised a hand, drawing Amore’s attention, “If I may ask, where precisely did the idea that Quincy abilities destroy souls originate from? You’re Captain of the Division in charge of record keeping and administration in Seireitei, so I imagine if anyone knows the origin of this claim, it’d be you.”

“That is correct,” Amore’s lips twitched a bit, not quite a smile, but a look of approval at Twilight’s curiosity and acknowledgment, “And it is a worthwhile question. The answer dates back to around the time of the formal creation of Soul Society and the Gotei 13, although for a time back then it was just The Thirteen.”

“The Thirteen?” Twilight asked, looking a tad bewildered.

“Yes, the original thirteen warriors who were the first Soul Reapers, and who became the first thirteen Captains when the Gotei 13’s actual Divisions was formally created,” Amore explained, “Of their number Captain Commander Scorpan counted himself, as did Captain Starswirl, although in his case he did not remain a Captain for very long before his personal research interests took him elsewhere and another had to take his place. Of the others, there were Captain Mistmane, Captain Stonehoof, Captain-”

“Ahem,” Scorpan cut her off, “Focus upon the question if you will, Captain Amore?”

“Ah, yes, of course. Well the important part is that five of the original thirteen were direct children of the Soul Queen, who would later leave the Gotei 13 and create the Zero Division to guard the Soul Palace. It was around that same timeframe that King Sombra of the Quincy made himself known, and Hollows began to vanish from Quincy attacks. It was such an astounding and concerning event that the Zero Division performed their own investigation into the matter, and it was their report that contained the vital information that the vanished Hollows had not been purified or had their souls captured or otherwise relocated, but instead were for all intents and purposes, obliterated. This was the spark that caused Soul Society to consider Quincy a significant threat to the balance of souls and began our conflict with them.”

“Have you read this ancient report from the Zero Division’s investigation?” asked Twilight, “Do you know precisely how it was conducted?”

“I have. It’s actually required reading at the Academy,” Amore admitted, “No one can question the capabilities of the Zero Division, and the report details a very thorough analysis of battle sites where Quincy and Hollows have done battle, showing not even the slightest trace of Hollow reiatsu following their destruction. Furthermore, careful study of the reiryoku levels within the flow of souls between realms did show a growing loss after Quincy conflicts with the Hollows. Just to be even more thorough, there were even experiments conducted on captured Quincy and Hollows to confirm that upon being slain by the Quincy’s abilities, the vanishing of the Hollow soul was readily apparent. I can’t see how there can be any doubt cast upon the matter, as unfortunate as it is.”

“I see,” Twilight adjusted her glasses in thought, “So which Zero Division member specifically wrote the report?”

“I’m not sure why that matters, and technically the actual writing of the report wasn’t done by them but rather one of their family members,” Amore said, taking a moment to think, her eyes staring upward as she searched her long memory for the names in question, “I believe it was a member of the Star Family, Flareburst I believe her name was.”

Twilight did her best to hide a frown of recognition, not looking at the girls across the table but she felt all of them, especially Sunset, tense. Twilight had been made aware before this meeting what Sunset and the girls were intending to reveal here, and the connection the Star Family had with the Zero Division and Starlight Glimmer. Flareburst was a remarkably similar name to a certain other someone who was at the heart of all of this, and the fact that this individual wrote the report that condemned the Quincy... and might also be aware of the truth...

“Let me ask you another question, then,” Twilight said quietly, “Do you know why it is that only Hollow souls vanish when slain by Quincy weapons, and Soul Reaper souls do not?”

Amore flinched slightly, “I... presume it is because your Quincy techniques were designed for destroying Hollows specifically, and while you can harm and even kill Soul Reapers, the same methods meant to destroy a Hollow don’t have the same effect on us?”

“But is the destruction of Hollows a specific quality of our reishi manipulation?” Twilight asked, although this time she was looking more towards Sombra, “I know I haven’t been at this as long as some of you, but my studies on our techniques have never shown any sign that there’s a particular element that would destroy a Hollow’s soul like that. Yes, our arrows don’t purify them like a Zanpaktou does, but logically I can’t see how our abilities can just make a soul disappear like that. It defies one of the most basic principles of energy physics, which granted a lot of spiritual powers play loosely with but still... energy technically can’t be destroyed. Changed and moved around, but not destroyed.”

“And why do you think it matters, young lady?” said Scorpan with words of cutting weight, like cleavers dropping upon a butcher’s block. “Be it by accident or design, by intent or deception, the fact remains that Hollows killed by Quincy vanish from the flow of souls. The balance remains in threat, and so quibbling over the reasons why doesn’t alter the fact that peace is not possible while Quincy bear arms against that balance.”

A dark laugh billowed from Sombra like a gust of wind and he inclined his head at Scorpan, “And there is the same stubbornness I’ve come to expect from you. I lost count over the many centuries how often I have told you that the human race has every right to defend itself against threats to its existence, and we Quincy exist to shield those ignorant of the truth from the predation of Hollows and the unjust control of the afterlife put forth by your Soul Society. This goes far beyond the fate of Hollow kind. The very nature of Soul Society as an self-imposed arbitrator of human souls’ fate after death is an affront.”

“As opposed to what, boy?” asked Scorpan, “What will you and your Quincy grant the human race if you ‘won’ this war? How would your rule prove better than the appointed order set down by the Soul Queen herself and her very own children? Where is there justice or dignity in an afterlife ruled over by one man who is too short sighted to even acknowledge that his people disrupt the balance of souls?”

“Better than what would come of continuing to rely on a corrupt grouping of ‘noble’ families and an equally corrupted controlling body like Central 46,” Sombra replied, a paper thin smile on his lips, “I can assure you that no soul would need to live in poverty, as seen in your Rukongai districts, nor would any have to fear being hunted by Hollows again.”

“Kinda feel like this is running off track,” Rainbow Dash whispered at Sunset, and she couldn’t help but agree that these two men were sounding very much like an old married couple rehashing ancient arguments. She shared looks with her friends, and understanding nods passed between them.

Sunset let out a sharp whistle that halted the heated words between Sombra and Scorpan, drawing their eyes to her. If she hadn’t already dealt with keeping her cool under Tirek’s reiatsu, perhaps the combined focus and hefty pressure stemming from this pair might have made Sunset more nervous. As it stood, she was more annoyed than anything else, and stood up, planting her hands firmly on the table as she shot a hot look of challenge towards these two powerful rulers and commanders of their respective peoples.

“Listen to yourselves!” she said while pouring heat and empathy into her voice, “How many times have you two hashed this same routine out!? A dozen? A hundred? A thousand!? And where has it gotten you? A war that drags on to this day, ruining countless lives on either side of the divide of death!”

First her eyes bored into Sombra, who met her flaming gaze with the weight of his own enigmatic stare, “You’re not wrong that the Soul Society has problems! You think my friends and I didn’t see that when we went there? I saw the Rukongai myself. I saw souls barely eking out what could be called a ‘peaceful’ rest in what should be a place where souls don’t need to want or fear. I watched two women I respect and care about be taken and treated like criminals by a justice system so twisted and screwed up I wanted to burn the whole thing down while I was there. I saw a proud Captain of the Gotei 13, people who are supposed to be our protectors, become so desperate to save her son that she was willing to throw it all away just so he could be saved when no one else would help her. Yes, Soul Society needs... change.”

Anger filled her voice, scalding and strong, “But I’ve also seen Quincy who treated the idea of collateral damage and civilian casualties like a given. I’ve seen them refuse to help souls in peril just because we were associated with Soul Reapers. One of my best friends barely survived a psycho trying to assassinate her, and another friend lost her life helping put a stop to it! You hate Hollows? Fine, I get it, a lot of them are monsters. And some of them... aren’t. Treating the entire race like vermin to be exterminated is short sighted and borderline insanity. Hollows are human souls too, and to pretend otherwise is wrong.”

Not done, she turned to Scorpan, whose face was as stone wrought as a mountainside as he gazed hard at her, “But the Quincy aren’t wrong that the way the Soul Society has run things based on, at best, old fashioned and outdated tradition has not led to the afterlife people hope for when they wonder what waits for them after they die. Not for themselves, or their loved ones. I know the Soul Reapers are not monsters and that many are decent enough people, but you’ve gotten complacent, and the Quincy aren’t without their own right to arm themselves, defend themselves, or seek to make things better.”

Sunset looked to her right, where both Bounts at the table sat, right next to Cloudy Quartz. Since the start of the summit, these women had gone through an increasing build up of tension, and now Sunset nodded to them, “I know that there are perspectives besides just myself and my friends. Would anyone else like to speak?”

“If I may?” Cloudy asked, looking at Holiday and Lofty, “I know you two have your piece to say as well, but if I could go first?”

Holiday offered a kind smile while Lofty made an ‘after you’ gesture, and Cloudy smiled back before turning her eyes to Sweet Cider, who sat directly across the table from her. The two friends shared a long look, and Sweet Cider chuckled with all the dryness of a desert, “Ya got the floor, Cloudy. Ye’ve more fire in yer spit than I ever did, so let it loose.”

“Ahem, then first, Pinkie dear, please don’t repeat the language I am about to use,” Cloud said in all seriousness to her daughter, before rising with all of the statuesque poise of a long experienced matron of a house of chaos like the Pie household. She then cast eyes of pure storm at Sombra and Scorpan both and all but exploded.

“How dare both of you cocksure, stubborn asses sit there and shout inconsequential drivel at one another like a pair of arguing schoolboys!? Neither group holds any moral high ground in this war. Soul Society forced myself and my friends to become weapons, and only towards the end did Discord find enough ethical fortitude to find us a way out, and even then you stole our memories and left us to our devices without so much as an inch of recompense! Sweet Cider and her husband died because of the very Hollow you used to infect us with our powers! Now our children inherit our burden and are trying to sort out your mess! And the Quincy aren’t victims in this affair...” She looked at Twilight, sadness crossing her pinched eyes, “Velvet was a good woman, but she was molded by a society that caused her to become estranged from her own daughter, and abandon her friends in their time of need, because of a grudge against Soul Society and Hollows both that you’re too proud to put aside! If I had the power I’d bend both of you over my knee and tan your asses red until you got over your issues and learned to talk it out like halfway intelligent adults instead of prideful halfwits! So perhaps listen to what Sunset Shimmer is saying, because she’s trying to help you idiots.”

With that Cloudy took a few deep breaths, and carefully fixed her hair, as several strands had fallen loose of her bun after turning about to glare at Sombra and Scorpan during various parts of her heated speech. With some calm restored to herself, she sat down, and Pinkie Pie pulled her fingers out of her ears, “Is it safe now?”

“Yeah Pinks, yer mom’s got some pipes on her,” Applejack said, wincing a bit, and Sweet Cider couldn’t help but laugh again.

“Like I just said, Cloudy’s got me beat when she’s riled up.”

Scorpan looked more impressed than insulted, although one thick white eyebrow did raise up his wrinkled dark brow at Sweet Cider, “Indeed, Captain Sweet Cider.” Clearing his throat, he looked to Cloudy and inclined his head deeply in not quite a bow, but a gesture of respect, “I won’t deny the actions Soul Society has taken in regards to Xcution were not just or moral. I have... regretted, more than once, Hitsuyo-Aku’s creation. That having been said, you call myself and the Quincy King children for continuing our war, yet had we ceased to fight it the consequences to the world in which you and your family live would be more dire than the sins we bear in waging the conflict in the first place.”

“A rare point of agreement between me and the Captain Commander,” Sombra said, “The Quincy’s military culture was a direct result of the necessities of fighting against two foes already firmly established as vast and potent armies. I have...” he glanced at Twilight, “Recently felt the bite of that very culture’s less than admirable traits, but I forged my Quincy into an army as capable as needed for the monumental task of facing foes who were themselves merciless and relentless. You take issue with how you, your friends, and your family have been treated, and I cannot disagree with that, but it was Soul Society that created Xcution, not us. On the matter of Velvet, I will... concede the pressures I put my Quincy under perhaps could use some revision.”

Cloudy glowered, but her eyes turned to the Bounts, “Well, I tried. Your turn, ladies.”

Holiday gulped, “W-well, I’m not sure we can beat your impassioned words. Uh...hi?” she looked at Scorpan like someone might stare down the very incarnation of a nightmare, “W...we’re, um, well we’re Bounts.”

“I have surmised this by the nature of your reiatsu,” Scorpan said, “Speak. I know your kind were not entirely exterminated, so your presence is not as much of a surprise as you may think.”

Lofty’s hand reached out and gripped Holiday’s trembling ones, and the taller woman turned her more severe features to Scorpan and spoke with a greater calm than Holiday, “Then you know we have little reason to think fondly of Soul Reapers. Like the Fullbringers of Xcution, you made us. You created us to be weapons. And when your creations didn’t meet with your expectations, you sought to get rid of us.”

“It is more complicated than that, I’m afraid,” Scorpan said with the voice of a very tired man who was still resolved to keep doing his job, “We attempted to bring the Bount under control so you might exist peacefully, and die peacefully, under the observation of Soul Society. Given your source of ‘food’, it was not acceptable to simply allow your kind to exist in the human realm unsupervised. Your self appointed ‘leader’, Shadowlock, believed leading your race into an attempt to overthrow us was the better choice. He learned otherwise, to his misfortune, along with many who followed him. Do you think the survival of the few remaining Bounts has been an accident?”

His eyes bored into Lofty, “The Second and Third Divisions both have kept tabs on the presence of surviving Bounts. I have withheld the final extermination order, out of pity for your kind. Of course had I not, that foolish young one, Trixie, would not have fallen in with the rebel, Starlight Glimmer, so I am unsure of the wisdom of my mercy at this juncture. I would prefer not to have further reason to regret it, young ladies. Do not give me reason to do so.”

“The mercy is appreciated, but the overbearing threats are not,” Lofty said, although sweat did bead on her forehead, gulping as she faced down the leader of the very people whom she and her kin had feared and hidden from for generations. “We’ve joined the Coalition to forge a better future for ourselves and our children. We don’t want a fight. We want the fighting to stop. Me and Holiday are here to make that clear to you Soul Reapers and Quincy both. The Bount aren’t going to die off quietly, one way or another.”

“...Noted,” Scorpan said, then his eyes slowly turned back towards Sombra, “It seems we’ve spent a great deal of time airing grievances we are all well aware of. Do you see a path to peace in all of this?”

“Not especially, but I suspect we were brought here for more than just retreading the long litany of reasons we have to hate each other,” Sombra said, his own interest now locking back onto Sunset. “So what is the real reason we’re here?”

Sunset met his look and said with intensity, “What it comes down to is that the war you’re fighting has been spurred on by others. People who’s plans benefit from having Quincy, Soul Reaper, and Hollow duking it out for centuries on end. Whatever real grievances you have with each other, this group is eager to reinforce and exacerbate, making sure that this war continues to grind on and feed their plans. You’ve been deceived. Duped. Played for fools. Used like pawns on someone else’s game board, and we’re here to tell you the truth so that just maybe you’ll be willing to set aside your differences and together we can do something about it.”

Her words caused a stir, mostly among the Soul Reapers present, although among the Quincy there seemed less surprise and more intrigue.

“Apologies, but what are you on about?” asked Blueblood, “I’ve kept my peace since the Captain Commander has every right to speak ahead of any of us, but I confess I find your accusations... disturbing.” His eyes flicked towards Rarity before resettling on Sunset and Discord, “Perhaps once I’d have dismissed your words out of hand. But my task as Captain of the Sixth Division is diplomacy and to that end I want to give you the benefit of the doubt that you wouldn’t imply what you are without supporting evidence.”

“Quite so,” Discord replied, and reached out with a hand to press down with one finger upon the surface of the table, where there was a hidden set of touch-sensitive reishi buttons. There was a brief bit of alarm from some present, Sugarcoat shifting more defensively towards Twilight in particular, but that alarm passed quickly as all that happened was that the table lit up with a number of harmless Kido symbols and began to project imagery upon it.

Specifically a holographic image of Clover appeared, standing a bit stiffly and anxious, but otherwise ready as she blinked and snapped to attention, bowing to Scorpan, “Captain Commander, I hope you don’t mind I’m providing a little assistance to my friends for this meeting.”

He nodded, once, “It is well enough, young Clover. Now, what is this about? I knew you had come ahead of us, and was somewhat surprised to see you were not seated at this table.”

“Considering how crowded it would be there, it was decided it’d be easier for me to help with this part of the meeting from Discord’s laboratory, where all the pertinent data we’re about to show you is stored,” Clover explained, still wearing a pale mask of tension as she drew out a metal, extendable pointer from her sleeve.

Sunset, with a emphatic river of encouragement in her voice, said, “You’ve got this, Clover.”

“I hope so, but this is going to be difficult for many gathered at this table to hear,” Clover replied, and manipulating a console that was out of sight of the holographic display, she brought up the very same detailed imagery of the swirling spiral of Hell’s construction that Discord had shown Sunset and her friends not so very long ago.

Twilight felt her own gut wrench a bit. Sunset had told her everything before now, but to see it with her own eyes. A cold tremor in her mind told her that Midnight was all but bristling. Both of them were intelligent enough to see precisely the implications of Hell’s design, even if they hadn’t been given the breakdown of it already. For Twilight especially she had to wonder if it wasn’t for Sombra’s ability to absorb Quincy souls into his own, would every Quincy have been condemned to this... soul grinding factory of misery?

Out of all present, it was oddly Radiant Hope that spoke first, a troubled air of quiet naivety surrounding her voice, “What an unusual looking realm. What is this meant to be? I don’t recognize it’s design at all, although it has the qualities of what appears to be a prison of some sort.”

Sombra flinched at her voice, barely more than a tick over his obsidian features, but he spoke in answer, voice as cold as grave dirt, “It seems, Scorpan, that you’re Soul Reapers are not as thoroughly educated as I would have thought. Do they not recognize the very place they have sent numerous souls to over the millennia? This is my first time laying eyes upon it, but there can be no mistake what this depressing pit is.”

For a brief moment a sense of tired pain creased Scorpan’s oaken features, but like such an ancient oak, strength unbending remained firm in it, “Lieutenant Radiant Hope, you gaze upon Jigoku. A seemingly very detailed and complete schematic of the entire realm’s composition. Discord, I take it you took this information from a highly restricted area?”

It was Ditzy who replied, frank and proud as she kept her arms crossed under her bosom, “That was me. Sorry Scorpan, but still isn’t a spot in Seireitei my skills can’t manage to slip into when I need it. And before you wonder, yeah, this little nugget was kept in one of Central 46’s most secure records storage. This was buried so deep a part of me had to wonder why anyone bothered to keep it at all, rather than just burn the data to ash. Guess Zero Division either got sloppy, or wanted to keep this design around in case they needed to build another.”

“So why are we being showed this?” asked Blueblood, “Jigoku is no great mystery to Soul Reapers. We know it was constructed as a means of jailing the worst souls who commit the most deplorable of acts. If you mean to suggest that’s against the balance we guard due to removing souls from the flow, then you should know that the condemned souls still exist there and hence remain as a balancing force within the overall flow.”

Clover cleared her throat loudly and bowed at Blueblood, “Begging your pardons, Captain Blueblood, but we wouldn’t be showing you this data if the situation didn’t call for into question the very thing you’ve just mentioned. Please, I ask all of you, Captains and Lieutenants both, listen and watch carefully as I explain the truth to all of you.”

Scorpan’s face was a hard wall that betrayed little of his thoughts, while Blueblood looked at both him and Amore as if seeking guidance, before once more glancing at Rarity and seeming to gather himself, “W-well, I see no reason to say no, myself. We did come here to hear you out, after all.”

“I agree,” Amore said, eyes showing a waver of disturbed curiosity, having never left the image of Jigoku. From Twilight’s seat, she could almost see the long haired Soul Reaper Captain shaking slightly, could read the dawning fear and denial playing over Amore’s face as she, without Clover even having to begin the explanation, could see into and understand the issues this diagram of Hell showed.

Beside Twilight, she felt Sugarcoat grow tense as well, whispering, “This is going to get ugly, isn’t it?”

“Just listen,” Twilight told her, and Clover began her presentation.

There was no grandstanding or extensive elaboration. Clover, point by point, showed precisely how Jigoku, “Hell”, functioned. Specifically she demonstrated in detail the manner in which the jailors of Hell, the Kushanada, used the repeated killing and regeneration of Hell’s Sinners to break down their souls piece by piece. Falling, layer by layer, these souls would eventually become nothing more than raw spirit particles, pooled into a massive reservoir of power at the very depths of Hell’s spiral.

This would be bad enough, for the belief in Soul Society that the Sinner’s souls remained existing and hence functioning as part of the balance of souls was utterly contradicted by this blueprint of Hell. Yet Clover was not done. She went on to demonstrate that the very manner in which a Zanpaktou was encoded with a means to scan a soul for the weight of the sins needed to be condemned to Hell during the Konso ritual could also, and indeed were, used to condemn other souls that had committed no such sins. Various other codes could be placed upon Zanpaktou to send literally any soul to Hell, sin or no sin. And she showed the proof with the codes ingrained in all Zanpaktou for condemning the Star Family, finishing her presentation with an exhausted look on her face that showed still the raw pain of learning the truth.

“I can only conclude that the Star Family’s rebellion was considered enough for Zero Division to condemn all of them. With this information, it isn’t a stretch to conclude that Sunburst, Starlight Glimmer’s friend, was a reincarnation of one of the Star Family. He committed no sin in his human life, but that didn’t matter, Starlight Glimmer’s Zanpaktou had the code for his soul engraved in it, so the moment she performed Konso upon him, Jigoku’s Gate came and claimed him. There’s no telling how many other souls may have been condemned in similar fashion. I wish this wasn’t the truth, but the information is here, clear and plain for all of you to see. Zero Division has used this place to collect countless souls, getting rid of opposition, and gathering power for... I can’t even begin to fathom what purpose.”

Her holographic image turned to Scorpan, bowing deeply, almost on her knees, “Captain Commander, I implore you, please, consider carefully what I’ve just shown you and understand that my friends seated here at the table have taken a huge risk in sharing this information openly. Sunset Shimmer, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash are among the most courageous and honorable people I have ever had the fortune to know and call friends. Twilight Sparkle, too, is a young woman of remarkable character, and Quincy or not, she is my friend as well. War is not only meaningless between us, it is actively serving the corrupt ends of those whom we have mistakenly trusted as the greatest among us... but the Zero Division are nothing more than deceivers, and I want no further part in aiding their plans. Nor should any person here today.”

Sunset couldn’t help but beam a smile, and all her friends beside her were doing the same. However else this all went down, she was proud of Clover.

“How much...?”

The question came from Sombra’s lips, a storm of crimson brewing in his dour eyes, “How much did you know about this, Scorpan!? I have known for a long time that the Zero Division were my enemy, but even I didn’t imagine in my worst scenarios that they would have concocted something like this. Did you know?”

“...No,” the word fell from Scorpan like a pebble, almost small compared to the immensity of the Captain Commander himself. He almost slackened in his seat.

“Captain Commander,” Amore began to say in concern, rising, but he held up a hand towards her.

“Be still, Captain Amore. I am not about to crumple into nothing,” Scorpan said, raising his eyes to look at Clover, and at the imagery of Hell that still flickered on display. “I have, for a very long time, had my doubts concerning them. Glory, Bowtie, Minty, Blossom, and Medley. That day, so long ago, has numerous questions that never had satisfactory answers. If the Soul Queen had survived the betrayal of Tirek at what was meant to be a peace conference, then it should not take so long for her to recover. Difficult even to believe she could be so gravely wounded, and her husband slain, by Tirek and his minions alone. Yet... I did not want to believe any treachery was possible. Not from them. They were and are the strongest and greatest among us. Even in my prime, I was the young one seeking to emulate them. They were the heroes of those ancient wars, they built Soul Society and brought order to chaos. How could they...?”

He shook his head, white hair somehow seeming to grow even more dull and stark in that moment as long held sadness entered the otherwise hardened Soul Reapers eyes, “I did not know, and at the same time, suspected, but did not act. I have no excuse to offer.”

“No excuse to offer?” Sombra’s voice was slick with fury, but Twilight, without care for who might see it, reached out and touched his arm with a calming and imploring look in her eyes. Sombra winced at her touch, and visibly struggled to get a hold of himself as he went on to say, “I am no stranger to being blind to treachery among those I wished sorely to trust, I will grant. Yet you admit now that you have pursued a war of extermination upon my people under the pretenses of manipulators and liars. How much else then, is a lie? Shall we revisit the question of Quincy’s destruction of Hollow souls? What of the state of the Soul Queen? What of what you did to my wife by ripping her soul in half and...and...”

“AHEM!”

It was a loud, guttural throat clearing as Discord stood, rapping his cane loudly upon the table, “Gentlemen and ladies! I understand this is a nice shocking revelation that’s a big gut punch to your sensibilities about what you’ve been doing for the past eternity or two. However, don’t you all think you're missing the forest for the trees just a smidge? I swear, we show you the truth, and you’re about ready to go for each other’s throats again! Sombra, O’ Quincy King, I’m sure you’ve got your delightfully intelligent young protégé there just ready and raring to delve into the truth behind what happens to Hollow souls struck down by Quincy weapons. I’m also sure you and Scorpan could have a very long, heartfelt talk over the numerous things you’ve done to upset each other over this long, highly pointless war. But let’s not get sidetracked, shall we? As was just demonstrated quite effectively by the lovely Miss Clover, good job by the way dear, we have much, much bigger fish to filet. Grievances and side questing can happen later. Let’s instead focus on the bigger picture, namely Zero Division and what we can do about them.”

His proclamation was met with a veritable spectrum of mixed responses. Amore looked pale and horrified, as if still trying to digest what she was hearing. Blueblood kept opening his mouth to say something and similarly closing it as his eyes pinched in fizzled attempts at thinking through his troubled confusion. Radiant Hope wore a stricken look, although it mostly appeared to be concern for her Captain more than anything else, while Moondancer was running a hand through her head of split ended hair while mouthing silently expletives that weren’t suitable to voice.

Meanwhile Sugarcoat was still as a rock next to Twilight, expression unreadable to all save perhaps Twilight herself, who could tell her friend was handling things with her usual no nonsense pragmatism. Sugarcoat was ready for whatever came, even if she was also afraid.

Coloratura was a lot more optimistic in her outlook, practically beaming a smirk at her King. “Your Majesty, if my ears aren’t playing tricks on me, I feel as if I just heard an open invitation to discuss a rather fruitful paradigm shift in our war. If this news reaches all of Soul Society...”

“It would trigger rebellion and unrest unlike anything the Soul Reapers have ever known,” Sombra agreed, although his eyes remained locked on Scorpan, as if his words were more for the Captain Commander than anyone else, “Indeed if this all became common knowledge, it might irreversibly damage any trust in Soul Society’s instruments of control and government that the souls dwelling there may ever have. So this does beg the question, what do you intend to do about this, Scorpan? Discord points out a rather obvious fact. Much as I detest the idea of putting aside certain personal grudges, Zero Division is a bigger threat than you or Tirek combined.”

“...I am aware,” Scorpan spoke with a profound stillness, “None, perhaps, are more aware than I how powerful they are. This truth is, as you said, something that could shatter Soul Society, break the Gotei 13, and see Seireitei engulfed in the flame of rebellion. We have, for thousands of years, placed complete trust in the Soul Queen, the Zero Division that ‘guard’ her, and the laws passed down by them to be interpreted by Central 46 and enforced by the Soul Reapers. This is Soul Society, the bedrock of an ordered, structured afterlife for all human souls.”

Guilt like poison and anger like a tangled web choked his voice, perhaps more emotion than any individual present had ever seen crack through the Captain Commander’s strong exterior, “And it seems I have allowed it all to be predicated upon a lie. Too fearful to seek the truth, too stubborn to let go of my ideals, and entirely too willing to play my part in the masquerade because I still wanted in my bones to believe that if we could just... win, then the world would be put to rights.”

“Sir...no,” Amore said, shaking her head in denial, “This isn’t your burden alone to bear. If indeed we’ve been lied to, then every Captain of the Gotei 13 has a share of this responsibility. And no matter what may be said, I believe in our ideals of a safe and structured afterlife, free of Hollow threat. Even if Zero Division has committed some act of grand betrayal, it doesn’t mean our duty to protect and guide souls has been in vain.”

“I mostly agree with my colleagues' sentiments,” Blueblood finally managed to say, sweat trickling down his head, “Still a lot to take in, honestly. Presuming we accept all of this at face value, where does it leave us?”

“At a guess, Captain, the Coalition wants us to make peace with the Quincy and align with them against Zero Division,” Moondancer said, blinking as if she couldn’t even believe she was saying those words. Sunset, however, was quick to speak, and clarify something.

“I get that outright peace isn’t something you folks can just pull off like an instant flip, but at least a cease fire. Back off of each other. Zero Division is a problem, but they’re not the only one. Starlight Glimmer is in my homeworld of Equestria, still causing trouble, but now we know why she feels she has to do that. I want to go there, bring her back, and get her on our side. Then I want you all to take a moment ot consider that the Quincy and Soul Reapers aren’t the only victims of deception... so are the Hollows.”

Sombra’s brow furrowed deeply as he leaned towards her, sliding his hands up to steeple in front of him, “Are you suggesting we ally with them as well? Tirek has on many occasions asked me to make common cause with him. Why should I even consider it while he and his kind remain devourers of souls?”

“Well for one, if Zero Division are as strong as they seem like, we’ll basically need ever ally we can get against them,” Sunset said, “And for seconds, while I don’t know about Tirek, I know for a fact not every Hollow is happy with the status quo in Hueco Mundo. I fought Tirek, just earlier today, and we of the Coalition have built an embassy in Las Noches after I survived his challenge. You want some kind of inroad to diplomacy with the Hollows, that’s it right there.”

Scorpan went still, but Sombra’s eyes lit up, “Ah, Twilight Sparkle did inform me of your adventure to Las Noches. I can’t deny what you achieved there is remarkable by any standard. But I also question the value of this ‘embassy’. Tirek likes challenge, likes to fight those with genuine power, and he does not believe in peace. Any truce with him would only be if he found it to his benefit, and would end in blood the second it stopped benefiting him. Also do I not have it on rather good authority he’s been marshaling forces for an attack, most likely upon your very homeworld?”

“That’s true, I won’t deny any of that,” Sunset said with a heavy nod, “My estimation of Tirek is that he’s a damned beast who loves power and fighting so much he’s turned it into the entire culture of Hueco Mundo. He has honor, in his way, but he wants to die fighting someone stronger than him. Felt that from every swing me and him exchanged. Maybe the idea of fighting Zero Division will appeal to him more than fighting us. Or maybe he really will attack Equestria, in which case that only means my friends and I need to get there to stop Starlight all the sooner so my old home is ready to repel Tirek, and if need be put him and his Espada out of commission. I’ll give peace every chance, right up until I can’t afford to give any more chances. If it’s to be a throw down anyway, there’s still Hollows in Tirek’s ranks who will more likely turn to our side, long as we give them our word they won’t be turned on by us afterward.”

“Hmm...” Sombra looked contemplative, while Scorpan took a long, deep sigh.

“Your estimation of my older brother’s character is more than accurate enough for me to wholly believe you did cross swords with him. He has ever been a man of... passionate appetite and unwavering belief in his own power. In his mind he knows what the world should be like, and be damned anyone who disagrees with him, unless they can prove him wrong by force of arms. Strength truly is the only thing he respects and values. He would only honor an alliance for a limited duration, although we could at least feel confident he would not plant his blade in our backs until Zero Division was defeated. Then he’d openly plant it in our fronts. And, knowing him, he might not desire ‘help’ defeating Zero Division, whatever offers he’s given Sombra. More likely he’ll strike Equestria, seek its magic to empower himself, and seek eternal power and the ultimate battle by challenging Zero Division directly for control of all realms.”

“So what I’m hearing here is that no one really thinks we can safely ally with Tirek, but I also haven’t heard any disagreement about allying with certain Hollows, if me and my friends can vouch for them?” Sunset put out there, and Scorpan glanced at Gaia.

“Once upon a time, ages ago, I knew the souls who became Hollow. Gaia Everfree, it seems both of us stand poised at the edge of an age of change neither of us expected. There was a time you valued peace, at least until Tirek brought you into his fold. If he is removed, could you lead Hollows on any path different than he? The very nature of Hollows remains that of souls who consume other souls, perhaps the one thing we and the Quincy can agree on.”

One could all but feel the long weight of Gaia Everfree’s own centuries of experience pressing upon her voice, counterbalanced by a brush of Gloriosa’s own energy and drive, “There’s a lot of uncertainty in this, Scorpan. My memory is as long as yours, and I remember how we went from godly beings who followed different paths, sometimes fought over disagreements, to becoming so utterly divided that our only recourse was to seek each other’s destruction. I don’t know if our Hollow nature can change, because what we are is natural and part of the fabric of the soul. All I can say is that I feel Tirek’s control of Hueco Mundo exacerbated that nature and pushed it further than it started out as. Whether or not things can reverse course, or at least altered, I don’t know. What I do know is that I am willing to try, for the sake of all of us having a future beyond endless warfare. There are other Hollows who are willing to do the same, especially if it means Tirek’s downfall.”

“Is that for any semblance of the greater good, or simply because Tirek’s fall would lead to an opportunity for themselves to grab power?” asked Sombra, and Gaia gave him a flat stare.

“Those two concepts are not mutually exclusive.”

“A very Hollow sentiment.”

“Look!” Sunset said, grabbing everyone’s attention once more, “We can argue until we’re all out of breath over our differences. I understand that we can’t just ignore what Hollows are, or that there’s a lot of questions about how we’ll deal with one another once all is said and done, but all of that is kinda moot if we don’t take down Zero Division. Way I see it, you’ve basically got a choice between either ignoring what we just told you and go back to fighting each other knowing full well that your strings are being pulled, or you agree to work together with us to put a stop to all of this. Because if any of you try to go it alone, how far do you honestly think you’ll get?”

Sombra settled back in his seat, first looking once more at the depicted, floating schematics of Hell, then at Twilight... and briefly Radiant Hope, although he kept that so swift that it wasn’t clear if the still very shaken looking Soul Reaper realized the Quincy King had looked at her at all. Slowly, Sombra said, “You have laid the harsh reality of our situation quite bare, Sunset Shimmer. My misgivings are many. My Quincy will not like this. But they will follow me. And... I am with you. Consider the Quincy willing to enter into this alliance. For the sake of all humanity, the Zero Division must fall.”

Sunset nodded, hoping she didn’t look so utterly relieved that she was ready to collapse then and there. Looking at Scorpan, she said, “And what about the Gotei 13?’

Troubled didn’t even begin to describe the look that remained in Scorpan’s deep set eyes. “As you should understand by now, Sunset Shimmer, the Gotei 13 is not a body that has full authority to act on its own. Even knowing what I now know about Zero Division, I must move carefully in regards to Central 46. Yet... I cannot ignore what I have learned here today.”

“Ya dang well know ya can’t trust Central 46, Captain Commander!” Sweet Cider said with emphatic force, “They’re pretty much n’ Zero Division’s pocket’s, or I’m an albino prairie dog!”

“I understand this, Captain Sweet Cider, and I am not intending to allow them to interfere with any action I deem needed for the safety and security of Soul Society. All this means is that, unlike Sombra, I am not an absolute authority, and in entering into an alliance with the Coalition, I must ensure Central 46 can’t pull any shenanigans to stall the process... or warn Zero Division.”

“So that means you’ll...?” Sunset asked, and Scorpan gave a shallow, grave nod.

“Yes, it means I am convinced, at least of the value of entering into a ceasefire with the Quincy and preparing to aid you in dealing with the renegade, Starlight Glimmer. Afterward, we can confront the Zero Division, together. I have questions that I require they answer. I will not commit to a life or death battle with them, but I shall certainly be willing to demand some long overdue answers.”

“All things considered, that’s more than sufficient for the Coalition’s needs,” Discord said, and looked to be about to say more, but was interrupted as a beeping issued forth from his robes. Ignoring the looks he got, he quickly retrieved his cell-phone like communication device held it to his ear. “What is it Screwloose, we’re in the middle of...”

His eyes dilated and both Sunset and Twilight noticed his hand clench hard around the phone, and immediately realized something something was very wrong. Discord often had a lot of expressions on his face. Amusement, wry smarm, and confidence were pretty common ones. Fear, on the other hand, was not one of his regular looks.

“Discord, what’s happening?” Sunset asked, just as she felt a faint shake in the ground of the stone mesa that the meeting was set up upon.

“What in the world?” Rarity stood, as did most of Sunset’s friends, as one by one they all started to sense not just the tremor, but the sound of something high pitched like a long held note upon a violin.

Discord was standing as well, talking into the phone, “No! Don’t try to stop them! Open the wards, otherwise they’ll just get overloaded and we’ll end up glassing half of downtown. Do it now, Screwloose! And get Screwball, and empty the lab. Get the kids and Chappy evacuated to the safehouse. No, you go full dark if you don’t hear from me or one of our own in the next twenty four hours.”

“Discord, what’s coming our way?” Sunset said, grabbing his arm with one hand while grabbing her Zanpaktou with the other, but a part of her already knew the answer. Who else could be triggering this kind of response? Her own fear was confirmed as Discord looked first at her, then at a spot across the mesa, near the edge where the Soul Reapers had first arrived in their Senkaimon Gate.

Something appeared with the abruptness of a snapping finger. A golden pillar, wider than a school bus and several hundred feet tall, smashed through a hole that cracked in reality like the air was nothing more than a pane of glass. That high strung violin noise reached a screeching crescendo and the golden pillar of shining metal smashed through the very edge of the mesa like some gigantic elevator car crashing to a restful stop. Dust flew and everyone stared. The pillar was capped at its top by an encircling halo band of heavenly light, which then lowered along the length of the pillar in a wash of stark geometric symbols. When the halo reached the edge of the mesa, it stopped and extended like a bridge of light.

From the beam of light, an opening in the gold pillar split, like elaborate gates swinging open, and light spilled forth.

And shadowed by that light were five figures, walking forward, and Discord exhaled under his breath.

“...The Zero Division has decided to pay us a visit.”

Episode 176: The Zero Plan

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Episode 176: The Zero Plan

Sunset’s breath had halted. This had nothing to do with spiritual pressure. Much as with her first encounter with Medley, there was a disturbing lack of reiatsu to be felt, at least from the shadows emerging from within that iridescent pillar of celestial gold. Sombra’s and Scorpan’s reiatsu was a turbulent twin storm, at least until a voice clear as a silver bell rang out with the tone of a stern elder sister lecturing rowdy young siblings.

“Enough of that. Such a display is poor manners even when one is not in the company of those who cannot readily withstand it.”

The two men restrained their reiatsu, if only because it was clearly overwhelming some of the Soul Reaper Lieutenants present, all of whom were far more visibly sweating than their Captains. On Sunset’s side of the table it was clear Scootaloo’s aunts had not been doing so well either, each turning drained as bleached sheets, while Cloudy Quarts was breathing heavily until the tempest of reiatsu eased up a bit.

The speaker had emerged from the pillar first, slowly followed and flanked, two at each side, by four others. Sunset took in their appearances, etching them into her mind, for there could be no doubt that these were the individuals most responsible for everything that had happened to her and her friends since the very first day she’d picked up her Zanpaktou. Starlight Glimmer may have arranged some of the particulars of that event, but Starlight herself was motivated by plots and ploys enacted by the Zero Division, tracing Sunburst’s own horrible fate to the designs of the five individuals approaching the meeting table.

The woman who had spoken was as near perfectly carved a figure of matronly authority and power as Sunset had seen in human form. This wasn’t Chrysalis’ sinfully impossible figure of obsidian seduction incarnate, but rather an alabaster icon of a motherly goddess cast in ivory and woven in gold, with a face too stern to be called sexy or cute, yet far too attractive to be seen as anything other than beautiful. There was a plain elegance to her clothing, almost humble in its imitation of the Soul Reaper’s black robes and sandals, yet her white haori swept lower than a normal Captain’s coat and graced her arms in a volume of white fabric like shifting clouds. The sword tucked through a white sash was similar in it’s pure white sheath and handle, as if cast and forged from shining pearl. Her figure was hard to define under her clothes, but Sunset could tell the woman continued her matronly qualities with wide, swaying hips and enough bust to notice under the thick robes. Yet her motions held no hint of anything other than raw confidence and authority, as if every single step was one declaring dominion of all around her.

Sunset found she had trouble looking directly at the woman’s eyes, crisp aquamarine blue.

She turned her attention to the others, recognizing Medley on the lead woman’s, whom she presumed was Glory, immediate left. Further left was a man with rich blue skin akin to a dawn sky, his body firm and well muscled. It wasn’t like Tirek’s overblown extravaganza of shredded abs, but rather the body of a man who had no room for extravagance or softness in him. It was a body of lean, hard muscle, not built up for display, just kept strong for pure utilitarian purposes. This continued to the man’s plain yet strong features, with somehow even his head of light pink hair looking dull and functional in a way pink hair should probably never look, tied into a traditional samurai’s topknot. His expression was like a freshly sharpened knife, keen and uncompromising. Eyes of a dark blue shade akin to an ocean storm judged everything around him and somehow found it wanting. Even his clothes, the same black robes and white haori worn by his fellows, was wrapped in a tight and simple military style with no room for flowing or loose bits. The blade he wore at his hip had this same quality of hard function, a sheath of dark iron, and a hilt in which Sunset thought she saw the small whirring of internal cogs.

On Glory’s other side were a flamboyant man and equally striking young woman, both of which Sunset had a hard time even comprehending were members of Zero Division. With his slicked forward, long purple hair, bare chest of copper skin, and flame etched sleeves, the man looked more like someone who belonged in a band from a few decades back than one of the architects of the world’s present misery. Yet there was no denying the fire red blade he kept stuck through his equally red sash held a gleam of power to it that nobody could mistake. As for the girl next to him, Sunset felt a weird sense of familiarity about her, if only because that neon pink pigtails, however streaked with crème white, was a dead ringer for Pinkie’s, with similar levels of puffiness cranked up to unnatural levels. The girl wore a rather stylistically altered set of black robes and white haori, specifically in the white pleated dress it turned into at the waist with black lace and stockings that crawled up the girl’s legs. The girl was a bit on the chubby side, but moved with bouncy grace beside her fellows, all but half floating along with a pink parasol spinning in her hands, blurring the white skull patterns stitched into it... which Sunset had a feeling had to be the girl’s weapon for she saw no actual blade sheathed anywhere on her.

Sunset was already familiar with Medley, but still took a second to look over the final Zero Division member, as if looking for some clue as to what to expect from this sudden and unexpected arrival. To Sunset’s surprise, Medley locked eyes with her for a second, and there was a hint of something in the woman’s eyes that Sunset thought was... caution? A hint of warning? It vanished before Sunset could gauge it further and Medley looked away, while the half floating girl with pink hair bubbled up a laugh, eyeing Discord.

“You know if you hadn’t dropped your wards at the last second, we would’ve busted through anyway, so thanks for rolling out the red carpet, Discord.”

Discord’s face was like a scowl of a scarecrow, his hands wrapped around the top of his cane and eyes shaded by his hat until they were unfriendly yellow slits, “Well Minty, I didn’t want to see the surrounding city blocks demolished by the clash of dimensional energies that pillar creates when it smashes through such wards, so I had little choice. Had Screwloose not warned me first, that tragedy may have occurred anyway, so... you know, thanks for that heart attack.”

“Aww, you’re welcome,” Minty said, “I do so love giving them out.”

“Nice spread you’ve got here Discord,” said the dark skinned man with the purple hair, giving a broad smile that seemed to drink in everyone present, and when his eyes passed over Sunset she felt... a strange press of something on her heart that left her feeling very uncomfortable as the man continued to speak, “I can smell the potential bursting out of some of these kids. Always had an eye for talent, didn’t you?”

“I don’t claim to be the connoisseur of ‘talent’ like you are, Blossom. Honestly I’m rather surprised you and Minty are here. Bowtie and Medley I can understand following Glory around, as they have a modicum of responsibility. The two of you prefer your play and distractions more, as I recall.” Discord’s words were pointed, edging past the realm of politeness as the five Zero Division members got close, with Sombra being the one at the end of the table they approached.

At least until literally everything shifted. Sunset wasn’t even certain how it happened. It was like reality just bent in the same way one’s body might in a carnival mirror. She still felt no reiatsu, but just like when Blossom looked at her, she felt something pressing on her as the world shifted. It only took the span of a blink, but suddenly the meeting table was altered. No longer one long rectangle, it had expanded and shifted orientation to become a huge rounded C shape, with the open end facing the Zero Division. Sombra and Scorpan were still seated at either end, but now Sunset and the Coalition group was seated in the C’s middle, with Discord directly across from Zero Division as the five of them entered the C.

Glory’s eyes gleamed, and Sunset instinctively knew it was her who had willed the change. Again the feeling of something pressing on her skin and she saw five chairs just appear from nowhere in the middle of the area. Each was woven of ivory and gold, high backed and interlaced with symbols of clouds and sunrays. Glory sat in the center chair, while her companions took up the others. She pointedly took her sword from where it was kept in her sash and laid it across her lap, like a harsh parent holding a strap or whipping branch as she eyed the table left to right.

“We are not here for idle chit chat,” she said, as much to the other Zero Division members as to those seated at the now altered table. “Minty, Blossom, restrain yourselves.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll keep it down,” said Minty, holding her hands up, and Blossom sighed and kicked his legs up, resting his hands behind his head.

“This is your show, Glory, but you know the rules. We’re here because we choose to be. Do your thing, I’ll listen in. If my tune shifts, it shifts, got it?”

Sunset felt Rarity shift next to her and caught her friend’s look, which was shared by Fluttershy as well, who’d also taken note of the fact that the Zero Division didn’t seem like they were entirely homogeneous in their attitudes. Glory was in charge, nominally, but this group clearly showed some internal differences between its members.

Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie were busy with thoughts of their own, and far less inclined to keep quiet and observe. Applejack stood first, hands slamming down on the table, “Ya’ll are the big hogs in charge o’ this whole pigsty o’ a mess you’ve turned the world into!? Well good! We’ve got a lot to say to ya’ll, not the least o’ which is what n’ utter crazyland bannapants tarnation yer plannin’!?”

Blossom let out a low whistle, glancing at Medley, “She’s a loud, passionate one, isn’t she? One of those girls with the magic touch?”

“Yes,” replied Medley, “That one’s Applejack. Her mother is right over there, the current ‘Kenpachi’.” She pointed at Sweet Cider, who scowled deep enough to crush rock between her teeth. This caused Bowtie to take note, leaning forward to examine Sweet Cider carefully.

“The title ‘Kenpachi’ is worthy of some respect, although it does only pertain to the Gotei 13. Impressive enough that one so young holds it, assuming she is worthy.”

“She is sittin’ right here, an’ can hear ya just fine if ya talk to her directly instead o’ being a rude bastard,” Sweet Cider said, causing Bowtie to look her in the eyes, unwavering, measuring.

“Noted,” he said without any sign of insult or pleasure, just stating a simple fact.

“So what are you jerks doing here?” snapped Rainbow Dash, electricity buzzing round her body, curling through her hair, and lighting up her eyes cobalt blue. “Don’t think we sent you any freakin’ invites.”

Glory’s eyes didn’t shift, but Sunset sensed the change in the air, the imperceptible yet monstrous weight of the woman’s attention turning towards herself and her friends. Glory’s voice was not loud. She wasn’t shouting. It didn’t raise by a single octave. Yet the command in it was as indisputable as gravity.

“Be silent until spoken to, young lady.”

Rainbow Dash’s face grew heated and her mouth opened to say something, but her eyes widened a bit as no sound came out. Sunset turned to Dash, about to ask her what was wrong, until she realized her voice was simply... gone, as well. It didn’t take more than a second of looking at her friends to realize the same had occurred to all of them, Pinkie looking confused as she tried making a bunch of random noises to no effect, while Applejack was shouting without sound. Rarity was more composed, lips pressed firmly as she touched Fluttershy’s shoulder and nodded to the other girl, who in turn started to try and calm the others down with hand gestures.

“Relax,” said Medley, “Glory can’t steal your voice. It’s just a silencing Kido, without the incantation.”

“Medley, you don’t have to explain that to them,” Glory stated, “But I don’t wish to waste time on the banal queries of children.”

Sunset couldn’t help but glare fire at the woman, but before things could go further, Scorpan cut in, rising from his seat. Eyes turned to him as the Captain Commander strode with even steps towards the front of the Zero Division. At the same time, Sombra mirrored Scorpan’s actions, rising and gliding forward on shadowed steps to stand beside his rival, enemy, and counterpart in front of the five seated before them.

“I, too, do not wish to waste time,” said Scorpan with eyes of iron, and a voice of stone, “Glory. I have not seen your face in a long time. That goes for many of you, whom I believed to be occupied with the sacred duty of guarding the Soul Queen during her long recovery from my brother’s treacherous attack thousands of years ago. Yet... you must be aware that I have been presented with information that brings that presumption into question. Have you come here to defend yourselves, or to lay bare the truth?”

“Like this poor old soldier next to me, I wonder why you have come,” Sombra said with a tone far less reserved than Scorpan’s and significantly more drenched in barely contained fury and scorn, “Unlike him I have no interest in hearing your defense. Confession, perhaps. I’m more interested in what your true goals are, much like young Miss Applejack astutely demanded before you silenced her.”

“And for the record,” stated Discord, unmoved from his seat, but wound more tense than the world’s tightest spring, “I’m far more curious about what you’ve done with the Soul Queen than I am in hearing your reasons for it. Glory, that ability you’re using, you didn’t have it eight thousand years ago, I am willing to lay money on. Scorpan, you’d know, am I correct?”

Scorpan made a grunting noise like he’d been kicked in the sensitive spot of the knee, grimacing deeply so his wrinkled face of brown looked like ancient leather, “I want to hear it from Glory’s lips, Discord. I will not believe anyone capable of such... desecration without hearing it from them, personally.”

Despite the severity of what was being said, there was not a trace of unease or upset on Glory’s face. Bowtie was an unreadable mask, while Medley only showed a faint tick at the corner of her eye that could have meant anything, yet Sunset’s intuition told her the woman was... being very observant of everyone else’s reactions, as if waiting for something. Blossom didn’t smile, but he wore an intense look of naked desire and anguish, as if the man was remembering something both beautiful yet somehow horrifying. Minty openly laughed, spinning her parasol and leaning over to look sidelong at Glory with her lips curling up into a smirk.

“Well Glory, you want to answer the fellas, or should I do the honors? I mean, no point hiding it, right? That’s what we agreed on, right? Discord’s got it figured out, least some of it.”

“It’s my responsibility, so I shall do it, Minty,” Glory said, to which the seemingly younger girl sighed and shrugged, leaning back in her seat and pulling her legs up like she was enjoying a good show.

Meanwhile Glory focused her attention upon the men in front of her, hand still calmly set upon her blade. There was a heavy waver in the air, and Sunset felt as if there was a winter breeze chilling the air, despite no change in the temperature. It was just Glory’s voice, it’s cold, uncompromising nature as she stated facts with the finality of falling stars.

“It is as you observe, Discord. I have absorbed the Soul Queen’s ability to instate her will upon her surroundings, granted by her Heart. You will note the others have absorbed their own portions. Minty, the Stomach, Blossom, the Hands, Bowtie, the Legs, and Medley the Right Eye. Save for the Left Eye, which Mother cast out before we contained her, all else we have not taken remains with Mother. She is not ‘recovering’. She is imprisoned. And will remain so until the end of the Zero Plan.”

Scorpan looked ready to either collapse, scream, or draw his blade and attack in that very second. His reiatsu flared into a coiling, drowning storm. Sombra was less rattled, but his wrath seemed no less boiling from the dark shadows sharpening his violent features and the way those shadows brimmed to life around his feet and crawled up his body or from his cape in sharp, grasping motions. Discord looked... satisfied, as if he’d known the answer all along, but was just having it confirmed.

“What... sickening madness...?” Scorpan began, but Glory spoke again in that same, simple, cold and fact-stating tone.

“If you wish to know in full, then control yourself. Or do you mean to fight us here, now, within the confines of this human city?” Glory asked, “You know what would occur, were we to do battle in this realm. This city would not survive the first minute of our conflict. Indeed, the entire continent would be in danger, potentially the entire world if we unleashed our collective power in full. Do you intend to draw your weapons upon us then, Scorpan? Or you, pretender to our Father’s power?”

Scorpan’s face was twisted in both rage and pain, disbelief coiling around immense sadness. Then Sombra’s hand gripped his, and Scorpan realized he’d nearly drawn his Zanpaktou. Sombra’s fingers held his wrist tightly, yet his eyes were shockingly understanding as Scopan looked at them, the Quincy King’s face showing a soft sympathy that Scorpan had never seen directed at a Soul Reaper before.

“I know this pain, Captain Commander of the Gotei 13. This betrayal. This anguish of rage that one cannot afford to unleash. Do not let it take hold. We have been enemies, have sought each other’s lives, but today we are faced with a common foe. Let us hear what they have to say, before we decide how to enact vengeance upon them.”

“Hah! Vengeance he says, like he’s the one who’s been wronged,” Blossom said with a light chuckle, “Like he isn’t some human skin rag wearing our Father’s power like a cheap suit that doesn’t fit him! Man, you’re a master of bad comedy, Quincy ‘King’.”

“Scorpan,” Bowtie suddenly said, “I understand your fury, yet you should know the full extent of our actions, our reasons for them, and what the Zero Plan is before deciding where you should stand on this matter. Hear Glory’s words with blade sheathed, for she is correct, if this turns to battle... it will go poorly for you, and you know this.”

Sunset, listening to all of this, was more than a little riled up herself! If what was said so far was true, then Zero Division really had betrayed the Soul Queen, but had gone a step even further than that and stolen... parts of her!? Absorbed them into themselves? That sounded insane! Granted, just about everything so far had indicated that these five individuals were just a tad bonkers, but cannibalizing their own mother was about as horrifically mad as anything Sunset had heard, and her standards for that had gotten rather high over the past year of her life.

Her friends weren’t idle, either. Each of them had stood, and summoned forth their Fullbrings. It, perhaps, was a bit of an indication that despite that display, none of the Zero Division had even bothered giving the girls another look once Glory had silenced them. Yet that did work a bit to the girls’ advantage, as Fluttershy extended from the halo upon her back a weave of several dozen golden arms of light, which then Sunset felt connected to herself and the rest of her friends.

I’m going to break the Kido, Fluttershy’s voice spoke into Sunset’s... well, not her mind so much as her soul, given the nature of Fluttershy’s power. I just need to draw on power from all of you first, because this Kido is... um, rather immense.

Rainbow Dash smiled wickedly and gave a thumbs up, while Applejack slammed armor clad fists together. Pinkie Pie nodded enthusiastically while Pinkamena appeared from a dark pink tendril and licked salivating lips. Rarity nodded, arms crossed with imperial poise. Sunset raised her still sheathed Zanpaktou and let Fluttershy’s power freely seep into the blade, offering up her reiatsu.

Fluttershy drew in energy from all of her friends, and that collective pool of shared reiatsu burned upwards through her ethereal golden arms. These arms then gripped an up to that point invisible set of glass-like domes that surrounded them... and ripped into them like tearing at aluminum foil. There was a shredding sound and the screech of breaking crystal as the Kido flared with white kanji symbols, resisting Fluttershy’s potency for a few seconds. Glory’s eyes finally moved, shifting for the first time to actually look at the girls. The other Zero Division members did the same, Medley giving a microscopic nod of... approval?

With a calm, focused shout, Fluttershy drew hard on all of the girls’ combined reiatsu and hammered the Kido, this time with palm strikes, and finally the Kido broke fully, scattering to crystalline motes of energy.

“Fuwha!” Rainbow Dash belched, “Finally can talk gain! Hey, lady! Piss right the hell off with that ‘be silent’ crap!”

“Wowie, that was way not fun,” Pinkie said, and Pinkamena, still half formed out of her head, flipped Glory off, to which Pinkie said, “Mena, that’s not nice. Warranted, but not nice.”

“While I tend towards maintaining a sense of ladylike politeness, I agree with my friends in the sentiment that the lot of you can kiss the most pale part of my posterior,” Rarity stated, “No matter how powerful or old you are, it is not polite to simply silence others. Especially considering this conversation has as much to do with us as it does anyone else here.”

“W-well said, fair lady,” Blueblood said, struggling to get words out of his mouth, and visibly forcing himself to stay straight backed and not cringe away from the combined presence of the Zero Division, and to his credit succeeding sufficiently that he wasn’t quaking. Beside him, Moondancer was pale as old milk and looked ready to pass out, by comparison.

There was a fascinated gleam in Blossom’s eyes, ignoring Blueblood and instead roving over the six girls beside Discord, as if drinking in Sunset and her friends. He didn’t overly linger on any singular one of them, but Sunset did note that he seemed focused more on Fluttershy and Rarity than anyone else as he said, “This is a pleasant surprise. Medley said you young ladies were worth watching, but I wasn’t inclined to believe it until just now. Breaking one of Glory’s Kido, even a basic one, is quite the deed.”

“Eeeh,” Minty floated upside down and around, pursing her lips, “It’s not that impressive. I mean, felt like it took all six of them to pull it off, and that golden chick’s power feels like it specializes in screwing with reishi. Hey, yellow girl, what’s it your weird arms do?”

“Nothing special,” Fluttershy replied with stillness in her voice, to which Minty’s hand slipped lower on her parasol. Sunset saw a hint of a black blade appearing, with the slightest wisp of brackish dark smoke, but then Glory’s voice rang out hard and clear.

“Minty, sheath your blade at once! I have not given anyone here leave to engage in barbarism.”

Minty turned a slow look towards Glory, to which the elder woman gave back a stare hard enough to crack a glacier. Slowly Minty relented, putting the small bit of blade she’d drawn from her parasol back and floated back down to sit in her chair with a bored and sour look. “Fine, whatever. This is getting to be a pain. If this takes much longer I’m going home to play.”

Glory paid the sulking Minty no further mind and briefly looked at Sunset and her friends, as if truly seeing them for the first time. Sunset’s skin tingled with the kind of uncomfortable, nervous twinge she got whenever she imagined Celestia chewing her out over abandoning Equestria. There was such ancient, measuring judgment in Glory’s eyes, endlessly blue, like being stuck falling through a cold sky without ground.

“I commend the effort in breaking that Kido, but it is also a clear sign you six young women have become overly involved in this affair. The magic of the other world has given birth to a dangerous hybrid of energy that does not belong here, and it seems obvious to me you are all entirely too young and impulsive to possess such capabilities.”

“Is that your big takeaway?” Sunset asked, dumfounded, “You’re just bothered by us being strong? You don’t have anything to say for yourself about the war you’ve orchestrated, or the horrible place you created with Hell?”

“You fail to understand, as I might expect of one who’s only lived a tiny candle flicker of time compared to what I and my siblings have. Your name is...Sunset Shimmer?”

Sunset gave one, firm nod, not breaking eye contact with Glory, despite it feeling like the woman was drilling holes through her skull. “That’s right. And I assume you know I was originally from Equestria. I call Earth my home now, and short time here or not, I love this world and the people in it. I want to know why you’ve done what you have. What could possibly drive anyone to betray their own mother, engineer an endless, brutal war, and create a merciless prison for souls just for the purpose of grinding them down into energy? Because from my simple, short, ‘candle flicker’ of life’s perspective... you all seem batshit insane.”

“Oh my,” said Fluttershy, “I might have said ‘seemed a tad coo-coo’, perhaps?”

“Nah, Flutters, Sunset nailed it,” Rainbow Dash said, “Sometimes you just need that extra pop a good swear gives, you know?”

“Yeah,” agreed Pinkie Pie, “I mean ‘bat guano insane’ just doesn’t have the same punch.”

“I’m glad we can all focus on what’s important here,” Rarity sighed, “It really sets the tone for a standoff with five murderous, insane deities.”

“Heh, this comin’ from the gal that thirty seconds ago told ‘em all ta kiss yer shiny white behind?” egged Applejack with a half smile, to which Rarity held her head high.

“Words I stand by.”

“These are... the threats you were so concerned with?” Bowtie queried, glancing at Medley, who maintained an enigmatic air in her seat.

“They may act like simple teenagers, but you just saw what they did to Glory’s Kido. They deserve to be taken seriously.”

“Is that why you stole the geodes from us at Everfree?” Sunset asked, “Because you see us as a threat?”

“That’s one way to interpret it,” Medley replied, giving no hint in her voice as to just what she meant by that. “Taking down that Kido is impressive, but not really threatening. The six of you together are certainly dangerous, but as you are you still fall short of something that could take one of us head on. Those crystal baubles might have made you stronger, enough to warrant a more severe response than just leaving you to your own devices. You ought to thank me for taking them off your hands.”

“Ahem, excuse me?” said Twilight quite suddenly, having stayed rather quiet the entire time, as if trying very hard not to draw attention to herself. Now she gulped a bit at the Zero Division’s abrupt attention, but she firmed her back and spoke in a measured manner, “Hello. Twilight Sparkle, um, of the Sternritter. I’d just like to clarify something. What precisely is your knowledge of magic and Equestria? I’ve been bothered by this, because I’ve seen enough evidence to know that Equestria’s magic has seeped into this world well before the events at Canterlot High School. Gaia here is proof enough of that. Since the five of you are literally the oldest beings present, can you confirm to me just how far back our world’s connection to Equestria goes?”

“A curious question,” Glory said, giving Twilight a look as if a particularly loud and yapping dog had just run up at her, “But simple to answer. The world of Equestria has always been connected to ours through the Beast Realm, like a triumvirate of parallel existences. That realm’s energies seep into the Beast Realm, and in turn a trickle of that seeps into ours. Yet our world’s remain separate, and it has been the long standing way of things to keep that separation. Sunset Shimmer is an anomaly in that regard, although far from the only one that has occurred over the eons. Now, child, why your curiosity? We know you are Sombra’s pet being of magic. Your poor soul has been all but infected down to the core with that foreign power. Do you hope to find some grand revelation by probing what we know? I apologize, but none of us have sought to practice magic.”

“I see, but why? If magic makes spiritual powers stronger, wouldn’t it have made sense to study them? Tirek has been all but salivating at the chance to absorb magical power, as have other Espada,” Twilight said, “I can’t see the logic in why the Zero Division, or indeed any of the beings from your time, including the Soul Queen, wouldn’t have sought out magic.”

There was that prickling of cold along Sunset’s skin again, the invisible press of unseen power. Suddenly Twilight wasn’t sitting, but was standing directly in front of Glory, eyes wide and confused at the sudden shift. Glory stood, and Sombra stepped forward, but the woman held her hand up without looking at him, her eyes focused solely upon Twilight.

“Touch her and you will answer to me,” Sombra promised, and Glory shook her head.

“I will not harm her. I merely wish to look at her more closely as I ask...” She loomed over Twilight, “Has magic brought you joy in your life, child? Or has it brought strife? Was there order in its explosive use, or chaos and pain to your soul? Magic is a great power, it is true. But it is an unstructured, dangerous power, that does not belong as a part of our world. I recognize it’s value to those who use it in their own realm, for that realm was made to support that power. I even respect that power, for how dangerous it can be to us. But ours is a world of order, and spirit. Our souls bloom in structure, and stifle under chaos. For all of Mother’s other faults, she saw this clearly and encouraged the realms to remain separate. If only she did more to enforce order and not let small wanderers slip through the cracks, or conflicts to be born where they should have been stifled. No, young Twilight Sparkle, I have not studied magic, only those who make use of it. It is only my compassion that has left me unwilling to end those such as yourself and your friends who use it, and that compassion has limits that are fast approaching.”

Without even a gesture, Twilight was sent back to her seat, like a quarrelsome student put back in detention, and Glory sat down, smoothing out her robes and haori with a deep breath. “Now then, enough interruptions. Those of you gathered her have all to one degree or another expressed the desire to know the truth, and our motivations, so be silent and I shall tell it all in full. There is nothing more to be gained in obfuscating the truth, so the truth you shall have.”

She gave a brief moment to ensure that all were now seated and quiet, like a teacher observing to ensure an unruly class had settled down. Scorpan still looked like rage constrained by the smallest of dams, while Sombra had moved protectively in front of Twilight with a dour glare. Sunset and her friends remained silent for the moment, Sunset admittedly very curious to have her questions answered. Discord looked most keen, while Ditzy stayed tense nearby alongside Gaia. Amore and Blueblood exchanged looks, both Captains too subdued to say or consider doing anything to interrupt, and their Lieutenants were in the same boat. Sugarcoat secretly held Twilight’s hand from under the table, comforting the other girl. Coloratura was more focused on Sombra, as if waiting for an unseen signal.

With no further voices raised, Glory nodded.

“For the sake of brevity I will keep this focused on the facts of the matter and not go into unnecessary detail. Much of this is going to go over the heads of those who lack the context, but Scorpan, you shall understand well enough, having lived through these times alongside us. It was more than eight thousand years ago that this world was in crisis. The Soul Queen’s children warred among themselves over petty disputes, but most predominantly there was the question of the soul’s innate disposition and the manner in which the cycle of reincarnation should be managed. Tirek was at the head of a faction of powerful souls that believed conflict and suffering bred strength and evolution of the soul’s powers, and supported by like minded, self styled gods of war, death, and destruction, pursued violence on those of us who valued order, law, structure, and peace. The fighting had seen to the deaths of countless of the Soul Queen’s children. Century by century, pantheons of gods fell to ruin, and fewer and fewer of us remained, the war continuing without compromise or retreat from either side. The physical realm of the living suffered terribly as well, with plague and calamities befalling many human cities during these times of strife. I saw firsthand the end of so many souls that even now I can still smell the blood and smoke, and remember the feeling of watching their essence shatter...”

Glory paused, for no dramatic effect, but just a simple moment of reflection. Sunset saw it on all of their faces, even Scorpan’s. These ancient beings were recalling a time of horror so vivid to their memories that it must have been like reliving it in surround sound. Not a one of the Zero Division looked happy or fond of these memories Glory conjured, even the seemingly violent Minty had a sour look like Pinkie Pie sometimes got on the very rare occasions the girl ate too many sweets, even by Pinkie standards.

“One by one the halls of the Soul Palace became an empty place of shades. When a being like us, who are closer to the Soul Queen in power, dies, we do not reincarnate like you human souls do. Our souls are too... potent. They break apart and scatter like slivers of diamond upon the soil of the world of the living. It is only then that the fragments of our souls are reborn into smaller pieces. Mortal shards. Humans who then die and scatter their souls a bit more, until they are like any other person. A single god’s soul might create tens of thousands of lesser mortal ones. And we bore witness to the deaths of hundreds of our kin in this manner. Until only a handful of us remained. Myself and my siblings are direct children of the Soul Queen and her Consort, while Tirek and Scorpan are second generation. There were a few others who were further removed, third or fourth generations, but not many. Most of us whom mortals would call ‘gods’ came from those generations of souls. Once one got to the fifth generation removed from the Soul Queen the dip in power was... notable. Less godly. More mortal, and susceptible to aging and sickness. Yet the war was not ended. Tirek wished to ensure his Hollows dominated the realms of the living and the dead. I, in good conscience, could not back down from this. The beginnings of a new society that could oversee the cycle of souls was necessary. Yet the Soul Queen would not end the conflict...”

Glory’s voice had held a great deal of self-discipline and smooth control up until then, but it started to grew more impassioned, and the unmistakable current of hot anger was there as she continued, “I pleaded endlessly with her to end it. She had the power to stop Tirek, remove the Hollows, and allow a new realm of peaceful structure to take root. All of us argued with Mother and Father to intervene. They would not. Mother only agreed to assemble meetings, not unlike this one we have right now, to ‘talk things over’. Not to enforce her rule, but to just have pointless talks in which none of Tirek’s forces would give ground, and neither would we, for what ground was there to give?”

“So far this is all as I remember it,” Scorpan said, “I fought in some of those battles. I argued with my own brother as often as crossed blades with him and his fellow war gods and Hollows. He would not cease, even as his allies fell one after another. He thought he could still win, and perhaps he could, for our own forces dwindled as fast as his did. And the world suffered for it. I also remember what comes next, at least in part. The Soul Queen did as you said, and arranged another talk with the Hollows, inviting Tirek and his warlords to meet with all of you at the Palace. I was there that day, guarding the great Gate of Heaven, as was my charge. I let my brother in, I saw him enter with his cronies to stride up the path to the Soul Palace. You... you entered last, told me to watch the Gate closely and be ready for betrayal. I thought you meant my brother. Were you warning me against yourself, Glory?”

She took his thunderous words of accusation like an ocean accepting the storm, and replied without a tremor on her ivory face, even if Sunset did note a hint of discomfort in her eyes. “You were told what was necessary. We knew you were a dutiful and loyal man, Scorpan. You would not have understood our actions at the time, and I had no desire to kill you. It was not out of the question Tirek would strike before we could, anyway, so the warning held purpose beyond priming you to view him as the culprit.”

“I was eager to believe that,” Scorpan confessed with a deep strain of bitter regret, “Too eager. Our differences had grown great by that point, and I had come to view him and his Hollows as lost souls in need of purification... at sword point, if need be. I was all too willing to go along with the lies you told of Tirek and his forces ‘betrayal’ at that meeting. I did not want to question how he and his warlords had the strength to slay the Consort and wound the Soul Queen, even with the element of surprise. Given you are openly admitting your hands are the ones stained in blood, I can only wonder how you defeated Her. Mighty as you are, the Soul Queen was above all of us, and her Consort nearly her equal.”

“A good question,” agreed Sombra, “Perhaps I should add in my own memories to this testimony? Long have I striven to piece together the fragments of the Consorts’ scattered recollections, and that fated day was quite vivid in his mind, even when fractured like a broken mirror.”

“Keep your half remembered ‘memories’ to yourself,” Glory told him, “Our Father may have sent his soul to be reborn relatively whole in a mortal body, but you are not He who sired us, and you have but a shadow of his grace about you. Be silent, shadow, lest light extinguish you. I was not intending to hide anything. This is what happened that day... the truth, as I lived it.”

----------

Long, long ago...

“I sense Tirek has already arrived.”

Glory’s statement was given as she stepped from the tall pillar of gold that stood at the edge of a wide, flat bridge of red wood. The bridge was flanked by glorious pillars of white stone and led to a set of gold and white gates, flat and solid as towering doors brushed with cloud. Endless sky and a sea of white clouds extended on either side of the gates, which were connected to nothing, yet Glory knew the Gate of Heaven was the first major physical projection of the ward that guarded the Soul Palace. To an outside observer, they’d seen nothing beyond those tall, immaculate doors, just more sky and clouds.

Scorpan stood at the gate, alert and tall with his young but strong face cast in a worried glower. He wore the black robes that Glory had started to mark as the symbol of her faction of the war. Shinigami, Bowtie preferred to call them, although Glory wasn’t certain about the name herself. She had tried to coin ‘Balancers’ instead, but Shinigami, or Soul Reaper, was sticking among the lower ranked.

It would do. For the sake of the plan, any name would suit.

“He has,” Scorpan said, looking back at the gates, “Him, Ravana, Cerberus, Lavan, and Typhon.”

Glory gave a miniscule nod, “Almost all of his inner circle. Gaia is absent?”

“Thank our Queen’s grace, Gaia does not want any further part in this. One of the only Hollows I’ve seen with sense, although she does not speak with me any longer,” Scorpan said, not masking his regret over the fact that what small friendship he might have once had with among the more reasonable of Tirek’s faction was largely gone after a brutal, long war.

While Tirek had not brought as many of his warlords as Glory would have anticipated, it was enough for her purposes. She approached the Gate of Heaven, and it opened for her without Scorpan having to go through the process of unlocking the wards. Mother knew she was coming, and likely willed the Gate open on her own. It hurt Glory, Mother’s unrelenting trust. If only she’d listen when Glory kept telling her to intervene in this war. Now, she had to take action herself.

Passing Scorpan she paused and laid a hand upon his shoulder, “Be ready, in case of betrayal.”

“Glory?”

“I have a bad feeling about this meeting. Remain here and stay watchful, in case of outside attack, but I do not trust Tirek.”

“Nor do I. My brother has lost his way, and is hungry enough for power I could almost see him being mad enough to strike within the Queen’s very home but... no, even he wouldn’t...” Scorpan shook his head, “I shall be watchful. Please be careful, all of you. The others wait at the foot of the Palace.”

All according to plan, then, thus far. She gave Scorpan a small smile and then proceeded past him. When the Gate closed behind her, only then did she allow herself a brief sigh, almost wanting to apologize to Scorpan, but... no, she was resolute in her goal. There was no point in apologies. No point in regret. What had to be, had to be.

Beyond the Gate the true Soul Palace was in view in all it’s expansive glory and heavenly splendor. Red walls gilded in gold stretched as far as mortal eyes could see in a great curving circle. Land dotted the clouds, filled with the beauty of immaculate gardens and primordial forest alike. The shining walls of greater tiers of a pagoda-style palace defying the size of mountains rose from the sea of clouds, bridges of glorious crimson spanning across endless palace wings that filled the sky with countless towers.

Glory loved this place, her home. And she despised to the core of her soul how empty it had become. Once the raucous voices of hundreds of her siblings, cousins, even children, filled this place. Gods born of the Queen and the Consort, filling these halls with the boisterous laughter and even friendly conflict of family.

Gone, one by one, now. No more laughter, and the conflicts had turned to hate and blood scattered across the lower realms, with that dirt ball of a mud planet the grave of too many of her family to count. Now infested with millions of mortals. Humans who were just fragmented shades of those whom Glory had loved.

The mind numbing silence of the Soul Palace assaulted her soul as she walked further down the long red bridge towards it’s entry stairs, the vast climb of immense stairs that bypassed the numerous Halls of the Soul Palace to reach it’s true summit. She still could not comprehend why Mother and Father had allowed it all to happen. Why even now they insisted on doing nothing but arrange meetings and encourage ‘talks’, as if it was even possible to resolve this dispute with talking any longer.

Tirek and his Hollows had to be expunged. What was wrong had to be put to right, by any means necessary, and thankfully Glory was not alone in her thinking.

“They’re waiting for us up above, sister,” said Medley first, standing between their fellows, Minty, Bowtie, and Blossom. Medley approached Glory, meeting her halfway down the bridge, and lowered her voice.

“If you intend to back out of this, now is the time.”

Glory looked at Medley and didn’t break stride, “There is no turning back. Have you lost your nerve?”

“No. It’s you I worry about. This won’t be as easy as you think, Glory.”

“I am well aware of how powerful Mother and Father are,” she stated defensively, and Medley’s jaw tightened.

“Not what I meant. But never mind, I can see there’s no getting this across to you. I’m with you. We all are.”

“Indeed,” said Bowtie as the five of them met at the bottom of the first of thousands of steps that led upward onto the monolithic walls of the Palace. “Each of us is resolved to correct our world’s wayward course, and restore what we have all lost. Any sacrifice made in the process is beyond justified.”

“Far too much ugliness in the way the world is now for me to even dream of something more beautiful,” Blossom stated with a sad shake of his head, “So I suppose it’s only fair we indulge in some ugliness ourselves. Destruction before creation and all that.”

“You all are way too glum about this!” Minty said, pumping a fist in the air, “Gotta psych yourselves up! Kick Mom and Dad’s ass, we can do it! Unscrew the world, we can do it! Murder anyone who disagrees with us, we can do it!”

“And there goes any sense of gravitas to what we’re about to do,” Medley said with a soft chuckle, “Minty, please, try not to talk until this is over and done with?”

“Enough,” Glory said, “It’s time.”

Her words cut off further chatter, and the five of them as one ascended the steps. Distance and time fluctuated up that seemingly miles high flight of stairs, passing by tier after tier of Palace walls and corridors. For them it was just a perception of seconds to reach the summit. Below the extensive horizon of clouds went on forever, while just in front of them was the short red wall and much smaller, almost humble gate into the courtyard of the Soul Queen’s abode. The gate stood open, welcoming, and beyond was a great pavilion of polished stone, and a simple garden with a immaculate crystal spring of water. A set of cherry blossom trees grew along a winding grass trail to the right of the gate, while the stone walkway led across to a plain open space in front of a two story, wide building of red wood and white stone.

In front of this building was a comfortable set of red cushion seats arranged in a semi circle in front of the short stairs leading to the building’s gold gilded front doors.

Tirek was already there, colossal and crimson, surly and challenging as he glared at Glory and her compatriots. A well trimmed, black mustache filled out his upper lip, and curled with his proud smile.

“Hah, took you long enough! Intending to keep us waiting forever, Glory!? Hmph, and Bowtie, are you hiding the scar I gave you from our last bout?”

“I don’t hide my scars, Tirek. I simply don’t care about them,” stated Bowtie, while Medley gave the mighty Arrancar a wink and sharply blown kiss.

“Bowtie is just mad he can’t pull off the same facial hair you do. Maybe next time I’ll join him in taking you on and see if we can’t capture the great Tirek for some personal fun.”

Tirek rolled his eyes and rubbed at his mustache, “Perhaps I ought to shave it, if it’s such a distraction for you.”

Glory ignored the inane banter and eyed the others seated around Tirek.

There was an immense male Arrancar almost taller than Tirek himself, and a rather primeval example of the Hollow race, with three heads sprouting from his wide shoulders, each as squat and ugly as a bulldog and sporting canine half skull masks. He wore a thick chain of bone around his body that wrapped his arms, Cerberus’ blades dangling from his wrists in the shape of thick meat hooks. He spoke not at all, besides a low growl issuing forth from one of his heads, giving Glory and her group a snarling glare from his six blood red eyes. Bone spikes protruded in circles around his three necks, and his Hollow ‘hole’ was actually three, arranged in his lower stomach, a sign of his rather unique nature of a mutation among Hollows who had once been three brothers who in their mutual bloodlust merged together into one.

On Tirek’s left sat he who was the weakest of Tirek’s inner circle warlords, but incredibly dangerous in his own right due to his tactical acumen that had outmaneuvered many a foe on the battlefield. He was a broad bellied Arrancar with a Hollow hole in the center of his stomach. His bright orange skin gave off a continuous, steaming heat. Wide arms were decorated in rings of gold, and a crest of bone rose from a bald head and flat brick of a face that held burning, judgmental yellow eyes. A great bladed hunk of molten metal was stabbed into the ground next to him, pulsing with inner volcanic power. From his grousing look, Lavan was not at all happy to be present during this meeting. Or perhaps it was just the jostling of the six armed giant next to him that was annoying him.

“Geheheh, relax, Lavan, before you pop a vein. You didn’t even need to come.”

“As if I’d trust you with keeping an eye out for Shinigami trickery,” Lavan shot back, casting a burning glare at the one who had spoken.

This Arrancar had a skin tone of a darker red than Tirek’s, more akin to a maroon, almost purple, and his body was covered in scarring and sharp dark tattoos. Six arms of bulk laden muscle rippled from his tree trunk body, and a wild mane of black hair fell down around a head of handsome features sporting burning red eyes. Ravana wore little other than a loincloth of elegant black silk, and on his back carried a massive black, curved blade nearly as large as his body, yet oddly next to it was also strapped a polished instrument of dark wood and strings that had one large wood chamber at the bottom and a second, small chamber higher up the neck of strings. The man’s jawline was covered in bone, and a Hollow hole was set right in the center of his chest, where he wore a large necklace of many colored beads.

“I prefer Lavan’s insights to your bluster, Ravana,” Tirek said with an almost friendly grin, “He can see through much that would never occur to a straightforward warrior like you, although if it comes to it I don’t doubt your blade arms will be of great use.”

“As if there is much here to see through,” said the fifth of the present Arrancar, a figure of pale white, his skin flecked with scales and his features obscured by a serpentine mask of bone. What half of his face could be seen was long and ghostly, with sunken gray eyes. He wore wrappings of white shrouds around his chest, and an interlocking set of thick, pale snake skins around his waist. Amid those waist wrappings were a pair of large, curved knives that bore jagged, fang-like protrusions as if they were carved from the jaws of a reptilian beast. Typhon looked at Glory and her comrades with unhidden disgust and hate, “These people have nothing to say worth hearing or seeing through. We waste our time, Tirek.”

“Most likely,” Tirek admitted, and his eyes found Glory with a blaze of amusement, “But I don’t mind listening to them bluster. It costs us nothing, and the war has entered a bit of a lull for now.”

Glory kept her face as carefully schooled to calm as she could, not wishing to give the slightest hint of what she truly intended to do this day. In some ways Tirek was being more cordial than she expected, but that was likely because he knew the lull in the war would not last long, and he felt confident in the power of his remaining forces, even though Glory knew his side had taken as many losses as hers. Strictly speaking, Glory had the edge in power over Tirek, but he was a beast among his kind, stronger even than some of his predecessors who had shared his ideals but not quite become Hollows, such as Set or Ares. Entire pantheons of what mortals considered ‘gods’ had been slain in the fighting, to the point where those seated beside Tirek were the strongest of who was left. Ravana and Typhon were roughly Tirek’s equals, but had no ambition to rule as he did. Cerberus and Lavan were weaker, but no less vicious in their own ways, and still too dangerous to discount. And Tirek had many other followers who were not far behind in power, too many left for Glory to feel comfortable taking them in a final, open battle. Even if victory was secured, the cost would be too high. It had already become too high. This mad gamble of hers was the only path she could see to break that paradigm and rebalance the scales.

“Because so many of us have fallen on both sides already,” Glory stated simply in response to Tirek’s words as she went to take her place at the cushion on his right, where further on to her right the other Shinigami of her group took their own places. “Much of our fighting is now done by lesser souls. Your ‘Hollows’, and my ‘Shinigami’, and it has gotten to the point where as many get reincarnated as die between each lull in our conflict. Can you not see the futility of it all?”

“What I see, Glory, is that with every battle you fight, you only prove me more correct. Conflict is in the nature of the soul. It is unavoidable. You call us Hollow, and I accept that moniker with pride, but the truth is that we’re just the natural next step. You and your Shinigami just refuse to accept it.”

Minty stuck her tongue out at him, “Pfft, you’d just turn every world into a boring death march where the only food is souls and the only entertainment is cutting each other up! I like a good fight, but just as the seasoning on more fun stuff like feasts with actual food and drink! Even if Glory is a bit too stuffy for my tastes, she’s still a million times better than letting you Hollow dullards run the show. Least she lets me have fun.”

“I’m all for fun, little Minty,” laughed Ravana, crimson eyes sparkling, “But if you let souls get soft from all that hedonism, then who’s going to be left that’s even worth fighting? Battle isn’t just for settling disputes. It’s a way of life! The way of life. Nobody is really alive until they’ve proven it with blood and strife. Doesn’t mean you can’t like the person you’re killing. Best friends make for the best foes, too.”

“As backwards a way of thinking as I’ve ever heard,” stated Bowtie, “A mindless animal has more sense in its skull than you, Ravana.”

“Then feel free to come over here and try to crack it open,” Ravana taunted, gesturing with a few of his hands at Bowtie in both a beckoning and rude, one-fingered manner, while another hand already reached for the sword on his back.

The door to the tall, immaculate home swung open silently and a rich male voice of a deep and scolding baritone came forth, “There will be no violence in these halls.”

The man who strode out wore an elegant but simply cut white tunic that went down to his waist, where a similarly clean white set of trousers covered his legs up until a lattice of leather corded sandals took over. A long cape went down his back, spun from gold and silver, the silver forming a star-shaped cross upon it. This symbol was partially hidden by the man’s rivers of night black hair that swept from a face of a similar dark tone, more a light charcoal that complemented strong, masculine features. Red eyes regarded those seated before the home of the Soul Queen cooly, the man crossing his arms over a proud chest. From his side hung a blade sheathed in a black scabbard, the weapon itself an immense broadsword with a cross shaped hilt of silver.

“You were invited here to speak and seek to settle your disputes. I understand this will involve a great deal of shouting and accusation, but none of you are to draw blades in this holy place. Am I clear?”

The words were spoken in the steel tone of a father handing down the law to his children, for that was entirely what was happening.

“Yes, Father,” Glory said, lowering her head, and all others present did the same, even prideful Tirek. All called the Consort Father, just as all called the Soul Queen Mother, for those terms were ones of both respect and on some level, the perceived truth of the matter. Glory may have been a first generation child, born directly from the Soul Queen, but those such as Tirek still viewed the Consort and Her as parental figures. That was just the way of things.

And she was intending to end that, today. She silently hoped none of her intentions were betrayed on her face. Father was a perceptive creature. His red eyes could pierce through nearly anything. He looked at them now with distant, stern features, that held a ray of concern and love for his children, but this was overshadowed by frustration and disapproval. She could readily feel that radiating off of him like a harsh wave.

Suddenly a voice all too familiar, all too kind, all too... encompassing in its loving compassion spoke from the doorway, “Really my love, no need to give them such a glowering look. Our children are passionate people, and I wish them to speak their minds.”

She emerged into the light carrying a golden tray piled with freshly baked cakes smeared with honey. The smell was divine, and even made Glory hungry, and horribly sent her mind reeling to distant childhood memories of eating many sweets baked by her Mother’s hand. Her heart near tore in half, but she resolved herself to what was to be done as she watched the Soul Queen walked out next to her husband and cast a happy look over her gathered children.

In some ways, she defied conventional attempts at description, while at the same time managing to appear almost humble and mundane. Her hair was stark white, but if it caught any light, be it natural sunrays or flickering candle flame, and turned it into a prismatic display of countless colors. Her hair shimmered with those unseen colors, yet still somehow stayed as a cascading waterfall of unaltered, bleached white that struck the ground and trailed behind her like a gown. Her skin was like her husband’s, dark, but not like charcoal, but the shimmering deep blue and black of the sky at the threshold of dusk or dawn. Motherly, warm features curled her face into an eternal smile, with eyes wide and silver as the moon. She was remarkably tall, with long legs, broad hips, yet there was a plumpness to her middle that was somehow welcoming. She wore a pearl colored toga that swayed like mist around her, trailing to feet that wore simple, red wood sandals. No other adornments graced her, and she carried no visible weapon.

Not that the Soul Queen needed weapons. Her will, her uncompromising and towering reiatsu, and the ability to manifest it physically into what shape she wished was her power. Reishi danced to her whim in a way the particles of spirit energy did for no other being.

The tray of cakes she carried was something she could have just wished into existence, although Glory knew that Mother preferred to bake the normal, mundane way.

“My heart,” the Consort said, turning to the Soul Queen and wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a cuddle. She laughed and gave him a warm kiss.

“Now, now, not in front of the children. Keep watch as I know you feel you must, but please, they need to feel free to speak. Now then,” she turned to them all and walked down the steps with a merry gait, “Who wants snacks?”

The dour silence that followed was almost broken by Minty, but Glory gave the salivating younger woman a stern warning look and Minty relented. The Soul Queen looked at them with a bit of disappointment and carefully set the tray down, “Well, they’re here if anyone changes their mind. I know that things have been difficult for all of you, so perhaps you don’t have a great appetite at the moment. So instead I’ll hear what you have to say to each other. Are any of you prepared to stop fighting yet?”

It was as appalling as ever to Glory the utter casualness of the Soul Queen’s words. As if this was some... some backyard squabble! As if she hadn’t, dozens of times, argued with her over the very notion of this long and taxing war needing to end! While she seethed, Tirek spoke.

“I am prepared to cease the war immediately, if Glory and her faction agree to halt any and all attempts to ‘purify’ my people with their contemptible blades.”

“Do not lie to me or Mother,” Glory said, “You would continue to convert mortal souls into Hollows as much as possible were we not there to act as a bulwark against you. Any ceasefire would benefit you Hollows and gradually erode the number of pure souls left in the realms.”

His smug smirk made her blood boil, “Does that not simply prove me correct, then? That Hollows are the natural progression of the soul, and your imposed ‘order’ is nothing more than a sham that requires constant effort to enforce? Meanwhile human souls naturally turn Hollow, without I or my forces having to lift a finger?”

It was the same old circular argument. Glory could go on with it for eternity. She felt as if she already had.

No more.

“Mother, I come here today to beseech you one last time. Please... please do something,” Glory said, shocked at bit at the moisture in her eyes that she couldn’t quite keep at bay, “I’m begging you. Tirek and the Hollows cannot be allowed to continue as they are. We cannot be allowed to continue as we are. As long as there is no singular order to the realms, conflict will arise again. More of your children will shatter into pieces and become nothing more than human motes, billowing on winds of unending strife. You have the power to stop it! You could even bring back those we have lost, if you but gather the pieces-”

“I cannot.”

Glory choked back her words as the Soul Queen spoke. It was a voice burdened with sadness, but also overflowing with quiet compassion and resolve as the Soul Queen looked at Glory with loving but troubled eyes.

“Why?” Glory asked.

“What you are asking me to do is to remove the one thing I truly love about each and every one of you, my beloved offspring; your free will. I understand you cannot abide the beliefs and ways of the Hollows. I also understand that Tirek and his followers cannot abide the order your Shinigami seek to impose. I know that fighting between you, as has been the case in the past for many other of my children, is simply a natural occurrence that you must work out for yourselves.”

“Even if it has cost us so many loved ones we can never see again?” Glory whispered, “Reincarnation only works for the fragments, the small, mortal soul. We who are your truest children, we die in truth, Mother. We have been dying, broken apart, and you’ll not see those who are lost again unless you use your power to restore them!”

“If I did that, it would cost thousands of innocent mortal souls their own lives, Glory. I will not rob so many individual wills of their freedom to restore those who have passed on of their own equally free will,” the Soul Queen said, pain running like a stream through her tone, but no less resolute, “Freedom to choose one’s path is the greatest gift I know of, and I will not rob it from a single child, be they born directly from my womb or from generations hence from my line. I could never forgive myself if I became the kind of mother who would steal her children's’ freedom. I grieve for every death, Glory. I’ve cried unending tears, many endless nights, for those who have passed. I want nothing more than for your fights to end, but it is you who must end it. All of you. I cannot force it. I will not force it.”

“...What good is it then?” Glory found herself asking without being able to contain the scathing anger bubbling up from within her chest, “Your power. What good is it then if you won’t use it when your children are dying!?”

The Soul Queen’s eyes were as soft as moonlight and filled with love, but also a long suffering patience that enraged Glory. “What good would my power be if I abused it to steal my children’s right to discover their own paths? It is true, Glory, if it was my wish I could have silenced this conflict between my children on the very first day. The moment I watched a child of mine slay another, and had to watch their soul shatter into pieces, I could have put an end to it all. Locked you all away. Forbade you from ever making a choice I didn’t approve of. Indeed I did react like that, at first. Until I discovered the realm of Earth, of the ‘living’. Such a strange pair of words, ‘living’ and ‘death’. I had to invent them just to differentiate between my children who remained on this side, and my children who were born again in those smaller, human forms.”

“Not born again, Mother, scattered! Broken! One of our souls makes hundreds, even thousands of theirs! There’s no coming back from that, and I’ve witnessed it too many times!” Glory shouted, but again the Soul Queen looked at her with a sad shake of her head.

“I know, my Glory, I know. It hurt me too, for a long time, and that was my failing, because it took me too long to come to terms with the existence of death to properly teach my children not to fear it. But you must understand, all of you, that your souls are meant to be reborn into those many pieces. Each and every one of those ‘small’ souls is a unique one, yet is imprinted with the beautiful spark of the grand and godly soul they were born from. I do not know why this is, for I’ve never been all knowing. I merely have come to understand that this existence we find ourselves in has its own natural current, and we are all to grow and experience it through our own choices, and yes even the violent clash of our beliefs. That is why I will never take away your ability to choose, Glory. Nor yours, Tirek. Or any of you, whom I all love so much, be you bloodthirsty or saintly, hedonist of erudite, pacifist or warrior... I love you all.”

A dark hand fell on the Soul Queen’s shoulders and she looked to the Consort’s own approving and loving gaze as he held her. The rest gathered were silent, save for Tirek who looked away with a rare expression of consternation and embarrassment.

“Hmph, no offense Mother, but this is why I don’t often come here. How am I to maintain my image as an all powerful conqueror when you say such utterly sappy things? I’m going to need to bathe in the blood of at least a hundred foolish challengers to get myself sorted again.”

The Soul Queen smiled at him without judgment, “You’ve always loved battles and power, little Tirek. Your father always worried, but I kept telling him that you have to be who you are. While I wish you’d make some peace with Glory, I know your nature drives you to conflict. I only hope that when you get the truly final battle you desire, you find peace within it.”

He groused unintelligibly even more, not willing to meet her serene gaze.

Glory, however, stood. Her shoulders shook slightly with silent tears she refused to shed.

“So that is it, then. I tried. Now, at least, I know I have no choice. I can live with that.”

There was a distinct change in the air, and the Consort sensed it before anyone else, moving a step in front of the Soul Queen with his hand halfway to his blade, “I do not like the tone you take, Glory.”

“Geeze, are we finally done talking?” Minty said, also standing, as did the others alongside Glory, “We doing this now?”

“Looks that way, Mints,” said Blossom, stretching his arms, a melancholic smile on his face, “As some of the mortal bards are fond of saying; it’s showtime.”

Despite the Consort’s concern, the Soul Queen simply looked confused, tilting her head in a curious manner. And in fairness to her, Tirek did not see the danger inherent in Glory’s stance either, and in his own moment of flustered weakness after the Soul Queen’s loving and emotional speech, was taken just as off guard as she was.

Glory drew her sword. A blade of curved, streaming light emerged from its pearl scabbard. Her words were drained of emotion save for hardened, deathly resolution.

“Do it... Eos.”

The strike came from behind, within the very doors of the Soul Queen’s home.

A blade of immense golden power and sunfire stabbed right through the Soul Queen’s unsuspecting back with such catastrophic force and power that the resulting shock of sun gold light knocked almost everyone besides Glorys’ group backwards due to lack of time to brace. The walls were cracked and the air let out a thunderous peal of sound from that singular blow, and the Soul Queen looked down at her chest with uncomprehending eyes at the blade sticking from within her. Sunfire, its heat radiant, dripped down and burned the ground, along with trickles of a luminous blood that glowed with the Soul Queen’s reishi.

“...Huh...” the Soul Queen uttered, and complete chaos exploded in the pavilion.

Glory did not see it all, yet she sensed it.

Bowtie went right for Tirek, as planned. The man drew his Zanpaktou and from the dark iron scimitar blade of clockwork a mountain of steel burst forth that smashed into Tirek with all of the concussive force of being smashed into by a falling mountain. A storm of steel blades lager than any real life tornado screamed in a metal barrage as Bowtie’s sword sparked off of Tirek’s, who had just barely drawn his own golden claymore in time. Bowtie in turn redoubled the titanic size of the metal monoliths that sprung from every swing of his sword, bearing down mountains upon first Tirek, and then Ravana, who had by that point stood and stretched his own six arms and drawn both the blade and instrument from his back. Ravana cradled the instrument in his lower two arms, fingers already dancing across the strings as his upper four arms began to move in a hypnotic haze of motion. The single, humongous curved tulwar style blade was immediately duplicated in the palms of his free hands, until he wielded four in a dark storm of motion that sliced into the monoliths of metal conjured by Bowtie. Tirek also responded in kind to Bowtie's assault by slicing the air with his blade and generating a blast of such unrelenting force that even without seeing it Glory could feel all of the Palace groan and buckle under the blows. Against either one of those opponents Bowtie would find a match, but pitted against both Glory knew that even her brother, the most martially skilled of her siblings, could only last for so long.

Minty’s task was to occupy Typhon, and a cascade of black smoke and oil flooded the grounds and swept him up as Minty gleefully giggled, her disastrous obsidian blade flying from her playful parasol as Typhon and her surfed down the immense Soul Palace, the smoke and oil melting walls to putty as it went. The howls of a thousand beasts accompanied Typhon's retaliation as a geyser of flesh tore from his back, formed from countless serpent heads, all of which belched forth vomitous Ceros that cut into Minty's tide of melting black.

Fire surged forth from Blossom’s blade, which swiftly transmuted into a sharpened horn of red metal that he put to his lips and hammered the world with an explosive sound that created a series of rupturing detonations of reishi that ripped half of the pavilion apart and sent Cerberus and Lavan both tumbling back. Both Arrancar recovered and drew their weapons, and in a fraction of a second an entire wing of the Palace just below was being ripped to pieces by a high speed clash of sound and fury from the three combatants. Given Cerberus and Lavan were the weaker of the gathered forces of Tirek, it was hoped Blossom could keep them busy by himself.

This left Medley with the hardest job of all.

Her face was frightening in its focus as her own sword came forth, grasping the redwood hilt that appeared from thin air and into her hand. The blade of wind force that extended from the hilt cut right towards the Consort, and in a concussive flash his own sword was there to meet it with such impact that it sheared through Medley’s sword and into her-

A whisper of wind and waver of force and that Medley vanished, the Consort turning to feel the impact of Medley’s real body in a tackle that smashed him with sound shattering force through the wall of his house. The home had a hole blasted clean through it by the Consort’s flying body, and Medley vanished in less than a millisecond, following him through it with her sword generating a legion of... not illusions, but rather alternate memories of herself that had as much physicality as her real body. They swarmed the Consort in a flurry, as his own power spilled forth in an oceanic tide of space warping shadow that was filled with his pure fury.

Glory knew Medley would not keep their Father occupied for long. Everything had to be done swiftly. Not even half a second had passed from the beginning, and she was already moving the same time her compatriots had.

Her Zanpaktou was a crescent of the very essence of light itself, and she poured all of her reiatsu, a heavenly sky’s worth of spiritual pressure, into the single thrust beyond the speed of light that was aimed true at her Mother’s heart.

Glory never really knew if the Soul Queen was unable to defend herself because of the horrible wound she’d already received and her own shock, or if in that final moment she’d simply chosen not to. Glory didn’t see her Mother move to protect herself, either way, and felt the almost anti-climatic smoothness of her sword passing into the Soul Queen’s body and finding the beating heart within.

Now two blades pierced the very First Soul, the giant blade of golden metal and sunfire from behind, and the thin curved blade of most pure and raw light from the front.

Within the Soul Queen, Glory felt her Mother’s reaitsu struggling like a caged star against bands of power coursing through its wounded core. Power that was not spiritual pressure, but magic. Magic from a foreign world, that even the Soul Queen would not have an easy time countering. Perhaps if she had seen the attack coming and could have hardened her nearly almighty reiatsu against it, then even this blade of titanic magical might would have not pierced fully, but the wielder of this sword was no mere mortal. Indeed the wielder was one whom Glory knew was an equal to herself.

“She struggles mightily,” said the ringing and imperious feminine tone as a being strode out of the doorway, wings of sunfire flaring over a body of of white sunfire clad in armor of blinding, molten gold. The winged equine’s mane was a raw corona of white flame, and her eyes pools of light that dimmed only a little to show gold orbs looking at the Soul Queen in hard concentration, “I suggest you remove her heart quickly, for even my magic will not hold this one for very long.”

“I know, Eos. Just hold her. This... will only take a moment.”

"Hmph, only a moment she says," scoffed Eos, strain writ plain on her flaming features, "You'd best keep your end of our bargain, for this is much more difficult than I am making it look."

Glory ignored the alicorn and kept her attention on the Soul Queen. Her Mother’s eyes looked into hers with shock that was fast softening into... emotions that Glory refused to acknowledge. She instead put all of her focus on searing her reiatsu into her Mother’s core. Without Eos’ help, without her magic, this would have been impossible. Glory had considered this from all angles countless times before enacting the plan. Even together, she and all four of her allies could not have guaranteed being able to subdue their Mother. More importantly, keeping the Consort and Tirek’s forces busy would mean only one of them could truly strike at Mother without her having time to retaliate. Glory by herself would never have been enough, and no other in all the world would have been able to help her do this feat of matricide.

No one of this world.

It had taken a long time to secure Eos’ help. Decades of slow diplomacy behind the scenes, aided by an ally in the Beast Realm to facilitate the meetings. Ultimately Eos’ own desperation due to her own conflict with her sister had finally put the alicorn in enough of a bind to accept the deal Glory was offering. A bargain was struck, and then it was just a matter of waiting for the right time.

Getting Eos into the Soul Palace was easy for Glory, who had access to all of the wards, and knew all of the hidden places as thoroughly as anyone save perhaps her Father, and even he did not always check every nook and cranny. More importantly, through many trials, and Medley’s help specifically in the area of stealth, Eos’ magic was proven to be able to subtly avoid the detection methods of normal reiatsu. Normal spells may not have been enough, but Eos was as powerful as alicorn’s got, and had mastery of magic almost none in her world save her sister possessed. So creating a spell to hide herself, tested thoroughly by Medley and Glory both, had been well within Eos’ power.

Eos had been hidden in the Soul Palace a full day before the meeting, just waiting for Glory’s arrival so she could follow them right into the thick of the meeting. Then it was almost simple, hidden with her magic, to get into position and wait Glory’s signal to attack with the sole purpose of wounding the Soul Queen badly enough to disable her and using as much magic as needed to subdue, or at least weaken, her spiritual pressure enough for Glory to finish the job.

And finish it she was, for she felt the bands of light, on the smallest level of basic particles, slipping around her Mother’s heart. Her blade pierced the heart even as it gripped it on every single molecular level with strands of light until the organ was bound to the sword itself. Glory hardened all of her power within her arms, her sword, and her own soul as she prepared herself to yank the blade free and with it, her Mother’s heart... and paused only for a moment as she felt her Mother’s hand.

The Soul Queen had raised her right hand, slick with her own blood from having clutched at her wound a moment earlier. Now it touched her daughter’s face, but rather than attack, or struggle to unleash her power past the bonds of magic being forced into her by Eos, the Soul Queen simply held Glory’s head gently, like she was rocking her to sleep when she’d been small.

Glory looked into her Mother’s eyes and saw nothing but love and forgiveness there, and it killed her soul to see.

“I... love you...”

The Soul Queen’s words echoed in Glory’s ears as she felt tears on her face for only the second it took for the raw heat of her reiatsu to burn them away. “I love you too, Mother... goodbye.”

She screamed as she tore her sword out, and with it, amid a gout of blood, came the Heart of the Soul Queen.

----------

Nothing could pierce the black hole of silence that had fallen over the meeting area under Discord’s shop.

Scorpan looked stricken and ill, mouth hanging slightly open in corpse-like disbelief.

Sombra was a jet black statue, eyes as unreadable as chipped rubies.

For Discord there was nothing save the phantom glint of suspicions confirmed.

Most others were silent, stricken dumb or mesmerized in horror by the tale that Glory had recounted for them.

Of all of them, it was Sunset Shimmer who managed to speak first, to collect her thoughts and feelings enough to muster a voice amid that deathly quiet.

“I’ll... not ask about this Eos individual, because that sounds like a whole other conversation waiting to melt my brain. So instead I’ll focus on what I don’t understand. Is the Soul Queen dead?”

“Not in truth,” Glory replied, voice desiccated of much of her earlier pride and now just stating facts, “Tearing out her Heart removed the core of her power, but Eos still had to keep her bound while I absorbed it, and then went to the aid of my fellow Zero Division members. The battle was not a short one. Cerberus and Typhon were slain, but Tirek escaped with the remainder for future struggles. However with everyone together we could turn to helping Medley deal with our Father, who rather than let his power be captured, sent it in a burst of strength to the realm of the living even as our blades pierced him. Then, unfortunately, our Mother regained enough power to do something similar, tearing out one of her Eyes to send away before we could regroup to finish the job. We took her power then, carving it up. But Mother cannot truly die like we can, so she remains, barely alive, and sealed within the Soul Palace.”

“But then... why did you create Hell? I still don’t quite understand this,” Sunset said, and no others rose to speak, but she could tell she had the attention of all, “You wanted to beat the Hollows, and it sounds like with the Soul Queens, ugh, ‘pieces’, you got even more powerful. I mean, Tirek was on your level back then, but you’re stronger than he is now, at least a little. You could have ended the war, but you kept it going instead! According to your story you hated that eternal war, so why would you make it continue on via the Soul Society and later on the Quincy?”

“For the Zero Plan,” Glory said simply, “What you don’t grasp, child, is that while I had held a small hope that Mother might end the war, I also wanted her to restore those we had lost. Unfortunately even with absorbing some of Mother’s power, we couldn’t fully replicate all of her incredible ability to control reishi. It wasn’t enough to end the war, we want to put the world back to the proper state it should be. Jigoku was created for this purpose.”

“Then the last piece is in place,” Discord said suddenly, settling back in his seat with a disgruntled look, “I had always wondered why you’d wanted my help so badly. Why you wanted me in Zero Division. It’s making sense now. The Hogyoku. When I created that, you realized I could also aid you in the methods of using all the soul energy you're using Hell to store up. I could help you figure out how to rebuild the souls of the gods who died in the war.”

Glory looked Discord in the eye, a small confirming smile on her lips, “I had more reasons than that to offer you a place beside us, Discord, but your genius was indeed one of them. Your understanding of the structure of the soul is such that you’d make it far easier for us to restore those lost to us. We could do it ourselves eventually, but I’d rather have your help, not to mention keep you preserved in the new world to come after.”

“Wait, what do you mean ‘preserved’?” asked Sunset, and this time it was Medley who responded, earning an irked look from Glory.

“Oh, that’s Glory’s idea of being merciful and ‘compassionate’. You see, she wants all of our old friends and family back, which means grinding up the souls that used to make up their base components for ‘reassembly’, but because Jigoku makes a nice big soup of it all, it’s been more or less figured out that we can spare a few thousand souls from the process. So in Glory’s oh so great wisdom, she decided we’d take our time and let you mortal souls prove yourselves. You guys get to live however many dozens of lives it takes for you to either end up in Jigoku, or become ‘worthy’ in one of our eyes. You see, each of us Zero Division members gets to pick souls we like for preservation. Any soul we deem worthy, for whatever reason. That was part of our agreement. So if you’re a fantastic artistic soul, maybe you catch Blossom’s eye. If you’re a crazy party animal who has enough of a ‘fun’ spirit, maybe Minty snaps you up. Show a ridiculous amount of loyalty and honor, and maybe you’ll impress Bowtie. Have a big enough stick up your ass, then who knows, Glory might take you in as well. As for me, I’m not much for that whole process. But you get the idea.”

“What Medly’s disrespectful words convey is, in essence, the core of the Zero Plan,” Glory said with finality, “I wish to preserve what souls among mortals show themselves deserving. The rest, after generously being allowed to live many times, and only after proving theri final lack of worth by falling into Jigoku, will return the very soul energy that they took from the corpses of our brothers and sisters and give it back. Then, the world will be made right once again. Maybe then I will consider restoring Mother as well, after forcing her to acknowledge that I was... right...”

Sunset had no words. Not for that. It was crazy, and she was having the hardest time getting her head wrapped around it all. On some level she could feel the pain that Glory must have gone through watching her family die one after another... but to come to this conclusion about it all? To concoct a plan that would callously and cruelly destroy not merely the lives, but the very souls of countless individuals to try to get back what was lost? Forget the guilt of those whose crimes had put them in Hell. Forget the notion of ‘preservation’. The particular arguments over the right or wrongs of all of this didn't matter to Sunset, because for her there would be no argument that’d justify a plan that required sacrifice and suffering of this scale.

As she struggled to find words to express this, Scorpan did it for her, and quite a bit more simply than Sunset may have managed.

“No.”

“No?” Glory repeated, slowly, and Scorpan’s reiatsu rose in a crackling tide around him.

“No, Glory. This is not why Soul Society exists. Perhaps it is the reason you made it, but it is not why I lead it, and it is not why every single Soul Reaper has fought for the past eight thousand years. We exist to protect the cycle of mortal reincarnation, so that every soul gets to live through its natural span of life in eternal balance. The world you seek to create with this twisted design...”

A tectonic shift in his reiatsu hammered down upon the proceedings, and his leathery brown hand had his Zanpaktou out in a fraction of a breath. Dull gray metal glinted from the seemingly simple katana with the black leather wrapped hilt, but the aura of power the rose from within it and the old man was difficult even for the Zero Division to ignore.

“Once we called you the ‘Royal Guard’, but all of that was a lie. The Soul Queen, the Spirit Queen, our Mother, has been desecrated by your betrayal. I built the Gotei 13 with my own hands at your behest, believing that you still wanted a world of balance and peace for all souls. I had blinded myself, but no longer. I denounce you, Glory, and those who follow you. The Gotei 13 will never accept your Zero Plan as long as I breathe.”

Glory stared at him, as did all of her fellows of the Zero Division. Slowly, yet with immeasurable power and purpose, she stood and faced Scorpan directly. Her eyes reflected his own with the same unbreakable will as her hand went to her own blade’s hilt.

“So be it."

Episode 177: Lines Drawn

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Episode 177: Lines Drawn

It was as innocuous a building as could be. People would pass by it thousands of times over the course of their lives and never pay it a second glance. Just another drab, two story figure of the borderline between downtown Canterlot City and it’s vibrant suburbs, the kind of place an accounting firm or small time insurance company might house itself. Nobody ever really noticed, let alone questioned, the fact that the exact same bland blue sedan was always parked out front, or that no one ever really seemed to go in through the doors on the first floor.

If one peered into the windows, it would look like a plain reception area, like the kind of room one sat in and ignored the outdated magazines scattered on the table amid the plain chairs and one, odd smelling couch while waiting for one’s appointment time. Again, no one ever really questioned that nobody appeared to occupy this room at any given time. Certainly none would have looked inside the always closed and shuttered windows on the second floor to see what lay behind them.

What did lay behind the façade on the second floor of the building was an intelligence post that was torn from the pages of near future spy novellas, where men and women in dark green suits sat in front of glowing monitors displaying camera feeds and data from all corners of Canterlot City. The center of the room was taken up by a circular, black table where the surface was in fact a screen that showed a top-down, current satellite image of the city. There were various markings of blue, white, red, and green dotting the map, with the largest cluster centered above what would be a familiar hidden shop to some people who looked at the map.

Standing at one end of this map table, with a fresh brewed cup of coffee in her hands, was Windy Whistles. She wore a similar green suit to the other folk in the room, but had the added element of a red and black plaid arm band around her left arm, with an emblem of with the black letters ‘WB’ printed upon it just below a small red symbol that looked like a crown. She drank her coffee with a perpetual frown at the map, and the huge cluster of icons located at Discord’s shop.

“God this is frustrating,” she sighed, “First you, Firefly, now Rainbow Dash. And I still can’t do anything about it.”

Across the table from here, and somewhat concerned looking Bon Bon cleared her throat, “Ma’am?”

Windy Whistles glanced up at Bon Bon, who was still in her usual school outfit rather than the seeming uniform of those around her. “Just grousing at myself, agent. It isn’t particularly encouraging that all we can do is watch this play out.” She gestured at the icons on the map, and Bon Bon cleared her throat loudly.

“Begging your pardon, ma’am, but observation is our only job here, isn’t it? We’ve gotten no word from headquarters to directly interfere, unless it’s to protect the civilian population, and even then we’re supposed to avoid revealing ourselves. Which, admittedly, makes me wonder why we’re so focused on Wallflower. She gave up the item to Twilight Sparkle. What further interest do we have in her, that you’ve got two other agents tailing her right now?”

There was a very direct and challenging light in Bon Bon’s eyes, which Windy Whistles appreciated. “You’re an astute girl, ‘Bon Bon’, which is why I wanted you on my team. Two years at this post, right? Long enough to make friends locally. Yes we were interested in that magical artifact, but Wallflower might be even more important, given we’ve intercepted two of them tracking her over the past few months alone. It’s rather lucky we were able to deal with that without the spiritual groups being made aware of it, yet.”

“I thought those incidents were because of Sunset and the portal,” Bon Bon said, “I don’t remember reading in your reports that Wallflower was the target.”

“We weren’t sure, at first,” Windy said, “It was certainly possible Sunset was a target of interest, even before her current stint as a Substitute Soul Reaper. But after yesterday I’m convinced our opponents on the other side were looking for Wallflower, although why that is, I have no idea. I haven’t made the call to bring her in, yet. We’ve had somewhat more concerning matters to occupy our attention,” she gestured once more at the map. Bon Bon looked, equally worried over the ‘meeting’ that was taking place at Discord’s shop.

There was no way of telling what a congregation of that many powerful spiritual entities might escalate to. Yes, as far as Bon Bon could tell, the intent was purely diplomatic, but knowing the volatile nature of Soul Reapers and Quincy in the same space, it was easy to imagine various worst case scenarios occurring. And as Windy Whistles had said herself, there was very little the personnel of Wing Bind could do about it. Strictly speaking, without a direct countermand of orders from headquarters in London, they were to never directly engage with Soul Reapers or Quincy. Hollows were only considered fair game if an agent was under direct threat, or had to act to save an innocent life, and was still required to do all that was necessary to cover up the fact afterward to leave no trace of their presence.

Which seemed silly to Bon Bon because she’d eat her own shoe if the Soul Reaper and Quincy higher ups weren’t aware of Wing Bind’s existence. No matter how secret, there just wasn’t any way they’d kept off the big factions of the world’s radars forever. Bon Bon chalked up their continued lack of harassment from any of those factions as a result of Wing Bind not being big or powerful enough to be worth the trouble. Which was fine by her... at least until recently, where events had escalated to the point where she was starting to think that taking a stand to end the war might be worth the risks.

Looking elsewhere on the map, she noted the pale gray icon indicating Wallflower’s location. Near a cemetery? Odd. The girl was odd. Bon Bon and her fellow agents had been tracking her, and there were a number of inconsistent things about her. No obvious permanent residence, for one. When not at the school, or at her garden, Wallflower just seemed to... wander the city at random. It was a little creepy.

Noting two green icons not more than half a block away from the cemetery Wallflower was at, Bon Bon noted, “You thinking of bringing her in? Normally you’d just have one of us keeping an eye on her.”

“It’s been on my mind. I have questions I want answers to, and she’d be safer in custody. Considering that so far we haven’t found any parental registry, I’m starting to think she doesn’t actually have any family that’d miss her if she vanished off the street for a while.”

Bon Bon frowned, “Those two are both from the Pipers Division. Not exactly known for their subtlety. Why not let me bring Wallflower in, if it comes to that? I can do it quietly. Patchworks Division is practically tailor made for covert action.”

Windy snorted out a laugh, “Tailor made? Was that a pun? Did you just pun me, agent?”

“Uh, maybe?”

“Hmm, well, you’re not wrong, you're better suited to the job. More personable. Which reminds me, have you given any thought to my proposal to bring that friend of yours in as well, Lyra?”

Bon Bon found her jaw tightening, “I’m... not sure Lyra would be a good fit for Wing Bind, ma’am. She’s a bit on the flighty side, doesn’t really take things all that seriously, and has a highly overactive imagination.”

“Sounds like a shoe-in for the Inks Division to me, then. Still, if you’re sure she’s not up to it-”

“It’s not a question of being ‘up’ to it or not, I just...” Don’t want my friend anywhere near this business, if I can help it, Bon Bon thought, but then again, Lyra was already involved, just like the rest of the students at Canterlot High. The insanity at Camp Everfree saw to that. Lyra was overly enthusiastic about helping with the students doing neighborhood patrols, and Bon Bon constantly worried about the girl getting herself hurt. Would the odds of that increase if she was brought into Bon Bon’s organization, or would it be safer for Lyra if she knew some skills to defend herself with?

Being in Wing Bind meant dealing with a whole different crate of potatoes compared to what Sunset and her friends were tackling. Not necessarily more dangerous, given Sunset and those girls were on a whole other level of power compared to what Bon Bon was used to dealing with, but Wing Bind’s issues were still deadly ones. Hollows and Soul Reapers may have been the dominant forces of the world, but those thousands of years of spiritual conflict had left plenty of significantly smaller but still problematic forces around the globe that the Soul Reapers didn’t concern themselves with.

Whether it was a pack of rogue lycanthropes on the loose, or a mad witch stealing children at night, or even the rare Dragon or similar denizen of the Beast Realm that wandered in to wreck a little havoc... it was the secret, international supernatural enforcement organization ‘Wing Bind’ that was tasked with dealing with such matters. Not to mention keeping a lid on all of it, so the everyday citizen could sleep well at night blissfully unaware of just how often their lives were imperiled by the supernatural.

If Canterlot City hadn’t had such a high concentration of Soul Reapers and Quincy in the first place, Sunset Shimmer's initial shenanigans with magic would’ve fallen under Wing Bind’s normal jurisdiction to handle. Chances were she’d have been taken into custody and either imprisoned or recruited ages ago, but Wing Bind went to great lengths to avoid making itself known to any one of the “Big Three”; Soul Reapers, Quincy, or Hollows. Funded by a secret multi-national agreement or not, Wind Bind just wasn’t anywhere near on the level with those spiritual factions, so staying out of the way was rather important.

Not that they didn’t try rather hard to find ways to upgrade their abilities, hence why magical artifacts like Wallflower’s stone had been a target of interest.

Windy Whistles looked long and hard at Bon Bon after the girl’s trailing off answer, but any further comment was forestalled by the sound of a sudden and intense beeping from the table. Around the cluster of icons at Discord’s shop, a rippling signal of many red circles bloomed outward, and one of the people at the side monitors spoke up in a fearful voice, “M-Ma’am, we’ve just picked up a severe spiritual disturbance from location D! It’s completely off the scales!”

“That shouldn’t be possible with all of the wards Discord has around that damn shop of his,” Windy Whistles replied, voice cool despite the monumental readings coming in and displaying on the map, which were enough to make Bon Bon break out in a frozen sweat.

“Holy crap, whatever is causing that is outputting enough spiritual energy to wreak the whole city three times over,” Bon Bon said through clenched teeth, “If those wards crack, it might lay out the entire population, or worse.”

Spiritual pressure was no joke. Normal people couldn’t stand up to concentrated levels of it for long, and the amount this reading showed was dangerous enough that every single person in Canterlot City might suffer from more than just a brief bout of unconsciousness. So far the protective barriers around Discord’s shop were essentially saving the city, but if they dropped again, like they had not so long ago, then...

Windy Whistles glared at the map, her frustration back in full force, “Dammit all. Even if we use our pre-planned media control to simulate a city wide gas leak, it’d take hours to evacuate. We don’t have any options other than to hope Discord and those girls can diffuse whatever is going down, otherwise we’re all about to be at ground zero.”

----------

In a snap of streaming embers, the fire wreathed longsword of Hokori and the burning red shield of Hikari were in Sunset’s hands, the girl already on her feet before she finished fully drawing her Zanpaktou. Each of her friends had risen in the same moment, their Fullbrings manifested around them. Solid lightning blasted in pillars from Rainbow’s spear, her prismatic wings brimming with a cascade of energy ready to be unleashed. The ground shook from the impact of Applejack’s drill lance landing next to her, the bits humming with power and golden light as they began to spin. A wreath of translucent gold hands bloomed around Fluttershy as she drew both them and her six real arms into a calm, and ready martial arts stance. Bubbling pink tendrils of solid mist rose up around Pinkie Pie as she reached into that colorful void and withdrew her ridiculously sized half-hammer, half-pick, hefting it over her shoulder. Rarity created a floating armada of weapons around herself, glinting with deadly ruby light, as the air rippled behind her with the power of her gate, ready to bring forth her army of constructs.

This tension flooded through the rest of the table as well. Cloudy Quartz reached back towards her shadow and the gleam of green Bringer Light rose from it as her shadow became alive and started to rise up around her body like a living tar. Lofty and Holiday both readied their individual Bount Crests in preparation to summon their Dolls, although both looked readily terrified at the prospect of attempting to fight under these circumstances. Gaia had stood, but not yet drawn her Zanpaktou, instead just resting her hand on its hilt as wood and vines started to blossom into being from her flesh and wrap her like armor.

Among the Soul Reapers, Captain Blueblood had stood and drawn his own sword, while the others had gotten up but kept their blades sheathed. Moondancer looked ready to faint or throw up, while Radiant Hope was giving her a comforting grip on the arm with one hand, eyes wavering with fear but holding on, regardless. Smart Cookie was pale, eyes locked on Scorpan more than anyone, hands clenched tightly on the table The Lieutenants were fully cognizant that if this came to blows, only their Captain Commander really stood any chance among their ranks. This was writ plain on Captain Amore’s worried, torn features as she looked to Scorpan, her concern for him palpable in her wide blue eyes. Sweet Cider looked nearly as angered as Scorpan, long blonde hair bristling like the quills on an irate hedgehog as she rose to her own feet, Zanpaktou coming free of its sheath.

Twilight and Sugarcoat had risen together but stopped short of summoning their bows. Coloratura didn’t even bother rising, instead watching her King for any signal that he was giving the go ahead to take action, but otherwise maintained a faux lazy posture with one leg crossed over the other and a hand tapping light blue fingers upon the table.

Of the Zero Division, none had risen from their seats. Indeed only Glory had even put a hand on their Zanpaktou, although that alone was sufficient threat to warrant a response. It looked as if Scorpan was quite ready, by the deathly and serious cast of fury on his features, that he was ready to provide all of the response Glory could desire and then some.

Only in that moment there was a clap of hands and a long, drawn out whistle. Eyes turned to Discord, who very slowly and deliberately stood up, with Ditzy Doo rising alongside him.

“Whoa now folks, let’s put the brakes on just a tad, shall we?” Discord said, hand on his hat as he twirled his sword cane with the other, “Even with my wards back up, the poor people of Canterlot City are going to be feeling all of this reiatsu spilling out, you know? Glory, much as you’re down a rabbit hole of logic I just can’t follow, I suspect you’d rather not just erase this city from the map if you can help it, yes?”

Although her eyes had been fixed squarely on Scorpan, there was something in Discord’s voice that made her ever so slightly shift her attention to him, “It is not my intention to engage in wholesale slaughter of mortal humans, which is why I warned you against conflict here to begin with. Yet if Scorpan chooses to draw steel upon me, I shall respond in kind. He had declared himself and all of the Gotei 13 to be against us, although I cannot help but wonder if he will find support for himself unanimous among his ranks?”

At that, Smart Cookie blurted out, “We’d follow the Captain Commander anywhere, even unto the Soul Palace. Especially after what you’ve admitted.”

Smart Cookie nearly choked as Glory’s eyes, and a trickle of the woman’s insane reiatsu, became manifest. But before any real harm was done, Scorpan stepped in to shield his Lieutenant like a protective, grandfatherly bear, and his own reiatsu encased her and the other Lieutenants at the table. His eyes did not lose a single iota of his rage even as his voice spoke like that horrible calm before the onset of a calamitous storm.

“I have faith in those who wear this uniform and uphold the ideals of the Soul Society. It is not us who is betraying you, Glory, but quite the opposite. Even so, even if there are some who choose not to join with me, it makes no difference in my decision. You cannot be allowed to continue your plans.”

“Yet our humble shopkeeper makes a fine point,” Sombra spoke suddenly, having not yet drawn his own weapon, but showing a ready stance that said he could have it out in an instant if need be, “I would not have Canterlot City destroyed, a near sure result if we come to blows here and now. Glory, other dogs of the Zero Division, I suspect you knew full well the truth of your actions would garner this reaction, for you may be insane, but you’re not idiots. You must have had a reason to so willingly confess your plans here in front of those who’d be so eager to oppose you. Why not state your true aims in coming here today, then we can see if battle, and the sacrifice of the innocents of this city, is the only course of action left to us.”

“It is not complicated,” Glory said, “I concluded there was no longer a way to maintain the secret, and even less reason to do so. At this point, the Zero Plan is far enough along that even knowledge of it would not readily forestall its completion. Instead I thought I’d be gracious and reveal the truth to all concerned parties, and then offer a hand of compassion.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” asked Sunset, mind swirling with possible ways to avert disaster. Much as she was ready to fight, and knew her friends and allies would be too, she wasn’t stupid enough to think that an all out brawl with the Zero Division here and now was a good idea. Discord was right, even if, ideally, they somehow managed to drive Zero Division off, there was no chance Canterlot City would escape unscathed. Countless people would probably die from the fallout of spiritual pressure alone, never mind how much actual damage the powers of those in this league of ability would cause.

Camp Everfree would be nothing in comparison.

Yet even if they did fight, could they win? Scorpan and Sombra might account for one or two of the Zero Division themselves. Discord and Ditzy Doo together might be able to handle another. But that’d still leave two or three Zero Division members for everyone else to tackle, and even with the help of Gaia Everfree, Sweet Cider, and that Coloratura Sternritter woman, Sunset had doubts they had enough power here to come out on even grounds, let alone win.

So it didn’t cost them anything to hear what Glory had to say, if only to buy a few precious moments to think.

When Glory’s eyes shifted to Sunset, it was like having an oncoming natural disaster suddenly look right at you.

“What I mean, Sunset Shimmer, is that I do not wish to waste any souls that can conceivably be preserved, without negating the entire purpose of the Zero Plan. You, your friends, your loved ones, your allies, any and all here including Soul Reapers and Quincy alike who willingly lay down arms... will be allowed permanent residence within the infinite expanse of the Soul Palace.”

“What-?” Applejack began.

“-the fudge?” Pinkie Pie finished.

Sweet Cider spat to the side, “Oh yer a right piece o’ work ain’t ya? Puttin’ the whole o’ the world n’ the gutter, but ya think offering ta keep some folks as bleedin’ pets is some kind o’ compassion? Lord have mercy, ya’ll r’ insane.”

“Hardly insanity, so-called ‘Kenpachi’,” Bowtie stated, causing Sweet Cider’s ire and her hardened tide of spiritual pressure to focus upon him, but he weathered it with the composure of unbending metal as he met her glaring eyes, “We are undoing the damage caused by an aberrant belief our Mother had that the death and destruction caused by our siblings’ conflicts was somehow an acceptable and natural thing. We could have done this through pure brute force, after absorbing Mother’s power. Even Tirek, once our equal, could not have hoped to stop us, had we simply decided to slaughter all and forcibly take the soul of every Hollow and living human at sword point. This matter would have been over thousands of years ago, if not for Glory’s kind heart. She wished to give every soul a chance, indeed dozens of chances, to prove themselves worthy. And now, even though I would personally rate very few among you as worth preserving, Glory is willing to grant amnesty to all who would willingly accept our course as the right one, and be granted life everlasting in the world to come. She has no reason to care at all for a single one of you creatures, but she is willing to risk exposing our plans, speaking with all of you directly, to make this generous offer. Yet you insult her by calling her insane? Hmph, well I shall not weep for the ungrateful. Feel free to attack us, and I shall gladly send you to Jigoku personally, Kenpachi.”

“I will not argue the matter further,” said Glory, still not drawing her sword, but something in the faintest shift in her stance put Sunset on immediate edge, “Nor will I draw first blood, if battle is what you desire, Scorpan. I came here to hear everyone’s answer to my offer. If you refuse, I still have no intention of engaging you unless you strike first. We both know you cannot breach the Soul Palace without the Queen’s Key, which your renegade ‘Substitute Soul Reaper’ stole. I expect a visit from her sometime in the near future, where I fully intend to teach her the gross extent of her hubris in thinking she could challenge us. The same shall apply to you or anyone foolish enough to follow you, should you somehow obtain the Queen’s Key to assault the Soul Palace.”

“Hold up!” Rainbow Dash piped in, “So you guys just plan on chilling in your snazzy palace and just... what, wait around? I mean, now that the cat’s out of the bag, what’s stopping the Soul Reapers, Quincy, and Hollows from making peace and putting a wrench in your plan right now?”

Glory’s lips thinned into an unsettlingly cold smile, “Do you honestly think the ‘truth’ will matter in the long run, young lady? Oh, I imagine some might try for peace, for a time. But I lived through eons of such lulls in warfare, which always sparked anew into war. Even if Scorpan and Sombra forge an alliance, or Tirek goes quiet for a time, the conflict between these forces will rise again. Hollows cannot help their nature, and Soul Reapers will still resent the Quincy. Animosity will occur, in due time, even if it takes another few centuries to ignite once more. And all the while, souls will be tested by their many reincarnations, until they either fall into Jigoku, or are chosen to reside with us.”

“Soul Reapers could refuse to enact Konso,” Sunset Shimmer pointed out, “That’s how you send souls to Hell anyway, so if they stop using that ritual, then it halts that whole process.”

“Ah, but then what? Just leave those souls to eventually become Hollow? I suppose another means of stopping that process could be found, but even then there’d be nothing to stop us from distributing more Zanpaktou to souls willing to use them. We have nothing but time to see our plan through, Sunset Shimmer. Your only hope of stopping us would be to confront us at the Soul Palace, and even if you amassed all of the might of the Gotei 13, the Quincy, and even Hueco Mundo... I assure you, that is a battle you still would not emerge victorious from.”

The assured confidence, the absolute faith that radiated from Glory’s statement felt like a physical thing, almost as if it was pressing like blinding white needles into Sunset’s mind. She wasn’t even sure if this was a spiritual power, or just the raw force of Glory’s personality and reiatsu combining in a way that simply made her statement seem like a force of pure will.

“So I ask one last time, to all of you, who here will accept my mercy and be granted clemency?”

Nothing but silence reigned. No one so much as showed a hint of willingness to accept. While fear and trepidation was certainly present in some, there was, by far, a much stronger current of united outrage and focused rejection of what the Zero Division had so boldly declared as their intentions.

Rarity broke the quiet tension with a lightly breathed laugh, “No one appears to be biting, darling. Perhaps your offer isn’t as generous as you thought? I mean, an eternity with any of you sounds significantly less appealing than Hell itself, quite frankly.”

“Indeed, you seem to have your answer, Glory,” said Discord, smiling, but with all the coiled up tension of a mightily tightened spring as he placed the tip of his cane on the table, both hands resting at seeming ease upon it. Yet his red on yellow eyes burned with dangerous light, even if Sunset could sense he would have been sweating if he lacked self control. “But will you leave peacefully?”

“I have not decided if I shall let them leave peacefully,” Scorpan pointed out, and Discord cleared his throat loudly.

“Scorpan. City. Full of innocents. Right above us.”

“I know that, but...” Scorpan’s body was trembling, not with fear, but in the way of a kettle boiling over and ready to explode, “I cannot let this merely pass without action.”

“Oh for the love of Mom!” Minty groused, “Glory, can we just do the thing now!? Little Scorpan wants to brawl, and the ugly guy wearing Dad’s power is making me want to slice his face off. Who cares about one dumb city? Planet has thousands of them. Blowing up one isn’t gonna screw up the plan!”

“...Well, I do suppose we received our answer, so there’s little reason not to proceed as we planned,” Glory said with a titanic sigh, “I still do not wish to see needless destruction, so I insist everyone restrict your reiatsu to Discord’s shop as much as possible, please. Once our goals are secure, we return to the Palace. I will not waste time on a drawn out affair.”

Glory’s words were an obvious threat to immediate action, but even with that level of warning, Sunset was not prepared for the transcendent storm of motion and violence that occurred within that first millisecond of blades screaming free of sheaths and multiple tidal waves of spiritual pressure hammering the entire underground chamber of Discord’s shop.

The meeting table itself disintegrated into splinters as Bowtie plowed through it and into Sweet Cider, his Zanpaktou out in a dark iron flash. Blood splattered in a crescent, Sweet Cider’s left shoulder showing a crimson line down to her hip. She wasn’t bisected, as she’d Flash Stepped back just barely in time to keep the blow from being lethal, but the wound was no shallow one as she slammed her own Zanpaktou down just in time to clash with Bowtie’s instantaneous follow up that aimed a stab right at her eye. The clash of noise and sound was deafening and both combatants were sent flying away at such high speed that half of the mesa the meeting took place on was blown to rocky chunks and a swath of the training area was rent asunder as Bowtie smashed Sweet Cider across it.

Shadow coated the area, and Minty’s giggle rang in everyone’s ears. The young woman had simply appeared above everyone, specifically Sombra, and her parasol spun as a blade black as pitch flew from it’s handle and into her hand. Darkness like sickening coal smoke billowed down and Sunset saw stone melt before the black smoke even touched it. Sombra should have melted as well, but his own shadows rose in their own tide of night stained motion to clash with Minty’s. The air itself screamed and bent, as if space was being rent apart, and Sombra flickered out of view to appear in front of Minty, arrows of darkness appearing around him in a hurricane of hundreds of space warping shots. Yet Minty moved even faster, laughing all the while as her parasol spun and the cloud of coal black smoke billowed around her in a haze faster than light that just seemed to consume Sombra’s arrows like putty eating toothpicks.

Sunset couldn’t even see Medley move, but she felt through her spiritual senses that the woman went right for Discord and Ditzy Doo, and those three all vanished in a blinding stream of Flash Steps that instantly trailed away across the entire chamber. Were Discord and Ditzy trying to lead her away? Sunset didn’t have time to even think about that as so much light poured into the area it was as if someone had momentarily dropped the sun in front of them.

Glory had drawn her sword, and the pearl white hilt lead to a curved blade of singular, purest white light that Sunset could hardly look at. Scorpan advanced a single step, then was upon Glory with such force and fury Sunset lost count of his strokes past the first hundred within that second alone. What was left of the mesa started to break apart and crumble under the simple concussions of Glory’s Zanpaktou of light deflecting Scorpan’s unrelenting slashes, each one sending shockwaves rattling through bone and marrow.

Sunset jumped up, as did her friends, getting height and distance. She faintly spotted others doing the same, with Captain Blue Blood and Amore appearing on the ground a good hundred meters from the crumbling mesa alongside the three Lieutenants.

Cloudy Quartz, Lofty, and Holiday were with them, both Bounts summoning forth their Dolls, for what little good the might do. Sunset tried to draw a bead on Twilight, and didn’t see her or Sugarcoat anywhere, which was very concerning. She also had lost track of Coloratura’s location, but was a fair bit more worried about her actual friend at that moment.

Wait, where was the last Zero Division member, Blossom?

“Hello ladies.”

Sunset and her friends turned around, and the flamboyant man of dark skin and oddly poufy pompadour, violet hair was bouncing lightly on his feet in the air some distance behind them. He had his sword dancing in lazy curved motions in his hand. The weapon was red, but not quite like blood, but rather the deep orange red of angered flame, not unlike Sunset’s hair. He was giving the six girls an openly intrigued grin of playful amiability, which Sunset didn’t buy for a single moment.

“Medley talked you six up quite a bit, so I can’t help but want to get a taste myself, see if you really are all that special or if Medley’s just being paranoid like usual. So how about it? Care to show me what colors your souls can produce? I’m expecting something intense, and hate being disappointed.”

Considering the shockwaves of conflict still rocking the entire training area from multiple battles, Sunset didn’t think there was any time to spare for banter. At the same time, she struggled to come up with a plan that wouldn’t involve just attacking blindly. Chances of victory aside, she had the city above to worry about. Sure Glory had said something about restricting their reiatsu, but from the way Minty talked, restraint wasn’t every Zero Division member’s strong suit.

And it wasn’t exactly some of her friend’s strong suits, either.

“AJ, let’s do this!” Rainbow Dash shouted, her wings of rainbow light burning brighter as they extended further outward, while at the same instant she raised the writhing spear of lightning in her hands above her head where it extended a storm surge of wind and electricity.

“Right with ya, sugarcube!” Applejack cried out, so in synch with Rainbow’s intentions that she’d already been moving before the other girl had even spoken. The two sections of her drill lance grew super-heated as they spun in opposite directions at break-neck speeds, raw gold and orange energy like the heart of some great forge spiraling out of both the drill and the nozzles that opened all across her shoulders, back, arms, and legs.

Sunset wanted to shout at the pair to wait, that they needed a plan first, but her friends struck before Sunset could even draw in the breath. Rainbow Dash cut down with a burning arch of elemental annihilation, lightning and wind combined into one extended spear blast that cut down at Blossom at a right angle. Complementing this from the left was Applejack blasting forward, lance extended, in a spearing thrust of shining light and mountain splitting force that perfectly matched Rainbow Dash’s own attack in a cross pattern aimed right for the Zero Division member’s leanly muscled chest.

It was difficult to fully grasp the speed and fluidity of Blossom’s movement. Sunset felt like time was being divided into portions that no longer lined up with a simple concept like a “second” or a “moment”, instant or otherwise. She knew her own senses, and those of her friends, had become so heightened by their powers that they could all fight and react at speeds surpassing most common measures short of light itself, and in Dash’s case that might have no longer been the case either. She could, as with when she fought Tirek, sense and somewhat see Blossom move. She just was slow to react.

He had raised the hilt of his Zanpaktou to his lips, as if he was about to kiss the pommel. In a flash of red flame the weapon transformed into a shining, ruby saxophone. He blew upon it, fingers dancing in rhythm across the instrument. Soulful music of a powerfully upbeat and maddeningly frantic nature shook the air, as if every particle was being brought to life by the frenzy of the tune.

Explosions of reishi blossomed into existence around the man, and in the quaking cacophony of the blasts’ incredible might, Rainbow Dash and Applejack’s combined attack was met and blocked with equal power. Then that blossoming chain of explosions ripped towards the girls, as if the music was somehow igniting subatomic particles and causing them to enter a state of fission. Heat that even Sunset felt, despite her innate resistance with her Zanpaktou, burned through every spherical burst of crimson heat, and she threw herself to the side, as did most of her friends from the daisy chain of detonations.

Applejack took the worst of it, a tad too slow as her armored form got hammered by the edge of one explosion. She was battered sideways, and her armor boiled bright red from the heat. It held, but it was clear from the steam rising from the armor and Applejack’s pained grimace that even a glancing blow had been no laughing matter.

Rarity, faster on the draw for retaliation, had already opened her army’s gate beneath her. Knights arrayed behind a voluminous display of crystal cannons, all of which opened fire at once upon Blossom. At the same time, Rarity herself sent forth a spiraling salvo of several hundred weapon constructs that practically buzzed with power, each weapon exploding with even more force than her army’s cannons as they covered Blossom in a shredding swarm of raw destructive fury.

Not content to simply do nothing, and her own senses catching up to things, Sunset added her own flames to the pyre, swinging several times in the same instance to create three merged pillars of cerulean fire. She’d held off using this on Tirek, as it wasn’t something she’d really gotten perfected yet. It was still lacking energy efficiency and was a lot harder to handle in Bankai than it was in Shikai. It also wasn’t anything fancy, just combining three rapid Aohi Senko into a single set of instantaneous slashes, with a little extra added manipulation to help the flames surround the target and add touch of style.

”Aoihi Hoko!” (Blue Fire Roar)

The three rivers of sapphire flames coiled together and rose like three snakes, until they split apart at the last second and spun around to come at Blossom from three sides. Each pillar grew into the piercing shape of a phoenix head, beak open in a screech of roaring fire as they collided as one. The blue fire mixed with the red detonations of Rarity’s attacks into a multi-colored display of force.

“Guys!” Sunset shouted, “We need to get distance! We keep fighting here and the city will feel it sooner or later!”

She knew full well Blossom wouldn’t be slowed down much by their attacks. That was why she wasn't bothering with Bankai just yet. It wouldn't make enough of a difference to warrant adding even more reiatsu to the pressure building up on Discord's wards. Right now the only thing her mind could think of was to find some way to get the Zero Division away from the city. With their speed, maybe they could fly outside the city limits fast enough that at least if the Zero Division gave chase, they could choose a location far off in the wilderness. But then the fighting was already broken up into too many sections! Sweet Cider was somewhere fighting against Bowtie, and Medley was after Discord! Minty and the Quincy King were dueling higher above near the ceiling, and worst of all, Scorpan and Glory were still squaring off near the remains of the meeting mesa, the sheer reiatsu and force of their blows alone rattling Sunset to her core.

This was absolutely the worst case scenario, and Sunset had no idea at all how to handle the situation. She’d tested herself against Tirek that very morning to get an idea of how far she and her friends still had to go against these very opponents, and while she’d felt encouraged by passing a simple challenge against Tirek... the fact was that they weren’t ready for a serious throw down with the Zero Division.

“I hear you, Sunny, but where are we gonna go?” asked Pinkie Pie, surrounded by coils of her pink mist and holding her hammer tightly, “If we gotta skedaddle we need to know where we’re going, first!”

“And there’s no guarantee they’ll follow us alone,” Fluttershy said, eyes closing as she focused her rather sharp spiritual senses, “And it’s not just Zero Division. I sense others.”

“What do you mean others!?” said Rainbow Dash, “Isn’t it just these five overpowered bozos!?”

Suddenly a ‘tsk tsk’ came from the cloud of dispersing energies from Rarity and Sunset’s attacks. Blossom emerged, smoking, but barely scathed. His clothing was a tad torn, and at the very least his dusky skin did bear a few marks that suggested he hadn’t completely negated the barrage he’d endured, but he still was wearing that madcap grin of his as he lightly spun his saxophone around, “You ladies have got a nice spring in your steps! A pleasant bit of pep in your power! But come on now, that certainly isn’t your best. Oh, and the yellow missy is right, we brought along an Attendant or two to keep watch from up top, just in case anyone tried to slip out of this dance.”

“The sam hell is an ‘Attendant’?” asked Applejack, ignoring the pain of her injury as she leveled her drill lance at him, “What, ain’t powerful ‘nuff ta handle yer own dirty work?”

“Hey, I may be brilliant, powerful, dead sexy, and the greatest virtuoso in history, but I still only got the two hands, babe!” Blossom said, eyes glinting at Applejack, “Even Glory’s got a few souls she’s picked out, stingy as she is. Rest of us got plenty in our collections, and some of them we’ve juiced up to be Attendants. Each one of them has got the muscle to match a Captain, although considering the current stock, maybe that ain’t saying much?”

“And you’ve got one watching the shop from above,” Sunset hissed, thinking of those who would have been up in Discord's shop. Her friend’s little sisters, Chappy, Clover, Screwloose, and Screwball... it’d been agreed if anything went wrong, they’d immediately evacuate, just to be safe. But if one of these Attendants were watching...

----------

Clover had thrown open the door into where the three young girls had been keeping themselves occupied. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle had both been sitting in front of one of Discord’s old televisions in one corner of the lounge room, watching some colorfully action-packed cartoon, while Applebloom had been dozing on the couch. The only reason the three had been in the shop that day was because all three had insisted that they wanted to keep to their new training schedules, and once the meeting down below was finished Clover had intended to take charge for the day and help them with refining their reiatsu control.

While there’d been some concern that Scorpan and Sombra might come to blows, Discord had been confident that they’d be able to keep the meeting peaceful. No one could have known that the entire Zero Division would just show up out of the blue, let alone begin a fight right there in the underground training area. Clover was fairly familiar with the specifications behind that training area’s design now. Even being partially sectioned off from the city via both wards and a set of permanent Kido that put it halfway out of physical phase with the world of the living, there was just no way to contain the insane amount of spiritual power and pressure radiating out from the battle now taking place. For now the wards and the dimensional barrier was holding, but Clover could already sense incredible streams of reiatsu pouring from ever widening cracks in those defenses.

She didn’t know if they had minutes, hours, or just precious seconds before disaster poured forth into Canterlot City, but Clover knew her duty was clear. She had to get the most vulnerable people in the shop to safety, which were these three children. She’d all but flown from Discord’s lab the second she’d seen through the monitors what was happening at the meeting, and had reached the lounge in seconds.

Now three terrified sets of eyes looked at her, Applebloom having woken up and fallen off the couch while the other two girls had thrown their controllers aside and leapt to their feet.

“W-what’s going on!?” Sweetie Belle asked, voice cracking as she clutched at her stomach, “I feel like I’m going to be sick, ugh... what is this?”

“It’s s-spiritual pressure!” Scootaloo squeaked, “So much of it! Oh God, Aunt Holiday and Lofty are down there! We have to go save them!”

“No,” Clover said, shaking her head firmly, “We have to evacuate the shop. Get as far from here as possible. Come now, swiftly. Harden your spiritual pressures as much as you can, just like you’ve been training. It should help with the queasy feeling.”

Applebloom’s pale yellow skin was looking even more pallid, sweat dripping down her brow as she grabbed her ribbon from her hair and in a flash of red, summoned her Fullbring whip, “I-I can’t just leave my sister n’ ma ta fight alone!”

“They’re not fighting alone. Everyone with enough power to do anything of use is already down there. If you girls go, you’ll die.” Clover didn’t sugarcoat her words or her tone. She was not being cruel, just utterly, bluntly truthful as she stared at the three young ones with hard eyes, “Right now the best thing for you to do is get somewhere safe so your loved ones can fight without worrying about you. The same... goes for me.”

It hurt to say, but truth was truth. She knew she’d gotten so much stronger than she’d been before she’d met Sunset Shimmer and her other friends she’d made here in Canterlot City, but the battle taking place at that moment was simply beyond what her skills could aid. Securing these three, and anyone else present, was the top priority. Speaking of which... “Where’s Chappy?”

A sound from down the hall drew Clover’s attention as she spun and saw Chappy strolling down with a huge plate of baked sweets from the kitchen in her hands. Chappy paused, donut in mouth, and looked at Clover, then at the three frightened children now gathering outside the lounge. Gulping the glazed donut down with one big bite, Chappy blinked. “Um, did I miss something?”

“Do you not feel the spiritual pressure threatening to break free from the training grounds and potentially crater the entire city?” Clover asked in astonishment, and Chappy tilted her head.

“Oh yeah, I was wondering what that was about. I just figured the big ol’ Quincy King and the Captain Commander geezer were having a shouting match or something. Uh, is that not what’s going on?”

“If only, piglets.”

Screwloose appeared from the opposite hall, followed by the worriedly and specifically non-bouncy Screwball. Both of Discord’s servants were armed with their traditional weaponry, Screwball hefting her giant spiked club, while Screwloose was hauling a new, shiny and upgraded multi-barreled rocket launcher. Neither had the faces of women in good spirits, Screwloose's already unkempt gray hair even more frazzled than usual, and Screwball’s eyes seeming to kaleidoscope with dizzy concern.

Screwloose glanced at all of them, giving a swift nod, “Right, looks like this is all of you. Now listen up, right now the mother of all turds is hitting the world’s largest oscillation device, and it's our job to clear out of the blast zone at top speed. That means we’re leaving, fast, and we don’t stop until we’re past the city limits.”

“W-wait a sec, what ‘bout all o’ the regular folks in the city?” asked Applebloom, “We gotta warn ‘em all!”

Screwball made a sound like a highly agitated poodle and shook her head like crazy, “Won’t work, Mini-jack. You’ll just sound crazy to them, and nobody will run. You’ll just waste time. Boss Discord says we gotta get you all safe, so that’s what we do. Talking to the locals, screaming at them that gods are fighting below their city and they’re all about to die, will at best just cause a panic, so they all can die scared. Oh, and get you dead too, for hanging around when we should be running full speed away from this.”

Clover glared at her, despite knowing full well that what Screwball was saying was unfortunately true. Still, she gave Applebloom as comforting a look as she was able, “It’s possible that the city will still be safe. None of my friends, especially Sunset, would ever let anything happen if there’s even a small chance of stopping it. We just have to trust them.”

“Grrr... agh, fine! Let’s go then!” Applebloom shouted, clearly unhappy, and who could blame her? But at least with her agreement, any argument the other two girls may have had quickly crumbled. Chappy’s only response was to nod vigorously and eat her plate of sweets even faster, as if the thought of imminent death pretty much just made her more hungry.

With no further preamble, the group made the short dash down the shop’s extensive interior halls to reach the sliding doors into the front of the store. Passing through that and into the exterior courtyard, they all halted as there was someone waiting for them there, standing right in the middle of the path that would lead to the alleyways and back to the city’s downtown.

She was a young woman, seemingly between the age of Applebloom, Sweetie Bell, and Scootaloo, and those of their older sisters. With a lean, long legged frame, she had ochre colored skin and shining, metallic blue hair that fell in a long wave down across her back and shoulders. She wore a white pleated dress that covered just about everything except her ankles, and had on tall red wooden sandals with white socks. Her eyes matched her hair, a gleaming metal blue that was filled with eager, if somewhat disturbing mirth. In her hands she cradled a long metal rod that ended in a circular ring. It reminded Clover a little of Chishiki’s Shikai form, albeit more sized like a one handed scepter than a staff.

Clover had been in the lead, flanked by Screwloose and Screwball when they’d emerged from the shop, and she held out her hands to halt the girls behind her as she stood defensively in front of the group and eyed this stranger down.

“Who are you?” Clover asked, every inch of her nerves and instincts shouting at her to be on her guard.

“Hello everyone. I am very pleased to meet with you,” the girl said, bowing deeply once before rising with that same merry, yet somehow unpleasant grin on her face, “My name is Bubbles. I am one of Lady Minty’s faithful Attendants, and she has charged me with the task of ensuring nobody leaves the party grounds until she has finished having her fun. So I would be ever so delighted if you remained where you are and didn’t try to pass.”

“Huh?” Scootaloo’s face screwed up in flustered confusion, but just as quickly turned fresh with anger over fear and worry for her aunts, “Look lady, I don’t care who you think you are or whoever you work for, but you’d better get outta the way! Alerion; Zeige Dich!”

She’d been carrying her scooter under one arm, and thrust it out like a shield as the glowing brand of the Bount Crest appeared upon it. Bursting forth from that mark was a swirl of stone and rock laden wind that formed together into the broad winged, hulking avian body of Alerion, who let out a echoing screech upon sensing his master’s enmity towards this young girl blocking their path.

As the Doll moved to attack, Clover started to shout, “Wait!”, but wasn’t quite in time as Alerion stabbed his stone beak, large as a car, right at Bubbles. The girl, in turn, just made a breathy ‘tut tut’ sound as she glided aside from the attack, Alerion’s beak smashing into the ground she’d just occupied.

“Well, I did warn you,” Bubbles chided, and flicked her right wrist in a cutting motion with the metal ring scepter in her hand.

A flush of basketball sized, translucent bubbles appeared from a thin sheen of gloss that filled the ring’s center. Faster than any could blink, those bubbles flew right into Alerion’s side, and burst with a crackling series of popping sounds louder than thunder. Each popping bubble created an impact akin to a block of plastic explosive, not only throwing Alerion to the side and into another building with enough force to smash the wall, but throwing nearly everyone else to the ground at the same time.

“W-w-what the-!? Alerion!?” Scootaloo screamed, staggering to her feet as she ran towards her fallen Doll, which had several chunks blasted out of his body of solid rock. Bubbles whistled in appreciation, seeing Alerion struggle and twitch to move.

“Oh, he’s still intact? Bravo! I meant to turn him into little pebbles, but your plaything is well made. No worries, I’ll get him with the next shot.”

“Won’t be a next shot! Canterlot Riser, leap into action!” Chappy cried as she flipped to her feet and raised her left wrist that bore the gold watch Discord had given her. Pressing a button on it, a flashing red ‘C’ appeared in the air, and then Chappy jumped up into the air. In mid-air, a small explosion of red smoke briefly engulfed her, causing Bubbles to glance up curiously at the display. From the smoke then descended Chappy like a wrecking ball, now clad in her tightly fitting, cape flowing, genre savvy costume, one foot already extended in a classic heroic kicking maneuver.

“Riiiiseeerr Kiiiiiick!”

Bubbles’ motions, at casual glance, might not have seemed fast, but there was a slick and glib smoothness to them as she ducked under Chappy’s kick and turned about while extending her scepter in a catching motion. One long bubble extended and perfectly encapsulated Chappy, trapping the bounce Mod Soul inside as her kick bounced off the bubble’s interior and left her pinballing about within. The bubble floated in the air, a confused Chappy looking around inside as she raised a hand to pound on the bubble, but then Bubbles herself raised a finger and waggled it at her. “Ah ah, if you do that, my Time Out Bubble might just explode even worse than my Punishment Bubbles. I wasn’t told that I had to kill anyone, just keep you all from leaving. But if you want to blow your body up into tiny pieces, go right ahead.”

Chappy halted her fist right before punching the bubble, and visibly gulped, eyes wide.

Bubbles laughed and spun to the others, “Now then, are you all going to be difficult still? I don’t mind either way, really, it’s all a question of how many of you I have to cripple and maim.”

Screwloose and Screwball exchanged looks with each other.

“Do you think we oughta do it, Screwloose?” asked Screwball, “The boss always said we shouldn’t, unless we really had no other option left.”

Screwloose grimaced, but it was a smiling grimace, like someone who knew that what they had to do was monumentally stupid, and likely to be quite painful, but it was worth doing anyway. “I know, but orders are orders, we got to get these kids out of here safely, no matter what. We don’t have the control Ditzy has, but we’ve got enough to last at least a minute or two. Maybe long enough to clear the path for the piglets.”

Bubbles, tilting her head at the pair, said, “What’s this now? I sense you two are Soul Reapers, but you don’t have Zanpaktou. How curious.”

“Eh, we got ours stolen by an intern a while back,” said Screwball, holding her club aloft with one hand while her other raised above her head in a... grasping gesture. A deep purple aura, rimmed in black, began to form around her body as her reiatsu spiked upwards.

Screwloose’s reiatsu did the same, emanating a blue aura similar rimmed in black as she aimed her rocket launcher at Bubbles over one shoulder while using her other hand to make the same grasping gesture Screwball was, “But we gained other powers that day. We can’t control it as well as our senior can, but maybe it’ll be enough to wipe that ugly smirk off of your face.”

Clover and the others watched in fascination as both Screwloose and Screwball made sudden, sharp downward motions with their free hands, as if lowering something onto their faces. Shards of liquid white bone formed from their reiatsu auras and then took the instant shapes of masks on both of their faces, while their eyes turned black and yellow as Hollows.

Screwball’s Hollow mask was perfectly round, with the sides laced with holes that gave it a styling not unlike a hockey mask, except that a single, curved and bladed horn rose from her brow, which was then punctuated by a bone white pinwheel. Meanwhile Screwloose’s mask was long, tapered, and canine in nature, showing a long jaw of stylistically exaggerated and razor fangs, while having the overall shape and pointed bone ears akin to a doberman. Both women’s auras of spiritual pressure flared up, showing the Hollow power pouring out form within, long held in check by Discord’s express orders to never use unless of an extreme emergency.

This counted.

Bubbles, looking at them both as they prepared to attack, only smiled deeper and readied her scepter, “This might be more fun than I thought it would be.”

----------

Despite how fast everything had happened, Twilight had been keeping track of it all with the assistance of magic. Midnight, within her mind, was keeping a number of spells going that essentially sensed information about the surrounding area and fed it directly into Twilight’s senses. With Midnight helping parse the information out, she knew the general state of things, even mere seconds after the battle had begun.

Sweet Cider was the worst wounded, due to Bowtie’s surprise first hit, but Twilight sensed Gaia was already moving to help cover the Tenth Division Captain. Scorpan and Sombra were both still maintaining a seemingly even stalemate against their opponents, although Twilight knew that wouldn't last for long one way or the other. Discord and Ditzy both felt like they were being pressed by Minty, but Twilight couldn’t tell much other than their individual reiatsus were fluctuating greatly.

Coloratura had gotten distance and not engaged anyone yet, which didn’t surprise Twilight as Sombra hadn’t ordered her to do so yet, and without Vollstandig it was unlikely even an elite Sternritter like Coloratura would be much of a match for one of the Zero Division. Meanwhile Twilight and Sugarcoat had done exactly as they had agreed with Sombra to do if a fight had broken out with Scorpan.

They were within a small, perfectly square cavern underground, lit by Twilight’s magic in a neon purple glow of floating light balls. The cavern had been just excavated by Twilight’s Schrift, using the Variable to shift all the needed material up onto the training ground after Sugarcoat had used her own Schrift to grab Twilight and go down into the earth.

Right now she saw Sugarcoat, visor gleaming, staring up through the rock. There was enough air in this freshly made cavern because Twilight also used the Variable to switch the air quality to fresh, which gave them plenty of time to assess the situation. Sugarcoat didn’t need Twilight’s magic spells to see what was happening above because the power of the Schrift that allowed her to drag herself and Twilight through solid rock also let her see through... well, just about anything.

That was part of the power of Sugarcoat, freshly minted Sternritter X, the “X-Ray”. She could project herself, any element of her reishi, and even others in her vicinity, through any other form of material or even spiritual matter. There were of course limits, just as there were to Twilight’s Variable, but overall it was a rather potent Schrift that Sugarcoat was rapidly getting used to. Sugarcoat’s head kept shifting about as she watched battles that Twilight could only sense, not see, and her face showed a deep frown.

“Your friends are about to get creamed up there,” Sugarcoat said in her usual direct manner, “They can barely scratch that Blossom guy.”

“I know,” Twilight said, focusing her Variable to shift even more rock to expand the cavern so that she had more room to work the spells she needed to, “Midnight is crunching some numbers and by her estimation and mine, we have only seven or eight minutes before all of this combined spiritual energy breaks Discord’s wards and harms the people of the city. I’m working as fast as I can.”

As fast as we can, Twilight, said Midnight, I’ll be giving you as much energy as I can and walking you through the finer points of these spells you haven’t had a chance to study enough yet. Thankfully your pure nerdiness is actually an asset for once, and we have functional gates on the other side.

“Yes, although they were just for experimentation. I didn’t think I’d have to use them, although Sombra did suspect something would go wrong, so that’s why I decided to have the other girls prep them...” Twilight said, feeling at least a tad reassured that at least the rest of her team were safe for the moment, all the way back at her family manor.

They were preparing a number of experimental teleportation gates that Twilight had and they had been experimenting with in an attempt to simulate a Quincy version of the Hollow Garganta or a Soul Reaper’s Senkaimon. While the project wasn’t exactly what Twilight would call “finished”, there had been enough promising results from the current batch of prototypes that when the possibility of a battle taking place during this meeting came up among her father and Sombra’s voice concerns before coming to Discord’s shop, Twilight had decided that her fellow Quincy friends ought to prepare those gates for use.

There were three such gates, each about twelve feet in diameter, which was why she was making the cavern a similar size so she could generate the portals that would connect to those gates from this side. Right now she would have to use magic more than reiatsu to get the job done, because they hadn’t brought any connecting physical gate devices, but in theory her spells alone ought to be enough to generate semi-permanent gateways that could then be used to evacuate.

Hopefully, if she could get everyone out of the building, then the Zero Division would leave. If nothing else, it’d buy time for everyone to regroup and work out a plan.

Purple streams of magic poured from her outstretched hands as she wove them in a circle and opened up the first gate, feeling it connect with the signal of the first gate device located at her family manor. “One down, two to go. I’ll have these open in just a minute.”

“I don’t know if your friends have a minute,” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight felt a stab of guilt inside her. She wanted to go to them that very second and help them fight, but until she had all of the gates open, there might not be enough to get everyone through fast enough.

Please everyone, just hold on. Just for one minute.

But in a battle against the likes of Zero Division, Twilight was all too aware that one minute may as well be an eternity.

Episode 178: On the Back Foot

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Episode 178: On the Back Foot

The last time Scorpan could remember the edge of his Zanpaktou crossing paths with that of Glory, it was in a time so far back his memory of it was edged with mist. It was wretched nostalgia, to recall even a fraction of those days in this moment. The way he’d admired her. The manner in which, as a much younger soul, full of vigor and eagerness to become strong like his elder brother, he’d all but begged Glory to train him in the ways of combat. And damn her now, he could so readily recall her kind and eternal patience as she mentored him. Much of what he’d learned of how to fight had its foundation in Glory’s teachings, only refined much later by his own hand as centuries of war dragged on, and on, and on...

That was the greatest pain of all. He knew precisely the same frustration and desperation as Glory had. He’d fought in those same battles, witnessed the same procession of seemingly endless death, and even in his darker moments questioned the judgment of the Soul Queen and whether or not her unwillingness to intervene was truly right. Yet through it all he’d kept one ideal close to his heart; that a Soul Reaper was defined by their duty to preserve the cycle of souls. Good and evil, law and chaos, sin and virtue, these things were all secondary to that one overriding purpose, for nothing else would matter if that cycle of reincarnation was ever allowed to collapse.

And all this time Glory and her compatriots had always set that cycle up to abuse it for their own personal ends.

It was a betrayal so fundamental that Scorpan felt his soul could shatter itself without any need for Glory’s blade to pierce it. Yet he refused. Every shred of conviction within him screamed out with the force of a thousand bursting stars to deny the Zero Division and their plans in their entirety. If they had created Soul Society based upon a lie, then Scorpan himself would burn his soul to cinders in defense of those ideals and make those ideals real. He owed it to every single Soul Reaper who had ever given up their own souls in service to the Gotei 13 under his command. He owed it himself for his own role in allowing Glory’s plot to take place without having investigated matters more closely. And he owed it to Sunset Shimmer and every one of those living humans whose courage and resolve had already saved so many lives, while shedding light upon the dark truth the Zero Division had sought to keep hidden for so long.

Above anyone else, Scorpan would gladly sacrifice all that he had to if that is what it took to ensure those young ladies survived this day, so that they could fulfill their still untapped potential and become even greater guardians for the world Scorpan felt he had failed.

Which meant he had to either defeat, or at the very least weaken, Glory enough to grant those girls the opportunity to escape. No easy feat, considering that as powerful as he was, he had to begrudgingly admit that she still held the edge over him. Part of it had to be the Heart of the Soul Queen beating in her chest, fueling her already immense and godly reiatsu to heights it never could have achieved otherwise, but truly even without the Heart’s power Glory would have been a foe few could readily stand against alone. Even back in the ancient days, her skill and ability was among the highest of the Soul Queen’s children.

Her sword was not merely made of light, despite appearances. Scorpan knew an actual blade existed within that raw bar of pure white, so thin that only an eye of supreme perception would even note the steel glint at the heart of the light. He knew her Zanpaktou’ s name and ability, and understood she wasn’t bothering to draw much of it out yet. Then again, he hadn’t activated his own Shikai, either, and much for the same reason as she had, he suspected.

Time was all but frozen for the pair in comparison to everyone else in the expansive underground training area, which Scorpan was thankful Discord had constructed to be so large and sturdy. He and Glory streaked in incomprehensibly fast smears of motion from the center of the training ground towards the northern end, and each time the dull gray steel of his sword touched her brilliantly bright blade, entire new canyons were carved in the rock, and entire swaths of rocky cliffs and mesas were obliterated into dust.

He saw her face placid and calm in those flashing heartbeats between strokes of their swords. She was being defensive, parrying only as he unleashed his fury on her. He never attacked the same place twice, never kept the same angle, every flashing strike of his sword aiming for a different portion of Glory’s body, no matter the hundreds of blows he rained within those fractions of seconds. It didn’t matter. Her defense was immaculate. Every single time his blade got close, her own blade of light was simply there to intercept, halting his momentum dead and pushing his sword back. Every. Single. Time. Thousands of times.

Finally he halted with one final overhand strike, both of his arms surging with muscles and his body exploding with spiritual power as he gave out a great shout and hammered his blade upon her. She blocked again, and while she’d held her sword with just one hand up until then, this time she blocked him with both hands on the pearl hilt of her blade. Beneath her the ground shattered for a few football fields around, cracking apart as he drove power downward to try and force her to the ground.

She slowly floated down, more of her own free will than because he was driving her, but his blade continued to spark against hers and she didn’t push him away as her infinite blue eyes gave a flicker of emotion; disappointment and resignation.

“You’re still very hotheaded. You wear the flesh of an old man, but you’re still the same overeager young boy I took on as my pupil.”

“This age is my badge of honor for centuries spent fighting your war for you. A war I now know never served any purpose other than to further your madness, Glory. Every scar and wrinkle on my body is a symbol of those Soul Reapers who have given everything in service to Soul Society. Now, their strength fuels me, and demands I cast you down!”

With another shout he broke off from her sword and leapt back, landing on a tall broken piece of rock as Glory settled upon a lower set of crumbled rocks. In the distance the ground trembled and booming echoes of other battles washed over both of them, and Glory’s brow twitched.

“I know, Scorpan. Now that you’re committed, I understand nothing short of death will halt you. However if you and I are to do this, we simply cannot do it here. Discord’s wards will not hold much longer, and it is bad enough that this little skirmish is taking as long as it is. Hmph, I told the others to just focus on obtaining our goals and leaving, but I can already tell from their reiatsu that Blossom and Minty are having a little too much fun with this.”

Scorpion’s suspicions drew his eyes to narrow razors, “What ‘objectives’?”

She stared at him, as if he was once more a boy training under her, and having difficulty understanding a lesson. “If destroying this shop and this city was my intent, I would have destroyed it already. Aside from providing my offer and the explanation of my actions, I had only two other goals in coming here with the rest of Zero Division. Goals you need not be concerned with, since we shall no longer be here to witness their completion. I’ll entrust the others to handle things, hopefully with Medley and Bowtie being sensible enough to reign in Blossom and Minty. As for you and I, Scorpan... I will give you the duel you’re so eager for, but not in this place. Neither of us can fight to our fullest in this place. So come...”

She reversed her blade and stabbed it into the air behind her. A intricate, golden version of a Senkaimon took shape behind her and opened with sliding doors of blood red paper inlaid with gold painted wooden panels. Scorpan tensed as she turned her back to him and began to enter the Senkaimon. He knew that the Zero Division’s Senkaimon could lead to a number of places besides Soul Society, so he didn’t think she was going there. Indeed, he caught a glimpse through it, and realized it very likely was leading directly to the Soul Palace.

“Are you intending to try and stab me in the back?” Glory asked.

“It would be appropriate, considering your own actions,” he stated, and Glory sighed.

“Fair. But you know it wouldn’t work, even if you tried. So are you coming or not? Within the Palace’s Royal Arena, neither of us have to worry about holding back.”

The Royal Arena. He hadn’t seen it in an eternity. Certainly if there was anyplace where he could make full use of his power without concern for collateral damage, it would be there. If he followed Glory, it would also ensure she was kept occupied for a time, but was that really enough? Keeping Glory tied up fighting him would only accomplish so much, with the other four Zero Division members still free to do as they pleased. But how many other options did he have? As long as Glory was here, he could do nothing to help anyone else.

As if reading his thoughts, Glory continued, voice irritatingly reasonable in tone, “Come with me, Scorpan, and that will reduce the spiritual pressure in this area enough so that even if my compatriots get rambunctious the city should be safer than it would be otherwise. If we continue to fight here, you know what we’re both capable of, and what the results will be. This is the only real course you have.”

“Yes, but even if I defeat you, I’d have no means of easily returning, especially with the pillar already here,” Scorpan said. That golden pillar was the only conventional means of transport to and from the Soul Palace, without either using the Zanapktou of a Zero Division member to create a special Senkaimon, or making use of the Queen’s Key. If he went with her to the Soul Palace, then even were he to somehow emerge victorious over Glory, she’d still have effectively trapped him there.

Glory smiled, as if she felt no need to even hide her intentions, “Very true, but again, what choice do you have? In the highly unlikely outcome of your victory, that is still better than fighting here and dooming the city above.”

“No, Glory. This, I’m truly starting to see, is one of your many issues... you lack the ability to see outside yourself,” Scorpan said, and raised his blade horizontally in front of him. Glory’s eyes went slightly wider in surprise as his reiatsu shot upwards in an earth shaking fountain of spiritual power, surrounding his body in an aura of steel gray that began to spark with other colors.

“What is this? You wouldn't... not in a populated area!” Glory didn’t quite shout, but she did raise her voice, “Stop this at once, Scorpan! You’ll annihilate the wards and kill half the city!”

“What of it?” Scorpan said, face like a mask of death, “You intend far worse fates for them. If you truly care, then change that Senkaimon from the Royal Palace, to the wild lands far outside the Seireitei. You have that ability. But regardless of what you do, I am coming at you with the full breadth of my ability, Glory! I hope you are as prepared as you pretend to be!”

“Stubborn child!” Glory said and the Senkaimon she had opened altered, revealing through its doors the sight of a vast and empty grassland, one of many immense wildernesses that extended in the spirit realm beyond the boundaries of Soul Society.

“That location will do just fine,” Scorpan said, and didn’t halt the vastly increasing spiritual pressure pouring out of his body. He intoned a resonant phrase that echoed loudly as he rushed Glory with a supreme Flash Step. He struck with his sword even as he invoked it’s release, catching Glory who blocked with her own Zanpaktou as he shoved her through the Senkaimon just as a radiant surge of power exploded form him in four different colors of green, red, yellow, and blue.

”Bring all of heaven and earth under one sky and become the foundation of the world; Shiki no Ken!” (Sword of Four Seasons)

----------

Despite breathing heavily and bleeding like crazy from the ragged wound across her chest, Sweet Cider felt like she was holding her own fairly well, considering whom she was fighting. Her Zanpaktou was already released to it’s Shikai state, Kizuna feeling warm and weighty in her grip, although part of the warmth might have been the blood trickling down her arm and onto her right hand. In her other hand was her Fullbring, Hearthstone, the immense blade of rock pairing nicely with Kizuna’s steel weight.

Without having ceased to miss a beat, she came in with a whirlwind set of spinning strikes at her opponent, ripping the landscape asunder in front of her like she was one big blender and the rocky terrain little more than soft cake. Her spinning assault was met by a man who planted his feet firmly at her oncoming carnage and sheathed his katana of dark iron and clockwork, without taking his hand off of the hilt. Then at the last millisecond he drew the sword again with a speed that couldn’t even be measured in time, and Sweet Cider felt her swords not only deflected upwards as if they had weighed no more than leaves, but the pressure wave that rushed out of that man’s strike knocked her back like a doll being torn by shredding winds.

Yet it wasn’t just air pressure. Sweet Cider felt the presence of Bowtie’s reiatsu and barely managed to turn and use Flash Step to kick off the air and speed away as a blade of steel erupted from the ground behind her, gigantic like a tree of metal. Several more simply appeared around her, some forming from the air itself as they crashed down towards her. Bowtie didn’t even have to gesture, it was as if his will alone was creating this blades, constructing them from the very reishi in the air as they stabbed down around Sweet Cider as she laboriously dodged around, trying to get clear so she could find and opening.

“I am bewildered by your title,” Bowtie commented without much inflection in his tone outside of mild disappointment, “For one who carries the name ‘Kenpachi’ your entire fighting style lacks refinement. You are passably strong, I will grant you that much. Your reiatsu is quite impressive for such a young and recently deceased mortal. It’s astonishing you survived my frist strike, and continue to fight me despite that wound. Still, much as I would like to keep commending you, I do have a task to perform. Testing you is merely a pleasant diversion from that task. So if you’ll excuse me...”

He turned as if to leave, which only enraged Sweet Cider further, because she could tell his attention was actually shifting towards her daughter and Applejack’s friends. Like hell she’d let this bastard anywhere near them!

“Hrrrraaaa!” she let out an orgerish bellow and managed to zip past several more pine tree sized blades that crashed down into her path. She burst past Bowtie so she was now in front of him, and she sliced down in a diagonal from left to right with Hearthstone while coming up with a upward angled thrust with Kiznua aimed right for his chest.

He wasted no motion, his footwork spinning him around instantly. His body bent so that the Fullbring blade went within a scant centimeter of him while he used the flat of his Zanpaktou to deflect Kizuna’s thrust up even higher, which ended up binding both of Sweet Cider’s swords together high and above her head. She was left open in that instant, and he flicked his sword down and struck with the pommel, crunching it into her stomach right across her wound. Sweet Cider was thrust back like a pinball, grunting in pain as fresh blood spilled from the injury. Even so, she didn’t lose her focus, and drew Kizuna back and slammed the blade forward while using Hearthstone to drag along the ground to slow herself down.

Raw golden energy was absorbed from her body and unleashed in a wild wave of power from her Zanpaktou, crashing right towards Bowtie.

She saw him take a deep breath and place both hands on his Zanpaktou, raising it up in a simple kendo stance before swinging it down in a single, fluid motion.

Her energy wave was parted like a waterfall being split by a vast hand, and a thin line was cut through not just the rock in front of Sweet Cider, but she felt the line of pressure cut further onward. She looked back in shock as she saw a small line was cut across the ceiling hundreds of feet above, and the wall even hundreds of yards further on, and felt the entire chamber shudder from the impact. And yet, despite being directly in that line’s path, she was...uncut?

“I see the confusion written plain on your face,” he said, sheathing his Zanpaktou, “A true swordsman cuts only what he desires. Nothing more. Nothing less. There is no excess. Considering your own destructive style, I can hardly see you as a disciple of the blade. You are more like a savage beast who's been given steel to thrash about with. You can’t even bring out your Zanpaktou’s full power.”

“Got ‘nough o’ it ta keep ya yappin’ at me, don’t I?” Sweet Cider shot back while letting the surging waves of her own reiatsu push back the pain from her wounds until all she could feel was the angered pulse of her own heartbeat. Kizuna was humming in her hand, echoed by the quaking roar of energy that reverberated from Hearthstone, both of her swords seeming to want to leap from her hands to cleave into this smug bastard.

She came at him again, this time not going straight in by instead smashing Hearthstone into the ground and activating the Fullbring’s ability to generate energy ports along it’s edge. These ports shot out energy that spun the blade so it became akin to a drill, and Sweet Cider used it to scoop up entire chunks of the ground and hurled them in a dust filled mass towards Bowtie. He sidestepped the rock chunks without difficulty, but Sweet Cider kept throwing more, until he was surrounded by debris and dust.

“Really? This was an old trick when I was still young,” Bowtie chided, “I can sense your reiatsu plainly.”

When he felt a burst of Sweet Cider’s spiritual pressure upon a rock that was flung past him, he drew his Zanpaktu and not only cleaved through it, but made a spinning strike that created sufficient air pressure to utterly blow away all of the rock chunks and dust from around him with ease. His eyes flicked towards the spot he’d sensed Sweet Cider’s reiatsu, and frowned as he saw it was not her, but her Fullbring blade stuck into a rock and still emitting jets of energy.

She came in from behind and above, having suppressed her reiatsu as much as possible while using Hearthstone was a decoy. Now it exploded from her and Kizuna as she slammed the massive blade down at Bowtie’s back with all of her might while unleashing the only real technique she knew.

”Chi Tanzo-Ha!”

He turned at the last possible fraction of a moment, his own Zanpaktou cleaving up with an entire array of over a dozen giant blades materializing around him and his Zanapktou to stab right towards Sweet Cider even as her sword impacted on the tip of his own.

Overwhelmingly bright gold energy exploded in a terrific pillar of power that exploded up and outwards from the impact point. It ripped the training area in front of it apart and tore a ragged ravine in both the ceiling and ground alike until it hit the far wall and encountered the wards there. Immense shaking filled the area, and even in the city above a large number of residents paused in their day to day activities as they felt the tremor and wondered if an earthquake had just hit the city.

It took a few seconds for the smoke to clear from Sweet Cider’s attack, and when it did it revealed both her and Bowtie were still there and intact, although both were in differing positions.

Bowtie was a few dozen feet back from where he’d previously been, Zanpaktou still in hand, if somewhat smoking, and most of the conjured blades he’d created having fallen into broken pieces that then dissipated back into base reishi particles. He wasn’t badly wounded, but it was clear that Sweet Cider’s blow had marked him with a bleeding red line down his right shoulder and about halfway down his chest.

He didn’t breath hard, nor even really wince, he just took one hand and briefly ran a finger over the wound with a look of... consideration. “Then again, even a raging beast has been known to wound an unwary warrior from time to time. I would offer you congratulations on scoring a hit, but by the look of you, I still came out ahead in that exchange.”

His words made sense once one saw the state of Sweet Cider. Even if Bowtie’s conjured swords had been destroyed by her attack, they still possessed a transcendent amount of reishi inside them that allowed the blades to strike hard and true before being blown to pieces. She was left on one knee, several chunks of broken metal from the conjured swords now stuck in her body. Some pierced her legs, others lodged in her arms, while a nasty chunk was embedded in her left side and could be seen piercing out of the back. Blood poured down around her feet and the woman breathed in hard, ragged gasps at the wounds even as she tried to force herself to stand.

“Guggh...you...talk a’ lot o’... crap fer a fella... who ain’t killed me yet...”

He nodded in agreement and began to walk towards her wounded form. “Well said, and a point well made.”

Sweet Cider tried to raise Kizuna to defend herself, but her injuries were bad enough that it was hard to get her Zanpaktou up. Just as Bowtie crossed half the distance to her, however, the ground split open between them. Plants rose in thick, coiling vines, opening several large, purple fronded flowers that pointed directly at Bowtie. Then they disgorged the thick purple and green lights of several Cero beams. Bowtie flicked from view, evading the explosive beams with a Flash Step that took him upwards. The vines continued to grow, making more flowers that spat out deathly beams of Hollow energy against the man, while right next to Sweet Cider a collection of smaller vines arose in the shape of a human sized pod.

The vines uncoiled to reveal Gaia Everfree, who already had her Zanpaktou drawn in her hand, and as she directed more vines to grow in a defensive barrier around her and Sweet Cider, she looked to the wounded Soul Reaper and grimaced at the woman’s wounds. “Those are some nasty looking injuries. Let me see about keeping them from killing you.”

With a gesture, Gaia brought forth more vines from the ground that began to wrap around Sweet Cider, and she felt those plants start to inch their way into her own flesh. Strangely this didn’t hurt, but rather Sweet Cider could feel energy transferring from the plants and into her. She still wined and muttered, “Alright, this is downright creepy. Ain’t gonna complain, mind, but... gugh, somethin’ ‘bout this just don’t feel right. An’ where were ya hidin’ out all this time?”

Gaia’s dark eyes gave Sweet Cider a sardonic stab, “Unlike some people, I know better than to charge in blind against someone stronger than me. Now quit squirming while I heal you. You’re a mess, but you’re also stupidly powerful, so I could use you nice and functioning.”

As they had talked, Gaia’s flowers had been throwing up quite the barrage of Ceros, but even those weren’t able to keep Bowtie more than momentarily occupied. In a second he just rushed past with a gust of air as the only indication of his motions, and flowers and vines alike were diced to pieces. Gaia grunted, feeling her plants get butchered, and turned in time to fling out an arm and bring forth a fresh wave of plants, these ones edged in piercing thorns, to try and stab towards Bowtie.

He didn’t even need to make a return gesture to conjure a giant slicing blade the size of a building to dissipate the thick vines that had come flying at him, and he landed nearby and gave both Gaia and Sweet Cider a flat stare.

“Gaia Everfree. You were always among the more peaceful Hollows, for what little worth there was in that. Fused with a human soul, one with Fullbring, I can imagine you might be an interesting opponent. But I’ve spent enough time on satisfying my curiosity about the so-called Kenpachi, and don’t intend to waste further time on dealing with you as well. I can sense Glory and Scorpan have left, and so my time for self indulgence is up.”

He held his Zanpaktou out to the side, and then let go of the hilt.

Rather than fall to the ground, the sword merely hovered in the air next to him. Then with a wash of white light, the Zanpaktou grew and morphed into a new shape. The shape of a woman. She wore tight fitting bands of metal armor that gleamed like polished steel, formed around a curvaceous body that still showed no shortage of muscles. Dark skin showed on an aquiline, womanly face that sported a head of wheat blonde hair and metal gray eyes. A voluminous cape of chrome metal fell from her back, and within its inner lining were sheathed swords, several dozen of them of varying shapes and sizes, clanking and clinking as her cape swayed in the air.

The woman looked at Bowtie with a loving smile, “You’re going to let me have a bit of fun on my own, Chonekutai-sama?”

“It’s best if you keep these two tied up, Ito-Kiri. I only need to perform a simple Konso, so one of your sisters will suffice.”

“But of course, Chonekutai-sama,” the woman replied, and withdrew a hiltless katana blade from the array of swords attached to her cape and handed it over to Bowtie. He took the weapon without question and then Flash Stepped away.

“I didn’t say you could just leave,” Gaia shouted, raising her hand and charging up a Cero that she fired at where she sensed Bowtie’s presence to be, but even faster than her beam was the woman of steel who appeared in front of the Cero blast and pulled out two more swords from her cape, a longsword and gladius, and with immense strength bisected Gaia’s Cero.

“As if I’d let you interfere with my lord,” the woman said, and slammed down onto the ground with enough weight to break apart the earth as she rushed forward and slashed out both at Sweet Cider and Gaia at the same time. The speed of the woman’s motions was enough that Gaia had to work to get her Zanpaktou into a parrying position, and Sweet Cider only blocked because Kizuna was large enough to practically be a shield. Still, both women were catapulted away by the incredible strength in this strange woman of steel, who spun her blades in her hands and laughed, “Chonekutai-sama doesn’t let me fight without his hand on my hilt very often, so I’m going to enjoy this!”

“T-the hell are you supposed to be?” Sweet Cider grunted, struggling to keep her feet under her with her still bleeding wounds.

The woman smiled, “My name is Ito-Kiri, or ‘Thread Cutter’ in your tongue. I am Chonekutai-sama’s first creation. I have the honor of being the progenitor of all of my sisters that came afterward. And it’s utterly distressing to see one of my kin in the hands of such a whelp like you, who doesn’t appreciate the bond you should share with her.”

“What n’ blue blazes are ya ramblin’ on ‘bout?” Sweet Cider grunted, but she noticed Gaia Everfree had a look of recognition on her face.

“I see,” Gaia said, “I knew Bowtie was the original forge master who made them, but I hadn’t realized he still kept the first as his personal blade.”

“Of course he did!” Ito-Kiri said, and radiant waves of reiatsu started to rise from her as every weapon attached to her cape and her very armor started to gleam like it was shining under the sun, “Why wouldn’t the creator of Zanpaktou keep the first and most beautiful of them for himself?”

Sweet Cider blinked, “Wait a tic, yer the... first Zanpaktou?”

“In the steel,” Ito-Kiri said with a widening smile and a bow. But as she rose from that bow the air above her gave off a rending noise like screeching metal, and several layered circles consisting of hundreds of floating katanas rose above her like a gigantic cylinder of floating death. “Now, shall we resume the dance you began with my beloved Chonekutai-sama?”

----------

Sombra felt the abrupt absence of Scorpan’s and Glory’s reiatsu and understood that the two must have traveled elsewhere to finish a duel that had a high probability in resulting in one of their deaths. Considering the state of their respective spiritual pressures, Sombra had a feeling Scorpan’s odds were not favorable. In some ways he had very little reason to be bothered by that fact. He and the old Soul Reaper had been foes for a very long time, and Sombra had neither forgotten nor forgiven Scorpan’s role in the fateful day that he had lost his dear Radiant Hope. The very Radiant Hope who had a portion of her soul now shaped as a Soul Reaper and was present in this very chamber. He sensed her, clustered near the other Soul Reaper Lieutenants and those two Captains. The group had not moved to engage any of the Zero Division, which was either a sign that they were overwhelmed by the spiritual pressure that flooded the battleground, or that they were simply smart enough to understand they couldn’t affect the outcome with their meager powers.

Either way, Scorpan was out of the way for now. If he lived or died was a matter of a coin toss. In a moment of generous levity, Sombra decided to silently wish his old adversary luck, for if Scorpan did somehow manage to scrape a victory over Glory, then that simply meant one very deadly foe was dealt with and a familiar, weaker one was leftover to consider.

And besides, was it possible that Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer’s mad dreams of peace could actually come to pass? Sombra didn’t dare want to hope, but perhaps with Twilight now revealed to be who she was, he could allow himself that small, dangerous luxury. Regardless, the future had to wait. He had a rather troublesome opponent to focus his attention on at that moment.

“Ugly, ugly, ugly! You’re so utterly ugly and gross I just want to tear you into little, slightly less ugly pieces!”

It was rather difficult to pin down Minty’s motions. Every twist and bounce of her body was an erratic puzzle, leaving nothing but black and pink smears of light in her giggling path. Sombra was surrounded by coil after coil of ashen black mist that came at him in a relentless tide. He felt the raw corrosive power of this mist the moment he defended himself with the Absolute, creating pitch black voids in space around him in a protective shell of snapping tendrils. Where the void touched the consuming mist, Sombra felt his own reishi struggle and sizzled as the base particles started to decompose. He’d never felt anything like it before, as if the very components of his reiatsu were being corroded and dissolved at a touch from Minty’s own sickeningly acidic spiritual pressure.

However his own power did resist and rushed forth from him in a heavy well of pure spatial warping that still managed to generate a wide bubble of safety around himself, a good twenty meters wide. Minty hammered at it not just with her mist, but with her blade, which was like a dripping shard of sharpened tar that ate at the black void Sombra surrounded himself with.

“Stop hiding in there you big ugly faker! You can’t survive in that little dark hole of yours forever!”

I have no intention of doing so, Sombra thought to himself, having already drawn his own weapon, the gloriously gleaming blue blade of solid reishi that was akin to a sizable broadsword made of sapphire light. Keeping the void shell of space hardened in place, he stepped into a warp created by his Absolute and flowed outside of it, keeping track as best he could of Minty’s movements while he prepared his attack.

He appeared with such speed that the darkness he stepped from moved faster than light could register, cleaving an azure path with his blade right at Minty’s midsection as she streaked by. He felt his sword make contact, slicing into Minty while somehow catching on a vast net of hard reishi that instead of cutting through her, caused her to spin around and get thrown backwards across the air. She instantly came to a halt, giggling even louder, and Sombra blinked at the wound in her side. His sword had dug right into her, but she didn’t bleed so much as just... ooze more of the tar-like substance that dripped from her sword, and now even her parasol.

“Heheheh, you don’t hit anywhere as hard as Dad did,” Minty said, a lopsided grin of wide, sharp teeth on her face, with bits of black blood dripping from her jaw, “You can’t cut my body up with a dull blade like that, little man!”

Her flesh rejoined, and Sombra heard a sizzling sound from his sword and frowned as he saw bits of black ooze on the edge of his sword of reishi, corroding it’s edge. He shook his head and turned hard ruby eyes towards Minty, “You Zero Division creatures are more monstrous than I imagined, but who said anything about using a blade?”

He inverted his grip on the sword, and exerted his own vast spiritual pressure, pushing back the corrosion on its edge. At the same time, a second blade sprouted from the hilt, and both blades curved back, forming a massive crescent bow forged of both seeming swords, that weren’t swords at all. “Quincy use bows and arrows.”

He drew back upon a string of light formed upon his bow, and then the shadowed void of his Absolute bloomed across the weapon as an arrow of warped darkness took shape. He fired, and the space around him shuddered and twisted. In a flash, an uncountable storm of black reishi arrows, all tearing space with the power of raw void, burst into being and swarmed upon Minty. She moved in an erratic corkscrew of streaking Flash Steps, narrowly avoiding an air rending and earth shaking procession of explosions as each of countless thousands of void arrows detonated in spheres of crushing spatial energy in her wake. Sombra fired more, and warped space in front of him in a dark wave to transfer the new barrage and send it ahead of Minty. Now she was trapped between two converging swarms, and was left with no option by to try and confront the oncoming attacks.

She did so with howling laughter, swinging her black blade of tar around her with such speed and force that she practically surrounded herself with a shield of thick mist and black liquid. These corrosive crescents of power and mist slammed into Sombra’s barrages of arrows, melting many as Minty’s power ate through the very space warping energies that encased each arrow. An ear bleeding string of explosions followed as Minty was surrounded by the tearing space of thousands of destroyed arrows, but even so there were still dozens that broke through and found their marks upon her, engulfing the young woman in a cluster of spherical voids of destructive darkness.

Yet a second later, Minty emerged from the storm, body twisting and cracking as it reconfigured itself to wholeness, despite having just had several limbs bent into broken fragments. Sombra could only wonder if even a trace of the girl’s body couldn’t reshape itself. It seemed Chrysalis had a contender for most difficult to kill madwoman, now. Whatever blood did seep from Minty just pooled at her feet and sizzled as it rose and pulsed around her like a living thing, and she just chuckled, looking up at Sombra with eyes hungry for more violence.

“A little painful, but whatever I can take apart, I can also put back together. That’s the essence of Kaido, the healing arts. Soul Reapers owe their thanks to me for inventing the skill. None of them have half the ability I do in using it. So good luck trying to kill me, faker. You’re gonna run out of energy long before you manage to do enough damage to take me down.”

“That is of course assuming that taking you down is my objective,” Sombra replied, and raised his left hand, where shadows pooled and swelled, “However I have already accomplished my goal.”

“Huh?” Minty tilted her head in confusion, and then looked down as she felt a tug in her side, in the same spot she’d been hit by Sombra’s first strike. Shadows emerged there, like black blood seeping from a wound. These shadows crawled across Minty’s body and she growled like a feral panther at them. Sombra felt her reiatsu push back against his, and knew she could indeed tear apart the bonds of his power if given a second to focus. So he didn’t give her time to bring the heft of her power to bear and made use of his Absolute to activate the tether he’d attached to her side when he’d struck her, knowing full well his attack wouldn’t have really injured her but using it as a means to physically string some reishi onto her body. He had then used the swarms of arrows to keep her distracted as he connected that tether to the sphere of void he’d previously been using as a shield.

But it was not meant to be a shield, but a prison. He’d created it and reinforced it while testing it against her corrosive powers specifically so he could calibrate it to be stronger against her ability, while ensuring he erected a spatial warp to the tether he’d attached to her.

“Oh sunuvabit-” Minty shouted, the shadows flowing over her like a cocoon, which then immediately vanished and deposited her inside the spherical barrier of void.

Sombra turned to the sphere, and with his left hand still extended, he gripped hard with it like he was squeezing the sphere in his line of sight. “I know that won’t hold you for very long. Your power does, unfortunately, surpass mine. However, I think I can keep you in ‘time out’ for a few minutes at least. Enough for Twilight Sparkle to finish her work.”

He pressed down with his palm, and sent the sphere crashing towards the ground, while at the same time the sphere contracted and grew smaller as he compressed the spatial energies within it. He felt Minty inside being pressed upon by a crush of black hole-like gravity and tearing forces. He also could tell she was utterly enraged and outpouring enough reiatsu to readily survive the horrific confines of the sphere, and as he had estimated, he could probably only contain her for a short time.

Hopefully long enough for Twilight Sparkle and Sugarcoat to finish creating magical portals to get everyone to safety.

“My King, well done! Quite magnificent!”

Sombra glanced up as Coloratura descended next to him. She had the glowing blue keys of her piano bow conjured before her and he could tell by the way her eyes shifted about that she was keeping close watch on the other battles taking place.

“Hardly,” he said, ignoring a bit of sweat pouring down the side of his cheek, “I barely scratched her, and this containment will only last ten minutes or so at most. I doubt I can outright kill her, even if I used my full power.”

“Surely not, your Majesty!? I can tell these cretins are powerful, but once you get serious-”

“Countess, let us not waste time on idle attempts to fluff my ego. We have no time for it,” Sombra responded with terse tension. Minty’s power was raging like a corrosive hurricane within the sphere the Absolute had created, and it was taking no small amount of his concentration to keep reinforcing it with his own power to try to keep her contained. The sphere pulsated and shook like a living thing being tortured, cracks appearing along its pure obsidian surface as bits of Minty’s acidic reiatsu leaked outward, even as Sombra redoubled his efforts to keep her locked inside. The raw gravitational and space warping forces of the sphere were shaking the ground and carving out a vast crater beneath the sphere as Sombra poured more and more power into it, and even then he could tell Minty was slowly gaining ground on him.

Coloratura saw this and visibly paled, gulping slightly as she truly began to realize that even her King had a foe against whom his vast power had met a match. “Very well, your Majesty, I then only ask what you would have of me? I am prepared to sacrifice my human form to aid you against this one, if it is your will.”

She of course was referring to her Vollstandig, which much like with Sapphire Shores was of a unique type that would unleash a Quincy’s fullest power by merging her soul with her body in a far more thorough manner than what was normal. Using it would grant her power beyond any regular Sternritter, but at the cost of losing her human form, forever. Sombra was loath to command any of his most loyal subjects to make such a sacrifice without absolute necessity, but had also known even during the development of the Vollstandig transformation that such a sacrifice would likely need to be made if the Zero Division was ever to be defeated.

However...

“Your day to make that sacrifice may yet come soon, Countess, but fortune willing it will not be this day. I will continue to deal with this troublesome one. You are to go to the aid of those young ladies with whom lay the power of magic that troubles the Zero Division so. I suspect they will be key in our future efforts to bring this despicable war to its final closing. Besides, it seems you know one of them.”

Coloratura gave a dainty shrug at the mention, but then bowed with a flourish, “A trifle of my youth, but no matter, I shall gladly follow your command, my King. I sense the young girls in question are having difficulty anyway, so perhaps I can tip the scale in their favor.”

Sombra nodded to her to give her leave, and without further words Coloratura vanished from view with the use of a swift Hirenkyaku. Sombra knew her words to be true, for his own senses had not ceased to keep track of the other conflicts, and could tell that Sunset Shimmer and her friends were being pressed hard by Blossom. He could tell the Zero Division member was doing little more than toy with them, using far less power than Minty had been using against Sombra. Coloratura’s presence might incite the man to get more serious, but Sombra saw little choice. They had to hold out long enough for Twilight to enact their escape route.

It was galling that escape was really their only option, but all it did was highlight the extent of the danger Zero Division represented. Defeating them would take a unified front, and power beyond what even the greatest of their forces presently possessed.

Which meant the key to all of this was Equestria itself, and the mysterious strength of its magic. How convenient that Discord had somehow connected himself to each of the individuals who had gained access to great stores of magic; Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, and Adagio Dazzle. Had Discord known all along that those girls would be the critical elements needed to unravel Zero Division’s schemes?

Somehow Sombra imagined that if he asked Discord, the man wouldn’t give anything resembling a straight answer.

----------

“So, just so we’re all on the same page, I am really not into Glory,” Discord said with entirely too much casual snark for a man squaring off with one of the most powerful entities in the world that presumably had every reason to harm him. He had his Zanpaktou spinning on one thin finger, having not activated his Shikai yet, so it remained a wooden cane for the moment.

Next to him Ditzy Doo was licking her lips and cracking her knuckles, staring down their opponent with a bristling twitch running down her hair, “Nothing personal, Discy, but the idea of you two being in bed together seriously gives me a case of the projectile vomits. Just, ugh, you know?”

“Honestly taking that one as a compliment, as I have such better taste than that,” Discord said, his eyes not leaving the one standing nearby. He and Ditzy had ended up picking a lonely canyon near the east end of the training ground’s wall to face off against Medley, and Medley had appeared on the canyon’s opposite cliff, Zanpaktou in hand, but oddly not leaping into the attack.

Instead Medley seemed to be casually observing them, as relaxed in truth as Discord was attempting to show on the surface. She put her free hand on her hip and let out a faintly amused groan, “Trust me, I’ve never encouraged Glory’s inexplicable crush on you. I really don’t get it, myself. I guess she’s just into crusty weirdos who keep telling her ‘no’. Kind of self destructive, if you ask me.”

“Oooh, she’s that type,” Ditzy said, as if receiving a revelation as she pounded a hand into her palm, “Some people really jones after the people who keep rejecting them. It’s like the more you tell them to piss off, the thirstier they get.”

“Yeah, that tracks,” Medley agreed, “Glory’s used to getting her way so much, I think the idea that anyone would consistently stand up to her activates some weird reverse dopamine reaction. If I didn’t love my sister so much, I’d probably have worse things to say about that, but eh, can’t choose your family.”

“I rather disagree,” Discord said, “I’ve never much cared for my biological family, but have instead chosen those with whom I believe I can give that definition to without regret. Which brings me to an observation, Medley. You seem the one least pleased with your family’s plans. Why then do you remain on their side?”

Medley looked him squarely in the eye, and he felt the piercing rush of power that focused directly upon him as her body let off such spiritual pressure that it was hard to gauge it as a physical thing. He knew the reiatsu of the Zero Division members weren’t normal, that the presence of the Soul Queen’s pieces within them had transmuted the spirit energy into something subtly different than normal reiatsu. Those too weak wouldn’t even be able to sense it properly, even as it crushed them. He and Ditzy could sense Medley’s only because they themselves were on a high enough level to do so. It was still unnerving to feel the laser focus of Medley’s reiatsu upon him, however, like a hot knife digging into his heart.

“Let me spell one thing out for you, Discord. No matter what I think of Glory’s obsession or my siblings’ willingness to go along with her plans, I will never let them come to harm. Not while I’m still breathing. That just isn’t in me. So think what you will of the things I do, even if they don’t make sense to you. They don’t have to. All you need to know is that while I wouldn’t shed a tear if Glory’s plans fail, I’ll die myself before I let her or any of the others fall.”

Discord sensed a double meaning behind Medley’s words. Oh, he could tell she absolute meant each and every single syllable, but her choice of wording had meaning beyond the obvious. As someone used to using double-speak himself, he suspected he had a notion of what she was actually getting at.

Yet that would have to wait, because Medley was making her move.

She vanished from view, but Discord didn’t sense the tell-tale air currents of a Flash Step and didn’t see any trace of her movements. He leaped up in an evasive maneuver on instinct, placing his free hand on the side of his sword cane, filling the weapon with an aura of prism light.

”Rip through all boundaries; Konran Arashi.”

He was surrounded by a resplendent wave of light formed from all colors across the spectrum, splashing up and around him in a waterfall of eye wrenching color. His Zanpaktou assumed its Shikai form, the gnarled cane retaining its head but the rest becoming a shifting blade of painfully twisting prismatic colors , some of which defied common comparison. As this happened, he saw Ditzy Doo suddenly shift on her feet and pivot away from Medley, who was suddenly behind the other woman. Medley’s Zanpaktou blade, which was seemingly made of solid wind, cut down and took off a bit of Ditzy’s hair as she in turn flickered from view with a Flash Step that took her above Medley, coming down with a sudden ax kick. Medley twisted away, and a substantial portion of the canyon cliff was sundered into rock chunks by Ditzy’s kick.

“Where are you looking?”

Discord grunted and threw himself to the side as a second Medley cut by him, and he felt the bite in his side as her Zanpaktou tore at him. He responded with a fast series of thrusts from Konran Arashi, sending out waves of prismatic chaos to try and tag Medley with their disrupting power. Yet even as he did so he felt a twinge in his mind, and that Medley disappeared, while the fist one he’d seen also vanished. Yet in that same instant another Medley appeared below him, grabbing his foot and with shocking strength hurled Discord down with the force of a sonic boom.

He corrected himself in mid-air just barely in time to keep from cratering into the ground, but he landed in a crouch, one hand on his hat, which had nearly fluttered off. Ditzy appeared next to him, frowning.

“Okay, I know Zero Division members are going to be fast, but I’m having trouble tracking her. Also, are those speed clones, or actual copies?” Ditzy asked, and Discord just shook his head, eyes focused on Medley.

“I don’t think they’re either. This might take me a minute, but I don’t think her power is merely speed or copies. Something else is happening here.”

“Don’t overthink it,” came Medley’s voice, but it didn’t stem from the Medley that stood high in the air, but one who was now behind the pair with her hand pressed upon the ground as she gave off a knowing smirk, “The mind is a fragile thing. Always misinterpreting and misremembering.”

A series of black kanji lettering extended from Medley’s fingers like a skittering carpet of spiders across the ground, almost faster than Discord could visually track. He also noticed that her right eye was now dark as pitch, with faint wisps of oozing blackness curling up from it. Both he and Ditzy jumped in opposite directions with blurring Flash Steps, but Ditzy had always been the faster between them and while she escaped the boundaries of the swarming script on the ground, Discord was a touch slower as the letters sprang to life upwards in nine separate pillars of interlocked kanji. A glow of deep blue energy flowed between the letters, then formed a containment field that looked smooth and solid as glass, transparent but pulsing with power.

Discord didn’t recognize this Kido, and Medley had conjured it without even bothering with an invocation, but he could sense it was Kido, and appropriately potent given its summoner. Still, powerful or not, this binding spell was still something that relied upon its fundamental order to function, and so Discord swung his Zanpaktou around him and let out a flowing wave of prismatic chaos energies.

Konran Arashi’s power seeped into the Kido and Discord felt Medley’s infused reiatsu clash with his own. Normally he’d have difficulty exerting the full breadth of Konran Arashi’s ability against a higher grade reiatsu, but Medley wasn’t able to put her full power into a separate Kido. Honestly it was a testament to how powerful the Kido was that it resisted Konran Arashi for even a short time, as Discord could feel the spell fraying as the rules governing it were broken down, but the field remained intact for a few seconds.

A few seconds that the other Medley used to attack Ditzy, blazing down like a light speed shooting star. Ditzy was fast enough to meet the attack head on, and both women clashed in mid-air with such speed and ferocity that it was as if someone was unleashing multiple airburst cruise missiles in the span of a mere couple of seconds. Discord could see some of it. Medley was not just slashing with her blade of solid air, but was mixing in a flurry of palm strikes and wheeling kicks that seemed every bit as strong as anything Ditzy Doo was dishing out in turn.

But Ditzy did have a card still to play, and did so amidst blocking one of Medley’s kicks while performing a hard backflipping kick of her own that actually drove Medley back a step. Completing her flipping arc, Ditzy ran her hand over her face and immediately a black and golden aura of explosive Hollow reiatsu burned hot around Ditzy’s body as her Hollow mask took shape over her face. Bending like a predatory feline on the balls of her feet and her palms down, Ditzy smiled beneath her mask and launched herself right at Medley with a shattering crack of force.

The punch wasn’t singular, as it was accompanied by a legion of simultaneous strikes, all so swift they came as a mutual storm of fists and feet laced with an explosive aura of crackling golden and black energies.

Medley weathered the storm with not a single wasted movement, bending like a blade of grass in the midst of a harsh wind. For all of Ditzy’s fury, little in the way of actual contact was being made with Medley, but at least she appeared to be on the defensive for now. Yet Discord had to focus on the fact that there was more than one Medley, and with another swift swing of Konran Arashi, he ejected another wave of disrupting energies that finally shattered the Kido that had trapped him.

Which triggered this particular Kido’s secondary effect, for upon breaking the glass-like field it had created turned into a series of sharp, thin reishi blades that then slammed towards Discord with murderous intent. He had to hold onto his hat as he flipped through the first wave and slashed about with his Zanpaktou, forming a near torrent of rainbow color that fanned out around him. Even these incredibly sharp shards of reishi lost their cohesion under the utter loss of order Discord’s Zanpaktou created.

He then wasted no time in homing in on the second Medley, and flinging a Kido of his own her way.

“Secret Hado: Jugeki Byakurai.” (Heavy Striking Pale Lightning)

A thin beam of crimson light shot from his outstretched finger at Medley. This was a modified version of Byakurai he had created himself that took the penetrative power of the low level Kido and amplified it while stripping out any connection to the electrical element, replacing it instead with the raw speed factor of concentrated light energy. In theory the spell was a perfect speed tester, for only one capable of light speed motion could dodge it. He fully expected Medley to do so, but at the same time, this was a way to test his growing theory concerning the nature of her power. Not to mention that eye of darkness she’d just unveiled, which he knew had to be the Right Eye of the Soul Queen.

To his mild surprise, Medley didn’t dodge the Kido beam, instead letting it strike her straight in the chest. To his further interest, it penetrated her, boring right through her body and into the ground behind her like a high intensity laser might a mere block of cheese.

“Huh, I honestly didn’t think I’d hit you.”

“Did you hit me?”

Discord forced himself to refrain from blinking in shock this time, for Medley just... ceased to be in one location and now was right behind him with her sword of cutting wind poised along his neck. She had no injury at all on her chest as she chuckled like the crinkle of dry leaves, “I remember it differently, myself.”

No stranger to being caught in a tough spot, Discord gave an impressed whistle while holding up his free hand with his palm out, “Oh ho? So I was right. You don’t use speed at all, at least not as a specialty like the Third Espada does. Now, hot or cold, tell me true, is what you’re doing a means of manipulating my mind’s memory?”

“Warm, but not quite red hot. You’re on the right track, for what little good it does you,” she replied and instead of striking with her sword, Discord felt the incredible air pressure on his back as she kneed him there with enough power to send him spinning. However he had rolled just enough with the blow to only feel a couple of ribs crack, and he retaliated with an explosive wave of prismatic force that was practically a shimmering rainbow tidal wave towards Medley’s position.

This time she had no room to dodge it, and instead used her Zanpaktou like a shield and withstood the brunt of the wave of chaos force. Discord saw genuine discomfort on Medley’s face from what must have been a horrific scrambling of her senses, but even as he turned to come back at her, she grit her teeth through it and rushed him as if she could still sense him clearly. That, he suspected, had a lot more to do with the Right Eye than it did her own ability to completely resist his power. Even with her higher reiatsu, taking a full wave of Konran Arashi’s power would meddle with her, yet even as her normal eye was glazed and unfocused, that dark Right Eye stayed laser focused on him.

Their blades met as they flew right into each other, the many colors of Konran Arashi sparking and buzzing against the invisible wind force that comprised Medley’s sword. And behind the clashing pair, Discord could still see Ditzy fighting the seeming double of Medley. Was this a trick upon his and Ditzy’s mind? Were there really multiple Medley’s or were they just remembering it this way? As his Zanpaktou pressed against hers, pouring more and more of his Zanpaktou’s disruptive reiatsu into her own weapon, he saw flickers of static across the whole area they were fighting in.

As if Medley’s power didn’t just extend to herself, but the entire region she fought within.

“Getting a clearer idea of things, hm?” Medley said, her Right Eye seeming to leak even more darkness that trailed upwards across her brow, “You’ve got a halfway decent head, Discord. And Glory, blind as she is, still wants you. But you and I both know you’re not the linchpin to all of this. It’s those girls. They’re the ones who are important. Even Glory, in all of her vast pride, has enough sense to realize that on some fundamental level... which is why she gave the orders she did. Do you honestly think any fight here matters other than the one involving those kids?”

This was more than a taunt. Discord could feel it in the intense inflection of Medley’s words. And a part of him realized with a sinking feeling like cold oil in his gut that he’d made another mistake. He’d assumed Glory would be focused on the big fish like Scorpan and Sombra, or even capturing himself. He’d conceded she might considering taking him as an objective alongside defeating Scorpan. But he’d believed that, by and large, she’d dismiss Sunset Shimmer and her friends. They weren’t strong enough yet to warrant a genuine threat, even if one of them realized Sunset had the second Hogyoku he’d created.

But if Glory had surmised how important the girls were...

He broke off from Medley and tried to focus his attention on their battle. He only just realized to his dismay that Bowtie had managed to break way from Sweet Cider and Gaia and was proceeding towards the girls’ battle with Blossom.

“Ditzy! We have to get to the girls, fast-” he started to shout, but Medley was right on top of him before he’d barely drawn breath to speak. He was now forced to defend himself from not just one, but a dozen Medley’s that just seemed to apparate into existence around him, surrounding him in an endless barrage of wind blades that he had to all but engulf himself in chaos power to keep at bow.

At this rate he’d have to use his Bankai, as dangerous as that would be for all involved.

Ditzy was equally unable to respond, having heard him but suddenly finding herself pushed back by one of Medley’s devastating kicks that Ditzy had to block with both arms crossed in front of her.

“You’re good, scion of the Doo Family,” Medley said, and potent streams of tinted cerulean reiatsu coiled around her back and exploded outward in a familiar sight to Ditzy’s eyes, “In fact I think you might have taken the Hakuda unarmed techniques I developed further than I could have imagined. But there’s still plenty you don’t know, kid. But come on, show me what you’ve got. One Shunko against another.”

Ditzy didn’t want to give this woman any more time, especially if there was danger approaching the girls, but Medley wasn’t exactly an enemy she could just turn her back on, either. She didn’t have the blind pride to think that she was going to be able to overcome the person who essentially invented the very school of reiatsu-fueled unarmed combat that all Soul Reapers learned at least the fundamentals of. At the same time, Ditzy believed in the same basic ideal that Discord did, that the old eventually gives way to the new, and the potential of the younger generations was ever higher than the ones who came before. Even if she couldn’t win here, even her defeat might serve to pave the way for those younger to have a chance to do the things she and Discord couldn’t.

In her heart’s eye, she could see her daughter, Derpy, smiling with the purity of the young not yet beaten down by the world. A smile Ditzy knew was shared by those other young ladies she’d helped train and shape, and whom Ditzy was happy to shed her blood defending even against the worst possible odds.

With those thoughts in mind, she focused her own reiatsu, Soul Reaper and Hollow alike, and let the melded energies explode out of her body in a swirling mix of sparkling white and blood drenched vermillion. She held her right arm out and let the spinning torrents of reiatsu coil from her shoulders and down her arm. Eyes locked with Medley's she crouched in a panther’s gait, hands curling into feline claws as her reiatsu dripped from her fingers in sharp points, the energies around her growing to a typhon torrent.

Medley smiled and nodded, adjusting her stance with one foot sliding forward and the other sliding back, left hand forward with palm up while the other cocked back in a straight first. Her own smoky blue reiatsu spun like a wild tornado around her, focusing upon her right fist. “Good. Hate to think the family I entrusted these techniques to produced an heir with no backbone. Let’s do this.”

The blaze of blue power engulfed her as she shot forward in a spherical blast of speed beyond light, her words stamping themselves upon reality in that same shard of an instant. “Shunko: Ten-Suisei!” (Flash Cry: Heaven’s Comet)

Ditzy shot forward to meet Medley, almost as fast, her clawed right hand slashing forward while extending claws of thick, blood red energy from it. Then her left hand, held behind her did the same, bursting forth with long claws of crimson. At the same time she spun her whole body like a insane, blood colored blender as line after line of cutting ruby power spun off of her until she was akin to a cyclonic wood chipper made of energy claws. “Shunko: Abareru Tora!” (Flash Cry: Rampaging Tiger)

They collided in a spastic kaleidoscope of air rending power, with crackling lines of distorted space spreading out from their point of impact as Medley’s pure torrent of azure force smashed into the spinning storm of Ditzy’s reiatsu claws. For just a few moments it looked as if they were actually evenly matched, or that a few of Ditzy’s flying claws of reiatsu might penetrate through the corona of Medley’s comet...

But Discord, further away, even while dealing with the other Medley, could sense what was about to happen. He’d been wracking his mind to understand Medley’s power, and finally he believed he understood it, and he shouted, “Ditzy! Below!”

It was hard to tell if his warning came in time. It did give Ditzy just a small fraction of an instant to realize what was about to happen and, having utter faith in Discord, she rolled her body with a blow from beneath her. Fortunate, as Medley simply vanished, as if she’d never charged Ditzy head on, and suddenly another Medley, with the same comet-like Shunko technique was just as abruptly beneath Ditzy, flying up. Rolling with the blow or not, Ditzy was struck, her own momentum and Shunko aimed now entirely in the wrong directly as her whole body was caught in the blast of raw power and force that now drove her upwards at such speed that she and Medley all but immediately impacted with the ceiling of the training grounds.

Then punched right through it, wards and all.

Within Discord's shop, several rooms on both floors were annihilated by Medley punching Ditzy right through them. Then they burst up through the roof itself, where Ditzy was left spinning in the air, a dark bruise up her entire indented right side as Medley let her fall and land on top of the shop in a heap.

Below in the courtyard, Screwloose, Screwball, Clover, Chappy, and the young girls of the CMC all heard the impact and saw Ditzy fall to the roof. They also now felt the immense leakage of reiatsu from the hole driven in Discord’s wards.

“W-w-w-what the heck!? Ditzy!” Chappy shouted from within the bubble she was still trapped within.

Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, who were all trying to help Scotaloo’s Doll get back up, now stared in pale horror at what they saw and were sensing.

“No way...” Sweetie Belle gulped, “No way.”

“What n’ tarnation are we supposed ta do? Who’re these people anyhows!?” Applebloom said, shaking her head as fear started to grip her as well.

“Get a hold of yourselves!” Screwloose shouted, “Get that rock bird up and get going! Don’t look back!”

“Can you afford to be giving them advice right now?” said Bubbles, who took advantage of Screwloose’s brief distraction to flit about with Flash Step and get behind her and swung her bubble generating scepter down in an attempt to trap Screwloose in a bubble the same way Chappy was. Screwloose, having not entirely taken her attention off of her opponent, flipped to the side and spun her rocket launcher around, the barrels glowing red as she charged it up with Hollow energy, courtesy of her Vaizard mask.

“Can you afford to be getting cocky?” Screwloose replied before firing a point blank barrage of explosive red shells that tore up the courtyard where Bubbles stood. However an instant later something bounced up from amid the explosions, and it appeared that Bubbles had surrounded herself with a bubble at the last moment. This bubble, unlike the others, didn’t explode, but appeared to serve as a protective barrier, and she all but ignored Screwloose to look up at Medley.

“My Lady Medley, is everything going well down below?”

Medley, eyes locked on Ditzy’s fallen form, didn’t even look at Bubbles before replying, “Eh. Could be going faster, to be honest. Don’t let any of those kids run off, but don’t kill any of them if you can help it. I think this one is done, so I’m heading back down.”

Bubbles bowed, “Of course, my Lady.”

Ditzy lay still, one arm hanging off of the roof’s edge. It was impossible to tell if she was unconscious or worse. Medley, oddly, didn’t double check, and simply disappeared with a Flash Step. Bubble’s, perhaps distracted by the brief conversation, hadn’t removed her protective barrier bubble and Screwball leaped up at her while she’d been talking to Medley.

“Give me a ball to smack around is a bad idea, lady!” Screwball said, eyes burning as sparks of red Hollow energy ran up and down her spiked club, and she whipped it full force into Bubble’s barrier. The impact didn’t break the bubble, but it did bend it, and knocked Bubble’s off her feet. More importantly, the strike launched the bubble right into the wall of a building adjacent to Discord’s shop, and sent it bouncing around within. Luckily it was an empty storage facility, still partially inside Discord’s wards, weakened as they were.

“We’ve got this kids!” Screwball said, waving at the CMC and Clover, “You lot get going!”

“Hold on!” Clover said, “I have to help Ditzy, but the three young ones should go.” She looked back at the three girls, “Is Alerion capable of flying?”

“I, I don’t know. Alerion, big guy, you good?” Scootaloo asked, hand worryingly stroking her Doll’s stone beak. The Doll grunted and shook himself, standing up.

“I believe I can, if the ringing in my skull stops,” Alerion said in his booming voice. He lowered a wing, “Come, small weak ones.”

None of the trio looked remotely like they wanted to leave. Sweetie Belle looked at Chappy, still trapped in a bubble, but the mod soul gave a weak if reassuring grin and a thumbs up, “Don’t worry about me, kids! I’ll be fine! We all will! Just get going while the going’s good.”

“Dammit, this sucks so hard!” Scootaloo said past fearful tears, worried about her aunts, and about her idol Rainbow Dash, all still trapped down in the training area with such monstrous foes. A strong hand from Applebloom on Scootaloo’s arm got the girl to gulp and nod, seeing her friend was just as scared, but trying to keep it together.

As the CMC started to clamber onto Alerion, Clover Flash Stepped up to Ditzy and kneeled down to start administering a healing Kido. So close to the hole in Discord's shop, and his wards, Clover got a strong feeling of the clashing reiatsu below. Trying to hold back her own tears, and equal fears, for the safety of her friends, Clover pushed through those feelings and got to work trying to heal Ditzy.

All the while a part of her retained a growing sense of dread that this was not going to end well.

----------

It was becoming more and more clear to Sunset that Blossom was not taking them seriously, merely playing with her and her friends in the same manner a child might with a moth caught in a jar. This was not something that disheartened her. If anything it sharpened Sunset’s focus, for she knew that Blossom and the other Zero Division members, as powerful as they were, still overestimated themselves while grossly underestimating herself and her friends. The power gap was real, but not insurmountable.

Her worries were less about herself and her friends taking on Blossom and more about the fact that she sensed Scorpan’s reiatsu disappear alongside Glory’s, and further sensed that Applejack’s mother and Gloriosa were struggling, as were Discord and Ditzy.

Still, with Scorpan and Glory having vanished somewhere, that took some of the reiatsu pressure off of the wards, so Sunset felt like she could bust out her Bankai without making things worse. She sharpened her spiritual pressure and focused it into her Zanpaktou, preparing to speak the words, but just then Pinkie Pie bounced up in front of her and held up a hand.

“Hold up, Sunny! No need to get your Bankai on just yet!’

“Uh, okay...?” Sunset said, and flinched a bit as she saw that the rest of her friends were still going at Blossom full force.

Rarity’s army of crystal knights had emerged from the sanguine gates that hovered behind her, marching forth in gleaming ranks. Rarity mounted up on a crystalline, armored pegasus, flanked by a score of similar mounted knights each bearing an array of deadly weaponry. Fluttershy appeared amid the group and from her back halo extended ethereal arms that laid hands upon Rarity’s mounted knights and Rarity herself, pouring reinforcing spirit energy from Fluttershy into the whole unit.

“Thank you, darling,” Rarity said, saluting Fluttershy with her rapier, “Always appreciate a supporting boost from you.”

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Fluttershy replied with a serene smile, then she floated upwards herself and formed more arms from her halo, which coiled around her six flesh and blood arms to encase them in a sheath of heavenly gold light.

The pair, along with Rarity’s host of constructs, went flying up at Blossom, who’d been playing his saxophone while seeming to moonwalk across the air, flinging clusters of exploding reishi particles towards a rapidly dodging Rainbow Dash and Applejack. There was always a faint sparkle of flaming red in the air that accompanied the explosions, as if the reishi particles were being ignited from within before expanding into such shining bursts of destructive power. Sunset couldn’t help but notice that each arc of explosions were far from random, but looked more like artful brush strokes on a canvas. Rainbow Dash was little more than a line of lightning, keeping just ahead of the arcs of blasts that followed her, while Applejack’s armor was jetting out long tails of gold power to keep herself blasting around like a hypersonic rocket.

It didn’t even look as if Blossom was trying to hit them, but Sunset realized each stroke of explosions his music produced was ever tightening a net around her two friends, cutting off their escape and herding them towards each other.

Just as it looked as if the trap was going to close around Rainbow Dash and Applejack, Rarity and Fluttershy struck.

Rarity and her flying pegasus knights formed an elegant series of streaking lights, their coordination and speed improved from their confrontation with Hoity Toity. Weapons cut lines of blinding red across the air, converging on Blossom from multiple arcing angles, with Rarity forming a central spark of spearing power as she charged in, rapier thrusting forward with a conical surge of power cutting the air at its tip.

The man kept playing his tune as he twisted and juked his body in ways that seemed almost anatomically impossible, seeming to all but break dance as his feet kicked and twirled about in a blur, never once taking his hands or lips form his instrument. Crystal weapons were shattered on impact, and more than a few pegasus knights were sent blasted away by the force of the kicks alone. Rarity fared better, performing a magnificent aerial maneuver as her pegasus inverted itself in a roll that still kept her rapier on point, and in a display of her construct manipulation she altered the shape of her blade, bending it around Blossom’s deflecting kick to stab it on towards his chest. This did indeed force him to halt his playing, just for a moment, to reach out and grip the tip of Rarity’s rapier to halt it in place. But Rarity didn’t miss a beat, altering her blade to detach it’s crystal tip as she flew right on past, and letting the detached blade spark and glow brighter with volatile reiatsu she’d left behind in it so the blade exploded in Blossom’s grasp, covering him in a burst of crimson flame.

Then Fluttershy rushed right into those flames, eyes placid and calm, yet somehow fierce as two bottomless volcanos as her six fists of shining gold pummeled at Blossom within the still searing flames. A countless number of punches rained in from Fluttershy, cracking the air and sending hurricane blasts of wind from the intensity of the barrage.

Sunset grunted, “Pinkie, I really ought to get in there-”

“Just wait, I got an idea, but this won’t work if everyone’s just trying to punch and/or stabbity the dude,” Pinkie said, and a bit of Mena’s voice came out as she winked, “Trust us, Sunset. Ahem, guys! Hey guys!? Give it a rest, and let me and Pinks have a go!”

For their part, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were both momentarily busy defending themselves against the lines of explosions that had chased them down and, back to back, both blasted out at the oncoming line of detonations with their own might. Rainbow Dash flared her prismatic wings, and summoned surges of godly lightning from on high into them, which then flowed into the many colored lights within the wings themselves before firing outward in twin, wide bolts of electrical rainbow power. Applejack, vastly more straightforward, grounded her lance in the air and used it as a brace with one foot while kicking out with the other, where dozens of vents opened at once to expel a flood of raw golden energy in a massive beam. Their attacks managed to sweep through the oncoming explosions, momentarily dissipating them, or at least that was what it appeared like. Sunset sensed it was more that Blossom simply stopped playing his music, robbing the explosions of their igniting reiatsu.

The reason he’d stopped playing his music was because he stepped out of the remnants of red flame created by Rarity’s own exploding crystal weapon, and cracked his neck as he stepped into Fluttershy’s rain of punches. To her credit, there were actual small bruises on his chiseled chest and for the first time Blossom looked a tad less playing and more intrigued. He flowed smoother than water through Fluttershy’s fists, placing a palm in front of her face as he intoned a Kido that Sunset had never heard before.

”Ura Hado: Sannodo-Teppusatsu.” (Hidden Way of Destruction: Third Path - Iron Wind Murder)

His palm chopped down, and around him formed the head of a gigantic, translucent jade dragon. This monstrous dragon head then puffed up it’s cheeks, the mustache tendrils from it’s lips quivering, as it sucked in a breath so hard that Sunset felt the entire chamber’s air pressure change, before the dragon blasted the air out in a focused line of raw force right on top of Fluttershy. The sound was louder than any storm wind Sunset had ever heard, and even standing a good distance away, she felt her body buffeted by the surge of wind. Fluttershy had barely had time to cross her six arms in front of her to block a her own body took a direct hit from the brunt of the focused blast, and she was sent flying back at insane speed, the gold energy around her arms cracking and shattering like glass in the process.

“I gotcha Flutters!” Rainbow Dash shouted, moving faster than any of them could track as she simply flashed into existence behind Fluttershy and caught her, but still had to streak backwards through the air with her feet grinding out a sizzling path on the air particles before managing to stop herself and Fluttershy.

“Ugh...ow...” Fluttershy coughed, at least two of her six arms bent at angles that heavily suggested their broken state.

The green dragon head vanished from around Blossom as he stretched his arms and tapped one foot on the air as if still hearing his saxophone’s beat in his head, “You gals are pretty durable. That Kido is supposed to straight up liquify your innards, but you took it with only a few broken bones. Color me impressed. Heck, some of you gal’s moves are putting some scratches on my nice duds and immaculate body. Now what’s this I hear about the pink gal wanting a go and stopping the redhead from going Bankai? I mean, granted I don’t recommend Bankai right now, because I’d probably break it and then you’d be up the creek, but I mean, it’s a shame you don’t get to come at me full force while your friends can.”

“Tell me about it!” Sunset growled, frustrated a bit herself that Pinkie had asked her to hold off on Bankai. Granted she wasn’t convinced it’d be enough to do much more to Blossom than what her friends were doing, because she was well aware that they were all roughly on par with her, but her Bankai still technically gave her the edge overall. “What exactly is your plan, Pinkie?”

“Going to do what I do best, and get a laugh out of even bad situations. We might not win on brute strength, but not even the grumpiest of these godly meanies can say no to a little Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena magic.”

Sunset was nervous about the notion of Pinkie and her alter ego trying anything solo, especially against a guy this ludicrously strong, but it wasn’t as if she and the rest of the girls wouldn’t be right there and ready to jump right back into the fray if things went sour. Fortunately at that same moment, she heard a familiar voice appear in her head.

“Everyone, can you hear me? Respond with a thought to this message if you can hear me.”

“Twilight, that you?” Sunset thought, and heard all of her friends respond similarly, as if they were all somehow sharing a mental link. Twilight gave off a happy if very nervous laugh.

“Hah, the spell worked. Great! I mean, not great, because of what’s happening, but great that I can contact all of you now. Me and Sugarcoat are underground, and I just finished getting the second of three magical portals open that will lead to my family manor. I just need a bit longer to get the third open, then I can start teleporting people down here to escape.”

“That’s perfect. Things are rough up here, but we’re holding on. But wait, what about those who were in the shop?” Sunset asked, and she heard Rarity and Applejack speak up, swiftly followed by Rainbow Dash.

“I’m worried about Sweetie Belle, but I know they had instructions to escape if things went poorly. They’re probably already out of the shop.”

“Wish I could feel out their spirit pressure, but I just gotta trust my little sis knows ta git her n’ her friends outta harm’s way.”

“Scoots is a smart kid, and Chappy, Clover, Screwloose, and Screwball are all with them. They’ll be fine. But just in case, when you all evacuate, I’ll instead take the stairs up and out. I’m the fastest, so I can easily check to make sure they’re in the clear. Besides, somebody has to tell them where the rest of you went once we’re all out.”

Sunset nodded, “Good point, Dash. We’ll leave that to you, then. But we still got to find a way to keep Blossom busy. Guess we’ll go with Pinkie’s plan, whatever it is.”

“You all having a stroke? Is that what all of this blank starring is about?” asked Blossom, who’s eyes then gained a dangerous glint as they flicked downward and he sighed, “Or it’s that magical Quincy girl. I was wondering what that odd energy I was sensing was. Maybe I ought to just stick a fly in whatever arcane ointment she’s working on down there.”

Sunset grunted as she felt Blossom’s reiatsu quite swiftly shift in focus and power as he spun his saxophone and it became a blaze of cherry flame that turned into a new instrument, that of a flaming black cello. Running the bow across gossamer strings, the Zanpaktou turned cello gave off a mournful, air rending cry. What looked like a cascade of several scores worth of ribbon-like bands of black energy flew from the instrument's strings and shot downward, presumably aimed for where Twilight and Sugarcoat were hidden.

Fed up, and reacting on instinct as much as anything else, Sunset became a burning shade of motion as she Flash Stepped and cried out, “Bankai!”

Air searing flame burst into a blinding column around Sunset and she was already in motion, creating a wall of rock melting fire in her wake. In a streaking inferno of motion she got lower than the descending bands of blackness, her Bankai forming around her instantly and surrounding her body in a thick aura of incredible heat. Raising the now brilliantly bright shield of Hokori she extended a translucent white barrier from the shield, unsure if it was strong enough to stop Blossom’s attack. Yet she wasn’t alone. Help came from several unexpected sources.

“Bankai!”

A set of glittering lights flew around Sunset and impacted with her shield from below, and she saw daggers made of glass set their points around her shield as they filled with blinding white light that connected all of the daggers with intersecting sheets of energy. Soon a humongous plane of glass, like a thick plate over a hundred feet wide, supported her shield. Blade-like protrusions both rose and descended from the pane of glass, and Sunset saw the image of a compass rose engraved almost invisibly upon the glass surface of the giant disc.

Beside her, Blueblood stood, hand raised, body glowing white with his reiatsu, which was notably a fair bit stronger than what Sunset remembered it from her encounter with him in Soul Society. He looked half terrified, half thrilled, like someone leaping out of an airplane without a parachute but still having the time of their life.

“Kagayakashi Chiheisen.” (Brilliant Horizon)

The black bands of energy from Blossom slammed into Hikari’s energy shield, piercing through it in places as Sunset struggled to pour out more spirit power to reinforce it. Where the bands did break through, Blueblood’s Bankai extended thick blades of glass from the floating disc at remarkable speed and charged with gleaming white energy. Some of the bands were halted, but others snapped the glass blades or coiled around, faster than even Blueblood could compensate for, although he most certainly tired as he narrowed his eyes and sent out a fresh set of blades from the edge of the disc to curl around like living things to try and catch up.

But even he wasn’t alone in helping Sunset, for another voice intoned, “Bakudo Number Eighty One: Danku.”

A flat shield of nearly invisible force blocked yet more of the ribbons of darkness, and Captain Amore appeared on Sunset’s side opposite from Blueblood, palms out as she focused upon the protective Kido spell. She offered Sunset a pleasant if unease nod, “I may lack my Zanpaktou at present, but my Soul Sleep is recovered enough for a Kido or two.”

Even with the assistance of two Captains, some of Blossom’s attack still managed to wiggle through way like snakes of shadow around all of those defenses and tried to stab down into the earth. However they were met by a sudden and beautiful melody of energized piano notes that picked up a fast and strong beat. Coils of blue reishi wavered through the air, fast as the black bands, and sliced through the remainder like hawks diving upon cobras.

Sunset glanced to her right and above, where higher in the air, the origin of those coils of reishi stood with her hands gracefully strumming a keyboard bow made of blue light. Countess Coloratura grinned with flashing white teeth and gave a brief salute to Sunset and all others present, “My King has graciously ordered me to lend you my considerable assistance! Be grateful for my most glorious presence, for now your victory is assured!”

For his part, Blossom took in the new combatants on the scene with a twitch in his pompadour. Rarity saw Blueblood and as one her surviving pegasus knights flew about in formation with her as she brought them down to Sunset and his level, while the rest of her army was taking up position around Blossom.

“Captain Blueblood, good to see you are willing to actually put in the effort,” Rarity said, glancing at the floating, hundred foot disc of glass in the air, “Your Bankai certainly has an elegance to it.”

“Your words lighten my heart, fair lady,” Blueblood said, bowing, and withdrawing from his robes a small, red crystal rose, “I’ve kept the token you gave me, as inspiration to continue to improve myself so I might earn your regard.”

Amore cleared her throat, “Perhaps compliments can wait for after we are not dealing with a foe quite this potent?”

“I was going to suggest that you all are entirely too relaxed, thinking a few side dishes were going to distract me from the main course,” Blossom said loudly, twirling the cello bow over the strings of the instrument, eyes shifting towards Coloratura, “Although it’s always nice to face off against another patron of the arts.”

“Oh, you’ll find my music quite to your liking, I’m sure,” Coloratura replied, “Sadly I don’t have my usual partner available for a duet, but I can still keep pace with you, I’m sure.”

Before Blossom could reply, a burst of pink motion appeared between him and Coloratura. Pinkie Pie, surrounded by the thick tendrils of her pink mist, and smacking her hammer down on the air, created a giant, twenty foot tall fire hydrant which burst water out of both ends in a sudden high pressure torrent. Both Blossom and Coloratura were soaked, although hardly harmed by the display, but both were left spitting water out and blinking at the ornery pink girl bouncing lightly atop the fire hydrant that floated in mid-air. It vanished, and Pinkie Pie landed on a sudden musical stage that replaced the fire hydrant, complete with a set of ornate pink stereos and a mic.

“Now hold it and cool off, you eager beavers! I’ve got first dibs here, and honestly it’s been driving me batty trying to work out just what kind of fun I wanna have with a fella who proclaims to be all into the arts.”

Blossom, drying out the water with his reiatsu alone in a wash of steam, transformed his cello back into a saxophone, flashing his teeth at Pinkie Pie, “Doesn’t matter to me who I take on. One of you, all of you, whatever order or sets you want to try. I’m here to enjoy myself until my more boring siblings get their own jobs done, so I don’t mind, have at me girl. What do you got?”

“I confess I wish you found a dryer way to ask to go first, but I’m not so rude as to try to cut in line if you happened to be first,” Coloratura said, leaning on her keyboard bow and sighing, “But for the record, if he kills you, I’m telling my King it is not my fault, and that you asked for this.”

“No problem, Collie! I actually could use your musical talent here. Can you bust out a nice rap beat on that shiny accordion of yours?”

“C-Collie? Accordion!? I, ugh... fine, whatever. Wait, rap?”

“Oh yeeeeah,” Pinkie Pie said, grabbing the mic on her odd, very pink stage, which Sunset was realizing happened to be shaped like a double decker cake with strawberry frosting. “Hey B-Dude, you ever heard of a rap battle?”

Blossom threw his head back and laughed. Then, without hesitation, he flipped his saxophone into the air. It turned into flames that went into his held out right hand, transforming into a burning red hand-held microphone, “Rap battle? Oh, little girl, I inspired the idea. Quincy, do as the pink one says, and get a beat going. This is gonna be fun.”

Coloratura looked a tad put out, but she shrugged and adjusted her piano shaped bow a little so it started sparkling with various new shades of blue. Her fingers danced like spider’s legs over the keys, and music flowed forth. Pinkie Pie and Blossom both started nodding their heads to the beat, and Pinkie Pie stuck a finger at Blossom, “How about you start us off, B? Age before beauty.”

“Hah, if you insist!”

On the beat, he went right into it, as everyone else looked on with varying levels of confusion, bewilderment, embarrassment, or outright enjoyment, depending on just how well the individual happened to know Pinkie Pie.

“Let’s kick this off right, put an end to this so-called fight

Bubblegum girl you’ve got no style, your combat technique is a steaming pile

Your ability is to fight with the power of jokes, but you should've left it on the shelf

Because the biggest joke of all is yourself!”

Pinkie Pie tittered at the end of Blossom’s opening volley, and with her eyes alight with joy, even behind her jester’s mask over half of her face, she shot right back.

“Hah, someone thinks they’re the king of funny,

But Pinkie’s got some bad news for you, honey

You’re just the washed up stooge who’s out of time

With a hairdo that’s as dead as your sense of rhyme

You blowing nothing but hot air from your sax

So give it a rest while Pinkie spits some facts

Me and my friends have taken on the worst of the worst

Against Sternritter, Espada, or Captains, we still come in first”

Rainbow Dash was pumping her first, “Oh yeah, get him Pinkie!”

Amore glanced at Sunset, whispering, “Is this... normal for her?”

To this Sunset could only smile and shake her head, “What? Did you never ask that Cheese Sandwich guy about his fight with her?”

Meanwhile Blossom was clearly getting into things, gyrating his body in a wild dance as he launched into his next verse.

“You talk about facts, while here’s one for you girl

You’re a slack jawed protozoa with the brains of a churl

We’re changing the world, you’re barely a speedbump

Struggle all you want, we’re ragdoll you straight to the dump

That other you wants to have a go at the master, I can tell

So let her on out so I can send her straight to lyrical Hell”

Having been called out, Pinkamena wasn’t one to remain in the shadows. Pinkie Pie’s face twitched and her hair went straight as the jester’s mask flowed to the other half of her face and her eyes turned yellow. Yet her voice was still as energetic and Pinkie as ever, even if one could tell Pinkamena was the one singing now, with her tone gaining a whipcord edge to it.

“You want me, you got me you ham faced nitwit

Get your ass ready because Pinkamena is about to Fullbring it

I’ve seen scarier things than you in Pinkie’s day dreams

One of them is me, and I’m gonna feast on your screams

Zero Division is nothing more than a bunch of whiners afraid of death

While Pinkie Pie and her friends have braved it with every breath”

The cake stage rumbled and trembled as pink tendrils, now rimmed in black, grew out of it like the stage was turning into a tentacled monstrosity. The tendrils rose around the cake and grew many dozens of razor toothed mouths that blasted horrific screams at Blossom. He withstood the sonic assault and responded in kind with his own bellowing voice.

“That’s cute little shade, but you’ve got one thing wrong

I’ll still be the one standing at the end of this song

Because even if your beats are sick and your music clear

You only started this rap because it’s my power you fear

It seeps out of every pore and drips down your face

You know you’re facing the extinction of the human race

When this is all over, Zero Division will win this bash

While all of your souls will be ground into ash”

With that verse his reiatsu only rose higher, as if reaching out to press down and compress all of them like ants under a boot. Sunset felt it woven into his very words, as if the verse he sang was more than some jaunty rap beat, but some manner of oracle’s prophecy of death and doom. Power was woven into his words, Blossom’s voice as much an instrument as his transforming Zanpaktou, perhaps even his strongest instrument. More than that, Sunset noted that on his hands and parts of his exposed arms, black markings had appeared, growing along his veins. Hadn’t it been mentioned he had the Arms of the Soul Queen? Was that adding power to what he was doing?

Yet even if Sunset could see her friends and Soul Reaper allies were being affected by Blossom’s crushing reiatsu, Pinkie Pie refused to stop. Pinkamena’s frightful grin merged with Pinkie’s happier, hopeful one, and while the mask stayed put on one side of her face, her eyes went blue again and when she sang next it was as if both Pinkie and Pinkamena were speaking as one.

“Keep thinking that, but all we see is you making a gaff

We know that the best way to fight fear is to laugh

Together we’re better than the sum of our parts

While Zero Division, you guys are just a bunch of old farts

Trying to turn back the clock to what you think are better days

But if you know how these stories go, you’d be rethinking your ways

Because Pinkie Pie and Pinkamena are as inseparable as a pair of socks

Oh, and Applejack is about to pummel you with rocks”

Power radiated from Pinkie Pie and her voice, the cake stage and it’s tendrils spinning about like buzz saws that then shout out a glamorous display of pink and purple fireworks, which timed perfectly with a crescendo to Coloratura’s playing. As it happened, Sunset couldn’t help but notice that Fluttershy had snuck beneath Pinkie Pie’s stage, despite her injuries, and even while wincing in pain she’d placed her hands on the stage and poured power into Pinkie Pie to enhance the girl’s reiatsu to help withstand Blossom’s.

As for Blossom, he paused, shrugged, and said, “Alright, alright, not half bad for a kid. But that last part didn’t really flow well, you know? And which one of you is Applejack anyway?”

He got his answer almost immediately, because whether Pinkie Pie happened to spot Applejack moving earlier or whether this was just some element of Pinkie Sense triggering, Applejack had indeed used the rap battle to make a move of her own. Attaching her lance to her back, she used her hands to pick up two colossal chunks of rock from the broken mesa, and while Blossom was still distracted, she flew right up behind him.

He turned around just in time for Applejack to smash both giant rock chunks together on top of him like someone trying to clap a mosquito out of the air.

“Rocks? Seriously?” Rainbow Dash shouted, “Why do you think that would work?”

“I don't!” Applejack shouted back, “I just thought it’d be kinda funny!”

Rock dust fell and from the cloud Blossom emerged, unscathed save for slightly mussed up hair, which actually seemed to put him out more than any actual injury could have as he raised a hand to pluck a stray purple hair from his pompadour and glower at Applejack, “Oh yeah, hilarious. Applejack, right? How about we rename you Applesauce?”

“That’s technically my third cousin’s name on my Ma’s si-” Applejack began to say, only to have to immediately blast herself backwards to dodge a powerful flip kick from Blossom that still created enough air pressure to knock Applejack out of the air and impact with the ground in a hard crater.

“I guess that means Pinkie Pie’s distraction time is over with,” Rarity said, looking to Sunset, Amore, and Blueblood, “Still I think with all of us we can still keep him busy. Twilight must only need a few more moments.”

“Done!”

Twilight poofed into existence in front of them in a burst of purple light, breathing hard, sweat covered, her eyes showing a wreathing of purple flames from the magic she was tapping into. “Got the portals ready. I can start evacuating all of us. Um, if all of us are together and in one place, which doesn’t appear to be the case.”

“Twilight, thank goodness! Okay, just start grabbing whoever is closest. I’ll keep Blossom busy,” Sunset began to say, then halted as she felt the press of another spiritual pressure that had appeared nearby. Just ten feet away, in fact. She turned, as did everyone else nearby, to see the form of Bowtie standing in the air just in front of Sunset, Twilight, Rarity, Amore, and Blueblood. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie were still higher up with Coloratura and Blossom, while down below Applejack was digging herself out of the crater she’d been smacked into.

Upon seeing him, Blossom let out a huge sigh and waved at Bowtie, “Yo! Did I run the clock out?”

Bowtie eyes scanned around him with complete dispassionate calm, and Sunset shivered as they rested on, of all people, Rarity. Strangely, he wasn’t carrying the same Zanpaktou that Sunset had seen him arrive with. Even odder, her senses told her that Zanpaktou was still over where Sweet Cider and Gloriosa were, and it felt like that Zanpaktou... was fighting? But how was it doing that by itself, while Bowtie was here, with another Zanpaktou in his hand?

“We all have taken too long,” Bowtie said, “Glory and Scorpan have departed to settle their affairs. Medley is occupying Discord and the Doo scion. Minty is wasting time with our Father’s shadow. And you’re wasting time playing with these children when your job was to break their fellowship. So, as usual, it falls to me to do it in your stead.”

“For crying out loud, Bowtie, lighten up! We’re not on a strict schedule here! I was having fun, and discovering some halfway decent talent in the process. Might want to nab the pink gal here, whether she likes it or not, because no way I want her soul going to waste,” Blossom said, and Pinkie Pie made a sour face.

“Ew, no thank you, weirdo. I’m not getting nabbed without a fight.”

Bowtie made a cutting motion with his hand, “Silence! All of you! Blossom, get Minty, and prepare the pillar. I am finishing our business here and we are leaving. This matter has gone on long enough.”

“What do you think you’re going to do?” Sunset said, readying Hokori with a fresh blaze of fire as she stared Bowtie down, “Finishing what business? If you want to leave, just leave.”

Bowtie didn’t even bother to look at her, but he raised the Zanpaktou in his hand. It was a simple looking thing, no hilt or guard, just a solid sharp crescent curve of steel. “Glory instructed one simple task for Blossom which I now shall perform. To remove the threat you and your companions represent by your fellowship. Medley made it clear your true power stems from being together as a group. So, ergo-”

Even with Sunset having suspected he was about to make a move, there was little she was able to do. Even with two of the Gotei 13’s Captains present, there was nothing they could do. None of Sunset’s friends, powerful as they had become, were in a position to do anything either.

Sunset still go the closest, almost managing to match Bowtie’s Flash Step with a flaming burst of speed of her own. He wasn’t going for her, however, but Rarity.

Sunset saw the pommel of his Zanpaktou touch Rarity’s forehead just before she slammed her own blade into Bowtie’s side and unleashed a raw blue blast of searing flame via an Aoihi Senko. The melting storm of azure flame drove Bowtie away from Rarity and even singed through his clothing and burned his arm, but his Zanpaktou had still touched Rarity all the same.

For a second Sunset wasn’t sure what Bowtie had just done. “The hell was that!?” She shouted, readying another attack, but Bowtie seemed uninterested in her, just dusting himself off.

“Hell. Yes. The appropriate term. But you are a poor ‘Substitute’ Soul Reaper indeed if you did not recognize that technique. It is the first thing almost all Soul Reapers learn once they obtain one of the Asauchi I forge. Have you never performed a Konso before?”

Konso...?

Konso!?

“Sunset?” Rarity said in a wavering voice, looking at herself as bits of her body, her spirit body, began to glow with small motes of light.

“I don’t understand,” said Fluttershy, “Wouldn’t Konso just send her to Soul Society?”

Normally, yes, Sunset knew that was what Konso was supposed to do under most circumstances. But there was no way Bowtie would have done the technique if that was all it was going to do. Sunset’s blood turned colder than winter’s depths as she sensed something faintly familiar, a sensation of energy she’d only felt once before. Once, when she’d seen a Hollow dragged to Hell.

“Rarity, run!” Sunset found herself shouting, just as the very air behind and beneath Rarity turned darkly red.

Then, with shocking speed and harsh finality, the Gates of Hell arose. Vast doors of stone, flanked by skeletal guardians merged into the doors' gargantuan frames, dwarfed Rarity as they loomed over her. Rarity turned with eyes wide with fear, recognizing these Gates as well, for she’d been present that long ago day they’d all witnessed the snake-like Hollow’s fate upon being defeated by Sunset and Clover.

And just as then, the Gates of Hell yawned open, revealing a smoky void beyond that was licked through with intense and ominous flames; opening to claim Hell’s newest convict.

Author's Notes:

Hope everyone had a good holiday! This chapter was mostly dedicated to just showing a slice of each skirmish with Zero Division to give an idea of what each member is capable of, with the exception of Scorpan and Glory who will be getting a dedicated chapter to themselves soon. Some might have noted that the Zero Division can seem to do plenty with their Zanpaktou without invoking Shikai, a factor that will be delved into a bit more when time allows and the girls have some breathing room. Serious as circumstances are, I am highly amused that I was able to give Pinkie Pie a rap battle, something I'd been intending to do for years now ever since Bleach Abridged did it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6fYLaQXq0U

At any rate, thank you all for reading, and as ever I welcome any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 179: Souls Ablaze

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Episode 179: Souls Ablaze

Uncountable leagues from the familiar walls of the Seireitei, or the winding, packed streets of the Rukon Districts, were wide stretches of unmapped and unoccupied wilderness. The Spirit Realm had a surface area larger than that of Earth’s, although like it’s dark cousin Hueco Mundo, it too was in essence a circular globe with its own atmosphere of reishi and even a spiritual approximation of a sun. The souls of humanity could and did mostly fit within Soul Society’s structured cityscape, although there were numerous pockets that dwelled in the further reaches in their own villages, either too small or too scattered for the Soul Reapers to bother considering policing to any degree.

Yet it was even further still past any demarcation between settled area and untouched land where a wide mountain range was marked in it’s center by a low, long dormant volcanic caldera. Surrounded by the volcano’s long cold rim, this caldera flourished with fields of tall grass and white flowers, so thick it almost made the land look as if it was covered in a blanket of snow.

A deafening crack of sound stirred up flights of birds from the caldera, swarming into the sky as something opened in the air near the caldera’s center. An ornate red and gold Senkaimon Gate, which nearly burst apart as fast as it appeared as multi-hued torrents of spiritual energy shot through it and drove two individuals out and into the ground with enough force to rip into the caldera’s basin as if it were no more solid than water. Rock chunks as large as trees fell from the air as a result of the impact, and scattered around like a shotgun blast.

Then a white flash cut through the debris and sliced into the wave of energy, like a giant thin thread of singular light. This was followed by a blast of air pressure that saw the two figures leap apart, landing on opposite sides of the deeply cut, new ravine that their clash had created straight down the center of the caldera.

Glory glanced to her left and right, her Zanpaktou held loosely in her right hand. She saw that Scorpan’s attack had blown a hole through the caldera wall to her right over a hundred meters wide, and similarly her own counter had sliced a neat line through the opposite caldera wall which was even now sliding away in a grinding, thunderous groan of crumbling rock. She sighed, flipping golden hair away from her face. “I liked this spot. A shame we’re to ruin it. Do you recognize it, Scorpan?”

He was still partially obscured by rock dust that was settling around him, a strong wind swirling around his body from the intensity of his reiatsu and the release of his Zanpaktou. She heard his voice before she saw him clearly.

“I do. Of course I do, Glory. This indeed was a favored spot you used to train me, when we both wished to be away from the Palace. Enjoyable days, now long dead and unrecoverable.”

“It need not be so. Such days can come again,” she said, emphatic, but his retort was harsh and barked out with a report as sharp as thunder.

“No. I have said it once already, and repeat it only once more...”

Finally the dust cleared and Scorpan was revealed. His Zanpaktou, Shiki no Ken, was raised in front of him in a two handed grip, a classic and strong kenjutsu stance. The blade retained a familiar curved shape akin to a katana, but now far longer, a proper ‘nodachi’ over five feet long. The circular guard of the weapon was formed from four different colored stones wrapped together in the shape of magatama’s; one ice blue, one heated orange, another verdant green, and the last pale white. The pommel retained its wrapping of black leather, but was capped with a bronze, teardrop magatama shape. Little at first might have seemed noteworthy about the sword itself, but the steel gleamed with flashes of internal light showing various colors of orange, green, blue, and white. Flashes that soon sparked energies that ran forth and curled up and down the blade in helix swirls. Currents of wind shot through with lightning, streams of flame so deeply orange they appeared like magma, curing crystals of liquid ice that froze the air, and raw rivers of green light that carried clusters of rockshards through them.

Scorpan’s face showed nothing but resolute denial and disciplined anger as he said, “I reject you and your plans, Glory. I will end them, by all the power my soul possesses, or expend my life in the attempt. But one way or another, it ends here.”

It took her a few moments to respond, her face going through a curious shimmy of twitches, small frowns, and gradual cold, ivory acceptance. “Then all I have left to say is that I truly didn’t wish for it to end this way, but you’ve left me no choice. Come, Scorpan... one last bout, master against student. Show me if you’ve learned anything quarreling with your brother and the Quincy King these past few thousand years.”

Before, back in Discord’s underground training area, Glory had fought almost entirely defensively, outputting only a portion of her reiatsu as to try and prevent Discord’s wards from failing and a wave of spiritual pressure from harming all of Canterlot City. Even in her twisted sense of right and wrong, Glory was weirdly concerned over the quandary of collateral damage in the world of the living.

But this was the Spirit Realm, and there wasn’t another soul around for a continent's length. Glory had no reason at all to hold back any longer, and so she did not.

It almost ended in the first stroke. For all of Scorpan’s preparedness, all his own great power and skill, he’d nearly forgotten how ungodly fast and unmitigated in her overwhelming strength Glory was, when she fought in earnest.

Her first blow was beyond any measure of speed, her blade encased in light screaming through the air as she brought it down upon him before he’d even had a chance to register her words. Only Shiki no Ken’s own impressive array of abilities kept him from falling to that first blow, for the Zanpaktou was a blade that encompassed and controlled all of the elements that comprised the four mortal seasons. This afforded Scorpan a nearly unlimited amount of versatility and ability to both strike and defend himself, for the very air around his body, the ground beneath his feet, every drop of water, and every shred of heat within his scope of awareness was his to command.

Water droplets in the air instantly froze to sheet of reiatsu enhanced ice as thin as a micrometer, yet stronger than any metal found upon Earth or Heaven, for it was also encased in a protective sheen of wind further boosted by Scorpan’s reaitsu. This move was a defensive instinct, one not of conscious thought but of many ages spent in battle. Glory’s blade of light still struck the barrier with such unimaginable power that it still shattered, scattering so much force about that a crater nearly half the caldera’s length was made in an instant. Yet the barest fraction of a moment that Scorpan’s barrier slowed her blade was enough for him to fly upwards, the light scouring his brow and sending blood droplets scattering to the ground as he shot upward several hundred meters.

Drawing Shiki no Ken back, he swept it forward, taking hold of the heat laying dormant within the volcano, and all of the vast earth embedded within it.

Underneath Glory the ground heaved, splintering upwards in a forest of rocky spikes that sought to skewer into her in their multitudes of hundreds. Yet even as her blade danced and sliced rock to pieces with the ease of butter, the volcano heaved, and was awoken by Shiki no Ken’s call.

Hundreds of miles away animals looked up and fearfully ran as they heard a sound they never had before, that of a volcano erupting. The pyroclastic cloud belched into the sky, searing ash and boiling lava alike flying upwards as the entire caldera, only moments ago cold and dormant, became ground zero for an eruption that would have utterly destroyed a human settlement like Canterlot City.

From within that thick cloud of pyroclastic ash and skin melting heat, a place where a normal human would have been scorched to death in a mere instant, there was a percussive cluster of radial bursts. Light pierced through the ash like bars of sunlight from each burst, and the clouds were dispersed in air rending shockwaves of force, all stemming from the clash of elemental blade upon radiant sword of light. From the eruption ash cloud, Scorpan shot backwards across the mountain range’s skyline. Following him was a searing array consisting of curving strands of light, untold in their numbers, but all stemming from the length of Glory’s Zanpaktou as she followed him from the depths of the volcano’s ash cloud.

Both already bore marks upon them, Scorpan’s brow bleeding profusely from that very first strike, but also showing burns and cuts upon his body from the scintillating strands of light that sought to pierce him. Glory’s perfectly smooth and ivory white skin showed soot and ash from the volcano, although no obvious burns even from the eruption itself.

As her beams of light followed Scorpan he twisted in the air and led them on a blinding chase. Shiki no Ken warped the air around him, creating dozens of reflective distortions. He knew the properties of Glory’s Zanpaktou, and understood that in most respects it obeyed the laws of light, although enhanced and pushed far beyond the mortal understanding of physics due to her supreme spiritual power that infused every light particle. Still, by altering the air and water particles around him with Shiki no Ken he was able to create a number of flat planes around him that were just reflecting enough, and sufficiently infused with his own reiatsu, to bend the light beams ever so slightly as they sought to impale him.

The result was a dizzying display as he moved in countless streaks of Flash Step while twisting beams of light continued to brim around him, twisting this way and that as they were bent but also kept course correcting to chase after him. In the span of a simple second or two he’d led the beams into and through one mountain, doubled back up and then came right at Glory. He knew she could project a limitless amount of these light beams, and that he had to stretch her focus before engaging her too directly. Hence giving her a bit of chase first before he came in hard with the light beams still close behind him.

Flinging one hand back behind him he drew forth the power of Winter. Ice crawled along his hands then cracked like a shotgun blast of ice shards that then swiftly grew to monstrous size. Hardening that ice with his reiatsu, he effectively turned the cloud of ice shards into prisms that blocked and deflected the beams of light that still chased him while he thrust his sword towards Glory. Calling on the strength of Autumn, storm winds and a sheath of purest lighting wracked along his sword’s length, flaring bolts of power across the sky as he slashed at Glory’s chest.

She met him with an upswing, light and lightning mixing in a cataclysmic wave of conflicting forces. More than fast enough to switch instantly to offense, and unbothered by her light beams being tied up by the ice Scorpan had summoned, Glory appeared with such speed that for Scorpan it was as if she was nearly everywhere at once. Wrapping his body in wind, Scorpan spun and generated sharp blades of cutting air force to accompany his physical blade as he moved with all the speed he could muster to match Glory’s lightspeed assault. Even with Shiki no Ken empowering each slicing burst of wind, Glory’s sword was able to cut through and Scorpan was forced to feel the sting of several cuts along his aged flesh. Yet he knew this would be the case and was prepared for it, having intentionally drawn Glory close.

With a rugged shout, Scorpan called forth Summer’s scorching heat and the chill of wind was instantly replaced by a storm of intense fire that exploded from him in a spherical blaze. He felt Glory take the hit, for she’d been attacking him so fast from so many angles that even with her speed it would have been near impossible to escape a blast of such widespread flame that appeared so immediately. Not letting up, he charged where he sensed her reiatsu, coiling those very flames around Shiki no Ken and intensifying them until they became as liquid magma. Lava from the volcano leaped almost like an eager, alive thing to join with his sword, even as from the sky he called down powerful strokes of lightning to merge with the flames.

He saw Glory, singed slightly and glaring at him, as he came at her with his sword bearing a bubbling cyclone of fire, magma, and coiling lightning.

She put both hands on the hilt of her Zanpaktou and turned to the side, feet spread upon the air, and a flat square of light appeared before her, so brilliant solid and white that it as if someone had cut a perfect chunk out of the sun and placed it like a shield before them. Scorpan struck the barrier dead on with his omni-elemental blade, and miles below and for vast distances beyond, the Spirit Realm shook at the impact.

Scorpan felt the incredible resilience of Glory’s shield of light, and knew its danger went well beyond its defensive capability. It was no surprise to him when he saw beams of light extend from the corners of the square, snapping into place a cube around him about ten meters per side. He knew Glory enjoyed this technique, having used it to trap many a foe. This was why he’d been prepared for it.

Slicing blades of light, like scythes, appeared within the cube, cutting through flame and lava that had surrounded Scorpan when he’d dove in to strike at Glory’s shield. Yet now those cutting lights were touching nothing but the remnants of fire and magma left within, for Scorpan had drawn upon the seasons of Spring just before he’d struck. Glory, looking into the cube of light, saw a simple but life-like rendition of Scorpan formed from rock that he’d drawn into Shiki no Ken when he’d charged through the mountain earlier.

Now, with many countless tons of earth absorbed into his sword, the real Scorpan appeared behind Glory and cut downward with his Zanpaktou. Even as she flipped away in a flicker of lightspeed that left behind a ghostly image of herself in pure white, he anticipated her evasion and called upon Spring even more. A mountainous wave of solid stone filled the sky and crashed in on Glory. The slab of earth must have weighed hundreds of thousands of tons on it’s own, but the raw force of power with which Scorpan could bring it down using his reiatsu made the impact force that many magnitudes worse.

Glory was driven down towards the distant mountain valleys below, her Zanpaktou piercing into the massive rock wave that was pushing her downward. Then from below she heard the noise akin to a dozen earthquakes, and saw a pillar of stone rising from the ground to meet her, effectively sandwiching her between it and the wave above. Huffing slightly, she began to become infused with a solid silver sheen of light. Threads of light spiraled from her blade, and even more flew from her very aura, both sets embedded themselves into the rock trying to crush her from above and below.

Stone was sliced to pieces, the pillar, itself the size of a skyscraper, reduced to dust, while the wave above was torn asunder until it was a rain of pebbles.

Glory didn’t halt her descent, instead choosing to flicker down and land upon the mountain valley below. This place, just minutes ago a verdant and picturesque landscape, was ruined by the volcanic eruption and was still covered in a thick haze of ash, which continued to fall like snow flurries of depressing gray.

Not spending even a fraction of a second on the scenery, however, Glory tracked Scorpan’s reiatsu as he descended towards her, engulfed in fire like a falling star. She raised her left hand and extended a soot stained white finger towards him, and the area around her shuddered, the ash itself billowing out and fading to nothing as she focused her incredible reiatsu at a single point at the tip of her finger.

”Ura Hado: Gonnodo - Uchu Hebi Juji.” (Hidden Way of Destruction : Fifth Path - Cosmic Serpent Cross)

There was no “dodging” this particular Kido. Even for one such as Scorpan, who’s speed was enough to keep pace with Glory’s lightspeed movements, the idea of evading could not have even formed within the synapses of his mind before the spiritual energies of Glory’s Kido would already be in contact with him. The reason for this was because among the various restricted Kido that only Zero Division had access to, some took effect without there being even the smallest measurable sliver of intervening time between their casting and their results taking place. Even Glory’s incantation was not verbally restricted by timeframe, but instead was created by the resonating of her reiatsu to generate the required invoking sounds all simultaneously, a technique only a very small handful outside of Zero Division were capable of.

Scorpan did happen to be one of those individuals, so he knew what was coming and was aware that evading would be next to impossible for him. There also wasn’t time to create another clever rock duplicate of himself. Instead, he used that bare instant of realization to harden himself, drawing in Winter and Spring’s power at the same time to coat his flesh with layers of dense, reiatsu hardened ice and rock while not halting his downward charge.

A symbol was instantly stamped in blazing light upon his chest from where Glory had pointed, a symbol that resembled a brilliant and starkly white serpent that was twisted into eating it’s own tail in a double layered infinity symbol with four loops. Only this symbol was not static. It moved with incredible speed as if alive, the serpent’s mouth devouring more of itself as it’s coils of light seemed to grow and engulf the target they were stamped upon.

Then, imploding on itself, the serpent, now thoroughly coiled around Scorpan’s body, flashed so brightly that it eclipsed the sun for a moment. A straight cross of light larger than a city erupted outward, its energies annihilating a castle-sized hole through the center of one mountain, while another mountain’s top was demolished. The cross spun, it’s earth rending energies spinning about as it tore canyons and deep rifts in the ground for kilometers around. All the while at the cross’ center was a nimbus of pure white destruction, the true focal point of the insanely potent Kido.

The Kido eventually petered out after a few moments of ungodly destruction, leaving Glory to watch as a form fell smoking from the dissipating center of light.

Scorpan landed hard on his feet, the top of his Captain’s haori and robes now ash and leaving his muscled chest bare and scored with dark burns. Blood trickled down his arms and chest, smoke still steaming from his body as chunks of blackened rock and rivers of melted ice fell off of him. Glory knew well that Kido could kill nearly any opponent short of one like Scorpan or those at least close to his level. Its raw power and near impossible to defend against accuracy was what made it so deadly, yet it did carry the rather nasty drawback that it drained an appropriately ridiculous amount of reiatsu and by its nature was unusable again for a long period of time.

She’d known Scorpan would survive it, but Glory’s slightly pressed lips and short intake of breath showed she had expected him to come out of it more damaged.

Scorpan managed to suppress the desire to grunt out a laugh. There was no time for petty satisfaction just because he surprised Glory. Instead he took advantage of her brief being taken aback and sliced forth with Shiki no Ken.

The ground beneath Glory split as completely as if a knife from the heavens had cleaved it open like a birthday cake. With the brutal method of a carnivorous think devouring it’s prey, the earth snapped upon her in a quaking gnashing of stone. Glory was battered about, more distracted than injured, but this was enough for Scorpan to close the distance. Shiki no Ken now blossomed with a wreath of solid white ice, doubling in thickness and length. The ground beneath Scorpan’s feet and for hundreds of feet around froze over as he slashed hard at Glory’s neck with his elongated blade of pure Winter frost.

She just managed to get her sword of light up to block, the edge of ice coming within inches of her neck. Even so she was driven back like a puck on an ice rink, and a divine blast of absolute zero wind and ice shot out of Scorpan’s continued strike. The landscape of ash and fallen trees was engulfed in a rolling mist of instant freeze, many trees bursting under sudden unimaginable cold.

Glory, for all of her speed, did not escape wholly unscathed, ice rime coating her clothes, hands, and feet as she slid upon the icy land and came to a halt. Fury bled into her eyes, and new focus sharpened her stance as she readied to meet Scorpan, who charged on. In the cold mist they now clashed, Scorpan cutting down hard at her from above and to her right. Glory blinked out in a burst of light, this time dodging the frozen blast that came with Scorpan’s strike, and cut her blade of light in a wide arc at his back.

A sheet of ice and rock spiked up to meet her blade, but was cut through cleanly, and Scorpan grunted as his Flash Step was a shade too slow and he felt his back left shoulder blade be cut into. Red blood splashed on ice, the blood itself freezing instantly. Glory pressed him, each stroke faster than the last, each cutting arc of light leaving long rents in the earth.

Scorpan was placed on the back foot, each Flash Step of incredible speed leading him further back from Glory as she kept the pressure on. They left the frozen landscape behind and crossed miles of distance as their blades clashed, ending up upon the bottom slopes of one of the taller mountains in the range. By now Scorpan had several more cuts on his body, and by comparison Glory had only a bit more frost on her and some unkempt hair.

The difference between them was clear. Scorpan could press her. Surprise her. Force her to put in effort. Indeed far more so than she’d ever expected. But at this rate, anyone could tell who the victor would be, given time.

Of course Scorpan did have one remaining factor to put into play, and Glory knew it. Which was why she paused, halting her attacks upon him on that mountain slope. At this lower elevation this area still bore trees, and while any animal with sense had fled already upon the eruption of the volcano miles away now, Glory could appreciate the scenery. However her interest was solely in the seemingly old man facing her, but in her mind’s eye all she could see was the boy. A young, eager, optimistic lad who’d endlessly quarreled with his boisterous and prideful big brother, and had followed her for weeks before working up the courage to ask one of the Soul Queen’s firstborn children to train him.

“You’ve gotten better,” she admitted in that brief span of quiet as they both caught their breath. “I suppose I should have expected as much, but somehow I just didn’t realize how much you’d grow.”

“You rarely looked at those beneath you with clear eyes, even back then,” Scorpan replied, “I thought it was kindness that spurred you to finally train me, but looking back, was it just that you were preparing me to be a more useful tool?”

“Don’t be absurd. At that time I had not conceived of what I would have to do to set the world to rights. I still...” Glory took a slow breath, “I still believed in Mother, back then. But my words matter little to you, you’ve made that clear. War has sharpened you, but you know that you won’t do more than wind me and get a few scratches in as long as you rely on Shikai. So why waste our time further, Scorpan? You know your only chance lies in using Shiki no Ken’s full strength.”

Her words rang true, he knew. Shiki no Ken was a fabulously powerful Zanpaktou. Its Shikai was sufficient to overcome many of his fellow Captains' Bankai. Only Celestia and Cheese Sandwich could really give him a run for his money, with Hurricane and Sweet Cider coming in close second. In the former two’s cases it was their Zanpaktou’s powers and their skill in using them, as well as their mastery of Kido that made Celestia and Cheese so dangerous. Strictly speaking Hurricane and Sweet Cider had greater physical strengths to rely upon, but sword skills alone would never compete against Shiki no Ken. Even now, Scorpan suspected if he truly wished to draw this battle out, he had many ways in which his command of the elements could forestall Glory and perhaps even score a few telling hits upon her.

But that would be it. Against Glory, Shikai wasn’t enough. Controlling the elements of the four seasons was one thing, but he needed to go further beyond that. Much further.

Clearly Glory knew this, and was goading him to do what both of them knew he must. She’d let him do it, too. Whether it was simply well founded confidence in her ability to win, or that she wished to defeat him at his full measure as a matter of principle, the reason mattered little to Scorpan. His responsibilities to Soul Society and the duty bound need to see this battle through to the end, no matter the outcome, set his course in a manner from which there was no retreat.

“It is as you say. I have never once gotten the best of you in our years of training together,” he replied to Glory, raising Shiki no Ken high above his head, “But you never have fought me after I was raised to Captain Commander of the Gotei 13. Even you haven’t tested me at this level.”

“Yes, which is why I say it is your only possible chance. Even then, your Shiki no Ken is fundamentally different from what I and my siblings wield. Will it be enough, I wonder?”

A valid question, Scorpan knew. Zanpaktou as they existed today among the Soul Reapers were based upon the swords forged by the Soul Queen’s first children, but there was a separation of nature between the weapons Bowtie created originally, and the ones mass produced for distribution to the ranks of Soul Reapers after the Gotei 13 were properly established. The Zanpaktou Scorpan held was the first prototype of that mass produced design, a sort of ‘in-between’ stage before Bowtie settled on the Asauchi that transformed into Zanpaktou.

And Shikai and Bankai releases were a core element of the design, existing as a means to allow a Soul Reaper, many of whom would be human souls far weaker than the god-like souls that came before them, to survive the process of growing in strength. Normally were a human soul to gain full access to a Zanpaktou’s potential power, it would rip them to spiritual shreds. Shikai and Bankai were controllable forms of releasing that power in gradual stages.

Yet the swords used by the Zero Division, the naked blade of light in Glory’s hand, was not quite the same. It was most assuredly still a Zanpaktou, but a far more primal version, unrestricted by stages of “release”, save for the basic nature that a Zanpaktou still had a name, and invoking that name brought forth it’s power. For all intents and purposes, the Zero Division did not require things like “Shikai” and “Bankai”, their swords maintained a state of raw power at a base level that competed or utterly outstripped even many Bankai abilities.

There was another state to them, when their names were called, but it was called neither Shikai nor Bankai.

If Glory used that, he wasn’t certain if even his Bankai would compete, but it was his only option.

A rumbling emanated across the mountain slope. The sky darkened with the formation of boiling, lightning ridden clouds above. Frost crawled across the ground, causing rock and trees alike to freeze over and crumble under the weight of the building cold. At the same time a heat as focused as plasma coated Scorpan’s body and melted the ground beneath his feet. Above all, his spiritual pressure pressed out like the mother of all storm fronts, blanketing all.

Even thousands of miles away, in Soul Society...

----------

From the streets of the Rukon Districts countless souls murmured uneasily to each other at the unusual feelings of the past few minutes. Even ordinary souls, going about their peaceful afterlives, sensed a distant, uncomfortable pressure in the air. Many paused in their day to day activities to give one another nervous looks and a few wondered aloud what was happening.

This unsettled feeling only grew as many realized there was a faint tremble in the streets, as if shaking from a distant earthquake.

At one of Seireitei’s gates, the massive and generally impassive Iron Will grunted in worry, looking east towards the sensation pressing on his senses. Gulping, the burly man stayed firmly at his post, but now looked at the walls of Seireitei with dubious wonderment. Whatever he was sensing was so powerful, he doubted walls and wards would matter much at all if it came towards them, but he imagined that whatever it was, the Captains had things under control.

Hopefully.

Within Seireitei itself things were more tense. Soul Reapers were, by and large, well trained in sensing spiritual pressures, and even the lowest ranks could feel the immense build of reiatsu to the distant east. Division members quickly asked higher ranked seated members as to what they should be doing, which in turn prompted questions going up the command chain to Lieutenants.

“Captain!? Hey, Captain, where are you at?” asked a somewhat rotund, middle aged man with mustard colored skin and thick black hair. His Soul Reaper robes were neatly worn, although is Lieutenant's badge, bearing the Third Division’s kanji symbol, was worn a bit loosely on his arm. He’d barged into the office of the Third Division Captain, a small but highly decorative place with lots of random knick knacks organized in neat rows on various shelves.

“She not here, Lieutenant Quibble?” asked another Soul Reaper, the tall and somewhat lumbering form of Troubleshoes from the Tenth Division. He’d been over helping the Third Division Lieutenant, Quibble Pants, organize a joint training exercise when the whole place started going crazy over sensing that distant, huge reiatsu.

“Looks like she’s out. Dammit, everyone is freaking out, and the Captain dips?” Quibble Pants grumbled, but was cut off by a sudden voice from the window, which happened to look out of the Third Division’s fourth story.

“I didn’t ‘dip’ anywhere, I went to check with Captain Celestia to confirm what we’re all sensing.”

Captain Daring Do sat perched on the windowsill, eyes as grave as any had ever seen her with a scowl that was not directed at her fellow Soul Reapers, but at the situation in general. Quibble Pants gulped a bit, “And what the heck are we sensing, Captain? Feels like the whole sky is pressing down on me, but it’s way too far away and-”

Just then a faint rumble filled the air, and the floorboards creaked with a trace of a rattle. Troubleshoes made a ‘urk’ sound as he knelt down and touched the floor, “It’s... tremblin’. The whole ground. All o’ it.”

Daring Do nodded, eyes narrowed to magenta slits, “Yeah. That’s what happens when he goes all out. He shakes everything. Be it the Earth, or the Spirit Realm, Old Man Scorpan’s power just makes it all tremble like a leaf.”

“T-the Captain Commander!?” Quibble Pants hoarsely croaked, “He’s fighting something? W-what could make him of all people fight? Wait, it isn’t Tirek, is it!? Are the Hollows invading?”

“Keep it together, Lieutenant. No, it’s not Tirek. Like I said, I was just with Celestia. My senses are a bit better than hers, but she knows the Old Man’s reiatsu better. We both concurred he’s up against what feels like another Soul Reaper... only...”

“Only?” her Lieutenant pressed, but Daring Do shook her head firmly.

“No point speculating. Go and get the Division under control and let everyone know not to panic. We knew the Captain Commander was going with Blueblood and Amore to a meeting in the world of the living, but clearly something has gone wrong there. Right now the rest of the Captains are meeting in front of First Division. If the Captain Commander is in combat, we need to put Seireitei on alert, but not raise a panic. I’m going to that meeting now. You get to work on calming everyone down, but get the Division prepped in case we need to go into action. Troubleshoes, better get back to your Division barracks and let Lieutenant Silverstar know to do the same. If something went down, his Captain is probably in the thick of it already.”

Discipline kicked in over the stress of the situation, and both of the other Soul Reapers gave quick salutes and rushed off to follow orders. This left Daring Do to sigh under her breath and immediately turn to Flash Step out of the window and start making her way swiftly across rooftops towards the foot of the stairs of the First Division and the central headquarters.

She would meet with her fellow Captains to figure out what to do, but if she was being honest with herself? Daring was terrified. Not of Scorpan’s power, although that by itself was a terrifying thing to behold and she’d never really felt the Old Man go all out like this.

No, what horrified her was that her senses had also touched upon what he was facing, and that thing, whatever it was, left Daring Do doing something she never thought she would have to...

...she feared for Scorpan’s life.

----------

“Bankai.”

Such a simple word, to shake the foundations of an entire realm. To almost every Soul Reaper it represented the pinnacle, the highest honor and greatest power any of them could dare dream of achieving. And Scorpan, the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13, was the Soul Reaper against which all other Soul Reapers within Soul Society measured themselves. He had been there since the beginning, and most understandably assumed he would remain with Soul Society for as long as its traditions and cause continued to exist.

To them, he was a permanent fixture, and a figure akin to a myth. Few, if any, had even truly seen him do battle, let alone with the complete measure of his power. This was for good reason. His power would break nearly any landscape upon which he stood upon unleashing it. His war was a war to protect Soul Society, the world of the living, and the cycle of reincarnation. Oftentimes this meant training others to fight battles in his place, powerful Captains and other capable Soul Reapers who could carry his will into the field where, if he were to go and fight, he’d be as much a danger to his beloved subordinates as he would be to the enemy.

The only times he had made exceptions where when those who equaled him had dared take the field. In the war’s long history this had only happened three times against his brother, and twice against the Quincy King, all such incidents inevitably ending in draws when their powers proved each other’s match.

Yet he knew instinctively this time would be different. Glory was no foe he could walk away from, nor afford to leave at a ‘draw’. This time, the battle would be to the bitter finish, one way or another.

Upon the intoning word being spoken, all was engulfed in a calamitous, skyward surging flood of elements. Glory blinked in a flicker of light to get distance from the surge that consumed the entirety of half the mountain slope in its unmitigated power. Amid the sky piercing typhon of energies all the elements danced together; fire, wind, lightning, earth, water, ice. They did not simply swirl around one another in gigantic rivers of power, they merged and fused together like oils on a paint canvas. This created impossible colors and combinations of energies as a wave of spiritual pressure crushed the landscape and caused a quake so severe that across the entire mountain range peaks and cliffs collapsed and avalanches broke free.

Glory waited patiently, just a short distance up in the air, watching with focused intent. Her perfectly shaped mouth twitched ever so slightly in a frown.

This was more power than she’d expected. In the quiet corners of her mind, a part of her that was more detached and analytical than the rest, suggested the possibility that the Zero Division’s long millennias of inactivity, versus Scorpan’s equal years of warfare, may have had a greater impact on their power gap than she’d anticipated.

Yet within her breast beat the Heart of the Soul Queen, merged with her own, and that transcendent reiatsu flooded her own body and bowled outward to encase her in snow white light. She calmed herself, feeling foolish for her momentary concern. This might prove a worthy fight, but she remained confident of the outcome.

Then, as abruptly as it had appeared, the immense cyclone of fusing elements were sucked right back to their origin point, where an equally massive expelling of raw force blasted outwards in an echoing boom so loud that it caused even Glory to flinch slightly. Then, standing there at the epicenter of what was now a thoroughly cratered and pulverized mountain, was Scorpan.

He bore no blade in his hands. He stood, upper torso naked, but with the very distinct difference that upon the center of his chest was now the form of four large magatama crystals fused into his very flesh, arranged in a perfectly balanced circle. The top one was deep orange and gleamed with inner fire, and counter clockwise from that the fire bled into a magatama of brightest ice white where the fire then turned to ice which further fed to the next magatama. This one, the bottom magatama, was flush forest green, and as the ice bled into it from the previous magatama, a stream of earthen veins grew from the green magatama to its brother to the right. The final, blue magatama coursed with inner lightning and storm clouds, taking the earthen veins and mixing it with its storms to feed back into the flame magatama.

This centerpiece was hardly the only change to accompany Scorpan’s Bankai. His entire body was infused with elemental power that manifested in various ways across his flesh. His left arm was a molten black, shot through with veins of magma, yet across his skin the heat and flames were intermixed with a coiling of frost that turned the flames into glowing crystal shards of ice that were somehow impossibly mixed with the heat of fire. His right arm was no less a strange fusion of elements, the skin hardened by an encasing of jagged stone that also crackled and glared with forks of raw lightning that poured out in a wild jetstream of wind that carried particles of earth.

His lower body was coated in a flaring armor of ice that was mixed with trailing tails of lightning, which then turned into molten flame that formed around his feet that simultaneously exuded swirling jets of wind. Even Scorpan’s beard now flickered at the tip with flame, yet also was coated in ice and rock, and sparked around the edges with arcs of electricity.

Despite the tumultuous power pulsing within his body, Scorpan stood with a serene stillness, eyes closed as he took a slow breath. Then his eyes opened, alight with shifting colors that matched the storm seasons that raged within.

“Shunkashuto-Ikkon.” (Four Seasons - One Soul)

The name of his Bankai was spoken in the same breath that Scorpan attacked. Glory was ready for it, yet at the same time was most assuredly not ready for it.

She did see him coming. His speed was monstrously faster now, but she was able to track it. She sliced her blade forward and created a swarm of light beams to slice into his path, but he was through them before she could truly correct their aim, or even properly pull back her sword. He was right in front of her with his right fist coming up under her chin while Glory was still trying to adjust her sword.

The impact was not merely force, but an air shattering explosion of wind beyond any mortal storm, while at the exact same time every particle of cutting air was infused with an accompanying hammer of earth. This created a fusion storm of flesh stripping earthen dust merged with such wind power that it put anything existing in the human world to shame. The strike knocked Glory briefly senseless as she was sent careening upward like a fly caught in a tornado.

To her brief shock she tasted the copper of blood in her mouth. Correcting her trajectory, she flipped over and made a defensive cut with her sword, slicing into the impossibly fused rock winds. Her light sliced into it, not nearly as completely and cleanly as she would have liked, but it dispersed the scalding storm around her just long enough for her to realize Scorpan wasn’t where she’d last seen him.

She had just enough time to react by turning to her left, and saw the corona coming for her face. There was a maddening mix of overwhelming heat intertwined with breath stealing cold, and a torrential wave slammed into Glory alongside Scorpan’s left fist. Blazing ice, shards so hot they glowed like pieces of stars, yet freezing all they touched with depthless chill, battered Glory and carried her along like a waterfall. She encased herself in light, sending out streaming beams in all directions to defend herself, but it was undeniable that this hurt as Scorpan’s strike sent her flying.

She vaguely felt the impact with a mountain top, but ignored it as she grunted and took hold of her reiatsu, and the beams of light pouring from her. The wave of burning ice was cut into like a swimmer trying to break through rapids, and finally Glory managed to disperse the wave just as her feet touched ground and she scrapped along a... sandy beach?

Shaking her dazed head, she saw that she’d been hit so hard that she was no longer in the mountain range. She could see it, distantly, but now she stood on the sand coated shore of a long coastline, ocean going to the horizon behind her. Pain caused her to ignore the change in scenery as she bit back a groan and looked at herself. Her left arm was burned, yet also bore signs of frostbite, but more concerning was the trickle from her lip. She raised a hand to touch the red stain on her chin and looked at the blood on her fingers for a moment.

When was the last time she’d seen her own blood? Her memory failed her.

A meteoric crash from nearby drew her attention. Scorpan had landed a mere dozen meters in front of her, the impact accompanied by a expulsion of elemental forces that froze the surf behind her while in the same instant flash melting the beach into a molten river, while above funnels of storm wracked clouds began to shape water spouts further out in the ocean. He wasted no breath, giving her no moment to recover. Scorpan burst one direction and in the same moment actually came at her from the opposite side, this time swinging a sidelong kick towards the side of Glory’s head. She was adjusting to his new speed, but was still a little slow in erecting a barrier of light, only partially getting the screen up in time to take the blow. From his kick exploded another bizarre fusion of elements, creating a spiky bloom of jagged rock that simultaneously was coursing with cutting arcs of blue electricity and cutting streams of wind.

Glory was knocked across the frozen iceberg created by Scorpan’s landing which now extended out into the ocean from the beach, and her body felt the jolt of pain from impact. The pain was a further surprise to her. It was as if her reiatsu was having difficulty absorbing the energies coursing off of Scorpan, now, and it took Glory a few moments to grasp why. Even as the revelation was dawning on her, Scorpan did not let up, as if he too understood his advantage had a time limit based on how long it would take Glory to figure out the fundamentals of his Bankai.

She saw him coming this time, further getting used to his speed and her focus sharpening as a result. She drew her Zanpaktou up and around her in a dance-like fan movement, and from above a thick forest of light beams sprung down in a cage around the charging Scorpan. Rather than slow his attack, Scorpan bowled through the threads of light, letting them cut into his hardened flesh. His body tanked the beams with the power of the fused elemental energies creating a hard layer atop him that lessened the damage, turning what would have been deep burns into flesh wounds.

Glory saw him place the palms of his hands together, and elemental power flow through his arms and into his hands. Opening those palms, she saw he’d formed a circular swirl of energy that looked as if fire, lightning, and ice were being compacted into a singular sphere that undulated and crackled with the unstable fusion of three elements together. She raised her sword and brought down a multitude of light particles into it, actively darkening the sky and area around her through sheer absorption of light. This magnified the size and thickness of her light blade as she brought it down to try and sever into Scorpan before he finished whatever he was doing.

She was just a shave too late, for Scorpan thrust the pulsating elemental sphere forward, his voice booming, “Yoso Yugo: Fuyu-Natsu-Aki. Shakunetsu Fubuki Kaminari!” (Elemental Fusion: Winter, Summer, Spring. Burning Snowstorm Thunder!”

From his palms fired a monolithic flood of what looked like snow, if snow was a deeper orange than Hell’s own flames, and crackled and churned with streams of pure lightning. The beam of fused elemental energies burst out wider than a whale’s length and struck with wrathful force. Glory’s enlarged blade of light briefly cut into the storm of energy, but even so she was forced to use two hands and was carried backwards like a leaf caught in a whirlpool. She felt her skin sear and muscles seize, while her breath was stolen by cold.

The Heart throbbed in her chest in response to her distress, and soon she felt a protective bubble of pure, empty space around her as her will manifested. The Heart of the Soul Queen beat heavily, warping reality so that the rest of the powerful attack flowed around Glory without further harm... although it’d certainly done damage before the Heart had reacted fully. Glory was left breathing hard, pushing back the pain of injury as she saw Scorpan’s attack vaporize a long line of seam across the ocean for dozens of miles while at the same time freezing large chunks of it so that more icebergs floated around the coastline.

She was hurt, but at the same time, she took a deep breath and smiled. Having experienced it firsthand now, she understood the nature of Scorpan’s Bankai. Through pure force of reiatsu he could make elements combine that were normally not able to be mixed together. This created a type of attack that the usual defenses of reiatsu would not be as effective against, for the energy Scorpan unleashed wasn’t fully grounded in the same spectrum as normal reiatsu.

In a way it was like the transcendent reiatsu of the Soul Queen, which was difficult to resist by normal standards. Scorpan, perhaps unknowingly, had found a way to simulate that same effect, albeit in a very blunt and crude fashion. But now that Glory knew that, she could account for it. She hadn’t been using the Heart’s power because she assumed that she wouldn’t need to. Scorpan, for all his power, was still a Soul Reaper who existed in the realm of non-transcendent reaitsu, so Glory had been using the same.

Now she drew more upon the Heart and let the Soul Queen’s higher reiatsu flow more freely into her own. In the mere fraction of a second it took her to come to her conclusions and do this, Scorpan had exploded into the air above her and dropped down towards her with his left first drawn back. His fist buried with solid fire that writhed with an expulsion of rock that turned molten and twisted around, turning his entire arm into a giant drill of hot lava.

Glory twisted to the side, and even then Scorpan’s blow created such heat that it burned, and bored a vaporized hole in the ocean floor below her feet. He whipped the attack around, the molten lava splashing forth like a wave, which then buzzed with arcs of wind that made the magma take the shape of dozens of huge, thin blades. Wind, earth, and fire combined together, generating scything arcs of lava so hot, yet micro thin and able to slice air particles in half.

On streaming flickers of light, Glory moved through them, although even with her speed she could not fully dodge every one of Scorpan’s recently timed attacks, especially given he was able to control them so that each blade of cutting lava bent and twisted towards her. So she defended with sheets of light, forming hexagonal barriers that sprung around her as she charged him, much as he had her moments earlier. Now fused with the pulsating power of the Heart, her barriers were able to withstand the lava arcs, although the power behind each of Scorpan’s attacks was enough to break those barriers, forcing Glory to make more as she closed the distance.

Reaching him, she thrust, and the speed of her blade was such that a multitude of light streaks, each an attack of its own, reached for Scorpan’s chest and throat. He planted his feet upon the air, and held his ground, fists moving so fast they matched each of Glory’s light speed thrusts. A storm exploded from his fists with each parry, his hands turning aside her Zanpaktou even as the searing light of it managed to burn through his own protections and score his flesh. Yet he was able to find openings to counter in between her attacks, managing to get a knee up into her stomach that blasted out a wave of lightning and frost together, causing Glory to gasp even as her blade of light cut a bloody gouge across his upper chest which in turn caused Scorpan to grunt in pain.

Around them the ocean roiled, burned, froze, and otherwise churned with ferocity of their clash, the coastline breaking apart in places as all ground for hundreds of miles continued to shake harshly from the spiritual power being unleashed upon it.

Suddenly Scorpan caught Glory off guard by choosing to let one of her thrusts past, the tip of her blade sinking into his shoulder, but her moment of shock cost her as his right hand shot up and gripped her wrist with the force of unbreakable will. Glory’s mouth opened in a silent shout as pain wracked her, Scorpan pouring raw elemental lighting into her, while simultaneously scorching her skin with heat beyond the melting flames of the Earth’s core. The Heart pulsed once once, and Scorpan found his whole body suddenly crushed with an impact of raw force. No, force wasn’t even a word capable of describing it. It was as if reality itself warped around his body and punched him with the weight of an entire planet.

It was now Scorpan who found himself flying in a daze, ripping the ocean open wide at the simple force of his body’s passage.

However his focus was supreme, and he flipped and shot upwards to reorient himself. Now hundreds of feet up, he felt Glory coming, or rather her power coming. It was a singular gleam of light in the distance, but Scorpan felt the immeasurable might behind it. Crossing his elemental arms in front of him, he drew a deep breath and intoned, “Yoso Yugo: Aki-Haru-Fuyu. Kotta Seikaiju!” (Elemental Fusion: Autumn-Spring-Winter. Frozen World Tree)

The ocean beneath him turned pure bright blue and from it erupted upward a thick tree of ice, shot through with massive veins of pulsating rock that glowed green with power. Branches grew in the thousands from this tree of rock and ice, blossoming with flowers forged of pure wind that created, as a whole, one gargantuan barrier around Scorpan. This fused elemental barrier of ice, earth, and wind stood firm as Glory unleashed her attack, a focused beam of light that, while only appearing to be as wide as a person, carried within it the penetrative power to likely pierce through even the highest level of defense Kido.

Fortunately for Scorpan he wasn’t using Kido, but the strongest defensive maneuver his Bankai allowed. The element of Winter froze the power of the light, while the earthen power of Spring reinforced and hardened the whole barrier, and finally the power of change in Autumn's winds deflected and altered the course of much of the light. The beam diffused into thousands of smaller light beams which arced across the ocean, although to the credit of Glory’s power, even then a portion of the beam still penetrated into the tree of ice and earth itself to the point that it started to crack and fall apart by the time the beam dissipated fully. This left Scorpan briefly breathless, but he had no time to catch said breath for he sensed Glory high above him now.

She was amid the clouds of storm that had gathered above their conflict, and Scorpan felt her start to gather particles of light around her, likely in preparation for another beam.

He didn’t give her the time to do this, creating a giant water funnel with the force of his movement as he blasted straight up towards her. Making use of the ocean water, he froze it as he went, and then filled it with elemental flame, creating more blazing ice that he shaped into a series of roaring dragon heads that he sent flying at Glory. He saw these dozen or so streams of dragon-shaped, burning ice storms slam into Glory, or rather Glory’s position. He noticed at the last second that her image flickered out, and knew immediately that she’d done her own version of his rock clone trick, only by using light to generate an image of herself infused with enough reiatsu to feel real.

Pain burned his side as he Flash Stepped sideways, Glory’s sword having almost pierced him from behind, but instead scoring a bleeding wound across his hip as he twisted to face her. He used the momentum of his turn to deliver a backhand blow with his right fist, an explosion of ice and jagged rock shooting off of it. She blocked with her left hand, catching his fist with her palm, while drawing back her sword to thrust at his face. Light sunk into her blade, extending it faster and thicker than before as he caught it with his left, thick jets of flame and arching lighting clashing with the light of her blade.

For a second the two were stalemated, space wavering around the and energy billowing out in a mass that broke apart the clouds and briefly cleared the sky to pure blue above them.

Then, slowly, the strength of Scorpan’s Bankai started to win out, pushing Glory’s blade back. Even as the light pierced into his fist and caused it to bleed molten blood that seemed in the air, her sword was pushed back. Further, his other fist started to coat her blocking hand in ice and crush it with earth, and Scorpan even heard the faint snap of a finger bone inside his old mentor’s hand. It was a testament to her own discipline that she didn’t cry out. Her face never lost focus.

Scorpan pushed off of her, and then coiled as much raw wind power as he could into his feet, along with a burst of elemental flame as powerful as he could generate. He flipped in an arching kick that created a wide, circular blast of wind and fire so large and potent that even a couple hundred meters below the arc still sliced through the ocean. Glory raised a light screen in front of her, but it was broken and she was knocked upwards, just as Scorpan had intended.

He didn’t want to risk doing irreparable damage to the Spirit Realm by allowing his next attack to go anywhere but straight up.

For as much as he was proud of himself that he was overpowering Glory, he knew this was only because, in her own pride, she had refused to thus far call out her own Zanpaktou’s name.

Fine, if she wished to be so proud, he would not balk at taking advantage of the fact.

Scorpan knew he could draw this battle out further. He could try to play things safer. Try to wear her down more, try to rack up a few more injuries, or seek more openings. Right now he held the edge. But the longer he let this drag out the more likely Glory would realize the need to bring out her Zanpaktou’s full power, or the more likely the Heart of the Soul Queen would start to come into play. Also, he knew his Captains would be sensing this battle, and the longer it went the more likely some of them would choose to come to help him, and hence risk their own deaths interfering in the fight.

No, he’d rather risk ending this now than let this go on for much longer. This was the best opening he was going to get, while Glory was still off balance.

While she was still being knocked upward by his flip kick, Scorpan was already preparing himself for his next, and strongest, attack. The four magatama on his chest filled with the luminous light of their elements, and around him a representation of those four tear-drop shaped crystals appeared, formed from pure energy each of their corresponding colors. These four energy magatama began to spin around him, faster and faster, their colors blending until they were one pure circular arc of mingled light. Meanwhile Scorpan’s muscles flexed and bulged, veins pulsating across his body as his blood boiled and his reiatsu peaked. If the ocean and earth had been shaking before, they practically heaved now as his whole body began to become alight with the same multi-hued pattern of energy as the circle blazing around him.

His eyes locked upon Glory, who was just now halting herself from his earlier blow. She saw him, and he spotted the look of surprise there, as if she hadn’t really imagined he was capable of this much. It was a comforting thing to see, for Scorpan knew that regardless of how this battle turned out, if Glory’s truest weakness was her inability to see other’s clearly for their potential, then even if he lost here, Scorpan knew there were those who would come after him that would finish the job.

With speed surpassing light, he shot upwards, right past a cavalcade of light barriers that Glory tried to create in his path. The circle of elemental energies that buzzed around him contracted as he shot his two fists forward, left held above the right, and impacted cleanly with Glory’s abdomen. The circle of elemental might contracted right upon his fists and linked them, just as his voice shattered the sky.

“Yoso Yugo: Fuyu-Natsu-Haru-Aki. Tenha Ken!” (Elemental Fusion: Winter-Summer-Spring-Autumn. Heaven Breaking Fist!)

Many things happened at the same moment in time. A pillar connected the sky and earth, one that was a perfect cylinder of purest white ice the width of an island, yet at the same time burned within with a flame so intense and bright it was like staring into the sun. Even within that flame, the coursing storm of unimaginable lighting and wind tore and ripped, merged with the flame and ice as thoroughly as the thick, spearing rods of earth that crashed through it all with the force of an entire mountain range dropping. And all of this was accompanied by the singular impact force of two fists striking like a storm of nuclear detonations, sending the entire pillar-like mass of fused elemental destruction flying skyward like one singular wave.

And carried upon that wave of purest power was Glory, thrust higher and higher in the crushing tempest of elements.

----------

The tone of the conversation between the Captains of the Gotei 13 had been dire. Hurricane was all but shouting at the top of his lungs, hand clasped so hard on his Zanpaktou it nearly bled.

“We should be going right now, not arguing over orders!” he was roaring, while Thunderhooves was nearly in his face, the massive and burly man not quite managing to impose upon Hurricane’s own presence.

“The Captain Commander made his instructions clear that regardless of what happens we were not to interfere with his meeting.”

“I’m not sure how much that applies, considering whatever battle he fights now might have nothing to do with that,” Luna pointed out, her own eyes barley hiding the concern that swam underneath as she gave her sister a sidelong look. Celestia had been very quiet during the argument, eyes focused on the distant east, face a white mask that betrayed no thoughts to those who didn’t know her well. Luna could feel the tension wracking Celestia, however, and knew it was taking much of her sister’s willpower to not have already rushed off to try and go to Scorpan’s aid.

“Orders are a moot point in my opinion,” stated Captain Starswirl, looking at Hurricane and Thunderhooves with the air of a man irritated with a pair of unruly students, “It should be fairly apparent to anyone here that the reiatsu of the Captain Commander’s opponent outstrips that of anyone here by a notable margin. Yet it is clearly the reiatsu of a Soul Reaper, yes? What logical conclusion can we come to from this fact? A Soul Reaper who’s power equals or eclipses that of the Captain Commander can only belong to a select few.”

“You’re saying it's one of them. One of Zero Division,” said Zecora, her face cast in a dire light at the implication. Starswirl shrugged.

“It seems near certain, does it not? And judging from our esteemed leader making use of his Bankai, it is no mere friendly sparring match.”

“All the more reason for us to go!” Hurricane said, eyes flashing with barely restrained anger. “Now!”

“Ease up there, all of you,” said Cheese Sandwich, standing near to Celestia and like her, looking to the east, “The Old Man wouldn’t want us out there right now. Although... it may not matter anymore.”

“What the hell does that mea-” Hurricane began to ask, but just then they all felt it, while at the same time seeing it. The incredible burst of Scorpan’s reiatsu washed over all of Seireitei, and to the distant east, a blinding pillar of elemental energies that must have been truly monumental to have been seen from thousands of miles away went flying up into the sky, splitting it like a knife.

Daring Do visibly sweated and said, “So, was that the Old Man’s trump card just now...? Because that much reiatsu put into one attack...”

“It would create a horrible strain, even on him,” Celestia finally spoke, voice filled with a wealth of admiration and fear for her teacher, friend, and commander. The light of Scorpan’s attack reflected in her eyes as she looked up into the heavens, whispering a prayer for his safety in her heart as she took hold of her emotions and then turned to her fellow Captains, “I know it is selfish of me to ask this, but Soul Society must remain guarded, and all of us going would be a mistake. So please I ask you all that you allow me to go. If the Captain Commander is victorious, I will be able to help him get home. If he is...” she paused, taking a steadying breath, “If he is not, then I can ascertain the nature of the enemy that defeated him and get back here swiftly to report on the situation. No more than one Captain should be risked on this venture, and I believe I have the best chance of succeeding.”

Hurricane looked ready to argue, but he held his tongue, and instead grunted, “Your logic is hard to dispute. Damn you. Bring him back, if you can, or I won’t forgive you easily, Celestia.”

“Sure you don’t want me or your sis going with?” asked Daring Do, “We’re both better at stealth.”

“Yes,” Celestia admitted, glancing at Luna, “But if it turns out Scorpan lives and needs healing, I’m better at those techniques. Zecora still lacks her Zanpaktou, otherwise I’d have suggested her. No offense intended, Captain Zecora.”

“I take none,” Zecora replied with a sage nod, “You are right. I can still heal, but my fighting ability is much reduced now. You are best suited to this dire circumstance. Go with my hopes that you find our Captain Commander alive and well, and his foe defeated.”

With that there was no further debate, and the area in front of the Gotei 13’s headquarters went deathly silent for a moment. Celestia felt Luna touch her hand, squeezing it for a moment of support as Luna whispered, “Be careful, sister.”

Celestia squeezed Luna’s hand back, “I will.”

She didn’t spend another moment on words or hesitations, instead leaping away form the courtyard and moving with all swiftness on a course that would take her out of the Seireitei and eastward. Although she already sensed that, no matter how fast she moved, things would be long over by the time she got there.

----------

As it happened, a Soul Reaper’s ability to seemingly fly about the air, be it on Earth or the Spirit Realm, was due to reishi particles. However even the spirit world’s reishi started to thin out the further one got from the earth. While this realm did not have “outer space” as those on Earth might understand it, there was a void of emptiness that hung over the Spirit Realm and had a few minor celestial objects in it, like the sun and moon that mirrored that of Earth’s in most respects.

And once one was sufficiently out of the atmosphere, there was no more spirit particles to “stand” on for spirit beings. Nor technically air to breathe, although there was still some small amount of air particles that dusted the higher stratosphere. Spirit beings didn’t really need to breathe as much as human bodies did, although they did still breathe in the reishi enriched air to keep their bodies maintained. It just wasn’t as critical, especially for extremely powerful entities.

This being the case Glory didn’t really mind the lack of air, it was just the inability to stand on anything that was an issue, causing her to notice upon regaining consciousness that she was falling and unable to halt her fall because there were no spirit particles to grasp onto.

She was wracked with pain, her left side which had taken the brunt of Scorpan’s blow showing the most damage, from the ripped clothing to the bloodied and blackened arm and shoulder that dripped crimson droplets into the black air of the void. Without needing to check she knew that arm was now useless, its bones and muscles shattered beyond function. She saw the vast, slightly curved plane of the Spirit Realm below her that she was falling towards, and realized that Scorpan’s attack must have driven her all the way up hundreds of miles until she was nearly in the void itself.

Ice coated her, which cracked as she moved and reoriented her body to face down. Every inch of her still groaned in agony. While her left arm and shoulder were in the worst condition, she knew she had broken ribs, some internal bleeding, and no shortage of scorched or bruised, bleeding skin. None of it was fatal, not for one like her, and not with the Heart still beating in her chest, but this was the most injured she had been since the early days of the war among the Soul Queen’s children. She wasn’t sure even Tirek, on his best day back then, had managed to do this much to her. Each motion was far more painful than she expected, and for a moment of freefall she just sat still in introspection.

Okay, she was adult enough to admit when she’d underestimated someone. Scorpan had utterly surpassed her expectations and then some. It was honestly rather embarrassing. The leader of the Zero Division ought to be able to make a better account of herself against someone technically ranked below her. Of course it was her own fault and she understood that, rankling as it was. She’d failed to treat Scorpan with the respect he deserved as an opponent, and her roughed up state was a direct result of her allowing her memory of him as her young pupil to cloud her vision.

As much as she seethed with rancor over the fact, she had to admit she was... proud, in a way. Her student had truly grown into someone able to match her. It had been inappropriate to goad him into going all out without doing the courtesy of responding in kind.

She sensed Scorpan then, and realized that the strength of his final attack had, in a way, worked against him. He’d knocked her so high into orbit that he hadn’t been able to follow her and finish her off. No reishi particles was as much a problem for him as it was for her, and so Scorpan had flown as high as he could, standing on the thinnest possible reishi that would still support his weight. This still happened to be very high up, so high that it still kissed the edge of the void. She saw him standing there, on the backdrop of blue that was the world below. He stood with elemental arms crossed, eyes hard, and still clearly eager to fight... but she saw the way he was breathing hard, and noticed his reiatsu was reduced greatly from what it was.

That final attack had drained him significantly. Understandably so. No foe lesser than one of Scorpan’s own caliber could have survived such an attack, and even for one like her it had left her left arm mauled and her body damaged to the point that if she kept fighting as she was, she may well still lose.

But she had no intention of fighting as she had been any longer. Scorpan deserved better from her.

And so she angled her descent towards him, and held her Zanpaktou aloft to her right. She saw the narrowing of his eyes. He knew what she was about to do, and knew he wasn’t in a position to stop her. With a deep and calming breath, Glory spoke in clear, ringing words.

“Take hold of all around you and coat it in your devotion; Yuruginai Ishi no Hoyo.” (Embrace of Unbroken Will)

Episode 180: Hell's Chains

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Episode 180: Hell’s Chains

Sunset had rarely attributed emotional characteristics to inanimate objects, but to her eyes the tall doors of stone that spanned upwards a solid thirty feet bore a remorseless, pitiless quality. The twin skeletal bodies that were merged with those doors had no eyes, yet she felt their gaze like black spears, piercing and cold. Each skeleton was run through by gold, twisted nails with rings caped upon their ends, and their skeletal faces were wrapped in white cloth marked by red talisman strips. The symbolism was lost on Sunset, if there even was any behind the design of the Gates of Hell, and she hardly had time to ponder, for with a groan like the bellow of a long slumbering giant now awakening, the Gates had swung open.

Beyond, darkness, and flame. A pit without seeming end, yet Sunset felt she could sense the shift of something immense beyond. Power, akin to reiatsu, yet scalding to the senses. Spiritual energy turned into something altogether more writhing and violent.

She didn’t hesitate. She got between Rarity and those Gates while shouting back at her friend, “What are you waiting for!? RUN!”

Rarity had been staring into the depths of the Gates for that brief moment like the proverbial deer caught in the headlights, but Sunset’s voice snapped her out of it and in an instant Rarity had summoned forth her crystalline construct in the shape of a pegasus. She was atop it and the construct spread its wings to bear its creator to safety with all speed, but the moment it began to do so Rarity was yanked off of it with a yelp.

Sunset, blinking in astonishment, heard a clink of metal rattle through the air. To her shock, and Rarity’s horror, several dozen spectral chains of black iron now wrapped around Rarity’s arms, legs, and torso, as if they had always been there. The chains glinted, partially translucent and partially solid, and all led into the depths of the Gates of Hell.

Nearby, Bowtie spoke in cold words, “The moment she was judged, the chains were upon your friend. There is no escape from Hell’s grasp.”

He turned, looking to Blossom, “I go to aid Minty. See that our egress is ready.”

“Yeah yeah, don’t need to get all bossy about it,” Blossom said with a wave at his brother before Bowtie vanished with a Flash Step. Sunset might have thought to give chase if she didn’t have immensely bigger issues right now. Again, without hesitation she acted, Hokori burning brightly in her hand as she swung as hard as she could with her Zanpaktou upon the chains binding Rarity.

With a burst of sparks and a dull ring of unbroken steel, Sunset saw her sword bounce off the chains without so much as leaving a mark on them.

“Oh dear,” Rarity said, feeling the chains tighten around her and start to pull her towards the yawning portal to Hell, “This is potentially a bit of a kerfuffle, isn’t it?”

“Rarity!”

“Hold on, sugarcube!”

“We’re coming!”

Shouts descended alongside the rest of the girls, all flying in from all sides to try and help their friend. Applejack used her left arm to grab Rarity around the waist while aiming her drill lance at the nearest chain. Rocket beams of energy shot from Applejack’s armor as she tried to yank Rarity backwards while at the same time spinning up her drill to a feverish pitch, slamming it’s blurred tip to the chains. Gold sparks flew, yet just as with Sunset’s Zanpaktou, the chains resisted Applejack’s attempt to break them.

Rainbow Dash tried to form wind around her spear, sharpening the wind currents into a sawing disc that she hurled at the chains, to equally little effect. The girl growled in frustration and shouted, “What the heck is with these chains!? Why can’t we break them?”

Pinkie Pie had formed a mass of dark, neon pink tendrils lined with massive mouths of razor teeth, and was biting the chains like a mad dog worrying at a bone, and the girl gave a confused shrug at Dash’s question, “Beats me! Mina’s teeth can usually chomp through just about anything!”

Pinkie’s face shifted slightly, her tone growing unamused as Mena said, “These things taste like ash and regret. Eugh! They burn my non-existent taste buds. Pinkie, got any gags to get us out of this?”

“Honestly Mena the situation is about as unfunny as it gets! I’ve got no joke ideas at all! I can’t rap battle a door, even if it’s a super mean door with anger issues!”

“Then we close them,” Fluttershy said. She had flown down to float above Rarity, facing the Gates. With her six arms clasped in front of her in a motion of prayer, she extended hundreds of her golden spirit arms from her halo. They shot outward in two groups, each bunching up on either side of the Gates and Fluttershy let out a grunt of strain as she struggled with all her power to close them.

However the Gates barely budged, and Rarity was being dragged closer, inch by inch.

Sunset hadn’t stopped trying to hack at the chains, but at the same time she looked to others present. Captain Amore looked stunned, but Blueblood was already in motion. His Bankai remained active, and with a gesture he moved the bright disc of glass around so that it hovered just a dozen feet above.

“I won’t abandon you, my Lady Rarity,” he declared, and with another gesture, numerous blades of glass extended down from the disc like a forest of highly sharp roots. They bent and twisted to Blueblood’s will, forming a latticework around the chains and creating a barrier between Rarity and the Gates.

“There, that ought to slow-” Blueblood started to say. However at just that moment something else emerged from the Gates. A hand, as large as any giant’s, and formed of thick gray flesh. Upon it were flaming red markings, like glowing tattoos, and further along it’s length there were segments of what looked like dark and gold lined armor plating. This hand balled into a fist and smashed right through Blueblood’s glass blades, and then opened to try and grasp at Rarity.

“Back off! Aoihi Senko!” Sunset growled, zipping in front of the oncoming hand and slashing horizontally with Hokori to unleash a focused wave of azure flame. The blue flames burned into the hand, marking it’s palm with black char and forcing it back a bit. But only a bit. Beyond the hand and the arm attached to it, Sunset could see in the depths of the Gate were two glowing yellow eyes, attached to a huge mass that looked too broad and bulky to be human. Whatever it was, it let out a deep bellow, and the hand reached for Rarity again.

It was intercepted by a twin rain of arrows. From above came a pelting swath of blue reishi arrows, each of which were rimmed with purple flickers of magic. Twilight Sparkle had manifested her bow, alongside a new gauntlet upon her left arm that Sunset didn’t recognize. It was similar to Twilight’s previous Hexenfaust, but the armor segments were smoother, with geometric lines of blue etched across their surface that glowed with power. The metal was still a dark purple, and towards the shoulder there were three metallic notes that looked like miniature pyramids aligned in a rough circle. One of these sparked with blue arcs of energy and in a pop of light a tiny cylinder of metal appeared that itself glowed with a core of flickering purple. Twilight used simple magical telekinesis to guide the upgrade M-Cell from the storage space it had been teleported out of and loaded it into her Hexenfaust Mk.II, preparing to charge up a more potent attack than the Licht Regen she’d just fired upon the hand stemming from the Gates.

At the same moment, the other arrow barrage came from Rarity’s knights, all of whom surrounded the Gates with precision efficiency. Cannons were brought to bear and in moments were unleashing crimson fury upon the hand and whatever dwelled beyond. Crystal arrows and exploding cannon shot smashed into the Gates, and several dozen crimson knight constructs rushed in and formed a barricade in front of the grasping hand, hacking at it with their numerous weapons.

The hand responded by backing up, but only so much as it gave it space to open it’s palm upward. Suddenly deep orange hellfire coalesced in the air above the hand, and then spread out to take solid shape, summoning forth a gigantic and bitterly sharp cleaver that fell right into the waiting hand’s grip. With shocking strength the hand swung that cleaver, which burst with more hellfire, and scattered a swath of Rarity’s knights like kicking toys aside.

“Applejack, Rainbow Dash, we can’t cut the chains!” shouted Sunset, “Help Fluttershy close the Gates instead! Twilight, Pinkie, Amore, Blueblood, help me drive the hand back!”

She had a thought that perhaps her black flames might cut the chains, but there were so many that she wasn’t sure she could hold onto it long enough to get them all. But she could potentially drive the hand back into the Gates, with some help, and then if the rest of her friends could just get those doors shut...

Nobody questioned her orders, even the two Captains whom she technically didn’t command. They just went to work. Applejack had been holding Rarity back, keeping the chains from dragging her more than a few more inches closer, but now that job got taken over by a group of Rarity’s knights, while Rarity herself had summoned forth her whirlpool of blood and used it now to create a series of ruby crystal chains of her own that she used to stretch out to the ground below where she anchored herself and started to yank back.

“Ugh, this is most uncomfortable,” Rarity said, grunting in pain as her body became the central focus of a tug-o-war between her friends and the literal pull of Hell itself.

“Just don’t lose hope, we’ll git ya outta here! I swear it!” Applejack said with vehement intensity, flying in a flash of gold light to get on one of the Gates, while Rainbow Dash burst into lightning and instantly formed on the other. “Get pushin’, Dash! Rarity’s dependin’ on us!”

“Don’t need to tell me twice! Hrrrrggg!” Rainbow Dash’s wings burned with a wash of rainbow colored power as each wing shot forth wind, lightning, and cascades of raw power as she pushed with her shoulder upon the door of stone, aided by many of Fluttershy’s spectral arms.

The same scene was playing out with Applejack, every jet nozzle on her armor open and firing streams of gold light as she pushed with her lance point first upon her side of the Gates, yelling for all she was worth as she strained with all of her might to close them.

The very air was crackling and shaking from the waves of spiritual energies pouring out of the girls struggling to save their friend. The hand was certainly not finding it easy to advance, for it now had to contend with a storm of blows from multiple sources. Pinkie Pie was now playing literal whack-a-mole with her hammer, trying to smash the hand’s fingers to get it to drop it’s blade, “They say when all you’ve got is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail! Well you’ve got five nails on this hand, buster, so you better believe Pinkie is gonna smash!”

Her power did seem to have some effect, for a solid blow on the hand’s thumb made it loosen it’s grip as the thumb started to throb with a cartoonish red glow.

Amore, lacking a Zanpaktou, hung back from the fray. She clasped her own hands in front of her and began a Kido incantation.

“Walls of iron and sand,

a priestly pagoda,

glowing ironclad fireflies,

Standing upright, silent to the end”

Five strands of orange energy rise from her hands and moved upward like small beads of light until they became five circular orbs above her head. She then thrust her hands down and intoned, “Bakudo Number Seventy Five: Gochutekkan.” (Five-Pillared Iron Weights)

A circular blaze of orange energy appeared above the hand from Hell, and from that circle descended five pillars of bright iron metal, attached to one another by thick chains. The pillars slammed into the hand’s arm at the wrist, pressing in with force and seeking to slow it’s movements. Amore gasped, sweat beading her brow, her chest aching.

It had not truly been that long ago that she’d suffered the near fatal wound from Chrysalis’ blade that had all but destroyed her Soul Sleep. Amore may have recovered a decent portion of her power due to Starswirl’s treatments, but to expend too much reiatsu still caused her great pain. And even invoking the Kido’s full incantation, she couldn’t put too much power into her Kido. She wished she had her Zanpaktou fully restored, but that was taking even longer than fixing the damage to her Soul Sleep. All Amore could do was this small amount, and hope these human girls could do the rest.

Well, that and Blueblood, who despite a growing fear on his face was not backing down, and was keeping close to Rarity like a protective hawk. “Blasted hand! Begone with your wretched digits!”

With greater and greater speed the blades of thick glass extended down in a tempest of stabs from on high, the disc spinning about as it created an increasing tempo of attacks. Each blade of glass was around three feet thick, but was nearly invisible to the naked eye. It was only their number and the speed with which they struck that made many of them visible at all, and from the way they curved and bent as they moved, it was apparent Blueblood could direct these blades however he wished, much like their much smaller Shikai counterparts. Each strike of the glass edges cut shallow wounds upon the Kushanada’s arm and hand, but the hide was so insanely tough that even direct stabs couldn’t get more than an inch deep, although Blueblood quickly adjusted his tactic to start focusing on the same few spots to try and dig his blades deeper. The Kushanada in turn was demolishing his blades one after another with air rending swings of its cleaver, but the large disc that formed the Bankai’s main body seemed quite capable of producing more to replace the broken ones.

“It’s... a lovely Bankai,” Rarity said past clenched teeth as she struggled against the increasing pain of having her soul pulled at like a piece of taffy. “Rather glad I stopped you from ever using it on me.”

“Hah, knowing you, I still would have lost, even if I had...” Blueblood replied, then winched as he saw the hand rear up and give a might backswing that pulverized a dozen more of his glass blades, “Damn it all, what is this thing?”

“A Kushanada,” Amore said, “Did you never pay attention to your Academy lessons, Blueblood? These are Hell’s own guardians and jail keepers. Even we Captains know little about them besides their name and function.”

“I don’t suppose you know if they’ve got any weaknesses!?” asked Sunset in between flaring in and out of arcing slashes upon the Kushanada’s arm. Each strike was faster and more driven than the last, Sunset’s wings firing jets of such intense heat that she had to be careful not to burn Rarity, who was in such close proximity. She was taking advantage of the Kushanada’s wild swings to block with Hikari, using each massive impact upon her shield to add fuel to Hokori’s flames. By now she was starting to see wounds piling up on the Kushanada’s hand. It didn’t bleed anything like conventional blood, but rather a thick, molten liquid that seared hotter than magma. This made it a tad difficult to keep up the attack, because she had to keep dodging those bubbling droplets of blood, as did Pinkie Pie, who’s pink tendrils covered in fanged mouths started to burn away the deeper they managed to bite.

As to Sunset’s question, Amore wore a strained look of apology, her deep red hair plastered by sweat to her face from the growing heat of both Sunset’s flames and the Kushanada’s blood. “Not really, no. They’re immortal, relentless, and the physical equal of at least some of us Captains. They don’t have any special powers or unique abilities, if that’s any consolation? Just lots of brute force and their weapons.”

As if to give proof to her words, Sunset saw some of the wounds on the flailing arm and hand start to heal up, and she growled, “Oh for the love of-! Twilight, can you teleport Rarity clear of all this?”

At her question, Twilight had already been busy gathering a huge amount of arcane energy, which swirled in heavy droplets of purple light around the tip of a reishi arrow drawn taut within her bow. The M-Cell within her Hexenfaust pumped more power through the bow, and Twilight opened fire. The resulting arrow flashed down in a streak of violet light, and impacted hard upon the arm, right next to where Amore’s Kido summoned pillars were embedded. From the arrow spread multiple, layered arcane circles that wrapped around the entire arm and hand of the Kushanada, extending fields of paralyzing magical force, and momentarily halting the arm’s movements.

“Ah, the triple-layering on the binding agents worked wonders,” Twilight commented to herself, “And looks like the M-Cells added the extra stabilizing effect needed to keep all of the spells going for a longer duration. Great! Oh! Um, right, teleporting! I’ll try.”

There was a horrific, reverberating bellow from within the gate. The Kushanada’s arms flexed, muscles bulging as it strained against Twilight’s spell circles and Amore’s binding Kido. Sunset saw the misshapen shadow of its main body draw closer as another hand reached the edge of the Gates and slammed its fingers across the threshold. A blunt, ugly and jawless skull with a swept back, inhuman cranium. Nothing but two merciless yellow pits of light burned within the skull’s eye sockets, and somehow without any apparent mouth the Kushanada let out another furious bellow.

“Oh... oh my,” Fluttershy said, breathless, and redoubled her efforts to help Applejack and Rainbow Dash close the Gates, but the Kushanada’s bulk was making that difficult, and things were getting worse, for all of them could now see the shadowed hulks of two more Kushanada approaching from the depths of Hell beyond. Fluttershy took a deep breath and her eyes flared into solid blue pools of light. From her halo bands of gold light flickered down and wrapped around her physical arms. She then thrust those forwards, generating six spectral palm strikes that landed right atop the Kushanada’s skull.

“Begone and leave us in peace!” Fluttershy commanded, and for an instant or two the Kushanada reeled back. Sunset took advantage of that moment of weakness and went right for it’s face, gripping Hokori tightly as she drew upon her black flames. This was probably the best shot to knock this bastard right on his ass.

“Kuroihi Moegara!” (Blackfire Cinders)

Her right hand sent shivers of pain up her arm as the thick rivers of obsidian fire ran up her Zanpaktou’s hilt and covered her orange flames in purest darkness and consuming heat beyond any conventional concept of fire. With one heavy, vertical strike she cut a line of melting darkness across the Kushanada’s face, and saw the skull partially split. It howled and fell backwards, drawing back its hand and crashing into its two shadowed fellows coming up behind it.

Still holding the black flames and ignoring the pain in her hand, Sunset shouted to her friends, “Get the Gates closed. Twilight, get Rarity out of here!”

As an experiment, she tried slicing into the chains still attached to Rarity with her black flames. It was harder than she would have liked, but she at least saw her blade manage to sever two or three of them. But there were dozens of chains holding Rarity, and Sunset’s hand might turn to ash by the time she could cut through them all. Well, if that’s what it took, so be it! She started to slice more chains, while Twilight flew down to Rarity’s side.

“Grab hold of me,” Twilight said, placing one hand on Rarity’s shoulder. Rarity gulped and obliged as best she could, the chains making any movement difficult. Grasping Twilight’s hand, Rarity nodded to her friend, while Twilight closed her eyes and focused her mind upon the teleportation spell.

Purple light flared, and in a poof, both she and Rarity vanished.

However, Sunset saw the chains attached to Rarity didn’t go slack. Instead they moved, staying as taut as ever, while being yanked downward as if Rarity had been taken down into the ground. Which was probably the case as Sunset recalled Twilight mentioning something about portals down there. But did that mean the chains of Hell just stayed attached to Rarity even when teleported elsewhere?

Then there was this incredible groaning sound, like a breaking mountain, and Sunset turned to see to her chilling spine that the Gates of Hell themselves were moving, flying downward at high speed. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were thrown off, although both swiftly recovered and started to fly after them. With little choice, Sunset, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy followed suit, trying to keep up with the now very mobile Gates of Hell that seemed quite determined to chase their friend down.

----------

Chaos reigned between Discord and Medley. With every swing of Discord’s Zanpaktou, he sent ripples of impossibility and disorder flying towards not only Medley herself, but in an ever more intense pattern in the air around her. It was getting to the point where the air was starting to shimmer with waves of prism light, and the effects of his Zanpaktou’s power was starting to rack up.

Medley saw it first in the way the air stopped filling her lungs properly, and how the reishi she flew around on stopped being quite so easy to utilize. Her vision was growing more unreliable as light no longer behaved properly, and by the time she ran into a solid block of air that no longer thought of there being a difference between “solid” and “gas” forms, she knew she’d probably been taking it too easy on Discord.

“That Zanpaktou of yours is a real nuisance,” she commented without amusement, leaping off of the “solid” air and focusing for a moment on Discord’s motions, just as the man was trying to make a bee line for all of the drama occurring with those girls and the Gate that had finally been summoned.

All it took was a slight adjustment to the “memory” of the space around Discord to place herself in front of him, no Flash Step needed. It was simply as if she’d always been there, waiting for him, and she could remember doing that, for her Zanpaktou affected her mind as much as it did the memories of those around her or the area she was in. She cut hard, aiming to sever Discord’s sword arm and rid herself of his troublesome Zanpaktou, but she had to give credit to the wily bastard, he could react far faster than most at his level could. Her cut was met with cloth, her blade tearing a decent sized hole in the arm sleeve of his billowing robes, but not quite reaching flesh.

His eyes twinkled at her, but she knew that spark hid his fear, his anxiety. Having already wounded him before, she could all but browse his memories at will, and knew he was kicking himself for not foreseeing that Glory would try to send the girl named Rarity to Hell. To Medley it was a pretty obvious conclusion, but that was because she knew Glory better than Discord. In Glory’s head, Hell was inescapable. Putting Rarity there was supposedly a final nail in the coffin of any plans to use those girls as a weapon against the Zero Plan.

Medley doubted it would go as Glory intended, but for now it was clear Discord wanted nothing more than to go save that girl. And Medley had no intention of allowing him to do so. The seemingly hardened “air” that made up her Zanpaktou’s blade was merely a byproduct of the continuous non-existent nature of it. Her sword had no “blade”, but rather an absence of self, with which she could fill in memories from her own mind or that of anyone she struck with the edge of the non-blade, which itself acted as a void cable of deflecting or cutting through most things. Once a memory was set, it could be cast out into the field the Zanpaktou projected around her, creating a physical reality in which that memory was real.

In simpler terms, while she didn’t alter a person’s direct memory, or affect relative time, she would project physical memories all around her, at will.

This meant that changing her position was as easy as placing herself wherever her own, or a victim’s, memory allowed themselves to be. And since Discord had been over every inch of his training area while constructing it, it meant Medley had the run of the place, instantly able to project either herself or a “memory” of herself to any such location. She did so without even thinking about it, creating two memories of herself in front of Discord as she closed in on him from behind. Her two memories cut swift trails towards Discord’s head, while she came in from a lower angle, cutting at his legs. He gripped his hat and flung himself into a horizontal angle, spinning with one leg kicking out to catch one of her memory’s arms to push her sword away while swiping with his Zanpaktou of chaotic rainbow colors to deflect the other memory’s sword.

However this still left the “real” Medley free to adjust her swing higher to compensate for his dodge. Blood kissed the air as Discord grunted, leaping higher with a Flash Step as he now had to favor one leg, his left one bearing a nasty cut across the calf.

“Look who’s talking,” he said, whistling as he tapped his injured leg and nodded at the two “memory” Medley’s, “You say my Zanpaktou is trouble, but I’d say yours is a fair bit worse. You’re not even trying right now, are you? Or are you worried about losing control?”

The last was said with his eyes turning to yellow, deadly slits, and Medley felt herself shiver slightly. While she couldn’t comprehend Glory’s interest in this man on any romantic level, she could at least understand why her elder sister was interested in Discord’s intellect and power. While he was far flung from the lineage of the Soul Queen, he possessed a keen mind unlike many that existed even in the days of the gods. In only a few minutes of fighting, he already seemed to grasp the nature of her Zanpaktou’s power... including its weaknesses.

“I am,” she admitted, seeing no point in denying it, seeing as how Discord clearly had things figured out, “And yes, I’m holding back. All I’m supposed to do is keep you from interfering with the Gates of Hell. That was my sole assignment.”

Discord’s eyes grew even more dangerous, as if a sinister light was coming to life within those yellow on red pits. “Glory fears my girls that much, does she? She’d go this far, just to get rid of even one of them? Consign them to that wretched place, just like that poor boy from the Star Family?”

The aura of his Zanpaktou flowed from the hilt of the sword and into his body, wreathing him in it’s scintillating glow of dancing colors as his eyes were shadowed by his hat, “I don’t appreciate the way in which every attempt I’ve made to do well by those girls has only gotten them deeper in trouble. My quest for change irrevocably damaged their mother’s lives, and now theirs, too. I accept my own soul deserves some level of damnation for the trouble I’ve caused, but I will not let others suffer that fate in my place, Medley.”

She couldn’t help but wear a sardonic, sighing smile at that, “Little late to be lamenting, isn’t it? You chose to give them power. No point complaining about the consequences of that now.”

“Perhaps not, but I can still do what I can to balance the scales in their favor.”

He unleashed a spreading wave of prism light, but not at Medley herself, or any of her memories. Instead he sent it out around him in a spreading bubble of oily colors that filled a wide space around both him and Medley. She frowned at the display, and the way in which the air started to flicker with lines of what looked like infected patches of static, as if a computer screen was cracked and glitching. Medley knew she had to get more serious, now, before Discord filled the space with so much of that rule unbinding power of his that she couldn’t project memories without risking serious issues with her own mind.

It was really her Zanpaktou’s one real drawback. The memories she projected weren’t fake in any way. What happened to them became very real memories in her own mind. If too many of them were adversely affected simultaneously, it’d start to become a problem. This went double for the space around her, which was in effect one giant memory field.

Discord's power, if he sent out enough of it to disrupt everything around him, would unbalance her own Zanpaktou. Had their reiatsu levels been more equal, she’d probably have already lost. The fact that Medley’s raw spiritual pressure was much higher was what was keeping the balance tipped squarely in her favor, despite the problematic nature of Discord’s abilities. Of course neither of them were going all out, yet. He had not activated his Bankai, nor had she invoked the name of her own Zanpaktou. She knew Discord wouldn’t use his Bankai while those he cared for were nearby, due to its nature, and she wasn’t going to call upon her Zanpaktou because doing so would shatter the already weak wards around the shop and have dire consequences to the city.

Granted, she didn’t necessarily care about the city that much, but the less reason she gave Glory to complain about later, the better.

Regardless, it meant she and Discord were stuck in this awkwardly intense slap fight where they were still very much trying to take each other down, but couldn’t afford to throw any genuine haymakers.

But cleverness and precision could often beat out raw power, and both of them were experts at it. It was a question of who could outmaneuver who first.

Discord’s move, throwing out a large wave of his Zanpaktou’s sickly, eye twisting color patterns may have disrupted the space around him, but it also put Medley out of his view for a moment. She used this to relocate, so that when the prismatic energies dissipated for a moment, Discord saw nothing where she’d just been. Wily as he was, Discord didn’t stand still, even if he couldn’t spot where his foe had gone. He saw the struggle with the Gates of Hell happening some distance away, easily recognizing the ominous stone doors. He knew he had to get there, and reached into his robes to grab something while he shot forward with a Flash Step, trying to get clear of Medley’s range.

His sharp eyes caught the barest hint of movement to his left, and he cut to the right to dodge as something shot by. A red Kido beam? It was the same ruby shaft of light that his own personally designed Kido had created!

Suddenly he found that multiple versions of him were filling the air, over a dozen Discords, all mimicking the same motions. Some did flicker with static, Discord’s power disrupting Medley’s Zanpaktou ability, but not enough to cause all of the memory copies of him from enacting the Kido spell he’d fired at her earlier. This was in no way weaker than his own beam, for the memory that Medley created was as potent as she herself could remember it.

Discord bobbed and weaved like a high speed leaf in a storm, evading laser dot beams of light that had the power to readily punch through his defenses. The memory clones vanished when they finished their Kido invocations, but they’d succeeded in driving Discord to dodge downward, where Medley waited. Or rather a memory of Medley, from just a minute ago when she’d clashed with Ditzy.

This Medley was already enacting her own personal Shunko, the hard spherical shell of blue reiatsu, like a blazing cerulean comet, flared up at Discord from below. Discord halted and prepared to evade to the side, but then crimson light came from that very direction as another memory, this one of Ditzy herself, utilizing her specialized Shunko, rushed him from a side angle.

The pair of Shunko wielding memories impacted with Discord in a terrific burst of light and force, shredding him to pieces...

Or rather what appeared to be him. The “Discord” that was struck burst like a balloon, bits of rubbery material floating down like confetti. Nearby, the real Medley, who’d taken cover behind some loose boulders on the ground, grimaced in irritation at the sight of what had obviously been a fake Discord. Probably some special, expendable version of a gigai that mimicked Discord’s reiatsu.

But then when had he gone to stealth himself?

“The moment I surrounded myself with that wave of power from my Zanpaktou, if you were wondering.”

Medley, the moment she heard Discord talking, had thrown herself upward with a Flash Step, but Discord had anticipated the move and sent a focused beam of chaos energy in that very direction, catching her side as she tried to slip away. Medley felt her senses go wild, even as her reiatsu pushed back on his power to keep it from throwing her whole body’s equilibrium off. It was enough, however, for her to be slowed as Discord appeared, his hand tearing away a slice of air like pulling aside a curtain. It was a stealth Kido, probably enacted immediately after she’d lost sight of him earlier.

Now he stepped out and pressed the attack on her while she was off balance, his blade shifting and coiling like a slick of liquid gasoline as he flung rainbow patterns at her in a rapid, close range barrage of strikes she had no choice but to parry.

Weird gouts of prism energy sparked between her blade and his as she jumped back from his blows, Discord keeping close to her with every Flash Step she made. It’d been awhile since she’d been on the defensive, but Medley kept her cool and even as more of his chaos power seeped into her reiatsu from every clash of her sword on his, she didn’t break focus.

She was hardly out of tricks, or memories to make use of.

All it took was a spare moment to remember herself to a new location, reorienting herself some distance up and away from Discord. There, she held her Zanpaktou out in front of her and began to spin it. Flicks of distorted air fell away from her non-blade in a spreading circle. Most of the time the quick memories she created were very ephemeral and temporary, which was partly why Discord’s power made them so unstable.

But if she took some time to let shards of her actual Zanpaktou form the core of a memory, it became much stronger and able to function without direction. This dead weaken her actual Zanpaktou until the shards returned, but it was oftentimes more potent to split her power in this way, as long as the memories in question would be effective against their target.

Discord didn’t seem to have many weaknesses, but he did clearly care about certain people.

Discord, having seen Medley vanish and sensed her reappearance, had opted to get distance and aim to get closer to the site of struggle against the Gates of Hell. He sensed the girls’ growing desperation, their reiatsu surging wildly in their fight to protect Rarity from the Gates’ relentless clutches. His heart hammered, his desire to get to their side and aid them making it hard to be as detached as he knew he needed his mind to be against someone like Medley.

Fire blasted down from above, and Discord leaped to the side to avoid the melting wave as it created a molten hole in the ground where he’d just been. A blast of multiple lightning strikes then forced him to dodge the other direction, right into the path of a golden lance that nearly took his head off before he blocked the blow and was sent reeling back by the strength of it.

He then had to duck a massive pink hammer that struck the ground and turned it into a rubbery wave that destabilized the ground with its cartoon physics and bounced him upwards. This made him an easy target for the cascade of crystalline red weapons and golden, translucent palm strikes from dozens of hands that converged on him from either side. Spun rapidly, creating a tornado swirl of prismatic light, the chaotic energy within dispersing the attacks.

“Oh, now this is cruel of you, Medley...” he muttered, as he saw that now surrounding him were six all too familiar faces.

Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy stood facing him now. Memory copies, but ones with enough power to certainly at least approach what the genuine articles were capable of.

From higher up in the air, Medley huffed her chagrin, “Cruel my ass. You’re far too wily for me to do anything less, and you know it. I got to study those girls and their powers plenty during the Everfree fracas. These memories should be a decent approximation. But do let me know if I’m missing any details.”

Discord just closed his eyes and sighed, “Their spirits, for one. It’s painful looking at these humorless copies. The girls are far more lively...” His power surged, and his eyes hardened, “And I must get to them, right after I smash these poor imitations to pieces.”

But even as he said that, a part of him was deathly afraid he wouldn’t make it in time.

----------

Upon the roof of Discord’s shop, Clover bent her will towards healing Ditzy Doo. Healing Kido, or Kaido as the proper term went, lacked the formalized invocations of Hado or Bakkudo, and instead consisted of various methods in which one extended reiatsu into either a spiritual or physical body to aid, or in some cases force the process of repair. For as simplistic as it appeared from the outside, often just holding one or both hands out to an injury and coating in a glow of blue or green energy, the actual individual doing the healing had a difficult task. Too little energy and one was essentially wasting reiryuku to no effect. Too much energy and it was all too easy to do more harm than good as flesh tried to knit itself rapidly and in warped ways that could be worse than the original wound. True masters of Kaido knew how to walk the line and guide that healing process, or invented their own workarounds to make things go smoother.

Clover was skilled, but knew she was no master, and Ditzy had taken a bad hit. On the outside the bruising around her abdomen was enough to make Clover wince, but the internal damage was even worse. Whatever had hit Ditzy hadn’t just been a raw force of impact. It had somehow spun and twisted energies inside Ditzy, like hundreds of individual swirls of warped muscle and bone. Clover was gradually mending the worst of it, but it’d be a miracle if Ditzy got back up anytime soon.

“Uggn...” Ditzy’s eyes snapped open, and the woman nearly bolted upright, scaring Clover half to death and making her let out a brief yelp. “Where am- aaaugh! Oh, oh that’s a lot of broken everything.”

Ditzy laid back down, then tried to sit up again when she heard an explosion from nearby. The building next door had a wall blown out by a set of wandering, explosive bubbles, courtesy of Bubbles herself as she leaped through the rooms on the warehouse’s upper floor, chased by Screwloose and Screwball. Other parts of the building’s roof blew off, from a barrage of rockets from Screwloose’s weapon by the sound of things. Then Clover heard Screwball laughing in maniacal glee as a Cero went off and melted another section of wall.

“S-sounds like they’re having fun,” Ditzy said, past teeth clenched in pain, “Who’s the new chick?”

“Called herself Bubbles. Claimed to be an Attendant to one of the Zero Division,” Clover said.

“Wait, is that Chappy I see down there floating inside a bubble?” asked Ditzy.

“Hiiiiiiiii!” said Chappy, waving up at the rooftop from where she remained trapped, “Hope your feeling better, Ditzy!”

Ditzy grunted and coughed up some blood before waving back, “Never better. Speaking of which, got to get back down there. D...ugh... Discy needs me.”

“Oh no you don’t!” Clover said, trying and failing to hold Ditzy down as the woman forced herself to her feet, “You’re still in horrific condition! If you try to move around too much, let alone fight with internal injuries like that, you’ll die!”

“No way. I won’t croak to something like this,” Ditzy said, pulling away from Clover’s grasp and stumbling towards the hole her body had made in the roof just a minute or so earlier. She wiped blood from her chin and lurched forward like a blood coated zombie. Ditzy raised her hand above her head and started to reform her Hollow mask.

Interrupting her, however, was a set of six bright yellow beams of light that flew around her and snapped in around her waist, pinning her in place and halting her movement. Her mask failed to form and Ditzy let out a pained gasp as the binding panes of pale yellow light held her firm. She managed to look back at Clover, who approached with one finger still pointed from the Kido she’d unleashed while her other hand glowed soft green as she resumed healing Ditzy.

“Rikujokoro, without even speaking the invocation name?” Ditzy said weakly, slumping a bit as the binding Kido kept her rooted to the spot, “You’ve gotten a lot stronger, Clover.”

Clover brushed some of her green strands of hair from her sweat soaked face and offered a wane smile at Ditzy’s words, “Not as strong as I wish I was. Even now, all I can do is pray and hope they’ll be okay.”

It wasn’t as if she had to explain who ‘they’ were, and Ditzy nodded in understanding, “You do all you can. Even if I’m kinda ticked you’re stopping me from going down there, I get it. Did the younger kids get out okay?”

“Yes, they’re clear. It seems like Screwloose and Screwball can at least keep that Attendant occupied,” this said as half of the next door warehouse collapsed on itself from the continued fighting within. “I sort of suspected they were like you, but never knew for sure until they brought out those masks.”

“Heheh, ow, well Discy and I kind of encouraged them to keep it on the down low. They don’t got my level of control, and can only keep their Hollowfied state going for a couple of minutes. Huh, how long has this fight been going on, by the way?”

At Ditzy’s question, Clover looked down to see Bubbles standing atop the rubble of the next door warehouse, confronting Screwloose and Screwball as the pair flanked her from either side. Notable, their Hollow masks were starting to crack, not quite falling apart yet, but clearly reaching their limits.

“Too long, I think,” Clover replied, glancing between her own hand that was healing Ditzy, and the fight, “They might need my help down there.”

“Then go help them. I promise I won’t run off. Not that I could in my condition, with this Kido locking me up tight.” Ditzy’s words sounded sincere enough to Clover’s ears, but she still had a sneaking suspicion that the woman might try to break free of her Kido the moment Clover turned her back. Even if she did, a part of Clover almost wanted Ditzy to be able to do so, because Clover could sense how desperate things still were, down below in the training grounds. There especially was a sensation of heightened danger from the reiatsu of Clover’s friends, and an ominously familiar reiatsu that Clover recognized from the times she’d seen the Gates of Hell arrive to claim a Hollow she’d purified.

What’s happening down there? she wondered, not without a healthy dose of apprehension. But seeing this woman, Bubbles, still standing so prominently against Screwloose and Screwball, with Ditzy badly injured and Chappy still trapped... Clover knew she had no choice. She had to stay here, even if half of her heart was screaming at her to go to Sunset’s side.

With no words but just a simple nod to Ditzy, Clover leaped through the air with a Flash Step. She appeared behind Bubbles, on the opposite side of Screwloose and Screwball, and raised her left hand, palm up, in preparation to throw out more Kido. Bubbles cast an unconcerned look back at her from atop the pile of rubble she stood upon, her metal scepter spinning in lazy arcs in her right hand.

“Decided to join us? I don’t object. Lady Minty prefers parties with more guests. Still, you’re a curious Soul Reaper. You’re not wearing a Captain’s haori or a Lieutenant’s badge, so I imagine you must be Third Seat or lesser... yet your reiatsu is far too strong for that. Who are you?”

“I’m under no obligation to answer your questions,” Clover responded, and really was in no mood for this woman’s casual banter, anyway. She didn’t waste another second, and from her palm she focused her spiritual energy. The rubble around her began to rattle as it was outlined in green light, which matched the energy glowing in her outstretched palm.

“Hado Number Fifty Seven: Daichi Tenyo!” (Ground Swell Dance)

Dozens of chunks of rubble, infused with spiritual power, now levitated and flew at Bubbles with extreme speed and precision. The woman shot upwards to dodge the initial barrage, while more chunks of rubble already waited for her above, having been sent up by Clover the moment the other pieces of rubble had attacked. These ones now shot downward, save for a few that spread out around Bubbles. In response, she waved her scepter and generated a string of connected bubbles that remained attached to the scepter, like a long whip. With surprising strength, Bubbles whipped this chain of bubbles around herself in a dizzying pattern, smashing the rubble chunks that came at her. The bubbles she’d created were harder than steel, and vibrated with her spiritual energy, making them effectively giant bludgeons.

“Hah! This is a fun game! Throw more Kido at me. I don’t know why you don’t have a Zanpaktou, but these spells are neat.”

“Glad you think so,” Clover said, giving Screwloose and Screwball a meaningful look to hold back for a moment. Taking the meaning of the look, the pair both leaped back, understanding that Clover had a plan and didn’t want them striking until the moment was right. This helped them conserve energy anyway, maintaining their Hollow masks for a bit longer while preparing to make their move when Clover provided an opening.

Bubbles didn’t intend to stay still and let this happen, flipping her whip of bubbles towards Clover. As this happened, Clover saw that the color at the “tip” of the whip changed, the bubble going from blue to red. Correctly guessing that this meant trouble, she Flash Stepped back just in time to avoid the explosion as the bubble struck the ground and detonated, pelting Clover with fragments of rock in the process. Not losing sight of her target, Clover gathered spirit energy in her right hand while keeping her left palm out, chanting Kido spells rapidly.

“Bakudo Number Sixty Two: Hyapporankan.” (Hundred Steps Fence)

“Hado Number Forty Six: Gaki Rekko.” (Raging Light Fang)

Almost simultaneously did she throw out a violet glowing bar of light that split into a cluster of similar rods that filled the air and rushed Bubbles, while also pointing with her other hand and generating a circular plane of brilliant emerald light that then shot out a dozen thin but powerful green beams that cut at sharp right angles towards the Attendant.

“Useless! Useless! Useless!” Bubbles chanted, moving like a ribbon dancer as she twirled her bubble whip around, deflecting the binding Kido rods, and expertly weaving through the destructive beams of green light. “You cast those spells fast, but you’ll never hit me with- huh?”

She looked down at her chest, where a small glop of blue, spherical energy was now stuck to her chest like a bit of bubblegum. Bubbles had no idea how it had gotten there, but that was mostly because she’d been so focused on deflecting or dodging the other two Kido that she never noticed the third spell that Clover cast, this time without resorting to even an invocation. Granted it was hard to do this was powerful Kido, which this was not, but it didn’t have to be.

The sphere of blue goo expanded rapidly into a thick, rubbery sheet, with strands that extended outward to latch onto whatever objects Clover intended... which in this case was the handful of remaining rubble chunks she’d still left levitating around, and Bubbles had unwisely ignored. This was Bakudo Number Thirty Seven, Tsuriboshi (Hanging Star). Normally this Kido was just for simple things like catching falling people or objects, creating a safety net of sorts, or in emergency situations it could act as a barrier against incoming attacks. Clover, in this instance, attached the strands of the rubbery “net” to the rubble chunks, which now spun around Bubbles rapidly, wrapping the net around the woman like a cocoon. This also ended with the rubble chunks themselves slamming into and sticking fast to the cocoon, keeping it levitating in the air as Bubbles struggled inside.

“Hah! This stuff won’t hold me still for very long, you know!?” Bubbles taunted, but Clover just shrugged.

“I know. It doesn’t have to hold for long. Just long enough. Screwloose, Screwball, sic her!”

“What are we, dogs?” Screwball whined, but Screwloose just laughed and went, “Arf, arf!” while leaping into the attack with gusto. She slammed her rocket launcher right into the bound Bubbles and the weapon’s many barrels glowed red as she fired a set of point blank, Cero enhanced rockets. Multiple explosions of crimson sent Bubbles and the net she was bound in bouncing skyward like an out of control pinball, and Screwball herself flew up to meet it. Cherry red power glowed around Screwball’s bat as she held it over her head for a massive overswing that smashed with a concussion of ruby force right atop Bubbles. The woman went flying down even faster than she’d been blasted upwards, and impacted in the courtyard of Discord’s shop with the cratering force of a missile.

As dust rose from the crater, Clover jumped back to the courtyard to check to see if the woman was down for the count. She took it as an encouraging sign that the bubble holding Chappy suddenly popped harmlessly, depositing the Mod Soul neatly on the courtyard lawn.

“Whoa! I’m okay, and all my beautiful and sexy Chappy parts are intact!” Chappy declared, checking herself over. She gave Clover a thumbs up, “Good job there, Clover! You’re the best!”

“Hey, we helped too! I’d even say we kind of did most of the work,” Screwball said, landing nearby just as her Hollow mask started to crack and flake off of her face. Shouldering her spiked club, she smiled at Clover, “But I’ll admit, you really took charge there.”

“Heheh, our little Third Seat is all grown up,” Screwloose grinned, her own mask also dissipating from her features, “You’ll be gunning for that Captain seat in no time at this rate.”

Clover let out a sighing laugh, shaking her head, “Not sure I’d be interested in it, even if it was on offer, but... let’s save the banter until we know the danger is passed. Even if we just defeated this ‘Attendant’, the real danger remains below.”

“Oh you girls have no idea...”

They all grew tense as Bubbles floated up from the bottom of the crater. She was definitely badly injured from their assault. Blood coated her face, and her clothing was a tattered wreak showing bleeding injuries all over her body. Bubbles spat out blood and ran a hand through her frayed hair, licking more blood off of her lips, “Lady Minty and her divine siblings have this world’s fate, and those of every soul dwelling in it, in the palm of their hands. Resisting them is like trying to resist the warmth of the sun or the pull of gravity. You should be thanking them for their mercy in instructing me not to kill any of you, let alone dealing with you themselves. Now, I shall-”

A foot slammed into the side of Bubble’s face at marvelously insane speed, catapulting her like a professionally kicked soccer ball straight into a nearby wall. Everyone blinked at the sight of Ditzy Doo, now free of Clover’s Kido, standing on the air, having just delivered said kick.

“Geeze, tell it to someone who has time to listen to that bullcrap! Monologuing twerp!” Ditzy sternly stated, then doubled over and coughed up some blood, “Oh ow, okay, maybe should’ve held back a bit on that.”

“Nah, I think you kicked her just hard enough,” said Screwloose, while Clover rushed over to Ditzy, who was now floating down to the edge of the crater that Bubbles had left.

“Didn’t I tell you not to overdo it?” Clover admonished, quickly resuming her healing Kido on Ditzy, “Breaking out of my binding spell like that must have hurt.”

“Y-yeah, think I’ve got to...mmph...take a breather after that,” Ditzy said, but gave Discord’s shop a worried look, “But I hate having to sit here. Whatever is going on down there, it isn’t good.”

“Well we’ll worry about that when we can,” said Screwloose, heading over to the now thoroughly unconscious, at the very least, Bubbles. “In the meantime, if you didn’t outright kill this dumb twit, me and Screwball are going to tie her up and lock her in the bossman’s strongest cell. Whatever happens down below, at least we’ll have someone to interrogate after all this.”

Clover wasn’t going to comment on whether or not it was a smart idea to take one of the Zero Division’s personal servants prisoner. It might just be more trouble than it was worth. That said, they’d have to worry about that after the crisis was over, and from what she was still sensing from within the shop, things were still hanging on a knife’s edge.

----------

Chaos reigned within the training grounds underneath Discord’s shop. Sunset had no time to pay anything else any mind aside from the Gates of Hell trying to take one of her dearest friends away from her, and so she descended after them when she saw the Gates fly downward towards the location Twilight had likely teleported Rarity to.

In said location, the carved out cavern Twilight had made underground to form her escape portals, she appeared in a flash of purple light alongside Rarity. Next to the pair, Sugarcoat stood with her Quincy bow of smooth pearl drawn and aimed upwards. Sky blue light bathed the chamber from Sugarcoat, who’s body now was sporting twin wings of reishi energy, shaped like long, bent rods along the bottom of which were affixed a shifting sheet of connected hexagons. Her halo was also hexagon shaped, and from the front end of it descended a pair of spokes that then created a visor of light that layered over the magitech visor that Twilight had created for Sugarcoat.

“You’re in Vollstandig?” Twilight said in surprise upon seeing Sugarcoat. Without looking towards her or Rarity, Sugarcoat aimed up with her bow and fired several potent arrows of hardened reishi in quick succession, adjusting her aim slightly with each shot. The arrows vanished into the cavern’s ceiling without slowing down or inflicting damage on the rock, courtesy of Sugarcoat’s Schrift, the X-Ray.

“I needed the reiatsu boost to have a hope of doing any harm to my target,” Sugarcoat replied, “While you all are busy with that weird gate, Coloratura is moving to engage the guy with the saxophone. I’m providing support fire, or at least I was until you showed up.”

“Damn, I didn’t even see Coloratura engage Blossom,” Twilight said, then shook her head and grabbed Rarity, who remained heavily bound by the clinking, semi-transparent chains of Hell, “I need to get you through the portal, fast. Sugarcoat, cover us.”

“No problem.”

“W-wait, Twilight,” said Rarity, barely able to stand as the chains around her stayed tight as ever, and even seemed to be trying to pull her towards the cavern ceiling, “What about everyone else?”

“We need to get you in the clear first. I’ll come back for the others-” Twilight started to say, the flames of magical power around her eyes intensifying as her voice grew more desperate, and for a moment sounded more like Midnight, “No time to argue this! My magic might be able to close those Gates, but not while we’re stuck trying to keep you out of them at the same time.”

She started to haul Rarity towards one of the open portals, which showed a view of the back lawn of Twilight’s family manor beyond the portal’s swirling, violet edges. However Twilight barely managed to drag Rarity a single pace before the whole cavern was rocked by a horrendous tremor. Twilight saw the walls crack apart, and was able to throw up a protective shell around herself, Rarity, and Sugarcoat just before the entire area around them broke apart under a massive, crashing force.

The three girls looked about as rock and dust cleared, partially pushed away by Twilight’s magical telekinesis. The cavern was gone, and now they stood at the bottom of a deep crater made by the impact of the Gates of Hell literally dropping on top of them. No more than twenty feet away, the Gates stood amid the rock and rubble they’d just made, and now three or four Kushanada hands reached out of the Gate’s dark depths, most wielding cleavers the size of dump trucks, but one of them grabbed upon Rarity’s chains and yanked.

“Aaaaah!” Rarity shouted as she was pulled through the air, and on instinct her whirlpool of blood flowed in front of her and extended massive spikes of red crystal and locked the chains in place, at least for a moment. More ruby crystal flowed out along the chains, some of it wrapping protectively around Rarity like a flower bud, while towards the Kushanada a tumorous growth of dozens of different weapons swelled forth and slashed at the hands and arms of Hell’s guardians.

Although wounded and bleeding by the assault, they hands were relentless, smashing crystal constructs without regard for harm to themselves. Mighty cleavers crushed the crystal spikes locking the chains in place, and soon Rarity was being tugged closer to Hell’s embrace.

Sugarcoat flew back, her wings buzzing, “For the record Twilight, this is the second most screwed up thing I’ve seen since I became friends with you.”

Her bow shot out solid, air shattering arrows at the hands, while Twilight joined her with a hail of purple ignited arrows that flashed with arcane flame. Yet the Kushanada were working in tandem now, the hands wielding cleavers using those bulky weapons like shields to guard their comrade whose hand kept pulling Rarity closer to the Gates.

Rarity dug her heels, literally, into the ground, extending ruby spikes of crystal from her feet to try and ground herself. It slowed her down, but only a little.

Fortunately it was just long enough for Sunset to arrive with Rarity’s remaining friends, who fell upon the Gates with a fury.

“Get off of her!” Sunset’s growling roar was near feral with desperation and rage as she fell like a black bolt of lightning, Hokori all but pure darkness in her hand as black fire surged from it. Sunset felt the strain in her soul, and sensed that Hikari was struggling to keep her hand intact from using so much of the black flame. The shield was burning gold with light, pouring what restorative power it could into Sunset’s hand, which still burned with terrible pain. Still, the black flames around her Zanpaktou was able to sever a few more chains around Rarity, each slice getting at least one or two.

Yet for each chain severed, another and more flew out of Hell’s depths.

“Close, damn ya!” Applejack shouted, throwing her lance behind her and using it like a rocket booster alongside all of her other jets as she planted a double-booted kick upon one of the doors, causing the Gates to close slightly, but only just slightly as another Kushanada hand clamped upon the Gates, it’s giant muscles straining against Applejack’s own hellish strength.

“You’re not taking our Rarity!” Rainbow Dash stated, moving so fast that she was practically everywhere at once, a iridescent streak of lightning blue that sliced and stabbed with the force of entire stormfronts upon the Kushanada limbs. She even managed to crack and break apart one of their cleavers amid her barrage of attacks, and Rainbow Dash didn’t let up, flaring her wings wide and casting forth hundreds of forks of lightning from them to flare into the Gates and blast at the colossal forms of the Kushanada beyond.

“You’re all under arrest for harassing a lady against her will!” Pinkie Pie shouted, or rather dozens of her did as a bunch of Pinkie copies in FBI uniforms and tactical gear came busting in out various doors that hadn’t been there before, or crashing literally through the air as if it were a drywall ceiling, and like a scrambling pile of ants they started trying to throw on oversized, comically gigantic handcuffs on the Kushanada.

Unfortunately the joke was lost on the servants of Hell, and the handcuffs only slightly slowed them down as they started to cleave at both the Pinkie Pies and Rainbow Dash. To compound things, none of this stopped the chains from their unending, single minded pull upon Rarity herself, and by now it was as if the chains were getting smarter. Every time Rarity tried to conjure more crystal weapons, or summoned down some of her knights, the chains reacted like living things, moving with viperish speed to bind and crush any crystal construct that got close.

By now Rarity was nearly at the Gate’s very threshold, and a set of six golden hands wrapped around her as Fluttershy gripped Rarity close from behind. Fluttershy shoved her spiritual power into the chains themselves, trying to inject her reiatsu, and her will, into them. There was an intense struggle as her warmth and light clashed harshly against a seemingly limitless sea of relentless power that seared like hellfire itself. In that moment Fluttershy could feel it, the will of Hell.

She understood that she and her friends weren't fighting a group of separate individuals. The Gates, the chains, the Kushanada, they were all part of a collective force of will that was ingrained into the very construct of reality that was Hell. Fluttershy could barely grasp the full meaning, but she felt as if Hell was a singular entity, some insanely vast and unimaginably powerful spiritual construct bound by one mind and willpower. It was like a Zanpaktou, in a way, but on a scale so much larger it was like comparing a rowboat to the Titanic.

Fluttershy struggled to hold on, trying to test her will against that of Hell, and for a few moments she actually held out, forcing the chains to cease dragging her friend away.

But the strain was tearing her soul, and Rarity sensed it, being closest and being held but Fluttershy.

“Darling, no...” Rarity said, and as she did so she looked up, seeing her friends battling to protect her so desperately, and also seeing the pain it was causing them. Sunset’s right hand was smoking and sizzling under the burning agony of her black flames. Applejack was straining her armor to the point that it was starting to show tears and cracks as she tried to close even one of Hell’s mighty Gates. Rainbow Dash was moving so fast her Fullbring was having trouble compensating for the speed and blood was starting to leak from her nose and ears. Pinkie Pie, for all of her forced cheer, had a look of genuine fear in her eyes as she tried every lame pun under the sun to try and find some weakness in the Kushanada’s defenses. Twilight had a look of desperate calculation in her magic soaked eyes, and Rarity feared what the girl might do with such unpredictable power to try and save the day.

Worst of all, Rarity noticed how each of them were either latched on to her chains, were fighting close to them, or were literally ignoring that by now they were so far near the threshold to Hell that if her friends kept fighting like this, they might all get trapped with her, if the Gates closed upon her.

“...Let me go...” she whispered, trying to muster more strength past her fear.

“What was that Rarity? Hold on, we’ll get you free,” said Fluttershy, voice pained as her very soul struggled against the weight of Hell itself.

“Let me go!” Rarity said, trying to pitch her voice so all of them could hear, “If you keep this up, all of you will end up there with me, or worse!”

“What? Are you crazy?” Sunset said, slashing more chains, trying to deflect others that came flying out at her, “There’s no way we’re doing that!”

“Darlings, you must! Can’t you see this isn’t working!? Even if you get me away from here, the Gates will just follow!”

“But Rares, these stupid Cushy Nadas have to give up eventually!” Pinkie Pie said, turning to block one of the Kushanada’s cleaver strikes with her hammer, “They got to have, like, a time they clock off or something, right?”

“I don’t think that’s how it works,” Rarity said, shaking her head, “I’m sorry, but I don’t see any other way. I won’t watch any of you get dragged in there with me, and I won’t watch you break yourselves trying to save me.”

“Rare, hun, what’re ya doin’!?” said Applejack with a spike of fright, sensing the reiatsu rise inside Rarity, and also seeing a large contingent of her crystalline knights descend around Fluttershy.

The knight’s grabbed Fluttershy, and started to pull her away from Rarity. In response, Fluttershy’s face went very... still, like a clean drift of untouched snow as she held Rarity close and said, “You don’t have to do this, Rarity.”

“I believe I do, Fluttershy. Don’t fret. I don’t intend to play gently with Hell.”

Fluttershy nodded, but her face was now awash with fresh tears, and she let herself be pulled away by Rarity’s Knights.

“No! I won’t let you do this!” Sunset leaped upon the chains around Rarity with a renewed vigor, voice hoarse with anger laden screams as she hacked at them. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie all leaped upon the chains as well, stabbing and hammering with their weapons in a desperate final attempt to break their friend free.

“Twilight... please, look after them for me,” Rarity said, looking up at the Quincy girl, who looked aghast at the request, but Rarity knew Twilight was a smart girl and would understand. She saw it, recognized it, in the other girl. Twilight had been through the wringer as bad or worse as any of them, and understood that necessity sometimes outweighed emotion. Rarity could see Twilight make the calculation and understand the situation. She’d been trying to force the Gates shut with magic already, and had even sensed she might succeed, but she’d also realized Rarity’s point. Even if they stopped the Gates for the moment, it would be a temporary solution, for Rarity was now marked. The Gates would chase her continuously until they got ahold of her.

Still, even if there was no stopping the Gates, Twilight was not about to let Hell have it’s way entirely. With eyes flaring bright, she cast a spell that sent a streak of purple down to alight upon Rarity, embedding something she hoped would prove helpful later on.

Meanwhile Rarity looked to her remaining friends that had not given up on trying to drag her away from the Gate’s looming embrace, and she put all of her effort into speaking with clarity, love, and most of all, sincerity. “Please, all of you, this isn’t the end of things. I promise you, I’ll find a way to escape. But this world and Equestria both need you here. We’ll find each other again, my word as a lady and fashionista.”

“Rarity... no, we can’t do squat without you around,” Rainbow Dash said, “I know I’d be one hundred percent less awesome without your cool head.”

“Ya can’t let ‘em have ya, hun, ya can’t,” Applejack pleaded, eyes wet, “I don’t wanna lose no one else from my family, an’ that includes you, Rares.”

“You picked the worst time to try being a comedian,” Pinkie Pie laughed, but it was a fearful sound as a mass of dark pink tendrils struggled in vain to pull and bite at the chains wrapped around her friend, “I mean, I know a lot about bad comedy, and you giving up is as terrible as jokes get.”

“We’re going to save you, Rarity, no matter what it takes!” Sunset promised, never once ceasing to slice, her bloodied, burned hand a blur of black flame as her Zanpaktou cut chain after chain. But Rarity saw that they were now between the doors, hanging on the precipice of Hell. Around her friends the Kushanada’s arms rose, cleavers bearing down, even as Twilight and Sugarcoat’s arrows slammed into them to try and stay them for even a moment longer. Twilight’s magic remained firmly pushing upon the Gates, trying to close them, but she was faltering, now seeing that all of her friends were in a position that if the Gates did close, it’d cut them all off from any chance of escape.

Rarity could see into Hell’s depths now. Darkness and flame filled the air, but far below, perhaps miles, she saw what appeared to be some vast labyrinth of white stone walls and pillars. She also saw the Kushanada, now a dozen strong, hovering around the inner Gates. Six of them had shoved their hands through the doors to try and attack her friends, while the rest waited behind, their emotionless skull faces looking at her with soulless yellow lights in their eye sockets.

It was now or never, Rarity realized. If words wouldn’t reach her friends, save apparently for Fluttershy, then Rarity would simply have to take action herself. She hated to do it, but there simply wasn’t another path to follow that wouldn’t condemn her friends. Nothing could be more unladylike, in Rarity’s opinion.

“I’m sorry,” she said, sharing her friends’ tears as she generated a set of blunt, red crystal rods that shot out of her whirlpool and targeted each of her unsuspecting friends. Unprepared for it, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack were shoved back and knocked a good twenty paces away from the Gates. Only Sunset managed to spot the move coming in time to block the rod that came for her with her shield.

“What are you doing!? Rarity, you can’t-”

“Sunset, there’s nothing more you can do! Let me go!” Rarity shouted.

“No! I refuse!” Sunset’s eyes brimmed with tears that steamed away to vapor through the heat pouring off her body. Inside she was a screaming torrent of denial, shame, fear, rage, and desperation. Nothing mattered more to her than the girls she’d formed these precious friendships with. It’d been heart-rending enough to realize Rarity had died in these endless battles, but Sunset had taken some comfort in the understanding that Rarity, dead or alive, would still be a part of the lives they all shared together.

If Rarity disappeared behind those remorseless Gates, Sunset didn’t know if she’d ever see her again. She couldn’t even imagine the torments that might await in that horrible place, and the thought of one so dear to her having to face all of that alone was entirely too much for Sunset’s soul to bear.

She thought she could hear Hikari and Hokori’s voices in her head, shouting warning or caution, but it was also as if her Zanpaktou’s spirits were sharing her agony and wrath. The black flames only grew, and the burn inside of Sunset’s hand felt as if it was spreading up through her arm and into her chest, a scorching pain that as terrible as it was, it also pushed her fear away.

Kushanada hands reached for her and Rarity, casting them in shadow.

Sunset let out a scream that was as hellish as the realm looming before her, a noise that didn’t belong to a human’s throat. The black flame consuming Hokori’s edge surged into a dark so deep it surpassed in, like an expanse of hot nothingness, but rimmed in white so intense it was as if the sun itself was made to bleed through the sword’s edge.

“Cut through! Cut through!Cut through!”

Sunset didn’t realize she was speaking, or that she was even in motion. A line of severing dark fire that extended so large that it sliced right through the roof of the training grounds created a wide arc from one slice alone. The Kushanada hands were decimated, fingers and palms sliced neatly. Then another arc of extensive flame that bored through hundreds of meters of training ground, shattering the wards of Discord’s shop, sliced again and dozens of Hell’s chains were neatly parted. More came, and were sliced again as Sunset’s roaring shouts accompanied lines of slicing void fire.

Something near her chest pulsated. A new heat joined the burning in her chest. Unseen by her, some of the severed Hell chains turned into dark orange hellfire and flowed towards her chest, seemingly entering it. Or rather, the Hogyoku that Discord had given her.

Yet despite all of this, despite destroying any Kushanada’s limb that dared reach out from the Gates, despite slicing through masses of chains that boiled forth... all it took was a few. Just a few remaining chains, still intact, that yanked Rarity the last scant inches and into the waiting grasp of one of the Kushanda beyond.

Seeing this, Sunset’s wings turned black, the fire exploding from them now pitch as night. She tried to move forward, intent to charge into Hell itself and cut down anything that was between her and her friend, determined to raze the entirety of Hell to ash if that’s what it took.

But then the Gates slammed closed as fast as any beam of light could move, cutting off Sunset’s last view of Rarity, looking back at her with a saddened smile.

Sunset sliced as hard as she ever had with Hokori, and the pure black blade of fire cut into the Gates, gouging the seemingly impenetrable stone. The Gates remained intact, despite her assault ripping several more melted gouges into it. Then, before Sunset’s eyes, and the eyes of everyone else gathered, the Gates of Hell flowed downward into a dark haze, and vanished.

And Rarity went with them.

----------

Heat and smoke choked her, and the pressure of the Kushanada’s hand squeezing her body was unbearable. But none of the physical pain came close to the deep cutting sadness of having to have seen the last looks on her friends faces as the Gates of Hell closed them off from Rarity’s view. Applejack’s usually strong and steady face, a source of such comfort to Rarity even when they clashed over tastes, had been a tormented mess of memory, no doubt remembering losing her parents. All of the endless confidence and cockiness of Rainbow Dash had been given over to such wide eyed shock and desperation that she had barely looked like herself. Pinkie Pie’s face had been a mask twisted by dual agonies, her jester’s mask running liquid as eyes both blue and yellow streamed tears. Fluttershy’s calm, zen mask was tainted by single streaks of tears as her hands clasped in a prayer worded silently for Rarity. Twilight’s eyes had been obscured by her glasses, fogged by tears of her own, her lips bit in frantic thought, magic writhing around her like frothing water. But painful as all those were to see, Sunset had been the worst to behold, her entire right side being consumed by the black fires raging uncontrolled from her Zanpaktou, her beautiful wings of flame turned dark as tar, face contorted into a demonic visage that Rarity hadn’t seen since before ever calling Sunset friend.

What have I done to you all? she wondered, but even as she thought it, she felt the remaining chains upon her tighten in ways that were in no way physical. She knew, in her soul, that there had been no other choice to make. The chains didn’t just hold her, they were bound to her spirit. No amount of running would have broken them from her. Even Sunset’s sword of dark flame could only sever the chain’s temporarily.

She’d been hellbound the moment Bowtie had performed Konso upon her. All her friends had done was delay an inevitable result for a few minutes.

Rarity had to take comfort in the fact that she’d spared them the same fate, but what now?

As if in answer, she felt her body being hurled like a pitched stone, sent cartwheeling downward with meteoric force.

“Gah! I know this is Hell and all, but it’s quite impolite to toss a lady!” she said, dipping into her spiritual power to try and summon forth some Bringer Light. To her rather pleased surprise, her Fullbring powers seemed to be working just fine and she was able to grind against the reishi particles in the air to slow her descent. As such, she was able to land with some dignity on her feet, now standing atop what appeared to be a tall pillar of white stone.

Taking stock of her surroundings, Rarity noticed that where she stood was the beginnings of some manner of incredibly large labyrinth of walls, bridges, pillars, and stone blocks. It stretched out to either side for as far as her eyes could see, but was also filled with thick stretches of smoke that smelled of brimstone. A thick heat cloyed at her skin, and she saw flames lick across expanses of the labyrinth, like rivers of fire that were a tad to biblically apt for her tastes.

“Not quite what I was expecting,” she said to herself, then looked up as she heard a set of bellowing groans, “Oh, so you lot aren’t done with me, are you?”

The Kushanada were falling from the sky where the Gates had been. She didn’t see the Gates now, but the hulking giants were hard to miss as they slammed down amid the labyrinth around her. Now that she could see their full bodies, unobscured, she had to admit that Hell’s very own wardens certainly cut imposing figures. Each one was readily in the fifty meter range, give or take. They were ogre-like humanoid brutes with dark gray skin and grotesquely bulging muscles. Their shoulders and lower waist were covered by what appeared to be dark and gold trimmed plates of armor in a samurai’s stylings, which clashed somewhat with their inhumanly elongated, skull shaped heads. The cleavers in their hands reflected the flames of Hell like torchlights, and with further bellows, several of them started to stomp through the labyrinth towards the pillar Rarity stood on, cleavers raised high.

The hunt is on, then, is it? Well, pardon me if I don’t play the role of rabbit so well.

Moment of truth, did her powers still work in full? With a glint of red light that shot up behind her, the “gates” of her own Fullbring sprung to life and yawned open. Her army of knights waited beyond, ready to march. Rarity looked back at the contingent of constructs, and recalled that in small numbers they were no match for the Kushanada’s strength, but now that she could bring them all out in full, well...

“Boys, be darlings and entertain these rather sizable gentlemen while I get the lay of the land, would you?”

Her verbal command was hardly needed, her knights sprung into action with the readiness of total commitment. Rarity let them surge past her in a crystal red tide as she herself turned and leaped off the pillar and floated down to a bridge further below. She started running along said bridge, while her knights engaged the first few Kushanada. Arrows and blades clashed against Kushanada’s cleavers and hide, and the air was briefly filled with the roaring retorts of cannons. While no one knight had the power to inflict more than superficial wounds on the Kushanada, the combined weight of arrows, spears, blades, and exploding cannon shots was enough to stagger the first set of Hell’s giant jailors.

Rarity got a few hundred meters down the first bridge, passing offshoots and passages between other pillars as the labyrinth went on. She wasn’t sure where she was going, but getting distance from the Kushanada and finding a spot to hide and catch her breath seemed like a good idea. She was all too aware of the clink of chains around her, and the faint weight of the spectral links of iron that wrapped her hands and legs. It seemed that now that she was in Hell, the chains didn’t seek to restrict her movement at all, but their weight, while not physically heavy, felt like it went deeper into her spirit and was already pulling upon her in ways that left her feeling a sensation of... helplessness, despite her spiritual powers working without restraint.

A stone building ahead of her to her left suddenly exploded, scattering rock and dust in a wide cloud. Rarity skidded to a halt as a Kushanada’s terrifying visage bore down on her, cleaver descending with air shattering power. Undaunted, Rarity leapt to meet it, Bringer Light flowing from her feet. Her whirlpool of blood stemmed forth from the rose on her left wrist, sending a stream to her right hand that formed into a large bladed saber that she used to parry the oncoming cleaver. Sparks showered, and her arm felt the incredible strain of deflecting the giant’s blow, but she used the momentum of the parry to change course and go flying down another passage between pillars.

The Kushanada gave chase, and Rarity sensed most of her knights were still busy fighting off this ones’ comrades near the spot she’d first arrived in. Even if many of her knights were getting pulverized, they’d always respawn within her own Fullbring’s gate, which moved to follow her as she got distance from it.

Tactically, the knights had served their purpose in giving her an opening to escape, and the gate would just give away her position, so Rarity dismissed it for the moment and focused on running. She ducked and dived through several changes in direction, rushing across different bridges and overhangs, trying to keep herself out of the Kushanada’s sight.

She thought she’d just about lost it, but then a shadow fell over her and she looked up to see that the titanic brute had leaped up over the labyrinth and now was coming down towards her like a cat pouncing on a mouse.

“Of for the love of-” Rarity braced herself and started to generate a crystal dome to try and absorb the impact, but just as she started to do so a voice range out, a man’s.

“Follow us!”

Bolts of deep orange fire lanced forth from a lower bridge, the heat of them intense even by the already hot standards of Hell’s atmosphere. The flames blasted into the Kushanada, inflicting blistering wounds, and pushing it back just enough so that when it impacted the ground, it was in front of Rarity rather than on top of her. She jumped back all the same, for the bridge she was on collapsed, but in mid-air she turned to see a cloaked figure, aiming hands at the Kushanada that were still wrapped in flames.

“Who are you?” she said, but then another voice, this one of a young girl, spoke.

“Names can wait, lady. You don’t want to get squashed on your first day in Hell, do you?”

This was followed by the sound of chains, and Rarity saw another, smaller cloaked figure leap off a nearby pillar and with a laughter that was, quite frankly, a tad chilling in tone, the small figure seemed to take hold of the invisible chains of Hell that wrapped around her cloaked body and cast them out like whips she could control. As if obeying the girl’s will, the chains flew out and wrapped around the head of the Kushanada just as it was starting to rise and regain its balance. The chains then constricted, and whether by their own power, or more frightfully, the girl’s, the Kushanada was yanked head first into one of the opposite pillars and sent sprawling.

The girl landed right in front of Rarity, the chains of Hell attached to her body unwrapping from the Kushanada and returning to her as if like loyal snakes. Rarity caught a glimpse of a childish face, wearing a grin of mischief as the girl held up a finger and wagged it at her, “Taking on a whole pack of Kushanada on your first day! Hahahah! You’re going to be an interesting one, I can tell. Come on! Before the whole pack catches up with us!”

“This way!” the cloaked man shouted, waving an arm towards an opening inside one of the larger stone blocks of the labyrinth. Hearing the roars of the other Kushanada filling the air around her, and realizing there were far more of them than just a dozen, Rarity realized it was by far in her best interest to follow these two, even if she didn’t exactly trust them yet. After all, much as the Zero Division’s plans for Hell were abhorrent, it didn’t change the fact that most people down here probably didn’t arrive by being good, charitable souls.

But given circumstances, Rarity didn’t mind accepting strange bedfellows.

She kept pace with the pair of cloaked individuals as they led her into the interior of one of the stone blocks, which in turn led to a rather swift and dizzying set of twists and turns through other corridors, across bridges leading lower and lower down until there was little light to even see by. After about five or so minutes of non-stop running, the pair finally slowed, coming to a halt atop a circular area nestled between a grouping of pillars so tightly packed that only a few silvers of hellish light entered from a river of fire that flowed like liquid only a dozen paces beyond the pillars. The heat was unbearable, and Rarity was already having trouble breathing.

Taking notice, the man of the pair of strangers looked at her and said with some sympathy, “You’ll get used to it, in time. The air here saps strength, dries out your lungs and mouth. You’ll feel like your dying of thirst for a while, because there’s no water here, but our bodies are left with the craving for it. But... the pain will pass in time.”

“Pfft, don’t give her the wrong idea,” the girl said, “The pain never goes away. You just get used to it. But hey, whatever doesn’t kill ya, right!? Heheh.”

Rarity took a deep breath to steady herself, and let her Fullbring fade, her clothing returning to normal and her hair going back to purple. The girl whistled, “Oh neat, you can do an instant dye job, on top of the whole toy soldier summoning.”

“You saw that?” Rarity asked, and this time the man responded.

“We were watching when the Gates appeared. We tend to hang out on the First Layer like this, keeping an eye out for new arrivals. Helps with recruitment.”

“Pardon?” Rarity asked, and the man reached up to the hood of his dark cloak and pulled it back. She hadn’t been giving her new companions a close look, but now she did. Their clothing consisted of little more than dark brown and black rags, with feet and hands bare, and the thick cloaks that covered much of their form and faces until the hoods were removed.

The man’s age was a bit hard to tell, because it was clear Hell was not kind to its denizens, and he looked older than he probably was. Flame orange skin was very reminiscent of Sunset’s, however, and the more she looked at him, the more the resemblance was there. Darker orange hair, ragged and split around his face, which was once probably youthful but now looked wane and skeleton. Only his eyes, bright blue, remained untarnished, burning feverishly with an intense fire darker than the one’s he’d summoned against the Kushanada.

“Let’s get introductions out of the way first. Only polite, really, and I’ve tried not to let this place rob me of that much, at least. My name is Sunburst. My companion here is-”

“I can introduce myself, silly, geeze,” the girl said, and removed her own hood.

Rarity gulped. The right side of the girl's face was a mess of burnt scar tissue, from her scalp all the way down to her neck, just a gray wasteland of melted flesh with all features, even her eye, scorched away. On the left side, however, was the smiling face of a girl probably not older than twelve or thirteen, with pale pink skin and a fiercely intelligent look in her single, soft pink eye. Light blue curled hair hung in a tangled mess down the left side of her head, braided at the ends but otherwise dirty and soot smudged. The girl’s smile was shockingly bright for such a dark place, but there was a dangerous, deadly edge to it that immediately concerned Rarity as the girl held out a stained, burned right hand.

“Heya, name’s Cozy Glow, and welcome to Hell.”

Episode 181: From Ashes

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Episode 181: From Ashes

Miles of landscape crossed beneath her like river rapids. Captain Celestia neither stopped nor slowed for nothing. Every thunderous Flash Step tore away hundreds of miles to her destination, as she was unconcerned with anything other than speed. Even now she sensed the Captain Commander’s reiatsu, somewhere high above, and still all too distant. It remained strong, but she could tell it was struggling, flagging, against...

Against a sky painted white.

When Celestia looked above, she still couldn’t quite grasp what she was seeing. It was as if, stretched from horizon to horizon, the once blue skies of the spirit realm were encompassed in a stark coating of white so complete that it was as if someone had taken a continental paint brush and slathered a gleaming pearl emptiness over everything. This was no overcast sky, for there was no texture of clouds, no variation in colors to denote grays. Just unbroken, pure white that bleached out color and left everything beneath it covered in a harsh, unpleasant light that radiated a disturbing reiatsu that was so thick it was like it permeated every other spark of reishi the light touched.

Celestia had no idea whom Scorpan was fighting, but their power was sickening to behold. Her only comfort was that despite this unnatural horizon of pure white, she could still feel her mentor’s reiatsu within, struggling against it. Which meant Scorpan still lived, and was fighting. And as long as he fought, hope remained.

----------

Moments earlier...

Scorpan had some idea of what to expect. He’d witnessed this before, if not been the target. When Glory brought forth her full power, it was rare to see anyone besides his brother stand up to her, and Tirek was only able to do so because of the unnaturally monstrous levels of reiatsu the ruler of Hollowkind had to resist the effects of Glory’s Zanpaktou.

Scorpan knew he wasn’t as strong as his brother in that regard, so his ability to resist what was coming was in question. He instinctively hardened his spiritual energy around himself in a defensive posture, as everything around him turned such brilliant white that from his perspective, it was as if all the world now was just a blank, empty canvas.

Glory’s reiatsu was everywhere now, so pinpointing her real location took a moment, and was only possible because Scorpan was so intimately familiar with her spirit energy that picking out the ripple of power amid the overwhelming sensation of her energy being literally everywhere was possible. He spun and Flash Stepped back in a microsecond, right fist smashing forward. A spiral torrent of ice and flame combined together and speared out in a branching wave of red hot icicles.

Yet droplets of white, like ink from a brush, splattered upon the flames of ice and the color spread like an infection. The elemental energy of the attack became as ivory, solid and drained of all color, a dead thing of white that cracked and fell to dust a moment later.

Glory stood there, and her sword, her form, were no longer things of light. Light couldn’t encompass what was there, an energy that did not belong in the world of the physical or spiritual, but transcended it. The sword looked like a bubbling extension of frothing, churning white liquid power, vaguely containing a hilt and Glory’s hand upon it. But this seething mass of power that crossed out all existence around it crawled up her arm, her shoulders, the side of her face, and wrapped around her chest like a constantly shifting serpent. Where it touched her body, it too became a vivid white that was not so much a color, but an absence of existence. Or rather, an existence so overpowering that it whited out all it touched.

Even her voice was changed, vibrating through the air in a resonant hum.

“Saisho Ichigeki: Sengen.” (First-Stroke: Proclamation)

He saw her draw her arm back, sword perpendicular to her face, and he readied himself to evade. Her speed was such that her motions all seemed to happen at once, drawing letters on the air in instantaneous, dancing patterns of liquid white. Each motion made the world of emptiness around him ripple and churn. Scorpan threw himself wholly into dodging as every single such ripple produced a brush stroke of slathering white energy that rained upon him like a torrential downpour.

Spinning himself, kicking out with both legs in a tornado-like movement that he had once taught to Celestia, he generated a earthen cyclone of molten magma fused with crackling currents of air and veins of pure ice, all steaming together in a defensive vortex of elemental power.

”Yuso Yugo; Yuki-Haru-Natsu. Kotta Kazan Bofu!” (Elemental Fusion: Winter, Spring, Summer. Frozen Volcanic Windstorm)

Pouring as much reiatsu as he dared into the technique, the let the spinning cyclone of mixed elemental energy engulfed him. Yet he felt Glory’s power pelt into it, the rain of overriding power causing even the storm of elemental fury to start turning into dead, ivory stillness. It protected him, but in moments what was an impossible tornado of fused elements was frozen still in dead silence, drained of all color and power as it crumbled around him in chunks of white dust.

Glory was immediately in his face, the droplets of white from her blade splattering like paint as she brought it down at him in a blindingly fast stroke. Scorpan didn’t dare try to block with his bare hands, instead encasing his left fist in a hardened gauntlet of ice and earth as he tried to dodge and deflect. It was a painful, jarring feeling through his arm as mere contact with that unnatural blade of white turned the gauntlet around his fist to empty, porcelain matter.

He could sense the details of it, the way her power infested the reishi of his own elemental potency. It was as if her power simply washed his away, drained it of all its individuality and purpose, stilled all of the spiritual motion and mechanics of his own power to a single, uniform pattern.

It was only because of how powerful his reiatsu remained while in his Bankai state that her blade didn’t cut right through to the core of him and transform him instantly into such a drained, bleached white statue of nothingness.

In the span of an instant she struck him again and again, so fast and precise that it took every ounce of Scorpan’s skill to summon defensive elemental energies around his body while he dodged and deflected. There was no chance for him to turn the tables and switch to offense. All he could do was block, and each time he did he felt his power drain a little more, and Glory’s unnatural blade get a little closer.

Abruptly she backed off, taking him off guard as she appeared a short distance away and dipped her sword low to the ground, as if sinking into a pool as the blade partially appeared to vanish into nothing.

“Daini Ichigeki: Hinan.” (Second Stroke: Denouncement)

She flicked her sword arm and tore the blade upward. Everything became a titanic tidal surge of white rapids, a true tsunami of crushing liquid light that would cross out all before it. It filled all the space in front of Scorpan in its frothing madness, and there was no possible way to dodge, no matter how swift he was, for this attack filled the world for all that he could see before him.

Drawing in a deep breath, his barrel chest of muscles blooming outward with it, he planted his feet apart in a wide stance and slammed his fists together in front of him as he brought forth his reiatsu to burn deeply in his stomach, then let that power fill his lungs. His chest burned fiery orange, and at the same time frost and lightning coursed up his legs and into his chest, then mixed with the fire and flowed down his arms as his breathed out a long shout.

“Yoso Yugo: Aki-Yuki-Natsu. Mon no Shugo Shishi.” (Guardian Lions of the Gates)

From his breath a stream of lightning, flame, and frost billowed out in a thickly expanding mist that then rapidly coalesced into the forms of three gigantic creatures. Each one was a burly crossbreed of lion and canine traits, with broad heads of wild, elemental eyes and huge tusks. Their curled manes snapped with fire and lightning, while their bodies were formed of solid ice interspersed with forks of electricity, while their paws sported claws of solid flame. Immediately these three creatures, each one as tall as a tree and wide as a yacht, planted themselves defensively in front of Scorpan and howled as one.

Streams of fused elemental lightning, fire, and ice burst out of their mouths in beams that slammed into the onrushing wave of liquid light. It all froze upon the moment of contact, petrifying to drained white stone that cracked apart in a mere second. Yet the beams did created a divot in the wave, and when the wave hit the three summoned beasts, they hunkered down around Scorpan and shielded him from the onslaught.

When it passed, they were turned to ivory statues, falling apart and crumbling around him, but Scorpan himself managed to escape... almost unharmed.

Some of the unnatural lahar and splattered through and got on his left hand. He felt Glory’s power pierce into his flesh and spirit, and saw his hand turn to solid, unnatural stone, shining white. He clamped down with his own reiatsu, forestalling any further incursion up his arm, but his hand was now useless, and he could tell his elemental power could no longer flow properly through it.

“It's over.”

Glory’s statement held no joy in it. She simply began to walk towards him, her sword trailing a long river of liquid light that shimmered behind her, “Even if you struck me right now, it would not be enough. The harm you did was impressive, Scorpan. You deserve to feel pride for that. If we continue, you might hurt me a little more, but you’ve lost the ability to land a decisive blow.”

“I thought you intended to take this seriously, now. Why then talk at all? You should know a battle is not decided until one combatant or the other is no longer capable of fighting.”

His words were punctuated by him raising his right hand and creating a dense sphere of flame, surrounded by an encasement of thick stone, that then vibrated with arcs of surging blue electricity. He hurled this sphere at her in a fastball pitch that created multiple, circular shockwaves with its speed.

Glory barely made a motion with her sword, bisecting the sphere and transforming it into white stone that flew to either side of her. She blinked a bit, however, as she noticed that Scorpan had kept the flames packed so tight inside the sphere that when her power froze the object, only the outer layers of earth and lightning were turned white. The fire inside had just enough time to explode, twin detonations from each half that was on either side of her.

She was engulfed in thick explosions of bright fire, and Scorpan was already charging in, thrusting his hand out.

He grabbed Glory around the throat. She was essentially unharmed from the flames, but that had only been meant to distract her for the millisecond he needed to get close. Holding her tight, he readied himself to speak the incantation of a Kido, one that he hoped might pack enough punch at this distance to properly wound Glory further.

But he never got the words out. Glory had anticipated his move. She had been taking the fight seriously, now, and knew he’d try to do something like this. Her sword had already thrust out, a clean stroke that went right through Scorpan’s chest even as he’d grabbed hold of her. He tried to speak out the Kido, or even focus enough reiatsu to invoke it without the words, but Glory’s power was seeping through him like a virus. His body didn’t even bleed much, just a small few droplets of blood that themselves rapidly turned white and cracked apart into ashen dust as his chest started to become petrified.

“I was speaking because I meant what I said, Scopan,” Glory said, her face still as a mask, but a small tear crawling down her face until it, like his blood, turned to frozen white and crumbled apart, “It’s over. You fought well. Bravely. Proudly. You protected your ideals and stood for your beliefs until the very end. My only consolation at having to be the hand that ends your life is that, once my plans succeed, I can personally gather the fractured pieces of your soul and reforge you in the new world to come.”

The sorrow drained from her voice and became hard as she drew close to him, eyes inches from his, “But my new world will come, Scorpan. You failed to stop it. As shall anyone else who stands in my path.”

The spread of her infectious power through his body continued, reaching his neck, but Scorpan did not look away from Glory’s gaze. The magatama in his chest, fueled by the strongest cores of his power, remained their true colors even as his chest turned into pale white stone, and Scorpan focused all his remaining will and drew upon that reiatsu. He took all remaining scraps of power he could and brought that spirit energy to bear to stave off Glory’s power, if only for a second. Steam billowed from his body from an aura of intense heat, and across his still uncorrupted flesh lines of furious, blood red energy appeared like cracks in the earth.

For the one second of time he’d bought himself, the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 put all he had into uttering past cracked, bloodied lips a final Kido invocation.

“Hado Number Ninety Six: Itto Kaso.” (Flame Sword Burial)

The cracks of raw red power spread further then, glowing bright, and filling the white space with a sanguine gleam. Then all was consumed in a scarlet flame that rivaled the sun.

----------

Celestia felt it all. Scorpan’s loss of reiatsu, so sharp and quick it frightened her. Then the sudden, bursting uptick, followed by the sky’s white expanse being stained red as if by a titanic splash of blood. From the sky descended a wide, ruby bloom of destructive spirit energy. An explosion of power shaped like the tip of a katana, but large as a mountain. It shot downward from the heavens and impacted the sea below, creating an explosion so potent that it heaved up a large tidal wave where it didn’t instantly vaporize water all the way to the seabed.

She felt the cold in her own heart upon seeing it. She knew that Kido. Itto Kaso. A sacrificial spell, designed to be a last ditch effort to kill or cripple one’s foe when all other avenues to victory were closed. It used the invoker’s own body as a catalyst and burned both it and the user’s life force to generate an explosion of focused power that would be magnitudes greater than any normal Kido that didn’t punish its wielder in such a manner. How much of one’s body one sacrificed was up to the user as well, with even just using a single limb generating a ludicrous amount of destructive force.

But for an explosion of that size? How much had Scorpan just sacrificed of himself?

She halted on top of a hill not far from the beach, watching as the tidal wave from the explosion rolled in and filled the foothills with so much water that each hill became a small island. Almost immediately afterward it began to rain from the sheer volume of water that had been kicked up and vapor that had been sent cascading into the atmosphere. Celestia looked to the sky, stretching her senses, her hand trembling on the hilt of one of her Zanpaktou.

The sky... it was still white.

But only for a moment. The expanse of unnatural brightness that encased the sky began to recede, concentrating upon a single point in the sky. There, it glinted like a star, which then began to descend. Celestia’s eyes narrowed and her hand drew her twin blades. Fear and outrage clashed inside her heart as she watched that star lower in the sky, and then angle towards her.

It was weakened, but she sensed the reiatsu of Scorpan’s foe, clear and still quite potent. Of Scorpan’s spiritual pressure she barely felt the tiniest flicker remaining, and it was all she could do to control herself as the beacon of light fell to a hill across from hers.

There she saw the light fade around the shape of a woman, one Celestia had never seen before. Pure white skin was charred all over a tattered remnant of a Captain’s robes. Blonde hair was burned and bloodied, and the woman’s near perfect face was a marred mask of bleeding burns that still somehow didn’t quite tarnish her otherwise unnatural beauty and aura of authority. She was breathing hard, mouth dripping blood. Her left arm was twisted and broken. Her Zanpaktou was sheathed at her side, while in her right arm she cradled a cracked body of partial stone and partially blackened, burned flesh.

As the woman set the body down, Celestia recognized Scorpan, and she gasped. Her mentor was missing his right arm down to the elbow, and his left had a broken shard of what looked like marble or ivory in place of his hand. His Zanpaktou was broken and turned to scorched slag, laying on his chest, which in turn was mostly cracked stone. Only his legs and head up past his throat was still flesh, and even then it was burned to near cinder.

It would have been impossible to even think he was alive, if not for that tiny flicker of reiatsu inside of him, but Celestia sensed it was moments from fading.

“Surprising me right until the end. I should have expected nothing less.”

The woman’s words shook Celestia out of her shock, and in a rage she shouted, “Who are you!? What have you done!?”

The woman looked up as if only just now realizing Celestia was there. Despite the horrific damage covering her body, the woman still spoke clearly, and her eyes of purest blue were focused and keen. Recognition sparked in them and her burned lips twisted in a look partway between smile and sneer. “Ah, one of the half-breeds. Daughter of the Dragon, are you not? Quetzalcoatl's spawn, as I recall. Is your half-sister not here with you? As I understand it, you two are usually joined at the hip.”

“Answer my questions!” Celestia demanded, and let her reiatsu surge out in a threatening explosion of power that scattered rock and water from her hill and covered her in a fierce aura of raw white and gold energy, “Or better yet, get away from him before I reduce you to ashes.”

If Celestia’s display of spiritual pressure bothered the woman, she didn’t show it as she looked down at Scorpan, and sighed. “In honor of your will, Scorpan, I’ll ignore the girl’s yapping. I’m tired. I’m going home. When I see you again, it will only be after I’ve fixed Mother’s mistakes and reassembled you, and all of our lost brethren.”

The woman stood and turned her back to Celestia, drawing her Zanpaktou in a shine of light. Celestia blinked, unsure whether to use this as an opportunity to strike at the woman while her back was turned, or to go to Scorpan’s side to try and save him. In that moment of hesitance, the woman had inserted her blade into the very air, creating a gold and red Senkaimon Gate of incredible, ornate quality.

“Wait! I’m not letting you walk away!” Celestia said, and prepared to Flash Step forward, getting halfway there when she was halted in her tracks by a rasp of a voice.

“...Don’t...”

It was Scorpan, who had cracked open one bloodshot, bleary eye, "You cannot... beat her yet..."

The woman paused, the Senkaimon Gate opening before her, revealing beyond the bright red walkway of a grand, heavenly palace beyond. She only briefly tilted her head to look back at Celestia. “He’s dying. Listen to his last words if you must. I’ll listen to his apology after I undo the insanity of the past. But take this as a message back to your Gotei 13. Any further interference and Soul Society itself will be shown no clemency.”

The woman entered the Senkaimon and it closed behind her, vanishing. Celestia shook herself, then went to Scorpan’s side, sheathing her blades and dropping to her knees next to him. She held out her hands to begin performing a healing Kido, but her horror was complete, for she couldn’t begin to fathom how to save him. The damage was beyond anything even Captain Zecora could have healed, and that wasn’t even accounting for the unnatural way parts of his body were turned to that pure white, ivory stone.

“Captain... Commander...” she reached out a hand to his cheek, voice wavering as her eyes turned wet, “How could this...?”

With a will beyond compare, Scorpan turned his head towards her, his damaged eye focused on hers. Shockingly, his lips turned into a small smile of comfort. “Crying does not become you, Celestia.”

She shuddered, head shaking, “What do I do? I can’t heal this.”

“Then do not try. Accept this. I fought with all I had, and could not win... but that does not mean we have lost.” There was a shocking amount of fire in his eye, as if he was burning out that last flicker of energy inside him like a bonfire, “Listen closely. That woman was Glory, leader of the Zero Division. They have vile plans for the world, and must be stopped. You... Celestia, you must lead the Gotei 13 now. Ally with Discord and Sunset Shimmer. Do whatever it takes... to protect Soul Society, and everyone in it.”

The enormity of everything he was saying was striking Celestia like a hammer to the heart, but she did her best not to break down completely and listen to his words. It was almost too much, but she’d been carrying heavy burdens her entire life, and so she accepted this as well, even as it nearly broke her soul in two to do so. “I... I will do as you ask, Scorpan. I swear it, although I don’t know if I am ready, or even able...”

“You are,” Scorpan replied, eye closing as his smile turned proud, even as his voice faded and grew weaker with each word, “You and your sister... are the future of Soul Society. I have nothing to regret, leaving it in your hands.”

With those words still lingering, his body drew no more breath. Celestia held him, and saw his body begin to fade into motes of bright blue light. Yet this was unlike the way normal souls faded after death, which was often just a few motes and a quiet fading. Scorpan’s was a soul of the olden days, and what was occurring upon his death was a scene Glory herself had witnessed every time one of her siblings had fallen.

There was an incredible cracking noise, like a cathedral's many windows breaking all at once. Scorpan’s spirit body fractured into shards of blue in a sudden, violent burst. Each shard then broke again, and again, each shattering creating a noise that was at once both heart rending and beautiful all at once. Celestia watched with wide, tear streaked eyes as the soul of her mentor, leader, and dear friend broke over and over again as every shard of his spirit body eventually splintered into thousands of smaller pieces that then rocketed across the sky like shooting stars.

She knew then that Scorpan would never reincarnate as himself. That what she’d seen was his powerful, ancient soul becoming the seed for thousands of smaller souls that would be born. It was painful, terrible to behold, yet she saw a certain comforting rightness to it.

All that remained of Scorpan was the empty husk of his Zanpaktou. Celestia reverently gathered the pieces of the broken blade and wrapped them in strips of cloth she tore from her own robes. Then, drying her eyes, she turned back towards Soul Society.

There was mourning to do, but even more so, work to be done.

Scorpan’s death would not go unanswered, and whatever it took, Celestia would see to it that Zero Division would be brought down, even if that meant assaulting the Soul Palace itself.

----------

Sombra had been aware of the drastic change in spiritual pressure within Discord’s training grounds. He was familiar with those wretched Gates of Hell himself, and was grateful the composition of his own soul and powers allowed him to safeguard his Quincy from such a fate, for the most part. He was still painfully aware of Radiant Hope’s presence, and did all he could to put her from his mind, knowing she was likely as safe as possible by simply not engaging. According to his senses, she was with the other two Soul Reaper Lieutenants and those two elder Bounts, all wisely staying out of the conflict and having found a hiding spot near the training ground’s exit.

However he was worried at how close Twilight Sparkle was to those Gates. He felt her try to help that girl, Rarity. Even as he was focused upon trying to contain Minty within his prison of reishi, he paid careful attention to the struggle of those girls against the Gates of Hell. He’d suspected it was a doomed effort. Powerful as they were, as strong as Twilight herself was, the Gates were an extension of Hell itself, a living prison fueled by the power of every soul it had ever jailed in its depths. Sombra imagined even the vaunted Zero Division themselves would not find it easy to escape Hell’s chains, once unleashed upon them.

So it was that he was not surprised to sense Rarity’s reiatsu vanish along with the Gates. Potent as Twilight was with her Quincy skills, amazing Schrift, and magical power, there wouldn’t have been any way to extract Rarity from the Gates’ grasp, at least not for long.

Sombra had other problems to deal with, at any rate, for he felt Bowtie’s reiatsu fly towards him and was only just barely in time to spin his bow of merged blades around to blanket they sky with a carpet of black arrows. Bowtie, having been charging in behind Sombra, created a powerful pressure wave with a single swing of a hitless sword that Sombra noted wasn’t his original Zanpaktou. That pressure wave was strong enough to cut a path through the center portion of Sombra’s arrows, causing many to veer off course into the ground where they exploded in crushing spheres of warping, dark space.

Without a word, Bowtie vanished with a divinely swift Flash Step that got around Sombra and went right for the sphere of reishi that the Quincy King had been keeping in place to hold Minty.

Sombra threw out a hand, and a carpet of seeming shadows rose around the sphere as he began to warp space around the sphere, intending to transport it away, but Bowtie was faster, shoulder checking the sphere with enough force to rocket it across the training grounds like a pinball, where it smashed into the far eastern wall with enough force to crack even further. Sombra frowned in annoyance as he saw the shell begin to break, black oily mist seeping out as Minty’s power finally began to break through.

Then Sombra noticed an even more concerning issue. Discord’s wards had been sliced through cleanly by something. When had that happened? He’d sensed a surge of power from that girl, Sunset Shimmer, but he hadn’t seen what she had done. The wards were failing, falling apart like a building no longer able to support it’s own weight, and the confluence of spiritual pressures within the training grounds began to billow outwards.

“No!” Sombra realized the danger the people of Canterlot City were in, and much as he regretted it, he withdrew the last of his reishi from the sphere imprisoning Minty and instead directed all of his power upward and outward. A blackness expanded from him and shot up like a fountain, engulfing the ceiling and flowing out in a thick tide of raven dark void. In seconds Sombra had surrounded most of the training grounds in his power, extending a field of containing willpower and reishi to try and soften the auras within. He couldn’t possibly stop the combined spiritual pressures of multiple Zero Division members, Discord, Captains of Sweet Cider’s caliber, not to mention those girls, including Sunset Shimmer... who's reiatsu only growing more erratic by the second.

It put Sombra in a bad spot, for to use all of his power like this left him in a state where he couldn’t readily defend himself, but the alternative was to allow the full brunt of all this spirit energy seep out into the city and start crushing the souls of the citizenry. He imagined that even with his protective blanket of power softening the blow, that people across the city had to be feeling the effects.

Meanwhile Minty emerged from the flaking remains of the reishi sphere that had held her, and with a lopsided grin flew up with her parasol to greet the waiting Bowtie, “Thanks for the save, bro! Now where’s that Quincy Pauper? I still need to melt his abominable face off.”

“We’re done here,” Bowtie told her, “Our tasks are done, and we return to the Palace now.”

“Whaaaaat!? No way!? But there’s still so many stupid, stupid people here that need punishment!”

Bowtie leaned down in front of her, and wagged a finger in her face, “No buts, Minty. I’d indulge your desire to play any other time, but not when Glory is... unaccounted for.”

“Oh, you worried about her? She’s just discipling little Scorpy. It’s no big. But whatever, I can see when you’re getting in a freakin’ mood. Fine, we’ll go, but only because I’m getting hungry and know I’ll get a chance to kill that wannabe King soon enough anyway.”

Sombra sensed the two move, seeing them vanish from near the wall and reappear near the floating, golden pillar that had brought the Zero Division here, still hovering over the broken remains of the mesa. He didn’t understand why they would be so willing to depart if it was clear they could probably finish off everyone present, but Sombra was not about to look this particular gift horse in the mouth. He maintained the protective bubble of his power around the training grounds while turning and leaping across the air, heading for where he sensed Coloratura was engaged in battle with Blossom.

He was pleased to see one of his elites holding her own against a member of the vaunted Zero Division. While Coloratura was not as dedicated to her skills as Night Light, or possessed of such a potent Schrift as Sapphire Shores had been, nor had the absolute raw talent and magic of Twilight Sparkle, what Coloratura did have was an unparalleled combat instinct that was married perfectly to her passion for music.

It was apparent in the way she moved, dancing with the smooth motions of a true diva as her hands flowed over the glowing blue keys of her “bow”. The curved set of piano keys formed from reishi gave off an ever resonating beat that rocked the air with an endless series of coiling blue reishi streams. Within this reishi, the power of Coloratura’s Octave took hold of every oscillation of sound and bent it to her will, making the reishi streams into sonic rivers of spearing force.

Destructive, yes, but this alone would not have given one such as Blossom difficulty. His power, as far as Sombra could discern, was quite similar to Coloratura’s. His Zanpaktou was returned to the shape of a fiery red saxophone and he played with great energy and enthusiasm, his power flowing through each note that generated a constant sleet of exploding reshi particles, as if every musical note could bring out such passion from the reishi particles that they couldn’t help but fuse together and detonate in flowering blossoms of fusion.

Looking at him and Coloratura fight was like looking at twin stars trying to eat each other, endless streams of blue, sonic reishi colliding with similar lines of detonating red fusion light. And Sombra could tell that Coloratura was making use of her Octave to interfere with Blossom’s musical assault, weakening the notes he was using to excite the reishi particles to explode, although in doing so she couldn’t work up enough power to break through and attack Blossom directly. Indeed, while it appeared to be a stalemate, it was only a faux one. Sombra could tell that Blossom had not gotten serious yet, and was just playing around.

Of course Coloratura hadn’t used her Vollstandig either, but Sombra doubted if both of them went all out that the outcome would end in favor of his Sternritter. He imagined out of all the Quincy only he, and perhaps Twilight once she had full command of her magic and own Vollstandig, would match these Zero Division monsters.

With a burst of power from his own Absolute, he coated the area between Blossom and Coloratura with a thick sheet of warped darkness, letting their attacks flow into the void space beyond.

“Whoa, coming to play yourself, Mister Quincy King?” Blossom said, and Coloratura bowed to him.

“A duet, your Majesty? I’d be honored.”

“Another time, perhaps,” Sombra said, eyes narrowing at Blossom, “Your fellows are departing. Do so as well and I shall not pursue.”

“Hah! Aren’t you the ‘honorable’ one? As if I don’t know you’re using the lion’s share of your power to protect the city above. Oh well,” Blossom shrugged and tossed his saxophone up, which then turned in a burst of flame back into a katana that he sheathed through his sash, “If it’s time to go, it’s time to go. Nice tunes, Lady Coloratura. If you ever tire of serving this humorless King of yours, I’d have space for you as one of my Attendants.”

“Never in your wildest dreams, cretin,” Coloratura replied, “My loyalty to my King is beyond question. We’ll finish our song another day.”

Blossom just winked at the two Quincy before flying off, “By all means, I’ll be looking forward to it.”

----------

Battles were flagging everywhere at the same time.

In the west of the training grounds, Sweet Cider and Gaia were both standing wounded amid a field of rock that now teamed with hundreds of blades that had planted themselves across the area. Where any blade touched, steam rose as if from a forge, and the ground hardened and became as dark and gleaming as iron.

Facing them, a more lightly wounded Ito-Kiri stood with one metal clad foot propped up on a rock that itself was transformed into iron. She held a pair of different sized katana in her hands, while other blades continued to cover around her in a cylinder of sharpened death. She tapped one blade upon the iron transmuted rock, and sparks danced up from the touch, the heat in the entire area increasing, “Hope you’re learning something, Soul Reaper. Treat your Zanpaktou with respect, and it’ll burn all the hotter for you. Use it like a tool, and her edge gets dull and chips. I’ve forged so many sisters I may have lost count, but I love each and every one of them, so you’d best do a better job listening to Kizuna, otherwise I’ll break you in half.”

Sweet Cider stood firm, despite the blood making her grip on Kizuna and Hearthstone both slick, “You talk a lot o’ crap fer a lady that ain’t downed either me or Gaia, yet.”

“Ahem, for the record, I’m not actually asking you to fight any harder,” said Gaia, her left hand holding a thick sphere of green energy as she readied another Cero, “In fact, feel free to leave whenever you want.”

Kiri looked more than willing to continue the fight, if the violent light in her eyes was anything to go by, but the Zanpaktou spirit looked up abruptly and frowned, “Hmph. As it turns out, you’ll get your wish, Hollow. My master and his siblings are departing, and I go with them. Of course if you wish to try to stop me, I don’t mind having an excuse to cut you both down, but otherwise we can postpone this for another day.”

“Fine by me,” Sweet Cider said, spitting and jutting her chin in the direction of the floating gold pillar, “Go on then, git!”

At Sweet Cider’s flippant attitude, Kiri turned her nose up and gave a loud, distinct “Hmph!” before leaping away with speed equivalent to a highly talented Flash Step. Once she was gone, Sweet Cider let out a breath she’d held and nearly fell over, drained by the fight. She felt warm hands on her waist and arm as Gaia wrapped that arm around her shoulder and held her up.

“Not our finest hour, today,” Gaia said, looking back in the direction where Sweet Cider could sense the spiritual pressures of her daughter and friends. Gaia was wearing a deeply furrowed frown of disquiet, “And I don’t know if it’s over yet.”

Given what Sweet Cider was sensing, she agreed. There was something unstable about the reiatsu she was feeling. Not from Applejack, but from Sunset Shimmer. She also noticed that Discord’s wards were down, and it was only a shell of power that felt like it was coming from the Quincy King that was containing the various reiatsu inside the shop.

----------

In a side alley a number of blocks from Discord’s shop, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo huddled together and peeked out onto the street. Alerion had gone back inside the Bount Crest on Scootaloo’s scooter, but Applebloom and Sweetie Belle still had their Fullbrings out, just in case. However what had their worried attention was not a new enemy, but the sight of multiple people collapsed on the street and sidewalk.

“What’s happened to ‘em?” asked Applebloom, but her brow was sweating and she had a bad feeling she already knew.

“Don’t be a dope,” Sweetie Belle said, equally sweating, “You got to be able to feel it too!”

Indeed, there was a thick and crushing aura of spiritual pressure that now wafted up from the area of Discord’s shop. It had come in a sharp burst when a blade of black fire had shot up into the sky briefly, and it was then that so many people collapsed in the street, knocked unconscious by so much conflicting spirit energy that normal souls couldn’t withstand it. Thankfully that burst had deadened to a lesser buzz as something had happened to contain it, but the three girls had no idea what.

“S-so what do we do?” asked Scootaloo.

Gulping, Applebloom rolled up her sleeves and headed out onto the sidewalk, going to the first collapsed person and turning them over to check on them, and once satisfied they were still breathing, she dragged them to the side in a comfortable laying position. “We help folk out of the street. Nothing else ta do but whatever we can that helps!”

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo looked at each other, then both nodded, and immediately joined their friend, going from person to person to check to make sure they weren’t wounded from collapsing, then pulling them away from any precarious positions.

Meanwhile all three silently hoped that the situation would be resolved soon, and that everyone back at the shop would be safe.

----------

“And that’s my time, looks like.”

Discord risked a glance towards Medley. After sending her memories of the six girls after him, she’d hung back and ceased trying to engage him. Indeed her stance was remarkably relaxed for someone who’d been giving him such trouble only a moment ago.

Of the six copies of his precious protégées, he’d only managed to take down Applejack. Despite being the most physically powerful of the six, she had such a straightforward attack style that it made it fairly easy for him to catch her in a field of his unraveling chaos power. While such a field of energy would have normally only disrupted Applejack’s senses, or muscle control, or caused her own powers to go wonky, it confirmed to Discord that his abilities were highly effective against Medley since this memory copy became far more unstable when hit with his power. Her whole body had grown flickering with static, and behaved equally erratic after being struck, something that normally wouldn’t have happened, at least not without a much heavier dosage of his power.

It still wasn’t easy with all of the girls coming at him at once, but he’d cut down Applejack’s clone, which was still an unpleasant experience, all things considered. But now the memories simply halted in place, and like wafts of smoke that vanished in an instant at Medley snapping her fingers.

“You think you can just leave?” Discord asked, and Medley actually laughed at him.

“Your wards are trashed, and only the Quincy King is keeping the locals from being pulverized. Keep fighting if you want, but you care about this city, Discord. Us leaving is the best thing that could happen for you right now, and you know it.”

She walked past him, utterly unconcerned, “Besides, you feel her, right? Your star pupil? Can you feel her soul right now? Without you, she’s probably about to make some serious mistakes. I suggest you get to damage control. I’ll be sure to give Glory your regards.”

He held up his Zanpaktou as she made another step, the blade almost but not quite touching her neck. His eyes were obscured by the brim of his hat, but his mouth was giving a most scathing scowl. “I’m not sure I care much about what your game is, Medley. Glory has crossed the threshold of going back, and nothing will ever get me to concede this world to her. Tell her that. Make it crystal clear.”

“Heh... sure thing,” Medley said, giving a little wave before disappearing in a quiet burst of speed.

Discord didn’t spend another second of thought on her. He began to rush for where he felt Sunset Shimmer was, with all the swiftness his Flash Step could take him.

----------

Her heartbeat was a pitch black roar in her ears that matched the consuming wave of midnight flames that surrounded her. Sunset Shimmer had no immediate awareness of her friends around her, of Applejack’s concerned “Sugarcube?” or the way Pinkie Pie was on her knees, eyes watering as she whispered, “Rarity...”

Sunset didn’t hear Rainbow Dash’s scream of frustration as she smashed a lightning bolt into the ground, “Dammit all! We almost had her out of there! Fluttershy, why did you stop trying to pull her out!?”

Sunset also didn’t register Flutteshy’s quiet reply of pained, but resolute words, “I felt it, Rainbow. Hell’s... spirit. It was already a permanent attachment to Rarity’s soul, and it was too strong for us. Rarity knew that. That’s why she told us to let go.”

“Screw that! Screw that goddamn noise! We should have all tried harder!”

“It’s not that simple,” this was Twilight speaking now, having flown down alongside Sugarcoat, although Sunset wasn’t responding to either presence as Twilight gave an anguished look at her friends, “Fluttershy is right. I was sensing it too, the collective energy of Hell. It was overwhelming. Even my Variable wouldn’t work on it, and believe me I was trying.”

“But... is she really gone for good?” Pinkie Pie asked, “Really, really? We can bust her out, right?”

“Well,” said Twilight, adjusting her glasses, “I did use a spell at the last minute that I hope might help, but I don’t know if it will even work between here and Hell, although in theory-”

Whatever Twilight’s theory was, her words were interrupted by an unnatural, deeply guttural howl of rage. This sound tore the air with its furnace of fury, something a human throat shouldn’t have been able to even replicate. It came out in a bloody wave from Sunset’s throat as she slammed Hokori’s brand of obsidian fire into the ground where the Gates of Hell had vanished. All of the girls, Twilight included, had to leap away from the blast of black flame that erupted upwards from the impact, disintegrating stone in a flash and sending a pillar of darkness flaring upwards.

“Whoa! Sugarcube, watch where yer aimin’ that fire o’ yers!” Applejack shouted, “I git it, we’re all mad, but-”

Sunset still head nothing. Just the roar. Just the anger. Just the image of Rarity’s face disappearing behind the merciless Gates that took Sunset’s friend away from her. The cutting agony of failure to protect what she loved was like a hot poker right through her chest. Inside her mind were twin voices, trying to reach her.

Get a grip, Sunset! shouted Hokori, You keep this up and the black flames will consume you!

Listen to her, Sunset, said Hikari, You can’t afford to lose your balance between your Light and your Pride. I know you are wounded by this loss, but please, calm your flames.

She did hear those voices, but it was just... too much. This pain, this boiling rage, she couldn’t contain it inside of herself! She had to have a target to vent it on. Something, someone, anyone to blame for what had happened that she could justifiable unleash all of this horrid pain and anger upon! And even in her uncontrolled state she could sense them. The Zero Division! Not all of them, but she didn’t need all of them; just one.

By now the black fire covered not just her right hand and arm, but burned across the right side of her body, and fully engulfed her Bankai’s wings, turning them solid onyx. The pain was a lake of agony on her skin, but it didn’t matter. In her mind, she saw Bowtie, his Zanpaktou performing the Konso ritual on Rarity, and sensed his reiatsu with his comrades nearby. She had her target.

With another howl, her black wings exploded in jets of voidfire, and she blasted off with such speed and intensity that it created a fresh crater within the one she already stood. There was no transition. She was where she wanted to be in a nanosecond.

Bowtie was standing beside Minty, and a freshly arrived Medley. Blossom was flying down towards them, bearing a few light wounds from his scuffle with Coloratura, while the Quincy in question had already disengaged and gone to her King’s side. This left the four Zero Division members all in the same area, right in front of the towering pillar of ornate gold that had ferried them here.

“I’m telling you, Glory’s too soft to go through with it,” Minty was saying to Medley, twirling her parasol around while floating upside down, “Bet you anything she just let Scorpan walk.”

“I wouldn’t be so certain,” Medley was starting to reply, but then her eyes cut left towards the direction Sunset was coming from, “Bowtie look-”

He turned, just in time for Sunset to simply appear before him in a burst of dark fire, her sword already making an upper-cutting slash that frothed with an ocean of rage-fueled flame. There was a flicker of darkness, then a towering cut of pure black, as if a deity wielding an ink brush simply painted a sharp blade of flaming void from the ground to the sky. This pillar of absolute destructive flame punched a hole through the ceiling and burned a fresh path through the top of Discord’s shop, and both Sunset and Bowtie went with it, high into the sky above Canterlot City, leaving all gaping and blinking behind them.

Bowtie found his chest singed and cut by the blow of surprisingly strong flame-based reiatsu. Even with Ito-Kiri in his hand, blocking the blow just in time, he felt the singe of the injury. His senses for war, heightened beyond any sane measure, was already leading him to grip his blade in both hands and block Sunset’s follow up attacks. The splashes of black flame rushed across the sky with the span of a dozen strikes in a moment, Sunset roaring as she hammered at Bowtie’s defenses, each blow driving him back while the two screamed across Canterlot City’s skyline in a hyper-sonic rush.

Like an impenetrable wall, Bowtie kept his guard up, and in an instantaneous snap he retaliated with a single strike. Ito-Kiri cut a blinding metallic line and was joined by a cascading rush of dozens of blade strikes as a forest of metal blades burst into being around Sunset. She heaved Hikari around in tandem with Hokori, trying to block them all, but her armor was cut and pierced and she was hammered backwards, feet digging a trail of flame across the air as she came to a halt in front of Bowtie.

His eyes regarded her with a note of respect, not dropping his guard for a moment, “A most impressive display, Sunset Shimmer. Even consumed by rage, without technique, your blows carry the weight of a warrior’s soul.

“Shut up! Shut your murdering mouth! You’re going to pay for what you’ve done! Here! NOW!”

A pulsation from her chest made her briefly grunt in further pain, and the black flames became tinted with a hellish orange light. Ignoring it, she charged in, raising Hokori high and brining the blade down in a twin cross-strike that created an X-shaped wave of black fire that flew right towards Bowtie. He turned to the side and sliced horizontally with Ito-Kiri. A massive iron wall appeared, like a castle’s thick ramparts, all forged of solid metal. A sound like a hammer striking an anvil accompanied the wall’s appearance, and Sunset’s black flames struck it full on. As powerful as Bowtie’s reiatsu within this wall was, the destructive, consuming nature of the black flames still disintegrated a good chunk of it, and a blast of the black fire, still tinged in Hell’s orange cinders, reached towards a somewhat surprised Bowtie who had to Flash Step away just as he felt the burn.

Appearing higher in the air, he looked at his singed arm and frowned, “I see. I thought it odd you could sever any of Hell’s chains. Even Captains wouldn’t find it easy to break a few, let alone as many as you did. Somehow you’ve absorbed a small flicker of Hell’s power for yourself. How?”

“Mabe you’ll find the answer in Hell yourself, after I send you there!” Sunset spat back, flying in an instant jet black streak of flame towards him. By now the pain wracking her body was nearly unbearable, but she let it fuel her fury rather than distract her from it. As she came in at him, Bowtie adjusted his stance and sheathed his Zanpaktou, but clearly not in an act of surrender but rather preparation for a strike.

She didn’t know what manner of attack was coming. From what she’d seen, his Zanpaktou was able to instantaneously forge any number of iron objects, be they blades, barriers, or whatever else. Like a more metallic version of Rarity’s Fullbring. It seemed... kind of basic and underwhelming for a member of Zero Division. And she’d already seen her black flames could melt through even thick barriers he created.

I can beat him. I can make him pay for what he did to Rarity.

Ignoring the pain, she gathered her power in her sword and tried a similar maneuver she’d used on Tirek.

”Kuroihi Moegara!

Instead of letting the focused black flames extend out in a wide slice form her sword, she pulled them inward, letting them concentrate and burn hotter around the blade itself as she let her wings vent out an extra portion of the power for an extra fast and powerful Flash Step that essentially turned her into a dark, light speed rocket. Whatever attack he threw at her, she’d penetrate it, and shove her sword right down his damn throat!

She didn’t fully hear Bowtie’s words, or even track his motion as he drew Ito-Kiri in one sky shattering stroke.

”Katanakaji no Giho: Oritatami.” (Bladesmith Technique: Folding)

Time dilated. For a frozen instant it looked as if millions of identical blades to Ito-Kiri extended both impossibly high into the sky and straight down into the earth, and then folded upon one another over and over again in a single millisecond as all these millions of blades became one in a single strike. What was both one and several millions of blades all simultaneously struck, edge upon point, against Hokori.

Then as she blinked, Sunset found herself standing on the air past Bowtie, or perhaps he had passed her? She couldn’t quite fathom what had just happened, at least until she felt the pain in her left shoulder as her chest armor split, about a foot distance towards her hip, and blood sprayed through the air. She tasted the blood in her mouth and spit it out, stumbling but not quite falling as she forced herself to turn around and face Bowtie, who was glancing back at her with an even greater look of respect in his eyes.

“You continue to impress. That technique has split in half Hollows in the same power category as what you know as Espada now. Yet not only are you still alive, but your armor is still mostly intact.”

A small rip appeared in his own right shoulder, and a shallow but still noticeably bleeding cut began to stain his robes. Bowtie looked at the wound, grunted dryly, and then he turned towards her, “You and your friends are proof positive that Glory is right to fear the power of magic. It clearly does not belong in this world, if it can grant a mere child such extraordinary ability.”

Sunset raised her sword and shield, eyes near feral, but before she could do anything else a number of forms flickered in around her.

“Enough!” Discord said, standing right between Sunset and Bowtie, with his prismatic blade of chaos pointed at the Zero Division member. Meanwhile Sunset’s friends rushed around her.

“Sunny! You’re hurt! You gotta stop!” said Pinkie Pie, eyes imploring, while a mimic of Pinkamena’s head appeared at the tip of one of the pink tendrils rising from Pinkie’s aura, “Look I totally get wanting to rip this dude to bloody chunks, but not if you get torn apart in the process.”

“Please, Sunset, those flames are burning you up,” said Fluttershy, extending a series of golden hands from her halo, “I have to heal you.”

“You guys don’t understand! I have to take him down! I have to make him pay!” Sunset said, the anger still roiling inside her like a wounded beast, roaring for further release. The black flames surged, and the heat was enough to clearly start effecting her friends. But even so they didn’t back up or relent, even as it was obvious they were in pain. Fluttershy leaned in further, forcing her golden hands both ethereal and physical around Sunset, and soothing power flowed into her body. Sunset wanted to resist this calming, soothing feeling. She didn’t want to stop. If she stopped... then Rarity...

Rainbow Dash had one of her arms, Hikari’s side, holding both the shield and Sunset’s limb, “I’m all for kicking this dude's ass, but not if you burn up in the process! We’ll get him another day, Sunset! I promise. Just cool your jets, girl. Please!”

Applejack’s armor steamed form the heat of Sunset’s black flames as she held firm onto Hokori and Sunset’s right arm, but the farmgirl’s expression, tear stained, was hard as age old oak. “Nobody wants ta crush the Zero Division more n’ me right now, sugarcube. Rarity is one o’ my oldest friends, an’ the idea o’ what she’s facin’ right now, it boils my blood hotter n’ i can put ta words. But we need ya, Sunset. We need ya clear headed, leadin’ us, cause without ya we’re all lost, gal.”

Their words sunk into her, and Sunset felt each of them as a warmth inside her chest. There was a sensation of flowing, cool resonance, like the feeling of soft sunlight touching the trees during the first rays of morning. From each of her friends pooled colored lights, pink from Pinkie, yellow from Fluttershy, blue form Rainbow Dash, and orange from Applejack. And also, a violet stream, which came from behind as Twilight Sparkle arrived, breathless.

“Oh good, she’s okay! I mean, kind of okay. Those wounds look bad. Um, Sunset it might be a good idea to shut off those black flames, or maybe just turn them down a little? Huh, we all seem to be glowing...”

Sunset’s mind was being dunked in cool water, and suddenly she could feel not just her friends, but Hokori and Hikari’s presence much more strongly than before. Finally feeling more in control of herself, she realized the utter agony she was in and let out a pained, choked sob as she forced her power down. The black flames subsided. Indeed her Bankai subsided, and her Zanpaktou reverted back to a fully sealed state as she got her power control. Looking at her Zanpaktou, she saw that the flames had burned hot enough that the blade had been partially burned, and she whispered, “I’m sorry... Hokori no Hikari... i really screwed up.”

Hmph, I’d say so, said Hokori with a sense of irritation that gave way to relief, But at least you did put a few wounds on that arrogant bastard. I’ll forgive you, as long as you promise you’ll learn to control our flames properly next time and defeat him in full in your next encounter.

Hikari’s voice was soft and understanding, if also carrying a motherly tone of admonishment, We understand your pain. Your anger. It is justified, but do not let it blind you any longer. Against the foes we are to face, you cannot afford to lose sight of what matters. Fear not, we’ll be here for you, when you’re ready.

“Thank you...” she whispered to her blade, then louder, to her friends, “Thanks guys, I... kind of lost my head for a second there. Aaggh...”

She hurt all over. She didn’t even want to look at her right hand or arm. Fluttershy’s power was seeping through her, keeping the worst of the pain at bay, but the fact that she still hurt this much even with Fluttershy’s help was testament to how badly injured she was. However, despite this, she felt a continued warmth near her chest, and realized it was coming from the Hogyoku that Discord had given her. She’d kept it firmly tucked in her robes with her pretty much at all times, but hadn’t paid it much attention with all that was happening. It almost felt like it had opened up to the spirits of her friends and absorbed something from them, just as it had when she’d broken some of Hell’s chains.

Was this a good thing or a bad thing? She’d need to let Discord know, but right now there was the more immediate issue of Bowtie.

He hadn’t attacked, and merely looked at her, her friends, and Discord with a shrewd and pragmatic expression of steel on his face. “It seems that this matter is resolved.”

“Not even close,” Discord replied, “But the immediate conflict is ended for today, as long as you all get out of my damn city.”

Just after Discord’s words, there was a whoosh of air as the massive pillar that had transported the Zero Division floated up from below and halted behind Bowtie. Within the glowing golden depths of the doorway into the pillar, the other Zero Division members, except for Glory of course, waited.

“Everything done here?” Medley asked, and Bowtie nodded.

“Yes, it seems it is.”

He turned and began to walk into the pillar’s entrance, but paused just once to glance back at Sunset, “On the day that you seek to finish matters with us, Sunset Shimmer, come to my domain within the Soul Palace. I will grant you a true duel, with my full strength, if it will satisfy your desire for retribution for your friend.”

Sunset didn’t reply, just silently glared back at him. He seemed to take this as sufficient answer, and entered the pillar, upon which the entrance vanished without so much as a visible seam in the pillar’s surface. The pillar then shot up into the sky, then punched through a golden hole in the air, sinking out of this realm and traveling across the bounds of reality to the Soul Palace beyond.

In the silence that followed, Sunset sagged in her friend’s arms, feeling the fresh weight of the burdens now upon her.

----------

Within the confines of the Soul Palace, just beyond the Gates of Heaven, a landing platform of cherry red wood extended in a perfect circle. It was here that the great pillar rose from the infinite sky below the floating magnificence of the palace and came to a halt. From the pillar the four members of Zero Division emerged, stepping onto the platform and walking towards the short bridge that would take them to the central avenue between the Gates of Heaven and the palace proper.

"That was a halfway pleasant excursion," chatted Blossom, "Got to stretch a bit, meet some new faces, including some potential candidates for preservation."

"Meh, I wasn't that impressed with them," Minty yawned, lazily floating along, "I wonder if Bubbles is back already? She usually stays out and plays unless I give a deadline."

"You have a poor record when it comes to keeping track of your flock..." Bowtie grumbled, and Minty giggled at him.

However their banter died as Medley, who'd walked ahead of them, paused at the bridge and breathed out a rather emphatic, "Glory!"

They all looked to see that their fifth sibling and leader was laying face down on the bridge, blood printed footsteps leading from the gate in long, red smears. They were all at her side immediately, Minty's previous look of good humor evaporating in an instant as she extended a hand and from it a cavalcade of glowing threads of reishi extended like a web to wrap around Glory and turn her over.

"Oh..." said Glory, "You're all back. I must have dozed off."

"Dozed off, my ass!" Minty said, looking over Glory's injuries, which all of the Zero Division could now see were quite extensive. Minty no longer wore the slightest hint of amusement or joke on her face as she extended those threads of incandescent pink reishi into Glory, to which Glory herself let out a soft hiss of discomfort. Medley and Blossom got on either side of her and helped her sit up, while Bowtie stood back and watched with a flat look of barely contained worry.

"You allowed Scorpan to inflict this much harm on you?" Bowtie asked, to which Glory gave him a look that attempted to be piercing and prideful, but the effect was rather ruined by the way she gasped in pain.

"I did not 'allow' it. Scorpan fought... well," she said, and Medley took immediate note of the weight in Glory's voice.

"You killed him," Medley said, and Glory gave the barest of nods.

"He would not relent. I owed it to him to... fight to the finish. It matters not. We will remake him, as we will all the others once the Zero Plan is complete...ugh, but I need rest first."

"You need more than rest," Minty scoffed, but her reishi threads worked diligently inside Glory and her eyes were utterly focused upon the act of examining and beginning the process of healing her sister, "I can tell what happened here. Damn fool, you invoked your Zanpaktou with a damaged Soul Sleep."

"What are you talking about?" Glory asked, halfway past teeth clenched in pain.

"I mean that whatever Scorpan hit you with, it targeted your Soul Sleep, and you put additional strain on it by invoking your Zanpaktou at full power, doofus," Minty said, voice every inch the disgruntled doctor as she poked and prodded at Glory's injuries, some of the superficial ones already starting to heal, "Even with my skills you're going to be out of action for at least a week. We're talking full dunking in the Blood Pools, plus daily work with my Kaido. You'd better not even think of straining yourself in the meantime, otherwise I'll have to nail you to the ground myself."

"That sounds all very excessive," Glory began to say, but Medley and Blossom both hauled her up at the same time, much to her chagrin.

"You heard Minty. She's the healer, and healer's orders go," Blossom said, heaving out a sigh himself, "Still, hard to imagine you got this banged up taking down little Scorpan. Kid must have become an impressive fighter without us noticing."

"Of course he would," Medley said, "He's been fighting while we've been up here. It'd be foolish to think he wouldn't have gotten stronger during those thousands of years. In many ways, Glory got lucky to get off with just these wounds." She eyed Glory dead on, voice dropping to a quiet whisper to Glory, "You see what I meant, right? That this won't be as easy as you thought?"

Glory looked back at her and gave the smallest of nods, "Yes, Scorpan made that apparent. As did whom I suspect is his chosen successor. Tell me, did you succeed in dealing with the girl?"

"Within the bounds of Jigoku as we speak," confirmed Bowtie, "The unity of those six girls' magic should be weakened now."

"And Discord?" Glory inquired, to which Medley tapped a finger to her own head.

"Not to fear, in sifting through his memories during our skirmish I gleaned just enough that I can craft a halfway complete simulacrum. One with enough knowledge to help us fine tune the rituals to utilize Jigoku's gathered spirit energy to recreate the souls of those we've lost."

"On that note, I noticed that girl, Sunset Shimmer, absorbed a small sliver of Jigoku's energies when severing some of the chains," said Bowtie, expression stiff as wood, and quite unamused, "Not long after her flames were tinted with hellfire. That concerns me greatly."

"It doesn't matter," Glory said, wincing as she was carried along by her siblings towards the palace, "They have no way to assault us here, and even if they did, without any further magic from that cursed magical realm, they can't obtain enough power to threaten us. The Zero Plan will proceed, and come to fruition. Nothing will stop that, now."

Episode 182: The Path to Ragnarok

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Episode 182: The Path to Ragnarok

No blade could have pierced the air of tension that hung like a miasma within the main meeting hall of the Gotei 13’s headquarters. The absence of Captain Commander Scorpan was as a wound, the chair he would occupy at the head of the meeting hall empty. The seven Captains that were present in the room all bore the tension differently. Hurricane looked as if his jaw was fit to break rocks as he glared at the entry doors, as if willing them to open. Thunderhooves stood like an immobile mountain, dark eyes staring at the wall in grim silence. Daring Do paced, unable to stay still, hand ever tapping on the hilt of her Zanpaktou. Starswirl remained composed, but any could see the way he occasionally stroked his beard was sign enough his mind was running a mile a second. Zecora kept her arms calmly folded within the sleeves of her Captain's haori, eyes closed as if in meditation, although the troubled crease of her brow was enough to make it clear she was inwardly far from alright. Cheese Sandwich was near Scorpan’s empty chair, looking at it with a pale face that was set in a saddened cast. Finally, Luna was right by the doors, hands clenched tightly at her side, a bead of sweat slowly making its way down the side of her face.

They had talked little since coming here. They’d given their orders to their respective Divisions to be prepared and on standby in case of an attack on the Seireitei, but there was nothing for them to do about what had already happened.

They’d all felt Scorpan’s reiatsu vanish.

Not long after, Celestia had sent a message ahead via Kido to relay that the Captain Commander had fallen in battle, and that she was returning with the remains of his Zanpaktou. There was nothing to do but wait for her return to hear the details, and until then it was as if someone had dropped a veil of cold silence among the Captains. Although each had their own thoughts churning within their minds, all understood the unprecedented severity of what had happened. With the Captain Commander dead, Soul Society itself was more vulnerable now than it had ever been. Worse, Celestia had not communicated specifically who had killed Scorpan, but all of them had felt the unimaginably powerful reiatsu of a Soul Reaper in battle with him.

None of the Captains were foolish enough to not understand that it had to have been a member of the Zero Division to have done this deed. But the why of it, what was to come next, were gnawing away at the guts of all present.

When finally they sensed Celestia’s reiatsu approach, Luna let out a faint sigh of relief, although one short lived. She also noticed the two other reiatsu with Celestia, and immediately swung open the doors before any of the others could speak. “You’re all back,” she said, as not just Celestia, but Captain Amore and Sweet Cider strode into the room as well. Luna gave them a questioning look, “What about Blueblood?”

“Who cares about that half-baked twerp!?” snarled Hurricane, approaching Celestia, who carried bundled in scraps of her robes the fragments of Scorpan’s blade, “What in the damned hell happened out there!?”

Celestia just shook her head and strode past him, walking right up to the Captain Commander’s chair, where she knelt down and laid out the cloth bundle, which she unwrapped to unveil the charred and snapped remains of the Zanpaktou within.

“I’m sorry,” she told them all, voice already near broken with barely contained sobs, “I couldn’t do anything. By the time I arrived, he was already past the point of saving.”

“Who?” Cheese Sandwich asked, leaning down next to her as the other Captains gathered, “Who did it? Which of Zero Division, and why?”

Celestia stood on briefly shaking legs, but forced them to remain steady as she turned to face them all. “Scorpan called her Glory,” she turned her eyes towards Starswirl, “You are far more familiar with Zero Division’s records. I’ve barely looked at them since the Academy days.”

By and large while all knew of the Zero Division, specifics on their appearance and identities was not at all common knowledge, even among the Captains. Starswirl would have had access to the most information, and given his age, some actual direct familiarity from the days when Soul Society was first founded. Starswirl now sucked in a breath and let it out in a great puff as he stroked his beard even harder.

“Glory, eh? She’s Zero Division’s leader. A direct daughter of the Soul Queen herself. I imagine if anyone had the power to defeat Captain Commander Scorpan, it was going to be her.”

“But why!?” Luna burst out, “Why were they fighting in the first place!?”

“I can shed light on that,” said Amore with such pain and weariness it was as if her words were stone, “Please listen, and I’ll tell all that happened at our summit with Discord’s new Coalition.”

It took some time, but Amore explained all that had happened. The summit itself, and the tenuous meeting between Scorpan and the Quincy King, Sombra. Then Zero Division’s sudden arrival, and the terrible revelations that followed. Hell and it’s true purpose, the Zero Division’s betrayal of the Soul Queen and her Consort, and the deception under which all the Gotei 13 had been laboring under. Then came Scorpan’s defiance, and the battle that followed.

“I don’t know what happened after the Captain Commander and Glory passed through the Senkaimon, but now that I see...” Amore shuddered, nodding at Scorpan’s broken Zanpaktou, “I returned with Captain Sweet Cider as fast as I could, and we encountered Captain Celestia on the way to headquarters. And so we are here, and... he is gone.”

“Hold,” said Thunderhooves, “But what of Captain Blueblood? Where is he?”

Sweet Cider huffed out a humorless chuckle held up a helpless hand, “Yer not gonna believe what that smarmy, spoiled noble up n’ did. Go on Amore, tell ‘em. Ya helped ‘im do it, after all.”

“I... I just couldn’t say no after he begged me so sincerely,” Amore said, hanging her head in shame, “Perhaps I should not have, but what’s done is done.”

“Well don’t keep us waiting, blast it, out with it!” Hurricane demanded, and Amore nodded.

“You see, when Miss Rarity was being pulled into Hell, and it became obvious that despite her friend’s best efforts there was no stopping the inevitable outcome... well...”

----------

“No! Amore there must be something we can do!” Blueblood cried, watching in horror as far down below where he and Amore stood on the air, down in the crater, Rarity was being dragged ever closer to the Gates of Hell.

His Bankai just didn’t have anywhere near enough power to make a difference, so he had deactivated it, but he remained adamant about doing something. Yet Amore had no idea what could be done. Her own binding Kido had been all but useless on the Kushanada, and by now Amore could tell the individual power of each of those human girls readily surpassed many of the Captain’s, including herself.

“I don’t know, Blueblood. I don’t think there’s anything we can do.”

“I refuse to accept that! That young woman deserves far better from us than to simply give up! I may be the weakest of all Captains, and a sham of a man besides, but I will not just do nothing!” Blueblood said with such heated intensity it was hard not to agree, but Amore still couldn’t see what they were supposed to do.

“I agree with you, but we cannot stop the Gates,” she said, but then a sudden, mad light appeared in Blueblood’s eyes, and he grabbed her arm.

“Then we won’t stop them. If we can’t stop Rarity from being taken to Hell itself, then I will see to it she doesn’t face it alone. I’ll go with her.”

“Are you mad? Even if you tried, you might not get past the Kushanada,” Amore began to say, but Blueblood was already ahead of her.

“Enshroud me in a stealth Kido. I’m not skilled with them, but I know you are. You’re now Captain Luna or Daring Do, but I recall your Academy classes. You have the skill to cloak me.”

----------

“You’re kidding?” Luna said, “Blueblood, of all people? He did that?”

There was a collective air of understandable disbelief. For each Captain present they all had tales of Blueblood’s narcissistic tendencies, general laziness, and lack of exceptional ability outside of the area of being a pain in the ass. Talented or not, few present had ever considered him as having the qualities of a Captain, even if for one reason or another Scorpan had deigned to promote him to such a position.

To think that he’d willingly step into Hell itself for the sake of another was hard to swallow.

Cheese Sandwich scratched his head and sighed, “Well figure if anything was going to kick that boy’s butt into high gear, it was going to be a woman.”

“So you know for certain that he made it through the Gates?” Daring Do asked, “There aren’t many stealth oriented Kido that’d keep him obscured for long if he couldn’t keep the spell going himself.”

There was no sign of uncertainty on Amore’s waxen features as she responded, “Because I cast the spell, I and I alone could sense it, and I felt him go through the Gates along with Miss Rarity. I know it was a rash choice, for I cannot imagine how he might escape that place with her now, but I couldn’t deny the sincere desire he had to do something for that young woman and I... believe I agreed with him that we still owe those girls a debt that is yet to be repaid.”

“Hmph, I’d be more upset if it was someone with genuine combat prowess, but the loss of Blueblood pales in comparison to the loss of the Captain Commander,” Hurricane said, and Sweet Cider gave him a look as hard as a drawn blade.

“It was reckless o’ the boy, but brave, n’ ya’d better keep yer tone respectful, Hurricane.”

Before Hurricane could shoot back any number of barbed responses, Celestia’s own voice cut through the hall, like a hot flame, “We will not bicker among ourselves, not now of all times. Soul Society cannot afford us to be anything other than focused upon the task of protecting both this realm and the world of the living.”

“Agreed,” said Thunderhooves, voice rumbling, if still stricken with a strong undercurrent of grief, “The Captain Commander would quickly put us in our place if he saw us waver. By the law, he must be given funeral rites, and a successor chosen.”

“I...” Celestia’s mouth tasted like dry mud as she forced herself to speak, now very much understanding the massive weight she was about to place on herself. Cheese Sandwich saw her hesitance, and having known Scorpan’s plans quite well, he already knew what she was trying to say. Coming up next to her, he clapped a hand on her shoulder and put a reassuring if still troubled smile on his face.

“The Old Man put it on you, right? Knew he would.”

She saw that her fellow Captains all wore knowing looks. Even Hurricane, who looked least pleased by the notion, crossed his thickly muscled arms over his chest and gave a dour nod, “No point trying to deny it, Celestia. Everyone here, myself included, knew Captain Commander Scorpan was grooming you to take his place one day. Even if that day is today, under the worst circumstances, and entirely too soon.”

“Hurricane!” Luna snapped, “Do you doubt my sister’s ability?”

“I doubt many things about her, in fact,” Hurricane stated with blunt force and no shame on his face as he looked first to Luna, then Celestia, “I will not soften my words. I accepted Scorpan’s choice to pick you to eventually succeed him, but it is centuries too early for you to take the role of Captain Commander. You, who still fears your own power. You, who remains only halfway a part of our world, and barely understand the Beast Realm whose blood courses through your veins.”

“That is enough, Captain Hurricane,” Amore stated, moving to stand between him and Celestia, “There can be no doubt that Celestia is the Captain Commander’s choice of successor. Her heritage is irrelevant, and in all other ways she has sufficient experience to qualify-”

“No, he’s right,” Celestia said, to several shocked looks, especially from her sister and Hurricane himself.

“What are you saying, sister?” Luna said, and Celestia composed herself as she went back to where Scorpan’s blade lay shattered at the foot of the Captain Commander’s chair. She knelt next to it and laid a hand on the burned hilt.

“Hurricane is not wrong. I still lack the qualities needed to properly take on the role that Scorpan has now left vacant. I have feared my power for a long time, and the lack of control I have over the destruction it can bring. I also fear my bloodline, our bloodline, Lulu. For our entire lives we’ve struggled to control the beasts inside us, without ever confronting the origin of that power.”

She stood and turned to the whole hall, looking at her fellow Captains, “No more. I will take on the responsibility that the Captain Commander has left me. I will command the Gotei 13 to the best of my ability, but to do that I and my sister both must know more of our origins and gain true mastery of our Zanpaktou. The portal to Equestria now runs through the Beast Realm, and sooner or later Sunset Shimmer and her friends must pass through it. Probably sooner. That means the time to act is now. My sister and I must accompany them to the Beast Realm, where we can negotiate a treaty of passage with... our mothers.”

“But no Captain has entered the Beast Realm since the signing of the original non-intervention pact your father negotiated ages ago,” Thuderhooves said, “Even in regards to those human girls going through the portal there was great hesitance to consider sending a diplomatic delegation. We don’t know how the Beast Realm Clans will respond.”

“We will find out,” Celestia promised, “Because we must. Because if I am to assume the mantle of Captain Commander, I must confront and accept all of myself. I can only assume my sister feels the same way?”

Luna certainly looked nervous at the prospect, looking down at her own shadow for a moment before taking a deep breath and looking back up at her sister with a rueful twitch of a smile, “As if there is another choice? Of course I’ll be going with you, Tia.”

“Well, now that that is all settled, I suppose we’ll need to begin preparations for the Captain Commander’s funeral-” Starwswirl began to say, but then all of the Captains froze. Each of them felt it, the sudden, unbelievable massive spike of Hollow reiatsu that crashed down on their senses like a falling moon. There could be absolutely no doubt at all as to what, or who could generate such an immense and pervasive aura of Hollow power.

“Tirek...” Celestia breathed.

----------

He stood at the exit of his Garganta, which hung high in the sky, and looked down upon the vast, neatly ordered streets and structures of the Seireitei. He saw the rise of mountainous rock upon which the white washed towers and walls of the First Division headquarters were built, with the lonely Sogkyoku Hill protruding from the side like a fang of stone.

He looked at the wall encasing the Seireitei, and beyond its tightly controlled, orderly structure, the seemingly endless sprawl of the Rukongai Districts.

Tirek looked at it all, with the teeming masses of Soul Society scurrying below like worker ants, and a scowl printed itself on his face. His hatred for this place had not waned one whit in thousands of years. Billions of soft, weak souls living out a meek existence, just waiting to die again and reincarnate, so they could be born in a pathetically fragile mortal shell only to die once more and repeat the whole asinine process.

How his brother, or Glory ever considered this to be the ideal world was beyond baffling to him. For all of their talk of the terrible suffering Hollows endured in their endless hunger and struggles, Tirek could not see how this empty existence of eternal “peace” was in any way superior. At least Hollows were honest in their desires, hungers, and passions, and were free to pursue them as long as they had the strength to claim what they wanted through force.

It was an argument as old as time, and one he was quite tired of having. Was he no longer going to have to? He had come here for one reason alone, to confirm what he had felt just a short time ago. It seemed impossible, but with all that was going on, Tirek knew the impossible was indeed not so uncommon anymore. What was worse, the sensation in the pit of his stomach was very much like discomfort and... something else, something he hadn’t felt in a length of an eon.

He waited, alone. Chrysalis had wanted to come, but he’d tossed her right back out of the Garganta and told her to await his return.

He had nothing to fear from these people, especially if what he had felt turned out to be true.

The wait was not a long one. In a rush of wind and a buzzing of faint sound, he was surrounded by ten Captains of the Gotei 13. They formed a wide circle around him, all drawn Zanpaktou, all filling the air with their significant reiatsu.

Yet all combined, his own aura pushed back strongly against theirs, and he was not cowed. Tirek instead glared at them, while turning his scowl into a dark smile, “Such a greeting. At least you fools have the sense to not come at me alone or in small groups.”

“What are you doing here, Hollow?” spat a young buck that Tirek somewhat recognized as... what was his name? Hurricane? The one Torch was eager to fight again.

Tirek turned an eye towards the man, not even bothering to adopt a guarded posture, “That is Lord Tirek to you, boy. And I am here to ask a simple question; where is my brother?”

He sensed the quiver of unease and sorrow that passed through them. That alone was answer enough, and he felt that uncomfortable pit in his stomach grow, but he ignored it as a tall and admittedly beautiful woman with white skin and shimmering, multi-hued hair stepped forward with twin Zanpaktou naked in her hands. Celestia. Yes, he knew her. Chrysalis was fond of this one and her sister. From what Tirek understood, this one had power sufficient to perhaps be a worthy adversary, if she matured into it fully.

“How is it you know anything happened?” she asked, and Tirek scoffed at her.

“My brother and I share a connection older than any which you whelps have with him. The moment something occurred to him, I felt it. Now answer my question, before I wring it from your pretty throat.”

Celestia’s stare of adamant distaste did not wane in the slightest. “Captain Commander Scorpan... has fallen,” she said, barely containing a shimmer of tears in her eyes, but her face was a resolute mask of fury as she faced him, not backing down from his own menacing aura. Good. He liked that. “He was killed by the leader of the Zero Division.”

There was a long pause, then he slowly closed his eyes and nodded, as if it was the answer he was already expecting, “I see.”

Tirek was not prone to acts of extreme sentiment. Indeed there were few in existence who had ever earned his respect, regard, let alone a flicker of genuine care. Yet on that short list, his brother’s name had still sat at the top. Not for any lingering belief that they would ever reconcile their immense differences. No, Tirek had always known he and his brother’s story could only end one way.

He’d just always believed that the ending would be written by their own blades at each other’s throats, not like... like this.

“The fool...” he said, and turned to open a Garganta.

“Is that all you have to say!?” blurted another Captain. This one was orange, female, black hair. Tirek didn’t know her, or care. Just another one of the children his brother had tried to turn into worthy warriors, and failed. He looked at her with all the interest one might a cricket one found annoyingly chirping on the windowsill.

“What more needs to be said?” he replied, shrugging his broad shoulders.

“So you came all the way here to confirm your brother’s death,” said one Tirek did know. Starswirl was young yet in the days of the old wars between the gods, but Tirek was aware he’d been a brilliant mind even then. Grogar often commented that Starswirl was the only one who’s intellect rivaled his own. Starswirl didn’t sound angered or accusing, only calculating as he added, “Not that I am complaining if you merely leave, but I would think that given how long we’ve been your enemy, you’d take this opportunity to attack Soul Society.”

To this, Tirek just barked out a harsh laugh, one that hid the hint of pain underneath that he didn’t want to acknowledge.

“My brother was the only reason I considered you foolish children a remote threat. Sure, you provided decent sport for my Espada to cut their teeth on. You served, just as the Quincy served, as a means to separate wheat from chaff among my ranks. Now that he is... gone, you are quite right. I could demolish this fragile realm with relative ease.”

“Are you so sure about that?” said the loud one, Hurricane, “All of us together may well take you down.”

“He ain’t wrong,” spoke a woman whom Tirek found he rather liked the look of. Tall, muscly, red, with a giant sword. Definitely his type. According to reports, this one was probably the one wearing that silly ‘Kenpachi’ title. Might make her a worthwhile opponent for a bit. She was certainly looking as if she was willing to give him a go, which he appreciated. “If yer here alone, might be we could put a king sized dent in Las Noches here n’ now.”

Tirek turned from the Garganta he’d opened and threw his hands out in a welcoming gesture, looking over the assembled Captains in turn.

“You are all invited to try your luck,” he said with a loud and boisterous laugh, “I am in an exceptionally foul mood, and would welcome the sport. Who knows, you might even win if you’re willing to sacrifice most of your numbers and watch your precious Seireitei burn in the cataclysmic battle it would take to bring me low!”

There was no fabrication to his claim. Where these Captains to come at him with their full force and hold nothing back, it was conceivably possible that as a group they might overwhelm even him. More than half of them would no doubt die in the attempt, and if Tirek responded with his unrestrained might then the Seireitei and Rukongai Districts both would be reduced to ashen craters by the end of it. And Tirek did not fear that result. If he were to die, he had decided long ago it would be in battle against foes with enough strength and personal conviction to make the sacrifices necessary to kill him. He could ask for no better end, even if he did still desire to fulfill his ambition of making Hollows the dominant form of the soul in all realms.

He held himself ready, eyes challenging the Captains to dare come at him with steel bared. He could see them all hesitating, calculating, going through the mental hoops one by one as they weighed the possibility of eliminating one of their worst enemies versus the high price that would need to be paid to see it done.

To his disappointment, none of them attacked. Instead they looked at each other, and then mostly at Celestia. She, in turn, continued to give him a sour glare, but she sheathed her Zanpaktou. Soon after, most of the others did so as well, reluctantly. Only Hurricane and the Kenpachi kept their blades out. Smart, and Tirek did toy with the idea of attacking, just to blow off some steam, but no...

“I see my brother at least instilled a basic survival instinct in all of you,” he said, focusing on Celestia, “Fool that he was.”

“If you are going to begone from this place, then go. I will not stand here and listen to insults to the Captain Commander’s memory,” Celestia said, hurt and anger just barely controlled to a scathing edge. He looked her over for a moment, realizing something as he noted the intensity of her aura.

“Ah, so that’s it. You were his favorite, were you?” he said, and while Celestia opened her mouth to respond, he cut her off, “Let me tell you about my brother, since you will be making the poor attempt to fill his shoes. My brother was a sentimental idiot. An idealistic dreamer. When Glory betrayed us all and slew our Soul Queen, I told him what I witnessed! I spoke no lies, yet he refused to believe me, his own brother, over the fabrication that Glory fed him. He believed her, over me, because I was the supposed abomination who dared embrace the strength and truth of the Hollow way! Meanwhile what did he do? He chose to follow Glory’s way, and built that pathetic tapestry of lies that you call the Soul Society. For thousands of years he trained you little children in war, turned you into his personal army of moronic dreamers, supporting a lie by hunting and ‘purifying’ Hollows.”

He threw his head back and laughed. It was a laugh of pained bitterness, and he was only glad that any wetness he felt in his eyes was evaporated by his spiritual pressure long before he looked back at Celestia’s haunted, hurt features.

“Scorpan led you all in a fanciful dream, and now with his death, the dream dies with him! Glory and her so-called ‘Zero Division’ played you all for fools, and now you can sit in the empty bed of lies you all built. Let it burn, for all I care. My course is as set as it’s ever been. I shall lead my Hollows, the worthy souls, on a path of strength! We will devour all that we must, and gain power unimagined. Then it shall be I who cuts down the Gates of Heaven, razes the very walls of the Soul Palace... and when I cut off the heads of the Zero Division, you all had best hope I’ll be in a good enough mood to be satisfied by that and not come to sweep away the last remnants of Soul Society’s failures before I set the world on a more proper course.”

With those words still ringing in the air, the King of Hueco Mundo finished opening his Garganta and marked back into the void towards his desolate realm, leaving the Captains of the Gotei 13 to look on in muted unease.

----------

As tough as she wished to present herself as, and indeed as tough as she believed with confidence that she was, Rarity was already having difficulty with just handling the air of Hell. Her mouth was shockingly dry in such a short time, and she craved even a single drop of water to soothe the growing ache in her throat. How for granted she’d taken the simple luxury of being able to go grab a bottle of water or fill a cup from a faucet whenever she pleased. It was only a few hours since she’d crossed the Gates and met her new “friends”, but the growing sensation of thirst and hunger were a keen reminder that in this place there was no means by which to satiate either.

“Not true!”

The contrast between horrific burn tissue and bright pink, grinning face was remarkable on Cozy Glow as she hopped down from the ledge of one of the nearby white blocks of stone she’d been using to scout the route ahead and stared Rarity right in the face.

“P-pardon?” Rarity said, glancing between the odd young girl and her companion. For his part, Sunburst looked on from a ways down a side passage through the labyrinth where he’d been keeping watch for Kushanada, and gave Rarity a knowing yet enigmatic shrug.

Cozy Glow on the other hand stuck out her tongue and pointed at it, her words slurred as she did so, “Yur thunking abut hoo thurfsty yu ur!”

Parsing out the words, Rarity grimaced, but swiftly schooled her face to stone, “How would you know what I’m thinking? Is mind reading a power granted by your stay in Hell?”

“Pfffft! Of course not, silly!” Cozy Glow waved a hand while giving off a slightly manic smile. She poked a finger at Rarity’s chest, the chains around the tiny girl’s arms clinking ever so faintly, “It’s easy to tell. I’ve seen it so many times. These first few days are gonna be super rough on you. You’re one of those people who come from a really nice place, aren’t you? One of those countries with plenty of food, water, electricity, warmth, all that nice stuff you’ve never had to go a serious day without.”

“I... confess I am fortunate to have been born in such a place,” Rarity admitted, “And I suppose it’d be foolish of me to deny that the prospect of dealing with constant thirst and starvation is hardly a pleasant one. But I won’t break from it that easily.”

“That’s what everybody thinks,” Cozy Glow tittered, but then her tone grew more like that of a saddened parent who knew their child was about to have a bad first day at school, hands planted on hips as she shook her head, “The gnawing hasn’t even set in yet. The real agony. Look, you may not get this, but I’m trying to help you when I say...” Cozy Glow’s one good eye when utterly flat, like glass, “Don’t try to tough it out. The harder you try to act tough, the worse it hurts.”

“My apologies, but I’m afraid I don’t do ‘giving up’ very well at all,” Rarity said, knowing she probably sounded stubborn, but she didn’t care, “I have no intention of allowing this place to break me. I’ve felt pain before. I can endure whatever I must to return to my friends.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Cozy Glow hung her head and then threw her hands up with a devil-may-care smile, “Well golly, at least I tried to warn you! Heheh, I actually kind of admire this fresh spirit you’ve got, Rarity. You’re like virgin snow right before two armies rip each other to bloody shreds over it.”

“Cozy, are you done trying to scare her?” Sunburst asked, and Cozy Glow waved him off.

“Oh give me a break, Sunny! I don’t get to have this kind of fun very often, so let me tease the new girl, will you? Besides, I'm giving her honest advice. You know how bad the first week here is for people like her. I want to at least try to mentally prep her before we get to Tartarus.”

“Tartarus?” Rarity said. She’d heard the name not only in regards to its roll in Greek Mythology, but in some of the few times the Twilight from Equestria had visited, Rarity recalled some vague mentions of that same name.

Sunburst looked to Cozy Glow, who gave an ‘after you’ gesture to him in clear indication he ought to explain, so he cleared his throat and approached Rarity. Kneeling down he used a thin, bony finger to point at the stone floor of the confined corridor. Flame built at the tip of that finger in a solid amber orb, and he used it like a miniature blowtorch to etch onto the stone, creating a simple map. First he created a basic disc upon which there were small blocks, and a skeletal gate hanging over it. Rarity watched in silence, doing her best not to stare too hard at him. She’d thus far kept secret the fact that she knew who he was, because she wasn’t certain at all that either he or Cozy Glow were particularly trustworthy yet. Sure, they were helping her for now, but Rarity intended to keep her guard up. Besides, she wasn’t sure how Sunburst might react to hearing about Starlight Glimmer and all she’d been up to since he was brought to Hell.

“This is the First Layer, where all Sinners first appear after being condemned to be in Hell,” he said, and proceeded to carefully control his flames to etch out more layers, one after another. He only added details to the second and third layer, however. The second layer he drew what looked like a lake or ocean with some kind of mountain in the center, while on the third he created what looked like a series of layered plateaus, between which was some kind of cavern system.

“Each Layer has entry Gates, a lot like the ones that dragged you here. Only these Gates are always open, and are placed randomly. They even shift positions from time to time, which is why scouting missions like what me and Cozy Glow do are important, so we Sinners can keep tabs on how to move between the Layers.”

“Are they guarded?” Rarity inquired, and Cozy Glow gave a small whistle.

“Oooh, you’re sharp. Knew I liked you for a reason. Yup, the Gates are guarded, usually by at least one or two Kushanada. Tough to fight, but you can run past them as long as you know how to decoy them off,” Cozy Glow giggled again, “The Kushanada are powerful, but not the brightest.”

“Ahem,” Sunburst coughed, and pointed at the cavern on the Third Layer, “To answer your question, Rarity, Tartarus is the name the Sinners gave to the cave system that runs through the plateaus on the Third Layer. It’s one of the few places in Hell the Kushanada can’t go, and so we built a... well I hesitate to call it a ‘city’, but it’s basically where a lot of Sinners choose to live.”

This made Rarity confused ‘hmph’ and tapped her fingers on her arms, “Wait, I don’t understand. I was under the impression that the Kushanada are what hunt Hell’s occupants continuously, killing them over and over until our souls are broken down from despair. If there is a place they can’t go, doesn’t that defeat the purpose of Hell?”

Cozy gave her such a wide and unsettling smile that it almost caused Rarity to want to back up, but she held the girl’s gaze as Cozy said, “Very sharp, but think about it. Carefully. How big is Tartarus? How many Sinners are in Hell? What is worse than a Kushanada? What could give even more despair than thoughtless, giant, killing machines, hmm?”

Sunburst had gained a somewhat sickened look, his eyes sunken, “I’ll spare you Cozy’s mind game and just flat out say it; Tartarus is a double edged sword. Yes, we’re safe there from Kushanada. But space is limited, resources even more limited, and... well, some say that Hell is other people. In a place were thousands of Sinners gather, it can be just as bad, if not worse, than dealing with the Kushanada.”

“Ooooh it’s such a clever trap!” Cozy Glow exclaimed like someone who’d found a new toy, she even spun and danced around, hugging herself, “So beautiful, the simplicity of it! One place in all of Hell the Kushanada cannot go, so of course all of the Sinners go there, thinking of safety! Hahaha! And then what do they do? Oh, what human nature demands! They turn on each other! Make life miserable for one another! Inevitably some are driven out, prefering to face the Kushanada than to have to deal with their fellow ‘human beings’. Hah, Tartarus is a city of beasts in human skin, and it’s just oh so much fun.”

Rarity looked aghast, her already dry mouth practically turning into a desert, “And we’re going there? Intentionally?”

“It’s not quite as bad as it sounds,” Sunburst said in a less than reassuring voice, “Granted it is chaotic, violent, and basically filled with gangs of Sinners fighting daily turf wars, but there’s a few areas of order there, too. Mostly because of her.”

He nodded at Cozy Glow, and the burned girl held up her head, “Don’t go besmirching me by calling it ‘order’. I just make sure the dumbest morons in the gangs don’t get too uppity with me and mine. If anyone can’t keep up, they get cut loose, you know that.”

“I don’t quite understand. Are you in charge of some kind of gang?” Rarity pressed, to which Cozy Glow snickered deeply, and the chains around her arm quivered, growing small sets of razor blades. The chains rose like snakes around her and flowed in a sudden, sharp dance, and nearby a stone block fell apart into dozens of neatly cut pieces.

“I don’t run a ‘gang’, Rarity, I run the gang. The strongest in Hell. The Legion. I like to go out and play among the Layers, but back home in Tartarus, I’m at the top of the pile of corpses. Lucky you I picked you up, right!? Hah! Of course if you can’t cut the mustard, you’re free to go figure things out for yourself, but if I like you and you prove yourself useful, you’ll find the Legion is as comfy as it gets in Hell.”

She licked brought her chains around her like a cloak and petted them like loyal hounds, “Just don’t get on my bad side. Speaking of which-”

One of her chains moved in a serpent strike that lashed past Rarity and struck a spot on the wall some meters behind her. When it did, the chain seemed to vanish into the air with a breaking noise like glass, and some of the air in front of the wall gained shattered cracks like a mirror. There was a masculine “Urk!” from within, and suddenly the chain dragged backwards, hauling a form out of a pocket area that had been camouflaged like a perfect mirror. This area broke apart into fragments of reishi, and this figure, a man Rarity quickly recognized, was pulled in front of Cozy Glow, who had a dozen other bladed chains poised to spear at the man in moments.

“-some asshole has been tailing us since we picked you up, Rarity. Hello, gorgeous. Want go straight to telling us who you are, or do I get to cut on you for a while first? I’m good, either way.”

“G-get off of me you cretinous, abominable little tart!” shouted Blueblood, trying to reach for his Zanpaktou, “If you hurt Lady Rarity, I swear on my bloodline that you shall pay the price!”

“Oh that’s funny. You hear that Sunny? He’s a Rarity fanboy! Rarity, you know this smooth skinned piece of meat?” asked Cozy Glow, then blinked as at a speed faster than her own chains had moved, a whirlpool of blood had appeared from Rarity’s summoned rose, and a full set of a dozen thin bladed sabers of crimson crystal hovered around her.

“I do,” Rarity said, voice flat, “Now do please let him up gently, because I’d hate to have to do something unmentionable to a child your age. However, I suspect in this place that age is irrelevant, and violence a currency I’ll need to get used to spending more often to get what I want.”

Cozy looked back at her with a sparkle of glee in her eyes as she smiled wide and retracted her chains, hands held up like a kid pulling her hand away from the cookie jar, “Look at you, taking a level in no-bullshitery. And you’re worried about Tartarus? Sounds to me like you’ve got just the right attitude to fit in. So fast on the draw, too.”

Rarity nodded her head in polite acknowledgement, and withdrew her constructs back to the whirlpool, which flowed back into her rose and then vanished once more. She didn’t bother with her army’s gate, as something that huge would have given away their position to the Kushanada. Besides, she just wanted to make a point to Cozy that she wasn’t helpless. She stood and extended a hand down to the haggard looking Blueblood, honestly shocked to see him.

“Captain Blueblood, of all people you are the last I expected to see here,” she said as he took her hand and she pulled him to his feet, “Whatever in the world are you doing here?”

One of his hands still kept close to his Zanpaktou as he gave Sunburst and Cozy Glow looks of exceeding distrust and equal distaste, but he cleared his throat and bowed to Rarity, “My lady, I simply couldn’t bear to stand by as you bravely sacrificed yourself to ensure your friends were not brought to Hell alongside you. I had Captain Amore place a Kido on me to hide my presence and went through the Gates after you. After that I, um, well I kind of lost track of you for a bit when you fled the Kushanada. Fortunately I was able to pick up your faint reiatsu again, and followed it until I found you here with these two... individuals. I decided to wait and listen to determine if you were in danger before acting, but then, well...”

“I smelled your cheap cologne and snatched you right out of your hiding spot,” Cozy used one of her chains to wave at him, “And then bam, here you are, and we’re all caught up.”

“What was that!? My cologne is anything but cheap, you four foot tall trollop!” Blueblood barked, and Cozy Glow threw a rude middle-fingered gesture at him quite inappropriate for an apparent twelve or thirteen year old.

“I’ve literally smelled better at the worst slaughter pits in Hell, buddy. But whatever, if you’re a Soul Reaper, then oh man are you screwed.”

“Screwed?” Blueblood blinked, and Cozy Glow nodded.

“Totally screwed.”

“Screwed how, precisely?” Rarity asked, and Sunburst was the one to answer, and for once he wore an expression not of his customary exhaustion or dour stoicism. No, looking at Blueblood, at his black Soul Reaper robes and white Captain’s haori, there was a hot flame of genuine hate in Sunbrust’s eyes. His voice was still calm and controlled, but Rarity heard the scathing acid in it.

“There isn’t a Sinner here who’s going to see a Soul Reaper as anything but a target of revenge. We’re all here because of them, after all. But that’s not the part that’s going to screw this guy over. Since he came here on his own, instead of being consigned by a Konso ritual, he doesn’t have any chains. He’s not connected to Hell’s spiritual essence.”

Rarity glanced at Blueblood, who wore an uncomprehending look. She didn’t fully understand either, although she had noticed that since her arrival there was a faint weight around her arms and legs. They were all but invisible if she didn’t pay them any mind, but there were a few translucent chains attached to her. They didn’t interfere with her movement, and she couldn’t grasp where they trailed off to. It was as if they simply vanished into thin air after a few feet, but the chains of Hell were firmly upon her, embedded in her very soul.

No such chains were on Blueblood. “I still don’t follow,” she said, “Would not him lacking these chains be a good thing?”

Cozy Glow was the one to speak this time, giggling as she so often seemed to do, “Oh sure, if you had a way out. These chains mean that even if we escape Hell, we’d get dragged back eventually. A lot of Sinners dream of breaking them. But there are benefits to them, as you’ve already seen.” She raised her hand and spun her chains around her in a swift dance, like iron cobras, “The chains connect us Sinners to Hell’s essence. Through our will and hatred, they grant us power. Sunbrust has his flames. I command the chains themselves. Other Sinners get different abilities. But more importantly, the chains are what allow us to regenerate after being ‘killed’. No matter how bad the damage, the chains pump more of Hell’s essence into us, and our bodies regrow. Except Captain Boy here doesn’t have that.”

“So... if I die here,” Blueblood said, piecing it together with a dawning look of gulping worry, “It shall be quite permanent?”

“Yup!” Cozy Glow smiled brightly, like a shark, “And if you die here, don’t think you’ll just pop into the reincarnation cycle, Captain Boy. You’ll be dead dead. Super murdered. Extra overmaximum corpsified. Still glad you jumped into Hell to chase a bit of ass?”

Blueblood took this news with a slow intake of breath, and a look at Rarity that he held for a good long moment before letting said breath out and giving a firm nod, “I am, in fact. There is nowhere I wish to be at this moment other than by Lady Rarity’s side, ensuring she has every opportunity to escape this unjust punishment that has been laid upon her.”

She heard no lie or lack of sincerity in his words, and she wasn’t sure if that was encouraging or mortifying. But she was grateful that he was here, if now also rather concerned. “Thank you, but you did hear what they just said? You must promise me to be extremely careful from now on, Captain Blueblood. I’ll not have your death on my conscience. We will escape this place together.”

“So you do intend to seek escape?” asked Sunburst, eyes narrowing in intense interest, “What makes you think it’s possible?”

“There must be a way,” Rarity said, “If there is a way in, ergo there is a way out, even if that way out is to break through the very Gates that brought us here.”

“People have been trying to get out of here forever,” Cozy Glow said, shrugging, “And just as many have given up. You want to try, have at it, but you won’t get far without support. Look, I don’t give the slightest crap about the Soul Reaper, but you’re a nice find, Rarity. How about you at least come to Tartarus with me and Sunny, see if the Legion is to your liking. Worst comes to worst, you can skedaddle with your boy toy here and do whatever you like, if it turns out you don’t like what I can offer.”

“Are you seriously considering making common cause with people such as this?” Blueblood asked her, and Rarity simply looked back at him with a firmness in her expression that brooked no argument.

“I am. I will do whatever I have to. Will that be a problem?”

“...None, my lady,” he said, settling the matter.

----------

For a time, Sunset Shimmer lost track of herself. She never fully lost consciousness, so she was generally aware of being carried back into Discord’s shop. She remembered catching sight of the city streets before that, of seeing people laying unconscious on the sidewalk or in stores, of crashed cars and police sirens. Had she done that? How much reiatsu had escaped into the city, overwhelming the people.

Yes, battles had taken place around the city before, but none with reiatsu levels akin to what the Zero Division had put out, and she herself had used well beyond her full force against Bowtie, too enraged to think about the consequences. There hadn’t even been any protective wards put up.

Shame hit her as she fell into a brief malaise of painkillers and medication from Discord’s treatment as she was taken into a room she hadn’t seen before. It was a sterile place, with the same square mat floors and wood paneled walls she was used to seeing, but with brighter fluorescent lighting and a number of beds situated along one wall. A set of steel tables and medical equipment filled another wall, and on the end opposite the door she noticed a series of metal tubes connected ceiling to floor amid monitoring equipment. She was set up in one of the beds. Her entire right side was covered in bandages that in turn had talisman with kanji written upon them pinned to her with thin red needles. Her right arm up to the shoulder was encased in a wooden construct of interconnected slates that made it look like a robotic cast. The interior was lined with some kind of soft, organic material, and a thick green fluid was pumped into it via tubes that bathed her whole arm in soothing energy.

Sunset hadn’t kept track of the time, but her friends had stayed with her for awhile, talking softly, although she couldn’t remember what they were saying. The medication put her mind in a thick fog, not quite enough to knock her out, but to make her sense of events more than a tad muddled. Now that she was getting her senses back in order, she coughed past a brick dry mouth and noticed that on a small table next to her bed, there was already a large cup of ice water waiting for her.

Not questioning, she drank it down after managing to get herself sitting upright. Her motions, or the shift in her reiatsu perhaps, must have alerted someone, because Discord entered the room before she was done drinking. He didn’t look too worse for wear, but Sunset didn’t fail to notice the weary set of his shoulders even as he wore one of his customary enigmatic smiles upon seeing her up.

“I’m pleased to see you’re already feeling better,” he said, and Sunset coughed a bit as she finished her water and set the glass aside.

“Better is relative,” she said, hesitant as her chest still clenched in shame, “How is... the city? I saw a lot of people out in the street, on the ground.”

Sympathy and understanding was in his eyes, tempered by steady current in his voice, “No one suffered permanent harm. I’ve had Screwloose and Screwball double checking much of the city to ensure this. As it turns out, our intrepid young Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were already taking care of the citizenry before things finished up with Zero Division’s little visit.”

“Is that what we’re calling this?” Sunset asked, grateful to hear no innocent civilians were killed, but pretty sure Discord was leaving out any mention of injuries that were suffered. After all, he just said no ‘permanent’ harm was done. That meant plenty of temporary harm had occurred, partially due to her own lack of self control. Still, the anger burned in her, too. The memory of Rarity's face as the Gates of Hell closed was a hot poker in her mind, but Sunset kept a firm grip on that anger for now. “Glory and her flunkies waltzed right into our home, our city, and did as they pleased. We could barely fight back. If Scorpan and that Quincy King weren’t here... wait...”

She looked at Discord, “Do we know what happened to Glory and Scorpan? They vanished in the middle of the fight.”

She was not comforted by the troubled look that clouded Discord’s face for a moment as she asked that. “It’s only been a few hours, and Clover has already departed to check in with Soul Society. Hopefully she’ll be able to contact us soon with an update, but until then we’re in the dark.”

He may not have shared his fears directly with his words, but she could read the tension in his voice and the uncharacteristic uncertainty in the old shopkeeper’s eyes. “What are the odds that Scorpan could have beaten Glory?”

“If I was forced to place a bet on the outcome, I’d be taking quite the risk to place my chips on Scorpan, unfortunately,” Discord said, then he went and turned so he could lean sidelong against the foot of her bed, “That said, it’s not inconceivable that he could have won. Regardless, we won’t know for a time, yet. It was far more important to get you and Ditzy Doo tended to, medically speaking. Oh, and securing our prisoner.”

“Prisoner?”

“Oh yes, credit is due to Third Seat Clover on that count,” Discord said, “Sure, Screwloose and Screwball helped, and Ditzy delivered the final blow, but by all accounts Clover set things up admirably for a servant of the Zero Division to be defeated and taken captive by us. An ‘Attendant’ named Bubbles who serves Minty. She’s being placed in a properly secure cell in my dungeo...er, ‘containment facility’.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow at his air quotes, “You know, you can just admit you’ve got a dungeon. I would neither be surprised, nor judge, for that matter.”

“Oh in that case, yes, I very much have a dungeon. Multi-purpose, very secure, and about as impregnable as I can make any place. Granted this is a Zero Division Attendant, but it should serve to keep her in one spot.”

“Should I even ask what an ‘Attendant’ is? Also is keeping one of the Zero Division’s servants prisoner smart? Won’t they come looking for her?”

Discord nodded, “I imagine Minty will miss Bubbles soon enough, but even if we keep her just a short time, I can likely extract some useful information from her. As to what Attendants are, the name says it all, really. They are special among the souls chosen by Zero Division to personally attend to the needs of their patron, and given additional power to perform their duties. From what I have heard, Bubble’s task was to prevent people from fleeing the shop.”

Sunset rubbed at her head, suppressing a groan, “Great. So we don’t just have the five Big Bads to worry about, but an unknown number of super-powered groupies that serve them? How much worse can this get, Discord? We’ve lost Rarity, Zero Division has proven it can come in and manhandle us anytime they want, we don’t know if Scorpan is alive or dead, and... and I don’t know what we’re going to do about any of it.”

“The first thing you’re going to do is get some rest,” Discord stated simply, “You’re injuries aren’t something to walk off, Sunset Shimmer.”

She could feel that, both physically and spiritually. Even if the pain was kept to a distant, dull roar from the medication and healing fluids of her cast, she still had this gnarled and rough sensation of uneven flesh along her arm. Internally she felt drained, even burned to some degree, even if there was still a warm pulsing from her spiritual core... and also from where she still felt the Hogyoku resting against her chest.

“How bad is it?” she asked, and tried to give off at least a somewhat forced, joking smile, “I didn’t completely ruin my good looks, did I? Should I start shopping for opera masks to wear?”

“Hmph, at least you can joke about it, which I shall take as a positive sign,” Discord replied, pointing with his cane at the covered side of her face, “Luckily the scar tissue is repairable, especially around your face, which was not as bad as your arm. You’ll have some discoloration on the arm and hand, which even my skills won’t be able to fully repair. But you’ll have full function in a few days time, but keep the cast on until then. Handling the black flames to that extent, you could have killed yourself, you know that, yes?”

“I... yeah,” Sunset said, and noticed she didn’t so Hokori no Hikari anywhere, “Where is my Zanpaktou?”

Discord nodded to one of the metal tubes, snapping a finger and causing the tube to open on one side. Inside was a glass window showing that within the tube, Sunset’s Zanpaktou was floating suspended in a field of blue spiritual energies fed in by various tubes.

“You’re fortunate you have such a resilient blade. Bankai are usually rather... temperamental in terms of the damage they can take, but yours is all but designed to withstand punishment. Must be a trait the Zanpaktou spirits share with their wielder,” he smirked at her, “I’m helping Hokori no Hikari recover, but quite frankly you and your sword spirits need to have a long talk with one another. They’re a tad upset with you.”

“I don’t blame them,” Sunset said, “I kind of screwed up back there, didn’t I?”

“I wouldn’t be too hard on yourself,” Discord said, reaching out and patting her good hand. She almost pulled back from the gesture, if only because she wasn’t used to it, but she soon relaxed, letting herself just briefly appreciate the comfort. Discord’s eyes were understanding, if a tad haunted. “I know what you’ve just gone through. What all of your friends have gone through. I’m sorry. Truly sorry. I should have been there to protect her, but I failed Rarity, just as I failed Starlight and Sunburst long ago...”

“No,” she said, grasping his hand now in a gesture of return comfort, “This isn’t your fault. Zero Division did this, and mark my words, they’ll regret it before this is all said and done. I... damnit all, part of me doesn’t want to say this, but I feel like I get Starlight a little better now. How she must have felt back then, when her friend was taken. I... I’m still so angry, Discord.”

“I know,” he said, voice soft as a feather, “And even if you say it is not my fault, I still accept partial responsibility. For Starlight, and for you. These are burdens none of you girls should have been forced to bear, and it remains my failure to prevent it. All I can do now try to help you set it all right, whatever the final cost ends up being.”

“This better not be you setting yourself up to die down the road, because I will kick your ass if you try to sacrifice yourself at any point before this is over, old man,” she said, giving him a very stern look while still managing a smile. He held his hand over his heart with a look of mock mortification.

“Self sacrifice? Me? Perish the thought. There’s a whole world of discovery and creation for me to get to once this business is settled, and I’d hate to miss seeing just what you girls will do with your lives when you’re free of this war.”

That did remind Sunset, so she reached with her good hand into her shirt and withdrew the small gem of the Hogyoku. It was still very much the same pulsing color of deep dark blue and sparkling lights, but within it Sunset could pick out other lights of color dancing about, some she recognized. “On the note of your creations, when I was trying to cut Rarity free, some kind of energy from the chains was absorbed into this. I also felt it absorbing energy from my friends when they pulled me back from Bowtie.”

Discord looked at the Hogyoku with intense curiosity, and held out a hand. Sunset put the gem in his palm, and he held it between thumb and forefinger, examining it closely. “Interesting. The effect on your friends I expected. The Hogyoku is designed to break down barriers between souls and generate the ability for different souls to resonate with each other and gain power from one another. You and your friends are already so in sync in terms of your spirits, the Hogyku is only going to enhance the power that’s already there. But Hell’s very chains responded to you...? Quite unexpected.”

“Uhhh, okay, but is it dangerous? What is having some Hell power in there going to do to me? Or us, for that matter, since my friends are connected to this too?”

“If I knew more of Hell I could probably tell you, but as it stands I’m still studying what information Ditzy Doo brought from Soul Society. That said, it doesn’t feel as if very much energy was absorbed, so it probably won’t be too much of a problem.”

He handed the Hogyoku back to her, and she looked at it with some brief trepidation before shrugging and putting it back to it’s comfy spot nestled in her chest. “Well, if I start growing horns and red skin again, guess I’ll worry about it then. So do I have to keep sitting here in bed for now, or can I at least get to walking around?”

“I would prefer you stay resting for a bit longer, but you should be fine to leave before morning. I’ll let your friends know you’re awake. Twilight is especially eager to speak with all of you.”

“She’s still here?” Sunset said, “I would have thought her and that Sombra guy would’ve gone back to the Quincy’s territory by now.”

“As it happens the Quincy have remained here for the time being,” Discord explained, not sounding completely pleased with the fact, “It seems King Sombra wishes to speak with you as well, although I’m uncertain what about.”

“Heh, well aren’t I popular?” Sunset said with a sigh, “Wonder what he wants?”

Just then a knock came at the door, and without waiting for an answer, Screwball’s head popped in around the edge of the door. “Boss, me and Screwloose are back, and there’s something we found that you might wanna come see!”

Discord frowned, “What is it, precisely?”

“Yeeeeah, this might be something you want to look at, instead,” Screwball replied, “I got no clue what to make of this.”

Sunset watched Discord lean off her bed and begin to head for the door, and despite his words that she ought to stay in bed, she couldn’t help herself. Throwing off the covers, she swung out of the bed and got up on unsteady legs. Her whole right side gave off a twinge of pain that seeped past the medication, but she forced herself to ignore it, “Hold up, I’m coming too.”

Discord looked back at her with a worried and disapproving frown, but seeing her determined eyes, he just nodded and she followed him and Screwball out into the hall. She heard her friends talking a few rooms down the hall, and wanted to go see them, but Screwball was leading Discord in the opposite direction towards the shop front, so Sunset followed. Whatever this was, it didn’t sound dangerous, otherwise Screwball would’ve sounded more scared or freaked out rather than just... confused?

She desperately wanted to see her friends, to work out what to do about Rarity, but first things first.

Screwball led her and Discord right out through the shop’s storefront and into the courtyard entryway. There was still a crater from the battle with Bubbles, not to mention a partially smashed warehouse. Sunset could sense that Discord’s wards that she had destroyed were placed back up, so it made sense that the warehouse, which was within the wards, had drawn no attention from the normal populace outside. To normal human eyes the building would still look intact.

However the damage didn’t draw Sunset’s attention for long, because waiting in the courtyard was Screwloose, who was standing in front of quite the unusual sight.

First, was the dead dragon. Or at least Sunset assumed the dragon was dead, what with all of the wounds, bullet holes, burn marks, and the significant portion of its green scaled chest that was blown out and smoking.

Next to the corpse were a number of individuals that she recognized.

First was Wallflower, who was ashen faced and terrified as she looked between everyone with water filled eyes. Keeping watch on her was Screwloose, who was also eying the other people present with a look of amusement.

Next to her was Bon Bon, wearing a rather nice green suit that Sunset had never seen the girl wear before. Also for some very odd reason Bon Bon had a leather satchel at her side that was filled with... threads and needles? Yet stranger still was the presence of two other girls she vaguely recognized from school. She didn’t know either very well, but it was hard not to recall some of Canterlot High School’s most prominent music prodigies, especially given Sunset and her friends also played music on the regular.

Vinyl Scratch was wearing her usual neon purple, wide shades on her snow white face, all framed by bright multi-hued hair of short cut, wild blues. Like Bon Bon, she had a green suit on, although sporting a red and black plaid skirt and knee high black boots. Sheathed in a leather belt at her side was some kind of odd object that looked like a cross between a pistol and a bright purple metallic horn with a neon musical note etched into the handle, and a “barrel” that appeared to be made out of several stereo speaker mufflers impaled along the barrel’s thin length.

She was standing with hands laced behind her head as she nodded to a beat from headphones, tapping her boots and generally ignoring the girl next to her, who was speaking rather firmly at Screwloose right as Sunset, Discord, and Screwball arrived.

“-we are under no obligation to reveal anything at all without authorization. This is a waste of time, and even if you helped us with the Dragon, that hardly means that...”

This girl trailed off as she saw Discord and Sunset, and she clammed up. She was taller than Vinyl Scratch, with smoky gray skin and long, well maintained black hair. Her eyes were a dark violet, and had a haughty, but intelligent keenness to them. Like Vinyl she wore a green suit with red and black plaid dress, although she wore black stockings and smaller shoes, rather than boots. At her hip was holstered a similar object that had a vague gun-like shape, but this was dark brown wood polished bright and with a “barrel” that was as if someone had taken a cello bow and placed it strings up across the top of the “gun”. Sunset had no idea what Octavia was doing here any more than Vinyl was, and she spent a few seconds just blinking at them and Bon Bon, with Wallflower still crying behind them next to the corpse of the car-sized green dragon.

Discord cleared his throat and said, “Welcome to my shop, ladies. Now does anyone wish to explain to me what is going on?”

Vinyl just shrugged and jabbed a thumb back at Wallflower. Meanwhile Octavia crossed arms firmly beneath her chest and glared, saying, “That is classified.”

Bon Bon then groaned aloud, “Oh for goodness sake! Octavia, we literally have a dead Dragon on our hands, and this place just got nuked by enough spiritual pressure to light up half the planet! We’re a bit beyond ‘classified’ right now!”

“Protocol demands-” Octavia began, but Bon Bon just groaned again and strode past her, planting herself in front of Discord.

“Look, we know something major just went down here, Discord, and as you can probably tell by the ten ton magical reptile sitting dead over there, something else major happened at the same time while you guys were busy dealing with whatever the hell happened here. Now maybe you’ve heard of Wing Bind before or maybe you haven’t. Maybe I’m about to get in a whole buttload of trouble with my superiors for even talking to you. But far as I’m concerned we’re all a little past secrecy. If you’re cool with it, I’d like to compare notes on your situation versus our situation and see if any dots get connected.”

Discord leaned on his cane and looked Bon Bon over with a look that said he wasn’t half as surprised to see her or the other girls here, or even the dragon for that matter, “Yes, I imagine an info swap could prove fruitful. As you suspected, I am aware of your organization, Miss Bon Bon. I didn’t know it had so many agents in town, let alone ingrained in Canterlot High's student body, but as you have noticed, I’ve been rather busy for the past few months with affairs a little outside Wing Bind’s... purview.”

“Uh, hey Bon Bon,” Sunset said, “Is this going to be one of those situations where I find out somebody I knew is somehow connected to some super secret spiritual faction I never heard of before? Because I already went through that with Twilight, so honestly not going to be all super shocked. Just noting I don’t see Lyra here, and you two usually are pretty tight...”

Bon Bon looked away from Sunset for a moment, although she had been giving Sunset’s bandaged up state and odd wooden arm cast a concerned look. “Lyra doesn’t know, if that’s what you were wondering. As for the details, we’ll get to that. First, you okay? You look like you just got put through the wringer. You're literally a walking cartoon cliché with all the mummified bandages right now.”

“I'll live, but things... sucked here,” Sunset admitted, “It’s over for now, but to put it mildly, things got real here today. My friends and I got a lot on our plate. I almost want to just tell you and your pals here to take that dragon somewhere else, maybe dump it in the forest, and come back next week with whatever this is. But, I see Wallflower is with you, and I want to make sure she’s okay. Did she end up as a bystander again?”

“It’s... more complicated than that,” Bon Bon said, and Octavia made a grunting noise like a hose sucking air.

“Bon Bon, we really shouldn’t say more, especially without authorization.”

“I don't know what's going on!” Wallflower suddenly burst out, stumbling to her feet and coming forward, looking at Sunset with hard, gulping breaths, “I don’t know why the dragon came after me!”

“It was after you?” Sunset didn’t hesitate to go up and do her best to give Wallflower comfort with an arm around the shoulders, letting the girl lean on her a bit as she cast a questioning look at Bon Bon, Vinyl, and Octavia.

Vinyl shrugged without a word, just kicking a rock towards the dead dragon, while Octavia bit her lip and muttered, “We cannot confirm that. It did appear as if the Dragon was targeting this girl, but it could have been pure coincidence, or simply the beast being hungry and aiming for what seemed to be easy prey.”

“I don’t buy that,” Bon Bon stated, “The thing was already tracking her by the time you and Vinyl were in position to maintain surveillance on Wallflower, and before we killed it the thing shouted something about ‘Ragnarok’. Not at all normal hunting behavior we’ve seen in the past.”

“Whoa whoa, slow down here,” Sunset said, “So you... Wing Bind people have fought dragons before?”

“Dragons, capital ‘D’, as in the kind that seep in from the Beast Realm, among other things,” Bon Bon replied, “Wing Bind is... well I can’t get into it while standing around here. How about we get this all situated inside?”

“And I still need to contact our superior officer,” Octavia stated bluntly, “She requires an update, and quite frankly ‘Bon Bon’, you’ve pushed the limit already.”

“Fine, contact away, but the cat was already out of the bag when Discord’s people found us,” Bon Bon said, gesturing at Screwball and Screwloose, the latter giving a wave.

Octavia in the meantime had pulled out a small cell phone and was already speaking with someone on it. “Ma’am, it’s agent Philharmonica. Yes, I’m afraid so, ma’am. It was agent Sweetie Drops’ insistence. ...Yes, the target is unharmed. Wait, are you certain, ma’am? I... yes, yes of course, just a moment.”

With an irritable grimace, Octavia handed the phone towards Bon Bon, who took it and cleared her throat, “Ahem, hey ma’am, I-...yeeeeeah, figured with everything that happened there wasn’t much point trying to hide it. Ugh, c’mon ma’am, at least let me sit in on it! I owe Sunset and the gals at least that much. Okay, okay, orders received. We’ll be back soon.”

She tossed the phone back to Octavia and looked to Sunset with an apologetic, downcast sigh, “Our boss has ordered us to get our butts back to base ASAP. We’re to leave Wallflower here in your custody for now, assuming you want her.”

“I do believe we can take care of Miss Wallflower,” Discord stated, “Did your ‘boss’ mention anything else?”

“She’ll be paying you visit later, after things have settled down. I don't know if she'll share any information with you or just make it a courtesy call, but I've been specifically ordered to keep my mouth shut until after she's spoken with all of you,” Bon Bon said, and specifically met Sunset’s eyes with what looked to Sunset to be a feeling of sincere frustration and equal levels of regret, “I’m sorry to do this. I wanted to sit down and explain things. Even if we’ve all had our secrets to keep, I never did like having to keep a mask up while you, Rarity, Rainbow, AJ, Fluttershy, and Pinkie risked your lives day after day. I hate having to keep all of this from Lyra, too. But orders are orders. I hope my boss is willing to be open and share info, because I got a bad feeling that something big is happening and whatever this Ragnarok business is, it’s tied to what just went down with you and... whoever you were fighting today. I’m just sorry I just got ordered to zip it and say nothing more.”

Sunset trusted her gut, which was telling her that Bon Bon’s regret was genuine. She held out a hand, managing a smile despite the twinge of pain from the still healing burns on her face, “Don’t sweat it. Sounds like you kept Wallflower safe, and you’ve clued us in that the Beast Realm has something going on that we’d best keep an eye out for. I appreciate that. Take care of yourself, and hopefully sometime soon we can talk again.”

Bon Bon nodded, and turned around, saying to Octavia and Vinyl, “Okay, let’s get back to base. I’ll set up an invisible screen so we can fly.”

Sunset wasn’t certain precisely what Bon Bon meant until she saw her smoothly reach into her satchel and withdraw a pair of long needles, already laced with thread. With incredibly fast motions Bon Bon began weaving with those threads, and the threads sprung to dancing life, alight with colors as Bon Bon spoke in a manner not unlike invoking Kido.

“Patchworks Spellcode Number Twenty Seven: Veil of Secrecy.”

Dark gray wove a misty curtain around herself, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, and even the dragon’s corpse. Sunset could still see them, but she noticed there was a glimmer in the air that felt to her senses not unlike a ward. She guessed it would probably keep non-spiritually aware people from seeing those under this ‘veil’. Bon Bon wasn’t done, more threads magically leaping from her satchel\

“Patchworks Spellcode Number Twelve: Corpse Pocket.”

White threads flew into the dragon’s body, wrapping it up like spider silk, and at the same time the body began to shrink, smaller and smaller, until it was no larger than a small doll that Bon Bon pulled to her and slipped into her satchel right before weaving one last spell with her needles and thread.

“Patchworks Spellcode Number Fifteen: Carpet of Winds.”

Blue and purple threads flew before her and swiftly wove together to create a twelve foot long and six foot wide carpet that floated on the air. Bon Bon hopped onto the carpet and it seemed to move to her whim, floating her up in the air.

At the same time Octavia and Vinyl scratch both pulled out those odd gun-like objects, that Sunset also now realized had a vaguely wand feel to them as they both aimed the tips of those wands up above their heads. Both of their voices spoke at the same time, although Sunset noticed she couldn’t really tell if Vinyl was talking or just mouthing the same words Octavia was.

“Pipers Spellcode Number Fourteen: Familiar Call.”

Soft blue balls of light shot upward amid musical notes chiming from their wands; a deep synth beat from Vinyl’s and a rich cello’s hum from Octavia’s. The spheres of energy then burst into rings of blue light that within them contained pentagrams. As if these acted as portals, down from these rings swooped two... creatures? Objects? It was hard to tell, as they both seemed to be organic yet also artificial. Each one was long and thin, like a broom, but with wings and heads, and both somewhat draconic in appearance.

Vinyl hopped upon one that was hot neon purple, with a long snout at it’s head, and four bat-like wings. It’s big, google eyes also bore a pair of purple shades like Vinyl’s own. Meanwhile Octavia sat side saddle on her own ‘Familiar’, which was mahogany brown with a flat, blunt face with big tusks, and had two broad wings shaped like square sails.

Both rode these odd creatures up to join Bon Bon on her carpet, as Sunset looked on. She couldn’t help her curiosity and called up to them, “Can you at least tell me what you guys are?”

Bon Bon twirled her needles and thread back into her satchel with a laugh and started to fly away, but she shouted back, “Witches!”

Soon the trio had flown out of sight and Sunset just shook her head in wonderment, “Witches, eh? Sure, why not? It’s a big, crazy world, after all.”

Episode 183: Much to Consider

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Episode 183: Much to Consider

To say the past twenty four hours had been busy for Princess Twilight would have been an understatement of gross proportions. She’d hardly had time for a thirty minute nap, half standing, in between arranging for Charybdis to be transferred under guard to Tartarus, securing provisions and a proper landing strip for the Treasury, calming the local population of Ponyville that indeed all was well (when Twilight was not entirely sure it was, if reports from Canterlot and what she’d learned from Spike were to be believed), and spending a great deal of time listening to Spike’s tale of events that had led to his present... physical and mental condition.

“-all I can continue to say, Twilight, is that I’m feeling just fine. I’m a lot hungrier than I usually am, but that’s it. Fafnir is in here,” a gigantic talon tapped at the side of Spike’s vast and tapered head, “But aside from that first burst when I got all his power out of the Dragonlord’s Scepter, he’s mostly gone quiet. I am having dreams about his life, I guess...”

Twilight couldn’t help but draw in a sharp breath, her deep rooted care for her young draconic charge no less overwhelming now than it was when he’d first hatched. An odd sentiment in some ways, now that he dwarfed her size by a good magnitude. The question of whether or not Spike could revert to his original size remained unanswered, for the young dragon was quite uncertain himself as to whether or not being the Inheritor to this “Fafnir” had actually aged him prematurely or if this was some transformed state he might deactivate in similar manner to what Twilight and her friends were capable of.

He’d tried, but given his lack of familiarity with magic in general, Twilight was not convinced he simply lacked the right foreknowledge to control the power now in his possession. She sincerely hoped he might be able to revert his form, for at the present there was no way Spike could fit inside her castle, let alone do more than poke his head through the front door! At present he contented himself to lay like a very large and scaly canine along the wall of the castle, quite the imposing sight given his newly grown body out massed two or three of Ponyville’s houses put together.

The issue of his size aside, Twilight was far more concerned with his mind, knowing full well the effect being an Inheritor had in regards to integrating the memories and personality of the individual whose power was Inherited. But she was wholly unsure if the process was different in the case of dragons. Indeed she had not even considered that in Equestria’s ancient past there would even be dragons who might have undergone the process! It did make a certain sense, given that she had seen examples of none-alicorn Inheritors already, having not missed that the Paralogos of ancient times shared a similar aspect to the present day Discord. Celestia had already confirmed as much to corroborate the story Spike had told, that indeed powerful entities such as elemental spirits and dragons had been worshiped in the past as well, gaining power not unlike the alicorns, albeit far less commonly by comparison.

It was Spike’s story that was the most worrying, and the topic of the moment, which found Twilight sitting with a book and quill on the steps in front of her palace, going over the matter once more with Spike to try and sort it all out. Time was precious, after all, and growing more so.

“These dreams, do they seem like they match what that other dragon, Nidhogg, was telling you?” she asked, and Spike rolled his impressively board shoulders in a shrug.

“Dunno, they’re weird. Sometimes I’m flying between these insanely tall mountains! I mean like, waaaaay huge! Taller than the one Canterlot is built on. I’m surrounded by other dragons, but also a whole bunch of other flying creatures. Birds bigger than whole towns. Whales with wings. Serpents covered in rainbow colored feathers. And other times I’m swimming in the ocean, with a whole bunch of scary huge leviathans, including this... this one big guy! I mean, just, scary huge, like his head is bigger than an island. He has this cold white eyes, and in the dreams I... I’m listening to him, talking about stuff.”

Spike trailed off, obviously spooked, and although Twilight was loath to do it she prompted him to continue, “It’s okay, Spike. I need to know, and get all the facts straight. This serpent, he’s the one Nidhogg mentioned; Jormungandr?”

“Y-y-yeah, that’s the name,” Spike said, shivering, his huge bulk causing the ground to tremble a bit at the motion, “Jormungandr. I... Fafnir, I guess that’s who I was or whatever back then, was a follower of him. Even though I guess me and Nidhogg were part of the Sky Tribe? Jormungandr ruled the oceans and the Sea Tribe, but he had a voice that reached everyone. In the dreams there’s a war, to try and take over the Sky and Land Tribes, in order to kick start something called ‘Ragnarok’. But it failed, mostly because Fafnir started to doubt that Jormungandr was sane. Twilight, the dreams are messed up. I mean... there’s a lot of...” Spike’s purple scales rattled and his taloned hands clenched, “Blood. Bad stuff. Stuff I’ve never seen and really makes me feel queasy. Jormungandr and his followers were crazy, and Fafnir couldn’t take it anymore. He took a group of other dragons that were fed up with the war, and left. Came to Equestria, a long time ago. My dreams have snippets of these shining cities in the sky, filled with alicorns, and Fafnir meeting their leaders in this huge tower, to ask for sanctuary for himself and those that came with him.”

Twilight wrote rapidly, magic levitating her quill to scribble neat notes in her book. While this was not the first time she’d heard the story from Spike, now that it was backed up by these dreams, she felt there was little room to doubt their veracity. These were clearly Inherited memories, and corresponded with at least what little information she had concerning the spiritual realms of the other world. Charybdis herself had insinuated that she had allies in those realms, and considering the aquatic nature of this ‘Sea Tribe’ and Jormungandr, she had a fair degree of confidence where the ancient seapony witch had obtained some of her knowledge of spirit energy and how to mix it with magic.

What she didn’t understand was this whole Ragnarok business, or why this Nidghogg had shown up, claiming brotherhood with Spike, or Fafnir as it were.

“Alright,” she said, drawing lines between items in her notes in neat, if conspiratorial strokes, “So Fafnir comes to Equestria, essentially leading to dragonkind’s establishment in this world. Jormungandr pursues and ultimately fails in his war, but whether he survived that is unknown. However he does still have followers, because the dragon that accosted you and Dragonlord Ember named himself Nidhogg, a servant of Jormungandr, and Fafnir’s brother, who came to take you ‘home’ to this place called the Beast Realm.”

“Yeah,” Spike said, his spirits brightening a bit with a rueful smile of fangs, “That’s when Torch and Ember started giving him the business end of their claws. Did you know Ember has a seriously mean left hook? I mean, this Nidhogg guy was pretty strong too, but there was a whole flight of Equestrian dragons going at him.”

“But amid all of that, you got a hold of the Dragonlord’s Scepter, which turned out to be a Relic, and it awakened.”

Spike’s head sunk a bit, blowing a smoky sigh from his nostrils, “Which I don’t remember because I blacked out for most of that. Ember says I went nuts, grew huge like I am now, and went into a frenzy. Drove Nidhogg off, but then Ember and Torch and pretty much the whole damn flight of dragons had to hold me down. With Shining Armor and Flurry Heart there, I was really worried I might have hurt them.”

Twilight went up and stroked his nose, the gesture a tad odd at first, but she was growing used to the idea, especially given it clearly soothed Spike as he rumbled a deep growl that was more akin to a purr deep in his massive chest. “But you didn’t. They’re both just fine, and back in the Crystal Empire.”

The news from there was dreadful enough. Yes, Twilight had already known about the attack, but it was still distressing to think of how long and difficult the reconstruction efforts would be. Thorax was engaging help from the Changeling hive to render all aid in getting the Empire back in order, but it’d be a task of some months even with their help. Worse, the monster responsible for all of that damage was still very much at large. There was some hope that the location of the human Starlight Glimmer’s base of operations might be discovered soon, but that remained a wild card. Twilight had not met much with Sombra or Radiant Hope after the pair had left on their long quest to find the broken pieces of Amore, but she didn’t doubt the reformed Umbrum’s courage in tailing after the attackers on Canterlot.

It still made her mind boggle that some manner of human copy of Starswirl the Bearded was running around, now. Even without Starlight Glimmer as a present threat, it seemed her machinations remained a cause of chaos. And not the generally tolerable and controllable kind Discord got up to these days, although with him captured Twilight was deathly worried for Fluttershy, who was not at all taking to the situation.

She could only hope Sombra would find their foe’s hideout and in so doing allow the Princesses of Equestria to muster together as a strike force to bring an end to this. No matter how powerful their opponents, be they former Soul Reaper Captains or this monstrous Hollow Chrysalis, surely the combined might of Twilight, Cadence, Luna, and Celestia all together could overcome them. Especially if Twilight brought along her friends to add their newfound powers to the mix.

“Any luck fixing the journal?” Spike asked, and Twilight let out an embarrassed laugh.

“I was going to get to that later today, but I really wanted to check on you first thing this morning.”

“Hey, I’m fine! I mean, not totally fine, but I’m tough. But that journal is way more important, Twilight. I’m really sorry it got damaged in the fight,” Spike rubbed the spines along the back of his long neck, looking away from her. He had taken her magical journal in order to keep an eye on it, like she’d asked him to, but in the fight with Nidhogg, which had involved no small amount of fire, the book had been burned. Not to total ashes, but sufficiently so that the magic inside it was largely rendered non-functional. Twilight was confident she could repair it, but it’d take her the larger portion of the evening to do, and a drowsy fall of her eyelids fast reminded her of how tired she was.

Forcing back a yawn, she smiled with reassurance to Spike, “Don’t worry yourself over it. I’ll get the journal back in working order, and with any luck nothing too terrible has happened on Sunset’s side while we were out in the ocean taking care of Charybdis.”

A rough frown pulled Spike’s jaws back in a display of barred fangs, “Grrr, wish I could have been there with you. From what the rest of the gang has said, she’s a right nasty customer. At least she’s packed off to Tartarus where she belongs, but man, would’ve liked to get a few swings in on her myself.”

To this, Twilight could only shake her head, “It was a very... unpleasant affair, and I’m glad enough you weren’t there, to be in any extra danger. At least it’s over, although there’s hardly any time to sit back and rest what with... with...”

She couldn’t keep the yawn away any longer, and swayed on her hooves for a moment before giving herself a shake to get the blood pumping again. Spike was eyeing her, his eye now about the size of her entire head, like an emerald watermelon staring right at her.

“Twi, you might want to catch some Zs while the catching is good. Doubt the country is going to explode if you get a few hours of actual sleep.”

“You don’t know that. With my track record, it’s exactly when I decide to sleep that more explosions will happen,” Twilight said, fighting with all her might to keep another yawn from forming, “I just need some coffee and I’ll be fine.”

“Did somepony order up a fresh cup o’ Joe!?”

Pinkie Pie appeared from a nearby bush, a bush that Twilight didn’t even remember having next to her castle. The mare had a whole tray balanced on her snout along with a pot of coffee and an already poured cup, pale with cream and sugar. Twilight’s whole body visibly trembled at the smell, her mouth salivating a bit, and she didn’t honestly care how undignified it looked. Without preamble, or even questioning Pinkie’s serendipitous presence, she took the cup of offered coffee and the pot as well in her magical levitation and drank with grateful gluttony.

“Oh gosh, Pinkie, for once you have used your powers of defying causality and physics for the greater good!” Twilight said, draining the cup and pouring another from the pot without halting. Her mane twitched in delight, “Ah, the caffeine, it fuels me.”

“Got an itch in my third rib that told me you were in desperate need of a pick me up, so came running along!” Pinkie said happily, tossing the tray to an unceremonious crash off screen, and then waved at Spike, “Heya Spike! How’s being big and kaijufied?”

“Eh, can’t complain. Well, okay, not true, I can complain a lot. I mean, I can’t get into my room to get at any of my comics, which is a major drag. Hey Twilight, think I might knock out the wall in my room so I can-”

“No, Spike, you’re not demolishing your room for the sake of comic books. I can go get you them in a moment. Just need the caffeine and sugar to do it’s work,” Twilight said with motherly sternness, but not unkindly, then she turned to Pinkie, “Thanks again for the coffee. Any of the other girls up yet?”

Understandably her friends had largely gone to spend time with their families or at least get some rest in their own beds, but there’d been a general agreement to convene at Twilight’s castle that morning once everypony was up. It was still early, but Twilight figured it wouldn’t be long, and Pinkie tended to have an uncanny ability to keep tabs on everypony.

“Well I saw Applejack in her orchards, but her chores looked near done. Rainbow’s house had this loud snoring sound coming out of it, so pretty sure’ll be last to show. I passed Fluttershy and Rarity just a minute ago, and hey look there they are! Hi gals!”

Indeed Twilight could see that two of her friends were making their way to join them. Rarity looked bright eyed and well rested, but tense, which made sense given Fluttershy had a particularly gloom laden shade to her eyes. Discord’s capture and continued absence was a weight on the pegasus’ shoulders, dampening her mood in a most visible wilting of her mane and tail. Granted Fluttershy sometimes got that way with simpler things, like having to say goodbye to her new shark friend before they’d left the oceans, but this was far more pronounced and understandably so. She and Discord were close, although Twilight was never really certain how close.

“Good morning,” she said to them, Rarity giving a polite nod.

“And to you too, Twilight. I hope you don’t take offense if I say you appear a bit ghastly. Did you not sleep at all, darling?”

“Not as much as I’d have liked,” she said, skirting giving any solid number. To Fluttershy she said, “Um, I haven’t contacted the Princesses yet this morning, so maybe there’s news about Sombra or Discord?”

“Well if it wouldn’t be too much trouble...” Fluttershy replied in a small voice, and Twilight finished off her second cup of coffee and nodded vigorously, the caffeine kicking into full gear.

“Say no more! Spike, we’ll talk more about Fafnir and Nidhogg later. If Nidhogg is still in Equestria, I’d say dragons have the best chance of tracking him down.”

“No problem,” he said, gesturing vaguely to the south, “Torch stuck around in the Crystal Empire, but Ember came back with me. I’ll go chat with her about organizing the dragons into search parties.”

“Is that needed?” asked Rarity, giving Spike a worried glance, “This dastardly fellow did say he was here for you, right Spike? Which means he’s likely to give another go at trying to take you away to this dreadful sounding Beast Realm. Might it not be more advantageous to keep you under guard and just wait for him to poke his villainous head out again?”

It was a rather practically minded suggestion, and one Twilight couldn’t fully argue with. A part of her mind that was Astra’s understood this moment of practical thinking was very much a trait of Zoismos, filtered through Rarity’s own concern for Spike. “You do have a point. But I’d rather find Nidhogg first and confront him on our terms, rather than wait for him to make a move on Spike. Especially here in Ponyville, where the last thing we need are dragons battling it out.”

“Ah, point well taken,” Rarity said, “Never mind the thought then. As long as Spike is well protected, I’ll be content.”

“W-well, I’m pretty big and strong now, so I can totally take care of myself, and you Rarity,” Spike said, scratching his snout with a self conscious stare at Rarity, who in turn seemed to blink in a moment of awareness.

“Of course Spike. I’d not suggest you are incapable of defending yourself, or any of us for that matter. Indeed allow me to say that while I do prefer your youthful, compact form, this elder version of you is quite striking. I do hope that, once you learn to reverse to your natural self, that in due time you’ll grow into the fine draconic specimen I see before me.”

Spike visibly gulped, light purple scales scorched to darker violet, and he mumbled, “Y-yup, you bet!”

Twilight cleared her throat, “Well then girls, I’m sure Applejack and Rainbow Dash can join us at their leisure. For now shall we go inside and I’ll contact the palace at Canterlot, see if there’s any updates?”

“Of course, lead on,” Rarity said, while Fluttershy mutely nodded, also offering Spike a brief greeting and the first smile Twilight had seen on her that day.

Once inside the castle it was a short jaunt to the main room where the crystal table, surrounded by the chairs devoted to each of her friends lay. Twilight saw that floating around one side of the room, talking quietly between themselves, were Aria and Sonata. The two sirens had stayed overnight and Twilight intended to allow them their own rooms at least until the general crisis was over. Given that both were eager for news of their sister Adagio, and had expressed an interest in getting back to the human world to return the third siren’s soul fragment, Twilight had no reason to not keep the pair nearby.

“S’up ponyfolk!” Sonata cried happily, rolling in the air and floating over with no shortage of energy in her grinning face. The siren’s mood was much improved after Charybdis’ defeat. Twilight was less certain as to the effect the Inheritor state was having on either her or Aria, but as far as Twilight could tell there was no noticeable change in their personalities for having absorbed Domare’s power and memories. Perhaps having the burden split between the two of them, or three since Adagio’s share appeared to remain in the Eye of the Sea, mitigated the impact of the memories?

“Yo,” Aria greeted, less enthused than her sister, but leagues more polite than was usual for her as she set down a book on the table. Twilight noted it was her charred journal, “Heard you were gonna fix this thing today?”

Good hearing, Twilight noted, if the pair had picked up on the conversation she’d had with Spike outside and well away from this main chamber. Another factor of the Inheritor powers, no doubt. Even when not transformed she and her friends retained some ability from that state. She’d already noticed her magic reserves were stronger than ever, even without transforming.

Clearing her throat, she gave the sirens courtesy nods, “I will be, although not until later.”

“Aww c’mon, why not right now!?” Sonata said, almost getting nose to snout with Twilight, “I need to know that Dagi is okay and to tell her we’re going to be coming back soon with her soul piece thingy!”

“Well, first of all, the spells needed to repair the journal won’t be simple, short rituals, even for me. Second of all, sending you back to the human world might take time as well. I need to study the present state of the portal to determine how safe and feasible a return trip would be.”

As things stood, she couldn’t even begin to guess what was happening with the portal. The room with the magi-tech devices she’d hooked up to the mirror was intact, but had suffered some manner of severe blowback. Not the explosive trap of spirit energy that the Bount Trixie had placed within, but some other manner of massive and unstable energy discharge that had damaged the equipment and made a mess of the room. Fortunately it was all repairable, and the mirror itself was intact and it’s portal magic functioning, but even a cursory examination upon her return home had told Twilight that the portal was altered in some manner.

There was no way she could authorize an attempt to go through it until she got a hold of Sunset Shimmer via the journal to find out what might have happened, and done a much greater and extensive examination of the portal herself.

Neither Aria or Sonata looked overly pleased with her answer, the later visibly drooping while the former put a comforting hoof around her sister. Aria’s eyes were angered, but not at Twilight. Just a general smolder of long held frustration. “We get it. You got to do your magic thing. It’s just... we’ve been waiting a long time to help Adagio. It’s hard having to keep doing it.”

“Believe me, I understand,” Twilight said, “I’m no less eager to find out how Sunset and my friends' human counterparts fare. Indeed if the portal proves stable and still leads to the human world, I’ll be the first to open it up for all of us to go through. They may need our help, and we could certainly use theirs here, so getting the portal working is quite high on my priority list, I assure you.”

Among a dozen other things.

“Now, if you both would like to hang around, my friends and I are gathering so I can contact Princess Celestia and Princess Luna so we can learn if Sombra has returned from his recon of the enemy’s whereabouts. If all has gone well, we might have a chance to strike directly at Starlight Glimmer’s base.”

There was a fresh flame alight in Aria’s eyes, “Good. Count me and Sonata in.”

“Well I don't know if-” Twilight began, but was cut short by the siren.

“Look, we got juiced up by this Domare chick’s magic, we might as well put it to use. Top that off with our gems getting restored, and me and Sonata couldn’t be more ready to unleash some pain on whoever or whatever is in the way between us and reuniting with our sister. Do you have a reason to tell us we can’t go?”

Twilight honestly didn’t, at least not one that would sound compelling to the two sirens. Her biggest concern was the simple fact that she didn’t want either Aria or Sonata to have to put themselves in any further risk, especially now that they were restored fully with their gems intact. The two deserved to rest and be able to return to find Adagio. Twilight wasn’t eager to see either of them get hurt, especially considering it sounded as if this Arrancar version of Chrysalis was far more dangerous than they’d anticipated. It still left Twilight feeling an icy clench of anxiety in her gut to think of what had been done to Cadence and the Crystal Empire. Anger as well, but that was secondary to ensure she and her friends would be able to overcome an encounter with that beastly creature.

Still, they’d beaten Charybdis, fully amped up on Domare’s power. Hollow Chrysalis could be beaten, too.

“If you truly want to come, I won’t say no, but please just consider that right now Adagio should be your priority, and what would happen to her soul fragment if either of you were hurt, or worse?”

“You’d give it to her, wouldn’t you?” Sonata asked, blinking in innocence.

“If I could, I would, but the fragment is still tied to the Domare’s Relic, which only you two can make use of now,” Twilight explained, and this gave both sirens a moment of pause.

“Aria?” Sonata said, and the other siren gave a surly grunt.

“Yeah, the Princess has got a point, much as it bugs me. Dammit. Hate sitting around doing nothing.”

“It needn’t be nothing.”

They all turned at the new speaker, Twilight’s eyes lighting up, “Cadence!”

“We’re here too!” Rainbow Dash said, having flown in alongside the Princess of the Crystal Empire, while Applejack trailed in behind. Cadence gave everypony in the room an acknowledging incline of her head and quickly braced herself as Twilight rushed up and wrapped hooves and wings around her fellow alicorn in a big hug.

“I’m so glad you’re alright. I mean, you are alright, right?” Twilight said, examining Cadence as if expecting to see still bleeding wounds from the battle in the Crystal Empire. Cadence heaved out an understanding sigh and let Twilight fuss for a moment before smiling, albeit in a small, tired manner.

“It isn’t as if we didn’t talk already, Twilight, even if it was only long distance magic communication. I was more worried about you, having to go into the Abyss itself. I’m happy to see that you and your friends all made it back.”

Twilight nodded, wiping at her eyes, “Yes, we did. And I know we already talked, but it's different seeing you in person.”

“Hey, not to interrupt the hugs and stuff, but what was that about us not having to do ‘nothing’?” asked Aria with a pointed look at Cadence. The alicorn’s smile turned coy just then.

“I am to understand that you and Sonata are now Inheritors as well? I was intending to bring this to Twilight and her friend’s attention, and now the offer is extended to the two of you as well. Celestia and Luna happen to have a rather effective training area built underneath their old castle. I’ve been using it to refine my magic and powers as an Inheritor, and I suggest the same for all of you,” she gave a tired but satisfied shake of her wings and stretch of her limbs, and Twilight noticed just how many small bruises and scrapes that Cadence had. “I can promise you that the results, even in a short time frame, are quite worth it.”

“Is that so?” said Rarity with a curious stroke of her chin, “I’m usually loath to get involved in too much sweaty exercise, but it would be useful to have a place we can hone our abilities. But is time not quite short before we might have to do battle again?”

“Yeah, ain’t that Sombra fella supposed ta be trailin’ some jerk back ta’ the human Starlight’s base n’ such? Is a’ couple days o’ trainin’ gonna do any o’ us much good?” asked Applejack, to which Cadence raised a hoof to quiet them.

“All I can say is that a mere couple of days have done me wonders for coming to terms with my powers and the... personality and memories attached to them,” Cadence said, “Because we’ve ‘inherited’ these powers alongside memories, all it takes is a short span of training to become better accustomed to them.”

“What the hay, I’ll take any excuse to train up a bit!” Rainbow Dash said, and Fluttershy gave a rather... intense nod, her eyes seeming to briefly turn sanguine red.

“I’d like to be able to rescue Discord as soon as possible, and...” Fluttershy didn’t quite smile, exactly, so much as pull back her lips, and Twilight noted the ever so faint point to two of those teeth, “Give the people that hurt him a stern talking to.”

Pinkie Pie paused still as an ice sculpture for an instant, her nose wiggling, followed by a jitter in her left hindleg. “Oh, incoming call.”

“Huh?” Twilight said, just before a ring of translucent blue magical light, like a pool of shimmering water, appeared in the air above her table. Within the visage of Princess Celestia appeared, looking down at them with an eager light.

“Ah, good, you’re all here. Apologies for contacting you first, Twilight, but I didn’t wish to wait.”

“Not at all, Princess,” Twilight said, trotting over to her seat and sitting down, while her friends did the same, and Cadence and the sirens found places to stand or over near Twilight’s chair. “Please, if there’s good news to tell, we all could use it.”

“No doubt. I trust Spike is doing well?” Celestia asked, and Twilight gave a faintly hesitant nod.

“As well as could be expected, considering what’s happened. Now, about Sombra...?”

“That is why I wanted to contact you as fast as possible,” she said, and Twilight frowned at the way Celestia’s expression grew exceedingly grave, “He has not returned, but I received, just this past hour, a garbled magical sending from him via the shadows in my... er, ‘chambers’.”

A faint coloring of Celestia’s face gave Twilight a momentary riot of potential mental images as to what that meant, but she coughed and said, “Go on, what did he say?’

“There was a great deal of interference with the message. I suspect spiritual energy was disrupting the words,” Celestia said, “But I got that he had found Starlight Glimmer’s base of operations. However most of the message was garbled by the interference, and he hasn’t sent another. I get the impression he ran into some trouble.”

“Oooooh!” Pinkie piped up, “That’s what the leg twitch was about! I was like, nose wiggle, that means incoming call, but the leg twitch usually means ‘friend being punched in the face’, but I totally didn’t see that happening so figured maybe my Sense was on the fritz.”

“Where is he?” said Fluttershy, her intensity not lessening in the least as she put her fore hooves on the table, half rising with a buzz of her wings, “We have to go to him at once! He knows where Discord is!”

“Easy there, sugarcube, let the Princess talk fer a sec,” Applejack said, rising to put a hoof on Fluttershy, who nearly hissed in her frustration as she settled back down.

Celestia wore an understanding look, eyeing Fluttershy with sympathy as she said, “I’m currently trying to trace the message spell he sent me. I don’t know if he is still at Starlight’s hideout or if he was caught en route back here, but either way, we have to get him back alive so he can tell us what he knows. As soon as I have his location, I’d like all of you to go to his aid. Luna is teleporting with Radiant Hope to Ponyville now. She insisted on being brought along.”

“I understand, Princess,” Twilight said, “We’ll be ready to go as soon as you know where he is. How long do you think that will take?”

“I don’t know,” Celestia admitted with a grave sigh, “His shadow magic is very much unlike anything I am used to, and tracing it is hard even if there wasn’t this interference from spirit energy. It could be hours, or even more than a day. But rest assured I will find it, and relay the information to you the moment I know.”

Twilight nodded, thinking. They wouldn’t be able to teleport there directly, in most likelihood, because of the necessity of familiarity to accurately teleport to a precise spot. But they would be able to teleport somewhere close, at least, and proceed the rest of the way via flight, carrying those who couldn’t fly on their own.

I should bring Flash Sentry as well... she thought. He was currently with the Treasury, helping Tempest Shadow with settling in her new crew of recruited volunteers from Ponyville’s more adventurous residents. If they were going into battle against those with spiritual powers from his own world, she’d want him at her side. Besides, she’d have to tie him down to keep him from coming anyway, and she hardly needed an excuse to want to keep him near.

“For now I suggest all of you get what rest you can, especially you, Twilight,” Celestia said, a softened look of a concerned teacher lightening her otherwise severe expression, “You’ve done so much already I hate having to ask more, so please promise me you’ll get some sleep in the meantime.”

Twilight looked abashed, realizing she probably wasn’t hiding her exhaustion very well at all, and was simply mortified to have to be reminded of it by Celestia. “O-of course I will, I promise.”

“Thank you. I’ll get back in touch soon,” Celestia said, and then her image vanished.

“Well that’s that,” said Rainbow Dash, “Not even back home a full two days, and we’re about to jump right back into it.”

“Would ya want it any other way?” asked Applejack, and Rainbow Dash flashed a wordless grin in response.

----------

An unexpected sensation of bile rising in her throat caused Chrysalis to clench her teeth and try to shake the unpleasant sensation off. Next to her, Platinum cast her a look of undisguised concern in her ice blue eyes, the former Soul Reaper now in the body of a unicorn keeping her voice low despite the fact that they were still a far distance from the towering structure of the Changeling hive.

“Are you going to be able to do this?”

Chrysalis didn’t snarl, but her anger rose up to battle the heady churn of other emotions she was struggling to suppress as she said, “I’ll be fine. This will be easy. You didn’t even need to come.”

She wasn’t much sure she liked the note of understanding in Platinum’s tightly guarded look that deflected Chrysalis’ anger as deftly as one might a sword stroke, Platinum nodding towards the hive. It was still a good kilometer off, but well visible over the edge of a sloped outcropping of bush covered rock the pair were using for cover to observe it.

“Your hive has more than enough Changelings in it that if you were discovered, even you might not so readily escape,” Platinum reminded Chrysalis, “Even if Firefly had not given the order, I would have considered it tactically sound to come as a form of backup.”

“It will not be needed,” Chrysalis insisted, but inwardly she was not nearly so certain, especially now that she was laying eyes upon her former... home.

It barely looked like itself! What had Thorax, that soft hearted traitor, done with her beloved hive!? Its beautifully imposing arms of dark resin and stone, so menacing and powerful in its former appearance, were now somehow scrubbed lighter and hung with array after array of greenery! Ivy and flowers crawled like gangrenous growths of color over what was supposed to be an intimidating edifice to Changeling power! Now it looked like... like... a damned garden vacation spot!

Even the usually dried out and barren waste of the Badlands surrounding the hive seemed more lively, strewn now with freshly growing shrubs, flower patches, and even trees. Chrysalis was at first at a loss to explain this inexplicable growth, but much as it galled her, logical deduction was that the destruction of her anti-magic throne likely resulted in some manner of magical growth being made possible. Indeed it was possible the Badlands had only been so because of the throne. Chrysalis had some vague recollection that there’d been some plant life hereabouts when she’d first chosen the area to create her hive and raise her army, with the throne of anti-magic as her centerpiece. Honestly she hadn’t paid much attention to the environment, having chosen this location for it’s remoteness, so she might have the privacy of ruling her people in seclusion until appropriate targets for infiltration and harvesting were selected.

Ah, those had been the times! Surrounded by the boundless loyalty of her offspring, pouring over maps and reports as they infiltrated neighboring regions, carefully choosing the best locations to strike and harvest the all important resource that was “love”.

Now she was returning as a fugitive and as an infiltrator herself, in her own damn hive! And her Changelings, she could see them flitting about in the distance, specks of color in the sky or buzzing about the hive. Those colors! Those wretchedly bright colors, so garish in comparison to the noble dark chitin her children had sported prior to Thorax’s infection of her people with whatever madness the Equestrians had stuffed in his head.

She’d rip that infection out of them all if only she had the power to do so. Which was essentially why she was here, with Platinum as her chaperone. This close to the hive, she could feel it, a faint pulsation in her head. A draw, like the tolling of some distant bell. A Relic. Her Relic, hidden somewhere within the hive.

Why it was there was something of a mystery to Chrysalis, but there were two theories she had in mind. One was that during her reign as Queen, the Changelings had pillaged more than love from the locations they’d struck. Material goods had also been taken, sometimes to be used in covert barter with less scrupulous nations, other times simply for the sake of having plunder besides the love siphoned from victims. There was a trove of such random treasures in closed off vaults inside the depths of the hive, so it was entirely possible a Relic had been among those items.

The other theory was that the Relic was inside the cavern system beneath the hive. When Chrysalis had first erected the hive, she’d discovered that there was a rather large series of unusual caves beneath it. Really more like carved tunnels instead of natural formations. They were not safe, either, having contained several deadly traps, the origin of which Chrysalis had never discovered. She had this maze of tunnels and traps sealed off, and thought of it no further past that point, at least until recently when she understood the pull of her Relic led to her hive and it occurred to her that it might be buried down there, somewhere.

She and Platinum had left the previous day, journeying swiftly to the Badlands, with the intention of sneaking into the hive and retrieving Chrysalis’ Relic. With its power, perhaps she could retake her hive, remove Thorax from his ill-gotten position of leadership, and get her offspring back on track. If nothing else, the acquisition of more power might help her with her hopes for revenge... or just surviving the further attention of her insane, Hollow counterpart.

There was a sick image in Chrysalis’ head of her counterpart coming here, now, to this place. Her Changelings, soft and feeble as they were now in their colorful state of supposed “harmony” would be helpless against such a ruthless monster. Not that she cared, or so told herself, despite the wrenching in her gut at the thought.

“Let us go over the plan, at least,” Platinum insisted, drawing Chrysalis out of her ruminations. “Disguising ourselves, we infiltrate the hive and try to reach the vaults in search of the Relic. Your senses should guide us and tell us whether or not it’s there, or in the deeper caverns you mentioned. If we’re accosted, we stick with our cover story of being a pair of sisters who are just exploring the hive.”

“Leave the talking to me, and be certain of your spellwork,” Chrysalis said. Platinum had been working hard on learning how to utilize unicorn magic to affect her appearance, and with Chrysalis’ guidance had settled on a disguise. “In fact, show me now.”

Platinum nodded, and with little hesitation lit up her horn. Chrysalis could tell the woman was still unused to channeling actual magic, but what Platinum lacked in innate talent or familiarity, she made up for with ironclad focus and unbreakable, ice cold resolve. The pale blue of magic coated Platinum’s body, and altered it in a glint of illusionary magic. In a moment she stood now as a young adult, female Changeling with a bright violet carapace and ice blue wings that matched her solid, gem-like eyes. It was a bit subdued for the colorful appearances of the other Changelings, but she’d pass as one of them readily enough, and Platinum had practiced holding this illusion for many hours straight. It’d hold, and no Changelings were familiar enough yet with unicorn magic to be able to detect the difference.

“Good,” Chrysalis reluctantly gave praise, and then her own jagged horn sputtered with green flame as she herself quickly went about her own change. Her form was smaller than Platinum’s disguise, taking the form of an even younger Changeling with a body of midnight blue, with a bright emerald chest, and lighter jade wings and eyes. She couldn’t bring herself to go any brighter, and had chosen to appear as a younger Changeling as she surmised it’d make others less suspicious.

“You look to be about my son’s age,” Platinum noted, “Very well then, I’m to be the elder sister of our pairing? Hmm, it occurs to me we didn’t pick names.”

Chrysalis snorted, a now much younger, higher pitched voice saying, “It hardly matters. Pick anything. I’ll be Vespid.”

“That has a nice ring. I suppose I’ll call myself... Ice Dancer.”

At Chrysalis’ face, Platinum said, “What?”

“That’s not a very Changeling sounding name,” Chrysalis explained, waving a hoof, “We tend to have names at least somewhat inspired by the insect kingdom.”

“Really?” Platinum asked, tilting her head and now leaning down towards the shorter Chrysalis, “Did you not name your children? They are all mostly yours, yes? And all of them have insect inspired names?”

Chrysalis backed up a step, grumbling in red faced embarrassment, “Yes, they are mostly mine. I suppose a few reproduced among themselves, but I hardly kept track of that! I still did a lot of the naming. And there may have been some, or a lot, of repeats. I think there’s at least twenty or so ‘Mandibles’, and over fifty ‘Carapaces’ in there. Look just pick something insect sounding, okay!?”

“Oh very well, let’s see...” Platinum fluttered her illusionary wings for a moment, and then nodded to herself, “Coccinellidae.”

Chrysalis shot up and eyebrow and Platinum coughed politely, “When my husband still lived, he collected insects. I learned a lot of specific species' scientific names. Ladybugs were a favorite of his.”

To this, Chrysalis made no immediate comment, even though several dismissive ones shot to mind. Yet she restrained them, not even entirely certain why other than it didn’t really make any sense to antagonize one of the few individuals left in the world who didn’t treat her with instant hostility.

“It shall do,” was all she eventually said before turning to gaze at the distant hive, “Let us be off then. We can say we were out foraging or some such if any challenge us upon reaching the hive.”

“We will blend in without difficulty?”

“Oh, there’s so many of us that I doubt every drone is going to recognize every other at a glance. Just follow my lead, and this excursion will be over shortly,” Chrysalis said as she took wing. Platinum followed her, albeit in a somewhat more awkward manner. Lacking actual wings to fly, she had to control the illusion to make its wings buzz, while using her Soul Reaper skills to prance upon the air. It served well enough, as long as none looked at her too closely.

In short order the pair began eating up the distance between themselves and the Changeling hive, and despite Chrysalis’ attempted air of nonchalantness, that churning gut only increased with each moment she got closer to the place of her disgrace. Her failure. The spot where she lost everything.

Teeth grinding to near bleeding, the former Queen of the Changelings forced herself to calm and fluttered on towards her former home and family.

Unseen by either her or Platinum, a pair of smaller heads popped out of a bush that had been further back from the rocky rise that the two had taken off from.

“This really isn’t the best idea,” Pipsqueak insisted to Ocellus, the Arrancar girl turning her gleaming grin towards him with an assuring poke to the side. He held up under her prodding, adjusting his Zanpaktou, freshly sheathed through a red sash that Ocellus had gotten him as a present the other day.

“It is the best idea,” Ocellus insisted, “We’ve already scoped this place out, and your mom and my not-mom might need help if things go sideways.”

“If they had wanted help, they’d have said so,” Pipsqueak pointed out, but Ocellus just tittered under her breath.

“Adults say a lot of stupid things, and never ask for help, or rather they forbid a lot of things because they think they know better. Nothing was even happening back at base anyway, and this will be fun. They probably won’t even know we’re here, and we can check out all these weird candy colored Changelings in the meantime!”

“You’re not intending to eat any souls, are you?” Pipsqueak asked, giving Ocellus a sidelong look, “Because you did promise me-”

“Relax!” she said, reaching over to tap his shoulder, “I ate plenty before we came.”

At his horrified stare, she nearly doubled over with gusts of laughter, “Oh, your face is so precious. No, seriously, I didn’t eat any people’s souls. Some animal snacks.”

“Well I suppose that’s acceptable,” Pipsqueak said, having long resigned himself to the understanding that Hollow’s did subsist on souls, although his understanding of just how much they did or didn’t need to eat was still iffy. Ocellus was an unpredictable ball of chaos, but she’d never given him reason to distrust her. Well, aside from being that Espada’s daughter, Ocellus seemed to march to the beat of her own tune, which he’d noted sometimes ran counter to her mother’s.

As for why he’d agreed to her less than well thought through idea of following his own mother on this mission... well in truth he was worried. He didn’t regret giving his mother such a cold shoulder after having first arrived in Equestria, but he’d been watching her. Something was changing in his mother. She’d never treated much of anyone other than himself or his father with any consideration or tenderness, but he’d seen how she’d been trying to... for lack of a better term be a friend to Firefly and this world’s Chrysalis.

He’d felt betrayed by her when he thought she’d turned on all of the virtues of nobility he thought she’d valued, and hence instilled in him growing up. Now he was beginning to think that those virtues had been so focused on him that there’d been no room for other things, even Soul Society, and now she was trying to become more the kind of person he’d first thought of her as.

Regardless, he knew it would be childishness and nothing else if he held on to bitterness towards her. And with the emergence of his Zanpaktou, and the gradual control he was working towards concerning his Inner Hollow, the young noble wanted nothing more than to enact his own will. He was small, still weak, and the world was turning with schemes and plots beyond his understanding or imagining, but he wanted to ensure his mother and the few friends he had now came out the other end of it all relatively intact. Even if one of those friends was a less than mentally stable Arrancar girl.

“At any rate, let us wait a little while until my mother and your ‘not-mother’ get inside the hive, then we shall follow,” he said, “We will need to keep out of sight, and be present in case something goes wrong-”

“Nope! No hiding for us, we’re going in there to have some fun, which means we find ourselves some new friends to play with while we’re in there. We just need to give you a disguise.”

“But I am not a unicorn in this world like my mother is,” Pipsqueak pointed out, “I can’t cast a spell on myself like she just did.”

“You can’t, but I can,” Ocellus said with a wink, and in a burst of Changeling fire, she became an onyx black unicorn filly with wide pink eyes and a flaring pink mohawk, “Say hello to Pop Rock, and her little brother Fizzle.”

Before he could make a comment or get over his immediate confusion, her horn blasted him with a sparkling sheet of magic, and his own form changed appearance. Not by much, only enough to alter his coat color to match hers, and to give his mop of brown mane a stripe of pink.

“When did you...?” he gasped, and Ocellus, or ‘Pop Rock’, gave off a musical laugh.

“Changelings get the abilities of whatever they turn into, and I was already used to shapeshifting back home anyway, so this isn’t all that new to me. The magic was a little funny to figure out, but mom always said I was a natural. Been practicing practically since I got to this world, whenever i wasn’t helping you train or playing with mom. Now c’mon, let’s go!”

“Why are you so eager all of a sudden, anyway?” he asked, following her as she began a fast trot out of the bushes, making their own way towards the hive.

“Are you kidding? If there’s another me here, I sooooo wanna meet her!” said Ocellus, with a strange light in her eyes that made Pipsqueak more nervous than anything else.

----------

Sunset sank into the couch without any attempt to hide her sigh of relief. While her pain threshold had increased exponentially since she’d first taken up her Zanpaktou, it was still an immense relief to sit down again. Perhaps it had been a tad foolish to insist on walking about while only her injuries weren’t even a full day into the healing process. Discord’s skills and Fluttershy’s power were both impressive tools to help that process along, but she could tell from the bone deep weariness and howling ache in her muscles that she needed to take it easy.

“Does somebody want to get some yummy in her tummy?” Pinkie asked with friendly concern, sliding up towards the door out of the lounge, “Because I can pop right on over to the kitchen and whip up whatever you want, Sunset.”

“Thanks, Pinkie, but I’m okay for now,” she said, “But I’ll take you up on that offer soon.”

“Sure hope so,” said Rainbow Dash, who’d perched herself on the side of the couch beside Sunset, “Because you look like you’re gonna need it. Heck I’m gonna need it. After the crap we just went through I’m both furiously angry and hungry. Hangry to an epic degree.”

“And oh boy you do not want to know what Dashie is like when she’s super hangry!” said Pinkie, and Rainbow Dash gave a firm nod of agreement.

Pacing like she was intending to rip a new dimensional rift into the floor, Applejack grunted at them, followed by a frustrated removal of her stetson to run her hand through her blond locks. “Food talk aside, what’re we planin’ ta do now? How do we get Rarity back?”

The question hung like a dense, foul fog in the room. Nobody answered, Pinkie looking downcast while Rainbow’s face looked fit to spit. The door to the lounge opened, causing Pinkie to jump back as Fluttershy came in. Sunset hadn’t seen her leave, but then again she’d been busy settling Wallflower in so she supposed Fluttershy would have had time to go somewhere herself. The where and why of it became apparent as behind Fluttershy came the form of an individual wearing a head to toe jumpsuit of thick, padded white cloth. The outfit was interspersed with stripes of black along the sides, with feet that were clad in rubber soled boots that matched similar black gloves the figure wore on its hands. The head was encased entirely in a masked helmet of white ceramic, with a black faceplate. A few nodes along the fringe of the helmet gave it a high-tech flare, and the black faceplate, upon seeing them, emoted a face of purple lines that looked for all the world like a sad face one might find on an online emote store.

“I must sincerely apologize to all of you for my uselessness. ;_; Were I present perhaps I may have rendered some level of additional aid to avoid the tragic loss of Lady Fluttershy’s friend.”

“The flippin’ flapjacks is...?” Applejack began, but Pinkie instantly snapped her fingers at the new figure, which only now Sunset noticed had the hilt of a Zanpaktou poking from a strap across his shoulder.

“It’s Smoozie! Heya, what’s the haps?”

The figure, Smooze, was much taller now than his previous almost childlike form. At this point he stood just an inch shorter than Fluttershy, with a slim build beneath his jumpsuit. Sunset didn’t really want to think about the body that lay underneath that seemingly airtight outfit and helmet, and imagined she had Discord to thank for the arrangement.

“You’re looking better,” she noted, to which Smooze offered a deep and polite bow.

“It is all due to the tender kindness of Lady Fluttershy, who has given me such sanctuary. I have been able to recover nearly half of my former power, supping upon the lesser Hollows that your Coalition patrols missed. My noble Lady has kept me informed of the Coalition’s progress, including the sad events of the day. Again, I offer no shortage of apologizes for not being present.”

“Nonsense, Smooze,” Fluttershy said, placing a gentle hand on his arm, “You were busy doing me a personal favor. You couldn’t have known what would happen, and even if you had been here, the Zero Division were far too powerful for you to have given us any reasonable help. Oh, don’t look so down, please! I didn’t mean it like that.”

“>_< But it is the truth of your words the pierce me so, my Lady. At half my strength, I remain unable to repay your kindness to me.”

Clearing her throat, Sunset sat up a bit more on the couch and said, “If it’s okay to ask, what favor were you doing for Fluttershy?”

“Well, it was more a favor for me,” said Twilight, appearing in the doorway. Smooze and Fluttershy both moved to the side so Twilight could enter the room, and Sunset was about to greet her friend warmly, but just then she saw the tall, shadowed form coming in right on Twilight’s heels.

Even if the lounge wasn’t already crowded, Sombra would have filled it with presence alone. His aura fell like a giant’s hand upon the room. Not spiritual pressure, just the magnetism of the man’s intensity. Sunset had felt a bit of it during the summit, but in this close, cozy proximity, it was a lot harder to ignore. He looked like someone out of time, a dark king clad in armor and cape, arresting the attention of all with an imperious stride but a nearly impossible to read stare in his deep red eyes.

He looked at the silent room, and took a deep breath through his nose before raising a hand, “If this is perhaps not an ideal time, I can wait.”

“No, it’s fine,” Sunset said after a moment of collecting her thoughts, eyes sliding briefly towards Twilight for some clue. Her friend just smiled and gave a small gesture with her hand, not quite a wave but more a calming press of her palm that Sunset took as a signal that there was nothing to worry about. Sunset cleared her throat and gestured at a nearby chair, “Take a seat, if you want.”

“I will have to depart soon,” Sombra replied, not moving towards the seat, but instead across the room where Applejack had been pacing, but had now halted. He gave Applejack some space and instead took up a post not far from the room’s television, which was a stark and odd contrast to his medieval manner of dress as he turned to regard the room.

First his eyes laid upon Smooze, unfriendly but Sombra’s voice remained polite, “Given you no longer hold allegiance to Tirek, and the favor you have done at Twilight’s behest, I shall consider your presence a non-issue, Hollow.”

“The King of the Quincy has never been known for mercy among our kind, so I shall take that as the highest regard I can hope for at this juncture. -_-”

“Indeed,” Sombra said, eyes flicking to Twilight, “You are certain of the vaccinations?”

“Yes,” Twilight replied, addressing the room as a whole, “Smooze, at Fluttershy’s request, allowed me to conduct several tests upon his... uh, unique body. Nothing too invasive, just enough for me to collect a baseline of information on the structure of the diseases contained in him. With those samples, I am confident I can synthesize cures for them. This will not only help Quincy medical research as a whole, but I can actually treat one of our Sternritter, Lightning Dust, who still suffers from her last contact with Smooze.”

Smooze made a sound not quite a laugh or a gurgle, his arms folding, “I do not hold any warmth for that wrongheaded woman, but a request from my Lady Fluttershy is not to be ignored.”

“And you have my deepest thanks,” Fluttershy said.

“It is for this reason and others I speak with you all now,” Sombra proclaimed, with all the gravity of a falling moon, “Between this, and the assistance rendered in preparing an rescue mission for Fleur De Lis, you had already demonstrated to me the value of your Canterlot Spirit Coalition. The battle against the Zero Division today has only cemented this. I will not mince words. Only Twilight Sparkle’s connection to all of you made me consider you all a neutral party, at best, and one I still labored to consider how to best deal with as potential roadblocks to the elimination of the Gotei 13 and the Hollows of Las Noches. Your... alliance with Adagio Dazzle, and clear friendly terms with the Soul Reapers placed you as individuals I would need to one day subdue, even if that put me at odds with Twilight, who has rapidly become indispensable to me.”

“Sombra...” Twilight, by the surprised and even unsettled light in her eyes, was only just now hearing of the fact that Sombra had been considering Sunset and the others as potential enemies. He gave her a look that Sunset had a hard time placing; something between the pride of a parent and the rumination of a ruler who was embarrassed that a subordinate had been proven right about something.

“You needn’t concern yourself with that any longer, Twilight. You, and your friends, have convinced me. As of this moment I am decided that the Quincy shall ally ourselves with the Canterlot Spirit Coalition, and to enact an armistice with the forces of the Gotei 13. Assuming that Scopan’s successor and the other Captains agree to it, and I can quell the dissent that will rise in our own ranks form this, the war between us shall cease.”

“Hold up, isn’t an ‘armistice’ basically just a temporary cease fire?” asked Rainbow Dash, and at Applejack’s look, she grumbled, “What!? I know what an ‘armistice’ is. I pay attention in class sometimes too, ya know?”

A brief chuckle reverberated from Sombra, but it was soon replaced by a tone of as deathly serious as drawn steel. “You are not wrong to point that out, Miss Dash. As things presently stand it will take all of my considerable influence as the sole ruler of my Quincy children to convince them to accept even a simple armistice. Only the apparent temporary nature of such an arrangement, combined with the far greater threat represented by the Zero Division, will provide enough leverage to quiet the loudest and most violently inclined naysayers among my Quincy. I can command much from them, but this will test their wills and loyalty to me sorely, for I’ve spent centuries honing their hatred of Hollow and Soul Reaper alike.”

“Hmph, sounds like the chicken’s comin’ home ta roost if ya ask me,” Applejack stated with no lack of dryness, “Not that I don’t appreciate ya willin’ ta finally look ta ending this dumb war, but ain’t easy ta ferget that yer one o’ the ones responsible fer perpetuatin’ it fer so damn long.”

“That is not lost on me,” Sombra said, eyes cutting towards the farmgirl without warmth, but also without denial of her accusation, “As you insinuate, any troubles I face in controlling my Quincy is my own fault, for I created them to be warriors first, with peace always seen as a distant dream only achievable through the destruction of our enemies. I will bear the burden of... slowly disabusing them of this fanaticism, and can only hope that the pains of it be largely my own to bear, and not theirs.”

“We’ll be able to do it together, Sombra,” said Twilight, a potent note of conviction lightening her voice and her expression, “I know we will. Whatever it may take, we’ll bring about peace between everyone.”

He looked at her with a sad smile, holding his hands out to his sides in a gesture of mock surrender, “I accept your chosen course, Twilight. It will not be a simple thing, however. The Soul Reapers may see reason, but what plans are there for Tirek and his Hollows? Your arrangement with Adagio Dazzle is still fundamentally built upon mutual benefit, and the hint that she might one day depose Tirek. Yet she still lacks the power to do this, does she not?”

“Welllll....” Twilight made a show of glancing up at the ceiling, as if calculating in her head, “Adagio has kept me abreast of her intentions. She has a few Privaron Espada on board, and at least two, maybe three of the present Espada on her side. She’s been recruiting any adrift Arrancar who hasn’t already pledged to an Espada, plus extended offers to even non-Arrancar Hollows in Huecuo Mundo’s more remote regions. She’s building a decent army of it all, if still a fairly loose knit alliance.”

“And not enough to defeat Tirek, even if he stood alone,” Sombra stated bluntly, “This alongside the fact that we know the Second Espada, Chrysalis, and her substantial horde, alongside the Third, Catrina, remain loyal to him. Even I would hesitate to attack the combined forces of those three with our full complement of Sternritter, not unless I was willing to sacrifice at least two thirds of our number; which I am not.”

Sunset cut in then, grimacing slightly at the pain as she sat up straighter on the couch, “Look, I fought Tirek, and I get it. He’s absurdly powerful. If his next best two supporters even hold a candle to him, they’re trouble too. But assuming Tirek is going to be stubborn enough to not recognize that Zero Division is too big a problem for him to handle alone, is it really impossible that we can’t take him and his loyalists on? If it were all of us? The Coalition, the Quincy, and the Gotei 13?”

This did give Sombra some pause, his dark eyes considering carefully, “Perhaps. Even if Scorpan has fallen, his remaining Captains are a formidable force. If they were willing... but first I would still need to fully pacify my own people. That will take time. On top of that, Twilight still needs to enact her rescue operation of Fleur De Lis.”

“Which I was going to ask if you girls wanted to help with,” Twilight said, blushing a shade of darker purple as she nodded at Sunset, “Although with you injured, and Rarity elsewhere...”

“Yeah,” Sunset replied softly, “I’m not going to be much use for a little bit, but what did you need, exactly? We helped you get a some kind of Quincy tracer on Fleur, right?”

“Yes,” Twilight said, “Your bout with Tirek was the perfect distraction, and with Fluttershy’s help, we attached a modified tracer to Fleur without any Hollows being any the wiser. I got a clear signal on her location and can maintain a fix on her any time we need. It’s just a matter of using that to extract her from wherever Guto is keeping her. I don’t need a lot of firepower for this. This would be more a matter of subtlety.”

“Heh, kinda rules me out of the op, doesn’t it?” Rainbow Dash said with a shrug, “Not exactly the stealth oriented type over here.”

“I would like to go, if that’s alright,” said Fluttershy, “I believe I have some personal reasons to ensure that Guto is not allowed to harm anyone any further.”

“Well our goal isn’t to take out Guto, just get Fleur De Lis out...” Twilight said, but then rubbed her chin, “Although Adagio has definitely placed him as a non-ally, so if we managed to take him out of the picture, it’d just be one less hostile Espada to worry about down the road.”

“Yikes, sugarcube, didn’t realize ya’d gotten quite that ruthless while gettin’ all Quincied up,” Applejack said, causing a flash of embarrassed indignation to flow over Twilight.

“I-I’m not being ruthless, just practical! I mean, we’ll be relying on Adagio’s assistance for this anyway, so you just see if she doesn’t bring up the possibility of removing Guto. She’s way more ruthless than I am. Hmph.”

Applejack snorted out a low laugh, “Relax, hun, wasn’t a’ criticism. Like it or not, we’re still fightin’ a war, an’ yer not ‘bout ta see me cryin’ over a fella like Guto gettin’ the long goodnight.”

Next to Pinkie Pie there was a rising tendril of frothing pink energy that resolved itself into the upper body of Pinkamena, licking her sharp teeth, “No kidding. Anyone we take out is just one less problem to deal with later. How about you bring me and Pinks along for the party as well?”

“Ahem, either way, our main goal would be extracting Fleur. Ideally without raising any alarm,” Twilight said, to which Pinkie Pie leaned on Pikamena and the pair talked simultaneously, overlapping one another.

“No problemo Twiliy, we’re perfect for pulling off the silent takedown routine-”

“-and if by chance things do go loud, you couldn’t ask for a better distraction than us, long as you don’t mind us taking a few bites out of Guto’s crew.”

Twilight considered that, and gave a firm nod, “Very well, I’ll gladly accept you and Fluttershy on the team. Both of your powersets would be extremely helpful. I’ll be taking in Sugarcoat as well, with the rest of my Quincy friends as backup. Sombra, I was also going to see if I could bring in Cinch?”

“Cinch?” he said, not hiding his surprise, “Why her, of all people?”

“Her Schrift is our best chance of being able to exit Las Noches after we have Fleur without having to fight our way through half the Arrancar army. I don’t really need her to fight, but having her in place to get us out once we’re in would be preferable,” Twilight said, to which Sombra nodded accent.

“Sensible enough, assuming you trust her to do as she’s told.”

“Well if he doesn’t she’ll have you to answer to, wouldn’t she?” Twilight replied. Sunset got the impression Twilight actually liked the idea of being put in charge of her former principal. She certainly radiated a good deal more confidence and a self-assured sense of command that Twilight had lacked in the days before her involvement with the Quincy.

“When would this be going down, anyway?” Sunset asked, and Twilight gave a frown of thought.

“I’d want at least a day or two to contact Adagio and coordinate our plans. Let’s say early morning, two days from now?”

“Gives us time to sort out other matters,” Sunset said, thinking of Wallflower and Rarity both. They still had no idea what that Dragon had been doing in town or why it had gone after Wallflower, if all people. And Sunset would be damned if she was just going to sit on her thumbs and do nothing about Rarity being trapped in Hell. Then there was the whole other matter of needing to go to Equestria, and the pathway to get there being through a portal that’d lead right into the Beast Realm.

The fact that a Dragon from the Beast Realm had come to Canterlot City right around the same time the portal had been shifted to that Realm couldn’t have been just coincidence. But what it actually meant, Sunset couldn’t even begin to guess.

“Oh, OH!” Twilight nearly jumped as she snapped her fingers, “That’s right, I almost forgot! About Rarity!”

She rapidly reached into the buttoned up portion of her white uniform jacket and pulled out a small notebook with a purple binding and a symbol on it that Sunset instantly recognized as a set of blue diamonds that was a pattern that Rarity often favored on her clothing. She’d long since stopped trying to work out why some of her friends seemed to naturally have symbols on their clothes that so often matched the cutie marks of their pony counterparts. She chalked it up to multidimensional weirdness that likely had no rational answer.

“Oooh, that’s nifty? What is it?” Pinkie Pie asked, “And why does it totally smell like Rarity’s shampoo and hair conditioner?”

Twilight blinked, then sniffed the notebook, looking flabbergasted, “Wait, it does smell like- but why would...? Argh, never mind that! What’s important isn’t what the notebook smells like, but what it does!”

She opened it to the first page and slapped it down on the coffee table between the couch and chairs. She then pulled out a pen and sat down in front of the notebook, “You see, with Midnight’s help, I replicated the same magic spells used in Sunset’s journal to Princess Twilight. This notebook is mystically tied so that if I or anyone else writes in it, it will reach Rarity.”

“Holy cow! That’s so freakin’ awesome!” Rainbow Dash said, “Will this actually reach her in Hell!?”

“I don’t know for sure, but since the magic could transfer across the boundary of worlds between Equestria and here, I don’t see any reason it couldn’t reach through to Hell,” Twilight said, then Sunset leaned over it, ignoring the pain in her body at the sudden motion.

“This is impressive, Twilight, but... when did you have time to do this? And how and when did you tie it to Rarity? I didn’t see her with a notebook of her own.”

Twilight’s face flushed, “W-well, you see, the thing about that is that you’re right, Rarity didn’t have a notebook of her own. And this plan was just what me and Midnight came up with on the fly when we realized she was intending to sacrifice herself to the Gates to ensure none of you were trapped with her. Midnight and I, we just sort of rapidly cast the spell without thinking. The first half of the spell we anchored to Rarity’s body, and only afterward finished the full spell on this notebook to link the two. So, um, if we write on this, the letters will appear... on Rarity. Somewhere. I’m not entirely sure where, but probably just her arm.”

“Or her face,” Rainbow Dash noted.

“Or her back,” Applejack added.

“Or her bu-” Pinkie Pie started, but Fluttershy cut her off.

“But it doesn’t matter,” said Fluttershy with confidence, “It’s still a way to communicate with her, and that’s far better than nothing.”

By now Twilight’s face had flushed to a crimson burn, “I didn’t really have time to consider the awkward manner in which this might work.”

A real blossom of optimism flared up inside Sunset and she gave Twilight a warm smile, “Don’t worry about it, this is great. I mean, not that Rarity is in Hell, but at least with a way to communicate with her we’ve got a much better chance of working out how to break her free of there.”

“Excactomundo!” said Pinkie, “You should totally write her now, to check that it works.”

Pinkamena in turn hovered over the notebook with a curious eye, “What do you guys think Hell is like?”

“Probably not party-oriented,” Pinkie noted, “But if anyone could liven the place up, it’s Rarity.

“Well, don’t keep us waiting, Twilight,” Sunset said, gesturing at the pen in the other girl’s hand, but Twilight shook her head and held the pen towards Sunset.

“It should be you. You’re better at this kind of thing than I am.”

Sunset raised her right hand, still very much encased in a wooden cast that was barely movable, and shook her head, “My writing hand isn’t up to it, I’m afraid. C’mon Twilight, it’s easy. Just write something short and simple, to check if she’s alright.”

“Go for it, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash encouraged, and after a hesitant moment, Twilight gulped and bent over the notebook.

It was only as she started to write that Sunset thought about her journal. Specifically the way it would glow and vibrate whenever she received a message from Princess Twilight. “Uh, out of curiosity, you said you replicated the spell exactly like it was on mine?”

----------

“What in the heavens!?” Rarity, exclaiming with a brief jump as her whole body started to vibrate and glow with a faint blue luminescence.

“Shhhh!” Cozy said with a snap, at first pointing to the distance where a pair of Kushanada could be seen standing guard over a vast, horizontal portal that was situated within a vast cleft between labyrinthine walls, “You trying to get us caught? Also, did you know you were buzzing and glowing? That normal?”

Their group was concealing themselves some two hundred yards from the Gate that would lead from the First Layer of Hell to the Second, using the edge of a taller stone platform to stay out of the Kushanada’s sight. The immense giants stood still as statues, their baleful yellow eyes flickering like demon lights, fists clenched tightly around their cleavers. Fortunately neither stirred at Rarity’s outburst, for she’d had just enough presence of mind to keep her volume low. Still, she looked herself over in alarm, trying to discern why she was quite suddenly so aglow and vibrating in a most tingly fashion.

On the other side of Cozy, Sunburst had looked up with alarm, while Blueblood, to Rarity’s right hand side and kneeling, looked at the side of her face that was turned towards him and blinked, “Why, there’s letters appearing upon your cheek.”

“There’s what?” Rarity said, baffled by his words. However, she was a quick thinker, and with a small, suppressed amount of spirit energy she crafted a red crystal disc in her hand, polished to as much of a mirror finish as she could make it. While the reflection was still tinted red, she could look at herself clearly and see Blueblood was right. Writing was etching itself across her right cheek, just beneath her eye and tracing along down towards her jaw in a small, neatly written print that she recognized.

“Why, that’s Twilight’s handwriting!” she said in a shocked whisper.

“Who?” Cozy asked, voice growing a bit irate.

“Just a moment,” Rarity told her, concentrating on reading the letters. In the mirror they were of course backwards, but it was no great feat to read the words as long as she took a moment to work it out in her head.

‘Used a copy of Sunset’s journal spell on you. Everyone is worried about you and hopes you’re okay. We’ll figure out a way to get you out. Any information on your end will be handy. Don’t know where this will appear on you, so won’t say more for now. You can write on yourself to reply. Please let us know you got this message.’

By the time the letters stopped, they’d reached nearly to her chin, but Rarity had no trouble reading them, and afterward let out a huge sigh. Her chest felt lighter, near impossibly so, just to know that her friends had a means to contact her. She silently praised Twilight’s quick thinking, however unorthodox, in making use of such a spell.

She felt a tap of cold chains on her shoulder, and saw the metal links dangling beside her as Cozy frowned, her scared side crinkling like worn leather, “Hey, I am not used to being out of the loop, so how about you enlighten us about why your face is suddenly tattooing itself with chicken scratch?”

Rarity brushed the chains aside, “Let us try for some politeness first, shall we? You are familiar with the word ‘please’, I take it?”

Sharp air was sucked in through Cozy’s nose, let out like the hiss of a cobra as she smiled in dainty, girlish fashion so forced it was like looking at a grotesque doll, “Oh pretty please tell me what the fuck is up with your glowing face writing, Miss Rarity, as I’d ever so much appreciate knowing. With a big old lump of sugar on top?”

Sunburst cleared his throat, “That is, um, about as polite as she’s going to get, I think. I’m pretty curious, myself. You clearly weren’t expecting this any more than we were.”

“True,” Rarity admitted, and took a minute or two to explain things to her companions. This did take a bit of a detour, as to explain the journal spell Twilight had apparently applied to Rarity’s body also required briefly explaining the existence of magic itself, along with the other world of Equestria.

“You’re kidding?” Cozy eventually said, and at Rarity’s deadpan look the girl just shook her head in plain amazement, “You’re not kidding. Magic. Like, literal hocus pocus, bibidi-babidi-boo, alaka-goddamn-zam magic? And this text-to-check thing is a spell that just casually zips info right on past the boundaries of Hell itself to pop up on your perfect, pearly skin? Oh golly gee holy freakin’ willikers! Do you have any idea what this means!?”

It was rather unsettling to Rarity just how fast this child’s mood swings seemed to take her. A second ago she seemed ready to slit Rarity’s throat over having to be a tad polite. Now she all but cavorted like a mad little gremlin in a candy store around Rarity. Still keeping her voice down, of course, because of the nearby Kushanada, but Cozy Glow was grinning with what appeared to be genuine mirth as she slid up and wrapped arms around Rarity’s waist, and with inhuman strength twirled the girl around with a laugh.

“You just went from ‘kind of interesting and I might keep you around if you don’t piss me off’ to ‘most useful person in all the Layers of Hell’! Wow, I’m getting dizzy just thinking about it.”

“Yes, that’s lovely, can you put me down now?” asked Rarity, and Cozy paused, and seemed to realize her behavior was somewhat ruining whatever self image she had of herself as a hardened gang leader in Hell, so she dropped Rarity and strode next to Sunburst, elbowing the man.

“Sunny, you get what this means, right? She can send messages clean and clear to Earth. If magic is this powerful, this is our ticket out of here. Also, you can finally get a message to that girlfriend you’ve been pining about for years.”

Sunburst grunted, looking away, “My friend who is a girl, not a girlfriend. And I don’t even know if Starlight still remembers me, let alone would know what to do with a message from me. Besides, Rarity’s friends might not even know who she is.”

“They live in the same city, right? How hard could it be to track one person down? Starlight Glimmer. Overly dramatic. I totally bet she’s the type to visit your grave, like, every week. Easy peasy to find her,” Cozy said with confidence.

“You’re making so many leaps of logic I’m not even able to keep up,” Sunburst said, scratching his head before looking at Rarity, “Although it’s true that this could be useful in finding a way to escape, assuming you’d be willing to help us?”

Rarity had kept her face placid and considering, making a point of not showing any particular twitch or gasp that might give away that she recognized Starlight Glimmer’s name. Although at this point it would get harder to keep that secret, so she wasn’t sure if there was any point in keeping the information from Sunburst. But her mind was quickly conjuring unpleasant notions that the last thing she might want to do was provide an easy way out of Hell for Cozy Glow or anyone who followed her. Granted, the souls trapped here were being served a punishment perhaps too extreme even for the worst offenders, but by the same token if Rarity’s friends did find a way for her and Blueblood to escape, and a whole legion of very angry and violent Sinners with Hell-fueled superpowers escaped into the living world as well...

She had to tread carefully. Very carefully. Sunburst might be here unjustly. Even the likes of Cozy Glow might not deserve the horrific fate this dismal dimension would eventually give them. But Rarity also could not afford to just throw open the gates of egress without nary a thought for the potential consequences to the world of the living.

“My lady, are you quite alright?” asked Blueblood, and Rarity realized she’d been quietly starring at Sunburst, who was starting to return her stare with a frowning tilt of his head.

Composing herself, Rarity forced a smile and said, “Just reeling in relief at knowing I can contact my friends. Ahem, as to your question, Sunburst, it’s possible my friends might be able to help us. Obviously I can offer no guarantees, but they’re an eclectic bunch with various resources at their disposal. Let us take this one step at a time, shall we?”

With that said, she flicked her wrist and summoned forth a glittering quill of red crystal. She adjusted the construct’s consistency so that the crystalline structure became like liquid towards the tip, forming a red ink quite like blood. A tad morbid, but it was what she had to work with, lacking an actual pen. Presuming that if the spell generated writing on her body from whatever Twilight was using on her end, then Rarity imagined she could pen a reply by writing on herself. Hopefully her arm would suffice.

As Sunburst looked on with hope and Cozy Glow with hunger, Rarity rolled up the sleeve of her arm and began to write.

Episode 184: Shifting Paradigms

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Episode 184: Shifting Paradigms

A pallid air of disbelief still hung over Clover like some thick fogbank. Despite the clear skies and the warm day that covered the Seireitei, she felt both within and without a heavy laden air of uncertainty, as if the very reishi of the air were charged with an anxious vibration. She passed Soul Reapers on the broad, clean pathways between buildings who were, like her, moving either in a daze about their duties, or holding uneasy counsel in whispers with one another.

Word had spread that Captain Commander Scorpan had fallen in battle. Captain Celestia was to be raised as the new Captain Commander, and furthermore almost all expeditionary forces were to be recalled to the Soul Society immediately. Soul Reapers assigned to guard and watch particular cities were to remain on duty, but any units poised in either the world of the living or Hueco Mundo on any business other than the bare minimum of scouts to keep watch were already returning. In Clover’s understanding of things, this was only rarely ever done, usually when the whole of the Gotei 13 was preparing to move in force. In this instance, she sensed it had more to do with consolidating power around the Rukon Districts and Seireitei itself, to quell any potential unrest that might spring up as news of Scorpan’s passing would spread.

For her part, she had not known the Captain Commander on any personal level, but that hardly mattered. The loss was felt as keenly as any might at the sudden death of a parent or grandparent, for Captain Commander Scorpan had formed the unbreakable bedrock of the Soul Society from the very beginning. He was as a mountain under whom’s shade the whole of the Gotei 13 resided. Generations had come and gone, from the famed to the ill fated, all under the guardianship of Soul Society’s chief architect and defender. To lose Scorpan was as a ship losing its main sailing mast and rudder all at once.

Little wonder that everywhere she looked, Clover saw despondent faces, barely hiding their nervous fear. What was to come next? What was to happen to Soul Society and the Soul Reapers as a whole, without their Captain Commander?

Clover felt for Captain Celestia. Captain Commander Celestia... even the thought of the title hung heavy in Clover’s thoughts. She liked Celestia quite well, and respected the Captain of the Thirteenth Division greatly. But was Celestia truly up to filling Scorpan’s monumental shoes? And with her taking over the First Division, that left another Division without a Captain. Platinum’s Sixth remained absent a Captain, now alongside the Thirteenth. The Gotei 13 was now greatly diminished, upon the eve of them discovering that their greatest foe was neither the Hollows nor the Quincy, but the very Zero Division who had reigned over them from the beginning.

That news, concerning Zero Division, had not spread yet, and Clover was under a gag order to keep silent. Understandable. Things were shakey enough without that bombshell finishing things off, which it may well do.

And strangest of all, although she knew her duty lay in now doing all she could to better serve the Gotei 13, her Twelfth Division, and Soul Society as a whole... a part of her wanted nothing more than to go back immediately to the living world and her friends. To Sunset. She was confused and a little mortified by the feeling, face reddening as she hurried her steps until she reached the forested park where the Thirteenth Division’s headquarters was kept. Captain Celestia and Starswirl both had summoned her there, although to what purpose Clover did not know. She’d intended to return to Canterlot City to inform Sunset and the girls about Scorpan’s fate, but she could hardly ignore a summons from two Captains.

It was just that Sunset had been left in such a dreadful state when she’d left, unconscious and burned, being treated by Discord’s spirit science. Clover knew Discord was among the best suited to seeing to Sunset’s health, but there was an irrational desire to be there to look after her friend that Clover continually told herself was nothing more than normal, friendly concern.

I am being foolish, and wish Chishiki was here to tell me so, she thought, missing her Zanpaktou all the keener now for her confused feelings. Her Zanpaktou spirit could readily read her, and had always provided good advice when she felt lost. And did she ever feel lost now. Uncertain of her usefulness to those she cared for, as the battles had escalated to such heights as confronting the likes of Tirek and Zero Division.

She’d felt outclassed even trying to help a little bit against Gaia Everfree. While there was some satisfaction to be had in having helped capture that Attendant woman, Bubbles, Clover didn’t make that much of her victory there; she’d had plenty of help, after all.

Having reached the picturesque collection of low roofed buildings situated by the forest’s singular lake, Clover made at once for Captain Celestia’s offices. She was greeted by some few members of the Thirteenth Division, who were only slightly more upbeat than some of their fellow Soul Reapers, if only because of the honor inherent in their Captain being chosen as the new Captain Commander. Still, Clover would have thought they’d be more worried about no longer having a Captain themselves, but each person she passed was polite and some even smiled at her, even as they bowed respectfully as she went by.

“Ah, Third Seat Clover, thank you for coming so promptly,” Celestia said from where she was arranging several boxes of letters on her desk. Nearby, seated comfortably in front of the desk, Captain Starswirl didn’t stand but gave Clover an approving look.

“Good, you’re here, now we can get on to this business,” he said, clearing his throat and not even giving Clover a moment to bow, sit, or collect herself much at all before going on to say, “As of now, you are dismissed from the Twelfth Division.”

“P-pardon?” Clover said, utterly dumbfounded. As she floundered for thought or word, Celestia cast a reproachful look towards Starswirl as she went to sit at her desk.

“Now Captain Starswirl, you can’t just hit her with that out of the blue before explaining the situation to her at all. Be sensible.”

“Oh, but it is much simpler to get the unpleasant part over with first before one moves on to the good stuff,” Starswirl replied, a twitch of a smile on his lips, “Besides, all you really needed me here for, Celestia, was to make her dismissal official so you can do the rest.”

“Well I do expect she might need some encouragement and convincing from you,” Celestia said, turning to Clover, “But let us not talk as if you are not here, Clover. Before you are forced to ask any questions, allow me to shed light as to our purpose. I am leaving the Thirteenth Division to assume my duties as Captain Commander. As of now the Gotei 13 are in need of those capable of assuming the duties of Captain for the Sixth and Thirteenth Divisions. Lieutenant Fancy Pants has made a good account of himself of late, and also with some assistance from Starswirl’s research, even achieved Bankai. As a result he shall be assuming command of the Sixth Division as Captain. That merely leaves the Thirteenth... and I have requested you for the position as its new Captain.”

If Starswirl’s sudden dismissal from the Twelfth Division had left Clover speechless, this left her utterly breathless and more than a little dizzy. Her brain staggered to conceive of what she was hearing and she found herself sitting down in one of the other chairs before Celestia’s desk much like a suddenly dropped sack of grain.

Eventually she started to form words again.

“I... must respectfully inquire... why?” she said, once her thoughts started to march in some manner of logical order, “Why me? I am not Captain material in the least.”

Celestia’s expression was the kind of warm, receptive understanding that had left many members of the Thirteenth loyal to her. It was the look of a mother happy to correct her children about their own talents. “With respect, Clover, I do not believe you give yourself sufficient credit. Over the past few months you have acquired battle experience in excess of many of our Lieutenants. You’ve been instrumental in matters of diplomacy, cultivating friendships with those of the living world, including Quincy and even Hollows. Indeed few Soul Reapers have the variety of experiences you have, while also being a qualified substitute instructor at the Academy, which gives you plenty of qualification to run the Thirteenth Division’s affairs.”

Technically yes, Clover understood the Thirteenth Division’s purpose as a sort of “training” Division for young Soul Reapers to get practical field experience and cultivate their talents to eventually transfer to other, more specialized Divisions. Given her time at the Academy, and her varied experiences in the living world, she supposed she might be well set to take over such duties. But she still felt she lacked any real command experience, plus...

“What of my Zanpaktou?” she said, “Chishiki is still in the clutches of Starlight Glimmer, and even if I had him back, I had not achieved Bankai, which is a prerequisite for Captainship, is it not?”

“Strictly speaking that is more a tradition than a rule,” Starswirl said, shrugging, “Captains are supposed to be the strongest Soul Reapers, hence it’s preferable for them to have Bankai, what with it being the power boost it is. That said, power comes in many forms, and yours is not inconsiderable at this point. I have heard plenty from Pudding Head as to your talent and rapid development as a master of Kido, and Amore’s report as to the dreadful business at that summit with this new Coalition stated you took down a direct servant of one of the Zero Division. At this point, Bankai is a formality that can be ignored. I’ve little doubt, once you re-acquire your Zanpaktou, that you’ll achieve it in good time anyway. Fancy Pants did well enough, and quite frankly your reiatsu is stronger than his.”

“It is? But he is a Lieutenant, and I’m still Third Seat,” Clover began to say but Starswirl just snorted at her.

“Hogwash. You’ve been fighting more, and even sitting here I can sense your reiatsu is of a magnitude greater than our Lieutenants. Certainly shot past poor Meadowbrook, at any rate. Oh stop being a bother, girl. You did well enough in the Twelfth, but I never felt research was your best field. You’ll do much better running the Thirteenth, and we don’t have time to laze about arguing the matter. With Scorpan gone, the Gotei 13 need to recover a sense of purpose and at least the semblance of power. That shall be done by getting our empty Captain seats filled, and getting on about the business of dealing with whatever mischief the Hollows have planned for our magical neighbors over in Equestria.”

Celestia cleared her throat at Starswirl and spoke in a more measured, assuring tone to Clover, “I cannot force this on you, but please consider it, Clover. Starswirl speaks the truth. Whether you know it or not, you are qualified for this role, and I have every faith in you.”

“And what of your own Lieutenant, Flash Sentry?” Clover asked, mostly to buy time to just absorb this sudden and drastic change thrust upon her life.

There was a knowing, curled smile on Celestia now, a certain mischievous radiance cast upon her voice that was like unsung laughter, “He is a fine young man and I shall be sad to lose him as my Lieutenant, but I do fear he has long since set his heart upon serving another. As it happens, I think he’ll do well as a diplomatic emissary to Equestria.”

“Huh?” Clover wasn’t sure what Celestia knew that she didn’t, but it must have had something to do with Flash having gone through the portal to Equestria. Had the two talked of something before that had happened, perhaps? Celestia certainly seemed unbothered by her Lieutenant’s absence, at any rate.

“It’s nothing to be concerned with,” Celestia insisted, “At any rate, I can leave you a list of recommendations for promotion, once you’re settled in. Some of these letters are to you, to bring you up to speed on Division affairs. Assuming you will take the post?”

By all accounts she had no reason not to. It was an incredible honor to even be considered a candidate for Captaincy, let alone be hand picked by who was to become the new Captain Commander. Despite both Celestia and Starswirl’s assurances, Clover still felt as if she was a child contemplating wearing the uniform of her parents. She couldn’t even envision herself wearing the white haori jacket of a Captain, especially without Chishiki at her side.

On top of that, if she accepted this position, what was to become of her friendship with Sunset Shimmer and the girls? As Captain of the Thirteenth Division she’d be so embroiled with new duties she couldn’t imagine she could continue to act as the liaison between them and Soul Society. When would she get to see them again?

As if knowing her precise thoughts, Celestia said, “As it happens, with the recall of many of our forces back to Seireitei, there’s still an issue of maintaining a presence in Canterlot City. Given that myself and Captain Luna were given such a posting in the past, it is not out of the question that the Captain of the Thirteenth Division, once she had the Division’s affairs in order here, could not take up a similar post in Canterlot City. You see, as being Captain Commander will demand much of my time, I can no longer masquerade as a high school principal anyway. You, on the other hand, may make the transition with minimal change.”

“I was just posing as a high school student there,” Clover pointed out, but Celestia waved the worry away.

“Most of the student body know your true nature already, and as for the few among the faculty who don’t, it is no difficult matter to give you an older, slightly altered gigai that can sufficiently pose as an older sister or even mother to your student persona.”

Well, that settled that in a neat package. Clover sat back in her seat, still trying to process the enormous nature of what this change meant for her. Yet she had no rational reason to object, her dubious qualifications aside.

At long last she summoned up all of her courage and swallowed past a dry throat, “Very well then, I suppose I should ask... when am I to begin?”

“Quite immediately,” was Celestia’s smiling reply.

----------

They’d been told to expect a visit from whomever was in charge of this faction of witches whom Bon Bon, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia were a part of, but Sunset had not at all expected to be staring at the fuzzy face of a knitted doll in the shape of a ridiculously plump dragon. The gaudy thing was done up in bright blue thread, patched over with squares of yellow and green, with disproportionately small wings that flapped lazily as the plush doll hovered in front of them.

She, her friends, and Discord were all set up in his shop front for the meeting. Ditzy was sitting things out to rest from her wounds, while Wallflower was fast asleep after the pressures of what had happened to her. The doll, meanwhile, was extending threads from it’s hand to create a square screen that hovered next to it. On said screen, some manner of energy flowed through to provide a visual of what looked like a small cemetery in the outskirts of the downtown area of the city.

There, Sunset watched a recorded scene unfold.

Wallflower had been shown wandering into the cemetery, almost as if in a daze. She went to a gravestone and stood staring at it for some time. Meanwhile Octavia and Vinyl Scratch were seen hiding nearby, keeping watch from behind several other gravestones. It was then that the air stirred with wind and Wallflower was seen to look up, mouth agape as the Dragon descended, landing full body in the cemetery and crushing several gravestones to powder in the process. Its snout was mere feet from Wallflower and it sniffed her, and said in a resonant growl.

“Your hiding is at an end. Ragnarok comes and our lord requires you, even if you are but an empty vessel.”

The last scene before the screen faded was Wallflower screaming and scrambling away, just as Vinyl and Octavia leaped out of hiding, their odd wands drawn to begin engaging the Dragon. At that point the doll retracted the threads of yarn back into it’s body and spoke in a woman’s tone that was oddly flat to Sunset’s ears, as if her voice was being masked partially as to not be identified.

“That happened while you folks were dealing with your own problems here. With some timely assistance from your... employees, the Dragon was put down, but not before causing half a city block to catch fire. We’re cleaning that mess up, and just count ourselves lucky all that spiritual pressure going around had already knocked out most witnesses.”

“Very elucidating,” Discord replied simply, “Although I find myself laden down with a number of questions.”

“Yeah let’s start with who the heck are you and why are you talking to us through a weird looking floating crochet nightmare instead of coming here in person, lady?” blurted Rainbow Dash, jabbing a finger into the pudgy gut of the yarn dragon. The doll looked at her, its button eyes actually blinking in somewhat disturbing fashion, one after another.

“Don’t be impatient. I wanted to make clear what happened first, so you had a tiny bit of context before we got on with this. For the moment you may refer to me as Miss... Three. Don’t bother asking my actual name. If I wished to provide it, I’d have come in person.”

“Okay weirdo,” Dash said with a surly shrug and went back to leaning against one of the dubiously stocked candy shelves in the storefront. Meanwhile Sunset cleared her throat and raised her left, uninjured hand.

“If you want to keep things secret, fine, but it’s not like we’re not already in the know about you witches being here. Might go a long way to help with trust if you threw us a bone or two.”

The doll turned to her, its arms squeaking as it crossed them, its big snout drooping in a frown, “The bone was having my agents bring Wallflower to you. It’s clear we’re not presently best suited to keeping an eye on her, although it might be safer in the long run to take her out of Canterlot City. You see I wasn’t sure before that the Dragons of Jormungandr’s damned Cult of Ragnarok were targeting her, but this all but confirmed it.”

“Oh, Cult of Ragnarok sounds like a wicked band name!” Pinkie Pie said, and Applejack sighed, sitting next to her on one of the inner store steps.

“Just what we need, a bunch o’ new nutjobs causin’ problems. Like we waint got ‘nough on our plate. An’ these fellers bein’ Dragons means they’re all up in the Beast Realm, where we got ta go soon anyhows?”

“Further elaboration would not go unappreciated,” Discord stated, adjusting his hat and leaning harder on his cane, “Miss Windy Whistles.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, “Wha...?”

The doll narrowed it’s eyes at Discord, “You sneaky goddamn bastard, if you knew it was me you could have spared me the trouble of sending in a Thread Proxy.”

Even the doll’s voice had changed it’s artificial tone to take on the more natural voice of Rainbow Dash’s aunt, Windy Whistles, and Dash just stared at it, mouth agape, “Aunt... Windy?”

With hunched wings the doll hovered her way and spread its arms out, “Yes, Dashie, it’s me. Rather sorry you had to find out this way, and I’d be rather grateful if you didn’t immediately blab to your father about it. I’ll tell Bow in my own good time, but I can’t do everything I please, when I please. Wing Bind has its own rules, and while I am high on the totem pole, I still answer to my fellow Top of Horns.”

Rainbow Dash’s face twitched several times, going from shocked, to disappointed, then a brooding if somewhat leached away anger as she hung her head and muttered, “Well whatever. Mom ran out on me and dad without telling us the truth, no reason to figure you’d have been honest with us either. You know what? I don’t care about whatever this is about. You go explain this crap to my friends. I’m heading downstairs and getting some training in.”

She turned and started to storm out of the room, while Windy’s voice called from the doll, “Dashie, I wasn’t trying to hurt you or Bow. I wasn’t at liberty to say anything about my new job-”

“I don’t care about that,” Rainbow said, rounding on her from the doorway, hands propped on the sides of it as a bit of electricity course over her, “I’m sure you have a whole damn hullabaloo that means you think it’s cool to keep things from me and dad, and act all cozy towards him while living a second life as a secret agent witch or whatever. Don’t. Care. He doesn’t need another person who’ll up and leave him again. Stay away from my dad!”

She slammed the door shut and it was easy enough to feel the stomps of her feet as she walked away, no doubt to go down into the training area. After an uncomfortable moment of silence, Applejack stood up and said, “I’ll go n’ keep an eye on her, make sure she don’t tear the place down.” With a look at Sunset she added, “Tell me what ya learn when y’all are done here?”

“No problem,” Sunset replied, “Look after Dash.”

Once Applejack had departed as well, the doll that was Windy Whistles proxy floated back to the center of the room, sighing. “Well, she’s got Firefly’s temper, that’s for sure.”

“I think it’s that she’s protective of her father,” Sunset said, not quite glaring or anything, but less than pleased to see her friend so upset, “And this makes it sound like you’ve been keeping things from him, same as her mother did. It’s a sore spot for Dash.”

“I was as ignorant of Firefly’s activities as Bow was back then,” Windy Whistles said, “I wasn’t a witch, let alone a high ranking one, in those days. I didn’t even get involved in Wing Bind until my previous job as a government accountant landed me a job at the U.S embassy in London.”

“Do tell,” Discord said, having largely stayed stoic during Dash’s outburst, but now leaned forward with intent.

“No, I think I’ll skip that sordid story,” Windy said, with an air of irritated revenge on Discord revealing her identity, “Besides it’s not important compared to what we’re dealing with. All you need to know about me is that nowadays I’m Top of Horns for the Patchwork’s Division. For simplicity’s sake I’ll say that’s essentially equivalent to the Captains among the Soul Reapers you’re already familiar with. Wing Bind is a secret, multinational organization that has existed for some time, born originally from a group in Britain that developed ‘magic’ from the study of spiritual energy. Back then it was solely concerned with defending Britain from supernatural threats, but has long since grown into a world spanning force. That said, we’ve never had the power or numbers to make any real splash in the larger spiritual war between the Soul Reapers, Quincy, and Hollows, and so we’ve kept out of it entirely and instead focused on what you might consider more... low key threats. But threats no less dangerous for their seemingly smaller scale nature.”

“Only I’m guessing things are no longer so small scale, if it now involves Dragons, and Jormungandr of all of them,” Discord noted, and Fluttershy cleared her throat.

“Do you know who Jormungandr is, Mister Discord?”

“I’ve certainly never met the fellow, but I know enough about the Beast Realm to know he is the High Chieftain of the Sea Tribe,” Discord said, sucking in a breath, “And in theory, the strongest of the three. The three High Chieftains that is. From what I recall, Quetzalcoatl rules the Sky Tribe, while Fenris rules the Land Tribe. But in truth, both of them know that Jormungandr is older and more potent, his Tribe only held back by the comparative numbers of the clans within the other Tribes.”

“Wowie, sounds like a serious bigwig. He was as crazy strong as those Zero Division grumps that ruined our party?” Pinkie Pie said, casting a thumb towards the roof in the far corner of the storefront, where the hole that had been blasted in the shop partially edged into this section of the building. Fortunately the interior nature of Discord’s shop, with its shifting hallways, meant that getting around still wasn’t overly difficult, but Discord had mentioned it’d be a bit before the damage was repaired.

In answer to Pinkie’s question, Discord offered an enigmatic side glance and faint shrug of his shoulders, “The Beast Realm is a mysterious place, even to the Soul Reapers. They’ve power sufficient to keep us out of their affairs, and Jormungandr being rumored the strongest of their leaders certainly suggests he is quite formidable, as I suspect any High Chieftain would be. However, I suspect that Zero Division would still pose a serious threat, even to the Beast Realm’s strongest. They remain the strongest spirit beings that I am aware of.”

“Which still means that Jormungandr and any of his upper ranked Dragons and other creatures of his Tribe are damn dangerous,” Windy said in a flat, no nonsense voice, “And you’re not kidding about that ‘mysterious’ part. For as long as Wing Bind has dealt with rogue entities from that Beast Realm, we don’t know much about them. At least nowhere near as much as we’d like. Which makes this whole business with Miss Wallflower a giant pain in the butt, given we haven’t the slightest clue why they’re after her.”

Sunset was hesitant to bring this up, as Twilight wasn’t present an could probably provide more information after having studied the artifact, but right now it stuck out in Sunset’s mind that it was awfully coincidental that Wallflower was targeted this way only a short time after Sunset had taken that Equestrian artifact from her. “Look, I don’t know if this is related, but...”

She described the Hollow attack on Wallflower and the odd magical stone that Sunset had found in her possession. Windy’s floating dragon doll rubbed its head, “Yes, we were aware of that item. I won’t lie, we wanted it for ourselves, and had been considering both bringing in Miss Wallflower and that artifact before you got to her. We’ve rounded up a few items like that from across the world. You’d be shocked just how much our world seems to get used as a dumping ground by those Equestrian folk for random, problematic artifacts they wanted to get rid of.”

“You do realize how dangerous those are, then? Especially if they were so dangerous that somepony in Equestrian felt the best way to deal with them was to toss them into another dimension?” Sunset said, feeling a moment of mild panic at the thought of crazy Equestrian artifacts in the hands of people who had no idea what to do with them.

Windy chuckled as dryly as the yarn of her doll, “We’ve been at this for centuries, Miss Shimmer. Believe you me, the research boys in the Billions Division know how to handle dangerous magic. Don’t worry, we haven’t blown the world up. Yet. Suppose the way things are going, it’d be just our luck, wouldn’t it?”

Pinkie Pie giggled, but Sunset remained hard faced, “I don’t think this is particularly funny. But we’re getting sidetracked. What’s important right now is that Wallflower is still probably being targeted, and the last thing we need is more Dragons showing up. It won’t be long before we’re going to the Beast Realm to try and cross over it to Equestria. I don’t know what this Jormungandr jerk thinks he’s up to, or what this Ragnarok business is about, and it’d be pretty dumb to assume it isn’t somehow connected to Zero Division’s actions. So what I propose we do is keep Wallflower as far out of the line of fire as possible, and when we cross the Beast Realm, we confront whoever is in authority over there to get some answers about Jormungandr. It’s on our way to Equestria, we can knock it out as an issue while passing through.”

“Hah!” Windy Whistles laughed, not with too much derision, but more just surprised, “The moxy on you. You’re just going to ‘knock it out’ with the High Chieftains of the Beast Realm, on your way to Equestria? Like it’s a damn pit stop at an Arby’s.”

“Oh I don’t like Arby’s. I’m more of a Wendy’s girl,” Sunset said, flashing an incorrigible smirk.

“Hmph, well if you think it will be that easy, don’t let me stop you,” Windy said, “But if we’re talking about keeping Miss Wallflower safe, you may as well let us have her.”

“Why?” Sunset asked, eyes narrowing.

“Look, the Dragons already know she’s here in Canterlot City, and you just pointed out you’ll be trying to go to Equestria soon. Sure, you plan to try and deal with Jormungandr on the way there, but no telling how that will actually go, and every second in between now and then, the girl is in danger. On top of that, you don’t know how that magic artifact is tied into any of this, if at all. Maybe your Quincy friend has learned something about it, maybe she hasn’t, but either way its a fair bet it’s not a mystery that’s going to resolve itself any convenient time soon before you go jetting off to the Beast Realm and Equestria.”

Wind Whistles pointed at Discord, “On top of that, your problems with the Zero Division only put Miss Wallflower in more danger. You keep her here, there’s no guarantee she won’t end up a side casualty of another attack. This shop is right at the center of a lot of attention of the less than friendly variety.”

“Well made points,” said Discord, “But even so, why should we give her over to you? How will she be safer, precisely?”

“Also let’s not forget that she isn’t here for this conversation, and I’m pretty damn sure she should be the one to decide what to do, not us,” pointed out Sunset.

Windy cleared her throat, “We won’t take her against her will, but I can give her plenty of reasons to agree to this, including a guarantee of safety and extremely good treatment while under our care. Listen, this goes against regulations a bit, but I’ll give you the location of our headquarters. Reverse London. Just like it sounds, it’s a magically created mirror image of London, existing spiritually right underneath it. It’s extremely secure, and while there she’ll enjoy the protection of a whole damn army of witches. On top of that, the Dragon’s don’t know where Reverse London is. They won’t be able to track her there.”

Something about this still irked Sunset. Perhaps it was just that she felt some responsibility towards Wallflower. She’d made the girl’s life miserable, once, and still felt like just saving her life that one time the other day didn’t really make up for it. Also Wallflower seemed wholly unprepared for dealing with any more craziness in her life, and getting shipped off to some weird witch organization that had its headquarters in a pocket dimension copy of London just sounded like it would make things worse.

“It’s a nice offer, but I’m not convinced it’s for the best,” Sunset said simply, “Besides, Wallflower has a life here in Canterlot City. We can’t just pack her off on a plane to England like it’s nothing. What about her family?”

“Near as we can tell she doesn’t have any,” Windy Whistles replied, which made Sunset blink, and caused Discord to stroke his beard.

“I feared as much,” he said, “I had already checked myself, and noted the lack of any permanent address associated with the girl. No family name. Not much of any record at all, really.”

“Then... how was she at school?” asked Sunset, and looked at Fluttershy, then Pinkie Pie, “Did you guys ever see her at school?”

Pinkie scratched her head, “Um...uhhh... nope! Sorry! Got no memory of her at all.”

Fluttershy sadly shook her head, “I don’t either. She wasn’t in any of my classes. I’m not even sure I’ve seen her until you rescued her and brought her here.”

Sunset felt a strange stillness inside her, recalling her own less than clear memory. She’d surmised she’d bullied Wallflower, but actual memory of those events... “Okay, so what are we thinking then? Could she be a rogue Soul Reaper who hijacked a gigai?”

“Oh, you’d have sensed as much by now if that were the case,” Discord said, making an off handed gesture, “And while I’ve been discreet about it, I have examined her. She’s human. Even my analysis of her on a spiritual level suggests she’s human. Except for... a certain abnormality.”

Sunset turned her head swiftly on him, lips twisted into a somewhat exasperated if bemused smile, “Just mentioning this now, are you?”

“It really wasn’t relevant until now,” Discord said, smiling back at her with an utterly disarming amount of charm, “It’s been a busy day or two for you. No point worrying you, when I wasn’t really certain as to the nature of this abnormality. I do have a theory or two, now, but I’d like to hold off on discussing the matter until Twilight can be consulted more upon the nature of that magical stone.”

“And I take it from the turn of this conversation that you won’t be handing Miss Wallflower over to us, or the artifact?” said Windy Whistles, and both Sunset and Discord spoke simultaneously.

“Hell no!”

“Most assuredly not.”

They glanced at each other, nodded, then looked back at Windy Whistles with straight stares. The doll sighed and drooped, “Fair enough. The offer shall remain open, if you change your minds. Or if Miss Wallflower decides to come to us of your own accord. You did say the decision should be her’s, did you not, Miss Shimmer? Then I would ask that you at least pass the offer along to her and give her my number. If she decides, then she’s free to join us. My unit and I shall still be in Canterlot City for a time, until we receive word of recall from headquarters.”

Sunset grimaced, but nodded, “Fine, give me the number, I’ll pass it along to her.”

But I sure won’t be encouraging her to take you up on it, she thought. It wasn’t that she thought it was an entirely terrible idea, but there was something about Windy Whistle’s manner that rubbed Sunset the wrong way. It wasn’t that she’d upset Rainbow Dash, although that certainly didn’t help. It was the all business attitude, and focus on all of this like it was... just work. Now Sunset was the last person at this point to judge a whole organization based on the attitudes of one or two of its members. Bon Bon seemed cool, and the other witches hadn’t given her much reason to distrust them. It might be that Wing Bind as a whole was on the right side of things.

But they’d also been collecting dangerous Equestrian artifacts for centuries, if Windy was to be believed, and she seemed a little too fixated on the idea of getting Wallflower and that magic stone. Just as much as the Dragons, for that matter.

Once Windy Whistles had left, Sunset sat back, all but laying down on the storefront floor with a huge exclamation of frustrated breath, “Augh! Why of all times did we have to get another faction cropping up out of the woodwork to cause problems!?”

Pinkie Pie sat next to her and patted Sunset’s head, smiling bright as lemonade, “There, there, Sunny. It’s not that big a deal. Who cares what this silly Jormunblather is up to? Probably just some dumb ‘take over the world’ nonsense. Maybe Wallflower is his random, magical Mcguffin who he needs to fulfill his dark prophecy or whatever. Doesn’t matter. We’ll just punch him really hard when we’re passing through the Beast Realm, and it won’t matter what his plans were, because he’ll be K.O’ed and we’ll be moving on to more important stuff!”

“Pinkie, your optimistic outlook is exactly what I needed to hear,” Sunset said, letting the tension drain out of her as Fluttershy also came up, and both she and Pinkie offered hands to help Sunset sit up. She groaned as her body, still quite injured, let it’s protests be known through more than a few shooting pains down her spine.

Discord and Fluttershy both looked at each other, the former saying, “If you would be so kind, Miss Fluttershy?”

“Of course,” Fluttershy said, and before Sunset could so much as raise a word of protest, her friend had laid a golden hand of ethereal light upon her shoulder, and Sunset felt the warm breeze of power from Fluttershy dull her pain. What surprised Sunset, however, was that Fluttershy had not transformed, and the hand of gold light extended from the air near her like a second limb.

“Oh, I didn’t know you could do that,” Sunset said.

“Learning to bring out only the power I need has been as important as pushing the limits of what I can do at full strength,” Fluttershy said, and Pinkie Pie nodded, flickering her own hand and letting a small tendril of pink energy curl up her finger.

“Yup! Me and Mena have been practicing a lot too, so we can do the subtle stuff.”

“Subtle stuff? Dare I inquire what that entails with your kooky power set?” Sunset asked, and Pinkie winked.

“You’ll know it when you see it.”

Discord cleared his throat, “That aside, this day has been more chaotic than even my tastes tend to prefer. I still have to oversee repairs to my shop, and get my wards properly restored. In the meantime I suggest you girls get what rest you can. Perhaps go see if Miss Dash’s feathers aren’t too ruffled by her aunt’s revelations.”

“Yeah, I’d like to make sure she’s alright,” Sunset said, “Who’s on patrol duty, though?”

“Miss Lofty and Miss Holiday have volunteered to take the younger ladies on a combined patrol this evening,” Discord replied, and Sunset considered that a moment before nodding. She wasn’t sure just how strong the two elder Bount were, but they’d probably have no issues shepherding the younger girls through any lesser Hollow encounters that might crop up.

“I’d feel better if we had at least one heavy hitter on standby,” she said, glancing at Fluttershy, “Any chance your pal Smooze wouldn’t mind helping out?”

“Oh I’m sure he’d be delighted to assist us, although I am worried he isn’t recovered enough to really be considered a ‘heavy hitter’,” Fluttershy said, “But I don’t doubt he’ll do it if I asked.”

“Just for tonight,” Sunset said, “I’d ask Gloriosa instead, but I want someone still covering Everfree, and that’s still basically her back yard. I don’t think Tirek is going to make any moves immediately, but I’ve got a feeling once news of what happened today spreads, it’ll be like blood in the water for the sharks.”

“You’re not wrong,” Discord commented, “And I would be shocked if Tirek was not already aware. We can expect something, and likely very soon.”

“Adagio will give us warning if anything weird starts happening in Las Noches, at least,” Sunset replied, “We just got to hope we’ll be given enough time to lick our wounds before it does.”

----------

“I don’t like it, boss lady,” Di Roy said, staring hard across the interior desert of Las Noches' vast insides. He stood next to Adagio atop a recently built observation platform that she had constructed near the ‘roof’, where the insanely massive fortress’ sky dome connected to the inner wall. This was was a fan-shaped platform of worked stone, high above the chambers and halls of her claimed territory. It was a plain affair, without bother of a railing, and a single door in the wall behind it that led to carved stairs that switched back and forth downward several hundred feet until it reached level with the chambers of Adagio’s territory.

The platform gave a magnificent view of much of Las Noches' interior, and a well made telescope taken from the human world was mounted on a tripod to allow for watching a great deal of the fortress expanse. From here Adagio could gaze at Torch’s holdings to the east, and see the vast sprawling tent city of his horde, encircling the giant stone obelisk he used as his throne. She could readily make out Lament’s tower to the north west, tall and lonely, and almost thought she could make out the pale dot of the man himself, sitting in his usual spot on a rocking chair set before the cabin at the top of his tower.

Lament was recovering from the power drain he’d suffered from the extraction of the Seed Grogar had planted in him. Adagio had spent time helping train him back up with multiple sparring matches. Yet Lament remained reduced. Adagio was starting to suspect it wasn’t simply a matter of the loss of the Seed. Something was much changed in him since the climatic battles at Everfree Forest. Humanity was returning to the Fourth Espada, at least all of its anxieties, fears, and attachments. He clearly disliked being called Lament any longer, and only tolerated it when needed to maintain the masquerade that he remained a loyal Espada. Alone with his children or with Adagio’s inner circle, he preferred to be called Hard Nail.

She didn’t fault him for this, but she was growing suspect of his desire to regain power. Adagio had learned much of how Hollows grew in strength. Conflict, consuming other Hollows, but also there was a potent emotional core to how strong a Hollow could grow. They needed a specific negative emotion to unify their Hollow power. Or perhaps ‘negative’ was the wrong word. She knew now for certain that ‘ambition’ was her core emotion that granted her power as a Hollow. She didn’t see such an emotion as negative, but she could see how it was not at all a truly harmonious feeling.

Clearly regret had been Lament’s source of power, even beyond the Seed. But now the man had reunited with his family, regained his memories, and desired greatly to live as much an existence of peace as possible. When they sparred, Adagio sensed none of the cold, void-like power of regret that had flowed from Lament in the past.

Indeed, in most ways, the Espada Lament was gone. Hard Nail was now in his place, an Arrancar with half of his former power, and little will to use it save in defense of his family, both adopted and otherwise. Adagio was uncertain how to reignite some manner of proper motivation to him, and in some ways doubted it would be possible without flirting with some dangerous actions. Be it anger, hatred, desperation, or any other such emotion she could think of a dozen schemes to potentially evoke them in Hard Nail, to give him a new emotion to latch onto... but some small part of her that too often thought of Sunset Shimmer found she no longer had any stomach for such manipulations.

A pity, because she sure as hell needed a few more powerhouses on her side. Hard Nail, but her estimate, still held enough power to rank among the Espada, but not the Fourth. It was only the relative quiet of Las Noches of late that had allowed this fact to remain hidden, as few wanted to give the dreaded ‘Lament’ any excuse to lop off heads. It would be problematic if anyone discovered his capacity to do so was much reduced.

But she hadn’t been relying on him as a cure all to her own troubles, anyway. He had just been a very handy card in her deck, his value now reduced, but far from absent. She still counted him as an ally, and with him others such as Roka, who’s healing abilities could not be underestimated, and Fenice who’s Fullbring had useful qualities of its own.

In her head she could readily tally her own forces and allies. Around fifty Arrancar warriors, with Gaw, Di Roy, Dumbbell, Hoops, and Score as her primary enforcers and ‘Fraccion’ to organize the lower ranked. None of the other warriors were of great note, the dregs of other hordes, but Adagio had set to whipping them into shape with a passionate fervor. Working in groups of ten, these relatively weak warriors could utilize teamwork to overcome stronger foes. On top of these Arrancar, she had twice as many Adjuchas-class Hollows in her employ, and a like number of competent lesser Hollows who exhibited enough intelligence to be of use. These were largely utilized in servant capacities, courier jobs, or scouting and spywork in Hueco Mundo’s deserts.

Through them she’d been establishing an ever growing network of contacts amid the independent holdings of Hollows outside Las Noches, which in turn, alongside the intel the incident with the Storm King had garnered her, allowed her ever more opportunities to court alliance with the Privaron Espada.

She had two of those now who agreed to ally with her, first Erebus, and now a rather wretched but still potent individual who called himself Bray. The self-styled ‘Necromancer’ occupied an exceedingly depressing stretch of Hueco Mundo so flat and featureless it had looked like a plane of glass. Yet beneath those desolate sands, Bray had built himself a so-called ‘Necropolis’, filled with emaciated Hollows that served his dour whims. Adagio was threadbare for allies, so did not balk in making the same offers to Bray as she had Erebus, sensing no small amount of hate for Tirek in the skeletal Privaron Espada. He’d agreed, on the condition Adagio reinstate his former place in the Espada and a promise of a steady supply of human souls for what he termed his ‘experiments’.

The similarity to Grogar was not lost on Adagio, but she had no issue making any number of promises. After all, if Bray died in the fighting, she wouldn’t have to worry about keeping them.

But that was all concern for the future. The present was at the moment more pressing. The thing that Di Roy had made his ominous statement about was clear to see from this high position of observation.

Activity was plentiful and visible among a number of areas of both interest and disquiet.

Guto’s self styled ‘aerie’ tower had a large fortified camp now around it, with near the whole of his forces engaged in exercises so close to Adagio’s territory that it couldn’t be seen as anything other than direct provocation. Worse, Hydia’s collection of unusually formed Arrancar and lesser classed Hollows were camped right next to Guto’s forces, aiding in the war games and making it very clear of a close alliance between the two. Indeed the fact that the combined hordes of the presently Seventh and Eight Espada’s outnumbered Adagio’s horde more than four to one was very much on display.

Yet this was not the only activity of concern. A similar flurry of movement could be seen in Catrina’s palace, where her vast force of oddly unique and near identical Hollows, the Bushwoolies, were engaged in what looked to Adagio like stockpiling supplies. Big pavilion tents were being strung up and cages of lesser Hollows and even a scattering of human souls were being stacked up like food crates. Meanwhile runners were flitting back and forth from Las Noches' central tower, and, most worryingly, the giant crevasse to the west where Chrysalis kept her lair.

Adagio knew well that Catrina and Chrysalis hated each other, so why were Catrina’s Bushwoolies going in and out of Chrysalis’ territory as if the pair were now on friendly terms?

To add to this, Chrysalis’ drones were disturbingly absent. Usually it wasn’t odd to see them going about here and there, playing whatever games they’d invented among themselves to pass time or to run errands. But there was nothing to be seen now at all, not so much as a buzz.

She’d tried contacting Thorax, but her messenger never returned, and Thorax had not been at any of his usual haunts or their pre-arranged meeting spots.

“I don’t like it either,” she said with flat displeasure to Di Roy, eye still peering through the telescope, “Something is going on behind the scenes and we’ve been left out of the loop. Not just us, but Torch and Hard Nail as well. It’s as if the fortress is preparing for a major offensive, but only those not attached to our faction.”

“You think we’re about to get hit by all the others? Maybe Lord Tirek has gotten it in his head he isn’t so keen on you gunning for his chair and has set all the rest up to wipe us out,” Di Roy said, eyeing Guto’s tower with a sour look, “I can definitely smell the bloodlust in the air, lemme tell you.”

“I don’t think so,” Adagio replied, turning the telescope towards Guto and Hydia’s combined forces, “It isn’t Tirek’s style. If he wanted us dead, he’d come do it himself. He also wouldn’t need to arrange cooperation between his Esapda. He wouldn’t want to. Best they take their own initiative. That said, I smell Grogar’s hand in this. Hydia is still obsessed with him, and Guto despises me, so Grogar could readily set them both to box us in like this. As for whatever is going on with Catrina and Chrysalis, I suspect it’s unrelated, but still concerning. Catrina is stockpiling ‘food’ in the form of lesser Hollows and human souls, and her creatures keep moving between the main tower and Chrysalis’ territory. That strikes me as preparation for a larger operation between the higher Espada. What worries me is the lack of word from Thorax. If something was wrong, he’d contact me. And our messenger didn’t come back...”

“Could be they got ganked by one of Guto or Hydia’s people,” Di Roy suggested, shrugging, “Using lesser Hollows as messengers is risky like that. You ought to send me or Gaw. Some scrub gets in our way, we’ve got the muscle now to make them regret it.”

Adagio pulled away from the telescope, considering. It was true that after consuming their portion of the Seed, Di Roy and Gaw had gotten notably stronger. Strong enough that Gilda could very well be challenged for the position of Tenth Espada, had Adagio so wished to position either of them there. As it was, she liked keeping them as her left and right hands for now, and to keep their increased strength, as well as her own, a secret.

But Di Roy was right, if she wanted to get a message through to Thorax, she’d need to send a stronger messenger, or just go herself. But she dared not leave her territory with Guto and Hydia so poised against her. If either of them attacked, she wanted to be present to put it down, hard. She was loath to risk her two most capable Fraccion, but one way or another, she needed to know what was going down and Thorax was her best in-line. She needed to know now, before things got more complicated.

“Alright,” she said at last, “I’ll write an invitation to Thorax myself, and you and Gaw will deliver it to him, if you can find him. Between the two of you if you run into any trouble you should be able to handle it, or at least escape.”

“Can do, boss lady. Hey, quick question; is that Gilda? What is she doing with that Fluttershy chick?”

Adagio blinked, then followed Di Roy’s finger where he was pointing. Indeed, it was Gilda and Fluttershy. The pair together had appeared in a flash of movement in front of Adagio’s territory, and even as she looked down from so high above, she could make out the pair looking right back up at her, Fluttershy giving an all too casual wave of friendly greeting.

----------

“I do hope you didn’t run into any problems,” Adagio told Fluttershy, serving the girl a glass of ice water freshly poured from a plastic water cooler. She was working on the idea of getting actual plumbing built into her territory which could pump water from the lake and underground sources, but for now she still had to work with what she could.

Fluttershy took the glass with a grateful smile and took a deep drink. She sat on one of the couches of Adagio’s guest room, Gilda standing in an uncomfortably stiff manner next to said couch.

“Oh, everything was fine,” Fluttershy said, “A few Arrancar gentlemen from Guto’s group tried to block my and Gilda’s path after we left the embassy, but I convinced them to let us pass without any... significant violence. Oh my, this water is delightful. The air here is so dry, you know?”

Adagio didn’t hide an amused smile of her own at hearing that. She could well imagine how such a scene had played out, and was sorry she missed it. The rule of that embassy was that there was to be no attacks on it’s soil, but the second any of the members of the Coalition stepped off of it they were fair game. However that didn’t mean any of these girls were easy game, and no doubt Guto’s men had learned that the hard way. Still, it meant Guto would know Fluttershy was here, as was Gilda. It didn’t take any great stretch of thought to know how much that’d ruffle his feathers.

“This realm has few charms,” Adagio admitted, “But it isn’t the weather you’re here to discuss, I assume?” She glanced at Gilda, wondering on just what business had brought the Tenth Espada to the Coalition’s ‘embassy’ to meet with Fluttershy. She was also dying of curiosity to know what all of this was about.

“No,” Fluttershy admitted, setting the glass of water aside, “I came here for several reasons. One, Sunset requested I bring you up to date on what’s happened in Canterlot City.”

Adagio’s unease rose like a coiled eel at the ominous tone in Fluttershy’s voice. “It hasn’t even been two full days since you girls came and made such a scene in front of all Las Noches, and now you’re saying something else has happened?”

Fluttershy gave a serene, if somewhat hapless nod, and proceeded to divulge the entirety of Zero Division’s appearance and subsequent assault upon the Coalition’s summit between Soul Society and the Quincy. Adagio listened, and somewhere in the middle of it all realized she’d poured herself a rather large glass of wine and had it mostly drained by the end of the tale, at which point wine wasn’t enough and she poured herself a glass of something harder.

“I... take it that you still don’t know what became of the Soul Reaper’s Captain Commander and this... Glory, was it?” she asked, and within her felt the sudden grip of mental vertigo as she saw the smooth glass of Fluttershy’s still visage.

The girl spoke past falls of pink hair over her unblinking eyes that shifted briefly towards Gilda, with a great deal more calculation than Adagio would have given credit to Fluttershy for being capable of. “We received word from Soul Society just before I came here. Captain Commander Scorpan... fell to Glory. Celestia has now taken the role of Captain Commander in his place.”

Adagio’s mind started going through a swift domino effect of spiraling thoughts, and suddenly some of the activity among her fellow Espada’s hordes took on a new light. While she was trying to come to a conclusion as to what this meant, Gilda let out a grunting gasp, her mouth briefly parting in a silent gape of amazement.

“No damn way! He’s dead? The most powerful Soul Reaper ever? Hah!”

Fluttershy looked at Gilda straight in the eyes, and Gilda paused, beading with sweat, and quickly set her jaw tighter, “What? Dude was a boogeyman for our kind since forever. With him gone, the Soul Reapers will think twice before coming at us. I get you’re all nicety-nice, Fluttershy, but I don’t have to act like I’m sad one of my kind’s most dangerous enemies is gone.”

“You’re not thinking through the ramifications,” Adagio cut in sharply, “If the Zero Division’s leader was able to defeat the likes of this Scorpan, then what chance does anyone have of taking them down? There’s five of these monsters, and their plan is to eventually expunge all of our souls for their scheme to restore their ancient brethren. If Tirek and Sombra all the only ones left of that same category of power, then let’s see if I remember my basic math here... five versus two counts as crap odds.”

Gilda just blinked at her like a brick wall with eyes, “But the Quincy would never work with us, and Tirek and Sombra hate each other.”

“Oh, sorry, my math was off, five versus zero, because the two won’t work together. We’re even more screwed,” Adagio shot back, downing the last of her drink and pouring more, but only for a second before she threw the glass aside and just drank from the bottle. Taking a bit of a gasp as the fiery liquid made a nice warm burn down to her stomach, she looked back at Fluttershy, “So, aside from delivering some of the worst news I’ve had since I got turned into a Hollow, why else are you here?”

She had a suspicion already, but she might as well hear it from the horse’s mouth. Fluttershy obliged her readily, having at least some small self consciousness to adjust her grass green skirt and fold her hands into her lap before continuing on in a tone seemingly designed to vibrate with a calming tenor.

“Twilight is prepared to lead a group to rescue Fleur De Lis from Guto, and I came here to ask for your help.”

Adagio leaned against her bar counter, “Figured. That’s been on Twilight’s to-do list since me and her started swapping info-”

“Wait what?” Gilda said, but Adagio waved her off.

“-Oh relax, Gilda. It’s been an equitable exchange, and I know a lot more about the Quincy’s techniques and higher ranked members than probably any other Espada now because of it. But part of the plan was always to retrieve that Fleur woman from Guto’s grasp, and you can’t argue much with that, can you Gilda? You’re no longer Guto’s warrior, but the Tenth Espada, with a very tenuous hold on your position. You haven’t even gained any Fraccion to your name.”

“S-so what!?” Gilda said, “I’ll manage on my own! You’re talking about working with our enemies against another Espada, here!”

“As if that’s somehow a shock. You already understood my connection to those girls since Everfree.”

“Yeah, but that was to help a fellow Arrancar. Now you’re talking about helping a Quincy. That’s totally different!”

Adagio sucked in a deep breath and let it out slow as she approached Gilda with pointed steps. Gilda tensed, but Adagio just handed her the bottle, not quite half empty. She spoke slowly, with controlled words, staring at Gilda with hard eyes, “Drink. Then think. Right now we stand on the precipice of a paradigm shift of truly massive proportions, Gilda. The Soul Reapers leader is dead, leaving their ranks in disarray. The Zero Division represents an incredible threat to all of us, Hollow, Soul Reaper, and Quincy alike. Our only hope of surviving their plans is in a united front of all remaining faction’s forces. Now, the Quincy hate us as much as we hate them, but what would it mean if we, Hollows, helped rescue one of their own? It would add weight to the formation of an alliance, a needed alliance. It would also weaken Guto’s position, perhaps causing warriors once loyal to him to seek a new leader. Indeed one way or another a massive battle is coming, one where no doubt Espada will fall, perhaps even Tirek himself. Who might rise in rank in the aftermath, hmm? Perhaps that title of Tenth might become much higher, by the end of it all?”

Gilda listened, and drank, eyes growing ever wider in realization with every word Adagio spoke. Polishing off the bottle, Gilda looked at the empty glass, and then threw it aside. She eyed Fluttershy, and Adagio saw Gilda’s face warm with some memory lighting her eyes, conflict stilling as Fluttershy smiled at her.

“Okay, screw it, I’m in. But mark me, Adagio, you better damn well believe if we both survive to the end of this, I’m expecting you to come through on that higher spot in the Espada.”

Adagio’s lips parted in a flash of white, “But of course. Now, Fluttershy, shall we get into the nitty gritty as to what this plan is going to entail?”

----------

Sunset was tired, but she needed to do this. The news of Scorpan’s death was still fresh in her mind, and she’d have been lying to herself if she said she wasn’t afraid. It was easy to be blasé about possibly dealing with Jormungandr, because as of yet he represented a largely mysterious and vaguely defined threat.

Glory and the Zero Division were a threat Sunset now knew all too well, and Scorpan’s death was proof positive of them playing for keeps. And with Rarity in Hell, Sunset and her friends didn’t even have the comforting synergy their friendship gave them when they all stood together. Much as she now saw herself as human, she’d never ceased to believe firmly in the tenets of friendship and harmony so vital to Equestrian thinking, and Sunset felt diminished without Rarity’s presence. She knew her other friends all felt the same, and she did her best to stoke her inner fire so she could continue to act as a pillar of strength for them. She needed to keep her eyes forward, to lead everyone through this.

It was a comfort, at least, that they could communicate with Rarity, albeit in a limited manner. Their last message from her said she was on her way to some kind of settlement in Hell, which struck Sunset as odd that such a place even had ‘settlements’, but it sounded like at least Rarity had run into some potential... friends? Rarity’s wording had been odd.

”I’ve met with some unexpected associates, but whom may prove to be useful in establishing myself in this dismal place. Oh, and Captain Blueblood is here, too.”

That was a shock as well. Blueblood had somehow snuck into Hell? Sunset was a tad... jealous? She wished she’d found a way to be by Rarity’s side as well, but she supposed she’d have to settle for that puffed up dandy. But so help her, if Blueblood screwed up and got Rarity hurt... well, he was already in Hell, so Sunset didn’t suppose she could do much worse to him, but she’d see if she could get creative.

All of that were things she needed to place neatly in the back of her mind right now, however. At this moment, she had a personal matter to attend to.

She was in the medical room where she’d woken up earlier, although it was now well into the night. Instead of laying in bed, she was situated on a comfortable meditation cushion in front of the cylinder that had contained Hokori no Hikari. The Zanpaktou was now out of that cylinder of restorative spirit energies and lay sheathed across Sunset’s lap. She sat cross legged, with her uninjured left hand laid upon the blade, while her right arm was left laying next to it in a resting position.

Sunset breathed in a steady rhythm, settling her mind and spirit, letting her soul flow into the connection between herself and her Zanpaktou.

She felt them, her twin Zanpaktou spirits. Hokori and Hikari’s energies were... disquiet. Tense. Sunset felt a brewing storm within her Zanpaktou, and knew that it was largely a reflection of the dissonance inside herself. Hokori and Hikari were her partners, and in turn pieces of herself, which meant the in order to regain her footing she needed them. Time and again her Zanpaktou spirits had hinted at the fact that there was still much she had left to master about their power, and with Zero Division no longer a theoretical and looming threat, but a very real and present danger, it was time to begin that final path to mastery.

Both of her Zanpaktou, and herself, for they were ultimately one and the same for a Soul Reaper.

With this thought in mind, she dove once more into her Inner World.

Episode 185: Counting Dominoes

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Episode 185: Counting Dominoes

“You really ought to be in bed,” Discord said with an air of understanding his words were already going to be ignored. Before him, Ditzy stood in front of a seemingly long, stretching hallway of steel, lined on either side by thick doors of a faintly green metal sheen. Each door was coated in bands of cloth printed with sealing wards, and the metal itself was not steel, but a reishi treated alloy of Discord’s own design. These cells were within the lowest area of his “shop”, a dungeon for sealing way problematic experiments, or individuals.

“I feel fine,” Ditzy replied, a faint grunt of pain afterward giving the lie away as she still held herself tall and straight, “I’ll live. Just wanted to listen in while you grill our guest. Then I’m going home to my daughter for the rest of the day, and probably tomorrow.”

“That should probably be fine,” Discord said, still eyeing her injury as he walked past her towards one of the cells several doors down, “Even if there is another incident, I’ll handle the matter myself so you can recover. Sunset needs time too, not just to recover from her injuries, but to bond more thoroughly with Hokori no Hikari.”

“Huh, you mean apologize for nearly breaking her sword?” Ditzy said with a tired half-laugh, following him, “I doubt she even realizes how close she came to doing that, overclocking those black flames against Bowtie. That girl is something else, but she still doesn’t get what she’s capable of, or how to reel herself in. Saw the same damn thing back in Soul Society, and I’m just glad I was there to give her at least a little guidance. But she’s quickly gotten to the point where I’m not sure there’s much either you or me can do for her, Discy. Soon enough, she’s going to be stronger than either of us, and if she doesn’t have a handle on her power by then...”

“I am well aware...” Discord said, and let the exhaustion briefly show as he gave his old friend a helpless, tired look, but one still touched by a bit of hopeful mirth, “I lack your parental experience, but I sometimes imagine if this constant terror for another’s well being combined with pride at their growth is something akin to fatherhood. Regardless, I think it is fortunate that I never had children. It is a harrowing experience.”

“Aw, finally fessing up to how you see those girls?” Ditzy goaded him, and he perhaps once would have brushed her teasing off, but this time he couldn’t quite bring himself to do so.

“Oh, I am not so presumptuous. Most of them, against all tropes, do still have their parents in their lives, one manner or another.”

“Except for Sunset.”

“...Well, in her case I still feel it a stretch to suggest I’m any replacement for a proper father figure. I am quite bereft of the qualifications. But I have done my best to be a mentor, at least. I hope I’ve guided her well enough. I don’t know how much more I have left to contribute to her growth. Much now rests on her own shoulders.”

He paused in front of the door on the left, at the end of the long, stretching hall, and he waved Ditzy off, “At any rate, enough of that. We’ve a prisoner to chat with. Let us see what mood she is in.”

At a gesture, he partially deactivated the outer layer of wards around the cell. The cloth straps rippled like living things, snapping back into recesses within the doorframe. With a great clunk of shifting metal, the door slid to the side to allow access. Passing through, Discord entered a cylindrical chamber with a open hole in the floor about twenty feet in diameter, with a five foot catwalk around it. A field of thick green energy covered the cole, reinforced by more warded straps of cloth. About another twenty feet down in the hole was the cell floor, where inside a rather furiously glaring Bubbles, who’d heard the doors open, was seen shouting. No sound could be heard past the ward, but Discord could imagine the threats and obscenities coming from the Zero Division Attendant’s mouth.

Bubbles had been disarmed of her weapon. Discord had spent some time analyzing it, as it wasn’t quite like a Zanpaktou as far as he could tell, but something different and likely unique to Attendants. This was his first opportunity to really study one of the Zero Division’s chosen servants up close, as these cells doubled as examination laboratories, fully equipped with any number of sensors and probes of both material and metaphysical nature.

Clearing his throat and activating a communication stub on a intercom near the cell wall, he said, “Now, now, let’s have no more of yelling, otherwise this is going to take all day, and I truly do not care about whatever threats you’re tossing about.”

“Oh you’ll be sooooo sorry once Mistress Minty comes back for me! You’ve never seen what she can do to someone’s flesh without killing them, but believe you me, Discord, my Mistress is the last person in existence you wish to make angry!”

“In that case I can’t imagine why you’d wish to return to her so quickly, given your utter failure to accomplish the task she set for you. Is Minty in the habit of being forgiving towards those who fail her?” Discord asked, while Ditzy took up a leaning position on the wall, yawning.

Bubbles' eyes twitched, but then she tittered, albeit with some hidden nerves showing in the unevenness of her laugh, “Hahaha! My divine Mistress is not some petty villain who punishes her servants for every little trifle! She is forgiving to those who are devout, and none among her chosen are more devoted than I am! That is why any interrogation you intend is pointless, pointless, pointless! I’ll never give up any information you could use against my Mistress. Never in a million, billion, trillion years! So do your worst! I can withstand any torture you could inflict upon me!”

“While I confess a part of me is tempted to put your claim to the test, I’m afraid I left my own villain top hat and black cape in my closet,” Discord said, while Ditzy snickered.

“He’s not joking. He’s actually got the ensemble. Even looks half decent in it.”

“Hmm, but I prefer my present hat, thank you very much,” Discord replied, tapping his trademark white and green striped hat affectionately, then turned his gaze back down towards Bubbles in the cell below. “However I’ve neither the time nor patience for an actual ‘interrogation’ by such methods. I haven’t the need. Not when there are far more efficient means of extracting information out of an individual, especially when situated in such a... special cell.”

A bit of Bubble’s bravado faltered as her eyes started to dart about the cell with suspicious unrest, “What delivery are you plotting? I’ll break out of here, I swear it!”

She did make a decent go of trying to smash her way through the wards. Discord had to admit that these Attendants were given an impressive bit of power, as he watched her Flash Step around at full speed, punching and kicking the walls and ward field with enough strength that he could feel some of the shockwaves through the ground. But he’d built these cells to hold almost anything short of himself. Yes, some Captains would still be able to break free, and higher ranked Espada, but he was fairly confident the cell would hold against Bubbles, especially without her weapon on hand.

She gave a frustrated yell, falling to her knees after a few minutes of failed attempts to break out, which gave Discord time to boot up the systems he’d need to use. Aside from the various sensors for analysis of captured subjects, the cells were equipped with an array of other more... intense and invasive devices.

He was glad none of the girls asked too many questions or showed a lot of interest in being a part of questioning Bubbles. While nothing he was about to do would be lethal, or even all that painful, this was still a side of this that gave him shameful reminders of his days running Hitsuyo-Aku.

Bubble’s head snapped left and right as along the walls of her cell, circles of dark purple energy emerged as something akin to Kido spells were activated, and from these holes emerged skeletal hands of metal and conjured bone. These hands shot out, growing to inhumane length as they flew at Bubbles faster than she could Flash Step away from. They grabbed her limbs and held her like a vice, immobilizing her not through physical strength, but by draining spiritual energy. She certainly still struggled, but the cells could produce dozen of these summoned skeletal hands, enough to fill the entire cell.

Once she was thoroughly incapacitated, Discord activated the next function, which created another conjured Kido in the shape of a beast, this one a long, stretched out creature of black fur with the back end being that of a panther, but the front end that of a jackal with sightless pits for eyes. This creature floated through a hole in the ground and flew up, curling around Bubble’s head until its eyeless pits stared right at hers. Then small violet flames appeared in its eyes, and ghostly light connected those eyes to Bubble’s.

“This gonna take awhile?” Ditzy asked, “I remember you once telling me this Glawackus thing can vary in how long it takes for it to sift through a mind.”

“Yes, well, when I first developed it, I didn’t have sufficient data to refine its technique, so even a weak mind could take days. I’ve improved the model significantly since then, in case we ever had such a... distinguished guest in our cells,” Discord said, without any real pride that might have once felt in his work. Much like the conjured hands, the Glawackus was not a living thing, but a construct summoned by Kido spells built into the cell itself. It was like a viral program that might scan a computer for information, but in this instance it sifted through memories, looking for specified information. Much like the design for these prison cells, the Glawackus was a creation from his Hitsuyo-Aku days, and kept on hand just in case it might ever prove useful. It was limited in a number of ways, still. For one, it did need to know generally what information to look for. One couldn’t give it too broad a search criteria.

Fortunately Discord knew more or less what to tell it to look for inside Bubble’s mind. Most basic information about the Zero Division wouldn’t be useful, since they’d already make a fairly poignant demonstration of their abilities already. What Discord wanted instead was the layout of the Soul Palace, something even he wasn’t very familiar with, and if there were any known ways to get in and out of there besides use of the Queen’s Key, or the transportation pillar the Zero Division used.

Anything else was largely superfluous. He didn’t doubt any of the girls’ abilities to tackle the likes of Bubbles and her fellow Attendants, and the Zero Division itself was such a large issue that any details Bubbles could provide would be meaningless in the long run. But a way into the Soul Palace was rather key, and there was no guarantee of one, even if Sunset and the girls reached Equestria.

Best case scenario, they’d defeat Starlight Glimmer, or forge a truce, and gain access to the Queen’s Key. But if that failed, a backup would be handy, alongside details of the Soul Palace’s layout.

“You planning on turning her loose after this?” Ditzy inquired.

“On the chance that Minty does decide to come looking for her it would be for the best, but I certainly wasn’t going to pass up a chance to gather what little intel we can first,” Discord said, watching the Glawackus do it’s work with grim satisfaction, “The battles to come are going to be impossible enough, as is.”

----------

Sunset felt immediately that something was different about her Inner World, although it wasn’t apparent at first glance. The mixture of two school’s architecture still surrounded her, the familiar white marble pillars and archways of Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns and the orderly lockers and fluorescent lighting of Canterlot High School blended together as one. Doors to classrooms on subjects both arcane and modern, as if her old life and new life were firmly fused together.

But she soon saw the damage. Scorch marks upon the walls were hidden partially by shadows cast by charred lighting fixtures. Her footfalls echoed on soot stained tiles, and as she peered into classrooms she saw some lacked lighting, or had burnt desks and bookshelves. Indeed the deeper she walked down the halls, the more she smelled the dry sting of ash in the air, and her stomach clenched more and more with a dreadful, piercing feeling.

Ahead lay the grand doors that looked so similar to the ones that led to Celestia’s throne room. Sunset was at least a little relieved to see that these weren’t damaged, but she came up short as with a groan the doors opened, and she saw the one opening them.

“Hikari!” Sunset ran up to the second of her Zanpaktou spirits, representing her ‘Light’, and nearly grabbed the angelic mirror of herself before Hikari raised a hand to stop her.

“Hello Sunset. Please, don’t panic at the sight of me. It’s... not as bad as it looks.”

Indeed, Sunset’s moment of panic stemmed from the fact that Hikari didn’t look any better off than she was, and lacked the benefit of bandages and cast to hide the scarring and burn tissue that marred Hikari’s otherwise beautiful and ethereal features. Her elaborate dress of white and pink was now marred with frayed marks of burned black, especially around the right side where Sunset had incurred the worst of her injuries from the use of the black flames. Hikari’s face remained kind and supportive, even if tense from pain, and Sunset couldn’t stop herself from bowing her head and nearly bursting into tears.

“I’m so sorry,” she said, “I didn’t mean to get you hurt. Either of you. Where... where is Hokori?”

Hikari’s hand graced Sunset’s head with a gentle pat, “She’s here. Come. We’ve much to discuss.”

Hikari led Sunset past the doors and into the throne chamber, although in truth Sunset tended to think of it more like simply the height of her Inner World, as it had always stood at the top of a clear blue sky and sea of clouds, like a magical terrace of marble stone leading to her throne upon which she could look out on the horizons of her Inner World.

The clear sky was now overcast and cloudy itself, the lower ocean of clouds beneath the throne painted in ashen gray. Her throne was intact, and she saw Hokori laying on it, slumped and with stormy eyes herself. Hokori looked even worse off than Hikari, the burned scar tissue showing grotesquely upon the whole of her right side, but Sunset’s ‘Pride’ was more willful than ever and stubbornly showed none of the pain that swam in her eyes as she rose from the throne and slammed hands to her hips. Demon wings spread and Hokori flew down to meet Sunset and Hikari, voice dripping ire as one hand grabbed Sunset by the collar.

“What the hell was THAT back there!?” Hokori shouted in Sunset’s face, “You do remember what we’ve told you about the Black Flame, right!? If you can’t control it, it’ll destroy whatever it touches. Including us.”

Sunset clenched her teeth, at first raising a hand to grip Hokori’s arm, but at the last moment she let her hand fall and she looked away, “I’m sorry. When I saw Rarity... when those Gates closed on her I just...”

“Like I don’t know that!” Hokori said, letting Sunset go and stalking away, “You think me and Hikari didn’t feel what you were feeling!? This place got drenched in the Black Flame when that happened, and there was nothing we could do to stop that flood without your help. This place is as much yours as it is ours, so if you go ballistic, there’s jack all me and my sister can do to stop you.”

Hikari cleared her throat and, one hand firmly grasping Sunset’s shoulder, she stepped towards Hokori, “Let us not put all of this solely upon Sunset’s shoulders. We’ve both known a moment like this would come, and there was an outside influence this time making matters worse.”

“Outside influence?” Sunset said, and Hokori, back still turned to her, made a small groaning growl and gestured to the throne itself. Only now did Sunset take note of an odd change to it. Several chains of blackened iron now dangled from the arms of the throne, clinking as they slowly swayed, despite the lack of a breeze. With her spiritual senses she stretched towards those chains, and within them felt an echo of the heated power of Hell that she’d felt herself absorb when she’d cut the chains around Rarity.

Licking her lips, she glanced at her twin Zanpaktou spirits, “Okay, so what does this mean? I felt the Hogyoku pull in some energy from Hell, and it’s... what, now inside me?”

“It’s not all that’s changed,” Hokori said, grunting in pain as she sat on the steps leading up to the throne, “If you take a stroll through the halls, you’ll see some of the rooms are taking on qualities from your pals. That’s been happening for a while. The chains are the newest addition. We took a bite out of Hell, but it also is taking a bite out of us.”

Sunset gave a hard frown, and strolled past Hokori and went up to the throne. She halted as the chains writhed, clinking and rising towards her. One tried to snake its way around her arm but she pulled back, and the chains halted, seemingly unable to move far from the throne. Still, they hovered and wavered like animals scenting food, and Sunset could easily imagine them wrapping around her entirely if she sat down on the throne.

“As you can see, this Hell energy is foreign to us and seems to want to follow an instinct to bind other energies,” Hikari said, coming up beside her. “While the injuries myself and Hokori have suffered will recover in time, we’re a bit at a loss as to what to do about this new development.”

“Is this going to interfere with our ability to fight?” Sunset asked, and Hokori snorted at her.

“You’re not that simple, are you? Of course it is! Our throne is the fundamental symbol of our power here. I figured you’d understand that when you tossed me off it to take it for yourself. Having these upstart chains infesting it weakens us, unless you can either remove them or force them into submission.”

“Hokori tends to look at things in such a straightforward manner,” Hikari said, although her own town suggested she wasn’t any more thrilled with the situation than her twin was, “I sense a limited will behind the chains, like an echo of the much larger force they were once a part of. I believe they can be tamed, and only you can do so.”

“Makes sense to me,” Sunset said, taking a deep breath to steel herself, “This is my world, so if something wants to take up space here, I’m not letting it do so rent free. We’ve got way too much work to do to let a little speed bump like this slow us down.”

“Hmph, at least you get that much,” Hokori said, “Until you deal with this irritation, we can’t get to the real business of finally getting you to control the Black Flames without cooking us like crispy bacon.”

For a moment Sunset wondered just how to go about “taming” these chains, which were effectively just a representation of the small sliver of power she’d absorbed from Hell. All things considered, she concluded that there wasn’t anything for it but to just dive in and see what happened. Cracking her knuckles, she stepped forward towards her throne. The chains rose, stretching towards her, but this time she didn’t falter or shrink back. She went right to the throne and took her seat. The chains reacted almost immediately, wrapping her arms tightly and with an almost living hunger. Sunset felt a sharp burn as the abnormal heat of something molten and foreign to her own flames began to burrow into her being.

She took a sharp breath and focused against the pain, and let her own reiatsu flare up, pushing back against the chains. The chains were stubborn things, she knew this well from how relentless they had been in taking Rarity. Like white hot slivers, Sunset felt the chains drilling into her, ripping at her power. Despite the increasing pain, Sunset hardened her reiatsu and gradually started to halt the chains’ progress. The dark metal links shuddered in a cascade of metallic clinking, unable to pierce her flesh more deeply than a few millimeters, but Sunset could tell they were going to keep trying. Down at the foot of the stairs, Hokori had stood back up and now was next to Hikari, both of them watching her with intensity.

“They certainly are trying hard to bind you, Sunset, but don’t forget that Rarity endured far more than this,” Hikari said, “Remember her strength and your feelings for your friend, and draw power from that just as she draws power from you.”

“Our Pride was injured, watching her get taken from us,” Hokori said, “All of that anger and hate for the Zero Division is what fuels that Black Flame, but without the will to sharpen it into a blade, it rages and consumes indiscriminately. Remember what you’ve learned, that Pride without guidance is just empty ego, but Pride with purpose is a fire that never fades. Show these tiny little chains that Hell didn’t dampen Rarity’s Pride, and it isn’t a match for ours either!”

The words of her Zanpaktou spirits resonated deep within Sunset, for they were just echoes of her own feelings, spoken back to her through the bond shared with her blade. Losing Rarity, first to death, then to Hell, was a realization of her worst fears. That she wasn’t strong enough to protect her friends. That indeed, being friends with her was hurting her friends, and that their lives may well have been better off if they’d never met Sunset Shimmer. But that was the lie born of fear, her ever present foe. The Zero Division used fear as one of their most potent weapons, and Hell was a personification of that fear; a prison of final punishment for whomever the Zero Division deemed unfit for existence.

The notion was an affront to everything Sunset Shimmer held dear. All souls deserved the continuous opportunity to grow, change, and learn from past mistakes. She certainly had. And she was damn proud of the fact, too! A Pride that turned to Light, which she wished to spend her life using to inspire others. Others like Adagio, who had gone from a petty siren seeking power, to a respectable leader of others who was looking to make Hueco Mundo itself a better place. Others like Twilight Sparkle, who had once been a recluse, but now had such inner strength she was inspiring the leader of the Quincy to begin the process of ending a centuries long war. And each of her friends, who had stood through her through so much, were capable of amazing things themselves, leaving Sunset feeling nothing but Pride in each of them.

Compared to all that had faced and all still needed to face, a few small chains from Hell were... literally nothing. Her power rose in a wave of heat and controlled, focused pride that flowed like a hot river right into the chains.

By the time Sunset was even aware of her surroundings again she found that she was sitting quite comfortably on her throne, and the chains were no longer trying to burrow into her. Instead they had wrapped around the arms of her throne and become fused to the throne itself, and she felt that small spark of Hell’s power now nestled neatly alongside the seat of her own Zanpaktou’s power.

“Heh, it always amazes me how all it takes is a bit of kick to remind you of what you’re capable of,” Hokori said.

“At this juncture matters such as this shouldn’t be a difficulty, anyway, especially considering we have much greater matters to attend to,” added Hikari, and Sunset looked to them with a relaxed nod, but also a genuine look of apology.

“I’m still sorry I got you both hurt so badly. Losing it on Bowtie shouldn’t have happened like that. There’s too much at stake now for me to let my emotions get the better of me.”

“Pfft, as if you’d be you if you weren’t prone to an angry outburst every now and then,” Hokori said, grinning with a show of fangs, then she winced, still clearly in pain, “Although yes, please, don’t go ham with that Black Flame until you’ve got it under control. Next time you might not have your friends handily nearby to calm your ass down before you outright kill yourself. Rather we kill our enemies first.”

“Yeah,” Sunset said, tapping her fingers on the arm of her throne, “Zero Division is something else. Didn’t get the feeling that they were much stronger than Tirek, but the nature of their abilities felt like tackling something well above what we’ve seen so far. I couldn’t even follow what Bowtie did with that last attack... it was like his sword multiplied into millions, but somehow folded upon itself for a single strike...”

“Fraggin’ cheaters are what they are,” Hokori grumbled, but Hikari patted her sister on the shoulder and looked up at Sunset, all motherly smiles.

“It’s best not to worry so much about the nature of their powers, for they predate what we, as modern Zanpaktou are. However just because the nature of their abilities is different, perhaps even bending the laws of spiritual energy as we understand them, does not mean they are insurmountable. When you struck Bowtie, both I and Hokori felt it. We felt our energy clash with his, and his Zanpaktou. For a moment, we overcame it enough to cut his flesh.”

“You’re right,” Sunset said, recalling the small but still noticeable injury they’d inflicted on Bowtie in that last exchange, “Guess that’s proof enough they’re not invincible. But we still need to close this final gap. Not going to beat them by scratching them to death.”

A quick exchange of understanding glances passed between Hokori and Hikari, and both Zanpaktou spirits gestured as one towards the expansive sea of clouds beyond the throne.

“Then it’s time we begin to show you the full extent of yourself, Sunset Shimmer,” said Hikari.

“Nothing of value comes easy, and you’d best believe you’ll be put to the test more than ever,” said Hokori, showing fangs, “But we both know that won’t stop someone like you, will it?”

Sunset felt a fierce rush of wind billow in from the sky, and the overcast above began to clear. But more than that, the parting clouds above, showing blue sky once more, was only a prelude to the clouds beneath parting as well. Sunset felt a shift beneath her, and the stone around the steps leading up to her throne grew more steps, now winging out to either side and curling around so that they fell off behind the throne. Quite abruptly she found her throne detached from the ground and now could float, turning as she willed, and she turned it to face outward to see that the new twin sets of steps now went soaring downward where the clouds had once been.

“What the...?” she stared down at a new vista before her.

What was revealed was that her throne, and the school that she thought consisted of the whole of her Inner World, was instead just what occupied the top of a verdant, forest covered mountain. Far below, the twin sets of new stairs led down towards a city built into the side of the mountain, not unlike how Canterlot was constructed back in Equestria. Only this city was quite different from Canterlot. It carried elements of that city’s old, magical architecture, but it was blended thoroughly with the modern skyscrapers of the human world’s Canterlot City. Buildings of both stone and metal merged the magical with the technological, each building energized with combinations of neon lights and magical torches that burned with countless elemental colors. The skyscrapers were not alone, as Sunset saw a circular residential area hugging the outer disc of the city, and in the middle of that stood a giant coliseum of white stone, it’s entrance flanked by two large statues, both of herself; one of her original form as a pony, and the other as she was now as a human. Both statues were carved to depict her dressed in the robes of a Soul Reaper, and carried her Zanpaktou sheathed at her side.

Sunset stared at the sight for a minute, then looked back at Hokori and Hikari, “Been holding out on me, eh?”

Hikari gave a light, chiming laugh, “This is the way of Zanpaktou, Sunset. We reveal more of ourselves only when our bearer is ready.”

“You’re hot stuff, no denying that,” Hokori said, with a lower chuckle, flipping a finger at Sunset, “But give us some freakin’ respect. Up here, in the school, is where you learned the basics. Taking the throne showed you were worthy of being in charge of us. But the city? That’s our heart, the heart you carved out for both us and yourself. Mastering it will in turn truly master us, and your power. But don’t think it’ll be easy.”

Sunset stood, turning to look down once more into the city, feeling only a great sense of purpose, “I never wanted things easy, anyway.”

“Your determination does you credit,” said Hikari, “But for now, we merely wished to show you what was to come next. All of us must first recover from our wounds.”

“But when you’re back to one hundred percent... get ready to sweat, Sunset Shimmer,” said Hokori with devilish eagerness.

----------

Dripping head to toe in sweat, Rainbow Dash finally fell backwards into a tired heap. Just a few feet away, Applejack let out a huge whoop of a sigh and sat down hard, her massive drill lance clattering to the ground beside her. Around both girls was a field of craters and oblong blast marks, the signs of the long “training session” both had just engaged in. In reality it was less training and more Applejack helping Rainbow Dash vent her feelings, at least a little.

Even now, Applejack wasn’t sure how much it helped, and looked at her friend as she fanned herself with her stetson hat, “Hoowee, I keep fergettin’ how hard ya go when yer in a mood, Dash.”

“Eeeegh, not hard enough, if you still got breath to yap at me,” Rainbow replied, letting the armor and spear of her Fullbring fade away from her body in a burst of blue, sparking light. “I wasn’t even holding back all that much. Still, pretty sure I won that.”

“Tch, as if! Yer fast, Dash, n’ hard as all get out ta hit, but I clobbered ya solid at least four times!”

“Pfft, more like two, at most. Those other two were glancing blows I let you have, because i was feeling generous,” Rainbow Dash replied, trying to rise up, but twinged as her muscles and a few serious bruises protested her motion and she fell back down, “But fine, I’ll let you call it a draw. Because we’re friends.”

“Mighty generous o’ ya,” Applejack said, and for a moment a long silence grew between them. Finally Applejack grunted in awkward frustration and said, “Wanna talk ‘bout it?”

“...Not really,” Rainbow Dash said, but sighed and just as quickly added, “Bu I should, shouldn't I? We’re not kids anymore. Well, not little kids. Can’t be stupid about this and keep things bottled up. But man it sucks. Always hated talking about feelings, but I guess I should.”

She sat up, much more slowly this time, sucking in a sharp breath with every twinge of pain from the way Applejack had knocked her around. Some of the larger craters in the area were from her own body being smacked right into it like a ballistic missile by her incredibly strong friend. Rainbow Dash had to admit, she really admired Applejack’s strength. Her friend had also dismissed her Fullbring by now, and just sat in partially torn clothing, covered in plenty of bruisers herself, but Rainbow was more just paying attention to how well muscled and toned Applejack was. She’d always thought it was a real shame Applejack wasn’t interested in playing sports professionally. The girl would be a straight up terror on the field. But Rainbow knew that her friend was completely dedicated to her family’s farm. It was a scary thought, sometimes, for Rainbow Dash to imagine she might one day go off to college on a sports scholarship, while her best friend remained behind, bound to a farm her whole life.

Of course all of that was way before all this crazy stuff with the spirit realms had happened, and Rainbow Dash didn’t have much time to think beyond the next day.

Or today, for that matter.

Applejack just waited patiently for Rainbow to speak up.

“Just pisses me off, is all,” Rainbow finally said, lips curled in a half grimace, “I like aunt Windy, dammit! After mom left, my aunt was always dropping by to make sure me and dad were alright. Even when she left for her government job, she’d call, write, and dad would really brighten up each time it happened. And with all this nuttiness going on, I think I liked the idea that dad would have someone... normal, keeping an eye on him. Because even if mom comes back, in the end, I don’t know it’ll ever really be the same, you know? Like I don’t know if we’ll ever get to be a family again like we used to, not that she was the best mom even when she was here, but... well you get what I mean, right?”

Applejack gave a very slow, deliberate nod. Talking feelings wasn’t her strong suit either, but she had more practice at it than Dash did. “I do at that, I reckon. Definitely know somethin’ ‘bout weird family circumstances an’ not being sure if things’ll ever been the same again. Lost my parents once, then met ‘em both again under less n’ ideal circumstances.”

“Heh, tell me about it. We both had to fight our moms, but you’ve got me beat in the weird dad reunion department. But still, it’s almost... worse, to have my dad being so chill about everything. I can tell he still thinks about mom, but he’s also kind of over her? And I know he’s been thinking about aunt Windy, lately. I was kind of happy for him, too, thinking he’d be able to find someone who cares about him and won’t go away anywhere or have any weird secrets to keep.”

“Only ta find out that yer aunt is keepin’ secrets, and a’ dang big one at that,” Applejack said, and Rainbow nodded, clenching her fists.

“Yeah... pisses me right off, and I don’t even know if I’m being fair about it or not. Not like we broadcasted what we were getting involved in to our families, you know? We kept our powers secret for a long time because we wanted to protect them from the truth and all the dangerous stuff we were up to, so a part of me gets that aunt Windy was probably coming from the same place. But I can’t help it, I’m still mad, because she was supposed to be the safe person for my dad. The person he could be with and not get involved any deeper in this weird supernatural crap.”

Applejack considered that for a moment, “Brutal truth, Dash? Ship’s probably already sailed on yer dad not gettin’ involved. Might be fer the better that if he does get together with yer aunt, that she’s at least some kind o’ magical witch boss, right? Ya don’t think her feelin’s towards him are fake, do ya?”

“Nah, don’t think so. Windy’s always seemed so legit... guess that’s part of why this got me so damn mad at her. Ugh, I hate this. Should I go apologize to her?”

“Give it a’ few days. Let her stew. Might make her think twice ‘fore she ever treats yer dad poorly. Heck she might even go fess up to him while worryin’ over whether you’ll tell him first,” Applejack said, and Rainbow Dash gave her a sidelong look.

“That’s pretty devious, coming from you, AJ.”

“Hey, I’m honest, but that don’t mean I don’t sometimes get ta be a little clever,” Applejack said, smiling, and Dash shared the smile, letting out a relieved sigh.

“Thanks, AJ. For everything. I feel a lot better now.”

“Glad ta hear it. Mmph, just wish I could say the same ‘bout my limbs. Tryin’ ta keep up with yer insane pace has left me feelin’ like a great big pile o’ jello. Might just take a nap right here.”

“Oh come off it, I know for a fact you’ve got at least two more rounds in you if it really came to it. You’ve got stamina to spare.”

Applejack grunted as she stood up, summoning her Fullbring back to cover her body in golden armor and to drop her lance by her side, “Sounds like yer askin’ fer another pummelin’ ta me, then.”

Dash flipped to her feet as well, her own armor and crackling spear of lighting flashing to her in an instant, wings of energy spreading out from her back, “Heck yeah I am! Round two! Let’s do this!”

Power exploded in thick auras around both of them and they very nearly charged directly at one another, but then both of them were forced to halt at the sound of a startled gasp from nearby. Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash turned their heads to see a wide eyes, shocked Wallflower nearby, having fallen back as she’d been unable to keep her feet under her from the way the two Fullbringers’ power had been shaking the area.

“Whoa! How’d you get down here?” Rainbow Dash said, getting her power under control. Applejack did the same, letting her spiritual pressure die down so the ground stopped shaking.

“Ya alright there, hun? Wallflower, right?”

“I...I... um, yes? I am,” Wallflower said, still sitting in bewildered fear as she looked between the two girls in front of her, Rainbow Dash in her crackling armor of lightning and prismatic energy wings, and Applejack in her thick plates of golden armor and massive drill lance. “What are... both of you? Are you like Sunset Shimmer? Soul...uh, something?”

“Oh, Sunset’s a Soul Reaper. Think Grim Reaper, but with awesome Japanese sword powers,” Rainbow Dash said, casually coming up and offering Wallflower a hand up. Wallflower stared at the offered hand for a second before very nervously taking it.

“But that’s not what you are?”

“Nah, me and AJ are Fullbringers. Our swank comes from our mom’s being attacked by Hollows, those masked jerks that you met the other night. Kind of weird and hard to explain, but that tiny bit of Hollow power kind of gets mixed up with other stuff inside us, including magic, and makes us awesome. Go figure, am I right?”

“Eh, ain’t really worth gettin’ into,” Applejack said with a shrug, “Take a’ couple o’ days straight just tryin’ to explain the basics to ya, and like Dash says, it’s kinda all weird ta begin with. Not like ya got ta worry ‘bout it none.”

“I...um, feel like I very much should be worrying about it,” Wallflower said, eyes darting around the giant underground training area that was clearly far larger than any space that could logically exist beneath the humble exterior shop front that Discord’s establishment appeared to be. “I don’t understand anything that’s happened, but that hasn’t stopped my life from being in danger. Those things you call Hollows, and then a Dragon... I just don’t get it.”

“Well, sugarcube, if yer confused, yer in good company,” Applejack said, “Not so long ago none o’ us knew nothin’ ‘bout all o’ this, an’ we’ve mostly just rolled with the punches as they’ve come. I know fer a fact that Sunset won’t let no harm come to ya, an’ the rest o’ us gals will happily keep ya safe ‘till we get things sorted out ‘bout why them Dragon fellas are after ya.”

“Don’t suppose you’ve got, like, any clue at all why that’d be?” Dash asked, “I mean, I know you just said you don’t know anything, but I mean... really? Nothing odd about your past? Missing parents? Grandparents run an old shrine? Transferred from another school under mysterious circumstances?”

“Dash, are ya just listin’ off clichés from them anime ya watch?” Applejack asked and Rainbow Dash threw up a hand.

“Hey, we’ve already dropped headfirst into that territory! Just covering the basics with this chick, okay?”

Wallflower looked at the ground, wringing her hands, “I, uh, don’t know my grandparents. I didn’t transfer. I... I don’t... know.”

“Huh? Don’t know what?” Rainbow Dash said, leaning forward and peering closely at Wallflower, who backed up a step and held up her hands.

“I don’t really know anything. About my family, I mean.”

“Well you’ve got parents, right? Where do you live?” Rainbow Dash continued to press, while Applejack started to stroke her chin in careful thought, eyeing Wallflower with increasing interest as her own sense of the girl started to give off clues as to how much Wallflower was showing signs of both... being honest and lying at the same time.

“I said I don’t know!” Wallflower shouted, “I don’t know where I live! I don’t know who my parents are! I don’t remember. I mean I do. I remember, faces, and places, and I have a home. I think. I remember having a house, and family, but I don’t know why it’s so fuzzy in my head now. It all felt clear yesterday. Or was it the day before...? It's like I can only remember the school clearly, and my garden, and when I think of anything else it all starts to get dark.”

She curled her arms around herself, “I want my stone back. Please, can I have it back?”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked at each other.

“I think we need ta go git Mister Discord n’ Sunset.”

----------

Earlier that day...

Things had not gone according to plan. Given how easily he had managed to sneak into the enemy’s stronghold, Sombra had imagined that getting out would prove similarly simple. Discord didn’t seem to be in any immediate danger, despite the injury these interlopers had done to him, so Sombra had decided it would be worth it to get a full layout of this “Hitsuyo-Aku” and the extent of the enemy force within.

It had gone well at first. He’d confirmed many things of interest while slipping from shadow to shadow. While ostensibly servants of the human world’s Starlight Glimmer, the one nominally in charge was a pegasus named Firefly. Besides her, Sombra had made a count of nine other persons of interest. Both Chrysalis’, neither of whom he was very familiar with, and distinctly felt the version from the human world was the more imposing of the pair. The Equestrian one had spent a great deal of time with a unicorn named Platinum who was a Soul Reaper, and mother to a much younger buck named Pipsqueak. Then there was the strange girl, Ocellus, who appeared to be a daughter to the Hollow Chrysalis. By Sombra’s observation, there was a less than stable unity between that Chrysalis and everyone else, including the “Reigai”. Among the Reigai he noted three “Captains”, and at least a hundred lesser clones, the majority of whom acted as sentries or patrollers who left the hideout at regular intervals.

The one that he and Radiant Hope had fought, Starswirl, was constantly inside one of the many labs of the fortress, working on projects that Sombra couldn’t begin to guess at the nature of... but one he did recognize all too well. There had been a display showing the image and parameters of the Crystal Heart, and a cultivation tank in which Starswirl appeared to be working on creating a replica, although it only looked to be in the early stages. That could be a serious problem.

The last person of note was that Storm King fellow, if only because he appeared to be quite disgruntled with being used as the local gopher for any random tasks the others needed doing. Sombra for the moment regulated him to the category of a non-issue.

He had been feeling good about his reconnaissance, having memorized the hideout’s corridors and various levels, and gotten a full gauge on the enemy’s numbers and strength. He was confident that the full force of the Equestrian Princesses could handle the opposition here, he just had to get the information to them.

Sombra had spent nearly a full twelve hour period on his scouting, but he didn’t quite tire like normal ponies, especially while remaining inside the shadows, which helped sustain him. He’d noted, earlier that morning, that the Equestrian Chrysalis and Platinum had left, but hadn’t been able to eavesdrop on their conversation before departure so he wasn’t sure what that pair was going off to do. Nor was he sure why the two young ones, Ocellus and Pipsqueak, had snuck out to follow them, making a point of staying out of sight.

Still, in his mind this meant it was the ideal time to leave himself, for if he could get back to Canterlot and report, a strike might be organized while a portion of the enemy group was gone. He’d waited an hour or two, just to make sure the shadows within the canyon were long enough for him to skim across them unseen... but the moment he got a few hundred yards away he had run face first into some kind of barrier!

It didn’t force him out of the shadows completely, but it did disrupt his shadow skimming briefly as a giant, dome-like field of partially opaque blue energy appeared not just in front of him, but surrounded the entire canyon, with Hitsuyo-Aku at the center.

He dove down into the shadows immediately, and began to skim around the perimeter, trying to see if the barrier surrounded everything. While he did this he saw that from the top of the dark tower of metal, Firefly appeared, and flew down to the spot where he’d first hit the barrier. She was soon followed by the darting forms of about a dozen of the Reigai Soul Reapers, including one of a woman he had heard called ‘Zecora’.

Staying hidden in the shadows, he had crept close enough to hear what the enemy was saying, catching Firefly’s voice.

“-looks like we lucked out. Starswirl’s calibrations are working like a charm.”

“It helps that the data recovered from the Crystal Empire provided a clear example of how magical wards function,” Zecora said, drawing her katana and looking around the canyon with keen focus, “Fortunate that we Reigai carry the traits of our originals, including Starswirl’s remarkable brilliance for invention and adaption.”

“We owe you guys, that’s for sure,” Firefly said, “Only Starswirl could’ve gotten such a large ward built so fast. Figured after that scuffle in Canterlot we might run the risk of a tail, but didn’t think it’d happen so soon. So... can your Zanpaktou flush out whoever’s tripped this thing? If it’s a unicorn, they’re probably using an invisibility spell or something.”

“My Zanpaktou can reveal anything,” Zecora replied, “So our interloper won’t be able to stay hidden for long.”

She raised her blade in front of her and spoke in a firm whisper, ”Open the beholder’s eye: Kodokuna Shinjitsu.” (Solitary Truth)

Sombra was already backing away, remaining in shadow, as he watched the Zanpaktou transform in a wave of silvery motes of light. It became a wide, blunt rectangle of metal, attached to a white and black wrapped cloth hilt, and upon its surface bore four consecutive, circular mirrors that were polished to silver reflection. Sombra didn’t know what the special power of this weapon was, but given what Zecora had said he could surmise it had some manner of detection capability.

His only advantage in that moment was that as long as he had shadows to merge with, he could move at incredible speed, and hence had no trouble quickly darting away from Firefly and Zecora’s position and hide on the opposite side of the fortress tower. However he was now stuck with a distinct problem. The barrier surrounded the whole canyon, and a quick check revealed the energies of it appeared to extend underground. There was no way in which he could sneak out. He could perhaps hide within Hitsuyo-Aku itself, but that would only be buying time.

As Sombra saw it, he had two options.

Option one was to try to smash through the ward. While it was made of spiritual energy, he knew his shadow magic could still work upon it, and if he concentrated enough, he could probably break through. But that would definitely give away his position, and it might take him a few moments to break through. The enemy would probably be upon him quickly, and there was no telling if he’d be able to make his escape.

The other option was to search for some way to shut the barrier down, or bypass it. That would mean searching Hitsuyo-Aku for something that might deactivate the ward or let him pass through, which there was no guarantee that such a thing even existed.

Already he saw the flickering forms of the other Soul Reaper Reigai taking up watchful positions around the tower. If he was going to make an escape, he had to act now, before they had a chance to fully establish a net around the perimeter.

No good choices, eh? Well, I suppose this must be part of my karma for being such a wretched bastard for so long, he thought to himself, and then thought of Radiant Hope. Perhaps it had been foolhardy of him to go rushing off like he had, leaving her behind. He had entirely too much to still make up for, and never did feel as if it’d be enough. Could be he did have a self-destructive desire to go on some impossible mission, thinking the only way he’d come close to balancing the scales of his past actions would be to sacrifice himself for some manner of greater good.

Which was rather stupid, because if he got himself caught or killed he was doing absolutely no good to anypony.

But nothing for it, if I try to hide, they’ll have this place swept top to bottom before I ever find a way to bring down this barrier. I just have to break through and keep going... no matter what.

Decision made, he moved swiftly among the shadows behind the tower and looked for the right point. There was a spot on the left side of the canyon wall behind some larger rock outcroppings where the Soul Reaper Regais had not yet formed their perimeter. Zecora and Firefly were still on the other side, presumably searching that area while working their way towards him.

Now or never.

Sombra prepared multiple spells at once, and flew forward across the shadows. He reached the ward and rose up like a living spear of darkness, and from his horn hurled a concentrated burst of magical shadow right against the ward. It flared brightly, sparkling energies across the dome while shadows sparked against it. With a guttural roar, Sombra hurled more might out of his horn, and there was a cracking noise as a hole, like broken glass, appeared in the barrier.

There were shouts behind him from the Reigai, but he ignored them as he threw out a dome of darkness around himself, hoping to obscure himself from view as he hurled forward once more. At the same time he began to cast another spell, although he had little hope that this one would work. Long distance communication spells could be notoriously ineffective unless conditions for casting them were perfect, and often required physical mediums to act as connecting factors to ensure a clear transmission. Sombra, having chased after Starswirl so swiftly, had not the time to prepare such a physical medium, and was now relying solely on the spell itself to try to get a message to his target. Not only would it be unlikely to arrive intact and clear, but there’d probably be a time delay as well. Regardless, he had to try, and a magical circle appeared around his horn as he focused upon the image of the individual he was trying to broadcast to.

“Princess Celestia, this is Sombra, I’ve found the enemy base and Discord. It’s-”

“Not so fast! Dragoons, spread out!”

He sensed the attacks coming rather than saw them, and tried to dive deeper into his shadows, but felt a burning sensation as dozens of purple beams of light pierced through the darkness and cut across the canyon floor he’d been skimming over. With a wounded rear left leg sporting a burn mark, Sombra rolled and came up in a gallop as overhead flew Firefly. She was now covered in a set of dark violet armor, with metal wings that spread over there pegasus wings, and a glass visor covering her eyes. Motes of energy flew from ports in her wings and armor, letting her fly at ridiculous speed that took her well ahead of Sombra. Around her also flew a flurry of small, metal wing bits, from which were firing the purple beams that tried to box him in.

Sombra threw up a barrier of shadows to absorb some of the beams, his sending spell disrupted, and dodged to the side. He fired back with a summoned swarm of dark spheres that he sharpened to cones of darkness, letting them dart up at Firefly in swift streaks.

She evaded with a diving roll that took her to the ground, and then she flew right at him, hooves extended for a tackling maneuver.

He sank down into shadow, trying to escape once more as she flew overhead, but soon he found a buzz of movement blocked his path as Zecora appeared, her transformed Zanpaktou held loosely in her right hand as she raised her left and pointed a finger upward.

”Hado Number Six: Chochin Hata.” (Field of Lanterns)

From her finger sparked a circle of flaring red light that then expanded outward and burst into a series of ghostly crimson lanterns of spherical paper. Within each lantern burned a bright light, and with several dozen of them floating around, the area was entirely bathed in thick sheets of light, banishing much of the natural shadows of the area.

This had the unfortunate effect of removing the shadows Sombra was trying to sink into and flee with, leaving him exposed on the canyon floor as Firefly skidded to a halt from her tackle and flipped over, landing behind him. Now with her behind him and Zecora in front, Sombra was effectively surrounded.

“You’re the one who confronted Starswirl in Canterlot,” Zecora stated, “Sombra, yes?”

“Heeeey, whaaat?” Firefly said, looking rather casual in her stance despite the fact that her swarm of metal drones were poised around Sombra like a school of hungry sharks, “Sombra!? Holy shit, you do look like the Quincy’s King! Only all broody, adorable pony-like! Man, hope you’re not packing the same level of power the Quincy you does, otherwise me and Zecora here are about to get our butts kicked.”

“Would you believe me if I did boast to you that I am all powerful and that you’d be better off letting me go peacefully?” he inquired, mostly just to keep the conversation going while he tried to plan his next move.

“Nah, but it’d be a good bluff. Don’t know your circumstances, my dude, but it’s pretty clear if you could’ve broken through us on pure power, you’d have done it already,” Firefly said, and reared up on her hind legs, using her forehooves to now grasp a long, hexagonal shaped cannon with a long barrier that simply appeared from thin air, “And obviously we can’t just let you run off with the location of our base. Don’t want to have to hurt you, buddy, but you don’t strike me as the surrendering type, either.”

To this, Sombra only allowed himself a grim smile as he adjusted his stance so he was standing with either side facing Zecora and Firefly, eyeing them both. Further back he saw many of the lesser Reigai Soul Reapers were forming up either atop the canyon walls or back near the ward, giving the two women some distance so they could fight.

He didn’t see any of the other heavy hitters arriving, but he didn’t know if that was because they hadn’t sensed what was happening yet, or just didn’t care. He was grateful, whatever the reason, that the Hollow Chrysalis hadn’t shown up.

With a deep breath, he gathered his magic around him. He could still summon shadows, despite the light being cast by those red lanterns, as long as he pooled it in a concentrated form around himself. Doing so, he let his shadows rise around him like blades, and said to Firefly.

“No, no I am not the surrendering type at all.”

----------

It was taking all of Chrysalis’ self control to not scowl or have an utter roaring fit once she got close to her hive. It was even worse up close than it had been to see it from a distance! Security was an utter joke. Nothing more than a mere pair of “sentries”, if they could even be called that, lounging about at the main entrance and merrily chatting about food and the weather without a care in the world! They barely even looked up at Chrysalis and Platinum’s approach, and weren’t even armed. Who was in charge of this place!? Oh, right, that idiot Thorax, who probably had no idea how dangerous it was to leave the hive exposed like this!

“Hey, idiots, look alive down there!” suddenly came a deep voiced shout from above, and Chrysalis looked up with mild surprise to see a darkly colored changeling flying down from one of the higher terraces that overlooked the hive’s main entrance. It took her a moment or two to realize who it was, for he’d converted to the abominable new form her changelings had been bastardized into, but at least his coloring was at least somewhat sensibly dark compared to the others. Pharynx had always been among her favorites in the old days; quite dependable and pragmatic. The way he slammed down in front of the two lazing sentries with a fierce glare which had both of his more colorful brethren on their hooves in seconds, nervously saluting, did give Chrysalis a small spark of hope that not every single one of her children were lost causes.

“C-Captain Pharynx, sir!” chirped one changeling, a orange female with green eyes, “Sorry, we were just talking about which kind of food from the Yaks was better, the borsches or the pot pie!”

“I know that, and for the record, the pot pie, but that’s not important!” growled Pharynx, gesturing with a hoof at Chrysalis and Platinum, “What’s important is that you’ve got to be alert and challenge everycreature that approaches the entrance! That’s the whole point of having sentries!”

“Apologies, Captain!” said the other sentry, a purple male, somewhat more bulky than his companion, “But they’re just more of the hive, right? Uh...” he peered at Chrysalis and Platinum, and Chrysalis quickly hopped forward, putting on her innocent face. She was practiced beyond any of her children in her acting skills, so adopting the cheerful, innocent face of an excited young one was as easy as breathing.

“Hi! Me and my big sis are back! We were just out looking around for some grub to forage, but we just haven’t had any luck today so we’re packing it in! Right, big sis Cocci?”

Coccinellidae may have been the name Platinum had chosen, but a real little sister would use a nick name. Platinum, a bit more stiffly than Chrysalis would have liked, coughed politely and nodded her head, “Yes, Vespid and I couldn’t find anything good today, but maybe we’ll have better luck tomorrow.”

“That bites,” said the female sentry, “But we coulda told you most of the west Badlands are already picked clean. Even with the new growth we’re still not going to be able to rely on foraging for awhile.”

“Well you never know!” Chrysalis chirped as energetically as she could, “We could’ve gotten lucky and found a good spot the rest of you missed.

Pharynx cleared his throat, eyeing both of them, “Yeah, well, it’s still dangerous out there, and you’re lucky you didn’t run into any trouble out there. Curfew is still an hour before sundown, so it’s good you’re back. After the attack on the Crystal Empire, I’m not taking chances with any of us wandering around near dark.”

There was a piercing element to Pharynx gaze, as if he was trying to place “Cocci” and “Vespid”. Sadly the one competent changeling among her children might unravel her plan here and now if he got too suspicious, but even Pharynx hadn’t memorized every one of his brother and sister’s faces, and Chrysalis imagined that after the change into these damnable colorful forms it was even more difficult to keep every changeling straight.

She indeed saw the suspicious thoughts running through his mind, and understood the reason for them. Chrysalis had heard of her counterpart’s attack on the Crystal Empire, and a major attack like that would make any security minded person like Pharynx jumpy. He looked ready to question them more, but there was another call from the terrace above, another familiar voice, this one Chrysalis was less enthused to hear.

“Brother, there you are!” said Thorax from above, “Been looking for you. Are you ready for our training session?”

Pharynx frowned, looking away from Chrysalis and Platinum as he shot a look of brotherly aggravation up towards Thorax, “I haven’t forgotten, and I’ll be right there. Just making sure these two lazy bugs realize they’ve got to take sentry duty seriously!”

Turning his attention to the sentries, “Speaking of which, I want both of you to report to the training grounds tomorrow morning at first light for some punishment exercise.”

The two sentries groaned but saluted in response, and Pharynx took to the air, wings extending in a soft buzz, “As for you two sisters, go on in and next time go with one of the larger foraging groups. With too many monsters running around I don’t want to risk losing anyone, you hear me?”

“Of course, Captain, and you’re doing a very dutiful job. Your concern for me and my sister’s well being is greatly appreciated,” Platinum said, bowing her head respectfully, and probably in far too formal a fashion, as Pharynx tilted his head for a second at her gesture. Chrysalis, however, quickly flew up to draw his attention, all happy grins.

“Yes! Thank you very much for protecting the hive, Big Brother Pharynx! Keep up the good work!”

“Um, well, y-yeah, sure thing kid...” Pharynx mumbled in embarrassment, then glared up at Thorax as the other changeling chuckled, “What are you laughing at!? Geeze, let’s go get this stupid training over with. As if this plan of yours is actually going to work.”

“I think it will, brother, we just need to work on getting our magic balanced with one another’s. Come on then, and the rest of you, have a good day.”

Thorax waved, and very reluctantly Chrysalis kept up her foalish grin and waved back, while inside she wanted to throw up. How had this saccharine buffoon taken everything away from her and usurped her rightful place as Queen? And he was clearly ruining discipline among her children! Even her dependable Pharynx was less formidable, merely assigning some kind of ‘punishment exercise’ instead of something more appropriately severe for such lazy guards.

She kept it all internalized with long centuries of practice at hiding her feelings behind any number of masked layers, bouncing along past the sentries with her “big sister” in tow. The hive’s main entrance was essentially one large cleft in the side of the massive edifice of hardened resin, now so coated in green vines, flowering bushes, and all other manner of verdant life that the exterior was hardly recognizable to her beloved home.

And once she was inside things were even more starkly different than she remembered. The entry led to a short, tall ceilinged hall, which opened up into a massive pavilion. This was so utterly unlike the tight, twisting corridors of the old hive! She’d built her home to be a labyrinthine fortress, but this was so... so open!

It was hard not to drop her jaw open as she stared up a tall, conical space, with an admittedly beautifully arranged center courtyard with a large pool of water and a fountain spewing water from a statue of resin shaped like a castle spire. Her children, hundreds of them, buzzed around this central chamber in a constant buzz of laughter and activity. The walls had numerous openings leading to different halls, but there were also a number of stalls and open fronts here that showed chambers, stores, and homes on various tiers along the inner walls of the chamber. The bottom two floors especially were filled with what looked like stores and taverns, packed with not only changelings, but actual ponies, a few griffins, and Chrysalis even spotted a pair of small, younger dragons chatting at a table outside one of the taverns.

The bustle of activity was overwhelming, and left her feeling dizzy for a few moments until she felt a steadying hoof on her shoulder.

“We should keep moving,” Platinum said, and Chrysalis realized that standing in the threshold was making them stand out. Getting a grip on herself, she shuffled to the side alongside Platinum, still staring at the sights around her.

This was wrong. It was all wrong. Why was there so much food!? How were these stores even operating!? Her children didn’t know anything about commerce! And why were these ponies and other creatures here and just strolling about freely!? Didn’t her children smell the love coming off of them? Didn’t it drive them crazy with hunger? And did none of her children understand the danger of letting so many outsiders just wander around freely? What if the griffins were studying their defenses to take back to Griffinstone so an invasion could be planned? What if the dragons were merely scouting out if the changelings had any good gemstones worth stealing?

Everything she was seeing was incomprehensibly stupid. Her children clearly needed her back, otherwise they were about to leave themselves exposed to annihilation by the first group that saw all of this weakness and decided to take advantage of it. Damn Thorax! Damn Starlight Glimmer! Damn all of those puffed up, arrogant, pony Princesses! They were going to all be the death of the changelings. And why did Chrysalis even care?

This was a mistake. Coming here was obviously a mistake. She couldn’t do this.

“Relax.”

Platinum’s voice was solid as ice a she led Chrysalis to a table at a... café? It didn’t look like a tavern, but rather a place that was serving various coffees and teas out of an opening in the wall, with a handful of tables and benches set up. Flying about was a young changeling, some kind of waitress. She had light blue chitin and pink coloring ot her wings and frills, and Chrysalis watched her take note of the two new customers and she flew right up, smiling brightly.

“Hello, what can I get you two today?”

“Um...” Chrysalis was actually at a loss, despite her acting chops, because it occurred to her she had no idea what was being used as currency now. In the old days all was a matter of distributing cocooned captives for the value of the individual love contained within, and she had quartermasters in charge of most of that distribution. How were her children even handling things, now?

Platinum was on top of things, however, “Oh, just two green teas, if you please, miss...?”

“Oh, Ocellus! Happy to meet you! Two green teas for...?’

“Miss Coccinellidae, and this is my little sister Vespid.”

“Great! I’ll have your two teas in no time!” Ocellus replied and sped off, and once she was out earshot Chrysalis leaned over to whisper to Platinum.

“Do you know how to pay for this tea?”

Platinum smiled at her with a wink, revealing a sudden satchel that Chrysalis hadn’t seen her carrying a moment ago, but it had several gemstones rattling inside, “As we walked over I watched the others exchanging these. Swiped this from one of the distracted sentries as we entered. Figured it’d be useful.”

Damn. Smart. Chrysalis had to begrudgingly admit that Platinum was actually proving quite useful to have around, and it was... nice to have someone to help keep her mind off of things. Embarrassingly enough she’d come dangerously close to losing it, just seeing this central chamber to her old hive. It was just overwhelming, how different everything was. Worse, it looked as if her children were... thriving. Which had to be a façade. Sure they seemed ‘happy’, but that couldn’t last. Everything here was soft, and weak. Vulnerable. Like this Ocellus girl, who looked like just a little snowflake of happiness as she hummed, getting two resin cups of tea from the open counter and flying them over to Platinum and Chrysalis’ table.

“Here you go! Two green teas! We just got a fresh supply of leaves in yesterday all the way from Canterlot!”

“You’re trading with Canterlot?” Chrysalis asked, then felt immediately stupid for asking, for if she was a resident she ought to already know this. But Ocellus didn’t bat an eye, nodding with enthusiasm.

“Oh yes! My dad runs the shop here, but mom is part of the new merchant guild that Mister Vertebrae set up! There’s so many minerals we’re now mining from the caverns below that we can afford all sorts of nice things from other places. It’s great.”

“How wonderful to hear,” Platinum said, “But is it dangerous, doing long trade trips like that? I’ve heard so many rumors of how dangerous the roads can be.”

Ocellus didn’t stop smiling, but a bit of worry shadowed her face, “I guess it can be. There’s that really nasty business that happened to the crystal ponies. But King Thorax says we can’t let fear make us back down from pursuing a bright future, and we should be open with our neighbors so they can start to learn to trust us. I, um, I’m really curious to visit the other races. I’d like to learn more about them, and I try to talk to anyone I can who visits the tea shop.”

Chrysalis bit back bitter words and instead kept in mind the way another young idiot might act, “You must make a lot of friends that way.”

“Heheh, I try to, but I don’t get to meet too many other creatures my own age,” Ocellus said, and blinked at Chrysalis, “Hey, I don’t think I’ve seen you around much, Vespid. There’s only a few of us young changelings left, since the... the old Queen left. Did you want to come play with me and my friends later?”

Chrysalis glanced at Platinum. They needed a cover to blend in until they could get an opening to check the vaults. On top of that, it was important to get a better lay of the land here, especially considering how much the hive had changed since Chrysalis had been Queen. Platinum must have come to the same conclusion, for she smiled with encouragement and said, “I think it's a wonderful idea for you to go play with some new friends, Vespid. Just don’t stay out too late.”

“Of course big sis, of course,” Chrysalis replied. This would be a good opportunity to spread their efforts in gathering information. With Platinum’s spiritual senses she’d have an easy time finding Chrysalis again, and in the meantime Chrysalis could make use of this foolish Ocellus child... whom she only now realized shared a name with her counterpart’s daughter!?

Hmph, I suppose it stands to reason there’d be a mirror of that disturbing child here. At least this one seems simply vapid, instead of dangerous.

Keeping her thoughts off her face, she smiled at Ocellus, “Well my big sis is okay with it so I don’t mind playing for a while.”

“Wonderful! My shift is over soon, so just meet me in front of the fountain in an hour,” Ocellus said, and flew away with a wave to go back to serving other customers. Chrysalis waved after her, unable to keep her own smile from taking on just a hint of the devious satisfaction she felt at having so quickly found such a convenient tour guide.

“Looking forward to it.”

Episode 186: Surmounting Doubt

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Episode 186: Surmounting Doubt

Gloriosa was mostly pleased with the progress made in getting Camp Everfree back in order. Ultimately she understood that it’d be a very long time before anything resembling “normal” was even on the table for her and her brother, but at least her home was not only finally repaired of the damage incurred during the cascade of battles that had taken place, but with Gaia’s influence things were, in her mind, improved from what they were before.

Gaia’s Hollow powers had already naturally been inclined towards the control and guidance of nature’s elements, and Gloriosa’s Fullbring only enhanced this now that they were both one and the same being. It’d made renovations quite the breeze. She’d not only repaired the camp buildings, but expanded upon them and naturalized them to a degree. Each building was larger, but now also built within seemingly natural earthen mounds covered in trees and beautiful bushes sporting flowers of all colors. She’d added quite a bit of interior decorating, so the interiors of the buildings had tree roots and vines as natural growths forming support pillars and tables and chairs looked more molded from the trees than crudely carved.

And the lake was back. She’d made a point of filling it back in, ensuring the crystal clear waters now shone brightly across where they’d once been. The addition of the giant tree to the center of the lake was certainly picturesque, quite otherworldly in the way its humongous roots formed bridges across parts of the lake.

“You do realize that anybody we actually get to come to camp here is going to wonder why this place looks like a literal fantasy fairy groove, right?” Timber asked as Gaia finished the last touches on an expanded dock that was essentially grown from one large tree root spread out into several branches, with lamp posts grown from the root itself under the guidance of her power.

“Oh let them ask questions and wonder, brother. It’ll add to the camp’s mystique,” she replied with a cheeky smile, eyes glowing green as she waved her hands to finish the last curled, fey lamp post. “I, for one, intend to lean into the whole magical force of nature thing I have going on.”

She didn’t fail to notice Timber’s moment of uneasy shifting on his feet before simple acceptance bowed his head, “Guess it’ll still be awhile before we’ve got to worry about guests anyway. Heh, at least finances aren’t going to be an issue anymore. Twilight’s being really generous about that.”

“Ah, had a talk with her, have we?”

“Barely,” Timber said, shrugging, “That girl is way busier than any teenager ought to be, but not like I can judge, considering the crap she’s dealing with. Even just talking to her for five minutes about funding for the camp was enough to tell me she’s ten kinds of distracted. I couldn’t even say a proper thank you for all she did to help us out.”

“Perhaps that’s for the best,” Gloriosa said, taking her brother’s hand and gesturing with the others all around them at the restored Camp Everfree, “Focus on the home we have, rather than on a girl who’s worlds apart from you, Timber.”

“Yeesh, sis, reading into things, much?” Timber said, managing a half hearted grin, “Sure, I think she’s cute, and feel I still owe her for saving my life, but it’s not like I’m pinning over here.”

“You very much are. A sister knows these things.”

“Oh come off it. Just because you’re now merged with some ancient Hollow with thousands of years of experience doesn’t mean you suddenly know everything. I barely know Twilight, won’t be getting a lot of chances to get to know her, and am basically under house arrest by you because you think I’m going to break if I step two feet outside of the camp. Which, by the way, is totally hypocritical of you considering you were at that summit meeting that got attacked...”

He wasn’t able to keep his own worry out of his voice as he stared at her with harsh brotherly concern, and Gloriosa felt a brief conflict between herself as Gaia, who found this whole affair quite unnecessary, and herself as Gloriosa who couldn’t just toss her brother’s words aside. Seamless as the blend between her two selves was, it could still cause a bit of a headache when there was disagreement over how to handle things.

“It was a difficult situation, but we got through it just fine, Timber. You needn’t worry about us so much. And you’re not under ‘house arrest’, I just... I’d prefer it if you didn’t wander into the city without at least taking one of my flowers with you so I can keep an eye on things.”

“Which you know what, fine, I’d be stupid to ignore how dangerous things still are, so I don’t begrudge you that, sis, but still wish we could have a proper talk about what we’re going to do now. It’s all nice to pretend we’re going to just keep running the camp, but we both know that’s not really what’s going on. We’ve got a portal to another dimension sitting in the middle of our lake crying out loud!”

“A portal that hasn’t done anything yet,” Gloriosa pointed out, and then immediately flinched when she felt a sudden surge of energies coming precisely from the lake, at the exact location of the portal.

Timber winced too, and that bothered Gloriosa, because she knew that he’d been affected by his brief exposure to magic and Hollow power when she, during her less than stable mental breakdown after her initial merging, had tried to alter him. He hadn’t exhibited any powers, but his sensitivity to spiritual and magical energies was apparent, especially now that he clearly sensed the same thing she just had as his eyes widened and stared towards the tree in the middle of the lake.

“What’s that?”

“I don’t know,” she said, “But I’m going to go check it out. You stay here. Or better yet, get inside-”

Her words were barely out when there was an incredible rush of air, and a shadow flickered overhead, and also around them. Two spiritual pressures, both of equal intensity if fairly different flavors. Gloriosa looked up while holding out a protective arm in front of her brother, seeing the descent of a house sized avian being. The bird sported a long peacock tail of green and blue which continued on to a sapphire body that flickered on and off with shimmering jade lights. Its long neck ended in a thin, feminine bird’s face with wide, jewel blue eyes and a sharp black beak like a spear. The bird’s wings shared the peacock coloring of her tail, and they stirred the air with a hot wind as she landed on one side of Gloriosa and Timber.

Right on the other side stalked a wolf with dark blue fur, nearly as tall as the bird, bearing white runic markings across her sleek body. Amber eyes glared at the bird, but looked with faint respect towards Gloriosa before the wolf bowed her head and opened salivating jaws to speak.

“We had heard Gaia Everfree was restored. I greet you in the name of my High Chieftain, Fenris.”

“Asena,” Gloriosa said, memories from Gaia’s days now flooding her, “I confess I was not expecting emissaries from the Beast Realm, but I welcome you, nonetheless. And Simurgh, I see you are well.”

The giant sapphire bird made a clicking noise, speaking in a light, airy tone, “Well indeed, and I greet you as well in the name of my High Chieftain, Quetzalcoatl. I apologize for any startelment we may have caused. I was generous in allowing my much slower, land bound companion to set our pace.”

The wolf, Asena, licked the air and her ears twitched, “Set the pace, indeed. You stopped every other league to indulge in drink and revelry while we’re about our High Chieftain’s business, you lush of a lark.”

“First of all it was every ten leagues. I limit myself. Secondly, if you weren’t such a dry, uptight traveling companion I wouldn’t have needed to engage in some refreshment to keep myself from going mad. We made it in good time, so I don’t need to hear your complaints.”

Timber, looking between the two massive creatures while doing his best not to go pale and pass out, whispered to Gloriosa, “Do you, er, I mean Gaia, know these guys?”

“In a manner of speaking,” Gloriosa replied. Gaia was among the few Hollows with any real personal contact with the Beast Realm, and it was hard not to know the heralds for two of the High Chieftains. She cleared her throat to interrupt the bickering and spoke louder, “What business do you both have in the living realm? It isn’t often both of you are sent on the same errand.”

“ ‘Tis no errand,” said Asena, “This is a summoning.”

Simurgh bent her head low, cocked to one side so one eye could focus upon Gloriosa, “We know the serpents of the Sea Tribe stir. Dragons of his cult have entered this realm. Servants of the fallen Clans have soiled this very ground.”

Gloriosa bristled slightly, remembering the creatures from the Beast Realm, including a hydra, that had caused her campers no shortage of terror. “I have wondered why denizens of your realm have been coming here. What is this about, you two?”

“Ragnarok,” Simurgh said, “That madness has gripped our kin once more, and this time the High Chieftains mean to put an end to it for good. The Fates have been consulted, and a course of action decided. The Daughters of the Dragon and Wolf must come home to their Clans, and it has been seen that warriors of harmony accompany them.”

“We know of the Bifrost Road that leads to the realm of Asgard,” said Asena, “The spark of Ragnarok stirs there, as well, and if this flame is to be put out, the way must be cleared. We have been sent to find the Daughters of the Dragon and Wolf, along with their warrior entourage, so we may escort them to the Convocation of Clans at the base of Yggdrasil.”

“Are you following any of this, sis?” asked Timber, and he gulped as Simurgh adjusted her head, which was about three times his size, to peer closely at him.

“What is this small human male doing here, Gaia?”

Gloriosa stepped in front of the bird and let just enough reiatsu flow out of her that her eyes filled in green and it got Simurgh to take a step back, “This is my brother, and I’ll thank you to perhaps explain yourselves more thoroughly to others besides myself. Your ‘Daughters of the Dragon and Wolf’ aren’t here, but back in Soul Society. As for their warriors of harmony... well they’re a tad indisposed at the moment as well, considering half of them are in Hueco Mundo right now.”

“So we’ve... come at a bad time?” asked Asena, somehow managing to look abashed as a giant wolf, and giving Simurgh an accusatory glance. Simurgh partially hid her face behind a wing, coughing.

“Well, I may have taken a bit too long with some of our drinking stops. Is there perhaps a place we can wait for them to become available? Ragnarok is a bit... urgent. Not the kind of thing that can really wait.”

“It’ll have to,” Gloriosa said, “But I can take you to Discord’s. But do try to shift into less conspicuous shapes before we go there, please? It’s in the middle of a human city.”

----------

“You two didn’t have to come with us. In fact, pretty sure the boss lady might straight up have my head on a pike if anything happened to either of you,” Di Roy said to the two ladies following along behind him and Gaw as they made their way to one of the entrances to the Warrens. This particular entrance was an old bolt-hole that was situated in Torch’s territory. Di Roy figured the chances of them being seen by any of Guto’s people was low, here, given Torch’s horde was being doubly protective of their area ever since Ember was returned to them.

As vassals of Adagio, of course, he and Gaw had passes to go as they pleased, and more than a few of Torch’s people greeted them warmly as they went by. Granted, the two following them were given somewhat more wary looks if only because Lament still had a reputation, but no one tried to stop Roka and Fenice, either.

Fenice responded first, voice heated, “I’ve literally got nothing better to do, and watching our father pace and brood was kind of getting on my last nerve.”

“Be kind to him,” Roka said, smiling in understanding at her adoptive sister, “Everything has been an adjustment since he reunited with the rest of his family.”

Di Roy wasn’t the best at reading people, but it wasn’t as if he had to be to see the way Fenice’s walk was stiff as a cat being carried to a bath. Her voice would have been snappish, but she controlled it for Roka, turning it into something vaguely softer. “I know. I’m... happy for him, you know? But he’s clearly not having an easy time with this, and it bugs me I can’t do anything about it. I know he’s worried, and I’m basically stuck watching him worry, only his version of worrying is getting eerily quiet, pacing around his orchard, and occasionally vanishing for random blocks of time.”

“He’s visiting the Apple farm, Fenice,” Roka said, and after a moment added, “He doesn’t know how to stitch us together. His two families. He’s working on it.”

“Doesn’t help that we’ve got the ever looming threat of the higher Espada finding out about his... condition, and dropping on us like a ton of angry, violent bricks,” Fenice grunted, fingering the medallion that was her Fullbring’s catalyst, “And no offense to Adagio, but this alliance of hers still isn’t strong enough for us to take them on.”

“I feel very strong,” Gaw said, hammering a fist to her chest for emphasis. Di Roy cleared his throat and patted her on the shoulder, which earned a growl and a nip at his hand which was only half hearted.

“Yes, Gaw, we’re totally more buff now. You’ve filled out, I’ve gotten shiner. Pretty sure we might be shoe-ins for Number Ten if we wanted it, but, uh, yeah that’s a far cry from tackling the head honchos. Heck, I’m still not one hundred percent convinced we can take Guto, Hydia, and Grogar’s little power bloc, but I think we’re on a collision course with them anyway,” Di Roy said, scratching his shark-bone helmet mask as he shook his head, “Man, I hope Thorax is okay. That dude is one of the few people around here with the smarts to work out halfway decent plans besides the boss lady. If he’s in trouble, we’re all in trouble.”

“He’s not that strong,” Gaw said, then scratched her head, making a sniffing noise, “But he also is important to Adagio. So I suppose we save him.”

“Hey, is it just me, or are you getting better at talking?” Di Roy asked, and she grunted at him, which simply caused Di Roy to look back at Fenice and Roka, “I’m not crazy, right? She’s talking way better than she was a month ago?”

“Don’t tease her for making progress, Di Roy,” Roka stated with an encouraging nod towards Gaw, who continued to somewhat wilt and grumble under the scrutiny. Fenice, less interested in banter, simply groaned a bit.

“Is this entrance nearby yet? Looks to me like we’re talking and walking towards literally nothing!”

“Relax, flamebrand. Ember told me right where it was, and if I’m any good at judging distances, which I am, it should be right about... here!” Di Roy declared, stomping his foot on a patch of sand that gave a hollow thump from the impact. With a self-satisfied laugh he knelt down and brushed away more sand to reveal a stone slab with a small rope handle. He hauled it open, revealing a straight drop down into darkness.

“Ladies first?” he asked Gaw, who unsheathed her Zanpaktou and stretched her arms before leaping down without any hint of hesitation. Di Roy looked to Fenice and Roka, holding the door open. Fenice patted her sister’s arm and went next, the faint green of Bringer Light trailing from her feet as she floated down in a controlled fall. Roka went next, nodding politely to Di Roy, who then jumped down with the stone door slab being hauled closed behind him.

The shaft went down nearly four dozen feet, and opened into one of many interconnecting tunnels within the Warrens. Their destination was Thorax’s underground club, which Di Roy had the idea of checking first. Granted, Adagio had already sent their missing messenger there, so it wasn’t like a great leap of logic to check the location or anything. Di Roy certainly didn’t know what to expect, because anything could have happened. Some asshole Arrancar could have gotten hungry and chowed down on the messenger before they even got to deliver it to Thorax.

Still, Di Roy’s gut was telling him something else was up. The Hollows, lesser or otherwise, who served Adagio wore distinctly styled punk clothing to make it clear they were part of the Sixth Espada’s horde, so someone would have to be either stupid to screw with one of her messengers... or intentionally out to attack Adagio.

So Di Roy’s money was on Guto’s alliance being responsible, as it was the simplest explanation. Wouldn’t be that hard to keep watch on known hangouts like Thorax’s club to intercept any of Adagio’s people. Option two was more worrying, which would be something was going on on Chrysalis' end, and Di Roy wanted zero part of having to deal with any of the Second Espada’s schemes. Guto’s people he felt they could handle. That crazy bitch was on a whole different level of “Nope”. Even Thorax was someone Di Roy was pretty leery of, despite Adagio’s clear approval of the guy. Whatever Thorax’s overtures to wanting to do his own thing, Di Roy didn’t trust that if it came down to it that Thorax would choose to go against his nutty mother.

Their route towards Thorax’s club took several winding paths, and Di Roy heard movement in a larger tunnel ahead and motioned for the rest to halt as they rounded a bend near a four way junction. Slowly he shifted and leaned so he could peek, with Gaw shuffling low to peek around just below him. Roka and Fenice stayed back, but Roka’s closed eyes suggested she was heavily focusing on her Pesquisa to sense what was ahead.

The sound of movement turned out to be a whole troop of Bushwoolies. The odd, white fur balls with mouths filled with serrated teeth also sported stubby but strong arms and legs, and there were scores of them hauling platforms laden down with tarp covered shapes, most larger than a truck. Di Roy watched as this convoy hauled about ten of these past the junction before it ended, and he glanced back at his companions and whispered, “The heck is that about?”

“Hairy little things aren’t normal here,” Gaw said, sniffing, “Their scent is new, not part of the older tunnels.”

“She’s right,” Roka said, “Bushwoolies normally don’t come down into the Warrens. They serve Catrina and only Catrina. The Smooze was here until his disappearance, and now Chrysalis’ forces control the Warren factories.”

“Something here stinks,” Di Roy said, thinking for a moment, “Let’s follow them.”

“What about Thorax?” Gaw asked, and Di Roy waved a hand at her.

“We’ll still check his place out, but I’m thinking this is tied to that, somehow. I want to see what’s under those tarps and where they’re being taken.”

“Hey, if there’s something screwy going on down there, I’m all for busting the lid off of it,” said Fenice, “I think you’re right that this is probably why your messenger went missing.”

They proceeded with more caution, but fortunately the Bushwoolies were not difficult to follow. As long as he and the others kept their spiritual pressure low, it would’ve taken a focused search with Pesquisa to sense them. The strange fuzzy beasts didn’t have apparent eyes, but Di Roy figured that was less important than the fact that they were so focused on where they were going that however they went about seeing, they weren’t really checking behind them. The whole convoy seemed relaxed, in fact, and the Bushwoolies chartered among themselves in a strange, mish mash of guttural words and clicks that didn’t sound like any Di Roy could grasp, but clearly meant something to the Bushwoolies. Sadly this meant none of their banter yielded any clues, but Di Roy figured they’d see what this was about soon enough.

The heat, smoky scents, and general humidity of the factories was getting more prevalent, making it pretty clear where the convoy was going.

“Anyone else feeling as if there’s too much reiatsu up ahead?” whispered Fenice. “Last time we were down here I wasn’t sensing so many different spiritual pressures.”

“Yes,” said Roka, her one exposed eye closed in focus, “There’s much more energy in general than I ever recall sensing before, either when I lived down here or our more recent ventures.”

“We’ll get a gander at what’s up soon enough,” Di Roy told them, but he couldn’t deny that he was starting to get nervous. A part of him wanted to call this off and return to Adagio, but knew it’d disappoint the boss lady if they came back with barely a scrap of information other than ‘something weird was going down’. His survival instincts were yelling at him that they were walking into a dangerous situation, but dammit Adagio had been generous enough to share the power of that Seed with him and Gaw! It was time they earned their keep and proved to Adagio that the faith she’d placed in her vassals was actually worth something.

Fear now properly wrangled, he led them along, keeping just out of sight of the Bushwoolies, who continued to be oblivious to the fact that they were being followed. The at first distant sense of many overlapping reiatsu signatures now grew much more dense and pervasive. This was accompanied by an obvious and rapid change in the Warrens’ architecture. Di Roy first saw it as a few small pipes and odd conduits built into the wall, but soon this expanded into large sections of the ceiling and even floor sporting an odd techno-industrial feel as stone was replaced with metal and a network of strange conduits.

There was spiritual energy inside these conduits, humming ever so slightly if Di Roy touched them. He sensed that the energy was flowing both to and from the direction they were going, as if some conduits were ferrying power in while others were ferrying it out. Odd, but also convenient, since the extra auras of reiatsu make it even easier for the group to mask their own as they snuck along.

While the group all shared confused looks concerning the nature of the conduits, the Bushwoolie convoy exited into an opening that led to one of the giant underground caverns where the old factories Smooze once operated had existed. ‘Had’ being the operative term. Sneaking up to the lip of the huge ledge of metal that formed a catwalk that expanded to either side of them, it was plain to see that these caverns had undergone an extensive renovation in Smooze’s absence. The factories were completely redone and enlarged, brimming with strange devices and spinning coils of energy that covered their exteriors, while those same conduits built into the ceilings, walls, and floors, hooked up to the factories like a network of tree roots. Aside from the metal reworking, there was now a series of black resin secretions that formed new walls, and most notably a series of pens that lined in neat rows between the factories.

Chrysalis’ army of drones were flitting about everywhere, coming in and out of the renovated factories. They were stockpiling strange resin cases near the pens, or moving boxes of materials being brought in from other tunnels into the factories themselves. Everything was coated in a wash of flickering green lights as the factories spewed this odd light from every barred window or half open metal door, and aside from the buzz of energy or the grinding of machinery, there was a continuous low series of pained howls that Di Roy recognized as distinctly Hollow coming from within the factories.

Gaw’s nose wrinkled instantly and a low growl built in her throat, “Everything smells terrible.”

That was a mild way of putting it. Di Roy had been covering his nose and mouth as well, noting that the air had a horrid, chemical stink to it. “No kidding. What the heck did Chrysalis’ people do to this place? Smooze was a walking pile of puke and didn’t make his factories look or smell so damn creepy.”

“I don’t know if Chrysalis alone is responsible for this,” Roka said, eyes scanning the area carefully, “Look.”

It took Di Roy a few seconds to notice what Roka was pointing out, but his spine shivered when he saw them. These Hollows were near impossible to mistake, for their bodies were built up into meaty hulks with implanted metal limbs, or grossly bloated muscle grafts, or had entirely new limbs sewn or bolted onto their bodies like a madman’s toy collection.

“Grogar...” Di Roy said under his breath, “Damn bastard must have helped Chrysalis renovate everything down here. But the hell are they manufacturing? Not just clothes and furniture like Smooze used to, that’s for freakin’ certain.”

“Get down!” Fenice hissed, pointing as she hit the deck herself, laying so that she could only just barely peek over the lip of the catwalk. The others followed suit, also following her gaze, and Di Roy found himself gulping.

Grogar was here. The old, leather skinned Espada had walked out of one of the factories, striding around like he owned the place. Seeing the Bushwoolies arriving with their loads, Grogar approached them with swift, impatient strides. His voice rang out like a paper rasp across the chamber. “Hurry up you confounded evolutionary reprobates! I’ve been waiting for your shipment for over an hour! If Catrina doesn’t want her servants returned to her with my installed improvements, she’d best send faster ones next time. No, no, stop your worthless groveling! I’ve no time to experiment on your corpses today, so just set those down over there.”

The Bushwoolies, jittering in fear among themselves, rapidly obeyed and set down their payloads along the side of the resin pens. By now Di Roy noticed most of those ones were covered by tarps, but there was something moving underneath many of them. As the Bushwoollies turned and waited, Grogar approached one of the pallets that had been brought in, and he removed the cloth covering of what lay underneath.

Di Roy strained to see, but his eyes narrowed at the sight of what looked like a Hollow laying on the pallet. Not dead, but rather insensate, as if drugged. Not a lesser Hollow, either, but what looked like an Adjuchas-class. Were all of the pallets carrying those?

Grogar muttered something, but Di Roy couldn’t hear what he was saying now that he wasn’t yelling. He just stood and waved off the Bushwoollies while shouting back towards the factory doors, “Get these candidates into Stage One processing immediately!”

At his command, a pair of his modified Hollow servants came trundling out of the factory and began hauling the pallets inside, while Grogar looked on with a pleased expression. Suddenly Di Roy could hear what the Espada was saying, and glanced down to notice a small reishi thread hovering near him, and then Roka giving him a nod as she held up her hand with the extended threads, another one of which she’d sent floating down towards the factory grounds.

“Only thirty units produced thus far,” Grogar’s voice, now picked up by Roka’s thread and transferred up to the group, “I suppose I should be pleased, but that damn human girl ruined my main lab. I had twice as many ready Stage Ones finished! All incinerated, along with weeks of research. It’s been a royal pain in the backside trying to recoup the loss.”

There was a pause. Was he having some kind of long distance conversation with someone? Di Roy didn’t see anyone else down there. Given who this was, it wasn’t hard to imagine Grogar probably had devices to talk over a long distance. He paused for a good while before he responded to whatever the other person had just said.

“No, I can’t. Three Stage Twos are all we have to work with. Oh shut it! I’m a genius, not a miracle worker! The destruction of my main lab was a blow I cannot simply undo. Be glad we have what we do. Forty percent of our forces will have the new armaments, but no more than that. ...No, Adagio Dazzle will not be a factor. She had never been a factor. Oh, but you enjoy the idea of her playing her games, don’t you? Sorry to disappoint, but I’m certain she’ll learn her place once the plan is in full swing. That, or destroy herself in pointless struggle. Either way, she’s an experiment that has outlived the usefulness of her data. Now cease bothering me while I am working. Tell Lord Tirek that I will be ready by the deadline. As for the Stage Three... well, no need for him to know about that, is there? Not when we both know you intended it for yourself, yes?”

Grogar’s voice faded, for he’d walked back into the depths of one of the factories, and Roka was not going to risk extending her threads any further, lest they be discovered. For a minute or silence no one in the group said anything, but eventually Gaw said, “Adagio will want to know. But we must first find her male.”

Di Roy let out a puff of a grunt, “Yeah I have no idea what we just heard, but it all sounds bad to me. As for Thorax, I’ll give up human world junk food for a month if that dude isn’t somehow tied up in this crap. Either he’s a part of it, or he found out about it, and got caught by his mommy dearest before he could tell Adagio.”

“Still need to find him,” Gaw pointed out, and her nose wrinkled further, “This place is too smelly to make it easy, but if he was down here, I can pick up his scent.”

“That was the plan for the club,” Di Roy said, “I still say we check there first, then try to work our way around. We don’t find his trail anywhere down here, we go back to Adagio to tell her what we’ve found. This shit is too important to wait, I’m thinking.”

“Then let’s get moving, fast.” said Fenice, scooting away from the edge of the catwalk so she could stand without easily being seen by anyone below. However just as she did so, she was yanked up with sudden force from behind and thrown to the left, hurled like a sack right into the wall alongside the catwalk on the left. The impact left a decent crater, but Fenice had instinctively activated her Fullbring and hardened herself against the impact. She was still partially stunned with the air knocked out of her as she landed on one knee. From her pendant a blaze of molten lava poured forth, forming her claymore, while the others all stood and spun to face their attacker.

“If you’re looking for my brother, he’s under house arrest.”

Pharynx stood in the opening of the tunnel they’d come out of earlier, his towering bulk of dark skinned muscle all but acting as the world’s largest roadblock as his meaty arms crossed in front of him. Di Roy let out a profuse swear, kicking himself for carelessness. The same pervasive spirit energies filling the air from the factories that let him and the group sneak up undetected also worked both ways; letting others more easily sneak up on them. On top of that, the chemical scents from the factories probably masked Pharynx's smell from Gaw's keen nose.

Everyone turned to face him as Pharynx's bored holes at the three Arrancar and one human girl, and he certainly didn’t look intimidated by their numbers as he growled, “And unfortunately for you lot, my mother has given me clear orders to deal with any intruders who don’t belong down here.”

Gaw growled back, already drawing her curved Zanpaktou, while Di Roy put a hand on his own, more hesitant to attack. He was all too aware the second a fight started, there was a whole damn army of Hollows down in the factories who would be on top of them in minutes. The general aura of conflicting spirit energies from the factories may have helped them hide up until now, and it would probably mask the first few moments of a fight, but if Pharynx got serious, Di Roy knew they’d have to get serious too, and there was no way the lackeys down below wouldn’t take notice.

“Hold up a sec,” he said, playing for time and information, “Why’s Thorax under house arrest?”

Pharynx’s insanely square and manly jaw clenched slightly at the question, “He openly defied our mother’s instructions. He ought to have known how that would turn out. He’s lucky she favors him so much that a little... incapacitation is all that happened. That poisonous wench you serve can forget it if she thinks she can use my brother against his own family, that’s for damn sure.”

Di Roy got the distinct feeling that Pharynx was not totally in the loop, himself. It sounded like he was following Chrysalis’ orders without much question, unlike his more independent thinking brother. He also was probably misconstruing the nature of Adagio and Thorax’s relationship. Maybe. Di Roy wasn’t one hundred percent sure if the boss lady and Thorax didn’t have something going on that was beyond professional, but it was rather hard to tell with the way Thorax joked around with and toyed with just about everyone, and Adagio kept her cards so close to the chest that she could probably juggle multiple relationships without anyone noticing. Kind of a moot point at the moment with the towering, muscle bound roadblock that was Pharynx standing in front of him, barring their path out of here.

Pharynx’s reiatsu was heating up, becoming a visible aura of mixed vermillion red and deep lavender purple that steamed off of his body as he reached behind his back. There, he grasped the shaft of his glaive shaped Zanpaktou, leveling the polearm with its long, curved blade head towards them.

“Now, if you surrender quietly, I might be inclined to see if mother wants to keep any of you alive.”

“Are you certain you wish to engage in combat with us?” asked Roka, showing no sign if she was intimidated or not as she kept her hands calmly folded in front of her, “If my sister and I went missing, how do you think our father would respond?”

Pharynx snorted in bleak amusement, “Why should I care? If the Lament wishes to challenge the territory of the Second Espada, he is welcome to make the attempt.”

“Yeah, sounds like we’re done with the talky portion of this,” Di Roy said with a shrug, “Gaw! Violence time! You and me, we make an opening for Roka and Fenice to beat feet out of here!”

“Gladly!” Gaw all but growled with eagerness for action dripping from her voice. She vanished in a Sonido of such force it actually bent and twisted the catwalk underneath her as she flung herself at Pharynx. Her inwardly curved blade spun as she did, turning herself into a vertical saw of slashing motion. Pharynx met the headlong attack with equal speed and ferocity, twisting his glaive and slashing up with strength that ripped through the ground before smashing the polearm’s blade into Gaw’s.

The air shivered with power, and Di Roy couldn’t even tell which was stronger, Gaw’s sawing attack, or Pharynx’s cleaving counterblow, but both attacks sent the combatants reeling back after a booming blossom of sparks. Gaw hit the ground, clawed hands and feet ripping long furrows in the ground until she was flung off the catwalk and had to skid across the air instead.

Pharynx was shoved into the side of the tunnel wall, cracking the stone, but it didn’t even slow him down as he charged out, aiming for Roka.

Di Roy wasn’t having any of that, and got in front of Roka with a quick Sonido while shouting, “Get moving already, you two!”

He raised his sharktooth blade just in time to block a punishing downward cleave from Pharynx’s glaive, and struggled not to get forced down to his knees. He knew he was stronger than he’d been before eating part of the Seed, but it was still utterly ridiculous how physically powerful Pharynx was. Di Roy knew that Chrysalis' special kids weren’t normal Arrancar, but it was still a whole different thing to feel the power behind those corded muscles and sense the surging waves of murderous reiatsu rising inside Pharynx.

This guy could readily be an Espada. Thorax probably could, too. The only reason they weren’t, it seemed, was because it served Chrysalis’ purposes more to keep them closer to hand. Could he and Gaw win? Di Roy couldn’t tell. Neither he or Gaw had really cut loose after the Seed. All he knew was, do or die, they had to buy Roka and Fenice a chance to-

Lava speared forward in a hose-like burst, and with searing heat struck Pharynx in the right side. The bubbling heat caused him to let out a clear grunt of pain, even as his aura of spirit energy protected him from the worst of the scalding lava hosing. Fenice followed her blast of lava with a roaring charge, thrusting her claymore in front of her and trying to pierce Pharynx’s side. He side stepped away from it, but Fenice used her Fullbring to step off the ground at high speed and turned her thrust into a spinning slash that Pharynx had to block. Even as he did so, stopping the claymore dead, a splashing wave of magma shot out of the blade and tried to encase him.

He dodged upwards, flipping and slashing with his glaive. Dark, purple reiatsu formed around the blade and slashed out at Fenice in an arc, but before it could make contact scores of silvery threads of reishi slashed through the air and cut the arc of destructive power apart. This caused a series of smaller detonations, but all were mostly harmless as Roka, still controlling her reishi threads, held her hands up and ready to send them on the attack.

“We’re not going anywhere,” said Fenice to Di Roy, “Right sis?”

“Indeed,” replied Roka, “The four of us will escape together, or not at all. I believe our combined strength is enough to deal with this man.”

“It isn’t him I’m most worried about,” Di Roy said, glancing back to see Gaw was leaping back to the catwalk to join them, but by now there was a stir amid the Hollows working around the factories. Both the Bushwoolies and a number of Grogar’s altered servants were now looking up towards them.

“We stay here too long and we’re gonna get surrounded. Or worse, Grogar will notice the noise and show up.”

“Then we rip this one apart fast,” said Gaw, “And run over his corpse!”

Pharynx, having landing from his flip right in the middle of the exit tunnel, just readied his glaive with a daring smirk and used one hand to make a ‘come on’ gesture at the four of them, “Go ahead and try.”

----------

Despite Celestia’s words, there was a lot that needed to be done before Clover would assume the full duties as the Thirteenth Division’s Captain. The Soul Society was still in an emergency situation, and any official transfers of power would still have to wait until after Scorpan’s funeral. As such Clover had at least a few days to acclimate herself to the idea, and prepare as she wished. The Thirteenth Division had already been informed of the decision, so Clover was forced to deal with the awkward sensation of having many familiar faces suddenly giving her far more deference than she was used to as she left the barracks. Before she left, she did ask the Third Seat, Inkwell, if she could be provided a set of Division regulations and roster, so she could at least start familiarizing herself with it, which had only taken a mere half hour.

Then Clover had all but fled, while trying to at least make her exit with some dignity.

She needed clear air to get her head on straight, and she was worried about her friends back in Canterlot City. Word had already been sent about Scorpan, but Clover was concerned over what the girls’ next move was going to be, especially with Sunset in such a state. While Sunset may have grown well past Clover in terms of power, it didn’t change that in Clover’s mind she was still partly responsible for “training” Sunset as a Substitute Soul Reaper. With Hokori no Hikari damaged, and Sunset likely to want to talk with her Zanpaktou directly, Clover wanted to be there to at least provide moral support.

Besides all that, the atmosphere in Soul Society was far too tense for her to really think properly. It was as if everything was now a reminder of the wretched truth Zero Division had handed down; that the entirety of what the Soul Reapers existed for was built on a foundation of falsehoods. Clover didn’t know how much the other Captains would even allow to get out, about that. Would Celestia, upon assuming the mantle of Captain Commander, share the whole truth of things with all Soul Reapers?

Was that even the correct thing to do? If things felt tense now, then disclosing the full truth might well burn everything down. Mass desertions, or outright rioting might take place. Rebellion on a scale much worse than what happened when Celestia and Luna had been imprisoned. The truth could gut Soul Society and the Gotei 13 far worse than any Arrancar or Quincy invasion could.

Yet somewhere deep in Clover’s gut, she knew the truth should be told.

Just like the truth of Hitsuyo-Aku and Xcution had needed to come out in regards to her friends, and she’d dug to bring that information to them, there had to be some kind of foundation of truth and principles in regards to the Soul Society as well.

If the lie could destroy them, then they had to somehow learn to deal with that lie and in whatever aftermath came after, build a new set of foundations based on truth.

...But was she anywhere near strong enough to help with building such new foundations? In her heart, she still felt utterly out of her depth. Doubt dogged her every thought. So much so she barely felt Meadowbrook’s reiatsu until he was nearly right next to her. She had reached the long walkway up to the Senkaimon Gate tower by the time she turned and gave a brief yelp of surprise at Meadowbrook, who gave off a bemused laugh at her reaction.

“Head in the clouds, soon-to-be Captain?”

“Y-you heard about that already? I assume Captain Starswirl told you?” asked, flushed with that fresh feeling of doubt and the sense of how absurd it seemed that she was being promoted to such a position. She expected some level of teasing from Meadowbrook, but instead there was just an air of satisfaction from his knowing smile.

“Of course he did. I’m going to have to work out who’ll be the new Third Seat after you, you know? It’s going to be a loss, given you’ve got way more skill at managing the research teams, but I’ll just have to adjust.”

“I’m not sure I was ever all that skilled,” she said, but he shook his head with vigor.

“Nonsense. Why do you think you kept getting tapped as a sub at the Academy? Why do you think Starswirl fully backed you being the mentor to the Substitute Soul Reaper when Sunset Shimmer first gained her powers? Honestly I’m shocked you never even thought of transferring to the Thirteenth Division. It was clear even to me your talents were suited there.”

Clover now felt like maybe he was getting to the teasing, and gave him a light, only half hearted glare, “I joined Twelfth Division because I enjoyed helping with research, and the pursuit of knowledge. My Zanpaktou is literally named ‘Knowledge’. As much as this promotion is an honor, I almost feel like you and Captain Starswirl are shuffling me off.”

“Hah, nothing could be further from the truth! Personally I’d like to keep you around, but bottom line is that you’re probably among the only people qualified to even try taking on the Thirteenth Division Captainship,” Meadowbrook replied, and it was then that Clover noticed he’d been carrying something, a rectangular object wrapped in a black cloth and tied with string.

Ignoring it for the moment, she tried to shrug off his praise and began to resume her walk up the long walkway towards the Senkaimon Gate tower. He followed her pace, while she said, “I don’t know about that at all, Lieutenant. Putting questions of my power aside, or even my ability to do the administrative work of the role... I don’t know how I feel about Soul Society right now.”

“I had a feeling. You’ve been avoiding the Division labs, and spending as much time as you can in the human world, then this sudden loss of the Captain Commander. Everyone is wondering about the details and gossip is spreading fast. Most just know it was another Soul Reaper that killed the Old Man, and everyone can guess the only ones capable of that are them. Zero Division.”

Clover frowned deeply, “You know I can’t say anything, right?”

“I’m aware. But you do know more, because you must have been at the summit. I won’t ask, but I can guess a lot from the way you look. Things are bad, really bad. I’ve never seen you look this lost, and I know it isn’t just doubt over becoming a Captain.”

Meadowbrook’s words were gentle, but had a sharp point hidden in them that Clover recognized as his own signal that he had deduced the reasons she was so unsteady and filled with doubts. She remained silent, unable to say anything, or rather not really trusting herself not to blurt out the truth, which she wasn’t authorized to say. And a part of her was angry at herself for still feeling the kind of loyalty to Soul Society that’d keep her silent. Why shouldn’t she just blurt the truth? Go yell it from every tower and street corner? Didn’t everyone deserve to know?

Why did she still have faith in a system that had been built on lies?

But it wasn’t the system she had faith in, was it? It was the people in it, whether good leaders like Celestia, or honest peers like Meadwobrook, it struck Clover that Soul Society was filled with decent people who cared far more for the principles Soul Society was supposedly built on than the deceivers who created the system in the first place.

And, ultimately, Clover believed Sunset Shimmer and her friends would bring all of those lies crashing down, along with Zero Division.

“You’re right, Meadowbrook. It’s bad. Worse than any scenario you could imagine,” she said, but then forced herself to take a calming breath and bring out a smile, however shallow it may be, “But while I can’t tell you the details, I can tell you that I believe we’re going to get through it. And the Substitute Soul Reaper I trained, and the girls from the living world I befriended, will be the ones to set things right, as long as we all do what we can to back them up. That, more than anything else, is why I’ll be trying my best as Thirteenth Division’s new Captain.”

Meadowbrook cracked a satisfied smile and held up the package he’d been carrying, “Then I’ll call my pep talk a rousing success! On top of that, I didn’t just pop up out of nowhere for no good reason. Kido Corps Chief Puddinghead came by the labs looking for you, and then when I told him you were elsewhere he shoved this package at me and commanded I deliver it to you ‘with the speed of terror at the miffed wrath of Puddinghead’. Given I prefer not to have my body fried by storms of lightning or frozen in eternal ice, I decided to track you down.”

Clover felt a cold sweat break out on her forehead as she now knew the origin of the dubious package. Much as she was grateful to the Kido Corps Chief for his intensive training course, she still wondered just how close she came to not surviving it! Just what could that frightful tempest of a Kido master be sending her? With all the air of someone picking up a poisonous spider, she took the package from Meadowbrook and opened it.

As the cloth fell away, it revealed a wooden case with a letter scroll attached to it. Gulping, she opened the letter first, unfurling the scroll and reading the bombastically written kanji within.

“Dear acceptably adequate student,

Rejoice! Kiss the ground in gratitude, for I, the ever magnanimous Puddinghead, have decreed you to be worthy of my further attention! Not personal attention, as I’m very busy and have other things to be doing than looking over your shoulders, girl, but you showed sufficient intelligence and competence for me to believe you’re actually capable of surviving having your soft brain meats stuffed with further knowledge of my epic Kido! Contained within this case, which is carved out of mahogany I might add, are a selection of training scrolls for my rare, limited edition, one of a kind, totally mind blowing Kido spells designed by me, the greatest Kido savant of this or any other age! Beware, small girlish pupil, for to undertake learning these spells is to put your very soul into the pits of Hell! Figurative Hell, because real Hell apparently got trademarked by those unoriginal bastards in Zero Division. Losers. So this is my very own, special deluxe Puddinghead Training Hell, which is better than the normal Hell in every way... in terms of PAIN and TERROR for those too weak to learn these spells. But you’re not weak, are you? No, I hear you’re being promoted to Captain. Very nice for you I’m sure, but we both know learning more of my spells is by far the greater honor. Now then, I can just imagine your uncontainable excitement at the prospect of risking life, limb, and sanity to learn these spells, do don’t let me keep you. Go on then, shoo, get to learning, girl, and don’t let me catch you dead without having learned them!”

To say that Clover was struck dumb, and more than a tad intimidated, was an understatement. She rolled up the scroll and tucked it into her robes, still sweating as she took the case and tucked it under her arm, “Oh my... I’ve really stepped in it with that man.”

“Should I even ask?” inquired Meadowbrook.

Clover just gave him a nervous smile and said, “Well let me put it to you like this, either I’m going to survive what’s in this case, after which I can probably assume I can handle the Captain role as well as anyone else, or I’ll very likely be dead and hence not have to worry about it. Either way, doubts solved.”

----------

Adagio had not sat on her hands in regards to the underground water tunnels that ran beneath Las Noches. With direct access to the new lake that had appeared when she’d evolved into a Vasto Lorde, she’d taken the time to carve out new tunnels and ensure she had a decent sized network that let her get around as she pleased. It also was handy for the development of the whole indoor plumbing situation, or lack thereof, that Las Noches had issues with. More importantly, it meant that when the Coalition embassy had been chosen, she’d already grasped the value of having a tunnel that led directly to it. If she’d known Fluttershy was coming earlier, she could have met her at the embassy, but as it stood it was still useful to transfer their planning session over there in an unseen manner.

Adagio left Dumbell and Usagi with instructions to keep watch for Gaw and Di Roy’s return from their mission to seek out Thorax, then took Fluttershy and Gilda down to a chamber below the foundations of Las Noches’ wall. The chamber was essentially a big underground reservoir that Adagio had created with the aid of her vassals, which fed a public bath house next door, the exterior swimming pond, and several drinking areas for her people to use. The reservoir itself was also what hid several underwater tunnels she used to get into the larger network, and with simple water control it was easy for her to form a bubble to carry herself, Fluttershy, and Gilda along.

No tunnel went had been built into the embassy, given it was only just established, but no time like the present. It wasn’t as if carving through sand and stone with high pressure water jets was hard. For now she didn’t mind of Guto knew Fluttershy and Gilda had met with her, but she wanted to maintain some deniability by at least not strutting right into the embassy in the open, especially if this whole plan was going to involve the Quincy. For all Sunset Shimmer’ ambitions of using her Coalition to forge a newfound peace, Adagio doubted the animosity between Hollows and their adversaries was going away anytime soon. But then again, it didn’t necessarily have to all at once. Gradual changes could be encouraged with the right... pressures applied. Of course she had to survive long enough to get into a position to apply those pressures.

At least getting into the embassy was easy, coming at it from underground.

Adagio admitted to taking some genuine satisfaction at seeing the unnerved incredulity on Gilda’s face as the other Arrancar watched her work. Adagio was using her power to create an air bubble around herself, Gilda, and Fluttershy, while generating a series of extremely pressurized, cutting discs of water around them that dug through the ground as readily as a blow torch through ice.

“Geeze you are such a damn show off,” Gilda groused, watching Adagio work, to which Adagio spread a pleased smirk towards her.

“It’s okay, Gilda,” said Fluttershy, patting Gilda’s arm, “Adagio has her specialties, as do you. You’ll be very important to helping us get to Fleur de Lis.”

“Only because I know the damn interior of Guto’s tower so well,” Gilda said, “I can’t really afford to have it publicly known I’m helping you guys any more than Adagio can. Wish we’d avoided running into those jerks on the way to Adagio’s place.”

While technically true, Adagio was already thinking along parallel lines and making plans, “Don’t concern yourself too much with that. I already have an idea or two on how to handle that. We need to lean into the opportunities Sunset’s embassy presents and take advantage of Las Noches’ obsessive culture of might making right.”

“I don’t get what you mean,” Gilda said, and Adagio tried so very hard not to look like she was condescending to the burlier woman. Gilda was willing to be helpful, and making an effort. Adagio figured she ought to do the same.

“I’ll explain in full once we’ve all the participants in the same room. If all goes well, you and I will come off smelling like roses, while Guto gets to be embarrassed again. Or dead, depending on how things go. I trust that won’t be an issue for you?”

Adagio could readily read the shudder of emotions playing over Gilda, from the clenching hands, the thinned out lips pressed hard enough to go pale, and the quick intake of breath. There was a lot of anger and fear rippling through Gilda in equal measure, but she nodded, face stone. “I’ve cut ties. Mostly. There’s a few who’re with him I don’t... want to see hurt, but I’m not about to crumble under sentimental bullshit either. If Guto’s got to go down, he goes down, along with anyone who’s still standing with him. Just... not really sure how you plan to pull this off without this whole Quincy business screwing us over.”

“Patience,” Adagio said, and felt the solid flooring above her giving way as her cutting sphere of water finally finished tunneling upwards into what she assumed to be one of the rooms of the embassy.

The water burst out of the ground and Adagio let it dissipate and slow into a harmless splash as she hopped up, and almost immediately had to raise an arm to catch a massive, absurdly colorful and pink hammer smashing down at her head. She felt not only a strong impact that her immense might halted, albeit with a numbing sensation, but a burst of odd reiatsu that suddenly turned her left arm into a springy noodle!

Leaping backwards, Adagio landed in the chamber, grunting annoyance as her left arm just sort of flopped about for a moment like rubber before her own reiatsu pushed back against the odd effect on it. Her arm made a loud, ridiculous ‘sproing’ noise as it popped back to normal, and she was left looking at her assailant in vast irritation while Fluttershy and Gilda crawled out of the hole in the ground.

“Seriously, Pinkie Pie? Are your senses such mush you didn’t recognize my reiatsu as I tunneled in?”

Pinkie Pie, holding her hammer over her shoulder, blinked a few times at Adagio, then noticed Fluttershy and Gilda. “Huuuuuh? Oh! Wow, so that’s what your spirit energy feels like, Daggie?”

Adagio’s eyebrow twitched, “Don’t call me that, please.”

“Ahaha! Sorry, I guess that was Sonata’s thing, huh? But nope, didn’t recognize you at all! We’ve like, never hung out since you got all Hollowy and cool. Just felt a whole bunch of weird Hollow energy surging up from below, breaking into the embassy, and I was all like ‘Should I keep playing pinball or go check out that intruder situation?’”

“Wait, what do you mean you don’t know what my energy feels like!? I was at Everfree, you dolt! I fought Luna at full power!” Adagio argued, but Fluttershy was fast to cut in.

“It’s not that odd, really. We were all busy with so many things, I doubt Pinkie Pie was really paying attention to every reiatsu that was around that day. For example, I know that Applejack’s father was there, too, but I’m not sure I could pick his rieatsu out from other Hollows. Not unless I spent a lot more time around him.”

“Ugh, fine, I suppose that’s fair. Still, be more careful with that hammer. I don’t need it doing anything weird to me. I swear your power is the strangest among you.”

“Thanks!”

“I wasn’t compli...you know, never mind. Where is Twilight and her Quincy? I’d like to get down to business, not shoot the breeze.”

The chamber they were in was spacious, and shaped with one wall being semi-circular, curving between two straight walls, like a one-quarter slice of a pie. It was furnished like a college dorm’s break room, with couches arranged around a TV, a foosball table set in one corner, a pinball machine in another, and the walls lined with counters bearing a fridge, microwave, and cabinets no doubt filled with enough junk food to satisfy a small army of teenagers. It was almost painfully mundane for being in the middle of Las Noches, but Adagio certainly felt it vibed with Sunset and her friends.

There were doorways on either wall, one of which opened to reveal Twilight Sparkle, who looked at those gathered with knowing expectation. “Ah, good, that was you I was sensing, Adagio. And...”

Her eyes slid towards Gilda, and Adagio sensed a brief, chilling sensation from Twilight’s reiatsu. It didn’t last long, but for a moment Twilight’s eyes were utterly obscured by the glint of her glasses, her voice gaining a flinty edge. “Gilda. Interesting. Well, please, follow me and I’ll introduce you formally to my team, and we can begin.”

She vanished back into the room she’d opened the door from, and Adagio glanced at Gilda, “You know, I’d nearly forgotten you and her had some history.”

“What of it?” Gilda said, arms firmly crossing over her chest, mouth twisted in defensive ire, “It was war, people get killed. I’m not sorry for doing what’s normal in a fight. If she or her Quincy pals want to give me guff over killing one of them, they can shove it right up their...”

She trailed off at Fluttershy’s look, the other girl not wearing any judgment on her features, merely a serene and soothing gaze that met Gilda’s eyes and didn’t blink. Gilda did, however, blinking and looking away from Fluttershy’s intensity. “Whatever, I won’t make beef over it if they don’t, you know?”

“I understand, Gilda,” Fluttershy said, “Just also try to understand them, too, okay? Just like you didn’t ask to be made into a ruthless warrior by Guto, they didn’t really ask to be born as Quincy and raised in a not-so-dissimilar culture of warfare. You were both raised to see the other as enemies. That has to start changing somewhere, however slowly.”

“Don’t see why it’s got to be me to do it,” Gilda muttered, “I suck at this stuff.”

“It’s easier than you’d think,” said Pinkie Pie, her eyes having shifted briefly to a bright yellow instead of baby blue, “It’s all about learning to go with the flow instead of trying to force things. Pinks and me were at odds forever, until we learned to mesh.”

Her eyes snapped back to blue and Pinkie giggled, scratching her head, “Aw, we weren’t that at odds, Mena, but it does feel great having you back in my head. You’re like my comfort pillow with teeth.”

Gilda looked at Pinkie with a faint sense of confusion mixed with horror, but Adagio passed her, saying, “Don’t think so hard about what the crazy pink one says. I don’t. As for Twilight and her Quincy team, I merely ask that you try not to fight with them for now. Now let’s not keep them waiting.”

Passing through the doorway, they found themselves in another similarly shaped pie-slice chamber, although this one was notable because it had two levels, with a stone stairwell carved into the circular side of the wall that led up to a ledge that overlooked the rest of the room, with multiple small columns helping keep the ledge up. Beneath the ledge was a set of desks with adjoining filing cabinets and computers on them. The rest of the ground floor had sets of waiting chairs like one might find in a doctor’s office, along with customary water cooler and table of magazines. Adagio had to wonder if Discord or someone else was choosing this set up, but it gave off a serious office air. Up on the second story ledge there was a long, sleek black conference table that was curved just like the ledge was, and within the concave portion of the table was a large, high-tech looking projector screen that was essentially one big pane of glass framed in marble that was etched with kanji symbols. A Soul Reaper device, probably, given the kanji, Adagio surmised. The conference table was otherwise surrounded by a set of tall, black office chairs, and there were several laptop computers set on the table itself, one of which was connected to the big screen display via several cables.

Up on the ledge, at the conference table, Twilight was joined by the Quincy girls that Adagio recognized from vague memories of the attack on the cadets that felt as if it had happened so long ago.

There was already a heated atmosphere among these Quincy as Adagio, Gilda, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie all entered the room. A freckles, yellow skinned girl with magenta hair bearing a green streak, tied in a high ponytail, had one hand slammed on the table while waving the other hand at Twilight, not quite shouting, “Are you goddamn kidding me!? Why the hell are we working with her!?”

Seated nearby at one of the comfortable looking high backed office chairs situated around the table, a girl with short cropped purple and pink streaked hair, along with light blue skin, was far less loud than her compatriot but wasn’t hiding her bothered grimace. “Can’t say I’m a fan of this development, either, Twilight.”

“I understand,” said Twilight, eyes shifting around the table where others in Quincy uniforms were seated. Adagio noted that only one of them was an older woman, while the rest were girls Twilight’s age. The woman had a skin tone similar to the girl who last spoke, which briefly made Adagio wonder if there was a family relation, but she decided against it as there was little else the two shared in features. Twilight continued to speak as Adagio and the rest came up the stairs to the ledge, her voice carrying a weight of authority that Adagio was still getting used to hearing from the girl.

“I haven’t forgotten Gilda’s actions, but we have a mission to accomplish that is too important to allow personal feelings to interfere with. Indigo Zap...” Twilight looked at the girl at the furthest part of the conference table from the stairs, who rather than sitting was awkwardly pacing. Adagio noticed that while this girl’s legs were covered by her uniform, there was a faint clacking sound from them with each step she took.

“Yeah...?” Indigo said, eyes shifting uneasily towards Twilight, and notably trying not to look towards Gilda.

“Will you be okay? I can let you sit this one out, if you need to.”

It was hard for Adagio to tell if Twilight was being kind or harsh. There was a simple frankness to Twilight’s words. She wasn’t judging Indigo. Just laying out that if Indigo wasn’t comfortable being on a mission with Gilda, there was an option to opt out.

Indigo Zap paused, the clack of her legs going silent. She closed her eyes and took a very deep, slow breath, before forcing herself to open her eyes and look directly at Gilda.

Gilda stared back, arms crossed, saying nothing, but there was a visible discomfort in her eyes that looked as if they wanted to look away.

Finally Indigo turned and took a seat at the table, “I’m in, Twilight. If she’s got to be here for whatever reason, I can deal. Don’t like it, but I can deal. Let’s just get this done and go home with Fleur.”

“You sure you feelin’ that, Indigo?” asked a girl fidgeting across the table from her, one Adagio felt was on a similar wavelength to Pinkie Pie or Sonata, given the way she kept looking like she wanted to bounce out of her seat, “I mean, your legs...”

“Got cut off. Yeah, Lemon, I freakin’ know. I’m using these, admittedly bitchin’, artificial legs Twi was cool enough to make for me, but not like complaining is going to fix anything. She’s here, we’ve got to live with it.”

“Not to mention what happened to that poor McColt girl,” said Sunny, but Gilda at that point went up to the table and plopped down in one of the seats, her bulk making the chair seem almost comically small by comparison.

“You all finished?” Gilda said, “Need me to recap it all in detail? Yeah, I tried to kill all of you. Beat the shit out of most of you. Took the blue haired chick’s legs, and blew up some other chick whose name I never bothered learning. You want me to apologize? Would that fix anything? Undo it? Don’t answer; we all know it wouldn’t. We were fighting on opposite sides of a war, and you all would’ve killed me if you could’ve, right? Well... things change. Not a lot, but enough that I’m here not as an enemy. You’re planning to bust out one of your own from Guto’s tower, a place I know the ins and outs of. My help might mean the difference between pulling this off without a hitch, or a fight where even more of you scrawny chicks will end up dead. Don’t want that help? Fine, I can leave. I’m only here because Adagio’s proven she’s smarter than me and probably has a decent plan, and Fluttershy... asked for my help. That’s it. Don’t like it? Cool, I don’t care.”

There was silence for a few moments, before Indigo Zap, still glaring, but also showing... well not a smile but rather barred teeth, “Wow, you’re way more long winded than I remember. Did you rehearse that speech or something?”

Gilda flipped her off, “Kiss my ass.”

“Rather kick it, but since you’re here as an ally this time around, I’ll hold off,” Indigo replied, returning the finger, “And if you do know the area we’ve got to infiltrate, I’m not stupid enough to say no to the help.”

“Good...” Gilda said, looking around almost plaintively towards Adagio and Twilight, clearly wanting to move on from this awkward part of the conversation.

Adagio coughed politely and gestured towards the open seats, “Let’s all just sit down and start getting to the meat of this, before anything comes along to derail the situation further.”

“Oh! We’re not arguing anymore?” Pinkie said, eating popcorn that she had acquired form places unknown, and she just as rapidly returned to the ether by tossing it over her shoulder and leaping the table to land on a chair, swiveling around on the chair, “Cool beans, we can start the planning! Do we have figurines and a battle map to work with?”

“I think we’ll probably be using the screen, Pinkie,” said Fluttershy, far more calmly sitting down next to her energetic friend. Twilight nodded to Adagio to take a chair towards the center of the table that she then also took a seat next to.

“First off, let me handle a full round of introductions, just so we’re all familiar with each other,” Twilight said, and one by one introduced Sour Sweet, Lemon Zest, Sunny Flare, Indigo Zap, and Sugarcoat, the last of which had kept very quiet while observing the brief argument that had taken place. Adagio noticed Sugarcoat sat at Twilight’s other side, and was sporting an impressive looking visor that covered her eyes. It struck Adagio that the girl may well be seeing more with that visor than she could have with her natural eyes, and it was almost unnerving to not be entirely sure where Sugarcoat was looking at any given moment. The last person introduced was the older woman, Cinch, and upon her introduction she inclined her head towards Adagio, having been giving her a rather sizing up look up until then.

“Sternritter W, a pleasure,” Cinch said, “I’ll be remaining here in the embassy for the most part, but I’ll be your exit strategy for this operation.”

Adagio kept her face carefully neutral. The last intel she had was that the former Sternritter W, Gladmane, was the ‘Weight’, but she knew from the information she’d garnered from Twilight that Schrifts didn’t stay the same between new wielders.

“And what, pray tell, is your ‘W’ representative of?”

“The ‘Window’,” Cinch said, shrugging, “No real reason to hide it, considering I’ll be using my Schrift to extract the infiltration team. It appears to be the only reason I’m here.”

“As mundane as it may sound, Cinch’s presence is critical,” Twilight said, “As she can not only extract us from Guto’s tower quickly, but also remove our presence from Las Noches itself in such a manner that we shouldn’t leave behind any significant evidence we were even here.”

“I’d like to know precisely how it works, as it might change my own plans to a degree,” Adagio said, “But first let’s establish the basics of this whole affair. I trust this screen set up here isn’t merely for decoration?”

“Of course not,” Twilight replied, and Adagio watched as she opened up the laptop that was hooked up to the giant display screen, and began to work at the keys. The big screen lit up and shared the laptop’s own screen, showing Twilight pulling up several exterior photographs in high definition of Guto’s territory. It showed the tall tower of his horde’s “aerie”, with several key points highlighted in vibrant blue with information text boxes next to them.

“Thanks to Sugarcoat’s X-Ray, we’ve been able to obtain a fair amount of intel on the target location. Called the ‘Aerie’, this is the stronghold of the current Seventh Espada, Guto. However as you can see here, there is an expansive camp of tents surrounding the tower that contains a fair number of Arrancar from an allied Espada, the Eighth, Hydia.”

At a keystroke the photos were replaced by a three dimensional model of the tower and surrounding area, upon which a blue dot appeared about two thirds of the way up the tower where it blinked rapidly. “Because of the tracer that Fluttershy helped place on Fleur, we can track her location. Most of her time is spent on this floor, the eleventh, although from my observations she is often moved to areas beneath the tower.”

“The X-Ray has a limit on how much material I can see through at once,” Sugarcoat admitted, “But being able to transmit myself through solid matter allowed me to get close and see that the tower has several basement floors. Looked like a lot of storage and some kind of arena.”

“That’s where Guto makes new prospective warriors fight it out,” Gilda said, face sour, “Along with other bloodsports when he’s bored. It’s popular, too, so if you guys move at the right time, a lot of warriors might be down in the basement level instead of up in the tower or amid those camps.”

“Uh, that’s great and all,” said Lemon Zest, “But why can’t we just have Sugarcoat ghost her way through this whole mess and snatch away Fleur before any Arrancar know what’s up?”

Sugarcoat shook her head, “It’s not that simple. Using the X-Ray gives off spiritual pressure. At a distance I can mask it, but the tower floors are too small for that to work. I try to slip through the floors and walls, and any Arrancar with halfway decent Pesquisa will sense my Quincy reiatsu. If nothing else, we know Guto keeps Fleur close almost all the time, and i doubt I’d get close without him noticing. I sure as heck don’t count my chances of taking him down alone very high.”

“But you can, like, take people with you, right?” Lemon Zest said, prompting a sigh from Sugarcoat.

“I can only bring one or two people with me when I ‘ghost’ through stuff. Sorry, the X-Ray will be handy in spots here, but it can’t solve all of our problems. Too many Arrancar, too many variables.”

“But as Gilda just pointed out, if there’s some manner of event occurring in that arena, then we can potentially empty out a good portion of the tower,” said Twilight, who then tapped the rim of her glasses in thought, “Hmm, but wouldn’t Guto also attend any such event himself? You did just say he enjoys bloodsport.”

“Yeah,” said Gilda, “If anything big is going on down there, he’d be there too. Probably with his pet Quincy. Also wouldn’t put it past Hydia, if she’s hanging out with her horde.”

“Why are those two chilling with their armies camped out together anyway?” asked Sour Sweet, “It’s damn inconvenient.”

“They’re putting pressure on my territory,” answered Adagio, “And I suspect preparing some manner of nasty surprise for me. Which is partially why I’m so willing to aid you girls in this matter, as I’d like to act first and put Guto and Hydia on the defensive before they can spring whatever they have planned for me.”

“So your conundrum is working out how to separate Fleur de Lis from Guto long enough to even enact an extraction while dealing with an area far more saturated with enemy forces than originally anticipated,” Cinch said, her narrow features showing an unpleasant smile at the description of the scenario, her own eyes gazing past her glasses inquisitive at Twilight, “I do wonder how you plan to solve this particular puzzle?”

“Geh, don’t act like you’re not involved in this,” Sunny Flare said, but Twilight held up a hand to quiet her.

“Cinch is merely pointing out that her role in this is already decided as the extraction method. Ultimately whatever plan we come up with, nothing for her actually changes. The real challenge before us is just as she just described. We need a way to get inside without detection, a way to get Fleur away from Guto’s side, and then a way to secure the time to extract, and all preferably without being discovered and allowing this to turn into a battle.”

“How much of a time limit are you constrained by?” Adagio asked, “If we needed a day?”

Twilight shot a questioning look at Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, the former of which offered a smile, “You have the run of the embassy, so you can stay hidden here as long as you need.”

“Then I’d say we can take at least a few days, if that’s what’s needed,” Twilight said, “But why, Adagio? Do you have something specific in mind?”

“As it happens, Fluttershy and I already came up with an idea, although now that I know more of the pieces I have to work with I can amend the plan somewhat,” Adagio said, “I’d just like to also have a bit of time so the people I’ve sent out can return with information on a fri-”

She caught herself before she used the ‘F’ word and amended it to, “-ally of mine.”

Adagio didn’t think her face was coloring, but she was certainly annoyed by the way Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie both gave her knowing smiles and laughed quietly between themselves. She glared, but without much force. She supposed she was glad that Sunset Shimmer wasn’t here, at least, to hear that slip up. It’d be mortifying to think the bacon head would lord it over her that she might be letting any of this friendship stuff infect her perfectly pragmatic mindset.

“Ahem,” said Twilight, “I don’t think a day’s wait will hurt. Indeed it just gives us time to refine our plan, and if this, er, ‘ally’ of yours is important then I imagine it’d benefit us to wait to hear word about them.”

“Thank you,” Adagio said, also trying to suppress a small icicle of worry inside her. She wanted Thorax to be okay, and it bothered her that the desire for that extended beyond the fact that Thorax was a useful ally who could also potentially help with the present situation. She just didn’t like that he’d been out of contact, and was all too aware of how many things could have gone wrong. Worse, she had a bad feeling that even sending her two strongest vassals out, something may have gone wrong for Di Roy and Gaw as well.

Episode 187: Bloody Prelude

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Episode 187: Bloody Prelude

Amid a stinking ocean of fetid, acidic bile, an endless series of isles of near lifeless stone rose like the spinal chords of fallen giants. Between two lines of jagged stone rocks, a Kushanada traded blows with an immense knight of blood red crystal. This titan of shining ruby dragged a bladed fist across the Kushanada’s chest, then immediately reversed course, transmuting its blade into a widening spear that then pierced the Hell giant’s shoulder in a gout of blood.

The Kushanada’s blazing eye pits flared, and it retaliated, gripping the spear and lashing out with its building sized cleaver with air rending speed. A clarion ring of screaming crystal sounded as the blade dragged a deep gash in the crimson knight’s chest, but even as the damage formed, flickers of red power coursed over the towering construct’s chest. From the chest emerged cylindrical barrels, cannons with bores wider than battleship guns, and as the cylinders rotated a storm of devastation fired out in a relentless hail of exploding reishi shards fired at ludicrous speed. The Kushanada’s chest was ripped through like wet beef, but even as it fell back into the acid ocean, it tried to drag the knight down with it, meaty hands clasped around the construct’s waist.

However the entire titanic knight glowed red, and immediately broke apart into its hundreds of component pieces, now resuming the form of Rarity’s army of knight constructs. The damaged Kushanada fell into the ocean as the knights sent it on its way with a final flurry of explosive arrows and cannon fire, while Rarity herself now rode astride her gleaming construct pegasus, blade in hand as she watched the bloody work be done.

“It won’t stay down long, but damn if that doesn’t take care of things for a few minutes,” Cozy Glow called out, perched on one of the nearby, jagged rock formations.

“We can’t stay still long,” said Sunburst. He was flying through the air, jets of flame rolling from his feet and hands like riding a carpet of fire. “I just spotted about ten more coming up on us from the last Gate. They really seem pissed off this time.”

“Hahaha! And why not!?” laughed Cozy Glow, “They probably haven’t had sport this good in centuries! Hey Rar-Rar, you having fun yet?”

She wasn’t. She was exhausted. While her reiatsu was still going strong, lack of sleep, food, or water was starting to mount its toll on her mood. It didn’t help that this layer of Hell had such an appalling sea of acid that left the air stinking profusely. Licking dry, cracked lips, she said, “I shall refrain from comment. Let us just hurry to Tartarus. It’s on this Layer, is it not?”

“It is. Main landmass isn’t far off. Now where’s that cutie patootie boyfriend of yours?”

Rarity didn’t rise to the bait. It was clear Cozy Glow vastly enjoyed teasing her companions, and Blueblood was not only a prime target himself, but his... admiration for Rarity left plenty of ammunition in the child’s arsenal to fire off. Glancing behind her, Rarity searched for Blueblood’s spiritual pressure. She lost track of him a bit after they breached the Gate and had to fight past the Kushanada guarding it. And she could tell that Sunburst was right, they didn’t have time to wait around. Already she could see the faint form of the Kushanada she had felled stirring under the ocean waves. The acid didn’t seem to bother it, and its damaged body was quickly regenerating.

She picked up Blueblood’s reiatsu just as he appeared nearby from a Flash Step, breathing heavily.

“Apologies. I led one of them on a bit of a merry chase, but I think I lost it.”

His words were punctuated by an explosion of rock as one of the spires of stone were shattered, and an enraged Kushanada’s roar filled the air as another one came barreling through. Blueblood groaned, and Sunburst shouted, “Just move it everyone! We can’t waste time fighting, otherwise we’ll be swarmed.”

He jetted off on tails of intense flame, and Cozy Glow followed by shooting out her chains and using them like high speed grapple lines to swing like a crazed, giggling acrobat. Rarity nodded to Blueblood and without asking, grabbed him by the arm and hauled him onto the back of her pegasus construct. He gave her a surprised look, but she just winked back at him and told him, “Do hold on, please.”

She directed the construct to fly with all speed after her companions, while the remaining knights retreated into her own gateway. This freed up the reiatsu she’d use to maintain the army to pour directly into the construct she was riding, boosting it’s speed even further, and easily catching up to then outpacing Cozy Glow and Sunburst.

The Kushanada chased after them, but the terrain left several narrow crevasse between island mesas and outcroppings, letting the group weave between and slow the giant down until, after about half an hour, they finally left it long behind.

By now Rarity noticed the ocean and uneven islands of stone were giving way to a larger landmass. The ‘sky’ above was an ugly shade of yellow, streaked with unpleasant, brown clouds. The land was a bleak, dark gray, uneven with rising hills and sharp cliffs. There was no majesty in the vast mass of tall, dead rock. It was like a tumor of mountains, no life or greenery to see, no snow caps or wisps of white cloud. Just depressing gray and black in the shape of irregular, sharp angles. Every inch of it offended Rarity’s sense of beauty and esthetic, but then again what did she expect? This was Hell. She understood she’d have to get used to it.

As they traveled, Sunburst flew a little closer. Cozy Glow had taken the lead to show the way to the next Gate, and Rarity did note the little girl did glance back at them as Sunburst got closer, but Cozy made no comment. Sunburst himself was silent for a time as well, but Rarity could see the hesitance on his weathered face. It still left her with a burst of sympathy to see how drained and beaten down the man looked. If she squinted and used her imagination to look past the sunken eyes, hollowed cheeks, and faded, stringy strands of hair, she could see the youth that would have been. She could imagine the rich, fiery hair, and energetic, kind eyes. But what she saw now was like a tattered painting so faded with abuse that whatever colors and clear imagery there had been was a nearly broken and unrecognizable mess.

There were only a few small glints of hope and kindness buried under a lifetime of suffering in Sunburst’s eyes as he spoke.

“Before we get to Tartarus, I should warn you that you’ll be tested.”

“What do you mean by that, sir?” asked Blueblood, suspicious burning in his tone, but Rarity cleared her throat loudly.

“Ahem, I suspect he means the local population will try to see what I am made of?” she suggested, and Sunburst’s expression flinched with a cynical shadow.

“That’s one way to put it. You’ll be seen as fresh meat, even with me and Cozy Glow with you. And we can only do so much to shield you, otherwise it’ll make you seem vulnerable. So... My advice is to make an impression. A violent one. The more harsh, the better.”

“Are you speaking from experience, by chance?” she asked, and he closed his eyes with a pained nod.

“I didn’t meet Cozy right off the bat. My first few weeks here... were pretty horrible.”

“Just how did you and Miss Cozy Glow become acquainted, if I may ask? She's rather, how shall I put this, an unusual match for someone such as yourself. You two have very different dispositions, to put it mildly.”

His response was accompanied by a very odd, twisted smile and a certain fondness in his eyes as he looked at the companion in question, “No kidding. No sugarcoating it; Cozy’s nuts. Unpredictable. Violent. Manipulative. Ruthless.”

“Oh God, just keep complimenting me, why don’t you!?” Cozy shouted back at them, “Don’t mind me, I love it!”

Sunburst sighed, but kept smiling in that odd manner, “As you can see, she’s also got a weird sense of humor and nearly zero sense of shame. When I met her, I was just some gang’s plaything. I hadn’t even manifested my Sinner powers yet. But that gang must have done something to piss Cozy off, because she and her Legion tore through like a blender one day. Thought I’d just be on a different gang’s chopping block when that happened, but Cozy, she just saw me and it was like she saw something in me I didn’t even know was there. ‘Hey, you tired of being the butchered instead of the butcher?’ she asked me, and gave me her hand. I’ve stuck by her side ever since.”

“Awww, you’re gonna make me cry so hard I’ll barf!” Cozy clamored, her swift chain slinging leading her to land upon a humongous ledge of stone that jutted out from the land like a blade tip from the side of a tall mesa cliff. She made a gagging noise as Sunburst landed next to her, “You made me sound like a nice person, when we both know I’m a die hard opportunist! I figured anybody that could get abused as much as you did and still look so damn pissed off had enough pep in his guts to be worth my time. And hey, turns out it was a solid bet! You’re like, one of two or three competent lieutenants I’ve got now, so I’d say my investment was totally worth it.”

“If you say so, Cozy,” Sunburst replied, which only seemed to irritate the girl as she puffed her cheeks at him like an angry bellows, then huffed and turned to Rarity and Blueblood.

“Alright then, you two beautiful, creamy skinned meat slabs, here we are! Our next step on the way to Tartarus!” she swept a hand back at the cliff, which Rarity now noticed had a thin slit on it’s stone, as if a sword had cut into the cliffside and left an opening now more than three meters wide. “Me and Sunburst go first, you two follow behind. Heard the advice Sunburst gave you, and it’s pretty solid. Even being lead by yours truly, some Sinners with mucus for brains won’t be able to ignore the chance to feel out a pair of pretty pieces like you two.”

“For what purpose?” Blueblood said, expression askance, “Surely they cannot be so foolish as to attack a formidable group such as ours.”

“Ugh, c’mon pretty boy, get your two brain cells into gear! Nobody can die down here, so nobody has anything to lose by trying until it’s made crystal fuggin’ clear that screwing with you is bad news. I mean,” Cozy glow gestured up and down at both Blueblood and Rarity, “Do I got to paint a picture for you two!? This is H-E-Double Hockeysticks! Filled with the worst of the worst, most of whom ain’t seen a gal half as fine as Rarity in centuries, or a guy who ain’t far behind her in the looks department. Every gang in sight is going to want to snatch you for all of the reasons you don’t mention in polite society, and guess what, this ain’t nowhere near polite society.”

“I believe we get the picture,” Rarity said, taking a deep breath, “I don’t think we need to go into any unpleasant details. Suffice to say I understand that we represent tempting targets, and it is our first task to make it abundantly clear that neither of us are prey to be so accosted.”

“Got it on the nose. So let’s get on with this, and you can show me just how you handle things,” Cozy Glow said with a bit too much eagerness for Rarity’s liking. Sunburst might have had a bit of a soft spot for the little hellion due to being rescued by her, but Rarity was inclined to believe Cozy Glow’s words about acting purely on opportunistic motives. At least thus far the child hadn’t shown much indication of being trustworthy outside of willing to be helpful as long as she found Rarity interesting. Which was fine as far as Rarity was concerned. This relationship could be mutually beneficial, and Rarity could learn to sleep with one eye open.

The crevasse they entered didn’t stay narrow for long, widening into something more akin to a sheer, mountain ravine as they walked along. Rarity remained wary, knowing that if they were about to approach another Gate, there’d be more Kushanada. She could handle herself against one or two of the big brutes, but only just, and a larger group would be difficult even for her. It was unsettling, as she knew she’d gotten strong enough to readily deal with Captain-level threats at this point, but the Kushanada even in small groups posed a deadly threat. Well... deadly in the sense that if she had to fight more than two, she’d probably be ‘killed’, but apparently that was a very different kind of issue here in Hell. A part of her wondered what the process was actually like, and she felt the chains of Hell weighing upon her as if they were hooked right into her bones.

“Once we’re at the Third Layer, how far is Tartarus?” she asked, and Sunburst whispered back to her.

“Very close, actually. The Gate that’s currently between the Second Layer here, and the third, is nearly on top of the plateau that Tartarus is built under. So once we’re through, it’s practically a hop, skip, and a jump to get into Tartarus.”

“Just gotta deal with the Gate guards, same as we did with the ones back on the First Layer,” Cozy said, “And with us four, or three, since I don’t expect much from pretty boy, we ought to have it wrapped up in... no time...?”

She trailed off, the small form of Cozy Glow stopping dead in her tracks. Up ahead the ravine-like area opened up onto a wide, rocky shelf, which in turn looked out into a truly enormous, volcanic caldera. The air stank with acrid smoke as waterfalls of acid bile poured from the caldera’s inner cliffs and rushed down to fill a gigantic lake within the caldera’s center. If Rarity looked closely enough, she thought she could see the occasional skeletal face peering from the depths of the lake. At the lake of acid bile’s center was a blackened isle of rock, upon which stood the tall, bone-like structures of the Gate between Layers.

However, instead of Kushanada guards, there were instead two Kushanada corpses, ever so slowly regenerating, but so devastatingly damaged and demolished that Rarity estimated it’d probably take them hours to recuperate. But what had done something like that!?

“Oh my,” said Blueblood, “Um, c-could a friend of yours have taken care of the guards?”

At his hopeful question, Cozy Glow gave him a sickened, angered look, like one might give a slow minded child for asking a less than brilliant question, “Are you goddamn kidding me? Ain’t got a single friend who can pull that off, and there’s only a handful of bastards that can.”

Sunburst’s face was even more ashen than usual as he looked around in equal parts fear and intense scrutiny. Rarity sensed both the immense nerves and combat readiness that came over Cozy Glow and Sunburst, like starved wolves sensing the presence of another predator. She took their cue and began scanning around herself, flicking her wrist to summon forth a glittering red rapier to her hand. Sunbrust’s mouth twitched into a grimace as he looked to her and Blueblood.

“The only ones who can do that to Kushanada besides Cozy Glow are... the Lords of the Lowest.”

“Ugh, don’t use that stupid pet name they gave themselves,” Cozy Glow groused, “Bunch of egomaniacs, so freakin’ full of themselves. They’re just a couple of Hollows, former Arrancar that claim the lowest two layers of Hell as theirs.” Her eyes narrowed dangerously, her chains rising around her like angry cobras that gave of metallic hisses. Suddenly she shouted, loud and piercing, “We know you’re out there; Typhon! Cerberus! Whichever one of you it is, or both, I don’t care, but stop trying to act all cool and make an entrance! I’m not in the mood for your crap!”

Rarity found herself blinking in surprise. Typhon and Cerberus!? But weren’t those names... from Glory’s tale of the betrayal of the Soul Queen?

Even as she thought of it, there was a sensation of ancient reiatsu that vibrated across the surface of her spiritual senses. It was no doubt the reiatsu of a Hollow, and an immensely powerful one, but it was more than that. Rarity could feel just how strangely vibrant and primal this reiatsu was compared to the Arrancar she had sensed before. It was akin to Tirek’s, if not in the same overwhelming power, in a very similar vein of something far older and more elemental than the reiatsu of modern Hollows.

He appeared before them in a distinct blur of motion that Rarity recognized as Sonido. She was able to follow the movement just enough to understand that he’d been poised above them on the cliff, watching and suppressing his spiritual pressure until Cozy called out. Now this figure stood before them, not holding his reiatsu back any longer. Rarity looked this strange individual up and down, trying to work out what to make of him.

He was tall and gaunt, yet there was no denying the bare chest of marble white flesh was tight with corded muscles. And scales. Thin, fine scales marked his arms and chest in dull waves, all the way down to his wiry legs and thin, clawed bare feet. The man wore a tattered shroud of cloth around his shoulders, and a blood stained set of snake skin leather tied around his waist. Upon his face was the fragmented remainder of a snake’s skull, covering part of his brows and left cheekbone, but otherwise leaving his intense, ghostly thin and pale face bare. Eyes like gray lakes of ash stared at her, but only for a moment. At the man’s waist, thrust through his snake skin loincloth, were two deadly, jagged knives of bone, bearing fanged protrusions that rose from the back edge as if carved from jawbones. Over his arms and legs was the faint clink of chains, the same chains of Hell that bound Rarity and all others to this plane, but there was something different about them, as if the chains were imprinted on his flesh almost more like tattoos.

The last thing she noticed was that this man’s Hollow hole was absent, or rather transformed, taking the shape of a ring of bone that rose from his shoulders and wrapped up around him, like a mockery of a halo.

“Cozy Glow... you’ve made some unusual friends,” the man said in a voice cold and sinuous, like a greased piece of wire strung over glass.

Cozy smiled thin as a blade and kept her chains at the ready, not stepping back, but rather leaning forward, arms crossed, “Oh yeah, you know me, can’t help but just going around making friends with everybody I meet. That’s me in a nutshell; the Empress Supreme of Friendship Town. Now, as a friend, can you kindly tell me what you’re doing here, Typhon, and if it’s going to involve me having to get violent with you?”

He tilted his head in a way that was far less human and more animalistic in the way it left him almost staring at her sideways, his hands spreading out in smooth, empty motions. “Such words are so meaningless between us, child. How often have we barked at each other? How often have we torn out each other’s throats over... whatever comes to mind, really. No, today I was in no mood for playing your little games. I am here because this day I sensed what I have not in eons. A sensation that boils my blood with... murderous fury...”

Power was now radiating out of him in a palpable, gray wave. Dark, smoky gray reiatsu pulsated around Typhon in a rich, terrifying aura and his eyes bored directly towards... Blueblood. Blueblood saw this, visibly gulped, and reached for his Zanpaktou. Typhon smiled, showing blackened teeth and sharp fangs.

“Oh yes, little Soul Reaper, your fear smells so... intoxicatingly fresh. I know not why one of your kind was sent here, but I have not had the pleasure of destroying one of your ilk in far too long. Cerberus wanted your blood as well, but I am the stronger between us, and the kill is mine by right. Prepare yourself.”

“AHEM, I think not,” Rarity said, moving with the speed of Bringer Light and standing right between Typhon and Blueblood. She raised her crystal red rapier and aimed it’s point at the Arrancar’s chest, meeting his questioning gaze with a steady one of her own. “I do think that what you would rather do, good sir, is get a grip on your bloodlust and explain precisely what our companion has done to warrant your ill intentions.”

Typhon now looked straight at her, as if not quite grasping what she was, like a man studying some strange and new animal that suddenly appeared in front of him. “You are... human, but not entirely. I smell... Hollow in you... and something else. What might you be, so clean and new, but smelling so much of blood?”

Rarity shook her head, “Alright, first of all, can we not be talking so much about what we smell like? It’s... quite rude. Second of all, my name is Rarity. Anything else you wish to know, I am glad to speak of, but only with a civil individual who understands the value of polite conversation and doesn’t threaten my friends and allies. Can you do that, I wonder, or are you a mere animal I will need to soon put down?”

Cozy Glow snickered a bit at this, “Damn, girl, way to just throw the gauntlet at him. What do you say, Typhon? If it were just you, me, and Sunny, we’d be evenly matched, but want to try your luck against us, Rarity, and even the wannabe Soul Reaper Captain here all at once?”

Blueblood shot her a venomous look, hissing, “Wannabe Captain!? I am a full fledged Captain of the Gotei 13, I’ll have you know. Very respected and such... within my own Division. Mostly.”

Rarity cleared her throat loudly, “Blueblood, not now.”

He pouted, but nodded, putting his game face on as he glared at Typhon.

For his part, Typhon did not seem to know quite what to make of the exchange or those in front of him, but there remained a simmering hatred in his burning gray eyes as he looked upon Blueblood. His lips sneered, a forked tongue licking his dry lips.

“I owe his kind an endless debt of torment, Cozy Glow. I fear ‘death’ no more than you, and if you think you can protect this weakling, then by all means, try. That applies to you, too, child known as ‘Rarity’. Hmm, perhaps you are a rarity, but in this place all must be proven by action. Words come and go as swiftly as blood in Hell!”

With that, there was no more negotiation. In a mist-like haze of speed Typhon drew forth his jagged bone knives and moved with singular purpose, rushing forward past Rarity and aiming the deadly points of his weapons right for Blueblood’s throat.

----------

In short order all hell was breaking loose within the confines of the smoke filled, dim space of the Warren’s factory grounds. Pharynx moved like a storm of onyx motion, his chiseled face a confident smirk as his glaive carve a hammering path, first into Di Roy who braced his arms to receive the blow, and then right into Gaw, who’d blurred in behind Pharynx to try to get at his head. However her sword strike crashed right into the backswing of his glaive, rattling the amazonian woman and sending her into the ceiling in a shower or shattered rock.

Di Roy’s arms bled profusely, his Hierro keeping the limbs from being severed, but leaving gashes where Pharynx’s glaive had struck. “Right, note to self; sonuvabitch is tough!”

“Then hit him harder!” Fenice shouted, and wove past him, zipping left and right in flashes of Bringer Light. A trail of lava roiled out of her giant two handed claymore and the girl let out a roar, sweeping an overhand chop at Pharynx’s exposed back, sending a sheet of lava at him.

He looked at her with a gruff snort, “Impressive enough, human.”

He sliced through the wave of lava, but then Fenice grinned, gesturing with her hand, “I haven’t even started trying to impress you.”

The ground beneath Pharynx’s feet grew white hot, and a geyser of magma that Fenice had sent tunneling beneath him then burst upward, engulfing the man in a curtain of scalding, reiatsu enhanced lava. Pharynx actually let out a notable grunt of pain, jumping from the shower of molten liquid with some of his skin actually burning. But his eyes were no less focused and with a sweep of his hands he conjured a series of glittering, dark green orbs of power that then grew sharp protrusions.

“Bala Mandibulas!” (Bala Mandibles)

In a swift storm a series of Bala shot out at Fenice, each bullet of reishi converted into a set of energy mandibles. The girl let out a shout, dodging one, smashing down another with her sword, then got caught by the left arm by another. The Bala, instead of bursting, instead carried her around like a doll and pinned her to the wall, where the remaining Bala also surrounded her, pinning her arms and legs.

“Argh! Jerk! Lemme go!”

“Fenice!” Roka shouted, appearing next to her sister in a flash of Sonido. Her threads flew out around her, Roka raising her arms as the shining strings of reishi moved to her whim, her one exposed eye narrowed in supreme focus. Some of her threads into into the Bala holding Fenice pinned, seeking to burrow in and undo Pharynx’s reishi. The rest of Roka’s threads shot out towards Pharynx, but the man swiftly vanished, moving further back down the tunnel.

“No escape for you, rats,” he said, “If you give up, for my brother’s sake, I’ll ask my mother to keep you alive. Perhaps she’ll even listen, and deliver you to Adagio’s doorstep relatively... unscathed. Relatively.”

“Yeah, pass,” Di Roy replied, “Think we’ll make our own exit. Gaw!”

He pointed up at the ceiling of the vast underground cavern with his sword. Gaw, pealing herself off of the tunnel ceiling, shook herself and jumped back, looking up at the higher cavern ceiling. Understanding dawned in her, and she gave off a deep, throaty laugh.

“Burrowing? Hah, somehow that feels nostalgic.”

Di Roy gave her a look, “Someone’s vocabulary is improving.”

“Shut up, I’ll still bite you! Go for the throat; Cazadora!”

Gaw snarled, releasing her Zanpaktou and coating the whole area in a burst of her violent, wild reiatsu. As red light surged forth and a near liquid, ruby energy surrounded Gaw as she went into her Resurreccion form, it was clear that any semblance of stealth had flown from the situation. Di Roy could see the flurry of activity from the factories, dozens of Bushwoolies giving up a frightful howl as they pointed stubby hands at the action on the cavern shelf above. Some of Grogar’s twisted servants were taking note, but they apparently weren’t under any immediate orders to do anything other than begin to move the bodies of the Adjuchas the Bushwoolies had brought into the factories themselves.

Di Roy was worried how bad things might get once those Arrancar did receive orders to interfere, but at that point it’d also likely be Grogar coming after him. No doubt the Espada had sensed the reiatsu going off, especially with Gaw transforming, but that was why Di Roy had given the order he had. They only had one, potentially fast way out of here!

Gaw emerged from her sanguine bath of energies, so big she couldn’t fit inside the tunnel entrance and shattered stone as she emerged. Her massive, armor-clad saurian body, like some humanoid theropod with spikes and a bad attitude, raised her arms now bearing hooked blades and built up a swirling aura of power around them. Without hesitation, she went flying up at the ceiling, spinning her whole body around in a blurring corkscrew, blade arms outstretched. So fast she spun, she all but became a single blur of crimson motion, and hit the ceiling like a living drill.

The whole chamber shook, rock raining down, and Pharynx looked at the spectacle with a combination of irritation and genuine respect. “Hmph, Adagio’s servants are stronger than I thought. Does she really think she’ll tunnel through all that rock? Pfft, I’ll deal with her after I’ve dealt with all of you.”

“Good luck, asshole,” Di Roy said, baring his blade before him, “Laugh at death; Picar-”

Before he could finish his release phrase, Pharynx came barreling in at him with blinding speed and a powerful left hook that caught Di Roy by the jaw and sent him flying. He managed to right himself in mid-air, wiping blood off his lips, and shouting in annoyance, “H-hey! That’s cheating! You let Gaw do her thing, dammit!”

“That was because I was still evading the young lady’s threads,” Pharynx responded, tilting his head towards Roka, who spun her arms in a dance and as if to confirm what Pharynx said, sent a cat’s-cradle of cutting reishi threads towards him. Pharynx coated his glaive in thick green and red reiatsu and spun it in an arc, cutting her threats while aiming a hand at Di Roy, “Also, there’s no cheating in battle, you fool. Just whoever is standing at the end.”

A Cero blasted from his palm, and Di Roy, growling, aimed his own palm forward, a red sphere of power gathering there, “Geez, I bet you’re a real laugh at parties.”

“Di-Roy, hold up, two Ceros in a confined space-” Fenice started to shout in warning, only halfway free from Pharynx’s Balas, but Di Roy was already firing his own thick scarlet Cero beam to blast right into Pharynx’s. As one might have expected, the colliding beams did little to cancel each other out, and instead resulted in a combined explosion of energies that all but obliterated the tunnel.

Fenice yelped, trying to shield herself with her blade, and blinked as she felt herself get yanked free of the Balas and was wrapped up in threads. Roka had pulled her free at the last moment, and used Sonido to leap to safety with Fenice in tow. The two sisters were left standing in mid-air, looking now at a huge pile of rock dust and a thick cloud of smoke that now poured from where the tunnel entrance had been. The factories were still below, shouts of alarm rising up from the Bushwoolies, and Grogar’s factory workers all now alarmingly absent. Gaw remained above, her spinning form tunneling straight up through stone and leaving a constant waterfall of debris raining down below her.

“Holy crap, is Di Roy insane?” Fenice breathed, gripping her smolder sword of lava tightly, “I don’t have freakin’ Hierro to deal with big explosions like that!”

“W-well, I do believe he accounted for me pulling you out in time,” Roka said, her voice filled with a note of worry as she looked at the fallen pile of rock that was now the tunnel entrance, “But... where is he? Did he... get buried?”

“As if!” Di Roy suddenly said, popping up next to them. He was covered in rock dust, which he was patting off as he chuckled to himself, looking immensely pleased, “Your boy Di Roy is way too smart to get caught in his own trap.”

“Trap?” Fenice said, then her face reddened and she kicked him, “Trap!? Like hell! That was use making up stupid crap on the fly and nearly getting us killed!”

“Whoa, hey now, I might not have planned that in advance, but a trap you think up on the fly is still a trap, ain’t it!?” Di Roy shouted back, ignoring her kicking him, “Besides, it worked out. Dude’s buried under enough rock to keep him busy for at least a few-”

The rubble of rock exploded in a haze of baleful green energies, and Di Roy’s face blanched as he finished lamely, “-...minutes. Ugh... I need to talk to Adagio about some vacation time.”

Pharynx did not simply emerge from the pile of fallen rock, but came catapulting out of it with all of the speed and fury of a supersonic ballistic missile. Di Roy had just enough time to turn and face the oncoming freight train of pain before his face was grabbed by a meaty onyx hand and Pharynx fast balled Di Roy straight into the nearest factory roof. Di Roy felt his body impact with metal and stone, and go careening through several floors, catching only a glimpse of a bizarre, mad scientist interior, before he hit a ground floor that “broke” his fall by having him smash right into some manner of laboratory table that had thankfully been unoccupied.

Groaning, head dizzy, he flopped over and raised his head. The bottom floor of the factory had a faint semblance of the textiles manufacturing center it once was. There were still some industrial sized weaving and wood carving machinery that Smooze would have once used to make the clothing and few amenities seen around Las Noches. But now most of that was gone and was replaced by what could only be described as a mad man’s idea of a testing and construction factory for monstrosities that fused Hollow flesh with Grogar’s cybernetic, crazed designs.

Suddenly the ‘Stage One’ and ‘Stage Two’ crap Di Roy had heard Grogar talking about made more sense, as he saw a number of the Adjuchas-class Hollows strapped along the wall to metal slabs where mechanical arms moved with automatic proficiency to finish sewing and grafting various metallic enhancements and strange bio-organic weaponry onto their bodies. There was a clear delineation between the level of modification between them, with only a handful of the unfortunate Hollow test subjects being so overwhelmingly modified that they looked more like twisted machines of war with a little Hollow left in them, compared to the more half-and-half level the rest were at.

But regardless, most worrying of all, was that each Hollow, no matter how modified, had an artificial siren gem embedded in their Hollow holes.

“Tut, tut, tut,” Di Roy heard from behind him, and he turned to feel his face grow cold as ice upon seeing who stood in the middle of the lab, giving him a narrow eyed glare of irritation, “So it’s my wayward experiment’s little servants causing all that noise outside?”

Grogar looked up through the hole that Di Roy’s passage had made, where Pharynx was seen to be looking down from the top of the roof. Voice raspy with annoyance, Grogar shouted, “Do you lack any form of common sense or subtlety, you meat brained barbarian? If you’re going to toss these interlopers around, don’t throw them into my work space! These makeshift labs are pathetically appointed compared to my previous lab, and I don’t need them made any more cluttered by your incompetent combat tactics!”

Pharynx was heard scoffing, and then he leaped down, landing with the weight of an ox, towering over Grogar. Not that Grogar showed one whit of care for Pharynx’s imposing size.

“You complain entirely too much, old man. You’re lucky my mother still sees any reason to make common cause with you.”

Grogar gave a phlegm filled, darkly amused laugh, “Oh please, don’t even pretend to think I find your barking intimidating. Now deal with this fool and whomever is with him before... before... oh dammit all!”

Grogar growled as he noticed that, while he and Pharynx had been glowering at each other, Di Roy had taken the moment of distraction to make a bee-line out of there. He was already out of the lab, Sonidoing down a few hallways, and after a moment of consideration, blasting his way through the walls via Cero to find himself back out in the main cavern. Knowing he had perhaps at most a few seconds before Pharynx and/or Grogar both would be coming right out after him, Di Roy looked up to see the progress Gaw was making. He was glad to see that the tunnel upwards was now so expansive that he couldn’t even see his giant dinosaur companion's tail, and it sounded like she’d easily burrowed a good distance upward.

“Time to go!” he shouted, spotting Fenice and Roka, who’d been in turn about to rush towards the factory to go help him, but now were left watching as he flew straight up, gesturing wildly at the tunnel Gaw was making.

“Don’t need to tell me twice, but first let’s give these jerks something to think about,” Fenice said, taking Roka’s hand and rushing upwards alongside Di Roy towards the hole Gaw had made. At the same time she swung her claymore down, and Di Roy felt the human’s reiatsu surge upward in a heated, fiery display. He was honestly impressed, sensing that Fenice was yanking out all the stops to pull as much of her spiritual energy up as she could and channel it through her Fullbring.

Rather than a mere simple small wave, a singular torrent of magma blasted out of her sword as she swung it, in much greater volume than anything she’d generated before. It filled the air with blistering heat and the tsunami of roiling lava poured into the factory grounds in a sizzling tide. In moments Bushwoolies were left screaming and shouting, scampering to get to safety before their bodies were engulfed. Fenice directed her lava with precise control, aiming to burn into the factories, rather than consume any of the captured and unconscious Adjuchas-class Hollows. This had the intended effect that, when Grogar emerged, he gave out a furious shout.

“Oh blast it all! Deal with this mess, you fools!”

He was apparently commanding his servants, who came rushing out of the factories at their master’s call. As Grogar’s mutated servant Arrancar started trying to use small, contained Ceros to blast away the lava, Grogar took more direct action and simply raised his hand. His miasma of raw, powerful reiatsu rushed out of him and directly started to suppress the very spirit energy Fenice had infused her lava with, in some areas stopping the lava flow in it’s tracks or causing the magma to lose all heat. It was as if Grogar’s spiritual pressure alone was such that it was forming a counteracting wave, diffusing the power of the lava.

And Di Roy knew he shouldn’t have been able to do that. Sure, Fenice was no Espada, but from Di Roy’s own experience there shouldn’t have been any way the old Grogar, the Grogar who’d been the Eight Espada, could have pulled off fully negating such a potent attack like Fenice’s massive magma wave in one fell swoop like that.

Looking closely, Di Roy saw a pulse of power, of strange ethereal light, coming from Grogar’s chest. Only this wasn’t just a simple artificial siren gem. It seemed... larger, and the glow from it was more of a pale violet color than the red of a siren gem. Di Roy couldn't see it through Grogar's vest, but the sensation of spiritual power stemming from whatever Grogar had grafted to himself was gut churning. Whatever it was, it was magnifying Grogar’s power to a point that Di Roy didn’t think that Grogar’s current position of Ninth Espada even remotely applied anymore.

“We have to get to Adagio,” he whispered, “She has to know about this. All of this.”

“Then we follow Gaw, quickly,” Roka said, and the three of them went up into the hole in the cavern ceiling Gaw had carved. Chunks of rock and dirt were still falling down from Gaw’s tunneling, but the three of them were able to mostly avoid it as they bounced off the walls, leaping upwards.

However before they got far, Di Roy felt a spark of dark energy below them, and looked down to see Pharynx standing at the mouth of the carved tunnel, aiming his glaive upwards and charging up a Cero.

“Just freakin’ great. Didn’t you learn your lesson from last time, dipstick!?” Di Roy shouted, and prepared to fire his own Cero right back. Even if the two beams collided, all it would do is create an explosion that’d collapse the lower half of the tunnel, barring Pharynx more than it did anything to affect Di Roy and the other’s escape.

However, just as he fired his crimson Cero beam, Roka seemed to sense something he hadn’t. He heard her fearful shout, “Di Roy, wait, don’t-!”

But it was too late and his Cero discharged straight down. However Pharynx hadn’t fired his own Cero. It had simply been a bluff. Instead all of that energy Pharynx had summoned up was absorbed into his glaive and he hurled it like a javelin. Encased in a sheath of power meant to penetrate rather than explode, the flying glaive cut through Di Roy’s Cero like so much beard under a hot knife. Di Roy didn’t have time to react, the glaive was thrown at such speed, but he felt himself being knocked aside by somebody. He hit the wall, slightly dazed but unharmed, and looked to see, eyes snapping wide in shock that Roka had body checked him aside and now had Pharynx’s glaive impaled through her stomach.

“R-Roka!”

The half of Roka’s face that wasn’t covered by her skull mask was pale, but there was a glint of utter focus in her eyes, despite the pain Di Roy saw in them. She lowered one hand to the wound itself, while her other hand gripped the glaive itself. Her threads wove out from her sleeve and entered around the bleeding injury, and Di Roy starred as Roka yanked the glaive out of her own body and threw it clattering down the vertical tunnel.

“Oh my God, sis!” Fenice was at Roka’s side, one hand holding Roka’s shoulder while she still kept her claymore in her left hand, “Oh crap! H-how bad is it?”

“Look pretty freakin’ bad to me!” Di Roy said, feeling his mouth going dry at the sight of all the blood that was now coating the front half of Roka’s robes. Roka, however, despite sweat now beading on her brow and her eyes swimming in pain, she shook her head at them. Blood was trickling from her mouth, but she kept her hand focused over her wound, the threads of reishi moving inside the injury.

“D-don’t worry,” she said, “We have to keep moving.”

That much was true, Pharynx had caught his clattering glaive and was coming up after them. Di Roy looked at Fenice, who looked back at him with wild eyes, but the human understood what needed doing. Together, they both supported Roka on either side and together, pushing with their reiatsu on the air, they flew upward through the vertical tunnel Gaw had carved for them. Suddenly there was a break of light above, shining down on the rising trio, and Di Roy saw Gaw now peering down at them from above. Her huge, theropod face, covered in bone armor, couldn’t show that much expression, but it was clear by her widening eyes that she smelled Roka’s blood and knew what had happened. Di Roy heard Gaw’s angry growl, and saw Gaw pull back to give them space to exit the tunnel.

It only took a second, Di Roy and Fenice pouring on the speed as they flew up the full distance of the freshly carved tunnel, leaving behind numerous offshoots of Warren tunnels tha Gaw had heedlessly burrowed through in her bid to reach the surface. Di Roy felt Pharynx’s reiatsu hot on their heels, knowing the man was coming up right behind them!

In an instant, they were free, flying up out of a twenty foot hole Gaw had carved in Las Noche’s sandy surface. Di Roy and Fenice landed a few dozen meters away, still holding Roka, who was doing her best not to make any pained noises at the jarring motion. Gaw remained near the tunnel, her bladed, clawed arms poised to strike the moment Pharynx appeared.

He did a split second later, coming out of the tunnel like a cannonball. He’d sensed Gaw’s presence and already had his glaive swinging just as Gaw herself brought both her bladed arms down on him, her barking roar shaking the air. Transformed into Resurreccion, Gaw was far more formidable now and her double armed blow struck Pharynx’s glaive in a booming clash of power that could be heard like thunder. His muscles bulged and strained against her, and Pharynx actually grinned in a flash of white teeth.

“Hah! So you actually pack a bit of power, once you stop holding back!”

“I never hold back,” Gaw said bluntly, and opened her fang filled dinosaur maw wide and discharged a point blank, thick Cero beam of pure crimson right into Pharynx. The beam destroyed the tunnel exit, along with carving a melting path through hundreds of meters of sand. Pharynx was pushed along the beam, his glaive held in front of him like an oar carving through water, but the skin of his arms were burning from the potent contact of Gaw’s Cero.

By the time the beam petered out, Pharynx was left standing in a smoking line of glassed sand, his body injured, but the man himself just shouldering his glaive like someone was finishing up the warm up to a workout. “It seems Adagio Dazzle picks her servants well. Still...” He began to stride forward, his body emitting a pulsating aura of green reiatsu, “It’s not as if I’ve released my Zanpaktou, yet, is it? I wonder if you can keep up? I’ve heard you’re supposed to be Adagio’s ‘enforcer’, but can you live up to such a title?”

“Okay, while the goon is busy talking himself up, let’s get Roka out of here,” Di Roy told Fenice, then looked to Roka, “Can you hold on? We’ll get you to... to...” His wracked his brain. Roka was their go-to healer, dammit! It was obvious Roka was trying to do something with her threads to keep her wound in check, but Di Roy didn’t think such a deep injury could be so easily handled. That glaive blade had nearly gone fully through her! It was kind of impressive she was staying conscious at all. Di Roy thought, and he suddenly felt like smacking himself.

Fluttershy. Duh! That weirdo kindness obsessed girl was like someone took a white mage and a shaolin monk and smashed them together into a walking font of miracle working! Last Di Roy had heard from Adagio, they were going to some kind of meeting with Fluttershy and other folk at the newly established Coalition embassy. They just had to get Roka there before she bled out.

The problem was that Pharynx wasn’t about to just let them walk away. Facing Gaw, he spun his glaive above his head, and although she blurred towards him with Sonido to try and stop him in time, Pharynx was already speaking the intoning words to release his Zanpaktou.

“Stand unwavering; Hijo Leal!” (Loyal Son)

Gaw’s charge was knocked back by the sudden burst of emerald reiatsu that shot upwards from Pharynx’s body in a solid pillar. Blood-like trails of flickering red spirit energy joined the predominantly green pillar, and Pharynx’s form was silhouetted in darkness amid the torrent of power, rising up as his body morphed and grew.

Gaw suddenly found a huge, bone white pincer even larger than she was fly out of the pillar in a wide swing. It was a huge, curved pincer, like that of a titanic beetle, and Gaw took the blow by crossing both of her arm blades in front of her. Her thirty foot tall, saurian body was sent crashing to the ground, where she landed on her clawed feet and skidded backwards. Meanwhile the rest of Pharynx’s transformed body emerged from the dissipating flare of green spirit energy, the ground shaking with his steps.

“Oh... screw this...” Di Roy said, looking back over his shoulder at what they now faced.

Pharynx had grown humongous, at least by normal standards. His body was now fifty feet tall, but more than that, it had transmuted and changed until it had become something quite different than his normal humanoid form. A long, thick, beetle body of white carapace supported six tremendous, tree trunk insect legs that carried him along. At the front of this, a humanoid torso rose up, bone white, and sporting the stupidly muscular shape Pharynx was known for. However his face was clad entirely in a thick helmet of bone, sporting a long and downward curving horn jutting from the helmet's brow, and only showing a dark slit where his eyes glinted dangerously from. His arms were only half humanoid now, ending in the gigantic pincer blades shaped like that of the horns of a Hercules beetle's.

His voice boomed out alongside an oppressive surge of spiritual pressure, “Go ahead and run, if you like!” Wings opened and buzzed from his back carapace, lifting Pharynx’s massive body into the air. “But you won’t get far!”

----------

Sombra was not an inexperienced warrior, but he knew he was operating with far less magic than he was used to in the past. Fortunately he had one advantage when faced against Firefly and the Reigai of Zecora... he didn’t need to defeat them, just escape them. As long as he could find a way to last long enough to create an opening, he ought to be able to slip away. The biggest hurdle was the weapon Zecora wielded. These Zanpaktou were irritating, given each one had a different kind of power, and Zecora’s was a detection-based ability that largely negated the primary advantage of Sombra’s shadow merging. His shadow magic, even in a weakened state since his rejection of his Umbra nature, still usually made it supremely easy to evade, ambush, or simply hide from a target.

That wasn’t possible as long as this Reigai woman had that blasted blade of mirrors on hand! So he had to find a way to neutralize it, if only for a few moments.

He did have one other thing going in his favor, despite the gap in raw power between him and his opponents. Neither Firefly or Zecora knew in full what his shadow magic could do, what all of its properties were. He wasn’t going to overcome them with strength alone, but perhaps he could outfox them. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t spent a large chunk of his life being a less than noble individual, so he was under no notion of fighting fair, and had plenty of practice being a cunning bastard.

Sombra began by hurling the shadow blades he had conjured in a spiraling pattern around him. Some were aimed at Zecora and Firefly, but only a few. The rest he sent streaking in wavering, smoky lines of darkness towards the Kido lanterns that Zecora had conjured up. In the same instant, he hurled himself towards the nearest canyon wall, gliding along the shadows beneath his hooves to increase his speed as he galloped.

Zecora swung her mirror-blade in smooth arcs, deflecting the shadow swords that flew at her, and she frowned at seeing several of her lanterns were cut in half by the other blades streaking through them. She had conjured more than enough to still keep the canyon floor bathed in light, but it was clear Sombra, if given time, could shroud the area in darkness once more.

She didn’t chase after him, instead raising her Zanpaktou and observing his movements, while preparing to cast another Kido.

Firefly on the other hand had no compunctions about chasing Sombra down! She used her Dragoons to fire several thin beams of purple light that pierced the shadow blades he sent her way, and then with her metallic wings jetting violet energy, she flew after him. It was only a split second for her to catch up, and she aimed her cannon at his legs.

“Sorry about this! I’ll try to be gentle!” she said, visor beeping with a target lock and her hexagonal cannon barrel discharging a beam of crackling purple energy.

Sombra leaped upward, just barely avoiding the beam, and he landed on the canyon wall’s vertical surface. It took a lot of effort due to the lantern light, but he used the shadows his legs and hooves made to keep himself grounded to the canyon wall and he started to run up it like a living spider. At the same time he forced his shadow magic to generate another barrage of shadow blades, which wouldn’t last long in the light, but would do so long enough for him to sent a rushing swarm of them back at Firefly, this time mostly focusing on her as he tried to ascend the canyon wall.

Firefly sent herself into a sharp corkscrew motion, flying away from the canyon wall as Sombra’s shadow blades chased her. As before the flitting forms of her metallic Dragoons came flying around her and started firing thin beams of energy to strike down the blades of darkness, and they scattered in puffs of inky black smoke... or at least that was the impression Sombra wished to give! Having anticipated Firefly using those flying bits of metal to protect herself again, he’d intentionally had his shadow blades shift form, becoming a blanket of thick shadow stuff like a floating cloud of oil. It wouldn’t last more than few seconds under the light of the Kido lamps, but it didn’t have to last long for Sombra to use the nature of his shadow magic to absorb the laser blasts from the Dragoons and transfer them to another shadow, the one’s beneath his body, created by the angle of his position on the canyon wall. The Dragoon beams fired out of the shadow his body was casting downward, and they tore massive chunks out of the rocky surface.

And just as Sombra had hoped, the shower of thick rock chunks not only smashed through several of Zecora’s Kido lamps, the falling rock also generated shadows upon the ground.

He leaped off of the canyon wall, aiming for one of the shadows, hoping to dive right into it.

By now Zecora had finished preparing her next Kido, seeing Sombra’s actions and narrowing her eyes in focus. Her hand moved in a triangular motion, blurring so fast it was nearly invisible as she traced three golden lines into an inverted triangle. At each corner of the triangle bloomed a burst of golden light and formed three beak-like protrusions.

”Bakudo Number Thirty: Shitotsu Sansen!” (Triple Flash Beak Slash)

The three triangular planes of pointed energy fired out like missiles, flying at Sombra. He saw this and grimaced as he poured magic from his horn, the horn shrouded in midnight darkness as a stream of roiling shadow, like a small river of ink, burst from his hooves and he used it to glide to the side, like riding a slide. The Kido spell’s projectiles flew past him, once, twice, but the third caught his tail! Sombra was yanked off of his darkness slide and shoved into the canyon wall, pinned by his tail! Grunting from the impact, Sombra didn’t hesitate to conjure another shadow blade and cut the strands of his tail, freeing himself.

As he dropped once more, the tumbling rocks from earlier had impacted the ground in a crashing cacophony. While the main shadows of the falling rock was gone, the rubble now at least created a few more cracks and pools of shadow for Sombra to work with, having also taken out more than half of Zecora’s Kido lamps. He used this fact to start summoning forth growing strands of shadow from these cracks and pools, forming them into tendrils he sent snaking towards Zecora.

The Reigai evaded with relative ease, flickering out of sight with the speed of a Flash Step, but at least it put her on the defensive for a second. A second Sombra needed, because Firefly was rushing him! Her speed was incredible, and it was easy to believe that this pegasus was the mother of at least a version of Rainbow Dash. He barely had time to react as Firefly stowed her cannon, and from a hatch on her flank, the dark purple hilt of a blade shot out and into her waiting hoof. In a blaze a purple blade of light energy shot of the hilt and Firefly slashed it low, trying to take his legs out from under him!

Sombra, still in free fall, grit his teeth and his eyes grew fierce as shadow magic roared from his horn. A singular shadow blade formed, filled with so much of Sombra’s magic that rather than looking like a mere thing of loose shadow and smoke, it was a blade of solid, glinting onyx metal that pulsated with an aura of void black. Moving it much like he might have a regular sword under telekinesis, he sent his sword of darkness to clash against Firefly’s blazing energy saber! She slashed and slashed again in a blinding rush, carving the air with multiple streaks of light form her energy blade’s path, and as they fell together towards the ground, Sombra continued to parry her blows and send back dark slashes of his own.

He felt the painful burn of a grazing hit on his right leg, and saw Firefly flinch as his solid sword of shadow cut a gash on her cheek. But neither got a telling blow before they reached the ground, Firefly pulling up and away in a flying streak while Sombra used his shadow blade to pierce the canyon wall and slow his fall until he landed neatly on the ground.

There wasn’t even a single moment for him to relax or catch his breath, because his hooves were barely touching stone before Zecora, having Flash Stepped through all of the slashing movements of the shadow tendrils he sent at her, appeared in front of him in a whoosh of air and slammed her mirror blade down at him! While the Zanpaktou did not have a sharp edge, it hardly needed one to be dangerous, and Zecora was attacking with superhuman speed and strength. Sombra drew his sword of darkness from the wall in a flash, bringing it down to try to deflect the blow, and only partially succeeded. Sparks flew as Zecora’s strike was turned just barely an inch’s length, allowing Sombra to roll away, but the blow still struck the canyon wall and floor where he’d been standing and stone was smashed and blasted like a bomb had gone off!

Sombra rolled to his hooves, staring in a little shock at the strength of Reigai’s attack. A bit of blood oozed down his head from where a small chunk of rock had struck him, and he felt a moment of dizziness, but pushed it away and focused. Zecora was turning towards him, and Firefly had already flown around to come at him in another pass.

But despite the desperate situation, he’d succeeded in creating enough natural shadows and extinguishing a sufficient number of Zecora’s Kido lamps that the canyon floor was coated in plenty of gloom once more. In an instant Sombra’s horn darkened to a tar-like pitch, and he pulled in all of those shadows around himself. A dark swirl of bubbling black smoke poured from every shadowed corner of the canyon and wrapped around him in a thick, spherical shroud.

“Dammit, he’s gonna bolt!” he heard Firefly yell and sensed her Dragoons flying around in a swarm to surround his shadows. Beams pierced into the dark sphere, trying to find him within... but Sombra had already sunk down, merging with the shadows completely. Merged now with the shadows, he slipped through the dark cracks of the stone rubble strewn about the canyon floor. In a mere split second he was streaking along the canyon, past the few remaining Kido lamps, now making full use of the dim canyon to rush away from the battle site.

Yet he sensed danger behind him! From the shadows he streaked through he saw the blurring motion of Zecora, the Reigai moving from point to point with Flash Steps that allowed her to keep up with him. Her Zanpaktou as piercing through the shadows to pinpoint the exact location, allowing her to follow him as readily as if she were a bloodhound. Now, high above in the sky, Sombra also saw Firefly soaring along, following Zecora.

As long as Zecora was following him with that Zanpaktou, there was no chance he could escape... but he’d known that from the get go and now it was time to spring his surprise upon the Reigai.

When she had deflected his shadow blades at the start of the battle, he’d made use of his shadow magic to infest the small shadows that existed between her hand and the blade. After all, shadows existed everywhere, in almost every dark little corner one could imagine, including the dark that existed between a person’s hand and any object they might hold. He couldn’t afford to spring his trap until he was already merged with the shadows and making a full run for it, for if he’d done this during the fight Zecora could just recover her blade swiftly... but now?

Now shadows sprung from the hilt of Zecora’s Zanpaktou, sharp nails of hard darkness that pierced her hand in an instant! Zecora cried out, instinctively letting go of her Zanpaktou and clutching her bleeding hand. As the mirror blade clattered to the ground, Zecora had to halt and not only deal with her now badly injured hand, but recover her sword. But that would take a few moments, now with her hand in such bad shape, and with Sombra moving at the speed of darkness, merged with shadow, now was his chance go give both her and Firefly the slip!

He rushed along the canyon floor, and in moments it broke out into the vast Bone Dry Desert as the canyon itself ended and emptied out onto the wide fields of sand dunes beyond. This was... admittedly a problem. It was still daylight out and with the sun beating down on the desert there were few shadows to be had, at least ones connected enough to each other to allow Sombra to glide along them. He paused amid the last vestiges of shadow in the canyon, and adjusted his course to move along the canyon’s outer cliff edge, keeping to the few remaining shadows between the rocks.

His only choice now was to hide, to play cat and mouse with his pursuers. Zecora could still detect him if perhaps let her get too close, but if he was lucky, perhaps he could keep his distance and remain undetected long enough for dusk to settle in and give him all the darkness he’d need to flee the area, then the region itself, and return to Canterlot.

But as he saw Firefly streaking through the sky above, and saw Zecora, her hand freshly healed from the use of Kido as she held her Zanpaktou once more, he knew that it was going to be a long, tense wait for nightfall...

Episode 188: The Phoenix and the Hollow

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Episode 188: The Phoenix and the Hollow

There was a hot mixture of fear, adrenaline, and shame burning inside Fenice as she and Di Roy tried to help her injured sister along the uneven sands of Las Noches’ interior. Roka was trying her best to keep moving her feet, but the pain was written across her face in deep lines, her eyes blurry as Roka tried to keep her threads working inside the terrible wound Pharynx had dealt to her. Whereas moving fast would have been easy for the likes of Fenice or Di Roy, Roka’s injury slowed them to a staggering walk. They couldn’t risk picking her up and using Sonido or Fullbringer movement, for it would likely make Roka’s injury far worse.

Meanwhile Gaw faced Pharynx alone, his Resurreccion form looming over even the tall, thirty foot dinosaur Arrancar. Gaw, undaunted, pulled her jaws back in a rumbling growl, legs tensing. She jumped into the air and then blurred out of view with a high-speed Sonido that sent her zipping around Pharynx, her flickering motions circling him in an attempt to confuse his senses. Pharynx reacted with a deep, booming belly laugh as he thrust out his right pincer arm and stabbed right at Gaw, tracking her movements quite readily. She growled again, having anticipated this, and used her forearm blades to block the blow as best she could, feeling the rough impact on both arms. However she used her proximity to his arm to wrap her tail around the base of his pincer and then used that to keep herself attached as she gripped the pincer with her clawed hands and feet and proceeded to start savaging the limb. Her teeth and claws glowed red with Hollow power as she tried to rip and bite through the hardened carapace, and with her raw savagery managed to rend fissures in the smooth white pincer.

“Hmph, fierce, but foolish!” Pharynx said with a grunt as he proceeded to raise his pincer up and then bring it down with such speed and force it generated multiple sonic booms as he slammed Gaw straight into the ground. This loosened her grip and left her laying, groaning in a crater as Pharynx then used one of his pointed, insectile legs to try and stab her. Gaw just barely managed to get her wits gathered enough to see this coming and scramble aside, but she then fell victim to Pharynx’s other pincer arm, which swung down with air rending force and caught her in the side. Gaw went sprawling, only barely rolling to her feet, still growling despite the cracks now appearing in her own armor and her labored breathing. That said, she was far from out, and let out a roar at Pharynx that shook the air.

Fenice could get a good gauge on both of their respective spiritual pressures, and it hardly took an expert to tell that Pharynx was the stronger of the two. Not to the point that the situation was hopeless. Gaw could still hurt Pharynx, as long as she could get a solid enough shot in. But the advantage was clearly his. Right now Gaw was buying time, more than anything else, for the rest of them to escape. Which only added to Fenice’s sense of helplessness and shame.

The claymore in her hand dripped with magma, heating up in response to her feelings. As far back as her mind allowed her to remember, the medallion she wore had been her beacon of pride. Proof of a mother she barely remembered. The source of a power she had always wanted to use to safeguard the family that she found in this otherwise dead, dismal realm. Her father, her siblings, they were everything to her... a second chance to protect what she couldn’t as a weak, lost child.

Only it felt like nothing was different. Roka was bleeding out. Father had lost most of his power, and might leave them at any time for his real family in the human world. Even Adagio, Di Roy and Gaw, whom Fenice was starting to feel a sense of friendship with, might be killed at any time. And she couldn’t do anything about it.

Pharynx saw them running, and as Gaw fired a Cero at him from her mouth, he used his right hand pincer to cut into the beam, despite it singing his armor. “Nobody gets to just walk away.”

While blocking the Cero, he raised his other pincer and opened the claws wide. Green energy crackled in a growing circle of writhing emerald power that formed around the pincer. He then launched this circle into the air above him, where it hovered about three hundred feet up and pulsated several times before rapidly expanding. In mere seconds this ring of spirit energy formed a cylinder-like cage of power that slammed down upon the area, trapping all within. The interior of the cage was laced with hundreds of sharp, mandible-shaped protrusions that turned the area into a deadly, spiked cage. Di Roy, Fenice, and Roka had to pull up short, the wall of the cage having formed just a few short paces in front of them.

“Crapcrapcrap!” Di Roy growled, “This guy is taking his job way too damn seriously!” He used his free hand that wasn’t supporting Roka to aim at the cage wall. Red energy shuddered around his fist and he fired a Bala at the wall, but the bullet of crimson Hollow power bounced off without leaving so much as a mark.

“I...I can probably... with my threads,” Roka said weakly, and Di Roy looked at her sharply.

“Roka, you’re busy keeping your insides inside at the moment! You try to open this cage up, and you’ll bleed out.”

“If I don’t... we all die anyway...” Roka said with a sad smile, “At least this way... some of you might escape.”

Fenice was breathing heavily, hearing the echoing booms of Gaw's continued fight with Pharynx in the background, dust clouds kicking up as the two traded physical blows at high speed. She heard Di Roy protesting, arguing with Roka’s calm, steadfast voice, but Fenice wasn’t really hearing the words. She was only hearing a ringing in her ears, her heartbeat a distant pounding.

She felt like she was falling... falling backwards to...

----------

Canterlot City, many years ago...

“Mama, why’d you give me and big brother these thingies? They’re weird,” she said to her mother, who was sitting behind the counter of their bookstore, reading like always. She always thought her mom was pretty, with such nice red hair and orange skin, like a living sunset. Maybe that’s why her mom named her that?

Her mom smiled at her around the corners of her book and put a hand on her head, then pointed at the medallion she wore, just like her big brother’s, “I know it might seem weird to you now, honey. One day you’ll understand, when you get big enough.”

“Like Sunburst!? He’s getting really big, and he doesn’t want to play with me as much anymore,” she said, feeling the kind of simple, intense sadness that was natural for young children still trying to understand the world. She was almost four years old. She kept holding her medallion, feeling its weight. She kind of liked it, but didn’t understand why her mom insisted she always wear it.

“Yes, Sunset, your brother is getting older, but that just means he’s meeting a lot of new friends. He still loves you and will play with you, but you’ll need to start making friends of your own as well.”

“I don’t wanna! I like it here. Outside is scary,” she said. She didn’t really like going outside the bookstore or their cozy apartment above it. Too many people, always staring at her.

“I know, honey, but in a couple of years you’ll be old enough to start pre-school. Just remember, as long as you keep your medallion with you, your mamma can always keep an eye on you and make sure you’re safe.”

Her mother smiled in that odd way that little Sunset knew meant she was talking about the ‘secret stuff’ that happened in her mother’s workshop. The stuff with the weird circles drawn on the floor and chanting. Dad did it too, but he was always gone on ‘business trips’ so Sunset didn’t see him much and sometimes couldn’t remember what he looked like.

The bell above the bookshop door rang and she heard her brother’s voice.

“Hey mom, hey Sunset! Guess what? I made a really cool friend today!”

Sunset turned to see her brother entering the bookstore with a girl next to him, a girl his age, and whom Sunset thought looked far too pretty to be hanging out with her brother. The girl smiled, giving them a nervous wave.

“Hi, um, I’m Starlight Glimmer. Sunburst has been telling me all about you guys at school...”

Things blurred, time shifted, the memories continued like chips of glass falling from a broken mirror, one by one.

She was older, dealing with the irritations of school and puberty. And Sunburst was gone. An accident involving a “gas leak” or something. She’d been too young to understand, and even as a teenager, she didn’t quite grasp what had happened to her brother. Or why that girl he’d always been hanging out with, Starlight, had up and vanished at the same time. But she’d grown, and moved past it, and now was just doing her best to deal with life.

She was in the shop now, hearing the sounds of an argument in the apartment above. Dad had come back from one of those mysterious ‘business trips’ and now he and mom were having a fight about something. About what, Sunset didn’t know. Her father was almost never around, always traveling to some far flung part of the world for his work as a photographer. As always the medallion sat around her neck, its weight a comforting presence, but also a reminder of the oddities of her family.

Did her mother really practice magic? Sunset knew about the workshop, but by now just assumed her mom was a weird, old-school wicca sort. There wasn’t any real magic happening, her mom was just eccentric.

...Right?

What were they arguing about, up there? Sunset’s curiosity got the better of her, and she locked the shop up and turned around the “Out to Lunch” sign, then she sneaked upstairs. She crept towards the door to the living room on the apartment's second floor, now hearing her parent’s voices more clearly.

“I know you did what you thought was right, but it’s still dangerous to have brought her here. This is painting a target on our backs not just from Zero Division, but the Beast Realm as well.”

That was her mother’s voice. A second later she heard her father’s responding, a rich baritone she had so rarely heard in her life.

“I am aware of that, Flare. What else could I do? Jormungandr was turning her into some kind of screwed up trigger for his own plans. It was making me sick to watch. I had to bust her out!”

“I know, love, I know. I never should have even considered making common cause with that deranged serpent, but we’re short of any possible allies. The children and I may be all that’s left of the Star Family. Now you bring this child to our home, our secret home. What are we to do with her?”

Sunset had crept closer to the door, and dared to peek inside. She could see a sliver of the living room, and her mother pacing, dark orange red hair frazzled. Stellar Flare was holding her chin in deep thought, eyes darting to a form on the couch wrapped in a blanket. Sunset saw what looked like the head of a young girl, with dark green hair, but it was hard to see any other details. Meanwhile her father came into view, facing Stellar Flare. He was a broad shouldered man of dark red skin and long, wild black hair, muscled like a bodybuilder.

“We look after her is what we do, Flare. She doesn’t even remember who she is, and Jormungandr has screwed with her mind and soul both. You’re the matron of the Star Family, dammit! I’ve seen what you can do with Kido! Those cheap swords your family made are great and all, but this girl needs real help.”

Stellar Flare’s eyes narrowed a little, but only a little before she sighed, “First of all, the Phantom Blades are not ‘cheap’, Ravana. They were meant to be our secret weapon against the Zero Division.”

“Fat lot of good they did,” Ravana said, crossing his arms, “Your rebellion got crushed and all but two of your precious blades lost. Still can’t believe you hid them in those trinkets you gave our kids.”

“They are our children’s inheritance and perhaps the only things that will keep them safe in the future,” Stellar Flare stated plainly, then shook her head and looked at the girl unconscious on the couch, “If we’d been able to make more, before the Zero Division discovered our plans, things would have been different. Now all we can do is hide, and try to prepare alternatives. As for... this one here. If she’s to stay with us, we’ll need a cover story to tell Sunset. Also, are you sure you can control her? The things Jormungandr did to her...”

Sunset’s father nodded his head, eyes fierce, “She trusts me. She let me bust her out of Jormungandr’s realm, after all.”

“Fine, then. Guess I’ll work out a name for her and some kind of cover identity. Some orphan kid you found during your work in a war zone somewhere and felt obligated to adopt or something.”

Ravana smiled, “Thanks, Flare.”

Sunset had no idea what to think about what she was hearing. What in the world were her parents even talking about? It all sounded like some weird, fantasy role-player’s live action script or something. Had her dad kidnapped some child from somewhere? The hell was happening?

And she wasn’t given very long to contemplate the matter. It was less than two weeks after the girl’s mysterious arrival that Sunset’s world crumbled into fire and smoke. In that time ‘Wallflower’ spoke not a word, and seemed to Sunset like little more than an empty doll, despite the way her mother started to spend with her. But then... that night arrived...

The flames were consuming the building. The smoke and heat was unbearable, and Sunset, having woken up in the middle of the night to this horror, found the bottom floor already entirely ablaze. However what was worse was that there were holes in the apartment walls and the living room was completely destroyed, as if a bomb had gone off! There was a terrible roaring sound coming from somewhere outside, and Sunset screamed for her mom or dad, but didn’t know where they were.

She stumbled up the stairs towards the building’s roof, coughing through the smoke as her eyes blurred with tears. Finally breaking out into the cold night air upon the roof, she stumbled a few steps and fell to her knees. What was happening? She could feel the heat rising, the flames crawling up the building. The roof wouldn’t be safe for long!

Suddenly she heard an impact nearby, and felt a strange pressure on her chest, something strong, yet somehow familiar. She looked up and blinked, eyes widening. A man was kneeling on the ground in front of her, one familiar, yet very different. Her father, Ravana, still had his red skin, but it now glowed with an aura of visible red energy and was covered in black tattoos. He had six arms, not two, thick as tree trunks. In two of them he carried a vast, curved blade of dark and jagged iron, while in his other hands he cradled a strange wooden instrument Sunset didn’t recognize. There was a small hole in his chest, but one that didn’t bleed, but just contained a dark void, and upon his jawline was a thick ridge of bone, like the fragments of a skull mask. When he noticed her, he managed a weak smile. He was bleeding from multiple deep gashes on his body, blood dripping to the roof.

“Hah... hey, kiddo. Guess this isn’t a good time to tell you that your old man isn’t a war photographer?”

“What...what the... dad!?”

Before her father could respond, he seemed to move in a blinding motion of speed, and Sunset couldn’t even grasp that something, or someone else had flown down at him from above. There was a clash of sparks and concussive force that left Sunset clutching her medallion and hunkering down. The medallion felt warm in her hand, almost hotter than the rising flames below. It pulsated, almost like a heartbeat.

When she looked up again, her father was standing, sweat soaked and bloody, barring his massive blade at a... woman? She seemed like a fairly normal, unimpressive looking woman with teal skin and mint green hair, holding a katana loosely in one hand. Who the hell...?

The woman glanced at Sunset, and it made Sunset’s heart want to freeze up.

“So this is your other kid, Ravana? Still can’t imagine how you and Stellar Flare pulled that off. You couldn’t have used gigai’s for it.”

Ravana smirked, “Let’s just say don’t underestimate the Star Family’s skills in both Kido and alchemy. She found a way to ensure we could have offspring, although it took some doing. Heh, not that I had any reason to complain about all of the ‘doing’.”

“Shame I can’t let her live through the night,” the woman said with a sly chuckle, “Although I got to wonder who that girl she took with her was? Didn’t recognize her.”

“Just an adopted orphan, Medley, nothing more,” Ravana said, and the other woman took her own turn to smirk at him, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah, sure, an ‘adopted orphan’ so important that even after I mortally wounded her, Stellar still managed to take the girl and run off. Well, whatever, my orders are just to wipe out what’s left of the Star Family. Glory didn’t mention anything about any extras. As for you, my orders don’t specify killing you either, Ravana, but you know how Glory feels about Hollows.”

“L-leave my dad alone!” Sunset found herself shouting, standing up as the pulsating heat in her medallion increased. There was a burst of flame and a rising heat as Sunset felt something inside her chest start burning. In a flash of bright orange light, she found herself suddenly holding a longsword in her hands. Its blade was mostly made of flickering orange flame, but its core was like a rod of solid magma, leading to a hilt and cross guard of similar molten liquid that she was somehow holding without being burned.

Both her father and the woman, Medley, turned to look at her.

“Well... isn’t that interesting?” Medley said, “Just like Discord’s experiments. Human, but with Hollow spiritual energy. I guess an Arrancar hybrid soul would be able to pull off the same thing, even while still living in a human body.”

Sunset had no idea what was going on, or why she suddenly had this magma sword in her hand... but she didn’t really care. She’d protect her family! She began to charge at this woman, Medley, but even as she started to move she felt an immense pressure push down on her and she all but dropped to her knees.

“You know, it’s harder to let my reiatsu out just enough to do that without breaking you completely, kid,” Medley said, then her body seemed to vanish as Ravana catapulted through the spot she was standing in, his giant sword carving the air apart around where Medley had stood. Half of the building started to collapse from the impact, and Ravana leaped back to stand in front of Sunset. She felt one of his powerful arms wrap around her protectively, and felt a new pressure, something from him. It was warm, comforting, and helped her breath as the other pressure from Medley was pushed back.

“Dad...what’s happening... Where's mom?”

Sunset hated that she was crying. She never liked feeling weak and scared, and she clutched the blade of fire and magma in her hand, even if she couldn’t seem to make any real use of it. Her father patted her head as he stood her up.

“She had to go, and take Wallflower away...” he said, and there was a deep sadness etched on his features, “The way she was wounded, I don’t know if...”

There was a roaring sound, a howl from above, and Sunset saw creatures flying around in the sky. Creatures with masks covering bodies of various, horrific forms. What were they? Ravana looked up at them and frowned. “Great. All this reiatsu is attracting the riff raff. Dammit, that means Soul Reapers will be coming soon.”

“Quite right,” said Medley, who was suddenly sitting on top of the edge of the roof, bouncing her katana over her shoulder, “Not good news for you, Ravana. Or your daughter. Tell you what, I’ll make you a little deal, because I’m feeling capricious. Come with me somewhere more private where we can finish our little duel alone. I’ll... refrain from ending your daughter’s life, but on the condition you kick her through a Garganta to Hueco Mundo.”

Hueco Mundo? Sunset had no idea what that was. Ravana growled, holding her protectively. “Are you mad? She’ll die there!”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Medley said with a shrug, then a simple, sharp smile as her eyes stared into Ravana’s with an unreadable, flat look, “She’s part Arrancar, so perhaps she’ll thrive there. Or get eaten. Point is, if you keep her here, you won’t be able to protect her. Either I’ll get her, or she’ll be discovered when one of the local Soul Reapers gets here. What do you think her odds will be, then?”

“Why offer this deal at all?” Ravana said, eyes narrowing, “What are you after, Medley?”

“Like I said, I’m feeling capricious. Glory wants the Star Family gone, but she didn’t specify how I have to go about it. I guess you could say I don’t always appreciate being her personal maid when it comes to these affairs, so this is my way of sticking it to my sister a little bit. So let the last prodigal daughter of the Star Family get exiled to Hueco Mundo by her own father. Maybe she’ll die. Maybe she’ll hate you. Maybe she’ll dedicate herself to revenge. Maybe she’ll just block all this trauma from her memory. Whatever the result, it’ll probably make things less boring, won’t it?”

Medley waggled her fingers, “But I sense some Soul Reapers inbound, so you don’t have a lot of time to decide, Ravana. Tick tock, tick tock. All these small fry Hollows might slow them down a bit, but not for long. Decide fast.”

“Dad...?” Sunset said, as her father turned to her and kneeled down. He pretty much had to, given how much he towered over her in this form. She still couldn’t grasp what was happening or why. It all made her head hurt, like a building pressure behind her skull.

He looked at her with kind, proud eyes, and ruffled her hair. “There’s so much I should have told you, kiddo. Now we’re out of time. You’re going to need to be strong, now, Sunset. I have to send you somewhere far away, and dangerous, but it means this woman won’t hurt you. When you get there, look for the giant fortress. If you can find it, you might survive, if you can show strength to those that dwell there.”

“I don’t understand! Dad, what is this all about!?” Sunset cried, and he just shook his head. Behind Sunset, an opening appeared in the very air. A dark hole of utter void, opening like uneven teeth in some cavernous mouth. Sunset stared at it in shock, and then felt even more surprised as her father lifted her and pushed her towards it.

“Remember, Sunset, the fortress. Find it, and do whatever you must to survive!”

“Dad! Wait!” Sunset shouted, frightened, both for him, and of the utter unknown of the portal she was being pushed through. She saw a hole open in the void on the other side, leading to some kind of pale, nighttime desert. Her father’s strength was able to launch her right towards it, and the last she saw of him was a sad smile as he turned around to face the woman, Medley, as the portal closed behind him.

She remembered the cold impact upon the sands. The shock, the terror, and utter confusion of those first few minutes in Hueco Mundo. She stood there upon a bone white sand dune, under a starless black sky with a single, huge crescent moon, and stared around in disbelief. This couldn’t be happening. It just couldn’t. None of it made any sense. Her father wasn’t human? Her mother was... what? What even was the Star Family? Was her mother dead? Dying? Why did she run away with that Wallflower girl?

Why? Why? Why? Why?

Sunset screamed, clutching the blade of magma to her chest, the only warmth to be had in this place. After a long hour or two of sobbing and trying to get herself under control, she looked up into the distance.

Far away, on the dark horizon, there was the pale image of some vast, strange fortress.

Her father’s words echoed dulling her already traumatized mind, and she started walking towards it. All the while, her mind couldn’t fully accept all that had happened. She hurt, inside and out. She didn’t want to think about any of it. Or remember any of it.

The girl’s first real memories of Hueco Mundo must have been a day or two later, feeling the severe effects of dehydration as she stumbled to the front of Las Noches. All other memories were repressed, save for fragments of a life with a mother, a long dead brother, and a... father? Did she have one? A family and life from another time? No, too painful. She was here now. She had to survive, somehow.

And she did. She found a new family. A new father. A family she’d fight, kill, and die to protect. The name ‘Sunset Shimmer’ had ceased to mean much beyond a half remembered dream of an old life. Now she was...

----------

“Fenice?”

Hearing her sister’s voice, Fenice looked to Roka, and saw the deep echo of worry in Roka’s eyes despite the pain on her face from trying to endure her wound. Fenice realized she must have briefly blacked out as her mind dredged up memories long repressed. Once again, the family she had was under threat, only this time... she hoped she was stronger. She looked at the claymore in her right hand, the completed Fullbring that manifested its first form from the medallion her mother gave her all those years ago.

And my parents from back then said something about a ‘Phantom Blade’, hidden inside the medallion? What was that referring to? What was the Star Family?

She didn’t know, but in that moment she understood that the barrier Pharynx had created needed to be broken, and that the one most likely to be able to do so was Gaw with her burrowing ability. So someone had to go keep Pharynx busy to free Gaw up to do that. Fenice knew what she had to do, and she looked at her sister and Di Roy with a look far more calm and focused than what she was feeling.

“Di Roy, I’m going to tag in with Gaw. Get her to rip open a hole in this cage, then get out of here as fast as you can with my sister.”

“Wait, hold on, you think you can take He-Mad the Destroyer over there!?” Di Roy croaked, waving an arm towards Pharynx, who by now had Gaw fighting on the defensive, slamming her around as she tried her best to block hammering blows from his pincers.

“I’ll manage,” Fenice said, and turned to go, only halting briefly as she felt Roka’s hand weakly grasp the dark robes Fenice worked.

“Please... be careful.”

“...I will.”

She moved, pulling upon the full extent of her Fullbring powers to launch herself across the sands towards where Gaw and Pharynx fought. Gaw was putting up a valiant resistance. It seemed no matter how many times Pharynx slammed her to the ground, blasted her with piercing green Balas from his pincers, or hammered her with relentless blow after blow, Gaw was utterly refusing to fall. She blocked with her claw blades, rolled with each attack, and viscously retaliated with fang and claw alike. She even fired multiple, concentrated projectiles of conical-shaped red Hollow power, her own unique variation on Bala, to try and pierce Pharynx’s armor. However the overall exchange between them was showing the telling difference in power. Pharynx bore several wounds, but by comparison Gaw was battered and bloody, her armored body cracked and seeping blood all over the sands beneath her clawed feet.

“Your endurance is remarkable,” Pharynx said in grudging praise, “Indeed I don’t doubt you could defeat the likes of Gilda and claim a rightful place among the Espada. I don’t relish killing off talented individuals, but this ends here, servant of Adagio.”

He pulled back a pincer in preparation to ram it forward against a weakened Gaw, who was struggling now to stay on her feet after withstanding so much concentrated punishment. It was then, however, that Fenice soared in, making a mighty final leap across the last distance to Gaw’s position. She swung her claymore in a sweeping arc, and boiled the sands beneath her as she created a scything wave of magma to rise up and slash into Pharynx’s side.

He grunted slightly as the molten rock and sand washed over his insectile legs and carapace, and he swung his pincer at the wave instead of Gaw, using air pressure alone to disperse a great chunk of magma in a shower of hot droplets.

Landing in front of Gaw, Fenice looked back at the wounded Arrancar, “Gaw, tag out! I’ll take this guy. You go tear a hole open in the cage for you, Di Roy, and my sis to slip out.”

Gaw looked at her, eyes twitching in dissatisfaction. She growled, eyeing Pharynx, “I’m not done fighting.”

“Don’t be stubborn about this, dammit! You’re the only one who can rip a hole in this stupid energy cage! Now get going! This isn’t up for debate!”

Gaw growled again, a deep rumble in her throat that was a raw combination of frustration, anger, and reluctant acceptance of the situation. Her tail lashed and slammed the ground as she snorted at Fenice, “If you die, I will be so mad at you, dumb human girl!”

Without waiting for Fenice to respond, Gaw launched herself out of there with Sonido, blurring out of view as she rushed to go to Di Roy and Roka’s side. This left Fenice to stand in Phayrnx’s looming shadow as he brushed off the last of her magma and glared down at her, a massive giant facing one lone human that was now daring to challenge him.

“One sacrifice was traded for another. It doesn’t make a difference to me. I can kill you even faster than Gaw. At least she is sturdy enough to withstand some pain. You’re just a fragile human, with a toy lava sword that might do for weaker Hollows, but lacks real power.”

“Maybe...” Fenice said, holding her claymore up in front of her, feeling the pulsation of its heat, matching her anger, her fear, her long buried anguish, but most of all a resolute desire to never lose another family. Somewhere deep inside her, the core of Hollow power that had given shape to her Fullbring began to pulse a well, rising as if Hueco Mundo itself was calling to it. “Or maybe I’ll surprise you.”

“Hmph, doubtful, but one can hope, I suppose,” Pharynx said, then struck like a bolt of thunder, his left pincer slashing down with hurricane force.

She rocketed above it, shooting out jets of highly pressurized magma from her claymore to send her flying above the blow. Then in mid-air she turned and spun herself into a flying chop, still ejecting magma from her blade to increase her speed and force while heating up her sword’s edge to a bright, melting orange. She felt her blow impact Pharynx’s shoulder, burning and scraping along the insanely tough exterior of his Heirro as she dragged her blade down his body.

He grunted and laughed at the same time, now coming at her from the left with his other pincer, even faster than before. She braced herself on her sword, its width akin to a shield as she felt the pincer impact. It jarred her and sent her flying, but she somersaulted in the air and reoriented herself, thrusting the tip of her blade towards the ground. A powerful jet of lava shot out and hit the sands, and Fenice melted that sand and pulled the molten glass into her lava stream, adding to its size and intensity as she then slashed upwards and sent the whole focused jet of spiritually enhanced magma flying towards Pharynx.

In response he raised a pincer and opened the claws, forming a ring of green energy akin to the one he used to make the giant cage entrapping everyone. Only this time he used it to create a smaller cage, like a floating tube of green light that caught her beam of magma and redirected it! Fenice blinked, a tad taken off guard he could do something so fine tuned with his power. Pharynx had struck her as a pure muscle head, but that was clearly a mistake.

Seeing her look, he smirked and opened his other pincer, forming another ring of green spiritual power. This one he launched at her, and Fenice had only a split second to decide how to defend herself. Knowing now that he could create cages of varying shapes and sizes, she knew better than to just dodge, because he might easily entrap her if she wasn’t fast enough. So instead she sliced her blade in front of her and generated a wide sheet of magma, like a brief waterfall that obscured her from sight. Only then did she launch herself upward, stepping off of the air with Fullbring to get height above Pharynx. She saw a burst of green light as a cylindrical cage shot through her magma screen right where she’d been, almost catching her despite her obscuring herself.

She threw herself across the air above Pharynx, moving as fast as her Fullbring could make her as she flew down behind him and reversed course. She now charged at the back of his chest with her claymore almost held like a lance in front of her as she blasted magma out of the hilt to increase her speed and force like a rocket, while simultaneously heating the blade to a blinding white hotness.

Once more Pharynx demonstrated that his immense bulk did nothing to slow his movements, careening his right arm around with shocking speed and force so the closed pincers got right in the path of Fenice’s charge. The white hot blade scraped along the hardened white carapace of the pincer, the extreme heat and spiritual energy coating the blade managing to score a darkened mark that actually drew a bit of blood and made Pharynx flinch as Fenice rode her attack across the top of the pincer and launched herself up his arm. She ran along his bulging muscles, extending a river of lava behind her as she leaped towards his head and slashed out, flinging the stream of molten liquid at the part of his visor that still left his eyes exposed.

Grunting in annoyance, Pharynx raised his arm to shield his vulnerable eyes, and Fenice used this opening to then launch herself downward, landing on the ground between his six insectile legs. Jamming her claymore into the sandy ground beneath her, she poured her power into it, and soon a wide, pool shaped area around her and Pharynx became a field of bubbling magma as sand melted and Fenice poured out her own lava to add to the sinking caldera.

The magma sizzled around his legs, but Pharynx just scoffed and jumped upwards out of the pit, “You’re trying, I’ll give you that much.”

He landed sideways on the wall of his own energy cage, like some giant spider upon a glowing web of green. Fenice remained in her magma pool, not burned by it, and instead doing her best to create more as she melted more sand to add to her arsenal of burning hot liquid. She took a glance to see how the others were doing. Gaw had reached Di Roy and Roka, and was now using her bladed claw arms to rip and tear at the cage wall, surrounding her blade tips with that conical red energy that was so good at piercing through things.

Good, at least she was buying them time.

She’d kept one eye on Pharynx, and hence saw as much felt him make his move as he skittered along the wall of his energy cage. The spiky protrusion that faced inward from the cage wall didn’t harm him, but as he passed over them Fenice saw that they glowed brightly, and she gulped as she realized these things weren’t just nasty decorations... They were weapons! Like missiles of energy, these spikes started shooting out at her! In defense, she spun her claymore above her head and in response the magma pool around her rose and spun like a whirlpool. The green bolts of energy impacted with the magma whirlpool, blasting chunks of it apart, and some penetrating through, but Fenice was already flying up by the time the spikes of energy reached where she was.

Pharynx had anticipated this, however, and spat out a vicious laugh as he propelled himself off the cage wall and came right at her with both pincer arms crossed in front of him. Fenice did her best to block with her sword, and felt the twin, X-shaped chop of his pincers on both the blade and her body, the impact cracking the sound barrier as she was thrown right towards the opposite cage wall!

She saw herself flying right towards the energy spikes still on the wall, and it took all of her concentration to create a softening wall of magma to erupt from her claymore and splatter upon the cage, forming enough of a cushion for her that when she impacted, she wasn’t impaled. Instead she stood unsteadily on a bubbling pool of magma on the cage wall, and tried not to cough up blood. The impact of Pharynx’s attack had done a number on her human body, and she was pretty sure she’d just broken a rib or two. She pushed back the pain and jumped back into the fray, swinging her sword to control and direct her magma and add more to it as she flung the pool at Pharynx.

“Tch, I’ve already demonstrated how ineffective your lava is, little girl, so I don’t see-”

Suddenly Fenice condensed the pool into one large sphere of magma, and then pulled all of the heat out of it all at once. The ball cooled instantly into a giant sphere of stone that smashed into Pharynx’s head in a shower of cooled molten rock. She knew this wouldn’t inflict much damage, but it would ring his bell and possibly daze him for a second. Enough for her to close the gap once more! Zipping across the air as swiftly as her Fullbring could launch her, she took all the heat she’d sucked out of the magma and focused it into her claymore, turning it white hot once more. She then jetted highly pressurized streams of lava from her blade to add momentum to a spinning, overhanded slash that she aimed right for Pharynx’s head!

Indeed dazed, he was a tad slow in pulling himself back. Fenice didn’t quite land a solid blow right on his dome, but her blade did dig through the edge of his visor and sliced in a sizzling heat across his left eye.

“ARRGH! You bitch!” Pharynx roared as his left eye burst and he shook his head in pain. Fenice’s sense of triumph was a tad short lived as she’d used up so much spirit energy empowering her blade with so much heat that she was slow herself in dodging his retaliatory strike, a pincer blow that ended up smashing her bodily to the ground with enough force to make her bounce and cough up a spray of blood.

Staggered, and struggling to try and stand, Fenice saw Pharynx back up a few skittering steps and shake his head as if trying to clear the pain itself from his burnt out eye. His remaining good eye glared at her, and his reiatsu shot up to a dangerously potent level as the ground began to shake beneath them. “That hurt. Congratulations on actually being one of the few to strike such a blow on me. Now, enjoy your reward.”

He opened both pincers and aimed his arms at her like cannons, which was an apt comparison considering the build up of swirling green energy forming between both pincers as he prepared to unleash what looked to be a double Cero at her using his full power. Even Fenice wasn’t so cocky as to think there was going to be much left of her if she took this attack head on, but she was hurt enough that moving fast to dodge was nearly out of the question.

And yet despite that a part of her very soul felt... excited! More and more there was a pulsation of resonating heat inside her chest, something she could feel being echoed in the very air and sands around her. She had spent much of her life since being adopted by Lament and joining her found family being isolated from conflict. It was only after spending time with Adagio alongside her sister Roka that Fenice started partaking in any real fights or dangerous situations. This particular moment was her first time really going all out against a Hollow as powerful as Pharynx, and it was as if something in her soul was responding to the conflict itself. On top of that, she could feel her frustration at her lack of strength, especially after witnessing Sunset Shimmer fight Tirek, only adding fuel to this feeling of need inside her to fight.

It almost felt like she was born for it, and was just now waking up to the fact.

So even if it seemed impossible to survive what was coming, Fenice stood, and smiled even as blood trickled from her mouth. She raised her sword, and in her mind she could see two father’s looking over her shoulder. Lament, who had taken her in and given her a new family. And the one whom she’d suppressed her memory of but now understood had also helped give her a second chance at life; Ravana, an Arrancar.

The blood and will of an Arrancar warrior ran through her soul as much as her body, and Fenice let that surging heat guide her as she stepped towards Pharynx and his oncoming attack, rather than seek to flee from it.

He saw her do this, and chuckled, “Brave, if nothing else. I can respect that.”

With thunderous bursts of sound and lime green light the dual Ceros fired from his open pincers, the twin beams cascading together in a flood of power that rushed straight towards Fenice. She didn’t flinch away from the onrush of lethal energy, and instead let out a deep, defiant shout from her gut as she gathered up all of her remaining spiritual strength and shunted it into her claymore. Magma swirled forth from the blade and coalesced around it until she’d effectively formed a pulsating, bubbling sword of lava four times the size of the original claymore. As the dual Ceros reached her, she swung that sword down as hard as she could against the emerald tide of destruction.

She felt the impact down to the marrow of her bones, her giant lava sword barely halting the oncoming torrent of power, which pushed against her like she was trying to hold back the weight of a mountain. Her feet scraped along the sands, her body straining and bleeding as for a few seconds she stood against the tide of the dual Ceros like a lone plank of wood being blasted by a firehose. Soon enough, she could feel her reiatsu being overcome, the giant magma sword starting to crack as Pharynx’s incredible dual Ceros ate away at it.

Yet Fenice refused to give in to despair or accept giving up a single inch. She planted her feet and growled like a feral beast, ripping and digging into her own soul for power... any power she could dredge up from the depths. From that place inside her that kept pulsating in tune with the very air of Hueco Mundo.

And not just one, but two things responded to the desperate cry of her soul for power. Power like she’d seen Sunset Shimmer wield. Power to safeguard those dear to her, and face the strange and painful truths of her past.

First was a dark surge of strength that welled up from the core of her spirit. It was the same place the power of her Fullbring stemmed from, something fundamentally Hollow, but this was a far more pure expression of it than the Fullbring. This was primal and thick with the inherent negatively charged power of Hollow-kind, and it burned through Fenice’s body like the very magma she controlled as her power. Like some long hidden reservoir, a dam was breaking inside her and flooding her body with Hollow spirit energy. It was a rush of both pain and exhilarating adrenaline, as if her body was trying to accommodate something not really meant to be contained in a human’s flesh.

Her skin darkened, growing a darker reddish orange. Her hair, identical to Sunset Shimmer’s, now gained streaks of dark red and grew in length down her back. And speaking of her back, there was a painful, wet tearing sensation that Fenice barely noticed as a single wing of skeletal bone spread from her right shoulder blade, and began to drip and pulsate with streams of magma. The veins on her hands and arms throbbed with power, glowing orange. Then, on her face, white particles of reishi began to coalesce into a thick swirl of flame shaped bone around her left eye, like the fragment of a Hollow mask.

Suddenly her blade of lava, still cracking under the pressure from Pharynx’s Ceros, glowed bright red as this Hollow spirit energy rushed from Fenice’s body and into the Fullbring, making it vibrate with power as a beam of red and orange energy blasted out of it. This briefly pushed back Pharynx’s Ceros before they detonated alongside Fenice’s beam, creating a massive pillar-like explosion that shook the ground throughout Las Noches.

There likely wasn’t a person in the fortress that hadn’t felt it, or the clashing reiatsu of two Espada-level combatants duking it out.

In particular, Tirek, overseeing a very specific map of a certain land of ponies in his personal war chambers, looked up at the sensation of reiatsu. Reiatsu that was familiar to him from a time long, long ago. “Ravana?”

On the battlefield Pharynx was blinking with confusion. Fortunately his cage was still intact, but he could sense that Gaw woman was nearly done ripping open a hole in it. However that seemed a secondary concern to what had just happened. He’d sensed a massive spike in Hollow reiatsu from that girl, Fenice, just now, and he could have sworn that what she’d fired out of her sword had been... “Was that a damn Cero?”

While the dust of the explosion was clearing, he didn’t need to see through the veil of smoke to know Fenice still lived, for he could sense her spiritual pressure. It was different than before, thick with Hollow power. But there was something else, now, too. A strange resonance of spirit energy he didn’t recognize at all.

Fenice was breathing hard. Not so much from her injuries, although those still hurt quite a lot. Instead she was just trying to adjust to and contain the wild surge of Hollow power inside her, which was running a little wild. Also, she noticed her claymore of magma had all but shattered in the explosion. She was still holding the hilt and a shard of broken blade attached to it, but that was it. She could probably reform it easily enough, but that thought was barely in her mind because she was too busy looking at a very strange sight.

From the fragments of her broken sword, another sword had emerged. It floated in the air amid a halo of bright white light. It looked a bit like an old viking broadsword, but with a longer handle and a wider blade that bore a hollow core, like the middle length of the blade was emptied out.

And from this floating blade she heard a voice, male and kind, speaking with a friendly baritone.

“Well, I’ve certainly been asleep long enough. Child of the Star Family, I have heard your plea for power, and shall fulfill my covenant. Take my blade, and accept the phantom of Tyr as your ally and comrade in arms against all your foes.”

“Say what?” Fenice blurted, somewhat dumbfounded. There was a brief pause as the floating, glowing viking sword coughed politely.

“Um, perhaps I should rephrase? Grab hilt. Kick ass. Simple enough, child?”

Fenice’s face cracked a gloriously bright smile and she nodded, “Now that makes sense!”

She grabbed the floating blade, and the moment her hands closed around the hilt she felt a warm and tingling rush of power seep into her from it, adding onto the wild surge of Hollow energies still flowing out of her soul. It left her all feeling a little light headed. Holding the hollow-cored viking blade in her left hand, she glanced at her broken claymore, and with a moment of focused will she generated a fresh flow of magma from it. Lava poured forth and rapidly cooled, reforming the claymore’s blade in her right hand.

She held both swords up, examining them, “Huh, never saw myself as a dual wielder, but I’ll get used to it.”

The voice from the viking blade spoke again, chuckling heartily, “I always preferred a blade and a stout shield myself, but I’ve seen many warriors make two blades work! Hah, I take it this giant bug man is our enemy?”

Pharynx was still staring at her, a bit taken aback by the turn of events, but he was quickly recovering his wits and his surprise was turning back into a fierce glare. “Just what is that sword, human? And why are you exuding so much Hollow power? That isn’t how a Fullbringer’s reiatsu feels.”

Fenice laughed, not even sure of any of the answers herself. The ‘Phantom Blades’ her mother had spoken of the Star Family making, and her Arrancar biological father, Ravana. She didn’t fully understand it all herself, and at the moment she didn’t care.

“Don’t ask me! I just know that right now... I feel like I’ve got a good shot at kicking your teeth in! So you ready for round two or what!?” Fenice shouted, flourishing both blades in her hands. The voice from her new sword laughed heartily.

“Yes, explanations can wait. Just know that you now hold a fragment of the power of Tyr in your hands, child. I shall serve you well.”

I didn’t seem like Pharynx could hear the blade talking, because he showed no reaction to it and instead answered Fenice’s previous words, grinding his pincers together in a shower of sparks, “Don’t get too full of yourself because you had a little extra power hidden inside you. You’re still far more injured than I am, and my own power has hardly waned! Yes, come on for round two! I’m actually starting to enjoy myself”

Fenice snorted, eyes growing cold, “Let’s see how long that lasts.”

Not knowing for certain what abilities this ‘Phantom Blade’ might have, she decided to keep it simple at first. Testing out the speed of her new level of reiatsu, she intended to just use Fullbring to spring off the ground at Pharynx... but her Hollow power boiled inside her and instincts from the core of her soul rose up. So she flickered out of view with the distinct buzzing noise that was no use of Fullbring, but instead a Sonido. Or rather, a Sonido that was further enhanced by Fullbring, catapulting her faster than even she expected straight towards Pharynx’s chest!

It happened so fast she barely had time to swing her claymore, wrapping it in a sheath of bubbling magma that was in turn wreathed in an aura of red Hollow spirit energy. The lava itself seemed to gleam red as her blade scraped along Pharynx’s chest, cutting through his hardened Hierro and drawing a spurt of thick blood.

Shocked by her attack actually penetrating his Hierro, Pharynx growled and skittered back, slamming his pincer arms in rapid succession, generating a storm of wind force as he tried to overwhelm her instantly with high speed strikes powerful enough to shatter the ground beneath them. Yet Fenice found she could block these, working both her swords in tandem to absorb the impact of consecutive, blinding strikes that previously would have pummeled her into a bloody mess!

The viking swords voice spoke to her as she worked to parry Pharynx’s assault, “You wield Gleipnir, my old sword. It’s golden bindings can restrain any foe, even the mighty Fenrir!”

“Yeah, great! I have no idea how to do that!” Fenice said, leaping over one of Pharynx’s pincers and spinning herself into a corkscrew motion as she flew at his head, generating a whipping wave of red and orange magma that she flung like a liquid boomerang. Pharynx shielded himself with his thick arms, but while this protected his head, the magma started to sizzle and burn into the armoring of his limb.

Grunting in pain, he opened his pincers and generated a pair of green energy circles, and started to quickly fire spinning cages at Fenice. She flung herself into a series of swift evasions, getting used to the way her body now moved with Sonido. However Pharynx wasn’t just flinging these cages randomly, and in a second or two, Fenice saw he’d surrounded her with over a score of crackling energy circles that then started to join together to form a larger spherical cage around her!

She threw herself towards the narrow opening that was left, trying to get through before it closed. Even as the cage closed around her, she didn’t slow down, crossing both swords in front of her and giving out a guttural roar. Magma shot from her bone wing, adding thrust to her motion, and a corona of heat aura billowed around her as she slammed, blades first, into the cage wall.

Pharynx gave a grim smile as he closed his pincers around the cage sphere and started compressing it with Fenice inside. “This should end it... huh?”

He blinked as a bright orange crack appeared in the spherical cage held in his pincers, which rapidly grew until it shattered like egg shell, and a blazing rocket of magma led by a still roaring Fenice came flying out and erupted in an uppercut slash right to Pharynx’s chin. His helmet held, but cracked, and his entire fifty foot body was lifted off the ground and sent tumbling upwards. He then suddenly halted, air whooshing from his lungs as something wrapped around his chest and instantly stopped all his upward momentum.

Looking, he saw a band of golden energy around him, and glanced down to see that from Fenice’s new sword, from the hollow core of the viking blade, a bright band of gold light had shot out and wrapped around him so tightly that it was squeezing the air out of his lungs!

“Oh, so that’s what you meant!” Fenice said, “Neat.”

She then yanked down as hard as she could with the viking blade, which in turn yanked down on Pharynx with incredible force as he was pulled down by this seemingly unbreakable band of energy. Like an out of control yo-yo he was smashed straight into the ground with a sizable impact. Before he could shake off the daze from that, he felt himself getting yanked once more, this time finding his body getting spun around as Fenice waved her blade around in a circle, spinning him faster and faster as the gold band of energy stayed tight around his body.

Pharynx tried to scrape at it and snap the binding with his pincers, but even his immense strength seemed unable to cut through the binding, and in a few seconds of getting spun around he felt himself getting flung headlong at the very wall of his cage like a fifty foot tall ballistic missile! He impacted with it hard, grunting from several of his own energy spikes poking into his back. Before he could fully recover, he felt a wave of heat and looked up in time to see Fenice flying right at him. He managed to cross his pincers in defense, but she still rammed her blazing, magma-covered claymore straight into his arms, penetrating deep into one of the pincers, while still drilling forward with immense speed and power... enough to break both of them through the energy cage entirely!

Distantly, Gaw finished opening a hole in the cage as she’d been trying to do this entire time, and gave a shout of, “I did it!” Only a moment before the entire cage collapsed into shards of fading green energy as Fenice battered Pharynx through the entire thing. Gaw grunted and did as close as a dinosaur’s face could to a pout, “I still did it...”

Di Roy, caught between amazement and sympathy, patted Gaw’s leg while still holding Roka with a supporting arm, “Roka, the hell’s going on with your sister? Why does she totally feel more like an Arrancar, now?”

Roka’s eyes were wide and showed nothing but surprise, “I... don’t know. I knew she had an unusual past, but nothing that would explain this.”

“Well it looks like I missed a lot!”

Gaw, Di Roy, and Roka all turned to see that Ember had appeared nearby, and she wasn’t alone. Next to the blue haired tomboy Arrancar was a small host of Torch’s warriors, followed by the tall, lumbering Fifth Espada himself, landing on the sands next to his danger with his axe already brandished.

“Felt a brawl goin’ on on our turf, and figured you lot must have run into some fun!” Torch bellowed, grinning, while also giving the fight nearby an appraising look. Fenice and Pharynx were now both flickering in and out of Sonido, exchanging blows at an accelerating pace. Each time Pharynx's pincers clashed with one of Fenice's blades, it created a peal of thunder and shook the air. Even as the onlookers watched, the pair broke apart from their fierce exchange of blows and Pharynx swept one pincer in a wide arc, generating a barrage of small green, pincer-shaped Bala bullets that swarmed at Fenice. In response she matched his maneuver, lava shooting out in multiple streams from her singular bone wing that then compacted into small bullets of magma hat were charged with Hollow power, effectively creating magma Bala that fired out and crashed into Pharynx's barrage in a series of multiple rapid explosions that filled the air between the two combatants.

Torch raised an eyebrow, “That looks like one of Chrysalis’ brats and Lament’s human kid.”

Ember frowned, “Yeah, but both of them are putting out way too much reiatsu! This feels like I’m watching two Espada fight, not a Fraccion and some human chick.”

Di Roy made an annoyed sound deep in his throat, “Yeah it’s super freakin’ neat and all, but Roka is kinda bleeding out over here! I have to get her to that embassy, asap!”

Ember glanced at him and nodded, “I’ll help carry her. Dad?”

Torch nodded, bouncing his axe on his prodigious shoulders, “Go ahead, honey. I’ll keep an eye on things here.”

“You’ll... make sure Fenice... doesn’t get hurt?” Roka asked him, and Torch let out a deep belly laugh, nodding at the fight.

“Take a proper gander at that brawl! Your sister doesn't need looking after, I’m thinking. In fact, I think it’s not gonna last too much longer.”

All now watched as the battle between Fenice and Pharynx reached its feverish pitch of fury. The two had gone airborne, Pharynx becoming a massive streak of motion as he tried to overwhelm Fenice with one mountainous physical blow after another. In turn she matched him motion for motion, blazing a burning trail through the air to meet his attacks with her own clashing blades. And it was gradually becoming clear that every impact of Pharynx's pincers on her bright, burning magma sword was charring more of his chitin, cracking his pincers even further.

With a feral growl, Pharynx's insect wings revved up to high speed and he flew up even higher into the air to get above Fenice. He then started firing multiple Ceros from his pincers down at Fenice. However between each Cero he also fired one of his cage rings, flinging them about the field of sand or hanging them in the air. The reason for this became swiftly evident as some of his Ceros he aimed for the rings, which then formed cylindrical cages of various curvatures which then spun and moved to redirect the Cero beams. In mere seconds Fenice was being surrounded by a veritable storm of explosive beams that were now coming at her from countless directions.

She leaped and wove through them as best she could, her wing of bone jetting magma like a sheet of bright light that boosted her speed to curve and dance through the Cero beams. Even so explosions were detonating all over, filling the air with smoke and debris, and some detonations were so close they were singing Fenice’s body. Yet amid it all she was not idle, firing streams of magma from her claymore up at Pharynx. He dodged these streams with seeming ease, blinking in and out of view with Sonido and hardly slowing his Cero blasts.

“Hmph, your power has increased, but your aim has not improved,” he taunted, and smiled as he saw one of his Ceros, which had curved through several of his cage rings, catch Fenice from behind and exploded upon her. She tumbled to the ground, smoking, and he converged more beams towards her, although he had to dodge once more as this time Fenice flung up that gold band of light from her new sword. “Hah, even your new weapon will fail you if you can’t hit me with it!”

As his Cero beams converged on her location, he saw Fenice make a final, desperate dodge with her enhanced Sonido, barely escaping the catastrophic combined explosion of multiple Cero beams. Still, he could tell she was badly injured now, all of her previous injuries having accumulated enough to slow her down as she stumbled to her feet. Oddly, she hadn’t retracted her band of gold light, despite having missed him with it.

“I don’t remember missing yet...” Pharynx heard her mumble, and then yank down hard with the viking sword.

Now Pharynx felt heat on his back and turned to look up above him. All of those dozens of magma streams Fenice had fired at him that he’d dodged had not simply petered out. They’d accumulated together into one big ball of magma. More than that, this ball pulsated with veins of red energy, a vast amount of Hollow power concentrated like some kind of huge Cero bomb. And now Fenice’s band of gold light had wrapped around it and yanked the whole thing straight down, and consequently right on top of Pharynx!

“Oh hell...” Pharynx muttered, and took the entire ball of supercharged magma that was twice his size straight on. It and he went flying straight down to the ground not more than twenty meters from Fenice’s position, where upon impact the entire sphere exploded in a gloriously intense and hot pillar of flame, heat, magma, and raw Cero energy that rocked all of Las Noches for a few seconds and sent a blast wave of air rushing across the sands.

From her sword, that same voice spoke, “Not bad at all, for a first time out. You wield Gleipnir well.”

Fenice sighed and plopped to the ground on her rear, utterly exhausted, “Yeah... you’re gonna have a lot of explaining to do about what the blazes you are... but not right now. Too tired to think.”

She fell backwards, drained and breathing heavily while trying to just ignore how hurt she felt all over. The impact zone where Pharynx had fallen was smoking, but gradually clearing, revealing him battered and charred, and largely unmoving save for a few twitches and groans. He didn’t look like he was going to get up anytime soon.

Fenice felt like she might be able to relax for a second. But then she felt spiritual pressure press down on her in a manner so oppressive it nearly crushed the air from her lungs. Looking up, she saw a familiar chiseled face of red attached to a body of immaculate muscle staring down at her.

“Well,” Tirek said, “It seems Lament has been hiding something from me.”

Author's Notes:

You know, back during the Everfree Arc, I had considered doing something along these lines. It probably would've happened during the final confrontation between Sweet Cider, Applejack, and Lament, where I considered having Fenice's actual Hollow heritage come out and have her participate more in that fight. I didn't go for it ultimately because not all the pieces were in place. I'd only hinted at Wallflower's existence, so her presence in Fenice's memories wouldn't have had as much intrigue attached to it. I hadn't even introduced Ravana or any of Tirek's other old warlords yet. Even hints at the Star Family's rebellion hadn't really come up much. On top of that the fight with Lament was a very Apple family centric affair and I didn't want to take away from Applejack's actions or her Fullbring being completed. So I held off with Fenice until now, but I'm happy to finally give her this.

At any rate, I do hope you folks enjoyed the chapter, and as always I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 189: Dancing in Hell

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Episode 189: Dancing in Hell

Typhon’s daggers got to within mere centimeters of Blueblood’s throat. The Soul Reaper Captain had barely seen the Arrancar move and was only partially in the process of trying to leap back, and never would have made it in time if not for a streak of crystal red that slashed across his vision. A clash of noise accompanied the sight of a pair of thin, crimson spikes of crystal that shot out of Rarity’s whirlpool of blood, impacting with Typhon’s daggers just enough to redirect them and buy Blueblood the millisecond extra he needed to Flash Step away.

Typhon’s eyes, burning hot with hate, never left Blueblood, but from his back a bubbling pulsation beneath his flesh was followed by an eruption of organic matter that flew out of him. This fleshy growth twisted and hissed into the form of a tangled mess of dozens of snake heads attached to long, ropey bodies. Some were black, others white, a few more ashen gray, but all hissed and flew with incredible speed to whip at Rarity, Cozy Glow, and Sunburst. All three had to leap in different directions while the snakes impacted with ridiculous strength, shattering large chunks of the stone cliff outcropping they stood on.

Rarity saw Typhon streak towards Blueblood, and quickly noticed that the mass of snakes growing from his back was multiplying, splitting like the heads of a hydra. She didn’t know how many he could produce, but felt confident in assuming it would be a lot. She immediately summoned the towering red gates for her army of knights, but knew she had to act faster than they could deploy. She rushed after Typhon, while generating a circular storm of crystal blades from her whirlpool. Snake heads came at her like a living forest of flesh and fang, and she used her flying wheels of crystalline swords to slice through the mass.

She heard Cozy Glow cackling madly as the girl spread her chains around her, tearing into snake heads recklessly while Sunburst flew above on jets of flame. He raised his palms towards Typhon and started emitting twin, narrow streams of fire that cut through mountain rock like hot knives. Typhon readily swayed like a dancer through the flames, even as one of the beams cut through the mass of snakes still stemming from the Arrancar’s back. Shockingly, rather than this killing the snakes, the severed mass started to pulsate and froth with ichor, growing a bulbous body and twisted limbs, as it rose on its own as a hydra-like thing that thrashed it’s heads about. Multiple snake maws opened and sickly yellow Cero beams started firing out, forcing Sunburst to fly upward to evade. Cozy Glow had to cross multiple chains in front of her, splitting Ceros apart as they exploded around her.

Meanwhile Typhon caught up with Blueblood on one of the narrower parts of the mountain cliffside. Blueblood had raised his Zanpaktou by now and spoken the release for his Shikai, “Look upon the world’s treasures; Uncommon Vision!”

Bright light shone forth as the swarm of invisible glass daggers rushed forward and cut at Typhon. The Arrancar’s body jerked about in a spastic motion almost like a video image that was corrupted, but this was Typhon’s combat style, his arms working in flickering motions like a mad spider’s limbs. Blueblood’s daggers, despite being nearly invisible to the naked eye, were being plucked out of the air like butterflies. His eyes widened, “What the-!?”

“Fall, Soul Reaper,” Typhon said with the deathly tone of a cobra eyeing it’s prey. His back burst with a fresh wave of flesh, and this growth sculpted itself into the horrifying visage of a twisted worm with a face that was nothing but spinning circles of serrated teeth. This slammed forward faster than lightning, scattering Blueblood’s Zanpaktou daggers. From above, Rarity came down like a crimson bolt of light, slamming her crystal rapier down through the worm’s body. She then extended a swift and merciless string of crystal spikes from the rapier and into the worm, generating a cascade of blood red crystals sprouting all over it’s mutated length. She sent this towards Typhon as well, hoping to penetrate his main body with her invasive crystals, but he was wise enough to rip the worm from his back before the crystals reached him.

His eyes narrowed at her, and he came at her, more pulsating motion under his skin now not just appearing on his back, but his arms and legs as well. She sensed a growing, potent and unwavering reiatsu from him, but by now her army of knights had deployed in the sky above and she grabbed Blueblood and with all due speed yanked him away from the mountain cliff as she sent the mental command for her knights to rain down destruction.

Rows and rows of knightly crystal constructs opened fire with bows or cannons, all potently charged with Rarity’s spiritual energy. The mountainside was engulfed in a firestorm of ruby explosions, engulfing Typhon in a haze of destruction.

Now mounted on her pegasus construct, Blueblood seated behind her, Rarity flew in a slow arch to survey the bombardment. Cozy Glow and Sunburst were still engaged with the terrible growth of hydra snakes that Typhon had spawned earlier, although she noted it looked like Cozy Glow was have more fun just plucking heads off with her chains than seriously trying to fight, while Sunburst was trying to systematically immolate the whole thing.

Either way, they were still busy, while she could sense Typhon’s power increasing, even as his body was obscured by her army’s relentless barrage.

“Interesting,” she heard Typhon’s voice ring out, “You, too, spawn your power in the form of an army...”

There was a distinct rumble of noise, and then from the mass of smoke, dust, and residual energy from her army’s attack, Rarity heard the sound of a thousand howls, hisses, and roars. She felt her mouth go dry as she saw rising up a grotesque sight. Typhon raised himself up, his upper torso and head still very much the same, with his halo behind his back emitting an aura of wafting black ash. His arms had grown long and the chain-like tattoos on his body wrapped around them, dripping blood as they emerged like barbed tendrils of flesh. His legs extended into twin masses that merged together to form a long, segmented snake’s body that was easily several dozen meters long. Along the length of this body flesh pulsated, and then spawned forth monstrous creatures of many heads, limbs, and fangs. Each bore a resemblance to something reptilian or worm-like, although they were countless in variation from slim, whip shaped bodies to hulking brutes as thick as brick houses. In mere seconds Typhon had spawned an army of nightmare creatures akin to the snake hydra or worse, some of them sprouting wings to take to the skies.

“I have hardened my minions’ flesh in the fires of Hell, girl. Can your toy soldiers compete?”

Blueblood, being very polite even under dire circumstances by not holding Rarity in any ungentlemanly manner as he sat behind her, whispered, “My lady, did you see or hear him release his Zanpaktou?”

It was a pointed question, and Rarity found herself frowning deeply. She hadn’t heard Typhon speak any command phrase to invoke his Zanpaktou. Did that mean this was not his Resurreccion form? Was this just something he was capable of doing at a base level?

Typhon saw her expression and while he did not smile, there was a hint of satisfaction in his rasping tone. “I see you are confused. Your little friend, Cozy Glow, has not told you we Arrancar who survive in Hell’s depths are not like our brethren who are still free. Cerberus and I have spent millennia carving out Hell’s secrets in the bowels of this wretched place. We are not like the Sinners who only fight and struggle pointlessly among themselves. Hell has a voice, for those with the will to listen.”

“Absolutely fascinating, darling, but as much as I’d love to converse with you on that topic, there’s still the little issue of you trying to kill my good friend here,” Rarity replied, patting Blueblood’s hand, which caused the Soul Reaper noble to make a rather boyishly adorable choking noise. “Now, I presume you have no intention of quitting the field?”

Typhon's response was a deadly smirk, and with a gesture, his massed army of horrific monster spawn rushed into the sky to charge straight at Rarity’s own massed force of constructs. Blueblood gulped, and said, “Rarity, the Gate remains nearby. If we can but keep him distracted, we might make a retreat of this.”

Tactically that was a sound plan. Rarity was not awash with any particular pride or hubris-filled need to prove anything to Typhon. She just wanted to keep Blueblood safe and get to Tartarus intact. She doubted it would be that simple, however. Thus far Typhon’s spawn had proven to be just as swift as their creator, and it took all of her skill and speed to keep up with them. She didn’t doubt her knights could hold their own, but in terms of numbers it looked like Typhon could spawn more volume than she could summon. She could keep replacing fallen knights, but she’d already seen Typhon could replace his minions almost instantly.

In terms of a battle of attrition, she might be at a disadvantage. If they were to make a retreat through the Gate to the Third Layer, it’d require a hefty risk.

She shouted to Cozy Glow and Sunburst, “Make for the Gate! Now!”

“Huuuuuh!?” Cozy Glow made a face as she wrapped both her chains and hands around the throats of several snake heads from the hydra creature, seeming to very much enjoy tearing one head off after another as blood spattered her face, “But we’re having so much fun!”

Flames flew down around her, intense jets that incinerated the rest of the hydra as Sunburst flew by and grabbed Cozy Glow up, throwing her over his shoulder, “Playtime later, run time now!”

“Gah! Put me down you nerd! I wanna rip and tear!”

Despite her half hearted struggles, Sunburst jetted more hellfire from his feet and flew along like a living missile towards the gate, dragging Cozy Glow along. That just left Rarity and Blueblood to deal with Typhon and his wave of minions rushing right towards them.

There was no outrunning the speed of the oncoming horde, so Rarity instead swept her blade in front of her and with a single mental command, ordered her army of knights to form a spherical formation around her, summoning her pegasus knights to get as close to her and Blueblood as possible. In a mere blink of an eye the constructs moved in streaks of red, each knight slamming shields and weapons together as they formed a tight phalanx formation in the shape of a flying sphere that covered her from all angles. Cannons poked between shields, archers and cannoneers alike forming a second layer to the sphere as the front line knights ready blades and spears.

Typhon and his forces slammed into the formation like a singular tidal wave of howling flesh, and there was a wet and terrible cacophony of tearing flesh as crystal construct met with flesh born nightmare. Claws and teeth of immense power slammed into crystal shields, some cracking, others shattering, but each time the knights struck back hard with crimson blades and spears of glittering crystal. Blood and ichor began to rain from the sky as flesh was cleaved, and joining the rain were shards of crystal as knights were pulled from formation and ripped to broken pieces by the swirling mass of howling monsters.

Rarity had kept her own Fullbring’s gate at the center of the formation, so as knights were destroyed, she could send forth replacements. The cannons and archers waited for her commands, firing only when she saw openings that would allow her to briefly open the shield wall to send out powerful blasts and barrages of explosive shells and arrows. As she suspected, Typhon could replace his losses just as fast if not faster than she could, for she saw him slithering around the battle, more and more monstrosities spawning from his long snake body. She for a moment thought he intended to just try to wear her forces down, but Typhon soon demonstrated that he’d merely been testing her.

With swift gestures he barred his daggers at the top of her sphere formation, and ran their edges along his tongue. Power filled the blades as his blood crackled with bright pulsations of yellow energy that started to warp space around him as he flung the dagger’s forward, and Rarity felt a massive spike of spiritual power.

“Oh bugger all,” she muttered, realizing she’d grown a tad complacent by the fact that Typhon had been raining so much on spawning creations like she did. Fortunately she’d kept her pegasus knights close for just such an emergency, and sent them flying upward as she focused her power. Crystal energy blossomed among the mounted knights that flew up, forming a giant circular shield of thick crystal that they all bore together as Rarity formed it just in time.

“Gran Rey Cero Con Colmillos!” (Fanged Royal Hollow Flash)

Typhon’s words accompanied his daggers turning into beacons of raw yellow energy that then fired double Gran Rey Ceros in the shape of gigantic carving blades of power. This technique decimated the front line of Rarity’s knights, demolishing the top of the sphere, and would have continued inside to the center of the sphere and ripped the formation apart from within. Fortunately Rarity’s quick thinking had sent her pegasus knights up with that massive, thick shield of crystal that met the spinning energy blades and slammed into them before they could fly down further.

Even so, Typhon had unleashed a specialized version of two Gran Rey Ceros, containing so much power that had they impacted with a city, there’d be no more city. Rarity’s crystal shield was powerful, infused with a fair portion of her spirit energy, but even it started to crack after a few seconds of contact with the spinning energy blades. She strained, face pinched and sweating as she shot up a score of crystal spikes to slam into the shield and reinforce it alongside her knights, pouring power into it. Even so, she felt the crystal cracking further.

She was exhausted by the journey through Hell thus far. Her mouth was a sand trap of thirst. Her belly rumbled with hunger she couldn’t satiate. And she was bitterly angry, despite how hard she was trying to keep her composure. Things had seemed to be going so well, just the other day. She and her friends had been building something new with the Coalition. Hope had seemed on the horizon, with the summit talks.

Then Zero Division had ruined everything. They’d created this terrible place, and consigned her to it, and Rarity was... tired of trying to be gracious about it all. Right now, she kind of wanted to do as Cozy Glow said, and get a little more violent.

Power seeped into her from somewhere she couldn’t define, and she heard a clink of chains, and almost something akin to a whisper of smoke and flame somewhere in the dark corners of her mind. She’d been generous her whole life. Perhaps now it was time to take what she deserved.

Something changed in her crystal shield, and the pegasus knights bearing it up under the brunt of Typhon’s tightly focused Gran Rey Ceros. Hellish violet light filled them, turning her constructs from noble red to a menacing dark purple that flickered with embers of hellfire. Suddenly the energy blades broke apart and Typhon had to catch his daggers as they flew back at him. At the same time, a number of other knights among Rarity’s sphere formation also turned dark purple, small hellflames alighting in their helmets. This surge of strength tore through a number of Typhon’s monsters, and the ones that were firing Ceros into the formation found their beams being deflected by the knight’s shields.

“Hmm?” Typhon seemed more intrigued than annoyed, “She’s attuning to Hell this quickly? Most Sinners take years.”

Rarity didn’t fully understand, but she felt stronger now! She grinned, thinking perhaps she didn’t need to retreat after all-

“R-Rarity... what is this...?”

Blueblood sounded ill, and in pain, and she glanced back towards him. She blinked. Some of her chains binding to Hell had wrapped around Blueblood, and she saw the chains flowing with spirit energy that was being drained from his body and... going into her!?

“What in the world?” she breathed, horrified. She tried to pull the chains off of him, but they wouldn’t obey her, and kept draining Blueblood of his spirit energy. He was breathing heavily, looking faint as he looked at her with confusion.

“I am... rather embarrassed... as this is not what I was thinking about... when I fantasized about us and being tied up.”

She felt like giving him a hard smack on the head, but was too busy trying to figure out how to make her chains release him to worry about his stupid comments! She pulled at them, and then tried to mentally focus on them to command them to stop. Thus far, nothing was working.

“Blast it all, why won’t these come off!?”

Rarity didn’t have time to consider much else, for a wave of explosions on the outer edges of her knight's sphere formation drew her attention. Typhon had entered the fray more personally now, and was flying a crisscross pattern over her formation while slashing big gaps in her line with his flickering daggers. In his wake he’d gathered his army of monstrosities and hurled them at the gaps in her formation where the monsters’ bodies would begin to implode and burst in gouts of destructive energy.

There was nothing for it, it was time to make a run for it. Since the shield she’d created had become reinforced, and she suspected it was with Blueblood’s spirit energy to some degree, she had her pegasus knights slam the shield towards the gaps in the sphere’s formation, then gave her army a general command to charge in and attack. As the knights broke formation and started to swarm forward, using the huge crystal shield as a wedge, Rarity turned her own pegasus construct around and had it fly with full speed towards the Gate upon the island in the middle of the acid lake.

She saw Sunburst already there, still holding an irate Cozy Glow. He was looking her way, eyes worried, and shouting something Rarity couldn’t hear.

Behind her she heard the overwhelming clash of noise as Typhon’s spawn and her knights became one giant, bloody melee of pure confusion and chaos. She hoped it’d buy her just a few seconds to get to the Gate in time!

Typhon’s voice called out, echoing loudly with a tone of interest and a sincere promise, “Run, then, ‘Rarity’. Run away with your Soul Reaper and the arrogant child to her depraved club house of Sinners. Know that I shall ever be watching, and waiting in the lowest layers. Hell itself has noticed you. Will you hear her voice, I wonder?”

Rarity didn’t slow down, barely even gave Sunburst and Cozy Glow a glance as she, still holding a drained Blueblood, flew past them and through the Gate to the Third Layer.

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Sunburst had no real idea what to make of the situation. The moment this Rarity girl had shown up in Hell, things had started to feel off. Cozy Glow was acting off, for one. He was used to her being playful and a little sadistic, but he’d never seen her get... competitive before. Oh, she was being nice enough to Rarity, but Sunburst wasn’t blind to the undercurrent of tension that his dubious partner in survival was not so subtly demonstrating.

“Hmph, I swear the next time you try to drag me away from my fun, Sunburst, I’m gonna pull out my flaying chains,” Cozy Glow said with a childish huff as he set her down. They were on an ash-covered plateau of stone amid sharp mesas, the air thick with sulfuric fumes from lava floes burning deep down the rocky crevasses. The heat here on the Third Layer was oppressive, the air hard to breath, but Sunburst had long forgotten the pain on his scarred lungs.

“We can afford to die as much as we want, Cozy,” he reminded her, “But Rarity’s friend doesn’t have the luxury of us playing footsie with Typhon or his limitless spawn.”

“Pfft, who cares about pretty boy?” Cozy Glow groused, her chains rattling around her like agitated wasps, “For a Soul Reaper Captain he seemed pretty useless back there. Hey! Pretty boy! Why didn’t you use Bankai, huh!? Ain’t that your big, go to super move?”

Blueblood was coughing and sputtering, laying against a small boulder that Rarity had set him against. She’d finally gotten her chains off of him, having figured out they were responding to her emotional state. Once she calmed down enough to focus, they withdrew from Blueblood. But he was pale... well, paleer, his white marble skin now waxen. His eyes fluttered, barely conscious, and it was clear he was struggling to stay awake. Even so, he somehow managed some composure and croaked out, “Bankai... too cumbersome for... a mobile fight. Would have... hindered my lady’s efforts, more than helped...”

Rarity was stroking his head, and turned a furious glare towards Cozy Glow, “You have no room to criticize him at any rate. You barely helped in that encounter!”

“Oh I’m sorry, would you have preferred to deal with that huge ass hydra thing as well? Me and Sunburst kept it busy, thank you very much. Also, you’re the one who wanted to chicken out and scram before the fight even got good! I was still warming up when you were all like ‘Oh no, my dress is getting dirty, and my boy toy is being sucked dry of his soul! Better skedaddle!’”

“Why you little...!” Rarity stood and turned like a living thunderhead towards Cozy Glow, with a mass of dozens of sharp implements of crystal death forming around her as she walked forward. Cozy Glow just grinned and her multitudes of dark iron chains rose up in preparation to strike.

“Hold it!” Sunburst stood between the two ladies, arms outstretched, “Much as I might actually find some catharsis watching you two get this pointless posturing out of the way, I need you both to tone it way the Hell down and chill out.”

“Uhhh... why?” Cozy Glow asked, “Me and Rares could rip each other to shreds all day and night and be perfectly fine by the end of it. It’ll be fun. I need fun, Sunny! It’s what keeps me going.”

Rarity made a somewhat unladylike grunting noise and crossed her arms, eyeing Sunburst, “I am not the one being antagonistic here.”

He looked her, and she coughed, glancing away, “Well, perhaps a skosh antagonistic, but she’s being far more so than I am.”

“You’re both acting like drenched cats hissing at each other and I’m tired of it. We’re not even home yet, and I’m already dreading having you two living under the same room,” he said, giving Cozy Glow a harsh look, which she met with her attempt at an even stare, but he kept glaring until her nose started twitching and she scrunched her face up, very much now looking like a twelve year old rather than a crazed hellion.

“Oh fine, if you’re gonna be like that, I’ll ease up! I’m just mad because I wasn’t expecting Typhon to show up like that! Dude never ever leaves his cozy lower layers with his buddy Cerberus. Would’ve been fun to fight it out proper, but yeah, Rarity probably made the right call to beat feet, at least if she wants to keep Captain Wheezealot alive. Seriously, pretty boy is going to be a liability.”

“Well he’s my liability,” Rarity stated flatly, “And anyone who tries to touch him is going to get impaled with enough crystal to make them barf red for a week. Am I clear?”

“Crystal. Heh, get it, ‘crystal’? Eh? Eh?” Cozy Glow waggled her eyebrows, and Rarity sighed, sagging as she returned to Blueblood. She found he had passed out during the conversation, but was still breathing. She stroked his head again and with careful skill formed a red crystal construct in the shape of a comfortable palanquin to carry him on, floating it beside her once she laid him down upon it.

Sunburst watched her, slowly walking up. Having now seen her fight against Typhon, he had to admit he was extremely impressed. He said as much, finishing his statement by adding, “Him and Cerberus are essentially Hell’s strongest residents, besides Cozy Glow. You held up pretty well back there.”

Rarity shook her head, wiping sweat from her brow that did little as more sweat simply appeared in this sweltering Layer, “I was being pushed about, mostly, having to work to simply keep up. At least until...” She looked at her chains, and Sunburst gave an understanding nod.

“You’re Sinner powers. They manifest differently for everyone down here. It’s rare for them to directly involve the chains. What happened, exactly? It looked like you were... draining him,” Sunburst nodded towards the unconscious Blueblood.

Rarity’s breath hitched briefly, but she composed herself, “It was as if I was stealing his power and somehow... amplifying it through my own. Converting it into some manner of ghastly strength inside my constructs.”

“It certainly helped deflect that big attack Typhon threw at you.”

“I’d rather not have it if the cost is draining my friends...” Rarity said, trailing off as Sunburst saw her eyes flicker with pondering thoughts, “Although if it’s possible to drain my enemies instead?”

Cozy Glow chuckled from nearby where she’d sat down on a bigger boulder, “Didn’t take you long to consider the benefits, huh? Just got to figure out how to make your power do what you want. Sinners like us get our strength from adapting to Hell’s nature, it’s tortures, and the manner in which we fight back. That’s the key there. Fighting back. Hell grinds you down. By resisting that pull towards oblivion, our power forms.”

Rarity remembered her feelings in the moment her chains started to drain Blueblood. She’d been feeling utterly lost, angry, and nearly defeated by her stress and how much things felt like they’d been going wrong. And the thought of ‘taking’ from others to fight back had crossed her mind, a desire to stop being generous and just take for a change, instead of being taken from...

She gulped, “I’m... not sure I like the implications.”

“Gee, who would’ve guessed?” Cozy Glow said with a roll of her eyes and hopped off the boulder, “Well whatever, you have your moral struggles or whatever. That’s enough of a breather. Let’s get moving.”

“Is Typhon likely to give chase?” Rarity asked, glancing back the way they had come. After going through the Gate to the Third Layer, they had moved at full speed for a few minutes until Rarity found a spot to land and get her chains to release Blueblood. In that time frame they’d crossed miles of this hostile, jagged terrain of ash covered, hot mesas and plateaus

“Nah,” Cozy Glow said, “He let us go. Trust me, he wasn’t even going that hard at us back there. More like he was just testing you out. That and I’m pretty sure he really does want your Soul Reaper pal dead, but the dude’s patient. He’ll wait it out, let you come to him eventually. That or he’ll sick Cerberus on you. The big guy likes to come up to the higher layers more often than snake boy does.”

As they got moving again, rapidly covering the terrain heading... Rarity was so turned around she had no idea how they were navigating, but she did see a long ridge of dark stone in the distance, like some vastly larger plateau. Her mind turned towards Typhons words. “What did he mean? That he and Cerberus had been uncovering Hell’s secrets? That it has a voice?”

Cozy Glow looked at her, flipping along with her chains without stopping. “Beats me. Those two were in control of the lowest layers long before I was born. If there are secrets down there, they don’t let anyone else get close enough to find out.”

Rarity nodded, frowning, then something Cozy Glow had just said caught her attention, “Wait, what do you mean by ‘long before you were born’?”

In response, the little girl with the half burned face looked at Rarity with her one good eye gleaming strangely, “It means Hell is my home. I was born here.”

----------

She felt adrift in a gray sea of fog, listless, an uncontrolled mote of dust that occasionally clung to fleeting fragments of memory. A mother’s warmth, doused by flame and pain. A great serpent's jaws, dripping venom into her screaming mouth, burning like a thousand flames. Her essence stripped out of her, like blood dripping from open wounds. A girl, her hair akin to the fire of a setting sun. The garden, the hidden sanctuary, where the stone was pressed into her hands by a dying woman with bloodied lips.

“Stay hidden. Don’t let others notice you. Strip their memories if you must, but be the wallflower... quiet, quiet... until Sunset finds you...”

Whose words were those? Where was her stone!? She’d lost it. Had she forgotten it? She felt a hot glow in the depths of the fog, a terrible pain that she didn’t want to look at. Yet her eyes were drawn down, down, spiraling to something primal and hellish. Eyes looked back at her, flame and hatred, and so much pain, screaming in a voice. Her voice-

“AAAHH!” Wallflower shot up in her bed and fell out of it, grunting in pain as she blinked bleary eyes at her surroundings. The guest room in Discord’s “shop”. Yeah right. This wasn’t any shop as far as Wallflower could tell. Just some weird headquarters where all the weirdness in Canterlot City seemed to gather, Sunset Shimmer and her friends at the very center of it all.

“Uggh...” She sat up and rubbed her head, taking a deep breath. Her dream was already fading from her thoughts, but that didn’t bother her too much. It didn’t feel to her like it’d been a very good dream. While she wasn’t really sure if she was a guest or prisoner here, she hadn’t been told she had to stay in her room, and she was getting hungry.

Wallflower poked her head out the door, glancing left and right down the hallway, seeing no one. What time was it, anyway? How long had she been out since the whole incident with that... dragon? God, how had things gotten this bizarre? Padding quietly down the hall, going right out of habit, she peeked into several rooms, trying to get her bearings. Storage closet. Bathroom. Another guest room. Some kind of creepy room filled with shelves of unmarked jars?

“The heck is with this place?” she muttered, passing another room that was empty except for a big wooden chest in the middle of it that Wallflower felt very distinctly that if she touched it, something bad would happen. After another few more rooms with no sign of a kitchen, she finally heard voices up ahead.

Slowing, moving even quieter, she crept forward to a sliding paper and wood door that was already partially open. Inside she heard talking, recognizing the voice of Sunset and her friends. Well, some of them, at any rate.

“Just sayin’ we can’t, and shouldn’t, keep it ta ourselves fer long, Sunset.” This was that farm girl. Applejack? Wallflower was pretty sure that was her name.

“I know,” Sunset’s voice responded, “I’ll do it myself, if need be.”

“Sunset, you’re still injured, and got to focus on communing with your Zanpaktou or whatever it is you’re doing,” this was Rainbow Dash’s voice, “Leave talking to Rarity’s family to me and AJ. We’ve known Rarity the longest. It’ll be easier, coming from us.”

Had something happened to that refined girl, Wallflower wondered? She’d seen the damage outside. It’d looked like this place had gone through an earthquake. Had someone gotten hurt, or... worse? Sunset’s voice had that heavy quality that made Wallflower swallow in reflexive sympathy. The girl sounded miserable.

“Yeah... thanks, guys. I... just let them know, we’re going to get her back. Somehow.”

There was a pause, and the sound of someone getting hugged. “Dang straight we will, sugarcube. Hell ain’t gonna hold our Rares forever. We’ll tear the whole thing down from top ta bottom if that’s what we gotta do.”

“Hell yeah... er, I mean, huh, you know that phrase feels weird to say when you know Hell is a real place and you met the jerks who made it,” Rainbow Dash said, her words only making Wallflower raise an eyebrow.

She wasn’t sure what anyone was talking about, and carefully moved forward to take a peek, but it just so happened that’s when a hand touched her shoulder and a pleasant if smugly teasing man’s voice said, “It’s not polite to eavesdrop, my dear.”

Wallflower shrieked and nearly bolted, but ran into Applejack as the girl walked out. Applejack, holding Wallflower, looked over the girl’s head at the man who’d snuck up on her. “Discord, ya enjoy makin’ a’ habit o’ frightenin’ folk fer fun?”

Discord spun his cane and whistled innocently, “I beg your pardon, Miss Applejack, but I don’t just do it for fun! ...It’s also stress relieving.”

“Everything alright out there?” asked Sunset, and Wallflower took a few deeply calming breaths as she shot a less than effective glare at Discord, and then nodded thanks at Applejack.

“Um, thanks, I’m okay now.”

Applejack gave her a sympathetic look and nodded, guiding her into the room where she, Sunset, and Rainbow Dash had been talking. Thankfully this turned out to be the kitchen, and Wallflower’s stomach started to rumble a bit at the thought of food. Rainbow Dash was sitting on one of the counters, while Sunset was leaning across from her near the oven. Both looked to Wallflower, then at Discord as he came in behind her and Applejack.

“Hey, Discord, what’s the haps?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Heard from Screwloose that you were putting the screws to that Bubbles chick?”

Discord frowned slightly, “I need to remind Screwloose not to gossip so much. But yes, I’m finished interrogating our prisoner. Ditzy Doo is in the process of... delivering her to a location where her erstwhile mistress can find her.”

“Is that a good idea?” asked Rainbow Dash, “Letting her go back to her freakin’ creepy as heck masters?”

“Trust me, it’s better than giving Minty cause to come back looking for her, and I’ve gotten all I can of use out of Bubbles anyway,” Discord said with a shrug. As he talked he moved about his kitchen with expert speed and familiarity, arms moving swiftly to throw open the fridge, a cupboard, draws, and in a few moments he’d thrown together a plate of turkey, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches plus a bowl of goldfish crackers that were shoved Wallflower’s way without him even looking at her.

She gulped, mouth watering, and quietly sat at one of the stools at the kitchen's central island counter and started eating while shifting her eyes about the room. She was totally lost about what anyone was talking about, but if Wallflower was good at anything it was being quiet, listening, and generally being ignored.

Sunset did glance at her, eyes showing worry, but her attention then went to Discord, the girl’s face became so hardened and serious it was like she’d flipped a switch in her mind to become a different person. “What did you learn, exactly? Will it help us get Rarity out of Hell, or assault the Soul Palace?”

Discord chuckled with a dry smirk, “Eager to storm Heaven itself I see. Well, I did learn a few things of potential use in that regard. Bubbles does have detailed knowledge of the Soul Palace’s layout, so when the time comes, I should be able to put together a solid plan of attack. Entry, however, is a totally different matter. You saw the golden pillar the Zero Division used to arrive here. It’s called the Tenchuren, and it’s one of a few highly restrictive means of entry. Clearly we can’t access it, and while I might make a replica, that process would take me years, if not decades, given the pillar’s rather unique composition and materials.”

Applejack huffed, crossing her arms under her chest and tapped her foot, “Skip the details, Discord, n’ just tell us if ya got a’ way fer us to get in or not.”

“I don’t, but Starlight Glimmer does...” Discord’s eyes flashed, “The Queen’s Key she stole from beneath Central 46 is our only true chance of entering the Soul Palace to take the fight to Zero Division.”

There was a heavy silence that descended on the group, and Wallflower felt even more out of place as the only sound to be heard was her shoveling a sandwich into her mouth and chewing. Maybe if she just took the plate and bowl of goldfish crackers she could edge out of the kitchen without anyone noticing? But the food, while satisfying her hunger, was also making her thirsty. She was considering how to best get to the fridge to fish around for a drink without drawing attention to herself when Sunset spoke up, “I’m sorry Wallflower, you probably don’t need to be listening to us go on about this stuff. Are you feeling alright?”

Wallflower froze like an animal caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. All eyes were on her now and her main impulse was to either flee or hide. She chewed the last of her bite of sandwich instead, swallowed hard, and stammered, “I-I...um, yeah, I feel... okay?”

Discord in particular was looking at her with a shrewd expression that made her eleven kinds of uncomfortable. He stroked his thin white beard and said, “I shall be frank, you’re something of an anomaly I have not accounted for, Miss Wallflower. Your past records are muddled, at best, and the fact that Dragons of the Beast Realm have attempted to abduct you speaks volumes of your ties to matters well beyond the ken of a simple high school girl.”

“I really have no idea what any of that was about!” she blurted, shaking a little, feeling her palms get sweaty, her mind having a building presser behind her eyes, “I’m not involved in any of this weirdness! I just want to go home.”

“Ah, but you don’t seem to actually have a home,” Discord said, “No record of a permanent residence. Just where have you been staying?”

“At... at my house. My... family...” she searched her mind for memories. She’d been in plenty of houses. Plenty of homes. Places where people didn’t remember her being because the stone took those memories. The stone she was given to by... her mother? In the garden. The secret place by the school. When was that, exactly? How long had she been...?

There was a warm hand on her shoulder, firm and comforting. Wallflower looked up to see Sunset’s eyes looking into hers with a simple, supporting warmth. “It’s okay. I think that magic stone of yours has done some things to your head, Wallflower. But you’re safe here. We’re you’re friends, or we can be, if you let us.”

“Yup!” said Rainbow Dash with a nod and flashing a grin, “If you’ve got some kind of mysterious baggage in your past, then trust me, you’re in good company here! We’re all pretty chill with the strange and unusual.”

“An’ on top o’ that, if yer worried ‘bout more o’ them dragon-folk stormin’ after ya, then no better spot ta hole up then here,” Applejack said, before giving a bit of a wince and adding, “Recent holes n’ the roof not withstandin’.”

Discord gave a bit of a grousing sigh, leaning on his cane, “Screwball assures me she’ll have the hole in the roof, and every other floor for that matter, repaired in due course before the night is done. Now, as for you, Miss Wallflower, I can see that you are somewhat befuddled, and as Sunset has said, I concur it is likely tied to the Equestrian artifact you had in your possession. Unfortunately the lady who has taken custody of said artifact is... indisposed at the moment, so further investigation may have to wait.”

Wallflower recalled the purple girl with glasses, and frowned, “Do you think she, or any of you, might be able to figure out what’s wrong with me? Why my memories are so disjointed?”

“If anybody can work out magic related shenanigans, it’s Twilight,” Sunset said, although a glint entered her eyes as she rubbed her chin, “Although I’m not half bad with working out magical theory myself. Or at least, I used to be. It’s been a hot minute since I last really delved into magic. I wonder if we showed up at Twilight’s manor if they let us check out the stone?”

“Ain’t the Quincy likely ta be a tad jumpy?” Applejack asked, but Sunset shrugged.

“After today, I think we’re officially allied, or at least non-hostile with each other. Can’t hurt to see if we might be allowed to see the stone. Just a shame Twilight’s busy in Hueco Mundo with her whole team. But... I don’t know, maybe her family might be willing.”

“No offense, Sunset, but last time we talked to any of Twilight’s family, they were hanging us out to dry with Grand Fisher,” Rainbow Dash said, but Sunset held up a hand.

“I know, but didn’t Crystal Prep’s Dean, Cadence, help us out a little during the Everfree incident? I don’t know, I figure it’s still worth a shot. I’m not starting my training with Hokori no Hikari until tomorrow, so we’ve got some time to kill. I want to work out a more solid plan of action for handling Zero Division, but I want Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight to get back from Hueco Mundo before we pin it all down. Sounds like we’ve got no choice except to get to Equestria as fast as possible, either defeat or talk down Starlight, and get that Queen’s Key.”

“And we don’t actually have a clue right now how things are going in Equestria, because your journal is either broken, or Princess Twilight’s is,” said Rainbow Dash, hopping off the counter, “Well whatever, let’s go hit up our Twilight’s house and see if we can’t bully someone into letting us see Wallflower’s magic rock.”

“Ask politely, Dash, not bully,” Applejack said, and the other girl smirked.

“Tomato, tomaato.”

----------

Rarity wasn’t entirely sure what she’d been expecting from Tartarus, but the entrance alone left a certain colorful impression.

The rough, blanketing heat of the Third Layer only got worse the further into it they had traveled, and now ash feel like dark motes of snow, covering the broken terrain of gray crags and mesas in a thick carpet. Curling smoke fumes of heat waves rose from the cracks in the ground as streams of lava flowed through the jagged canyons, and tainted the air with a terrible haze that was impossible not to breath in. Rarity’s throat was already parched beyond belief, but now every breath was a minor torture. She was sweating so profusely, skin grimy with ash, that she didn’t think she’d ever feel clean again. Her stomach knotted with hunger, a growing agony in the pit of her gut that she, with dread, understood would only get worse with the passing of days.

Now, straight ahead of her, was an overhanging maw of black stone jutting from an uneven rock face that curved scores of miles in either direction. The edifice of rock was rough hewn, but clearly carved, shaped by intent to resemble a leering face with broken rows of sharp teeth. From the face’s eyes poured streams of magma that joined a large river that flowed from the face’s mouth, and deep into the cavernous throat of stone Rarity saw the river of lava continue into the plateau’s dark depths. The face itself was adorned with graffiti of the most visceral and grotesque fashion, apparent blood and other bodily fluids used by the hands of maddened painters to depict every human horror imaginable. Rarity couldn’t even remotely desire to recount the vulgarity on display, be it in the simple curses and blasphemous phrases painted in some of the ‘tags’, or the actual pictures, some of which were entirely too well drawn and finely detailed to be worthy of depicting some of the acts she saw on display.

Beside her, Cozy Glow took a deep breath and let it out with a satisfied smile, “Aaaah, home sweet home. Hell’s own wretched hive of scum and villainy. Welcome to Tartarus, Rarity. Well, the front door, at any rate. The locals all like to add their own flare to it. You can feel free to add a tag or pic if you like, someday, when you’ve really settled in and this all feels like home.”

Rarity flinched slightly at Cozy Glow’s words, not looking directly at the child. She was still processing the notion that Cozy Glow had been born in Hell. Rarity had not pressed her for details, and by the look Sunburst had given her, it was probably best not to for the time being. Just what had this child experienced while “growing up” in an environment like this? Looking upon the profanity of the graffiti upon the mere entrance to her “home”, Cozy Glow’s life here could not have held much, if any semblance of good influence.

“I think I’d rather gouge my eyes out, but yes, thank you for the warm welcome,” Rarity said, trying to keep herself composed while resting her hand on the crystal palanquin she had floating beside her that still bore an unconscious Blueblood. She’d checked his breathing and pulse with what little medical knowledge she had from a first aid class, and he at least seemed stable, just exhausted. She was worried the lack of food and water was going to affect him even worse than her. She knew Soul Reapers, and indeed spirits in general, didn’t need food to survive, but it helped maintain their levels of reiryoku. Without sustenance, Blueblood was likely to get weaker, and being drained by her newly awakened Sinner powers had in no way helped.

A problem to address once she’d established a stable position for herself, which required making the right impression in this new environment. With a breath to steel her nerves and straighten her back, she flipped her sweat soaked hair and kept a hand on the hilt of her crystalline rapier, having never deactivated her Fullbring since the fight with Typhon. “At any rate, let us get to it.”

There were several charred stalagmites that rose from the lava flow, and between them had been strung lengths of chain in what appeared to be a ramshackle construction of a bridge that led into the cavern’s interior. Rarity had little trouble leaping from stalagmite to stalagmite, bypassing the need for using the makeshift bridge, which she noted was so heated by the lava that even if someone did use the bridge, the metal chains would burn them. Even entering Tartarus, it seemed, was a painful act if one didn’t have powers to make doing so easier.

The nature of this place only revealed itself more the further down the vast cavern tunnel she went, seeing more grotesque graffiti and depictions of debaucherous acts of violence and lust painted upon the walls, or even the very ceiling. Then she noted the cages. Strung at seemingly random points along the walls of the lava river were dozens of black iron cages of varying sizes. Some were empty, but others were most certainly not, and Rarity paused on one stalagmite to stare in mute displeasure as she saw some people were packed into the cages, some wailing from pain as the heat of the lava river did to the cages the same as it did to the chain bridge, heating the metal to the sizzling level of an oven top.

“What is this?” she said, lips twisting in a mixture of affronted disgust and anger.

Sunburst sighed heavily, flying upon jets of flame as he hovered next to her, “The gang fights are pretty constant in Tartarus. Being strung up in the cages for awhile is a pretty common punishment for the losers of such fights.”

“It's horrific,” she said, immediately moving towards the cages with every intent of opening them to free those trapped within. Cozy Glow didn’t precisely stand in her way, but she flipped upon her chains across the ceiling like some bizarre cross of a spider or marionette, and hang upside down to look at Rarity sidelong.

“If you let them out you’re not doing them any favors. Losers like this would just get punished harder by those that slammed them in there in the first place.”

“Then that is about to change,” Rarity stated bluntly, and with a gesture she summoned her whirlpool of blood. In seconds she generated a small cloud of crimson sickles that spun with flashing streaks of red. Cage bars were sliced apart like little more than butter. For a second the prisoners within screamed as they fell towards the lava, but then red crystal platforms formed under them, catching the burned people safely.

Confused eyes of uncertainty mixed with relief started at her from many faces, although Rarity noted with an unsettled feeling that many other faces held nothing but dead eyed, empty stares of souls already broken by their circumstances. However, be they broken or grateful, hopeful or confused, Rarity repeated this gesture all the way down the length of the tunnel, jumping along and creating more crystal platforms as she diced cage after cage.

By the time she reached the end of the tunnel she had linked the platform together and was carrying along a group of nearly a hundred burned, exhausted Sinners behind her while Sunburst and Cozy Glow moved with her. Cozy Glow was giving her a strange look, one Rarity couldn’t quite read, while Sunburst continued to hover nearby, eyes concerned.

“Guess this is one way to make an impression,” he said, “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Rarity took a deep, seething breath and said, “I’m doing what’s right. Even in Hell, I’m not about to forget how to do that.”

There was a tittering giggle from Cozy Glow, “This oughta be a good show. Chill, Sunburst, and let’s just watch how she handles this.”

The flow of lava led into what Rarity could discern was an enormous but unevenly shaped space within the heart of the plateau. The lava was stemming from some manner of vent in the ceiling of the cavern, situated in the very center, falling down into a small lake that bubbled as the main river streamed down towards the tunnel that Rarity was emerging from. Around this lake of lava were nearly a dozen big growths of rock, some the length of four or five football fields, and one of which jutted out right next to the cavern entrance. Upon these rock formations were tightly packed shanty towns, built from rock, or roughly hewn sheets of iron, built atop each other so closely that it was like looking at an ugly put together collection of random lego blocks. Torches and bonfires burned among the shanty towns, dotting the buildings with pin pricks of hellish light. More chain bridges spanned the gaps between the rock formations, or rose higher to connect to the walls or ceiling where more makeshift shacks hung.

Rarity couldn’t gauge how many people lived here, but from the constant string of noise, the screams, shouts, and even the nose of several small explosions from an island shanty town further in, she felt like she was looking at some kind of chaotic semi-warzone where thousands of violent people were packed together like sardines. Sardines that considered carving each other up to be an acceptable way to spend a Tuesday evening.

The people that Rarity could see were almost all either clothed in tattered rags, or a combination of bone and leather armoring that must have likely been harvested from their fellow Sinners. It reminded her of some of the “wasteland warrior” style films that Rainbow Dash had sometimes forced them to watch for movie nights, with enough spikes, skulls, and rough leather in view to put the extras in those films to shame. She almost appreciated the conservative style of Cozy Glow and Sunburst, now.

Her arrival had not gone unnoticed. While there were many residents of Tartarus who only peeked fearfully out of their shacks before disappearing inside once more, or others who seemed to have such broken spirits that they just huddled in corners and alleys, there was a veritable army of rough looking individuals who were crawling out of the woodwork to gather near where Rarity was lowering her crystal platforms to deposit the prisoners she’d freed.

“Hehehehe! What’s this!? What’s this!?” chattered one broad, barrel of a man with a shaved head and bearing a bandolier of sharpened bone across his broad chest. He carried a big cleaver over his shoulder, a big sharp square of metal with a handle that looked like someone’s spine. He towered over Rarity, and leered at her with undisguised carnal interest that made her skin crawl. “Never seen skin that smooth and pretty!”

There were howls of laughter and rude jeers from a collection of equally rough looking men and women from behind the man, rattling weapons. From nearby another group, headed up by a whipcord of a woman with bronze skin and wearing what looked to be a blood stained toga that was frayed at the edges, leaned on a staff that looked like it was made of stone, but pulsated with blood that dripped from the eyes of it’s carved skull at the tip. “Now who told this little piece of meat she could free all of these worthless flesh rags? Hey, Cozy Glow, who’s the new screamer?”

Cozy Glow had landed a distance away, her chains rattling as she giggled, her one eye glowing with violent mirth, “Not telling. Why don’t you introduce yourselves? Give her the traditional Tartarus welcome.”

Rarity could see there was a sneering look in the bronze woman’s eyes, and the big burly man didn’t look particularly happy to see Cozy Glow either, with the bristling air of rivals who knew better than to actually challenge the top dog on the pile. Instead, judging from the ugly glares they sent her way, they were more than happy to vent their hate and frustration on what they considered to be an easy mark.

The man strode forward first, hefting his cleaver and licking his lips with a long, rough tongue, “Heh, always fun to introduce myself to a new bed warmer. Hello little lady, I’m-

Rarity really didn’t care, and was well past done with the farce. Streaks of red light glinted, the sickles she’d kept formed and floating near the platforms moved with incredible speed. The big man blinked in brief confusion, noticing the sickles of blood red spinning behind him, not realizing that they’d gotten there by going through him.

“The fu-?” the giant man fell apart into bloody chunks, coughing a pool of blood as his pieces splattered upon the floor. Behind him his gang paused, some mouths gaping open. Rarity, eyes hardening to a cold, diamond edge, drew her crystal rapier and made a gesture. More sickles formed, along with larger scythes, disgorging from her whirlpool of blood in a torrent. She sent the weapons spinning in lines of crimson death among the big man’s gang, and within a mere second or two half of them were in no better condition than their boss was.

A few managed to rush her, one sprouting spikes of bone from his flesh, another’s eyes pouring out a black liquid that sizzled like acid. Rarity wasn’t particularly interested in giving them the chance to make use of whatever Sinner powers they might have, especially if they were weaker than their boss, so with barely a glance she sent forth crystal veins into the ground that then erupted upward in a field of tall spikes that impaled dozens at once, any that had escaped her initial barrage of scythes and sickles.

She did note with some interest that even when utterly dismembered, these people, none of them died. They groaned and screamed in pain, but even while in pieces their bodies still twitched. She could see that in some cases they were slowly being pulled back together by an invisible force, and she heard the rattling of Hell’s chains. The large boss man seemed to be getting reconstructed the fastest, but even then Rarity guessed it’d be an hour before he was intact again.

Plenty of time to deal with any other challengers. Ignoring the carnage she’d just created, she turned to face the tall, bronze skinned woman with her staff, her own gang having backed up from the sight of the violence Rarity had just unleashed.

“Introductions!” Rarity said, like a teacher addressing a classroom, “My name is Rarity. Miss Rarity, to anyone who wishes to be polite and get on my good side. Now I don’t particularly care what any of your names are. What I do care about is respect, and being afforded it. Are any of you intending to be disrespectful like this lot have been?” She gestured with her rapier towards the pile of shredded Sinners, and the swarm of her scythe and sickle constructs floated dangerously towards the other, intact gang, almost all of whom recoiled back slightly.

The woman with the staff of stone narrowed her eyes, smiling through grit teeth, “Pretty damn cocky for a newcomer-”

Rarity sighed, and moved. The woman saw the danger coming and tried to raise her staff of stone, the skull at its tip lighting up with some manner of oily green smoke the properties of which Rarity could only guess, and didn’t care to find out. She was faster, much more so, than this individual, and her crystal rapier flashed a line of pure red through the woman from top to bottom before more than a trickle of that green smoke had poured out.

She turned and walked away from the confused woman, sheathing her rapier a moment after the gang leader split in half down the middle from skull to crotch.

Rarity ignored the gasps and shouts of the gang behind her, sensing none of them were daring to come nearer to her, and several had flat out run off.

Her heart felt a little sick inside. She hated violence. She deplored everything about this situation. She wanted to be home, with her friends, enjoying a nice meal, some cool, clean water, and a relaxing night of watching movies together. Hell, she’d even take fighting Hollows over dealing with this... godawful place.

But she couldn’t afford to be bowed. She couldn’t afford to break. This was all... only just beginning for her, but she swore she would not let Hell win, even if she had to wade through miles of muck and blood to escape this place and return to those she loved.

The very people she’d freed from the cages were looking at her with a mixture of horror and uncertainty, as if they weren’t sure if their lot had improved not or not. Given the nature of this place, she could imagine they maybe were thinking they’d just been claimed by one potentially just as bad or worse than their previous captors. Rarity tried to muster a smile for them, but it was difficult, and she walked pas them to approach Cozy Glow and Sunburst.

“I want these people cared for,” she told Cozy Glow, “Can your Legion do that?”

Cozy Glow shrugged, “Taking in a hundred strays? Not easy, but I might be able to make use of them. Besides, you just gave a better show than I was expecting! Heheh, not like those two were top gang leaders or anything, but rumor of this is gonna spread fast. Solid first impression.”

“I didn’t do it to impress you, only to make it clear I’m not to be trifled with,” Rarity said, still feeling a little sick inside, but managing to keep her composure as she glanced at Blueblood. He’d awoken on the palanquin, his head raised weakly as he looked at her. She feared he might look at her with disgust or fear at her violent display, but her heart... warmed a little to see him just give her an understanding not of support.

Cozy Glow chuckled at her, “Well you’ve probably given the scrub level gangers plenty of reason to avoid you. The bigger boys and girls on the totem pole will take notice, but long as they know you’re with me, you probably won’t get directly hit in the streets. Anywhos, c’mon Sunny, let’s get Rarity and her boy toy, along with all these fresh workers to Legion HQ! I like to call it the Clubhouse!”

Rarity suppressed another sigh, “Not workers, Cozy Glow, people. We are to take care of these people.”

The girl gave a slight groan as she hung her shoulders and dropped her mirthful look to throw an eye-twitching scowl at the crowd in question, “I’m not taking in anyone who isn’t going to be useful to me. Before you jump on a high horse, Rarity, these losers are still getting a better deal than anything they’ve got a right to expect, so either shut up and accept my ‘generosity’ here, or you can have fun looking for a place for this lot yourself.”

It rankled her a little, but Rarity had already considered that prospect, and knew Cozy Glow was right. While she may have demonstrated her own power, in the short term, Rarity was exhausted. Her spiritual energy wouldn’t last forever without rest, and she couldn’t afford to try to make a go of this alone. She still... needed to use Cozy Glow, and Cozy Glow still clearly thought she had a use for Rarity. With Blueblood’s life also on the line, she couldn’t take the risk of doing everything by herself.

She clenched her jaw and nodded, “Very well... to your ‘Clubhouse’, then.”

Episode 190: Escalation

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Episode 190: Escalation

Sunset glanced over her shoulder as she opened up the passenger door to the truck Applejack was still kinda-sorta “borrowing” from her brother, although at this point it was more like a permanent loan.

“So at this point you’re not even sure about how you got this magic stone?”

Wallflower visibly gulped, hesitating as Sunset stood aside to let her climb into the truck cabin’s backseat area first. She did so only gingerly as Sunset climbed in behind her, followed by Rainbow Dash taking the passenger seat and Applejack hopping into the driver’s seat. As they got buckled, Wallflower answered in a confused tone, her eyes looking at her hands in her lap with an air of pure uncertainty.

“I can’t really explain it. It’s like one moment, I feel like I have one set of memories, then a little while later if I think about it, there’s slight variations, or different ones popping in and out. I remember finding the stone in my garden, the secret one I keep near the back of the school. But I also remember...” she shivered, “Someone gave it to me there, my... I think my mother. Or a woman who was important to me.”

“Sounds like yer brainpan is right frazzled,” said Applejack, starting the truck and pulling away from the sidewalk near the alleyway that lead to Discord’s shop, getting on the main road leading out of downtown and heading for Twilight’s manor in the upscale part of town.

Wallflower flinched, “I don’t know why. A week ago, I felt, well, normal. A month ago even more so. I mean, I remember all this time spent at school, being ignored by everyone, and...” she glanced at Sunset, face twitching with a mixture of shame and old hurt, “Thinking about getting back at you.”

Sunset flinched as well, but she nodded in understanding, her voice soft, “I’m sorry. I wish I could remember what I did so I could-”

“No, you don’t,” Wallflower stated, and took a deep breath, “It’s better this way. There’s... there’s way bigger things happening right now than that, and considering you saved my life the other day, we can just call things square. I just want to know what’s wrong with me, and get my life back to normal.”

“Well if there’s anyway that’ll happen, it’s gonna happen with the crazy sciency and magicy know how of either Twilight or Sunset here,” said Rainbow Dash, having rolled down the window to prop her arm on it while clearly enjoying the wind flow in her hair.

“Here’s hoping Twilight doesn't mind me borrowing her lab for a bit while she’s gone,” Sunset said, “Assuming we can get through the front door.”

The drive only took about ten minutes, with traffic not being particularly thick that day, and the sturdy old truck made quite the contrast to the slick blue sports car parked out front of the massive Sparkle family manor. The girls hoped out of the truck and went up the large stone steps to the manor’s front doors, and Sunset raised her hand to give it a firm knock, but the left door opened before she could.

An elderly man with white hair, a thick mustache, and glasses, wearing a butlers uniform looked out at them with a quizzical and somewhat stiff air. “Good day, Field Marshals. Is this official business that members of the Coalition are visiting the Sparkle estate?”

Sunset cleared her throat, trying to sound as officious as she could manage, “I guess? I mean, sure, yes! We’re here on behalf of the Coalition to, um, provide research support to our friend an ally, Twilight Sparkle, on examining a specific object recently acquired. A certain stone previously held by Miss Wallflower here.”

Wallflower gulped and gave a nervous wave, “...Hi...”

The butler looked at them with his inscrutable, soul piercing gaze, and slowly said, “I was not informed by Lady Sparkle that any of her projects were open to... ‘research support’. Do you have a message from her indicating authorization to have access to any of her materials or personal labs?”

Rainbow Dash sighed and stepped forward past Sunset, sticking her foot in the door to keep the man from closing it, “Look dude, Twi and us are cool! We just need to check out the freaky magic rock to see if we can work out what it does and how it’s made Flower’s head all messed up.”

“Flower?” Wallflower repeated while the butler just looked at Dash with an expression that suggested he was tempted to close the door on her foot.

“I am aware of your relationship with Lady Sparkle, but that does not mean she would approve of you barging, unannounced, into her laboratories.”

“Hey, it’s cool, Robert. Go ahead and let them in.”

The voice was a familiar one to everyone, even Wallflower, although she paled and her eyes went a little wide at hearing it. Robert, the butler, grimaced but complied with clear reluctance as he opened the door fully and moved aside, “Very well, Master Spike, since Lady Sparkle did invest you with authority over the household in her absence I shall comply.”

“The dog...” Wallflower whispered, following Sunset and the other girls inside into the massive front foyer of the manor.

Everyone except Robert was staring up the wide set of stairs that led to the manor’s second floor, for climbing down the stairs wasn’t Spike, but rather a metal monstrosity out of someone’s science fiction nightmare. The metallic canine robot was easily six feet tall at the shoulder, and twice the length, made of gleaming plates of silver Quincy metal. It was made of multiple segments giving it’s limbs and body a flowing sinuousness that looked more organic than robotic, although one would never mistake it for a biological creature due to the glowing conduits of blue and black that ran beneath and between the metal plates like synthetic muscle. The beast had claws noticeably large enough to count as butcher’s knives, although those paled in comparison to a mouth on a tapered, wolfish face of metal that had teeth segmented like chainsaw blades. Then there was the tail, like a long line of metal segments that ended not in a point, but in an actual smooth bore gun barrel. The head of the mech had bright green eyes, and solid, pointed ears that flexed like radar antennas.

As the big mecha wolf stomped down the stairs and sat on its haunches in front of the girls, a segment of metal plates on the back opened up and a hatch rose upwards along with a whole internal cockpit section. Strapped into a comfortable harness and wearing some manner of neural headband around his grinning face, Spike waved a canine paw at the girls.

“Sup! You gals like my new ride?”

Silence reigned for a second. Sunset looked at Wallflower with worry. Once catching Sunset’s look, Wallflower’s gray features blushed rose.

“I’m not going to faint again,” she said, and Sunset nodded.

“Okay I’m stuck between wanting to make a Metal Gear reference, or a Zoids reference,” Rainbow Dash said, “Spike, help me out here, what is this unbelievably awesome piece of mecha badassery I’m looking at!?”

Spike, practically glowing with self satisfaction, patted the metallic head of the robot and said, “I’d say this puppy has got more Zoids in them than anything else, but I have to practically beg to get Twilight to watch that stuff with me, so not sure if it was on her brain when she built it. But hey, not complaining with results! Still workshopping the name, but for now Twilight’s calling it the ‘Gunwolf’.”

Rainbow Dash scratched her chin, looking the robot up and down, “I’d say you should punch it up with a little more oomf, like Gunwolf X or Gunwolf Alpha, or give it your personal stamp with Spikewolf Alpha X!”

Spike looked at Rainbow with clear appreciation and admiration, “Why the heck aren’t we hanging out more?”

“Agreed, let’s fix that immediately. Anime night next weekend?”

“If the world hasn’t ended by then, yes!”

Applejack chuckled dryly at the pair and walked up to the mecha, giving it an experimental tap with her knuckles, “Looks mighty fancy, an’ just the kind o’ thing I figure Twilight would cook up. This all Quincy tech?”

Like a proud father showing off a child, Spike lovingly patted the Gunwolf’s neck and said, “Partially, but a lot of it is also Twilight’s own homebrew combo of Quincy technology and magic. She’s got it running on those M-Cells she refined at Everfree. I mean, I don’t actually get how it all works, but she told me it's like a hybrid between a spirit particle construct and a physical whatever.”

“A physical whatever?” Sunset said, raising an eyebrow, and Spike shrugged.

“Twilight’s the genius, I’m just the charmer. Basically she told me the Gunwolf exists as both a spiritual thingy and a physical thingy, and I can blow up both with it. Hollows? Boom! Jerks who aren’t Hollows? Also boom. Oh! And check this out!”

He tapped a small silver pin that Sunset just now noticed was attached to his dog collar, a pin in the shape of a silver wolf. In just an instant there was a blue flash of light, and suddenly the massive Gunwolf mech vanished in a swirl of blue reishi particles and Spike now stood with his dog tail wagging proudly as he rubbed the pin with a paw, “Instant access or storage, just like a Quincy’s bow.”

“That’s slick,” said Sunset, somewhat flabbergasted by just how much Twilight was capable of. Sure, she was here to try and work on figuring out the magic stone herself, but if Sunset didn’t delude herself into thinking she had the same span of innate talent for this kind of thing that Twilight had.

“How’s it handle in a fight?” asked Rainbow Dash, “You tested it out yet?”

“Shining Armor came by to help with that, actually,” Spike said, “He was here with me all morning running me and the Gunwolf through the paces. I think I did pretty well, too! I mean, he says I did.”

“Considering he’s a Sternritter, if you impressed him then I’d say any Hollow that decides to screw with you is in for a real nasty surprise,” said Sunset, and Spike gave her a very wolfish grin.

“Or any jerk assassins that try to come after Twilight again,” Spike said with a fairly shocking amount of menace for a such a cute dog, reminding Sunset clearly that this Spike was just as fiercely loyal as his Equestrian counterpart to his Twilight. She didn’t doubt if anyone did try to go after Twilight again, it wasn’t going to be a pleasant time for them.

“So, you said Twilight’s brother is here?”

Spike nodded, “Yeah, he’s around. So’s Cadence, but she showed up, like, I dunno, only a couple hours ago. Not sure where they are right now. Probably doing lovey-dovey stuff. So you guys said you were here to check out the new girl’s freaky magic rock?”

Wallflower’s eyebrow twitched a little, and Sunset cleared her throat and nodded, “Yes, if that’s alright.”

“Don’t see why it wouldn’t be,” Spike said, gesturing with a paw for them to follow him as he turned and started to lead them upstairs, “Follow me, I’ll take you to the lab Twilight put it in. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind you poking at it, long as it’s you girls.”

“Thanks Spike, you’re the best.”

“Man do I not hear that enough,” he replied with a little chuckle, and the girls followed him up the stairs, leaving behind a somewhat disgruntled looking Robert who sighed, shook his head, muttered something about ‘magical tomfoolery’.

After a few minutes of being led through the now somewhat familiar and seemingly endless hallways of the Sparkle manor, Spike managed to bring them to a big sturdy wooden door with a hefty electronic lock on it that he opened by an eye scanner. As the scanner sent a glowing beam into his eye, a cold, computerized female voice said, “Scan complete; retina and spiritual pattern confirmed. Welcome, Spike.”

The inside of the lab was precisely as Sunset imagined it would be. Even a room about the size of a two tennis courts couldn’t contain the amount of lab equipment and materials someone like Twilight kept in what was essentially her personal playground. The walls and floor were all polished steel, and were strewn with tables of varying sizes and shapes, each bearing different experiments and scientific equipment, all packed to such a degree that the girls practically had to move around single file to get by. All of it was well lit, and Sunset had a clear view from one end to the other. Some of what she saw looked familiar, like a set of tables on the middle left section that had fragments of Hollow masks and similar pieces floating in test tubes or under glass scanners. Other things looked more related to Soul Reapers, including what looked to be a broken Zanpaktou held in some kind of zero gravity field. Where had Twilight gotten that, Sunset wondered?

“What’d ya’ll think Twilight’s cookin’ up with studyin’ Hollow parts an’ busted Zanpaktou?” Applejack asked, and Spike waved a paw at her in a relaxed fashion.

“Chill, Applejack. She’s trying to figure out the way Zanpaktou purifies Hollows, and the spiritual makeup of both, so she can then work on understanding what Quincy powers do to Hollows. She’s got this whole theory that Quincy doesn't destroy Hollow souls, but has a totally different effect, just one nobody knows about or understands yet.”

“She did seem interested in that back during the confrontation with the Zero Division at the summit,” Sunset said, “I hope she finds something. It’d certainly help smooth things over between the factions if she can prove Quincy doesn't wipe out Hollows.”

Heading towards the middle of the room, she noticed a huge scaffolding on the far right side where numerous robotic arms were mounted, and saw a number of rather dangerous looking modern weaponry set up on racks. Alongside that were spare parts that were clearly for the Gunwolf, so Sunset guessed this was the mech’s maintenance area, and presumed the weapons she saw were either prototypes or backups.

Her attention was then drawn away from that to a circular table in the middle of the room, one that had a similar circular platform descending from the ceiling so that between the two a bubble field of reishi and magic was projected to contain what now floated inside the bubble. The unusual magic stone that Wallflower had held was now there, lightly bathed in blue light. As the girls and Spike surrounded the table to look at it, Spike scratched his head with a hind leg and yawned, “You know, not sure why you’re so interested in this thing. Twilight’s poked at it, but it sounds pretty boring to me.”

“Did she learn anything about it, specifically?” Sunset asked, “Be nice to have a baseline to work with before I start fiddling with it myself.”

“That laptop over there has her notes on it, plus controls for the analyzer here,” Spike said, curling up on a nice plush, purple dog bed with his name printed on it, clearly set up right next to where Twilight would sit and work, “I’ll just nap here while you girls do your thing.”

With an exchange of looks, Sunset and the others gathered around the laptop in question, set up on a desk near the analyzing table. Fortunately it wasn’t locked or anything, and wasn’t even in sleep mode. Sunset was able to pull up the files on the stone in short order, and began skimming the text. Twilight tended to get... wordy, so Sunset had to take a few minutes to cut to the heart of what she’d learned past all of the more longer winded jargon.

“Okay... Contains vast storage capacity akin to a near infinite hard drive’, so it can store information? A lot of it. Hmm... ‘spell matrix patterns indicate a direct interface methodology with both biological and metaphysical memory imprinting’... ugh, Twilight, why didn’t you just write, ‘it downloads memories’? Three words, way simpler.”

“Whoa, so is that why Flowers’ head is all swiss cheese?” asked Dash, and Wallflower grunted.

“Can you just please call me Wallflower?”

“What about WF?”

“...Mmmmpgh...”

“Was that a positive grunting whine or a negative grunting whine?”

Sunset sighed, “Rainbow, cut her some slack please? And yes, this is probably very connected to why Wallflower’s memories are messed up. According to Twilight’s analysis here, this stone projects some sort of ability to remove or copy, possibly even alter, memory. She isn’t sure what it’s full abilities are, only that the spells engraved on it create an interface between the stone and a target’s memory centers, both physical and spiritual. From there... well, it could theoretically do anything.”

Applejack’s face was a paler shade of orange now, her freckles standing out more starkly as she gulped, “That’s... actually mighty terrifyin’. Big old energy blasts, elemental manipulatin’, even somethin’ gross like Smooze’s disease powers I can deal with. But screwin’ with a person’s memories, the things that make ya who ya are? That ain’t pleasant stuff right there.”

Sunset frowned, her mind thinking back to their experiences with Medley, “And it’s oddly reminiscent of what one of the Zero Division can do.”

Wallflower, looking with nervous energy between them all while occasionally casting uneasy looks at the stone, said, “S-so... does that Twilight girl have anything written down about if the effects can be reversed? If it takes memories, or alters them, can it put them back to normal?”

Sunset went back to the document, skimming more, and once more grunting in slight frustration over the fact that Twilight, while thorough in her research, had zero concept of parsing things down. Twilight may have been a genius when it came to research and development, but Sunset had a knack for taking the complex and breaking it down to something straightforward. After another few minutes of reading at a fast pace, she said, “She believes it works on willpower alone, which isn’t too strange for magical items. You hold it, you will what memories you want to take or alter, the stone does the rest. She doesn’t know if that will work for restoration, since the spells engraved are designed just for the interface itself. Anything after that is kind of up to the user and the ‘Memory Stone’.”

“So all I have to do is hold the stone and tell it to give me my memories back?” Wallflower asked with a pensive air, eyes locked on the stone. Sunset frowned and turned from the laptop, eyeing the artifact as well.

“That might work, or it could react in any number of ways we can’t predict. This stone is from my home world of Equestria, and there’s a lot of dangerous magic artifacts that can be unpredictable if handled by somepony, er, someone who doesn’t know precisely what they’re doing. The fact that you’ve had this stone for what sounds like a long time, using it’s powers without understanding it fully... Wallflower, there’s no telling just how many of your memoires and that of other peoples’ are in there right now. Not to mention what memories it might contain from it’s time in Equestria.”

“So you’re saying there’s nothing we can do to... fix me?” Wallflower said, crestfallen, and Sunset gave her a small, hopeful smile.

“I didn’t say that. Just laying out the risks. Twilight’s data here does suggest to me that any memories you’re missing are very likely inside that Memory Stone. And if it has a mechanism for extracting memories, there’s probably a method for restoring them. If we try anything, I just want it to be under as controlled a situation as possible. Hey Spike, I’m betting Twilight’s got a spot for conducting risky experiments, right?”

The dog lifted his head with a yawn and winked, “Geez, like you gotta ask. She’s done a lot of expanding since getting a blank check from big ol’ Quincy King Edgy McBrood, so if you want a safe spot to use, just take the elevator in the back over there and it’ll lead you down to the testing chambers. That’s where Shining Armor helped me test out the Gunwolf, too.”

“Ya sure this is a good idea, Sunset?” asked Applejack.

Sunset shook her head with a pensive shrug, “No, but we’re not going to get much done just staring at the thing. From what I’ve read here, Twilight’s already run about every test I would’ve done myself, so there’s not much more I could try doing that she hasn’t. If we’re going to learn more, we’ll have to try using it. I can volunteer myself to test it out first, to try and make sure its safe-ish before Wallflower gives it a go.”

“Relax AJ,” Rainbow Dash said, patting her farmgirl pal on the shoulder, “If something goes wrong, you and me will be here to deal with it.”

“How? By punching it?” Applejack said, sounding unconvinced, “Monsters are one thing, but if this thing zaps our brains, not even sure havin’ superpowers is gonna help much.”

Sunset considered the matter. Normally she’d have preferred to wait until Twilight was around to at least help out with conducting safety precautions. She would have really liked to have been able to consult the Twilight in Equestria, or any of the other Princesses to get their take on this. Heck, Princess Celestia or Luna might actually know what the Memory Stone was, given how old they were. But the journal was a no-go, and the Twilight on this end was in Hueco Mundo, with no certain timeframe of when she’d be back from trying to rescue Fleur de Lis.

And Sunset had a nagging feeling, deep in her bones, that the clock was ticking. Zero Division, this new threat of Jormungandr, Starlight Glimmer... everything felt like it was ticking to some kind of explosively messy convergence and that Sunset and her friends just didn’t have any time left to sit on their laurels and take things easy. Even spending time to train with her Zanpaktou felt like a luxury she might not have, despite her potent desire to get in there and take Hokori no Hikari and herself to the next level.

Wallflower, whoever she truly was, whatever reason she’d suddenly dropped into Sunset’s life, was clearly a victim of extraordinary circumstances that were also somehow connected to everything that was happening. Could they afford to wait around when answers might be sitting right there in this Memory Stone, quite possibly just one touch away from revelation?

Still, this wasn’t entirely her choice, and the risk wasn’t hers alone to take. Eying Wallflower, she said, “I’m not going to lie to you, Applejack has a really good point. This could go sideways fast. With magic, that’s just how it is. I can’t give you any guarantee this is going to help you, or that it might not make things worse if something goes wrong. That said, I if you want to take the risk-”

“I do.”

Wallflower’s voice held a not of uncharacteristic determination. Her body trembled a little as she held her fists clenched at her sides, like a shuddering green leaf, fragile and small, yet exceedingly vivid. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t even... know if I’m who I thought I was. But I can’t just turn away from this. Whatever the truth is, I want to know it, even if it means something... bad. B-besides, it sounds like knowing might help you all, too, right?”

Applejack was still frowning, but she adjusted her stetson and sighed, “Well, if ya got any kernels o’ truth ‘bout what’s up with them Dragons what’re after ya, it’d be help ta know it. Still don’t like this idea much, but if yer resolved ta take the risk, I ain’t gonna stop ya.”

“Alright, let’s do this!” Rainbow Dash said, giving Wallflower a playful punch on the shoulder that left the much slighter girl wincing and rubbing the spot. “Heheh, sorry, you don’t bruise easy, right?”

After Sunset grabbed the Memory Stone, Spike led them to an elevator, a cylindrically shaped one built into one far corner of the main lab. It was a cozy ride down to what Sunset estimated to be only about twenty feet down below the manor, then felt the elevator shift into... horizontal movement?

“Heh, Twilight built the testing area not directly beneath the mansion, but out into the fields behind the place,” Spike said, and Sunset nodded.

“Right, I remember there’s a huge back lawn that may as well be half a dozen football fields. Guess that’s a safer area to build under for potentially dangerous experiments.”

“Yup, and the chambers have emergency exits up to the yard, so not like we’re trapped underground,” Spike said, and soon afterward the elevator stopped its horizontal motion with a soft ‘ding’ and the doors opened.

What lay outside the doors was what looked like a big, dome shaped arena, with a reinforced steel floor and massive support struts going up the now thirty foot high ceiling. Sunset estimated the elevator, while moving sideways, also must have curved down a little, probably putting them about fifty feet underground. Nothing she couldn’t easily punch through, if needed. Lights flipped on as they entered, and along the floor about twenty feet from the elevator doors a panel opened and a platform rose up with a computer terminal on it.

“You can set up various parameters for testing from there,” Spike said, “Force fields, gravity controls, drone deployment, all sorts of stuff.”

Sunset looked at the Memory Stone in her hand, “Not sure we’ll need any of that, but good to know it’s there. Alright Wallflower, let’s head to the center of the chamber and see what we can do with this. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, stick nearby, but don’t get too close. If something goes haywire, I don’t want either of you getting caught in it.”

“Got it.”

“I hear ya.”

The speedster and farmgirl took up lookout positions near the computer terminal with Spike, while Sunset and Wallflower walked out to the middle of the wide chamber, which easily spanned a couple hundred yards of diameter. Sunset smiled slightly, wondering if Twilight was inspired a little by Discord’s training area under the shop. At least she hadn’t gone quite that crazy on the size and wards, although Sunset’s spiritual senses detected the presence of faint wards, and even her magical intuition told her Twilight had infused some magic in the chamber, probably from more magic-tech devices.

Once in the center of the chamber, she turned to face Wallflower, “Alright, want me to try testing it out first before you do?”

Wallflower visibly gulped, “I-if you think it’ll help? What do you plan to try, exactly?”

“Well, we want to work out if this thing can give memories back, right? So I’m thinking what I’ll try to do is see if I can extract a trivial memory out of my head, then try to put it right back. If it fails, well, it’ll be a memory I don’t need, so no big loss, but if it works, then we know it should work for you, too.”

The other girl gave a slow nod, looking a bit more confident, if perhaps only because Sunset was speaking with such calm herself. “Makes sense to me. Do you need me to show you how to work it? I still remember that much.”

Sunset shook her head, “Nah, I think I got the idea. Magic artifacts might be unpredictable, but a common trait a lot of them have is that, for better or worse, they tend to be very easy to use.”

She could already feel the magic humming inside the Memory Stone, as if it sensed it was in the hands of someone from its original world. While she hadn’t been in the form of a unicorn for a very long time, she still remembered the sensations of magic as clearly as if she was still sitting in class at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. While she might not have had a horn to use, she had a similar means of focusing the energies inside herself, her body having no long since grown use to her spiritual powers, which were all infused with some of her magic in the first place. So it was almost as natural as breathing for her to will the magic within the stone to rise up to her will.

Sunset focused on a basic memory of what she ate for breakfast that morning, and willed the stone to take that memory. In a moment, a thin beam of lime green light rose from the stone in a swirl and attached itself almost like a fishing line to Sunset’s head. Then, like a fishing pole reeling in a catch, it pulled forth a strand of light that had the faintest imagery imprinted on its surface of Sunset eating breakfast that morning, consisting of a quick bit of toast and scrambled eggs, along with a glass of milk. She felt the memory go, able to recall everything before and after that breakfast, but the memory itself was just absent now from her mind as it got sucked into the stone.

It all took a mere second to do, and Wallflower gulped as she watched, “Do you feel okay?”

“Yeah, little light headed, but didn’t hurt or anything,” Sunset said, turning the Memory Stone over in her hand, pursing her lips, “Right, step one done. Now let’s see if I can get this thing to spit the memory back out.”

This took longer. Perhaps because she didn’t actually remember the memory she was trying to extract, she had to focus much harder and visualize the empty space in her mind, and her desire to have that space filled in once more. The Memory Stone quivered in her palm, glowing green, but after a minute of coaxing that same strand of imagery of her breakfast emerged like a timid mouse, and slowly slipped back into her head. She felt a bit of a mental kick as the memory reasserted itself, but after a moment she felt normal again.

From across the chamber, Rainbow Dash yelled, “You didn’t lobotomize yourself, did you Sunset? And if you did, can I have your video game collection?”

Sunset grinned ruefully at her friend, “Not even if I was six feet under, Dash. I want that stuff buried with me!”

She heard Dash laugh as she took a deep breath and held the Memory Stone towards Wallflower, “Guess we can call that a successful test. It clearly has the means to give memories back, as long as you can focus enough on what you want returned.”

Wallflower gave the stone an uncertain look, reaching for it slowly, then pulling her hand back with a worried look, “I don’t even know for sure what I need to remember. There feels like there’s so much missing. So many jumbled, uncertain memories that feel stitched together or half there.”

Sunset nodded slowly, “We can call this off, if you want.”

The other girl shook her head with a shuddering breath, reaching out once more to take the Memory Stone, “No. No I have to do this. I think I... just need to focus on the one thing I want to remember most right now. My mother. The woman I think was my mother, or at least she took care of me. She... had red hair, kind of like yours. She reminds me of you, Sunset. I feel like I know you, before I ever knew you.”

That got Sunset tilting her head, her mind briefly racing towards what little she knew about her human self in this world. If Wallflower had been hanging around, hidden in the city, surviving with swiss-cheese memories for years... could this really be connected to the girl who now called herself Fenice?

“Alright, go for it. Just take it slow, and know we’re all keeping an eye on you. First sign of trouble, I’ll take the stone and try to stop it, okay?”

Wallflower nodded, clasping the Memory Stone between her two hands, “Okay. Here I go...”

For a long minute or two nothing seemed to be happening. Wallflower just stood there, eyes closed tight, face pinched in concentration as she held the stone in front of her light she was praying to it. Sunset’s senses could feel the quiver of magic from the Memory Stone, at first feeling normal as when she’d used it. But then, in a sudden surge, she felt a burst of magic rise from the stone in such a sharp tidal wave it was almost enough to knock her off her feet. Green light roiled out from the stone in a radiant wave, drenching all in green. Wallflower gasped, her eyes shooting wide as the stone seemed to keep itself rooted to her hands as she was lifted into the air.

“Crap! Going to file this under one of my less brilliant ideas,” Sunset said as she flew up and grabbed Wallflower, trying to pry the Memory Stone away from her. She was more than strong enough, even without transforming into her Soul Reaper state, to get the Memory Stone free and hurl it away. She and Wallflower fell to the ground, Sunset shielding the girl with her body as they hit.

However, even as the both sat up, the Memory Stone was still glowing with that incredibly intense green light, and flew up into the air. Sunset felt magic torrenting out of the thing, far more than there should have been inside it according to Twilight’s analysis. Even weirder, this magic wasn’t just the stone’s, but something else, something that felt denser than normal magic. Sunset looked, and her eyes widened as she saw what looked like a symbol of a chain appearing in front of the Memory Stone for a moment before the symbol shattered like glass.

Then light, both green and white, shot out in a beam right towards Wallflower. Sunset grasped her Soul Reaper badge and transformed in an instant, whipping out her Zanpaktou and getting in the beam’s path. However this wasn’t an attack, it was an almost living surge of raw magic along with floods of memory strands, all of which flowed around Sunset like she wasn’t even there and shot at the speed of light towards Wallflower.

Sunset and Rainbow Dash both moved, equaling that speed of light, although Rainbow Dash was the faster between the pair, having exploded into her Fullbring state in a burst of lightning. Sunset saw Rainbow Dash coming, and pushed Wallflower towards the faster speedster, who grabbed the completely frozen girl in mid-air. Extended her reiatsu protectively around Wallflower to keep the light speed motion from pasting her, Rainbow Dash started to dart for the nearest emergency exit.

However the wave of magic and memories chased her, moving faster and faster, no bound even by the constraints of light itself.

Rainbow Dash hit the door to the emergency exit, not even slowed down by the thick metal, tearing through it like it was paper and flying up the stairs towards the surface. Sunset Shimmer followed, Applejack and Spike close behind. While Applejack and Spike weren’t light-speed fast, they’d both changed, Applejack entering her Fullbring and Spike mounting his mech with a touch of his silver wolf-head pin. The Gunwolf was certainly quick with its thrusters, far faster than anything of normal science and steel due to Quincy alchemy, technology, and Twilight’s magic-tech blend. As a result he kept easy pace with Applejack as they followed Sunset and Rainbow Dash up the long flight of emergency stairs where a hatch opened up into the wide back yard area near a forested set of short hills well out back of the Sparkle family estate.

And once up there it was clear to see the magic and memories, all spiraling together in a beam that didn’t get slowed by mere dirt and earth, flew faster than even Rainbow Dash’s insane speed could manage and had caught Wallflower in mid-air, just a hundred or so feet off the ground.

Rainbow Dash was holding on to the girl, trying to pull her out of the beam as the relentless tide of magic and memories surrounded and then entered Wallflower in a blazing rush. The girls eyes glowed, her mouth gaping open in a soundless scream. Magic crackled over her body and as Sunset and the others watched, she began to change.

Her body began to grow in size, her limbs gaining muscle mass rapidly, her hair lengthening and turning an even darker shade of green that then gained streaks of black, yet with snowy white tips. Her body remained human, but her facial features grew more nobly angled, less pudgy and more sculpted with a prominent brow and strong chin. Her human clothes were shredded but in their place appeared a gorgeous woolen dress of black cloth and gold trim that covered her body all the way down past her knees, which then became clad in leather wrapped sandals. A headband of ivy appeared in her hair, interspersed with golden pins shaped like skulls.

By the time she was done growing, Wallflower had become close to fifteen feet tall, and as her body settled to the ground, she wobbled for a moment before her shining white eyes stopped glowing and now blinked with confusion... then rage.

“ᚹᚺᛖᚱᛖ ᚨᛗ ᛁ? ᛁᛋ ᛏᚺᛁᛋ ᛗᛁᛞᚷᚨᚱᛞ?”

The words that came out of her mouth were of a language Sunset Shimmer had never heard, but it was clear Wallflower was speaking in anger, no recognition in her eyes as she looked at her and her friends. Wallflower stumbled slightly, and held her head with a groan, then glared at them, her voice getting louder as a crackle of dark energy gathered in her fist.

“ᚨᚾᛋᚹᛖᚱ ᛗᛖ, ᛗᛟᚱᛏᚨᛚᛋ! ᚹᚺᚤ ᚨᛗ ᛁ ᚨᚹᚨᚴᛖᚾᛖᛞ ᛁᚾ ᛗᛁᛞᚷᚨᚱᛞ!? ᚹᚺᛖᚱᛖ ᛁᛋ ᚷᛚᛟᚱᚤ!?”

Spike from inside the Gunwolf said, “I have no idea what she’s saying, but she sounds kinda ticked off.”

Sunset noticed that the grass around Wallflower’s feet started to turn brown and decay, as if she was sucking the life force right out of them to further empower the energy gathering in her hand. Wallflower twitched her fist, and sent the power in it out in a swift burst of black, lancing force that was aimed right at Sunset. Fortunately her reflexes were more than quick enough to get her shield in place, Hikari gleaming white with power as the shield blocked the lance of black energy. Although the impact wasn’t too severe, at least compared to what Sunset was used to dealing with at this point, she felt a hint of fatigue, as if some of her life energy had been somehow absorbed by the blow. Indeed the lance of dark energy had left a trail of dead grass in its wake.

Wallflower’s face contorted in surprise, as if she was genuinely shocked to see Sunset actually withstand the attack.

“ᚹᚺᚨᛏ ᛈᛟᚹᛖᚱ ᛁᛋ ᛏᚺᛁᛋ ᛁ ᛋᛖᚾᛋᛖ? ᛗᛟᚱᛏᚨᛚᛋ ᚺᚨᚡᛖ ᚾᛖᚡᛖᚱ ᛒᛖᛖᚾ ᚨᛒᛚᛖ ᛏᛟ ᚹᛁᛏᚺᛋᛏᚨᚾᛞ ᚨ ᛒᛚᛟᚹ ᚠᚱᛟᛗ ᚨ ᚷᛟᛞ ᛒᛖᚠᛟᚱᛖ!”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash glanced at each other and nodded, “She might’ve gotten big, but she ain’t no Tirek. We’d better get her nice n’ hogtied ‘till Twilight gets back and can help us fix whatever just went wrong.”

Applejack blasted towards Wallflower, not bothering to use her drill lance and instead grabbing Wallflower’s left arm and bending it behind the giant girl’s back. Rainbow Dash followed right behind her, lighting coursing over her body as she zipped to Wallflower’s other arm and grabbed it. Wallflower’s eyes flashed with indignant anger, voice shouting with an almost echoing boom.

“ᚷᛖᛏ ᚤᛟᚢᚱ ᚺᚨᚾᛞᛋ ᛟᚠᚠ ᛟᚠ ᛗᛖ, ᚤᛟᚢ ᚲᚱᛖᛏᛁᚾᛋ! ᛁ ᚨᛗ ᛏᚺᛖ ᛞᚨᚢᚷᚺᛏᛖᚱ ᛟᚠ ᛚᛟᚴᛁ! ᛁ ᚨᛗ ᚺᛖᛚ!”

Sunset grimaced as her friends kept hold of Wallflower, “Be careful, guys! She might not be that powerful, but she’s draining lifeforce!”

Also, amid that last string of unknown language, Sunset’s keen hearing picked up on two of the words that sounded somewhat familiar. ‘Loki’ and ‘Hel’. Norse deities. Norse deities that Sunset knew now after her experiences with the Zero Division had been very real and once walked the Earth.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash weren’t having trouble holding the thrashing Wallflower, despite how much the now fifteen foot tall girls muscles bulged, but what did start to happen was that snaking tendrils of dark energy began to flow down Wallflowers arms and as they touched where Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s hands gripped her, the black energy seeped into them and immediately caused both girls to gasp and grunt in pain.

“Oh heck no!” Rainbow Dash said, vanishing and appearing a good twenty yards back, shaking her hands to get the black tendrils of energy off of her as she pushed her reiatsu out to zap them with electricity, “Ugh, that felt like having the most oily of oil slicks touching my hand!”

Applejack held on a bit longer out of sheer stubbornness, but had to leap back as well as the tendrils of necrotic energy seeped into her golden armor. She glared at Wallflower, “Well that’s a nasty trick. Maybe we ought just knock her out with one hammer blow ta the noggin’?”

Wallflower growled at them, almost like a feral creature more than a person, and leaped into the air. Wind stirred and it was as if from her feet emerged a dark cloud of smoke that she began to fly away on. Sunset grimaced, knowing that they were in a populated area and that trying to chase down a possible reawakened Norse goddess in the body of a scared, confused girl was going to be a massive pain in the butt. And that was before accounting for her apparent necromantic powers.

It wasn’t a question of overpowering Wallflower, because any of them had enough power to probably take her down. It was doing it gently enough to not hurt Wallflower that was the issue.

“Well we need to chase her and keep her from getting too far. Applejack, hold back, and Dash, try to use your lightning and weather powers to box her in and stun her. I’ll see about knocking her out.”

As she spoke, however, Spike suddenly jumped into the air, the Gunwolf stepping upon microscopic platforms of reishi in exact imitation of a Quincy Hirenkyaku technique. “Hold up, Sunset. Let me handle this. The Gunwolf has a lot of non-lethal weapon options, and this is a good chance for me to test them.”

“Spike, this isn’t a game-” Sunset began, but the dog quickly spoke again, his voice calm and sincere.

“I know. You girls follow close and step in if I don’t pull this off, but Twilight entrusted the Gunwolf to me, trusted me to look after things here while she was gone. This is partially my fault for letting this happen. Let me do this so I can put it right. I’ll capture Wallflower, I promise.”

It was a tad reckless, but she could hear the earnest desire in Spike’s voice. He wanted to help, and felt responsible for the situation escalating to this point. It would probably do him good to let him try, and she had to admit she was curious what this Gunwolf of his could do. And it wasn’t as if she, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack wouldn’t be right there to step in if he started to get in over his head. She took a deep breath, knowing she could trust Spike. Twilight’s loyal friend might not have been much of a presence in her own life, but Sunset knew a trustworthy guy when she saw one.

“Alright Spike, she’s all yours. We’ll be right behind you.”

Applejack grinned and hefted her drill lance, “Git on after her then, ya bloodhound.”

“Yeah, she’s like, already nearly to the next manor, so maybe we ought to hurry up?” Rainbow Dash said, and Spike chuckled. The Gunwolf suddenly began to glow around the edges with an intense blue aura, and the mecha’s blue mechanicals eyes flashed.

“On it! Gunwolf, entering combat mode!”

With respectable speed, the Gunwolf moved in a streak of blue motion, flying after Wallflower with high-speed leaps across the air just like a Hirenkyaku. Sunset, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack took to the air as well, following in pursuit.

----------

Timber Spruce was sweating bullets. His next move might decide everything! Trying to control his breathing, he reached with a trembling hand towards the objects that would decide his fate. Almost too afraid to watch, he rolled the dice.

“Hah! Nine!” Asena said, her wolfish features grinning at him with long fangs as she counted the spaces that Timber Spruce would have to move his piece, “You have landed upon my territory, puny mortal man! I have...” she counted briefly, “Three houses on the Place of Parks means you owe me eight hundred of your tiny colorful papers! Pay up, mortal!”

Timber groaned, forking over what little was left of his Monopoly money to the grinning she-wolf. Across from them both, Simurgh rolled her eyes and picked up the dice, rolling them without paying much attention, “You are entirely too into this children’s game, Asena.”

Both the wolf and bird from the Beast Realm had shifted into ‘human’ form, although anyone who looked at the pair closely would be able to easily tell they weren’t exactly normal. Asena’s ears remained pointed and a tad fuzzy like wolf ears, her eyes sharp and amber, her mouth still clearly bearing wolf fangs. Otherwise she also looked like a hulking, blue skinned woman who would put some female bodybuilders to shame, wearing clothing that looked like a Norse warriors fur cuirass and loincloth, which would’ve drawn stares even without the wolf features and massive, wild mane of dark gray hair. Simurgh wasn’t much better, her green skin and long, light blue hair normal enough if not for the obvious peacock feathers hanging amid her hair strands, and the similar thick feathers hanging from her arms. Her clothes were no more subtle than Asena’s, consisting of near sheer see through green and blue cloth like some exotic dancer, covered in gold and silver bangles.

They were sitting in a waiting room at Discord’s shop, Gloriosa having driven them over and gone to talk with the eccentric shop owner and leader of the Coalition. Meanwhile Timber was stick keeping the two Beast Realm guests entertained, and, well, he’s spied the Monopoly game on one of the shelves...

“Hah!” Asena laughed at Simurgh, “You are just mad that you are losing! I had no idea the realm of Midgard had such amusing entertainments! A game of ruthless territorial battle and resource acquisition! Ah, the only thing that would make this better is if there were honor duels as well, but I shall settle for annihilating my foes by taking all that is theirs and making it mine!”

“Hmph, this is a boorish game of chance and little else,” Simurgh said, then her eyes lit up as she counted her spaces and moved the tiny car piece, “Oh, I passed GO! I can collect two hundred dollars now. How exciting!”

Asena grunted, “Boorish game, hm?”

“Well, it is, but that doesn’t mean I intend to lose without a fight. Now roll the dice, you insufferable wolf.”

The door to the waiting room opened and Timber Spruce let out a sigh of relief as he saw his sister enter alongside Discord. “Oh thank God.”

Gloriosa gave him a curious look as she noted the Monopoly board and he just shrugged at her haplessly, while Discord cleared his throat and tipped his green and white striped hat at the two Beast Realm women. “Ladies, what an unexpected pleasure to host two visitors from your fascinating realm. Gaia here tells me you’ve come on some urgent business?”

Asena and Simurgh exchanged looks and both stood up as one. Bowing, Simurgh spoke first, “We require your help in finding the Daughter of the Dragon and the Daughter of the Wolf, the ones you know as Celestia and Luna, of the Gotei 13. We also must meet the chosen warriors of harmony, whom are to be gathered to face the embers of Ragnarok. The Convocation of the Clans begins, and we are to escort them to the base of Yggdrasil.”

Discord blinked, then narrowed his eyes, “Oh, is that all? I suppose Fenris and Quetzalcoatl sent you both? Looking for a family reunion with their daughters, after spending so long ignoring them?”

Asena’s eyes gleamed as she growled and Simurgh, more diplomatic, held up a hand, “The accord between Soul Society and the High Chieftains made it plain the Daughter of the Dragon and Daughter of the Wolf were to be raised among the Soul Reapers, with the understanding that when the time was right, they would bridge the gap between realms. The time has come... sooner than expected.”

A faint twitch of a grimace crossed Discord’s face, but he nodded, “If you’re looking for those two, I can get a message to Soul Society quickly. However, about those ‘warriors of harmony’, you’ll find your timing has been less than ideal. Two of them are in Hueco Mundo, three of them are off taking care of a personal matter with a newly acquired friend, and one of them... is beyond our reach at the moment.”

“What?” Asena grunted, barring her teeth, “But the Fates were consulted! The Daughters of the Dragon and Wolf are to be accompanied by the warriors of harmony!”

Discord shrugged, “Guess the ‘Fates’ are having an off day. That, or somebody didn’t understand whatever half baked drivel came out of them. Either way, you want to meet those girls, you might need to wait a bit.”

Just then, however, Gloriosa turned her head and looked back out the door, although she wasn’t looking into the hallway, but with a more distant gaze. Her expression was followed by Asena and Simurgh, who both stiffened and looked up, as if seeing something far off. Discord, for his part, frowned at the sight of the three’s reaction, then closed his eyes and focused his own senses.

Timber, gulping, was afraid even to ask.

“This energy...” Gloriosa said, “I’ve felt it before. Gaia Everfree has, at least.”

Asena and Simurgh’s eyes napped open, looking at each other with equal looks of disbelief.

“It cannot be her, can it?” Asena said, and Simurgh nodded with severity.

“We must go and see for ourselves. If we can sense it, it is possible Jormungandr will as well!”

----------

Spike could feel every aspect of the Gunwolf as if it was his own body. The neural band around his head did more than connect his mind to the magic-tech, spiritual construct. It synchronized his soul with it, much like how a Quincy was connected to their bow. All of his senses essentially extended out of the wolf-shaped mech as he moved effortlessly through the air.

It wasn’t simply a testament to Twilight’s skill and talent as an engineer, or with magic and spiritual powers that was allowing Spike to rapidly catch up with Wallflower. From the moment Twilight had finished building the Gunwolf, Spike had hardly slept, spending every waking moment training with it. That was partially why he’d started taking a nap the moment he’d let Sunset and the girls into the lab. He was literally dog tired, doing almost nothing but eat in between training sessions.

When Shining Armor had arrived he’d all but begged Twilight’s brother to help train him. Briefly he wondered if either Shining Armor or Cadence had sensed what was going on. Probably, but things were happening so fast that the pair probably were still trying to figure out just where the trouble was located.

Good, because Spike wanted to do this on his own. Maybe it was foolish, but ever since Twilight had been attacked by that assassin, he’d been feeling an ever growing urge to find some way to be of help to her and the other girls. Usually he was pretty content to just provide Twilight with emotional support, knowing how much his precious friend needed to feel like someone cared about her. She’d been a bit of a mess before meeting Sunset Shimmer and the others, and Spike was always going to be grateful for the chance those girls gave Twilight to make worthwhile friends.

But he had a lingering feeling in the back of his mind that made him wonder, now that Twilight had friends, including a building professional relationship with her pals from Crystal Prep, and fellow Quincy, how much did she really need him anymore? She’d left him charge while she was gone to Hueco Mundo, sure... but she hadn’t taken him along.

He understood why, obviously. She didn’t want him getting hurt. Even building the Gunwolf, she probably thought it was far too early for him to be tossed into danger with it.

Well, too late for that now! He was going to do this!

He could sense Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack keeping pace behind him and he was grateful the trio were willing to let him take the lead. Sunset probably understood what he was feeling. Up ahead he could easily keep track of Wallflower, his vision able to zoom in on her as if in slow motion. She was sailing through the air on that cloud of dark gray smoke, and he saw her look back at him with wide, angry eyes.

She raised a palm towards him, dark necrotic energy coiling around her fist. She flung several lances of the deadly power at Spike, and he and the Gunwolf moved as one, leaping to the left and right as he kicked off the air in swift bursts. In terms of speed and agility he was able to readily match her, and he rushed ahead faster, feeling energy course through him as the Gunwolf drew upon his spirit and the potent power reserves from the M-Cells inside its core.

The Gunwolf was aptly named, sporting quite a few more weapons than were obvious at a glance. With a thought he called up a list of weapons like a drop-down list in a video game, and selected the missile pods equipped with non-lethal stun ordinance. On the flanks of the Gunwolf, blue reishi flashed and formed into a pair of box shaped missile mounts, which opened and revealed dozens of small, hex-shaped missiles that fired out in a swift swarm.

Wallflower looked shocked as the wave of small missiles moved with shocking speed and flew at her, each one crackling with stunning, electrical energy. She growled and spread her arms wide, taking the coils of black energy around her arms and forming it into a half dome shield in front of her. As the missiles passed through they weren’t stopped so much as their metal and energies were corroded, as if the necrotic power of the shield was leeching the reishi of its vital force. Most of them fell inert as they passed through the shield, but a few had managed to fly around it and came at Wallflower form the sides. Impacting her in spherical bursts of electrical power.

“ᚨᚱᚷᚺ! ᛋᚢᚲᚺ ᛋᛏᚱᚨᚾᚷᛖ ᚨᛚᚲᚺᛖᛗᚤ ᚤᛟᚢ ᚹᛁᛖᛚᛞ, ᛗᛖᛏᚨᛚ ᚹᛟᛚᚠ!”

Wallflower grunted in pain from the blows but didn’t fall, dropping her barrier and throwing both hands forward to try and strike Spike and the Gunwolf with a wider, wave-like beam of combined necrotic power from her palms. He flew up to evade it, leaping high into the air and then angling himself to come down at her in a rush. Switching weapons, the missile pods vanished, and in the Gunwolf’s metal jaws a flash of reishi formed into the shape of a big, double-sided blade, one edge extending from either side of the jaw. The blade was in non-lethal mode, it’s edge blunted rather than razor sharp, and crackling with more electricity to stun. In lethal mode it could vibrate at insanely high frequency, cutting reishi particles with ease, but Spike figured they wanted Wallflower alive and intact, instead of diced to pieces.

He flew at her, swinging his head and hence the electrified stun blade in his mouth.

She crossed her arms to block, and he impacted with her at full speed, breaking the sound barrier as he launched her body towards the ground. Down below was one of the long, snaking streets between manors in this rich residential area, and Wallflower hit the street hard enough to not only crack through the pavement and crater into it, but to upend several nearby luxury cards parked along the sidewalk.

Spike winced a little as car alarms started going off, “Whoops. Here’s hoping nobody notices?”

As Wallflower got up from the middle of the crater her impact had made, Spike landed the Gunwolf on the sidewalk, and raised the tail of the mech and aimed the barrel of the gun at the tip of it at her. This, too, was a versatile weapon, with multiple firing modes. As with the other weapons he’d used thus far, this one was currently set for non-lethal force, charging up a gleaming blue bolt of power meant to fry and frazzle the synapse and senses of even a tough spirit entity like an Arrancar.

He fired a continuous blue stream of stunning light firing from the gun tail. Wallflower reached down into the ground and hauled up a slab of concrete, a piece of the street as large as a van that she used to block the stream of energy. Normally he could easily punch through that just but cranking up the energy output, but that would turn the beam distinctly lethal, so he avoided that. This gave Wallflower time to gather her strength and she hurled the huge slab of broken street at Spike!

“Whoa!” He wasn’t too worried, as something like that wouldn’t do any real damage to the Gunwolf, but it was still surprising and he slashed with the mech’s front claws on reflex. This diced the slab of street and rock to pieces, but Spike was surprised to find Wallflower barreling at him right behind it!

She tackled him, her big fifteen foot frame trying to push the Gunwolf over. However Spike wasn’t so easily pushed around within the heart of his mech, and he ground his hind claws into the street, only sliding back a few feet before stopping Wallflower. He then hooked his arms under hers and turned the tables, flipping her over and body slamming her to the sidewalk with a loud impact.

The air was knocked out of her lungs, and as she was momentarily stunned, Spike got on top of her, metal paws pressed down on her shoulders to keep her arms pinned as he leaned over her.

“Seriously, lady, give it a rest!” he growled, feeling his hackles rise despite the fact that he wasn’t really trying to hurt her, “Don’t know what’s happened to you, but we can’t fix you if you go running around all crazy like.”

“ᛚᛖᛏ ᛗᛖ ᚷᛟ! ᛁ ᚹᛟᚾ'ᛏ ᚷᛟ ᛒᚨᚲᚴ! ᛁ ᚹᛟᚾ'ᛏ!”

Wallflower shook her head and struggled under him, and Spike felt a rising instinct deep in his chest that made him growl even lower. The Gunwolf’s claws pressed into Wallflower, not quite drawing blood, but getting close. He couldn’t see himself, but his eyes had grown alight with a feral quality, a line of amber rimming his otherwise green eyes.

“Spike, whoa, ease up dude!” Rainbow Dash said, as she, Applejack, and Sunset landed nearby. “We’re trying to catch her, not make her piss herself.”

Spike didn’t realize just how loudly he was growling, a sound that somehow didn’t even feel natural coming from his throat. His heart was pounding fast, blood surging in his ears, and for a moment he wasn’t even sure where he was until he finally came back to himself. He didn’t get off Wallflower, but he did lessen the intensity of the Gunwolf’s bleedingly sharp claws on her.

“I, uh... yeah.”

For her part, Wallflower was no longer struggling under him. Instead her eyes were looking at the Gunwolf with confusion, shock, and... recognition? She spoke again, and while it was the same language, the word itself was recognizable, and spoken with the voice of someone seeing a ghost.

“...ᚠᛖᚾᚱᛁᚱ?”

Fenrir.

Episode 191: Things Forgotten

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Episode 191: Things Forgotten

It’d been so long since she genuinely had to act in a role that Chrysalis had to admit with no shortage of grudging self-irritation that she’d lost her touch somewhat. Sure, fooling the less than attentive guards at the entrance to what was once her hive had been a simple affair, and she was still keeping up a mask of innocence for the casual observers who might see her trot by in her disguised form... but the whole affair was becoming draining. Everywhere she went, she saw smiling, happy, colorful Changelings living their new lives in peaceful enthusiasm and cheer. It grated on her like an ice cold sliver in her brain. It was like her people never needed her at all! Flushed the memory of her, their queen, down the drain like yesterday’s offal.

It brought the mocking laughter of her Hollow counterpart back to her own memory, the snide and chiding way that creature had degraded her and slapped her in the face with her own powerlessness and failures.

There was almost no controlling the scowl on her face whenever she wasn’t being directly looked at, and she knew the innocent smile she flashed when one of her Changelings did look her way was far more forced than it should have been. Back when she was on top of her game she could slip into any role seamlessly. Now she had the distinct feeling that Platinum was having a much easier time of this than she was. The Soul Reaper had gone to scout around where Chrysalis had kept the hive’s old vault, while Chrysalis herself was on her way to the spot next to the fountain in the main courtyard where she’d agreed to meet up with that obnoxious child, Ocellus.

It somewhat bothered Chrysalis that she couldn’t even remember if Ocellus was one of her own, or one of the ones born among her drones later. She supposed it didn’t matter, really, but the thought stuck like a small prickle barb in the back of her mind.

When she saw Ocellus, Chrysalis wasn’t surprised to notice the child had a couple of friends with her, both equally young. One was a painfully orange female with the unfortunate combination of neon green streaks on her chitin and wings the same sparkly shade. The other child beside Ocellus was male, and bore bright violet chitin along with soft pink wings and frills not unlike Ocellus’. As she approached, the trio saw her and Ocellus waved and they all flew over.

“Hi Vespid! I’m glad you showed up,” said Ocellus, gesturing to the pair beside her, “This is Spinneret and her brother Fuller. We’ve been pals ever since the Big Change.”

Chrysalis barely managed to smile and kept her brow from twitching. She didn’t ask what the ‘Big Change’ was, considering if she was a resident she ought to already know, and it wasn’t exactly a big exercise in brain power to work out what it meant. The Changelings had only one ‘Big Change’ happen to them that would’ve required the title. As for their names, Spinneret made sense to her, and it could have been a name she might have picked out herself, but 'Fuller' was an odd one. She was sure she'd never named any of her children that, so perhaps these two were second generation?

“Pleased to meet you both,” she said, nodding to the brother-sister pair.

“So you’re Vespid, huh?” Spinneret said, buzzing her wings as she hovered around Chrysalis, arms crossed as she eyed her up and down with a smile that had a little fire in it, as if she was sizing up a rival rather than merely greeting. While it partially annoyed Chrysalis, she also felt a tiny twinge of satisfaction. At least a shred of her old Changelings was still present in a handful of them. “So why haven’t I seen you around before?”

Spinneret's brother, Fuller, visibly blanched at his sister’s behavior and said, “Spin, ease up, will you? She’s probably from one of the families that were out doing spy stuff before the Big Change.”

“Oh, right, ol’ Queeny really did send us all over the dang place to infiltrate, back in the day,” Spinneret said, sighing with a flat look on her face, “So that it, huh? You and your big sis were out there spying and stuff when Queeny went kaput?”

Chrysalis felt her jaw grinding a little, but she still smiled and nodded, “Something like that. The old Queen did have a lot of our people acquiring vital information on potential targets before... going ‘kaput’.”

Ocellus looked at her with sympathy and came up to her, putting a hoof on Chrysalis’ shoulder, which she instinctively pulled away from. Physical contact was... not comfortable for her, at least when she wasn’t the one initiating it for her own purposes. Ocellus blinked at the way ‘Vespid’ reacted, and demurely looked away, “Oh, um, sorry. I just wanted to say I’m sorry you and your sister had to go through that. I heard from my parents that infiltration work was the hardest, and most dangerous thing from back when... when she ran things.”

“It... wasn’t that bad,” Chrysalis said, feeling distinctly uncomfortable with the turn of the conversation. What was Ocellus talking about? Infiltration wasn’t that difficult! Her entire race was practically born for it! And her spies were highly skilled. She never sent anyone out into the field who hadn’t proven their capability, and they almost always returned with good results... almost...

Looking away she said, “But that’s in the past. Big sis and I are totally happy that everything is all shiny, colorful, and happy-happy joy-joy around here. Yup, so glad that the old Queen is gone. Hahaha.”

Ugh, if this keeps up even the most dimwitted among these fools will figure out there’s something off about me. Get your head in the game, Chrysalis! Even if you’re people abandoned you like a ratty old dishrag, you’re still Queen of the Changelings! Act like it!

Flashing what she hoped was a more natural smile, she said, “Seriously, though, I’d rather get to playing rather than chatting about back then. Let’s find something fun to do.”

“New girl has the right idea,” said Spinneret, hovering around with an excited buzz, “We could play Change and Seek outside the hive.”

“C’mon, Spin, the guards won’t let us stay out very long anymore,” Fuller said, “Why don’t we just go to the roof and hang out there?”

“No, that’s totally boring. We literally do that almost every day, Full!”

Ocellus cleared her throat politely, “Maybe since Vespid is our new friend, she could decide what we do?”

The three young Changelings all looked her way, and Chrysalis flashed a confident grin as the situation provided the ideal circumstance for her to take advantage of. While she could feel the faint pressure in her mind that told her the Relic was somewhere in the hive, pinpointing it would require getting close. Spinneret's suggestion of Change and Seek was a perfect excuse to join Platinum in checking out the vault area, and then the caverns even deeper beneath the hive. Change and Seek was much like the more conventional Hide and Seek that the other species played, with the primary difference that the Changeling participants were encouraged to get as creative as possible in transforming into local flora, fauna, or even mundane objects if they were skilled enough to pull it off. She’d invented the game to train her children, and it was at least a little gratifying to see it was still a pastime for them.

“I like the idea of playing Change and Seek, but if we can’t go outside, we’ll just find a good spot to do it inside the hive. How about down in the lower levels?”

Ocellus blinked, “But... um, K-King Thorax doesn’t like us going down there, right?”

‘Vespid’ gave Ocellus a look of practiced peer pressure, finally getting a bit of her groove back as she smiled in just the right way to seem reasonable as she put just a hint of disappointment into her otherwise friendly voice, “Well I guess that’s true, but has he outright forbidden it?”

“Not exactly, but-”

“Then come on, Ocellus, the game is way more fun when there’s lots of places to hide, and if you don’t go down there very often aren’t you curious to see it? There’s even the vault I heard the old Queen kept. Who knows what’s in there?”

Spinneret giggled, her green eyes flashing with mirth, “Oh I’m starting to like you, Vespid. The King keeps the vault guarded, but I bet we could get a peek inside.”

“No way, sis!” Fuller said, “I don’t mind playing down there, but let’s not get ourselves into trouble, either.”

“Pfft, King Thorax is a big softie, Full. Even if we get into trouble, it’ll be a slap on the wrist. Totally worth checking out the vault!”

Time to push the idea a bit further, Chrysalis knew, and said with keen interest and child-like playfulness, “We could go even further than that. I remember hearing about all sorts of old caverns and tunnels down there. It’d be fun to explore them.”

Fuller and Ocellus exchanged worried looks, but Ocellus managed a small smile and shrugged, “I guess it’ll be okay, as long as we don’t go too far.”

“Yeah, but... well, okay, fine, but if something goes wrong, I officially don’t know any of you,” Fuller said, to which Spinneret snorted.

“Uh, dude, we’re siblings.”

“I still disavow any knowledge of ever having known you. Spinneret? Who’s that? Must be talking about some other poor sap’s idiot sister who got him into trouble.”

As the children bantered, Chrysalis allowed herself a small smile of satisfaction. It looked like things were slowly turning her way.

----------

Or perhaps not. Chrysalis felt a stab of undesired and thankfully brief respect for that idiot, Thorax. While security up top had seemed lax, apparently the buffoon had decided to concentrate protective measures on the one place where Chrysalis kept useful and dangerous items. In her days as Queen, she certainly kept a few guards on the vault doors, but otherwise couldn’t imagine her own people trying to break into the place. Thorax, apparently, had decided to take extra precautions. There were twice as many guards in the narrow hallway than Chrysalis had posted in the past, and from the buzz of magic she felt in the air, he’d also brought in some of those blasted Equestrian unicorns to add protective wards to the walls and big, thick stone doors.

“We’re, uh, not getting in there, not even for a peek,” said Ocellus, sounding quite understandably relieved. They were hiding at the far end of the hallway, whispering to each other, and Chrysalis barely contained her seething frown.

“It appears not,” she said, wondering if Platinum had already scouted here and was now looking for her? She didn’t sense the Soul Reaper’s reiatsu nearby, but that didn’t mean much. Chrysalis was still very unfamiliar with spirit energy, so Platinum could probably sneak up on her without much trouble. As for the guards, they weren’t much more attentive than the ones at the hive entrance had been, but there were six of them, all playing some kind of game with... marbles? Must have been an imported Equestrian thing.

“Well, crud, but guess we can still play,” said Spinneret, scrunching her nose in disappointment, “I really wanted to see if ol’ Queeny actually kept trophies from each conquest in there.”

“Ew, why?” asked Fuller, “I don’t even like thinking about her.”

“Oh don’t get me wrong, things sucked when she was in charge, and life is way better now, but I did kinda think she had... I dunno, style? Thorax is a cool King and all, but Queeny had way more presence.”

Ocellus looked at Spinneret with an almost sunken, pale look, “I... think the word you’re looking for is ‘fear’. She... kept all of us in fear.”

Spinneret blanched, her gossamer wings drooping, “Yeah, I guess so. I was scared of her too, but I suppose I’m the weird one, because she also seemed strong.”

“Then why did she ditch us the second the Big Change happened?” Fuller asked, “She just buzzed off and left us all behind, like we were nothing to her.”

“That’s not what happened!” Chrysalis shouted, immediately regretting it as not only did the three young Changelings look at her with startlement, but the guards down the hall stopped their game, one of them speaking in a loud, seeking tone.

“Who’s down there!?”

“Aw crud, scram guys!” Spinneret said, and the four of them took flight, buzzing down the hall as fast as they could away from the vault. After a minute of swift flying, the four found themselves in a lower hall, one that was more rough worked stone than shaped resin, and they all worked to catch their breaths.

“Whew... close call,” Fuller said, wiping his brow. Ocellus nodded in agreement, but her eyes focused on ‘Vespid’.

“Hey... what did you mean back there? ‘That’s not what happened’?”

Her mind scrambled fast to come up with an explanation, and Chrysalis kept her voice steady as she said, “I mean, I just... I was there like everyone else was that day. I don’t think...” Her mind reeled. She didn’t abandon her hive! It was they who abandoned her! “I mean, the old Queen had to flee, didn’t she? We’d all... changed, and she was facing multiple Equestrian alicorns, that blasted- I mean, that unicorn, Starlight Glimmer, the Element Bearers, even Discord himself was there! If she’d stayed and fought, she’d have lost instantly. I guess I’m just saying I don’t really see how she could have stayed, and saying it was abandonment isn’t...”

“But she could have just taken that unicorn’s hoof,” said Ocellus, “I was there, too. I saw that Starlight Glimmer mare offer Chrysalis a hoof. The old Queen slapped it away and ran. She didn’t have to do that. She could have stayed. Joined us and changed.”

Those words aggravated Chrysalis to no end, like iron hot pokers in her gut. It took all her willpower to control herself, and within the confines of her disguise she felt her Bakkoto stir, as if the spiritual weapon sensed her ire. “How could she just change everything she’d believed in and worked for in a single instant like that? Nobody just changes that quickly, especially when they just saw their whole life’s work crumble in front of their eyes.”

“What, you still a fan of hers or something?” Fuller asked, “Pharynx used to go around saying stuff like that, too.”

“I... no, I’m just saying, I... don’t think from her point of view that she was abandoning us. Maybe from her perspective, we all abandoned her.”

“Even if that were true,” Ocellus said after a quiet moment, “Thorax showed us a way that was better. I... I used to live every day being afraid of her. Chrysalis. I’d lose sleep at night wondering when either me or one of my family would be sent out on a mission that might get them hurt. I hated having to eat love from cocooned victims. I thought it was the only way, but I didn’t like a single second of it. The moment Thorax proved there was a different way, I felt so happy. I think a lot of us did. You must have, too, Vespid, otherwise you wouldn’t have changed, either.”

Chrysalis looked at the floor, taking a deep breath and trying to act the part of a simple, young Changeling that was being convinced of an argument. In truth she was roiling and screaming inside. Ocellus had hated eating love? It was the whole point of their existence! Living every day and night in fear? She’d only done what was needed to keep her people strong!

That was the truth. Wasn’t it? She’d led, and they’d followed out of devotion and loyalty. Had they all just followed her out of pure fear? Her mind kept wracking itself for details of the past. She could recall time and again her days of scheming to target the next small, remote village, ensuring to avoid drawing suspicion down upon her people by taking victims in small numbers. Missing ponies whose disappearance might have gotten a little attention, but not enough to clue the higher authorities in to the reality of what was happening. Because they’d taken their victims in small numbers, the harvested love had to be rationed. Clearly because she was the leader, and the strongest, she needed the most to stay potent and healthy, but she’d rationed effectively for the rest, had she not? How many times had she heard complaints? Not many, after cutting off rations to the few they did bellyache over it. But then that was why she’d wanted to target Canterlot itself and take the whole nation of Equestria! That way there wouldn’t be any need for strict rationing of love, or punishments for dissent, or...

...Or any of the other horrible things she’d done to keep her people in line.

Fortunately none of the other children present noticed ‘Vespid’ getting rather pale and sporting a distinctly disquieted look on her face.

“Okaaaay, can we put a lid on the serious talk?” said Spinneret, “I mean, c’mon, we’re here to play, not chat about missing Queeny’s who are probably never coming back.”

“Don’t even joke about that,” said Fuller, “I never want to see her again.”

“I wouldn’t mind it if she did come back,” said Ocellus, to which everyone, Chrysalis included, gave her a surprised look. Blushing in embarrassment, Ocellus simply clarified, “I just kind of think if she could see how well we’re all doing, how happy we all are, maybe she wouldn’t be as scared of the change, you know? She might see how good it is for us.”

‘Vespid’ looked away, suddenly finding a crack in the floor very interesting, mostly so Chrysalis could hide her expression of mixed apprehension fighting with scathing anger. Seeing how happy her hive was without her was mostly giving her an ulcer, but what got to her was the constant framing that she had been ‘scared’ of the change in her people! She wasn’t scared! She hadn’t been frightened to her very core by seeing her entire race transform into something so alien and unknown to her in front of her face! She hadn’t run away terrified of confronting the wretched notion that she’d been... wrong.

The word ‘wrong’ got stuck inside her gut like a piece of badly digested food that she couldn’t even throw up properly.

“Pfft, that’s some serious next-level optimism you’ve got there, Celly,” Spinneret said, patting Ocellus on the head, who sighed heavily.

“Don’t tease me, please.”

“Well, let’s get to playing!” Spinneret said, looking around, blinking, “Where are we anyway?”

Glad to have anything else to focus on besides the of ugly emotions inside her head, Chrysalis glanced around and recognized at least the general nature of the tunnels they were in, even if she’d never been down here much herself. “Looks like we ended up running straight into the lower caverns.”

Even as she said the words, she realized part of the unpleasant feelings inside her wasn’t just the turn the children's conversation had taken, but her headache from the presence of the Relic was gaining a sort of pulsating focus, even if faintly. She hadn’t felt much of anything near the vault, but now...?

“You know, I still feel a bit uneasy about being down here,” Ocellus said, “maybe we should just go back up?”

“No way! Now that we’re down here, we should take a look around!” buzzed Spinneret.

“What if we get lost?” asked Fuller, “I’m not eager to starve to death in some forgotten tunnel, just to satisfy your random curiosity, Spin.”

“Hold on a moment,” said Chrysalis, taking a few steps down a tunnel entrance to her left that was just a few paces down the main tunnel they were in. Turning that corner somehow felt familiar to her, as if she actually had been here before, and just couldn’t remember. When she got into the new tunnel, her eyes widened, and she popped back to wave to the others, “Hey, come take a look at this.”

They joined her in the left tunnel, and all saw that only about ten paces ahead the tunnel dipped down, but with clearly carved steps rather than a natural cave. More than that, at the bottom of the short flight of stone steps there was a big, stone door that was carved into the very wall. It had an arched top, but was set in a circular recess, surrounded by odd, carved geoglyphs. Upon the door itself was etched a square pattern filled with smaller glyphs set in random patterns, like someone’s long forgotten crossword puzzle.

“Whoooa!” Spinneret's eyes shot wide with gleaming glee, her wings buzzing as she flew forward, “Check this out! What is it!? It looks cool! I bet there’s gotta be treasure or something crazy behind this door!”

“That, or deadly traps, monsters, poisonous gas, ancient diseases, or any number of other terrible fates waiting to befall a bunch of dumb kids who mess with it,” Fuller pointed out with a flat look and dry tone.

His sister cast him a withering look, face drooped in the deepest of frowns, “You are like, the least fun.”

“I’m also alive, and would like to keep it that way.”

Ocellus approached the door with great trepidation, but also an unmistakable curiosity growing in her eyes, “I’ve never seen anything like this before. It’s... not something we made, right? I mean, there’s no resin anywhere, and these glyphs down look like any writing I know.”

‘Vespid’ gave her a sidelong look, “How many forms of writing do you know?” Chrysalis was rather curious, considering learning other languages and cultures was something she had encouraged for the sake of making infiltration easier, but that was usually for adult Changelings. Ocellus looked at her with a happy blush.

“Oh, I get my hooves on every book I can, now that we’re trading with other places! I read as much as I can! I only know enough to be conversational in about four languages so far, but I want to learn so much more. Heh, it’s, um, really kind of a dream of mine to travel the world and write about other places in one big book, when I grow up.”

Chrysalis blinked a few times, not sure how to process that. In the past, Changelings didn’t have time for something so frivolous as dreams. Learning was a tool for survival, of growing in power, all for the sake of gathering more hosts to steal precious love from. Now a child like Ocellus could just... learn for the sake of some dream?

Everything was different. It was starting to sink in to Chrysalis’ stubborn mind that even if she did return and reclaim her hive, it might not be possible to turn her people back into what they had been. The change was sunk in too deeply, now. Young ones like Ocellus would grow up and live entirely different lives from what Chrysalis had envisioned for the Changelings, and have children of their own who’d be born into a hive and world where her Changelings were just... stories, where she’d just be a story, some old boogeyman of yesteryear. Eventually even she’d be forgotten, and the Changelings would endure as this new... thing.

A thing she still despised, but wasn’t entirely certain she could fight or alter. It was a bitter pill to swallow, this realization that she’d never be ‘Queen’ again. All she had left was the pursuit of power, and revenge. And even the notion of revenge was starting to feel like an empty pursuit, something to do because what else was there for her?

She shoved the thoughts aside, and took a deep breath, realizing that Ocellus was giving her a worried look, probably because Chrysalis had been starring.

“Yes, well, if you don’t recognize this writing, then that must mean that whoever built this was... from a very long time ago,” she said while approaching the door. This was by far the best lead to the Relic she could imagine. From what she understood of these Relics, they were from a bygone age of wonders, where alicorns ruled in their multitudes. A mysterious door with unknown writing certainly looked like it fit the bill for a place an alicorn of ancient times might store a Relic... although it did beg the question as to why this location, of all places.

And it couldn’t be coincidence that in the modern era Chrysalis had built her hive right above the caverns housing this door. When she thought back to it, she’d had a lot of reservations about building her hive in the Badlands, excusing her whim as instead being ‘cunning’, as who’d look for a thriving population of anything in such an inhospitable environment. But... maybe she’d been subconsciously influenced by the Relic, waiting in the depths below?

Now the question was, should she try to get inside right now, or construe an excuse to ditch the children and go find Platinum, wherever she’d gone off to? Surely it’d be helpful to have the powerful Soul Reaper, who could probably take down the door herself. Granted, Chrysalis could probably brute force the door as well with any number of shapes in her repertoire. It was the rare door that could keep a powerful, determined Changeling out. Would it be too suspicious if ‘Vespid’ showed off the power and skill to break through the door? They already thought she and her ‘big sister’ were spies and infiltrators from the old days, so maybe she could pass it off as her just being skilled for her age.

The headache was pointed, acute, and she wanted to get to her Relic as soon as possible. She didn’t know where Platinum was, and who knew how much time she might waste trying to find her? No, Chrysalis was impatient to get on with this. She might no longer have known what she was fighting for, or what she even really wanted any longer, but she did know that she wanted power. If only because, much as she hated herself for the admission... she was scared. Scared of being left behind and forgotten. Scared of being the useless piece of trash her Hollow counterpart had told her she was. Scared of the notion that she’d been wrong about pretty much her entire life’s purpose and goals.

Maybe power wouldn’t fix all of that, but it sure would make her feel better. At least that’s what Chrysalis thought as she approached the door and morphed her arm into a sharp, adamantine blade, much to the surprise of the children watching.

She managed a disarming smile at them, “No worries, just a little trick my big sis taught me when we were infiltrating Yakyakistan a few years back. Adamantine can cut through pretty much anything.”

“Okay, that’s straight up wicked,” Spinneret said, eyes glowing as she looked at the blade that Chrysalis’ arm had turned into.

“Oh, you haven’t begun to see me be ‘wicked’ yet,” ‘Vespid’ said with a genuine smile this time, and started cutting through the stone door.

----------

Platinum was giving the pair a frozen stare. She’d dragged them both to the roof, well, mostly just one of them, while the other laughed and followed, but Platinum did not see what was so funny about this. “Okay young man, I know we haven’t been on the best of terms of late, but I still feel I am fully within my rights to ask what you think you’re doing following me out here. Especially with her along with you.”

Ocellus laughed like a hyena, holding her belly at Pipsqueak’s sour look. “Ohehehe, I can’t believe you caught us so quick, Mama Plat! Is this your keen, maternal instincts at work?”

Platinum wanted to smack her own face, but settled for a sharp glare at the Arrancar in the current shape of a unicorn, “I didn’t need maternal instincts to sense your spirit energies trying to sneak around behind my back. Among the Captains it remains true my spiritual senses are among the best developed. Really, Pipsqueak, you should have known better.”

He managed some small level of defiance as he held his head up, meeting her gaze with a measure of pride. While he had started speaking to her again, they remained in a... tenuous position as mother and son. “I know, mother. I am well aware the odds of successfully sneaking about behind your back were minimal, but I don’t see the issue with myself and Ocellus coming along. There is nothing of value either of us can accomplish back at that depressing fortress. It’s not a home. I hate being there.”

“It’s also super boring,” said Ocellus, and Platinum had to severely restrain herself from blowing their cover by drawing her Zanpkatou to attack the uppity little Arrancar. After all, they were standing upon the roof of the hive, which had been converted into a lovely garden where it seemed the Changelings not only enjoyed buzzing around and basking in the weather, but also set up a number of spaces to grow small crops of fruits and vegetables. Platinum wasn’t entirely sure how much good the physical food did the Changelings who fed on love, but she wasn’t too keen to question the biological mechanics of a magical world. She’d merely brought Pipsqueak and Ocellus up here because it was out of the way. With night falling, most Changelings had gone inside by now, so she could talk to these two in relative peace.

She’d already investigated the area where Chrysalis had told her the vault would be, and discovered it was well guarded. Dealing with the guards would be child’s play for her, but she’d wanted to consult with Chrysalis on the best course of action, first. However, Chrysalis had already left with those children, apparently, and Platinum sensed her grumpy companion's reiatsu down beneath the hive. She had been about to go seek Chrysalis out when she’d felt her son’s and Ocellus’ reiatsu, and uncovered the pair sneaking around, hence the present course of events.

She eyeballed the pair, her defiant son and utterly unashamed Arrancar girl, and blew out a long, deep sigh, “Well, since you’ve decided to act on your own, you may as well make use of yourselves. Chrysalis is down below, and I can only assume that it’s because she thinks what we’re seeking isn’t in the vault, but further beneath the hive.”

“Oh, so Not Mom is looking for her shiny whatchamacallit? Heheh, I wonder if she finds it if she’ll be able to stand up to my actual mother,” Ocellus said with a sharp smile that said she already suspected how such a confrontation would go, “But I hope she finds it, because that’d make things more interesting.”

Pipsqueak cleared his throat, eyeing her sidelong, “I do wish your mother would recall we’re all supposed to be on the same side.”

Ocellus giggled, patting him on the shoulder, “Mother is only ever on one side; hers. All other sides vary in importance depending on her mood and appetite. Even us.”

A disgruntled grimace crossed Platinum’s features at the blunt way Ocellus spoke of the Chrysalis from her own world. No one who’d thrown in with Starlight Glimmer were saints or wholly innocent, except her precious son of course, but Platinum still felt that Starlight had made a mistake in allowing that creature into her inner circle. Where even was that violent, hedonistic Arrancar, anyway? Platinum had not seen her recently. Had she returned to the human realm, or Hueco Mundo? It left Platinum with an uneasy feeling.

“Regardless of the Second Espada’s poor attitude or intentions, we’ve work to do here, and the pair of you can be of some help. While I go catch up with the more agreeable Chrysalis from this world, I’d like you two to perform a task that requires stealth and observation. The ruler of the Changelings, this ‘King’ Thorax, spoke with another Changeling, Pharynx, when we arrived. I heard them talking about some manner of training or exercise the pair are conducting. I’d like to know what that is.”

Her son frowned a little, scratching a hoof through his thick brown mane, “How should we do that? We don’t know where they went, do we?”

Platinum nodded at him with a calm and patient look, much as she had when teaching him various skills when he’d been younger, “By now you should have enough familiarity with magic and reiatsu, and how the two affect your senses to be able to pick out a pair of strong magic users with equally potent spirits.”

Ocellus gave a grin and quick nod, licking her lips, “Yeah, if they’re doing some kind of training, we ought to be able to feel them out, even if they flew off somewhere into the Badlands to do it. Me and Pipsqueak should be able to find them, no problem. Then we just get all sneaky-like and take a peek at what they’re up to.”

“Precisely,” Platinum said, “Remain hidden, and try to assess their strength. Our world’s Chrysalis may have defeated them and that Crystal Princess, but it wasn’t a clean victory, and by Zecora’s report those two Changelings were far stronger than the rest. If they’re working on some new trick, it’d be useful to know what it is.”

This would also keep Pipsqueak and Ocellus occupied while she and the Equestrian Chrysalis finished their business here. She had confidence they could remain unseen, and in the potential event that they were discovered, the Arrancar girl seemed fairly capable of spinning a believable lie or two.

Her son looked a bit apprehensive, but he nodded slowly and said, “Alright, mother. We’ll see what Ocellus and I can do. Um... be careful in the meantime?”

It was an awkward moment of him trying to say something that showed that, while their relationship had changed as a result of all that had happened between them, he still cared about her as his mother. Platinum felt the same uncertainty and awkwardness, not knowing what to say or how to really reach out to her son. In a sense, being out on a mission like this helped her feel more at ease because work was always easier to focus on, and for the moment they all had jobs to do. She nodded, giving a rather pony-like flick of her tail, an unconscious habit now picked up from being in a unicorn body.

“You as well, Pipsqueak.”

----------

It wasn’t very often that Hard Nail had felt much real fear while existing as the Lament, dreaded Fourth Espada. Oh, he knew fear, certainly. Every day he’d feared for the safety of his adopted family, his irreplaceable children. He knew and despised the dangers of Hueco Mundo and Las Noches, wishing only to provide some bubble of safety in which the young Arrancar he adopted could survive in relative peace.

So much had changed due to Adagio Dazzle’s entry into his life. It was her who had convinced him to take the chance of being more active among the Espada. She had befriended his two eldest daughters, and despite his concerns, Roka and Fenice seemed to start thriving when they accompanied Adagio outside the tower. Both were happier, and even the smaller children seemed to smile more when the likes of Di Roy or Gaw visited. This had, in many ways, left Hard Nail concerned, but not truly fearful.

After all, he was powerful and knew he could defend those under his charge.

Yet it was all different, now. He was no longer even truly Lament, but the soul of a simple man who had loved and lost a family in the human world, only to regain one in the most unlikely of all realms, among souls others would consider tainted and hollow. Against all odds and logic, he’d reunited with his living family, regained the memories of who he was, but in so doing lost much of the wrathful power that would allow him to protect those he cherished. In some ways he didn’t wholly regret it, despite ‘regret’ itself being once such a key element of who he was. That power he’d held, that near uncontrollable wrath, had made him a danger to others in ways he could not control. It’d led him to kill a woman who’d once been a friend, even if the circumstances may have forced his hand at the time. He’d nearly killed his wife and eldest daughter from his human family, and had their bonds to him not proven stronger, who knows how that might have turned out?

No, regret was no longer his core, but fear was a growing element in his existence as he came to understand how much power he’d lost and how much he had now to lose. How much fear can a man contain in his heart, with two precious families to protect, and nowhere near enough power to do it?

It was this fear, slick and oil stained, that grasped at his mind as he had sensed the clash of powers taking place in Las Noches. He’d felt his dear Roka and Fenice’s reiatsu, clear as daylight, and was as fearful as we was confused when he sensed the massive increase of Fenice’s spiritual pressure. And the distinctly Hollow shade that reiatsu took.

He had ordered the younger children into the tower’s shelter, as no one was present he could trust to guard them. Oh, Adagio had offered to have some of her vassals posted as guards, but Hard Nail had rejected the notion. It’d be a clear signal of weakness to the other Espada if Adagio’s forces were seen guarding his tower, when in the past Lament alone had been enough protection. That illusion he desperately wished to keep raised, at least until he found a way to recover his strength. Adagio and he had trained together, and while he was stronger than he was after the moment he’d had the Seed pulled from him, he was still only at around half of the level of power he’d once held. On top of that, the attack his wife had used to defeat him back at Everfree had demolished his left hand. At the time it had only been left as a stump. At this juncture, the skeletal bones of a new hand were forming, but the bones had no grip strength at all. His body’s regenerative powers were simply far too slow and weak and it’d likely be months before he had a functional left hand, again. This meant he’d been training with Adagio not only to try and get his spiritual energies strong again, but to get used to wielding his rather long bladed Zanpaktou in one hand.

The bottom line was that, as much as he was grateful to be back to being Hard Nail, and wouldn’t have trading his reunion with his family for any amount of power, he was still all too aware of the fact that a critical lack of it could still cost him and those he loved dearly.

So when he sensed his daughters in danger, felt the heated, violent clash of spiritual pressures between Fenice and another powerful Arrancar he suspected was one of Chrysalis’ brood, Lament had left his tower in a state of fear. This fear only grew as he sensed the battle end, his daughter’s reiatsu and that of her foe’s so intermixed he couldn’t tell who had won.

Then he sensed Tirek there, the First Espada’s spiritual pressure like a blazing scarlet sun against Hard Nail’s skin. He moved faster, leaping over Las Noche’s dunes in swift Sonido’s, as swift as his now weaker reiatsu could carry him.

“Lament,” he heard someone say as he felt a presence appear by his side. He had his hand on his Zanpaktou, but released it as soon as he realized who it was.

“Adagio,” he said, “I thought I told you to just call me Hard Nail, now.”.

“In private, yes. In public, you’re still Lament,” the woman replied flatly, but her eyes were soft, and showed him an uncharacteristic level of empathy beyond what he expected from Adagio. “Don’t worry, I can tell Fenice won.”

He blinked in surprise. She could tell, when he could not? Had his own senses dulled along with his power? Yet as glad as he was to know his human adopted daughter had survived her battle, he was still terribly fearful. What had even triggered the fight, and what was Tirek now going to do? Hard Nail had known Roka and Fenice had gone with Adagio’s two top vassals on some task to contact Thorax, but how had any of that resulted in a battle as intensive as the one that had just taken place?

“Tirek had best not touch my daughters,” he said, his fear being masked by the anger he put into his voice. Adagio looked at him as the pair flew in great, swift leaps through the air, passing the bisecting stone causeway that led from Las Noche’s main gates to the central tower. They were now in Torch’s territory, and not far from where Tirek’s reiatsu was so oppressively blanketing everything, Hard Nail couldn’t even sense his daughters anymore.

With a sensation of a tender breeze, he felt another presence catch up to him and Adagio, and Hard Nail looked to his left to see a young girl gliding through the air on steps of glinting golden light. He vaguely recognized her long, light pink hair, and butter yellow skin, recalling this was one of his daughter Applejack’s friends. Fluttershy seemed wholly out ouf place in Las Noches, wearing a leaf green, short sleeved shirt and similarly colored skirt with yellow and pink flower patterns, along with a simple pair of sandals. She looked like a girl who was about to go on a summer nature hike or visit the mall with friends, not one of the strongest members of the recently formed Coalition and someone responsible for handing Gilda, the newest Espada, a one-on-one defeat.

Fluttershy gave him a calming smile like a hand slowing his heartbeat, “Applejack says hi.”

“I... thanks, kid. I hope she’s doing okay. Heard there was a ruckus in the city.”

For a moment a sliver of cloud crossed the sunlight of her warm smile, but Fluttershy nodded all the same, “It was an unpleasantly difficult situation, but Applejack is just fine. And Adagio is right, I can sense that your daughters are alive... but there are injuries. That’s why I left the embassy to come along.”

Hard Nail felt his hand clench and jaw tighten, which were fairly unfamiliar sensations in his otherwise near deathless body. He felt a sting of his old wrath flare somewhere inside him, like a flame burning at the icicles of his fear. His one good hand clenched and drew the lengthy, curved blade of his Zanpaktou from the sheath strapped across his back. “I’ll have words with whomever hurt them.”

“Easy, ‘Lament’,” said Adagio, “Let’s hold off on lopping off heads until we know precisely what the situation is.”

At times he was grateful for Adagio’s practical mindset. Other times it only grated on him. He pressed his jaw tight and nodded silently, focused only on what was in front of them as they crossed the last leagues to where the epicenter of the spiritual pressures were located, including Tirek’s overbearing sea of reiatsu. Lament didn’t care if Tirek’s power was so vastly overwhelming, if he was so much as laying a finger on one of his children...

Lament, Adagio, and Fluttershy all appeared on the sands at the same time, standing side by side as they took in the scene. A couple dozen of Torch's warriors were maintaining a respectful distance, while Torch himself and his daughter Ember were standing next to a tired, injured Gaw and a sweating Di Roy, who in turn had a waxen featured Roka leaning upon him with blood coating the lower half of her robes from an all too obvious wound in her gut.

Not more than twenty yards from them was Tirek, sitting down with one hand on a large gourd of weathered wood from which he poured a fountain of liquid into his mouth so smelling of alcoholic content that it burned nostrils from dozens of paces away. He was laughing, and slapping Fenice’s back with enough strength to clearly make the girl grimace with the impact, as she sat in an exhausted heap next to the First Espada. With a purely disgruntled and near dead look on his face, Pharynx, charred even more obsidian than he already naturally was, and bleeding profusely into the sands, sat across from Fenice as Tirek poured more of the clear, intense smelling drink into “cups” that were more like big red bowls than anything else as he laughed some more.

“Hahahahah! Stop looking like a whipped dog, Pharynx, and drink the damn sauce! You too, girl! I’m not having the moment spoiled here, and if you’ve got even a fraction of Ravana’s blood in you, girl, you ought to be able to at least match me drink for drink! This was your father’s secret recipe, the only thing he left behind before vanishing.”

Adagio’s eyes showed a sheen of brief disbelief before rapidly adjusting to a look of calculation, while Hard Nail gave a torn look between his two daughters, his heart being yanked in two directions as he wasn’t sure who to check on first. He felt a calm hand on his arm, and saw Fluttershy’s soft gaze of understanding as she said, “I’ll look after Roka, don’t worry.”

He felt his throat tighten and he nodded, “Thank you.”

As Fluttershy went swiftly towards Roka, Adagio gestured at Gaw, who looked at her Espada with rapt attention, “Gaw, I need a report on what happened here.” She then cast a furtive glance at Hard Nail.

“Lament-” she started to say, but Hard Nail was already moving. He’d seen Roka’s injury. He saw his other daughter Fenice was bloodied and battered as well. He saw the craters pock marking the sands. Weak or not, he was acting on the flaming brand of fatherly, protective instincts. He did hear Adagio mutter some manner of unladylike swear as he flickered with the rush of a Sonido to stand amid the sitting group of drinkers, of which Tirek was still the only one to have imbibed.

“What is the meaning of this?” Hard Nail said, Zanpaktou in hand.

Tirek looked at him in the manner of a man so utterly unconcerned with the implications of violence that he actually thought it a joke, lips pulled back in a madcap grin of rictus pleasure as he drank straight from that oversized gourd again, “Lament! Just the gaunt faced ghost I wanted to see! Sit, sit! I don’t have another cup, but I’ll toss you the gourd if you fancy a drink, assuming that mummified body of yours can even feel the pleasure of getting hammered.”

“Fenice, are you alright?” Hard Nail asked, not sitting, still tense, one eye on her, the other half focused on Pharynx with a murderously cold aura. Pharynx, for his part, was breathing hard and remaining utterly silent, looking more like he was moments from passing out, and struggling to even get the cup of alcohol to his lips.

Fenice had wide eyes, half scared, half just flat out tired. Hard Nail noticed that despite her injuries, she was exuding a healthy dose of reiatsu that he could now feel under Tirek’s smothering corona of power. His blind worry had caused him not to see it, but now it was plain as day that she’d changed. Her skin was a darker shade of orange, her hair longer and similarly shaded with darker red streaks. There was an unmistakable bone white fragment of Hollow mask around her left eye in the shape of feathers, and the skeletal, single wing of bone sprouting from her right shoulder was hard to miss. He also was now seeing that alongside her Fullbring’s blade, which lay at her right side, she now had a second sword laying on her left side, in the shape of an old broadsword with an empty core.

“I’m... alive,” Fenice said, giving him a thinly twitching smile, glancing between him and Tirek, “It’s complicated.”

Tirek snorted, like a bull billowing steam from its nostrils, “Nothing complicated about it from my seeing of things. You’re Ravana’s offspring, and given the smell of you, he somehow sired you upon either a human woman, or someone doing a fine impersonation of one. Don’t much care save for the fact that it confirms he was alive for a time after vanishing from Las Noches. Hmph, could have used him all these centuries, but he always did his own thing, no matter what I’d say about it. One of the reasons I respected him, besides the fact that he could give me a fight.”

“And what happened here, exactly?” Hard Nail said, looking pointedly at Pharynx.

Fenice licked her lips, turning to look over her shoulder back towards her sister and Di Roy. Fluttershy had gone over there and brought forth the power of her Fullbring, becoming bathed in gold radiance as her shining halo formed in all its splendor and her body transformed with its additional arms and elegant green, sheer robes. A spectral hand of gold light gently touched Roka’s stomach and started pouring spiritual power to merge with Roka’s threads, Fluttershy empowering Roka’s own natural healing abilities to such a degree that flesh started to stitch together swiftly.

Adagio was watching both scenes play out with intense scrutiny while listening to Gaw, who had approached her Espada to start whispering her own report of events.

Fenice heaved out an exasperated sigh, and an apologetic look came over her face as she looked at Hard Nail, “We were kinda doing Adagio a favor, checking around the Warrens looking for Thorax, then we got side tracked and saw some things down there that this jerk,” she nodded a Pharynx, “Decided to try and kill us for seeing.”

Hard Nail felt a rush of desire to lop off Pharynx’s head then and there, and may well have done so if not for Tirek’s reiatsu spiking and the First Espada fixing him with an especially pointed stare, “You still haven’t sat down, Lament. Sit.”

It wasn’t a question, but a command. Hard Nail considered whether he could manage to ram his blade through Tirek any swifter than taking of Pharynx’s head, but the safety of his children, both his eldest daughters here and the younger ones back in his tower, forced him to control himself and sit down as Tirek bade. Tirek tossed him the gourd of alcohol, smirking.

“Drink, before you pop a vein. Pharynx was following his Espada’s orders, just like Adagio’s vassals were following hers. Fights like this happen. Besides, by all accounts your girl cleaned Pharynx's clock once she tapped into her real daddy’s blood.”

“I am her father,” Hard Nail sated in no uncertain terms, eyes like chips of black ice as he drank, feeling nothing from the alcohol searing its way down his dead throat. “I’ve never heard of this Ravana.”

Tirek nodded, “No reason you would have. His time was long ago, even before the likes of Gaia joined my ranks. There were no ‘Espada’ in that time, merely my loyal warlords. Among them, Ravana was... one of my strongest, and one of a very small few worthy of the word ‘friend’, by my own limited notions of the term.”

“What does this have to do with my Fenice?” Hard Nail asked, not really that interested in Tirek’s reminiscing of ancient times, only in how it related to his family whom he wished to keep safe.

“Father, I-” Fenice began, then cast a fearful look at Tirek, as if the insanely powerful First Espada might object to her jumping in. Tirek shrugged and nodded for her to go ahead. Taking a very deep breath and taking even longer to meet Hard Nail’s eyes, she continued, “I remembered, that’s all. Everything was so desperate against Pharynx... it forced me to remember things I made myself forget. My father was this Arrancar, Ravana. And my mother, her name was Stellar Flare. Part of something called the Star Family.”

Tirek slapped his knee hard enough that it sounded like a thunderclap, and he snatched his gourd back from Hard Nail and proceeded to drain it, tossing it aside afterward and standing up in looming fashion, “Then that smarmy, sly vixen Medley shows up and forced Ravana to ditch his own flesh and blood in Hueco Mundo. No idea if he survived, but given he hasn’t shown up lately to check to see if his daughter is alive, it’s safe to say Ravana either was cut down by Medley, or taken prisoner, which if this is the Zero Division we’re talking about, death may have been cleaner.”

“I don’t understand,” Hard Nail said, “Why would this woman from Zero Division want to target him specifically?”

Tirek gave off a dark laugh, “It wasn’t him, but the bloodline of the Star Family they were after. Only Soul Reapers with the courage to rebel, but got wiped out before their rebellion could amount to much. Seems like a few managed to slip into the human world, and somehow this Stellar Flare drew Ravana in... he was always a bit of a romantic. I wouldn’t be shocked if having children with an Arrancar was her way of trying to make weapons to fight Zero Division, along with these blades.”

He cast a look at the viking-style broadsword next to Fenice, which Hard Nail felt a distinct sense of reiatsu from that was unusual and separate from anything he’d felt before, but was now also stamped with an aura of Fenice’s own spirit energy. “Fenice...?”

She shrugged with a hapless and bemused half-grin, “Don’t ask me. The sword came out of my Fullbring, and called itself Gleipnir, a fragment of some guy named Tyr’s power.”

At that, Tirek turned a heatedly interested gaze at both Fenice and the sword, “Is that right? So the Star Family wasn’t entirely mad in their plans for rebellion. A shame they never had the guts to come to me directly, I may have granted them asylum here. Hah, then again they were still proud, self-righteous Soul Reapers. Perhaps they thought they could do it all on their own. Hah! Not that I can judge them harshly for that, for I intend to succeed where they failed.”

“Lord Tirek...” Adagio approached, Gaw hanging back on the woman’s left, having just finished giving Adagio the full update on all that had transpired, “It seems my vassals ran afoul of one of Grogar’s projects in the Warrens. I’ll assume its something you’re aware of?”

Tirek turned his intense golden gaze upon her, Adagio maintaining full composure as he faced her fully with a presence fully incapable of doing anything other than loom in oppressive magnitudes of restrained force. “I am. I gave orders to keep matters in the Warrens secret until I deemed it necessary to reveal my plans. I should have known such secrecy wouldn’t last long, in Las Noches, especially not with a perceptive and ambitious Espada such as yourself seemingly being incapable of not meddling.”

Adagio placed a hand over her Hollow hole and siren gem and bowed, as if it was a compliment she’d been given instead of a reproach, “I give all credit to my capable vassals, who continue to prove their worth to me. I merely tasked them with locating Thorax, whom I wished to speak with on a personal matter. Still, matching and then defeating one of Chrysalis' more potent children has been a pleasant result, demonstrating their growth to me. The added insult to Grogar’s pride is merely a delectable cherry on top.”

“Hmph, I suppose I could just kill all of you to keep things secret, but that would be quite wasteful at this point and spoil my good mood in learning my old friend has a daughter.” Tirek said with a grin that might have been joking, but remained terrifying, regardless. He did frown, then, a look that might have seemed small on another, but on him was chilling. “Before you ask, I won’t be sharing details until all is in place, but rest assured, Adagio Dazzle, that it will be soon. As for Thorax, I don’t know what his mother has done with him. You’ll have to ask her yourself. I suggest just going to her lair personally instead of sending your Fraccion to sneak about. Who knows, maybe Chrysalis will give you an honest answer. Or maybe she’ll torture and kill you. She’s been known to do that, even to those she likes.”

“Ah, yes, hence my lack of interest in speaking with the woman, especially in her own home.” Adagio said, but it was clear from the faint trace of deeper worry on her face that she may well have been considering it. Hard Nail watched carefully, wondering if Adagio’s motivations to find Thorax extended beyond the practical. He’d seen that kind of look of concern before, and it usually was because of deeper attachment than mere allies of convenience.

Adagio’s expression cleared very quickly and she looked between Tirek, Fenice, and Hard Nail, “Putting aside that matter, does Fenice’s revelations concerning her parentage change anything?”

“Aside from making me even more eager to batter down the doors of the Soul Palace to discover if Ravana lives, or if Medley really did kill him?” Tirek said, and shrugged, “Not really, no. She’s Lament’s, as far as I’m concerned, and a free woman to do as she pleases, like any other Arrancar. Hah, only now she’s proven she has the power to take even more of what she wants.” He eyed Pharynx and chuckled darkly, “You’d best train harder, boy, or you’ll get left behind by your peers.”

Pharynx grunted in pain, managing a respectful bow, first to Tirek, then to Fenice, “I do not regret following my orders. It was... a worthy fight, and I will not lose a second time.”

Tirek smirked, “Good, because most warriors don’t get the luxury of a second time. Now then... I’ve business to attend to with Grogar, anyway, so you lot... go do whatever it is you want.” A sharp glance was sent towards Adagio, “Seems like Guto and Hydia are about to give you some trouble. Have fun with that.”

He simply vanished then, using Sonido in such a manner that no one present had the ability to really track his movement, only the faint trail of dusty sand left behind as his massively oppressive reiatsu vanished somewhere down into the Warrens. At this point Fluttershy had helped Roka enough that, while the wound remained as an ugly, barely closed mass of reddened flesh on her stomach, Roka could walk while leaning on Fluttershy to approach the group. Ember and Torch came with them, the Fifth Espada chuckling as he looked at them all with an amused flash of teeth.

“Not often I see Lord Tirek so chatty! I wish I’d known this Ravana fellow, since he sounds like my kind of people!”

Ember shook her head in clear confusion, “I didn’t even know it was possible for Arrancar and humans to have offspring. That’s so... weird.”

Fenice made a face, “Well excuse me for being ‘weird’.”

“Oh don’t get all huffy about it, I was just saying,” Ember groused, and Adagio cleared her throat loudly to get everyone’s attention.

“While I’d absolutely love to spend the next however long talking about all of this, I suggest we all return to our respective territories for now. Three Espada in one place is going to be notable even without Tirek present, and I imagine Roka would like to get home to actually lay down and rest.”

“That would be... wonderful...” Roka said, smiling as best she could. Hard Nail could not have agreed more and went to her side, Fenice following as they both moved with tender care to take Roka from Fluttershy and proper her up between them.

“Agreed,” he said, nodding to Torch, “Thank you for showing up when you did, to look after my daughters.”

“Hah, think nothing of it!” Torch said, “Not like my little Ember and I had to do much, you’re firecracker of a daughter was already putting Chrysalis’ kid in his place before we showed up.”

“Speaking of the crispy critter, where the hell did he go?” Di Roy asked, looking around. As the others looked as well, it was clear that Pharynx had somehow vanished while the rest of them had been distracted. Adagio sighed, offering a small shrug.

“I may have to take Tirek’s advice and go to Chrysalis directly to find out what’s become of Thorax.”

Gaw growled a little, “Too dangerous.”

“That is for me to decide, Gaw. Thorax has done much for us. If he’s in trouble I...” Adagio clearly grasped for phrasing that would sound more practical than emotion driven, “Owe him for his assistance thus far, and he’s too useful to leave in a bad position if he requires help.”

Di Roy looked at her with a level stare, “...’Kay. What about the ‘you know who’ and the plan to ‘you know what’ in the ‘you know where’?”

Adagio rubbed a hand to her forehead and shot him a flat look, “I leave that in the capable hands of others, now that the ball is rolling. We each have our roles to play, Di Roy.”

“Going to assume this has got something to do with why one of the ladies from the Coalition is here?” asked Torch, nodding his massive chin at Fluttershy, who simply smiled at him in return and nodded in greeting.

“Hello, Mister Torch. I don’t believe we’ve formally met. I’m Fluttershy. Heheh, I guess my official title now would be ‘Field Marshal’ for the Canterlot Spirit Coalition, but that sounds kind of stuffy to me. So please, just call me Fluttershy.”

Torch gave off a strong bellow of a laugh and knelt down to extend a meaty hand to her so large that it nearly encapsulated Fluttershy’s arm as they shook hands, although it didn’t look like Fluttershy had any trouble matching Torch’s powerful grip as he squeezed. Indeed his eyes widened with a note of respect as the seemingly mild mannered girl matched his grip quite evenly. “Well, damn, if we ever got cause to go toe to toe with this new Coalition of yours, I might look forward to it. Between this and seeing what your fiery friend did during her duel with Tirek, it’s clear you aren’t a bunch of common little humans.”

“We hope to avoid fighting if we can,” Fluttershy said, eyes unblinking, “which is not the same as not being able to fight.”

At her words, something changed in Torch’s expression, a flicker of recognition and surprise. He let go of Fluttershy’s hand and crouched down so he was closer to eye level with her, as much as his immense size allowed, at any rate. Rubbing his square jaw, he said, “Hmm have we met before this?”

Fluttershy tilted her head only a hair’s breadth, smiling in total calm, not seeming that surprised herself, “No, I don’t believe we have. You’re probably confusing me with someone else. I get that a lot.”

He stared at her for a good long moment, everyone else noting the pause and slight tension. Then Torch just chuckled and stood up, grinning down at Fluttershy, “Yes, must be thinking of some other woman. Just something about what you said and the look of you, reminded me of a Soul Reaper I once killed. Good fight, that was. Strong woman, brave as could be.”

Torch winked at her, “All that aside, I know you and your friends helped my Ember get away from the Soul Reapers, so even if we ever do cross blades or fists or whatever ya got, it’ll be purely for fun on my end, not personal. Hah! Well whatever you’re doing here, girl, plotting some mischief with Adagio, good luck with it. C’mon Ember, let’s head on back to camp! I’m starving!”

Ember gave Adagio a brief look and nod, “Take care, Adagio, and please be careful. I got a... feeling things are going to get messy around here soon.”

“I’m always careful,” Adagio replied, and returned her friend’s nod before Ember departed with Torch and his cadre of warriors. This left her, Gaw, Di Roy, and Fluttershy to part ways with Hard Nail, Fenice, and Roka.

“You look good,” Adagio commented to Fenice, “If you can put up with it, I’ll have Usagi start putting together some fresh outfits for you that might complement the new ‘you’.”

Fenice actually blushed a little, running a hand through her now longer hair, “No offense, but I’m kind of hoping this change is temporary and I can revert back. Like, I dunno, a transformation I can bust out, instead of a permanent state?” She flexed the bone wing, frowning, “This thing alone is going to be a pain in the butt to deal with. I’m going to snag it on so many doors, I can tell already.”

Roka gave a weak laugh, but there was at least some color returning to her pale features, “I think it’s a very striking new look, sister.”

Hard Nail nodded in mute agreement, but his eye was drawn to the broadsword that Fenice carried. She’d transformed her Fullbring back into a medallion that she slipped back around her neck, but she didn’t have a scabbard for the new blade she’d acquired. “Daughter, once we are back home, I...”

He trailed off, feeling uncertain on how to express what he wanted to. He felt her hand clasp his own, warmth in both the grip and her eyes. “Don’t worry, father. Nothing’s changed. Not between you and me, at least. You’re always going to be my father.”

Hard Nail closed his eyes, and almost wished his body wasn’t so deathless, so his tear ducts actually worked. He nodded silently. There’d be time to talk more, later. He was worried about that sword, and what it might mean for his daughter, but both Fenice and Roka were alright, and that’s all that really mattered to him.

There was a polite throat clearing from nearby, and he opened his eyes to see Adagio standing across from him, Di Roy and Gaw respectfully keeping back but both looking tense. Adagio had her trident bouncing off her shoulder in an uncommon display of anxiety, and her eyes weren’t trying to hide that she was agitated even as she spoke with a level and measured tone.

“Once you’re back at your tower, I might consider... coming to the Coalition embassy, bringing your children as well.”

Hard Nail’s pale features creased in a frown, “Why?”

“Something is wrong,” Adagio said simply, eyes glancing down there Tirek’s reiatsu had gone, down into the Warrens. “Gaw has told me what they found down there. I don’t like it one bit. My intuition is telling me we don’t have much time left, and I’m sorry, Lament... but you’re still too weak to be a reliable force in the fights to come. I’d feel better if you and your family weren’t in Las Noches when everything goes down.”

“Hold up,” said Fenice, eyes heated, “I agree that the crap we saw Grogar doing in the Warrens isn’t good news, but why should we split for the human world? That is what you’re suggesting, isn’t it? That we go to the Coalition embassy and ask for asylum or something?”

Adagio gave both her and Hard Nail a sharp look, “Or something. Look, I’m not going to tell you what you have to do, I’m just suggesting it because I don’t know what’s coming, just that my gut is telling me it might not be best to be here when it happens.”

“No,” Hard Nail said, and Adagio blinked at him. Rather than give the young siren turned Espada a glare, he softened his face with a rare and somewhat lopsided half-smile, “Oh, I wouldn’t mind bringing my family here to meet my family there, and I want my children to be safe. I may take the offer to send them to the Coalition for safety, because I can’t protect them here. But I’m staying, Adagio. I may be weaker than what I was, but you’re a... friend, now. I don’t abandon my friends when they need me. Ain’t the kind of man I was, and not the kind of Hollow I am.”

“It goes without saying that you will have our support as well,” Roka said, still a bit weak from her injury by smiling all the same, “I agree with father that the younger children will benefit from spending time with our extended family at Sweet Apple Achers. That said, I and Fenice shall stay by father’s side to help him, and in turn, help you.”

“Give it up, Adagio,” Fenice said with her face breaking out into a fierce grin that reminded Adagio far too much of Sunset Shimmer’s, “You’re not kicking us to the curb until this is all said and done!”

Adagio gained a frustrated twist to her lips, eyes twitching, “I’m just trying to keep you all out of trouble in case the worst happens.”

She heard Di Roy chuckle and shot a glare at the man, but he held up under her gaze and smiled his shark-toothed grin, “Hey, don’t blame me, boss lady. You’re the one going around inspiring loyalty in people.”

Gaw gave off a rough laugh of her own, licking her own wounds but showing a pleased smile as she elbowed Di Roy, “Our tribe’s leader is so silly, she complains of others following her. But that is part of why we do it, isn’t it?”

Di Roy nodded with a faux sage look on his face, rubbing his chin, “Indeed, a victim of her own success.”

Adagio made a noise somewhere between a growl of exasperation and a groan of reluctant acceptance, “Fine, whatever. If that’s how things are going to be, then at least, ‘Lament’, once your younger children are moved, it’s best that you, Roka, and Fenice take up residence in my territory. I want our power as consolidated as possible, just in case.”

Her gaze turned to Fluttershy, “As for you, when you get back to the embassy, you might impress upon our Quincy guest that our timetable may be shorter than we’d like.”

Fluttershy nodded, “I’ll let Twilight know. Hopefully we can do what we need to before whatever Tirek is planning comes to fruition.”

“I hope so... ugh, and I also hope I’m around to see it, whatever the hell it’ll turn out to be,” Adagio said, rubbing her forehead, “Because the next thing I have to do is go pay a visit to Chrysalis’ lair to see if I can find Thorax myself.”

----------

Sunset Shimmer’s mind worked swiftly, even as guilt cut into her. Wallflower had ended up this way only because Sunset had gotten the notion in her head that she could work out the magical mysteries of that damn stone, and it was painfully obvious she’d underestimated the situation badly. She wanted to admonish herself more, but there wasn’t time for that right now. The fight, however brief, between Spike and Wallflower had caused enough noise to get the attention of normal people living in the various manors and estates dotting this rich section of Canterlot City’s suburban sprawl. Already doors were opening as faces started to peek out to see what had caused the tremors and explosive sounds that had cratered a portion of the street and toppled over several cars.

“Spike, grab her and follow us!” Sunset said, taking to the air and figuring she could trust Rainbow Dash and Applejack to do the same. They didn’t have to go far, as there were small strips of woods here and there that would serve to visually hide them, and everyone could move fast enough that any onlookers might have at best caught sight of a brief streak of color.

Spike was quick to catch on and used the Gunwolf’s powerful metal tail to wrap up Wallflower's legs while the mecha’s arms pinned hers as it took to the air. Wallflower struggled, and black tendrils of her necrotic magic flowed over her body and tried to seep into the Gunwolf. However, the machine of Quincy design and Twilight's unique blend of magic and spirit energy caused that necromantic magic to slide off like oil down a water-slick raincoat. Whatever magic or power Wallflower was using, it wasn’t compatible with machinery and couldn’t reach the living canine within.

She growled and shouted more in her odd language, and Sunset caught that name ‘Fenrir’ again. Regardless, she flew the short distance to some woods a few hundred yards away in less than a millisecond, joined shortly by the others as Rainbow Dash reached up towards the sky. Suddenly it got a lot more cloudy and thunder sounded in the air. Sunset felt moisture kick up and a moment later a thick amount of fog started to fill the air, blanketing not just the woods, but the various rich estates as well.

Rainbow Dash smiled, proud of herself, “That oughta buy us some time before folks notice the street damage.”

“Yeah, sugarcube, ‘cause a sudden overcast sky an’ thick fog bank ain’t just as weird n’ suspicious,” Applejack deadpanned, but Rainbow just kept smiling.

“Aw c’mon, admit it, you dig my weather controlling awesomeness. Hey, bet I could make Sweet Apple Acres a buttload of money by providing ideal weather any time you want rain or whatever.”

Applejack’s face twisted in a battle of honesty versus sincere desire to see her family farm prosper, “That’d be... cheatin’... wouldn’t it? Aw dang it, Dash, now ya got me in a moral conundrum!”

Spike raised the Gunwolf’s head to stare blankly at them with its robotic, blue eyes, his voice dripping snark, “Girls? More important things to focus on?” He nodded at the still struggling Wallflower, who was looking back and forth at all of them with wild eyes.

With a calming breath, Sunset knelt down and planted Hokori in the ground next to her, still holding Hikari just in case she needed the shield’s defenses. She looked Wallflower in the eyes, trying to discern the woman’s mental and emotional state. Wallflower’s lips were a snarl of anger, but they were trembling as well, hiding the fear inside. In fact, the more Sunset looked at her, the more Wallflower, or whoever she was now, looked terrified and desperate, like a frightened animal trying to escape its predators. Her energy, reiatsu and magic both, had this wild, writhing sensation to it. Dark, but not in a way that felt malevolent like some spiritual pressures Sunset had felt before. The grass underneath Wallflower had died and turned brown, her necrotic tendrils growing, and Sunset held up her hand and spoke in a soothing, soft tone.

“We won’t want to hurt you. Please, just look at my face. There’s no threat, here.”

Wallflower’s breathing, heaving in and out in fear, gradually slowed as she held Sunset’s gaze. Her head tilted slightly, suspicion and mistrust battling across her eyes. Wallflower glanced at the Gunwolf, then back at Sunset. Specifically, she looked at the Soul Reaper robes Sunset wore, then at the still heated and warm blade of Hokori planted in the ground.

She spoke again, but rather than an angered shout or growl, Wallflower’s words were measured, and inquisitive. She tugged her right arm a little, not trying so much to free it from Spike’s grip but rather indicating she wanted to use it. Spike glanced at Sunset, “Should I?”

Sunset gave a small nod, hoping she wasn’t being too trusting, but willing to extend it a little in hopes of rectifying this mess she’d help create. Wallflower felt the Gunwolf’s metal claws lighten their pressure on her right arm, and slowly she freed her hand. She was clearly being careful to make no fast movements or gestures as she placed a finger on her throat. Sunset watched in fascination as Wallflower drew a set of runes on her throat in black motes of energy, which then sunk into her skin.

Clearing her throat, Wallflower spoke, “Do thy ears comprehend my speech now, mortals?”

“Well hot damn!” Rainbow Dash blurted, “She speaks, and not in weirdo moon words!”

Wallflowers eyes narrowed at Rainbow Dash, “ ‘Tis the language of Niflheim thou insult, Midgardian wench of garish coloration. I deign to use a runic invocation of tongues so my words dost cease to fall upon clearly deaf ears. For what purpose do you Midgard mortals restrain a goddess!? Where in Midgard have you sought to imprison me? Where is...” her eyes lost focus for a moment, her voice suddenly cracking with strain and sudden pain, “Where is my brother, Fenrir!? You, wolf of forged metal, why dost thou bear my noble brother’s form, voice, and spirit!?”

“Whoa whoa whoa, lady! Slow it down!” Spike said, sounding a smidge alarmed as he let go of her and backed up, which Sunset wasn’t sure was the wisest idea, but right now anything that might get Wallflower to calm down a little might be better than nothing. Spike, meanwhile, popped the cockpit of the Gunwolf open and revealed himself inside, looking at Wallflower with wide, confused eyes, “I got no idea who this Fenrir dude even is.”

Wallflower let out a gasp, moving a hand to her mouth as she sat up, clearly too stunned to stand, but her necromantic magic coiled around her like a depressive miasma. For a moment, Sunset almost thought she saw a ghostly image of the dark energies taking the shape of a skull across the left side of her face. “Oh... brother... dear brother... it’s impossible. Your eyes, I shan't ever forget your eyes. How can this be? Reborn in Midgard? No, it should not be possible. How is it thou has been reduced so?”

Spike frowned and crossed his small puppy dog arms, “Reduced? Lady, you need to lay off. Yeah, so I’m a dog, so what? Lots of cool people are dogs. Lassie. Bolt. Krypto. That one that got shot in the end but was kind of a badass before the whole rabies thing. The Taco Bell chihuahua... okay maybe not that one, but still!”

Rainbow Dash came over and reached up a hand to pat him on the back, “It’s okay, my dude. Nobody is thinking less of you because you’re four legged and fuzzy.”

“Kinda more focused on this whole ‘Fenrir’ business, anyhows,” said Applejack, putting her hands on her hips and leaning towards Wallflower, “What’re ya goin’ n about, there, Wallflower?”

Wallflower twitched, as if the name itself struck her physically, “Wallflower... I don’t... know that name,” She shook her head in a manner like one trying to clear out flies buzzing around their head, “I am not some Midgard mortal, least of all some weak minded wench. I am the goddess Hel, daughter of Loki, sister to Fenrir and...” her voice trailed off, turning cold and terrified as the depths of a winter lake, “...No...no no no no no...”

As she clutched at her head, Sunset senses a coiling fluctuation in Wallflower’s reiatsu, and saw the strands of necrotic wisps begin to twitch and writhe like pained snakes. Sunset was still trying to get her head wrapped around that Wallflower had just claimed to be some kind of goddess. Her knowledge of mythology was far from complete, but she was pretty sure ‘Hel’ was a Norse deity, but for the moment she couldn’t think too much on that because Wallflower was heaving in and out terrified breaths as she held her head and her power seeped out of her, rotting even more of the nearby vegetation.

“Wallflower, what’s wrong? Please, we want to help,” Sunset said, keeping her hand help up in a calming gesture. Wallflower kept shaking her head, curling in on herself, eyes glazed and starring.

“It’s all wrong! It shouldn’t be this way! I remember... oh no... he killed him... and then Glory and I... Soul Queen above what have I done? Jormungandr! He’ll be searching for me. I have to... to...”

She let out a sharp scream of pain, followed by a confused gasp, and Sunset saw Wallflower’s eyes shift from a look of horrified knowledge and drowning knowing, to stark confusion and the uncertainty of the young girl Sunset knew, “S-Sunset? What’s happening? My head... ugh, I’m gonna be sick...”

Wallflower proceeded to throw up, and despite the necrotic energy still flowing off of her, Sunset went to the girls side and put her arms around her in a strong, steadying hug. She felt the dark energy pushing against her own spiritual pressure, trying to drain her life force in a seeping, sickly flow. Yet Sunset bore up under it and hardened her reiatsu, resisting the necromantic power as she kept holding the other girl, “Wallflower, just try to keep your mind focused on being you! I promise we’ll help you through this.”

“I hope you can explain what ‘this’ is, Sunset Shimmer.”

She looked up, along with Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Spike, as in a streak of white motion both Shining Armor and Cadence appeared in the clearing, their reishi bows already formed and their white Quincy uniforms almost blending with the mist. Cadence saw Wallflower, eyes more concerned than stern, as opposed to Shining Armor who looked less than pleased by the situation in front of him.

“Shining, ease up,” Cadence said, then looked to Sunset, “We sensed all of your spiritual pressures. Who is this girl?”

“Long story,” Sunset replied, “We just need to get her back inside somewhere safe until we can figure out how to help her.”

“Help her what? You haven’t explained anything,” Shining Armor said, eyes narrowing, “All I know is that Robert allowed you in on Spike’s word and you went into my little sister’s lab, and the next thing I know my neighborhood is in chaos. So before anything else happens you’re going to explain yourself.”

“Hey, Shining, chill the heck out, dude,” Spike said, “In case you hadn’t noticed we’re not in the best spot for a long bit of exposition. Let’s get back to the house and then we’ll jabber at you all you want.”

“Sunset...” Wallflower said, voice now filled with a sheet of iced over fear, pointing, and Sunset looked to where the girl’s finger indicated.

Everyone turned, as from the mist a form emerged. A phantom in white, its body nothing but a pale shroud that floated over the ground. Yet its head was a hood of featureless red. Sunset sensed only a faint trace of reiatsu from the form as it floated towards them, but she moved protectively in front of Wallflower all the same, as did Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Spike.

“Alright, whoever you are, you’ve chosen a really bad time to show up,” Rainbow Dash said, then blinked as the figure just kept floating along, drifting slightly as if blown by a breeze. “Uhh... dude? Hellooooo?”

“Dash, it ain’t alone,” Applejack said, eyes widening, and Sunset looked around to see that not just one, but dozens of identical floating figures in pure white shrouds bearing blank red hoods started to materialize from the fog. No, more than just the fog, she saw that these figures were apparating from the ground, or descending from the sky, and while there were several dozen nearby, many more floated through the woods.

“What in the...?” Shining Armor aimed his bow, but didn’t fire as Cadence raised her hand to touch his arm.

“Shining, I don’t think they’re hostile,” Cadence said, “I don’t sense even a shred of malignant intent.”

“They barely got any reiatsu at all,” Rainbow Dash said, brow twitching as she shivered a little, “But they’re giving me serious willies. The heck are these guys?”

“Blanks...”

All eyes turned to Wallflower, who’s voice had regained an edge of knowledge as the black energies around her formed once more into the half skull upon the left side of her face as Hel spoke, “Glory named them ‘Blanks’.”

Episode 192: Jormungandr

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Episode 192: Jormungandr

Despite the lack of any apparent hostility either in their actions or their faint traces of reiatsu, Sunset felt a distinct sensation of ill-ease as she gazed upon the wafting forms of the Blanks. Her eyes shifted to Wallflower, or ‘Hel’, whichever she was at the moment. “What are these Blanks supposed to be? And you said Glory named them?”

Wallflower’s face had gone pale enough that her gray tones had turned into something more like the fog around them, and she forced herself to stand on trembling legs as her eyes darting around like an animal seeking an escape route, “Yes, Glory felt it appropriate to describe the wretched souls who have had so much scrubbed from them that only the traces of lingering memory and the core shell of reishi remained.”

“These are... people’s souls?” Cadence whispered, watching with morbid uncertainty as the Blanks continued to hover around them like a school of lazy, disturbing fish.

Hel turned her eyes towards Cadence, and then Shining Armor, frowning at the sight of their Quincy bows. “I thought the metal shell Fenrir wears was mere alchemy, but that reishi manipulation you mortals are using... it is akin to the Consort’s power.” She groaned suddenly, clutching her head once more, “Ugh, no... so many memories within... Why this girl? So weak, yet she keeps clawing at my mind!”

“Wallflower!?” Sunset grimaced. She would have loved to get more answers about these Blanks, but she had to help Wallflower get her identity back in order, no matter what. All of this was Sunset’s fault, and she had to figure out how to fix it. She gripped Hel’s shoulder, ignoring the painful, chilling drain of the deathly energies seeping from the woman’s body, “Wallflower if you can hear me in there, I promise I’m going to find a way to help you! Just hang in there!”

Hel pushed her back, shaking her head, “You’re speaking to nothing! A ghost! A fantasy! An empty shell in the shape of a human girl! There is no ‘Wallflower’ beyond a handful of meaningless memories and emotions stitched together during my own dormancy, but I am Hel and no one else! My memories might be fractured, but I know myself, and I shall not let you or anyone else use me again. Glory... Jormungandr... both of them can rot with their schemes!”

She looked ready to start fighting again, or running away, dependent entirely on chance, her eyes casting left and right as she clearly understood how outnumbered she was. Applejack’s voice cut through the tension, sharp as a knife slicing an apple, “Look sugarcube, we ain’t yer enemy, much as ya seem dead set on causin’ a fuss. Before ya start flinging about more o’ that necro juice, take a breath an’ maybe ya can tell us why these here Blank fellas would show up here outta nowhere?”

The question clearly struck Hel hard as she looked back at the Blanks, which had grown in number, and her eyes slowly widened, “They are empty, but can be manipulated by others. Or drawn to sources of intense memory like graveyards or battlefields. Jormungandr’s Ragnarok Cult... they mastered a technique to convert Blanks into forms, like Mother’s Consort could manipulate reishi to create weapons...”

She looked up at the sky suddenly, visibly gulping, “So many would not gather unless it was by the hand of another.”

It was then that Sunset Shimmer felt it, a blossoming of multiple spiritual pressures appearing across the sky above the small woods. Taking up Hokori no Hikari, she nodded to Rainbow Dash and Applejack, “We’ve got incoming, girls. Spike, can you keep an eye on Hel?”

From within the Gunwolf, Spike waved a sharp metal paw, “I can do more than that. I’ve got enough ranged weapons on this puppy to provide plenty of long distance support.”

“And I hope you haven’t forgotten you’re on Quincy property,” Shining Armor said, raising his bow skyward, “If there’s an enemy coming our way, we’ll help you deal with it.”

Cadence gave him a dry chuckle, “You could just admit you want to help them because they’re friends with Twilight, Shining.”

His face twitched slightly and his white features heated, “Fine, I want to help them because of Twilight. Also, I’m still a bit miffed that I wasn’t able to help back when they had to go to Hueco Mundo. Time to make up for that, at least a little.”

A flash of a bright smile lit Sunset’s features, “Glad to have the help. Cadence, do you mind backing up Spike in case whoever is coming gets past us? I’m sensing a lot of them, whoever they are.”

She honestly had to admit she had no real sure idea who was coming, as the sensations of reiatsu didn’t match anything she’d ever felt from a Hollow, a Quincy, or a Soul Reaper. Even the subtly different reiatsu she’d sensed from that witch group that Bon Bon was a part of didn’t line up with this. Given what Hel had just said about Jormungandr’s people making use of Blanks as some kind of weapons, then the only thing that made sense would be that these inbounds were Dragons or some other group of creatures from the Beast Realm. It wasn’t too surprising they could appear here so suddenly. After all, a bunch of monsters had appeared in Everfree from a number of portals someone had opened up. Seemed like the same thing was happening here.

There was no objection from Cadence, who gave a swift nod and readied her arm mounted reishi crossbow, “I’ll make sure the girl is kept safe. Spike, I’ll be counting on your help.”

From inside the Gunwolf, Spike’s voice said, “Yeah, yeah, I know you’re all helpless without me.”

With that, Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Shining Armor all took to the sky, leaping up upon particles of reishi to swiftly reach a point several hundred meters high. The fog that Rainbow Dash had conjured now remained as a thick blanket beneath them, and Sunset was glad of that since it would keep any onlookers from the manor estates below from seeing anything going on in the sky. Looking up into the dark overcast clouds, Sunset saw the faint flashes of sanguine light appear in multiple places across the clouds. She caught glimpses of radiating circles of bleeding red light, portals quite different from Garganta or Senkaimon Gates, and not only giving off a sense of spiritual pressure... but magic.

As she recalled from the brief encounters Applejack and Rainbow Dash described from fighting the creatures at Everfree, the residents of the Beast Realm had both spiritual energy and a form of magic ingrained in them. Whatever was coming, it would be a new kind of threat, and she was not about to underestimate it. There was a soft peal of sound like thunder, but it wasn’t long before Sunset realized it wasn’t thunder at all, but the sound of massive wing beats and deep, throaty roars.

“Oh wow, I’m kinda sad Fluttershy ain’t here,” said Rainbow Dash, “She’d totally get a kick out of seeing something like this.”

What Rainbow Dash was referring to was the sight of an entire flight of Dragons that was soaring forth from the clouds, emerging one after another from the line of scarlet portals. In a wave of scales and wings, the great beasts flew down in a formation of dozens, their wings generating rumbling gusts of wind as they began to circle downward. They came in a wide assortment of shapes and sizes, but even the smallest among them would still dwarf a freight container. Some bore the image of classical dragons of western mythology, with four long, scaled limbs to join their two wings, and horns of all configurations sweeping from tapered snouts bearing glinting fangs. Others were long, serpentine, coated in fur or eel-like tendrils, coiling through the air not on wings, but seeming glinting sparks of reishi, and resembling the beasts of eastern mythological depiction. Yet more still bore no resemblance to any “dragon” mentioned in myth or legend, and instead were darkly amorphous amalgamations of many different blends of beast, like chimeras that only roughly took some small semblance of draconic inspiration but otherwise were monsters all their own.

Sunset couldn’t quite count them all, but at a rough estimate she figured they were facing around fifty or sixty of the beasts, who had formed something akin to a great descending circle that filled the air with roars as they got closer.

“Ya know, Fluttershy might’ve liked the sight o’ so many facinatin’ critters, but pretty sure she wouldn’t be able ta talk ‘em down if they’re set ta brawl with us,” said Applejack, small jets of energy from her armor keeping her aloft as she readied her drill lance, “Should we start tryin’ ta knock ‘em outta the sky?”

Shining Armor had his bow out and read, his eyes giving the area a keen look, “First thing I’ll do is generate a barrier to enclose the civilian area below us. I don’t want stray shots hitting anything or anyone.”

“Good call, my dude,” said Rainbow Dash, twirling her sizzling double-spear of writhing electrical energies, “If we start dropping these overgrown iguanas, last thing we want is anyone getting crushed by falling bodies.”

“Hold on...” Sunset Shimmer said, her eyes scanning the sky and the flight of dragons, “Something’s off. They’re not attacking yet.”

It’d seemed a fair assumption that the sudden appearance of a force of Dragons, right where Wallflower was, when they knew the Dragons serving Jormungandr were after her, meant that they were here to fight and take Wallflower by force. That might have very well been the case, but Sunset was noticing now that the formation of dragons had descended to around a hundred or so feet above them, but now had leveled out and were just... circling. There were dozens of pairs of less than friendly draconic eyes watching Sunset and her allies, certainly, but not a single one of the dragons had begun to attack.

“Huh, yeah, you’re right,” Rainbow Dash said, frowning, “What gives? Ain’t they here for Wallflower?”

“Maybe they don’t know exactly where she’s at, an’ they’re just holdin’ off ‘till they can pinpoint her?” Applejack suggested, shrugging, “I mean, figure someone must’ve sensed her energy or some such fer all these scaly folk ta show up here... unless we’re leapin’ ta conclusions?”

“Well whatever they’re here for, this is still my family’s territory, and sudden guests aren’t welcome,” Shining Armor said firmly, then took a deep breath before calling out loudly, “Dragons of the Beast Realm, I am Shining Armor, Sternritter B of the Quincy Vandenreich! You are trespassing in our airspace with an excessive force of numbers! State your business here, or leave! Failure to do either will result in the use of force to remove you from the premises!”

Rainbow Dash gave him a deadpan look, “Geeze, man, could you sound more stiff necked? I’d have just said ‘Hey jerkwads, either get talking, or get scramming, otherwise I’ll kick your butts’! See? Way more breezy.”

“Look, when an army of Dragons drops in on your house, you can handle them however you want,” Shining Armor shot back, “Kinda not in the mood for this crap right now. Especially not with Cadence... being in the condition she’s in.”

Sunset’s eyes widened a bit. Oh. That explained why Shining Armor suddenly was acting like a nettled papa bear. The man just had the stakes of any kind of disturbance or fight taking place here skyrocket tenfold. No doubt Shining Armor was ready to do anything it took to protect his fiancé, especially if she was carrying his child. That also meant he had every reason to want to avoid a fight here, if he could.

“Say no more,” Sunset told him, nodding in understanding, “We’ll do everything we can to keep this from spiraling out of control.”

He gave her a brief look of gratitude, then cast his hard gaze back up at the Dragons, “Well!? Answer me! Why are you here?”

From behind them spoke a voice, a rich masculine tone that vibrated through the air with a mixture of refined politeness... and unmistakable threat.

“Apologies, they are merely waiting for their High Chieftain to speak, for it is by my will they gather to me, hence it is my right to answer your challenge, Midgardian.”

Sunset Shimmer and the others all turned around. Standing in the air a few dozen feet away was... a human man? No, his spiritual pressure was utterly unlike a human’s, and it was only now that Sunset was even sensing it. The man had skin the color of ocean at dusk, a blue so dark it was almost black, but still distinctly in the spectrum of blue. This stood in stark contrast to his hair, which was a vibrantly bright shade of silver that was too luminous to be natural, and hung down his back in a wildly untamed mane. He didn’t appear to be wearing clothing so much as what covered his broad framed body was an organic growth of finely layered scales that took the shape of a breastplate with large pauldrons, each one bearing a set of white claws, and a set of waist plates that covered his hips and groin. All else was just bare naked muscle with hints of scales within the flesh. Other clear signs of his non-human nature were shown by the claws upon his hands and feet, and the slit pupils set in his purple shaded eyes.

While the reiatsu she sensed from him wasn’t as crushing or overwhelming as Tirek’s, it still stood above any of the Dragons circling above, and made it readily apparent who this likely was. But Sunset wanted to confirm things, all the same, and she stepped forward, not quite raising Hokori, but keeping her grip on her Zanpaktou’s hilt firm.

“Going to stab a guess that you’re Jormungandr?”

The man flashed a wide and pleased grin, showing his mouth sported prominent fangs. His eyes fixated upon Sunset Shimmer in a manner that made her feel distinctly uncomfortable, but she met the look with a solid stare of her own. When he spoke, it was with a light, almost joking tone.

“I’m surprised you’d make such a guess, Midgardian lass. I thought all your kind’s stories of me were of the great ‘World Serpent’ who’s size engulfs the world. I thought I kept this form of mine fairly humble by comparison.”

“So you are him...” Sunset took a step forward, keeping her aggression in check but unable to keep her voice unheated, “Why are you after Wallflower? Or Hel. You’ve sent your Dragons here before.”

“Do I require a reason to wish my kin returned to me?” Jormungandr responded with a coy smirk, but then his face dropped any pretense of cordiality and became a hardened visage of long held fury, “She was stolen from me, and I’ve had to waste too many years in search of her. She has work to finish, a role to play, and I have no patience for the arrogance of mortal Midgardians interfering in my family’s affairs. Already you and your ilk have been irritants between my claws. The witches of Wing Bind have slain my servants, and will get their due recompense, and as for you... well, Ormir spoke highly of the golden and blue lasses over there...” he nodded towards Rainbow Dash and Applejack, “I know no common mortal could best a Jarl. So unlike Wing Bind, you have genuine power at your command. Power I can respect, but only to a degree.”

He held out a clawed hand towards Sunset, “Give Hel to me. She is nothing to you, while she is quite important to me. Do this, and you need not be concerned with either I or even what you call the Beast Realm.”

Sunset Shimmer’s hands clenched around the handles of her blade and shield. What was Hel to her? Technically speaking, hardly anything. Even Wallflower was a girl she’d met only recently. But for Sunset that was more than enough. Wallflower had ended up where she was because Sunset had interfered with her life. There was no way of knowing if things would have turned out better or worse if Sunset had just left Wallflower alone or otherwise kept her at a distance, but the fact was that Sunset had chosen to involve herself and as a result Wallflower’s very consciousness was at risk of being lost to the memories of one of Earth’s ancient spirit beings.

The bottom line was that Sunset Shimmer wasn’t the kind of person who could walk away from someone in need of help, and doubly so if she was part of the reason that person needed help in the first place.

She raised her Zanpaktou, now that she knew there was going to be every reason to use it, and pointed the blade at Jormungandr.

“Not happening.”

His eyes of midnight purple flashed with indignant anger, even as his lips curled in a smirk of faint respect, “As I’ve heard you Midgardians are fond of saying... it's your funeral. This may be our first meeting, Sunset Shimmer, but I am not ignorant of you or your companions’ exploits. Or of the fact that you must hold a grudge against the Zero Division that approaches half of the extent to which I despise them. Our paths need not be at cross purposes.”

Sunset Shimmer did not falter in her focus, sensing the hostility and danger radiating off of him, but she did cast a slight glance back at Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Shining Armor. The Quincy looked ready to attack even without any direct provocation, but he kept his jaw firmly shut, letting Sunset take the lead on this. Rainbow Dash and Applejack equally looked ready to fight, although both gained equal glances of hesitance at Jormungandr’s words.

“You’re going to have to give more details than that,” Sunset said simply, not lowering her Zanpaktou, “Hel, she sounds terrified of you, and that’s with her memories being all over the place. All I know about you is that those folks from Wing Bind said you’re trying to start up this whole ‘Ragnarok’ thing. What even is that?”

A sardonic and sarcastic smirk curled his lips, voice rippling with ancient amusement, “What, you haven’t read a book in the last few centuries? I thought that mortal media loved portraying it as one of their favorite end times stories.”

“I know the basics, sure. Some big war between Norse gods, the whole World Serpent coiling around the world, getting taken down by Thor. Pretty sure if my present experiences are anything to go by, the mythology and the reality only barely resemble each other,” Sunset said, and Jormungandr crossed his arms with a nod. He wasn’t quite as beefy as Tirek, but it was hard not to note the muscle tone.

“Then it shouldn’t surprise you to learn that your ‘friends’ from Wing Bind only know bits and pieces of the truth. My Tribe, the Tribe of the Sea, and the so-called ‘Cult’ that follow my teachings of Ragnarok have long sought to bring about the natural death of the world. Mortals like those in Wing Bind who have opposed our... work in the lands across your Atlantic ocean have failed to grasp the true meaning of that goal. They believe our goal is the world’s destruction. However as a Soul Reaper you must grasp that ‘death’ and ‘destruction’ are not the same thing.”

His words didn’t quite land in any manner that made sense in Sunset’s head. She frowned and tried to gaze into his eyes with greater security, trying to read him better. It was confusing. Jormungandr all but vibrated with barely contained hostility and violence, but at the same time she didn’t think his manner of politeness or professed interest in avoiding battle was fake. And the way he spoke of Ragnarok... it was with reverence, not malice. Yet despite that, she did sense an inherent malicious violence hiding somewhere in his eyes, bordering on something like madness. She didn’t trust him at all. Every instinct she felt told her this ‘man’ who was no man was exceedingly dangerous. Not in the same way Tirek’s raw power made him dangerous, or in the manner Grogar’s amoral obsessions made him dangerous, or Chrysalis’ unrestrained hedonism made her dangerous, or Glory’s self-absorbed god complex made her dangerous.

Jormungandr was a different beast, and she wasn’t yet sure where he fell on the threat spectrum... only that she felt certain that he was yet another enemy she was going to have to contend with.

“Yeah, sure, but you got to admit that saying your plan is to seek the death of the world, that sounds pretty bad. Crazy, even, I’d venture to say. So you want to elaborate? Especially on why you need Hel? Because right now I’m still pretty much leaning towards kicking your ass right out of Canterlot City along with your scaled buddies.”

His lips curled not in a smile, but a deep barring of fangs, his violet eyes literally now glowing with an inner light of fury, “I owe you no answers. It is only out of understanding we share a mutual hatred for Glory that I proffer any words to you at all, rather than eating your throat out. Hel is my half-sister, by blood of our so-called ‘father’, Loki. She is my kin, and I have use of her, after she was stolen from me by a supposed ally. You need not know more than that. As for Ragnarok, regardless of Glory’s struggles or your own, it is what will be. All things die so they may be reborn, including the world itself. All who believe otherwise, including my foolish fellow High Chieftains, are merely delaying what must be. Now...”

She felt the air tremble and heard the rumble of tremendous pressure building up. His reiatsu sharpened into focus around his body, along with the distinct buzzing sensation of magic flowing off of him. Jormungandr’s body lit up with a flickering gleam of violet energies, and he raised his clawed arms to his sides. In the air beside him what appeared to spectral scales started to appear, dozens, then hundreds, all floating like sharp arrow-heads that then began to interlock with one another. In mere moments what looked like gigantic dragon claws formed of the merged violet scales took shape, eight of them, each over a hundred feet long, and four to either side of him. They hummed with power, and to Sunset’s senses felt like extensions of Jormungandr’s magic and reiatsu forged into physical form; the Anima power that Rainbow Dash and Applejack had described the hydra, Ormir, using.

“...give me Hel, or be crushed between my claws, Midgardian.”

“Give you hell, you say...?” Sunset said, and felt herself give a light chuckle as flames blossomed along Hokori’s edge, “Man did you pick the wrong phrasing.”

In a burst of fiery Flash Step she crossed the distance to appear behind Jormungandr and sent a backhanded swing of her flaming blade at his back. He bent almost like a contortionist, silver hair glinting in a wave as he turned his left arm around and used the claws of his hand to bat aside her Zanpaktou. However on contact, Sunset let the flames geyser outward and explode over him in a focused and intense fireball that shook the air.

He leaped out of the flames, barely singed and grinning a fanged expression of mixed fury and mad joy, “Then battle it is! A part of me hoped for such! Even if this body is a mere projection, my ancient heart wakes from slumber at the scent of blood and flame! Come, my Thanes, my loyal followers of Ragnarok! Let the clarion call of the coming war sing true!”

He threw his head back and an inhuman sound came from his throat and deeper in his chest. It was a roar, but like no roar Sunset Shimmer had ever heard uttered by a thing of flesh and blood. It was like a ripping quake of pure force and unrestrained fury that tore every molecule in the air. The overcast sky itself trembled and parted, as if a great clawed hand simply scooped away the clouds. Every dragon of the circling flight opened their jaws and added their roaring voices to Jormungandr’s chorus. It took a concentrated effort on Sunset’s part not to let go of her Zanpaktou and put her hands over her ears, and she hardened her reiatsu against the wash of force as the roars gradually subsided.

She had no time to focus beyond that, for the moment he lowered his head from the roar, Jormungandr’s eyes locked on hers with a glint of bloodlust like a mad animal, and he was in her face, slashing with his clawed hands in tearing motions that shattered the sound barrier. She was more than fast enough to match him, however, and got Hikari up just in time to take the blows in a flow of sparks. She was shoved back, feet grinding in the air, and she saw Jormungandr moving his arms in a pattern like some harsh, violent dance. She sensed the reiatsu of his Anima before she even saw the claws of spectral scales incoming. All eight slashed at her in a tempest of air shattering motions, and she twisted left and right with Hikari and Hokori both spinning around her to block and parry the rush of attacks.

Meanwhile the flight of dragons had all dived together towards Sunset’s allies. Jaws opened and within dozens of maws baleful lights of different colored energies took form. Waves of flame, streams of acid, flickers of forked lightning, streams of sharp ice, slicing jets of water, and even simple beams of raw force and energy all careened down in an elemental torrent towards Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Shining Armor.

Their response was as fast as it was potent.

Rainbow Dash’s wings of prismatic light flared brightly and she slashed with her spear, and with her motion a titanic gust of air beyond hurricane force billowed up and across like a mountainous scythe of pure wind force. This washed away over half of the lines of destructive, draconic breath weapons coming down at them, but Applejack and Shining Armor weren’t to be outdone. Spinning up the two drill portions on her lance, Applejack charged the weapon with an intense glow of golden energy and aimed it upward as the tip opened up in three sections. At the same time ports opened up along her form fitting gold armor, nozzles within blazing with power.

With a loud shout, Applejack fired from both the drill lance and from the ports across her armor, sending out a staggering storm of golden blasts and beams that sheared into the oncoming breath attacks and the dragons beyond alike, causing a chorus of pained roars as several dragons were blasted back like massive rag dolls by the farm girl’s powerful barrage.

Not to be outdone, but simultaneously keeping his priorities straight, Shining Armor took his bow and spun his body in a graceful circle. The shield-shaped covering on the middle of the bow flashed with bright motes of blue reishi as he drew back and unleashed two glittering arrows of power, one up, and one down. The arrow that flew down shattered and spread out a curtain of protective reishi that rapidly spread to create a barrier around at least several kilometers of area beneath where the battle was taking place, a thick and reinforced dome formed by the Bastion to protect all beneath it.

The arrow he shot upwards took advantage of the confusion among the draconic flight caused by Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s attacks, breaking apart in a shine of light that formed a vertical sheet of barrier energy that split the formation into two disjointed halves. “We’ll keep them split up and take them down one at a time!”

His shout was interrupted by him having to evade some of the breath weapons that still reached them, flame and acid nearly scorching his side as he skidded aside in a burst of motion, and instantly retaliated with a swift burst of multiple arrows that pierced into the hide of the closest dragon. Many of the beasts were still oncoming, howling their rage and quite willing to ignore pain and injury to get at the tree of them. Rainbow Dash had to bolt, quite literally, ina flicker of lightning speed to get around the snatching claws of several monstrously sized beasts that came at her. She chuckled, feeling confident in her ability to dodge with her incredible speed. At least until two of the larger dragons started to glow with thick auras, bringing forth their Animas, which in one case created a spectral bog of translucent brown sludge that formed around her instantly, catching her like a bug on a fly trap.

“The hell!? Ew! Gross!” She pulled against the sludge, which shimmered like some kind of spectral ectoplasm. It was stickier than tar and a hundred times more gripping. Even so, she was powerful enough to start tearing free of the floating ghost bog, but that did slow her down long enough for the other dragon’s Anima to form, taking the shape of a pair of glowing emerald wings that overlapped their own, and from runic circles of magic that grew upon their length they discharged a slicing barrage of disc-shaped wind blades.

Rainbow made a swift ‘Tch!’ and coiled electric power and surging wind around herself, her body becoming incandescent with an azure surge of might as massive pillars of lightning raced out of her and pierced both sky and ground, nearly breaking Shining Armor’s barrier. “You jerks want to try and match me wind to wind!? Bring it on!”

The electricity sizzled through the spectral tar bog and she rushed towards the barrage of wind blades, bringing with her a tornado cyclone of swirling power as she spun her body and sliced with her dual lightning spear. The dragon’s wind blades were broken apart and Rainbow Dash streaked right past the offending pair of Anima using dragons, long arcs of lightning from her spear hammering both of them in bursts of power.

Applejack had been watching out of the corner of her eye, figuring Dash had things under control on her end. She instead focused on the dragons coming after her, at least half a dozen that were trying to flank her on either side. One came in with a ear splitting roar and furnace blast of what looked to be a jetting cloud of steam. Compared to some attacks she’d endured, the steam didn’t do much other than feel uncomfortably toasty, although she imagined normal people or those with weaker reiatsu would’ve genuinely been scalded. She wasn’t an idiot, however, and figured the dragon must’ve known that and the steam breath was just to obscure her vision while his buddies prepared something nasty.

She flew up on instinct, and just in time, for as she cleared the steam cloud she saw that, interestingly enough, the other five dragons were all breathing flames together, but not at her. Instead they streamed their flaming breaths together into one growing sphere that one of them was then controlling with what Applejack assumed was another example of an Anima. This lead dragon’s body gleamed with blue light, and tendrils like cobalt vines appeared from its body and coiled around the concentrated sphere of its companion’s joined flames. It then used the vines to enclose it, creating essentially a giant bomb that it then hurled at Applejack.

“Fine, I’m up fer a bit o’ volleyball!” she said, shouldering her drill-lance and with jets of gold power erupting from her shoulder armor she flew down to meet the explosive bomb of flame and coiled vines. She used her left hand to pull back and with jet assisted power venting from her elbow, she slapped down with a hard spike, nailing the bomb.

She could tell it was set to blow practically on contact, but she doubted the dragons were accounting for her speed and power, because she effectively launched the construct right back at the dragons too quickly for it to explode on her and instead it ended up detonating when it was nearly back at the starting point. The dragons roared in a mixture of indignation and pain as they had to scatter from the blast, and Applejack took advantage of the confusion to fly down at high speed, zipping right on top of the dragon that had used Anima. She’d judged so far that only a handful of these beasts were actually able to use this power, as the larger majority seemed to be relying solely on physical strength and their breaths.

Landing on this one’s back, she slammed her drill lance down, cracking it into his shoulder blade as she revved the drills up and pierced scale and muscle alike. This dragon was pretty tough, however, and didn’t immediately drop, instead turning his head towards her and giving her a blasting roar as his Anima glowed across his body and a set of razor sharp, translucent blue vines shot from his mouth and tried to engulf her. Applejack kicked off just in time, her armor taking a few nasty scrapes, but she managed to avoid the worst of it.

Still, the dragon didn’t immediately pursue her after that, flying lower and sagging in the air, the wound Applejack had given it dripping blood as the dragon’s shoulder hung limp.

As her friends kept the flying horde at bay, Sunset Shimmer was locked toe-to-toe with Jormungandr, or his ‘projection’, if what he claimed was true. Sunset was willing to believe it. He was the only Dragon here sporting a human-like form, and the more she clashed with him, she more she noticed his spiritual pressure not only didn’t feel as sharp or complete as she was used to feeling from other opponents she’d fought, but she also sensed a small string of power running from his body all the way back towards one of the portals in the sky. This thing she was fighting was more like a puppet, formed of Jormungandr's power. Which was certainly concerning, given the ‘puppet’ was fighting on par with her with her Shikai.

He seemed to be able to readily read into her thoughts and as his claws batted aside a fresh wave of flame she’d sent his way, he ducked low and came at her with a sudden snap kick with his right leg, catching a bit of her hair and severing a few locks with the sharp talons on his foot.

“I’d fight you with my real body, but even I can’t break ancient pacts that prohibit the leaders of the Beast Tribes from entering Midgard or Asgard in our true forms. Not until the conditions of Ragnarok are met, at any rate.”

He slashed down, not only trying to claw her face with his hand, but bringing down four of this giant, flying Anima claws that rocketed down at her one after another in a series of consecutive slashes, each one creating ripples of force around them. She stepped back from his first claw swipe, turning her body to roll with the momentum of the first Anima talon as she slammed Hikari into it and deflected it into the second one, knocking it off course. This still forced her to use Hokori to fend off the other two, slashing left and right so fast with burning flames so bright that it looked like she created a single arc of fire as she slammed back both talons. She noticed her fire seemed to be able to burn the scales these Anima constructs were made of, which gave her some encouragement, but at the same time saw this she also spotted Jormungandr grinning and dozens of scales spark with power.

That was all the warning she had before scales launched off of the claws like ticked off, hyper-velocity blades, stabbing at her in a wild shotgun blast of sharp, piercing projectiles. She Flash Stepped, body vanishing and reappearing a dozen yards back. She winced, having evaded most of the barrage, but feeling a wet warmth on her left side and right forearm, where the soft burn of fresh cuts could be felt.

Still, she was far from done, and not even feeling the need to bump this up to Bankai yet, especially now that she knew her flames could burn these Anima constructs. Admittedly there was a lot she didn’t know about how this seemingly exclusive Beast Realm power functioned, but just from what she’d seen so far it reminded her a lot of how her friend’s Fullbrings worked as a set of distinctive powers manifesting from an extension of the user’s spirit energy and magic, but she also felt it might be dangerous to make too many assumptions based on that superficial similarity. So far all she knew was that Jorumgandr could apparently generate these scales and form them into claws to attack with, and break them apart to strike with the scales individually, but it’d be a swift ticket to painsville if she assumed that’s all he could do.

Deciding to turn up the heat and test out a few things, Sunset held Hokori aloft and intensified the flames coiling around the broadsword’s edge. Blocking so many attacks with Hikari had built up plenty of power in her Zanpaktou, and the red cloth dangling from the hilt practically blazed hot orange. Leaping high with a Flash Step, she went flying behind one of the draconic, spectral claws and charged down its length, slashing as she went. Melting flames burned outward from her sword in a long stream as she sliced, cutting through the translucent purple scales of the giant claw as she put her back and the power of her flames into the slice.

She saw her flames burst out the other side, having melted through as she cut the claw in half. However a moment later, despite having scorched what must have been hundreds of interlocking scales, more appeared and stitched the two halves of the claw back together almost instantly.

“Checking to see if you can destroy my Anima?” Jormungandr asked with entirely too casual a tone as he appeared behind her, his motions hardly matching his voice as he threw a haymaker punch at Sunset that had the force of a bullet train behind it.

She turned swiftly, catching his fist on Hikari’s shield, and her arm strained only a little to hold him there as she built up more flames upon her blade, “Wondering if there was a limit to how many of these you can make, or if damage to them drains your reiatsu at all. It can’t be cheap, energy-wise, to project all of this stuff into this world from the Beast Realm.”

His fist strained against her shield and she felt more and more power fill his limb, almost managing to push her back. It was odd. He could easily be attacking her with his summoned claws right now, but it was almost as if he was enjoying just testing her strength. For all his savagery, there was a playfulness to his smirk, “You’re right. This form is terribly inefficient and burns up a lot of power, and I can’t even manifest my full Anima. Strictly speaking, you technically have the advantage in terms of stamina right now.”

“Then why do you look so damn smug about it? Aoihi Senko!” Sunset shouted, reversing her grip on Hokori and slashing up in an inverted slice as she pushed his arm to the side. A focused, intense column of brilliant blue flames exploded outward from her slice, hammering Jormungandr’s body dead on and actually sending him flying backwards.

She flew right after him, leaping across the air in a blurringly fast Flash Step as she followed his flaming back and spun around, slashing down now with Hokori. She saw his body was burned, the dark blue tint of his skin turned to char in some places, and his armored chest armor flaked with ash, yet even as she sliced down, Jormungandr looked at her with his violet eyes and flashed a smile as he spun in the opposite direction she had and kicked with both feet. In a brilliant display of martial arts prowess he deflected her Zanpaktou with one foot while hammering her in the stomach with the other, knocking the air from Sunset’s lungs as she was sent reeling back.

Then, before she had time to recover, he clapped his hands together and two of his giant, flying Anima claws came slamming in at her from the left and right. She managed to respond just in time, bracing Hikari and letting the shield gleam white with power as the shield formed a wider barrier. This absorbed the blow from the claw on her left, while she aimed Hokori to her right and unleashed another jet of wide blue flame, the Aoihi Senko burning straight through the second claw even as she pushed off and away from the first one.

Jormungandr was still smiling, although it had a certain violent shine to it, “Smug? I’m deigning to engage in battle with a mere slip of a girl who’s barely had her powers for a handful of months, doing so only out of overwhelming respect for her accomplishments in that short time frame, and she thinks I’m the smug one? Midgardians, I swear.”

He spun his arms in another of those strangely entrancing and graceful maneuvers akin to a dance, and the seven remaining spectral Anima claws mimicked his motions and began spinning around Sunset at varying distances and trajectories. She didn’t have trouble following their movements, and instantly noticed how each claw was now open with its palm facing her. She could readily guess what was coming, even before the rather unpleasant image of a mouth of draconic fangs pushing itself out from the palm of each massive claw, the scales reforming to take this strange shape.

Sunset was already dodging even before the newly grown maws opened wide and malicious purple light formed within. She rocketed upwards, getting quite high above in an instant, while the Anima claws flew after her, and discharged blazing spheres of dark purple flame that roared up after her at speeds matching her own. With a deep breath, she let her body become coated in white flame, and started generating clones of herself formed of the bright white fire. Almost like a jet releasing chaff against incoming missiles, she sent her fire clones streaking into the purple balls of fire coming after her, and upon impact they detonated in a concussive flash of intermixed white and violet heat. The heat was so intense that even as she flew away from the line of explosions, she could feel the moisture evaporate from the air. Those fireballs of Jormungandr’s had clearly packed a punch.

Pausing to collect and reorient herself, her eyes scanned for both the Anima claws and their controller... and she blinked as she saw that Jormungandr wasn’t standing where he’d been before. In fact, she felt his spiritual pressure descending, not ascending towards her. In a moment of frustrated ire, Sunset realized the bastard had chased her upwards only to buy himself time to head straight down towards where Spike, Cadence, and Hel were!

----------

It was irritating for Spike to not really have a clear view of what was happening up there. The Gunwolf had really good sensors and fed him accurate information in terms of a detailed radar display, but it wasn’t as if it could see through trees, so he was stuck doing a lot of guesswork based on what he was seeing on his radar display and what little he could parse out in terms of his still fledgling level of spiritual sensing. Twilight had been teaching him when she had time, but it was still hard to suss out just what was what in terms of all this “reiatsu this” or “spiritual pressure that”. Didn’t help that he had to keep half an eye on Wallflower, who was huddling on the ground hugging herself and looking around like a caged animal ready to bolt.

“You still Hel?” he asked, “Or is Wallflower home upstairs right now?”

The girl gave him a flat look that for a moment showed the seemingly casual glare he’d come to associate with Hel, but it was heavily mitigated by a tremble of fear and a similar look of uncertainty, “I wish you all would stop using that name! It’s like my mind creaks every time you say it. And what does it matter right now, Fenrir!? Jormungandr is here, and he’s likely to deal with us both as soon as he is finished with those Midgardians!”

“Heh, yeah right,” Spike said, “I might not be seeing everything happening up there, but pretty sure the green dots are still my pals kicking butt, and all the red dots blinking out one at a time suggests they’re doing just fine. And seriously, what’s with this Fenrir business? My name is Spike.”

Hel looked at him with more of that lip twitching uncertainty, her eyes growing distant as faint stars, “I forgot... your death. It was so painful, so easy to put into the stone... along with all the other memories I hate. If my brother is dead, then you are one of his fragments. But so large, so pure, I can feel you, Fenrir. Even if it’s just a piece of you in that shell...”

To say that her words were making Spike uneasy was a vast understatement. It wasn’t that what she was saying sounded crazy. His standards of “crazy” had gone through radical changes since his best friend became a mystical bow-wielding super warrior in a multi-dimensional ghost war. He was literally piloting a giant mecha shaped like a freakin’ wolf that was powered by magic and soul energy.

So no, the idea that what Hel was saying was nuts wasn’t what bothered him. It was the notion that not only was what she said was entirely plausible, but some part of him... some deeply rooted sensation in his soul, told him she was telling the truth. And if that was the case, what did any of this mean? For all of his natural desire to take things in stride and keep a level head, a skill cultivated over long years of caring for Twilight’s tendency towards panic, this was a moment when Spike truly wished he had her here just for the calming effect her presence had on him.

“Listen lady, even if you’re right, I really got no memory of being anybody other than me. Doesn’t matter right now, anyway. All I got to do is keep you safe and from running off, until either Sunset or Twilight work out how to unscrew this screwy situation.”

“Although I’ll admit I’ve got quite a few questions for you, myself,” said Cadence to Hel, her rose red and pink arm mounted crossbow partially aimed up, ready to fire if it proved necessary while she maintained a rather relaxed stance for the fact that a pitched fight was taking place so close by. “His Majesty may well want to know what it is you know about Glory and her plans.”

Hel twitched at the mention of Glory’s name, hands bending almost like claws as she shuddered, “Her plan or my brother’s, between the two I preferred hers, but the price...”

Before she could speak further there was a shattering noise from above, and they all looked up to see a circular portion of Shining Armor’s barrier had been pierced through like a window being broken by a high-speed fastball. A bare moment later someone slammed into the ground nearby, scattering trees, and a few of the Blanks that continued to float around the area like drifting leaves.

Spike found himself instinctively growling deep in his throat as he moved between Hel, Cadence, and this newcomer. The man that stood before them wasn’t quite human, not with that scaled, organic armor, and clawed hands and feet. A long mane of silver hair and violet eyes somehow sparked familiarity in Spike’s mind as he saw the man stand from the crouching position he landed in. The man held out his right hand, and suddenly the Blanks around him all halted, and quivered like jelly. In a swirl, the dozens and dozens of Blanks floating around the area all coiled and swirled towards the man, coiling into his hand like liquid. Fusing together, they then took the shape of a sword in his hand, although it was a bizarrely shaped one, consisting of two intertwining coils of silver metal that twisted together until they ended in twin points like the forked tongue of a snake.

The man looked right at the Gunwolf, as if he could see through it to Spike, and gave a deeply satisfied smirk, his voice a rich, resonant noise of amusement, “Hello, brother. Fancy meeting you here. Was me killing you once not enough? You’re going to make me do it again?”

As Spike faced the man, he heard Hel made a ragged sound of rapid breathing as dark streams of necromantic energy billowed from her hands and she stared at the man with eyes almost glazed with feral fear and hate, “Jormungandr! Get away from me!”

She slashed with her arms, her hands like claws slashing at the air as she sent thin crescents of focused necrotic power flying at the man. Jormungandr swung his newly formed blade shaped from the Blanks and sliced through the oncoming onslaught of black energy crescents like someone batting away tennis balls. “Please, sister. You’re so reduced from what you were that this display is only embarrassing you. Even when you were at your full measure, before Glory stole most of what you were to fuel her disgusting project, you still would have struggled against me. Now, you’re a clawless kitten scratching at not just a Dragon, but the Dragon. Be sensible, and return to me. Only by my side will this shell you’ve become still serve any meaningful purpose.”

As he spoke, there was a phantom of white motion behind him. Cadence, wearing a ruthlessly calm and cold expression, appeared at Jormungandr’s back and fired a streaking pink arrow from her crossbow. It struck him square in the back, and a flicker of pink power coursed over him as Cadence narrowed her eyes and activated the power of her Schrift in an attempt to affect him with the Lust, which should have incited enough primal emotion for her to control him to force obedience.

Yet when his shoulders slumped, it wasn’t in the manner of one succumbing to blind love for her to listen to her commands, but instead the deep rumbling chuckling of a man utterly mirthful. “Hahaha, oh, so you’re one of the Consort’s little toy soldiers? Sorry, but this body is just a flicker of my real form. Tricks like this won’t work.”

He moved in a freakishly fast motion, slicing with his twisted sword in an upward cleaving slice that would rip the ground for hundreds of meters and sever the trees of the forest like tiny twigs. Cadence felt a burst of pain across her face, blood coating one of her eyes as a deep wound tore across her chin and up her cheek to her temple... but it was a lot better than being bisected, which is what likely would have happened if she hadn’t been bowled aside by Spike’s Gunwolf, which had moved just moments before Jormungandr did to move her out of the way.

The Gunwolf itself took a long, sparking gash on it’s left side, but Twilight had invested a lot of time ensuring the mech’s armor was reinforced by advanced Quincy alchemy and her and Midnight’s own combined efforts to interweave protective magic wards. It wasn’t a stretch to say the Gunwolf’s durability matched or surpassed many Arrancar Hierros, probably only beaten out by those like Torch who specialized in that power.

Standing protectively over Cadence, Spike aimed the Gunwolf at Jormungandr and its gun-tipped tail snapped forward, Spike charging up its intense blue reishi cannon to full power. This wasn’t going to be the non-lethal blast he’d used on Hel, but a focused beam at maximum output without utilizing the Gunwolf’s trump card system. The only reason he wasn’t using said trump card system was because Twilight had specifically warned him not to because it wasn’t technically finished. He recalled the specific words she and Midnight both used were “catastrophic atomic degeneration to everything in a kilometer radius” in the event something went wrong. And since they knew Spike so well, they had put a lock on the system he couldn’t deactivate on his own, anyway. Because he definitely would’ve pushed the shiny red button in this situation if they hadn’t. And probably blown up.

Even so, the beam that sliced forth from the Gunwolf’s tail was several magnitudes brighter and more intense than what he’d hit Hel with, and Jormungandr raised his sword and braced it with both hands as he used it to intercept the beam. While the beam wasn’t able to pierce through the blade, it also was able to keep Jormungandr briefly rooted in place, and Spike kept his paw on the trigger, the beam no slacking off as it drained the Gunwolf’s M-Cells bit by bit.

“Cadence, can you still move?” he asked, and the Quincy nodded, half of her face covered in blood.

“Yes, I’m fine,” she said, clearly not fine.

“Then grab Hel and get out of here! I’ll keep him busy!”

“Hah, always with the forced nobility, eh, Fenrir?” Jormungandr said, shaking his head of silver hair, “One would think being reincarnated into such a diminutive body would’ve inflicted some level of humility on you. Or at least common sense. Where do you think Hel can be taken that I would not find her? Sister, do you truly wish to watch me kill our brother again? Cease this foolishness and come back with me. Our work is not finished.”

Hel had scrambled away from him, looking fearfully between Jormungandr, Cadence, and Spike, naked fear in her eyes. “I... won’t go back.”

She closed her eyes and gave off a loud shout, spreading a thick mist of life-draining, oily dark energy to fly towards Jormungandr, who was still busy blocking the Gunwolf’s beam and hence could neither dodge nor readily smoke the mist away with raw power. Even so, the thick mist of darkness only seemed to discomfort him more than seriously harm him. Cadence still took the moment to move and grab Hel by the arm, somehow looking more fearsome with so much of her face blood soaked from her wound.

“Come on, we need to get to Discord’s shop.”

Spike imagined that was as good a move as they could make. If Cadence could get Hel there, then he doubted Jormungandr, no matter how strong he was, wouldn’t be able to readily assault a place guarded by the likes of Discord and Ditzy Doo. Hel must have had some level of Wallflower’s knowledge as well, because she clearly recognized the name and with a gulp, nodded and took Cadence’s hand and got up to run with the Quincy.

However at that point Jormungandr sighed and said in a deep rumble that somehow got louder with each word, “I have given none of you permission to leave.”

The ground shook like an earthquake, and Spike heard rock and dirt tear, and trees buckle, as a massive fissure began to form across the forest. The ground split in a wide, circular area, and suddenly hundreds of spectral scales of dark purple shade flew up from the fissure. Spike wasn’t sure where these scales came from, but his sensors told him that the energy matched Jormungandr’s. The scales locked together, swarming into concentrated forms that became a quartet of giant... tails? They looked like the long, massive form of thick, draconic tails, fitted with car-sized scales and covered in concentric rows of curved ridges. It was hard to gauge their lengths, but Spike had seen kaiju flicks and these humongous tails of translucent purple energy were akin in size to those cinematic beasts.

Before either he, Cadence, or Hel could react, the four colossal dragon tails whipped across the forest landscape, smashing everything in their path.

Episode 193: Even the World is Mortal

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Episode 193: Even the World is Mortal

Within the isolated forest the shadows of four majestically monolithic tails of vibrant purple scales descended like falling towers. Those caught in the path of their descent had little room for escape, with a wounded Cadence holding Hel’s arm with one hand, and Spike still locked in place as his Gunwolf poured forth a beam towards Jormungandr’s projected form. Jormungandr himself seemed utterly unconcerned with his body being in the strike zone of the gigantic dragon tails his Anima scales had formed, likely simply because his body being a projection meant any damage it suffered mattered little to the ruler of the Beast Realm’s Tribe of the Sea.

Cadence saw little choice but to try and use Hirenkyaku to drag Hel towards one of the few small gaps between the tails, even knowing that the speed of their descent was too fast for her to make it in time.

Seeing this, and acting on instinct, Spike flipped the Gunwolf’s blazing tail barrel around and aimed the beam away from Jormungandr and instead fired for the gap, hoping to blast a hunk of one the tails off to create a gap for Cadence and Hel to escape through.

However just as he began to do this, multiple streaks of cobalt light penetrated through one of the draconic tails; reishi arrows that flew around and formed a pentagon pattern around Cadence, Hel, and Spike. Thick sheets of reishi rose up from around the arrows, forming a potent dome of almost opaque blue light that appeared just in time to shield the group. Even so, the immense impact of four building sized dragon tails moving at insane speeds was enough to shake the earth, flatten the forest, and leave a broken area of earthen rubble for several hundred meters around.

The barrier itself managed to hold under the impacts, although cracks had appeared across it like a barely intact eggshell. The protective shell dissipated a moment later to reveal the utterly crushed forest and riven earth all around them, but the dragon tails had pulled back now, readying for another strike. Before they could, however, two figures rushed between them, striking in tandem.

One was Sunset Shimmer. She was bearing a few extra wounds from tangling with Jormungandr’s conjured claws, but flames coated her body in white hot fire, some of the worst of the cuts slowly healing. More flame, solidified into a long, searing pillar of sapphire power, cut out of her blade in a wide arc as she slashed past one of the dragon tails. The blue flames turned the binding scales of the Anima construct to ashes of dissipating reishi, severing one of the tails into several pieces as Sunset’s single strike revealed itself to be several, as she continued downward to land in front of Jormungandr with eyes burning with fresh anger.

“Not polite to ditch a lady in the middle of a dance, you ass,” she said, already flashing towards him in a haze of blinding motion. Her flames had returned to burning orange, but were still hot of enough to ignite some of fallen timber as she struck hard at Jormungandr, who smile with an appreciative eye as he brought the odd helix shaped blade he’d forged from the Blanks up to block in a blast of heat and sparks.

“Apologies, but my business is mostly with my sister, and you seem less than eager to hear me out on that front. I am taking her today, one way or another.”

“The hell do you need her for!? You haven’t explained a damn thing!” Sunset pushed with Hokori to knock his blade aside and slammed Hikari forward, trying to get a good head shot in with the shield’s pointed tip. He caught it with his hand, but the tip of the shield still pierced the projection’s “flesh”, causing motes of reishi to float away from the wound as the hand was pierced through. Still, he halted the shield, and glanced away from her for a moment.

He was looking at the second figure that had charged down with her. Shining Armor.

While Sunset had destroyed one of the Anima tails that Jormungandr had created, Shining Armor, who’s arrows had created the barrier that protected those in the forest a moment ago, now went to work on the remaining tails. His spiritual pressure was blasting forth in a seething mass, the man’s face a raw mask of fury as he’d seen his injured wife and now took that anger out in impressive fashion upon the giant constructs of power in the shape of dragon tails.

These enormous tails had targeted him and focused their full attention upon the Quincy Sternritter, flailing through the air with shocking speed for their size. Unfortunately for them, striking a target in the sky was much harder than those on the ground, and Shining Armor was no slouch when it came to speed, even if he was a far cry from the likes of Rainbow Dash. He moved with bright flickers of high-speed motion, leaping over waves of sonic wind force as the tail constructs sailed by him. Every time he vanished and appeared elsewhere his bow fired a swarm of arrows, similar to Lich Regen, yet with fewer, but larger arrows. These arrows pelted the tails, sticking to them, but seeming not to penetrate the scales in any significant manner... at least not until Shining Armor had thoroughly tagged all three remaining tails with several dozen arrows apiece.

He gestured at the arrows, invoking in a resonant voice, “Vergeltungsfeld!” (Retribution Field)

Abruptly each arrow he’d fired into the Anima constructs generated a field of force from its end which connected with one another and started to fuse together until dozens of arrows essentially formed into one massive field of energy that proceeded to then explode with magnified force, detonating one after another. This blasted great chunks out of the three constructs, causing them to fall over. Sunset wasn’t sure how long that would last, remembering that Jormungandr was capable of rapidly repairing the creations had made with his Anima, but also recalling that projecting his power into this world was draining for him. Perhaps he could only do so much, because he didn’t seem to be in a rush to reform the tails. She also noted the draconic claws he’d created were hovering above, but not chasing her down to the ground, as if Jormungandr was content for the moment to face her with that odd blade of his.

What was more, she realized that the number of Blanks floating around the area hadn’t gone down, but had only been increasing, to the point where she wasn’t sure she could count how many were now hovering about.

“You’ve noticed,” Jormungandr said, “Should I tell you what they really are? That they’re a symptom of the sickness at the heart of our world?”

“You’re going to need to be at least fifty or so percent less cryptic and smug before I take anything you say seriously,” she replied, breaking their physical stalemate by kicking off the ground and flipping backwards, while reversing her grip on Hokori so she could point her index finger downward and rapidly invoke a Kido, “Bakudo Number One: Sai!” (Restrain)

Jormungandr looked briefly insulted, but then surprised as his arms shook at the energies of the restraining Kido that tried to invisibly bind his arms behind him. Normally a beginner's Kido like that would hardly affect an opponent with his level of reiatsu, but Sunset was banking on how much energy he was having to expend just to maintain his projection meaning he didn’t have as much to use on pure defense. Also, it didn’t have to hold him long, just a second or two, and indeed even as Jormungandr redirected his reiatsu to push the minor binding Kido off, it still left his arms in an awkward position and exposed as Sunset used Flash Step to push off the air and slam right back own towards him with a heavy overhanded chip that bust to life with azure power, “Aoihi Senko!”

She felt her Zanpaktou, erupting with a potent wave of intense blue fire, strike right down Jormungandr’s chest and then blast his body backwards through the onrushing explosion of flames that burnt a charred and ashen trail for quite some distance.

By now Shining Armor had landed amid the group, immediately checking on his wife, “Cadence, shit, you’re face-”

“It’s nothing, Shining,” Cadence replied with swift assurance, ignoring the still thick amount of blood dripping from the rather horrifying gash across her face, “We’ve more important things to worry about than my looks.”

“That’s not why...ugh,” he cast an angered glance at Hel, “Why is he after you!?”

Naked fear warred with a certain level of divine indignation on Hel’s face as she looked at the mortal man yelling at her, “I... I’m supposed to help him... kill Yggdrasil.”

“What, like the mythological tree?” asked Spike, “It’s real? Wait, why am I even surprised, anymore?”

Sunset glanced back at them, “Wait, if Yggdrasil is a real thing, then why would Jormungandr want to kill it?”

“That’s not so difficult to answer, for someone with an ear to listen...”

The flame and smoke from Sunset’s Aoihi Senko gradually faded as Jormungandr walked amid the remainder of the azure flames clinging to the scorched earth. His projected body was clearly damaged, at least, with a gaping and burned wound down the chest that didn’t bleed any blood, but showed a few motes of reishi peeling off of him. His face showed no pain, but that was hardly a surprise, but it did show a bit of strain as he gave Sunset that strangely a manic yet resolved smile he’d been showing her their whole battle.

“Yggdrasil, the World Tree, is the beating heart of the Beast Realm, and through it, the natural system of this world’s ability to reincarnate souls. A system usurped by Glory and her little helpers, the Soul Reapers. Through her treachery, she perverts the natural order, preventing Yggdrasil from completing its own life cycle... in effect preventing the world from dying its natural death, but corrupting the process of mortality by doing so. All I want... is to force a rekindling of that natural order, by allowing Yggdrasil to die with dignity. For all of us to have a dignified end, and allow the process of mortality to proceed as it should.”

“Don’t listen to him!” Hel shrieked, shaking with either fear, disgust, anger, or a powerful mixture of all three, “His mind is twisted! He doesn’t know what killing Yggdrasil will do! He’s just assuming it will undo Glory’s... modifications.”

Sunset glanced between the pair, first at Hel, then back at Jormungandr. Up above in the sky she could hear the thunderous peals of lighting and thunder that were her friends fighting the draconic host, high above. Rainbow Dash’s and Applejack’s reiatsu remained strong in her senses, so she knew the pair were holding their own, but they were getting worn down a little, and there were still so many dragons. And this new information...

“Look, I’ve got no love for Glory and the Zero Division,” Sunset told Jormungandr, “I intend to stop their plans, whatever it ends up taking. That said, you’re not exactly selling me on bumping off some tree and speeding up the world’s supposedly ‘natural’ death as some kind of solution. That sounds like pure lunacy to me. Is this what your whole Ragnarok thing is all about?”

Jormungandr gave her a look that dripped condescension, even as he continued to wear his smile like some crazy people kept weird bumper stickers on their cars, “An appropriation of purpose, more like. Among the Tribes of the Beast Realm, Ragnarok is our final battle, to be waged in the twilight of Yggdrasil’s natural lifespan, to determine who is most worthy of rebirth. Legend and culture, in part, but Yggdrasil’s eventual death is no less true for it. Glory seeks to suspend death through her mind numbing goal of a ‘perfect world’, and my fellow High Chieftains were too cowardly to sound the call to Ragnarok to put things to right when I declared it the proper path. I tried once to fell Yggdrasil by my own tooth and claw, a loyal army by my side, but we were turned away, partially by desertion among those I thought most faithful. Now I seek to finish my task in another manner. With the aid of my dear sister, who fell to Glory’s influence, but I was able to reclaim and shape into a most valuable seed of destruction.”

Since he was being chatty, and Sunset detected a faint and approaching sense of new reiatsu, some of which she recognized, she decided to keep him talking. Jormungandr might have detected the approaching spiritual pressures as well, but if he was being this overconfident still, then maybe he’d happily keep talking. Sunset sure wasn’t about to stop him, and would gladly prompt more. Besides, she still didn’t understand this situation fully.

“Setting aside why you even need Hel for something like that, specifically, I still don’t see how killing Yggdrasil, and the world with it, benefits anyone. Won’t that just halt the reincarnation of souls, since you’re telling me the World Tree is key to operating that whole process?”

“Sunset, we should just destroy this asshole, not waste time talking with him,” said Shining Armor, but Spike actually stepped forward, putting a paw up to halt the Sternritter from raising his bow.

“Hold up. Sunset’s asking some key stuff here I want to know, too,” Spike said, turning the Gunwolf’s head towards Jormungandr, “Doesn’t mean we can’t put him down like a mad dog, once he’s done telling us what we want to know.”

A rich chuckle came from Jormungandr as he eyed Spike and his Gunwolf, “You even talk like Fenrir. So much bark for so little bite. You, along with Quetzalcoatl and your half-sister Fenris thought it madness to destroy Yggdrasil, but from my point of view it’s little different than putting down a sick and wounded animal. Yes, Sunset Shimmer, Yggdrasil’s death means that reincarnation will halt. Mortal deaths lead souls that in turn will die, yet their essence will not be reborn. Not until Yggdrasil renews itself. Which it will. That is the whole point of it! Be it by my claws today, or millions of years from now through natural degradation, Yggdrasil dies, the reincarnation process halts, the world crumbles... then is reborn as Yggdrasil blooms again. That is our faith. That is our fight. That is Ragnarok.”

“Riiiight...” Sunset shook her head, “Do you actually know this is true, or is this just guesswork based on Beast Realm legends? You know what, don’t answer that one. Even if all you said is true, I’d rather stop Glory, fix whatever she’s done to Yggdrasil, and let those ‘millions of years’ play out rather than let you end it all now just because you’re mad at Glory and the Zero Division.”

“Mad? Hah! I’m beyond mad, Midgardian,” Jormungandr’s eyes, even through a mere projection, burned with a hellish intensity that couldn’t even be called conventionally crazy or furious, “The Zero Division, the High Chieftains, the Soul Reapers, even you ignorant mortal Midgardians... all of you are guilty of allowing the world to become twisted and infected from its natural state. So it falls to me to force a correction.”

It looked like the interlude of exchanged words was about to end, Jormungandr gathering his remaining strength to relaunch his attack. Sunset and all others present prepared for it, but Sunset also sensed that the spiritual pressure’s she felt earlier were arriving just in time. A very familiar female voice chanted out with a powerful tone of focus, “Hado Number Eighty Eight: Hiryu Gekizoku Shinten Raiho!” (Flying Dragon Striking Heaven Shaking Thunder Cannon)

Standing no more than a few dozen meters away, as if she’d appeared there in an instant, which was probably very much the case via an impressive Flash Step, Clover held her right arm outstretched and braced with her left hand. The moment she finished her invocation, a small spark of electric light appeared in her palm, but then instantly exploded into a vast and churning swath of earth breaking lightning and raw spirit energy. The rushing wave of thunderous destruction slammed right into Jormungandr and exploded in a way lightning generally didn’t, the reishi within it seeming to go wild in a fury of pure detonation that resulted in a flaming explosion large enough that it would’ve leveled a sports stadium.

Sunset shielded her eyes from debris flying past her, whistling in an impressed manner. She knew Clover was good at Kido, but the punch she packed nowadays only seemed to keep growing. From her own experiences fighting the likes of Captain Platinum, Sunset didn’t think Clover was in any way behind them in terms of strength of Kido, and probably more skilled than some of those Captains besides.

Even Jormungandr’s projected body didn’t just walk out of that one unscathed, his body bouncing a few times from the smoke of the explosion, with a missing left arm and a chunk of his side gone, even as he landed on clawed feet and used his right arm to stab the ground with his sword and slow himself to a halt, his whole body smoking.

“Damn, Clover,” Sunset said, smiling, “You need to keep making entrances like that. By the time you get Chishiki back, your Zanpaktou is gonna wonder what the hell’s been going on with you.”

Clover, despite the serious look on her face just a moment ago as she hit Jormungandr with her Kido, blinked instantly and looked rather bashfully embarrassed as she waved her hands at Sunset, “This is hardly the time to be showering me with compliments, Sunset! Not that I’d mind afterward, but for now what in the world is even going on?”

“We hardly had time to explain anything in our rush to get here,” said another familiar voice, a buzzing of Sonido revealing Gaia Everfree appearing beside Clover, her curved, sickle-like Zanpaktou already drawn as she eyed Jormungandr with distaste, “Although I thought I recognized this snake’s reiatsu. Hmph, so the bloody wolf and bird were right.”

“Bird and wolf?” Sunset tilted her head, confused, at least until she heard a loud, piercing bird’s call, followed by the blistering howl of a wolf peal through the air.

She saw the brilliant streak of jade green and ocean blue hues as a gloriously colorful bird the size of a large helicopter flew by at impressive speed. From the bird’s long tail of colorful, peacock feathers a shimmering veil of spiritual power and magic formed, an Anima that became like a luminous rain of shimmering droplets formed of raw energy. Where these droplets fell, broken earth restored itself, and fallen trees grew new roots. Even Sunset felt her spirit energy being restored and her wounds soothed by the rain, and heard the soft gasps of her companions as they clearly felt similar restoration. Yet at the same time the rain seemed to have the opposite effect on Jormungandr, steaming and sizzling his projected body until he shieled himself with a set of conjured purple scales that formed into a protective... wing, above his head? Sunset only thought this odd because the wing wasn’t a draconic one, but closer in shape to that of a giant eagle. Why was that?

Her question fell out of the forefront of her mind as the howl of the wolf turned to a loud snarl as from the sky, slamming into the ground at a low angle like some furry ballistic missile, was a massive and heavily muscled canine with notably red fur. This huge wolf’s fur bristled as red motes of Anima energy rose over her body, which began to glow with the brands of multiple runic symbols. Her fur then grew in length and sharpened like living living blades, gaining a metallic huge as the wolf’s furry coat literally transformed into a covering of curved blades that sprouted from almost every angle of her body.

The bird circled overhead briefly before landing, the shimmering tail of her Anima trailing behind her. “Jormungandr! You do not belong in Midgard, and neither do your ill minded zealots! Withdraw at once back to Niflheim!”

“Simurgh and Asena,” Jormungandr wiped droplets of Simurgh’s Anima off of his skin and gave the pair a look of distaste, “I see Fenris and Quetzalcoatl continue to use you as their personal errand girls. As if you belong in Midgard any more than I do. Let us not make pretenses of civility. If the ancient pacts did not hold literal power over me, I’d have come here in full and not with this sorry shade, but alas, I work with what I can. And what else do we have here...?”

He glanced towards Clover and Gaia, eyeing the former with general disinterest and the later with more curiosity than concern, “I see a Soul Reaper whose name I neither know nor care to learn, and... a vaguely familiar soul. Gaia Everfree. I see your rebirth did not go wholly as you intended. I trust that my people's aid was still appreciated?”

Gaia’s face twitched in a generally more human manner in tune with Gloriosa, her voice tight with restrained emotions, “That’s a matter over and done with. Charybdis arranged those beasts entering Camp Everfree, so if it’s gratitude you seek, take it up with her.”

“Alas, I cannot, for Charybdis is no longer... active,” Jormungandr replied with a look of actual disappointment as he shook his head, “She would have proved a useful alternative tool to use had she not been defeated. With Hel missing for so long, I was rather bereft of a replacement and thought such a desperate mortal from Asgard might serve, but sadly Charybdis proved to be unequal to her own ambitions. But as the Fates seem to spin, not long after losing Charybdis, I discover my long lost sister! As for you, Gaia, did you spend such efforts to be reborn only to now become the lap dog of mortals yourself?”

Gaia let out a short laugh, raising her Zanpaktou in her right hand while her left gave a rather cheeky flip of her hair, “Don’t be ridiculous. I have my priorities straight. I have a summer camp to run, a little brother to look after, and a Chrysalis to kill. Long as I got those taken care of, I’m a happy woman, both as an Arrancar, and a human. I only came here to see if these ladies needed a hand in booting you back to the Beast Realm, but from the looks of things, my contribution would be overkill.”

Gloriosa turned to look at Sunset Shimmer, “You got this, right?”

Sunset smiled at the woman and nodded, “I think so. If you want to do me a favor, could you take Wallflower, er, Hel and escort her back to Discord’s? She’s who this jerk is after, and I don’t want him pulling a fast one. Right now Dash and AJ got things under control up above, but I don’t trust this dude doesn’t have some ace up his sleeve. He’s oozing that ‘overconfident bad guy’ vibe that is really starting to piss me off.”

Gloriosa looked back at where the girl she would’ve normally recognized as Wallflower was, but quickly noted the changes in the girl’s appearance, and being smart enough to add two and two based on what Jormungandr had been saying, grasped the situation fairly fast. “Right, I’ll take care of her.”

“Hold a moment,” said Simrugh, also eyeing Hel, “If she is truly Hel, then it is my and Asena’s responsibility to detain her.”

“Detain?” Sunset said, and Asena let out another growl, not taking her eyes off of Jormungandr.

“Hel is considered no less a threat than Jormungandr himself, and there is a standing order from our High Chieftains that she be taken into custody, if ever discovered. She must come with us.”

Jormungandr laughed loudly, a rough, manic sound as he grinned at Sunset Shimmer, “Do not be so foolish, girl, as to think my rival High Chieftains to be your friends merely because they oppose me. You’ll find the Beast Realm is not so simple a place of friend and foe, especially when dealing with the likes of Quetzalcoatl and Fenris.”

“Tch, what else is new?” Sunset said with a shrug, “Soul Society had its issues, and my friends and I crashed that party, too. The Quincy aren’t a pile of peaches, and neither are the Arrancar, but we’re managing to deal with them in our own way. If you think I’m going to be daunted by Beast Realm politics any more than my own realm’s BS, you don’t know me at all. That said...” she turned fiery eyes towards Simurgh and Asena, “I don’t know who you two are, exactly, but Hel is under our protection. You touch her at your own peril. You want to talk things over, help me deal with Jormungag first.”

Jormungandr let out another chuckle at her nickname for him, while Simurgh and Asena traded looks. Then Spike spoke up amid their silence, his voice cracking like a whip, “Look, ladies, this ain’t a hard choice! Give us a paw, or wing, or whatever, and then we can argue about Hel all we want afterward! But if you get in our way, I’m letting you know right now I’m on my last shred of patients after not getting any sleep for, like, two days straight! So pick a freakin’ side!”

He punctuated his words with a distinctly deep growl, and Sunset felt a rise in his spiritual pressure as the Gunwolf’s eyes flashed brightly.

Both Simurgh and Asena reacted rather intensely to this, Asena especially turning around fully to ignore Jormungandr as she almost seemed to reflexively bow her head, “This spirit...! Lord Fenrir! Is it truly you!?”

Simurgh shook her feathery head, “No, it cannot be him in full, Asena. A portion of his spirit, at most, but... such a large quantity! It should not be possible for so much of Lord Fenrir’s soul to reside in a mortal body.”

“You are sensing the same thing I am, you birdbrain,” Asena growled, “This spiritual presence belongs to Lord Fenrir. I would never forget his scent. Fragment or no...”

“Ugh, more of this Fenrir talk,” Spike sounded faintly irritated as he popped the cockpit hatch on the Gunwolf and poked his cute, purple and fluffy head out, “Will you all just give it a rest!? Focus less on me, and more on that jerkwad over there!” He pointed with a paw at Jormungandr, whom Sunset had already noticed was entirely too calm, given circumstances.

He’d already been outnumbered, and that numbers ratio had only increased now. She’d been holding her own well enough against him already without even using Bankai, besides. And with so many allies present, it was far more likely they could keep him occupied while Gloriosa got Hel far away to safety. So why was Jormungandr still just standing there... looking menacingly smug? Sunset didn’t sense any extensive spiritual pressure from him that suggested he was building up a powerful move, so what was he so calm about? What was she missing?

Asena and Simurgh both appeared to take Spike’s words to heart and started to slowly flank Jormungandr, who made no move to avoid the pair.

“Lord Fenrir speaks true enough, we can sort out more complicated matters after the far simpler matter in front of us is dealt with,” said Asena, while Simurgh ruffled her wings and tail, energy pour off of her in droplets.

“Indeed. Jormungandr is mighty, but in this projected state, not so much. However it is strange... should not his Anima, even in this diminished state, be creating more of his malefic shades?”

“Hold up, do you two know how his power works?” Sunset asked, but Jormungandr snorted at that moment and a combination of magic and spiritual energy surged out of him. The floating horde of Blanks all around shuddered in response and flowed towards him, and wrapped further around the helix blade he’d created as he spun around in a circular slash. The blade extended and roared with power, forcing almost everyone present to have to leap upwards or duck down to avoid the wide, severing wave of force that cut out around him.

Asena raised a blade laden foreleg to defend herself but was struck back and sent reeling through the ground like a nail driven by a jackhammer, while Simurgh was a bit slow on taking flight and received a rough gash across her tail. Clover, like Sunset, managed to Flash Step up in time, while Shining Armor grabbed Cadence and hauled her up with Hirenkyaku. This left Spike to shield Hel, deploying the Gunwolf’s mouth-held blade to receive the wave of cutting force and hold firm against it until the energies split around him and Hel.

Jormungandr raised his free hand upward after his attack, and Sunset felt his energy pulsate among the Blanks, “Did you all think I was being talkative simply to enjoy the sound of my own voice? Two can play at the game of buying time, and I thank you all for being complacent enough to not notice my intentions, now that it is too late for you to do anything about it.”

The Blanks started to billow upward like a cyclone of pale phantoms, spreading out into eight different tendrils. Sunset saw that their destinations were the conjured draconic claws that Jormungandr had left flying up in the sky. She had thought he’d left them there to conserve energy or to wait until the fight took to the air again before employing them, but it struck her hard that she probably should have paid closer attention. Jormungandr had been so willfully chatty to keep her attention off of what was happening up above, and on top of that he’d been using the clash of reiatsu from Rainbow Dash and Applejack fighting to further mask that he’d been slowly positioning those eight, translucent dragon claws into a octagonal position around the entire area.

Now the Blanks merged with these claws and they shifted shape, becoming clad in what looked like rune-etched gauntlets of dark steel as their clawed fingers spread and currents of purple energy ran over them in arcs. However, rather than some attack of energy beams or elemental blasts, what Sunset saw begin to form was a wide, crimson opening in the air between the eight claws. It was a portal, the same as the ones that had brought Jormungandr and his Dragons here, but much larger and exuding a greater degree of energy.

“If you will not let me take Hel with me back home, then I’ll just have to drag all of you there, all at once!” Jormungandr declared with a fanged grin as he laughed and slammed his hand down on the ground in a gesture that was mimicked by the eight empowered claws that now had a humongous portal formed between them. That portal slammed downwards at high speed, wider than the forest itself had been, and ready to swallow all of them.

There was next to no time for Sunset to react. In terms of speed she could have easily flown herself right out of the portal’s area with a Flash Step, but that would potentially leave behind Hel, or Spike, neither of whom might be able to move fast enough to avoid the descending portal, and she wasn’t in a position to grab both of them. There was also no guarantee that a wounded Cadence or Asena could readily avoid the portal, too, and Sunset wasn’t inclined to leave either behind.

In that instant she heard Simurgh’s voice call out in an avian screech, “Destroy the portal! Otherwise it will pull us to Niflheim!”

Sunset wasn’t sure if actively screwing with an interdimensional portal was the greatest idea in the world, but she agreed that it was a better option than just letting the portal drag them to wherever Jormungandr wanted. With her superhuman speed she gripped the cloth at the hilt of Hokori and spun it above her head in an instant cyclone of motion, charging her Zanpaktou blade with a coating of dark red flames.

“Akai Shobo-shi!” (Red Fire Destroyer)

With a flick of her wrist she flung the now solid disc of intense ruby flame upward at beyond lightning speed. She hadn’t used this technique in quite some time, and had a much better understanding of it now. The red flame was essentially the weaker, Shikai version of her black flames, fueled by her wrath. While the red fire didn’t possess the same quality of the black flames to utterly almost any kind of matter or energy particle it came into contact with, it did have immense severing force, despite a rather high trade off in terms of fragility. It wasn’t an attack to use on an opponent who could readily counter it with another energy attack, but as long as it struck its mark, its ability to cut through targets was exceptional.

Including the now steel clad, Anima dragon claws Jormungandr was using to generate the expansive portal he was sending at everyone.

The fiery red disc flew up and sliced clean through the fingers and palm of one of the dragon claws, dicing it like a huge, fresh carrot under a ginsu blade.

This had an immediate and noticeable impact on the portal, which slowed its descent, tilting and bubbling like a piece of melting plastic. Jormungandr, for once, lost his smug look and actually blinked in a stupefied manner at Sunset.

“Crazed Midgardian! Do you have notion of what you’re doing!?”

“Nope,” Sunset said, and shouted to everyone else, “Get clear, now!”

She’d hoped that disrupting the portal would cause it to collapse, and the fact that it had slowed down at least bought the others time to run. She saw Shining Armor holding Cadence’s hand as both started to take to the air. Clover followed her as she started to Flash Step towards Asena, the big wolf only now digging herself up from the ground where she’d been knocked down. She saw Gaia grimacing at the situation and gesturing with her hand, the beginnings of her own dark portal, a Garganta, forming behind her. In a streak of lighting and a burst of golden light, she saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack rush like meteors from the sky and land at the edge of the destroyed forest, both apparently having seen what was happening and coming down to either help or at least figure out what was going on.

Then the portal’s energies bubbled outward, moving instantaneously in a manner so swift that even the fastest of those present would not have had time to react. Sunset felt everything around her spin as it felt as if the world itself was tossed into a laundry dryer and set on high spin.

Then...

----------

Sunset Shimmer groaned and sat up, rubbing her aching skull. A rather large crack in a wall of natural stone nearby told her that her head had probably made quite the imprint. Thankfully she was tougher than the wall, giving it more of a mark than it had left on her. The wall was rough and naturally uneven, telling her she wasn’t in a man-made area, but rather somewhere like a cavern. Light glittered from luminous stones poking irregularly from the walls, and the ceiling as she looked upward to see a very high, curving ceiling stretching upwards. This caused her to look over her shoulder and realize she was standing on the slanted cusp of an uneven cavern wall that led down to a floor of a much larger area, with a gleaming pool of water in the center. Various underground foliage such as lichen and mushrooms grew around the pool, some of the mushrooms glowing so bright they may as well have been fluorescent lights. Their size was a lot bigger than anything that should’ve existed on Earth, as well.

She saw the others laying around as well, all either unconscious or gradually waking up. As she scooped up the fallen form of her Zanpaktou, Hokori no Hikari having reverted back to their sealed katana shape, Sunset took a quick head count.

Aside from herself, it looked to her as if most of those present when the portal had gone crazy were here, but she didn’t see Jormungandr, Gloriosa, or Clover. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were slowly sitting up together near the opposite end of the pool, where Asena also lay on her side, grunting as the huge wolf opened her jaws and yawned. Simurgh’s brightly colored form was half submerged in the pool, but was blinking awake and shaking water off of herself. Spike’s Gunwolf, presumably with Spike inside it still, was humming back to activity as well, with Hel clutched protectively in his claws. This left Cadence and Shining Armor, both stirring from where they had fallen further back in the cavern, away from the pool.

So if that was everyone, then what about those who weren’t here?

“Oh, good, the rest of you are waking up.”

Sunset didn’t quite jump, controlling herself as she turned to see Clover emerging from a small opening the cavern wall, apparently leading to some tunnel going elsewhere. Clover looked at Sunset with a mixture of relief and fresh concern as she walked up, “Are you okay? I used some healing Kido on you, although I think the cave took the worst of it.”

Sunset rubbed her head, managing a small smile as she glanced once more at the crack in the wall her skull had made, “I’m fine. Where are we? And what were you doing?”

Clover looked back at the tunnel entrance she’d come out of. As she did so she almost seemed to unconsciously touch a scroll case now tied to the sash of her Soul Reaper uniform, which Sunset wondered at but held off on asking about. “I was scouting,” Clover said, “After making sure everyone was in stable condition I thought I’d make sure there was no immediate danger nearby. The tunnel goes on for a while, however, so I came back to check on the rest of you. I’m... not actually sure where we were.”

Asena raised her snout to the air and sniffed deeply, shaking herself and letting out a throaty grumble, “Svartalfheim. Deep inside the realm, by the scent of the mana in the air.”

“Svartalwhat?” asked Applejack, dusting herself off as she and Rainbow Dash walked over to Sunset and Clover, “Seriously, what n’ tarnation just happened? Me n’ Dash were cleanin’ them Dragons’ clocks, then saw that big ol’ portal open up. Figured we’d come down ta help out, but next thing I know everythin’ is goin’ topsy turvy on us, and now we’re walkin’ up here in some kind o’ cave?”

“Kinda my fault,” Sunset admitted with a small grimace, “I didn’t realize Jormungandr was pulling a fast one on us, and he caught me off guard with that portal move. Then I sort of destroyed part of it, which made the whole thing go wonky and swallow us up.”

“Don’t blame yourself, young Midgardian,” said Simurgh, dragging herself out of the pool of cave water and shaking her feathers off, “I told you to do so, and if you had not, we’d have been dragged into the portal anyway, taken directly to wherever Jormungandr intended. No doubt the depths of his territory in Niflheim.”

“Where is that dude, anyway?” said Rainbow Dash, “He was right there in the middle of it all, so why hasn’t he gotten tossed here with the rest of us? Also, where’s Gloriossa?”

Jormungandr was nowhere to be seen, despite being in the center of the disrupted portal. Sunset didn’t imagine for a second that he was any worse off than them, and his not being present could readily be explained by the fact that his body had been a projection, and it may have been disrupted as much as the portal had been. Simurgh confirmed this a moment later, saying, “He was using a spell to channel a portion of his power into a simulacrum. It would have relied on a link to his true body, and once pulled into the portal, that connection would have been severed, ending the smiraculum’s existence.”

“Okay, that explains why he isn’t here, but what about Gloriosa? I saw her, I think she was opening up a Garganta?” Sunset said. Everything had happened so fast she hadn’t really gotten a good look at Gloriosa, but she did see her forming what looked like one of the Hollow gates just before everything went haywire with Jormungandr's own portal.

"I saw the same,” confirmed Simurgh, “I believe she managed to step inside before we were all drawn here.”

Sunset breathed a small sigh of relief, “Well, at least one of us managed to avoid getting tossed into the Beast Realm. Means she can tell Discord what happened. But why are we here? I mean, you told me to mess with Jormungandr’s portal, and I figured I shouldn’t question it, but did you know what would happen?”

With a bit of a bashful glance aside, Simurgh cleared her avian throat, “I knew we’d be better off than if we allowed Jormungandr’s portal to swallow us uncontested. I have some familiarity with the magic being used, so a disruption would not cause the portal to harm those taken in by it, but it would alter its intended course and randomize the target destination to a degree. I was hoping we might luck out and end up closer to Alfheim, but... well at least in Svartalfheim we shall be difficult for Jormungandr to locate quickly.”

“You n’ the big bad wolf over there seem ta know a whole heck o’ a lot,” commented Applejack, “Ain’t had the pleasure o’ introductions, yet. Ya’ll from the Beast Realm?”

“Simurgh, loyal vassal of High Chieftain Quetzalcoatl of the Sky Tribe,” Simurgh said, spreading her wings and inclining her head in a graceful bow.

“I am Asena, personal attendant to High Chieftain Fenris, of the Land Tribe,” said the wolf, nodding a little less graciously, her hackles rising as her nose sniffed the air again, “And we shouldn’t linger in one place for too long. Svartalfheim is not the most dangerous territory of the Beast Realm, but it is far from the safest, even in powerful company.”

“Hold on,” said Shining Armor, having now gotten his bearings alongside Cadence, whom he had torn off a portion of his uniform sleeve to make a bandage for her face while the rest of them had been talking, “We need to get back to Earth. Can neither of you make a portal like Jormungandr did?”

Asena barked out a laugh while Simurgh simply shook her avian head, “Portals of such inter-realm potency are beyond the skills of many, including myself and Asena. If you wish to return to Midgard, you had best travel with us to Alfheim, where the boughs of Yggdrasil reach to the sky.”

“No simple task,” Asena muttered, “Simurgh fails to mention how far one must go through the cavernous depths of Svartalfheim to even reach the surface, then we must journey through Vanaheim and Jotunheim before we even see the leaves of Yggdrasil. Even for ones such as we, many dangers await. Especially as we still have her with us, and Jormungandr will be hunting us.”

At Spike’s side, Hel groaned awake and slowly raised her head, blinking in incomprehension, “Huh...? Where...?” She saw the Gunwolf looming over her and yelped, scrambling backwards until she spotted Sunset, “S-Sunset? What’s going on?”

The manner of speech, along with that particular nervousness and fear, lacking the same haughtiness of Hel... “Wallflower?” Sunset immediately Flash Stepped over, kneeling next to Wallflower and touching her shoulder, “That you, Wallflower?”

“I... I think so?” Wallflower was blinking, her hand going to her forehead in a pained rub as her eyes clenched shut, “Aaah, my brain feels like someone’s taking a cheese grater to it.”

Sunset kept a comforting expression on her face, but inwardly she was definitely worried. Wallflower’s body still had the changed appearance that had overtaken her when becoming Hel, with the same increased size and altered outfit. Her spiritual energies felt the same as Hel’s as well, so Wallflower clearly hadn’t reverted back to being a normal girl, but rather it was her personality that was currently in control. At least for now.

“Look, it’s hard to explain, but things went wrong with the Memory Stone,” Sunset said, feeling a hard stab of guilt at having to say this, but knowing she couldn’t afford to ignore the truth of the matter, especially not where Wallflower was concerned, “The memories inside it that went into you, they belong to an ancient soul, a ‘goddess’ in a sense. Hel.”

“Who?”

“Errr... not up on your Norse mythology?”

Wallflower blinked once or twice, “Academics aren’t my strong suit. Sorry.”’

“No offense,” said Rainbow Dash, “But do you have a strong suit?”

“Dash, not now,” said Applejack, elbowing her friend. Sunset cleared her throat and held Wallflower’s attention by putting a reassuring hand on the other girl’s shoulder.

“I’ll bring you up to speed in a bit, but right now we’re... in possibly hostile territory. Once we find a spot to rest, I’ll explain everything. For now, can you stick close to Spike here, and if you feel anyone or anything trying to talk in your head, just let us know, alright?”

Wallflower looked more than a tad taken aback and scared by the situation, but she seemed to trust Sunset enough to nod and stood up on shaky legs, glancing at the Gunwolf, “Right, I remember you. Talking dog in a scary robot.”

“That is no way to speak of Lord Fenrir,” said Asena with a harsh growl, causing Wallflower to yelp and jump behind Spike, who in turn fixed Asena with a glare from the Gunwolf’s crystalline eyes.

“Chill out, lady. I keep telling you, I’m not this Fenrir dude.”

“You say this now, but already I sense your spirit and mana flowing freely from the core of your soul, my lord,” Asena said, “You’ll feel the changes happening soon enough. All of the Midgardians will.”

“Changes?” Cadence spoke up before any of them, a hand unconsciously straying down towards her stomach, “What kind of changes?”

Clover responded before Asena could, her expression contemplative, “Beast metamorphosis. It’s a phenomenon documented by the few expeditions and diplomatic missions the Soul Society dispatched to the Beast Realm. Those who are not native souls to the Beast Realm begin to undergo a series of changes the longer they remain, taking on beastly traits depending on their personal nature. The longer one stays in the Beast Realm, the more akin to the beasts one becomes.”

“And if one remains in our realm for too long,” said Simurgh, “Then one runs the risk of these changes becoming quite permanent.”

“Permanent...” Sunset looked at her hands as if wondering if she'd see fur start sprouting. Granted, for her that wouldn’t exactly be new territory, for she’d started life as a hooved, four-legged unicorn, but she’d grown so used to living as a human the thought of turning into a different form was actually a little uncomfortable. Besides, who knew if the changes that occur to her in the Beast Realm would result in anything similar to her unicorn form? And for her fully human friends this had to be an even more unnerving concept-

“Cool!” Rainbow Dash said, “Do we get, like, awesome beast powers to go along with our new forms?”

Sunset held her forehead, “Rainbow, you did hear her, right? If we stay here too long, any changes might become permanent. Do you plan to spend your athletic career as a cat girl?”

“Eh, I’d manage,” Rainbow Dash said with a blasé shrug, “Besides I’m hoping for something more along the lines of an awesome bird like a hawk.”

“Ya could at least pretend ta be takin’ this seriously, Dash,” Applejack muttered, “I fer one ain’t lookin’ ta grow now tails, horns, paws, or hooves, er... no offense, Sunset.”

“None taken,” Sunset replied, then glanced back at Simurgh, “How long do we have, exactly?”

The statuesque bird bent one of her wings to her beak in a rather human motion akin to chin stroking, “Hmmm, were you normal Midgardians I would say the changes would occur within days. With your increased levels of spiritual power, it will take longer for the Beast Realms inherent aura of mana to seep into your souls. I would say you will probably see the first changes in a few days, but bigger changes will take longer. Weeks, perhaps. Permanency will be even longer, at least a month or two, I’d estimate. Assuming you don’t indulge in, as your friend was so apt to put, ‘awesome beast powers’.”

Rainbow Dash blinked, “Waitwhat? I was half joking! We actually will get beastly powers?”

Asena responded this time, her rough wolfen voice barking out an amused laugh, “What do you think our Anima is, girl? The Beast Realm breathes with an intense mixture of magic and spiritual energy, a form of ‘mana’ we weave into our Anima. As this energy gradually infuses our bodies and souls, you too could learn to manipulate it into Anima. Hah, of course this would accelerate the rate of the changes to your bodies, so perhaps you might choose to avoid it.”

“Yeah, I think we’re good,” said Shining Armor, “Not planning to toy around with some weird powers I don’t understand. I’ll stick to my Quincy techniques. Cadence?”

“As if you have to ask,” she replied, taking a deep breath and eyeing Asena and Simurgh, “The sooner we can return to Earth, or ‘Midgard’, the better. I... am in no position to be dealing with even more changes to my body.”

Asena sniffed at Cadence, nodding with a sudden lack of aggression, but rather intense understanding, “You are with child. Rest assured the initial changes should not harm your offspring, but I give you my word as a warrior and mother to my own pups that I will see you safely escorted back to your realm, Cadence of the Quincy Tribe.”

“I...” Cadence blinked a bit at Asena’s rapid change in demeanor and simply nodded her head, saying with sincerity, “Thank you.”

“Asena, Simurgh, since we’re unfamiliar with this realm, we’re going to be relying a lot on you two to guide us,” Sunset said, offering the pair a small, respectful bow, as it seemed the appropriate thing to do, considering the position they were in, “So thanks in advance. That having been said... I need you to understand that when it comes to her,” she pointed at Wallflower, “She’s still under our protection. Whatever else happens, I want that made clear.”

“We understand,” Simurgh said after she and Asena shared a moment to look at one another, “Know that our High Chieftains do not wish to harm Lady Hel, but she remains a potential threat to Yggdrasil by virtue of Jormugandr’s plans for her.”

“Do you even understand what those plans are? What he did to her? Because quite frankly I understood maybe a third of what that nutjob was saying,” Sunset stated in a blunt tone, “Can either of you elaborate?”

“Not very much,” Simurgh admitted, eyes flicking towards Wallflower, who remained partially hidden behind Sunset and Spike both, biting her lip in unease. “All we know is that Hel was a willing accomplice to the actions of Glory and her cohorts in the Zero Division, but Jormungandr got a hold of her and kept her in his court in Niflheim for a long time. It was known that while he failed to destroy Yggdrasil through force of arms in his war against the rest of the Beast Realm, dark rumors from Niflheim suggested he had found an alternative means to kill the World Tree, and that Hel was a key component.”

“Why n’ tarnation didn’t ya’ll Sky and Land Tribe folk just gang up n’ finish off this Jormungandr if we was bein’ such a dang problem?” asked Applejack, and Asena growled, not aggressively but more in frustration.

“His full power and that of his Cult was such that even in open war, it took the greatest measure of the other Tribes to push him and his ilk back into Niflheim’s frozen seas and glaciers. In that war, we lost much, including our...” the she-wolf cast her eyes towards Spike, “Our dear Lord Fenrir. Now Fenris, his younger sister, rules in his absence. Jormungandr lost too many of his forces to mount another war, yet we lack the strength to face him in the heart of Niflheim. Hence a long stalemate that has lasted centuries.”

“Huh, not so different from our war with the Hollows and Soul Reapers,” Cadence said with a soft, bittersweet laugh, “It seems the Beast Realm Tribes and us share a similar problem.”

Sunset’s mind blazed with an unpleasant thought, “And somehow I wouldn’t be shocked if Glory and the Zero Division didn’t somehow plan to bring that stalemate about. Keep the Beast Realm out of affairs on Earth by ensuring they had their own deadlock to maintain.”

“A dire notion,” Simurgh agreed, then ruffled her feathers and let out a soft, screeching cry, “But we spend too much time in talk. Rest assured, Sunset Shimmer, we shall not attempt to steal Hel from your charge. On my own word as a vassal of Quetzalcoatl, I shall ensure this party in its wholeness shall be delivered safely to Alfheim, and then to Midgard. But we must begin moving soon. The longer we linger in any one place the greater the danger, not only from the potent and wild denizens of the Beast Realm, not all of whom owe us allegiance, but also Jormungandr’s search. If we are found, even if he does not come from Niflheim himself, he has his own elite cadre of servants, his Einherjar.”

“Like that Ormir dude me and AJ kicked the crap out of?” Rainbow Dash asked, but Simurgh shook her head.

“That name is known to me. Ormir is a Jarl, a Clan leader, of the Land Tribe. Jormungandr’s Cult has loyalists among all the Tribes, which is partly why his war was so devastating, and some Clans remain outcast for siding with him in those times. No, the Einherjar is a special name given to the greatest warriors serving a High Chieftain, which Jormungandr remains, despite his infamy. Neither I nor Asena or Einherjar, merely favored vassals, suitable for many errands. Einherjar are unleashed only for war, for destruction, for slaying.”

“Lovely,” sighed Sunset, “So just how many of these guys can we expect Jormungandr to send after us, and are they conveniently numbered by level of strength like the Espada?”

Simurgh’s had cocked to the side to look at Sunset more intently with one eye, a curiously avian gesture that gave off an air of incredulity, “You are quite nonplussed by these circumstance, aren’t you?”

Sunset shared a look with her friends, seeing Rainbow Dash’s cavalier smile, Applejack’s rock-solid resolution, and Clover’s quiet and firmly supportive gaze. While she couldn’t see Spike’s features, his Gunwolf remained protectively close to Wallflower, who certainly looked fearful, but she was neither fainting nor panicking. Meanwhile Shining Armor stayed by Cadence’s side, the two holding hands in unconscious reassurance of each other’s presence. Sunset returned her gaze to Simurgh and Asena.

“We’ve all been through it. Not about to quail at the thought of dealing with the Beast Realm’s best. Or worst, for that matter. So what do you know about these Einherjar?”

“Einherjar are not numbered, as you find with Tirek’s Espada,” Asena said, “There is no system by which they are ranked. Each High Chieftain chooses which of their warriors are worthy of being raised to such an honored position, above the Thanes who are recognized champions, or Jarls who lead Clans. A High Chieftain could name many Einherjar, but that would be foolish, for only the greatest should be so named.”

“As it happens, this means each Tribe usually only has a few Einherjar,” Simurgh added, “My Tribe of the Sky has but six, while Asena’s Tribe of the Land name’s seven. In the past war, Jormungandr’s Tribe of the Sea boasted thirteen Einherjar, but most were slain in those mighty battles. As far as I know, it is believed only three remain alive.”

“Just three, huh?” said Applejack, “That don’t sound too bad.”

Asena looked at the farm girl with flattened ears, “Do you think Tirek and his hordes of Hollows keep at bay, or the Quincy King never thought to expand his domain here, because the Beast Realm was not ‘too bad’? An Einherjar matches any Captain, Espada, or Sternritter, and that still leaves countless other warriors and loyal beasts at Jormungandr’s beck and call. You may be able to defeat many lesser Dragons like you demonstrated back in Midgard, but did you think Jormungandr came with the full measure of his army or his strongest servants? The pacts prevent those of great power from emerging in Midgard or Asgard.”

“He did mention something about old pacts or whatever,” Sunset said, “What are those, exactly?”

“Accords between the Three Tribes and the other realms, writ in both the power of soul and magic, and sealed by the power of the High Chieftains in the Zero Division,” Simurgh said plainly, eyes downcast, “Before Jormungandr’s rebellion, there was the greater wars between what you mortal Midgardian’s would have thought of as ‘gods’.”

“Right, the whole conflict between the Hollows and Glory,” Sunset said, rubbing her head, “Was the Beast Realm a part of that?”

“In the earlier stages of the war, yes,” Simurgh replied, shaking her head, “A conflict of pure devastation, and so the High Chieftains brokered the Beast Realm’s neutrality, as to not escalate it nor allow it to spill into our realm. The pacts merely enforce some of the rules, ensuring that neutrality. We stay out of Midgard’s affairs, and the powers of that realm stay out of ours.”

“Soul Society has tried a few times over the centuries to get the Beast Realm Tribes to revise those accords,” put in Clover, “I studied most of those records back when I was a student at the Academy. Every single diplomatic attempt to negotiate the Beast Realm’s help against the Hollows or Quincy was a spectacular failure. The only exception was the mission led by the previous Captain of the Ninth Division, Captain Blueblood’s predecessor. His diplomatic expedition resulted in not only a revision of the accords to allow the Gotei 13’s forces to enter the Beast Realm under specific, emergency situations, it also had the, um... unusual result of Soul Society gaining two powerful candidates for the Soul Reaper Academy.”

“Really? Who?” asked Sunset, to which Simurgh was faster to reply than Clover, speaking with an enthused air of formality.

“Ah, she speaks of the Princesses of the Tribes of Sky and Land, the Daughter of the Sun and Daughter of the Moon, whom I only now realize Asena and I have rather failed to contact now, as we were sent to give them a message from their mothers.”

“Okay, kinda lost now,” Rainbow Dash said with a scrunched up face, “The heck you talking about?”

Clover coughed politely, “It is something of a taboo subject in the Gotei 13, but still widely known among the officers that, um... Captain Celestia and Captain Luna are the daughters of Qutzalcoatl and Fenris, respectively. Half Beast-Realmers via their shared father, the former Captain of the Ninth Division, who apparently, uh...” Clover blushed, “Really, really impressed the Beast Realm High Chieftains during his negotiations.”

Sunset blinked at Clover. So did every other human present, save for Wallflower, who was so lost she didn’t even blink.

“Duuuuude,” Rainbow Dash broke the silence, “Who the blue blazes was this guy that he hooked up with the top chicks of the Beast Realm at the same freakin’ time!? How much game can one person have!?”

“Nevermind that,” Sunset said, “Why would Celestia and Luna be sent to Soul Society instead of being raised in the Beast Realm?”

“Being born as only half-beast, it was decided by their mothers that the Daughters of the Sun and Moon would find greater purpose and happiness in the realm of their father, and that in so doing they would remain as a bridge between Soul Society and the Beast Realm to help maintain the peace,” Simurgh said, to which Sunset slowly nodded.

“Okay, makes sense to me.”

“Still kinda want to know who this father of theirs is,” said Dash, “Dude sounds nuts.”

“Its not really any of our business, Rainbow,” Sunset said, although she was pretty curious too, “At any rate, we should probably get moving now. If we’re going to be hunted, let’s not make ourselves an easy target.”

“The tunnel I scouted widens up a few dozen meters along,” Clover said, “Then I believe it branches out in different directions.”

“I’ll take the lead,” said Asena, already padding towards the tunnel in question, “My nose is sensitive enough that I can scent where the air is fresher, and hence the passages most likely to lead closer to the surface.”

In short order the group as a whole assembled and began to follow the giant she-wolf down into the dark passages of Svartalfheim. Light was provided by a combination of Kido from Clover and Sunset that could produce small orbs of illumination, and Rainbow Dash’s ability to generate soft arcs of electricity that lit up the area ahead of them brightly. Shining Armor and Cadence could similarly produce small motes of blue reishi to add to the light, and Spike’s Gunwolf had plenty of internal sensors to allow easy navigation. Wallflower kept close to him and Sunset, holding herself.

Sunset worried about the girl, especially whether Hel would take over again sometime soon, but for now all that could be done was to give Wallflower a reassuring nod and press onward.

It was a long, grinding walk of an hour before one of the tunnels curled upward and snaked around, exiting through a sharp and tall opening onto a wide ledge of rock. There was fresh light to be seen, but not the comforting warmth of daylight or the soft grace of moonlight.

“Whoa...” said Spike first, as the group gathered on the rocky ledge and gazed outward. Sunset more or less figured he nailed the sentiment.

Spread out in front of them was a vast underground landscape, as if an entire world was carved out of the dark hewn stone of the Earth, but none would mistake this land for being anywhere on Earth. Mushrooms as tall as skyscrapers filled patches of the uneven hills and underground mountains of rock that spread before them. Rivers and lakes of glittering purple and black spotted the valleys of jagged rock. Waterfalls filled the echoing land with a gentle hiss of endless water. Gems bigger than houses encrusted a ceiling that was like a black sky, revealed as unyielding stone from the sight of countless stalagmites and stalactites that rose up or down like forests of rock. Some such pillars of stone connected fully between floor and ceiling of this underground world, so large and thick they were mountains unto themselves.

A loud cry like a thousand breaking logs sounded out somewhere far above, and Sunset saw a centipede so large it’d make a kaiju blush, its chitinous plates gleaming black and green. It skittered monstrously across the ceiling... miles distant, unknowing and uncaring of the small strangers in its realm as it let out another chattering cry and crawled into a vast tunnel out of sight.

Other, more distant cries of numerous other creatures now echoed up from down the shear cliff all the ledge Sunset and her companions stood upon. This massive landscape was inhabited, and if Sunset’s eyes weren’t deceiving her, in the greatest distance amid the shadows she could make out the shapes of what might be some manner of fortress carved into one of the mountainous rock pillars.

Licking her jaws, Asena looked back at them, “Look upon it well, for it is to be our first gauntlet, children of Midgard. Welcome to Svartalfheim.”

Episode 194: Beast Realm Bound

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Episode 194: Beast Realm Bound

Amid the boundless wildernesses and landscapes that comprised the primal territories of the Beast Realm there were two that were spoken of most in uneasy whispers among its denizens. One was the realm of Muspelheim, so far below the crust of the land that it was lower even than Svartalfheim, known as a fuming, choking fit of flame, relentless heat, and lakes of lava where only the most fire-hardened creatures dwelled. The other whispered realm was Muspelheim’s polar opposite, a place of endless cold, bordered by vast, icy oceans, glaciers, and pierced by snow encrusted mountains as much as white, frozen spans of deadened forests. Niflheim. Realm of eternal winter and home to all manner of dour inhabitants from the grim ice giants who carved their dwellings from glacial ice, or the dreaded frost wyrms who tunneled beneath miles of endless snow in hunt of prey.

Within this land of permanent snowfall and continuous, howling winds, one fortress stood above and beyond all other holdings. It was built upon the vast face of a glacier that had merged with a row of menacing, dark mountains upon the eastern shore of the continent. One of the mountain peaks had been hollowed out, carved through to resemble great, coiling scales from the outside, as if some monolithic serpent wrapped itself around the mountain's form as it merged into the glacier. Upon the glacier’s surface dark iron towers and walls had been bolted in like a macabre patchwork, all built around a central gate carved into the glacier’s yawning, central crevasse, wide enough to swallow a city. Within this glacier crevasse countless nests and burrows had been built to house an army of Niflheim’s denizens, alongside no small number of Dragons. All manner of beast owed fealty to Jormungandr, however, and the numerous passages and walkways within the glacier crevasse was marked by the paws and talons of dozens of species ranging from the likes a human might recognize despite their size, such as towering polar bears, to the truly fantastical such as the spindly and spike covered ice trolls with their long limbs and longer ice rending claws.

Regardless of species or size, all deferred to one degree or another to the Dragons in this place, still the most favored among Jormungandr's loyalists, and all paid homage to the High Chieftain himself, in the rare instances he ever appeared openly. The size of the glacier’s opening was no coincidence, it was built for Jormungander himself, to allow him access in and out of his personal fortress, and on rare occasion some of those dwelling here might see his immense shadow and wake passing through the cold waters of the channel. Indeed, the mood within the fortress was restless. Rumor and gossip of a new war brewing, after centuries of nothing more than skirmishes with the Land and Sky Tribes along Vanaheim’s borders across the ocean to the east.

But Jormungandr had made no declarations as of yet, and so the denizens of Niflheim waited patiently for when their High Chieftain would call upon them, in the meantime enjoying their daily lives of fighting, hunting, drinking, and fornicating; not always in that particular order or even done separately. All knew that inevitably Ragnarok would come, and it would be their lord Jormungandr who would herald its coming. All were determined to get in what fun they could in the meantime, ever ready to spill blood until they were called upon.

Deep within the interior of the fortress’ mountain was a space that was less a throne room and more a temple. Incomprehensibly large, the chamber was roughly shaped like a cone on it’s side, with water pouring in from the glacial channel outside that then entered through a tunnel through the cone’s point, and spread out into a pool wider than many lakes. The sides of the walls were covered in vast slabs of stone, seating and places of rest for supplicants or those seeking to gather at their lord’s command. At the end of the conical shaped room, a raised dais of stone stood dozens of meters tall, yet this only made it seem like a small and restful platform compared to the size of the one who occupied it.

Jormungandr’s true form could barely seem contained by even this wider section of the chamber, a place so large it must have filled a good third of the mountain's hollowed out lower portion. His body was long like a snakes, but no one would mistake him for any common serpent. His scales were a dark blue, as much as the ocean before daybreak or nightfall, and each one large as a freight train car and meters thick. His body had a ridged, spiny quality, with the scales themselves showing hooks and ridges that gave his long body an uneven appearance even before one began to account for the four long, folded wings of leathery skin that was a glacial blue/white coloring between thick spines of darker blue, and hooked with curved claws larger than some commercial jetliners. Beneath his coiled body were legs and arms powerful and long enough to pull his immense bulk around, but were now neatly folded in comfortable contemplation, his right leg ending in a wide, four fingered claw that could have speared an elephant like it was a little nugget of meat and popped it neatly into a mouth large enough to consume the bulk of a battleship in one bite. This head, thick, draconic, yet brutish in its wide, thick ridges across a brow bearing six long, straight white horns tipped with ice, was resting on the chin of his hand. Eyes of piercing blue as big as theater screens regarded the ceiling in grim yet bemused interest.

On the ceiling of the chamber was carved an intricate mural, showing a great tree, it’s roots so vast they spread through the circular globes of many depicted realms, each globe showing a different facet of the Beast Realm from the golden peaks of Alfheim’s mountains and smaller Life Trees, cousins to Yggdrasil, to the incredibly dense and sparkling gem caverns of Svartalfheim. Within the tree of Yggdrasil’s boughs the carving depicted it supporting the silvery gem of Asgard, and the bronze globe of Midgard, sister realms, ever held apart, yet intertwined by their mutual bond to the Beast Realm and the World Tree.

Jormungandr had carved this mural himself so many eons ago he barely remembered the number in years, yet the carving itself, the way his claws had delicately pierced stone to sculpt each detail... he remembered it all. For he was ever a romantic, and wanted to be reminded every time he sat in the seat of his power the reason he sought the position of High Chieftain in the first place. Oh, he had not been born as the leader of the Ocean Tribe, that honor had long ago belonged to the temperamental and voracious serpent, Leviathan. Jormungandr had spent his youth following in Leviathan’s footsteps as first a Thane, then a Jarl, then at long last... an Einherjar, one of Leviathan’s strongest warriors.

Even back then he had had a romantic streak concerning the legends of yore, and felt devoted to the notion of supporting the world’s natural cycle until the day Ragnarok would come, and all would do battle in an epic clash of worthy contest at the dying of the world, vanquished and victor alike finding rebirth alongside Yggdrasil upon the end of things.

How Glory, Tirek, and their malignant conflict had corrupted that course beyond all recognition! Jormungandr could never forgive himself for not seeing it sooner. At first that war had felt like any other grand conflict, even when the Beast Realm had been drawn in to it he had felt the joy any warrior felt when allowed to engage in unrestrained battle. But that war had rapidly grown beyond mere contest, honorable or otherwise. It became clear to Jormungandr that Tirek’s obsession with Hollow-kind was turning to madness, and Glory’s desire to take full control over the cycle of death was an even greater insanity. Leviathan couldn’t see it, however, no matter how Jormungandr had tried to get his High Chieftain to understand the danger.

But others had listened. In time Jormungandr built his own loyal following, challenged his mentor and cast down Leviathan, and took control of the Ocean Tribe. By then it was too late to stop Glory and Tirek’s war from reaching it’s ultimate boiling point, including Glory’s hubris in casting down the Soul Queen, empowering herself and her siblings of the “Zero Division” beyond the reach of Jormungandr to confront alone. Then to discover the profane plans for Yggdrasil... that had been Jormungandr’s tipping point. No, even then, he may have found some desire for reason if the other High Chieftains had agreed to aid him in destroying Glory, but their cowardice in enacting the pacts of neutrality... he’d had no choice but to concede to preserve his forces, but that had been the moment he’d made his own decision to tear things down himself.

If he could not kill Glory, he’d kill Yggdrasil itself, to spare it the indignity of being used to create such a disgusting world, twisted into what it was not meant to be. He had thought he could defeat the other High Chieftains more easily than ever taking on the Zero Division.

But he’d been mistaken there, too. While Fenrir had fallen, the bloody wolf’s sister had proven as much a leader as her brother, and that smug bitch Quetzalcoatl had shown herself to be too damn cunning by half. Defeat in open war had stung, even if Jormungandr had preserved enough power to make assaulting him in Niflheim as much a bad idea as him attempting another open assault on Yggdrasil. Centuries of waiting, plotting, looking for another path...

And he had found it. Hel. Once in his grasp, stolen by that grinning bastard Ravana, but now rediscovered on Earth. He had been so close to having her once more, his dear half-sister. She was the key to Yggdrasil’s salvation in death. Hel had been well prepared by decades of his careful hand, utilizing rituals of magic taken from Asgard and adapted by his own knowledge to turn Hel into the very instrument of euthanizing the sickened World Tree. It was a task only Hel could accomplish, because of what Glory had done, what she had used Hel for at Hel’s own insistence. An amusing irony, that Glory’s own tool could now be turned against her designs... as long as Jormungandr was able to retrieve his wayward sibling. And the only reason he did not presently have Hel in his grasp was that damned cocky Midgardian wench and her assorted ruffians, including the reborn fragment of blasted Fenrir of all people.

It was amusing, the jokes reality will play on you. Jormungandr could not help but rumble in laughter at it, enough to shake the mountain.

As much as a part of him was furious with Sunset Shimmer’s interference, he had to admit an equal part of him was intrigued by the girl and her allies. How appropriate, that the girl’s power was that of flame, her motif so much like that of a phoenix. After all, it was the very nature of flame, of the phoenix, to burn brightly in radiant life before inevitably succumbing to death and eventual rebirth. In many ways a symbol of Yggdrasil, and the world's own mortality. That being the case, Jormungandr could not fault Sunset Shimmer’s defiance. It was the nature of flame to burn and consume, to grow bright and hot and beautiful in the struggle to thrive. She would fight. She would struggle. She would burn brightly...

Then Jormungandr would help her fulfill fire’s true nature by being the one to extinguish her, the inevitable end of all flames.

“You appear to be in high spirits, lord Jormungandr.”

The voice was a honeyed, masculine drawl, and stemmed from a being who had simply appeared upon one of the many stone stands rising up the sides of the chamber. He, at casual glance, would have looked like a goat with bristled auburn fur, if a goat also had the upper torso of a gaunt man, and the bent lower body of a fur and hooves. One might have mistaken him for a satyr or faun, but in truth this man was neither, as evidenced by the water that circled his body in cold streams, forming into a violin with which the goat man began to play a haunting tune. As he did so, runes appeared in green flame upon his curled, black horns, and his hourglass eyes glinted. The power over water was one Jormungandr shared, but for this entity, a fossegrim, it was as normal as breathing was for others.

“So you’re the first to arrive, Ofridr,” Jormungandr commented, gazing at the first of his Einherjar.

Ofridr continued to play his solemn melody, the dark wood of his violin humming as he smiled, “I’m eager to find out what has my lord in such a mood. You would not have called us all together were it not a special occasion. Violence, bloodshed, screams and battle, I imagine?”

“Let us wait for the others to arrive, as I would prefer to not repeat myself,” Jormungandr said, although his bulky head turned somewhat as he heard voices from the tunnels running alongside the vast river pouring into the chamber, “Although it sounds like they are here. Good.”

A voice like chunks of ice grinding together was arguing with a silky feminine voice as two large figures entered into Jormungandr’s audience hall, walking side by side.

“You have the palette of a delicate child, Amaru! There was nothing wrong with my stew! I skewered the boars for it myself!” growled a twelve foot tall creature whose pale white body clanked with the shirt of chain-mail he wore over dark leathers riveted with studs of bone, where his icy spines did not protrude. The ice troll had a larger, sloped brow compared to his smaller brethren, with a mane of pure blue ice slicked back from his head, which borne a long nose and a jaw of jagged teeth. A huge, bearded axe of rune covered, glinting metal hung from his back harness.

Beside the ice troll his companion snorted and smirked, or at least one of her heads did, one that looked like a white, arctic fox, “I was playing dice with those boars before you skewered them, you big oaf! It cost me an entire trove of gems I was about to win. And all for a smelly, thick stew with all the taste of gravel!”

“Gravel!” chimed in another head, that of a puma with fine black fur and glittering green eyes.

“Oaf!” agreed a third head, that of an aged, wrinkled condor, with a shining black beak.

The rest of the feminine creature’s body was a mixture of the animals of her three heads, with a sinuous puma’s body, but intermixed with the paws of a fox, and sprouting the large dark wings of a condor. Oddly, her tail sported a serpentine nature of dark green scales, scales which, if one looked closely, could be seen hiding under her silky fur.

“G’nash, Amaru,” Jormungandr greeted the two Einherjar as they entered, bickering as was their usual. A mighty ice troll, and a cunning chimera. As at odds as they were largely inseparable. These two, along with Ofridr, were the last survivors of his once proud honor guard, the last three of what had once been thirteen Einherjar he’d fought beside proudly against the other forces of the Beast Realm. Each had survived in their own ways, G’nash through raw, brutal tenacity, Amaru through trickery, and Ofridr through virtue of being in the right place at the right time, as was his unique skill.

“Lord Jormungandr, can you believe this bug-brained fox thinks she’s too good for my stew!?” G’nash said, chortling as he hopped up on one of the platforms, “I spent days making it for her, too.”

Amaru spread her wings and flew higher than G’nash, landing pointedly on a stone tier above him as she laid down and folded her wings, “I did not ask you for anything, so cease your bellyaching. It is unseemly in front of our lord.”

“Unseemly!” cried the condor.

“Much bellyaching,” agreed the puma.

“Hmph, just you wait, when I perfect my skills as Niflheim’s greatest culinarian, you shall be begging to sit at my table, insufferable vixen,” G’nash said, clearly put out but too proud to show it beyond crossing his thick, long arms and regarding Jormungandr with a bow, “So you called upon us, my lord?”

“What, no greeting for little old me?” said Ofridr, to which both G’nash and Amaru immediately replied at the same time.

“No!”

“You still owe me gems, swindler!”

Ofridr sighed, smiled, and resumed playing his violin. Jormungandr’s throated rumbled with a dry chuckle, but he also slammed a great claw down to ensure his three Einherjar had their attention properly upon him. “I enjoy your banter, but there is work to be done. Hel has slipped from my grasp, but not so far as she cannot be found.”

G’nash looked stunned, ice blue eyes blinking, “Did you not take a mighty flight of Dragons with you, my lord? Even limited to a projection of your strength, it is difficult to imagine the drained goddess escaping.”

With lesser servants Jormungandr may have taken offense to such a question, but his Einherjar had far more leeway, and he was not bothered. Instead he laid out the affair in full, from the interference of Sunset Shimmer and the other human girls, the reveal of Fenrir’s reincarnated fragment in the form of a dog piloting a human-built machine of war, and the arrival of the other High Chieftains’ heralds, Asena and Simurgh, not to mention the reborn Gaia Everfree and an annoyingly potent Soul Reaper Kido specialist.

Ofridr whistled, interweaving it with his violin’s mournful dirge, “Such an eclectic collection of unexpected heroes. Surely their desperation alone must have tasted of sweet candy. I can see how they would have proven trouble for the Dragons, with Nidhogg still busy in Asgard, and Zahhak occupied with maintaining the border.”

“I still do not know why we allowed Nidhogg to try and find the traitor Fafnir,” G’nash groused loudly, “Even if he succeeds in dragging Fafnir’s sorry hide back to Niflheim, I’d rather split his belly open than give the traitor another chance to turn upon us.”

“Nidhogg is as close to an Einherjar as one can be without me bestowing the title,” Jormungandr declared simply, “He earned the chance to reason with his wayward brother’s reborn form. That is not our concern for now. Finding Hel is.”

“As you say, lord Jormungandr,” said Amaru, picking at her teeth with a claw, “And with your portal disrupted, they could be anywhere in the Beast Realm. Anywhere at all. I presume merely scrying for Hel’s spirit energy is not so easily done, now that she is here?”

“No,” Jormungandr said plainly, “In Midgard, her energy stood out, so much so that locking on to her location took little time, once she awoke. Here in the Beast Realm, her signature will be obscured by the manner of intermingled magic and spirit energy that permeates the realms. Her energy could still be tracked, but only at comparatively short range. That is why each realm must be searched, to try to pin-point which one she is in.”

He rose higher, his long body towering over his three Einherjar, “That is the task I leave to you three. Ofridr, you shall scour Vanaheim. Make use of your contacts among the remainder of the Vanir. Amaru, I trust you to be of sufficient cunning to sneak among the peaks of Alfheim without being discovered. And G’nash, your connection to the dwarves of Svartalfheim should make it easier to search that realm.”

“That still leaves Jotunheim and Muspelheim unaccounted for,” Amaru’s central fox head said, while her other heads echoed her thoughts.

“Jotunheim, too many giants!”

“Muspelheim, deadliest of all!”

Jormungandr’s massive jaws parted in a smile of teeth as large as trees, “Just so. In Jotunheim, Hel and her protectors will find no sanctuary among the giants. And Muspelheim... oh I imagine Surtur would do worse to them than even I could conjure. Let us hope they are in one of the other realms, for retrieving Hel form either of those two places would be a strain even for you, my loyal Einherjar.”

“And if we do discover the wayward Hel and her entourage of heroes,” said Ofridr, “Are we free to seek to recover her and deal with the others as we please?”

“Only if circumstances allow for an overwhelming advantage,” Jormungandr said, “Do not underestimate them, especially the three Midgardian girls. One possessed power over storm to rival Thor himself, while another wielded a lance with such strength as to fell Dragon after Dragon. As for their leader... I suspect I alone am best suited to dealing with her. Furthermore, I’d not take the remainder of the entourage lightly. We’ve rarely ever faced the Midgardian alchemists known as Quincy, and the two present were not weak, nevermind the power of the Consort their leader grants them. Fenrir’s reincarnation struck me as an overeager pup, but the golem of steel he controlled was not unimpressive, and the longer he remains in the Beast Realm the more he will grow into a form akin to his previous self. Indeed, all of them may tap into the powers of Anima if given enough time...”

“All the more reason to find and crush them quickly, my lord!” G’nash said, unshouldered his axe from its leather harness and slapping the broad bladed weapon in his palms, a frozen air rising around the potent ice troll, “I’ll depart for Svartalfheim at once.”

“Just remember our lord’s words, oaf,” said Amaru, her vulpine nose twitching, “If you do find them, send word rather than charge in blindly. I imagine the three of us Einherjar together should suffice for them, although I am curious who this Midgardian girl is whom you are so impressed by, lord Jormungandr?”

“Envy does not become you, Amaru,” Jormungandr said simply, lowering his vast head to eye level with the chimera, who herself was no small creature, practically the size of a house. “You’ll know her by the flames she wields, the same color as her own hair. She is mine to deal with. The others are of little concern besides Hel herself.”

“Still, a shame there are so few of us left,” said Ofridr, although his tone suggested he wasn’t lamenting that much, “The search would go so much faster if we had some of the old gang still with us.”

Both Amaru and G’nash shuddered slightly, Amaru’s heads all lowering as they glared at him, “You wouldn’t dare think to use your powers upon our comrade’s graves?”

“Why not, I am the Dirge Singer, am I not? The corpses of the departed dance to my tune, even long after the souls have moved on,” Ofridir sang, his violin dragging a sharp note across the chamber, “But I know how it offends some of you. I merely suggest it due to the dire circumstances.”

Jormungandr turned his vast gaze towards the fossegrim, voice a disapproving rumble of thunder, “I have already forbidden you to treat our fallen like your toys, Ofridr. If you need corpses for your dirge, seek the battlefields of our foes. Now, go, my Einherjar. Scour the lands from mountain peak to deep cavern. Find Hel, whatever it takes.”

----------

“Well...” Discord said, pointedly pouring a cup of clear liquid of nondescript but highly potent alcoholic nature for himself before downing it and leaning back on the cushion he was sitting on in front of the floor table that he, Ditzy, Gaia, and Timber Spruce were occupying. “This is not ideal. At all.”

“Fair understatement, Discy,” Ditzy said, yanking the bottle and pouring herself a drink as well, tossing the bottle over to Gaia, who pointedly set it aside with a curled nose. “I mean damn, who’d have thunk the overgrown snake had it in him to pop up out of the woodwork and yoink half our people like that!? I’m so pissed off right now! I should’ve been there to smash his smug, edge-lord face into the dirt!”

“The situation caught us all off guard,” Gaia said simply, “I barely escaped via a Garganta, after all, and could do nothing to help the others. Jormungandr simply outplayed us. Even if you had been there, Ditzy Doo, it’s unlikely you would have altered the outcome, other than to ensure our newborn Coalition was down another powerful combatant.”

“Pfft, give me more credit than that, GG. If it was just a projection, I could’ve dusted Jormungandr before it got to that point... I think,” Ditzy drank, and sighed heavily, “At least we know they’ll be alive somewhere in the Beast Realm, but no way of tracking where. Damn place is near twice the land mass of Earth. Finding them isn’t going to be easy.”

“Easier than you may think,” Discord said, still looking grumpy, but stroking his white beard with an air of forethought, “Sunset Shimmer has my second Hogyoku with her still, and it sends out a signature distinct enough that I can arrange a device to track it, at least to a degree. We just need an expedition to go there.”

“Should I contact Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie before they get any more engaged in their mission in Las Noches?” asked Gaia, “I’d presume they’d want to go after their friends.”

“I’m not certain it’s wise to distract them right now,” replied Discord, “The situation in the Beast Realm is a longer term problem than just a few days. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy will be done, one way or another, in Las Noches before long. No, we’ll plan for when they return from that mission, preparing our expedition for afterward. It’s a question of who remains here and who goes.”

“Well you’re staying, obviously,” said Ditzy, to which Discord nodded, “As for me, I’ve got some experience with the Beast Realm, but then again, so do you, GG.”

“Will you cut it out with the ‘GG’?” Gaia said, “It’s bad enough when Pinkie does it... But, yes, I do have some familiarity with the Beast Realm from a very long time ago. Perhaps too long to be as much use today. Even the Beast Realm does not remain static, and my time there was before even Jormungandr became a High Chieftain. Your experiences would be more contemporary, Ditzy.”

Ditzy Doo frowned deeply, “Yeah, true... it’s just... I don’t want to leave my girl Derpy in a lurch. She’s kind of getting used to having me around more often. And not sure what Time Turner would think of me going back to the Beast Realm... unless...”

Discord and Ditzy exchanged a long, serious look with one another. Amid the silence, a very nervous and confused looking Timber Spruce leaned towards his sister and whispered, “I have no idea what’s going on.”

Gaia’s face softened, her mind switching gears to Gloriosa as she patted her brother’s shoulder, “I’ll fill you in on the details later, Timber.”

The staring match between Ditzy Doo and Discord finally ended with Discord heaving out a sigh and throwing up his hands, “Its your call, Ditzy. I’ve never claimed to be your keeper, and your relationship with Time Turner has always been your own business. If you don’t go, I’m sure Gaia and I can work something out-”

“No, I think it’s past time,” Ditzy Doo said, standing up and finishing off her drink, looking at the empty cup with a heavy expression on her gray features, “Time Turner and I have known for awhile something like this might eventually happen. He knows the Beast Realm better than anyone else. If anyone can find our missing people the fastest, it’s him. And I’m not about to let him go there alone, so I’ll be going, too. I just... can’t leave my daughter behind with no explanation. She knows some of the truth already, at least that her mom and dad aren’t normal, and she isn’t either, but it’s time I lay it all out for her. Guess it was my stupid fantasy that I’d get to play the role of a normal mom to a normal kid forever.”

“Rest assured I’ll keep her well looked after in the meantime,” Discord stated, “Although with so much of the Coalition’s firepower heading to the Beast Realm or already there, I’ll have to step up the training of our backup crew. Gaia, may I ask for your help in that regard?”

Gaia nodded simply, “I’ll put the children through their paces, rest assured. It’s no different than running an exciting summer camp, just with more explosions. You’ll be training the adults, I take it?”

“Yes,” Discord nodded, “I’ve been preparing some special training grounds for the young ones and the adults alike.” His expression clouded over with a sigh, “Before all of that, however, I do have a responsibility to fulfill. Ditzy, can I trust you to handle contacting our allies in Soul Society? I’ll send a message to the Quincy. We’ll need to know how both will react before we make too many preparations to send our people to the Beast Realm.”

“Yeah, I can imagine the Quincy aren’t going to be happy to have two of their Sternritter missing,” said Ditzy, shaking her head, “And Soul Society is in a real lurch right now after... Scorpan.”

The air grew only heavier, the knowledge of the Captain Commander’s loss a hefty recent blow, news brought by Clover when she’d arrived, just moments before she had followed Gaia to go assist with the disturbance of spiritual energies everyone had sensed that had turned out to be Jormungandr’s attack. It didn’t surprise Discord in the least that Celestia was the one nominated to inherit the position of Captain Commander, and with the present situation he would be equally unsurprised if he didn’t get a visit soon from her and Luna. He’d invite them anyways, since Asena and Simurgh had been dispatched from the Beast Realm to bring the two half-beast sisters back to Alfheim.

“We’ll have to wait and see how things turn out on Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie’s end, but in the meantime we focus on shoring up defenses here,” Discord said, standing up and leaning on his cane, “Are we sure all the Dragons that came with Jormungandr retreated back through their portals?”

Gaia nodded, “Those oddball witches from Wing Bind showed up only minutes after Jormungandr’s portal went haywire. The Dragons didn’t have as much fight left in them with their leader gone, so they ran for it. Then the Wing Bind folk flew off before any Quincy showed up to start asking questions. I didn’t stick around either, since the last thing I wanted to do was answer to Quincy who’d probably show up extremely testy after two of their own just went missing.”

“Smart, I’d say,” Discord agreed, “Our alliance is still shaky enough that this whole affair could put cracks in it if not handled delicately. Just leave that to me. For now, Gaia, you and your brother should return to Everfree and rest up. I’ll brief our young trainees and send them your way in the morning.”

Gaia smiled, her Gloriosa showing in her warming smile, “I’ll enjoy having a bit of the camp up and running again. Timber, maybe we should ready a cookout?”

He blinked, almost taken aback by the normalcy of the prospect, considering the overwhelming crazy of almost everything else happening, “Y-yeah, I’ll get the grills ready. Uh, Discord, sorry if this sounds like a dumb question, but who are we training, exactly?”

“Ah, you’re still learning names, aren’t you?” Discord chuckled at him with a wink, “I refer to our B-Team of eager youngsters, mostly consisting of Rarity and Applejack’s younger sisters, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom, and their best friend Scootaloo. You ought to remember them from their time at your lovely camp. Then there’s Pinkie Pie’s sister, Maud, who’s recently awoken her Fullbring, and is proving a natural adept at using it. Of course its hard to forget the Mod Soul recently used so often by Sunset Shimmer, but now Chappy is quite independent and invested in doing her part. Joining that core team will also be Applejack’s big brother Big Mac, and Fluttershy’s younger brother Zephyr Breeze. While neither have awoken to a Fullbring, yet, the potential is there and I’ve devised some exercises that you and your sister can use to help guide them. I’ve also selected the most promising volunteers among the Canterlot High students to receive additional training. While they may not have spiritual powers, I’ve created a number of weapons and devices that they can be trained on to better enhance their ability to deal with at least low-level threats.”

Discord reached into his robe and tossed Timber Spruce a rather thick booklet that he caught, despite being taken off guard. “What’s this?”

“Just the training regimen and details on classes. The higher level stuff will be for your sister to administrate, but I imagine you can at least guide students through the lower level courses. After all...” Discord’s eyes gleamed, “You’ll be undertaking this training, too.”

Timber Spruce gulped, “I’m not sure how comfortable I am with all of this.”

“It’ll be okay, Timber,” Gloriosa said, looking at him with the same comforting eyes he was so used to seeing all of his life, yet there was something different in it; a weight and force of will that hadn’t always been there. “This will just ensure as many people as possible are able to protect themselves if something else happens. If anything, today proved we can’t relax our guard completely.”

“I get that, it’s just...” Timber didn’t know how to explain it, or rather, he felt like it’d be pointless to try. What right did he have to complain about feeling like he’d lost control of his life to the very people who were stuck in it even deeper than he was. In the end he was little more than a bystander, but that was part of the problem for him. His life had been upended, his sister changed forever, his home altered almost beyond recognition... and there wasn’t anything he could do about it and nothing he could say to convey his distress in a manner that’d really matter to people who were dealing with matters so much bigger than him it was almost impossible to grasp.

He held the training booklet to his chest and nodded at Discord, “I’ll read through it and make sure I know the material, and see to preparing the camp for the trainees.”

Discord gave a nod of approval, eyes glinting beneath the shadowed brim of his hat, “Good man. Alright then, that just leaves me calling in my old team and... working a few things out.”

Ditzy Doo looked at him with a somber softening of her usually plucky expression, “It’s a bit surreal, having the old Xcution back, even if Sweet Cider and Firefly aren’t here. You going to talk to Cookie Crumbles about Rarity?”

“I’m going to have to,” Discord replied with equal gravity, “There’s no one left to do it, and the family deserves to know. I just hope it’ll focus Cookie on training rather than distract her. Either way, I need her, Cloudy Quartz, and Soft Spoken as sharpened on their restored Fullbring powers as I can make them. If Cookie wants to take some aggression out on me for not being able to protect her daughter, well... she’ll have plenty of chances.”

----------

Indigo Zap’s face appeared over the fallen Pinkie Pie, soon followed by Sour Sweet and Sugarcoat, the later adjusting her visor as if scanning the twitching pink girl.

“Is she dead?” asked Indigo with faint, almost genuine concern.

“She’s still twitching,” pointed out Sour Sweet.

“Doesn’t mean she’s not dead,” countered Indigo.

Sugarcoat sighed, poking Pinkie with a foot, who let out a giggle, “No, she’s fine, just having some kind of seizure.”

“Seizures aren’t exactly indicators of ‘fine’, are they?” said Indigo, but then Pinkie Pie shot up like a blurring bolt of cotton candy and caused the Quincy girl to jump a good four feet in shock.

“Wowie zowie! That was the humiest humdingers of a Pinkie Sense tremor I’ve felt in... at least fifty or so episodes!” Pinkie Pie said, straightening out her hair as she hopped over to a chair and plopped down on it. Up above on the second story platform where the meeting area was, overlooking the lower floor of the embassy room, Twilight Sparkle poked her head over and stared down.

“Pinkie, are you okay? You kind of started spasming and twirled right off the edge!”

“I know! There’s no railing there! You should fix that! Oh, wait, this is our embassy, so we should fix that! Fluttershy, why isn’t there a railing!?” Pinkie Pie shouted, still rubbing her head.

“I don’t know,” replied Fluttershy as she hopped down from the second floor platform and landed beside the chair Pinkie Pie had collapsed in, “I didn’t design this building. I’ll ask Ditzy about installing railings, if it turns out to be not too much trouble. But, um, I’ll echo Twilight’s question; are you okay? That looked like a very intense bout of Pinkie Sensing.”

“You can say that again!” Pinkie said, and stared at Fluttershy. After a few seconds of silence, Pinkie sighed, “But apparently you aren’t, so I’ll just explain myself. I have no idea what that one was about!”

“Hmm, that’s odd, I thought you usually know exactly what most of those seizures mean,” said Twilight, still standing on the upper platform where Sunny Flare remained seated at the meeting table alongside some other noteworthy guests; Adagio, Gilda, Fenice, and Lament. Roka was also in the embassy, but in a different room recovering from the injuries Pharynx had inflicted upon her. Fluttershy had done all she could to help stabilize Roka’s wounds, and at this point it was just a matter of letting her rest and allow natural Arrancar regenerative fortitude to do the rest. As for Di Roy and Gaw, Adagio had already assigned them a task, with Lament’s consent, and the pair would likely already be on their way to the world of the living.

The group had been undergoing final preparations and plans for the operation to rescue Fleur de Lis from Guto’s tower when Pinkie had her episode, one so severe it had her rolling right off the edge of the meeting platform to the ground floor.

At Twilight’s comment, Pinkie’s eyes shifted color briefly from blue to yellow as her lips curled up in a sarcastic grin, “Our noggin isn’t exactly the most organized, Grape Flavor. There’ve been more of these little bursts of braingasm lately than she’s told you girls.”

“Grape Flavor?” Twilight repeated with a look that said she couldn’t tell if that was an insult or a term of endearment, while Pinkie’s eyes flashed back to blue.

“Mena, you don’t gotta tell them that,” she said, to which Fluttershy tilted her head and held Pinkie’s hand in a soft gesture of calm.

“You mean you’ve had a lot more ‘Pinkie Senses’ lately?”

“Y-yeah...” Pinkie said, heaving out a sigh as she curled up more into the chair, “A lot more. I just haven’t said anything because I can’t suss them out like I used to. Most of them are pretty small ones, anyway, so they’re not too noticeable. Mena helps me keep them in check. This one was just too much of a doozy. I don’t know what most of the ones lately have been about, or at least... not specifically. It's like I keep getting flashes of danger for almost everyone I know, like every day my family, friends, casual acquaintances, and even strangers I haven’t met but are somehow important... are all in danger or under attack, or will be. But this one I just had was more intense, and specific. I don’t know its whole meaning, but it felt like Sunset, Rainbow, and AJ got... cut off from us, somehow.”

“That sounds less than ideal,” said Adagio from where she sat at the table beside Lament, her eyes filled with a growing frustration, “But also not surprising. Sunset Shimmer is a magnet for problems. But ‘cut off’ can mean a lot of things. Can you be any clearer?”

“Nope,” said Pinkie, “I just know they’re alive, but... far away.”

“Pinkie, we’re in Hueco Mundo and they’re in the world of the living,” Twilight pointed out, but Pinkie shook her head vigorously.

“Even further away than that. I don’t know where, but they’re not on Earth anymore.”

“That doesn’t leave a lot of alternatives,” Sugarcoat pointed out, “If they’re not on Earth, but not closer to where we are in Hueco Mundo, that pretty much leaves Equestria, or...”

“The Beast Realm,” Fluttershy said, eyes narrowing in concern. Just then, the door to the room from the embassy’s main entry hall opened and an unlikely pair entered to look at all of them.

“Hmm, the mood here suddenly seems dour,” Cinch said, putting a hand on her hip as her sharp angled face regarded the room with a haughty eye, “And here I thought I might brighten your day by reporting my success. I’ll even be generous and heap a small dollop of praise to these unseemly creature beside me.”

“I do not require praise from you, but shall take it from Lady Fluttershy, if I have earned it. ^_^” Smooze stated, looking Fluttershy’s way with a smiling emoticon appearing on his otherwise dark screened full-faced helmet. The former Tenth Espada and freshly anointed Sternritter W certainly made an odd pairing as they stood side by side. Adagio rose from her seat and joined Twilight as the pair went down the stairs from the second floor platform to meet the pair.

“I take it things went well?” said Twilight.

“I hope all went smoothly with Gaw and the children?” asked Adagio.

Cinch and Smooze looked at each other, and Cinch made a small ‘after you’ gesture at the Arrancar, who then inclined his head towards Adagio.

“Your vassal had little trouble gathering Lament’s children together, and I provided the Garganta to take them to their destination. They arrived safely, as far as I am aware, Sexta Espada.”

“Good,” Adagio said, glancing back up at Lament, who remained up on the second floor with Fenice, “That gets them out of the line of fire. Lament, I’ll leave things in your hands here, then.”

“You’re really going?” asked Hard Nail, his pale features showing a twitch of genuine worry that Adagio almost found touching, “I feel as if you’re underestimating Chrysalis.”

“Perhaps I am,” Adagio said with a shrug, “But we’re out of time for caution. I need to find out what Thorax knows, and the only way to get to him is through Chrysalis’ lair. If she’s there, me and her will have a woman to woman chat. If she isn’t, none of her horde have the strength to stop me from overturning every stone until I find Thorax.”

“At least let me come along,” said Fenice, joining her father and crossing her arms as she looked Adagio’s way, “This new sword keeps yammering at me about wanting more to do, so I might as well follow you and back you up if it comes to a fight. I’m not about to sit around sidelined anymore, and I’m not needed for what these Quincy are planning.”

“Daughter, I don’t want you walking into a lion’s den, worse than any lion’s den in the whole of creation,” Hard Nail stated, but Fenice met his imploring look with her own heated gaze.

“Sorry father, but that’s all the more reason for me to support Adagio, in case things go sideways. You’re putting yourself on the line too, offering to help the Quincy in your condition, so don’t go acting like you’re the only one with the right to take risks.”

Hard Nail had no response to that, and the more observant in the room, mostly Adagio, noticed Twilight’s face grow a heavy shadow of roughly concealed emotions. The other Quincy were silent and still, but the air was thick with tension around Twilight for a moment before the girl took control of herself and said, “She’s right. You’re helping us, despite your weakened state. With Fenice’s recent... metamorphosis, she may have more than enough strength to provide Adagio with backup. Assuming Adagio, that you’re okay with this?”

Adagio eyed Fenice, then offered a smoothly pleased smile, “It’d be foolish to say no to the assistance. Preferably I’d like to avoid an actual fight with the Secunda Espada, but if it does come to that, having you and your rather odd new blade at my side may prove useful. Is it really jabbering at you about wanting to get into fights?”

Fenice’s face colored as she scratched the back of her head, thumping a fist onto the viking broadsword’s hilt, the blade now sheathed at her side through a sash she’d added to her robes, “I think we’re up to the twentieth or so time he’s brought it up. Shame the rest of you can’t hear him. Makes me feel like I’ve gone screwy in the head, hearing voices.”

Twilight adjusted her glasses, giving Fenice’s blade a clearly intrigued look, “Under less time-constraining circumstances I’d absolutely love to examine this Phantom Blade of yours in detail, but hopefully we’ll have time later once this operation is complete. I’m worried about this situation Pinkie’s senses have alerted us to, but there’s no time to contact the Coalition for an update. We’ll just have to leave it until later. Cinch, after Smooze gated Gaw and the children, I presume the rest of your work went smoothly? You weren’t spotted?”

Cinch snorted, “Please, I may not be the foremost expert in stealth among the Quincy, but I have many years of experience of over anyone else here. Smooze, despite his less than pleasant physical qualities, does have a sharp mind, I’ll admit. He provided all the details I needed of the Warrens’ layout and Las Nosche’s surface layout. As soon as you’re all ready, I can show you all my wonderful, expert power as Sternritter W!”

“Have fun with that,” Adagio said, “Fenice, let’s go.”

“Be careful, both of you,” Hard Nail said, and Adagio and Fenice both gave him acknowledging nods before leaving the room.

“Anyone else think that poking the literal second most powerful Hollow in existence when we’re about to launch a delicate rescue operation is a bad idea?” asked Sour Sweet as they all went back up to their respective chairs at the meeting table, “No? Just me?”

“Actually if you think about it, Adagio and that Fullbringer girl doing that should provide a handy distraction for us,” Sunny Flare pointed out, “If a fight breaks out, it’d draw eyes away from Guto’s tower and give us some cover.”

“I would prefer my daughter and close ally not be seen as little more than a distraction,” Hard Nail stated, to which Sunny Flare paled a bit, less than enthused about having one of the most terrifying of the Espada so close by. None of the Quincy present were unaware of the fact that, during their attack on Las Noches, this man was directly responsible for the deaths of two Sternritter, including Twilight’s own mother.

Even diminished as he was, Hard Nail retained a strong presence, and most of the Quincy still saw him as ‘the Lament’, Quatra Espada.

Twilight, sitting across from her mother’s killer, maintained a face still as stone and professionally forced to neutrality, “We can only trust that they’ll be able to handle themselves. Distraction or not, we won’t plan our actions around what happens with their confrontation with Chrysalis, if one even happens at all. For the moment, let’s focus on what we shall be doing. Cinch, if you would?”

“Of course,” Cinch said with a self-pleased smile. Raising her left hand, she generated a series of small reishi strands that then became silver darts that hovered over her upraised fingertips, “As Sternritter W, the Window, I’ll be providing key support to you all. Appreciate it. Now, observe, my first technique; Sichtfenster!” (Viewing Port)

The five silver darts shot up and outward, spiraling to impact with the wall behind the meeting table at various spots. Another set of silver darts formed at Cinch’s fingertips and fired again, and again, and again... until the wall was pockmarked by the darts. Then, each dart flattened out and grew like a silver pool, then flashed white. At each point, the pools became clear, like windows, and showed through each one a different scene. Some showed elements of the large Arrancar encampment outside Guto’s tower, with bored warriors milling around, gaming with dice, play fighting, or eating slain lesser Hollows. Other ‘Viewing Ports’ showed areas of the Warrens, specifically what looked like a series of tunnels and chambers linked to guarded doors that led to larger areas directly underneath Guto’s tower. Other parts of Las Noches could be seen through other ports, including areas observing Lament’s tower, Adagio’s walled territory, and the embassy itself.

“You were pretty thorough I see,” Twilight said, and Cinch laughed.

“Obviously. I wanted to ensure no corner was left unmarked so that we can have a clear view of our target area. Once you take more of my darts with you, your team can set them up to create more ports through which my Window will allow us to view.”

“Nobody can see us through these, right?” asked Indigo, to which Cinch looked mildly disgusted.

“Of course not, foolish girl. These ports are for one way viewing, unless I specifically allow for two way access.”

“Interesting,” said Fluttershy, while Pinkie Pie leaned over to poke at one of the ports, which shuddered a bit, like actual glass.

“Hey! Are these real windows!?” Pinkie said, to which Cinch grunted and gave the girl a hard glare.

“Don’t poke that so hard you imbecile. The Window is highly adaptable, and I’ve tempered the Viewing Ports to be difficult to break, but you could still accidentally give us away like that. And yes, my Schrift creates what you could consider to be ‘real windows’ on surfaces or even on open air if I so choose. I control the properties of my Windows, from which end they can be seen through to who can even move through them and when. All of the conditions of my Windows are mind to control.”

“Obviously Cinch needs to be able to place a dart to form both ends of a ‘Window’,” said Twilight, already fully briefed on the nature of Cinch’s Schrift, “So in terms of being able to infiltrate, we can utilize any of these ports to come at Guto’s tower how we like. However we’ll have to set up more darts once we’re inside. Hopefully, if all goes well, once we locate Fleur de Lis, we can use a Window to rapidly escape back here to the embassy without anyone inside the tower realizing where we’ve gone.”

Sugarcoat nodded, “And this, combined with my X-Ray, should make finding and snatching Fleur easy. Which almost certainly means something is going to go wrong.”

“You’re a real ray of sunshine today, ain’t ya?” said Lemon Zest, casually blowing a bubble with some bubblegum she’d been chewing, “This sounds like it’ll be a cakewalk as long as we do things fast.”

“Don’t be simple,” said Sunny Flare, “Even with the advantage of these Schrifts, we’ve got some hurdles to deal with. We have to break in, even if we’ve got the Window to make getting to an entry point easy. Then we have to find Fleur, and she won’t be alone.”

“No, she won’t,” Gilda said, finally speaking up and eyeing all of the Quincy in turn, “And hate to break it to you, but this isn’t going down without a fight. You’d better hope Adagio and Fenice do cause a scene with Chrysalis, because you’re going to need every distraction you can get to keep that tower from getting overrun with Guto and Hydia’s warriors the second any kind of alarm is raised.”

“That’s why we’ve got you, right?” said Indigo, “You know where the weak spots in security would be.”

“Hmph, it’s because of what I know that I’m telling you there aren’t any weak spots. Guto... he keeps a damn hold of the things he wants,” Gilda said with a heavy tone, eyes downcast, “Stealth will last up until the second you try to snatch anything he values, then he’ll be on your asses before you can blink. We need to be ready for a fight, and don’t fool yourselves into thinking this will go down any other way.”

Twilight and Lament looked at one another, the air cold between them, but his eyes were understanding, his voice even, “I will be drawing Guto and Hydia’s attention, with the assistance of Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. With any luck, we can make enough of a scene out front that you’ll be able to get inside with minimal issue.”

Gilda hands clenched on the table, her nervousness seeming to grow my the second now that the time to actually do this had finally come. Fluttershy drew her attention with a small leaning forward and warmth filled smile that drew a line against the unease in Gilda’s heart. For a moment Gilda suspected the girl might have been using her Fullbring’s power, but she didn’t see any of the signs like the extra arms, glowing third eye, or halo... so perhaps Fluttershy was just being that calming naturally.

“That’ll be easy to do, since Guto will be happy to take any chance to stick it to you, Lament,” Gilda said, “So be careful. He’ll take you out, if he thinks he can get away with it. Still, once we’re in, big warning; nobody touch anything of Guto’s. He’s got a lot of ritzy crap in there, and his power coats all of it. He’s got an instinctual power to sense when his possessions are being tampered with. That may well include your Quincy friend, once we find her, we got to split fast.”

“We can use that against him,” Twilight said, “Since we don’t know for sure if Guto will keep Fleuruer near him at all times, if he does have her at his side when... Lament’s distraction kicks off, we can raid his valuables to draw him right back into the tower, and he’ll bring Fluer right to us.”

“Risky, but as long as I you can use one of my darts to set up a Window, I can provide an exit point no matter where you are in that tower,” Cinch said, “And I’ve already set up additional Windows to lead us outside of Las Noches once we have Fleur de Lis. Even if you have to fight every Arrancar in the tower, Guto and Hydia included, you just have to survive long enough to get through my Window.”

“And ultimately we’re out of time to plan,” Twilight stated simply, eyeing each of her team in turn, “Between Adagio confronting Chrysalis, and Pinkie’s odd warnings of events back in the living world, I intend to get this done as soon as possible. So this is it; in half an hour, Lament, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie will begin their distraction. At the same time, I shall lead all Quincy present besides Cinch, along with Gilda, and infiltrate Guto’s tower via the power of the Window. We’ll expend every effort to locate Fluer and extract her, and engage any Arrancar necessary in the process. Any questions?”

Silence followed her query, each member of the group looking ready in their own way. Twilight nodded, rising from her seat, “Very well. In half an hour the operation commences, and we get Fleur de Lis out of Hueco Mundo.”

----------

While he had a million and one things on his mind, Discord knew when he just had to get an unpleasant bit of conversation over and done with. Time and again responsibility was a thing that hung heavy on his head, his hat almost feeling at times more like a blade pressing inward. He was accepting of the fact that he couldn’t act as a shield for the girls, had known as much for almost the duration of the time he’d been assisting them, but that didn’t change that it remained a stinging wound on his heart that they faced the consequences of a conflict they never should have had to get involved in.

And while he felt for each and every single one of them, and especially had a growing sensation of both pride and care for Sunset Shimmer in particular as a girl he was happy to see grow, and terrified to see fall, he was all too aware that out of the group Rarity had already paid the heaviest of prices. He was taking special care in the preparation of Rarity’s gigai, for the day she would one day be able to make use of it, but until then... duty compelled him to this moment.

“I don’t understand,” Cookie Crumbles said, eyes staring at Discord with equal elements of confusion and denial, “What do you mean my daughter is in...”

She couldn’t finish the sentence fully and just shook her head and paced about. She, along with her husband Magnum, were in one of the smaller private rooms that Discord had set aside for guests. Sweetie Belle was there as well, sitting on a couch next to her father, and looking no more able to comprehend the situation than Cookie Crumbles was.

Exercising as much presence as he was able, Magnum’s face was pale, his mustache twitching a bit as he spoke, “Can you run this by us again. I still don’t rightly get everything going on around here, but I know you’re the fella in charge and now you’re saying our Rarity is in even more trouble than she already was after some powerful bad folk showed up?”

Discord kept his composure, with some effort, considering his words very carefully.

“Our enemies created and control the place you might think of as ‘Hell’, a prison they abuse for their own ends. During their attack on this place, one of them was able to entrap Rarity in that prison. As of now we don’t have a means of getting her out, but we’re working on it.”

“OH! You’re [i[working on it!?” Cookie Crumbles snapped, hot tears in her eyes, throwing up a hand, “Well color me all relieved then! Discord, it’s my daughter! She’s in Hell! Dead and in Hell! Now that I have my memories and powers back, I’ve half a mind to shove my Fullbring straight up your-”

“H-honey, I don’t think Mister Discord is the problem here,” Magnum said, to which Cookie Crumbles rounded on him with nostrils flaring.

“Dear, our baby girl wouldn’t have ever gotten hurt if Discord had kept out of things. For Christ’s sake, me and my friends had our own lives upended by this man’s plots and schemes. I think I have every right to say he’s at fault for our daughter being... being...”

Magnum bit his lip and went quiet, and Discord took a deep breath before speaking again.

“You’re not wrong, Cookie Crumbles. There is a lot that can be laid at my feet. I was there, and still failed to ensure neither Rarity nor her friends came to harm. All I can tell you is that I am expending every available option to get Rarity back to you.”

“How’re you gonna do that?” asked Sweetie Belle before anyone else could, the young girl’s eyes red from unshed tears she was trying to hold in, and a hopeful look residing in her quivering lips.

“Yes,” added Cookie Crumbles, “Let’s hear it, Discord. You want us, my friends, my other daughter, her friends, you want us all fighting in your ‘Coalition’? You’d better have something to give us other than empty promises.”

Discord reached into the folds of his dark green robes and pulled out a book, “I don’t require that anyone fight who does not wish to. Our enemies don’t discriminate based on association. As far as they’re concerned, everyone is a valid target, and hence it’s in the best interest of anyone who can do so to train their abilities to face what’s to come. However you are quite correct that I should provide material, concrete benefits rather than empty words. So take this book...”

Handing it to Cookie Crumbles, the woman wiped at her tear stained eyes with one hand while looking at the book with vague confusion, “What is this? A journal?”

“Correct,” Discord confirmed, “But not just any journal. This particular one was enchanted by Twilight Sparkle and is linked to your daughter. If you write in the journal, the words will reach Rarity.”

The family all looked briefly stunned, Sweetie Belle leaping off the couch to approach her mother and the journal Cookie Crumbles now held. “It’ll really do that? We can talk to Rarity?”

“Yes, in fact Sunset Shimmer and the other girls already contacted her earlier to ensure it works,” Discord explained, his eyes kind, but filled with the weight of the circumstances, “Understand, please, that Rarity is still fighting. She is refusing to allow Hell to break her, and intends to seek a means of escape. She’s acquired allies there already. Your daughter is not a person easily cowed by anything. As she works to seek clues to a means of escaping Hell, I shall be working on a means to aid her in that endeavor. I give you this journal not only so you can speak to her, and let her know her family is waiting for her, but also so you can convey any clues she discovers to me. Together, we’ll get her out. And once she’s home safely, I’ll have finished a new body for her, I swear.”

Cookie Crumbles held the journal in trembling hands, breathing heavily, “I still don’t like you, Discord, and I’m not thrilled by any of this... but thank you for this at least. You’d better get her out of there.”

“I will, one way or another,” Discord assured her, and slowly turned towards the door, “I’ll leave you all to send your words to Rarity, now, in privacy. As I said, I don’t require anyone who doesn’t want it to train, but if you are willing, Cookie Crumbles, then Cloudy Quartz and Soft Spoken will be joining us down in the training area in a few hours.”

Cookie nodded silently, sitting down at the short coffee table by the couch with her husband and youngest daughter to lay down the journal, Discord almost all but forgotten as they got ready to send Rarity a message. He left them, feeling no less weight on his shoulders, but at least glad that Rarity would get to hear from her family.

Now he just had a million more problems to turn his attention towards, instead of a million and one.

And at least half of those problems all pointed directly towards the Beast Realm.

----------

She knew it was just her imagination playing tricks on her, but Celestia swore the fabric of the Captain Commander’s uniform itched. It was simply nerves, and the uncomfortable feeling that she didn’t belong in them, didn’t deserve the honor of wearing the white haori with the simple kanji for the First Division inked on its back. She was no replacement for the power, wisdom, and ages of experience that Captain Commander Scorpan had represented for the Gotei 13 and Soul Society as a whole. More than that, he’d been the unbreakable, unshakable, eternal centerpiece and bedrock of Soul Society since its inception.

How was she, a half-breed girl with a fraction of his experience supposed to fill shoes the size of a titan’s?

There wasn’t even time for doubt. She didn’t have the luxury of taking the time to face her uncertainties, her fears of inadequacies, like she wanted to. Celestia had to pick up the pieces of the unsteady Gotei 13 and hold them together, because if the news Ditzy had just brought was any indication... things were about to get far and away worse before they got better, and if things went really wrong, it could well mean the end of everything.

Above all, it was still the Gotei 13’s duty to prevent that from happening, to preserve balance and peace between the world of the living and the realm of spirits. Built on lies, perhaps, but by Scorpan’s will and her own, Celestia intended to forge that duty into truth, even if she didn’t know if she was truly up to the task.

The Captain Commander’s office was spacious, almost uncomfortably so as she sat behind her new desk and eyed not only Ditzy Doo, but her sister, whom she’d summoned upon hearing the full report Ditzy had brought.

“So before Asena and Simurgh disappeared along with Sunset Shimmer and the others, they specifically mentioned they had come to escort me and Luna to a ‘Convocation of Clans’?” she confirmed, to which Ditzy held up her hands in a tired, shrugging gesture.

“Pretty sure they babbled something along those lines. Went on about the Fates saying you two needed to be there, and would be accompanied by ‘warriors of harmony’. Kinda assumed that meant the girls, but with the scattered literally between Hell and back, not sure how that’s supposed to go down.”

“Father told us some of the Fates,” Luna said with an unimpressed, if still grave look, *Their predictions are hardly prophetic, and possess all manner of bends and inaccuracies.”

“It is more that they can be interpreted in various ways and rarely come about in a direct manner,” Ditzy said, moving over to the large balcony area to the right of the office, leaning on the railing and looking out over the Seireitei beyond, “Time Turner tried to explain to me plenty of times how time isn’t something you predict in a straight line, even when you’ve got powers that let you take a peek ahead. I wouldn’t worry about the details. I just figure you two might want to decide whether or not you want to be packing your bags or not.”

“Tch,” Luna crossed her arms, “We cannot afford to leave Soul Society right now! Celesita just became Captain Commander. We had Scorpan’s funeral this very morning! There’s so much instability among the Divisions, and among the populace. They need a solid symbol of security, which will hardly be helped by the new Captain Commander and myself galivanting off to the Beast Realm right now!”

There was a current of severe strain undercutting Luna’s words, and Celestia knew well her sister wasn’t speaking idly. However...

“Respectfully, sister, I believe we should go.”

“Are you serious, Tia?” Luna said, cocking her head to the side to look at her sister sidelong, “We’re in no position to deprive Soul Society of even the small measure of peace the presence of at least a Captain Commander brings. If we go, that leaves too few Captains to maintain order, or protect the Soul Society in case of attack.”

“That is why Amore has departed with her Lieutenant and a diplomatic entourage from Blueblood’s Division to cement our newfound ceasefire with the Quincy,” Celestia replied with far more cooled calm than she really felt, “And while the Coalition’s own forces are scattered somewhat by these recent events, we can still rely on them for support in case of an emergency. Right now Tirek and Las Noches remain the largest potential threat, and even now members of the Coalition are present there, so if any serious moves are made we’ll likely be informed of it before it gets too far. More importantly, Lulu, we’re needed in the Beast Realm. All points towards it as the new battleground.”

“And what of Zero Division...?” Luna asked, to which Ditzy cut in.

“Not to cut too deep on this one, but if Zero Division decides to make any move in force, it’s not like anyone would be in a good position to stop them even if you and Celestia stick around here. I’d say it’s better to deal with this Beast Realm business, and maybe snag some fresh allies out of the deal. Besides, you think those girls aren’t going to be tearing up and down that place, then rolling right along to Equestria afterward? At least if you two hit up this Convocation of Clans, it might lead to breaking the Beast Realm out of its neutrality. And... Time Turner and I will be going with you.”

Luna’s resistance visibly lessened the more both Ditzy and Celestia had spoken, laying out the logic if it all, and she sighed, nodding finally. There was even a small, phantom smile on her lips now, “Fine. I never could dissuade you lot from doing something foolish, even when we were children. If Discord was coming, we’d have the old gang back together.”

Ditzy smiled with a small chuckle, “Sadly Discy has his plate full up in Canterlot City, but he sends his regards. So, we good here? You two ready to pack your bags?”

“We tend to travel light,” Celestia said, rising from behind her desk, “But I do need to arrange matters here to ensure the other Captains know what's happening. Then... me and Luna have to pay someone a visit.”

Luna made a small, grunting noise very much of the kind only family members make when they know there’s a family get together that can’t be avoided, “Right, I suppose if we’re going to be meeting our mother’s face to face, we first have to speak with our father.”

Episode 195: Draugr

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Episode 195: Draugr

Adagio had seen this place from a distance, but this would be her first time actually approaching the territory Chrysalis had carved out for herself in Las Noches. Often she’d wondered just why the Second Espada, with her apparent ego, chose to make her home inside a barely lit, carved out rift in Las Noche’s otherwise brightly lit interior structure. The canyon was a dark wound in the sands, with spidery branches that spread from the central rift. The closest thing to a palace or tower was the gnarled structure of intertwined, almost coral-like ivory stone, like a twisted and petrified tree with roots hanging down into the canyon rift. Several elegant looking bridges led to the structure, but Adagio had heard from Thorax that the palace was little more than a glorified front and that the more important areas lay down in the canyon itself, including Chrysalis' real lair. Having observed the canyon rift from far away, Adagio knew the place was usually buzzing with Chrysalis’ army of drones. Which was why the utter lack of noise of movement she sensed set her on immediate edge, causing her to grip her trident Zanpaktou tighter as she landed by the edge of the rift’s southern tip.

Beside her Fenice landed as well, one hand on the hilt of her newly acquired blade, and the other on the medallion that was the focus of her Fullbring.

“It’s way too quiet,” Fenice said, “I’m barely sensing any reiatsu here.”

It didn’t take a strong look through the use of Pesquisa for Adagio to confirm that Fenice was right. Not only was it deathly silent, but there was very little traces of reiatsu that Adagio could feel out. Not gone, she sensed, perhaps better than Fenice, that there were still some spiritual pressures present somewhere down there, but nowhere near as much as she would’ve expected from the size of Chrysalis’ horde, let alone if Chrysalis herself was there.

“Its possible they’re suppressing their reiatsu,” Adagio said, although she wasn’t sure she believed it even as she said it. What reason would Chrysalis have to hide her reiatsu? Yet if she was in Las Noches, this was the place she’d likely be. Adagio hadn’t sensed her anywhere else, at least. “Regardless, I need to find Thorax. Last chance, are you sure you want to follow me in here? You haven’t exactly had a lot of time to rest after dealing with Pharynx”

Fenice cut a sideways look at Adagio, “Didn’t come along just to turn back now. Fluttershy healed me up enough that I back you up if we run into trouble, even if I’m not at a hundred percent. I’m not about to sit on the sidelines any longer, especially if a friend is sticking her head in the spider’s web.”

Adagio twitched a little at the word ‘friend’, but it was nowhere near the sensation of somewhat gut reaction denial she may have once felt over the matter. Instead she breathed out a small laugh, “If we end up having to fight Chrysalis herself, no offense Fenice, it’d have been easier on me if I’d been by myself. Still, not about to say no to free help. Just don’t expect me to cover for you if things get hairy down there.”

“Hmph, I took on Pharynx. I can handle myself,” Fenice said, and Adagio looked Fenice over, eyes lingering on the most noticeable physical changes the human girl had undergone. It was certainly something to get used to, although Adagio did think it quite suited Fenice. The girl was bearing up well, considering the revelations about her true parentage, and Adagio approved of how well Fenice was keeping composed and focused.

“Yes, you can. Just recall that Chrysalis is rather protective of her strongest children, so you cleaning Pharynx’s clock might make her less than thrilled with you. Let’s play this by ear. We don’t know what to expect down there.”

“And here I thought you were the woman who always had a plan?” Fenice said, smirking a little in jest, and Adagio rolled with it, shooting back a quick smile to cover her unease. She'd done her best to prepare and plan for different contingencies, but she had a growing premonition that events were accelerating beyond what she'd prepared for. That's why she was taking this risk to try and get to Thorax, as she heavily suspected he knew something critical.

“I do have a plan. Find Thorax and don’t die. There, perfect plan.”

“Yes, utterly flawless. I can see why you’re the one in charge,” Fenice said with a joking grin as she shook her head and flexed her singular bone wing. She then hopped into the darkness of the rift. Adagio followed after her, letting gravity do the work for a bit before exerting some spiritual pressure to slow her descent and land softly on the cold, stone floor at the bottom of the rift.

There wasn’t much light that filtered in from above, but there were a few places where a faint green luminescence from what looked like growths of black and green resin coated the walls and filled the area with a faint, pale glow. It was enough for Adagio and Fenice to see that there was no sign of life in this place. The walls had numerous honeycomb-like entrances and alcoves built at varying heights, stretching down towards the wider sections of the rift. Presumably these spaces led to where Chrysalis’ horde inhabited, and Adagio did see a few traces of this in the form of some odds and ends of furniture or randomly collected junk that decorated some of the alcoves. Other entrances supposedly lead to tunnels that fed into the Warrens, although Adagio didn't know which ones.

There were also bloodstains, some old, some more recent, but knowing what she did of Chrysalis, Adagio had a feeling her drones found means of entertaining themselves that made such stains seem normal rather than a sign of danger. Well, no more danger than one should feel when entering the lair of one like Chrysalis.

The two walked forward, their footsteps the only sounds to be heard, echoing up and down the steep rift walls.

“This isn’t right...” Fenice whispered, “There should be plenty of those creepy kids of hers popping up to challenge us, but there’s no one here.”

Adagio’s own nerves were winding tighter by the second. Over the weeks she’d made a point of gathering as much intel on her fellow Espada as possible, including a fair idea of the size of their hordes, the number of their Fraccion, the general expanse of their holdings. Chrysalis’ army of drones was the largest in terms of raw numbers, only really rivaled by Torch’s. This place should have been swarming with hundreds if not thousands of nearly identical Arrancar warriors.

Where the hell was Chrysalis’ horde? Even if she had moved them somewhere, would it have been possible to do so without anyone noticing? And where would Chrysalis send them? Adagio’s mind churned swiftly with possibilities, her anxiety rising with each step deeper, towards the looming sight of something shedding a sickly emerald glow beneath the hanging palace above. Thorax had told her that Chrysalis did have a home of sorts here, at the bottom of the spiraling chasm where stone platforms were spaced around the edges, leading ever downward. She and Fenice moved across these platforms as the floor slopped down, leading to the emanation of sickly green light.

It loomed ahead, a jagged structure of resin in the rough shape of a pyramid, while Adagio tried to think.

In her gut, she knew Tirek was planning a large move soon, perhaps as soon as a day or so. She’d seen the evidence of Catrina and Chrysalis’ warriors working together, building up supplies. On top of that, the recent revelation of Grogar’s laboratories and factories in the Warrens, creating monstrous weapons out of captured Hollows and combining them with artificial siren gems, and the massive amount of conduits meant to transfer spirit energy somewhere...

Myself, Torch, and Lament have been cut out of the loop. Even Gilda has been left in the dark, Adagio thought, Now its clear Chrysalis has already sent the bulk of her forces somewhere, and even she wouldn’t go that far without Tirek’s approval, meaning this is a part of what Tirek plans to do. Something neither he or Chrysalis want me to know about, otherwise... Thorax would have informed me. That’s why he’s here. He has to be.

This vastly narrowed down the possibilities in Adagio’s mind. Tirek knew she was gunning for him, but had never seemed to take issue with it. Yet he also knew she still had ties to Equestria. If nothing else, Grogar probably would’ve told Tirek about Adagio’s sisters. Had Tirek planned an attack on Soul Society or the Quincy, there’d have been little reason to cut her out of the loop on such a plan, since she didn’t have the same ties to those places, and had already fought and won against foes from both those factions.

But an attack on Equestria? Even if that had always been in the works, it had seemed like a far off plan, slowed down by the need to go through the Beast Realm. Tirek had even spoken of taking the gate in Everfree to do just that, but what if... he’d been offered a different path?

What if Chrysalis had offered him an alternative method? One much faster, than bypassing the Beast Realm?

Thorax had told Adagio that Chrysalis had kept a secret means of going back and forth to Equestria. She’d assumed that this was all part of Chrysalis’ own schemes involving Starlight Glimmer, and hence separate from anything involving Tirek. Yet Adagio had not heard much of recent events in Equestria, so what if something had happened there that had changed the entire dynamic? Chrysalis was an unpredictable sort, so if Starlight Glimmer had ceased to be a valuable partner...

By now they had reached the bottom of the canyon rift, where in the deep, bowl shaped chasm Adagio could now fully see the rough angled, wasp nest pyramid of emerald resin that was Chrysalis' real home. Adagio paused there, Fenice halting beside her as she felt a sudden chill pass down her spine, “Hold on. We’re being watched.”

She hadn’t sensed the reiatsu clearly, but something, multiple somethings, were approaching them. Adagio could taste the sudden bloodlust tinging the air with an acidic intensity. She turned with her trident at the ready, eyes shifting left and right as she sought the source of the rapidly closing spiritual pressures. Yet something was off. The reiatsu was strong, yet constrained in some manner, and Adagio had to focus for a moment with her Pesquisa senses to hone in on the differences she was feeling from these spiritual pressures.

It was as if the energy signature was scrambled in some fashion, making it hard to pinpoint, but also Adagio imagined it’d make it hard to sense the reiatsu from any significant distance.

“You feel the company we have coming?” she asked Fenice, who in response drew her Phantom Blade into her left hand and gripped her medallion with her right, invoking a stream of magma that quickly formed into her Fullbring claymore.

“Three... no, four of them,” Fenice replied, eyes narrowing as she got back to back with Adagio, “They feel weird as hell. I can’t figure out which way they’re coming from, or even how strong they are.”

The question of “where” was soon answered as shadows dropped from the top of the pyramid that the two women had approached. These shadowy shapes landed with heavy impact, indicating their hefty size as they uncurled and each let out warbling growls that hardly resembled what ought to come from a normal throat. The sense of bloodlust in the air intensified along with their reiatsu, which remained oddly scrambled and unfocused, yet Adagio still got a taste of decent strength in this pressure. Then the shapes started to stalk forward, illuminated by the thick emerald glow from the reisin pyramid and Adagio got a good look at what had come to greet her and Fenice.

“Grogar...” she spat, not because it was him, but simply out of general disgust for the twisted Espada’s work, which these things had to be. They certainly were no drones of Chrysalis’.

Each one was different from the other, the clear product of Grogar taking what must have once been a normal Arrancar before being subjected to Grogar’s particular brand of “science”. Huge and mutated flesh left limbs longer and pulsating with muscle fibers that in turn were interwoven with cables of thick cybernetic cable that buzzed with spiritual energy. One of them had nothing but a segmented cleaver for an arm, which Adagio suspected could detach and extend. Another bore grafts of bulbous spheres on its shoulders that looked to contain some vile toxin meant for spewing. The third had its stomach opened and replaced with some manner of metal furnace with twin nozzles that dripped purple flames. The fourth one’s head was covered in a singular steel helmet with a series of crimson lenses bolted on like the eyes of a cybernetic arachnid. Although all were still roughly humanoid as their original Arrancar shape, bearing some strands of hair or physique to denote gender, the combination of bloated mutation and cybernetic enhancement made these poor souls look nothing like what they once were.

And worse still, Adagio could recognize the distinct gleam of artificial siren gems embedded in the Hollow holes these creatures still possessed.

When her people had found Grogar’s lab, he’d talked about “Phase Ones” using Adjuchas. Could these Arrancar-based monstrosities be the “Phase Twos” beyond those that he had also mentioned?

“We running or fighting?” Fenice asked, and Adagio pressed her lips into a bitter phantom of a smirk, raising her trident.

“I’m not leaving without finding Thorax. If Grogar wants to put his sick little toys between me and my goal, then I consider it a pleasure to smash them to pieces.”

“Works for me,” Fenice replied with a nod, looking back at the four modified Arrancar that had moved closer, then halted to stare at the two women. Fenice frowned, “So, do we make the first move, or wait for-”

The one with the flame dripping nozzles in its stomach howled in a piercing cry and threw its arms back. Its whole chest and stomach area flared bright purple as the artificial siren gem gleamed, and then a thick, focused twin beam of raw purple heat blasted out of the nozzles directly at Adagio and Fenice. It was almost like a pair of Cero, yet curled with licks of such unnaturally hot flame that the stone beneath the beam was already melting even as it traversed like a twin laser at the pair.

Fenice wasn’t inclined to dodge, however, and stabbed her molten great word into the ground like a shield and took the twin beams straight on, which impacted with the flat of her magma sword with tremendous heat and impact. Adagio did leap up out of the way, less to dodge and more to go on the attack as she spun her trident and summoned forth the raw, wrathful power of her waters as Fenice and her sword both were pushed back by the enemy’s attack.

Spirals of insanely highly pressurized water curled around Adagio’s trident as she spun around and unleashed multiple condensed streams that cascaded outward like jetting waterfalls. Even as Fenice was pushed back, her sword melting through the floor as the twin beam of purple flames shoved her, Adagio’s water sliced down and cut into the beams, boiling them away swiftly even as other jets of water smashed towards the other Arrancar.

The three Arrancar that had not attacked yet all flickered upwards with Sonido to avoid the rush of water now filling the ground area, but the fourth that had fired the beams of flame was struck dead on in the chest and was sent flying backwards straight into the far wall with a tremendous crack that broke apart chunks of the wall in a great web.

Adagio found the three that had jumped up now surrounding her, all three appearing amid the swift buzz of Sonido. The one with bulbous growths of toxic sludge on its shoulders let out a gurgling cry as it sliced hands of metal claws into the toxin sacks, which burst forth with ugly green fluid. It then sliced its poison coated claws forward multiple times in blinding succession, flinging a series of arcing poison crescents at Adagio with incredible force.

She countered with a spin of her trident, conjuring a swirling vortex of water a dozen meters wide that acted as a barrier against the toxic barrage, which impacted heavily with the water but failed to penetrate through it. However this defense meant Adagio would be open to the other two’s attacks. The one with the segmented cleaver arm howled as it flung said arm forward. There was gross, organic noise of expanding flesh as the segments of the cleaver expanded into a whip, with the inner parts formed for muscle and blood that grew rapidly and glowed with fierce crimson energy as the blade swung at Adagio. The other Arrancar with the steel mask of glass eyes warbled a strange cry as those multiple lenses flared with light and all moved about it’s head seemingly at random until they all disgorged small, thin needles of ruby red energy, like highly focused Balas that then flew out and curved around like homing missiles to converge towards Adagio.

A band of pure light snapped upwards and wrapped around the segmented blade of blood and muscle, halting the attack in place. Adagio glanced down to see Fenice had extended that band of light from her Phantom Blade and with a yank used an impressive amount of strength to pull the modified Arrancar and its extendable blade arm straight down to the ground with a terrific impact.

With one less concern, Adagio focused fully on slipping through the storm of Bala needles with her own swift Sonido, appearing behind the Arrancar with it’s many eye lenses. Those lenses all swiveled around to the back of the Arrancar’s skull to focus on her as she smashed her trident’s barbs into it’s back and pierced the Arrancar’s Hierro, causing a thick, dark red blood to spew forth. She flung the skewered Arrancar into the nearest wall, but then had to dodge as the very Bala needles she had just dodged flickered through the air and came at her from the side.

Had those things just used Sonido themselves!? She’d never even heard of a Bala being able to redirect itself or move independently, let alone with the speed of a Sonido!

She slashed her trident as she dodged backwards, knocking many of the Bala needles off course or shattering them, but several pierced through and struck her limbs. She felt the bite of them, although her Hierro withstood most of it save for a few small wounds. But she heard a loud howl, and her eyes narrowed as she saw the Arrancar with the lens-covered helmet leap from the hole in the wall it’s impact had made. Despite it still bleeding from the grevious wound Adagio had dealt, it ignored the damage and it’s mechanical eyes flashed red, generating more Bala needles.

Meanwhile Fenice had squared off with the Arrancar and its segmented cleaver, her own sword’s binding of light still wrapped around the foe’s weapon. Like someone reeling in a fish, she pulled back on her Phantom Blade, retracting the Gleipnir binding of light to pull the Arrancar at her as she in turn readied her magma blade and sprung forward at high speed. Lava coated the sword as she swung it down, but at the last moment the Arrancar growled and it’s segmented blade did something Fenice hadn’t expected. It broke apart. This freed it from Gleipnir, yet each segment then instantly reattached as blood and muscle grew and formed attached the segments again, and the Arrancar whipped it hard at Fenice’s midsection before her own blade struck.

She barely managed to block with the Phantom Blade, but the impact and her awkward defense angle was such that she was sent rocketing across the ground, rolling and bouncing several times before she managed to right herself and skid to a halt.

“Be careful, young war maiden!” Fenice heard the blade say, “Even if you believe these foes to be weaker than you, they have nasty tricks up their vile sleeves!”

“Thanks for the freakin’ tip, Tyr!” Fenice said while wincing. She hadn’t been cut, but the impact had left a bad bruise on her left hip. And while the cleaver armed Arrancar stalked towards her, the one with the flame spewing torso appeared behind her, flanking Fenice, and she could see the one with the toxic shoulder growths was moving to double team Adagio with its weird needle spewing pal.

Dammit, they’re separating us to make it easier to take us down, Fenice realized, and immediately decided to be uncooperative towards the enemy’s intentions. She stabbed her Fullbring’s sword into the ground and let a massive wave of magma erupted around her, spreading it out like a rolling carpet as she herself went flying straight upwards. Her hope was that the rapidly expanding waves of magma would keep the two Arrancar that were focused on her busy, if not do serious damage to them, while she went to help Adagio deal with the other two... but her plans were dashed shockingly fast.

The Arrancar with the flame nozzles in its body grew a shroud of violet flames around its body that let it wade through the magma, as if the intense heat of its own flames acted a shield against the molten liquid. It then fired a twin jet of its purple fire, but not at Fenice, but rather it’s cleaver bearing companion. The cleaver Arrancar retracted it’s weapon arm, and caught the twin beams of flame with the edge of the cleaver. Yet rather than be burned, it was as if the reiatsu of the two mutated Arrancar synergized together, and it too became shrouded in flames that let it withstand the wave of lava head on.

“The hell!?” Fenice grunted, then had to respond swiftly as the cleaver wielding Arrancar leaped towards her in a blinding snap of Sonido, and it swung the cleaver at her. As the segments extended, the violet flames it’s companion had empowered it with spread across the weapon and jetted with extra force, causing the weapon to move faster and hit harder. Fenice defended herself with both of her swords, having to abandon her attempt to go to Adagio in order to keep the flurry of attacks at bay.

Adagio was similarly finding these modified monstrosities were exceptionally skilled at teamwork, for as the one with the lens laden helmet fired its fresh swarm of Bala needles, its partner opened up its toxin filled shoulders and flung the poison at high speed through the air. Not at Adagio, but rather it coated the Bala needles in the toxins, which fully fused the poison with them as the needles now glinted with vomit green color.

Letting out an irritated “Hmph!”, Adagio slammed the end of her trident down on the air in front of her. She didn’t have time to play around with Grogar’s toy soldiers, even as she begrudgingly acknowledged to herself that these things were stronger than she would have thought it possible for the ugly old goat to create. As her trident impacted upon the air, generating a massive spherical shockwave, she let her own reiatsu burst outward and fill with the resonate power of water. A tidal flood of intensely pressurized water flew from her in a tightly controlled series of ring shaped blasts, with her at the center. Poison or not, none of the Bala needles reached her now, and the slicing rings of water from her attack targeted all four of the Arrancar.

The cleaver wielding one found its weapon sliced through, empowered as it was, and it threw itself backwards to avoid more cutting rings of water. The other three all dodged with swift Sonido’s, although none escaped without cuts upon their bodies, some leaking brackish dark blood while other pieces of their cybernetic alterations sparked or dripped mechanical fluids.

Sensing weakness, Adagio followed up, keeping the momentum going as she flickered down to the cleaver Arrancar whose weapon she’d bisected. It swung the remnant of its weapon, at her, but she twirled aside and dug her trident into the Arrancar’s arm, then brutally kicked out to dislocate its knee and cause it to fall. Even so it knew no pain, only mindless fury as its blank eyes stared at her, half of its face metal cybernetics while the parts that were still even vaguely flesh and blood showed no emotion outside of lethal focus. There was no person inside that mind any longer, just a weapon following a set of instructions.

Adagio felt, deep inside the hole of her Hollow being, the hot spark of empathy... followed by cold rage. This would have very likely been her eventual fate had she not escaped from under Grogar’s thumb. It was the research he’d done on her siren gem that had led to the creation of these poor creatures.

She didn’t truly owe them anything, but the very least she could do was put them to rest.

The Arrancar, even with one knee bent out of place and its arm impaled, raised it’s left hand to try and charge a crimson Cero to blast her. Adagio looked at it with an expression flat as stone, but with a trace of softness in her eyes as she said, “Its over. He won’t hurt you anymore.”

Before the Arrancar discharged its own Cero, Adagio fired hers, an immense rush of power that she’d focused in her trident that she’d buried in the Arrancar’s broken weapon arm, and fired the beam right into the Arrancar’s body at point blank range. The wide beam of scarlet destruction fully consumed the mutant’s body and burned a clean hole across the rift floor until it blasted into a far wall.

There wasn’t a trace left of the cleaver bearing Arrancar save a few pieces of charred metal and slagged cybernetics as Adagio turned to look at the other three, “And I promise, one day soon I’ll make sure he can’t do this to anyone else, ever again.”

The three remaining modified Arrancar had paused, but only for half a second, and less out of shock at the destruction of one of their number and more out of calculation and revaluation of tactics. Clearly now seeing Adagio as the primary threat, the three ignored Fenice and all moved to attack Adagio as a coordinated group.

The one with the flamethrowers leaped upwards, arcing above her, and fired a wider set of its violet flames down in a spread out sheet. The reason for this became clear as the poison user sliced it’s shoulder bulbs once more and flung its toxins into its companion’s attack. The result was that the poison melted in the flames and transformed into a burst of wide spreading gas under the heat, resulting in a thick, toxic cloud that fell around Adagio, who had to hold her breath and close her eyes as the terrible poison stung at her eyelids and nostrils.

With her seemingly distracted and hampered, the one with the lens-covered helmet sent a focused spray of its Bala needles straight at Adagio, but was immediately stopped as its barrage was intercepted by a wall of lava that burst up from the ground.

“Not smart to ignore me like that!” Fenice said, her Fullbring claymore stabbed into the ground and transferring a stream of magma under the stone to shoot upwards not only to block the Bala, but to explode under the Arrancar that fired them. It dodged, but was slow and half of its side was burned to char by the geyser of lava, which left it off balance as Fenice swung her Phantom Blade and shot out a gleaming strand of Gleipnir to wrap around the Arrancar’s head, “Now let’s see you shoot more of those needles like this!”

The Arrancar certainly tried, but not only did the Bala needles utterly fail to penetrate the band of light that was Gleipnir, but they rebounded and stabbed back into the Arrancar’s own head, causing it to spark and burst with smoke as the unfortunate creature ended up offing itself in an attempt to break the seemingly unbreakable band of light that had wrapped its head.

With two enemies down, Adagio burst upwards from the poison cloud. She felt the trace elements of the poison burn where some had touched her nose or eyes, but she’d managed to keep from breathing any of it in. Now with raw speed and power she flew right towards the one with the flamethrowers. The nozzles burned bright and jetted a fresh beam of twin flames down at her, but Adagio spun her trident in front of her and generated a tunneling cone of high pressure water force. This was not unlike the attack she’d used against Luna during the battle at Everfree, albeit at a smaller, more controlled scale without the immense power of her Resurreccion to back it up.

Yet this more focused, controlled version of the water cone had its own uses, and it’s own name.

“Mordedura de Tormenta!” (Squall’s Bite)

Her swirling cone of water pierced the torrent of flames being shot down at her, and Adagio rose through the stream of violet fire like a shark bursting from the ocean. The mutated Arrancar was impacted dead in its stomach, the Mordedura de Tormenta’s spearing cone of water driving through its cybernetic core, with Adagio’s trident following right behind it to gut the Arrancar’s interior and blast the flaming pieces of the broken flamethrowers out its back in a hot, purple blaze. The power of the water cone kept going, acting like a flying drill that Adagio was effectively riding inside as she maneuvered it around, the Arrancar still impaled on the front, and aimed it down at the last of the monstrosities that had been set against her and Fenice.

“Fenice, immobilize the other one!” Adagio shouted, and Fenice didn’t hesitate, bringing her claymore to bear on the toxin spewer.

The final Arrancar dug its claws deeper than ever into its shoulder bulbs, and with a hissing cry ripped them clean open. Rather than a mere drip of poison, the thick fluid sprayed out in a set of streaming geysers, laced with crackling green energy, almost like a Cero fused inside the toxic liquid. The air filled with the horrendous stench of it. Fenice moved with breakneck speed, twisting to bend beneath the spraying ooze before swinging her Fullbring and Phantom Blade both. The light band of Gleipnir shot out and wrapped around the Arranar’s legs, while a thick and fast wave of magma rolled forth and encompassed its body, surrounding it like a prison.

It’s skin burned, but not fast enough, and its shot its poison everywhere, forcing Adagio to dodge in flickers of motion, using Sonido even as she kept her water cone spinning around her. More water formed, spheres of it around her body that then shot down and impacted with the modified Arrancar. The magma encasing it boiled and hissed as the water rapidly cooled the lava into hard rock, further immobilizing it, and also coating its shoulders to halt its poison.

A bare millisecond later, Adagio rammed herself, her water cone, her trident, and the body of the flame thrower Arrancar into this last foe. The impact was loud enough to sound like a peal of raw thunder as the ground cracked apart and Adagio drove her enemy into the floor and grinded it along at high speed, cracking ever more stone until she slammed Grogar’s creation into the wall with a further impact of thunderous force. Adagio flipped backwards as rock fell down from the cracked wall, further crushing the bodies of her enemies. When she landed with grace, she kept her eyes locked on the pile of rock and crushed cybernetics and organic bits, breathing a little hard, but more out of emotional stress than physical.

When it was clear nothing was left alive to move, she let out a long breath and turned to Fenice, “Any injuries?”

Fenice was catching her breath, and slowly shook her head, “Nothing serious. Don’t want to think about what that nasty, toxic crap might’ve done if it got on us.”

Adagio frowned and examined a few of the small wounds she’d taken from the Bala needles, “I think I was hit by a little, but not enough to slow me down much. Just unpleasant.”

“Looks like we lucked out, then...” Fenice said, feeling the strain and aches more from her fight with Pharynx than anything else, “Those things weren’t weak. Is this the crap Grogar makes in his spare time?”

Adagio’s own expression turned bitter, “I’d say these were more than just a side project for his own twisted fun. We might have beaten them, but I’m much stronger than my Espada number indicates, and you’ve recently gotten quite the boost yourself. If I’d sent Di Roy and Gaw here...”

“We’d both be down two friends,” Fenice agreed, “How many of these things has Grogar made?”

“He has four less, now,” Adagio declared with a steel edged tone, “And he wouldn’t have left them here if they weren’t meant to keep people out of Chrysalis’ lair. Which Chrysalis normally wouldn’t require, which means she, and her whole damn horde, truly isn’t here.”

“Which is downright unsettling,” Fenice said, “Figured I could back you up in a fight, but somehow the queen bitch herself being ominously out of town with her whole army is... way worse than if she’d been here and we just had to have it out with her.”

“Took the words right from my own mouth,” Adagio replied, although she gave Fenice a quick half-smile of approval, “Rather glad you came along. You’ve adapted to your new form rather quickly. Keep this up and eventually you’ll give your counterpart a run for her money.”

A swift scoff flew from Fenice’s mouth as she laughed and shouldered her Fullbring claymore, “Yeah right. Don’t need to blow smoke up my butt, Adagio. I saw Sunset Shimmer fight Tirek. I’m not getting to that level anytime soon, but damned if I’m not going to try and keep pace with you at least.”

“That may take even longer,” Adagio replied, flipping her hair with a pleased smirk, glad to let the tension building in her gut out a little, “I intend to surpass Tirek himself, after all.”

“Huh...” Fenice cocked her head and Adagio frowned.

“What?”

“Just... now that we’re talking counterparts... do you have one?”

Adagio blinked. She had rarely, if ever, thought much about the notion of her or her sisters having counterparts in the human world. There did seem to be an unusually concentrated number of counterparts between the world of Earth and the world of Equestria that had positions of prominence in the various factions of the spirit realm’s conflicts. After a moment she simply waved a hand at Fenice as if waving off the idea itself.

“Who knows? If there was another me, she’s certainly avoided the spotlight, which doesn’t sound much like me, so if I have a counterpart she must be either dead or boring. Not sure which I’d prefer. I imagine the same applies to my sisters’ counterparts. If they’re around, they must be living boring, humans lives somewhere. Really, I can’t imagine it even mattering at this point. Come, we’ve spent enough time catching our breaths. We must find Thorax.”

Fenice nodded slowly, and started to follow Adagio into the opening leading into Chrysalis’ inner lair. Her curiosity was still present, but she imagined Adagio was right. It’d just been a passing fancy in her head, wondering what Adagio’s human self might have been like, but Adagio was likely correct about them either not being around anymore, or just living a normal life somewhere, blissfully unaware of all the craziness currently going on...

----------

Ofridir was known as many things and for many things. Some in the cold white wastes of Niflheim called him the “Thousand Wails of the Dead” for the way his violin, in the throes of battle, could mimic the sounds of an army of damned souls. He was certainly known for his dreaded power to control the corpses of his enemies, and even pull the strings of the their very souls. In the warmer climes of Alfheim during the height of Jormungandr’s war to bring death, and peace, to Yggdrasil, he’d earned the name “Lifebane” after he’d reaped a toll of death upon the entirety of two Clans and their Thanes sent against him.

The titles were amusing, but Ofridir preferred to spin his own tales rather than bask in the infamy others with lesser imaginations cast his way. He liked his own, personal title, chosen when he’d taken up the mantle of Einherjar to lord Jormungander.

Dirge Singer.

For what is life if not a celebratory song? And what is death if not the final crescendo of that very song, the most poignant and beautiful part of the soul’s own music? Nothing gave the fossegrim greater joy than creating a greater appreciation and awareness of that beauty, as any artist should. He was a killer, true, but he saw battle as no brutal display of power like G’nash, or a puzzle to be solved like Amaru. It was music at its purest, most visceral state, and each death he ensured would be as memorable and bombastic as it should be.

And his music was so good he’d learned to make the very dead themselves dance in joyous celebration of his fine work. Granted, not all dead were the same, and not all appreciated an artists’ performance with the same fervor as all of his adoring fans. Yet sometimes in art a little bit of creative conflict was inevitable. One needed the right instruments to bring out the best performance possible, after all, even when those instruments could get... unruly.

Jormungandr had forbidden him to make such instruments from those loyal to Niflheim, or rather to Jormungandr. Ofridir imagined his lord could forgive the slight loophole that those he chose to make use of now weren’t technically Jormungandr’s people, bur rather they had once been servants of Leviathan.

Running water was rare in most places within Niflheim’s frosty expanse, yet there were still a few spots where glacial melt translated into freezing rivers that flowed with chunks of ice, cascading in waterfalls down peaks of arctic mountains slicked to glittering blue with frost. Icicles dangled like the teeth of a thousand hungry sharks along the roof of an overhang near one such river waterfall, the roar of the misty waters all but deafening as Ofridir approached a particular stretch of smooth glacial wall.

His dark, fur covered hand scraped away ages of frost to the near transparent ice within... where three forms, dark and muddled by the ice, were locked.

The fossegrim’s eyes glinted with dark mirth and his lips showed a deeply amused smile, “So long have I waited for the right stage to place you three lovely singers upon. Even as my enemies, I was enamored with you all. The only ones in all of Leviathan’s army to give the Dirge Singer the fight of his life, the performance of a century, and nearly the death even I would not have felt chagrined to accept, had you come out on top. Alas, my tune was the stronger, my fair ones, and your bodies, your souls... ohoho, have I longed to make you all dance and sing once more to the tune I play for you!”

With motions akin to a reverent prayer he brought forth a stream of water from the river, and from its depth was crafted from his Anima the form of his black violin. His soul resonated with the magic of elemental water, and the primal tunes in his spirit as his hand took up his instrument... and he began to play.

A chord of long, drawn out mourning hung heavy in the air. With each stroke of the bow, the violin painted a picture in sound of denied desires and the horrid waiting for rapturous release. What began as a slow cry of regret and patience longing then grew in pace, a tempo of ever increasing, heated defiance. Ofridir’s hooves moved upon the ice, a dance to accompany his music, each step a meaningful provocation of growing energy as the music rose to a feverish pitch of awakening. The snow at his hooves melted, steaming, water streaming around him in waves of radiant blue. Power pulsed with each note, and runes carved themselves in azure frost fire upon the ground with his steps and drew growing concentric circles in the air around him.

Faster and faster he played, the violin strumming a growing storm of awakening might and a call to action, no longer mournful, but demanding and binding, calling out to the world.

And there was certainly power in this music, for streams of it poured into the glacier, and the ice fell away like dew under a summer sun. The three forms, once locked within the ice, were exposed to the air of Niflheim for the first time in uncounted years. Rather than fall dead to the ground, these three corpses floated forth, surrounded by streams of glowing water and runes from Ofridir’s near frenzied playing. Soon the music rose to a roaring climax of screeching notes, like the final bells to awaken the dead themselves.

And the dead did thus awaken. Corpses preserved by Ofridir’s magic, prevented from decay or the loss of one iota of reishi. Souls, contained and not allowed to pass on, locked deep within and now filling their bodies once more with animate unlife. To awaken the corpse of a passed soul was a rare power, but not unique to Ofridir... however the power to ensure even the soul remained trapped in the body, kept suspended until awoken, that was a power only his Anima granted him, and why he was most feared as the Dirge Singer.

Approaching the three bodies as they set down upon the melted snow, he shouldered his violin and smiled like someone greeting old friends, “Open your eyes, my dears. It’s been too many ages since I’ve heard your voices.”

The middle corpse was the first to open her eyes, once magenta, now turned ice blue by the revival magic that turned her into a “draugr”, or bound undead. An athletic but voluptuous body was covered in fine scales of bright orange, visible around her shoulders and midriff where otherwise she was clad in a fine set of rune etched steel armor, the bracers and shoulders of which were coated in molded fins that matched the organic crest of a fine the graced her head. A magnificent mane of orange and yellow striped hair was woven into thick braids down her back, interspersed by threads of golden silk. A beautiful face that was mostly human, but bore the distinct, fine fish scales as the rest of her body and a set of gills on her neck took one look of Ofridir... and turned into a snarl bearing pronounced fangs.

The seeming fish woman sprung at Ofridir with shocking speed and force, reaching a hand up to thin air with power snapped into the form of a jagged edged scythe who’s blade looked to be forged from obsidian glass and its long, curved shaft wrapped in shark skin. Water, like a buzz-saw edge, flowed around the scythe at high speed so fast it created a piercing whine in the air as the woman sliced at Ofridir’s neck. The blade stopped a mere inch form him, and the woman’s eyes widened as she tried to force her weapon further, but to no avail.

“You... sick, ugly goat!” the woman growled with such venom, yet her voice held a lyrical quality to it even in its anger, “What have you done to me!?”

Ofridir sighed in clear pleasure, “Adagio, your voice sounds as lovely as the first time I heard it. Hah, and I see your viscous streak remains beautifully intact. Haven’t laid eyes upon me since our duel so long ago, and so eager to pick it right back up again.”

“Ugh, Odin’s hairy ass, did this tiny balled bilgesucker turn us into draugr?” said the woman on the right, who bore a similar stature to her sister Adagio, but with a more toned and well muscled form. She wore no steel armor, but thick leathers clad around the shoulders with a cloak of skin from what looked to be a manta ray. Her hair was dark purple streaked with teal, and mostly shaved into a warrior’s mohawk save for a long preserved tail wrapped in black leather. She cracked her neck and gave Ofridir and Adagio a look of equal scorn, reaching to her belt covered in various, long fangs to withdraw a huge blade from it’s sheath. It was something like a cutlass, but with a longer blade and a jagged back edge, and a split at it’s tip like teeth.

“Let me guess, we can’t cut the bastard down? Will you stop trying to press your scythe to the dumbass, Adagio? You look stupid like that.”

Growling, Adagio pulled her weapon back and rounded on the violet skinned woman, “What would you have me do, Aria!? Have a pleasant chat with the bastard that killed us, and now has us in this ungodly state!?”

Aria just looked at Adagio with a bitter shrug, “I’d have you act with some damn sense and stop embarrassing yourself. Hey, Ofridir, how long have we been dead?”

The fossegrim cracked a grand grin, “Quite some time. Quite some time indeed, and... oh, where’d Sonata go?”

The third woman had vanished from sight, but a mere moment later Ofridir felt clammy blue fingers around his eyes, not attacking, for it was impossible for these women to attack him while under his power, but there was a dangerous edge to the playful tone that spoke from behind, “Guess who Ofri!

Ofridir chuckled and turned, brushing the slighter build of the three sisters off his back and looking her over, “I see death changes little for you, Sonata.”

While there was an aggressive warrior aspect to Adagio and Aria’s appearance, there was an unassuming air about Sonata that Ofridir knew from personal experience only hid the deadly lethality of the third Nereid sister. Her blue skin and scales matched with her hair, two shades of darker blue that was cut short in a wild, spikey mess around her head. She wore no armor, but rather a silk robe of ocean green that wrapped her slim frame, with dainty boots of furred mastodon leather. Her hands, now pulled from Ofridir’s eyes, made a waving motion of playfulness in the air, producing a fan of wave pattern daggers that she juggled with glee, “I was soooooo sad when you cut us down, Ofri! I felt all my blood splat, splat, splatting out of my body, and it made me think I’d never get to stab you or anyone else ever again! So I’m kinda happy you brought me and my sis’s back for some fun!”

Adagio groaned out a frustrated noise, “Sonata, he’s made us into draugr! We’re bound corpses, forced to serve this bastard’s whims! Do you not understand the indignity and violation of this!?”

“Tch, lighten up, Dagi,” Sonata said, flipping a dagger past her sister’s head at supersonic speed, a swirl of snow and wind seeming to enhance the dagger’s velocity as it left a trail of spiked ice in the air behind it. Sonata’s eyes had dilated pupils as her voice quieted, “I don’t care if I’m alive or not, as long as I get to have fun. Ofri killed us fair and square, and we know how his music is. So stop complaining, because I wanna know what kind of games Ofri brought us out to play.”

Aria clapped a hand on Adagio’s shoulder in an almost comforting manner, although the woman still looked surly, “I don’t like it any more than you do, Adagio, but Sonata’s got a point. We can’t do much about this, so we might as well find out what the dungsucker wants from us. Who knows, might be fun? Better than sitting trapped in ice at any rate.”

With a grunt of relenting, Adagio shouldered her scythe and glared at Ofridir, “I am not doing your bidding out of anything other than necessity, and you’d better hope your Anima holds true, for the moment I find any weakness in it, I’m taking your head.”

“I expect nothing less from you, my watery angles of death,” Ofridir said with a bow, “The three Nereid who’s voices brought tears to even the eyes of the fire giant Surtur, who’s war ballads conjured storms and commanded tides! You were Leviathan’s finest, and it was my greatest performance the day we clashed and I brought you such gorgeous ends. Now, lord Jormungandr reigns as High Chieftain of the Sea Tribe, and has new enemies to challenge him.”

“Hmph, so the so-called ‘mighty’ World Serpent needs the aid of the dead to do his dirty work,” Adagio spat, “I’m not impressed.”

“Relax, Dagi, who cares who’s in charge of what anymore?” said Sonata, “Ol’ Levi got the axe, and Jorm’s on the throne. That’s how wars of succession work, right? So spill it, Ofri, who’re we gonna kill, hmm, hmm? If I can’t slit your throat, I at least want some good warm up targets. Giants? Dragons? Behemoths? Gotta be something nasty to get Jorm sending you on the job!”

“Ah, while there’s a few denizens of our Beast Realm among our dance partners to be, you’ll find the majority are Midgardians,” Ofridir said, which caused all three Nereid sisters to look confused.

“Midgardians? Really?” Aria said.

“Of all the things to be forced into this ignoble state for,” Adagio blanched, “You want us to hunt down mortals?”

“Oh, I think you’ll find these particular mortals will be far more of a challenge than you imagine, my dears. Let’s just say that they are not precisely typical, and are warriors of extreme capability and fierce power to make even the Dragons serving lord Jormungandr tremble. You should prepare yourselves for the fight of your unlives, for even now these mighty foes are somewhere in the Beast Realm, likely making the land tremble as they pass...”

----------

“Goddangit Dash, will ya git offa me!?” Applejack said as she tried to keep her friend at arm’s length. Rainbow Dash, in the meantime, had a glazed look in her eyes as she nibbled on Applejack’s hair, mouth watering.

“Mmm, your hair tastes like cornflakes and happiness. Hehehe.”

“Why’d ya hafta eat them mushrooms, ya dang fool?” Applejack groused, managing to push Rainbow Dash off and spin the girl around to sit her down on one of the growths of sparkling, green crystal growing from the ground at the base of the rocky hill the group was camping at.

“Stomach wanted snackies, so I went for the munchies! Mushroom munchies!” Rainbow declared, wavering back and forth as she let Applejack set her down on the makeshift crystalline bench, her eyes staring up at the ceiling as she held up her hands and gasped, “And the sky is made of rocks! Which I can’t eat! Why can’t I have hair like yours, Applejack? It’s so pretty, and nice, but don’t tell Applejack I told you that, because she’s not supposed to know I think that, hehehe.”

“Oh, good lord preserve me,” Applejack said, taking her hat off and fanning herself with it as she looked over at the sound of Sunset approaching, who’d just come from deeper in the forest of towering mushrooms the group was moving through, “Tell me ya found them herbs Simurgh said would help with gettin’ Dash sorted out?”

Sunset gave Rainbow a mixed look of concern and amusement before holding up a collection of pale red leaves the size and shape of starfish, just as Simurgh flew over from the other side of the camp to examine them.

“Ah, yes, these should do nicely,” Simurgh said, scooping up the herbs from Sunset using her rather dexterous talon, “I shall brew these into a tea that shall clear young Lady Dash’s head of the confusing fog induced by ingesting the Prismcap mushrooms. Truly, I should have warned you Midgardian folk about what to look out for, but I just never imagined you would get so hungry, so fast.”

“We’ve been here a full day already,” Sunset said, licking her lips as her stomach rumbled, “Most of us are kind of used to three square meals a day. Granted, still not Rainbow’s smartest move to snack on a few mushrooms without asking about if they’re safe first. Just glad it wasn’t actual poison and just...”

“Whoa! My hair looks like a rainbow!? Why didn’t anyone tell me!? Nom! Ugh! This doesn’t taste like Skittles at all!”

“Uh... that,” Sunset finished, shaking her head and giving Applejack a grateful look, “Just glad you could look after her while everyone else is busy securing the area and rustling up some actual grub.”

“Speaking of which, incoming down below,” came Shining Armor’s voice as he landed from above, carrying over his back what looked like some manner of immense trout, but with scales that gleamed almost golden. Beside him Cadence landed, having flown in beside her fiancé, and was carrying a large collection of what looked like a juicy purple fruit wrapped up in the mantle of her Quincy uniform, which she’d removed.

“Asena told us these were edible,” Cadence said, gently setting the fruit down by where a fire was already set up in the center of the camp area, “Hopefully this should be enough to keep us going a day or two.”

“Looks pretty good ta me,” Applejack said, and she eyed the big golden trout sidelong, “Ya need a hand guttin’ an’ cookin’ that up, fancy Quincy fella? Done it plenty o’ times myself while campin’.”

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow at her, “I’ve gotten my hands dirty a few times, and Quincy survival training covers basics like cleaning a catch. But you’re welcome to help, if yout want. Assuming your friend isn’t going to wander off in a stupor.”

“You talking to me you big, creamy white marshmallow!?” Rainbow Dash said, trying to stand back up, but wobbling and sitting back down, “Yeah, that’s right, you just stay over there, with your wavy wonkiness, talking marshmallow man.”

Simurgh cleared her throat and sat down beside Dash, and started to grind down the herbs Sunset had brought, “I’ll look after her until the tea is ready. Why don’t the rest of you get settled. Everyone else should be back soon.”

By that she meant that Asena, Spike, and Clover had also gone scouting, getting the lay of the land, while the others, including Wallflower, remained in the camp area. The day’s journey had been a long and trying one, if only because Svartalfheim was a far more immense and somewhat disorienting place than Sunset Shimmer had imagined it would be. Because not all of their number could fly or move at immense speed, they had to pace themselves somewhat. Wallflower had mostly ridden on Spike’s Gunwolf, while Asena had offered to carry Cadence on her back so the pregnant Quincy didn’t have to expend as much energy. Despite a few protestations, Cadence had relented to the kindness, also allowing Simurgh to check her wounded face, re-dressing the bandage once they’d made camp.

The climb down the cliffside had not been too bad, although Sunset had kept a close eye out for any sign of more insanely huge and potentially dangerous wildlife like that skyscraper sized centipede. Thankfully nothing quite that large had appeared again, but that didn’t mean there weren’t plenty of sights both aweing and concerning. During their travels, Sunset had spotted a large set of conical shaped stones to what she thought was the west, noting the truly giant and glittering strands of spiderwebs big enough to catch jetliners. More than once they’d spotted various insectile creatures of varying kinds roaming the landscape, including a whole herd of black and yellow striped pill bugs the size of Earth bison that rolled past their path by the dozens. Mere hours before they found their campsite a butterfly as big as a helicopter had landed atop a large stalagmite less than a hundred yards away, its wings glowing purple, blue, and shimmering silver, and Sunset had watched with fascination, then surprise, as the butterfly swooped down upon an unsuspecting group of hopping, dog-sized mice and snatched one up in a spearing proboscis that literally sucked its prey dry into a dead husk within a few seconds.

Asena and Simurgh assured the group the collective spiritual pressure that they all exuded would keep most of the land’s predators at bay, at least for a time. It still left Sunset a tad worried about the length of the journey ahead. They’d passed through a fairly smooth, rocky plain until the area had become thick with hills and winding ravines, alongside an ever denser patch of forest consisting of mushrooms of incredible and unusual size. According to Asena, they were making good time north, towards the fortress they’d spotted from the top of the cliff earlier, which the female wolf was ever more convinced was a stronghold of the “Dwarves”. Sunset had no idea what to expect from that, and figured once everyone was settled she might ask.

As Applejack went to help Shining Armor prepare to cook the trout, and Cadence started to organize the fruit, Sunset strode over to where she saw Wallflower sitting with her back up against the stock of one of the mushrooms surrounding the camp area. Upon seeing Sunset come towards her, Wallflower pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, scooting over a bit so Sunset had space to sit down.

“Looks like we won’t be starving for much longer,” Wallflower said, and Sunset nodded as she sat down.

“Figure Spike and Asena will bring back water, too, since apparently there’s a lake or river with fish in it. So yeah, guess we won’t be dying of thirst or hunger,” Sunset said, chuckling dryly, “I mean, after all the stuff me and my friends have been through, that’d have to be the lamest way possible for any of us to go out.”

A soft noise that might have been a laugh came from Wallflower, but it was a weak one, and Sunset looked over at the girl, “Guess this’ll sound stupid to ask, but you managing alright so far?”

“You don’t have to worry. I won’t slow you down,” Wallflower replied quietly.

“Didn’t ask if you were going to slow us down, I asked if you were doing alright?”

If anything, Wallflower bunched up even more into herself, hair falling across her face, “No. Not really. I wanted answers about who I was. Why my memories were all screwed up. Now I have those answers and I’m more scared than ever. I know who I am even less than I did before. I mean... Hel? I’m Hel? That’s so insane I can’t even put into words how crazy it is. A few days ago I was just a confused girl living what felt like a normal life, even if some things about it didn’t add up to me. Now I have to... what, accept that I might not even be real? That my whole personality is some figment of a crazed ancient goddess’ own broken mind? So... no, not alright, Sunset. Not alright at all.”

All Sunset could do was nod in understanding, leaning back against the tree-sized mushroom stalk, “Yeah, don’t blame you. I wouldn’t be alright, either. Had to ask, because I want you to know you’re not alone here. I might not be able to fully understand everything you’re going through, but I do promise I won’t make you go through it by yourself. And... I wanted to say I’m sorry...”

Wallflower glanced at her, “What for?”

Sunset was all too familiar with the sensation of guilt, as it was a leaden weight she’d felt in her heart all too often over the course of her short life, “For getting you into this whole mess. For encouraging us to screw with the Memory Stone, which I should’ve been smart enough to leave it alone until Twilight could’ve been around to help. Maybe if I’d been more patient, less cocky about our ability to handle things, we’d have found a safer way to access the stone’s memories, or keep it from going haywire inside you.”

“You couldn’t have known how things would go,” Wallflower said, sighing heavily and resting her chin on her knees, “And it’s not like you forced me. I went along with it, because I wanted to know the truth, too. Not your fault the truth turned out to be... way worse than I thought it would be. Heh, terrified as I am, some small part of me is almost... relieved? Like, it can’t get much worse for me, now, can it? I’m not even a real person. No parents, no family, no friends, no future...” another quiet laugh, closer to a sob, “I don’t have to worry about anything, anymore, right?”

Sunset reached out to put a hand on Wallflower’s head, somewhere between a head pat and a bonk, “Stop that. You’ve got friends. Me, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Spike. And if we’ve got anything to say about it, you’ve got a future, too. We’ve just got to reach for it, past all of this BS we’re stuck in the middle of.”

“H-hey, quit mussing up my hair,” Wallflower said, “It’s messy enough already... heh...” she took a deep breath, steadying herself, “Um, thanks. I just hope you’re right. I don’t know when Hel is going to, you know, get back behind the wheel in here.”

Wallflower tapped her head, and Sunset nodded, “Can you feel her in there?”

“Kind of. I think she drained herself a bunch when she was in control, but I can feel her getting stronger. I don’t know when she’ll wake up again.”

“Well, we’ll just have to move as fast as we can, and if Hel takes control, I promise you we won’t let her run off or do anything crazy with your body,” Sunset promised, to which Wallflower tried to muster up a grateful expression.

“It’s kind of her body, too, but thank you. Seriously, you don’t got to spend all this time checking up on me. I’m going to take a nap for a bit, just let me know when food is ready.”

“Will do,” Sunset said, getting up and giving Wallflower a reassuring smile before turning to do a walk around the camp’s perimeter, mostly just to let herself walk off the nervous energy building inside her. She wasn’t fooling herself into thinking she didn’t still have plenty of reason to be worried about Wallflower. Hel could crop up at any time, and there was no way to guarantee they could ensure any level of separation between the goddess’ mind, and the personality that was uniquely Wallflower’s.

And one apology wasn’t going to so easily shuck off the guilt and, more importantly, the responsibility Sunset felt for creating the situation they were all now stuck in. Jormungandr wouldn’t have even found Hel if Sunset hadn’t released Hel’s memories from the Memory Stone. They wouldn’t now be stuck in the Beast Realm, separated from half of their friends.

Have I grown at all, from that arrogant filly that ran away from Equestria, and Celestia? I thought I’d learned to balance my pride with temperance and a little humility where it counts... but feels like I got sloppy, when now, of all times, I have to be on my A-game for everyone.

She felt a faint, burning pulse of spirit energy from her Zanpaktou, and Sunset touched the hilt of Hokori no Hikari. Closing her eyes, she felt for the sensation of the twin spirits in her blade. They were calling to her, one voice demanding, the other urgent but soothing. It felt like it was high time she delved inside both herself and her Zanpaktou for some much needed spiritual training.

“Soon...” she said. She wanted to make sure they were in a stable spot, at least, before rendering herself potentially immobile and unconscious for awhile. Where were Asena, Spike, and Clover? It shouldn’t be taking this long just to scout the area, should it?

She paused by the campfire, ignoring the rather delicious smell of the cooking trout, and glanced at Shining Armor and Cadence, who were sitting and resting together, now that the fish was cleaned and cut, set up on various sticks to cook.

“Did either of you spot the others on your way back from food gathering?”

The pair looked at each other, then Cadence said, “Last I saw of them they were going west, checking something that Spike picked up on his robot’s sensors.”

“Okay, but that was, what, nearly half an hour ago?” Sunset said, frowning, “Doesn’t take that long to take a quick look at something, not at the speed they can move at.”

She saw Shining Armor focus for a moment, his eyes closing, “You’re right, but I’m not sensing any spikes of reiatsu out there. If they were in trouble, we’d feel it.”

Sunset couldn’t deny the logic of the statement. She spread out her own spiritual senses and couldn’t detect any signs of raised spiritual pressures that would indicate a battle taking place. She had a hard time buying that anything could easily get the drop on them without them being able to put up a struggle. Not unless they were completely ambushed... but Asena was with them, and she was a local. Sort of. Well, Asena was a local of the Beast Realm, but how familiar she was with Svartalfheim itself...

“Simurgh,” Sunset said, causing the tall bird of blue and green radiance to perk up. She’d just finished feeding Rainbow Dash a piping clay bowl of brewed tea, and Dash was now half snoring and dozing next to Simurgh.

“Yes, Lady Shimmer?”

“Is there anything in this neck of Svartalfheim that could cause a problem for Asena, let alone her alongside Spike and Clover?”

Simurgh tail feathers bristled a little as she swept a wing over her beak in a thoughtful gesture, “Nothing normal, to be sure. Nothing that wouldn’t cause quite the loud commotion. Unless... well, no, that’s quite unlikely...”

Sunset grimaced, getting a sinking feeling about the way her and her friends’ luck tended to go when it came to ‘unlikely’ things. “What is it?”

“Well, we’re near Dwarven territory, so it should be rather uncommon for their rivals to stray so close to a Dwarf fortress, but there is a species common to Svartalfheim that specializes in stealth, and has several abilities that suppress spiritual senses, and are quite good at ambushing unsuspecting travelers,” Simurgh explained, “But they only are interested in shiny things. Treasures, gems, great works of art. It's why they always fight with the Dwarves, or Dragons, who hoard such treasures. Even if these creatures did risk a hunting party so close to a Dwarf stronghold, our scouting party has nothing...shiny...”

Simurgh’s eyes widened, and Sunset found herself rubbing her head, “Spike’s Gunwolf.”

“Oh my, I didn’t even think of that...” Simurgh said, and by now Applejack, hearing the conversation in full, rose from where she’d been watching the trout cook, and crossed.

“So yer sayin’ some treasure obsessed varmints might’ve bushwhacked our folk? Varmints that’re good at hiding, ambush, an’ concealin' spiritual pressures?”

“It’s possible...” Simurgh admitted, and Sunset sighed.

“What are these things called, anyways?” she was already looking west, getting ready to take to the air and start leaping in that direction as fast as she could.

“Their Clans call themselves various names, but the general term most others in the Beast Realm refer to them to is Diamond Dogs.

This caused Sunset to swiftly tilt her head in recognition, mind reeling back to her school days in Equestria. She remembered several classes discussing some of the varied species ponykind shared their land with, and Diamond Dogs had been a notable topic during one such class. From what she remembered they were a subterranean species of bipedal canines with remarkable digging capability, and a fascination for gems. At least, that covered the scattered groups inside Equestria’s borders, but she did recall there were records of a related surface kingdom somewhere in the far south... Caninia, or something like that?

But she couldn’t imagine she should rely on any knowledge of the Diamond Dogs of Equestria, for if these were inhabitants of the Beast Realm then who could even imagine what differences might exist? They’d likely be as different from their Equestrian counterparts as Arrancar were from living humans.

“Right, Diamond Dogs. Ambush skills aside, how powerful are they? Should we expect a serious fight? Assuming there’s a fight at all, which I guess is still a big if,” Sunset said, already trying to decide who she should bring to go check on the scouting party. She couldn’t afford to leave the camp unguarded, especially with Wallflower here, who was right now looking with wide, worried eyes at the conversation taking place.

Simurgh’s avian features weren’t the easiest to read, but the droop of her crest feathers seemed to suggest unease, “Difficult to say. I have little experience with them. They have warred with the Dwarves for many years, and that is no small feat. No doubt their Thanes possess strong Anima to support their talent for stealth. It would be unwise to treat them lightly.”

Especially if they did manage to capture Clover, Spike, and Asena without any of them being able to escape back here to warn us, Sunset thought with an extra sense of urgency.

“We’re goin’ after ‘em, obviously,” Applejack said, already summoning her Fullbring armor onto her body in a golden rush of light. Sunset looked at her friend, then at the insensate Rainbow Dash who remained snoring under the influence of Simurgh’s tea.

“Yeah, but I’d rather you keep an eye on things here, AJ, especially with Dash out of commission.”

Applejack glanced at Rainbow Dash and frowned, “Ya ain’t thinkin’ o’ goin’ alone, are ya?”

“Of course not,” Sunset agreed, turning to Shining Armor, “What do you say? A Quincy might spot something a Soul Reaper would miss.”

Shining Armor’s lips quivered in an almost smile, “Oh, playing to Quincy ego? That a trick Twily told you to use? Well considering it’s Spike who’s in trouble, I was going to go anyway, whether you asked or not. He’s part of the family.”

He squeezed Cadence’s hand, who looked back at him with a grateful smile, “Agreed, I’d never be able to look Twilight in the eye again if we lost her best friend. Go, Shining, I’ll be fine here and make sure that food’s ready for when you bring everyone back.”

“Here’s hoping it won’t take long,” Sunset said, leaping up into the air, joined by Shining Armor as the pair stood above the camp, “With any luck, there isn’t any problem at all and they’re just running late. Or found something interesting.”

“Be wary, regardless,” Simurgh told them, “And if that silly wolf has turned out to have simply gotten herself distracted, give Asena a solid smack upside the head for me.”

Sunset smiled, despite her anxiety about the situation. Nodding to those still in camp, and giving Shining Armor one last confirming nod to ensure he was ready, the pair swiftly departed, leaping upon the air in wide streaks of motion as they headed west towards the last known location of their wayward friends.

The mushroom forest passed beneath them like an uneven carpet of cloud, each cap glinting with different colors and spots. In some ways it gave Sunset the impression of leaping across a child’s finger-painting, with random colors splashed every wish way in random clumps. She kept her spiritual and physical senses sharp, seeking every little trace of reiatsu, sound, or motion she could. The forest was hardly quiet, buzzing with the noise of countless insects and the croaking and warbling of dozens of different species that all rolled together in a steady background chorus of lively sound. Really the more she thought about it, this area was the ideal terrain for ambush predators, or sapient people who relied on getting the drop on unwary prey.

If the Diamond Dogs could hide their presence, then even relatively powerful individuals like her friends could still be vulnerable. Super powers only did you so much good when someone got the drop on you. And she still had little understanding of how Anima worked. A well timed ambush, using strange powers, could be devastating to those who weren’t prepared for it.

Which meant she and Shining Armor were just as vulnerable, even knowing that they were potentially moving into dangerous and unknown territory. Her right hand clenched tight around Hokori no Hikari’s hilt, the Zanpaktou’s earlier sensations of desiring training now replaced by the spirits’ sharp focus on the task at hand.

Shining Armor kept an easy pace with her. They couldn’t afford to move too fast, or risk not spotting any clues that might pass below. Westward, up ahead, Sunset could see a rising ridge of rock that to her eye was shape somewhat like a hand of stone, grasping at something, but only in that vague way one imagined shapes in the shapeless.

“There’s a river that passes by that rock formation, turning north,” Shining Armor said, “That's where we caught the trout. Asena wanted to check on the other side of the ridge, so that’s the last place me and Cadence saw them heading.”

“Right, let’s get to the top of the ridge, then. Might be we’ll spot them if they’re still moving around in the air,” Sunset said, trying to be optimistic. It’d be nice if this did just turn out to be a false alarm. They had enough trouble on their hands already without kidnappings slowing them down. For all she knew Jormungandr already had servants scouring Svartalfheim for them.

At the top of the rocky, vaguely hand shaped ridge she and Shining Armor landed and paused to survey the area. On the west side of the ridge the mushroom forest terminated in a steep slope and wide, rolling basin of what looked like a small off-shoot lake that was attached to the passing river. The water was still and dark, and little moved that Sunset could see. Further beyond a shorter ridge of rock, like a long, winding spine, had multiple dark openings spaced around it... clear cave entrances.

“Well, those aren’t suspicious at all,” Sunset said.

“They’re not the only ones,” Shining Armor said, nodding downward. Sunset glanced down the length of the taller ridge they stood on, and noticed there were at least a couple of open slits that looked as if they led into the ridge itself. Her eyes narrowed, scanning.

“No signs of a fight. No blast marks from Kido or the Gunwolf’s weapons. Even ambushed, I have a hard time believing neither Clover or Spike would have gotten off a shot or two...”

“Let’s take a closer look,” Shining Armor said, raising his left hand and in a spark of blue reishi, he formed his bow. Sunset followed suit by drawing her Zanpaktou as the pair leapt down to the bottom of the ridge, near one of the cavern entrances.

She couldn’t see very far into the cavern itself, but there were growths of smaller mushrooms she could see near the entrance, and hangings of strange, somewhat luminous red lichen that looked like it continued deeper in. But she saw no tracks or any other sign of activity near the cave, so she instead turned her attention to the slope heading towards the lake. She and Shining Armor took a few minutes to examine the area, and she paused once she spotted a trace of red fur, barely more than a miniscule tuft, attached to a small rock closer to the lake.

Sunset paused and caught Shining Armor’s eyes with a raised hand, putting a finger to her lips for silence and nodding towards the tuft of fur. He saw it, and slowly nodded. Same color as Asena’s. The pair moved slowly, eyes alert and scanning. The stone was too hard for any tracks, but Sunset soon spotted another tuft of fur, even closer to the lake than the last one.

Once they were close to the dark, still waters, Sunset knelt down as she reached out to pick up another bit of red fur, this one slightly wet from the lake waters lapping against it gently.

Shining Armor kept his voice to a quiet whisper, bow at the ready, “They must have stopped here for water. I can’t imagine they’d bother going in the lake.”

Sunset thought it unlikely as well, but it was clear they’d been here, at least. Could they have decided to gather water to drink, and been ambushed then? Watering holes did tend to make good spots for such attacks. But the lack of any battle signs was concerning.

“We’ll head to the other ridge, check those caves. Maybe they-”

Her words were cut off mid-sentence as the glossy dark waters, still as glass just an eyeblink earlier, suddenly exploded as something pale, enormous, and made of flashing teeth and scales that stank of death came surging from the lake and right at Sunset Shimmer.

Episode 196: Warrior's Challenge

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Episode 196: Warrior’s Challenge

Within Gilda was a tumult of thoughts scraping like feral wolves for her attention the closer she got to Guto’s tower. Why was she doing this, again? Throwing her lot in with that overconfident, arrogant, entirely too talented prig, Adagio? Furthermore, was she really about to stick her neck out as if all but begging Guto to cut her throat? Because he would. She had no illusion left in her mind that Guto would, or possibly ever did, consider her valuable. Then again, Gilda glanced beside her to the ease, gliding strides of Fluttershy beside her, and thought that her own sense of self worth was going through some serious re-evaluation lately.

The angry, proud part of Gilda’s mind kept shouting at her that she didn’t need anyone's help! Not Adagio’s, and not Fluttershy’s! She could become as strong as she needed to be by herself, and...

What, exactly? Build a horde of Arrancar warriors she could abuse the same way Guto had abused her? Fight again and again in battles against Soul Reapers, Quincy, or even other Arrancar for the sheer sake of it? Granted, fighting had always felt good to Gilda, but ever since Fluttershy had defeated her so utterly, and taken a stroll through Gilda’s less than sterling memories, there was a painful sensation in the pit of her soul that much of her existence had been wasted on the pursuit of strength that didn’t even matter because Gilda had nothing worth fighting for. Not even herself.

So was that what she was doing here, helping some Quincy rescue another Quincy that had nothing to do with Gilda? Just because Adagio asked? Or because, more likely, Fluttershy had? It was almost frightening, really. Gilda saw Smooze walking right alongside Fluttershy, out in the open, fearless of the consequences, and it was just flat out scary how much loyalty that girl could inspire. Was it a part of her freaky powers? No, Gilda didn’t think so. Fluttershy hadn’t put any kind of mind control on her or Smooze, she was pretty sure. It was just that the damn girl had an uncanny capacity to make someone want to follow her example, which was annoying because Gilda was about as opposite of Fluttershy as a person could get.

“Looks like the welcome wagons coming out to meet us!” bounced Pinkie Pie with happy abandon, as if they were out for a leisurely stroll through the park, rather than approaching Guto’s heavily fortified tower, with not only his own army camped out there, but Hydia’s as well. Gilda could see movement among the collection of tents strung up around the base of the huge tower, among the tallest in Las Noches aside from the central one that Tirek occupied. Arrancar were stirring, calls ringing out now that Gilda’s group was spotted. Not that they were trying to hide their approach. She, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Smooze were as out in the open as could be. The whole point was to draw attention and get Guto, and possibly Hydia if she was around, to engage in a little distraction.

Knowing Guto like she did, Gilda figured that this was still going to somehow end in violence, and it surprised her how much fear she still had of him. Her burly arms weren't quite trembling, but her hands were, a little, and her legs felt a tad weak the closer to that tower she walked. She’d spent so much time in there, training, fighting for position among Guto’s warriors, trying to please him and make him proud, to make herself worth something. And she knew how swiftly his displeasure turned into painful consequences.

Fearfully, she glanced at Fluttershy. She sincerely doubted any amount of the girl’s calm charm would work quite so well here, today, and Gilda was surprised at how much of her fears transferred easily into concern for Fluttershy. As if she had any reason go give a damn! Dammit, she had to be sharp and focused right now! Not losing her head over a human girl, no matter how much said human girl had shown more kindness and concern for Gilda than almost any other person ever had. Greta, maybe... speaking of which, Gilda realized that among the Arrancar swiftly approaching to intercept their group, Greta was at the head of it.

Gilda wondered if Greta had continued to stay in Guto’s good graces after Gilda's thus far lackluster performance as an Espada. She hadn't heard much from Greta after the Everfree debacle, and hadn't had time to check in on her, and hoped nothing about that affair had reflected badly on Greta, who'd mostly just been there as Gilda's backup. Granted, Greta was supposed to have omitted certain details of those events to Guto, but in the subsequent report Gilda had needed to give to Tirek, much of the truth had already come out anyway. Guto wouldn't have put any blame on Gilda's actions on Greta, right?

There were about a dozen Arrancar in the group that arrived in front of them to bar their path. Eight of them were of Guto’s horde, all tall, well muscled, proud looking warriors who already had blades out as if ready for a fight, Greta most of all as she glared at them... and at Gilda, which made Gilda flinch a little. Her friend was clearly not so happy to see her, or perhaps she was just putting on a mask for the others, Gilda thought hopefully? Something did seem off about just how out of sorts Greta looked, and it made Gilda wonder if something had happened since the Everfree incident?

The other four Arrancars were of Hydia’s troops, all unusual looking in their own ways, with one having a neck and limbs elongated like pipe cleaners, and another whose entire body looked squashed down and compacted like a ball of playdough. Once, Gilda might’ve made fun of the collection of oddballs Hydia collected for her horde, but after spending time with Fluttershy, she perhaps could see something admirable in the way the present Eight Espada seemed to accept those who didn’t normally fit in.

Kind of like how Adagio does it, too. I wonder if Las Noches really would be better with someone like her in charge, instead of Tirek.

“Halt!” Greta said in a voice of forced, officious tone that didn’t really sound like her at all to Gilda’s ears, “What business do you have in Lord Guto’s domain, Tenth Espada?”

Hells, Greta, I didn’t become some different person just because I got a damn number tattooed on me... and what's with this unfriendly attitude? Did my screwing things up in Everfree cause you to get in hot water with Guto? Gilda thought ruefully, then drew herself up to her full height. It’d been agreed she’d open up the talks. Nobody would recognize Smooze as he looked right now, at least not until he pumped out enough reiatsu to make it clear who he was. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie would certainly jump in soon, but right now Gilda was the one who knew how to talk to Guto’s people.

“Cut the crap, Greta, and relax. It's just me. I’m here showing these humans around, because they just set up their embassy and are curious to see one of the best armies in Las Noches up close.”

Greta’s eyes did a complex dance, flickering towards pride at Gilda’s compliment, but also immediate concern and suspicion as her gaze scanned across Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, both of whom smiled, Fluttershy with serenity, and Pinkie Pie with so much friendliness it made Gilda feel a tad sick inside. Nobody ought to be able to smile that wide or openly with multiple Arrancar blades pointed at her. Then Greta’s eyes settled on Smooze, even more suspicious of his odd, digital screen helmet/mask.

“Right, so the weirdo humans want to play friendly or some crap, fine. What are you doing helping them, Gilda? And who’s the freak in the mask?”

“He’s not a ‘freak’,” Fluttershy cut in, her voice not so much sharp as it was blanketing, as if each word was as implacable as the sky, “He is my friend, and a former resident of Las Noches.”

“Smooze, former Tenth Espada,” Smooze himself stated bluntly, to the reaction of several gasps and Greta’s throat making a strangled noise, “I now owe allegiance to the Canterlot Spirit Coalition. I am here as Lady Fluttershy’s vassal.”

“Friend,” Fluttershy corrected, to which Smooze made a polite, embarrassed coughing noise.

“And loyal bodyguard?” he offered as something of a compromise title, and Fluttershy gave a small smile and nodded.

Greta, eyeballs still wide like grapefruits, glanced Gilda's way, “This doesn’t actually make me feel any more comfortable with you being here, Gilda. Or them. Again, why are you helping them out? You do realize that outside the confines of that little embassy Lord Tirek granted them, these humans are free game?”

Pinkie Pie giggled then, loudly, and all the Arrancar gasped as she just appeared next to Greta in less than an eyeblink, her jester’s motley now worn plain on her body with the seamless activation of her Fullbring. Greta didn’t even have time to respond before Pinkie was hugging her with one arm, while suddenly producing a rather large and sparkling cake in her other hand, “Awww don’t be like that, Miss Grouchy Face! We’re here to make friends, after all! Why fight when we chill and eat cake?”

Greta eyed the cake like it was a bomb with a lit fuse, and the Arrancar around her, at least the ones from Guto’s horde, had their blades pointed firmly at Pinkie Pie’s face. Not that the girl seemed to make the cutlery aimed squarely at her head as she giggled and glanced at the four Arrancar from Hydia’s horde, “What about you guys? You all as grumped up as these fellas? I got more where this came from, you know?” She bounced the cake towards one of them, the squashed down one, who caught said confection in his oddly wide, oven-mitt hands and glanced at the cake with a quizzical look for a moment before popping it into his large, trash-can sized mouth.

Chewing it down, the Arrancar went, “Mmm, not bad, girlie! Heya guys, maybe we keep this one around for a bit to make more yummy stuff?”

This gained a chorus of agreement from his fell oddballs, to which Guto’s Arrancar all continued to glare daggers, both at them and the humans. Greta, slipping Pinkie’s arm off from around her shoulder, growled and shoved her Zanpaktou back into it’s sheath, her eyes remaining fixed on Gilda, despite Pinkie being right there grinning next to her, as if this was all one big joke. Perhaps to Pinkie Pie it was. Gilda hadn’t really seen what Pinkie was capable of, not like with Fluttershy and Rarity, but if Pinkie was on the same level then as absurd as it felt to Gilda, chances were Pinkie could solo this entire group of Arrancar soldiers and still be grinning and giggling about it afterward.

“If Hydia’s... servants-” Greta said the word as if it was more insult than anything else, “-want to play friendly with this so-called ‘Coalition’, then they’re welcome to your company. We who serve Lord Guto still have standards.”

Gilda felt her teeth grind at Greta’s challenging look, staring straight at her as if somehow Gilda was lesser than her, when Gilda was the one who was a damn Espada! Maybe it was time to remind those here that there was a reason she’d been Guto’s right hand enforcer for so long. And what was Greta’s problem, anyway!? She was acting weird, and it was starting to really worry and tick Gilda off at the same time! With a menacing growl on her lips, Gilda stepped towards Greta, and to her small pleasure she did see most of the Arrancar loyal to Guto flinch back. They remembered her well enough, it seemed. Greta stood her ground, however, starring into Gilda’s eyes with that look of challenge still present.

“Back off and chill, Greta. You want us gone? Go ahead and try. Everyone here knows you can’t take me. Not when I was still a part of the horde, and sure as hell not now when I’m the Tenth Espada. Want to try challenging me for the position?” She didn't like throwing it out there like that, but dammit Greta was acting as if they weren't even friends! Why?

There was a flash of something in Greta’s expression. Not anger. Pain. But it was gone swiftly, replaced by a stone-cold challenge once more, “Don’t tempt me. I’ve heard you’ve been having trouble even recruiting anyone to your side since you left us, so perhaps you’d be better off if someone took the Tenth seat from you? Since it seems Smooze doesn’t want it back.”

“I could not possibly care less about my former position,” Smooze stated as clearly as a man declaring his disinterest in watching paint dry. Greta made a face, but otherwise ignored him.

“I’m sure Gilda wishes she had more time to spend with the friends she has among those here,” Fluttershy spoke up, drawing Greta’s attention, and most others as the girl stepped forward with an inviting smile, “she thinks about you often.”

Gilda, face immediately shooting through with red, made a choking noise, “Fluttershy, maybe can it with the personal talk?”

“My apologies,” Fluttershy said, blinking with pure innocence, “I merely wished for Greta to know that your position hasn’t changed, that you are friends, really. But you’re right, this is probably something you two should work out between yourselves. Just promise me that if you do come to blows, you’ll try to understand one another at the same time?”

“Is... is this girl for real?” Greta asked plainly, blinking, then her eyes narrowed with suspicion, “Hold on, don’t tell me this is the one who... beat you, Gilda? You lost to this sappy chick?”

Gilda's mind poked at her, rattling with a sneaking feeling that what Greta just said didn't add up, but Gilda was already too flustered and growingly bothered to lock down those stray thoughts to work out what her brain was trying to tell her. She was distracted from thinking about it further when Pinkie Pie let out a tittering laugh, soon after which the girl's expression got oddly serious for a moment, “Oh please, Fluttershy is like, probably the toughest cookie in our collective jar at the moment. Me n’ Mena can bake up a real storm of hurt when we want to, but you don’t want to mess with Flutters, trust us.”

“Us?” asked one of the other Arrancar warriors, and from Pinkie Pie’s shoulder a pink and red tendril of energy grew and formed into Pinkamena’s grinning mouth of wide, horrifically sharp teeth.

“She means me, chewy.”

“Gah!” the Arrancar leaped back, as did most of the others near Pinkie Pie, which only caused Pinkamena to let out a dark chuckle.

“Man, I miss freaking people out. Hey Pinks, if this whole thing turns violent, I’m free to get some nibble-time in on these guys, right?”

Pinkie Pie looked up and tapped her chin as if thinking about it, and then held up her finger and thumb in a ‘just a little’ gesture, “It has been awhile, so I think its okay if you’re gentle about it. No limbs.”

“What about fingers?”

“Negotiable.”

Most of the Arrancar present now looked rather horrified, except the four from Hydia’s forces, a group that was growing as more and more Arrancar showed up to see what all the fuss was about. One of them looked forlornly at Pinkie Pie and asked, “Cake? More cake?”

Pinkie Pie smiled and pushed Pinkamena’s head back into herself, much to the others' protests, as she said, “Oh yeah! I can totally bust out some more tasty treats, if you all agree to be super nice to me and my friends here.”

“We can be nice!” said one of Hydia’s Arrancar, “Hydia gives us yummies, too, when we behave.”

“As long as ‘yummies’ doesn’t involve human souls, then I totally got you guys covered,” Pinkie said, and with a gesture out twirled her massive pink hammer from a puff of similarly pink spirit energy that rose from her body. At first the Arrancar looked alarmed at the appearance of a weapon, especially one that large and, well... loud in its coloration, but Pinkie simply flashed a grin and seemed to give the air itself a little ‘tap’ with it. A few moments later it started to literally rain cake, donuts, cupcakes, muffins, and other assorted pastries.

This caused a bit of a riot among Hydia’s Arrancar, while Guto’s forces looked on in mildly shocked horror at what could at best be described as a scene of zombie horde horror, only being enacted upon hapless, sugary treats.

Fluttershy tilted her head a bit, “I thought your powers mostly revolved around gags, Pinkie, not just randomly summoning food.”

“Humor is in the eye squiggles of the beholder,” Pinkie intoned with mock wisdom, “I mean, I find the looks on these guys’ faces to be hilarious,” she gestured at Greta and the other Arrancar loyal to Guto.

Fluttershy looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded as if that made total sense. Gilda was not entirely sure it did, but she had the twisting gut feeling that trying to understand Pinkie Pie was a swift road to madness. As innocent and playful as the display of summoning a rain of pastries might seem, Gilda suspected it was just the sugary tip of the deadly iceberg that was Pinkie’s Fullbring, perhaps as frightening in its implied ability as Fluttershy’s.

I hate the fact that as ridiculous as these girls are, I never, ever want to have to fight them again. Does that make me smart, or a coward?

Regardless of the answer to that question, one thing became immediately clear to Gilda in the next moment...

“What is the meaning of this!?”

They’d succeeded in getting Guto’s attention, for that was his voice bellowing as the present Seventh Espada landed nearby in a towering flurry of speed and power, and his eyes, radiating pure displeasure, was locked firmly on her.

----------

In one of the exterior corridors on the ground floor of Guto’s tower, invisible to any who were looking directly at it, a shimmer of haze appeared and a figure dropped out as if having leaped through the wall.

Twilight Sparkle was clad not only in her white Quincy uniform, but she was wearing a thick white cloak over her body as well. Her eyes darted left and right. A pair of very alert guards were at the end of the corridor to her right, where an archway opened up to the outside. But those guard’s had their eyes focused on the spectacle that Gilda, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Smooze were making of themselves, so the guards weren’t looking in Twilight’s direction.

Not that they would be able to see her even if they had. Twilight moved slowly a few steps down the corridor to the left, and waited for the rest of her team to step through one of Cinch’s ‘Windows’. Next cam Sugarcoat, also wearing one of the long white cloaks that was identical to Twilight’s. Her visor made a soft hum as she met Twilight’s gaze, then noted the guards, and nodded.

One by one the rest of the Quincy infiltration team stepped through the faint, invisible haze from the Window that linked the Coalition's embassy with this spot. Cinch couldn’t get a dart any deeper inside without risking detection, even with the cloaks that Twilight had modified. The cloaks in question, which every one of the team was wearing, were of the same variety that Quincy used to make themselves invisible to regular humans when performing operations in the living world. Twilight, making use of her Variable, had switched the ‘variable’ of what the cloaks made someone invisible to. Now no Arrancar would be able to see them, as opposed to humans. Still, the cloaks only dealt with visual input. Their footsteps still made sound, and if they used too much spirit energy, the reiatsu would be detectable. Furthermore, Gilda’s intel had told them that Guto had his own types of wards all over this tower, so Twilight knew they couldn’t rely on the cloaks to get them very far.

“Sounds like a real party out there,” Lemon Zest whispered, hearing Guto’s roaring voice from outside.

“Sounds like they’re doing exactly what they’re supposed to be doing,” Sugarcoat stated in a similar whisper, “Keeping all eyes on them, including the big man himself.”

“Is Fleur with him?” Twilight asked, and Sugarcoat looked, starring at seemingly the wall itself, but Twilight knew Sugarcoat was making use of her own Schrift, the X-Ray, to see right through everything.

“No, she’s not.”

“Lucky us,” drawled Sour Sweet, her smile swiftly turning into a grimace, “Only that means we have to search this whole tower for her, now.”

“Better than what our Plan B was to get her away from Guto if he dragged her outside,” whispered Sunny Flare, “Personally I prefer sticking to stealth instead of trying a smash and grab that relies solely on the element of surprise.”

“We won’t have to search every corner of the tower, hopefully,” Twilight said, still watching Sugarcoat, “Can you pinpoint her anywhere else?”

The exact range on the X-Ray was fairly far, as long as nothing too reishi dense was involved. Even then the X-Ray could allow Sugarcoat to see and transmit through just about anything, but there was a strong chance that the heavier wards Guto had on his tower might interfere with a clear line of sight. Sugarcoat looked around thoroughly for a minute or two as the noises of shouting grew louder outside, and Hollow reiatsu started flaring up.

Twilight felt Guto’s reiatsu and Gilda’s both quite clearly, given how familiar she was with both after the assault on Las Noches. Even if she couldn't hear what was being said, the spikes of power on display suggested, if not a fight, there was one heck of an argument taking place. She silently prayed for everyone’s safety, although ultimately she trusted Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy could take care of themselves.

“Got her,” Sugarcoat said finally, looking straight up, “Looks like she’s at the very top, north side. Plenty of sentries between us and her, and those wards... yeah, they’re dense as Sour Sweet’s sarcasm streak.”

“Hey!” Sour Sweet said in a hard whisper, although just as quickly paused and added, “Fair.”

“Any chance at all you could use the X-Ray to transmit yourself and one us up there without tripping the wards?” Twilight asked. She knew plenty about how Quincy set up wards, but almost none about how Arrancar did it. Gilda wasn’t the most technically inclined when it came to spirit powers, so she wasn’t a very big help on knowing specifics. All she did know was that the wards were of Guto’s own crafting, and that they were all over the place, especially on the upper levels and on almost every object he considered to be his personal possession; Fleur included.

Sugarcoat shook her head, clearly holding in a sigh, “Not a chance. At least, I wouldn’t risk it. I can get through most of the wards, but not without tripping over at least one of them. It’d be even harder if I had another person with me.”

“Then we proceed on foot,” Twilight said, and looked at her squad with a calm sense of command she hadn’t really felt even a month ago, “I’m on point. Sunny, left flank, Sour, right flank. Indigo and Lemon, rear guard. Sugarcoat, I want you in the middle with the X-Ray, keeping us updated on guard positions. We move fast and quiet. Do not engage unless I give the order, otherwise if a guard gets suspicious, evade and hide.”

They all nodded at her with quick salutes that Twilight was surprised didn’t feel odd or awkward to her anymore. They were friends, but this was a mission, and they were also Quincy. And they had one of their own to save.

----------

Gilda did her best to keep her arms at her sides in a calm position, not letting her fists clench despite the sweat now on her palms. Guto rose from the crouched position he’d landed in and stood at his full height, his eyes as hawkish and judging as ever they’d been, piercing right through her as he looked down his aquiline nose at her. Even as a certain boiling anger bubbled inside her at the look, a part of Gilda felt like a child all over again, a young Arrancar terrified and eager to serve and please the once Sixth Espada.

No. I’m not that overeager, or spineless, anymore, she thought with a fierce inner growl, I will not let this man make me feel small ever again.

It felt good, but didn’t change the fact that as Guto let his reiatsu pour out of his body in a raw display of power, bronze skin glowing with a sharp yellow aura, that Gilda could feel all to clearly the difference in spiritual pressure between them. Adagio might have knocked Guto off his perch as Sixth Espada, but the man was still higher ranked than she was for good reason, and... if Gilda wasn’t hallucinating it, he felt stronger than she remembered.

He couldn’t have improved so dramatically in a short period of time, could he?

“Gilda,” he said, voice rich with that imperious tone of judgmental displeasure he used whenever she’d failed him in some manner, “Why have you come here with these... uninvited guests? I don’t recall summoning you for any reason, nor seeking to have mere humans tracking their mud all over my territory.”

Pinkie Pie made a gagging sound, “Uggh, and I thought nobody could out-do Cinch on being a smarmy, stick-up-the-butt, snooty-pants.”

Guto’s eyes turned like raised spears towards Pinkie Pie, his reiatsu crashing upon her like a tide. But the girl just withstood the rush of spiritual pressure, laying her magnificently pink hammer on her shoulders and staring back at him with her baby blue eyes, “Nuh-uh, buddy, can’t make me feel all crushified and quailing with your big scary spirit farts. I can do it too, see?”

Pinkie Pie’s body became outlined in an aura of raw pink energy, her own reiatsu rushing outward in a ball of condensed, spiritual fluff that seemed to less crash into Guto’s and more just... absorb it in the way a rubbery ball might absorb an impact. Guto blinked, but his face did not lose an iota of its glaring ire.

“Guto, enough!” Gilda said, shocked at the volume of her own voice as now she let her reiatsu flare out. It didn’t match the volume of what Guto could put out, and much to Gilda’s chagrin it didn’t match Pinkie’s either, but at least the burst of her own spirit energy got him to look towards her instead of the human.

“I was considering disciplining the human for speaking with such disrespect, and I may still do so, but since you were once a favorite of mine, Gilda, I shall allow you to explain yourself.”

“Nothing to explain,” she said, “They wanted to take a look around. I offered to escort them. Figured since you’re such a... powerful and grand Espada, you might enjoy showing off for them.”

He crossed his arms and gave a scornful look over the group, “Showing my power and the glorious stature of my holdings does indeed please me, but only for those who have the wit to appreciate it. A pink, bumbling fool, a quiet and unassuming flower, and... oh my, that isn’t you, is it Smooze?”

“...Guto. -_-” Smooze replied flatly.

Guto’s eyes blinked in brief wonder, then he flashed a rather harsh smile, “...and a disgraced former Espada. Not the most wonderous collection of guests you’ve dragged to my doorstep, Gilda.”

Gilda took in a sharp breath and tried to keep herself sounding cordial, which she wasn’t really succeeding at, “Look, these Coalition people are just trying to be all diplomatic and crap. You don’t have to take them on a freakin’ tour, but at least, I dunno, chat them up for a bit. I mean, don’t you got that pet Quincy to flaunt around?”

It wasn’t the most subtle probing, but Gilda had noticed that Fleur de Lis wasn’t with Guto, which was rather surprising given how much he seemed to see the Quincy as some prized pet. If she’d been with him, that meant it would’ve been up to her, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Smooze to provide enough distraction to give Twilight and her team an opening to launch a surprise attack and snatch Fleur away. But with Fleur not here, that meant that right now Twilight had to be searching the tower. But that would take time, so now Gilda and company had to keep Guto’s attention rooted out here for as long as possible.

The way he looked at them with his lips twisting into a smile that was purely for show, and especially seemed to eye Fluttershy, gave Gilda a gut chilling feeling. His voice became smooth as an edge of broken glass. “She is currently being given a lesson in discipline, due to some unruly behavior. I do rather think that with enough time I can tame this Quincy’s abrasive spirit and demonstrate to Lord Tirek that their kind can be of use to us, once we’ve won the war. Perhaps not all humans need be consumed or converted to Hollowkind.”

“I’ve wondered if that is all Tirek intended to do, if he won,” Fluttershy said, drawing Guto’s full attention, “A world where everyone eventually becomes Hollows.”

“A magnificent vision, and one I do wholly support,” Guto replied, attempting to loom over the girl, but Fluttershy merely stood with the calm of a willow tree, gently steadfast in the wind of a storm. Guto’s reiatsu flowed around her, without seeming to have any effect. Guto showed only the smallest twitch in his brow that indicated his irritation at her lack of response to his crushing reiatsu and went on to say, tone lowering, “Of course I feel it could use some refinements. We shouldn’t do away with all living humans, otherwise we may lack a proper breeding pool for cycling souls. I’ve drawn up extensive plans for how to control and corral the human population, once they are made to understand the change in management. Why, I hear we may be expanding our goals to whole new horizons... Equestria, for example?”

Pinkie Pie had, unbeknownst to Guto, slipped behind him to make a gagging face as she stuck her finger in her mouth. Fluttershy smiled, but otherwise made no show of having noticed Pinkie. Meanwhile Guto noted the way Greata and his warriors were looking behind him with aghast faces and sharply turned to glare, but Pinkie Pie was already looking quite innocent and starring up at the tower, “Golly that’s a big tower you have there, Mister Grumpy Guto. Is that where you keep all you’re big filing cabinets filled with notebooks on how to be a supervillain?”

“Adorable...” he replied with eyes that were clearly trying to strangle Pinkie by death glare alone, “I can see why Grogar considers you in particular to be a target of interest. Fortunately for you am I above jesting with a clown. It wouldn’t even be worth my time to decorate my tower with your blood as an object lesson in courtesy to any other rude guest who opens their vapid mouth in my presence.”

“Oooo, now you’re making Mena get all frothy and worked up,” Pinkie said, her eyes changing to yellow as the mask of her Fullbring switched sides on her face, “We know lots of ways to make that kind of party fun now, too, don’t we Mena?”

“Pinkie,” Fluttershy said simply, then surprised Gilda by stepping right up towards Guto, almost in a mirror of the way Sunset Shimmer had stepped up to Tirek before their duel. Only Fluttershy showed not even the barest hint of violence about her. She wasn’t showing weakness, either. No, anyone with any combat experience who looked at the girl could tell Fluttershy was fully prepared to defend herself, but there was a smooth placidity to her that seemed to make threats and hostility wash off her as readily as air.

“Mister Guto, I know you don’t like us. Truthfully the feeling is mutual. I can tell there is very little, if anything, about you that I can find common ground with or even consider remotely acceptable. Yet we didn’t create that embassy for no reason. I do believe it is important to the future of our mutually shared realms that some manner of understanding between not only Hollows and us, but all of the disparate factions. Peace must one day be made attainable through open communication.”

Guto looked at her as if she were an annoying, confusing, and particularly amusing small animal that he was trying to work out if he should skin alive, or feed a treat to. Either way, it was a look that dripped condescension. “How sweetly naïve of you. Lord Tirek only allowed your farce of an embassy out of a sense of honor to the only one among you with the strength to provide him some sport. You only have protection while within its walls. Right now, I’d be fully in my rights to rip your soul from your body and devour it in front of your friend-”

“Pfft, as if I wouldn’t whack-a-mole you into next Sunday if you so much as tried it, buster!” growled Pinkie and Pinkamena in a dual voice, which caused Greta a look of concern, but Guto ignored the girl and continued to stare down at Fluttershy.

“-The reason I am not is not because I couldn’t, but because I have just enough respect for my fellow Espada, however lowly she is on that totem pole, to allow her this moment of fanciful entertainment.”

His eyes cut towards Gilda, “You were my favorite. You’ve disappointed me of late, but you wear that number 10 upon your skin due to my influence, my discipline, my protection and nurturing of your talents, Gilda! However crassly willful you have become, your position still reflects upon me.”

“My Lord,” Greta spoke up suddenly, causing Guto to glare at her, making Greta flinch slightly but otherwise she held her ground and spoke boldly, “If I may suggest, since these humans want to ‘understand’ us better... Perhaps we should show them how we in your glorious horde entertain and improve ourselves?”

Guto’s displeasure turned swiftly to the anticipation of a hawk ready to swoop upon an unsuspecting mouse, and Gilda had a sinking feeling she knew exactly where this was going before he even responded.

“Oh, quite an excellent idea, Greta. Yes, that sounds ideal.”

He walked over so that he could address his warriors, many of whom at this point had gathered to watch the scene unfold, joined by the smaller but curious procession of Hydia’s Arrancar who were still mostly focused on devouring Pinkie Pie’s conjured confections. Guto swept his lean, well muscled arms out, “My warriors! Our human guests, plus Smooze, as if he counts as anything anymore, wish to partake of our ‘hospitality’! Perhaps we shall give them exactly as they desire... in the colosseum!”

As was almost always the case when Guto mentioned the colosseum, referring to the massive underground arena complex below the tower, there was as much fervent eagerness as there was a certain disquiet reverence. Nowhere in Guto’s holdings was treated as more sacred, yet frightening, more important, yet etched with memories of blood. No warrior in Guto’s horde got their position with anything less than spilling blood in the colosseum. Often that blood would have been of former comrades one had gone through the trials to be considered worthy.

Gilda could remember her final trial in that underground pit with vivid detail, even without Fluttershy having refreshed that memory not so long ago.

That colosseum was used for everything in Guto’s horde. Not just mass battles to find the most worthy candidates from the hopefuls seeking to join his horde, but it was almost always used daily for entertainment via blood matches. It was also frequently used to resolve disputes. Almost any disagreement or grudge in the horde could be dealt with via a fight in the pit. But really, any excuse was a good one in Guto’s book, and Gilda had a bad feeling that if he got Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy in there, even on the pretense of just a friendly match... someone was going to die.

----------

Her last time in Las Noches, Twilight had not exactly gotten the grand tour, what with all of the violence, blood, and extreme personal trauma. She’d seen a little of Adagio’s territory, and the little personal touches Adagio had added to the otherwise cold and barren halls and rooms within the fortress’ monolithic exterior walls. However this was the first time she’d been inside the domain of one of the longer established Espada, and Guto’s tower was... certainly different.

Whoever the man had been in his human life, Twilight suspected a great deal of aesthetic taste had carried over, for she felt like she was walking through the recreation of someone’s somewhat twisted interpretation of ancient Rome as seen through the lens of a person who’d romanticized it a bit too much. Every hall had marble columns draped in tapestries of crimson or gold, all bearing depictions of great battles with zero historical context. The walls were lit by interspersed, bronze hanging braziers that dangled from chains. Fine vases of various colorful materials and statuettes of gold were displayed in every nook and cranny, almost carelessly.

Yet there was function amid the seeming surface frivolousness. The tower was not the widest, no more than fifty yards across, at most, but it was tall, easily spanning half the height to the immense ceiling above, making this close to the tallest structure if one did not count the central tower that pierced the ceiling itself. This meant that Guto’s tower had dozens of floors, and Twilight rapidly learned each one used its space to the maximum. The first fifteen alone were essentially a multi-tiered barracks for Guto’s warriors, which was saying something considering how many were camped outside. A central staircase separated the floors, but the location shifted every five floors, forcing Twilight’s team to move between the two sets of staircases through a wide, oval shaped middle room. In doing this, she noted that the oval acted as a mess hall, connecting a ring of sleeping quarters, bare bones and spartan in furnishing to begin with, but every five floors there was a distinct jump in luxury and ornateness of the barrack’s.

Simple, bare floors and tables became rug covered, plush affairs of many pillows and gold gilded furniture. By the time they sneaked their way up to the fifteenth floor, the “barracks” was more like a lavish palace, with silken finery everywhere. Yet even here, there was a draconian tension to the guards they were passing. Thus far their altered Quincy cloaks was making moving past the sentries at doorways a relative breeze, which afforded Twilight time to note that even in the most luxurious of the barracks rooms... nobody seemed at ease. Every Arrancar warrior greeted each other tersely, spoke in controlled, hushed voices, and moved with tightly controlled precision amid their clearly assigned tasks of maintaining the rooms in pristine order.

And all of it held an undercurrent of barely perceptible fear, as if each Arrancar was worried that if they scratched or scuffed the wrong piece of furniture, it’d be their heads.

The ease of progress halted the moment they got to the sixteenth floor. Apparently Guto hadn’t bothered with wards on the barracks levels, but past this point was where he considered his personal domain to be, thus only Arrancar he’d authorized to be there could ascend higher. Twilight had been waiting for Sugarcoat’s signal, as Sugarcoat’s visor and her X-Ray Schrift let her pinpoint the exact spot the wards began with a precision that even Twilight couldn’t match with her sharpest senses.

“Right here,” Sugarcoat whispered in Twilight’s ear, pointing to where a tall, bronze bust of an eagle sat at the top landing of the stairs, staring across the doorway with flat, metal eyes, “That ugly as sin statue is projecting a field across the whole doorway. First big ward. Looks like it encircles the whole hallway beyond, too.”

“Are we clear behind?” Twilight asked. Indigo Zap and Lemon Zest both looked back and nodded, Lemon giving a thumbs up.

“Only four dudes on the last floor, and they ain’t moving around much,” Lemon said. Of course that could change at any moment. This was the most dangerous part of the infiltration, with her team on the relatively narrow stairs. Sure the Arrancar couldn’t see them, but if a guard came walking up or down the stairs, it would risk bumping into them, even if the girls pressed flat against the wall. She needed to clear this ward quickly.

Taking a deep breath, she reached into her mind, Okay Midnight, we’re up. These wards are for dealing with spirit energy. Let’s see if we can work a little magic to either disable or fool them.

Midnight’s voice spoke with eager and haughty candor in her mind, and Twilight swore she could hear the cracking of knuckles echo in her thoughts, With pleasure. I’ll have this taken care of in no time.

Twilight surrendered a little control, letting Midnight take the reins as she began to weave subtle magic around their body. Her eyes lit with pale, teal flames of magic, and Twilight felt her vision adjust until she could see the sparkling gold threads of energy holding the spirit ward together. The statue was an anchor point, sending out a whole net of thin wires of energy through the walls, the floor, the very air itself. Twilight’s power, a fusion of spirit energy and magic both, could now see the ward clearly. Now it was just a matter of working out just where to poke and prod to switch it off without actually tripping the ward off.

She felt Midnight’s focus, and simple, purring pleasure at working any magic at all. Twilight’s face gained a mischievous smile, a flamboyant hand raising to her chin as she spoke as Midnight in a quiet, dulcet whisper, “Tsk, such a blunt barrier. No finesse at all. It’s all tied to one, singular control node. If Guto made these himself, the man has the tact and subtlety of a sexually aroused hippopotamus.”

Twilight flinched, her voice becoming abashed, “Midnight!”

Her face immediately switched back to Midnight’s charmingly smarmy smile, “What? It’s an accurate description. And amusing.”

“Just deal with the ward already,” Sugarcoat said, “We’re on the clock, Twilight’s weird other self.”

“And we’ve got incoming,” Indigo Zap said, tensing, her artificial legs making a soft scraping sound on the stone stairs as she shifted against the wall, “Someone’s running up this way.”

Midnight sighed and nodded, “Yes, fine, I’ll be quick. Now, let's see here...” she lit up her finger with an ember of teal magical energy and pointed it at the eagle statue, “If I were to cut any thread... I’d say... eenie, menie, minie, moe...”

“Hurry up.” Sour Sweet said in a frantic whisper as shouts could be heard from below and someone started running up the stairs. The girls all started to press themselves to the wall as an Arrancar male with a head of red hair came barreling up the stairs.

“And... snip!” Midnight said, sending a streak of subtle, curling magic into the eagle statue, and just in time for her to slide to the side and join the others up against the wall as the Arrancar warrior pounded up the stairs past them.

“What’s the damn racket about?” said a challenging voice from past the stair’s landing, apparently a sentry that saw their comrade running up in a rush.

“Big gathering at the colosseum!” said the red headed Arrancar, “Lord Guto sent me to inform everyone to be present. Sounds like those weirdo humans might be fighting in the arena, or maybe Smooze? Oh yeah, Smooze is back, and he’s working with the humans! Can you believe that!?”

“No, not really, but heck, I’m down to go watch some blood get spilled. But, uh, you sure Lord Guto is authorizing everyone to go spectate. As in, everyone? Because I know he doesn’t like leaving the top floors unguarded.”

“Yeah, no, poor suckers up top got to stay, but he told me anyone who isn’t on duty on the top strata is good to come watch. You’re the last guy I had to inform. So hurry up, man, everyone is piling into the arena right now, and I do not want to miss this. There’s this freaky pink chick with a big hammer, and she, like, makes cakes appear out of thin air!”

By this point the red haired Arrancar and his companion, a broad shouldered, black haired fellow, were already walking back down the stairs. This was problematic because while just one Arrancar had gone up without issue, now that there were two of them walking side by side, it was a real squeeze.

Midnight had surrendered control back to Twilight, and as a last resort, she pressed her hands to the wall and sent a small spark of the Variable into it. The two Arrancar kept chatting as they walked past her and her squad one by one, all of them pressed against a wall that was now rather subtly a few inches wider than it had been a second ago...

“She summons... cake? How terrifying.”

“Nah, dude, you don’t get it, she was like, all up in Greta’s grill like it was nothing, I mean super fast, and she had this second head pop up out of nowhere and she had the creepiest grin, even if it was a little hot, but like in a ‘going to eat your throat’ kind of way? I’m telling you, I’ve never seen a human give off a freakier vibe. I sooo want to see what she can do in a fight. I bet Greta’s going to fight them. Huh? What’s up?”

The broad shouldered Arrancar had paused, glancing at the wall, mere inches from Indigo Zap’s face, who remained stock still.

“Is it me, or does the wall look weird to you?”

The shorter redhead Arrancar looked at the other one with an impatient eye roll, “No, dude, it looks like a wall. Now come on! We’re going to miss it!”

“Hmm...” the other Arrancar grunted, then shrugged and nodded, joining his chatty companion as they continued down the stairs. After a full minute, Twilight and the other Quincy girls all let out a collective sigh, and moved off the wall.

“Way too close,” breathed Sunny Flare, “And wow, do these guys know how to bathe? At all?”

“Remember, water is at a premium in Hueco Mundo, and Guto doesn’t strike me as the kind to spring for it often,” said Sugarcoat, “Questions of hygiene aside, the ward is down. There are more, but if Midnight can keep pulling off the same trick, we should be able to reach the top.”

Twilight took a deep breath and gestured for the girls to follow her as she made her way up the stairs and into the sixteenth floor hallway beyond, “And it sounds like we don’t have a moment to spare in getting there, if what we just heard is any indication.”

----------

Gilda hadn’t expected being back in this place to twist her gut the way it did. Not so long ago she’d still been a part of Guto’s horde, and had been to the underground colosseum plenty of times. It hadn’t bothered her then. Had it? Could she have just shoved all the ugly memories of the arena down deep in her mind while putting every waking moment of focus on getting stronger to both impress Lord Guto and earn her shot at being an Espada?

And now, having accomplished her supposed life goals, it all felt ashen when faced with that same, cold pit of sand she’d spilled the blood of her fellow hopefuls, just to become a part of something she could see never had any value in the first place. The colosseum was as it had always been, a wide, rectangular pit of sand and dirt surrounded by tall walls of stone where dozens of rows of stone benches were placed. One side had a far more comfortable throne of stone, piled with cushions, where Guto took his seat, imperiously watching as members of his horde moved in to fill the benches. Gilda kept glancing his way, something bothering her that she couldn’t put her finger on. Guto usually wore an open vest to show off his lean, well muscled chest of golden tanned skin, and a golden torc that covered his Hollow hole. It only now occurred to her the torc was gone, and he was wearing a high necked white tunic under a golden breastplate. Why bother with armor, when he had Heirro?

Her mind switched gears as a familiar cackle lit the air, and Hydia’s mass of interestingly unique Arrancar started to pile in to the wide chamber, with Hydia herself waddling along at the head of the parade, “Ghahaha! Guuuuto! Why didn’t you tell me you were having the human kiddos over for some fun!? I’m seriously insulted over here! Reeka, Draggle, tell him this is my insulted face!”

Beside Hydia’s bulbously bouncing body, her two Fraccion daughters marched along, short and squat Reeka yawning as if she’d just woken up from slumber, and tall, wiry Draggle alertly and obediently pointing at Hydia, “Yup, that grimace is definitely a sign of how nettled you are.”

Hydia shot a grimacing grin at Guto, “See? Insulted.” Before he could even open his mouth to respond she Sonido’d over in a flash, planting her prodigious backside onto the stone bench beside him, cracking it in half without a care as she propped her hands on her knees and looked over at where Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Gilda, and Smooze were all standing near the edge of the wall leading into the arena pit, “Hey there, you little stinkers! Figured you’d stick to your safe zone embassy, instead of waltzing your pretty souls hither and thither! And Smooze, you ol’ pussbag, what are you doing back! And with a snazzy new outfit, to boot! Planning to snag your old post from Guto’s baby chick?”

Gilda flinched at the terminology, although Smooze was swift to wave a gloved hand, “I have no interest. As I have said. Many times. >_< I serve at Lady Fluttershy’s pleasure now.”

“Ew,” Hydia said, “She’s nowhere near pretty enough for a beautiful sludge bucket like you. And here I was thinking of setting you up with one of my daughters, but eh, your loss.”

Fluttershy cleared her throat and inclined her head towards Hydia, speaking diplomatically, “I’m happy you could join us. Mister Guto was just about to demonstrate some of his people’s culture with an arena match.”

Hydia made a choking noise, eyes flicking towards Guto, “Well ain’t she just the politest thing ever? She does know that Lord Tirek still kind of wants to have one of their souls to suck the magic out of, right? Or that my Groggykins would literally murder to have one of them strapped to a lab table?”

“I do believe they are aware, yes,” Guto replied, lacing his fingers in front of him as his elbows rested on his throne, “And indeed you and I could take them both, perhaps, and choose which one we give to Lord Tirek and which to Grogar.”

“The pink one I’d totally wrap up like a gift burrito to hand over to my Grogolog,” Hydia said, licking her lips, “Buuuut I’m guessing there’s a reason we’re not just going ham on them right now?’

“Uh, we can totally hear you both!” Pinkie Pie called, “And for the record, come and try it, sister.” Pinkie Pie still had her hammer out and planted the head heavily in front of her, smiling wide, with her teeth sharpening to points very much like Pinkamena’s, “Me and Flutters are here to play nice, but if you want to play a totally different game, I’ve got party tricks even my friends don’t know about.”

Fluttershy didn’t visibly shift her stance, but there was a change in the air about her, as if the calm looking girl had suddenly grown immeasurably more alert and ready to snap into violence, “I would prefer we keep our exchange pleasant today. Even in a place like this, an arena meant for contests of martial prowess, we can maintain a spirit of friendly competition, can we not? It would be very unfortunate to have to deprive the very people we seek to befriend of... such key leaders.”

The threat was clear, as was the simple fact that neither Fluttershy or Pinkie Pie were afraid of being surrounded by Arrancar warriors and two Espada. What was more, whether it was Hydia or Guto themselves, or any of their servants, all could tell this lack of fear was no mere front of false bravado. They all keenly remembered the battle of Sunset Shimmer with their near god-like ruler and the thought was in almost every mind that it was entirely possible these two girls may well possess power in equal strength to their friend who measured up to the standards of Tirek himself.

Guto forced a polite smile, although one not devoid of a certain nasty streak, “Words worthy of an Arrancar. Perhaps you would like to demonstrate this power you have such confidence in, then, Miss Fluttershy? You are the one who defeated Gilda as I understand it. Perhaps we should see how well you measure up to she who has replaced her as my favored warrior? Greta!”

“My lord!” Greta stood from where she’d been waiting, giving Guto a bow, “I would be my pleasure.”

“No.”

All eyes turned to Gilda, who was the one who had spoken. Gilda, face filling with storm clouds, marched until he was at the foot of the steps leading up to Guto’s throne. Guto looked down at her with a mixture of disdain and faint interest, “No? What, do you propose a rematch with your newfound ‘friend’, then? We all might enjoy watching, in detail, how the mighty Tenth Espada lost to a human girl.”

A series of unpleasant laughs rose amid Guto’s warriors, but Gilda ignored the mocking noises and glanced sidelong at Greta, then back at Guto, “No, I mean if you need to entertain yourself by watching some blood spill on the sands, then I’ll fight Greta. After all...” she turned to Greta, trying to recall the friendship they once had, the sisterhood of growing up together under Guto’s rule, “That’s what you want most, isn’t it Greta?”

Guto scoffed, “I’d rather watch the human girls fight instead-”

“Wait, Lord Guto,” Greta said, making Guto’s face darken at the interruption, but Greta bowed again with respect, even as her eyes drilled heated holes into Gilda, “I know it’d entertain everyone to see the humans fight, but I believe Gilda deserves a... chance to demonstrate her worthiness for her title.”

“Oh?” Guto said, eyebrow raising, “Are you making this an official challenge, Greta? That could be... worthwhile.”

Gilda nearly froze. She’d merely intended to make this a chance for Greta and her to work out their feelings in the way warriors like them knew how, but if Greta was making this a challenge for the position of Tenth Espada... “Greta, don’t. I know you’re pissed off at me, maybe even for good reasons, I don’t know. I figure we can fight it out and get it out of your system, but-”

“But nothing,” Greta said, drawing her Zanpaktou in a sharp ring of steel, “You wanted that damn number so badly, you can fight to keep it. Now either get your ass in the ring, or walk away and prove, finally, to all of us how weak and cowardly you really are.”

There was a heaving element to Greta’s breathing, as if her emotions were rising too fast for her to control, and Gilda just stared at her in blinking wonderment. What had happened to Greta since she’d left to become an Espada? Was Greta really this angry at her for not staying in Guto’s horde? Or was there something else going on here? Either way, Gilda didn’t want to fight Greta in an official challenge, as it’d be all the harder to spare her friend’s life in a fight like that.

She felt a warm hand on her arm and glanced over to see Fluttershy next to her. The girl’s kind eyes warmed and calmed Gilda, and Fluttershy said in a quiet voice only they could hear, “You don’t have to do this.”

The implication being that they’d already bought Twilight and her team plenty of time at this point, and Fluttershy was willing to find another way to run down that clock even more without Gilda having to fight her friend. But even if Greta was taking this far too seriously than she should, no, because this clearly was important to Greta... Gilda didn’t think she could afford to just walk away from this. She shook her head, offering Fluttershy only the smallest of smiles, “Nah, it’s cool. I think I need to sort this out.”

Then, she turned fully to Greta, took a deep breath, and drew her Zanpaktou, “Alright. In the pit, then.”

She leaped down to the colosseum sands, striding out to the middle, and felt the rising rush of Greta’s reiatsu as her friend joined her, following her out to the very center of the arena. Even now, the dull brown dirt and sand was spotted with old bits of long dried blood, until the entire field was pockmarked with such testaments to its long, violent history.

“Well then!” Guto clapped his hands and stood, like a sports officiator bellowing to a crowded stadium, “It seems we have a special treat for all to behold! Our very own Greta seeks to take the throne of our former comrade, who seems to think befriending humans is a pathway to power rather than humiliation. Perhaps Gilda will show us how much ‘stronger’ her experiences away from our horde has made her, or perhaps instead my most favored warrior, Greta, will soon be installed as Las Noches’ newest Espada! Let their blood on the sands of this hallowed arena be the proof of their resolve! Warriors, are you prepared?”

Gilda sighed, thinking of how many young Arrancar, barely more than children like she and Greta had been long ago, had listened to that pompous speech before having to kill or be killed by their friends. She looked into Greta’s eyes and readied her sword, “Yeah, let’s get this over with.”

Greta’s eye twitched and her lips curled in a pained and angered sneer, her own Zanpaktou rising in front of her in an aggressive stance, “Ready.”

Guto drew his own gladius styled Zanpaktou, and raised it high for a long, drawn out moment, before lowering it and commanding, “Begin!”

Gilda thought she was prepared. She’d sparred with Greta countless times after they’d joined Guto’s horde, pushing each other to get stronger. She’d always had the edge over her friend, always been the one who’d come out on top, even if she never looked down on Greta for the fact. Greta was never that far behind her in terms of power, and worked as hard as anyone Gilda had known to push herself. In a dead serious fight, Gilda was worried about whether she could beat Greta without doing life threatening harm to her...

There was a crack of shattering air, followed by a Sonido of such intense speed that Gilda swore she thought Greta was still standing still even as she felt the edge of Greta’s blade reach her. Only pure, refined warrior instincts had Gilda’s body moving before she even had time to register her own actions, her own Sonido blurring her as she leaped back. Even so, she felt a raw tear of pain down her chest, and as Guto’s warriors and Hydia’s servants alike all exploded with cheers and roars of excitement over the starting battle... Gilda breathed heavily and looked at Greta with shock.

Blood dripped from her friend’s Zanpaktou, and Gilda wore a shallow red line of bleeding wound down her chest from that opening blow. And Greta did not give her a moment to catch her breath, turning and holding her Zanpaktou in a ready lunging position as she burst forward with another rush of speed. Gilda was a bit more prepared for it this time, managing to scrape her blade along the edge of Greta’s thrust, turning the point away from her heart in a blazing rain of sparks. Greta’s strength still drove both herself and the blade forward, and she slammed her shoulder into Gilda, knocking her to the ground and sending her skidding along until she nearly slammed into the arena’s far wall.

Gilda lost her breath for a second, and felt Greta’s reiatsu as her only warning before her friend, wearing a torn snarl on her face, appeared in the air above Gilda and dropped down, sword first, like a piercing meteor. Gilda rolled aside, throwing her body into a spinning evasion while slashing with her blade in retaliation. Greta struck the ground and smashed the sands in a plume of dirt, and Gilda felt her Zanpaktou strike flesh, tearing a ragged line over the white jerkin that Greta wore.

Rolling into a kneeling slide and then rising to her feet, Gilda kept her blade up, eyes focused as she watched Greta emerge from the small crater her dropping attack had created. Greta’s jerkin was torn across the stomach, a shallow wound bleeding into the white fabric. Greta’s lips almost twitched into a smile.

“So you didn’t go entirely soft on me.”

Gilda sucked in a sharp breath and tensed herself, keeping her guard up as she and Greta started to circle one another slowly, “I haven’t gone soft at all.”

“Not from what I’ve heard and seen,” Greta replied coldly, “Consorting with the same humans you lost to. Hanging out with that stuck up bitch, Adagio, who is clearly disloyal. I don’t know why, Gilda, but you’ve changed, and none of it has made you stronger. You... don’t deserve to be an Espada.”

A rushing of pale green reiatsu flowed off of Greta as she gripped her Zanpaktou in both hands and held it above her head, “So I’ll take it from you, since you don’t seem to actually want it anymore in the first place. Or me.”

Gilda knew what Greta was about to do, and worse, was starting to understand the source of Greta’s pain and anger, “Greta wait-”

“Tear through the storm; Cernicalo!” (Kestrel)

Episode 197: Gilda's Strength

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Episode 197: Gilda’s Strength

With the remains of the four mutated Arrancar, victims of Grogar’s mad experimentation and weapons engineering, still cooling behind them, Adagio and Fenice approached the pyramid-shaped inner sanctum of Chrysalis’ silent bastion. While nowhere near as large as the palace suspended at the top of the rift many hundreds of feet above, this building of sickly, dark green resin was still sizable and filled Adagio with an unnerving sensation of being watched. She sensed no further hostile reiatsu, even the fuzzy kind the mutants had possessed that made them so hard to detect.

The main doors to the pyramid were open, and inside Adagio found a short passage that led to the center of the structure’s interior, which was hollowed out, with a lowered floor akin to a big carved bowl with stone steps encircling it. She blinked at the sight of dozens upon dozens of green, spherical shapes of dark green shells... the remains of eggs, each one the size of a basketball. Fenice, beside her, wrinkled her nose and a bit of lava dripped from her skeletal wing in a hiss.

“Holy hell, no wonder her horde is so damn big,” Fenice muttered, shuddering slightly, “Ugh, don’t need the mental image associated with it, either. Out of all of the Hollows I’ve seen, Chrysalis is by far the creepiest.”

Adagio put a faint smirk on her face, thinking of all of the horrors seen and experienced while she’d been stuck as a captive of Grogar. “I think she has competition in that department, although, yes, I see your point. Going to guess most of these are Tirek’s, assuming she even needs that component for eggs. She might not, for all we know. Not in the mood to speculate too much. Really want to find Thorax and get out of here before ‘mommy dearest’ comes home from... wherever she is.”

That really was a question that was starting to burn a hole right through her gut. There was just no way that Adagio could imagine Chrysalis, of all Espada, just leaving her home empty like this. Well, empty save for a group of Grogar’s horror-show bio-weapons, but that was even more worrying. She’d known Chrysalis and Grogar were in cahoots with each other, but she hadn’t expected the alliance to be quite so tight that Chrysalis would trust Grogar’s monstrosities to guard her lair rather than her own, homegrown drones. What was so important it took every single Arrancar of Chrysalis’ horde, including the queen bitch herself, to be present for it and leave their home base practically empty?

She’d left Pharynx behind, however, perhaps to keep an eye on Grogar and ensure things went as planned here in Las Noches? And Thorax must have known something, and Chrysalis couldn’t afford to let him tell Adagio about it. That was the only thing that made any sense to her, unless Thorax had been playing her the entire time and was in fact completely loyal to Chrysalis... but no, no Adagio didn’t think she’d misjudged his character that badly. She hadn’t gone that soft in the head, yet. Sure, maybe she’d softened up a little bit, lately, perhaps put a bit of faith into this whole “friendship” thing that Sunset was always going on about. But Adagio hadn’t lost her edge so much that Thorax could have pulled the wool over her eyes. It just didn’t track.

So where the hell was he?

Suspended in the center of the large inner chamber was a cocoon-like building made entirely out of spun threads of silken webbing and jade green resin. It was like a twisted spider’s mansion, hanging in a dangling spot over the pyramid’s incubation chamber. Probably so Chrysalis could keep an eye on her children before they hatched. Murderous psycho that she was, Adagio supposed she had to give it to Chrysalis that she was a doting mother. She actually couldn’t see Thorax being hurt or in any real danger, just locked up somewhere. Problem was, it wasn’t as if she’d spotted any convenient dungeons on the way in, and she still couldn’t sense his reiatsu anywhere, despite focusing hard on her Pesquisa the entire time as they walked towards the center of the chamber.

“There’s a few side passages,” Fenice mentioned, nodding off to the left and right, where Adagio could see a few archways leading to corridors that presumably went around the perimeter of the pyramid.

“We could split up,” Adagio said, although she didn’t like the sound of it even as she spoke the words, “But honestly I’d rather we just move faster and start sweeping every room we can.”

Fenice gave Adagio a confident look that Adagio found she liked, as it reminded her that while these two Sunsets might be different from one another, there was a prideful, self-assured core inside both of them that shone with a similar fire. “I can keep up with your Sonido, I’m pretty sure.”

Adagio returned the confident look with a nod, “Then show me.”

The next minute or so passed with the two girls moving in flickering whirlwinds of high-speed motion. First they checked Chrysalis’ abode, and while Adagio was tempted to sort through some of the books she was shocked to see on Chrysalis bookshelf, in fact shocked at the idea of Chrysalis reading anything, she decided they didn’t have time for anything other than being focused on finding Thorax. So once it was clear he wasn’t in there, they swept out into the side passages of the pyramid, zipping from chamber to chamber, of which the outer perimeter was lined with them, several of which may well have suited as a cell to keep an unruly Arrancar.

Yet once the whole building was covered, still no Thorax.

“What the blasted hell?” Adagio growled, feeling her frustration mounting and using it to hide how worried she actually was starting to get about him. “Could he really not be here?”

“Huh...” Fenice’s brow furrowed, but then the girl’s eyes lit up as she looked at Adagio, “Hold on, got a question for you. You’ve got water-based powers, right? Like you control water and stuff?”

Adagio tilted her head to the side, and made a little gesture that summoned forth a conjured globe of swirling water, “Whatever gave you that idea?”

Much to Adagio’s hidden delight, Fenice just grinned at the sarcasm and swept her hand around, “Well, you can summon up a whole bunch of water, right? So if there were, like, any hidden doors or passages in this place, the water would seep through the cracks. You could feel it, or sense it with your crazy water powers, couldn’t you?”

For a moment Adagio had to collect herself, then kick herself for having not thought of that herself! “Okay, you’ve officially made yourself one of my most useful vassals, Fenice.”

“Frieeeend. F. R. I. E. N. D. Say it with me,” Fenice chuckled, clearly not actually taking any offense, and Adagio shared the brief laugh and shook her head.

“Person whose company is sufficiently pleasant for me to continue enduring it. There. Happy?”

“It’ll do. For now. Now c’mon, make with the waterworks,” Fenice said, then blinked as she appeared to think of something, “Actually on second thought perhaps I should wait outside before you-”

But Adagio was already bringing forth her power, all but exploding with thick waves of water that washed out around her in a massive, gushing tide. Fenice made a startled ‘yorp!’ sound, but Adagio, in her infinite magnanimousness, directed the water to create an air bubble around Fenice as it continued to be conjured forth in wave after frothing wave. With Adagio’s present level of power, it barely took more than a few seconds for her to quickly flood the pyramid, even sensing the water rapidly spilling forth into the larger rift beyond. She didn’t much care if some of the water might ruin Chrysalis’ little web-house. She was all in at this point on the “piss Chrysalis off and damn the consequences” part of the plan. If her fears turned out to be true, it wasn’t as if there was much more time to pretend to be at all on Tirek’s side of this war.

As Fenice had surmised, Adagio had an innate sense of the water she could create, as it was formed from the reishi of her Hollow power. So she felt every gallon of it as it flooded through the chambers of the pyramid and the caverns outside. She sensed every nook and cranny that her water soaked through, and as she spread her senses through the mass of water.... she realized that indeed there was a space where water was seeping through small seams in the stone floor of the incubation chamber.

It took a minute, but she soon let the tides of water subside, instead focusing and concentrating the pressure of her water at a spot on the far side of the entry passage, no more than fifty paces from where she and Fenice were standing. She let the water seep in further into those hidden seams, until the water gathered at the... stairway on the other side? With a moment or so more, she had enough water to push the stone block hiding the secret passage on the other side, sending it flying up on a jet of pressurized water.

As the water finally went still, and they were left standing in about two feet of the stuff, Fenice looked at the crashed stone door and the passage of stairs leading down and splashed a bit of water with her foot at Adagio, “Went a little overboard, didn’t you?”

“I like to be thorough,” Adagio replied, “And it worked, didn’t it?”

“True,” Fenice’s joking expression melted away to grow serious, like lava hardening into rock, “Got to wonder what someone like Chrysalis decides to keep behind a secret door right under where she sleeps.”

Adagio squared her shoulders and started walking to the opening in the floor, “We’re about to find out.”

Up close it was clear to see that the secret passage was no small affair, but a rather sizeable space with stairs wide enough that ten or more people could march down it shoulder to shoulder. Perfectly sized, in fact, for moving a large group of people in or out of whatever lay beyond the stairs, which curved down at a steady, curving angle. Adagio kept her trident at the ready as she walked down, eyes narrowed, lips pressed tightly together as her mind placed itself in Chrysalis’ headspace.

I’ve been so focused on my own plans to overthrow Tirek that I haven’t spent enough time considering my other competition. Chrysalis... What is it she really wants? I know from Sunset that she’s allied with Starlight Glimmer, and I’ve always assumed the point of that was to acquire more power so she could backstab Tirek one day. Mistake on my part, making any assumptions at all about someone as unstable in the brainpan as Chrysalis. Worse, we don’t know what’s been happening in Equestria lately. Something could have occurred there to change the pieces on the board... dammit, I hate playing blind, having to make my moves without being able to see the whole picture.

The stairs went down a fair distance, and when they opened up from a curved archway into a new, circular chamber, Adagio looked up to see the stairs had partially been part of a stone pillar that went down into this cylindrical shaped space. Numerous openings covered in green resin were built into the wall circling the chamber, which had the scent of fear and blood leaking through the air. Adagio flinched at the sensation, if only for a second, and realized the resin doors were partially transparent, and that she could see within them were what looked like cells. Hollows, all of them Adjuchas class, were chained up inside these cells, dozens of them arranged like wall decorations, most barely conscious.

“Adagio... what is this?” Fenice asked, “Chrysalis’ prison? Or personal pantry?”

“I don’t think so,” Adagio said, shaking her head in confusion, “She wouldn’t bother hiding either of those. Look... there’s pipes in the walls.”

The same kind of metallic piping that Gaw, Di Roy, Roka, and Fenice had found in the Warrens was melded into the walls of the chamber, and ran through the cells, with each and every Hollow prisoner hooked up to them by metal bands that wrapped around them alongside their chains. There was a constant, low pulsation of reiatsu flowing through the pipes and through the captive Hollows. The sight made Adagio’s gut twist, but she didn’t have time to wallow in sympathy.

“We’ll free them if we have time,” she told a worried looking Fenice, “But we check around for Thorax, first. There’s one door that doesn’t lead to a cell.”

This door was directly across from the stairway pillar, and its resin was shaped less like a solid, semi-transparent wall, and more like an actual door with a pair of handles to pull it open. Adagio, feeling less and less inclined towards patience, went right up to it and proceeded to lift her right leg and slam her heel in a straight on kick with all her strength right into the center of the door. The resin shattered and the doors went flying off their hinges, revealing beyond an even wider space... and a bright flicker of white and blue light that for a moment almost blinded Adagio.

“Subtle,” Fenice commented on the broken doors, and blinking, followed Adagio into the room beyond, and both of them gawked for a moment.

Adagio had heard of Sunset’s misadventures in Soul Society. She knew, at least in general bullet points, what had happened there. The chaos that Celestia and Luna’s capture had caused, the brief quasi-civil war that had occurred between the Soul Reapers as Sunset and her friends rushed in to try and rescue the erstwhile sisters. She knew that Starlight Glimmer and Chrysalis had been behind the whole plot, all so that Starlight could steal the power of this execution weapon called the Sokyoku, and then hijack the Soul Reaper’s secret weapons laboratory, Hitsuyo-Aku. And the purpose of doing all of that had been to get ahold of a unique item crafted by the Soul Reapers, an powerful portal device that could pierce the barrier between realities and ferry Starlight and her cronies, along with Hitsuyo-Aku, all the way to Equestria in an instant!

“Oh shit... the Cross Gate...” Adagio said, staring ahead, “They replicated it here.”

Sunset had never described it to Adagio, but she could guess at what she was looking at. There were four large, curved, very talon-like pillars of dark metal and green coated resin that rose from a disc of metal, all pointed inward. In front of the disc was an obelisk of black metal with more green resin forming a makeshift control console of sorts. The flickering white and blue light came from a swirling vortex of energy that was being generated by the four pillars, creating an opening in space that Adagio could see through and vaguely make out what looked like a dark chamber beyond... presumably the other side of the original Cross Gate.

More of those metal pipes grew in a thick nest through this chamber, massing through the ceiling and floor to gather around and then merge with the disc supporting the Cross Gate. Adagio could feel the power seeping into it, reiatsu being drawn from the Adjuchas prisoners in the other chamber. Prisoners who’d been there for who knew how long? Weeks? Months? Starlight had used the Sokyoku to power her Cross Gate. Could Hollows be converted over the course of months to result in similar power? Chrysalis could have had her drones capture an endless supply from Hueco Mundo’s wasteland, just putting more in when the present stock got drained dry.

But Grogar... she would’ve needed Grogar to set all this up. Had Chrysalis worked all of that out before she even infiltrated Soul Society with Starlight Glimmer? Grogar, sick genius that he was, very likely could have replicated the Soul Reaper’s technology, if Chrysalis had handed over everything in Hitsuyo-Aku’s database over to him.

Hell, that’s probably exactly what happened. This is... this is what Thorax meant when he told me he had an alternative means of getting me to Equestria. He’s known about this second, Hollow-built and powered Cross Gate since the very start. Its how Chrysalis moves so easily back and forth between the two worlds. I thought it was just the original Cross Gate doing the jumps, but if they linked up two of them, it’d be even easier... easy enough to move a whole army through.

An army that was probably in Equestria right now! Chrysalis was moving her entire damn horde into Equestria... which Starlight Glimmer never would’ve tolerated, Adagio felt certain. Which meant something must have happened to Starlight, otherwise Chrysalis wouldn’t pull a move like this.

All of her speculation was put on hold, however, as she noticed that on the left side of the chamber, there was a pillar of resin in all different shades of green and black, and trapped inside the pillar was Thorax!

“Thorax!” Adagio didn’t even notice the tone of her own voice as she rushed to the pillar, Fenice right behind her. She halted at the pillar’s base, one hand on the resin as she looked at his face. His eyes were closed, as if he was sleeping, his body suspended like a proverbial bug trapped in amber. She couldn’t see him breathing, but she pushed her Pesquisa’s senses into the thick, hardened resin prison and breathed a deep sigh of relief as she felt his reiatsu.

“Oh good, he's alive. Thank the ocean...”

Fenice gave her an odd look, and Adagio, realizing just how relieved she felt, and the rather embarrassing display of those emotions, swiftly put on a glare and held her head high in challenge, “I mean, we need him to tell us what this is all about, after all.”

“Riiiiight,” Fenice said with a smug grin that Adagio really wanted to punch, but that’d just confirm everything Fenice was probably thinking, which wasn’t helped as Fenice added, “Thank the ocean?”

“Ugh, just an old phrase from back home. We don’t really do ‘gods’ in Equestria,” Adagio said, shaking her head, “Nevermind that. Let’s get this big lummox out of there so I can properly yell at him for getting his fool-self put in this situation in the first place.”

Given her performance with the doors, she didn’t think this resin pillar would keep her out. That said, she didn’t want to hurt Thorax, so rather than just smash the thing with her fist, she conjured up a pair of water spheres and then expelled a highly focused line of pressurized water from each. The lines of cutting water delicately sawed through the resin, carving away at it until a neatly spaced opening was made that allowed Adagio to reach in and tear away the last bits of resin holding Thorax inside. A few moments later and she had him in her arms, having set her trident aside so she could gently lay him on the ground.

Before she could fully set him down and stand away, he opened his eyes with her still holding his head in an entirely too tender position for Adagio’s liking. Especially when he looked up at her from nearly her lap and smiled in a wide, beaming, and entirely too sultry manner, “Oh, my goddess come to save my delectable rear from the frying pan? I am either dreaming one of several dreams I’ve had about you that lead to all manner of debauchery, or... wait, is this real?”

Adagio dropped him with a huff, letting his head smack to the ground as she stood and scooped up her trident, “Hmph! I see you’re no worse for wear after your mother apparently put you in a time out box! Debauchery indeed! Get your head out of the gutter, Thorax, and please focus. We came to find you and learn why you went missing. Apparently Chrysalis didn’t want me knowing she has a Cross Gate for moving armies around, did she?”

Thorax sat up, rubbing his head with exaggerated motions, despite Adagio knowing full well that drop wouldn’t have hurt him at all. He stood, cracking his back and stretching his limbs with a groan, then his expression gave her and Fenice a curious look, then a surprisingly soft smile, “It seems you already put together some of it. I’ll tell you the rest in a second, but first I do want to thank you for coming. Haven’t been wrapped up like that by mother in... a long time.”

He blinked, doing a double take towards Fenice, “I see you’ve undergone some fashion changes. How long have I been out?”

Fenice rolled her eyes, “Not that long, but it’s been a busy day. Now what the heck is going on here?”

Thorax’s expression lost any hint of joking manner as he gave the Cross Gate a narrow eyed, stone laden look, “Mother has switched to her ‘Plan B’. ‘Plan A’ was always Starlight Glimmer, but that has apparently fallen through.”

Adagio clenched her hands around her trident, wondering just what could’ve happened to Starlight Glimmer in the first place. “So what’s her ‘Plan B’? Invading Equestria directly sounds dicey, even with her whole horde. The Princesses are not to be underestimated, and Equestria has enough magical firepower to give any one Espada’s horde a run for its money, even Chrysalis’.”

Throax’s eyes were not comforting as he nodded, “You’re right, and after spending time there, mother knows that. Which is why she’s not planning to invade with just our horde. We’re just the vanguard meant to secure our new base of operations. And if you’re here, that means you got here without the horde present to stop you. That means mother is already on the other side... which means we don’t have a lot of time before she uses the two Cross Gates to-”

“Incorrect, my young, foolish friend.”

Adagio, Fenice, and Thorax all spun to see Grogar stride into the chamber with all of the confidence in his aged, withered form as a grizzled alley cat that just caught a mouse. Beside him walked another pair of his cybernetically altered and mutated Arrancar monstrosities, each one more grotesque than the last. Seeing Grogar along with his pet monsters would've been back enough, but then a group of small, white, furry Arrancar Bushwoolies waddled in right behind him, and Adagio felt the reiatsu of their mistress flaring up before the woman entered the room! Walking in with a smug sway to her hips like she owned the place, or at least was severely judging the décor, was Catrina. The Third Espada had her hands tapping her slim chin with a look of keen interest in her jewel green eyes as she gazed at the trio of Adagio, Fenice, and thorax.

Grogar, smiling with dark satisfaction, stared right at Adagio, although there was a flicker of cold scientific curiosity after a brief glance at Fenice.

“It is not that you ‘don’t have a lot of time’," he said with his sandpaper voice, "You, in fact, have no time left at all.”

----------

Wind soared in a cyclone through the large, underground arena. The spectating Arrancar on both Guto and Hydia’s side howled with delight, eager for the bloodletting to grow more intense, now that Greta had unleashed her Resurreccion. Many gazed expectantly at Gilda, figuring that she, too, would make use of her Resurreccion while Greta was still in the process of transforming.

Instead Gilda just wore an increasingly disgusted look as her eyes flicked sideways towards Guto on his throne. The man sat with the stiff and prideful stature of an emperor watching choice gladiators entertain him, as if the outcome of this fight meant nothing more than an evening’s sport. It rankled and boiled in Gilda’s blood. How much had she and Greata sacrificed for his vanity, his self-absorbed desire to own everything around him? She cast her eyes over the cheering and equally jeering warriors in the stands, many of whom she recognized as former comrades she’d fought beside. Did any of them understand how much Guto had stolen from them? With his grueling treatment, his ‘trials’, of young desperate Arrancar, grinding down their hopes and aspirations until they were honed to a fine killing edge that were willing to spill the blood of their brothers and sisters just to... be considered one of Guto’s ‘elites’.

She’d been no different. Desperate to be strong. Desperate to be looked upon with value by her Espada. Loyal, loyal, loyal, even when the punishments were harsh, because of course didn’t they have to be, for failing one who was so generous as to give worthless wretches like her a chance at glory and power?

It made Gilda want to vomit, now. It pissed her off, like a thick acid in her veins. Oh, she was mad at Guto, but a lot of her anger was also directed at herself for having been such a thick headed moron for so many years. Why had it taken such a buttery, flowery, kind hearted sap like Fluttershy to smack some sense to Gilda, both metaphorically and literally?

Because compassion, empathy, kindness was part of a strength Guto didn’t grasp, and sure as hell couldn’t pass down to his so-called warriors. Even he was little more than a product of the larger system of power-obsession and might equaling right that Tirek presided over like some immovable god.

Maybe that was why Gilda felt such a strong desire to help Fluttershy, much as it galled her. In Fluttershy, her friends, and even that smug faced Adagio... there lay perhaps the only hope Gilda saw for those like herself and Greta to break free of the system. Or at least change it even slightly for the better. That, more than anything else right now, seemed worth fighting for, perhaps even dying for, if it came to that.

Her hand gripped her Zanpaktou tightly, eyes still half focused on Guto. Certainly worth killing for, if we can pull it off.

But right now she had to turn her full attention to Greta. The thick cyclone of winds had started to subside, sand kicked up by the swift swirl of air now falling away to reveal Greta’s new form. And Gilda felt a lurch in her chest as she saw it, for she knew what Greta’s Resurreccion was supposed to look like! She’d fought alongside Greta in this state plenty of times.

This wasn’t the same. Oh, it had similarities, but Gilda would’ve needed to be blind not to see the glint of metallic, cybernetic enhancements blossoming along Greta’s body, and Gilda’s eyes grew with sickened anger.

“What did you do, Greta?”

Greta’s face was partially obscured by a fall of metallic, silver strands, her mane of white and green tinted hair now shot through with silver. Her arms were covered in sharp wings whose feathers were more akin to jagged blades. In the past, these would have been the white of bone, along with the razor edged bone spurs along the top of her arms, but now Gilda saw metal lacing through the feather blades, edging them in serrated teeth. Greta’s body had a taller, more hunched and avian form, like that of a harpy with her torso still mostly human, but her feet feather coated bird legs, the feathers razor sharp, and her talons thick and ending in piercing claws. However along her legs were now strange metal pods connected to hoses that went into her sides. Normally Greta’s back was left bare in this form save for a spinal length of bone armor, but with her clear modifications Gilda saw Greta had a pair of what looked like winged get boosters grafted to her shoulders. Her tail was at least the same, a long segmented whip of sharp bone that ended in a fan of bladed feathers. Greta’s face was also largely unchanged, save for the valkyrie-like white wings that flowed from her temples, and the specks of bone white, small feathers around her brow and eyes.

At Gilda’s question, Greta frowned, her ire still written plain on her changed features, “Only what I had to, in order to get stronger! Stronger than you. Stronger than Thorax. Stronger than anyone who’d turn their backs on me. Lord Grogar has been offering plenty of gifts to those loyal to Lord Tirek, and Lord Guto’s whole army is on the docket for upgrades, at least for those who prove themselves actually loyal... unlike someone like you.”

Gilda’s jaw tightened, her voice hoarse, “I was loyal, but I’ve got my eyes open to how much we’re being used, Greta. I’m sorry I didn’t come to you sooner. I’m still not sure what changed with you after Everfree-”

“I wasn’t at Everfree, Gilda!” Greta snarled, and green light blasted from the jet boosters on her back, and with a powerful, straight on Sonido she rammed herself right towards Gilda. Gilda barely had time to register the buzz of noise from the feathers on one of Greta’s wings vibrating at high frequency. This was part of her natural Ressureccion’s power, but Gilda sensed it’d been enhanced by the metal added to the feather blades.

She tried to dodge, but felt the horrible bite of pain in her side as a thick slice drew a line of blood across her hip. Her Hierro was useless against Greta’s sonic wing blades. Even without Grogar’s enhancements, those vibrating feathers were a terror on any kind of armor, and could even penetrate many spiritual barriers.

Greta’s head on rush left her slamming into the arena wall, and she’d leaped and turned to impact the stone feet-first, her talons crunching into the wall with tremendous force. Her eyes were locked on Gilda, who’s partial dodge had sent her sprawling halfway across the sands, and Greta blasted herself off the wall for another full speed rush, her jet boosters flaring.

Gilda sliced the ground in front of her, flinging a scatter shot of rock and dirt chunks into Greta’s path as she tried to flip over the attack. However Greta sliced right through the distracting barrage of debris and altered course with an incredible hairpin turn that sent her flying right at Gilda as she flipped. Gilda barely got her Zanpaktou in the path of Greta’s next wing attack, the vibrating feather blades making an ear piercing whine as they slammed into Gilda’s sword and rained sparks down upon the arena. Gilda felt her arm go numb from the vibrations, and saw Greta raise her right wing in preparation to slice while Gilda’s sword was occupied with Greta’s left wing.

With no other option, Gilda opened her mouth and fired a point blank Cero of crimson power right into Greta, driving her friend back down to the arena floor in a bright blast of ruby energy. Before Gilda even had time to fully land back on the arena ground, Greta swung her wings and dissipated Gilda’s Cero. Her body did smoke a little from the blast. Even in Resurreccion, even with Grogar’s enhancements, Greta couldn’t just walk away from a point blank Cero as if it was nothing. Still, the damage was little more than a few scorch marks, and Greta’s expression grew darker as she glared daggers at Gilda.

“What do you mean you weren’t at Everfree?” Gilda asked, hoping to learn what this was all about, while also buying herself a moment to breathe.

Greta gained a sarcastically twisted smirk as she said, “What, did your bestest best new friend Adagio not tell you? That it wasn’t me who went with you to Everfree, but Thorax?” At Gilda’s wide eyes, Greta huffed a bitter laugh, “Couldn’t even tell, could you? I thought I could trust him, and he freakin’ drugged me and took my place. Nothing I could even do about it, even after the fact, because he’s goddamn Chrysalis’ favored child! I... am never trusting him again.”

Gilda felt as if the ground under her feet was unsteady, and she shook her head, trying to work out just how pissed off she ought to be at Thorax. Or Adagio, assuming she knew. Why did Thorax replace Greta like that? “I... I thought maybe you’d been acting a bit odd, but... shit, I didn’t know, Greta! I swear I had no idea! But I promise I’ll find out, even if I have to slap an answer right out both his and Adagio’s faces when I see them again.”

“Touching, really,” Greta said, bitterness still tainting her tone, “But don’t bother. I don’t really care what their reasons were. I’m mad at them, but I’m more mad at you for getting duped, then switching teams, without even talking to me about what was going through your head. Now it’s too late. You picked your side, and by the end of today either you’re dead and I’m then new Tenth Espada or...” she trailed off, no pleasure or anticipation on her face, “There isn’t any ‘or’. I have to do this, otherwise you’re just as dead, only by Lord Guto’s hand, or someone else’s gunning for your spot. The very least I can do, as someone who thought of you as a friend, is be the one who cuts you down. I owe you that much.”

She held her wings out to the side and the outer layer of vibrating feathers shimmered with an edge of fierce, jade light. In a sickeningly swift storm, a dozen feathers from each wing shot out and flew in curving arcs towards Gilda. Only the fact that Gilda was familiar with this attack from having seen Greta use it in the past allowed her to survive it as she charged in, bobbing and weaving her body in slick bursts of Sonido as she swung her Zanpaktou about, deflecting one razor feather after another. Still, even anticipating the attack, the speed of these flying feathers was such that Gilda couldn’t evade or deflect all of them, and she felt the terrible pain of one of them slicing the back of her leg, just below the left knee. It nearly sent her crashing to the ground, but instead she used her remaining good leg to spring forward with one last Sonido and get behind Greta. Her blade swung in a flashing arc, aiming for one of Grogar’s cybernetic jet pods.

Greta twisted, zipping away with a Sonido of her own, but Gilda did feel the jarring bite of her sword managing to strike one of the pods, scoring it with a gash of sparks. Greta landed a dozen yards away, and with a fling of her right wing, she still controlled the feathers that had detached from her, and they swarmed towards Gilda.

For her part, Gilda sighed, talking almost to herself, as if time was slowing down as she ignored the pain in her leg and stood to her full height. Red spiritual energy mixed with violet as an aura of reiatsu built around her.

“I get it, Greta. You won’t listen. I’m no Fluttershy. So we’ll do this our way instead...” As the storm of razor sharp feathers were about to strike her, she growled out, “Rend; Bestia Herida!” (Wounded Beast)

The eruption of raw red and deep violet power engulfed her and swirled upwards until it crashed into the ceiling, shaking the arena as she unleashed her Resurreccion. Greta’s flying feathers were all knocked away like twigs in a wind storm, and Greta raised her wings to accept them back as they flew to her. Her eyes were locked on Gilda’s blinding aura of power, only a bit of her anger fading as a glint of satisfaction lit her eyes, “About time, Gilda. I thought you were going ot let me kick you around like a sad sack forever. I don’t want to kill you and take your place without you going all out on me, dammit. I don’t want to do this without it being... done right, my all versus your all.”

Gilda’s voice echoed from the dissipating plumb of raw crimson and purple energies that were released from her transforming body, and she stepped forth in her Resurreccion form, lion-maned spear at the ready. Seeing them side by side, one could see the similarities between the two, and might’ve thought there was some blood relation. Gilda’s form had the lower body of a lion, golden fur and claws to mirror Greta’s avian lower half. Her upper body, clad now in bone white armor in Roman centurion style had echos of the harpy myth Greta’s form clearly resembled. Both of them even had tails in this form, Greta’s the thin whip-like extension of bone, while Gilda’s was a beefier barbed tail like a pale scorpion. The biggest difference now was the cybernetics built into Greta’s body, like metallic tumors, the jet engine pod Gilda had damaged sparking slightly.

“I’ll give you my all,” Gilda stated bluntly, “But only because after I beat your ass, I’m going to make you listen to my apology for letting Thorax do that to you, then I’m going to find and kick his ass. After that, who knows, I might get ambitious and kick Guto’s ass too!”

From his throne the Espada in question raised a very annoyed and skeptical eyebrow, “Someone is getting bold beyond their station.”

“She’s grown to understand her own self-worth and that of those she cares for,” Fluttershy said with serene bluntness, side-eyeing him from where she stood a few steps down, “Something you took from her and others like her when they were still children.”

“Which, gonna outright say, major ew and creepozoid factor with all the making kids fight and kill each other,” Pinkie Pie said, her cotton-candy hair bristling like an irate hedgehog, and a few Arrancar nearby her scooted away as they noticed a rather growing shade of darkly pink-hued shadow that crept out from the base of Pinkie’s feet like a menacing sludge of melting candy.

Hydia took note, eyeing Pinkie with interest and a mixture of hunger and ire in equal measure on her broad features. Her two daughters were too captivated by the arena fight to be paying much mind to the peanut gallery. Guto, for his part, looked at Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie as if he still couldn’t decide if he should be cordial to them like guests, or gut them like offending vermin. He settled for sitting back in his throne and turning his attention back to the fight as he said, “I give nothing to my warriors, other than a path to strength. One that Gilda and Greta both willingly followed, until you tainted the former with your saccharine words. Soon, she’ll pay the price for allowing that weakness into her mind.”

Gilda and Greta squared off against one another for a moment, both measuring each other’s stances and reiatsu. Now in her Resurreccion form, Gilda’s spiritual pressure readily clashed with Greta’s, although those most perceptive in sensing energy would be able to tell that Greta, possibly due to Grogar’s modifications to her body, held a slight edge. But only slight. Gilda had always been the stronger of the two, and it showed now in the fact that even enhanced as she was, Greta didn’t hold a decisive advantage. Transforming had also reduced Gilda’s wounds, giving her body a brief burst of regeneration.

There was no more exchange of words between the two, despite the fact that Greta’s expression was now less filled with rage and more focused, almost relieved it seemed, to hear Gilda’s declaration, as if Gilda’s words confirmed her friend was still someone she recognized.

Greta made the first move, leaping into the air and spinning as her wings vibrated. A fresh barrage of piercing feathers flew out, half of them going right for Gilda... while the other half rather oddly went nowhere other than straight down into the sandy floor of the arena where they penetrated into the ground and vanished from sight. With a whole new level of speed and reflexes, Gilda spun her broad-bladed spear around her body, generating gusts of wind force as the weapon hummed through the air. The vibrating feather blades deflected off of the shaft of Gilda’s spear, sent spinning away.

A microsecond later, the ground around her rippled as the other set of ungodly sharp feathers flew out of the sands, coming at her from below. Gilda flipped her body and slammed her spear into the ground, generating an explosion of force that created a wide crater in the arena floor and sent her flying upwards away from the feather blades, even as they narrowly grazed her with their vibrating edges. Blood dripped from the shallow wounds, but Gilda didn’t lose a moment of focus, aiming her spear down as the feathers chased her. Crackles of ruby light coursed over the spear and a moment later was followed by a rapid expulsion of Bala reishi bullets that rained down upon the feathers, blasting most of them apart.

Greta rushed Gilda from the side while the feathers had her distracted, and it was now the pods on her legs that opened up, revealing extending spikes on one and end smaller thrusters on the other. The spikes, like her wing feathers, vibrated at high frequency as Greta spun her body into a double kick with both her harpy talons and the spiked pods crashing right at Gilda’s face and body.

Gilda spun to defend herself, feeling her spear vibrate as she parried the kick aimed at her face, but she took the body blow, and felt the raw jab of searing pain from the spikes drilling into her flank. Greta’s look of satisfaction was short lived, however, as a grimly determined Gilda used her right hand to grab Greta’s leg, rip the spikes from her side, and then proceeded to rocket her body straight down to the ground, dragging Greta with her. Greta was body slammed, one handed by Gilda, straight into the floor, making the whole arena shudder from the impact. Not letting up for a split second, Gilda kept her grip on Greta’s leg and spun her around rapidly like a top, and after a few fast rotations that created a small tornado in the arena, she released Greta and flung her straight into the nearest arena wall with tremendous force.

Greta coughed as the impact burst blood from her mouth and almost crumpled, but managed to right herself as she fell and landed on her feet. A good thing for her, as Gilda was already making a swiping gesture with her spear. The lion mane at the base of the spear’s blade grew sanguine with acidic blood, crawling like veins up the spear until the blade was covered in a thick sheath of smoking red acid. Gilda thrust her spear forward and a thick torrent of multiple acidic tendrils flew at Greta as Gilda intoned, “Derritiendo Venas!” (Melting Veins)

In response Greta flung her wings outward, and a new cascade of bladed feathers flew out. These feathers instantly spiraled around in front of Greta and locked together, forming a jagged, sharp shield over ten feet across that took the impact of Gilda’s acid blood assault. The blood still sprayed everywhere as it hosed against the shield of feathers, filling the arena with an acrid stench as sand melted in puddles. No small amount of Arrancar in the ‘splash zone’ of the nearby spectator benches let out cries of pain and dismay as some of the acid splashed towards them, most scrambling out of the way while others nursed burning spots where stray drops got on them.

Greta flew up in a flash of speed, zipping around to Gilda’s right side. At the same time the shield of combined feathers, while partially melted from the acid blood, remained intact enough that the feathers now moved at Greta’s direction and flew right at Gilda, spinning like an aerial buzzsaw. Gilda didn’t even look at it while raising her spear in her right hand alone, and brought the weapon down with such force that it hit the shield and sliced it in half. As the two halves flew past Gilda, she had kept her eyes on Greta, who was using Sonido and the jet engines on her back to burst around the air at such speed as to try and confuse Gilda’s senses. As she did so, Greta kept detaching feathers from her wings, but rather than attack in mass, the feathers just hung in the air, vibrating more and more as they floated around.

This was a new one on Gilda. She’d never seen Greta pull a move like this before, and had to give her friend a moment of respect. Either Greta had thought up this technique recently, or had always kept it in her back pocket and never shown it to Gilda, just in case. Either way, Gilda had to respect the smarts of that, as she sure didn’t have any similar moves that Greta wasn’t aware of.

Rather than wait to see what Greta had in store for her, Gilda decided to try and shut this technique down in the most straightforward manner possible. Throwing her left hand out, she pooled crimson power within and exploded a full powered Cero out in a wide path of destruction. She kept the beam going, sweeping it left to right to try and destroy the vibrating feathers before they finished doing whatever it was they were doing. The beam smashed into the ceiling, making everything shake. Fortunately this arena and the surrounding underground structure was heavily reinforced to withstand immense punishment, but it wasn’t really meant for Espada-level opponents, so Gilda’s Cero still managed to rip a furrow in the ceiling and drop hundreds of tons of rock down.

Greta avoided the falling debris as swiftly as the Cero, and unfortunately for Gilda while she’d destroyed half of the feathers with ease, Greta had distributed so many of them and in such a wide area that Gilda’s Cero couldn’t get all of them. Even as Gilda’s beam petered out, more feathers floated nearby, and Greta, finishing deploying a few more, appeared in a buzz of Sonido across from Gilda as she raised her tail from behind her. At the pointed tip of the tail a similar gathering of energy to a Cero occurred, but smaller, more focused, and distinctly pale green.

“Cero Rebufo!” (Cero Slipstream)

A thin, focused beam of green Hollow energy fired from Greta’s tail and struck the nearest floating feather. The vibrations seemed to split the beam and send it scattering in several other directions... right into other feathers, which then split the beam magnitudes of times further. Yet for each feather, energy was added from the feather to the beams, so the Cero didn’t lose destructive impact as it kept splitting. In less than a second the single Cero beam became a blinding array of scores if not hundreds of crisscrossing beams that all cut into and around the area Gilda was standing in!

Gilda could barely follow the movements, let alone do much to dodge. All she could do was spin her spear around her with such speed and force it effectively created a dome of air pressure and raw force around her. Even then, this only did so much to defend her, as beams from the Cero Rebufo sliced through and pierced her in various places, including her left bicep, her right thigh, her left hip and shoulder, and even through her scorpion tail. Speaking of said tail, as the beams struck her, she drove it into the ground and used it to dig through the sands.

Greta was so focused on watching the effects of her attack, that she almost didn’t notice the burrowing scorpion tail burst out of the sand and slash at her. She grunted in pain as the barb on the end tore one of the cybernetic pods from her right leg, not striking flesh but still hurting as the spike pods were torn off of her flesh. The Cero Rebufo ended, the Cero beam’s energy used up, and Gilda was left with several smoking holes in her as she staggered, letting out a snarl of pain past clenched teeth.

The feathers that had been used to disperse the Cero beam now hovered around Gilda, their razor sharp points aimed at her in preparation to fly at her, while Greta kept half an eye on Gilda’s tail as it withdrew back to her.

“You put up a fight, but it looks clear to me how this is going to go,” Greta said, “You’re too hurt to dodge another barrage of my feathers, and I can just keep making more. It’s over, Gilda.”

Gilda heard no sense of satisfaction or jubilation in Greta’s voice. If anything Greta sounded as if she was forcing even the gloating. She glanced towards Guto, who was watching with far more satisfaction glowing in his smug eyes than Greta was showing. He was leaning forward, looking down his nose at her, as if to say ‘This was the inevitable result of you disappointing me’.

Apparently in his disdain for her, he’d forgotten that she was an Espada, even if the lowest ranked. Greta, perhaps, was also making the mistake of thinking Gilda was still essentially the same after becoming an Espada.

Gilda lowered her spear. To anyone looking it almost would’ve looked like she was giving up, as if preparing to let the feathers floating with menace in the air pierce her body from all sides. She saw Greta gain a confused look, and even more disdain coat Guto’s face. She almost laughed, but instead just silently smiled.

Do or die in this moment, she wasn’t the same person who’d served Guto with blind faith for so many years, or envied Adagio until she was all but maddened by it. She and Adagio would never see eye to eye on a lot of things, especially Thorax related things, but one thing Gilda felt like she did understand now was that a part of Adagio’s strength, same as with Fluttershy, was that they pursued goals greater than just themselves. Adagio mixed that with practical, intelligent planning, and Fluttershy augmented her actions with pure compassion and serenity that let her see other’s more clearly.

Gilda... well she didn’t have either of those. But she did have a goal now beyond herself, and her way of doing things, her strength, was she could always find the blunt solution to a complicated problem.

Heh, Twilight wanted us to keep everyone here distracted. I’ll deliver that much in spades.

It was almost too easy with how much she was bleeding. Blood being the catalyst for the power shown only to those who earned the rank of Espada. And Gilda had worked out a twist to it, utilizing her natural blood combined with the acidic blood produced by her spear. With her left hand she gathered blood from her various wounds, and then gripped the lion’s mane attached to her spearhead and ran the blood over it. This blood mixed with the acid blood produced by the mane, and as Gilda mixed the two bloods together a spark or raw cerulean energy began to swirl and snap around her spear.

Greta, as if sensing the sudden danger, sent her feather blades flying at Gilda while using her wings to enshroud herself in a defensive shield as even more feathers grew around her in a shell. Several of the flying feathers stabbed into Gilda, but she ignored the painful wounds and spun her spear in a sudden cyclone above her head as the raw, distinctive blue energy flared brighter flaring arcs of power, shot through with acid veins of red.

”Mordaz Gran Rey Cero!” (Scathing Royal Hollow Flash)

The majority of the spectators in the seats around the arena were throwing themselves back, many using Sonido to try and get away from the epicenter of what any Hollow present could sense was going to be a devastating attack far outside the bounds of the arena edge. Even Guto and Hydia reacted, Guto standing up from his throne and holding out a hand with an annoyed and only slightly concerned grimace while Hydia actively grabbed her daughters by their heads and tossed them behind her while drawing her Zanpaktou in a defensive posture.

Pinkie and Fluttershy didn’t move back or dodge, but Fluttershy did expand a series of golden arms from her Fullbring’s halo to encompass protectively around herself, Pinkie, and any nearby Arrancar warriors who were reacting too slowly.

All of this happened in the split second of Gilda shouting her attack as a sudden explosive typhoon of churning blue and red power surged out of her in a wide dome that fired outward as much as it did upward, like a bursting waterspout. This Gran Rey Cero boiled over with melting veins of blood, drowning the whole arena in destruction, while the bulk of the beam also fired upward and cored through the ceiling in a cascade that destroyed even the reinforced stone and burrowed to the surface. Indeed on the surface, right next to Guto’s tower, the Mordaz Gran Rey Cero’s energies tore up and through the sands and flew up, nearly touching Las Noches’ own vast ceiling high above.

When it was done, and the main pillar of energy dissipated, there was still a soft rain of blood red acid that smoked along the sands for hundreds of yards around and even pelted the tower.

The artificial light from above filtered down the hole and into the now ruined arena. Half the seating was melted away, and the arena had gone from a neatly rectangular space to a jagged oval of partially melted and destroyed stone. Most of the Arrancar had managed to get clear in time, and Fluttershy specifically had protected any near her with her golden arms generating reinforced shells of reiatsu around them. She and Pinkie were mostly unharmed, Pinkie having slammed her hammer into the wave of power that had come their way, the hammer gaining a hungry mouth that had slurped up a good portion of the oncoming energies. Guto and Hydia were similarly unscathed, primarily due to being out of the blast’s range, but Guto was looking at his ruined arena with eyes burning with fresh anger.

Within the arena, or what was left of it, Gilda stood, body shaking. Her attack had drained a lot of her energy, and there were still several of Greta’s feathers pierced into her, which she slowly used one hand to pull out with grunts of pain. Gilda’s eyes blearily looked towards Greta, who was still standing, but only just...

Greta’s body was covered in burn marks, her wings and feathers scalded, the feather’s of her wings in particular a twisted and partially melted mess. The jet engines on her back were ruined, and her tail was half melted away. Blood dripped from open burn sores all over her, and Greta was breathing heavily with hisses of agony as her legs shook under the strain of trying to keep standing.

With a distinct limp in her step, blood dripping down her legs, Gilda walked towards Greta, her spear nearly dragging on the ground.

Greta, sucking in breath and eyes twitching from pain, shuffled forward towards Gilda.

When the pair got within a few paces of each other they paused, Greta’s face twisting in strain as she raised her battered wings in a ready stance, but she failed as her arms drooped. She didn’t have the strength to lift them anymore. “Dammit...”

Gilda, seeing this, looked at her own dragging spear, and raised it. She still had just enough strength to bring the point towards Greta’s chest. Both women looked at each other... then Gilda glanced sideways at Guto. She saw Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie looking at her, and for a second her eyes met Fluttershy’s, who looked back at Gilda with calm faith and smiled softly. Gilda wasn’t even all that shocked at herself when she returned that smile. She took her spear away from Greta’s chest and instead just rested the weapon on her shoulder, and extended a hand towards Greta.

“I’m not playing by his rules anymore, Greta. Not even sure I’m playing by Las Noches’ rules anymore. But I am the Tenth Espada for now, and if you want... I’d like you to join me. As a friend.”

Greta looked at Gilda’s hand as if she didn’t really comprehend what it was, like she was looking at some weird creature that had crawled out from under a rock. Her voice was hoarse as she said, “That’s not... how things work here, you know?”

“Says who? Guto? Screw him. Screw this whole place, Greta. You fought as hard as anyone to get his attention and approval, and right now does he looked more pissed off that you're this badly hurt, or pissed off that his damn playground got jacked up?”

Greta’s eyes slid towards Guto, who was glowering at the melted ruins of his arena and glaring deathly towards Gilda, but wasn’t sparing so much as half a glance of concern towards Greta. Gilda saw something break in Greta’s eyes, like a tiny candle of child-like hope going out, and while it hurt Gilda to see it, she also knew that what Greta was losing was the false belief she’d ever actually matter to Guto. It was pain she’d happily help Greta through so her friend could learn what self-worth actually meant.

Greta looked at Gilda’s proffered hand once more, and half reached for it, but then Guto’s voice snapped across the air like a whip.

“GRETA! You disappoint me! Get your carcass out of that arena, and I will finish what you clearly lack the ability to.”

Greta flinched as if she’d actually been hit and backed away from Gilda, who seethed as Guto jumped down into the ruined arena and started towards her. Gilda turned towards him, struggling to keep standing as she met his furious eyes.

“What, did the glorious Seventh Espada need me softened up before taking me on?” she said, “I can’t believe it took me so long to figure out what an absolute ballsless bastard you are.”

“Guto, ain’t saying you can’t off her if you really want to,” called out Hydia from the back of the arena seating, “But won’t Tirek get all uppity if you kill one of your fellow Espada without making it a formal challenge? Also, ain’t we kind of expecting... you know... something important to happen soon where we need all of us?”

Guto snorted, “Lord Tirek doesn’t need this one for his plans. She’d be less than useless in the invasion to come. And that was if she was loyal, where I highly suspect she’s fully in bed with Adagio fucking Dazzle. Considering its up in the air if that one will be kept alive for much longer, I think we can safely say we can erase this embarrassment of an Espada without too much trouble.”

“Incorrectomundo my petty party pooper!” Pinkie Pie said, quite suddenly standing between Guto and the wounded Gilda. He blinked at her, as if not quite sure how she’d moved so fast as to get in his path. He blinked again when Fluttershy was also suddenly there, the faint glitter of green Bringer Light still softly wafting around her feet from the high-speed motion she’d made to get there. The two girls stood facing off with Guto, keeping Gilda and Greta alike behind them as they stared down the Seventh Espada.

“I believe we’ve seen enough,” Fluttershy said plainly, “I appreciate your attempt at... showing us your culture, Mister Guto, but Gilda is our friend. Attempt to harm her, and we shall be forced to respond with appropriate measures.”

“Double that for Gilda’s gal pal!” Pinkie declared, jabbing a thumb over her shoulder at Greta, “She’s a bit messed in the head, but she’s cool. You might wanna stop treating her and all your other peps like they’re disposable tissue paper. It’s super lame, and makes me and Mena all kinds of grumpy to watch.”

Guto’s eyes smoldered darkly with murderous light, “I’ve indulged your desire to lecture and spout your childish nonsense for as much as I can reasonably be expected to stomach. As far as I am concerned Gilda is a failure of an Espada that none will miss. The two of you are little better than naive toddlers in sore need of a reality check.”

A golden aura of power rose from within him as he drew his Zanpaktou, “And I am more than happy to deliver it. Hydia, you plan on spectating, or putting the pain to the humans who have embarrassed your beloved Gorgar?”

Hydia bristled at this, although it wasn’t clear if it was at Guto’s insinuation and overbearing words, or at being reminded that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie both had gotten under Grogar’s skin at one point or another. She still had her own Zanpaktou drawn, the weapon looking as if a fire-poker of dark iron had a broad blade in place of the usual poking end. Her wide mouth twisting her face in a broad grimace, she took a thunderous step forward, “Reeka, Draggle, take the boys n’ gals back home to the grotto while mamma takes care of business here.”

Her two daughters exchanged uneasy looks, but both bounced their heads in nods.

“Yes mama,” said Draggle, waving her arms at the group of deformed Arrancar that served Hydia, “You all heard mamma! We’re heading home!”

“Awww, but I wanna watch the nice candy lady fight!” cried one, while another nodded eagerly.

“Yes, yes, the fun pink lady fed us. Does she have to get dead, Lady Hydia?”

Hydia cackled, cracking a grin at her vassals, “Tell you what, boys, if you all like the pink one so much I’ll just beat her down, feed her some choice poison that’ll keep her alive, and I can drag her back home so she can join the family.”

“Ooooo! Yaaaay!”

“Okay, mamma’s said her piece, everyone let’s get going,” said Reeka, while she and Draggle ushered the bouncing collection of odd balls away. Meanwhile Hydia adjusted her clothes and then took a big, bouncing leap into the arena, landing next to Guto. She did give him a bit of a stink eye before brandishing her bladed fire-poker Zanpaktou at Fluttershy and Pinkie.

“I ain’t a petty woman,” Hydia said, “Want to give you both a nice face rearranging because it’ll tickle Grogar pink, and I can lord it over him that I got to you first, so don’t take this all personal. Just figure I’d have some fun with you two! Quite frankly I ain’t had the chance to get a proper taste of you girls the way Groggikins has.”

“Heheh, fine by me!” Pinkie said, twirling her hammer and angling herself to face off with Hydia while Fluttershy took a slight step to the left to angle herself more towards Guto.

“Gilda, Greta, you’d best both get to a safe location. I recommend the embassy,” Fluttershy said, to which Gilda nodded and moved to put Greta’s arm around her shoulder. However before she could leave, she saw a flash of gold light and her eyes widened as a Bala from Guto flew straight at her head!

The Bala bullet was slapped out of the air just an inch from Gilda’s face from one of Fluttershy’s ethereal hands that extended from her halo. Guto’s brow furrowed in annoyance, his left hand raised and ready to fire more Bala as his right hand held his Zanpaktou drawn at his side.

“Nobody is going anywhere,” he said, “Except as corpses, or in chains.”

----------

Despite the thickening complexity and increased frequency of the wards blanketing the upper levels of Guto's tower, Twilight and her team was having a relatively smooth time of thing thanks largely in part to the lack of sentries or servants on these levels. Apparently Guto didn't trust the vast majority of his horde to even stand watch over his personal rooms. There had still been a few levels that remained guarded due to their use as storage chambers for captured lesser Hollows meant clearly for food, or carefully arranged storerooms with living world amenities kept under lock and key, probably for distributing as rare rewards or for Guto's own use. There was one entire level fully dedicated to being an indoor bath complete with marble statues in the center of half naked warriors locked in battle. The girls stared at that for a few moments before moving on, Twilight wondering at the fact that Guto had somehow arranged such a project prior to Adagio showing up and creating an actual lake outside Las Noches.

The final, top ten floors of the tower were dedicated to Guto's personal use. Part of this seemed to be because the tower thinned out somewhat towards the top, with less space per floor. There was a notable open shaft with long, marble columns open to the exterior of the tower that went up and down the full circumference, making it all open to the rest of Las Noches and providing quite the view. However this meant that to climb up, as there were no more stairs at this juncture, Twilight and her team would have to use Hirenkyaku to form reishi under their feet to leap up from point to point. Doors surrounded the exterior of the inner column of the tower, with no indication as to which door might lead anywhere, so Sugarcoat's X-Ray was key to working out where to go, which as it turned out was the very top level of the tower.

There was a small platform at this door, only large enough for two people to stand on, so the other girls had to wait on lower platforms below while Twilight and Sugarcoat got to the door, which had the thickest ward on it yet. The door was a block of solid stone with ornate gold handles shaped like eagle wings. Crossing the door in multiple places were chains of gold, and Twilight could feel the intense reishi packed into each chain. These were made by Guto's power, rather than just fancy mundane chains, and they carried in them potent protective wards.

"If the wall's weren't warded I could use the X-Ray to get us through, just you and me," Sugarcoat said, frowning. Her expression had grown ever darker the closer they got to Fleur de Lis' location, "And I really want to try. She's not looking good."

Twilight bit her lower lip, thinking fast. "Just how bad is it? Fleur, I mean. Is she injured? Could she still walk, or fight, once we free her?" Getting out of the tower should, in theory, be easier than getting in, but if things went wrong she'd have to account for it if Fleur was or wasn't in any condition to move or defend herself. Sugarcoat's eyes couldn't be read behind her visor, but her lips were pressed tight and thin.

"I don't know. The injuries look surface level, but she looks completely out of it. How's the door looking? You and Midnight going to be able to crack it?"

Midnight had already been partially taking over in Twilight's mind, rising to the surface to more closely probe the warded door with magical tendrils of inquiry. Twilight heard her mental companion muttering like a lapping of waves on the shores of the beach. "Too entwined maybe here...? No, that'll set off that cluster there... and these all are mixed in with that matrices over there which triggers... oh, that's twisted. I almost respect the paranoia of this Guto. Literally so much as breathing on this door with anything other than the key to opening it would trigger an exposition strong enough to erase almost anyone presently here. Except you and me, of course, Twilight, because we are amazing. So instead of disarming this ward I suggest we wreath ourselves in defensive magic and just hammer it down. We'll survive the explosion."

Twilight's face blanched, "What about the girls!?"

She heard Midnight's amused mental chuckle, "Well we'll have them head down a few floors for safety, of course."

"And Fleur? If she's on the other side..."

Twilight could all but feel Midnight's rolling wave of frustration as she sighed, "Aaaah, fine, fine! I guess we are here to save the useless idiot who got captured. Not sure why you care so much, given she's been nothing but trouble and tried to kill your friends in the past, but sure, we'll find an alternative to the amazing method of just bashing this stupid door down like it deserves for being so... frustratingly obstructing."

Shifting her gaze towards the wall on either side of the door, Twilight asked aloud, "Are the wards as complex on the wall as they are on the door?"

Sugarcoat answered roughly at the same time as Midnight's voice did.

"Nearly as much, but still no."

"Enough of a difference that normally we could disarm them, but any tampering will still trigger the explosive trap on the door itself."

Twilight thought hard about it, and with the magical sight spell Midnight had woven over them she examined the dense layers of energy passing through the door and walls. A few quick clarifying questions to Midnight pointed out the likely spot where a ward pass of some sort was meant to open the door, like a pulsating node of glowing, interwoven wire around the door handles. She then used that to follow the lines of energy to the trap itself, a contained and condensed node of power that hummed in the center of the door. The trap itself, unlike the wards, wasn't complicated. Guto had more or less focused a series of multiple Ceros into the door and fused them with the chains so that any attempt to open or force the door without the right key and all the destructive energy would trigger at once in a direct line from the door. Midnight's assessment was fairly accurate. Twilight could survive the blast with a decent use of Blut Vene and magical protection, but any of her team would get incinerated. Sugarcoat might escape with the power of the X-Ray, at least. That wasn't too much of an issue because Twilight could just have them back off a few floors. The problem was that they didn't know if the back blast of the trap might hurt Fleur, who sounded like she was already in bad shape.

But now that I can see and understand the components of the trap... then I can use the Variable on it.

"Sugarcoat, take everyone else and head down to two or three floors. I'm going to try something."

Just then there was a rumble through the tower, and all the girls glanced over to look through the exterior columns to see a massive blast of swirling blue and pulsating red power bust out of the ground not far from the base of the tower. Twilight recognized the reiatsu of a Gran Rey Cero, although this one felt a bit different to Twilight's senses. She could also tell that it was Gilda's spirit energy that was firing this blast of power that rose from somewhere underground and rose into the air. Just what was happening down there?

"Man, feels like that chick is having a hell of a fight," Indigo Zap said with a voice tinged with multiple emotions, as if she couldn't decide if she wanted Gilda to actually win whatever combat was occurring.

"Uh, guys, is it me or is that blast now raining acid on everything?" said Lemon Zest, just a moment before the red acid rain started splattering around the open air columns. Before the drops of acid could get on anyone, or especially the door itself to trigger the trap, Twilight threw up a glittering, magical dome of teal and purple magic that encompassed herself, her team, and the door.

While this served to protect them from the bits of acid, that didn't stop other drops of the red acidic rain from getting on other parts of the wall, which started to eat through. And while those parts of the wall weren't trapped, they were certainly warded, and as Twilight watched, the melting parts of the wall triggered those wards, and suddenly loud alarm bells started to ring through the entire tower.

"Oh hell..." Twilight and Midnight said both out loud and mentally at the same time.

Episode 198: Reign of Hollows

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Episode 198: Reign of Hollows

Among the sadder realities of sitting at the top was that there was very little to do but wait. Wait for the next spark of battle between the slowly shifting forces of the spirit war. Wait for the next challenger with just enough of a spine to overcome common sense and logical fear to try their luck. Wait for anything new or stimulating to come along and offer a chance to do more than... well, more waiting.

Tirek had spent entirely too many centuries just waiting. Watching the sand drip through the proverbial hourglass between moments. Sure, there had been battles now and again, moments of blessed carnage to whet his appetite for conflict, but the general stalemate with Sombra’s Quincy and his brother’s Soul Reapers had left Tirek in a continuous lurch of impatient stasis. Perhaps this, more than anything, was the reason for his whims of fanciful indulgence with oddities. Chrysalis and her blatant seductions and playful flirtations with the line between loyalty and treachery. Lament and his unusual innate power and madness married to a core of virtue uncommon in Hollowkind. Adagio and her relentless endurance and ambition to topple the status quo Tirek himself had allowed to congeal. And most recently, Sunset Shimmer and her friends with their quaint Coalition, perhaps doomed to fail, but most assured to shake things up.

Was it foolishness on his part that the more he saw this human girls struggle, and the more the likes of Adagio made progress in gunning for him, that Tirek felt the dust of ages shaking off his soul and a growing fire of certainty in his empty heart that perhaps a conclusion to the endless war started eons ago was on the horizon?

Centuries of ennui disguised as patience, and things were finally changing, and he was willing to take risks. Risks he would not have taken even just a few months ago. But in that time he’d seen too many changes, not the smallest of which was the fall of his brother. Tirek felt the precipice in front of him, the end coming, one way or another. If the spy reports from the human world were accurate, even the Beast Realm was no longer merely neutral and apart. By now the Soul Reapers would have chosen Scorpan’s replacement, but they’d still be disorganized, in chaos.

If this had been merely a few months earlier, he’d have considered this the perfect moment to strike Soul Society and potentially crush the Gotei 13.

But now he had another target, one that had been like an enticing dish seen through the window of a restaurant by a starving man. Equestria.

Tirek’s right hand twitched, as if eager to feel his sword gripped in his fingers. Ever since he saw the Soul Queen’s body pierced by a blade of magic sunlight Tirek had understood that the magic of Equestria was the key to ending all of this. Yet for so long the acquisition of that power was beyond logical reach. Portals to Equestria were so few and so small that launching an invasion was next to an impossible dream, and what little magic leaked through or was tossed into the human world from that realm was so infinitesimal as to not be worthy of significant note. Even when Tirek had learned of the magical powers contained within those young ladies from Canterlot City, he had considered them a secondary objective, worth observing and capturing if possible, but not critical. Grogar put more stock in the value of studying them, and Tirek had to begrudgingly admit the man had turned out to be right.

Those artificial siren gems, and the spirit-based cybernetics, were both powerful indeed. But they weren’t enough. Not by a wide margin, if Glory and the Zero Division were to be defeated, and all other foes crushed under heel.

That would require an apotheosis of magic. It would require a fundamental redefining of the pinnacle of Hollow power. Tirek almost chuckled to himself, his mind drifting to the ‘myth’ of Segunda Etapa, the state beyond Resurreccion. He was one of the only Hollows left who was old enough to know the truth of the legend, at least in parts. Enough to know it was possible, that there was a Hollow state that surpassed what was currently known to be achievable.

Not that Tirek knew how to achieve it, and not through lack of trying. The individual who had achieved that form so long ago had not shared the secret of their metamorphosis before practically all of Glory’s army from back then had descended upon them. One might think that would dissuade Tirek from considering Segunda Etapa to be worth the trouble, since the one who achieved it before still ended up falling to Glory. However back then Glory had led an entire army of god-like spirits, and it had taken the larger portion of it to overwhelm the original Segunda Etapa. Now Glory had herself and her four siblings.

Then there was the fact that magic amplified spirit power, so a Segunda Etapa achieved by consuming vast quantities of magic should, in theory, be even stronger than the original had been.

This made the prospect of invading Equestria not merely a temptation, but an inevitability. It was just a question of how the dice would roll, once cast. Even Tirek couldn’t guess at the outcome. Would the colorful inhabitants of Equestria prove themselves up to the challenge of repelling him and his forces? Would Chrysalis take advantage of the situation to finally turn upon him, as he’s often believed she eventually would? Or would Adagio’s cobbled together rebellion take form and prove problematic? Perhaps even Sunset Shimmer and those girls would end up surprising him in some unexpected fashion?

For the first time in a very, very long time Tirek couldn’t say for certain if he would emerge victorious in the battles to come... and that excited him in a way like nothing else could!

“Hah! Knew you were in an unusually good mood. Not even paying attention to the show happening down below, eh?”

Tirek’s self-reflection ended and he wore a loose grin of ease as he looked over his shoulder at the speaker. He’d been standing at the apex of Las Noche’s central tower, above even the immense domed roof that stretched over the fortress’ interior. The empty black sky of Hueco Mundo stretched above with its ever present crescent moon illuminating all in dull silver light. He generally only came here rarely when he felt like not being bothered by others, but Torch was one of the few besides Chrysalis who knew Tirek well enough to approach him.

The towering brute of a man that was Torch was still somehow made small by Tirek’s simple presence, but Tirek didn’t impose any great strain of spiritual pressure upon the other Espada, and simply gestured for Torch to come and stand beside him. They weren’t “friends” per se, not in the way Tirek had once thought of those in his closest inner circle of warlords, but Torch was perhaps the Espada most aligned with Tirek’s own worldview, despite the man’s strange obsession with his family.

“I’m not ignoring it,” he said, referring to the spiking sensations of reiatsu down inside Las Noches that he recognized as a growing conflict. He’d felt Gilda and Greta’s clash, secretly glad to find out that Gilda had grown enough to raise Guto’s ire. Guto was a valuable tactical asset, but the man hardly understood Tirek’s vision for the future. Now it felt as if Guto was about to clash with two of the human girls... Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, if Tirek’s senses were accurate. He wasn’t too familiar with those girls to fully pick out their individual reiatsu yet, but he suspected he’d get to know these spiritual pressures well within the upcoming days.

“I merely don’t care,” he finished, with a huge roll of his shoulders. Torch chuckled with deep, dry bellowing chortles and came to stand beside Tirek, crossing his huge, blue arms of corded muscle.

“Hahah, the squabbles of the lower ranked are just not of any interest to you, eh? Or is it that you already know the outcome won’t change anything?”

“If we lose Guto or Hydia, it merely means others will rise in their place. Adagio Dazzle has two Fraccion who are strong enough now to rank as Espada, and your own daughter Ember has grown in power to the point I am surprised she hasn’t challenged for a seat.

Torch’s face twitched in the way it always did when it came to the topic of Ember. Again, that odd obsession with family. Tirek... supposed he was not one to truly judge. His own heart still felt unusually heavy at the knowledge of his brother’s end. His hand ached again to hold his Zanpaktou. If Scorpan had needed to die, Tirek felt he owed it to his brother to do the deed himself. Letting another do it felt like a failure, and Tirek was not one fond of personal failure. That was why family and friends were such a problematic concept. Those bonds represented cracks in one's resolve. He’d only allowed it in the past because he’d trusted a rare few individuals to not hold him back.

“Ember would mop the floor with Gilda,” Torch declared with some fatherly pride, and perhaps also some overestimation, “But I want her good and ready for a higher spot before she goes for it. Of course, who knows how things’ll be shortly. Adagio’s still gunning hot for you, and you know at this point where I stand on that.”

Tirek nodded, no hint of ire or threat in his expression as he smiled at the other Espada, “Throwing your chips in with the new blood, still, eh? Has Adagio Dazzle truly impressed you?”

“She took on every challenge thrown at her so far, saving my Ember in the process,” Torch’s eyes matched his name, like firelights of unquenchable heat. Tirek could hear the steel resolution in Torch’s voice, “Nothing personal, Tirek, but when she pulls the trigger on the fight, me and mine are in her camp.”

“So be it,” Tirek said with a shrug, “I don’t fault your choice. I continue to find Dazzle an interesting prospective rival. By all accounts she should have been dead by now, but she keeps surpassing expectations. I’m eager to see what she does when we invade Equestria.”

“If you want my guess, that’ll be the point she’ll turn,” Torch said, “She’s ruthless to her enemies, but she’s got no stomach for going after innocents. She won’t have her people attack the souls of that realm, even if you threatened her directly. Figure that’ll be the breaking point and she’ll make her move against the rest of us.”

“Hmm, strange phrasing. You said you’d be in her camp, but also you say ‘rest of us’? Whose side are you truly on, Torch?”

Torch let out another bellow of a laugh, shaking his head, “I’m past my own prime, ever since Grogar put this damn wound in me...” he patted his side with a wince, indicating the internal damage caused by the treachery of Grogar long ago, when the two had vied for similar positions in the Espada. “I’ve learned to live with the fact that I’ll never be able to take you down, Tirek, in that big brawl we always wanted. Damn shame. But I’m thinking Adagio or one of them human gals will give you that fight in my stead. In the meantime, I’ll do what I’ve always done... find the biggest, baddest brawl I know I’ve still got a chance to win, and go at it with all I’ve got!”

Torch slammed a fist into his palm, teeth bared in a fierce smile, “Figure Equestria has to have a foe worthy enough to give an old, wounded war dog like me the fight of my life! Hah, that or maybe the Soul Reapers and Quincy will join in to make it a real banger of a final war. Know there’s at least one Captain out there who’s got a bone to pick with me, and always felt a bit bad. I haven't had the chance to give him the proper revenge match he’s probably been salivating over for so long. Adagio doesn’t need my help in her rebellion, but my daughter will take care of that, I’m thinking.”

Tirek couldn’t help but chuckle a little himself, appreciating the simple honesty of it all. “I won’t hold back against any of them, you know.”

“Pffah! As if I’d want you to! Heh, but like I said, who knows if it’ll even be Adagio going at you? We’ve got a whole world of magically superpowered ponies to take on at the same time, and I know in my gut them human gals won’t sit that fight out. Speaking of which, your absolute viper of a woman already on the other side by now?”

He gave Torch a sidelong look, then slowly nodded, “Chrysalis is securing our foothold as we speak. Grogar assures me his replication of the Soul Reaper’s interdimensional portal device will work as intended. Adagio was the only one who might do something about it, but again, Grogar has given me assurances that have been accounted for.”

“She might surprise you,” Torch pointed out, but Tirek shrugged.

“If she does, it is her right as one with power and a willingness to accept the truth of this world; that might is what makes right, and violence the only true resolver of conflict.”

----------

Adagio hated feeling trapped, or as if she’d miscalculated. The possibility of Grogar showing up had occurred to her after encountering his damned mutated experiments. He’d put monitoring devices in her, once, so it stood to reason he could have done the same with his engineered weapons, and been alerted the moment they had engaged her and Fenice. She had hoped to find Thorax and get out of here before Grogar arrived, if he did so at all. And in the event he did, Adagio had felt confident enough that she, Fenice, and Thorax were too much of a combined threat for him to do more than make noise at her.

She hadn’t anticipated Catrina would show up as well. Out of all the Espada, Catrina was the largest sticking point in Adagio’s plans. Guto and Hydia she knew to be problems and largely in bed with Grogar. With Smooze and Gilda both being non-issues, and Torch and Lament both firmly in Adagio’s camp, the biggest question mark on the ladder to tackling Chrysalis and Tirek themselves was the Third Espada. Frustratingly Adagio had not been able to gather much information on Catrina outside of what was general knowledge and gossip among the Arrancar denizens of Las Noches.

Most of what Adagio knew came from her limited personal experiences and observations, which was that Catrina was mostly vain, but competent and cautious, and absolutely hated Chrysalis on the grounds that Chrysalis had breezed by her in the Espada rankings, and held physical beauty even Catrina couldn’t match.

None of this readily explained why Catrina was here with Grogar, in Chrysalis’ lair, almost as if Grogar had her along as some kind of bodyguard. Doubtful that Catrina was actually here out of any loyalty or interest in Grogar personally, but Adagio had a sneaking suspicion that if Grogar had offered up an artificial siren gem as a bargaining chip, that might have bought Catrina’s assistance in the short term. She couldn’t see Catrina’s Hollow hole, currently, to confirm whether or not the woman bore such a gem. Catrina was wearing an even more stylized and flowing set of voluminous, white silk toga robes than what she’d had on when Adagio had first met her, the fabric all but clinging to Catrina’s curvaceous form. Catrina was casually carrying the war fan that was her Zanpaktou in her right hand, fanning herself as she observed Adagio and her company with keen green eyes. That look betrayed no real hostility on Catrina’s part, just a vague distaste for their surroundings and a curious interest in the proceedings.

As for Grogar, the wretched old bastard looked disgustingly pleased with himself, and it immediately made Adagio want to just give in to her own instinct to blast his face off with a Cero, despite her more refined intuition telling her what a spectacularly bad idea that would be.

Play for time, start talking, work out a plan on the fly. Adagio’s main priority was getting herself, Thorax, and Fenice out of here alive and back to her territory.

“No time at all?” she said, repeating Grogar’s last phrase with an air of mock surprise, “Don’t be so dramatic, old goat. I sincerely doubt Lord Tirek sent you down here to kill me, especially when we’re on the cusp of invading another world. He’d want every Espada he can get for that.”

Grogar’s smirk only deepened, his two cybernetic monstrosities flanking him like ugly, silent statues. “You presume much, as you always have tended to, my dear former experiment. Tirek may not desire your loss, but he won’t lift a finger if you prove to be an issue in need of dealing with. My words were in reference to the fact that the invasion has already begun, with Chrysalis doing what that simple minded maniac does best, blood and slaughter. I’m simply here to ensure you don’t interfere with that.”

Catrina cleared her throat, casting an annoyed glance at him, “Do not ignore my presence. You all but begged for my assistance.”

Grogar’s jaw tightened, “I did no such thing. I merely asked if you’d be interested in bringing Adagio to heel and you were all too eager for the opportunity to take out your frustrations towards Chrysalis on a lesser Espada who reminds you of her.”

This earned a throaty chuckle from Thorax, “Oh Spirit Queen preserve us, Adagio shouldn’t remind anyone of my mother. Nowhere near the same body count.”

Fenice frowned slightly, “I dunno. Di Roy told me the story of how she became a Vasto Lorde. Sounded like a real Chrysalis move to me, what she did to those Hollows in the Forest of Gillians.”

“Setting aside that disturbing comparison,” Adagio said, focusing on Catrina, “The only reason you’d need to ‘bring me to heel’ is if I decided to try to turn on Lord Tirek right here and now. Which I don’t intend to do-” Just yet. “-as I am not suicidal. What reason do I have to even care that Chrysalis and her army is now in Equestria?”

She was glad she kept her voice steady, because honestly she was filled to the brim with anxiety. Chrysalis by herself, when forced into clandestine action due to working with Starlight Glimmer was one thing, and bad enough besides! But to have Chrysalis off the leash? With her whole horde at her side? That thought alone was nightmare inducing. Adagio was, admittedly, mostly fearful for the safety of her two sisters, but it wasn’t as if she was a heartless monster who couldn’t fathom the utter horror Chrysalis and her ilk could be visiting upon innocent Equestrians in the near future.

Granted she’d already known things were going this way, what with Tirek’s plans for invasion, but Adagio had been hoping to get her own forces together enough to possibly counter that at the right moment. As things stood, she wasn’t ready. At least, not as ready as she’d like. She’d sent Di Roy out earlier on an important task the moment she’d felt that time was no longer on her side, but couldn’t guess if he’d had enough time to do as she’d asked yet.

Grogar, much as she hated him, was astute and familiar enough with her to read her even through her forced mask of calm. “You have reason enough, Adagio Dazzle. You still care for your mortal family members who fled to that realm. You detest the idea of participating in wholesale slaughter of mortal souls. You certainly have no intention of aiding Lord Tirek in any earnest manner upon the launching of our full scale invasion. Indeed, I know you will do all you can to stop us, at that point. Tirek has indulged you out of his own perverse desire to be challenged, but I see no reason to wait for you to decide when and how to enact your betrayal. You’ve outlived any use I still had for you, now that I’ve largely perfected your siren gem, and found an even greater source of power to replace it. If you surrender to me, I shall install safety measures in you to keep you... loyal from now on. I will even give my word that you can keep your pet vassals, unharmed and free from any of my further attentions.”

“Such a generous megalomaniac,” Thorax drawled, “Truly, my heart is touched by such a sterling offer; become a slave again and maybe I won’t kill your subjects. Adagio, how can you refuse?”

“Can the sarcasm, Thorax, unless you find a way to weaponize it to annihilate my enemies for me,” Adagio replied dryly, and Thorax actually scratched his chin in thought.

“Hah, if only I could harness my sarcastic wit to empower a Cero. Cero Sarcastica?”

Fenice cleared her throat, “Guys, joking aside, we got a play here? Fight it out? I’m game for fighting it out.”

Catrina’s gaze shifted to the girl, one delicately elegant eyebrow raising in interest, “Just what makes you think that you have a chance against me? Also, what in the world happened to your appearance? Actually, scratch that, who are you, exactly?”

“Feni-”

“Oh I didn’t actually want you to answer, I was just musing aloud. Unimportant people don’t qualify as worthy of my attention.”

Fenice’s hands clenched around her swords, head tilting a bit as if hearing something the viking blade was saying, “Yeah, Tyr, I’m thinking I’d like to gag her, too.”

Catrina ignored Fenice’s comment and, snapping her war fan out in a provocative gesture, eyed up Adagio and Thorax, “Charming as this conversation is becoming, the reality is that your only real options are to either accept Grogar’s new leash, or be dealt with in a more permanent fashion. I’d suggest taking his offer, as its the best chance you have of survival right now.”

“I’m surprised you’re even willing to play lackey to this withered sleaze,” Adagio said, not bothering to hide an iota of her disdain for Grogar, “Or do anything that even indirectly benefits Chrysalis. What are you getting out of this, Catrina? It must be something more valuable than just the opportunity to vent your frustrations at not being able to deal with Chrysalis.”

The feline cast to Catrina’s features grew more poignant as she flashed a slightly fanged smile, “You’d be surprised just how far that alone will please me, Adagio Dazzle. You have a similar cocky attitude and think yourself far more clever than you are. But I suppose it is true that I wouldn’t lift a finger for Grogar if there wasn’t a significantly tastier bit of incentive on the table. However I have no reason to tell you what that is, do I?”

“Perhaps not,” Adagio said, “Yet whatever he’s offering, can you be certain I cannot match or beat it?”

Grogar snorted, “Enough of this idle prattle. Catrina, deal with her, and I’ll subdue Chrysalis’ progeny and the human. I could use the later for study, given her hybrid metamorphosis.”

Catrina’s nose wrinkled, “Ew, is that what she is? Well whatever, not my concern. I’m more interesting in what Adagio’s counter offer might be.”

“Catrina...” Gorgar growled in a low warning, but she waved her hand at him with a high tilt of her chin.

“Don’t take that tone with me. I am here of my own volition, not your orders, Ninth Espada. You’ve made me a tempting offer, but perhaps Dazzle has something better in mind.”

“She does not,” Grogar stated, “That I can assure you. She’s a desperate schemer, not a visionary nor a worker of evolutionary miracles, Catrina. Only I have the means to grant you your desire to surpass Chrysalis.”

“Hah,” Adagio laughed, “So that’s it, then? You’ve put some manner of overpowering Chrysalis on the table? What, another version of my siren gem? Cybernetic implants?”

Catrina made a disgusted noise, “Please, I would never pervert my own beauty by allowing Grogar to alter my form in such a manner.”

“More’s the pity, I could improve you in countless ways,” Grogar said under his breath, which only made Catrina’s nauseated look deepen.

“No. Several thousand times over, no. But what Grogar has offered is that I shall be first in line to be gifted the apotheosis he seeks to achieve that has eluded our kind for eons. A legend few even still know of, let alone dream of. The Seguna-”

“-Etapa, yes, I’ve heard of it,” Adagio cut her off, timing it well so her own self-assured tone struck with maximum impact. “And you really think if he could pull that off that he wouldn’t do it to himself first, and keep the power for himself? What good is his promise, exactly?”

Catrina’s eyes flickered with a cloud of doubt, but her haughtiness and clear hunger to have any way to surpass and destroy Chrysalis flashed brighter a moment later, “Better than nothing, when I’ve no other means to possibly put an end to that arrogant harlot. Grogar has no loyalty to her, and has assured me his latest creation is near ready to push a Hollow to that fabled stage of power. Even if he uses it on himself first, I can live with that, as long as he still grants me the same power so I can finally be rid of Chrysalis and take my proper place at Tirek’s right hand.”

There was a long, bitter desperation in Catrina’s tone that told Adagio that this was a matter that had festered inside the Third Espada for entirely too many centuries. Granted, Adagio could relate. She’d been dealing with Chrysalis for a few months and that had been more than enough for her to feel like the world would be an infinitely better place without that madwoman in it. Catrina had been living in Chrysalis' shadow for hundreds upon hundreds of years, with never any realistic chance of dealing with her. Perhaps even the small, fragile strand of hope that Grogar’s offer represented was enough to get Catrina to do his bidding, despite her pride and the vast difference in their strength.

And worse, Adagio really didn’t have a way to beat that offer. The captured research from Grogar’s lab gave her a baseline idea of how much power might be needed to reach Segunda Etapa, but she didn’t possess any such means yet. It sounded like Grogar had gotten ahold of something that might do the trick, which was a horrifying thought on its own, and only made it seem more important that she take him down soon.

But could she even hope to pull it off here, now? Not with Catrina in the way. Much as Adagio knew she’d gotten stronger since ingesting her portion of the Seed, she doubted it was enough to go toe-to-toe with the Third Espada on even terms. Even if she could, that still left Thorax and Fenice to face Grogar, his escort of cybernetic bio-warriors, and Catrina’s small entourage of unusual Arrancar Bushwoolies.

A stand up fight here would not end well for her, and Adagio knew it. So what were her other options? She’d run out of ways to stall, and unfortunately had no real offer that would appeal to Catrina more than what Grogar had put up. That left only one real choice; retreat. Of course the exit was blocked by their enemy, and Catrina was well known as the fastest of the Espada. Not ideal. But Adagio wasn’t without a surprise card or two left in her proverbial deck.

“Well,” she said, “Sadly I must confess I can’t offer you an easy, guaranteed way to off Chrysalis for good, Catrina.”

“Don't sound that disappointed about it,” Thorax said half-jokingly, “I’m still fond on my mother, her glaring personality flaws notwithstanding.”

Adagio gave him a rueful sidelong look, then turned back to Catrina, “That being said, any gift or reward from Grogar is poison, even if it gives you the power you seek. I don’t expect that to sway you, but as someone who knows what it feels like to live with humiliation to the point of wanting to take any chance at power to escape it... you can do better than accepting the old goat’s poison fruit.”

Catrina paused for a moment, face oddly still, before she said slowly, “Perhaps had you shown up a century or two earlier... but now? I’ll take my chances, any I can get my claws on.”

Adagio nodded, and said, somewhat sadly, “I figured as much,” and she then proceeded to thrust her trident forward and upon each tip charged up a gleaming ruby sphere of energy, and discharged three Ceros in unison straight at Grogar and Catrina both.

----------

Being a spirit of chaos wasn’t always fun and games, but Discord seemed to recall a one hundred percent lesser rate of himself being stabbed and incarcerated before he’d switched to the “good guy” side of the tracks. Sure, he’d been imprisoned in stone for a thousand or so years, but at least Celestia and Luna hadn't impaled him with an anti-magic shaft of metal, first. Pain kind of lost its flavor after languishing in it for... how many days had it been now? Not that many, but enough that Discord was more than fed up with his present circumstances.

How long had it been since that Sombra chap had shown up and then jetted off with promises of bringing help? Long enough that Discord had the distinct feeling something had gone wrong.

His next clue that the status was no longer quo was when the walls of his prison chamber shuddered with the distinct rumble of a distant explosion. The impaled draconequus frowned, still floating in the same field of energy he’d been imprisoned in since being dragged here. His nose twitched. Chaos was ensuing somewhere nearby. He could smell it, even if he didn’t have the next rumbling shudder of a detonation to clue him in.

Had Sombra actually gotten through back to Canterlot, then? Were the Princesses charging in like meteoric, celestial cavalry? Discord might very well kiss Princess Celestia if she managed to trot through the doors to his prison cell and bust him out of here, not that she’d at all appreciate the gesture, but imagining the look on her face would be part of the fun!

However all Discord felt was disappointment when the doors to the chamber did open and who stumbled in was a frantic, tattered looking Trixie. He could tell it wasn’t Equestria’s version of the eccentric magician, for hobbling in right behind Trixie was the tall and darkly armored figure of Eisenwald, the Bount’s Doll.

“Watch the hall!” Trixie commanded her Doll, and scrambled towards Discord’s cage of hovering spirit energy. She looked injured, bearing a cut along her flank and a scrap on her brow, both oozing blood.

“I take it you’re all not having a rowdy party upstairs, hmm?” Discord quipped, wondering at the situation. It could still be the Princesses and a rescue party charging in to save the day, but Discord’s gut told him otherwise. The Bount Trixie looked terrified in a way that didn’t bespeak of the Princesses’ usual non-lethal tactics, and that wound on her flank looked like it came from a sword, which to Discord’s knowledge wasn’t a weapon any of them favored.

That and, much as the anti-magic javelin in his gut shut off his access to his chaos powers, his magical senses weren’t completely dull. He wasn’t sensing any magic use up above, despite the occasional rumble and shake signaling more explosions in the upper levels of Hitsuyo-Aku.

At his query, Trixie shot a fearful look of heavy breathing, practically tripping over her own words, “She’s turned on us! Chrysalis! Her Arrancar are rampaging everywhere, slaughtering the Reigai.”

“How sad for you,” Discord said without a trace of sympathy, “Who could have predicted the murderous psychopath was an untrustworthy ally? This will go down as one of the top ten anime betrayals in history.”

“Anime!? What!?” Trixie the Bount blinked in stupefied confusion, causing Discord to sigh.

“Nevermind. Pinkie would’ve gotten the joke. At any rate, Starlight’s pet monster is doing as monsters do and sounds like the rest of you are in a terrible spot of trouble. If only I had my popcorn handy.”

“Don’t you understand, you asymmetrical asshole!? If Chrysalis has turned against Starlight, that means she’s got no reason to care about keeping you alive!” Trixie said, in a burst of intensity that did manage to crack through Discord’s smug exterior to make him realize that... well, yes, she had a point. He frowned, looking down at the panicked Bount.

“That is a pickle. I take it you’re here to make me an offer I can’t refuse? At least not if I want to avoid being murderized by the aforementioned murder hobo dancing a bloody swath through her former allies presently?”

“Yes! That!” Trixie said, raising a hoof towards him, “If I let you out, pull that javelin from your body, and get you back your chaos magic... you swear you get me, Firefly, and anyone else left alive around here that ain’t Chrysalis and her goons and take us to safety.”

His eyes nearly flashed red, his face creasing in a snaggle toothed grin that would unsettle even the most stalwart of souls, and remind any looking at him that no matter that he’d turned over a new leaf... Discord was still very much a spirit of chaos, and not always the nice, clean, PG variety.

“Take this cursed rod out of me and sure, I’ll keep you and yours safe. Right after I’m finished redecorating the interior of this place with the still living but highly separated body parts of every Arrancar I come across. There aren’t any left around here you care about, right?”

“I... uh...” Trixie seemed to think about it, “I don’t think so? All of them are Chrysalis’, so, sure, go ham.”

“Mistress, I sense danger approaching. Be quick,” Eisenwald said, and Trixie gulped, reaching for the controls of Discord’s spiritual cage. He watched with thirsty eyes, all but salivating at the prospect of freedom and the return of his magic so he could unleash some unholy chaos on somebody.

But then there was a breeze, and a shadow of motion, followed by Trixie making a distinct ‘urk’ noise as a curved blade rose up under her chin and a onyx hand caressed her mane. Chrysalis, having slipped right past Eisenwald with a Sonido, now leaned down over Trixie, her macabre face spread in a pleasant smile, her voice sweet as poisoned honey.

“Hello Trixie. Were you about to release the neigh all powerful chaos god to come after me?”

“Aaah... aaah... n-no?” Trixie said slowly. Chrysalis’ smile turned sharper and she patted Trixie’s cheek.

“Now, now, if you’re going to lie, at least put some effort into it,” Chrysalis said, and while she took her blade away from Trixie’s throat, she instantly gripped the Bount by the back of her head an slammed Trixie’s face into the floor hard enough to crack stone.

“Mistress!” Eisenwand flared his metal wings and flew towards Chrysalis, forming his lance of iron from the metallic mist of his mane. He thrust the lance in a powerful streak at Chrysalis’ head, but she didn’t even look up to bat the attack aside with her Zanpaktou, still kneeling over Trixie as she kept the Bount’s head pressed to the ground.

Eisenwand flew up and around, lashing with his tail of metal mist, slicing with it’s edge of iron fragments. Chrysalis allowed the attack to hit her this time, almost seeming to enjoy the laceration that appeared across her back as she let out a pleased noise. The wound closed all but instantly, and Chrysalis stood up, dragging a dazed and bloody faced Trixie with her. Trixie struggled, trying to pry her head free of Chrysalis’ grip, but Chrysalis just proceeded to ram her knee up into Trixie’s gut with so much force the indent of the blow appeared on Trixie’s back. Spit and blood spat out from Trixie’s mouth as her body went limp, stunned.

Eisenwand’s metal wings flapped as he readied himself to charge again, lance poised, but Chrysalis just held Trixie forth, dangling from her hand by the head. “Down, Doll. Unless you want to see what it looks like to have your Mistress’ head popped off like a champagne cork.”

“Fiendish wench...” Eisenwald said, slowly settling back to the floor, his ruby gem eyes flashing in anger at her. Chrysalis simply kept smiling.

“Flatter me harder, I might decide to keep you. As it stands, consider yourself fortunate that I think your cute little ‘Mistress’ will make a fine toy for a while. I want a little leverage, in case Glimmer eventually crawls out of whatever trouble she landed herself in. Now... sit boy,” she dangled Trixie at Eisenwald like one might shake a chew toy at a dog. Eisenwald growled, but slowly sat on his haunches, subdued.

Chuckling at the sight, Chrysalis turned around to face Discord, eyeing the draconequus up like a hungry restaurant goer looking at a prize steak, freshly served. “Now I don’t believe we’ve had the unique pleasure, Discord of this delightful realm.”

“I could go another millennia without the ‘pleasure’, vastly inferior version of our world’s Chrysalis,” Discord said, to which Chrysalis’ laughed like a rusty razor, eyes filled with dreadful hunger.

“Oh, I’ll bite at the bait. Just what makes me ‘inferior’ to that sad, weak willed, broken little husk of a woman? I’m dying to hear your evaluation, oh mighty chaos spirit.”

Discord’s lips twisted in a dreadful parody of a smirk, “She’s as you say, I won’t deny. Wasted her whole life wretchedly stealing love that could have been freely given instead. Brutalized her entire host of progeny into being just as callous and short sighted as she was. Never once gave a second thought to those she hurt in her pursuit of personal gain. All that having been said...”

Discord chuckled and shook his head, “I was never any better. Worse, even, if I get honest with myself. At least Chrysalis’ victims were usually unconscious for most of the love draining, and could recover afterward. I tortured my victims and took their free will, forcing them into whatever living nightmare I felt was most fun for me. I didn’t do it due to some internal hunger, like Chrysalis was unfortunate enough to be born with. I did it because I liked it. And a part of me still does. Chaos will always be a part of me. I’m only a ‘good guy’ now because one very special, and stubborn mare decided to not give up on changing my perspective.”

“Yawn. Is this going anywhere? I’ve places to burn, souls to eat, yours included,” Chrysalis said, to which Discord only chuckled again.

“By all means I invite you to try. I’m a spicy meatball, I’ll warn you. As to my point, it’s simply that wretched as our world’s Chrysalis is, she still has something you completely lack.”

“A loving family? Personal standards? A functional spine? Actual power?”

Discord looked her in the eyes, voice deadpan, “The possibility to choose differently.”

Chrysalis stared back at him for a long, slow moment, then licked her lips with an unamused frown as her emerald eyes narrowed. Like tossing aside a grain sack she chucked Trixie across the room, and hopped right up in front of Discord. She all but ripped aside the spiritual cage separating them, ignoring Eisenwand cautiously moving to Trixie’s side behind her.

“Possibility to choose, hm? I have no need for that. I know who and what I am, and will always be so. That’s what makes me strong,” Chrysalis said, grabbing Discord by the head with one hand while pressing her Zanpaktou against his chest with the other, “That’s what makes me better than feckless trash like her. Where is she, by the by? I was looking forward to ending her personally, but she doesn’t seem to be around.”

“How would I know? I’ve just been hanging around down here. I’ve hardly gotten any social calls,” Discord replied, and wrinkled his nose, “And could you back off a bit? Your breath reeks.”

“Should I remove your nose so you have nothing to complain about?” Chrysalis replied sweetly, and proceeded to move like a lunging snake. Discord felt a rip of unimaginable, searing pain that dug into his very essence as the Espada’s teeth, suddenly sharp as knives, sank into his collarbone. He choked down a scream, unable to do more than twitch under the restraints of his cage of spiritual energy. However he didn’t have to do anything, as a moment later Chrysalis leaped off him, making a soft gagging sound. Discord’s blood dripped from her lips, alongside strands of chaotically glitching strands of ichor that pulsated with shades of negative color.

Chrysalis licked her lips, blood staining her chin as her eyes shifted from sharp to dazed as she tried to digest the chaos energy she’d just eaten from Discord’s very soul, and from the way her skin itself seemed to twitch and shift, the meal didn’t wholly agree with her. Even so, her mouth formed a rictus grin, “Pfawah... you’re right, you’re quite the sizzling spicy meal. It might take me dozens of licks to get to the center of your Tootsie Pop.”

“I have never heard a more dated yet still disturbing way of describing what just happened,” Discord groaned, only able to take some satisfaction in the fact that trying to eat his essence wasn’t something Chrysalis could do without serious discomfort, “I am going to take an immeasurable amount of pleasure from watching the Princesses put an end to you, presuming I don’t get the opportunity to do it myself.”

“Ah ah ah, no cutting the line, although I very much enjoy your vibe right now, Discord. You’re... more fun than your human counterpart. He’s trying so hard to be the atoner, whereas I get the impression you care a lot less about what other people think of you,” Chrysalis said as she turned away from him and put her attention on Trixie and Eisenwand. The Bount’s Doll had gotten her up onto her hooves, but Trixie still looked dazed from the beating she’d taken.

“Now, since I can’t chow down on the chaotic dessert I’d been hoping for, I suppose the pair of you might do as a chaser. Assuming you don’t want to tell me where my microscopic minded mimic is?” Chrysalis said, stepping towards the pair with an air of graceful menace. Eisenwand moved to proactively place himself between her and Trixie, to which Chrysalis just chuckled, “Oh please, even I get tired of kicking puppies, Doll.”

“Eisenwand... it’s okay...” Trixie said, laying a hoof on her Doll’s iron shoulder and forcing herself to step forward, hobbling and looking at Chrysalis with clear fear, “Even if we told you where she is, what guarantee do we have you’d let us go? None.”

Chrysalis smiled with the glow of real mirth as she ran a finger along the edge of her Zanpaktou, “Accurate. Not that I was putting letting you go on the table, little Bount. We’re just discussing whether you get to live for a time longer, in which case your savior Starlight Glimmer might come and save you... or I just end you here and you never see her again. I wonder if she’d even mourn you? You do realize you were little more than a convenient tool for her, right?”

Trixie shook her head, “I’m not listening to your poisonous bullshit. Starlight is on a different level than your self-absorbed, hedonistic, psychopathic crap. You were the tool, here, Chrysalis. And you’re an idiot if you think Starlight didn’t anticipate you’d turn on us, eventually. When she returns, she’ll deal with you.”

Chrysalis threw her head back and her rich laughter filled the room, “If you say so. Far be it for me to keep a foolish girl from her delusions. Just remember, I met Starlight Glimmer long before you did, and know her better than you think. Whatever connections she has, genuine or not, they are still sacrificial tokens for the purpose of fulfilling her goal. Very task oriented, with a darker soul than she believes herself to have. I’m not concerned with her response to what I’m doing here, especially if everyone goes like I’m predicting it will...”

“What does that mean-” Trixie began to say, but Chrysalis’ foot lashed out with the speed of a whipping bolt of lightning and caught Trixie in the chin, all but punting her into the wall.

Eisenwand let out a chest rumbling growl and hammered his lance of iron at Chrysalis’ heart, but she caught the weapon by the tip with her free hand, stopping it dead, “From what I recall, a Bount dies if their Doll dies. I’d still like to play with your ‘Mistress’, so I suppose I’ll just have to settle for tearing your legs and wings off for now.”

“E...Eisenwand... return...” Trixie breathed, barely conscious as she struggled to crawl her legs back under her. Eisenwand’s body responded by dissolving into a swirl of iron mist, flowing back into the Bount Crest glowing red upon Trixie’s hat, which miraculously was still somehow on her head. Chrysalis pouted slightly, placing her hand on her hip.

“Boo. I was just getting warmed up. Oh well, plenty of other playmates running around. I sense Firefly’s reiatsu out in the desert, alongside another of those Reigai. The Reigai aren’t very fun as targets, what with the lack of actual blood, internal organs, and their artificial souls just taste bland to me, but eh, what can you do?”

Chrysalis snapped her fingers and a quartet of her drone children appeared in the room in flickers of Sonido, bowing to her. Chrysalis gestured to them, “Two of you, stay here and keep an eye on the floating chaos noodle,” she nodded at Discord, “The other two, pick up that-” she pointed at Trixie, “-and deposit her in another cell. Oh, and take the hat and stuff it in a box somewhere, so she can’t summon her Doll.”

“On it, mother!” the Arrancar drones almost all said in unison, and proceeded to follow their instructions, two of the moving to stand guard flanking Discord’s cage, while the other pair took Trixie’s hat and picked up the barely conscious Bount to be dragged out of the room.

“Is the building secure of those pesky Reigai?” Chrysalis asked one of the Arrancar now standing guard beside Discord. The Arrancar in question, a female with an almost reverent look on her face to be spoken to by Chrysalis, gulped and shook her head.

“Not entirely, mother. Most of the weaker ones are destroyed, but several escaped outside with the help of the ones named Starswirl and Redheart. We did manage to wound them both, however, and we don’t think they’ve gotten far, but the desert outside the canyon is very big...”

“Ah, more fun for me, then,” Chrysalis said, “I’ll send a few more of your brothers and sisters to help you watch this one. Don’t speak to him, even if he speaks to you. If he so much as twitches in a way that seems suspicious, you have my permission to kill him. I’d like him alive to keep nibbling on, but I’d like him even more dead if he turns out to be a problem.”

Discord could hear the clear note of truth in her tone that said she wasn’t joking around, either. The only reason he was still alive was because she couldn’t fully or easily eat his chaotic soul, filled to the brim with raw chaos magic. If he caused a hint of trouble, this Chrysalis wouldn’t hesitate to kill him.

“Oh,” Chrysalis said as she turned to head for the exit, “I don’t suppose any of you saw Ocellus around? I can’t sense her reiatsu nearby.”

“No, mother,” the two guards shook their heads, “We haven’t seen or felt our trueborn sister anywhere.”

Chrysalis’ face darkened with a frown, but soon brightened, “Come to think of it, Platinum and her little brat aren’t here either. If Ocellus is also missing... ah, I think I see now. They must have all gone somewhere together. I’ll find out, soon enough. I can track Ocellus’ reiatsu over a distance, given time.”

That gave Discord a cold shiver in his spine. While he hadn’t been keen on all the details, he’d heard enough earlier to gather that his world’s Chrysalis had gone to her hive on some undercover mission. Which meant if this Chrysalis could track one of her spawn who may presumably be there as well... Discord did not want to think about what might happen.

After Chrysalis had left, he eyed his two guards, wondering if he should try his luck. “Soooo... either of you know how to play Eye Spy?”

The looks he got were not friendly ones, and one of the Arrancar already had their Zanpaktou out as if trying to decide if Discord even trying to speak constituted enough reason to split him open. So, talking was definitely a no-go. However, his eyes alighted upon something, and his eyes practically glowed.

His blood.

When Chrysalis had tried to feed on him, she’d gotten his blood on her mouth, and a few drops had spattered onto the floor of the room. Just a couple of drops, utterly innocuous. Chrysalis probably hadn’t paid the blood so much as a first thought, let alone a second one.

After all, blood was just blood to most people. Inert and rather incapable of being useful once outside the body. But in Discord’s case, his blood was, like any other part of his body, utterly suffused with the pure power of chaos. And those few droplets were now outside his body, and hence no longer in contact with the anti-magic javelin still burning a painful hole in his gut.

He had to be careful, however. Those few, small drops of blood contained only a flicker of his chaos magic, and with it no longer directly attached to him even Discord would have difficulty controlling it. Chaos didn’t like to be controlled on the best of days. There was just barely enough magic in the droplets of his blood that he wouldn’t be able to pull off anything big. No instantly turning every Arrancar in the fortress into dalmatians or somesuch. No convenient teleportation into Celestia’s lap with a fresh cup of tea on offer for the Equestrian monarch. He wouldn’t even be able to make his prison vanish, or remove the pair of murderous, sword happy guards from around him.

But he could certainly do something.

He just had to think about it awhile and work out what.

----------

The game of cat and mouse had been going on for laboriously long. Sombra felt like he was at the end of his tether at this point. He was miles into the Bone Dry Desert, well away from Hitsuyo-Aku by now, but rather than being able to make a clean escape as the evening wore on and the shadows between the sand dunes lengthened, he only found the noose tightening around his neck.

Firefly and Zecora were relentless in their pursuit of him, and had the skill set necessary to make what should have been an easy task of shadow melding out of this place into a desperate contest of patience and attempts at misdirection.

Zecora and Firefly were working expertly together, with Firefly soaring high in the sky to survey and terrain and relay information to Zecora, who in turn was using her Zanpaktou’s ability to sweep each shadow of every dune to trace Sombra’s movements. With Kido she would erect wards that would box him in and block his ability to just rapidly dart from shadow to shadow. Wards he could break through with effort, but doing so meant alerting Firefly high above, and ensuring both she and Zecora would be on his position within moments. So he’d have to hide again, doing all he could to avoid Zecora’s deadly accurate Zanpaktou until he started to lose them again, but then Zecora would just throw up another ward or two, like a fisherman casting a wide net over a sandy sea, and the dance would start all over again.

Several times Sombra had tried to fake them out by breaking the ward in one direction, then switching to rushing towards the opposite side, but credit where it was due, Zecora was disturbingly good at guessing when he’d do that, and even when he did manage to fake her out, there was no fooling Firefly who had the literal bird’s eye view of everything and could sense his magic use even when he dove into shadow.

He was making a slow kind of progress across the desert, but nowhere near enough to make good on an escape. His only real hope now was that full nightfall would give him enough of an edge to get away, but as he rested within the shadows of a small dune near the east side of one of the fresh warded areas Zecora had put up, he saw that she was also rapidly making use of additional Kido to float what looked to be hundreds of those blasted lanterns into the air... all in anticipation of lighting up the area once the sun fully set.

He’d have to try to deal with the lanterns all at once to have a chance. Perhaps if he conjured enough shadow to canopy of sorts that’d block all of the lantern light? But that would take too long, giving Zecora and Firefly too much time to zero in on him. As he pondered what to do, he sensed Zecora nearby, her form flickering into view atop a sand dune across from the one he was using to hide. He tensed, ready to bolt for a new shadow to try and lose her the moment she would spot him, but right before her eyes settled in his direction. Zecora’s eyes widened and she snapped around to look back in the direction of the canyon several miles behind them. She looked confused and fearful, which immediately confused Sombra.

What was she sensing that’d cause such a sudden change in expression? He then heard the roar of air as Firefly flew down in a shattering of the sound barrier, landing right next to Zecora after having dive bombed out of the sky. The human didn’t look any more relaxed than her Reigai companion.

“You feeling it, too?” Firefly said, to which Zecora gave a shallow, pale faced nod.

“Hollows. Far too many. An entire horde of them, spreading out from Hitsuyo-Aku! And my people, their reiatsu is fading one after another!”

Zecora moved as if to leap towards the distant canyon, but Firefly caught her arm, shaking her head, “Hold on, don’t rush in. We got to assess first. If this is Chrysalis pulling a damn backstab, neither of us can take her alone. We need Starswirl, if he’s still alive, and preferably we face her three on one. Hell, why’s she pulling this crap now of all times?”

“I neither know nor care, but though my life may be an artificial one, I still have a duty to protect my people,” Zecora said, pulling her arm away from Firefly, “Follow me if you must, but I am going.”

Sombra listened in from his hiding spot, mind whirling. What was happening? He couldn’t sense spirit energy the way these two could, but it was clear they were feeling some sort of conflict occurring back at their base. Chrysalis was betraying them? Which one? Well, given the talk of Hollows, it had to be the Espada from the human world. And if they were talking about a horde of Hollows emerging at their base, that spelled serious trouble for all of Equestria. Sombra considered that his best bet right now was to lay low and see if Firefly and Zecora would abandon their chase of him, which would give him the chance to flee and make haste back to Canterlot.

The Princesses would need to know what was happening here, especially if there was now an entire army of dangerous Hollows flooding into the world.

Before he could make any further decisions, however, Firefly said, “Hold up... you feel that? It’s Starswirl’s reiatsu. I think that’s your Lieutenant's as well.”

Zecora’s eyes close for a moment, her tension remaining despite a small, relieved smile, “Yes, that’s Redheart. They’re fleeing... southward. But there’s so few others with them. Did no one else make it? And I sense some of Chrysalis’ horde pursuing them.”

“Damn, I’m not sensing Trixie’s reiatsu either, or her Doll’s,” Firefly murmured with genuine worry coating her tone, “And holy crap is that a lot of Arrancar. Feels like they’re rushing out in all directions. Did Chrysalis bring her entire horde here? How? No way the Cross Gate had enough juice left to portal in that many...”

“Oh, you know how it is, where there’s a will and all that jazz. I’ve given my children free reign to go enjoy themselves all across Equestria, and before long all of Las Noches will be joining in. Wholesome family fun to be had by all.”

This new voice was unmistakable as Chrysalis, silhouetted by the setting sun, appeared in the air above them and made a show of slowly descending towards the ground to land lightly on her feet no more than a dozen paces from Zecora and Firefly. There was a faint breeze of air, as if the wind was catching up with the speed at which Chrysalis had arrived.

“Shit... fast much?” Firefly breathed, eyes narrowing at Chrysalis, who just grinned back and tapped the number ‘2’ tattooed in white at the base of her throat.

“Segunda Espada, honey. I may not quite match Catrina’s silly levels of speed focus, but crossing a couple of miles in an eyeblink is still child’s play. Really, you two should have started running the moment you realized what was happening, instead of standing around talking about it like a pair of nitwits. Not that running would have done you much good, but it might have made this more fun for me.”

Firefly let out a ragged groan, readying the long barrel of her hexagon shaped canon, the wings of her Fullbring flaring up with intense violet energies and her Dragoon bits floating with focused intensity at her side, “You play’d ball with us this long, Chrysalis, and sure, me an Starlight knew you’d eventually go feral on us, but why do it now? You could have turned the moment Starlight went missing, if that was your only reason. There’s got to be something else going on here.”

Chrysalis smiled and raised a waving, dismissive hand, “Does there? Does there really? Well you’re not entirely wrong, just mostly wrong. I was just as likely to do this even when Starlight was around, really, if the whim took me strongly enough. But different as I and Starlight are, we share one very important thing in common; we’ll both do whatever it takes to fulfill our heart’s desire. It just so happens that while once my path to that desire meant playing nice with all of you, now... not so much. And, hey, extra benefit for me, this means as soon as I find where my counterpart went I can take a long, slow, vastly enjoyable time torturing her emotionally, mentally, and physically until she begs me to end her miserable existence. It’s going to be epically therapeutic for me, let me tell you.”

Firefly’s eyebrow twitched a little, her expression cold as the sand beneath her hooves, “Is Trixie still alive?”

“Maaaaaybe,” Chrysalis teased, “Killing her would be a bit like putting down a particularly dumb, sappy puppy dog. Which, honestly, may be tacky even by my standards.”

“Somehow the term ‘standards’ doesn’t really go in the same sentence as you, Chrysalis,” Firefly said, an she side eyed Zecora, “Hey, if I buy you time, think you can catch up with your Reigai pals?”

Zecora blink in surprise, “I might, but I thought we should fight her together. Both of us.”

“No way we can both escape,” Firefly said with a sigh, “And since it was me and Starlight that brought Chrysalis here in the first place, it’s only fitting I... take the L and clean up my own mess. No reason you Reigai should pay any more for something that isn’t your fault.”

Indecision played across Zecora’s features, her Zanpaktou raised, “I was made to be stronger than my original... perhaps the two of us will be enough.”

“Look, I appreciate the sentiment, but I don’t think the two of us can handle her if she goes all out,” Firefly said, to which Chrysalis nodded agreement.

“You really can’t, but I’m all for the spectacle of you trying. I backed down in the Crystal Empire only because it wasn’t worth it after I’d already had my fun with this realm’s delightful Cadence. But I’m feeling quite a bit more frisky today, so no, I doubt the two of you can take me.”

Sombra wasn’t at all certain he was making the right choice as he emerged from the shadows of the sand dunes, shadows that grew larger as the sun fell ever more to the horizon, lengthening the dusk shades across the desert. Perhaps it was simply that, as night drew closer and the power of darkness rose within him, Sombra felt more confident. Or perhaps it was simply that while it would have been easy to vanish into the night and leave his two pursuers to face a monster alone... that wasn’t the kind of thing that sat well with the pony Sombra had chosen to be alongside Radiant Hope.

He strode up between a surprised looking Firefly and Zecora, facing Chrysalis with the shadows creeping around his hooves like a rising, black mist.

“Then perhaps three will succeed where two would fail.”

----------

Ironically the hours of twilight were among Twilight Sparkle’s least favorite of the day. It was an awkward time where there weren’t enough hours left in the day to plan for getting anything done, but she couldn’t justify turning in for the night, either. Leisure time, basically, which Twilight had always struggled a little with. Books were her usual, go-to method of solving that problem, and even after becoming a Princess that much hadn’t changed.

What had recently changed was her and her friends literally inheriting super powers from their previous alicorn lives and both her world and the human world next door coming under deadly threat from equally super powered beings. So, leisure time was less a concern these days.

This was why the coming of dusk found Twilight and her friends, plus a rather pleasantly eager Flash Sentry, all sweat soaked and tiredly exiting the Castle of the Two Sisters, deep in the Everfree Forest. Behind them pranced the sandy form of Announcer, somehow putting an unbelievable amount of sunny disposition into a smiling expression literally made solely from san.

“Today’s training session was spectacular, my new best friends!” Announcer said, holding up a hoof and producing from the sands of her own body the image of a sheet of paper she mime checking over, “I calculate that each of you improved on your Combat Potential Ratings in at least two or three categories apiece. Oh, I can’t wait to fine tune the arena some more to provide you with an even more stimulating training experience for tomorrow!”

“Oh my...” Rarity said, running a hoof through her mane and sitting down on the bottom steps of the castle exit, “I appreciate a mare who is enthusiastic about her work, but could you tone it down just a notch, Miss Announcer? Some of us are not used to sweating quite this much.”

“But Miss Rarity, you need to improve your Strength stat the most out of everyone! That’s why I gave your part of the arena such a heavy increase in gravity!”

“Don’t remind me,” Rarity said with a sigh, “I suppose I must praise Princess Celestia and Princess Luna for being so thorough in the capabilities they gave you. Although it is rather unfortunate you can’t leave the castle grounds.”

“Yes, I suppose,” Announcer said, the glowing blue and yellow lights that made up her ‘eyes’ inside her sandmare face looking wistfully at the forest, “It’d be fun to be able to spread the joy of arena battles and training to more ponies in the world.”

Twilight cleared her throat, patting Announcer with one of her wings, “I may be able to help with that one day. Once I have time to examine the enchantments that make up you and the training arena, I’m sure I can work out a way to make you, um... more portable?”

“Could you!? That’d be so wonderful!”

“Be a’ lot more convenient fer us, too,” said Applejack, grinning quite happily as she stretched her legs. The day of hard training had been a lot easier on the already hearty farm mare compared to some of her friends. “Instead o’ havin’ ta pop into an secret underground dungeon, you could just bring the arena ta us. My farm’s got a’ lot o’ space perfect fer this kind o’ hard workin’ exercise.”

Flash Sentry had been hovering alongside Rainbow Dash, still getting a little used to using his wings as a pegasus. The long journey to the Abyss had mostly been about swimming, so he still needed time in the actual air, but by Twilight’s estimate he was improving by leaps and bounds. He lowered himself to the ground next to her, leaning on her a bit as she in turn leaned on him. She tried not to blush too hard at doing so, especially from the knowing looks her friends were giving her. There was no real secret about her and Flash’s present relationship, but that still didn’t mean she was used to being too public about it yet.

“You feeling okay?” Flash asked her, “You seemed kinda out of it a few times during the practice bouts.”

The majority of the afternoon hours had consisted of them all having increasingly intensive sparring matches with one another. Not only did each of them want to become more comfortable with their Inheritor powers, both the ones they could access without transforming and the ones they had in the transformed state, but the practice fights also provided more time to be accustomed to any lingering emotions and memories from their past lives.

Among the participants had also been Princess Cadence, although she’d left a few hours earlier due to wanting to teleport to the Crystal Empire to oversee the reconstruction efforts and spend some personal time with Shining Armor and Flurry Heart.

And Spike was also no longer in Ponyville, which gave Twilight a sense of growing anxiety, even though she’d agreed that he should go with Ember and Torch to search for that mysterious dragon, Nidhogg.

Indeed, Flash was right, she’d been severely distracted during the entire training process. Something deep inside her was agitated beyond belief, telling her that something was wrong. Beyond the already large list of things that she already knew about. Charybdis had already been sent off to Tartarus under guard. Everyone was waiting to hear whether Sombra would contact them again after they’d received his initial warning. Tempest Shadow had the Treasure well situated and crewed by now, parked just outside Ponyville for whenever the airship might be needed. Aria and Sonata were back at Twilight’s castle, resting and keeping careful watch over the Eye of the Sea, and the fragment of their sister Adagio’s soul.

Logic told Twilight all she could do was wait and prepare herself and her friends for whatever came next. Experience told her they’d be ready for anything.

...So why did she continue to have this growing sense of dread taking root in her heart? As if the lengthening shadows of dusk were an ominous omen of what was coming.

“It’s okay, Flash,” she said, nuzzling his neck slightly as she draped a wing over him, and he over her, “Just... jumping at shadows.”

----------

Even a pair of Espada couldn’t simply ignore a trio of simultaneous Ceros fired at them from nearly point blank range, especially considering Adagio herself was an Espada and hardly holding back. Yet even as Catrina, with her supreme speed, moved to easily dodge out of the beam’s path and Grogar gestured to have his two bio-weapon servants shield him with their bodies, something odd happened.

Three Garganta portals opened up in the path of the triple Cero beams, and the beams entered those portals. A mere moment later the entire underground area was rocked by a series of explosions that came from behind Grogar and Catrina, an both of them looked back that direction to see that another trio of Garganta portals had opened up, each one angled towards different portions of the wall where clusters of the spirit energy transferring pipes were built. Huge blasts crater chunks of rock and pipe, and subsequently also blew apart portions of the cell doors holding the Adjuchas prisoners whose energies were being drained to fuel the replica Cross Gate.

“What the-!?” Catrina blinked in shock, “But nobody can make that many Garganta so quickly except... Squirk!?”

Grogar narrowed his eyes at Adagio, who was wearing a smug smile as she flicked her wrist and closed the Garganta she’d created to transfer her Cero beams, an then snapped her fingers. A dozen more Garganta appeared in the air around her of varying sizes, shifting an hovering like open, dark mirrors that were hers to command.

“I got a little more out of Squirk than I think Chrysalis anticipated when she ordered me to kill him,” Adagio said, to which Catrina looked shocked, clearly having not actually known the details of Squirk’s demise. Grogar simply wore an expression of faint irritation, and intrigue, despite himself.

“It seems I’ve underestimated that gem of yours. I knew it could absorb energy, which is what I’ve based all of my replica’s capabilities on, but I wasn’t aware you could consume specific powers. Fascinating. Perhaps I’ll need to keep you alive a little longer to work out how that ability works.”

“You’ll never get the chance,” Adagio said, then swept her trident out again, the flare of a Cero appearing at the middle prong’s tip, “Fenice, Thorax, go through the Garganta now!”

There was no question as to which Garganta she meant, for she had two hover down and float behind each of them an open wide enough for either to slip through. However neither one looked eager to do so.

“What about you!?” Fenice said, and Thorax, forcing a cocky smile onto his face, nodded.

“Indeed, I do hope you’re not planning some horrifically cliché self-sacrifice moment, Adagio. I’d be forced to write a scathing review of such a gross violation of common sense.”

Adagio groaned and snapped, “I can’t go through first, you idiots, because I have to create and target the portals from an origin point! I can keep these two busy for a few seconds while you escape, then follow right behind!”

“Two? You can’t count at all. Bushwoolies, take them!” Catrina commanded, an as one her small squad of fuzzy white balls of fury sprang into action. Adagio had never seen the Bushwoolies do, well, much of anything before, so she’d always wondered just what kind of Hollows they really were. They didn’t appear to be Arrancar, and were almost all physically identical save for minor variations in the shape of their bone white fluff.

Now the horrible little fuzz balls opened up their mouths to expose that over half their bodies were bloody teeth that then crackled and vibrated with crimson Hollow energy as they flew through the air like living cannonballs made of sharp fangs. They went for Fenice and Thorax specifically, flying, furry piranha that moved a lot quicker than Adagio would have imagined possible.

Fenice and Thorax were not slouches, nor caught off guard. Fenice whipped her Phantom Blade in a side arc, causing the gleaming white ban of Gleipnir to snap out in a flash and wrap up one of the Bushwoolies, which she then flicked like a whip into its companion. Adagio, quick to react, shifted one of her Garganta portals to swallow up the pair and spit them out... somewhere random in Hueco Mundo.

Thorax resorted to physical force to defend himself, drawing his Zanpaktou to slam into the mouth of the first Bushwoolie that came at him, while gracefully spinning his whole body around an lashing out in a roundhouse kick with one svelte leg to punt another into the wall like a wooly pinball.

However simple that may have all appeared, however, the distraction was all the time Catrina needed to move with disgusting levels of speed that even Adagio couldn’t catch. There was no following the woman’s emotions. She was simply beside Fenice, and moved her war fan in a blinding sweep, the speed of which creating a brutal blast of raw wind force so powerful that it forced everyone in the room to struggle to maintain their feet for a moment, but Fenice was directly hit and sent flying into the wall with tremendous force.

Adagio swore under her breath and rushed Catrina, sweeping her trident out. Water blossomed into existence around the Third Espada in a series of coiling rings, swiftly rushing in to try and constrain Catrina. If Adagio could just limit her movements-

-Catrina was simply one from amid the coiling rush of water, and Adagio sensed the brief brush of energy as Catrina swept up beside her in a flicker of afterimage.

“Too slow.”

The cutting prongs of Catrina’s war fan cut into Adagio in a spray of blood. Only for that blood to turn into water a second later as ‘Adagio’ burst into a series of water bubbles, and the air shimmered as the real Adagio appeared from a swirl of water whose reflections she was using to hide herself like camouflage while she’d sent her water clone to lure Catrina on. Adagio didn’t bother with a quip and instead rammed her trident right at Catrina’s back, not unlike when she’d stabbed Squirk in the back in the past.

Catrina’s speed, however, was something well and above anything Adagio had ever dealt with before, and what should have been the perfect backstab was thwarted as Catrina flipped up, using one hand to grasp and do a hand-stand on Adagio’s trident as she spun around and slashed down with her war fan at Adagio’s neck. With a twist of her body, Adagio avoided the blow just barely, feeling the scrap of those sharp metal prongs on her Heirro hardened skin.

She opened a small Garganta portal right on top of Catrina, trying to close it around the other Espada’s head in what would have been a decapitating maneuver had Catrina not swiftly vanished with a ridiculously fast Sonido that placed her a good distance away near the Cross Gate replica.

“This is getting you nowhere, Adagio,” Grogar stated simply, “You cannot match Catrina alone, nevermind if I choose to join in. Be smart about this. Surrender to me and live. I’d like to re-examine your siren gem. You owe me some research for depriving me of my Seed project, I think.”

“I would literally rather tear my own heart out and smash it to paste and let my body wither into dust before ever letting you touch me again,” Adagio said with all the truly honest and concentrated venom she was capable of mustering. Grogar frowned, then shrugged.

“So dramatic. I’ll just have to take what I can from your remains. It should be obvious by now that you cannot win, regardless of having Squirk’s useful, but highly situational skill with Garganta.”

“Hmph, you think so?” Adagio said, eyeing Fenice and Thorax, the former of which was groaning as she peeled herself off the crater she’d made in the wall and was rubbing her head, wounded by still standing. Adagio’s original hope was just to get them clear, then blast as much of this chamber as possible to try and sabotage the replica Cross Gate, but since her friends (dammit, she kept using that word in her brain, stop it brain!) were being stubborn about leaving her behind she’d just have to pull out her other trump card.

She hadn’t wanted to expose the fact that she’d absorbed Squirk’s Garganta specialty in the first place. She’d been sitting on that particular card for a long while, keeping it under wraps even in situations where it might have been useful. She knew Tirek would likely demand she use it for him in ways she wouldn’t like, such as promoting further invasions of Soul Society or Quincy territory. Or worse, as she feared now, to help him with his invasion of Equestria. Squirk’s ability with Garganta had either been even better than Adagio had originally thought, or she herself had somehow pushed it even further with the help of the Equestrian magic she bore inside her, because she could do all sorts of tricks with Garganta that normally shouldn’t be possible.

Including creating dormant Garganta that could be attached to individuals with or without their knowledge to be activated remotely when she so desired. Fortunately she had trusted her secret with a handful of people she thought was trustworthy enough to know. Di Roy, Gaw, Ember... and Hard Nail.

She was now standing between Catrina and Grogar, effectively flanked by the pair, while Grogar’s cybernetic Arrancar servants moved in on Thorax and Fenice.

It was then that she raised her left hand and snapped her fingers again, and a Garganta opened up in the air, horizontally right next to her. From that portal, dropping with a cool, easy landing, and calmly surveying the situation with cold eyes that gradually started to burn hot with anger as they landed upon the wounded Fenice... Hard Nail spoke with a razor sharp menace directed at Grogar and Catrina.

“The next one of you to so much as move in any manner that is not leaving this place in peace is going to discover just how many pieces you can be torn into, and still have breath to scream.”

Episode 199: Serenity, Wrath, Resolve

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Episode 199: Serenity, Wrath, Resolve

Although many of Guto’s loyal warriors had gotten distance from the arena due to Gilda’s caustic display of power that melted away much of the coliseum's seating and surroundings, the flock of curious Arrancar didn’t go far. They hung around the lip of the melted hole in the earth or at the relatively unscathed underground entries to what had once been the arena. None wanted to miss a chance to watch their Espada fight, and many more were curious to see the human girls of this “Coalition” that had been the gossip of Las Noches since the explosive duel with Tirek no more than a day earlier.

Neither Fluttershy or Pinkie Pie seemed to mind having an audience, their attention fully fixed on Guto and Hydia standing before them. Behind the two girls, Gilda could still barely stand due to her wounds from battling Greta, but she edged closer to Greta regardless, who herself could no longer even move. Greta gave Gilda a confused and curled grimace as the other woman scooped her up and slung her arm over Gilda’s broad shoulders.

“Put me down,” Greta said with a voice weary and strained.

“Make me,” Gilda replied flatly, then with what little strength she had left she leaped up towards the top of the melted hole. Guto saw this with a snarling twitch and moved to intercept them.

“I have not given you leave to depart, you failures!” his Zanpaktou cut a curving path at Gilda’s unprotected back.

Then a firm, pale yellow hand held his wrist and stopped the blow dead in its tracks, the force of the strike being halted creating a shockwave of air pressure to explode outward. Gilda kept going, barely landing atop the hole with Greta still slung over her shoulder. She then turned back to look down, seeing that Fluttershy was standing on the air beside Guto, one dainty hand wrapped firmly around the Seventh Espada’s sword wrist.

Guto’s eyes held a momentary shock that soon burned away into rage as she yanked his hand back. Fluttershy let go, face placid as Guto leveled his Zanpaktou at her, “I have absolutely had it with your interference. I’ll be putting you in chains right beside my pet Quincy by the end of this day, mark my words.”

Fluttershy calmly turned towards him and held her six arms in a relaxed, meditative pose, her eyes betraying nothing but a smooth lake of awareness. “The only chains are the ones you’ve placed on yourself, and the more you try to control those around you, the more those chains weigh you down. I know you don’t have ears to listen, so I’ll show you with the violence you prefer. Smooze?”

Rather to Gilda’s surprise, Smooze was already up top with her, as if he simply appeared next to her and Greata. “Yes, my lady?”

“Protect Gilda and Greta until this is over.”

“As you wish, Lady Fluttershy. ^_^” Smooze said, his digital faceplate smiling as he bowed.

Guto still wore a sneering expression, eyeing Smooze, Gilda, and Greta was if still trying to calculate if he could manage to kill them with Fluttershy in the way. His eyes then also shifted to his tower, his voice snapping in barked command towards his warriors, “While I deal with this human whelp, the rest of you secure our tower! Gilda’s foolish technique has damaged it and all of my wards are going off. Sweep the area and ensure my Quincy is still where she’s supposed to be!”

The gathering of Arrancar all swiftly hoped to his orders, most rushing into the tower’s ground floor to start searching it floor by floor. Fluttershy kept her expression neutral, silently hoping Twilight and her Quincy friends were getting Fleur out safely even at that moment, but there was no way to check, not with Guto right in front of her, reiatsu spiking high as he readied himself to attack. When he did, Fluttershy was ready for it. She’d been carefully observing his posture for the minute traces of tension that would tell her when and how he’d move. When he came at her with a maiming vertical slash at her left shoulder, clearly meant to take her left set of arms clean off, she was already stepping into his attack and spinning her body to the left, angling herself just short of his attack’s arc while ramming her right set of three elbows into his gut.

His Heirro was not weak, absorbing a great deal of the significant impact that sent him flying up at an angle and out of the hole. Fluttershy pursued, sending energy from herself and into Guto, having established a link for her Fullbring’s power to flow into him from the moment her hand had touched his wrist earlier.

In mid air Guto twirled his body around and aimed a palm at her, generating a circle of six points of arcing golden energy that then exploded into a stream of incredibly fast firing Bala bullets. Yet Fluttershy flickered a thought of her power’s influence into his arm and caused him to yank his aim well off center, and the destructive stream of reishi bullets tore a path of explosions along a long line of Las Noche’s desert instead.

“What!?” Guto blurted, eyes boggling at his own hand as if it had betrayed him.

His surprise afforded Fluttershy plenty of time to streak in a lightning motion of Bringer Light to appear above him and with aching grace she raised her right leg up almost straight over her head in a rather limber motion, then smashed down her heel with such force that even when Guto blocked it with his Zanpaktou the impact broke the sound barrier and sent him smashing to the ground with a skidding landing that left him tumbling for several dozen yards before he dug his heels into the sand to stop himself.

“You’re not used to it, not being in control,” Fluttershy said, her voice soft yet cold, like a snowdrift as she landed a few paces from him, “You’ve taken it from so many others you’ve forgotten what it feels like to be on the receiving end.”

Guto’s face bore an unbridled look of scornful anger as he stood to his full height, which did tower a head or so above Fluttershy’s slight form, and he exploded forward with renewed speed and fury. Air tore as he lashed a string of slashes at her, generating a storm of sand with the whirlwind of expert strikes that would have torn a lesser opponent open in dozens of places at once. Yet Fluttershy navigated that storm of steel like a streaming creek flowing downriver, her body shifting and bending in small ways that wasted no motion. She was not unharmed, small cuts finding her flesh, cutting the fine silk of her Fullbring’s elegant robes, yet despite these shallow wounds, Guto could gain no deeper score. It was like trying to cut water. Even in striking it, it parted, leaving no trace of one’s furious efforts in the rolling waves.

Changing tactics on a dime, Guto flung himself upward, lips still curled in a chiding sneer, “You know nothing about me or what I do, girl! And your manipulative tricks won’t save you forever.”

Points of golden light flowed into being around him, a multitude of them that multiplied as he soared upwards. Then with a flick of his blade, the points of gold light spread out and swarmed like locust, surrounding Fluttershy in a dome before bursting into streams of Bala shots. There were so many being fired at once from so many individual points that it was as if a literal blizzard of light was converging on Fluttershy, each one a reishi bullet containing enough force to puncture a fortified bunker and faster than lightning.

Guto felt confident that this barrage of thousands of Bala would, at the very least, severely wound the arrogant brat he was fighting. He didn’t want her dead, of course, because this willful girl was, to him, another object to add to his collection. Like Fleur De Lis before her, Fluttershy would serve as an example of his own power and the value of owning and training humankind to serve their Hollow betters. Lord Tirek would surely see that Guto’s way of doing things was the correct way with one of these magical girls serving in chains...

He frowned. There should have been a cacophonous series of detonations as his Balas struck. Even if Fluttershy had used her remarkably skillful dodging techniques to evade some, the impacts still should have been rocking the Las Noches sands. So why...?

His eyes boggled wide, mouth hanging open. “Ridiculous.”

Gold light, but not from his own reishi, was radiating across the sands. The light stemmed not only from the immense and beautiful sunburst halo that hung behind Fluttershy’s back and framed her head in golden rays, but from the hundreds of luminous arms of gold light that bloomed from that halo and spread around her like a glorious flower. Between them any fingers of these hundreds of hands were clasped Bala after Bala, the entire swarm of thousands of reishi bullets, all caught simultaneously by the wreath of hundreds of Fluttershy’s golden hands.

Guto could barely grasp how the girl could have reacted so fast as to accomplish the feat, and with a shuddering breath he felt her spiritual pressure flow out of her like a calm ocean of pure serenity.

With a surprising ease and gentleness did Fluttershy take the reishi from Guto’s Bala and scattered them, her golden fingers pinching away the Bala one at a time like a child popping bubbles. The wreath of many hundreds of golden hands shrank back into her halo, which remained as a golden aura behind Fluttershy as she looked up at Guto, “Your reiatsu feels awful, like boiling tar. Can you really not see how damaging your own actions are to yourself? Every person you try to make lesser than you only ends up making you all the smaller, weaker, and alone.”

“Spit all the prattle you wish, I will still be the one to make you kneel in the end,” Guto declared with a near manic laugh as he drew back his Zanpaktou, the blade of which began to glow with pale yellow light, “I’ll grant that you are stronger than I expected. But if this is the extent of what you can do, then don’t be so proud of yourself, child! Not until you’ve faced an Espada at their full power! Plunder their corpses; Conquistador!”

He was engulfed in the swirling vortex of near liquid gold energy that poured from his blade and body. As his spiritual pressure crashed outward from the process of assuming his Resurreccion form, back in the remains of the arena Hydia bounced her poker Zanpaktou on her shoulder and let out a whistle.

“Whew, your gal pal has really lit a fire under ol’ Guto’s tush,” Hydia said to Pinkie, “Didn’t think he’d release his Zanpaktou so quick, but sounds like the walking stick of butter seriously prodded his every ego-driven button. Hahaha, kinda sad we’re missing the show.”

Pinkie laughed with casual merriment and all but bounced on her feet, mimicking Hydia’s actions with her hammer, rocking it on her shoulder while facing off with the present Eighth Espada, “Hey, I’m all for grabbing some seats to spectate. Shy’s a treat to watch fight! All smooth and graceful, like watching taffy get made.”

“Heh, much as it’d be fun to watch Guto get humbled, I ain’t in the business of sitting on my own prodigious posterior while my co-workers are on the clock,” Hydia said, and made a disgusting sound in the back of her throat as she rubbed her palms together, then spat up a thick glob of saliva that was faintly tinted purple into her hands. Rubbing the saliva together she then ran it over her Zanpaktou, and Pinkie noticed the weapon began to smoke and sizzled with a faint purple smoke.

“So let’s get right to it, eh, candy girl?”

Pinkie Pie hadn’t known precisely what to expect from Hydia. Which was fine by her. Pinkie wasn’t really a “detail oriented” kind of person. But she wasn’t quite the same girl who’d first broken off a piece of her own mind to form her Fullbring all those months ago. Even as Hydia moved in a bulbous bounce of breakneck speed, the razor mind of violent focus that was Pinkamena combined with the intuitive flow of pure chaos information that was Pinkie Pie, and she saw clearly Hydia’s motions.

The Espada was shockingly agile for her rotund form, spinning like an expertly kicked soccer ball at Pinkie, a large whiff of burning purple smoke trailing her like a long cloak. Where that smoke touched stone, it melted and stained purple, even faster and more viscous than what Gilda’s acid had done to it. Pinkie coiled her legs, feeling them all but turn into springs as she bounced away from Hydia’s smashing blow, the hot poker Zanpaktou the big woman wielded ripping apart the ground where Pinkie had stood. Then more deadly violet fumes spewed from the saliva coating the weapon, chasing Pinkie’s jester motley and almost sizzling one of the bells.

“Wowie zowie, that’s some some serious sewer breath you’ve got, lady!” Pinkie Pie said, and her leap took her to the wall where she landed sideways and spun her hammer around in a powerful swing, “How about swirling some mouthwash in there to freshen things up!”

Her swing smacked a giant bottle of Listerine that suddenly appeared and knocked it like a supersonic baseball right at Hydia, who tilted her neckless head curiously at the comically oversized bottle of mouthwash that crashed into her like a literal wrecking ball. Hydia took the blow on her belly, letting out a deep laugh as she was driven back a few dozen feet and then with a thrust of her stomach she sent the bottle flying skyward.

“Hah, gonna need a lot more mint flavor than what you got in that bottle to degrade my poison, girlie!” Hydia said, then her whole body got soaked in Listerine green as the upended bottle managed to somehow lose its cap and dump its full contents right on Hydia’s head. “Gah! No! Not a refreshing mint flavor! My gingivitis!”

“You shall not oppose my proper dental care, foul fiend!” Pinkie said, diving at Hydia as her hammer transmuted into a twelve foot long, mechanical toothbrush with bristles like giant spears. Pinkie’s hands flipped the switch and the unnecessarily large toothbrush began to vibrate like a high frequency blade as she began to swing it in a spinning arch at Hydia, who with equally ridiculous poise held her poker Zanpaktou like a fencing foil and began to rapidly parry Pinkie’s toothbrush while being pushed back.

“I reject your standards of hygiene and replace them with my own, pink menace!” Hydia declared, shockwaves of force blasting out from each clash of her Zanpaktou with Pinkie’s hammer turned brush. Then, spewing from Hydia’s armpits like a disgusting fog, was a blast of thick purple gas. Pinkie immediately knew the danger she was in and with pure comedic timing whipped out a big white sign from behind her back that read in big red liters “Yikes!” and then used said sign to begin fanning the air, generating an incredibly large amount of wind to keep the gas away from her in a great big swirl.

This wouldn’t keep the gas at bay for long, and one didn’t need to be a genius to tell how poisonous the fumes were. Pinkie jumped straight up before the gas could envelop her. With a spin of her weapon the giant toothbrush turned back into a hammer, only the front half of it opened up like a toy mallet and a ridiculous contraption of multiple giant fans appeared and proceeded to blast the ground, billowing away the gas exuding from Hydia.

“I’m not a judgy Mcjudgerson, really, but that’s some serious BO!” said Pinkie Pie, hanging in the air. Her jester mask shifted to the other side of her face, her exposed eye turning yellow as she grew a shark toothed grin, “Almost makes me not want to take a bite at all, but not about to let Fluttershy have all the fun here. Time to switch things up from comedy... to tragedy.”

All at once the ludicrously big assortment of fans that were attached together by pink mechanical arms suddenly shot back into the hammer’s face, which closed up. Pinkie Pie’s reiatsu shifted abruptly and with sudden, immense chilling focus as dark pink tendrils of energy flowed from the edges of her body’s outline. Each tendril grew mouths aplenty, like rows of eager saws, and Pinkie dropped to the ground. Tendrils grasped the floor like pulsating legs, Pinkie’s body suspended just above the ground as she faced Hydia with a lopsided grin of teeth.

Hydia looked momentarily concerned at the shift, and with a swing of her Zanpaktou, a thick and concentrated cloud of purple gas billowed forth, “Only tragedy I’m seeing here is that you crazy girls are still picking fights you can’t win. Don’t try to intimidate me with a few creepy smiles, candy girl! I literally flirt with monsters for fun. Nothing you got in your bag of tricks that’s gonna scare ol’ Hydia!”

As the gas cloud flowed like a dark wave at Pinkie Pie, she let out an intense titter that felt like claws tap dancing on frozen glass. “Hehehe, challenge accepted!”

The mass of sanguine pink tendrils before her roiled and combined in a hideous mass, expanding into a giant mouth of dripping, bladed teeth. This mouth opened wide to eat the advancing cloud of gas, as if the gas was being sucked into a void-like maw of emptiness. Hydia blinked, sure that her immensely deadly poison should have affected Pinkie even through those tendrils, for her poison was a lethal extension of her spiritual energy and would therefore degrade the reishi of an opponent’s abilities.

Yet Pinkie Pie’s reiatsu wasn’t degrading. If anything it was growing more pervasive and thick as Hydia noticed the light and color draining from the area around her. That mass of dark pink tendrils had become expansive and flowed with wet rippling noises and Hydia suddenly realized that with speed far exceeding what she’d expected, Pinkie’s reiatsu itself seemed to cover what was left of Guto’s arena. Things were dark, too dark. Hydia’s eyes couldn’t adjust to the shadow around her, and the air felt cold and dry. Hydia made more gas, enveloping herself in it in an almost protective gesture as she looked left and right, trying to spot Pinkie Pie in this ink black darkness.

What the hell had the girl just done? This wasn’t at all like the silly gags her hammer had produced before.

Giggles filled the air, not just one or two, but a chorus of mad voices that sent shivers down Hydia’s spine. Suddenly a spotlight clicked on and focused on Hydia, and she could see she was standing on what looked like... the dirt of a circus ring? More lights flicked on, neon pink and deep red, going up and down the spine of a tall circus tent bearing stripes in shades of blood red, cotton candy pink, and velvet black. The circus ring was encased in wreaths of pink metal razor wire and amid the dirt circle were dozens upon dozens of human sized butcher knives stabbed into the ground, gleaming red.

“Come one, come all, to witness the deadly delights of our harrowing phantasmagoria of painful plenty!”

A second spotlight lit up upon Pinkie Pie, standing above Hydia on a tightrope of thin wire crossing the circus tent, hammer in hand, but its long, spiked backside now dripped with pinkish liquid like blood as she swept it about to address the... crowd? Hydia looked to see that surrounding the circus’ ground floor was a set of bench stands packed full with dozens of Pinkie Pies! The Pinkies all cheered, jeered, and hollered, the sounds mixing together into an orchestra of frightful howls. The main Pinkie Pie’s face split with an inhumanly wide grin as she flipped off the tightrope and landed before Hydia, and the giant knives around her began to shudder as if coming to life, rising into the air around them.

“Hehehe, Laughter of Madness is a funny Fullbring, with me and Mena being the chocolate and strawberry swirl that makes up its delicious ice-creamy goodness. Buuuuut what you see isn’t always what you get! I bring the ha-ha, but now that me and Mena are on the same wavelength...”

She snapped her fingers, and the floating forest of giant knives all sprouted hideous pink eyes and their sharp ends split with thick toothed, metal mouths that all laughed and howled in horrid chorus as one. There was a sudden discordant string of maniacal circus music that piped through the air as bursts of fireworks in crimson colors exploded along the edge of the circus ring, revealing in their flashes of light that the crowd of Pinkie Pies were crawling forward on elongated limbs like hungry spiders, heads twisted at countless odd angles as mouths salivated off sharp teeth.

“We can bring the frights as much as the funnies! Welcome to my Fullbring’s other half; Circus of Terror.”

----------

An incredulous stillness followed Hard Nail’s simple yet violently blunt declaration. Catrina made a soft snorting sound, as if she could hardly believe the audacity of the threat, and she cast a glance back and forth between Hard Nail and Grogar as if trying to gauge the veracity of the danger based on Grogar’s own reaction. For Grogar’s part, his withered features contorted into a smile as frightfully wide to remind one of Pinkamena on a bad day.

“Ah, Hard Nail, being as melodramatic as ever I see-” Grogar had not gotten through half his sentence before there was a savage blur of motion that tore the space between him and Hard Nail, with Grogar’s eyes widening as he threw himself sideways from the cutting wrath that ripped a foot wide and deep hole that tore not only the ground, but the ceiling in one serving line that trailed all the way out the door. Despite his evasion, a ragged line tore down Grogar’s right shoulder and arm, dripping dark blood to the stone as he clutched the wound and looked around for Hard Nail, for the man had vanished from sight during the attack.

Catrina had been the only one who had fully followed Hard Nail’s motions, seeing the pale Espada slice and move a one, cutting with both blade and razor sharp pressure wave that probably would’ve taken Grogar’s arm off if he hadn’t at least instinctually sensed the danger.

“I’m not inclined to repeat myself,” Hard Nail’s voice came from behind Grogar, his body wreathed in a growing aura of noble darkness that was rimmed with a raw edge of rageful green, “I am here solely to protect my daughter and my friend. I don’t care what else is happening here or why you’re fighting. It ends now, either by your choice, or your death.”

Adagio had barely been able to track Hard Nail’s motions too, and more than that she felt that his reiatsu was filled with a pressure that felt at once strangely reminiscent of when she first met “the Lament”, yet resonating on a different level than what she’d known. Hard Nail had always been powerful and felt different from other Hollows, and after the incident with the Seed Adagio had largely chalked that up to Grogar’s blasted experiment, yet now she could sense that something was welling up inside Hard Nail. A Hollow power no less potent or dark, yet somehow purer, cleaner, more natural, like the strength of a river being let loose after the dam has been torn down.

Grogar was eyeing Hard Nail with a hand idly touching his wound, then, smiling with more of an angered edge, he said, “Idiot boy. You think embracing your Hollow nature will give you the strength to close the gap? You were only special because of me and my work! Now you’re nothing more than a nascent Espada pretending to power. Catrina, we’ve no more time to indulge this farce; end it.”

Catrina, however, was studying Hard Nail with interest, her war fan snapping open and shut several times as she toyed with the weapon, eyes locked on him, “Grogar claimed you lost your bite, Lament, but it seems to me you’ve found your teeth. Enough to warrant consideration... but what should I do with you? Lord Tirek might actually value you if you gain some strength back, but I’d benefit just as much from consuming you before you become a larger threat. I doubt you’d accept submission, would you? Just as stubborn as little Adagio, here.”

If Lament was concerned at all about facing the Third Espada, he showed none of it on his ice cold features, nor in his equally unbending voice, “I know your power, Catrina, and I also know that, stronger than me or not, I can cut that flesh of yours. You’re a creature of vanity and caution. So understand this; even if you defeat me, you won’t be able to do so without my blade finding your face and rendering it unrecognizable.”

Catrina’s lips curled back in a flash of a snarl, but much as she was clearly enraged, there was a flicker of unease and fear in her eyes. Adagio was impressed. Hard Nail, she couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or serious, but he’d succeeded in planting doubt in Catrina as to the wisdom of fighting, which played to Adagio’s favor. Even with Hard Nail’s help, that only evened the odds against Grogar and Catrina, rather than flip them firmly in her favor.

“That is a daring threat for a man with a family he can’t always be around to protect,” Catrina pointed out with acid in her voice.

Hard Nail’s reiatsu only grew more dense and potent as Adagio felt the chamber shake with it. He wasn’t holding back, and the growing surge of darkness around him only flowed with purer intensity as he raised the long, elegant blade of his Zanpaktou.

“That has always been the truth, but unlike before I am no longer afraid of it. I no longer regret what I can’t always be there to protect. My wife, the woman who owns my heart, was a Fullbringer who charged headlong into death to save our children, and now she is a Soul Reaper who’s very title denotes her relentless strength. Death itself didn’t stop her. My eldest daughter follows in her mother’s footsteps, and her honest heart shakes the earth where she walks. I’ve adopted a host of Hollow children into my loving care, each of them as precious to me as life itself, yet I know they’ll walk their own paths in due time. One is capable of compassion and wisdom beyond any I’ve known, beyond any Hollow I’ve seen capable of, while the one who stands in this very chamber has learned to embrace the Hollow blood that runs through her soul without fear. My whole life has been witnessing those I long to protect show me exactly how to do so, not by fearing what may happen or regretting what has already happened... but by embracing exactly who and what I am in the present.”

The rivers of dark reiatsu coursing over his body coalesced around his skeletal arm, granting not flesh, but hardened, black bone that moved now with the strength and ease beyond what his flesh and blood arm had once been. He now gripped his Zanpaktou with both hands, and it was as if this sharpened his spiritual pressure into a killing edge beyond killing edges, the phantom image of a black wolf skull forming around his body amid the dark aura that howled with challenging menace and power.

“I am Hard Nail, Fourth Espada, aspect of Wrath itself. To harm what I love is to court a screaming death.”

Grogar made a small ‘tch’ sound under his breath and tensed, making the simplest of small gestures with his own Zanpaktou. His two bio-engineered and cybernetically enhanced servitor Arrancar leaped into motion, bursting through the air on high-speed Sonidos to rush Hard Nail from the left and right with weapons barred; one expelling a briar of lethal scalpels from their hands while the other’s throat bulged as its mouth opened to shoot out a metallic, drilling tongue.

Hard Nail didn’t even seem to move. There was simply a black, crescent shadow of motion and the two enhanced Arrancar bio-weapons were shredded into multiple pieces as if bisected half a dozen times by the same stroke.

“Holy shit...” Fenice breathed, to which Hard Nail, without any irony, glanced at her.

“Fenice, language."

Grogar let out a seething sigh, “I’m going to need to fine tune the next batch of models for both the Phase Ones and Phase Twos, it seems. They shouldn’t be that easy to dismantle, even for an Espada of moderate caliber.”

Adagio took that moment to loudly clear her throat, gaining the attention of the room in general. “Considering the shift in the present power dynamic, perhaps you’d like to revisit the notion of pushing this fight, Grogar? Even if you and Catrina win, which is no longer so certain for you, there can be no doubt you won’t come out of it unscathed.”

“Your calculations lack data,” Grogar stated bluntly, “Lament is demonstrating an... ample power increase beyond my own projections, but that doesn’t change the simple fact that Catrina and I are here to prevent your interference with the function of this Cross Gate. You’ve already damaged some of its power conduits, which I’ll have to repair. I am going nowhere as long as you remain to potentially cause further irritating mischief due to your misguided desire to rebel against Tirek, which I might add is still so unbelievably far beyond your capacity I am shocked you are still even considering it.”

“My business with Tirek is my own, and I happen to believe your calculations concerning my chances of dethroning him are what lack data. Far as I can tell Tirek wants me, or anyone with a backbone, to aim for his throne. May as well be me,” Adagio stated with a cheeky smirk, “As for this Cross Gate... I’m assuming you need it to invade Equestria in full. If we manage to destroy it, that strands Chrysalis on the other side, and prevents any larger force from going there.”

“Don’t be an idiot,” Catrina said with a growl, “Tirek may have some asinine patience for your plans to overthrow him, but even he wouldn’t forgive you for so directly interfering with the invasion of Equestria. He’ll kill you himself if you destroyed the gateway.”

Adagio felt Thorax’s surprisingly gentle hand on her shoulder, and looked over to see him giving her a knowing and annoyingly appeasing look, “My mother placed me in ‘time out’ because she knew I’d come to you to warn you about her attack, and might use the Cross Gate myself to aid you or others to go after her.”

By others he meant Sunset Shimmer and the Coalition, which Adagio had to admit probably would have been her first thought to do, had Thorax managed to warn her in advance about Chrysalis’ attack. It would’ve been almost too easy to Garganta Sunset and her friends into this space and have them pop over to Equestria like they’d been so badly wanting to do for so long. Now it almost seemed like the better option to blow this replica Cross Gate up in the hopes it’d at least stop Tirek from sending in the rest of Hueco Mundo’s forces, even if in doing so she’d be damning herself and her followers to facing Tirek and the other Espada’s retribution.

She might be able to use her expanded Garganta powers to evacuate her people, but could she also do the same for those who supported her, like Torch and his horde? Even in the best case scenario it seemed likely she’d lose too many of those who’d placed faith in her if she took things down that route, but none of the alternatives were ideal either. Grogar wanted her dead or on a leash at this point, and Catrina was still backing him up. The only ways out of this were either by beating them both, or retreating. She wouldn’t use the Cross Gate to do that, because she wasn’t about to abandon her people. If Catrina and Grogar could be kept at bay, she could have everyone fall back to her territory via Garganta. At least then if Grogar wanted to push this, he’d have to come to her on her own turf.

The only question was whether she’d also destroy this Cross Gate in the process, and Thorax had made a good point that as long as it was intact, she might be able to use it herself at some point. That was the implication of what he’d said. She’d damaged it already, which should delay Tirek’s full scale invasion by at least a small margin. If Adagio could use that time to get ahold of Sunset Shimmer and arrange a way to get her and her friends here... but would Tirek’s patience run out by then? No doubt Grogar would inform Tirek of Adagio’s Garganta ability, now, and with the Cross Gate damaged, Tirek may well no longer consider Adagio’s interference worthy of ignoring.

Too many variables. She was getting lost in the mire of weighing options, and she couldn’t afford that. Time to be decisive.

“Hard Nail, can you keep Catrina off our backs while we deal with Grogar and open up some portals?” Adagio said, “We’re falling back to my territory.”

He simply nodded, the vast well of his awakened spiritual pressure sharpening to a killing focus. Hard Nail didn’t even waste words with a verbal response, he simply vanished in a sonic burst of speed and went right for Catrina. She hissed, and responded with blinding god-speed of her own, and Adagio could barely follow the rattling string of thunderous clashes that occurred as the pair exchanged strikes across the air of the expansive chamber, sword and warfan sparking off of each other.

Adagio wasted no time in snapping her fingers and opening a fresh set of Garganta portals, four of them in an arc behind her and twice as many in a vertical circle formation in front of her. Water poured down her right arm in tightly pressurized coils as she aimed her trident forward and proceeded to fire a blazing hail of water-based Bala bullets into the Garganta she’d opened in front of her. At the same instance, smaller Garganta opened around Grogar in a spinning circle, disgorging the water Bala in a staggering line of shots that would rip apart the stone floor in chunks.

Grogar heaved a vastly annoyed sigh and stomped a foot upon the ground so hard it cracked it upwards into a series of thick rock chunks that acted as shields against the barrage. He then rushed forward through the hail of Bala that tore through the rock slabs, and went right for Adagio with his blade extended and glowing hot at its tip with the tell-tale azure sphere of a Gran Rey Cero being charged up.

Before Adagio could respond, both Fenice and Thorax were in front of her, the pair seeming to act on the same instinctive thoughts as they appeared in flickers of Sonido to standing between her and Grogar. Fenice swung her Fullbring sword forward, crimson Hollow energy rolling up the blade alongside the sizzling stream of lava that flowed from its edge. Thorax meanwhile cupped his hands in front of him, and lowered his head at the same time. Twin green spheres of Cero energy appeared, one between his hands, and one between the mandibles of the betel skull helmet that was the fragment of his Hollow mask.

Grogar discharged his Gran Rey Cero at the same moment that Thorax unleashed two identical green Cero beams, and Fenice joined him with her sword swing blasting forth a thick and melting pillar of lava that was interlaced with the core of a deep red Cero of her own. The entire chamber shook and cracked at the collision of the beams, resulting in a gloriously loud and rumbling detonation that would have probably started to collapse the place had Grogar not held back at the last second, clearly realizing the danger this clash posed to the Cross Gate.

“Now!” Adagio told Thorax and Fenice, all but using strands of nearly solidly physical water to grab the two and move them towards the Garganta portals she’d opened behind her.

With the dust still settling from the clash of Ceros, Fenice and Thorax had ample time to rush the portals. Even Catrina’s Bushwoolies no longer seemed interested in intercepting them, instead entranced as they tried to watch their mistress overwhelm Hard Nail. The clash between Third and Fourth Espada was at this point little more than a staggering series of stone rending shockwaves as both moved at full speed around the chamber, barely more than wafting streaks of light and darkness that sharply clashed with earth shaking thunder with each pass of their blades.

Adagio had no idea if Hard Nail was keeping up or if either him or Catrina were even able to wound each other. All she could feel was their conflicting reiatsu, with Catrina’s monstrously high and sharp spiritual pressure still edging out Hard Nails' freshly revived dark ocean of power, but not by enough of a margin that it felt like Hard Nail was going to get overwhelmed. There was still time to mar Grogar’s plans, and finally get a proper swipe at him, as she’d been boiling inside to take since the moment he’d dragged her to his laboratory all those months ago.

“Hard Nail, keep Catrina pinned down while I handle Grogar! Don’t miss your exit when the time is right!” she shouted, and then came for Grogar with a fresh vengeance taking root in her limbs. Her blood was singing and her siren gem was pulsing red with her rising emotions. She knew she probably couldn't kill Grogar here without Tirek coming down on her like an anvil, but Grogar had started this fight and far as she was concerned that was all the excuse she needed to finally, finally vent some of her long held rage.

He was still dusting himself off on the other side of the crater the clash of Ceros had created, and Adagio slipped through a Gargnata to blur with Sonido right behind him, driving her trident at his back, its triple prongs glittering red. He jerked sideways like a twitching spider, lashing with his blade. It caught between the prongs of her trident, but Adagio pushed in anyway, screaming with potent fury as she put her back into the thrust.

Sparks flew, first from Grogar’s Zanpaktou, then from the skin of his Heirro as the tips of her trident pushed in. Adagio smelled the blood she drew as her trident sunk deeper, but Grogar twisted his sword and rolling to the side he led her off balance and with his right hand he let go of his Zanpaktou to strike with an air shattering backhand that was swifter than Adagio expected.

She felt the blow on her jaw, blood spiting from her lips, but she didn’t relent, planting her feet and drawing upon her Hollow power to unleash a slicing torrent of multiple water streams from around her, seeking to dice Grogar to ribbons. He leaped backwards, form flickering with multiple Sonidos to avoid the cutting lines of water. This kept him on the defensive, however, which Adagio used to slip through another Garganta, this one opening up inside the lager chamber with the stairwell leading up and the cages for the many imprisoned Adjuchas.

While slapping around Grogar was cathartic, her true goal was to cripple the use of the Cross Gate without destroying it, so she might be able to use it for her own ends later. She hadn’t forgotten about these unfortunate Hollows trapped by Chrysalis for this ghoulish use, and now that she had proper line of sight on the cages, including the ones she’d damaged earlier, she began to open up dozens of Garganta portals. She positioned each one to surround a different Adjuchas Hollow prisoner, the edges of the portals slicing through chain bindings. She then gestured and had the portals swallow up the prisoners, each portal opening to locations she was familiar with around the lake she’d created outside Las Noches.

“Blasted, meddling mad woman!” Grogar hissed, appearing in the chamber. As he did so there was a thick gust and burst of multiple shockwaves as Catrina and Hard Nails' blinding high-speed conflict landed them inside the larger prison chamber as well. Adagio could slightly make out the details now, unfortunately because Hard Nail was slowing down a little. His power remained immense in its freshly reawakened state, but he was going up against the Third Espada, and Catrina was not at all playing footsies at the moment.

Adagio had never truly seen Catrina go all out. She’d barely felt glimpses of Catrina’s real ability during the raid on the Quincy’s Silburn castle, or the retaliatory battle the Quincy launched on Las Noches. Now she was seeing Catrina in action up close, and as frightful as the likes of Tirek and Chrysalis rightfully were, Catrina’s speed was a breathtakingly terrifying thing to behold in its own right.

When Catrina could be seen, she was never just in one space or form, she was seemingly a living typhoon of savage, sweeping strikes of her Zanpaktou that appeared everyone at once. Her red hair was an endless flicker of a hundred firelights, her warfan a constant blizzard of steel. Hard Nail was keeping pace as best he could, a dancer in the storm, a darkly outlined shade of ghostly pale power weathering the hail of thunderous blows coming his way with the steady relentlessness of pure, focused wrath.

That was likely why Catrina had not yet overwhelmed him. She was landing blows, cutting his form, which failed to bleed even as his porcelain flesh parted in shallow wounds. For every dozen strikes Catrina landed, Hard Nail was only able to retaliate with one or two; but those one or two were brutally precise and potent, each swing of his long Zanpaktou leaving crescents of darkness in their wake that ripped rock floor and ceiling apart like tissue paper and shook the whole underground. Hard Nail could afford to take Catrina’s thousand cuts. She couldn’t afford to let him land more than a single blow.

This fact forced her to fight with caution, despite her speed. Each thrust and slice was probing, trying to open up his defenses. Yet all Hard Nail did was patiently evade and parry, shift to make deep cuts lesser, his eyes never blinking as he looked for the slightest hint of an opening to take advantage of.

Adagio would have watched that deadly dance longer, entrancing as it was, but Grogar occupied her attention as he stalked towards her. By now her Garganta had already finished whisking away the prisoners, so he couldn’t stop her on that count, but he seemed focused just on her now as he used his free hand to reach into the folds of his white vest and withdrew an object. It looked like a small metal card about five inches long and three wide. Upon it was printed unusually curving lines of what might have been circuitry if not for the semi-organic way the red lines pulsated like veins.

“Time and again you or those associated with you have delayed project after project, costing me far more research than you were worth in the first place. A part of me almost wishes to claim a certain pride in that audacious level of persistence, Adagio, for I know you wouldn’t be what you are without me. Yet I have grown utterly weary of you at the same time. Curious as I am to have another go at examining you after displaying such an interesting capacity to consume other Hollow’s powers, I am also at a juncture where I am nearing the cusp of true evolutionary greatness and I just cannot afford you mucking things up.”

He flung the card at her, “Besides, stealing power is hardly a method restricted solely to yourself, even if my technique differs.”

Adagio didn’t know what to expect from the flung card, so simply erected a spherical barrier of water around herself as it came flying in. Of the many potential surprises she expected, what she never would have counted on was her own power erupting from the card. It was an empty echo of her own water techniques fueled by Grogar’s own reiatsu, seemingly stored in the card itself. A burst of sickly green water, like the fetid waters of a swamp, exploded out of the card and formed a conical burst of concentrated and highly pressurized force upon the shield of her own, pure blue water.

She was taken off guard by the strength of this spear of water as it pierced her shield and struck her. Her Heirro was hard enough to take most of the blow but she felt the air knocked from her lungs as she was flung back and nearly slammed into the pillar containing the stairs back up.

Grogar had already manifested a trio of additional metal cards in his hand and flung them at her, creating more flying drills of pressurized and reiatsu enhanced swamp water. The water even smelled fouler than her own, and Adagio wrinkled her nose as she stood. No longer off guard, she gripped her trident and spun it forward, pouring forth her own Hollow power in a focused wave as she created a tidal wave of powerful water that crashed forward in a thick wall. Grogar’s own water lances were absorbed in the tide, and Adagio leaped over the wave to ride it down towards him, trident poised to impale him as the wave crashed upon him.

Yet he responded with another card, this one tossed up and bursting with a thick disc of spinning, horrid green water that held such pressure and potency it actually took her trident blow head on as the wave crashed down. She sensed Grogar speed up and over her, another card in hand, held between the fingers of his left hand as he slashed with it. Water spun forth, forming an intensely focused blade of filthy green liquid. Adagio formed her own blade of water, slicing with her left hand while thrusting low with her trident in her right hand.

Both she and Grogar were struck simultaneously, her trident catching his side in a bloody gouge, and his blade of water managing to cut through her own and land a crimson blow upon her arm, almost deep enough to disable it.

“Ugh...” Adagio skidded back from the blow, eyes glowering. How had Grogar’s foul green water so easily penetrated her own, and more than once?

He chuckled at her angered look, but he also winced at the wound on his side, “Don’t look so surprised. As if I’d copy any element of your power without also ensuring the reishi contained within was calibrated to counter your own ability. I’ve known for a long time your intent to kill me, Adagio. Did you think I’d cease making preparations to best you when the time came?”

“Hmph, there has to be a limit to how many of those cards you have,” Adagio said, “And how much power you can invest in them.”

He nodded, almost looking pleased, “I despise your interference but do admire your sharp mind. These cards are a new invention, but have great potential once I work out all the kinks. This was an ideal opportunity to test them out, but I only had so many prototypes on hand. I shall make more, and with abilities beyond yours besides. I’ve had ample time to collect data on other subjects, after all.”

As they trade words, the battle between Catrina and Hard Nail reached a violent crescendo. Their forms appeared in a dozen places at once as the speed of their exchange hit its feverish final pitch. Adagio caught the moment where Hard Nail drew Catrina in, perhaps taking advantage of her growing frustration painted clearly on her otherwise beautiful features. He lowered his blade, feigning a lack of guard that she leaped on like a hungry tigress. Her Zanpaktou blazed and blurred, slicing towards his Hollow hole. However Hard Nail raised his blackened, skeletal left hand and let the sharp prongs of her warfan sink into the bones... then he twisted and bent his arm with viscous power and managed to actually wrench the weapon free of her grasp, causing the Zanpaktou to skitter across the chamber and plant itself in the stone wall.

With not even a microsecond of hesitation, Hard Nail slashed up with his lowered blade, the long curving arc of steel leaving a black wave in its wake. Catrina used all her speed to dodge despite being off balance, and it was a true testament to that speed that what should have been a perfect counterblow that would have likely killed many other opponents via bisecting only managed to graze her face.

Catrina’s howl of pain was shrill and air rending, regardless, for even that graze took her right eye clean out of its socket in a gout of red.

Adagio actually flinched. Ouch. That had to hurt.

“ARRGH! You BASTARD!” Catrina’s roar of pain and utter ire was only matched by the insane speed at which she instantly had her Zanpaktou back in hand and cut down with an explosion of raw, radiant red Hollow power. The resulting Cero was less a beam and more an eviscerating vertical line of red, one which ripped apart all in its path.

Hard Nail countered by raising his damaged skeletal hand and from its thin finger tip he generated a sparking and crackling line of dark edged emerald green that exploded forth in a focused Cero of his own. His beam impacted with Catrina’s red line, and while his power was enough to blunt the force of her fury, Catrina’s Cero was the stronger and cut through his beam as a knife through cake.

But it did slow the Cero enough that Adagio had time to open a Garganta beneath Hard Nail and drop him through it, leading him out of the chamber and having him follow where she’d sent Fenice and Thorax.

Before Catrina could react, as the woman was still clutching her ruined right eye, Adagio turned and rushed for another Garganta she opened up right behind herself.

“This is not over, Adagio Dazzle,” she heard Grogar say as he watched her go, “Run all you like. I will have you brought to heel, one way or another, before we walk Equestrian soil. I’ll not tolerate anyone, least of all my own experiment, stand between me and my evolution.”

Keep telling yourself that, old goat. I’ll be the death of you yet.

Adagio was through the Garganta in an eyeblink. All in all the battle had only really lasted a minute or two, but it had felt like a short eternity. But at least they’d done it. She’d rescued Thorax, sabotaged the replica Cross Gate enough to hopefully buy a few more days, and even bloodied Grogar with her own hands. There would surely be consequences to come, and depending on how capricious Tirek was feeling she might have to flee Las Noches or Hueco Mundo itself, but for the moment she and those she cared for were still alive, and in Adagio’s book that was a win.

The portals opened up into her own personal chambers, including the ones she’d sent Hard Nail, Thorax, and Fenice through. So when Adagio emerged, she saw all three, with Fenice sitting on her bed, hands on her knees as she looked up at Adagio, and let out a deep breath of relief, “Whew... you made it. Thank God.”

Thorax, a bit more composed, brushed himself off and gave Adagio a grateful look as looked her over, noting her bloodied arm, “A little worse for wear, but looks like we’re all intact. Thank you again for coming for me, Adagio. Hopefully I can return the favor momentarily, once I catch my breath. A double Cero to match a Gran Rey Cero is a strain, even for me.”

“Hey, I helped,” Fenice said, to which Thorax smiled broadly and made an exaggerated bow.

“My humble thanks, daughter of the Lament. Or should I say Hard Nail, now?” Thorax queried to the Espada in question, who silently sheathed his Zanpaktou. Hard Nail barely looked in Thorax’s direction, instead going to Fenice’s side. He raised his right hand to her shoulder and held her.

“Are you unhurt, daughter?”

“No, but most of what I got are flesh wounds. Pharynx hit me way harder, overall... but thanks for asking, father,” she replied with a weak smile. Adagio could tell she was a lot more strained and weakened by the ordeal than she was letting on, but all things considered it had been a rather rough day.

And it wasn’t over. She didn’t know what Grogar would do next, but it probably wouldn’t be good. Worse, now that she was catching her own breath and had a second to let her senses settle in, she felt spiritual pressures out in Las Noches, and knew that Twilight’s rescue mission had gone from stealth to conflict. There was a mess of conflicting reiatsu out there, and she could pick out Fluttershy’s, Pinkie Pie’s, Hydia’s, and Grogar’s all going at it.

“Feels like there’s quite a party going on out there,” Thorax commented, “I must have missed a lot during my brief incarceration.”

Adagio just shook her head and looked at him with a sardonic snort, “You have, but there’s nothing we can do about that particular ‘party’. That’s in the hands of others, and we have our own issues to deal with in the meantime.”

She knew she was making quite the understatement. It was difficult to predict precisely what would come next. Catrina no doubt now had a grudge against Hard Nail for the loss of her eye. Grogar had made it clear he intended to push for her to be shackled in some way before Tirek launched the full invasion of Equestria that Chrysalis was currently establishing a foothold for. She’d, at best, probably only bought a couple of days worth of time for Grogar to repair the damage she’d inflicted and capture more Hollows to use to power his replica Cross Gate.

She had to use that time wisely and hopefully avoid Tirek himself deciding she’d overstepped her bounds. And of course all of this was assuming that Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight could pull off their rescue without getting themselves killed.

----------

Chrysalis’ laughter echoed like derisive thunder off of the sand dunes of the Bone Dry Desert, the Second Espada’s eyes all but sparkling with gleeful interest as Sombra appeared, taking a stand alongside Firefly and Zecora’s Regai to face her. Chrysalis’ left hand was placed with sass upon her hip as she twirled her Zanpaktou in her other hand with playful but menacing speed and smooth ease.

“So that’s what the Quincy King looks like as a pony? Oh, I know you’re not him, but his counterpart, because you are far and way weaker than your other half is, little pony. Still, handsome, for a short equine. You actually pull off the hair better. Or mane, as it were. And did I hear that right? You plan on helping these two try to take me on? How odd. From the dynamics of the situation I would have thought these two would be your enemies and you’d take this opportunity to leave them in the dust and escape, as you were clearly trying to...” Chrysalis gestured with her blade at the handful of shimmering wards and the clusters of Kido lanterns Zecora had created, “I mean, obviously they were trying to pen you in. So why help them, instead of using this as your chance to get away?”

“Not that I’m complaining about the decision,” Firefly said, glancing sidelong at Sombra through the purple glass of her visor, “But the monster has a point. You should’ve booked it the moment we were distracted.”

Sombra let out a humorless, dark chuckle, “I have never been accused of being a stallion who thinks his actions through. Whether in my less than glorious past or questionable present, I have always followed my gut. It’s telling me now that leaving the two of you to face this... creature alone wouldn’t be right. We can concern ourselves with our own status as enemies after the larger and far worse threat is dealt with.”

“Well hot damn, welcome aboard, frenemy,” Firefly said, shaking her head and grinning, “But seriously though, Chrysalis turning on us pretty much flash fries my whole earlier plan of keeping you from escaping to report where our base is. Right now, we could really use a pair of nuclear-grade magical pony princesses showing up to save our asses.”

“What do donkeys have to do with this?” Sombra asked, to which Firefly, Zecora, and even Chrysalis gave him flat looks. Sombra rolled his eyes, “I jest. We have swear words in Equestria too. Merely seeking a moment of levity before we all get to killing one another.”

“Are you now?” Chrysalis said, and in a dark snap of shattering speed she vanished and slid past Sombra faster than any eye could hope to blink. He didn’t have time to react with normal senses, only saved from the worst edge of her blade by the fact that his body was still connected to the lengthening shadows of dusk and hence he’d already been partially translucent and made of shadowstuff as her Zanpaktou sliced through his neck.

Sombra felt that bite of steel, fortunately not deep enough to be a grievous blow, but he was all too aware he could have easily been decapitated by that had he not already been partially melded with shadows to begin with. Chrysalis snickered, seeing him stagger and lose focus, following up her strike with a sweep of her sword that generated an immense pressure wave. Sombra had to tuck further into his shadows, but even then the blast of raw force from Chrysalis’ strike stirred the ground into a sand storm, disrupting his shadows and causing him to go tumbling.

Firefly and Zecora barely fended any better, Firefly’s metallic wings wrenching under the windforce as she tried to stabilize herself, and Zecora having to ground herself with her own Zanpaktou, and even then she was pushed back.

“I figure you were already casting a spell to try and communicate back with the Princesses in Canterlot,” Chrysalis said as Sombra managed to land on his hooves and retaliate with a black lance of shadow magic that flew from his horn and tore through the sandstorm towards her. Her right foot rose and she kicked the focused spear of shadow away, “And much as I wouldn’t mind testing out this world’s Celestia and Luna, I’d rather save that for after the invasion begins proper.”

Finally managing to right herself in the air, Firefly swore under her breath and on a thick blast of energy from her wings, she rocketed up and to the right of Chrysalis’ position. Hatches opened on her leg armor even as she aimed her hexagon shaped main cannon, while her Dragoon’s danced a spiral pattern around her, “Won’t be an invasion if we stop you here and now!”

Clusters of miniature missiles rocketed out of the hatches on her leg armor, while all of the Dragoons spat forth a storm of focused purple lasers of spirit energy. The cannon held between Firefly’s hands glowed bright with its own charge of violet light, and joined the barrage of attacks with a single, large gout of power, firing its thick beam as the centerpiece of the destructive tempest Firefly was unloading on Chrysalis.

“Tch, please.”

Chrysalis tilted her chin up as the missiles exploded all over her in bursts of raw purple flame, and the lasers criss-crossed around her, ripping apart the desert where Chrysalis stood. Then the central beam fired by Firefly’s cannon hammered Chrysalis’ position in one huge blast that melted through sand, then exploded outward in a wide flash of violet light that shook the desert.

Zecora did not remain idle while this was happening, holding her Zanpaktou off to one side while flinging her left hand forward, palm out, as she swiftly chanted.

“Dominate the earth with sodden disdain,

Foul the mud with fallen viscera

Pierce, Slacken, and Erupt!

Hado Number Eighty Two: Ueta Mushinoiki!” (Hungering Worm’s Breath)

The desert sand in front of Zecora trembled, then from below the sands burst upward as a massive form as wide across as a shipping trailer rose with a roar. It was a giant worm forged from swirling and scintillating veins of jade spirit energy. It opened its mouth and showed rows of spinning, thick teeth forged of crackling power as it dived forward like a hungry titan at the dust cloud kicked up by Firefly’s attack and where Chrysalis still stood. The huge Kido summoned worm of power smashed into Chrysalis, teeth bared, maw crunching, and drove onward like a freight train with immense strength that tore across the desert.

It was possible to see Chrysalis now, having been caught up in the worm’s mouth, her body actually bloody from its spinning energy teeth. But she was grinning wide like a madwoman who was actually enjoying herself, her wounds from both Firefly’s barrage and this Kido already closing even as she gleamed with her own intense and sickly pale emerald light. Laughing, she opened her mouth and fired a dense Cero beam of pulsating green destruction right into the worm’s maw. Its body bloated and burst, the Kido unable to withstand the Second Espada’s Cero rippling through it. Zecora vanished with the speed of a Flash Step to avoid the Cero’s path tearing right towards her.

Chrysalis halted amid the falling bits of energy dust from the destroyed Kido, wiping her mouth, “Well, at least it feels like you’re trying. Still, be a dear, fake Zecora, and why not try out that Bankai you were boasting to me about in the Crystal Empire? Think I’m in the mood to see it, now.”

The area around her suddenly grew darker than the dusk sky above, and Chrysalis raised and eyebrow as she glanced upward. A huge sword of shadow, larger than some castle towers, had taken shape above her. She glanced across the sands to see Sombra, horn wrapped in thick pillars of shadow magic, as his eyes burned green and his face focused with fierce intensity. With a gesture of his horn, the giant shadow blade fell with air rending force. Chrysalis, face more curious than intimidated, swung her Zanpaktou up to meet it.

There was a tremendous impact that indented the sands of the desert beneath Chrysalis’ feet as her Zanpaktou held against the immense blade of shadow, but the clash kept her rooted in place for a few moments, which was Sombra’s sole intent as he cut a sharp glance towards Zecora, “Drop all your wards and get rid of those blasted lanterns! I need all the darkness around me that’s possible!”

Zecora didn’t hesitate, the Reigai’s eyes flaring with the artificial purple light of her reiatsu as she cut a quick gesture with her Zanpaktou and all of the wards she’d placed to try to box Sombra in earlier fell away like dust. The hundreds of Kido lanterns all went up in flame, self-destructing at her mental command, flooding the desert in further shade.

Sombra’s horn flickered with motes of further darkness, and he strained to concentrate both on the giant shadow blade he continue to press down on Chrysalis while conjuring another spell, this one another long distance communication spell that he hoped would swiftly reach Celestia.

“Princess, things have taken an even more dire turn! The Bone Dry Desert! Almost midway to Klugetown! Bring your sister! Tartarus is being unleashed here-”

That was about as far as he got before a bullet of jade reishi impacted with his chest and sent him skidding across the desert like a black pinball. Chrysalis was still holding her Zanpaktou with one hand while the finger of her other hand pointed at him, still sparking with the energy of the Bala, “I hope that didn’t kill you, Pony Sombra. I want to get at least a day’s worth of fun out of you.”

Sombra grunted as he rolled up to his hooves, chest smoking a little from the Bala impact, but his flesh otherwise intact. Still, he felt a sharp pain in his chest that suggested that, protective shadow magic or not, he’d probably lost a rib to that blow. Despite the painful hit, he hadn’t lost concentration on his shadow blade, and with a lip curling growl, his horn wrapped itself in darkness and he detonated the magic inside the shadow blade, causing it to explode on top of Chrysalis.

“That’s right, keep hitting her!” Firefly shouted from the air, still curling Chrysalis position as she kept her cannon trained on where the Espada was, “Her regeneration might make her damn near impossible to kill, but it still costs her energy. Make her keep using it up, and maybe we can wear her out!”

“Nice plan,” said Chrysalis herself from inside the detonation of destructive shadow magic Sombra had just exploded on her. She burst out of it at sicking speed, some of her flesh burned but closing up almost instantly as she flashed by Firefly.

Firefly dove sideways in the air, firing a blast from her cannon that Chrysalis sliced through with her Zanpaktou on the way to streak right into Firefly with a punishing knee to the chest. Firefly felt the armor of her Fullbring crack, but still hold firm as the air was knocked from her lungs and she staggered in the air. She reached to her side and withdrew the hilt of her energy blade, igniting the thick purple sword of light as Chrysalis came at her again with a hammering downward swing.

The two swords clashed, and Firefly felt herself being outmatched, driven off balance by Chrysalis’ raw power.

“Let me know how it works out for you,” Chrysalis finished, all but pirouetting in the air with a side slash that drove Firefly’s guard upward and then kicking out again, this time her heel smashing into Firefly’s right hoof as she tried to get her cannon aimed to blast Chrysalis. Firefly let out a gasp of pain as she felt the bones of her hoof and leg crunch, and her cannon went flying from her grasp.

Her Dragoons swooped in around her, filling the air around her with a patchwork of thin laser beams, all stitching into Chrysalis like threads of a spider’s web catching a fly. Yet Chrysalis took the blows with aplomb, her Heirro resisting most of the burning beams of purple light while what beams did penetrate only caused wounds that swiftly closed as Chrysalis laughed and wove her blade in a swift X pattern that Firefly barely avoided the full brunt of as her armor was further damaged and she took a bleeding gash on her lower left chest.

Firefly continued to have her Dragoons dance around Chrysalis, piercing the air with ever more beams, and mostly just trying to distract Chrysalis for even a moment as she flew down towards the ground to try and retrieve her cannon.

Chrysalis’ continued laughter chased her as Chrysalis aimed a palm at Firefly’s retreating back and charged a ludicrously large and potent Cero of pale jade light that was dozens of feet wide. The massive Cero blasted downward with a loud whine of power, the sheer shockwave of its descent causing Firefly’s Dragoons to get knocked about like twigs in a storm. Even as Firefly grasped her cannon in her hooves again she realized she had no more room to dodge the destructive beam of energy, sensing the explosion it would make would be far too wide for her to hope to evade.

“Bakudo Number Number Eighty Six: Dai Shugoshin-Sha!” (Grand Protective Shrine)

In an instant a quartet of cherry red wooden pillars rose up from the sand around Firefly, growing wide connecting branches of wood and then deep gold tiling to encase her in a giant roofed Japanese temple shrine whose walls and pillars were covered in burning symbols of protection kanji. This happened just in time for Chrysalis’ Cero to impact with the defensive Kido, which caused a bright green flash to engulf the desert.

Even for miles around the strike of green light and the resulting explosive pillar of roaring power could be seen, the tremors of the explosion reaching even further still.

Sombra melded with the shadows to avoid the brunt of the destructive pressure wave that would have toppled buildings had any been present.

Zecora, whom had cast the Kido to try and protect Firefly, had little choice but to use Flash Step to avoid to edge of the explosion, and even then the wave of force drove her into a painful roll across the desert to impact with a dune at the far edge of the crater Chrysalis’ Cero left behind.

Amid the crater which was roughly two hundred meters wide, Chrysalis stood on the air and looked down with a curious smile on her face that suggested a woman simply enjoying a casual evening of entertainment, rather than someone in a life or death battle. “Still breathing down there, Firefly? I actually don’t mind if you croak, really, as I’ve already seen all of your tricks. You’re kind of the least interesting opponent on the field right now.”

“Ugh... screw you too...” Firefly said as she wavered up to her hooves, shaking off her wings, both pegasus and Fullbring alike. The shrine of Kido that had protected her was a broken ruin under the impact of Chrysalis Cero, but its destruction had blunt the force of the Cero enough that Firefly had gotten off with only light singing, by comparison. Spreading her wings, she took to the air again, rising with cannon in her right hoof and her pulsing purple energy blade in her left, ready to resume the fight.

“Wait,” she heard Zecora say as the Reigai Flash Stepped into view, “This is getting us nowhere. It is clear you don’t have the strength to do serious damage to her, and her regeneration is not draining her enough for us to have a hope of outlasting her.”

“Ohoho! The Regai isn’t braindead after all! Which is hilarious considering there isn’t actually a brain in that doll-like body of yours,” Chrysalis cooed. She then glanced to the side towards the shadows Sombra had melded with, “Haven’t run yet, Pony Sombra? You can, if you want. I’d enjoy a chase, after I’m one with these two...”

Firefly grit her teeth and said in a lower voice to Zecora, “If you have a plan, say it quick, while she’s monologuing.”

The Regai regarded her with cool, calm eyes, her voice steady, “We tried taking her together, and it clearly is not working. She is too strong. There is no sense in all of us dying, either, when her children must be stopped from harming any nearby settlements, such as Klugetown. I sense that is where my fellow Regai are going...”

True, Firefly had sensed Starswirl’s reiatsu along with some of the surviving Reigai heading towards Klugetown’s location. Perhaps a defense could be mounted there? But...

“If we’re gonna run, we all run, Zecora,” Firefly stated, but Zecora shook her head, an held up her Zanpaktou horizontally in front of her.

“No. She’ll be able to chase us an kill us one by one that way. Someone has to remain to keep her busy while the rest escape. And I am the only one with a chance of doing that.”

“Aww, are you two having a moment down there?” Chrysalis called, “I can totally tell this is going to be a moment of self-sacrifice! Don’t let me stop you, of course! I love this kind of thing. Makes the bloodshed more fun. Go on, Reigai, have your ‘moment’. This better lead to me seeing that Bankaaaaaai!”

A look of disgust, both at Chrysalis and at herself, etched its way across Firefly’s face as she hung her head, “I really hate her... Zecora, are you sure about this? We might still win together if you bust out that Bankai with me and Sombra backing you up.”

“Doubtful,” Zecora replied, not as an admonishment, but just an honest assessment, “Princess Cadence was more powerful than you, Firefly, by a decent margin during her battle with Chrysalis, and still lost. Perhaps if I had used my Bankai then to reign Chrysalis in, me and the Crystal Princess could have won together, but my loyalty remained to Starlight then. Now my only desire is to just... to do what little right I can and perhaps ensure some of my Reigai brethren survive. That’s all. I cannot defeat Chrysalis with my Bankai, but I can keep her occupied for some time. Long enough, perhaps, for good to be done elsewhere.”

“I don’t like this,” Firefly stated bluntly, “This sucks balls, I’ll have you know. Chrysalis is me and Starlight’s mistake to bear. You shouldn't be paying for it.”

Zecora offered only a small smile of pity, “She will still be your sin to bear after this, but just make sure you take that responsibility, when the time comes. Ensure Starlight does as well. And if possible, please look after my fellow Reigai, especially Redheart. I hope for them to find a place for themselves in whatever comes after this.”

“I’ll do what I can, I promise,” Firefly said, then with a deep sigh she shouted loudly, “You hear that, Sombra!? Get your shadowy butt moving!”

With that she gave Zecora one last look, “Good luck.” ‘

And then she flew off at full speed. Chrysalis tapped her sword point under her own chin as she watched the pegasus go, as if considering if it was worth it to pursue, but then she just let out a carefree giggle an descended from the air to land at the opposite side of the crater she’d created, staring at Zecora.

“I’m on a bit of a timetable with those two heading off to get reinforcements, but I figured something like this might happen, so no worries. I really just want to see what you can do, Reigai. Your real self was always so conservative and focused on healing. Even when I impersonated her I never got to see what her Bankai was, and Starlight’s nifty theft powers never let me access that power even when I could use that Zanpaktou. So I’m just dying to see this. Sooooo? Don’t keep me waiting! You’re literally giving up your life to have your big moment, puppet-girl, so come on, say the thing! Say! The! Thing!”

Zecora stared at Chrysalis dispassionately, Zanpaktou still held horizontally in front of her, the rising moonlight now glinting off of the blade’s mirrors.

“Bankai.”

There was a sound that permeated the air like a single, all encompassing crack as the mirrors upon the blade splintered. A hurricane of force an sound then followed as the mirror fragments launched themselves outward in a spinning hail of shards. These shards fragmented again, yet grew, fragmented once more, and grew again as they expanded in a dizzying swirl of reflective shards. In less than a second an area covering several hundred meters was now a kaleidoscope of hundreds upon hundreds of sharp mirror shards, each of various jagged or smooth shapes and sizes, with no two being quite identical. Some were the size of buildings while others no larger than a fingernail, some were pointed as rough fangs or blades, others oblong or rounded. Yet regardless of shape or size, no matter where one looked, there was a mirror, reflecting thousands of other mirrors, casting the reflections of Chrysalis and Zecora into a myriad display of ten thousand other reflections of themselves.

Zecora stood in the vague center of this mass of reflections, the Zanpaktou in her hand now missing its blade save for a few broken shards attached to the remaining hilt. Yet there was a faint shimmer in the air where the blade of mirrors had been, as if some manner of force was still present.

The Regia, eyes nearly a solid purple from her artificial reiatsu being pushed to its fullest limit, took a deep breath and spoke the name of her Bankai, although in her heart she didn't feel it belonged to her. She was just borrowing this Bankai's image an power, a reflection of what belonged to the original user, somewhere across the gap between worlds...

"Sen no Kudaketa Shinjitsu." (One Thousand Fractured Truths)

Author's Notes:

I do almost feel bad for the real Zecora that its her Reigai that gets to show off their Bankai, but I doubt the real Captain Zecora would mind much, considering the circumstances. So now we've got Fluttershy vs Guto, Pinkie vs Hydia, and-

Sunset: Hey! Did you just forget you left me literally being attacked by some mysterious, Sveratlfheim lake monsters, like, forever ago!?

I didn't forget, Sunset, just felt like I needed to advance things elsewhere for a bit before getting back to you. And it wasn't "forever" ago, it was five chapters ago.

Sunset: In this story, five chapters is a eternity. Seriously, you can put these fights on pause for a sec and get back to Svartalfheim for a chapter! I've been stuck in this kneeling down pose in front of this freakin' lake for like two months, your time!

Okay! Okay! Next chapter is all yours, Sunset. Yeeash...

Anyway, you heard the lady, folks, next chapter we're checking back in on Sunset and the Svartalfheim team! Thank you all for reading, and as always I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 200: Of Diamond Dogs and Dwarves

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Episode 200: Of Diamond Dogs and Dwarves

Despite having been taken by surprise, Sunset’s instincts and reflexes were so far above human norm that she’d already moved, struck with Hokori no Hikari in a shining arc, and appeared twenty or so paces back from the lakeshore all in the transition of a single microsecond. Her blade had met hard resistance, more than she’d honestly expected, but brackish dark blood coated her Zanpaktou’s edge as she looked at what what attacked her and she saw she’d left a deep gouge in one ropey tendril that extended from the sides of a monstrously wide face.

The creature resembled what one might get if a catfish was blended with a salamander and was then given entirely too many steroids, while simultaneously being dead and left to rot at the bottom of a lake. The creature’s entire body was coated in a thick sheath of slime that gave off an odor of death so pungent that it was like being slapped directly in the nostrils by decay. There were great open wounds on the beast’s side that showed dead innards and ribcage. Yet the eyes of the thing were a ghostly pale blue that glowed with awareness and focus, if not comprehensible intelligence. It made no noise as it ignored the damage Sunset’s first strike had done and lowered its body and shook like an eager dog about to pounce.

Sunset hadn’t felt any spiritual pressure of significance before this thing had struck from the lake, but now she did feel something, like a growing bubble in her spiritual awareness. She was starting to recognize Anima use when she felt it, a strange blending of spirit energy and the Beast Realm’s inherent magic, and she watched as along the beast’s back a series of light blue runes flared into existence, six in a neat row along where the creature’s spine would be. A part of her wanted to counter attack immediately before whatever this ability was activated, but Sunset was curious to see more of how Anima functioned. Without needing to speak her Zanpaktou’s release phrase, she turned Hokori no Hikari into their Shikai form, shield and blade blazing to flaming life in her hands. She would play this defensively for a bit, and observe how this thing fought... maybe she’d learn something about Anima in the process.

Her spiritual senses were focused upon the beast, whatever it was. For now she was mentally dubbing it the ‘Lake Zombie’.

Shining Armor had taken to the air, his bow aimed at the creature, but he’d held off on firing as he looked her way. Sunset could tell from his questioning look that he was asking her if she wanted backup on this or not, and she gave the smallest shake of her head, to which he gave the tiniest of nods back. He didn’t put away his bow or redirect his aim from the Lake Zombie, but he kept his distance to let Sunset fight her way. She appreciated that. A little trust would go a long way to making working with the Quincy go that much smoother.

From the runes on the Lake Zombie’s back emerged shifting masses of deeply midnight blue energy that looked very much like frothing and bubbling oil or slime. This masses gained definition and grew mouths, and twin pale wisps of light for eyes. Each remained connected to the Lake Zombie by small tendrils of energy, but otherwise the six beastly mouths all gurgled and roared as one and came flying at Sunset with incredible force and speed. It wasn’t beyond what she could handle, however, as she leaped up and forward at an angle, arching through the collection of hungry slime mouths as they flew past her. The impacted where she’d been standing, ripping apart huge chunks of stone that was pulverized by their very presence. Then the impact splattered bits of the slime-like energy everywhere, turning more stone ashen gray before it crumbled, as if these things were mobile bombs.

Sunset arced down towards the Lake Zombie itself, Hokori’s edge red hot with raw flame as she drove the blade towards its head. This creature’s own reflexes were fairly slow compared to her, so it didn’t have time to raise one of its bulging, slime covered limbs in defense, and even its attempt to side step in the lake was a labored affair compared to Sunset’s speed. However the things it had created with its Anima could move much faster, and it drew them back to it in an instant, the six mouth-like masses colliding together to form a rough shield that Sunset’s blade struck. Flames burst from her Zanpaktou and she sliced down through the mouths, and she felt the destructive and corrosive energy of them trying to sizzle Hokori’s very blade itself. Her Zanpaktou steamed but didn’t relent as Sunset’s reiatsu overpowered the Anima trying to melt her blade, and her flames burned hotter as she used her shield to guard herself from the splatter of energy her attack had caused.

The resultant expulsion of flame she directed like a wave to smash into the Lake Zombie and its strange Anima constructs alike, shoving it further into the lake as its thick flesh burned. The slime it was coated in along with all the water did ablate the flame’s effect a little bit, but Sunset’s fire could burn far hotter than what this creature could readily withstand. The only reason she hadn’t fully incinerated it yet was because she was still trying to learn. She wanted to understand the power that the Beast Realmers wielded, so that the next time she went toe to toe with Jormungandr she’d have a better chance of taking him down.

So far her observations told her almost all expressions of Anima created extensions of their users. Simurgh’s healing rain, or Asena’s blades that coated the wolf’s body, or Jormungandr’s draconic constructs, all of them were like direct projections. They weren’t separate objects like a Zanpaktou, but rather had more in common with a Quincy’s reishi generated weapons or even her friend’s Fullbrings. In fact, these Anima felt a lot like what her friends did with Fullbring, to the point that Sunset wasn’t convinced the two abilities didn’t share some kind of history.

Fullbrings were Hollow based, but since the Beast Realm existed as a neutral, in-between world connected to both the human realm and Equestria, presumably with some bleed over between them, who was to say at some point that Hollows didn’t acquire some small smattering of Anima, which then turned into Fullbring when mixed with living humans?

That was just the researcher in her spit-balling, however. Clearly there were enough differences that Anima was its own thing.

Wanting to test out an idea, she narrowed her eyes at the small strands of energy connecting the Lake Zombie to its collection of flying mouth constructs, and she flicked towards them in a burst of pure speed, blade held to her right in a fiery red line. The creature tried to turn its whole body to the side to make her strike difficult, one long, thick tail the size of a tree trunk whipping at her from beneath the lake. Sunset didn’t halt or alter course, slicing through the tail in a foul smelling spray of dark blood. She kept from gagging as she streaked onwards, and flew past the Lake Zombie in a line of hot red fire. Hokori sliced at the two nearest lines of energy connecting the Anima constructs to the Lake Zombie’s body, and upon her sword’s connect with them Sunset felt resistance not unlike when she’d sliced through the mouths themselves.

There was a hum and buzz as the lines severed, and the runes snapped off, dissipating like motes of dust. The connected constructs didn’t vanish, however, they just howled and flew about at random, until they impacted the lake and exploded in huge bursts of oily dark blue energy that destroyed whatever was nearby. Sunset swiftly wove between thick droplets of this destructive energy, and turned to look back down on the Lake Zombie as it looked up at her with a dead gaze. It still made no noise, perhaps incapable of even making sound as far as she knew.

She did see it start to reform the runes she’d destroyed, which made her frown. So she could use her own reiatsu to disrupt Anima abilities, but nothing stopped them from just re-using them? Fair enough, although she kept that as a mental note, since she knew damage to her Zanpaktou took longer to repair, and was especially problematic if she used Bankai. Seemed like Anima was a more durable power than that. Still, even being able to momentarily disrupt their use by severing their connection to the user might prove useful, if all Anima shared that trait.

“Alright, don’t think I’m going to learn more than this, and you don’t seem actually sapient, so not like I can talk to you,” she said, readying Hokori and letting her reiatsu flow outward as she powered up for a finishing strike. She also didn’t think it was possible for something this weak to have been a danger to the missing party. No way Clover, Asena, and Spike would have had trouble with this thing, if it had attacked them. Which still didn’t explain why they’d found traces of Asena’s fur down there by the lake.

Raising Hokori over her head, she turned its flames into a cascade of burning blue and started to strike forward with it, “Aoihi Sen-”

A piercing whistle split the air, shockingly loud and high pitched. Sunset halted in place, blinking as she saw a short, fuzzy yellow creature hopping along the bank of the lake, making the whistling noise, which soon dissolved into a chiding, commanding, and all together impish female voice.

“ᚱᚢᛏᚷᚢᚱ, ᚤᛟᚢ ᛁᛗᛒᛖᚲᛁᛚᛖ! ᛞᛁᛞᚾ'ᛏ ᛁ ᛏᛖᛚᛚ ᚤᛟᚢ ᛏᛟ ᛋᛏᛟᛈ ᛈᛚᚨᚤᛁᚾᚷ ᚹᛁᛏᚺ ᚨᚾᚤᛟᚾᛖ ᚹᚺᛟ ᚹᚨᚾᛞᛖᚱ'ᛋ ᛒᚤ? ᛈᚢᛏ ᚤᛟᚢᚱ ᚲᚢᚱᛋᛖᛞ ᚨᚾᛁᛗᚨ ᚨᚹᚨᚤ ᚱᛁᚷᚺᛏ ᛏᚺᛁᛋ ᛁᚾᛋᛏᚨᚾᛏ ᛒᛖᚠᛟᚱᛖ ᛁ ᚷᛁᚡᛖ ᚤᛟᚢ ᛋᚢᚲᚺ ᚨ ᛏᚺᚹᚨᚲᚴ ᛟᚾ ᛏᚺᛖ ᚾᛟᛋᛖ!”

Sunset tilted her head, not understanding a word of it, but recognizing the Beast Realm’s language. The Lake Zombie halted what it was doing and turned to look at the creature yapping at it, and Sunset had the rather surreal sensation of watching a massive, undead lake monster slump its shoulders like a pet being scolded. Which was even more disorienting because now that she was looking at the one doing the scolding, the woman for all the world looked like a three foot tall, humanoid dog with golden fur, wearing her similarly golden mane of hair in thickly brained buns and wearing a thick leather jerkin over her furry body. She had digitigrade legs, one pawed foot tapping in conjunction with her hands on her hips like an irate mother. Green eyes glared at the Lake Monster, speaking more in her native tongue and making a ‘heel’ gesture with one finger.

To this, the Lake Monster made no sound, but sagged its head and lowered itself in the lake, making bubbles like an upset child.

Sunset blinked, then looked at Shining Armor, who didn’t look any more like he grasped the situation than she did, only offering her a blank shrug. His posture remained tense, but he wasn’t aiming his bow at this new individual, which concurred with Sunset’s own conclusion that whoever this was they didn’t seem to be a threat. Why else would they have called off the Lake Zombie? Sunset was a tad mortified by seeing the undead, rotting fish monster adopting the mannerisms of a scolded pet. Even it’s Anima constructs were drooping, mouths downturned and sparking ghost eyes lidded.

Apparently this thing was more sapient than she’d given it credit for. Probably for the best she’d been halted short of incinerating it and the entire lake, then.

By now the... dog person, which Sunset assumed was likely a ‘Diamond Dog’, was waving her tiny and fluffy arms up at them and jabbering rather loudly in more of the Beast Realm tongue. Sunset wished she had Simurgh or Asena here to translate or offer up a spell like what Hel had cast. This Diamond Dog was able to shout quite loudly for her tiny frame, and from her gestures it was clear she wanted Sunset and Shining Armor to come down and talk.

“Might as well,” Shining Armor said, “Strong chance she’s seen our missing party members.”

“Agreed,” Sunset said, eyeing the Lake Zombie one last time before turning her Zanpaktou back to it’s sealed state and sheathing it. “Keep an eye out, just in case. Simurgh said these Diamond Dogs are good at ambushes.”

“Weird way to start an ambush, if it is one,” he said, but nodded agreement as he kept his bow out and joined Sunset in flying down to the lakeshore to stand in front of the Diamond Dog.

Up close Sunset could see the female Diamond Dog was remarkably ripped and fit under her leather armor, like a three foot tall, fuzzy body builder. A bushy tail wagged slightly behind her, and the woman’s canine face was shockingly expressive as her paws went to her hips once more and she looked Sunset and Shining Armor over with lips curled in an apologetic smile.

“ᛋᛟᚱᚱᚤ ᚨᛒᛟᚢᛏ ᛏᚺᚨᛏ. ᚱᚢᛏᚷᚢᚱ ᚨᛁᚾ'ᛏ ᛏᚺᛖ ᛒᚱᛁᚷᚺᛏᛖᛋᛏ ᛋᛖᚾᛏᚱᚤ ᛁᚾ ᛋᚡᚨᚱᛏᚨᛚᚠᚺᛁᛖᛗ. ᛏᛖᚾᛞᛋ ᛏᛟ ᛒᛁᛏᛖ ᚠᛁᚱᛋᛏ, ᛏᚺᛁᚾᚴ ᛋᛖᚲᛟᚾᛞ. ᚺᛖ'ᛋ ᛒᛖᛖᚾ ᛞᚱᚨᚢᚷᚱ ᛋᛟ ᛚᛟᚾᚷ ᛁᛏ'ᛋ ᚱᛟᛏᛏᛖᛞ ᚺᛁᛋ ᛒᚱᚨᛁᚾ ᚨ ᛒᛁᛏ. ᚨᚾᚤᚹᚨᚤᛋ, ᛁ'ᛗ ᛒᚱᚨᚹᚾᚹᚤᚾ! ᚤᛟᚢ ᛗᚢᛋᛏ ᛒᛖ ᛏᚺᛖ ᚠᚱᛁᛖᚾᛞᛋ ᛚᛟᚱᛞ ᚠᛖᚾᚱᛁᚱ ᚹᚨᛋ ᛏᚨᛚᚴᛁᚾᚷ ᚨᛒᛟᚢᛏ. ᚠᛟᛚᛚᛟᚹ ᛗᛖ, ᛁ'ᛚᛚ ᛏᚨᚴᛖ ᚤᛟᚢ ᛏᛟ ᚺᛁᛗ.”

Just about all of it went over Sunset’s head, but her keen ears did pick up the name ‘Fenrir’ amid the words, and she took an eager step forward.

“Fenrir? Little guy, big mech?” she gestured at the ground at about Spike’s dog height, then gestured much higher to indicate the Gunwolf’s size and made a few imitations of the mech’s mechanicals noises.

The Diamond Dog actually barked out a rather rich, feminine laugh, and nodded, still smiling as she turned and made a ‘follow me’ gesture with her paw, quickly making her way back towards the caves that Sunset and Shining Armor had looked at earlier.

“Guess they must know where at least Spike’s at,” she said, and glanced back at the lake. The zombified catfish monster had sunk back down beneath the water, even taking its severed tail with it. The waters of the lake were now placid and still, as if nothing inhabited them at all. She turned her attention to Shining Armor, “Alright, I’ll follow our fuzzy new friend, and you head back to camp, and let the others know what's up.”

His eyes showed a waver if disquiet, “Not sure I like the idea of you going alone.”

“I’d rather everyone know where I am and what’s happening. Worst comes to worst I can probably fight my way out, but I don’t think that’ll be needed. Not getting the impression of any hostility here.”

“An undead lake monster just tried to eat you,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, but that might’ve just been a misunderstanding. Got to remind ourselves we’re the strangers and intruders in this realm. Going to be on us to keep our cool and an open mind.”

Shining Armor huffed out a short chuckle, “Says the girl who was about to flash fry the entire lake. Alright, fine. You go play diplomat and hopefully find our people. I’ll go let camp know the situation. You got one hour before we all come charging after you.”

As he departed, the Diamond Dog watched him go and Sunset approach, having waited patiently at the cavern entrances for the two to finish talking. With Sunset now in tow, the short canine perked her floppy, golden ears and led Sunset into the cave. Sunset didn’t see anything she hadn’t seen before, unsure at all on whether or not this was just an empty cavern like what she’d first seen. The Diamond Dog didn’t even break stride as she marched right for the back end of the left wall, to the point that Sunset was sure she’d walk face first into the stone.

But there was no wall, at least none in the position that there appeared to be one. Sunset blinked as the optical illusion took effect and she saw that the “wall” was in fact an opening almost perfectly positioned and lit to appear like a wall, but was in face a tunnel that went further into the rock and bent to the right, leading to a longer passage the curved downward.

“Hah, I’ll be damned. Never would’ve seen it,” she shook her head as she followed the Diamond Dog down.

The tunnel was clearly dug rather than natural, and Sunset suspected the clusters of glowing crystals that started to appear at regular intervals that almost perfectly lit the way weren’t there by accident of nature either. Nor was the maze of branches, junctions, and quick turns the Diamond Dog took her on, almost dizzying in complexity.

Seemed like the Diamond Dogs had set this up to be one hell of a confusing mess for anyone to find them by chance. Which begged the question as to how Clover, Spike, and Asena had come across them? Had they really just been lucky enough to stumble on the entrance up top and had decided to investigate further? Sunset wasn’t overly tense at the moment, given how open and non-hostile this Diamond Dog appeared to be, but a part of her still wondered why her friends had been missing for so long if they weren’t in some kind of trouble.

The labyrinth of tunnels abruptly opened up into a large, trapezoidal shaped chamber with a ceiling carved into a point where larger formations of crystals hung down, glowing with washed out white light that reminded Sunset of fluorescent hospital lighting. The room was a few hundred feet at its widest side, directly across from where Sunset and her Diamond Dog guide entered. Upon entering, there was a chorus of barks and loud voices, as Sunset saw no fewer than three or four dozen more Diamond Dogs all gathered around several long tables of worked stone. The furry creatures came in a dizzying array of shapes and sizes. Some of the largest were easily a foot or so taller than Sunset, while the shorter ones shared her guide’s diminutive three foot height, although any shorter bore the cute countenance of children. And there were definitely children present, giving off tinier yips than their adult counterparts. All had canine appearances, but the influence stemmed from seemingly dozens of canine breeds. Sunset saw pug and bulldog faces right alongside long and slender doberman snouts, and the distinct black and white fluff of huskies right alongside the wavy furred faces of retrievers.

Some back part of her brain raised a hand and asked the question of why a race of humanoid canines in this spiritual realm had features mimicking living world dog breeds, but Sunset just told that part of her brain to shut up for now. Chances were that since animal soul went to the Beast Realm after death, plenty of real life dog breeds lived here, and for all she knew became Diamond Dogs. It wasn’t like she was an expert on spirit realm afterlife mechanics. She’d been a bit too busy fighting for her and her friends' lives to do much homework on anything other than how to better hit things with her sword.

This chamber appeared to be some kind of communal dining area, because she now noticed the back wall lined with cauldrons and cooking stoves carved out of the stone wall, and the air was filled with the scent of sizzling meat and freshly cooked food. In fact the tables were all piled up with rough stone dishes heaped with food that looked like the results of someone frying up some of the local population of giant insects, along with underground mushrooms and lichen. It wasn’t the most appetizing thing she’d ever seen or smelled, but the Diamond Dogs seemed to enjoy it, at least until all their attention focused on her when she entered the room.

“Uh... hi?” she said to the crowd, giving an awkward wave, “Don’t suppose any of you have seen my friends... or speak English?”

“Sunset! You’re here!”

A head of curly, dark green hair appeared amid the crowd, followed by Clover’s gray, smiling features as she elbowed her way past the pack of Diamond Dogs who’d been crowding around the table she’d been sitting at. Sunset breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Clover was unhurt and clearly not bound up like some prisoner. She rushed over to greet her friend, while many of the Diamond Dogs either went back to eating, or continued to watch on curiously. The brawny, golden Diamond Dog who’d led Sunset here stuck close by, watching with an almost smirk as Sunset and Clover met.

“Clover, I’m glad you’re alright, but what the hell? What have you, Spike, and Asena been doing? We were worried sick about you and came looking,” Sunset said, not precisely upset, but wondering just why they’d been gone so long.

Clover’s face turned abashed as she grimaced and her cheeks colored, “Oh, um, there must have been some kind of mistake or miscommunication? I thought Chieftain Proudfang sent a messenger? I’m sorry, Asena is doing all the translating for us right now and I swear she told the head of this Clan to send a messenger back to camp to let everyone know we’re alright.”

“Huh... well we didn’t get any messenger,” Sunset said, glancing at the gold furred Diamond Dog, who just looked at them blankly, of course not knowing what was being said. “So what is happening here? I mean, who are these Diamond Dogs?”

Clover’s fingers went to rub her chin in thought, “Sounds like Simurgh must have already told you a bit about Diamond Dogs, then. I’m just learning about them, myself. They’re actually rather fascinating. Did you know that their Clan structure, while taking its roots from the Clans of other Beast Realm tribes, has a far more complex structure based around ten layers of castes... and you’re giving me that ‘stop babbling Clover’ look. Right, you see we ran into their sentry up by the lake-”

“Big ugly catfish lizard dude who’s a zombie?” Sunset asked, and Clover nodded.

“Yes, Rutgur. He’s apparently what they call a ‘draugr’, although I’m unclear as to the details of what that entails. At any rate, Brawnwyn here,” she indicated the golden Diamond Dog, who barked happily and held her head up with pride, “Stopped Rutgur from attacking us, and then sort of insisted we follow her here. I was skeptical, but Spike and Asena both agreed it was worth talking to them to get more information about the local area. As it turns out, that was the right call. Spike and Asena are speaking with Chieftain Proudfang right now, who’s the leader of this specific Clan, which is part of a larger alliance of Diamond Dog Clans. A kingdom of sorts, I suppose.”

“Right, following you so far,” Sunset said, “So why has chatting up this Chieftain taken so long?”

“Well we thought we had some time, due to the supposed messenger, but more to the point, I think the Chieftain is trying to entreat Spike, specifically, for help. They recognize him as Fenrir’s reincarnation,” Clover frowned a little, “Not that Asena tried to keep that a secret, it seems.”

Sunset recalled Brawnwyn having mentioned the name Fenrir earlier. She raised a curious eyebrow, “What kind of help are we talking about, here?”

A dour, more serious look crept onto Clover’s face like a rain-laden cloud, her arms crossing over her chest, “Tensions between the Diamond Dogs and the Dwarves have always been high due to competition over all the rich gem and ore veins all over Svartalfheim. It often means raids back and forth between their Clans. However in this particular region we find ourselves in, things have escalated into outright war. The Dwarven Clan that occupies the nearby fortress has a new leader who’s gotten a lot more aggressive and made a point of assaulting several Diamond Dog settlements outside his Clan’s territory. They weren’t prepared for it, the Diamond Dogs. The Clans closest to that Dwarf fortress we’ve seen, including Proudfang’s, have had to abandon their homes and go into hiding, while the rest of the Diamond Dog Clans prepare a counteroffensive.”

So that explained why this Clan was here, but not why they were asking Spike for help. “That sucks to hear, and doesn’t sound like it’s going to make our job of crossing this realm any easier, but what does Spike have to do with any of this? I mean, this Fenrir guy he once was has technically been dead for a long time, right? I also seem to recall Soul Society had some kind of thing about reincarnated souls not being treated like their previous spirit lives, right?”

The apologetic look on Clover’s face only deepened as she spread her hands out in a helpless gesture, “Soul Society’s rules and the Beast Realm’s customs and laws have very little to do with one another, I’m afraid. From what I’ve overheard of Asena’s talks with Chieftain Proudfang, Spike very much does retain some level of... authority? Importance? At the very least they’re treating him as if he is still Fenrir, to some degree. They want him to intervene on the Diamond Dog’s behalf to broker a truce with the Dwarves.”

Sunset felt a headache coming on. Setting aside larger questions of the long standing conflict between these Beast Realm Clans, which she somehow doubted Spike could somehow diplomatically resolve with a quick conversation, the fact of the matter was that their group was trying to pass through this region without attracting attention that would bring Jormungandr and his forces right to them. If they stepped into the middle of all of this, they might as well be lighting a signal fire to any and all looking for them. Intervening in a war was not keeping a low profile.

But at the same time, Sunset didn’t like the taste of those thoughts on her proverbial brainpan. If people, innocent people, were being hurt, wasn’t this exactly the kind of thing she and her friends were all about stepping into? It wasn’t as if they hadn’t already been meddling in inter-faction conflicts since practically day one of this whole, insane adventure, so why stop a perfectly good snowball from rolling even further downhill? If Jormungandr and his cronies did use this to track them down... then that just meant the inevitable fight between them would happen that much sooner.

“You’re thinking of just jumping head first into this, aren’t you?” Clover said, reading Sunset like an open book. There was a small, caring smile on Clover’s face, as if she had figured this was exactly how Sunset would react to this information. Sunset just flashed a smile back at her friend.

“Even if I didn’t, you can bet your Soul Reaper pension that Applejack and Rainbow Dash would be all over this. But yeah, I’m thinking if we’re about to lose the element of stealth, might as well do so in grand fashion. I’d like to talk with this Proudfang lady myself, and get the whole story, first. I mean, these Diamond Dogs seem like okay people, but we just met them, and from what Simurgh said this conflict with the Dwarves has been a long back-and-forth. Let’s get more of a lay of the land before we commit to anything... assuming Spike hasn’t committed us already.”

She was offered some food in the form of a plate of what appeared to be well cooked slabs of bug meat still sizzling in its shell, but Sunset politely declined. She didn’t decline the offered mug of what smelled like a fruity, fermented drink that was definitely alcoholic, and considering the day she’d had and was likely to continue having she was more than happy to down it. Hey, by Equestrian standards she was of legal drinking age. And she didn’t see any human police down here, anyway.

Maybe a bit of Chappy’s attitude had rubbed off on her.

Thus fortified and refreshed, she followed Clover into a side passage out of the dining chamber, with Brawnwyn hopping along ahead of them to take the lead. The halls here were less a maze, and more a simple and organized array of storage and sleeping quarters, and Sunset had to reevaluate her guess on how many Diamond Dogs were down here from a few dozen to at least a couple of hundred from some of the longer side passages she saw where many of the canine creatures could be seen moving about.

Sunset let her spiritual senses stretch out a bit, looking to get familiar with the Diamond Dog’s faint sensation of reiatsu and magic. She assumed they had to have some kind of equivalent of a ward in place, otherwise what would stop the Dwarves from sensing them down here? Then again, she and Shining Armor hadn’t sensed them either while searching around. Was Anima capable of such masking barriers? It still frustrated her she knew so little of this power inherent to the Beast Realm.

She didn’t really notice that amid her thoughts of frustration, there was a tiny flicker of flame along her hair, colored a vibrant rose hue, and that a few strands of her hair briefly transmuted into bright feathers of an identical color. Clover, having been looking at Sunset, spotted the change and gasped.

“Sunset, your hair...”

“Huh?” Sunset reached to the back of her head, feeling around, “What’s up? Oh...” She felt the feathers, only a few of them, but distinct, and her face paled as she paused in the hall, “I thought Simurgh said it’d take a bit longer for this to start happening.”

Brawnwyn had paused as well, glancing back at them to see why the two had stopped, and upon seeing Sunset’s hair, or the handful of colorful feathers that had appeared in them, gave a melodious and surprisingly happy bark. Her words spilled out quick, too quick for Sunset to remotely follow as the short Diamond Dog pointed with a burly arm at Sunset’s feathers, then made a strange gesture with her paws, index and middle fingers on both hands touching in front of her. Sunset felt that heady mix of spirit energy and magic flowing now from Brawnwyn which she now recognized as Anima use.

“What’s she doing?” Clover said, just as a rune symbol appeared in front of Brawnwyn.

The symbol vanished after a second and in its place a translucent image of a bird-like creature appeared in Brawnwyn’s now upraised palm, flapping its wings like a living, holographic picture. It was made of a rose red aura that matched the color of Sunset’s new feathers, and Brawnwyn held it up for Sunset to see closer. The bird had very wide wings, which trails bits of rosy hued flames, and a long, elegant neck ending in a fiercely pointed beak. Its eyes were a darker red hue, like pools of lava. Its tail trailed long behind it in seven different thick strands of interwoven feathers that held waves of rose hued flames.

Brawnwyn said one word that certainly held the accent and tone of Beast Realm tongue, but was instantly recognizable to Sunset.

“ᛈᚺᛟᛖᚾᛁᛪ”

Sunset took a deep breath, and repeated the word in an awed whisper.

“Phoenix.”

----------

Chieftain Proudfang certainly lived up to her name. The Diamond Dog woman nearly gave Asena a run for her money in terms of height and broad strength, although in Proudfang’s case it was contained in a body so wide and coated in rolls of dark gray, pudgy fur that she looked almost as cuddly as she appeared deadly dangerous. Pudgy or not, nobody would miss the thick slabs of muscle under the fur, either, nor think that the chieftain couldn’t properly wield the spiked morningstar she kept leaning against her makeshift throne of heavily cobbled together wood. She wore an iron breastplate backed by folds of leather that went down to a long skirt of metal chain, and had an amulet around her thick neck bearing what Sunset assumed was her Clan’s sigil; a dog’s claw ripping into a shield.

Proudfang had a mane of black hair, left unruly and long on her head, and a blunt, short snout with a broad, dark nose. Jaws made for biting out throats curled in a pleased smile as she looked upon Sunset and Clover as Brawnwyn led them into what was essentially a short, rectangular meeting room with a few chairs set up around a straight table in front of her throne.

“Hah! Good good! More allies! So the great Fenrir, even reborn as a pup, makes Soul Reapers his attendants!” Proudfang spoke in somewhat understandable English, but Sunset sensed spirit energy and magic in the air, and so assumed some kind of translation spell was working. A glance at Asena, the wolf sitting at one end of the table, earned a return look and nod.

“I see you’ve come, Sunset Shimmer. Lord Fenrir grew tired of my translations and so asked me to attempt a spell to further matters along. I am not skilled in such Runecraft, but it should... mostly work.”

Runecraft? Sunset had so many questions, but the last thing she needed was to get even further sidetracked. She was still mentally reeling a bit from the idea that her Beast Realm changes were already occurring, and somehow she was gaining the feathers of a phoenix in her damn hair. She knew about phoenix from Equestria. They were rare, beautiful, nigh immortal birds of incredible innate magic. Princess Celestia kept one as a pet and as Sunset recalled had doted upon the bird.

Putting aside some of the sad thoughts that memory brought up, Sunset looked at the room’s other occupant. Spike was out of the Gunwolf, the mech standing off to the side of the other end of the table while Spike himself sat perched on another chair, eyes wide, looking like he was beyond glad to see Sunset there.

“Whew, Sunset, thank goodness. I have been trying for hours to convince this whackadoo that I’m not freaking Fenrir!”

“Lord Fe-” Asena began and Spike snapped his head towards her with a pointed glare.

“You’re not helping, either! I get I’m some kind of reincarnation or whatever, but I don’t care about that! I’m Spike, and I swear on Twilight’s top secret ‘biological research materials’ video collection that the next person who calls me anything other than Spike is going to be the first one I test the Gunwolf’s Overdrive mode on!”

There was... a lot to unpack in that statement, most of it making Sunset offer up an amused half smile as she took a seat next to Spike, “Sorry Asena, but he’s right. I understand you and Simurgh are just trying to be respectful towards who you think is one of your realm’s big cheeses, but you’re way better off treating Spike like Spike. Trust me on this one.”

Asena tilted her large wolven head, her ears twitching a little, but what was probably her version of a smile slowly appeared on her face, which showed probably more fang than most would consider friendly but she still managed to make it look natural. “I see. As you wish, Spike. And Chieftain Proudfang, given he has made these wishes so very, very clear, I suggest you also follow suit, before our young lord declares an honor challenge. Given I have seen his magnificent war armor in action, I do not recommend giving him cause.”

Proudfang’s paw reached up to scratch her head, her eyes more confused than offended as she finally offered up a shrug, “As Lord Spike wishes. Long as Dwarves know whom they deal with, will matter little. Need the authority, the strength, not just the name.”

“And I also haven’t agreed to anything yet,” Spike said, giving Sunset a grateful look, “Was kind of hoping you guys would show up to put in your two cents, because I can’t really make heads or tails of this whole situation.”

Clover, who remained standing, but took up position next to Spike’s other side, cleared her throat politely, “I’ve done my best to try to bring Sunset up to speed, but we’re still lacking critical details. Also, it seems the messenger Chieftain Proudfang told us she’d send did not reach our party, causing Sunset and Shining Armor to come here under the belief we were missing.”

Asena growled a little, eyeing Proudfang, “Diamond Dogs shouldn’t get lost so easily.”

Proudfang in response just held up her paws in a shrug, “I send runner! If runner not find group, could be many reasons! Many monsters in Svartalfheim tunnels and wilderness. Some Dogs get unlucky, sometimes.”

“Hmph, I’m certain. Perhaps you didn’t want others here to give Lord Spike further council while you worked to convince him to aid your cause?” Asena asked, to which Proudfang growled back with narrowed eyes, one paw almost twitching towards her mace.

“Look,” Sunset said, interjecting before things could escalate, “Whatever the reasons, we’re here now, so you may as well lay it out for us what’s going on. Heard a bit from Clover, but I’d like to hear the full story from you, Chieftain.”

“And who are you?” Proudfang asked with a mixture of honest curiosity and a bit of suspicion as her eyes darted between Sunset and Clover, “Soul Reapers not come to Beast Realm in many ages. Treaty forged by the Peacebinder remains strong, and the Beast Realm does not interfere with Midgard, so Midgard does not interfere with the Beast Realm. All is balance. Why here and now? Why bring Lord F...Spike back to our lands?”

Spike looked to Sunset, clearly unsure how to go about answering this, and even Clover deferred to Sunset with a small nod that Sunset read as ‘up to you how much to say’. She appreciated the trust, even if she wished she had everyone here to consult on this first. She didn’t think it’d be the best idea to bring up Jormungandr or Hel, that was for sure. Sunset decided to mix a bit of truth with an otherwise vague answer. Not like she was Applejack here, with a penchant for pure honesty.

“Asena and Simurgh are guiding us to Alfheim for something called the Convocation of Clans. Heard of it?”

Proudfang’s eyes gave a furrowed twitch, “Yes. Big meet of most powerful Clans. Mine, not among them. Only one Diamond Dog Clan powerful enough to be at Convocation, Clan Shatterstone. Dwarven Clans also send one, Clan Allhammer.”

“Is that the Clan that’s attacking Diamond Dog settlements?” Sunset inquired, and Proudfang made a small whining sound, paws scratching her throne’s armrests.

“Makes no sense. Allhammer gains new Jarl, our version of Chieftain, and organizes big attack on Diamond Dog homes closest to Dwarf territory. We raid, yes. Done raiding of mines for many generations. Never more than competition. Never bad blood. Diamond Dogs and Dwarves not friends, but respect and offer fair exchange of prisoners and goods between raids. That is what’s normal. But now, now new Jarl Brogensmasher sends troops and Thanes to dig up and destroy our holds and homes.”

She picked up her mace suddenly and smashed the ground beside her throne, her throat rumbling in a deep, seething anger. “Proudfangs lose their home first! Two other Clans not long after. We run, we hide, and ask Shatterstones to help us! They say ‘yes, but not until after Convocation!’. Grrrr! Not want to wait! Need help now. Lord Spike, good Soul Reapers, you can help us, yes?”

Well, at least she was so focused on her own problems that she didn’t press Sunset too hard on her own story, as Sunset had feared that Proudfang might ask for more details as to why Asena and Simurgh had brought them here to Svartalfheim instead of straight to Alheim, or indeed why Soul Reapers were being brought to this Convocation of Clans at all. Perhaps Spike’s presence alone, as the reincarnated Fenrir, made Proudfang forget any further questions.

“Right, so just what do you expect us, or specifically Spike, to do to help? Was the plan to just have us drive the Dwarves off?”

Proudfangs huffed and her head gave a floppy shake, “Might be fun to watch Dwarves run, but smash their army won’t help. Need Jarl Brogensmasher to give up. Thought if Lord... Spike, demanded it, even mighty Dwarven Jarl would be forced to make peace.”

“Okay, Asena, I have to ask, just how much authority is Spike supposed to have here?” Sunset said while giving the big wolf a serious look, “Sure I can buy that he’s Fenrir’s reincarnation, at least partially if what I understand about how powerful souls like that work, what with the breaking into fragments... but does he really have the same pull and leverage Fenrir had way back whenever?”

“It is... complicated,” Asena admitted, wrinkling her nose, “He no longer serves as High Chief of the Land Tribe, for his sister Fenris rightfully fills that role, now. He also does not control the same lands and Clans he would have once held authority over. However he carries the... the honor accumulated by Fenrir in his life. He has rights, by that honor, to be treated with guest rights in any Clan holding, no matter the Tribe. He may also by right demand to treat with any Jarl, Chief, or equivalent Clan leader as a person of honor. This means he can make Jarl Brogensmasher deal with him as a fair negotiator at a bargaining table. Or... offer an honor challenge, as well.”

“The heck is an honor challenge, anyway?” Spike asked, to which Proudfang was very happy to jump in with gleaming eyes.

“A duel of honor between either the challenger and challenged, or their mightiest warriors! Challenge cannot be denied, not from one of Lord Fen...Spike’s level of honor! Challenge Brogensmasher and he must accept, and winner has right to place terms on the defeated!”

“Sooooo what you’re saying is, I challenge this Dwarf dude, kick his butt, and basically tell him to cut it out with attacking you Diamond Dogs?” Spike said, and Proudfang nodded enthusiastically.

“Hold up, so either Spike would have to fight, or...?” Sunset said, to which Asena clarified.

“Or one of his warriors who serve him. Which, I suppose technically could include myself or Simurgh at the moment, or any of you Midgardians who are part of Lord Spike’s entourage.”

“And either Brogensmasher fights himself, or chooses a champion. Got it,” Sunset rubbed her head in thought, glancing sidelong at Spike and Clover, “I mean, normally I’d say try the diplomatic route here, but we don’t exactly have the luxury of time. You think we can take this Jarl guy or one of his warriors, one-on-one?”

Clover gained a very and almost uncharacteristically intensive look of consideration on her face, “I agree we don’t have the time, or the leverage, to make an actual negotiation very feasible. Yet I have personally witnessed the effectiveness of yourself and our other friends in battle, Sunset. I don’t know the power of a Dwarven Jarl, but I do have faith in your own abilities.”

More quietly she added, “My own? I have yet to test my limits, and I know I must...”

“Clover?”

“It’s nothing, Sunset. I’ll defer to your judgment on this.”

“Well, I’m down to smack a Dwarf,” said Spike, “How hard could it be?”

----------

There were many mystical substances in the vast reaches of the Beast Realm, and in their raw forms were considered potent and valuable for a wide plethora of reasons. These substances became even more valued when utilized in crafting, and no species in the Beast Realm was more renowned for being master artisans than the Dwarves, especially in the area of smithing. Almost every stereotypical myth of a legendary Dwarven blacksmith that trickled its way over the ages into the popular culture of the humans in Midgard could trace itself back to the very real truth that none matched the Beast Realm Dwarves for their ability to forge anything in their powerful foundries. They excelled most specifically in creating alloys from ores and gems, combined with their Runecraft, that were unparalleled in their quality.

In particular, the alloy known as orichalcum was the most potent and treasured of Dwarven creations. It was a metal nearly as light as the more common but still fabled mithril, but ten times more durable and capable of enhancing the power of any Anima use that was channeled through the metal first. Hence why weapons, armor, or even simple trinkets like orbs, amulets, rings, and bracelets made from orichalcum were symbols of power and status. Dwarf Clans made an absolute killing on the trade of this metal, given they alone had the secret of forging with it. Other Clans of other Tribes might pull off mithril or adamantine forging, but if one wanted orichalcum, you had to go to the Dwarves.

And if you wanted good orichalcum craft, the best of the best, you had to go to Clan Allhammer.

Brogensmasher Allhammer only briefly contemplated this, his family’s legacy, as he stood in front of a ten meter tall obelisk made out of solid orichalcum that stood in front of him, nearly half as wide as it was tall. It was etched with runes meant to further harden the metal against any force that might come against it, these particular runes drawing on ambient Anima in the environment to keep themselves powered. Runecraft 101; size matters, numbers matter. More runes equals more power, and bigger runes... you guessed it, more power. Of course there still had to be Anima to fuel the runes, so runes that relied on ambient Anima were always going to be weaker than ones you powered up yourself, but those weren’t mutually exclusive concepts.

Hence why the obelisk wasn’t just sporting a few glowing runes like it normally did, but a set of runes that blazed with red hot power as a pair of Dwarven runemasters stood nearby, channeling their Anima into the obelisk to empower it further. Normally with Anima it would take one of two forms, the “inherent” form that was unique to each individual who tapped into Anima and granted its specific powers to the user, or the “primal” form that was raw Anima itself, without shape... but oh so handy for powering up runes.

The Runemasters were channeling Anima in the primal form to power up the obelisk, encasing it in a field of hardening strength that would make the neigh unbreakable object even more resistant to damage. Brogensmasher wasn’t really one for complex figures or mathematics, so he certainly couldn’t put a numeric comparison to how tough this obelisk was. He just knew that to damage it, nothing short of earth shattering, mountain splitting force was required.

Which of course was the whole point.

Brogensmasher spread his squat, furry legs, muscles bulging as thick feet broke into the stone of the training grounds and cracked the earth around him. The large yard on the western side of his family’s towering cliff-side fortress was the size of a battlefield unto itself, often used for the formations of Allhammer warriors to practice maneuvers and combat. Now most of it was clear, because nobody was dumb enough to be in the way when the Clan’s most hotheaded Jarl to date was training.

His barrel chest expanded under a thick fur cloak and gold breastplate, also orichalcum forged. What looked like steam began to pour up from his short but broad body, only five feet tall but damn near just as wide. Black fur covered most of his body in short, wiry tufts, doing little to hide his corded muscles. Like all Dwarves he had a face that was wide but sharp featured, what most humans would see as a humanoid mole’s visage if a mole also came sporting a beard of braids and gold bangles stretching nearly to his feet. Like all Beast Realmers, Dwarves were beast-like, and the Clans that weren’t mole-like tended to share qualities with other tunneling creatures. Brogensmasher was definitely a powerful example of his people, taller and stronger than most, save perhaps his now very dead father, who had been a giant among their kind.

His keen blue eyes narrowed and sweat dripped down his face from beneath a wide, crested orichalcum helmet. That aura of steam flowing off him grew in intensity and thickness, turning dark gray as he coiled the powerful aura around his cocked back arm and thick fingered fist. His Anima, forming in its inherent shape, became like digging claws that grew into four separate spirals around his fist, spinning faster and faster as the ground around him shook and all his focus hardened upon the obelisk in front of him.

With a guttural shout that itself seemed to carry a shockwave of power that cracked the ground around him, Brogensmasher punched with his right fist. The spirals of dark gray power that had formed there exploded outward, his Anima smashing forward in a conical cyclone of force that roared louder than a hundred dragon throats and ripped across the training grounds like the spear of a mountainous giant.

The obelisk of thick, Anima enhanced orichalcum was struck dead on in the center, and for a brief few seconds there was a titanic clash of conflicting waves of force that created a localized earthquake as the punch of raw Anima from Brogensmasher drilled into the seemingly indominable obelisk of unnaturally tough metal. But finally there was a horrific screen of bending, twisting metal as the whole obelisk not only started to bend inward, but was torn upward from the ground and twisted around like something caught in a whirlpool. It warped and bent, twisting more and more, and the Dwarven Runemasters nearby let out gasps as their primal Anima was stripped out of him from trying to maintain the breaking runes on the obelisk.

Then, torn and twisted and balled up like a crumpled piece of paper, the massive obelisk, or the remains of what it used to be at any rate, was thrown by the remainder of Brogenson’s Anima punch like a toy ball straight across the grounds to plant itself into, then through the encircling wall, which crumbled.

Brogensmasher looked at his handiwork, which now resembled a smashed and deformed piece of metal slag, and stretched his arms with an audible and satisfying pop.

“Eh, not bad,” he said, “Ain’t gonna be satisfied ‘till I can do it to one twice that size.”

One of the Runemasters coughed politely, scratching his smaller, but no less ornately decorated beard, “As my Jarl wishes. However, that obelisk cost around two hundred thousand marks. Perhaps my Jarl would consider finding less economically draining methods of training?”

Brogensmasher spat, “Costs shmosts. We’re Allhammers. We decide what things cost. Now, I expect another one of those prepared for tomorrow.”

“Yes, my Jarl,” said both Runemasters together, not looking particularly pleased, but knowing better than to argue with their new Jarl. Brogensmasher watched them go with a hint of disdain, wondering if they’d ever have given any backtalk to his father. The thought alone gave him an acidic sensation of anger in his gut, but that only lasted as long as it took for him to notice that someone was approaching through the new hole he’d made in the training ground’s wall. He’d have to tell someone to go get that fixed.

His sour mood only lightened somewhat when he saw who it was, but he still managed a grin as he stomped over towards the tall, notably cold creature breezing into his Clan’s home.

“G'nash! You sonuvabitch!”

The sizeable ice troll sported a fang filled grin as Brogensmasher slapped out a meaty hand, and responded in kind with his own thickly muscled, cold blue limb. Hands locked with a meaty smack, and the pair grinned at one another as they took a few second to silently test one another’s strength. Muscles shuddered and strained as G'nash and Brogensmasher pitted their mettle against one another... and slowly G'nash started to push Brogensmasher’s arm back.

“Getting soft on me, you pampered rich kid?” G'nash asked, and Brogensmasher’s smirked, almost sneered, pushing harder as the dark gray mist of his Anima rose.

“Not on your life, you crazed icicle on feet! Been only gettin’ stronger!”

Brogensmasher almost managed to start pushing G'nash’s arm back, but the ice troll just grinned deeper and tapped into a bit of his own Anima. A rime of blue light flowed from his body, and ground frozen over for meters around them, and Brogensmasher found his arm nearly twisting over as G'nash got a tad serious.

“Gah! Alright! Alright! Dammit all, you still got it, Enherjar!” Brogensmasher said, taking his hand back and rubbing his arm with a glare, “Gotta remind me every time you show up that Jormungandr only picked the strongest?”

“Could’ve been you, too, boy, if you’d taken training more seriously,” G'nash replied with his usual, relentless bluntness, “But not like you ever cared for our cause anyway, yeah? Too married to your luxuries to think ending the world’s a good idea.”

Brogensmasher’s face turned stony, “Jormungandr still ain’t giving up on that, eh? Hah, never figured why you went to work for the serpent. Always seemed like you liked living too much to toss it aside.”

G'nash breathed out a thin hiss of laughter, icicles dripping from his fangs, “Love living. Can’t live if you’re not putting death on the line. Yggdrasil gets tainted any more than it already is, and no life will be worth living. Jormungandr gets that. Doesn’t matter to me if no one else does, you included, much as I like you, kid. So, hear your pa up and kicked it. You’re the big Jarl now?”

It was a natural reflex to grow guarded, his eyes glancing around the training grounds. He always had an honor guard not too far off, but that collection of ten or so Dwarven warriors had stayed well back while Brogensmasher had trained, and now that G'nash was here more than a few of them were watching warily but still from a distance. Their Jarl hadn’t called them over, and most of the Allhammers knew that Brogensmasher had past dealings with this ice troll. It’d been a point of sour contention between him and his father, the late Jarl Gagansmelt.

“He did. Taken by a cave in, inspecting our deepest and newest mine.”

G'nash gave him a knowing look, “Dwarf that powerful, that skilled, killed by a few falling rocks?”

Brogensmasher felt his jaw clench, “Cave in opened up a hole into a chamber filled with Tearful Goodbye. Nobody knew it was there. Surveyors must have missed it.”

Tearful Goodbye, a rare and exceedingly deadly plant native to Svartalfheim that produced toxic spores so lethal that very few could survive breathing them in without some manner of protection via Anima. If you weren’t ready for it, no matter how powerful you were, it’d be a sure ticket to a quick death. Tragic that Jarl Gagansmelt had fallen into such a place, when many had expected him to still live for many, many centuries to come.

G'nash, still wearing that irritatingly knowing look, simply shrugged, “Like I said. Life ain’t worth nothing without the risk of death. So, long live Jarl Brogensmasher. What’s your plan, now that you wear the big man pants around here?”

“Hmph, I’ll tell you in the moment, but let’s get somewhere more comfortable, first.”

The pair had started to walk together back towards the fortress of the Allhammer Clan, Brogensmaher’s honor guard respectfully starting to fall in beside them until the Jarl gave them a look and nod that told the collection of warriors to give him some distance. He saw his honor guard captain, a notably rotund but no less physically powerful female Dwarf with auburn fur and a neatly combed head of red curls under helmet, give him a less than pleased look. Frigrune had been his father’s closest confidant, and was a Dwarf of impeccable honor. Hence why she’d done nothing but argue with him ever since he’d decided it was high time they dealt with the Diamond Dogs in a more heavy handed manner. But he was Jarl, and Frigrune was just honorbound enough to follow commands even against her own better judgment, which was just as well because he genuinely didn’t want to have to get rid of her...

“My Jarl, I do not impinge your choice of companion, but must remind you that this one is an ice troll of Niflheim and serves Jormungandr,” Frigrune said simply, hand almost unconsciously on the head of the magnificent, orichalcum warhammer strapped to her hip.

“Your talent for informing me of what I already know is greatly appreciated, Thane Frigrune,” he stated, dry as stone, “G'nash has walked these halls before, even when my father still ruled. Clan Allhammer remains in his debt for past deeds.”

“But High Chieftain Fenris’ mandate-”

“Does not apply in the depths of Svartalfheim, in the halls of our own home!” Brogensmasher declared, all but kicking open the gates built into this side of the fortress wall that faced the training grounds.

For one who’d lived his whole life inside the walls of Clan Allhammer’s seat of power, Mattugeirr, the ‘Mighty Anvil’, the splendorous sights beyond barely registered. The immense walls of riveted adamantine that rose a two hundred feet at an angle, spotted with metal turrets bearing countless deadly Dwarven weapons ranging from rune enchanted bolt-throwers to colossal multi-ton cannons with barrels fashioned into the faces of fierce beasts, were just background to him. Beyond the walls were even taller, square shaped spires of black metal, clustered against the monolithic northern cliffs of Svartalfheim’s largest underground cavern region, with courtyards running in a circle around the formation of soaring towers. Each tower was a bare minimum of three hundred feet, and the central cluster rose higher still to near twice that, all hugging the cliff wall like spears planted against a weapons rack.

From the sides of these towers large metal rails were built into the stone cavern wall, rails that bore enchantments that rang large metal elevator cars, each one large enough to carry hundreds of Dwarves, or dozens of cargo containers, up and down at impressive speeds. These elevators, a grand feat of Dwarven Runecraft and engineering, were the lifeline between Svartalfheim in the region, and the surface of Vanaheim and Alfheim. Clan Allhammer controlled this gateway between the Beast Realm’s regions, and while others existed, those passages to the surface were far more treacherous than the elevators of Mattugeirr.

As a young boy, Brogensmasher had watched those gigantic elevator cars fly up and down those elevator rails, sailing up into the darkness of Svartalfheim’s cavern ceiling with fascination and awe. Now he barely looked up as one such massive metal box descended from above, its ghostly metallic whine mixing in with all the other noises of the highly active fortress. He walked with G'nash across the courtyard between the defensive walls and the nearest tower, and passed a bridge of solid metal that ran over a smoky recess in the floor. This recess descended hundreds of feet more, revealing that for all the great size of the fortress towers, Mattugeirr was larger still in its huge underground chambers. Down there the raw heat of the fortress countless forges rose like a comforting blanket. The steady clang of hammers that gave the Clan its name was the ever present heartbeat that was mirrored in any Dwarven Clan.

The only thing that was not normal was the steady march of metal shod boots as a large detachment of warriors, some two hundred, came marching across another courtyard out of one of the other towers, heading for the main gates for deployment. Brogensmasher briefly looked at the unit, noting the golden pips on the detachment’s flag to tell which regiment it was. Looked like a relief unit heading to replace one of the new garrisons they needed to maintain after taking three of the Diamond Dog’s nearest settlements.

“Busy, busy,” G'nash noted, and Frigrune, whose lips had stayed pressed tightly closed after Brogensmasher’s reprimand, let out a gruff huff of air that might’ve been a humorless laugh.

“An understatement, troll. I trust your master understands that no matter how much time passes since his ill-fated attempt at assaulting Yggdrasil, no Clan of the Tribe of Land shall be caught unprepared again.”

G’nash let out a long, hissing laugh of his own, grinning wide, “I remember. Yggdrasil has roots not far from here. This fortress was a prime target during the war.”

“You led more than one assault upon it,” Frigrune said with a cold stare, but this only amused G’nash more.

“Bawhahah! Sure did! Back then it was Gagansmelt’s grandpappy Burincleave who was Jarl of the Allhammers! Ah but he was a damn fine warrior to trade blows with! Why do you think I decided to keep coming back, even after the war was over? Told old Burincleave I’d always keep an eye on his bloodline, and ain’t broken that word since.”

“Hmph, watching us because you like us or because one day you’re hoping the war starts up again so you can fight someone half as good as Burincleave?” Brogensmasher asked, already knowing the answer, his voice more joking than serious. Quite frankly he enjoyed watching Frigrune fume at his familiar tone as G’nash laughed again.

“Can’t it be both, kid? You ain’t at Burincleave’s level yet, but you’re getting there. Maybe another century of two of healthy eating and training. Still kinda runty right now.”

“Tch, I’ll make you eat those words, one day,” Brogensmasher promised, to which G’nash only nodded, as if that was the only appropriate answer to give.

Once inside the fortress towers proper, Brogensmasher made Frigrune and his honor guard wait in one of the grander halls while he led G’nash up multiple flights of stairs to an enclosed den, one of his private lounges to meet with honored guests. Metal furniture that was still somehow luxurious and ostentatious with their embedded gems and thick leather padding provided spots for the pair to sit as Brogensmasher poured a big, frosty mug of ale from a wall-hung keg and offered G’nash a drink, which the ice troll accepted.

“So, you going to tell me what in Surtur’s flaming arsehole one of Jormunganr’s Einherjar are doing here?” Brogensmasher asked bluntly once he was sure they were alone, “You may still have guest rights here due to my great grandfather’s friendship, but lips will be wagging before nightfall that you’re here. That word will pass to Vanaheim, and then to Alfheim. I might not give two burnt turds what ‘Lady’ Fenris thinks of you or Jormungandr, but that won’t stop her from sending her own Einherjar from sniffing around.”

“With luck, I won’t be here long,” G’nash replied simply, quaffing his drink quickly and tossing the mug aside without care, “Jormungandr has sent us all to search for a certain group of not-so-lucky folk who we know are in the Beast Realm, and Jormungandr wants them.”

Brogensmasher snorted, “Oh, he just sent you and your fellow Einherjar to search all the Beast Realm, eh? Glad to hear the Serpent has reasonable expectations of his servants.”

G’nash flashed a fang-filled smile, “He knows what we can do. And I know what the Allhammers can do. Jormungandr gave me Svartalfheim to search, and the fastest way to do that was to pay you a visit and see if you’d put feelers out. The Allhammers are connected to every Dwarf Clan in Svartalfheim, and Dwarves gossip over drinks as a matter of course. Figured if the group we’re looking for shows up here, it’d only be a matter of time before they’d get spotted by some Dwarves.”

“Hmm,” Brogensmasher unconsciously touched the bangles in his beard, clinking them together, “You ain’t wrong. I’ve got to wonder what this group is that’s got Jorumungandr’s attention? Sending his Einherjar out of Niflheim is a ballsy move, likely to piss off Fenris and Quetzacoatl both. Why risk it? What makes this group so important to find? And this wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with that damn Convocation of the Clans that got called, would it?”

“That’s a lot of questions I suspect Jormungandr would prefer I don’t answer,” G’nash said, and Brogensmasher frowned.

“Jormungandr ain’t here. I’m no friend to that proud wolf bitch or the featherbrained rainbow dragon, but the Allhammers can’t afford to totally alienate two High Chieftains. Yet. Also, fond as I am of you, G’nash, I know damn well Jormungandr’s goals are not aligned with my Clan leading a long, prosperous existence. My friendship with you buys you some of my time, maybe even a favor, but you’re going to need to give me something more than just empty air.”

G’nash regarded him, those icy eyes inscrutable in the dim lighting of the enclosed den.

“Still can’t tell you much. This group is an odd bunch, for sure. A mix of Soul Reapers, Midgardians, and Beast Realmers.”

That got Brogensmasher’s thick eyebrows rising high, “Midgardians and Soul Reapers haven’t come to the Beast Realm since... forever. This is only making me more curious about what Jormungandr’s game is, here.”

“Gets better. It’s Asena and Simurgh that are guiding them.”

That got the Dwarven Jarl rising up in his seat, “No joke? The heralds to Fenris and Quetzalcoatl both? Then that would mean these Soul Reapers and Midgardians were being brought to the Convocation. No other reason to send those two if that weren’t the case.”

As his mind mulled over that information, G’nash leaned forward, long and clawed hands resting on his knees, “I’ll level with you, Brogensmasher. Help me or not, I’m going to find them if they’re anywhere in Svartalfheim. Need be I can twist arms, or heads, until I get Dwarves talking. However, you help me out, help me track these folk down and bring them in... then I’ll lend you a hand with your Diamond Dog problem.”

The Dwarf’s snout twitched, his beard bangles rattling, “I have that under control.”

“Heard enough to know you managed to catch the dogs off guard and snag a few settlements, but you know damn well that won’t last once they mount a proper counterattack. Worse, they’ll start barking for help from Fenris. You’re both still Tribe of Land, and you know Fenris will step in to help the dogs. Help me, and I’ll deal with whatever trouble Fenris sends your way so you’re free to handle the dogs however you want.”

Brogensmasher wanted to take the offer. Impulsive as he was, a part of him didn’t want to think about it too much. For one, he knew G’nash was right. The moment Fenris heard about what he was doing down here, she’d probably try to strongarm him into backing off on taking more Diamond Dog territory. But it was well past time the dogs learned their damn place! They were thieves and crude ones at that. It wasn’t right that the Dwarves had to put up with this ‘friendly rivalry’ that they’d had going on with the Diamond Dogs for so long. Never mind that most of his warriors grumbled about being ordered to occupy Diamond Dog settlements. The other Clan Jarls would pipe down once the extra wealth started to flow in from captured gem and ore veins that always should have belonged to the Dwarves in the first place!

And if Fenris wanted to growl from the top of her high mountain about it, well... G’nash was an Einherjar, and wasn’t joking when he said he could handle most trouble Fenris would send Brogensmasher’s way. And once Brogensmasher got strong enough, who’s to say he’d still need the ice troll, or be concerned about the damn Serpent’s goals? As if Jormungandr would ever succeed in destroying Yggdrasil. If he really wanted to start the war again, Brogensmasher could make sure the Dwarves were powerful enough to stop him dead in his tracks before getting to the World Tree’s roots.

Had Frigrune been present the far more level headed Thane probably would have brought up a dozen holes in Brogensmasher’s thinking, but the hotheaded young Jarl was only seeing future wealth and glory for himself and his Clan as he offered G’nash his hand in a mirror of their meeting in the training grounds.

“G’nash, sounds to me like you’ve got yourself a deal.”

Episode 201: Push Forward

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Episode 201: Push Forward

Agreeing to aid the Diamond Dogs in their plight had taken little discussion, once the entire group was brought up to speed. Simurgh expressed nothing short of shock that the Dwarven Clans would get that blatantly aggressive at all after so many generations of an otherwise simmering status quo of back and forth skirmishes and raids that was tantamount to tradition at this point. Yet the claim Proudfang had made concerning a new Jarl for Clan Allhammer struck a chord with Simurgh, and that evening in camp the tall and graceful bird preened her wings with a contemplative look as she confided to Sunset and the others.

“I knew Jarl Gagansmelt for a long time. His Clan’s orichalcum is prized by High Chieftain Quetzalcoatl in the Golden City. I’ve negotiated those very mines in times past while the Jarl took me on tours of the Allhammer’s operations. He was a very careful, cautious, and above all honorable man. I cannot imagine he’d ever have approved of taking the Clans to all out war with the Diamond Dogs. I have... and even more difficult time imagining him dying in such a fashion.”

“Ain’t gonna lie, that whole story sounds mighty fishy ta me,” said Applejack, sitting on a large mushroom cap next to Rainbow Dash, who was groaning, head bent over between her legs, having more or less recovered from her own mushroom escapade.

“Foul play is not out of the question, but we are in no position to investigate, let alone prove whether the young Jarl Brogensmasher had a hand in his father’s death,” said Asena, to which Simurgh reluctantly nodded her head.

“Much as I do not wish to agree with my blunt companion, she speaks truly. We’ve neither the time nor the means to conduct an investigation, although rest assured once we are back in Alfheim I shall be delivering a most thorough report to my High Chieftain concerning this matter. Right now, we must concern ourselves with simply defeating Brogensmasher in an open challenge to thwart his war against the Diamond Dogs.”

“I could take him...” Rainbow Dash said, raising her hand, if not her head as she groaned again, “Soon as I’m done puking up all this... bad mushroom juice...”

Applejack patted her on the back again, face lit up with an admonishing but fond smile, “Now what’ve we learned, Dash? Not ta eat up random shrooms, right?”

“Bite me. But yeah, not touching anything around here again without our local gals given it the all clear,” Rainbow said, nodding at Simurgh and Asena with a weak grin, to which Asena returned a toothy smirk.

“It is good to temper boldness with wisdom, young Lady Dash. As for your offer to duel Brogensmasher, it is appreciated, especially considering the likelihood of this expanding into a Trial of Arms.”

“Come again?” asked Shining Armor, who was seated by the campfire eating next to Cadence, both Quincy partaking of the stew that had been refreshed with ingredients offered up by the Diamond Dogs. At this point everyone was hungry enough that the meat on offer in the form of various insects was even being accepted with little trepidation. Wallflower was eating as well, which Sunset was glad to see. The girl’s mood seemed at least a little brighter, if still fairly withdrawn.

The only one not in immediate attendance was Clover, who’d just a few minutes earlier told Sunset she was staying near the lake to work on something with the Diamond Dogs’ help. Sunset was deathly curious what that ‘something’ was, and suspected it had to do with the scroll case that Clover had been keeping close this whole time. As soon as this meeting was over with, Sunset intended to go check in on Clover to find out what her friend was up to. Then, time permitting, she wanted to commune with Hokori no Hikari.

Mind focused back on the present, Sunset crossed her arms and echoed Shining Armor’s sentiments, “Yeah, what is a Trial of Arms and how is that any different than the challenge we already plan to give Brogensmasher?”

Asena laid herself down and actually wagged her tail, as if relishing the prospect of what she was talking of, the campfire glinting in her eyes with particular intensity, “Just as one challenged to an honorable duel can name a champion to fight in their name, those of high station who command many forces can declare a Trial of Arms. This is because a challenge to a ruler is considered a challenge to all of his subjects, so all are considered as having the right to defend their own honor. This results in a contest of multiple champions facing one another in equal, one-on-one duels until one side no longer has champions left to fight.”

Rainbow Dash and Spike both perked up, nearly blurting at the same time, “Tournament arc?”

“Wut?” Applejack said, blinking, and looking between the two as if they’d spoken in code. Rainbow Dash turned to her and Sunset could all but see the girl vibrating with energy.

“Asena literally just described a tournament. Like, Dwarf dude picks his best, and we get to smack them around in an arena, one v one.”

“An’ why’re ya two lookin’ all excited like that’s a good thing?” Applejack said, wrinkling her nose and pursing her lips at the whole idea, “Sounds like a massive waste o’ time when it could all git settled by just takin’ down that one guy we need ta wallop.”

“I just like the idea of being able to put the Gunwolf through some more practice use,” Spike said, patting the mech’s arm. He was sitting out of it, but stayed close to the machine like it was his own doghouse, although Sunset gauged the main reason was that Spike was going through a lot right now and the Gunwolf was a direct reminder of Twilight, and hence it was a comfort. Like a big, metal, gun toting safety blanket.

“I’m pretty much in the same mindset,” Rainbow said, finally looking a little better with her pale blue features regaining a bit of darker color as her excitement pushed back the residual illness of the mushrooms, “I mean, I’ve always wanted to fight in a big tournament with super-cool powers, and this whole crazy spirit war hasn’t had a single one of those! I mean, how cool would it have been if the Quincy, Soul Reapers, and Hollows could’ve settled all their bullcrap with a huge Spirit Tournament!?”

“Ignoring the fact that the outcome would have been completely unenforceable?” Cadence said, raising a quizzical eyebrow, “Or that, quite frankly, nobody would trust one another enough to even show up for such a dubious event?”

“Pfft...Pfft I say,” Rainbow replied, grumbling. Shining Armor coughed out a laugh, shaking his head.

“Might have been fun, but yeah, I somehow don’t see any of my fellow Sternritter being up to the idea, except for maybe a handful like Lightning Dust or Rutherford. Moot notion at this point anyway, what with our supposed truce in place.”

“Supposed?” Sunset asked, frowning deeply at him, “Is that just you being pessimistic or is there something you’re not telling us?”

Shining Armor shook his head, eyes showing a gray shade of exhaustion that lay hidden behind his otherwise focused and professional demeanor, “Oh, don’t read into it too much. I know that if His Majesty... Sombra, agreed to a truce, he’ll honor it, and ensure the rest of us do as well. Any who oppose him wouldn’t get far in doing so. That said, there will be resistance, mark my words on that. Not every Sternritter, not every Quincy, is going to drop generations of hatred and distrust right off the bat.”

“Even with the Zero Division breathin’ down our necks an’ it outright beyond any question that all o’ this spirit war nonsense is mostly their own damn fault?” Applejack said, and this time Cadence answered, her voice carrying a quiet calm as she touched her fiancé's arm.

“I doubt any will question the need to face the Zero Division. Shining is merely saying that, once that’s all said and done, peace between all of us won’t be an easy task. Still, I’m hopeful. I’ve long respected Celestia and Luna, and I know I am not the only Quincy who is tired of fighting. Surely there are Soul Reapers who feel the same way. It is harder to say, for Hollows, but I’m willing to give peace a chance...” her hand strayed to her stomach, a gentle gesture filled with a world of love and worry both, “I don’t want my child growing up having to deal with the same burdens I have, so I’ll fight for peace, even against other Quincy, if that is what needs to be done.”

“...Okay, yeah, point taken,” Rainbow Dash said, rubbing her head as if to clear out fuzz, then cast a sidelong look at Sunset, “Total side note, but if you’ve started sporting those spiffy new feathers, doesn’t that mean the rest of us will start doing the same, soon? I thought we had, like, a few more days or something?”

Sunset ran a hand through her hair, feeling the growths of several feathers gleaming bright and rose red in her hair, like incandescent flames. “I, uh, really don’t know. I’m not sure why I’m showing the sings first... although I have a theory or two.”

“Do tell,” Simurgh said, “I’m quite curious as to your swift changes, myself. Especially given that you appear to be taking on aspects of a phoenix.”

“Before I talk theory, could you tell me if there’s something special about phoenix in the Beast Realm? I mean, Brawnwyn, that Diamond Dog we first met, all but seemed to leap through the roof when she saw my feathers,” Sunset said, still recalling vividly the bright and near joyful look on the golden furred Diamond Dog’s face.

“Ah, how to explain?” Simurgh rubbed her beak with a wing, “Phoenix are among the rarest of the Tribe of Sky’s inhabitants. So rare that it is said to cross paths with one is to be blessed with true fortune. There are even legends that when a phoenix is born in the Beast Realm, the Fates themselves must re-spin their tapestry of threads to account for the great changes a phoenix will bring to the lives of those that cross its path. Such is the phoenix’s fabled power, to alter Fate.”

“Whoa...” Spike stated with innocent clarity, “That all true, or just, like, stories and stuff?”

Asena looked at Simurgh with a bit of a half-bark, half-snort, and said, “Sky Tribe does love its flowery exaggerations and talk of Fate. To be a bit more grounded, phoenix are wonderfully powerful birds with innate magic for healing and renewal, often naturally bringing health to the land and those around them. And yes, they are quite rare. I believe there are only around a dozen or so in all the Beast Realm, so Sunset is quite fortunate if she is taking on their shape. If it turns out we do not get you out of the Beast Realm before you change permanently, you can at least feel assured you’ll have a truly magnificent new form to enjoy.”

“Ehhh, think I’ll pass, if I can help it,” Sunset said, “Anyway, as to my guess as to why I’m changing first, I got two ideas. One, I’m from Equestria, and given its a world more naturally attuned to magic, maybe that makes me more susceptible to Anima, which is also part magic. I mean, I half expected to start turning unicorn again, anyway. As for the other idea...” she patted her chest, where the Hogyoku still lay firmly and safely tucked away. She barely noticed its presence anymore, although she did always check to make sure it wasn’t doing anything weird.

She’d checked it not long after leaving the Diamond Dog caverns, just to be sure, but the odd gem ball certainly didn’t look any different than normal... save for the tiniest hint of an orange spark in its depths. That she attributed to whatever it had absorbed from the Hell Gate. But it certainly occurred to her it might also be absorbing Anima from the Beast Realm itself.

“Let’s just say Discord gave me something that affects the spirit energy and magic that my friends and I share. It connects us to each other and other forms of energy. It might be the reason I’m changing faster. Might not be long before Rainbow Dash and Applejack start to change too, considering we’re connected.”

“Riiight, the Hogyowhatever,” Rainbow Dash said, “I usually forget that thing exists.”

“We oughta be keepin’ a closer eye on it,” Applejack said, “Might be the only thing we got ta counter Starlight Glimmer’s. Lands sake, who knows how much more powerful she’s gotten with all o’ this time ta traipse around Equestria like she owns the place.”

“No way Princess Celestia, Luna, or Twilight would let Starlight have an easy time of that,” Sunset said with conviction, but her heart felt a wave of constriction just thinking about it. “I just hope we get there soon.”

“Speaking of getting to places, how far to this Allhammer Clan’s hangout? It’s not the fortress we saw near that big rock pillar, is it?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“No, that’s one of the smaller Clan holdfasts,” Asena said, “The Allhammer Clan's stronghold, Mattugeirr, is further north and west of that. At proper speed, we can reach there in perhaps one or two days, depending on delays we encounter.”

“Such as?” Sunset asked.

“Thus far we’ve been fortunate that the only local creatures we’ve encountered can sense our party is too dangerous to risk attacking, one ornery draugr aside. We may not stay that fortunate, the further on we go. There is also the simple fact that Mattugeirr is so deep in Dwarven territory its unlikely we’ll get to it without being detected, hence we may have a confrontation with Dwarven forces before we even get in sight of the citadel.”

“Are we... sure we even want to do this?” Wallflower asked suddenly, flinching a little as all eyes turned towards her. She hunched in on herself a bit, but after a moment gathered her nerve and went on to say, “I’m not against it, exactly, but we’re just kind of taking the Diamond Dogs at their word, aren’t we? What if we’re not getting the whole story?”

“It’s not a bad point to bring up,” Shining Armor said, “We really don’t know anything about the situation we’re stepping into, and it’s not impossible that we could just be getting ourselves used here.”

“I feel like it’d be pretty easy to confirm with our own eyes what’s really going on once we get further into the Dwarves’ territory,” said Sunset, “I mean, I get what you’re saying, Wallflower, Shining Armor, and trust me after everything that’s happened I don’t want to make the mistake of jumping the gun or letting myself get cocky. That said, from what I understand we have to go that direction anyway to get out of Svartalfheim. We may as well take a look at what’s up with this war, and if it looks like the Dwarves, or at least this Jarl Brogensmasher, is up to no good... we proceed with plan ‘kick his butt’. Make sense to everyone?”

“Hell yeah,” Rainbow Dash said.

“No complaints from me,” added Applejack.

General agreement gradually rang out from the rest, and even Wallflower looked as if she was less nervous after listening to Sunset. Without a sun to gauge time with it was mostly a matter of one’s internal clock to work out how close to late evening it was, and most were certainly getting tired, so not long after the conversation wound down most everyone started settling in to get some sleep. Asena agreed to take first watch, perching herself on one of the larger nearby boulders to keep and eye out for any approaching dangers.

Sunset took this opportunity to go check on Clover, making her way back to the lake in little to no time with a few Flash Steps.

Once at the large pool of dark water, she saw no sign of that draugr, Rutgur, which was just as well. She wasn’t really sure what to make of the undead catfish monster, and when she’d asked Asena about them what she’d learned left her a tad weirded out. The fact that some Anima skills could be used to manipulate souls into a state between passing on to the next life and this present one while also binding them to service left her with a singularly strong feeling of distaste. From what Asena explained it wasn’t all that common an ability, at least not anymore. Apparently in the ancient times, closer to the wars between gods, it was a more widespread, although primarily used by the denizens of Niflheim and Muspelheim. A lot of the draugr still around were leftover from those times. Without a source of Anima from the one they served, a draugr was inanimate. Left that way long enough without a means of preservation, they’d eventually pass on naturally. Some draugr apparently didn’t desire this and hence sought out someone to serve, hopefully through some equitable arrangement. That was seemingly the case with Rutgur and the Diamond Dogs of Proudfang’s Clan, with Brawnwyn providing Anima to him in exchange for the draugr acting as a guard for the Clan’s hiding spot.

It just emphasized to her how not like home this place was.

Finding Clover wasn’t hard. The young Soul Reaper wasn’t concealing herself. She was on top of the ridge across the lake from the Diamond Dog caverns, and as Sunset approached, appearing on the ridge with a simple Flash Step, she paused to observe what Clover was doing.

That scroll case lay on the ground in front of Clover, who was sitting on her knees in a pose of calm concentration as she held an unfurled parchment in front of her. The parchment was a darkened brown that gave it a feeling of ancient age, like a relic more than a mere piece of paper. It was hard for Sunset to see, but she could barely make out the darker black ink of the symbols upon the parchment. Her eyes began to hurt as she saw the symbols shift, move, like drops of paint swirling in water.

Clover was chanting under her breath, and now Sunset could see her friend was sweating profusely, and her body was outlined with a faint white gleam of reiatsu as if Clover was focusing her spiritual power in preparation to fight.

Sunset chanced a step closer, speaking quietly, “Clover...?”

Clover did not respond, her eyes locked on the parchment, almost glazed as if not seeing anything around her. Her mouth kept whispering an indistinct chant that Sunset could not make out. Slowly the outline of white spiritual aura around Clover grew, and was drawn towards the parchment the way mist or smoke might be drawn into a suction fan. The symbols on the parchment moved even faster, swirling and mixing and sharpening a hundred times over per second.

Sunset now felt the air around her changing, growing thicker somehow, and she felt a sudden sense of danger crawl along her spine and her hand went instinctively to her Zanpaktou’s hilt. However the moment she touched Hokori no Hikari, she felt a jolt of sensation from her Zanpaktou and sensed the spirts in her blade informing her of a single thing; don’t interfere.

Don’t interfere? With what? What was Clover doing?

The pressure in the air grew by magnitudes, until Sunset felt as if she was being pressed beneath a mountain. She could withstand it, but this reiatsu, for that’s what it felt like this was, held a cloying and suffocating intensity to it. It wasn’t Clover’s, was it? Not entirely, no. She looked at Clover and the parchment and realized this reiatsu was somehow being formed from both Clover and the scroll... or rather something lurking inside the scroll.

Whatever it was, it was drinking in Clover’s spiritual energy and somehow adding it to it’s own, mixing it in the way a painter mixes colors on an easel.

Strain was blooming across Clover’s features, and Sunset noticed her friend’s breath started to become irregular. Clover’s hands trembled, fingers curling as if grasping at something unseen. The reiatsu surrounding Clover fluctuated with sudden, violent turmoil. Sunset felt her blood chill as she saw the abrupt appearance of wounds on Clover’s body, claw marks slowly and shallowly tearing over her arms and side.

Instinct was telling her to do something about this, but Hokori no Hikari remained steadily providing a sense that interference would be an ill-advised action. Choosing to trust her Zanpaktou, Sunset forced herself to remain still and watch, although she resolved to step in if it looked as if Clover’s life was in genuine danger. The wounds at least were small and mostly superficial, but there was now no mistaking the expression of pain and difficult concentration trembling on Clover’s face.

Then, with shockingly immediacy, everything stopped. There was a small burst of reiatsu, a wave of white aura that rolled off of Clover and the parchment, then Clover fell back with a gasp and the parchment dropped to the ground, inert.

“Clover!” Sunset said, unable to stay still any longer and quickly going to the other girl’s side, kneeling down to help Clover sit up, “Are you alright?”

“Ooooh...ow... that hurt...” Clover muttered, eyes a tad unfocused as she blinked. It took Clover a few seconds to seem to realize she was resting on her back in Sunset’s arms, upon which her eyes flickered uncomfortably around as she sat up a bit faster than might appear normal, scooting away while swaying a bit, as if dizzy. “I’m... okay. I think. D-did you come looking for me?”

“Well, yeah,” Sunset admitted, standing up slowly and peering at Clover, then at the parchment and scroll case. She noticed now the case had another scroll in it as well, or rather some kind of rolled up scroll tube with a smaller wooden case next to it, painted over with kanji she didn’t recognize. “Mind if I ask what you’re doing? Look kinda... intense.”

It was a tad odd to see Clover so clearly embarrassed, the girl shifting and scrambling to pick up and roll up the older parchment before reverently putting it back in the case next to the other scroll tube. She held her wounded arms, flinching a bit at the blood, “I suppose I should have said something. I was hoping I might be able to do this on my own without anyone noticing, but pretty clear that was just me being foolish about this. I don’t know why I feel so self conscious about it. At the same time, its not like there’s much any of you can do to help me. This is a challenge I have to overcome on my own.”

“That really doesn’t explain anything,” Sunset said, but her voice was soft and understanding as she took a seat next to Clover, glancing at the scrolls again before saying, “If its secret Soul Reaper stuff, I’m not about to pry too hard. Its just that this looked a bit dangerous, is all.”

Clover gulped, face still plastered with sweat, “That’s because it is. Give me a moment to collect myself, and I’ll tell you.”

Sunset was plenty patient in this case, and waited as Clover took some calming breaths and applied some healing Kido to her wounds. Once Clover was more settled, she gestured at the scrolls, “You’ve learned how to cast Kido yourself, so you have some familiarity with how the spells function. You’re also aware that Kido could roughly be translated to ‘Demon Arts’. This moniker is not entirely without purpose. Just as a Zanpaktou has its individual spirit, in essence a Kido spell is represented by its own spirit, or ‘demon’, that symbolizes the spell’s core. For lower ranked spells, up to level eighty, any Soul Reaper can be taught to invoke that spirit and give it shape through their own reiatsu, creating the spell from their own spirit energy. However, spells higher than level eighty are different. To learn spells of that power, one must confront the ‘demon’ that symbolizes that spell directly in order to obtain its power and invoke the spell. It is not unlike how one must confront and subdue one’s own Zanpaktou to achieve Bankai...”

“Damn, that is intense,” Sunset said, understanding now why Clover had never so much as brought up the idea of teaching Sunset any higher level Kido spells. Thinking back to the battle with Gaia Everfree, she recalled Clover using a powerful Bakudo-class Kido in that range, “You’ve done this before?”

Clover nodded slowly, face a little pale, “Learning that spell was one of the hardest things I did during the time of Puddinghead’s training me. And because I succeeded, he seems to think I’m capable of more. You see, the higher level the Kido, the stronger the demon spirit that must be suppressed. The essence of the Kido spell and its associated demon is engraved on the scroll, and when I fuse my spirit energy with it, I am drawn to its Inner World. We fight. Fortunately it is not to the death, but... well, losing isn’t pleasant,” she rubbed her arms. The wounds were gone now, but the tears in her Soul Reaper robes remained.

“What level spell is this?” Sunset asked.

“It is the Ninety Seventh Way of Hado,” Clover said, “And I must master it, if I’m to be able to fulfill my new duties. That, and this other scroll. An entirely different kind of test.”

She picked up the scroll tube and the smaller case next to it. Opening the tube, she pulled out a scroll that was... blank? No, not blank, Sunset realized as she saw the borders of the clean white parchment were inked with symbols, like the ornate frame of a picture. laying the scroll out and opening the case, Clover revealed a well of dark ink and an ornate brush, its wood handle bleached white and carved with kanji.

“I’m a bit confused here. A test for what? What new duties?” Sunset asked.

Clover took a deep breath, “I’d not had time to tell you yet, have I? When I arrived, you were already fighting Jormungandr, and we’ve been busy with the journey in front of us since then. Before I returned from Soul Society I was informed that Captain Celestia would be assuming the new role of Captain Commander.”

That news didn’t surprise Sunset too much. Ever since knowing that Scorpan had fallen to Glory, a difficult notion to process on its own, she’d figured that the only Captain who could have taken up the reigns of leadership would have been Celestia. Granted, Sunset knew she might have been biased, but she couldn’t see anyone else doing the job. Maybe that Cheese Sandwich guy? But she didn’t know him well enough to figure if he’d do as good a job as Celestia herself.

And Clover’s words then struck Sunset as she read between the lines. “The Thirteenth Division would need a new Captain...”

Clover nodded, now staring at the mostly blank scroll parchment tin front of her, “And I’ve been selected for the role. I believe Puddinghead gave me these scrolls as a test to ensure I’d be up to the task. Or perhaps this is his way of encouraging me? I don’t know, I only know that I have to try and live up to the expectations now placed on me. But... hah... a Captain without her Zanpaktou would seem a pretty poor one, even if I manage to master these scrolls.”

Sunset didn’t know what to think, but she did know she wanted to support Clover and could tell her friend was crushing herself under these new supposed expectations. She reached out and grasped Clover’s shoulder with a firm hand, “Hey, leading isn’t all about power. You’ve helped us since day one, and never faltered when a lot of others might’ve broken or run. I think you’ll make for one badass Captain, Clover. As for these Kido scrolls, I’m sure it’ll be tough, sure as heck looked tough as an outside observer. But I’ve seen you pull through against tough odds. You’ve got this. Now, what’s the deal with the blank one here?”

Clover’s face was still for a moment before a small smile appeared, not as whole hearted as Sunset would’ve liked to see, but at least it was there. Clover indicated the ink and brush, “To be considered a true Kido master it isn’t enough to simply learn the higher level spells. Genuine mastery only comes when one is capable of forging ones own Kido spell, utilizing the techniques set down not only by Puddinghead, but his direct mentor... Medley, of the Zero Division.”

“Seriously? She’s the one who created Kido?”

“According to Soul Reaper legend, yes, the Demon Arts were created by her. Including the methodology of forging original spells, which is an even greater challenge than subduing the demon spirits of the higher level spells.”

Sunset rubbed the back of her head, “So, wait, I thought Kido spells basically just went from one to ninety nine, of both Hado and Bakudo types. I mean, I remember Discord and Ditzy did use some that weren’t numbered...”

“You’re correct. Officially there are only the ninety nine spells of the two types of Kido, if one does not count the healing spells of the Way of Kaido. However, that is not to say that custom Kido do not exist. It is merely that the process of creating one is most difficult, and rarely ever done. If I succeed, I will be among the few who possesses such a personalized spell. Even Puddinghead, to my knowledge, has only crafted a handful of personal spells of his own.”

“How does it work?” Sunset said, leaning forward a bit. She couldn’t help herself. She was still, at heart, a student of magic. She wanted to know how things worked, and for a moment all of the pressure and dangers of the situations they were in faded away as she just sat next to Clover to listen and learn.

“Strictly speaking, it isn’t complicated,” Clover said, picking up the brush, “With this specially crafted brush and ink, I pour my spirit energy into the parchment as I write the kanji I wish to associate with my spell. I must hold in my mind and soul a perfect image of the effects I wish the spell to have. Then, not unlike an Asauchi absorbing spirit energy to transform itself into a Soul Reaper’s personal Zanpaktou, the scroll will absorb my own energy to give rise to the spirit demon that will encompass the essence of my spell. Then, just like with a higher level spell, I must confront and subdue the very spirit demon I create. And unlike the confrontation with the numbered demon of the old parchment, my fight with the spirit I create will be far more... potentially lethal.”

Sunset went quiet for a few seconds, thinking back to her battle with Hokori to achieve Bankai. Hokori hadn’t held back, and could have easily killed Sunset had she made the slightest error. Heck, more than once she thought that Hikari appearing when she did may well have saved her butt.

“So it’s a lot more like Bankai, in that your spell’s demon spirit is going to seriously try to kill you, not just kick you around like the other one did?”

Clover gave a solemn nod, “Precisely. It hurts to fail, but I can survive and try again with the Ninety Seventh Hado. But the spell I make here, on this parchment...? Whatever it ends up being, it will fight as viciously as a wild animal, until I tame it, or it kills me. Which certainly makes it difficult to decide what kind of spell to craft, for the stronger and more complex a spell I try to create, the more powerful the demon spirit will be.”

She spoke without any sugar coating of the facts, voice almost clinical, but Sunset could detect the undercurrents of doubt clashing against her calm, akin to waves crashing upon a rocky shore. Clover was frightened of what she felt she needed to do, but was resolved to do it. Sunset felt the warmth of admiration mixed with the muggy rime of unease. A part of her wanted to tell Clover to hold off on this whole Kido spell business. To put it aside until things were calmer.

As if things would ever be calmer. They were stuck in the bowels of the Beast Realm, with a genocidal mad dragon of monumental power chasing them for the purpose of completing a scheme to literally murder the world for pseudo-philosophical reasons. And that was just the current problem they faced, never mind the greater issue of a whole cabal of the world’s former most powerful gods orchestrating an equally insane plan to crush the souls of anyone who didn’t pass their standards and then use them for some ritual to resurrect their fallen deific brethren.

Life hadn’t been normal or ‘calm’ for awhile, and didn’t look like it was going to be again anytime in the near future. So as much as a part of her was terrified for Clover and the danger her friend was trying to put herself in, Sunset had to admit that if Clover could pull this off it’d be a heck of a boon for future fights.

Besides, the much larger part of Sunset, larger than any of her fears, was a firm faith and belief in the strength of those she chose to call friend. Clover had been with them since the beginning of all of this. Even when outmatched or out of her depth, the seemingly mild-mannered Soul Reaper had never faltered or run away. She’d grown, bit by bit, into someone Sunset believed could readily handle the responsibilities of being a Captain of the Gotei 13, and stand beside her and her other friends against all the dangers of the battles yet to come.

So Sunset swallowed her fears and showed Clover a confident smile, “Knowing you, whatever spell you come up with is going to be an awesome one. And the demon spirit that springs out of it? You’ll be able to take it.”

A small laugh escaped Clover, “I’d better, since I’d hate to prove you wrong after such encouragement. I do have a solid idea of the spell I wish to create. I’m merely fine tuning the specifics in my head. As I said, I must have a very clear picture of it in my mind before I begin writing the scroll. I was hoping I’d have it prepared by tomorrow evening. That’s why this night I was trying my luck with the Ninety Seventh Hado.”

Sunset cast a glance at the old parchment in question, “You plan on giving it another go? Everyone else is already going to bed. Chances are we’ve got an early start, tomorrow.”

Clover considered the scroll for a moment, lips pursed, eyes narrowed, “No, not tonight. I think, perhaps, if I succeed with the creation of my Kido, that may provide insight on taming the demon spirit of the Ninety Seventh Kido. My life may not be on the line with the Ninety Seventh, but the drain in attempting to face it is considerable. I’ll save my strength for tomorrow, for the creation ritual. I... I would not say no, if you, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack wished to be present for it. Having my friends around may help me focus.”

Sunset’s smile deepened, “I know they’d be honored to be there. We’ll be right behind you for this, Clover, every step.”

Sunset stood and offered Clover a hand up, which Clover accepted after putting away the scrolls. With that, they returned together to the camp, where rest awaited, and what would promise to be another long and potentially dangerous day in the depths of Svartalfheim.

----------

Platinum was beyond nervous.

Her instincts, honed over her long career as Captain of the Sixth Division, were directly tied into her exceptionally sharp spiritual senses, among the best the Gotei 13 had once had with the possible exceptions of Daring Do, Luna, or Celestia. It had always been a bit up in the air whose senses were strongest, as it was such a difficult metric to properly measure. Sometimes, depending on the strength and nature of the reiatsu, sensing it would be exceptionally difficult even from a close range.

Other types of reiatsu could be sensed from many miles, even continents away. Reiatsu like Captain Commander Scorpan’s could practically be felt from anywhere on a planetary body.

Right now Platinum was focused almost entirely upon this dread sense in her chest that had begun not so long ago, and had not removed its claws from her. She was in the lower tunnels of the Changeling hive, trying to follow Chrysalis’ trail, uncertain where her partner had gotten off to. By now it was obvious the Relic they sought was not in the vault of the hive or anywhere else easily accessed, but clearly Chrysalis must have felt something to have vanished like this.

Of course it was possible the former Changeling Queen had gone rogue, but Platinum didn’t think that was the case. It would be rather risky to pull anything like that while still in the middle of what constituted as enemy territory, and Chrysalis was bereft of any allies besides Platinum and Starlight’s other still-loyal followers. Or perhaps that was Platinum’s own wishful thinking? Had she really been changed so much by the experiences of the past few weeks in this world as to think she’d somehow made a... friend, with the disillusioned and destitute Changeling Queen? If not a friend, Platinum had at least sensed a kindred soul, or sorts. Someone who had lost nearly everyone of value, cast adrift of the moors that had once been the bedrock of their life. Children, whom no longer fully viewed their mother figures in the light they once had.

Sentimentality. Platinum had burned much of her own life for the sack of her love for her son. A son she knew would never truly look at her the same way again, even if he’d grown more open and communicative of late. Perhaps she was wrong to think she’d also formed some manner of bond with Firefly and Chrysalis?

She banished that thought with a shake of her head. True or not, she had to focus on the practicalities of the mission at hand. She hadn’t found where Chrysalis had gone, yet, but she had detected a trace of Chrysalis' spiritual pressure, still gradually growing since bonding with her Bakkoto. The Bakkoto itself, as distasteful a tool as it seemed to Platinum, was not difficult to feel out and track.

It was because she’d been so focused on following that trail that she’d suddenly sensed something else. Something distant, but coldly powerful. Also, something terribly familiar. It was why Platinum felt cold sweat break out on her unicorn features.

Chrysalis. My world’s Chrysalis. This is her reiatsu... so distant, but I’m feeling it so sharply. Only a battle would cause such a massive rise in spiritual pressure. But who is she fighting? And given the direction and distance it must be in the Bone Dry Desert, all but on top of our hidden base. What is happening over there!?

Even more concerning was that she wasn’t just sensing the Second Espada’s chillingly potent reiatsu. It was all but a single torch compared to the overall maelstrom, but she’d sensed Firefly’s, and that of the Regai of Zecora, alongside a wave of lower intensity Hollow reiatsu that was all-too familiar to Platinum. She’d fought in many battles against hordes of Hollows and knew this sickeningly dark foreboding of spirit pressure, the kind of front that could only be generated by a vast quantity of Hollows about to go on the warpath.

Far more Hollows than she, Firefly, or Starlight Glimmer had ever given Chrysalis permission to bring to Equestria.

Which was why Platinum felt the sickening drop in her gut at the realization that, in all likelihood, the Second Espada had just dropped any pretense to being on “their side” and was now operating entirely on her own twisted whims and volition. Worse, Platinum could readily calculate and predict what this meant. Chrysalis would not have made a move this bold without support, knowing how powerful Equestria’s own defenders were.

It was horrifically likely that, before long, Tirek himself, and all of the remaining Espada, would join in on the invasion.

Given the reiatsu she was sensing, it seemed likely that Firefly and the Reigai were putting up a fight against the invasion, but how effective would they be? Firefly was strong, for a human Fullbringer, but the Second Espada was on a whole higher tier of ability by comparison. And while Platinum sensed the spiritual pressure of Zecora’s Regai, her own Reigai, and Starswirl's, were mysteriously absent. Had her Reigai and Starswirl’s already been killed? Starswirl’s Reigai unnerved Platinum, and she didn’t really trust him. He may not have even chosen to fight, and instead fled on his own, using the Hollow attack as an opportunity to go rogue himself. As for Platinum’s Reigai, she had a hard time imagining her “younger” self fleeing. Her Reigai had her more youthful vigor and sense of honor, so in all likelihood she would have been the first to face the Second Espada, and the absence of the Reigai’s spiritual pressure likely meant...

Platinum shook her head, choosing not to dwell on the thought and instead focus on what this all meant. It was now all the more important for Equestria’s Chrysalis to find her Relic. Knowing how much Hollow Chrysalis hated her Equestrian counterpart, Platinum didn’t need to rub too many brain cells together to understand how probable it was that the bloodthirsty Espada would be making her way here as soon as she worked out where Equestria’s Chrysalis was.

Platinum knew that by herself she’d be no match for the Second Espada. Even if Equestria’s Chrysalis found her Relic, there was no guarantee it would provide enough power to make up the difference. Furthermore, Hollow Chrysalis’ daughter, Ocellus, was with Platinum’s son! Had that little psycho known her mother was about to go on a rampage? Had that been why she’d...

Platinum’s eye twitched. Had Ocellus intentionally gotten Pipsqueak away from Hitsuyo-Aku to... protect him? Or to guarantee she had leverage on Platinum once the cat was out of the bag?

Too many possibilities now gnawed at Platinum’s gut. But she hadn’t gotten this far by being indecisive. Whether the plan ended up being to run, fight, or try to make common cause with the Equestrians, Platinum had no intention of abandoning this world’s Chrysalis to face her monstrous Hollow counterpart alone. So Platinum continued her search of the lower tunnels, following that faint trace of Chrysalis’ reiatsu until she found the off shoot corridor with the strange door that looked as if it had been cut open by some insanely sharp blade.

Beyond the door lay darkness and a steep slope. Faint tracks in the dust covered floor showed multiple groupings of small hooves. Chrysalis in her young Changeling disguise, and several others, presumably other Changeling children. Was this where Chrysalis sensed her Relic to be located? And why bring a bunch of kids with her?

Platinum took a deep breath and began to follow, hoping that they had time before Hollow Chrysalis finished fighting and began to search for them. She feared for Firefly’s safety, and to a much lesser degree the Reigai and Trixie, but there was nothing she could do for any of them right now. She just hoped they had the sense to run, rather than fight the near invulnerable Second Espada to the death... because Platinum was quite certain it wouldn’t be Chrysalis’ death, against almost any opponent short of the likes of Captain Commander Scorpan.

----------

With the near total lack of foliage in the Badlands, rocks and boulders provided the only real cover for Ocellus and Pipsqueak to use as they stealthily made their way across the landscape north of the hive, searching for wherever the Pharynx and Thorax of Equestria had gotten off to. Ocellus was relying more on Pipsqueak's senses at this point than her own, as he’d inherited some of his mother’s talent in that regard and was surprisingly well trained at it. One of the few genuine Soul Reaper techniques his mother had taught him when they’d still lived in the Seireitei was how to carefully fine tune his spirit senses. In order to protect himself from any who might break into their home to seek to kidnap the only son of one of the Four Noble Families, his mother had told him.

Not once had he ever had to actually deal with a possible kidnapper, but he was still grateful for the lessons. It was an awkward memory now, those simpler times of being taught and cared for by her. He still didn’t truly know how to feel, and any time he thought too much of it, he could feel the Hollow energy inside him roil and bubble like heated water in a kettle. Ocellus tapped his back, giving him a knowing grin.

“Just let it steam a bit, then simmer down,” she said, and Pipsqueak nodded, taking deep breaths as his inner Hollow quieted. Without Ocellus, he wondered if he’d ever manage to get a handle on it. It felt so odd to owe a Hollow so much.

“Sorry,” he said, “I was thinking of mom again.”

“Heheh, I do like that about you. I think most kids would’ve forgiven her by now, what with the whole saving your life thing, but you still kind of hold a grudge. It’s cute.”

“I am not holding a grudge. I am speaking to her. I care about her. I just... remain somewhat miffed over the whole upending of my life and abandoning all we’ve ever known or cared about... even if it was to save my life, yes.”

He cleared his throat and put a finger to his lips, “Now let us drop the subject. We’re not being very stealthy like this.”

Ocellus bobbed her head and whispered, “Got any sign of them on those expertly trained Soul Reaper senses of yours?”

In response he paused behind an oblong boulder with her crouched behind him and closed his eyes in focus. He’d long since worked out how to pick out magical signatures from spiritual ones, and thankfully the Badlands seemed like a region largely devoid of either. This meant what magic was being used stood out greatly amid the otherwise blank background. The hive was a veritable beacon of magic from all the Changelings living in it. And that beacon acted as a good counterpoint to any other magic to be detected in the area.

This meant finding the two blazing signatures that must have belonged to Thorax and Pharynx was quiet easy, and he opened his eyes to nod and gesture north and a bit eastward, “This way.”

He led Ocellus further on as they crept along the dry landscape. There were several small dips or rises, but otherwise much of the Badlands was fairly flat, with barely anything to constitute a proper hill or ridge. There was the occasional rocky spire or cluster of larger boulders to break up the monotony, and it was near a noticeably curved rock spire that the pair finally found their quarry.

Hiding behind a tall, flat boulder that lay on its side, the two peered over the top to look at where Thorax and Pharynx were standing face to face with one another, barely a pace spanning between them. Both male Changelings were surrounded by intense auras of shimmering emerald flame, the clear sign of their species’ inherent magic. Both were holding their right forehooves against one another’s chests, eyes closed in concentration. Pipsqueak could feel the raw surge of magic from both of them, quite a bit greater than he could recall feeling, even from his mother’s unicorn form.

It was difficult to gauge the power of magic versus the strength of spiritual pressure. The two energies never did quite align evenly with one another. Yet in general Pipsqueak felt that the sensation of heated power coming off the pair reminded him a lot of when he’d watched Captain Thunderhooves spar with Captain Hurricane many years ago during an exhibition for one of the noble family’s festivals.

“Huh, wonder what my brothers from another mother are up to?” Ocellus pondered, licking her lips, “Well, your mom did tell us to spy on them, so what do you think? This some kind of Changeling training meditation?”

Pipsqueak frowned, “How would I know? To me it looks as if they’re just standing there, touching each other’s chests. Its not particularly menacing.”

“If this turns out to be some weird Changeling kink... then man, why didn’t I bring a camera?” Ocellus snickered, and Pipsqueak gave her an exasperated look and then turned his attention back to Thorax and Pharynx.

Although the two were a fair distance away, it was still possible to hear Thorax speaking loud and clear, “I think we’ve almost got it, brother. This will work.”

Pharynx’s huffing grunt mirrored the darker colored Changeling’s grumpy expression, “Still not sure I like this, but I’m also stuck agreeing. Pulling it off here, where its quiet, and we can take our time with it is one thing. Doing it in the middle of a fight? Whole different story there.”

“We don’t have a lot of options, Pharynx,” replied Thorax, still channeling his magic into his brother, and Pharynx doing the same to him, “We have to get strong enough so that when those monsters hit us or our friends again, we can make a difference. This is the best way I’ve discovered to do it, and its a way that we never could have pulled off if we were still doing things the old way.”

“I know, I know, I did change, remember? Don’t gotta keep harping on me about how the new way is better. I’m all for it, now, even if I do think you’re still a bit too much of a softie on everyone. We could use some real discipline around here.”

“Heh, want to take a turn as King?” Thorax queried with a smirk, and Pharynx rolled his gem-like eyes.

“Don’t even tempt me. I might have a thousand ideas on how to handle security better than you do, but I’d bash my head in out of pure boredom if I had to do half of the diplomatic crap you do with the ponies. I am not sitting in on a six hour meeting with Celestia or Luna on trade relations. Nope. No way. You have fun with that, brother.”

“It actually is kind of fun,” Thorax said with a wide smile, “They serve these really tasty coffee cakes and tea, and Celestia has a lot of nifty ideas on new arts and crafts that can be imported in exchange for some of the rarer miners that can be found in the Badland’s outskirts, so I... and you’re making a gag face.”

“To clearly indicate my level of interest,” Pharynx replied flatly, and with that took his hoof away from Thorax’s chest. The intense aura of emerald magic around the pair slowly faded away as he looked at his own hoof, “Anyway, I think we can give this a go for real, next time. Let’s just hope we can, you know, pull apart, afterward.”

“We should be able to. I mean, I’m almost completely sure we can” Thorax said, his smile faltering a bit as he laughed nervously.

“You are not inspiring confidence, brother. We’re close, but I don’t plan on spending a lifetime being that close, so you’d better be sure we can go back to normal once we do this.”

“I am. Mostly. Call it ninety five percent sure,” Thorax said, wagging his hoof in a shaky gesture.

“Ugh, fine, it’ll have to be enough,” came the surly reply from Pharynx, and there was a brief pause between the pair as Pharynx’s posture turned pensive as he looked at his brother with a pensive twitch in his gossamer wings, “So, about what Princess Celestia told you...”

Thorax visibly flinched, and sucked in a sharp breath before letting it out slowly, “I thought I’d be more scared, or something, when she finally reared her head again. Weird thing is, Pharynx? It's more like I’m eager. I’ve hated not knowing when she might appear and try something. Her being out of sight meant she might be lurking in every shadow, and that doesn’t just weigh on me, it weighs on everyone. The whole hive. Jumping at her damn shadow...”

Thorax kicked a nearby small rock, sighing, “We might have broken free of her, but I feel like we’ll never really be our own people until we know for sure that Chrysalis is truly no longer a threat. That’s she’s gone for good. And knowing she’s out there, working with the same group that has her awful counterpart in it? It means sooner or later we’ll get a chance to banish that shadow once and for all.”

“If I’m gonna be honest here, I’m way more worried about the Hollow version,” Pharynx admitted with a shallow shrug, “But I get what you mean. Sooner or later, we’ll be face to face with her again. Wanted to make sure your head was going to be screwed on straight, when it happens.”

“Here’s hoping,” Thorax replied, shaking his head as if trying to clear a fog, “We’d better get back. It's nearly dark.”

By this point there wasn’t even much twilight left in the sky, with the stars already visible high above and moon starting to make its transition into night. Ocellus and Pipsqueak hunkered down behind their flat boulder as the two Changelings took to the air and started to fly back towards the hive. Pipsqueak scratched his mane of thick brown hair, thinking, “That wasn’t as informative as I imagine my mother was hoping spying on them would be, but I suppose we did learn they are practicing some manner of magical ritual to increase their power.”

Ocellus sat next to him, yawning as she leaned into his shoulder a bit, “Kinda looked to me like they were trying to combine their power. Couldn’t you feel the way it was all wiggling together like chocolate melting into peanut butter?”

“I... have never even tried mixing chocolate and peanut butter,” Pipsqueak stated, then blinked, “In fact I don’t think I’ve ever tried peanut butter.”

“How is it you lived your whole life as literally one of the richest of rich kids in Soul Society, but you haven’t actually, you know, lived?” Ocellus asked, “It’s way sad. I grew up in a place that barely has water in it, but I’ve still had a damn Reese's Pieces before. Your mom totally shortchanged your childhood.”

“Somewhat late to lament the fact,” Pipsqueak said, “Now let’s follow those two back to the hive and sneak back in before someone spots us and wonders what two unicorn children are doing wandering around the Badlands at night.”

He stood and scanned the sky to look for Thorax and Pharynx in order to more easily follow them back towards the hive... and paused when he realized that during his brief conversation with Ocellus that both Changelings had mysteriously vanished from the sky. He looked left and right, eyes narrowed at the horizon. Where had they gone?

Pipsqueak then focused his spiritual senses, figuring he ought to be able to at least track their magic if they were still relatively close. And they were close.

Right on top of them, in fact.

“Ahem. That is, in fact, exactly what I was wondering, young colt,” said Thorax as he transformed from the tiny beetle he’d turned into to sneak up on the pair and assumed his natural form, “As I can’t imagine why two young ponies would be spying on me or my brother.”

“Personally I’d go so far to venture,” said Pharynx as he also transformed from the shape of a similarly small if different horned beetle to regain his true form, flanking Pipsqueak and Ocellus with his brother, “That neither of you are what you appear to be. But that’s fine, you can start answering questions and we’ll get to the truth soon enough.”

----------

“Stop!” ‘Vespid’ said with as loud a hiss she could muster without actually shouting, “Don’t move, Spinneret!”

Spinneret’s bright orange chitin marked her well in the gloom of the twisting hall, neon green wings buzzing furiously as she halted in place. She was just at the gap in the hall that led to a split off, one opening winding delicately to the left while the other corridor cut a harsh right angle to the right and further down. The only light was from faintly pulsating green gems set in various parts of the clearly carved walls.

Ocellus and Fuller were right behind ‘Vespid’, Chrysalis keeping herself in the middle of the group since they entered this maze of tunnels and chambers. Spinneret had boldly insisted on taking the lead, and Chrysalis hadn’t countermanded that, mostly because she wanted to avoid being asked about how she knew which way to go and it was easier to let Spinneret thing the directions were her idea.

“W-what do you see? Is a trap about to spring and incinerate, impale, melt, crush, and/or electrocute me?” Spinneret asked, voice trembling a little in fear, but mostly excitement. Chrysalis had to wonder if the kid really grasped how dangerous the situation they were in was.

Chrysalis suppressed a groan and took several careful steps forward. As she did so she changed form, emerald flame flowing over her until he body was that of a tall, lanky simian creature with stark white fur, arctic blue eyes, and curled blue horns. In the shape of a lanky, female Yeti, she took a deep breath and aimed her mouth past Spinneret and breathed a cloud of misty ice fog. The replicated power of the Yeti would have been far stronger if Chrysalis made use of her true level of magic, but she held it back enough to appear to be at the appropriate level a Changeling child would be capable of. Which was still enough to freeze the thin wires strung up along the left side passage. The wires glinted dangerously, invisible until ice crystals froze over them.

“Diced, as it turns out,” Chrysalis stated to Spinneret, “You would have been diced.”

“Yikes,” Spinneret said, slowly floating to the ground and licking her lips “Nasty trick.”

“No worse than what we’ve seen so far,” Chrysalis said, to which Fuller shuddered.

“That’s the fourth trap so far,’ Fuller said past clenched teeth, “First the spikes-”

“I totally spotted those first, easy,” said Spinneret.

“-then the trap doors in the walls that shot out spinning blades-”

“All we had to do was duck down! The penitent Changeling will pass!” his sister insisted.

Fuller growled, forging on, “-then we nearly fell into the pit of what I’m quite sure was acid!”

“Pfft,” Spinneret stuck out her tongue, “We would’ve known if it was acid or not if you’d let me touch it. Pit traps are lame. We can fly right over them!”

Ocellus put a comforting hoof on Fuller’s head, “For the record, I’m on your side. Vespid, Spinneret, I know you’re both eager to keep finding out what’s own here, but its clear this place is too dangerous. We should go back and tell King Thorax about what we’ve found.”

“Geeze, Ocellus, don’t be such a worry worm! We’ve done just fine so far, and just think of what kind of neat stuff we might find down here,” said Spinneret, wings fluttering, eyes glistening, “Who’d go through the trouble of making all these traps if there wasn’t treasure to guard?”

“Even if that were true, it's not like we need treasure,” Ocellus pointed out, “The survival of the hive is what’s important, and if there’s treasure down here, then adult Changelings, trained Changelings, can find it. King Thorax wouldn’t want us putting ourselves in danger for some measly treasure.”

“She’s right,” Chrysalis said, feeling a bit like scrubbing her tongue to have to agree with any statement that gave Thorax any level of credit, but facts were facts. Now that she was here, and it was clear that the Relic was close, and protected, she wasn’t sure there was any use in having these children with her. At best, they might take a trap in her place, but at this point Chrysalis felt confident she could spot traps well enough, and these three would probably start to get in her way more than be of use to her.

It had nothing at all to do with some tiny twinge of thought that she didn’t want them in any further danger. Because that clearly wasn’t the case.

She, still in Yeti form, breathed again on the wires to freeze them to the point of breaking into bits of useless metal fragments. She then turned back into her ‘Vespid’ form and looked at the other three children, “There’s no sense in all of us risking our necks for uncertain rewards. Which is why I’ll go on alone while you three return and inform... King,” she struggled not to throw up a little, “Thorax of what we’ve found.”

“What!? No way!” Spinneret's wings gave off an angry buzz and her eyes gleamed fiercely as she stomped a hoof, “I’m not scared! And I’m the oldest one here, so I’m practically an adult. I’m not about to turn wing and crawl away like a scaredy scarab! Especially if you’re planning to keep going, Vespid! What if something happened to you? You’d be alone, with no one around to help! The hive sticks together! That’s the rule, now!”

It was always the rule, Chrysalis thought bitterly, Only it didn’t seem to apply to me when all of you turned on me. I’ve been alone, with no one to help me...

She squashed that bitter thought. It didn’t matter anymore. It wasn’t as if these children had any choice in what their parents did, and Chrysalis, for all that ugly bitterness, had to admit she wasn’t as alone as she’d been not so long ago. For whatever reason, those like Platinum seemed to almost enjoy being around her.

Fuller listened to his sister’s words with a heavily reserved look, the fear written clearly in his eyes as he darted a look back the way they’d come. “I don’t any of us getting hurt. Vespid, maybe you should come back with us?”

“Why do you want to keep going?” Ocellus asked instead, head tilting in curiosity, “I mean, it's clearly going to keep getting more dangerous the further on you go. This isn’t just some game we’re playing anymore, or just having fun exploring. I agree that there must be something valuable down here to be worth going through the trouble of designing traps to protect it, but...”

Intelligence and careful thought burned in Ocellus’ eyes, and Chrysalis found herself both feeling a small hint of admiration and also a sensation of danger as she watched the young Changeling’s mind work. Cogs were turning, and Ocellus was starting to things up. There wasn’t any true suspicion in her eyes yet, but Chrysalis could tell Ocellus was sensing something amiss with ‘Vespid’ and the situation in general.

Hiding the lie in truth, Chrysalis knew, was the basis of any good deception.

“Look,” she said, straining her tone of sincerity, “I’ll level with you guys. I know there’s something important down here. Not just treasure, but some kind of... Relic.”

“A Relic? Huh?” Spinneret scrunched her nose in confusion, and Ocellus raised a hoof to her chin.

“Yes,” Chrysalis spoke in a hushed tone, as if she was sharing a secret. Which she was, just not all of it, “Listen, not long ago I started getting weird headaches. Like this pain in my brain, but one that pulls me in a direction. I had no idea what it was about, until I overheard the King talking about a meeting he had with the Equestrian Princesses. I don’t know the whole story, but it sounds like really powerful magical artifacts called Relics are somehow activating all over the world, and each one is tied to someone that's an ‘inheritor’ of that Relic. And one of the signs of being an Inheritor are these headaches.”

“Hold up, didn’t he ask the hive just the other day about whether anyone in the hive was having weird headaches?” asked Fuller, eyes widening.

“Oh yeah,” Spinneret said, rubbing her head, “Man, now I kind of wish I had them, if it meant I got to have some really cool magic artifact.”

“Hmm...” Ocellus was still rubbing her chin, “I see. But, Vespid, if you’re having these headaches, why didn’t you tell the King?”

“Because I wasn't sure,” Chrysalis replied, perhaps a bit too hastily, “Not until we found the door to this place. That’s when my headaches got really sharp and focused. I’m still feeling it, Ocellus. It’s drawing me further into this maze. It’s how I can figure which way to go without getting lost.”

“But I’ve been the one choosing which way to go!” said Spinneret, to which Chrysalis heave out a groan.

“Because I’ve been ‘suggesting’ the right directions to you. Didn’t you notice?”

“Uhhhh...nope, not really.”

After a moment of deadpan staring at Spinneret's wide, uncaring grin, Chrysalis turned to Ocellus, “Anyway, that’s the reason i want to keep going. I can feel my Relic down here, so very, very close. I don’t even know if any other Changeling can claim it, except me, so there’s no point in having King Thorax or anyone else come down here. Still, I’m the only one who needs to risk life and limb here. The three of you have been a big help, but it’s safer if you all go back, and I keep going.”

Every word was true, even if it was all couched in the big lie that was ‘Vespid’. But Chrysalis very much did want to just go collect her Relic herself, and there was no reason, even a valid selfish reason, to drag these children along with her. She may have been a terrible Queen, but even she didn’t see any point in throwing the hive’s young ones into any more of this trap gauntlet. It wasn’t compassion, or... love. It was just practicality. These bumbling kids would probably screw something up for her or ruin her chance to get the Relic. She just needed them out of the way. Not safe. Out of the way. Huge difference.

She stared at Ocellus, wiling the young Changeling to believe her words.

After a moment, Ocellus turned to Fuller and Spinneret, speaking softly, “Okay, you two had better head back.”

“Nuh-uh, no way, you’re not the boss of me!” Spinneret said emphatically, but Ocellus just spoke once more in that focused, soft tone.

“I’m not, but that’s not important. This is about hive safety. King Thorax needs to know, and that means somebody has to go tell him. Fuller wants to go, but we can’t have someone go alone, just in case, so you need to go with him to protect your brother.”

Spinneret made a face, but glanced at Fuller, who nodded multiple times before saying, “I really am not having fun, Spin. This is scary, and I’m not too ashamed to admit it. I want to go back.”

There was a genuine note of fear in his voice, and that, more than anything, cracked the hard exterior of Spinneret's expression as she looked at her brother with fresh worry and understanding, “Okay, okay... I get it, bro. We’ll go back. But, Ocellus, you’re making it sound like you’re planning to stay.”

This made Chrysalis frown, because she’d picked up on that too, “Indeed, you talk as if you’re not going with them.”

“That’s because I’m not,” Ocellus declared with a slightly abashed smile, lowering her head a bit, “I mean, all three of us don’t need to be there to tell King Thorax. And much as I don’t share Spinneret's eagerness for charging headlong into danger, she did have one good point to make, Vespid. You can’t go on alone. If you get hurt, you’ll need a friend around to help you out of danger. So I’m sticking close to you, until we find this Relic of yours.”

“I do not agree to this,” Chrysalis stated with flat vehemence, almost flaring her wings, almost taking on her commanding, queenly pose to tell this silly drone that she couldn’t follow her into such a dangerous situation! “You need to go back, too! I comma...insist!”

“Insist all you want, but I’m coming,” Ocellus replied, somehow managing to look timid and resolved as a rock at the same time. It was infuriating to Chrysalis.

“I could always make you go with them,” Chrysalis said, to which Ocellus stared back at her, eyes unblinking.

“You could. But I don’t think you will. You want to find that Relic, and wasting time arguing with me doesn’t get you any closer to it. Besides, you know I’m right about it being safer with a friend along to help in case of trouble.”

Every part of Chrysalis wanted to whack this weirdly insistent little Changeling over the head and have the other two drag her away, but the sad fact was that Ocellus was right. They were wasting time, and if Ocellus really was so damn set on coming along... well, whatever happened to her was her own fault at that point. Chrysalis wasn’t going to shed a tear if the silly girl got herself hurt.

With a withering sigh, she nodded and said, “Fine, have it your way.”

She turned away and started to stalk down the left side corridor, feeling the pointed pain in her skull that drew her along towards the Relic, somewhere deeper into the dark maze of traps. Behind her she heard Fuller and Spinneret exchange quick farewells with Ocellus.

“Please be careful,” Fuller said, hugging Ocellus, “Please, please, please don’t get killed by some dumb trap.”

“Yeah, it’d be exceedingly lame to lose one of you two to some dumb, falling rock, or poison dart, or face melting flame pit,” Spinneret added.

“I’ll be careful, I promise,” Ocellus said, “And I’ll make sure Vespid is, too.”

“You’d better,” Spinneret said, and with that she and her brother started back the direction they had come from, vanishing into the shifting dark of the corridor behind them.

It didn’t take Ocellus long to catch up to Chrysalis, the new hall they were walking own curving even more to the left after a few dozen paces, and then leading down at a sharp angle to a fresh set of delicately carved stairs. Ocellus didn’t say anything, allowing Chrysalis to take the lead, which was all well and good because Chrysalis didn’t need any distracting talk while she focused on keeping an eye out for more traps.

Yet she felt Ocellus' eyes on her, staring, questioning, thinking.

Episode 202: Bloodstained Gold

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Episode 202: Bloodstained Gold

Fluttershy remained steady and calm on the outside as an ancient willow tree, with roots dug deep. Her hundred fold ethereal hands of light fanned out behind her gleaming halo, palms out, while her six hands of flesh and blood remained poised into curled fists. The air vibrated and stirred, the white sands of Las Noche’s interior desert shaking as the termors of raw spiritual pressure shook them. Guto’s form was awash and obscured with a pallet of metallic liquid, gold and brass auras of gushing reiatsu blasting around him as he assumed the form of his Ressureccion. Fluttershy felt the press of that pressure upon herself, and took a slow, deep breath through her nose.

If Sunset could have the courage to stand against Tirek, then Fluttershy felt the very least she owed to that example was to stand firmly against the full might of the present Seventh Espada. Even if Adagio had unseated Guto from his higher position, only the foolish would doubt for an instant that Guto was a deadly foe. Fleur de Lis’ imprisonment itself was proof of that. Fluttershy still vividly recalled the mighty Sternritter’s overwhelming power when she and her friends had faced Fleur early on in the course of these extraordinary events. None of them except Sunset had been able to do a thing against Fleur , back then. And now Fluttershy was facing alone the man who had brought Fleur down.

And she fully intended to win.

As the mass of gold and brass colored light burst away from Guto in a rushing gust, his transformed body emerged. His head that of a bone white mask shaped in the visage of a fearsome eagle, yellow eyes glaring from dark sockets. A mass of brown feathers formed a mane down his head and neck, and then spread into a large cape. Upon that back sat somewhat familiar looking turbine-like protrusions of pale bone, like jet engines formed from the carved bones of some massive animal, and bearing thin wing protrusions. His chest was bare, showing off lean muscle and his Hollow hole, and his lower body was clad in thick, feather covered leggings that ended in feet like avian talons. Again, a familiar sight, Fluttershy realized, as she thought about Greta’s own Resurreccion. The similarities to Guto’s was unmistakable. Guto raised his arms out to his side, as if making an inviting gesture, and the curved, scimitar-like blades on his armored gauntlets gleamed with edges of gold.

Then Fluttershy focused her attention upon Guto’s Hollow hole in his muscular, bronze chest, and noticed the twinkling gleam of something red and gem-like. A replica of Adagio’s siren gem, housed in the deeper recesses of the Hollow hole and mounted there on small, metal cables.

“Impressed? I do strike a remarkable figure in this form, if I do say so myself,” Guto said with a tone coated in narcissism and garnished with overconfidence. He gave off a richly amused and dark chuckle as he gestured at his Hollow hole, “I would have preferred it if Grogar could have found a way to make the gem’s gleam gold, but alas I shall accept the accessory for the extra power it can bring.”

Fluttershy tilted her head slightly, the inflection of her voice showing only simple curiosity, “The gem isn’t what interests me. I see a resemblance you share with Greta, now. The engines she had grafted onto her, were they meant to imitate yours?”

Guto’s teeth flashed in a pearl grin of self-satisfaction, “She admires me so, she insisted Grogar’s attachments helped her emulate my fine example of form and function. I suppose it helps that she shares my blood, but that hardly matters, without merit to back it up. That is just part of the great power I wield over my subjects, child. My gift to them, among so many I generously provide, is an example to strive for. That some fail and are crushed by said failure is a cheap price to pay in recompense for the ones who succeed.”

Her eyes glanced towards the rabble of Arrancar warriors who remained watching the conflict from the sidelines, so many still looking at Guto in awe, and equal fear. She saw Gilda still holding up the barely standing Great by the rim of the hole that had been melted in the ground, where even now down in the remains of the arena she could feel Pinkie Pie and Hydia’s reiatsu clashing. Gilda wore a look of sickness and shame, partially watching Guto, and partially looking at Greta, who’s own eyes still remained locked on Guto with something akin to desperate desire for approval.

Fluttershy shivered slightly, her pool of placid calm rippling with the displeasure underneath, “You’ve stripped them of any notion of self worth and replaced it with your own image. Even your own daughter.”

Her eyes glowed both figurative and quite literally with an aura of keen promise, “I’m going to shatter that image.”

Guto responded with a condescending chuckle, and his whole body tensed like a wound up spring, “I may well enjoy breaking you even more than I did the Quincy woman. She was arrogant, but you, my dear, are delusional.”

The turbine protrusions on his back flared with jetting blasts of crimson light, and Guto shot down at Fluttershy at a speed surpassing any previous Sonido of his. Even knowing it was coming, Fluttershy barely felt herself twist out of the way in time as Guto’s curved arm blades cut a twin path right where she’d been standing. Several of her golden arms of light were severed by the strike, the power in Guto’s swing enough to create a cutting X-shaped shockwave that tore apart a wide swath of sands. Fluttershy planted her feet and used the extra momentum of her dodge to twist herself into a spin that then saw her launching all six of her physical hands in a short, combined punch at Guto’s side.

He flipped forward, sending his body over her striking fists, and in mid-air his jet engines shot out a spinning stream of thrusting energy that spun him like a circular saw. His arm blades cut outward in a sawing stream of blows, but Fluttershy spun with them, stepping back lightly as Guto flew at her, still spinning as well. Fluttershy crossed her arms in front of her and sent out a mass of spectral golden hands, and the air rang with a string of thunderous impacts as the hands deflected Guto’s spinning blades.

Not even slowing, Guto flipped again, this time landing in a crouched position, and grinned at her as lines of red light appeared across the length of his turbines. Like striking cobras, a series of glittering gold chains ending in grasping manacles flew out, ten per turbine, and started to snap at Fluttershy’s luminous hands.

Fluttershy was not too concerned with this, for each time the manacles snapped upon the wrist of one of her translucent arms, she simply dissipated it. But that did mean that Guto’s chains were removing those arms from play temporarily and lessening her defenses as he then gestured with his hands and conjured forth a fresh swarm of blazing yellow dots of energy that then exploded into rapid fire Bala bullets. Instinct may have told her to evade further back and open up the distance between them, but she realized that Guto had the advantage in a long distance battle. She had to remain close to him if she was to have a chance of winning.

So instead of stepping or leaping back, Fluttershy lowered her body and rushed forward instead, running through the swarm of Bala shots and snapping golden chains while making straight for Guto. Her steps were as smooth and liquid as a olympic ice skater going through a complex routine, her body throwing itself into spins and evasive leaps, but always moving forward as her hands, both flesh and composed of spirit energy, fanned out around her. Her palms deflected Balas, or caught chains to halt them before they could reach her. Step by step she closed on Guto, and as she did so she coiled her right three hands to her side, and gathered power around them as she interwove streams of ethereal fists into three larger fists of golden light that wreathed her hands.

Once she was within about twenty meters from Guto, Fluttershy punched forward with her three right fists. Balas and chains were knocked aside as the three gold auras in the shape of massive fists extended outward with sound shattering force. Guto crossed both his blades and chains in front of him to take the blow, but even so the incredible impact of the three bus-sized ethereal fists cracked the air and sent him flying.

Fluttershy then felt a snap on one of her left wrists, and realized only too late that a gold chain’s manacle was wrapped upon her middle left arm. Guto had hidden a chain inside a Bala, so when she’d deflected it without thinking, having deflected so many amid the barrage up to that point, she didn’t even spot the chain until it was too late.

So as Guto was sent flying, she was yanked along as well by the pure momentum of her own attack. She did her best to recover in mid-air, rolling her body to gain a better position. At the same time, however, she saw Guto stab one arm blade into the sands to ground and halt himself, while the chain attached to her suddenly grew taut and reeled back towards him, dragging Fluttershy towards Guto with the speed and force of a Sonido. He swung his other arm blade out and, almost like a clothesline, aimed for Fluttershy’s chest. She managed to roll with the blow, but still felt a searing pain over her chest and shoulder as the blade cut.

Blood dripped to the white sands as Guto drew first blood, and Fluttershy, still attached to one of his chains, landed a dozen meters away, wincing from the wound.

“Still think you’re going to ‘shatter’ me, my dear?” asked Guto, to which Fluttershy reached out her other left hands and grasped the chain he’d attached to her.

Then, she poured her real power into it, the power that let her alter and control the fundamental expressions of one’s reiatsu. Of which Guto’s chains were composed entirely of.

“Yes,” she said, and then commanded, “Now, expose your chin.”

And Guto, unprepared for the direct assault on his very will by being in physical contact with Fluttershy, found himself bowing without thinking, sticking his chin out in a highly vulnerable fashion.

“What is this-!?” he started to say, right in time for Fluttershy, with speed as fast as any of his own Sonidos, appeared in front of him and proceeded to uppercut his chin with all three of her right hands with earth rending force.

----------

Knowing that the allotted time she and her team had was down to seconds rather than minutes, Twilight stopped screwing around. With the wards of Guto’s tower triggered, they’d be swarmed by Arrancar warriors in no time, and even with their cloaks providing a strong measure of stealth, it’d be impossible to hide themselves with enough Hollows scouring the area. They had to get Fleur out of here, now.

Twilight drew upon her magic, allowing Midnight to help her guide the flow of eldritch energy as she simultaneously tapped into her Schrift. Teal flames engulfed her eyes as she directed the flow of magical light directly into the door beyond which Fleur ’s reiatsu could be felt. Twilight sensed the defenses on the door triggering, the potent Cero trap activating the moment foreign energy that didn’t belong it its creator touched it. Twilight didn’t care, grasping her hand like a claw and surrounding the door with a shimmering shell of pure magic and spirit energy infused power as she crushed the door of metal like paper. Her Schrift flowed into the energies of the trap, altering its variable of explosion to implosion, directing the potent force of multiple Cero detonations inward. The shell of her magic around the door flickered slightly at the golden pulsation of intense spiritual detonation that took place inside as the force of three or four of Guto’s Ceros imploded at once... but her magical barrier held with relative ease. Compared to hurling Sapphire Shore’s subspace dimension into orbit as it was exploding, this little firecracker was nothing.

“Sugarcoat, you and the girls hold the line here while I confirm Fleur ’s status. Don’t engage Guto’s men until you’re left with no choice, but don’t let a single one step inside this room if you can help it,” she told her friend, and Sugarcoat saluted as Twilight stepped past the threshold the door had once guarded.

The interior of the room beyond was swelteringly hot! Twilight flinched at the uncomfortable heat, as if someone had bathed the stone chamber in the center of a giant hearth. The source of the heat appeared to be a series of brass pipes that ran along the ceiling, powered by connecting devices interspersed on the wall. Twilight knew some in Hueco Mundo used a sort of strange spirit-particle based technology, and surmised perhaps Grogar had created these devices, probably for some favor from Guto. The chamber itself was split into thirds, with stone walls lining the center which had archways in their middle to lead to either the left or right third of the tower floor. Twilight moved forward quickly, glancing left and right.

To the left was a bedchamber of sorts, one both decadent and lavish, yet somehow incredibly messy in the manner of which countless cushions were piled about to create a pool of comfort. A smoke haze stemmed from some kind of floor mounted grill, still sizzling with some manner of meat that Twilight guessed was from a lesser Hollow. A somewhat ludicrously large wine case showing bottle after bottle of alcohol occupied almost the entirety of one wall. Opulent decorations of gold could be seen everywhere else, from ornate candelabras, to intricate statuettes, to a wall lined with gem encrusted weapons collected from a dozen cultures.

Twilight turned from it with a bewildered shake of her head and looked to the right, and there found Fleur .

This chamber was clearly set up as a comfortable den, with thick fur rugs and high backed leather seats arranged around a wide round table of dark wood. A map of Las Noches was spread across the table, notable markings focused on Adagio’s territory showing off the fact that Guto had been using his people to scout out the disposition of Adagio’s forces for some time, and was working on a potential plan of attack.

As interesting as that was, Twilight’s eyes focused solely on her objective, the woman chained to the wall on the opposite side of the table.

Fleur de Lis was managing her best to handle the room’s immense heat, but it was clear she was sweat soaked and exhausted. Partly this was due to the way she was chained to the wall, with short chains that were looped through anchors that wouldn’t let her properly rest, nor move significantly without also moving what looked to be huge weights of molded gold. Twilight guessed the weights had to be far heavier than usual, because normally a Sternritter like Fleur would have had the spiritual power to readily lift them, but she sensed Hollow energy engraved into the weights that probably made them much heavier. Fleur was wearing a tightly fit, one piece body suit of white fabric that terminated at her shoulders and lower thighs, not precisely modest but more covering than Twilight had expected considering what she’d heard about Guto. Then again, given the heat, perhaps the outfit was meant to make it harder for Fleur to cool down properly.

As Twilight stepped around the table, she saw that Fleur was slumped in the chains, eyes staring at something on the ground.

It was a saucer of gold, like a pet’s dish. It was filled with clean, clear water. Fleur could probably drink it, but she’d need to pull the weights in order to lean down and kneel to drink, and the position required would be humiliating once achieved, for Twilight could see the dish was bolted to the floor, meaning Fleur wouldn’t even be able to pick it up to drink properly. She’d have to lap the water, like an animal.

Given the cracked lips on the woman’s face and the dogged determination in her eyes, Twilight guessed Fleur hadn’t lowered herself to touching the water, yet. But how long had she been kept in here, with this ungodly heat, dehydrating with water right in front of her? Water she could drink, for the price of humiliation and broken pride.

Twilight was suddenly filled with the intense grip of outrage, and the image of putting an arrow through Guto’s head.

“Fleur ...” she said, and the woman jerked her head up, having been so absorbed in her own misery she hadn’t even realized Twilight had arrived.

Recognition sparked in Fleur s eye’s, the woman’s head of pale pink hair painted in sweat across her brow. Her lips trailed a bit of blood from their dry, cracked state as she tried to speak, failed, and then hacked out a rough cough before managing to croak, “S...Sparkle...”

Now that she had moved closer to the woman and was examining her in greater detail, including probing with her spiritual senses, Twilight understood that it was miraculous that Fleur had the presence of mind to even recognize her, let alone still be conscious. Those weights were indeed draining the Sternritter’s spirit energy, rendering her much weaker than she otherwise normally would be. Twilight could feel the woman’s reishi pooled inside the weights like blood drained into a mosquito’s belly. Seeing them up close, she realized with a twitch of disgust that the weights weren’t actually made of metal, or even inanimate objects.

They were Hollows. She could see the small, squelching eyes open on one of the, and the lazy opening of a mouth where the chains extended to Fleur’s limbs. These were Hollows, very likely creations of Grogar, designed to attach and suck energy out of prisoners like leeches.

“God,” Twilight breathed, and knelt down in front of Fleur , resting a hand on the woman’s sweat slick head, “I’m going to get you out of here, Fleur . Just stay with me, okay? Stay conscious, if you can.”

“H... how... are you...?” Fleur weakly shook her head, eyes closing as if in some kind of pained denial, “You can’t be here... just another... dream.”

Given how dehydrated and drained Fleur was, Twilight wasn’t surprised if the woman had been having delusional dreams about rescue and was mistaking her for another one. Twilight’s presence was probably confusing enough on its own, given the last time Fleur had seen her, Twilight had been nothing more than a cadet. It’d be hard for Fleur to swallow that Twilight had grown into a powerful Sternritter in such a short time and now was commanding a team on a rescue mission into the heart of Las Noches.

She sighed and stood, “If I was a dream I wouldn’t tell you how angry I still am at you for what you tried to do to my friends, Fleur de Lis. I don’t like you, but nobody deserves what Guto has done to you. I’m getting you out of here. You can decide if you’re dreaming or not once you’re safely home.”

With that, she summoned forth her bow in a rush of teal light and flame, and fired two arrows in short order directly into the two Hollow weights attached to Fleur . She’d already scanned them to ensure there was no more nasty traps attached to them, and she felt confident destroying them was safe enough. It seemed unlikely Guto ever expected an interloper to get this far into his tower. The two Hollow creations died and turned to motes of ash without so much as a whimper of protest, and Twilight considered the possibility that, given what Grogar had molded them into, she’d just done the poor things a favor.

Fleur groaned as she slumped, no longer attached to the weights. Twilight caught her, holding the other woman almost tenderly. However there wasn’t much time, and she glanced towards the golden dish of water. Fleur needed hydration ASAP, so Twilight, with relative ease, removed the dish from its bolts on the floor. She didn’t even need to use her Schrift for that one, just a bit of Blut Arterie to boost her strength.

As she raised it to Fleur ’s lips, the woman shook her head, “No... won’t... given in... never... not your dog... Guto...”

“Please, Fleur , you need water. You didn’t give in. You made it. He won’t hurt you anymore, I promise. You’re free, so please just drink, because if you pass out or die on me, then this whole mission is for nothing.”

The slow, dawning light of understanding was starting to break through the dread clouds of delusion in Fleur ’s eyes. Looking first at Twilight with the growing realization that this was no dreamt phantasm, Fleur then gazed at the cool water with trembling lips. With unashamed tears, she started to drink, although Twilight noted that Fleur managed to do so almost like someone trying to sip tea, rather than devour the drink greedily. Probably for the best, as it’d help the water settle in her stomach better if she didn’t down it all at once.

By now Twilight both heard the buzzing twangs of Quincy bowfire, along with feeling the intense bursts of reiatsu from just outside. Her team had engaged Guto’s Arrancar, probably when one got too close to the clearly destroyed door. Twilight sensed at least twenty Arrancar directly outside, their reiatsu shifting around in rapid confusion as the still invisible Quincy opened fire from their ambush positions. Despite that invisibility, Twilight knew things could turn dire swiftly, given that her team was heavily outnumbered and it wouldn’t take the Arrancar long to recover from their confusion and start pinpointing where all the reishi arrows were coming from.

“That’s our cue to go,” she told Fleur , and gently let the woman take one last sip before discarding the golden saucer of water and slung one of Fleur ’s arms over her shoulder.

With water having whetted her mouth and restored a bit more of her cognitive senses, Fleur ’s eyes were showing a combination of wild desperation and fierce heat, “Where’s Guto...? Going to... kill him...”

Twilight opened her mouth to say that there was hardly time for that, and that even if there was, Fleur ’s safe rescue took priority. However at the same moment there was a stone shattering crash as the wall just ten feet to their left exploded and a dark, hurtling mass of tumbling Espada went crashing by, impacting the next wall and breaking right through it in his uncontrolled spin as Guto was knocked skyward through the top of his tower by Fluttershy’s uppercut form moments ago. A length of golden chain that still connected Guto to Fluttershy was swiftly clinking as it was drawn after Guto.

As Twilight and Fleur both stared at the Guto shaped hole the man’s body had left in the ceiling, Fluttershy appeared at the entrance in the wall that Guto’s passage had made and she blinked at the two Quincy. They saw that the gold chain was attached to Fluttershy’s middle left arm, which didn’t seem to bother the girl overly much as she paused to give the two a smiling nod.

“Hello, Twilight. Hello, Fleur de Lis. I’m glad you’re okay. Please, continue on back to the embassy while I finish explaining to Guto the error of his ways.”

With that, Fluttershy leaped through the hole in the ceiling, following Guto just before the chain connecting them would have grown taut. A moment later both Twilight and Fleur heard a peal of sonic thunder from what must have been another impactful punch that shook the whole tower.

Fleur , suddenly much more awake and cognizant, glanced at Twilight, “What in the hell have I missed...?”

Twilight coughed politely and began helping Fleur down the hall, “It’s been an eventful few weeks.”

----------

Fluttershy’s next punch, delivered via another mammoth sized golden fist summoned forth from her halo, catapulted Guto back down towards the ground. Through the length of his chain that connected them, Fluttershy now had several smaller hands of gold light grasping the links and channeling her spirit energy into it, and hence into Guto. Strictly speaking she didn’t even need to speak commands with such a connection, she could simply send her will into Guto. Through this, she weakened his body and spiritual pressure while simultaneously willing him to paralysis.

At least, that was her intent. As was always the case, her reiatsu had to contest with her target’s, and Guto’s was resisting with fierce intensity. She’d caught him off guard with that first command, but now he snarled and barred his beak in a furious grimace as his violent will fought back. Before he hit the ground he spun his body around and the turbines on his back fired crimson jets of power as he flew off to Fluttershy’s left, a red comet that then unleashed a torrential storm of golden light at her.

Bala appeared and fired with the rapidity of a waterfall, while his beak opened and let out a predatory raptor screech as yellow light pooled and then blasted forth in a wide Cero. Fluttershy went on the defensive, a blossom of hundreds of hands flaring from her halo to intercept the Bala like flyswatters assaulting a swarm of insects. Meanwhile she cupped all six of her flesh and blood hands in front of her to seemingly catch the Cero that was flying towards her. However Fluttershy had learned from Guto’s previous trick, and her spiritual senses probed the Cero for what she suspected... a coiling mass of a dozen gold chains hidden inside the blast itself.

Feigning to fall for it, she took the Cero head on, letting it splash over her six braced hands as she poured her reiatsu into counter the mighty beam of destruction. She felt the energy sear at her palms as the wave of intense yellow light flowed over and around her. Guto’s Cero was far from weak, the kind of blast that would have obliterated its way through a mountainside. It certainly would have killed Fluttershy outright not so long ago, before developing her Fullbring to the degree that she had. It wasn’t simply raw reiatsu that was letting her tank the blast, but the way her Fullbring let her manipulate his reishi to weaken it. However much he could resist her commands to a degree, he couldn’t do it fully, and so the Cero’s energies were unfocused.

As the Cero splintered around her hands, the chains hidden inside the bema struck, trying to wrap her up fully. Fluttershy, prepared for them, spun backwards out of their snapping grasp and responded in kind with a rush of her own summoned hands of spectral gold. Grasping the chains and halting them before their manacles could clasp on her, Fluttershy was about to yank Guto towards her to deliver another punch, but saw the man smile with wicked satisfaction.

“Got you.”

She barely had a millisecond to react as the manacles her hands grasp all glowed brightly and Guto channeled power directly through them. Suddenly the explosive bullets of dozens of Bala all fired out of the chains themselves, catching Fluttershy at point blank range. She coiled her hands around herself, both flesh and ethereal, in a physical barrier as she was pelted and knocked groundward by the barrage. Pain shot through her, as a few Bala had struck home before she’d fully raised her reiatsu in defense.

As she hit the ground, the Bala kept flowing, Guto firing both from his chains and conjuring more from the air as he hammered the spot she’d fallen in.

However a second later he felt a titanic surge of reiatsu flow through those very chains, and strike his his core as a force of great strength yanked down on the chains. Fluttershy’s willpower all but slapped him in the face as she said, “Get down here...”

Resisting or not, he lost momentary control of his senses as he was pulled down like a wrecking ball and smashed into the ground by his own chains, feeling the bone-jarring impact through his whole body. Grunting and spitting blood, Guto rose with a growl. Across from him, about thirty paces or so away, Fluttershy rose as well, her golden hands uncoiling from around her like a protective flowering opening up. She was bleeding herself, from a wound to her scalp, which only added to the red coating her loose robes as the shoulder wound she’d taken was still seeping.

Blue light poured from her third eye, and she threw away his other chains, only keeping a grasp on the first one he’d attached to her as she poured more of her power into it, “You’re a bully and a coward, and you should be ashamed of the suffering you’ve subjected others to for the sake of glorifying yourself.”

Guto’s eyes boiled with indignation as her words tried to hammer his mind such such thoughts, but wounded pride and raw rancor added fuel to his spiritual pressure as he rushed her, “I’ll not be lectured by a hypocritical child who’s own power revolves around subverting the will of others.”

The ground all but exploded around him in a wake of sand akin to water flying past a jet ski as he flew at her, arm blades carving the earth in a violently swift pair of slashes. Of course, Fluttershy had baited this exact reaction. She knew her power couldn’t truly force him to feel shame for his actions, but figured he’d get angry enough to want to close the distance, where she had the advantage in melee.

At least somewhat. Guto’s strikes were blindingly fast and powerful. Fluttershy moved with the ease of a willow bending in a storm, but still felt the sting of his blade’s edge several times as she turned and twisted through his attacks. More blood coated her skin from slashes on her hips, her legs, her arms, even her face as one near blow tore a cut over her cheek. But when the moment was right and one slash was just a hair’s breadth too overextended, she punished Guto with a deadly combination of channeling her will through the chain she still held to stiffen his reflexes and weaken his physical resistance as she struck back with a flaring flurry of golden hands that struck in such multitude and speed that all normal eyes would have seen is hundreds of incandescent flashes of light before Guto’s body was sent reeling like a pinball.

Each impact Guto felt like a hammer blow to his Hierro, and to his shock he sensed some of his Ressureccion cracking in places from the rain of blows as he coughed up fresh blood. Yet with stubborn pride he did not fall and planted his feet before grinding himself to a halt and glaring hate at Fluttershy, who was breathing hard herself in exertion. She may have appeared to hold the edge, but she was expending power swiftly by channeling her Fullbring’s ability into his chain and matching him in melee.

Guto smiled. He’d spent a long time thinking over an eventual duel with Adagio Dazzle, and in many ways things were playing out similarly with Fluttershy. Much as he hated to admit it, Adagio was stronger than him, and humiliatingly enough this seemed potentially true of this human upstart. But he was the more experienced warrior, and he’d been conserving his strength, while letting Fluttershy spend hers freely.

It was perhaps time to show her the true power and nature of his Ressureccion’s chains, something even Fleur de Lis had not lasted long enough to be worthy of witnessing.

Fluttershy felt the shift in the air immediately, as if Guto’s spiritual pressure had grown heated and more solid all at once. The artificial siren gem gave off a baleful glint, while the growths of bone on his back that were shaped like turbines split open several long hatches along their circumference. From these, chains of gleaming gold flew forth, many more than before. They did not move towards Fluttershy, but rather spread out around Guto, snaking along the ground like metallic adders.

That’s when Fluttershy had the sharp, immediate sensation in her middle left arm of intense heat and pain, as if her flesh had just been dipped into a volcanic flow. A single glance showed her the shocking sight of her arm slowly transmuting into solid gold metal, the effect spreading from the manacle Guto had originally attached to her. At the same instant, a hissing noise filled the air as the sands of Las Noches began to turn into gold, the dozens upon dozens of chains Guto spread out around him spreading the change around them like flame might consume a page of paper.

It clicked in Fluttershy’s mind that she’d gotten careless. Despite the fact that she’d been using his manacle and chain as a means to affect him with her power, he’d never removed it, and she hadn’t asked herself why.

Fluttershy, as calmly as she could manage, and with only a single deep breath, took her upper right hand and held it with fingers rigid like a knife... then struck with that hand as if it were a blade. A raw rush of molten pain ripped through her senses and she felt the wet heat of blood as it flowed freely from what was now the severed stump of her middle left arm, which she had just cut off with her own hand just above the elbow before the gold transmutation effect could reach the rest of her body.

Her face broke out into cold sweat and a small cry of pain was impossible to keep away from her lips. Even so, she didn’t lose focus and jumped straight up into the air, clearing a few hundred feet as the land turned to gold beneath her. She knew she probably didn’t want to be standing on any of that gold.

Guto watched her with a sneering laugh, “Hah! Glorious, is it not!? Those who do not eventually bend the knee to me, can be turned into such marvelous decorations for my tower! What will it be, human child? Submission, or decoration?”

“Neither,” she replied simply, using one of her right hands to clench shut the bleeding end of her severed arm, concentrating her best to try and get her body to stop the flow of blood as she applied her Fullbring’s healing to herself, “Is turning people into objects, mentally or physically, all you’re capable of?”

“More hypocrisy,” Guto spat, and the golden land seemed to boil with chains that rose up as he himself soared skyward towards her. Wherever the gold spread, it seemed to be able to produce additional chains, creating a dangerous field in which to fight, “All your power does is impose your will upon others, yet you chide me for doing the same?”

Fluttershy was more cautious now, and needed more information. What were the limits of Guto’s ability to turn things into gold? Her only chance was to learn fast, and seek an opening, before he found the means to overwhelm her. Hoping to take him off guard, she met his skyward charge, green motes of Bringer Light flowing from her legs as she vanished with startling speed to rush him at first from the front, then abruptly shift to an attack from his left.

She focused on her halo, bringing forth a sunburst of several dozen hands that flowed out in a spiral, punching in at Guto from multiple directions. These were deliberately slower attacks than she’d used before, however, and her eyes and spirit senses focused heavily upon Guto as he gave a contemptuous glower as he brought in his chains in defense. The multitudes of gold chains sprouting from his back crossed together like a wall of clinking gold, and Fluttershy’s ethereal fists slammed into them in a great, gong-like impact.

Her firsts didn’t transmute into gold, not the ones made out of her spirit energy at least. She sensed the currents of his Hollow reiatsu, the way they tried to gain purchase on her spectral hands and slid off, unlike the way it had penetrated her flesh so easily.

So he could only transmute certain kinds of reishi particles, ones that simulated solid matter. Or at the very least it took more time and effort to do so with raw energy, she surmised. Still, he was clearly drawing power out of the artificial siren gem, having readily resisted her combined blows.

Fluttershy was driven back as chains rising from below reached for her in a swift mass. She was just a shade swifter, cracking the air with her blisteringly fast movements as she dodged around the mass and tried to keep the pressure on Guto himself. More fists erupted from her halo and struck at the man as he, too, blurred with multiple Sonidos as he tried to surround her with chains. Her fists deflected off chains, battering them away, yet more and more appeared. In response Fluttershy threw her arms out and conjured hundreds of more hands, until the air around her and Guto was a maddening storm of impacts from so may fists and chains striking one another that throughout Las Noches the air was filled with their metallic impacts like an aerial earthquake.

She was expending too much energy, she knew, but she didn’t have a lot of options. Between the field of gold he’d created to form more chains, and the huge number he was producing from his own body, Guto was probably one of the only Espada who had a means to match her ethereal hands. Her ability to command him was limited, but not inconsequential, and she suspected it was her best shot to create the opening she needed.

It was clear he was by far the more experienced combatant, but that was being hampered by his pure arrogance. That, and his obsessive need to keep talking, as if trying to convince her of his greatness by words as much as force.

“Look at you! Reduced to solely defending yourself, and draining your reiryoku so quickly in the process! Admit it, child! Admit your inferiority! You’ll be more content once you accept your place under me.”

Fluttershy was familiar with Guto’s sort. She’d been running into them most of her life, since for most of it her shy and soft spoken nature all but attracted either bullies who saw an easy target, or manipulators who thought her a gullible mark. Guto was both a bully and manipulator, who fancied himself an icon. On the surface, someone like Guto probably thought of her Fullbring’s power as something in their same wheelhouse. Fluttershy could indeed subvert the will of another, if she so chose. But that was just a facet of what her Fullbring did. She’d understood that in her first fight with Gilda. That her Fullbring’s true power was how it connected her to others.

She could command, yes. Manipulate and control if she so chose. Truly, perhaps more than any of her friends, Fluttershy knew she had the potential to be a truly horrific tyrant if she ever let herself go down that path.

The difference was that Guto sought to build himself up by creating a pile of others crushed underneath him. Fluttershy wanted to help others grow by reaching out her hands and pulling them up when they were down. Sometimes that meant a little friendly encouragement, pumping up another when they needed it. Sometimes it meant soothing their hurts and helping them confront their issues.

And, sometimes, it simply meant she had to deliver a harsh dose of reality to one whose head was cramped entirely too far up their own rear end.

She breathed with the rhythm of her own motions, directing hundreds of her spectral hands of light in their constant typhoon of deflecting parries as seemingly just as many gold chains came from both below, above, and all around like a sky of metal cobras. The ferocity and frequency of Guto’s chains striking towards her was such that Fluttershy was unable to strike directly at the Espada, who remained a good fifty or so paces back from the action itself. Inch by slow inch the chains’ strikes grew closer to Fluttershy, her many parrying hands gradually being pushed inward so the dome of safety around Fluttershy appeared to get smaller and smaller as the seconds dripped by.

Her eyes snapped to the right as she sensed a spike of reiatsu, and saw one chain’s manacles drag themselves across the air, shimmering gold dust flowing in its wake. Guto’s power was turning the air particles themselves into gold! This dust then solidified into a thin, golden wire that slashed forward at hypersonic speed. Fluttershy rolled aside, feeling strands of her long pink hair cut free by the near miss. Those strands that were cut away turned gold and fell to the ground below. Suddenly more manacles dragged and swayed across the air, creating more lines of gold dust that coalesced together into micro-thin razor wires that hurled themselves in arcing slashes at Fluttershy.

Twisting about like a dancer, contorting her body with flexibility few likely knew Fluttershy even had, she kept the slashing wires of gold away from her flesh by scant centimeters. Even so, no shortage of her translucent hands and arms were sliced clean through, disrupting them and forcing Fluttershy to conjure forth even more to try to compensate as the chains redoubled their efforts to coil towards her.

A mass of chains flew under her, then boiled up, manacles clacking. Another mass pushed through her hands from her left side, rolling towards her in a metal wave. With a deep breath, Fluttershy spun, pulling forth more power and spilling forth from her halo a veritable mountain of golden arms that forged together into nine great lengths, “Enlightenment Technique: Flower Flowing Down River.”

With titanic slams of hurricane force, each fist unfurled like the petals of a flower, punching the air and chains with speed beyond lightning or sound. Each crack of power split the air and sent the masses of chains hurtling back, many broken into scattering links that clinked to the land below, frozen in gold.

Fluttershy had a few seconds of respite as she breathed heavily from the strain of her efforts, blood and sweat caking part of her hair to her face as her still bleeding wounds dripped down her body.

Guto, allowing his chains a moment to fall back and reconstitute themselves, chuckled with dry amusement, “I can sense your reiatsu flagging. How long do you believe you can last, now? Five minutes? Ten? Regardless, the end is fast approaching.”

He frowned slightly, glancing towards his tower, where he now sensed and heard a ruckus occurring. The fight between him and Fluttershy had been involved enough that he’d not been paying attention to matters elsewhere. He sensed his warriors doing battle, and saw flashes of Cero light near his tower’s damaged roof structure. And were those... Quincy arrows!?

“What!? Who dares-!?” he began to shout, and then swiftly turned back towards Fluttershy as he felt her move, but it was too late.

Fluttershy had been counting on several factors.

One was that she knew Guto would notice Twilight and the other Quincy girls’ actions sooner or later, and felt confident that the moment he did, he’d be distracted. Another factor was that the entire time he’d been trying to break down her defenses with his chains, she’d been paying careful attention to the fact that he was standing a good distance back from the constant movements of those chains.

She suspected he wasn’t immune to his own power, and didn’t want to accidentally affect himself. His control over those chains weren’t perfect, probably because he was so proud of his power that he didn’t use it often enough to practice the control needed to avoid hitting himself.

Experienced as he was, his pride and arrogance were vulnerabilities he just couldn’t account for, because he thought himself above having to compensate for them.

That was what let Fluttershy use his momentary distraction to break through the exterior perimeter of his chains while he was still reforming some of them, and rush close to him in a burst of pure speed. It was true she was weakening. Bloodlose and massive expenditure of reiatsu was taking its toll on her...

...But she had enough left to finish this.

Grace did not begin to describe it. Fury did not cover the intensity of it. Relentless barely scraped the surface of what Fluttershy unleashed. Her fists, the now five of pure flesh and blood, glowed with inner sunlight as she struck with the speed and flash of light rays. She all but danced within a hair's breadth of Guto, striking his body with a downpour of fist and palm strikes that rang out with the clarity of church bells.

Guto didn’t so much as have room to gasp or fully register the impacts of damage hammering through his Hierro. Yet, he was an Espada. Rage gripped him and centuries of violent discipline took hold as he fought back with savage speed and power of his own. As blood flowed form his mouth and he felt his ribs crack, he spun and turned with Fluttershy’s blinding assault and slashed his arm blades in a horrifically swift series of counterstrokes.

Fluttershy didn’t retreat a step. She remained within inches of him, angling her body as best she could to lessen the painful strikes as Guto’s blades slashed her. More of her blood flowed, staining her Fullbring’s outfit almost entirely crimson. Pain and fatigue burned her, then turned parts of her limbs cold, but Fluttershy remained right in Guto’s face, her punches not lessening, but only getting faster and more potent as she drew out as much of her spiritual power as she could.

Her third eye glowed like a blue star, and her halo shone with a thousand points of light that resolved into as many and more hands of gold power. Guto’s chains chased them as they hammered their way across the sky, but Fluttershy’s guess had turned out correct... Guto hesitated to bring his chains close to his own body. A hesitation she capitalized on as she now surprised him with a kick that took him square in the jaw of his beak.

He spun downward and slammed into his own field of solid gold. The landscape turned gold bent inward with a titanic groan of broken metal.

His face mask cracked, Guto’s blood streaming from his mouth and nearly broken jaw.

“Bitch! I am LORD GUTO! I rule this land! I am everything an Arrancar must desire to be! I conquer, and ensure all bow to my glory! There can be no other result! No other path! I will make you bow to me!”

The chains suddenly all dropped, flowing into the broken, gold landscape. Then the gold boiled like liquid and from around Guto sprung a small forest of chains that then all wrapped together on either side of him, angled upward as he crossed his arm blades and aimed skyward. Blue light flowed from his bloodied body and pooled into a pulsating sphere along the edge of his blades, then the chains expelled gold light as they coiled around these sphere and began to merge with it, melting into the sphere. Within moments a massive, trembling sphere of destructive energy that glowed blue at its core, while surrounded by a bubbling swirl of liquid gold, had taken shape above Guto.

“Die, and be preserved forever in gold as the foolish human girl who thought to make me, of all people, bow their head in shame! Gran Rey Cero: Victoria Dorada!” (Royal Hollow Flash: Golden Victory)

It exploded upwards like a flying wave breaking over itself. No singular beam, but a frothing wave of crackling blue power intermixed with seething liquid gold that left a towering, frozen pillar of twisted gold in its wake. It had all the space distorting power of a Gran Rey Cero alongside the insidious ability to instantly turn any physical or spiritual matter struck with it into gold, and this wave flew right up at Fluttershy at incredible speed.

And she’d expended so much strength that dodging or blocking it was all but out of the question. She’d lost so much blood by now that she felt like she could barely walk, and much of her power had gone into that last furious flurry of punches to break down Guto’s defenses.

Yet she was not out of options. In fact this was what she’d hoped he’d do. An all out final attack that expended the lion’s share of his own remaining reiatsu, after Fluttershy had already pummeled his body to its own near breaking point.

This was where she put everything she had into one last effort. One last command.

Her Fullbring’s ability to influence the spirit energy and will of others was more potent with physical contact and with a spoken command. She’d punched Guto so many times he probably hadn’t noticed how much of her own reiatsu she’d attached to him in the process. At this point it was as if she was standing right next to him with a hand right over his own heart. And with all of his remaining reiatsu put towards destroying her, he had little left to resist with. All she had to do was speak a word, and shove all her own remaining will and spiritual pressure through the connection to his soul.

“Bow.”

It was beyond a mere word at this point. Fluttershy had put all of her will towards its true meaning of submission, of full acknowledgment of inferiority. That single command carried with it the weight of mountainous authority, hammered straight through Guto’s spiritual defenses and overwhelming his already off kilter and weakened mental state.

So he bowed. Physically, and with a mental scream, emotionally. As Fluttershy had expected, this affected his attack as well, the Gran Rey Cero: Victoria Dorada curving downward abruptly and sharply in response to the damaged will of its progenitor. The beam of crackling blue energy and golden liquid flew beneath Fluttershy, missing her by a few feet, before curving off down to explode upon the Las Noches sands half a kilometer away in an explosive flash of instant, frozen gold the size of several football stadiums. Fluttershy idly wondered how long it might take the Arrancar to remove the sudden, gigantic piece of gold modern art sitting in their back yard.

But Guto’s feral roar drew her attention as the man howled out a cry of wordless fury. He was still bowing his head to her, down on the ground, his body shaking as he tried to raise his head.

It was a bit shocking to her he even had the will left to resist that much. But then again, perhaps it wasn’t that surprising. This was an Espada who’d been several ranks above Grogar, and whom Adagio had not been eager to fight herself, despite having bested Captain Luna. The fact that Fluttershy had managed to scrap out a victory at all was... rather miraculous.

And mostly owed to his blind overconfidence. Had he truly taken her as a serious opponent from the start, Fluttershy doubted she’d have won.

Also, perhaps, she was getting ahead of herself. He was still standing, after all. From what Fluttershy could sense, he’d expended the lion’s share of his remaining power on that attack she’d just forced him to miss with, but it wasn’t as if every last scrap of reiatsu was gone. She had no idea how much power he needed to utilize his chain’s gold transmutation, so there was still a real risk this fight wasn’t over.

On top of that, she could still sense Pinkie Pie and Hydia’s reiatsu clashing, down in the arena. It was hard to tell what was going on down there, or who was winning. A brief glance only showed darkness, down in that hole. Far more than there should have been. Pinkie’s reiatsu was still flaring with potent force, but so was Hydia’s, so Fluttershy could only hope her friend was holding her own. It was equally unclear if Twilight had successfully gotten Fleur out of the tower yet. The sounds of battle still rang out from around the top of Guto’s tower, and Fluttershy could feel the reiatsu from Guto’s warriors as they fought Twilight’s squad.

A good portion of the Arrancar who served Guto were still entirely focused on her and their Espada, however, which meant Fluttershy’s best bet to help Twilight was to keep their attention on this fight to the very end. Even if that end was already past its climax. Neither she or Guto had much left to work with, so finishing this would come down to whatever last-ditch efforts they dredged up here and now.

Fluttershy let herself fall from the air, wary of the golden ground below. But she had to get close to him, and doubted he’d come to her this time around. Her power’s connection to him remained steady, so as she neared the bent, metallic ground, she pushed her will through that connection.

“Turn everything back to normal.”

Guto’s voice ripped out a frustrated growl like that of a caged animal as he straightened his body, muscles trembling with the effort to try and resist her commands. He was still too weakened, however, and with a cutting motion of one of his arm blades, the transmuted gold sands he’d created of the surrounding area shimmered with light and returned to white sand. Which was fortunate, because Fluttershy wasn’t actually sure he could turn the things he’d transmuted into gold back to their original state. That had been a bit of a guess, and if it hadn’t worked, she’d have had trouble getting close to him in a field of gold he could manifest more chains from.

Of the chains he had left, many had remained in broken links from her previous attack, scattering into motes of light, and the few he had left coiled on either side of him to help form the Gran Rey Cero variant he’d fired now hung in limp posture, like wet noodles. Yet Guto’s fury remained clear in his eyes past his cracked eagle mask, blood dripping from his beak.

“I am... not beaten yet... girl...” he breathed heavily, “You lack the will... to finish me off...”

He came at her. It wasn’t fast. He could barely pull off a Sonido, his form flickering, but the high-speed movement more like an awkward stagger as he tried to catch her in a cross slash. Fluttershy, admittedly, wasn’t much faster at this point, her limbs so numb from blood loss, her body in agony where it wasn’t numb, she could barely twirl aside the blow and catch the blades in her hands. Twisting, using as much of his own momentum as she could, she shoulder threw him into the ground with a heavy impact.

Snarling, he lashed with one taloned foot, scraping her face, drawing several lines of blood as she staggered back. He rolled over and rose to his feet, cutting with his right arm blade at her legs. She hopped over it, and with her power dimming with dull arcs of gold, she managed to manifest a few more ethereal arms to fly out and slam towards him. He coughed blood as he spun his blades, slashing the arms apart, but Fluttershy used that moment to command him, her voice barking, “Halt!”

It froze him, for just a moment, which she used to step in and pull her arms back, pouring the last of her strength into her flesh and blood hands. Her halo flared one last time in a brilliant golden starburst, and her fists mirrored that glow, albeit weaker than usual as she was running on spiritual fumes at this point.

“Enlightenment Technique: Gentle Lotus.”

She struck, and even for her missing arm, a brief flare of gold light formed into a brief flash of a fist where the stump was as all six fists struck simultaneously. Directly on Guto’s Hollow hole and the artificial siren gem mounted within. A circular blast of golden force impacted Guto and flowed out from chest to back, shaking the air and carving a tunnel of swirling air force across the sands. Guto felt more ribs shatter as his chest vibrated with the energies of the strike, and worse, heard a singular crack of noise as the artificial siren gem fractured and fell from his chest in pieces.

He opened his mouth, but had no air to gasp, grunt, or swear obscenities with. He just stumbled back several steps, and dropped to one knee, arm blades falling to his side like limp sacks of granite. Veins popped out on his arms as he struggled to raise them. His beak clenched, the bone white mask cracking even more as he tried to force himself to rise.

And he couldn’t. Only pure willpower kept him from falling to the ground completely. That, and utter, venomous hatred for the girl still standing in front of him.

Fluttershy did not look like a woman victorious, however. Her body was covered in wounds, many of which still bled. Her face was a mask of liquid red, bearing cuts that would no doubt leave scars if left untreated. Her middle left arm was still gone, the brief one of translucent gold now faded after her attack was finished. Even the halo of light that flowed from her back had dimmed to a dull, almost sallow yellow color, and her third eye was barely a wisp of blue light. Her eyes remained calm, but were nearly unfocused as she struggled to keep standing, despite her wounds.

“I... will not... submit...” he spat, blood coating his sputtered words.

“I don’t... need you to...” Fluttershy replied equally exhausted, “You lost. They... saw you lose... to someone you thought was weaker. That’s enough. Enough to damage the image of you that you worked so hard to hammer into them.”

Guto’s eyes flared a little wider as he glanced towards the crowd of his warriors who were slowly gathering closer, many of them bearing faces of shock, confusion, and dismay as they gazed upon their Espada. Felled by a human girl. Kneeling before her, bloodied, battered, and beaten.

“B...bitch...” he said after a few shallow, gasping breaths. “You’re... not better than... me. Hypocrite.”

“You keep saying that,” Fluttershy said, shaking her head, “But I’m not interested in people being above or beneath me. I connect to people. That’s all. Even this fight... just another connection. To them,” she nodded towards his warriors, “And to you. Maybe you can’t, or don’t want, to learn from that connection. But Gilda did, and I hope some of the others do, too. Either way...”

She turned and started to walk away as best she could, although it was really more of a hobble at this point, “I’m done here. Once Pinkie is finished with Hydia, we’re leaving.”

Guto’s fury only grew like an all consuming, dark flame in his wounded chest as he watched her walk away. He saw the faces of his many warriors, all looking at him with all manner of confusion and dismay writ on their foolish faces, and he despises those looks. What were they looking at him like that for!? He wasn’t finished yet! He was not shamed yet in front of his own subordinates!

When he noticed several warriors approaching, Greta limping along with them, coming towards him with concerned looks, Guto’s ire grew. It was even worse when he heard Greta, his failed flesh and blood daughter, say, “Are you able to stand, Lord Guto?”

Utter, tar-like rage boiled his blood, and despite his body’s state, this scathing hate alone gave his Hollow soul the power to force his legs to move and his arms to raise like twitching corpses. “I AM NOT BEATEN!”

He stabbed for Fluttershy’s retreating back with his right arm blade, throwing all he had into the blow.

“Yes, you are.”

A clamorous ring of metal sounded out as his strike was halted by a shaft of metal, and a bleeding, but firmly standing body behind it. Gilda, her spear held horizontally in front of her, had blocked Guto’s charge with the shaft of her weapon. Despite her own significant number of wounds, Gilda stood without budging as she pushed Guto back.

At the same instant, a flicker of motion showed Smooze appearing next to Fluttershy, immediately lending the girl his own body to lean on as he held her.

“We must get you somewhere safe to receive medical attention, Lady Fluttershy. ;_;” Smooze said with no shortage of worry in his voice.

“Gilda, what are you doing, interfering with Lord Guto’s fight?” said Greta, all but a shambling mass of wounds, herself.

Gilda’s face contorted into a fed-up scowl, “The fight is over. Fluttershy won. If Guto lacks the honor to grasp even that much, then he doesn’t deserve to be an Espada, or even a Hollow, for that matter.”

A rasping gasp of guttural anger split Guto’s beak as he, fueled by raw hateful emotion alone, aimed his arm blades at Gilda, “A battle is only over when one foe lies dead, and the girl lacks the courage to strike me down. If you were a true Hollow you’d understand that, Gilda.”

Her eyes stared into his, unblinking, and her hands clenched tight around her spear. By now there was an uneasy circle of Guto’s warriors around the scene. Uncertainty bled from them like a miasma, some looking towards the signs of battle at the tower as if unsure if they should go there, or remain close to their wounded Espada. Some looked as if they were even unclear if they ought to attack Gilda, Fluttershy, or Smooze at this point. Normally an Espada when faced with a challenge were expected to finish things themselves, and while some might have servants that would readily follow any order to mob an enemy, Guto had hammered so much ideology of respecting strength that there was an innate hesitation to interfere.

Fluttershy could all but see the calculation in Guto’s eyes, deciding whether or not ordering his warriors to attack her, Gilda, and Smooze would lose him too much respect to be worth it.

“What are you all standing there, gawking for? Our territory is under attack,” he said with as much mustered strength as he could, jabbing an arm blade at the tower, “Go and destroy whatever interlopers you find.”

There was a swift series of almost instinctual salutes and bows as almost every single Arrancar warrior present rushed off to join their fellows at the tower. Fluttershy silently prayed that Twilight and the others were almost in the clear, because they’d be even more outnumbered in a few moments, and she didn’t have any further means by which to help.

The only one of Guto’s forces that remained was Greta, who eyed both him and Gilda with a torn expression. Guto, seeing this, let his voice turn to an iron edge, “I meant that order for you as well.”

“But... Lord Guto, you’re... severely wounded. Against these three...”

“I did not ask your opinion of my condition, warrior!” Guto roared, “I ordered you to go deal with the interlopers who are likely stealing from me at this very moment! What good are you to me if you cannot follow even basic commands!?”

Greta’s hands, still slick with some of her own blood from the battering she took fighting Gilda, clenched at her side and she looked down in shame. But she did not go, “I... cannot obey, Lord Guto.”

“What was that?” he said with a genuine note of disbelief.

“I said I cannot do that!” Greta repeated, more forcefully, looking up with a complex mixture of emotions brewing on her features, “I would be no use in dealing with intruders in my present state of injury, and I will not walk away while my Espada is standing on death’s door.”

“Insolent and ungrateful,” Guto spat up more blood, “I do not need you here, least of all filled with useless pity. Both you and Gilda... I had such high expectations, and somehow both of you became like this. Weak willed and rebellious. Where did my training methods err? I sought to craft the finest, most disciplined warriors for my horde, yet somehow they all have turned out so disappointing.”

Greta’s teeth clenched as if Guto’s words were physical blows, and Gilda breathed out a deep, guttural noise as she pointed her spear at him, “Craft us? Like we were just blocks of fucking stone for you to chisel at? Well, guess what, Lord Dumbass, we weren’t made of stone. We were people. Kids, half the time. Desperate enough to think we could find a place for ourselves in this craptastic place because you dangled that damn carrot in front of our noses, then gave us nothing but hell, blood, and pain so you could feel important and strong. And turns out you’re not strong... not where it counts.”

Guto, forcing his body to not shake from his injuries, stared at her without a hint of compromise in his eyes, “If you believe those words, Gilda, then if there’s even a scrap of you that is truly Hollow, you know what to do. I’ll not trade words with you to justify my actions like some sniveling Soul Reaper or Quincy. Hollows have only one way we settle disputes. I’ll postpone finishing things with Fluttershy, if you intend to stand in for her as a challenger yourself.”

Gilda’s eyes narrowed, “Gladly.”

“Wait,” said Fluttershy, “Gilda, you don’t have to do this. Especially as badly hurt as you are...”

“He’s even worse off than I am, after tangling with you,” Gilda replied bluntly, glancing back to offer Fluttershy a tired, but resolute look, “I know you don’t like this kind of thing, that it isn’t your style. You’d try to find some way to reach him, even as he’s stabbing you through the back. So... I’ll take care of it. As a Hollow.”

“She is correct, my lady,” said Smooze, “Your gift for unburdening the souls of others is great beyond imagining, but Gilda and Guto both wish to settle their mutual ire in the only way they feel can truly end it. It is foolish, perhaps, and I certainly have no desire to return to the ways of Las Noches, yet you cannot alter its very nature today, Lady Fluttershy. Perhaps another day, but not this one.”

She reached out and clasped one of Smooze’s gloved hands with a grateful squeeze. Her nose was clogged with the scent of blood, and her ears still rang with the echoing clamor of battle. To her, Gilda and Guto both looked like corpses risen, like two fallen warriors being strung along by some grim puppeteer. Guto, with nothing but his wounded pride left to keep him going. Gilda, with the icon of her past and all the suffering that came with it starring her in the face, with only one way to bury it all for herself.

Fluttershy looked at her bloodstained hands, then at Gilda, “If you’re certain you want to do this, then I have a suggestion.”

“What idiocy are you planning?” Guto had nothing but scathing suspicion on his face, “Do not think I cannot deal with my upstart former Fraccion, then still handle you, girl.”

A rough expletive huffed from Gilda’s lips, “Says the guy barely standing after trying to solo her.”

“Says the impudent brat who's barely standing after fighting an Arrancar much weaker than I,” Guto retorted.

Clearing her throat to draw their attention back to her, Fluttershy held out her to upper hands, “Neither of you have much energy left to spare, and are both in such terrible condition that a physical fight wouldn’t be... very satisfying for either of you, would it? If you absolutely must try to kill one another, then I suggest you also understand each other, first. If, in the process, death is all that can solve this, then I can’t say anything to that... but I can open up a means of fighting that will come down to your wills, not your already weakened bodies.”

“Hmph, that sounds like more of your obnoxious Fullbring power, isn’t it?” Guto grunted, “What a truly vexing ability you possess.”

Gilda, who’d experienced first hand what Fluttershy was likely alluding to, looked thoughtful, “That... thing you did when you entered my soul. Ugh, not sure I even want to look at Guto’s... but can I kick the crap out of him in there, too?”

Fluttershy gave a reluctant nod, “I have been refining my powers, and learned how to use that technique in new ways. Before, I couldn't connect multiple people, just myself and a recipient. Now I can bind two others, using myself as a medium. And if two people fight in such a state, it would have similar results to fighting physically. The only difference is that it will be your thoughts and wills clashing.”

She did feel some frayed nerves at the thought of using her ability in this way. She’d only recently, just prior to the Coalition summit, learned how to connect multiple souls together, whereas before she’d needed Twilight to use her Variable to allow her to connect Sunset to Gaia. Her nerves were mostly out of fear for Gilda. Sure, Fluttershy was suggesting this because she thought it’d be safer than Gilda trying to finish things with Guto with her body so close to expiring. Theoretically a conflict between their souls would be less likely to get Gilda killed. But just in theory.

Guto scoffed, “This sounds like nonsense, but be it a clash of blade and body, or will and mind, I will not be overcome by my own failure of a former subordinate. Come then, girl, do your trick. Once I’ve broken Gilda’s will, you and I will conclude our duel.”

“Do it, Fluttershy. One way or another, it's well past time I faced him,” Gilda said.

Fluttershy nodded and stood between the pair, holding her upper arms out now to either side. Smooze hovered close, watching Guto for any sign of a hostile move, while Greta stood opposite of him, doing the same with Gilda. With a deep and meditative breath, Fluttershy let soft motes of golden light flow from the palms of her hands. The motes connected together into gently glowing strands of light, remaining connected to her hands as they extended towards Guto and Gilda’s Hollow holes. As the small rivers of gold light connected all of them, Fluttershy’s eyes closed and her voice softly intoned; “Enlightenment Technique; Reflections Upon Still Water - Twin Ripples”

----------

Sunny Flare’s reishi dart guns were surrounded by crosses of bright blue spirit energy as she ducked the long reaching claw of an Arrancar warrior who was in their Resurreccion form, which covered their body in bony ridges and elongated their arms to blades finger claws. With a blaze of motion she used Hirenkyaku to zigzag around the Arrancar as a flood of sharp blue reishi darts flew from her weapons.

The darts peppered the warrior as he used his long arms to guard himself, but he was still pushed back by the scores of dart impacts that cracked his armored hide, “Ugh! Just die already, Quincy scum!”

A single, long pointed finger blade extended towards her like a sudden growth spurt, and Sunny Flare gasped in pain as she dodged, but felt the finger stab take a chunk out of her cheek. “Dammit, why the face!?” She reached for a silver ginto tube in the mantle of her uniform and threw it at the Arrancar. The glittering Quincy alchemic liquid splattered into the air as the tube burst and she gestured with a few fingers on her right hand towards it and channeled her spirit energy into the water.

“Gletscher” (Glacier)

A flash burst of ice created a solid, cube-shaped block that flew into the Arrancar at supersonic speed. Even as the ice broke apart on impact, each chunk then grew in size and then homed in on the Arrancar again, impacting in a series of freezing blows. Then the chunks of ice from those impacts did it all over again, swirling in in a blizzard of homing ice particles that surrounded the dazed warrior until they formed into a solid cube of ice once more, with the Arrancar trapped inside.

“Hah... hah...” Sunny Flare caught her breath, then felt a spike of reiatsu behind her as another Arrancar rushed her from the back, only for the Hollow to end up pincushioned in place by a hail of corkscrewing reishi arrows that moved with insane, erratic patterns before they impaled the Arrancar form all sides.

“Watch yourself, Sunny!” said Lemon Zest, appearing nearby with her oddly shaped bow still sporting multiple reishi arrows ready to fire, “Without your cloak, you’re kinda a sitting duck!”

“Yeah! Thanks, Lemon! I freakin’ realized that!” Sunny said, rushing past her friend and heading for the top of Guto’s tower that she and the girls had been deafening.

The fight had been going well, considering their little team was outnumbered dozens to one. At first it’d been easy to take down the Arrancar warriors who had come to check on the top of the tower, because with the cloaks the Quincy team wore that rendered them invisible it made ambushing the enemy a snap. But then the Arrancar had quickly wised up and began working in groups to cover each other, so if one got struck, the rest would attack wherever they sensed the strike came from. As a result the girls had needed to be far more careful, but then that became a problem when Twilight arrived with Fleur, who didn’t have a cloak to make herself invisible the Hollows.

This meant the Arrancar had to be fought with less caution as they focused on Twilight and Fleur, and a confusion, difficult skirmish had resulted as they fought to keep the enemy off of the pair as Twilight carried a nearly unconscious Fleur to the top of the tower. There, Twilight had used one of the small darts made from Cinch’s Schrift to set up a Window, but even within the minute that had taken more and more Arrancar had shown up to fight.

Sunny Flare had lost her cloak to a stray Bala shot, and now that she was visible a lot of the enemy were turning towards her and she’d been briefly cut off from the team.

Luckily for her Twilight had immediately led the other girls in a push to force back the Arrancar. Twilight herself made deadly use of magical telekinesis to halt Arrancar in place while drawing forth a storm of large reishi arrows encased in teal flames to pierce a score of Arrancar at once. This created enough of an opening for the rest of the girls to reach Sunny and begin falling back to the tower’s rooftop. Sunny saw the Arrancar forming into what looked rather direly like a firing line, and felt her stomach drop at the sight of what had to be at least thirty or so Cero blats being charged up, coating the roof of the tower in a sanguine glow.

“Wooooow, so they’ve figured out they don’t even need to see us all if they just blow everything up!” Sour Sweet said in a sing song tone of sarcasm that quickly grew rankled as she hefted her huge crossbow, firing into the line of Arrancar while looking back at Twilight, “Now would be the best time to do something, Twilight!”

“Working on it,” Twilight said. Her eyes were coated in a bright aura of teal, magical fire, and the light continued on to form the flickering image of raven wings behind her as she channeled magic and spirit energy together.

Fleur was laying on the roof at the very center, where one of Cinch’s darts was moved by Twilight’s telekinesis to plant itself in the stone, where the open field of a Window appeared. At the same moment, the Arrancar opened fire with their barrage of several dozen Cero beams. Sugarcoat rushed to Fleur and all but threw the other woman through the Window, which would lead to the embassy where Cinch was waiting.

Sunny Flare and the others rushed the Window as well, but none of them felt certain they could make it before the Cero barrage engulfed the roof.

Fortunately they had Twilight Sparkle with them, whose channeling of magic and reishi together formed a thick barrier of interlocking hexagonal barriers of purple light that formed multiple layers of a half dome in front of the roof. With a flicker of the Variable’s power, she altered the course of many of the Cero to bend around the barrier, and the few that still impacted barely caused a flicker amid the near solid walls of power.

“Alright, everybody go through, now!” Sugarcoat said, standing by the Window as Indigo Zap, Sour Sweet, Lemon Zest, and Sunny Flare all went through one after another.

Twilight hesitated, looking down the length of the tower at the ground far below. There, she senses Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, and knew her friends were both still in danger.

“Twilight, come on!” Sugarcoat shouted, “If you’re worried about them, you’re not helping them by staying here!”

It was true, but that didn’t mean Twilight liked it. For this plan to work, she, a Quincy, couldn't be seen openly helping Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, or vice versa. This rescue of Fleur had to come off as a coincidence, at least enough so to give her friends some plausible deniability. So she just had to trust that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie would be able to handle themselves, although picking fights with Guto and Hydia had not really been part of the plan.

With a reluctant breath, she turned and joined Sugarcoat at the Window, hopping through the Schrift-created opening in space that instantly led from the rooftop of Guto’s tower to the interior meeting room of the Coalition's embassy building.

Once through, Twilight immediately noticed something was wrong. Her squadmates were all frozen in place, looks of horror on their faces. Fleur was breathing hard, struggling to stay conscious as she sat on the floor, looking too tired to be scared, but still bearing wide eyes.

“Oh... crap...” Sugarcoat said as she and Twilight both saw the source of the issue.

Cinch was still alive, but being held casually by the throat by a strong, crimson hand.

“Good, you’re back,” said Tirek, First Espada and King of Hueco Mundo, as he reclined on the meeting desk of the chamber’s second floor overhang as he gazed down at Twilight and her squad. Cinch made a gurgling noise as he dangled her off her feet, and Tirek cast a glance at her, “Ah, you can close your quaint little portal now.”

He dropped Cinch, who coughed, sputtered, and scrambled away from him as Tirek crossed his thick arms over his chest and watched Twilight. Cinch, hands shaking, made a gesture and the Window closed behind Twilight.

She had her bow out, still, but didn’t dare raise it yet. Fortunately none on her team were stupid enough to try anything either, and whether either smart enough, or scared enough, to stay silent.

“How...?” Twilight manages to say slowly, to which Tirek let out a rich chuckle that was entirely too cold to be friendly.

“Did you truly imagine you could make this much of a scene in my home and not draw my attention? If I hadn’t already had such an interesting day, I’d have shown up sooner,” Tirek said as he gave them all his unblinking gaze, and a growing, crushing rise of his spiritual pressure. Twilight felt her breath quicken at the feel of that insanely heavy reiatsu, remembering it well from the assault on Las Noches.

“I see. And what are your intentions?” Twilight asked, and Tirek’s lips curled in a spine tingling smile.

“Whatever they are, could you do anything about them, Twilight Sparkle?” he asked, then chuckled again like a rumbling cave and hopped down to the meeting chamber’s ground level, causing all of the Quincy to step back except for Twilight, who took a step forward to stand protectively between her team, Fleur, and Tirek.

“If you’re trying to scare us... well, good job. But if you were here to kill us for our actions, why bother talking at all? You’d just attack us, wouldn’t you?”

“You don’t know me very well,” Tirek stated simply, “I am quite capable of enjoying a little banter before a slaughter. That being said... let’s say you chose an auspicious day to pull this stunt, Twilight Sparkle. I’m in good spirits, and I’m choosing to view this as Guto’s personal failure to secure his territory and handle his affairs, rather than a personal attack on my kingdom as a whole.”

His eyes turned to dark slits and his spiritual pressure redoubled upon them like a crushing black hole. Twilight found herself able to stand up to it, her own not inconsequential reiatsu flaring against the storm, but her team almost one and all went to their knees, sweating bullets.

“Rest assured if I decide to take offense to you stealing into Las Noches for your little rescue, there would be nothing but dust left of you and yours, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Then... what do you want with us?” she asked, not dropping her guard, and doing her best to ignore Midnight’s urgings in her mind to launch a preemptive strike.

Tirek gave her a thin smile, one that left her gut churning like ice water.

“Nothing much. I just want you to arrange a little meeting for me. With Sombra.”

Author's Notes:

Rainbow Dash and Applejack will need to step up their game if they want to catch up to Fluttershy, who at this point has two wins over Espada under her belt.

Rainbow: "We would if you gave us any to fight! C'mon, what's with handing Fluttershy and Rarity all the big opponents?"

I know, I know. Just try to be patient, Dash. The Beast Realm will have plenty of things for you gals to fight, and later on I've got some big matchups planned for you.

Applejack: "Personally I'm fine with takin' it easy. Competition' is fine n' all, but I ain't keepin' score when its our friends' lives at stake."

Rainbow Dash: "Fiiiiine, whatever. Just saying, these Enherjar we've been hearing about better be awesome, because I want a real solid one one one fight to show off some new moves I've been working on!"

Ahem, well, I'll certainly try my best to meet your expectations. At any rate, with that out of the way, I hope all of you fine folk reading have enjoyed the chapter, and had a lovely end to 2023. Moving on to 2024, I hope to keep entertaining everyone as we continue through the Beast Realm arc. As always I appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time!

Episode 203: Chainbreaker

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Episode 203: Chainbreaker

Her previous experience with Fluttershy’s ability to soul delve gave Gilda some notion of what to expect. Even so, she wasn’t wholly prepared to be exposed to the cloying stink of so much death in so instant a transition. One moment she’d been standing across from Guto, clashing gazes with her former Espada as Fluttershy tied the golden threads that’d send them to a final confrontation within their own soul, then the very next thing she knew she was surrounded by piles of Hollow corpses in a place of darkness, illuminated only by the faint glow of ebony torches.

She did her best to get her bearings, looking left and right. She stood on hewn stone, and around her, like hills, Hollow after Hollow had been piled high, all of the lesser variety. The stink of their rotting blood was such that it all but coated the ground in a faint miasma. A clatter above startled her and she looked up to see a bridge of more carved stone crossing over the pit-like area she was in, the bridge itself strung between opposing walls of some large, underground catacomb. The clatter had come from more corpses falling down, being tossed there by other Hollows who pushed a cart of wood and bone that itself was laden with dead.

The Hollows wore strange robes of black, not the usual white clothing of Las Noches. Where was she? It wasn’t her memory, clearly.

“Hmph, of all places to see again, that stupid child’s power had to send us here.”

Gilda whirled about just in time to catch Guto’s attack. She didn’t remember drawing it, but her Zanpaktou was in her hand all but instantly, although it was in its sealed state rather than her Resurreccion form, which she noticed she was no longer in. Neither was Guto as he struck, his own sword stabbing for her neck in a straight thrust that she parried up and to the side as she spun away. She growled and retaliated, leaping forward and blurring from view with a Sonido that took her in front of him, but down low as she crouched then slashed up with her full body strength. He braced his sword with both arms and blocked, grunting with effort as she pushed him back into one of the corpse piles.

“Where is this?” she grunted, still straining to push her blade against his, perhaps enough to sink it in, “It isn’t Las Noches.”

His nostrils flared as his mouth twisted in a mocking grimace, “What good would knowing that do you? We are here to kill each other, not explore our pasts!”

To emphasize this, his body flared with a yellow aura that then manifested several Bala around his body that shot down at Gilda from several angles, forcing her to break off from him and dance backwards. She deflected several, but felt the stinging bite as one of the Bala crashed into her stomach and knocked her through one of the corpse piles. She retched as the horrible scent of the rotten viscera got all over her, and she kicked bodies aside as she surged to her feet, clutching her wounded stomach.

Guto, smirking, raised a hand to charge up a Cero... and halted.

A pair of Arrancar with emaciated, thin bodies that were almost skeletal moved across the space between Gilda and Guto. They didn’t look at either of them, as if the battling pair weren’t present. One of them looked younger than the other, a girl with a wild head of gray hair and intensely sparkling green eyes. She was all but pulling her companion along, a scrawny runt of a young man who, if it wasn’t for the eyes, would never have occured to Gilda was the same as the man she hated.

“Keep up, Guto!” said the girl, “We’ve gotta pick the best out of the Pit for Lord Bray. Our offer is gonna be the best, and then we’ll get chosen, you’ll see. Chosen by Lord Bray!”

The smaller Arrancar that was Guto was looking about with trepidation, hand never straying far from the hilt of his dirt coated blade, “We’re not the only ones looking, Gabby, so could you keep it down? If we run into one of the bigger acolytes, we won’t live to be chosen for much of anything.”

“Heheh, always the worrywart. We’re here right as the collectors are dumping the newest bodies. Almost everyone is gonna be busy at mass. We’ve got a head start.”

The young Guto looked at Gabby with a flat stare, “I can never tell if you're optimistic, stupid, or both.”

“Well, you always come with me, so who’s the real stupid one, hmm?” Gabby shot back with a cheeky smile and continued to drag the memory of Guto along until the pair vanished around another towering pile of death, Gabby’s chatter still echoing off of the artificial valleys of Hollow bodies.

Gilda just blinked, then looked at the real Guto, whose lips were pinched in a sour look.

“I really hate that damn girl who convinced us to do this,” Guto said, “I can kill you without needing to be reminded of every damn step I took to get here.”

“Well, can’t say I give the slightest crap about you or your past either,” Gilda said, readying her blade once more, but not quite charging back into the fray, but rather holding a steady stance and eyeing him closely, “But I respect Fluttershy, and she wants me to understand you before I finish you off. Fine. So spit it out. What is this place?”

Guto spat, “You can talk and fight at the same time. I’m not wasting a moment here longer than I have to.”

He came at her in a ferocious deluge of buzzing, Sonido enhanced thrusts that magnified his blade a hundredfold. Gilda kept pace with him, parrying like mad, sparks flying as she worked to keep the tip of his sword from gutting her. As if to further demonstrate his point, Guto spoke as they went through this furious exchange.

“We’re in the depths of ‘Lord’ Bray’s territory. A Privaron Espada, a self-absorbed fool who reached beyond his station, yet was cunning and ruthless enough to survive Tirek’s ire and carve a place for himself far from Las Noches. Tambelon, this rotting city in the ground is called. This lovely place is the Pit, where Bray’s corpse collectors dumped their various finds. We acolytes who served him would pick from the corpse piles to make offerings to Bray.”

He lashed out with a sudden fist that smashed the ground and ripped out a portion of hewn stone over a dozen meters wide and hurled it, with Gilda on it, towards a corpse pile, “We were foolish and devoted enough ourselves to believe he elevated his chosen to positions of luxury and honor.”

Gilda sliced through the stone before it smashed her into the corpse pile and flowed with a blurring motion to appear above Guto, aiming her Zanpaktou down as she charged up a Cero, “Sounds familiar. What, copied your old master’s homework, is that it!?”

Her beam of scarlet power flashed down in a destructive torrent, and Guto flung himself to the side as the beam exploded in a harsh detonation of blood red power. The explosion did more than demolish a good chunk of the corpse laden area around them, it was as if the whole world flickered and suddenly they were standing in Guto’s arena.

There were still bodies, however, only now the bodies were not of old Hollow corpses but freshly slain Arrancar children. The arena was thick with the remnants of the bloody battle where young Arrancar fought to the death as Guto presided over the scene of carnage from his throne. Gilda looked at him with eyes of hot rancor as she pointed at the bodies, and at the image of her bloodied, younger self, shaking from the ordeal.

“We thought you’d elevate us, too. Me, Greta, and how many others!? How could you do all of that to us if you suffered the same?”

Guto briefly looked over the blood soaked arena, nose wrinkling, then eyes hardening, “You think this is the same? You were starving wretches before I came upon you! Afterward, warriors, fed, clothed, and respected as long as you knew your place and obeyed. I never lied about what you were receiving, child. Unlike my so-called ‘master’, who built all he had upon deceiving the weak and desperate.”

There was an immense, acidic hate in Guto’s voice as he spoke, and it was as if the hatred spilled from him in a golden aura that turned the arena around him, bodies and all, into the glitter of gold, “I swore I would never again be weak. Never again be deceived or deceiver. I would surround myself with only the strong, only the loyal, proven by blood.”

Chains of gold emerged from the increasingly metallic arena floor and Gilda jumped up away from them as they came for her. Her blade slashed in a blinding streak as she sliced down golden links and manacles trying to catch her as she dashed up the side wall of the arena. It looked as if she was about to be surrounded, by her own feelings of righteous fury boiled inside her. She reminded herself this was a battle of wills, and Fluttershy had given her this opportunity to use that will to overpower Guto in a way beating him physically simply wouldn’t.

She let her pure anger build within her as she thought of all she, Greta, and countless others endured under Guto, and she let it burst out of her in a thick red storm of blood acid. In this space, just as Guto didn’t need Resurreccion to access his powers of gold and chains, she too did not need to transform to let her acidic blood flow forth in a surging wave. The red acid melted chains and gold alike, and Guto hissed as he had to leap back from the flood. With a sweep of his blade he created a whirlwind of gold dust that solidified into a heap of chains now bearing curved spikes that used their combined mass to hammer through Gilda’s acidic waves of blood.

“Tell me, Gilda, when did I ever lie to you!? From the moment I saw you and Greta’s weak, rail thin bodies alongside countless others, did I once say it would be easy to earn your place!? Did I once utter a word of false compassion!? False frivolity!? I told you that if you survived the harshness of my trials that I would make you strong. So tell me, where was my lie!?”

Even as the gold was tarnished by the corrosive hiss of her acid, the spiked chains came at her like a nest of grasping vines, and Gilda kicked off of the arena wall to dive through the mass. Her sword carved ahead of her in swift swings that cut chains down, even as the spikes cut at her body. In the real world this may have instantly transmuted parts of her into gold, but in this space of mind, soul, and wills, her focus and tempered rage were an armor better than her Hierro. The acidic blood poured over her in a protective shell that melted more gold as she dove through the mass and delivered a punishing knee kick to Guto’s jaw and knocked him through the arena’s opposite wall.

The whole scene cracked and shook like glass, and it was as if both of them were shunted into a new place.

Guto, grunting and rubbing his jaw, used his sword to push himself back up to his feet, even as both he and Gilda looked around at their surroundings.

Gilda saw the same bleak stone walls and floor of the catacombs of Tambelon, but this place was somehow both more dour yet also grand compared to the corpse laden Pit. This chamber could only be described as a temple, with ornate columns of stone carved with skulls and skeletal figures, and walls decorated with altars bearing statuettes of worked stone made in the likeness of an... equine skull?

Around them were dozens of Hollows, some Aduchas-class, others Arrancar, but all wearing thick folds of black robes as they held their heads down and chanted while holding forth stone bowls filled with various parts of what Gilda assumed were once other Hollows.

Walking among these prostrated Hollow worshipers were others in robes adorned with white horns painted upon their hoods, almost all of them Arrancar. These seemingly higher ranked individuals would inspect the “offerings” of those gathered, and by criteria that Gilda couldn’t fathom, they would choose one and bring it forth to the end of the chamber. Here a pair of immense stone doors stood open leading to a stairway that slanted up at a sharp angle, through which Gilda could see what appeared to be the top of some tall structure like an underground tower.

Among those prostrating on the ground, she recognized the younger Guto, and his companion Gabby. Both of their bowls were already empty, if slick with blood from whatever offering they’d obtained in the Pit. Both were also wounded and battered, as if they’d been through a fight.

One of the horn adorned acolytes stepped down from the stairs that led to the exterior tower and approached them, speaking in a thin voice from behind his hood, “The Master has expressed his pleasure at this one’s offerings. They are to be chosen for... elevation.”

Gabby and the young Guto looked at each other, the former sporting a bright grin as she whispered, “Told you we’d make it, Guto. Totally worth a little scuffle.”

“Nearly got killed, you mean, but you’re right, it was worth it. Elevation, finally. No more starving on scraps.”

As the pair moved to rise, the acolyte that had approached them held out a hand wrapped in fraying strips of cloth and shook his head at Guto, “The Master seeks but one to elevate.”

“What? But we both made the same offering!” Guto said, and Gabby was quick to nod her head in agreement.

“That’s right, prelate! We searched together, even fought those who’d have taken our choice offering, and cut the pieces ourselves for the richest centers of reishi. Guto and I couldn’t have made such good offerings if we’d tried to do it alone.”

“It matters not,” responded the prelate, “The Master requires one, and only one.” He pointed to the Zanpaktou both younger Arrancar wore, “Either decide which of you is worthy, or make it so there is only one of you to choose. But do so quickly. The Master is not patient.”

Gabby stared with her mouth twitching in an attempt to form words, but clearly looked utterly confounded by the choice in front of her. Guto’s younger shade gazed at her for a moment, then rolled his eyes and elbowed her, “Stop gawking and go.”

“Huh?”

“You deaf? I said go. You can be chosen this time.”

“No way,” Gabby shook her head, “Nuh-uh, I wouldn’t have made it if I hadn’t had you backing me up all this time. You deserve it more. Food forever, luxury forever, eternal comfort at Lord Bray’s side. I’m just some dumb orphan who wandered in here. You earned being an Arrancar by evolving into it. I’d totally be dead if it wasn’t for you.”

“Yeah, because I’m strong,” Guto insisted, “Which is why I can tough out more than you can. I’ll get another offering another year, and join you in Lord Bray’s tower later.” He glared hard at the prelate, “She’s the chosen. Take her.”

There were mutterings from the other worshippers who weren’t chosen as Gabby, with still some reluctance, stood and followed the prelate up the vast stairs towards the tower beyond. She looked back once as the stone doors closed, leaving Guto behind with the angry stares of other, more jealous acolytes.

As the scene played out, Gilda side-eyed the real Guto, who had watched everything occur with a look of contempt etched on his bronze features.

“Who was this Gabby?”

“An optimistic fool,” Guto replied, barring his sword once more with a feral growl, “And I, no better. All these memories illustrate that I was right to learn my lessons from this place. The weak have no place to complain about their lot, and those with strength are the ones who craft whatever steps the weak must undergo to survive. I resolved to make the steps to survival in my world simple, clear, and without deceit.”

“Save for the lie that you were the only one worthy of following, or with any worth at all,” Gilda said back with scathing heat, and came at him with a potent combination in which she led with her sword carving a trail towards his neck, but then dipped it low to aim for his legs while using her left leg to spin into a kick that’d target his jaw once more.

Guto was almost taken off guard by the switch, but his experience allowed him to catch the shift in Gilda’s stance at the last second and he used his foot to strike the flat of her Zanpaktou and push it into the ground while using his right arm to block her kick. The intercepted kick still struck with concussive force that shook the ground, although this had no affect on the images of the chamber’s memory. Guto pushed off with his arm, knocking Gilda off balance while he slashed down hard with his own Zanpaktou.

She twisted back from the blow, but was a shade too slow, feeling the biting cut that formed down her chest. It was just shallow enough to avoid being critical, but blood flowed all the same as she ran some of that blood over her fingers and flung it at Guto’s face. This did manage to catch him off guard as the blood splattered across his features, and then the acid kicked in, sizzling as he yelled in pain. Gilda rushed him. and cut sideways with both hands on her blade.

He blocked, but the force of the blow sent him flying back through the same stone doors that had been closed earlier, and he crunched right through them and into the stairs. As Gilda charged across the temple floor at him, Guto, eyes red and bloodshot now, glowered towards her and unleashed a storm of Bala that exploded from a cloud of spheres that formed around him.

Gilda’s charge was halted as she was forced to start blocking like crazy, sword a flashing glint as she cut down Bala as fast as she could, but the thick flock of attacks was so intense that one by one shots got through and started weakening her. A knee, an arm, her hip, the side of her face, bit by bit she was struck as Guto laughed and kept firing.

“Say what you will, but I know my strength. From this shithole to Las Noches, I’ve scraped my way higher and higher. Oh, there are those with more power for now. That cocky newcomer Adagio, or old guard like Torch and Catrina. Freaks like Chrysalis or Lament. Even Tirek, who stands as King above all. But none of them, not even Tirek, understand what I do. Real strength is not simply destructive power or fighting skill, it is the ability to force the world to obey your will. Every inch of it. Every iota. No lies, no trickery, just utter, harsh, uncompromising domination. Conquest, in its purest form.”

With his words it was as if each one hammered a golden stamp across the frozen scene in the chamber. Columns, altars, the prostrate acolytes, even the younger version of himself, all were slowly transmuted into effigies of gold. Gilda saw this aura of gold coming at her, and could all but feel Guto’s maddened will in it, seeking to overcome her as chains rose from the scene like blooming sores.

She tried to lash out with both blade and blood, severing chains and melting golden manacles as they came, but it was like trying to push back a tide with a shovel. It was as if Guto was drawing power from seeing images of his past, reinforcing his own personal delusions bit by bit that empowered the energy he was using to chip away at Gilda’s own will of indignant rage.

With a feral shout she felt herself getting dragged down as if sinking into murky water, all of it liquid gold. Only encasing herself in a cocoon of melting blood did she keep from being overcome entirely as she felt herself being pulled down by countless chains and then slammed bodily into a solid surface with the kind of force that would split bedrock.

Coughing, feeling the pain mounting inside her very soul, she gave a roar and let her blood burst outward around her in a whirlpool that joined with her blade as she cut in a circular slash, finally severing enough chains to stand. By now the scene had changed around her and saw the younger Guto of the past digging through piles of corpses in the Pit once more, apparently seeking another offering.

In a flash of flickering imagery, she saw past Guto being surrounded by other acolytes in the Pit, ones whose eyes glowed with jealous anger as they set upon him half a dozen to one.

“There’s always going to be weak souls who act like animals to get what they want,” spoke the real Guto from behind Gilda as he advanced on her, gesturing at the scene of his younger self desperately fending off his multitude of attackers, “They’ll follow any master who offers them enough scraps from his table and tells them what they want to hear. No loyalty. No discipline. Just dogs, fighting over pieces of meat.”

As the young Guto of the past barely managed to cut down one of his enemies, making the rest of the pack back off for a moment, he looked up to see several higher ranked acolytes, the prelates, walking across the bridge above. Gilda could see them as one lifted the hood of their robes; Gabby, gazing down at Guto with an expression completely stone-like and guarded compared to her open brightness and energy from before.

Gilda could see the hope in the younger Guto’s eyes as he reached up towards her, as if asking for help, and his expression faltered as she pulled her hood back up and walked away across the bridge with her fellow prelate without looking back.

She heard Guto, the real Guto, step up right behind her, voice drenched in bitterness, “Reliance on anything other than yourself breeds weakness.”

Without hesitation, Gilda slammed her elbow backwards with all the force she could muster, and managed to catch him in the sternum with a thunderous blow that swept away the imagery around them. Blood boiled and sizzled around her arm and sword as she brought it around and sliced towards him, and he blocked with a blade now covered in golden chains, more of the clanking, glittering manacles rising around him like a cloak of living serpents. With a bellow she raised her Zanpaktou and brought it down with tremendous speed and force, her will laced with denial of his words as much as fury at this attempts at justifying himself.

“So what!? You had it rough!? You got betrayed!? What does any of that do to make the shit you did to us right!?”

Again and again he managed to block her attacks, but he was driven back step by step as the world around them cracked and split like a crumbling mountain, replaced by growing sea of bubbling blood amid melting towers of gold, all in the shape of either Guto’s tower, or the strange, conical ziggurat that Gilda recognized as Bray’s tower. They both landed atop one of those ziggurat copies of Bray’s tower, the air fetid with the stink of melting metal as the burning sea of acid blood beneath them now surged slowly higher, while the sky above was black as Hueco Mundo’s.

“All you did was take what one man did to you, and copied the same style of abuse and control, and thought changing around a few details somehow made you better than this Bray asshole,” Gilda said past clenched teeth, to which Guto sneered. His body had several burns across its bronze chest from her blood acid and a few slashes of her blade that had gotten through, but she felt his reiatsu and will holding against hers as if like a walking corpse that refused to die.

“You have no idea how much better than Bray I am!” he said in a hiss of heavy breaths, eyes twitching, “If I were like him, you’d have been dead ages go, or worse. You think Gabby betrayed me!? It’s so much worse than that...”

The roof of the ziggurat beneath them suddenly flared open, and Gilda found herself dropping down alongside Guto as they both landed in the lavish scene of an immaculate throne room that looked as if it belonged more in a cathedral than in an underground catacomb. The tall, vaulted ceiling had a dozen chandeliers hanging down decorated with horse skulls that bore flickering torches of red light. Red carpeting covered the floor, save for the space near the throne of tall, black stone where a massive circle was cut into the floor in the center of which was a stone slab stained red with blood.

Guto’s younger self stood with a broken arm and a bloodied face, his body in it’s Resurreccion form. Gilda was surprised to see the young Guto’s Resurreccion form was creating chains, but they were not gold, but dark iron. He faced off against a huge, hunchbacked figure wearing incredibly ornate black robes. The Hollow, no doubt an Arrancar from the partially human face Gilda could see beneath a mask of a equine’s skull bearing long, curled horns, let out a raucous, dry laugh.

“Geheheh, did you really sneak into my sanctum, boy, to talk to one of my meat sacks? Hah! Hahaah! That’s so sweet it makes me want to bring her in for you. What was your name, meat?”

“Guto, bastard, now where is Gabby!? I don’t care about giving you any more offerings, I just want to get an answer as to why she’s ignored me every time I see her outside your tower.”

Again the Arrancar, Lord Bray, gave a guffawing laugh, his whole body shaking with the sound of rattling bones. Gilda saw that his hands were thin and skeletal, and carried a Zanpaktou shaped like some long staff that ended in a pair of spiked iron clubs that split and curved like horns. “Geheh, you’ll get an answer alright. Why not give an answer to a dead man walking? Hahah, this is the funniest thing I’ve seen in ages, and you’re just going to give me a free show, like all the other suckers down below.”

Bray tapped his staff on the ground, and a burst of sickly pale violet energy flew outward from him like smoke.

Soundlessly Arrancar wearing the robes of prelates entered from shadowed side passages, among them Gabby, who only slightly looked Guto’s way as she entered. Guto’s past self looked at her and took a deep breath, chains poised to strike at Bray but not taking his eyes off his former companion, “Gabby. I need to know. Why won’t you speak to me? I get it if you have duties or something, or are forbidden from helping lesser acolytes, but you at least owe me a straight answer so I understand.”

Silence greeted him, and the young Guto’s expression grew ever more desperate, “Answer me! Say something!”

But all that happened was that Bray threw back his masked, robed head and laughed so loud and jovially it rattled the iron chandeliers above, “Bwahahaa! Oh, it’s so rich! I can’t take it! Hey, meat sack formerly known as Gabby.”

Gabby turned like a doll on strings, eyes unblinking, much to the dawning horror on young Guto’s face.

“Yes, Master,” said Gabby with a tone lacking any and all of her previous, bright inflection and passion.

“Cut off your own arm.”

“As you command,” she said, not even blinking as she drew her Zanpaktou and raised it to strike at her arm. However a series of iron chains snapped forward and wrapped around her and her blade arm, yanking Gabby back towards the young Guto as he held her suspended amid his chains.

“What the hell is this!?” Guto’s past self breathed, “What did you do to them? To her!?”

Bray spread out his left hand as if making an inviting gesture, his shadowed face beneath his mask grinning, “Elevated them, just like all of you simple minded suckers wanted. Free of pain, free of fear, free of hunger. I mean, sure, also free of thought and personal will, but hey, small price to pay for never having to worry about anything ever again, am I right? Geheheh!”

The horror on past Guto’s face was mirrored by Gilda, who knew that there were no shortage of terrible souls among Hollowkind... but from what she was seeing here, this Bray gave the likes of Grogar and Chrysalis a run for their money when it came to being awful. She wondered if Adagio, in her search for allies among the Privaron Espada, had made contact with Bray? Gilda wasn’t privy to just everyone Adagio was planning, but had a feeling that if she survived this battle, she needed to have a chat with the Sixth Espada.

Bray pointed at young Guto, “Now then, let's elevate you, shall we? Take him!”

The other prelates, nearly twenty total, all moved as one to rush Guto’s past self. He, in turn, spun around and fled as fast as he could, his body all but turning in a streak of motion with Sonido as he dragged Gabby along with him. The scene all but broke apart in a blur, leaving Gilda now standing on an island of Hueco Mundo’s white sands amid the sea of bubbling red blood that was consuming the towers of gold. This sandy island of bare white sands, clearly a fragment of a past scene from Hueco Mundo itself, had the young Guto standing upon it with a silently struggling Gabby still bound in iron chains.

“Snap out of it...” the young Guto said, reaching out a hand to touch Gabby’s head, “Whatever he did to you, you can’t be like this forever.”

But still mindlessly operating under the last orders Bray had spoken, Gabby still struggled to break out of his chains. He had her bound tightly, however, with her Zanpaktou held separately from her hand so she couldn’t release it’s power. For long minutes the image of Guto’s past remained still, until he brought one of his arm blades to Gabby’s chest, poised to strike.

“I couldn’t do it.”

This was the real Guto, standing on the opposite side of the memory’s image as he looked at the scene, watching his past self lower his arm.

“I remembered too many times she had gotten me through another day serving Bray, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I should have. Gabby wouldn’t want to live that way. But I was still weak. Yet this was the turning point, where I vowed to cut out my weakness, and surpass anything Bray could hope to create.”

Gilda saw the golden aura suffice the young Guto’s body as he screamed a noise of pain and rage, his iron chains flowing into shining gold. This gold wrapped around Gabby as well, as both the sands, and her, were turned into solid, eternal gold. The young Guto left her there, like an enshrined monument, untouchable. The last thing Gilda saw of the image of Guto’s past was his changed self marching across the sands towards an image of distant Las Noches.

With a sweep of her sword and her will she banished the image, the ground shaking as the island grew in size from the melting sea of blood. Conjured by her own memory, the sands around them swirled up to take the shapes of young Arrancar, all of them exhausted and bloodied from dozens of wounds carved upon their bodies as they relentlessly drilled in combat with one another, overseen by older Arrancar who swiftly delivered blows against any who wouldn’t get back up to keep training. A young Gilda and Greta, more bruised than the others, received the attention of Guto himself, the past image delivering particularly punishing strikes with his sheathed Zanpaktou whenever either girl so much as showed a moment of hesitation.

“I remember what you built, Guto,” said Gilda as the images dissolved into sand, the sands shifting to become scene after scene. Her and Greta as children with hands rubbed raw from pushing immense blocks up a dune. Her with her head bowed to the floor of Guto’s chambers, prostrate in apology for some perceived failure as a merciless foot kicked her in the ribs repeatedly. Greta and her watching another batch of children forced to fight to the death in the arena, and Greta looking away as Gilda blocked Greta from Guto’s view so he couldn’t witness her weakness.

“You didn’t surpass Bray. You became him.”

Her words stabbed into Guto as hard as any blade could have, and his teeth flashed in a grimace of fresh anger. Gold flowed from around his feet and slid up his body like armor, chains rattling in a chorus of hungry denial as his will howled forth akin to a wave of spiritual pressure. Gilda felt the world shift as the golden towers rising from the blood sea started to rise alongside Guto’s ire as he came at her in a golden streak. His sword was coated in liquid gold as both blade and chains struck in a savage flurry.

“What place have you earned that you can judge me!? I am nothing like Bray! Everything I have I took openly and with my own two hands! My warriors worship me because I am strong, not because of false promises! Who are you to tell me otherwise, Gilda!?”

She did not retreat from his brutal assault. Pain was slowly ceasing to mean anything to her as she understood better and better than in this place of conjoined souls, it was her desires and will that manifested through her blade more than any matter of raw strength. She met Guto’s sword with her own, steaming blood bursting from her back and arms in wild arcs of acidic speed. Shining gold and ruby red clashed in a tempest of matched ferocity between the two as they exchanged equal blows with equally relentless intensity.

“I am someone who lived through your reign, and suffered every inch of it believing it was to make me strong. Only now, after learning so much about what real strength is from the human who bested both me and you do I understand that all the shit you did was never to make us strong, but to run away from your own weakness. In all these years did you ever even think about going back and taking Bray down yourself!?”

Her words were sharply punctuated by a torrent of acid blood coiling in a wave around her sword as she pushed a thrust past his guard, severing a score of gold chains in the process, and a geyser-like burst of the crimson liquid exploded upon him like a pressure hose. Guto was thrown back, so fast and so hard that his body created twin waves across the blood sea as he was thrown into the base of one of the golden towers.

His body indented into the side of the tower, bending it and causing the whole edifice to lean. Gilda flew after him with a prodigious leap, raising her sword and bringing it down in a massive vertical slice. Guto’s chains sprawled forth both from his body and the tower and coiled in front of him in their hundreds of multitudes. Golden sparks flew as Gilda’s sword and the wave of blood that came with it was halted by the chain’s, Guto’s seething will refusing to give in. She felt it, a seething ocean of ire, ambition, and voracious hunger for power and recognition, all covering his shame and fear.

“Go back...? I have always intended to go back, when the time is right, when I have all of the power, and the perfect army,” Guto said past bloodied lips as he reached back and placed one of his hands on the tower behind him, “When everything was perfect, I’d march on his pathetic hole in the ground, drag him from it, drag him to her grave of gold, and devour him right in front of Gabby. That’s why... that’s why... I’LL NEVER LOSE!”

The tower trembled and melted into rivers of gold that flowed into him as a will of pure, mad desire pulsated from Guto’s core. For a man who lost what little he had, the singular obsession to control and grab hold of power in all of its forms was the only thing left to drive his soul. The heart of his power as a Hollow; conquest.

The gold formed into a new solid shape around his body, giant wings and talons spreading as the image of a tremendous eagle appeared in the air. Gold chains flowed like contrails from feathers sharp as blades, and eyes stained red with red focused on Gilda as the massive eagle flew into her with streaks of destructive light flowing from both chains and talons as they struck. There was barely time to register the impact as she was thrown down into the blood sea, creating a towering stream of blood as she sunk down into scarlet depths.

Yet this sea was hers, made from her scathing, long denied feelings of abuse and inadequacy, and tempered by the growing belief forged in her by Fluttershy that strength did not come from one source alone. She could feel Fluttershy, like a distant shred of sunlight, and knew the girl was watching all of this.

I still don’t know if I’ll ever understand the seemingly bottomless well of your empathy and kindness, Fluttershy. Even now, understanding his soul, I can only respond by putting everything I have into taking him down. I’m a Hollow, and I thought the source of my power as one was my rage. Maybe it still is, but I don’t think it's alone anymore. I don’t have a word for what I’m feeling, but it’s telling me to break them... all of these chains that he put on us, and got put on him.

The blood around her of this seemingly depthless sea began to glow brighter red and fill with power alongside a deep, thrumming noise like a colossal heartbeat. Gilda felt as if she was melting into that blood, and that heartbeat, even as she felt herself rising faster and faster towards the surface.

This feeling is telling me to shatter every chain I ever see!

The golden eagle that Guto had become circled the blood sea in search of Gilda’s body, and saw the stirring of the ruddy waves just a millisecond before the blood erupted upwards in a maelstrom funnel that crackled with emotion and power. In the span of moments the blood took form, gained definition, becoming a powerfully muscled yet lithe feline body with glittering ruby claws. A darker saffron mane flickered with power and hissed with heat around a lion’s face with gleaming purple eyes. A long tail ending in a spear point cracked the air with a pressure wave of force as the lion roared, Gilda’s heart and power at its center.

“You already lost to Fluttershy, Guto. Can’t you see why!?”

With the surging speed of a peal of lightning the red lion pounced with claws of rippling blood. The eagle screamed defiance and swooped forth to meet the lion in a blaze of golden light. Claws and talons flashed with the clash of the two Hollows’ desires, one to consume and conquer in order to overcome long buried fears and shame, the other to rip apart the very symbol of the abusive power that stirred that destructive cycle. The air was rent asunder with the sound of tearing metal as those ruby claws melted through golden talons, and the lion buried its fangs deep into the eagle's neck.

Defiant, the eagle, even as it bled gold, stabbed its beak into the lion’s breast, talons raking its stomach in a wash of bleeding gold power.

“And why is that!? I refuse to be conquered! I will conquer instead! That is what it means to be strong in this world! And I am strong.”

The two tumbled across the air, smashing through golden towers as they tore upon one another in ever growing fury. The lion’s jaws tore chunks away from the eagle and roared as claws battered the eagle's chest with ragged wounds. Gold splattered over the lion’s face as chains wrapped its muzzle and neck, squeezing tight as the bound combatants slammed across the surface of the blood ocean, arching into another tower that shattered like fragile glass.

“Maybe you are. But not enough to get over your obsession with control, and that means you don’t even have the strength to let go of the chains you put on others, let alone the ones you wrapped yourself up in. Which is why I’ll break them, along with you.”

Rising from the fragmented remains of the tower they just plowed through, the pair stabbed and slashed at each other in a blizzard of brutal blows, tearing gouges across each other's bodies until Guto's eagle form broke away from the lion and flew low across the blood ocean at high speed. He streaked between other golden towers, and chains spiraled from his wings to hook into those towers while Gilda pursued him with her lion's form bounding across the air. The chains from Guto's wings hauled upon the forms of half a dozen of the golden towers and tore them upwards into the air, and one after another he spun them about to fling the at the lion, each tower filled with his conviction to conquer and control.

The lion's throat issued forth a challenging roar and with strength born of the will to shatter and break the chains of control, she did not even try to dodge the towers being flung at her. Claws flowed with ruby blood and power, seemingly extending into blades of scarlet might. They slashed into the towers as they came at her, and the golden edifices of Guto's making were broken and severed one after another in cacophonous showers or broken gold fragments.

Screeching fury, the eagle banked around and, wings folded, dove upon the oncoming lion. More chains bloomed from the eagle's wings, a rain of manacles that converged on the lion. In response, the lion did not even slow down, rushing up to meet the eagle in a final charge of determined fury and focus.

As the lion that was Gilda spun her body in a tearing corkscrew motion, her claws tore a path through the flurry of chains that surrounded her. She then impacted with the golden eagle that was Guto. His beak tried to pierce her chest, but her spinning motion deflected the blow into her shoulder, and in turn her glowing crimson claws ripped through the wings of the eagle as they tumbled together and then spun downward. In a final blast of supreme, savage motion she drilled into him, claws like a blender that sent waves of blood red shredding across his body as both of them flew downward right back to the island of white sands. In a final impact, both gold and blood burst apart in a steaming shower of sparks, and just like that the inner world went silent and still. Gold towers turned to faded, cracked stone and fell into the sea of placid, graying blood.

Gilda stood above Guto’s body, lion and eagle gone, just her sword now piercing through his chest as it pinned him to the sands below.

Guto, breathing shallowly, looked at the sword through his chest, and exhaled slowly, “...Fuck... I keep losing... to Bray... to that human girl... now you. Why do I keep losing... always losing...”

“Yeah, sucks, doesn't it? That’s how it goes when you don’t learn from anything and just pretend to be great without honestly looking at yourself and your screw ups. I was lucky that Fluttershy got to me early enough before the cycle went any further and I became another Bray, just like you did,” Gilda said, face showing relief, and exhaustion, both in roughly equal measure. She looked up and then said, “You watching this, right Fluttershy?”

A small mote of golden light appeared, and from it a translucent growth of lines appeared until the shape of Fluttershy was sketched in like a glowing pencil drawing. The girl wore a heavy cast of solemn understanding on her soft features, “I have.”

The world around them seemed to let out its own exhaled sigh, a rattling shudder, followed by a cold wind. Fluttershy looked down at Guto, “What transpired here is as it would have been in the real world. A mortal wound.”

“Hmph... as if I needed you to tell me that...” Guto said, spitting blood out of his mouth, and turning a hard stare towards Gilda, “You know what comes next. Don’t disappoint me by wasting the opportunity.”

Gilda growled, kneeling down and pressing the sword a little harder into him, “Even in death, you can’t get over yourself, can you?”

“Well, you did say I became Bray... and Bray is an utter ass...” Guto said, his breathing slowing to a crawl, “So don’t make the same mistake.”

“I won’t,” Gilda said, eyes shifting to Fluttershy, “You don’t have to watch this, you know.”

Fluttershy gave the barest of nods, “I know, but I intend to. I mean to work towards peace with Hollows, and I can’t do that by averting my eyes from Hollows. Do as you feel you must, Gilda. I won’t look away from you. And Guto... you were a wretched person, but I won’t look away from you or what made you. I will tell you this much, before you’re gone...”

Fluttershy’s eyes held a radiant ocean within them as her voice held the sincerity of a promise, “I will see to Bray, and if possible, find a way to restore Gabby.”

“Huh...” Guto breathed out one last time before going still, his face showing a moment of bewilderment, as if he truly couldn’t understand the human girl and whatever emotions drove her.

Then, with time short and the inner world crumbling, Gilda picked Guto’s body up and brought it to her mouth. Fluttershy kept her word and did not look away as Gilda did as Hollows did, and proceeded to eat. Amid the bloody affair, Gilda felt Guto’s fading essence and power seep into her with each bite. Just as delivering the deathblow in this inner world had translated into very real world consequences, so too was consuming Guto’s body no different than if she’d done so in the spirit world.

By the time Gilda’s conscious mind snapped back to physical space within her own body, standing upon the sands of Las Noches, she’d nearly consumed him all. In the real world she was still connected to Guto through Fluttershy, but the process of consumption had led to his body losing chunks of itself in conjunction with each of her bites, with his flesh dissolving into crimson streams that flowed into her until nothing was left but a few scraps of clothing and fragments of dust that joined the sand.

Fluttershy let go of the golden threads that had tied them together and let out a long breath, clasping her hands together briefly and closing her eyes for a moment before looking at Gilda, “Will you be alright?”

Gilda almost laughed, but now that she was back in her body she was feeling all of the damage she’s taken from taking on Greta now layered on top of the strain placed on her by facing and defeating Guto within the arena of their own souls. While she could feel Guto’s power merging with hers in a settling quiver, it wasn’t as if all of her injuries were going to be erased. Yet even so, she let that power flow, and her spiritual pressure rise from her. She couldn’t afford to rest quite yet.

“I’ll be fine,” she said, turning to face Greta.

Greta looked on with a face drained of color and instead painted with shock. She stared at the space Guto had occupied a few moments ago, and seemed to just sag in place, collapsing onto one knee as she breathed heavily, “He lost... he lost...? How? This can’t be happening. Lord Guto doesn’t lose. He’s the greatest leader and warrior among us. Other Espada are higher only by power alone, not from skill or discipline...”

A deeply exhausted and frustrated sigh escaped Gilda as she knelt down in front of her friend and put a hand on Greta’s shoulder, “That was what he wanted all of us to see him as, so we’d follow him forever and prop up all the ego he’d built around himself to escape how much he hated himself for not being able to stand up to a Hollow named Bray.”

“Bray...?”

“A dead man walking, if I have my say,” Gilda stated flatly, and cast her eyes towards Guto’s... now her, tower, she supposed. Her’s, if she could get control of the situation. Guto’s army of warriors had scattered around the top of the tower, here Gilda could no longer sense any fighting. Had Twilight’s team managed to escape, then? That was good, but it meant all of those Arrancar warriors could now be turning their attention towards the fact that their Espada’s reiatsu had vanished, and Gilda’s own reiatsu had just risen higher by similar proportion.

On top of that, Pinkie Pie and Hydia’s reiatsu remained clashing within the remains of the arena, and it felt to Gilda like that fight was reaching a feverish pitch.

“Greta,” she said, “You heard it yourself that Guto accepted my challenge and the conditions of it of Fluttershy acting as a proxy to link our souls. You know then that his loss to her, then to me, is legitimate.”

Her friend’s face twisted with too many conflicting emotions to count, but she nodded, reluctance strong in her voice, “I heard, and saw. You won... against me, and...him.” She shuddered, and forced herself back to her feet, holding back her emotions, “By right that makes you his successor.”

“Tirek will need to rank my new power, but yes, by right, I can claim Guto’s seat, and horde,” Gilda said, keeping her own tone free of any hard edges, meeting Greta’s eyes with as much of a level stare as she could manage, “Greta, I’m not Guto, and I don’t want to be. I won’t command you. Instead I’ll ask you, help me get the others under control.”

“What of the human still fighting Hydia?” Greta asked, and Gilda shrugged.

“What about her? Hydia and Pinkie can finish their fight. I don’t want any of us interfering with that,” she shot Fluttershy a meaningful look, indicating that applied to Fluttershy, too. The human girl simply return her a small, knowing smile.

“I understand. I have no fear that Pinkie is going to lose.”

“Makes one of us,” Gilda said, “Hydia might have been lower ranked than Guto, but she’s a whole unique bag of nasty on her own, and not sure your giggly friend is as strong as you are, Fluttershy.”

“If there is one thing nobody should ever do, it’s underestimate Pinkie Pie,” Fluttershy replied simply, to which Gilda shrugged.

“And if there’s anyone who’s word I’ll take without much question, it’s yours, Fluttershy,” she said, watching the distant Arrancar warriors carefully. Some remained to secure the tower, but many more were filing back down to either surround the remnants of the arena, or surround the area she, Greta, and Fluttershy stood in. There was hesitation in the movements of the warriors, as if they expected to see their Espada, Guto, appear before them from somewhere, and were only growing more confused by his absence.

“Right, let’s get this over with,” she said, mostly to herself, then to Fluttershy, “I’m going to want to have a serious talk with you about Bray and that remark you made about restoring Gabby. But right now, I have to clean up this mess. Stick close to me, and hopefully I can get my former comrades to not dogpile us for killing their Espada.”

"Are they likely to do that?" asked Fluttershy, showing a hint of concern, although whether it was for her own safety, Gilda's, or the well being of Guto's former warriors whom they might need to fight was hard to tell.

"They won't," Greta said without enthusiasm, but also certainty. "As long as I tell them... it was a fair win."

For a moment or two she and Gilda shared a long stare of silent understanding. Greta had the ability to very much ruin Gilda and Fluttershy's victory if she simply incited Guto's warriors to violence by stating that Guto was killed by some manner of treachery or foul play, rather than a fair challenge. Even with her strength increased and some of her stamina restored from consuming Guto, there was little chance Gilda could take on hundreds of Arrancar warriors all at once, and Fluttershy was too drained to make up the difference if it came to a fight.

Greta shook her head, "I'll tell the truth. I had my chance to kill you in the arena, and you beat me. I'm not a backstabber, anyway. But once this is done I don't know if I plan to stick around. I have to... think."

"I get it," Gilda said, "Believe me, I get it. Work it out in your head, Greta, and whatever you eventually decide to do, hopefully I'll still be around for us to hash it out."

Because, besides the challenge ahead of her of trying to take command of Guto's horde while somehow trying to alleviate all the lessons he'd hammered into their heads, there was the entire other matter of Adagio's ambitions, Tirek's invasion of Equestria, and now Bray to deal with all on the horizon. Gilda almost had to laugh as she considered the number '10' etched onto her body, likely soon to be a different number. She'd striven so hard to become an Espada, only now to understand how little that title mattered in light of all challenges ahead of her and the source of real strength needed to overcome them.

But somehow, looking at Fluttershy and Greta by her side, Gilda had a feeling they might just make it.

Episode 204: The Nitty Gritty

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Episode 204: The Nitty Gritty

It wasn’t as if Rarity had been expecting Hell itself to be a picnic, but she was rapidly reaching a limit on just how much concentrated awfulness she was willing to tolerate within a single, twenty-four hour period. Or however long it had been since she had arrived in this filth encrusted city which, as far as she could tell, was actively trying to scrub any sense of decency out of the mindset of those who walked its streets. Few of the buildings crudely carved from stone had anything resembling doors or windows, aside from rough openings that rarely had any kind of covering. This meant that whatever debauched and depraved forms of fun local Sinners came up with to have in the “privacy” of their own homes was quite audible, and echoed across every street, lending the city an ever churning ambiance of screams and moans that hung in the air with every step.

Worse was the smell. Rarity didn’t know Tartarus’ population, but however many thousands might reside here, the city had nothing resembling a waste disposal system, nor bathing amenities. The pungent stink of so many humans cramped together with no way to deal with their own waste or clean themselves, combined with the regularity of violence spilling blood at any opportunity, created such a thick fog of overwhelming stench that Rarity had crafted a mask of finely woven crystal over her nose and lower face like a veil to attempt to filter some of it out. It... sort of worked, at least a little.

Setting aside the issue of Tartarus’ foul atmosphere, it was practically impossible for her to walk fifty feet without having to defend herself from some sludge-brained moron of a Sinner who didn’t quite seem to get the notion through their skulls that she was not to be trifled with! She kept a perpetual line of crystalline weaponry floating about her in a scarlet cloud, like a glittering and lethal school of fish. Whenever someone inevitably tried to jump her from the blood coated shadows of some alleyway, they were usually shorn into giblets or impaled before they got within ten feet of her. It was at the point she barely even looked at their faces as she went about her business, searching the cobbled together walkways of Tartarus’ westernmost habitation block.

She was in search of somewhere in particular, a place Cozy had told her of after Rarity had agreed to a few favors. Favors were, by and large, a potent currency among Sinners, as Hell lacked the kind of natural resources one could use to base any other kind of economy. At least, depending on how desperate one got. Rarity, as a new arrival, was still debating with herself just how desperate she was getting. Hunger and thirst assaulted her every minute now, so she surmised she’d been here long enough to truly be feeling the bite of her body’s desire for sustenance it could no longer find, but also no longer die from.

She believed she could stand up to the increasing pangs of agonizing need. Her resolve wasn’t about to break. She certainly wasn’t planning to assuage that pain in the manner Hell’s denizens did. Having seen it at the place Cozy and her so-called ‘Legion’ had carved out for themselves as a personal fortress, Rarity still felt queasy. Bereft of food or liquid of any normally natural kind, Rarity had swiftly discovered that Sinners took full advantage of the fact that their bodies regenerated and could not truly die. It disgusted her, but it seemed like if one spent enough time here, one might not balk so much at the origin of the meat one eats or what manner of liquid fills one's cup. The one thing the Sinners had in infinite supply was, horrifically, the meat and blood of their fellow Sinners.

She planned to escape this wretched place long before she ever got close to being that desperate. Hunger and thirst be damned.

After about the fifth attack of local, grubby ruffians that she left in shreds behind her, Rarity finally found what she was looking for. Cozy had described the location as a long hut of laced together bones, sitting under a cleared area beneath several swaying bridges between clusters of buildings, like a bleached out carcass left too long in the sun. Bone was used for plenty of decorations around Tartarus, Rarity noted, but few of the buildings themselves were formed wholly from it. Finally coming across the bridge in question, she looked down to see just such a hut. The bones were twinned together by straps of... well, it wasn’t cloth, and Rarity, with a resigned sigh, guessed it had to be skin. While most of the bones in the hut’s construction were human sized, she spotted a few that were larger, or more deformed, as if from something hulking or mutated.

Given she’d seen Hollows like Typhon here in Hell, perhaps others resided here that lacked a human form? She tried not to think too hard about it as she jumped down from the edge of the rocky cleft the bridge was strung along, and landed in front of the hut. A rather silly looking picket fence of bones surrounded the hut, and a post with a skull upon it had a slate of stone hanging from its mouth, with a sign carved into it.

‘Trespassers will be donating future construction materials!’

“Hmph, lovely,” Rarity said to herself, opening the little, creaking bone gate that led through the picket fence, and proceeded to approach the door. The door itself was mostly fashioned from lashed together leg bones, which Rarity knocked on a few times while allowing her flotilla of escorting weapons to hover a bit further behind her. She hadn’t bothered summoning her knights in force, but was ready to spring them out if this proved to be more trouble than it was worth.

There was a scrabbling sound from behind the door, along with a muffled, guttural muttering. Soon, one of the bones in the door slid aside and a single, irritated red eye peered out at Rarity. A voice as coarse as gravel said, “Did I not make the sign big enough, or is English not your language, lady?”

“Would you be named Ahgg, by any chance?” Rarity asked back, ignoring the man’s comments. The single red eye narrowed at her, and she heard a large body shift aggressively behind the door.

“If I am, who’s asking? Speak up fast, because I’m this close to deciding to add your bones to my increasing collection I’m using to make a summer home on the Fourth Layer.”

Rarity casually hovered some of her weapons closer, several blades flipping horizontal to aim at the door with a razor air of menace, “You’re welcome to make the attempt, but before we spend too much time posturing, I’ll introduce myself. My name is Rarity, and Cozy Glow told me where to find you. I am to understand that you owe her certain... favors.”

“...Shit,” was the reply after a slow, poignant second. She heard the rattle of bones as something shifted behind the door and it opened a creak, showing a shadowed face attached to a hunched over, broad body, still cloaked in the hut’s gloom. “The fuck does that pint-sized terror want now?”

“Ah, it isn’t what she wants, but rather what I want, dear fellow,” Rarity said, managing a diplomatic tone despite the fact that a part of her was eager to just get this business done with so she could return to the Legion’s base. Not because it was all that much better than the rest of the city, but because every second she left Blueblood there on his own, she worried something might happen to him. She still was far from trusting Cozy Glow, and her gang of micreants had not left the greatest impression.

Ahgg’s single red eye, set more in the center of his face than Rarity had expected, flickered over her with critical scrutiny, “You’re not one of hers, are you? Too clean. Too clean for Hell. You just got here. Heh... hahaha... did Cozy snatch you up, fresh from the Gate?”

“Something like that,” Rarity said, “Now are you going to let me in, or are we to conduct business here on your doorstep? I know we’re in Hell, but some manners would not go unappreciated, Mister Ahgg.”

“Drop the ‘mister’ crap, girl. I’m one of the least respectable assholes you’ll meet down here, and trust me, clean and frilly thing like you doesn’t want to see what I’ve got in my hut,” he said as he slipped outside the door to join her. Rarity only caught a faint glimpse of the hut’s interior as he did so, along with a wafting gust of scents form within, and she swallowed to keep bile down. There was a distinct smell of decay, but somehow mixed with a burning chemical air that made her nostrils twitch. She saw briefly what might have been tables lined with scraps of what she suspected were body parts and bones in various states of cleaning before the door closed behind Ahgg and she got a full look at him.

He wasn’t human. She wasn’t entirely sure what he was. Hollow? Perhaps, but she didn’t see anything resembling a conventional Hollow hole or skull mask. He had a body of soot black skin clad in rags that was probably someone else’s skin at one point or another. He had four legs and four arms, all ending in clawed points, save for the two uppermost arms that ended in more conventional “human” hands. His broad body bore a head of brutish countenance, with a mouth jutted out with large, white tusks. A single red eye burned from beneath a furrowed brow, his head topped with short, fuzzy black fur.

He held his body in a hunch, but once outside he straightened up to a height that towered a good two feet above Rarity’s head height as he crossed his arms and looked down at her, “So get on with it, girlie, and quit staring at me. You’re making me self conscious.”

“Apologies. I have never seen someone quite like you, so don’t take my staring as rudeness, merely surprise,” she replied, rubbing her chin for a moment before taking the crystal mask off that she’d made to handle the city’s smells, “Would it be terribly rude of me to ask just what you are?”

“Yes, but considering I’ve deboned assholes for trying to break into my home or take a crack at me on the streets, good ol’ curiosity is a lesser offense so I’ll cut you some slack,” Ahgg said, cracking his neck slightly as if unused to standing at his full height, “I’m a ‘Fomorian’. And no, ain’t shocking you haven’t seen my kind around, if you were human. My folk call the Beast Realm home...”

A dark, ugly surge of anger crossed his face like a storm, not directed at Rarity, but she could hear the murderous vitriol in his words, “Where I should’ve gone after croaking, but certain folk had other ideas about where I belonged, so here I am. So, backstory shit aside, what do you want from me? Or rather, why’d the tiny-tot-of-terrible send you?”

While she was deathly curious to inquire more about just how Ahgg ended up in Hell, considering her own experience with the Zero Division and knowing they were the only ones with the ability to decide who ended up here, Rarity decided to focus on the matter at hand, “I’m given to understand that out of Tartarus’ residents, you are the one with the most experience in exploring the lower Layers, yes? The territories claimed by the likes of Typhon and Cerberus?”

Ahgg’s posture stiffened, and Rarity felt the way he began to pick at her even more critically with his gaze. His eye shifted to her still floating weapons, and there was a pin-prick of sensation across her skin as she felt his reiatsu slowly stir, probing at her. There was an undercurrent of fear, carefully layered under a tone of indifference in his voice, “Might be I do. People think Hell’s got nothing to give, but you dig deep enough, in the right places, you can find all sorts of useful shit. So yeah, I’ve gone down a few Layers, scuttled about here and there. It’s why me and Cozy have our arrangements.”

“Yes, she did tell me that some of the more unusual amenities her Legion enjoys is the result of your work,” Rarity said, “Which is why she directed me to you. You see, I have a keen interest in going to the lower Layers myself, and am in need of information from someone who’s already been there, so I won’t be going in blind.”

To this, Ahgg made a wet, gutter noise in the back of his throat that took Rarity a few moments to realize was derisive laughter, “Pffhaha! Look, girlie, I can tell you’ve got a bit of power, what with those pretty looking pokers you’ve got floating around. I mean, you walked here to my hut in one piece, so you must be able to handle yourself against the average, brain-dead Sinner. But the lower you go in Hell, the worse it gets. The Kushanada get more aggressive, and bigger. The environmental hazards go from inconvenient to downright torturous. And that’s nothing to say about the fact that you’ve got the Lower Lords like Typhon and their crew down there, who don’t respond well to strangers in their neck of the woods. So knowing all that, the fuck you want to go down there for?”

“I believe the proper phrasing is that it's ‘my own damn business’ why I want to go there. The more pertinent question is what will it take for you to agree to guide me as far into Hell’s depths as you are presently able to go?”

“Cheeky ass response for a girl who clearly doesn’t know what she’s asking,” Ahgg used one long, greenish tongue to lick one of his tusks, his single eye still measuring her, “When I go down into the bowles of this festering cyst of a realm, I only go alone. Looking after some teen fuckwit with hash for brains is exactly the kind of thing that’d get myself into trouble I don’t need. You looking for a guide? Ask somewhere else.”

He turned to rip open the door of his hut in a crunching rattle of bones, but as he did so Rarity cleared her throat and said, “Cozy Glow told me you’d be difficult about this, so informed me to pass along the message that if you do this for me, she’ll consider your debt fully cleared.”

Ahgg froze in place as if struck by a binding Kido. His single red eye flicked back towards her, even as the rest of his body remained paralyzed in place. An unsteady note entered the Fomorian’s voice, “Is that her exact words? Fully cleared? I won’t owe her anything else after this?”

“That was what she said. You tell me what she meant by that,” Rarity said with a curious shrug, “I don’t know what went on between you two or what arrangements existed before this. I’m merely passing along what she told me when she sent me your way. I gather she must have done something significant to garner your debts to her?”

Ahgg, with clear reluctance, closed his door again, turned around, and leaned his rather broad bulk against his hut, “Could say that. Little bitch has a way of getting her hooks into you. Consider that a fair warning to you, girlie. Don’t toy around with Cozy Glow. She’s got a talent for getting what she wants.”

“Well, so do I,” Rarity replied, “But I’ll take the warning to heart. At the moment my choices of allies are too slim for me to be picky.”

“Which, nothing against you girlie, doesn't much add up to me,” Ahgg said, pulling himself back up and scratching his thick skulled head, “My debts to Cozy still run pretty deep. Doesn’t make sense to clear them just to help you out. What’s in it for her? What are you to her?”

Very good questions, and ones Rarity didn’t have anything other than theories on. Theories she wasn’t precisely eager to share. Ahgg seemed to be dealing with her fairly enough, but it wasn’t as if she had much reason to trust him beyond the necessity of relying on his knowledge as a guide. From the sound of things he wasn’t strictly in Hell due to misdeeds so much as the possibility of having gotten on the wrong side of the Zero Division. Very curious, but Rarity wasn’t yet willing to broach that subject, nor share her speculation on Cozy Glow’s motivations for being so helpful.

“I imagine she thinks I can be useful to her,” Rarity ventured with intentional vagueness, “Bolster her Legion, perhaps.”

“You?” Ahgg said, still looking at her as if he couldn’t gaze past her exterior as a teenaged girl in a dress, no matter how blood splattered said dress was at this point.

“I’m stronger than I look, darling,” Rarity said, flashing a smile, “If anyone accosts us on the way back to Cozy Glow’s stronghold, I’ll happily demonstrate just how strong.”

“It’s Tartarus. It’s Hell. Someone is always going to accost you. Eh, I’ll get my cloak. Ugh, because of course I have to go sort this shit out with Cozy, and make sure she isn’t trying to scam me,” Ahgg said, shaking his head, “Hold on while I go get dressed. Hate leaving my house.”

“I’ll wait right here, darling, taking your time,” Rarity said, feeling relaxed and fairly patient now that it looked like things were moving along. There was an increasing anxiety in her chest, like gray claws digging in slowly through the hard exterior of her outer calm. She needed to get herself and Blueblood out of this place. She had to escape, no matter the cost. Not only were her friends and family waiting for her, enduring who knew what trials and dangers, but the longer she stayed in Hell the more she felt worried she’d begin to lose parts of herself.

The mere fact that her Sinner power had manifested into such a distinctly selfish ability was a hook in her heart. She hadn’t quite gotten the image of Blueblood, drained and weakened by her chains, out of her mind.

Nor had she ignored the fact that she was willing to cut down Hell’s residents with such brutal ease. Sure, they would get right back up due to the nature of Hell, but she didn’t think it was a sign of anything good going on in her psyche that she hadn’t even bothered to clean the blood off of her clothing yet. She’d only been here a few days at most and it was already changing her in ways she didn’t like. Rarity would scour Hell’s very depths and face down Typhon and Cerberus both if it meant getting even one step closer to escape...

Perhaps that’s why Cozy is being so helpful. She knows I’m going to try to escape, so on the off chance I succeed, she’s probably planning an escape of her own.

Rarity wasn’t sure how she felt about that prospect. On one hand, she felt a bit of sympathy for the child, born into this ugly place. She couldn’t even imagine what Cozy’s existence here must have been like. How could any child grow up in Hell as a well adjusted, mentally stable human being? Yet for that very reason it was clear Cozy Glow was not the kind of person to either be wholly trusted, nor allowed to walk freely into the world of the living.

Chances were, come the end of this road she found herself on, Rarity was going to have to make a less than pleasant choice concerning Cozy Glow.

“Alright, let’s get this over with!”

Rarity nearly jumped as Ahgg came back out from his hut amid the sound of bone rattling and clinking... metal? Rarity looked at him, surprised to see the accouterments the Fomorian had equipped himself with. He wore a leather harness that Rarity had a bad feeling she didn’t want to know the origin of, but it also held up an equally unpleasant set of leather satchels and a huge knapsack over his broad back. Bones of various lengths dangled from the harness and poked from the sacks, including a trio of skulls that hung from a bandolier over his chest. The metal clinking came from several tools hitched to his knapsack, including a huge and spade-headed shovel and an iron pick nearly as large as Rarity’s own height. A dark, hooded lantern of metal and a set of chains dangled from his side belt, and on his other hip was a wide cleaver blade that appeared freshly sharpened.

“I didn’t think so many metal tools were readily available in Hell,” she commented, to which Ahgg sputtered out a low laugh.

“There aren’t, but you’re looking at one of the few people in Tartarus that can both get at some of Hell’s rare veins of reishi ores, but can also forge it into something better than shitty pokers or pots. My talents don’t come cheap, either, so while Cozy may be offering to clear my debts, I’m thinking you, me, and her are going to have a long talk about just what this little trek into Hell’s lower Layers is going to cost.”

“Let’s not waste time then. Time is... well, not money, obviously, but too valuable to spend pointlessly,” Rarity said, turning and easily vaulting up out of the stony chasm and back up to the ledge she’d descended from earlier. Ahgg watched her go, her cadre of floating weaponry following her, and rubbed his chin for a second before making a leap that took him to the cliff. There, his pincer arms and human capped hands dug into the stone and he climbed up as readily as any spider might.

“You like to show off a bit, eh, girlie?” he said, reaching the top to join her.

“Why do you ask? Was merely leaping out of a chasm so impressive?” she shot back with a coy raise of her eyebrow, briskly walking along. She wasn’t joking about not wasting time. Idle chatter was fine by her, but they’d be walking as they talked.

“Nah, more talking about all those fancy pig-stickers you keep floating around you all the time. Got a feeling you don’t actually need them out, and you’re just doing it to scare off trouble.”

“Hmm, if I really wanted to make an impression I’d be more... grandiose about it,” Rarity said simply. Honestly she’d been tempted to. Just open up her gate and let the Court of the Generous Rose march in full knightly procession down the streets of Tartarus. She’d like to see the local gangs and murder-hobos of Hell try anything against her full army of knights, her marching at their head astride her crystalline pegasus construct.

But she wasn’t here to stir up trouble. She wanted out, simple as that. Fighting turf wars with the local gang leaders was not her idea of well spent time, however much Cozy Glow seemed to think it was inevitable that Rarity would get targeted. So she’d opted to try to at least keep something resembling a lower profile while meeting with Ahgg, and hoped equally to avoid trouble on the way back to Cozy Glow’s stronghold, which was located on the north eastern habitation block.

Her hopes withered as she noticed the abrupt lack of people nearby. On her way to Ahgg’s hut she’d seen no shortage of Sinners flitting about the streets or watching her from behind the openings to their dwellings. On the central block she’d even passed an entire courtyard given over to Sinners engaging in violent play with each other, using one another’s heads as balls in some manner of game the rules of which she neither tried nor wanted to grasp.

Yet as she passed by that same wide courtyard of bloodied stone, the hoops of bone used for ‘scoring’ in that game now standing empty, she noticed not a soul about. It was frightfully quiet, and only after taking a few more cautious steps forward did she notice the fog.

A thin gray mist trailed along the ground of the courtyard, growing thicker by the step, until the air grew into a haze thick as soup. Rarity paused, no longer able to fully make out the buildings around her save for their vague black shadows in the fog. Beside her, Ahgg grunted and put a hand on his cleaver.

“Well shit, you really did catch the eye of a heavy hitter...”

Rarity glanced at him, as it was clear Ahgg recognized the nature of the fog now surrounding them, “And who, pray tell, am I about to have to deal with?”

Her words were answered by a distinct and pointed *clack* of noise. One after another, at a steady pace, this sound of wood on stone clacked, the noise echoing across the fog with muted eloquence. Rarity frowned, peering ahead through the fog as a figure of darker gray emerged from the wall of mist, each step punctuated by that piercing clack of wood.

A cane of black wood touched the stone, capped with a silver fox head, and held in the gloved hands of a tall, lanky man dressed all in black. Rarity blinked, surprised to see someone dressed in actual finery rather than the savage norm of Hell’s Sinners. His suit was immaculate, as was the mantle of his long, elegant black cloak. A similarly dark top hat graced his head, which had a smooth and shoulder length spill of black locks frame his face. His features were pale as a specter and almost as gauntly skeletal, with a razor of a nose and chin that seemed to compliment the sharp blue of his eyes.

When he spoke, it was with the crisp, posh accent of a British gentleman.

“Good evening, my fair lady. I would like to have a moment of your time if you could be troubled to spare it.”

----------

Hydia laid about left and right with her fire-poker of a Zanpaktou, puncturing eyes, gaping toothed grins, and cotton candy clawed limbs with every movement. She was a big woman, but Hydia made it work with a penchant for rolling with her rotundness in a manner that gave her a powerful momentum, like a boulder ever tumbling downhill. A hundred Pinkie Pies of grossly stretched and frightening proportions and visages assailed the Espada from all sides amid the ghostly pink flickers of neon light in the horrid, phantasmal circus.

Limbs like gnarled tree branches in shadow sliced and diced with claws as gleamingly sharp as razor wire, and Hydia felt the bite of them on her flesh even as she pulped clone after clone in a welter of gore. Yet even the gore was not real, a part of the nightmare realm, for blood and guts ran into tendrils of sickeningly pink mist that became clones afresh, all giggling and wailing like a chorus of damned souls.

It was impossible for Hydia to even grasp her position in the three-ringed horrorscape, nor where the real Pinkie Pie was amid the horde of her conjured terrors. Every flash of strobing neon light revealed little, and only in snippets. The string of wire upon which a gratingly cackling Pinkie rode a unicycle, juggling lit explosive sticks of dynamite that tumbled down around Hydia, forcing her to barrel through the horde of zombie mouths as pink detonations of neon flame hammered the circus. Or the similarly laughing Pinkie spinning upon a giant wheel adorned with hatchets, knives, and chainsaws that then flew out like a storm of serrated death, making Hydia drop to the ground lest she be torn to the bone. Each flicker of lights, a new danger, ever surging with more of the salivating maws of the Pinkie clones, thorny teeth gnashing as they laughed.

Even moving quickly was made difficult, for Sonido itself seemed to have lost its potency in this place. Every time Hydia tried to rely on such Hollow-born speed, it was as if her feet got stuck in mud, the air cloying and thick, slowing her. A sensation familiar to anyone who’d had a genuine night terror. Indeed, fear was coiling itself around Hydia’s heart, unnaturally so. Her mouth, wide and frog-like, drew in sharp breaths as she rammed her Zanpaktou through one clone, only to find another clamping sharp teeth and claws on her arm.

Hydia shrieked, and flung with all her not-inconsiderable strength, sending the cackling clone bowling through her fellows with a literal burst of clanking sounds like a strike of pins at a bowling alley. Phlegm on her lips, Hydia spun around and drew forth her poisonous might, exuding a fog of thick, violet gas from her armpits while shrilly crying, “Alright, done being nice about this! Gonna melt all of you super-freaks with enough toxin to boil your whole menagerie, Pinkie Pie!”

“Ooooh!” echoed Pinkie’s voice from somewhere in the strobing lights of the dark circus, rising over the howling chorus of her clones, “I like your energy, Hydia! We’re having so much fun, right!? Let’s crank up the fear and see how crazy we can both get, hahahaha!”

Hydia grimaced, but continued to exude her filth of deadly poisonous gas. Even if the clones didn’t have nervous-systems, per se, it was irrelevant to Hydia’s poison. It was corrosive to the bonds of reishi itself, and as she expected, clones by the dozens began to bleed away and melt into piles of choking and coughing mush under the touch of her gas. As much as this warped space of manifested terror was an issue, Hydia felt like she’d be fine if she could just fill it all up with enough poison to weed out the real Pinkie Pie, wherever she was hiding.

Yet no more than a few seconds later, after her gas had swallowed up hundreds of the giggling, melting clones, Hydia felt a sudden splash of cold water as scores of sprinklers activated across the darkened rooftops of the circus and began to drench the area in a torrent of water far more intense than any conventional sprinklers should be capable of. It was a true flood, and to Hydia’s immense horror, she began to see bubbles fill the air as a few dozen clones that had been further back in the shadows of the circus’ outer rings all laughed uproariously as they dragged in and upended cartons of powder detergent the size of vending machines!

“Oh hell no!” Hydia shouted, bouncing back as the detergent and torrential rain of sprinkler water combined to form a horrifying wave of soapy doom! The flood of unnatural cleanliness hammered through her poison fog and swept Hydia up, her mouth open in a silent scream of bubbles as she was swirled around wildly. She felt the wretched soap cleansing her pores and with deep seated fury, Hydia gripped her fear and hammered it outward in a belching Cero.

Her belly bulged and her throat followed suit, glowing purple as she opened her maw wide and vomited out a booming burp of a Cero that she used to blast the tide of water around her in a blast of destruction. She was tossed backwards by the force of the Cero as well, and rolled across the circus floor in a dizzy spin until she wobbled to her feet, brandishing her Zanpaktou.

“Nope! Not screwing around with this anymore! Covering me in suds is where I draw the line, kid! You’ve just went and hacked me off royally.”

“Aww, scared of a little bathy wathy?” said Pinkie’s tone, half-joking, half-threatening, voice gaining a static grain to it as a pink shadow began to swirl around Hydia amid the neon lights that still flashed with erratic strobes. Pinkie’s body was all but invisible amid the lights and shades, but her eyes had grown to shades of manic pink and Hydia could see the girl’s mouth stretching impossibly to a rictus grin of teeth like a titanic shark as she laughed.

A hundred hands of warped spindle claws dressed in jester motley assembled an arsenal of comically huge yet horridly deformed cleaners, spray bottles, liquid dispensers, and aggressively sharp soap bars, as if Hydia was about to be pummeled and dissolved into acidic clean.

“Who’s afraid of a little bit of HYGIENE!” Pinkie’s distorted voice howled, and Hydia, terrified as much as she was enraged, tried to dodge as one massive bar of soap the size of a sedan and shaped like an axe hammered her gut and crushed her to the ground with earth shattering force.

She rolled away from a flood of liquid pink cleanser that sizzled across the ground, then Hydia looked up as an aerosol bottle bigger than her head aimed right at her face with spray of sweet smelling air purifier. Hydia let out a bellow as the terrible stuff burned her eyes and felt like it was corroding her skin, Hierro be damned. Nothing made sense in this circus of madness, but Hydia knew that it had to work no differently than when Pinkie had been simply cracking jokes. It was a spiritual power, grounded in reishi.

Hydia just had to rip it apart with an even greater amount of spiritual pressure.

So, amid her pain, nightmarish cleaning products assaulting her from all sides, Hydia inverted her grip on her fire-poker Zanpaktou and proceeded to open her mouth to extend her tongue around it. The Zanpaktou appeared to start to melt as noxious purple fumes rose from Hydia’s mouth and dissolved the weapon into her as she uttered the phrase, “Degenerate; Alcantarilla.” (Cesspool)

A thick sludge akin to mucus and the rancid pale white of a corpse grew from every pore on Hydia’s body. The slime expanded like living putting around her, enshrouding her body in a ever widening growth of putrid liquid that further exuded a toxic spiritual pressure that took the form of a gaseous purple aura. Pinkie’s assault of cleaning products all but melted in this aura, and even the shadows drew back from Hydia as her form continued to change.

From the nodule of pulsating white muck, like some living fungus, long trunks began to form, extending outward then down to slam into the ground with solid ferocity. Like drying mud the white sludge hardened, shaped into five long, legged limbs ending in clawed, four fingered feet, each attached to a central mass that continued to bubble and pulsate as it, too, grew in size. This center mass grew definition as a mollusk-like bulge formed at its top, growing further to form an almost conical rise of twisted tubes that poured forth thick streams of gas so darkly purple as to be nearly black. From the crest of this mass thick, flabby limbs that also bulged with muscles sprouted, and Hydia’s face, stretched to an even more toad-like width, her eyes grown large and bulbous as beach balls, grew forth as if melded with the rest of her body. With a wet ripple, her mouth spat out an even larger version of the fire-poker she’d been using, only this was a ten foot long, thick pole of bone white, dripping mucus and steaming with toxic fumes which she now clutched in her meaty hands.

“Auuuwaaggh...” she either groaned or yawned in a voice warbling with phlegm, “That’s the stuff! I feel so much better in this form. Even my Groggykin couldn’t improve on this perfection, ghehehe!”

There was a momentary stillness and silence from the deep shadows of the surrounding Circus of Terror, and somewhere amid that ink dark, the faint rustle of Pinkie Pie shrugging could be heard as the girl called out, “You know, I’m not one to judge. Whatever you’ve got going on, Hyds, you seem to be making it work for you. I mean, you do kind of look like a weird modern art project that then got dunked in a vat of bird poop, but if this is what you like, who am I to say it’s fugly?”

“See, kiddo, you get it! My body is a damn temple to self-assurance and acceptance, and soooo many people just go ‘Oh, that’s so hideous! You look like a monster!’ Pffft! Please! I’ve seen too many ‘beautiful’ people with personalities like a pile of dogshit. As if washboard abs or a titanic rack mean diddly if your brainpan is made of tar.”

There was a rattling shift amid the shadows of the circus, as if dozens and dozens of feet were shuffling and rearranging a theater set, while Pinkie’s voice seemed to echo from around Hydia’s transformed body, “I bet if you weren’t trying to kill us, we’d get along great! Buuuut you are, so gonna have to keep the knives out, Hyds! I really dig your body positive attitude, though, so nothing personal!”

Hydia felt the ground beneath her five new, deadly clawed feet rumble, and then she heard a cracking noise as the circus literally crumbled out from under her and the Esapda found herself tumbling down what looked like the spiral plastic chute of a funhouse slide! However at the bottom of this slide, a pile of pink mist formed into a gigantic version of Pinkie Pie’s head, yet split by a massively wide mouth of razor teeth that began to chomp rapidly like a steel rock crusher!

“To show how accepting I am, I’ll nom you, like a tasty treat!”

“Hah! Not this time, Pink Menace!” Hydia cackled, digging her massive poker blade into the floor of the slide, ripping through it as if it was sheet metal howling. Her five clawed feet dug in as well until she had braced her massive body along the chute, and then with a gesture of one of her thick hands, she conjured blasts of poison cloud from the protrusions on her back. “But if you’re hungry, I got something yummy to chew on! Have a taste of my Asesinato Fragante! (Fragrant Murder)

The miasma of incredibly dense poison gas, like malignant purple tar, poured forth down the chute, corroding the very spiritual essence of Pinkie Pie’s Fullbring as it went. Anything the gas touched rotted like dying flowers, and Pinkie’s giant head made a loud ‘eep!’ noise as it vanished in a puff of pink smoke to avoid the spearing cloud of murder gas.

“Ghehehe! What’s the matter!? Not so eager to bite down on my tuckus now, are you!?” Hydia laughed with a belly rumbling bellow, only to find gravity shifting as the chute suddenly upended and shook like a giant hand had grabbed it and was trying to dislodge a spider from a shoe, “Whoa! H-hey! Cut it oooouuuut!”

She was forcefully dislodged, but Hydia’s reflexes were boosted in her Resurreccion form, and despite the ungainly, strange bulk of her new body she spun herself with rather unusual elegance as she popped out of the chute and fell towards the ground. She landed, once more in the middle of the familiar nightmare circus, only this time instead of a horde of zombie Pinkie Pies waiting for her, it was a series of reflections. Towering around her were warped mirrors, a funhouse maze that took Hydia’s shape and distorted it further into a collage of stretched and squished shapes.

“You think this impresses me!?” Hydia called out, her five legs stamping forward as she lunge through the mirror maze, smashing left and right with one meaty fist and the blunt butt of her poker blade. Mirrors smashed as she went, and she hissed as the glass shards leaped like crazed piranha, gaining sharp mouths that snapped at her body.

Hydia’s Resurreccion’s form was built tough, however. Not as tough as Torch, perhaps, but what her bulky form lacked in speed it certainly made up for in resilience. The hungry, living glass shards tore little chunks from her thick, white armored hide, but in most cases failed to penetrate deep. Hydia spat as her back heaved and more of her Asesinato Fragante gas poured forth to start melting glass shards like bits of broken candy under a summer sun. “Gonna need to try harder than this to scare me, now, Pink! In this form, I can rip this little circus of yours to pieces, bit by bit, until I find your ass and give you a direct dose of my toxic bliss. You’ll just die laughing, ghahaha!”

She was aware that Pinkie’s Fullbring was distorting space, the question was by how much? Was she still inside the rough area of Guto’s arena, or had this crazed circus literally created some kind of subspace pocket, like a Negacion? Hydia knew that as long as this space had some manner of limited border, then she could eventually fill it to the brim with her poison gas. Assuming Pinkie didn’t have some way to vent things from her Fullbring’s space she didn’t want in it, or that this wasn’t all some illusion. But Hydia was no stranger to fighting those with unusual powers, both Soul Reapers and Quincy alike had their own curveballs to throw and Hydia had survived centuries despite being among the lower rungs of the Espada.

Because her Asesinato Fragante was made up of her reishi, she was attuned to it and could use it as a means of expanding her senses, not simply as an offensive tool. She let it spread out low to the ground, filling through the countless twists and turns of the mirror maze. Hydia didn’t give the faintest fart about actually navigating the maze, because she was just going to smash her way through it, but she did want to find Pinkie Pie. Because the damn circus was made entirely of Pinkie’s spirit energy, it all radiated her reiatsu, which made pin-pointing her via Pesquisa alone nearly impossible.

With hefty blows Hydia began to barrel through mirror after mirror, surrounding herself in a thick mantle of her toxic gas so any of the biting shards of glass melted before severely damaging her. Her momentum built as her elephant sized body crunched through the maze like a bulldozer. Cackling, Hydia barreled onward, until up ahead the next mirror showed not her own reflection, but the blindingly clear image of her two daughters.

Reeka and Draggle looked at her without the usual simple devotion Hydia was used to, and instead had lines of disappointment and disdain etched on their faces as their images turned their backs on Hydia, vanishing further into the depths of the mirror.

Instinctive fear clutched at Hydia for a moment before fresh rage lit a fire in her chest and she took her fire-poker blade in both hands and smashed the mirror with three times the force she’d used before, “Don’t you dare use my kid’s images against me!”

Pinkie’s voice skittered over the shadows, not quite toned normally, as if somehow muted and reflective, “I don’t tell the Circus what to show those trapped inside, Hyds. But just like Laughter, Fear is an instinctual thing that rumbles right into your gut, primal as it gets. What are you afraid of, Hydia?”

Her eyes darted left and right rapidly as Hydia tried to spread her poison gas further, growling as she tried to pin down Pinkie’s location. She felt the walls of dense violet poison rushing beyond the edges of the maze, the mirrors melting away, but aside from the wide three-ring circus grounds she couldn’t sense anything. At least, not until with a loud click a wide, neon pink spotlight illuminated the center ring, where a stage of wood painted in a kaleidoscope of colors rose. Upon it Pinkie Pie stood with her spiked hammer twirling in her hands, the bells of her jester outfit clinging with a chorus of rings like laughter. The mask on half of her face remained black, her one visible eye glowing yellow in the shadows.

“Little something I learned from Mena is that if you can’t figure out how to live with your fears, you won’t be able to laugh like you mean it.”

“Ghahaha! You want to lecture me, kiddo!? I’ve never been afraid of anything! I live life how I want, and piss on those who’d try to judge me.”

She reared up, raising three of her legs that were facing Pinkie Pie. From within the gnarled palms of these clawed hands, holes opened up like slick orifices, and from them jetted a trio of nearly tar black poison streams. Pinkie Pie leaped up into the higher reaches of the circus tent’s ill-defined shadow space as the toxic sludge streams melted through the stage. Hydia flung her arms upward, crisscrossing poisonous rivers through the air at Pinkie’s flitting form.

Like some ephemeral, pink ghost Pinkie just kept blurring amid the dark perimeter of the circus’ big top, and Hydia snarled at how readily the girl could slip away like a puff of smoke.

Pinkie’s giggle bounced around the air from all directions, leaving Hydia further unable to pin-point her.

“You sure do! But I gotta wonder if that’s for real, or if you’re putting on a brave face. I used to do that all the time.”

Rolling masses of liquid pink and darkly crimson energy flowed around the circus, growing into jagged tendrils that formed into a landscape of gnashing, sharp teeth that speared towards Hydia. She felt Pinkie’s erratic reiatsu inside these tendrils, and a little taken aback by the direct attack, Hydia coiled her poison fog around herself and swirled the Asesinato Fragante about her in a scything motion. With terrifying slams the tendrils lashed upon her, three from the left, another four from her right, and a single wide with with its mouth gaping as broad as a garage door as razor teeth spun. Hydia’s boiling fog melted most, but the top one forced her to use her pitchfork to jam into the terrible mouth and keep its pink saliva at bay. She felt several other tendrils bite into her legs, the Hierro armor holding but pain cracking through her.

Hydia grunted and heaved with her arms, ripping the tip of her pitchfork through the giant mouth above her, then she skittered back, throwing her left arm out and two of her lower legs. More black, toxic sludge battered the growing mass of Pinkie Pie’s tendrils, while in Hydia’s palm a swirl of purple smoke condensed and bloomed with destructive light as she charged a Cero that she then fired in a wide sweep at the walls around her.

“Nope! Nope! Nope! Not playing any mind games today, Pink! Don’t want no damn therapist and even if I did, you’re not on the top of my list for people I’d choose as my personal shrink! Going to blow up this whole damn freak show now!”

Suddenly beneath her she felt something rise with the force and speed of a rocket launch, and Hydia found herself getting impacted in her lower gut by a giant sofa that then flipped her over until she landed on top of it on her back as it slammed back to the ground. Suddenly the mass of Pinkie’s tendrils pulled back, with one of them, still salivating at the mouths, held a notebook and pen up to Pinkie herself, who appeared in a tacky pink suit and wearing glasses as she pretended to take notes.

“Mmmh, yes, I see, so let us unpack how that makes you feel. Does the idea of confronting your fears, in and of itself, generate fear?”

Hydia blanched, her bloated face screwing up even more into a sour grimace, “I thought you were done with the comedy bit and going for ‘fear’ now?”

Pinkie adjusted her fake glasses and giggled, “Fear and Laughter are two halves of the same balloon. Besides, I thought you were afraid of therapists?”

“This is admittedly the most horrifying thing that’s happened yet in this screwy circus of yours,” Hydia admitted, paused, then with a feral growl she leaped from the therapist sofa and tried to impale Pinkie Pie on her massive, ten foot long fire poker! “Haha! Surprise face stab!”

For added effect, Hydia had called forth her thick smog of lethal fumes to swirl around and surround Pinkie Pie, who’d finally gotten close enough to Hydia that she felt confident she could trap the girl! Hydia wasn’t all that surprised when Pinkie gave a speedy poof of motion that sent her flying above Hydia’s stab. Pinkie’s therapist attire vanished and her jester motley reappeared, her scarf billowing wide as it came alive, grabbed the hilt of her giant hammer from seemingly nowhere, and swung it around to clock Hydia in the face. But even as the huge impact rocked Hydia’s jaw, she grinned past a cracked tooth and sent a blast of her death fog right into Pinkie Pie in a swirling cloud.

“Got you!”

Pinkie went flying out of the fog, a mass of liquid tendrils of gnawing pink mouths opening wide to absorb and literally eat the poison fog. Although the tendrils grew sickly purple and some melted, many more remained intact as more tendrils snapped at the fog while Pinkie landed in a crouch on the circus ground while Hydia slammed down a dozen meters away, sending dirt flying.

Hydia frowned, her big, bulbous face breaking out into a sweat. She knew she’d bathed Pinkie in her Asesinato Fragante just then, even with those ugly tendril mouths eating so much of it. And Pinkie was coughing a bit as she stood and faced Hydia, hefting her hammer with both hands. Pinkie’s face was paler and a bit of blood trickled from her eyes, but she was still very much alive. That poison, Hydia knew, should be making the girl vomit up blood and melt skin off the bone.

The fact that Pinkie had taken it meant that the girl’s reiatsu was actually on par with if not outright stronger than Hydia’s own. No wonder her Cero from moments ago hadn’t torn the circus apart. No wonder she couldn’t seem to get a physical upper hand on this girl, even in Resurreccion form. It wasn’t just that Pinkie’s Fullbring was bizarre beyond accounting for. The girl was just flat out that potent in terms of spiritual pressure.

Hydia licked her own face with her long tongue, wiping sweat off. She wasn’t about to admit it, not at all, and least of all to Pinkie Pie, but the fear that she might actually lose this fight was creeping into Hydia’s skull like worms working their way into a coffin to get at the rotting meat within.

If I don’t kill her quick, with a serious deathblow, she’s... going to wear me down.

But Hydia’s growing sense of desperation went beyond merely the fear of losing. It was the fact that Pinkie was right. This blasted Circus of Terror seemed to know what Hydia truly feared, and Hydia didn’t want to be forced to dwell on it let alone face it directly. Even now, out of the corner of her eyes, like snippets of a chilling dream, she could see visions dancing in the shaded reaches of the circus. Her daughters in the stands, looking at her with disgust. Her loyal minions, all deformed Hollows she’d given a home to, turning from her, or vanishing into ash.

Hydia would tolerate none of it. As always, fear was bashed down by gregarious anger and overwhelming, if fragile, self-confidence that bordered on the insane. This included making insane decisions mid-battle, on a whim.

“Think I’m going to make this simpler for both of us, Pink,” Hydia said as she locked eyes with Pinkie Pie, and gripped her pitchfork from both ends. Then, her arm muscles bulging, she crushed the weapon of pale bone down, and poured spirit energy into it. Like putty the weapon was molded into a new shape, that of a skeletal chalice with a misshapen skull’s face carved into it. Then, Hydia heaved, her throat making wet hocking noises as she pulled in the dense fog of her poison cloud to her mouth.

The near solid toxic cloud entered her mouth and then combined with a thick glob of black mucus that she vomited out into the chalice, the liquid glowing around its edges with deathly purple light and smoke. The chalice took more and more, beyond what its size indicated it should, until Hydia had all but spat a small pool into it.

Pinkie’s head tilted to the side, eyes wide in the manner of someone looking at a train wreck and unable to tear their gaze away.

Finished with filling the chalice, Hydia held it up, the eyes of its death skull lighting up green to contrast with the purple aura around it as the terrible brew within bubbled over.

”Vino del Verdugo.” (Executioner’s Wine)

She saw Pinkie Pie’s jester mask shift, going from black to white as it moved to the other side of the girl’s face and her eye flashed from yellow back to blue. Pinkie was still smiling, but there was a look and faint movement to her mouth as if she was conferring with someone unseen. Hydia didn’t much care what the girl was doing, with the creation of the Vino del Verdugo, the battle was in its final stretch, and the clock was already ticking.

She tossed the chalice, although rather than fly in a tumble and splash the intensely vile brew within, the chalice floated as if born by an invisible hand until it landed softly upon the ground between Hydia and Pinkie.

“Before you ask, kiddo, let me spare you the trouble and explain,” Hydia said, “This here bubbling cup contains the most concentrated, deadly version of my poison I can concoct. It's so bad that even the resistance powerful folk enjoy from their strong spiritual pressure isn’t proof against it. Moreover, the fumes become rapidly invisible, spread instantly over an area of my choosing, and get into your system just as fast. Which means both you and I should already be feeling the effects...”

Pinkie’s skin turned a faded tone, like heavily chewed bubblegum, and she wobbled a bit on her feet, “Uh-oh... yuppers, can totally confirm I’m feeling extra barfy. But hold up, you said this stuff was super lethal right? So shouldn’t I be croaking already? And why do you look all woozy too?”

It was true, Hydia was feeling the effects of her most potent poison as well. She was normally immune to her various toxic powers, but Vino del Verdugo was the sole exception. That was part of the price for making it so singularly powerful, she had to take the risk of its effects as well.

“Normally it’d be dumb of me to answer any questions about my powers, but in this case it’s actually important you understand,” Hydia said as she began to slam her clawed legs into the ground as she stomped towards Pinkie, the potent purple spheres of twin Ceros appearing in her open palms, “This poison is one hundred percent lethal, but the effect is designed to take full effect over time. The smaller the area I set for it to affect, the shorter the time frame. Meanwhile the poison works its way through us, burning, hurting, draining us of power...”

Already she was feeling that painful, scathing sensation like sandpaper scraping its way through her veins. She hadn’t felt this pain in a long, long time. So few opponents were worth the risk of Vino del Verdugo. For every second that passed her and Pinkie’s bodies would be assailed by growing agony, their reiatsu lowering as the poison did its work. Since Hydia had constrained the area to just the arena, the lethal dosage would be reached in a matter of minutes.

“...And I give us five minutes, maybe six, before we both croak. Wanna know how to avoid that, Pinks?” Hydia chuckled, and discharged both her Ceros, one after the other. The first was meant to force Pinkie to dodge, which the girl readily obliged by blurring into a pink streak that ran to the left. But Pinkie’s speed was already flagging due to the poison. Granted, so was Hydia’s accuracy as it was hard to concentrate with the sensation of razors in her blood, but she still managed to judge where Pinkie’s evasion took her and aimed the second Cero beam appropriately.

Pinkie managed to bring her hammer down on the head of the second Cero, the huge weapon of ornate pink smashing into the violet beam in a shuddering clash that exploded the ground around Pinkie and sent her flying back to smash into the pieces of the partially melted arena.

Hydia at that point did notice that the Circus of Terror had vanished, and in fact had done so while she’d been placing the chalice. It briefly confused her as to why, because Pinkie had seemed to be relying on that ability’s fear factor, but Hydia didn’t think on it too much as she leaped into the air in a curving arc that would end in her slamming down on top of Pinkie if the girl didn’t move. As she did so she shouted, “Whoever bleeds their opponent into the chalice and drinks the mixture of the poison and their enemy’s blood receives the antidote. So to survive, you got to get my blood, and same goes for me! Four minutes left, Pinks”

No point in having such a lethal and dangerous poison if she couldn’t survive using it in some way, despite her lack of innate immunity to it. It was a power meant to lock her and her foe into a limited time deathmatch in which her enemy couldn’t afford to run away or surrender. Of course ironically it was a power that Hydia was behooved to explain to her enemies so they grasped that fleeing wasn’t an option... mostly because if they did, it'd put Hydia up the proverbial creek as well.

She let out blasts of murderous dark, corrosive poison from her claws as she impacted where Pinkie Pie should have been, but the girl slipped away by tapping her hammer against the ground and dropping through it like some cartoon trap door. The air above Hydia opened up at the same time, Pinkie instantly leaping out of it with her hammer arcing around in an arc at Hydia’s chest. A bit wiser to Pinkie’s erratic fighting style by now, Hydia anticipated the move and caught the hammer with her broad arms, hands clenching around the hammer’s octagonal head. Even so, Hydia felt the impressive strength of Pinkie’s strike, and the candy scented burst of power as the head of the hammer opened up, produced a smaller hammer held in a miniature robot version of Pinkie’s arms that then shot out and struck Hydia in the chin like some prank boxing glove.

“Arrgh! I preferred the creepy circus to the damn gags! We’re both dying, Pinks, you could at least try to take it seriously for the few minutes we got!”

“Suuuure, I could do that,” Pinkie said, lightly bouncing back from several of Hydia’s counter swings with her thick, clawed legs that dug gouges of the stone arena stands as Pinkie dodged about, “Or I could do what I’ve been wanting to do for awhile, and have ourselves a cathartic rap battle to the finish!”

“Huh?” Hydia said as impromptu techno music started playing and Pinkie Pie spun her hammer around in her hands until it turned into neon pink mist that in turn reshaped itself into a pair of handheld microphones. Before Hydia knew it, one of the microphones was tossed her way and she caught it on reflex. As Hydia was still staring, flabbergasted, at the situation, Pinkie Pie was drenched in flashing neon light from several suddenly appearing spotlights and she started singing.

“Lemme lay it out for you, pal, I’m a gal who likes to bust a gut
And spark grins on folk who are stuck in a rut
Now I get you, you’re big, you’re mean,
You’re the queen with a poison sheen
But tear away the mask of glee and it's clear to see
You’re even more insecure than me.”

Even with blood seeping from her nose and eyes, and face sweaty from the lethal poison working its way through her, Pinkie Pie seemed alive with energy, her body wreathed in bright pink aura as she danced circles around Hydia, who growled as she lashed out with another sweeping Cero that Pinkie readily flipped over, landing safely behind the blast of destruction that crater the far well.

And as crazy as this was, Hydia felt a bubbling surge of desire to just sing right back, and she wasn’t even certain if this was the result of Pinkie’s bizarre power or her just getting caught up in the moment, but as she came at Pinkie in a blur of slashing claw legs she put the microphone to her mouth and belted out some verse.

“Tch, you wanna play games, Pinks, then you’ll have your fill!
Against me and my toxic flow you’ll feel only chills
‘Cause this big mama's gonna put you six feet under
And you’ll see why screwing with me was a total blunder
Every moment my poison will make you cough and sputter
While all this shit talk about my ‘insecurities’ will be put in the gutter.”

Hydia could feel her own poison sapping her own strength as it coursed through her veins, her strikes slowing even as she redoubled her ferocity as she sang. Pinkie Pie was slowing as well, and Hydia felt a burst of glee as one of her massive clawed feet tore a gouge in Pinkie’s side, blood flowing red across the stone of the arena. Yet Pinkie kept grinning, and twirled with a haphazard grace under one of Hydia’s leg strikes to appear under Hydia, where her jester scarf, billowing with multiple colors, looped around one of Hydia’s legs and yanked the Espada off balance and sent her tumbling like a ten ton bowling ball. Pinkie Pie jumped on top of Hydia’s rolling form like someone balancing on a log in water, spitting her own verse right back.

”Oh you can bet I’m feeling this lethal dose, but I’m not one to give up the ghost
You may be the deadliest poison, but laughter is the best cure
So no matter how much I bleed, my heart and my focus are pure
I’ve seen what makes you quiver and shake, an loneliness isn’t a fear you can fake
You’ve got so much self-love its become thicker than your triple chin, but even so
You’re scared of being abandoned by your kin.”

With her vision spinning, Hydia felt Pinkie’s words create a stab of momentary panic that she quashed with quick denial and rage. That emptiness that was her Hollow hole all but ached, but she ignored it as she dug her hands into the floor to halt her tumble and managed to catch Pinkie Pie with an elbow to the girl’s gut. The blow slammed Pinkie to the ground, and Hydia gurgled deep in her throat as she loomed over Pinkie.

“Nope, not hearing this, you’re full of it
And we’re down to three minutes left of this pathetic bit
I’ve had it up to here with your saccharine shit
Time to melt your face off with some acid spit!”

She let out a belching burst of thick purple gas, a focused burst of her Asesinato Fragante that slithered towards Pinkie Pie. Yet there’d been just enough of a momentary hesitation in her actions from the way Pinkie’s words struck her that by the time Hydia was vomiting up the poison gas, Pinkie had already used the cord of her microphone like a whip to snag something “off screen” and pull herself up in a swift arc over Hydia’s head where she then proceeded to create a throng of crimson pink tendrils from her shadow that slipped around Hydia’s head and, like some deranged laffy-taffy, Pinkie had the tendrils yank her down with both feet extended to land a dropkick that produced a shockwave through the air and smashed Hydia into the ground hard enough to rattle the Espada to her bones.

Landing a few paces from the fallen Hydia, Pinkie paced around the chalice that contained the Vino del Verdugo and actually picked it up while still singing into her mic.

“If I’m so wrong then why the long face
This rap battle was going at your pace
But I think you know that I’ve touched a nerve
So it's time for the flow of this battle to swerve
Towards a climax that I hope will help you see
When it comes to our fears, you’re a lot like me.”

Coughing and spitting out blood, Hydia rose with fresh fury. It shocked her how much strength Pinkie still had, even as the poison must have been making a ruin of her insides! Hydia was feeling it acutely as well, her vision getting blurry and her breath growing haggard as she felt herself nearing the limit. Was there two minutes left now? It was hard to tell. But she was shocked to see Pinkie holding the chalice, and couldn’t fathom what the crazy brat was planning. Regardless, Hydia didn’t like the way this ‘rap battle’ was going, and the way Pinkie kept digging at ideas Hydia didn’t want to think about. So instead of think, Hydia went with her gut, which was mostly full of acid, blood, and anger.

Jumping straight up into the air, the nodules on her back exploded with thick strands of violet death gas, and every one of her five meaty claw legs glowed with the crackling power of a Cero. While it occurred to some back part of Hydia’s mind that if she blew up Pinkie Pie into little pieces, or melted her entirely, there might not be any blood left to make an antidote with, Hydia was at the point where she was perhaps willing to just double K.O herself with this pink terror.

“The Hell you say? If you were a candy, you’re clearly an Airhead!
Meanwhile I’m the living poison that leaves everyone dead!
Nobody can match my overwhelming, boisterous smarm
Even Grogar will eventually succumb to my charm!”

She unleashed all five Ceros at once, along with the broadest and thickest stream of her Asesinato Fragante yet, filling the arena with potent explosions that cratered the ground even as the purple gas flooded the place to the point of making it all look like a soupy lake of death. Surely, Hydia felt, this would put this girl down, and if Hydia was lucky there’d just be enough blood or guts to scrape off the floor to put in the chalice and get her antidote before time ran out.

Yet to Hydia’s wide eyed shock and horror, an object rose out of the pea-soup fog cloud of poison as it made a loud klaxon blaring sound. A pink submarine, short and rotund as any cartoonishly drawn one with an overemphasized periscope and big bubble windows. It splashed up, and from its hatch leaped Pinkie Pie, who then jumped skyward as the cartoon submarine fired a torpedo with a clown’s face on it that Pinkie landed on and rode like a hypersonic surfboard. Hydia was still blinking in pure confusion as both Pinkie and the torpedo struck her dead center in the chest, and with incredible force rammed her into the upper wall of the circular chasm. The ground shook and rock cracked up and down, Hydia letting out a rush of air and blood from her trembling lips.

As she peeled off the wall, Hydia fell, and Pinkie landed on her head to ride the Espada down to the edge of the arena, holding her mic to her lips as they went.

“But there it is, clear as a bell
One note of hesitation that makes it easy to tell
There’s a lot in you that I genuinely vibe with, Hydia
But your taste in men is worse than chlamydia
Nobody who’s got an ounce of real self love
Would do anything other than off a cliff, Grogar shove.”

Hydia groaned loudly, and not just in physical pain as she hit the upper benches of the arena stands and lay there in a bloodied, exhausted heap. She tried standing, but found she couldn’t as her body was not only wracked with pain from Pinkie Pie’s last hit, but the poison had finally done enough work that she was barely able to crawl. Even so she managed to look incredulously at Pinkie, and said, “Really? ‘Off a cliff, Grogar shove’? What are you, Yoda?”

Pinkie, sitting next to Hydia’s busted up body with her own face a mask of bloody death, clearly not doing much better than the Espada, just grinned happily, “Hey, rhyming is hard! Besides, you haven’t countered my point. Why are you so into that grody, grumpy-pants supreme? You can do waaaaay better than him, girl. Personally I think this is a self-confidence issue.”

“Uugh, I’m almost glad I’m dying of my own damn poison. The psycho-analysis is torture.”

However, there was a lack of ‘omph’ behind Hydia’s protests. Perhaps because there was something to what Pinkie Pie was saying. Hydia had her reasons for hitting on Grogar all the time. It was hellaciously fun, for one. And for two... she knew he’d never respond to her. She could flagrantly play the flirt for centuries with the guy and he’d never so much as look at her with anything other than his usual disgust, and she knew it. So it made the whole game... safe. She could be secure in the knowledge that she’d always know what to expect from him. Didn’t mean the game wasn’t fun, but it was irritating to think this stupid girl could actually see through part of Hydia’s mask.

Her self reflection was interrupted by seeing Pinkie spitting some of her own blood into the chalice that the girl had managed to hold onto after picking it up.

“The hell you think you’re doing...?” Hydia rasped, watching as Pinkie strung out some more blood from her nose into the chalice, which hissed and bubbled at the addition.

“Curing you, duh. Oh, also me, because dying would be way boring, although I guess Rarity is making it work for her so I dunno, maybe I’d manage. But not eager to try it out yet. Besides, I don’t know what me dying would do to Mena.”

As Pinkie talked she forced herself to stand, like some wobbly, bleeding zombie, and put the chalice under Hydia’s chin, which was dripping some of Hydia’s blood as well. As the Espada’s blood joined the concoction in the chalice, the purplish and green brew within sizzled and fumed until it turned a swirling, bright red.

“Hope that color means ‘cure’,” Pinkie said, and Hydia boggled at her.

“How the heck should I know!? I’ve never put both my blood and my opponents in it at the same time! I’ve... I’ve never even thought to try something like that.”

“Heheh, experimentation it is, then! Bottoms up!” Pinkie said, and took a big quaff from the chalice. She gulped it down and let out loud cough afterward, hitting her chest with a fist, “Wheeeew, that’s some serious sour. Ugh, but medicine is supposed to taste bad, so maybe that’s a good thing. Here ya go, Hyds, drinkie drinkie!”

Hydia almost said no, but then again, given she figured both she and Pinkie Pie had seconds left to live anyway, she really had nothing to lose. With a deep groan and sigh, she let Pinkie Pie upend the rest of the chalice’s contents into her mouth. Pinkie hadn’t been kidding, the thick, gurgling liquid tasted like someone had squashed up a whole bushel of rotten apples and added a seasoning of cat puke to the mix, but Hydia got the stuff down after a few gulps.

For a few seconds the pair stood silent, waiting, still feeling the poison scathing their guts.

But then Hydia felt the tell-tale wash of cool relief start to pass over her, and to her shock it turns out the cure still worked even if multiple people’s blood was added to the chalice. She filed that tidbit away for the future, just in case it ever became pertinent. Still, even with the feeling of the poison leaving her body, Hydia remained utterly exhausted, badly wounded, and near her breaking point. Pinkie didn’t look much better off, nursing several nasty injuries from their fight...

A fight that technically wasn’t over yet, because nobody had surrendered or died.

“Soooo,” Pinkie said, “We doing a round... what are we up to, now? Three?”

Hydia considered it. Or tried to consider it. Quite frankly her mind was a bit of a tangled mess. She didn’t like losing. She’d also only been fighting because it was overall part of the plan to support Guto until Adagio could be dealt with. And speaking of Guto, now that she wasn’t so focused on Pinkie Pie, Hydia couldn’t help but notice that the Seventh Espada’s reiatsu had vanished from above. Had the damn bastard gone and bit the dust while Hydia was having a rap battle with a crazy human girl?

With a loud groan, Hydia let herself lay back, and released her Resurreccion form. Her massively transformed body was surrounded by a swirl of reishi particles as it deflated back to her more normal, if still bloated and roundish body. Her Zanpaktou took shape next to her and clattered to the ground, and Hydia didn’t even feel like picking it up again, yet.

“Meh... I think I’m done for the day. I’ll let you off by calling it a draw.”

Pinkie Pie let out a small, weak giggled, and fell back as well, the microphone in her hand transforming back to a hammer form that fell next to her.

“Yeah, I’m fine with that. Let’s take five, and if neither of us passes out, we can go find out what happened up top.”

Hydia let herself smirk with a hint of self-degradation at those words. Even if she called it a ‘draw’, she had a feeling they both knew Pinkie Pie had won that fight. At the end there, Hydia couldn’t move, but Pinkie had still had the strength to do so. Pinkie could have simply taken Hydia’s blood to cure herself and left the Espada to die of her own poison, and Hydia couldn’t have done anything to stop her at that point. Galling as it was, the human had beaten her, if just barely. Hydia had to wonder if there was something to some of the crap Pinkie Pie had been talking about Hydia’s fears?

Eh, Hydia wasn’t really one for too much self-doubt or thought.

But she was worried, now. If Guto was dead, presumably beaten by that butter colored girl, and she’d lost to Pinkie Pie... just how much stronger were these magic-fueled gals going to get?

Whatever else Hydia might think of Grogar, the ancient, withered evolution-nut was probably right about one thing; without magic, the Hollows were going to fall behind the new power curve that was being set. And one way or another, Hydia wanted to be on the winning team.

Episode 205: Back to Basics

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Episode 205: Back to Basics

Their luck had held for most of the day. Amid the soaring caps of the fungal forest, awash with bioluminescence that filtered through every imaginable color, the party adrift in the depths of Svartalfheim had managed to avoid any significant danger. With provisions provided by the eager Diamond Dogs, happy to have anything resembling allies in their plight against the Dwarves, Sunset Shimmer’s group were able to cover a lot of ground on full bellies. To aid them in finding their way the group had also been given an exceedingly detailed map that showed precise locations of the Diamond Dog’s previous holdings, and the last known positions of Dwarven forces that had occupied them.

The plan was to bypass as much of that front line as possible and reach the stronghold of the Allhammer Clan, and find out the reason for their aggression against the Diamond Dogs, and hopefully cut off the issue at the source. Given time was of the essence for reasons beyond wanting to help the Diamond Dogs, the party had moved as fast as they were able to, the slowest among them being Wallflower, who rode on either Asena or Simurgh’s backs when possible.

Everything had gone well until the mushroom forest had thinned out, leading to a deep set of craggy valleys of sharp rock that stretched for miles across the terrain to the north and west. It might have been possible to skirt the mist veiled valleys, but doing so would have required passing close to another Dwarven Clan stronghold, and it was decided it was better to chance the valleys and their fauna rather than try to talk their way past the Dwarves.

Things had gone well for most the day, although ‘day’ was a relative term in a place that had no sunlight, just the endlessly shifting glows of natural gemstones or glowing plants, which were both fewer and far between within the misty valleys the group sought to traverse. For hours while passing through the cold and narrow valley spaces, fingers of mist ever coiling around them, Sunset had seen and felt the presence of creatures in the deeper corners of the broken cliff surfaces. Only a few at first, and always keeping at a distance, but as time wore on, she’d felt more of them gathering, following her and her friends in a stalking pack.

Asena had sniffed the air and twisted her wolfish lips in a predatory snarl, “Troglodytes. They must be desperate to stalk a group our size.”

“Are they dangerous?” asked Clover, and her hand reflexively went to a Zanpaktou that wasn’t there. She frowned, and instead readied her hands in preparation to cast Kido.

“To unwary travelers of conventional ilk, yes, undoubtedly,” replied Simurgh, spreading her wings a bit wider as she flew higher above the group. On her back, Wallflower clung to the bird’s neck tightly, eyes wide.

“Could you be more specific, maybe?” said Sunset, “I’m sensing a lot of them out there. Two or three dozen, at least, on either side of us. If this fog wasn’t so thick...”

“Relax, I’m sure we got this, no prob,” said Rainbow Dash, her aura blazing as she activated her Fullbring and flashed out her sparking dual lighting spear from the heart of her armored chest. Applejack sighed, not activating her own Fullbring yet as she eyed the towering, winding cliff walls of the valley around them.

“Ya ever gonna learn not ta git cocky? We’re powerful, sure, but even a big bull can be brought down by enough coyotes working as a pack. Especially desperate, hungry coyotes.”

“Hah, a fair comparison,” said Asena, giving the farm girl a grim grin, “But there is little to fear from the likes of troglodytes. They are no stronger than your Hollows, unless one or two of them has sharpened their Anima.”

By now Shining Armor and Cadence had summoned forth their respective bows, the former standing protectively in front of the later as he narrowed his eyes and focused on his own spiritual senses, “How could you tell, either way? I can sense them like Sunset, but I can’t gauge how strong their reiatsu is. When you say ‘no stronger than Hollows’ are we talking basic, garden variety Hollows, or any of the evolved types? Because three dozen lesser Hollows is a whole different story from three dozen Adjuchas-class.”

Granted, Sunset herself felt fairly confident in being able to take on three dozen Adjuchas, if it really came down to that. After her tussle with Tirek, she felt like she had a handle on her own strength, including how far she still needed to improve. It wasn’t her own safety she was concerned with, but rather the possibility that if they were attacked, Wallflower might get injured. Just about everyone else in the group was battle tested and proven. Spike, in his Gunwolf, had certainly shown he could handle himself. Wallflower might have had the power of some ancient goddess buried inside her, but Hel’s power wasn’t something the girl could command at will, and honestly if a fight broke out there was the possibility that the stress might bring Hel’s personality up to the surface.

But whether it was the drive of starvation, blind overconfidence, a lack of familiarity with the spiritual pressures of Sunset’s group, or some other motivation that was beyond reckoning, the troglodytes attacked not long after, just as the group was reaching the rise at the end of the valley that would lead up out of the fog.

While not at all like Hollows, the creatures certainly howled like them. Sunset, even confident in her power and fighting skills, felt a greasy chill as the hairs of the back of her neck rose. Those shrill howls echoed off of the valley in a chorus that spoke of little but ravenous hunger and mindless violence. Earlier in life, before she’d learned to face down monsters, the sound would have frozen Sunset in place.

Now it just resolved her to the battle to come. And a quick, brutal one it was.

They came fast, faster than Sunset had been expecting. They weren’t truly moving at the super-speed possible with Flash Step or Sonido, but the shadows that burst from the depths of the fog were still moving at the kind of fluid speeds that dominate normal human reflexes. Fortunately no one present save perhaps Wallflower was relying upon normal human reflexes.

One came at her, leaping out of the billowing mist like a flying pile of fangs and dripping, ten-inch claws. Sunset caught the sight of its form, nose wrinkling in reflexive disgust at not only its sour, fish-guts smell, but at its bloated maw of needle teeth in a mouth too wide for comfort. Its body was lean and long, like a man stretched too far beyond human capacity, its arms lanky and scaled, its feet and hands alike ending in claws dark as granite and thick as a butcher’s cleaver. Its eyes were milk white, lacking any pupils, set in a face wrinkled with filth and covered in coarse gray fur. Some mad part of Sunset’s brain immediately thought of a mutant, stretched out pug and the absurdity almost caused her to forget herself.

But reflexes now long honed kicked in and she side-stepped the troglodyte’s grasping claws and gnashing fangs, sweeping her Zanpaktou out in a single, flashing arc as it flew past her.

The stink of the beast was now joined by the copper scent of blood and other bodily fluids as her strike cleaved it from head to groin, its two halves flying apart in a bloody mess.

Before she could take a second to even contemplate if these creatures were sapient and if she should be killing them out of hand, another four came at her in a wall of slashing claws, jumping from the mists like crazed murder monkeys, howling all the louder. For a second or two of pure, slow motion adrenaline, Sunset could only focus on the moment. Her emotions fell to a swift, focused edge, the heat in her heart burning away hesitation and fear. Claws sought her flesh, swiping with animal ferocity, and Sunset stepped among the beasts like a flickering mote of flame. With neat, precise strokes her blade separated arms from torsos, legs from hips, and claws fingers from hands, all in one blurring whirlwind of arcing steel.

Crippled and howling, the troglodytes that didn’t die or fall unconscious from blood loss crawled or scampered away from her, even as more of their comrades boiled forth from the shadows of the valley... far more than just three dozen.

For a moment, Sunset checked on her friends, still at the ready for if another creature came at her in the meantime.

Rainbow Dash had charged off into the fog, her presence marked only by the brilliant blaze of lightning, the coursing flow of wind, and the girl’s adrenaline fueled, daredevil laughter. Sunset saw the dark silhouette of Rainbow with each stroke of her lighting spear, the double edged weapon exploding out blinding arcs of electrical power that speared through transfixed troglodytes in photo-flash moments. She had at least a score on her, flailing and howling for the girl’s blood as Dash laughed and led them about, a one-woman storm in the contained valley.

Applejack was being much more deliberate and defensive, although no less aggressive and brutal. To Sunset’s interest, Applejack didn’t even summon all of the components of her Fullbring, cladding herself solely in her golden armor and leaving out the gunlance of the Honest Heart Regalia for now. It wasn’t as if Applejack’s fists and feet weren’t more than up to the task of dispatching any troglodyte that was brave enough to come leaping at her. There was mechanical efficiency to the way Applejack blasted one troglodyte with a rocket powered heel kick, and with the very same kick drove the body of that troglodyte into one of its companions, folding both of them practically in half before smashing them to the ground with a hellish impact. Then, without so much as slowing her spin, she jackhammered another that came clawing at her back, using her elbow alongside a boost of thrusting energy from her palm to snap the monster’s head clean around in a shower of broken teeth.

Clover was keeping everyone covered, filling in the middle range between the group, her palms sweeping left and right as they were extended to either side of her. Sunset couldn’t even hear the incantations of Clover’s Kido, the casting so fast it was like the Soul Reaper’s palms were machine guns, blasting out azure waves of power from Sokatsui, or harsh red energy spheres from Shakkaho, interspersed with the blinding white lighting spears form Byakurai. Clover’s Kido blew apart or pierced through troglodytes that were trying to slip in at the group’s backs, preventing the monsters’ lager numbers from being fully brought to bear.

Asena and Spike were fighting back to back at the rear of the party, holding back a large surge of the troglodytes that were pouring in from the valley behind them. Asena’s entire body was awash with a deep, scarlet glow as the giant wolf’s fur sharpened and extended into an array of curving blades. Troglodytes were all by skewering themselves trying to leap upon her, their claws unable to find purchase on the massive wolf’s fur, now hard as metal. Her jaws did savage work, snapping like a pair of executioner’s axes to bite heads clean off. By comparison Spike was being more clinical and precise with the Gunwolf’s ordinance. Fortunately because the robot’s weapons were fueled by spiritual energy and the special combination of Twilight’s understanding of Quincy techniques and magic, the Gunwolf wasn’t about to run out of ammunition anytime soon. Accurate laser fire from the barrel on his tail combined with short bursts of missiles from his shoulder mounted launchers were quite effective, for Spike had a very target rich environment where he practically couldn’t miss. Troglodytes were being flung about by explosions or cut down by thin laser beams by the handful, although there were so many crowding forward that Spike was still forced into melee before long, troglodyte claws scraping at his robot suit’s armor as he laid about with the mouth blade of the Gunwolf.

It was painfully clear that their initial estimation of these things’ numbers had been woefully underestimated. There were hundreds of these creatures, Sunset started to realize, pouring out of holes and crevices in the cliffs and valley floor that had been utterly obscured by the mist. She quickly understood that the reason they couldn’t sense the troglodytes numbers was because the reiatsu they exhibited were all blending together. What had felt earlier like one troglodyte had likely instead been a pack of a dozen or more. And the creatures had waited until the party had gotten to a place in the valley where they could be fully surrounded before striking.

Sapient or not, the troglodytes were smart enough to know they needed to hit Sunset and her friends with their full numbers and try to overwhelm them.

It was just that as much as the group may have underestimated the numbers of the troglodytes, the beasts in turn had underestimated the strength of their intended prey.

Before even half a minute had passed after the battle was joined, there was a bright flash of pale blue light from above, and a sound like great metal walls slamming down. Shining Armor, flying high above with swift motions of Hirenkyaku, fired arrows from his bow in specific patterns. As each arrow landed, a barrier of blue Quincy reishi would form, slicing through troglodytes unfortunate enough to be caught in their path, but also creating a wall of solid spirit power on either flank of the group that now cut off the troglodytes from being able to surround them. The creatures howled and slashed at the tall energy fields formed by the Bastion, but couldn’t hope to penetrate barriers that Shining Armor had once used to briefly contest Tirek himself.

Then, upon the outside rim of these barriers, a pale pink form moved like a wraith. Cadence fired careful shots with her arm mounted crossbow, small pink arrows with heart-shaped heads hitting troglodyte after troglodyte. With each one struck, the power of the Lust flowed through them and Cadence’s whispered command filled their minds with fresh bloodlust... for the flesh of their comrades. Sunset shuddered a bit, seeing the troglodytes now rip into their fellows, glad for the obscuring fog hiding at least some of the visual carnage, if not the gory audio of it all.

She herself had not ceased to cut the beasts down as they came at her, all but holding the very frontline of the group at the head of the valley’s exit. Shining Armor’s barriers didn’t fully extend to here, so many of the troglodytes were now funneling towards this front area, pouring in by the score. Sunset felt increasingly aghast at just... how mindlessly determined these beasts were. How many had been killed before even a minute had passed. The ground was slick with so much blood she felt it soaking her damn shoes! She hadn’t even activated her Shikai yet, having smoothly hacked her way through at least two dozen foes, and they still kept coming as if the only thing they could think of was to attack, attack, attack.

Something inside her was disgusted by all of this needless bloodshed. At the same time something else inside her was starting to let out a piercing cry of supreme ire. Without even really knowing it, her hair had started to flicker with sanguine flames, feathers of several shades of red and pink growing amid her hair as she stepped forward to meet the next wave of troglodytes.

“Will you damn idiots just give up already!?” she shouted, leaping forward and giving a long, horizontal slash with her blade at the front row of troglodytes. To her surprise, despite not activating Shikai, a burst of feathers made of ruby flame flew from her strike and zipped forward like flechettes from a shotgun. Ten or so troglodytes went tumbling to the ground, shrieking as the feathers of red flame pierced their bodies like incendiary rounds. Then each feather proceeded to explode like a triggered mine, hammering the troglodytes and sending dozens more scattering like kicked rocks.

“...The hell?” Sunset blinked, looking at her Zanpaktou. Then she gasped, noticing that her left hand had changed, feathers sprouting from the cuff of her arm, her fingers growing into scaled orange and red tinted talons. The sensation of something screeching in her head intensified, the echoing cry of an avian predator.

“Sunset, watch yerself!”

While she’d been briefly stunned by the sound in her head and her confusion at her changed hand, the mindless troglodytes had leaped over the blasted bodies of their fallen kin and rushed her. With the power of a dropping anvil, Applejack landed with a heel kick that squashed one like a watermelon, and she threw a hand out to eject a stream of blasting orange energy as she swept a beam across the charging monsters. While she incinerated many, several still loped through and slashed at Applejack. She readily adjusted her stance to dodge, claws sparking as the troglodytes tried and failed to pierce her armor. But one got a lucky blow in, slipping past her guard to catch some of her hair, and her stetson hat.

Seeing the beloved hat take a ragged cut across its brim, Applejack’s green eyes grew furious and a snarl escaped her lips that didn’t sound entirely human. Sunset, still reeling a bit from her own physical changes, now saw Applejack’s body get outlined in a strange, dark blue aura unlike the usual gold she tended to sport. She cocked back a fist to smash forward at the troglodyte that had slashed her hat, and in mid swing the gauntleted hand became incased in cobalt, translucent bear claw that proceeded to turn the troglodyte into mincemeat before smashing into the ground, which then in turn generate a shockwave through the earth that erupted into flying chunks of rock in a lone line that devastated the troglodytes gathered in front of the group and shook the entire valley.

Applejack, breathing hard and still snarling, looked left and right for more enemies, her mane of golden hair having grown more shaggy as gold fur markings grew across her face.

Sunset felt a pulsation in her chest like a heartbeat, and glanced down to see a faint light emanating from the Hogyoku. She felt it slowly absorbing energy from the mass of dead troglodytes, and from herself, and then passing along that energy to Applejack. Focusing for a moment, Sunset also felt a thread of that energy snaking its way out towards the direction Rainbow Dash had gone, where in the distance she could still hear thunder strikes.

“Applejack,” she said, reaching out to touch her friend’s shoulder.

Applejack flinched and whirled on her, hand raised, a faint image of the bear claw forming around her gauntleted first. Sunset could see that Applejack’s eyes took a second to focus on her, and that the girl’s teeth were showing sharp fangs where there hadn’t been ones before. Yet Applejack got a hold of herself. The troglodytes were regrouping for another charge, but there was a brief respite as Applejack took a deep breath and looked at her hands.

“What’s goin’ on...? Is this them changes we was warned about?”

Sunset held up her left hand, now much more akin to a bird talon than a human one, “Take a guess. I have a feeling the Hogyoku Discord gave us is accelerating the process. C’mon, we need to go help Rainbow Dash, because I think it’s about to-”

Suddenly from the general area Rainbow Dash had gone, there was a echoing feline howl, like some giant jungle cat letting out a hunting call.

“-happen to her, too.”

----------

Rainbow Dash really didn’t get why everyone else was being so cautious about things. This was barely a fight! Sure these trogwhatevers were nasty looking and maybe if she and the gals had run into this many of them way back when they first got their Fullbrings, this situation would’ve been bad news... but c’mon! She was untouchable by now! Practical light speed combat, baby! She could tap dance on these fools heads, literally count their nose hairs and ugly teeth one at a time and still be able to lazily slip past their gangly strikes like taking a casual jog through the park.

It isn’t arrogance if you’ve got the stuff to back it up, right?

Really she felt sorry for the beasties. It wasn’t like she had to even try, here. The raw lightning that surged from her double headed spear could readily blast through whole groups of them at once, each twirling swing sending arcs of power that sizzled dozens of foes and left them smoking heaps behind her prismatic streak. She could have blasted out more energy using her wings, really gone to town and taken hold of the local weather to summon up a few tornadoes, but that would have just been overkill.

Dash knew that she’d gotten a good distance from the group, having assaulted the troglodytes along the winding and splitting ravines of what looked to be a maze of side paths. To her perspective she was all but just walking like an afternoon stroll amid scores of leaping monsters that filled the foggy terrain around her, spinning her energized spear around in flaring indigo arcs without putting much thought into it. She just wanted to get rid of all of these guys fast enough so they could get on with their journey already! She wanted to see what was up with the Dwarves of this Allhammer Clan, then hopefully once that was taken care of they could get to the surface and move even faster.

To Alfheim for this Convocation of Whatever, then presumably Equestria. Rainbow Dash was just eager to move ahead. It was a heck of a lot easier than dwelling on the past. Failing to save Rarity from Hell’s grasp. The sting of her aunt Windy’s hidden identity. The looming unease about what she’d do when she saw her mother again in Equestria.

Frying troglodytes and having this weird Beast Realm adventure was a bit of a breath of fresh air compared to having to deal with all of that.

And the thing about speed, even ludicrous speed that’s all but untouchable under normal circumstances, is that its no proof against an object in place that one doesn’t see, and Rainbow Dash was taking things so casual to the point that her mind had started to wander to things other than the fight in front of her. So when she ran face first into a series of nearly invisible and thick strands like wet, sticky tissue paper, but the size of stretched out trampolines that crisscrossed the narrow ravine, all her speed did was ensure she was thoroughly wrapped up before she had a chance to even blink.

“Pffwwah! Huh!?” she shook herself, her limbs entangled at awkward angles. She still had her spear held in her right hand, its electrical arcs buzzing and sparking about to keep the troglodytes at bay for a moment, but she had to use that moment to work out what had happened to her as she looked around with confusion.

She’d run smack dab into what looked like a thick series of massive cob-webs, but ones many inches wider than anything she’d seen before, and covered in a dripping and sticky fluid that hardened on contact with her skin and clothes, not to mention her hair. She pulled and tugged at it, and her strength being not inconsiderable she was able to start tearing at it... but then more of the sheets descended onto her and she looked up to see that there was a troglodyte on the walls above her that wasn’t like the others.

This one, while just as horrific looking as its brethren, also was covered in a coat of coarse, spiny black fur that seemed to grow from it in an unnatural mass. Rainbow Dash could feel the sudden burst of energy from this troglodyte, and saw the fur on its back shudder, then an opening appeared, like a slit vertically appearing across the creature’s spine. A mouth! Its whole back became one big mouth, and the thing’s spiritual pressure flowed out with a sharp, hungry intent as the mouth let out an ear rending screech. To Rainbow Dash’s confusion, she saw shapes emerge from the walls around the troglodyte, ethereal and white, but with conical red heads. She briefly recalled seeing these things back in Canterlot City. They’d been floating around all over the place when Jormungandr and his dragon posse had attacked. What had they been called...? Blanks! That was it.

As Dash still struggled to pull free of the webs, she saw at least half a dozen Blanks float towards the troglodyte with the mouth on its back, and the ghost-like figures in white twisted and stretched like pieces of chewing gum until they went right into the troglodyte's mouth! She felt its spiritual pressure rise higher then, right before it spat a thick stream of webbing out in a globy mass right onto Rainbow Dash! Whatever the Blanks had done when they’d been absorbed by its mouth, it was like they’d enhanced the web, making it even stronger and stickier! It occurred to Rainbow that all the web here must have been enhanced in this fashion, which was why it was harder than she would have expected to break free!

“Ugggh! Okay, gross as hell! Pfft, ugh, it got in my mouth!”

Spirit energy permeated the webs, and she couldn’t tell how much of it was from the troglodyte or the Blanks, but either way Dash struggled against them. Tearing the webs was possible, and once she got her wings into gear, she was able to start firing swift beams of prismatic power out of them to burn through the webs even more. However, this did take a second or two, in which time the rest of the troglodytes had time to group up and rush her like a pack of starving rats. The web was slowing her down, but even so she sliced about with her spear, generating sizzling arcs of electricity that burned through the beasts one after another.

However, one among scores of assailants did manage to get close, and even as lightning fried the troglodyte its claws sliced at Rainbow Dash’s legs and she felt a sharp bite of pain in her right calf. It wasn't a deep wound, but for an instant, surrounded by salivating monsters, covered in webs restricting her movement, and realizing she was far away from any help, there was an instinctive fear that any human might feel in that situation. Inside Rainbow Dash, the fight or flight response was always, always fight. And in the Beast Realm, that instinct brings out the animal in us all.

It began as a rumble in the back of her throat, rising to a tingle across her spine and the back of her neck. Rainbow Dash stopped thinking as her mouth issued forth a throating noise that soon rose to a full blown growl. Suddenly her nose was filled with even sharper scents as the stink of the troglodytes around her mixed with the smell of her own blood, and before she knew it she was clawing at both herself and them. Her spear wasn’t forgotten, but it was being used with one hand now like a sparkling bludgeon as her other hand clawed and clashed recklessly around her. Webbing was torn from her, even if she had to wound herself to rip it off. Troglodytes had throats torn out in mere flashes of motion and Dash felt blood on her claws. It wasn’t enough. These prey things had cornered her, and would learn she was the predator, not they!

She howled again, and electricity flew from her in bolting arcs, while she slashed with the claws of her left hand, bisecting one creature and then hurling the bloody corpse at the one that had dared tried to cage her.

The troglodyte with the mouth on its back was impacted by the shredded remains of its kin and was knocked off the wall. Dash could have pulverized with energy blasts or torn it apart with cutting bursts of wind, but she wanted to rip into it more personally. Scattering dozens of other troglodytes in a headlong charge, Dash rushed the Anima using troglodyte. It rose to face her, opening its strange back mouth and shooting a thick wave of webbing at her, but Rainbow howled again and tore through it with wild abandon. It stuck to her, but she kept clawing, and letting thunderous lightning blast from her wings and spear to incinerate the sticky substance.

Then she had the troglodyte in her left paw, claws squeezing onto its shoulder with the crack of bone. She heard it howl and felt her mouth water as she saw its neck, feeling her fangs ache to rip into it.

Before she could, something unbelievably strong grabbed her from behind, pinning her arms to her side. Rainbow Dash howled louder, seeking to turn her head and bite at the interloper interfering with her kill. Green eyes filled with concern looked at her in the dark, a voice calling, heard as if from far away even if the mouth speaking was right in front of her.

“Godrammit, Dash! Calm down! Git a’ hold o’ yerself! It’s me!”

Pure, animal instinct railed against being restrained, and Dash thrashed and clawed at the arms holding her. She felt hard metal resist her slashes, and she couldn’t get her spear around to stab, so instead she let electricity course through her body in a thunderous bolt of power. Lightning flashed up and down, spearing through the dark cavern sky, millions upon millions of volts. Yet her foe held on tightly, grunting in pain but refusing to let go! Rainbow howled and her wing flared, prismatic energy burning brightly as she flew back at near light speed to slam into the cliff wall back-first, crunching her captor into it.

“Gh! D-Dash you damn idjit, don’t make me get rough with ya!”

The one holding her, with indomitable strength, adjusted her grip expertly on the struggling Rainbow Dash, getting one golden armored arm under Dash’s chin for a choke hold. Nearly feral, Dash bit down hard with a pair of thin, but sharp fangs. She couldn’t get through the armor, yet by now something else was trickling into her mind as she finally started to catch the scent of the one holding her.

This scent was familiar. It was a pleasant, earthy smell of grass and sunbaked dirt. Memories of a farmhouse, a friend’s abode. It reminded Rainbow Dash of warm summer days on a farm, reluctantly helping that friend pick apples so they could do more fun stuff in town later. It was the scent of comfort and safety. Her heart still thrashed in her chest, but Rainbow Dash started to slowly come back to herself. Applejack... it was Applejack who was holding her, powerful arms keeping the squirming Dash pinned. The cliff side was cratered by Rainbow having slammed Applejack into it, all but indenting them both several meters into the rock wall, but Applejack had held on. She was singed from the raw bolts of lightning Dash had slammed upon them, but the insanely tough farmgirl had withstood it to keep Rainbow Dash held down.

Now that she was slowly calming down, Rainbow Dash stopped struggling and also took note of the sensation of heat in the ravine, along with the bright ruby glow of flames.

Sunset Shimmer was there in the ravine as well, her Zanpaktou alight... wait, no, Rainbow Dash just saw the katana of Hokori no Hikari’s sealed form. Where were all those flames coming from, so bright, red, and flaring also with strands of pink and orange? It was like Sunset was surrounded by a ghostly aura of those flames that grew from her shoulders like the phantom image of wings, which then flowed in the wake of her sword strikes until they coalesced into feathers, which in turn flew out to pierce troglodytes and explode with crimson intensity.

The troglodytes were finally retreating, what few of them remained. The one with the mouth on its back had crawled away even further, making an undulating call to its kin as the mass slowly faded back into the dark walls of fog they’d attacked from. In unsettling fashion the valley and ravines went still and quiet, almost as if the monsters had never been there at all. Yet the ground was carpeted with their remains, testament to the bloody if brief fight that had taken place.

And Rainbow Dash, now finally getting her senses back, looked at herself in bewildered wonderment. Her hands were covered in fine, black fur, ending in incredibly sharp, faintly purple shaded claws. She touched her face carefully, feeling more fur there, and a twitching sensation on her head as she realized her ears had tapered to fuzzy points, becoming black cat ears.

All it took was one look to tell her friends had also undergone changes, with feathers flowing through Sunset’s hair and her left hand now akin to bird’s talon. Applejack was showing fur lining her own features, a rich brown, and her lips were somewhat parted by prominent fangs.

Breathing hard, trying to slowly calm herself, Rainbow nodded at Applejack, “I’m... I’m good. You can let go now.”

“Ya sure?”

She wasn’t sure, which was only further emphasized by the fact that an irrational urge to bite Applejack surged up inside her as she literally growled, “No, but if you don’t, I’m not totally sure what I’m going to do.”

“AJ, it’s okay, let her go,” said Sunset, and Applejack, wearing a pinched look of concern, went ahead and did so, stepping back from Rainbow Dash and holding up her hands. Hands that Dash could now see were also covered in thick brown fur, and showing black, curved claws like those of a bear.

“Are you all unharmed?”

This call came from above. Rainbow Dash and the others looked up to see the air light up with a soft emerald glow from the wings of Simurgh. The bird was slowly hovering downward with large flaps of her wings, barely able to fit into the narrow ravine that Dash had run off to. Wallflower clung to the bird’s back, peering over at them with wide, worried eyes, “When you all ran off, I asked Simurgh to follow you. Are you all okay? What happened?”

“I dunno...” said Rainbow Dash, cringing in upon herself as she looked at all the burned webbing on the floor and felt a cold rush of embarrassment as she understood she’d screwed up, “I got a bit carried away, and then... I was trapped for a sec, then its like I lost my head or something. And, apparently, I’m a freakin’ cat now.”

“Only a tad,” said Applejack, managing a relieves smile to see her friend was at least back to acting normal, “Shame we ain’t got Ditzy Doo with us ta give ya some pointers. As fer me...” she held up her hands, wiggling her claws, which extended past her golden armored gauntlets, “Give me a smack upside the head if I start tryin’ ta raid picnic baskets.”

“Hardy har har, Yogi, but this is serious!” Rainbow Dash said, looking up at Simurgh, “Was this supposed to happen so fast? And you didn’t say anything about us going literally feral on our own friends!”

“That is weird,” said Sunset, coming over to Rainbow and offering a comforting if brief touch on her arm, “Neither me or Applejack went that berserk. Felt a little funny in the head, but that’s it so far.”

“Same,” said Applejack, frowning as she went to Rainbow’s other side, “Got a bit growly, but I was still thinkin’ like myself. Fer a sec, there, ya looked like ya wanted to bite my throat out.”

“It sucked. I couldn’t even think straight. Is this how this crap is supposed to work?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Simurgh lowered her head, allowing Wallflower to climb down, although the girl stayed very close to the huge avian while giving a gulping look towards the troglodyte bodies. Meanwhile Simurgh looked at the three partially transformed girls, tilting her head to examine them closely with one eye. A soft blue glow emanated from her wings and long tail feathers, and a gentle rain of blue droplets of energy floated down from her wings. Where the droplets touched, and soothing aura left a calm, cooling feeling of refreshment and restoration through Rainbow Dash’s body. She saw Applejack and Sunset also let out relieved breaths.

“No, the changes should not be happening quite this quickly, or as intensely,” said Simurgh, beak clacking briefly in an expression of consternation, “Nor should it be possible for you to use Anima this early. Sunset Shimmer, I am sensing a concentration of Anima upon you especially...”

“It’s probably this,” she said, reaching into her Soul Reaper robes to pull out the Hogyoku, “It’s something Discord made. Might take awhile to explain what it is and what it does, but the short version is that it makes it possible for souls to absorb energy from each other and... I don’t know, sort of evolve from it?”

“Why would he give you something like that? It sounds potentially dangerous.”

“Long story. But its something that could help me and my friends get stronger in the long run, so I’ve been keeping it on me. I just also noticed it was connecting my spirit energy to AJ’s and Dash’s during the fight, so I think that’s why these changes triggered,” Sunset said, “But I’ve got no idea why Dash reacted more severely than me and AJ did.”

“That is simple,” said Asena, the wolf padding incredibly silently for something her size as she joined them from the direction the rest of the party had been. The wolf eyed Rainbow Dash meaningfully, jaws still slick with troglodyte blood as she panted, “It is because Rainbow Dash is, among the three of you, the most in tune with her inner beast.”

“Huh?” Dash cocked her head, “The heck does that mean!?”

“It means that you think less and act more on instinct. For us of the Beast Realm, it is an admirable trait,” said Asena, to which Simurgh made a clucking noise.

“Perhaps to those of the Land Tribe. Some of us do value intellectual pursuits over simple savagery.”

Asena’s teeth showed in an accepting smile, “That is why the Land Tribe is relied upon by you of the Sky for protection. Hah! Come, noble Rainbow Dash, do not look so worried. This is a good thing! You and your companions are stepping upon the path of the Beast!”

“Yeah, let’s just try to remember that we don’t actually want to become Beasts,” said Sunset, “We need to get a handle on this Anima stuff, ASAP, otherwise its not going to be any use to us. Did the troglodytes run on your guys’ end as well?”

Asena gave a firm nod, still grinning with bloodied lips, “Indeed, they broke upon the bulwark of your Quincy friend’s barriers, then were torn asunder by my and Lord Fenris’ combined might. I suppose your little Soul Reaper friend helped, too. She is quite skilled with those spells of hers. Between all of us, hundreds of our foes carpet the battlefield with their corpses! A great victory for our warband!”

“Don’t celebrate too much,” said Simurgh, “I’m concerned-”

“My shock shall ever be eternal,” deadpanned Asena, and Simurgh continued as if she hadn’t heard the wolf.

“-I’m concerned that not only has this scuffle given away our position due to the amount of energy we expended, not to mention Lady Dash’s lightshow with the lightning, but that it is extremely uncharacteristic for troglodytes to hunt in so large a force or to retreat once battle is joined. Nothing about this makes sense to me.”

“Hmph, the bird thinks too much,” said Asena, “Perhaps the trogs usual hunting grounds have been disrupted by the Dwarven armies marching about! Perhaps, for once, there was a troglodyte among them smart enough to call a retreat when it was plain they could not win. Do not overthink it, Simurgh. Besides, we have work to do. We must find a good, defensible camp for the night, so we might begin instructing the young ladies on the finer points of Anima use.”

“...Very well,” said Simurgh, but the look in her eyes said the Sky Tribe herald was still uneasy about the strange nature of the troglodyte attack. She lowered her head and wing again, “Lady Wallflower, shall convey you once more?”

“Um, that’s okay. I think I’d like to walk with the others for a bit, if that’s fine?” Wallflower said, stepping a little closer to the girls.

“As it pleases you. I shall search from the air for a suitable place to make camp. With luck, there will be no more trouble this night.”

----------

Camp turned out to be a pleasantly comfortable spring located at the base of a small waterfall near the top of the valley edge. They were out of the dark and fog and now were on the highest ridge of the slanted valley terrain which overlooked a huge rock plain covered in stalagmites of so many varied shapes and sizes it was like gazing upon a city of conical stone. In the very far distance Sunset could make out the lights of what might have been severale villages or small towns, and Simurgh, checking their map from the Diamond Dogs, explained that those were likely small communities of Svartalfheim races mixed together. While the Diamond Dogs and Dwarves were the major players of this part of the Beast Realm, smaller ‘Clans’ of various species still made common cause for survival. Sunset would’ve been curious to see these villages, but both Asena and Simurgh agreed it was best to avoid them to try and keep a low profile.

It had been hours since the fight with the troglodytes, but Sunset still couldn’t get the smell, sounds, and imagery of it out of her head. Asena had laughed off any of Sunset’s voiced concerns, assuring her that the troglodytes were little more than ravenous and near mindless predators. Sunset supposed she’d slain plenty of Hollows, so this shouldn’t really feel that much different. It did make her briefly wonder how the reincarnation cycle worked for denizens of the Beast Realm. Did each dead troglodyte equate to a reincarnated animal from the living world? How did that all work, exactly?

“Your guess is as good as mine,” said Clover, when Sunset asked as the pair sat by the edge of the waterfall, near the spring pool its gentle waters formed, “The Beast Realm remains a mysterious place for we of Soul Society. In theory, the path of soul reincarnation is not terribly different here. So any slain in this place should pass on to be reborn in the human world. But given the possible connection to Equestria as well, it may be there is a rate of rebirth in that realm, too.”

“Kind of makes my head hurt trying to get it all sorted,” Sunset said, tapping her head with a claw, wincing a bit as she wasn’t used to having her fingers be sharp. She frowned at the talon her left hand had become. Thankfully its shape was stilly mostly human, but the feathers and faint, bird-like scales felt odd to her, not to mention the slightly curved, short talons at the ends of her fingers. At least it wouldn't interfere with her holding her Zanpaktou. “You think this looks alright on me? The talon and feathers?”

Clover smiled and let out a small laugh, “That’s what you’re worried about? You look fine, Sunset. Honestly the feathers suit you. They blend in with your hair nicely, and the lighter pink and red shades compliment the rest of you quite nicely, I think.”

“Well... good. I don’t want these changes to be permanent, but if they end up being so its at least nice to know I don’t look too goofy,” Sunset said, smirking a little at her friend, “Wonder what kind of animal you’d end up as if you start to change.”

“Hmm, a part of me would like to go owl, like my Chishiki. But I could also see myself as... a turtle.”

“A turtle?” Sunset blinked several times, to which Clover just offered a shrug.

“Slow, yet dependable. Green, like my hair. Not remarkable, but ever determined and resolved to move forward. I think I would make a fine turtle.”

Sunset could feel some of the tension that had built up in her slowly seep out of her as she exhaled a light, breathy laugh. “You know, I could see it. You know Dash has a pet turtle? Adorable little dude.”

“I didn’t, and I have to say I’m a bit surprised that out of all animals, she’d have a turtle as a pet,” said Clover, looking over her shoulder back towards where the majority of the group was gathered around a small campfire, where dinner was being cooked by an attentive Cadence. They’d managed to snag some berries and mushrooms that Simurgh assured them were of the safe variety to complement a small stew of preserved meats given to them by the Diamond Dogs. Sunset was doing her best not to think too hard about the meat itself. She’d kind of broken with her pony inclination towards vegetarianism some time ago.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were both sitting together on a set of rocks brought over to be seats, talking quietly with one another in much the same way Clover and Sunset were. While Dash was smiling and from the sound of things was being her usual joking self, Sunset could read the stiffness in her friend’s shoulders and the nervous way Rainbow’s eyes would flick towards her altered hands. The fur Dash now sported was at first glance black, but in the light of the campfire Sunset could make out shades of dark purple. The hair was fine, like that of a panther. Quite the contrast with Applejack’s coarser brown fur. Both girls still looked like themselves, really, just as if someone had taken an artist's brush and expertly added the starting touches of animal features.

“Yeah,” said Sunset, “The way things have gone since you met us, you haven’t had a lot of chances to just hang out with everyone.”

“That’s life as a Soul Reaper,” Clover said, her voice holding a note of sadness coated heavily with resigned duty, “Even more so, now that I’m to be a Captain.”

Her eyes shifted to the scroll case at her side, and Sunset gave Clover a serious look, “You working on those spells again tonight?”

“I have to,” Clover stated, taking a deep breath, “If I don’t master them, I won’t be able to keep pace with the rest of you. I’m not going to be the one that holds you back, Sunset.”

“Hey, we started this whole thing together when we first met you,” Sunset said with an emphatic nudge of Clover’s arm with her own, “And I know I’d never have gotten this far without your help. Don’t do this because you’re afraid of holding me or any of the other girls back. Do it because you want it for yourself.”

Clover clutched the scroll case tighter in her small gray hands, and nodded slowly, “Yes... I will.”

“Dinner is just about ready, you two,” called Cadence, “Why don’t you come over and get warmed up by the fire?”

As Sunset and Clover came over, Shining Armor, who was standing watch by the other side of the waterfall, gave them both a nod, “Go ahead. I’ll eat after. I want to make sure this barrier is adjusted properly.”

When they had made camp the Sternritter had made use of his Schrift to craft a reishi barrier around the camp that was an effective stealth camouflage. Sunset recalled Twilight had used devices capable of something similar to disguise her field lab back at Everfree, but it seemed Shining Armor could do the same with the Bastion. The more she saw of his Schrift the more she understood just how versatile and potent an ability it was, and was just glad that she and him were on the same side now. For now. Hopefully long term.

Dammit, she hoped that the Quincy King was on the level, and that maybe, just maybe, there really would be a ceasefire with the Soul Reapers. It was killing Sunset, a little, not knowing what was going on back in the living world.

Dinner was brief, and shockingly tasty, given the limited ingredients. Cadence simply smiled through the meal, clearly pleased with herself.

“Man, beautiful, plus awesome cooking skills?” Rainbow Dash grinned and called out to Shining Armor, “Hey man, you got any idea how much you scored with landing this chick?”

“Oh believe me, I know,” Shining Armor said, smiling at Cadence, who smirked back at him with a loving wink.

“So, um... are you three feeling... you know, better?” asked Wallflower quietly, having sort of slowly nursed her food while gazing at Sunset and the other two girls who had undergone partial Beast transformation. Applejack blanched a bit, while Rainbow scratched the back of her head.

“I mean, I haven’t felt like clawing anyone’s throat out... again,” Dash said, frowning as her cat ears twitched, “Still annoyed I ended up as a cat. Why wouldn’t it be something like a badass hawk, or at least a wolf.”

Asena gave a rumble of approval, “To desire to be a wolf shows great taste. But hunting cats are capable predators as well. Inferior to us canines, of course, but acceptable.”

“Hell, it isn’t even that I’m worried about,” Rainbow said, shuddering, “I’m just dreading the hairballs. And the joke references. I swear the first person that tries to call me a ‘Thundercat’ is going to get a bolt of lightning shoved straight up their butt.”

Applejack snorted, almost choking on her stew, “Oh God, I ain’t even made that connection! Hahaha! Now I ain’t gonna be able ta git it outta my head! Dash, ya got any idea how hard it’s gonna be ta not rib ya over that one?”

“You better not!” the other girl warned.

“Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight...” whispered, strangely enough, Wallflower, to which Rainbow rounded on her.

“Don’t you start! Dang it AJ, look what you’ve done, you’ve corrupted our innocent Wallflower with terrible references!”

“Hey, ya’ll started this, not me,” said Applejack, and Wallflower, with what Sunset could swear was a moment of genuine amusement and a smile, whispered further.

“Thunder, thunder, thunder!”

“Lightning!” Dash warned, “Up the butt!”

Wallflower relented, giggling a little as she went silent. Sunset could only smile at her, and felt even more relaxed, hearing Clover, Applejack, and Rainbow join in the relieving, if brief bout of laughter.

“I see you are all in good spirits,” said Simurgh, who was perched on a smaller cliff outcropping about a dozen feet up, acting as a secondary lookout, “Perhaps now would be a good time to begin your lesson on Anima, now that you are all fed and rested.”

“I’m all for that,” said Sunset, glancing at Applejack and Rainbow Dash, “I think we’re all on the same page, as in ‘Page 1: We Don’t Know Anything’.”

Applejack chuckled, patting her stetson, which still had a nasty tear in it that they couldn’t repair, given nobody had exactly been packing needle and thread when Jormungandr had so rudely given them an unwanted vacation to Svartalfheim. “Makes me feel like we’re right back at Discord’s shop, gettin’ our first lessons on our Fullbrings.”

“Kind of nostalgic, huh?” said Rainbow Dash.

“Nah, more like I remember being just as confused an’ scared back then, an’ didn’t like how little we know ‘bout what we was gettin’ into. Only now it feels worse ‘cause we’re down Rarity, Fluttershy, an’ Pinkie Pie.”

Dash gulped, looking away, “Yeah, hope they’re all okay. Especially Rares. Wonder what she’s dealing with right now.”

“Nothing we can do about it without first taking care of what’s in front of us,” said Sunset, wanting to keep her friend’s focused on the situation before they dwelt too much on things they couldn’t affect. As if she was one to talk. It was hard for her own mind not to wander to the same places Rainbow Dash and Applejack were.

“Your leader speaks wisdom,” said Asena, settling her huge, furry bulk down on the opposite side for the fire from them. “You will do well to cleave to what lessons I and Simurgh can impart to you, and sharpen the new fangs you’ve been granted. Learn to add the strength to Anima to your already impressive skills, and perhaps even the likes of Jormungandr will fall to you, as shall your future enemies, which I understand you have many.”

“Ya ain’t makin’ no understatement there,” said Applejack, holding up her fingers one at a time, “We got Jormungandr, Tirek n’ his Hollow armies, Starlight Glimmer n’ her crew, then the whole Zero Division ta knock outta commission. So if this Anima and Beast stuff will give me n’ the other gals an edge, then ya got an eager student with me.”

“Yup, let’s do this!” Rainbow Dash said, slapping a fist into her palm, and then wincing as her cat claws made this a tad awkward as she poked herself, “Ouch... okay, so, seriously is there a way for us to turn this stuff on and off?”

Asena’s throat rumbled with a deep laugh, her tail swishing like a giant brush behind her, “Not as such. Once you are free of the Beast Realm your bodies should return to normal, assuming you escape in time. Fortunately you will still be able to use Anima, regardless, although your bodies will likely change with Anima use if only temporarily once outside the Beast Realm. Now, before we begin... Lord Fen- I mean, Lord Spike, shall you join us?”

Spike had been napping nearby, resting atop the head of his Gunwolf. At Asena’s call the dog’s ears perked up and he raised his head to look over at them, yawning, “I guess I could. I mean, I don’t have any of this Anima stuff yet, so not sure how much good this’ll do me. Besides, me and the Gunwolf have been doing alright.”

“I understand, my Lord. The weapon fashioned for you by your human companion is marvelous indeed, but it is inevitable that while you remain in the Beast Realm that your old powers will either reawaken, or be reborn anew into a shape suited to your present incarnation. Knowing the basics of Anima will be useful for you, and best to learn them now,” Asena said, patting the stone next to her, “Come, Lord Spike, attend to my words. I swear on my honor that they shall prove valuable to you in due time.”

“Okay, okay, I get it. Heh, not like I’m not used to listening to lectures,” said Spike, hopping down from the head of the Gunwolf and padding over to them so he could lay down on the stone next to Asena, “Twilight can talk for hours on pretty much any subject you can think of, and for a lot of years I was her only real study buddy.”

“Wait, but you couldn’t talk back then, right?” said Dash, to which Spike smiled with a fond look in his eyes.

“Yeah, so what? She just needed someone to listen to her while she went over lessons in her own head. I never understood even a fraction of what she talked about, but I liked listening to her all the same.”

“You were the goodest of good boys,” Applejack said with a wink, and Spike beamed, tail wagging.

“Damn straight I was. Still am.”

Asena and Simurgh exchanged mortified looks, the big wolf exhaling a large sigh, “I am not sure how I feel about the reincarnation of the Beast Realm’s great High Chieftain of the Tribe of Land being referred to as the ‘goodest of good boys’. Is this a Midgard title of some manner? One of great honor?”

“Oh yes,” said Sunset, trying not to laugh and look deadly serious, “No greater honor.”

“Hmm,” Asena rumbled, “Then I shall not question it. Now, let our lecture begin...”

----------

“The first thing I shall tell you of Anima is that it is born of one’s soul, but also of the energy inherent to all things that you would call ‘magic’. From this, the beast spirit is born, dormant in many, but it awakens in all who call the Beast Realm home. All of us have our Inner Beast. This Inner Beast is expressed outwardly through a power we know as Anima...

Spike glided on wings far vaster than he’d ever imagined himself once having just a few days ago when he’d still been a ‘baby’ dragon. It was still hard for him to fully accept that he’d transformed into such a humongous and, in his estimation, fairly handsome dragon. If only it didn’t come with a whole host of weird memories and emotions that he knew weren’t actually his, but some previous version of himself. Fafnir, one of the first dragons to come to Equestria from another realm, and one of the progenitors of dragonkind on Equestria.

How wild was that?

“Hey, focus!” Ember gave his snout a flick with her tail. She might have been a lot smaller to him, now, but her tail still packed a wallop and Spike snorted and adjusted his course before he hit the side of a mountain. There was a whole range of ice capped peaks sprawling out beneath him and Ember, the far northern range of the Frozen North. They’d been scouring this area for the past day in search of Nidhogg.

Almost every dragon under Torch’s command was either helping with reconstruction efforts in the Crystal Empire, or searching for the mysterious interloper who’d attack Spike and Ember and who’s attack had resulted in Spike activating the power of the ‘Relic’ within the Dragon Lord’s Scepter.

Several scouts from Yakyakistan had reported seeing a huge, black dragon flying among these ice peaks, and so the search had shifted and now dragons flew in small flights or pairs to look high and low for any trace of Nidhogg’s presence. Spike had wanted to join the efforts for pretty obviously personal reasons. After all, this Nidhogg was claiming to be his brother. Or Fafnir’s brother. Spike wanted to know what his deal was and why he’d come here to attack him. Or ‘bring him back’ as Nidhogg had claimed.

Ember had insisted on being Spike’s search partner, to keep an eye on him and ‘protect’ him, which Spike thought was a tad absurd given the size difference now. But then again, Ember had enough attitude to make up any size difference, Spike thought with a smile grin.

“What’s that goofy grin about?” Ember asked, eyeing him as she flew next to his head.

“Nothing,” Spike said, glancing away and hiding his flushed face scales by pretending to examine the ground terrain. There were a lot of caves and deep, dark ravines amid the frozen mountain landscape. So many places to hide.

“The forms Anima expresses itself in are as varied as the vaunted Zanpaktou powers of the Soul Reapers, capable of taking on any number of vastly different capabilities depending on the one who uses them. That said, Anima has eight distinct aspects, and each user has an affinity with one of these aspects. The Eight Aspects are-”

A sound suddenly hammered Spike and Ember as they passed between two narrow mountain peaks. The sound reverberated in their ears like an earthquake, a roar so loud and potent that it disoriented Spike, causing him to lose all track of where he was flying. It was beyond just the jarring jumble of the roar itself, it was as if the sound had somehow reversed his sense of gravity.

“Howl; the aspect with the longest range and with powers often specialized in debilitating a foe or empowering an ally. Howl users are most dangerous when fighting at long distance.”

Spike did his best to right his course before he slammed headlong into the mountainside, and did manage to at least get his shoulder in place to impact instead of his head. Still he felt the immense, jarring crash as his body tumbled into the snowy side of the peak on his left, sending icicles of sharp pain into his side. Groaning, he dug his claws into the mountain and shook his head, trying to get his senses back. He still felt like gravity was somehow reversed, like up was down, but he used the feeling of his claws on the rock beneath him to help ground his senses and he looked around for Ember.

“Ember! Ember!?”

Where was she!? Had she been hit by that weird roar, too? And who-?

Before he could complete the thought he saw the ground above him quake, and it was as if the mountainside itself exploded outward, the ice and snow that had caked the stone now falling away to reveal a hulking draconic body of midnight black scales. Nidhogg was larger than Spike, and even gave Torch a run for his money on sheer size. Huge, thick backwards curving horns curled into a spinning shape like an over exaggerated ram-head, and Nidhogg’s jaws were thick and jutted outward with downward curved tusks, as if stone had formed a spiky beard on his chin.

“Brother! You come back to me! Now we shall go back to our Lord Jormungandr, together!”

Nidhogg’s roaring, baritone voice was followed by him raising up on his haunches and extending his huge, dark scaled limbs. Emerald green energy coursed up his arms and gathered in his claws, which began to distort the air around them with pulsating waves of force.

”Claw; the aspect considered most common, and most potent at close combat. Claw users can create any number of deadly effects up close, so it's rarely wise to engage one face to face unless you have an equivalent close range power.”

Spike threw himself backward, down the slope of the mountain. He felt those deadly, green glowing claws pass by his scales, missing by only a meter, a short distance at his and Nidhogg’s comparative sizes. Yet the distortion in the air that surrounded Nidhogg’s claws seemed to vibrate the very air for at least five meters around the claws, and so even as Spike dodge he felt his scales crunch as if under a great impact. He nearly lost his balance sliding down the slope, but he ignored the pain and let out a roar of his own, letting his anger explode out of his throat in the form of a blast of hellish green fire directly at Nidhogg.

“Then there is Hide; this aspect is also close range, but more defensive in nature. Hide users often develop powers that harden or otherwise enhance their own body, making it useful for both defense and offense, depending on the shape the Anima takes.”

Spike watched as his billowing flames flowed over Nidhogg, and he felt his heart drop as Nidhogg let out a hearty laugh. The emerald aura of power that started with Nidhogg’s claws now extended across his whole body, his scaly hide lighting up green and that same distortion in the air now encasing his whole body like a shield. Nidhogg looked at Spike with a pair of dark orange eyes showing a strange mixture of amusement and sad disappointment.

“You have grown so... lesser than you once were, my brother. Once your flames would have baked through my Hide Anima like the fragile shell of a hatchling! My Claw Anima could never penetrate your Hide, only my Howl ever could, and yet... oh well, I suppose you’ve lived this new life of yours ignorant of your true self. But fear not, beloved sibling, I shall not allow you to wallow in this ugly, weak, ignorant state a moment longer! I may need to beat you bloody first but I shall drag you home and reawaken you to your true self, I swear it.”

----------

“Hold up, question, teach?” Rainbow Dash said as she raised a hand. Asena looked at her, but nodded.

“Go ahead.”

“These aspects or whatever, can you guys use more than one of them at once, or just the one you got an affinity for? Because i’ve seen you and Simurgh do your things, and you’ve got the metal blade fur, and she’s got this, like, healing rain stuff from her wings. Are those both just one aspect?”

Asena tilted her head, then glanced up at Simurgh, “Shall you take this one, oh ‘intellectual’ Simurgh? You may be better at explaining the finer details rather than the broad strokes.”

Simurgh gave a curt nod, remaining on her higher perch on the cliff, but speaking clear and easily enough for everyone to understand, “But of course. You ask an apt question, young Lady Dash. Indeed Anima users can use more than one aspect. We all have an affinity for usually just one aspect, although rarely potent users might have two affinities. However there is not restriction in using all of the aspects, and indeed the most skilled and powerful Anima users combine aspects together to generate their unique powers. Recall the hydra you fought in Midgard.”

“Yeah, he made this magic snake things that attack me and Applejack and, like, melted stuff like acid,” Rainbow said, giving Applejack a questioning look, “I’m remembering that right?”

“Sure are, sugarcube. Was a right pain ta deal with.”

“From your description that sounds like a combination of Venom and Tail Anima,” Simurgh said, and Asena nodded agreement.

“Yes, I thought the same.”

“Oh, did you now?”

“Silence. Now, the Venom aspect is most deadly. It is not as long range as Howl, but it is an aspect that specializes in breaking down and negating whatever it comes into contact with, and is exceedingly hard to defend against. Tail Anima is also known to be difficult to counter, not due to outright lethality like Venom, but rather how versatile Tail users are and how surprising their powers can be-”

----------

Spike didn’t bother responding to Nidhogg’s mad rant. He didn’t care what this nutbar of a dragon thought, there was no way Spike was going anywhere with him willingly! It bothered him that he still couldn’t spot Ember anywhere, and he was starting to feel a genuine current of fear running through him at the thought that the young female dragon might be hurt. In response to this fear, there was also a hot, fresh anger burning in his chest.

So his fire wasn’t strong enough to burn this guy? Fine! He’d just have to grab something big and do this the old fashioned, blunt force trauma way! Nobody messed with Spike’s friends and got away with it!

As if in response to this hot wave of instinctual, protective anger, he felt his tail slam up and down, smashing into the ground with tremendous force. He’d meant it simply as an intimidation display to let Nidhogg know he wasn’t about to back down, but to Spike’s, and more importantly Nidhogg’s shock, the moment Spike’s tail hit the ground it sent a trail of sparkling green energy into the mountain itself! Spike felt as if for a moment he was connected to the earth of the mountain, and felt the mountain respond almost like it was itself alive and feeling his anger.

A replica of Spikes tail forged out of mountain stone rose up like a battering ram and smashed into Nidhogg’s side. While the distortion in the air from Nidhogg’s ‘Hide Anima’ blunted some of the impact, the replica tail of Spikes was immensely large, easily more than half Spike’s own mass and Nidhogg was bowled over and sent sprawling about fifty meters.

As Nidhogg grunted and picked himself up, he looked at the stone tail with a curious expression, “Tail Anima? That was not your previous affinity, brother. How strange. Has this realm of Asgard changed even your very nature?”

“Got no idea what you’re talking about, and reaaaaaaaly don’t care!” Spike growled as he stepped forward, huge taloned feet slamming into the mountain side as he readied himself to charge. He lashed his tail behind him, and the stone tail towering next to him mimicked the movement, “Whatever it takes, bringing you down!”

“Good, very good, brother, your spirit at least retains some of its old spark. Let us see if you can reawaken the strength to back it up!” Nidhogg said with a roar of challenge, and both he and Spike charged one another at the same time, making the entire mountain side shake in the process.

Episode 206: Dragons and Dungeons

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Episode 206: Dragons and Dungeons

“Alright, so we’ve got Howl, Claw, Hide, Venom, and Tail so far,” Sunset said, counting up on her fingers as she shifted on the rock she was using as a seat. One thing she was sorely missing about the human world right now was proper furniture. “That makes five Anima aspects, but you said we got eight, right Asena?”

“Correct, Lady Shimmer,” Asena replied with a pleased tone, “I’m glad someone is paying attention.” She eyed Spike, who was curled up, half nodded off. The dog gave a yawn and cracked open an eye.

“Hey, I’m listening. Just doing it with my eyes closed. Ears still work.”

“Hmm, we shall see, young Lord Spike. Now, the final three aspects are Fang, Wing, and Shell. Fang is an offensive aspect, like its cousin, Claw. However, Fang users are known for both their ability to pierce defenses and consume energies. While not as powerful in raw attack strength as Claw, Fang makes up for it with that penetrative quality, and the numerous powers that stem from the ability to consume.”

For emphasis, Asena licked her lips and snapped her jaws, grinning, “Be careful of a Fang user’s bite, they’ll take more than just flesh, more often than not.”

“Creepy,” said Rainbow Dash, to which Asena chuckled, causing the girl to blush and frown, “What? What’s so funny?”

“Ah, nothing, Lady Dash. Only, from what I sense of your own Anima when it came upon you, I highly suspect your affinity is for Fang,” said Asena, “You may not have realized this, but the troglodyte who entrapped you in its web was most likely a Tail user. Tail Anima is versatile, with powers of all kinds of utility besides attacking, and those webs had the feeling of such Anima. Fang Anima is vulnerable to Tail Anima, which may have contributed to yours awakening, sensing that vulnerability to trigger your instincts more fiercely.”

“Ehhh... not sure how to feel about that one,” Rainbow Dash said, scratching at the dirt in front of her with one cat claw, frowning at her hand, “Claw sounded cooler to me.”

“We do not choose our affinity, but nothing prevents you from developing powers of any Anima type. Your affinity only determines which type will be strongest for you,” Simurgh put in, “The trick is knowing the properties of your Anima, and learning that of your foe’s.”

“So we got not just our own strengths ta think of, but our weaknesses, too,” said Applejack, “Do all Anima got this whole bein’ weak ta one deal goin’ on. Assumin’ that also means there’s Anima we’d be strong against?”

“A warrior born, you are,” said Asena, nodding enthusiastically, tail wagging, “Indeed. Rainbow Dash’s Fang Anima would be strong against Hide Anima, such as my own. But we can cover those properties later. Let us first finish covering the basics. Simurgh, you are a Wing user, so do explain it to our eager learners.”

The colorful avian trilled out a soft laugh and spread her wings wide, “It shall come as no surprise that many of the Tribe of Sky are born Wing users. Wing is the affinity of Anima that spreads itself the widest, with powers that can cover a vast area. The most powerful of Wing Anima is said to be able to affect entire realms at once, although only the likes of the great Quetzalcoatl could have such a grand Anima.”

“Huh... the flames that came out of me during the fight,” Sunset said, rubbing her chin, “They formed into feathers. Does that mean I’m...?”

“Not necessarily,” said Simurgh, “Wing Anima naturally spreads to affect a large area. Did the feathers of flame you conjured strike you as something wide spread, or more focused?”

“I... I couldn't really tell. I mean, I wasn’t using the power with any conscious decision. The feathers just kind of flew out and hit things at random. They also exploded,” Sunset said with a thoughtful look, “But I can’t say for sure that the blasts were all that widespread. If anything they felt a lot more focused and contained.”

“I see,” Simurgh folded her wings, making another soft trilling noise, perhaps her version of a ‘hmm’, “It is still possible it is Wing Anima, but by your description it may also be Howl, due to its ranged property.”

“Sounds kinda weird,” said Wallflower, “Wouldn’t she need to like, shout or something for that kind of, er, Anima?”

“Oh not at all,” Simurgh said, “Do not let the names alone confuse you. The names of each aspect do stem from elements of the core nature of the Anima, but one need not have Wings to use Wing Anima, or indeed have any avian traits at all. The core of Wing Anima is the wide area of its powers, like wings casting a long shadow. By the same token, one need not roar to use Howl Anima. Howl Anima’s trait is its incredible yet focused range, like a howl piercing the air. The powers can take many shapes. That is why I say young Lady Shimmer might be a Wing user, or a Howl user. One will learn the truth in time, as one becomes more accustomed to one’s Anima.”

“O-okay... uh, neat?” Wallflower said, giving Sunset Shimmer a helpless shrug. Sunset returned a warm smile to her, encouraging the girl, glad to see she was at least participating in the conversation. It was a step up from the quiet.

“So, lay it on us then,” said Spike suddenly, “Just Shell left, right? Immediately thinking of turtles, here.”

Asena’s ears twitched a bit but she nodded at him, “Shell, like Hide, is a defensive aspect, but unlike Hide, which can have offensive properties, Shell is an aspect of pure defense, unrivaled in regards to powers of protection. Indeed so potent is a Shell user's defense, that not even Fang’s vaunted penetration powers can fully counter it. In battles against a Shell user, one might be clever to find a way around such powers, rather than rely on brute force.”

Shining Armor suddenly cracked a smile, one hand on his hip, “Sounds interesting. I wonder how my Bastion would stack up against a good Shell user.”

“Oh, don’t go comparing your barriers with other men's’, dear,” said Cadence with a wink, “You don’t need to impress me.”

“He can’t help it,” said Rainbow Dash, “Dudes are always concerned about the size and thickness of their barriers.”

“And mine are prodigious indeed,” Shining Armor said, giving Rainbow Dash a joking wink. Sunset Shimmer could only let out a small laugh, letting more of her tension flow out of her. The air itself somehow seemed more vibrant, now. More relaxed. She looked up at the ‘sky’, as it were, the rocky ceiling of the insanely huge cavern where the glitter of thousands of gems and colored stones created a painter’s dream of clashing colors.

She then blinked, and squinted.

“Hey, what’s that?” she said, pointing up. Everyone looked where her finger indicated.

High above, amid the glow of a cluster of gem shards the size of houses that gave off a saturated white glow, a large shadow filled the ceiling with a tangled and twisting shape. At first Sunset thought it was another of those skyscraper sized centipedes they’d witnessed upon first arriving here, but this mass wasn’t moving, and instead just had lots of offshoots that curled through the ceiling rock like tendrils.

Or roots.

“Yggdrasil,” said Simurgh, “Or, one of its many long burrowing roots. The World Tree’s roots stem through all of the Beast Realm, stretching far from the actual Tree itself.”

“Amazing,” said Cadence in awe, standing and peering intently, “Those roots must be a kilometer long, and hundreds of meters wide. And they spread everywhere?”

“Of course. Even into Midgard and Asgard,” said Asena, “Deep in your Earth, and the realm known as Equestria, Yggdrasil spreads its supporting roots. Connecting all. A bridge for souls to cross into the restful seas beyond until rebirth.”

Sunset wondered about that. Was Yggdrasil really connected to Equestria and the Earth both? She felt like she knew so little, even after having learned so much. Jormungandr wanted the tree dead, and had hinted at Glory having done something to it, a violation of some sort that motivated Jormungandr to put the tree down like a sick creature.

“Huh, its more of those weird Blank things,” said Rainbow Dash suddenly, causing everyone to peer more intently at the roots. After a moment Sunset realized that Dash was right! There were small, pale dots floating around the Yggdrasil roots, with distinctive, conical red mask heads, their white shrouded bodies making them look utterly ethereal. They moved slowly, like listless balloons in a weak wind, but they didn’t drift far from the roots.

“What are they, exactly?” Sunset asked, glancing between Asena and Simurgh.

“They are the river of the cycle,” replied Simurgh in a quiet, reverent tone that suggested the words were more than just hyperbole, “They are the shape the soul takes when wandering the boughs of eternity between incarnations.”

“Huh?” was the collective response from more than a few present, and Sunset couldn’t quite tell who looked more taken aback, especially Clover or the two Quincy.

“You mean to say those shades are souls moving between phases of the reincarnation cycle?” Clover probed, eyes slightly wide with keen interest.

“That is right, young Soul Reaper. Your people may bring souls to your Soul Society for a period of time, but eventually all souls flow through Yggdrasil’s roots, prepared for rebirth. When one of your kind perishes, or one of ours, even the Hollows when not slain by a Soul Reaper’s blade.”

“Wait... what about Quincy weapons?” asked Cadence with sudden intensity, “There’s never any sign of a soul’s energy after...”

Simurgh’s gaze fixed on Cadence and Shining Armor, speaking simply, “I know what you might be wondering, Quincy, but I cannot confirm to you whether or not your weapons destroy the soul of Hollows or return them to Yggdrasil as Blanks. We of the Beast Realm have no way to count or measure such things.”

“But it is a possibility,” Shining Armor said to himself, gazing at the distant cloud of hundreds of Blanks floating around the offshoot root of Yggdrasil.

Clover looked thoughtful as well, “If there was a way to confirm it, one way or another, it could go leagues to help settle tensions between the Soul Society and Quincy. Asena, Simurgh, are you sure there’s no one among the Tribes of the Beast Realm who studies this flow of souls that travels through Yggdrasil? Surely there must be someone?”

“There are,” Simurgh confirmed, raising one wing i a waving gesture, “But you must understand, measuring something like what you are asking is akin to trying to measure how much water is in the ocean.”

“Pretty sure we actually do that on Earth,” said Rainbow Dash, “Bet you anything I could Goggle how much water is in the oceans.”

Simurgh stared at the girl in blinking confusion, and Clover eyed Dash, “I think I grasp Simurgh’s point, regardless. She’s saying that the flow of souls through Yggdrasil is so enormous that no effort has ever been made to measure it. What would be the point?”

“Hold on, then wouldn’t that mean there’s also been no noticeable decrease in the amount of souls?” asked Cadence, a creeping hope in her tone, “You’d notice it if there was, right?”

“Honey, the Soul Reapers have been going on and on about the ‘balance of souls’ for ages while fighting us, and the world never destroyed itself due to that lack of supposed ‘balance’,” said Shining Armor, “If they still think our weapon destroy Hollow Souls, despite that total lack of evidence, I don’t think any measurements one way or another from some Beat Realm scholar would change anything.”

Cadence looked down, nodding after a moment of deflated silence. Clover, however kept a hopeful look on her face, “Be that as it may, if I can find any further evidence on this matter while I’m here, you can rest assured I’ll take it with me to Soul Society to present to the Captains of the Gotei 13 and the chambers of Central 46.”

“Here’s ta hopin’ any o’ that will still matter before Jormungandr an’ the Zero Division screw things over,” said Applejack.

Sunset frowned, thinking about her battle with Jormungandr, and crossed her arms as she said, “Hey, I’ve been wondering... Jormungandr used Blanks when we fought, turned them into a weapon, somehow. What’s the deal with that? Is that an Anima power?”

This time Asena answered, growling deep in her throat, “No, not an Anima power. Blanks are very malleable by outside forces and will. Jormungandr developed a means of controlling them to form weapons or enhance Anima abilities, and spread this dark knowledge to his followers. A foul technique, forbidden by the other Tribes.”

“Yeah, and that troglodyte jerk used them too,” said Rainbow Dash, “Like, ate them then spat them out with its webs. I think the webs got stronger because of it.”

Both the huge wolf and birds heads snapped around to stare at Rainbow Dash, Asena growling, “Are you certain!? The troglodyte Anima users also made use of Blanks?”

“U-uh, yeah,” Rainbow said, leaning back a bit from Asena’s intense stare, “Why, is that a big deal?”

“It is no good sign,” said Asena, lashing her tail about and her big, sword-like claws digging furrows in the dirt in agitation, “Only Jormungandr’s cult makes use of Blanks in battle. I just said it is a forbidden art. If that troglodyte used them, it must serve the lord of Niflheim, or at least learned from one of his vassals.”

“That’s bad,” said Sunset, “Do we need to get moving? Does this mean they know where we are, now?”

“Possibly,” said Simurgh, but after a moment she shook her head, ruffling her feathers about nervously, “It is just as likely this one troglodyte learned the technique to control Blanks a long time ago, and neither presently serves Jormungandr, or at least does not know that he seeks a party like ours. News of us may not have spread beyond his Einherjar.”

“There is little point in running like spooked rabbits,” said Asena, taking a few billows-like breaths to calm herself down, “I apologize for my outburst. The bird is right. It is unlikely our position is compromised.”

Rainbow Dash held up her hands, her whole frame cringing a bit as she shook her head of ever more unkempt hair. Sunset noticed that now that Dash had cat ears, they were currently laying flat on the girl’s head as she said, “It’s cool, dude, seriously. I should’ve had the smarts to bring up the Blank thing earlier, but totally spaced it on account of freaking out over going all Cheetara over here.”

“Eh, ya strike me as more o’ a Catra,” said Applejack, which only made Rainbow Dash groan.

“Wrong cartoon, AJ, but whatevs, still just wish I’d gone anything other than standard issue cat-girl. At least you’ve got some badass bear stylings to work with.”

Applejack didn’t exactly look all that impressed with herself as she looked at her own furry and clawed hands, “Can’t say I know fer sure what ta feel ‘bout this, other n’ I just hope it helps us out n’ the long run. Say, Asena, Simurgh, all this ‘aspects’ stuff is facinatin’ an’ all, but what I really wanna know is how are we supposed ta learn ta control Anima?”

There was a pause of some weight as the two native Beast Realmers both quietly looked at one another. Sunset got the distinct feeling that the question, while not unexpected, was something neither of their local guides truly knew how to answer. It was that kind of pause that a teacher has when a student asks a question that isn’t covered by the textbook. Which was weird, considering the learning of Anima control would logically be a pretty well known and basic piece of knowledge of folk like Asena and Simurgh, Sunset would think. But there was a factor here that probably made things different...

“You’re not sure,” she said aloud, hand reaching to touch the Hogyoku now firmly hidden back under her robes, “Both because we’re not Beast Realm natives and because the Hogyoku is involved.”

“That is... accurate,” said Simurgh at length, lowering her head in an apologetic bow, “While Asena and I can try to guide you, the truth of the matter is that for one born of the Beast Realm like us, the learning of Anima is a matter of instinct. We do so in the same manner than children of Midgard might learn to walk or count. Yes, true mastery requires much more, and there are more formalized ways to train that, but the basics of Anima use is something we do in the same way a bird knows how to fly or a fish to swim.”

“Or a wolf to hunt,” said Asena, “Our Inner Beast will grow strong as we follow our natures, and Anima flows by the growth of our instincts. The power will gain shape from our innermost desires and become sharpened by training to hone our instincts to obtain those desires. Take myself as an example.”

Her fur suddenly grew with shades of crimson light and the thick fibers of her furry hide grew long, rigid, and curved. Blade after twisting crescent blade became her furred hide, as if her very body was an armor to tear flesh from bone. Sunset had to admire the simple brutality of it, having seen this bladed fur armor at work. Her spiritual senses could pick up on the Anima in use, although she was still struck by how different it felt from raw reiatsu. Given her and the girl’s powers were also intermixed with magic, she wondered if this is how they felt to other spirit beings when sensing them?

Holding up a paw as if to grasp something, Asena focused and the fur along the back of her paw grew longer still, the blades changing from curved scythes to long, pointed spikes, “As a young wolf, I was separated from my pack on a hunt. Lost, I wandered into a swamp, and was nearly eaten alive by the foul, giant and carnivorous plants. The swamp was so thick with them I could hardly move without fighting for every inch, being bitten at from all sides. My Anima was nascent, only just awakening, but I needed no training to instinctually know my own Inner Beast and my desire to cut myself free of that wretched place. So my Anima took its proper shape, manifesting into the Hide Anima I used to rip apart those plans and escape to freedom, to find my pack once more.”

“So... what you’re saying is that you’re not sure if it will work the same for us, because there’s no way to be sure our ‘Inner Beast’ will act the same or react to the same instincts,” Sunset said, glancing at Rainbow Dash, “But it is at least clear that instinct played a role, right? I mean, Dash’s powers came out when she got caught and felt like she was in danger. And I know mine came out when I started to get frustrated that the troglodytes were still coming at us...”

“An’ mine sure felt like they came out when I saw Sunset n’ trouble an’ wanted ta give them beasts an’ even more thorough trouncin’,” said Applejack, cracking her knuckles.

“Which is why I say that for now it is best to simply teach you the basics of what Anima is and how its aspects work,” said Asena, “You, young warriors of Midgard, may have the instincts to sharpen your Inner Beasts, or you may not. Yet I shall ensure that, whether you can tap into your instincts or no, you shall be armed with the knowledge to understand Anima. If nothing else, when facing Jormungandr and his minions, that knowledge may aid you in defeating them.”

“Good point,” Sunset agreed, “I... actually have no idea what Jormungandr’s Anima power really is. It was weird. He was manifesting giant claws, like they were pieces of his true form, maybe?”

“Ah,” said Simurgh, “Jormungandr is an outlier. A rare individual who has no affinity for any aspect, but rather excels at all of them.”

“Oh... great,” Sunset put her chin in her hand, sighing heavily, “Can’t ever be easy, can it? For once I’d like to have a major enemy who’s like a video game boss, with a big, shiny bit that’s labeled ‘Hit me to win’.”

“If our lives were a video game, Sunset, I think it’d be made by From Software,” said Rainbow Dash with a snarky smirk, one that Sunset returned with one of her own, knowing full well that her friend was probably right.

“Hmm, out of curiosity are there others like him out there who have this omni-affinity?” Clover asked, “Just how rare are they?”

“Exceedingly,” said Asena, “So much so that Jormungandr is the only one we know of who is living in the current age. It is one of the reasons he bested Leviathan for leadership of the Tribe of Sea, and why he was able to so boldly go to war with the other Tribes in the past.”

“Yikes,” Rainbow Dash said, “Talk about OP.”

“OP?” Asena said, head tilting and ears twitching.

“Er, ‘over powered’, kinda a human term we use for shit that is not fair and in need of rebalancing,” said Rainbow Dash, to which Asena let out a bit of a rumbling chuckle.

“I see. OP. I... like it. But, do not despair. Jormungandr is mighty, it is true, but even one like him must obey the rules of Anima like any other. If he makes use of one Anima affinity, that power will have a weakness to its natural counter. The difficulty is in the way he can use all of the affinities at their full potential. If and when you face him again, you must be prepared to identify what Anima he is using and when. As for his conjuring of those giant claws, Lady Shimmer, I know that power from the tales of the old war. It is a Fang affinity power, one that lets him reproduce the body parts of anything... or anyone he’s eaten.”

“E-eaten!?” Wallflower let out a frightened squeak.

Sunset frowned, thinking back to the fight. Had all of the claws Jormungander had conjured been uniform? Or the large tail he’d created? Had they... all been parts of different bodies? Her memory was fuzzy, but she thought perhaps they had all had small differences, as if they’d not all come from the same source. “Just how many people has Jormungandr consumed?”

“In the war? Thousands,” said Asena bluntly, “Too many met their ends in his voracious belly. And with that particular Anima power, he can bring forth all of them to his side in battle. To fight Jormungandr is not just to fight a monster of immense power, but an army of his consumed victims.”

“But do not fear!” said Simurgh, “With good hope and fortune, you won’t even have to face him yourselves. At the Convocation of Clans, you can petition the great Quetzalcoatl for aid!”

Asena cleared her throat, “And Lady Fenris.”

“Yes, yes, her too, I suppose,” said Simurgh, “But for now, I think there has been enough talk. You should all rest for the night, now that we’ve eaten.”

“I’d love to get some sleep, but I’m afraid I’ve got important training of my own to do,” said Clover, standing up and brushing off her robes. She bowed respectfully to the two Beast Realm natives, “Sincerest thanks for the informative lesson. Even if I don’t develop any Anima like Sunset and the others, I always enjoy learning.”

“Yeah, looking forward to hearing more,” said Sunset, standing as well and giving Clover a small bump on her shoulder with a fist, “If you don’t mind, I’ll come with you. Way past time I communed with Hokori no Hikari.”

“I’d welcome the company,” Clover replied, flashing a small smile.

“Don’t go too far,” Shining Armor warned, “I set up my barrier to have around a football field radius, so if you go beyond that point you won’t be covered.”

“We’ll be careful, and stick close to camp,” Sunset promised.

“You know what?” Rainbow Dash suddenly said, hopping to her feet as well, “Not really all that tired yet, either. I get you and Clover got, like Soul Reaper stuff you’re training with, so I can’t do much to help you there. But I got some energy I still need to burn off... uh, AJ, you think you could...?”

“Yeah, yeah, I got ya, sugarcube,” Applejack said, grunting as she got to her feet, “Bit of sparrin’ before bed sounds just fine ta me.”

“You girls are impossible,” Cadence said with a chiming laugh, “Even after all that happened today, you can’t sit still, can you? No wonder Celestia and Luna were always complaining to me back in the old school principal days that they never had a quiet week with you girls on the loose.”

“Would it be okay if I came and, uh, watched?” asked Wallflower, to which the girls all exchanged looks and Sunset gave a firm nod.

“Sure, just don’t expect much. I’m basically going to sit and meditate with my sword, and probably have an existential crisis once I’m in there. Clover is going to punch spells into existence with her mind. Applejack and Rainbow Dash are going to hit each other platonically until both probably pass out. Not sure it's what you’d call a fun night on the town, but come with if you like.”

“I just feel way more comfortable being around you guys in case, you know, she comes popping out of my head,” Wallflower said, tapping her skull with a finger.

“No problem, WF, if your tall, dark, and weird goddess personality comes calling, we’ll keep her in check,” said Rainbow Dash.

With that, the group split, and as Shining Armor told them, they didn’t go far. There was a long and relatively flat cliff shelf less than a hundred feet up from the campsite, just large enough for everyone to fit comfortably. Clover had a cozy spot near a rock outcropping to sit with her scrolls and begin work on taming the Kido spell she was working on. Just next to that was a mossy overhang that Sunset could sit on cross-legged, her Zanpaktou laid out across her knees. Behind her Wallflower had found a nice spot on a tall, strewn out series of rocks to sit with hands braced backward to watch as Applejack and Rainbow Dash squared off along the wide stretch of the cliff shelf.

The calm of the scene helped Sunset get her mind and soul in order. She laid her hands on Hokori no Hikari’s gently curved, gleaming edge. The blade was warm to her touch, as if her Zanpaktou had been hotly anticipating when Sunset would finally get around to doing this.

Sorry it took awhile, girls. Been a hell of a distracting few days. But I’m ready to get to work. Show me what you’ve got.

It didn’t even take a moment. With the flashing sensation of light and heat filling her mind and spilling into her very spirit, Sunset Shimmer felt herself drawn like a river of flame into her Zanpaktou’s Inner World.

----------

Spike was relying on gut instinct. He had rarely been in a lot of fights. Twilight and the other mares tended to be front and center when crisis’ came calling to Ponyville. Not that Spike wasn’t ready and willing to throw down beside his friends, it was just that actual opportunities to do so had been relatively few and far between. As such he didn’t really have any formal combat training to rely on. However, he was a dragon, and at this moment a very big dragon. On top of that, even if he had no real order to the memories of Fafnir in his mind, there felt like there was something helping guide him, if only on that instinctive level he could feel down in his bones.

It’s why he was able to spring across the gap between himself and Nidhogg with the kind of speed and power that came from a natural predator leaping on prey. He wasn’t attacking mindlessly, however. He knew Nidhogg had some kind of protective magic covering his body. Spike didn’t know if his own talons and teeth would do much, but he was hoping Nidhogg would assume he didn’t know that. As such, Spike’s charge was a feint, albeit one he had to commit to to make it convincing.

He reared up and slammed down at Nidhogg with both his front claws. Nidhogg didn’t even try to dodge, instead rising to meet Spike’s charging swipes with his own claws surging up to grasp Spike’s wrists mid-swing. For a moment the two dragon’s slammed and strained against one another, muscle to muscle, but the shimmering field of distortion covering Nidhogg’s body caused a wrenching feeling inside Spike as if the air itself was trying to rip the scales from his body.

“Poor brother,” Nidhogg said, “You have the body of a dragon grown, but you are still a whelp in heart and mind. The ponies of this world raised you soft, so I must harden you once more. Batter your unblemished hide until your true instincts and memories as Fafnir awaken.”

“Dude,” Spike growled, and lashed his tail behind him hard, “Put a cork in it.”

Again, instinct is what was guiding him. Spike was a fairly laid back person, most of the time. Took life as it came at him. Perhaps it was this nature that led him to simply trust his instincts, to not question how he knew that lashing his tail would conjure another explosion of mountain rock to take his tail’s shape and lash sidelong at Nidhogg’s flank. He just knew it, and followed that gut feeling.

The strike was not all that refined. The rock heaved like a wave, forming a vague tail shape as it careened into Nidhogg’s side with a devastating crash. Yet Nidhogg rolled with the blow as if he’d been expecting it, and Spike saw his opponent grin savagely as he hooked Spike’s arm under his own and used his bulk and momentum from being struck to wrench spike over and down into a powerful throw that sent Spike sprawling into the mountainside with tremendous impact that scattered rock bits around for hundreds of feet.

“Well you were never much of a talker yourself, brother. So terse in your time. I had to make up the difference somehow. Now then...”

Nidhogg’s wings spread. They were unlike Spike’s, longer yet somehow thinner, with many more lines of ribbed spines shooting through their length as they curved more into a crescent shape. Much of Nidhogg’s black scaled body was not like that of dragons that Spike knew. Somehow Nidhogg’s scales were thicker, with greater defined ridges and sharpened plate edges, as if every part of his body was evolved into a weapon. The same could be said of his thick, curled horns, or the massive, spiked whip of his tail. No Equestrian dragon could ever be considered soft, yet Nidhogg looked like a creature that existed solely to sunder and tear flesh. It made for quite the intimidation display as he flapped those wings to get airborne, stirring up a whirlwind in the process. As Nidhogg rose, he kept his neck craned to fixate his head upon Spike’s position, and Spike felt the power surging in Nidhogg even before he saw the lines of baleful green light pulsating up Nidhogg’s throat to pool between his jaws.

Spike didn’t exactly need to be a battle hardened veteran to know that standing still was not a good idea, but he also knew he didn’t have time to dodge out of the way fully. As he hurled his body sideways from the dizzied position he was on, halfway down into a crater his impact had made, Spike also flicked his tail once more. He felt the drag and pull of energies inside him, felt a growing roar in his mind, but one with purpose. It wasn’t speaking in a voice so much as hammering meaning through something deeper, like a resonant vibration, more song than sentence.

All Spike knew is that it was telling him his power could be used to guard as well as attack, and immediately following his action the mountain stone shuddered to form a rising wall of rock twenty feet thick and fifty high that was shaped with the indentations of dragon scales.

This, just as Nidhogg unleashed his breath, intermixed with a roaring howl and terrible pulsation of magical and spiritual power. Flames of pale green shot forth not in a wide sheet of natural fire, but an unnaturally focused spiral that distorted the air with warbling force. Spike’s shield of stone was shattered like the wall of a sandcastle being dashed by a shovel, rock blasting everywhere, but the impact did give Spike a precious second to finish diving out of harm’s way.

Nidhogg’s head whipped upward, sending the practical beam of focused flames and spiraling force energy ripping up the mountainside in a hazardous line of destruction. Spike saw thousands of tons of rock heaved skyward in great flying chunks, only to be broken down into smaller chunks and then... suspended in mid-air?

He blinked, confused. Nidhogg’s roaring scream kept going, the force from his mouth creating a distorted field of energies that caught the chunks of mountainside and spun them as if in a field of negated gravity. Spike thought back to when he and Ember were hit with that howling roar, how his sense of gravity had felt broken and put in disarray.

He thought maybe that had just been his head getting a bit dazed. But now it looked like Nidhogg’s ability was far more directly in control of gravity, and Spike had all of a few seconds to shake off his daze before Nidhogg tilted his chin down, and send the flying wave of rock shards hurtling towards Spike under an amplified wave of gravitational forces.

Spike was agile, by dragon standards, and while he might not have been the world’s most experienced warrior, the young dragon knew how to dodge. Scootaloo and her obsessive competitiveness in dodgeball had seen to that before Spike had ever set foot out of Ponyville. He shifted his immense bulk with the kind of shuffling ease that would have likely shocked onlookers, and he did his best to weave his way through the hail of rock chunks, some of which were as large as his head and likely weighed dozens of not hundreds of tons. A few impacted his body, regardless of his skill, one bruising his left wing, another taking a few scales off his right hip, while a third caught the end of his tail. Each strike hurt, but Spike was mad enough to push pain aside.

He still didn’t know where Ember was, and that was unacceptable. If she was hurt... oh, Nidhogg was going to need a lot more than some fancy gravity-defying tricks to get out of this unscathed!

Besides, if he wants to chuck rocks, he’s not the only one who can play that game.

Spike leaped into the sky, bursting past the last of the falling stones as he let his large wings carrying him upward, but only high enough that he could cruise up the mountainside at about twenty feet up. He sharply turned, eyeing Nidhogg, who had gained height as well and was keeping his distance. Spike had a feeling burning in his stomach that told him Nidhogg was gathering energy for another display of power. Was this some kind of magic sense? Spike wasn’t sure, he just knew he could feel Nidhogg’s power gathering like a rumble, and Spike planned to beat him to the punch this time.

Reaching a spot near the mountain’s peak, Spike banked sharply and let his tail drag down and scrape along the stone and ice that was there. He felt the rock beneath the icy peak respond and his tail flicked like it was hurtling a javelin. Half the mountain peak sheared off and reshaped itself into a long, sharp replica of one of Spike’s horns, flying at Nidhogg with enough force to form an air cone around it.

Spike didn’t stop there, dipping into a dive and running his tail along the mountain, flicking the appendage left and right as he created more and more stone javelins that he sent hurtling at his opponent, although none as large as the first one.

Nidhogg let out another blasting howl of force and flame, catching the largest initial spike of stone just a dozen meters from impact. It slowed then stopped in mid-air in front of Nidhogg, then abruptly crashed down as if yanked to the earth by an invisible hand, gravity multiplying to crush it to the ground in an instant. Spike’s smaller javelins of stone hurtled in, reaching Nidhogg as he hovered in the air with defiant pride. The way the air around his body was distorted ripped the stone javelins to chunks before they could meaningfully impact him. By now Spike realized that distortion surrounding Nidhogg’s hide was more warped gravity, only pulling in different directions to act as both an ablative shield against attack and a punishing counter to those that got too close.

But Spike knew that guard had a weak spot. The knowledge stemmed from the same spot as that guiding, roaring song in his gut. In his mind he could almost feel the press of another mind, another him, whispering things Spike would never had known. Anima and affinities. Nidhogg’s strengths and weaknesses.

Fafnir knew his brother all too well, and little had changed over the many centuries where Nidhogg was concerned. Whereas Fafnir? Fafnir was a whole new dragon, now.

He couldn’t break through Nidhogg’s defense with pure force. His power wasn’t right for that. Fafnir’s memories were scattered and vague, but Spike knew he didn’t have the needed “affinity” to overpower that “Hide” ability. However, he did know that the power he did have had the potential to create an opening he could take advantage of, as long as he survived long enough to do it.

That’s why he kept flying low to the ground, soaring down the mountainside while throwing up great piles of rock with each swing of his tail. Dust and ice kept getting kicked up, forming a growing cloud of debris and mist that helped obscure Spike’s movements. Nidhogg was staying high in the air, keeping distance. Again, a flicker of Fafnir’s memories told Spike that was how a good “Howl” fighter worked, although Nidhogg had a habit of liking to get in close once he felt comfortable to use an affinity he was less potent in like “Claw”.

None of these terms made a lot of sense to Spike, but he wasn’t questioning it. He was just glad these jumbled thoughts and feelings from Fafnir were good for something. Fafnir’s own anger felt as if it overlapped Spike’s well, although Fafnir’s was more a raw wound of frustration and regret as much as anger.

“It’s strange,” called Nidhogg’s voice as the dark dragon circled the growing cloud of rock dust and ice mist that Spike was kicking up, “I cannot tell how much you remember and how much of this is just guesswork on your part, brother. Do you remember how to truly use Anima? You don’t have to swing your tail about to use Tail Anima, you know? Hah, reminds me of when we were wyrmlings, you did enjoy tail wrestling. Oh, am I talking too much again? Forgive me, I was just gathering power...”

Nidhogg inhaled, and this time his whole chest lit up with pulsating, inner green light that built up through his long neck to glow at his mouth. He then threw his head down as he circled Spike’s obscured position and let out a roar. The flames and warped gravity energy within this roar spread wider than before, although Nidhogg still had to sweep his head about like someone trying to power wash a floor tile. Where the wide beam of conical force and burning green flame touched, rock, mist, ice and snow, all flew skyward as gravity reversed. It was clear Nidhogg was trying to pick Spike up out of his protective cover.

Yet Nidhogg didn’t see Spike amid the numerous piles of snow, ice chunks, and boulders of various sizes that rose from the mist. He kept up a gradual roar, controlling the gravity howl to keep the debris lifted up to float in place. That was when he realized one particular pile of rocks was oddly clumped together, and as Nidhogg narrowed his eyes at it, the entire pile of collected boulders exploded outward. Spike, having hidden himself inside by using his mysterious new power to gather the debris around his body, now directed the dozens of multi-ton boulders to hammer right into Nidhogg as they shaped themselves into pointed talons. Nidhogg grunted as the barrage struck his defensive Hide, the warped space breaking down the sharp rocks.

However this meant he did cut off his roar, which sent the rest of the debris falling. It also let Spike spread his wings and surge upward, getting above Nidhogg just as the rock barrage was striking the larger dragon. Spike then, having kept one large boulder wrapped in his tail, dove down and shaped the rock around is tail like an extra layer, sprouting spikes like a giant stone mace.

He slammed his tail, along with that stone mace, right into Nidhogg’s back with crushing force, and this time Nidhogg’s protection didn’t hold up nearly as well. That was because Spike new from Fafnir’s memories that if Nidhogg’s “Hide” was busy focusing on protecting one side of him, the other sides weakened as a result.

Nidhogg let out a roar of pain and went sailing down right into the ground, slamming into the mountainside hard enough to send cracks running over the stone and ice for scores of meters. Spike, grinning with satisfaction, went charging down after him.

“Maybe you should stop treating me like your bro and just fight, dude!”

Spike hurtled towards Nidhogg, but even so, still saw the black dragon’s lips curl in a fang filled smile as he said, “As you prefer.”

Nidhogg sprang up with shocking speed, given his size, and sized Spike’s outstretched talons with his own, all but stopping Spike’s descending charge dead in it’s tracks. Spike still impacted with Nidhogg and the two wrestled on the mountain slope, rolling end over end as they bit and clawed at each other. Spike tried to get a few more stone constructs formed, but he couldn’t focus as Nidhogg’s gravity warped talons slammed his face sideways one moment, then struck his chest and crumpled scales the next. Nidhogg’s protective field was weakened, so Spike’s own bites and claws scored a few blows that drew blood, but before Spike knew it he was heaved onto his back and pinned down by Nidhogg’s superior bulk.

Nidhogg used one of his hind legs to hold down Spike’s tail as he tried to lash it, and Nidhogg’s pointed, almost blade-like features gazed down at Spike with a air churning growl.

“No more talk or games, brother. It is time to take you home.”

The ground shuddered and the air above them roiled, as if stirred to storm. Rain started to fall upon the mountain slope, even if it had been a fairly clear day just minutes ago. Spike felt the buzzing sensation of powerful magic and other energies in the air as Nidhogg’s body lit up with green patterns of spiral light. Spike struggled to move, but it seemed Nidhogg had a firm pin on Spike that was preventing him getting any meaningful leverage.

“Spike! Let him go, you jerk!”

Spike’s eyes shot wide as he recognized Ember’s voice, and saw the small blue, bipedal dragon flying in from above. She was carrying the Dragon Lord’s Scepter with both clawed hands as if about to baseball swing it into the back of Nidhogg’s head. Nidhogg barely glanced her way as she flew at him, then glanced back at Spike with a strange grin.

“Well, looks like you’ll have a guest joining us in Lord Jormungandr’s court.”

Spike saw the flash of magical energies forming sigils on the mountain around him and Nidhogg. He might not have known the details himself about how the powers Nidhogg used worked, but Fafnir’s broken memories did tell him clearly enough one word; portal.

“Ember, stay back!” he roared in warning, but too late.

Ember reached Nidhogg and swung the scepter with its gleaming ruby head. Nidhogg laughed as the world around them in a single circle flashed with pure white light.

Then the mountainside was empty, with Nidhogg, Spike, and Ember nowhere to be found in all of Equestria.

----------

“Hmmmmm...”

“...”

“Grrrrr...”

“...Can I-?”

“No. Let me think.”

“...”

“...Maybe if I turn this one? No... grrraaah.”

“I think I know-”

Chrysalis, with a snappish twist of her head, gave Ocellus a glare that could strip paint. “I said let me think! This stupid puzzle cannot possibly be this hard!”

Ocellus, chin resting on one hoof as she sat on her haunches at the back of the octagonal room, sighed softly and didn’t respond to Chrysalis’ outburst. Instead the young Changeling simply pointed with her other hoof upward, where Chrysalis against her better judgment looked. Up at the roof of the chamber there was a set of pictographs, ones that, to Chrysalis’ growing dismay, matched the patterns on the wall tiles she’d been fiddling with without progress for the past ten minutes.

It burned her pride fiercely to think she hadn’t actually just looked up and had been laser focused on just the wall tiles, each one rotatable to allow for different pictographs to be aligned side by side. Given the chamber, upon aligning the wrong pictographs, would fills with bursts of flame from floor nozzles, Chrysalis felt at least a tad justified in wanting to take her time with this. Not that it was hard to take the shape of something flame resistant, like the five foot long fire newt she currently was, and choose to remain so until she started arranging the pictographs according to the pattern on the ceiling.

When this was rewarded with a grinding sound of stone as a circular hole in the floor opened up, Chrysalis transformed back into her ‘Vespid’ disguise and gave Ocellus a flat look, “I... would’ve looked up eventually.”

Ocellus cleared her throat with a polite cough and fluttered her wings as she buzzed over to the hole in the floor, peering into the darkness below, “I’m sure you would have.”

Chrysalis bit back at retort. It was rather difficult to tell of Ocellus was being condescending or genuine. Chrysalis wanted to assume the later, but a growing part of her was starting to think Ocellus was a lot more intelligent and perceptive than she let on. And also had a hidden snark streak.

Reminded Chrysalis a little of Pharynx, if he was inherently less abrasive.

Well, whatever, they could start making progress again. The delve ever deeper into this labyrinth was wearing upon Chrysalis’ patience and nerves. Traps and puzzles aside, the twists and turns of the maze itself had grown more complex the deeper she and Ocellus had gone. Luckily navigation was made easier by assuming forms with echolocation. A good look around as a giant bat provided a sort of mental map to the area ahead. Even now, she watched Ocellus take her turn in transforming, becoming a big blue bat with pink wing membranes, and give a sonic screech into the tunnel below.

Chrysalis waited as Ocellus’ transformed state let her map out the chambers below with the sound waves she’d just produced. Still in bat form, Ocellus raised a wing to her nose and scratched it in thought, “That’s odd.”

“What? Don’t just leave me guessing,” Chrysalis said, trying to keep her anxiety and bubbling ire in check.

“I think we’ve reached the bottom. I couldn’t sense any more tunnels or passages down there,” Ocellus said, transforming back into her natural form, hovering in the air with fitful wing buzzes, “There’s just one more big chamber down there, shaped like a long rectangle. This floor tunnel leads to one end of it. Then there’s a lot of pillars on either side of the room leading up to what felt like a... um..”

“Yes, yes, out with it already!” Chrysalis insisted, her patience thin as tissue paper.

“A, uh... coffin.”

That made Chrysalis blink for a moment, taken slightly aback. She had not expected to find something like that down here. Was... was the body of her previous incarnation actually buried in this tomb? Like the mummified bodies of some of the cultures in the south of Equestria? Not precisely what Chrysalis would have wanted to find, but then if the Relic was going to be anywhere, it may as well be buried with its owner. Soon to be former owner.

“Morbid, but I think you and I can deal with a few dusty old bones. The Relic has to be there, if there’s no further places to progress too. Hm, then again this may be just another puzzle room with a secret exit.”

“Maybe,” said Ocellus, “But usually we can feel the false floors or walls where those have been. It’s how we knew this chamber was the right spot to progress in.”

“True enough... well then, I’ll go first. You didn’t sense any trap triggers?”

“No, but considering we’ve run into a few that spring from magical glyphs rather than physical mechanisms, that doesn’t mean it’s safe,” Ocellus pointed out, to which Chrysalis gave a reluctant nod of agreement. Girl was sharp, Chrysalis had to give her that. Of course Chrysalis could have done this on her own, but galling as it was, Ocellus had made things go faster than they otherwise would have.

Licking her lips with anticipation, Chrysalis took to the air and started to hover down the vertical floor tunnel, with Ocellus flying in right behind her. The pair descended what Chrysalis guessed was about fifty paces until they exited out from the ceiling of the chamber Ocellus had described. It... had a different feeling to it that struck Chrysalis immediately as somehow both reverent, sacred, yet dangerous.

Part of it was the lighting. Here, unlike in all other spaces, there was bright lighting from long preserved crystal lanterns that hung from the ceilings and pillars, bathing everything in a gentle and somber white glow. The air was warmer, as if heated to a spring day via some unseen magical force. The air wasn’t still and dead, either, but slightly hummed with an energy that felt almost vibrant.

That’s when Chrysalis saw the plants. Living plants, although how they were alive after who knows how long being down here she had to assume was due to magic. Between the pillars along either wall of the rectangular chamber was a vibrant garden where flowers of all manner bloomed, weaving a carpet of color. The wall themselves hung with ivy and vines that sprouted similar, wider petaled flower blooms. The air was thick with their fragrant scents, and against her own will, Chrysalis shuddered a little.

She felt like she knew this place.

Her head started to throb, and she rubbed it with a hoof. Something was creeping through her mind’s eye, or rather something deeper, connected to a part of her that... had never meant much of anything to her in the past.

“Vespid? Hey, you okay?” Ocellus was hovering next to her, eyes looking her over with worry. Chrysalis moved away from her, keeping herself from scowling and forcing herself to sound calm.

“Fine. I’m fine,” she said, angry without knowing why, “Let’s just get what we came for.”

Examining the room, she saw what Ocellus had meant by a ‘coffin’ on the other side of the chamber. The room itself must have been several hundred feet long, with the ceiling of slightly curved stone standing an easy sixty or so feet high. Chrysalis was hesitant to set hoof on the floor, although she imagined if there were any final, deadly traps present, their makers were smart enough to set triggers in case of flying thieves.

More than ever before there was a sense in her gut she couldn’t name that told her to advance with caution, especially with her target in sight. The coffin was more like a stone sarcophagus. It seemed plain from a distance, but some kind of bas relief was carved onto its lid, although Chrysalis could make out not details from far away. Gesturing for Ocellus to follow her, Chrysalis flew forward slowly, hovering about ten feet off the floor. She looked left and right, keen to spot any hint of a trap going off so she could transform into an appropriate creature to weather the danger.

To her surprise, nothing happened. They passed the first set of pillars unmolested. Yet, Chrysalis slowed, stopping.

“What is this...?” she whispered, the pressure in her mind increasing as she looked at the pillars. Beside her, Ocellus raised a hoof to her mouth, letting out a quiet gasp.

“So beautiful... who is she?”

The pillars were painted with nearly photorealistic pictures of stunning composition. Starting from the top and spiraling their way down each pillar, the pictures looked to be telling a story, all of them starring an alicorn mare of almost painfully elegant beauty. Her fur was black as a night sky, yet her mane, wild and windswept, reflected a stunning gold sheen. Her wings were graced with both black and gold feathers, alternating lines that made the wings glimmer. Her body was lithe and athletic, yet elegant as a cracking whip. Upon her body she wore a magnificent torc of jade, from which hung a sheath with a curved, long dagger with a hilt caped with a perfectly spherical orb of jade.

The first pair of pillars showed this alicorn mare in her youth, dancing and playing with a number of other alicorns, most notable a pair that looked like sisters; one dark blue and black like nearly a twin of night, while the other was regal and white, with flame spun hair like the sun.

Chrysalis’ head hurt ever more, yet she couldn’t look away from the pillars, as if something inside her was gripping her by the back of the head and forcing her to look. She could feel her heartbeat in her chest growing faster, although she couldn’t tell if it was in fear, dismay, or something else. Almost like she was on autopilot, she hovered forward, gazing upon the pillars as the pictures continued to tell their story in expertly painted detail.

As the story went on the dark furred beauty was shown walking among glorious cities in the sky, some so fantastical that Chrysalis half thought they must have been built from moonlight, rainbows, and the very essence of the stars. Alicorns filled these cities, so many that their radiant colors nearly hurt the eyes. The alicorn beauty walked among them, gathering flowers, tending a garden, and spreading the beauty of it to others.

Until some stopped looking. The pictures started to gain a gray cast as the alicorn mare beauty wandered into rare shades of darkness and gray. Alleys and tunnels beneath the glorious cities, where a hoof full of alicorns dwelled who were less colorful than the rest. Outcasts, for one reason or another. Somehow, in Chrysalis’ mind that grew all the more pressured, she knew that these alicorns were shunned by their peers for as many reasons as there were stars in the sky. Some had made mistakes that made them pariah's. Others had been born weaker than others and so could not contribute as much to society, left to fend for themselves. Others had simply never fit in with society at all, insular by nature.

Regardless of the reason, they were all outcasts, left in the rare dark shadows of the alicorn’s shining civilization.

And the alicorn mare of singular beauty discovered a new desire.

The next pillars showed depictions of the dark beauty now wearing a cloak of onyx over her sleek form, the cloak tattered in places, yet somehow enshrouding her and her form like oil. She gathered the outcasts in secret places, built her gardens for them, and delivered the sustenance and wealth, treasures taken as she was shown sliding and slipping like a shadow through vaults and shining chambers of treasure. She would snatch away these treasures, and in their place leave flowers of countless shades and colors, as if trying to remind the owners of those vaults of wealth that there was beauty beyond the shine of a gem or coin.

She was often shown being chased by alicorn guards in crystal armor, the mare of beautiful shadows laughing as she skipped away with treasures piled upon her back. The outcasts gathered around her like a flock, or... a hive, surviving off of her treasures, learning to steal with equal aplomb, and carving new tunnels and hidden places within the forgotten corners of alicorn cities.

Chrysalis halted in front of one particular pillar, one which showed the mare with her cloak of shadows wrapping around her like a cocoon. Then, in the next picture, the mare had taken a new shape. The shadows took whatever shape she needed. Bird. Beast. Bug. With such means she could fool others, get into more secret places, steal more treasures for her people. Her people, who learned to shape themselves the same way she did.

And all the while, she was chased, this mare. The white alicorn of flaming mane and righteous light was always shown a few steps behind the laughing mare of shapeshifting shadow. One particular picture even showed them clashing, briefly, jade gapped dagger poised against a massive blade of light. Yet even that ‘battle’ was just another of the shadow mare’s tricks, a puff of smoke vanishing under the sunlight blade, the white alicorn shown howling in fury as her rival skipped away again, twirling a tiara on her hoof that was clearly stolen from the sun alicorn’s very head.

Chrysalis didn’t even realize she was talking, words coming from her mouth with a strange mirth and smirk, “You and I have always fought, Eos... always my rival... a joy to get the better of you, a pleasant pain when you got the better of me...”

She clutched her head, the sensations of pained pressure increasing, yet also reaching a river-like breaking point of release. A name, repeated in her mind, spoken by a hundred different voices.

”Laverna...”

“Vespid!”

Chrysalis felt herself staring at the floor, just a few feet from her face. Ocellus had her hooves wrapped around Chrysalis’ mid-section, having caught her. Chrysalis realized she must have passed out briefly, and fallen from the air, only Ocellus’ quick intervention preventing her from cracking her head open on the stone floor.

Grunting in irritation, she raised a hoof to push Ocellus away, but hesitated, if only for a second.

“...Thanks,” she muttered quietly, then pushed Ocellus back, “I’m fine now. Just responding to the Relic, and-”

She stopped talking, voice halting in her throat as her eyes widened. Ocellus, looking up and over at the pillars that Chrysalis was staring at now mirrored the same expression, adding a fearful gulp to the mix.

The pictures on the pillars had come to life. The beautiful dark mare of shadows, dozen of them, had their eyes flare with baleful emerald light and one by one some two score living paintings pulled themselves from the pillars and began to trail dark magic like contrails of smoke. They surrounded Ocellus and Chrysalis, a flock of living paintings that radiated potent magic. Then, as one, the paintings spoke in a female voice that was painfully close to Chrysalis’ own, magnified to a gale storm of voices.

“At long last my future shadow arrives! I applaud you getting here. I hope you enjoyed the game of mazes and traps. My children loved such diversions as much as I did, and our homes were filled with games and laughter, even in the darkest places where we dwelled. If you’re anything like me you got here relatively unscathed. But now the real test begins, myself from a future age. You see, unlike Eos, who probably couldn’t wait to get reborn via her Relic, I’m not so sure I like the idea of just giving over my power and memories to someone I don’t know can use the power for what it's meant for. Who knows who I’d eventually get reborn as?”

The paintings all smiled and winked as one, laughing almost derisively, “My future self might be a selfish bitch, after all. So, one last test. One last game. Pass it and live to receive our Relic. Fail and... well, from my perspective I’ll already be dead. I don’t mind staying that way if it means keeping power out of the hooves of those who would only abuse it.”

Chrysalis would have been lying if she claimed she wasn’t afraid, considering just how many of these painting shades there were. She sensed a collectively massive amount of magic coming from them, although individually they didn’t seem too strong. But as the former Queen of the Changelings, she was well aware of the power of overwhelming numbers.

She had her magic, she had her Bakkoto, and most of all she had a whole massive heap of built up, murderous rage she’d been forced to keep in check for entirely too long. If this was to be a fight, Chrysalis wasn’t about to back down from it. Ocellus was at her back, but Chrysalis had no idea if the child could be relied upon in a fight. Probably just a liability. Then again, the painting shades might not even consider Ocellus a target. The fact that they had activated and spoke with knowledge of at least who Chrysalis was supposed to be, as an Inheritor, suggested the magic that fueled these constructs was keyed in on Chrysalis' specific magical signature, which would resemble ‘Laverna’.

In all likelihood, that meant...

Chrysalis’ fears were confirmed when, swift as the wind itself, a flight of a dozen violent murder-paintings swept in from the flock and flew right at her and only her, extending numerous blades, claws, and coiling whips of razor sharp, magic infused paint.

Episode 207: Mirror Dance

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Episode 207: Mirror Dance

“Bankai”

”Sen no Kudaketa Shinjitsu.” (One Thousand Fractured Truths)

Chrysalis, Second Espada, made a show of idly stretching her long, onyx skinned arms over her head in a languid pose, watching with smiling eyes at the unfolding of the Reigai of Zecora’s Bankai. Chrysalis was always tickled in the vast, dark pit of her soul the way Soul Reapers treated the release of their full power like some kind of strip tease. Always flirting with their Shikai for however long before getting to the raw event of exposing their precious Bankai.

Not that she had any space to judge. Arrancar were just as much battle-teases, and she was hardly an exception, only ever breaking out her Resurreccion on rare occasions she felt she’d found a worthy moment to indulge in the wanton violence and destruction of going all out.

Maybe that was why the war with the Quincy and Soul Reapers had taken forever? Too much time spent playing the combat equivalent of footsies instead of just getting down to business.

Yet, even knowing that, and finding it infinitely amusing, she didn’t feel the need to release the power of her own Zanpaktou. It wasn’t that Zecora’s Reigai wasn’t powerful. Apparently Starlight Glimmer had tried to make this one have a higher amount of reiatsu than the original. Chrysalis couldn’t tell the difference, given the last time she dealt with the real Zecora the woman was the victim of an ambush and didn’t get a chance to fight back in any meaningful fashion. So for all Chrysalis knew, this Reigai could have been magnitudes stronger, or even weaker than the real thing, given Starlight had probably been guessing on Zecora’s power in the first place.

None of that changed the fact that the spiritual pressure she felt now, while impressive, didn’t make Chrysalis feel the need to respond to this Bankai with a Resurreccion. Certainly not until she saw what it could do.

Upon activation the Bankai had generated a truly expansive, spherical field of mirror shards that vastly ranged in size and shape, leaving Chrysalis looking at thousands of different reflections of herself. The mirror shards floated about and slowly spun with a certain lethargic speed that had the deceptive stillness of a spider ready to skitter in any direction.

“Well, I do love looking at my perfect features and figure,” Chrysalis noted with a shrug, “But unless the idea was to distract me with my own narcissism, I’m waiting to see something else impressive, doll.”

The Reigai’s purple glowing eyes narrowed, her voice as sharp as the edges of the countless floating mirror shards, “Your wish will be granted, Hollow. To see everything you are not.”

These words were spoken as one of the larger mirror shards passed between Zecora and Chrysalis, and as the shard spun away, Zecora was suddenly nowhere to be seen. However, Chrysalis did not sense the tell-tale flicker of reiatsu that would indicate a Flash Step. It was as if Zecora had simply vanished. A stealth power, perhaps? Chrysalis chuckled dryly, walking forward across the desert as the mirrors kept floating around for hundreds of meters in all directions. She kept expecting the shards to come at her, or for Zecora to appear out of one of them at any moment, but... no, nothing.

“Alright, if something doesn’t happen soon, I’m going to obliterate everything in a several mile radius,” Chrysalis said, raising her left palm and gathering the beginnings of a gleaming, emerald Cero orb there.

“Always so impatient.”

Chrysalis grinned and spun as she felt the attack coming by the air pressure alone. Her Zanpaktou sang a clamorous note of steel against another Zanpaktou, but not the shimmering non-blade that Zecora’s had become upon activating Bankai. Instead this was an elegant khopesh of curved steel, one that spun a rapid series of curving arcs like a dance of smooth, rolling waves. Chrysalis parried them, impressed she had to actually work for it as the strikes got close to scoring her flesh as her foe spun around her in a swift, dancing twirl.

When her foe spun away and squared off against her, Chrysalis’ grin twitched slightly as she found herself looking not at Zecora, but at a mirror image of herself. Another Chrysalis stood before her, with the same perfect, onyx black skin, and voluptuous body of a sinful goddess of lust. Yet instead of the Arrancar dress of snow white that Chrysalis wore to huge her body and gracefully display her sensual assets, the mirror Chrysalis that now faced her was wearing the all-too familiar black robes of a Soul Reaper, modestly concealing her figure. She lacked the white horn of Chrysalis’ Hollow mask fragment, and had no Hollow hole to be seen anywhere on her body.

And also a short cut, long sleeve Captain’s haori with the kanji symbol for “5” written on the back of it.

“Oh...?” Chrysalis raised an eyebrow, “Is that this Bankai’s game? Creating duplicates of me with a cute outfit change?”

“Hah,” her double let out a musical laugh that was matched by a pleasantly familiar smirk that seemed as mocking as it was genuinely warm and inviting, “Think of me as a ‘mirror’ if it suits you, my ugly true self. What I am is an echo of what you could have been. Personally a better self, far as I’m concerned. I’m Chrysalis, Captain of the Fifth Division, Gotei 13. And it’ll be my duty, and pleasure, to put you down like the rabid dog you are.”

Chrysalis gave off a full throated laugh of her own, licking her lips with anticipation, “So you’re telling me I get to kill a version of me who’s even more annoying than my Equestrian counterpart? What a happy day this is! My heart is fit to burst from pure delight! Let’s see if you can handle me by your lonesome.”

She was about to tear a path towards her Soul Reaper mirror image with gleeful abandon, only at that very moment there was another burst of reiatsu from above her and she instead threw herself back with slip of Sonido. She vanished out of the way just in time to avoid a humongous hail of brilliant blue reishi arrows that looked more like bullets, which continued to tear after Chrysalis as the shooter adjusted their aim with monstrously swift skill and precision.

Chrysalis had to cross her arms in front of her as the last of the barrage truck her in mid-Sonido, piercing flesh and hurtling through a mirror shard. She grunted and adjusted herself in the air to land on the sand, injuries already healing as another figure landed next to her Soul Reaper duplicate.

“Sorry, babe, but this isn’t a one-woman show! Hahaha! Good on you for almost dodging all of my shots! Blasting you to little bitty Hollow chunks is going to get me hot and bothered like nobody's business!”

The Soul Reaper Chrysalis sighed, “Try to stay focused. I don’t need you hitting me, mid-fight.”

The newcomer also looked just like Chrysalis, dark of skin, glorious of body, and sporting even more of it for show than the real Chrysalis was. White short-shorts and a similar halter-top showed off more skin and cleavage than common sense would normally call for, even for someone looking to show off. It was as if the real Chrysalis’ manner of dress, draping her body with lavish yet perfectly accentuated flows of silk that framed and enticed with the body beneath, was now being starkly contrasted with an outfit that shattered any sense of subtly and placed all on display with brazen audacity. Thigh-high white combat boots and a white cap with the Quincy cross marked in silver on it completed the outfit as this Chrysalis flipped her long, braided green hair and hefted her silver Quincy weapon, a multi-barreled gatling gun, and leveled it at the real Chrysalis.

“Heya, bitch! I’m Chrysalis! Sternritter R of the Quincy Vandenriech! Hope you’re ready to be shredded!”

The Soul Reaper Chrysalis looked at the Quincy with a side-eyed frown, “Okay, just ignore me, apparently.”

Pure, distilled cockiness burned with open challenge on the Quincy Chrysalis' dark lips, curled up into a flashing smile, “Did you say something, Reaper?”

“Little of import. Let us focus upon dispatching our Hollow reflection, before she gets bored,” replied the Soul Reaper duplicate, running a slim finger across the inner edge of her khopesh’s blade.

“Give the gift of penance; Yugana Batsu.” (Elegant Punishment)

The Zanpaktou emitted a sanguine glow that enveloped the sword in streamers of spirit energy that grew the sword’s size by nearly double in length. Along its crescent edge, nail-like sharp protrusions of steel emerged, turning it into the image of a deadly, needle pointed maw that glinted faintly red.

Chrysalis herself watched this with the arrogant air of someone observing a film or play they fully intended to give a scathing review to. If this was Zecora’s Bankai, she was a little underwhelmed by the gimmick. What could these duplicates in cosplay costumes of the other factions really hope to accomplish? Could her Soul Reaper counterpart even use Bankai herself? And while her Quincy counterpart’s reishi bullets had stung a little, it was nothing her regeneration couldn’t handle. What was her Schrift supposed to be, anyway? R? Another “regenerator” perhaps?

“Well, as faintly amusing as it is to see how I’d look dressed up as a humorless Soul Reaper or one of Sombra’s Quincy bimbo groupies, I’m afraid I literally have thousands of better places to be and people to be killing right now. So, Zecora’s pathetic puppet imitation, wherever you’re hiding to watch this farce, enjoy the show. I’m going to splatter these two imitator's innards all over your mirrors, then drag you out of the hole you’re secreted away in before doing the same to you.”

“Nice shit talk for someone who’s little more than Tirek’s self-absorbed bed warmer,” chortled the Quincy duplicate, and before Chrysalis could so much as get a breath drawn to spout a rebuttal, the wild Quincy woman was howling with glee as she moved with a cyclone of blinding white speed. Chrysalis found herself having to move with equal speed, a dark bolt of lightning to head not away from her aggressive Quincy counterpart, but directly at her.

The Quincy unleashed a fury of thousands of shots from her rotary weapon, the barrels a piercing torrent of blinding blue that tore the air apart between herself and Chrysalis. There was no dodging such a thickly virulent wall of firepower, so Chrysalis instead turned her own sword into a twirling blur in front of her that braved the river of reishi bullets like a swimmer tearing across a lake. It was impossible for her body not to take a number of stray shots, smearing passing mirrors red with her blood. Chrysalis kept confidence in her regeneration as she burst through the hail of fire and cut at the Quincy mirror with a blazing overhand swing that followed through into a spinning roulette of body blows with both her blade and lashing kicks.

Her Quincy duplicate demonstrated that hefty gatling cannon of silver metal was as adept a shield as it was a weapon, twirling the massive weapon as if it weighed no more than a sheet of paper. Sparks flew as Chrysalis blade scored against the hunk of reishi-forged metal, but one of her kicks still launched past the weapon and caught the Quincy in the stomach, knocking her back.

But before Chrysalis could capitalize on that and streak forward to skewer the off balance Quincy, the shadow of the Soul Reaper flickered over her and Chrysalis had to leap away to avoid the deadly bite of the nails sprouting from the Reaper counterpart’s khopesh. Without so much as letting a millisecond pass, the Soul Reaper smiled, twisting her blade in her two-handed grip and rolled into a flowing sea of strikes that left Chrysalis no room to breath. Parrying such an ungainly weapon was more difficult than it looked, the nails along the blade’s edge leaving a hundred places Chrysalis’ sword could get caught. As such she focused on moving her body out of the way, which left several close calls that tore at her dress.

Then one of the nails broke off, by no clear accident or other means, giving Chrysalis little time to react as a red wave of pressure suddenly emitted from the nail as it seemed to plant itself in the air and give off a howl.

Pain sizzled through Chrysalis’ senses, as if that howl was wracking every nerve ending in her body with a grinding set of razor blades. She was both sadist and masochist at heart, so pain was usually no great issue for her. Yet the overwhelming intensity of this sensation, while perhaps it would have been pleasant in differing circumstances, was utterly distracting and it took Chrysalis a moment to get her mind oriented. This was time her Soul Reaper duplicate used well to slam a palm into Chrysalis’ chest and chant an invocation, apparently completely unaffected by the nail’s howling pain shockwave.

“Hado Number Fifty Three: Kongobaku!” (Adamantine Blast)

Boiling lava flame intermixed with the sparking yellow arcs of electricity formed together into a pulsing sphere that burned into Chrysalis’ chest as it was fired into her, practically inserted into her chest at point blank range. She was thrown back as skin and internal organs heated up and nearly burst from the explosive discharge of lightning and fire combined. Fortunately the blast also sent her out of the radius of that nail, still affixed to the same point in the air and giving off a buzzing howl of sound.

Near instantly her charred flesh regrew, organs twitching with new growth as Chrysalis flipped in the air and retaliated with a swipe of her left hand that emitted a flash of raw emerald. The wide Cero carved forward more like a scything blade than a beam, forcing the Soul Reaper duplicate to leap upwards to avoid getting bisected, and destroying the affixed nail in an instant. Hundreds of mirrors were also caught in the Cero’s swiping motion, and Chrysalis hoped she might catch Zecora out there, somewhere.

Her injury was gone in a second, and she dusted off her now holed dress front, sighing, “Neat trick with the nail. Good to see even my Soul Reaper self has an appreciation for pain.”

“It’s a tool for growth, in the right hands, for the right reasons. In the wrong ones? Just a pointless self-indulgence, which is all that defines you,” the Reaper said, disdain clear in every acid-dripped note as she hovered a few dozen meters up from where she’d been a moment ago.

Chrysalis spat out a derisive chuckle, “Indulgence is one of life’s only genuine points for existing. Self-restriction breeds misery for all. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t give the slightest care for if others are miserable, but there’s nothing more despicable than the notion that we’re obligated to do anything other than what we fucking want to in life.”

Maybe it was because these duplicates were wearing her face, but she was feeling more incensed than usual by this kind of banal, mid-battle chatter. Usually she liked a little banter in a fight, and enjoyed teasing her foes and throwing taunts and ideologies back and forth. Made things more fun. But for some reason doing it with herself, in the guise of supposed alternate versions, was... pissing her off. This wasn’t fun. This was annoying, and she wanted to rip that smug Reaper Chrysalis' face off and make a toilet seat out of it.

Rather than fire back a comment on Chrysalis’ words, the Reaper simply swept her blade in front of her, despite still being a fair distance away. Chrysalis saw a fan of ten or so of the needles along the Zanapktou’s edge break off of the blade and fly out like miniaturized, projectile stingers. They didn’t come straight for Chrysalis, but rather juked around at several different, high-speed trajectories, which may have looked random until Chrysalis also saw her Quincy counterpart.

The Quincy was flitting across the air in sound breaking bursts of speed, and was now holding her gatling cannon with one hand. The reason for this became immediately evident as blue reishi surged from the woman, flowing from her left hand in an ice blue tide of light that then formed into a second gatling cannon. Laughing like a madwoman, Quincy Chrysalis leveled both weapons at Chrysalis’ back and unleashed a wall of reishi bullets so thick that it was less a cloud of projectiles and more a solid avalanche of pure devastation.

Throwing caution aside, Chrysalis threw herself backwards away from the flood of potent reishi bullets. She knew damn well the intent was to box her in, to make it so the Reaper’s needles could surround her in a semi-circle of pain inducing fields. As she expected, the ten or so needles all planted themselves in the air around her, creating overlapping vibrations of agony inducing energy as the metal nails howled.

Chances were her Reaper duplicate expected the pain to be enough to temporarily cripple Chrysalis’ movements, allowing the Quincy’s overwhelming barrage to then rip into her.

Chrysalis was only somewhat disappointed that the Reaper bore no look of surprise when she let all of that magnified anguish flow over her and rushed her headlong anyway. Sure, her blood felt as if it had been replaced with scathing acid. Her brain felt like it was bursting a thousand blood vessels at once, blood dribbling from her nose and eyes. But she just let the pain fuel her as she took her Zanpaktou in both hands and carved through the needles and kept going, her form vanishing with such speed it left a trail of after images as light struggled to keep up with her.

She drove her sword at the Reaper’s gut, not wanting to kill her fast, but rather see guts spill. Irritatingly, her duplicate braced and spun with equal speed, turning a gutting wound into a violent but non-fatal tear across her side as she forced Chrysalis into a spinning motion and twirled aside. Blood still flowed, red staining black robes and the torn white of the Reaper’s haori, but Chrysalis wanted to carve deeper into her foe than that!

There was no time to turn and attack again, as by now the flood of reishi bullets cascaded over the area, forcing both Chrysalis and her Reaper mirror to part by flying in opposite directions.

Even after the destructive flood passed by, Chrysalis heard the Quincy duplicate’s high pitched laughter. The woman was flying in right behind her barrage, and both gatling cannons now gathered streams of blue light around their barrels. Instead of a waterfall of bullets, this time each barrel fired off an individual spear of reishi like a combined cannon fusillade. Chrysalis had barely enough time to shield herself with a warding gesture of her Zanpaktou and arm, hardening her Hierro as the lances of reishi detonated around her in brilliantly explosive azure waves.

Again her skin was scorched and ripped, and again when the smoldering smoke faded, she was regenerating.

“You’d think if you were paying attention, you’d notice how little either of you are actually doing to me,” Chrysalis huffed.

The Quincy, the barrels of her twin gatling guns gleaming blue, split her face with a disturbingly gleeful grin that Chrysalis found reminded her just a tad of Ocellus.

“Think so? Wanna guess what my Schrift is, you inglorious Hollow hag?”

A new sensation rippled through Chrysalis' body as her skin warped and roiled in various places. Blood and flesh burst and then turned to a sour, grayed shade of decay. The wounds weren’t massive, but there were dozens where she’d been struck earlier by reishi bullets, and it was as if both on the surface on the inside that her flesh was gouging itself apart and actively rotting. It was a whole different kind of pain from the needles the Reaper used, and the Quincy Chrysalis cackled at the look of surprise on the real Chrysalis’ face.

“Sternritter R, the Ruin. Anything my reishi touches, decays, flenses itself, and dies. Regenerate all you want, bitch, but eventually the Ruin will just destroy that flesh over and over again. Who knows? Maybe it won’t kill you, but if I pump you full of enough reishi, then at best you’ll end up a ruined lump of flesh, eternally decaying and regenerating in agony.”

Her moment of surprise faded into a bubbling sea of invigorated interest. Chrysalis couldn’t help but smile, which caused her Quincy double to blink and go silent as Chrysalis then laughed, “Okay, you get a pass. The Reaper is annoying, but you’re not bad. Should have known at least my Quincy version would have some bite to her.”

“Not fishing for compliments, but yeah, Soul Reapers suck.”

“I can hear both of you.”

“We know!” said both real and Quincy Chrysalis at the same time. Even with parts of her flesh actively trying to rot and tear itself apart as she regenerated, Chrysalis mind had not ceased to consider the tactical situation.

In terms of speed, strength, and skill these mirror images of her were unsurprisingly equal to her measure. Mostly. There were minor differences that Chrysalis suspected was owed to the nature of the counterpart’s origins. The Quincy was more aggressive, less skilled, owing to living as a human of at most thirty years or so experience. The Reaper was actually a bit faster, but not as strong or durable, if only by a margin, due to Soul Reapers lacking Arrancar raw physicality. Even with the Quincy’s Schrift, Chrysalis had the advantage in attrition. The Ruin couldn’t halt her regeneration entirely, not yet anyway. She’d have to avoid taking too many more hits, otherwise the Quincy’s reishi might start to overcome her...

Which struck her as odd.

Fundamentally this was still just a battle against the Zecora Reigai’s Bankai. The Bankai had to have a limit on how much reiryoku it could output. It couldn’t be energy efficient to fuel the powers of two alternate duplicates of her.

Was that why these two mirrors hadn’t used a Bankai or Volstandig themselves? And why just two duplicates? Why not overwhelm Chrysalis with a dozen? Or a hundred? Fundamentally this Bankai had to be limited by the amount of reiatsu Zecora had access to. Which meant her counterparts were similarly limited in what powers they could use. The mere fact that they could keep up with her physically meant that the lion’s share of the Bankai’s power had to be going into fueling that, otherwise Chrysalis should have easily been able to overwhelm these two replicas.

With a small smirk, she understood what she needed to do.

Moving with the harsh speed and fluid lethality of a striking serpent, she put her Zanpaktou’s edge to her own throat, and opened it, allowing a arterial spray of blood to darken the air.

----------

The horde Arrancar of Chrysalis’ spawned children were simple beings at heart. Lacking the true independence of Chrysalis’ three trueborn, but not mindless as the drones formed purely of Chrysalis’ blood, the regular Arrancar of the horde had straightforward desires and interests born from the nature of their mother. When not engaging in bloodsport and other excesses amongst themselves, they hungered.

Hueco Mundo was filled with an excess of lesser Hollows for packs of Chrysalis’ brood to pursue and feed upon, roaming the endless dunes of lunar white in howling warbands. They made games of it, competitions, with ever shifting rules and rewards to pass the time. Then there was the world of the living, the human realm. Packs needed Chrysalis’ permission to hunt there, and often she’d grant it for specific regions, either for the sake of pissing off the local Soul Reapers of a given area, or to rile up the Quincy. The danger was greater due to that resistance, but the taste of whole human souls was far better than fellow Hollows, so it was considered a joyous day a pack was allowed to hunt in the living world.

But today, of all days, was beyond joyous. It was rapturous. A rare few packs had been given the honor to join their glorious dark mother in this promised land of plenty, this endless buffet of delight, this... Equestria. Those left behind had waited with baited breath and whining pleas for word of their returned brothers and sisters to hear any crumb of a tale about the world of candy colored ponies whose souls glowed with such rich taste.

After so much waiting, the time had finally come. Chrysalis, their generous and loving parent for whom any and all in the horde would die for in an instant, had brought the whole family this time! They were to be the vanguard of Lord Tirek’s soon to be arriving invasion, and every single Hollow born from Chrysalis’ blood intended to gorge themselves fully before the other Espada and hordes arrived to provide competition.

Mother had given permission to go hog wild, after all.

There was no hesitation or fear for Chrysalis among her horde, even as they all sensed the raw power of the fake Soul Reaper’s Bankai. All eyes could plainly see the glittering, thick cloud of mirror shards marking a several hundred meter radius in the golden desert sands. They heard the thunders of battle from within, felt the violent surging of their mother’s towering reiatsu clashing with others within that deadly field of mirrors. With darkness falling, the mirror shards reflected moon and starlight in sparkling rivers that might have been found beautiful had the eyes of the Arrancar horde cared to waste time looking.

All they knew was that their progenitor fought, and all sane members of the horde knew to remain well out of Chrysalis' way in such circumstances. It wasn’t as if, in their minds, she was even capable of being killed. So, for them, it was playtime, with all of the innocent, carefree glee of children released upon a playground.

Of course, some packs argued over who would get to go where. Klugetown was nearby, the nearest source of souls, and so a brief, violent contest ensued in which the strongest packs fought for position. This only lasted a few minutes. Everyone was too hungry and excited to spent too much time on arguing over who’d get to go to the nearby town. Besides, by all the stories they’d heard, much larger cities existed elsewhere in the world, perhaps days or weeks away by conventional means but not nearly so far as an Arrancar moves.

And so the packs scattered their separate ways, each one consisting of a few dozen to even a few hundred Arrancar. The designated few that Chrysalis had handpicked had to stay behind to keep order in the Soul Reaper fortress of Hitsuyo-Aku, which they’d grumbled about, but their mother had promised them that for their service and restraint she’d treat them to a special outing herself, later.

As it was, two packs had tied over rights to Klugetown, numbering about fifty or so Arrancar between them. With grinning faces and casual boasting over how many souls each would get to gorge upon, they crossed the darkened desert like super-sonic bullet trains in miniature. They ran together loosely, kicking up a vast wall of sand dust in their wake, one that swiftly reached a soaring height.

In distant Klugetown, the some ten thousand resident and travelers passing through of a dozen or more of Equestrias varied species all were busy about the process of engaging in the towns highly active night life. Klugetown was not a place of rest, but constant drinking, gambling, trading, skullduggery, and general debauchery. Far from any other nation of “civilized” rules, those who either dwelled in the mish-mash of clay and stone buildings build up into a patchwork mesas followed only their own rules and passions, most of which might make a passing Equestrian pony double-take.

But there was some small notion of authority in the form of the organized merchant guilds and borderline criminal groups that kept things mostly in line, ensuring Klugetown didn’t descend into complete anarchy. This also meant that there were, kinda sorta, “town guards''. In truth, this title was barely recognized by either the local populace or the guards themselves, who were mostly either very bored volunteers with nothing better to do, or some poor schmuck on punishment duty as a result of ticking off one of their merchant bosses. Almost one and all the guards of Klugetown spent as much time drinking and gambling over the course of the night as any of the tavern goers, even if they did sit on the walls or watchtowers while doing it.

But even a drunk, distracted guard would not have missed the nearly mile high wall of sand being kicked up to the point that it stained the moon, still low on the night horizon.

“Oi, Heckta, ya see that, mate?” said one lizard-like fellow with a long crocodilian snout, flopping tail, and a tin can on his head that more or less constituted a helmet, while the spiked length of wood he carried served as his truncheon.

His companion, a bleary eyed, red faced drunk of a turtle-shaped individual barely looked up from their cards with faint irritation, “See wot?”

“That there looks like a sand storm brewin’ our way, but it’s funny lookin’,” said the lizard man, gesturing with his truncheon, “Lookin’ loik its comin’ right at us in a’ line.”

With a great, heaving sigh of someone who very much did not want to get up, the turtle person, who was wearing what at best could be described as stitched together pot armor over his already thick shelled body, stood and joined his fellow guard. The pair were on one of the tallest watchtowers on Klugetown’s northern wall, and the night desert could be seen like a silver sea for many miles around. Blinking the blur from his eyes, the turtle squinted at the fast approaching cloud of sand.

“Well oi’ll be... that is kinda funny lookin’ fer a sand storm-”

“GET EVERYONE OUT OF TOWN RIGHT NOW!”’

Both guards screamed in high pitched tenors, clutching each other and dropping their respective weapons as a pink, female pegasus wearing what looked to be some ridiculously expensive, advanced, form fitting purple armor that jetted purple energy from its metallic wings suddenly appeared right in front of their watchtower and shouted in their faces at the top of her lungs.

The pegasus blinked at them as they kept screaming, and looked at the giant, hexagon shaped cannon cradled in her right hoof, “Uh, guys, chill, I’m not going to shoot you. But this town is in serious trouble, so could you please stop screaming and, I don’t know, sound an alarm?”

The guards almost did stop screaming, but then the shadows grew around them like a pool of thick oil, and both went from screaming to more a terrified, heavy panting as the shadows grew and resolved into the shape of a unicorn pony, black as soot, with piercing green eyes. The unicorn stallion regarded the pegasus coolly, his expression flat as granite.

“I don’t think that’s going to reassure them. We’re also not going to get an alarm raised fast enough, Firefly. The enemy will be here in minutes.”

“You think I don’t know that!? Still, we got to get this place evacuated somehow,” the pegasus said, fear and worry plain on her face as she looked behind her. The guards, barely able to think straight, couldn’t help but notice she looked right at the approaching storm cloud of sand, and touched the odd visor of purple glass across her eyes, which suddenly beeped and flashed with symbols.

“We’ve got fifty two Arrancar coming our way, each one around Fourth or Fifth seat officer level. A couple of them are more on par with Lieutenants.”

“I don’t know what that means in terms of power,” said the dark unicorn, “How strong are you and that Zecora woman, comparatively?”

“Stronger. More like Captains, but Zecora was rocking more raw reiatsu than me. I can take... I don’t know, maybe a third of the guys coming at us?”

With a pursing of his lips the unicorn flicked his tail and the shadows at his hooves grew up around his legs like black vines, “I could account for another third, then, under ideal circumstances. With night fallen, the darkness serves me better, but I drained a good deal of my magic reserves fighting you.”

The pegasus spared the unicorn a shamed glance without truly taking her eyes off of the approaching storm, “Hindsight sucks. I’m sorry about what’s happening. Rake me over the coals all you want later, if we survive the next half hour. We still need to figure out how to save these people.”

“W-w-wait a tik, luv,” managed to stammer the lizard man, “Wots all this about, eh? Who’re you tossers?”

He flinched, eyes wide as the unicorn, so coated in shadows now that he all but blended into the night background, put a hoof on his shoulder, “There is no time for explanations beyond the fact that monsters beyond your worst nightmares approach Klugetown, intent on devouring every soul within these walls. Me and this pegasus will do our utmost to stave off their assault, but you two must spread the warning and evacuate.”

The unicorn gestured towards a series of taller towers clustered near the center of Klugetown’s mesas, where half a dozen airships of various sizes and shapes were docked. His tone carried the leaden weight of command mixed with earnest sincerity. “Fleeing on foot will be too slow. Wait until we engage the foe, then pile whom you can on those vessels and flee to the sky. Pack the decks shoulder to shoulder, if you have to.”

“W-won’t be ‘nough room, even if we git all them captains ta agree,” stammered the turtle. The stallions’ eyes of emerald light narrowed, his voice hardening.

“Then make them agree, and load the females and young first. Every able bodied other creature is to then flee on foot, or if your conscience dictates, take up arms. There is no more time to argue or plan. Go. Now!”

“But who’s gonna believe us?” cried the turtle, but just then a crimson light bathed the air, and the unicorn looked outward towards the desert with a grim curl of his lips illuminated past his curling shadows.

“They all will, soon.”

The first Cero beam, little wider than a few meters but still packing a stone shattering punch, hit the northern wall of Klugetown with a deafening detonation. A good ten meter span of hard stone and packed earth that had kept the town safe from storms and invaders alike for decades came crumbling down in an instant as the crimson beam of otherworldly spirit energy carved up the tall edifice. A couple of distant shouts of alarm and fear could be heard from guards unfortunate enough to be close to the point of impact.

“Crap, they’re in range,” said the pegasus, “More will be coming in. Clear the damn walls! Sombra, I’m hitting them on the left. You take the right. We delay the bastards as long as we can and try to keep their firepower focused on us!”

She didn’t even await a reply. Jets of pure purple light flared with beautiful life in the silvery night as her metal wings spread wider and the pegasus jetted off with speeds neither Klugetown guard could see to even believe. In an instant she was just a violet comet of light heading right for the approaching storm, and the very next instant a barrage of brilliant purple beams fired into the distance, exploding in fiery blossoms amid whatever force was coming to reave their town.

The unicorn, Sombra, blew a harsh, intense breath from his nostrils, frosting the night air as shadows embraced him from the ground up. He didn’t even spare the guards another glance before the darkness took him wholly and he moved with the speed of shadow itself to join Firefly in the fray.

----------

Firefly didn’t have time to think, and barely time to aim. More than fifty Arrancar was a tall order for anyone, even if none of them were near Espada strength. Chrysalis hordlings were dangerous because of their viciousness and numbers, and before Firefly had even gotten off her fifth shot from Ace of Sky’s potent cannon she was having to corkscrew, dive, and climb like a mad sparrow to avoid a disco-ball stitching of crimson Cero beams that tore up at her from the approaching Hollows.

Which was all well and good. Dodging she could do, and that meant that these were Ceros not being aimed at Klugetown.

The Arrancar host had slowed their headlong run towards the town, but only a little, enough for them to throw hands skyward to unleash their blood-stain blasts of spirit energy, while around ten of them leaped skyward to engage her. They cackling black forms kicked off the air in rapid thrusts of Sonido that rapidly saw her getting blindsided by their swift motions and slashing blades.

Firefly was no slouch in the speed department, and twisted her body even more, her form darting in blindingly swift curving motions as she let blades miss her by centimeters. One did clip her left wing, leaving a gouge in the metal armor, but not enough to slow her down. She spun over onto her back, flying backwards as she looked upon the cluster of enemies that had tried to surround her. Her visor flashed with a smear of targeting circles as each Arrancar was individually locked on.

“Dinner isn’t in town, kiddos, it’s right here with mamma!”

Hatches on her Fullbring’s thigh plates opened up, and a swarm of energy charged missiles were spat out in the volume of several dozen warheads.

“Now eat it!”

The Arrancar re-enacted her evasive maneuvers from moments ago, most leaping or spiraling away with the bursting twitches of Sonidos. Her missiles tracked their individual reiatsu, coursing after their targets with the dogged determination of pissed off hornets. The star strewn night sky became alight with fresh stars of light, purple detonations as missiles either found their marks or were just barely evaded and exploded in near misses. Firefly didn’t even have time to check if any of the hits resulted in deaths or injuries among her foes, because she had to hurl herself into a sharp dive as a trio of Ceros nearly caught her in a crossfire. She felt a sting of pain in her left side as the close miss still left the destructive energies brushing against her armor and melting plates away.

Heading for the ground, she saw that about another five or six of the bastards had halted and were now wholly focused on tracking her with their palms, the ruby glint of more Ceros forming. The rest were still making a straight charge for Klugetown, and to Firefly’s dismay she saw that a whole line of Cero beams were being charged up and fired into the town’s north wall. Explosions rocked that side of the town, and Firefly’s heart and mind clenched in anger and fresh shame.

We should have killed Chrysalis the second we got here and didn’t need her damn help anymore...

Or perhaps it went further back than that. Should she and Starlight had followed this course at all? But the Zero Division... they needed to be stopped, no matter what. In Firefly’s mind she could see with crystal clarity the moment she held her little Dashie in her arms, seeing all the potential and life in that little blue miracle. What price wasn’t worth it, to ensure the Zero Division couldn’t steal her daughter’s future?

And how many futures were being stolen right now, because of the path she and Starlight had stubbornly pursued, believing themselves to be the only ones who could solve the problem?

She cast the thoughts deep down. No time. Not now. Fight first. Rumination and recompense could come after.

For a mercy, not every Cero struck Klugetown. A wall of purest black rose to meet the barrage, an aegis of shadow born of ancient magic. Sombra may have been tired and drained, but that was not the same as weak. The towering bastion of darkness absorbed a dozen or more Ceros, reducing the impact on Klugetown to a handful of explosions in the outskirts and walls. Then the unicorn himself stepped from his roiling tide wall of night born darkness, green eyes ablaze like damming torches.

Even Firefly, flying so fast that the wind was a howling shriek in her ears, heard Sombra’s voice bellow with magically induced intensity that would put thunder itself to shame.

“I am Sombra Umbra, He Who Walks in Shadow, and the souls of this land are not yours to reap, invaders from another world! Come forth, and die in darkness, cretinous spirits!”

It was not meant to make the Arrancar run. Nor was it a jest. Sombra knew precisely what he was doing, and it was working. With howls of glee at the challenge, almost every Arrancar not currently trying to shoot Firefly out of the sky instead altered course and went right for the former villain, unable to resist either the brazen challenge itself or the delicious smell of the magic within his potent soul.

For now, at least, the residents Klugetown would have precious time to save themselves and escape.

Assuming its two defenders lasted long enough to buy it for them.

----------

A soft sigh of pleasure gurgled from Chrysalis’ slit throat as she let her blood jet forth in an unmitigated spray. Rather than simply splatter about at random, droplets of blood congealed into scores of ruby spheres that floated before her. Her gaping throat wound closed with the wet squelch of mending flesh, and Chrysalis spat out a last globule of blood as she grinned with reddened teeth.

Her counterparts both clearly understood the nature of what Chrysalis was doing, the Quincy Chrysalis clashing together her rotary canons with the barrels already spinning up to a humming haze in preparation to unload a fresh salvo. In the same instant the Reaper Chrysalis began to invoke another Kido, waving her left hand forward with a familiar spark of golden light.

“Bakudo Number Sixty-”

Chrysalis didn’t let her finish the invocation, moving with a sonic crack of speed that sent her hurtling into her Reaper mirror’s midriff with a shoulder charge that nearly bent the other woman double-over and caused blood and spittle to fly from the Reaper’s mouth as she was thrown back. Chrysalis, before she’d even moved, had let a trail of sparking green energy flow from her own hand to spread among the blood droplets, and she charged at her Quincy duplicate as she intoned her power into her soon to be brood.

“Nacimiento Sanguinario.” (Sanguine Birth)

The Quincy Chrysalis was forced to choose between firing upon the array of blood droplets which at that very moment began to undulate and grow, sprouting spindly limbs and horrible, clawed hands and insectile faces of bearing razor mawed teeth, or taking aim at Chrysalis herself who was bearing down on her even faster than she had against the Reaper.

With no more than a microsecond to choose, the Quincy went with her instinct and choose the progenitor instead of the progeny. The twin barrels snapped towards Chrysalis with a flash of silver speed, and a hellstorm of reishi bullets greeted the Second Espada. With even slicker speed, Chrysalis spun her course to the side, evading the torrent of destruction as she came in upon the Quincy with a straight thrust of her blade at the woman’s neck. Flipping faster than Chrysalis could have imagined, the Quincy contorted over the thrust and with shocking strength she used the gatling canons as bludgeons. The pure red of veins glowing bright showed the potency of Blut Arterie in the Quincy Chrysalis’ veins as both massive guns became whirling instruments of physical punishment. Chrysalis managed to twist aside one, only to find her body crumbled over the barrel of the other, and all but mimicking what had been down to her Reaper doppelganger, she was doubled over and sent flying by a shockwave of impact force.

It hurt, sure, but what did it matter? Her drone children had finished forming, even if it was just a small army of the blood born, mindless variety.

With howls of pure instinctual fury and hunger, nearly a hundred of the sanguine born Hollow drones rushed across the field of mirror shards, splitting in halves to go after Reaper and Quincy both.

As Chrysalis bounced off of one mirror and landed atop another, she shook herself and took a second to let her spin realign and some of her internal organs to grow back from being nearly pulped. She watched as the Quincy turned her attention to the attacking horde of drones, and heard the duplicate all but roar with delighted laughter.

“Giving me more targets to splatter? At least you know how to throw a party!”

The blazing thunder of reishi bullets echoed as blue lines of hammering fire tore a hole through the horde. Yet howling still the drones came on, ignoring the bursting gore of their fallen comrades as they surrounded the Quincy with a maelstrom of slashing claws and gnashing teeth. None of it seemed to bother the Quincy Chrysalis, who just kept laughing like a kid on a sugar high, wielding her stupidly massive cannons with the deft ease someone else might wield a pair of light daggers. Drones that weren’t caught in the constant stream of unending reishi bullets flying out of either weapon were being smacked aside by the twirling of the huge weapons. This only got worse when, with a swift click, a rod extended from the back housing of each cannon and suddenly the pair were connected into the most ridiculous looking double-gatling-cannon-staff that must have come from the mind of a very inebriated individual.

Chrysalis surmised her Quincy counterpart must have designed the weapon herself.

As questionable as it’s physical form was, the double cannon staff... thing, was put to immediately effective use as the Quincy spun the whole thing like a tornado and unleashed what could only be described as a stupid amount of reishi blasts in all directions, all while screaming at the top of her lungs.

“Kugel Holle!” (Bullet Hell)

There was so much ludicrous levels of swift azure reishi rounds flying in all directions, so dense and thick, yet bizarrely intricate in their patterns, that Chrysalis had little choice but to back off and try to evade. Mirrors were shattering in multitudes under the hailstorm, and Chrysalis even saw her Reaper double flickering away with a Flash Step to try to get space from the center of the hurricane bullet storm taking place.

Chrysalis’ body, despite her best efforts to Sonido from point to point in a dizzying streak of speed, still got punctured over and over again. There was just too many to be dodged entirely. The Reaper got away with minimal injury through the swift and efficient use of a Kido, one Chrysalis recognized as the classic and potent defense spell, “Danku”, which formed a glassy field of pure force from which the bullets bounced off like rain on a windshield.

What should have been injuries that closed nearly as fast as they appeared upon Chrysalis’ flesh now writhed and seeped with the war between her regenerative powers and the strength of the Quincy’s Schrift, the Ruin. Every sharp projectile of Quincy reishi that penetrated her infused Chrysalis with a bit more of the Schrift’s infectious power. By comparison her own reiatsu still soared higher, but the Schrift was gaining ground, the injuries remaining flesh wounds that refused to fully mend.

No matter, Chrysalis thought. As soon as the Quincy was dead, the Schrift’s power would fade.

Despite the monstrous rain of bullets, her blood born drones remained laser focused upon the Quincy’s death. Even as their bodies were torn apart, the spindly Hollows hurled their carcasses upon the Quincy Chrysalis, bodies distending as energies built up within them to a crimson glow. The Quincy’s eyes glared as explosions ripped across her, nearly half of the drones Chrysalis had made self-destructing around the Quincy in their violent death throes. The flowering field of crimson blossoms flashed bright, and the Quincy fell in a smoking trail to the desert below. She was intact, her bare skin covered now in lines of azure blue from Blut Vene, but one of her gatling cannons was shattered upon the staff, and she hit the ground in a stunned heap.

Not dead, but she would be down for a moment, and even when she stood would still have the surviving pack of drones to deal with. This was Chrysalis’ moment to focus all her fury upon the Reaper, just as planned!

With a grin of glee she greeted her Soul Reaper mirror with an outstretched palm that cracked around its fingers with intense emerald light. She bracketed the Reaper with a swarm of Bala, the small and condensed bolts of reishi green around their edges, but containing smeared globs of Chrysalis’ blood that turned each bullet into a spiked menace that would rip and flense flesh.

Despite the intensity of the focused barrage, the Reaper Chrysalis was as graceful and precise as ever, stepping back with one Flash Step after another and sweeping her curved Zanpaktou in wide, elegant arcs that slashed down the Bala four or five at a time. Still, Chrysalis came on, knowing she’d catch up and overwhelm her counterpart in just a moment!

She almost didn’t see the mirrors move. The countless hundreds of mirror shards consisting of Zecora’s Bankai had done little more than lazily and randomly float around this entire time. So much so that Chrysalis had not immediately noticed when a batch of the mirrors now moved with genuine intent and formed a cordon around an area her headlong charge was taking her through.

Instinct more than anything else kept Chrysalis from being struck when the first needle of steel shot from one of the mirrors in a flash of glinting light. She even managed to dodge the next dozen or so that stabbed through the air at her, extending like liquid metal to fill the space around her in a dense field of piercing metal nails.

But one got her in the ankle, slowing her just a fraction of an instant enough for more to strike her, sinking into her arms, her torso, and even her neck. Even so Chrysalis twisted and slashed with her Zanpaktou, annihilating a dozen or more of the extending needles that failed to connect with her as they fell to pieces under her assault. She bent and twisted others with raw strength and nearly wrenched free fully before...

Pain.

Not pain in the previous sense she was so familiar with. No sensation of sharp, cutting flesh she knew so intimately. Not the raw, bruising strength of pain from being smashed through walls. Not even the intense, fiery sensation of burning skin and muscle she’d experienced against foes who so loved fire or acid as their elements of choice.

This pain was nearly beyond the word itself. It didn’t have an easy, lyrical metaphor to give it shape for the mind. There was no point of comparison, even for a creature like Chrysalis who had spent centuries of her existence indulging and exploring both the delivery and receiving of pain. This was a sensation that ripped into her core and spread with the immediate rush of a nuclear blast wave through every pore of her being.

For the first time in uncounted centuries, Chrysalis, the Second Espada, screamed. She was barely even aware that the sound was her own, but like an echo through a dull roar of thunder, she did hear a voice speaking. It was her own, but it wasn’t hers. The Soul Reaper had approached her, impaled upon something like twenty of the needles extending from the surrounding mirrors, and sensually touched her Zanpaktou like a lover might.

“I’m glad of your arrogance. A wiser woman might have wondered if the mirrors could do more than make duplicates. Well, now that you’re in my blade’s caring embrace, perhaps I can educate you, my poor, deluded ‘real self’.”

Chrysalis heard the words, and even had enough willpower to focus on them, anger starting to rise in her insides as the Reaper strode around her in a circle, like a professor looking upon a dullard of a student at their desk. Before Chrysalis could do more than open her mouth to spit a retort, she was immersed in the wordless, indescribable ocean of pain, and words became another choked scream, this time barely bit back into a barely more dignified grunt.

“Ah ah, no speaking. Only listening. You really have so little experience with real pain, don’t you? You’ve only crudely administered it with your Hollow orgies of brutality. In battle you’re so reliant on your regeneration, which wipes away physical pain quickly, that you don’t even appreciate the pain of a wound. Little wonder you’re such a inelegant creature.”

“Fu...fuc...” Chrysalis tried to breath, before she felt the pain roll across her in entirely new, bone shattering ways, as if she was being dragged across an unseen spectrum of colors, and each color a new flavor of agony.

“I usually don’t go this overboard on someone, but I feel you’re a special case. One needle from my Zanpaktou is enough to bring most people to their breaking point. I can’t remember the last time I used so many on one person. Oh, and if you think this is painful, be grateful I’m stuck with only my Shikai in this duplicated state. Just imagine what I could show you with my Bankai?”

Chrysalis had ceased paying the Reaper much mind. The pain was what she focused on. With each new wave of it, she felt like she was reaching just a little closer to adjusting to it. Her Reaper replica was right, she’d never experienced pain on this level before. Her regenerative powers usually took care of injuries so quickly tha she didn’t have time to really appreciate the sensations. She’d never imagined it was possible for pain to burn this brightly in ones senses. Like jumping into a frozen lake for the first time, its a shock to the system.

And just like such a shocking immersion into cold water, one adjusts to it.

The Reaper was still talking, but Chrysalis was not hearing the words. Her body coiled, tensed, and strained as she focused upon the sensations of her flesh. The pain interfered still, near overwhelming, but now that she was getting used to it she could sense beyond it to the feeling of the metal nails digging into muscle and bone. She gradually built tension and power in her arms, her legs, and chest as she flexed and readied herself.

Her Soul Reaper double had circled back to stand in front of her, still holding her Zanpaktou like a teacher holding a pointer for a blackboard, “While I hope this has been informative, I’m afraid its time for the lesson to end.”

She raised her Zanpaktou in preparation to strike Chrysalis’ head off.

That was when Chrysalis made her move. Like a butterfly bursting from its cocoon, Chrysalis’ body heaved and split. In a shower of red gore that splattered everywhere, Chrysalis divested herself of her outer shell of wounded skin and muscle and as a drenched red skeleton of still beating organs, she struck with all the sudden savagery and fury of a horror movie slasher. Free of the needles and their special pain, Chrysalis’ first strike took the Reaper’s legs off above the knee, toppling her backwards as Chrysalis rammed into her with her other free hand, now balled into a meaty fist of bone.

Already her flesh was regenerating. Tearing free of her skin and outer layer of muscle had also gotten her free of the wounds infected by the Quicy’s Schrift. As her fist rammed into the Reaper’s stomach and tore through it out of the shocked woman’s back, Chrysalis’ hand had already regrown a shell of perfect, onyx skin. Her skeletal face of muscle and bone swiftly grew new flesh, her hair bursting from her scalp like a waterfall of dark green. Before she was even done flinging the Reaper’s body off of her bloody fist to the ground, Chrysalis was whole again, naked and covered in her and her foe’s blood.

Her natural state.

“Thanks,” she spat at the twitching Reaper bleeding out into the sands, “Neat lesson. Kinda liked it. Now then...”

She raised her palm and gathered the baleful jade glow of a Cero, “Kindly piss the hell off and die.”

The blinding green beam blasted forth with a sonic boom, and engulfed the fallen Reaper in a pillar of disintegrating power. The resulting explosion shook the desert and cored an immensely deep hole in the ground several dozen meters wide. Chrysalis saw her Soul Reaper mirror’s body flake away in the light of destruction, cracking and turning into small, broken mirrors shards before vanishing.

With that taken care of, she took a second to collect herself, looking at her palm for a second. To her annoyance, her hand shook a little. She was drained.

A glance showed her the Quincy Chrysalis was finishing off the last of the drones she’d created, so Chrysalis took an extra moment to retrieve was was left of her tattered, blood-stained clothes. Even she didn’t feel like fighting butt naked for no reason. Especially without anyone worth showing off to. Tearing her dress in half, given its present state wasn’t any good to her, she wrapped the two halves around herself, one over the waist, the other over the chest. Good enough, she figured. Kind of gave her a bloody, tattered barbarian princess look. It’d do for now.

By the time she was done getting dressed, the last of her drones fell, crushed to paste by the Quincy wielding the remaining end of her gatling cannon staff like a massive club and creating a shockwave through the sands for several football fields of distance. Chrysalis walked up as the Quincy shouldered the weapon. Her counterpart scoffed, looking over at the still smoking hole the Cero had made.

“Aw, so the Soul Reaper bites it first? No shocker, there. Woman had her head waaaaay up her ass if you ask me.”

Chrysalis nodded, “Preaching to the choir. Makes my skin crawl to think I could have turned out like that.”

“Hah, yeah, because being a soul sucking, homicidal Hollow is so much better?” asked the Quincy Chrysalis, giving off a lyrical chortle as she took aim with her gatling cannon, “Let’s face it, Chryssy, all versions of us have got problems. Just a question of which among us learned to make those problems work for us better.”

Chrysalis responded with a cheeky grin, not even bothering to wipe some of her own blood and viscera that remained on her face after she’d torn her own flesh off to escape the Reaper’s Zanpaktou. “You say ‘problems’. I say ‘charming natural instincts’. To each their own. My Soul Reaper self loved hearing herself talk-”

“Gee, imagine that,” quipped the Quincy, and Chrysalis continued to speak, knowing full well her own hypocrisy and rather enjoying the sass.

“-and that’s about all we had in common. I get the feeling she lived an entirely too uptight lifestyle. A little like poor Starlight Glimmer.”

“Oh, that how Glimmy is here?” said the Quincy, pursing her lips and tapping them with a finger, “She’s rather wild where I come from.”

That did make Chrysalis’ head tilt in abject curiosity she couldn’t fully rein in, “You speak as if you and that Reaper aren’t just reflections created by this Bankai.”

To this the Quincy Chrysalis giggled and shrugged, leveling her gatling cannon again, “We are. But what do you think we’re reflecting, exactly? Zecora’s Zanpaktou’s power is to see into the complete, utter truth of something. The Shikai just reveals, while the Bankai reflects. I’m as true as you are, even if I’m just a reflection. That means complete memories, babe, not just power or personality. Hell, you want to get all multiversal about it we might even be snippets of a genuine alternate reality that the Bankai can peer into. Who knows, right?”

Chrysalis made a face alongside a dispassionate grunt, “Nope, not entertaining that level of nonsense. Let’s just get back to killing each other. Much simpler and more fun. And now that I’ve got you alone, I think I can take my time with you, ‘Ruin’ or not.”

“Aww,” said the Quicy with the snarling grin of a person who knew a nasty joke about to be played, “But who said you had me alone?”

That was the only warning Chrysalis had before the ground beneath her exploded in a shower of sand as a swarm of several hundred voracious scarabs formed of jade shot upwards. The small insects of hard jewel rock struck like munching cuisinarts, mouths digging into flesh as they buzzed around her. Chrysalis let out a burst of raw reiatsu from her body as she slammed her blade around in a straight pressure wave, scattering the swarm as she dodged back. The swarm of scarabs didn’t pursue her, instead coalescing together into one larger scarab who’s body shifted with the mass of beetles it was composed of.

Standing atop the swarm turned singular beetle was a Chrysalis wearing what could be at best described as gothic punk chic. Her green hair was a swept back, short cut affair, dyed black at the tips. Her dark clothing of stockings and leather were metal studded in many places, with boots large and belted enough to make more fashion statement than serve practical purpose. This Chrysalis looked... younger, a teenager, and from her hands dripped blood that with a flash of green Fullbringer Light turned into more scarabs that buzzed around her.

“S’up,” said this Chrysalis, the taste of her reiatsu on the air quite human, “Guessing you’re what I’d look like if I were a stuck up, megalomaniacle Espada? Wonder what Sun and the rest of the girls would make of me like this?”

Chrysalis couldn’t quite help herself as she rubbed the bridge of her nose, “Great... a human me. I think I’ll kill you even quicker than the Reaper.”

“Depends on how fast you can chew through the rest of us,” said the Fullbringer Chrysalis with a sly glint in her eyes, and with a groan of pure aggravation Chrysalis spun as she felt two more reiatsu flare up behind her and she heard two other distinct versions of her voice speaking over one another.

“Inks Spellcode Number Sixty: Dark Scripture!”

“Raubtier, Zeige Dich!”

One darting form used what looked to be a pair of hand held paint guns to spray black paint in the air, the paint clinging in mid-air as if it had been painted onto a flat and solid surface. The black paint formed a complex pentagram with several variants of the numbers ‘66’ within the paint. Then with a burst of spiritual pressure and power the pentagram flared with black light and a torrent of indescribable script wrote itself through the air and into the ground, surrounding Chrysalis and forming a circular barrier. She felt it put pressure on her, like an immense press of gravity. It reminded her of the Soul Reaper’s ‘Kurohitsugi’ Kido, only less focused.

The one who’d created this strange spell was a Chrysalis wearing something akin to a business suit and dress, well tailored and dark green. On her shoulders were wide, stylized patches showing a symbol of a paintbrush etched in brass. She wore thick glasses and her silken green hair was tied back in a conservative bun. This, combined with her rather still voluptuous body hidden behind her suit, but pushing the poor garment to bursting, gave this Chrysalis a distinct ‘librarian fantasy’ look about her. Her high heels hardly seemed to slow her as she held her paint guns towards the ground and emitted more paint from them, the dark spray seeming to reinforce the circle of increased pressure that Chrysalis was inside.

“Get her while she’s held!” shouted the glasses wearing Chrysalis, “My magic isn’t going to hold out for long!”

This was shouted to the other new Chrysalis that had emerged from the many floating mirrors. This Chrysalis was somehow the most plain one yet, almost specifically lacking in any ostentatious clothing. Her hair was mussy, almost unkempt, but still long. She wore a totally nondescript black shirt over her still ample assets, and equally plain black pants and shoes. There were only two things she wore that were remotely distinct about this dour-faced Chrysalis. One was her long, leather trench coat that was oddly split in color, the upper half brown, the lower half black. The other was the oddly ornate, gold finger sheath she wore on her left index finger, like a single golden claw. On the back of the adornment a single crest flashed red, and from which came forth a thick wash of gray light that soon coalesced into a humongous and monstrous claw consisting of six scythe-like blades. The center of this single claw bore a skull face, as if the giant hand was also the face for some kind of demonic construct. The arm of this construct remained attached to the finger sheath on the dour Chrysalis, whom the real Chrysalis now understood was a Bount.

“Suck her dry, Raubtier,” said the Bount Chrysalis, and the demonic face within the metallic claw arm, which had grown to the size of a pine tree, laughed with a screech of metal saws as it slammed down towards Chrysalis.

She raised her Zanpaktou, bracing it with her other arm as the Bount’s doll struck, rattling her body with an admittedly impressive impact as the six scythe fingers tried to slice her. Sparks flew as her blade impeded them, but even so she felt her reiatsu start to flow out of her body as this Bount doll opened the skeletal demon mouth housed within the claw’s palm and began to make a suction noise. She saw flakes of her green reiatsu aura wafting off of her and into the Bount. It was a trickle of draining, normally nothing to be concerned over, but by now the Quincy Chrysalis had stopped watching the spectacle and the barrels of her gatling canon began to spin.

Reiatsu drain, plus the destructive nature of the Ruin Schrift would spell serious trouble if Chrysalis let both take their toll on her. ‘

And amid all of this, that damn Reigai had yet to show her face.

It was enough to make Chrysalis bark a laugh as she decided she was well and truly done with this farce. In a lot of ways she was impressed. She had thought to wipe out the Reigai and her Bankai in short order, but this had proven to be a far larger threat than she’d expected. Under other circumstances Chrysalis would have been elated to find an opponent who had the potential to actually kill her. She just wasn’t fond of seeing so many different versions of her own face. As if each of these replicas was just demonstrating some lesser version of herself. Were any of these fakers even mothers?

Still, credit where it was due... this proved that Starlight Glimmer had had Chrysalis’ number all along. She’d thought the cocky Substitute Soul Reaper had been relying on being able to overwhelm her with the aid of her other allies to keep Chrysalis in check. But no, she’d had Zecora’s Zanpaktou this whole time, and likely knew exactly what it’s Bankai ability was. This told Chrysalis many things. That Starlight had targeted Zecora during the infiltration of Soul Society not merely because Zecora was an ideal person for Chrysalis to take the place of, but because taking Zecora’s Zanpaktou was key beyond just the plan to frame Celestia and Luna. Starlight must have known what Zecora’s Bankai could do. How? Likely through the same archives she’d raided to learn about Zero Division.

She couldn’t have known for sure that any alternate version of Chrysalis created by the Bankai would have abilities that could counter her regeneration, but Starlight’s own Zanpaktou was something of a mystery itself. As far as Chrysalis knew, it was entirely possible she could extrapolate the full powers of any Zanpaktou she’d stolen, and Zecora’s Shikai alone granted incredibly detailed knowledge of what its power scanned.

Chrysalis herself had used it, after all. Yet Starlight’s Shikai didn’t grant the ability to use a stolen Zanpaktou’s Bankai. From this, Chrysalis easily guessed that Starlight’s own long withheld Bankai must remove that restriction. It now also made sense to her why Starlight had empowered the Reigai Zecora so much over her fellow Mod Souls.

“Hah...hahaha! She planned on killing me all along, and even let me play around with the Zanpaktou that she would use to do it to alay my suspicions! Starlight Glimmer, it’s such a shame you lost to Celestia. Reaving Zero Division’s blood with you would have been much more fun than playing second fiddle to Tirek.”

“What’s she babbling about?” asked the Fullbringer Chrysalis.

“Real world affairs. No matter to reflections like us,” said the librarian one, whose origin Chrysalis had no idea of and was only vaguely curious about at the moment.

“What’s taking so long, Quincy?” asked the Bount Chrysalis, frowning as she held her hand out, as if straining ot aid her Doll in pressing down upon Chrysalis body with its massive bladed fingers.

Her Quincy counterpart licked her lips, the barrels of her gatling cannon spinning faster and faster. Rather than shooting its usual barrage of small reishi bullets, it was building up a growing circle of scintillating power that seemed to grow larger and more chaotic with each second. Particles of reishi were flowing from her and the air around her to gather into the ever spinning barrels, the single blinding circle of azure they were creating strobing with potency, “Need another few seconds! The Ruin ain’t enough with the usual rounds! I’m charging up the strongest attack I got without Volstandig! Just hold her still a little longer!”

In response, the Fullbringer Chrysalis nodded and waved her hands, and swarms of her jade scarabs flew from the larger mass she stood upon. As the swarms entered the binding circle the librarian had created, Chrysalis figured the plan was to have the scarabs help pin her down. Or maybe devour her limbs, to make it harder for her to move? Whatever the plan was, it was too late.

Chrysalis had been gathering power herself, letting her reiatsu pulsate louder and harsher inside herself. For all the individual skills these mirror images brought to the table, all of them were limited by the singular restraining fact that they got their power not from themselves but from the Reigai Zecora. Bankai or not, there was only so much spiritual energy to go around, and Chrysalis for all the injuries she’d taken so far, had far from exhausted her own ample supply.

And she really didn’t care if she blew herself up a bit, just to make a point.

She raised her head up, mouth opening wide, jaw all but unhinging as she sucked in air and power alike. Her throat and mouth all but radiated a sickly emerald glow as the air itself around her wavered and distorted with the amount of reiatsu she was outputting. All it took was her running her tongue once over sharp teeth to add a bit of extra blood to the mix, turning emerald to a mixture of cerulean blue. Then, she threw her head down and disgorged a point-blank Gran Rey Cero straight into the ground at her feet.

From this, everything exploded into a field of pure blue. She couldn’t see or even sense who among the mirror duplicates she might have destroyed, because the explosion of pure destructive spirit energy was all encompassing and resulted in a blast large enough to sweep away nearly a kilometer of desert. The mushroom cloud that soared into the air could be seen for miles around, even as the ground continued to shake from the blast. Hitsuyo-Aku, nestled in its canyon at the edge of the blast, was still rocked to its foundations.

Chrysalis herself was not particularly insulated from her own blast, but her body could reconstitute itself nearly as fast as her own technique had incinerated parts of it. She really was going to need a new dress after this, though. Even the bloody rags she’d had tied around herself were all but cinders now.

When the dust started to settle there was still a thick cloud of sand kicked up by the explosion that left Chrysalis batting at her hair to clean it off. She was covered in blood, a lot of it her own, and sand was clinging to her like poorly added strokes of paint. She tapped the back of her head and let some sand spill out of her ears, muttering, “I am so tired of fighting in deserts. Need to attack another city. Some nice architecture to destroy, take in the sights while I’m killing.”

Her eyes scanned with predatory focus even as she muttered to herself. She knew it was unlikely she’d ended things with a simple blast like that. Even a Gran Rey Cero shouldn’t be able to one-shot a halfway decent Bankai, and Zecora’s was proving more than adequate to giving Chrysalis trouble. She knew she ought to just use her Resurreccion already, but this was becoming a point of pride. Princess Cadence had earned Chrysalis’ Resurreccion by fighting head on herself. So far, problematic as this Bankai was, the Zecora Reigai was still hiding. Chrysalis wasn’t about to put her all into an opponent who was too lacking in backbone to show their face.

Less a matter of honor, which Chrysalis gave no thought towards, and more simply that she couldn’t be bothered to work up her own bloodlust on someone who couldn’t be asked to do the same.

A casual scan of the area, even with the still vast, settling cloud of dust and sand, Chrysalis could see that her Cero had created a crater a few hundred meters deep, sloping up for most of the kilometer span around her. If she hadn’t held back, it’d have been larger, and likely destroyed Hitsuyo-Aku, which she certainly couldn’t afford to do.

It didn’t surprise Chrysalis when she sensed movement amid the swirling remains of the dust cloud. She’d felt the lingering of Zecora’s reiatsu, and knew the Bankai had not been itself destroyed. With the glint of moonlight off glass, dozens upon dozens of mirror shards emerged from the sands of the crater, or flew down from the sky. Apparently while some of the mirrors had been blown to pieces, as evidenced by the fewer numbers of them left now, there was still about a third of the original hundreds of mirror shards which now formed a rough circle around where Chrysalis stood on the air above the crater.

“I lived, bitch!”

Flying from within the reflection of one mirror, Chrysalis’ Quincy double rushed forward, the glass rippling like water. The woman struck a pose, ignoring that some of her body and clothes were still scorched by what must have been a close call by throwing herself into the mirror before the full force of the Gran Rey Cero hit.

“Don’t act like you’re the only one,” said the Bount Chrysalis, stepping forth from another mirror with a lot less flourish and a downcast, tired expression as her giant, metallic claw-skull Doll followed after her, “I think we all did, didn’t we?”

“Only because Zecora snatched me up,” grumbled the teenaged, Fullbringer Chrysalis as she stumbled out of a mirror halfway lodged in the side of the crater, born forth on a blanket of her scarabs that helped her stand. She had one arm bleeding and broken, torn by the blast force of the explosion, even having escaped into a mirror, “Not sure if glasses-chick made it.”

“I’m fine, thanks for the concern.”

A portion of the sky appeared to run like melting paint, and flaked away as the Chrysalis in a business suit and glasses appeared... the only one who didn’t emerge from a mirror. She was now wearing a small gas mask, and her twin paint guns had a black mist of what looked like living paint flowing from their nozzles, “Fortunately I have more than a few spells suited to escaping attacks like that. Quite sloppy work, Arrancar. I rather detest such messy methods.”

“Says the chick who uses paint to fight?” said the Fullbringer, chuckling.

“Okay, am I just having an off day?” Chrysalis grumbled, “That Cero should have killed at least one of you!”

“Hey, everybody starts to have performance issues after awhile, granny,” said Fullbringer Chrysalis, “What are you pushing now, a thousand?”

“Whatever my true age is, you can rest assured you won’t live to see a fraction of it, my hormonally challenged counterpart,” Chrysalis replied, and cast an eye-twitching glance at the one in glasses, “And, just to satisfy my curiosity before we begin trying to slaughter each other again; what even are you supposed to be?”

“A Witch of Wing Bind. Top of Horns for the Inks Division,” the replica stated, already spraying lines of jet black paint from her paint guns to form twin circles of arcane pentagrams.

Chrysalis just blinked for a moment, then chortled, “A witch. Witches are a thing? That’s... just adorable.”

“Let’s see if you keep thinking it's ‘adorable’ by the end of this,” the Witch Chrysalis said with a grin beneath her gas mask as she finished the twin paint circles, which overlapped one another like an infinity symbol. “Inks Spellcode Number Sixty Six: Abyssal Dragon Twin Summons !”

The conjoined circles grew in size rapidly, and from the now twenty meter length emerged two long, serpentine heads that looked as if their scaled forms were forged of ashen gray flame and black bones. Two long dragon heads with pointed horns, wreathed in ashen fire, gained ruby glowing eyes and roared at Chrysalis with enough force to billow her hair about her head.

She smiled, faintly reminded of Celestia’s Shikai.

“Fine then; round two.”

Episode 208: Don't Lose to the You From Yesterday

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Episode 208: Don’t Lose to the You From Yesterday

A cold, steel weight infused the air of Hokori no Hikari’s Inner World. Sunset Shimmer could feel it prickling against her spirit like wading through the current of a fast moving river. She arrived amid the empty streets of the city hidden beneath the Inner World’s clouds, built upon the side of the mountain upon which this realm was built. The school at the summit was barely visible behind her up the soaring slope, and around her was the patchwork buildings and towers of a city both ancient yet modern. Blended like two paintings running together, the city merged the glass and clean metal lines of modern downtown Canterlot City with the artful, elegant curved stone edifices, archways, and towers of the Canterlot she remembered from Equestria.

Mostly remembered, at any rate. Walking down the lengths of the empty streets, looking at statues of regal ponies flanking the archway entrances to some buildings, or the oddly placed yet beautiful fountain of pegasi in flight, Sunset realized she could no longer conjure a clear picture of Equestria’s Canterlot in her mind. She wasn’t sure anymore what the city she’d lived and studied in during her youth looked like, or how accurate this spiritual representation was as it blended in with the now far more familiar modern streets and buildings of Canterlot City.

She wondered if the tension she felt all but suffocating the air was stemming solely from her twin Zanpaktou spirits? Hokori she knew to be still at her core the most willing and eager to test and challenge Sunset Shimmer, for the sake of helping both of them grow. Hikari’s presence usually counterbalanced that, yet at the moment it almost felt like both of her Zanpaktou’s spirits were tense. Granted she knew that part of this was due to the overuse of her black flames and the fact that she still struggled to control them. Against Bowtie, she’d risked breaking Hokori no Hikari when she’d gone at him full bore, without thinking. This inner communion with her blade spirits was long overdue, and Sunset had a feeling this was made more so by this unplanned sojourn into the Beast Realm and her recent awakening of Anima inside her.

And she hadn’t forgotten about that small sliver of Hell’s energy that had also entered her from exposure to Hell’s Gate.

Well, worrying would accomplish nothing. She was here to talk to her Zanpaktou and, hopefully, become stronger through communing with them. Clover was putting her all into trying to keep pace and tame those Kido spells, while Rainbow Dash and Applejack both had new inner beasts to contend with, and even Wallflower was likely fighting her own inner battle against the revelations of her own nature and origins. The least Sunset could do was put equal effort into facing her own uncertainties and push herself as far as she could go.

When she’d had the city revealed to her by Hokori no Hikari, she remembered the prominent stadium that took up a good portion of one of its districts. Sunset made her way there almost without thinking about it, finding the streets parting to reveal the ominous looming walls of the stadium in no time at all. It was like no stadium Sunset could recall seeing, and much like the rest of this city it was a thorough blend of her old life and new life.

Its walls were thick stone, rising nearly two hundred feet straight up, and gently curved to give the whole building a long, oval shape. Big, vaulted alcoves circled the outer wall, containing carved statues of warriors of every age, era, and ilk, from heavily armored knights to rugged modern soldiers, from cloth clad ninjas to leather sporting barbarians. The only commonality was that each statue was of Sunset, sometimes barely recognizable to herself for all the differences with each statue. The roof of the stadium went from stone to metal as a dome structure covered half of it, with panels clearly designed to move to either fully cover the stadium or retract back to expose all of it to the sky. Entry was possible through several wide routes leading into a well lit interior, bright lighting from powerful ceiling fixtures providing plenty of illumination.

Entering the stadium's largest front entrance, big enough that hundreds of people could have entered here at once, Sunset passed an inner circle passage that clearly went around the entire stadium, with stairs likely leading to seating above or other chambers. But she ignored all that and continued on through a smaller but still rather large passage that cut through to the center of the stadium. Here, she emerged through a semi-circular archway into the huge, open stadium grounds, bigger than several football fields combined. The ground was solid packed earth, not paved or covered in grass. This wasn’t a sports arena, and this became even more evident as Sunset noticed the way the inner walls surrounding the stadium had several arching pillars that curved out into spikes, giving the arena the look of a fanged mouth. Seating went up and up for several dozen tiers, including overhanging box seating that overlooked the whole arena. This place could probably hold a few hundred thousand or more spectators, if fully filled.

She certainly felt a tad small, walking out towards the center of the arena. She had no real reason to know that this was where she was supposed to be, just the simple gut instinct that always drove her interactions with her Zanpaktou’s Inner World.

Sunset cast her gaze about, looking for Hokori and Hikari.

“Well?” she called out, “I’m here. I know it took awhile. Hasn’t exactly been a lot of free time these past few days.”

She was seriously starting to wonder if her two Zanpaktou spirits were playing some kind of game with her when finally she heard Hokori’s voice speak from what sounded like almost next to her, but when Sunset turned she could see the flaring red skin and wild hair of her demonic-looking spirit standing on the edge of the stadium ring, clawed hands planted on her hips.

“Yeah, we know! Not like me and Hikari are blind, you know? You’ve been busy diving head first into the deep end again, and much as I’m loving the chance to go head to head with bigger, badder enemies, there’s some serious spring cleaning you need to do in here.”

In a soft ray of dancing lights, Hikari appeared next to Hokori, radiating her usual expression of understanding, but with a sharp undercurrent of unease tightening the area around her eyes. The angelic spirit nodded to Sunset, hands clasped low before her, and her voice just as clear for Sunset to hear despite the distance between them being such that normally they’d need to shout to be heard.

“We understand that circumstances have made it difficult for you to come here, Sunset. But you’re here, now, and that means I hope you’re prepared to deal with matters that have developed within us. Things have changed quickly, and not all of it is your fault, but it is your place as our wielder to sharpen us as any blacksmith might. That includes working out how to deal with new elements...”

“New elements, huh... you talking about the Beast Realm Anima, that spark of Hell energy, or the fact that I still can’t wield the black flames properly?” Sunset asked, and Hokori let out a snickering snort.

“How about ‘yes’ to all three? Holy crap, Sunset, you got any idea how messed up it is to shove new energies into us without even asking if we’re cool with it?”

Sunset rubbed the back of her neck as she looked away, feeling like she could readily understand why recent events might have upset the pair, “You’re not wrong. In my defense, none of that was actually intentional on my part. And whatever the problem is and whatever I’ve got to do to fix it, I’m here now to do that. So please tell me, what exactly is the problem? Are these energies having an adverse effect on you two?”

“Not adverse, precisely,” answered Hikari, “If anything we’ve grown stronger. Between the introduction of these new energies, and the growing synchronicity between yourself and your friends’ souls, the power well growing inside me and Hokori is slowly but surely mounting ever higher. It may not be all that long before we can legitimately give challenge to the likes of Tirek or even those of the Zero Division. However that amount of power is immensely dangerous, Sunset Shimmer. It’s unclear if your soul can truly handle it without breaking... or us breaking...”

Hokori plopped down on the edge of the stadium ring, legs swinging casually as she gave Sunset a meaningfully sharp grin, her dark eyes gleaming, “You took a Hell of a gamble trying to cut down that Bowtie bastard! Scorched us pretty bad, and if you’d pushed it any harder we would’ve snapped. You can’t afford to lose us and while I don’t speak for Miss Sunshine over here, I personally don’t want to die because you don’t yet have a handle on our power. I mean, being fair isn’t my style, but if I was to be fair to you, I get that you didn’t plan on adding random ass Hell energy to us, or to get a one-way trip to the Beast Realm. But the thing is that it doesn’t really matter if it's your fault or not, you’re the only one that can get stronger here to deal with all this crap.”

“Right, I get that,” said Sunset, looking at them with a growing confusion as she glanced around the empty stadium arena, and at her two Zanpaktou spirits, still hanging out at the arena edge and not approaching her or entering said arena, “Sooooo... how am I supposed to do that? I’m ready for whatever I have to do. I just don’t know what that is. Why are we here right now, in this arena? Are we fighting again? Are we training? What?”

“Heh, we’re here to watch,” said Hokori, “And to maybe give pointers, but honestly this one is gonna be mostly on you, Sunset. You don’t got much left to prove to me, or to Hikari...”

Hikari nodded, a gravity in both the gesture and her voice as she looked beyond Sunset Shimmer, towards where another entrance to the arena lay, “It is not us you will be facing, Sunset. There is another, now, with whom you must come to terms with. Whether or not you can, that will be what determines whether or not we can all survive the battles to come.”

An echoing tap of steps on stone filtered into Sunset’s hearing, stemming from behind her. Even before she turned around, she knew that the sound of those steps was not that of a human’s. The canter of four hooves was unmistakable. Sunset spun around, and saw a short yet familiar quadrupedal, equine shape emerge from the shadow archway of one of the arena’s many entrances. The soft orange fur coat was a match for Sunset’s skin tone, the mane of hot red streaked with yellow a mirror to her’s. Blue green eyes stared into hers from a face cast in an angered light, the horn of the unicorn mare already encased in a thick light of magic that, oddly, didn’t match her eyes as it did with many unicorns. Instead the magic was a nimbus of rose pink and deeper crimson... familiar to Sunset only recently as the color of the energy that stemmed from her recent Anima powers.

Sunset Shimmer’s unicorn self trotted towards her with a purpose. Aggression preceded her like a solid wall, making the four foot height unicorn seem far more imposing than one might have expected. Her eyes didn’t leave Sunset’s for a second, locked on with laser focus.

Left momentarily speechless, Sunset stood there starring for a few moments as the unicorn halted about ten paces away. Soon, the unicorn blew a huff of air from her muzzle and raised her head. “Don’t have anything to say? Why am I not surprised? You were always dumber than you pretended to be.”

Generally being insulted, even by herself, never sat well with Sunset Shimmer, so she found herself leaning forward over her unicorn self, who looked back up at her with equal fiery fervor as Sunset glowered, “Who are you calling dumb? Why wouldn’t I be surprised to see myself as a unicorn walking around in my Zanpaktou’s Inner World? Who are you even supposed to be?”

The unicorn Sunset raised herself up on her hooves tips for a little extra height, putting her snout almost up against Sunset’s nose in their eye-to-eye glaring contest, “I’m calling you dumb because that’s what you are! Can’t even work out who I am? I’m you, you ungrateful, selfish, arrogant hay-brain! The ‘you’ that you’ve conveniently decided to forget about because of how inconvenient I am to your self image.”

Sunset had her fists now planted on her hips as she tapped one foot in thought, trying to work out what her unicorn self was talking about. She knew Hokori and Hikari were formed from a combination of her magic and soul, mixed together inside the Zanpaktou she’d obtained until they formed their own independent spirits. She was herself in this place, and they were them, linked by still their own souls in a way. So who was this unicorn claiming to be her?

“Alright, let’s assume for a sec that what you’re jabbering about is right, and you’re ‘me’. Why would ‘I’ be such a bitch to myself all of sudden, and why would ‘I’ pop up here, now, inside my Zanpaktou to smack talk myself?”

“Arrggh! It hurts to realize I was always this dense!” the unicorn Shimmer groaned, horn flaring brighter with a growing aura of the flaming pink and red magic that was starting to heat the air with visible wavers and shimmers, “I’ve always been here! In fact I’d go so far as to say I was here first! I started to get smaller when you arrived in the human world, and got weaker and weaker the more ‘human’ you became. I was barely a flicker of memory and magic in your soul until I finally got a spark of kindling to light up my fire with!”

That heat grew in intensity as it billowed out from the little unicorn’s body, the aura of flaming red magic and Anima flowing over her body until she looked like she was literally on fire. Parts of her mane turned to feathers and the same rose red feathers also grew down her legs and back as two small but thickly intense wings of red fire grew from her back. Sunset sensed the raw magic coursing off of her unicorn self, and the spark of spirit energy from her awakened Anima. There was a familiarity to the magic that she knew well, and understanding started to grow in her mind as she thought back to a life nearly forgotten, back in Equestria.

“You’re... me, or rather... my magic? My original, unicorn magic?”

“I’m way more than that, now, Sunset Shimmer!” said her magical, unicorn self, her aura still growing as her eyes shifted to rose pink pools of light, “You left your magic, and your memories of Equestria, to languish in the back of your mind, suppressed us in favor of your new life as a human. Conveniently forgot all of your wrongs while living as a unicorn, and ran away into a whole new set of wrongs as some half-baked Substitute Soul Reaper. Well, I’ve found a path to taking you to task for all of that arrogance, Sunset! Power, from a Beast, and an ember of Hell.”

A clink of chains issued forth as, from the aura of ruby fire engulfing the unicorn, a set of familiar chains appeared. These were nearly identical to the chains that she’d encountered on her Inner World’s throne, only now they were coated in the red flame surrounding her unicorn self. Sunset still didn’t wholly understand what was happening here, but for the moment her theory was that a portion of her magic as a unicorn which had largely gone unused since her transformation into a human had lingered, or rather languished in her soul. The emergence of the ‘Inner Beast’ stemming from her awakening to Anima had merged with that unicorn magic, and also a spark of Hell energy she’d absorbed via the Hogyoku.

The result was the amalgamation in front of her, apparently also fueled by some manner of repressed trauma from... well, all of her unresolved baggage from back in Equestria.

Her hand went on instinct to her Zanpaktou, only to realize that, right, she was inside Hokori no Hikari, so there was no blade there to grab.

Looking back at the two Zanpaktou spirits, Hikair gave her an apologetic look while Hokori smirked while waving, “You’re on your own for this one, Sunset! We can’t help you directly here.”

“Except for moral support,” Hikari pointed out, pulling out a small orange and red flag from behind her back and waving it, “Woo-hoo, go Sunset!”

Sunset sighed, “Well great, I don’t suppose we can sit down and talk about our feelings-”

Before she was able to finish her sentence her unicorn self launched towards her like a flaming ballistic missile and tackled Sunset right in her midriff with all of the force and impact of a hurtling comet.

----------

Feeling rather fed up with theatrics, Rarity still didn’t forget that it was unbecoming of her to be rude. But her voice did get a tad sharp as she eyed the well dressed gentleman up and down, “Forgive me if I’m not the most terribly trusting of strange men who appear from amidst a suddenly appearing fog, especially considering where we are. If you have some manner of business with me, do speak quickly and plainly.”

Behind her, Ahgg had gone stock still, which Rarity took to mean that the Fomorian recognized this top-hat sporting fellow and was guarded. As for the man himself, his gaunt, bleak features showed a pleasant smile that only touched the edges of his eyes, which had yet to blink, Rarity noticed. He swept his hat off of his head and wielded it in a formal bow before placing it back on his head and resting his hands atop his fox-head cane.

“Your instincts do you credit, Miss Rarity, and rumors of you fall short of providing apt justice to the reality. I’m quite pleased with this first impression. But yes, to business, straight as a razor. My name is... Sebastian. You may think of me as one of Hell’s few entrepreneurs. I have little interest in the gang politics of this lovely city of Tartarus, but I do run several business ventures, such as they are in a place like this, and one of them may be of interest to a young lady with ambitions of escape from our cozy realm.”

Rarity didn’t yet know what to make of this man or his claims. His manner was entirely too polite, his clothes so clean and strangely immaculate for the filth that encrusted Tartarus and its residents seemed all too eager to embrace. His stare of unblinking, ice gray stone, making his face seem almost as lifeless as a skeleton, left her with alarm bells ringing in every corner of her mind. Yet if she was going to quail at every unsettling individual she met in Hell, she might as well give up on escape here and now.

“I see. I was given to understand that only Mister Ahgg here was familiar with exploring the deeper layers of Hell. What, pray tell, does a man such as yourself have to offer me? And what price might you be asking in exchange for whatever it is you’re selling?”

Sebastian’s chuckle was as cold and smooth as his eyes or smile, and Rarity almost felt as if the thick strands of fog was closing in around her as he leaned forward, almost looking past her at Ahgg, “Indeed you are correct that our good fellow Ahgg is one of the few capable enough to go where most Sinners will not. As a guide to Hell’s many horrific trails, he is unsurpassed. However,” he held up a finger, long, slim, clad in its black glove, and the fog around him almost seemed to shudder, “If you are to succeed in your desire to reach Hell’s lowest layers and explore its secrets, you will find I offer a useful service as transporter.”

The fog parted, revealing that Rarity, Ahgg, and Sebastian had suddenly changed locations! She blinked in surprise at the sight of a ramshackle yet stout collection of stone carved blocks that crawled up the wall of the Tartarus cavern, forming an almost tumorous collection of tightly packed buildings that were surrounded by a series of trenches. The trenches were fortified with bones sharpened to spikes, and a pair of tall poles also formed from bone showed a pair of tattered leather flags bearing a painted blood symbol of three intertwining chains. Further chains dangled from every slit in the stone that served as windows, or rattled from the arched openings of doorways, or clanked with slow, ominous swaying at random intervals over every walls. The effect gave the cluster of tightly packed buildings and crooked towers an ever constant aura of clinking metal, as if the ramshackle fortress itself was a prisoner in chains.

The stronghold of Cozy Glow’s Legion.

Rarity looked at Sebastian with a quickly composed expression, forcing herself to calm as she crossed her arms, “Impressive. Your Sinner ability, I take it?”

“Correct, in part,” he replied, tapping his cane on the ground and gathering a smaller blanket of fog along the ground at his feet, “My fog can do many things, but its most useful is the ability to translocate people and objects over vast distances. I, of course, cannot use to escape Hell, but as a convenient means of travel to and from locations within the same realm it is quite unparalleled. I use it to provide those willing to pay with the service of swift transport, be it of persons or goods. In your case, you will find your expedition down the layers of Hell to be made much easier if you have a swift means of travel back to Tartarus for resupply or escape from... hairy circumstances.”

“Hmm, perhaps,” Rarity rubbed her chin, eyes giving him a shrewd, narrow gaze, “But the usefulness of such a service will be dependent upon price. What is it you’re asking for in exchange for this? Keeping in mind I’m fresh to Hell and hence I have little of what locals might consider currency.”

“Ah, of course. I would not have approached you, dear lady, had I not already factored in your circumstances. Fortunately for you there are many ways to conduct trade, even in a place such as this,” With a certain dramatic flourish of his cape he extended an arm and made a gesture as if grasping something in his upturned palm, “From you, Miss Rarity, I only require the smallest of tokens. A trifle, really. A favor. A task performed, well within your capabilities.”

“I can hardly agree to doing anything for you unless I know the details of what it is you want done. Keep in mind that I will not simply agree to any favor, and I won’t be accepting any vague ‘future favors’ either. Tell me what it is you want done, and I’ll consider it. Otherwise I’ll wish you a good day, Mister Sebastian.”

“But of course,” he replied, “The task is-”

Suddenly a voice like a crack of whips, followed by the rattle of dozens of thick chains rang out as a pink little ball of anger leaped upon the situation. “Oh Hell no! You get your dusty, slimy, crusty old ass off of my turf, old man! She’s mine! You hear me!? You keep your grubby mitts off her!”

Cozy Glow had leaped all the way from one of the top roofs of her stronghold and planted herself amid a crack of stone right in front of Sebastian. Her chains rattled and coiled around her like a storm of metal cobras, their sharp ends poised around his body by inches, ready to stroke. As her eyes bored hateful holes into him, the man just smiled politely and tipped his top hat towards Cozy Glow as if this was just a casual greeting from her.

“And a fine evening to you as well, Cozy Glow. How lovely of you to come greet me in person, young lady. I see at least a few of my lessons of politeness and proper etiquette did not wholly fall upon deaf ears.”

“Eat a thousand chainsaw dicks, assmunch!”

“...Although I see your vocabulary remains as colorful as a cesspit,” Sebastian heaved out a long suffering sigh, “Now perhaps you could allow me and Miss Rarity to finish conducting our business?”

“Not a chance,” Cozy Glow said, her one eye twitching in time with the rattle of her chains, “Get your carcass off my gang’s turf, or you’ll be sopping up your guts with your own tasteless ass cravat!”

With smooth steps, Rarity moved up to stand not quite between the two, given Cozy Glow was right in Sebastian’s face, but close enough that when she planted a foot between the pair, it forced Cozy to look at her and back off a step.

“Pardon, but if I have business with the man, then it's my decision. If you like, Cozy Glow, me and Mister Sebastian can leave to finish our talk away from your stronghold and turf. But he has an offer for me, and given my sore lack of useful allies, I will at least hear him out.”

“Pfft, me and the Legion are all the allies you need, but whatever, feel free to stick your nose in a blender, Rare,” said Cozy Glow, only slightly drawing back her chains and still giving Sebastian a hateful stare, “And just so you know, his name isn’t ‘Sebastian’. That’s just the shit he spouts when he’s trying to be coy.”

“On the contrary, Cozy Glow, Sebastian was a name I once went by. Granted it isn’t the moniker I am most known for, but really I prefer not to color new prospective business partners with any preconceptions that might strain relations.”

“You’re being awfully quiet over there, Ahgg,” said Cozy Glow, shooting a glance towards the Fomorian, who in turn just shrugged his broad shoulders.

“Not my business. If Rarity wants to cut a deal with the Ripper, that’s up to her.”

“The Ripper...?” Rarity said, blinking as she turned to look over Sebastian once more. He did have a slight accent about his speech, faintly British, now that she thought about it.

Sebastian looked, if anything, slightly embarrassed, looking away as he rested his hands atop the head of his cane, “A somewhat dramatic title. Hardly my idea, but the result of some hoaxer’s letter, I am given to understand. Really, ‘Jack’ is such a mundane name, too. Sebastian at least has a certain class to it.”

Rarity felt like she ought to be more shocked, more surprised, perhaps even more than just the brief and fleeting unnerved chill in her heart that soon was replaced with avid resolve. She was in Hell. It was unlikely, even with Zero Divisions’ activities, that she was going to run into very many innocent people here. Still, Jack the Ripper...?

“Well, you would have done better just to tell me that up front. It would have come across as less suspicious,” she said with a certain forced calm, “Just know that if you do happen to try anything with me, you won’t find me an easy mark.”

He merely waved a hand, still bearing an air of embarrassment that was difficult to discern the sincerity of, “Hardly something you need to be concerned with, dear lady. I’ve had well over a century of exposure to the finest elements of human suffering here in Hell to have long gotten over the... proclivities of my youth. I do not deny the heinous crimes I committed while alive. Of the many souls condemned to this realm, I am most deserving of my place here. But I no longer have any interest in the mundane act of murder. I am but a simple businessman, now.”

Cozy Glow spat, “You can’t trust him.”

“That strikes me as the pot calling the kettle black, young lady,” said Sebastian, “Who can one truly trust in Hell? Trust is not the issue, it is value versus cost. Miss Rarity takes risks working with you the same as she would striking a bargain with me. She clearly values your potential as an ally over the risk you represent if you choose to turn on her at some point. I only ask that she give thought to my offer and its value in comparison to whatever risk she thinks I might represent.”

“And I still haven’t heard about what favor you want me to do in exchange for you help, Mister Sebastian,” Rarity said, deciding to stick with the name he’d given her rather than continue to press on the ‘Jack the Ripper’ issue. She was already working with one mentally unstable psychopath. What was adding another to the roster? Besides, if he turned out to be an unreliable ally and turned on her, then Rarity would have no reason to feel any compunctions with taking him out. And how many people would have the credit of saying they’d killed the notorious serial killer, Jack the Ripper?

One had to look at the silver linings, especially in Hell.

As if he could read her mind, Sebastian gave off one of those thin, razor smiles and nodded, “But of course. The favor is simplicity itself. I wish you to allow me to accompany you on your journey to the lowest layer of Hell, and share with me any knowledge of the secrets you uncover there, for just as what I suspect is Cozy Glow’s motivation, if you discover a path to escape this realm of eternal punishment... I wish to be free of this place.”

----------

The unicorn struck Sunset with a lot more force than she would’ve expected out of such a small package, but then again ponies were always stronger than people gave them credit for. Sunset knew it was probably a bad sign than she was as taken aback by it as she was. She’d lived so long as a human, now, that she’d forgotten even basic facts about life as an Equestrian.

The blow sent her flying back, and knocked the breath from her lungs as the heated, stiff impact of hooves on her stomach sent shivers of pain up her spine. Sunset was pretty used to taking hits like this, however, and didn’t lose her balance. Instead she planted her legs and let them drag across the ground for a few dozen meters before she halted. With no Zanpaktou in hand, she had to rely on what few lessons in Hakuda that Clover had given her, along with the Kido she knew.

Taking up a ready martial arts stance, she lashed out with a kick of her right foot as her unicorn self rushed in for a follow-up charge. The unicorn’s horn flashed, and she vanished in a zap of rose light. Recognizing the teleport, Sunset threw herself forward in a roll just in time to avoid the unicorn’s strike from behind as both hooves cracked the ground in a scorching burst of red flames. Sunset felt the heat on her back as he rolled to her feet, hands outstretched already into the pose of one hand gripping the wrist of the other to cast a Kido.

“Hado Number Thirty One: Shakkaho!”

She repeated the Kido invocation several times in short order, launching a barrage of solid red spheres of spirit energy at her unicorn self. She couldn’t cast nearly as fast as Clover, but her only goal here was to put the unicorn on the defensive for a few moments to buy herself time to think. The unicorn Sunset obliged, galloping with swift speed and hooves glowing so intensely red from the aura around her that she was leaving burning, charred marks in the ground as she streaked past the Kido blasts that detonated around her.

“You got no problem using Soul Reaper magic, but you barely remember anything about the magic of your birth world!”

Sunset grimaced, half in anger, half in a sting of internal pain. That wasn’t entirely true. She hadn’t forgotten about magic. How could she? She’d loved studying it back home, and it played a huge role in how she’d come to her senses after Princess Twilight and her friends had defeated her in the past. Magic was one of the reasons why she’d been able to make her new friends, and why amid the madness of this spirit war they’d managed to grow strong enough to survive and make a difference! Just because she didn’t actively use magic didn’t mean she had abandoned it, or her heritage. It wasn’t as if she’d had a horn to cast Equestrian spells with, anyway!

She shouted as much, rushing to her left to open up some distance as her unicorn self sliced a thin red beam of magic across the space Sunset had just occupied, “I haven’t ignored any of that, but I’m living a different life, now! Earth is my home! I’m...”

I’m human, was what she wanted to shout. But was that part of the problem? Did she truly believe that? Was there some part of her that still had a painful desire to go back to Equestria, to feel her body with four familiar hooves and a pointed horn on her head? Did she miss Equestria’s skies, its fields and mountain vistas?

Did she miss Celestia?

“You don’t deserve to see Celestia again!” came the harsh growl of her unicorn self as cast out with a thick aura of telekinesis magic that Sunset felt grip her like a massive, iron hand. Her body became covered in rose red magic that contained burning heat, but more importantly a potent, squeezing grip as the unicorn smashed Sunset face first to the ground and proceeded to drag her across scores of yards in a deep furrow.

“You think she wants to see her failure of a student again!?”

Pain shot through Sunset that had nothing to do with her face being dragged through the ground at bullet train speeds. A hot lance of shame bled freely in her heart as she could vividly recall how poorly she treated the opportunities she’d been blessed with to study under Celestia, and the way her pride had become corrupted like a once strong tree rotting from within. While she’d come to understand and accept the virtue that could exist within her pride, that didn’t change that a part of her remained ashamed of how she’d let it get the better of her back then.

There was something inside Sunset that still felt like she hadn’t done enough penance to be worthy of returning to Equestria, or of looking Princess Celestia in the eye again without feeling as if she’d was still a disappointment to her mentor.

You’re stronger than that, my girl. Don’t let doubt drag you through the mud. Don’t lose to this apparition of your self-hate.

Who? The voice had almost sounded like Discord’s, to the point she could almost see that snaggle-tooth smirk of his, encouraging her. She dug into her spiritual energies and let her reiatsu push outward. Warm heat and flaming orange aura pulsated around her, disrupting the unicorn’s telekinetic grip. Sunset, freed from that iron hold of magic, flipped through the air, pushing off the ground with one hand while flinging out her other, eyes locked on her unicorn self.

Red light flowed from her fingers as she drew a complex sigil in an instant and incanted the Kido, “Bakudo Number Nine: Geki!” (Strike)

Not unlike the telekinesis spell of an Equestrian unicorn, Geki transmitted a binding field of energy almost instantaneously upon the intended target. The unicorn grunted as her body was coated in a film of red light, paralyzing her in place. Sunset immediately landed from her flip and, legs coiled, pushed forth with full strength and power with a Flash Step that cut across the ground between them in a microsecond. Appearing above the unicorn, Sunset focused her reiatsu around her right leg as she brought it down in a heel kick aimed at her unicorn counterpart’s back, hoping to end this in one swift strike.

Once more the unicorn’s horn flashed and she teleported, narrowly avoiding Sunset’s kick, which impacted the ground with an explosion of raw force that cut a cratering path all the way to the stadium seating, splitting the ground. While she was hardly an expert on Hakuda techniques, even basic strikes, when combined with her massive amount of reiatsu, translated into some serious power.

Between this and my Kido spells, I might be able to take her even without my Zanpaktou, she thought, although her heart was racing in her chest, both from adrenaline and the lingering pain and anger this unicorn counterpart was engendering in her. She looked around with eyes scanning about rapidly for where her unicorn self had teleported to.

Only too late did she realize the unicorn had layered an invisibility spell on top of the teleport, sensing the waver of magical energy behind her just in time to also feel hot metal snapping around her legs and pulling her to the ground. Turning, Sunset saw that the unicorn had used the Hell chains coming off of her flaming body to wrap up Sunset’s ankles, and now with a rage fueled grin the unicorn yanked the chains up and over her and hurled Sunset along with it like a ball at the end of a tether.

“What, you think because you got a few new friends and self-styled yourself the protector of Earth that this makes you something special!? Get over yourself!”

Sunset managed to brace herself for the impact as her body was smashed into the ground, turning packed earth into an explosive shower of dirt and rock as another fresh crater formed. This space may have been one of pure spirit, dwelling within her Zanpaktou, but it simulated physical reality readily enough and every bone in her body was jolted. Still, her resilience weathered the hit, and going over the Kido she knew, she hit upon one to use against the chains binding her.

Reaching to grab the chains around her ankles, she focused and stilled her mind, letting her reiryoku travel through her. It wasn’t entirely easy, with her unicorn counterpart’s words causing ripples of unrest inside her, but there was a steadying reminder that still somehow sounded like Discord that she’d endured far worse than this.

“Hado Number Eleven: Tsuzuri Raiden!” (Bound Lightning)

A massive charge of writhing gold electricity sprang from her hands and into the chains, flowing up the links in less than an eyeblink to strike the unicorn the chains were connected to in a thunderous crack of electrical might. The chains slackened as the unicorn was thrown back with a grunt of pain, and Sunset slipped free, leaping out of the crater and circling the fallen unicorn as she prepared another spell.

“I don’t care if I’m special or not! Maybe once, I did, and that obsession led me down the wrong path, but I’ve grown past that because of the friends who were willing to give me a chance. I know that still doesn’t change the things I did, but Celestia... if I’m ever lucky enough to see her again, I hope she’ll see the person I’ve become, not just the person I was.”

Chanting under her breath, she then put her hands on the ground and narrowed her eyes at the unicorn who was slowly getting back on her hooves, body smoking amid the flames still growing hotter and more intense around her body.

“Tomb of silken scales, open pearl eyes

Gaze up upon the broken plane and rise

Crash forth through firmament and drown

Unruly revelry forced to stillness!

Bakudo Number Twenty Nine: Nami no Hoi!” (Encirclement of Waves)

She’d learned this Kido specifically to diversify her access to different elements, and as she finished the invocation a series of snaking water streams formed from where her hands touched the ground, and burst forth like the waves of several frothing rivers. These winding streams of water then flew up and around her unicorn counterpart, expanding rapidly to encase her in a tight cylinder of multiple water currents all flowing in opposite directions.

Not intending to give her opponent a moment to recover, Sunset followed this up by leaping upwards, her body soaring up hundreds of feet until she was nearly level with the roof of the stadium. There, she tilted her whole body down to face the spot the unicorn was bound, and kicked off the air with her feet as hard as she could. Multiple shockwaves cracked the air as she launched down and extended a knee, all but instantly striking her unicorn self dead on in the flank with an explosive knee drop from several hundred feet up that resulted in a giant explosion of broken rock and ground scattering almost as high and shaking the whole stadium.

Still watching on from the edge of the stands, Hokori and Hikari both kept eyes locked on the unfolding fight.

“She’s definitely getting points for effort,” said Hokori, still casually kicking her legs as she sat on the lip of the stadium ring, “But I don’t think her heart is in it, yet.”

“She’s trying,” said Hikari more kindly, closing her eyes and breathing deeply, “I wish we could help her more.”

“If we did, we’d just be interfering with her working this out for herself. We may be her blade and shield, but not every enemy can be beaten by cutting it down, much as that sucks to admit,” Hokori replied, lips twisted into a smirk, “And our girl is a stubborn one. She’ll crack her head open before she gives up on getting through a wall blocking her way.”

“Which won’t work here,” Hikari sighed, “Not against an enemy made from her longest held fears, and fueled by powers even we don’t understand.”

“Heh, well, we’re about to see how Sunset handles it, because this fight is about get heated,” said Hokori as, amid the dust cloud formed from Sunset’s massive knee drop, there was a bursting flare of raw, rose and crimson heat. Flames swirled higher in a cyclone, blistering the ground and casting the whole stadium in hellish, red light.

Sunset leaped from the cloud of dust, her body trailing smoke as she landed in a roll, skidding a few score meters before righting herself. Her skin was scorched in several places and she had to pat out flames on her clothes as her pained eyes looked at the growing cyclone of rose tinted flames that now also sparked with brighter oranges, golds, and even blue hues.

Her unicorn self’s voice spoke, with growing resonance and a screeching warble, “You really think yourself a changed woman? You, whose arrogance and pride has gotten so many people hurt, failed so many you wanted to protect? You think you deserve to rise from the ashes of your failures and mistakes like a phoenix?”

The cyclone exploded outward, and from the nimbus of scouring ruby flames one could see a blinding avian form of beauty and horrible fire. At its heart still beat the incandescent image of a unicorn pony, whose body was now all a beating core of rose fire, but around the unicorn now grew the form of the phoenix. Wings spread with feathers each dripping blood red flame, hotter blue sparks of fire flowing between them like veins. A proud chest of flaming plumage glittered with orange and blue before bleeding to red and rose, a color scheme repeated in flowing lights of pure flame down a tail that spread into half a dozen splits of jewel-shapes chained together and glowing with pure, scorching heat. The head of the phoenix was a long, sharp, proud featured bird with a flaming crest of pure rose, and a curved beak of scarlet, its two eyes a pair of blue gems of gleaming fire, like fresh born stars. And still, dangling from the phoenix’s legs like forgotten ornaments, were the black Hell chains, rattling amid the heated wind billowing from the phoenix’s beating wings.

“Well, the phoenix judges you, Sunset Shimmer, and finds you wanting. Now, be consumed by the very flames of purification you so foolishly thought you deserved to wield!”

----------

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were solely focused upon the simple enjoyment of their sparring match. The pair had always competed, to the point where the fun back and forth of sending jabs both physical and verbal was as calming and familiar an action as sitting down together to watch a movie or play a video game. Yet this time there was an undercurrent of tension that kept either girl from fully relaxing and getting into the groove of exchanging punches and kicks, although the tempo of their motions was well beyond human perception at this point.

Wallflower for the most part watched less the fight and more the whirlwind of stirred air and impacts that only occasionally showed the blue and orange forms of the girls bodies.

Neither Rainbow or Applejack were trading quips like usual, instead only pausing on occasion to look between themselves and their surroundings, both wary of any dangers that might creep up upon the cliff face, despite Shining Armor’s assurances of the veracity of his Quincy barrier.

Sweat dripping from either of their faces, Applejack ducked an overextended kick from Dash and landed a solid left jab on Rainbow’s side with the kind of impact that would have pulped a normal human’s rib cage, but now only gave Rainbow a brief grunt of paint as she stepped back and held up a hand.

“Hit. That’s three to three, now,” Dash said, shaking her head and wiping sweat off her brow, “Going to ten?”

“If yer up to it,” Applejack said, relaxing from her battle stance and taking off her stetson to fan herself, “Would kill fer a’ glass o’ Granny’s lemonade.”

Rainbow Dash breathed out a weak laugh, “Lemonade? Isn’t your family’s whole deal apples?”

Applejack shared the laugh, if also a bit subdued, “Ain’t like we don’t recognize other fruits exist, Dash. Just don’t grow ‘em, but we trade with other families. The Hoofington Lemons, fer example.”

“Are you just making that up?”

“Nah, I’m tellin’ ya, they’re a real family, an’ long time friends o’ Sweet Apple Acres. Ya had lemonade from their lemons before, Dash, we bring it ta all yer soccer games fer like the past three years in a’ row!”

“I know, I know, I’m just joshing you, AJ, sheesh...” Rainbow Dash sat down where she stood, cross legged and hands on her knees, “Just trying to lighten the mood, you feel me?”

“Yeah, I git ya,” replied Applejack in a quieter tone, not sitting down but stretching her legs a little as she glanced at the others. Clover was still planted nearby, eyes closed, kneeling as she focused energy into a floating scroll. From the look on Clover’s face, the girl was straining, in pain, her lips pale and pressed thin in effort.

“She looks like she’s not feeling too hot,” said Rainbow Dash, “You think that Kido demon is giving her a hard time?”

“From the sound o’ things, tamin’ one of them high-level spell-whatsits ain’t exactly a picnic,” said Applejack, “I just hope she don’t push herself too hard. Clover might not think she’s a big help, but truth is we’d be lost as drunk skunks, still wonderin’ what Hollows even are if she hadn’t been around.”

“Heh, you ever wonder what things would be like right now if we hadn’t... you know, gotten involved in all this?” asked Rainbow Dash, her voice half joking, half serious, “Like, would be just enjoying summer vacation and worrying about what colleges we’d be getting into?”

“...Nah...can’t afford to think like that. If none o’ this had happened,” Applejack shuddered a bit, holding a hand clenched to a fist, right near her heart, “Wouldn’t have learned ‘bout my parents, or put their deaths ta rest. Also prefer ta know the real score about this world n’ what the powers that be are doin’ to it, so I can fight back. Crazy as things are, this is better n’ ignorance, far as I’m concerned. Surprised ta hear ya even wonderin’ different.”

“Hey! I’m all for the crazy! Wouldn’t go back to change it if you gift wrapped a time machine for me! It’s just...” Rainbow Dash looked at her now altered hands, fur clad and clawed, “This is the first time in a while we haven’t all been together. Everything felt... easier to deal with when it was us, the whole crew, facing it as a team. Now Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy are back on Earth, Rarity is... trapped, and we’re here in this weird beast place. Guess I’m just not used to playing the game without my whole team at my back. Especially now that it feels like we’re getting into overtime and the bad guys are ahead of us on the scoreboard.”

“I know how ya feel, Dash. Don’t like us being split up none either, especially when we’re dealin’ with so many unknowns,” Applejack said, going over to kneel next to Dash and place her own furred hand over her friend’s, “Just got ta remember our ‘team’ has long since expanded ta include folk besides our nearest and dearest. We got a’ lot of folk both helpin’ us an’ countin’ on us, them right here with us included.”

Wallflower blinked as Applejack gestured at her, looking over her shoulder to see if someone else had appeared behind her. Opening her mouth a few times before managing to speak, Wallflower’s face was like a plaster cast of social awkwardness as she said, “Uh, y-yeah, what she said! Um, you are referring to me, right?”

“Heh, you n’ everyone else here, sugarcube,” said Applejack, “Like it r’ not, yer part o’ the crew, now. Gonna git yer Hel issue sorted, clean Jormungandr’s clock, n’ then make sure everything wit that Memory Stone is put ta rights. Just stick wit us.”

“Sure, I mean, yes! I... I’ll try,” Wallflower said, then abruptly said, “Sunset is on fire.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty awesome, and if anyone is going to lead us through this, its her,” Rainbow Dash said, while Wallflower stood up, facing growing ever more alarmed as she pointed with a shaking finger.

“N-no, she’s actually on fire!”

Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash rounded just as the felt the wave of heat wash over them from the burst of flames that erupted from where Sunset was sitting upon the cliff outcropping. Sunset remained sitting where she was, her Zanpaktou sat across her lap, but her body was surrounded by an intense and burning aura of raw red heat and crackling flames. The avian aspects of her altered hand grew brighter as the feathers turned to jewel like flames, and her hair gained several more feathers as the heat only grew into a suffocating, melting wave.

“Dagnabbit, that’s hot!” Applejack said, noticing the rock under Sunset melting away like wax on a candle, “She’s gonna burn the whole cliff down at this rate!”

“What do we do!?” Wallflower said, near panic.

“Chill, for one,” said Rainbow Dash as she activated her Fullbring, becoming glad in her wings and armored chest plate. She then zipped behind Wallflower to pick the girl up and carry her into the air, away from the aura of heat, “Whatever Sunset’s going in that Zanpakutou of hers, I think it’s working.”

“How can you tell?” asked Wallflower.

“Well, if it ain’t workin’, not much we can do about it!” shouted Applejack, using one arm to shield herself from the heat wave, but otherwise able to stand up to the intense aura, although it was an impressive amount of burning reiatsu flowing off of Sunset, so dense and hot it was like standing next to a small sun, “But I’m thinkin’ if we were tryin’ ta keep a low profile, this ain’t helpin’ none.”

“What about Clover, then? Is she going to be okay?” Wallflower said, looking down at the Soul Reaper, who remained in her state of focused meditation, locked within the mental realm of the Kido spell she sought to unlock.

Applejack frowned and moved to stand in front of Clover, shielding her body from the heat coming off of Sunset, although there was enough distance between the two that doing so was more a token gesture than necessity. Of more concern was the fact that the cliff was melting away to molten liquid under Sunset, which should have sent her body tumbling down... but instead Sunset remained exactly where she was even as the stone turned to liquid beneath her and ran down. Her body just stayed hovering where it was, emitting its intense nimbus of pure flame and heat as she struggled with her internal battle.

“What do you think is going on in there?” asked Rainbow Dash, to which Applejack could only shake her head, hand on her hat.

“Don’t rightly know, hun, but whatever it is, we gotta hope Sunset can handle it.”